Roumen.ganeff

Today the European Commission has announced that it has found Google in breach of EU antitrust laws and has fined the company €4.34 billion.

The original proceedings against Google formally opened in April 2015, and investigated Google’s business practices related to Android licensing between 2011 and 2014. In their investigation the EU determined that Google was in violation of EU rules prohibiting anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominant market positions.

As detailed in the thorough press-release, Google was found to have engaged in a trio of illegal practices:

• has required manufacturers to pre-install the Google Search app and browser app (Chrome), as a condition for licensing Google's app store (the Play Store);
   
• made payments to certain large manufacturers and mobile network operators on condition that they exclusively pre-installed the Google Search app on their devices; and
   
• has prevented manufacturers wishing to pre-install Google apps from selling even a single smart mobile device running on alternative versions of Android that were not approved by Google (so-called "Android forks").

Furthermore in the press release, the Commission correctly details Google’s business model for Android, as it describes that the operating system was created in order for Google to be a part of the crucial shift from desktop PCs towards mobile devices. And, in turn, to ensure that its flagship product, Google Search, would feature predominantly in the mobile space. The Commission determined that starting in 2011 Google became dominant in the market for app stores for Android, and thus its practice of forcing manufacturers to preinstall the Google Search app was found to be illegal.

The tying of the Google Chrome browser into the list of required pre-installed application from 2012 onwards was also found to be abusive of its dominant market position.

The commission argues that pre-installation creates a status quo bias for users, as whatever default applications are included with a device are the predominantly retained ones by users, creating a significant barrier to entry for competing alternatives. Google forcing manufacturers to pre-install these applications thus reduced the ability of rival application developers to compete.

The investigation also found that Google offered significant financial incentives to device manufacturers to exclusively pre-install only Google Search across that manufacturer's whole device portfolio. The investigation is said to have shown that rival search engine providers would have been unable to counter-compensate a manufacturer for the loss of revenue from Google while still generating a profit of their own. The Commission found that this particular conduct was gradually lessened in 2013 and ceased as of 2014.

Finally, one of the bigger findings is Google’s obstruction of the development and distribution of competing Android operating systems (forks). As Android is an open-source operating system, in theory any manufacturer could just fork it and continue to develop it independently as they would see fit. While in theory nothing stops a manufacturer from doing this, in practice Google’s strict CTS requirements mean that any such fork would not be supported by any Google services, and as such be shut out of the main Android application ecosystem. Of particular note is that a manufacturer would lose all rights to bundle Google apps across all of its devices if it were to sell any alternative device with a forked OS.

Google’s counterargument to this was that the restrictions were necessary in order to avoid fragmentation; the Commission however found that Google had made no effort in trying to determine if Android forks would be compliant with the technical requirements of its own proprietary applications. The Commission also said that Google had made no credible evidence available that could demonstrate any technical failures in forks that would cause them to be unable to support Google’s apps.

The €4.34bn fine takes into account the duration and gravity of the infringements, and is based on Google’s revenue from search and advertising in the European Economic Area. The Commission decision requires Google to end its illegal conduct within 90 days or else face further fines of up to 5% of daily average worldwide turnover of Alphabet (Google’s parent company).

Google for their part is refuting the commision's anti-competitive findings, and has stated that they intend to formally appeal the EU's ruling.

Today, researchers from the Carnegie Institution for Science announced that they have discovered twelve more moons of our solar system's resident monster planet, Jupiter. This brings the official total of identified Jovian moons to 79. That's the hig...

Today, Netflix announced the first TV shows and movies based on comic book writer Mark Millar's properties. Netflix will add two television series and three movies to its original programming.

Imagine you've gotten your hands on a file of e-mail addresses and passwords. You want to monetize it, but the site it's for isn't very valuable. How do you use it? You convince the owners of the password to send you money.

I recently saw a spam e-mail that ties the password to a porn site. The e-mail title contains the password, which is sure to get the recipient's attention.

I do know, yhhaabor, is your password. You may not know me and you're most likely thinking why you're getting this email, right?

actually, I actually setup a malware on the adult video clips (pornographic material) web site and you know what, you visited this web site to have fun (you know what I mean). While you were watching videos, your web browser began operating as a RDP (Remote Desktop) having a key logger which provided me accessibility to your display and web camera. after that, my software obtained your entire contacts from your Messenger, social networks, and email.

What exactly did I do?

I created a double-screen video. First part shows the video you were viewing (you've got a fine taste ; )), and 2nd part displays the recording of your webcam.

What should you do?

Well, I believe, $2900 is a reasonable price for our little secret. You will make the payment through Bitcoin (if you don't know this, search "how to buy bitcoin" in Google).

This is clever. The valid password establishes legitimacy. There's a decent chance the recipient has visited porn sites, and maybe set up an account for which they can't remember the password. The RDP attack is plausible, as is turning on the camera and downloading the contacts file.

Of course, it all fails because there isn't enough detail. If the attacker actually did all of this, they would include the name of the porn site and attached the video file.

But it's a clever attack, and one I have not seen before. If the attacker asked for an order of magnitude less money, I think they would make more.

EDITED TO ADD: Brian Krebs has written about this, too.

With Qatar 2022 just before Christmas and the 2026 event featuring 48 teams, Richard Conway wonders what lies ahead for the World Cup.

Launching in 3… 2… 1…

House of Cards creator Beau Willimon is returning to television with The First, a drama set in the near future and centers on the first human mission to Mars. Natascha McElhone and Sean Penn star in the series, and now we have our first look at the actors with newly released photos from the series, which will focus not only on the human challenges of interplanetary colonization but also on the mission’s ground team and the astronauts’ loved ones back on Earth.

“I have such deep admiration for Sean’s immense talent and extraordinary body of work,” Willimon said in a statement back when Penn was cast. “I feel very lucky to be collaborating with an artist of his caliber.”

Lisa Gay Hamilton, James Ranson, and Melissa George also star.

Willimon has had a busy year: He also wrote the screenplay for Mary Queen of Scots, starring Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie, adapted from the book by John Guy, out December 7.

The First launches Sept. 14 on Hulu.

On screen, Legends of Tomorrow’s Caity Lotz and The Flash’s Candice Patton help save the world on a weekly basis as their characters battle metahumans, aliens, and even the occasional demon. But off screen, the actors are focused on a different battle: combating the notion that women should see one another as competition. “Society has pinned women against each other,” Lotz says. “There’s always this feeling of there’s only one seat at the table and if you want it, you better tear that other girl down. But if we want to reach equality, we have to lift each other up.” In order to do that, Lotz and Patton founded Shethority, a digital space where women can come together and, quite simply, talk.

The idea was solidified during the filming of the 2016 Arrowverse crossover, which brought together characters from four CW superhero shows — Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, The Flash, and Supergirl. While their characters teamed up in front of the camera, the women found themselves talking more and more in-between takes. “It’s usually one or two women on each show and all the sudden there were five or six of us and we started really talking,” Lotz says. What resulted was a conversation so impactful that the actors decided they wanted to involve others, from other actors to fans. So together, they launched social media handles for Shethority in October of 2017. “We want it to be a safe space for female-identifying humans,” Legends of Tomorrow star and Shethority member Maisie Richardson-Sellers says. “People can come here, share their stories and be heard.”

Less than a year later, Shethority has more than 120,000 followers and is feeling timelier than ever. “There’s been this movement of female empowerment and women standing up and asking for what they deserve and demanding respect and equality,” Patton says. “Shethority came around the time of the #MeToo and all of these other movements, and I think it has to do with where we are in our society.” Lotz, Patton, and other women use the Shetority pages to talk about what’s affecting them, and they encourage fans to do the same. So far, members have posted about everything from gun violence to body image. “There is no substitute for the authenticity of actually talking to one another,” Arrow star and Shethority member Emily Bett Rickards says. “Any question you have, most likely someone else is having as well. You’re continually learning about yourself and the people around you.” Patton adds, “We found that the more women speak to each other and speak truthfully, we have way more in common than we have differences.”

That conversation has only just begun. On Monday, Lotz and Patton, along with Shethority COO Lynn Sounakhene, launched the Shethority website, which gives members the ability to talk about their experiences in more detail by writing articles or creating longer videos. Additionally, the website features a tab where people can buy merchandise through Represent. The majority of the proceeds from those purchases will go to an organization that highlights female empowerment, with the chosen organization changing every few months. “We need very little money to keep Shethority afloat, so we thought to use the rest of it and give to causes that speak to us and what we’re trying to do,” Patton says. After already donating money to Girls, Inc. and Girls Not Brides, Shethority is currently looking to help GirlForward, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating and enhancing opportunities for girls who have been displaced globally by conflict and persecution.

As for what comes next, there are almost too many ideas: Shethority block party! Shethority convention! Shethority book club! There are no limits to the ways in which Shethority aims to bring women together. But regardless of the method, the goal remains the same: Shethority will include as many different voices as possible to show that women are stronger together. “So often we smother our own lights, and we allow society to smother our lights,” Richardson-Sellers says. “Part of Shethority is just giving people permission to shine.”

Nathan Fillion, the actor known for his roles as Captain Malcolm in Firefly and as the title character in the crime-comedy Castle, has regularly appeared as the dream choice to play Nathan Drake in the elusive live-action Uncharted film from Sony Pictures. The most recent rumors suggest that Spider-man Homecoming's Tom Holland will be playing a young Nathan in the film, but Fillion has embraced the role in a fan-made short film. Watch the short, which comes to almost fifteen minutes, before Sony inevitably shuts it all down.

The short, spotted by Kotaku, is directed by Allan Ungar and written by Unger and Jesse Wheeler. Producer credits include Ungar, Wheeler, Louis Sallerson, Bruno Marino, and Nathan Fillion himself. In a bit of surprise, Stephen Lang also stars in the short as Victor "Sully" Sullivan. Fillion has a lot on his plate these days with the debut of his new cop show The Rookie, but potentially having Tom Holland build the series of films before a time-jump to an older Drake with Fillion in the role would be interesting.

Holland is related to another instance where a fan-casting was brought to life. Donald Glover (aka Childish Gambino) was the focus of an online campaign to cast him as Miles Morales and ended up getting a role as Miles's uncle in Spider-man: Homecoming. Whether this is Fillion's official campaign for a role in the movies or simply a treat for fans, we should be glad its here.

Enjoy and let us know what you think in Chatty. Stay tuned to Shacknews for more!

Fans have been hoping for years that Nathan Fillion would play Uncharted protagonist Nathan Drake in a film adaptation, but now that the long-delayed official movie has refocused to a prequel story, that hope seemed less and less possible. For those...

Want a hint of how the automotive zeitgeist is changing? You only need to look at the just-ended Goodwood Festival of Speed. Roborace has carved out a small niche in history with the first self-driving vehicle to successfully complete Goodwood's fa...

Wargaming — the company behind free-to-play titles World Of Tanks (2010), World Of Warplanes (2013) and World Of Warships (2015) — recently announced that IRON MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson is hosting 10 online educational warplanes diaries. This free-to-view series is being released weekly on the World Of Warplanes official portal and YouTube channel across June, July and August, alongside an exclusive World Of Warplanes video tribute to the classic IRON MAIDEN song "Aces High". As an avid enthusiast of military aviation, pilot, and supporter of World Of Warplanes' dedication to historical accuracy, Bruce has recorded "The Bruce Dickinson Warplanes Diaries" about the classic WW2 fighter and bomber aircraft such as the Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109. As an extra treat for MAIDEN and Warplanes fans, World Of Warplanes have created, with many of the graphics from their in-game engine and some classic archive footage, a tribute video clip to the epic "Aces High" music video. Featuring many of the Battle Of Britain planes that Bruce profiles in the series, viewers can see the machines really brought to life. "We are all delighted that Bruce has brought his enthusiasm and expertise to World Of Warplanes with these informative videos which he has delivered in his own inimitable style," commented Wargaming's global marketing director, Al King. "As well as the diaries and the 'Aces High' tribute, we are also introducing a renovated hangar subtly branded with iconic IRON MAIDEN imagery. It's unlike anything the game’s ever had before and we hope MAIDEN fans will have fun spotting the various Easter eggs hidden throughout!" Dickinson's fifth video sees him talking about the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, a four-engine heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC).

Julia Roberts starred in 1997’s Conspiracy Theory, but that could just as easily be the title of her first foray into episodic television.

Adapted from the critically acclaimed 2016 podcast created by Eli Horowitz and Micah Bloomberg, who serve as showrunners, Homecoming focuses on the titular initiative that helps soldiers transition back to civilian life. Roberts plays a case worker who begins to bond with a patient (Shots Fired‘s Stephan James) but realizes the Homecoming project isn’t as virtuous as she thought.

Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail was drawn to tell this story after listening to the podcast on a car trip with his wife, Emmy Rossum (Shameless). “That’s when it clicked for me that there’s a whole other dimension to this we could really tap into if we turned it into a series,” says Esmail, who exec-produces and directs all 10 of Homecoming‘s first-season episodes.

If anyone knows how to craft a paranoia thriller, it’s him.

Homecoming will debut this fall on Amazon.

Special counsel Robert Mueller and his team have received an indictment for 12 Russian intelligence for hacking Democrats leading up to the 2016 presidential election. The spies are accused of digitally infiltrating the Democratic National Committee...

Joss Whedon's next show has been ordered by HBO, which reportedly beat out other bidders including Netflix, per The Hollywood Reporter. The Nevers is a science fiction drama about a group of Victorian women with unusual abilities who have to fight en...

 

Long before Marvel Studios popularized the idea of a fictional “universe,” Stephen King sat at his typewriter in Maine, building his own world, book by bestselling book.

In King’s universe, the fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine is the epicenter from which shock waves of macabre weirdness radiate: Coma-induced clairvoyance (The Dead Zone), a murderous St. Bernard (Cujo), a devilish shopkeeper with a sadistic streak (Needful Things). And that’s just in Castle Rock proper — you only have to drive across the state to Derry to find a killer clown lurking in the sewer.

Looming over it all is a foreboding pile of rock called Shawshank Prison. The decrepit and corrupt penitentiary is at the center of Castle Rock, Hulu’s creepy and captivating horror series set in the “Stephen King multiverse.” (Two former EW employees, Scott Brown and Marc Bernardin, are writers on Castle Rock.)

We meet the warden of this prison, Dale Lacy (Lost’s Terry O’Quinn), on his last day before retirement. On his way out—in more ways than one—he leaves behind a horrific secret: A man, locked in a cage hidden deep in Shawshank’s bowels.

The discovery of the unnamed prisoner (It’s Bill Skarsgård, putting his Resting Creep Face to excellent use) brings defense attorney Henry Deaver (André Holland) back to his hometown of Castle Rock.

Henry doesn’t visit much, as the whole town thinks he murdered his father. One night back in 1991, they both trekked into the frigid Maine woods, and his dad wound up shattered at the bottom of a cliff, while Henry disappeared. He returned 11 days later, mysteriously unharmed and with no memory of the events.

From there, Castle Rock’s narrative tendrils slither toward each other: Who is the man Lacy kept in a cage? Why were the prisoner’s first words “Henry Deaver”? And what does Henry’s childhood neighbor Molly (Melanie Lynskey) know about his father’s death?

Answers are parceled out at a slow but satisfying pace, as the series explores themes common in King’s work: Shawshank guard Zalewski (Noel Fisher) is a working-class guy doing his best to survive in dehumanizing circumstances; Henry’s mom Ruth (Sissy Spacek) is losing herself, bit by bit, to the mundane terror of dementia; while Lacy (O’Quinn) and Henry’s father Matthew (Adam Rothenberg) exemplify the sometimes dangerous power of the Christian faith.

Castle Rock (launching July 25 on Hulu) requires and rewards close attention, serving up Kingsian Easter eggs (ie. A newspaper clipping with the headline “Rabid Dog Tears Through Town”) and a mood of disquiet that settles in like New England fog.

Holland is excellent as Henry, a weary outcast who wears his skepticism like a shield, and Lynskey brings a keen mix of sadness and repressed panic to Molly, a woman whose life is continually derailed by an “undiagnosed psychic affliction.” Though most characters are new (Scott Glenn’s Alan Pangborn, a sheriff who appeared in Needful Things and The Dark Half, is one exception), for King fans the world of Castle Rock will be inescapably familiar. Spending time here feels, in many ways, like coming home — with all of the excitement and dread such a visit entails. Grade: A-

 

Netflix's Extinction, directed by Ben Young, is an alien invasion movie with a prominent leading cast, starring Michael Pena (Ant-Man and the Wasp) and Lizzy Caplan (Cloverfield).

The story centers on Peter (Pena), who has a recurring dream about an otherworldly force invading earth. Unfortunately for Peter, his dream comes true, "and he's gotta find an inner strength within himself in order to find a way to try and save his family," according to Young.

You can watch the exclusive trailer for Extinction below:

In an interview with IGN, Young talked about what makes a good sci-fi movie and explained how Extinction stands out from similar films within the genre.

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Transport Security Administration (TSA) officials have intercepted a traveler at Miami International Airport who planned to illegally smuggle a snake en route to Barbados. The female passenger was prevented from boarding the flight after security age...

Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco have uncovered a gene-editing technique which could provide safer treatments for patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases. The breakthrough -- which involves the CRISPR/Cas9 system -- w...

Those little plastic straws that you get at virtually every restaurant in America have become a huge problem for the world's oceans and Starbucks is finally doing something about it. The global coffeehouse chain announced on Monday that it will immed...

"VISUAL CAFFEINE" #6 Link - by Avi Abrams DRB Visual Caffeine: a thrilling blend of art, architecture, myths and fabulous technology - Issue 6 This is the sixth issue of our "visual caffeine mix" (read the first one here) - somewhat unpredictable short forays into spectacular history of art and architecture, coupled with mythology, culture and fabulous (modern and vintage, often quaintly obsolete) technology. ------------ Baroque Spaceships and Byzantine Machinery Coming in for the landing: this golden starship looks like something straight out of Ian M. Banks "Culture" novels, or a dream illustration for some Alastair Reynolds "Revelation Space" epics: (image credit: Jae Cheol Park) This is the work of Jae Cheol Park (who goes by "PaperBlue" on ArtStation) and we highly recommend checking out his other work there. Great website for futuristic flying machinery geeks Concept Ships also has an overview PaperBlue art. Hailing from the heady 1970s-1980s Golden Age of Manga/Anime Space Adventure is this Captain Harlock spaceship, created by legendary Leiji Matsumoto for the "Space Pirate Captain Harlock" manga series: (image via) Pablo Castello's "Brain Bot": a perfect illustration/cover for Philip K. Dick "existential android angst" fiction - see more concept art awesomeness by Pablo Castaño Norkus (from Caba, Argentina) at his ArtStation portfolio: "Reconstruction Project" impresses with gigantic, mega-complex "oil refinery style on steroids" sophistication: (images credit: Pablo Castaño Norkus) ------------ Cities in the Sky "Laputa: Castle in the Sky" by Hayao Miyazaki (info) is still my favorite high-fantasy/dieselpunk fix (which is admittedly a strange combination, but Japanese are so adept at combining the fairy-like purity and "blood & sweat" of the machines in their pop culture - and this is one of the best examples). The following are some high-fantasy Tolkienesque cities set in a "Lost World" environments - truly a potent visual mix, if there ever was one: (original unknown) SilentField from Seoul, South Korea, has a smorgasbord of high-flying cities on his ArtStation page: (images credit: SilentField) "Magic Kingdom" by Ivan Laliashvili - his portfolio is also worth taking a look: (image credit: Ivan Laliashvili) ------------ Victorian Fairies & Angels, by legendary Hans Zatzka Hans Zatzka exemplifies Beaux-Arts and Baroque Rococo Revival in his visually stunning paintings: he worked between 1890s-1910s in Vienna, and his style became the standard for fanciful decorations in Europe during that Silver Age before the advent of Art Deco and harsh realities of Totalitarianism and militarization in the 1930s. His work explodes with flowers and sheer joy of living, his painting are inhabited by fairies, "Spring Beauties", female Elves (of that unadulterated Rivendell highly-exalted variety) and female angels (muses): This oriental dancer is still as beautiful as any angel in previous pictures. By the way, I highly recommend hunting down and reading Richard Burton original unexpurgated 12-volume "Arabian Nights" translation; this Hans Zatzka painting perfectly captures the heady exotic and highly-glamorous atmosphere of that literary wonder: What's that with the swans? German fairy tales (such as The Six Swans, The Wild Swans, etc) abound with transformations of beautiful women (fairies) into swans; many ancient myths have the same motif (see Arabian Nights, for example): Charming the animals, before Snow White and Cinderella were "Disneyfied" for the silver screen: Dutch and Flemish painters in the last quarter of the 16th century have perfected the art of majestic still life compositions, see for example work of Jan Bruegel - but Hans Zatzka has brought the similar "flower explosions" back into fashion in the 1890s Europe: Another "Floral Apotheosis" in oils: is this the ultimate in sensual and joyful art? decide for yourself: Some of the Victorian high-fantasy/pastoral pastimes are enumerated here: And we finish with the "dream sequence", easily one of our most favorite Victorian/Neo-Baroque paintings: (images credit: Hans Zatzka) ------------ Soaring Deco Imagery Continuing our visual time travel from Art Nouveau to Art Deco, we enter the "imperial-minded" Thirties, and the most appropriate symbol for the whole era is, perhaps, a sinister gargoyle sitting on a proud "industrial temple" skyscraper. Here we have New York City gargoyle captured on film by legendary photographer Margaret Bourke-White (former associate editor and staff photographer of Fortune magazine), who braved the heights viewing these creatures of stone up close in 1930: (image credit: Margaret Bourke-White, via) More Gotham can be seen in concept art of Dylan Cole (right image below), in 1930s Chicago skyline shots (left), and in unknown artist futuristic panorama conceived below: (top right image credit: Dylan Cole Studio, bottom image: original unknown) Art Deco Movie Sets were truly masterpieces of epic proportions: witness, for example, Greta Garbo and Conrad Nagel in "The Kiss" (pre-code Hollywood film from 1929, info) - set design by Cedric Gibbons (Irish-born art director and production designer). The following collage also features Nadja Regin in a glamorous mode (as "The Goldfinger" Bonita girl): On the right below Merna Kennedy - this is one of our favorite images and movie sets from the Art Deco and Film Noir era: (images via) Showgirls from "Dames" 1934 movie (left) and Greta Garbo in the "The Mysterious Lady" (1928) on the right - she gives us that classic bored/sophisticated look that pierces the soul (especially considering the fate of Germany coming soon after): (images via) ------------ Chrome, Shark Fins, and Big Car Ecstasy Some of the shark-finned police cars are a pleasure to behold, and are highly collectible today: 1958 Pontiac Bonneville Custom Sport Coupe is simply spectacular piece of "Detroit Iron": (images credit: Barrett-Jackson Auctions) "The Engineer's Triumph: 1949 Chrysler New Yorker" - read more about it: Continuing on to the 1970s and "The Chrysler Fuselage Look": Dodge Monaco 2-door Hardtop 1971 (see more at CarInfo): Another example of fuselage design: Plymouth in all its glory - True to our tradition of mixing retro actresses and girl models with glamorous cars, here are Hayley Mills, Jenny Agguter, and further down Russian actresses: Ada Sheremetieva in "Molodo-Zeleno" (1962) and Galina Belyaeva: Traveling in style: (unknown 1950s Italian movie still) Grace Kelly (Princess of Monaco) and Jean Simmons - the epitome of glamour: The sultry 1960s look: actress Jackie Lane (later Jocelyn Lane): ------------ Note of Luxury Arriving at modern times, we see glamour alive and well: witness work by Kristina Makeeva - and on the right is the latest Rolex luxury watch auction: "Rainbow Daytona" appeared at Sotheby's Action with estimated price of 300.000 USD: (images credit: Kristina Makeeva, Sothebys) ------------ Keep on trucking! Here is a beautiful Kenworth K100 Truck: Russian "Shaman" is the mind-boggling version of the ultimate off-road truck, sporting somewhat intimidating look: That "Shaman" vehicle would fit right in as a "land cruiser" vehicle in Roger Zelazny's classic of 1970s post-apocalyptic adventure "Damnation Alley". Here is another twisted "zombie apocalypse vehicle" vision of these crazy Russian engineers: Sherp ATV (more info and images here): (image via) This is all for now, folks. Keep the sunshine, and stay tuned for more awesomeness on DRB. Visual Caffeine issues, Feel-Good issues (formely "Biscotti Bits") and Link Latte (link compilations) should brighten up your daily coffee ritual, as we've been happily providing them since 2005: Read previous Visual Caffeine Issues here: Issue #5 Issue #4 Issue #3 Issue #2 Issue #1 SEE OUR COMPLETE FELL-GOOD ISSUES ARCHIVE

This casting’s certainly cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool. No doubt.

Well, maybe it should be warm, warm, warm? Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Melissa Fumero (a.k.a. Amy) announced on Twitter Tuesday that she and costar Stephanie Beatriz (a.k.a. Rosa) will leave the New York borough for a brief stint in Los Angeles, as guest stars in season 3 of Netflix’s One Day at a Time. Fumero unveiled the news with a boomerang clip literally unveiling the two from behind the iconic curtain used by Rita Moreno’s Lydia.

Guess who’s coming to hang with the Alvarez family!?!! @iamstephbeatz & I are guest starring on @OneDayAtATime Season 3!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/XwBW1qMQRy

— Melissa Fumero (@melissafumero) July 10, 2018

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The comedy, which follows the Cuban-American Alvarez family led by single mother Penelope (Justina Machado), confirmed the news with a tweet of its own. “Our familia keeps growing,” the post reads.

Our familia keeps growing https://t.co/Pt4yrNY774

— One Day at a Time (@OneDayAtATime) July 10, 2018

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Even better: EW has confirmed that Fumero and Beatriz are set to guest star in the same episode that also features singer Gloria Estefan, who sings the opening theme. All three play members of the Alvarez family: Fumero plays Estrellita, a cousin Penelope used to be close with, until Lydia and Estrellita’s mom — played by Stefan — developed a rift that hasn’t healed since. Beatriz, meanwhile, plays Pilar, another cousin of Penelope’s, who Elena (Isabella Gomez) believes is gay and wants to help come out to the family.

Besides this co-guest-starring gig, Fumero and Beatriz recently had plenty of reason to celebrate, after Brooklyn Nine-Nine was saved from its cancellation at Fox with a revival by NBC. One Day at a Time, executive-produced by Norman Lear and starring Moreno, Machado, Gomez, Todd Grinnell, Marcel Ruiz, and Stephen Tobolowsky, is streaming on Netflix and will return in 2019.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is expanding in a big way thanks to Ant-Man and the Wasp. Not only does the film finally put Evangeline Lilly's Hope Van Dyne in costume and introduce her long-lost mother, Janet (played by Michelle Pfeiffer), but we also meet Dr. Bill Foster (Laurence Fishburne), a brilliant scientist and future heir to the mantle of Giant-Man (in the comics anyway). As we learned in the trailers for the film, Foster worked with Hank Pym at one time on "the Goliath program"... though he never got quite as big as Ant-Man did!

Whether you call him Giant-Man, Goliath or Black Goliath, Bill Foster isn't a character many causal Marvel fans may be aware of. With that in mind, here's everything you need to know about this new addition to the MCU.

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For more on Ant-Man and the Wasp, be sure to also check out our Ending Explained feature or the WTF Questions we have about the film!

Ant-Man and the Wasp may have chronicled the story of Scott Lang, Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne attempting to rescue the long-lost Janet van Dyne from the Quantum Realm, but along the way it also subtly sowed seeds for the debut of two teams from Marvel’s comics -- teams that could be part of the as-of-yet unrevealed Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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In the bartender’s defense, they both play hot heroes on TV.

But that’s probably not much of a consolation for Arrow star Stephen Amell, who admitted via Twitter Saturday that he was confused for Chris O’Donnell from NCIS: Los Angeles. The bartender even thought O’Donnell was the guy who plays the green crusader on The CW.

“I worked with @chrisodonnell on NCIS: LA,” Amell added ironically on social media. “He couldn’t have been a nicer guy.”

Also… I worked with @chrisodonnell on NCIS: LA. He couldn’t have been a nicer guy.

— Stephen Amell (@StephenAmell) July 7, 2018

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GALLERY: 20 Celebrity Lookalikes: Ever Get These Pairs Mixed Up?

Amell, not O’Donnell, has played the title role of Arrow since 2012. But O’Donnell also has experience donning a cape: he played Robin in the 1995 flick Batman Forever, followed by Batman & Robin in 1997. He’s been on NCIS: LA since 2009.

A girl has no more scenes to shoot — from Game of Thrones, at least.

Maisie Williams said goodbye to the HBO drama sensation that made her an international star with a bloody Instagram photo.

The actress wrote: “Goodbye belfast. goodbye arya. goodbye game of thrones. what a joy i’ve had. here’s to the adventures to come #lastwomanstanding #barely #immasleepforthenextfouryears #justkiddingidontsleep”

And here’s the photo:

That “#lastwomanstanding” hashtag is bound to cause some speculation. I suspect Williams (who’s ultra careful about spoilers and meticulously plans her social media posts) meant she was the last female cast member to finish filming, not that Arya is the only female character to survive (and GoT episodes and scenes are not shot in order, so that wouldn’t spoil anything either).

Williams was cast as Arya Stark in 2011 when she was only 12 years old and helped make the character a fan favorite. She’s also been nominated for an Emmy for her performance on the series. Her future appearances include playing Rahne Sinclair / Wolfsbane in the X-Men franchise spin-off The New Mutants next year.

RELATED: Maisie Williams casts doubt on Game of Thrones multiple endings rumor

Thrones is almost finished filming its eighth and final season, which has been in production since October. Even though the final season is only six episodes, it’s had a particularly long shooting schedule given the producers’ plan to create the most epic season yet. GoT returns in 2019. HBO has also greenlit a Game of Thrones prequel pilot (more on that here).

The post follows co-star Emilia Clarke saying goodbye with a heartfelt farewell message of her own last month.

A Harvard-led team of scientists has made important progress in the quest to prevent HIV infections. They've had early success testing a multi-strain vaccine in humans -- everyone who received the drug produced at least some kind of anti-HIV immune r...

The Intercept has a long story about the NSA's domestic interception points.

Includes some new Snowden documents.

Hannah John-Kamen spent the Atlanta shoot of the just-released Ant-Man and the Wasp clad in the tight — and sweltering— suit of Ghost, a mysterious character intent on thwarting the titular heroes at every turn. “But Marvel makes sure the actors are kept hydrated and cool,” says the British actress, 28. “They had one tube with cold water connected to this crop top. It kind of made my back feel like it was peeing itself.”

In the comics, Ghost is depicted as a man, which allowed John-Kamen to essentially create a new character. “I went, ‘Well, great,'” she says. “‘Let’s start from scratch!'” John-Kamen had sci-fi cred even before joining the MCU. She plays a space bounty hunter on Syfy’s Killjoys, whose fourth season premieres July 20, and appeared in Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One. “We’d sing show tunes in between takes. Singin’ in the Rain, Guys and Dolls. It was very fun,” she says of the latter.

Speaking of singing, John-Kamen also starred in the Spice Girls musical Viva Forever! in London in 2012.

“The Spice Girls were my life growing up,” she says. “My birthday was Spice Girls-inspired. I actually got to meet them. That was really wonderful. Each of them are their persona. ”

She’s currently shooting season 5 of Killjoys. “I think we’ve added some swear words,” she says. “It’s our last season, so what the hell?”

Watch John-Kamen’s Ant-Man and the Wasp costar Evangeline Lilly talk about the superhero sequel, above.

E-readers have become one of the most pervasive pieces of tech for many reasons. They survive alongside tablets because they're accessible -- Amazon's entry-level Kindle is just $80 -- and don't require daily charging. E-ink displays don't strain you...

Research in AI continues to make video games better. The technology informs NPCs that can move and fight more convincingly, orcs with personalities and ever-more realistic visuals. Now researchers at DeepMind have taught an AI to play a customized ve...