| High-altitude balloons are bringing internet to remote regions of Africa Posted: 19 Jul 2020 05:28 AM PDT  Each week, we spotlight a cool innovation recommended by some of the industry's top tech writers. This week's pick is a fleet of high-altitude balloons.Google's new "fleet of high-altitude balloons" is bringing internet service to one of the remotest regions of Africa, said Abdi Latif Dahir in The New York Times. Acting as "floating cell towers," the balloons began providing 4G LTE network connections last week across a nearly 31,000-square-mile area of central and western Kenya.(Courtesy image)The balloons were designed by Loon, a unit of Google parent Alphabet, and had previously been used only in emergency situations, "such as in Puerto Rico in 2017 after Hurricane Maria wiped out cell towers." The Kenya venture is the company's first commercial effort. The balloons are made of a polyethylene that can last 100 days hovering "about 12 miles up in the stratosphere." In testing leading up to the launch, 35,000 users were able to stream video and make WhatsApp calls.This article was first published in the latest issue of The Week magazine. If you want to read more like it, you can try six risk-free issues of the magazine here.More stories from theweek.com Has Trump incidentally squashed his own argument about the Supreme Court? What Americans are finally learning about freedom Marco Rubio mistakenly tweets a picture of Elijah Cummings alongside tribute to John Lewis
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| Oregon sues feds over Portland protests as unrest continues Posted: 18 Jul 2020 11:30 PM PDT  Oregon's attorney general is seeking an order to stop federal agents from arresting people in Portland as the city continues to be convulsed by nightly protests that have gone on for seven weeks and have now pitted local officials against the Trump administration. Federal agents, some wearing camouflage and some wearing dark Homeland Security uniforms, used tear gas at least twice to break up crowds late Friday night, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. Demonstrations against systemic racism and police brutality have happened every day in Oregon's largest city since Minneapolis police killed George Floyd on May 25.
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| Coronavirus: The slow death of the American all-you-can-eat buffet Posted: 18 Jul 2020 05:28 PM PDT  Buffets, beloved by many Americans, are rapidly changing their business model to adapt to the virus.
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