Leftovers

• University of Michigan ☛ ‘Manus x Machina’ and the breakdown of a technological utopia

  Nearly nine years ago, in 2016, the “Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology” Met Gala painted a picture of how the fashion world views a future where technology and art develop hand-in-hand.

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ Scientists Build First-Ever 'Black Hole Bomb' Analog

    We can explain.

  • Science Alert ☛ JWST Confirms Coldest Exoplanet Ever Found, Circling Its Dead Star

    That telescope just keeps on giving.

  • Science Alert ☛ Defunct Soviet Spacecraft Set to Crash to Earth in Fiery End to 53-Year Orbit

    Straight out of the history books.

• Career/Education

  • New York Times ☛ I Teach Computer Science, and That Is All

    Politics has no place at universities or in the classroom.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Help Us Report on How the Department of Education Is Handling Civil Rights Cases

    Since President Donald Trump took office, his administration laid off nearly half of the Department of Education division that handles civil rights investigations and shifted its focus. The administration halted work on thousands of pending discrimination cases while ordering investigations aligned with its priorities.

    Some people have spoken out about their cases being in limbo or about not receiving updates. We know there are thousands of other people who are affected. We need your help to see the full picture of how the dismantling of the Office for Civil Rights is affecting students, parents, school employees and their wider communities.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Education Department Rolls Back Decades of Civil Rights Progress Under Trump

    In California, the federal government was deep into an investigation of alleged racial discrimination at a school district where, a parent said, students called a Black peer racial slurs and played whipping sounds from their cellphones during a lesson about slavery. Then the U.S. Department of Education in March suddenly closed the California regional outpost of its Office for Civil Rights and fired all its employees there. That investigation and others went silent.

    In South Dakota, the OCR abruptly terminated its work with a school district that had agreed to take steps to end discrimination against its Native American students. The same office that helped craft the agreement to treat indigenous students equally made a stunning about-face and decided in March that helping Native American students would discriminate against white students.

• Hardware

  • Hackaday ☛ Smart Speaker Gets Brain Surgery, Line-Out

    Sometimes you find a commercial product that is almost, but not exactly perfect for your needs. Your choices become: hack together a DIY replacement, or hack the commercial product to do what you need. [Daniel] chose door number two when he realized his Yamaha MusicCast smart speaker was perfect for his particular use case, except for its tragic lack of line out. A little surgery and a Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) breakout board solved that problem.

  • Hackaday ☛ Ratcheting Mechanism Gives Tendons A Tug

    A common ratchet from your garage may work wonders for tightening hard to reach bolts on whatever everyday projects around the house. However, those over at [Chronova Engineering] had a particularly unusual project where a special ratchet mechanism needed to be developed. And developed it was, an absolutely beautiful machining job is done to create a ratcheting actuator for tendon pulling. Yes, this mechanical steampunk-esk ratchet is meant for yanking on the fleshy strings found in all of us.

  • Hackaday ☛ A Neat E-Paper Digit Clock (or Four)

    [sprite_tm] had a problem. He needed a clock for the living room, but didn’t want to just buy something off the shelf. In his own words, “It’s an opportunity for a cool project that I’d rather not let go to waste.” Thus started a project to build a fun e-paper digit clock!

  • Hackaday ☛ A Gentle Introduction To Impedance Matching

    Impedance matching is one of the perpetual confusions for new electronics students, and for good reason: the idea that increasing the impedance of a circuit can lead to more power transmission is frighteningly unintuitive at first glance. Even once you understand this, designing a circuit with impedance matching is a tricky task, and it’s here that [Ralph Gable]’s introduction to impedance matching is helpful.

  • Hackaday ☛ Prusa Mini Nozzle Cam On The Cheap

    Let me throw in a curveball—watching your 3D print fail in real-time is so much more satisfying when you have a crisp, up-close view of the nozzle drama. That’s exactly what [Mellow Labs] delivers in his latest DIY video: transforming a generic HD endoscope camera into a purpose-built nozzle cam for the Prusa Mini. The hack blends absurd simplicity with delightful nerdy precision, and comes with a full walkthrough, a printable mount, and just enough bad advice to make it interesting. It’s a must-see for any maker who enjoys solder fumes with their spaghetti monsters.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Health workers say disease on rise in Myanmar as aid cuts bite

    The cuts are hurting efforts to prevent the spread of tuberculosis and HIV.

  • JURIST ☛ UNAMA: Taliban systemically erasing women’s public life and freedom of movement

    The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Thursday released its first quarterly human rights report of 2025, stating that the Taliban continues to implement decrees aimed at erasing women from public life and restricting their fundamental freedoms, including access to education, work, health care, and freedom of movement.

  • New York Times ☛ RFK Jr. Orders Search for New Measles Treatments Instead of Urging Vaccination

    Decades of research have turned up no miracle treatment for measles, but studies show the M.M.R. shot is 97 percent effective in preventing the disease.

  • American Oversight ☛ RFK Jr. Appears to Have Skipped January CDC Planning Exercise on Bird Flu

    As concerns mount about the spread of bird flu, documents recently obtained by American Oversight indicate that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was not present at a transition-period CDC tabletop exercise on the distribution of a vaccine.

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Budget Cuts Funding for CDC

    Kennedy has warned of an epidemic of chronic disease, but the budget blueprint would close the C.D.C. center focused on prevention.

  • New York Times ☛ Universal Antivenom May Grow Out of Man Who Let Snakes Bite Him 200 Times

    Scientists identified antibodies that neutralized the poison in whole or in part from the bites of cobras, mambas and other deadly species.

  • New York Times ☛ Upheaval in Washington Hinders Campaign Against Bird Flu

    Determined to cut costs and manage communications, the Convicted Felon administration is moving too slowly to contain the virus, experts say.

  • New York Times ☛ Former Fetterman Aide Expressed Concern to Doctor About Senator’s Mental Health

    The former chief of staff to Senator John Fetterman last year wrote to a doctor who had treated him, pointing to “warning signs” that suggested the senator could be backsliding on his recovery from a mental health crisis.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Director of Arizona Medicaid Agency Resigns Following Fraud Response

    The director of Arizona’s embattled Medicaid agency resigned this week, just as she was expected to face questions from lawmakers about her handling of a massive fraud scheme that largely targeted Native Americans.

    Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, announced Wednesday that she had accepted the resignation of Carmen Heredia, director of the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System. The governor lauded Heredia’s leadership of the agency while blaming Republican lawmakers for politicizing the confirmation process, saying it had become clear they would not confirm Heredia’s nomination.

  • New Yorker ☛ Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and the Confounding Politics of Junk Food

    The nutrition researcher Marion Nestle on the health impact of America’s diet, and whether the Convicted Felon Administration will take on the food industry.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Food Scientist Explains The Best Way to Peel a Boiled Egg

    Science can help!

  • Science Alert ☛ Experimental Drug Tested in Mice Repairs The Eye to Restore Vision

    "Our goal is to provide a solution for patients at risk of blindness."

  • Science Alert ☛ After 856 'Snake Bites', Man's Blood Could Unlock Universal Antivenom

    Don't try this at home.

  • Science Alert ☛ Scientists May Have Found a Natural Alternative to Ozempic

    The solution is inside you.

  • Science Alert ☛ Landmark Study Finds Semaglutide Effectively Treats Serious Liver Disease

    Impressive results from a clinical trial.

• Proprietary

  • [Old] Daniel Lange ☛ Daniel Lange: Creating iPhone/iPod/iPad notes from the shell

    I found a very nice script to create Notes on the iPhone from the command line by hossman over at Perlmonks.

    For some weird reason Perlmonks does not allow me to reply with amendments even after I created an account. I can "preview" a reply at Perlmonks but after "create" I get "Permission Denied". Duh. vroom, if you want screenshots, contact me on IRC .

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Amazon’s stock declines on light guidance and third successive cloud revenue miss

  • Amazon Inc ☛ Port .NET Framework workloads to Linux with Amazon Q Developer, Part 4: MVC projects [Ed: From proprietary to proprietary]

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Apple’s stock falls as Tim Cook admits it’s ‘difficult to predict’ tariff impact

    Shares of the iPhone maker Fashion Company Apple Inc. were heading south in late trading today after it failed to offer much clarity on the long-term impact of President The Insurrectionist’s tariffs. Growth in its closely watched services business slowed as well, falling short of Wall Street’s revenue target.

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • France24 ☛ Is energy security a threat to Europe's Hey Hi (AI) ambitions?

      This week's massive power outage in Spain and Portugal has raised questions over whether Europe's power grid is ready for a surge in demand, given the rapid pace of data centre deployment amid the rise of artificial intelligence. We take a closer look in this edition of Tech 24.

    • Qt ☛ Qt EchoCardio Demo with AI: Enabling Hey Hi (AI) + HMI on a Single Connected SOM

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Scoop News Group ☛ Amazon, CrowdStrike, Surveillance Giant Google and Palo Alto Networks claim no change to threat intel sharing under Convicted Felon

      Top security leaders at some of the largest tech and cybersecurity vendors said public-private collaborative work continues, despite budget cuts and personnel changes.

    • Privacy International ☛ No Body's Business but Mine: Vol 1 - 2019 Research

  • Confidentiality

    • American Oversight ☛ Statement on New Photo Revealing Convicted Felon Administration’s Continued Use of Signal

      Top officials appear to be continuing the brazen use of insecure messaging apps for official business, potentially threatening our national security.

• Defence/Aggression

  • New York Times ☛ Far-Right AfD Is Labeled Extremist by Germany’s Intelligence Agency

    The designation is certain to inflame debates over whether the party should be banned, though some polls show it to be the most popular in the country.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan to mark World War II end in history narrative battle with China

    A source said it was about Taiwan trying to take back the narrative about the war from China.

  • The Straits Times ☛ How the Philippines could win big amid the US-China trade battle

    It seeks a "China +1" role amid US tariffs as manufacturers pursue cheaper, more stable alternatives.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China weighs fentanyl offer to US to start trade talks, WSJ reports

    Washington says Chinese chemical manufacturers provide most precursor chemicals used by drug cartels to produce synthetic opioids.

  • New York Times ☛ TikTok Fined $600 Million for Sending European User Data to China

    Irish investigators said Fentanylware (TikTok) did not protect the data of users in the European Union, improperly transferring some of it to China. Fentanylware (TikTok) said it would appeal.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ EU fines Fentanylware (TikTok) 530 million euros over data transfer to China

    Fentanylware (TikTok) was hit with a massive EU fine of 530 million euros (US$600 million) Friday, accused of sending personal data of Europeans to China and failing to guarantee it was shielded from access by Chinese authorities. TikTok, which is also in the crosshairs of the United States, […]

  • New York Times ☛ South Korea Lurches From One Political Crisis to Another

    In five months, the country has had three acting presidents after the leader who imposed martial law was impeached. And now doubts cloud the coming election.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea's third acting president is low-key economist at helm amid deep turmoil

    South Korea's third acting leader in five months, Lee Ju-ho, is an understated labour economist and education bureaucrat thrust into managing high-stakes trade talks with the United States and a country reeling from political knife fights before a crucial election.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s Han Duck-soo looks to rally conservatives in election bid

    He pledged to amend the Constitution in a bid to bring more stability to the country.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s embattled Lee Jae-myung remains front runner in leadership race

    The biggest immediate threat to his candidacy is his sentencing after he was found guilty of violating election law.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia holding joint military exercise in Johor for 2 weeks

    Roadblocks and traffic control measures are being implemented at several locations.

  • France24 ☛ Why did Israel conduct a strike on Syria? Our analysis

    Israel bombed an area near the presidential palace in Damascus early on Friday in its clearest signal yet of hostility toward the Islamist-led Syrian authorities and a preparedness to ramp up military action in the name of Syria's Druze minority. Analysis by FRANCE 24 Foreign Affairs Commentator, Douglas Herbert.

  • France24 ☛ 'A dangerous escalation': Syria slams Israeli attack near presidential palace

    Syria on Friday denounced an Israeli air strike near the presidential palace in Damascus as a “dangerous escalation” after Israel warned it would act to defend the Druze minority from ongoing sectarian violence.

  • New York Times ☛ Israel Launches Airstrikes Near Syrian Presidential Palace

    It was the second time in days that Israel intervened militarily in Syria amid a wave of sectarian violence there.

  • Atlantic Council ☛ The Forrest Dump-Meloni challenge: How to make both the US and the West great again

    American Greatness has multiple levels, and understanding how each operates is important to making the most of US power and influence.

  • New York Times ☛ How Rubio Proved Himself as Convicted Felon’s Loyal Foreign Policy Foot Soldier

    As Secretary of State, Marco Rubio has been The Insurrectionist’s reliable echo on issues like Iran, Ukraine and Gaza. But Steve Witkoff, the president’s friend, remains the chief negotiator.

  • New York Times ☛ 2 Planes Abort Landings as Army Helicopter Flies Near D.C. Airport

    The episode followed a fatal collision between a military helicopter and a commercial jet in January, and prompted concern and outrage among officials.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • New York Times ☛ Message From the Russian Military: ‘We Lost Your Son’

      Russia lacks any formal, organized effort to account for legions of missing soldiers. That often leaves relatives in limbo, fending for themselves with scant government information.

    • New York Times ☛ How Convicted Felon Dismantled His First-Term Policy on Crimea

      After more than three years of war, Hell Toupée proposed a peace plan for Russia and Ukraine in late April that would have the United States recognize Moscow’s 2014 takeover of the Crimean peninsula. Michael D. Shear, a former White House correspondent for The New York Times in London, explains how the proposal, which Ukraine has rejected, is a reversal from Mr. Convicted Felon’s first term as president.

    • Meduza ☛ State Department says U.S. will no longer ‘fly around the world’ to mediate Russia–Ukraine talks — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘I was intimidated, and then I fell in love’ A Ukrainian woman describes how a likely Russian agent duped her into an attempt on the life of former Right Sector activist Serhii Sternenko — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Putin shifting focus to short-term objectives in the war and consolidating control in occupied Ukraine, intelligence suggests — CNN — Meduza

    • Security Week ☛ Ukrainian Nefilim Ransomware Affiliate Extradited to US

      Ukrainian national Artem Stryzhak was extradited to the US and charged with using Nefilim ransomware in attacks on large businesses.

    • France24 ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man’s 100 days, Carney’s Canadian Comeback, Ukraine’s Minerals Deal

      In a week that marked Hell Toupée’s 100 days in office. National Security advisor Mike Waltz wasn’t celebrating, as he was moved being aside. The first cabinet casualty of the President’s second term, in the fall out of SignalGate, when he ‘accidentally’ added a journalist to its war planning group chat.

    • RFERL ☛ US Approves F-16 Maintenance Deal For Jets Already Transferred To Ukraine

      The US State Department on May 2 approved a deal to provide training and equipment for F-16 fighter jets already in Ukraine.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine War 'Not Ending Soon': Vance, Rubio Cast Doubt On Quick Peace Deal With Russia

      US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Vice President JD Vance expressed uncertainty over the chances of reaching a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine one day after Washington and Kyiv signed a deal that gives the United States access to Ukraine’s mineral resources.

    • RFERL ☛ Russian Drone Strike Hits Kharkiv, Wounding Dozens

      A Russian drone attack late on May 1 injured at least 31 people in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhya, local authorities said.

    • New York Times ☛ Life in Ukraine Has Become More Dangerous Since Cease-Fire Talks Began

      Russian strikes and fighting along the front line have killed far more civilians than over the same period a year ago, U.N. officials said in a presentation for diplomats in New York this week.

    • Latvia ☛ Measles case arrived in Latvia on coach from Russia

      The Center for Disease Prevention and Control (SPKC) has received a notification of a laboratory-confirmed measles case.

    • LRT ☛ Russia spy recruited by Lithuanian resident arrested in Greece – media

      Greek officials arrested a man in the port city of Alexandroupolis who was reportedly recruited by Russian military intelligence through a Georgian national residing in Lithuania.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Russia says it will help Taliban fight Islamic State in Afghanistan

      Russia will help the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan fight against the Afghan branch of Islamic State, Moscow's special representative for the country was quoted as saying on Friday.

    • Meduza ☛ Russian foreign minister pens foreword to book challenging Lithuanian statehood — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘When someone wants a vacation, they don’t care’: Occupied Crimea might be a war zone, but locals are gearing up for a flood of Russian vacationers — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘Skaters know their history’: A Russian town turned a Lenin monument into a skateboard ramp. Not everyone is pleased. — Meduza

• Environment

  • New York Times ☛ New ‘Climate Superfund’ Laws Face Widening Legal Challenges

    The Forrest Dump administration sued to block two state laws designed to force oil companies to pay the costs of climate change. Several other states are joining the fight, too.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia’s Petronas accused of breaching Sarawak state laws, media says

      The local media said its subsidiary was operating its Miri Crude Oil Terminal without a licence.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Science Alert ☛ This Adorable Sea Lion Can Keep a Beat Better Than Some Humans

      The moves you wish you had.

• Finance

  • CS Monitor ☛ Hiring is up, GDP is down: Economy sends mixed signals as tariffs loom

    The latest U.S. jobs report beat expectations, yet consumer sentiment is down. America’s economic health may turn on upcoming tariffs

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China says open to US trade talks offer but wants levies scrapped

    By Matthew Walsh China said Friday it is evaluating a US offer for negotiations on tariffs but insisted Washington must be ready to scrap levies that have roiled global markets and supply chains before talks can begin.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China says it’s open to US trade talks offer but wants tariffs scrapped

    It said any talks would first require sincerity from the US side.

  • China says US wants trade talks, Beijing open to discussions

    China’s commerce ministry says Hell Toupée must cancel tariffs.

  • France24 ☛ China/US trade war: heading for a de-escalation?

    Is the trade war between China and the United States heading for a de-escalation? Both sides say they are open to dialogue to reach an agreement. However the Chinese Ministry of Commerce emphasized Friday that it wants the U.S. to reverse unilateral tariffs... failing that there could be further distrust between the two countries. At the same time, new customs duties for Chinese parcels arriving to the U.S. come into force Friday. Story by Eliza Herbert and Alice Brogat.

  • France24 ☛ These Chinese companies make you pay a small fee to pretend to have a job

    As China's economy falters, scams such as recruitment for non-existent jobs, false advertising and loan traps are on the rise. The latest, making waves on social control media, are so-called companies where unemployed young people can spend a small daily fee to pretend they are working. Story by France 2 and Charlotte Lam.

  • New Yorker ☛ How The Insurrectionist Is Trying to Rewrite the Rules of Capitalism

    The financial columnist John Cassidy on America’s turn to tariffs, and his new book “Capitalism and Its Critics.”

  • The Straits Times ☛ In the rough: Thai tycoon jailed for golf course land fraud

    Authorities said 30ha added to the development fell within areas protected by conservation laws.

  • New York Times ☛ China Is Considering Trade Talks With U.S., but It Has Conditions

    Despite mounting financial pressure, China says it won’t negotiate until the Convicted Felon administration shows “sincerity” by canceling tariffs on its goods.

  • New York Times ☛ How the End of a U.S. Tax Loophole Hurts Chinese Companies

    A loophole that has allowed American shoppers to buy lots of cheap goods from mainland China and Hong Kong without paying tariffs and filling customs forms is closing on Friday. Meaghan Tobin, a correspondent for The New York Times covering business in Asia, explains.

  • New York Times ☛ U.S. and China Dig In on Trade War, With No Plans for Formal Talks

    The standoff over terms of negotiations, and whether they are happening, signals that a protracted economic fight lies ahead.

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Proposed Slashing $163 Billion in Spending

    Also, universal antivenom may grow out of a Wisconsin man. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

  • New York Times ☛ Temu Stops Shipping Products From China to U.S. Customers as Convicted Felon Closes Tariff Loophole

    The e-commerce site acted after the Convicted Felon administration said it would close a loophole that allowed low-cost Chinese-made items to enter the U.S. without import fees.

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man’s Tariff on Cheap Chinese Imports Will Cost Big Tech Billions

    For Meta, Alphabet and other platforms, the elimination of the tariff exemption for inexpensive goods is already cutting into advertising revenue.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ ‘Surreal, Kafka-esque’: Hong Kong’s ex-lawmaker Claudia Mo breaks silence on prison life following release

    Former Hong Kong opposition lawmaker Claudia Mo has made her first public comment about her “prison experience,” days after she was released from jail. “My prison experience… Prison life was surreal, almost Kafka-esque to start with,” Mo wrote in a Facebook (Farcebook) post on Friday.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Hong Kong ex-lawmaker Claudia Mo calls prison experience ‘surreal’

    She was among the 45 Hong Kong opposition figures imprisoned in the city’s largest national security case.

  • New York Times ☛ Marco Rubio Adds a New Title Under Convicted Felon: Interim National Security Adviser

    The former senator from Florida is now the head of four government bodies. He has outdone Henry Kissinger and even Pooh-tin Jinping, China’s leader, who has only three main titles.

  • The Strategist ☛ In national security, Australia needs a ‘banana republic’ shock

    On 14 May 1986, Paul Keating gave one of the most consequential political interviews in Australian history.

  • Atlantic Council ☛ Saudi-Israeli normalization is still possible—if the United States plays it smart

    Saudi-Israeli normalization remains a potential game changer in Middle East geopolitics. It could reshape alliances, enhance security, and spur economic growth. But progress hinges on US diplomacy, Palestinian inclusion, and Saudi leadership.

  • France24 ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man to combine birthday celebration, US army anniversary with military parade

    The White House announced Friday that US President The Insurrectionist will celebrate his 79th birthday and the US Army's 250th anniversary on June 14 with a military parade in Washington, drawing financial and security concerns.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Voting begins in Australia amid polls shaped by inflation, Convicted Felon

    A result could come as soon as the night of May 3, unless the vote is very tight.

  • New York Times ☛ Why The Insurrectionist Looms Over Australia’s Election

    The last time Australians went to the polls, China was top of mind. This time, the United States is the dominant foreign factor in an election mostly fought on domestic issues.

  • New York Times ☛ Australia Election 2025: Voters Focus on Cost-of-Living Concerns Amid Global Turmoil

    Voters will decide who can turn Australia around from the throes of inflation and a housing crisis, and navigate relations with a volatile Washington.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • JURIST ☛ Thailand prosecutors decline to indict US professor on royal defamation allegations

    Thai state prosecutors announced on Thursday they would not pursue royal defamation charges against an American political science lecturer at Naresuan University who was arrested on April 8 for allegedly violating Thailand’s lese majeste law, according to local media.

  • Police arrest family of wanted Hong Kong activist, media say

    Anna Kwok’s father and brother were accused of managing her funds.

  • France24 ☛ 'China Targets': New investigation explores how Beijing extends its repression worldwide

    China has instrumentalised the UN, Interpol and Western law enforcement to hunt down and intimidate government critics living abroad, according to a new worldwide investigation led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. In a series of reports, the ICIJ sheds new light on China's long-running "transnational repression". One of its lead authors speaks to FRANCE 24 about their findings.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Meduza ☛ Between independence and survival Economic pressure brings global press freedom to ‘unprecedented’ low in 2025, says Reporters Without Borders — Meduza

  • Press Gazette ☛ RSF downgrades global press freedom index to all-time low

    The global average press freedom score has fallen for the first time into RSF's "difficult" territory.

  • RFA announces mass layoffs, shutdown of major language services

    Uyghur, Tibetan, Burmese will halt content production, programming on May 9

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong falls to 140th in press freedom index with historic low score, entering ‘red zone’ for first time

    Hong Kong has tumbled five places in the annual Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Press Freedom Index, entering the “red zone” – meaning a “very serious” situation – for the first time, alongside China. The city fell five places to 140th place, sandwiched between Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • AccessNow ☛ Strategic Workshop of the DSA Human Rights Alliance

    With shrinking civic space, limited funding, and a general democratic decline in the EU and beyond, at-risk communities, including HRDs and exiled media, are becoming increasingly vulnerable online.

  • ACLU ☛ Your Questions Answered: Convicted Felon’s First 100 Days

    In the first 100 days of President The Insurrectionist’s second term, we’ve seen a whirlwind of executive orders, policy proposals, and media commentary that have left many of us questioning the future of our democracy. It can be hard to separate what’s truly important, what’s fact, and what can be done to safeguard our rights. We believe that an informed public is a powerful one, and we're here to help you understand the policies shaping our country,

  • American Oversight ☛ Beyond the First 100 Days: Combating Convicted Felon Administration Secrecy and Abuses of Power

    The Insurrectionist’s second administration has been characterized by extreme executive overreach and abuses of power — along with a concerted effort to evade federal records laws and accountability. American Oversight has been fighting back against Convicted Felon’s authoritarian agenda.

• Digital Restrictions (DRM)

  • Digital Music News ☛ Spotify Wastes No Time Rolling Out iOS Update Following Apple-Epic Ruling, Promising ‘Lower Prices, More Control, and Easier Access’

    On the heels of a major ruling in the marathon Fashion Company Apple v. Epic Games legal battle, Spotify has received approval for an updated version of its iOS app in the U.S.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• New York Times ☛ Justice Dept. Lawyers Say US Wants to Break Up Google’s Ad Technology

  In a hearing on Friday, lawyers for the Justice Department indicated the government would double down on its requests to break up the tech giant’s business.

• Licensing / Legal

  • Macworld ☛ Once again, Apple has to be forced to do the right thing

    In a major ruling this week, Apple has been forced to stop taxing app developers a huge fee just for the privilege of making apps on its platform. After years of delay tactics and stonewalling (and, the judge says, “outright lies” in court), Apple has to allow app developers to offer in-app purchases through stores outside the App Store, here in the U.S. Apple will appeal the decision, but is required to comply with it in the meantime.

  • Six Colors ☛ Tim Cook gambles big on the App Store and loses (for now)

    On a surface level, Cook’s bet would appear to be purely about the money, because isn’t it always? (CFO Luca Maestri being on the side of charging the commission certainly supports that idea.) But at the same time, it’s hard to imagine that flouting compliance like this was worth the few…billion, perhaps?…dollars that Apple has made via this mechanism over the last few years.

    Which is why I think that more than purely being a matter of bottom line, it was about exerting control. Unfortunately, the end result probably means Apple will lose even more control than it will revenue.

• Patents

  • Unified Patents ☛ Intellectual Ventures cloud application management patent monopoly challenged

    On April 30, 2025, Unified Patents filed an ex parte reexamination proceeding against U.S. Patent 8,332,844, owned by Intellectual Ventures II LLC. The ‘844 patent monopoly is directed to distributing application environments to a computer nodes using a “root/leaf” system of application environment storage.

  • Unified Patents ☛ $2,000 for L4T Innovations media content patent monopoly prior art

    Unified Patents added a new PATROLL contest, with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on at least claim 1 of U.S. Patent 11,189,321, owned and asserted by L4T Innovations LLC, an NPE. The '321 patent monopoly describes an event marking device designed to facilitate the identification and retrieval of media related to notable events.

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ AI and Cognitive Laziness for Lawyers

    I enjoyed reading Professor S.I. Strong’s new article on AI-lawyering and her proposed solution that inspired by the English legal profession’s structure. Although I think this is all still early stage, emerging empirical research is showing how generative Hey Hi (AI) usage often triggers “metacognitive laziness” and “cognitive offloading” in users. Studies particularly with law students show reduced motivation to learn, diminished ability to self-regulate, and less deep engagement with material—gaining only improved short-term performance on individual tasks.  Routine reliance on Hey Hi (AI) usage is also showing an atrophy of other critical skills.

  • Kangaroo Courts

    • JUVE ☛ First French decision on disparagement issue relating to pending UPC cases [Ed: UPC cases are invalid because this court is illegal and unconstitutional. Nevertheless, JUVE was paid to play a role in advancing this illegality and kangaroo court; it'll backfire badly on the EU.]

      On 3 March 2025, Qiagen published a press release announcing it had filed an infringement action against France-based company bioMérieux at the Düsseldorf local division of the UPC (case ID: ACT_9962/2025). In response, bioMérieux filed interim proceedings for disparagement before the Tribunal des activités économiques de Lyon.

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ TTAB Posts May 2025 Hearing Schedule

    The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (Tee-Tee-Ā-Bee) has scheduled five (V) oral hearings for the month of May 2025. All will be held virtually. Briefs and other papers for each case may be found at TTABVUE via the links provided.

• Copyrights

  • Digital Music News ☛ Warner Music Sues Designer Shoe Warehouse for Alleged Social Media Copyright Infringement

    Another day, another social-focused copyright monopoly lawsuit – this time from Warner Music, which is suing Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) and others for allegedly infringing on protected works in hundreds of promo videos.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Live Nation Earnings Keep Softening Post-COVID—Q1 Revenue Drops 11% Year-Over-Year

    Live Nation reports a slow start in Q1 2025. But the company has lots of revenue booked that is yet to be realized, according to CEO Michael Rapino. Live Nation’s Q1 2025 earnings report shows drops in total revenue and adjusted operating income compared to the same quarter the year prior. Overall revenue came to […]