Leftovers

• Jim Nielsen ☛ Blown Away By the Unexpected

  A friend gave me a copy of the book “Perfect Wave” by Dave Hickey.

  I’ve been slowly reading through each essay and highlighting parts with my red pencil.

• Ruben Schade ☛ People want solutions

  My dad used to quip that chemists have solutions. That’s probably where I get this awful sense of humour from. But I digress.

  It’s been five years now since I moved into my current role, doing something I never in a million years would have expected. I talk to people, about their tech. I sit with sales teams, and I’m “the tech guy” for architecture, system design, and advice. I then write these notes, requirements, and constraints into handover documents, which I pass to clients who I’m sure are happy to receive them and proceed to never read.

• Ismael Olea: A RightsStatements ontology

  At LaOficina we are currently working on a project to digitize family photographs and one of the challenges is the correct traceability of intellectual property. In this case we have encountered the difficulty of knowing the exact conditions of the received material, a situation that is not new and which is already addressed by the RightsStatements vocabulary, which includes 12 terms that are used, among others, by the Europeana community.

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ 'Lost City' Deep Under The Ocean Is Unlike Anything We've Ever Seen Before on Earth

    Now that we've found it, we can't afford to lose it.

  • Science Alert ☛ 10 Minutes of Violence Gave The Moon Its Very Own 'Grand Canyons'

    Canyon formation cheat code.

  • Science Alert ☛ Third of Earth's Landmass Could Soon Be Too Hot For Over 60s

    Limits of human endurance.

• Career/Education

  • Pro Publica ☛ A Push to Stop Police Ticketing in Illinois Schools Becomes Urgent in the Trump Era

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s private education sector rakes in profits despite drop in student numbers

    Cram schools are shifting their business strategies to focus on premium, high-intensity programmes.

  • EXPLAINED: Why are North Korean teachers hauling water up apartment buildings?

    Teachers are trusted to enter people’s homes, so they lug buckets up stairs to earn extra cash.

• Hardware

  • CNX Software ☛ Ceva-Waves Links200 IP supports Bluetooth LE High Data Throughput (HDT) up to 7.5 Mbps, 802.15.4 for Zigbee, Thread and Matter

    Ceva has recently unveiled the Ceva-Waves Links200 multi-protocol platform IP with support for Bluetooth LE High Data Throughput (HDT) technology up to 7.5 Mbps and IEEE 802.15.4 for Zigbee, Thread, and Matter designed for TSMC’s low-power 12nm process. Released in 2016, Bluetooth 5 upgraded Low Energy implementation with four times the range and twice the speed of Bluetooth 4.0 LE transmission which meant up to 2 Mbps over BLE, and even the latest Bluetooth 6.0 specification does not change that.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ AMD’s data center revenue comes up short, leaving investors dismayed

    Investors bailed on Advanced Micro Devices Inc. late today after the chipmaker reported lower-than-expected revenue in its key data center segment, despite posting solid results overall. The company revealed fourth-quarter earnings before certain costs such as stock compensation of $1.09 per share on record-breaking revenue of $7.66 billion, up 12% from a year earlier.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • France24 ☛ While medical advances have reduced deaths, incidents of breast cancer continue to rise unabated

    On World Cancer Day, as we raise awareness and promote prevention through a balanced and healthy lifestyle, FRANCE 24's Genie Godula welcomes Jajini Varghese, Plastic Surgeon and Consultant in Oncoplastic Breast Surgery at the Royal Free Hospital and Associate Professor at University College London.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong health authorities record 122 flu deaths in 4 weeks, urge residents to get vaccinated [Ed: Hopefully they did not shatter people's confidence in the vaccine industry as a whole after patent plunders and blunders (experiments) in 2021]

    Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection (CHP) has urged the public to get flu jabs as it recorded 122 related deaths in the first four weeks of the influenza season which began in early January.

  • Ruben Schade ☛ Trying ALDI coffee beans

    Long-term readers know I love ALDI. With a few rare misses, the German discount supermarket chain has stuff as good as the others, at better prices, and in a well-designed environment that doesn’t trigger anxiety like the blaring lights and music of Colesworth. I wrote more about the enduring appeal of Aldi back in June last year.

  • 2019 Week 3 Deaths in England and Wales: 11,860. 2025 Week 3 Deaths in England and Wales: 14,679. That’s Almost 3,000 More Deaths in Just One Week!

  • Science Alert ☛ You Have a 3% Chance of Getting a Brain Aneurism And Will Probably Never Know

    Here's how to reduce those odds.

  • Science Alert ☛ Pig Kidney Transplant Trials Given FDA Approval in The US

    First is expected later this year.

  • Science Alert ☛ Children Who Live With Cannabis Smokers Also Test Positive to The Drug

    You smoke, they smoke.

  • Science Alert ☛ Airports Have a Strange Effect on Human Behavior. Here's Why.

    Let's get weird.

  • NYPost ☛ Playing classical music to babies inside the womb can stimulate their development, study suggests

    Researchers selected “The Swan” by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns, and “Arpa de Oro” by Mexican composer Abundio Martínez for the study.

  • Science Alert ☛ Men's Heights Grew Twice as Much as Women's Last Century, Says Study

    For a surprisingly simple reason.

  • France24 ☛ Controversial US health secretary nominee Robert F Kennedy Jr passes Senate committee vote

    US President The Insurrectionist's nominee for health secretary and former Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr passed a crucial test on Tuesday, as senators voted to advance his nomination to the floor. Kennedy initially met with resistance from some members of the US senate because of past unfounded claims linking vaccines to autism.

  • Latvia ☛ Latvia's preventive healthcare spend is small

    Latvia's spending on preventive healthcare was at a level around a quarter of the European Union average in 2022, according to Eurostat data published February 4.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Seoul mayor assures tourists of city’s safety amid ongoing political turmoil

    The number of foreign travellers visiting Seoul has steadily increased since the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Proprietary

  • HT Digital Streams Ltd ☛ Microsoft Layoffs: Satya Nadella’s company fires employees with immediate effect, denies severance pay

    Microsoft has started its performance-based job cuts which will lead to the affected employees losing their jobs with immediate effect and without any severance pay [...]

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)

    • The Straits Times ☛ Australia bans DeepSeek from government tech on security concern

      The action does not extend to personal devices of private citizens.

    • Tom's Hardware ☛ DeepSeek research suggests Huawei's Ascend 910C delivers 60% of Nvidia H100 inference performance

      Nvidia's GPUs remain the best solutions for Hey Hi (AI) training, but Huawei's own processors can be used for inference.

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • Thailand says it is cutting power to Myanmar’s scam centers

      A Chinese security official recently visited the Thai-Myanmar border to press for a solution.

• Defence/Aggression

  • Rebels in Kayah try to build a new state as they hold off the junta

    Fighters in Myanmar's Kayah state are trying to create a new government to meet the needs of the residents here.

  • Nearly 300 Myanmar nationals in Singapore naturalized in 2024 to avoid returning home

    With the junta collecting taxes on diaspora and conscripting anyone they can, many thought it was time for a change

  • Atlantic Council ☛ What Ecuador’s election will mean for the region’s fight against organized crime

    The winner of Ecuador’s presidential election will need to adopt a new approach to confronting the country’s security and economic challenges.

  • Defence Web ☛ Interpol carries out successful West Africa border security operation

    An Interpol co-ordinated border security operation in West Africa saw 45 arrests and the seizure of drugs, counterfeit medicines and stolen vehicles worth millions of dollars.

  • Defence Web ☛ Drone technology boosts border security over festive season

    The use of drone technology has boosted South Africa’s border security efforts, with operations at ports of entry this festive season having been improved as a result.

  • France24 ☛ US freezes funding for Haiti multinational security force, says UN

    The US has notified the United Nations that it is freezing some funding to a UN-backed mission in Haiti tasked with fighting gangs trying to seize back control of the capital, Port-au-Prince, the UN said Tuesday. The US has been the biggest contributor to the mission led by Kenyan police, which was launched last year and is struggling with a lack of funding.

  • France24 ☛ As Erdogan eyes a run in 2028, Kurdish situation in Syria will have 'huge impact on domestic agenda'

    Syria’s interim president Ahmad al-Sharaa was in the Turkish capital on Tuesday for talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to focus on Syria’s economic recovery as well as the presence of Kurdish-led forces in the north of the country that Turkey considers to be a security threat. For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, FRANCE 24's François Picard welcomes Gönül Tol, Author, founding Director of the Middle East Institute's Turkey program and Senior Fellow with the Black Sea Program.

  • JURIST ☛ US Homeland Security Secretary says migrants detained in Guantanamo Bay will receive due process

    US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem stated in an interview Sunday with NBC News that the federal government will follow due process for all migrants transferred to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

  • JURIST ☛ US civil liberties union sues University of Michigan for banning student pro-Palestine protesters

    The ACLU filed a lawsuit in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan against the University of Michigan (UM) on Monday claiming that the university’s trespass ban on students’ peaceful pro-Palestine protests on campus violated their right to free speech.

  • NYPost ☛ University of California accused of racial discrimination against Asian American, white applicants: bombshell suit

    A group called Students Against Racial Discrimination sued Monday in federal court, alleging the university system admits students with inferior academic credentials at the expense of better-qualified ones.

  • France24 ☛ Dictator and South Africa: doing Musk's bidding?

    We would assume that the new president of the United States has a pretty full in-tray. So at first glance, it was a bit of a surprise to hear The Insurrectionist lash out at South Africa, threatening to cut aid over its 2023 employment equity act. There’s an obvious suspicion over who did the whispering in Convicted Felon’s ear. South African-born Elon Musk has been locking horns with the ANC-led government of Cyril Ramaphosa over its refusal to sign on to SpaceX founder’s Starlink broadband via satellite system. Musk calling post-Apartheid laws on Black empowerment “openly racist.” Who wins this showdown?More broadly, are tech titans now dictating US foreign policy? How much power do they wield? And as the developing world goes online, who controls the personal information of citizens who log on?

  • France24 ☛ USAID $40bn budget frozen: Int'l aid from UN agencies, NGOs, public/private sector severely impacted

    President The Insurrectionist's overhaul of US foreign assistance has led to chaos in the aid and development field, leaving hundreds of contractors in a severe financial crunch with some already having to lay off staff and others facing millions of dollars in unpaid invoices. For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, FRANCE 24's Sharon Gaffney welcomes Dr. Paul B. Spiegel, Director of the Center for Humanitarian Health and Distinguished Professor of the Practice at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Fiji leader to press Pacific Islands concerns in Washington after US aid frozen

    Analysts warn aid cuts targeting clean energy risk damaging the US' ability to compete with China in the region.

  • JURIST ☛ Dictator withdraws US from UN Human Rights Council, citing global body’s unmet ‘potential’

    US President The Insurrectionist on Tuesday signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), and demanding a review of US involvement in the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

  • JURIST ☛ Immigration advocacy groups challenge Convicted Felon’s asylum executive order

    A group of immigration advocacy groups initiated a lawsuit Monday against the Convicted Felon administration over their executive order barring migrants the right to make asylum claims at the US-Mexico border. First, the plaintiffs maintained that the order violates administrative procedure laws because the administration failed to provide adequate reasoning for the implementation.

  • New York Times ☛ Lawsuit Accuses Neil Gaiman of Sexual Assault Facilitated by His Wife

    Scarlett Pavlovich, who accused Mr. Gaiman of rape and assault in a report last month, said in the suit that his wife had played a role in “procuring and presenting” her.

  • Federal News Network ☛ ODNI comes under scrutiny for workforce cuts

    The chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee wants to see reductions at ODNI, and DNI nominee Tulsi Gabbard has agreed that a review is needed.

  • Off Guardian ☛ Hegemony and Propaganda: Love Your Servitude!

    Today, we are witnessing a profound transformation. We are increasingly impacted by algorithmic decision-making, artificial intelligence, data proliferation, data harvesting and sophisticated monitoring of how we think and act. This affects how we work, how we access services and how we relate to and interact with others.

  • New York Times ☛ Man Sentenced to 44 Years in Prison After Pleading Guilty to Qaeda Ties

    Minh Quang Pham was accused of plotting a suicide bombing at Heathrow Airport in London in support of Al Qaeda’s Yemen branch.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean military officer says he believed President Yoon’s martial law ‘legitimate’

    The officer declined to say if Mr Yoon gave orders to "drag" lawmakers out of Parliament.

  • ADF ☛ Weapons, Fuel Deliveries From Russia, Iran Inflame Sudan’s Civil War

    As Sudan continues to be torn apart by civil war, Russia and Iran are fueling the conflict with shipments of arms and other goods. The countries are supplying the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) with guns, drones, fuel and parts for fighter jets as it battles the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

  • Philippines, US stage joint air patrol, exercise over South China Sea

    China said the activity undermined regional peace, stability.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Philippines, US hold joint air patrol over South China Sea, angering China

    China also conducted a “routine patrol” over a disputed shoal. 

  • New York Times ☛ Dictator Said Palestinians Should Leave Gaza

    Also, China swiftly countered Convicted Felon’s tariffs. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ Russia’s Defense Ministry is quietly making it even harder to get a medical exemption from military service — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ A new wave of nationalization: How the Russian authorities are seizing private assets, one court ruling at a time — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘You chose to come here, so behave yourselves’: How anti-war Russians in Japan navigate exile, activism, and cultural differences — Meduza

    • European Commission ☛ The Commission and High Representative Kaja Kallas welcome a major step towards holding Russia accountable for its war of aggression against Ukraine*

      European Commission Press release Brussels, 04 Feb 2025 Today, senior legal experts of the European Commission, the European External Action Service, the Council of Europe, Ukraine and 37 States concluded the legal work on the establishment of a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine.

    • Latvia ☛ Latvian government gives more money for Ukraine's reconstruction

      On Tuesday, February 4, the government adopted a decision on the allocation of €5.7 million to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Transport for reconstruction measures and development cooperation projects in Ukraine.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ The next German chancellor must lead from the front, not the middle, on European security

      From support for Ukraine to defense spending, German leaders would be wise to take the phrase Führung aus der Mitte permanently out of their vocabulary.

    • France24 ☛ Russian missile kills five, wounds more than 50 in Ukraine's Izium

      A Russian ballistic missile killed five and injured more than 50 in the town of Izium in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region. The missile also partially partially destroyed the city council building.

    • JURIST ☛ UN experts find Russia increasing executions of Ukrainian POWs

      The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reported on Monday that captured Ukrainian soldiers are being executed at an alarming rate. The mission has recorded 79 executions in 24 separate incidents since August 2024. For all incidents, the mission obtained video and photo material showing executions or dead bodies.

    • US expert estimates North Korean casualty rate in Kursk may be as high as 50%

      Ukraine and South Korea believe North Korea will send more troops to support Russia despite the losses.

    • RFERL ☛ At Least 5 Killed In Russian Strike On Izyum In Eastern Ukraine

      Russian forces have launched a deadly missile strike on the eastern frontline city of Izyum in the Kharkiv region, killing at least five and injuring dozens, the head of the regional military administration said.

    • CS Monitor ☛ Facing relentless Russia, Ukraine confronts shortages of men and morale

      As the Russia-Ukraine war grinds toward its third anniversary, Ukrainian morale is low amid shortages of military support from European allies and America under The Insurrectionist.

    • Meduza ☛ Russia’s pro-invasion bloggers report mass disruption to Starlink satellite terminals in occupied Ukraine — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Zelensky proposes rearming with nuclear weapons if Ukrainian membership in NATO is rejected — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Zelensky welcomes Trump’s offer to continue U.S. military support in exchange for privileged access to Ukraine’s rare earth metals — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ At least five killed and dozens injured by Russian strike on Ukraine’s Izyum — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘The city is being destroyed’: Photos from Ukraine’s Kostiantynivka, the likely next target of Russia’s offensive — Meduza

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Fearmongering from Western Balkan leaders is no longer working on their citizens—or the EU

      The European Union has ample leverage to press its concerns on reforms, Russia policy, and regional stability to Western Balkan countries.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian president not optimistic about EU jointly borrowing for defence

      Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda says he is “not too optimistic” that EU countries will manage to agree on joint borrowing for military spending, citing scepticism from member states farther away from Russia.

    • LRT ☛ Russians still own 9,000 properties in Lithuania, some stand empty

      Russian citizens own more than 9,000 properties in Lithuania. Many are unused because Lithuania introduced strict travel bans on Russians. And selling their properties could be impossible due to banking sanctions.

    • North Korea ready to send 25,000 more troops to Russia: Zelenskyy

      South Korea said in January the North was accelerating preparations to send more troops to Russia amid casualties.

• Environment

  • University of Michigan ☛ Climate anxiety and the objective observer

    As an 8-year-old child, I always began my evening prayers with the polar bear in mind. Hands folded against my chest, I imagined his button eyes shining, like the ones on the teddy bear I gripped in my sleep. I would watch as he floated away helplessly, into the dark, expansive sea. 

  • Atlantic Council ☛ On Greenland, Convicted Felon’s choice is warmed-over McKinley or a landmark security deal

    A new deal with Denmark could give the United States the military access it needs and provide a basis for shared costs.

  • The Straits Times ☛ 6.2-magnitude quake hits off coast of Indonesia’s North Maluku

    The quake, which was 81km deep, had no tsunami potential.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Cab-hailing platform HKTaxi to shut down on April 1 as users asked to switch to Uber app

      Hong Kong cab-hailing platform HKTaxi has announced it will cease operations in April, asking riders to switch to the Uber app, its parent company. In a notice issued on its app on Monday, HKTaxi said they would be gradually suspending users’ accounts.

    • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea wants to rebuild aviation safety system after Jeju Air crash, fire incidents

      In the deadliest air disaster ever on South Korean soil on Dec 29, 179 people were killed.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Air Busan to disallow power banks in overhead bins after plane fire

      Power banks should be kept with passengers so any overheating, smoke or fire can be dealt with quickly.

• Finance

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Boost tourism by expanding multiple-entry visas to more Chinese cities, says pro-Beijing party

    A pro-Beijing labour group has called for an expansion of the multiple-entry visa scheme to other mainland Chinese cities to boost Hong Kong’s economy.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Want to Report on Homelessness? What ProPublica Learned About Engaging Responsibly.

  • Bloomberg ☛ Workday to Cut Nearly 2,000 Workers on Profitability Focus

    Workday Inc. is cutting about 8.5% of its workforce, making it the latest technology company to begin 2025 with headcount reductions.

    The cuts will amount to about 1,750 workers, Chief Executive Officer Carl Eschenbach wrote in a note to employees Wednesday. “The environment we’re operating in today demands a new approach, particularly given our size and scale,” he wrote.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ PayPal shares drop 13% despite better-than-expected earnings

    PayPal Holdings Inc. today posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings, but reported payment volume growth that fell short of expectations, and its shares dropped 13% on the results. PayPal operates one of the world’s most popular online payment platforms. It’s also active in several adjacent segments of the financial technology market.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Salesfarce reportedly letting go 1,000+ workers in new round of layoffs

    Salesfarce Inc. is launching a workforce reduction initiative that will affect more than 1,000 employees, Bloomberg reported today. It’s unclear which business units are set to see cuts. A source told Bloomberg that Salesfarce will enable affected employees to apply for other positions internally.

  • France24 ☛ WHY IS THE WTO'S DISPUTE SETTLEMENT SYSTEM IN CRISIS?

    After The Insurrectionist's 10% tariff against all Chinese imports took effect, China immediately hit back with a raft of targeted measures and said it would file a complaint with the World Trade Organisation.  It's not likely to go anywhere, however, as the WTO's dispute settlement system has been in crisis with its appelate body being paralysed for years. Plus, Honda is now reportedly eyeing making Nissan a subsidiary, rather than merging under a holding company.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China hits back at US with levies as Convicted Felon tariffs come in force

    China said Tuesday it would impose tariffs of 15 percent on imports of coal and liquefied natural gas from the United States, in retaliation for Washington’s 10 percent levies on Chinese goods.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China hits back with tariffs on US goods after Convicted Felon imposes new levies

    This signals the start of a new round of trade war between the world’s top two economies.

  • CS Monitor ☛ Tariffs on China but not Mexico, Canada? The stakes in a potential trade war.

    In postponing some threatened tariffs but not others, U.S. President The Insurrectionist is sowing uncertainty for businesses and consumers in his own country and abroad. His tactics could score some wins, but also carry big risks.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia PM Anwar says will build trade relations, not wait for US tariffs

    PM Anwar said Malaysia could not act hastily as there remained many geopolitical uncertainties.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia preparing for possible US tariffs by building trade relations with others: Anwar

    US President Convicted Felon has warned Brics member countries of 100 per cent tariffs should the bloc create its own currency.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China hits back at Convicted Felon tariffs with calibrated measures, leaves room for negotiation

    Beijing’s countermeasures will not deal too heavy a blow to the US for now, analysts note.

  • France24 ☛ China-US trade war erupts again after Beijing slaps retaliatory tariffs on US goods

    The Convicted Felon administration's 10 percent tariffs on Chinese imports came into effect this Tuesday, leading to immediate retaliation from Beijing. In this special edition, we look at the different ways China retaliated to the US president's measures, which are supposed to stop the flow of the drug fentanyl to American shores. In addition, we see how last-minute talks led to both Mexico and Canada avoiding 25 percent US tariffs for at least 30 days and how businesses have reacted.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ US postal service suspends inbound parcels from Hong Kong and China amid tariff war

    The US Postal Service (USPS) has temporarily halted acceptance of international packages from Hong Kong and China until further notice. The move comes amid a tit-for-tat trade dispute between Washington and Beijing. A sweeping 10 per cent levy on Chinese products was imposed by US President The Insurrectionist, effective Tuesday.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US Postal Service suspends incoming packages from China, Hong Kong

    US President Convicted Felon has implemented an additional 10 per cent tariff on China.

  • New York Times ☛ Don & Elon’s Excellent Adventure? Only China Is Laughing.

    The president’s impulsive tariffs are a symptom of a deeper challenge to U.S. manufacturing.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Latvia ☛ Latvian Foreign and Security Policy Yearbook 2025 launched

    February 3 sees the publication of the annual Latvian Foreign and Security Policy Yearbook for 2025.

  • Federal News Network ☛ Senate Democrats raise concerns about Musk team access to Treasury payment systems

    In separate letters, both Warren and Wyden say the DOGE team’s access to Treasury systems poses major legal and security concerns.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Books banned in Hong Kong crackdown find new home in democratic Taiwan

    Libraries in democratic Taiwan stock books banned in Hong Kong, amid a war on politically “sensitive” content.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Australia expresses ‘serious concerns’ for writer jailed in China

    Yang Hengjun, a Chinese-born Australian citizen, has been in jail in China since 2019 on spying allegations.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Press Gazette ☛ Tortoise appoints co-CEOs from both sides of Observer acquisition

    Tortoise's Basia Cummings named digital editor of the new daily Observer online.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Judges tell Jimmy Lai to ‘contain’ his emotions after tycoon’s fiery remarks in nat. security trial

    Three Hong Kong judges overseeing the national security trial of Jimmy Lai have asked the jailed media tycoon to calm down and restrict himself to answering questions after he issued a fiery criticism against prosecutors in the witness box.

  • Press Gazette ☛ UK-based sports publisher aims to create 100 new jobs in 2025

    GRV Media co-founder sets out goal to increase headcount by 100 and reach 2bn page views in 2025.

  • Press Gazette ☛ 2025 journalism job cuts tracked: More than 900 layoffs in UK and US news in January

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • ACLU ☛ "Hope is the Counter to Fear."

    One of Daishi Miguel-Tanaka’s earliest memories is walking into his first grade class in California and being struck by how diverse the student body was.

    “I saw kids of all shapes and colors holding their hands over their hearts [saying the pledge] under the American flag,” Miguel-Tanaka recalls. “That was huge for me. I fell in love with this country and I wanted to stay for the rest of my life.”

    Miguel-Tanaka was born in Japan to a Japanese father and Filipina mother. His family faced discrimination for being mixed race and, in hopes of finding greater opportunity elsewhere, immigrated to the U.S. Miguel-Tanaka’s grandfather was already a U.S. citizen living in California and his family looked forward to being reunited.

    Even without knowing much about America, Miguel-Tanaka dreamed of going to Harvard and becoming a lawyer. “My parents remembered me, as a young child, telling them I wanted to go to Harvard. I wanted an American education because America is a land of opportunity.”

    Miguel-Tanaka’s family arrived in the states in 2004 when he was just six years old.

  • ACLU ☛ What is an Executive Order and How Does it Work?

    During his first two weeks in office, President The Insurrectionist has signed nearly 40 executive orders. They cover a dizzying array of policy areas --from immigration to public school -- and many of them have already been challenged in court. The orders have impacted all of our lives, and, constitutional or not, the damage that some of these orders threaten to do is real.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China eases travel curbs on Uyghurs but maintains ‘severe’ controls – report

    China has eased travel curbs on Uyghurs but maintains “severe restrictions” on those seeking to go abroad or visit family in Xinjiang, a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report said Monday.

  • JURIST ☛ China imposes strict travel restrictions on Uyghur population

    China is infringing on Uyghurs’ right to freedom of movement by enforcing strict travel restrictions for those who travel, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report released on Monday.

  • Uyghur who tried to flee China in 2015 sentenced to 19 years in prison

    The man and his new wife were on their way to South Asia.

  • Thai PM to visit China as groups fear Uyghur detainees may be sent back

    Thailand has denied any plan to deport the detained men but rights groups are worried.

  • Ethnic Mongolian dissident Hada rushed to hospital from house arrest

    Hada’s long-term health is deteriorating due to his long-term detention by state security police, an activist says.

  • China ‘ramping up’ efforts to suppress Taiwan in South Africa, says Taipei

    South Africa recently again demanded that Taiwan relocate its de facto embassy from its capital.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Korean retail RTX 5090 spotted for sale in China — Chinese shoppers plunder Japan and Taiwan, too

    A clearly Korea-sourced Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card has been spotted for sale on an online Chinese marketplace. There are also recent reports of Chinese GPU shoppers visiting Japan and Taiwan.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • Ruben Schade ☛ Cancelling should be as easy (or hard) as registration

    I judge the process of cancelling a service against how easy it was to register with the company in the first place. It’s amazing how many companies fail when judged against this! Okay, it’s not amazing at all, it’s entirely routine. Which is frustrating.

    If you can register online, you must be able to cancel online. If you can register without a call, you must be able to cancel without a call. If you can register without having a stilted and frustrating “conversation” with a chatbot where you’re trying to predict what answers they want, you must be able to cancel without one.

  • Public Knowledge ☛ Privileged Conversations | Feb. 2025

    Public Knowledge has the pleasure of inviting you to a multifaceted program focused on training and developing the next generation of tech policy experts and public interest advocates that reflects the diversity of voices and experiences in our society.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Patents

  • JUVE ☛ Fischerwerke and Dhenne Avocats prevail in fight with Art Color

    Fischerwerke accused the two French competitors of infringing its EP 2 213 888. The patent monopoly protects an insulation holder — a type of rawlplug — for fixing an insulation panel.

  • Software Patents

    • Unified Patents ☛ IP Bridge HEVC/AV1 patent monopoly invalidity confirmed by Fed. Circuit

      On December 3, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit summarily affirmed the PTAB’s ruling that all challenged claims of U.S. Patent 7,515,635 are unpatentable under Rule 36. The patent monopoly is owned by Godo Kaisha IP Bridge. The patent monopoly was claimed to be essential as part of the Access Advance patent monopoly pool, as well as SISVEL’s VP9 and AV1 patent monopoly pools.

    • Unified Patents ☛ $2,000 awarded for Raymond Anthony Joao entity, Amadora Systems security patent monopoly prior art

      Unified is pleased to announce PATROLL crowdsourcing contest winners, Ketan Sachdeva, Calvin Zhong, and Deepika Palanisamy, who split a cash prize of $2,000 for their prior art submissions on U.S. Patent 11,922,429, owned by Amadora Systems LLC, an NPE and entity of Raymond Anthony Joao. The ‘429 patent monopoly relates relates to a transaction security apparatus that transmits a notification message to a communication device associated with an account holder of the account. The central processing computer provides for a retrieval, by the user or the operator via the display, of the information regarding the transaction and the photograph or the video clip of the individual involved in the transaction.

    • Unified Patents ☛ Better Browsing web browser patent monopoly affirmed invalid in ex parte appeal

      On January 28, 2025, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) affirmed the Examiner’s final rejection of all claims of U.S. Patent 8,838,736, owned and asserted by Better Browsing LLC. 

    • Unified Patents ☛ Eric Zautner entity, e-Beacon, location detection patent monopoly challenge instituted

      On January 30, 2025, less than two months after Unified filed an ex parte reexamination, the Central Reexamination Unit (CRU) granted Unified’s request, finding substantial new questions of patentability on all challenged claims of U.S. Patent 8,515,386, owned and asserted by e-Beacon LLC, an NPE and entity of Eric Zautner.

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ Porn Star Name GIGI DIOR Dilutes-by-Blurring Famous DIOR Mark

    The Board sustained an opposition to registration of the mark GIGI DIOR for “Entertainment services, namely, personal appearances by a porn star; Entertainment services, namely, providing a web site featuring non-downloadable adult-themed photographs and videos," finding that the proposed mark is likely to dilute by blurring the famous mark DIOR for clothing, jewelry and bags. The Board declined to reach opposer's likelihood of confusion or dilution-by-tarnishment claims. This blog post will attempt to hit the highlights. Christian Dior Couture, S.A. v. Gramkey Investments, Modeling and Consulting, Opposition No. 91281244 (January 31, 2025) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Elizabeth A. Dunn).

• Copyrights

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Attorney Fees in Copyright Cases, Part II

    WC Realty recently filed a petition for certiorari that builds upon and expands the issues presented in the Property Matters case that I wrote about recently.  Both cases focus on whether a voluntary dismissal of a copyright monopoly infringement action under Rule 41(a)(1) bars "prevailing party" status under §505 of the Copyright Act.  Under Section 505, "the court may also award a reasonable attorney’s fee to the prevailing party."   This is almost identical to the Patent Act's fee shifting provision except that patent monopoly law limits discretion to "exceptional cases." 

  • Digital Music News ☛ Bombshell Ruling on Global Music Copyright Termination Emerges — With Rumblings of Music Industry Chaos Ahead

    A court ruling by a federal judge in a Louisiana copyright monopoly case has rooted chaos in the music industry over how copyrights on music catalogs function.

  • Public Domain Review ☛ George Baxter’s Print of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs (ca. 1854)

    A Baxter process print of Hawkins’ re-creations of prehistoric life, which still stand today.