● 02.21.23

Gemini version available ♊︎

● Links 21/02/2023: OpenSUSE Leap 15.5 Beta and Tor Browser 12.5a3

Posted in News Roundup at 9:50 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

GNU/Linux

Desktop/Laptop

=> ↺ The 14 things I always do when setting up Linux on a laptop

• I perform clean Linux installs regularly. On my own computers and those of others. For my personal use and for review purposes.

=> ↺ A new Slimbook is on its way

• My laptop fleet is quiet old. Excluding the other Slimbook in my possession, which I use primarily for work, the youngest laptop dates back to 2015. The machines are anywhere between fourteen and just eight years old, and most have fairly modest specs for today’s standards. The only truly capable machine is the Y50-70 rig, which still pulls its weight, but the mechanical disk is slow, and nine years is a respectable time to look for a replacement.

• And so I decided to get myself a new laptop – a Slimbook Titan no less. Why? Well, first I wanted a powerful mobile system that I can use for all sorts of purposes, including gaming. After all, that’s what the Y50-70 did for a fair share of its life span. Second, I wanted a Linux-only machine so I can fully and totally prepare for the inevitable move away from Windows sometime in 2025 or so. I already did a lot of preliminary work in this regard, and even just recently turned the previously dual-boot Y50-70 into a Linux-only system. Highly encouraged by that experience, including the hybrid graphics support, I decided, yes, I want a new machine, a powerful machine, with solid graphics, and it’s going to be Linux only, and I’m going to tweak it into a total productivity host equivalent to what I get with Windows. Slimbook Titan, it is.

=> ↺ Not All Linux Systems Are Created Equal, but They’re All Equally Linux

• A friend of mine with decades of experience in tech made a wittily apt remark that I’ve been thinking about lately.

• When discussing how to overcome a thorny technical hurdle that most desktop OSes would obstruct the user from addressing, he quipped that Linux was easily up to the task because “Linux is a real operating system.”

Audiocasts/Shows

=> ↺ Destination Linux 313: KDE Plasma 5.27 Review & Is System Tray Returning to GNOME?!

=> ↺ Late Night Linux – Episode 217

• More reverse-engineering, free tech books, a handy tool for fixing things you’ve aCCIDENTALLY CAPITALISED, Chromium in the terminal, putting apps and config files in a “box”, more on aviation tracking, GUI vs CLI backups on Linux, and loads more.

=> ↺ GNU World Order 500

• parley , partition-manager , picmi from the Slackware kde

• package set.

• shasum -a256=b78f6646d0fe9b8ceefb8925cb5f705311754fcc6d0b8795e9b29cf78ea8a74b

=> ↺ Destination Linux 313: KDE Plasma 5.27 Review & Is System Tray Returning to GNOME?!

• This week’s episode of Destination Linux, we take the new KDE Plasma 5.27 for a spin! Then we talk about GNOME . . . kind of, sort of, almost bringing back App Indicators . . . or something close to it. Plus, we have our tips/tricks and software picks.

Kernel Space

=> ↺ Linux 6.2: The first mainstream Linux kernel for Apple M1 chips arrives

• Getting Linux to run on the M1 family wasn’t easy.

• When these high-powered ARM chips first arrived, Torvalds told me in an exclusive interview that he’d like to run Linux on these next-generation Macs. But, while he’d been “waiting for an ARM laptop that can run Linux for a long time,” he worried, saying, “The main problem with the M1 for me is the GPU and other devices around it because that’s likely what would hold me off using it because it wouldn’t have any Linux support unless Apple opens up.”

=> ↺ Linux kernel 6.2 is out now, here’s a feature highlight

• You can have a little Linux kernel update, as a treat. The Linux kernel 6.2 is officially out now so here’s some notes on some of what’s new. In the release announcement Linus Torvalds requested people to “please do give 6.2 a testing” and that it may not be a “sexy LTS release like 6.1 ended up being, but all those regular pedestrian kernels want some test love too”.

=> ↺ Linux 6.2: The first mainstream Linux kernel for Apple M1 chips arrives

• Linux is now ready to run on modern Macs.

=> ↺ Linux 6.2

• Expect 6.2 to make it to bleeding edge users and Fedora in the very near future.

=> ↺ Reducing Hardware Noise on Linux 6.3 with the New ‘hwnoise’ Tool

• Exciting news for Linux 6.3 – the introduction of a brand new feature, hwnoise! Developed by Daniel Bristot de Oliveira over the past few months, hwnoise works in conjunction with the operating system noise (osnoise) tracer to quantify and monitor hardware noise efficiently.

Applications

=> ↺ My favorite open source tools for personal finance

• There are tons of open source personal finance apps out there. These apps are useful because they help you take control of your finances. I find it much easier to use an app rather than a spreadsheet or a ledger. Here are some of my favorite apps.

• GnuCash is a popular open source personal finance or small business accounting program for Linux users. It is a full-featured double-entry accounting system that supports multiple accounts, investments, and currency conversions. The app also provides a variety of helpful financial tools, including budgeting, reporting, invoicing, and more. GnuCash is a great choice for users looking for a comprehensive and powerful financial management solution. GnuCash is my own personal favorite that I have been using every day for over six years. GnuCash can be installed from the command line or as a Flatpak depending on your distribution and personal choice. GnuCash is licensed with the Gnu Public License. GnuCash is also available for MacOS and Windows users too.

=> ↺ 11 Best Free and Open Source Linux GPS Tools

• This article focuses in selecting the best free software for undertaking a wide variety of GPS related tasks. Hopefully, there will be something of interest here for anyone who needs to keep track of where they are, to find the way to a specified location, or determine what direction and how fast they are going. We make the following recommendations captured in a LinuxLinks-style ratings chart.

Instructionals/Technical

=> ↺ How to Host Your Own Youtube with Peertube

• Peertube is a federated and open source video hosting platform that you can run from your own computer. Iit allows you to completely control all the content that you host and share from your website. This tutorial shows you how to install and host Peertube on Ubuntu.

=> ↺ How To Install Kodi on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

• In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Kodi on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.

=> ↺ Beautify your terminal with Powerline! (Part I: Installation & Configuration)

• Linux distributions have come a long way in the past decade to the point where it is possible today to use Linux without getting into the dark of the terminal (CLI). However, the more you use and learn about Linux, the more you realize that it is inevitable to use the command-line interface. By default, the CLI has a simple interface that gets boring quickly. Luckily, you can illuminate the darkness of the terminal by beautifying it with plugins like Powerline.

=> ↺ How to Safely Remove a Swollen Battery from Your Laptop

• If you decide to go the DIY route, then it is best to be prepared and apply all safety precautions even though you may end up not needing them.

=> ↺ How to Install Zeit Tool on Ubuntu

• Hello, friends. In this post, you will learn how to install Zeit on Ubuntu. This tool provides you with a simple graphical interface for scheduling tasks on Linux. Written in C++ and with a QT interface, Zeit provides a graphical interface to schedule tasks using crontab and at.

=> ↺ Barrier on Gentoo

• Barrier is an utility to share a keyboard and a mouse between multiple computers, just like we used to do with old school KVM switches. And why someone would like to do that?

=> ↺ The guide to managing users and groups in Ubuntu

• In Ubuntu, managing users and groups is an essential task that allows system administrators to control access to the system and its resources. A user is an individual who can log into the system and perform tasks, while a group is a collection of users that share the same permissions and access rights.

=> ↺ What is the difference between Homebrew and NPM?

• Homebrew and NPM are two popular package managers which are essentially used to install various packages for modern development environments. Although they appear similar, they have distinct characteristics.

=> ↺ How to Install Elastic Stack on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS

• Elastic Stack (Formerly ELK Stack) is a group of open-source software created by Elastic for collecting data from multiple sources. It allows you to collect, store, process, analyze, and visualize data from various sources in any formats to the centralized Elastic Stack platform.

=> ↺ How to Install Nginx with Brotli Compression on Ubuntu 20.04

• Brotli is an open-source compression algorithm created by Google. It can be used as an alternative to Gzip, Zopfli, and Deflate. This tutorial will show you how to install Brotli with Nginx on Ubuntu 20.04 server.

=> ↺ How to Add a Swap File On Ubuntu

• A swap file enables an operating system (OS) to utilize hard disk space to simulate additional memory. Effectively, as the system goes on the low-memory mode, it swaps a certain section of the RAM that an idle program may be using onto the hard disk to release memory capacity for other vital programs. Subsequently, when the user returns to the swapped out program, it swaps places with another program in RAM. This intelligent mix of RAM and swap files is commonly referred to as virtual memory, and its use allows the system to run a far greater number of programs than possible using only the built-in RAM.

=> ↺ How to Install Apache Maven on Fedora Linux

• Apache Maven is a powerful build automation tool widely used in Java-based projects to manage dependencies, build, and deploy applications. It provides a comprehensive set of features that automate the entire build process and simplify the development of Java applications.

=> ↺ How to Install Neofetch on Linux Mint 21 or 20

• Neofetch is a command-line tool that provides system information in a simple and easy-to-read format. It is available for Linux, macOS, and other Unix-like operating systems. It provides a quick and convenient way to view important information about your system, including the operating system, kernel, CPU, GPU, memory usage, and more.

=> ↺ How to Install qBittorrent on Linux Mint 21 or 20

• qBittorrent is a free, open-source torrent client that has become increasingly popular among users who want to download and share files through peer-to-peer (P2P) networks. Its user-friendly interface, powerful features, and robust performance have made it a preferred choice for many, especially those who prioritize privacy and security.

=> ↺ How to Install Opera Browser on Linux Mint 21 or 20

• Opera Browser is a popular web browser known for its speed, security, and unique features. It was developed by Opera Software and was first released in 1995. Opera is available on various platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, and mobile devices. It is also popular among users who value privacy, including a built-in VPN and ad-blocker.

Games

=> ↺ Building a Retro Linux Gaming Computer – Part 26: Coming to You Live

=> ↺ Dead Space got a small update for Steam Deck

• In case you missed it in my recent Steam Deck news video, Motive released an update for the new Dead Space to improve it even more on Steam Deck.

=> ↺ Open source evolution game Thrive adds part upgrades and a benchmark mode

• Benchmark the cells! Evolve all the things! Thrive 0.6.1 is a fun sounding upgrade to this free and open source scientific evolution sim.

=> ↺ OpenRA has another test release improving Dune 2000, Red Alert and major bug fixes

• OpenRA is closing in on another big new release to improve the experience of playing Command & Conquer, Red Alert and Dune 2000.

=> ↺ Sonic the Hedgehog on TheC64 with SNES Style Gamepad

• One of the games that I think is a great accomplishment is the direct port of “Sonic the Hedgehog” from the SEGA Master System to the Commodore 64. This was manually converted from Z80 to 6502 assembly by Mr. SID. The game plays great on real hardware with a RAM Expansion Unit or REU.

=> ↺ Free 2D space exploration sim Endless Sky v0.10.0 adds new factions, gets better AI

• If you love free and open source games keep an eye on the 2D space sim Endless Sky, which just got a new Beta release with version 0.10.0 giving some fresh gameplay improvements. Currently in Beta, so it’s not quite a full release yet.

=> ↺ CryoUtilities 2.0 helps boost Steam Deck performance

• CryoUtilities has a big new 2.0 release out now, with plenty of tweaks to help you get the most out of your Steam Deck. Previously it simply offered some Swap sizing tweaks but now it can do more, and makes it easier than ever to use.

=> ↺ Counter-Strike: Global Offensive keeps breaking player records

• One Valve game that is clearly unstoppable is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, their first-person shooter from 2012 just keeps growing. Being free to play certainly helps too of course.

=> ↺ The upcoming Team Fortress 2 update may not be as big as expected

• Remember all the hype over the announced Team Fortress 2 update? Well, it seems Valve edited the announcement silently and hoped no one would notice.

Distributions and Operating Systems

=> ↺ Dusting off Dreamcast Linux

• But jokes aside, Dreamcast Linux has something to teach later Johnny-come-latelies with a distro surprisingly well-adapted to its target platform, support for many peripherals, and an all-in-one batteries-included philosophy. Plus, it was one of the earliest Un*xy things for game consoles circa 2001, predating PlayStation 2 Linux by about a year or so, though PS2 Linux was at least Sony-official. (While at least one Linux purports to run on an O.G. PlayStation, this was a slightly later development.)

=> ↺ Missing build-choices file in initrd

• I am very grateful to the guys who are patiently testing Easy 4.99. I know what is causing the reported bugs, so can fix them.

• There is one very odd problem; williwaw reported an error message “/build-choices: No such file or directory”:

• https://forum.puppylinux.com/viewtopic.php?p=81976#p81976

• …from subsequent posts, I deducted that the framebuffer device /dev/fb0 must be missing, which is very odd.

• Without /dev/fb0, Xorg server is unable to run, hence the gtk app that asks for locale and keyboard-layout is unable to run. In that case, there is fallback to /sbin/ask-language, which is a CLI app.

SUSE/OpenSUSE

=> ↺ Leap 15.5 Reaches Beta Phase

• The release manager for openSUSE Leap Luboš Kocman is expected to announce the Beta release phase of Leap 15.5 soon. The first Beta release is syncing on mirrors globally for people to download it and test it out.

• Users can begin testing the beta versions to find bugs before the general release, which is scheduled for official release at the beginning of June, according to the roadmap.

Canonical/Ubuntu Family

=> ↺ Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter Issue 775

• Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue 775 for the week of February 12 – 18, 2023.

=> ↺ The Fridge: Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter Issue 775

Devices/Embedded

=> ↺ Auspicious Machine modular handheld Linux PC with keyboard takes various Arm-based SoMs

• The “Auspicious Machine” may look like a Blackberry phone, but it’s actually a handheld Linux PC with a built-in QWERTY keyboard and a 3.5-inch display that can be powered by a range of system-on-modules (SoM).

• The computer, whose name can also be translated as the “Auspicious Phone”, can be used as a Linux terminal with GPIO control, and for gaming with Linux distributions such as Batotera or RetroBat with the D-Pad and ABXY buttons found on the device.

Open Hardware/Modding

=> ↺ USB-C Type Universal Travel Chargers Available from Purism

• We just added a new accessory product to our shop, a USB type-C universal travel charger offering up to 65 Watt output power.

• It can charge and operate our Librem 5 phones as well as the Librem 14 laptop, the Lapdock Kit and upcoming products using USB type-C Power Delivery (PD).

=> ↺ WIZnet board features Raspberry Pi 2040 and hardwired internet controller chip

• The W6100-EVB-PICO is a compact embedded device integrating the Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller and the WIZnet W6100 hardwired internet controller chip. This board provides up to 30x GPIOs, 1x RJ45 port and it supports internet protocols such as TCP, UDP, IPv6, IPv4, etc.

=> ↺ Raspberry Pi Debug Probe eases bare metal development for $12

• The Raspberry Pi Debug Probe is a USB serial adapter based on the Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller and designed to debug the Raspberry Pi Pico, third-party RP2040 boards, and pretty much any Arm board through SWD and/or UART interfaces.

• The main advantage over a typical USB-to-serial adapter is the presence of a Serial Wire Debug (SWD) bridge used for bare metal code development and debugging through tools such as OpenOCD.

=> ↺ Debug Your Pi Pico

• The Raspberry Pi Debug Probe provides both a processor serial debug interface (by default this is the ARM Serial Wire Debug interface) and an industry-standard UART interface. Both interfaces use a 3-pin debug connector, as specified in the Raspberry Pi 3-pin debug connector specification.

=> ↺ Raspberry Pi Debug Probe: a plug-and-play debug kit for $12

• While it has been designed with Raspberry Pi Pico, and other RP2040-based targets, in mind, the Raspberry Pi Debug Probe can be used to debug any Arm-based microcontroller that provides an SWD port with 3V3 I/O.

Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications

=> ↺ Lava launches entry level smartphone Yuva 2 Pro with pure Android 12 – The Hindu

=> ↺ 7 Best Offline Music Player Apps for Android

=> ↺ Android’s new OEM rules in India swap “requirements” with “revenue sharing” | Ars Technica

=> ↺ How to setup Android Auto – Geeky Gadgets

=> ↺ How to play Android games on a PC with Google Play Games

=> ↺ How To Stop YouTube Videos From Lagging On Your Android Phone

=> ↺ People are just realizing Android phones have hidden body detection feature – all shoppers and runners should turn it on | The US Sun

Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

=> ↺ 5 Best Free and Open Source Web-Based Email Clients

• Thunderbird is widely regarded as an exceptional open source desktop email client, especially on Linux. It is highly customizable, has a rich set of features, and is geared for both novices and professional users. But you may prefer a web-based email client.

• Gmail is a free email service which offers 15GB of storage, a search-oriented interface and a ‘conversation view’. It’s hugely popular with more than 1.8 billion active users. But you might not like the automated scanning of email content. The following programs are alternatives to Gmail.

• The chart below summarises our findings. They are all free and open source goodness.

=> ↺ My Mastodon strategy

• I know, I know. Yet another “how to Mastodon” post.

• That said, I feel like I’ve finally gotten at least a semblance of traction on making my Mastodon feed worthwhile. Reader, it was not easy.

• I should also point out that I was incredibly invested in Twitter for staying on top of industry goings on, networking, friendship, and entertainment. A lot of the following is an attempt of a highly motivated individual in a state of mourning trying to recapture what I once had.

Web Browsers/Web Servers

Mozilla

=> ↺ New Alpha Release: Tor Browser 12.5a3 (Android, Windows, macOS, Linux)

• Tor Browser 12.5a3 is now available from the Tor Browser download page and also from our distribution directory.

• This release updates Firefox on Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux to 102.8.0esr. It includes important security updates to Firefox and GeckoView. There were no Android-specific security updates to backport from the Firefox 110 release.

GNU Projects

=> ↺ GNU Linux-libre 6.2-gnu (la quinceañera)

=> ↺ GNU Guix: Dissecting Guix, Part 2: The Store Monad

• Hello again!

• In the last post, we briefly mentioned the with-store and run-with-store macros. Today, we’ll be looking at those in further detail, along with the related monad library and the %store-monad!

• Typically, we use monads to chain operations together, and the %store-monad is no different; it’s used to combine operations that work on the Guix store (for instance, creating derivations, building derivations, or adding data files to the store).

• However, monads are a little hard to explain, and from a distance, they seem to be quite incomprehensible. So, I want you to erase them from your mind for now. We’ll come back to them later. And be aware that if you can’t seem to get your head around them, it’s okay; you can understand most of the architecture of Guix without understanding monads.

• Let’s instead implement another M of functional programming, maybe values, representing a value that may or may not exist. For instance, there could be a procedure that attempts to pop a stack, returning the result if there is one, ornothing if the stack has no elements.

• maybe is a very common feature of statically-typed functional languages, and you’ll see it all over the place in Haskell and OCaml code. However, Guile is dynamically typed, so we usually use ad-hoc #f values as the “null value” instead of a proper “nothing” or “none”.

• Just for fun, though, we’ll implement a proper maybe in Guile. Fire up that REPL once again, and let’s import a bunch of modules that we’ll need:

• We’ll implement maybe as a record with two fields, is? and value. If the value contains something, is? will be #t and value will contain the thing in question, and if it’s empty, is?‘ll be #f.

=> ↺ a2ps 4.14.95 released [alpha]

• This alpha release benefits from feedback from the platform-testers list (mostly Bruno Haible, thanks Bruno!) The work is all on the build system. If you have not tried a previous alpha release for functionality, now is the time!

• Here are the compressed sources and a GPG detached signature:   https://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/a2ps/a2ps-4.14.95.tar.gz   https://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/a2ps/a2ps-4.14.95.tar.gz.sig

• Use a mirror for higher download bandwidth:   https://www.gnu.org/order/ftp.html

• Here are the SHA1 and SHA256 checksums:

• 3169e01029bb2eec80feb488bafdd417fb35c7d5  a2ps-4.14.95.tar.gz pP7eBLeaAn/4x48sq8548vTAkj0rpMi2yToQuCRRgvg  a2ps-4.14.95.tar.gz

• The SHA256 checksum is base64 encoded, instead of the hexadecimal encoding that most checksum tools default to.

• Use a .sig file to verify that the corresponding file (without the .sig suffix) is intact.  First, be sure to download both the .sig file and the corresponding tarball.  Then, run a command like this:

• gpg –verify a2ps-4.14.95.tar.gz.sig

• The signature should match the fingerprint of the following key:

• pub   rsa2048 2013-12-11 [SC]         2409 3F01 6FFE 8602 EF44  9BB8 4C8E F3DA 3FD3 7230   uid   Reuben Thomas rrt@sc3d.org   uid   keybase.io/rrt rrt@keybase.io

• If that command fails because you don’t have the required public key, or that public key has expired, try the following commands to retrieve or refresh it, and then rerun the ‘gpg –verify’ command.

• gpg –locate-external-key rrt@sc3d.org

• gpg –recv-keys 4C8EF3DA3FD37230

• wget -q -O- ‘https://savannah.gnu.org/project/release-gpgkeys.php?group=a2ps&download=1′ | gpg –import -

• As a last resort to find the key, you can try the official GNU keyring:

• wget -q https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-keyring.gpg   gpg –keyring gnu-keyring.gpg –verify a2ps-4.14.95.tar.gz.sig

• This release was bootstrapped with the following tools:   Autoconf 2.71   Automake 1.16.5   Gnulib v0.1-5836-geecd8afd69

• NEWS

• • Noteworthy changes in release 4.14.95 (2023-02-20) [alpha]  * Build   – Build man pages in a simpler and more robust way, using x-to-1 from     gnulib.   – Don’t install useless liba2ps.h.   – Other minor build system improvements, including updating to more recent     autoconf and gettext.   – Don’t require help2man or gperf to build from source.   – Document runtime dependencies.   – Minor code quality improvements.

Programming/Development

=> ↺ Moving the poudriere jail from slocum to r730-01

• I recently moved the pkg01 jail from one host to another. I’m having trouble getting it to build packages.

=> ↺ Moving one jail from host to host

• This is a quick post about the steps I’m using to move my jails from one host to another. This is bing done as I merge two hosts into one. I have not attempted to automate this, apart from the initial syncoid copying of data. This post is base roughly upon my Mastodon post from yesterday.

=> ↺ Pivoting in tidyr and data.table

• We all need to pivot data at some point, so these are just some notes for my own benefit really, because gather and spread are no longer in favour within tidyr.

• I tended to only ever need gather, and nearly always relied on the same key and value names, so it was an easy function for me to use.

• pivot_longer and pivot_wider are much more flexible, they just take a little bit more thinking about.

=> ↺ What to expect from your framework

• There’s been a bit of a brouhaha these last weeks as parts of the Internet suddenly woke up to the realization that most Single Page Apps are slow and overcomplicated, and — shock horror — it turns out that Facebook, the lovable scamps that brought us React and QAnon, have conducted themselves badly! Refreshingly, rather than launching a thousand caustic subtweets, this little stormwind has caused the blog posts to start flying again. Thank you, Elon “Vain gobshite” Musk. I’m totally here for it.

• For a bit of backstory, the best place to start is probably Zach Leatherman’s History of React criticism followed by Alex Russell’s long and eloquent assault on SPA stacks. You can easily lose an entire afternoon reading the various pieces linked from those (a fun afternoon! so much tech drama!) but what got my delicious brainmeat reaching for the blog this time was the most recent shot, fired over at Laurie Voss’ site. It’s called “The case for frameworks” and you should go read that, too.

• All caught up? Great.

=> ↺ What’s in my software engineering tool belt?

• One of my favorite things is reading about the tools other people use, and talking about the tools I use. When I read a post recently about a data journalist’s data tool belt, well… I knew I’d have to share my own software engineering tool belt, too.

• So, here’s my software engineering tool belt.

• There are a lot of tools that I use, and not all of them bear mentioning. I’ve left out some of the tools that are probably very common or not super interesting, unless I particularly love those tools.

• The tools I’ve included are categorized roughly based on things that are directly for coding, vs. all the other supporting tasks that are part of software engineering.

=> ↺ NP-Complete isn’t (always) Hard

• A common assumption I see on the ‘net is that NP-complete problems are impossible to solve. I recently read that dependency management in Python is hard because package resolution is NP-complete. This is true in principle, but the reality is more complicated. When we say “NP-complete is hard” we’re talking about worst-case complexity, and the average-case complexity is often much more tractable. Many industry problems are “well-behaved” and modern SAT solvers can solve them quickly.

• Okay I’ve probably lost 40% of my readers by this point so let’s back up and explain “NP-complete” and “SAT solver” and stuff.

=> ↺ End-to-end encrypted Kitten Chat

• Sorry, your browser doesn’t support embedded videos. But that doesn’t mean you can’t watch it! You can download Small Is Beautiful #27 directly, and watch it with your favourite video player.

=> ↺ My 2023 dev machine

• My desktop computer is my trusted work machine that I do the majority of all my (curl) development on. When the 15th computer I’ve owned through the times was ten years old the time was ripe to bump things up a notch.

• I don’t do games (as in: never) and I don’t do any other 3D stuff. I just need my two 4K monitors to display my desktops and browser windows fine.

• In my ordinary days I compile C code and I run tests. CPU and memory will be used to build and test faster and to be able to run separate VM runtimes in parallel without problems. I rarely even build very large or complicated software projects. (The days of building Firefox are long gone…)

• Ideally, this upgrade will last for a long time again so I’ve tried to push it a little to increase those chances.

Buttondown ☛ Code review vs code proofreadingAdministrative StuffJust one month until the March TLA+ Workshop! Thanks to everyone who already signed up, I’m in the process of revising everything and am real excited to share the new content. There’s still nine slots left if you want to join!I have a new blog post up: NP-Complete isn’t (always) Hard, about NP-complete problems and modern SAT solvers.Code review vs code proofreadingSo in my last newsletter I had an aside on code review:This is also why a lot of people hate code review. It’s good when you’re acting as an editor, looking for foundational improvements to the code, but it’s awful when you’re acting as a proofreader. That probably deserves its own essay!Let’s dig into that a bit more.

Python

=> ↺ A bit on unspecified unique objects in Python

• Tratt notes that Python’s language specification doesn’t specify the behavior here, so both implementations are correct. Python does this to preserve the ability of implementations to make different choices, and goes on the use the example of del destructors. This might leave a reader who is willing to accept the difference in destructor behavior to wonder why Python doesn’t standardize object identity here.

Standards/Consortia

=> ↺ Jonathan McDowell: Fixing mobile viewing

• It was brought to my attention recently that the mobile viewing experience of this blog was not exactly what I’d hope for. In my poor defence I proof read on my desktop and the only time I see my posts on mobile is via FreshRSS. Also my UX ability sucks.

• Anyway. I’ve updated the “theme” to a more recent version of minima and tried to make sure I haven’t broken it all in the process (I did break tagging, but then I fixed it again). I double checked the generated feed to confirm it was the same (other than some re-tagging I did), so hopefully I haven’t flooded anyone’s feed.

=> ↺ The voice control challenge

• A lot of software these days is difficult to use with accessibility tools. A lot of this problem is not really exposed to the people that create the software. A lot of software seems to be made with the assumption that people have working hands, they can use a mouse, and that the text is legible. This is simply not the case for many people.

• I would like to propose a challenge for people. Let’s call it the voice control challenge. For this challenge, you need to use voice control on your mac, iPad, or iPhone and see how many of your day-to-day tasks you can do without having to reach for a keyboard or type on the phone manually.

Leftovers

=> ↺ Magnitude 6.3 aftershock strikes southern Turkey, killing 3 and injuring hundreds 2 weeks after massive quake killed thousands

• A magnitude 6.3 aftershock struck southern Turkey Monday, killing at least three people and injuring hundreds more, according to Turkish and Syrian officials, two weeks after a massive earthquake killed tens of thousands of people in both countries.

=> ↺ How Citizen is trying to remake itself by recruiting elderly Asians

• This story was produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s AI Accountability Network.

=> ↺ How AI can actually be helpful in disaster response

• This article is from The Technocrat, MIT Technology Review’s weekly tech policy newsletter about power, politics, and Silicon Valley.

=> ↺ Another Deadly Quake Rocks an Already Ravaged Area of Turkey

• Just two weeks after the deadliest earthquake in the country’s modern history, a powerful shock hit southern Turkey, where many people are still sleeping outdoors for fear of building collapses.

=> ↺ Jet Engine Powers Tea Kettle

• While there are plenty of places around the world to get a great cup of tea, no one has quite burned it into their culture like those in the United Kingdom. While they don’t have the climate to grow the plants themselves, they at least have figured out the art of heating water extremely rapidly in purpose-built electric kettles while the rest of us wait to heat water on our stoves and microwaves. But that’s still not fast enough for some, like [Finlay Shellard], who just completed this jet-powered tea kettle.

=> ↺ “Strangers on the Internet” Podcast Episode 23: A Rationalist Guide to Dating

• Volokh Conspiracy blogger Prof. Ilya Somin gives tips on taking a scholarly approach to achieve dating success

=> ↺ Breaking: New 6,4-Earthquake Hits Hatay in Turkey

• The Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center issued a tsunami warning for the coastal regions of Syria and Turkey.

=> ↺ Turkey hit by new earthquakes, leaving 3 dead and more than 200 injured

• A 6.4-magnitude earthquake shook southern Turkey on Monday, just two weeks after a massive earthquake and aftershocks devastated the region.

=> ↺ Magnitude 6.4 earthquake kills three in southern Türkiye

• The earthquake in Hatay, which was already in ruins after the major earthquakes two weeks ago, was followed by a second one with a magnitude of 5.8.

=> ↺ FEBRUARY 6 EARTHQUAKES: Another threat for the earthquake-hit region: Asbestos

• Asbestos demolition expert warns: FFP3 masks should be distributed in the region, watering should be done against dust formation, and debris should be removed without creating hills and on impermeable soil.

=> ↺ Hatay Archeology Museum puts artifacts under protection after quakes

• In one of the hardest-hit cities from the Maraş earthquakes, the museum is left relatively unscathed, with world-renowned artifacts and mosaics undamaged, according to the manager of the museum.

=> ↺ Panel Recap: 3D Scanning for Cultural Heritage Preservation, Access and Revitalization

• We have an opportunity as a community to explore how 3D scans might offer greater access to artifacts that are disputed for repatriation. Cosmo Wenman was curious to see how institutions might repatriate objects, but possibly retain scans of them. He also noted other tactics with institutions: “I used freedom of information laws to release scans of public domain materials… Institutions leverage secrecy of their policies to preserve their commercial interest.”

• There is no global consensus on the public domain yet, the policies that should govern it, and what the public domain means to different communities. Teresa Nobre stated: “How can we protect public domain works from appropriations from other intellectual [sic] property [sic] (IP) laws, like trademarks? In Europe, we have addressed the issue of 3D scans, but are still facing issues of cultural heritage laws and IP appropriation of the public domain.” Michael Weinberg noted additional nuances: “The consensus is that 3D scans of public domain material are also in the public domain, but cultural heritage institutions wrestle with questions of copyright.”

=> ↺ Death toll from flooding in Brazil rises, Lula visits disaster-hit region

• The death toll from devastating rainfall in southeastern Brazil rose to 40 on Monday, official figures showed, as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva visited the region and said homes should no longer be built in areas at risk of landslides and major floods.

=> ↺ Powerful quake rattles southern Turkey two weeks after devastating tremor

• A 6.4-magnitude earthquake on Monday rocked Turkey’s southern province of Hatay and northern Syria, killing three people and sparking fresh panic after a February 6 tremor that left nearly 45,000 dead in both countries.

Science

=> ↺ Jupiter’s Largest Moons All Have Aurorae That Glow Deep Red And 15x Brighter Than Ours

• Imagine the view!

=> ↺ Discovery of Two New Forms of Salt Water Could Rewrite Fundamental Chemistry

• Solving a mystery on the Solar System’s icy moons.

Education

=> ↺ Why it’s time for the UK to introduce mandatory training for new dog owners

• In 1987, the UK government discontinued its dog licensing system as politicians felt the old licence scheme cost too much for the limited benefits it gave. It was replaced by dog controls in the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. But people told my research team that most dog bites are preventable, meaning the system is letting down both dogs and humans.

• One idea researchers have discussed is that when an owner has a problem with an out-of-control dog they should have to take training, similar to the kind of “speed awareness” courses for drivers in the UK.

Hardware

=> ↺ Graphics Card Shipments in China Down 42% Y-o-Y, Up From December

• Shipments of third-party cards fell year over year but are trending up from the prior month.

=> ↺ Tidy Breadboard Uses Banana Bread

• Self-described passionate maker in the electronics and 3D printing world, [Jakob], aka [testudor], was getting frustrated trying to connect banana plugs to solderless breadboards. Project Banana Bread was born — small banana jack adaptors and a companion tray with pockets to hold up to six modules.

=> ↺ Low Power Challenge: Weather Station Runs For Months Thanks To E-Ink Display

• Having a device in your living room that shows weather information is convenient, and building one of those is a great project if you enjoy tinkering with microcontrollers and environmental sensors. It’s also a great way to learn about low-power design, as [x-labz] demonstrated with their e-ink weather station which works for no less than 60 days on a single battery charge. It has a clear display that shows the local temperature and humidity, as well as the weather forecast for the day.

=> ↺ Clear PLA Diffuses LEDs

• [Chuck] often prints up interesting 3D prints. But we enjoyed his enhancement to a cheap LED Christmas tree kit. The original kit was simply a few green PCBs in the shape of a tree. Cute, but not really something a non-nerd would appreciate. What [Chuck] did, though, is printed a clear PLA overcoat for it and it came out great. You can see how great in the video below.

=> ↺ Digital Library Of Amateur Radio And Communications Is A Treasure Trove

• Having a big bookshelf of ham radio books and magazines used to be a point of bragging right for hams. These days, you are more likely to just browse the internet for information. But you can still have, virtually, that big shelf of old ham books, thanks to the DLARC — the digital library of Amateur Radio and Communications.

=> ↺ First-generation, 2007 iPhone sells for more than $63,000 at auction

• The Apple relic sold for for an eye-popping $63,356.40 Sunday — more than 100 times its original price of $599 in 2007.

Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

=> ↺ Trump’s Former Budget Director Is Advising GOP to Cut Medicaid by $2 Trillion

=> ↺ Lawsuit Uncovers Chicago’s Failure to Provide Disability Protections in Housing

=> ↺ Empty egg fridge spotted at Woolies in Melbourne

• Woolworths customer in Melbourne shares footage of empty egg shelves, prompting speculation of further egg shortages.

=> ↺ U-M leaders announce COVID-19 policy changes

• U-M announced that effective Feb. 20, 2023, only UM-Ann Arbor students living in Michigan Housing are required to report COVID-19 vaccination.

=> ↺ The Growing Popularity of CBD Oil in Germany

• In recent years, the popularity of Cannabidiol (CBD) oil has been rapidly growing in Germany.

=> ↺ Pete Buttigieg slams Norfolk Southern amid criticism over his response to Ohio train derailment

• Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg penned a letter to the CEO of Norfolk Southern, alleging that the railway company is putting profits over safety after the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

=> ↺ Food safety recall: Lidl salami may contain salmonella

• Lidl is recalling its Deluxe Strolghino Salami due to salmonella risk

=> ↺ Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates-backed brain implant startup testing mind-controlled computing on humans

• Synchron is part of an emerging crop of companies testing technology in the brain-computer interface industry, reports CNBC.

• The Synchron Switch is implanted through the blood vessels and allows patients to operate technology using only their minds.

• So far, the experimental technology has been tested on three patients in the US and four in Australia, according to the report.

=> ↺ Mom who fled with baby after toxic derailment wants officials to ‘drink the water’ in Ohio town

• In response to the derailment and safety concerns it raises, U.S. Senate commerce committee chair Maria Cantwell late on Friday said she has opened an inquiry into railroad hazardous materials safety practices.

=> ↺ Calls Grow for Public Ownership of Rail System Following Ohio Train Derailment

=> ↺ Investigation Shows Rail Giant Donated to Ohio Governor a Month Before Toxic Crash

• An investigation published Monday revealed that just weeks before a Norfolk Southern-owned train overloaded with hazardous materials derailed and caused a toxic chemical fire in East Palestine, Ohio, the rail giant donated $10,000—the maximum amount allowed—to help fund the inauguration of the state’s Republican Gov. Mike DeWine.

=> ↺ “Log Off”: 1 in 3 U.S. Girls Weighs Suicide. Will Congress Restrict Big Tech?

• As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns teen girls face record levels of depression and hopelessness, we host a roundtable on the role of social media and a bipartisan push against Big Tech in Congress. Several child safety-focused bills to curtail children’s exposure to harmful online interactions are being proposed this session. Critics say the measures may not actually help children while limiting speech and privacy rights. We are joined by three people who testified last week before the Senate Judiciary Committee: Emma Lembke, a college student and founder of the LOG OFF movement, which promotes healthy social media use among teens; Mitch Prinstein, professor of psychology and neuroscience and chief science officer at the American Psychological Association; and Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, a consumer advocacy group dedicated to ending marketing targeted at children.

=> ↺ Third patient cured of HIV after receiving stem cell cancer treatment

• A man known as “the Duesseldorf patient” has become the third person declared cured of HIV after receiving a stem cell transplant that also treated his leukaemia, a study said on Monday.

=> ↺ Think You Know What Normal Blood Pressure Is? New Study Suggests You’re Probably Wrong

• False confidence can be deadly.

=> ↺ Another Person Has Been ‘Cured’ of HIV, Almost a Decade After Treatment

• Here’s what you need to know.

=> ↺ AUDIO: Michael Bryant on Perspective with Jesse Zurawell

• Independent journalist (and regular OffG contributor) Michael Bryant joins Jesse Zurawell on Perspective to discuss Italy’s role in establishing the Covid narrative in 2020. They talk demographics, pollution, struggling hospitals, and how misinformation stoked the hysteria. Michael Bryant is a freelance journalist/activist and researcher who presently focuses primarily on issues surrounding health freedom.

Proprietary

=> ↺ Meta Verified Coming — A Subscription Service for Creators

• Meta is following in Twitter’s footsteps, offering an account subscription aimed at creators. Here’s what’s coming in Meta Verified. Meta says it wants to make it easier for creators to establish a presence online that is verified, so they can focus on building communities on Instagram or Facebook.

=> ↺ Twitter Shuts Off Text-Based 2FA for Non-Subscribers

• Twitter started a security ruckus over the weekend with the sudden decision to turn off text message/SMS method of two-factor authentication (2FA) for non-subscribers.

• [...]

• The decision — and the way it is positioned as a paid feature — attracted backlash from security professionals who argue that text-based 2FA is better than nothing at all. Worse, it creates a false sense of security among paying subscribers who may think the weakest form of 2FA is a premium feature.

• Twitter’s own internal data shows that multi-factor adoption remains startlingly low. According to a 2021 transparency report, Twitter found that barely 2.3 percent of all its active accounts have enabled at least one method of two-factor authentication between July and December 2020.

=> ↺ Why Did Google Stadia Die? Experts Point To Lack Of Content, Technology Incompatibilities

• New insights, plus expert commentary, suggest why Google may have folded the project: lack of content and less-than-ideal technology infrastructure. In fact, some regulators are using Stadia’s closure as key evidence that may stop Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard in the UK.

• “Google’s recent decision to shut down its own cloud gaming service, Stadia, shows that merely having some strengths relevant to cloud gaming is not enough to guarantee a platform’s success,” wrote the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), in a report.

=> ↺ 80% of Indian firms face cyber attacks due to miscommunication in IT security

• According to the cybersecurity firm Kaspersky, in terms of personal attitudes, the majority of non-IT executives (48%) cited a decreased sense of cooperation among different teams and stated that the situation causes them to question their colleagues’ skills and abilities when communicating with their IT-security employees is unclear (43%).

=> ↺ Google rolls out memory and energy saving features to Chrome

• The first new capability, dubbed Memory Saver, aims to reduce the amount of RAM that Chrome requires to run. Chrome is considered a memory-intensive browser because it deploys each tab as a separate process, or program, which increases hardware requirements. The new Memory Saver feature can reduce browser’s RAM usage by up to 40% or 10 gigabytes when running demanding web applications.

Security

Integrity/Availability/Authenticity

=> ↺ The benefits of RPKI Signed Checklists

• An RSC is a new type of RPKI-signed object that permits a resource holder to sign arbitrary files or documents with a set of Internet Number Resources. The recipient of an RSC can then cryptographically verify that the holder of those resources attests to the signed files/documents.

• There are several use cases for this functionality.

Privacy/Surveillance

=> ↺ Facebook-Owner Meta To Roll Out Paid Subscription

• [...] It was not immediately clear how Mr. Zuckerberg planned to price Meta Verified in countries where users cannot afford to pay $12 a month, or in cash-based economies where they may have fewer ways to get the money to Meta. Mr. Musk’s initial attempts to launch a similar service at rival social media network Twitter last year backfired wildly with an embarrassing spate of fake accounts that scared advertisers and cast doubt on the site’s future. He was forced to briefly suspend the effort before relaunching it to muted reception in December.

=> ↺ Blue badge coming to Facebook and Instagram as Meta tests paid subscription services

• The social media giant’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg has earlier said it was planning to launch several new products that would “empower creators to be way more productive and creative,” while cautioning about the cost associated with supporting the technology for a large user base.

Confidentiality

=> ↺ Aviacode remains silent after 0mega dumps 200 GB of their files

• On January 9, DataBreaches noticed that Aviacode had been added to the leak site for 0mega. Aviacode, which is part of GeBBS Healthcare Solutions, offers medical coding services, medical coding audits, coding denial management, clinical documentation improvement, and revenue cycle management for billings and claims. As such, it is often a business associate for HIPAA-covered entities.

• Seeing 0mega’s claims, DataBreaches sent an inquiry to Aviacode. They did not reply. As 0mega later told DataBreaches, Aviacode did not respond to them, either.

• On February 11, 0mega dumped more than 200 GB of Aviacode files.

Defence/Aggression

=> ↺ Our Freedoms Shrink as Our Military Expands

• The Merchants of Death even own our sidewalks. That’s what we were told when we arrived at Raytheon Technologies in Arlington, Virginia, on Valentine’s Day, February 14th, to issue a “Contempt Citation” for Raytheon’s failure to comply with a subpoena issued last November by the Merchants of Death War Crimes Tribunal, a People’s Tribunal scheduled […]

=> ↺ China and Russia are closer than ever

• As US President Joe Biden touched down in Ukraine to meet with his counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday, China’s top diplomat was traveling in the opposite direction, on his way to Russia.

=> ↺ With the „TCG Anadolu“, Ankara wants to be a naval drone power

• Turkey wants to be the first country in the world to equip an aircraft carrier with armed drones

=> ↺ Hensoldt South Africa’s presence at IDEX 2023 highlights importance of Middle Eastern market

• Hensoldt South Africa is presenting an extensive portfolio of products at the IDEX 2023 exhibition in Abu Dhabi as it continues to focus on the strategic Middle Eastern market.

=> ↺ Etion Create out in force at IDEX under Reunert umbrella

• Pretoria-based electronics company Etion Create is out in force at the IDEX 2023 exhibition in the United Arab Emirates – the first time it is attending the show since becoming part of the Reunert Limited group.

=> ↺ Calls for police to deal with crime not falling on deaf ears, says Minister

• Calls by South Africans for police to decisively deal with crime are not falling on deaf ears, said Police Minister Bheki Cele.

=> ↺ EU ministers, Kasparov meet at Lithuania’s initiative to talk about Russian opposition

• EU foreign ministers met with Garry Kasparov in Brussels on Monday at the initiative of Lithuania and Poland to discuss the activities of Russia’s opposition.

=> ↺ Russian Draft Resolution on Nord Stream Is Legitimate – China

• “We see the request is legitimate,” a Chinese diplomat told reporters about the Russian call for a meeting of the UN Security Council.

=> ↺ A powerful symbol of Vladimir Putin’s failure

=> ↺ Poland closes last available border checkpoint to Belarusian freight traffic — Meduza

• Poland will suspend Belarusian freight traffic through the only checkpoint still available to freight vehicles on the two countries’ border, the Kukuryki–Kozlowicze crossing, at 7:00 p.m. local time on Tuesday, the Polish Interior Ministry has reported.

=> ↺ Evgeny Prigozhin demands Russian Defense Ministry provide ammunition to Wagner Group amid mercenaries’ ‘shell famine’ — Meduza

• Evgeny Prigozhin, the founder of Russia’s Wagner Group, said Monday that the mercenary company is experiencing a “complete shell famine” and called on the Russian Defense Ministry to provide ammunition to Wagner “in the amount needed, which it has in storage.”

=> ↺ Six Russian soldiers killed in Kursk region bunker fire — Meduza

• Six Russian soldiers were killed and one was injured in a fire at a bunker in the country’s Kursk region on Monday morning, Russian state news outlet TASS reported.

=> ↺ How to End Putin’s Forever War

• As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its second year, it increasingly resembles an earlier example of imperial hubris, the Global War on Terror launched by George W. Bush, which became the quagmire known as the Forever War. Russia has failed to subdue Ukraine and institute regime change. But Ukrainian resistance, fueled by patriotic fervor and NATO assistance, has only been partially successful in rebuffing the invasion. Some territory has been regained, but Russia still occupies about 20 percent of Ukraine. The war is being fought in Ukraine, which means it is Ukraine’s landscape and infrastructure that are being devastated. Russian bombs are turning a significant part of the country into a barely inhabitable hell on earth.1

=> ↺ Biden declares ‘Kyiv stands’ in surprise visit to Ukraine

• “One year later, Kyiv stands,” Biden declared after meeting Zelenskyy at Mariinsky Palace.

=> ↺ US says UN Security Council silence on North Korea is dangerous

• The council last took action on North Korea in 2017, when it adopted a resolution to strengthen sanctions.

=> ↺ Joe Biden makes surprise visit to Kyiv — Meduza

• U.S. President Joe Biden has arrived in Kyiv for a surprise visit as part of his trip to Europe marking the one-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to Ukrainian media.

=> ↺ Russian authorities open criminal case against military doctor for refusing to serve in Ukraine — Meduza

• The Russian Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case against Medical Corps Lieutenant Denis Vasilyev for refusing to take part in combat, Pavel Chikov, the founder of the human rights group Agora, reported on Monday.

=> ↺ Russian Officials Are Denying Ammunition To Wagner Fighters, Says Prigozhin

• Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of Russia’s mercenary Wagner Group, has accused unspecified officials of deliberately denying his fighters sufficient ammunition as part of an ongoing rivalry between himself and parts of the Russian elite.

=> ↺ Biden in Ukraine on War Anniversary: Matt Duss, Medea Benjamin Debate U.S. Involvement, Hopes for Peace

• President Biden made a surprise visit to Ukraine ahead of this week’s first anniversary of Russia’s invasion and announced another $500 million in military aid to Ukraine and more sanctions on Russia. The visit underlines what Biden called his “unwavering support” for Ukrainian independence at a time when growing numbers of people in the United States and other countries are pushing for a negotiated end to the fighting. “For an American president to make a trip like this is enormously symbolic,” says Matt Duss, visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former Bernie Sanders adviser. “I feel this is a propaganda move to shore up support for a senseless war that the American public are starting to realize has no end in sight except for more senseless waste of lives,” says CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin.

=> ↺ VP Harris Says Russia Is Guilty of Crimes Against Humanity in Ukraine, But U.S. Limits Power of International Law

• At the Munich Security Conference, Vice President Kamala Harris announced the United States has formally determined Russia committed crimes against humanity in Ukraine. Her remarks come amid a “massive justice mobilization” in Ukraine, where investigators are documenting abuses and seeking to prosecute Russian soldiers and leaders, says Reed Brody, a veteran war crimes prosecutor and former counsel for Human Rights Watch. Brody notes that for international law to have force, it must apply to powerful countries including the United States. “You can’t have it both ways. The tools of international justice should not only be aimed at enemies and outcasts,” says Brody.

=> ↺ ERR in Munich: Western politicians might not be ready for long war

• While Western politicians reiterated their promises to stay behind Ukraine for as long as it takes at the Munich Security Conference, PM Kaja Kallas said there were also signals to suggest countries might not be in it for the long haul.

=> ↺ Iran said on cusp of ability to make nukes, having enriched uranium to 84% purity

• Inspectors from the UN atomic agency discovered uranium enriched to 84-percent purity in Iran last week, closer than ever to weapons-grade levels, Bloomberg reported Sunday, citing two unnamed senior diplomats.

• Iran has been known thus far to have enriched uranium to 60%. A purity of 90% is needed to produce nuclear weapons.

=> ↺ Met police and MI5 foil 15 plots by Iran against British or UK-based ‘enemies’

• Police and the security services have foiled 15 plots by Iran to either kidnap or kill British or UK-based individuals it considers “enemies of the regime”, counter-terrorism police revealed on Saturday.

• The toll of attempted assassinations and abductions was made public hours after a London-based Iranian broadcaster announced it had moved operations to the US after mounting safety concerns against its journalists from Tehran.

=> ↺ Al-Qaeda-linked Uyghur militant group seeks India’s help against China over Xinjiang – report

• Turkistan Islamic Party, a militant group linked to Al-Qaeda and Taliban, has sought India’s help against China over Xinjiang issue [...]

=> ↺ Inside the Taliban slaughterhouses where Western ‘collaborators’ are tortured to death

• The family is among half a dozen who have spoken to The Independent about cases that, according to local activists, journalists and rights groups, show an alarming trend: far from keeping its promise not to seek retribution against those associated with the previous government, the Taliban has merely been biding its time before enacting vicious extrajudicial “justice” against its perceived enemies.

=> ↺ In Surprise Visit to Kyiv, Biden Approves $500 Million in Aid as War Nears One-Year Mark

• U.S. President Joe Biden made a brief surprise trip to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Monday to pledge his “unwavering and unflagging commitment” ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion, which has left tens of thousands dead, sparked a massive humanitarian crisis, and raised fears of a broader war between nuclear powers.

=> ↺ Negotiated Resolutions the ‘Only Way’ Guantánamo Prison Will Ever Close

• On February 2, U.S. prisoner and former al-Qaeda courier Majid Khan was released from the Guantánamo Bay Detention Camp in Cuba after more than 16 years of imprisonment. “We are very pleased with Majid’s release,” says J. Wells Dixon, a senior staff attorney at the New York City-based Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR).

=> ↺ US Is Pushing Olympics to Exclude Russia, But What About Its Own War Crimes?

=> ↺ Olympics-Australia Aligned With Other Nations on Russia, Belarus Athlete Ban

=> ↺ Chris Hedges: Rage Against The War Machine Speech

• On Feb. 19, 2023, Chris Hedges spoke at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC at a bipartisan anti-war rally called “Rage Against the War Machine.” Hedges was joined by prominent anti-war figures on the political left and right, drawing ire from some on both sides and making apparent the ever-growing schism that has come to characterize modern Americana. Here is the text of his speech in its entirety.

=> ↺ Rage Against the War Machine Speeches

• At the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday, February 19th, on the anniversary of the Ukraine War, protestors from the Right and the Left gathered to demand an end to the American funding of the war in Ukraine and an end to the War State.

=> ↺ US Admits Weather Pushed Chinese Balloon Off Course, US Shot Down Hobbyist’s $12 Balloon in $2 Million Attack

• US officials acknowledged the Chinese balloon they shot down on February 4 had likely been blown off course by unexpected weather. The US Air Force later spent $2 million using missiles to blow up what appeared to be a $12 hobbyist balloon.

=> ↺ March to War In Iraq, 20 Years Later: February 20, 2003

=> ↺ Dozens of soldiers killed in jihadi attack on Burkina Faso army unit

• The death toll from a jihadi attack on a Burkina Faso army unit in the north of the country last week has risen to 51, military officials said Monday, after 43 new bodies were found.

=> ↺ France Eyes Ivory Coast After Burkina Faso Boots Out French Troops

• By Ange Aboa and Thiam NdiagaABIDJAN/OUAGADOUGOU (Reuters) – France’s defence minister pledged on Monday to boost military support to Ivory Coast…

=> ↺ Iranian Policeman Arrested Over Death Of Young Kurdish Man

• Iranian authorities say they have arrested a police officer over the killing of a Kurdish youth in a rare move against security forces who have been leading a brutal crackdown against anti-government protesters.

=> ↺ “This Here Is Hell”: A Visit to the Front in Bakhmut

• As the West continues to debate how many modern tanks should be delivered to Ukraine and when, soldiers in Bakhmut continue to rely on their Soviet-era weaponry. But how much longer can they hold out? A visit to the front lines.

=> ↺ “We Are Not Going To Give Up”: The Day That Never Ended for Ukraine

• On the morning of February 24, 2022, Russian forces marched into Ukraine. Nothing has been the same since – for Kyiv or for Europe. A chronicle of the hours leading up to the war and the immediate aftermath.

=> ↺ German Defense Minister Visits Tank Training For Ukrainian Crews

• The training of Ukrainian tank crews in Germany on how to operate advanced German-made tanks is on schedule, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said while visiting a military training ground in northwest Germany on February 20.

=> ↺ What if Putin’s plan for a quick victory in Ukraine had succeeded?

• Russian President Vladimir Putin hasn’t met any of the strategic objectives he alluded to when he launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine a year ago.

=> ↺ AUKUS will redefine government–industry partnerships

• Australia’s defence and technology industry will be tested like never before by the AUKUS partnership in managing the torrent of sensitive information flowing from partner countries and in defining the shape of the agreement itself.

=> ↺ Building Bangladeshi–Australian ties for regional prosperity and security

• Australia’s economic opportunities in South Asia extend far beyond India.

=> ↺ Ukraine Eyes $15 Billion Program After Meeting With IMF Chief

• Ukraine is hoping to clinch a multiyear support program of at least $15 billion, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on February 20 after meeting the head of the International Monetary Fund.

=> ↺ German Foreign Minister Says No Legal Grounds To Declare Iran’s Revolutionary Guards A Terrorist Entity

• German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said that German experts have found no legal grounds to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization.

=> ↺ Six Russian Soldiers Killed In Fire At Military Site In Kursk Region

• Six Russian soldiers were killed in the country’s Kursk region in a fire blamed on a “gross violation” of safety rules, Russian state media reported on February 20.

=> ↺ China’s Top Diplomat Urges End To Hostilities Ahead Of Moscow Visit

• China’s top diplomat Wang Yi, who is to visit Russia this week on the one-year anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine, called on February 20 for negotiations and peace for the sake of the world.

=> ↺ Hear Wagner leader complain of ammo shortages

• Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Russian private military company Wagner, acknowledged a “major problem” with ammunition supplies for his troops, amid a public spat with the leaders of Russia’s defense establishment.

=> ↺ Special prosecutor in ‘Rust’ case drops firearm enhancement charge against Alec Baldwin

• The manslaughter charges against Alec Baldwin relating to the 2021 fatal shooting on the set of the movie “Rust” have been downgraded by prosecutors in New Mexico, which will reduce the prison time the actor could face in the death of the movie’s cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins.

=> ↺ ‘Rust’ Prosecutors Downgrade Alec Baldwin’s Manslaughter Charges

• The actor’s lawyers had argued that a firearm law included by the prosecutors was not in effect at the time of the fatal shooting. It would have carried a mandatory five-year sentence.

=> ↺ US urges UN to condemn North Korea; China, Russia blame US

• The United States and its allies are urging the U.N. Security Council to condemn North Korea’s unlawful ballistic missile launches. But China and Russia blamed the U.S. for escalating tensions by increasing military exercises targeting Pyongyang. U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the council at an emergency meeting Monday that at a minimum all 15 members should be agreeable to condemning the North’s missile launches, to urging Pyongyang to comply with its resolutions, and “to engage in meaningful dialogue.” She warned the council that its silence leads to “irrelevance.” Pyongyang’s allies China and Russia countered that what’s needed now is dialogue between North Korea and the Biden administration, a de-escalation of military exercises and an easing of sanctions.

=> ↺ Inside Biden’s Surreal and Secretive Journey to Ukraine

• President Biden traveled covertly to the besieged Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, hoping to demonstrate American resolve to help defeat the Russian forces that invaded a year ago this week.

=> ↺ In Biden’s Unannounced Visit to Kyiv, a Preview of an Increasingly Direct Contest With Putin

• The vastly different world views of President Biden and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia will become vividly apparent in a rare split-screen moment on Tuesday.

=> ↺ Biden’s Kyiv Visit Lifts Spirits of War-Weary Ukrainians

• The American president was the most prominent Western leader to visit Ukraine since Russia invaded, and the capital was swept up in the excitement.

=> ↺ With an Eye on China, Philippines Moves Closer to U.S. Interests

• Driven by worry about China’s aggression, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has adopted the most muscular foreign policy approach that the Philippines has seen in close to a decade.

=> ↺ The Problem With Russia Is Russia

• Ukrainians will survive the Russian Federation, just as we survived the Soviet Union.

=> ↺ A Married Couple Shared a Trench on Ukraine’s Frontline. They Died in It Together.

• Taras and Olha Melster signed up to help the war effort. Like many other urban professionals in Ukraine, they never expected to be sent to the front line.

=> ↺ How President Biden secretly visited Ukraine

• President Biden arrived back in Poland on Monday evening following a roughly five-hour surprise visit to Kyiv ahead of the one-year anniversary of the war.

=> ↺ Exclusive: Kevin McCarthy gives Tucker Carlson access to massive trove of Jan. 6 riot tape

• House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has given Fox News’ Tucker Carlson exclusive access to 41,000 hours of Capitol surveillance footage from the Jan. 6 riot, McCarthy sources tell me.

=> ↺ Russia sells weapons at Abu Dhabi arms fair amid Ukraine war

• Russia is offering weapons for sale ranging from Kalashnikov assault rifles to missile systems despite facing sanctions from the West over its war on Ukraine. The offer is on display at the biennial arms fair just outside of Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, on Monday. The fair — known as the International Defense Exhibition and Conference — underscores the UAE’s intentions to embrace Moscow while balancing its ties to the West, even as the war on Ukraine approaches its first anniversary this Friday. A sanctioned Russian trade official was seen attending the event. At the same fair, U.S. forces displayed the Javelin anti-tank missile that Ukraine has used to devastating effect against Moscow’s tanks.

=> ↺ 13 people taken to hospitals after explosion and fire at Ohio metal factory

• Thirteen people were taken to local hospitals after an explosion at a metal factory near Oakwood, Ohio, according to Captain Brian DiRocco with the Oakwood Village Fire Department.

=> ↺ Kevin McCarthy gives Tucker Carlson access to Jan. 6 riot surveillance tapes

• The 44,000 hours of footage, most of which Carlson claims has never been seen by the public before, has been under review by the Fox News host’s producers “for about a week.”

Transparency/Investigative Reporting

=> ↺ Leftist Group Rocked by Revelation That Its ‘Queer, Muslim, Multiethnic’ Equity Chief Is Really A White Lady

• Raquel Saraswati apparently really is “queer” and Muslim, although her affectation of the hijab suggests that she adheres to a moral code that would have her executed for homosexual activity. And of course, she certainly isn’t a person of color. The contradictions and absurdities in her story should have raised eyebrows among the American Friends Service Committee. But her story was just too good, so good as to be irresistible. Now, despite the fact that the truth has come out about her, one thing is certain: among Leftists, no lessons will be learned.

=> ↺ Why That Ohio Town Is Named “East Palestine”

• The tragic spotlight now shining on Ohio’s “East Palestine” naturally leaves some people curious as to why it has such as unusual name. The answer is that it’s not a very unusual name at all.

• Elsewhere in Ohio, there are towns named Hebron, Gilboa, Canaan, and Shiloh (two of them, in fact). There’s even a Sodom, which was given its name after a prohibition advocate, disappointed at the small turnout for his lecture in 1840, jokingly compared the locale to that infamous biblical center of sin.

Environment

=> ↺ How Change Is Actually Made on Campus

• In September 2022, Princeton University announced plans to divest its $35 billion endowment and to end financial research ties with 90 fossil fuel companies, including ExxonMobil, Synergy, and Total. “We’re grateful to the Princeton faculty members who dedicated their time and expertise to addressing an important and challenging set of questions,” wrote Weezie Sams, the chair of Princeton’s board, in its announcement. “It is thanks to their work, and the engagement of many members of the University community, that we’re able to take these steps today.”

=> ↺ Climate Crisis Worsening Social Injustices, Conflicts: Nkirote

• This year’s World Day of Social Justice seeks to rally communities toward collective action on threats to basic rights and human dignity, including poverty and hunger.

=> ↺ Venice’s canals run dry as Italy faces new drought alert

• The city, where flooding is normally the primary concern, faces unusually low tides that are making it impossible for gondolas, water taxis and ambulances to navigate.

Energy/Transportation

=> ↺ EU calls for fast-track [cryptocurrency] capital rules for banks

• Tough capital rules for banks holding cryptoassets must be fast-tracked in the European Union’s pending banking law if Europe wants to avoid missing a globally-agreed deadline, the bloc’s executive has said.

• The global Basel Committee of banking regulators from the world’s main financial centres has set a January 2025 deadline for implementing capital requirements for banks’ exposures to cryptoassets such as stablecoins and bitcoin.

=> ↺ Copenhagen rated among top cities for cycling

• “The first bike lane in Denmark was set up in 1892 in Copenhagen. Today, the capital has 385 kilometres (239 miles) of bike lanes, according to VisitDenmark.com,” wrote CNN.

• “Cyclists and drivers also safely share the same roadway in many places. Thanks to Danish design innovations, such as narrowed streets and textured surfaces, cars drive slower.”

=> ↺ 10 of the best cities in the world to see while riding a bicycle

• The good news is some cities have given bicycles and the practice of sustainability their due.

• The following 10 cities worldwide are among the best for tourists (and locals) who like to bike.

=> ↺ Automating The Most Analog Of HVAC Equipment

• Burning wood, while not a perfect heating solution, has a number of advantages over more modern heating appliances. It’s a renewable resource, doesn’t add carbon to the atmosphere over geologic time scales like fossil fuels do, can be harvested locally using simple tools, and it doesn’t require any modern infrastructure to support it. That being said, wood stoves aren’t something that are very high-tech and don’t lend themselves particularly well to automation as a result, at least with the exception of this wood stove from [jotulf45v2].

=> ↺ India invokes emergency law to force coal-based power plants to raise output

• The directive comes into effect on March 16. It would remain valid till June 15.

Wildlife/Nature

=> ↺ Botswana Loses Third of Rhinos to Poaching in 5 Years

• Botswana does not publicly disclose its rhino population, but a document the government presented before the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Panama last year showed there were an estimated 285 white rhinos and 23 black rhinos across the country.

=> ↺ It’s Too Soon to Remove the Grizzly From the Endangered Species List

Overpopulation

=> ↺ Taliban bans contraception calling use a ‘western conspiracy’

• Reports that fighters have threatened those issuing birth control medicines come as Afghan midwives and activists warn of impact on women’s health and rights

=> ↺ Project would pipe water from Mexico to parched Arizona — if anyone can agree on it

Finance

=> ↺ In numbers: The food products in Sweden seeing the biggest price rises

• Food prices in Sweden continued to rise last month, with milk, cheese and eggs seeing the largest increases.

=> ↺ Pakistan Hikes Tax On Luxury Goods And Services To Get IMF Deal

• Pakistan’s parliament gave the go-ahead on February 20 for the government to raise taxes on a raft of luxury imports and services in a bid to unlock the next tranche of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan.

=> ↺ Statistics Finland: Inflation slowed to 8.4% in January

• THE SURGE in Finnish consumer prices showed signs of letting up in January.

• Statistics Finland on Monday reported that the year-on-year rise in consumer prices slowed down from 9.1 per cent in December 2022 to 8.4 per cent in January. The slowdown, it viewed, is attributable to factors such as the moderation of electricity price increases.

=> ↺ Every eighth full-time worker in Denmark is a foreigner

• In related news, almost 60 percent of Ukrainians who fled to Denmark to escape the War in Ukraine have found employment

=> ↺ Hedge Fund Billionaire Ray Dalio Gets Billions More to Retire

• Bridgewater’s founder, Ray Dalio, retired last year after months of negotiations that guaranteed him a gigantic exit package.

=> ↺ GOP Taking Budget Advice From Trump Official Who Wants to Cut $2 Trillion From Medicaid

• The right-wing official who served as budget director for the Trump administration is reportedly playing a significant advisory role for House Republicans as they seek to leverage a fast-approaching debt ceiling crisis to enact spending cuts that would disproportionately impact low-income households.

=> ↺ The Rail Unions Warned Us: Greed Is Dangerous

• The toxic clouds that billowed up from a derailed freight train in Ohio earlier this month are a chilling metaphor for the toxic greed that has infected so many of our big corporations.

=> ↺ The Rail Unions Warned Us. Greed Is Dangerous.

• Following multiple, dangerous derailments across the country, those working the railroad have a solution to the nation’s rail crisis: public ownership.

=> ↺ Bipartisan Alarm Over Social Media’s Harms to Children Prompts Slew of Proposed Legislation

• The Judiciary Committee hearing included discussion of several bills aimed at protecting children online, such as the Kids Online Safety Act, a measure that would create a “duty of care” requirement for platforms to shield children from harmful content. KOSA gained significant bipartisan traction during the previous session of Congress but ultimately failed to pass.

=> ↺ Granting Indigenous people early age pension will have flow-on impact

• Using life expectancy as criteria to assess whether someone was eligible for the age pension would lead to an ‘unworkable uncertainty’, a federal court has been told.

=> ↺ Ho Chi Minh City issues urgent directive after footwear factory cuts jobs

• PouYuen makes sports shoes for Adidas and Nike but has been hit by plunging demand from the US and Europe.

=> ↺ How “trained incapacity” could be damaging your career

• It’s an onboarding technique job switchers are no stranger to—seeking out a peer with seniority and asking for keys to success in this uncertain setting. Maybe you’ve offered that advice to a new hire, or maybe you’ve been the one asked for tips.

=> ↺ Student Loan Borrowers to Rally ‘In Full Force’ as SCOTUS Weighs Biden Relief Plan

• Supporters of President Joe Biden’s stalled student debt relief proposal are planning to rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. at the end of the month as justices hear a case challenging the administration’s long-awaited program.

=> ↺ The Tradeoffs in the Fight Against Inflation

• Life is about tradeoffs. And that’s also true for the Federal Reserve, which is meant to balance employment and inflation. Through 2021 and ’22, many economists saw the scales as being off. While unemployment fell dramatically, inflation spiked far higher than most experts had predicted. We can see from the Fed’s economic projections and public statements that these developments caught the institution off guard. Suddenly it shifted its focus to tamping down inflation, even if its decisions risked sparking a recession. And so last year the Fed scrambled to raise interest rates after having left them at zero throughout 2021.

AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

=> ↺ A BBC monitoring station that listened in on the world is being sold

• Eavesdropping on the airwaves was a habit that was slow to begin in Britain. An initial government department, set up at the start of the second world war, comprised three people, one of whom first taught his junior to make tea properly. But it was the BBC, which started its own service at around the same time, that won out.

• By 1943 BBC Monitoring—the branch of the broadcaster that doesn’t speak but listens—was operating in earnest. It took up residence in Caversham Park, bringing with it radios and receivers, typewriters and teleprinters, and numerous refugees from Nazi-occupied Europe to act as monitors. They set about building Babel by a lake in Berkshire—and then they set about translating it. Over the years that followed the reports they produced were used by the BBC itself, by other news agencies and by wartime and peacetime governments.

=> ↺ Apple flexes lobbying power as Apple Watch ban comes before Biden next week

• The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) ruled in December that Apple infringed on medical device company AliveCor’s wearable electrocardiogram patents. The commission’s ruling could result in an import ban on popular Apple Watch models, unless the Biden administration steps in.

• Apple responded by contracting with Shara Aranoff, a lobbyist at Covington & Burling who chaired the ITC during the Obama administration.

=> ↺ Twitter lays off more employees from sales team: report

• Elon Musk-owned microblogging platform Twitter on Friday laid off employees from ad sales team in a fresh round of layoffs, news website The Information reported.

• The number of job cuts, however, is not known, as per the report, which added that the social media company had about 800 sales and marketing employees as of last month.

• Twitter had in November last year reduced staff from its sales team.

=> ↺ Dem Leaders Urged to Mark Bloody Sunday by Acting on Voting Rights, Economic Justice

• “Selma is sacred ground. It is, in a very real sense, the delivery room where the possibility of a true democracy was born. It is no place to play or to be for political pretense. Either you’re serious or not. If you’re coming, come on Sunday, the actual day of remembrance. If you’re coming, come with a commitment to fight for what these people were willing to give their lives for.”

=> ↺ Can Nigeria’s Peter Obi ride his newfound momentum all the way to presidency?

• The rise of Peter Obi in the campaign for Nigeria’s presidential election on February 25 has shaken up the country’s politics, hitherto dominated by two major parties since the end of military rule in 1999. But analysts say that Obi still faces an uphill struggle.

=> ↺ New Day of Protests in Israel Against Judicial Reform

• Today’s protests included blockades of streets and avenues, and some demonstrators gathered in front of the residences of government officials.

=> ↺ Protests as Israel’s parliament pushes ahead with judicial ‘reform’

• Israel’s parliament on Monday voted to push ahead with a contested overhaul of the country’s judicial system championed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist government that has sparked mass protests.

=> ↺ Yana, a Russian exile in Paris: ‘Russia’s destiny is everyone’s business’

• Arrested during a protest against the war in Ukraine in March 2022, Yana, a 35-year-old Russian executive, decided to flee her home town of Moscow. Since her arrival in Paris in June, she has been trying to deal with the administration involved in moving country, while sharing the message of critics of Vladimir Putin’s regime.

=> ↺ Mardzhina, a Ukrainian refugee: ‘I planned to visit Paris – not to live there’

• When Mardhzina left her home on the outskirts of Kyiv to shield her family from the war, the 41-year-old single mother hoped she would be returning quickly to Ukraine. A year later, she is now considering a future in France, while keeping a close eye on her home country’s fate.

=> ↺ 2 members of party led by former Malaysia premier Muhyiddin charged with graft

• They are accused of accepting bribes amounting to close to RM7 million in relation to the Jana Wibawa Covid-19 relief initiative.

=> ↺ China says it is ‘deeply worried’ about escalation of Ukraine conflict

• BEIJING – China is “deeply worried” about the escalation of the Ukraine conflict and the possibility of the situation spiralling out of control, China’s foreign minister Qin Gang said on Tuesday.

=> ↺ Charles McGonigal and the Unclassified Oligarch Info

• A protective order dispute between SDNY and Charles McGonigal’s co-defendant reveals that all the discovery in the case is unclassified. But McGonigal and his attorney, former Bill Barr aide Seth DuCharme, both undoubtedly know of classified information they could demand.

=> ↺ AMLO resists handover of Pacific Alliance presidency to Peru’s Boluarte

• AMLO was scheduled to hand over leadership of the four-nation coalition to Peru’s former president Castillo in November.

=> ↺ The Normalization Phenomena: Strategic Desperation of Neighbors Amid New Delhi’s Rise

• As New Delhi is setting the stage for great power meetings this year like G-20 and QUAD, its neighbors seem to be desperate to roll out a thaw plan with India.

=> ↺ The Growing Persecution of Women in India has a Fallout on Kashmir

• If there is any country that makes international headlines for its treatment of women, it is India. India is also famous for the exploitation and trafficking of women. Women in India face life threating challenges, including poverty, discrimination, and violence; they are often subjected to sexual exploitation and trafficking.

=> ↺ How China Can Help Reimagine Europe

• China still believes that Europe can be relatively independent from the US as a participant in the global economy and politics. At least, this is evidenced by the extremely friendly tone of Chinese diplomacy with regard to the activities of the European Union and the relations of the Celestial Empire itself with the Old Continent.

=> ↺ Jimmy Carter Is Our Greatest Former President

• The battle over the legacy of an American president begins the moment they leave office. Historians debate their contributions, reporters examine their records, and the public weighs in with their memories.

=> ↺ Jimmy Carter and the End of Democratic Capitalism

=> ↺ In This Tender Time: Few Humans Have Served So Well

• We can forget, but the news Jimmy Carter is nearing the end of his righteous life reminds us there has been, and perhaps will be, good on this earth. A “thoroughly decent man” and “steadfast champion of humanity,” Carter spoke up for racial justice, economic equity, prison reform, the rights of Palestinians, and hard truths the rich and powerful didn’t want to hear. A “man of great faith who led by example,” he taught us how to live with dignity. And now how to die.

=> ↺ The Nation Names New Columnists Spencer Ackerman, Adolph Reed Jr., and Jane McAlevey

=> ↺ Israel Is Destroying the Fantasies of Liberal Zionism

• Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Jerusalem in late January came during a period of notable violence and political upheaval throughout Palestine. But most of the anodyne comments Blinken made during his trip could have been made at just about any time in the past 30 years.

=> ↺ Running for or Running From?

=> ↺ The New York Times Is Repeating One of Its Most Notorious Mistakes

• On March 11, 1998, New York Times copy editor Donna Cartwright posted a letter on bulletin boards on every floor of the paper’s newsroom. The letter began: To my colleagues at the New York Times: in the 21 years we’ve worked together, we have shared much hard work and many rewarding experiences. I’m writing this now to inform you of a significant change in my life that will affect our relationship and to ask for your understanding and support. After much reflection and inner struggle, I have decided to resolve a longstanding conflict in my life by beginning to live full-time as a woman starting in about two months’ time.

=> ↺ Tens of Thousands in Israel Rally Against ‘Dictator’s Bill’ as Lawmakers Vote on Judicial Overhaul

• Tens of thousands of people opposed to the far-right Israeli government’s proposed judicial overhaul once again hit the streets of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv on Monday, where they implored lawmakers to vote against the measures during the afternoon’s first reading.

=> ↺ ‘Moderate PAC’ Is Latest Big-Money Push to Keep Democrats in Line on Israel

• A new Democratic political action committee (PAC) has arisen, dedicated to cultivating what it refers to as “moderate policies.” It stands against Republicans, as it supports only Democrats, but primarily, it aims to move the Democratic party to the right. It’s the latest iteration of conservative efforts to revive the classical conservatism that has been drowned by right-wing fanaticism, creating the so-called “Never-Trump Republicans” who don’t have a political home for the moment.

=> ↺ Kosovo’s PM ‘very optimistic’ that agreement with Serbia could happen this year

• FRANCE 24 spoke to Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti, as Kosovo celebrates 15 years of independence. Kurti is due to meet Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Brussels on February 27 and said he was “very optimistic” that an agreement leading to full normalisation between the two countries could happen “this year”. He regretted that relations between Kosovo and Serbia “are not normal” and claimed Belgrade isolated itself by “not delinking (…) from the Kremlin”.

=> ↺ ‘The United States is here’: US Secretary of State visits Turkey earthquake zone

• U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday announced further aid to Turkey and said Washington would provide longer term help to Ankara as it seeks to rebuild following this month’s earthquake.

=> ↺ Exclusive: Hong Kong police leave 100s of spent tear gas rounds on marine park island after exercise

• Police have left hundreds of spent tear gas grenades and debris from crowd control weapons on one of the Soko Islands following a training exercise. The potentially hazardous refuse was spotted by HKFP on Tai A Chau – which is within the protected South Lantau Marine Park – on Saturday.

=> ↺ Young HK activists who flouted national security law can still hope for a future in the city: Official

• Youth envoys a key to bringing estranged young people back into society’s fold

=> ↺ Proposed Hong Kong crowdfunding law will hinder survival of civil groups, says pro-democracy group

• Proposals to regulate crowdfunding in Hong Kong will make the survival of civil organisations “more difficult,” the League of Social Democrats (LSD) has said. The pro-democracy group added that the new law may bring harsh punishments and criminalise those who donate to unauthorised campaigns.

Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

=> ↺ Black Girl Environmentalist rejects climate “doomism”

• Climate “doomism” — fatalistic messaging that nothing can be done to reverse climate change on a global scale — is easy to find on outlets like TikTok, where the baseless argument has gone viral in recent years.

=> ↺ Bipartisan Calls for TikTok Regulatory Action Grow As Senators Express ‘Profound’ Concerns: ‘ByteDance Cannot Be Trusted’

• TikTok has been outlawed in both chambers of Congress and by more than 20 state governments. Now, as federal lawmakers push for an outright ban, different senators, also from both sides of the aisle, are calling on Washington to “impose strict structural restrictions between TikTok’s American operations and its Chinese parent company.”

=> ↺ Fact check: How propaganda denigrates Ukrainian refugees

• According to an analysis by the institute in October that examined Russian-language discussions about refugees on Telegram in particular, the narratives differ depending on the target group. Audiences in Russia are primarily told that people from Ukraine are fleeing from supposed “Nazis” who allegedly rule the country.

=> ↺ The Internal Decapitation of Fox News

• “I have been internally decapitated, and, yet, I live…. The Wind tells me I’m a ghost, but I don’t believe it.” Thus speaks the oracle at the center of the great conspiracy theory that nearly toppled the American republic. The writer was an unnamed correspondent of Sidney Powell, the most visible—and most unhinged—promoter of the lie that the 2020 election had been stolen by Joe Biden. A vast tranche of damning discovery and testimony surfaced late last week as part of the $1.4 billion defamation lawsuit Dominion Voting Systems filed against Fox News in March 2021. The company’s petition for summary judgment furnishes the basis for this dumbfounding saga; you can read the 200-page document here.

=> ↺ Project Veritas Founder James O’Keefe Out at Right-Wing Org

• Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe said in a speech posted online that he has been removed as the right-wing group’s leader

Censorship/Free Speech

=> ↺ Bangladesh forces main opposition newspaper to shut down

• The order accused the Bengali-language broadsheet of violating printing and publication laws.

• The Dainik Dinkal has long been an important voice for the center-right BNP party. It covers stories that most mainstream newspapers, many of which are controlled by pro-government businessmen, often ignore. This includes what the BNP says are false arrests of its members and intimidation tactics from the government.

• It also employs hundreds of journalists and other workers, most of whom were out in the streets of the capital Dhaka on Monday to protest the government and its shutdown order.

=> ↺ What is Section 230?

• Section 230 was passed nearly 30 years ago, when websites were young and perceived to be vulnerable. The provision ensured that the companies that hosted them would not get bogged down in lawsuits if users posted material to which others might object, such as bad restaurant reviews or complaints about neighbours. The law has been interpreted by federal courts to do two things. First, it immunises both “provider[s]” and “user[s]” of “an interactive computer service” from liability for potentially harmful posts created by other people. Second, it allows platforms to take down posts that are “obscene…excessively violent, harassing or otherwise objectionable”—even if they are constitutionally protected—without risking liability for any such content they happen to leave up.

=> ↺ Section 230, student debt top divisive Supreme Court agenda

• The plaintiffs, relatives of a victim who was among the more than 100 people killed in a series of attacks by Islamic State terrorists in Paris in November 2015, sued Google under federal anti-terrorism laws.

• The family accused Google of aiding and abetting terrorism by purportedly recommending pro-ISIS content to users on YouTube, but Google argues that its recommendations are protected by Section 230, a controversial provision that shields internet companies from liability for content provided by a third-party user.

=> ↺ TikTokers jailed as Iraq targets ‘decadent content’

• The young Iraqi woman using that pseudonym was sentenced early this month to half a year behind bars for the light-hearted video clips that show her in tight-fitting clothes.

• A new government campaign aims to cleanse social media platforms of content that breaches Iraqi “mores and traditions”, the interior ministry announced in January.

=> ↺ TikTokers jailed as Iraq targets ‘decadent content’

• Dancing to Iraqi pop made TikTok personality Om Fahad a hit among tens of thousands of followers, but now she is in prison, caught up in a state campaign targeting “decadent content”.

• The young Iraqi woman using that pseudonym was sentenced early this month to half a year behind bars for the light-hearted video clips that show her in tight-fitting clothes.

=> ↺ NATO Praises Sweden’s Decision to Adopt Sharia Blasphemy Laws and Ban Qur’an Burnings (Video)

• NATO Secretary praised Stockholm’s decision to stop two planned Qur’an burnings this month and, in a dictation, banned any further burnings of the Islamic “holy” book. However, the authority’s ban applies only to the Qur’an, not to other holy scriptures.

• Despite freedom of expression and demonstration being protected by Sweden’s constitution, the Stockholm police press spokesman Ola Östling announced on state television they will not deny permission to anyone seeking to burn the Qur’an and warns that they will act accordingly if anyone does not comply.

=> ↺ Fans defend Sara Ali Khan’s Maha Shivratri post as trolls call the actress ‘improper’ and unworthy’ Muslim

• Sara Ali Khan stirred controversy on social media with her recent Maha Shivratri post. The actress shared a series of pictures from her spiritual outings and captioned it, “Jai Bholenath’.

=> ↺ Salman Rushdie, Rishi Sunak condemn Roald Dahl rewrites

• Separately, renowned author Salman Rushdie also called out the “absurd censorship” on the part of publishers Puffin books and the Netflix-owned Dahl estate.

=> ↺ Sensitivity Censors Are Rewriting Raold Dahl Classics to Avoid Offense

• “Roald Dahl was no angel but this is absurd censorship,” said Salmon Rushdie, a Booker Prize-winning author, wrote on Twitter. Rushdie was seriously injured last year in an attack stemming from a long-standing fatwa against him by the late Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran, who objected to his fictional portrayal of the Prophet Mohammed in his 1988 novel The Satanic Verses. “Puffin Books and the Dahl estate should be ashamed,” Rushdie added.

=> ↺ The protesters who’ve gone missing as China deepens crackdown

• Police made few arrests at the time. Now, months on, scores of those protesters are in police custody, say Chinese activists, with one group estimating there have been more than 100 arrests.

• International rights groups and foreign universities have called for their release. And activist groups have published lists naming the alleged detainees. This includes those who protested in Beijing as well as other cities such as Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Nanjing.

=> ↺ The invasion has stalled, but Putin’s war on dissent marches on

• Daniel Treisman of the University of California argues that these people and institutions are not accidental victims of the war, but one of its main targets. Ukraine, after all, posed no military threat to Russia. And a vast and sparsely populated country, spanning 11 time zones, could scarcely be said to need more territory. Rather, it was the gradual emergence in Ukraine of a vigorous civil society that successfully demanded reform of the state, and the inklings of a similar process in Russia, that Mr Putin found threatening.

• Before the tanks rolled into Ukraine, Mr Treisman notes, liberal values were spreading fast in Russia. The share of people who told pollsters that freedom of speech was important to them rose from 34% in 2017 to 61% in 2021. Record numbers were watching Mr Navalny’s YouTube channel. Meanwhile, television viewing, the government’s main tool for shaping Russians’ outlook, was in sharp decline.

=> ↺ Scholar cleared of Islamophobia says Bristol caved in to students

• Professor Greer, who received online threats and noticed a stranger loitering outside his home after BRISOC began its campaign two years ago, was alleged to have made discriminatory remarks by referring to the 2015 Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris in the context of Islam’s stance on freedom of speech, which the petition claimed was “an example of the kind of Islamophobic rhetoric that aims to posit the actions of killers as being representative of the entire Muslim community”.

• He was cleared of wrongdoing by a review involving a King’s Counsel, which found “no evidence of Islamophobic speech” and concluded that his teaching material “did not amount to discrimination or harassment and was intended as the basis for academic debate by the students who elected to study it”.

=> ↺ Why Some Florida Schools Are Removing Books from Their Libraries

• Farther south, in Manatee County, on the Gulf Coast, Nicole Harlow has recently begun to see local social-media posts about teachers having to remove or cover up their classroom libraries. Harlow, a veterinary nurse in her early forties, has three children in county schools. Her two youngest are in charter schools; so far, the libraries there seem to have remained largely untouched. But her oldest, Emma, is a tenth grader at Parrish Community High School, where bookcases have been covered with signs reading, “Books Are NOT for Student Use!!”

=> ↺ Salman Rushdie lashes out at ‘absurd censorship’ of Roald Dahl

• Mumbai-born Booker Prize winning author Salman Rushdie is among the leading literary voices to speak out against a British publisher’s “absurd censorship” after it rewrote certain sections of Roald Dahl’s classic children’s books because the language was deemed offensive.

• Under a review of Dahl’s classics, which include popular titles that were adapted to the screen such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda, references to weight, mental health, violence, gender and race are to be rewritten or removed by so-called sensitivity readers to avoid causing offence.

=> ↺ Senate committee OKs bill allowing government censorship, criminal charges for teachers and librarians

• Senate Bill 81 classifies such materials as harmful to minors and creates a new crime, making it a misdemeanor for any adults, including teachers and librarians, to knowingly allow access to such things.

• It also seemingly grants the power of judicial review to city boards and county quorum courts. Anyone who disagrees with a library board’s decision to not ban a book would be able to appeal to the city or county government, who would be then empowered to decide what materials stay in libraries and which have to go.

=> ↺ Organizers are Fighting Ron DeSantis’s Educational Bans with Free Books

• While these headlines may be shocking, they come as no surprise to those on the ground in Florida. “It’s in line with things that he’s always had planned for Florida, and we’ve always known what his ideas were and what he planned to do to us. So it’s shocking, but it’s not surprising,” Alisha Cox, an organizer with the Florida-based Dream Defenders, told Teen Vogue. So Dream Defenders got to work, connecting with leftist publishers including Haymarket Books, Verso, and PM Press, to distribute books and literature to Florida students.

=> ↺ James Comer’s Twitter Hearing Confirmed Donald Trump’s Censorship Attempt and Matt Taibbi’s “Censorship” about It

• James Comer’s hearing on Twitter proved two things: The single instance of government censorship proven at the hearing involved Trump’s attempt to censor a tweet calling him “pussy ass bitch,” and Matt Taibbi had obscured — according to his own false terms, “censored” — that incident.

=> ↺ Facebook Says Noting the CDC’s Scientific Misrepresentations ‘Could Mislead People’

• The social media site slapped a warning on a column in which I criticized the CDC for exaggerating the evidence supporting mask mandates.

Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

=> ↺ Telex photographers sweep the board at 41st Hungarian Press Photography Awards

=> ↺ Russian journalist Filipp Dzyadko denied entry into Georgia.

• Filipp Dzyadko is the former editor-in-chief of Russian Esquire and is currently the head of the Arzamas educational project. According to TV Rain, he was stopped by customs officials upon returning to the country from Vienna, and was initially told that he had to wait to enter because the “system was frozen,” but was later informed that he had been denied entry.

=> ↺ Iran International: Channel leaves UK after regime threats

• Independent TV network Iran International is suspending its operations in the UK because of threats against its London-based journalists.

• The Persian-language TV channel said that the decision was due to a “significant escalation in state-backed threats from Iran”.

=> ↺ Guilty of Journalism: New Documentary Film Ithaka and New Book on the Political Case Against Julian Assange – The Project Censored Show

• Gabriel Shipton is Julian Assange’s brother, and a professional film producer. John Shipton is the father of Gabriel and Julian. Information about the documentary, and their U.S. speaking tour, can be found here. Kevin Gosztola is the managing editor of ShadowProof. He has covered the Julian Assange legal proceedings in the UK from their beginning, as well as other press freedom and whistleblower cases dating back to Chelsea Manning. His new book on the Assange case, Guilty of Journalism, will soon be available from The Censored Press/Seven Stories Press March 7. Gosztola also writes at The Dissenter.

=> ↺ The February 2023 Newsletter – Censored Notebook

• Gosztola will also be a featured speaker at the Disruption Lab Network’s Smart Prisons conference, to be held in Berlin, March 24-26, 2023. Many events on the program, including the panel featuring lawyer Stella Assange (Julian Assange’s wife), Gosztola, and investigative journalist Stefania Maurizi, will be streamed for free. Check the event website for the full schedule and streaming information.

=> ↺ Sanders Proposes ‘New Deal for Journalism’ To Ensure Media Serves Public Interest

• Nonpartisan, publicly funded media is “an idea that we should explore,” said the senator.

=> ↺ The Right Distance

• “Every journalist who is not too stupid or too full of himself to notice what is going on knows that what he does is morally indefensible.” This sentence is among the most famous in American journalism. It first appeared as the lede in a two-part essay published by The New Yorker in 1989, and then again in 1990 when the essay was published as a short book called The Journalist and the Murderer. Its author was Janet Malcolm, who was on The New Yorker’s staff and wrote lengthy profiles of writers, photographers, psychoanalysts, and many more of whom her writing alone made figures of note. When she died in 2021 at the age of 86, she left behind eight books of nonfiction, four essay collections, and a treasure trove of awards and honors that her work had garnered. The level of attention, positive and negative, that came Malcolm’s way leaves no doubt that she was a significant figure on the American cultural scene.

=> ↺ Britain Summons Iranian Diplomat Over Journalist Threats, Sets New Sanctions

• The British government summoned Iran’s most senior diplomat in London on February 20 to protest what it said were serious threats against journalists living in the United Kingdom, as ministers launched a new security review into Iranian activities.

=> ↺ UK foreign secretary summons Iran diplomat following threats to UK-based journalists

• UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly Monday summoned the Iranian Charge D’affaires Mehdi Hosseini Matin due to threats from the Iranian regime concerning UK-based journalists working for Iran International. The London-based, Persian-language news channel recently paused their reporting in the UK as a result of “very real and specific threats.

=> ↺ Nicola Bulley family attack media and single out ITV and Sky News

• ITN and Sky News condemned for contacting the family on Sunday.

=> ↺ U.S. Public Trust in News Organizations Down to New Low: CNN

• The media landscape has fractured and it’s not uncommon to now see the same story presented in entirely different ways to different audiences.

Civil Rights/Policing

=> ↺ Why the Warrior Met Strike Is Ending

• On February 15, 23 months after more than 1,000 coal miners in Brookwood, Ala., walked out on their employers at Warrior Met Coal, representatives from the United Mine Workers of America gathered them in a union hall to share some bad news. The company had reported its results for the fourth-quarter and full-year earnings, and thanks to the skyrocketing price of coal, Warrior Met raked in huge profits. The strike, believed to be the longest in Alabama history, had not had the desired economic impact. It may have cost the company over $1 billion in potential profits, but the high coal prices and the replacement workers that the company brought in meant that the strike hadn’t made a sufficient dent in the company’s bottom line. In 2022, Warrior Met Coal pulled in more than $640 million in net income.

=> ↺ New York Times Under Fire for Anti-Trans Coverage

• In a letter to New York Times leadership (2/15/23), more than 180 of the paper’s contributors (later swelling to more than 1,000) raised “serious concerns about editorial bias in the newspaper’s reporting on transgender, non⁠-⁠binary and gender nonconforming people.” What started as a conversation about a paper’s coverage exploded into a battle between media workers who see a problem at one of the most powerful media outlets on earth, and a media management that simply won’t listen.

=> ↺ Turbotax is blitzing Congress for the right to tax YOU

• Every year, Americans spend billions on tax prep services, paying a heavily concentrated industry of giant, wildly profitable firms to send the IRS information it already has. Despite the fact that most other rich countries have a far more efficient process, many Americans believe that adopting this process here is either impossible, immoral, or both.

• That puts tax preparation in the same bucket as other forms of weird American exceptionalism – like the belief that we’re too untrustworthy to have universal healthcare, or that we’re so violent that we must all have assault rifles to protect ourselves from one another.

=> ↺ Police spy unit caused ‘outrage and pain’ as it infiltrated leftwing groups

• A judge-led public inquiry has found that an undercover police unit that infiltrated leftwing political groups caused “outrage and pain” to the public and acted in a sexist and racist way.

• The inquiry ruled that the Scotland Yard unit was not justified in intruding deeply into the private lives of campaigners, including their sexual relationships, and suggested it should have been disbanded early in its existence.

=> ↺ Iranians Stage Fresh Anti-Government Protests Despite Security Crackdown

• Officials, who have blamed the West for the demonstrations, have vowed to crack down even harder on protesters, with the judiciary leading the way after the unrest entered a fourth month.

• The protests pose the biggest threat to the Islamic government since the 1979 revolution.

=> ↺ Uber inks pact with Tata Motors for supply of 25,000 EVs; Wipro cuts salary package offered to freshers

• Delhi govt bans bike taxis: In a big blow to bike taxi operators in Delhi, the transport department has banned commercial bike taxi services against plying on the roads. Carrying passengers on hire or reward basis will be considered a violation of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, that would make aggregators liable for a fine of Rs 1 lakh.

=> ↺ Booked a flight out of China? Police are likely to knock on your door

• Police and neighborhood committees now get to decide who can travel and who can’t, although group tours continue

=> ↺ Dutch schools warned to be alert to female circumcision

• This form of genital mutilation has been illegal in the Netherlands since 1993. It is also illegal to take a girl abroad to get it done, though no one has been convicted of this crime to date. In the Netherlands, an estimated 41,000 women have been circumcised, and about 4,200 girls are at risk of genital mutilation in the coming years, according to knowledge institute Pharos and the GGD health services.

=> ↺ Legislative “War Against LGBTQ People” Is Underway, New Report Warns

=> ↺ Race and Class: The Beginnings of an Argument

• “Watch out there, Jack, there’s people living under here.”—Ralph Ellison, “The World and the Jug”

=> ↺ Seattle Considers Banning Caste-based Discrimination

• AP reports: [Seattle City Council member Kshama] Sawant has proposed an ordinance to add caste to Seattle’s anti-discrimination laws. If her fellow council members approve it Tuesday, Seattle will become the first city in the United States to specifically outlaw caste discrimination….

=> ↺ Free Immigration Is a Core American Value

• Just consider the policies that the Founding Fathers embraced.

=> ↺ MN House passes ‘conversion therapy’ ban

• The vote places the bill one step closer to the governor’s desk.

=> ↺ Microsoft to defend Activision deal at EU hearing on Feb. 21

• The company asked for the hearing after receiving a statement of objections from the European Commission warning about the possible anti-competitive effects of the deal.

• A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the oral hearing

=> ↺ UK report finds Black men 7 times more likely to die after police restraint

• UK nonprofit group INQUEST Monday reported that Black men are 7 times more likely to die than their white counterparts following the use of restraint by police.

=> ↺ UK court sentences city fund managers to 12 years in $8M fraud case

• Southwark Crown Court Sunday sentenced three fund managers to a total of 12 years and three months imprisonment following a seven year investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

=> ↺ U.S. Welcomes Move By Kyrgyzstan To Repatriate Women, Children From Syrian Displaced Persons Camps

• The United States has welcomed the efforts of the Kyrgyz government to repatriate 18 women and 41 children from displaced persons camps in northeast Syria, where the Islamic State extremist group remains a “persistent threat.”

=> ↺ Former Pakistani PM Imran Khan Gets Court Protection Against Arrest

• Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan was granted protective bail by a court in the eastern city of Lahore on February 20, providing him respite from arrest for two weeks in a case that involves charges under the country’s anti-terrorism laws.

=> ↺ London Says More Than 30 Countries Vow Support For Ban On Russian, Belarusian Athletes

• More than 30 countries, including the United States, Britain and France, have pledged their support for banning Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in international sporting events, a British government statement said on February 20.

Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

=> ↺ Gateway.fm raises $4.6M to provide access to Web3 node infrastructure tools

=> ↺ Should we give Econet, NetOne and Telecel a pass for shoddy service? Maybe

• Customers are wont to complain even when their complaints are not justified. Businesses are aware of this and customer care personnel are taught, ‘the customer is king, so just smile and take in their abuse.’ Customer service people will tell you stories for days about all that. 

Digital Restrictions (DRM)

=> ↺ Digital Right to Repair Coalition Letter of Support – ITC Samsung Display Technology

• By giving every consumer and small business access to the parts, tools and service information they need to repair products from cell phones to tractors, we can keep products in use longer and reduce unnecessary waste.

Monopolies

=> ↺ Big Tech’s future is up to a Supreme Court that doesn’t understand it

• The firestorm over Big Tech and content moderation is coming to a head at the Supreme Court — but some experts fear it’s a job the court simply isn’t equipped to do well.

• Why it matters: The court has historically not been great at grappling with new technology. As it dives into the political battle over social-media algorithms, there’s a real fear that the justices could end up creating more controversies than they solve.

Patents

=> ↺ A new European patent landscape (4): the Unified Patent Court

=> ↺ Dr Reddy’s and Mishcon de Reya deflect Warner-Lambert appeal over claim amendments

• The Court of Appeal has upheld a first-instance decision that pharmaceutical company Warner-Lambert may not amend two of its Points of Defence claims against generic drug manufacturer, Dr Reddy’s (case ID: CA-2022-000735).

Software Patents

=> ↺ Tanit Ventures entity L2 Mobile Tech wireless patent reexam granted

• On February 17, 2023, less than two months after Unified filed an ex parte reexamination, the USPTO granted Unified’s request, finding substantial new questions of patentability on the challenged claims (claims 1-10) of U.S. Patent 8,321,740, owned and asserted by L2 Mobile Technologies LLC, an NPE and entity of Tanit Ventures Inc. The ’740 patent is generally directed to Transmission Time Interval (TTI) bundling in user equipment of a wireless communication system.

Copyrights

=> ↺ Bungie Wins $4.3 Million Award Against Cheat Seller in Arbitration

• Game developer Bungie has won its first battle against cheat seller AimJunkies. In an arbitration proceeding, Judge Ronald Cox concluded that the cheaters violated the DMCA’s anti-circumvention provision and related trafficking restrictions. The end result is an award for $3.6 million in damages and over $700k in fees and other costs.

=> ↺ Does ChatGPT plagiarize beyond ‘copy-paste’?

• Before finishing their next assignment with a chatbot, students might want to give it some thought. According to a research team led by Penn University that undertook the first study to specifically look at the topic, language models that generate text in response to user prompts plagiarise content in more ways than one.

• “Plagiarism comes in different flavours,” said Dongwon Lee, professor of information sciences and technology at Penn State. “We wanted to see if language models not only copy and paste but resort to more sophisticated forms of plagiarism without realizing it.”

=> ↺ Papers on the UX of AI programming assistants

• This is a list of research papers investigating the user experience of AI-powered programming assistants (e.g., Copilot). I started the list because I was finding it difficult to keep up with the massive surge of papers recently.

Gemini* and Gopher

Technical

Internet/Gemini

=> ↺ android finger client

• fingerlist almost did what I wanted. It didn’t have finger URI support and it also didn’t have anything in its manifest to let other apps know that it was able to handle finger URIs.

• So I installed android studio to see if it’d be as much of a pain as I was hoping it wasn’t.

• Took me a bit to get into a good work loop of write, build, test using python3 -m http.server to re-download it to my phone after each apk build.

• My computer is new enough to run the studio, but it has a really hard time trying to run a phone emulator at the same time.

• Anyway, I have an apk that seems to work how I want now. So, have some links to the apk and the source.

• Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It’s like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter. Share in other sites/networks: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. Permalink  Send this to a friend

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