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Lexus LC 500: a vision of the future, with one exception

It’s rare that we see a concept car make it to full production with minimal changes, but with the Lexus LC 500 – on the exterior at least – things are different. It’s an almost carbon copy of the futuristic LF-LC Concept, and that means it looks absolutely fantastic.

With prices starting at $92,200 (£75,595) the future certainly doesn’t come cheap, but walking up to the LC 500 and sliding into the driving seat does soften the blow.

That said, considering the price tag, the Lexus LC 500 is lacking in one area – in-car tech. While on the outside it still looks like a futuristic concept car, the infotainment feels like a bit of a blast from the past.

However, with a naturally aspirated V8 under your right foot you won’t need a heap of tech to keep you entertained.

A glimpse of the future

We drove

Lexus LC 500 Sport+
Engine: 5 liter V8
Power output: 471bhp
Top speed: 168mph
0-62mph: 4.4 seconds
 [...]  read more

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Tor Is Easier Than Ever. Time to Give It a Try

You probably know about the digital anonymity service Tor, but for whatever reason you may not actually use it. Maybe between the nodes, traffic rerouting, and special onion URLs it seems too confusing to be worth the effort.

In truth, Tor has been relatively accessible for years now, largely because of the Tor Browser, which works almost exactly like a regular browser and does all the complicated stuff for you in the background. But in 2018 a slew of new offerings and integrations vastly expanded the available tools, making 2019 the year to finally try Tor. You may even end up using the network without realizing it.

“At the end of the day for Tor what we hope is that our technology becomes underlying, and everything else that happens online happens on top of it,” says Isabela Bagueros, executive director of the Tor Project. “Seeing interest and adoption from for-profit companies and other organizations is a very interesting moment for us, because we are [...]  read more

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Milano, urta contro il treno che gli trancia il piede: salvato dai carabinieri che lo inseguivano

Un 34enne africano ha perso il piede urtando un treno della linea alta velocità mentre scappava a un controllo dei carabinieri nella stazione di San Zenone al Lambro (Milano). E’ accaduto attorno alle 15.15, quando i militari hanno notato un gruppo di stranieri nel parcheggio della stazione e si sono avvicinati per un controllo. In quel momento l’africano è scappato lungo la ferrovia. Poco dopo è rimasto ferito per l’urto con il convoglio che gli ha tranciato di netto il piede destro.

I carabinieri del nucleo radiomobile di San Donato lo hanno soccorso fermando l’emorragia stringendo una cintura poco sopra la caviglia dell’uomo. Ciò ha consentito di guadagnare tempo per l’arrivo dell’ambulanza che lo ha trasportato in ospedale. La prontezza dei militari gli ha salvato la vita. In tasca aveva 15 grammi di eroina, 25 di cocaina e 5mila euro in contatti, l’ipotesi è che si tratti di un pusher e che sia scappato per evitare l’arresto. [...]  read more

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NYSE operator’s crypto project Bakkt brings in $182M

The Intercontinental Exchange’s (ICE) cryptocurrency project Bakkt celebrated New Year’s Eve with the announcement of a $182.5 million equity round from a slew of notable institutional investors. ICE, the operator of several global exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange, established Bakkt to build a trading platform that enables consumers and institutions to buy, sell, store and spend digital assets.

This is Bakkt’s first institutional funding round; it was not a token sale. Participating in the round are Horizons Ventures, Microsoft’s venture capital arm (M12), Pantera Capital, Naspers’ fintech arm (PayU), Protocol Ventures, Boston Consulting Group, CMT Digital, Eagle Seven, Galaxy Digital, Goldfinch Partners and more.

Bakkt is currently seeking regulatory approval to launch a one-day physically delivered Bitcoin futures contract along with physical warehousing. The startup initially [...]  read more