Lidar used to map ancient Mayan superhighway system

The Mayan city of El Mirador might have been more advanced than we thought.

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Explosions used to make large quantities of graphene

All you need is hydrocarbon gas, oxygen, and a spark plug.

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Android Nougat 7.1.2 Beta Released for Select Devices; Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 Miss Out

Google has launched yet another incremental update in the form of Android Nougat 7.1.2. The company has so far been true to its words of providing small incremental updates mainly consisting of bug fixes and tweaks to its Android OS. Soon after debuting Android Nougat 7.0, Google introduced an exclusive Nougat 7.1 edition along with the Pixel and Pixel XL smartphone. Thereafter came Android 7.1.1.

With that said, the latest Nougat build isn’t a stable one. Rather, it’s still in beta and users can sign up to download the same using the Android beta program. Alternatively, you can download factory beta images from here. It is, however, worth noting that only a handful of devices support the Android Nougat 7.1.2 as of now. These include the latest Google Pixel and Pixel XL, Pixel C, Nexus 5X and Nexus Player. Incidentally, the last year’s flagship smartphone from Google, the Nexus 6P misses out on the list. That said, if you are Nexus 6P user you needn’t worry as Google has officially stated that the update will be released for the device soon.

Things however are quite gloomy for those who own a Nexus device that’s older than two years. Apparently, Google has decided to stop the update stream for its Nexus 6 and Nexus 9. That said, Google has promised that these two devices will still keep receiving the security patches.

Now coming to the update, Google claims that the Android Nougat 7.1.2 comes with a number of bug fixes and optimizations, along with a small number of enhancements for carriers and users. While there’s no real changelog of sorts, but it’s quite obvious that there’s won’t be a huge amount of changes in the OS. That aside, just like any beta software update the Android Nougat 7.1.2 too comes with its own range of issues. Among them the most notable ones include occasional UI hangs, Pixel launcher crashes using physical keyboard and WiFi stability issues.

  

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Microsoft wants to bring HoloLens to the consumer market once the technology matures

If you've hoped Microsoft would release a consumer version of HoloLens, the company does plan to do so -- but it doesn't have a firm timeline nailed down just yet.

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ET deals: Lifetime subscription to VPNSecure for 91% off

Governments, ISPs, and malicious individuals have no qualms about watching your every move online, and a good way to thwart them is by encrypting your traffic with a VPN. And since you can get a lifetime subscription to VPNSecure for under 40 bucks, now's the time to act.

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No need to wait for Tesla: the Chevrolet Bolt is excellent (and already shipping)

Quick, roomy (even in back), Chevy hit a home run with this 238-mile EV-only compact. It matches the Tesla Model 3 on tech, specs, and price.

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The 10 best PS4 Pro game updates

Some of this generation's best titles are looking better than ever, here are 10 games that really benefit from this $400 half-step.

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