hyperclocker shares a report from CCN: Thursday marked a historic day for bitcoin, as the flagship cryptocurrency made its first appearance in an opinion published by the U.S. Supreme Court. The case, Wisconsin Central Ltd. v. United States, did not involve bitcoin's regulatory or legal status. Rather, it examined whether employee stock options represent taxable compensation under the Railroad Retirement Tax Act of 1937. That may seem like an unlikely place for a discussion of bitcoin to appear, however, as justices noted in both the majority and dissenting opinions, the case forced them to consider a fundamental question that has also taken on a renewed importance in the decade following the publication of the Bitcoin white paper: "What is money?" "Ultimately, the 5-4 majority ruled that employees should not be taxed for exercising stock options since the action does not constitute 'money remuneration,'" the report adds. "However, writing in a dissenting opinion, Justice Stephen Breyer argued for a 'broader understanding of money' and said that stock options should be classified as taxable compensation."

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I like to throw ideas around without concern for how practical they are to implement. When I was running my company, this was one of the most difficult concepts to teach my people. Don’t worry about time when your mind comes up with an idea. Ideas lead to other ideas, and the next one might not take much time.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: Creator's transparent burger robot doesn't grind your brisket and chuck steak into a gourmet patty until you order it. That's just one way this startup, formerly known as Momentum Machines, wants to serve the world's freshest cheeseburger for just $6. On June 27th, after eight years in development, Creator unveils its first robot restaurant before opening to the public in September. Here's how Creator's burger-cooking bot works at its 680 Folsom Street location in San Francisco. Once you order your burger style through a human concierge on a tablet, a compressed air tube pushes a baked-that-day bun into an elevator on the right. It's sawed in half by a vibrating knife before being toasted and buttered as it's lowered to conveyor belt. Sauces measured by the milliliter and spices by the gram are automatically squirted onto the bun. Whole pickles, tomatoes, onions and blocks of nice cheese get slices shaved off just a second before they're dropped on top. Meanwhile, the robot grinds hormone-free, pasture-raised brisket and chuck steak to order. But rather than mash them all up, the strands of meat hang vertically and are lightly pressed together. They form a loose but auto-griddleable patty that's then plopped onto the bun before the whole package slides out of the machine after a total time of about five minutes. The idea is that when you bite into the burger, your teeth align with the vertical strands so instead of requiring harsh chewing it almost melts in your mouth. TechCrunch has produced a video about the company on YouTube.

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The discovery of a prehistoric pet gibbon suggests humans pushed apes to extinction far back in history.

Fake Fortnite Android apps are spreading around the internet, even though the game has not been officially released for the platform. From a report: Videos on YouTube with links to scam versions of the popular game have been viewed millions of times, according to security experts. None of the fake apps has made it on to the Google Play Store, but they are easy to find on search engines. According to one security firm, the apps look legitimate. Talking about one particular fake app, Nathan Collier, an analyst from security firm Malwarebytes, said: "It's so realistic that some may recognise it from the Apple iOS version. By stealing the icon directly from Apple, how could it not look real? In fact the app redirects users to a browser asking them to download a number of other apps in order to play the game. The scammers are paid each time someone downloads an app from the website.

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Perl extension for STL-like object management

DBI Wrapper with Perl style data structure interfaces

A POE Component providing TCP client services for test cases

Marine servicemen discuss the challenges and rewards of helping stranded refugees reach safety.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is used in the production of a wide variety of food and drink products. But with at least five CO2 producers across northern Europe offline, a shortfall in the gas is causing shortages in beer, fizzy drinks, and meat. From a report: Britain is particularly affected because the seasonal shutdown of the plants has meant that the UK has only one big plant producing CO2 left. The British Beer and Pub Association, along with individual beer producers and pubs, has warned of the crisis caused by the shortage. Without naming companies, the trade association said the shortfall has caused beer production shortages. Heineken, the UK's biggest brewer, said its CO2 supplier was facing "a major issue" in the UK. Meanwhile, one of Britain's biggest pub chains, Wetherspoons, said it'll be forced to pull a number of beers and fizzy drinks from its menu soon.

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Investigation reveals prisoners are beaten, tortured and sexually abused in secret centres run by the UAE.

Romania's high court sentences Liviu Dragnea to three-and-a-half years in prison over a fake jobs scandal.

Group says current model for the peace process is "unrealistic" and "there is no shortcut to peace."

Koko was also said to have understood some 2,000 words of spoken English.

AT&T is launching a new streaming service incorporating television networks from the Time Warner company it just bought. From a report: The WatchTV service, a cable-like package of more than 30 TV channels delivered over the internet, is an example of the "skinny bundles" coming from telecom and broadband providers as more people watch TV online. Competitors include Sling TV, PlayStation Vue and AT&T's own DirecTV Now. WatchTV will be free for subscribers of two unlimited wireless plans AT&T is launching. Others can get WatchTV for $15 -- $20 less than DirecTV Now, but with just half the channels.

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