Strong earthquake shakes Japan's northeastern coast

The Japan Meteorological Agency says a strong earthquake has hit off the coast of northeastern Japan, shaking Fukushima, Miyagi and other areas.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-strong-earthquake-japan-northeastern-coast.html

Mercedes recalls vehicles for emergency-call location error

Mercedes-Benz is recalling more than 1.3 million vehicles because the software in their emergency-call systems could send responders to the wrong location after a crash.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-mercedes-recalls-vehicles-emergency-call-error.html

In Nevada desert, a technology firm aims to be a government

In the Nevada desert, a cryptocurrency magnate hopes to turn dreams of a futuristic "smart city" into reality. To do that, he's asking the state to let companies like his form local governments on land they own, which would grant them power over everything from schools to law enforcement.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-nevada-technology-firm-aims.html

Dutch get their skates on in Amsterdam before the thaw

Dozens of skaters took to the frozen surface of Amsterdam's historic Prinsengracht canal Saturday as the deep freeze gripping Europe briefly made it possible to skate on a small section of the canal for the first time since 2018.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-dutch-skates-amsterdam.html

Image: Hubble takes portrait of nebula

This image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope features an impressive portrait of M1-63, a beautifully captured example of a bipolar planetary nebula located in the constellation of Scutum (the Shield).

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-image-hubble-portrait-nebula.html

InSight is meeting the challenge of winter on dusty Mars

As dust collects on the solar panels and winter comes to Elysium Planitia, the team is following a plan to reduce science operations in order to keep the lander safe.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-insight-winter-dusty-mars.html

Canada authorizes first exchange-traded bitcoin fund

Canada's main securities regulator has cleared the launch of the world's first exchange-traded bitcoin fund, the investment manager and the regulator said Friday, giving retail investors greater access to the booming cryptocurrency.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-canada-authorizes-exchange-traded-bitcoin-fund.html

American Express probed over sales practices

American Express disclosed a pair of federal probes over its sales practices, according to a securities filing Friday.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-american-probed-sales.html

Twitter chief Dorsey teams with Jay-Z to back bitcoin

Twitter chief Jack Dorsey on Friday put out word that he and rap mogul Jay-Z are creating a fund devoted to making bitcoin digital money "the internet's currency."

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-twitter-chief-dorsey-teams-jay-z.html

Feminist dating app Bumble takes Wall Street by storm

US dating app Bumble, where women make the first move, won Wall Street's heart as it went public Friday, with markets valuing the company at $13 billion.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-feminist-dating-app-bumble-wall.html

Maryland lawmakers move ahead with first tax on internet ads

Maryland lawmakers are moving forward with a first-in-the-nation tax on internet ads for Big Tech companies like Google and Facebook to help pay for a comprehensive and costly measure to improve K-12 education.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-maryland-lawmakers-tax-internet-ads.html