Leftovers

• Science

  • Science Alert ☛ Planets Are About to Line Up in a Rare Event. Here's How to Watch.

    Most will be visible to the naked eye.

  • Science Alert ☛ UK First: Woman Gives Birth After Womb Transplant From Deceased Donor

    "A huge milestone."

  • Science Alert ☛ A Hidden Brain Process May Help Explain Why Alzheimer's Risk Rises With Age

    "We could potentially identify new biomarkers of brain health."

  • Science Alert ☛ Hidden Virus Found in Gut Bacteria Is Linked to Colorectal Cancer

    A new layer of understanding.

  • Science Alert ☛ Lightning 'Whistler' Detected on Mars For The First Time, Scientists Report

    Implications for astrobiology.

  • Science Alert ☛ Waking Up at 5am Could Make You More Productive, But There's a Catch

    Here's what sleep science has to say.

• Hardware

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Imec's new post-exposure bake method speeds up EUV chipmaking tools, boosting production for the most advanced chips — 20% gain in photoresist improvement from increased oxygen concentration

    Increased oxygen concentration during the EUV lithography post-exposure bake step can increase photoresist performance by 15% - 20%, according to Imec's findings.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • France24 ☛ Cancer rates rise amid inequalities between EU members

    European countries have some of the best public health systems in the world. And yet cancer rates have been going up, according to the European Commission. For instance, in 2022, there was a 2.3 percent increase on the year 2020.

  • Futurism ☛ Huge Study Finds Living Near Nuclear Plants Linked With Cancer Deaths

    "Our study suggests that living near a [nuclear power plant] may carry a measurable cancer risk."

  • New York Times ☛ Instagram to Alert Parents to Teens’ Self-Harm Searches

    Parents will receive notifications if a child has used the platform repeatedly to search for terms related to suicide or self-harm, but users must opt in to get them.

• Proprietary

  • Qt ☛ Qt Gradle Plugin 1.4 is released

    Qt Gradle Plugin 1.4 (QtGP) is now "at your service, M'am!" A tool that is used by Qt Tools for Android Studio and Qt Quick for Android projects like the Qt Quick for Android API examples.

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Press Gazette ☛ Staff journalists sacked and misleadingly replaced with Hey Hi (AI) writers

      Everything about writers Brian Merrygold and Callum Mercer is fake.

    • Futurism ☛ Chatbot Use Can Cause Mental Illness to Get Worse, Research Finds

      "I fear the problem is more common than most people think."

    • Futurism ☛ AI Workers, and Even CEOs, Suddenly Turning Against the Convicted Felon Administration

      "If any tech company caves to the Pentagon's demands, War Secretary Pete Hegseth will have won the ability to surveil our communities... en masse."

    • Futurism ☛ The Economy Is Lurching Downward as Fear of Hey Hi (AI) Spreads

      The cracks are starting to show.

  • Social Control Media

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ US tech giant Meta sues Brazil, China advertisers over celebrity deepfake scams

      US tech giant Meta filed lawsuits Thursday against several individuals and companies in Brazil and China who used celebrity deepfakes to advertise products on its platforms, the company said in a statement.

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • Security Week ☛ Chilean Carding Shop Operator Extradited to US

      The 24-year-old suspect has been accused of trafficking over 26,000 cards from a single brand.

    • Bruce Schneier ☛ Phishing Attacks Against People Seeking Programming Jobs

      This is new. North Korean hackers are posing as company recruiters, enticing job candidates to participate in coding challenges. When they run the code they are supposed to work on, it installs malware on their system.

    • SANS ☛ Fake Fedex Email Delivers Donuts, (Fri, Feb 27th)

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • New York Times ☛ South Korea Clears Way for Surveillance Giant Google Maps to Fully Operate

      South Korea approved Google’s request to export detailed map data, reversing a longstanding restriction that made the tool largely nonfunctional.

    • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea set to finally get fully functioning Surveillance Giant Google Maps

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

    • Privacy International ☛ The Anthropic and US Government conflict is larger than you think

    • Michael Geist ☛ Nobody Wants This: Senate Rejects Government’s Anti-Privacy Plan for Political Parties By Sending Bill Back to the House With a Sunset Clause

      Faced with a bill that would leave political parties subject to weaker privacy rules than virtually any other major organization in Canada, the Senate voted yesterday to amend the bill by including a sunset clause on the privacy provisions that gives that the government three years to come up with something better.

• Defence/Aggression

  • The Straits Times ☛ Women at risk as Taliban curbs hit Afghan healthcare, UN expert warns

    Restrictions imposed by the Taliban are jeopardising the lives of women and their children who are sometimes denied emergency treatment, a U.N. human rights expert said on Friday.

  • New York Times ☛ Why Are Pakistan and Afghanistan Fighting?

    The renewed violence between the neighboring countries stems from Pakistan’s accusations that Afghanistan’s Taliban government has harbored a militant group.

  • France24 ☛ Live: Two blasts rock Afghanistan's Jalalabad city as diplomatic efforts intensify

    Two loud explosions rocked Jalalabad in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday morning, as Pakistan said that 37 locations had been subject to aerial targeting since its operation began. This comes as the European Union called for ​both sides to de-escalate and engage in dialogue, while the United Nations urged an immediate end to hostilities. Follow our liveblog for the latest updates.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Russia urges Afghanistan and Pakistan to stop fighting and negotiate

    Russia urged Afghanistan and Pakistan on Friday to halt cross-border attacks immediately and resolve their differences by diplomatic means.

  • CS Monitor ☛ How Afghanistan-Pakistan relations deteriorated into ‘open war’

    Tensions between former allies Pakistan and Afghanistan have yet again come to a head, with Pakistan’s defense minister saying the neighbors are now in “open war.”

  • The Straits Times ☛ Afghans fear further escalation after Pakistani air strikes shake Kabul

    Pakistani air strikes hit a weapons depot on the western outskirts of Kabul overnight, triggering hours of secondary explosions that rattled homes across the Afghan capital and left residents fearing further violence.

  • RFERL ☛ Pakistan Continues To Strike Taliban Targets In Afghanistan Amid Signals Of 'Open War'

    Pakistani war planes bombed 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 into what one senior official from Islamabad called "open war."

  • France24 ☛ Pakistan declares 'open war' against Afghanistan

    #Pakistan conducted airstrikes in Kabul and three other Afghan provinces overnight between Thursday and Friday, authorities in #Afghanistan said, as the former's defence minister said that the countries were now in "open war".

  • France24 ☛ 'Our enemy is not the Afghan people' Pakistani ambassador tells France 24

    Pakistan's enemy is not the people of Afghanistan but rather the terror groups it claims the Afghan government has been supporting, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, Pakistan's ambassador to France told France 24 on Friday, a day after Islamabad launched air strikes on Kabul and other cities in Afghanistan.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ ‘Deeply concerned’: China calls for Afghanistan-Pakistan ceasefire

    China called on Friday for a ceasefire between Afghanistan and Pakistan, adding it was talking to both sides to try to end violent clashes that had left Beijing “deeply concerned”. Pakistan is one of China’s closest partners in the region, but Beijing also calls itself a “friendly neighbour” of Afghanistan.

  • France24 ☛ Civilians flee fighting after Pakistan bombs Afghan cities

    After an Afghan cross-border attack on Thursday night, Pakistan carried out overnight strikes on Kabul and declared what it called an “open war” with Afghanistan, sending civilians in border areas fleeing to safety.

  • France24 ☛ Ignoring the optics: Modimir stands firmly by Netanyahu in Israel

    In this edition of Access Asia, we explore what the recent visit by India's prime minister to Israel means for both sides. Narendra Modi's public embrace of Benjamin Netanyahu may have raised eyebrows at home, but it is part of New Delhi's broader strategic vision. We ask our analyst whether New Delhi has abandoned the Palestinian cause. Plus, we find out whether the rise in South Korea's birth rate is here to stay.

  • New York Times ☛ Taiwan Arms Sale Approved by Congress Is Delayed as Convicted Felon Plans Visit to Beijing

    The package worth billions of dollars and endorsed by lawmakers is stalled at the State Department as the U.S. and China plan an April summit.

  • New York Times ☛ Former U.S. Air Force Officer Is Accused of Training Chinese Military Pilots

    The former officer traveled to China to train pilots of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force without approval from the State Department, the Justice Department said.

  • The Straits Times ☛ India builds military airfield in Indian Ocean to counter China

    India will also extend the runways of two existing military airstrips.

  • The Straits Times ☛ No easy path ahead for China and Europe, even as Western leaders flock to Beijing

    A huge trade deficit with China is among difficulties between the two sides.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Deep in China’s mountains, a revival of nuclear weapons takes shape

    China had more than 600 nuclear warheads by the end of 2024 and is on track to have 1,000 by 2030.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • LRT ☛ Thousands continue to travel from Latvia to Belarus every month

      Every month, thousands of Latvian residents cross the border into Belarus – they visit relatives, go to health resorts, and shop despite the fact that for years, the security services and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been urging them not to do so.

    • New York Times ☛ Some Russians Go Without Heat or Power in Winter, as Energy System Falls Into Disrepair

      A dozen major blackouts and central heating cutoffs across the country have affected hundreds of thousands during a brutal winter.

    • France24 ☛ Drone jammed near French aircraft carrier was Russian, Sweden's military confirms

    • European Commission ☛ President von der Leyen stresses EU's support to Eastern borders at first Eastern Border Regions High-Level Conference

    • New York Times ☛ Hungary Plays Spoiler in Europe as Orban Strains for Votes at Home

      Facing a serious election challenge, Prime Minister Viktor Orban is holding up a big E.U. loan for Ukraine. Analysts say the timing is no coincidence.

    • France24 ☛ Ukraine, The Clintons, El Mencho and Iran

      It’s been a week that began in silence in Independence Square, where European leaders laid flowers for Ukraine’s war dead — even as the fighting grinds on in the east, across vast drone-dominated front lines in territory Russia now claims as its own.

    • France24 ☛ 55 Ghanaians killed on the battlefields of Ukraine

      First, dozens of Ghanaians have been killed on the battlefields of Ukraine, as Ghana's Foreign Minister makes a direct appeal to President Zelensky. Also, a new sleeping sickness pill receives the green light from European regulators, paving its way to Africa to protect over 60 million at risk from the deadly tsetse fly. Finally, Paris Agriculture Fair celebrates African Culture with many producers from the continent who came to showcase their products. Côte d'Ivoire shines as guest of Honor with shea Butter stealing the spotlight.

• Environment

  • Energy/Transportation

    • New York Times ☛ Judge Approves $345 Million Verdict Against Greenpeace in Dakota Access Pipeline Suit

      Greenpeace has said the verdict could bankrupt it. The lawsuit was over the group’s role in protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Futurism ☛ There’s a Perfectly Reasonable Explanation for Antarctica’s Waterfall of Blood

      Bear with us.

• Finance

  • New Yorker ☛ Failed “Finance Bros” Find Success with HBO’s “Industry”

    Mickey Down and Konrad Kay, the creators of the financial drama, explain what “finance bros” misunderstand about capitalism’s allure.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Indonesia tightens rules for Airbnb-style rentals

    The Indonesian government expects all operators to start processing the required permits.

  • New Yorker ☛ “Everyone is Overreacting” on the Tariff Ruling, Stephen Vladeck Says

    Is the Supreme Court really checking Convicted Felon’s power?

  • The Straits Times ☛ China suspends some agricultural tariffs on Canada after Carney visit

    The suspension of some tariffs will begin on March 1 and last throughout the year.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • New York Times ☛ Justice Thomas Bemoans Incivility as Security Prompts Cancellation of In-Person Speech

    The justice participated remotely in a closed-door session of a legal conference, a reminder of the heightened threats facing jurists in recent years.

  • New York Times ☛ Were Duterte’s Speeches Orders to Kill or Hyperbole?

    Judges at the International Criminal Court have heard starkly different interpretations this week of the words of former President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines.

  • CS Monitor ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man is trying to exert more control over elections. Will he succeed?

    President The Insurrectionist has issued orders to tighten rules around voting and demanded states turn over voter rolls. Last month, the FBI raided an election center in Georgia. Most of these moves are being fought over in court, as the fall midterm elections approach.

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • JURIST ☛ Hong Kong court quashes fraud convictions against media tycoon Jimmy Lai

    The Hong Kong Court of Appeal quashed the fraud convictions against Apple Daily newspaper founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and its administrative director, Wong Wai Keung, on Thursday. The appellate court rejected the reasoning of District Judge Stanley Chan, who convicted Lai and Wong of fraud in 2022.

  • New Yorker ☛ The Ellison Media Empire Grows Again

    After torpedoing Netflix’s bid to buy Warner Bros., Paramount Skydance is poised to have multiple major news organizations under its control.

• Civil Rights / Policing / Accessibility

  • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysian authorities urged to curb new wave of ‘upgraded’ beggars

    Costumed beggars are becoming more visible at petrol stations and night markets in Johor Bahru.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Dyson settles Malaysian workers' UK lawsuit

    The workers alleged they were sometimes beaten for not meeting targets.

  • Federal News Network ☛ IRS rescinds collective bargaining agreement with its largest union

    President The Insurrectionist signed an executive order last year that expands the number of agencies exempt from collective bargaining on national security grounds.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Nicki Minaj Dropped by Attorney In High-Stakes $10 Million Fan Lawsuit — Northstar Lawyer Says He’s Getting Ghosted by His Client

    Nicki Minaj is getting dropped by her lawyer over a “communication breakdown” amid a $10 million defamation lawsuit filed against her by a former fan. Nicki Minaj is caught up in an ongoing $10 million defamation lawsuit filed against her by a former fan.

  • PHR ☛ Iranian Physicians’ Testimonies Highlight Extent and Severity of Government Attacks on Protesters

    New testimonies from physicians inside the Islamic Republic of Iran, shared with Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), add to mounting evidence from health care professionals about the scale and severity of the recent nationwide crackdown, which many observers describe as the most violent in the country’s recent history, including the 1979 Revolution. 

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • Bruce Schneier ☛ Why Tehran’s Two-Tiered Internet Is So Dangerous

    Iran is slowly emerging from the most severe communications blackout in its history and one of the longest in the world. Triggered as part of January’s government crackdown against citizen protests nationwide, the regime implemented an internet shutdown that transcends the standard definition of internet censorship.

  • Jim Nielsen ☛ Computers and the Internet: A Two-Edged Sword

    Dave Rupert articulated something in “Priority of idle hands” that’s been growing in my subconscious for years:

    I had a small, intrusive realization the other day that computers and the internet are probably bad for me […] This is hard to accept because a lot of my work, hobbies, education, entertainment, news, communities, and curiosities are all on the internet. I love the internet, it’s a big part of who I am today

  • Silicon Angle ☛ Internet under fire: Will Section 230 live to see another birthday?

    It’s only 26 words in a 60,000-word act, but Section 230 has proven to be one of the most significant, and controversial, pieces of law ever passed in the United States.

  • Public Knowledge ☛ Privileged Conversations | Mar. 2026

    Public Knowledge has the pleasure of inviting you to a multifaceted program focused on training and developing the next generation of tech policy experts and public interest advocates that reflects the diversity of voices and experiences in our society. Please join us for our monthly Career Breakfast Series.

  • Public Knowledge ☛ FCC Formally Approves Cox/Charter Merger in $34.5 Billion Deal Reducing Broadband Competition

    Today, the Federal Communications Commission released its Order formally approving the $34.5 billion Cox/Charter merger that would leave Charter with majority control of the new combined company.

Monopolies/Monopsonies

• Patents

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ The 20-Year Allowance Rate Arc: From Trough to Peak and Back Again

    Two decades of USPTO data reveal a dramatic V-curve in patent monopoly allowance rates, from 71% in 2001 to a 59% trough in 2006, climbing to over 80% by 2020.

  • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ No Sunshine, No Standing? The Federal Circuit’s Informational Rights Gap in IPR

    Dolby challenges the Federal Circuit's decision holding that the AIA does not create an "informational right" for patent monopoly owners to know the identities of all real parties in interest.

  • JUVE ☛ “Forum shopping is the plaintiff’s prerogative” [Ed: JUVE helping Team UPC turn Europe into another Texas; this is a corruption of the occupation and distortion of the notion of justice]

    JUVE Patent: The number of newly filed patent monopoly cases at Düsseldorf Regional Court has been declining for several years. What does this mean for Düsseldorf as a patent monopoly location? Carsten Haase: Fortunately, this does not change the way we work.

• Copyrights

  • Press Gazette ☛ Who’s suing Hey Hi (AI) and who’s signing: Danish publishers take Proprietary Chaffbot Company to court

    Plus: New York Times and Chicago Tribune sue Perplexity.