Leftovers

• Hackaday ☛ Necroprinting Isn’t As Bad As It Sounds

  A mosquito has a very finely tuned proboscis that is excellent at slipping through your skin to suck out the blood beneath. Researchers at McGill University recently figured that the same biological structure could also prove useful in another was—as a fine and precise nozzle for 3D printing (via Tom’s Hardware).

• Science

  • CS Monitor ☛ ‘The tools to imagine solutions’: Science educator inspires Pakistani children

    Science Fuse, a social enterprise, primarily teaches children in impoverished areas, including the Machar Colony slum area in Karachi.

  • Science Alert ☛ Study Reveals The Age You Hit The 'Tipping Point' Into Frailty

    The point of no return.

  • Science Alert ☛ New Breakthrough to Strengthen Bone Could Reverse Osteoporosis

    A potential treatment for millions.

  • Science Alert ☛ Molecule Vital to Happiness Found in Material From Asteroid Bennu

    Maybe we all came from the stars.

  • Science Alert ☛ 7th HIV Remission Raises Hope of Long-Lasting Treatment For More People

    This could save lives

  • Science Alert ☛ Plants Stopped Thriving When Earth Warmed 56 Million Years Ago

    Today, we're heating Earth 10x faster.

  • Science Alert ☛ Common Infection Is Rapidly Becoming Resistant to Drugs, Scientists Warn

    This is a global problem.

  • Bert Hubert ☛ TU Delft lecture: Security of Science

    This is a mostly verbatim transcript of my lecture at the TU Delft VvTP Physics symposium “Security of Science” held on the 20th of November.

    Audio version (scroll along the page to see the associated slides): Thank you so much for being here tonight. It’s a great honor. I used to study here. I’m a dropout. I never finished my studies, so I feel like I graduate tonight. This is a somewhat special presentation, it has footnotes and references, which you can browse later if you like what you saw.

• Hardware

  • Futurism ☛ China Is Officially Scared of Robots

    It's just way too much.

  • Hackaday ☛ Quiet Your Drums With An Electronic Setup

    Playing the drums requires a lot of practice, but that practice can be incredibly loud. A nice workaround is presented by [PocketBoy], in converting an acoustic kit to electronic operation so you can play with headphones instead.

  • Hackaday ☛ TARS-Like Robot Both Rolls, And Walks

    [Aditya Sripada] and [Abhishek Warrier]’s TARS3D robot came from asking what it would take to make a robot with the capabilities of TARS, the robotic character from Interstellar. We couldn’t find a repository of CAD files or code but the research paper for TARS3D explains the principles, which should be enough to inspire a motivated hacker.

  • Hackaday ☛ Converting A 1980s Broadcast Camera To HDMI

    Although it might seem like there was a sudden step change from analog to digital sometime in the late 1900s, it was actually a slow, gradual change from things like record players to iPods or from magnetic tape to hard disk drives. Some of these changes happened slowly within the same piece of hardware, too. Take the Sony DXC-3000A, a broadcast camera from the 1980s. Although it outputs an analog signal, this actually has a discrete pixel CCD sensor capturing video. [Colby] decided to finish the digitization of this camera and converted it to output HDMI instead of the analog signal it was built for.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • The Straits Times ☛ Mask up: PM2.5 pollution blankets Bangkok, with Sathorn district severely affected

    Nearly the entire Bangkok Metropolitan Region now have conditions that can affect public health.

  • LRT ☛ Psychologist access in Lithuania: easier for the high earners, a struggle for seniors

    A survey conducted by Baltijos tyrimai for LRT.lt shows that 40% of Lithuanian residents believe psychological services are hard to access due to long waiting lists. Meanwhile, mental-health experts say the greater problem is continuity of care: a few free consultations are rarely enough to resolve deeper issues.

  “In one of her books, Kristina Sabaliauskaitė described it perfectly – Vilnius has two world-famous icons: the Virgin Mary of the Gate of Dawn and the Image of Divine Mercy,” says journalist, broadcaster and pilgrim Rimas Šapauskas.

• Bridge Michigan ☛ 1 in 6 Michigan moms use weed during pregnancy, study finds

  Researchers at Michigan State University found marital status, education, depressive symptoms and adverse childhood experiences are factors contributing to prenatal cannabis use.

• Bridge Michigan ☛ Michigan tops doula goal in push to improve maternal and infant health

  Michigan has rapidly expanded doula access, already doubling its goal to have 500 registered doulas by 2028. The state began covering the service through Medicaid in 2023.

• Stanford University ☛ HIV/AIDS education nonprofit celebrates 15 years of collaboration with Stanford

  Collaboration with the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education has allowed the Stanford-born health education non-profit to distribute materials to over half a billion students globally.

• Stanford University ☛ From the Community | Today’s youth must renew their advocacy this World AIDS Day

  Aya Aziz '25 argues for the importance of World AIDS Day and encourages students to fight to continue advocacy in global health.

• Federal News Network ☛ Congress faces a packed December agenda and big decisions on healthcare subsidies

  "I think there's actually a lot of nervousness right now about what is going to happen with [outgoing Comptroller Gene Dodaro]," said Mitchell Miller.

• Federal News Network ☛ HHS faces months-long backlog of reasonable accommodation requests from employees

  The Department of Health and Human Services expects it will take six to eight months to clear a backlog of reasonable accommodation requests from employees.

• Federal News Network ☛ Chairman of vaccine committee leaves for new HHS job

  U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has replaced the head of his controversial vaccine advisory committee.

• Latvia ☛ Don't leave open flames unsupervised, firefighters urge public

  With the winter holiday season coming, the State Fire and Rescue Service (VUGD) urges everyone to be careful so that a small candle does not cause a major fire, Latvian Radio reported on 30 November.

• The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia introduces Bill to curb school bullying as cases spike

  The number of bullying cases in the South-east Asian nation rose 18 per cent to 7,681 in 2024.

• The Straits Times ☛ Prices of vegetables in Malaysia may increase if rain persists

  Recent flooding in Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia had begun to push up prices of vegetables.

• The Straits Times ☛ Concern in China over fire hazards in tall buildings following deadly Hong Kong blaze

  The Chinese authorities have started a national campaign to inspect and rectify the hazards in such buildings.

• The Straits Times ☛ China’s $1 flu shots show price squeeze for vaccine makers

  Once riding high on the Covid-19 boom, China’s vaccine industry now faces a reckoning.

• CS Monitor ☛ With school violence rising, Europe eyes a usual suspect: Social media

  Violence at schools has been a growing problem in Europe. For teachers and officials, the solution is to restrict youth’s access to social control media.

• NYPost ☛ Inside RFK Jr’s needy love, drug use and cringe poetry, as Olivia Nuzzi book reveals how he hid bad behavior

  From alleged use of psychedelic drugs to hiding his wedding photos, all the ways "The Politician" covered up his messy affairs.

• Hackaday ☛ Australia’s New Asbestos Scare In Schools

  Asbestos is a nasty old mineral. It’s known for releasing fine, microscopic fibers that can lodge in the body’s tissues and cause deadly disease over a period of decades. Originally prized for its fire resistance and insulating properties, it was widely used in all sorts of building materials. Years after the dangers became clear, many countries eventually banned its use, with strict rules around disposal to protect the public from the risk it poses to health.

• Science Alert ☛ There's a Surprising Link Between a Key Nutrient, Obesity, And Alzheimer's Risk

  "Most people don't realize they aren't getting enough."

• Science Alert ☛ A Natural Molecule May Help Clear Buildup of Alzheimer's Proteins, Study Finds

  "Like cheese that connects the long, thin pasta."

• Science Alert ☛ Common Acne Medication Linked With 30% Lower Schizophrenia Risk

  Tentative, but exciting.

• Science Alert ☛ Celebrities Are Now Cloning Their Pets, But Experts Warn of Hidden Risks

  A 'forever pet' might leave you heartbroken instead.

• European Commission ☛ Commissioner Roswall's opening address at the 5th EU Clean Air Forum

  Welcome to the fifth EU Clean Air Forum in the beautiful city of Bonn and in this historic Bundestag plenary chamber.

Proprietary

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

  • ACLU ☛ Another Police Use of AI

    The police technology company Axon has gotten a lot of attention for its “Draft One” product, which uses body camera recordings to generate a first draft of a police report for officers after an incident. But the company has another Hey Hi (AI) product called “Policy Chat” that I haven’t seen much discussion of.

    The product uses large language models (LLMs), combined with an Hey Hi (AI) technique called Retrieval-Augmented Generations, or RAG, to provide officers in the field answers about their department’s official procedures and policies. Examples given by Axon of questions it might answer include “What is the protocol for handling domestic violence calls?” and “What is the department’s off duty employment policy.” In theory a department could have a phone bank of lawyers on call for officers to ring them up with questions. This product can best be thought of as trying to provide a scaled up, automated form of that service.

  • dwaves.de ☛ do not copy paste Hey Hi (AI) answers un double checked: why it is important to double check double think whatever LLM Hey Hi (AI) is saying

• Social Control Media

  • Digital Music News ☛ No Kids, the Wiggles Don’t Do Drugs: Aussie Children’s Music Group Responds After ‘Ecstasy’ Clip Blows Up on TikTok

    Beloved Aussie children’s music group The Wiggles issued a statement after a music video alluding to drug use featured a clip of two of its members. A music video for musician Keli Holiday’s new song, “Ecstasy,” featured a clip of two members from beloved Australian children’s music group The Wiggles.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Australian teen challenging social control media ban says internet will be less safe

    He said parents, not the government, should decide how children use social control media.

  • Futurism ☛ OpenAI Preparing to Stuff Ads Into ChatGPT, According to Beta Code in App

    It was always a matter of time.

• Windows TCO / Windows Bot Nets

  • SANS ☛ Hunting for SharePoint In-Memory ToolShell Payloads, (Tue, Dec 2nd)

Pseudo-Open Source

• Openwashing

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Open-source image generator startup Black Forest Labs raises $300M

  • The Case for an Open Source Patent Search System

    Something important happened at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) last month, and it did not get nearly the attention it deserved. The Office rolled out its Artificial Intelligence Search Automated Pilot (ASAP) Program, and for the first time, Hey Hi (AI) is now part of the pre-examination process, rather than operating around it. Given where things stand, this move almost feels inevitable. Filings keep climbing, examiners are stretched thin, and first office action pendency  reached an all-time high of 22.6 months in FY 2025. Anyone who has spent time in prosecution knows the system needs help.

Security

• Privacy/Surveillance

  • The Straits Times ☛ ByteDance rolls out Hey Hi (AI) voice assistant for Chinese smartphones

    The Hey Hi (AI) assistant is powered by ByteDance’s popular Doubao large language model.

  • NYOB ☛ Digital Omnibus: First Analysis of Select GDPR and ePrivacy Proposals by the Commission

    Digital Omnibus: First Analysis of Select GDPR and ePrivacy Proposals by the Commission

  • American Oversight ☛ American Oversight Urges DHS to Halt Unlawful Expansion of SAVE System Citing Data Privacy, Eligible Voter Purge Concerns

    Transforming SAVE into a sweeping repository of Americans’ personal information threatens data security and could wrongfully remove lawfully registered voters from the rolls.

  • The Straits Times ☛ KL police under fire after ‘gay spa’ raid exposes men’s identities but yields no prosecutions

    Advocacy groups criticised the raid for privacy violations as the media filmed partially clothed men in towels.

  • The Straits Times ☛ India orders mobile phones preloaded with government app to ensure cyber safety

    The move is likely to antagonise Fashion Company Apple and privacy advocates.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean teen’s death reignites debate over privacy; shop had spread images of her shoplifting

    Her father said she collapsed under "fear and despair".

  • Security Week ☛ Facial Recognition’s Trust Problem

    Two technologies — one for public safety, one for controlled entry — show why trust in facial recognition must be earned, not assumed.

• Confidentiality

  • The Straits Times ☛ Coupang data leak: S. Korean police tracing IP addresses, looking into possible tech weaknesses

    Coupang said the breach did not expose customers' payment details or login credentials.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean leader calls for penalties over e-commerce data leak

    Seoul has said the leak took place through overseas servers from June 24 to Nov 8.

Defence/Aggression

• The Straits Times ☛ Damaged Shenzhou-20 spacecraft to return to Earth uncrewed for inspection

  China's first crewed spacecraft to be ruled unfit to fly in mid-mission will be sent back to Earth for experts to assess the damage it sustained more closely, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Monday.

• The Straits Times ☛ Nearly half of China flights to Japan cut in December, Chinese state media says

  Sapporo and Osaka saw the biggest cuts as a percentage of planned services, data shows.

• The Straits Times ☛ China sends another letter to UN chief over Japan PM’s Taiwan remarks

  The second letter by Mr Fu Cong refuted Japan’s position and accused Tokyo of “making unreasonable arguments”.

• The Straits Times ☛ China, Japan give conflicting accounts of confrontation around Senkaku Islands

  Japan’s Coast Guard said it intercepted and expelled two Chinese Coast Guard ships.

• The Straits Times ☛ No room for compromise on Taiwan’s security, president tells reservists

  Freedom and democracy are core foundational values that have nothing to do with ideological disputes, President Lai said.

• The Straits Times ☛ Trial begins for former South Korean president Yoon over Pyongyang drone allegations

  The former leader allegedly sent the drones to goad North Korea into retaliatory action.

• The Straits Times ☛ At trial of South Korea's Unification Church head, prosecutors allege luxury bribes

  Dec 1 - The trial of the head of South Korea's Unification Church started on Monday, with prosecutors portraying Han Hak-ja as keen to exert political influence and accusing her of using Chanel bags to bribe former First Lady Kim Keon Hee.

• The Straits Times ☛ South Koreans arrested in Iran on smuggling charges, Seoul says

  SEOUL, Dec 1 - South Korean nationals have been arrested in Iran on suspicion of smuggling, South Korea's foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday, but declined to confirm the number of people arrested.

• The Straits Times ☛ How South Korea’s brief martial law upended lives

  Protesters in 2024 took to the streets in the freezing cold and rallied outside then President Yoon’s residence.

• The Straits Times ☛ Tajikistan says five Chinese nationals killed in cross-border attacks from Afghanistan in past week

  Five Chinese nationals have been killed and five more injured in Tajikistan in attacks launched from neighbouring Afghanistan over the past week, Tajik authorities and China's embassy in the Central Asian country said on Monday.

• The Straits Times ☛ Philippines delays award of key bridge project amid China risk

  The US has sanctioned units of the winning bidder over their role in building China’s outposts in the South China Sea.

• France24 ☛ White House holds high-level talks as Convicted Felon ramps up Venezuela campaign

  US President The Insurrectionist met senior national security advisers on Monday to discuss the pressure campaign on Venezuela, a US official said, without providing details. The talks came as Convicted Felon intensifies efforts to curb alleged drug shipments originating from the South American nation.

• Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

  • JURIST ☛ Russia Supreme Court labels deceased opposition figure Navalny’s foundation ‘terrorist’

    The Supreme Court of Russia, in a closed-door decision on Friday, designated the Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF/FBK) as a “terrorist organisation.” The ruling specifically affects Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF), Inc., a U.S.-registered entity, and the late opposition leader Alexeï Navalny’s movement against corruption since 2022.

  • Meduza ☛ Would a ‘drone wall’ solve the E.U.’s Russian incursion problem? German military expert Frank Sauer is skeptical. — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ As Russia conceals HIV data, report finds rising infection rates among pregnant women — Meduza

  • France24 ☛ LIVE: US envoy to meet Russia's Putin for talks on ending Ukraine war

    US envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian President Vladimir Putin are expected to hold talks in Moscow on Tuesday to discuss the Convicted Felon administration's controversial proposal to end the war in Ukraine. Follow our liveblog for the latest developments.

  • New York Times ☛ Putin to Meet With Convicted Felon’s Envoy as U.S. Pushes for Ukraine Deal

    In Moscow, Steve Witkoff, Hell Toupée’s special envoy, is expected to present President Vladimir V. Putin with a revised proposal to end the war in Ukraine.

  • New York Times ☛ Zelensky Turns to Europe After Talks With U.S. Officials

    Ukraine’s president met with President Emmanuel Macron of France on Monday as Steve Witkoff, Hell Toupée’s special envoy, was traveling to Russia.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Russia's Putin seeks to boost energy, defence exports with India visit

    NEW DELHI, Dec 2 - Russian President Vladimir Putin starts a two-day visit to India from Thursday, pitching for more sales of Russian oil, missile systems and fighter jets in a bid to restore energy and defence ties hit by U.S. pressure on the South Asian nation.

  • The Strategist ☛ Lesson from Ukraine: US, Taiwan need interceptor drones and wide-area jammers

    The deep strike calculus was already changing for all the world’s leading military powers when, back in August, Ukraine dramatically illustrated the shifting balance of power by revealing a powerful and inexpensive new cruise missile [...]

  • Ukraine reportedly attacks tanker carrying Russian oil off Senegal

    A Turkish tanker sailing under the Panamian flag was reportedly attacked by Ukrainian USVs (unmanned surface vessels) and is sinking [...]

  • Five suspects in custody for recruiting South Africans for Russia-Ukraine war

    Crack South African police investigation unit – the Hawks – has made five arrests in connection with the recruitment of [...]

  • France24 ☛ Belgian PM digs in against EU push to use Russian assets for Ukraine

    Belgium's Prime Minister Bart De Wever has called an EU plan to use frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine "fundamentally wrong", throwing further doubt on a push to agree the move next month. In a letter to European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen seen by AFP Friday, De Wever pushed back strongly on the initiative and urged against venturing "into unchartered legal and financial waters". FRANCE 24's Dave Keating reports from Brussels.

  • France24 ☛ Macron calls for Europeans to have a seat at the table in Ukraine negotiations

    French President Emmanuel Macron and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky launched a flurry of diplomatic activity during hours-long talks at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Monday. Macron said he hoped that ongoing talks around ending the war in Ukraine could be a "turning point" for both the Ukrainians and Europe's own security situation.

  • France24 ☛ Macron - Zelensky: ‘No peace deal without Ukraine and Europe’

    French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gave a joint address on Monday, speaking about peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.

    Zelensky notably stated that Russia must not be rewarded for its invasion in February 2022.

  • France24 ☛ Intense diplomacy in Paris as Macron and Zelensky seek consensus on peace plan

    As Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky jointly addressed the public regarding peace negotiations in Ukraine, FRANCE 24's senior journalist Catherine Norris Trent reports that diplomatic activity at the Élysée appears intense. Numerous delegates are working to secure as much support as possible in a short time, aiming to persuade both the United States and Russia to back a peace plan that is more acceptable than the 28-point proposal put forward by the US a few days ago, especially on security guarantees.

  • France24 ☛ 'We will continue to support Ukraine's resistance', Macron says in joint speech

    French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that work on the security guarantees had been “finalised” following his meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, while adding that the United States’ involvement in these “guarantees” would be discussed with Washington next week. FRANCE 24's Philip Turle breaks down the rest of the joint address, shedding light on the key issues of the discussion.

  • JURIST ☛ Ukraine condemned for withdrawing from mine ban treaty

    Five humanitarian disarmament coalitions and 77 civil society organizations on Saturday condemned Ukraine’s suspension of the 1997 Mine Ban Convention, also known as the Ottawa Convention. The civil society coalitions and organizations stated that the Ottawa Convention does not allow for states parties’ obligations to be suspended, including during wartime.

  • LRT ☛ Lithuania's Interior Ministry proposes broader govt powers over use of Ukrainian flags

    Lithuania’s Interior Ministry has drafted amendments that would allow the government to decide when foreign flags – including Ukraine’s – may be flown at state or municipal institutions, following political debate over their legality.

  • RFERL ☛ Zelenskyy In Paris, Witkoff To Moscow, In 'Pivotal Week' For Ukraine Talks

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived at the Elysee Palace in Paris for talks with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, kicking off another week of intense diplomacy aimed at ending nearly four years of fighting in Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion.

  • New York Times ☛ A Crucial Week in Ukraine Peace Negotiations

    Plus, a court voids another Convicted Felon appointee. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

  • Meduza ☛ Ukrainian war-tracking project DeepState accuses crypto prediction platform Polymarket of using its battlefield data for real-time gambling — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Expanding the war at sea, Ukraine attacks two Russian ‘shadow fleet’ oil tankers off the Turkish coast — Meduza

  • Meduza ☛ Ukrainian political scientist Volodymyr Fesenko explains what Yermak’s resignation means for Zelensky and the peace process — Meduza

  • Security Week ☛ New Albiriox Android Malware Developed by Russian Cybercriminals

    Albiriox is a banking trojan offered under a malware-as-a-service model for $720 per month.

  • Futurism ☛ Severe Accident Destroys Russia’s Ability to Launch Astronauts Into Space

    The damage is extensive.

  • New York Times ☛ Russian Launch Site Mishap Leaves Country’s Space Program in Limbo

    The ability of Russia to launch astronauts to the International Space Station remains in limbo after an incident last week at the Baikonur base in Kazakhstan.

  • LRT ☛ FSB-linked firm obtained sensitive data on Lithuania’s Klaipėda port – media

    A company connected to a former Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officer gained access to sensitive information about Lithuania’s port of Klaipėda after carrying out dredging works between 2016 and 2018.

  • LRT ☛ Lithuania mulls moving night flights to Kaunas over balloons from Belarus

    Lithuania is looking into moving night flights from Vilnius to its second-largest city of Kaunas as smuggling balloons continue to disrupt operations at Vilnius Airport, the spokesperson for Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė said on Monday.

  • LRT ☛ Lithuania asks EU Commission to help recover trucks stuck in Belarus, back new sanctions

    Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys and Transport Minister Juras Taminskas have urged the European Commission to help recover trucks stranded in Belarus and to impose further sanctions on the Minsk regime in response to the recent wave of smugglers’ balloon incursions.

  • France24 ☛ US Navy commander authorised second strike on Venezuela vessel, White House says

    The White House said Monday a Navy admiral acted “within his authority and the law” in ordering a second strike on a suspected drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean on Sept. 2, after bipartisan calls for reviews of US maritime operations following reports of a verbal order that killed survivors.

  • New Yorker ☛ The Dishonorable Strikes on Venezuelan Boats

    New reporting suggests that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated multiple rules of war.

  • New York Times ☛ Hegseth Ordered Lethal Boat Strike but Not the Killing of Survivors, Officials Say

    Amid talk of war crimes, the details and precise sequence of a Sept. 2 attack on a boat in the Caribbean are facing intensifying scrutiny.

  • New York Times ☛ For Convicted Felon, Hegseth’s Approach to Venezuela Strikes Is a Growing Liability

    Investigations are mounting into the legality of strikes that have killed scores of people in the waters off Venezuela.

Environment

• France24 ☛ Asia floods death toll tops 1,160 as troops aid survivors

  The toll in deadly flooding and landslides across parts of Asia climbed past 1,160 on Monday as hardest-hit Sri Lanka and Indonesia deployed military personnel to help survivors. Speaking with FRANCE 24's Mark Owen, Dr Akshay Deoras, Research Scientist at the National Centre for Atmospheric Science at the University of Reading, says that 'the focus has to shift from talking about climate change to really dealing with it on the ground and keep people away from vulnerable areas'.

• Energy/Transportation

  • The Straits Times ☛ Runner hit by truck during South Korean marathon dies

    He was hit by a truck while running on a lane that had been closed to traffic for the race.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Unsafe construction netting found at Tai Po fire site, 13 arrests for alleged manslaughter – officials

    Some construction netting samples taken from the site of the fatal Tai Po blaze have failed to meet fire safety standards, authorities say. Meanwhile, 13 people have now been arrested for suspected manslaughter, the police force’s Director of Crime and Security Joe Chan Tung said during a media briefing on Monday.

  • Security Week ☛ $29 Million Worth of Bitcoin Seized in Cryptomixer Takedown

    Cryptomixer was targeted by law enforcement in Operation Olympia for facilitating cybercrime and money laundering. 

  • Hackaday ☛ Using A Level 2 Charger To Work Around Slow 120 VAC Kettles

    To those of us who live in the civilized lands where ~230 VAC mains is the norm and we can shove a cool 3.5 kW into an electric kettle without so much as a second thought, the mere idea of trying to boil water with 120 VAC and a tepid 1.5 kW brings back traumatic memories of trying to boil water with a 12 VDC kettle while out camping. Naturally, in a fit of nationalistic pride this leads certain North American people like that bloke over at the [Technology Connections] YouTube to insist that this is fine, as he tries to demonstrate how ridiculous 240 VAC kettles are by abusing a North American Level 2 car charger to power a UK-sourced kettle.

Finance

• New York Times ☛ Starbucks to Pay $39 Million in Landmark N.Y.C. Labor Law Settlement

  Starbucks agreed to the settlement after failing to give workers stable schedules. Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect, joined striking Starbucks workers in Brooklyn.

AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

• New York Times ☛ After Convicted Felon’s M.R.I. Claim, His Doctor’s Memo Offers Little Clarity

  While the president said he had a M.R.I. exam, a physician’s memo released by the White House was less specific.

• The Straits Times ☛ South Korea special prosecutor indicts Seoul mayor for violating political funding law

  Oh is accused of running an opinion poll through the broker and having a third person pay for the poll.

• The Straits Times ☛ Malaysian PM Anwar rules out Cabinet reshuffle

  This is because the Cabinet only has about two years to serve, said Mr Anwar.

• LRT ☛ Lithuanian MPs form group to normalise diplomatic ties with China

  Several Lithuanian lawmakers have established a parliamentary group aimed at removing obstacles to the restoration of diplomatic relations with China, the group’s chair Ignas Vėgėlė announced on Monday.

• JURIST ☛ Thousands protest in the Philippines demanding accountability and President’s resignation

  Thousands of protesters in the Philippines on Sunday, including the Roman Catholic church clergy, called for the resignation of the country’s President and the prosecution of high-level officials over a corruption scandal tied to flood-control infrastructure.

• European Commission ☛ Joint Statement by President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney

  European Commission Press release Brussels, 01 Dec 2025 Conclusion of negotiations on an Agreement between the European Union and Canada under the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) Instrument.

• The Straits Times ☛ OSCE observers say Kyrgyzstan election was efficient but freedoms increasingly limited

  OSCE election observers said on Monday that a weekend parliamentary election in Kyrgyzstan had been efficiently run, but stifled by a restrictive campaign environment and that fundamental freedoms were increasingly limited.

Censorship/Free Speech

• Hong Kong Free Press ☛ 2 ‘subversive’ overseas groups officially banned in Hong Kong

  Hong Kong has officially banned two overseas political groups it deems subversive from operating in the city.

Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

• RFERL ☛ Lawyer Raises Alarm As Journalist Nika Novak Disappears From Siberian Prison

  Former RFE/RL contributor Nika Novak, who was sentenced to prison last year by a Russian court for carrying out her professional duties, has disappeared from a Siberian correctional colony, her lawyer said.

• Press Gazette ☛ Canadian streaming TV platform invests in news

  Addition of news part of plan for Crave to reach six million subscribers by end of 2028.

• Press Gazette ☛ Guardian faces trial after influencer sues over ‘alt-right agitator’ label

  Andy Ngo said 'alt-right' label synonymous with racist or far-right beliefs.

  [...]

  Ngo sued GNM for libel over the phrase “‘alt-right’ agitator”, arguing that the descriptor “alt-right” was synonymous with racist or far-right beliefs and that “agitator” suggested that he took action on those beliefs and was not just an “armchair observer”.

  Ngo is an American social media influencer who now lives in London and has published a book titled: “Unmasked: Inside antifa’s [anti-fascists’] radical plan to destroy democracy.” He is also an editor at Canadian-based website The Post Millennial.

  Lawyer Ben Gallop, for The Guardian, told a pre-trial hearing held on 19 November that the article was a “humorous, opinionated and pithy music review”.

  According to the judgment, Gallop said: “The ordinary reasonable reader would read this once only and the fleeting reference to the Claimant would make very little impression. The reader would not be thinking about what definition applies to the alt-right – this would be overly analytical.”

  He argued that “alt-right” was in quotation marks to indicate that this is how other people have characterised Ngo’s beliefs.

  He also argued it was a statement of opinion – honest is a defence for libel under UK law – as it was a “criticism, judgment, remark or observation” about Ngo’s publicly stated views.

  However in a judgment published on Friday, Deputy High Court Judge Guy Vassall-Adams KC found that the phrase was “plainly defamatory at common law” as the natural and ordinary meaning was that Ngo “actively promotes far right beliefs”.

Civil Rights/Policing

• JURIST ☛ Turkey abused justice system in arrest of 87 protestors, Amnesty International says

  Amnesty International reported Friday that an acquittal of 87 individuals, including protestors, journalists, and lawyers, reveals an endemic misuse of the criminal justice system by the Turkish government and authorities. Those acquitted had originally been arrested and detained for eight months following the police response to largely peaceful protests held between March 19 and 26.

• PHR ☛ Federal Immigration Agents Misused Dangerous Crowd-Control Weapons Against Journalists and Protestors in Los Angeles: New PHR Amicus Brief

  U.S. federal law enforcement repeatedly misused rubber bullets, pepper balls, tear gas cannisters, and flash-bang grenades in harmful and dangerous ways against journalists, medics, and peaceful protestors during demonstrations in Los Angeles, California over the summer of 2025, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) argues in a new amicus brief filed [...]

Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

• Michael Geist ☛ The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 252: Len St-Aubin on the CRTC’s Plan To Modernize Canadian Content Rules

  The CRTC recently released its much anticipated decision on Canadian content rules, the first of two decisions that could reshape broadcasting and film/TV production in Canada. The Commission promoted its Cancon approach as offering new flexibility into the system but the fine print matters as some changes may be more restrictive than they appear at first glance.