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While we consumed our body weight in chocolate, the US Navy banned vaping on its entire fleet and EA detailed the sequel to Battlefront. There's also a drone that can spy on fish, some stealth iPad upgrades and a potentially life-saving AI.
US Navy is banning e-cigarettes across its fleet
While they're far from the most dangerous threat to those serving in the US Navy, it turns out e-cigarettes have been posing quite the problem in recent years. A Navy memorandum details 15 incidents of exploding batteries. Two occurred while e-cigarettes were in sailors' mouths, two required fires to be extinguished and one even forced a naval aircraft to abandon its flight and return for landing. With this in mind, it's perhaps no surprise that the US Navy decided to ban e-cigarettes across its entire fleet. Those on terra firma will still be able to vape to their hearts' content, but the prohibition goes into effect next month.
Apple will replace your busted iPad 4 with an iPad Air 2
It's an everyday occurrence for Apple to deem a faulty product a total loss, and replace it rather than repairing it. What's not so common is swapping that product out for a different -- and much improved -- model. But that's exactly what Apple has started doing with older iPads, according to a leaked memo. Essentially, Apple has run through its stock of the now-ancient iPad 4, and is instructing employees to replace tablets covered by AppleCare with the newer iPad Air 2. Of course, if you're outside of that coverage, it probably makes a lot more sense to stump up the cash for an iPad or iPad Pro.
The PowerRay drone helps you catch fish
Whether you're a spy trying to foil an aquatic crime ring, or just want an upper hand when going fishing, Chinese companyPowerVision has just the drone for you. The PowerRay UUV is a miniature submersible equipped with a light to lure fish, a bait dispenser and even a 4K camera for salmon snooping. The one downside? Because wireless signals don't play nicely with water, the PowerRay needs to be connected to its controller via a roughly 200-feet long cord. Well, that and the $1,500-$1,900 asking price.
'Star Wars Battlefront' returns this November
Do you harbor fantasies of succumbing to the dark side? Someone at EA clearly does, as the sequel to 2015's Battlefront will see you embodying a stormtrooper. Unlike the first game, Battlefront II will have an extensive single-player campaign that aims to fill in the 30-year gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.
The debut trailer shows Iden Versio, the leader of a small team of Imperial soldiers, looking on in horror from Endor as the Death Star is destroyed. It's not only Versio that you'll embody, though, as EA says you'll also control Alliance hero Luke Skywalker.
AI can predict heart attacks more accurately than doctors
Enlisting AI to aid in diagnosis could reduce the number of deaths due to cardiovascular disease. A team of researchers from the University of Nottingham, England, developed a machine-learning algorithm that can best the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association's diagnosis guidelines by 7.6 percent. From a set of 83,000 test records, the AI system could have saved 355 extra lives. If you spin that number up to the estimated 20 million people who die each year because of cardiovascular disease, tens of thousands could be saved.
But wait, there's more...
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- David Bowie's musical is making the leap to VR
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