Leftovers

• Xe's Blog ☛ Avoiding becoming the lone dependency peg with load-bearing anime

  This is sometimes phrased politely. Other times people commenting on this display a measured lack of common courtesy.

  The Anubis character is displayed by default as a way to ensure that I am not the lone unpaid dependency peg holding up a vast majority of the Internet.

  [...]

  Of course, nothing is stopping you from forking the software to replace the art assets. Instead of doing that, I would rather you support the project and purchase a license for the commercial variant of Anubis named BotStopper. Doing this will make sure that the project is sustainable and that I don't burn myself out to a crisp in the process of keeping small internet websites open to the public.

• Yves-Alexis Perez: strongSwan autopkgtests

  For a while, the strongSwan Debian package had an autopktest. The initial version was proposed by Christian Ehrhardt in 2016 (presumably especially for downstream use in Ubuntu) and updated in 2019, but since then not much at least in Debian.

  With the metapackage dependencies update in 6.0.0-1 I had to tune a bit the tests dependencies so they wouldn't totally fail, and I noticed the amd64 tests were failing since basically the beginning (the other architectures would pass, but because the tests wouldn't actually run at all since they rely on the isolation-machine restriction which is not available there.

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ Piles of Penguin Poop Could Surprisingly Help Cool Antarctica

    But they're still guano need our help.

  • Science Alert ☛ Do Eyes Really See The World Upside Down? Here's The Science.

    You might be surprised.

  • Science Alert ☛ Earth's Crust Is Hiding Vast Reserves of Hydrogen – Here's How We Can Find It

    Enough for 170,000 years.

• Career/Education

  • The Straits Times ☛ Long advantageous, Harvard's China ties become a political liability

    WASHINGTON - Harvard University's links to China, long an asset to the school, have become a liability as the Convicted Felon administration levels accusations that its campus is plagued by Beijing-backed influence operations.

  • JURIST ☛ US federal judge blocks Convicted Felon ban on Harvard enrollment of international students

    A US federal judge for the District Court of Massachusetts on Friday temporarily blocked President The Insurrectionist’s administration from banning Harvard College’s enrollment of international students.

  • Chronicle Of Higher Education ☛ Hours After Harvard Sues, Court Blocks Convicted Felon's Move to Ban Enrollment of Foreign Students

    "Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard," the lawsuit says.

  • Chinese factory worker sets fire to textile plant over 800 yuan in unpaid wages

    While police dispute the story, Chinese netizens express sympathy for “800 Brother” over how workers are treated.

  • New York Times ☛ Judge Blocks Convicted Felon Effort to Bar Harvard’s International Student Enrollment After Lawsuit

    Harvard sued and asked for a restraining order less than 24 hours after the Convicted Felon administration had said it would block current and future international students from attending the university.

  • New York Times ☛ Teachers Protest in Mexico City Shuts Down Airport

    Flights were briefly halted, delaying travel for thousands, as security forces swarmed into passenger terminals in an effort to assert order.

  • JURIST ☛ Native nations sue US government alleging misuse of trust funds for boarding schools

    The Wichita and Affiliated Tribes (Wichita Tribe) and the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California (Washoe Tribe) filed a class action trust accounting lawsuit on Thursday, alleging that the US government misused Native nations’ “own funds” to pay for the country’s boarding school program [...]

• Hardware

  • Gunnar Wolf ☛ Gunnar Wolf: No further discussion -- I am staying with a Thinkpad keyboard.

    I have been a very happy user of my two SK-8845 keyboards (one at my office, one at home) since I bought them, in 2018 and 2021 respectively. What are they, mind you?

  • Hackaday ☛ 2025 Pet Hacks Contest: Keep Your Hound Toasty Warm With This Heated Dog Bed

    It’s been a universal trait among the different faithful Hackaday Hounds who have loped around these parts over the decades, that there is no place warm enough for their tastes. Fire up the stove and the dog is there stretched out in front of it, leaving one to wonder whether our house temperature is being cruel to the mutt, or simply that they are heat sponges with infinite capacity. There’s got to be some joy in doggy circles then at the prospect of [John.r.sheahan]’s heated dog bed, designed in particular with the comfort of an older dog in mind.

  • Hackaday ☛ Tearing Down And Hacking The T2S+ Thermal Camera

    [Dmytro] was able to lay his hands on a InfiRay T2S+ camera. It’s a capable thermal imaging unit that comes at a cheaper price than many of its rivals. [Dmytro] decided to pull it apart to see what makes it tick, and he discovered a few interesting things along the way.

  • Hackaday ☛ 2025 Pet Hacks Contest: Aquassist Fish Feeder

    This project submitted to the 2025 Pet Hacks Contest brings a bit of IoT to your finned friends. Aquassist is a fish feeder that is primarily 3D printed only requiring a servo and a microcontroller to give you remote control of feeding your fish.

  • Hackaday ☛ LED Matrix Built For M.2 Interface

    The M.2 slot is usually used for solid-state storage devices. However, [bitluni] had another fun idea for how to use the interface. He built an M.2 compatible LED matrix that adds a little light to your motherboard.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong urges employers to ensure worker safety after heat stress warnings issued for 2 consecutive days

    Hong Kong’s Labour Department has urged employers to take preventive measures against heatstroke and to ensure workers’ safety after the city issued a heat stress warning for two consecutive days.

  • Science Alert ☛ Earth's Rotation Is Slowing Down, And It Might Explain Why We Have Oxygen

    Everything is connected.

• Proprietary

  • The Business Journals ☛ Education tech firm terminates its Santa Clara HQ lease, cuts employees

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Threatens 50% Tariff on E.U. and 25% Tariff on Apple

    The president threatened both Fashion Company Apple and the European Union with higher tariffs on Friday, saying trade talks with the Europeans had stalled.

  • New York Times ☛ Why Making an iPhone in the U.S. Would Be So Difficult

    Apple has resisted pressure to make its most important product in the United States since 2016, and instead has moved some production to India.

  • Social Control Media

    • Digital Music News ☛ YouTube Content ID Payouts Crossed $12 Billion Last Year — ‘Over 90% of All Content ID Claims’ Were Monetized, Platform Says [Ed: So YouTube still cannot be profitable]

      After cracking 125 million Music and Premium subscribers, YouTube has reported making a cumulative $12 billion in Content ID payouts as of December 2024.

    • Digital Music News ☛ Gracie Abrams Is Getting Broiled by TikTok’s ‘Propaganda’ Trend

      A new Fentanylware (TikTok) trend is turning the concept of ‘propaganda’ on its head — and singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams finds herself squarely in its crosshairs.

  • Windows TCO / Windows Bot Nets

    • Scoop News Group ☛ Large-scale sting tied to Operation Endgame disrupts ransomware infrastructure

      A coordinated effort took down seven kinds of malware and targeted initial access brokers.

    • Security Week ☛ Signal Adds Screenshot-Blocker to Thwart ‘Windows Recall’ [Ed: The real solution is to abandon Windows, which has back doors (still)]

      Signal said the privacy feature is on by default for every backdoored Windows 11 user to block Abusive Monopolist Microsoft from taking screenshots for backdoored Windows Recall.

• Defence/Aggression

  • JURIST ☛ UK signs deal handing sovereignty of Chagos Islands over to Mauritius

    The UK on Thursday signed an agreement to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius and lease back the Diego Garcia military base, critical to the UK and the US, for an average of 101 million pounds per year.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Talk of US forces drawdown spooks Seoul ahead of presidential election

    An informal US review reportedly suggested re-deploying 4,500 troops in South Korea to other parts of the Pacific.

  • North Korean warship tough to salvage after launch failure, analysts say

    State media says those responsible for Wednesday’s mishap that angered Kim Jong Un will be arrested.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia’s Anwar defends lengthening tenure of anti-graft chief

    This will be Mr Azam's third extension since he turned 60 years old.

  • New York Times ☛ How China Stands in the Way of a U.S.-Vietnam Trade Deal

    Among dozens of countries that were hit with steep tariffs, Vietnam was among the most publicly willing to meet the demands of the Convicted Felon administration. But China is a sticking point.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Meduza ☛ A proxy in plain sight New OCCRP investigation reveals how Kremlin-backed foundation extended Moscow’s reach across Europe — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Kyiv proposes that E.U. countries finance its armed forces under NATO defense obligations — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ G7 countries considering lowering price cap on Russian oil — Reuters — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russian foreign minister says Moscow will give Kyiv ceasefire terms after prisoner swap — Meduza

    • CS Monitor ☛ Why the thanks for German tanks

      Tiny Lithuania on the Russian border welcomed the first permanent deployment of German forces on foreign soil since World War II. Germany welcomed the gratitude for its transformation into a trusted leader of Europe.

    • Meduza ☛ Debris from downed Ukrainian drone falls on apartment building in Russia’s Yelets — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ On the move again Russian forces break through Ukrainian defenses in major Donbas offensive — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Two killed in Russian missile strikes on Odesa and Chuhuiv in Ukraine — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘The endgame is here’: JPMorganChase’s new geopolitics center predicts an ‘imperfect deal’ will freeze the Russia-Ukraine war this year — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Russia and Ukraine exchange 390 prisoners each on first day of swap — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ In May 23 prisoner exchange, Kyiv traded dozens of Ukrainian civilians convicted of collaboration, treason, and voicing online support for Russia’s invasion — Meduza

    • France24 ☛ Kyiv hit by large-scale drone attack as Russia, Ukraine set to continue major prisoner swap

      Kyiv was hit by a large-scale Russian drone and missile attack on Saturday morning with debris of intercepted missiles falling on a shopping mall and a residential building, according to a local official. The strike came as Russia and Ukraine prepare for the second day of a major prisoner exchange.

    • New York Times ☛ Ukraine and Russia Begin Largest Exchange of Prisoners of War

      Each side reported that 390 of its people had been returned, and more swaps are expected this weekend.

    • The Straits Times ☛ US-based Ukrainian says he completed Everest climb from sea level to summit in 4 days

      Mr Andrew Ushakov said he did not use Xenon gas.

    • RFERL ☛ Kyiv Comes Under 'Combined Enemy Attack' After Prisoner Exchange

      Kyiv came under a combined drone and missile attack early on May 24, Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said, describing explosions in the Ukrainian capital and saying that air defenses had been activated.

    • France24 ☛ War in Ukraine: Russia says swapped 270 POWs, 120 civilians with Ukraine

      Ukraine confirmed a major prisoner swap was underway this Friday... it's one of the rare elements thtat Kyiv and Russia had agreed upon during their first direct talks in more than three years last week. Meanwhile,  the russian defense ministry claimed its troops captured a settlement in the Kharkiv region though that claim has yet to be independently verified. Catherine Viette has more.

    • France24 ☛ 🔴 Russia and Ukraine begin first stage of large-scale prisoner swap

    • France24 ☛ Russia and Ukraine begin first stage of large-scale prisoner swap

      Ukraine and Russia began a major prisoner exchange Friday, as both sides received 390 people in the first stage in what, if completed, would be the biggest swap since Moscow invaded Ukraine more than three years ago. The process, set to last 3 days, will free 1000 prisoners in total on each side.

    • NYPost ☛ Kyiv comes under large-scale Russian drone and missile attack hours after prisoner swap

      Ukraine’s capital came under a large-scale combined drone and missile attack late Friday with explosions and machine gun fire heard throughout the city.

    • RFERL ☛ Nearly 800 People Exchanged As Largest Ukraine-Russia Prisoner Swap Begins

      Russia and Ukraine launched the biggest prisoner swap since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, exchanging hundreds of soldiers and civilians in a process that was set to continue over the weekend, officials in both countries said on May 23.

    • Latvia ☛ Latvia and rest of EU pledge tighter export controls on cutting-edge technologies [Ed: More like a shopping list of hype and/or buzzwords]

      Latvia, together with the other European Union Member States, has added artificial intelligence (AI), quantum and semiconductor technologies to its export control list, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said May 23.

• Environment

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Hackaday ☛ EMF Forming Was A Neat Aerospace Breakthrough

      Typically, when we think about forming metal parts, we think about beating them with hammers, or squeezing them with big hydraulic presses. But what if magnets could do the squeezing? As it turns out—Grumman Aerospace discovered they can, several decades ago! Even better, they summed up this technique in a great educational video which we’ve placed below the break.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • The Straits Times ☛ Travellers avoid trips to Japan over viral comic book’s quake prediction

      YouTube videos and Facebook (Farcebook) posts warning people of traveling to Japan has attracted millions of views. 

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • France24 ☛ Arts24 in Cannes: Iranian director Jafar Panahi defies censorship with bold new film at Cannes

    In this episode, we talk about a powerful moment at the Cannes Film festival as acclaimed Iranian director Jafar Panahi presents "A Simple Accident" – a film impossible to separate from his own harrowing story. Long targeted by Iran’s regime with censorship, house arrest, and imprisonment, Panahi has defied the odds to attend the festival in person. His latest work offers a stark, unflinching portrait of Iranian society and a bold critique of the ruling powers. As buzz builds around his chances for the Palme d'Or, Panahi sits down for an interview with Louise Dupont from the French channel of FRANCE 24.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • France24 ☛ Why didn't mainstream media report Joe Biden's decline sooner?

    In a new book, CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson look at Joe Biden's ill-fated re-election campaign and allege there was a cover-up of Biden's cognitive decline. Together they claim to have interviewed hundreds of people, but few were quoted on the record. Fair or not, the political right and left have criticized the authors of Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, while the realizations in the book have also sparked reflection within in the press itself over how Biden's health was covered at the time. This week's guest is Richard Tofel, the former president of ProPublica, the nonprofit investigative journalism organization.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • ACLU ☛ For Undocumented Immigrants, Being ‘Good’ Is Not Good Enough

    *Name has been changed to protect identities

    Just days after The Insurrectionist’s first inauguration, Sarah* and Matt* rushed to City Hall to get married, not because of romance or tradition, but because they were terrified. A recently-signed executive order that came to be known as the “Muslim Ban” signaled to them that the administration would wage war on immigrants. In fact, that war had already begun.

    “I never thought about marriage as a necessity,” Sarah explains. “But once Convicted Felon was elected, my knee-jerk reaction was to protect [Matt.] I thought marriage might give me some power. At least I could ask where he was if he got detained.”

  • University of Michigan ☛ Florida must reject efforts to weaken child labor laws

    A 14-year-old’s biggest concerns should be finishing their homework, finding time to play outside with friends and spending quality time with family. They should not have to worry about going to work. Yet, in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis and the State Legislature are currently attempting to pass legislation that would weaken child labor laws.

  • New Yorker ☛ A Mother’s Hunger Strike Challenges Two Nations

    Laila Soueif’s effort to free her son, Alaa Abd el-Fattah, a British citizen, from an Egyptian prison is a study in personal protest.

  • JURIST ☛ Rights group expresses concern over rule of law in Italy

    Human Rights Watch (HRW) expressed alarm Thursday over Italy’s trajectory following a closed-door hearing last week that previewed the European Union’s upcoming 2025 rule-of-law report for the country.

  • Pro Publica ☛ DOJ Abandons Effort to Address Phoenix’s Treatment of Homeless People

    When a homeless man questioned the Phoenix police’s authority to stop him in February 2020, an officer grabbed him and knelt on his neck while another officer shocked him with a Taser. Another unhoused man said officers threw away his belongings, telling him, “You guys are trash and this is trash.” Other people experiencing homelessness were regularly cited and arrested by the city’s officers during early morning hours for “conduct that is plainly not a crime.”

    Those were among the abuses alleged by the Department of Justice last June, following a nearly three-year investigation into the city of Phoenix and its police department. The investigation marked the first time the DOJ had found a pattern of violations against homeless people, including that officers and other city employees illegally threw away their belongings.

  • Pro Publica ☛ The Trump Administration’s Legal Battle to Cast Immigration as an “Invasion”

    When top Trump adviser Stephen Miller threatened on May 9 that the administration is “actively looking at” suspending habeas corpus in response to an “invasion” from undocumented immigrants, he was operating on a fringe legal theory that a right-wing faction has been working to legitimize for more than a decade.

    “The Constitution is clear — and that of course is the supreme law of the land — that the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus can be suspended in a time of invasion,” Miller said earlier this month in response to a question about Trump’s threat to suspend habeas corpus, the legal right of a prisoner to challenge their detention. Days after Miller’s remarks, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem issued the same warning when a member of a House panel asked her if the number of illegal border crossings meets the threshold for suspending the right. “I’m not a constitutional lawyer,” Noem said. “But I believe it does.”

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Patents

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Inherent Disclosure and Implicit Construction

    Sigray, Inc. v. Carl Zeiss X-Ray Microscopy, Inc., --- F.4th --- (Fed. Cir. 2025)

    The Federal Circuit established an important precedent regarding inherent disclosure and implicit claim construction in this IPR appeal, holding that the Board's  purported interpretation of the prior art was rather an implicit claim construction that neither party requested.  The decision, went rely heavily on the Federal Circuit inherency decision in SmithKline Beecham Corp. v. Apotex Corp., 403 F.3d 1331 (Fed. Cir. 2005), allowing for inherency finding even for miniscule or undetectable features found in the prior art.  As I dug into the case though, I was surprised to find that the PTAB did not cite or reference SmithKline, nor did any of the briefs filed in the appeal.  As Judge Dyk wryly stated at oral arguments: "but of course, nobody showed them the SmithKline case." 

• Copyrights

  • Perlmutter Says Convicted Felon’s Attempt to Remove Her as Register is ‘Blatantly Unlawful’ and Has No Effect

    In a complaint filed Thursday, May 22, Shira Perlmutter, who is presently still listed as Register of Copyrights on the U.S. Copyright Office website, told the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that President The Insurrectionist’s controversial attempt to remove her from her post is “unlawful and ineffective.” The Forrest Dump Administration fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden on May 9, two days before it fired Perlmutter. The day after Hayden was let go, the Copyright Office released a pre-publication edition of the third part in its series of reports exploring issues in copyright monopoly law in light of evolving artificial intelligence (AI) technology.