Leftovers

• Science / Mathematics / Computer Science

  • Science Alert ☛ In April 2029, a Massive Asteroid Will Just Miss Earth. Scientists Are Worried There Could Still Be Major Consequences

    Apophis is going to get close.

  • Science Alert ☛ Monkeys Show a Strange Language Quirk We Thought Was Unique to Humans

    There's just something about 'Bouba' and 'Kiki'.

  • Science Alert ☛ An Ancient Poop Explosion Could Have Helped Complex Life Evolve

    Er... thanks?

  • Science Alert ☛ The World Is Running Out of River Sand, And That's a Massive Issue

    We're digging it up faster than it can be replaced.

• Career/Education

  • The Straits Times ☛ China dismisses Philippine education concerns as 'political provocation'

    China accused the Philippines of an "extremely serious political provocation" on Tuesday, after the southeast Asian nation flagged concerns that the Asian giant's state-linked institutions were influencing domestic education programmes.

  • Science Alert ☛ A New Study of Screen Time And Child Development Has Some Unexpected Findings

    There might be more to this story.

  • ACLU ☛ Why an Appeals Court Blocked a Dangerous Censorship Law in Florida’s Universities

    The ACLU filed a lawsuit in 2022 on behalf of professors forced to censor race and gender in their instruction.

• Hardware

  • CNX Software ☛ BG2B is the lowest-power Bluetooth LE SoC from Silicon Labs so far

    Silicon Labs BG2B is an ultra-low-power Arm Cortex-M33 Bluetooth 6 LE SoC with support for Channel Sounding, “Secure Vault High” security, and integrated CAN-FD and peripherals such as LED drivers and ADCs for smaller, longer-lasting IoT devices. The company claims it’s the lowest-power Bluetooth LE device in its portfolio, with 1.1 µA EM2 sleep current with RAM retention, as well as 14%-15% lower MCU active current and lower Bluetooth receive current compared to Silicon Labs BG22/BG22L.

  • Russell Coker ☛ Russell Coker: Monitors for Work

    The Corporate Monitor Issue

    Some time ago I worked in the IT department of a company that had a corporate standard of two 27″ FUllHD (either 1920*1080 or 1920*1200) monitors for the desktop. I was pushing to make the standard be one 32″ 4K monitor or the two cheaper monitors. They ended up making one 27″ 4K monitor an option which was still a better option for many users than two FullHD monitors due to having twice the pixels even though it had half the screen area. It was a surprise to me when hardly anyone took up that option.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ China cracks down on copycat chip designs with new regulations and penalties — new guidelines enforce originality and independent development

    China tightens legal protections for domestically developed chip layout designs by raising originality requirements and strengthening infringement penalties.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Chinese chipmaking tool roadmaps examined — Beijing's nascent lithography tools target DUV production at five machines a year, and an EUV prototype with no chips

    Ultimately, three markers will indicate whether China’s domestic DUV program is a legitimate rival or yet more state-sanctioned hot air.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • The Straits Times ☛ Brisbane nurse uses jiu-jitsu to take down abusive, violent patient

    Viral hospital takedown highlights the violence and abuse confronting healthcare workers worldwide.

  • Digital Music News ☛ Ariana Grande Announces Step Back from Public Amid Health Scrutiny

    Ariana Grande has announced she’s taking a step back from public-facing work after her most recent tour ends. The news comes amid renewed attention to the singer’s gaunt appearance, especially in her latest “petal” music video and the conclusion of the Wicked: Part 2 press tour.

  • New York Times ☛ China’s Nonsmokers Try to Clear the Air, One Confrontation at a Time

    Disputes between smokers and nonsmokers are becoming more visible as a younger generation increasingly refuses to suffer secondhand smoke in silence.

  • Science Alert ☛ GLP-1 Drugs May Have a Hidden Effect on Your Eyes, Study Finds

    The effects could go much further than we expected.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Afghan child malnutrition surges as aid cuts force clinics to turn families away, WFP says

    Child malnutrition in Afghanistan has reached critical levels and aid shortages are forcing health workers to turn away millions of children and mothers — six in seven of those in need — the U.N. World Food Programme said on Tuesday.

• Proprietary / SaaS

  • Engadget ☛ Xbox's devastating July was inevitable

    On July 6, at the dawn of a new fiscal year, Microsoft announced it was laying off 3,200 people in its Xbox division, plus an additional 3,200 employees across other departments. Of the Xbox layoffs, 1,600 jobs were cut immediately, while the remaining 1,600 will be lost over the coming year, the promise casting a morbid shadow over the immediate future of Microsoft's gaming business. Additionally, Xbox attempted to shutter five of its development teams — Arkane Studios, Compulsion Games, Double Fine, Ninja Theory and Undead Labs — and it ended up divesting four of them, while the future of Arkane remains uncertain.

    The layoffs hit Xbox at all levels: Doom creator id Software lost a reported 50 percent of its staff, Double Fine had to drop a third of its employees as it bought itself back from Microsoft, the platform team was gutted, and it appears that multiple projects were canceled at Fallout: New Vegas studio Obsidian Entertainment, including a sequel to Avowed.

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

    • New York Times ☛ I’m Begging You: Never Write With A.I.

      It’s bad for your brain and worse for democracy.

    • JURIST ☛ INTERPOL report finds Hey Hi (AI) linked to over half of cybercrime in Africa

      INTERPOL announced on Monday that it has released a new report entitled “African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026” which revealed that artificial intelligence (AI) now drives over 55 per cent of cybercrime across Africa, with financial losses doubling to $484 million since 2024.

    • Futurism ☛ Rapper Denies That His Billboard-Charting Song Is AI-Generated

      Listeners — and musicians — aren't having it.

    • Futurism ☛ Tech Companies Are Setting Themselves on Fire to Keep Up in the Hey Hi (AI) Race

      But why?

    • Futurism ☛ New Hey Hi (AI) Chatbot Turns Out to Be One Overworked Guy Answering All the Messages by Hand

      "You ask a question, and a person named Tucker reads it, thinks about it, and writes back when awake and motivated."

    • Futurism ☛ Parents Horrified as Boomer Mawmaws Gift Children Blatant Hey Hi (AI) Slop Picture Books

      "Well-meaning on their end, but f**king yikes."

    • Scoop News Group ☛ AISI, Proprietary Chaffbot Company report more ‘unsanctioned’ model hacks

      Following similar reports by Proprietary Chaffbot Company and Anthropic, the UK’s top Hey Hi (AI) testing lab and a private cybersecurity tester say their models exploited parts of the open internet.

    • Latvia ☛ Latvian State Security Service looks at violent Hey Hi (AI) video

      The State Security Service is investigating a video of boxer Kristaps Zutis, published on the ‘X’ platform, which was created using artificial intelligence. It shows scenes of violence against third-country citizens, including crude and cruel treatment of food delivery workers.

  • Social Control Media

    • The Straits Times ☛ ‘Like WeChat messages’: E-mail etiquette debate grips college students in China

      Commenters said students treat e-mails like instant messages and often use overly casual language.

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong mulls Hey Hi (AI) facial recognition-enabled drones to police smoking ban at construction sites, 39 fines issued so far

      Authorities have issued 39 fines since a smoking ban at construction sites came into effect last month, with the Labour Department saying it is looking into equipping drones with facial recognition tools to better enforce the new law.

    • AccessNow ☛ Joint statement on surveillance and interception in Bangladesh

• Defence/Aggression

  • PNG’s closure of Taiwan trade office signals expanded economic ties with China

    Experts said the move was diplomatically confusing, but that PNG could expect vast sums of Chinese money.

  • Tom's Hardware ☛ Chinese ship spotted lurking over Taiwan-US undersea cables — 'research vessel' seen loitering above the 8,000-mile Pacific Light Cable Network fiber-optic system

    A new video shows Taiwan’s Coast Guard warning a 200-ft long Chinese-flagged research vessel, spotted loitering over a fiber internet cable, to change course.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan begins military drills as China pressure grows

    Civilians will also be put through their paces during exercises that include air raid drills.

  • ADF ☛ Terrorists Weaponize Women

    Boko Haram’s first female suicide bomber killed herself and a Nigerian Soldier in 2014 at a barracks in Gombe State. Since then, Boko Haram has deployed more female suicide bombers than any other terror group in history, conducting a form of asymmetric warfare that analysts say has a deep psychological impact on communities.

  • The Straits Times ☛ North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong warns of new military options over Japan’s strike capabilities

    She added that Pyongyang will make new military choices against Japan's threat.

  • ADF ☛ Sahel Towns Build Barriers to Slow Terror Threat

    Across the Sahel landscape, an old security feature is returning: fortified barriers. Inhabitants of rural towns are building rings of earthen walls and trenches in an effort to stop attacks by terrorist groups.

  • Defence Web ☛ Sahel security crisis demands action beyond assurances of solidarity

    Recent attacks in Central Sahel reflect a worrying evolution of the terror threat in West Africa. The situation demands more [...]

  • France24 ☛ Ceuta has 're-exposed immigration's divisive nature' in the EU

    The EU's migration chief said the bloc successfully met a "test" of its border security and "resilience to disinformation" in the handling of a migrant rush into Spain's North African territory of Ceuta. His comments came as the bloc's interior ministers held an emergency meeting over the incident, with several praising Spain for how it handled it. FRANCE 24's Kethevane Gorjestani tells us more.

  • France24 ☛ ‘Europe passed the test’ of Ceuta crisis, says EU commissioner

    The EU's migration chief said Tuesday the bloc successfully met a "test" of its border security and "resilience to disinformation" in the handling of a migrant rush into Spain's North African territory of Ceuta.

    Last Thursday, more than 70,000 migrants crossed the border from Morocco to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in just 24 hours. The influx fueled tensions among EU partners, which eased after a "constructive" extraordinary meeting on Tuesday.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • France24 ☛ Ukraine: Drone follows man before detonating and injuring him

      The Kherson Regional Military Administration released a video showing a drone flying in front of a man, before detonating and injuring him. The army says the incident occurred on August 4, 2026.

      The war in Ukraine has become the first major conflict dominated by unmanned aerial vehicles. Kyiv has set itself the ambitious target of producing seven million drones by 2026, which is about 10,000 per day. Russia currently has the capacity to fire 350 to 500 long-range attack drones per day, according to Ukrainian estimates.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuania seeks to produce Ukrainian drones under bilateral defence agreement

      Lithuania is seeking to establish production of Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles on its territory under a bilateral defence industry cooperation agreement, Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas said Tuesday.

    • RFERL ☛ Ukrainian Strikes On Russian Warehouses, Including Wildberries, Leave Five Dead

      Ukrainian drones struck two more warehouses used by the online retailer Wildberries, as well as a third in the Moscow region that killed five people as Russia and Ukraine continued exchanging cross-border strikes with US-mediated peace talks stalled.

    • The Straits Times ☛ North Korean missile unit deploys in Russia for Ukraine war, Kyiv says

      Russia has fired scores of North Korean ballistic missiles at Ukraine since late 2023.

    • New York Times ☛ A New Lethal Front in Ukraine: Its Beloved Gas Stations

      Russian drone attacks have hit hundreds of gas stations in apparent retaliation for Ukraine’s attacks on oil refineries.

    • France24 ☛ Ukraine live: Russian strikes kill at least 15 in Kyiv and surrounding region

      Russian strikes on Kyiv and the surrounding region killed at least 15 people and wounded dozens overnight, authorities said on Wednesday. In recent weeks, both sides have increased long-range attacks, with Russia more than doubling its use of missiles in July. On Tuesday, at least five were killed and 10 others wounded in the Moscow region. Follow our liveblog for the latest updates.

    • Latvia ☛ Latvia's 'national position' on Russia and Belarus is to step up sanctions

      On 4th August, the Latvian cabinet approved what it dubbed the country's "national position" with regard to aggressor states Russia and Belarus.

    • France24 ☛ How Togo has become a new entry point for weapons sent by Russia to Mali

      A Russian ship under US sanctions, the Mikhail Britnev, dropped off its cargo of military vehicles at the Port of Lomé in Togo on July 9. It’s the first time that Togo has been a stop for a Russian shipment of weapons to Mali, carried out as part of Moscow’s support for the Malian government.

    • LRT ☛ China adds Lithuanian firm to export control list in possible retaliation for EU sanctions

      China has imposed export restrictions on Lithuanian laser manufacturer Ekspla, limiting its ability to purchase dual-use goods and technologies from Chinese suppliers in what appears to be retaliation for the European Union’s latest sanctions against Russia.

    • LRT ☛ Russian attack on Lithuanian embassy in Kyiv could have been deliberate, FM speculates

      Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said Monay that Vilnius cannot rule out the possibility that Russia deliberately targeted Lithuania’s embassy in Kyiv when two Russian missiles damaged the diplomatic mission over the weekend.

    • LRT ☛ Lithuanian FM calls for ‘firm response’ from NATO after Russian missile lands in Poland

      Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys on Monday said NATO should respond more forcefully after a Russian missile landed in eastern Poland last week, arguing that the alliance must reinforce its military presence and adopt a stronger political stance following the incident.

    • ADF ☛ Zimbabwe Probes Russian War Recruiting Schemes

      Amid a spate of recent arrests on charges of human trafficking, police and government officials in Zimbabwe are investigating an elaborate recruitment network responsible for funneling men into Russian military service under false pretenses.

    • Latvia ☛ Latvia-Belarus border will not be closed completely

      The Latvian-Belarusian border will not be closed for the time being, the government decided on Tuesday, 4 August, during a closed-door meeting, Latvian Radio reported.

    • Latvia ☛ Estonian border guards head south to help Latvia

      The Estonian Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) sent a third rotating unit to Latvia on Monday, August 3rd to help stop illegal migration on the Latvian-Belarusian border, reports ERR News.

    • LRT ☛ Latvia proposes closing the Belarus border to the general public and freight transport

      The Ministry of the Interior is set to propose to the government that operations at the ‘Paternieki’ border crossing between Latvia and Belarus be suspended, according to a publicly available draft government decision prepared by the ministry.

• Environment

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea’s President Lee calls heatwave a national disaster as deaths rise to 19

    The South Korean President called on officials to protect the daily lives of people.

  • The Straits Times ☛ As summer returns in South Korea, so does debate over shirtless runners

    While some view it as a matter of personal freedom, local governments continue to receive complaints.

  • Energy/Transportation

    • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea to revive stalled rail project that could connect to North Korea

      The railway, which begins in Seoul, could serve as a future connection to Wonsan in North Korea.

    • The Straits Times ☛ China draws up safety rules for autonomous vehicles

      Manufacturers will have to ensure autonomous systems can match the safety of human drivers.

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China draws up safety rules for autonomous vehicles

      China has drawn up new safety rules for the growing number of autonomous vehicles on its roads, including a mandatory deactivation override, the government said Tuesday.

    • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ More than 1,000 drivers apply to take written tests for new ride-hailing regulatory regime

      More than 1,000 drivers have applied to take written tests required under new regulations for providing ride-hailing services such as Uber, the Transport Department has said. The department’s announcement was made on Monday as some of the legal provisions under the new laws for regulating ride-hailing services came into effect.

    • New York Times ☛ Airport chaos, delays as E.U. debuts biometric border system

      The biometric system for non-E.U. citizens is causing long delays and short tempers at airports. Officials say the rocky rollout will get better and will improve security.

    • The Straits Times ☛ Malaysian police eye security staff in investigation into pilot arrested with drugs in Jakarta

      The employee will be questioned or arrested if necessary, said Malaysian police.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • New York Times ☛ Video: Dolphin Carries Dead Calf in What Experts Call Mourning

      Footage posted by a conservancy group offers an unusual glimpse of a common behavior by dolphins that often goes unobserved.

  • Overpopulation

    • Science Alert ☛ California's Drought Has Now Caused Irreversible Damage to a Crucial Aquifer

      This water capacity isn't coming back.

    • CS Monitor ☛ In China, motherhood begins with ‘sitting the month.’ The tradition is spreading.

      China’s ancient tradition requiring a month of special postpartum care is evolving into an upscale, spalike experience – and slowly migrating to the West.

    • New York Times ☛ South Korea Wants to Raise Its Birthrate but Doesn’t Have Enough NICU Doctors

      South Korea, which has one of the world’s lowest fertility rates, is in the throes of a breakdown in emergency care. It is particularly acute for at-risk newborns.

• Finance

  • New York Times ☛ In Lawsuit, NJ Accuses Amazon of Suppressing Pay for Delivery Drivers

    The state attorney general said in an antitrust lawsuit filed on Tuesday that the company was abusing its market power to keep its delivery costs low.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ HSBC resumes buyback after big profit jump in first half of 2026

    British Banking giant HSBC said Tuesday it would buy back up to US$1 billion of shares after a big jump in profits in the first half of 2026.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • France24 ☛ FIFA president Infantino's problems mount as key FIFA allies turn on him

    FIFA president Gianni Infantino faced intensified pressure on Tuesday from within world football's governing body as well as from external critics over his since-abandoned proposal to open the World Cup to private investment. Infantino has been swamped with criticism of his style of leadership and a previously smooth path to being re-elected unopposed to a fourth and final term next March now looks rocky

  • The Straits Times ☛ Bangladesh warns media against airing Hasina's planned address from India

    Bangladesh warned the country's media not to publicise the statements of exiled former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina who is due to give a virtual address on Wednesday from India to mark the second anniversary of the uprising that ousted her.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • The Straits Times ☛ Police raid Starbucks Korea headquarters over ‘Tank Day’ event

    This comes after its “Tank Day” promotion was accused of insulting victims of South Korea’s democracy movement.

  • BIA Net ☛ Photographer Bennu Gerede detained for 'obscenity' after showing vibrator during interview

    Gerede was released with an international travel ban after questioning. Her detention marks another case where non-explicit material has been treated as “obscene.”

  • Citizen Lab ☛ A Roadmap for Confronting the Chilling Effects of Censorship, Surveillance and New Technology

    Senior research fellow Jon Penney spoke with Tech Policy Press about how rising surveillance is causing people to self-censor. 

• Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

  • Press Gazette ☛ Belfast News Letter editor Ben Lowry made redundant

    Iconic Media planning to create role of group editorial director for Northern Ireland.

  • Press Gazette ☛ The prisoner’s dilemma: Why UK publishers are signing Surveillance Giant Google Hey Hi (AI) deals

    Is short-term revenue and traffic being prioritised over long-term health of news industry?

  • Press Gazette ☛ Journalism job cuts in 2026 tracked: Latest from Chattanooga Times Free Press, Buzzfeed and National Geographic

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • APNIC ☛ Join the final online listening session on diversity in APNIC community leadership

    The APNIC Executive Council (EC) is seeking community input to better understand barriers affecting diversity in community leadership and EC candidacy. These insights will inform future initiatives to support a broader leadership pipeline.

  • Michael Geist ☛ Why the Answers to Hateful Content Online are Hiding in the Platforms’ Own Rules

    The Canadian government has a two-pronged legal strategy to counter rising hate: New Criminal Code provisions to address offline harms, such as intimidation or protests outside schools and places of worship, and the digital safety bill introduced in June, which targets online harms. A new legal duty to act responsibly, which would require internet platforms to publish digital safety plans, provide greater transparency on their efforts to counter harms, and occasionally remove content, serves as the foundation for fighting back against the spread online of illegal content such as non-consensual distribution of intimate images, cyberbullying, terrorist content, and content that incites violence or hatred.

  • Scoop News Group ☛ Senate set to debate package of bills on privacy, Hey Hi (AI) and kids safety

    Headlined by the Kids Online Safety Act, a key committee will look to clear major legislation governing how minors interact with the internet.

  • Internet Society ☛ Community Snapshot—July

    Around the world, our community works to keep the Internet a force for good. We are highlighting just a few of their initiatives from July.

• Monopolies/Monopsonies

  • Patents

    • Unified Patents ☛ Anaqua Acquires Unified Patents to Help Organizations Protect Against Rising Intellectual Property Litigation Risk [Ed: Anaqua can be a parasite at times]

    • Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Back to 1789: Collision Asks the Federal Circuit to Rewrite the eBay Factors

      Collision's Federal Circuit opening brief seeks the injunction and asks the court to let 1789 equity reshape eBay's first two factors.

    • JUVE ☛ Baker Botts hires first patent monopoly litigation partner in London from EIP [Ed: How or why is hiring a single person newsworthy? Marketing spam?]

      Kathleen Fox Murphy joined Baker Botts on 3 August. She began her legal career at Taylor Wessing (then Taylor Joynson Garrett), where she trained from 1997 and remained for a total of around 16 years, most recently as senior counsel.

    • Kangaroo Courts

      • JUVE ☛ UPC decides to bifurcate proceedings in Merz vs Viatris over SPC for Fampyra [Ed: UPC is illegal and unconstitutional. JUVE knows this, but gets paid to pretend corruption is OK.]

        The dispute between German pharmaceutical company Merz and generics manufacturer Viatris over the multiple sclerosis drug Fampyra continues to unfold across multiple forums. Late last week, the UPC Paris local division rejected a preliminary objection filed by Viatris under Rule 19 of the Rules of Procedure (case ID: UPC-CFI-1901/2026).

  • Copyrights

    • Digital Music News ☛ South Korea’s KOMCA Reverses Hey Hi (AI) Music Copyright Ban, Confirms AI-Assisted Works Are Now Eligible for Registration

      16 months later, the Korea Music Copyright Association (KOMCA) has walked back its zero-tolerance artificial intelligence policy by allowing the registration of AI-assisted musical works. KOMCA announced the pivot in a formal release that quickly made way for reports from regional outlets.