Leftovers

• Evan Hahn ☛ Notes from May 2026

  My blog turned 16 this month! I did nothing to celebrate, but made some little tools and clicked some links about tech ethics.

• Science / Mathematics / Computer Science

  • Science Alert ☛ This Week in Science: A Sleep Apnea Pill, Ancient Anesthetic, And More!

    Our weekly science news roundup.

• Hardware

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Huawei chairman thanks the US for export restrictions on chips, says it supercharged China’s semiconductor industry — Washington’s export controls encouraged Chinese firms to invest in R&D and build their own tech stack competing with American tech

    Huawei's current Rotating Chairman thanked the United States for its export bans, which boosted the progress of China's semiconductor industry. He made the comment after unveiling the groundbreaking LogicFolding chip architecture, when reporters asked him how the company came up with the idea.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Futurism ☛ Scientists Intrigued by Chunk of Flesh That Refuses to Die After Several Years

    "This is naturally occurring tissue immortality."

  • New York Times ☛ What to Know About the Ebola Outbreak

    Aid agencies are racing to help underequipped health workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. More than 245 people are now suspected to have died from the virus.

  • Futurism ☛ Apocalyptic “Fungal Storms” Are Now Surging Across the US

    "Sand and dust storms do not just mean dirty windows and hazy skies."

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Investigation: Illegal firings, cancelled visas and lack of healthcare – how domestic workers facing critical illness are left in limbo

    Nancy, a Filipino domestic worker in Hong Kong, squints her eyes for the camera as her right arm holds her employers’ younger daughter tight. The toddler beams, legs thrown around her nanny’s hips.

  • France24 ☛ WHO chief visits eastern DR Congo amid Ebola outbreak

    The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus traveled to Bunia, in DR Congo on Saturday to show his support to the residents of the capital of Ituri Province, the epicentre of a severe Ebola virus outbreak. There have been at least 1,077 suspected cases in the country since the outbreak was declared on May 15.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Japan, South Korea to resume search-and-rescue drill after 9 years in sign of warming ties

    Defence exchanges between both sides stalled after a 2018 dispute in Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

  • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Squeezes Immigrants by Cutting Them Off From Jobs, Health Care and Housing

    The methodically planned strategy is intended to pressure noncitizens, including many with legal status, to leave the United States.

  • PHR ☛ As Ethiopia Votes, Ongoing Violence and Voter Suppression Put Civilians at Risk

    As Ethiopia prepares to hold parliamentary and regional elections on Monday, June 1, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) and the Organization for Justice and Accountability in the Horn of Africa (OJAH) warned that the vote is taking place amid growing instability, escalating repression, and ongoing humanitarian and human rights crises across the country. 

  • PHR ☛ Health Care Under Attack: Drone Strikes Amidst High Levels Of Violence By State Forces In 2025, New Report Finds

    Care in the Crosshairs: Violence Against Health Care in Conflict in 2025, released today by the Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition (SHCC), documents 2,546 incidents of violence against or obstruction of health care across 33 countries in 2025, including 790 incidents where hospitals were damaged or destroyed and 455 health workers killed.

  • JURIST ☛ Thailand criminal court acquits political leader of lèse majesté charges

    Thailand’s Criminal Court acquitted on Thursday political figure and founder of the Progressive Movement Party Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit of charges of defaming the monarchy, arising from comments he had made in 2021 criticizing the government’s procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine.

  • Science Alert ☛ World MS Day: Immune Cell Discovery Might Explain Multiple Sclerosis at Its Worst

    "It does not appear to be simply about the inflammatory response alone."

  • Science Alert ☛ Beethoven's DNA Reveals a Surprise 200 Years Later

    A tragic irony.

  • Science Alert ☛ Keto Diet May Help Protect Against Multiple Brain Diseases, Study Finds

    Lower weight and a brain boost?

  • Science Alert ☛ Giant Study Reveals The Secret to Heart Health Isn't Low-Carb or Low-Fat

    There's another factor that may matter more.

  • Science Alert ☛ One Easy Step Promises to Eliminate Your Hangover. But Does It Work?

    What you need to know about 'zebra striping'.

  • Science Alert ☛ One Sign of Aging Could Be a Powerful Predictor of Death if You Don't Act

    Some people can reverse it.

• Proprietary / SaaS

  • So-Called 'Artificial Intelligence' ('AI') / LLM Slop / Plagiarism

    • Futurism ☛ AI Filmmaker Compares His Tech to Something That Gets Worse the More You Think About It

      Something about sex and babies.

• Entrapment (Microsoft GitHub)

  • Indian Express ☛ ‘I’m cancelling’: As Microsoft’s GitHub Copilot moves to token-based billing, developers fear rising AI costs

    Microsoft’s GitHub Copilot, one of the most widely used AI coding tools, could potentially become costlier for many developers as the tech giant explores new pricing structures tied to usage.

    The Windows-maker is set to switch its billing system for GitHub Copilot from a flat subscription rate to a token-usage system, according to a report by TechCrunch. This means that users will be charged based on how many tokens they burn through as they work instead of a low flat rate based on requests.

• Security

  • Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

    • WhichUK ☛ The rise of fake days out

      From fictional sky rides to ghost Christmas markets, how you can spot Hey Hi (AI) scams and navigate the world of social control media travel content

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • The Straits Times ☛ Indian court ruling on Surveillance Giant Google keyword ads could reshape online advertising

      Google allowed rivals of Hindware to use “Hindware” as a keyword to target their own advertising.

• Defence/Aggression

  • France24 ☛ How to to end edemic violence in Colombia? Presidential elections to take place on Sunday

    Colombia is going to the polls this Sunday. The presidential election is set to determine Gustavo Petro’s successor. Violence is at the heart of this campaign: armed groups are stepping up their attacks, and each candidate has their own proposals for how to prevent it. Violence is an endemic problem in the country that has been ravaged by conflict for decades. Story by Eliza Herbert and Antoine Fenaux.

  • The Straits Times ☛ India says signed BrahMos missile deal with Vietnam

    India has signed a deal with Vietnam under which it will supply BrahMos missiles which it has jointly developed with Russia, and is in "final stages" for a similar deal with Indonesia, India's Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said on Saturday.

  • France24 ☛ Lebanon PM condemns Israeli 'scorched-earth policy' as fresh strikes hit south

    Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam accused Israel in a televised address on Saturday of pursuing a “scorched-earth policy” following new Israeli strikes in the south of the country. A ceasefire between Israel and Tehran-backed Hezbollah officially took effect on April 17 but has not been observed.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US says it struck another vessel in eastern Pacific, killing three

    May 30 - The U.S. military said on Saturday it had carried out a strike on a vessel in the eastern Pacific killing three men, the second strike in as many days.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Japanese defence chief takes swipe at China at security meet

    Japan’s defence minister took a veiled swipe at China on Sunday, pledging to keep strengthening the military despite Beijing’s criticism of Tokyo’s increasingly muscular security stance.

  • JURIST ☛ New York state limits immigration enforcement activities

    New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation Friday that limits where and how Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents can enforce immigration law. The new legislation also prohibits state and local police from cooperating with ICE to enforce civil laws. The new laws are included in the state’s Fiscal Year 27 Enacted Budget.

  • New York Times ☛ In Taiwan, ‘Mainland Spouses’ From China Become a Focus of Infiltration Fears

    A Chinese-born woman accused of infiltration has set off a debate over how Taiwan defends its democracy without profiling migrants from China.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China’s top diplomat says Canada ties ‘fully restored’

    Mr Wang Yi’s short visit to Canada was the first by a Chinese foreign minister in a decade.

  • The Straits Times ☛ US, South Korea in talks over American commander’s remarks that drew China’s ire

    The Chinese embassy in Seoul said that the comments had “truly crossed the line”.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Philippines remains under threat from China despite Convicted Felon-Xi summit, minister says

    He said the country has "no choice but really to be resilient and to stand up against Chinese aggression".

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • New York Times ☛ A Big Bang, a Fire and Panic as War Enters Romanian Homes

      When a drone crashed into an apartment building in eastern Romania, residents were reminded that the Russia-Ukraine war makes for a dangerous neighbor.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukraine Says It Hit Multiple Targets Inside Russia During Overnight Assault

      Ukraine says that its forces carried out a large-scale overnight drone assault targeting military and infrastructure sites inside Russia and Russian-occupied territory.

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Taiwanese drone exports soar on Ukraine war

      By Allison Jackson and Joy Chiang Taiwan’s drone exports are taking off, fuelled by the war in Ukraine, as Taiwanese companies seek a stake in the fast-growing global market for unmanned aerial vehicles.

    • France24 ☛ Putin's quest to avoid the grim reaper: What’s behind the $26 Billion longevity programme?

      The Wall Street Journal’s award winning Chief European Political Correspondent Bojan Pancevski speaks to France 24’s Gavin Lee about the anti aging efforts President Putin is undertaking and the 26 billion dollar Russian State backed programme for longevity.

    • New York Times ☛ The Russian Drone That Hit Romania Also Hit European Confidence

      The failure to protect NATO territory further increased anxiety about alliance solidarity, Russia’s intentions and Washington’s commitment to collective defense.

• Environment

  • France24 ☛ Heat Wave Grips France

    France is sweltering in an "unprecedented" heatwave for May - says the French meteorological service. Skyrocketing temperatures have broken records this month. We speak with Fabio D'Andrea, a CNRS climatologist and head of the geosciences department of ENS about the cause.

  • Futurism ☛ French Open Descends Into Hellish Nightmare Thanks to Climate Change

    "It's insane to play in this weather."

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Latvia ☛ Large rock in eastern Latvia earns title of giant boulder

      A giant boulder has been discovered on the banks of the Malta River in Ornicāni, Viļāni Parish, Rēzekne Municipality. The owners, who had known for years that an unusually large rock was on their property but had only recently decided to report it, notified experts about the impressive boulder. Following an inspection and measurements of the site, it was concluded that the stone qualifies as a giant boulder.

• Finance

  • The Straits Times ☛ From lottery draws to fiscal spending, China broadens digital yuan footprint

    Some say Beijing's move is aimed at reducing dependence on a Western-dominated global payments system.

  • New York Times ☛ Inside Convicted Felon’s Deal With the I.R.S. to Drop His $10 Billion Lawsuit

    Discussions among a group of lawyers with allegiance to the president were closely held. Some senior White House officials were said to have felt blindsided as the agreement took shape.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Kevin O'Leary claims Chinese propaganda is to blame for anti-datacenter backlash, 'hundreds of millions of dollars' being spent to kill US dominance in Hey Hi (AI) — industry proponents and Convicted Felon administration reinforce claims of foreign interference

    Kevin O'Leary claims Chinese propaganda to blame for anti-datacenter sentiment.

• Civil Rights / Policing / Accessibility

  • France24 ☛ France mourns intellectual 'grandfather', sociologist and philosopher Edgar Morin

    France is mourning the loss of Edgar Morin. The country's favorite intellectual has passed away at the age of 104. President Emmanuel Macron paid him tribute – calling Morin "humanism personified" – and offered his loved ones the condolences of the nation. FRANCE 24's Caroline Baum takes a look back at his life.

  • New York Times ☛ Edgar Morin, ‘Grandfather’ of French Intellectuals, Dies at 104

    A former member of the Resistance, he went on to a career spanning eras and disciplines. His books and pronouncements carried moral authority.

• Monopolies/Monopsonies

  • Copyrights

    • New York Times ☛ Ye and Travis Scott Concerts Canceled in Italy Over Security Fears

      The events were canceled “to ensure public order and safety,” the authorities said. Jewish leaders had objected to the concert by Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, who has a history of antisemitic remarks.

    • Frankie Valli ends Four Seasons’ farewell tour, citing health concerns

      Frankie Valli, 92, has cancelled the remainder of the Four Seasons 2026 tour dates due to health concerns.