Leftovers

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ Most People Give Up New Year's Resolutions. Here's How to Turn Failure Positive.

    It's a matter of perspective.

  • Science Alert ☛ Gestational Diabetes in US Surges by 36 Percent Over Last Decade

    What we're doing isn't working.

  • Science Alert ☛ Blood of Exceptionally Long-Lived People Reveals Crucial Differences

    What can we learn from them?

  • Science Alert ☛ Three Supermassive Black Holes Discovered on Collision Course in a Cosmic First

    And we have a front row seat.

  • Science Alert ☛ Feeling The Post-Christmas Blues? These Simple Actions Can Help

    You're not alone.

  • Science Alert ☛ DNA Study of 117-Year-Old Woman Reveals Clues to Long Life

    What can we learn from her?

  • Science Alert ☛ 'Mini-Brains' Reveal Hidden Signals of Schizophrenia And Bipolar Disorder

    They have unique neural signatures.

  • Science Alert ☛ Why Do Songs Get Stuck in Your Head? A Psychologist Explains Earworms

    And how to get rid of annoying ones.

  • Science Alert ☛ Hubble Reveals Extreme Chaos Inside 'Dracula's Sandwich'

    The largest planetary birthplace ever found.

• Hardware

  • CNX Software ☛ DFRobot HUSKYLENS 2 Hey Hi (AI) camera review – From built-in Hey Hi (AI) samples to training a custom model to detect elephants

    Hello, today I am going to review the HUSKYLENS 2, released in October 2025. It is the next generation of HUSKYLENS, an Hey Hi (AI) vision sensor equipped with a Kendryte K230 dual-core RISC-V SoC with a 6 TOPS Hey Hi (AI) accelerator and a 2.4-inch IPS touchscreen. The device runs machine vision algorithms fully on-device, providing fast and low-latency performance, and includes more than 15 built-in Hey Hi (AI) models.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Start-up plans to use terahertz radio frequencies for communication between servers instead of copper or optical connections — radio-based interconnections offer 1.6 TB/s using half the volume of copper

    When copper is not enough and yet optical interconnections are overkill, waveguide-based cables can do the job.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ China tells chipmakers to use homegrown chipmaking tools for 50% of new capacity — decree designed to squeeze foreign suppliers out of supply chain

    China has quietly mandated that at least 50% of equipment used for new semiconductor capacity be domestically sourced. However, as China's industry cannot produce enough lithography tools, authorities tend to get flexible and allow foreign alternatives in.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ U.S. grants Samsung and SK hynix 2026 licenses for chipmaking tool shipments to China — annual approvals replace dated waiver system

    The U.S. government has approved annual export licenses allowing Samsung Electronics and SK hynix to ship chipmaking equipment to their manufacturing facilities in China throughout 2026.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Report: Samsung, SK Hynix receive US approval to ship American chipmaking gear to China

    The U.S. government will reportedly permit Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc. to ship American chipmaking equipment to their fabs in China. Reuters late Monday cited sources as saying that the authorization is valid only for the next year.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ China targets semiconductor self-sufficiency with ‘50% rule’ imposed on local chipmakers

    China’s rapid advances in semiconductor development are being fueled by a previously undocumented rule that requires local chipmakers to use at least 50% domestically made equipment, according to a report today by Reuters. According to three people familiar with the matter, the rule went into effect earlier in the year.

  • Hackaday ☛ Vice Of Old Brought To The Modern Age

    People say they don’t make em’ like they used to, and while this isn’t always the case, it’s certainly true that old vices rarely die with time. This doesn’t mean they can’t use a refresh. [Marius Hornberger] recently backed that up when he decided to restore an old vice that had seen better days.

  • Hackaday ☛ Know Audio: Microphone Basics

    A friend of mine is producing a series of HOWTO videos for an open source project, and discovered that he needed a better microphone than the one built into his laptop.  Upon searching, he was faced with a bewildering array of peripherals aimed at would-be podcasters, influencers, and content creators, many of which appeared to be well-packaged versions of very cheap genericised items such as you can find on AliExpress.

  • Hackaday ☛ The Confusing World Of Bus Mice

    The USB port which first appeared on our computers some time in the mid-1990s has made interfacing peripherals an easy task, save for the occasional upside down connector. But in the days before USB there were a plethora of plugs and sockets for peripherals, often requiring their own expansion card. Among these were mice, and [Robert Smallshire] is here with a potted history of the many incompatible standards which confuse the retrocomputing enthusiast to this day.

  • CNX Software ☛ Rockchip RK1820/RK1828 SO-DIMM and M.2 LLM/VLM Hey Hi (AI) accelerator modules, devkits, and benchmarks

    Rockchip unveiled two RK182X LLM/VLM accelerators at its developer conference last July, namely the RK1820 with 2.5GB RAM for 3B parameter models, and the RK1828 with 5GB RAM for 7B parameter models. A few months have passed, and we have a few more details since a development kit based on Rockchip RK1820/RK1828 SO-DIMM module is now available, some basic documentation has been released, and the RK1828 has been benchmarked against the Rockchip RK3588’s NPU. I was also told that M.2 modules are coming soon.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • New York Times ☛ Health Dept. Pauses Child Care Funding to Minnesota, Citing State’s Fraud Scandal

    The pause affects a funding stream that provides $185 million in annual aid to the state’s day care centers, as federal investigations into fraud in Minnesota’s social services programs continue.

  • JURIST ☛ Kenya dispatch: High Court halts Kenya-US health deal over constitutional concerns

    A Kenyan High Court judge halted implementation of a landmark US-Kenya health cooperation agreement on December 19, 2025, pending a constitutional challenge.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Emergency room visits at Hong Kong public hospitals to increase to HK$400 on Jan 1 amid sweeping fee reform

    Public hospitals in Hong Kong will implement new charges starting from January 1, with Accident and Emergency (A&E) fees more than doubling from HK$180 to HK$400.

  • Mexico News Daily ☛ Health minister seeks to create a culture of organ donation with new campaign

    Approximately three to four people per million donate their organs in Mexico — compared to 42 per million in the United States — making it one of the countries with the lowest donation rates in the world, given its population. 

  • JURIST ☛ US dispatch, day 9: Luigi Mangione suppression hearings conclude, defense challenges mother’s alleged statement

    Editor’s note: This is Day 9 (final day) of JURIST’s coverage of Luigi Mangione’s suppression hearings.

  • NYPost ☛ Minnesota hospital patient accused of beating security guard to death while trying to flee

    "She was supposed to be our friend for her life, and that was taken away from us."

• Proprietary

  • Qt ☛ Design Handoff to Developers: How to Stay True to Your Original Vision

    The design handoff process - transferring design vision from the designer to the developer - is one of the most critical yet challenging phases in product development. When executed poorly, it leads to misaligned expectations, inconsistent UI implementation, frustrated teams, and a very poor customer experience. This guide explores how to hand off design to developers effectively while maintaining your original design vision.

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Ben Congdon ☛ Software Engineering in 2026

      Over the holidays, I’ve been thinking about what the impacts of 2025’s progress in Hey Hi (AI) coding tools will mean for how software gets designed, built, and operated

      The primary impact of LLM tooling, so far, is that the marginal cost (both in terms of time and dollars) of producing high quality code has gone down significantly. Of course, producing code is only part of the full job of software engineering, so the bottlenecks for engineering time will shift elsewhere.

    • Futurism ☛ OpenAI Reportedly Planning to Make Abusive Monopolist Microsoft Chaffbot “Prioritize” Advertisers in Conversation

      The effort is a virtual goldmine for OpenAI.

    • Scoop News Group ☛ OpenAI says prompt injection may never be ‘solved’ for browser agents like Atlas

      OpenAI is warning that prompt injection, a technique that hides malicious instructions inside ordinary online content, is becoming a central security risk for Hey Hi (AI) agents designed to operate inside a web browser and carry out tasks for users.

    • Open Source For U ☛ Liquid Reply Joins Linux Foundation Backed Agentic AI Foundation [Ed: LF for Ponzi schemes]

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • Bruce Schneier ☛ Using AI-Generated Images to Get Refunds

      Scammers are generating images of broken merchandise in order to apply for refunds.

    • ADF ☛ Cybercrime Outpaces Online Security

      As internet access expands, African nations have become a laboratory for malicious actors worldwide who are developing new cyberattacks and committing cybercrimes.

• Defence/Aggression

  • ADF ☛ ‘Security is a Shared Responsibility’

    Special Operations Forces operate in small, agile units, under a shroud of secrecy and with little external support. Because of their high-risk, low-profile missions they sometimes are known as “silent warriors.”

  • New York Times ☛ How the Assad Regime Covered Up Its Crimes: Key Takeaways

    We documented how the dictator Bashar al-Assad and his henchmen conspired to hide evidence of torture and deaths of detainees during Syria’s long civil war.

  • France24 ☛ Syria arrests suspects in Latakia after sectarian violence, curfew imposed

    Syrian authorities have arrested 21 people in the coastal province of Latakia over alleged links to the ousted government of Bashar al-Assad, state media reported, after sectarian violence prompted an overnight curfew in the provincial capital.

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Pushes Venezuela

    Plus, the inside story of how the U.S. split with Ukraine. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

  • New York Times ☛ The C.I.A. Strike on Venezuela: What to Know

    The drone attack, said to be on a dock where drugs were being prepared for loading on boats, represented a further escalation of the Convicted Felon administration’s campaign against Nicolás Maduro.

  • France24 ☛ Iran protests spread to students on third day

    The drop in value in Iran's rial and the country getting close to hyperinflation has increased the cost of living for many Iranians. After shopkeepers started protesting on December 28, Iranian students joined in on December 30. The protests are the biggest the country has known since the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' movement in 2022. FRANCE 24's Philip Turle tells us more.

  • New York Times ☛ Protests Over Iran’s Currency Crash and Inflation Spread to Universities

    Iranian leaders face pressure over a currency collapse and threats of possible military strikes from Israel and the United States over Tehran’s nuclear activities.

  • New York Times ☛ Saudis Say Airstrike in Yemen Targeted Arms From U.A.E.

    Saudi-led forces struck an Emirati shipment early Tuesday, worsening tensions between the once-close allies. The Saudis said the shipment had arms for a separatist group, which the Emiratis denied.

  • France24 ☛ The UAE denies shipping weapons to Yemen after overnight Saudi strike

    In an overnight strike, the Saudi military hit a Yemeni port saying they were neutralising a weapons shipments arriving from UAE and meant for the STC separatist group. The UAE has denied the shipment contained weapons and claimed the vehicles were not intended for any groups. Both countries have supported the fighting sides in the over-decade long war in Yemen, but this strike has turned this rivalry into an open dispute.

  • France24 ☛ UAE to withdraw forces from Yemen amid crisis with Saudi Arabia

    The UAE said Tuesday it would withdraw its remaining forces from Yemen after Saudi Arabia led an airstrike on a southern Yemeni port targeting what it said was a UAE-linked weapons shipment. Following the strike, Saudi Arabia backed calls for UAE forces to leave the country within 24 hours.

  • France24 ☛ Thousands of Somalis protest against Israel's recognition of Somaliland

    In tonight's edition, the largest ever protests against Israel's recognition of Somaliland are organised across Somalia. Also, a blown tyre and high speed are behind the accident that left boxer Anthony Joshua just injured in a Nigerian hospital. And Abuja ends the year still unpicking the complex ramifications of the US’s airstrikes on alleged extremist camps in Nigeria’s northwest.

  • New York Times ☛ Yonaguni, the Japanese Island on the Front Lines of China’s Feud with Japan

    Yonaguni, a tiny Japanese island near Taiwan, is getting soldiers, radar and missiles. As China’s dispute with Tokyo escalates, some residents are worried.

  • New York Times ☛ China Fires Rockets Near Taiwan in Display of Military Power

    China’s military also sent warships and aircraft during a second day of exercises designed to show its ability to claim the democratic island.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China conducts 2nd day of military drills around Taiwan

    By James Edgar, with Isabel Kua in Pingtan and Amber Wang in Taipei China kicked off a second day of live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, aimed at simulating a blockade of the self-ruled island’s key ports and assaults on maritime targets.

  • France24 ☛ Why China is bringing out the big guns for military drills around Taiwan

    China stepped up its military drills around Taiwan with live-fire exercises on Tuesday, the second day of an operation dubbed “Justice Mission 2025". The massive show of force comes at a crucial time as Beijing seeks to capitalise on domestic political tensions in Taiwan and issue a warning to foreign powers supporting Taipei.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China fires rockets towards Taiwan in war games simulating blockade

    This marks China’s sixth major round of war games since 2022.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Thai tourism takes hit as strong baht, war compound China fears

    Some 32.6 million travellers had come to Thailand as at Dec 28, a 7% drop from a year earlier.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s President Lee to visit China next week

    Lee Jae Myung will be visiting China from Jan 4 to Jan 7.

  • France24 ☛ Turkey arrests 357 people in operation against Islamic State group

    Turkey said it arrested 357 people on Tuesday linked to the Islamic State group, following intelligence reports that the terrorist organisation was "planning attacks" during Christmas and New Year.

  • Transitional justice is key to addressing Tigray’s conflict-related sexual violence

    On 16 October, the Commission of Inquiry on Tigray Genocide (CITG) released its landmark report documenting atrocities allegedly committed [...]

  • JURIST ☛ Malaysia launches military procurement corruption probe

    The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) announced on Monday that it has opened a formal investigation into potential corruption in the country’s military procurement contracts. MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki announced that the investigation was launched under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act of 2009, following a complaint filed by political activist Badrul Hisham Shaharin.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • New York Times ☛ Crew Paints Russian Flag on Oil Tanker Pursued by the U.S. Coast Guard

      The U.S. military tried to intercept the Bella 1 last week in the Caribbean Sea as it headed to Venezuela to pick up oil.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuania preps bridges for demolition on Belarus, Russia borders

      People in Lithuania have noticed construction work taking place almost simultaneously on bridges close to the Belarusian border. The Lithuanian Armed Forces confirmed to LRT.lt that this is part of fortification measures agreed last July.

    • Multinational naval exercise between SA, Iran, China, and Russia scheduled for January

      South Africa will host the multinational naval exercise Will for Peace 2026 in early January, when Chinese, Russian, and Iranian [...]

    • Latvia ☛ 280 km-long fence on Latvian-Russian border finished

      After several years of work, the construction of a 280-kilometre-long border fence between Latvia and Russia has been completed, Latgale Regional Television reported on 30th December.

    • New York Times ☛ How Russia and Ukraine Are Fighting to Shape Convicted Felon’s View of the War

      Off the battlefield, each side is trying to influence Hell Toupée’s perception of the military conflict as they look to negotiate a peace settlement in their favor.

    • New York Times ☛ 6 Takeaways on the Unwinding U.S.-Ukraine Alliance

      A Times investigation reveals the inside story of the Convicted Felon administration’s chaotic push for a peace deal and its erratic role in the war.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian president: Russia shows little willingness to end war in Ukraine

      Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said Tuesday that Russia’s demands in Ukraine peace talks are too big and that the Kremlin’s lack of response may indicate Moscow is not ready to end the war.

    • Latvia ☛ Over 200 Latvian "money mules" detained in international fraud network

      This year, the State Police, together with Ukrainian law enforcement agencies, disrupted the activities of an international organised crime network. The criminals caused losses to a foreign payment institution and laundered money amounting to more than €1.6 million. Several hundred specially trained "money mules" and persons associated with them have been identified, 213 of whom are Latvian citizens, Latvian Television reported on 29th December.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Russia's Gerasimov says Putin ordered Ukraine buffer zone expansion in 2026

      Dec 31 - Russia’s top general said its forces were pressing forward in northeastern Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin had ordered expansion of territory Moscow calls a buffer zone there in 2026, Russian news agencies said on Wednesday.

• Environment

  • Futurism ☛ Ship of Scientists Headed to Doomsday Glacier

    With good news to report, we hope.

  • France24 ☛ 'A combination of adaptation, preparedness and mitigation' is needed to tackle climate change

    Climate change worsened by human behaviour made 2025 one of the three hottest years on record, according to a new report by World Weather Attribution. It was also the first time that the three-year temperature average broke through the 1.5 degrees Celsius thresshold. Jean-Pascal Van Ypersele, Professor of Climatology and Environmental Sciences at University College Louvain in Belgium, tells us more.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • France24 ☛ MH370 search resumes in Indian Ocean nearly 12 years after plane's disappearance

      Nearly 12 years after Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished with 239 people on board, a renewed search has begun in the remote southern Indian Ocean, as investigators deploy advanced deep-sea technology in a fresh bid to solve one of aviation’s most enduring mysteries.

    • New York Times ☛ Cheap Solar Is Transforming Lives and Economies Across Africa

      Chinese panels are now so affordable that businesses and families are snapping them up, slashing their bills and challenging utilities.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • New York Times ☛ Pet Owners, How Do You Deal With the High Costs of Grooming?

      Making sure your furry friend’s nails and coat are groomed properly does not come cheap. As pet care costs continue to climb, how are you keeping up?

    • The Straits Times ☛ ‘I can’t move’: Man climbing Mount Fuji falls, dies after calling police

      The police mountain rescue team found him in cardiac arrest.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • France24 ☛ Brigitte Bardot's funeral divides French politics: Le Pen to attend, Macron sits out

    France's far-right leader Marine Le Pen will attend the screen legend Brigitte Bardot's funeral next week, but President Emmanuel Macron will not, their teams said on Tuesday. In her later years, Bardot was an outspoken supporter of the far right and was convicted in court for hate speech, stirring debate over whether or not France should give her the honour of a national farewell ceremony.

  • FSF ☛ Eko K. A. Owen joins the FSF board as the union staff pick

    Union staff selected outreach and communications coordinator Eko K. A. Owen to the role. Owen follows Ian Kelling, current president, who held the staff seat since its creation in 2021. At the board meeting on the 20th of December, 2025, Owen was officially welcomed to both the board of directors and the FSF's voting member bodies.

    This board position was created to have staff participate via this designated seat in governance deliberations. It was an important step in the FSF's effort to recognize and support new leadership, to connect that leadership to the community, and to improve transparency and accountability through giving staff a seat at the table. "The union staff seat on the board enabled me to make many positive contributions to the FSF over the last 4 years," said Kelling. "I'm confident this role will enable Eko to help the FSF in wonderful and new ways. I'm excited to be a part of it and thankful that they volunteered for it."

    "I'm very optimistic about the freer future we can work towards together," Eko said when asked about joining the FSF board. "User freedom is a human right, and I am honored to take part in the legacy of fighting for it."

  • WSWS ☛ 2025: The year of mass layoffs—prepare a global working-class counteroffensive in 2026 - World Socialist Web Site

    The ruling class has used the year to carry out a deliberate restructuring of production, accelerating automation, artificial intelligence and global reorganization to slash labor costs and vastly enrich a tiny financial oligarchy.

  • The Business Journals ☛ Serial layoffs are becoming the norm heading into 2026

  • The Straits Times ☛ S. Korean President Lee approves resignation of anti-corruption agency chief

    He faced mounting criticism over the agency’s handling of a case involving the former first lady.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s Cabinet green-lights fake news Bill, insurrection tribunal

    The fake news Bill is set to take effect in July.

  • The Straits Times ☛ North Korea may pursue active diplomacy after ruling party congress in 2026

    North Korea is also expected to further bolster its defence capabilities in the upcoming years.

  • The Straits Times ☛ More resign after ex-Malaysian PM Muhyiddin quits as chief of opposition bloc Perikatan Nasional

    PM Anwar said he is grateful that no such quarrel is happening within the government coalition.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia’s ex-PM Najib files appeal against 1MDB conviction

    He was found guilty on Dec 26 of four power abuse and 21 money laundering charges.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysia activists renew reform calls after ex-PM Najib’s jail sentence for 1MDB scandal

    Many said the verdict raised fresh questions over the independence of Malaysia’s institutions.

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • Bridge Michigan ☛ Michigan startup aims to expose Hey Hi (AI) ‘deep fakes’ in videos, more

      ProbeTruth is the first commercialized research from the UM-Flint campus, officials said. The company, which helps detect content generated by artificial intelligence, aims to employ 50 workers by the end of 2026.

    • New York Times ☛ Did Starmer Impose a Curfew in the U.K.? No, It’s a Fake Fentanylware (CheeTok) Video.

      A.I. has made it easy to put words in people’s mouths, and Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain has become a favorite target. The motive, experts say, is not political but financial.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Reducing gov’t venue partners means ‘more opportunities’ for art groups, Hong Kong culture minister says

    Hong Kong’s culture minister has said a decision to reduce the number of government venue partners is meant to provide “more opportunities” for local arts groups, brushing off censorship concerns. Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law made the comments on a Commercial Radio programme on Tuesday. ]

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Digital Music News ☛ Live Nation Redoubles Efforts to Shut Down US Government Antitrust Case — Late-Year Summary Judgment Filing Questions Whether ‘Real World’ Damages Are Actually Occurring

  Live Nation makes a high-stakes move to kill the US government’s antitrust lawsuit, claiming that prosecutors have failed to produce any evidence. Live Nation hopes to cut off the U.S. Department of Justice’s antitrust case at the legs before it makes it to trial.

• Patents

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ The Surprising Headline of 2025: USPTO Stability?

    2025 USPTO stats show a utility patent monopoly plateau at 325k, while design patents hit a record high. Explore the allowance rates and 2025 trends.

  • Unified Patents ☛ iScan2D Technologies device-pairing patent monopoly campaign - invalidity charts coming soon

    The team at Unified IP Services is using Pearl to identify and chart prior art against U.S. Patent 11,664,123, owned by iScan2D Technologies, LLC.

  • JUVE ☛ Success for Nintendo against Bigben over Wii in France and Germany

    At the heart of both disputes lies EP 1 854 518. The patent monopoly protects a game operating device that combines ergonomic aspects with sensor technology, including a camera and accelerometer. The Wii Remote, the main controller for Nintendo’s Wii console launched in 2006, features this technology.

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Section 101 and Functional Claiming: The Unexplored § 112(f) Path in 10Tales v. TikTok

    Can a 2003 patent monopoly on social-network personalization survive Alice? Federal Circuit considers timing, functional claims, and abstract ideas.

• Trademarks

  • TTAB Blog ☛ TTAB Reverses Two Section 2(d) Refusals: Cited Third-Party Websites Failed to Show Relatedness of Charitable Food Distribution and Fundraising Services

    In a lengthy, detailed opinion, the Board reversed Section 2(d) refusals of the mark POTS in standard character and logo form (shown below) for food distribution and charitable services, in view of the mark POTS for fundraising software and services. Relying on the Board's OSF Healthcare decision [pdf here] in analyzing the relatedness issue, the Board found that the differences in the goods and services, channels of trade, and classes of consumers outweighed the identity and similarity of the marks, making confusion unlikely. In re Part of the Solution, Serial Nos. 97791804 and 97791806 (December 18, 2025) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Christopher C. Larkin).

• Copyrights

  • Digital Music News ☛ NewJeans Legal Drama Intensifies—Danielle Slapped with $31 Million Lawsuit After Abruptly Departing Group

    NewJeans’ label Ador is suing member Danielle, one of her family members, and former label head Min Hee-jin for $31 million for breaking contract. The legal drama between K-pop sensation NewJeans and their label Ador takes another twist as the label sues one of the band’s members for breach of contract.