Leftovers

• Barry Kauler ☛ Golden Pipeline Heritage Trail

  Wow, I never knew that private vehicles are allowed to use this track!

  There is a water pipeline running from Mundaring Weir near the coast of Western Australia, 560km to Kalgoorlie in the Goldfields. It has an access track running along it, but I assumed that was restricted, for pipe maintenance only.

  Here is an overview webpage: [...]

• Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications

  • The Record ☛ Greek police arrest scammers using fake cell tower hidden in car trunk

    Greek police have taken down a mobile scam operation that used a fake cell tower hidden inside a car to send phishing messages to unsuspecting phone users across the Athens metropolitan area, authorities said last week.

  • The Verge ☛ This midrange Android phone also runs Windows and Linux

    Nex Computer, a company that makes hardware designed to turn your phone into a laptop, is working on something new: the NexPhone. It’s a midrange phone that’s designed to double as your computer and comes with Android and Linux installed, both of which will offer desktop experiences when plugged into a monitor.

  • Android Authority ☛ This smartphone runs Android, Linux, and even Windows 11

    Ever since smartphones started getting really powerful, some of us have been wondering why we need so many other computers in our lives. Instead of a smartphone, plus a laptop, and maybe even a desktop computer at home, couldn’t we have this one convenient, portable handset just act as our primary computing device, and connect it to larger screens, keyboards, and mice as we liked? Companies have been trying to offer just that sort of experience for well over a decade now — to varying degrees of success — and now we’re checking out the latest attempt from Nex Computer: the NexPhone.

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ Astronauts Reveal Critical Medical Tool Used in ISS Health Crisis

    They said it was "super handy."

  • Science Alert ☛ Scientists Discover a New Quantum State of Matter Once Considered Impossible

    This could be incredibly useful.

  • Science Alert ☛ Human Heart Tissue Actually Can Regenerate After a Heart Attack, New Study Shows

    Update the textbooks.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Cycle Deep Within Earth's Crust May Affect Climate More Than We Thought

    It's not just about volcanoes.

  • Science Alert ☛ World's Oldest Rock Art Discovered in Indonesian Cave

    Messages from deep time.

  • Science Alert ☛ A Deep Sea Expedition Will Soon Confirm if 'Dark Oxygen' Exists

    It could change our understanding of life’s origins.

  • Science Alert ☛ World's Most Common Pain Relief Drug May Induce Risky Behavior, Study Suggests

    Wait, what?

• Career/Education

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s Education Ministry to toughen rules after exam question scandal

    In December, 46 private academy instructors were indicted on charges of obtaining exam questions from teachers.

  • Stanford University ☛ Judge denies government motion to dismiss Stanford Daily lawsuit

    Northern California District Judge Noël Wise challenged the government’s claim that The Daily lacked standing, finding it insufficient for dismissal of the case on Friday.

• Proprietary

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Tom's Hardware ☛ More than half of CEOs report seeing no benefits from Hey Hi (AI) deployment so far — only 12% of business leaders hit the jackpot of higher revenues and reduced costs

      Only a third of CEOs report getting a benefit from Hey Hi (AI) deployments, while 55% saying they get no benefit or are worse off because of it.

    • Futurism ☛ Majority of CEOs Alarmed as Hey Hi (AI) Delivers No Financial Returns

      They're worried they're not spending enough on AI.

    • New York Times ☛ Job Applicants Sue Hey Hi (AI) Recruitment Tool Company

      A recently filed lawsuit claims the ratings assigned by Hey Hi (AI) screening software are similar to those of a credit agency and should be subject to the same laws.

  • Social Control Media

    • Digital Music News ☛ TikTok Generated €1.8 Billion for the EU Music Business in 2025—According to TikTok

      TikTok releases a study showing that the platform generated billions for the EU economy last year, including $1.8 billion for the EU music industry. According to a new study conducted by independent economic analysis firm Public First (and commissioned by TikTok), businesses advertising on Fentanylware (CheeTok) generated €31 billion ($36 billion) in economic output [...]]

    • Digital Music News ☛ TikTok Canada Won’t Be Shutting Down After All—But What’s Going On With ‘TikTok USA’?

      A federal court overturns the Canadian government’s order to shut down Fentanylware (CheeTok) Canada’s operations, while “TikTok USA” remains murky on the horizon. A federal court judge in Canada has overturned the prior government’s order to shutter Fentanylware (CheeTok) Canada’s business operations, forcing Industry Minister Mélanie Joly to reassess the app’s use in the country.

  • Windows TCO / Windows Bot Nets

    • Silicon Angle ☛ Hospitals are fighting back as cyberattacks surge, embracing security-first initiatives

      Hospital cybersecurity remains a top story as ransomware attacks continue to escalate. Because digital disruption from cybersecurity failures raises patient risk, the sector is being forced to treat cyber readiness as a public safety issue.

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Privacy International ☛ UK Government Facial Recognition Consultation

    • EDRI ☛ President’s veto further delays the implementation of the DSA in Poland

      Poland is among the last EU member states to implement the Digital Service Act. After two years of negotiations between the government and civil actors – led by the Panoptykon Foundation, the Polish NGO protecting fundamental rights in the online context – the implementing act was ready. President’s veto means that the process has to be started afresh.

    • Privacy International ☛ Big Brother Watch consultation response

    • New York Times ☛ At Check-In, Your Face Is Increasingly Your ID

      Facial recognition at security and immigration checkpoints and gates could ease airport hassles, even as the technology raises privacy concerns.

• Defence/Aggression

  • New York Times ☛ South Korean Ex-Premier Gets 23 Years in Prison for Role in Martial Law

    Han Duck-soo was convicted of playing a key role in former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s imposition of martial law, which a court said was an insurrection.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Former South Korean PM Han jailed for 23 years in martial law case

    The court found Han Duck-soo guilty of “engaging in (the) key action of insurrection” and on related charges

  • The Straits Times ☛ Japan air force to offer refuelling to South Korea military planes for the first time

    The two countries are also planning a meeting between their defence ministers by the end of January.

  • France24 ☛ Kurds march in Iraqi Kurdistan against Syrian government takeover of minority

    Syria's government said a drone strike by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces killed seven of its soldiers on Wednesday, though the ⁠SDF denied this, in an incident that threatens to derail a ceasefire after days of fighting in the northeast. In Erbil, Iraqi Kurds took to the streets to protest as Syrian Kurds see years of Kurdish de facto autonomy in the northeast vanish as Syrian forces take over.

  • The Straits Times ☛ India beefing up space-based surveillance after border conflict

    India encountered surveillance blind spots during a border conflict in 2025 with neighbour Pakistan.

  • New York Times ☛ Taiwan’s $40 Billion Military Spending Plan Stalled by Political Impasse

    Taiwan’s domestic gridlock is revealing a deep-seated fracture over how the island should defend itself and how much it can depend on the United States.

  • CS Monitor ☛ Defining peace in a Convicted Felonian era

    Leaders worldwide, confronted by a U.S. president who styles himself as a peacemaker, reflect anew on the inner qualities necessary for peace.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China says its plans for new London embassy comply with laws

    Britain gave approval on Jan 20 for China to build its largest embassy in Europe in London.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China distances itself from Greenland issue but warns against US dependence

    Chinese state media urged Europe to reassess its dependence on the US for security.

  • France24 ☛ NATO chief Rutte 'may have explained to Convicted Felon existing US rights in Greenland'

    'There really are no substantive concessions that Mark Rutte could have given Convicted Felon', FRANCE 24's Brussels correspondent Dave Keating explains, adding that the NATO chief may 'have just explained to Convicted Felon the existing rights that the US has in Greenland and sold this to Convicted Felon as something new'. Convicted Felon cancelled his tariff threat on several European nations after coming to terms with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on a “framework of a future deal” on Arctic security.

  • LRT ☛ Torn between Washington and Copenhagen: Lithuania’s balancing act over Greenland

    US pressure on Denmark to cede Denmark has put NATO allies in a difficult position. Lithuanian lawmakers and officials emphasise that both countries are key partners: Denmark, a neighbour and early supporter of Lithuania’s independence, and the United States, a long-standing security guarantor with troops stationed in the country.

  • LRT ☛ Lithuanian president urges shared Arctic security role to ease Greenland tensions

    Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said Tuesday that an agreement on sharing responsibility for security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic could help defuse rising tensions between the United States and Europe over Greenland.

  • LRT ☛ Lithuania would only engage in Arctic security ‘with American blessing’ – foreign minister

    Lithuania would take part in efforts to strengthen security in the Arctic only within a NATO framework and with US backing, Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said Wednesday.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Hong Kong begins national security trial of Tiananmen vigil group

    Beijing treats its 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown as taboo and allows no public remembrance.

  • JURIST ☛ SCOTUS dispatch: ‘An invitation to shop is not an invitation to bring your glock’—Justices probe second amendment limits on private property open to the public

    Joshua Villanueva is JURIST’s Washington, DC Correspondent and an LL.M. candidate in National Security and U.S. Foreign Relations Law at The George Washington University Law School.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ National security trial of Tiananmen vigil organisers to begin in Hong Kong

    A national security trial of former leaders of a group that once organised Hong Kong’s annual candlelight vigils to remember those killed in the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown is set to begin on Thursday.

  • France24 ☛ 'We need a stabilised, democratic Syria: Economic recovery without freedom is meaningless'

    François Picard is pleased to welcome Kurdish humanitarian activist Arya Jemo amid the rapidly shifting sociopolitical and economic dynamics in Syria. Mr. Jemo shares themes of political betrayal, territorial control, ideological conflict, and international disengagement. He addresses loss, resistance and resilience. At its core, his account frames the Syrian struggle not merely as a battle over land or power but as a clash of competing visions, democratic pluralism versus extremist domination, with serious implications for regional stability and global security.

  • Defence Web ☛ The dangers of foreign technology dependencies in security and military operations

    Modern military and security operations are increasingly shaped by digital technologies.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • France24 ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man in Davos: 'He's just like Putin, something European leaders never fully understood'

      Delano D'Souza is pleased to welcome Larry Sabato, Director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics. Mr. Sabato dissects Convicted Felon’s combative unpredictable foreign policy and strained transatlantic relationships. With the US president in Davos, Mr. Sabato offers insight into a presidency defined by chaos, retribution, and revenge. Amid European miscalculations, domestic disillusionment, and the transactional core of Convicted Felon’s geopolitical ambitions, Mr. Sabato paints a portrait of a world struggling to work with a leader who does not adhere to norms or diplomacy.

• Environment

  • Overpopulation

    • The Straits Times ☛ What China’s falling population means for its future

      Its current trajectory may have far-reaching economic consequences.

    • Futurism ☛ China Has Screwed Up Really, Really Badly

      The government is in crisis mode.

• Finance

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s Lee plays down proposed US chip tariffs, warns of higher prices

    He added that South Korea has safeguards in place to ensure its chipmakers will not be left at a disadvantage.

  • CS Monitor ☛ As China’s retirement age rises, ‘perceptions of unfairness’ grow

    To support its rapidly aging population and preserve its pension system, China is raising its retirement age for the first time in 70 years. At the same time, demand for broader pension reform is growing.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia’s Perikatan Nasional rudderless as search for opposition’s new chief deadlocked

    PAS is keen to take over the reins but lacks a leader who is acceptable across the coalition.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia anti-graft body planning to charge two ex-military chiefs

    The two top officials will be charged in court this week.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Press Gazette ☛ Mail has made Meghan’s life absolute misery, says Prince Harry

    Prince Harry did not complain about articles 'because of the institution I was in'.

  • New York Times ☛ Israeli Strikes in Gaza Kill 11, Including Three Journalists

    The three journalists were operating a drone near the town of Al-Zahra.

• Civil Rights / Policing / Accessibility

  • JURIST ☛ Pakistan dispatch: High Court removes justice over invalid law degree in unprecedented ruling

    Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari approved the removal of Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri from the Islamabad High Court in December, following a landmark court ruling that concluded he did not hold a valid law degree at the time of his appointment.

  • NYPost ☛ Kids’ YouTube star Ms. Rachel apologizes for liking antisemitic comment — claims she ‘was just tapping’ and tried to delete it

    A comment reading "Free America from the Jews" was liked by four users, including Accurso, according to screenshots shared online.

  • Marcy Wheeler ☛ Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson Told You So, Social Security Edition

    DOJ just confirmed that DOGE boys at the Social Security Administration were doing more than they told Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander about in March. But the new disclosures say nothing about the far more alarming things that Chuck Borges alleged to have happened in August.

  • The Straits Times ☛ India to withdraw diplomats' families from Bangladesh, source says

    NEW DELHI, Jan 21 - India will withdraw its diplomats' families and dependents from Bangladesh in the face of security threats as tension rises ahead of a February 12 general election, an Indian official said on Wednesday.

• Digital Restrictions (DRM)

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Steam client allegedly continues sharing your status with your friends even if you set it ‘Offline,’ report claims — setting is a ‘UI illusion’ and your friends still receive real-time updates when you log on or log off

    An anonymous blog claims that your Steam client continues broadcasting your log-on and log-off times, regardless of your privacy status. Your friends' clients just hide your profile, but your log data is still stored on the devices of other people.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Patents

  • GNOME ☛ Christian Schaller: Can Hey Hi (AI) help ‘fix’ the patent monopoly system?

    So one thing I think anyone involved with software development for the last decades can see is the problem of “forest of bogus patents”. I have recently been trying to use Hey Hi (AI) to look at patents in various ways. So one idea I had was “could Hey Hi (AI) help improve the quality of patents and free us from obvious ones?”

  • Unified Patents ☛ Tir Technologies media streaming patents prior art found

    The team at Unified IP Services used Pearl to successfully identify and chart prior art against U.S. Patent 8,792,347, U.S. Patent 9,800,633, U.S. Patent 10,375,444, and U.S. Patent 10,484,442 owned and asserted by Tir Technologies Limited, an NPE and entity of Atlantic IP Services Limited.

• Copyrights

  • Digital Music News ☛ Major Labels, Spotify Sue Anna’s Archive Over Alleged Scraping Scheme — Multiple Domain Takedowns Follow Preliminary Injunction

    It turns out allegedly scraping Spotify’s entire library wasn’t a great idea. Now, the major labels and the DSP itself have hit Anna’s Archive, the alleged “notorious pirate website” behind the purported “theft of millions of music files,” with a lawsuit and an injunction.