Leftovers

• Tracy Durnell ☛ Does kitsch discard the “interesting”?

  George Gessert describes ornamental plants as a form of domestication. Under that framing, Gessert argues, humans have actually domesticated more species for aesthetic purposes than we have for eating… and “interesting” has been just as common an aesthetic aim as “beautiful” has been.

• Gigi ☛ Betrayal - It never comes from the enemy.

  How paranoid should you be? If you get rekt, you haven’t been paranoid enough. But still, if you’ve been fine until now, it’s no guarantee that you’ve been paranoid enough, since you might get rekt at any moment.

  On the other side: how trusting should you be? If you are generally trusting, you will get hurt. Betrayal, exploitation, and other ills along these lines will befall you. However, if we’re not trusting anyone or anything at all ever, we’re back at paranoid schizophrenia, which isn’t a good way to live life either.

• University of Toronto ☛ It helps to keep track of and investigate your clever ideas

  I don't have an answer, but I found it interesting to actually observe myself having a clever idea and then not so much dropping it as losing track of it and never getting around to doing anything more. It feels like something I should pay at least some attention to.

• Andy Bell ☛ A little progressive enhancement as a treat

  I’m using the open music encyclopaedia, Music Brainz to give me the links, rather than writing a convoluted script that attempts to do all that. I tried it once and I actually sat and cried at my computer, so I won’t be doing it again.

  This approach is simple, which I like. It’s not going to surface as many links as I probably would like, but loads of people contribute to Music Brainz, so it’ll get better with time, probably.

• Science / Mathematics / Computer Science

  • New Yorker ☛ The Mystery of Dark Oxygen

    Scientists once thought that life-sustaining oxygen existed only near Earth’s surface. Then they detected it deep underground.

  • Science Alert ☛ Scientists Just Found a Hidden Fault Under New Jersey, And It Caused The 2024 Earthquake

    "Previously unrecognized but critical earthquake hazards."

  • Science Alert ☛ After 50 Years, Physicists Find Strong Evidence For What Really Holds Matter Together

    A discovery half a century in the making.

  • Science Alert ☛ More Young People Than Ever Before Are Getting One Type of Cancer, And It's Mystifying Scientists

    Here's what we know.

  • Science Alert ☛ Scientists Overfed a Tiny Worm… And It Started Growing a Chain of Clones

    This gives new meaning to the term 'food baby'.

  • LRT ☛ Partial solar eclipse over Lithuania – photos

    A partial solar eclipse was visible over Lithuania on Wednesday evening. Cloudy sky prevented the full display of the celestial event in some places – notably in Vilnius – but people went out to look, with special glasses, at the sun.

  • Latvia ☛ Photos: Latvia observes partial solar eclipse

    On Wednesday evening, keen observers in Latvia were rushing to watch the solar eclipse.

• Career/Education

  • Mississippi Journalism and Education Group ☛ Opinion | Cell Phones Are the Distraction in Student Pockets

    Even more importantly is the mental and social issues which come from cell [sic] phones. Obviously, youth with higher cell [sic] phone usage have less social interaction (creating a lifelong issue). Further, these youth are more likely to experience depression and anxiety. Then there is cyberbullying.

    So this leads us to a discussion of when a child should have a cell [sic] phone. I believe that decision is a parental right. Some school parents are signing pledges to “Wait Until 8th,” agreeing to delay giving their child a cell [sic] phone until the 8th grade, hoping to avoid peer pressure.

  • Coalition for Networked Information ☛ Designing Libraries – Early bird registration ends Aug. 17

    Our two keynote speakers will present talks on Biophilia Architecture in Libraries and the Future of Libraries and the Obama Presidential Center Chicago Public Library; additional sessions will address a wide range of topics. CNI’s Kate Zwaard will moderate a session on spaces for engagement and active learning, featuring projects from Georgetown University and Library of Congress.

  • Zachary Kai ☛ People and Blogs: Rusty

    My name is Rusty. I am just a regular guy who lives in the western United States. I have been married to my wife for 30 years now, and we have three adult children. I work full-time as a software engineer for a large university, and part-time as an adjunct professor of anthropology at a different, slightly smaller university. I am a child of the 1980s - which is responsible for my love of older personal computers, science fiction novels and comic books. I am a proponent of open-source software (especially Linux) and love all kinds of sports - some of which I used to participate in but now just watch. I also love to write - anything from blog posts to stories and poems - and have been doing so nearly all my life.

  • Robert Birming ☛ Bad communication

    Same job, totally different outcome. No magic, no special skills required.

    Clear communication, that's all there is to it.

  • Michael Barrett ☛ This is the end, isn’t ‘it?

    The days of the jacks-of-all-trades didn’t last. Roles became more specialized and visual design of websites became the role of experience designers using specialized design tools. Old-school web designers became web developers who became engineers. Engineers who could lead and talk to clients and other humans became directors. I became a Director of Technology.

  • Alcides Fonseca ☛ Paulo dual graduated!

    Paulo successfully defended his PhD thesis this Monday, wrapping up his dual PhD degree between Lisbon and Carnegie Mellon. Through out his PhD, Paulo studied the challenges that arise when writing modular robotics software using ROS. To help detect several types of misconfigurations, Paulo developed ROSpec, a specification language with Liquid Types that does not run. Instead, developers write the specification of the modules they create, and system integrators write the specification of their whole robot (the glue code). The type checker tells them whether it should work (w.r.t. the specification) or not.

• Hardware

  • France24 ☛ The Insurrectionist imposes tariffs of up to 100% on imported drones

    President The Insurrectionist on Thursday imposed tariffs of up to 100% on imported drones and components, including from key US allies, citing national security concerns and a need to reduce US reliance on foreign suppliers. The measures will take effect in 21 days.

  • Digital Camera World ☛ I photographed the Northern Lights and a Perseid meteor in the same frame – and I used one of the cheapest lenses in my bag

    Astrophotography to me has always seemed like a mix between planning, technique – and sheer luck. I was photographing the Northern Lights a few days ago when I managed to capture another astrophotography phenomenon in the same frame: a Perseid meteor.

  • Sal ☛ A mechanical Magic Keyboard

    As someone who likes mechanical keyboards but always ends up back on a Magic Keyboard, I was intrigued.

  • Howard Oakley ☛ Why and how to check your SSDs Trim correctly

    The cheat is simple: instead of waiting to erase blocks when they’re required for writing, they’re erased in advance and left in a free pool ready for use. That in turn relies on your Mac telling the SSD which blocks it can erase because they’re no longer being used by its file system, a process known as Trimming, after the TRIM command used in SATA SSDs. To be pernickety, NVMe SSDs don’t use a TRIM command, but its equivalent is DEALLOCATE to perform the same task.

    Most modern SSDs also perform their own housekeeping that may reduce or eliminate the need for Trimming, but some don’t, and when they’re left untrimmed they eventually become extremely slow at writing.

• Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

  • Science Alert ☛ Cutting Meat And Dairy For Just a Few Weeks Can Alter Your Body's Chemistry

    A few weeks can make a big difference.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Penang ready to step up measures as air quality hits unhealthy level

    The state's chief minister said Penang would step up measures if readings reached critical levels.

  • New York Times ☛ A City Mobilizes Against a Stubborn Health Threat: Mosquitoes

    The city of Belém in northern Brazil was overwhelmed by an outbreak of dengue two years ago. An all-out municipal effort has reduced cases and may offer lessons to American cities.

  • New York Times ☛ What to Know About Luigi Mangione’s Court Cases and Potential Plea Deal

    Mr. Mangione faces federal charges of stalking that resulted in the death of a health insurance executive. A guilty plea could close the federal case — and complicate a separate state murder trial.

  • New York Times ☛ Deaths of 3 ICE Detainees Prompt Questions About Medical Care

    Immigrants at Delaney Hall in Newark have complained about health services. Federal officials defended the treatment provided there and elsewhere.

  • Futurism ☛ Organisms Living Inside Psychopaths Could Be Driving Bad Behavior, Scientists Claim

    "To our knowledge, this is the first study to explore this association."

  • Science Alert ☛ First-of-Its-Kind Trial Against Food Allergies Yields 'Exciting' Results

    In a new study, transplanted microbiomes that were removed from donors' excrement helped resolve some people's severe allergic reactions.

  • Science Alert ☛ Pinot Noir Might Be Doomed as Droughts Become More Frequent

    Could the best Pinot Noirs be behind us?

• Proprietary / Vendor Lock-in / Malware

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

    • Tom's Hardware ☛ Cerebras shares plunge nearly 20% after missing earnings expectations — hardware sales drop but Hey Hi (AI) cloud revenue climbs 281% [Ed: Slop as a scam]

      Cerebras keeps growing, but misses forecast as hardware sales dip amid explosive increase of Hey Hi (AI) cloud revenue.

    • Digital Music News ☛ Amazon Exec Openly Admits That Voluntary Hey Hi (AI) Opt-Ins Don’t Work: ‘Nobody Would Opt In’

      Amazon says it will train Hey Hi (AI) on Twitch streamers’ content by default, unless they opt out—because “if this was opt-in, nobody would opt in.” Content creators on Twitch are raging at the Amazon-owned streaming platform, which the company says will train its Hey Hi (AI) on Twitch streamers’ content by default, unless they opt out.

    • Futurism ☛ College Kids Are Using Hey Hi (AI) Agents to “Take” Entire Online Classes for Them by Logging Directly Into the Course Management Software

      "Am I just interacting with bots here?"

    • Futurism ☛ Insane Dad Boasts About Using Hey Hi (AI) to Construct a “Truman Show” Style False Reality For His Son To Play In

      "This is dystopian and incredibly depressing."

    • Futurism ☛ Game Dev CEO Accused of Replacing Writers With Hey Hi (AI) is Now Completely Crashing Out

      "That statement is remarkably pathetic for the CEO of any company to be making."

    • Futurism ☛ Remember the Publisher That Put Fake Writers in Sports Illustrated? It Just Rebranded as an Hey Hi (AI) Company

      The natural next life cycle for the Arena Group.

    • Cloudbooklet ☛ Twitch Faces Backlash as Amazon Turns Streams into Hey Hi (AI) Data

      Creators are pushing back as Amazon uses Twitch streams for Hey Hi (AI) training, leaving Twitch Faces Backlash over privacy, consent, and user content.

  • Social Control Media

    • Futurism ☛ Facebook Is Filling With Viral AI-Generated Silver Foxes Wooing Women by Ranting About How Terrible Men Are

      "We live in a generation where women have to become the man, because the men are busy acting like the princess..."

• Security

  • Privacy/Surveillance

    • CS Monitor ☛ Brazilians weigh the benefits of Hey Hi (AI) facial recognition against the costs

      Advocates say smart cameras can help bring down crime – a top priority for many Brazilians – but this technology is exploding before a clear legal framework has been put into place.

    • MIT Technology Review ☛ Flock is tightening its rules in response to a growing surveillance backlash

      The police-tech giant Flock is announcing today that it will change officers’ access to its nationwide network of license plate readers, in an apparent effort to quell a growing backlash and win back contracts lost amid concerns about mass surveillance and police abuse.

    • ACLU ☛ Despite 'New' Updates, Flock's Creepy Cameras Remain Major Civil Liberties Threat

      In response to Flock’s announcement of operational changes, the ACLU breaks down why many fall short.

    • OSTechNix ☛ Hidden Phone Privacy Settings You Should Change Right Now (Android & iOS)

  • Confidentiality

    • The Register UK ☛ Scottish prosecutors cast eye over leaky supplier after staff data exposed

      Scotland's public prosecution service has warned 300 staff that their personal information may have been caught up in a cyberattack on one of its suppliers.

      The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) disclosed the incident on Thursday, saying an unnamed third-party supplier detected suspicious activity on August 5 and subsequently launched an investigation.

    • The Register UK ☛ Crypto wallet maker Trezor confirms 13,000 customers' details exposed in logistics breach

      Cryptocurrency hardware wallet maker Trezor has confirmed that a breach at one of its shipping partners exposed the personal data of more than 13,000 customers.

      The company's initial findings suggested the breach was limited to orders placed in certain countries during the previous 90 days. New information indicates that earlier orders may also be affected.

• Defence/Aggression

  • Site36 ☛ Despite PKK self-dissolution and peace process in Turkey: Germany set to keep pursuing Kurds hard

    The peace process launched in Turkey with the PKK’s self-dissolution is historic. In Germany, however, the will to prosecute the Kurdistan Workers’ Party remains unbroken.

  • The Straits Times ☛ North Korea warns of new ‘deterrent’ ahead of US-South Korea drills

    The 11-day exercises due to begin on Aug 17.

  • The Straits Times ☛ South Korea's Lee favours four-year presidency with re-election permitted, Yonhap says

    SEOUL, Aug 14 - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung favours a constitutional reform that would allow presidents to serve a four-year term and seek re-election while strengthening parliamentary powers, the Yonhap news agency reported on Friday, citing a presidential Blue House official.

  • The Strategist ☛ Australia is not ready for an economic blockade of Taiwan

    Last month, US Senator Tammy Duckworth warned that China may be more likely to impose an economic blockade on Taiwan in 2028 than launch a full-scale invasion.

  • The Straits Times ☛ Shipyard explosion in southeastern China kills fire and rescue worker

    An explosion at a shipyard in the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian on Thursday killed one fire and rescue worker, local authorities said.

  • New York Times ☛ Charlie Kirk Suspect Fights Death Penalty, Says No Others Were in Danger

    Prosecutors say they can seek the death penalty against Tyler Robinson because he also endangered people near Charlie Kirk, who was shot in the throat last year. Mr. Robinson’s lawyers note that the gunman struck only his target.

  • The Straits Times ☛ China rejects New Zealand spy allegations as false

    WELLINGTON, Aug 14 - China on Friday rejected allegations that it is conducting widespread espionage on New Zealand, saying the claim in the country's latest security assessment stemmed from a Cold War mentality.

  • Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine

    • Latvia ☛ Latvian car registry website suffers cyber attack

      Latvia's Road Traffic Safety Directorate (CSDD) suffered a cyber attack over the weekend - attackers managed to partially access the CSDD IT system and retrieve historical payment receipt data for CSDD services, the CSDD revealed.

    • Latvia ☛ 'Operation Werewolf' causes minor inconvenience to locals near Belarus border

      Despite its dramatic-sounding name, the recently announced Operation Werewolf ("Vilkatis") does not appear to have greatly affected daily life on Latvia's eastern border, reports Latvian Television.

    • The Strategist ☛ Russia’s Pacific submarine fleet could tip the scales in China’s favour

      Russia has a potent yet often overlooked fleet of nuclear-powered and conventional attack submarines in the Pacific.

    • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man Gives Green Light to U.S. Companies to Aim Hacks at Cybercriminals

      The practice would align the United States more closely with countries like China and Russia, where spy agencies have long relied on private-sector hackers to help with national security missions.

    • CS Monitor ☛ Why former Soviet states now challenge Russia over Ukraine war

      Former Soviet states in Central Asia are questioning Russia’s war with Ukraine

    • LRT ☛ Ukrainian defence company DEMZ to invest in ammunition plant in Lithuania

      Ukrainian defence industry company DEMZ will invest in a new ammunition plant in Lithuania, the Lithuanian Ministry of the Economy and Innovation said Thursday.

    • France24 ☛ Russian detained over plot to 'execute' Ukrainian-American in Warsaw, Tusk says

      Poland has arrested a Russian national who was allegedly hired to plan an "execution" targeting a Ukrainian-American dual citizen in Warsaw, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Thursday. Tusk said it was the first time that “someone on the order of Russia” had sought to attack an American citizen on NATO territory.

    • France24 ☛ Russian strike on Ukraine passenger train kills 2

      A Russian drone attack on a train carrying hundreds of passengers in southern Ukraine killed two people on Thursday. Our correspondent Emmanuelle Chaze tells us more.

    • France24 ☛ Russia-Ukraine war: Grain hub attacks raise fears over global food prices

      Kyiv and Moscow have been trading attacks on each other's grain warehouses, as concerns mount that global food prices could rise as a result.

      Russia struck Ukraine's largest grain shipment port on the Danube overnight, causing damage and setting off a fire. The attack came a day after Ukraine hit Novorossiysk, a major grain hub in Russia's part of the Black Sea.

    • Latvia ☛ Latvian and Ukrainian police team up to catch crypto fraudsters

      Earlier this month, officers of Latvia's State Police Cybercrime Department, together with Ukrainian colleagues, conducted several searches in Kyiv and Dnipro, Ukraine, at the premises of members of an organized criminal group who were laundering funds defrauded from Latvian citizens, Latvian State Police said.

    • Latvia ☛ Another group of Ukrainian soldiers arrives at Rīga Eastern Hospital

      On Thursday, 13 August, medical staff at the Eastern Hospital received another group of wounded Ukrainian soldiers, who had been brought in by special transport. Over the past four years, the hospital will have provided care to more than 1,000 wounded soldiers, Latvian Radio reports.

    • New York Times ☛ Dihydroxyacetone Man’s Plane Switch Ruse Pales in Comparison With Putin’s Secrecy

      Hell Toupée’s Air Force One subterfuge pales in comparison to the secrecy surrounding Russia’s president, whose fixation on security has reached new heights in recent years.

    • New York Times ☛ Putin Visits Islands Seized From Japan in World War II, Angering Tokyo

      Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi of Japan has been a public critic of Mr. Putin, who has denounced her country’s sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine war.

    • France24 ☛ Putin visits disputed Kuril Islands

      🇷🇺 🇯🇵 Russian President Putin has made his first visit to the disputed Kuril Islands, travelling to Iturup, one of four islands claimed by both Russia and Japan.

      Tokyo strongly protested the visit, calling it “absolutely unacceptable.”

    • France24 ☛ Japan protests Putin's first visit to disputed islands

      President Vladimir Putin visited Russia's far-eastern Kuril islands for the first time on Thursday, prompting protests by Japan which also claims the territory.

• Environment

  • Energy/Transportation

    • Futurism ☛ Giant Oil Tanker Runs Aground in Marine Nature Preserve, Spills Nonstop for Weeks

      "A nightmare scenario is there's no adequate response to keep the worst ‌from happening."

    • Tom's Hardware ☛ Alabama residents left powerless to stop massive Bitcoin mining data center despite county and town moratoriums — hole in state zoning laws lets facility through

      Alabama residents left powerless to stop 50 MW Bitcoin mining facility despite county and town moratoriums thanks to the state's lack of appropriate zoning laws.

  • Wildlife/Nature

    • Science Alert ☛ Swarming Jellyfish Just Shut Down a Nuclear Reactor For The Second Time

      On exactly the same date as last year.

• Finance

  • France24 ☛ Raul Castro makes rare public appearance at Fidel centenary event

    Cuba's Raul Castro made a rare public appearance on Thursday at a celebration marking the centenary of his brother Fidel's birth. The 95-year-old former president received a standing ovation at the secure event in Havana as the island grapples with a deepening economic crisis and frequent blackouts.

  • International Business Times ☛ International Motors Cuts 1,341 Jobs in Springfield in One of Ohio's Largest Layoffs in Five Years

    International Motors will cut 1,341 jobs at its Springfield, Ohio operations by October 2026 as part of a facility sale to Canadian defence firm Roshel Inc., according to WARN filings released in July that show more than 1,500 layoffs planned across the state.

• AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

  • Scoop News Group ☛ A bold new strategy or a dangerous precedent? Experts are divided on Convicted Felon’s memo.

    The “philosophical shift” that the memo authorizes raises legal, practical and moral questions, experts say.

• Censorship/Free Speech

  • MIT Technology Review ☛ Roundtables: Inside the “Censorship-Industrial Complex” Idea Shaping US Policy

    Listen to the session or watch below The “censorship-industrial complex” is an idea that a network of government, tech, and research groups is collaborating to suppress conservative online speech.

• Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

  • APNIC ☛ Chamelio: A chameleonic network stack that adapts to every tenant

    Guest Post: Chamelio is a provider-managed network stack for cloud VMs that runs in userspace on the host and allows tenants to upload custom transport protocols to a shared datapath.

  • AccessNow ☛ Vita Activa & the Digital Security Helpline join forces to support mental health and digital safety for activists

    Access Now's Digital Security Helpline and Vita Activa offer holistic digital safety and mental health support for activists.
    

  • The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan throttles mobile internet speeds in defence drill

    Island tests the public's reaction to a digital blockade but the drill appears ineffective

  • Internet Society ☛ Advancing the Safer Internet Initiative for Everyone

    We are advancing a connected set of efforts to strengthen online safety and security for people and communities worldwide.

  • Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Taiwan chokes mobile internet speeds in drill for Chinese attack

    Millions of people in Taiwan were forced indoors and mobile internet speeds slowed for 30 minutes on Thursday during a simulation of a Chinese attack on the island democracy. The drill was part of Taiwan’s annual “Han Kuang” military exercise that aims to prepare the island of 23 million people for a potential Chinese invasion.

• Monopolies/Monopsonies

  • Patents

    • Unified Patents ☛ NovaCloud Licensing streaming patent monopoly challenge granted

      On August 10, 2026, four weeks after Unified filed an ex parte reexamination, the Central Reexamination Unit (CRU) granted Unified’s request, finding substantial new questions of patentability on all challenged claims of U.S. Patent 8,145,721 owned and asserted by NovaCloud Licensing LLC, an NPE.

    • JUVE ☛ Bird & Bird brings back former associate Huw Edwards as London partner from Nokia

      Edwards began his career as a trainee solicitor at Linklaters in 2000, before joining Bird & Bird as a solicitor in 2002. In 2007, he moved to Australian firm Freehills as a senior associate, having previously spent time at Mallesons Stephen Jaques.