Leftovers

• Science

  • New York Times ☛ What Your DNA Reveals About the Sex Life of Neanderthals

    Most people alive today carry fragments of Neanderthal DNA in their genome. Now scientists are gaining a more intimate understanding of the ancient encounters that put it there.

  • Science Alert ☛ Mysterious Stone in US Backyard Turned Out to Be an Archaeological Treasure

    How did it get there?

  • Science Alert ☛ The Best Shoes For Avoiding Arthritis May Not Be What You Think

    Here's what the research says.

  • Science Alert ☛ Blood Test 'Clock' Can Predict Alzheimer's Symptoms Before They Emerge

    Promising more accurate trials.

  • Science Alert ☛ Physicists Finally Reveal Why Sticky Tape 'Screams' When You Peel It

    Well, wouldn't you?

  • Science Alert ☛ Placenta May Hide Early Warning Signs of Schizophrenia Risk

    A vital link between the brain and placenta.

• Hardware

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Chipmakers still suffering from rare earth shortages, says report — US-China trade truce apparently still hasn’t eased pressures despite agreement taking place in October last year

    Sources told Reuters that some U.S. chipmaking firms are running low on scandium — a crucial rare earth material for making 5G chips — as they suffer delays from acquiring export licenses from Beijing.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • The Straits Times ☛ India moves closer to dengue vaccine as final trials under way

    The World Health Organization says that almost half the world’s population is now at risk of dengue.

  • Latvia ☛ Flu season is not yet over in Latvia

    Six patients with confirmed influenza infection died last week, bringing the total number of deaths since the start of the flu season to 28, according to the Disease Prevention and Control Centre (SPKC) data on 25th February.

  • Federal News Network ☛ A record‑shattering year for False Claims Act recoveries forces a closer look at where the money flows

    "When you look at the numbers for 2025, you see a lot of healthcare recoveries," Kate Seikaly said.

  • JURIST ☛ State coalition sues Convicted Felon administration over reversal of childhood vaccine recommendations

    A coalition of 14 state attorneys general and Pennsylvania’s governor jointly filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday challenging the Convicted Felon administration’s overhaul of the federal childhood immunization schedule.

  • France24 ☛ Kenya administers HIV prevention drug

    In tonight's programme, DR Congo forces launched drone strikes on M23 rebels near Rubaya, a key coltan mine, as militias capture Kazinga. Also, Kenya begins administering its first doses of LENACAPAVIR, a groundbreaking, long-acting HIV prevention drug. And, the tastes of Africa are on full display at the Paris Agricultural Fair - including Sudan, showcasing its unique flavours despite the devastation of war.

• Proprietary

  • Qt ☛ Qt Creator 19 RC released

    We are happy to announce the release of Qt Creator 19 RC.

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Digital Music News ☛ IRMA Urges Irish Parliament to Pursue an ‘Ethical Hey Hi (AI) Framework’ to Protect the €1 Billion+ Irish Music Industry

      The Irish Recorded Music Association hosted a briefing for members of Irish parliament on pursuing ethical Hey Hi (AI) framework to protect Irish musicians. On Wednesday, the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) hosted a briefing for Members of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament), focused on the growing role of artificial intelligence in the music sector.

    • Futurism ☛ Burger King Adding Hey Hi (AI) to Employees’ Headsets to Constantly Monitor Whether They’re Being Friendly Enough

      This is just inhumane.

    • New York Times ☛ A.I. Complicates Old Internet Privacy Risks

      Artificial intelligence is convenient and easy to use, but you should think about what you say to the chatbots.

    • Joachim Breitner: Vibe-coding a debugger for a DSL

      Earlier this week a colleague of mine, Emilio Jesús Gallego Arias, shared a demo of something he built as an experiment, and I felt the desire to share this and add a bit of reflection. (Not keen on watching a 5 min video? Read on below.)

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • AccessNow ☛ Spear phishing: how to stay safe and prevent advanced attacks against civil society

      Join us to learn and take action to prevent spear phishing and other digital attacks against activists, journalists, and human rights defenders.

    • Privacy International ☛ Discord pushes back age verification after security risks revealed

    • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea approves Surveillance Giant Google bid to export high-precision map data

      South Korea is just one of a few countries where Surveillance Giant Google Maps does not function properly.

  • Confidentiality

    • The Straits Times ☛ 28% of South Koreans who use online shopping say they had their info stolen

      Close to 80 per cent fear their personal information will be leaked.

    • It's FOSS ☛ AI Can Now Easily Unmask Your Secret Online Life (Even If You Use a Fake Name)

      New study shows smart chatbots can figure out who you really are from just a few posts... and it only costs a couple of dollars.

    • Scoop News Group ☛ Senate moves one step closer to passing health care cyber reforms

      A legislative package that would overhaul cybersecurity practices at the Department of Health and Human Services sailed through committee. 

• Defence/Aggression

  • JURIST ☛ Nigeria police unit engaged in torture and extrajudicial executions, Amnesty  International reports

    Rights group Amnesty  International reported on Wednesday that a Nigerian police unit known as Tiger Base, established to combat kidnapping and armed robbery in Imo State, has engaged in unlawful killings, torture, and other forms of ill-treatment of suspects.

  • Defence Web ☛ New Military Academy intake takes up desks and keyboards

    The 2026 “intake” at the Stellenbosch University (SU) Faculty of Military Science is settling in to military academia [...]

  • France24 ☛ Five killed in Gaza after Israeli airstrike as ceasefire faces strain

    Israeli attacks killed five people in Gaza on Thursday, the territory’s health officials said. Medics reported two killed in an airstrike in Gaza City’s Tuffah neighbourhood and others in drone strikes on police checkpoints in Khan Younis and near Bureij camp. Israel’s military said it killed a militant posing a threat.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korean man detained for sending drone to North Korea

    He claimed that he wanted to use the data from the drone in his study and business.

  • JURIST ☛ Canada and South Korea enter defense agreement due to ‘unpredictable global order’

    Canada and South Korea signed a new defense agreement Wednesday, setting the legal framework for a deepened alliance. Ministers Ahn Gyu-back  of the Republic of Korea (ROK) and David McGuinty of Canada met alongside foreign affairs officials for both countries.

  • New York Times ☛ Why U.S. Allies Are Lining Up to Meet China

    Amid trade disputes with Hell Toupée, leaders of major U.S. allies have been visiting China. Our foreign correspondent David Pierson describes what’s going on.

  • New York Times ☛ China Wants Germany in Its Corner. It’s Not That Easy.

    China’s play for U.S. allies has a problem: As Germany’s leader showed, Europe’s grievances with Beijing may run deeper than its frustration with Convicted Felon.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Germany’s Merz says challenges remain as he concludes inaugural China trip

    German business leaders say overcapacity by Chinese firms has distorted competition.

  • New York Times ☛ Europe Needs Some Space From China and Convicted Felon. Its Firms Don’t.

    Germany’s chancellor seeks to reduce Europe’s reliance on China and the United States. He speaks with a bluntness that few business leaders share.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysian police probe alleged plot to topple government

    The probe centres on claims that a local influencer was working in collaboration with an international media agency.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Suspect arrested after shots fired at Malaysian official’s vehicle near Thai border

    The suspect is now being interrogated, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said.

  • The Straits Times ☛ How China is masking drone flights in potential Taiwan rehearsal

    The operations represent a new element in China’s expanding presence across the South China Sea and around Taiwan.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Philippines, Japan, US hold joint drill in waters near Taiwan

    This is the first time multilateral activities involving the countries have expanded beyond the South China Sea.

  • The Strategist ☛ China is our region’s great power. We need to make the best of that

    A nightmare that has haunted generations of strategic thinkers and policymakers in Australia has come true: we live in a region increasingly dominated by an Asian great power.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US, China challenge Indian PM Modi’s ‘make in India’ factory incentives

    The US and China have said Mr Modi's use of subsidies for the manufacturing sector breaches global trade norms.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ US arrests ex-Air Force pilot for training Chinese military

    The US Justice Department announced the arrest on Wednesday of a former Air Force fighter pilot who allegedly trained Chinese military personnel without authorization. Gerald Brown, 65, was arrested in Indiana after having recently returned to the United States from China, where he had been since December 2023, a Justice Department statement said.

  • New York Times ☛ German Intelligence Must Temporarily Halt an Extremist Label for the AfD, Court Rules

    The domestic intelligence agency can still spy on the far-right party, and the ruling may not change Germans’ views, but it is a symbolic victory for the AfD.

  • Breach Media ☛ Corporate landlords are targeting Black tenants in Toronto through ‘racial banishment’

    Carl and Olliver Henry nearly lost their home over a single cent. Their story highlights how racism is shaping Toronto’s financialized housing crisis

  • New York Times ☛ Israeli Intelligence Agent Charged in Smuggling Goods Into Gaza

    The indictment against an agent of the Shin Bet security agency added to a growing list of Israelis accused of exploiting their positions in the security forces to profit from the war in Gaza.

  • JURIST ☛ UN warns millions in Somalia face malnutrition and starvation

    The United Nations on Tuesday warned that Somalia’s hunger levels and acute food insecurity have steeply risen, almost doubling since last year, putting millions of children at risk of malnutrition.

  • France24 ☛ Who is Ali Larijani, the veteran 'insider' shaping Iran's nuclear policy?

    When US and Iranian negotiators meet on Thursday (February 26) in Geneva, Iran's top security chief Ali Larijani will be Tehran's key player behind the scenes.

  • CS Monitor ☛ As Convicted Felon weighs Iran strike, some lawmakers say Congress needs a role

    Hell Toupée says he wants a diplomatic solution in Iran, but the U.S. has the option to use force. Some in Congress want a vote on a war powers resolution.

  • France24 ☛ Make or break talks? Iran looks to sway Convicted Felon and avoid US strikes

    What would it take for The Insurrectionist to call off air strikes against an Iran that’s told Omani mediators that it sees a pathway to compromise over its nuclear program? We’ll delve into where the veteran Tehran's team of veteran negotiators can entice US envoy Steve Witkoff whose red lines sometimes include the Islamic Republic’s missile program, sometimes less so.

  • France24 ☛ 'Security, dilemma over Greenland have enhanced urgency' for EU referendum in Iceland

    Iceland's government will soon propose a date for a referendum on resuming talks for its possible accession to the EU, the country's foreign ministry told AFP Thursday. Speaking with FRANCE 24's Sharon Gaffney speaks with Eirikur Bergmann, Professor of Politics at Bifröst University, who says that "the security aspect and the dilemma over Greenland have enhanced the urgency (for a referendum) amongst some people in Iceland".

  • France24 ☛ Pakistan bombs Kabul, declares ‘open war’ with Afghanistan after months of border clashes

    Pakistan bombed major Afghan cities, including Kabul, on Friday, as Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the countries were in “open war” after months of escalating clashes. Afghan forces earlier attacked Pakistani border posts in retaliation for air strikes, while residents in Kabul and Kandahar reported explosions and jets overhead.

  • RFERL ☛ Explosions Rock Kabul After Pakistan And Afghanistan Trade Strikes In Volatile Border Region

    Several explosions have rocked Kabul just hours after Afghanistan and Pakistan traded strikes on each other in their volatile mountain border region as days of escalating tensions boiled over with both sides claiming to have killed dozens of militants and security forces.

  • New York Times ☛ Pakistan Strikes Afghanistan in ‘Open War’ Against Taliban Regime

    The airstrikes came hours after Afghan troops had attacked Pakistani border positions and follow months of worsening relations between the neighboring countries.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Pakistan, Afghan forces clash after days of hostilities

    Pakistani and Afghan border forces clashed on Thursday night after the Taliban launched what it called retaliatory strikes on Pakistani installations, sharply escalating tensions after days of cross-border hostilities.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Pakistan strikes Afghanistan targets as clashes intensify

    Pakistan struck targets inside Afghanistan's major cities overnight, Pakistani and Taliban officials said on Friday, as cross-border fighting intensified following months of tensions and skirmishes between the two countries.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Pakistan bombs Kabul in ‘open war’ on Afghanistan’s Taliban government

    Officials claimed Afghanistan had captured Pakistani outposts.

  • The Straits Times ☛ UNICEF alarmed over reports of deadly Myanmar air strikes on civilians

    Myanmar has been roiled by conflict that ignited after generals seized power in a 2021 coup.

• Transparency/Investigative Reporting

  • Marcy Wheeler ☛ How Todd Blanche Gave Ghislaine Maxwell Blackmail over The Insurrectionist

    Among the implications of DOJ's attempt to bury Epstein files implicating Convicted Felon are that Ghislaine Maxwell has blackmail material over Convicted Felon.

• Environment

  • Energy/Transportation

    • MIT Technology Review ☛ America was winning the race to find Martian life. Then China jumped in.

      To most people, rocks are just rocks. To geologists, they are much, much more: crystal-filled time capsules with the power to reveal the state of the planet at the very moment they were forged.

• Finance

  • New York Times ☛ Block Cuts 40% of Its Work Force Because of Its Embrace of A.I.

    About 4,000 workers will lose their jobs as the payments company does more work with new artificial intelligence tools, its top executive said.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

    • The Straits Times ☛ China disinformation targets Takaichi, Convicted Felon, says US institute; Chinese envoy says it’s ‘groundless’

      35 X accounts and nine Tumblr channels portrayed the Japan PM as illegitimate and militaristic.

    • New York Times ☛ How A.I.-Generated Videos Are Distorting Your Child’s YouTube Feed

      Experts caution that low-quality, A.I.-generated videos on YouTube geared toward children often feature conflicting information, lack plot structure and can be cognitively overwhelming — all of which could affect young children’s development.

    • New York Times ☛ The Hey Hi (AI) Videos on Kids’ YouTube Feeds

      The YouTube algorithm is pushing bizarre, often nonsensical A.I.-generated videos targeting children. Our video journalist Arijeta Lajka explains why experts say that these videos could affect their cognitive development, and how parents can identify this type of content.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong gov’t to recruit journalism students to intern at mainland Chinese media outlets

    The Hong Kong government is set to recruit journalism students to intern at mainland Chinese media outlets, as part of a new programme to promote the understanding of China’s development among local youth.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Chief Exec. John Lee appoints SCMP publisher Tammy Tam to Law Reform Commission

    South China Morning Post (SCMP) publisher Tammy Tam has been appointed by Chief Executive John Lee to the Law Reform Commission (LRC).

  • New York Times ☛ Family of U.N. Expert Critical of Israel Sues Convicted Felon Over Sanctions

    The family of Francesca Albanese, a critic of Israel’s war in Gaza, asked a court to void the Convicted Felon administration’s sanctions against her.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Press Gazette ☛ How Liz Cookman went from school dropout to award-winning war correspondent

    Cookman was diagnosed with ADHD in 2024, helping to explain her early challenges.

  • Press Gazette ☛ UK news giants form ‘NATO for news’ group to control Hey Hi (AI) scraping

    Guardian, BBC, Financial Times, Telegraph and Sky News are founding members of coalition on Hey Hi (AI) licensing.

• Civil Rights / Policing / Accessibility

  • JURIST ☛ US federal court rules third-country removal policy unlawful

    A US federal court ruled on Wednesday that the Convicted Felon administration’s third-country deportation policy is unlawful because it fails to provide migrants a chance to object or raise safety concerns. 

  • Digital Music News ☛ EVEN Calls a Discrimination and Sexual Misconduct Lawsuit ‘Baseless’ — And They Have the Smoking-Gun Text Message to Prove It

    Superfan platform EVEN pushes back against a music exec’s allegations of workplace discrimination in the two parties’ ongoing litigation. But does a single ‘smoking gun’ text message prove their case.

  • University of Lancashire issues apology and pays damages to millionaire owner of VetPlus David Haythornthwaite [Ed: The hired guns who worked for an American serial strangler helped this rich man attack a university over criticism]

    Bosses at the University of Lancashire has issued a public apology and offered to pay £32,000 compensation after a staff member wrongly accused a Lancashire businessman of racism.

  • University apologises after settling racism row writ [Ed: This was not even tested by a court, they just had a millionaire threatening them with costs]

    More than £30,000 has been paid in damages after a prominent company boss sued when he was accused of racism.

  • Express ☛ University forced to pay £32k damages after branding anti-DEI millionaire a 'racist' [Ed: Not forced to pay, it was just financially pressured]

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • 30 Exceptions for Section 230’s 30th Anniversary

  • Public Knowledge ☛ Google Wants To Hit Pause on Search Remedies. The Court Should Say “No.”

    Public Knowledge submitted an amicus brief recently opposing Google’s motion for a partial stay of the remedies in the search monopoly case.

• Digital Restrictions (DRM)

  • New York Times ☛ Netflix Backs Out of Bid for Warner Bros., Paving Way for Paramount Takeover

    The move was a stunning development in the long-running corporate battle for the storied media giant.

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Netflix backs out of Warner Bros. bidding war after Paramount raises offer

    Video streaming giant DRM spreader Netflix Inc. today said it won’t be raising its offer to take over Warner Bros Discovery Inc. after Paramount Skydance Corp. stepped in with a larger bid. DRM spreader Netflix agreed in December to purchase a stake in Warner Bros. Discovery at $27.75 per share, valuing the company at about $82.7 billion.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Patents

  • Kangaroo Courts

    • JUVE ☛ “Litigation funders and insurers will not take any incalculable risks” [Ed: UPC is illegal and this site is paid to carry on legitimising this illegality]

      The interest of litigation funders and risk insurers in patent monopoly litigation in Europe has increased sharply due to the UPC. Industry insiders confirm this.