Science & Technology
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Why California's milk cartons may lose their coveted recycling symbol
LOS ANGELES — California milk cartons may lose their coveted recycling symbol, the one with the chasing arrows, potentially threatening the existence of the ubiquitous beverage containers.
In a letter Dec. 15, Waste Management, one of the nation’s largest waste companies, told the state the company would no longer sort cartons out of the ...Read more
SpaceX defends airspace safety ahead of Florida Starship launch plans
ORLANDO, Fla. — With plans to launch the massive Starship from Florida next year, SpaceX defended its commitment to airspace safety after a Wall Street Journal article claimed an explosive mission in early 2025 was a greater danger to some flights than previously reported.
The article published Saturday cited Federal Aviation Administration ...Read more
Editorial: Climate change Grinches look to ruin the holidays
Who doesn’t have a soft spot for the smells of the holidays? The aromatic cinnamon stick flavoring a cup of eggnog or the hint of vanilla in grandma’s baked goods can trigger wonderful memories of the Christmas season.
Leave it to progressive climate Grinches to warn that global warming represents a threat to some of these cherished ...Read more
How Agility Robotics uses artificial intelligence, from their humanoid 'Digit' to everyday workflow
Digit the humanoid robot is 5 feet 9 inches tall and lives in warehouses, helping its human coworkers move and stack boxes up to 35 pounds. It also "smiles" and waves.
Robots like Digit are a growing pursuit among robotics companies that are trying to bring humanoids into everyday life, and specifically into the home as helpers. A crucial part ...Read more
It's been 25 years since America decided to save the Everglades. Where do we stand?
The 20th century was horrible for the Everglades. The broad shallow river, one of the most unique ecosystems on the planet, was labeled wasteland and ruthlessly dammed, carved into parcels, dried out and diverted into near oblivion.
But at the end of the century, 25 years ago this month, Democrats and Republicans from Florida and Washington, D....Read more
Orlando officials say tree count is good investment, despite DOGE criticisms
ORLANDO, Fla. — Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia blasted several line items in Orlando’s budget as “wasteful” spending, but by far the largest was $450,000 to count its trees.
“Maybe they’re trying to find the money tree? Oh, they already found it – it’s you the taxpayers,” Ingoglia said in October, a criticism ...Read more
Vince Zampella, 'Call of Duty' co-creator, dies after crash on Angeles Crest Highway
Vince Zampella, the video game developer who helped launch the wildly lucrative and enduring "Call of Duty" franchise and "Apex Legends" studio Respawn Entertainment, has died.
A representative for Electronic Arts, which owns Respawn, confirmed Zampella's death Monday in a statement shared with The Times. He was 55.
"This is an unimaginable ...Read more
Fight between Waymo and Santa Monica goes to court
Waymo is taking the city of Santa Monica to court after the city ordered the company to cease charging its autonomous vehicles at two facilities overnight, claiming the lights and beeping at the lots were a nuisance to residents.
The two charging stations at the intersection of Euclid Street and Broadway have been a sour point for neighbors ...Read more
Instacart ends AI pricing test that charged shoppers different prices for the same items
Instacart will stop using artificial intelligence to experiment with product pricing after a report showed that customers on the platform were paying different prices for the same items.
The report, published this month by Consumer Reports and Groundwork Collaborative, found that Instacart sometimes offered as many as five different prices for ...Read more
Kentucky Senate Republicans blast environmental report calling for end to state's coal dominance
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Recent temperature swings in the Bluegrass State underscore why Kentucky lawmakers are still clinging to coal, according to Senate Republicans who responded to new research by environmental groups calling for an end to the state’s alleged overreliance on fossil fuels.
Mid-December’s subfreezing temperatures proved why ...Read more
Relentless earthquake swarms rattle California. What does that mean for the Big One?
For more than a month, the San Francisco Bay Area has been subjected to a seemingly ceaseless stampede of earthquakes — the latest in a series of seismic swarms that have rattled windows and raised fears across California.
The latest swarm has been centered in the East Bay suburb of San Ramon, where a magnitude 4 earthquake struck Friday ...Read more
Review: Bay Area hikes an inspiration for a walking lighthouse in ‘Keeper’
Inspiration for video games can sprout from anywhere. A slice of pizza turned into “Pac-Man.” Trouble driving up a hill in the snow inspired a key mechanic in director Hidetaka Miyazaki’s “Souls” series. When it comes to “Keeper,” the latest game from Double Fine Productions, creative director Lee Petty took inspiration from the ...Read more
Gadgets: Spend those gift cards on these toys
I often refer to my gadget columns at this point of the year as "this, that and the others." It's a bunch of great products I just haven't gotten to this year. Nevertheless, they are great last-minute gifts or perfect for using a gift card on yourself.
The BotsLab G980H 4-channel dashcam covers 560 degrees of angles. It's designed to see in ...Read more
Jim Rossman: Enable Wi-Fi calling if your house has dead zones
I was recently talking to a friend who asked me if she should change her cell phone provider. She was happy enough with the service except for a few places in her house that never seem to get more than one bar of service.
Before changing service, it’s a good idea to know which network you are using. In this country, there are only three –...Read more
Halfway through Florida's bear hunt, state officials won't say how many bears are dead
Florida’s first statewide black bear hunt in a decade is more than halfway over but state wildlife leaders have offered no information on its progress, not even a death count.
“Are we overkilling like in 2015?” asked Joe Humphrey, a Seminole County resident who described himself as a hunter at odds with the Fish & Wildlife Conservation ...Read more
Earthquake swarm continues to rattle Northern California city, seismologists say
A swarm of at least a dozen earthquakes reaching up to magnitude 3.9 rattled San Ramon near San Francisco, the U.S. Geological Survey reports.
The other quakes in the Saturday, Dec. 21, swarm ranged from magnitude 1.3 to 3.0, according to the USGS.
San Ramon earlier was hit by a swarm of more than 90 quakes starting Nov. 9, The Sacramento Bee ...Read more
Social media users in the Central Valley are freaking out about unusual fog, and what might be in it
LOS ANGELES — A 400-mile blanket of fog has socked in California’s Central Valley for weeks. Scientists and meteorologists say the conditions for such persistent cloud cover are ripe: an early wet season, cold temperatures and a stable, unmoving high pressure system.
But take a stroll through X, Instagram or TikTok, and you’ll see not ...Read more
Blue Origin completes first space flight with wheelchair user
Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin completed a suborbital joyride Saturday with a six-person crew, including the first wheelchair user to reach space and one of SpaceX’s first engineers.
The flight took off at about 9:15 a.m. ET, and the capsule landed roughly 11 minutes later in West Texas.
The mission was initially slated to occur on Dec. 18 ...Read more
Trump reinforces NASA's moon plans, eliminates Space Council
President Donald Trump signed an executive order that aims to return astronauts to the moon through NASA’s Artemis space program with an eye toward building a permanent lunar presence.
The directive reinforces NASA’s current plans for sending Americans back to the moon by 2028 and for Americans to begin establishing the outpost by 2030. It ...Read more
Fort Lauderdale wants to help residents build 'living' seawalls
The City of Fort Lauderdale may soon make it easier for waterfront properties to install living seawalls — innovative underwater shoreline structures that mimic natural habitats, improve water quality and give marine life a home.
City commissioners showed interest in a proposed program that incentivizes residents and businesses that own ...Read more
Popular Stories
- Relentless earthquake swarms rattle California. What does that mean for the Big One?
- Instacart ends AI pricing test that charged shoppers different prices for the same items
- Editorial: Climate change Grinches look to ruin the holidays
- Vince Zampella, 'Call of Duty' co-creator, dies after crash on Angeles Crest Highway
- How Agility Robotics uses artificial intelligence, from their humanoid 'Digit' to everyday workflow





