What causes 'new car smell'?

There is nothing like new car smell. You probably wouldn't call it a fresh smell, but it's definitely an unused smell. No one else's funk has permeated the car; it's a blank slate for you and your very own funk. It smells like money — maybe like your first real job, or a graduation present, or a reward for your retirement. It might smell a bit like leather if you're fancy, or it might smell more like vinyl (before the kids have spilled who-knows-what on its easy-to-clean surface). Either way, it smells like you made a decision and committed the cash to paying for it over the next few years.

All of this is lovely, but what actually is new car smell? The truth is it's a far less romantic, yet still heady, mix of 50 to 60 volatile organic compounds, or VOCs,off-gassing in your car. (These are the same compounds that cause a greasy film to form on your car's windshield.) At new-car concentrations, these chemicals are not terribly dangerous, but they're not exactly aromatherapy, either. They do break down quickly, to the tune of about 20 percent decay every week, so the smell doesn't linger all that long. That's why we call it new-car smell, not car-I've-had-for-five-years smell.

As much as we love new-car smell, auto manufacturers are working to eliminate it. Not that they don't like the smell, but they'd rather not use the chemicals involved in the smell if they can help it. Automotive materials that include fewer VOCs, like soy-based foam seats cushions, don't off-gas quite so much, and they don't really have a smell. In fact, there may come a time when new-car smell is only available in a bottle. And if you're into that kind of thing, rest easy knowing that fragrance manufacturers aren't bottling up semi-dangerous VOCs. They're faking it, which is probably a good thing. That's the easy answer to the question.

Jay Z Becomes First Rapper Inducted Into Songwriters Hall Of Fame

Jay Z has topped iconic rappers like Eminem et al to become the fist rapper to be inducted into the songwriters hall of fame



By breaking this record, Jay Z has given other rappers hope of someday becoming inductees.
The Songwriters Hall announced on Wednesday Feb. 22nd that Jay Z will be inducted into the Hall at the organization’s 48th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner scheduled for June 15 in New York.

Songwriters are eligible 20 years after they were first published.

Jay Z’s first album, Reasonable Doubt, came out in
1996, the same year that fellow superstar rapper, Eminem, released his first album, so the two are both eligible with Jay Z getting the nod this year.

(There are, of course, other pioneering rappers who came long before Jay Z or Eminem, like Grand master Flash or the Beastie Boys...).

Drake Gives Rihanna A Birthday Shout-Out,While Jennifer Lopez Gets Grilled About The Singer

Drake and Rihanna may not have worked out in the romance department (yet, at least), but the Canadian singer still has “a lot of love” for his ex-girlfriend and frequent collaborator.
During Drizzy’s concert in Dublin on Monday, he gave RiRi a special shout-out on her birthday.


“It’s somebody’s birthday today — somebody I have a lot of love for and a lot of respect for,” he told the crowd about Rihanna, who turned 29. “So instead of singing ‘Happy Birthday,’ though, we just going to do this. We just going to do this in Dublin tonight. Instead of singing ‘Happy Birthday,’ we gonna set it off just like this. Run it!”.

Drake, 30, then performed a medley of their three hits, “Work,” “Take Care,” and “Too Good.” Naturally, the crowd went wild.

Rihanna and Drake rekindled their on-again, off-again relationship last year, but called it quits in October. Two months later, the “One Song” crooner cozied up to Jennifer Lopez.

Lopez, 47, continued to dodge questions about her relationship with Drake on Tuesday’s The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Ellen asked J.Lo who she spent Valentine’s Day with before flashing a cozy photo of the singer with Drake.

“He’s off on tour right now,” the Shades of Blue actress smiled.
“But you were songwriting with him, right, ‘songwriting’?” Ellen quipped.

“We did a song together, if that’s what you’re ‘asking,’” Lopez said before referencing the above Instagram photo. “We weren’t writing a song right at that moment. … We were just hanging out.”

Maybe that explanation is enough for Rihanna to follow Lopez on Instagram again.

from Yahoo Celebrity.

Dino Melaye raises petition over Osinbajo's refusal to assent to 3 bills today

Today, during the plenary session, Senate President, Bukola Saraki read 3 letters from Vice Presdient Professor Osinbajo where he witheld assent to 3 bills; namely '"dangerous drug amendment bill 2016", ' National Lottery bill, 2016' and the 'Agricultural Guaranteed Credit Scheme Bill'.


This development didn't sit well with some senators and now, Dino Melaye has raised a petition on the refusal by the Ag.President to assent to 3bills passed by the National Assembly and will be seeking redress in court. See more tweets after the court.

Do black cars really get hot in summer?

Obviously, the same principle that help you make smart clothing choices can help keep your car cool, too (and help the environment, while you're at it).

It's common knowledge that dark colors absorb heat (especially that from the sun's rays) while light colors reflect it. So in 2008 and 2009, the state of California considered banning the sale of new black cars, not out of concern for California residents' on-the-go comfort, but because of the unfavorable environmental effects. It sounded like a bunch of hippie nonsense (and it even got some conservatives, such as Rush Limbaugh, all worked up), but the science behind the idea is sound. A 2011 study by the Berkeley Lab Environmental Energy Technologies Division discovered that white, silver, and other light paint colors do improve a car's efficiency. The study, which pitted a silver Honda Civic against a black one, found that light colored cars reflect about 60 percent of sunlight compared to dark colored cars. This translates to a 2 percent decrease in fuel economy (due to increased air conditioner use), a 1.9 percent increase in carbon dioxide emissions, and a 1 percent increase in other harmful emissions for a black car

Why Scientists think aliens are likely huge

If you're traveling to distant planets anytime soon, you might think twice about raising a ruckus: The inhabitants likely weigh an average of 650 pounds, a cosmologist says.

Apparently it all comes down to planet size and the conservation of energy, CNET reports. "Throughout the animal kingdom, species which are physically larger invariably possess a lower population density, possibly due to their enhanced energy demands," says Fergus Simpson of the University of Barcelona.

That's quite true on Earth, where we have seven billion (relatively big) people, and, the BBC noted last year, up to 100 trillion (tiny) ants.

Which brings us to outer space, where, Simpson says, "most inhabited planets are likely to be closer in size to Mars than the Earth." And "since population density is widely observed to decline with increasing body mass, we conclude that most intelligent species are expected to exceed 300kg (660lbs)," he adds.

A scientist in Scotland says Simpson's "average size calculation is reasonable," but doesn't account for gravitational pull—and planets with stronger gravity would probably have smaller animals, Newsweek reports.

SETI Institute researcher Seth Shostak says Simpson's paper, published at arXiv.org, also leaves out evolutionary theory: With humans, for example, it's our ability to walk upright and use opposable thumbs that gave us the upper hand on Earth.

"Polar bears are large but do not write great literature and build radio towers," he says, "and a lot of that is probably because they are walking around on all fours." (See which moon is the top contender for life outside Earth.)

Why you might have to start wrapping up your keys in aluminum foil

Your car is always listening. Not for your voice, like the Amazon Echo or Siri, but for an electronic signal, such as the coded "unlock" signal from your electronic key fob. If it's a newer car model, you might not have to press any buttons; just approach your car and the doors will unlock automatically. In some cars, the engine will even turn on.

Wirelessly unlocking your car is convenient, but it comes at a price. Criminals can easily intercept the key fob's signal and open your car without setting off any alarms. If you have a true keyless car model, they might be able to just drive away. Let's look at how criminals pull this off and what you can do to keep your car safe.

How your car's security system works

As you've probably noticed, you can't just open your car with any old radio signal. You need your specific key fob to do the job, and there's a reason.

A key fob uses a computer chip to create a unique code that it sends to your car's security system. The car also has a chip that uses the same algorithm to generate codes. If the codes match up, the car opens. There's a bit more to it, but those are the basics.

How criminals attack #1

Since each key fob/car security pair is unique, and each one can create billions of codes, hackers shouldn’t stand a chance. But it turns out that a popular system from Megamos Crypto isn't as secure everyone thought.

Researchers at Radboud University in the Netherlands and the University of Birmingham found that by intercepting the wireless signal just twice, they could narrow down the possible combinations from billions to just 200,000. After that, a computer can figure out the code in just half an hour and unlock the car.

In a real-world application, a thief could sit on a street and gather wireless signals as car owners enter and exit their vehicles. Then overnight they could steal a number of cars. Click here to find out if your car is at risk from this kind of attack.

Still, it takes a skilled car thief or hacker to carry out this kind of attack, so the odds of it happening to you are slim. But thanks to always-on key fobs, there's another risk that's much more likely to happen

How criminals attack #2

Always-on key fobs present a serious weakness in your car's security. As long as your keys are in range, anyone can open the car and the system will think it's you. That's why newer car models won't unlock until the key fob is within a foot of them.

But for less than $100, criminals can get an amplifier that detects key fob signals from up to 300 feet away and then transmits them to your car. In other words, your keys could be in your house, and criminals could walk up to your car and open it. This isn't just a theory; it's actually happening.

Steps to stop car thieves

Fortunately, there are some simple steps you can take to keep hackers from stealing your signal. You can buy a signal-blocking pouch that can hold your keys, like the Hack-Blocking Card Pouch.

If you don’t want to spend any money, you can stick your key fob into the refrigerator or freezer. The multiple layers of metal will block your key fob's signal. Just check with the fob's manufacturer to make sure that freezing your key fob won't damage it.

If you're not hot on freezing your key fob, you can do the same thing with your microwave oven. (Hint: Don't turn it on.) Stick your key fob in there, and criminals won't be able to pick up its signal. Like any seasoned criminal, they'll just move onto an easier target.

Since your key fob's signal is blocked by metal, you can also wrap it up in aluminum foil. While that's the easiest solution, it can also leak the signal if you don't do it right. Plus, you might need to stock up on foil. You can also make a foil-lined box to put your keys in, if you're in a crafting mood.

You should also be aware that this kind of signal stealing isn't a problem just for car key fobs. Newer passports and other I.D. cards contain radio frequency identification chips that enable criminals to use a high-powered RFID reader to steal your information from a distance. You don't need aluminum foil, however. Explore the line of stylish RFID-blocking wallets, purses and passport cases.

Key fob hacking isn't the only danger to modern cars. Learn how hackers can take control of cars through their entertainment systems and other avenues of attack.