Links 08/11/2023: Lots More Censorship and Collaboration Initiative Regarding Software Patent Monopolies Inside Standards
Contents
- Leftovers
- Gemini* and Gopher
Leftovers
Fabian Sanglard ☛ 0x3 reasons to write and publish
If you spent time studying a topic, and struggled to understand parts of it, here are three good[1] reasons to write about it. And publish[2].
Modern Diplomacy ☛ Silver reveals luxury tastes of Vikings and trade talents of ancient Greeks
Her research project, called SILVER, got underway in March 2019 and is due to run into 2024. It also involves Dr Stephen Merkel, an earth-sciences expert at the Free University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands and a coin specialist named Jani Oravisjӓrvi at the University of Oulu in Finland.
‘Cultural chameleons’
The three researchers have analysed trace metals, including lead found in silver coins gathered from museums, using lasers for micro-sampling.
Examining different variants – or isotopes – of lead helped to shed light on the source ores and, with it, to provide new information on the origins of the Viking Age.
Science
Filippo Valsorda ☛ Enough Polynomials and Linear Algebra to Implement Kyber
Anyway, over the years of implementing RSA and elliptic curves, we collectively learned quite a bit about modular arithmetic, large finite fields, and group logic. We did it wrong for many years, and now I think we mostly know how to do it right.
Except now the post-quantum algorithms are coming, and they use lattices and matrices and polynomials. So, how much linear algebra and polynomial algebra do you need to know to implement these post-quantum cryptography primitives? Turns out, surprisingly little! The word “lattice” doesn’t even show up in the spec except in the name.
Bjoern Brembs ☛ Heading for #SfN23 with two posters
Our first poster will be up on Tuesday morning and shows results from operant self-stimulation experiments using optogenetics and dopaminergic neurons. Some of this work is already available as a preprint, but this poster contains essentially all the work done after that manuscript was peer-reviewed. This poster will be presented by our Bachelor student Luisa Guyton:
The Register UK ☛ 4,000 days of Curiosity: Rover still 'strong' despite worn joints, vision issues
For the wheels, engineers admitted that they misjudged the conditions encountered on the Martian surface. For the eyes, the plan is to gently encourage the filter wheel back to its standard position. If that fails, then there's always the 100mm right camera, but according to the team, nine times the number of images would be needed for the same area.
Many issues have been resolved or at least mitigated through software updates - the addition of a traction control algorithm, for example, helped decrease wear and tear on wheels from sharp rocks.
Education
BoingBoing ☛ School teacher supplemented $42k salary with $1 million OnlyFans earnings over the summer
"A lot of people asking why didn't you just get a part time job somewhere. That seems like that would've worked better but teachers also take all of their work home. We don't get to stop working when we leave the school day. We don't get to grade all 130 students' papers during the day. It's just not possible when you're teaching, so we take that work home with us on the evenings and on the weekends. Getting a second job is really not possible."
Robert Reich ☛ Why We Need to Ban College Legacy AdmissionsChildren of the...
Children of the super rich are more than twice as likely to get into America’s most elite universities as middle-class students with the exact same test scores. This fast-tracks them to become the next generation of CEOs and lawmakers, and helps keep wealth and power in the hands of people who started out wealthy and powerful.
SparkFun Electronics ☛ XRPs Around the World!
With the recent release of the Experiential Robotic Platform, or XRP, we wanted to get it into the hands of as many similarly tech-minded folks around the world as possible, and what better way to do that than by pairing up with FIRST Robotics? Hear all about my trip to Singapore for FIRST Global!
Hardware
Hackaday ☛ 3D-Printed LED Wall Clock Does Lots With Little
This wall clock built by [Alf Müller] is lovely, using two NeoPixel rings to mark the time by casting light onto a 3D-printed ring. The blue shows the minutes, made more discrete by a grid inside the ring. The green shows the hours. [Alf] has provided the code so you can rework the color scheme. It might be interesting to add seconds with the red LEDs, or perhaps a countdown triggered by a touch sensor…
Hackaday ☛ Open Brain Surgery For EBikes And EScooters
Personal Electric Vehicles (PEVs) all contain the same basic set of parts: a motor, a battery, a motor controller, some sensors, and a display to parse the information. This simplicity allowed [casainho] to develop a custom controller setup for their own PEVs.
Hackaday ☛ It’s A Marble Clock, But Not As We Know It
[Ivan Miranda] is taking a very interesting approach to a marble clock. His design is a huge assembly that uses black and white marbles to create a (sort of) dot matrix display. It’s part kinetic art and part digital clock, all driven by marbles.
Tom's Hardware ☛ China Increases Investment in Domestic Memory Maker to $5.4 Billion: Report
Changxin Xinqiao Memory Technologies gets $5.4 billion from Big Fund.
The Drone Girl ☛ The best Remote ID module for drone pilots
Remote ID modules are small devices that can be attached to your drone to broadcast its location and other information to other aircraft and air traffic control. And if you’re seeking to be Remote ID compliant (which you should be, as it’s a legal requirement in the U.S.), then you very likely may be seeking the best Remote ID module to add to your drone:
Remote ID is a new Federal Aviation Administration requirement for all drones flying in the United States. In short, drones must provide identification and location information that can be read by others, whether it’s law enforcement or simply other drone pilots. Some have referred to the Remote ID rules as a sort of electronic licensing plate system for drones.
Interesting Engineering ☛ China develops drone that ‘group chats’ battle strategy like humans
The drones have various sensors and advanced algorithms tailored for low-altitude exploration, real-time obstacle avoidance, and precise visual positioning. This design empowers the drones to comprehensively observe their environment from various perspectives and positions, facilitating efficient data collection and task execution.
Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
Hackaday ☛ Smart Ring Measures Blood Pressure
Continuous blood pressure monitoring has always been a major challenge for the biohacking community. Those giant arm cuffs aren’t exactly the kind of thing you want to wear all day and the wrist monitors aren’t super great either. So, [Kaan] and his research team set out to create a better continuous blood pressure monitor. This time as a ring.
Latvia ☛ Postnatal depression support issues raised after mother's disappearance
One in ten women may develop postpartum or postnatal depression after giving birth, experts say. The issue of postpartum depression and care has been raised following the tragedy with missing Anna Jansone and the death of her daughter Luīze. Specialists say that the attention paid to the mental health of young mothers in Latvia is insufficient, Latvian Television reported November 7.
Hong Kong Free Press ☛ NGOs urge more support for youth struggling with mental health amid rising student suicides in Hong Kong
Five NGOs in Hong Kong have called for more support for youth struggling with their mental health amid a sharp surge in student suicide cases.
Latvia ☛ Latvia has EU's largest life expectancy gender gap
Eurostat figures published November 6 confirm that Latvia is the place where women outlive men by the greatest amount of time – at least as far as the European Union is concerned.
Federal News Network ☛ Judge’s order cancels event that would have blocked sole entrance to a Kansas abortion clinic
A demonstration planned by a Roman Catholic diocese in Kansas that would have blocked the only entrance to a Wichita abortion clinic Saturday morning was canceled. That came after a judge issued an order Friday to stop it. The Wichita Eagle reports that the Catholic Diocese of Wichita had been granted a city permit to close the street in front of the Trust Women clinic on Saturday for a “Mass for Life” demonstration. The event would have left open the entrance to another clinic on the street that seeks to dissuade people from getting abortions. A judge granted Trust Women clinic's request for a temporary restraining order.
Federal News Network ☛ New HHS challenge prize program seeks to improve local environmental justice
The Health and Human Services Department (HHS) has launched a new challenge. It is seeking what it calls community-level solutions for health inequities. Prizes will total a million dollars. For how it works, the Federal Drive with Tom Temin talked with the Interim Director of the HHS office of Environmental Justice, Sharunda Buchanan.
Federal News Network ☛ VA’s historic hiring surge leads to all-time record for veteran care and benefits
The Department of Veterans Affairs says major hiring efforts across the department allowed it to set all-time records for providing health care and benefits to veterans.
Science Alert ☛ High Fluoride Levels in Natural Water Supplies Could Harm Developing Brains
Something to keep an eye on.
Science Alert ☛ Bystander Effect: Autism May Make People More Immune to Phenomenon
Not as susceptible?
Science Alert ☛ Your Body's 'Secret Age' Reveals More About Dementia Risk Than Your Birthday
How old are you really?
Science Alert ☛ Bizarre First: Viruses Seen 'Biting' Onto Other Viruses Like Tiny Vampires
"I can't believe this."
Science Alert ☛ Strawberries Could Have a Surprising Effect on Our Brains as We Age
A sweet thought.
La Prensa Latina ☛ Mobile phone use linked to low sperm count in young men
Male sperm count has fallen by over 50% globally in the last 50 years, leaving researchers scrambling to understand why. Could it be pollution, PFAS and other potential toxins in our food and water, an increase in obesity and chronic disease, or even the ever-present mobile phone?
California ☛ Western States’ planned water cuts are enough to avert a Colorado River crisis, for now
At stake is a water supply for 40 million people, seven states, 30 federally recognized Tribal Nations, and 5.5 million acres of agriculture. A combination of an ample Rocky Mountain snowpack, wet weather and the states’ planned cuts averted imminent declines that could have threatened water deliveries and power production, federal officials say. But they warned that long-term threats to the vital supply remain.
YLE ☛ THL admits rolling out Covid booster too late [Ed: How effective are these anyway?]
Finland has seen a recent rise in reports of Covid cases as well as the number of people requiring hospital treatment for the virus.
Reason ☛ Can You Keep a Secret?
Escambia County, Alabama, District Attorney Stephen Billy has charged Atmore News publisher and co-owner Sherry Digmon and reporter Don Fletcher with revealing grand jury secrets. The charges are based on a story about an investigation into whether federal COVID-19 funds were improperly paid to seven former Escambia County School System employees. The school system's payroll…
Federal News Network ☛ IRS to launch callback option for most taxpayers seeking help next filing season
The IRS is making these upgrades to avoid the kind of backlogs in paper tax returns and correspondence it saw at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Those backlogs led to unprecedented backlogs and tax refund delays.
UK Excess Deaths: Still About 10% More Deaths Than Before COVID-19
Looking back at what what ONS released yesterday morning
Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The Gamer ☛ Ubisoft Lays Off 124 Workers To Improve "Efficiency"
Ubisoft lays off 124 employees in the name of "enhanc[ing] collective efficiency", adding to the already huge number of job losses in the gaming industry this year.
While reassuring fans that the cuts won't affect the game production teams, it's still a huge number of workers to lose their jobs, particularly so close to the holidays. Ubisoft hasn't give us much information on the matter, other than saying that the decision was not "taken lightly", and that it is providing "comprehensive support" to those losing their jobs.
Ubisoft Montreal Is The Latest Studio Hit With Layoffs - Insider Gaming
Another studio has become victim to layoffs as Ubisoft Montreal has seen staff cut in the latest cost-cutting measure across gaming
Nextdoor to lay off 25% of its staff as part of cost reduction plan
San Francisco-based Nextdoor will lay off 25% of its staff, the company announced in a financial report posted Tuesday. The job cuts are part of a broader cost reduction plan that targets reducing the neighborhood network social media company’s personnel expenses by $60 million.
“This reduction in our team is the hardest decision we have had to make at Nextdoor,” said Nextdoor CEO Sarah Friar. “While our opportunity and belief in the transformative power of community remains unwavering, and our business is financially strong with a healthy balance sheet, we must follow through on our commitment to our shareholders.”
The Conversation ☛ AI-generated faces look just like real ones – but evidence shows your brain can tell the difference
The results from the EEG test showed that brain activity differed when people were looking at real versus synthetic faces. This difference was apparent at around 170 milliseconds after the faces first appeared onscreen.
Futurism ☛ Unemployed Man Uses AI to Apply for 5,000 Jobs, Gets 20 Interviews
Specifically, he used a tool called LazyApply to blast out 5,000 job applications "in a single click" — and managed to land around 20 job interviews. While that may sound a lot, that's a meager success rate of roughly half a percent.
At the same time, though, he only got 20 or so interviews after applying to several hundred jobs the old-fashioned way.
Wired ☛ This AI Bot Fills Out Job Applications for You While You Sleep
After Joseph paid $250 for a lifetime unlimited plan and installed LazyApply’s Chrome extension, he watched the bot zip through applications on his behalf on sites like LinkedIn and Indeed, targeting jobs that matched his criteria. Thirsting for efficiency, he installed the app on his boyfriend’s laptop too, and he went to bed with two computers furiously churning through reams of applications. By morning, the bot had applied to close to 1,000 jobs on his behalf.
The tool wasn’t perfect. It appeared to guess the answers to questions on some applications, with sometimes confused results. But in a brute force kind of way, it worked. After LazyApply completed applications for some 5,000 jobs, Joseph says he landed around 20 interviews, a hit rate of about a half percent. Compared to the 20 interviews he’d landed after manually applying to 200 to 300 jobs, the success rate was dismal. But given the time Job GPT saved, Joseph felt it was worth the investment. LazyApply didn’t respond to a question about how the service works.
Security
Privacy/Surveillance
MIT Technology Review ☛ It’s shockingly easy to buy sensitive data about US military personnel
For as little as $0.12 per record, data brokers in the US are selling sensitive private data about active-duty military members and veterans, including their names, home addresses, geolocation, net worth, and religion, and information about their children and health conditions.
EFF ☛ Introducing Badger Swarm: New Project Helps Privacy Badger Block Ever More Trackers
We continue to update and grow Privacy Badger’s pre-trained list. Privacy Badger now comes with the largest blocklist yet, thanks to improved tracking detection and continually expanding training. Can you guess when we started using Badger Swarm?
Privacy Badger is defined by its automatic learning. As we write in the FAQ, Privacy Badger was born out of our desire for an extension that would automatically analyze and block any tracker that violated consent, and that would use algorithmic methods to decide what is and isn’t tracking. But when and where that learning happens has evolved over the years.
When we first created Privacy Badger, every Privacy Badger installation started with no tracker knowledge and learned to block trackers as you browsed. This meant that every Privacy Badger became stronger, smarter, and more bespoke over time. It also meant that all learning was siloed, and new Privacy Badgers didn’t block anything until they got to visit several websites. This made some people think their Privacy Badger extension wasn’t working.
Defence/Aggression
Marcy Wheeler ☛ DOJ Refuses to Let Trump Disavow His Mob
In three different ways in their responses to Trump’s motions to dismiss submitted yesterday, Jack Smith’s prosecutors emphasized that Trump should be subject to the same standards — and legal precedents — as the mob he sicced on the Capitol.
One pertains to the appellate precedents already set in the application of 18 USC 1512(c)(2). DOJ cited both January 6 precedents — Fischer and Robertson — to lay out that interrupting the vote certification to secure the presidency for oneself would be evidence of corrupt intent.
Quillette ☛ Muslim Antisemitism and the Western Left
So, how does Hamas intend to solve “the Jewish problem”? The Charter states: “The Prophet… has said: ‘The time [the Day of Judgment] will not come until Muslims fight the Jews and kill them, when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. [And] the stones and trees will say O Muslims, O Abdullah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.’” We saw this happen, almost literally, on 7 October.
As to its immediate political goal, the Charter is clear: Hamas seeks to turn the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea—“from the river to the sea,” a phrase echoed in many of the post-7 October demonstrations—that is, all the territory of British Mandate Palestine or the historical Land of Israel into a Sharia-governed Islamic polity. It intends “to raise the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine,” after obliterating the Jewish state “through jihad,” as “Islam obliterated others before it.”
Thunberg and Butler and their colleagues, feminists all, might also ponder the Charter’s designated role for women: [...]
Patrick Breyer ☛ Political advertising: EU won’t ban voter manipulation and microtargeting
Yesterday, the EU Parliament and Council agreed on new rules on transparency and targeting of political advertising. The Parliament was able to secure a publicly accessible library of online political advertising, but targeting political messages based on the individual preferences, weaknesses, situation and personality of every user will remain legal (so-called surveillance advertising). Patrick Breyer, EU lawmaker and digital freedom fighter for the Pirate Party, who co-negotiated the regulation in the Civil Liberties Committee (LIBE), takes stock: [...]
Digital Music News ☛ Three Years Later, Fentanylware (TikTok) Is Shutting Down Its $2 Billion Creator Fund
Multiple outlets have reported on TikTok’s plans to retire the three-year-old Creator Fund, though at the time of this writing, the ByteDance-owned app hadn’t acknowledged the news with a formal release or social post.
In any event, the same sources have pointed to a Saturday, December 16th end for the Creator Fund. First announced back in July of 2020, this fund was initially billed as a support resource through which TikTok diehards could “realize additional earnings” for their on-platform “care and dedication.”
Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
Atlantic Council ☛ Peace is impossible while Vladimir Putin denies Ukraine’s right to exist
While calls to end the bloodshed in Ukraine are perfectly understandable, anyone advocating a compromise peace deal with Vladimir Putin must first reckon with the genocidal reality of Russia’s invasion, writes Taras Kuzio.
RFERL ☛ Russia Places Another ICC Judge On Its Wanted List
Russia has issued an arrest warrant for a judge at the International Criminal Court (ICC) who in March issued a warrant for President Vladimir Putin on war crimes charges.
Latvia ☛ Fallen war volunteer buried in Latvia
Former Latvian National Armed Forces (NBS) soldier Vitālijs Smirnovs died volunteering for Ukraine at night from September 30 to October 1 in a drone attack carried out by Russia in eastern Ukraine. On Tuesday, November 7, the urn with ashes was buried in Latvia.
Latvia ☛ Public asked to fill ten buses with donations for Ukraine
Riga will send ten more “Rīgas Satiksme” public transport buses to Chernihiv in Ukraine. Just like the previous times, residents have been asked to donate the things Ukrainians need to fill buses with food, hygiene goods, and other everyday items, Latvian Television reported Tuesday.
Atlantic Council ☛ Ukraine reports fresh success in the Battle of the Black Sea
Ukraine's success in the Battle of the Black Sea should convince the country's Western partners to finally abandon their cautious approach and provide the Ukrainian military with the weapons they need to defeat Russia, writes Peter Dickinson.
France24 ☛ Zelensky says ‘not the time’ for presidential elections in Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday he doesn't believe it is the right time for elections as debate intensifies on holding a vote in 2024 while the country fights against Russia's invasion.
LRT ☛ ‘Very difficult’ discussions ahead on Ukraine’s EU membership – Lithuanian FM
Lithuania’s foreign minister expects a positive assessment from the European Commission on Ukraine’s readiness to start negotiations on EU membership, but has no doubt that the subsequent discussions among heads of state will be difficult.
RFERL ☛ At Least Five Civilians Killed In Russian Shelling Of Eastern, Southeastern Ukraine
At least five civilians were killed and several wounded by Russian shelling of residential areas in eastern and southeastern Ukraine over the past day, authorities said on November 8.
RFERL ☛ U.S. Senate Democrats Block Republican Bid To Aid Israel, Not Ukraine
U.S. Senate Democrats on November 7 blocked a Republican effort to win quick approval for a bill providing emergency aid to Israel that passed the House of Representatives last week, but that provides no assistance for Ukraine's war against Russia.
RFERL ☛ Ukraine Anticipates 'Historic Conclusion' On EU Membership, Zelenskiy Says
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says Kyiv is already planning the steps it will take after the European Commission issues a report on November 8 on Ukraine's progress toward membership in the European Union.
RFERL ☛ U.S. Says Russia Funds Latin America-Wide Anti-Ukraine Disinformation Drive
The United States has accused Russia of financing a Latin America-wide disinformation campaign, which feeds media contacts with propaganda and fake news aimed at weakening support for Ukraine and boosting anti-U.S. and anti-NATO sentiments.
RFERL ☛ Dozens Of Women In Moscow Make Rare Public Call For Their Husbands' Return From Ukraine War
Dozens of women rallied in Moscow on November 7, demanding that their husbands, who have been mobilized to fight in Russia's invasion of Ukraine, return home, a rare display of protest amid a crackdown on any dissent over the conflict.
RFERL ☛ Top U.S. Officials Urge Congress To Back Request For Direct Budget Support For Ukraine
Top members of U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration on November 7 urged Congress to approve his request for direct budget support for Ukraine.
teleSUR ☛ Ukrainian Attack in Donetsk Leaves at Least 6 Dead
Moscow has asked the UN Security Council to hold an urgent meeting on November 8 "in connection with today's attacks, launched on Donetsk by the Kiev regime."
teleSUR ☛ Russia Shoots Down 17 Ukrainian Drones Over Black Sea & Crimea
Ukraine has been attacking the Crimean peninsula with NATO-made drones and missiles.
The Straits Times ☛ Top US officials Blinken, Austin to visit India for Indo-Pacific talks
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will hold talks with India this week that officials say will focus on security challenges in the Indo-Pacific and concerns over China, rather than the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.
New York Times ☛ ‘Something Was Wrong’: Ukrainians Lament Deaths at Medal Ceremony
A gathering in plain sight of so many soldiers was reckless, critics said, and evoked a rigid adherence to Soviet-era military tradition.
New York Times ☛ Ukraine Investigates Birthday Grenade Blast That Killed Military Aide
Maj. Gennadiy Chastyakov, an aide to Ukraine’s top commander, died when a grenade given to him as a gift blew up.
New York Times ☛ As Ukraine Seeks Troops, Women Prepare for the Call
With so much in the war against Russia hinging on refilling the ranks of soldiers, efforts are underway to draw more Ukrainian women into the army.
New York Times ☛ Orban’s Dream of an Illiberal Pan-European Alliance Is Fading
The Hungarian leader’s efforts have been undermined by setbacks for some of his political allies across Europe and deep divisions over the war in Ukraine.
Meduza ☛ ‘He probably didn’t believe they were live munitions’: Questions abound after top Ukrainian military aide killed by grenade he received for his birthday — Meduza
Meduza ☛ Zelensky says ‘now is not the time’ for elections in Ukraine — Meduza
Latvia ☛ Russian aircraft violated Latvian airspace
On November 7, Latvia's Ministry of Defense confirmed an airspace violation by Russia on November 6.
Latvia ☛ Pet imports from third countries could be restricted over rabies concerns
Over the past year, a significant number of dogs and cats have been coming into Latvia from third countries, in particular Russia and Belarus. Their accompanying documents often contain irregularities and falsehoods. This raises concerns about the true state of health of the animals and therefore the risks of rabies, the Food and Veterinary Service (PVD) said November 7.
France24 ☛ In wave of anti-Semitism, Russian mob storms plane 'looking for Israelis'
Several anti-semitic incidents were recorded in the Caucasus, a Russian region made up of three majority-Muslim republics, on October 28 and 29. In one of these incidents, a mob stormed an airport to search for "Israelis" and "Jews" on a flight from Tel Aviv. Our team spoke to a researcher who said that while these incidents were sparked by the war between Hamas and Israel, there is also a more complex regional context.
JURIST ☛ Russia withdraws from arms control treaty
Russia withdrew from the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty on Tuesday and NATO suspended its participation, signaling a continued break-down of the status quo in global security. Russia and 22 other countries signed the treaty in 1990, shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
LRT ☛ Lithuanian railway co detects possible sanctions evasion scheme to ship luxury cars to Russia
Lithuania’s state-owned railway company LTG has asked law enforcement to investigate a possible violation of international sanctions, suspecting that luxury cars exported to non-EU countries may be ending up in Russia.
RFERL ☛ Husband Of RFE/RL Journalist Detained In Russia Says Wife A 'Political Prisoner'
The husband of detained U.S. journalist Alsu Kurmasheva says his wife is a "political prisoner" and he called on the United States to classify her as "wrongfully detained" as she remains behind bars in Russia on a charge of failing to register as a foreign agent.
RFERL ☛ Russia's Navalny In Solitary Again, Day After Release
Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny, who is serving a total of 19 years in prison on extremism and other charges, has been placed in punitive solitary confinement for the 22nd time since August 2022.
RFERL ☛ Bashkortostan's Supreme Court Rejects Appeal Of Former Chief Of Navalny's Team Against Her Imprisonment
The Supreme Court of Russia's Republic of Bashkortostan has rejected an appeal filed by Lilia Chanysheva, the former regional leader of jailed opposition politician Aleksei Navalny's team, over the seven-and-a-half-year prison term she was handed in June amid a brutal crackdown on civil society.
The Straits Times ☛ Russia's Lavrov assails West over switch to green energy
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the West on Wednesday of provoking crises on the global oil and gas market by rushing to switch to green energy and imposing pressure on other countries to do the same.
The Straits Times ☛ Efforts to revive grain deal bearing no results: Russia's Lavrov
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that United Nations attempts to revive the Black Sea grain initiative were still bearing no results.
The Straits Times ☛ Russia's Shoigu meets top Chinese military official for second time in 10 days
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu held talks in Moscow on Wednesday with a senior Chinese military official and said they would discuss steps to deepen cooperation, Interfax news agency reported.
The Straits Times ☛ Russia's Patrushev says West stoking risk nuclear weapons will be used
Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev said on Wednesday that the "destructive" policies of the United States and its allies were increasing the risk that nuclear, chemical or biological weapons would be used.
The Straits Times ☛ Blinken to visit South Korea as North Korea, Russia deepen ties
The two-day visit is the first by a US secretary of state in 2½ years.
YLE ☛ Russian company says broken cable detected before Balticconnector pipeline incident
A break in a Russian telecommunications cable was apparently detected on 7 October, one day before the Balticconnector gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia was damaged.
Latvia ☛ Another 20 kilometers of border fence planned to be built this year
By the end of the year, it is planned to construct another 19.9 kilometers (km) of fence on the Latvian-Belarusian border, the Ministry of Interior told LETA on November 7.
Latvia ☛ Number of attempts to cross Latvian-Belarusian border reduce slightly
Attempts to cross the Latvian-Belarusian border illegally have decreased due to the cold weather, but tensions are currently increasing on Poland's border with Belarus, State Border Guard Chief Guntis Pujāts told Latvian Television November 7.
YLE ☛ Finland confiscates oligarch's €2.5m Kirkkonummi property
The Finnish Defence Ministry granted the Russian businessman permission to buy an adjoining lot in 2020, as he already owned the main cottage.
Meduza ☛ Russian authorities arrest Dagestan’s deputy interior minister — Meduza
Meduza ☛ Libraries in some Russian cities begin requiring patrons to show ID before checking out books by ‘foreign agents’ — Meduza
Meduza ☛ NATO condemns Russia’s withdrawal from Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, suspends treaty in response — Meduza
Meduza ☛ Hamas says two women with Russian citizenship found among hostages, can only be released if ‘Israelis stop the fighting’ — Meduza
Environment
Science Alert ☛ Our Planet Is Literally Shaking Under The Effects of Global Warming
Can you feel it?
Overpopulation ☛ Wealth Never Sleeps
Wishing away overconsumption without reducing population or affluence is a denial of math.
Omicron Limited ☛ Africa's dangerous air pollution levels are a global problem, says new research
Over the last 50 years African nations have suffered from rapidly deteriorating air quality, making their cities some of the most polluted in the world. Particulate matter concentration levels are now five to 10 levels greater than that recommended by the World Health Organization, with the situation predicted to worsen as populations grow and industrialization accelerates.
The Age AU ☛ Prince William rallies against climate denialism at Earthshot Prize
“I choose to believe that future generations will look back on this decade as the point at which we globally took collective action for our planet ... the moment we refused to accept the voices of denial and defeatism and instead became the architects of change towards a healthy and sustainable world,” he said.
“We owe it to the generations that will follow us to work together both for their future and for the future of our planet.”
Deutsche Welle ☛ Europe: How climate change, mass tourism threaten the Alps
Increasingly, though, the Alps are becoming infamous for traffic jams, overcrowded villages and pleasure seekers obstructing hiking trails and skiing slopes. What used to be idyllic Alpine villages in pristine landscapes have been transformed into ugly concrete fortresses of mass accommodation.
Science Alert ☛ Alarm Bells Sounded For Greenland's Ice Sheet, After The Collapse of 3 Ice Shelves
This research suggests faculty supervisors and university staff responsible for students' development and well-being are often ill-prepared to support students through online harassment experiences. This means graduate students are left frightened, discouraged and with nowhere to turn for help.
The Conversation ☛ Boom in space tourism threatens to boost the amounts of space junk and climate emissions
There are also major concerns about risks posed by the increase in the general number of space missions, particularly because space junk is already a major problem in low Earth orbit. In 1978, [NASA] scientist Donald J Kessler described the “Kessler syndrome” – a potential runaway effect where a collision in space could spark many more debris impacts, leading to the destruction of multiple spacecraft, or even the majority of low Earth orbit spacecraft.
Since 1999, the ISS has had to manoeuvre to avoid large pieces of space junk 32 times. Recently, the risk has been raised by a huge increase in the number of craft in low Earth orbit. In particular, since 2019, SpaceX and its competitors, such as OneWeb and Amazon Kuiper have embarked on programmes of launching tens of thousands of satellites into low Earth orbit to provide internet access.
Unicorn Media ☛ Doordash Does a Thing for Safety and Wants Credit for Doing What Should Be Expected
I don’t know whether this should be a kudos or brickbats story.
It seems that DoorDash, a company that’s responsible for lots of greenhouse gasses getting pumped into our atmosphere, announced on Friday that it’s added new safety features into the app that the company uses to dispatch its drivers to pick-up food to deliver to its customers.
Energy/Transportation
India Times ☛ Amazon launches programme for deliveries via electric vehicles in India
E-commerce company Amazon has launched its last-mile fleet programme in India with 100 per cent electric vehicles, under which it will provide its delivery service providers with access to customized EVs suitable for last-mile deliveries. In the initial phase of the programme, the company has introduced Mahindra Zor Grand three-wheeler EVs, each equipped with specialised enhancements for Amazon's last-mile deliveries.
DeSmog ☛ Burned Out: Documents Reveal The Gas Industry’s Use Of Tobacco Tactics Over Gas Stove Emissions
In the 1970s, Dr. Bernard Goldstein, a young professor at the New York University School of Medicine, researched the health impacts of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) produced by gas stoves. In a series of studies, Goldstein and his colleagues identified a higher incidence of respiratory problems among schoolchildren from homes with gas stoves. Fifty years on, Goldstein, now emeritus professor of Environmental and Occupational Health at the University of Pittsburgh, recently told NPR “it’s way past time that we were doing something about gas stoves.”
Explanation for this 50-year delay can be found in the hundreds of pages of documents referenced in a new report by the Climate Investigations Center (CIC), covered by NPR. The report illustrates the gas industry’s multi-decade PR campaign dating back to the 1970s to manufacture controversy over the health effects of gas stove emissions and avoid regulation. This PR campaign relied on tactics used by Big Tobacco to promote doubt and uncertainty over the link between cigarettes and cancer.
DeSmog ☛ Top Tory Think Tank’s North Sea Oil and Gas ‘Vested Interests’
The influential Conservative-linked Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) has been pushing for further North Sea oil and gas drilling while several of its board members hold financial interests in the industry, a DeSmog investigation has found.
The news follows the government’s approval of the major Rosebank oilfield and the issuing of new North Sea licences, which the government intends to turn into a mandatory annual process, as announced in this week’s King’s Speech.
Wildlife/Nature
CBC ☛ How an orca held captive at the Vancouver Aquarium helped changed the world's view on killer whales
It's been 43 years since the death of Skana, the Vancouver Aquarium's first resident orca, who experts believe changed the way people viewed killer whales and spurred a global movement in whale conservation.
Today, the resident killer whales that frequent the waters off British Columbia's South Coast are endangered, protected and beloved. But whaling once thrived in the area, particularly during the '60s and the '70s.
Science News ☛ The mysterious deaths of dozens of Zimbabwe’s elephants has been solved
The bacterium, dubbed Pasteurellaceae Bisgaard taxon 45, turned up in samples from six of 15 elephants analyzed, researchers report October 25 in Nature Communications. The pathogen is closely related to Pasteurella multocida, which is known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia, or fatal blood poisoning, but Bisgaard taxon 45 had not been previously implicated in such infections.
The Conversation ☛ Wildcats lived alongside domestic cats for 2,000 years but only started interbreeding 60 years ago – new study
Habitat loss and hunting are two of the biggest threats facing this species across its range, but in Scotland, hybridisation with domestic cats is now the biggest threat to this population. Interbreeding between the two species is frequent now.
Overpopulation
ADF ☛ U.N. Warns of ‘Tipping Point’ as Hunger, Violence Worsen
The number of Africans facing acute food insecurity rose from 137 million in 2022 to a record 149 million in 2023. An estimated 82% of them are in conflict-affected countries. The IPC system defines acute food insecurity as Phase 3 or higher.
Nicholas Haan, creator of the IPC scale, said famine is when more than 20% of a population can’t secure enough food to sustain themselves.
Finance
The Straits Times ☛ Social media platforms in Indonesia keep fighting for e-commerce pie slice despite ban
ByteDance is considering a separate platform for e-shopping. Meta and Alphabet have applied for e-commerce licences.
The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia studying regulations for Fentanylware (TikTok) shop, says minister
The move could further dent the social control media company’s online shopping ambitions in South-east Asia.
AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
India Times ☛ Big Tech to face tougher rules on targeted political ads in EU
Big Tech firms will face new European Union rules to clearly label political advertising on their platforms, who paid for it and how much and which elections are being targeted, ahead of important votes in the bloc next year.
The new political advertising rules, which were agreed by EU countries and European Parliament lawmakers late on Monday, will force social media groups such as Alphabet's Google, Meta Platforms to be more transparent and accountable.
CBC ☛ Jailed Iranian Nobel winner on hunger strike after being denied medical care for not wearing hijab
Narges Mohammadi refuses to wear a hijab, even if it means prison officials won't take her to hospital for urgently needed medical treatment.
Now the imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize winner is on hunger strike to protest her treatment. And according to her friends and supporters, other inmates are joining her.
The Age AU ☛ ‘Where will we go?’: First Nations court bid to force federal action on climate
The first Australian climate court case brought on behalf of First Nations people has heard climate “tipping points” could be reached that would rapidly lead to irreversible changes, such as sea level rise.
The Nation ☛ Tragic Prelude…
Atlantic Council ☛ Investigating China’s economic coercion: The reach and role of Chinese corporate entities
How is corporate ownership used in Beijing's economic influence operations, and what makes a country more susceptible to coercive attempts?
New York Times ☛ China Is Lending Billions to Countries in Financial Trouble
Instead of lending money for highways and bridges, China has shifted to providing emergency rescues for previous borrowers.
The Straits Times ☛ China, Australia to restart annual meetings as trade resumes
Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing on Tuesday, in what Albanese said was an annual leaders' meeting that would continue as relations between the trading partners stabilised.
The Straits Times ☛ Poll makes better reading for Biden than China's Pooh-tin before expected summit
Ahead of an expected meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and China's President Pooh-tin Jinping next week, a U.S. think tank says data it has collected from two dozen countries shows the American leader is winning the battle for public opinion.
RFA ☛ China urges Tibetan students to denounce Dalai Lama
At 'anti-separatism' workshop, teachers and students are told to pledge allegiance to the one-party state.
RFA ☛ Guangdong officials ban Model United Nations over federalism debate
A re-enacted debate from the 1920s on provincial autonomy sounds alarm bells in Beijing over Cantonese separatism.
RFA ☛ Thailand plans to evacuate 162 of its nationals from Myanmar via China
The Thais were rescued from human traffickers in Shan state but have been stuck there amid fighting between warring sides.
The Straits Times ☛ Man in South Korea arrested for assaulting woman for having short hair
He also used a chair to attack a customer who tried to intervene, causing bone fractures.
Democracy Now ☛ Trump Lashes Out at Judge, Attorney General in Fraud Trial That Could End His Real Estate Empire
Former President Donald Trump lashed out from the witness stand at the judge and prosecutor in his New York civil fraud case Monday. He could be forced to dissolve much of his real estate empire and bar his family from doing business in New York. “The scene was pretty incredible to witness,” says Lauren Aratani, reporter for the Guardian US who is covering the trial. The court is now determining how much the Trumps must pay in damages as the case enters the penalty phase.
Censorship/Free Speech
Make Tech Easier ☛ How to View Tweets Deleted By Anyone
Twitter, which is now known as X, is a fantastic platform for people to express themselves through their tweets. However, there may be times when you regret a post and decide to delete it. But what if you’re curious about tweets that have been deleted by someone else? This tutorial explores the methods and tools available to view deleted tweets by anyone, whether it’s someone you know, a stranger, or even yourself.
PinkNews ☛ Moms for Liberty members call cops on librarians after teen checks out YA novel
The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office referred Tapley and Gurski to the director of safety at Santa Rosa County Florida School District before the case was closed.
Commenting on the incident, Kasey Meehan, a director at PEN America, told the publication: “To see the orchestrated campaign to remove books from schools escalate to a police station is shocking.
RFA ☛ China urges Tibetan students to denounce Dalai Lama
China is urging teachers and students in western Tibet to pledge allegiance to the one-party state and denounce the Dalai Lama and what authorities say are his separatist ways, according to two Tibetans living inside Tibet.
Officials summoned more than 400 teachers and students from elementary and middle schools in Ngari prefecture of the western Tibet Autonomous Region of China to attend a workshop on “anti-separatism” in October, the sources said.
ANF News ☛ Norwegian Nobel Committee deeply concerned about the health of Narges Mohammadi
The Norwegian Nobel Committee is deeply concerned about the health of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi after she has been denied medical treatment.
“The requirement that female inmates must wear a hijab in order to be hospitalized, is inhumane and morally unacceptable,” said the Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Berit Reiss-Andersen.
RFERL ☛ Fired Iranian Professor Says High-Tech Surveillance, Dismissals Used To 'Impose Silence' At Universities
Speaking to RFE/RL's Radio Farda, Chamanara says that Iran's clerical establishment has tried to control universities since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Whenever it faces public opposition, as it does today, the authorities heap pressure on universities, he says.
Through this strategy, Chamanara says, Tehran has managed to keep professors -- although not students -- in a state of relative silence.
Bridge Michigan ☛ West Michigan library defunded over LGBTQ books wins tax support on 3rd try
Voters in Ottawa County’s Jamestown Township approved an operating millage Tuesday for the Patmos Library by a 63 percent to 37 percent margin, with all votes counted, ending one of Michigan’s most contentious culture wars over books.
RFERL ☛ Iranian Family Angered After Closure Of Investigation Into Son's Death During Protests
Adinehzadeh was one of hundreds of casualties during protests that erupted following the death of Amini, a 22-year-old woman who had been detained for an alleged head-scarf violation. The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) says more than 500 people have been killed during the unrest, including 71 minors, as security forces try to stifle widespread dissent.
Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
CPJ ☛ Two journalists assaulted by protestors in South Africa
A group of about seven unidentified people assaulted two journalists with local broadcaster Mpuma Kapa TV (MPKTV) around noon on October 30, while the reporters were covering protests about the alleged hijacking of government housing—where possession of the property is taken by those not on the waiting list—in the coastal city of Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape province, according to a statement by the South African National Editors’ Forum, a report by the outlet, and Sbu Maingo, one of the journalists who spoke to CPJ.
Kansas Reflector ☛ Kansas officials downplayed involvement in Marion raid. Here’s what they knew.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation, Kansas Department of Revenue, Marion County Sheriff’s Office and the Office of the State Fire Marshal — along with the county attorney and a magistrate judge — were complicit in the Aug. 11 raid or knew it was imminent. But in the days that followed, they largely downplayed their involvement.
Police reports, internal agency emails and other documents obtained by Kansas Reflector provide a clearer picture of the raid than the early one that crystallized as a fast-moving story attracted international attention.
Kansas Reflector ☛ Three months after newsroom raid, Marion editor’s advice resounds: Speak out and don’t be afraid
In the nearly three months since law enforcement raided the Marion County Record, we’ve seen an abundance of news coverage and a handful of changes on the ground.
Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody resigned after scrutiny of his career and actions around the search. Record editor and publisher Eric Meyer received the Above and Beyond Award from the Kansas Coalition for Open Government at a Friday luncheon. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation continues to look into the whole affair.
Yet a new account of authorities’ unprecedented assault on free expression brings home how much remains to be done in Kansas and across the nation to protect our constitutional rights.
CPJ ☛ Iranian journalist Negar Ostad Agha detained reporting on girl’s funeral
Iranian authorities must immediately release female journalist Negar Ostad Agha and cease jailing members of the press for reporting the news, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday.
CPJ ☛ Attacks, arrests, threats, censorship: The high risks of reporting the Israel-Gaza war
Since the Israel-Gaza war began on October 7, journalists and media across the region have faced a hostile environment that has made reporting on the war exceptionally challenging.
Civil Rights/Policing
New York Times ☛ Investigators Head to Antarctica Research Base After Sexual Violence Claims
The National Science Foundation watchdog is sending agents to a U.S. research base in Antarctica after a 2022 report raised concerns about sexual misconduct.
Kansas Reflector ☛ My great grandpa faced off against the Ku Klux Klan in Lincoln, Kansas, and prevailed
While the Ku Klux Klan in Kansas, like elsewhere across the country, purported to support decency, the family and white supremacy, it was also a vehicle for attacking business rivals and members of the Catholic Church. I know this as fact because my great grandfather, Ira Armsbury, had a run-in with the Klan in Lincoln during the 1920s.
My Great-Aunt Ila, Ira’s third daughter, told me the story in a letter dated Feb. 4, 2000.
The Atlantic ☛ How Is Child Marriage Still Legal in the U.S.?
USAID officials have declared child marriage a human-rights violation. Last year, the agency laid out a “roadmap” to end child marriage worldwide by 2030. And yet only 10 U.S states ban marriage under age 18 without exception. Five states have no minimum age of marriage as long as parental and/or judicial consent is given. The rest of the states allow child marriage with age limits—usually 16 to 17, though sometimes younger—as well as parental and/or judicial consent.
EFF ☛ The Government Surveillance Reform Act Would Rein in Some of the Worst Abuses of Section 702
While Section 702 was first sold as a tool necessary to stop foreign terrorists, it has since become clear that the government uses the communications it collects under this law as a domestic intelligence source. The program was intended to collect communications of people outside of the United States, but because we live in an increasingly globalized world, the government retains a massive trove of communications between people overseas on U.S. persons. Increasingly, it’s this U.S. side of digital conversations that are being routinely sifted through by domestic law enforcement agencies—all without a warrant.
EFF ☛ Article 45 Will Roll Back Web Security by 12 Years
This is a catastrophe for the privacy of everyone who uses the internet, but particularly for those who use the internet in the EU. Browser makers have not announced their plans yet, but it seems inevitable that they will have to create two versions of their software: one for the EU, with security checks removed, and another for the rest of the world, with security checks intact. We’ve been down this road before, when export controls on cryptography meant browsers were released in two versions: strong cryptography for US users, and weak cryptography for everyone else. It was a fundamentally inequitable situation and the knock-on effects set back web security by decades.
EFF ☛ This Month, The EU Parliament Can Take Action To Stop The Attack On Encryption
The original proposal from the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, would allow EU authorities to compel online services to analyze all user data and check it against law enforcement databases. The stated goal is to look for crimes against children, including child abuse images.
But this proposal would have undermined a private and secure internet, which relies on strong encryption to protect the communications of everyone—including minors. The EU proposal even proposed reporting people to police as possible child abusers by using AI to rifle through people’s text messages.
EFF ☛ Observation Mission Stresses Key Elements of Ola Bini's Case for Upholding Digital Rights
In the context of the Internet Governance Forum 2023 (IGF) held in Japan, the Observation Mission on the Bini case, which includes EFF and various digital and human rights groups, analyzed how advocates can utilize key elements of the judgment that found Bini not guilty. The Mission released a new statement pointing out these elements. The statement also urges Ecuadorian authorities to clarify Bini's procedural status as the attorney general's office has been posing difficulties for Bini's compliance with the precautionary measures still pending against him, particularly the requirement of periodic appearances to the AG's office.
Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
APNIC ☛ The prevalence of domain parking
My fellow researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM), the University of Twente and I set out to identify parking services and quantify the impact of domain parking on the DNS ecosystem and evaluate their impact on the Internet’s centralization.
Scheerpost ☛ Internet Access Shouldn't Be a Bargaining Chip In Geopolitical Battles - scheerpost.com
We at EFF are horrified by the events transpiring in the Middle East: Hamas’ deadly attack on southern Israel last weekend and Israel’s ongoing retributive military attack and siege on Gaza.
Monopolies
Patents
Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ In re TikTok: Fifth Circuit Implicitly Backs Federal Circuit’s Use of Mandamus to Transfer Cases Out of W.D.Tex.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals recently decided an important convenient venue case. Granting TikTok’s mandamus petition to have its trade secret case transferred from W.D.Tex to N.D.Cal. The decision does not really break ground in the venue/mandamus debate, but does solidify the Federal Circuit’s parallel approach in patent monopoly cases out of the same district. In re Fentanylware (TikTok) Incorporated, — F.4th —-, 2023 WL 7147263 (5th Cir. 2023). Decision.
Unified Patents ☛ Comments on the Joint ITA-NIST-USPTO Collaboration Initiative Regarding Standards
Unified Patents, LLC is a member organization dedicated to deterring the assertion of low-quality patents by non-practicing entities (“NPEs”), and by holders of self-declared standard essential patents (“SEPs”). Unified monitors ownership data, secondary-market patent monopoly sales, demand letters, post-grant procedures, and patent monopoly litigation to track NPE and SEP-holder activity, and often files post-grant proceedings challenging low-quality patents.
Unified writes to advocate for ways to make licensing of SEPs more transparent and efficient, to the benefit of patent monopoly holders and licensees, and both large and small and medium enterprises (“SMEs”). Unified appreciates the recognition of the importance of incentivizing greater collaboration in improving standardization efforts and bringing increased transparency and predictability to SEP licensing.
Standards development is critical. Computing technology, from personal computers and phones to the World Wide Web and cloud systems, operate based on thousands of standards. Most of these standards have been effectively adopted without major patent-related conflicts. Given this efficiency, the U.S. should be cautious about altering the governance of standard-setting organizations.
Trademarks
TTAB Blog ☛ TTABlog Test: Is METAL HEADS for Headwear Confusable With METAL for Jeans and Shirts?
Metal Jeans, Inc. opposed an application to register the mark METAL HEADS for headwear, claiming likelihood of confusion with its registered mark METAL for" ski jackets, jackets, jeans and shirts.” Third-party registrations covering both headwear and one or more of opposer's goods, along with applicant's admissions, established the relatedness of the goods. Applicant also admitted that the trade channels and classes of consumers overlap. Opposer contended that the marks are nearly identical in sight, sound, and meaning because applicant’s mark commences with the word “metal.” Applicant submitted 72 live registrations for third-party marks incorporating the word METAL for clothing, in an effort to show the weakness of opposer's mark. How do you think this came out? Metal Jeans, Inc. v. Destroyer Promotional Products, LLC, Opposition No. 91252176 (November 1,2023) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Angela Lykos).
Copyrights
Meduza ☛ Anti-plagiarism group finds Russian pro-war singer Shaman copied large portions of doctoral thesis from Wikipedia
The popular Russian pro-war singer Yaroslav Dronov, who performs under the stage name Shaman, copied large portions of his final thesis at Gnessin Academy of Music from Wikipedia, according to the anti-plagiarism project Dissernet.
Digital Music News ☛ Anthropic Says Copying Protected Works ‘As An Intermediate Step To Create a Non-Infringing Output Can Constitute Fair Use’
Weeks after being named in a music industry copyright monopoly suit, Anthropic has responded to a request for comment on “a number of copyright monopoly issues” pertaining to generative AI, claiming, among other things, that copying copyrighted material can in certain instances “constitute fair use.”
Techdirt ☛ When Even Hollywood Doesn’t Want To Expand Copyright Laws To Deal With AI…
We live in strange times. It used to be that you could set your watch to one simple thing: any time any government agency or policymaker had any question about whether or not we needed to expand copyright laws, Hollywood would answer with a resounding “YES, ABSOLUTELY!” Over the years, copyright has expanded massively, and always right there pushing that along gleefully has been the Motion Picture Association (MPA, formerly the MPAA).
Torrent Freak ☛ Relentless Genshin Impact Leakers Face Cognosphere's Attorneys Yet Again
Genshin Impact publisher Cognosphere has gone to court in the United States multiple times hoping to obtain the identities of people who deliberately leak details of game updates ahead of the official schedule. The company went to court again yesterday, this time focusing on four Twitter accounts posting leaked content that went on to be viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
Gemini* and Gopher
Personal/Opinions
lust agony and being the villain
There is an unwritten rule in the basements of Vatican passed on from one dying hooded figure to the next in cryptic whispers.
Oyster mushrooms
We tromped through trailless fall woods, Evy, daughter, me, Mr. Chris, dog Ender. We tromped fast over the ridge, down towards the folds in the land, down down down daughter sang, down into the holler.
We disturbed oak leaves around deadfall. Found some puffballs, but they'd already went to spore. Some- thing spindly & yellow also, but not safe to eat. Endless woody turkeytails, colorful and banded as the insides of agates.
Koyaanisqatsi
A couple of weeks ago I finally watched the 1982 experimental film Koyaanisqatsi, after being aware of and vaguely interested in it for several years. I watched it on YouTube, as a playlist of many separate videos. Don't be fooled by the French-titled video which appears to be the whole thing in a single video - that's actually the film played entirely in reverse. I am way too embarrassed to admit how long I made it through that version before realising what was going on. It says a lot about the film that this wasn't immediately obvious. It perhaps says less about *me* than you might immediately expect. I know full well what conventional audio played in revers sounds like, but I'm also enough of a weird experimental music buff that I'm fully aware there were times when that was all the rage and you couldn't really claim with a straight face to be an experimental artist without overindulging in it. More of a 70s thing than an 80s thing, but maybe Philip Glass was late to the party.
Winter Beard
From year to year, I sometimes grow out my beard.
🔤SpellBinding: CEYNTXL Wordo: VIBES
Technology and Free Software
Re: Small Operating Systems?
In a past life I worked on embedded systems that ran out in the elements, on mountains and in the desert. We ran low power, crunching a lot of numbers and generally needed to be fast an efficient. Small Operating Systems and applications often time blended together.
My original background at university was Operating Systems and hardware interaction. I studied to design an entire dynamic computing system where the OS and the hardware were nearly the same thing. CPUs with FPGA cores that could be programmed with application specific modules on demand. Are you about to do a lot of heavy math? Bam you now have a grid of ALU with integrators or structures to make complex matrix math very quick. Doing a lot of data movement or encryption? Now you have a lot of cache and custom DMA devices to easily map data access. Obviously general purpose computing was not the target for this technology and required a very unique operating system design.
WhitespaceHex
The same text is performing two functions, which is pleasing. I can't control where the line breaks (and hence paragraphs) go because that's white space and I have to leave that wherever it's been put.
Retrying the st Terminal Emulator
Way back when I lacked the tuits to recompile st. So after a bout of tuitism and maybe less sleep than normal a custom compiled version of st is installed. (I'll probably forget by the time OpenBSD 7.5 rolls around and then wonder why the terminals do not start.)
The Pro1 X Arrives
In December 2020, I decided to join a crowdfunding campaign by UK smartphone company F(x)Tec for a new smartphone. The decide was the Pro1 X, an Android phone with a sliding physical keyboard similar to the developer-only Nokia N950. Yesterday, a month shy of three years after my contribution, the device arrived at my front door.
The story of the Pro1 X is a long and harrowing one. It started as a glorified upgrade of the company's relatively-successful launch product, the Pro1, with more RAM and storage and an upgraded camera--but, critically, keeping the same Qualcomm Snapdragon SD835 processor. F(x)Tec partnered with XDA Developers to bring official LineageOS support to the Pro1 X, and in advertisements for the phone they boasted that the Pro1 X would be the world's first phone with LineageOS installed from the factory. My Samsung Galaxy Note 8 was already three years old when the Pro1 X was announced, and I decided to order one through Indiegogo.
Why I wanna try a rules-light game
One of several reason our RPG rules grew so much (not that I was complaining, it was fun having all those rules to fall back on) was that it was a collection of rulings that we actually had needed at the table at one point or another.
What I wanna test out is if maybe that won’t happen with a rules set that’s of a coarser granularity. For example, in our D&D game, we needed a rule for them to find a particular kind of moss that is a valuable spell component when foraging. So I mathed out a rule that made sense in the game world’s economy.
Internet/Gemini
The Guppy Protocol Specification v0.4.1
(I don't know if anyone is interested in this, but let's give it a try. It started as a thought experiment, when I looked for 'lighter' protocols I can implement on the Pico W. I see Spartan mentioned here and there, and I wonder if there's any interest in going even more ... spartan. If you find this interesting, useful or fun, and have ideas how to improve this protocol, I'd love to hear from you at my-first-name@dimakrasner.com!)
Programming
Automatic commit message formatting
For just jamming off tiny drive-by changes in a git repo, I often don’t bother whipping out magit and instead use a couple of shell scripts and they take a commit message right there on the command line.
Local repo copies
OMG, that sounds so bad! I didn’t know that many people used git that way. That sounds super fiddly. Having a couple of different local copies of the repo is usually not needed but it makes a lot of things way more straight-forward. And that goes especially when you’re new to git and don’t know every command. You can clone a fresh copy and use your normal file management and file melding tools.
* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.