Leftovers

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ The Missing Link to Snowball Earth Has Finally Surfaced

    There's something strange in Colorado.

  • Science Alert ☛ Eating Nuts Linked to Lower Risk of Dementia, Study Finds

    But we don't really know why.

  • Science Alert ☛ A 'Useless' Organ That Doctors Often Remove Could Actually Fight Cancer

    You may not even know you have one.

  • Science Alert ☛ Ghostly Creature Deep in The Ocean Is Like Nothing We've Seen Before

    An amazing new species has emerged.

  • Science Alert ☛ Exposure to Microgravity Seems to Seriously Disorient Human Sperm

    Sex in space may not fly.

  • Science Alert ☛ Leonid Meteor Shower May Put on a Surprise Show This Week

    You won't see it if you don't look up!

  • NYPost ☛ Your sweet tooth may be genetic — and your DNA could be pushing you to eat more, says new study

    Large amounts of sugar can damage cells, causing chronic inflammation, which can lead to obesity, heart disease, diabetes, liver disease and cancer.

• Hardware

  • Hackaday ☛ WAV2VGM Plays Audio Via OPL3 Synthesis

    Once upon a time, computers didn’t really have enough resources to play back high-quality audio. It took too much RAM and too many CPU cycles and it was just altogether too difficult. Instead, they relied upon synthesizing audio from basic instructions to make sounds and music. [caiannello] has taken advantage of this with the WAV2VGM project.

  • Hackaday ☛ Remember The Tri-Format Floppy Disk?

    These days, the vast majority of portable media users are storing their files on some kind of Microsoft-developed file system. Back in the 1980s and 1990s, though, things were different. You absolutely could not expect a floppy disk from one type of computer to work in another. That is, unless you had a magical three-format disk, as [RobSmithDev] explains.

  • CNX Software ☛ NXP i.MX 94 octa-core Cortex-A55/M33/M7 processor targets Edge Hey Hi (AI) industrial and automotive applications

    NXP i.MX 94 is an octa-core Arm SoC with up to four Cortex-A55 application cores, two Arm Cortex-M33 real-time/functional safety cores, two Arm Cortex-M7 real-time/functional safety cores, and an NXP eIQ Neutron NPU designed for Edge Hey Hi (AI) industrial and automotive applications

    I initially thought it would be a cost-down version of the NXP i.MX 95, and while it shares many of the same features, it’s more an application-specific processor designed specifically for industrial and automotive applications, lacking a 3D GPU, camera input interfaces, a MIPI DSI display interface, and 10GbE networking, but increasing the number of real-time cores (at the cost of application cores) and adding several networking features such as an Ethernet time-sensitive networking (TSN) switch, 2.5GbE interface, an Ethercat controller, and support for industrial protocols like Profinet or OPC-UA FX.

  • Hackaday ☛ Retrotechtacular: Color TV

    We have often wondered if people dreamed in black and white before the advent of photography. While color pictures eventually became the norm, black and white TV was common for many years. After all, a TV set was a big investment, so people didn’t run out and buy the latest TV every year. Even if you did buy a new or used TV, a black and white model was much less expensive and, for many years, some shows were in black and white anyway. RCA, of course, wanted you to buy a color set. [PeriscopeFilm] has a 1963 promotional film from RCA extolling the virtues of a color set. The video also shows something about how the sets were made, as you can see below.

  • CNX Software ☛ LG Display’s 12-inch stretchable screen can extend by up to 50%

    A new category of devices – the stretchables – may soon be upon us, as after writing about Murata stretchable PCBs for medical applications a few days ago, I’ve now come across LG’s latest stretchable display that can be extended from its original 12-inch size up to 18 inches.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • The Straits Times ☛ Marine experts warn consumers against eating suckermouth catfish

    This is as the authorities encourage anglers to catch as many of the invasive species as they can to reduce their numbers.

  • New York Times ☛ Sharath Jois, Heir to Founder of Ashtanga Yoga, Dies at 53

    He became one of the world’s most sought-after teachers of a style of yoga that his grandfather helped turn into a popular form of exercise worldwide.

  • Science Alert ☛ Sleep Can Actually Help You Make Better Decisions, Research Shows

    Ask me again in the morning.

  • TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ Women suing over Idaho’s abortion ban describe dangerous pregnancies, becoming ‘medical refugees’

    The state’s near-total ban makes performing an abortion a felony at any stage of pregnancy unless it is “necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman.”

  • Medevel ☛ Good News for Families: Countries Moving to Protect Kids Online! UK to Ban Social Control Media for Children, Australia Considers Social Control Media Ban for Under 16s

    In an exciting development for child safety and wellbeing, several countries are taking thoughtful steps to help protect our youngest digital citizens. Britain and Australia are leading the way with caring new approaches to how children interact with social control media.

    Britain is moving to ban social control media for children [...]

• Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  • Medevel ☛ 🚨 Breaking News: Chinese Military Adapts Meta's Hey Hi (AI) for Defense - Raising Global Concerns

    In a concerning development that's making waves across the tech and security sectors, Chinese military researchers have transformed Meta's open-source Hey Hi (AI) model into a military tool, sparking worldwide debate about the future of Hey Hi (AI) security.

  • Medevel ☛ Meta's Major Shift: Opening Hey Hi (AI) to Military Use - What This Means for Us All

    In a surprising and concerning development, Meta (formerly Facebook) has made a significant change that affects us all.

• Security

  • Pen Test Partners ☛ Did security gaps at Antwerp port enable drug smuggling operations?

    TL;DR Why hack shipping? For profit. Criminals have been proven to have hacked port systems to bypass security and facilitate drug smuggling. .

  • OpenSSF (Linux Foundation) ☛ What’s in the SOSS? Podcast #19 – Red Hat’s Rodrigo Freire and the Impact of High-Profile Security Incidents

  • Silicon Angle ☛ SlashNext warns of ‘GoIssue’ phishing tool targeting Microsoft's proprietary prison GitHub users

    A new report released today by phishing protection company SlashNext Inc. warns of a sophisticated new phishing tool called GoIssue that targets Microsoft's proprietary prison GitHub users. GoIssue was recently uncovered by SlashNext researchers on cybercrime forums, where it’s marketed to attackers looking to target Microsoft's proprietary prison GitHub users.

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • Latvia ☛ Tele2 launches scam caller blocking system in Latvia

      Tele2 has introduced a security system that automatically blocks fake mobile phone calls from abroad. In the first few days, about 100 fake calls per hour were blocked, the company said in a press release on November 12.

    • WhichUK ☛ Beware of bogus ‘Winter Fuel Payments’ ads on Facebook (Farcebook) and Instagram

      The scam adverts falsely claim that you can receive £500 or £575

• Defence/Aggression

  • The Strategist ☛ Public opinion and PLA loyalty: objects of the Information Support Force

    The court of public opinion is now a critical battleground in modern warfare, according to China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

  • ADF ☛ Turkey Hopes Peacemaking Can Increase Influence in Horn of Africa

    Turkey has made significant economic, military and diplomatic investments in Africa as part of its strategy in recent years to deepen ties across the continent.

  • ADF ☛ Terror Groups Capitalize on Fulani Anger to Recruit Fighters

    A mid-August attack on a Fulani community in central Mali left 23 people dead and 300 missing. After raiding the village of Saran, the unidentified attackers went to the Fulani village of Bidi, but people there had already fled, said Harouna Sankare, mayor of nearby Ouenkoro.

  • ADF ☛ Weapons from Libyan Stockpiles Flow to Terror Groups in Nigeria

    Terrorists that plague northern Nigeria are arming themselves with weapons that originated in Libya, according to Nigerian defense officials. Weapons traffickers in Nigeria are benefitting from instability across the Sahel, particularly in Niger, which has become a key transit point for weapons taken from Libyan stockpiles.

  • ADF ☛ Malian, Russian Forces Return to Tinzawaten After Brutal Defeat

    A convoy composed of Malian Armed Forces (FAMa) troops and Russian mercenaries rode in military vehicles, armored vehicles, trucks and pickups as they headed toward the northern town of Tinzawaten in late September.

  • ADF ☛ Conflict in Amhara Region Threatens to Ignite Another Ethiopian War

    Gun battles in late October shattered the typical tranquility of Debark town, nestled in the foothills of the Semien mountains in Ethiopia’s Amhara region.

  • New York Times ☛ Trump Picks John Ratcliffe, His Former Intelligence Director, for C.I.A. Chief

    Mr. Ratcliffe, who was also a Texas congressman, fought fiercely for Donald Trump during his first term.

  • Philippines rejects China’s new map claim in South China Sea

    Beijing draws baselines around Scarborough Shoal under Manila’s jurisdiction

  • ADF ☛ Security Cameras Aim to Prevent Al-Shabaab Attacks

    In Somalia’s capital city of Mogadishu, where al-Shabaab militants continue to plot attacks, people are fighting back with security cameras. In recent months, bustling commercial centers have suffered a wave of bombings by the al-Qaida-affiliated terrorist group targeting the businesses that installed closed-circuit cameras.

  • ADF ☛ Ibrahim Index Tracks Rising Authoritarian Governance, Declining Security in Africa

    Overall governance and security was worse in 2023 than it was a decade earlier for most of Africa’s population. That is according to the 2024 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG), which found the rise in junta-led governments may drive greater conflict, fueling a trend of deteriorating living standards.

  • New York Times ☛ Jack Teixeira Sentenced to 15 Years in Leaked Documents Case

    The disclosures that Jack Teixeira shared on a social control media platform raised questions over how a relatively low-ranking Air National Guardsman had access to some of the country’s most sensitive secrets.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Ten killed in India’s Manipur after firefight with security forces

    State police described the attackers as “armed militants”.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Beijing pushes to join security efforts for citizens in Pakistan, sources say

    Beijing is pushing Pakistan to allow its own security staff to provide protection to thousands of Chinese citizens working in the South Asian nation, during talks after a car bombing in Karachi that was seen as a major security breach, sources said.

  • China hawk to steer Trump’s national security

    Michael Waltz is among the most hardline critics of Beijing in Washington.

  • Scoop News Group ☛ DHS nominee Kristi Noem stood alone for rejecting department cyber grants to state, local governments

    But the South Dakota governor has touted cybersecurity as her state’s “next big industry” and signed cyber legislation into law.

  • New York Times ☛ Trump Picks Kristi Noem for Homeland Security Secretary

    Ms. Noem, the governor of South Dakota, would play a major role in carrying out the president-elect’s promises to crack down on the border and deport millions of people.

  • Defence Web ☛ Pakistan Navy warship visits Djibouti

    The Pakistan Navy Ship Zulfiquar has visited Djibouti during deployment on regional maritime security patrol. Upon arrival in Djibouti, the Zulfiquar was received by officials from the Djibouti Navy, the Directorate General Public Relations (Navy) said in a statement on 5 November.

  • Defence Web ☛ Nearly 400 SAPS firearms missing in six months

    Police officers lost or were robbed of 371 service firearms in the six-month period between October last year to March 2024. This is according to Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, who was responding to a parliamentary question by Rise Mzanzi National Assembly (NA) Member of Parliament Makashule Gana.

  • Atlantic Council ☛ A path forward for Colombia’s 2016 peace accord and lasting security

    Halfway through period allotted for the 2016 peace accord’s implementation, Colombia faces slow progress amid rising organized crime. To counter resurgent conflict, Colombia’s government must prioritize carrying out the commitments it made in the accord, backed by millions in US and European investment for long-term security.

  • France24 ☛ US jury orders contractor to pay $42 mn in Abu Ghraib torture case

    16 years after three Iraqi men sued US defense contractor CACI Premier Technology Inc for its complicity in their torture in the notorious Abu Ghraib prison, a US jury on Tuesday directed the company to disburse $42 million in damages to the plaintiffs.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ Russia’s military is trying to intimidate men into enlistment offices ahead of new restrictions on conscription evasion — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russian court fines Kursk region refugee for staging protest to demand promised housing assistance — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Rosneft denies plans to merge with Lukoil and Gazprom Neft to create Russian ‘mega oil producer’ — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russian military court has revoked rehabilitation of more than 250 victims of political repressions in last four years, journalists find — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russia’s State Duma bans ‘childfree propaganda’ — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Bloomberg: Some of Russia’s key employers privately doubt rosy promises by Putin and Trump — Meduza

    • The Straits Times ☛ Russia and China must counter any US attempt at containment, Shoigu says

      MOSCOW - The key task for Russia and China is to counter any attempt by the United States to contain their countries, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin told China's foreign minister on Tuesday.

    • Latvia ☛ Riga Security Forum podcast: 'How might the U.S. election impact the security of the Baltic States?'

      Another episode in the Riga Security Forum series of podcasts is available and this one relates to a subject you've probably heard quite a lot about already.

    • Meduza ☛ Ukrainian demonstrators shout over Yulia Navalnaya’s Lisbon speech against Western big tech’s collaboration with Russia — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russia’s prosecutor general launches investigation into rising milk prices — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ In some Russian regions, more than half of the money set aside for social welfare is now going to soldiers — Meduza

• Environment

  • France24 ☛ Senegal grapples with floods ahead of parliamentary elections

    The Matam region has suffered from a series of floods recently, destroying crops and farmland. The government has pledged to help, but for now residents say they have seen few results.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • ADF ☛ African Space Agencies See Satellite Launches as Key to National Security

      With the launch of its Gaindesat-1A satellite in August, Senegal joined the growing list of African nations establishing a presence in space. Senegalese engineers and technicians designed Gaindesat-1A in collaboration with France’s University Space Centre of Montpellier. The project took five years.

    • Hackaday ☛ Intuition About Maxwell’s Equations

      You don’t have to know how a car engine works to drive a car — but you can bet all the drivers in the Indy 500 have a better than average understanding of what’s going on under the hood. All of our understanding of electronics hinges on Maxwell’s equations, but not many people know them. Even fewer have an intuitive feel for the equations, and [Ali] wants to help you with that. Of course, Maxwell’s gets into some hairy math, but [Ali] covers each law in a very pragmatic way, as you can see in the video below.

    • Science Alert ☛ Unpredictable Solar Activity Sends Satellites Plummeting to Earth

      The Sun has kicked into high gear.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Science Alert ☛ Plastic-Eating Insect Discovered in Kenya Is The First of Its Kind in Africa

      This tiny critter could be a huge find.

    • Science Alert ☛ Massive Fossil Breaks Record as The World's Oldest Tadpole

      That's one big baby!

• Finance

  • Newsmax ☛ AMD to Cut 4% of Workforce to Focus on AI Chips [Ed: "HEY HI" as catch-all excuse for corporate failure; They could just say "GPUs" or "NPUs", not resort to buzzwords.]

    Advanced Micro Devices is laying off 4% of its global workforce, or about 1,000 employees, as it directs efforts towards developing AI chips in a bid to compete against industry bellwether Nvidia.

  • NYPost ☛ Average upfront cost for an NYC apartment with broker’s fee hits whopping all-time high

    The whopping amount includes the broker's cut, first month's rent in advance and security deposit, according to the study by the rental-listing company StreetEasy.

  • The Straits Times ☛ IMF holds unusual talks with Pakistan over $7 billion bailout

    The International Monetary Fund's Pakistan mission chief Nathan Porter on Tuesday opened unusual talks with Pakistan over a $7 billion bailout approved by its board in September, the finance ministry and sources said.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Development lenders set $120-billion climate finance goal for poorer countries

    The world's top multilateral banks pledged to ramp up climate finance to low- and middle-income countries to $120 billion a year by 2030 as part of efforts at global talks in Azerbaijan on Tuesday to agree an ambitious annual target.

  • University of Michigan ☛ From the Daily: Junk fees fuel Ann Arbor’s housing hell

    As November begins, so does Ann Arbor’s annual housing blitz. Every fall, students at the University of Michigan scramble to find roommates, reach out to landlords and secure a place on waitlists to sign a lease for the next school year.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Press Gazette ☛ Facebook still powering commercial success for local news brand The BV magazine [Ed: They put their fate at the hands of a very hostile company]

    The BV, 2024 Future of Media Award winner for regional site of the year, still sees room for commercial success on Facebook.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ 1 in 3 Hongkongers intend to move abroad, survey finds

    A third of Hong Kong residents have said they intend to move overseas, according to a recent survey. The proportion remained largely unchanged from the previous year despite residents rating the city’s liveability higher.

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • France24 ☛ Did Beyonce and Taylor Swift announce a “red state boycott” after Trump’s reelection win?

      A week on from the presidential election, fake posts claiming superstar singers Beyonce and Taylor Swift will no longer be performing in red Republican states that voted for Donald Trump. Though these fake posts are almost all labelled as “satire” and stem from a satirical website network, it hasn’t stopped internet users from sharing and commenting on the fake claims, fuelling them further online. Vedika Bahl explains in this episode of Truth or Fake.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Wheelchair-bound Cambodian man sentenced to 18 months in incitement case

    Phon Yuth posted messages on Facebook (Farcebook) that were critical of Prime Minister Hun Manet.

  • Meduza ☛ Russian pediatrician jailed for 5.5 years after patient’s mother reports her for allegedly criticizing military — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ A Russian teenager joked about the Crocus City Hall terrorist attack. Now her parents face criminal charges. — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Fifteen years ago, Dmitry Medvedev called for a free-thinking, future-focused Russia. This year, he’s advocated election interference, asset seizure, and Europe’s ‘humiliation.’ — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Russian gamers interested in ‘S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl’ could risk treason charges to buy an FPS its developer won’t even sell in Russia — Meduza

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Press Gazette ☛ Daily Mail wins European Court appeal over £822k costs payout to terror suspect

    Mail publishers argued its rights under the European Convention were breached.

  • France24 ☛ Jailed Eritrean journalist wins rights prize [Ed: They speak of "need for greater whistleblower protection in the country." To put it politely, when you live in Eritrea you worry about things like finding your next meal, the concept of protecting journalists is seen as more of a "first world problem".]

    In tonight's edition, Swedish-Eritrean journalist Dawit Issak, imprisoned without charge for over 23 years, is awarded the Swedish Edelstam Prize for his fight for freedom of expression.

    Also, Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko urges revenge for attacks on his supporters.

    And Cynthia Stimpel, the woman who exposed corruption at South African Airways during the years of State Capture, is embarking on a 700km hike to highlight the need for greater whistleblower protection in the country.

  • India Times ☛ Massive layoffs coming soon: CNN to sack hundreds including top stars due to dismal election ratings

    CNN is reportedly facing significant layoffs as part of a major restructuring effort which is actually aimed at reviving its struggling reputation following disappointing US Presidential election ratings, reported DailyMail. According to a report from Puck, CNN executives are planning to cut hundreds of jobs which will specifically affect the production staff while on the other hand, on-air talent might also see some major changes.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • Federal News Network ☛ Federal court ruling brings 9-year Secret Service overtime lawsuit closer to its end

    Attorneys representing Secret Service agents in a 9-year overtime lawsuit say there may be "light at the end of this tunnel," following a recent court ruling.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • APNIC ☛ Out-of-Band network design for service provider networks

    Guest Post: How to design OOB networks for ISPs, inspired by data centre networking.

  • APNIC ☛ The IXP — a privileged observation point, the airport of the Internet

    Guest Post: How has traffic changed over the years?

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• European Commission ☛ Commission and national authorities call on Fashion Company Apple to stop geo-blocking practices on Fashion Company Apple Media Services

  European Commission Press release Brussels, 12 Nov 2024 Today, the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network of national consumer authorities and the European Commission notified Fashion Company Apple of several potentially prohibited geo-blocking practices that the CPC Network has identified on certain Fashion Company Apple Media Services.

• Patents

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ USPTO Director Vidal Announces December Departure

    With Donald Trump’s reelection, leaders within the Biden administration will be stepping down over the next two months. USPTO Director Kathi Vidal has announced her departure from the agency, effective in December 2024. Deputy Director Derrick Brent will serve as Acting Director during the transition period.  Vidal’s announcement indicates that Brent will stay in the position until Trump’s replacement is confirmed.  Of course, that position serves at the pleasure of the president and so could change at any point.

  • JUVE ☛ uniQure successfully defends haemophilia gene therapy patent monopoly against Pfizer [Ed: Company sues another company and this shilling propaganda platform that takes bribes to lie for law firms calls a lawsuit a defence, as if someone suing is actually defending]

    uniQure has prevailed in a dispute with Pfizer. uniQure is active in the field of gene therapy and owner of EP 3 581 650. The patent monopoly protects a “Factor IX polypeptide mutant and a method for its production” for treating haemophilia.

  • Kangaroo Courts

    • Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ UPC’s NanoString Decision – Inventive step considerations with no strings attached? [Ed: UPC is illegal and should not even exist, but sites like these stand to profit from such fake courts tied to EPO corruption]

      UPC 252/2023 NanoString v Harvard ACT_551180/2023 (UPC_CFI_252/2023) The UPC’s Munich Central Division has recently issued its decision revoking Harvard’s EP 2794928 B1 (“the Patent”) in DE, NL, and FR, with other EPO member states likely excluded from the decision on commercial grounds having lapsed during opposition proceedings in 2019.

• Copyrights

  • Public Domain Review ☛ “Light from the Darkness”: Paul Nash’s Genesis (1924)

    Woodcuts inspired by the biblical Genesis, which depict the creation of the world as a jerky, frightening cataclysm.

  • JURIST ☛ French media outlets sue X over unpaid content usage

    A coalition of major French newspapers announced legal action against social control media company X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, alleging that the platform has been using their journalistic content without proper compensation.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Hybe Grapples With Continued Fallout Over Leaked Document — Weverse Magazine Issues Formal Apology

    Multiple weeks and angry fan responses later, Hybe is still grappling with fallout stemming from the leak of an internal document containing criticism of rival K-pop firms’ talent. This newest twist in the increasingly convoluted episode arrived in the form of an official statement from Weverse Magazine.