The Obtain: ocean-based carbon removing, and Musk’s untweeted journey to China

That is right this moment’s version of The Obtain, our weekday publication that gives a each day dose of what’s occurring on the earth of expertise.

Meta’s former CTO has a brand new $50 million venture: ocean-based carbon removing

The information: A nonprofit shaped by Mike Schroepfer, Meta’s former chief expertise officer, has spun out a brand new group geared toward rushing up analysis into ocean alkalinity enhancement—a possible manner to make use of the seas to suck up and retailer away much more carbon dioxide. The Carbon to Sea Initiative will get $50 million over the subsequent 5 years to pursue that objective.

The way it works: Ocean alkalinity enhancement refers to varied methods of including alkaline substances, like olivine, basalt, or lime, into seawater. These primary supplies bind with dissolved inorganic carbon dioxide within the water to kind bicarbonates and carbonates, ions that may persist for tens of hundreds of years within the ocean. As these CO2-depleted waters attain the floor, they’ll pull down further carbon dioxide from the air to return to a state of equilibrium. 

Why it issues: Whereas such tasks could be difficult to scale, local weather modelers are optimistic in regards to the methodology’s potential. Learn the total story.

—James Temple

Elon Musk’s quiet, untweeted China journey

Ever since China lifted most of its pandemic-era journey restrictions in January, overseas executives have been flocking in—together with one Elon Musk. He paid a three-day go to to China final week to fulfill with high-ranking authorities officers. Unusually for him, he stayed off Twitter your entire time. 

Nonetheless, from the general public readouts posted by Chinese language authorities web sites and sightings of Musk shared on Chinese language social media, we are able to reconstruct his journey. Learn the total story.

—Zeyi Yang

Zeyi’s story is from China Report, his weekly publication providing you with the within monitor on all issues tech in China. Join to obtain it in your inbox each Tuesday.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the web to search out you right this moment’s most enjoyable/vital/scary/fascinating tales about expertise.

1 The US regulator is suing Coinbase, too
Inside 24 hours of going after fellow crypto trade Binance. (WSJ $)
+ Retail crypto buying and selling within the US isn’t wanting so rosy proper now. (Wired $)

2 OpenAI has no plans to launch any extra merchandise 

CEO Sam Altman says ChatGPT would be the final. (Insider $)+ The within story of how ChatGPT was constructed from the individuals who made it. (MIT Expertise Evaluate)

three Headsets are out, goggles are in
Apple goes all in on blended actuality—simply don’t point out the metaverse. (The Atlantic $)
+ Sporting a pc in your face remains to be a bizarre expertise. (Wired $)
+ Apple might want to persuade builders to construct apps for its headset. (MIT Expertise Evaluate)

four Conservative activists are pressuring disinformation researchers
The undesirable consideration is forcing some researchers out of the sphere, simply because the 2024 US election approaches. (WP $)

5 The European Union might ban Huawei from 5G infrastructure
The bloc worries that its members haven’t heeded its warnings about excessive threat distributors. (FT $)

6 Johnson & Johnson’s covid vaccine has been withdrawn within the US
A scarcity of demand for the jab means there’s no must replace it. (Ars Technica)

7 A startup positioned a mind implant on sufferers’ skulls for 15 minutes
The versatile gadgets are a lot much less invasive than conventional electrodes. (Wired $)
+ How your mind knowledge could possibly be used towards you. (MIT Expertise Evaluate)

eight How a hospital staffing startup imploded
CareRev’s CEO overtly mentioned his drug use with colleagues, for starters. (The Info $)

9 Finland is elevating a era of fact-checkers
It’s the worldwide gold normal for educating media literacy to kids. (Slate $)
+ How completely different generations deal with misinformation. (MIT Expertise Evaluate)

10 We’re lastly studying extra about synesthesia 🎨
Scientists now consider it’s carefully linked to how we be taught as kids. (New Scientist $)

Quote of the day

“Folks hand out 5 stars prefer it’s sweet.”

—Uber driver Donnie Freeman believes passengers are nearly over-generous with scores today, he tells the Wall Avenue Journal.

The large story
 

The uneasy coexistence of Yandex and the Kremlin

August 2020

Whereas Moscow was below coronavirus lockdown between March and June 2020, the Russian capital emptied out—aside from the streams of cyclists within the trademark yellow uniform of Yandex’s meals supply service.

Usually referred to within the West as Russia’s Google, Yandex is de facto extra like Google, Amazon, Uber, and possibly just a few different corporations mixed. It’s a Russian Silicon Valley unto itself. 

However Yandex’s success has come at a worth. The Kremlin has lengthy considered the web as a battlefield in its escalating tensions with the West and has develop into more and more involved that an organization like Yandex, with the heaps of knowledge it has on Russian residents, might sooner or later fall into overseas arms. Learn the total story.

—Evan Gershkovich

We are able to nonetheless have good issues

A spot for consolation, enjoyable and distraction in these bizarre occasions. (Acquired any concepts? Drop me a line or tweet ’em at me.)

+ Aww, Banana the lobster has made a buddy.+ I have to admit, placing butter in porridge is a brand new one on me.
+ Archaeologists have uncovered bits and items of a Medieval church buried beneath the North Sea.
+ Oh I do wish to be beside the seaside—studying in regards to the seaside, too.
+ Wish to see the world by the eyes of the Roman Empire? Now you possibly can.

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