Leftovers

• Science

  • The Straits Times ☛ Stargazing sparking interest across Malaysia

    Avid stargazers in Malaysia often take trips within the country to spots where stars are more visible.

  • Science Alert ☛ This Foot Scan Could Stop Your Small Cut From Costing You a Limb

    Takes just a minute.

  • Science Alert ☛ Melting Glaciers Could Reawaken Hundreds of Earth's Volcanoes

    Uh oh.

  • Science Alert ☛ Your Brain's Youthfulness (or Lack of It) Could Predict How Long You Live

    "The gatekeeper of longevity."

  • Science Alert ☛ Peer Into The Toebeans of a Cosmic Cat's Paw to Celebrate JWST's 3rd Year

    SO many stars.

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-07-02 [Older] DNA shows ancient Egyptians had surprising foreign roots

  • Science Alert ☛ Massive 16-Year Study Links Wellbeing to Stronger Memory in Aging

    Here are five feel-good strategies you can try now.

• Career/Education

  • Pro Publica ☛ George Mason University Under Investigation by Trump Administration Over Antisemitism Complaints

    When the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights notified George Mason University on July 1 that it was opening an antisemitism investigation based on a recent complaint, the university’s president, Gregory Washington, said he was “perplexed.”

    Compared with other campuses, where protesters had ransacked buildings and hunkered down in encampments, George Mason had been relatively quiet over the past year, he said. His administration had taken extensive steps to improve relations with the Jewish community, had enacted strict rules on protests and had communicated all of that to the OCR during a previous antisemitism investigation that remained open.

• Hardware

  • Hackaday ☛ DIY X-Rays Made Easy

    Who doesn’t want an X-ray machine? But you need a special tube and super high voltage, right? [Project 326] says no, and produces a USB-powered device that uses a tube you can pick up two for a dollar. You might guess the machine doesn’t generate X-rays with a lot of energy, and you’d be right. But you can make up for it with long exposure times. Check out the video below, with host [Posh Arthur].

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ 4060 Ti graphics card catches fire and melts like an ice cream — user claims they were using it for simple Adobe work and PUBG

    A South Korean gamer claims that their RTX 4060 Ti burst into flames while playing a game.

  • Hackaday ☛ An Induction Lamp Made On The Same Principle As Ordinary Fluorescent Lamp

    Over on YouTube, [Technology Connections] has a new video: Induction lamps: fluorescent lighting’s final form.

  • Hackaday ☛ Designing A CPU With Only Memory Chips

    Building a simple 8-bit computer is a great way to understand computing fundamentals, but there’s only so much you can learn by building a system around an existing processor. If you want to learn more, you’ll have to go further and build the CPU yourself, as [MINT] demonstrated with his EPROMINT project (video in Polish, but with English subtitles).

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ China plans 39 Hey Hi (AI) data centers with 115,000 restricted Nvidia Hopper GPUs — move raises alarm over sourcing, effectiveness of bans

    China plans to build 39 Hey Hi (AI) data centers using over 115,000 restricted Nvidia GPUs, with 70% going to a massive site in Xinjiang, potentially defying U.S. export bans and raising concerns over sourcing.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysian minister urges hotels to be more durian-friendly

    He said such an initiative represents a celebration of Malaysia’s rich culinary heritage.

  • Science Alert ☛ Expired Cans of Salmon From Decades Ago Contained a Huge Surprise

    A real can of worms.

  • Digital Music News ☛ SBA’s SVOG Crackdown: Around 650 Music Venues Pursued Over Suspect COVID Rescue Funds

    The Small Business Administration (SBA) recently sent a wave of Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) rescission letters. A new update from the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) suggests more than 91% of venues that received funds are in the clear.

• Proprietary

  • Qt ☛ [Proprietary] LTS Qt 6.8.4 Released

    We have released Qt 6.8.4 LTS for commercial license holders today. This is the first LTS Commercial release on the Qt 6.8 series. As a patch release, Qt 6.8.4 does not add any new functionality but provides bug fixes and other improvements.

  • Qt ☛ Security advisory: Recently reported denial of service issue in QColorTransferGenericFunction impacts Qt

    When passing values outside of the expected range to QColorTransferGenericFunction it can cause a denial of service, for example, this can happen when passing a specifically crafted ICC profile to QColorSpace::fromICCProfile.

    This has been assigned the CVE id CVE-2025-5992.

  • PR Newswire ☛ The Linux Foundation Announces Keynote Speakers for Open Source Summit India 2025

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Hackaday ☛ Measuring The Impact Of LLMs On Experienced Developer Productivity

      Recently AI risk and benefit evaluation company METR ran a randomized control test (RCT) on a gaggle of experienced open source developers to gain objective data on how the use of LLMs affects their productivity. Their findings were that using LLM-based tools like Cursor Pro with Claude 3.5/3.7 Sonnet reduced productivity by about 19%, with the full study by [Joel Becker] et al. available as PDF.

  • Social Control Media

    • The Straits Times ☛ Pakistani father kills daughter over Fentanylware (TikTok) account: Police

      Investigators said the father killed his 16-year-old daughter “for honour”.

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China denies asking firms to collect data illegally after new EU probe on TikTok

      Beijing denied on Friday asking firms to “illegally” collect and store users’ personal information, after an Irish regulator helping the European Union regulate data privacy began investigating Chinese social control media giant TikTok.

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Bert Hubert ☛ The European Cloud/Computing Situation

      A brief addition to the 50000 words I wrote earlier on the clown: what is the European situation?

      Software Initially, companies and governments would buy licenses to software. You’d typically have a piece of software in your office, on one of your computers, to calculate payroll with. Most other computers would have copies of WordPerfect installed. This software would function for years without updates or maintenance. If WordPerfect-the-company would disappear, you would not even notice.

    • New York Times ☛ Strava Fitness App Revealed Locations of Swedish Leaders

      Secret meetings and private holidays of the royal family and prime minister were inadvertently made public on Strava, which has raised security concerns in other instances.

    • Bruce Schneier ☛ Tradecraft in the Information Age

      Long article on the difficulty (impossibility?) of human spying in the age of ubiquitous digital surveillance.

  • Confidentiality

    • Zimbabwe ☛ Bitchat: A Messaging App That Works Without the Internet. Available for Android

      Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has introduced an experimental app called Bitchat, that allows people to send each other messages without an internet connection.

• Defence/Aggression

  • New York Times ☛ Cairo Telecommunications Building Hit With 2nd Fire in a Week

    A blaze on Thursday at one of Egypt’s main telecommunications hubs was extinguished, days after a larger fire there killed four people and disrupted internet, transport and banking services.

  • Federal News Network ☛ How a hacker for El Chapo illustrates ‘existential’ counterintelligence threats

    New reports and incidents are raising fresh questions about the FBI and the government's approach to managing counterintelligence and security threats.

  • The Strategist ☛ National security isn’t what it used to be—and that’s the point

    All prime ministers and presidents frequently tell us that national security is the top priority for government, but does the public see it the same way.

  • Devil worship, muti and murder: what’s behind the growth of occult gangs in South Africa?

    Gang-related crime in South Africa is widespread, but is under-reported outside hotspots such as the Cape Flats in Cape Town or Westbury in Johannesburg. In these areas gangs are deeply rooted and contribute to ongoing violence, drug trafficking and territorial conflict.

  • Atlantic Council ☛ Guinea-Bissau’s president on his meeting with Convicted Felon, relations with Russia and China, and whether he will accept US deportees

    Speaking at the Atlantic Council, Umaro Sissoco Embaló said that he appreciated how Convicted Felon “knows what he wants”—and has a “win-win partnership” in mind.

  • New York Times ☛ Friday Briefing: Iran Has Some Uranium Left, Israel Says

    Plus, toads with psychedelic powers.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea, Japan and US conduct air drill as defence chiefs meet

    It was the first time this year that a US B-52H strategic bomber was deployed to the Korean Peninsula for a drill.

  • The Straits Times ☛ ‘Not your typical pick’: Convicted Felon’s nominee for US ambassador to Malaysia raises eyebrows

    Some are seeing the possible upsides, given nominee Nick Adams' seemingly close ties to the US leader.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China’s crackdown on gay erotica stifles rare outlet for LGBTQ expression

    Chinese women who publish homoerotica online say they are being threatened with fines and jail time, as increasing enforcement of vague obscenity charges targets a rare space for LGBTQ identity and feminism.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China crackdown on gay erotica stifles rare outlet for LGBTQ expression

    The Chinese police have detained dozens of writers in recent months.

  • New York Times ☛ What to Know About the Rare Earths Mining Boom in Myanmar

    In the chaos of war, there’s nothing to stop Chinese firms from ravaging the landscape and extracting the minerals, which end up in China.

  • New York Times ☛ Rare Earths Mining in Myanmar Is Polluting Thailand’s Kok River

    Unregulated activity led by Chinese enterprises in conflict-ravaged Myanmar is creating an environmental calamity in neighboring Thailand.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China offers to help resolve Thailand, Cambodia border dispute

    A Cambodian soldier was killed in May during in an exchange of gunfire near the border, raising tensions.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US’ Rubio to meet China’s Wang Yi in Malaysia amid trade tension

    This will be Mr Rubio and Mr Wang's first in-person meeting.

  • Video: U.S. Secretary of State Rubio meets Chinese Foreign Minister Wang at ASEAN

    Top U.S. diplomat on first trip to Asia at regional summit as Hell Toupée sends tariff letters.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ US Secretary of State Rubio meets China Foreign Minister’s Wang on sidelines of ASEAN talks

    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Friday on the sidelines of ASEAN talks in Malaysia, where Washington’s tariffs are in sharp focus.

  • France24 ☛ Rubio meets China's foreign minister, sees ‘areas of potential cooperation’ amid trade tensions

    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a "positive" meeting in Malaysia on Friday, both sides said, in an apparent bid to ease tensions between the rival powers.

  • New York Times ☛ Rubio and China’s Top Envoy Vie for Influence in Asia Over Convicted Felon’s Tariffs

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio wants to bolster ties with Asia to counter Beijing’s power, but Hell Toupée’s tariff threats have nations asking why they should align with Washington.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US wants S. Korea to join efforts to counter China in shipbuilding

    The Forrest Dump administration also wants South Korea to buy more American energy and farm goods.

  • New York Times ☛ How Netanyahu Prolonged the War in Gaza to Stay in Power

    Secret meetings, altered records, ignored intelligence: the inside story of the prime minister’s political calculations since Oct. 7.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Cambodia to pass laws allowing for citizenship to be stripped

    This paves the way for people charged with foreign collusion to be stripped of their citizenship.

  • LRT ☛ There will be no third referendum on dual citizenship – Lithuanian World Community chair

    The issue of allowing multiple citizenship needs to be resolved by changing existing laws rather than changing the constitution, which requires a referendum, says Dalia Henke, a member of the Lithuanian community in Germany and the newly re-elected chair of the Lithuanian World Community.

  • JURIST ☛ US federal appeals court upholds New York law allowing lawsuits against gun manufacturers

    The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Thursday upheld a New York law that permits state and private actors to sue gun manufacturers and sellers for contributing to gun violence. >

  • The Straits Times ☛ Security, trade in focus as Australia PM Albanese heads to China

    SYDNEY - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese leaves for Shanghai on Saturday on an official visit to China where regional security tensions and efforts to grow economic ties are likely to dominate talks.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Czechia warns that DeepSeek can share all user information with the Chinese government

    U.S. lawmakers issued similar warnings after the China-based Hey Hi (AI) company released its eponymous chatbot.

  • France24 ☛ Syria after Assad: Journey through a war-ravaged nation in transition

    Seven months after the fall of Syria's former president Bashar al-Assad, FRANCE 24’s Wassim Nasr gained access to sites across the war-ravaged nation, some of which have long been inaccessible to journalists. From Aleppo to the remote city of Deir ez-Zor via Manbij, Damascus and ancient Palmyra, he recounts a country in the throes of profound change.

  • BIA Net ☛ In photos: PKK's historic disarmament ceremony

    A group of 30 PKK members, including senior executives, attended a symbolic ceremony.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong construction site suspended after falling iron beam kills 1, injures another

    The Hong Kong government has suspended a construction site near the city’s international airport after a worker was killed by a falling iron beam while another was injured. The fatal accident took place on Thursday at around 2pm at a site near the Boundary Crossing Facilities of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, according to local media […]

  • New York Times ☛ Judge Orders Los Angeles Police to Stop Shooting Projectiles at Journalists

    Los Angeles Police Department officers fired foam projectiles and flash-bang devices at reporters and photographers who were covering the immigration protests in June.

  • Defence Web ☛ EU funding boost for West African peace and stability

    Three African countries will benefit from European Union (EU) Peace Facility support as per announcements this week to improve security and stability in West Africa. Top of the list, alphabetically, is Cabo Verde followed by the Central African Republic (CAR) and Senegal.

  • Defence Web ☛ Sexual violence increasingly a weapon of war in Darfur – ICC Deputy Prosecutor

    Systematic rape and sexual violence are used as “weapons of war” in Darfur according to the International Criminal Court (ICC) as part of a larger investigation into conflict in Sudan.

  • Government to increase sexual offences courts

    Government is set to increase the national footprint of sexual offences courts as part of the fight against gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

  • JURIST ☛ UK use of Hey Hi (AI) in digital welfare system sparks human rights concerns

    The UK government’s increasing reliance on artificial intelligence and digital technologies in its social security system is leading to the systematic exclusion of people with disabilities, low-income communities, and other marginalized groups, warned Amnesty International on Thursday in a new report.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • RFERL ☛ Former Russian Transport Minister Buried As Questions Over His Death Swirl

      Roman Starovoit, who was found dead hours after President Vladimir Putin sacked him as Russia’s transport minister, was buried in a St. Petersburg cemetery amid continued questions about the circumstances surrounding his death.

    • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Says NATO Countries Will Buy Weapons to Give to Ukraine

      If the plan is finalized, it would allow critical aid to flow to Ukraine as it endures one of Russia’s heaviest assaults of the war.

    • RFERL ☛ US Weapons To Continue Flowing To Ukraine Through NATO, Convicted Felon Says

      The United States is sending weapons to Ukraine through NATO, US President The Insurrectionist said on July 10, a week after the Pentagon said some weapons deliveries to the war-torn country were being paused.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian FM says he has good feeling after Ukraine reconstruction conference

      Lithuania’s foreign minister says he sees prospects that coordinated efforts of the US and the EU will increase pressure on Russia.

    • France24 ☛ 'Growing sense from Ukraine they'll have to rely on themselves sans US, with limited EU support'

      Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky kicked off a European recovery conference in Rome as Moscow pounded Ukraine’s capital with another major missile and drone attack overnight in some of the heaviest attacks on Kyiv in the more than three-year war. The conference is expected to finalize individual deals of guarantees and grants to unlock more than 10 billion euros (around $12 billion) in investments, Meloni said.  For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, FRANCE 24's Mark Owen welcomes Dr Neil Melvin, Director of International Security at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI).

    • European Commission ☛ Joint press release: EU and Ukraine to boost battlefield-driven solutions with BraveTech EU

      European Commission Press release Rome, 11 Jul 2025 Together with Ukraine, the European Commission is announcing the BraveTech EU initiative, aimed at accelerating defence innovation through closer cooperation. Building on battlefield-tested innovations from Ukraine, BraveTech EU will strengthen the EU's and Ukraine's defence capabilities and deepen integration with Ukraine's defence industry.

    • European Commission ☛ Speech by Commissioner Micallef at the Ukraine Recovery Conference

      ‘From Policy to Action: Youth Development Ecosystem, Sport as a Bridge for Intergenerational Cohesion'

    • Meduza ☛ Putin issues executive order pledging to defend and promote the Russian language — Meduza

    • CS Monitor ☛ Why is Russia hitting Kharkiv dairies? One Ukrainian theory: Envy.

      Ukrainians aren’t entirely sure why Russia has been targeting Kharkiv’s dairies. But over the last three years the region, Ukraine’s third-largest producer of milk in 2021, has lost half its herd of 33,000 cows.

    • Meduza ☛ Trump to invoke presidential authority to send military aid to Ukraine — Reuters — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘He’s back on Ukrainian soil’: After ten years in Russian captivity and several days in basement detention at the Georgian border, political prisoner Andriy Kolomiyets returns to Ukraine — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Ukrainian colonel gunned down in Kyiv commanded secret intelligence unit that orchestrated assassinations of pro-Russian militants — Meduza

    • LRT ☛ Russian drone crashed in Lithuania – what you should know

      A Russian Gerbera drone crashed a kilometre inside Lithuania’s territory after entering from Belarus. Here’s what we know so far.

    • LRT ☛ Amid debate on Russian language in Vilnius, minister urges more effort to teach Lithuanian

      After a well-known journalist complained about hearing too much Russian spoken in Vilnius, Culture Minister Šarūnas Birutis says discussions should focus on teaching recent immigrants the Lithuanian language rather than restrictions.

    • Tom's Hardware ☛ Ex-ASML employee sentenced to three years' imprisonment for sharing company secrets with Russia

      An ex-ASML employee has been sentenced to three years imprisonment for sharing company secrets with a Russian contact.

    • JURIST ☛ UN expert condemns detention of Russia human rights lawyer

      The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Russia condemned on Wednesday the detention of a human rights lawyer from Kaliningrad, saying her arrest appeared to be retaliation for defending political prisoners. The case centers on Maria Bontsler, a 64-year-old human rights lawyer with a chronic medical condition.

    • France24 ☛ France is Russia's 'main enemy' says head of French army this Friday

      The head of the French army, General Thierry Burkhard, on Friday said France was Russia’s “main enemy in Europe” as he held a rare press conference ahead of President Emmanuel Macron's annual address to members of the armed forces. Sébastien Maillard, special advisor to the Jacques Delors Institute, is our guest.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Russian foreign minister arrives in North Korea, KCNA says

      Mr Sergei Lavrov’s visit, scheduled to July 13, includes a meeting between the countries' foreign ministers.

    • New York Times ☛ Russia Sees France as Its Main Enemy in Europe, French General Says

      During a rare news conference on Friday, the head of the French military, Thierry Burkhard, said Russia remains a “lasting, close” threat.

    • Meduza ☛ Kharkiv maternity hospital evacuated after Russian drone strike — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ ‘So we don’t end up back in the days of rabid Meduza’ Kremlin spokesman defends wartime censorship, praises patriotic media, and warns against outlets that ‘discredit Russia’ — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Commander of Russia’s 155th Guards Naval Infantry Brigade killed in war — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ A glob summer How a massive oil spill in the Black Sea derailed southern Russia’s tourism industry — Meduza

    • Meduza ☛ Son of Russian defense conglomerate official arrested in Spain on money laundering charges — Meduza

    • New York Times ☛ Want to Understand Russia? Visit Dubai.

      It’s a key refuge for Moscow’s wealthy, including the record producer Iosif Prigozhin. He insists he still loves President Vladimir V. Putin, no matter what you’ve heard.

    • RFERL ☛ Senate Backs Ukraine Aid In Draft Military Spending Bill Ahead Of Convicted Felon's Statement On Russia

      The US Senate Armed Services Committee has approved $500 million in security assistance for Ukraine in the draft 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) amid reports that President The Insurrectionist could separately announce a new round of aid for the embattled country.

    • France24 ☛ Nobel worthy Convicted Felon? Putin’s “Bullsh*t”, Emmanuel, Keir & the King

      It’s been a grim, record-breaking week for Ukraine, with Russia unleashing an unprecedented wave of missiles and drones, including decoys to overwhelm air defences. Amid the chaos, Convicted Felon seemed equally thrown—confused by Putin, then reversing course to reinstate military aid to Kyiv after pausing it just last week. Washington is now dangling sanctions as the carrot turns to stick in ceasefire efforts.

    • Atlantic Council ☛ Turning on Putin would fit Convicted Felon’s trend of second-term wins

      Taking a tougher stance on the Russian president, who has not yet taken peace-making efforts seriously, would build on Convicted Felon’s recent successes.

• Environment

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea mandates breaks for outdoor workers in deadly heat

    The South Korean Labour Ministry has also recommended that all work outdoors be suspended during heatwaves.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysian man steals electricity for Bitcoin mining operation, gets $36,000 fine

      Officers discovered illegal direct tapping cables that bypassed electricity meters during routine inspections.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Airports in Indonesia’s Java grounded by low demand and poor planning

      For example, Kertajati International Airport in West Java, suspended all domestic routes on June 2.

    • Pro Publica ☛ Some Texas Officials Didn’t Respond to Flood Alerts, Echoing Hurricane Helene Tragedy

      Nine months ago, Hurricane Helene barreled up from the Gulf of Mexico and slammed into the rugged mountains of western North Carolina, dumping a foot of rain onto an already saturated landscape. More than 100 people died, most by drowning in floodwaters or being crushed by water-fueled landslides.

      “We had no idea it was going to do what it did,” said Jeff Howell, the now-retired emergency manager in Yancey County, North Carolina, a rural expanse that suffered the most deaths per capita.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • The Straits Times ☛ China to resume Japanese beef imports after 24-year hiatus

      The pact would pave the way for the restart of Japanese beef shipments to China for the first time in 24 years.

    • Bruce Schneier ☛ Squid Dominated the Oceans in the Late Cretaceous

      New research:

      One reason the early years of squids has been such a mystery is because squids’ lack of hard shells made their fossils hard to come by. Undeterred, the team instead focused on finding ancient squid beaks—hard mouthparts with high fossilization potential that could help the team figure out how squids evolved.

• Finance

  • The Straits Times ☛ Philippines orders removal of gambling ads amid addiction fears

    This comes as the gaming industry is under increasing scrutiny following a boom in online gambling.

  • New Yorker ☛ Susan B. Glasser on the Deficit, and Why “We Are the Boiled Frog”

    The New Yorker staff writer explains the political implications of The Insurrectionist’s “Big Beautiful Bill.”

  • New Yorker ☛ Janet Yellen on the Danger of a “Banana Republic” Economy

    The former Treasury Secretary and chair of the Federal Reserve on the budget bill, the exploding deficit, and why The Insurrectionist is so desperate for lower interest rates.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Chinese province says okay for officials to hustle on the side in tepid economy

    Financial hardship among Chinese households has risen in recent years post-Covid.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Marcy Wheeler ☛ “Fuck You:” Todd Blanche Continues to Flopsweat over Emil Bove’s Contempt

    Todd Blanche's brief presence at a March 14 meeting appears to coincide with two things: Redactions in Erez Reuveni's whistleblower complaint, and the impetus for Emil Bove to start threatening to tell judges to fuck off.

  • LRT ☛ Lithuania's Gražulis and Tomaszewski among MEPs who voted to oust von der Leyen

    European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has survived a vote of no confidence in the European Parliament on Thursday, following accusations of a lack of transparency over text messages exchanged with Pfizer’s CEO during COVID-19 vaccine negotiations.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • The Straits Times ☛ Pakistan court suspends order seeking YouTube ban on government critics

    A Pakistani court on Friday suspended an order seeking to ban the YouTube channels of more than two dozen critics of the government including former Prime Minister Imran Khan, a defence lawyer said.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Press Gazette ☛ Prince Harry lawyers told to disclose details of payments to witnesses in Mail trial

    Judge condemns 'inconsistent and incoherent' approach of Prince Harry lawyers.

• Civil Rights/Policing

  • JURIST ☛ South Korea job laws discriminate against older workers, report finds

    Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a report on Tuesday criticizing South Korea’s age-based employment laws and policies, finding that they systematically discriminated against older workers in violation of international human rights standards. The report cites South Korea’s mandatory retirement ages, regressive wage structures, and re-employment practices as violations of international law.

  • JURIST ☛ UN experts condemn Thailand for using lèse-majesté laws against pro-democracy activists

    UN experts on Friday voiced concern over ongoing judicial proceedings against Thai human rights defender Pimsiri Petchnamrob, urging the Thai government to drop all charges against her and other human rights defenders involved in pro-democracy protests.

  • Pro Publica ☛ Anchorage Rebuilds Prosecutor’s Office After Hundreds of Dropped Cases

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man’s Purge of Foreign Workers Arrives at Amazon’s Warehouses

    The tech giant has quietly shed warehouse employees whose work authorizations were revoked after the Convicted Felon administration ended a Biden-era immigration program.

  • Breach Media ☛ Snap out of denial—Mark Carney’s rightward-rushing agenda is just getting started

    Mark Carney is slashing public service, supercharging military spending, and ramming through a right-wing agenda—while much of the country stays stuck in denial

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong police vow to pursue ex-singer Tommy Yuen after bail jump in theft case

    Hong Kong police have vowed to pursue former Cantopop singer Tommy Yuen “to the end” after he fled the city while facing theft charges.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Public Knowledge ☛ Why the FTC’s Click-to-Cancel Rule Deserved Better

  The cancellation of click-to-cancel is a yet another blow to consumer protection.

• IP Kat ☛ 2025-07-07 [Older] Pitfalls of cell therapy manufacturing IP - A case study (T 0868/23) [Ed: It's not "IP"]

• Patents

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Federal Circuit Wrestles with Prosecution Laches in Sonos v. Google

    In 2020, Sonos sued Surveillance Giant Google in the N.D. of California, asserting two “zone scenes”  wireless speaker patents (US 10,848,885 and 10,469,966) that allow for overlapping groups of speakers. A jury found Surveillance Giant Google liable and awarded $30 million in damages. In an unusual move, District Judge William Alsup threw out the verdict in a 55-page post-trial order. He held the patents unenforceable for prosecution laches and invalid for lack of written description support. Judge Alsup found Sonos had engaged in a “daisy chain” continuation strategy to keep the patent monopoly family alive for over 13 years.  Although longer than average, this timeline is not long for a patent monopoly family recognized as valuable. 

  • Kangaroo Courts

    • JUVE ☛ Court of Appeal to get third panel [Ed: Klaus Grabinski is connected to EPO corruption and this entire kangaroo court is illegal and unconstitutional. This publisher did PR for Klaus Grabinski and does not disclose that it is funded by those who profit from the ongoing illegalities.]

      Last week, the UPC’s Administrative Committee met and approved an additional panel for the Court of Appeal. The court currently has two panels under presiding judges Klaus Grabinski and Rian Kalden.

  • Software Patents

    • Unified Patents ☛ Nchain blockchain patent monopoly challenged

      On July 10, 2025, Unified Patents filed an ex parte reexamination proceeding against U.S. Patent 12,032,677, owned by Nchain Holdings Limited, an NPE. The ‘677 patent monopoly generally relates to consensus-based electronic ledgers, and in particular to blockchain implementations and technologies.

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ Oops! Opposer Fails to Prove Statutory Standing: Submitting Ordinary Copy of Registration Not Enough

    Waldencast UK Limited filed an opposition to registration of the mark COATER for various skin care products, alleging likelihood of confusion with its registered mark COATS for non-medicated cosmetics. Neither party submitted testimony or other evidence and only Opposer Waldencast filed a brief. Looks like a slam dunk, right? Not so fast there, Charlie. Waldencast UK Limited v. Oretia LLC, Opposition No. 91286541 (July 1, 2025) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Mary Beth Myles).

  • Digital Music News ☛ T.I. Quickly Barred From Using ‘Situationships’ Movie Title by a Federal Judge

    A federal New York judge has issued an injunction preventing T.I. and his team from using the title “Situationships” for their upcoming film. T.I. has quickly been barred from using the title “Situationships” for his upcoming project after a trademark battle ensued with another production company.

  • IP Kat ☛ 2025-07-07 [Older] CRYSTAL VAPE: Proving unregistered earlier rights

• Copyrights

  • Digital Music News ☛ Verizon Moves to Stay Major Label Infringement Suit Pending Supreme Court’s Cox Communications Ruling

    As the Supreme Court prepares to hear a marathon copyright monopoly case involving Cox Communications, Verizon is looking to stay the separate infringement action it’s fending off from the major labels. Verizon just recently asked the court to pause the process pending the Supreme Court ruling.

  • France24 ☛ EU orders Hey Hi (AI) companies to clean up their act, stop using pirated data

    The European Commission wants Hey Hi (AI) companies to stop using pirated data and allow creators to withhold their copyrighted material. This comes amid the rise of a massive global workforce of remote workers from poor countries, who provide bespoke data via third party brokers. We take a closer look in this edition of Tech 24.

  • Digital Music News ☛ SoundCloud Taps elasticStage to Offer On-Demand Vinyl Production — Though Artists are Understandably Cautious

    SoundCloud has announced a new partnership with elasticStage, aiming to make vinyl production accessible for artists through on-demand printing. Artists are understandably wary of on-demand vinyl outfits, though. The collaboration introduces a print-on-demand model that enables creators to offer vinyls to their fans without upfront costs, minimum orders, or inventory management.