Leftovers

• Science

  • New York Times ☛ How Older People Are Reaping Brain Benefits From New Tech

    Overuse of digital gadgets harms teenagers, research suggests. But ubiquitous technology may be helping older Americans stay sharp.

  • Science Alert ☛ NASA Rovers Keep Getting Stuck, And We Finally Know Why

    It was right in front of us.

  • Science Alert ☛ Wild New Theory Suggests Gravitational Waves Shaped The Universe

    This could revolutionize cosmology.

  • Science Alert ☛ Washing Your Hands Is Even More Important in Summer. Here's Why.

    Heat comes with hidden risks.

  • Science Alert ☛ Meet The 'Genital King' Tarantula And Its Record-Breaking Sexual Organ

    All in the name of safe sex.

• Hardware

  • Hackaday ☛ Hacking Printed Circuit Board To Create Casing And Instrument Panels

    Over on Hackaday.io our hackers [Angelo] and [Oscarv] are making a replica of the PDP-1. That is interesting in and of itself but the particularly remarkable feature of this project is its novel use of printed circuit boards for casing and instrument panels.

  • Hackaday ☛ SparcStation 1+ Finally Gets Attention

    We can’t throw stones. [Leaded Solder] picked up a SparcStation 1+ in 2018 and found it only produced illegal instruction errors. We’re sure he’s like us and meant to get back to it, and, instead, it sat on the bench, taking up space. You eventually have to move it, though, so seven years later, it was time for another go at it.

  • Hackaday ☛ A Love Letter To Prototype Zero

    An old friend of mine at my hackerspace introduced me to the concept of Prototype Zero: The Version that Even Your Own Sweet Mother Isn’t Allowed to See. The idea is that when you’re building something truly new, or even just new to you, your first take will almost always be ugly, and nothing will work the way it will by the time you make your second one. But it’s also important to the exercise that you see it all the way through to the end if you can.

  • Hackaday ☛ The Kilopixel Display

    Despite the availability of ready-made displays never being better, there are still some hardy experimenters who take on the challenge of making their own. In [Ben Holmen]’s case the display he built is somewhat unusual and not the most practical, but for us a giant-sized wooden kilopixel display is exactly what the world needs.

  • Hackaday ☛ Desk Top Peltier-Powered Cloud Chamber Uses Desktop Parts

    There was a time when making a cloud chamber with dry ice and alcohol was one of those ‘rite of passage’ type science projects every nerdy child did. That time may or may not be passed, but we doubt many children are making cloud chambers quite like [Curious Scientist]’s 20 cm x 20 cm Peltier-powered desktop unit.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Battlefield 6 keeps crashing on defective chip maker Intel Arc GPUs — here are some workarounds until defective chip maker Intel releases a fix

    Battlefield 6’s open beta is crashing on defective chip maker Intel Arc A-series GPUs, with issues tied to the game’s default Borderless mode. defective chip maker Intel is working on a driver fix, but players can avoid crashes by switching to Full Screen/Windowed or using a risky legacy control panel tweak.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Enthusiast builds 'AMD gaming PC' entirely made of cardboard — specs include unreleased AMD 5800GT CPU, DDR8 RAM, PCIe 6.0 SSD, and 2,400W power supply

    A Redditor built several PC components out of cardboard with intricate detail to build a cardboard PC that spins and lights up. It's not a real computer, though.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • New York Times ☛ This Blood Drive Might Be a Way into Hollywood’s Exclusive Magic Castle

    The Hollywood landmark has hosted blood drives since 2014. Donors do a good deed, but the perk is entry into the private club.

  • NYPost ☛ Washington hospital fires fifteen nurses after 12-year-old patient’s suicide

    A 12-year-old girl died by suicide after slipping out of her room at a Washington state children’s hospital, prompting the firing of fifteen nurses. The girl’s family has sued, while the nurses’ union claims the firings were retaliation.

• Proprietary

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Kubernetes Blog ☛ Introducing Headlamp Hey Hi (AI) Assistant [Ed: Peak hype, peak stupidity? Of course, as usual, Kubernetes projects outsource everything to Microsoft and to proprietary software.]

      This announcement originally appeared on the Headlamp blog.

      To simplify Kubernetes management and troubleshooting, we're thrilled to introduce Headlamp Hey Hi (AI) Assistant: a powerful new plugin for Headlamp that helps you understand and operate your Kubernetes clusters and applications with greater clarity and ease.

  • Social Control Media

    • New York Times ☛ The Secret to One Swing State Democrat’s Rise? Wonky Fentanylware (TikTok) Videos.

      Jeff Jackson was elected to attorney general in North Carolina the same year that Hell Toupée won the state for the third time. Supporters see lessons for Democrats in Mr. Jackson’s rise.

  • Windows TCO / Windows Bot Nets

    • Tom's Hardware ☛ California man sues Abusive Monopolist Microsoft for discontinuing backdoored Windows 10 — says company is doing this to “monopolize the generative Hey Hi (AI) market”

      Microsoft is ending support for backdoored Windows 10 by October 2025, but someone is suing the company to stop it from doing so.

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • ! Avi Alkalay ¡: Thank you algorithm [Ed: Celebrating surveillance]

      I love it when the algorithm delivers me a beloved song that I didn’t even remember existed, didn’t know who made it, and didn’t know the name of.

      Thank you, algorithm.

      Or should I thank the data scientist who organized music data into a space of about 20 to 50 dimensions and optimized and trained decision trees to infer the next song to play?

    • New York Times ☛ What to Know About Instagram Map, Location Sharing and Privacy Concerns

      The service rolled out this week, prompting confusion and safety concerns. Meta, which owns Instagram, said the feature was turned off unless users activated it.

• Defence/Aggression

  • JURIST ☛ ICC unseals arrest warrant for Libya militia officer

    The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday unsealed an arrest warrant for a militia officer who allegedly committed war crimes in Libya during non-international armed conflict, including murder, torture, and outrages upon personal dignity.

  • France24 ☛ Thousands rally in Tel Aviv against Israeli government's plan to expand Gaza war

    Thousands marched through the streets of Tel Aviv on Saturday to demand an end to the war in Gaza, just a day after the Israeli government pledged to seize control of Gaza City. Protesters held signs and displayed photos of hostages still held in the Palestinian enclave, urging the government to obtain their release.

  • CS Monitor ☛ Haiti declares 3-month state of emergency as gangs ravage country’s central region

    The measure covers Haiti’s West, Artibonite, and Center departments to “fight against insecurity and respond to the agricultural and food crisis,” a government statement says.

  • New York Times ☛ A Small European Nation Has a Big Explosions Problem

    Three bombs go off on an average night in the Netherlands, blowing out windows and sometimes causing injury or death. “It is not normal,” a security guard says.

  • France24 ☛ Syria withdraws from Paris talks on integrating Kurds

    Syria will not take part in Paris talks on incorporating the Kurdish semi-autonomous administration into the Syrian state, a Syrian government official said Saturday. The decision comes a day after the Kurdish administration, which governs large parts of the north and northeast, hosted a conference involving several Syrian minority communities.

  • The Straits Times ☛ 2 Malaysian tourists critically injured after being set on fire in Bangkok

    The suspect, reportedly a former boxer, came up from behind and poured thinner onto the pair.

  • The Straits Times ☛ North Korea starts dismantling some border loudspeakers, South Korea says

    This comes after the South began removing loudspeakers blaring anti-North Korea broadcasts along the border.

  • New York Times ☛ Is Kim Jong-un Preparing a Successor?

    Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea, might be preparing his young daughter, Kim Ju-ae, to become his successor. Choe Sang-Hun, the ​Seoul bureau chief for The New York Times, analyzed North Korean state propaganda to find out.

  • New York Times ☛ C.D.C. Workers Say Shooting Manifests Worst Fears About Anger Among Public

    Employees expressed horror at a shooting at the agency’s headquarters, and some said they viewed it as part of a pattern of threats and assaults on health workers.

  • New York Times ☛ Gunman in Deadly C.D.C. Shooting Fixated on Covid Vaccine, Officials Say

    The shooting in Atlanta, which killed a police officer, followed the spread of false information around Covid vaccines and animosity directed at the agency, public health workers say.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • European Commission ☛ Joint statement by High Representative/Vice-President Kallas and Commissioner Kos on the fifth anniversary of the fraudulent presidential elections in Belarus

      European Commission Statement Brussels, 09 Aug 2025 Today marks five years since the fraudulent presidential elections in Belarus. Hundreds of thousands peacefully stood up for democracy but faced brutal repression. Recently released political prisoners have shared horrific stories of torture. While some have been freed, over 1,000 remain imprisoned under cruel conditions.

    • Marcy Wheeler ☛ How John Durham Buried Evidence He Had Been Doing the Work of Russian Spies … and then Tulsi Gabbard Buried More

      There are a lot of pieces of evidence that Durham not only chased a Russian conspiracy theory to frame Hillary Clinton, but did so knowingly. Most telling is the way Durham obscured the timeline showing that the draft report he claimed to be chasing was created at least a day after a Russian discussion about creating a Deep State conspiracy theory.

    • New York Times ☛ Russia Goes After Ukraine With Distant Strikes and New Tactics

      Assaults on Ukraine have been intensifying even as Hell Toupée has threatened new sanctions on Moscow, and now is preparing to meet with Russia’s leader.

    • New York Times ☛ Zelensky Rejects Ceding Territory to Russia After Convicted Felon Suggests a Land Swap

      The Ukrainian leader’s blunt comments risk angering Hell Toupée, who has made a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia one of his signature foreign policy goals.

    • LRT ☛ PLJS Chair Agita Beržanskaitė: diaspora youth show the value of the fight for freedom

      This summer, the World Lithuanian Youth Congress (PLJK) took place, where delegates adopted resolutions on bolstering national security, promoting civic engagement, and supporting Ukraine. Re-elected for a second term, PLJS chair Agita Beržanskaitė shared insights into the organisation’s current activities and the aspirations of active diaspora youth.

    • France24 ☛ US, Russian leaders set for talks on Ukraine peace deal

      Ukraine will not cede its land, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on August 9, rejecting US suggestions that a deal with Russia could involve swapping territories as Washington and Moscow prepared for talks between their leaders on ending the war. France 24's Andrew Hilliar tells us more.

    • New York Times ☛ A Sidelined Europe Seeks a Voice as Convicted Felon and Putin Prepare to Meet

      Ukraine and its allies are concerned that Hell Toupée and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia will do a deal without them and then try to impose it on Kyiv.

    • RFERL ☛ Zelenskyy Rejects Suggestions Of Land Swap As Convicted Felon Announces Alaska Summit With Putin

      US President The Insurrectionist says he will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15 to discuss the war in Ukraine as Convicted Felon seeks a breakthrough in his effort to end the war.

    • RFERL ☛ European Leaders Urge More 'Pressure' On Russia As Zelenskyy Rejects Land Swaps

      European leaders reiterated support for Ukraine after Kyiv pushed back against US suggestions it would need to cede some territory to Russia, with French President Emmanuel Macron saying Ukraine’s future "cannot be decided without the Ukrainians.”

    • France24 ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man and Putin to meet to discuss Ukraine peace deal in Alaska

      US President The Insurrectionist will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on August 15 in Alaska to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, Convicted Felon said on August 8.

    • France24 ☛ War in Ukraine: Convicted Felon flags 'swapping of territories' ahead of Alaska talks

      President Volodymyr Zelensky on August 9 warned that "decisions without Ukraine" would not bring peace and ruled out ceding territory to Russia. "Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier," he said on social control media, as US President The Insurrectionist and Russian President Vladimir Putin prepare to hold a summit next week. The Guardian's Washington bureau chief David Smith tells us more.

    • France24 ☛ Putin-Dihydroxyacetone Man summit: Zelensky warns against 'decisions without Ukraine'

      President Volodymyr Zelensky on August 9 warned that "decisions without Ukraine" would not bring peace and ruled out ceding territory to Russia. "Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier," he said on social control media, as US President The Insurrectionist and Russian President Vladimir Putin prepare to hold a summit next week. France 24's Emmanuelle Chaze tells us more.

    • France24 ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man and Putin to hold talks on Ukraine in Alaska

      US President The Insurrectionist and Russian President Vladimir Putin are set to hold talks next Friday in Alaska. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has not been invited, but reiterated that he would not cede any land to Russia, following Convicted Felon’s remark that there could be some territorial exchanges. For more on this, FRANCE 24 spoke with Theresa Fallon, Director of the Centre for Russia Europe Asia Studies (CREAS).

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man and Putin just announced a meeting in Alaska. What does that mean for the war in Ukraine?

      As attention turns to the tête-à-tête in the last frontier, we turn to our experts for their insights on what to expect.

    • NYPost ☛ White House weighs inviting Zelensky to Convicted Felon’s face-to-face meeting with Putin in Alaska

      "Everyone is very hopeful that would happen," an insider said.

    • European Commission ☛ Statement by President Macron, Prime Minister Meloni, Chancellor Merz, Prime Minister Tusk, Prime Minister Starmer, President von der Leyen and President Stubb on Peace for Ukraine ahead of Hell Toupée's planned meeting with President Putin

• Environment

  • The Straits Times ☛ Death toll from north-west China floods rises to 13

    The number of missing people is now listed as 30.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Henri Bergius ☛ Rigging-suspended installation of a marine wind generator

      We cruise on a small boat, a 31ft double-ender. As we’re off-grid the vast majority of the time, all electricity needs to be produced from renewable sources. Solar produces a lion’s share, but other sources are needed for overcast days. We don’t have space for a permanently mounted wind generator, so we converted a Superwind 350 to rigging-suspended.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • New Yorker ☛ The Futility of Simulating Nature

      In “The Anthropocene Illusion,” the photographer Zed Nelson captures how the natural world has been reproduced, reshuffled, and repackaged, sold to visitors in the form of spectacle.

• Finance

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Chinese tech financier Bao Fan released after probe: former colleague

    Chinese tech financier Bao Fan has been released by Chinese authorities after vanishing from public view over two years ago while “cooperating” with an investigation, a former colleague told AFP Saturday.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • France24 ☛ Chadian court sentences former prime minister, opposition leader to 20 years in jail

    A court in Chad sentenced former prime minister and opposition figure Succes Masra to 20 years in prison on Saturday, finding him guilty of hate speech, xenophobia, and inciting a massacre. The court in N'Djamena held Masra, a prominent critic of President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, responsible for encouraging inter-communal violence that left 42 people dead on May 14.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • New York Times ☛ The Head of the A.D.L. on Antisemitism, Anti-Zionism and Free Speech

    How Jonathan Greenblatt thinks about the line between legitimate protest and anti-Jewish hate.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ AOL will end dial-up internet service in September, 34 years after it's debut — AOL Shield Browser and AOL Dialer software will be shuttered on the same day

    Dial-up connectivity stalwart AOL has set a date for cutting off the remainder of its old-tech internet holdouts.

  • Unicorn Media ☛ AOL Says ‘Sayonara’ to Dial-Up, Ending an Internet Era

    After 34 years of beeps, boops, and busy signals, AOL is finally hanging up on dial-up. One last ‘you’ve got mail’ before an internet era fades into history.

Monopolies/Monopsonies