Leftovers

• New York Times ☛ Dating App Fatigue? In Vermont, Personal Ads Still Thrive.

  Small weekly seeks readers looking for love.

• Science

  • Hackaday ☛ Solar Orbiter Takes Amazing Solar Pictures

    There’s an old joke that they want to send an exploratory mission to the sun, but to save money, they are going at night. The European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter has gotten as close as anything we’ve sent to study our star on purpose, and the pictures it took last year were from less than 46 million miles away. That sounds far away, but in space terms, that’s awfully close to the nuclear furnace. The pictures are amazing, and the video below is also worth watching.

  • Hackaday ☛ Square Roots 1800s Style — No, The Other 1800s

    [MindYourDecisions] presents a Babylonian tablet dating back to around 1800 BC that shows that the hypotenuse of a unit square is the square root of two or 1.41421. How did they know that? We don’t know for sure how they computed it, but experts think it is the same as the ancient Greek method written down by Hero. It is a specialized form of the Newton method. You can follow along and learn how it works in the video below.

  • Science Alert ☛ The Mystery of Amelia Earhart's Lost Plane May Not Be Solved After All

    Another twist in the tale.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Strange Signal Beamed at Earth From a Dead Star Can Finally Be Explained

    It's puzzled astronomers for years.

  • Science Alert ☛ Physicists Just Found a Quirk in Einstein's Predictions of Space-Time

    A tantalizing mystery!

  • Science Alert ☛ Alzheimer's May Not Actually Be a Brain Disease, an Expert Reveals

    Are we looking at this the wrong way?

  • Science Alert ☛ 'Baby' Planet Is One of The Youngest Ever Detected, Astronomers Say

    "This one allows us to look back in time."

  • Science Alert ☛ Cosmic-Ray Electrons Slamming Earth Are The Most Powerful Ever Seen

    We don't know where they're coming from.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Mysterious Noise in The Ocean Sounds Like Leviathans Talking

    "The others were quiet, as though they were listening."

  • Science Alert ☛ A Surgeon Warned People to Never Kiss a Baby. This Is Why.

    This is important.

• Hardware

  • CNX Software ☛ STMicro releases IO-Link actuator board for industrial monitoring and home appliances

    STMicro has announced the EVLIOL4LSV1 IO-Link actuator board, an STM32G071CB Cortex-M0+ MCU-based reference design for commercial manufacturers with a built-in protocol stack and application software. Aimed at industrial beacons and home-appliance alarms, the EVLIOL4LSV1 combines the L6364Q dual-channel IO-Link transceiver (communications) and IPS4260L intelligent low-side power switch (for driving industrial loads).

  • Hackaday ☛ Keebin’ With Kristina: The One With The TRON Keyboard

    [Folaefolc] was craving a new keyboard build a few weeks ago and got inspired by the humble 3.5″ floppy disk. So much so that he decided to make a split keyboard with each half having the exact footprint of a floppy — 90 mm x 94 mm. And you know the PCBs have floppy details silkscreened on the back. Just check out the gallery.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ US to reportedly sanction 200 more Chinese chip firms — high bandwidth memory might also see export bans

    The latest round of US sanctions imposes tighter control over the export of US technology to 200 more chip makers in China.

  • CNX Software ☛ Beelink EQ14 mini PC features defective chip maker Intel N150 quad-core “Twin Lake” processor, built-in power supply

    Last month we noted the defective chip maker Intel Processor N150, Processor N250, and Core i3-N355 Alder Lake-N Refresh CPUs were found in the upcoming ASUS NUC 14 Essential mini PC family, but availability was unclear.

  • CNX Software ☛ nRF54L15 DK: A Development Kit for nRF54L15, nRF54L10, and nRF54L05 SoCs with Bluetooth, Thread, and Zigbee

    The nRF54L15 DK is a development kit designed to evaluate the wireless SoCs of the nRF54L15, nRF54L10, and nRF54L05 wireless SoCs.

  • Hackaday ☛ E-Ink Screen Combined With Analog Dial Is Epic Win

    Analog dials used to be a pretty common way of displaying information on test equipment and in industrial applications. They fell out of favor as more advanced display technologies became cheaper. However, if you combine an analog dial with a modern e-ink display, it turns out you get something truly fantastic indeed.

  • Hackaday ☛ An Over-Engineered Basement Monitor

    [Stephen] has a basement that depends on a sump pump. What that means is if the pump fails or the power goes out, the basement floods—which is rather undesirable. Not wanting to rely on a single point of failure, [Stephen] decided to build a monitor for the basement situation, which quickly spiralled to a greater degree of complexity than he initially expected.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ US plans to shrink Intel's $8.5B CHIPS funding to below $8B — restructuring takes into account chipmaker's $3.5B contract to make chips for the military

    The U.S. government plans to reduce Intel's $8.5 billion CHIPS and Science Act grant to below $8 billion.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • ACLU ☛ Incarceration Should Not be a Death Sentence for Individuals Who Use Opioids

    The opioid epidemic has gripped communities for more than 20 years. From 1999 to 2022, nearly 722,000 people died from an overdose involving prescription and illicit opioids. Litigation has dramatically changed the substance-use disorder policy landscape and, today, more than $50 billion in opioid settlements from pharmaceutical companies, distributors, pharmacies, consultants, and others are hitting state and local coffers. This creates an unprecedented opportunity to invest in substance-use disorder care that saves lives.

  • New York Times ☛ In-Air Emergencies Can Cause Lasting Trauma

    Extreme turbulence, a blown-out door, an engine on fire: For passengers and crew members who have experienced in-air emergencies, the pain endures.

  • TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ Health providers dropping Medicare Advantage could affect coverage for 60,000 Minnesotans

    Attorney General Keith Ellison and officials from state agencies handling aging and Medicare are trying to spread the word about providers dropping or changing Medicare Advantage plans.

  • Latvia ☛ Latvia mulls doctor queue reduction plans

    Next year, the Ministry of Health plans to reduce at least part of the long waiting times for specialist doctors by introducing a single appointment queue, Latvian Television reported on November 24.

  • China's safety inspection tour prompts widespread store closures

    Businesses, food stalls shut up shop amid warnings of 50,000 yuan (US$6,900) fines for safety violations.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean Bill proposed to mandate anti-smoking warnings on e-cigarettes

    E-cigarettes are currently also exempted from tobacco consumption taxes and other related levies.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ ‘Existential challenge’: plastic pollution treaty talks begin in S.Korea

    A final round of talks on a treaty to end plastic pollution opened on Monday, with the diplomat chairing the difficult negotiations urging nations to “meet an existential challenge.”

  • Digital Music News ☛ CD Sales Are Exploding in South Korea — Now Environmental Groups Are Taking Notice [Ed: Environmental groups must know that streaming and DRM are vastly worse for the planet]

    K-pop CD sales are exploding in South Korea, but physical album production is raising concerns about the mounting environmental impact. K-pop CD sales surpassed 100 million units in 2023 — an industry first, and a 50% increase from the year prior. That’s an impressive milestone, especially in the face of digital streaming dominance.

  • The Straits Times ☛ ‘Ribbit’ or regret? Internet divided over Pizza Hut China’s frog-topped offering

    It was created in collaboration with Chinese tech giant Tencent for its hit mobile game Dungeon And Fighter: Origins.

  • TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ Federal lawsuit seeks to overturn MN abortion protections

    The lawsuit was filed last week in Minnesota U.S. District Court by the Women’s Life Care Center, the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, and others.

  • New Yorker ☛ The Texas Ob-Gyn Exodus

    Amid increasingly stringent abortion laws, doctors who provide maternal care have been fleeing the state.

• Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Zoom struggles to grow beyond a crawl and its stock dips

    Shares of Zoom Communications Inc. were trading 4% lower in the after-hours session today, even as the company delivered strong third-quarter earnings results and provided optimistic guidance for the current quarter.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ European Commission flags Bluesky for breaching transparency rules

    Up-and-coming social network Bluesky Social Inc. has been found to be breaching European Union regulations by not disclosing key details about the decentralized platform. The news came today from a European Commission spokesperson during a daily briefing, as reporters were told that Bluesky was missing a number of mandatory legal notices on its website.

  • Licensing / Legal

    • The Register UK ☛ Microsoft shuttering dedicated licensing education site

      Microsoft has quietly revealed it's binning a site dedicated to software licensing info and education that it currently promotes as "a complete and up-to-date resource for anyone who needs to learn about Microsoft licensing."

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • WhichUK ☛ Millions scammed on Facebook, Surveillance Giant Google and Instagram despite fraud pledge

      A year on from the Online Fraud Charter and scammers continue to run rampant on social control media and search engines

    • The Straits Times ☛ US lawmakers say Hong Kong is becoming hub for financial crime

      Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives have asked Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to rethink ties with Hong Kong's banking sector, saying the city has become a top location for money laundering and sanctions evasion.

    • Latvia ☛ Campaign against online scam launched in Latvia

      Reports of internet fraud are on the rise. Four years ago, 131 reports of financial fraud were received, but this year the number has already exceeded 400, according to the internet safety platform "drossinternets.lv", Latvian Television reported November 25.

• Defence/Aggression

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China zeroes in on ‘common’ disputes in wake of deadly Zhuhai attacks

    Beijing is ramping up scrutiny of “common” disputes such as those involving marriages and property, the justice ministry said, as the public reels from a recent string of deadly attacks.

  • Overseas activists mark Urumqi fire, ‘white paper’ protest anniversary

    Two years after a fatal fire in Urumqi, activists light candles in a London church to mark 'white paper' movement.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Prosecutors seek 5-year jail term for Samsung Electronics chief in appeals case

    Lee Jae-yong is accused of gaining from a merger of Samsung affiliates at the expense of shareholders and investors.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Satellite images suggest North Korea expanding missile plant, researchers say

    The plant was the only one known to produce the Hwasong-11 class of solid-fuel ballistic missiles.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Meta, TikTok, Surveillance Giant Google slam Australia’s under-16 social control media ban

    The Australian Senate is holding a short inquiry into the legislation which is due to report by Nov 26.

  • The Straits Times ☛ How to avoid military service? South Korean takes a fat chance

    He followed a regimen cooked up by his friend.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean opposition leader cleared of forcing witness to commit perjury

    Lee Jae-myung thanked the court for "bringing back truth and justice" after the ruling.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea snubs Japan memorial event at controversial mine in blow to ties

    Seoul held a memorial event in Japan for its labourers forced to work at a controversial mine.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea's Yoon, Malaysia's Anwar agree to cooperate in defence, minerals

    South Korea and Malaysia signed an agreement on Monday to cooperate in supplying critical minerals from Malaysia's reserves and to boost cooperation in the defence industry as the Southeast Asian country looks to upgrade its air force jets.

  • CS Monitor ☛ Women in combat are not a ‘social experiment,’ says Canada’s top military commander

    Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. defense secretary, has repeatedly questioned if men and women should serve in the same combat unit. Gen. Jennie Carignan, who commands Canada’s military, defended women’s combat roles at a security forum.

  • France24 ☛ Netanyahu credibility at low point as Israeli security cabinet poised to vote on Lebanon ceasefire

    Israel's security cabinet was preparing to decide whether to accept a proposed ceasefire in its war with Hezbollah, an official said Monday, as the White House announced it believed a deal to end the fighting in Lebanon was "close". FRANCE 24's Noga Tarnopolsky reports from Jerusalem. She says that Netanyahu is on shaky ground as the truce proposal is put to a vote.

  • Defence Web ☛ Saab Grintek Defence poised for continued growth

    Jan Widerström, Managing Director at Saab Grintek Defence, says that there is a growing global demand for advanced defence technologies amid increasing geopolitical tensions and security challenges. Countries across the world are bolstering their defence budgets to address these evolving threats, with Saab Grintek playing a significant role in this international landscape.

  • Latvia ☛ Two Rīga police officers suspected of criminal violence

    The Internal Security Bureau (IDB), Latvia's 'police of the police', said November 25 it has sent a case to the Prosecutor's Office that could lead to two Rīga municipal police officers being charged with the use of excessive violence.

  • New York Times ☛ Nan Goldin Challenges Germany on What Artists Can Say About Israel

    A speech by the artist at an exhibition of her work was followed by protests from her supporters and an uproar in the news media.

  • JURIST ☛ HRW: Israel airstrike against Lebanon using US weapons likely constitute war crimes

    Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported Monday that an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon last month, which killed three journalists and injured four others, was likely a deliberate attack on civilians and an apparent war crime. The attack used a bomb equipped with a “United States-produced Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) guidance kit.”

  • New York Times ☛ Netanyahu Signals Openness to Israel-Hezbollah Cease-Fire, Officials Say

    The United States is pushing Israel to reach a deal with the Lebanese militia by Thanksgiving, even as key details remained unresolved, Israeli officials said.

  • New York Times ☛ Crowds Watch Israeli Airstrikes from a Beirut Hillside

    Every night, dozens gather at the hillside to watch airstrikes rain down on the city’s southern suburbs. The ritual offers a window into the war — and proof that the once unimaginable is really happening.

  • The Straits Times ☛ 39 foreigners flee Myanmar scam centre: Thai police

    The group from Sri Lanka, Nepal, Malaysia and Russia crossed into Thailand’s Tak province.

  • France24 ☛ Survivors, sniffing dogs join anti-mine march at Cambodia's Angkor Wat

    Survivors and sniffing dogs joined hundreds of people at Cambodia's Angkor Wat on Sunday for a march against landmines after the US decision to send anti-personnel mines to Ukraine. Participants, including landmine victims and deminers, repeatedly chanted for "a mine-free world" during the four-kilometre (2.5-mile) walk around the famed temple complex in Siem Reap.

  • Defence Web ☛ SA Navy needs to change and adapt quickly or become obsolete – Mkhonto

    The current geopolitical crises in Ukraine and the Middle East crisis have ramped up the importance of maritime security with the build-up of naval forces in the Red Sea especially creating serious problems for countries like South Africa.

  • Devices/Embedded

    • USMC ☛ New Marine Corps sniper rifle is officially operational

      The Corps chose the Mk22 Mod 0 Advanced Sniper Rifle, manufactured by Barrett Firearms, a company widely known for their groundbreaking work in developing the .50 caliber sniper rifle, as a changeable, multi-barrel rifle to replace two existing long rifles and give shooters three caliber options within their main shooting platform.

    • USMC ☛ Marine Corps Snipers Test New Rifle > Marine Corps Systems Command > News Article Display

      The Mk22 will replace all legacy M40A6 and Mk13 Mod 7 rifles, reducing the sniper rifle inventory from four to three, said Nick Berger, project officer for the Mk22 program. The option provided by the Mk22 to switch barrels will give Marines the ability to configure the rifle to fire the .338 Norma Magnum, .300 NM or 7.62x51 mm NATO rounds.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • France24 ☛ Ukraine studies debris said to be from Russia's experimental ballistic missile

      Ukraine has recovered what it says are fragments of the experimental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead that Russia fired at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro earlier this month. Members of Ukraine’s SBU security service said investigators are examining the fragments in an effort to learn more about the missile.

    • France24 ☛ Does Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky imprison his political opponents?

      Severs users on social control media claim that President Zelensky Is a ‘dictator’ since he imprisons his political opponents. These claims are based off statements made by Tulsi Gabbard, recently designated as Donald Trump’s Head of US Intelligence. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

    • Meduza ☛ Putin bans ‘childfree propaganda’ and adoption of Russian children by citizens of countries that recognize gender transition — Meduza

    • CS Monitor ☛ In shifting world, post-Soviet states look back to a constant: Russia

      Many of the countries that formed out of the Soviet Union aspired to link their future with the West. But European troubles and Russian aggressiveness are pulling their focus back toward Moscow.

    • Latvia ☛ Braže: Russia's 'cycle of impunity' must be broken

      Representatives of 39 countries met in Rīga November 22 to discuss how to hold Russia accountable for its crimes in Ukraine.

    • Meduza ☛ Russian Wagner Group mercenaries killed in attack by al-Qaeda-linked group in Mali — Meduza

    • The Straits Times ☛ Russia pledges broader Afghanistan ties, says US should help rebuild

      Sergei Shoigu, the secretary of Russia's powerful Security Council, told Afghanistan's Taliban leaders on Monday that Moscow wanted to help achieve a durable peace in the country, Russian news agencies reported.

    • Meduza ☛ Russian police reportedly raid Moscow Conservatory dorm and issue military summonses to students — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russian plane catches fire after landing at Turkish airport — Meduza

    • France24 ☛ 'Disillusioned Romanian voters have turned to the fringes', analyst says

      After a far-right pro-Russia candidate secured a surprise lead in Romania's presidential election Monday, the eastern European NATO member is bracing for a high-stakes parliamentary vote on Sunday, amid fears it could bring about a strategic shift in the country. FRANCE 24's Mark Owen speaks to Oana Popescu, director of GlobalFocus Center. She says voters turned to the fringes as disillusionment with political class took hold.

    • France24 ☛ Angela Merkel defends open-door migrant policy, ties with Russia in new memoir

      Germany's former chancellor Angela Merkel reflects on her 16-year tenure in her memoir Freedom, released Tuesday in 30 languages. In the much-anticipated account, Merkel confronts criticisms of her policies on Russia and migration, which some argue left Germany overly dependent on Russian gas and fueled far-right unrest.

    • France24 ☛ In election shock, Romanian far-right NATO critic set to contest presidential run-off

      A hard-right critic of NATO who has praised Russia is set to face a centre-right opposition leader in a presidential election run-off in Romania that could undermine its pro-Western stance after a shock outcome in the first-round vote. The outcome was a huge shock as pre-election opinion polls had made Social Democrat Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu the frontrunner. The candidate of the centre-right Liberals, Ciolacu's coalition partners, also failed to secure a place in the election run-off, which will be on Dec. 8. FRANCE 24's European Affairs Editor Armen Georgian tells us more.

    • France24 ☛ Pro-Russia candidate leads Romanian polls, PM out of the race

      A pro-Russia far-right candidate took a surprise lead Monday in Romania's presidential election, as the EU-leaning premier was knocked out of the race that will be decided in a December run off. The result is a political earthquake in the country of 19 million, a NATO member which has so far resisted nationalist appeals, setting itself apart from neighbours Hungary and Slovakia.

    • RFERL ☛ Pro-Russian Candidate In Shock Win Advances To Romania's Presidential Runoff

      Pro-Russian far-right candidate Calin Georgescu has won a surprise victory in the first round of EU and NATO member Romania's presidential vote and will face pro-Western center-right candidate Elena Lasconi in the December 8 runoff.

    • Seoul confirms casualties among North Korean troops in Russia

      South Korea’s confirmation comes after media report of 500 North Koreans killed by British missiles.

    • RFERL ☛ Russian Beaten In Custody By Kadyrov's Son Gets 13 1/2 Years In Prison

      Nikita Zhuravel, a Russian political prisoner who was beaten by the teenage son of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov while in pretrial detention, has been sentenced to 13 1/2 years in prison on a high treason charge.

    • Latvia ☛ Sanction breaches still continuing in Latvia: LTV's De Facto

      Although this is the third year that businesses have been urged to stop cooperating with Russia and Belarus, many are looking for ways to continue business as usual and circumvent the sanctions, Latvian Television's "De Facto" reported on November 25.

    • Meduza ☛ Russia luring and coercing Yemenis into fighting in Ukraine — Financial Times — Meduza

    • New Yorker ☛ Forbidden Sips of the Ukrainian Dom Pérignon

      In the Cold War, Stalin ordered that a winery be set up in an old gypsum mine in Bakhmut; now Russian soldiers are using the prized cuvée to flush toilets.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine Says It Hit Russian Oil Depot, Other 'Important Targets'

      Ukraine's military said it struck an oil depot overnight in Russia's western Kaluga region and "a number of important targets" in two other Russian regions after Russia shelled the center of the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.

    • New York Times ☛ U.K. Man Fighting for Ukraine Is Said to Be Captured in Russia

      Russian state media reported that a British volunteer for the Ukrainian Army was captured amid fighting in the Kursk region.

    • RFERL ☛ British Man Fighting For Ukraine Reportedly Captured In Russia's Kursk

      A British national fighting for Ukraine has reportedly been captured by Russian forces in Russia’s Kursk region, marking a significant development in the ongoing war.

    • RFERL ☛ Cargo Plane Crash In Vilnius Raises Question About Possible Link To Sabotage

      German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said the deadly crash of a cargo plane in Lithuania on November 25 could have been a "hybrid incident" with outside involvement.

    • Does a video show the repatriation of a US soldier killed in Ukraine?

      Verdict: False

    • LRT ☛ Ukrainian Defence Minister Umerov to visit Lithuania

      
      

    • LRT ☛ Lithuania vows to support Ukraine’s defence industry, allocate €10m

      Lithuania has pledged to support Ukraine’s defence industry and will allocate the initial 10 million euros for the production of the Ukrainian Palianytsia drones under a cooperation agreement signed by Lithuanian and Ukrainian Defence ministers in Vilnius on Saturday.

    • LRT ☛ Ukrainians viewed most favourably as Lithuanians’ attitudes towards migrants worsen

      As attitudes toward migrants in Lithuania grow more negative, Ukrainians remain the most favoured group, according to a survey commissioned by the Vilnius office of the International Organization for Migration (IOM Lithuania).

    • Meduza ☛ Yeltsin Center cancels event with Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter after complaints from Russian nationalist group and pro-Kremlin bloggers — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ From trial to the trenches: How the Russian authorities keep finding new ways to trick prisoners into going to war — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ White House confirms, officially this time, that Kyiv has Biden’s permission to fire ATACMS into Russia — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Man beaten in police custody for burning Quran gets 13.5 years for ‘treason’ against Russia in separate case — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Lawmakers move to keep migrants’ children out of schools if they can’t demonstrate Russian language fluency — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russian borderland governor wants to ban parking in heavily shelled areas to reduce compensation expenses — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russian lawmakers submit bill to allow suspension of bans on terrorist groups, paving way for Taliban removal from terrorist registry — Meduza

    • JURIST ☛ Belarus grants asylum to defecting Poland judge

      Belarus has granted asylum to a former Polish judge following espionage charges in Poland. In a decree granting citizenship to 257 people from 16 states Friday, President Alexander Lukashenko stated that Tomasz Szmydt faces political persecution in Poland.

    • Meduza ☛ Russia preparing to launch new offensive on Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia — The Economist — Meduza

    • RFERL ☛ Protesters Pelt Georgian Parliament With Eggs During First Session Since Disputed Election

      Georgia's new parliament met for its first session since the Moscow-friendly Georgian Dream party won elections last month that ignited calls for fresh polls amid accusations the balloting was rigged, as protesters gathered outside and pelted the building with eggs.

    • Meduza ☛ European leaders renew discussions on sending troops to Ukraine amid concerns Trump will end support — Le Monde — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ A deadly freeze Experts lay out three grim scenarios for winter in Ukraine as Russia pounds the country’s energy infrastructure — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ The Russians who’ve tasted occupation: Meet the desperate relatives of trapped Sudzha residents and the refugees who fled Ukrainian troops in time — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Ukraine continues ATACMS strikes inside Russia, hitting airfield in Kursk — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ U.K. sent Ukraine dozens of Storm Shadow missiles several weeks ago, before long-range strikes on Russian territory approved — Bloomberg — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Kremlin to add public opinion metrics to its governor evaluation criteria — Meduza

    • France24 ☛ Who is the far-right populist and Fentanylware (TikTok) star now leading Romania's presidential race? [Ed: Russia and China election meddling via social control media]

      Calin Georgescu, a previously obscure far-right populist and Tiktok star, unexpectedly came in first place with 22.9 percent of the vote during the first round of Romania's presidential election on Sunday. An independent candidate, he has focused his campaign on criticising NATO and pushing for reduced support for Ukraine.

• Environment

  • New York Times ☛ Storm Bert Batters UK With Rain and Fierce Winds, Killing at Least 3

    Torrential rain doused most of the country, stymying travel and leading to widespread flooding, landslides, fallen trees and power outages.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Contentious COP29 deal shows climate cooperation fraying at edges

    When COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev stepped to the podium at the closing meeting of the Baku climate summit on Sunday morning, hoping to clinch a hard-fought agreement on global climate finance, he carried with him two speeches.

  • The Strategist ☛ Climate security is an opportunity in Australia’s regional strategy

    From Pacific leaders to regional intelligence analysts, climate change is consistently identified as the foremost security issue for the Pacific island region.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Hackaday ☛ Experimental Drone Flies Like A Bird

      Most RC planes follow a simple control scheme: elevators for pitch, rudder for yaw, and ailerons for roll. This one-to-one mapping keeps things straightforward, and fewer actuators means less weight. But nature has other ideas. Birds achieve flight control through complex, coordinated movements where different body parts can affect multiple degrees of freedom simultaneously. Now, researchers at EPFL have brought this biological approach to robotics with the LisEagle, a drone featuring morphing wings and tail that demonstrate remarkable stability.

    • LRT ☛ No signs of alarm before plane crash in Vilnius, audio recording shows

      After a cargo plane crashed in Vilnius on Monday morning, a conversation between the pilots and flight controllers was published on the internet.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • New Yorker ☛ Lake Tahoe’s Bear Boom

      The vacation hot spot has been overrun by people—whose habits are drawing fast-moving animals with sharp claws and insatiable appetites.

• Finance

  • European Commission ☛ Commission challenges China's anti-dumping tariffs on EU brandy at the WTO

    European Commission Press release Brussels, 25 Nov 2024 Today the European Commission has formally requested consultations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) over the provisional anti-dumping measures imposed by China on imports of EU brandy.

  • Mexico News Daily ☛ Ebrard proposes North American ‘plan B’ to counter Chinese imports

    Speaking at a BBVA bank meeting in Cancún on Friday, Ebrard noted there is concern that North America is "losing competitiveness" relative to China.

  • NYPost ☛ Heed the warnings — we need to be economically independent from China, or they will punish us

    President-elect Donald Trump and Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer, the chair of NATO's military committee, understand that you cannot separate our economic and military competition with China.

  • As Chinese buyers snap up Chiang Mai properties, Thais fear for future

    Lower housing, education costs drive thousands to invest in housing units in northern Thailand.

  • Cambodian PM denies funding troubles for Funan Techo canal

    Hun Manet says mega project going ahead as planned without any hindrance

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • CS Monitor ☛ Marco Rubio wants to take a hard line on China. Will Trump let him?

    Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has a history of antagonizing China over its human rights record. But assuming Mr. Rubio is confirmed, his new boss may be more pragmatic.

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • JURIST ☛ Australia government abandons legislation requiring social control media companies to regulate misinformation

      The Australian government opted to abandon proposed laws on Sunday requiring social control media companies to regulate misinformation and disinformation that appears on their platforms.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • The Straits Times ☛ Swatch wins Malaysia suit over Pride watch raid: Media

    The Malaysian High Court ordered the Home Ministry to return the watches.

  • JURIST ☛ Malaysia High Court orders return of seized Swatch Pride watches

    The Malaysia High Court ordered the Home Ministry to return 172 Swatch-branded watches valued at over RM64,000 within 14 days to Swatch Group (Malaysia) Sendirian Berhad on Monday.

  • Citizen Lab ☛ Banned Books: Analysis of Censorship on Amazon.com

    We analyze the system Amazon deploys on the US “amazon.com” storefront to restrict shipments of certain products to specific regions. We found 17,050 products that Amazon restricted from being shipped to at least one world region. - While many of the shipping restrictions are related to regulations involving WiFi, car seats, and other heavily regulated product categories, the most common product category restricted by Amazon in our study was books.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Media tycoon Jimmy Lai denies telling Apple Daily staff to urge western sanctions on Hong Kong, court hears

    Jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai has denied that he instructed staff of his now-shuttered

    Apple Daily newspaper to urge the West to impose sanctions on Hong Kong, his national security trial has heard.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • RFERL ☛ Police Use Tear Gas On Khan Supporters Marching Toward Pakistani Capital

    Thousands of protesters calling for the release of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan defied roadblocks and tear gas on November 25 to march toward Islamabad despite a lockdown and a ban on public gatherings.

  • CS Monitor ☛ After Oklahoma and Louisiana, Texas will be next to try for Bible lessons in schools

    While Bible-based lessons will not be mandatory, schools that incorporate them will receive additional funding. Boosters say the Bible is a core feature of American history, while critics point out the lessons will alienate students from other religions.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia mulling new measures for elderly drivers who want to renew licences

    The percentage of accidents involving drivers aged 60 and above has been steadily increasing since 2020.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Man dies while in custody after creating ruckus at Malaysia’s KLIA

    The man, who was travelling from the UK to to Phuket, had transited at KLIA.

  • The Kent Stater ☛ Emily Calandrelli, 100th woman in space, refuses to bow to ‘small men on the internet’

    Gazing out the window of a rocket at Earth’s glistening blue perimeter, Emily Calandrelli’s mind was likely far from away from the trolls that inhabit the internet on this planet.

  • France24 ☛ Genital mutilations: Kenyan families send their girls across border to evade prosecution

    Today marks the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. In Kenya, 15 percent of girls have undergone female genital mutilation. Efforts to combat and criminalise the practice are growing, with stricter laws having been in place since 2011. Former President Uhuru Kenyatta promised the procedure would have disappeared by 2023.

  • France24 ☛ Education key to fighting child marriages, campaigner says

    According to Unicef, every three seconds, a girl child is forced into marriage. Robbing children of agency and bodily autonomy, the practice also undermines their emotional, sexual and reproductive health. Dr Faith Mwangi-Powell, CEO of Girls Not Brides, says that progress is happening, but stronger legislation is needed as well as support to enforce the laws. She also stresses the need to safeguard girls' education, whose absence often leads to child marriage.

  • Off Guardian ☛ This Is How It Begins: The Deep State Wants to Terminate the Constitution

    “That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said it would be temporary.” Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale This is how it begins. This is how it always begins, justified in the name of national security. Mass roundups. Raids. Indefinite detentions in concentration camps. Martial law.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • Digital Music News ☛ After Dethroning Spotify in Podcasting, YouTube Now Ranks Second in Overall TV Usage, Data Shows

    Spotify is plowing ahead with a video expansion, but as podcasting continues to evolve, it has a long way to go before catching up to YouTube and other well-entrenched players. The hard numbers behind that uphill battle come from Nielsen, and specifically its “Media Distributor Gauge” for October.

  • Michael Geist ☛ The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 220: Marina Pavlović on the CRTC’s Plans to Address Consumer Frustration Over Wireless Contracts

    Consumer frustration with just about everything associated with Canadian communications services is well known. The list of concerns is long: high prices, contracts that lock in consumers but not providers, gaming prices to make comparison shopping difficult, and confusing consumer codes among them.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• New York Times ☛ The ‘Rocket Docket’ Judge Who Will Decide the Fate of Google’s Ad Technology

  The ruling by a federal judge, Leonie Brinkema, in an antitrust case over Google’s advertising technology could add to the internet company’s woes.

• MIT Technology Review ☛ Google’s antitrust gut punch and the Trump wild card

  Last week, the US Department of Justice released its recommendations for proposed remedies in its antitrust case against Google.

• Patents

  • Unified Patents ☛ Intellectual Discovery video codec patent monopoly challenged

    On November 22, 2024, Unified Patents filed an ex parte reexamination proceeding against U.S. Patent 9,432,675, owned by Intellectual Discovery, an NPE. The ’675 Patent relates to a decoding method that uses most-probable-candidate modes for performing intraprediction.

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Howard Lutnick and the Patent System

    The USPTO's position within the Department of Commerce means that Commerce Secretary nominees warrant careful attention from the patent monopoly community. President-elect Trump's nominee for Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, brings particularly relevant experience to the role, shaped by extensive involvement with the U.S. patent monopoly system both as a prolific inventor and as CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, a company that has operated on multiple sides of patent monopoly disputes.

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ The Federal Circuit’s Oracle: When Silence Speaks Louder Than Words

    The Supreme Court currently has two cases that each provide opportunity to address a longstanding problem with the Federal Circuit’s practice of issuing no-opinion summary affirmances in patent monopoly cases. In ParkerVision v. TCL Industries Holdings Co., No. 24-518, and Island Intellectual Property LLC v. TD Ameritrade, Inc., No. 24-461, the petitioners challenge the Federal Circuit’s use of Rule 36 judgments – where the court simply affirms the lower tribunal’s decision without any written opinion. Both petitions are well drafted by expert counsel and both have recently received strong amicus support.

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Supreme Court Requests Response in Edwards Safe Harbor Case

    Following my recent post examining the Edwards v. Meril safe harbor challenge, the Supreme Court has requested a response from Meril after initially receiving only a waiver. The Court's November 20, 2024 request suggests that at least one Justice sees potential merit in Edwards' challenge to the Federal Circuit's broad interpretation of Section 271(e)(1)'s safe harbor provision.  It's important to note that a request for response does not guarantee that the Court will grant the petition. In fact, the case still has a <50% odds of being granted certiorari.

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ Precedential No. 28: TRIPLEYE Not Confusable With 3RD EYE for Optical Monitoring Software and Services, Says TTAB

    In a rather straightforward, yet precedential decision, the Board dismissed a Section 2(d) opposition to registration of the mark TRIPLEYE for optical monitoring software and equipment and related technical services, finding confusion unlikely with the registered mark 3RD EYE for vehicle surveillance and detection systems and related hardware, software and software-based services. The Board found the differences in sound, appearance, connotation, and commercial impression between the marks to be the most important factor in reaching its conclusion. The Heil Co. v. Tripleye GmbH, Opposition No. 91277359 (November 20, 2024) [precedential] (Opinion by Judge Lawrence T. Stanley, Jr.).

• Copyrights

  • Digital Music News ☛ German Court Upholds YouTube-DL Hosting Injunction and Damages Order As Stream-Ripper Crackdown Continues

    Amid an ongoing industry push to decommission stream rippers, a German appellate court has upheld a ruling against the web-hosting provider behind YouTube-DL. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) touted this latest ruling, handed down specifically by the Hamburg Appeal Court, in a brief release today.

  • NYPost ☛ Miley Cyrus ‘categorically’ denies ‘Flowers’ plagiarized a Bruno Mars song as she files to dismiss copyright monopoly lawsuit

    Miley's lawyers: let her have her "Flowers."

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ 2 arrested over illegal streaming of overseas football matches at restaurant

    Two Hong Kong men have been arrested on suspicion of illegally streaming overseas football matches at a restaurant. It marks the first time local authorities have made arrests following new communication rights granted to copyright monopoly owners last year.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Björn Ulvaeus Completes ‘First Global Economic Study’ on [Plagiarism]’s Impact on Musicians and Creators

    Björn Ulvaeus and CISAC complete the ‘first global economic study’ on AI’s impact on musicians and creators, out December 4. ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus, president of CISAC, has completed the first global economic study on [Plagiarism]’s impact on music and audiovisual industries.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Nelly Lawsuit Dropped by Three St. Lunatics Members

    Three of Nelly’s former St. Lunatics bandmates have dropped out of the lawsuit the group filed against him seeking royalties for his breakout album. Three of Nelly’s former St. Lunatics bandmates have formally dropped out of the lawsuit the group filed against him back in September.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Universal Music Criticizes Fred Durst’s Unpaid-Royalties Suit As ‘Fiction’ Ahead of Expected January Dismissal Hearing

    The massive unpaid-royalties lawsuit filed by Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst against Universal Music should be tossed – at least according to the major label itself, which says the complaint “is based on a fallacy.”