Ten nuggets of knowledge to take away for the weekend, including the reawakening of Philae, the launch of the Irish space race and and the Pope’s damning indictment of climate change deniers.
1. Rosetta’s Philae Lander wakes up and starts talking
The Philae comet lander – thought lost after skipping across the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and landing in a shady spot without enough sunlight – came out of hibernation on 13 June and spoke to mission controllers at the European Space Agency.
2. 185 new tech jobs in Dublin and Wexford across six companies
A whopping 185 new jobs have been announced across six separate IDA-backed businesses in Dublin and Wexford, spread across a number of sectors and a range of areas, including technology, fintech, business analytics and medical devices.
3. Johnson & Johnson to create 200 new jobs in Limerick in €100m investment
Johnson & Johnson company Vistakon is to create 200 new jobs in Limerick as part of a €100m investment to expand its manufacturing operations at the National Technology Park.
4. Internet of things will put Ireland at the heart of the next industrial revolution
For a country that missed the industrial revolution of the 19th century, Ireland did a great job in the last few decades of making itself one of Europe’s foremost digital economies. Now it is positioned to help drive the next industrial revolution with the internet of things.
5. 600m Samsung smartphones vulnerable to major security flaw
As many as 600m Samsung mobile devices may be vulnerable to a serious bug that could allow hackers to spy on mobile users. The risk includes the recently released Galaxy S6 smartphone.
6. 10 memes only a mathematician should get, but you might too
This week’s deep look into STEM professions brings us to maths, a numerical nightmare for all of us non-believers and the key differentiator between English and US English (maths vs math).
7. Change starts here: International sci-tech leaders arrive in Dublin for Inspirefest 2015
A new type of sci-tech conference has come to Dublin, spanning three days and incorporating an outdoor film festival with music, film and a dash of comedy.
The truly unique aspect of Inspirefest 2015 is that 75pc of the speakers at this conference are women, a conscious decision made to debunk the myth that there aren’t enough female leaders in these innovative sectors to change the gender ratio seen to-date at sci-tech conferences.
8. Pope Francis: “We may well be leaving to coming generations debris, desolation and filth”
After much anticipation, Pope Francis has issued his 180-page encyclical document on the topic of climate change in what appears to be a scathing attack on the human species’ reckless attitude to sustainability, telling his followers not to laugh at previous doomsday predictions.
9. Irish space race launched at Inspirefest by Prof Susan McKenna-Lawlor
“Let me just float an idea out there…” Those were the understated words that preceded the biggest excitement at Inspirefest when Professor Susan McKenna-Lawlor suggested that Ireland should get on with building its own spacecraft.
10. Brianna Wu — We are winning. We are changing the games industry
In what was easily the most moving keynote of the second day of Inspirefest 2015, head of development at Spacekat Games, Brianna Wu, spoke of her daily experience of sexism in the gaming industry, and how the tide is turning against it.
Thai takeaway image, via Shutterstock
