Russia's Blockchain Based E-Vote System Suffers Node Attack

The Bitfury-powered blockchain for the Russian constitutional amendments was reportedly attacked over the weekend.

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Maruti Suzuki launches the 2020 S-Presso CNG variant in India at a starting price of Rs 4.48 lakh

Maruti Suzuki S-Presso CNG variant has been launched at a starting price of Rs 4.84 lakh and the top model is for Rs 5.13 lakh. The car is offered in four variants- LXI, LXI (O), VXI, and VXI (O). The car is powered by a 1.0-liter engine that delivers a mileage of  31.2 km/kg and has a tank capacity of 55 litres.

Maruti Suzuki was the first brand to introduce factory-fitted CNG cars to the Indian market and at present, it has the largest number of CNG cars on the road. The company recorded a sales of 106,443 factory-fitted CNG vehicles across in the FY 2019-20. The brand has witnessed a 15.5 percent CAGR increase in its CNG sales in the past five years.

The company announced its Mission Green Million at the Auto Expo 2020 and has already sold a million green vehicles, this launch only adds to the next milestone of selling another million in the next couple of years. The CNG fleet of the brand complements the government's vision of reducing the oil import and opting for natural gas as an alternative fuel from the current 6.2 percent to 15 percent by 2030. There is a significant increase in the number of CNG stations and the government is working on spreading the CNG fuel pumps across the country.

Shashank Srivastava, executive director of marketing and sales at Maruti Suzuki India Limited said, "With the launch of S-PRESSO BS6 S-CNG, we are strengthening our efforts towards sustainable green mobility. The S-PRESSO S-CNG is designed to deliver optimum performance, safety, engine durability, convenience, and mileage. Moreover, The S-PRESSO has successfully carved a niche for itself and fulfills the need for a dynamic, stylish and youthful mini SUV. This launch also helps augment our commitment towards Mission Green Million, announced at the Auto Expo 2020. Maruti Suzuki, with its unmatched portfolio of CNG and Hybrid vehicles, has been the preferred choice of customers owing to the affordability and high-fuel efficiency of its green vehicles."

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Kawasaki syndrome or MIS-C: Children are now also facing the brunt of COVID-19

By and large, COVID-19 has not been infecting younger children as they have a better immunity system and almost no issues of co-morbidities. However, around April, children in the US started developing inflammatory symptoms that were similar to those of Kawasaki syndrome. There have been several reports of cases among children in France, Italy, Spain and Britain that have shown similar symptoms.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the symptoms included "inflammation of the blood vessels, which in turn could cause heart problems". The syndrome also shares symptoms with toxic shock and Kawasaki disease, which is associated with fever, skin rashes, swelling of the glands, and in severe cases, inflammation of arteries of the heart.

A study in The Journal of American Medical Association termed this new symptom as “Pediatric Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome Potentially Associated with COVID-19” (PIMS) while the WHO called it Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C). It is a new condition observed in children who have recovered from COVID-19 or are recovering.

The CDC had put out new guidelines to help doctors identify these new conditions among children. The guidance defines the condition as occurring in children under 21 with fever, evidence of inflammation, illness severe enough to require hospitalization and impairment of multiple organs such as the heart, kidneys, blood vessels, gut, skin and nerves. Doctors should rule out other plausible diagnoses and the children should test positive for a current infection or for antibodies that show they have had a recent infection.

Patterns in imaging findings

A recent study conducted by the doctors at the Evelina London Children’s Hospital in London, UK has examined the spectrum of imaging findings in children with these new inflammatory conditions.

It began when the hospital saw a rise in children who were admitted with a variety of symptoms that including fever, headaches, abdominal pain, rash, and conjunctivitis. While laboratory results showed that they shared some similarities to those of Kawasaki syndrome or toxic shock syndrome, the symptoms were atypical and more severe.

"Our hospital saw an unprecedented cluster of children presenting with MIS-C, a new hyperinflammatory syndrome in children related to the current COVID-19 pandemic—the recognition of which led to a national alert,” said Shema Hameed the lead author and the consultant pediatric radiologist at the hospital in a statement.

The researchers performed a 'retrospective review' of the 'clinical, laboratory and imaging findings' of the first 35 children, under age 17, who were admitted to the hospital and met the classic definition for MIS-C. The children included 27 boys and eight girls, with an average age of 11 years old.

A retrospective review is a process of determining coverage after treatment has been given. They analyse patient care data to support the coverage determination process.

According to a press statement, the study found that that the children that fever was most common in 33 children or 94 percent. Gastrointestinal symptoms including abdominal pain, vomiting and diarrhoea were present in 30 (86 percent) of the children, the rash was seen in 13 children (37 percent) and conjunctivitis in 9 children (26 percent). Twenty-one children (60 percent) were in shock.

Clinical status was severe enough to warrant management in the pediatric intensive care unit in 24 of 35 children (69 percent), of which 7 (20 percent) required mechanical ventilation and 20 (57 percent) inotropic support. Two children required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) due to severe myocardial dysfunction. Lab tests also revealed that all of the children had abnormal white blood cell counts.

The study also found a pattern in the imaging findings as well. The children that were part of the study had airway inflammation, rapidly progressive pulmonary edema, coronary artery aneurysms and extensive abdominal inflammatory changes within the right iliac fossa.

The iliac fossa is a large, smooth, concave surface on the internal surface of the ilium bone. The ilium is part of the three fused bones that make up the hip bone.

Pulmonary edema is a condition caused by excess fluid in the lungs and is usually caused by a heart condition.

The findings of this study have been published in the journal Radiology.

MIS-C cases in India

Recently, The Indian Express reported that a 14-year-old girl was admitted to a Mumbai hospital with rashes and high fever, classic symptoms of Kawasaki syndrome. She has been transferred to the ICU on Friday, last week as her conditions had worsened. She has been tested positive for COVID-19 after her father also tested positive. She has been put on a “high dose” of steroids, immunoglobulins, and immunosuppressant drug tocilizumab.

“It is not Kawasaki disease, but similar to it,” said Dr Tanu Singhal, a paediatric infectious disease expert at the Kokilaben hospital, Mumbai as patients who are infected with Kawasaki patients also exhibiting red tongue and eyes. “Children mostly develop the Kawasaki-like symptoms two-three weeks after a Covid-19 infection.”

Singhal also said she has seen two other cases in Mumbai - one at SRCC Hospital and another at a private hospital in Jogeshwari. Both the patients had inflammation, fever and rashes but had tested negative for Covid-19.

An eight-year-old boy from Chennai was the first case, that was reported in India, to be infected with MIS-C. The boy was in a critical condition and was admitted to the ICU in Kanchi Kamakoti CHILDS Trust Hospital, Chennai, reported Hindustan Times. He showed symptoms of toxic shock syndrome and Kawasaki disease according to the pre-print paper published in the journal of Indian Paediatrics on 10 May. He was also treated with "intravenous immunoglobulin and tocilizumab” and recovered within two weeks.

Also Read: 

‘Straight-Up Fire’ in His Veins: A personal recount of a New York teen who battled the new COVID-19 syndrome

What is Kawasaki disease and how is it linked to COVID-19 in children?

What is a multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and how is it linked to COVID-19?

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Bitcoin Miners Done Selling? 5 Things to Know for BTC Price This Week

A mixed bag of metrics and influences is testing Bitcoin’s resolve this week, with trajectory undecided as $9,000 wavers.

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Divinity: Original Sin 2, a role-playing game, will come to iPads soon, Apple confirms

Apple is bringing the Divinity: Original Sin 2 video game to iPads. The announcement was made in a developer session about Xcode 12 and Metal apps at WWDC 2020. However, the tech giant did not reveal when the Definitive Edition of the game will be launched on iPad.

Divinity: Original Sin 2, developed by Larian Studios, is a role-playing game and it sequel to 2014's Divinity: Original Sin, was released for Microsoft Windows in September 2017.

“The Definitive Edition is the most complete version of the best-selling, Metacritic Must-Play RPG, and includes all current and to-be-released DLC,” says the game’s website.

The game allows players to choose from six unique origin characters with their own backgrounds and quests. Apart from this, they can create their own hero and collaborate online as a party of up to four.

As per Phonearena.com, the game has new areas, fights and performance improvements. It also comes with new story difficulty, making battles easier for players who are interested in the narrative, but not the tactical aspect of the game.

The tech website has reported that the developers are working on adding all-new touchscreen controls and UI, along with controller support to the the iPad version of Divinity: Original Sin 2 Definitive Edition.

According to CNet, the announcement is a big one for Apple gamers for two reasons. First, it's one of the best video games committed to code. The game is an out-of-left-field success in an industry dominated by a handful of major franchises. It offers a very old-school Dungeons & Dragons kind of experience.

The second reason is that if Apple manages to introduce a full hard-core designed-for-PC game like Divinity: Original Sin 2 on iPad without losing too much in the translation, then it will show that the game can work on future ARM-based Macs as well.

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Mining Giant BHP Completes $14 Million Iron Ore Trade Using Blockchain

Multi-billion-dollar mining group BHP announced it has completed a $14 million iron ore trade using a blockchain platform.

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Crypto Research Report Predicts $397K Bitcoin Price by 2030

Researchers behind the June 2020 report from the Crypto Research Report used Bitcoin’s target addressable market to predict a rise to $397K.

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Instagram's Thread app may soon get a ‘Video Note’ feature that will translate audio in a video to live captions

Instagram is apparently working on a new 'Voice Note' feature that allows users to keep track of what is being said on a video in the Threads app. The feature was reported by the developer and tipster Alessandro Paluzzi on Twitter.

"Instagram is working on a new feature for the Threads app: video note. This feature will turn the audio of the video into live captions that will be shown in time with the recording," Paluzzi posted.

#Instagram is working on a new feature for the Threads app: video note 👀
This feature will turn the audio of the video into live captions that will be shown in time with the recording. pic.twitter.com/OxQrdIF7lH

— Alessandro Paluzzi (@alex193a) June 24, 2020

The ‘Video Note’ feature may prove helpful to those with hearing disabilities.

Instagram launched the Threads app in October 2019. The app allows users to quickly share text, photos, and videos with “close friends” list. It also invites constant, passive sharing of location, status and other intimate data.

Threads have three core components, camera, inbox and status screen. The inbox mirrors direct messages on Instagram but is limited to close friends while the status screen allows users to create a status and then tell Instagram how long to keep it visible.

Twitter too recently started rolling out audio tweets on iOS. “Sometimes 280 characters aren’t enough and some conversational nuances are lost in translation. So starting today, we’re testing a new feature that will add a more human touch to the way we use Twitter — your very own voice,” Twitter’s Maya Patterson and Rémy Bourgoin posted on the company's blog.

According to the blog, users have to open the Tweet composer and tap the new icon with wavelengths. Users will see the profile photo with the record button at the bottom. They need to tap it to record their voice. 

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Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Plus chipset is expected to launch next month

The much-awaited Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+ is rumored to be launched in July. If the chipset is launched next month, most of the smartphones that will be launched later this year will be powered with it.

A report by Gizmochina quoted Ice Universe as saying, “If there is no accident, Qualcomm will release the Snapdragon 865+ processor in July."

The tipster also added that mobile phones with Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+ processors will arrive in the second half of the year.

The report mentions that the Snapdragon 865+ processor is expected to have a clock speed of 3.09 GHz, which will be higher than 2.84GHz in Snapdragon 865.

As per the AnTuTu listing, Snapdragon 865+ chipset has a total score of 646,310 points, which includes a CPU score of 183,149 points, a GPU score of 247,932 points, MEM score of 111,239 points and UX score of 103,990 points.

According to a report by Wccftech.com, one of the first smartphones to come powered with the upcoming faster Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+ chipset could be the ASUS ROG Phone 3.

It further says that if manufacturers plan on letting the Snapdragon 865+ run at the aforementioned clock speeds, then they will have to design a cooling solution accordingly. If they don't, the chipset will throttle, wasting away its actual potential.

A report by TechRadar mentions that the other few devices that may also rock the new SoC could be the Samsung’s Note 20 Series and iQoo 3 Pro from Vivo. There are rumours that Samsung’s foldable phone Galaxy Z Flip may be powered with the new chipset.

 

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Bitcoin Price Must Flip This Level Into Support to Avoid a Drop to $7.4K

Bitcoin price continues to consolidate near a key support but a close above $9,400 is needed to avoid a sharper correction.

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OnePlus Nord will reportedly launch on 10 July in India; a teaser on Amazon also released

It was recently confirmed that OnePlus' much talked about affordable smartphone will be named OnePlus Nord instead of OnePlus Z or OnePlus 8 Lite.  The smartphone teaser has now popped up on the Amazon India website, hinting that the launch is near. The company has also confirmed that the smartphone will debut in July, hence we can expect that the OnePlus Nord might launch in the coming few days.

As per Amazon's OnePlus Nord dedicated website, more specifications about the smartphone will be revealed tomorrow (30 June).

OnePlus 6T

According to a report by Android Central, OnePlus Nord will be launched on 10 July in India. The report also suggests that the smartphone is likely to feature a dual-camera setup on the front that houses a 32 MP primary sensor and an 8 MP wide-angle sensor.

As per a previous report, the smartphone is expected to sport a 6.55-inch Super AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate. It is expected to be powered by Snapdragon 765 SoC with 5G support. The smartphone is likely to offer 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal storage.

The report mentions that OnePlus Nord may have three cameras on the rear. A 64 MP primary camera, a 16 MP (supposedly ultra-wide) lens, and a 2 MP shooter, which can either be a depth sensor or dedicated macro unit. It is expected to house a 4,300 mAh battery with the company's 30W Wrap charge.

To recall, OnePlus is also launching an affordable smart TV in India on 2 July. It will be priced under Rs 20,000.

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