Leftovers

• Ruben Schade ☛ Decision making is social behaviour

  Decision making is essentially social behaviour, even when there is nobody else present, because one anticipates how others will react and factors this into the decision. […] Organizations per se do not make decisions, but individuals in organizations do.

• Chris ☛ Entropic Thoughts: New Name for Two-Wrongs

• Hackaday ☛ 3D-Printed RC Drift Car Comes With Smoke Effects

  Drift cars are cool, but they’re also expensive. If you don’t have money for endless tires, fuel, and engine rebuilds, you might like to get involved at the RC scale instead. [Max Imagination] has just the build to get you started.

• Hardware

  • The Strategist ☛ Bold push into quantum computing is Australia’s Manhattan moment

    The Manhattan Project, a response Germany’s combination of innovation and military power, unleashed nuclear physics on the world.

  • MIT Technology Review ☛ PsiQuantum plans to build the biggest quantum computing facility in the US

    The quantum computing firm PsiQuantum is partnering with the state of Illinois to build the largest US-based quantum computing facility, the company announced today.  The firm, which has headquarters in California, says it aims to house a quantum computer containing up to 1 million quantum bits, or qubits, within the next 10 years.

  • Canonical ☛ How do you select the best enterprise data storage solution for your business?

    The choices you make around IT infrastructure have great impact for both business cost and performance, across areas as diverse as operations, finance, data analysis and marketing.

  • Hackaday ☛ A Robot Face With Human Skin

    Many scifi robots have taken the form of their creators. In the increasingly blurry space between the biological and the mechanical, researchers have found a way to affix human skin to robot faces. [via NewScientist]

  • Hackaday ☛ Car Becomes A Massive Bubble Machine

    You’ve probably seen street performers or family members making giant bubbles at some point in your life. But what if you could go ever bigger…even approaching a bubble of infinite length? That’s precisely what [Engineezy] tried to do.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Electronics engineer builds 1984 Macintosh Plus clone

    Following their success in building a clone of the Fashion Company Apple Lisa, a vintage computer enthusiast has built a (mostly) working clone of the 1984 Macintosh Plus.

  • Hackaday ☛ Cutting An IoT Fan Free Of The Cloud

    The cloud is supposed to make everything better. You can control things remotely, with the aid of a benevolent corporation and their totally friendly servers. However, you might not like those servers, and you might prefer to take personal control of your hardware. If that’s the case, you might like to follow the story of [ouaibe] and their quest to free a fan from the cloud.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • NYPost ☛ Inside the alarmingly open online market for fentanyl ingredients, where just $3,600 can turn a $3 million profit

    Using little more than a smartphone and digital currency, more than enough ingredients to create fentanyl can be easily purchased -- with few legal barriers.

  • Pro Publica ☛ A Federal Law Could Block Reforms to Address Failings in Angola’s Medical System

    Several months ago, in a lawsuit that was in its ninth year, a federal judge blasted the medical care at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. Many inmates hoped it would be a watershed moment.

    In her opinion, U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick excoriated the state for its “callous and wanton disregard” for the health of those in its custody. “Rather than receiving medical ‘care,’ the inmates are instead subjected to cruel and unusual punishment,” Dick said in her November opinion. The “human cost,” she said, is “unspeakable.”

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong spent HK$284.1 billion on healthcare in 2022-23, including HK$43.7 billion on Covid-19

    Hong Kong reported a total health expenditure of more than HK$284.1 billion in the 2022-23 financial year, accounting for 10 per cent of the city’s gross domestic product. Hongkongers spent HK$38,670 on average per capita on healthcare in 2022-23, the Health Bureau unveiled on Tuesday in the Domestic Health Accounts (DHA) 2022-23.

  • Science Alert ☛ Your Walking Style Says a Lot About Your Health And Aging. Here's Why.

    Don't ignore these early warning signs.

• Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  • MIT Technology Review ☛ The Download: US quantum computing, and Hey Hi (AI) garbage

    This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Reddit blocks Bing, several other search engines from indexing its platform on Hey Hi (AI) training concerns

    Reddit Inc. has blocked some search engines’ access to  content from its namesake forum platform. The development was first reported by 404 Media on Wednesday and Reddit confirmed the move in a blog post this morning.

  • Digital Music News ☛ What Major Label Litigation? Hey Hi (AI) Music Upstart Udio Launches ‘Audio-to-Audio’ Remixing

    As the major label battle with generative Hey Hi (AI) music start-ups Suno and Udio heat up, the latter has released a new model with audio-to-audio remixing. Here’s the latest. Lawsuits filed by Sony Music, Warner Music, and Universal Music claim that Udio and Suno have unlawfully copied the label’s recordings to train their music generation models.

  • Microsoft Implements Strategic Layoffs

    As part of its ongoing endeavors to optimize its workforce, Microsoft has implemented an additional round of redundancies this week. Although the precise number of employees affected is not disclosed, reports suggest that roles in project and product management have been affected in a variety of geographical locations. These layoffs follow the end of Microsoft's fiscal year on June 30, 2024, a period during which the company typically restructures its operations. In June, approximately 1,000 jobs were cut across multiple departments, including the HoloLens mixed-reality team and Azure cloud unit. Additionally, in January 2024, Microsoft laid off 2,000 employees from its gaming division, shortly after acquiring Activision Blizzard.

  • Business Standard ☛ WayCool lays off over 200 employees, aims to achieve profitability

    Agriculture supply chain firm WayCool has laid off over 200 employees across departments as the company aims to achieve profitability. This is the third round of layoffs at the Chennai-based firm within the last 12 months, according to the industry sources.

  • The 10 biggest mass layoffs among African tech firms

    When compared to layoffs from companies like Microsoft, they may seem minuscule when the Redmond firm fired 18 000 people in its latest spree this month.

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Silicon Angle ☛ EU reportedly set to fine Meta over allegedly anticompetitive Marketplace Facebook (Farcebook) integration

      Meta Platforms Inc. is reportedly set to be hit with its first European Union antitrust fine in tying Marketplace, the Facebook (Farcebook) classified service, to Facebook (Farcebook) itself.

• Defence/Aggression

  • New York Times ☛ For Years, Fentanylware (TikTok) Told Us What to Buy. Now ‘Underconsumption Core’ Is About Consuming Less.

    The trend of “underconsumption core” romanticizes buying and using only what you need. Yes, being normal is now trending. Experts say it’s a response to a period of economic hardship.

  • Mexico News Daily ☛ Are US military strikes against Mexican cartels on the table? Trump says ‘absolutely’

    The former president said "the cartels are running Mexico" and confirmed if he's elected, he'd consider U.S. military action.

  • Defence Web ☛ How militia groups capture states and ruin countries: the case of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces

    The rise of Sudan’s most notorious paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, shows how armed groups can infiltrate state institutions – often with disastrous results for society. Sudan’s central government created the Rapid Support Forces in 2013 as dictator Omar al-Bashir’s private protection detail.

  • New York Times ☛ Israeli Officials Retrieve the Bodies of 5 Hostages From Gaza

    The military said that the bodies had been found in the Khan Younis area and that intelligence, including information from detained Palestinian militants, had led its forces to them.

  • France24 ☛ UN human rights chief calls on Bangladesh to disclose protest crackdown details

    UN human rights chief Volker Turk Thursday demanded Bangladesh disclose details surrounding the crackdown on anti-job quota protests last week that killed 193 people. Turk also called on the government to restore internet connection, which was cut off Friday in response to the student-led demonstrations. Thousands of military personnel continue to patrol the country where protests have subsided after the Supreme Court scrapped most of the government-imposed quotas.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • RFERL ☛ Russian Activist Could Face 4 Years In Prison For Sending $22 To Navalny Foundation

      Prosecutors asked a court in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod on July 24 to sentence activist Gleb Kalinychev to four years in prison for sending 1,899 rubles ($21.9) to late opposition leader Aleksei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) in 2021-22.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Putin is convinced he can outlast the West and win in Ukraine

      The West's collective fear of escalation and reluctance to commit to Ukrainian victory have convinced Putin that he can outlast his opponents and achieve an historic triumph in Ukraine, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

    • RFERL ☛ Putin Hosts Syria's Assad, Expresses Concern Over Mideast Tensions

      Russian President Vladimir Putin met President Bashar al-Assad of Syria in the Kremlin, video distributed by the Kremlin press service July 25 showed.

• Environment

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Mexico News Daily ☛ Peso slides after Tesla setback and inflation spike

      New inflation data, a reform bill and Tesla pausing a Mexico gigafactory may explain a 1.5% drop overnight in the peso-USD rate Wednesday.

    • Mexico News Daily ☛ Sheinbaum refutes Trump on cartels; casts doubt on Tesla’s real reasons for factory pause

      Sheinbaum defended "progress in reducing insecurity" in Mexico, and also said it's "very unlikely" that the U.S. would put tariffs on Mexican products.

    • H2 View ☛ UK Govt strikes land deal with Crown Estate for clean energy developments

      The UK Government plans to use land and seabed owned by the Royal Family to build up to 30GW of offshore wind developments to support its clean energy and hydrogen production plans.

    • France24 ☛ Boeing finalises deal to plead guilty over fatal 737 Max crashes

      Boeing Co. has reached an agreement with the U.S. government to plead guilty to criminal conspiracy related to two fatal crashes of its 737 Max jetliner, paving the way for a potential courtroom showdown with the families of the victims.

    • Barry Kauler ☛ Fenders for custom trike

      Continuing the custom tadpole recumbent trike project, here are

    • Foot and leg safety on a recumbent trike — July 10, 2024

    The trike came with mudguards (fenders in US English); however, I have to create brackets to mount them in this custom project. Yes, the Wikipedia states that "bicycle fender" is US English, whereas "mudguard" is British English.

Finance

• JURIST ☛ Latest Bond report finds UK civic space under pressure

  The British Overseas NGOs for Development (Bond) released its latest report on Tuesday, finding that the UK’s civic space remains under pressure after being downgraded in global rankings. The report examines six key UK trends that threaten civil society.

AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

• France24 ☛ Biden says it's time to pass torch to 'younger voices' in Oval Office address

  US President Joe Biden defended his decision not to seek re-election on Wednesday night in what could be his final speech as head of state. Speaking from the Oval Office, he said the move was intended to unify the nation under a new generation of leaders and hailed his effective successor Kamala Harris as "tough", "capable", and "experienced".

• CS Monitor ☛ Biden’s pullout marks the end of an American era

  Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race marks the end of an era of U.S. leaders who saw America’s global role as key to its sense of self.

• New York Times ☛ Trump Workshops Jabs at Harris, but Nothing Plays Like the Classics

  Donald J. Trump began turning Vice President Kamala Harris, his new opponent, into a nemesis. But his crowd still wanted to hear the hits.

• New York Times ☛ Just One Question for Trump and Vance: What Is Wrong With You People?

  Say what you will about Biden, but he is not a bully.

• Atlantic Council ☛ Syrian elections are decided before election day

  While the polls were held on July 15, the elections were effectively over at the end of the primaries.

• France24 ☛ ‘Real enthusiasm’: Venezuela’s opposition may be on the cusp of unseating Maduro

  Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is vying for a third term in Sunday’s presidential election after being in power for more than a decade. But weakened by economic crisis and a deteriorating security situation, Hugo Chavez's chosen successor is trailing in polls against opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who is looking to open a new chapter in Venezuela’s history.

• Atlantic Council ☛ Leland Lazarus on the Chinese-built port in Chancay, Peru in China US Focus

  On July 17th, Global China Hub Nonresident Fellow Leland Lazarus published an article on the potential national security concerns of the Chinese-build port in Chancay, Peru in China US Focus.

• Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

  • Scoop News Group ☛ Senate defective chip maker Intel chair warns confluence of factors make election threats worse

    Sen. Mark Warner said influence operations are easy and cheap, and their social control media audience is more willing to believe them.

Censorship/Free Speech

• JURIST ☛ HRW urges Cameroon to revoke recent decree amid ‘unjustifiable censorship’ of free speech

  Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Tuesday urged Cameroon authorities to revoke a troubling recent decree introduced on July 16 by Emmanuel Mariel Djikdent, the head of the Mfoundi division.

Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

• Press Gazette ☛ Gary Lineker’s The Rest Is Football dominates booming UK sport podcasts market

  Presenters/producers for High Performance, Football Weekly and The Cycling Podcast share why podcasting is the right medium.

• University of Michigan ☛ No free democracy without free journalism

  In 2010, WikiLeaks published graphic footage from a United States military helicopter as it killed over a dozen innocent civilians (including two Reuters journalists) in a Baghdad suburb.

• Press Gazette ☛ Mail, Mirror, Express and Independent roll out ‘consent or pay’ walls

  The publishers are charging between £1.99 and £4 monthly for cookie-less access to their sites.

• Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai to testify when national security trial resumes in November

  Pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai will take the stand in his national security trial in November, a Hong Kong court has heard, after judges denied the Fashion Company Apple Daily founder’s bid to have charges against him dropped.

Civil Rights/Policing

• Silicon Angle ☛ High-profile ServiceNow executive CJ Desai quits over internal hiring policy violation

  ServiceNow Inc. said today that one of its most prominent executives, CJ Desai, is leaving the company immediately after an investigation into a complaint over the sales process for a government contract revealed serious policy violations.

• NYPost ☛ Video game performers to go on strike in another blow to Hollywood — here’s why

  The decision follows months of negotiations with major video game companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts and Epic Games.

• New York Times ☛ Actors’ Union to Go on Strike Against Video Game Companies

  The SAG-AFTRA union wants higher pay for the use of voices and images and protection from losing jobs to artificial intelligence.

• JURIST ☛ Human rights groups demand immediate release and compensation for Qatar whistleblower Abdullah Ibhais following UN determination

  Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International, and FairSquare called Wednesday for the immediate release and compensation of Abdullah Ibhais, a former media manager for Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, following a determination by a UN Body that his 2019 detention was arbitrary and linked to his criticism of migrant worker condition...

Digital Restrictions (DRM)

• Digital Music News ☛ The NBA Receives $2.5 Billion a Year From NBCUniversal for Broadcasting Rights—No Couch Delving Required to Pay Music Publishers

  Several music publishers have launched lawsuits against NBA teams including Kobalt Music Publishing, Artist Publishing Group, and Prescription Songs. These lawsuits allege the teams are using their music without permission, seeking $150,000 for each infringement. Over 14 NBA teams are facing legal action over using protected compositions without permission.