American parents are increasingly naming their kids after Darth Vader
OK, nerdy parents — this time you may have gone too far. Per Entertainment Weekly, it seems that the name “Anakin” last year climbed into the top 1,000 baby names among American newborns. According to the official list of popular baby names generated by the Social Security Administration, 218 newborns were named Anakin last year, which makes the name as popular as Emmet, Baylor and Judson. Overall Anakin was the 957th most popular name in the U.S. last year after ranking 1,234th in 2013.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Have a Samsung smart fridge? Your Gmail credentials might be at risk
With each passing year, more and more everyday objects are being outfitted with network connectivity. This type of futuristic world — dubbed The Internet of Things — promises to make our lives a whole lot easier in ways we never imagined possible even just a few years ago.
Of course, with every great technological advancement comes newfound security risks. Case in point: researchers recently uncovered a security flaw in a Samsung smart fridge which can compromise a user’s Gmail credentials. As to why you might need a refrigerator with an 8-inch Wi-Fi enabled display that can browse the web, mirror what’s on your phone, and even run apps, well, that’s a topic for another day.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Video: Jimmy Kimmel shows why virtual reality Facebook will be an absolute nightmare
We all know that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is fascinated by virtual reality, which he sees as the next big platform for social networking. But what would a virtual reality version of Facebook really be like? Jimmy Kimmel on Monday pondered how the typical Facebook experience would translate to a VR setting and the results were truly a nightmare that we wouldn’t wish on our worst enemies.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Siri can be a life saver… literally
Siri probably isn’t the most frequently used feature on your iPhone. It’s occasionally hard of hearing, it’s rarely more convenient than simply unlocking your phone and finding the information you need, and it can be obnoxious to attempt to use it in public. But in a moment of desperation, Apple’s digital assistant could save your life.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Twitter just made it more difficult to hold politicians accountable
Nothing ever really disappears on the Internet. It’s both terrifying and fantastic, depending on the circumstances — and on which end of the stick you’re on. Once an article is published… once a photo is leaked… once a tweet is tweeted… it’s out there forever.
In the case of politicians who have a tendency to tweet without stopping to think first and consider the ramifications of what they’re about to post, the permanency of the Internet can help the public see these elected officials’ true colors. Interestingly, however, Twitter just made it slightly more difficult for us to hold politicians accountable — and the company used the worst possible logic in doing so.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Things are getting worse and worse for Ashley Madison
As we’ve mentioned before, notorious cheating website Ashley Madison is extremely screwed. If you still somehow believe that Ashley Madison will somehow come out of its massive hacking crisis unscathed, then you’ll be sobered by two new developments in the story.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Scientists discover new reef that might be even bigger than the Great Barrier Reef
You know Great Barrier Reef off the eastern coast of Australia that you’ve seen in countless videos and pictures? Well, it turns out there’s yet another similarly impressive reef that’s located near the same country.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Irony: NSA worried hackers with super computers might break current encryption standards
The National Security Agency (NSA) has a bunch of sophisticated tools at its disposal to conduct massive data collection operations all in the name of doing good – and that’s definitely something you’d want from your intelligence agencies. Ironically, the NSA is already worried about the advanced computers that might be available to humans in the not so distant future, which could be used by hackers to break the complex cryptography that makes possible encryption.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Every free Xbox One and Xbox 360 game you can download in September
We’re about to enter the busiest holiday video game release season of the new console generation, but that doesn’t mean that Microsoft is going to stop giving away free games at the beginning of the month.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report
Go get your $900 flamethrower now before the government bans them
Last month, we brought you exciting news that a company called XMatter has started selling flamethrowers on the consumer market for surprisingly affordable prices. What made this even more amazing was the fact that selling such flamethrowers to Ma and Pa America is 100% legal and without restrictions in all but two states. However, Ars Technica reports that some governments have suddenly realized that giving people unrestricted access to flamethrowers that can spit fire 50 feet in the air might not be a great idea… and this revelation has only sparked more people to pick up flamethrowers while they’re still legal.
Read more here:: Boy Genius Report