The ice on portions of Michigan’s Great Lakes has turned blue, but don’t worry, there’s a perfectly good reason why. 

The phenomenon is common on glaciers, but not so much on large swathes of lake ice. It’s happening where Lake Michigan meets Lake Huron, at a place called the Straits of Mackinac. There, fat slabs and mounds of cracked blue ice have collected near the shorelines.

Local photographer Tori Burley captured the image above. 

The ice, however, is not actually turning blue. The color is a result of the way sunlight is bouncing off this particular ice, explained Ted Scambos, a research scientist at the National Snow and Ice Data Center, in an interview.  Read more…

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Source: Mashable | The ice on Lake Michigan has turned blue. Here's why.

Ayman Hariri, CEO of viral social app Vero, has shared a document that shows he was not financially tied to or running Saudi construction company Saudi Oger when it left thousands of migrant workers destitute and homeless. 

The decision followed backlash from Vero users and media reports exploring Hariri’s ties to the company that caused such damage and destruction to people’s well-beings. Hariri did indeed serve as Deputy CEO and Deputy Chairman of Saudi Oger, as explained in a previous statement from Vero’s team, until 2013.  Read more…

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Source: Mashable | Here's Vero CEO's proof he was no longer involved in Saudi Oger during employee riots

These violent delights sure do have violent ends — but perhaps not with quite the finality we often expect from violence.

The rule of TV and film is to always assume that anyone who dies off-screen is still alive. And it looks like that applies to Westworld Season 1. In an EW interview, creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy confirmed that many of the characters presumed dead, or at least MIA, at the end of Season 1 will in fact be returning for Season 2.

Except for one. Before we get to the good stuff, here’s the bad news: Ford’s dead. For serious.

After the robo massacre of the Season 1 finale, fans speculated whether Dolores had killed the real Ford, or just a host version of him. It’s now confirmed that Hopkins will not return for Season 2, though the character of Ford will return through a different actor in flashbacks. Read more…

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Source: Mashable | 'Westworld' creators settle fan debates over who actually died in Season 1

For weeks, weather experts have been expecting that early March would live up to its reputation of coming in “like a lion,” with a pattern conducive to major East Coast storms. That expectation is going to become a reality, first during the next three days, and then again next week. 

However, the specifics of the weather forecast, particularly what form of precipitation will fall in areas like New York City, Hartford, and Boston, are turning meteorologists’ hair white, and causing weather Twitter to resemble a therapy session.

More about Climate, Science, Extreme Weather, Jet Stream, and Nor Easter

Source: Mashable | Dangerous storm targets Northeast, Mid-Atlantic with high winds, coastal flooding, inland snow

As we saw with the very vocal minority of Star Wars fans who got upset about The Last Jedi, bringing new features of the Force to the screen can be somewhat controversial. 

Now we’re witnessing a new freakout over Force powers. The TV show Star Wars Rebels, set between Episode III and Episode IV, just revealed for the first time in the saga’s official storyline that the Force can let you travel in time. 

But there are good reasons why fans should hold their blaster fire on this one. 

In The Last Jedi, Luke Skywalker used a hitherto unseen skill, Force projection, to send an image of himself across the galaxy and save the Resistance. “That’s not how the Force works,” cried some fans — until director Rian Johnson dropped the mic by showcasing the book from which this power was drawn.   Read more…

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Source: Mashable | Yes, Star Wars just introduced time travel. Don't freak out.

After her beloved dog Sammie passed away, Barbra Streisand used the dog’s cells to have her cloned twice. Read more…

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Source: Mashable | Barbra Streisand deals with grief like the rest of us – by cloning her dead dog

Vero, the Instagram-like app that suddenly went viral in the last couple days, has more than a million users, but it’s still free — at least for now.

The app doesn’t host any ads, and the company’s founders have always said they intend to charge users a yearly subscription to support the business. The fee was originally supposed to kick in after the app’s first million users signed up (this first wave of users would be exempt from the fee).

But with the app getting so much attention that it’s been almost unusable for days, Vero now says the app will remain free “until further notice.” Read more…

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Source: Mashable | After days of technical issues, Vero says app will be free 'until further notice'

Vero is a three-year-old app that’s suddenly become a popular alternative to established social media platforms. It has a platform that promises to show you what your friends and network are posting, in chronological order — and with no ads.

It does sound alluring. Tons of users signed up for the Instagram-wannabe before anyone read the fine print and noticed the small detail that your account linked with your name and phone number is difficult to delete.

But the Vero micro-scandal serves as a useful reminder: It’s always a good time to go through your social media app settings on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and all the rest to check how your data is being used. This is especially necessary when it’s your content getting exploited for the benefit a company, usually for targeted advertising. Read more…

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Source: Mashable | All the social media opt-outs you need to activate right now