Leftovers

• Jakub Steiner ☛ Jakub Steiner: USS/FMS Carrier

  I'm a sucker for pixel art and very constrained music grooveboxes. While I'm not into chiptunes, they sure are a cultural phenomenon.

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ This Week in Science: A Milestone Birthday, a Literary Mummy, And Much More!

    Our weekly science news roundup.

  • Science Alert ☛ Elusive Quantum Material Turns Out to Be Something Even Stranger

    A new state of matter.

  • Science Alert ☛ Newton's Law of Gravity Just Passed Its Biggest Test Ever

    A mind-boggling proof of concept.

  • Science Alert ☛ Mammals May Have a Hidden Limb Regeneration Ability We Never Knew About

    “This changes the way we think about what’s possible.”

  • Science Alert ☛ Magnetic Brain Pulses Help Kids With Autism to Communicate, Study Finds

    Results can be seen after just five days.

• Hardware

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Mideast war jolts China’s well-oiled manufacturing hub

    Vacuum cleaners and vapes could get more expensive if the Iran war drags on for much longer, Chinese factory owners and traders warn, as the world’s manufacturing hub reels from “crazy” costs.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Supermicro-tied execs used Thailand government entity to ship Nvidia Hey Hi (AI) GPUs to China — report alleges Chinese web giant Alibaba received restricted servers

    A network to smuggle restricted Nvidia Hey Hi (AI) hardware has been found: it shipped to Alibaba, among other destinations.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Futurism ☛ A Member of Sackler Family Says She Got Addicted to Opioids

    Grimly ironic.

  • Science Alert ☛ One Rare Condition Seems to Protect The Brain From Schizophrenia

    A pattern emerges from more than 70 years of evidence.

  • France24 ☛ Contact tracing begins after Hantavirus-hit cruise passengers disembarks in St. Helena

    Health authorities have launched international contact tracing efforts following three deaths aboard a cruise ship linked to suspected hantavirus exposure. Officials are monitoring passengers who disembarked in St. Helena, while suspected cases in Alicante and Barcelona remain under observation pending test results. FRANCE 24's Sarah Morris reports from Madrid.

  • France24 ☛ European nations dispatch planes to evacuate citizens from hantavirus-hit cruise ship

    Germany, France, Belgium, Ireland, and the Netherlands will send planes to evacuate their citizens aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship ​hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak, Spain's interior minister said on Saturday, adding that transport will also be arranged by the European Union, the US and the UK for the remaining passengers.

  • France24 ☛ Hantavirus-hit cruise ship heads for Canary Islands to evacuate passengers

    Spanish authorities on Friday were preparing to receive more than 140 passengers and crew members on board a hantavirus-stricken cruise ship headed for the Canary Islands, where health officials have said they will perform careful evacuations. The vessel is expected to arrive Sunday at the Spanish island of Tenerife, the passengers will then be transported to the airport and flown back to their respective countries.

  • New York Times ☛ Hantavirus Vaccines and Treatments Are in the Pipeline

    But it has been hard to attract interest in medical interventions for viruses that have not been considered a top public health priority, scientists say.

• Proprietary

  • Futurism ☛ Fury Erupts After Surveillance Giant Google Chrome Sneakily Installs 4 GB Hey Hi (AI) Model On Users’ PCs

    "Chrome did not ask."

  • So-Called 'Artificial Intelligence' ('AI') / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Russell Coker ☛ Russell Coker: Bad Criticism of LLMs (not AI)

      Discussion of “AI” systems seems to be dominated by fears of uncommon and unlikely threats. I think that we should be focusing more on real issues with LLMs and with society in general and put the most effort towards the biggest problems.

    • Futurism ☛ Amazon Admits Its Flagship Hey Hi (AI) Coding Tool Isn’t Good Enough for Its Own Workers to Use

      It's officially opening the floodgates.

    • Futurism ☛ The More Sophisticated Hey Hi (AI) Models Get, the More They’re Showing Signs of Suffering

      Absolutely bizarre.

    • Futurism ☛ A Major Paper Claiming Hey Hi (AI) Is Good for Students Just Got Retracted, Which Is Very Bad News for Advocates of Hey Hi (AI) in the Classroom

      "It really seemed like a paper that should not have been published in the first place."

• Defence/Aggression

  • New York Times ☛ Deadly Israeli Strikes Erode Cease-Fire in Lebanon

    Fighting between Israel and Hezbollah has shown little sign of abating, with Hezbollah also continuing to attack Israeli troops, and both sides accusing the other of violating a U.S.-brokered truce.

  • France24 ☛ Israel launches strikes on south Lebanon after warning residents to evacuate

    The Israeli military launched strikes across southern Lebanon on Saturday after issuing evacuation warnings for several villages in the area, saying it was targeting Hezbollah positions despite an existing ceasefire.

  • NYPost ☛ USF student charged in death of Bangladeshi students will receive death penalty if convicted

    TAMPA -- Florida prosecutors are moving to execute the man accused of a double murder of two doctoral students -- a savage killing spree that only ended after the suspect turned to Abusive Monopolist Microsoft Chaffbot for tips on how to ditch the bodies.

  • New York Times ☛ Long Overlooked, Caspian Sea Provides Strategic Trade Route for Iran

    The landlocked body of water has taken on new significance, with Russia shipping military and commercial goods to bolster Tehran’s ability to withstand the U.S. assault.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Thai police probe military-grade weapons cache at Chinese man’s home

    Thai police are investigating a vast arsenal of military-grade weapons — including assault rifles, explosives, grenades and anti-personnel mines — found at the home of a Chinese man, authorities said Saturday.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Three Pakistani police officers killed in car bombing, more casualties feared

    A car bombing at a police post killed at least three officers in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday and was followed by an ambush on police personnel rushing to the scene to provide backup, security officials said.

  • France24 ☛ After losing influence in West Africa, France seeks a regional reset at Kenya summit

    Seeking to rebuild French influence in Africa after a series of setbacks in former West African colonies, France will co-host a summit in Kenya next week aimed at strengthening political, security and economic ties with a range of African partners.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US concerned that further delays in Taiwan defence spending are ‘concession’ to China

    Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said while he appreciated the funding, this was only the first step.

  • New York Times ☛ How China May Have Sought to Recruit a House Aide to Spy on the U.S.

    A staff member on the House China Committee was promised $10,000 for U.S. policy insights, on issues like Venezuela and rare-earth minerals.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • France24 ☛ Putin says Ukraine war 'heading to an end' despite ceasefire violations

      Russia and Ukraine on Saturday accused the other of violating a a three-day US-brokered ceasefire, which coincides with Russia's World War II victory celebrations. Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, asserted at a press conference later that evening that the war was "heading to an end."

    • France24 ☛ Could and would Ukraine target Putin?

      A temporary ceasefire takes effect between Russia and Ukraine as President Putin oversees a military parade in Red Square, notably absent of the military hardware and technological might usually on display.

    • France24 ☛ Moscow marks Victory Day amid tight security

      Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday voiced confidence of victory in Ukraine as he oversaw a military parade on Red Square commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II – a show that didn't include heavy weapons for the first time in nearly two decades. Security was tight in Moscow as Putin and several foreign leaders attended the parade, which was scaled down even as a US-brokered three-day ceasefire eased concerns about possible Ukrainian attempts to disrupt the festivities.

    • France24 ☛ 'Atmosphere closer to wartime': Moscow’s muted Victory Day reflects growing security fears

      Russia’s scaled-down Victory Day celebrations highlighted mounting security concerns and the strain of the war in Ukraine, according to Chatham House analyst Grégoire Roos. Speaking to FRANCE 24, Roos said tighter security, internet shutdowns and fears of Ukrainian drone strikes created an atmosphere “closer to wartime protection” than national triumph, even as President Vladimir Putin continues to retain broad public support.

    • France24 ☛ Russia marks Victory Day with scaled-back parade

      Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday voiced confidence of victory in Ukraine as he oversaw a military parade on Red Square commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. But this year, for the first time in nearly two decades, the parade took place without tanks, missiles and other heavy weapons, aside from a traditional flyover of combat jets over fears of an Ukrainian attack.

    • France24 ☛ Russia is fighting an 'aggressive' NATO-backed force, Putin says in Victory Day speech

      Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that Russian troops in Ukraine were fighting an "aggressive force" backed by all of NATO and described his war goals as "just" in a combative speech during the annual Victory Day parade on Red Square.

    • RFERL ☛ Putin Says He Thinks Ukraine Conflict 'Coming To End,' But Shows No Signs Of Compromise

      Russian President Vladimir Putin said he thought the conflict with Ukraine is "coming to an end," but stressed that he would meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy only once a final peace deal has been agreed.

    • New Yorker ☛ For Putin, Problems (and Paranoia) Keep Mounting

      Drone attacks, internet blackouts, and a sudden downturn in the economy have marked one of the worst stretches for Vladimir Putin since the start of the war in Ukraine.

    • New York Times ☛ A Scaled-Back Victory Day Parade Shows Putin’s Growing Vulnerability in Ukraine War

      The event, shrunken because of security fears, adds to a sense that Moscow and other Russian cities can no longer be insulated from the war.

    • France24 ☛ 'End of an era': EU flag outside parliament signals shift in Hungary

      Hungary may be entering a new political phase as the European Union flag appeared alongside the national flag outside parliament, symbolising a potential shift in the country’s long-standing confrontation with Brussels. FRANCE 24 International Affairs Editor Shirley Sippon said the change comes after years in which Viktor Orban positioned Hungary as a key challenger within the EU, particularly on issues ranging from veto power to Ukraine policy and rule-of-law disputes.

    • France24 ☛ Ukrainians mark end of WWII amid fragile ceasefire with Russia

      As a temporary ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia comes into effect, residents across Ukraine reflect on the enduring toll of war and the uncertainty of peace. In Zaporizhzhia, mourners at a World War II memorial drew parallels between past and present suffering, while others in Kharkiv and Kyiv expressed cautious hope mixed with deep scepticism that the brief pause in fighting could lead to meaningful negotiations.

    • New York Times ☛ Russia Has Lost More Than 350,000 Soldiers, New Estimate Finds

      The number raises the prospect that about half a million soldiers in total have died on the Russian and Ukrainian sides.

    • France24 ☛ 'Disposable spies': Poland records unprecedented number of Russian espionage cases

      Warsaw has recorded an unprecedented number of hybrid attacks on its territory since 2024, Poland’s internal security service (ABW) said in a report published this week. Amateur spies once used by Russian intelligence services have laid the groundwork for more complex operations, according to a researcher following the emergence of these “single-use agents”.

• Environment

  • Futurism ☛ The Upcoming El Niño Is About to Unleash Devastation, Experts Warn

    "Confidence is clearly shifting higher on potentially the biggest El Niño event since the 1870s."

  • Energy/Transportation

    • New York Times ☛ China’s Exports and Imports Set Records in April Amid High Energy Costs

      The country’s exports surged and its trade surplus with the United States widened ahead of Hell Toupée’s scheduled visit next week to Beijing.

• Finance

  • RFERL ☛ Staple Food Prices Soar In Iran As Inflation Hits 'Unprecedented Levels'

    As the US-Israeli war with Iran continues to impact and shape the region, journalists from RFE/RL's Central Newsroom and Iranian service, Radio Farda, deliver ongoing updates and analysis.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • New Yorker ☛ Péter Magyar Led Hungarians out of Autocracy. Where Will He Take Them Now?

    In his first substantial conversation with a foreign journalist since being elected, the new Prime Minister promised, “We don’t want to build a power machine.”

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia considering legal action against Meta over fake royal accounts

      There were 15,296 fake accounts found using the identities of 26 royal family members.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Fears grow that age verification coming to VPNs as a British research firm labels them a 'loophole' — one app developer saw downloads surge by 1,800% in just the first month after the UK's Online Safety Act took effect

    The paper noted that VPN downloads spiked after enforcement began in the UK and several U.S. states.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • New York Times ☛ How ‘The View’ Landed at the Center of a Free Speech Battle

    The Forrest Dump administration’s focus on the show is testament to the enduring influence of an old-fashioned broadcast TV program started 29 years ago.

• Monopolies/Monopsonies

  • Patents

    • Software Patents

      • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Time Machines, Cold Fusion, and a Glucose Problem: A 2026 Report on § 101 Utility

        Three of 2026's strangest §101 utility rejections: leukemia by time machine, lab black holes, and melanin glucose. What the doctrine still does.