Links 05/10/2024: Shift to ARM, Microsoft XBox Crisis

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Oct 05, 2024

Leftovers

Leftovers
- Science
  - Rlang ☛ Choosing the Right Chart: A Personal Guide to Better Data Visualization
  - Science Alert ☛ Brain Scans Reveal Why 'Girl With a Pearl Earring' Captivates Our Minds
    
    The neuroscience of art.
  - Science Alert ☛ The Sun Unleashed a Huge Solar Flare at Earth, And We're on Aurora Alert
    
    One of the most powerful ever measured!
  - Hackaday ☛ On The Nature Of Electricity: Recreating The Early Experiments
    
    Bits of material levitating against gravity, a stream of water deflected by invisible means, sparks of light appearing out of thin air; with observations like those, it’s a wonder that the early experiments into the nature of electricity progressed beyond the catch-all explanation of magic. And yet they did, but not without a lot of lamb’s bladders and sulfur globes, and not a little hand waving in the process. And urine — lots and lots of urine.
  - Science Alert ☛ CERN Confirms Ultra-Rare Particle Transformation, Hints at New Physics
    
    It's real.
  - Science Alert ☛ This Map of Every Neuron in an Adult Fly Brain Could Be Nobel Prize Worthy
    
    An incredible first in neuroscience.
  - Science Alert ☛ One Dietary Supplement Found to Reduce Aggression by Up to 28%
    
    A new tool for anger management?
  - Science Alert ☛ Most Powerful Solar Flare in 7 Years Blasts Earth: Expect Stunning Auroras
    
    We have INCOMING.
  - Science Alert ☛ Location of Impulse Control Found in Brain, May Help Parkinson's Patients
    
    This could mean better treatments.
- Hardware
  - Tom's Hardware ☛ Fujitsu, Supermicro working on Arm-based liquid cooled servers for 2027
    
    Fujitsu and server-giant Supermicro have partnered up to create liquid cooled servers based on Fujitsu's Monaka ARM datacenter processors, which are slated to arrive in 2027.
  - Hackaday ☛ Mobius Keyboard Wastes Little Space
    
    What is with all the wasted space on keyboards? There’s a whole back side just sitting there doing nothing. But how can you use the back at the same time as the front?
  - Hackaday ☛ Pulley System Makes Headphone Cables More Managable
    
    It’s 2024. You’ve probably got one or more pairs of wireless headphones around the house. [Barnso] prefers wired headphones with a long cable, but he also decries the fact that it often gets tangled in his chair. The solution? A pulley system to make everything easier.
  - Hackaday ☛ 3D Print A Stenciling Frame For Your PCB
    
    For many a hacker, stenciling a board for the first time is a game-changing experience – the solder joints you get, sure do give your PCB the aura of a mass-manufactured device. Now, you might not get a perfect print – and neither did [Atul R]. Not to worry, because if you have a 3D printer handy, he’s showing you how to design a 3D-printed frame using Blender and TinkerCAD, making your solder paste print well even if you’re trying to rest a giant stencil on top of a tiny board.
- Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
  - Science Alert ☛ Study Identifies Gut Microbe Imbalances That Predict Autism And ADHD
    
    Years before symptoms appear.
  - Science Alert ☛ Smoking Ban For Gen Z Could Save 1.2 Million Lives, Study Finds
    
    There's more we can do.
  - Science Alert ☛ Scientists Identify Brain Signal Disruptions Behind Voices in Schizophrenia
    
    Blurring the line between internal and external realities.
  - NYPost ☛ Father and 18-year-old daughter learn they aren’t related through Ancestry DNA test in possible IVF mix-up: lawsuit
    
    A Las Vegas father and his 18-year-old daughter learned through an Ancestry DNA test that they aren't related -- and the pair are now suing the IVF doctors they say are responsible for the embryo mix-up.
  - Pro Publica ☛ How Are Abortion Bans Affecting Maternal Health? Help Us Report.
  - Silicon Angle ☛ Texas AG sues Fentanylware (TikTok) over breach of new child safety law
    
    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton today filed a lawsuit against the social control media giant Fentanylware (TikTok) for allegedly sharing the personal data of young people, a violation of the state’s new child safety law.
- Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  - Tencent is reportedly considering buying Ubisoft: here’s why (and it’s a crying shame)
    
    There's been some breaking news around Ubisoft today. According to a reportfrom Bloomberg, the French video game industry giant is considering leaving the publicily-traded and family owned ways behind, to seek shelter from recent stock lows under Tencent's umbrella. This should worry those who've been paying attention to major gaming news over the past few years.
  - Game Rant ☛ Halo’s Canceled Project Tatanka Game Explained
    
    It's been nearly three years since 343 Industries released Halo Infinite. Though the multiplayer side of the game continues to be supported, a vast majority of the content added in recent updates has been created either by forgers or other third-party developers. 343 continues to shift what resources remain after Microsoft's major 2023 layoffs toward the studio's next project — whatever it may be.
  - Game Rant ☛ XR Games Hit With Layoffs
    
    Hitman 3 VR: Reloaded development studio XR Games has confirmed an initiative to lay off 72 employees, gutting a majority of its staff. The move comes after disappointing review scores and sales numbers for the VR launch of Hitman 3, leaving XR Games to make drastic changes to its structuring and budget.
  - Microsoft Is Investigating Why Devs Are Prioritising PS5 Over Xbox
    
    A blog post on Microsoft’s game developer website has highlighted the firm’s intention to learn why Xbox is being skipped over in favour of other platforms.
- Security
  - Privacy/Surveillance
    - Public Knowledge ☛ The FTC’s New Report Reaffirms Big Tech’s Personal Data Overreach – What’s New?
      
      The report confirms the data privacy violations that consumer advocates have been sounding the alarm on for years.
    - EDRI ☛ Dutch decision puts brakes on Chat Control
      
      This controversial draft EU law has seen so many twists and turns that it’s giving us whiplash. Under renewed pressure from Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, some lawmakers had hoped they could finally get enough support for the controversial bill this autumn.
    - The Strategist ☛ Triton: transforming Australia’s airborne ISR capabilities
      
      The Australian Defence Force is on the brink of a transformative shift in its airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities with the imminent introduction into service of the MQ-4C Triton [...]
- Defence/Aggression
  - New York Times ☛ After Successes, Israel’s Military Is in a ‘Long Game’ With No Clear Outcome
    
    A year after perhaps the worst military and intelligence debacle in the country’s history, its armed forces have regained the momentum. Some ask: to what end?
  - New York Times ☛ Israeli Planes Bomb Bunker Near Beirut, Targeting Hezbollah’s Presumed Next Leader
    
    The airstrikes were aimed at a meeting of senior Hezbollah leaders in an underground bunker early Friday, and targeted a cousin of Hassan Nasrallah.
  - RFERL ☛ Israel Presses Ahead With Lebanon Incursion After Strikes On Beirut Kill 9
    
    Israel's incursion into south Lebanon continued on October 3 hours after a strike on an apartment building in downtown Beirut killed 9 people while a separate action in the West Bank eliminated a Palestinian militant who was once involved in the lynching of an Israeli reservist.
  - Latvia ☛ Foreign Ministry asks Latvians not to travel to Israel, Iran, Lebanon
    
    In the context of continued security tensions and the significant risk of escalation in the region, the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) issued a statement October 2 strongly advising against travel to Israel, Lebanon and Iran.
  - RFERL ☛ Massive Explosions Rock Beirut; Biden Says Hitting Iran's Oil Sector Under Discussion
    
    Multiple explosions from Israeli air strikes rocked the suburbs of Beirut late on October 3 as the United States said it is discussing strikes on Iran's oil facilities as retaliation for Tehran's missile attack on Israel earlier this week.
  - New York Times ☛ Israeli Airstrike Kills At Least 18 People in the West Bank
    
    The high toll and Israel’s use of a warplane were unusual for the Israeli military’s operations in the West Bank, which have escalated during the war in Gaza.
  - New York Times ☛ Oil Prices Jump After Biden Says ‘Discussing’ Potential Israeli Strike on Iranian Facilities
    
    The president was asked about a potential strike on the oil infrastructure of Iran, which accounts for about 2 percent of the world’s supply.
  - RFA ☛ Thousands flee Myanmar airstrikes after rebel ambush
    
    Pro-democracy fighters said scores of junta soldiers were killed and captured in an ambush.
  - France24 ☛ Dominican Republic to deport 10,000 undocumented Haitians a week
    
    The Haitian government announced on Wednesday it will seek to "reduce the excessive migrant populations" in the country by implementing a new plan that would expel 10,000 undocumented Haitians a week, potentially forcing them to return to a country fraught with gang violence that has killed 3,600 people in Haiti this year.
  - Hong Kong Free Press ☛ 3 Hongkongers evacuated from Lebanon as Israeli forces clash with Hezbollah
    
    Three Hongkongers have been evacuated from Lebanon as Israel intensified its military operations against Hezbollah. Israel launched a ground offensive into southern Lebanon on Tuesday in what it called a limited incursion targeting Hezbollah’s “infrastructure.” Eight Israeli soldiers were killed in combat the following day.
  - France24 ☛ Israel targets Hezbollah HQ in Beirut as border clashes continue
    
    Israel's military said Thursday it had hit Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters in the Lebanese capital of Beirut, as its troops battled militants near the border and warplanes bombarded their strongholds around the country. The strike came after the Lebanese health minister said that at least 1,974 people had been killed in the recent Israeli offensive in Lebanon. Read our liveblog to see how all the day's events unfolded.
  - France24 ☛ 🔴 Live: Israel launches consecutive strikes on Hezbollah stronghold in south Beirut
    
    Journalists heard "several explosions" rock the southern suburbs of Beirut, recording more than 10 strikes after the Israeli military ordered residents of the Hadath neighbourhood to evacuate. US President Joe Biden told reporters on Thursday that it was still possible to avoid further escalation in the ongoing crisis in the Middle East on Thursday, saying he doesn't "doesn't believe there is going to be an all-out war."
  - Defence Web ☛ DR Congo minerals funding rebel groups – top UN official
    
    Exploitation of mineral resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) by rebel groups has reached the point where they can be called “militarised entrepreneurs”, the senior United Nations (UN) executive in the central African country told the Security Council (SC).
  - Defence Web ☛ SANDF crisis demands immediate action from Motshekga – DA
    
    Defence Minister Angie Motshekga’s failure to provide a report on the state of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is a clear indication that the Force is in crisis, the Democratic Alliance’s Member on the Select Committee on Security and Justice Nicholas Gotsell maintains.
  - Defence Web ☛ Border Management Authority short on funds and personnel
    
    With the first anniversary of its formal establishment just days away, South Africa’s Border Management Authority (BMA) faces a three-year medium term budget shortfall of R4.3 billion and needs to fill more than three thousand posts in the same period a Parliamentary questioner was told.
- Environment
  - Energy/Transportation
    - Hackaday ☛ A Lightweight Balloon Tracker For High Altitude Missions
      
      It’s pretty easy to take a balloon, fill it up with helium, and send it up in to the upper atmosphere. It’s much harder to keep track of it and recover it when it falls back to Earth. If you’re trying to do that, you might find some value in the Tiny4FSK project from the New England Weather Balloon Society.
  - Wildlife/Nature
    - New York Times ☛ A Climate Fund Could Pay Billions to Protect Trees in Amazon and Beyond
      
      Brazil is proposing a fund that would pay countries to protect tropical forests that are crucial to curbing climate change. It would generate returns, too.
- Finance
  - Breach Media ☛ Corporate landlords, financiers, CEOs are top donors to Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party
    
    Lax rules in Saskatchewan allow corporations and the rich to ‘double-dip’ with their donations
  - BIA Net ☛ Turkey’s inflation exceeds expectations in September
    
    The rising inflation dampens expectations of a central bank interest rate cut in the near future.
- AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
  - New York Times ☛ Some Evidence in Adams Case Involves Classified Material, U.S. Says
    
    In a letter to the judge handling the Eric Adams corruption case, federal prosecutors said there was evidence that could damage national security if exposed in open court.
  - RFA ☛ US election: Implications for Manila-Washington alliance, South China Sea
    
    As Nov. 5 nears, analysts assess how each candidate could affect security cooperation, territorial claims.
  - TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ St. Paul rape case dismissed after man’s indeterminate civil commitment for being mentally ill and dangerous
    
    He is under a civil commitment at Minnesota State Security Hospital in St. Peter with no time limit.
  - JURIST ☛ Amnesty International calls on Nigeria to end crackdown on peaceful protestors
    
    Amnesty International called on the Nigerian government to end their repression of peaceful protestors who participated in nationwide demonstrations against economic hardship and bad government on Wednesday. The #FearlessOctober protestors on October 1 faced inordinate use of tear gas and arrests by security forces, who barricaded usual protest areas in an attempt to quell dissidents.
  - Atlantic Council ☛ Michta for Le Figaro on the United States’ interest in protecting Europe from authoritarian influence [Ed: What about the corrupt EPO, where criminals run things and enjoy immunity? If that's not authoritarian influence, what is?]
    
    On September 27, Andrew Michta, director and senior fellow in the Scowcroft Strategy Initiative, was quoted in a Le Figaro article titled “It is in America’s vital interest not to let an aggressive power dominate Europe.”
  - New York Times ☛ Los Angeles District Attorney Says He Is Reviewing Menendez Case
    
    Interest in the Menendez brothers has intensified after the release of a new DRM spreader Netflix drama about the case. A separate documentary is forthcoming.
- Censorship/Free Speech
  - Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Taiwan deports 2 Chinese nationals over harassing Hongkongers’ demonstration on National Day
    
    Taiwan has deported two Chinese nationals for harassing people staging a demonstration for Hongkongers in Taipei on Tuesday, China’s National Day.
  - AccessNow ☛ Access Now’s Submission to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of freedom of opinion and expression on Freedom of Expression in Challenging Times
  - JURIST ☛ Council of Europe designates Julian Assange as ‘political prisoner’ following plea deal release
    
    The Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) voted on Wednesday to formally recognize WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as a political prisoner based on his time spent in UK custody while fighting extradition to the US on espionage charges.
- Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
  - Press Gazette ☛ FT Weekend editor Janine Gibson: ‘This interview is a disaster’
    
    To mark 30 years of Lunch with the FT, Janine Gibson sits down for lunch with PG.
  - Press Gazette ☛ GB News asks High Court to block Ofcom sanctions for alleged rules breach
    
    Ofcom said it was the twelfth Broadcasting Code breach by GB News since March 2023.
  - Press Gazette ☛ Leading cultural figures attack Observer sale as staff pave way for strike action
    
    More than 70 leading UK cultural figures decry Observer sale as "a betrayal" of liberal journalism.
  - Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Beijing-backed newspaper seeks to bar jury in libel suit brought by Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai
    
    A Beijing-backed newspaper being sued by Hong Kong’s jailed pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai is resisting his calls for a jury to hear the libel case.
  - JURIST ☛ Kyrgyzstan urged to drop charges against journalists ahead of sentencing
    
    Amnesty International urged Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday to drop unsubstantiated, politically motivated charges against independent journalists.
- Civil Rights/Policing
  - JURIST ☛ Quebec premier calls for ‘waiting zones’ for asylum seekers entering Canada
    
    François Legault, premier of the largely French-speaking Canadian province of Quebec, has called for the implementation of French-style waiting zones to address the growing number of asylum seekers entering Canada, according to local media reports.
  - New York Times ☛ Garth Brooks Is Accused of Rape and Assault in Lawsuit
    
    A woman who worked as a hair and makeup stylist for the country superstar says he subjected her to repeated advances. Mr. Brooks said it is “behavior I am incapable of.”
  - Digital Music News ☛ Garth Brooks Faces Sexual Battery and Assault Lawsuit from Former Makeup Artist
    
    Garth Brooks has been accused of sexual assault and battery in a new lawsuit from a former makeup artist who worked with the singer. Country music star Garth Brooks has been sued by a woman who worked as a makeup artist and hairstylist for the singer and accuses Brooks of sexual assault and battery.
  - Garth Brooks claims he was ‘hassled’ for ‘millions of dollars’ prior to sexual assault lawsuit: ‘I do not fear the truth’
    
    "I am not the man they have painted me to be," the country music icon said in a statement after being accused of rape and battery by an alleged former employee.
  - European Commission ☛ Commission evaluation shows the benefits and limitations of online consumer protection laws
    
    European Commission Press release Brussels, 03 Oct 2024 Today, the Commission published the findings of the Digital Fairness Fitness Check, which evaluates whether the current EU consumer protection laws are fit for purpose to ensure a high level of protection in the digital environment.
  - France24 ☛ US dock workers agree to deal with port operators, end crippling strike
    
    One of the biggest work stoppages in nearly 50 years came to an end on Thursday as US dockworkers and port operators reached an agreement that would implement a 62% wage increase over six years. Dockworkers will resume unloading of container ships immediately and both parties agreed to revisit the deal in January 2025, with issues such as the threat of automation to job security still unresolved.
  - TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ Dockworkers’ union suspends strike until Jan. 15 to allow time to negotiate new contract
    
    Both sides also reached agreement on wages. The union is to resume working immediately.
  - New York Times ☛ Union Agrees to Suspend Port Strike
    
    The International Longshoremen’s Association received a new wage offer and will halt its walkout at East and Gulf Coast ports, which began Tuesday.
  - New York Times ☛ Churches in the Dallas Area Grapple With Scandal and Controversy
    
    In this part of Texas, a pastor with a clean reputation is not to be taken for granted.
  - AccessNow ☛ Five years for fundamental rights: Access Now’s vision for an EU digital rights agenda
    
    As the EU’s new 2024-2029 mandate begins, we invite EU policymakers to join us on our mission of defending and extending digital rights of people and communities at risk around the world.
  - AccessNow ☛ Access Now Submission to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Climate Change for UN General Assembly 79th Session Report on “Access to Information on Climate Change and Human Rights”
  - AccessNow ☛ Access Now Submission to the United Nations Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity for the United Nations General Assembly 79th Session Report on “Artificial Intelligence and International Solidarity”
  - The Straits Times ☛ Samsung workers’ 25-day strike reflects living wage concerns in India’s manufacturing sector
    
    One analyst said it is "impossible" for a family to live on the average pay Samsung workers earn.
  - Stanford University ☛ From the Community | Why we are signing the strike pledge
    
    Graduate workers must strike because Stanford has stalled on significant bargaining issues after over a year of negotiations, write several representatives of the Stanford Graduate Workers Union.
  - Mexico News Daily ☛ Mexican industry and freight sectors brace for ‘significant impact’ from US port strike
    
    Mexico's auto industry, which relies on parts shipped from the United States, could be hit hard if the strike isn't resolved quickly.
- Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
  - Tom's Hardware ☛ Google Fiber forces the competition to offer faster internet speeds — study shows up to 50% download speed increases in Mesa, Arizona
    
    Ookla's research data shows that GFiber's entry into a market forces existing internet service providers to increase the reliability and speed of their current offerings.
  - Hackaday ☛ Supercon 2023: [Cory Doctorow] With An Audacious Plan To Halt The Internet’s Enshittification And Throw It Into Reverse
    
    Those of us old enough to remember BBS servers or even rainbow banners often go down the nostalgia hole about how the internet was better “back in the day” than it is now as a handful of middlemen with a stranglehold on the way we interact with information, commerce, and even other people. Where’s the disintermediated future we were promised? More importantly, can we make a “new good web” that puts users first? [Cory Doctorow] has a plan to reverse what he’s come to call enshittification, or the lifecycle of the extractionist tech platform, and he shared it with us as the Supercon 2023 keynote.
- Digital Restrictions (DRM)
  - Digital Music News ☛ Spotify Now Automatically Generates an Offline Playlist When You Lose Internet Access [Ed: So that's like basically doing what people could do in the 80s. They take stuff away, then give it "back" for a fee?]
    
    Spotify is launching a new ‘offline playlist’ option for Premium members. The feature offers the ability to listen to music while offline on a plane, train, or anywhere there’s no reliable internet connection. Offline Backup takes queued and recently streamed tracks to create an easy-to-access playlist that is unique to the user.

^* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.

Links 05/10/2024: Shift to ARM, Microsoft XBox Crisis

Contents

Leftovers

Science

Rlang ☛ Choosing the Right Chart: A Personal Guide to Better Data Visualization

Science Alert ☛ Brain Scans Reveal Why 'Girl With a Pearl Earring' Captivates Our Minds

Science Alert ☛ The Sun Unleashed a Huge Solar Flare at Earth, And We're on Aurora Alert

Hackaday ☛ On The Nature Of Electricity: Recreating The Early Experiments

Science Alert ☛ CERN Confirms Ultra-Rare Particle Transformation, Hints at New Physics

Science Alert ☛ This Map of Every Neuron in an Adult Fly Brain Could Be Nobel Prize Worthy

Science Alert ☛ One Dietary Supplement Found to Reduce Aggression by Up to 28%

Science Alert ☛ Most Powerful Solar Flare in 7 Years Blasts Earth: Expect Stunning Auroras

Science Alert ☛ Location of Impulse Control Found in Brain, May Help Parkinson's Patients

Hardware

Tom's Hardware ☛ Fujitsu, Supermicro working on Arm-based liquid cooled servers for 2027

Hackaday ☛ Mobius Keyboard Wastes Little Space

Hackaday ☛ Pulley System Makes Headphone Cables More Managable

Hackaday ☛ 3D Print A Stenciling Frame For Your PCB

Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

Science Alert ☛ Study Identifies Gut Microbe Imbalances That Predict Autism And ADHD

Science Alert ☛ Smoking Ban For Gen Z Could Save 1.2 Million Lives, Study Finds

Science Alert ☛ Scientists Identify Brain Signal Disruptions Behind Voices in Schizophrenia

NYPost ☛ Father and 18-year-old daughter learn they aren’t related through Ancestry DNA test in possible IVF mix-up: lawsuit

Pro Publica ☛ How Are Abortion Bans Affecting Maternal Health? Help Us Report.

Silicon Angle ☛ Texas AG sues Fentanylware (TikTok) over breach of new child safety law

Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Tencent is reportedly considering buying Ubisoft: here’s why (and it’s a crying shame)

Game Rant ☛ Halo’s Canceled Project Tatanka Game Explained

Game Rant ☛ XR Games Hit With Layoffs

Microsoft Is Investigating Why Devs Are Prioritising PS5 Over Xbox

Security

Privacy/Surveillance

Public Knowledge ☛ The FTC’s New Report Reaffirms Big Tech’s Personal Data Overreach – What’s New?

EDRI ☛ Dutch decision puts brakes on Chat Control

The Strategist ☛ Triton: transforming Australia’s airborne ISR capabilities

Defence/Aggression

New York Times ☛ After Successes, Israel’s Military Is in a ‘Long Game’ With No Clear Outcome

New York Times ☛ Israeli Planes Bomb Bunker Near Beirut, Targeting Hezbollah’s Presumed Next Leader

RFERL ☛ Israel Presses Ahead With Lebanon Incursion After Strikes On Beirut Kill 9

Latvia ☛ Foreign Ministry asks Latvians not to travel to Israel, Iran, Lebanon

RFERL ☛ Massive Explosions Rock Beirut; Biden Says Hitting Iran's Oil Sector Under Discussion

New York Times ☛ Israeli Airstrike Kills At Least 18 People in the West Bank

New York Times ☛ Oil Prices Jump After Biden Says ‘Discussing’ Potential Israeli Strike on Iranian Facilities

RFA ☛ Thousands flee Myanmar airstrikes after rebel ambush

France24 ☛ Dominican Republic to deport 10,000 undocumented Haitians a week

Hong Kong Free Press ☛ 3 Hongkongers evacuated from Lebanon as Israeli forces clash with Hezbollah

France24 ☛ Israel targets Hezbollah HQ in Beirut as border clashes continue

France24 ☛ 🔴 Live: Israel launches consecutive strikes on Hezbollah stronghold in south Beirut

Defence Web ☛ DR Congo minerals funding rebel groups – top UN official

Defence Web ☛ SANDF crisis demands immediate action from Motshekga – DA

Defence Web ☛ Border Management Authority short on funds and personnel

Environment

Energy/Transportation

Hackaday ☛ A Lightweight Balloon Tracker For High Altitude Missions

Wildlife/Nature

New York Times ☛ A Climate Fund Could Pay Billions to Protect Trees in Amazon and Beyond

Finance

Breach Media ☛ Corporate landlords, financiers, CEOs are top donors to Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party

BIA Net ☛ Turkey’s inflation exceeds expectations in September

AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

New York Times ☛ Some Evidence in Adams Case Involves Classified Material, U.S. Says

RFA ☛ US election: Implications for Manila-Washington alliance, South China Sea

TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ St. Paul rape case dismissed after man’s indeterminate civil commitment for being mentally ill and dangerous

JURIST ☛ Amnesty International calls on Nigeria to end crackdown on peaceful protestors

Atlantic Council ☛ Michta for Le Figaro on the United States’ interest in protecting Europe from authoritarian influence [Ed: What about the corrupt EPO, where criminals run things and enjoy immunity? If that's not authoritarian influence, what is?]

New York Times ☛ Los Angeles District Attorney Says He Is Reviewing Menendez Case

Censorship/Free Speech

Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Taiwan deports 2 Chinese nationals over harassing Hongkongers’ demonstration on National Day

AccessNow ☛ Access Now’s Submission to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of freedom of opinion and expression on Freedom of Expression in Challenging Times

JURIST ☛ Council of Europe designates Julian Assange as ‘political prisoner’ following plea deal release

Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

Press Gazette ☛ FT Weekend editor Janine Gibson: ‘This interview is a disaster’

Press Gazette ☛ GB News asks High Court to block Ofcom sanctions for alleged rules breach

Press Gazette ☛ Leading cultural figures attack Observer sale as staff pave way for strike action

Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Beijing-backed newspaper seeks to bar jury in libel suit brought by Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai

JURIST ☛ Kyrgyzstan urged to drop charges against journalists ahead of sentencing

Civil Rights/Policing

JURIST ☛ Quebec premier calls for ‘waiting zones’ for asylum seekers entering Canada

New York Times ☛ Garth Brooks Is Accused of Rape and Assault in Lawsuit

Digital Music News ☛ Garth Brooks Faces Sexual Battery and Assault Lawsuit from Former Makeup Artist