Leftovers

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ Fast Radio Burst Traced Back to The Last Place We Expected

    "That was definitely surprising!"

  • Science Alert ☛ Water May Have Come Into Existence Far Earlier Than We Ever Realized

    Life's most vital elixir showed up quick.

  • Science Alert ☛ Earth's Core Could Be Hiding a Vast Reservoir of Primordial Helium

    As old as the Universe.

• Career/Education

  • Pro Publica ☛ Illinois Bill Aims to Add More Oversight of Homeschooling

    A new Illinois bill aims to add some oversight of families who homeschool their children, a response to concerns that the state does little to ensure these students receive an education and are protected from harm.

    The measure, known as the Homeschool Act, comes after an investigation by Capitol News Illinois and ProPublica last year found that Illinois is among a small number of states that place virtually no rules on parents who homeschool their children. Parents don’t have to register with any state agency or school district, and authorities cannot compel them to track attendance, demonstrate their teaching methods or show student progress.

• Hardware

  • CNX Software ☛ Qualcomm X85 5G modem powers 12.5Gbps Dragonwing Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) Gen4 Elite platform

    As Mobile World Congress 2025 has just started, Qualcomm has announced the X85 5G modem with up to 12.5 Gbps peak download speed, 3.7 Gbps uploads and targeting a wide range of applications from Android smartphones to PCs, FWA routers, industrial applications with Ethernet TSN, or even railways with support for FRMCS (Future Railway Mobile Communication System) in Europe.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ The hidden danger lurking in your server infrastructure? Its own cooling system

    Cooling your server rack shouldn't expose you to a destructive water leak. Two-phase direct-to-chip cooling from Accelsius is a safer, more efficient cooling method that minimizes the risk of water leaks so you can protect your tech investments.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-25 [Older] Scientists find promising pancreatic cancer leads

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] US aid freeze hits health, development projects in Nepal

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] South Africa: Funding cuts to USAID programs spark concerns

  • Pro Publica ☛ Trump Officials Thwarted Warnings of Death, Illness in Race to Cut Foreign Aid

    For weeks, some of the federal government’s foremost authorities on global health have repeatedly warned Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other leaders about the coming death toll if they carried out the Trump administration’s plan to end nearly all U.S. foreign aid around the world.

    In their clearest accounting yet, top officials have estimated the casualties: One million children will not be treated for severe acute malnutrition. Up to 166,000 people will die from malaria. New cases of tuberculosis will go up by 30%. Two hundred thousand more children will be paralyzed by polio over the next decade.

  • Ruben Schade ☛ The tale of a cursed pair of glasses

    Last December I received a new pair of glasses, a form of speculation equipment used to bend light entering my eyes such that the object of my attention is presented to my brain with sharper focus. While I tend not to need these devices when positioned at my desk, my self-imposed myopia does require their use when up and about, and for reading text further than a few metres away. Given how bad most drivers are, I also use these to give myself the best possible vision when crossing to the other side, lest I cross to the other side.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Balance of Gut Bacteria Could Play a Crucial Role in How MS Develops

    The link is clear.

  • Science Alert ☛ An Early Sign of Dementia Risk May Be Keeping You Up at Night

    Sleep tight.

  • Science Alert ☛ The Flu Is Different This Year, And Cases Are Surging. An Expert Explains Why.

    Here's how to reduce your risk.

  • Science Alert ☛ Giving Up Your Phone For Just 3 Days Can Reshape Your Brain Activity

    It's in your hands.

• Proprietary

  • PC Mag ☛ Tens of Thousands of Abusive Monopolist Microsoft Users Hit by Outlook and 365 Outage

    Microsoft services were hit by an outage this weekend, locking many users out of their Outlook, Exchange, Teams, Abusive Monopolist Microsoft 365, and Microsoft trap Azure accounts.

  • Liam Proven ☛ Basic MS-DOS memory management for beginners

    If you are using Abusive Monopolist Microsoft tools, you need to load the 386 memory manager, emm386.exe, in your CONFIG.SYS file.

  • But, to do that, you need to load the XMS manager, HIMEM.SYS, first.

  • So your CONFIG.SYS should begin with the lines: [...]

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Defence Web ☛ Improved radar and target tracking algorithms enhance anti-poaching, drone-detection efforts

      The University of Pretoria has showcased advancements in radar and target tracking algorithms that can be used to improve anti-poaching and drone detection efforts.

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Gabbard Decries Britain's Reported Demand for Apple to Provide Backdoor Access to Users' Cloud Data

    • 2025-02-28 [Older] Cheeto Mussolini Claims to Have Spoken With Starmer Regarding Apple Encryption Backdoor Demand

    • 9to5Mac ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard Suggests UK Broke Agreement in Secretly Demanding That Apple Build iCloud Backdoor

    • OpenRightsGroup ☛ Queercryption: Safety in Numbers

      We deserve to live free from persecution. Where this is often lacking in the physical world, many people in the LGBTQIA+ community rely on encryption to find community, resources and support. Attempts to break encryption are not only damaging to our human right to privacy but also a security threat. 0 0 A Protective Shield […]

    • Hackaday ☛ Hijacking AirTag Infrastructure To Track Arbitrary Devices

      In case you weren’t aware, Apple devices around you are constantly scanning for AirTags. Now, imagine you’re carrying your laptop around – no WiFi connectivity, but BLE’s on as usual, and there’s a little bit of hostile code running at user privileges, say, a third-party app. Turns out, it’d be possible to make your laptop or phone pretend to be a lost AirTag – making it and you trackable whenever an iPhone is around.

• Defence/Aggression

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] DR Congo conflict: Life under M23 rebel control

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] DR Congo: Explosions at M23 rally kill at least 11

  • Defence Web ☛ 2025-02-25 [Older] SADC mission in DR Congo earns “in dilemma” tag at defence chiefs meeting

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-25 [Older] DR Congo: Ex-African leaders convene in push for peace

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Another mystery disease outbreak in DR Congo: What we know

  • Defence Web ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] A further 127 SA military personnel flown back from DR Congo

  • The Straits Times ☛ Pakistani, Afghan security forces clash at closed main border crossing

    KABUL/PESHAWAR, Pakistan - Pakistani and Afghan security forces clashed on Monday at the recently shuttered main border crossing between the two countries, killing at least one combatant and injuring several, officials said.

  • France24 ☛ Canada beefs up border security amid increasing pressure from US

    With US President The Insurrectionist's tariffs on goods coming from Canada due to come into effect on Tuesday, our reporters take a closer look at the border between the two neighbours. Under pressure from the US, Canada recently pledged C$1.3 billion on increasing security along the shared frontier. Even though US government figures show that less than 1 percent of all illegal migrants and fentanyl intercepted in the United States come from Canada, the changes are nonetheless being made. FRANCE 24's Francois Rihouay, Joanne Profeta and Fraser Jackson report.

  • JURIST ☛ US civil rights groups sue White House over transfer of migrants to Guantánamo

    Several civil rights organizations on Saturday filed a federal lawsuit against the Convicted Felon administration to halt the transfer of noncitizens from the US to the US Naval Station at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Islamic State terror threats overshadow German Carnival

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Middle East: Hamas to hand over remains of four hostages

  • The Straits Times ☛ Female suicide bomber kills one, injures four in southwestern Pakistan

    QUETTA, Pakistan - A female suicide bomber killed a Pakistani paramilitary force member and injured four others in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province in an attack claimed by separatists, a district official said on Monday.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ What will happen to Ukraine if Trump cuts off military aid?

    • Meduza ☛ Over 30 Kursk region residents return to Russia from Ukraine — Meduza

• Environment

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Does the global carbon offset sector need an overhaul?

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Security Week ☛ US Seizes $31 Million Worth of Crypto Stolen in Uranium Finance Hack

      The US government has seized roughly $31 million in cryptocurrency stolen in 2021 from Uranium Finance.

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Munich: Flights canceled over two-day airport strike

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Greeks to mark anniversary of Tempi train crash with strike

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Greece: Mass protests on anniversary of Tempi train crash

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-25 [Older] MH370: Search resumes to find missing plane 11 years on

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] EU squares up to US with deregulation, clean tech push

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Sweden's homes heated by a giant underground thermos

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Police probe arson attack linked to Tesla plant in Berlin

    • Ruben Schade ☛ Free Our Feeds… onto blockchain

      Rememeber that Free Our Feeds campaign to make Blusky and its protocols more open? How it seemed like something was a bit… off about it, despite all the regular news outlets obsessing over the idea?

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Scientists crack the code for why locusts swarm

    • US News And World Report ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] More Than 100 Firefighters Battle Blazes on South Africa's Table Mountain in Cape Town

• Finance

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Poor, Indebted Countries Need Collective Relief, African Leaders Say

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Temu & Shein: China's low-price platforms are a big headache for US and EU

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] India and Latin America tighten ties to diversify trade

  • Business Today ☛ 'AI-induced layoffs a smokescreen’: Blind user predicts 'H-1B sunset' as Big Tech offshoring jobs to India

    Tech layoffs, AI automation, and rising political resistance against the H-1B visa program have fueled speculation about its uncertain future. A recent viral post on Blind, an anonymous workplace forum, suggests that Big Tech may already be preparing for the programme’s decline—by shifting jobs offshore.

    A user who identifies as an H-1B worker shared a theory that aligns with recent trends in the tech industry: layoffs in the US are not just about AI-driven efficiency but also part of a larger strategy to relocate jobs to India before the H-1B visa programme faces potential restrictions or even an end.

  • Microsoft and Epic Games Leave Korea Game Industry Association Amid Workforce Cuts

    Microsoft (MS), which operates the global gaming platform "Xbox," and Epic Games, which operates the "Epic Games Store," have left the Korea Game Industry Association through their Korean branches.

    According to the gaming industry on the 4th, MS and Epic Games have voluntarily withdrawn from the Korea Game Industry Association. They were also excluded from the list of member companies published on the website.

    Korea MS became a board member of the Korea Game Industry Association in 2023. This decision garnered attention at the time as MS headquarters was undergoing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) procedures in the Korean market with Blizzard, meaning they left the association again after about two years.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • RFERL ☛ Iran Vice President Zarif Resigns Amid Government Turmoil In Tehran

    Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif has stepped down on the "advice" of the country's judiciary chief, Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejei.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] MElon's DOGE and the consequences of radical cutbacks

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Romania: Prosecutors probe canceled election frontrunner

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] German parliament has a diversity problem

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Fact check: No, Friedrich Merz did not promise to close the border before the election

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Fenerbahce boss Mourinho banned for 'offensive' comments

  • New Yorker ☛ Will Harvard Bend or Break?

    Free-speech battles and pressure from Washington threaten America’s oldest university—and the soul of higher education.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • France24 ☛ Pulling the plug: Why has French TV channel C8 stopped broadcasting?

    In this edition of Entre Nous, we dive into the French television landscape, after the TV channel C8 stopped broadcasting. We explain why French regulator Arcom decided to take it off the main airwaves, and why the move has the conservative media group Bolloré, talk show host Cyril Hanouna and far-right politicians up in arms. We also dive into the bigger picture, or the broader societal discussion about free speech that C8's shutdown has brought about.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Jailed Hong Kong tycoon Jimmy Lai denies requesting US to sanction China

    Jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai has denied at his national security trial that he requested Washington, via a senior US adviser, to sanction China after the Beijing-imposed security law came into effect five years ago.

  • Press Gazette ☛ Former Independent editor says Hey Hi (AI) will free up reporters to create more ‘guff’

    Chris Blackhurst said "guff" would fill the void left as journalism's business model collapsed.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • JURIST ☛ Thailand PM defends deportations of 40 Uyghurs amid international outcry

    Thailand Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra claimed on Monday that the deportation of 40 Uyghurs to China was in accordance with human rights standards. Citing photos published by the Chinese authorities, Shinawatra stated her confidence that “China will take good care of this group of people.”

  • BIA Net ☛ Edip Akbayram, a pioneer of Anatolian rock, dies at 75

    A key figure in Anatolian rock and protest music, Akbayram stood out from the 1970s onward with songs addressing social issues. He created a unique style by blending folk music with rock and Western musical elements.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Poland temporarily suspends right to asylum

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Germany will seek to revive relations with France and Poland

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Aiming for LA Olympics: World Boxing promises 'fair playing field' for women

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-26 [Older] Was Nazi-looted art in Germany concealed from Jewish heirs?

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-27 [Older] Why Thailand is not a safe place for Asian dissidents

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Thailand criticized for deporting 40 Uyghurs to China

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-02-28 [Older] Cheeto Mussolini to make English official language in US

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Patents

  • Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ MASC: a new requirement for entering the temple of Justice in Spain

    A recent reform of the Spanish Civil Procedure Act will introduce what the Recitals of Organic Law 1/2015 (“the Law”) call “other adequate means of dispute resolution in the non-jurisdictional route, as an indispensable measure for the consolidation of a sustainable public justice service” (according to the Spanish acronym, “MASC”).

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Second-Guessing the Jury: The Federal Circuit’s Flawed Take on Enhanced Damages in Halo v. Pulse

    After 18 years of litigation, the Federal Circuit has once again ruled in the patent monopoly infringement case Halo v. Pulse.  The February 28, 2025 opinion, authored by Judge Bryson, deals with enhanced damages, attorney fees, prejudgment interest, and the denial of a new damages trial.  On the biggest issue, punitive damages, I explain why the Federal Circuit was wrong in affirming the district court’s refusal to enhance damages. 

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ TTABlog Test: Is CLEANFACE Confusable with DR.BELMEUR CLEAN FACE for Beauty Products?

    The USPTO refused to register the mark CLEANFACE for "Beauty serums," finding confusion likely with the registered mark DR.BELMEUR CLEAN FACE (with the first two words displayed above the second two) for, inter alia, beauty masks [CLEAN FACE disclaimed]. The Board found the goods to be related, but what about the marks? How do you think this came out? In re Sorrentino, Serial No. 97256728 (February 28, 2025) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Cheryl S. Goodman).

• Copyrights

  • Creative Commons ☛ From Strategy to Action: Focus Areas for 2025

    Astronomical Clock by olemartin is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. The team here at Creative Commons was delighted to publicly release our new organizational strategy on January 22, after almost a year of intensive team, community, and board consultations.