Author Archives: Carol Edwards

It’s Friday night and you’re too tired to go out (same). You know how this conversation goes. Should we watch a movie? What’s on Netflix?

But halt, dear reader, because there is so much more you could be doing to maximize your home movie viewing, and we here at Mashable can no longer bear it. 

So, movie fans, if you’re serious about this whole staying-in thing and catching up on the latest releases, let us offer you a few non-Netflix and chill options for streaming movies online (although yes, Netflix is in there too). Read more…

More about Entertainment, Movies, Amazon, Netflix, and Hulu

This week, Mark Zuckerberg testified in front of Congress regarding Facebook’s data leaks and basically gave the most patient tech support assistance.

Join us as we cover the breaking memes rocking the Internet each week. Let us know below what are some of your favorite memes are this week and we’ll see you next week with All the Memes! Read more…

More about Watercooler, Facebook, Instagram, Funny, and Memes

Fait intéressant: Seulement 17% des Américains parlent plus d’une langue. Yep, according to a survey cited by Forbes, less than one fifth of Americans know a second language. And yet there are countless benefits to being bilingual, or at least able to fumble along in another dialect.

To name a few: It looks good on your resume and can help you get jobs; locals in foreign countries appreciate it when you make an effort in their own tongue; it makes you better at your own language; it’s believed to grow your brain and may protect against Alzheimer’s.

But what’s the best way to learn a new language? Approaches vary but there are some simple guidelines to make it a whole lot easier. Read more…

More about Language, Language App, Culture, and Other

Remember the PA system that blasted messages to every room in your elementary school? Yeah, Alexa is that now. 

You can now use Amazon’s voice assistant to broadcast messages to all the Echo devices in your house, and whatever unsuspecting souls happen to be near them. 

Amazon announced the new feature earlier this month, but it’s finally fully rolled out, according to the company’s newsletter. 

It’s pretty straightforward. Just tell your echo to “Announce” or “Broadcast,” followed by your important words. 

Unlike the Echo’s person-to-person calling, the audio isn’t live. Echo devices throughout your household will play a short chime, followed by a recording of your announcement (in your voice).  Read more…

More about Amazon, Amazon Echo, Amazon Alexa, Alexa, and Tech

Timothée Chalamet is definitely having a moment, making waves with both Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name — the latter of which earned him an Academy Award nomination

His next foray, Hot Summer Nights, is a coming-of-age film set in the ’90s. It finds Chalamet spending the summer on Cape Code, getting mixed up in weed, falling in love, and public bathroom make outs. The film hits theaters July 27th.  Read more…

More about Mashable Video, Dating, Shirtless, Relationships, and Love

With Special Counsel Mueller and Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein’s firings looking increasingly more likely, our great Congress is so far responding with a collective ¯_(ツ)_/¯.

Ah, checks and balances — we hardly knew ye!

Americans, on the other hand, are far more ready to mobilize if and when the moment comesMoveOn.org and over two dozen activist organizations from across the political spectrum have collected over 335,000 RSVPs for nationwide protests should Mueller or Rosenstein be fired.

While organizers have been planning protests for months, the number of RSVPs has grown in recent weeks, as Trump refuses to cooperate with the Special Counsel. Read more…

More about Protests, Donald Trump, Mueller Investigation, Culture, and Politics

After President Trump’s tweet describing former FBI director James Comey as a “slimeball,” Merriam-Webster dictionary says searches for the word are up by 60,000 percent.

The president called Comey a “proven LEAKER & LIAR” in a series of tweets improperly strung together on Friday morning. 

“He lied to Congress under OATH,” Trump tweeted. “He is a weak and untruthful slime ball who was, as time has proven, a terrible Director of the FBI.”

More about Twitter, Trump, Merriam Webster, Culture, and Web Culture

Slouching at your desk isn’t the only way to ruin your back and posture. If you carry a backpack, you probably know that better than most. Carrying around a laptop, lunch, chargers, thermoses, and any other stuff you think you might need on a daily basis will definitely cause some strain on your back and shoulders.

According to the America Association of Neurological Surgeons, an estimated 75-85 percent of Americans will experience back pain throughout their lives. Having our bags weigh us down on the regular probably doesn’t help either.  Read more…

More about Kickstarter, Backpack, Ergonomics, Kickstarter Project, and Mashable Shopping

Law enforcement agencies — despite protests from privacy advocates — have long lobbied to get access to your smartphone.

Now a mysterious U.S. startup called Grayshift — which reportedly has an ex-Apple security engineer on staff — is providing iPhone unlocking tools to cops, according to Motherboard.

GrayKey is a box that measures four by four inches wide, and features two Lightning cables at the front, as per a post by security software company Malwarebytes. 

According to Forbes, Grayshift claims the device only works with iOS 10 and 11, with iOS 9 compatibility slated for the future. Devices ranging from the iPhone X to the 6 are supported, as are various iPad models. Read more…

More about Apple, Iphone, Cybersecurity, Fbi, and Law Enforcement

About 64 pounds of plastic trash killed a young sperm whale that washed up in southeast Spain, according to scientists. 

The whale, whose body landed in Cape Palos on Feb. 27, most likely died because it couldn’t digest the plastic trash, fish nets, and garbage bags found in its digestive system. At 33 feet long, the whale only weighed 13,000 pounds. Adult sperm whales can weigh up to 120,000 pounds. 

According to officials in the Murcia region, scientists even found a plastic drum in the whale’s stomach. Unable to pass the garbage, the whale suffered severe inflammation called peritonitis until its death.   Read more…

More about Conservation, Plastic Waste, Science, and Animals