Links 16/05/2024: Orangutans as Political Props, VMware Calls Proprietary 'Free'
Contents
-
Leftovers
-
James G ☛ Late Night
I woke up this morning feeling particularly tired. I went to sleep at 1am, after spending the evening with many wonderful friends. I let myself sleep past my alarm a little bit. The moments where I can sleep in for 15 minutes are precious. Moments where I know the new day is here, but I can take a few more minutes to relax before getting up.
When I woke up, I reflected on the joy of feeling tired after being up late talking with people.
-
Science
-
Reason ☛ The Scandalous Science Behind Nuclear Regulation [Ed: Does this site care to disclose that the energy sector funds it?]
A flawed scientific model continues to hinder the nuclear power industry and shape policy, holding us all back.
-
Science Alert ☛ Study: Experiments That Could Show Gravity's 'Quantumness' Are Achievable
The weakest force, the biggest mystery.
-
Science Alert ☛ Ancient Humans Crafted Deadly Wooden Weapons 300,000 Years Ago, Study Finds
"A revelation to us."
-
Science Alert ☛ New Gel Could Neutralize Alcohol's Effects Before a Hangover Hits
A golden breakthrough.
-
MIT Technology Review ☛ A wave of retractions is shaking physics
Recent highly publicized scandals have gotten the physics community worried about its reputation—and its future. Over the last five years, several claims of major breakthroughs in quantum computing and superconducting research, published in prestigious journals, have disintegrated as other researchers found they could not reproduce the blockbuster results.
-
-
Education
-
Mexico News Daily ☛ Despite new 10% pay hike for teachers in Mexico, strikes to begin in 4 states
Teachers across Mexico will receive a 10% pay raise, President López Obrador announced Wednesday in honor of Teachers' Day.
-
Reason ☛ Congress is Preparing to Restore Quotas in College Admissions
And everywhere else -- as a very quiet part of the bipartisan "privacy" bill
-
-
Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
-
The Straits Times ☛ Peru's president to visit China in June, possible beef exports on agenda, minister says
LIMA - Peru's President Dina Boluarte will travel to China in June to meet with her counterpart Pooh-tin Jinping, her agriculture minister announced on Wednesday, adding that beef exports to the Asian giant are among the topics likely to be on the bilateral agenda.
-
Science Alert ☛ Plant-Based Diets Associated With Reduced Risk of Major Diseases, Large Study Finds
Evidence is mounting.
-
Science Alert ☛ Beyond The Gut? Microbes Found in Healthy Brains, Raising Questions
Does your brain have a microbiome?
-
JURIST ☛ Criminalization of abortion in Morocco violates rights of women and girls: Amnesty International
Morocco’s criminalization of abortion and its failure to ensure access to sexual and reproductive health services is violating women’s and girls’ human rights, according to a report published Tuesday by Amnesty International.
-
JURIST ☛ South Africa opposition party intends to take bill providing universal health coverage to Constitutional Court
South Africa’s main opposition party announced it would go all the way to the Constitutional Court to fight the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill, aimed at providing universal health coverage, on Tuesday.
-
-
Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)
-
Microsoft Leadership Reportedly Want No 'Red Line' Stopping Xbox Games Coming to PS5 [Ed: Xbox has lost, is lost, and is losing a lot of money]
A new report suggests that Microsoft's big boss, Satya Nadella, wants to bring more Xbox games to PlayStation as soon as possible. With the instant success Sea of Thieves found on Sony's platform, considered a "key test," it seems like the writing is on the wall at this point; Microsoft leadership reportedly wants there to be no "red line," nothing at all stopping the company's most valuable IP, like Halo and Gears of Wars, from coming to competing platforms.
-
Neowin ☛ VMware Workstation Pro goes free, official guides on how to install and switch are out
VMware Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro are now free for personal use. Alongside that announcement, a senior executive has also published a couple of guides on how to get them or switch.
-
Neowin ☛ Besides going free, VMware Workstation Pro finally stops hogging your CPU due to NAT
The latest VMware Workstation Pro is free as it doesn't require a license for personal use. Aside from that, the new release also finally fixes a high CPU usage issue related to the NAT device.
-
OMG Ubuntu ☛ VMware Workstation Pro Now Free to Use on GNU/Linux & Windows [Ed: OMG proprietary garbage from prolific GPL violator]
VMware has made its pro virtual machine software free to use on Windows, macOS, and GNU/Linux — only for personal use though. This changes means you can download VMware Workstation Pro 17 and use without a license key or ongoing subscription cost for backdoored Windows and Linux, while those on macOS can download, install, and use VMware Fusion Pro 13 for free instead.
-
-
Security
-
Integrity/Availability/Authenticity
-
WhichUK ☛ 3 new ways scammers target you on Bing and Google
Which? explores how scammers passed advertiser identity checks to impersonate British Airways and Tesco
-
-
Privacy/Surveillance
-
Computing UK ☛ 'TunnelVision' bug potentially allows snooping on all VPNs
Operating system features can be manipulated to divert traffic away from encrypted VPN tunnel
-
-
-
Defence/Aggression
-
Site36 ☛ First combat drone comes to Germany: The Israeli “Heron TP” may also fly in civilian airspace
The German Air Force has put its drone airfield in Jagel into operation. A key partner is the German defence division of Airbus. Domestic missions are also possible.
-
New York Times ☛ Swiss Court Convicts Ousman Sonko, Ex-Gambian Minister, of Crimes Against Humanity
Ousman Sonko, who served under an autocratic president now in exile, was found guilty of multiple counts of intentional homicide, torture and false imprisonment against citizens of the West African country.
-
The Straits Times ☛ Philippine boat convoy won’t proceed to China-held reef: Organisers
China had warned the convoy against any attempt to infringe on Beijing’s “indisputable sovereignty” over Scarborough Shoal.
-
New York Times ☛ Thursday Briefing: Slovakia’s Leader Was Shot
Also, mixed reviews for King Charles’s portrait.
-
teleSUR ☛ Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico Injured in Attack
"He has consistently opposed the proxy war in Ukraine, called for negotiations, and an end to the prolonging of the conflict," Going Underground TV recalled.
-
New York Times ☛ Who Is Robert Fico, the Prime Minister of Slovakia?
Much of the discussion of Mr. Fico’s leadership has focused on his ties to President Vladimir Putin of Russia and Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary.
-
New York Times ☛ Attempted Assassination of Slovakia’s Robert Fico Puts Europe on Edge
Prime Minister Robert Fico of Slovakia, an ally of Vladimir V. Putin and Viktor Orban, was shot multiple times on Wednesday, stoking fears that Europe’s polarized politics were tipping into violence.
-
RFA ☛ Filipino civilian convoy departs for Scarborough Shoal, demands ‘China leave’
Beijing warns Manila against violating its 'sovereignty' over the disputed South China Sea territory.
-
New York Times ☛ In Darfur, Genocide May Be Happening Again
While the world’s attention is focused on Ukraine and Gaza, Arab forces in Sudan seem to be trying to eliminate non-Arab tribes.
-
Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
-
New York Times ☛ Rafael Grossi of the IAEA Acts as the West’s Mediator With Putin and Iran
Rafael Grossi took over the International Atomic Energy Agency five years ago at what now seems like a far less fraught moment. With atomic fears everywhere, the inspector is edging toward mediator.
-
The Straits Times ☛ Putin arrives in China to deepen strategic partnership with Xi
Mr Putin praised Mr Pooh-tin for helping to build a "strategic partnership" with Russia based on national interests and deep mutual trust.
-
teleSUR ☛ BRICS Enters a New Era of Greater BRICS Cooperation: Putin
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS are pillars of the emerging multipolar world order, he said.
-
New York Times ☛ What to Know About the Summit Between Putin and Pooh-tin in China
China’s backing will be crucial to President Vladimir V. Putin as he intensifies his offensive in Ukraine. But his host, Pooh-tin Jinping, has other competing priorities.
-
New York Times ☛ Ukraine Fights to Hold Off Fierce Russian Assaults in Northeast
While Ukrainian officials and analysts said that a Russian advance across the border appeared to be slowing, President Volodymyr Zelensky canceled his participation in international events.
-
Atlantic Council ☛ Georgia’s government uses Kremlin playbook to consolidate grip on power
The Georgian government's efforts to adopt a Kremlin-style law imposing restrictions on civil society has sparked huge protests and led to questions over the country's future geopolitical direction, writes Lucy Minicozzi-Wheeland.
-
France24 ☛ Buffer or ruse?: Russia's new offensive in northeast Ukraine 'not an open road to Kharkiv'
Over the past three days, Russia has seized control of several localities north of Kharkiv in a fierce new offensive that could bring Moscow to the gates of Ukraine’s second-largest city. FRANCE 24 spoke to several military analysts who believe that it is still too early to speak of a turning point in Russia’s war on Ukraine.
-
France24 ☛ Zelensky cancels overseas visits as Ukraine withdraws from parts of Kharkiv region
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has postponed all upcoming international trips, his press secretary said on Wednesday, as Ukrainian troops withdraw from parts of the Kharkiv region ahead of an unrelenting Russian ground assault.
-
RFA ☛ China’s support for Russia is ‘tragic,’ says Mike Pompeo
The former secretary of state sat down with RFA to discuss Hong Kong, Taiwan and the war in Ukraine.
-
RFERL ☛ Putin Arrives In China In Show Of Unity Between Authoritarian Allies
Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Beijing for a two-day state visit to China in a show of unity between the authoritarian allies.
-
RFERL ☛ More Than 50 Countries Sign Up For Ukraine Peace Conference In June
More than 50 countries have confirmed their participation in a peace conference in Switzerland in June that is aimed at finding ways to achieve lasting peace in Ukraine.
-
RFERL ☛ Blinken Announces Upcoming $2 Billion Tranche Of Military Aid For Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has postponed all his upcoming foreign trips, a sign of the difficulties Ukrainian forces face as they struggle to stave off a Russian advance in the northeastern Kharkiv region.
-
RFERL ☛ Two Airports Temporarily Closed In Russia's Tatarstan After Drone Attack
Authorities in the Russian region of Tatarstan on May 15 shut down two major airports -- one in the region's capital, Kazan, and another in the city of Nizhnekamsk -- for several hours "for security reasons" following a drone attack.
-
RFERL ☛ Four Russian Journalists Recognized As Political Prisoners
The Memorial human rights center on May 15 recognized four Russian journalists arrested in recent months on charges of taking part in an extremist group's activities as political prisoners.
-
teleSUR ☛ Finland to Use Reservists to Reinforce Its Border With Russia
Currently, the Border Guard has over 10,000 personnel, with around 2,500 active agents.
-
Latvia ☛ International people-smuggling operation through Latvia disrupted
The Finnish Border Guard said on May 14 it had disrupted a large-scale people smuggling operation in which Finland was being used as a transit country for migrants from Belarus to Germany. More than 130 people were smuggled to Germany in this way last year.
-
New York Times ☛ Putin Is Selling Victory, and Many Russians Are Buying It
Vladimir Putin’s message to his country appears to be taking hold: that Russia is fighting against the whole Western world — and winning.
-
France24 ☛ Putin arrives in China on state visit to deepen strategic partnership with Xi
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing early on Thursday for talks with Pooh-tin Jinping that the Kremlin hopes will deepen a strategic partnership between the two most powerful geopolitical rivals of the United States.
-
-
-
Environment
-
Energy/Transportation
-
The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia’s plan to gift orangutans to countries buying palm oil panned by green groups
Orangutans should be left in situ and the deforestation issue addressed further, they say.
-
Atlantic Council ☛ Biden’s China tariffs are big and preemptive
The US president just announced sweeping tariff increases across a range of strategic industries, including a 100 percent tariff on electric vehicles.
> -
RFERL ☛ Dutch Court Hands Russian Tornado Cash Developer Lengthy Prison Sentence
Russian national Aleksei Pertsev, a co-developer of the Tornado Cash cryptocurrency tumbler, has received a sentence of five years and four months in prison in the Netherlands for laundering $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency from 2019 to 2022.
-
-
-
Finance
-
Mexico News Daily ☛ Could Mexican exports be affected by new US tariffs on China? ‘Stay tuned’ says USTR
The Biden administration toughened up tariffs on Chinese imports on Tuesday, which could bring both future complications and benefits for Mexico.
-
-
AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
-
Atlantic Council ☛ China Pathfinder: Q1 2024 update
In the first quarter of 2024, Beijing pushed forward with a flurry of efforts to support a faltering stock market, ramp up exports to make up for domestic demand, and double-down on high-tech sectors with subsidies and other innovation funding.
-
RFA ☛ Pacific gets ‘record’ share of Australia’s static foreign aid budget
Competition with China in the Pacific is shaping how Australia allocates development assistance.
-
RFA ☛ US to send delegation to Taiwan’s presidential inauguration
The decision follows a ‘long standing precedent,’ the White House said.
-
-
Censorship/Free Speech
-
MIT Technology Review ☛ Hong Kong is safe from China’s Great Firewall—for now
This story first appeared in China Report, MIT Technology Review’s newsletter about technology in China. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Tuesday. We finally know the result of a legal case I’ve been tracking in Hong Kong for almost a year.
-
RFA ☛ YouTube blocks banned Hong Kong protest anthem 'Glory to Hong Kong'
Dozens of videos featuring the song, penned during the 2019 protests, are now unavailable to users in the city.
-
-
Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
-
Press Gazette ☛ Jeff Zucker: ‘It’s going to be easier to invest in journalism outside UK’
Zucker defends involvement of UAE money in attempted Telegraph deal.
-
Press Gazette ☛ RAJARs Q1 2024: Hit to BillBC local radio continues as LBC’s Nick Ferrari is breakfast winner
Listening hours to BillBC local radio in England down by 10% for second quarter in a row.
-
Press Gazette ☛ New Yorker defies contempt risk to publish Lucy Letby story in UK print edition
The case may set up a showdown between England's justice system and the magazine.
-
-
Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
-
TechTarget ☛ How to use IPv6 in enterprise networks
The transition to IPv6 is a learning curve. Here's what to understand about IPv6, including benefits, troubleshooting techniques and best practices for secure integration.
-
AccessNow ☛ Unabashed and unabated: India leads the world shutdown count for sixth year
For the sixth year in a row, India led the world in internet shutdowns, disrupting the internet at least 116 times.
-
AccessNow ☛ Violence & internet shutdowns in 2023: the worst year on record
Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition’s new report, Shrinking democracy, growing violence: Internet shutdowns in 2023, exposes the impact of these attacks on human rights.
-
AccessNow ☛ #KeepItOn: why we’re updating our internet shutdown tracking methodology
The #KeepItOn coalition has made some important changes to its STOP methodology for tracking internet shutdowns.
-
AccessNow ☛ Myanmar’s iron curtain: internet shutdowns and repression in 2023
Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition documented 37 internet shutdowns in Myanmar in 2023.
-
-
Trademarks
-
TTAB Blog ☛ TTAB Orders Cancellation of "THE PLIMSOULS" Registration on Ownership and Likelihood of Confusion Grounds, Rejects Abandonment Claim
In another of those battles between a rock band and one of its members, the Board again sided with the band, granting a petition for cancellation of a registration for THE PLIMSOULS for "entertainment in the nature of live performances by a musical band." The Board ruled that the band was entitled to challenge the registration, had not abandoned the mark, and had proved its claim of ownership of the mark and likelihood of confusion based on its prior use of the same mark for the same services. The Plimsouls v. Edward David Munoz, Cancellation No. 92076883 (May 8, 2024) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Michael B. Adlin).
-
Monopolies/Monopsonies
-