Leftovers

• Ruben Schade ☛ Molly White on Hey Hi (AI) and effective altruism

  Molly White, the software engineer and writer famous for running the sublime Web 3.0 Is Going Just Great site, has a new post about AI, shortsighted views of technology, and the various philosophical movements that people use to justify accumulating wealth to the detriment of others.

  The whole post is fire, but this was my favourite passaige:

  Both ideologies embrace as a given the idea of a super-powerful artificial general intelligence being just around the corner, an assumption that leaves little room for discussion of the many ways that Hey Hi (AI) is harming real people today. This is no coincidence: when you can convince everyone that Hey Hi (AI) might turn everyone into paperclips tomorrow, or on the flip side might cure every disease on earth, it’s easy to distract people from today’s issues of ghost labor, algorithmic bias, and erosion of the rights of artists and others.

• Ruben Schade ☛ Singular or plural verbs for singular nouns

  I’m Australian, but grew up in Singapore where British English is mostly standard. Australian English is a bit of weird hybrid of British spelling with some American vocab and grammar, which has caught me out before.

• New York Times ☛ Off Broadway, a Vital Part of New York Theater, Feels the Squeeze

  The small theaters that help make the city a theater capital are cutting back as they struggle to recover from the pandemic.

• New York Times ☛ New York’s Millionaire Class Is Growing. Other People Are Leaving.

  Despite an exodus earlier in the pandemic, New York’s millionaires are increasing in number, according to a new report, raising questions about the state’s tax policies.

• Hackaday ☛ Retrotechtacular: The Story Of Turpentine

  If someone in 2023 has ever had much call to use turpentine, chances are good it was something to do with paint or other wood finishes, like varnish. Natural turpentine is the traditional solvent of choice for oil paints, which have decreased in popularity with the rise of easy-to-clean polymer-based paints and coating. Oh sure, there are still those who prefer oil paint, especially for trim work — it lays up so nice — but by and large, turpentine seems like a relic from days gone by, like goose grease and castor oil.

• Hackaday ☛ Powering A Cavity Magnetron, From A Battery

  While vacuum electronic devices have largely been superseded over much of consumer electronics, there’s one place where they can still be found for now. The cavity magnetron is a power RF oscillator device in which electrons are induced to move in a circular path through a tuned cavity, inducing a high-power RF field, and it lies at the heart of a domestic microwave oven. They usually need a high-voltage mains transformer and a rectifier to work, but [Hyperspace Pirate] has managed to make a solid-state power supply to power one from a 12 volt battery. Better still, he’s put the resulting combo in a Care Bears lunchbox. Take a look at the video below the break.

• Education

  • New York Times ☛ Math Scores Dropped Globally, but the U.S. Still Trails Other Countries

    In a global exam for 15-year-olds, only a handful of places, including Singapore, Japan and Australia, kept math performance high through the pandemic.

  • LRT ☛ Teachers’ union resumes strike as Lithuanian parliament set to vote on spending bill

    The Lithuanian Education Workers’ Union (LŠDPS), led by Andrius Navickas, is resuming a strike on Tuesday when the parliament is voting on next year’s state budget.

• Hardware

  • Hackaday ☛ Better 3D Printing Overhangs? Dive! Dive!

    If you want better 3D-printed overhangs, you need better cooling, right? What would be better for cooling than printing submerged in water? It turns out [CPSdrone] tried it, and, at least for overhangs, it seems to work pretty well. Check it out in the video below.

  • Hackaday ☛ Cockpit Instrument Respectfully Retasked As A Clock

    How do you convert an old cockpit instrument into a clock? Easy: just build a circuit that convinces it it’s in the air, and the rest will take care of itself.

  • Hackaday ☛ Finally! A Typeface For Hardware People

    When it comes to novelty typefaces there is no shortage of weird and wonderful fonts to be found when you have finally tired of Comic Sans. Everything from bananas forming letters to Wild West saloon lettering can be yours, plus of course our favourite, the embossed Dymo label. But there’s a new kid on the novelty typeface block, and for us it sweeps all before it.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Reason ☛ OxyContin's Reformulation Linked to Rising Suicides by Children

    The study is one of several documenting the perverse impact of an intervention aimed at reducing substance abuse.

  • Science Alert ☛ Outbreaks of Pneumonia Are Now Affecting Children in Multiple Countries

  • RFA ☛ Chinese censors delete news report probing return of COVID tracking

    The report followed up on social control media reports that the hated 'Health Code' is back amid wave of pneumonia cases.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Efforts stepped up in China to cope with spike in children’s respiratory illness

    Children in China are hit hard this winter as parents have found difficulties in getting hospital appointments.

  • YLE ☛ THL: Finland's fat population hits 1m

    In addition to carrying excess weight, Finns also suffer from high cholesterol and elevated blood pressure, according to a study by public health authority THL.

  • YLE ☛ Pension firms suspend payments to sanctioned retirees

    Pension companies in Finland are cross referencing their customer data against sanctions lists.

  • Reason ☛ Infographic: Who's Moved to Florida Since COVID Started?

    Over 2 million Americans have moved to Florida since COVID began. Where did they come from?

  • The Straits Times ☛ Philippines' Marcos tests positive for Covid-19

    Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has tested positive for COVID-19, but remains healthy enough to hold online meetings, his office said on Tuesday.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ GPU market sees impressive recovery as desktop graphics cards sales rocket up 37% — JPR says 'the post-Covid black death is over'

    The GPU market may finally be returning to normal, pre-COVID levels, in part thanks to a rise in desktop graphics cards sales.

  • New York Times ☛ Can Boris Johnson Keep His Cool at U.K.’s Covid Inquiry?

    Britain’s former prime minister will face tough questions when he testifies this week before an official inquiry into the pandemic.

  • Trust in science and vaccines is declining. Is it too late to reverse the decline?

    As we are approaching the end of the fourth year of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed close to 7 million people worldwide and 1.2 million in just the US alone, both estimates being almost certainly significant undercounts of the true toll, I was depressed  to see yet more evidence indicating significantly declining trust in science and science-based interventions to combat disease, such as vaccines.

  • England and Wales Deaths 12.5% Higher Than Before the Pandemic, Even Half a Year After WHO Declared the Pandemic ‘Over’

    In the morning, just a few minutes ago (maybe 1 minute, I kept refreshing the page!), ONS published new numbers to indicate the number of deaths (total mortality) in the UK or just in England and Wales, provisionally.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Man Drank So Much Radium His Skull Literally Disintegrated

    Be careful what you drink.

  • Science Alert ☛ Tinnitus Could Be Our Brain's Way of Coping With Nerve Damage

    Is there ringing in your ears?

  • New York Times ☛ Brain Implants Helped 5 People Recover From Traumatic Injuries

    People with chronic problems after falls and car crashes scored better on cognition tests after getting a brain implant, a new study found.

  • University of Michigan ☛ $9M grant to help train occupational health professionals

    The Center for Occupational Health and Safety Engineering in the School of Public Health has received a $9 million grant to continue its role in training future occupational health professionals.

  • Science Alert ☛ It's Crucial We Phase Out Fossil Fuels, Despite Outrageous COP28 Claims

    The science is clear.

  • Science Alert ☛ Rising Numbers of Long-Decomposed Bodies Are Being Found in The UK

    How can this be happening?

  • Science Alert ☛ Uploading Your Mind to a Computer Will Require 3 Crucial Things

    You better think really carefully about this.

  • Latvia ☛ Latvia looks for ways to fight medicine shortages: LTV's De Facto

    The solidarity mechanism announced by the European Union to share medicines in the event of shortages will not solve the ongoing lack of medicinal products, as acknowledged by the Latvian medical authorities, since the problem is more deeply rooted, Latvian Television's De Facto reported December 3.

  • Latvia ☛ Latvians report highest level of disability in the EU

    According to fresh Eurostat data published December 1, in the EU in 2022, some 27.0 % of the population aged 16 years and over reported some or severe long-standing limitations in their usual activities due to health problems (disability).

  • Techdirt ☛ Documents Show The DEA Has Problems Constraining Itself To Losing The War On Drugs

    It’s simply not enough to be part of one problem. The DEA feels the need to be part of several problems.

• Proprietary

  • Business Today ☛ ‘Unemployed before holidays yet again’: Engineer, hit by Twitter turmoil, faces fresh layoff at Spotify

    This decision attracted further scrutiny, especially given the backdrop of Spotify's recent rare quarterly net profit of 65 million euros in October and its impressive 26% surge in active users, totalling 574 million for the third quarter.

  • Billing Software Firm BILL to Reduce Workforce by 15% Amid Restructuring

    BILL will reduce its global workforce by 15% as part of a restructuring.

    The billing software firm will also close its office in Sydney, Australia, it said in a Tuesday (Dec. 5) filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

    The changes come as BILL works to “allocate resources to its key business priorities in service of small and midsize businesses and focus on improving the profitability of its core business (the ‘Restructuring’),” the company said in the filing.

    The news comes at a time when BILL and other businesses that make software for small businesses are being impacted by those customers reducing their software spending.

    BILL, HubSpot, Paycom and ZoomInfo have all recently cautioned investors of potential declines in revenue from the small- to medium-sized business (SMB) sector.

  • Armello Developer League of Geeks Lays off Over 50% of Staff, Puts Jumplight Odyssey on Hold

    League of Geeks, developer of Armello, is laying off over half of its staff, while the development of the early-access simulation game Jumplight Odyssey will be suspended indefinitely.

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • EFF ☛ How to Secure Your Kid's Android Device

      There's a handful of different tools, settings, and apps that can help better secure your kid’s device, depending on their needs. We've broken them down into four categories: Parental Monitoring, Security, Safety, and Privacy.

      Note: If you do not see these settings in your Android device, it may be out of date or a heavily modified Android distribution. This is based on Android 14’s features.

      Parental Monitoring

    • EFF ☛ Tor University Challenge: First Semester Report Card

      We started the campaign with thirteen institutions:

      People at each of these institutions have been running Tor relays for over a year and are contributing significantly to the Tor network.

      Since August, we've spent much of our time discovering and making contact with existing relays.  People at these institutions were already accomplishing the campaign goals, but hadn't made it into the launch:

    • Federal News Network ☛ Senators want to scrap TSA’s use of facial recognition

      In today's Federal Newscast: Some Senators have introduced legislation to scrap TSA's use of facial recognition at airports. The Office of Special Counsel warns federal employees about expressing partisan opinions on the war in Gaza. And Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) just received a letter saying money for Ukraine is running.

    • Privacy International ☛ Privacy International’s Comments on the Revised Draft Text of the UN Cybercrime Convention (November 2023)

    • Techdirt ☛ Our Ongoing Refusal To Regulate Data Brokers Is Going To Bite Us On The Ass

      Every few weeks for the last fifteen years there’s been a massive scandal involving some company, telecom, data broker, or app maker over-collecting your detailed personal location data, failing to secure it, then selling access to that information to any nitwit with a nickel. And despite the added risks this creates in the post-Roe era, we’ve still done little to pass a real privacy law or rein in reckless data brokers.

    • EDRI ☛ Civil society calls for an end to the expansion of EU’s EURODAC database

      Civil society is calling for an end to the expansion of EURODAC, the EU database for the registration of asylum-seekers. EURODAC is being transformed into an expansive, violent surveillance tool that will treat people seeking protection as crime suspects.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Facial recognition tech reunites abducted boy in China with family after 25 years

      The boy’s mother slipped into depression, and remained on medication for almost 10 years.

    • OpenRightsGroup ☛ Ofcom’s age verification proposals risk privacy and security

      Open Rights Group has responded to the publication of Ofcom guidelines on the age verification of pornography websites. The guidelines outline how sites and apps that display or publish pornographic content must fulfil duties outlined in the Online Safety Act to prevent children and young people from encountering pornography.

• Defence/Aggression

  • New York Times ☛ Tyler Goodson of ‘S-Town’ Podcast Is Shot Dead in Police Standoff

    Mr. Goodson, who had been featured in the investigative podcast set in the town of Woodstock, Ala., “brandished a gun at officers” before he was fatally shot, the authorities said.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US to deploy anti-ship Tomahawk missiles on subs in 2024 to deter China

    The missiles are meant to complement torpedoes and counter China’s numerically superior fleet.

  • RFA ☛ US ship conducts navigation operation near Second Thomas Shoal

    China says U.S. warship “trespassed” into waters near one of the most hotly contested reefs in the South China Sea.

  • RFA ☛ Chinese warships dock at Cambodia’s Ream naval base for ‘training’

    Until now, there has been no known instance of foreign warships gaining access to the naval base.

  • France24 ☛ Nigeria's Tinubu expresses grief, ‘indignation’ after army drone accident kills 85 civilians

    A Nigerian army drone strike accidentally killed at least 85 civilians on Sunday in a village in northwest Kaduna State, emergency officials said, in one of the country's deadliest military bombing accidents.

  • JURIST ☛ Philippine Coast Guard deploys to disputed reef amid rising tensions in South China Sea

    The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) announced Sunday that it deployed two ships to the Julian Felipe Reef (also called the Whitsun Reef) in response to an alleged increase in Chinese Maritime Militia (CMM) ships in the area.

  • New York Times ☛ In Taiwan, I See a Geopolitical Dance Up Close

    S. Leo Chiang reflects on his relationship with Taiwan, the United States and China from the islands of Kinmen, just a few miles from mainland China.

  • New York Times ☛ The Wild Card in Taiwan’s Election: Frustrated Young Voters

    An important bloc for the governing party, the island’s youth are focusing on bread-and-butter issues and have helped propel the rise of an insurgent party.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • New York Times ☛ A Prison at War: The Convicts Sustaining Putin’s Invasion

      Nearly 200 inmates left a high-security Russian prison to join the war in Ukraine, seeking redemption, money or freedom. Many were killed or wounded.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Putin blames Nord Stream blasts for disruption of Russia-Germany relations

      Mr Putin also said that he hoped that relations between Moscow and London would improve.

    • Latvia ☛ Ogre set to ban Moscow-time fireworks on New Year's eve

      In the municipality of Ogre, it is planned to permit fireworks only at midnight on New Year's Eve, as provided for in the draft binding regulations of the local government, LETA reported December 3.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian intelligence chief says Belarusian expats get targeted by KGB, pose security challenges

      Attempts are being made to recruit Belarusian nationals residing in Lithuania via social control media, says Darius Jauniškis, director of the State Security Department (VSD). On Monday, the Lithuanian MPs proposed tightening restrictions on Belarusian citizens.

    • Meduza ☛ Analysts predict Russian labor shortage to reach 2–4 million workers by 2030 — Meduza

    • BIA Net ☛ Police capture Russian organized crime leader in İstanbul

      Under the tenure of Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu, leaders of international criminal organizations and many of their members settled in Turkey. In recent operations, it was disclosed that some gang members had acquired Turkish citizenship despite search warrants against them.

    • Marcy Wheeler ☛ NYT Covers Up the Still-Ongoing Trump-Russian Effort to Frame Joe Biden

      The NYT is right: A second Trump term would be worse than the first one. But repeating that, over and over, even while misinforming readers about Trump's ongoing five year effort to frame Joe Biden is not the best way to prevent a second term. 

    • YLE ☛ MOT: Russia planned Islamophobic campaigns in Finland, Sweden to delay Nato membership

      The Finnish Security Intelligence Service (Supo) confirms that they were aware of the Russian intelligence service's plans to incite such demonstrations.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Nepal urges Russia not to recruit its citizens into army; says six killed

      December 05, 2023 1:03 PM
      
      

      Nepal said it has asked Moscow not to recruit its citizens into the Russian army and immediately send back any Nepali soldier commissioned there back to the Himalayan nation after revealing six soldiers serving Russia's military had been killed.

    • RFERL ☛ In New Case, Russian Prosecutors Seek 12 Years For Jailed Ex-Governor

      Prosecutors in Russia's Kirov region on December 4 asked a court in the regional capital of Kirov to sentence to 12 years in prison the region's former governor, Nikita Belykh, who is already serving an eight-year prison term on a bribe-taking charge that he rejects.

    • Meduza ☛ Russian Defense Ministry proposes changing medical requirements for military service after Putin orders troop increase — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Putin says he supports idea of granting amnesty for ‘certain categories of women prisoners’ — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Marching backwards to Stalingrad Local officials are lobbying hard to restore Volgograd’s former name. They might finally get their wish (but only after Putin’s reelection). — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ With over 1000 political prisoners in Russia, Putin says mass repressions must never be repeated — Meduza

    • Latvia ☛ Latvian ambulances on the way to Ukraine

      On the afternoon of Sunday, December 3, the first six of 61 ambulances set off for the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.

    • Latvia ☛ Ukrainian woman wins Rīga car wash discrimination case

      The owner of a car wash in the center of Rīga will have to pay 1,000 euros in compensation for moral damage to a Ukrainian citizen for discrimination, the Riga City Court has decided.

    • AntiWar ☛ Has Volodymyr Zelensky Passed His Expiration Date?

      Volodymyr Zelensky may have been the perfect president to lead Ukraine through the war with Russia. But he may not be the perfect president to lead them out. Zelensky has made it difficult for himself to get out of the picture he felt he needed to paint to get Ukraine through the war.

    • France24 ☛ White House warns Congress of urgent need to approve funding for Ukraine

      The Biden administration on Monday sent Congress an urgent warning about the need to approve tens of billions of dollars in military and economic assistance to Ukraine, saying Kyiv's war effort to defend itself from Russia's invasion may grind to a halt without it.

    • JURIST ☛ Ukraine officials launch investigation into alleged killing of unarmed soldiers by Russia military

      Ukrainian officials accused Russia Sunday of committing war crimes following the release of a video allegedly showing armed Russian soldiers shooting two unarmed Ukrainian soldiers, leading to the launching of an investigation by Ukrainian prosecutors.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine Downs 10 Russian Drones; Russia Downs Drones Over Occupied Crimea

      Ukrainian air defenses shot down 10 out of 17 Iranian-made drones launched by Russia overnight, the air force said on its Telegram channel on December 5.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine Says Exports Via Black Sea Corridor Total 7 Million Tons

      Ukraine says it has exported around 7 million tons of cargo through Black Sea ports despite Russia's blockade.

    • RFERL ☛ Orban Wants EU Membership For Ukraine Stripped From Summit Agenda

      Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has written European Council President Charles Michel to demand that Ukraine's membership in the European Union be taken off the agenda at a summit next week.

    • RFERL ☛ Russian Opposition Politician Confined To Prison Solitary

      Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin, who is serving an 8 1/2-year prison term for his criticism of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, has been sent to solitary confinement for five days.

    • CS Monitor ☛ In Ukraine, war speeds migration away from Russian language

      With the Russian invasion still ongoing, many Ukrainians see the choice between speaking Ukrainian and Russian as more than pragmatic. It is also about patriotism and affirmation of their identity.

    • New York Times ☛ White House Warns Ukraine Aid Is Running Out, Pressing Congress for More

      The warning, in a letter to congressional leaders, comes as Republican support for funding Kyiv’s war effort is waning, and an emergency funding package is stalled in Congress.

    • Meduza ☛ The other Z conflict Ukrainian journalists report a growing rivalry between President Zelensky and Commander-in-Chief General Zaluzhny — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Bulgarian president vetoes deal to send armored vehicles to Ukraine — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Top Russian legislator warns that rising anti-abortion rhetoric endangers women (but she still favors restrictions) — Meduza

    • Latvia ☛ Food authority reports over 380,000 tonnes of grain imports from Russia

      382,808 tonnes of food cereals have been imported from Russia into the European Union (EU) through the border inspection posts of Latvia in 11 months this year, including 61,894 tonnes imported in November, the Director of the Border Control Department of the Food and Veterinary Service (PVD) Iveta Šice-Trēde told LETA on December 4.

    • France24 ☛ Niger’s junta ends security agreements with EU, turns to Russia for defence cooperation

      Niger’s junta on Monday scrapped two key military agreements that the West African nation signed with the European Union to help fight the violence in Africa’s Sahel region as the country's army leaders and a senior Russian defence official discussed military cooperation.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian ministry suggests banning troops from travelling to China, Transnistria

      As Lithuanian lawmakers consider amendments that would ban the country’s troops from travelling to unfriendly countries, the Defence Ministry has proposed including in the list not only Russia and Belarus but also China and the Transnistria region of Moldova.

    • LRT ☛ ‘Russia has started rebuilding its capabilities and this threatens our region’ – NATO general

      It is common knowledge that Russia is rebuilding its capabilities and preparing for a possible confrontation with NATO,  Lieutenant General Jürgen-Joachim von Sandrart, Commander of NATO Multinational Corps Northeast, says in an interview with LRT.lt.

    • RFA ☛ Tourist rubles ensure warm welcome for Russians in Thailand

      Russian visitors are rising in the Land of Smiles, but Moscow struggles to forge strategic ties and weapon sales to the Thai military.

    • RFERL ☛ Prosecutor Seeks Almost 20 Years In Prison For Former Russian Minister Abyzov

      The prosecutor at the high-profile trial of former Russian Minister for Open Government Affairs Mikhail Abyzov has asked a Moscow court to convict the defendant on corruption charges and sentence him to almost two decades in prison.

    • RFERL ☛ Russian Activist Who Disappeared In Georgia Located In Detention Center In Sverdlovsk Region

      Russian activist Rafail Shepelev, who disappeared in Georgia in mid-October, has been located in a pretrial detention center in Nizhny Tagil in Russia's Sverdlovsk region in the Urals, the human rights project First Department reported.

    • RFERL ☛ U.S. Citizen Reportedly Found Dead In Russian Immigration Center

      A U.S. citizen has been found dead at an immigration center in Russia's Krasnodar region.

    • RFERL ☛ Russian Officials Visit Niger To Bolster Military Ties

      Russia and Niger agreed to strengthen military cooperation during a visit by a Russian delegation led by the deputy defense minister, Nigerien authorities said on December 4.

    • Meduza ☛ Russian activist who disappeared in Georgia in October found in Russian jail, facing terrorism charges — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Two of Kadyrov’s children included in Russian delegation to COP28 climate summit in Dubai — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russian conscientious objector tied to tree overnight for refusing to go to the front — Meduza

• Environment

  • CS Monitor ☛ World climate summit: Trendy vibes ... and an existential threat

    The United Nations COP28 climate summit has become something of a Davos-style show. But the need is still for unglamorous negotiating, and that heart still beats, too.

  • Ruben Schade ☛ Human-induced climate change

    The COP28 summit reminds me that some people need a primer:

    We, our environment, and our food supply evolved for a narrow band of conditions from which we’re now drifting.

    The planet will survive regardless of what we do to it. It is indifferent to our plight, priorities, or politics.

    The universe doesn’t owe us a good answer to our problems, but the challenge isn’t insurmountable.

    And a bonus if you’re religious: [..]

  • Energy/Transportation

    • New York Times ☛ Putin to Visit Saudi Arabia and U.A.E. on Wednesday

      The trip is part of a series of diplomatic meetings by the Russian leader, and comes as Ukraine tries to shore up eroding Western support for its war effort.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Putin to visit UAE, Saudi Arabia this week: Russian news outlet

      Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia this week, Russian news outlet Shot reported on Monday, citing Putin's aide Yury Ushakov.

    • RFERL ☛ Putin To Make Rare Trip Abroad With Visit To Middle East

      In a rare trip abroad as an international arrest warrant hangs over him, Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on December 6 before heading home for a meeting with Iran's president the next day.

    • Meduza ☛ Bloomberg: Putin to visit Saudi Arabia and UAE this week — Meduza

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China-made C919 passenger jet to make first flight outside mainland in Hong Kong

      China’s first domestically produced large passenger jet will conduct a flyby over Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour next week as part of the aircraft’s first showcase outside the mainland.

    • YLE ☛ Electricity to remain expensive through Christmas

      Electricity prices will only start to fall in March, according to the electricity exchange.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Kev Quirk ☛ I Contributed to Badger Cruelty

      I'm ashamed to say that I contributed to badger cruelty, and I feel horrendous because of it.

      This post contains details that some people my find upsettings (I know I did).

    • New York Times ☛ What It Takes to Save the Axolotl

      On the outskirts of Mexico City, biologists are working to reintroduce a treasured amphibian to the wild. But first they must revive an ancient method of farming.

    • Science Alert ☛ World's Largest Iceberg on The Loose After Being Stuck For Decades

      We're not sure where it's headed.

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ ‘Minor’ bleaching recorded at Hong Kong’s reefs but coral remains generally healthy, annual survey finds

      Hong Kong’s coral communities have been found to be “generally in a healthy condition,” according to an annual survey organised by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) and the Hong Kong Reef Check Foundation, despite some bleaching incidents likely caused by higher water temperatures.

    • BIA Net ☛ Earthquake strikes in the Sea of Marmara

      Earthquakes with magnitudes of 5.1 and 4.5 occurred in Gemlik Gulf, in the Sea of Marmara.

• Finance

  • Meduza ☛ Russian ruble falls as Moscow Exchange opens Tuesday — Meduza

  • New York Times ☛ China Evergrande Soared on the Property Boom. Here’s Why It Crashed.

    Blame for the property developer’s downfall has been placed on Chinese lending policies, but poor corporate oversight was hiding in plain sight.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong court gives indebted Chinese property giant Evergrande until January to come up with restructuring plan

    Heavily indebted Chinese property giant Evergrande has until late January to put together a restructuring plan, a Hong Kong court ruled Monday, extending a deadline that could lead to its liquidation.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China looks to deepen EU ties at summit, foreign minister says

    Mr Wang Yi said the two sides should view bilateral relations from a strategic perspective.

  • YLE ☛ 12-month Euribor sees largest drop of year

    The widely used interest rate measurement dropped to just under 3.8 percent on Monday.

  • New York Times ☛ Renewable Energy Could Be a Casualty in the War on Inflation. Here’s Why.

    High interest rates make green start-up costs soar. Officials at the U.N. climate summit fear the world could miss an opportunity to avert future greenhouse gas emissions.

  • LRT ☛ Incomes in Lithuania grew 10.7% this year – Sodra

    People’s incomes continued to rise in Lithuania during the third quarter of this year, with the growth outpacing inflation, according to the latest figures from the social insurance fund Sodra.

  • Wells Fargo Job Cuts Could Cost Bank Nearly $1 Billion

    Wells Fargo will reportedly incur greater-than-expected expenses from severances tied to recent job cuts.

    The price tag for those layoffs could come to between $750 million and just shy of $1 billion for the banking giant’s fourth quarter, CEO Charlie Scharf said Tuesday (Dec. 5) at the Goldman Sachs U.S. Financial Services Conference.

    “We are continuing to focus on efficiency with turnover dropping, unfortunately, we’re going to have to be more aggressive about our own internal actions,” said Scharf, whose comments were reported by Reuters.

    He also said that this would be the right move in the long run.

    The report notes that Wells Fargo last month let go of just under 50 workers from its corporate and investment banking business, and had warned it could cut additional jobs as it strives to boost efficiency.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ 1 charged, 1 wanted by Hong Kong anti-graft watchdog after allegedly inciting boycott of ‘patriots’ District Council race

    Hong Kong’s corruption watchdog has charged a man and issued a warrant for an overseas YouTube political commentator over allegedly inciting others not to vote in Sunday’s “patriots-only” District Council election.

  • The Nation ☛ This Ohio Turf War Is the Latest Sign That the Anti-Abortion Movement Is in Disarray

    Mark Lee Dickson is used to generating conflict as he travels the country, convincing cities and counties to adopt his anti-abortion “sanctuary cities for the unborn” ordinances. But this time, the conflict came from within his own movement. Janet Porter, architect of the six-week “heartbeat” bans that she first launched in Ohio, had a message for Dickson. She wanted him to stay out of the Ohio city of Lebanon. He was getting in her way.

  • The Straits Times ☛ DPM Lawrence Wong to co-chair top-level bilateral meeting during 4-day official visit to China

    Mr Wong will also call on Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing, and meet Singaporeans in the Chinese capital.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China says visa-free travel policy has boosted tourism

    China's foreign ministry said on Tuesday its visa-free travel policy has produced a clear effect, making things easier for travellers.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ US govt warns that sanctions swerving GPUs will fall under their 'control the very next day'

    The US Commerce Secretary, Gina Raimondo, is determined to stop cutting-edge Hey Hi (AI) chips from getting into China's hands and has warned companies that seek to follow the letter but not the spirit of the law.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Reason ☛ Plaintiff Sues Defendant, Alleging Defendant's "Niche Is Cancel Culture"

    From Couture v. Noshirvan, decided Thursday by Judge Sheri Polster Chappell (M.D. Fla.): This case stems from a dozen Fentanylware (TikTok) videos…. [According to the Complaint,] Defendant Noshirvan is a Fentanylware (TikTok) creator. He makes money through Fentanylware (TikTok) gifts, tips, and subscription fees. His niche is cancel culture. Noshirvan finds a video of someone messing up.

  • JURIST ☛ Imprisoned Russia dissident Alexei Navalny faces additional criminal charges

    Alexei Navalny, a prominent critic of the Kremlin, announced via social control media on Friday that the Russian Investigative Committee opened a new criminal case against him. Via his associates on the Telegram platform, Navalny said that he was charged under Article 214 of the Russian Penal Code, which pertains to vandalism.

  • RFERL ☛ My Little Pony's Rating Changed To Adult After Russia Declares 'LGBT Movement' Extremist

    The Russian online movie database Kinopoisk has changed its rating for the popular animated series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic to suitable for "18+" adult audiences, Mediazona reported, saying the move appears to be associated with "new legislative restrictions."

  • Meduza ☛ Moscow court opens second case against retired Russian military intelligence officer for ‘discrediting’ army — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Police raids, preemptive closures, and an 18+ label for ‘My Little Pony’ Russia’s ‘LGBT movement’ ban hasn’t come into force yet, but its chilling effect has been immediate — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Russian mapping and business database company 2GIS asks employees to compile registry of LGBT establishments — Meduza

  • Techdirt ☛ State Of Iowa Sued By Pretty Much Everyone After Codifying Hatred With A LGBTQ-Targeting Book Ban

    I continue to be sickened and saddened that this country — considered the Land of the Free — continues to devolve (rapidly!) into a place where intolerance and bigotry are being written into law. And all it took was a four-year calamity headed up by one of the worst presidents in history, Donald Trump.

  • RFERL ☛ Anti-War Committee, Academic Network Added To Russian Registry Of 'Undesirable Organizations'

    The Russian Justice Ministry on December 4 added the Anti-War Committee and the Academic Network Eastern Europe to its registry of undesirable organizations.

  • RFA ☛ No more ‘fighting’ texts allowed in North Korea

    Police target a loanword from English and South Korean dramas that’s slang for ‘hang in there.’

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ South China Morning Post pulls another op-ed over inability to ‘independently verify the author’s credentials’

    The South China Morning Post (SCMP) has withdrawn an opinion piece after being unable to verify the writer’s credentials – the second such case since 2020.

  • RFERL ☛ HRW Condemns Uzbekistan's Sentencing Of Popular Blogger To Eight Years In Prison

    Human Rights Watch has condemned the sentencing by an Uzbek court of blogger Olimjon Haidarov to eight years in prison on charges of extortion, defamation, and libel.

  • Press Gazette ☛ Police chief sacked for lying sues Northern Echo over phone-monitoring claim

    Northern Echo article about scandal-hit Cleveland Police angers former chief constable.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Meduza ☛ Russian State Duma introduces bill criminalizing ‘unlawful’ use of personal data, likely to combat investigative journalism — Meduza

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • Meduza ☛ U.S. citizen reportedly found dead in Russian migrant center after apparent suicide — Meduza

  • The Nation ☛ Humanitarian Aid

  • RFERL ☛ Concerns For Health Of Iranian Political Prisoner Rise Amid Hunger Strike

    Two Iranian political prisoners in Tehran's notorious Evin prison have warned about the deteriorating health of fellow inmate Zahra Sarv, who has been on a hunger strike since early December to protest against the harsh treatment and injustices she has faced since her arrest in October 2021.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • Techdirt ☛ Decentralization Matters: But Why?

    About a year ago, the Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web asked if I would help edit and compile a “magazine” talking about decentralization and why it’s important. It was a fun and interesting challenge, and now the final product is out, the D-Web Digest.

  • Crafting a One-Page resume website without spending a dollar

    This post details my side project—a one-page resume website that I constructed without incurring any expenses.

• Monopolies

  • Patents

    • Study Confirms That PREVAIL Act, Patent Office ANPRM Proposals Will Hurt the Economy

      A study from the Perryman Group – an economic and financial analysis firm based in Waco, Texas – confirmed that proposals contained in both the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) Advanced Notice for Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) and the PREVAIL Act would impose significant costs on the U.S. economy [...]

  • Trademarks

    • TTAB Blog ☛ Lack of Actual Actual Confusion Leads to Dismissal of FICO Challenge to FIDO for Fraud Prevention Software and Services

      In a 78-page opinion in this nearly eight-year-old proceeding, the Board dismissed Fair Issac's challenges to registration of the mark FIDO, finding confusion unlikely with the registered mark FICO, both marks for goods and services in the field of fraud prevention. The Board found that the differences in the marks outweighed their similarities, but most significant was the lack of actual confusion despite nine years of co-existence in the marketplace. Judge Bergsman's opinion (paper no. 172 in TTABVUE, the first 15 pages of which set out the parties' respective goods and services) runs smoothly through the DuPont factors and is well worth a read. This blog post will attempt to hit the highlights. Fair Isaac Corporation v. FIDO Alliance, Inc., Consolidated Oppositions Nos. 91225634 and 91249276 and Cancellation No. 92071706 (December 1, 2023) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Marc A. Bergsman).

  • Copyrights

    • Digital Music News ☛ Major Labels Have the Fight of Their Lives Against Hey Hi (AI) Tech Giants — Elon Musk Says It’s Already Too Late

      In our most recent DMN Pro Weekly report, Digital Music News tallied the tens of billions of dollars that Hey Hi (AI) giants have already amassed in funding. But that’s not the biggest threat facing major labels as they lock horns with Hey Hi (AI) behemoths like Google, Meta, Amazon, OpenAI, and Abusive Monopolist Microsoft — time is.

    • Digital Music News ☛ Uruguayan President “In Talks” with Spotify to Prevent Departure

      Following news that Spotify would leave Uruguay, the country’s president says he is in talks with Spotify to resolve the conflict. Spotify announced it would cease service in Uruguay in February 2024 following the passage of a new music copyright monopoly bill requiring “fair and equitable remuneration” for authors, composers, performers, and artists in the country.

    • Techdirt ☛ Google Takes Down ‘Downloader’ App Again After Bullshit DMCA Complaint, Restores It Again

      Earlier this year we discussed an app being removed from the Google Play store over copyright concerns and a DMCA notice that was sent in by a firm representing several Israeli television networks. The app, called “Downloader,” was created by Elias Saba, and he was very confused by the takedown. The reason for his confusion is based on what his app actually does: it combines a simple file management solution and a web browser for smart/streaming devices. It does not host any infringing content. It does not even point a user to any infringing content. If this app is a copyright problem, in other words, so is, oh, I don’t know… Google Chrome. And, yet, Google took the app down, before eventually realizing its mistake and reinstating the app to the Play Store.

    • Techdirt ☛ If Creators Suing AI Companies Over Copyright Win, It Will Further Entrench Big Tech

      There’s been this weird idea lately, even among people who used to recognize that copyright only empowers the largest gatekeepers, that in the AI world we have to magically flip the script on copyright and use it as a tool to get AI companies to pay for the material they train on. But, as we’ve explained repeatedly, this would be a huge mistake. Even if people are concerned about how AI works, copyright is not the right tool to use here, and the risk of it being used to destroy all sorts of important and useful tools is quite high (ignoring Elon Musk’s prediction that “Digital God” will obsolete all of this).

Gemini* and Gopher

• Personal/Opinions

  • GM-less roleplaying games

    Some people have taken to renaming GM-less roleplaying games “GM-full games”, maybe because they think “less” is a dirty word. But I think “GM” is an even dirtier word and that less is more when it comes to that! GM-less should be a selling point for these games, you don’t need no GM to play them!

  • First poo

    My daughter made her first poop in the potty. It's kind of a big deal, and not something I can really share elsewhere, so y'all are getting that.

    I feel it's a bit of a rite of passage, because it crowns a string of achievements: eating alone, putting on clothes, playing alone, etc.

  • Things I'm Feeling

    Over my time here i have gauged that im a lot younger than most of the users here. Im a teenager, I still go to school. I've had a privileged childhood. My parents are goverment workers overseas and I have sepnt a big portion of my childhood moving about, it's a double edged sword. I've never really had constant friends or people outside of the family I can trust, on the other hand I have gone to a variety of international schools and a privileged backround.

  • Books for students of Russian

    Whenever I set out to learn something, I like to shop around for the best books I can find, usually available for downloading on the internet. This is especially important being self-learned. There are usually all sorts of books, some better than others, some particularly good, but one has to dig for them, as there are plenty to pick from. In the case of language books, one generally encounters introductory courses, these books are very good as a first approach to the language, but there is a lot more, especially for a language such as Russian. Here are some of the books I've found to be good. Here is a brief overview for the benefit of those learning the language who are looking for good resources to expand their knowledge.

  • Big snooze, amazing display, or both?

    Verstappen has had extraordinary dominance in F1 this year. There are too many stats to repeat, all extremely impressive. But it wasn't a fun season to watch, knowing that Verstappen would win, come what may. Sometimes the race for the remaining places was fun, but, Damon Hill once said, the only ones who remember you when you come second are your wife and your dog. How clever was Hill's dog?

• Science

  • Stargazing: Cetus, Cygnus: Fairbanks, AK, USA, 2023-12-01 (publ. 2023-12-04)

    I wrote earlier about the moon observing I did on Friday Nov 1st, in the morning. That evening, the skies were still clear, so I headed out to the boat launch for some stargazing. The quarter moon was brightening the sky a little, but I didn't want to miss an opportunity for stargazing, rare as they are. I just brought the Skymaster 12x60 binoculars.

• Technology and Free Software

  • Making a diff-erence

    Browsers are conceptuality needle and rubber hose.

    How to re-member all *this* (what seemingly happens) "is" but re-flection (the "re-" emphasizing the againness-of-thought(s) nature of re-ality)?

  • In praise of the half-baked tarball

    I do agree with Björn here, but when I last wrote about it, someone commented something good that I hadn’t thought of: distros can take up the curating mantle, selecting and packaging the most accessible, internationalized software while leaving the more half-baked un-thought-through whim-releases in their “compile if you dare” repos.

    I believe that devs don’t owe you anything and every piece of FOSS is a precious, unearned gift, but devs aren’t owed to be featured in distros either. Not that that’s anything we ask for, we just hack something up that we ourselves need and figure “might as well release it”. (And by "distros" here, I know that there are hacky, half-baked, experimental distros too. That's kind of besides the core point that commenter was trying to say.)