TLDR 2019-04-12

SpaceX launches Falcon Heavy, tree planting drones

📱
Big Tech & Startups

Disney+ streaming service will be available starting Nov. 12 (5 minute read)

Disney has revealed some of the originals it plans to create for its upcoming Disney+ streaming service, which will be available starting November 12. For 7 bucks a month, subscribers will be able to watch exclusive original content, including Marvel and Star Wars series, Pixar shorts, movies, documentaries, and more. Other content owned by Disney will be available as well, including all the episodes of The Simpsons. Disney will continue to release movies in theatres ahead of their appearance on the streaming service. However, some movies, such as Frozen II, will be exclusively released on Disney+.

Uber releases its long-awaited IPO filing (4 minute read)

Uber will list on the New York Stock Exchange as UBER around May this year. Its IPO prospectus contained the first official record of its financials. The company reported $11.27 billion in revenue and $997 million net income in 2018. Names of major shareholders were released, revealing that co-founder and CEO Travis Kalanick still owns 8.6% of the company. Drivers who had done a certain amount of trips will receive a cash reward. While Uber is a giant in the ride-sharing industry, there are still challenges that the company faces that may affect its valuation.
🚀
Science & Futuristic Technology

ARABSAT-6A MISSION (Website)

Falcon Heavy launched the Arabsat-6A satellite on Thursday in Florida. The Arabsat-6A satellite is a high-capacity communications satellite that will provide television, radio, internet, and mobile communications to customers in the Middle-East, Africa, and Europe. There is a video of the launch and a press-kit with more information available.

These tree-planting drones are firing seed missiles to restore the world’s forests (5 minute read)

A start-up that builds tree-planting drones is working with an organization in Myanmar to plant trees in an area that is roughly 350,000 hectares. The drones fire biodegradable pods filled with germinated seeds and nutrients into the ground after assessing an area for suitability. While the drones are efficient, they still require human control. Locals are being trained to pilot the drones, as well as other technical skills, and the community is learning different types of farming and agriculture. Researchers have recently estimated that there is room to plant another 1.2 trillion trees in the world, enough to process more carbon each year than humans emit.
💻
Programming, Design & Data Science

Launching the Front-End Tooling Survey 2019 (4 minute read)

FreeCodeCamp has launched their 2019 front-end tooling survey, which seeks to discover common knowledge and usage levels of common front-end tools. Last years survey found that React and Vue.js were growing significantly in importance in front-end development. This year’s survey has a focus on CSS-in-JS tools, as well as some questions regarding performance and accessibility tools and features. The survey is open now and will close at the end of April.

Developer Survey Results 2019 (17 minute read)

Stack Overflow’s annual Developer Survey gathers information from developers all over the world. In the 2019 report, around 90,000 developers responded to the survey. Stack Overflow continues its efforts on becoming a welcoming and inclusive platform and has marked their results where there were differences in developer demographics. The results discuss developer profiles, technologies used by developers, the types of work that developers are employed in, and community engagement with Stack Overflow.
🎁
Miscellaneous

Julian Assange: Wikileaks co-founder arrested in London (6 minute read)

Julian Assange has been arrested in London after seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy. The Ecuadorian government has recently withdrawn asylum for Assange due to his behavior, as it was clear the Assange was still interfering with the affairs of other states. Assange was found guilty of failing to surrender to court in 2012 for charges that have since been dropped and can be sentenced to jail in the UK for up to 12 months. It is still unclear whether he will be extradited to the US, where he could face up to five years in jail for conspiracy to commit computer intrusion.
Get the most important tech, science, & coding news in a free daily email. Read by +1,250,000 software engineers and tech workers.
Join 1,250,000 readers for