Leftovers

• Jeff Triplett ☛ Jeff Triplett's Micro.blog

  As part of my recent Echofeed discovery, I updated my now page to list the most recent video games I’m playing and movies and series I’m watching. These are all data streams that Echofeed collects and publishes for me.

  Now that I have this data, it inspired me to create stand-alone pages for my games, movies, and series pages, which I will slowly backfill over time.

• Nathaniel Snelgrove ☛ Nathan Snelgrove | Writing

  When in your life did you feel like you were the most creative?

  I don’t mean productive. Creativity and productivity are different.

  I mean creative. When in your life did you feel like your output matched your input?1

• Nicholas Tietz-Sokolsky ☛ Affirmations for bloggers

  Every software engineer can have a great blog, if they want to. Many of us start blogs, but most of those blogs lie abandoned or sporadically updated. It's okay if you start blogging and figure out it's not really for you. But there are also some common issues that block people who want to write a blog for fun or to improve as a writer1.

• Science

  • The Conversation ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Human culture is changing too fast for evolution to catch up – here’s how it may affect you

  • The Conversation ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Documenting the world’s largest prehistoric rock art in South America – new study

  • The Conversation ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] The fascinating psychology behind ‘dine and dash’ and why it’s about so much more than a free meal

  • The Conversation ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Do we have more empathy for people who are similar to us? New research suggests it’s not that simple

  • The Conversation ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Welcome to the age of space scepticism – and a growing revolt against elites

  • The Conversation ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] How studying (robot) pigeon navigation changed my mind about their intellect

  • The Conversation ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] The Sun is reaching the peak of its activity – here’s how that could cause more auroras and solar storms

  • Andrei Ciobanu ☛ 13 problems with logarithms

    As a side hobby, I like to compose math problems. Solving exercises is one game; creating exercises is another world. It’s fun because you never know where you are going or what you wish to obtain, but sometimes, you can unravel interesting relationships between numbers.

    This problem set is an original endeavor, meaning I haven’t purposely copied the problems from an existing book or paper. However, the more straightforward exercises are just “natural” extensions of existing formulas, and I am sure somebody else proposed them first. For example, exercise 4 appears under different forms in various problems you can find online, and exercise 5 is a variation of an existing exercise from the classical Romanian “culegere de probleme” Nastasescu & Nita. I found exercise 8 solved on YouTube with a slight twist: \(a=10, b=e\).

• Education

  • Thomas Rigby ☛ This one weird punctuation thing really grinds my gears

    It is grammatically correct (in English, not sure about other languages) to place ending punctuation within any quotation marks.

    In my opinion it looks wrong.

  • Kansas Reflector ☛ Kansas relying on Blueprint for Literacy to build reading skills among public school students

    A bipartisan coalition of state legislators earmarked $10 million to implement the blueprint and work to change the lives of 40% of Kansas public school students not proficient at reading.

  • Thorsten Ball ☛ Note From the Bouncy Castle

    I’ve always thought of my strengths as things I can do even though they’re hard. Things that I’ve worked on, that are exhausting, that I’ve trained for, that take me a lot of effort, but that I can still do. These are my strengths — things not everybody can do, but I can, because I worked hard at it.

    Then someone said to me about something: that’s a strength of yours. No, it isn’t, I said, that’s very easy to do. For you, he said, but just because it’s easy for you, doesn’t mean it’s easy for others, and just because — or maybe: because of that — it’s easy for you or comes naturally to you, doesn’t mean it’s not a strength of yours. Things that come easy to you, he said, can be strengths, there’s no requirement that strain or lots of effort have to be involved.

  • Robert Birming ☛ Don't hold back

    It worked mentally for a short time, but then the doubt came back as strong as before. And my gut was constantly shouting that this was a clear case of "the wrong person in the wrong place".

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Green Party UK ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Greens offer ‘game-changing’ investment to 'nurse the NHS back to health'

  • Green Party UK ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Boost NHS salaries, guarantee access to NHS dentists, and give free personal care say Greens

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Germany: Radical fixes to an ailing healthcare system

  • COVID-19 vaccine “skeptics” are just antivax now

    Ever since the mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines were first granted emergency use approval (EUA) by the FDA in early December 2020—and, truth be told, even before that—I knew that the antivaccine movement would latch onto them and do its best to stoke fear, uncertainty, and doubt about their safety and efficacy. This was not a difficult prediction to make of course, given that that’s what antivaxxers have always done with a new vaccine, the most recent example being vaccines against human papilloma virus (HPV), such as Gardasil, which, as soon as it was approved by the FDA, ran into a buzzsaw of antivax misinformation, including false claims that the vaccine was causing sterility or, even worse, killing adolescent girls and young women. There was a time when I though that maybe—just maybe—it would be somewhat different with COVID-19 vaccines, given that we were in the middle of a global pandemic that had, in the US alone, already killed roughly 300,000 people by the time the vaccines started rolling out (and went on to produce a death toll of over a million). I soon realized that even my mild optimism had been way, way too optimistic. Antivax misinformation and lies about COVID-19 vaccines flowed rapidly and in vast quantities on social media and certain ideologically slanted old media outlets, including misinformation that the new vaccines caused sterility, “turbo cancer,” death, “permanent” alteration to your DNA, neurologic injury, and many more problems, all while not working.

  • The Hill ☛ PFAS drinking water rule challenged by utility lobby groups

    The American Water Works Association and the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies filed a petition on Friday challenging new drinking water limits that pertain to certain chemicals in a family known as PFAS.

    On Monday, the National Association of Manufacturer and the American Chemistry Council, trade groups representing the manufacturing and chemical industries, also filed a challenge to the rule.

  • [Repeat] Tedium ☛ Brannock Device History: A Machine That Measures Feet

    Today in Tedium: When a large retail outlet is in its final throes, it can be fascinating to walk around one, not necessarily because you want to buy anything, but because of the things the natural selection process of panic-shopping surfaces. (When something is 90 percent off, you have to really not want it to leave it sitting there.) So in the early days of 2009, when I learned my local Sears store was closing after more than 40 years in business, I made two stops: One, nine days before its closure; and two, on its final day. As you can imagine, the trip surfaced different sales items each time, even though it was the same massive store both times, but the different levels of decay put different levels of focus on what was there. And during the last time, I found myself utterly enthralled with a device I’ve seen a million times, as have most of you. Something about the removal of its full context, as well as the clear amount of use the product had received, made the device stand out that much more. I’m, of course (of course!) talking about the Brannock Device, a mainstay of shoe stores for decades. What’s your shoe size? Today’s Tedium talks about the simple device that could easily tell you. — Ernie @ Tedium

  • VOA News ☛ Some US families opt to raise teens sans social media

    Gabriela Durham, a high school senior in Brooklyn, says navigating high school without social media has made her who she is today. She is a focused, organized, straight-A student. Not having social media has made her an "outsider," in some ways. That used to hurt; now, she says, it feels like a badge of honor.

    With the damaging consequences of social media increasingly well documented, many parents are trying to raise their children with restrictions or blanket bans. Teenagers themselves are aware that too much social media is bad for them, and some are initiating social media "cleanses" because of the toll it takes on mental health and grades.

  • Nebraska Examiner ☛ Prodded by fed up parents, some in Congress try to curb kids’ use of social media • Nebraska Examiner

    Lawmakers are seeking to set a minimum age to access social media and put more of the onus on social media companies and their algorithms, while also giving parents more controls in trying to protect their kids online.

    A bipartisan coalition of U.S. senators, led by Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Brian Schatz of Hawaii, introduced a new version of a bill that would set a minimum age of 13 to access social media platforms.

    It would also block the use of “addictive algorithms” on social media platforms for those under 17 and limit social media use in schools. In late April, the bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, but the committee said it does not have a markup date.

• Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  • Kissflow Layoffs: Indian Software Company Cuts 15% of Its Workforce, Around 20 to 25 Employees Due to Product Shut Downs, Annual Performance Reviews

    Kissflow, a Chennai-based SaaS firm, laid off 15% of its employees due to product shut downs and annual performance reviews. The Kissflow layoffs affected 20 to 25 employees amid the macroeconomic pressure and implemented to increase customer acquisition across its digital products.

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] US Antitrust Enforcers Will Investigate Leading AI Companies Microsoft, Nvidia and OpenAI

  • The Age AU ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] From mortgage checks to scam-busting: How your bank is using AI

  • Matt Cool ☛ Community Programming Mini Case Study: Build Space

    An interesting component is Sage, a presumably OpenAI-based chatbot that helps you find others in the program and write your profile. I didn’t think I was going to like this, but I did. At first glance, it might look like another community-forced integration of AI, but it’s genuinely helpful and an interesting way to establish the brand for Build Space. It made the chore of setting up another online profile more interesting, and even with the usual LLM quirks, it was a fun experience cobbling it together with this no-caps Gen Z bot.

  • MIT Technology Review ☛ The data practitioner for the AI era

    This report explores, through a series of interviews with expert data practitioners, key shifts in data engineering, the evolving skill set required of data practitioners, options for data infrastructure and tooling to support AI, and data challenges and opportunities emerging in parallel with generative AI. The report’s key findings include the following: [...]

  • Federal News Network ☛ Accounting software keeps small business out of federal market

    A shrinking number of companies seem to want to do business with the federal government. Especially small businesses. Could it be all of the reporting and compliance requirements. There is one class of compliance that is particularly tricky, as the Federal Drive with Tom Temin heard from the Founder and CEO of PROCAS, Jim Wesloh.

  • New York Times ☛ California Proposes 30 AI Regulation Laws Amid Federal Standstill

    Lawmakers in California last month advanced about 30 new measures on artificial intelligence aimed at protecting consumers and jobs, one of the biggest efforts yet to regulate the new technology.

    The bills seek the toughest restrictions in the nation on A.I., which some technologists warn could kill entire categories of jobs, throw elections into chaos with disinformation, and pose national security risks. The California proposals, many of which have gained broad support, include rules to prevent A.I. tools from discriminating in housing and health care services. They also aim to protect intellectual [sic] property [sic] and jobs.

  • The Hill ☛ AI firms should be very afraid of lying to the government about what their products can do

    During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln confronted a rash of companies trying to sell the Union Army fake goods. Lincoln knew that the best way to stop companies from cheating the government was to incentivize individuals to come forward and tell the government directly. Thus, he created the False Claims Act, to stop what we would now call defense contractor fraud.

    The False Claims Act provides that any individual who knows about a company cheating the government can step into the shoes of the government and sue the company on its behalf. The government then has the right to investigate the claims brought by the whistleblower (or “relator” as whistleblowers are officially known in the False Claims Act) and decide whether to take on the case as its own.

  • Ruud van Asseldonk ☛ AI alignment starter pack

    Despite the amount of attention that machine learning is receiving nowadays, few people are familiar with the concept of AI alignment. This worries me, because a misaligned superintelligence has the potential to pose an existential threat to humanity, and I think we should treat it as seriously as nuclear warfare or climate change. In this post I want to introduce some of the concepts and share pointers for where to learn more about AI alignment.

  • [Repeat] New York Times ☛ How the Humane AI Pin Flopped

    The developments amount to a face-plant by Humane, which had positioned itself as a top contender among a wave of A.I. hardware makers. The San Francisco company had raised $240 million from powerful Silicon Valley investors, including Sam Altman, OpenAI’s chief executive, and Marc Benioff, Salesforce’s chief executive, who valued the start-up at $1 billion based on its enormous ambition and promise. Humane spent five years building a device to disrupt the smartphone — only to flounder.

  • The Register UK ☛ Cisco fixes WebEx flaw after government comms exposed

    The investigators, who received links to thousands of meetings hosted by the German armed forces (Bundeswehr) from Netzbegrünung, the German association for green web culture, were able to drop into the assembly gatherings held by the Social Democratic Party of Germany via phone, for example, all while remaining undetected.

    While not explicitly linked to this research, it wouldn't be a stretch to assume that the Russian leak of Bundeswehr calls in March was due to the bug in question.

  • Futurism ☛ Researcher Estimates 99.9 Percent Chance AI Will Destroy Humankind

    Some are extraordinarily negative. Take AI researcher and University of Louisville computer science lecturer Roman Yampolskiy, who's squarely in the doomer camp. In a recent episode of Lex Fridman's podcast, he predicted that there's — get this — a 99.9 percent chance AI could wipe out humanity within the next 100 years.

  • Futurism ☛ Former OpenAI Employee Says Company Had Plan to Start AGI Bidding War With China and Russia

    In a new interview, a former OpenAI employee made a striking claim about his ex-employer's plans for artificial general intelligence (AGI) — or, more specifically, how to make a bunch of money off it.

    During a lengthy interview with tech podcaster Dwarkesh Patel, ex-OpenAI safety researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner claimed that he'd heard tell "from multiple people" that his erstwhile employer had, in years past, schemed to start a global AGI bidding war.

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • Gizmodo ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Big Name TikTok Accounts Reportedly Hacked Via DMs

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] TikTok Says Cyberattack Targeted CNN and Other 'High-Profile Accounts'

    • AccessNow ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] First-time culprit: France blocks TikTok in New Caledonia [Ed: So accessnow protecting China's attempt to rile people up outside China]

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Trump Seeks to Court Young Male Voters in New TikTok Gambit [Ed: Foreign influence]

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Donald Trump Joins TikTok and Rapidly Wins Two Million Followers

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Trump Joins TikTok and Calls It 'An Honor.' as President He Once Tried to Ban the Video-Sharing App

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Far-right AfD appears as strongest German party on TikTok [Ed: China knows how to weaken other nations]

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Gizmodo ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] A Google Worker Reportedly Watched Private Nintendo Videos and Leaked Content

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] YouTube Toughens Policy on Gun Videos and Youth; Critics Say Proof Will Be in Enforcement

    • Gizmodo ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] YouTube Is Cracking Down on Gun Content, and 3D-Printed Gun Makers Aren't Happy

    • Wired ☛ Apple’s Biggest AI Challenge? Making It Behave

      Apple has a history of succeeding despite being late to market so many times before: the iPhone, the Apple Watch, AirPods, to name a few cases. Now the company hopes to show that the same approach will work with generative artificial intelligence, announcing today an Apple Intelligence initiative that bakes the technology into just about every device and application Apple offers.

    • The Record ☛ As markup nears, knives come out for comprehensive data privacy legislation

      With the American Privacy Rights Act (APRA) weeks away from a markup, critics of the bill’s language are ratcheting up pressure on congressional leaders to change the landmark federal comprehensive data privacy legislation.

      On Monday, a coalition of business associations and big tech advocacy groups sent House Energy and Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (D-WA) a letter attacking the bill for failing to provide “a uniform national privacy standard.”

    • Wired ☛ AI Tools Are Secretly Training on Real Images of Children

      The images have been scraped from content posted as recently as 2023 and as far back as the mid-1990s, according to the report, long before any internet user might anticipate that their content might be used to train AI. Human Rights Watch claims that personal details of these children, alongside URL links to their photographs, were included in LAION-5B, a dataset that has been a popular source of training data for AI startups.

    • HRW ☛ Brazil: Children’s Personal Photos Misused to Power AI Tools

      The personal photos of Brazilian children are being used to create powerful artificial intelligence (AI) tools without the children’s knowledge or consent, Human Rights Watch said today. These photos are being scraped off the web into a large data set that companies then use to train their AI tools. In turn, others are using these tools to create malicious deepfakes that put even more children at risk of exploitation and harm.

    • Wired ☛ Apple Is Coming for Your Password Manager

      At Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference next week, the company will reportedly announce its own stand-alone password manager that will compete with apps like 1Password and LastPass. Dubbed simply Passwords, according to Bloomberg News, the app will reportedly have features that go well beyond the iCloud or Mac Keychain tools Apple already offers, allowing users to save passwords for Wi-Fi networks, store passkeys, and organize login credentials into categories. Passwords will also reportedly work on Windows machines, but it’s unclear whether people who use Android devices can get in on the security tool.

    • Security Week ☛ Microsoft Bows to Public Pressure, Disables Controversial Windows Recall by Default

      Just this week, security researchers documented several ways malware could be designed to steal Windows Recall data and Google Project Zero researcher James Forshaw provided evidence that Windows Recall data is poorly protected on Windows.

    • Cyble Inc ☛ Microsoft Makes Windows Recall Opt-in, Encrypted After Outcry

      Recall, planned for Copilot+ PCs starting June 18, would have taken frequent screenshots of user activity with inadequate security controls and would have been turned on by default, raising concerns about the ability of hackers, domestic abusers and other malicious actors to access a trove of personal and financial data with ease.

    • Wired ☛ Microsoft Will Switch Off Recall by Default After Security Backlash

      When Microsoft named its new Windows feature Recall, the company intended the word to refer to a kind of perfect, AI-enabled memory for your device. Today, the other, unintended definition of “recall”—a company's admission that a product is too dangerous or defective to be left on the market in its current form—seems more appropriate.

  • Confidentiality

    • Oona Räisänen ☛ Pea whistle steganography

      Would anyone notice if a referee's whistle transmitted a secret data burst?

      I do really follow the game. But every time the pea whistle sounds to start the jam I can't help but think of the possibility of embedding data in the frequency fluctuation. I'm sure it's alternating between two distinct frequencies. Is it really that binary? How random is the fluctuation? Could it be synthesized to contain data, and could that be read back?

• Defence/Aggression

  • CBC ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] U.K. psychiatrist's YouTube advice around murder confessions questioned during serial killer trial

  • CPJ ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Attacks, arrests, threats, censorship: The high risks of reporting the Israel-Gaza war

  • TruthOut ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Palestinian Lawyer Censored for “Nakba as a Legal Concept” Article Speaks Out

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Turkey tops renewed spike in European incarceration rate

  • Atlantic Council ☛ ISIS fell, but the conditions that created the terrorist group still exist in Iraq

    What Iraq needs to ensure its success on the path of security and self-governance is to tackle the two most pressing challenges: economic uncertainty and corruption. Iraq continues to depend on a rentier economy, fully dependent on oil revenues, which fall short of supporting the governmental operational cost or leaving extra funds to invest in building a robust economy. Iraq’s only way out of the current economic quagmire is a diversified economy that encourages investment and a private sector. The Iraqi government must move away from the old philosophy and practice of a state-controlled economy to a new direction where its role is to create a healthy environment in which private businesses can thrive. In contrast, the Iraqi government is a regulator in most sectors where governments have not traditionally performed adequately.

    The same attention needs to be given to the malignant threat of corruption.

  • LRT ☛ Why pacifism kills – opinion

    In spite of Ukraine’s continued fight against Russian aggression, there are still many voices calling for peace at any cost. While such proposals may appear attractive on the surface, they ultimately benefit Moscow’s clear desire for further violence and terror on its own terms.

  • YLE ☛ Council of Europe group urges Finland to better combat human trafficking

    Finland should strengthen its laws on human trafficking and provide victims with compensation and assistance, according to a new report from the Council of Europe's Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (Greta).

  • Council Of Europe ☛ Finland: Third evaluation round: Access to justice and effective remedies for victims of traffickingin human beings [PDF]

    Despite the increase in the number of victims of THB, the Assistance System, which is administered by the Finnish Immigration Service, remains understaffed. Further, there are considerable variations in the availability and quality of assistance to victims between municipalities. GRETA urges the Finnish authorities to take further steps to comply with their obligations under Article 12 of the Convention and ensure that all victims of trafficking, including men, are provided with accommodation that is safe and suitable for their needs.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ Suspected IS supporter arrested at Cologne airport

    Investigators say the man, who has shared German-Moroccan-Polish nationality, transferred money in September 2023 to an account belonging to an offshoot of the IS terror group, the Islamic State Khorasan Province.

    According to the German press agency dpa, the man also applied to work as a steward and security staff for so-called side events outside the football stadiums during the Euros but was unsuccessful.

  • US News And World Report ☛ Suspected Islamists Kill at Least 10 in Attack on Eastern Congo Village

    The ADF originates from neighbouring Uganda. Now based in eastern Congo, it has pledged allegiance to Islamic State and mounts frequent attacks, further destabilising a region where many militant groups are active.

  • The Hindu ☛ China Embassy says no such thing as ‘president’ of Taiwan region

    Responding to the message, Mr. Modi thanked the Taiwanese leader and expressed hope for “closer ties” that would enhance “mutually beneficial economic and technological partnership.” The Prime Minister did not address Mr. Lai as ‘President’.

  • VOA News ☛ Russia aims to increase footprint, influence in Africa

    Russia's top diplomat pledged help and military assistance while on a whirlwind tour of several countries in Africa's sub-Saharan region of Sahel this week, as Moscow seeks to grow its influence in the restive, mineral-rich section of the continent.

    Russia is emerging as the security partner of choice for a growing number of African governments in the region, displacing traditional allies like France and the United States. Sergey Lavrov, who has made several trips to Africa in recent years, this week stopped in Guinea, the Republic of Congo, Burkina Faso and Chad.

  • Meduza ☛ ‘They broke ribs, damaged kidneys’: Ukrainian women POWs recount the torture they endured during their time in Russian captivity

    More than 400 Ukrainian women are currently being held in Russian captivity, according to Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. Those who’ve been released recount inhumane conditions, sexual assault, and torture during their detention. In the new film Captivity, the independent television channel Dozhd (TV Rain) interviews some of these women about their experiences and speaks with the daughter of a woman who is still imprisoned. Meduza shares excerpts from their stories.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] War with China 'neither imminent nor unavoidable,' US says

  • Vox ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] The backlash against children’s YouTuber Ms Rachel, explained

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Germany's Scholz Vows to Defend Free Speech After Campaign Violence

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Germany debates deportations to Afghanistan and Syria

  • ANF News ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] SDF remembers Keith Broomfield: A story of heroism, struggle and sacrifice against terrorism

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Syrians in Lebanon: Not safe to stay, not safe to go home

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ ‘I’m sick and tired of this war’: Meduza’s dispatch from a Warsaw music festival where Ukrainian and Russian artists shared the stage — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ New investigation shows that Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner Group lost almost 20,000 men in the battle for Bakhmut (and paid their families more than a billion dollars in compensation) — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Political scientist Steffen Kailitz explains the risks and rewards of Vladimir Putin’s growing reliance on economic technocrats — Meduza

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Biden Heads to France for D-Day Anniversary, Democracy Speech

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Biden calls for defense of democracy in Normandy speech

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Artur Chilingarov, Russian Polar Scientist and Member of Parliament, Dies at 84

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] At Least 19 Injured as Russia Hits Ukraine's Power Grid With Fresh Barrage

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Moldovan Opposition Leader Calls for Better Ties With Russia, China

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Russian Missile Injures 13 Near Ukraine's Kharkiv, Prosecutors Say

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Russia Pounds Ukraine's Energy Sector, Kyiv Urges More Air Defence Assistance

    • NL Times ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Client suspected of violently murdering Ukrainian sex worker faces 15 years in prison

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Biden, Macron Talk Middle East and Ukraine in French State Visit

    • NL Times ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] The Netherlands is building 180 armored personnel carriers for Ukraine

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Ukraine updates: EU says Kyiv ready for membership talks

    • HRW ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Ukraine: Recovery Conference Could Be Lifeline for Children

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Zelenskiy Says It's for Ukraine to Determine His Legitimacy, Not Putin

    • CBC ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Putin's threat to put long-range weapons closer to West leaves unanswered questions

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Ukraine updates: Zelenskyy in France for D-Day anniversary

    • The Age AU ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Facing Ukraine’s US-supplied missiles, Putin hints he could arm others to strike West

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] US to Send New $225 Million Military Aid Package to Ukraine, Officials Say.

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] France to Provide Mirage 2000 Warplanes to Ukraine, Macron Says

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] US Encourages China to Attend Peace Summit on Ukraine

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Slovakia's Fico Says He Was Targeted for Ukraine Views, in First Speech Since Assassination Attempt

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Ukraine's Zelenskiy, Qatari Emir Discuss How to End War, Qatari News Report Says

    • Counter Punch ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Look Who’s Spreading Disinformation on Ukraine

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Treasury Official Says Budget Assistance Designed to Help Ukraine Anti-Corruption Efforts

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Ukraine updates: Zelenskyy visits Philippines to promote peace summit

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Ex-US Soldier Charged in 'International Crime Spree' Extradited From Ukraine, Officials Say

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Ukraine: A focus on emergency aid rather than reconstruction

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Ukraine updates: Zelenskyy seeks support for peace summit

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Chinese Defence Minister, Ukraine's Zelenskiy Dominate Asian Security Conference

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] At Shangri-La Dialogue, Ukraine's Allies - and Zelenskiy - Push for More Defence Aid

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Ukraine's Zelenskiy Dominates Asia Security Conference as China, Taiwan Trade Barbs

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Ukraine's Zelenskiy to Address Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Organisers Confirm

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Russia arrests French citizen accused of collecting military data

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Russia, China Wrangle With US Over UN Resolution on Gaza Ceasefire Plan

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Russia-Installed Governor Says Ukrainian Forces Kill 22 in Small Town

    • Counter Punch ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Russian Uranium Ban Reopens Threat of Uranium Mining Escalation in US

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Russia rebuilding ties with the Taliban

    • Modern Diplomacy ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] American and Russian “Firebreaks”: Survival Risks of Asymmetrical Nuclear Doctrine

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Reports: Russian physicists being denied entry to US

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Attacks in Russian-Occupied Ukrainian Regions Leave 28 Dead, Moscow-Appointed Officials Say

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Russia Destroys Three Ukrainian Drones Over North Ossetia, Local Head Says

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Ukraine Air Defence Downs 9 Out of 13 Russian Drones Over Four Regions

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Moldovan Prosecutors Mull Charges Against General Accused of Spying for Russia

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Russian Warships Will Arrive in Havana Next Week, Say Cuban Officials Citing 'Friendly Relations'

    • Counter Punch ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Israel, Russia, and International Law

    • Counter Punch ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Why Russians Still Support the War

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] French counter-terrorism police detain Russian-Ukrainian man

    • Truthdig ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Ukraine Needs to Stop Droning Russia’s Nuke Radars

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Ukraine Uses US Weapons to Strike Inside Russia, According to a Senator and a Western Official

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] EU to Consider Leveraging Windfall Profits From Russian Assets After G7 Summit

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] France Arrests Ukraine-Russia National With Explosives on Terror Charges

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Kremlin Says US Is Blackmailing China by Threatening Sanctions Over Exports to Russia

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Putin Says U.S. Courts Are Being Used Against Trump

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Putin Says Russia Could Use Nuclear Weapons if Its Sovereignty or Territory Was Under Threat

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Putin Warns That Russia Could Provide Long-Range Weapons to Others to Strike Western Targets

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Allies Make Progress on Using Russian Assets for Ukraine, U.S. Official Says

    • Vox ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] The US tests Putin’s nuclear threats in Ukraine

    • Gizmodo ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Fake Tom Cruise Movie About the Paris Olympics Tied to Russian Disinformation

    • Modern Diplomacy ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Russia Holds BRICS Games Amid Heightened Geopolitical Divergences

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Russia Intercepts 20 Ukrainian Drones in Kursk, Governor Says

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Wives of Mobilized Russian Soldiers Hold Rare Protest at Defense Ministry Demanding Their Return

    • The Age AU ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Real Madrid seals 15th European Cup after 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund

    • The Age AU ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] She’s 98, and walked through a battlefield in slippers to escape Russian attacks

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Energy Shutdowns Hit Ukraine After Russian Attacks Target Infrastructure

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Two Killed in Lukoil Refinery Fire in Northwestern Russia

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Local Official Dies in Russia's Belgorod as Ammunition Detonates, Governor Says

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Russia Threatens Former Chess Champion Kasparov With Criminal Charges

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Zelenskyy Accuses China of Pressuring Other Countries Not to Attend Upcoming Ukraine Peace Talks

    • NL Times ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Ukraine receives 24 Dutch F-16 fighter jets for use against targets in Russia

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Ukraine updates: Russian energy grid attacks wound many

• Transparency/Investigative Reporting

  • Futurism ☛ Popular News App Caught Publishing Completely Untrue AI Articles

    NewsBreak — the most downloaded news app in the US — has been publishing made-up news articles generated by AI, a Reuters investigation reveals.

  • The Atlantic ☛ The Books Briefing: Adam Higginbotham and Challenger

    The immediate answers lie mostly in the end matter. There, Higginbotham reveals that he relied on extensive interviews with surviving family of the Challenger crew, in addition to supporting material from engineers, contractors, and astronauts. He mentions four years of trawling through archives and oral histories, submitting FOIA requests, sending emails, and talking with people; the notes in the finished book are 63 pages long, in tiny script, and followed by a robust bibliography. Higginbotham had ample material to pull from—many diagrams, reports, and testimonies exist because the disaster was covered extensively from nearly the second the shuttle disappeared in a ball of orange flame and white vapor. What he adds is depth made possible by time.

• Environment

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Southern Germany hit by catastrophic flooding

  • Jacobin Magazine ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Juneau’s Landslide Crisis Is Looming

  • Mexico News Daily ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] The dog days come early: Mexico’s climate crisis

  • TruthOut ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] Hochul Pressured to Sign NY Bill Making Big Oil Pay for Climate Adaptation

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] How hard-right EU lawmakers vote on climate, migration

  • Counter Punch ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Climate Activists Must do More

  • Counter Punch ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] We Need to Reclaim the Muddy Waters of the Louisiana Gulf Coast From the Climate Crisis

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] How is climate change impacting flooding around the world?

  • The Age AU ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Ban fossil fuel ads to prevent ‘climate hell’, says UN chief

  • Green Party UK ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] UN Secretary General's climate speech: only Greens offer real hope and real change on climate crisis

  • Vox ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] How heat waves form, and how climate change makes them worse

  • Truthdig ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Mexico Elects Climate Scientist As First Female President

  • Scheerpost ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Leftist Climate Scientist Claudia Sheinbaum Wins Mexican Presidency in Landslide

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Climate Change Made Devastating Brazil Floods Twice as Likely, Scientists Say

  • CBC ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Scientists are on a quest for drought-resistant wheat, agriculture's 'Holy Grail'

  • TruthOut ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Wealthy Nations Finally Meet $100B Climate Aid Promise, But Much More Is Needed

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] A Climate Activist in Paris Stuck a Protest Poster on Monet's 'Poppy Field'

  • Truthdig ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] AI Is Another Threat to the Climate

  • Modern Diplomacy ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Sustainable Pakistan: Climate Action Now

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Maryland Agencies Must Submit a Plan to Help Fight Climate Change, Governor Says

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] New Study Finds Earth Warming at Record Rate, but No Evidence of Climate Change Accelerating

  • Modern Diplomacy ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Devastating floods in Germany and Italy: more protection and climate action needed

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Climate finance: Preparations for UN climate talks kick off

  • BIA Net ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Turkey celebrates World Environment Day with news of ecocide

  • Greece ☛ Experts warn of collapse of sea ecosystems

    “We’ve seen the collapse happening for years. In the last decade, however, it has taken on very alarming proportions. It’s not just due to climate change – climate change and the rise of alien species is the icing on the cake. I am very afraid of what all this means for our seas,” she told Kathimerini.

  • Rolling Stone ☛ Supreme Court Helps Big Oil, Delays Historic Climate Lawsuit

    In 2020, Honolulu sued major oil and gas companies, accusing them of knowing for decades that burning fossil fuels would damage the climate — and violating laws requiring them to warn the public about the harms caused by their products.

    The litigation aims to force oil companies to cover the bill for damages to property and infrastructure. If it were to succeed, the lawsuit and others like it could ultimately force fossil fuel companies to pay billions of dollars. The companies argue the federal Clean Air Act should preempt state laws, and thus shut down the litigation.

  • The Straits Times ☛ India under longest-ever heatwave, with worse to come

    Parts of northern India have been gripped by a heatwave since mid-May, with temperatures soaring over 45 deg C.

    “This has been the longest spell because it has been experienced for about 24 days in different parts of the country,” the head of India’s Meteorological Department (IMD), Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, said in an interview with the Indian Express daily.

  • Brr ☛ South Pole Water Infrastructure

    This post will focus on how we produce fresh water and how we dispose of wastewater at the South Pole.

    The majority of the world’s population lives in coastal regions, and researchers in Antarctica are no exception.

    Most Antarctic research stations sit on or near the coast. Coastal stations are easier to operate, because the ocean provides a moderating effect on the climate, access to ship-based transportation, a water source, and a mechanism to dispose of (hopefully treated!) wastewater.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Futurism ☛ There Are Now So Many Unsold Teslas That You Can See Them From Orbit

      With sales slumping, production is outpacing demand considerably. And Tesla has seemingly struggled to ramp down production in time, with unsold stock piling up so much that it can literally be spotted from space, as Sherwood reports.

      Satellite imagery, courtesy of observation marketplace SkyFi, reveals that lots at the company's sales centers across the country and its factory in Fremont, California are really starting to fill up — a striking visualization of Tesla's ongoing financial woes.

    • CBC ☛ China's EV market is going global. Can U.S., Canada balance protectionism with reducing emissions?

      "In the last five years or so, China emerged as an absolute leader in [the EV] space," said Alla Kolesnikova, head of data and analytics at Adamas Intelligence, a research and consulting firm specializing in strategic metals and minerals based in Toronto.

    • Molly White ☛ Issue 59 – Hot damn, this is going to get interesting quickly

      In a surprise move two weeks ago, the SEC approved Ethereum spot ETP applications. As I mentioned in a previous issue [I56], early optimism around the chances of a speedy approval had dwindled as the SEC delayed decisions and had put off the kind of back-and-forth with issuers that preceded the bitcoin ETP approval. Some analysts still predicted an eventual approval, but the SEC’s rather abrupt decision to engage with applicants and then approve the applications (only days later, on May 23) took many by surprise.

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Oil Producers Led by Saudis Extended Supply Cuts Amid Slack Prices

    • NL Times ☛ 2024-06-08 [Older] DNB: energy bill as affordable again as before energy crisis

    • Counter Punch ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] The Necessary State: the Market Can’t Deliver the Energy Transition

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Judge Dismisses Native American Challenge to $10B SunZia Energy Transmission Project in Arizona

    • Modern Diplomacy ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] What Goes into Setting Up a Green Energy Power Plant?

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] US May Revive Some Shut Nuclear Plants to Help Meet Emissions Goal, Energy Chief Says

    • Bridge Michigan ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Opinion | Third-party community programs would expand solar-energy access in Michigan

    • The Age AU ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Deal done: Astron, Energy Fuels set for critical minerals JV

    • NL Times ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Energie-NL:power grid expansion should not be paid for through people's energy bills

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Vox ☛ Elephants have names — and they use them with each other

      Wild African elephants call each other by their names, according to a study published today in Nature Ecology & Evolution — making them the only nonhuman animals known to use language like this.

    • Science Alert ☛ Wild Elephants Invent Names For One Another in Surprise Sign of Abstract Thinking

      For the new study, a team of international researchers used an artificial intelligence algorithm to analyse the calls of two wild herds of African savannah elephants in Kenya.

      The research "not only shows that elephants use specific vocalisations for each individual, but that they recognise and react to a call addressed to them while ignoring those addressed to others," lead study author Michael Pardo said.

    • Hindustan Times ☛ Elephants use 'names' to communicate with each other: Study

      The researchers analyzed vocalizations - mostly rumbles generated by elephants using their vocal cords, similar to how people speak - made by more than 100 elephants in Amboseli National Park and Samburu National Reserve.

      Using a machine-learning model, the researchers identified what appeared to be a name-like component in these calls identifying a specific elephant as the intended addressee. The researchers then played audio for 17 elephants to test how they would respond to a call apparently addressed to them as well as to a call apparently addressed to some other elephant.

  • Overpopulation

    • The North Lines IN ☛ Delhi water crisis: Supreme Court takes exception to Kejriwal government’s failure to remove defects in petition; hearing deferred to June 12

      New Delhi, Jun 10: The Supreme Court on Monday took strong exception to the Delhi government's failure to remove certain defects in its petition seeking a direction to the Haryana government to release surplus water provided by Himachal Pradesh to deal with the water crisis in the national capital.

• Finance

  • HRW ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Saudi Arabia: ILO Forced Labor Complaint a Wake-Up Call

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Why did the US open up banking to Cuba's private sector?

  • Gizmodo ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] What to Know About 'Open Banking,' Coming Soon in the U.S.

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Banks' Drive to 'Tokenise' Assets Moves Slower Than Expected

  • Axios ☛ For venture capitalists, it's about AI and then everything else

    Artificial intelligence is skewing the venture capital market.

    • Not the tech itself, but the billions flooding into foundational model makers and their brethren.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Idiomdrottning ☛ Against the Appified Society

    The appified society is wrong when apps become necessary infrastructure, since infrastructure should be controlled by the people democratically, not privately owned by corporations. The network externality exacerbates those problems.

  • Forbes ☛ Trump’s Liquor Licenses Under Scrutiny After Felony Conviction

    Trump is the sole owner of three golf courses in New Jersey that have active liquor licenses, according to the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control. New Jersey law prohibits issuing a liquor license to anyone who has been convicted of a crime “involving moral turpitude.” A state handbook explains that those sorts of crimes typically involve “dishonesty, fraud or depravity” severe enough to typically be punishable by more than a year in prison.

    Spokespeople for the Trump Organization did not respond to requests for comment.

  • 404 Media ☛ Gateway Pundit Bankruptcy Is a 'Delay Tactic,' Election Workers Suing the Company Say

    Specifically, The Gateway Pundit is being sued for defamation in both Missouri and Colorado by two 2020 Georgia election workers, Ruby Freeman and Shane Moss. Soon after the 2020 election, The Gateway Pundit ran 29 separate articles alleging that Freeman and Moss committed election fraud to help Joe Biden beat Donald Trump. Both Freeman and Moss were cleared by an official Georgia investigation. Neither of the defamation cases have been decided yet, however, and are unlikely to be decided in the near future according to Freeman and Moss’s attorneys. The Gateway Pundit’s legal fees in these cases are currently being paid by a defamation insurance policy.

  • OpenRightsGroup ☛ Digital Rights 24

    Open Rights Group shared this guide for political parties to help inform the digital policies in their manifestos for the 2024 General Election.

  • Tech Central (South Africa) ☛ Big legal threat to new Copilot+ PCs

    “It’s definitely a real risk,” said Doug O’Laughlin, the founder of chip financial analysis firm Fabricated Knowledge. “The more successful [the laptops are], the more fees ARM can get eventually.”

    The British company, which is majority-owned by Japan’s SoftBank Group, sued Qualcomm in 2022 for failing to negotiate a new licence after it acquired a new company. The suit revolves around tech that Qualcomm, a designer of mobile chips, acquired from a business called Nuvia that was founded by Apple chip engineers and which it purchased in 2021 for US$1.4-billion.

  • Netzpolitik ☛ European Election: German Pirates will not re-enter EU Parliament

    The biggest losers among them are the Greens. The German Pirates even miss their re-entry, marking the end of an important part of digital civil society in the Parliament. It’s the end of a ten-year era.

  • Federal News Network ☛ CYBERCOM seeks to get more acquisition authority

    When CYBERCOM launched the Joint Cyber Warfighting Architecture five years ago, the goal was to consolidate disparate systems across the military services into one single platform. The JCWA currently encompasses six programs of record, including the Joint Common Access Platform, which is managed by the Army; the Joint Cyber Command and Control, managed by the Air Force; and a persistent cyber training environment, which also falls under the Army’s purview.

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • Haaretz ☛ Social Media Giants Fail to Remove False Content After Oct 7, Israeli Study Shows

      The Israel Internet Association claims that Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok haven't sufficiently stifled conspiracy theories and false information regarding Hamas' attack and the Gaza war, and ignore users complaints

    • New Eastern Europe ☛ Russia won the propaganda war in Barcelona

      After all, it was the Kremlin’s main money spinner, Gazprom, that financed the founding of Casa de Rusia in 2010. In 2016 this foundation became part of the Russkiy Mir network. Three years later, the Russian House assumed another role as an official representative of St Petersburg State University in Spain. In 2021 the foundation even positioned itself as the leading facilitator of attracting even more Russian tourists to Barcelona, whose number increased from half a million in 2016 to 0.8 million in 2019.

      The Casa de Rusia and its multiplying links with Russia’s elite and top institutions flourished under the watch of CEO Anna Silyunas. She assumed the post in 2018. Silyunas’s position in and access to Russia’s governing structures was perhaps ensured by her former husband, the Russian oligarch Konstantin Ernst. He is the Kremlin’s favoured media and propaganda profiler. Not surprisingly, due to his pivotal role in Russia’s war on Ukraine, Ernst found itself buried under a pile of western sanctions. Apparently, the Russian House was also instrumental in forging operative links between the Catalonian nationalists and the Kremlin.

    • US News And World Report ☛ The US Says It and Poland Are Launching Group to Help Ukraine Counter Kremlin Disinformation

      The U.S. State Department’s Global Engagement Center, which works to highlight disinformation by what it considers hostile states, said in a statement that the U.S. and Poland have jointly launched a Ukraine Communications Group “to support Ukraine against Russia’s aggression in the information space.”

      Increasingly, Polish officials say Poland is also a target of sabotage and other disruptive measures by the Russian secret services.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-01 [Older] Thaksin's 'royal insult': A warning to Thai ex-PM?

  • Jacobin Magazine ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] California’s Academic Strike for Free Speech and Palestine

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2024-06-05 [Older] Yulia Navalnaya receives DW's Freedom of Speech Award

  • TruthOut ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] ACLU Sues Milwaukee Over Republican Convention Free Speech Restrictions

  • Jacobin Magazine ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] For Pamela Paul, Free Speech Attacks Over Palestine Don’t Count

  • Atlantic Council ☛ The high price of dissident art in Iran: Silence or exile

    In recent weeks, the Iranian government’s unprecedented punitive measures against Rasoulof and dissident rapper Toomaj, as he is known to his followers, have ignited widespread controversy, sparking condemnations from civil rights and human rights bodies alike.

    These recent decisions have set new precedents in the history of a regime notorious for its draconian punishments.

  • TMZ ☛ Maitland Ward Says Porn on X Legitimizes Industry, Competes with OnlyFans

    We caught up with the sitcom actress turned porn star in L.A., and asked her about X's change in policy. While Ward admits people have put nudes on X for years, she feels the content's been shadowbanned -- a problem she hopes the new rules will solve.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] With Its Top Editor Abruptly Gone, the Washington Post Grapples With a Hastily Announced Restructure

  • Project Censored ☛ 2024-06-03 [Older] Reinvigorating Diplomacy: Global Tensions and Press Freedom

  • CPJ ☛ Turkmenistan releases journalist imprisoned for 4 years for COVID photo

    “We are relieved that Nurgeldi Halykov is free after enduring a shockingly unjust prison term in one of the world’s most opaque and fearsome prison systems,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, in New York. “Turkmen authorities must ensure that no more journalists are jailed for their reporting and work to improve the country’s international reputation by liberalizing the media environment so that independent reporters do not have to work clandestinely or under fear of arrest.”

  • New York Times ☛ A Reporter’s Work Helped Topple Presidents. Now He Is Being Investigated.

    More recently, he helped expose an enormous bribery scandal known as Operation Carwash that has led to the arrest and resignation of government officials across Latin America.

    Now, Mr. Gorriti himself is facing imprisonment.

    Peru’s attorney general has accused him of bribery, claiming that he provided positive coverage in exchange for government leaks. Mr. Gorriti denies the charges.

    Journalists and free speech supporters say the accusation is politically motivated, meant to punish Mr. Gorriti for his past investigations.

  • CPJ ☛ Mozambique journalist arrested, 2 harassed and robbed at protest

    Wilson said the police officers grabbed her, threw her under the seat of a police van, and took her to the Fourth Station in Maputo where she was held for six hours without being allowed to contact anyone.

    Wilson told CPJ that upon her release, the police retained her phone and told her that she would face an investigation, without specifying the charges.

  • VOA News ☛ Vietnam arrests prominent journalist over Facebook posts

    The 62-year-old former senior lieutenant worked for several influential newspapers in Vietnam before being fired in 2009 for criticizing the country's former communist ally the Soviet Union.

    Shortly before his arrest, Duc took aim at Vietnam's new president, To Lam, as well as Nguyen Phu Trong, the communist party general secretary and most powerful individual in the country's political system.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • The Register UK ☛ Telecom giants ask FCC to hold off net neutrality rules

    Telecom industry organizations have petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to halt its order to restore net neutrality.

    The petition [PDF] was penned by lawyers from a variety of telecom lobbying groups, who represent telecom companies across the country including AT&T, Verizon, and Comcast. While the petition doesn't really ask for more than a delay to the implementation of the new net neutrality rules, it does charge the FCC with making a "seismic claim of authority."

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• IP Kat ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] Fight against counterfeiting: Publication of new draft law in France

• IP Kat ☛ 2024-06-07 [Older] Book Review: Cross-Border Trade Secret Disputes in the European Union - Jurisdiction and Applicable Law

• The Register UK ☛ UK CMA early findings: Microsoft restricts cloud choice

  The CMA’s emerging view is that Microsoft has significant market power thanks to its software products, including Windows Server, Windows 10 and 11, SQL Server, Visual Studio and its productivity suites, which are widely used by organizations.

  It found that the licensing of those products plays a part in a customer’s choice of cloud provider, although conceded that other factors are also involved. Microsoft’s licensing practices will therefore have an effect on which cloud provider a customer chooses, at least when it comes to running Microsoft workloads.

• CoryDoctorow ☛ Pluralistic: The airlines were patient zero in the junk-fee plague

  Indeed, airlines are the cradle of junk-fees, the business that figured out how to extract 100 percent margins on "extras" that don't cost them anything to provide, like seat selection. The Big Four airlines pull down $8.3 billion/year on junk-fees, and it's all thanks to one fella: Jay Sorensen, founder of Ideaworkscompany, a consultancy that teaches airlines how to rip us off.

• Patents

  • Kangaroo Courts

    • IP Kat ☛ 2024-06-02 [Older] The difference between the credibility and the unambiguous disclosure of a therapeutic effect (T 0209/22)

• Trademarks

  • IP Kat ☛ 2024-06-06 [Older] Is Balsamic Vinegar for all? Yes, says Italian Supreme Court

  • IP Kat ☛ 2024-06-04 [Older] Bejewelled Eagle Head not a 3D trade mark, says EUIPO

  • Right of Publicity

    • Axios ☛ Congress wants Scarlett Johansson to testify on OpenAI dispute

      Zoom in: Johansson, who famously voiced an AI program in the 2013 film "Her," said in a statement last month that she received an offer from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in September to voice his ChatGPT 4.0 system.

      • "After much consideration and for personal reasons, I declined the offer," she said, but "nine months later, my friends, family and the general public all noted how much the newest system named 'Sky' sounded like me."

      • Johansson said Altman reached out asking her to reconsider two days before Sky went live. She said she then hired lawyers who got Altman to take down the voice.

• Copyrights

  • Torrent Freak ☛ Google "Profits From Pirated Textbooks" Publishers' Lawsuit Claims

    Google's relationships with major rightsholders seemed to be headed in a positive direction. Yet, according to a new lawsuit filed by the world's largest educational publishers, their situation could hardly be worse. They accuse Google of promoting pirate sites, profiting from piracy, and giving pirates preferential treatment, in part by limiting publishers' ability to advertise legal products.

  • Torrent Freak ☛ Redfox Disappearance Puts a Spotlight on Defiant StreamFab

    RedFox, the outfit behind popular ripping software AnyStream and AnyDVD, seems to have disappeared. The domain name is inaccessible after A records were removed, and its mail server is unreachable too. Despite days of downtime, there is no sign of enforcement action and no word from the developers either. Meanwhile, its competitor, StreamFab, is picking up new users.

  • Techdirt ☛ Court Quickly Dismisses Copyright Suit Against Comedy Central Over Non-Protectable Elements

    The idea/expression dichotomy strikes again! There is a misconception among some as to how copyright works, specifically in terms of what is protected under copyright and what is not. This has been distilled down to the afore-mentioned dichotomy, where general ideas do not enjoy the protection of copyright, whereas specific expressions do. So, an anthropomorphic mouse-hero that wears a cape and can fly is an idea that is not protectable, while the specific depiction of Mighty Mouse (just to age myself) is protectable.

  • New York Times ☛ Can I Opt Out of Meta’s A.I. Scraping on Instagram and Facebook? Sort Of.

    But for those living in the United States, where online privacy laws are not as strict, Meta A.I. has already been using public posts to train its A.I. It’s unclear where else Meta might expand the program.

    Privacy watchdogs have raised concerns about the data usage, and a lack of specifics about what Meta will do with people’s information. But Meta says it is complying with privacy laws, and that the information it is gathering will make services more relevant to the users in a given region.

    Here’s what to know about Meta’s A.I. chatbot and how you can opt out of sharing your information.

  • VOA News ☛ AI 'gold rush' for chatbot training data could run out of human-written text

    A new study released Thursday by research group Epoch AI projects that tech companies will exhaust the supply of publicly available training data for AI language models by roughly the turn of the decade -- sometime between 2026 and 2032.

    Comparing it to a "literal gold rush" that depletes finite natural resources, Tamay Besiroglu, an author of the study, said the AI field might face challenges in maintaining its current pace of progress once it drains the reserves of human-generated writing.