Science and Tech Weekly Wrap

A weekly round-up of Science and Technology stories.

Hyderabad: Science and Tech stories of the week.

Remembering Margherita Hack on her 99th birth anniversary

Born on 12 June 1922 in Florence, Prof. Margherita Hack was an Italian astrophysicist. Margherita Hack's scientific interests and research activity covered a broad range of subjects. Her main field of expertise concerned the observation and interpretation of the spectroscopic characteristics of stars.Read More

TECNO unveils most affordable 48MP dual-rear camera smartphone 'SPARK 7T'

Techno has launched a new budget-friendly smartphone, SPARK 7T in India. SPARK 7T comes with a 48MP primary camera and a massive 6000mAh battery. The smartphone sports a 6.52-inch HD+ IPS display with a 720x1600 resolution. The TECNO SPARK 7T is equipped with a 48MP + AI lens rear camera with quad flash enabling consumers to capture clear and detailed photos. There's an 8MP camera for selfies. Read More

ColorOS 11 arriving on more OPPO smartphones this month

OPPO has announced that its fastest ColorOS 11, which is based on the Android 11 operating system, will be available on more OPPO devices in the country this month. The OPPO A53 and OPPO F17 will receive the ColorOS 11 official version by June 17 and June 26, respectively.Read More
Microsoft unveils Xbox Series X-shaped mini fridge

Microsoft has unveiled the Xbox Series X-shaped mini fridge during the E3 2021 virtual gaming conference. When the Xbox series was first announced in 2019, people made memes on its size and compared it to a refrigerator. Read More

General Atomics to ship world's most powerful magnet to ITER

The completion of the first Central Solenoid module, the most powerful magnet that is sometimes called the 'beating heart of the ITER machine, is a major milestone for the world's largest first-of-its-kind upcoming science project in southern France for which India is among the 35 partner nations. ITER's mission is to prove that energy from hydrogen fusion can be created and controlled on Earth. Fusion energy is carbon-free, safe and economic. Read More

itel launches 'Magic 2' 4G superphone with Wi-Fi tethering in India

itel has launched its first 4G feature phone Magic 2 4G (it9210 model) under its 'Magic series' targeting a huge feature phone consumer base who are looking for an upgrade. This 4G feature phone also comes with a 1.3MP rear camera with flash to capture favourite memories, a wireless FM with recording advantage, an auto call recorder to record conversations, a big LED torch, one-touch mute and 8 preloaded games for entertainment needs.Read More

Tesla's new Model S gets official EPA range

Tesla Modal S has received the official Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rating for the Long Range. This is showing an improvement in efficiency over last year's version. When first announced, it was supposed to have 412 miles of range but it was updated on Tesla's website to 405 miles just a few days later.Read More

WhatsApp for iOS to add search for stickers shortcut

According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp has added a new search for stickers shortcuts in iOS. Default WhatsApp sticker packs already support this feature, so if you have installed one of them, try to type emojis or specific words in the chat bar, to see if the feature is available for your WhatsApp account. Read More

This AI tech can hear COVID in a cough

Australian computer scientists have developed a novel Artificial Intelligence-based model that can hear the effects of COVID-19 in the sound of a forced cough, even when people are asymptomatic, an advance that can pave the way for detecting the infectious disease via diagnostic mobile phone apps.Read More

Samsung launches Galaxy Tab S7 FE, Galaxy Tab A7 Lite in India

Samsung launched Galaxy Tab S7 FE and Galaxy Tab A7 in India. The two devices are the latest additions to Samsung’s Galaxy Tab portfolio, and together meet the productivity, creativity and entertainment needs of consumers. Galaxy Tab S7 FE brings the fan-favourite features from Galaxy Tab S7+, including a large display & S Pen in the box for work, studies, design and entertainment. Galaxy Tab A7 Lite’s compact design and features make it the perfect device for on-the-go entertainment and gaming.Read More

Sale of pre-owned phones on rise in India amid pandemic: Report

According to a report by the re-commerce marketplace Cashify, the Sale of second gadgets or pre-owned smartphone has increased in the Indian market. COVID-19 has pushed people to buy a second gadget for work from home and educational purposes. The report is based on a survey of nearly 4,000 people in the country. Read More

IISc's study gives new insights into structure of COVID spike protein

A research team form the Indian Institute of Science has made a crucial breakthrough in the study of the spike protein (S Protein) of the SARS-CoV-2 virus which causes COVID-19. The research team has observed that around 68 percent of the S-proteins exist in open formation at physiological pH 7.4, but their proportion decreases when the pH is slightly higher (pH 8.0) or lower (pH 6.5). Read More