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• Bill to Restrict N.S.A. Data Collection Blocked in Vote by Senate Republicans - NYTimes.com
  Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked a sweeping overhaul of the once-secret NSA program that collects records of Americans’ phone calls in bulk. Democrats and a handful of Republicans who supported the measure failed to secure the 60 votes they needed to take up the legislation. Senator Patrick J. Leahy, the Vermont Democrat who drafted the bill, blamed what he said was fear-mongering by the bill’s opponents for its defeat. “Fomenting fear stifles serious debate and constructive solutions,” he said. “This nation deserves more than that.” Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader, worked hard to defeat the bill, which had the support of the Obama administration and a coalition of technology companies including Apple, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo.“ This is the worst possible time to be tying our hands behind our backs,” McConnell said before the vote, expressing the concerns of those who argued that the program was a vital tool in the fight against terrorism.
• Baltimore Police balk when pressed by judge on phone tracking capabilities - Baltimore Sun
  In other surveillance news, Baltimore prosecutors withdrew key evidence in a robbery case Monday rather than reveal details of the cellphone tracking technology police used to gather it. The surprise turn in Baltimore Circuit Court came after a defense attorney pressed a city police detective to reveal how officers had tracked his client. City police Detective John L. Haley, a member of a specialized phone tracking unit, said officers did not use the controversial device known as a stingray. But when pressed on how phones are tracked, he cited what he called a "nondisclosure agreement" with the FBI. "You don't have a nondisclosure agreement with the court," Baltimore Circuit Judge Barry G. Williams replied. Williams threatened to hold Haley in contempt if he did not respond. Prosecutors decided to withdraw the evidence instead. Not shady at all.
• "God View": Uber Investigates Its Top New York Executive For Privacy Violations
  In even more surveillance news, Uber said Tuesday that it is investigating its top New York executive for tracking a BuzzFeed News reporter without her permission in violation of what the transit giant says has long been its privacy policy. The company also published its privacy policy for the first time on Tuesday, though it said the policy had always been in effect. Uber took both actions in the wake of a BuzzFeed News story that revealed that the reporter’s ride had been tracked without her permission and that another Uber executive had suggested the company might smear journalists who wrote critically of Uber. Tracking customers is easy using an internal company tool called “God View,” which shows the location of Uber vehicles and customers who have requested a car, was widely available to corporate employees. Drivers, who operate as contractors, do not have access to God View. Josh Mohrer, the general manager of Uber New York, told a BuzzFeed reporter earlier this month that he was tracker her without her permission.
• Apple Just Revealed Lots More Info About the Apple Watch | TIME
  Apple opened the floodgates for Apple Watch developers Tuesday when it made the smartwatch’s Software Development Kit available for the first time. But the SDK isn’t just for coders — it also has lots of hints about what using the Apple Watch will be like for consumers when it hits store shelves sometime next year. Some things we've learned from the SDK are: * Apple Watch apps will run on the iPhone and will be broadcast to the watch. * The two sizes of Apple Watch will run at different resolutions. * There's a new system font called San Francisco. * There are two kinds of notifications: a short look and a long look, depending on how long you hold the watch up.
• Marijuana Drastically Shrinks Aggressive Form Of Brain Cancer, New Study Finds
  In a paper published in the journal Molecular Cancer Therapies, a team of researchers from St. George's University of London outlined the "dramatic reductions" they observed in high-grade glioma masses, a deadly form of brain cancer, when treated with a combination of radiation and two different marijuana compounds, also known as cannabinoids. In many cases, those tumors shrunk to as low as one-tenth the sizes of those in the control group."We've shown that cannabinoids could play a role in treating one of the most aggressive cancers in adults," Dr. Wai Liu, one of the study's lead authors, wrote in an op-ed earlier this week. "The results are promising...it could provide a way of breaking through glioma and saving more lives."
• JetBlue adding bag fees, cutting legroom, breaking hearts
  Say it ain't so, JetBlue. The airline that billed itself as customer-friendly is going to start taking some very unfriendly steps soon, according to its SEC filings. Those steps will include baggage fees — a common charge by other airlines — and steps to cut back on legroom. The move comes as something of a surprise considering JetBlue has performed well financially, with its stock up more than 50% in 2014, sitting just below its all-time high. However, the Wall Street Journal noted earlier in 2014 that the company has faced rising costs, which caused it to miss some earnings estimates. The introduction of bag fees at JetBlue means that Southwest Airlines is now the only major carrier to not charge for luggage.