Leftovers

• Ruben Schade ☛ In which room do you see yourself?

  Famed Swedish furniture store IKEA had this buying guide on their website landing page: [...]

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• Games

  • Gabriel ☛ A penny-pinching data hoarder.

    Installing games in the most convoluted ways that I already own on other systems just because I can or because I want them all in one place or whatever my excuse is. Let’s take Stardew Valley as an example. I purchased that game years ago on the Nintendo Switch, and have never touched it, then I got it on iOS, same thing, never touched it. A few days ago I purchased it on Steam just to install it onto my Anbernic, again, in the most convoluted and pain-in-the-ass way, why? Just because I could? Would I even play it? I mean, I just might, after all that jumping through hoops to get it to work.

  • El País ☛ Alexey and Henk, the friends who took Tetris out of the Soviet Union

    One man invented a video game that has sold more than 520 million copies. The other fought to obtain the rights to it during the Soviet era, got the game’s designer out from behind the iron curtain, and made it possible for half of humanity to dream of colored blocks just as the Berlin Wall was collapsing.

    Alexey Pajitnov from Moscow and Henk Rogers from Amsterdam are partners in The Tetris Company, which celebrated the game’s 40th anniversary this year. But they are much more than that. They lived together in the Moscow of the late 1980s in a crazy adventure to wrest the Tetris distribution license from the jaws of both the hermetic Soviet bureaucracy and unbridled capitalism (the ill-fated media tycoon Robert Maxwell was distributing Tetris without a fully valid contract via Mirrorsoft) The odyssey inspired the entertaining thriller Tetris (2023, Apple TV+) and forged a complicit friendship.

• Science

  • Hackaday ☛ ALSEP: Apollo’s Modular Lunar Experiments Laboratory

    Although the US’ Moon landings were mostly made famous by the fact that it featured real-life human beings bunny hopping across the lunar surface, they weren’t there just for a refreshing stroll over the lunar regolith in deep vacuum. Starting with an early experimental kit (EASEP) that was part of the Apollo 11 mission, the Apollo 12 through Apollo 17 were provided with the full ALSEP (Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package). It’s this latter which is the subject of a video by [Our Own Devices].

  • Science Alert ☛ NASA Probe About to Make History With Record-Blazing Sun Approach

    Closer than any human-made object ever.

  • Science Alert ☛ Stunningly Preserved Baby Mammoth Found in Siberian Permafrost

    Only the seventh ever found.

  • Science Alert ☛ Unusual Activity in Our Guts Could Have Helped Our Brains Grow Larger

    Thanks team!

  • Science Alert ☛ Astronomer Calculates True Color of Rudolph's Nose on Christmas Eve

    Rudolph the Red-Shifted Reindeer.

  • Science Alert ☛ Lost Rules to One of The Oldest Board Games May at Last Be Known

    But is it actually fun?

• Career/Education

  • The Straits Times ☛ China improves vocational education with high-tech majors amid shortage in skilled workers

    The Education Ministry announced 40 new vocational majors in digital tech or advanced manufacturing.

• Hardware

  • CNX Software ☛ Sipeed NanoKVM-PCIe is an inexpensive KVM over IP solution with optional WiFi 6 and PoE support

    Sipeed NanoKVM-PCIe is a variation of the NanoKVM KVM-over-IP solution introduced last summer, but instead of being a tiny Cube with USB-C power, the new model can be powered through the PCIe slot from the host (as well as USB-C) and adds optional WiFi 6 and PoE functionality.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Be Quiet Light Base 600 LX Case Review: Innovative design, lackluster thermal performance

    Configurable in three layouts, Be Quiet’s Light Base 600 stands apart from the competition. We paired it with Intel’s i7-14700K and Radeon’s RX 7900 GRE to test its thermal performance.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Xerox to acquire rival printer maker Lexmark for $1.53B

    Xerox Holdings Corp. today announced plans to buy Lexmark International Inc., one of its main competitors in the printer market, for $1.53 billion. The company plans to finance the deal with a combination of cash and debt financing.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ U.S. gov't launches probe into ongoing China dominance of legacy semiconductor market amid concerns of Chinese vendors flooding the market

    The new investigation is yet another escalation in the U.S. government's efforts to tighten its scrutiny of China’s semiconductor industry

  • CNX Software ☛ MECOOL KM9PRO MAX 4K Streaming Box runs Surveillance Giant Google TV 12.0 on Realtek RTD1325 SoC

    MECOOL KM9PRO MAX 4K is a Surveillance Giant Google TV 12.0 streaming box based on the Realtek RTD1325 quad-core Cortex-A55 SoC which we initially found in the Formuler Z Mini 4K Android 12 dongle.

  • New York Times ☛ U.S. Takes Aim at China’s Production of Essential Chips

    The older-style chips are crucial for a wide array of appliances and other machinery, including weaponry.

  • Hackaday ☛ Keebin’ With Kristina: The One With The Keyboard-Mouse

    One of the most annoying things about keyboard and mouse input has got to be the need to constantly switch between the two. Ever wish there was a single solution that combined them with elegance? Then you should definitely check out [lemosbor]’s Lapa keyboard, where the right half includes a mouse sensor.

  • Hackaday ☛ Silicone Tubing As Springs For Capacitive Touch Buttons

    Capacitive touch buttons are a great way to turn just about any (non-conductive) surface into a button, but people generally dislike the lack of tactile feedback.  [KontinuumLab] apparently agreed and decided to experiment a bit with ways to make such buttons more springy. You can check out the results of those experiments in the video below. There are a few ways to add some spring to buttons and switches like these, including compliant mechanisms in the (3D-printed) plastic structure, but this isn’t always an option in a project. A separate plastic spring can be added, but they aren’t very durable. A metal spring works great but can be a bit of a hassle to integrate and they aren’t as cheap as the other options. So what about everyone’s favorite keyboard switch, the rubber dome type?

  • Hackaday ☛ Crawler Challenge: Building Rope-Traversing Robots

    Rope-climbing robots are the stuff of engineering dreams. As kids, didn’t we all clutter our family home with constructions of towers and strings – Meccano, or Lego – to have ziplines spanning entire rooms? Good for the youngsters of today, this has been included in school curricula. At the University of Illinois, the ME 370 students have been given the task of building a robot that can hang from a rope and walk across it—without damaging the rope. The final projects show not only how to approach tricky design problems, but also the creative solutions they stumbled upon.

  • Hackaday ☛ Camera Slider Uses Repositionable Rail To Do Rotational Moves

    You can buy motorized camera sliders off-the-shelf, but they’re pretty costly. Alternatively, you can make one yourself, and it’s not even that hard if you’re kitted out with a 3D printer. [Creative 3D Printing] did just that with a nifty design that adds rotation into the mix. Check it out in the video below.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ US officials launch investigation into China’s legacy chip sector

    The outgoing Biden administration today said it’s launching a fresh probe into China’s semiconductor industry, with a particular focus on legacy chips that are used in products such as cars, electrical goods and defense systems.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • New York Times ☛ Research Finds Vaccines Are Not Behind the Rise in Autism. So What Is?

    There is no one factor that causes autism — or explains its growing prevalence. Researchers are seeking explanations for the surge. Here are some possibilities.

  • Cloudbooklet ☛ South Korea Iron Man Robot Gives Hope to Paraplegics

    South Korea Iron Man Robot helps paraplegic users walk and climb stairs.

  • Does a photo show COVID patients in China in December 2024?

    Verdict: Misleading

  • The Straits Times ☛ Vietnam officials go on trial over Covid-19 flight bribes

    They allegedly gave or took bribes to help people get on repatriation flights in early 2020.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Multiple-entry visas for Shenzhen residents boosted Hong Kong food and beverage sector, says industry veteran

    Hong Kong’s food and beverage sector has benefited from the recent resumption of multiple-entry visas for Shenzhen residents, an industry veteran has said.

  • Science Alert ☛ Here's What Your Snot's Color Could Be Telling You About Your Body

    Take a peek.

  • Science Alert ☛ The FDA Just Approved The First US Drug Treatment For Sleep Apnea

    "This is a major step forward for patients."

  • Science Alert ☛ Drinking Tea or Coffee Each Day Could Reduce Mouth And Throat Cancer Risk

    Here’s to your health.

• Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  • It's FOSS ☛ 5 Local Hey Hi (AI) Tools to Interact With PDF and Documents

    Interact with your documents but in private with these local Hey Hi (AI) tools.

  • New York Times ☛ How Hallucinatory Hey Hi (AI) Helps Science Dream Up Big Breakthroughs [Ed: Now NY Times is pushing the lie that disinformation and misinformation are somehow good]

    Hallucinations, a bane of popular Hey Hi (AI) programs, turn out to be a boon for venturesome scientists eager to push back the frontiers of human knowledge.

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • EDRI ☛ Pre-travel controls: Digitalising travel documents

      We are responding to a public consultation on the European Commissions’ digitalising travel documents proposal. This proposal promises convenience in travel but could pave the way for biometric mass surveillance and automated discrimination.

    • Digital Music News ☛ AirPods May Soon Include Heart Rate Monitoring, Embedded Cameras, and More

      Apple’s next generation AirPods Pro will include heart rate and temperature monitoring. The next generation of AirPods Pro will include health monitoring features, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter, Gurman revealed Fashion Company Apple has been testing features including heart rate monitoring and temperature sensing.

• Defence/Aggression

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ A billion users, but controversies mount up for China-linked TikTok

    TikTok’s breakneck rise from niche video-sharing app to global social control media behemoth has drawn intense scrutiny, particularly over its links to China. In Washington, the platform has been accused of espionage. The European Union suspects it was used to sway Romania’s presidential election in favour of a far-right candidate.

  • Cloudbooklet ☛ TikToker Minahil Malik Returns to Social Media After Video Leak

    TikToker Minahil Malik returns to social control media stronger after a video leak scandal, denying claims and embracing support from fans and family.

  • Cloudbooklet ☛ Madzimai Kelly Quits Fentanylware (TikTok) After Leaked Video Shock

    Madzimai Kelly quits Fentanylware (TikTok) after a shocking leaked video sparks controversy across Zimbabwe. Learn more about the incident and its impact.

  • Michael Geist ☛ The Year in Review: Top Ten Posts

    Last week’s Law Bytes podcast featured a look at the year in review in digital law and policy. Before wrapping up for the year, the next three posts over the holidays will highlight the most popular posts, podcast episodes, and Substacks of the past year. Today’s post starts with the top posts, which starts with a major copyright monopoly ruling involving fair dealing and digital locks. The remaining posts include four posts on the Online Harms Act and two on Bill S-210, alongside posts on the implementation of Bills C-11, C-18, and the recent decision to ban Fentanylware (TikTok) from operating in Canada.

  • New York Times ☛ Luigi Mangione Pleads Not Guilty to N.Y. Charges in UnitedHealthcare CEO Killing

    The Manhattan district attorney’s office charged Luigi Mangione, who is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare’s chief executive, with first-degree murder. His lawyer argued his case had been politicized.

  • France24 ☛ Luigi Mangione pleads not guilty to murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO

    Luigi Mangione, accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, pleaded not guilty to state murder charges on Monday, including murder as an act of terrorism.

  • France24 ☛ Luigi Mangione pleads not guilty to murder and weapons charges

    The man accused of fatally shooting the CEO of UnitedHealthcare pleaded not guilty on December 23 to state murder and terror charges while his attorney complained that comments coming from New York’s mayor would make it tough to receive a fair trial.

  • New Yorker ☛ The Professional Health-Insurance-C.E.O. Nagger

    Susan Frager, known as the PsychBilling Coach, helps therapists appeal coverage denials. Her job got more difficult after the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s C.E.O., Brian Thompson.

  • New York Times ☛ Money for 9/11 Health Care Was Dropped from Year-End Spending Bill

    A plan to ensure long-term funding to address health needs stemming from the terrorist attacks fell to the wayside after President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk objected to a bipartisan budget deal.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean opposition threatens to impeach Acting President over martial law counsel

    Prime Minister Han has taken over from the suspended Yoon Suk-Yeol.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s court pushes ahead with hearing despite Yoon’s repeated refusal

    Mr Yoon prioritises defending himself in Constitutional Court over investigations, confidant says.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean opposition pushes for acting president’s impeachment

    This came after he snubbed its demand to promulgate special counsel Bills targeting Yoon and his wife.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea finance minister sees political turmoil weighing on economic growth

    SEOUL - South Korea's finance minister said on Monday some slowdown in economic growth would be unavoidable as the government prepares to revise forecasts for this year and next year due to the country's ongoing political turmoil.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Fake guns, real danger: Malaysia battles gel-blasters

    These guns, marketed as toys, closely resemble real firearms and can be easily purchased online.

  • Hackaday ☛ Atoms For Peace: The US Nuclear Fleet Build-Out And Modern-Day Revival

    By the end of World War II the world had changed forever, as nuclear weapons were used for the first and – to this date – only time in anger. Although the use of these weapons was barely avoided during the Korean War in the early 1950s, the dawning of the Atomic Age had come in the form of obliterated cities and an increasing number of these weapons being test fired around the world. It was against this background that on December 8, 1953, US President Dwight D. Eisenhower held his ‘Atoms for Peace’ speech, during which he would not only promote the peaceful use of nuclear technologies but also lay the groundwork for what would become the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), as announced in the full speech.

  • The Strategist ☛ Varghese review will undermine think tank independence

    For China watchers, there’s a grim irony contained in the 14 principles that former senior official Peter Varghese recommends in his long-awaited review into national security think tanks, released last week.

  • JURIST ☛ Saudi Arabia to reopen embassy in Taliban Afghanistan

    Saudi Arabia announced on Sunday that it has resumed diplomatic operations in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. This marks the reopening of its embassy, which had been closed since February 2023 due to security concerns.

  • New York Times ☛ ‘Rust’ Prosecutor Withdraws Appeal of Alec Baldwin Case

    The decision ends the criminal prosecution of the actor for the fatal shooting on a film set. During his trial, the judge dismissed the involuntary manslaughter charge against him.

  • France24 ☛ Jordanian, Qatari envoys meet Syria's new leader for reconstruction talks

    Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, hosted high-level talks on Monday with Arab diplomats, including Jordan and Qatar, focusing on reconstruction and future cooperation. The meetings marked a significant shift in regional ties after Bashar al-Assad's overthrow earlier this month.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Driver in China’s Hunan car ramming handed suspended death sentence

    His sentence may be converted to life imprisonment after two years, according to Chinese law.

  • France24 ☛ Dozens killed in Israeli strikes, Gaza officials say

    Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip overnight killed at least 20 people, Palestinian medics said on December 23.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Philippine military says will acquire US Typhon mid-range missile system

    China has warned that the presence of such weapons is destabilising to Asia.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ South China Sea: Philippine military says will acquire US Typhon missile system

    The Philippine military said Monday it plans to acquire the US Typhon missile system to protect its maritime interests, some of which overlap with regional power China.

  • JURIST ☛ Amnesty International urges China to release human rights lawyers detained since 2019

    Amnesty International called on the Chinese government to release human rights lawyers Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi, who have been jailed for subversion by attending a social gathering on 26 December 2019.

  • China imposes ‘countermeasures’ after Canada’s sanctions over human rights

    Two Canadian human rights advocacy organizations related to Uyghurs and Tibet have assets frozen, travel banned.

  • JURIST ☛ China imposes retaliatory sanctions on Canada human rights groups

    China announced countermeasures against two Canadian organizations and 20 affiliated individuals on Saturday. This decision, published in a statement on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, is rooted in what China perceives as unwarranted foreign interference in its internal affairs, particularly relating to human rights advocacy regarding China’s human rights record regarding Uyghurs and Tibetans.

  • LRT ☛ China says it provided information in Baltic Sea cables breach inquiry

    China has provided information and documents to a joint investigation into two damaged undersea cables in the Baltic Sea, Reuters has reported.

  • US charges man with infiltrating local California politics as ‘illegal’ Chinese agent

    Mike Sun acted as campaign manager in elections to a city council, ‘conspired’ with jailed agent Chen Jun.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s ex-intelligence commander’s note reveals alleged plans to provoke North Korea: Police

    The memo also detailed how the list of individuals would be accommodated and handled.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • The Strategist ☛ Norway is a Ukraine War profiteer

      When Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the order to invade Ukraine in February 2022, he surely did not expect that one of Russia’s neighbors would be the main beneficiary of his war.

    • France24 ☛ Zelensky accuses Slovak PM Fico of aiding Putin

      Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has criticised Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico for his stance on Russian gas imports, accusing him of helping President Vladimir Putin fund the war in Ukraine. This comes after Fico’s visit to Moscow, where he expressed opposition to reducing Slovakia’s energy dependence on Russia, despite Ukraine offering alternative solutions.

    • New York Times ☛ Slovak Leader Visits Putin, Breaking With E.U.’s Policy of Isolation

      Prime Minister Robert Fico’s surprise visit to Moscow on Sunday, reportedly to discuss natural gas and Ukraine, was a blow to European unity against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    • New York Times ☛ Is a Putin Ally in Belarus Making a Cautious Overture to the West?

      President Aleksandr G. Lukashenko of Belarus keeps arresting political opponents, but analysts wonder if a string of unusual pardons is a bid to get sanctions eased.

    • RFERL ☛ Zelenskiy Accuses Slovak PM Of Wanting To 'Help Putin' Through Gas Payments

      Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico of wanting to "help" President Vladimir Putin earn money to fund Russia’s war in Ukraine after Fico paid a visit to Putin in Moscow.

    • RFERL ☛ Kremlin Says No Plans Yet For Talks With Trump

      The Kremlin said there are currently no plans for President Vladimir Putin to meet with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump amid a rise in talk of finding a peace deal to end Russia's war against Ukraine.

    • Meduza ☛ Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico meets with Putin in Moscow to discuss Russian gas supplies — Meduza

    • France24 ☛ Putin welcomes Slovak PM to Moscow, a rare visit by EU leader

      Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Sunday, discussing gas transit and the war in Ukraine, as Kyiv signals it will not renew a key gas deal with Slovakia. The visit, condemned by Slovak opposition parties, highlights Fico's pro-Russia stance.

    • RFERL ☛ Putin Meets Slovak PM In Moscow For Talks About Natural Gas Deliveries

      Russian President Vladimir Putin and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico met in the Kremlin on December 22 to discuss a soon-to-expire contract allowing for Russian natural gas to transit through Ukraine.

    • RFERL ☛ Russia Launches Massive Drone Attack As Putin Vows Revenge For Kyiv's Attack On Kazan

      Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed revenge over Kyiv's attack a day earlier on high-rise buildings in Kazan, the capital of Russia's oil-rich republic of Tatarstan, as Russia launched a massive drone attack at Ukraine on December 22.

    • France24 ☛ How French soldiers train for trench warfare

      Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 marked the return of high-intensity warfare in Europe. Now, almost three years later and with the conflict showing no signs of abating, France is gearing itself up to fight. FRANCE 24 reports from a military camp in northeastern France where soldiers train for combat in trenches.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuania plans to extend sanctions on Russians, Belarusians for another year

      As Russia continues its war in Ukraine, Lithuania plans to extend national sanctions on Russian and Belarusian citizens for another year.

    • Russian POWs in Ukraine call their North Korean allies ‘reckless’

      The North Koreans are better equipped and better fed than the Russians, but they lack discipline, they said.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine Supports Stabilizing Syria, Zelenskiy Says As He Again Warns Of Russia-North Korea Cooperation

      Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine is interested in stabilizing the situation in Syria and believes it is essential for the country's security to remove any Russian presence from the country.

    • TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ First-time Twin Cities filmmaker shares stories of Ukrainians during the 1930s famine

      Titled “Holodomor: Minnesota Memories of Genocide in Ukraine,” the documentary is written and directed by Zina Poletz Gutmanis, of Plymouth, whose grandmother is a survivor of the famine.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Trump discusses Taiwan, end of war in Ukraine with Shinzo Abe’s widow

      Donald Trump and Mrs Akie Abe met on Dec 15 for dinner at the President-elect’s Mar-a-Lago estate.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan warns defence could suffer under opposition's funding laws

      Taiwan's opposition parties passed legislation to shift spending from the central government to local municipalities.

    • France24 ☛ Trump ally Matt Gaetz paid for underage sex, probe finds

      A new report from the House Ethics Committee details multiple allegations against former Congressman Matt Gaetz, including paying for underage sex, using illegal drugs, and breaking Florida laws on sexual misconduct. Gaetz, who was initially chosen to lead the Justice Department, denies the accusations.

    • New York Times ☛ Why Are North Korean Troops in Ukraine Taking Heavy Casualties?

      The North Korean army is one of the world’s largest.​ As it joins Russia’s war against Ukraine, its soldiers are paying a price for Kim Jong-un’s geopolitical maneuvers.

    • Meduza ☛ ‘We understand what war is now’: Fortitude, fatigue, and facing reality in Ukraine’s east — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Police blame Ukrainian scammers for wave of arson attacks and explosions in cities across Russia ahead of New Year holidays — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Another weekend of war Russian bomb destroys cancer hospital in Kherson, Ukrainian drones hit Kazan apartments — Meduza

    • North Korea’s mid-range ballistic missile systems spotted in Russia: expert

      North Korea is suspected of sending weapons to Russia to support its invasion of Ukraine.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine's Human Rights Ombudsman Accuses Russian Forces Of Executing 5 POWs

      Russian forces executed five Ukrainian prisoners of war according to the latest war crime allegation against Russian troops raised by Ukraine's ombudsman for human rights.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuania to spend €15m to upgrade Russia border surveillance systems

      Lithuania plans to use 15 million euros provided by the European Commission to upgrade electronic border surveillance systems at four frontier stations on the country’s border with Russia.

    • More than 3,000 North Koreans killed, wounded in Russia’s Kursk: Zelenskyy

      South Korea says the North is preparing to send more troops to help Russia.

    • RFERL ☛ Uzbek Authorities Keeping Tabs On Family Of Suspect In Russian General's Killing

      Uzbek authorities are keeping a close eye on the family of the suspect in the high-profile assassination of a Russian general in Moscow last week, neighbors and activists say.

    • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea detects signs of North Korea preparing more troops, drones for Russia

      Seoul, Washington and Kyiv have said there are around 12,000 North Korean troops in Russia.

    • Meduza ☛ Russia’s Muslim Spiritual Administration withdraws polygamy ruling after Prosecutor’s Office says it violates law and ‘traditional values’ — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Menacing sanctions, meaningless forecasts, and a murky future Meduza’s top five takeaways on the Russian economy heading into 2025 — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russia begins emergency electricity supplies to Georgia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ YouTube traffic in Russia drops to 20 percent of pre-throttling levels, platform ‘de facto blocked’ in country — Meduza

    • RFERL ☛ 5 Candidates Approved For Belarus Vote Lukashenka Seen Winning Easily

      Belarus' Central Election Commission (CEC) said five candidates, including Alyaksandr Lukashenka, have been registered for a presidential election next month, the first since balloting in 2020 triggered mass unrest.

    • JURIST ☛ US Department of Defense: corruption slows military modernization in China

      The US Department of Defense (DOD) released its annual report on Beijing’s defense strategies on Wednesday, revealing that corruption within China’s military may be slowing its progress toward achieving its 2027 modernization goals.

    • RFERL ☛ Georgian President Calls For New Election Date By December 29

      Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has called on the ruling Moscow-friendly Georgian Dream party to set a date for new parliamentary elections by December 29 amid unrest over the last vote and the party's unilateral decision to postpone negotiations with the European Union.

• Environment

  • The Straits Times ☛ Indonesian tsunami survivor holds on to hope for missing son after 20 years

    The deadly wave, triggered by a 9.1 magnitude quake, killed some 230,000 people in 2004.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia Airlines grounds new Airbus A330neo jet over safety concerns

      The airline’s CEO says the technical faults were “not acceptable” and “embarrassing”.

    • New York Times ☛ National Security Committee Forgoes Decision on U.S. Steel Acquisition

      The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States kicked a decision over the merger with Japan’s Nippon Steel to President Biden, who is expected to block the deal.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • BIA Net ☛ Smuggled baby gorilla seized at Istanbul Airport in good health

      Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry states that endangered baby gorilla seized at Istanbul Airport remains under observation.

    • Defence Web ☛ Suspected bushmeat poachers nabbed by Kruger Park crime investigators

      It might be year-end for many but not poachers and those tasked with stopping them as two suspects found out when they fell foul of the SANParks environmental crime investigation unit (ECIU).

• Finance

  • New York Times ☛ More Starbucks Store Workers Will Join Strike for Final Day

    The walkout began Friday at stores in the Los Angeles, Seattle and Chicago areas and will end on Tuesday.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia’s 1MDB seeks $1.35b from Amicorp for alleged fraud

    1MDB says Amicorp knew it was involved in a money laundering scheme.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Trump HUD Pick Scott Turner Has Opposed Efforts to Aid the Poor

    As Donald Trump’s nominee to run the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Scott Turner may soon oversee the nation’s efforts to build affordable apartments, protect poor tenants and aid the homeless. As a lawmaker in the Texas House of Representatives, Turner voted against those very initiatives.

    Turner supported a bill ensuring landlords could refuse apartments to applicants because they received federal housing assistance. He opposed a bill to expand affordable rental housing. He voted against funding public-private partnerships to support the homeless and against two bills that called merely to study homelessness among young people and veterans.

  • Pro Publica ☛ How Tribal Lenders Got Away With Triple-Digit Interest Rates

    More than a decade ago, loan financier Matt Martorello was worried that the golden days for his high-interest lending venture were over.

    In an email to his accountants, he detailed how attorneys general in multiple states were sending cease-and-desist letters to the online enterprise he operated with a Native American tribe based in Michigan. Major banks wanted nothing to do with the business, which offered small-dollar loans at exorbitant interest rates far above limits set by many states. Federal regulators were suing his competitors.

  • India Times ☛ SAP, Intel and 6 other companies who fired their top executives in the year 2024

    2024 has been a tumultuous year for corporate leadership in the tech industry as multiple companies made headlines for ousting their top executives. From tech giants like Intel and SAP to gaming powerhouses such as Bungie and Blizzard, high-profile firings have sparked conversations about shifting priorities, performance pressures, and internal upheavals among tech companies. These sudden departures reflect broader challenges, including the struggle to adapt to evolving market demands, employee dissatisfaction, and controversies surrounding the conduct of some leaders. Here’s a list of tech companies who were sacked, fired or laid off their top executives this year: [...]

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Financial services giant Fiserv buys Payfare to move into gig economy financing

    The financial infrastructure services firm Fiserv Inc. said today it has entered into an agreement to acquire the Canadian payments startup Payfare Inc. for C$201.5 million ($140 million) in a deal that will enable it to expand its payments offerings for gig economy workers.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • The Straits Times ☛ Real-life violence inspires South Korea’s Squid Game

    The series' main character was inspired by a 77-day strike by workers of a car giant in 2009.

  • 2025 ASEAN chair Malaysia expected to revive bloc amid questions about neutrality

    Smoothly navigating global rivalries in the current geopolitical scenario will be a daunting task, analysts said.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia PM Anwar’s approval ratings improve on investment push: Survey

    Respondents were generally satisfied with PM Anwar’s performance across a number of areas.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Former US Marines pilot who worked in China to be extradited to US, says Australia government

    SYDNEY - Australia's Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said on Monday he had approved a United States extradition request for former U.S. Marines pilot Daniel Duggan, who faces charges including breaking U.S. arms control law by training Chinese military pilots to land on aircraft carriers.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China says it ‘firmly opposes’ US military aid to Taiwan as Biden approves defence package

    US President Joe Biden had authorised the drawdown of up to $774.6 million in assistance for the territory.

  • New York Times ☛ Kay Granger’s Senior Living Revelation Draws Fresh Scrutiny to Aging Congress

    Representative Kay Granger, Republican of Texas, has been largely absent from Capitol Hill since the summer and has moved into a retirement home.

  • Daniel Pocock ☛ Fatima Payman, Kate O'Connell, Domain names & Irish Elections

    Another interesting coincidence: Kate and Fatima are both pharmacists. Ireland and the Australian Labor Party both have what open source software organizations call Codes of Conduct (gaslighting) and both of these pharmacists have turned their back on those codes. We can see that in the way Senator Payman refused to vote with the Government on Gaza and Kate O'Connell TD defied the Catholic Church on abortion.

  • Pro Publica ☛ ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer Adds Tools to Research Audits and Financial Health

    During the year’s busiest season of charitable giving, donors may wonder whether the nonprofits they are considering donating to are going to be good stewards of their money.

    ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer already allows users to thoroughly research charities, and now we’re adding more features to help you understand the financial health of organizations. Starting Monday, you can search for organizations that have reported a significant theft, as well as those that have had auditors flag serious financial issues.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Jefferson Griffin’s NC Election Challenge Relies on Theory Election Deniers Called Extreme

    Months before voters went to the polls in November, a group of election skeptics based in North Carolina gathered on a call and discussed what actions to take if they doubted any of the results.

    One of the ideas they floated: try to get the courts or state election board to throw out hundreds of thousands of ballots cast by voters whose registrations are missing a driver’s license number and the last four digits of a Social Security number.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Chinese censors target writers in nationwide crackdown on online erotic fiction

    Dozens of writers are arrested after publishing on the Taiwan-based adult fiction website Haitang Literature.

  • TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ Minneapolis softens law on obstructing abortion clinics in response to free-speech lawsuit

    The City Council this month quietly amended the ordinance to exclude constitutionally protected activities and agreed to pay the plaintiffs’ legal fees.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong gov’t cancels passports of 7 ‘absconder’ activists under new domestic security law provision

    The Hong Kong government has cancelled the HKSAR passports of seven “absconders” using under the city’s homegrown security law, including former lawmakers Ted Hui and Dennis Kwok who are now based overseas.

  • The Straits Times ☛ HK cancels passports of 7 activists based overseas

    They were listed in a government notice as absconders for offences endangering national security.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Hong Kong offers bounties for six more democrats in security squeeze

    Hong Kong on Tuesday imposed bounties of HK$1 million ($128,728) on six more pro-democracy campaigners deemed to have violated national security laws, as well as revoking the passports of seven others, in a continuing security squeeze in the financial hub.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Breaking: Hong Kong national security police issue HK$1 million bounties for 6 ‘fugitives’

    Hong Kong national security police have issued a fresh round of arrest warrants for six people living overseas, including self-exiled activists, a former pollster and an ex-actor. A reward of HK$1 million has been offered for information leading to their arrests.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Press Gazette ☛ Lady in the lake murder: Why reporter has returned to the crime 27 years on

    Jeremy Craddock's new book explores a notorious Lake District murder and the ethics of crime reporting.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • Site36 ☛ New scandal concerning riot police in Germany: Unit investigated and taken off duty

    The Dresden police are investigating 16 riot police officers for assault, coercion and misconduct. The police chief threatens to ‘restructure’ the unit. The Dresden Public Prosecutor General’s Office is investigating eight police officers from a riot police “Evidence and Arrest Unit” (BFE) on suspicion of assault in office and coercion.

  • Site36 ☛ From prison in Hungary to prison in Germany: Court in Karlsruhe orders custody for Tobias E.

    After being released from prison in Hungary, a 29-year-old man from Berlin is now in pre-trial detention in Germany. The Saxony Criminal Police Office is responsible for the continuation of his detention.

  • EFF ☛ 2024 Year in Review

    If there is something uniting all the disparate threads of work EFF has done this year, it is this: that law and policy should be careful, precise, practical, and technologically neutral. We do not care if a cop is using a glass pressed against your door or the most advanced microphone: they need a warrant.  

    For example, much of the public discourse this year was taken up by generative AI. It seemed that this issue was a Rorschach test for everyone’s anxieties about technology - be they privacy, replacement of workers, surveillance, or intellectual property. Ultimately, it matters little what the specific technology is: whenever technology is being used against our rights, EFF will oppose that use. It’s a future-proof way of protecting us. If we have privacy protections, labor protections, and protections against government invasions, then it does not matter what technology takes over the public imagination, we will have recourse against its harms. 

  • OpenRightsGroup ☛ ORG Review 2024

    It’s been another busy year for digital rights, with the added excitement of an earlier than expected General Election! Here are some of the key moments from 2024.

  • Uyghur intellectual died while in custody of Chinese authorities

    Ibrahim Dawut had been an advocate for Uyghur language education, but died only two months after his arrest.

  • EFF ☛ EFF in the Press: 2024 in Review

    Perhaps the single most exciting media hit for EFF in 2024 was “Secrets in Your Data,” the NOVA PBS documentary episode exploring “what happens to all the data we’re shedding and explores the latest efforts to maximize benefits – without compromising personal privacy.” EFFers Hayley Tsukayama, Eva Galperin, and Cory Doctorow were among those interviewed.

    One big-splash story in January demonstrated just how in-demand EFF can be when news breaks. Amazon’s Ring home doorbell unit announced that it would disable its Request For Assistance tool, the program that had let police seek footage from users on a voluntary basis – an issue on which EFF, and Matthew Guariglia in particular, have done extensive work. Matthew was quoted in Bloomberg, the Associated Press, CNN, The Washington Post, The Verge, The Guardian, TechCrunch, WIRED, Ars Technica, The Register, TechSpot, The Focus, American Wire News, and the Los Angeles Business Journal. The Bloomberg, AP, and CNN stories in turn were picked up by scores of media outlets across the country and around the world. Matthew also did interviews with local television stations in New York City, Oklahoma City, Allentown, PA, San Antonio, TX and Norfolk, VA. Matthew and Jason Kelley were quoted in Reason, and EFF was cited in reports by the New York Times, Engadget, The Messenger, the Washington Examiner, Silicon UK, Inc., the Daily Mail (UK), AfroTech, and KFSN ABC30 in Fresno, CA, as well as in an editorial in the Times Union of Albany, NY.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • APNIC ☛ Three of the best: Measurement

    Measurement is always a popular topic on the APNIC Blog. Here are three of the best from 2024.

  • APNIC ☛ Event Wrap: ON-IDLE Stakeholders Meeting

    APNIC participated in the ON-IDLE Stakeholder meeting, held in Manila Philippines on 4 December 2024.

• Digital Restrictions (DRM)

  • Medevel ☛ What Does TPM Mean for backdoored Windows 11 Users? Is TPM A Requirement or a Dealbreaker?

    Microsoft’s decision to require Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0 for backdoored Windows 11 installations has sparked significant discussion across the tech community. While the move aims to enhance security, it also leaves many users wondering about its implications.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Silicon Angle ☛ Japan targets Surveillance Giant Google over alleged Android ecosystem monopolization

  Japan’s Fair Trade Commission is reportedly planning to or has already sent a cease-and-desist order to Surveillance Giant Google LLC’s Japan office, accusing Surveillance Giant Google of breaching Japan’s antimonopoly laws by forcing smartphone manufacturers to include the Surveillance Giant Google search app on their smartphones. The exact status of the order is unclear.

• WCCF Tech ☛ Google Faces An Antitrust Crackdown As Japan’s Regulators Prepare To Deliver A Guilty Verdict

  Regulatory authorities are actively pursuing companies that are in violation or discourage healthy competition from sustaining. Many tech giants found themselves in legal trouble due to the ongoing pursuit. Google has been facing immense pressure lately, as authorities have held the company accountable for its monopolistic practices and are even looking into making Google sell off Chrome in an attempt to break its dominance. While the company is already juggling several claims of violations, things are not getting any easier. Recently, the company has been found guilty of antitrust violations in Japan.

• Patents

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ The Federal Circuit’s Divided Path on Divided Infringement

    The Federal Circuit recently issued an important decision refining how courts should analyze infringement of system claims when multiple parties are involved in operating different components of the claimed system. This post looks at the court’s  new decision in CloudofChange, LLC v. NCR Corp., No. 23-1111 (Fed. Cir. Dec. 18, 2024) and contrasts it Centillion Data Systems, LLC v. Qwest Communications International, Inc., 631 F.3d 1279 (Fed. Cir. 2011).

    These cases highlight a recurring challenge in patent monopoly law – how to analyze infringement when a claim requires components controlled by different actors. The issue is particularly salient for modern technology systems that often involve both vendor-operated backend servers and customer-operated frontend devices.

    The Centillion Framework

  • Kangaroo Courts

    • JUVE ☛ EPO not playing along with KPN’s UPC strategy [Ed: UPC is not legal; it'll get eradicated eventually, as it is based on lawbreaking by EPO and some EU officials]

      KPN’s UPC lawsuit against Oppo, which it only launched in September, has taken a surprising turn just three months later. The Boards of Appeal have declared the patent monopoly in suit EP 2 387 844 invalid due to added-subject matter (case ID: T1841/23).

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ Heck Freezes Over: USPTO Fails to Prove Gin Related to Beer Under Section 2(d)

    The USPTO fumbled the ball here in what should have been a fairly easy run for a touchdown. The Board reversed a refusal to register the mark shown below left, for "gin," finding that the USPTO failed to prove confusion likely with the mark on the right, for various beers. The Board found the marks to be "more similar than dissimilar," but the USPTO's feeble evidentiary showing regarding the relatedness of gin and beer led the Board to weigh the second DuPont factor as dispositive in favor of Applicant Cobblestone Brands. In re Cobblestone Brands Ltd, Serial No. 97453097 (December 19, 2024) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Lawrence T. Stanley, Jr.).

• Copyrights

  • Digital Music News ☛ Universal Music Doubles Down on Limp Bizkit Suit Dismissal Push, Says the ‘Agreements Expressly Allow the Cross-Account Recoupments’

    About one month after firing back against Limp Bizkit’s massive unpaid-royalties and infringement suit, Universal Music Group is aggressively doubling down on its dismissal arguments. The major made its newest push to have the case tossed via a reply in support of a late November dismissal motion.