Leftovers

• Hackaday ☛ The Atomic Gardener Of Eastbourne

  Pity the video team at a large hacker camp, because they have a huge pile of interesting talks in the can but only the limited resources of volunteers to put them online. Thus we often see talks appearing from past camps, and such it is with one from Electromagnetic Field 2022. It’s from [Sarah Angliss], and as its subject it takes the extraordinary work of [Muriel Howorth], a mid-20th-century British proponent of irradiated seeds as a means to solve world hunger.

• Hackaday ☛ Spin Your Own Passive Cooling Fibres

  When the temperature climbs, it’s an eternal problem: how to stay cool. An exciting field of materials science lies in radiative cooling materials, things which reflect so much incoming heat that they can cool down from their own radiation rather than heating up in the sun. It’s something [NightHawkInLight] has been working on over a series, and he’s dropped a very long video we’ve placed below. It’s ostensibly about spinning radiative cooling fibers, but in fact provides a huge quantity of background as well as a bonus explanation of cotton candy machines.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • CS Monitor ☛ Why a Georgia hospital closes – and a red state rethinks Medicaid

    A growing number of Southern conservatives are revisiting the idea that access to affordable health care can be vital to community well-being.

  • JURIST ☛ UK High Court rules ban on puberty blockers is lawful

    A UK High Court ruled Monday that a ban on puberty blockers issued in May 2024 in the UK was lawful.

  • Latvia ☛ Latvian emergency team holds large-scale exercises

    Last weekend, the 15th-anniversary event of the State Emergency Medical Service (NMPD) "NMPD Power" took place in Līgatne, during which a large-scale exercise was held to train and strengthen the readiness of the team for various emergencies and events, the service said in a press release on July 31.

  • Excess Deaths Increasing Further in the United Kingdom This Summer

    IN THE latest (released minutes ago) figures from ONS regarding “deaths registered weekly in England and Wales” one can see that in week 27, the latest on record, 10,536 people died in England and Wales.

• Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  • FUDZilla ☛ Bungie announces mass layoffs

    Destiny developer Bungie has announced it is letting go of 220 employees, or 17 per cent of its workforce.

    CEO Pete Parsons (pictured) attributed the layoffs to "financial challenges," a move that has sparked controversy, especially after it was revealed he may have spent over $2.4 million on classic cars following Sony's acquisition of the company and continued these purchases even after previous layoffs.

  • 18,000 Employees Likely To Get Fired Soon! US-Based Tech Giant Intel Plans To Cut $20 Billion Expenses In 2024

    A mass layoff of thousands of employees at American multinational corporation and technology company, Intel looks inevitable. Intel's CEO Pat Gelsinger says the mass reduction in headcount is painful but the company is looking at more tough days ahead. To be precise, about 15,000 to 18,000 job cuts are likely to take place at Intel. The announcement comes after Intel announced disappointing second-quarter earnings for 2024, and an intense cost reduction plan to increase efficiency and market competitiveness.

  • Investopedia ☛ Intel Stock Plunges on Wider-Than-Expected Loss, Layoffs To Cut Costs

    Intel (INTC) shares plunged in extended trading Thursday after the company posted a wider-than-expected loss and said it would lay off 15% of its workforce as part of a $10 billion cost-savings plan.

    The chipmaker missed expectations on its top and bottom lines, swinging to a second-quarter loss of $1.6 billion from a profit of $1.5 billion a year earlier. Revenue of $12.8 billion was down 1% year-over-year.

    “Second-quarter results were impacted by gross margin headwinds from the accelerated ramp of our AI PC product, higher than typical charges related to non-core businesses and the impact from unused capacity,” CFO David Zinsner said.

  • Newsmax ☛ Intel Set to Fall Most in 24 Years, Futures Down 22%

    Intel was set to erase nearly $25 billion in market value Friday in what would be its worst selloff since 2000 after it suspended its dividend and slashed its workforce to fund a costly turnaround for its chip-making business.

    Shares of the company were down about 22% in premarket trading after Intel late on Thursday forecast quarterly revenue below estimates and said it was cutting 15% of its workforce, raising worries about its ability to catch up to Taiwan's TSMC and other chipmakers it has fallen behind in recent years.

    The Santa Clara company was once the world's leading chipmaker, with the "Intel Inside" logo a valuable marketing feature on personal computers in the 1980s and 90s.

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • Security Week ☛ DigiCert Revoking Many Certificates Due to Verification Issue

      DigiCert is immediately revoking many certificates due to a domain validation issue, which could cause disruption to sites, apps and services.

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • JURIST ☛ Meta agrees to $1.4B settlement with Texas for allegedly violating biometric privacy laws

      Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced on Tuesday a $1.4 billion settlement with Meta Platforms Inc. over the company’s unauthorized collection and use of biometric data from millions of Texans.

    • RFA ☛ China mulls digital ID cards, sparking fears of tighter monitoring

      Free speech activists call instead for an end to real-name registration for online platforms.

• Defence/Aggression

  • Defence Web ☛ White River military camp training unlawful – PSiRA

    In the wake of the discovery of the illegal military training camp in White River, Mpumalanga, the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSiRA), has said the training conducted there was unlawful as it went beyond the scope of security industry training.

  • Defence Web ☛ Two dead in SA Army College shooting

    The calm of the senior learning institution of the SA Army – Army College – was shattered by gunshots leaving two people – one of them an officer on course – dead.

  • The Strategist ☛ How the Brahmaputra River could shape India–China security competition

    The Tibetan Plateau is the largest source of freshwater in the Indo-Pacific region, supporting a staggering 1.35 billion people, a fifth of the world’s population.

  • New York Times ☛ Pentagon Data Shows High Suicide Rates Among Troops Exposed to Blasts

    A military report on suicide rates broken down by occupation finds the highest rates among categories of troops that often work and train around weapons blasts.

  • Defence Web ☛ POPCRU: 300 SAPS Suicides Since 2017

    The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) has noted an “unfortunate incident” involving members of the SA Police Service that left two dead in a murder-suicide, highlighting the 300 police officers lost to suicide over the last seven years.

  • JURIST ☛ UN Afghanistan mission report details arbitrary detentions, torture and killings of former government officials

    The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) released a report regarding human rights in the country on Tuesday, providing reports of arbitrary arrest, torture, and killings. UNAMA’s latest report is based on monitoring undertaken by its Human Rights Service and covers the period from April to June 2024.

  • TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ UN report says Palestinians detained by Israeli authorities since Oct. 7 faced torture, mistreatment

    Findings could be used by prosecutors who are looking into crimes committed in connection with the Oct. 7 attacks.

  • France24 ☛ Hezbollah chief Nasrallah warns Israel 'crossed' red lines by killing leaders

    Lebanese Hezbollah's head Hassan Nasrallah vowed on Thursday to respond to Israel's killing of the group's top military commander, Fuad Shukr, saying its decades-old foe had "crossed red lines". Nasrallah spoke after the Israeli military said it had confirmation that Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif was killed in an air strike in July in Gaza's southern area of Khan Younis. Follow FRANCE 24's live blog to see how the day's events unfolded.

  • France24 ☛ Iranian leaders call for revenge during Tehran funeral for Hamas leader Haniyeh

    Iranian leaders called for revenge on Thursday during a funeral ceremony following the assassination of Hamas's political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday. The killing came just hours after Israel killed a top Hezbollah commander, Fuad Shukr, in a strike in the south of Lebanon's capital Beirut, raising fears of a wider regional conflict as the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza grinds on.

  • France24 ☛ Hezbollah confirms killing of top commander in Israeli strike on Beirut

    Lebanese armed group Hezbollah on Wednesday confirmed the assassination of its top commander Fuad Shukr in an Israeli strike in southern Beirut. The confirmation came the day after Israel said it targeted Shukr in Tuesday's strike on the Lebanese capital and hours after Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran. Read our liveblog to see how all the day's events unfolded.

  • RFERL ☛ Iranian Revolutionary Guard Killed In Israeli Strike That Targeted Top Hizballah Commander

    Milad Bidi, a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) was killed in an Israeli air strike on July 30 that targeted top Hizballah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut, Lebanon.

  • RFERL ☛ Jailed Iranian Activist Goes On Hunger Strike To Protest New Charges

    Iranian political prisoner Shakila Monfared has started a hunger strike in protest against two new charges, her brother Ashkan Monfared said on July 31.

  • New York Times ☛ Hezbollah Leader Threatens Retaliation Against Israel After Airstrike Near Beirut

    Nasrallah delivered a televised address at the funeral of a Hezbollah commander who was killed in an Israeli strike in suburban Beirut.

  • New York Times ☛ Muhammad Deif, a Top Hamas Commander, Is Dead, Israel Says

    Mr. Deif has survived several previous Israeli assassination attempts and has been the No. 2 Hamas leader in Gaza. Israel said it killed him in a strike last month in southern Gaza.

  • Defence Web ☛ Libyan arrests at White River training camp smack of “government ignorance”

    Viewed objectively, the hue and cry in connection with the arrest of 95 Libyans, apparently in South Africa under false pretences and undergoing what is termed “military training” at a Mpumalanga security training facility, has to be laid at government’s door.

  • CS Monitor ☛ China, North Korea draw US attention even as Mideast conflict escalates

    Visits to key allies in the region by top U.S. officials are aimed at bolstering relationships in Asia and building a bulwark against Chinese and Russian influence.

  • The Straits Times ☛ North Korea wants to restart nuclear talks if Trump wins, says ex-diplomat

    North Korea wants to reopen nuclear talks with the United States if Donald Trump is re-elected as president and is working to devise a new negotiating strategy, a senior North Korean diplomat who recently defected to South Korea told Reuters.

  • RFA ☛ North Korea appoints new ambassadors to Vietnam, Singapore

    The post for Vietnam had remained vacant since 2019.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ Putin welcomes returned Russian prisoners at airport with military honor guard and promises them state awards — Meduza

    • France24 ☛ Mali rebels claim to have killed at least 130 soldiers, Russians in July clashes

      Mali's Tuareg rebels announced on Thursday that they had killed at least 131 Malian soldiers and Russian Wagner mercenaries during intense clashes in late July. Despite the heavy losses, Russia reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Malian junta, emphasising ongoing military and socioeconomic cooperation.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Europe can do more to help Ukraine counter Russia’s energy attacks

      Russia has destroyed more than half of Ukraine's civilian energy infrastructure with a targeted bombed campaign, leaving Kyiv in desperate need of European support ahead of the coming winter season, writes Aura Sabadus.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Ukraine’s new F-16 jets won’t defeat Russia but will enhance air defenses

      Ukraine's fledgling fleet of F-16 jets will not win the war but should strengthen the country's air defenses and help protect the civilian population from Russian bombardment, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

    • France24 ☛ Ukraine receives first batch of US-built F-16 fighter jets, officials say

      The first batch of long-awaited F-16 jets has arrived in Ukraine, Lithuania's Foreign Minister Gabrielus Landsbergis and a US official said on Thursday. Ukraine wanted the weapons because of their destructive power and global availability, and has been frustrated by the lengthy process to procure the US-designed aircraft and train its pilots to fly them.

    • LRT ☛ Is Russia targeting Lithuanian volunteers in Ukraine?

      Ričardas Grigas opened the door to a hospital ward where Ričardas Savickas, only one leg visible from under the covers, was recovering from an attack that nearly claimed their lives.

    • RFERL ☛ Shelling, Drones Kill More Civilians As Kyiv Pleads For OK To Strike Deeper Into Russia

      Russian shelling and drone strikes have killed more Ukrainian civilians in several frontline regions, officials reported on August 1, as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy again appealed to Kyiv's allies to allow his forces to use Western weapons systems to strike military targets deeper inside Russia.

    • Latvia ☛ Rinkēvičs: Hungary's Schengen membership could be limited if current policies continue

      Hungary's permission to allow Russian and Belarusian citizens to enter the country freely poses significant risks that could lead to restrictions on Schengen membership, President of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs said in an interview on Latvian Television's Morning Panorama August 1.

    • RFA ☛ Russia condemns US revamp of military forces in Japan

      Moscow says it is ‘coordinating’ with Beijing and Pyongyang on the matter.

    • RFERL ☛ Moldova Expels Russian Diplomat Amid Spying Investigation

      Moldova's Foreign Ministry has declared an employee of the Russian Embassy to Chisinau persona non grata and gave him 48 hours to leave the country.

    • New York Times ☛ Who Was Freed in the Prisoner Swap Between Russia and the West?

      Here’s a list of the 24 prisoners who were exchanged on Thursday and their backgrounds.

    • Security Week ☛ Convicted Cybercriminals Included in Russian Prisoner Swap

      Two Russians serving time for insider trading, computer hacking and credit card theft were released in a prisoner swap deal with Moscow.

    • New York Times ☛ Live Updates: Journalists and Dissidents Freed in Prisoner Exchange With Russia

      Soon, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are expected to welcome home the Americans, including Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter. About two dozen other people were freed as part of a deal whose scope has little precedent in the post-Soviet era.

    • New York Times ☛ Evan Gershkovich Was Caught in Oppression His Parents Had Fled

      Evan Gershkovich was raised in New Jersey by parents who left the Soviet Union to escape antisemitism and a lack of opportunity.

    • New York Times ☛ Who Are the Most Prominent People Released in the Russia Prisoner Swap?

      The prisoners released on Thursday include a Wall Street Journal reporter, an editor working for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and a former U.S. Marine who had served in Iraq.

    • New York Times ☛ Evan Gershkovich and 23 Others Freed From Russian Prisons in Major Swap

      The Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was among 24 people released in a seven-nation, painstakingly negotiated deal that President Biden hailed as a triumph of diplomacy.

    • Krebs On Security ☛ U.S. Trades Cybercriminals to Russia in Prisoner Swap

      Twenty-four prisoners were freed today in an international prisoner swap between Russia and Western countries. Among the eight Russians repatriated were five convicted cybercriminals. In return, Russia has reportedly released 16 prisoners, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and ex-U.S. Marine Paul Whelan.

    • Press Gazette ☛ WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich is free in Russia prisoner exchange

      Journalist Alsu Kurmasheva also released.

    • NYPost ☛ Brittney Griner ‘head over heels happy’ over American returns of Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan

      The two-time Olympic gold medalist went through her own high-profile prisoner exchange with Russia in 2022.

    • CS Monitor ☛ Prisoner swap with Russia frees Americans – and raises hopes for future diplomacy

      The United States and its allies negotiated the freedom of Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and others – and showed that diplomacy with the Kremlin can work.

    • CS Monitor ☛ WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich freed in largest post-Soviet prisoner swap between US and Russia

      The United States and Russia have come to a deal completing the biggest prisoner swap in post-Soviet history on Aug. 1. Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested over a year ago, is among those in the swap.

    • New York Times ☛ Behind the Deal: Spies, a Killer, Secret Messages and Unseen Diplomacy

      The negotiations that led to the prisoner swap and the freeing of Americans wrongfully held in Russia required patience and creativity, but gave both sides what they wanted most.

    • New York Times ☛ Russia Freed Evan Gershkovich in a Major Prisoner Swap

      Also, a Hamas leader was killed by a bomb planted months ago. Here’s the latest at the end of Thursday.

    • New York Times ☛ With Russia Prisoner Swap, Biden Scores a Win Near the End of His Term

      The prisoner exchange offered a measure of validation for President Biden soon after he abandoned his bid for re-election.

    • New York Times ☛ How The Wall Street Journal Covered Evan Gershkovich’s Imprisonment in Russia

      The Journal staged several events in his honor and set up a part of its website to call attention to the plight of the journalist during his lengthy detention in Russia.

    • NYPost ☛ Top Republicans fear ‘costs of hostage diplomacy’ will increase after major prisoner swap with Russia

      “Without serious action to deter further hostage-taking by Russia, Iran, and other states hostile to the United States, the costs of hostage diplomacy will continue to rise,” the top House and Senate Republicans argued.

    • Reason ☛ Wall Street Journal Reporter Evan Gershkovich Released From Russian Captivity

      Gershkovich was released Thursday in an elaborate prisoner swap involving two dozen prisoners from at least six countries.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Welcome home, Evan

      We at the Atlantic Council are overjoyed and relieved that Evan has been released after 491 days of wrongful imprisonment in Russia, writes Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Statement from Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe on release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich

      "We at the Atlantic Council are overjoyed and relieved that Evan has been released after 491 days of wrongful imprisonment in Russia," Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe said.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Experts react: What to know about the release of Evan Gershkovich and others held by Russia

      A prisoner swap has freed American journalists Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva, former US Marine Paul Whelan, and Russian political dissidents Vladimir Kara-Murza and llya Yashin, among others.

    • Scoop News Group ☛ Jailed cybercriminals returned to Russia in historic prisoner swap

      The U.S. government has released at least two Russian nationals behind some of the most notorious cybercrimes of the past decade. 

• Environment

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Hackaday ☛ A New Era For US Passenger Rail?

      Here in the United States, we’re lagging behind the rest of the world when it comes to shiny new passenger rail, despite being leaders in previous centuries. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has just released a story map of how the US could close the gap (a little).

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Marcy Wheeler ☛ How to Fact Check Trump’s Lies about His Document Case

    Donald Trump is lying about how and why his classified documents case got dismissed. Here's what you need to fact check him.

  • FAIR ☛ When Does Concern About Presidential Fitness Become Media Ableism?

    The Economist published a cover story on July 6 with the stark image of a walker, a mobility device typically used by disabled people, with the United States presidential seal on it. “No Way to Run a Country,” the headline stated. Disabled people responded angrily on social media at the implication that mobility aids are disqualifying for office, mentioning former President Franklin Roosevelt, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Sen. Tammy Duckworth, all wheelchair users.

  • FAIR ☛ How Sinclair Sneaks Right-Wing Spin Into Millions of Households

    With the presidential contest in full swing, the Sinclair Broadcast Group appears to be ramping up its right-wing propaganda again.

  • Federal News Network ☛ Why the Washington Monument is more than a column of stone

    The U.S. seems mighty imperfect these days, but would you trade it for the government in Russia, or Venezuela or China?

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong should not let its guard down because national security risks still exist, security chief says

    People should stay alert as risks to national security remained despite relevant laws to safeguard the city, Hong Kong’s security chief Chris Tang has said. Speaking on Tuesday, Tang said Hong Kong had completed its constitutional responsibility of passing the city’s homegrown national security in March, as stated in Article 23 of the Basic Law.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Tiananmen vigil activists to take appeal against conviction over refusing nat. sec. data request to Hong Kong’s top court

    Three Tiananmen vigil activists convicted over refusing to comply with a national security data demand have been granted permission to take their appeal to the city’s top court.

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • The Straits Times ☛ Kim Jong Un wades into North Korean floods in hands-on propaganda drive

      The city of Sinuiju and the nearby county of Uiju were hit by torrential rains and floods in the last week of July.

    • Cloudbooklet ☛ Google Updates Search Algorithm to Remove Explicit Deepfakes from Search Result

      Discover the impact of Google's search algorithm update to Remove Explicit Deepfakes and what it means for internet safety.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • New York Times ☛ MrBeast Acknowledges ‘Inappropriate Language’ in Earlier Videos

    A representative for the popular YouTuber said that he was “trying to be funny” and made “bad jokes” in older videos of him that have resurfaced.

  • BIA Net ☛ Turkey’s media regulator penalizes streaming platforms over 'immoral' movies

    Netflix has been fined due to the comedy film ‘Sausage Party’ and MUBI and BluTV have been fined due to ‘Climax.’ The platforms have been ordered to remove these movies.

  • JURIST ☛ US Senate passes bill aimed at protecting minors’ safety and privacy online [Ed: No, just censorship online]

    The United States Senate on Tuesday passed the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act (KOSA), a bill that aims to protect children from harmful content online and hold internet companies accountable for exposing minors to content that can harm their mental health.

  • NYPost ☛ The 1975 sued over frontman Matty Healy’s onstage kiss with male bandmate at Malaysia concert

    Pop rock band The 1975 has been sued over a Malaysia concert where frontman Matty Healy kissed a male bandmate onstage — an act punishable by up to 20 years behind bars in the staunchly homophobic southeast Asian country.

  • Security Week ☛ Senate Passes Bill to Protect Kids Online and Make Tech Companies Accountable for Harmful Content

    The US Senate has passed a bill to protect kids online and make tech companies accountable for harmful content.

• Digital Restrictions (DRM)

  • Subscribe, Forever

    Logitech’s hinting at a mouse with a subscription suggests hardware companies want to become addicted to subscription revenue, too.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Unicorn Media ☛ Banning Noncompete Agreements Hearing: Big Business Criticized Over Unfair Labor Practices

  If allowed to go into effect, the FTC's rule banning non-compete "agreements" are expected to increase worker earnings by $488 billion over the next decade.

• Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ NO FAKES Act: Unpacking the New Bipartisan Bill on Digital Replicas

  This week, Senators Blackburn, Coons, Klobuchar, and Tillis introduced the bipartisan “NO FAKES” Act in Congress, a bill that has been under discussion for months and is intended to provide centerpiece legislation addressing the problem of digital replicas.  The recording industry (RIAA) and the actors’ union (SAGAFTRA) have been the leading proponents of such a law.  Senate Judiciary staff led a process with those groups–and with the Motion Picture Association (MPA)–that went through a long series of drafts.  Hey Hi (AI) companies were also part of the drafting process.

• Patents

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Presumption of Injunction: How the RESTORE Act Aims to Re-Empower Patent Holders [Ed: No, this is the litigation profiteers bribing politicians to make more lawsuits (business)]

    For the vast majority of American history, a judgment of patent monopoly infringement (by a court sitting in equity) led almost directly to injunctive relief barring ongoing infringement.  This construct was flipped by the Supreme Court’s 2006 decision in eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C., 547 U.S. 388 (2006), a case which served as the first major step of weakening patentee rights over the past two decades.  Now, a new bipartisan bill aims to restore the pre-eBay status quo. The Realizing Engineering, Science, and Technology Opportunities by Restoring Exclusive (RESTORE) Patent Rights Act of 2024, introduced by Senators Coons (D-Del.) and Cotton (R-Ark.), with a House companion bill from Representatives Moran (R-Texas) and Dean (D-Pa.), seeks to reshape and repair the availability of injunctive relief for patent monopoly holders.  As you’ll see, one nice element of the Bill is that it simply adds 1 sentence – creating a rebuttable presumption that an adjudged infringer should be subject to injunctive relief.

  • Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ Dear Mr. President A word on the composition of the Opposition Division Part I [Ed: The corrupt EPO has basically eliminated any compatibility with its charter and people are noticing]

    This is an open letter directed to the President of the EPO in his capacity to give directions on the composition of Opposition Divisions.

  • Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ An Emotional Roller-Coaster – the English Court of Appeal overturns the High Court on the Patentability of Hey Hi (AI) Inventions [Ed: An Emotional Roller-Coaster for who?]

    On 19 July 2024, the Court of Appeal handed down its judgment in Comptroller – General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks v Emotional Perception Hey Hi (AI) Limited [2024] EWCA Civ 825 following a hearing on 14-15 May 2024.

• Copyrights

  • Takedowns: Olympic Edition

    Lumen has identified new signs of a coordinated and potentially automated fraudulent DMCA takedown campaign relating to articles about a Russian Olympian.​ Building on work done by past Lumen team members and documented in previous Lumen blog posts, the evidence presented here sheds light on previously unreported tactics that may be used in attempts to suppress unfavorable information.

  • Public Domain Review ☛ Scenes of Reading on the Early Portrait Postcard

    When picture postcards began circulating with a frenzy across the United States and Europe at the turn of the twentieth century, a certain motif proved popular: photographs of people posed with books. Melina Moe and Victoria Nebolsin explore this paradoxical sign of interiority and find a class of image that traverses the poles of absorption and theatricality.

• Gemini* and Gopher

  • Technology and Free Software

    • Internet/Gemini

      • Plans for Tor

        I want to mention the plans I have for supporting Tor in all of my main software projects over the course of the next few months.