Leftovers

• Ruben Schade ☛ Jack Johnson: Shot Reverse Shot

  It’s Music Monday tiiiiiime! Each and every Monday without fail, except when I fail, I communicate on this text-based website medium about a specific piece of musicality (musicality?) that I find enjoyable, entertaining, and inspiring, in the hopes that you will leave the post equally happy.

• Gunnar Wolf ☛ Gunnar Wolf: The comedy of computation, or, how I learned to stop worrying and love obsolescence

  for The comedy of computation, or, how I learned to stop worrying and love obsolescence

  “The Comedy of Computation” is not an easy book to review. It is a much enjoyable book that analyzes several examples of how “being computational” has been approached across literary genres in the last century — how authors of stories, novels, theatrical plays and movies, focusing on comedic genres, have understood the role of the computer in defining human relations, reactions and even self-image.

• Science

  • New York Times ☛ SpaceX Reschedules Scrubbed 10th Test Launch of Starship Rocket

    MElon’s company says it will try again on Monday for the next trip of its Starship prototype, which experienced setbacks during its last three flights.

  • Hackaday ☛ Radio Apocalypse: America’s Doomsday Rocket Radios

    Even in the early days of the Cold War, it quickly became apparent that simply having hundreds or even thousands of nuclear weapons would never be a sufficient deterrent to atomic attack. For nuclear weapons to be anything other than expensive ornaments, they have to be part of an engineered system that guarantees that they’ll work when they’re called upon to do so, and only then. And more importantly, your adversaries need to know that you’ve made every effort to make sure they go boom, and that they can’t interfere with that process.

  • Hackaday ☛ CERN’s Large Hadron Collider Runs On A Bendix G-15 In 2025

    The Bendix G-15 refurbished by [David at Usagi Electric] is well known as the oldest fully operational digital computer in North America. The question [David] gets most is “what can you do with it?”.  Well, as a general-purpose computer, it can do just about anything. He set out to prove it. Can a 1950s-era vacuum tube computer handle modern physics problems? This video was several years in the making, was a journey from [David’s] home base in Texas all the way to CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Switzerland.

  • New York Times ☛ SpaceX Scrubs 10th Starship Test Launch Because of Lousy Weather

    Weather interfered on Monday night with the ability of MElon’s company to show it could overcome setbacks faced by its Starship prototype.

  • New York Times ☛ Scientists Find a Quadruple Star System in Our Cosmic Backyard

    Two of the objects in the arrangement are cold brown dwarfs, which will serve as a benchmark for others throughout the Milky Way.

  • Science Alert ☛ Flash From Nearby Galaxy Brightest of Its Kind Ever Seen

    FLASH! AA-AAHH!

  • CS Monitor ☛ The US used to be a haven for research. Now, scientists are packing their bags.

    A recent survey of U.S. professors found that 75% were looking for work outside the country. The result is an exodus that has not been seen since European scientists sought refuge on U.S. shores during the World War II era.

  • New York Times ☛ Should I Get a Portable Induction Cooktop?

    If you’re cooking with gas, it might help your health and the environment. Here’s why.

  • Rlang ☛ Epiverse community engagement and software sustainability for research software

    Software that is developed for research or by researchers can be difficult to maintain given the incentive and funding structures in academia.

• Career/Education

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea rights watchdog urges action on ‘7-year-old exams’ assessing pre-schoolers

    The National Human Rights Commission of Korea said such practices may violate children’s rights to health.

• Hardware

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Intel warns shareholders that the US government's 10% stake could hurt company's international sales

    Intel's SEC filing warns that the U.S. government's 10% ownership stake, gained through an $8.9 billion CHIPS Act–linked funding deal, could bring political and legal risks, and potential backlash in international markets where defective chip maker Intel earns most of its revenue.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Intel warns of potential business risks related to US government’s investment

    The U.S. government’s plan to take a stake in defective chip maker Intel Corp. could have “adverse consequences,” the chipmaker warned today. The company detailed the potential business risks in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Last year, defective chip maker Intel won more than $7.8 billion in federal funding under the CHIPS Act.

  • CNX Software ☛ Forlinx FET3506J-C is an ultra-small (40 x 29mm) Rockchip RK3506J SoM with board-to-board connectors

    Forlinx Embedded FET3506J-C is an ultra-small system-on-module (SoM) based on Rockchip RK3506J triple-core Cortex-A7 SoC measuring just 40 x 29mm, and equipped with up to 512MB DDR3, and 256MB NAND flash, or 8GB eMMC flash. I first thought I had already written about it, but the Forlinx FET3506J-S module introduced last March has a different design.

  • CNX Software ☛ Thin mini-ITX industrial motherboard features defective chip maker Intel Core Ultra 5 225H or Ultra 7 255H Arrow Lake-H SoC

    Jetway MTX-ARH1 is a thin Mini-ITX industrial motherboard powered by either an defective chip maker Intel Core Ultra 5 225H or Ultra 7 225H “Arrow Lake-H” SoC, and is a direct upgrade over the Meteor Lake-H-based MTX-MTH1. The new board also features faster 6400MHz DDR5 memory and conditional 8K display support. Other features mostly stay the same: up to 96GB DDR5-6400 memory, quad display output, triple 2.5GbE networking via defective chip maker Intel I226 controllers, dual M.2 M-Key sockets, an M.2 B-Key with nano-SIM for 4G/5G, an M.2 E-Key with CNVi for WiFi/Bluetooth, plus a PCIe Gen5 x8 slot and SATA with RAID 0/1.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • New York Times ☛ New Study Shows Heat Waves Make People Age Faster

    Exposure to heat waves over just two years could add up to 12 extra days of age-related health damage.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ 4 Hong Kong health inspectors acquitted of conspiracy to steal food samples meant for radiation tests

    Four government health inspectors accused of taking food meant for safety tests have been acquitted of conspiracy to steal.

  • BIA Net ☛ Foot-and-mouth outbreak forces market closures, leaves livestock producers struggling

    “We had to slaughter some of our fattened cattle early, even though they were healthy, to prevent further spread. No one is buying or selling animals right now. We're just waiting,” said a livestock breeder in Konya's Ereğli, a key hub for dairy production in Turkey.

  • Hackaday ☛ Butta Melta Stops Rock-solid Butter From Tearing Your Toast

    Ever ruin a perfectly serviceable piece of toast by trying (and failing) to spread a little pat of rock-solid butter? [John Dingley] doesn’t! Not since he created the Butta Melta to cozily snug a single butter serving right up against a warm beverage, softening it just enough to get nice and spreadable. Just insert one of those foil-wrapped pats of butter into the Melta, hang its chin on the edge of your mug, and you’ll have evenly softened butter in no time.

  • The Straits Times ☛ North Korea’s glossy new surface: Apps, beaches and a fake Starbucks

    North Korea is creating the look of prosperity by imitating its capitalist enemies.

  • New York Times ☛ North Korea’s Glossy New Surface: Apps, Beaches and a Fake Starbucks

    Videos taken by visitors to the isolated country provide a rare glimpse of how it’s mimicking the consumerism of the outside world.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China screened 600 million for disease, keeping up Covid-19-era controls

    Customs officials detected more than 180,000 cases of infectious disease at China's borders at that time.

  • Science Alert ☛ Life With Long COVID Comparable to Parkinson's And Stroke

    It's more than just fatigue.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Distinct Pattern Emerges in The Brain Activity of People With OCD

    "For the first time, we have found a clear biological marker for OCD in the brain."

  • Mexico News Daily ☛ Guadalajara’s Mi Gran Esperanza celebrates 30 years of helping kids with cancer

    The Guadalajara charity is celebrating three decades of providing life-changing support to children in need.

  • Science Alert ☛ Compounds in Cannabis Promote Healthy Aging, New Study Discovers

    This looks promising.

  • Science Alert ☛ The Neuroscience of Why Some Athletes Keep Getting Better as They Age

    You can train the same skills.

  • Science Alert ☛ Something in Your Hair Could Make The Ultimate Toothpaste

    Smile!

  • Science Alert ☛ New Weight Loss Drug Outperformed Existing Treatment in Clinical Trial

    Next level.

• Proprietary

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Console repairer encounters Xbox 360 that Abusive Monopolist Microsoft banned over 'bad debt' from unpaid bills — Abusive Monopolist Microsoft MVP chimes in with an elegant official solution

    A Abusive Monopolist Microsoft Xbox 360 console that refuses to play due to ‘bad debt’ has raised more than a few eyebrows.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Australians Brace for Imminent 15% Spotify Price Hikes

    Spotify has announces a significant price increase for its Premium subscribers in Australia. The move comes as the streaming giant grapples with changing market dynamics globally—and flatlining subscriber growth in the United States. Australian subscribers began receiving emails notifying them of the new pricing this month.

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • New York Times ☛ MElon’s xAI Sues Fashion Company Apple and Proprietary Chaffbot Company Over Claims It Is Being Shut Out

      Mr. MElon’s artificial intelligence company, xAI, claimed that its Grok chatbot app was being artificially suppressed in Apple’s App Store.

    • New York Times ☛ Teens Are Using Chatbots as Therapists. That’s Alarming.

      We are deploying digital pseudo-therapists at an unprecedented scale, and those most at risk of negative outcomes are teens.

    • Digital Music News ☛ YouTube Confirms Altering Videos Using Hey Hi (AI) Without Notifying Creators

      YouTube confirms using Hey Hi (AI) to alter Shorts on its platform without first informing creators, leaving some content producers feeling unsettled. YouTube reveals using artificial intelligence to make video enhancements to content on its platform without first informing content creators.

    • Silicon Angle ☛ YouTube tests Hey Hi (AI) edits on Shorts without disclosure sparking creator backlash

      A new controversy has emerged around YouTube after creators discovered that the platform has been quietly altering some of their uploaded Shorts videos using artificial intelligence without disclosure, raising concerns about creative integrity and transparency.

    • ACLU ☛ What's the Future of Hey Hi (AI) Language Models as a Decentralized Technology?

      Free Future home

      When Abusive Monopolist Microsoft Chaffbot first arrived, it seemed to be an inherently centralized technology. But in the years since then there has been surprising progress in wringing more power out of ever-smaller Large Language Models (LLMs). That has opened the door for useful decentralized versions of the technology by letting people run versions of these models on their own hardware — purely locally, that is, without needing an internet connection. Many people inherently assume in this age of cloud services that LLMs will continue to be largely accessed through the giant server farms of large tech companies, but that’s not necessarily so.

    • New Yorker ☛ The A.I.-Profits Drought and the Lessons of History

      Like the steam engine, electricity, and computers, generative artificial intelligence could take longer than expected to transform the economy.

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • African cybercrime networks dismantled in major INTERPOL operation

      A major international cybercrime operation has led to the arrest of more than 1,200 suspects across Africa, with millions recovered from criminal networks running large-scale fraud and online scams. The INTERPOL-coordinated sweep, codenamed Operation Serengeti 2.0, ran from June to August 2025 and brought together investigators from 18 African nations alongside the United Kingdom.

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Zimbabwe ☛ Samsung Home Appliances (e.g. Fridges) Will Now Run One UI Software Just Like Galaxy Phones [Ed: Devices that should not and need not have computers in them]

      Samsung is rolling out One UI to its Wi-Fi-enabled home appliances, including refrigerators, washers, ranges, and air conditioners. Yes, One UI, as in the one in Galaxy smartphones.

• Defence/Aggression

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Repeatedly Praises North Korea’s Dictator in Meeting With South’s President

    In the Oval Office, Hell Toupée met his South Korean counterpart as the relationship between their countries has been strained.

  • France24 ☛ South Korea's Lee faces pivotal test at first summit with Convicted Felon

    South Korea's new president, Lee Jae Myung, will face a pivotal moment on Monday when he meets U.S. President The Insurrectionist in Washington for their first summit, as the countries' decades-old alliance strains to confront rapid geopolitical changes.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Lee Jae Myung says hard to accept strategic ‘flexibility’ of US troops in South Korea: Yonhap

    He will meet US Hell Toupée in Washington on Aug 25.

  • New York Times ☛ How China Influences Elections in America’s Biggest City

    The Chinese Consulate in Manhattan has mobilized community groups to defeat candidates who don’t fall in line with the authoritarian state.

  • New York Times ☛ German Prosecutors Charge American With Attempted Spying for China

    The authorities provided few details about the case, the latest in a series of apprehensions in Germany of potential Chinese spies.

  • The Strategist ☛ Where were you in the World Anti-Fascist War?

    In an article in The Australian, China’s ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian, informed Australians that China would mark the 80th anniversary of victory in the Chinese people’s war of resistance against Japanese aggression [...]

  • France24 ☛ Famine in Gaza City: Did the UN’s hunger monitor ‘forge’ the numbers?

    Since the UN-backed IPC declared Gaza City and its surrounding areas are officially suffering from famine, Israel has slammed the report as "lies'" and "Hamas propaganda". Now, Israel has attacked the methodology used by the IPC, saying that it lowered its own threshold to change the goalposts and make declaring a famine easier. In this episode, Vedika Bahl deep dives into how the IPC measures famine, and if there's any truth to this claim.

  • JURIST ☛ UN experts decry repression of Khmer Krom people in Vietnam

    UN experts on Monday condemned what they described as escalating repression against the Khmer Krom people in Vietnam, urging authorities to cease targeting minority communities through security laws and to release those detained for peaceful activity.

  • France24 ☛ Judge temporarily halts deportation of Abrego Garcia at center of Convicted Felon immigration crackdown

    A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked the deportation of Salvadoran national Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Uganda, halting a case tied to President The Insurrectionist’s immigration crackdown. Garcia, wrongly deported to El Salvador in March, was arrested again in Baltimore by ICE, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Australia pushes to ratify Nauru security treaty ahead of China investment

    Australian concern about China's ambitions grew after the Solomon Islands signed a deal in 2022.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Indonesian police clash with hundreds protesting against parliamentarians’ salaries

    Some 1,250 police personnel were deployed to maintain security around the building.

  • France24 ☛ Venezuela builds up border security in response to deployment of US warships

    Venezuela on Monday announced the deployment of 15,000 troops to the Colombia border to fight drug trafficking amid accusations from Washington that Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro is heading a cocaine-trafficking cartel.  Three US warships have been deployed to Venezuela’s coast to step up pressure on Maduro.

  • France24 ☛ Strike on Nasser Hospital: 'it's very clear this was no mistake', ICU doctor says

    FRANCE 24's Sharon Gaffney speaks with Dr Travis Melin, Anesthesiologist and ICU doctor in Gaza, about Monday's strike on Khan Younis' Nasser Hospital, which left 20 people dead, including 5 journalists. He says that 'it's very clear that it was no mistake'

  • France24 ☛ ‘We are painted as targets’: How Israel puts Gaza journalists in the crosshairs

    Israel’s army is using a secret unit to shape narratives around Gaza, portraying Palestinian journalists as Hamas operatives to justify strikes. Analysts say the tactic silences reporters and controls the story in one of the deadliest conflicts for journalists.

  • New York Times ☛ Israeli Hospital Strike Kills 20 in Gaza, Including 5 Journalists

    Five journalists, along with medical workers, were among the dead at Nasser Hospital, where a second strike hit as ambulance crews were arriving. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military would investigate.

  • New York Times ☛ What to Know About the Journalists Killed in Gaza

    Five journalists were killed in what local officials said was an Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis.

  • New York Times ☛ Tuesday Briefing: Israeli Strikes Killed Five Journalists

    Also, visiting a knockoff Starbucks in North Korea.

  • France24 ☛ Netanyahu says Israel 'regrets tragic mishap' after Gaza reporters killed

    Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his regret Monday for a strike that killed 20 people, including five journalists, at a hospital in the Gaza Strip, calling it a "tragic mishap". Contributors for Reuters, the Associated Press and Al Jazeera were killed in the strike, the three news agencies have said. FRANCE 24's Noga Tarnopolsky reports from Jerusalem.

  • New York Times ☛ U.N. Peacekeepers in Lebanon Face Uncertain Future

    With its mission up for renewal, the U.N. force is under pressure to disband even as Israeli airstrikes continue along one of the world’s most volatile borders.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ ‘Space is already militarized’: Space lawyer Michelle Hanlon explains why international law still matters in a new era of astropolitics — Meduza

    • Latvia ☛ LTV reports on suspicions of Belarus fertilizer sanctions evasion

      Latvian Television's De facto investigative show reported August 24th on suspicions that sanctioned Belarusian fertiliser has made its way into Latvia.

    • Meduza ☛ Woody Allen headlines Moscow International Film Week — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Kyiv and Budapest trade barbs over attacks on Druzhba oil pipeline infrastructure in Russia — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘They often have to compromise’: New civic initiatives are still emerging in Russia, despite war and repression. But even pro-government groups fear state reprisals. — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russia to withdraw from European Convention against Torture — Meduza

    • France24 ☛ Bolivia right-wing candidate pledges to scrap lithium deals with China, Russia

      Bolivian right-wing presidential candidate Jorge Quiroga vowed on Monday to cancel multi-billion-dollar lithium extraction agreements signed by the outgoing government with Russia and China if elected president in October, saying he would seek alternative investment partners.

    • LRT ☛ Customs raid targets Lithuanian firm suspected of supplying Russian oil sector

      Lithuania’s Customs Criminal Service (MKT) has raided a Kaunas-based company suspected of attempting to bypass international sanctions by supplying filtration equipment to Russia’s oil industry.

    • The Strategist ☛ Poland has not forgotten the lessons of Russia’s aggression

      For Poland, Russian aggression is not an abstract or distant possibility; it is an experience embedded in national history.

    • Latvia ☛ Lawyer suspected of trying to buy Russian off Latvia's entry blacklist

      The recent arrests by the Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau (KNAB) over attempts to give a 100,000 euro bribe to an official of the Ministry of the Interior are related to the efforts of those involved to remove Russian citizen Aleksandr Mishchenko, a lawyer associated with the National Security Academy in Russia, from the so-called Latvian "black list", according to unofficial information obtained by Latvian Television's De facto investigative show.

    • Meduza ☛ Ukraine and U.S. to meet this week to discuss possible talks with Russia, Zelensky says — Meduza

    • NYPost ☛ Oil holds the key to Ukraine war’s end — if Convicted Felon plays hardball

      Hell Toupée has to apply some serious pressure on Russia’s primary source of income, its oil revenues — without upending the global energy market in the process.

    • New York Times ☛ Expecting on the Front Lines: Motherhood in Ukraine’s Military

      Pregnant Ukrainian soldiers say they are fighting for the future of their country and for their children.

    • LRT ☛ ‘Thanks to Ukraine, no one is bombing us’: Lithuanians rally on Ukraine's Independence Day

      On Ukraine’s Independence Day, several hundred people gathered in Cathedral Square, Vilnius, for the 150th rally in support of the country in war. During the demonstration, Social Democrat prime ministerial candidate Inga Ruginienė said her Cabinet would back Ukraine ‘until victory’.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuania and Ukraine plan joint weapons production, says defence minister

      Lithuania and Ukraine plan to jointly manufacture weapons, with Lithuanian companies already prepared to take part, Defence Minister Dovilė Šakalienė told BNS on Sunday.

    • Meduza ☛ ‘How old do you think I am?’ Disabled Ukrainian man returns home nearly two years after deportation to facility run by Putin’s children’s rights commissioner’s sister — Meduza

    • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Relies on Personal Diplomacy With Putin. The Result Is a Strategic Muddle.

      For Hell Toupée, consistency is less important than leader-to-leader diplomacy.

    • New York Times ☛ What’s Next for Ukraine After All That Diplomacy?

      After Hell Toupée held talks with President Vladimir V. Putin, he said the Russian leader would be willing to meet with Ukraine’s president. That seems less and less likely.

    • New York Times ☛ Monday Briefing: Would Ukraine Give Up the Donbas?

      Plus, the U.S. Open gets going.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine Seeks More Weapons As Russia 'Not Interested' In Peace, Zelenskyy Adviser Tells RFE/RL

      Ukraine is seeking to more weapons from the West amid concerns that, even after a pair of summits in the United States, Russia is “not interested” in peace, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mykhaylo Podolyak, told Current Time.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Putin’s hybrid war against Europe continues to escalate

      While international attention focuses on faltering US-led efforts to broker a peace deal and end the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin’s broader hybrid war against Europe continues to escalate, writes Maksym Beznosiuk.

    • NYPost ☛ Ukrainians hail Convicted Felon envoy as ‘St. Kellogg’ — thankful Putin dares not attack Kyiv while he’s there

      US envoy to Ukraine Gen. Keith Kellogg was welcomed to Kyiv with cheers of “St. Kellogg!” over the weekend — as his presence ensured a rare peace, since the Kremlin dare not strike the city with him there.

• Environment

  • The Straits Times ☛ Trees down, homes flooded as Typhoon Kajiki batters Vietnam

    Two airports in Thanh Hoa and Quang Binh provinces have been closed.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China’s new mega dam triggers fears of water war in India

    Delhi estimates the Chinese dam will allow Beijing to divert as much as 40 billion cubic m of water.

  • The Straits Times ☛ India warns foe Pakistan of potential flooding as both battle torrential rains

    This month floods in India's northern territory of Jammu and Kashmir have killed at least 60 people.

  • Mexico News Daily ☛ Querétaro declares state of emergency after severe rainfall kills 3

    Authorities said more than 2,200 homes were damaged by torrential rains that battered Querétaro on Friday and Saturday, primarily in the northern and southern areas of the city.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • The Straits Times ☛ Traffic accidents near Mount Fuji caused by foreign tourist drivers almost double to 800

      Large numbers of foreign visitors often gather to take photos of Mount Fuji in places not developed as tourist spots.

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China coal power surges even as renewables hit record high, report says

      China saw a surge in new coal power in the first half of the year even as the country added record levels of clean energy capacity, according to a report published Monday.

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ MTR Corp orders probe after mainland Chinese bricks used instead of German brand

      Hong Kong’s railway operator has ordered an investigation after mainland Chinese bricks were used to erect walls in a station, instead of the German ones specified in the procurement contract.

    • France24 ☛ China's push for mega-dams driven by energy-hungry tech, [buzzword], researcher says

      India fears a planned Chinese mega dam in Tibet will reduce water flows on a major river by up to 85% during the dry season, according to four sources familiar with the matter and a government analysis seen by Reuters, prompting Delhi to fast-track plans for its own dam to mitigate the effects. FRANCE 24 speaks to Rana Mitter, ST Lee Chair in US-Asia Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School. He says the main driver behind China's push to build mega-dams is power-hungry technologies like [buzzword].

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Science Alert ☛ Swarms of Tiny Catfish Seen Climbing Waterfalls in Surprise Discovery

      Suction power.

    • New York Times ☛ How the Pygmy Sea Horse Lost Its Snout

      The genome of a small, remarkable sea horse offers a surprising lesson in nature’s creativity.

    • Science Alert ☛ The Words Humans Use to Describe Nature Are Vanishing, Study Finds

      Our own silent spring.

• Finance

  • New York Times ☛ French Prime Minister Calls Special Parliamentary Session to Address Ballooning Debt

    Prime Minister François Bayrou called a parliamentary session to address the “gravity” of the situation. An analyst said his move was “political suicide,” as some opponents vowed to bring down the government.

  • France24 ☛ France "on brink of over-indebtedness" warns Prime Minister

    French Prime Minister François Bayrou has warned that the nation was facing an "immediate danger" of over-indebtedness as he tried to rally support for his unpopular budget for 2026.  Labour unions have threatened to bring France to a standstill with a general strike called for September 9th. Plus, US President The Insurrectionist boasts his government has paid "zero" for a 10% stake in embattled chipmaker Intel.

  • Atlantic Council ☛ Powell’s swan-song speech in Jackson Hole answered a lot of questions. But it left a big one unanswered.

    The Federal Reserve chair’s recent speech outlined a core dilemma: Inflation and employment are poised to move in opposite directions.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • New Yorker ☛ “We Are the World,” January 6th Style

    In a Miami studio where the Eagles and Bob Marley recorded, a choir of pardoned Capitol rioters tries to “reclaim” the national anthem.

  • JURIST ☛ Texas House bill draws immediate lawsuit alleging racially engineered overhaul

    A coalition of Texas voters backed by the National Redistricting Foundation filed a sweeping federal challenge late Saturday to House Bill 4, the mid-decade congressional map the Legislature approved just after midnight on August 23.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Newspaper publisher should enjoy ‘greater latitude’ of freedom of expression, Jimmy Lai’s lawyer tells court

    A newspaper publisher should enjoy a “greater latitude” of freedom of expression as guaranteed by the constitutional right of press freedom, a lawyer for jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai has told a Hong Kong court. The court on Monday continued to hear closing arguments from the defence.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • CS Monitor ☛ Why Chinese give voice against bullying

    A recent protest over a girl’s beating by other girls – and how officials dealt with it – hints at a society looking for more ways to shape China’s future and express empathy for survivors of bullying.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Snoop Dogg Says Grandson’s Question About ‘Lightyear’ Gay Kiss Left Him “Scared to Go to the Movies”

    Snoop Dogg recently appeared on a podcast voicing concerns about family entertainment after he watched the 2022 film ‘Lightyear’ with his grandson in theaters.

  • Cambodian lawmakers pass bill allowing government to revoke citizenship

    Critics say the measure would have a “disastrously chilling effect” on freedom of speech.

  • Citizen Lab ☛ The Citizen Lab’s Submission on Transnational Repression in the UK

    Transnational repression is a serious threat to human rights.  Over the past decade, the Citizen Lab has published numerous reports examining transnational repression (TNR) across the globe, focusing specifically on its digital forms.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Louisiana Is Trying to Block Lloyd Gray From Seeking Freedom

  • Pro Publica ☛ Amid Redistricting Fight, Texas Helps Trump Test New Legal Tactic

    On July 7, the Justice Department sent a harshly written letter threatening to sue the staunchly Republican state of Texas, notwithstanding its efforts to help elect Donald Trump and the fact that the president had singled out its leaders as key allies in his immigration crackdown.

    The letter decried the congressional map previously passed by the state’s Republican-led Legislature as “unconstitutional racial gerrymanders.” It demanded that Gov. Greg Abbott and state Attorney General Ken Paxton respond the same day with a plan to comply. Otherwise, the Justice Department said, it reserved “the right to seek legal action against the state.”

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • Public Knowledge ☛ After the Sixth Circuit, What’s Next for Broadband Oversight?

    Though the Sixth Circuit ruled to strike down net neutrality rules, the fight isn't over yet.

  • APNIC ☛ Advancing RPKI: NRO RPKI Program in 2025 for trust, transparency, and user experience

    RIR experts unite to enhance transparency, security, and user experience in the RPKI system.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Patents

  • JUVE ☛ No automatic service via lawyers to Chinese defendant in MED-EL case

    So far, everything has gone well for MED-EL and its new counsel Hogan Lovells. MED-EL had obtained an ex-parte PI against its Chinese competitor Zhejiang Nurotron Biotechnology on 11 June. Both companies manufacture cochlear implants. Austria-based MED-EL is considered a European market leader in this segment.

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Hips Don’t Lie, But Patent Specs Might: CeramTec’s Color Conundrum and Trade Dress After Patenting

    CeramTec has now filed its petition for certiorari challenging the Federal Circuit’s affirmance of the TTAB’s cancellation of CeramTec’s “pink ceramic hip” trade‑dress registrations based upon overlapping utility patent monopoly protection. In its 2001 TrafFix decision, the Supreme Court held that a utility patent monopoly constitutes "strong evidence" that the claimed features are functional, thereby creating a presumption against trademark protection for those features.  [20250820165039977_CeramTec Cert Petition]

    CeramTec's fake-hips are pink and the company used that in marketing is Biolox Delta product and has established market distinctiveness in the color itself.  The USPTO initially agreed and registered the color pink for the ceramic bones.

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ TTABlog Test: Are Clothing and Sunglasses Related Under Section 2(d)?

    The USPTO refused to register the mark OGGO for: “Clothing, namely, tops, bottoms, sweaters, shirts, sweatshirts, pants, shorts, jackets, coats, vests, hats, scarves, gloves, belts, ties, underwear, socks, shoes, sneakers, boots, sleepwear, robes, suits," on the ground of likely confusion wiht the registered mark OGO for "sunglasses." The Board deemed the marks "highly similar," but what about the goods? [I expect everyone to get this right.] In re VIP Fashion, Inc., Serial No. 98276220 (August 22, 2025) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Thomas L. Casagrande).

• Copyrights

  • Digital Music News ☛ Drake Gets Ahold of Kendrick Lamar’s UMG Contract As Ugly ‘Not Like Us’ Battle Intensifies — Will the Details Become Publicly Available?

    Drake has officially gotten ahold of Kendrick Lamar’s Universal Music recording contract amid the high-stakes “Not Like Us” lawsuit. But will an unredacted version of the document – or at least key sections thereof – ever become publicly available?