News gathered 2024-07-25
(date: 2024-07-25 07:55:16)
Why Texas Will Add More Clean Energy Than Any State This Year
date: 2024-07-25, from: Distilled Earth blog
Texas is expected to build twice as much clean energy capacity as the next two states—California and Arizona—combined
https://www.distilled.earth/p/why-texas-will-add-more-clean-energy
@Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed (date: 2024-07-25, from: Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed)
I am struggling with coming up with a good looking set of document tab bars for Godot on iPad.
My first take was this, it was a blend of Xcode elements.
And Václav suggested something like the second, but I think it feels strange. Anyone has some pointers to apps with document tabs on iPadOS?
https://mastodon.social/@Migueldeicaza/112847635346376144
YouTube star sets Domino installation world record
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
YouTube star Lily Hevesh has been mesmerizing viewers with domino creations for 15 years. Last weekend, at the National Building Museum in Washington, she completed her most ambitious project yet: she brought down an installation of 100,000 dominoes and set a world record. Maxim Adams reports. Camera: Dmitry Shakhov, Artem Kohan.
https://www.voanews.com/a/youtube-star-sets-domino-installation-world-record/7712563.html
California homebuying: Collapse? Crumble? Or crash?
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
A 21-month streak of statewide sales pace below 300,000 a year is the longest dip in stats dating to 1990.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/07/25/california-homebuying-collapse-crumble-or-crash/
Tracking Olympic medals (by conference) with the Pac-12 set to officially disintegrate during the Paris Games
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
The conference will officially disintegrate during the Paris Games, so how should we account for the medals won?
STMicroelectronics sees sharp decline in Q2 earnings amid weak auto sector demand
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
NXP Semiconductors and Texas Instruments also hit by slowdown
Euro chipmaker STMicroelectronics saw revenue and net income slump in Q2 of this year, blaming low demand in the automotive sector while orders elsewhere failed to meet expectations, in a hint that the semiconductor industry is still in a rough patch.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/stmicroelectronics_q2_weak_demand/
How Kamala Harris took command of the Democratic Party in 48 hours
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
She worked the phones. Her team worked the delegates. When it was over, she had quickly locked down the nomination in a “well-orchestrated cascade,” as one party leader put it.
Woman found fatally shot in Oakland
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
Authorities are in the process of confirming her identity and notifying family members before releasing her name. She is believed to be in her 20s.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/07/25/woman-found-fatally-shot-in-oakland/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-25, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
FBI Not Sure Trump Was Struck By a Bullet.
https://politicalwire.com/2024/07/25/fbi-not-sure-trump-was-hit-by-a-bullet/
Navy Ad: Gig Work Is a Dystopian, Unregulated Hellscape, Build Submarines Instead
date: 2024-07-25, from: 404 Media Group
The same government that has failed to regulate gig work has simply opted to agree that it is bad and to use those working conditions to recruit for the military.
PG&E profits soar, powered by increases in electricity and gas revenue
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
PG&E profits soared during its second quarter, powered by higher monthly bills.
Thirteen Sharks Test Positive for Cocaine Off the Coast of Brazil
date: 2024-07-25, from: Smithsonian Magazine
All of the wild Brazilian sharpnose sharks tested in a new study had the drug in their bodies, but many questions remain about cocaine’s effects on aquatic creatures—and the humans who eat them
Optum laying off 364 California healthcare workers, shuttering urgent cares
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
The company, in a notice to the state’s Employment Development Department, said it was carrying out layoffs and “departmental closures” at 14 California locations including Hayward.
Kamala Harris wants to be America’s first Silicon Valley president. She has tech’s support
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
Top tech leaders are showing their excitement for the Bay Area native, in the form of endorsements and donations for Harris, which have come from prominent names, such as longtime Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, Netflix Co-Founder Reed Hastings and philanthropist Melinda French Gates.
NASA Supports Burst Test for Orbital Reef Commercial Space Station
date: 2024-07-25, from: NASA breaking news
An element of a NASA-funded commercial space station, Orbital Reef, under development by Blue Origin and Sierra Space, recently completed a full-scale ultimate burst pressure test as part of the agency’s efforts for new destinations in low Earth orbit. This milestone is part of a NASA Space Act Agreement awarded to Blue Origin in 2021. […]
Gone but not Forgotten
date: 2024-07-25, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
The latest casualty is The Palace Grill, another iconic Santa Barbara staple.
The post Gone but not Forgotten appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/25/gone-but-not-forgotten/
You should probably fix this 5-year-old critical Docker vuln fairly sharpish
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
For some unknown reason, initial patch was omitted from later versions
Docker is warning users to rev their Docker Engine into patch mode after it realized a near-maximum severity vulnerability had been sticking around for five years.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/5yo_docker_vulnerability/
7 awesome Bay Area things to do this weekend, July 26-28
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
Got your weekend plans? We have some nifty ideas, from amazing milkshakes to Gold Country fun to a superhero movie that doesn’t, well. suck.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/07/25/7-awesome-bay-area-things-to-do-this-weekend-july-26-28/
Park Fire map: Wildfire near Chico explodes overnight to season’s biggest
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
The first evacuation order came before 6 p.m., and by Thursday morning the evacuation zone covered more than 400 square miles in Butte and Tehama counties.
Reclaiming the Viral Asian Body
date: 2024-07-25, from: Care
<p>“The truth is that we, as actors both individual and collective, are fundamentally enmeshed in/with the world. Our technologies weave their ways into our minds and bodies.”</p>https://logicmag.io/issue-21-medicine-and-the-body/reclaiming-the-viral-asian-body
AI Video Generator Runway Trained on Thousands of YouTube Videos Without Permission
date: 2024-07-25, from: 404 Media Group
A leaked document obtained by 404 Media shows company-wide effort collected thousands of YouTube videos and pirated content for training data.
https://www.404media.co/runway-ai-image-generator-training-data-youtube/
A popular new night market elevates baseball food in West Oakland
date: 2024-07-25, from: San Jose Mercury News
With 30-something vendors, the Prescott Night Market’s become the hot spot for lovers of food and haters of Oakland A’s owner John Fisher.
FreeBSD as a platform for your future technology
date: 2024-07-25, from: OS News
Choosing an operating system for new technology can be crucial for the success of any project. Years down the road, this decision will continue to inform the speed and efficiency of development. But should you build the infrastructure yourself or rely on a proven system? When faced with this decision, many companies have chosen, and continue to choose, FreeBSD. Few operating systems offer the immediate high performance and security of FreeBSD, areas where new technologies typically struggle. Having a stable and secure development platform reduces upfront costs and development time. The combination of stability, security, and high performance has led to the adoption of FreeBSD in a wide range of applications and industries. This is true for new startups and larger established companies such as Sony, Netflix, and Nintendo. FreeBSD continues to be a dependable ecosystem and an industry-leading platform. ↫ FreeBSD Foundation A FreeBSD marketing document highlighting FreeBSD’s strengths is, of course, hardly a surprise, but considering it’s fighting what you could generously call an uphill battle against the dominance of Linux, it’s still interesting to see what, exactly, FreeBSD highlights as its strengths. It should come as no surprise that its licensing model – the simple BSD license – is mentioned first and foremost, since it’s a less cumbersome license to deal with than something like the GPL. It’s philosophical debate we won’t be concluding any time soon, but the point still stands. FreeBSD also highlights that it’s apparently quite easy to upstream changes to FreeBSD, making sure that changes benefit everyone who uses FreeBSD. While I can’t vouch for this, it does seem reasonable to assume that it’s easier to deal with the integrated, one-stop-shop that is FreeBSD, compared to the hodge-podge of hundreds and thousands of groups whose software all together make up a Linux system. Like I said, this is a marketing document so do keep that in mind, but I still found it interesting.
https://www.osnews.com/story/140325/freebsd-as-a-platform-for-your-future-technology/
Adobe exec likened hidden cloud subscription fees to ‘heroin’, says FTC
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Read the unredacted complaint against Photoshop giant and its software plans
Adobe’s controversial billing practices and punitive fees for those terminating their subscriptions early follow from the software titan’s addiction to revenue, the FTC has said.…
More 3-inch mini PCs with Intel Alder Lake-N chips and up to 4 x 2.5 GbE Ethernet ports
date: 2024-07-25, from: Liliputing
Late last year Chinese PC maker CWWK began selling a line of tiny desktop computers that measure just 75.4 x 75.4 x 52.5mm (3″ x 3″ x 2.1″), but which pack a lot of features into that palm-sized package, including up to four 2.5 GbE Ethernet ports, up to an Intel Core i3-N305 octa-core processor, and […]
The post More 3-inch mini PCs with Intel Alder Lake-N chips and up to 4 x 2.5 GbE Ethernet ports appeared first on Liliputing.
How NASA’s Roman Space Telescope Will Illuminate Cosmic Dawn
date: 2024-07-25, from: NASA breaking news
Today, enormous stretches of space are crystal clear, but that wasn’t always the case. During its infancy, the universe was filled with a “fog” that made it opaque, cloaking the first stars and galaxies. NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will probe the universe’s subsequent transition to the brilliant starscape we see today –– […]
Former Space Communications, Navigation Interns Pioneer NASA’s Future
date: 2024-07-25, from: NASA breaking news
For over a decade, NASA’s SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) Internship Project alumni have played important roles in extending the agency’s long-term vision for exploration. For National Intern Day on Thursday, July 25, previous program interns reflect on their journeys to and through NASA and offer advice for current and future interns. Every summer interns […]
Kaspersky says Uncle Sam snubbed proposal to open up its code for third-party review
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Those national security threat claims? ‘No evidence,’ VP tells The Reg
Exclusive Despite the Feds’ determination to ban Kaspersky’s security software in the US, the Russian business is moving forward with another proposal to open up its data and products to third-party review – and prove to Uncle Sam that its code hasn’t been compromised by Kremlin spies.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/kaspersky_us_review_snub/
LA is planning for hundreds of thousands of new homes. But not in single-family zones
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The LAist
The city has a lot of work to do to meet state housing goals, including rezoning. But officials don’t want to touch single-family neighborhoods.
What goes up must come back down
date: 2024-07-25, from: Marketplace Morning Report
Wall Street indexes are droopy this morning after a surge downward yesterday. The S&P 500 fell 2.3% and the Nasdaq had its deepest drop in two years. Some are calling it “rebalancing” as investors pull back from some of their tech darlings. And, as a follow-up to yesterday’s episode, we check in with Juan Carlos Cisneros Suarez, who has been waiting for a visa and has skills in computer programming or robotics.
https://www.marketplace.org/shows/marketplace-morning-report/what-goes-up-must-come-back-down
AI models face collapse if they overdose on their own output
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Recursive training leads to nonsense, study finds
Researchers have found that the buildup of AI-generated content on the web is set to “collapse” machine learning models unless the industry can mitigate the risks.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/ai_will_eat_itself/
AI stocks lead tech slump
date: 2024-07-25, from: Marketplace Morning Report
From the BBC World Service: The stock market sell-off is spreading from the U.S. to Asia and Europe. There have been declines across the board, but companies specializing in AI and semiconductor chips have been hit especially hard. Part of it has to do with expectations of additional trade restrictions from the U.S. on chip trade with China. Then, smaller brands are competing against fashion giants to deck out this year’s Olympic athletes.
https://www.marketplace.org/shows/marketplace-morning-report/ai-stocks-lead-tech-slump
EPA Union Gets Behind Harris
date: 2024-07-25, from: Heatmap News
Current conditions: Typhoon Gaemi made landfall in Taiwan with the force of a Category 3 major hurricane • Large hailstones pelted Verona, Italy • Tropical Storm Bud formed in the Eastern Pacific, but is expected to dissipate by the weekend.
THE TOP FIVE
- Vineyard Wind turbine fiasco linked to manufacturing defect
The blade that snapped off an offshore turbine at the Vineyard Wind project in Massachusetts on July 13 broke due to a manufacturing defect, according to GE Vernova, the turbine maker and installer. During GE’s second quarter earnings call yesterday, CEO Scott Strazik and Vice President of Investor Relations Michael Lapides said the company had identified a “material deviation” at one of its factories in Canada and would “re-inspect all of the blades that we have made for offshore wind.” At a public meeting in Nantucket last night, Roger Martella, GE Vernova’s chief sustainability officer, said there were two issues at play. The first was the manufacturing issue — basically, the adhesives applied to the blade to hold it together did not do their job. The second was quality control. “The inspection that should have caught this did not,” he said. Two dozen turbines have been installed as part of the Vineyard Wind project so far, with 72 blades total. GE Vernova has not responded to requests for clarification about how many of them originated at the Canada facility, reported Heatmap’s Emily Pontecorvo. Nantucket representatives are going to meet with Vineyard Wind next week to negotiate compensation for the costs incurred as a result of the accident.
- Biggest EPA union endorses Harris
Vice President Kamala Harris got a little boost for her 2024 presidential bid yesterday with an endorsement from the American Federation of Government Employees Council 238. The group is the largest Environmental Protection Agency union – of the 750,000 government employees it represents, about 8,000 of them are with the EPA, accounting for just under half the agency’s permanent workforce. Last month the union issued its first-ever political endorsement, for President Biden’s re-election, saying he “supports and values the work of federal employees who are working tirelessly to face the climate emergency.” Shifting support to Harris “reaffirms” that endorsement. Former President Donald Trump rolled back many EPA rules during his time in office, including emissions regulations and environmental protections. He also gutted workplace protections for federal workers. Judging by the infamous Project 2025 playbook, Trump would seek to dramatically “restructure” and “streamline” the EPA to “reflect the principles of cooperative federalism and limited government,” and many workers reportedly fear their jobs will be on the line if he wins.
- Ford Q2 earnings disappoint as EV losses mount
Ford’s stock is down about 13% in pre-market trading after yesterday’s disappointing Q2 earnings report. The automaker reported adjusted earnings of 46 cents per share, far below analysts’ expectations of 68 cents per share. The company cited unforeseen costs for repairing problems on slightly older vehicles that are still under warranty. But its EV losses grew, too, reaching $2.5 billion through the first half of 2024. CEO Jim Farley remained bullish in the earnings call, telling investors the company is committed to reducing the losses on EVs but basically said the market has been tough and turbulent, and Ford is honing its strategy. That includes expanding its hybrid portfolio and prioritizing smaller, more affordable EVs. He said Ford “must do a much better job in educating our customers” about the advantages of owning an EV. “Overall, the EV journey has been humbling,” he said, “but it has forced us to get even more fit as a company.”
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- Wildfires approach Canadian oil pipeline
Firefighters are battling hundreds of wildfires in Canada’s Alberta province, one of which is nearing a crucial oil pipeline. The Trans Mountain Pipeline carries 890,000 barrels of oil per day from Edmonton to Vancouver. Its operator is reportedly using sprinklers to protect the pipeline, which was still operating normally yesterday. Some oil producers with operations in Canada’s Fort McMurray oil sands region have pulled staff as a precaution and reduced production. “While wildfires have already forced some producers to curtail production, these fires still threaten a large amount of supply,” ING Group analysts said.
- Study: Tree bark removes methane from atmosphere
Microbes living in tree bark are surprisingly effective at removing methane from the atmosphere, according to a new study published in the journal Nature. Up until now, soil was the only known “terrestrial sink” for methane, a potent but short-lived greenhouse gas that’s responsible for about one third of the global warming since the pre-industrial age. But the research suggests tree bark may be just as effective as soil when it comes to methane removal. Trees are already climate champions because of their ability to remove carbon from the atmosphere, and the authors think these new findings boost their overall climate contribution by about 10%. Another fun tidbit from the study is that, if all the bark from all the trees on Earth were laid flat, it would cover the planet’s entire land surface.
THE KICKER
The Irvine Police Department is adding Tesla’s Cybertruck to its fleet. The vehicle reportedly won’t be sent out on patrols, but will instead be used for “community relations.”
X/IrvinePolice
https://heatmap.news/climate/harris-epa-endorsement-ford-earnings
X.org lone ranger rides to rescue multi-monitor refresh rates
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
X11 isn’t dead while people still keep working on it
It isn’t quite XKCD 2347, but it’s close. At least one developer is still working away on the X.org codebase with an effort to improve variable refresh rate support in several different OSes.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/xorg_monitor_refresh_rates/
Gehn Imager Andotrope | The MagPi #144
date: 2024-07-25, from: Raspberry Pi News (.com)
Replicating a beloved display from a favourite game yielded amazing results for one Raspberry Pi maker.
The post Gehn Imager Andotrope | The MagPi #144 appeared first on Raspberry Pi.
https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/gehn-imager-andotrope-the-magpi-144/
Joe Guzzardi | Immigration: O My Gosh, Canada!
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
Canada faces an immigration crisis on multiple levels. Years of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s endorsed over-immigration into Canada have pushed housing prices into the stratosphere, sent per capita income into […]
The post Joe Guzzardi | Immigration: O My Gosh, Canada! appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/joe-guzzardi-immigration-o-my-gosh-canada/
Jason Gibbs | New and Upcoming Projects in Santa Clarita
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
Nothing says Santa Clarita like our beautiful mountains, pristine parks, paseos meandering through our neighborhoods, lush trees and amenities for residents of all ages. This year, the city has already […]
The post Jason Gibbs | New and Upcoming Projects in Santa Clarita appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/jason-gibbs-new-and-upcoming-projects-in-santa-clarita/
College Brief for July 24 | Phi Kappa Phi inducts new members from SCV
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
The following people recently were initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines: They are among […]
The post College Brief for July 24 | Phi Kappa Phi inducts new members from SCV appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/college-brief-for-july-24-phi-kappa-phi-inducts-new-members-from-scv/
Datacenters guzzled more than a fifth of Ireland’s electricity in 2023
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Bit barns binge on Emerald Isle power
Datacenters consumed more than a fifth of Ireland’s electricity supply during 2023, according to the latest figures from the republic’s Central Statistics Office (CSO). The news comes amid growing concerns over the expanding energy demands of the bit barn industry.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/ireland_datacenter_power_consumption/
Article Spotlight: The use of vocal coordination in male African elephant group departures
date: 2024-07-25, from: PeerJ blog
Dan Walters | Newsom’s Aspiring Successors Multiply
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
There never was much of a chance that Gov. Gavin Newsom would run for president this year, even if President Joe Biden were to step aside. While Newsom has been […]
The post Dan Walters | Newsom’s Aspiring Successors Multiply appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/dan-walters-newsoms-aspiring-successors-multiply/
Christopher Lucero | ‘Right Here, Right Now’ Wrong Again
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
Scott Wilk thinks California is “off the rails” (“Right Here, Right Now,” June 29). How inspiring, such leadership! He based his entire premise upon an assumption that a “Google search” […]
The post Christopher Lucero | ‘Right Here, Right Now’ Wrong Again appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/christopher-lucero-right-here-right-now-wrong-again/
OpenBSD enthusiast cooks up guide for the technically timid
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
If you want a simple step-by-step, this is the best we’ve seen
French BSD enthusiast Joel Carnat has written a how-to guide on setting up a laptop with OpenBSD for general use. It’s worth a go for the Unix-curious.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/openbsd_for_the_people/
Patch management still seemingly abysmal because no one wants the job
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Are your security and ops teams fighting to pass the buck?
Comment Patching: The bane of every IT professional’s existence. It’s a thankless, laborious job that no one wants to do, goes unappreciated when it interrupts work, and yet it’s more critical than ever in this modern threat landscape.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/patch_management_study/
Today in SCV History (July 25)
date: 2024-07-25, from: SCV New (TV Station)
1915 – Pioneer Juan Batista Suraco buried in a family graveyard, currently unmarked, in Bouquet Canyon near Benz Road. [story
https://scvnews.com/today-in-scv-history-july-25/
True #Hacks in Today’s Market
date: 2024-07-25, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Three rules of thumb to put you on the right path.
The post True #Hacks in Today’s Market appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/25/true-hacks-in-todays-market/
Charles Fletcher Lummis: ‘Stand Fast, Santa Barbara’
date: 2024-07-25, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Lummis was considered to be the father of historic preservation in Southern California.
The post Charles Fletcher Lummis: ‘Stand Fast, Santa Barbara’ appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/25/charles-fletcher-lummis-stand-fast-santa-barbara/
You’re not hallucinating: generative AI is helping IBM’s mainframes grow
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Big Blue brings in more cash and profit than predicted
Generative AI’s powers extend to helping the ancient concept of a proprietary enterprise OS and hardware stack to thrive, if IBM’s Q2 2024 results are any guide.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/ibm_q2_2024/
Some US states purge Chinese companies from investments amid tensions with China
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — As state treasurer, Vivek Malek pushed Missouri’s main retirement system to pull its investments from Chinese companies, making Missouri among the first nationally to do so. Now Malek is touting the Chinese divestment as he seeks reelection in an August 6 Republican primary against challengers who also are denouncing financial connections to China.
The Missouri treasurer’s race highlights a new facet of opposition to China, which has been cast as a top threat to the U.S. by many candidates seeking election this year. Indiana and Florida also have restricted their public pension funds from investing in certain Chinese companies. Similar legislation targeting public investments in foreign adversaries was vetoed in Arizona and proposed in Illinois and Oklahoma.
China ranks as the world’s second-largest economy behind the U.S.
Between 2018 and 2022, U.S. public pension and university endowments invested about $146 billion in China, according to an analysis by Future Union, a nonprofit pro-democracy group led by venture capitalist Andrew King. The report said more than four-fifths of U.S. states have at least one public pension fund investing in China and Hong Kong.
“Frankly, there should be shame — more shame than there is — for continuing to have those investments at this point in time,” said King, who asserts that China has used intellectual property from U.S. companies to make similar products that undercut market prices.
“You’re talking a considerable amount of money that frankly is competing against the U.S. technology and innovation ecosystem,” King said.
But some investment officials and economists have raised concerns that the emerging patchwork of state divestment policies could weaken investment returns for retirees.
“Most of these policies are unwise and would make U.S. citizens poorer,” said Ben Powell, an economics professor who is executive director of the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University.
The National Association of State Retirement Administrators opposes state-mandated divestments, saying such orders should come only from the federal government against specific companies based on U.S. security or humanitarian interests.
The U.S. Treasury Department recently proposed a rule prohibiting American investors from funding artificial intelligence systems in China that could have military uses, such as weapons targeting. In May, President Joe Biden blocked a Chinese-backed cryptocurrency mining firm from owning land near a Wyoming nuclear missile base, calling it a “national security risk.”
Yet this isn’t the first time that states have blacklisted particular investments. Numerous states, cities and universities divested from South Africa because of apartheid before the U.S. Congress eventually took action. Some states also have divested from tobacco companies because of health concerns.
Most recently, some states announced a divestment from Russia because of its war against Ukraine. But that has been difficult to carry out for some public pension fund administrators.
The quest to halt investments in Chinese companies comes as a growing number of states also have targeted Chinese ownership of U.S. land. Two dozen states now have laws restricting foreign ownership of agricultural land, according to the National Agricultural Law Center at the University of Arkansas. Some laws apply more broadly, such as one facing a legal challenge in Florida that bars Chinese citizens from buying property within 16 kilometers of military installations and critical infrastructure.
State pension divestment policies are “part of a broader march toward more confrontation between China and the United States,” said Clark Packard, a research fellow for trade policy studies at the libertarian Cato Institute. But “it makes it more challenging for the federal government to manage the overall relationship if we’ve got to deal with a scattershot policy at the state level.”
Indiana last year became the first to enact a law requiring the state’s public pension system to gradually divest from certain Chinese companies. As of March 31, 2023, the system had about $1.2 billion invested in Chinese entities with $486 million subject to the divestment requirement. A year later, its investment exposure in China had fallen to $314 million with just $700,000 still subject to divestment, the Indiana Public Retirement System said.
Missouri State Treasurer Malek tried last November to get fellow trustees of the Missouri State Employees’ Retirement System to divest from Chinese companies. After defeat, he tried again in December and won approval for a plan requiring divestment over a 12-month period. Officials at the retirement system did not respond to repeated questions from The Associated Press about the status of that divestment.
In recent weeks, Malek has highlighted the Chinese divestment in campaign ads, asserting that fentanyl from China “is drugging our kids” and vowing: “As long as I’m treasurer, they won’t get money from us. Not one penny.”
Two of Malek’s main challengers in the Republican primary — state Rep. Cody Smith and state Sen. Andrew Koenig — also support divestment from China.
Koenig said China is becoming less stable and “a more risky place to have money invested.”
“In China, the line between public and private is much more blurry than it is in America,” Smith said. “So I don’t think we can fully know that if we are investing in Chinese companies that we are not also aiding an enemy of the United States.”
A law signed earlier this year by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis requires a state board overseeing the retirement system to develop a plan by September 1 to divest from companies owned by China. The oversight board had announced in March 2022 that it would stop making new Chinese investments. As of May, it still had about $277 million invested in Chinese-owned entities, including banks, energy firms and alcohol companies, according to an analysis by Florida legislative staff.
Florida law already prohibits investment in certain companies tied to Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Venezuela, or those engaged in an economic boycott against Israel.
In April, Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed a bill that would have required divestment from companies in countries determined by the federal government to be foreign adversaries. That list includes China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia and Venezuela.
Hobbs said in a letter to lawmakers that the measure “would be detrimental to the economic growth Arizona is experiencing as well as the State’s investment portfolio.”
Biden, Netanyahu to discuss Gaza war and cease-fire talks
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
https://www.voanews.com/a/biden-netanyahu-to-discuss-gaza-war-and-cease-fire-talks/7712200.html
Biden speaks, with hope and wistfulness of decision to leave race
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday explained to American citizens and to the world why he decided not to stand for reelection in the 2024 presidential race. Biden, speaking from the Oval Office, also outlined what urgent challenges he sees as the nation careens toward a November vote. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports.
India ditches its ‘Google Tax’ after US waved a big stick
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Stakeholders found it an ‘ambiguous’ compliance burden and the world has moved on – or tried to
India will eliminate its equalization levy – a charge imposed on digital services provided by non-resident companies, known as the “Google Tax.”…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/india_eliminates_google_tax/
Former Trump NSC official explains his vision for ending war in Ukraine
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
WASHINGTON — Retired Army Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, who was chief of staff on former President Donald Trump’s national security council, spoke with VOA about his vision for ending the war in Ukraine.
Kellogg says he is not a formal adviser to the former president and has not presented his plan to Trump, but it is one of the options that he could consider if he is elected in November.
Kellogg also served as the national security adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence in the Trump administration. He now co-chairs the Center on American Security at America First Policy Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan group.
The Ukraine strategy was published back in May by AFPI as part of their An America First Approach to U.S. National Security, edited by Fred Fleitz, who also served as chief of staff at the National Security Council during Trump’s presidency and co-wrote with Kellogg the chapter on the Russia-Ukraine war.
It suggests that the U.S. should begin a formal policy “to seek a cease-fire and negotiated settlement of the Ukraine conflict.” The U.S. would continue to arm Ukraine to deter Russia from attacking during or after a deal is reached, but under the condition that Kyiv agrees to enter into peace talks with Russia.
To persuade Russia to participate in the negotiations, the U.S. and other NATO partners would delay Ukraine’s membership in the alliance for an extended period in exchange for a “comprehensive and verifiable deal with security guarantees.”
They write that Ukraine will not be asked to give up its ambition to regain all land seized by Russia, but Kyiv should agree to use diplomatic means only and realize that it might take a long time to regain all the territories. The strategy proposes to use the partial lifting of sanctions on Russia to encourage the Kremlin to take steps toward peace and establish levies on Russian energy imports to fund Ukraine’s reconstruction.
The interview with Kellogg, recorded on July 18 at the Republican convention in Milwaukee, has been edited for brevity and clarity.
VOA: Can you tell a little bit about the plan? I think it’s the most detailed paper coming publicly from Republican and Republican-affiliated groups.
Retired Army Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg: We’ve said very clearly in our paper that Ukraine has fought valiantly. They are very well led. We think the Russians did clearly an unwarranted invasion of a sovereign state and this must be addressed. President Trump, to his credit, said in the very first debate when he was asked by one of the commentators, Dana Bash, do the Russians basically get to keep the territories? He said no, not at all. He said not once, he did it twice.
So, there’s a negotiation, you are going to figure out what your starting points are going to be. You want to make sure that Ukrainians are not put at the position when they’re operating from weaknesses, but from strength. So, the question is how do you do that? And how you put all the pieces and parts in place? Nobody is ever saying that: “Oh, we just have to make Ukrainians to give up land and give it to Russia.” Look when you look at your losses, the losses in Ukraine alone, depending on who you talk to, you’re talking between 100,000 and 130,000 deaths. That’s enormous because when I look at [Russia’s losses] they have had three times that. The United States of America lost 60,000 in the Vietnam war. That was a 20-year war we went away from. The Russians, then the Soviets, lost 15,000 in Afghanistan and walked away from it.
If the Ukrainians say no and the Russians say no, then they can do it in a different way. But I think you started to ask yourself questions is this what’s best for Ukraine as a nation? I don’t care about Russia. I care about Ukraine.
Let’s say a year and a half ago the Russians turn their heels and if the West had provided the equipment that [Ukrainian] President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy asked for, then you probably could have finished the job. You could have gotten into the Sea of Azov through Kherson, splitting them in half, and that is what you wanted to do. So, I blame this administration and the West to a degree for not supporting Ukraine when they should have.
VOA: The Biden administration is saying that they want to put Ukraine in the position of strength before it can negotiate with Russia. You are suggesting pretty much the same, right?
Kellogg: No, that’s a false statement. Have the United States given Ukraine a support of F-16s? No. Did we provide long-range fires early for the Ukrainians to shoot in Russians? No. Did we provide permission for them to shoot deep into Russia? No. Did the United States provide them the armored capabilities they needed? We gave 31 tanks. Thirty-one tanks is not even a battalion in the United States army. So, they talk about it, but it didn’t really happen.
VOA: Ukrainian officials might be cautious about entering into the negotiations with Russians because it might send a signal to their partners that they don’t need military aid anymore.
Kellogg: You have to give more arms to them because you can’t trust the Russians. You just have to do it, and the question is, do you do this before Europe tires, Americans tire, Ukrainians tire? Two and a half years – that’s a long war and the destruction is enormous. Sometimes you have to look at what we call in America the long game. And that is security guarantees, financial support and military support. We have to bring that to the American people, you know, President Biden has only talked to American people one time. You got to talk to them a lot. President Biden has only talked to [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin one time. When I was with President Trump, he was talking to him 17 different times. It doesn’t mean he likes him. But you have to talk to your adversary.
VOA: Why would Russians want to negotiate?
Kellogg: You need to give them reasons to negotiate. You can give an extreme reason and say, OK, you’ve got to get back all the land from Ukraine. Maybe, short-term you tell Ukraine, we’re not going to support you coming to NATO, but we give you a bilateral security agreement.
VOA: The U.S. and Ukraine have just signed a security agreement.
Kellogg: That was not a defense agreement. A defense agreement should be ratified by the Senate. What you have to do is to come up with a peace agreement like we’ve done with Korea, we did years ago with Taiwan.
VOA: But what is the contingency plan if Russia doesn’t abide by the agreement.
Kellogg: That is part of negotiation. That’s where both sides draw the red lines. That’s where both sides make the determination: this is what we’re going to do or not do.
VOA: Ukraine already tried that signing the Minsk agreements with Russia.
Kellogg: Minsk agreements worked very well, didn’t they? They’re lousy. They didn’t do anything because nobody trusted anybody, and nobody worked together. You had Minsk 1, failed; Minsk 2, failed. Budapest memorandum, failed. So, you have to have some kind of degree of confidence and security.
VOA: One of the reasons why the negotiations in Istanbul broke down was that Russians demanded Ukraine’s demilitarization, a smaller army.
Kellogg: Yes. And this is an unacceptable demand. And you don’t walk into negotiating with unacceptable demands. But you have to have an ability, we call it an interlocutor. An interlocutor is somebody who can sit down and actually negotiate with both parties. It can be Trump, President Trump believes he can do it, but you also have to look at who else is out there. President [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan of Turkey, do you think he could do it? No, he’s not going to do it. [Chancellor Olaf] Scholz from Germany, you think he will do it? No, he is not going to do it. [President Emmanuel] Macron from France, he tried but hasn’t done it. Well, now they had a change in government in Britain. So that’s gone away. You know, I don’t know maybe [Klaus] Iohannis, [the president] of Romania. Maybe he could do it, but you have to have somebody that both sides could talk to.
President Trump is talking to both parties. And President Biden is not. Now the option is quite clear: If Ukraine doesn’t want to negotiate, fine, but then accept the fact that you can have enormous losses in your cities and accept the fact that you will have your children killed, accept the fact that you don’t have 130,000 dead, you will have 230,000–250,000. Demographically, what does that do to the country?
You have to accept the fact that maybe the threat will remain on Kyiv, you have to accept the fact that Kharkiv will have more damage or do you want to say this is time maybe we take a pause and figure out how to push the Russians out of there so that they don’t get territorial gain. And how do you have a long-term peace agreement?
Let’s use NATO as an example. NATO has already said they’re not going to support Ukraine going into NATO until the war is over. That’s the reality and that’s where you need somebody to stand as a negotiator and say no, this is where we want to go.
The size of this war is not appreciated in the West. That is the largest war in Europe since World War II, it is between the two largest countries in Europe. The losses have been horrific.
It is too great of a country, and I’ve been there. I have been to Izyum, I’ve been to Kharkiv and I’ve seen what Russians did to it. There’s no love for Russians. There’s a support for sovereignty. Figure out a way does not mean we say give up land.
VOA: The other reason why the negotiations in Istanbul broke down is because it became known what happened in Bucha. It means that if Ukraine allows Russia to continue occupying any of its lands, it condemns the people who live there. …
Kellogg: Who is saying to give up land?
VOA: Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance alluded to that.
Kellogg: J.D. Vance was just nominated as the vice president last night. Until that, he was just a senator, one of 100. Yeah, you can say a lot of things in the Senate. When you speak for an administration, things change.
ServiceNow president leaves after policy breach related to public sector boss hire
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
But the books look good, because of real AI
ServiceNow has parted ways with president and chief operating officer Chirantan “CJ” Desai after an internal investigation found he had violated company policy when hiring the former CIO of the US Army as the workflow vendor’s public sector boss.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/servicenow_q2_2024/
Black Boxes
date: 2024-07-25, from: Ed Summers blog, Inkdroid
One of the primary reasons I’ve resisted using machine learning models in my professional work is that they always appear to me in the guise of a black box.
A black box is a metaphor used to talk about some computational process which has known inputs and outputs, but whose internal workings are not known. It’s an idea that goes back to the beginnings of cybernetics and modern computing.
Computer professionals are trained to distinguish between the interpretability and explainability of machine learning models. But at the end of the day our ability to understand and adequately communicate how and why these models work are active areas of research.
Of course, our ability to understand is constrained because the details of some models are guarded as business secrets. But more and more we are seeing documentation efforts increase transparency about how “open source” models are built. We’ve seen significant efforts to regulate how they are used and by who. But it’s important to recognize that even these “Glass Boxes” don’t explain why some of the models work.
And that’s the glass half full version.
The glass half empty version is that we do understand how these models work, if you define “we” as someone, or some set of people, somewhere. The past isn’t evenly distributed too.
For a given model someone knows what software was used to build it–because someone installed it right? Someone made choices about what algorithms and data structures were used. Someone knows what data was used to train it because they collected it and fed it in. Someone knows what data was not fed in, and (maybe) how that biases the model. Someone knows how much money was spent training and using the model because the electricity bill got paid.
But these systems are very complex that these someones are almost certainly not the same people. They may not work in the same organizations. They may not be willing, or even able, to communicate these things to you, even if you could find them.
This is why Nick Seaver says that algorithmic systems are in fact culture, which require ethnographic methods to understand (Seaver, 2017).
I got my start as a professional programmer when the World Wide Web was being built in the mid-1990s. I didn’t have a computer science degree, but I was fortunate to be able to lean on the modest programming experience I got in high school (BASIC, Pascal and Fortran) to learn a new language Perl and apply it. I didn’t become a .com millionaire, but it helped pay the rent. I felt lucky, and in truth I was. I was already a participant in a network of privilege.
Perl had lots of features for working with text, which leant itself to be useful in web applications. It had an open source culture that encouraged the sharing of “modules” on CPAN that extended the language to do things like talk to databases, or work with specific data formats, or thousands of other things. I loved the attention to detail in the Camel Book about how the language was built and evolved. I knew that the real programmers had written the Perl interpreter in C. I didn’t really know C that well, but I knew other people did, and understood that (in theory) I could too. It was all a simple matter of programming, as they say.
But the reality was, I didn’t know the details of some of the open source Perl modules I installed and used. I trusted that the authors did. I didn’t know how some of the Perl language primitives were coded in C, but I learned from experience using them, while in conversation with other programmers, and knew that someone else somewhere did understand. I participated in the culture of programming in Perl.
The scary thing for me about generative AI is that I don’t have any meaningful trust relationships with the people who know parts of the answers to why/how it works. At a fundamental level I don’t know if it is even theoretically possible to know. Not only that, I have an active mistrust of some of the organizations that are trying to convince professionals that this is The New Way, because they stand to gain so much, while workers and consumers stand to gain so little, and the environment stands to lose so much more.
But, if I’m being generous, perhaps it appears that way because it’s not my culture?
It’s important to recognize that all of us experience some aspect of computing as a black box. Whether it is using a model from HuggingFace, an ATM, an app on our phone, or ChatGPT. I think the important question to ask is how do we participate in its the creation and use of this technology?
Can we open the black box? Can we open the other black boxes we find inside? Do we know other people who can? What do they say? What is the culture of this black box? Do I want to be a part of it? Why? Why not? What choices do I have? What about others?
I no longer program in Perl, but I still marvel at how Larry Wall practiced computing as a culture.
References
https://inkdroid.org/2024/07/25/blackbox/
Going for Gold … Times Three
date: 2024-07-25, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Isla Vista’s Neushul family rides a chlorine-scented wave all the way to the Olympics.
The post Going for Gold … Times Three appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/going-for-gold-times-three/
City confirms new outreach plan for substance abuse
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
City of Santa Clarita officials announced they will be taking a different approach toward informing parents about substance abuse this year in response to community feedback. After a sparsely attended […]
The post City confirms new outreach plan for substance abuse appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/city-confirms-new-outreach-plan-for-substance-abuse/
Things are going Z-shaped at Huawei: Chinese giant preps three-screen folding smartphone
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Reports hint they’ll be here by Christmas
Huawei has reportedly developed a tri-fold smartphone that can be formed into a Z-shape, and will mass produce the machine before the end of 2024.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/huawei_triple_screen_phone/
Biden speaks, with hope and wistfulness, of decision to leave race
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
washington — After three days of silence over his stunning decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race, U.S. President Joe Biden took to prime time television Tuesday to give Americans, and the world, an explanation in a speech that was at times hopeful, at times determined, and at times wistful.
Biden spoke of his five decades in public office, touted his presidential record of domestic and political achievements – but then called for energetic new leadership to face tomorrow’s challenges.
“I revere this office,” said Biden, his hands resting on the glossy, hulking Resolute Desk, the gold-brocade drapes of the Oval Office framing his sloping shoulders. “But I love my country more.”
“Nothing – nothing – can come in the way of saving our democracy,” he said. “That includes personal ambition. So, I decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation. It’s the best way to unite our nation. You know, there is a time and a place for long years of experience in public life. There’s also a time and a place for new voices. Fresh voices. Yes, younger voices. And that time and place is now.”
Biden also thanked Vice President Kamala Harris, who has taken to the campaign trail with his endorsement and enough delegate pledges to net the nomination. He described her as “experienced,” “tough,” and “capable” but added: “the choice is up to you.”
He did not name-check his Republican opponent in the race. But analysts say Biden’s stark warnings all point to one man.
“He talked about polarization,” said Jennifer Mercieca, a professor of communication and journalism at Texas A&M University. “He talked about violence and political violence. Those are all things that harken back to Donald Trump and his presidency. He talked about the threats facing the nation when he first took office, January 2021. And so that was certainly about Donald Trump. But yeah, this wasn’t a place for him to talk about Donald Trump. It wasn’t a place for him to give a campaign speech.”
Biden’s job now, he said, will focus on domestic challenges like civil rights and voter freedom, gun safety reforms, the quest to end cancer and Supreme Court reform. He also cited the various challenges the U.S. faces abroad, with wars raging in Gaza and Ukraine and China becoming more emboldened in the Indo-Pacific.
It’s those foreign fires, analysts say, that are likely to concern voters who were already worried about Biden’s future.
“That’s really the concern I think people will have, which is: How does a lame duck president deal with foreign policy crises?” said Thomas Schwartz, a history professor at Vanderbilt University.
That question may be answered as soon as Thursday, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the White House in what administration officials told reporters Wednesday is an attempt to stitch up the first phase of a longer cease-fire deal that will end the brutal nine-month conflict in Gaza.
In a sign that foreign leaders may be hedging their bets in this electric American election cycle, the Israeli leader is also holding two other meetings while in the U.S., with Harris and Trump.
But for the final act of this presidency, Joe Biden remains the protagonist on America’s biggest stage. The ending, analysts say, is a classic.
“What has stopped Joe Biden is the thing that has stopped every human being since the beginning of time, and that is, we age,” said Jim Kessler, executive vice president for policy at the policy and research firm Third Way. “And it got to the point where I feel he could do the job, but he couldn’t convince the American people that he could do the job.”
But this could also be a triumphant moment for the 81-year-old president, who was widely thanked by Democrats for making the decision to step aside.
”In some ways,” Kessler said, “he’s like an athlete that is going to make the Hall of Fame and is retiring and gets the cheers from the crowds, finally, for a long, 50-year, tremendous career.”
Biden clearly understood that this address would be a dramatic peak. So, he used his final words to break the fourth wall, with a message as old as America:
“The great thing about America,” he said, “is here, kings and dictators do not rule, the people do. History is in your hands. The power is in your hands. The idea of America lies in your hands.”
Kim Lewis contributed from Washington.
New York City nonprofit provides free swimming lessons to underserved communities
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
In an effort to prevent drownings and give kids a chance to learn how to play safely in water, Rising Tide Effect teaches youth how to swim in a pool as well as an ocean. June Hsu and Rendy Wicaksana report.
Surprise Yellowstone geyser eruption highlights little-known hazard at park
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
BILLINGS, Montana — A surprise eruption of steam in a Yellowstone National Park geyser basin that sent people scrambling for safety as basketball-sized rocks flew overhead has highlighted a little-known hazard that scientists hope to be able to predict someday.
The hydrothermal explosion on Tuesday in Biscuit Basin caused no injuries as dozens of people fled down the boardwalk before the wooden walkway was destroyed. The blast sent rocks, steam, water and dirt high into the air, according to a witness and a scientist who reviewed video footage of the event.
It came in a park teeming with geysers, hot springs and other hydrothermal features that attracts millions of tourists annually. Some, like the famous Old Faithful, erupt like clockwork and are well understood by the scientists who monitor the park’s seismic activity.
But the type of explosion that happened this week is less common and understood, and potentially more hazardous given that it occurs without warning.
“This drives home that even small events — and this one in the scheme of things was relatively small, if dramatic — can be really hazardous,” said Michael Poland, lead scientist at the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. “We’ve gotten pretty good at being able to understand the signs that a volcano is waking up and may erupt. We don’t have that knowledge base for hydrothermal systems like the one in Yellowstone.”
Monitoring system
Poland and other scientists are trying to change that with a fledgling monitoring system that was recently installed in another Yellowstone geyser basin. It measures seismic activity, deformations in the Earth’s surface and low-frequency acoustic energy that could signal an eruption.
The hydrothermal explosions are believed to result from clogged passageways in the extensive natural plumbing network under Yellowstone, Poland said. A clog could cause the heated, pressurized water to turn into steam instantly and explode.
Tuesday’s explosion came with little warning.
Witness Vlada March, who captured widely circulated video of the explosion, said steam started rising in the Biscuit Basin “and within seconds, it became this huge thing. … It just exploded and became like a black cloud that covered the sun.”
March’s tour guide, Isaac Fisher, told The Associated Press that he heard a hiss coming from Cliff Pool and told his group it was unusual. It looked like a geyser erupting 60 to 70 feet (18 to 21 meters) into the air for a few seconds and then, “Ba-boom!” he said.
“You felt the shock wave hit your chest and vibrate the bones in your chest,” he said. “The explosion was so significant, you felt your feet shaking. You felt the boardwalk shake and you felt everything shaking.”
He estimated the whole event lasted about 25 seconds as the debris plume climbed to about 100 meters (328 feet) into the air.
“I cannot believe nobody got hurt,” Fisher said. “There were rocks whizzing over our heads that were the size of basketballs.”
March’s mother, who was closest to the eruption, pulled her hoodie over her head and face and wasn’t injured, Fisher said.
Some of the rocks hurled into the air measured about a meter (3.3 feet) across, said Poland.
Slumbering volcano
Yellowstone encompasses the caldera of a huge, slumbering volcano that shows no sign of erupting anytime soon but provides the heat for the national park’s famous geysers, hot springs, mud pots and various other hydrothermal features. While far less common than geyser eruptions, hydrothermal explosions happen often enough in Yellowstone to be studied — and to be a safety concern.
Scientists don’t know if they’ll be able to devise a way to predict the blasts, Poland said.
For a geologist, seeing one in person is a payday. That’s what happened in 2009, when Montana Tech geology professor Mike Stickney and several other geologists were nearby when one happened close to the scene of Tuesday’s blast in the Biscuit Basin.
“It was very sudden and without any detectable warning, just standing on the boardwalk there. It was just was one ‘whoosh’ and it was done. No one saw it coming,” Stickney said.
Though it didn’t register on a sensitive seismometer at Old Faithful a couple miles (3.2 kilometers) away, he estimated the recent explosion was 10 times bigger.
In May, after scientists found a crater a few feet (1-2 meters) wide in the Norris Geyser Basin 18 miles (29 kilometers) north of Biscuit Basin, they consulted acoustic and seismic data from the basin’s new monitoring system and determined a hydrothermal explosion happened April 15, just a few days before roads opened for spring tourist season.
The data included no obvious precursors, however, that could potentially be used to develop a warning system.
Long-term study of where hydrothermal explosions and other ground disruptions can happen in Yellowstone is a focus of University of Wyoming geology professor Ken Sims, who has used ground-penetrating radar and other techniques to identify problem areas.
The information is critical to building roads and bridges in Yellowstone, he said.
“Whenever you build in a super active system like that, you have to pay attention to what’s going on,” Sims said.
A detection system takes time and money to develop, with monitoring stations that can cost roughly $30,000 each.
Yet even if explosions such as the recent one in Yellowstone could be predicted, there’s no feasible way to prevent them, said Poland.
“One of the things people ask me occasionally is, ‘How do you stop a volcano from erupting?’ You don’t. You get out of the way,” Poland said. “For any of this activity, you don’t want to be there when it happens.”
How a cheap barcode scanner helped fix CrowdStrike’d Windows PCs in a flash
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
This one weird trick saved countless hours and stress – no, really
Not long after Windows PCs and servers at the Australian limb of audit and tax advisory Grant Thornton started BSODing last Friday, senior systems engineer Rob Woltz remembered a small but important fact: When PCs boot, they consider barcode scanners no differently to keyboards.…
Wildfire smoke chokes parts of Canada and western US
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
LOS ANGELES — Fires burning in California, Oregon, Arizona, Washington and other western states, as well as Canada, have filled the skies in regions of the western U.S. with smoke and haze, forcing some affected areas to declare air quality alerts or advisories.
As of Wednesday morning, there were 79 large active wildfires across the country being managed that have burned 1,431,460 acres (579,292 hectares), according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
Evacuation orders are in effect for 15 fires in the Northwest, where fires continue to show active to extreme behavior. Communities near several fires in California, the Northern Rockies and the Great Basin are also under evacuation orders.
Where are the big fires?
Oregon has 31 large active fires that have burned 791,653 acres (320,371 hectares). The Durkee Fire, the largest active blaze in the U.S., was burning near the Oregon-Idaho border and was 0% contained as of Wednesday morning and had burned nearly 400 square miles (1,036 square kilometers). The Cow Valley, Falls and Lone Rock fires, the next largest, have collectively seared some 404,404 acres (163,657 hectares).
There are 12 active large wildfires in both California and Arizona. In the Golden State, the Lake Fire in Santa Barbara has scorched 38,664 acres (15,647 hectares) and was 90% contained; the 2024 SQF Lightning Complex in Tulare has burned 31,309 acres (12,670 hectares) and was 7% contained; and the Shelly Fire in Siskiyou County that’s charred 15,656 acres (6,336 hectares) was 62% contained. Hot, dry and windy conditions have increase fire activity in some areas, including the Hill Fire in northern California.
The Black Fire east of Phoenix is the largest in Arizona, followed by the Romero Fire west of Dudleyville.
The Pioneer Fire in Washington is the largest in the state at 30,667 acres (12,410.5 hectares). In Montana, the Deadman Fire in Rosebud County grew to 19,982 acres (8,086 hectares) and was 95% contained.
In Canada, there are about 430 active wildfires in British Columbia and 177 in neighboring Alberta, including two that led to the evacuation of up to 25,000 visitors and residents of Canadian Rockies’ largest national park.
Fuels and fire behavior advisories were in effect for California, Nevada, Southeast and Central Oregon, Southern Idaho and the Utah and Arizona Strip.
What areas are under air quality alerts?
Unhealthy air pollution from wildfires have triggered air quality alerts and advisories in regions of the western U.S.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued air quality alerts for the eastern counties of Harney, Malheur, Grant, Baker and Morrow until further notice. Unhealthy air was reported in cities of Bend and La Pine today and forecaster for tomorrow, with smoke expected to continue degrading air quality in La Pine after Thursday. Smoke from the Durkee Fire was choking the air in Boise, Idaho and beyond. An air quality warning was in effect for the entire region on Wednesday.
In Idaho, air quality advisories were sent out to the central counties of Ada, Canyon, Gem, Owyhee, Payette and Washington.
In north central Washington, the Colville Reservation, all of Chelan County, plus the Methow Valley down to Brewster in Okanogan County were under air quality alerts until further notice.
And in Canada, authorities issued an air quality advisory for Calgary, Alberta due to the wildfire smoke. The government agency called it high risk and said children and the elderly should avoid outdoor physical exertion.
How do I stay safe from wildfire smoke?
Wildfire smoke can cause unhealthy air quality in areas many miles away from fires. To stay safe, the South Coast Air Quality Management District recommends people start by learning about air quality conditions and forecasts in their area.
Those with an air conditioning system should change filters often, with high-efficiency filters labeled “MERV13” or higher being the most effective at removing smoke particles. Portable HEPA air purifiers also help.
To limit exposure to unhealthy air quality, people should stay indoors with windows and doors closed. Avoid heavy exertion outdoors, using fans or swamp coolers that take air from outside, all wood-burning appliances, and lighting candles and incense.
If you need to be outside in smoky conditions, a respirator mask such as an N-95 or P-100 can offer some protection.
Lastly, know your risks. Some people, such as children and those with heart or lung issues, can be more sensitive to moderate to unhealthy air quality.
https://www.voanews.com/a/wildfire-smoke-chokes-parts-of-canada-and-western-us/7712135.html
Mistral Large 2 leaps out as a leaner, meaner rival to GPT-4-class AI models
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
It’s not the size that matters, it’s how you use it
Mistral AI on Wednesday revealed a 123-billion-parameter large language model (LLM) called Mistral Large 2 (ML2) which, it claims, comes within spitting distance of the top models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/mistral_large_2/
Democrats poised to virtually nominate Harris and running mate by August 7
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
WASHINGTON — Democratic National Convention delegates can make Vice President Kamala Harris their presidential nominee — and even start approving her yet-to be-named running mate — in online voting beginning next week, as the party races to coalesce around a new top of its ticket heading into November.
The convention’s rules committee on Wednesday passed a proposal where delegates from around the country will be able to vote on potential presidential nominees to replace President Joe Biden, who abandoned his reelection bid last weekend.
But Harris is the only major Democrat to announce publicly that she’s seeking the nomination, meaning she’ll almost-certainly be approved in a single round of virtual balloting beginning August 1 — some 18 days before the party’s convention opens in Chicago.
Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison referenced the unprecedented shakeup in the presidential race left by Biden’s bowing out, telling a virtual meeting of the convention’s rulemaking arm, “In the darkness of night, we see our brightest stars.”
The plan was approved after more than 90 minutes of online discussion that featured little objection. The final vote to pass the full set of convention’s rules was 157-3.
They require Harris, and any other potential Democrat willing to challenge her, to submit 300 electronic signatures from convention delegates, not more than 50 of whom can be from the same state, by the evening of July 30.
If multiple candidates qualify, it could spark multiple rounds of voting over several days. But, if Harris is the only candidate, voting would begin August 1. Delegates voting “uncommitted,” or for another candidate who hasn’t qualified under the rules, will have their choices converted simply to “present.”
Delegates will receive ballots via secure email. The process will be designed not only to formally nominate Harris, but to eventually do the same for her vice presidential selection prior to August 7 — giving her a tight window to pick a running mate.
Who she might choose is unclear. Early favorites include Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, but potentially half a dozen other candidates are being considered.
Biden dropped out of the race last weekend and endorsed Harris, and hundreds of Democratic members of Congress and governors, as well as leading labor unions and activist organizations have since backed her to replace him. An Associated Press survey of delegates to the convention also revealed that the vice president has the support of well more than the 1,976 delegates she’ll need to win on a first ballot.
That doesn’t automatically make her the nominee, though, and the party is pushing ahead with the virtual voting process because it says it can’t wait until the convention starts to formally choose its nominee. It blames a deadline to appear on the Ohio ballot stating that candidates must be selected by August 7.
Ohio state lawmakers there have since changed that, but the modification doesn’t take effect until September 1 — and DNC attorneys warn that waiting until after the initial deadline to determine a presidential nominee could prompt legal challenges.
“Our party remains steadfast to an open, fair and transparent nominating process,” said Minyon Moore, chair of the Democratic convention. “We will do this right.”
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-25, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
NBA enters deal with Amazon, not accepting Warner Bros. Discovery's offer.
https://apnews.com/article/nba-tv-deal-tnt-855da6a644947d74ad3330c0470a7c94
Ocean Water Warning for July 24
date: 2024-07-25, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health cautions residents who are planning to visit the below Los Angeles County beaches to avoid swimming, surfing, and playing in ocean waters
https://scvnews.com/ocean-water-warning-for-july-24/
Missouri high court blocks release of man whose conviction was overturned
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
ST. LOUIS, missouri — The Missouri Supreme Court has blocked the immediate release of a man whose murder conviction was overturned — just as the man was about to walk free.
A St. Louis Circuit Court judge had ordered Christopher Dunn to be released by 6 p.m. CDT Wednesday and threatened the prison warden with contempt if Dunn remained imprisoned. But the attorney general has been fighting his release.
Corrections Department spokeswoman Karen Pojmann said Dunn was signing paperwork to be released when the Missouri Supreme Court issued a stay, blocking his freedom. His wife was en route to pick him up.
St. Louis Circuit Judge Jason Sengheiser’s decision to release Dunn came after he overturned Dunn’s murder conviction Monday, citing evidence of “actual innocence” in the 1990 killing. He ordered Dunn’s immediate release then, but Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey appealed, and the state Department of Corrections declined to release him.
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore filed a motion Wednesday urging the judge to immediately order Dunn’s freedom.
“The attorney general cannot unilaterally decide to ignore this court’s order,” Gore wrote.
A court filing said an attorney for the Department of Corrections told a lawyer in Gore’s office that Bailey advised the agency not to release Dunn until the appeal played out. When told it was improper to ignore a court order, the Department of Corrections attorney “responded that the attorney general’s office is legal counsel to the DOC and the DOC would be following the advice of counsel.”
On Wednesday, Sengheiser said the prison in Licking had until 6 p.m. CDT to release Dunn, or he would hold an order for the warden to be held in contempt of court.
“Barring a new court order that supersedes the current court order, Mr. Dunn will be released before 6 p.m.,” Missouri Corrections Department spokeswoman Karen Pojmann said in an email to The Associated Press, later texting that she expected him to be released in about an hour.
“It shouldn’t be this hard,” said Dunn’s attorney, Tricia Rojo Bushnell, the executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project.
‘Over the moon’
Dunn’s wife told the AP she couldn’t believe the news.
“I’m over the moon,” Kira Dunn said as she headed to the prison.
“We’re so grateful to the judge. We’re so grateful that he didn’t allow his ruling to be disrespected that way and he put his foot down and said, ‘You will respect the rule of law and you will respect a court order.’”
She said her husband looks forward to being freed after decades of longing to embrace his family for as long as he wants and having “a say in his own life.”
“He wants to just feel free ground against his feet. He wants to walk barefoot. He wants to open and close doors as he chooses. He wants to select the temperature of his shower. He wants to go out in the middle of the night and look at the stars and just sit there. And, he wants to sleep in a real bed,” she said.
Dunn’s situation is similar to what happened to Sandra Hemme.
The 64-year-old woman spent 43 years in prison for the fatal stabbing of a woman in St. Joseph in 1980. A judge on June 14 cited evidence of “actual innocence” and overturned her conviction. She had been the longest-held wrongly incarcerated woman known in the U.S., according to the National Innocence Project, which worked to free Hemme.
But appeals by Bailey — all the way up to the Missouri Supreme Court — kept Hemme imprisoned at the Chillicothe Correctional Center. During a court hearing Friday, Judge Ryan Horsman said that if Hemme wasn’t released within hours, Bailey himself would have to appear in court with contempt of court on the table. She was released later that day.
Judicial scolding
The judge also scolded Bailey’s office for calling the Chillicothe warden and telling prison officials not to release Hemme after he ordered her to be freed on her own recognizance.
Dunn was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1990 shooting of Ricco Rogers, 15. Gore’s office examined the case and filed a motion in February seeking to vacate the guilty verdict.
After weighing the case for nearly two months, Sengheiser issued a ruling that cited “a clear and convincing showing of ‘actual innocence’ that undermines the basis for Dunn’s convictions, because in light of new evidence, no juror, acting reasonably, would have voted to find Dunn guilty of these crimes beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Lawyers for Bailey’s office said at the hearing that initial testimony from two boys at the scene who identified Dunn as the shooter was correct, even though they recanted as adults.
A Missouri law adopted in 2021 lets prosecutors request hearings when they see evidence of a wrongful conviction. Although Bailey’s office is not required to oppose such efforts, he also did so at a hearing for Lamar Johnson, who spent 28 years in prison for murder. Another St. Louis judge ruled in February 2023 that Johnson was wrongfully convicted, and he was freed.
Another hearing begins August 21 for death row inmate Marcellus Williams. Bailey’s office is opposing the challenge to Williams’ conviction, too. Timing is of the essence: Williams is scheduled to be executed September 24.
St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell filed a motion in January to vacate the conviction of Williams for the fatal stabbing of Lisha Gayle in 1998. Bell’s motion said three experts determined that Williams’ DNA was not on the handle of the butcher knife used in the killing.
Steven Puro, professor emeritus of political science at St. Louis University, said Bailey is in a highly competitive race for the attorney general position, with the primary quickly approaching on August 6.
“Bailey is trying to show that he is ‘tough on crime,’ which is a very important Republican conservative position. Clearly, he’s angering members of the judicial system that he will have to argue before in the future. But he’s making the strategic notion that he needs to get his name before the voters and try to use that to win the primary election.”
‘Court has to be obeyed’
Michael Wolff, a former Missouri Supreme Court judge and chief justice, concurred with Puro’s observation, saying the handling of the case appears to be influenced by politics, also noting that the primary is quickly approaching.
“Does August 6 have anything to do with it?” he asked.
“If there’s a finding of actual innocence and there’s no case left, then that’s all,” Wolff said. “Then it seems to me that it’s just whatever he believes and whatever his political instincts tell him to do. But one of the things is that no matter what your beliefs are, if a court orders something to happen, it’s not your purview to say no. The court has to be obeyed.”
Netanyahu to US lawmakers: Demilitarized, deradicalized Gaza will bring peace
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a divided U.S. Congress on Wednesday, with many Democratic lawmakers boycotting his speech but Republicans saying it was key to reaffirming the U.S. commitment to its Middle Eastern ally. VOA Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson reports.
Steal the Heart
date: 2024-07-25, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
The event last Saturday at the Granada Theatre celebrating Andy Davis’s 1995 film Steal Big Steal Little was a celebration of the artful joy and humanity of filmmaking.
The post Steal the Heart appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/steal-the-heart/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-25, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Joe Biden calls for Supreme Court reform in Oval Office speech.
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/4791637-joe-biden-supreme-court-reform/
LIVE: NASA is with you from Oshkosh
date: 2024-07-25, from: NASA breaking news
Welcome to NASA Aeronautics’ live update page with news about NASA events and other festivities taking place throughout the week at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2024, which we simply call Oshkosh. Final Fact on Day 3 Wednesday, July 24 at 8:30 p.m. EDT Fun fact! During the week of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, the number of takeoffs, […]
https://www.nasa.gov/aeronautics/live-nasa-is-with-you-from-oshkosh/
Suspect arrested in Canyon Country shooting
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
By Katherine Quezada and Perry Smith Gang detectives with the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station made an arrest in an incident that stemmed from a man who called 911 to […]
The post Suspect arrested in Canyon Country shooting appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/suspect-arrested-in-canyon-country-shooting/
Practical woman shows her artistic side
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
Katrina Negrete is a very practical young woman. She’s always been practical. So, while she’s had a lifelong love for music and performance, she was never going to pursue the […]
The post Practical woman shows her artistic side appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/practical-woman-shows-her-artistic-side/
TMU baseball adds more local talent
date: 2024-07-25, from: The Signal
The Master’s University baseball is reloading with numerous talented Santa Clarita Valley players set to join the Mustangs for the 2025 season. There’ll likely be more signees before the season […]
The post TMU baseball adds more local talent appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/tmu-baseball-adds-more-local-talent/
The months and days before and after CrowdStrike’s fatal Friday
date: 2024-07-25, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
‘In the short term, they’re going to have to do a lot of groveling’
Analysis The great irony of the CrowdStrike fiasco is that a cybersecurity company caused the exact sort of massive global outage it was supposed to prevent. And it all started with an effort to make life more difficult for criminals and their malware, with an update to its endpoint detection and response tool Falcon.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/25/crowdstrike_timeline/
Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters converge on US Capitol
date: 2024-07-25, from: VOA News USA
As Benjamin Netanyahu addressed both houses of the U.S. Congress on Wednesday, thousands of people protested outside the Capitol, denouncing the Israeli prime minister for Israel’s war against Hamas. Robin Guess reports from Washington.
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-25, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Google Is the Only Search Engine That Works on Reddit Now Thanks to AI Deal.
https://www.404media.co/google-is-the-only-search-engine-that-works-on-reddit-now-thanks-to-ai-deal/
Los Angeles County Revamps 24/7 Help Line to Integrate Access to Mental Health & Substance Use Services
date: 2024-07-25, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The Los Angeles County Departments of Mental Health and Public Health have centralized access to mental health and substance use services into one 24/7 call center at (800) 854-
55 Years Ago: One Year Before the Moon Landing
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
In July 1968, much work still remained to meet the goal President John F. Kennedy set in May 1961, to land a man on the Moon and return him safely to the Earth before the end of the decade. No American astronaut had flown in space since the November 1966 flight of Gemini XII, the […]
https://www.nasa.gov/history/55-years-ago-one-year-before-the-moon-landing/
Biden, in Oval Office address, says it was time to ‘pass the torch’
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The LAist
President Biden will address the nation Wednesday evening at 5 p.m. PT for the first time since dropping out of the race for president and endorsing Vice President Harris.
Aug. 10: “Clear the Shelter Kick off Party” at Castaic Shelter Next Month
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
Adopt a Pet and help the Castaic Animal Shelter “Clear the Shelter” with their kick-off Party on Aug. 10.
https://scvnews.com/aug-10-clear-the-shelter-kick-off-party-at-castaic-shelter-next-month/
Golden Valley announces new head coaches
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
Golden Valley has announced new head coaches joining the Grizzly family for the 2024-25 school year. Megan Cooper will remain co-head coach of track and field after leading the program […]
The post Golden Valley announces new head coaches appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/golden-valley-announces-new-head-coaches/
Letters: Trump’s record | Pushed to GOP | Democrats unite | Parties’ rot | Project 2025
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Mercury News Letters to the Editor for July 25, 2024
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/07/24/letters-1807/
Condominium in San Jose sells for $1.2 million
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
The property located in the 5900 block of Golden Vista Drive in San Jose was sold on July 11, 2024.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/07/24/condominium-in-san-jose-sells-for-1-2-million-2/
Sheila Jackson Lee dies at 74; longtime Texas congresswoman was ‘a fierce champion of the people’
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
The Houston-area congresswoman, a Democrat, helped establish Juneteenth as a federal holiday and spoke out about police brutality.
25 Years Ago: STS-93, Launch of the Chandra X-Ray Observatory
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
On July 23, 1999, space shuttle Columbia took to the skies on its 26th trip into space, to deliver its heaviest payload ever – the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The STS-93 crew included Commander Eileen M. Collins, the first woman to command a space shuttle mission, Pilot Jeffrey S. Ashby, and Mission Specialists Catherine “Cady” G. […]
https://www.nasa.gov/history/25-years-ago-sts-93-launch-of-the-chandra-x-ray-observatory/
Where are the kids? Preschools in LA County struggle with enrollment post-pandemic
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The LAist
Private centers and state-funded preschools in L.A. County have reported nearly 28,000 empty slots.
Former Stanford star pitcher NiJaree Canady transferring to Texas Tech
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Canady helped Stanford reach the Women’s College World Series the past two seasons.
Public Health issues report on fentanyl deaths
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
Los Angeles County substance abuse experts reported encouraging data this week, indicating fentanyl-related deaths, which increased exponentially over a six-year span, might be approaching “a plateau,” according to an L.A. […]
The post Public Health issues report on fentanyl deaths appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/public-health-issues-report-on-fentanyl-deaths/
State Street Dilemma
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
COVID was lifted and State Street should be re-opened.
The post State Street Dilemma appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/state-street-dilemma/
Apple Maps on the Web Appears in Beta
date: 2024-07-24, from: TidBITS blog
We may soon get better sharing of Apple Maps location links with Windows users thanks to the beta of Maps on the Web.
https://tidbits.com/2024/07/24/apple-maps-on-the-web-appears-in-beta/
The UNIX Pipe Card Game
date: 2024-07-24, from: Tilde.news
https://punkx.org/unix-pipe-game/
Deputies: Man arrested after reports of broken car windows
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
Reports on Monday of a man breaking windows of several vehicles in Canyon Country led to the arrest of a 40-year-old Santa Clarita man on suspicion of vandalism, according to […]
The post Deputies: Man arrested after reports of broken car windows appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/deputies-man-arrested-after-reports-of-broken-car-windows/
North Korea seen unlikely to engage US after fall election, regardless of winner
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
washington — North Korea’s broadening ties with Russia make a possible re-engagement with the U.S. less appealing for Pyongyang despite an apparent overture from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, analysts said.
A delegation from the Russian prosecutor’s office wrapped up a three-day visit to Pyongyang and headed home Wednesday, North Korea’s state-run KCNA said.
Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov, the head of the delegation, and Kim Chol Won, director of North Korea’s Central Public Prosecutors Office, signed an agreement on Monday to cooperate on law enforcement countering foreign influence.
Krasnov said the two countries are “actively developing their comprehensive partnership” in “openly and successfully fighting off attempts to impose alien development models and values on us,” according to the Russian news agency Tass.
Krasnov said Moscow and Pyongyang seek to consolidate their efforts in countering “crimes in the area of information and communications technologies,” among other areas.
The ties between the two have been expanding rapidly in multiple areas since Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Pyongyang in June and signed a mutual defense treaty with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, promising closer military cooperation.
Russia-North Korea ties
“Kim Jong Un may see less need to engage with the U.S. than in 2018 because the regime is now getting economic and possibly military benefits from Russia,” said Bruce Klingner, senior research fellow for Northeast Asia at the Heritage Foundation.
North Korea said, “We do not care” that “any administration takes office in the U.S.” or that Trump has “lingering desire for the prospects of the DPRK-U.S. relations,” according to state-run KCNA on Tuesday.
The statement was released after Trump said last week in his presidential nomination acceptance speech at the Republic National Convention that he “got along very well with Kim” and thought Kim wanted him to win the presidential election in November.
During his term, Trump’s personal diplomacy with Kim resulted in their first 2018 summit in Singapore, a failed 2019 summit in Hanoi, and a last meeting at the inter-Korean border in 2019.
But that engagement came before Kim had Putin by his side, according to Andrew Yeo, the SK-Korea Foundation chair in Korea studies at the Brookings Institution. “There’s less incentive for Kim to engage with the U.S.” now that Russia and China are backing him, Yeo said.
“That said, Kim is an opportunist, so I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of Kim reaching out to Trump at some point if Trump is reelected,” Yeo added.
Little incentive for talks
In its KCNA statement, North Korea also said, “It is true that Trump, when he was president, tried to reflect the special personal relations between the heads of states in the relations between states, but he did not bring about any substantial positive change.”
Robert Manning, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center’s Reimagining U.S. Grand Strategy Program, said the KCNA statement “reflected that Kim felt humiliated when Trump walked out of the Hanoi summit rather than continuing negotiations, and the strategic choices Kim has made since 2019 — that he has abandoned long-standing North Korean interest in normalizing relations with the U.S.
“If Trump wins, he may be tempted to try to revive nuclear talks with Kim, but Pyongyang has taken denuclearization off the table. The political space for a more limited, credible U.S.-North Korea deal has shrunk immensely.”
Trump walked out of the summit in Hanoi, rejecting Kim’s offer to dismantle the Yongbyon nuclear facility in return for sanctions relief.
Nuclear talks between the U.S. and North Korea have remained stalled since 2019 despite the Biden administration’s call for Pyongyang to return to dialogue.
In the same KCNA statement that rebuffed Trump’s outreach, North Korea expressed its dissatisfaction with the deployment of U.S. FA-18 Super Hornets to the Suwon Air Force Base for joint drills with South Korea that began Tuesday and will run through this summer.
Washington’s continued call for dialogue in this context is a “sinister attempt” and “an extension of confrontation,” North Korea said.
The Heritage Foundation’s Klingner said North Korea’s message “hinted that the price for it reengaging with Washington would be the cancellation of bilateral military exercises, rotational deployment of U.S. strategic assets and reduction of the U.S. extended deterrence guarantee.
“If Washington capitulated to those demands, Pyongyang could seek to further divide the U.S.-ROK alliance and degrade deterrence by proposing a peace declaration or treaty which could then lead to advocacy for a premature decrease of U.S. troops in South Korea.”
Anthropic AI Scraper Hits iFixit’s Website a Million Times in a Day
date: 2024-07-24, from: 404 Media Group
“We’re just the largest database of repair information in the world, no big deal if they take it all without asking and swamp our servers in the process.”
https://www.404media.co/anthropic-ai-scraper-hits-ifixits-website-a-million-times-in-a-day/
Aug. 1: SCV Water’s Engineering and Operations Committee Meeting
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The Santa Clarita Valley Water Engineering and Operations Committee will hold a meeting Thursday, Aug 1, at 5:30 p.m., in the Engineering Services Section Boardroom, 26521 Summit Circle in Santa Clarita
https://scvnews.com/aug-1-scv-waters-engineering-and-operations-committee-meeting/
Blinken heads to Asia after Thursday’s meeting between Biden, Netanyahu
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
State Department — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will depart for Asia on Thursday to reaffirm ties with strategic allies, following his attendance at a highly anticipated White House meeting between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The secretary will now depart tomorrow for Asia, instead of tonight, as we had originally planned, so he can attend the meeting between the president and Prime Minister Netanyahu tomorrow here in Washington,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters during Wednesday’s briefing.
Washington said it is committed to allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific region, despite the Middle East crisis.
“This is the secretary’s 18th trip to the region,” Miller added. “He will still travel to Laos, to Vietnam, to Japan, to Singapore, to the Philippines and to Mongolia.”
Blinken will hold talks with senior officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Vientiane, Laos, before traveling to Hanoi, Vietnam. Although a schedule change will prevent him from attending the funeral of General Secretary Nguyen Phú Trong, the head of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party, he will still visit Vietnam to pay his respects and meet with senior officials.
In Tokyo and Manila, Blinken will join Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for 2+2 security talks with their counterparts.
Blinken will also travel to Singapore and Mongolia to hold talks with senior officials there.
Saugus school district considering facilities measure on November ballot
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
The Saugus Union School District announced Wednesday that it is considering placing a school facilities measure on the November ballot. The formal announcement is expected to take place at the […]
The post Saugus school district considering facilities measure on November ballot appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
San Jose Sharks re-sign RFA defenseman to two-year deal
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
NHL: Henry Thrun was a San Jose Sharks restricted free agent
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/07/24/san-jose-sharks-re-sign-rfa-defenseman-to-two-year-deal/
49ers training camp: It’s the same old Brock Purdy, and that’s a good thing
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
A look at who did what on the first day of training camp for the 49ers.
Paris Olympics: Former Cardinal Newman running back makes his mark for the U.S. rugby team
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
The opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics isn’t until Friday, but competitions began on Wednesday.
DMV to Host Community Hackathons to Facilitate Additional Uses for Mobile Driver’s License
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The California Department of Motor Vehicles invites businesses, public agencies and innovators to apply to join two community “hackathons” to promote additional uses for the California mobile Driver’s License
John Mayall dies at 90; British blues pioneer helped introduce the world to Eric Clapton, Mick Fleetwood and other musical superstars
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
His Bluesbreakers band included musicians who went on to play with such legendary groups as Cream, Fleetwood Mac, the Rolling Stones and Canned Heat.
San Jose police union asks DA to challenge judge after high-profile releases
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
A letter objects to the release of defendants charged with recent attacks on officers, including a viral sideshow vandalism of a patrol vehicle.
FBI: Would-be assassin was fixated on Trump, studied earlier high-profile killing
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
washington — The 20-year-old man who tried to kill former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally earlier this month appeared to have set his sights on the attempted assassination at least a week before the incident.
FBI Director Christopher Wray told lawmakers on Wednesday that while many questions remained unanswered, analysis of a laptop connected to Thomas Matthew Crooks showed the would-be assassin seemed to be fixated on high-profile public figures and searched for information on the 1963 killing of then-U.S. President John F. Kennedy by lone gunman Lee Harvey Oswald.
“On July 6, he did a Google search for – quote – ‘how far away was Oswald from Kennedy,’” Wray said.
“That’s obviously significant in terms of his state of mind,” Wray added. “That is the same day that he registered for the Butler rally.”
Seven days later, on July 13, Crooks climbed onto a roof overlooking the campaign rally in western Pennsylvania and fired at least eight shots from an AR-style assault rifle, leaving Trump with a bloody ear while killing a rallygoer and injuring two others.
Crooks, who was killed by a U.S. Secret Service sniper, also carried a remote detonator for two explosive devices left in his car, though the FBI director said the receivers had not been activated and likely would not have gone off had he tried to activate them.
“What else he had in mind is something that I think is very much an open question,” Wray told the House Judiciary Committee. “We’d love to have a road map that tells us exactly what he was thinking. We haven’t found that yet.”
What investigators have found, Wray said, is evidence that the shooter had developed a fascination with high-profile figures, using his mobile phone to get more information.
“The shooter appears to have done a lot of searches of public figures in general … news articles and things like that,” Wray said, adding that images of high-profile officials and politicians found on the shooter’s phone were linked to the articles.
“This does not appear to be some sort of target list,” he said. “There doesn’t seem to be a lot of rhyme or reason to it so far, other than that these are all prominent public people.”
By July 6, however, that fascination had morphed into a fixation.
“In the period around July 6, leading up to July 13, he does seem to have become very focused on this particular rally and former President Trump,” Wray said. “But exactly what his thought process was in doing that, that’s something that’s still very much under investigation.”
Other searches of the shooter’s mobile phone and electronic devices have so far not provided any additional insight into Crooks’ mindset.
Wray said the investigation had failed to turn up any evidence of a political ideology or a manifesto, nor have investigators come across any indication that the shooter had help or that he alerted anyone else to his plans.
“So far, we have not found any evidence of any accomplices or co-conspirators, foreign or domestic,” Wray said, adding the investigation appeared to confirm accounts that Crooks was a loner.
“His list of contacts, for example, is very short compared to what you would normally see from most people. It doesn’t appear to be a whole lot of interaction between him, face-to-face or digital, with a lot of people,” he said.
Still, Wray cautioned that the FBI had not been able to access all of the shooter’s social media accounts and that investigators might never get past some of the passwords and encryption.
U.S. lawmakers, both Republicans and Democrats, have repeatedly expressed outrage in the days since the shooting, leading to Tuesday’s resignation of the director of the U.S. Secret Service, the agency responsible for providing security to current and former presidents and their families.
The now former director, Kimberly Cheatle, drew additional ire from lawmakers the day before she resigned, repeatedly refusing to answer questions about the attempted assassination while calling the event the “most significant operational failure … in decades.”
The FBI’s Wray on Wednesday took a different tack, assuring lawmakers that the bureau would “leave no stone unturned” in its investigation, while committing to provide as much information as possible.
“We need to know what happened play by play, moment by moment, second by second,” said Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan.
“A significant portion of the country has a healthy skepticism regarding the FBI’s ability to conduct a fair, honest, open and transparent investigation,” the Republican lawmaker said, accusing the law enforcement agency of what he described as multiple failures over the past several years.
During the more than three hours of testimony, the FBI’s Wray confirmed reports that the shooter had flown a drone at the site of campaign rally about two hours before the event got underway.
He said the flight path took the drone over an area about 180 meters from the stage where Trump was to speak, and that it appeared the drone livestreamed video.
However, the camera appeared to have been pointing away from the podium.
“We think it would have shown him what would have been behind him [on the roof],” Wray said. “Like, it’s almost like giving him a rear-view mirror of the scene behind him.”
Wray also said investigators had determined the shooter visited the rally site at least three times.
The first visit, which came a week before the shooting, lasted 20 minutes. A second visit, which lasted 70 minutes, took place the morning of the shooting. And the final visit was the afternoon of the shooting, when Crooks arrived and waited to carry out the attempted assassination.
Yet for all that investigators think they know after digging into the shooter’s social media and communications, and after more than 400 interviews, Wray said there were other questions that had yet to be answered.
One of those questions is how Crooks got up on the roof of the building overlooking the rally.
Investigators found a receipt showing he had bought a 1.5-meter ladder, but that it was never brought to the scene of the shooting.
Wray said there was also still confusion about whether the shooter had placed the rifle on the roof before the shooting or had carried it up with him right before he started firing.
“The weapon had a collapsible stock, which might explain why it was less easy to observe,” Wray said, noting that the first sighting by law enforcement officers of the shooter actually holding the gun came just seconds before the first shots rang out.
https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-shooter-searched-for-info-on-a-previous-assassination/7711611.html
Representing Santa Barbara and Team U.S.A.
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Olympic athletes have local ties in beach and indoor volleyball, water polo, and soccer competitions.
The post Representing Santa Barbara and Team U.S.A. appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/representing-santa-barbara-and-team-u-s-a/
An unwelcome attendee has joined the Paris Olympic Games: COVID-19
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
After a handful of Australian water polo players tested positive for COVID-19 this week, questions have emerged around how the spread of the disease will be mitigated at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
AMD stalls Ryzen 9000 launch after chips fall short of quality controls
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
QA? In 2024? In this economy? How quaint!
AMD has delayed the launch of its Ryzen 9000 desktop processors after discovering that production units initially shipped to channel partners weren’t up to snuff.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/amds_ryzen_9000_launch_delayed/
UPDATE: NASA, Boeing to Stream Flight Test Mission Briefing on NASA+
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
NASA and Boeing will host a news conference with mission leadership at 11:30 a.m. EDT Thursday, July 25, to provide the latest status of the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test aboard the International Space Station. NASA previously planned an audio-only media teleconference to host the discussion. The agency will provide live coverage on NASA+, NASA […]
https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/update-nasa-boeing-to-stream-flight-test-mission-briefing-on-nasa/
Saugus Union School District to Put Facility Measure on November Ballot
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
In an effort to maintain transparency with the entire Saugus Union School District community, SUSD is announcing that the Governing Board of the Saugus Union School District will consider placing a school facility measure onto the Nov. 5, 2024 ballot
https://scvnews.com/saugus-union-school-district-to-put-facility-measure-on-november-ballot/
Illumination Through Art
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Holly Harmon shines a light on Santa Barbara’s cultural history for Fiesta.
The post Illumination Through Art appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/illumination-through-art/
This 13-Year-Old Stumbled Upon a Roman-Era Ring While Hiking in Israel
date: 2024-07-24, from: Smithsonian Magazine
The small artifact, discovered near an ancient farmstead, features an engraving of the goddess Minerva
No Carnival, Fewer Charros, but Still Plenty of Punch at Fiesta
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Higher costs and safety concerns forced changes in the 100-year celebration.
The post No Carnival, Fewer Charros, but Still Plenty of Punch at Fiesta appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
Harris was never ‘border czar,’ experts say, despite Republican claims
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
washington — After President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him as the Democratic nominee, Republicans quickly focused on Harris and her work on immigration issues, calling her a “border czar.”
Congressman Guy Reschenthaler, a Republican from Pennsylvania, said at a House Rules Committee hearing Tuesday that Biden appointed Harris as the border czar 64 days into his administration. The hearing focused on an emergency resolution addressing the “failures of the border czar position and its negative impact on our fellow citizens across the country.”
“With Harris at the helm, the Biden-Harris administration made good on their promise to systematically dismantle President [Donald] Trump’s secure border [policies],” Reschenthaler said.
But was Harris appointed as border czar?
Immigration experts say no.
Theresa Cardinal Brown, senior adviser on immigration and border policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, said that early in the Biden administration, Harris was assigned the task of reducing migration to the U.S. southern border and collaborating with Central American nations to address the root causes of migration through diplomacy, development and investment.
“She was never named a border czar. In fact, the border was not her priority issue at all. The border was the responsibility of Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. She was never in charge of the border per se,” Brown said.
Brown said “czar” is not a recognized term under the U.S. legal system.
“But it has been adopted into American political discourse as, I’d say, a shorthand title for somebody who is given within a White House administration – within the executive branch – broad responsibility and authority to direct the administration across different Cabinet departments on a particular issue or policy,” Brown said.
Border politics
During the pandemic, the Trump administration virtually closed the border to migration, as officials implemented a health order that allowed for the rapid expulsion of migrants, effectively turning away most migrants without giving them a chance to seek asylum.
When President Biden took office in January 2021, expulsions continued, except for unaccompanied minors. Both Biden and Harris openly urged migrants not to come, but they did, presenting a political crisis for Biden at the beginning of his administration.
Biden soon asked Harris to spearhead a “root causes” strategy, banking heavily on using American investments to improve living conditions and discourage migrants from leaving three Central American nations where a significant number of migrants come from: Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.
The Biden administration also reunited families separated under the Trump administration and expanded legal immigration pathways, including increasing refugee admissions and creating a humanitarian program for migrants from Central America, Venezuela and Haiti.
Although it is not known what Harris’ immigration policy will look like, immigration attorney Hector Quiroga said he thinks Harris will continue Biden’s policies, but he noted that Harris’ immigration message has changed.
“Her record is rather interesting because in the beginning, she was very much in the diplomatic kind of way. … With experience [in the vice president office], she has said, ‘Please don’t come’ to migrants,” he said, referring to Harris’ evolution to a stricter tone and tougher message.
Quiroga is referring to Harris’ 2021 trip to Guatemala to meet with former Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and address the root causes of illegal migration. During her visit, she emphasized the Biden administration’s commitment to helping Guatemalans find “hope at home.”
And she issued a stern warning to potential migrants.
“I want to be clear to folks in this region who are thinking about making that dangerous trek to the United States-Mexico border,” Harris said. “Do not come. Do not come.”
The Biden administration has been highlighting progress at the border, noting that arrests for illegal crossings from Mexico dropped by 29% in June, marking the lowest number during Joe Biden’s presidency.
Princess Cruises Reveals Epic 2026 Alaska Season
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
Princess Cruises, the leading cruise line in Alaska, today unveiled its biggest-ever Alaska season for 2026, highlighted by the debut of the newest ship in its fleet, Star Princess
https://scvnews.com/princess-cruises-reveals-epic-2026-alaska-season/
CrowdStrike blames quality control bug for global Windows outage
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
By Bill Pan Contributing Writer CrowdStrike, the cybersecurity company at the center of massive global IT outages, blamed the meltdown on a bug in quality control software that allowed bad data […]
The post CrowdStrike blames quality control bug for global Windows outage appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/crowdstrike-blames-quality-control-bug-for-global-windows-outage/
Santa Barbara Funds $250K to Legal Aid for Tenants Facing Evictions
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
City Council unanimously supports a proposal to provide legal services for low-income tenants.
The post Santa Barbara Funds $250K to Legal Aid for Tenants Facing Evictions appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
How to Watch the Southern Delta Aquariids Meteor Shower
date: 2024-07-24, from: Smithsonian Magazine
Though not as prolific as the Perseids, this annual spectacle is ‘scientifically interesting’ because its comet of origin remains a mystery
In address to Congress, Netanyahu urges US, Israel to ‘stand together’ amid ongoing war
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
By Ryan Morgan Contributing Writer Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for U.S. support amid his country’s ongoing war with terror group Hamas in an address to a joint session of […]
The post In address to Congress, Netanyahu urges US, Israel to ‘stand together’ amid ongoing war appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
Downtown Santa Barbara’s Commercial Cognoscenti Want More Than Pretty Pictures
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
State Street business and property owners, real estate brokers, and bankers share their thoughts and concerns on the near and distant future of the city’s main drag.
The post Downtown Santa Barbara’s Commercial Cognoscenti Want More Than Pretty Pictures appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
Oops. Apple relied on bad code while flaming Google Chrome’s Topics ad tech
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Yes, you can be fingerprinted and tracked via Privacy Sandbox – tho the risk isn’t as high as feared
Apple last week celebrated a slew of privacy changes coming to its Safari browser and took the time to bash rival Google for its Topics system that serves online ads based on your Chrome history.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/apple_google_topics/
Garcia issues statement on Netanyahu’s address to Congress
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
News release Rep. Mike Garcia. R-Santa Clarita, released a statement in support of Israel in its war against Hamas after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s joint address to Congress on […]
The post Garcia issues statement on Netanyahu’s address to Congress appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/garcia-issues-statement-on-netanyahus-address-to-congress/
Why the “Open Convention” proposal only appeals to Op-Ed columnists.
date: 2024-07-24, from: Dave Karpf’s blog
Political campaigns are supposed to tell a coherent story. Nominee-by-acclamation is Good, Actually.
https://davekarpf.substack.com/p/why-the-open-convention-proposal
Art and Design Come Together
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Karen Lehrer’s exhibition at Santa Barbara Interiors spotlights art you can live with.
The post Art and Design Come Together appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/art-and-design-come-together/
The Upside of Tesla’s Decline
date: 2024-07-24, from: Heatmap News
Tesla, formerly the golden boy of electric vehicle manufacturers, has hit the skids. After nearly continuous sales growth for a decade, in May sales were down 15% year-on-year — the fourth consecutive month of decline. Profits were down fully 45% in the second quarter thanks to soft sales and price cuts. The only new model the company has produced in five years, the Cybertruck, has gotten weak reviews and been plagued with problems.
Electrifying transportation is a vital part of combating climate change, and for years Tesla benefited from the argument that as the pioneering American EV company, it was doing great work on the climate.
Declining sales aren’t good for Tesla CEO Elon Musk or the company’s shareholders. But the fact that other companies are taking up the slack — now accounting for a majority of EV sales — is good for the EV market as a whole. Here’s why.
First, from a traditional business standpoint, it is good to have several competitors in a market. This is how capitalism is supposed to work — for any particular good or service, a number of different businesses should be constantly fighting each other for profits by improving their products on price and quality (within the bounds of government regulations on safety, efficiency, and so on). When there is sustained competition, old, established companies have to keep researching and innovating, lest they lose market share to someone else.
We have seen this in the automobile space many times before, as when General Motors improved on Ford’s assembly line to come out with regular new models in the 1920s, or when upstart Japanese companies caught the incumbent American players flatfooted in the 1970s and 80s with small, reliable cars at a lower price. Modern cars are dramatically safer, cleaner, more reliable, and more efficient thanks in large part to this history of competition.
Second, Tesla’s peculiar history makes it a poor foundation for the EV industry. The company comes out of California’s Big Tech culture, with its ideology of “move fast and break things” and deep disdain for prior experience. The result, as auto journalist Edward Neidermeyer explains in his book Ludicrous: The Unvarnished Story of Tesla Motors, is an unusually shoddy and dangerous manufacturing culture. Tesla’s factories are notorious for poor working conditions and regular injuries, and its cars are infamous for inconsistent panel gaps, structural failures, and of course Autopilot accidents.
We can see these two factors at work in the growing number of superior options available from other EV companies. Tesla’s habit of putting as many controls as possible into a massive central screen seemed fancy at first, but drivers are starting to remember that physical buttons are both more reliable and easier to use while driving. In the economy segment, Hyundai’s Kona EV or Chevy’s Bolt EUV both have dead simple rocker switches for adjusting the temperature — no touchscreen menu fiddling required. Indeed, Tesla has even replaced such a bog standard control as the turn signal stalk with capacitive buttons in the most recent Model 3 and Model S, which is straight-up dangerous.
Even in the upmarket segments Tesla is falling behind. The new GM Silverado EV is far more of a real utility vehicle than the Cybertruck — in particular, it can actually tow serious distances. Unlike Tesla, Kia and Rivian now have three-row vehicles for big families with the EV9 and Rivian R1S. For enthusiasts, Tesla’s top-shelf Model S Plaid is very fast in a straight line, but Hyundai’s new Ioniq 5 N both handles far better and comes with a (faintly comical, yet fun) manual transmission simulation system. This is what happens when serious companies cater to as many market segments as possible.
Then there is the fact that Musk seems to have turned against Tesla’s Supercharger network, which is legitimately the best in the business. That fact, along with some government subsidies and requirements, is why every other EV company has settled on the Tesla charging plug as the North American standard. But Musk recently fired almost the entire Supercharger team apparently in a fit of pique, and though he hired some of them back, the system’s future is in doubt. Relying on Tesla to build out a proper national charging network is unwise.
Finally, there is Elon Musk himself. Last year, I argued that Tesla could evolve into a normal car company if it could just be run by somebody other than him — like, for instance, then-Chief Financial Officer Zach Kirkhorn, who seemed to be running things at the time. Unfortunately, Kirkhorn is out, and Musk has since taken back control. His pet project Cybertruck looks to be a flop, and he’s reportedly canceled the $25,000 model that was supposed to be the end goal of Tesla’s entire business plan (though Musk denies this). Instead he is pivoting back to robotaxis — which, if year after year of broken promises and misleading promotions are any judge — is not going to happen.
More importantly, Musk has harnessed his vast fortune—which is mostly Tesla stock—on behalf of Donald Trump. Musk promised to donate $45 million per month for the rest of the presidential campaign (though he later walked back that specific figure). A second Trump presidency will probably not end the EV transition—all the world’s big automakers have bet heavily on it—but it might dramatically slow it down in this country. Trump has promised to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, which would end the $7,500 tax credit for EV purchases, not to mention the hundreds of billions in other subsidies for renewable power, utility-scale batteries, and much more. This would be a catastrophe for the climate and the American economy, which will lose out on the industries of the future to China and Europe.
Indeed, it could be that Musk sees his company can’t compete with the traditional manufacturers on quality or price, and so is hoping to strangle their EV divisions by cutting off their subsidies before they’ve reached profitability, so that Tesla remains the only big player in a much smaller market.
In doing so, he might hamstring all kinds of forthcoming EV innovations — from more energy-dense solid-state batteries, to hyper-efficient new models, to using one’s car as a virtual power plant, to who knows what else. (Although to be fair Chinese companies will surely figure these out sooner or later, even if Americans can’t buy them.)
Whatever the case, the fact that every new Tesla purchase or lease is now effectively an in-kind donation to the Trump campaign blows up any claim Musk has to be doing good on climate change, and makes buying one grossly irresponsible for the climate. The quicker this company loses its ludicrously overvalued stock price, the better.
https://heatmap.news/electric-vehicles/tesla-results-competition
Firefighters tackle house fire in Castaic
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
Firefighters responded to a two-story house fire on North Medford Place in Castaic on Wednesday afternoon, according to the L.A. County Fire Department. “We were dispatched at approximately 12:47 p.m.,” […]
The post Firefighters tackle house fire in Castaic appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/firefighters-tackle-house-fire-in-castaic/
Steve Jobs: Objects of Our Life
date: 2024-07-24, from: Michael Tsai
Jony Ive (Hacker News): Steve rarely attended design conferences. This was 1983, before the launch of the Mac, and still relatively early days of Apple. I find it breathtaking how profound his understanding was of the dramatic changes that were about to happen as the computer became broadly accessible. Of course, beyond just being prophetic, […]
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/07/24/steve-jobs-objects-of-our-life/
Safari Profiles and Extension Permissions Madness
date: 2024-07-24, from: Michael Tsai
Jeff Johnson: I’ve discovered a bug that unexpectedly causes Safari extensions in a profile to lose access to websites. I’ve reproduced the bug in Safari 17.5 on macOS 14.5 and in the Safari 18 beta on the macOS 15 beta. I haven’t yet been able to reproduce on iOS, but correspondence with a customer—the origin […]
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/07/24/safari-profiles-and-extension-permissions-madness/
Man who attacked author Salman Rushdie charged with supporting terrorist group
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
Buffalo, New York — A man who severely injured author Salman Rushdie in a frenzied knife attack in western New York faces new terrorism charges.
A three-count indictment unsealed in U.S. District Court in Buffalo on Wednesday charges Hadi Matar with attempting to provide material support to Hezbollah, a militant group based in Lebanon and backed by Iran. The indictment didn’t detail what evidence linked Matar to the group. It also includes charges of committing terrorism transcending national boundaries and providing material support to terrorists.
The federal charges come after Matar earlier this month rejected an offer by state prosecutors to recommend a shorter prison sentence if he agreed to plead guilty in Chautauqua County Court, where he is charged with attempted murder and assault. The agreement also would have required him to plead guilty to a federal terrorism-related charge, which hadn’t been filed yet at the time.
Instead, both cases will now proceed to trial separately. Jury selection in the state case is set for Oct. 15.
Matar was scheduled to appear on the new indictment Wednesday afternoon.
“Mr. Matar plans on denying the accusations in the indictment,” his attorney, Nathaniel Barone, said by phone. “He plans on proceeding with a vigorous defense and maintain his innocence.”
Matar, 26, has been held without bail since the 2022 attack, during which he stabbed Rushdie more than a dozen times as the acclaimed writer was onstage about to give a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution. Knife wounds blinded Rushdie in one eye. The event moderator, Henry Reese, was also wounded.
Rushdie detailed the attack and his long and painful recovery in a memoir published in April.
The author spent years in hiding after the Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa, or edict, in 1989 calling for Rushdie’s death over his novel “The Satanic Verses.” Khomeini considered the book blasphemous. Rushdie reemerged into the public the late 1990s.
Matar was born in the U.S. but holds dual citizenship in Lebanon, where his parents were born. He lived in New Jersey prior to the attack. His mother has said that her son became withdrawn and moody after he visited his father in Lebanon in 2018.
The attack raised questions about whether Rushdie had gotten proper security protection, given that he is still the subject of death threats. A state police trooper and county sheriff’s deputy had been assigned to the lecture. In 1991, a Japanese translator of “The Satanic Verses” was stabbed to death. An Italian translator survived a knife attack the same year. In 1993, the book’s Norwegian publisher was shot three times but survived.
The investigation into Rushdie’s stabbing focused partly on whether Matar had been acting alone or in concert with militant or religious groups.
SwiftUI at WWDC24
date: 2024-07-24, from: Michael Tsai
What’s new in SwiftUI: Learn how you can use SwiftUI to build great apps for any Apple platform. Explore a fresh new look and feel for tabs and documents on iPadOS. Improve your window management with new windowing APIs, and gain more control over immersive spaces and volumes in your visionOS apps. We’ll also take […]
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/07/24/swiftui-at-wwdc24/
Psychosis, Birth Control Pills, and an ‘Oblivious’ Father
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Cora Vides’s attorneys lay out their insanity defense in her attempted murder trial.
The post Psychosis, Birth Control Pills, and an ‘Oblivious’ Father appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/psychosis-birth-control-pills-and-an-oblivious-father/
The Future is Bright: Johnson Space Center Interns Shine Throughout Summer Term
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
More than 100 interns supported operations at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston this summer, each making an important impact on the agency’s mission success. Get to know seven stellar interns nominated by their mentors for their hard work and outstanding contributions. Stella Alcorn Assignment: Engineering Directorate, Guidance, Navigation, and Control Autonomous Flight Systems Branch, […]
Elon Musk Wants to Shoot More Rockets over Santa Barbara
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Space Force tells Coastal Commission it has no say.
The post Elon Musk Wants to Shoot More Rockets over Santa Barbara appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/elon-musk-wants-to-shoot-more-rockets-over-santa-barbara/
Get Tickets Now for Taste of the Santa Ynez Valley
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
This annual slate of food and drink events tends to sell out far in advance; this year features a “Sideways” celebration.
The post Get Tickets Now for Taste of the Santa Ynez Valley appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/24/get-tickets-now-for-taste-of-the-santa-ynez-valley/
The Marshall Star for July 24, 2024
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
25 Years On, Chandra Highlights Legacy of NASA Engineering Ingenuity By Rick Smith “The art of aerospace engineering is a matter of seeing around corners,” said NASA thermal analyst Jodi Turk. In the case of NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, marking its 25th anniversary in space this year, some of those corners proved to be as far […]
https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/marshall/the-marshall-star-for-july-24-2024/
Apple sends warnings to iPhone users over spyware attacks
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
By Jack Phillips Contributing Writer Apple is warning iPhone users of possible “mercenary spyware attacks” via its text message-based threat notification system, according to an antivirus software company, messages posted online […]
The post Apple sends warnings to iPhone users over spyware attacks appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/apple-sends-warnings-to-iphone-users-over-spyware-attacks/
Musk says he was tricked into allowing his son to receive puberty blockers
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
By Aldgra Fredly Contributing Writer Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said that he was “tricked” into giving consent for his son to be given puberty-suppressing hormones, which ultimately led to […]
The post Musk says he was tricked into allowing his son to receive puberty blockers appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
You can contribute to KDE with non-C++ code
date: 2024-07-24, from: OS News
Not everything made by KDE uses C++. This is probably obvious to some people, but it’s worth mentioning nevertheless. And I don’t mean this as just “well duh, KDE uses QtQuick which is written with C++ and QML”. I also don’t mean this as “well duh, Qt has a lot of bindings to other languages”. I mean explicitly “KDE has tools written primarily in certain languages and specialized formats”. ↫ Thiago Sueto If you ever wanted to contribute to KDE but weren’t sure if your preferred programming language or tools were relevant, this is a great blog post detailing how you can contribute if you are familiar with any of the following: Python, Ruby, Perl, Containerfile/Docker/Podman, HTML/SCSS/JavaScript, Web Assembly, Flatpak/Snap, CMake, Java, and Rust. A complex, large project like KDE needs people with a wide variety of skills, so it’s definitely not just C++. An excellent place to start.
https://www.osnews.com/story/140316/you-can-contribute-to-kde-with-non-c-code/
July 24: Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Operation
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department will conduct a traffic safety operation on, July 24 from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. focused on the most dangerous driver behaviors that put the safety of people biking or walking at risk.
https://scvnews.com/july-24-bicycle-and-pedestrian-safety-operation/
Equipping the Japan-U.S. Alliance to Handle China’s Disinformation Operations
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: RAND blog
China’s disinformation is dangerous. Just as the Japan-U.S. alliance has strengthened to enable a more robust deterrence against possible kinetic action, so too should the allies consider ways to strengthen their collective ability to respond to disinformation operations.
🤐🕵️ Silent Evidence
date: 2024-07-24, from: Interesting, a blog on writing
Avoiding incorrect assumptions based on limited evidence.
https://inneresting.substack.com/p/silent-evidence
Microsoft wants fatter pipes between its AI datacenters, asks Lumen to make light work of it
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Is this what the kidz call a glow-up?
Microsoft has tasked network operator Lumen Technologies — formerly CenturyLink — with scaling up its network capacity as the Windows giant looks to grow its burgeoning AI services business, the duo revealed Wednesday.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/microsoft_ai_dc_lumen/
Is Venice’s Controversial Entry Fee Working?
date: 2024-07-24, from: Smithsonian Magazine
Officials introduced the day-tripper fee to fight overtourism in the historic city, but critics aren’t convinced it’s helping
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/is-venices-controversial-entry-fee-working-180984758/
SCV Chamber Announces Honorees For Second Annual Black Business Month Celebration
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce today announced the honorees for its second Annual Black Business Month Celebration, taking place at California Institute of the Arts on Wednesday, Aug. 7 at 5:30 p.m
In photos: Protests as Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu addresses US Congress
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
Shows
date: 2024-07-24, from: Chris Coyier blog
Over the last few months I watched… They were all kinda dark. I’m starting the Bear Season 3 now and we’ll see if I can take it. I might need something a little funnier or lighter or something for a while.
https://chriscoyier.net/2024/07/24/shows/
Chimpanzees Take Turns in Fast-Paced Conversations, Just Like Humans Do
date: 2024-07-24, from: Smithsonian Magazine
A new study finds the average chimpanzee response time in gestured conversations is 120 milliseconds, which isn’t that far from the human average of 200 milliseconds
Why the Vineyard Wind Blade Broke
date: 2024-07-24, from: Heatmap News
The blade that snapped off an offshore turbine at the Vineyard Wind project in Massachusetts on July 13 broke due to a manufacturing defect, according to GE Vernova, the turbine maker and installer.
During GE’s second quarter earnings call on Wednesday, CEO Scott Strazik and Vice President of Investor Relations Michael Lapides said there was no indication of a design flaw in the blade. Rather, the company has identified a “material deviation” at one of its factories in Gaspé, Canada.
“Because of that, we’re going to use our existing data and re-inspect all of the blades that we have made for offshore wind,” Strazik told investors, adding that the factory has produced about 150 blades total.
Company executives shared more details about their findings at a public meeting in Nantucket on Wednesday night. Roger Martella, GE Vernova’s chief sustainability officer, said there were two issues at play. The first was the manufacturing issue — basically, the adhesives applied to the blade to hold it together did not do their job. The second was quality control. “The inspection that should have caught this did not,” he said. “So it’s a combination of the two factors.”
Two dozen turbines have been installed as part of the Vineyard Wind project so far, with 72 blades total. GE Vernova has not responded to requests for clarification about how many of them originated at the Gaspé facility.
The re-inspection process does not involve physically inspecting each blade, Martella explained. The company takes “incredibly detailed ultrasound pictures” of every blade it produces, he said, and will be reviewing the images as “a desktop exercise.” He likened the process to getting a second, more detailed opinion from a doctor on an MRI. When asked why the company did not catch the defect the first time these scans were inspected, Martella said answering that is part of the ongoing investigation. In the meantime, blade production at the factory is on pause.
GE also stressed that the incident at Vineyard Wind was unrelated to a blade failure at the Dogger Bank wind farm in the U.K. earlier this year, which was due to an installation error. Installation has resumed at Dogger Bank.
Tensions were high at Wednesday night’s meeting, where Nantucket residents again lined up to lambast Vineyard Wind. Select Board chair Brooke Mohr opened the meeting by saying that the incident has shown the inadequacy of the Good Neighbor Agreement, a settlement between the town and Vineyard Wind reached in 2020. Under the agreement, the company would contribute $4 million to a community fund and take steps to minimize visual impacts of the wind farm. In return, the town would “convey support” for the project to the community and to state and federal officials. Mohr said the town now intends to renegotiate these terms. “The Select Board is committed to holding vineyard wind and GE, the manufacturer of the turbine blades, accountable,” she said.
Town representatives are going to meet with Vineyard Wind next week to negotiate compensation for the costs it has incurred as a result of the accident.
Meanwhile, on the ground and in the water around Nantucket, crews from Vineyard Wind and GE continued to collect blade debris on Wednesday morning, for the ninth day straight. An initial environmental assessment of the blade debris published late Tuesday night began to answer key questions about the risks all that debris poses to people and marine life.
The report was commissioned by GE and conducted by Arcadis US, an engineering and environmental consultancy. It asserts that the primary risk to people is injury from the sharp edges of fiberglass fragments and that the debris “are considered inert, non-soluble, stable, and nontoxic.”
It also cautions, however, that further evaluation will be required to understand the risks posed by any blade materials that remain in the environment, such as assessing the potential for degradation. At the meeting in Nantucket on Wednesday night, one resident asked whether they should be worried about eating fish or shellfish that may have ingested pieces of the blade. Jim Nuss, one of the authors of the Arcadis report, said the firm had “not considered that yet,” and that it would be “one of the future looking activities.”
One particularly concerning question has been whether the debris could discharge dangerous per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS or “forever chemicals,” into the environment. Though there are no PFAS used in the blade construction itself, the firm did identify the chemicals in “aerodynamic add-ons,” small 6 inch by 8 inch pieces of plastic that are installed on the outside of the blade to improve its efficiency that are also commonly used on airplanes, it said.
According to the report, the total amount of PFAS on one blade equals 28.2 grams, or about 0.06 pounds. To put that in perspective, the chemical company Daikin once estimated it would release roughly 200 pounds of PFAS per day into the wastewater at one of its paper mills, according to federal filings obtained by the Environmental Defense Fund in 2018. It’s not yet clear how many of those plastic “add-ons” made it into the ocean.
A comprehensive list of all materials that make up the blades shows that more than half, by weight, is fiberglass. The other key ingredients include carbon fiber and PET foam, a common construction material. “There are 33 different materials involved in the production of a turbine blade, from the most basic common household adhesives to the more complex industrial materials used to build the blade,” the report says.
An introduction to the report notes that GE is creating an inventory of the debris collected to assess how much of the blade has been recovered. The company has also hired Resolve Marine, a marine salvage firm, to aid in dismantling the remainder of the blade that’s still attached to the turbine, though it didn’t offer a timeline for this work.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the events of
the July 24 Nantucket Select Board meeting.
https://heatmap.news/sparks/vineyard-wind-answers
A Saturnian Summer
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope captured this image of Saturn and its colossal rings on July 4, 2020, during summer in the gas giant’s northern hemisphere. Two of Saturn’s icy moons are also clearly visible: Mimas at right, and Enceladus at bottom. The light reddish haze over the northern hemisphere seen in this color composite could […]
https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/a-saturnian-summer/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-24, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Harry McCracken discovers the utility of ChatGPT in technical work.
https://www.fastcompany.com/91158989/chatgpt-ai-appreciation-day
Philadelphia tree trimmers fail to nip FTC noncompete ban in the bud
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
What a Trump-appointed judge taketh away, a Biden judge giveth
The Federal Trade Commission’s ban on noncompete agreements has been upheld after a second legal challenge, with a Philadelphia judge deciding that the FTC was well within its legal authority to prohibit such contract clauses.…
Microsoft is making Windows 11 updates smaller and more efficient
date: 2024-07-24, from: Liliputing
Microsoft is bringing more changes to Windows Updates in Windows 11. The new checkpoint cumulative updates should reduce the number of large updates users need to download. If you’re only in charge of maintaining a few computers around your home this isn’t a change that will affect you all that much. It may save a […]
The post Microsoft is making Windows 11 updates smaller and more efficient appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/microsoft-is-making-windows-11-updates-smaller-and-more-efficient/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-24, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Netanyahu’s Congress address is already a debacle. So glad this backfired. Hopefully Israel will get up the gumption to retire him.
Hidden Self-Portrait by Norman Cornish Discovered Behind Another Painting
date: 2024-07-24, from: Smithsonian Magazine
A conservator in northern England stumbled upon the work on the reverse side of a piece called “Bar Scene”
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-24, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Elon Isn’t Blocking Kamala From Getting Followers.
Uncle Sam opens probe into CrowdStrike turbulence at Delta Air Lines
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Concerns abound over why it has taken so long to recover compared to competitors
The US Department of Transportation (DoT) is investigating Delta Air Lines over its handling of the global IT outage caused by CrowdStrike’s content update.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/transport_department_delta_probe/
@Liam on Linux (date: 2024-07-24, from: Liam on Linux)
ARRA was the first ever Dutch computer.There’s an account of its creation entitled 9.2 Computers ontwerpen, toen ("Computer Designs, then") by the late Carel S Scholten, but sadly for Anglophone readers it’s in Dutch.
This is a translation into English, done using ChatGPT 4o by Gavin Scott. I found it readable and fun, although I have no way to judge how accurate it is.
C.S. Scholten
In the summer of 1947, I was on vacation in Almelo. Earlier that year,
on the same day as my best friend and inseparable study mate, Brain Jan
Loopstra, I had successfully passed the qualifying exams in mathematics
and physics. The mandatory brief introduction to the three major
laboratories—the Physics Laboratory, the V.d. Waals Laboratory, and the
Zeeman Laboratory—was behind us, and we were about to start our doctoral
studies in experimental physics. For two years, we would be practically
working in one of the aforementioned laboratories.
One day, I received a telegram in Almelo with approximately the
following content: "Would you like to assist in building an automatic
calculating machine?" For assurance, another sentence was added:
"Mr. Loopstra has already agreed." The sender was "The Mathematical
Center," according to further details, located in Amsterdam. I briefly
considered whether my friend had already confirmed my cooperation, but
in that case, the telegram seemed unnecessary, so I dismissed that
assumption. Both scenarios were equally valid: breaking up our
long-standing cooperation (dating back to the beginning of high school)
was simply unthinkable. Furthermore, the telegram contained two
attractive points: "automatic calculating machine" and "Mathematical
Center," both new concepts to me. I couldn’t deduce more than the name
suggested. Since the cost of a telegram exceeded my budget, I posted a
postcard with my answer and resumed my vacation activities. Those of you
who have been involved in recruiting staff will, I assume, be filled
with admiration for this unique example of recruitment tactics: no fuss
about salary or working hours, not to mention irrelevant details like
pension, vacation, and sick leave. For your reassurance, it should be
mentioned that I was indeed offered a salary and benefits, which, in our
eyes, were quite generous.
I wasn’t too concerned about how the new job could be combined with the
mandatory two-year laboratory work. I believed that a solution had to be
found for that. And a solution was found: the laboratory work could be
replaced by our work at the Mathematical Center.
Upon returning to Amsterdam, I found out the following: the Mathematical
Center was founded in 1946, with a goal that could roughly be inferred
from its name. One of the departments was the ‘Calculation Department,’
where diligent young ladies, using hand calculators—colloquially known
as ‘coffee grinders’—numerically solved, for example, differential
equations (in a later stage, so-called ‘bookkeeping machines’ were added
to the machinery). The problems dealt with usually came from external
clients. The head of the Calculation Department was Dr. ir. A. van
Wijngaarden. Stories about automatic calculating machines had also
reached the management of the Mathematical Center, and it was clear from
the outset that such a tool—if viable—could be of great importance,
especially for the Calculation Department. However, it was not possible
to buy this equipment; those who wanted to discuss it had to build it
themselves. Consequently, it was decided to establish a separate group
under the Calculation Department, with the task of constructing an
automatic calculating machine. Given the probable nature of this group’s
activities, it was somewhat an oddity within the Mathematical Center,
doomed to disappear, if not after completing the first machine, then
certainly once this kind of tool became a normal trade
object.
We were not the only group in the Netherlands involved in constructing
calculating machines. As we later discovered, Dr. W.L. v.d. Poel had
already started constructing a machine in 1946.
Our direct boss was Van Wijngaarden, and our newly formed two-man group
was temporarily housed in a room of the Physics Laboratory on Plantage
Muidergracht, where Prof. Clay was in charge. Our first significant act
was the removal of a high-voltage installation in the room, much to the
dismay of Clay, who was fond of the thing but arrived too late to
prevent the disaster. Then we thought it might be useful to equip the
room with some 220V sockets, so we went to Waterlooplein and returned
with a second-hand hammer, pliers, screwdriver, some wire, and a few
wooden (it was 1947!) sockets. I remember wondering whether we could
reasonably submit the exorbitant bill corresponding to these purchases.
Nonetheless, we did.
After providing our room with voltage, we felt an unpleasant sensation
that something was expected from us, though we had no idea how to start.
We decided to consult the sparse literature. This investigation yielded
two notable articles: one about the ENIAC, a digital (decimal) computer
designed for ballistic problems, and one about a differential analyzer,
a device for solving differential equations, where the values of
variables were represented by continuously variable physical quantities,
in this case, the rotation of shafts. The first article was abominably
written and incomprehensible, and as far as we understood it, it was
daunting, mentioning, for instance, 18,000 vacuum tubes, a number we
were sure our employer could never afford. The second article (by V.
Bush), on the other hand, was excellently written and gave us the idea
that such a thing indeed seemed buildable.
Therefore, it had to be a differential analyzer, and a mechanical one at
that. As we now know, we were betting on the wrong horse, but first, we
didn’t know that, and second, it didn’t really matter. Initially, we
were not up to either task simply because we lacked any electronic
training. We were supposed to master electricity and atomic physics, but
how a vacuum tube looked inside was known only to radio amateurs among
us, and we certainly were not. Our own (preliminary) practicum
contained, to my knowledge, no experiment in which a vacuum tube was the
object of study, and the physics practicum for medical students (the
so-called ‘medical practicum’), where we had supervised for a year as
student assistants, contained exactly one such experiment. It involved a
rectifier, dated by colleagues with some training in archaeology to
about the end of the First World War. The accompanying manual prescribed
turning on the ‘plate voltage’ only tens of seconds after the filament
voltage, and the students had to answer why this instruction was given.
The answers were sometimes very amusing. One such answer I won’t
withhold from you: ‘That is to give the current a chance to go around
once.’
Our first own experiment with a vacuum tube would not have been out of
place in a slapstick movie. It involved a triode, in whose anode circuit
we included a megohm resistor for safety. Safely ensconced behind a
tipped-over table, we turned on the ‘experiment.’ Unlike in a slapstick
movie, nothing significant happened in our case.
With the help of some textbooks, and not to forget the ‘tube manuals’ of
some manufacturers of these useful objects, we somewhat brushed up on
our electronic knowledge and managed to get a couple of components,
which were supposed to play a role in the differential analyzer, to a
state where their function could at least be guessed. They were a moment
amplifier and a curve follower. How we should perfect these devices so
that they would work reliably and could be produced in some numbers
remained a mystery to us. The solution to this mystery was never found.
Certainly not by me, as around this time (January 1948), I was summoned
to military service, which couldn’t do without me. During the two years
and eight months of my absence (I returned to civilian life in September
1950), a drastic change took place, which I could follow thanks to
frequent contacts with Loopstra.
First, the Mathematical Center, including our group, moved to the
current building at 2nd Boerhaavestraat 49. The building looked somewhat
different back then. The entire building had consisted of two
symmetrically built schools. During the war, the building was
requisitioned by the Germans and used as a garage. In this context, the
outer wall of one of the gymnasiums was demolished. Now, one half was
again in use as a school, and the other half, as well as the attic above
both halves, was assigned to the Mathematical Center. The Germans had
installed a munitions lift in the building. The lift was gone, but the
associated lift shaft was not. Fortunately, few among us had suicidal
tendencies. The frosted glass in the toilet doors (an old school!) had
long since disappeared; for the sake of decorum, curtains were hung in
front of them.
Van Wijngaarden could operate for a long time over a hole in the floor
next to his desk, corresponding with a hole in the ceiling of the room
below (unoccupied). Despite his impressive cigar consumption at that
time, I didn’t notice that this gigantic ashtray ever filled
up.
The number of employees in our group had meanwhile expanded somewhat;
all in all, perhaps around five.
The most significant change in the situation concerned our further
plans. The idea of a differential analyzer was abandoned as it had
become clear that the future belonged to digital computers. Upon my
return, a substantial part of such a computer, the ‘ARRA’ (Automatische
Relais Rekenmachine Amsterdam), had already been realized. The main
components were relays (for various logical functions) and tubes (for
the flip-flops that composed the registers). The relays were Siemens
high-speed relays (switching times in the order of a few milliseconds),
personally retrieved by Loopstra and Van Wijngaarden from an English war
surplus. They contained a single changeover contact (break-before-make),
with make and break contacts rigidly set, although adjustable. Logically
appealing were the two separate coils (with an equal number of
windings): both the inclusive and exclusive OR functions were within
reach. The relays were mounted on octal bases by us and later enclosed
in a plastic bag to prevent contact contamination.
They were a constant source of concern: switching times were unreliable
(especially when the exclusive OR was applied) and contact degradation
occurred nonetheless. Cleaning the contacts (‘polishing the pins’) and
resetting the switching times became a regular pastime, often involving
the girls from the Calculation Department. The setting was done on a
relay tester, and during this setting, the contacts were under
considerable voltage. Although an instrument with a wooden handle was
used for setting, the curses occasionally uttered suggested it was not
entirely effective.
For the flip-flops, double triodes were used, followed by a power tube
to drive a sufficient number of relays, and a pilot lamp for visual
indication of the flip-flop state. Since the A had three registers, each
30 bits wide, there must have been about 90 power tubes, and we noted
with dismay that 90 power tubes oscillated excellently. After some time,
we knew exactly which pilot lamp socket needed a 2-meter wire to
eliminate the oscillation.
At a later stage, a drum (initially, the instructions were read from a
plugboard via step switches) functioned as memory; for input and output,
a tape reader (paper, as magnetic tape was yet to be invented) and a
teleprinter were available. A wooden kitchen table served as the control
desk.
Relays and tubes might have been the main logical building blocks, but
they were certainly not the only ones. Without too much exaggeration, it
can be said that the ARRA was a collection of what the electronic
industry had to offer, a circumstance greatly contributed to by our
frequent trips to Eindhoven, from where we often returned with some
‘sample items.’ On the train back, we first reminisced about the
excellent lunch we had enjoyed and then inventoried to determine if we
brought back enough to cover the travel expenses. This examination
usually turned out positive.
It should be noted that the ARRA was mainly not clocked. Each primitive
operation was followed by an ‘operation complete’ signal, which in turn
started the next operation. It is somewhat amusing that nowadays such a
system is sometimes proposed again (but hopefully more reliable than
what we produced) to prevent glitch problems, a concept we were not
familiar with at the time.
Needless to say, the ARRA was so unreliable that little productive work
could be done with it. However, it was officially put into use. By
mid-1952, this was the case. His Excellency F.J. Th. Rutten, then
Minister of Education, appeared at our place and officially inaugurated
the ARRA with some ceremony. For this purpose, we carefully chose a
demonstration program with minimal risk of failure, namely producing
random numbers à la Fibonacci. We had rehearsed the demonstration so
often that we knew large parts of the output sequence by heart, and we
breathed a sigh of relief when we found that the machine produced the
correct output. In hindsight, I am surprised that this demonstration did
not earn us a reprimand from higher-ups. Imagine: you are the Minister
of Education, thoroughly briefed at the Department about the wonders of
the upcoming computing machines; you attend the official inauguration,
and you are greeted by a group explaining that, to demonstrate these
wonders, the machine will soon produce a series of random numbers. When
the moment arrives, they tell you with beaming faces that the machine
works excellently. I would have assumed that, if not with the truth, at
least with me, they were having a bit of fun. His Excellency remained
friendly, a remarkable display of self-control.
The emotions stirred by this festivity were apparently too much for the
ARRA. After the opening, as far as I recall, no reasonable amount of
useful work was ever produced. After some time, towards the end of 1952,
we decided to give up the ARRA as a hopeless case and do something else.
There was another reason for this decision. The year 1952 should be
considered an excellent harvest year for the Mathematical Center staff:
in March and November of that year, Edsger Dijkstra and Gerrit Blaauw
respectively appeared on the scene. Of these two, the latter is of
particular importance for today’s story and our future narrative. Gerrit
had worked on computers at Harvard, under the supervision of Howard
Aiken. He had also written a dissertation there and was willing to lend
his knowledge and insight to the Mathematical Center. We were not very
compliant boys at that time. Let me put it this way: we were aware that
we did not have a monopoly on wisdom, but we found it highly unlikely
that anyone else would know better. Therefore, the ‘newcomer’ was viewed
with some suspicion. Gerrit’s achievement was all the greater when he
convinced us in a lecture of the validity of what he proposed. And that
was quite something: a clocked machine, uniform building blocks
consisting of various types of AND/OR gates and corresponding
amplifiers, pluggable (and thus interchangeable) units, a neat design
method based on the use of two alternating, separate series of clock
pulses, and proper documentation.
We were sold on the plan and got to work. A small difficulty had to be
overcome: what we intended to do was obviously nothing more or less than
building a new machine, and this fact encountered some political
difficulties. The solution to this problem was simple: formally, it
would be a ‘revision’ of the ARRA. The new machine was thus also called
ARRA II (we shall henceforth speak of A II), but the double bottom was
perfectly clear to any visitor: the frames of the two machines were
distinctly separated, with no connecting wire between them.
For the AND/OR gates, we decided to use selenium diodes. These usually
arrived in the form of selenium rectifiers, a sort of firecrackers of
varying sizes, which we dismantled to extract the individual rectifier
plates, about half the diameter of a modern-day dime. The assembly—the
selenium plates couldn’t tolerate high temperatures, so soldering was
out of the question—was as follows: holes were drilled in a thick piece
of pertinax. One end of the hole was sealed with a metal plug; into the
resulting pot hole went a spring and a selenium plate, and finally, the
other end of the hole was also sealed with a metal plug. For connecting
the plugs, we thought the use of silver paint was appropriate, and soon
we were busy painting our first own circuits. Some time later, we had
plenty of reasons to curse this decision. The reliability of these
connections was poor, to put it mildly, and around this time, the
‘high-frequency hammer’ must have been invented: we took a small hammer
with a rubber head and rattled it along the handles of the units, like a
child running its hand along the railings of a fence. It proved an
effective means to turn intermittent interruptions into permanent ones.
I won’t hazard a guess as to how many interruptions we introduced in
this way. At a later stage, the selenium diodes were replaced by
germanium diodes, which were simply soldered.
The AND/OR gates were followed by a triode amplifier and a cathode
follower. ARRA II also got a drum and a tape reader. For output, an
electric typewriter was installed, with 16 keys operable by placing
magnets underneath them. The decoding tree for these magnets provided us
with the means to build an echo-check, and Dijkstra fabricated a routine
where, simultaneously with printing a number, the same number (if all
went well) was reconstructed. I assume we thus had one of the first
fully controlled print routines. Characteristic of ARRA II’s speed was
the time for an addition: 20 ms (the time of a drum
rotation).
ARRA II came into operation in December 1953, this time without
ministerial assistance, but it performed significantly more useful work
than its predecessor, despite the technical difficulties outlined
above.
The design phase of ARRA II marks for me the point where computer design
began to become a profession. This was greatly aided by the introduction
of uniform building blocks, describable in a multidimensional binary
state space, making the use of tools like Boolean algebra meaningful. We
figured out how to provide ARRA II with signed multiplicative addition
for integers (i.e., an operation of the form (A,S) := (M) * (±S’) + (A),
for all sign combinations of (A), (S), and (M) before and of the
result), despite the fact that ARRA II had only a counter as wide as a
register. As far as I can recall, this was the first time I devoted a
document to proving that the proposed solution was correct. Undoubtedly,
the proof was in a form I would not be satisfied with today, but still…
It worked as intended, and you can imagine my amusement when, years
later, I learned from a French book on computers that this problem was
considered unsolvable.
In May 1954, work began on a (slightly modified) copy of ARRA II, the
FERTA (Fokker’s First Calculating Machine Type A), intended for Fokker.
The FERTA was handed over to Fokker in April 1955. This entire affair
was mainly handled by Blaauw and Dijkstra. Shortly thereafter, Blaauw
left the service of the Mathematical Center.
In June 1956, the ARMAC (Automatic Calculating Machine Mathematical
Center), successor to ARRA II, was put into operation, several dozen
times faster than its predecessor. Design and construction took about 1½
years. Worth mentioning is that the ARMAC first used cores, albeit on a
modest scale (in total 64 words of 34 bits each, I believe). For
generating the horizontal and vertical selection currents for these
cores, we used large cores. To drive these large cores, however, they
had to be equipped with a coil with a reasonable number of windings.
Extensive embroidery work didn’t seem appealing to us, so the following
solution was devised: a (fairly deep) rim was turned from transparent
plastic. Thus, we now had two rings: the rim and the core. The rim was
sawed at one place, and the flexibility of the material made it possible
to interlock the two rings. Then, the coil was applied to the rim by
rotating it from the outside using a rubber wheel. The result was a
neatly wound coil. The whole thing was then encased in Araldite. The
unintended surprising effect was that, since the refractive indices of
the plastic and Araldite apparently differed little, the plastic rim
became completely invisible. The observer saw a core in the Araldite
with a beautifully regularly wound coil around it. We left many a
visitor in the dark for quite some time about how we produced these
things!
The time of amateurism was coming to an end. Computers began to appear
on the market, and the fact that our group, which had now grown to
several dozen employees, did not really belong in the Mathematical
Center started to become painfully clear to us. Gradual dissolution of
the group was, of course, an option, but that meant destroying a good
piece of know-how. A solution was found when the Nillmij, which had been
automating its administration for some time using Bull punch card
equipment, declared its willingness to take over our group as the core
of a new Dutch computer industry. Thus it happened. The new company,
N.V. Elektrologica, was formally established in 1956, and gradually our
group’s employees were transferred to Elektrologica, a process that was
completed with my own transfer on January 1, 1959. As the first
commercial machine, we designed a fully transistorized computer, the XI,
whose prototype performed its first calculations at the end of 1957. The
speed was about ten times that of the ARMAC.
With this, I consider the period I had to cover as concluded. When I
confront my memories with the title of this lecture, it must be said
that ‘designing computers’ as such hardly existed: the activities that
could be labeled as such were absorbed in the total of concerns that
demanded our attention. Those who engaged in constructing calculating
machines at that time usually worked in very small teams and performed
all the necessary tasks. We decided on the construction of racks, doors,
and closures, the placement of fans (the ARMAC consumed 10 kW!), we
mounted power distribution cabinets and associated wiring, we knew the
available fuses and cross-sections of electrical cables by heart, we
soldered, we peered at oscillographs, we climbed into the machine armed
with a vacuum cleaner to clean it, and, indeed, sometimes we were also
involved in design.
We should not idealize. As you may have gathered from the above, we were
occasionally brought to the brink of despair by technical problems.
Inadequate components plagued us, as did a lack of knowledge and
insight. This lack existed not only in our group but globally the field
was not yet mastered.
However, it was also a fascinating time, marked by a constant sense of
‘never before seen,’ although that may not always have been literally
true. It was a time when organizing overtime, sometimes lasting all
night, posed no problem. It was a time when we knew a large portion of
the participants in international computer conferences at least by
sight!
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https://liam-on-linux.dreamwidth.org/91041.html
This Is the Best Permitting Reform Deal We’re Going to Get
date: 2024-07-24, from: Heatmap News
We now know what a real bipartisan permitting overhaul could look like.
Senators Joe Manchin and John Barrasso on Monday unveiled the Energy Permitting Reform Act, the product of months of negotiations over how to craft a sweeping change to the nation’s federal energy project approvals system that could actually pass through Congress. It’s got a little bit of everything: For the oil and gas folks, there’s mandatory offshore oil and gas lease sales and streamlined permitting requirements; for renewables, there’s faster permits for “low-impact” construction jobs and new deployment goals; for transmission, there’s siting authority for interstate lines, compulsory interregional planning, and clarity on cost allocation. There are also sections devoted to helping mining projects navigate legal uncertainties around mill sites and assistance for hydropower projects needing extended licenses. Lastly there’s a fresh limit on the length of time allowed for legal challenges against energy projects of all types.
In other words, it’s an energy smorgasbord, and all sorts of fuels and resources are invited to the party.
Will such a bill be able to sail through Congress in the middle of a close election cycle? Unclear, but highly doubtful. Will it be able to overcome opposition from the major environmental groups — Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Earthjustice — that stymied Manchin’s prior permitting deal? We have yet to hear from President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, or congressional Democratic leaders on whether they support the bill, and representatives for the White House and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer did not respond to requests for comment.
But to the people most deeply invested in bipartisan permitting compromise, none of that matters — for now, at least. In their view, this bill sets the parameters for whatever permitting deal will eventually become law, whether that’s in this Congress or the next.
“Some of the environmental community is going to look at this and see it as a net win for climate change, and some in the environmental community are more anti-fossil fuel than they are pro-reducing emissions, and so it’s harder for them to get over the fossil fuel aspect of the bill,” Xan Fishman, senior director of the energy program at the Bipartisan Policy Center, told me. “But to some extent, that’s how bipartisan deals come together. Not everyone is going to be happy.”
The biggest gain for energy transition advocates is plainly the transmission language. Since the Inflation Reduction Act (which also similarly frustrated environmental groups with its giveaways to oil and gas) became law, it has been painfully apparent that easing the federal permitting burden on transmission could speed up the deployment of renewables projects boosted by the climate law. But Republicans have so far been unwilling to consider advancing transmission support on its own, in which case the Beltway Elite conventional wisdom calls for sweetening the deal with measures that benefit fossil fuels.
Agencies have already tried to advance permitting assistance sans new legislation. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has advanced a potential fix to regional transmission planning via Order 1920, and the Interior Department has moved forward with regulation to ease permitting burdens on solar and wind projects. Congress has also moved piecemeal solutions to sector-specific problems, such as the ADVANCE Act, which provided federal officials with new legal resources to process cutting-edge nuclear projects. But these have not achieved anything close to the broad changes that industry representatives say are needed for the overall permitting regime.
Fishman and other observers in D.C. expect Manchin to try and move the bill out of his Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee imminently, but it’s best shot of seeing the floor won’t come until after the election, during the so-called “lame duck” session. They’re also expecting more permitting proposals out of a different committee, Senate Environment and Public Works, which has key jurisdiction over activities of the Environmental Protection Agency. Manchin couldn’t touch those because they don’t fall under the remit of his committee, but advocates for a deal believe EPA language would help relieve more of the burden projects face.
Yet with some climate Democrats coming out in support of the bill already, those seeking a permitting deal say the immediate odds for the Manchin-Barrasso bill enactment into law are not at all the point. What matters is that we now have a real life example of what a true blue bipartisan compromise on permitting that advances the energy transition can look like.
“Even if this doesn’t pass, this is the baseline for conversations,” Ryan Fitzpatrick of Third Way told me. “This is a net win for climate … it’s the starting point, however it may be adapted.”
https://heatmap.news/politics/manchin-barrasso-permitting-bill
On goals, online projects, and the usefulness of money
date: 2024-07-24, from: Manu - I write blog
<p>I’m currently a <em>“<a href="https://getkirby.com/partners">Certified Kirby Partner</a>”</em>. Fancy title, I know. What that means is that I paid some money, last summer, to be listed on a website. This upcoming August, I will no longer be a <em>“Certified Kirby Partner”</em> because I am not going to pay money—again—to be listed on a website. But my certified status is not what I want to write about. It’s just an excuse to talk about the role money plays in achieving goals in the context of online projects.</p>Most online projects exist to fulfil a goal. Sometimes that goal is stated, sometimes it’s implied. And money may or may not be an aid in achieving said goal. I was chatting about online communities with Kev the other day and we both reached the same conclusion that in order to create something meaningful in that space it has to be a paid product. Not because you need that to make it sustainable financially but because a monetary commitment—even a small one—is a helpful tool to find people who are genuinely interested in what you’re creating. You’re not likely to spend money on something you don’t care about. So in that context, money is a helpful tool to achieve the goal of creating a small community of people who care about the shared space.
That same way of reasoning wouldn’t make sense for something like my People and Blogs series. My goal with that project is to help as many people as possible rediscover the beauty of having a personal blog and owning your corner of the web, and to encourage a healthier way to live online. Making it a paid series wouldn’t help me reach that goal. It would probably be an obstacle. This is why I started the series knowing it was going to be a cost for me both in terms of time and in terms of actual money but it was one I was willing to sustain because I believe it’s important.
It’s easy for me to commit to paying money when stated goals and monetisation schemes are aligned. To bring it back to Kirby, I absolutely love it both as a tool and as a project. It’s been run fantastically for more than a decade by a great group of people and I have nothing but positive things to say about it. I plan to keep using it and buying licenses for as long as they stay in business. But it’s also why I won’t pay again to be a “Certified Kirby Partner”. Because there the stated goals and the monetisation scheme are not aligned. As they say, money talks.
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Musk deflects sluggish Tesla car sales with Optimus optimism
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Claims ‘everyone on Earth is going to want one’
Tesla profits were nearly halved in the second quarter of 2024, extending a run of woe for the company, lightened only by a surge in energy generation and storage.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/tesla_q2_2024/
You can install Windows 11 on an iPhone, but you probably don’t want to
date: 2024-07-24, from: Liliputing
NTDEV — the developer behind the stripped-down tiny11 OS — strikes again, this time managing to get Windows 11 up and running on an iPhone 15 Pro. It’s a pretty amazing achievement even if the result isn’t something you’re likely to want to replicate. For starters it takes around 20 minutes for Windows to even […]
The post You can install Windows 11 on an iPhone, but you probably don’t want to appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/you-can-install-windows-11-on-an-iphone-but-you-probably-dont-want-to/
Drill team cultivates sense of identity for Chinese American girls
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
In the Pacific Northwest, there is a marching group that has thrilled parade audiences for more than 70 years. The Seattle Chinese Community Girls Drill Team has brought a sense of community and identity for generations of Chinese American girls. VOA’s Natasha Mozgovaya reports.
Crash Caused by Apple Mail’s Previous Recipients Window and Editing in Contacts
date: 2024-07-24, from: TidBITS blog
Mail will crash if you open its Previous Recipients window and then edit a contact in Contacts. This bug has existed since macOS 12 Monterey and continues to plague the betas of macOS 15 Sequoia.
US links Pakistan’s economic growth to political stability
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
ISLAMABAD — The United States urged Pakistan Wednesday to protect the rights of all citizens, including freedom of expression and assembly, as a military-backed crackdown on the opposition party of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan continues.
Donald Blome, the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, stressed during a seminar in Islamabad that upholding constitutionally guaranteed rights is crucial to the country’s economic progress.
“Protecting human rights for all is not just a fundamental pillar of a democracy; it’s a critical component of a vibrant and stable society drawing on the talents and contributions of all its citizens for the country’s benefits,” Blome said.
“Without such stability, the prospects for investment and economic growth appear far less certain,” he noted, without directly naming Pakistani political stakeholders.
The U.S. ambassador’s remarks came as Pakistan faces prolonged political turmoil stemming from Khan’s removal from power in 2022 through a parliamentary no-confidence vote and his subsequent imprisonment last August, which the United Nations described as having no legal basis.
The ongoing crackdown has led to the arrest of hundreds of supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or PTI, party, including women.
This week, police raided the PTI’s headquarters in the Pakistani capital, detaining its chief spokesman and several other media team professionals, accusing them of running an “anti-state campaign.”
Khan’s aides have denounced the arrests as part of a campaign of suppression and intimidation.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition government, struggling to address Pakistan’s deep economic problems, has publicly stated its intention to ban the party over charges of anti-state activities and maligning the military.
“We will, under no circumstances, tolerate such actions against our motherland, innocent people, or the armed forces of Pakistan,” Sharif reiterated Wednesday, while presiding over a cabinet meeting.
The threat of banning the country’s most popular and the single largest party in parliament has further fueled political tensions.
On Tuesday, during a congressional hearing in Washington, the crackdown and potential banning of the Pakistani opposition party also came under discussion when Donald Lu, the U.S. assistant secretary of state, was responding to questions from lawmakers.
Democratic Congressman Brad Sherman, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, raised the issue of Pakistan banning Khan from holding public office and preventing his party from using its iconic cricket bat symbol on the ballots in the February 8 vote.
“The information minister and two other ministers have said that they want to ban the PTI. And we see in the latest development that the PTI office has been sealed, their national information security and many women have been arrested,” Sherman said.
“The best thing you can do is ask Ambassador Blome to go visit Imran Khan in prison, and I wonder if you would consider that,” the congressmen told Lu. “We’ll definitely discuss it with Ambassador Blome,” responded the assistant secretary of state.
“Pakistan’s future must be decided by its people. It’s clear that the PTI is Pakistan’s most popular party. I disagree with Imran Khan on many things, but it’s the right of Pakistan’s people to choose their leader,” Sherman wrote on his social media X platform after the hearing.
Khan’s arrest last year sparked violent street protests in Pakistan, with some of his supporters attacking facilities linked to the country’s powerful military.
The Sharif government and the military used the riots to defend the crackdown on the PTI and as a reason to keep Khan in prison after several of his convictions in other cases were recently overturned by appeals courts for lack of evidence.
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court ruled that the PTI was eligible for around two dozen extra reserved seats in parliament, saying the Election Commission of Pakistan deprived the party of them in breach of the constitution.
Once implemented, the verdict will further strengthen the PTI in the parliament and weaken the ruling coalition. It has also given credence to the opposition and independent monitors’ allegations that the February 8 elections were rigged in favor of pro-military parties and prevented the PTI from sweeping the polls.
Khan, 71, rejects all charges against him — ranging from corruption to sedition and a fraudulent marriage — as politically motivated and part of a larger effort by the military to keep him and his party from returning to power.
The former cricket hero turned politician insists on the return of his party’s “stolen mandate” or new elections overseen by an impartial election commission.
Sharif, who has the backing of the military, denies his government is unfairly targeting Khan and his party, saying it was determined to bring to justice those responsible for the May 2023 attacks on military facilities.
Last month, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted 368-7 to approve a resolution urging “the full and independent investigation of claims of interference or irregularities” in Pakistan’s election, a move Islamabad rejected.
https://www.voanews.com/a/us-links-pakistan-s-economic-growth-to-political-stability-/7711118.html
Botanists Vote to Remove Racial Slur From Hundreds of Plant Species Names
date: 2024-07-24, from: Smithsonian Magazine
In a first for taxonomy, researchers opted to change scientific names containing derivatives of the slur “caffra” to derivatives of “afr,” in reference to the plants’ origins in Africa
One airport, thousands of stranded passengers
date: 2024-07-24, from: Marketplace Morning Report
“We started breaking down crying, because I didn’t think I would get out for my mother’s funeral.” “I’m about $10,000 out of pocket right now for just lodging, food and transportation.” These are just a few of the pained frustrations passengers at Atlanta’s airport, Delta’s primary hub, shared after flight delays and cancellations following the recent CrowdStrike outage. Also: sluggish home sales, the ban on noncompete agreements and politicization of the Federal Reserve.
Why OpenAI may well be completely Zuck’d
date: 2024-07-24, from: Gary Marcus blog
Regular readers of this Substack will recall that I have never been bullish on OpenAI. Last Fall, I warned that they might someday be known as the WeWork of AI, and in late January I wrote an essay about some of the strong headwinds they faced, despite their seeming invincibility, called “
https://garymarcus.substack.com/p/why-openai-may-well-be-completely
Windows Patch Tuesday update might send a user to the BitLocker recovery screen
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Not now, Microsoft
Some Windows devices are presenting users with a BitLocker recovery screen upon reboot following the installation of July’s Patch Tuesday update.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/windows_update_bitlocker/
NASA’s Webb Images Cold Exoplanet 12 Light-Years Away
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
An international team of astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has directly imaged an exoplanet roughly 12 light-years from Earth. The planet, Epsilon Indi Ab, is one of the coldest exoplanets observed to date. The planet is several times the mass of Jupiter and orbits the K-type star Epsilon Indi A (Eps Ind A), […]
https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/nasas-webb-images-cold-exoplanet-12-light-years-away/
EMD Climate Adaptation Video
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
https://www.nasa.gov/organizations/osi/emd/emd-climate-adaptation-video/
Whale surfaces, capsizes fishing boat off New Hampshire coast
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
RYE, New Hampshire — Two fishermen are safe after a whale crashed onto their boat, capsizing it off the New Hampshire shore, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The incident occurred Tuesday near Odiorne Point State Park in Rye. The two men, who were thrown overboard, said they had seen the whale earlier and were trying to keep their distance.
“He went under, he disappeared for a few minutes, and then the next thing we know, he just popped right up on our transom,” fisherman Ryland Kenney told WMUR-TV.
The Coast Guard posted to social media platform X that they had received a mayday call stating that a 7-meter center console boat had turned over because of a whale breach.
“The occupants were ejected from the vessel as the boat capsized,” the Coast Guard posted, adding that an urgent marine information broadcast was issued, and the Coast Guard Station Portsmouth Harbor was alerted.
“A good Samaritan recovered both individuals from the water. No injuries were reported,” the Coast Guard posted.
The rescuers were two young brothers.
“I saw it come up, and I was just like, ‘Oh, it’s going to hit the boat,’” Wyatt Yager told the station. “It started to flip.” His brother, Colin Yager, caught what happened on his phone.
The boat crew from Station Portsmouth reported that the whale appeared not to be injured. The incident was reported to the Center of Coastal Studies Marine Animal Hotline and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The vessel has also been salvaged.
The whale probably did not know the boat was there, said Sara Morris of the University of New Hampshire Shoals Marine Laboratory.
“If you look at the video really carefully, you can see that the whale has its mouth open,” she told the station. “It looks like it’s lunge feeding and actually trying to catch fish.”
https://www.voanews.com/a/whale-surfaces-capsizes-fishing-boat-off-new-hampshire-coast-/7711013.html
Oak Ridge casts nets in search of Frontier supercomputer’s heir
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
US national lab expects Discovery to deliver ‘three to five times more computational throughput’
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for a successor to the Frontier supercomputer, just a couple of years after the world’s first exascale system came online.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/oak_ridge_discovery/
How often you poop could suggest more than you think, study finds
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
How often you poop may influence more than whether you’re uncomfortably bloated. The frequency may also affect your gut microbiome and risk of chronic disease, a new study has found.
The Physics of Cold Water May Have Jump-Started Complex Life
date: 2024-07-24, from: Quanta Magazine
When seawater gets cold, it gets viscous. This fact could explain how single-celled ocean creatures became multicellular when the planet was frozen during “Snowball Earth,” according to experiments.The post The Physics of Cold Water May Have Jump-Started Complex Life first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Wildfires threaten communities in the West as Oregon fire closes interstate, creates its own weather
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Firefighters in the West are scrambling as wildfires threaten communities in Oregon, California and Washington, with at least one Oregon fire so large that it is creating its own weather.
Media Invited to Watch NASA Stream 4K Video to Space
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
NASA invites media to attend a real-time laser communications experiment at the agency’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. Researchers are testing a laser communications networking system that could enable the public to watch the first woman and first person of color walk on the Moon in HD during the Artemis missions. The media availability begins […]
https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/media-invited-to-watch-nasa-stream-4k-video-to-space/
NASA Streams First 4K Video from Aircraft to Space Station, Back
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
A team at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland streamed 4K video footage from an aircraft to the International Space Station and back for the first time using optical, or laser, communications. The feat was part of a series of tests on new technology that could provide live video coverage of astronauts on the Moon […]
Coco Gauff to be female flag bearer for US team at Olympic opening ceremony, joining LeBron James
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
Paris — Tennis star Coco Gauff will join LeBron James as a flag bearer for the U.S. Olympic team at Friday’s opening ceremony.
Gauff, the reigning U.S. Open champion, is set to make her Olympic debut at the Paris Games and will be the first tennis athlete to carry the U.S. flag. She and James were chosen by Team USA athletes.
“I mean, for me, the Olympics is a top priority. I would say equal to the Grand Slams. I wouldn’t put it above or below, just because I’ve never played before. This is my first time,” Gauff said earlier this year. “Obviously, I always want to do well, try to get a medal.”
Gauff and James, the 39-year-old leading scorer in NBA history, both compete in sports that are outside the traditional Olympic world and get attention year-round, not just every four years.
The 20-year-old Gauff made the American team for the Tokyo Games three years ago as a teenager but had to sit out those Olympics because she tested positive for COVID-19 right before she was supposed to fly to Japan.
Now Gauff, who is based in Florida, is a Grand Slam title winner in singles and doubles. She won her first major championship in New York in September, defeating Aryna Sabalenka in the singles final of the U.S. Open, then added her first Grand Slam doubles trophy at the French Open this June alongside Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic.
The same clay courts at Roland Garros used for the French Open will be where matches are going to be held for the Paris Olympics. The draw to set the brackets is Thursday, and play begins on Saturday.
Gauff is seeded No. 2 in singles, matching her current WTA ranking behind No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland, and will be among the medal favorites.
She and her usual doubles partner, Jessica Pegula, are seeded No. 1 in women’s doubles. It’s possible Gauff could also be entered in mixed doubles, but those pairings have not been announced yet.
“I’m not putting too much pressure on it, because I really want to fully indulge in the experience,” Gauff said about her Olympics debut. “Hopefully I can have the experience multiple times in my lifetime, (but) I’ll treat it as a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
45 Years Ago: Space Shuttle Enterprise Completes Launch Pad Checkout
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
On July 23, 1979, space shuttle Enterprise completed its time as a pathfinder vehicle at Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Workers towed it back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). During its four-month stay at KSC, Enterprise validated procedures for the assembly of the space shuttle stack and interfaces […]
https://www.nasa.gov/history/45-years-ago-space-shuttle-enterprise-completes-launch-pad-checkout/
The moral bankruptcy of Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz
date: 2024-07-24, from: Ben Werdmuller’s blog
<div class="known-bookmark">
<div class="e-content">[Elizabeth Lopatto at The Verge]
“Last week, the founders of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz declared their allegiance to Donald Trump in their customary fashion: talking about money on a podcast.
“Sorry, Mom,” Ben Horowitz says in an episode of The Ben & Marc Show. “I know you’re going to be mad at me for this. But, like, we have to do it.”“
No, you don’t.
As I’ve discussed before, investors like Andreessen and Horowitz are putting concerns about crypto regulation and taxation of unrealized gains over a host of social issues that include mass deportations, an increase in death sentences, military police in our cities, and potential ends to contraception and no-fault divorce. It’s myopic, selfish, and stupid.
It looks even more so in a world where Trump is reportedly already regretting appointing JD Vance as his Vice Presidential candidate and where Musk has reneged on his $45M a month pledge to a Trump PAC. They come out looking awful.
The progressive thing to do would be to starve their firm: founders who care about those issues should pledge not to let a16z into their rounds, and other VCs should refuse to join rounds where a16z is present. This is likely too much activism for Silicon Valley, but it would send the strong signal that’s needed here.
The desire for profit must never trump our duty of care to society’s most vulnerable. Agreeing with this statement should be a no-brainer - but we’re quickly learning how many would much rather put themselves first.
<p>[<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/7/24/24204706/marc-andreessen-ben-horowitz-a16z-trump-donations">Link</a>]</p>
</div>
</div>https://werd.io/2024/the-moral-bankruptcy-of-marc-andreessen-and-ben-horowitz
Data pilfered from Pentagon IT supplier Leidos
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
With numerous US government agency customers, any leak could be serious
Updated Internal documents stolen from Leidos Holdings, an IT services provider contracted with the Department of Defense and other US government agencies, have been leaked on the dark web.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/leidos_data_leak/
Taste-Off: The most delicious coffee ice creams — and the bitter disappointments
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Coffee ice cream is a favorite among java lovers but while some brands shine, others are merely meh. Here’s how Trader Joe’s, Straus, Talenti, Van Leeuwen and other brands measure up.
IOC awards 2034 Winter Games to Utah, pushes state officials to help end investigation
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
Paris — What was expected to be a simple coronation of Salt Lake City as the 2034 Winter Olympic host turned into complicated Olympic politics Wednesday, as the IOC pushed Utah officials to end an FBI investigation into a suspected doping coverup.
The International Olympic Committee is angry about an ongoing U.S. federal investigation of suspected doping by Chinese swimmers who were allowed to compete at the Tokyo Games despite positive drug tests. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accepted Chinese explanations for the tests, and U.S. officials are now investigating that decision under an anti-conspiracy law passed after the Russian doping scandal at the Sochi Winter Games.
President Thomas Bach wants to make sure WADA is the sole authority on Olympic doping cases, especially with the Sumer Olympics headed to Los Angeles in 2028. The IOC added a clause to Salt Lake’s host contract, demanding that local organizers - including Utah Gov. Spencer Cox - push to shut down the federal investigation or risk losing the Olympics.
Cox and others promised to lobby the U.S. president and Congress.
“We agree that if the United States does not support or violates the World Anti-Doping Federation’s rules, that they can withdraw the Games from from us and from the United States,” Cox said after the announcement. “That was the only way that that we could we could guarantee that we would get the Games.”
Even in the world Olympic diplomacy, it was a stunning power move to force government officials to publicly agree to do the IOC’s lobbying.
After getting the Utah contingent’s agreement on the clause, the IOC formally awarded the 2034 Winter Games to Salt Lake in an 83-6 vote.
The capital city of Utah was the only candidate after the IOC gave Salt Lake City exclusive negotiating rights last year in a fast-tracked process.
The campaign team presenting the bid on stage to IOC members included Cox, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall and Alpine ski great Lindsey Vonn. Back home, a 3 a.m. public watch party gathered to see the broadcast from Paris.
The clause inserted into the contract requires Utah officials to to work with current and future U.S. presidents and members of Congress “to alleviate your concerns” about the federal investigation into doping.
The IOC clause allows the Olympic body to terminate Salt Lake City’s deal if the authority of WADA was undermined on U.S. territory.
WADA’s role is under scrutiny for accepting a Chinese investigation that declared all 23 swimmers were contaminated by traces of a banned heart medication in a hotel kitchen. Three Chinese gold medals in the Tokyo Olympic pool were won by swimmers implicated in the case. Some are also competing in Paris next week.
The case an be investigated in the U.S. under federal legislation named for a whistleblower of Russian state doping at the 2014 Sochi Winter Games.
The IOC and WADA lobbied against passing the law, known as the Rodchenkov Act, which gives U.S. federal agencies wide jurisdiction of doping enforcement worldwide ahead of Los Angeles hosting the 2028 Summer Games.
“We will work with our members of Congress,” Gov. Cox told Bach and IOC voters ahead of the 2034 vote, “we will use all the levers of power open to us to resolve these concerns.”
Salt Lake City first hosted the Winter Games in 2002. That bid was hit with a bribery scandal, which led to anti-corruption reforms at the IOC.
Future U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney was brought in to clean up the Games, which went off well despite tightened security. The Games were the biggest international sports event hosted by the U.S. following the Sept. 11 attacks five months earlier.
“I am sorry for you, and for us, that this issue arose now,” Bach said, addressing the Salt Lake City delegation ahead of the vote.
It is an Olympic tradition for lawmakers and even heads of state to come to an IOC meeting and plead their case to be anointed as an host city.
Russian President Vladimir Putin did it in 2007, speaking in English to secure the 2014 Winter Games for Sochi. British Prime Minister Tony Blair made a key intervention in 2005 to help win the 2012 Olympics for London. U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to Copenhagen in 2009 did not help in Chicago’s losing cause for the 2016 Summer Games that went to Rio de Janeiro.
For its second turn, Salt Lake City will get almost 10 full years to prepare — the longest lead-in for a modern Winter Games — amid longer-term concerns about climate change affecting snow sports and reducing the pool of potential hosts.
Salt Lake City opted to target 2034 and so avoided potential commercial and logistical clashes with the 2028 Summer Games being hosted by Los Angeles.
It will be the fifth Winter Games in the U.S. Before Salt Lake City in 2002, there was Lake Placid in 1980 and 1932, and Squaw Valley — now known as Olympic Valley — in 1960.
In a separate decision earlier in Paris, the 2030 Winter Games was awarded — with conditions — to France for a regional project split between ski resorts in the Alps and the French Riviera city Nice.
That project needs official signoff from the national government being formed, and the Prime Minister yet to be confirmed, after recent elections called by President Emmanuel Macron. He helped present the 2030 bid Wednesday to IOC members.
Pleasanton threatens to ‘pull the plug’ on Stoneridge Mall project if property owners don’t move forward
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
After six extensions, the City Council is giving the shopping center’s owners a last chance to make some progress.
This Bay Area school district is being sued over teacher vacancies. Is it violating students’ civil rights?
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Textbooks, qualified teachers and clean, safe and functional schools are required, following the landmark Williams v. California settlement in 2004.
CrowdStrike fiasco highlights growing Sino-Russian tech independence
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
China is playing a long game, which could pay off on an enormous scale
Analysis Some of the common arguments for moving away from proprietary operating systems are about increasing personal (or corporate) freedom and decreasing expenditure, but there are bigger things at stake.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/foss_gets_geopolitical/
tinyPod is a case that turns an Apple Watch into a modern iPod
date: 2024-07-24, from: Liliputing
The Apple Watch is basically a tiny computer for your wrist. But the tinyPod is a case that repurposes Apple’s wearable as a pocket-sized device that… looks a lot like a small iPod. Just remove the wristband, pop an Apple Watch into a tinyPod and you’ve got a small interactive device that you can use […]
The post tinyPod is a case that turns an Apple Watch into a modern iPod appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/tinypod-is-a-case-that-turns-an-apple-watch-into-a-modern-ipod/
Waveshare Pi5 module box turns a Raspberry Pi into a PC in a flash
date: 2024-07-24, from: Liliputing
The Waveshare Pi5 Module Box is a compact aluminum enclosure that quickly turns a are Raspberry Pi 5 board into a slick-looking mini PC. It’s offered in three different configurations, each with a handful of extra ports that break out via a PCIe adapter board. The Pi5 Module Box A adds a second gigabit Ethernet […]
The post Waveshare Pi5 module box turns a Raspberry Pi into a PC in a flash appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/waveshare-pi5-module-box-turns-a-raspberry-pi-into-a-pc-in-a-flash/
Podcast: The CrowdStrike Outage
date: 2024-07-24, from: 404 Media Group
The worldwide CrowdStrike outage; vaping the internet; and a bunch of leaked documents from Cellebrite.
https://www.404media.co/404-media-podcast-the-crowd-strike-outage/
‘Where have all the preschoolers gone?’ new UC Berkeley study asks
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
A new study finds that despite the state’s ambitious early-childhood investments, enrollment in California’s preschools has struggled to bounce back post-pandemic.
Byron York | Democrats Rally Around Worst Possible Candidate
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
It wasn’t really a surprise that President Joe Biden announced Sunday that he will no longer be a candidate for a second term. After all, Biden was under crushing pressure […]
The post Byron York | Democrats Rally Around Worst Possible Candidate appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/byron-york-democrats-rally-around-worst-possible-candidate/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-24, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Why Trump and Vance are flailing against Kamala.
49ers poll: What is team’s biggest issue to sort out in training camp?
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Brandon Aiyuk’s contract isn’t the only matter the 49ers must manage over the next month and a half before the season opener.
Huge Silicon Valley tech campus is foreclosed as office market staggers
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Office complex is now worth one-third its prior value.
Walters: California’s image will be a weapon as Harris faces Trump this year
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
New GOP strategy will paint VP’s home state as a dystopia of crime, unaffordable living costs and ruinous taxation
Frustrated by School Web Filters, One Teenager Created His Own
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Markup blog
During early COVID lockdowns, a teen raised $1.8 million in venture funding and built a web filter with a team of data scientists and psychologists that he now hopes will help students safely surf the web
Joby Aviation takes 523-mile hydrogen-electric flight above Monterey County
date: 2024-07-24, from: San Jose Mercury News
Joby’s test flight is believed to be the first forward flight of a vertical take-off and landing aircraft powered by liquid hydrogen
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/07/24/joby-takes-523-mile-hydrogen-electric-flight-above-marina/
changelog changes
date: 2024-07-24, from: Daniel Stenberg Blog
On the curl website we of course list exactly what changes that go into each and every single release we do. In recent years I have even gone back and made sure we provide this information for every single release ever done. At the moment that means 258 releases, listing over 10,000 bugfixes and almost … Continue reading changelog changes
https://daniel.haxx.se/blog/2024/07/24/changelog-changes/
Knock, knock. Who’s there? The Department of Public Health, and they want to help
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The LAist
A new L.A. County pilot program sends community health workers in select neighborhoods across the county to ask: What do you need?
What pathways to work do immigrants without permanent legal status have?
date: 2024-07-24, from: Marketplace Morning Report
Working for cash off the books is illegal. But there are routes to work for immigrants who don’t have permission to in the U.S. as an independent contractor or by establishing a Limited Liability Company, or LLC. Today, we’ll hear from one young man who’s seeking a visa that would allow him to work — but he’s looking to start an LLC in the meantime. But first: Tesla is losing ground overseas.
@Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed (date: 2024-07-24, from: Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed)
I made a letter from the tooth fairy to the 8yo. Then I added an AI generated tooth fairy logo to the letter.
This morning:
“Wow you got a letter form the tooth fairy, and this
is their official logo”
“Dad, it’s AI generated”
https://mastodon.social/@Migueldeicaza/112841336750918771
Talk of turbulence in aviation supply chains at British international airshow
date: 2024-07-24, from: Marketplace Morning Report
From the BBC World Service: Some of the world’s biggest civilian and defense aviation businesses are gathered at this year’s Farnborough Airshow, a trade expo in the south of England. But with deals on the table, it’s clear that plane makers are struggling to keep up with demand. Also: a look at the the realities of Venezuela’s struggling economy as citizens head to the polls on Sunday.
Microsoft: Our licensing terms do not meaningfully raise cloud rivals’ costs
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Redmond comes out swinging as it files response to Competition and Markets Authority
Updated Microsoft has responded to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) probe into public cloud services and licensing by insisting that its terms “do not meaningfully raise cloud rivals’ costs.”…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/microsoft_cloud_cma/
The Crunch
date: 2024-07-24, from: 500-ish blog, A collection of posts by M.G. Siegler of around 500 words in length.
https://500ish.com/the-crunch-f051c764bc1e?source=rss----662a29c3b19e---4
Kia Niro electric vehicle defies physics with record-breaking 114 million miles on the clock
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
At least that’s what the app says…
BORK!BORK!BORK! One criticism frequently leveled at electric vehicles is about their batteries: “Won’t they wear out?”…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/kia_niro_app_blunder/
U.S. Naval Torpedo Station
date: 2024-07-24, from: National Archives, Pieces of History blog
For nearly 20 years the National Archives’ Alexandria Federal Records Center was housed in the former U.S. Naval Torpedo station located on Alexandria’s waterfront. One day after the end of World War I, the U.S. Navy began construction of the U.S. Naval Torpedo Station on the waterfront of Alexandria, Virginia. The factory built torpedoes until … Continue reading U.S. Naval Torpedo Station
https://prologue.blogs.archives.gov/2024/07/24/u-s-naval-torpedo-station/
Global Temperatures Hit a New Record High – Again
date: 2024-07-24, from: Heatmap News
Current conditions: Torrential rain from Typhoon Gaemi brought the Philippines’ capital to a standstill • California’s Santa Barbara County is dealing with an infestation of aggressive red fire ants • Monsoonal thunderstorms could bring flash flooding to the Great Basin region this week.
THE TOP FIVE
- Daily temperature record broken for 2 days in a row
Sunday was the hottest day ever recorded, and Monday was even hotter. Data from the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service shows the global average surface air temperature reached 62.87 degrees Fahrenheit Monday, which is just a touch higher than the all-time high of 62.76 degrees Fahrenheit recorded 24 hours earlier. And both days broke the new heat record set just last year. Before that, the previous hottest day was recorded in 2016. The trend is particularly worrying since the El Niño weather pattern, which tends to overlap with the warmest years on record, has now receded.
C3S
“What is truly staggering is how large the difference is between the temperature of the last 13 months and the previous temperature records,” said Copernicus director Carlo Buontempo. “We are now in truly uncharted territory and as the climate keeps warming, we are bound to see new records being broken in future months and years.” The records could well keep falling this week – last year’s stretch of new highs lasted for four days.
- Company behind damaged Vineyard Wind blade reports earnings today
GE Vernova will likely face some tough questions in a call with analysts today after it reports Q2 results. The company is the manufacturer behind a broken blade that fell from a Vineyard Wind turbine on July 13 and scattered debris across Nantucket beaches. Its shares have fallen by about 5% since the incident, which is still under investigation. Investors will want to know what happened – and whether it’s likely to happen again. As Heatmap’s Emily Pontecorvo explained, wind turbine blades can break for a variety of reasons, including factors like poor quality control and defects during manufacturing. In May, a blade on the same model of turbine sustained damage at a wind farm being installed off the coast of England called Dogger Bank.
An initial environmental assessment of the accident, commissioned by GE Vernova and released last night, concluded that the blade materials are non-toxic and do not contain any PFAS, but could pose an injury risk for beachgoers.
- Canada wildfires force 25,000 to evacuate
About 25,000 people have been evacuated from Canada’s Jasper National Park as wildfires rage. There are 170 blazes in the Alberta province, and 375 in British Columbia. Officials warn that more than half are burning out of control, and the hot weather conditions have only made things worse. Fires are also burning near oil sands in Alberta that produce two-thirds of Canada’s oil, according to Reuters. Last year’s fire season was the worst on record, scorching some 37 million acres. Here is a look at the regional wildfire map as of this morning:
- Musk denies pledging $45 million in monthly donations to Trump
Tesla CEO Elon Musk yesterday denied reports that he planned to donate $45 million a month to support Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential bid. “What’s been reported in the media is simply not true,” he told Jordan Peterson. Musk, who endorsed Trump, established a Super PAC called the America PAC, which he said will “promote the principles that made America great in the first place.” Trump and Musk have reportedly been speaking by phone, with Musk trying to persuade Trump on the merits of EVs. Trump has said he will end the EV “mandate” if he’s elected in November and gut EV tax credits. But he has adjusted his tone as of late. Over the weekend he said he was “totally for” EVs.
In related news, Tesla reported Q2 earnings yesterday, with net profits down 45% year-over-year. Musk sought to calm investors’ nerves by focusing on the company’s ambitions for self-driving technology, and promised to unveil the robotaxi in October.
- White House to focus on curbing U.S. nitrous oxide emissions
The Biden administration announced a new effort to “tackle climate super pollutants” like nitrous oxide, or N2O. This gas is far more potent than carbon dioxide but doesn’t last as long in the atmosphere. The White House said the new initiative would seek to reduce N2O emissions from industry by 50% next year compared to 2020 levels as companies work to curb their own pollution. The U.S. will also try to work with China to reduce these emissions from chemical plants across both countries. Together, the U.S. and China produce about 80% of industrial N2O pollution. “If successful, the two countries could reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking approximately 50 million automobiles off the road at a fraction of the cost of other emission reduction efforts,” Inside Climate News reported.
THE KICKER
The British royal family’s Crown Estate saw profits more than double over the last year, thanks largely to six offshore wind leasing deals.
https://heatmap.news/climate/hottest-day-ever-earth-temperature
Tim Peake joins Axiom Space as an astronaut advisor
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
A new mission: Securing funding for Brits in orbit
Former European Space Agency astronaut Tim Peake has joined Axiom Space’s astronaut team as a strategic advisor supporting a potential all-UK human spaceflight mission.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/tim_peake_joins_axiom_space/
The Real Hero of ‘Twisters’ Is Geoengineering
date: 2024-07-24, from: Heatmap News
This weekend, millions of Americans were reminded that we are living in extraordinary times. At moments, it almost seemed like you could feel our place in the great continuum of history — at once stretching backward to those who came before us while also extending forward, onward, to those who’ve been passed the torch.
I am talking, of course, about the Twister sequel.
Twisters touched down in theaters last Friday, nearly 30 years after its precursor was released on LaserDisc and VHS with a message from the FEMA administrator to “never try to outdrive a tornado.” For Hollywood reboots and the meteorological sciences both, three decades is an eon; Twisters’ lead actress, Daisy Edgar-Jones, was born two years after Twister premiered, and while Helen Hunt’s Jo had dreamed of improving tornado warning times in the mid-1990s, the Millennial storm chasers in Twisters own drones and plausibly discuss snuffing out the storms entirely. (Speaking of warnings: There are spoilers ahead.)
Twisters is a movie that loves science and shows its work. Director Lee Isaac Chung reportedly consulted researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and elsewhere to get the basic facts right, and in the opening minutes of the film, the screenplay debunks the common “one Mississippi” method of calculating a storm’s distance (in case you’re not familiar, here’s an explanation); casually references Lagrangian mechanics; and features a memorable PSA on why you should never use an overpass for shelter during a tornado. Twisters protagonists work for, or use taxpayer-funded technologies from, NOAA, the National Weather Service, and the military — a particularly meaningful inclusion at a time when government-funded science is under open threat by one of the leading candidates for highest office.
Even Twisters’ lack of focus on climate change is relatively accurate: While it might feel odd for there not to be an obvious climate nod in a weather disaster movie, scientists still haven’t demonstrated a strong correlation between global warming and tornadoes. Suggesting otherwise might actually have done more damage to public understanding by blurring the line between a frightening enough reality and Hollywood fiction in the name of topical relevance.
Still, Twisters does take some dramatic liberties. At one point, a weaker EF1 tornado breaks the blade off a wind turbine, which probably wouldn’t happen. The most egregious liberty, however, comes at the end of the film, when a tornado runs through an oil and gas refinery and wreaks havoc on the town of El Reno, Oklahoma. “The shelters are full; we’ve got to get everyone to the movie theater!” one character shouts when it becomes clear El Reno is on the verge of catastrophe. (I bet Warner Bros. loved that one.) But at just the moment when the tornado rips out the wall of the theater, turning the defacto shelter full of innocent people into the suck zone, Edgar-Jones’ character Kate is able to deploy a technology that decreases the moisture inside the twister, making it instantly collapse and dissolve.
To be clear, this is about as scientifically accurate as a Sharknado. Though the mechanics are real — Kate shoots the tornado with silver iodide, currently used in cloud seeding, to induce moisture, then saps the storm of water using sodium polyacrylate — the amount of absorbent material required to actually “tame” a tornado would be impossible to deploy. A twister also wouldn’t vanish instantly even if enough chemicals somehow could disrupt its moisture content. As Kevin Kelleher, a scientist who consulted on both Twister(s), told The New York Times, it would likely take closer to 15 to 20 minutes for a storm to — again, theoretically — collapse.
What is more interesting than Twisters’ dubious tornado-taming technique, though, is that it’s a rare positive example of geoengineering in an American film. Prior to Friday, the most memorable example of geoengineering in a widely seen movie was in Snowpiercer, where an attempt to correct global warming goes so awry that Chris Evans is forced to live on a train and eat babies. (This is a safe space from discussion of Geostorm.)
Twisters never reaches the point of exploring the ethics or potential downsides of Kate’s geoengineering experiment, and the credits roll over magazine and newspaper articles lauding her for “Taking Weather Science by Storm.” But Chung, the director, doesn’t let the moment pass entirely unremarked upon, either. The movie showing in the theater when the tornado hits El Reno is Frankenstein — perhaps our most famous parable about the hubris of playing God.
Movies don’t need to be accurate to be good, but Twisters nevertheless makes research and data the objective, nerds the hot heroes, and real-life scientists the background extras. In keeping with its dedication to science, it also takes geoengineering out of the realm of the dystopic; while there are plenty of people still staunchly opposed to climate modification, it is also no longer “one of climate science’s biggest taboos,” as my colleague Robinson Meyer has written.
Far more importantly, though, Twisters is a blast. It never tries to be anything more than what it is: a popcorn-worthy romantic disaster movie. Accuracy is just the cherry on top for us weather nerds in the audience; as one character rightly puts it: “Smile man — science is fun.”
https://heatmap.news/culture/twisters-movie-geoengineering
The Real Hero of ‘Twisters’ Is Geoengineering
date: 2024-07-24, from: Heatmap News
This weekend, millions of Americans were reminded that we are living in extraordinary times. At moments, it almost seemed like you could feel our place in the great continuum of history — at once stretching backward to those who came before us while also extending forward, onward, to those who’ve been passed the torch.
I am talking, of course, about the Twister sequel.
Twisters touched down in theaters last Friday, nearly 30 years after its precursor was released on LaserDisc and VHS with a message from the FEMA administrator to “never try to outdrive a tornado.” For Hollywood reboots and the meteorological sciences both, three decades is an eon; Twisters’ lead actress, Daisy Edgar-Jones, was born two years after Twister premiered, and while Helen Hunt’s Jo had dreamed of improving tornado warning times in the mid-1990s, the Millennial storm chasers in Twisters own drones and plausibly discuss snuffing out the storms entirely. (Speaking of warnings: There are spoilers ahead.)
Twisters is a movie that loves science and shows its work. Director Lee Isaac Chung reportedly consulted researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and elsewhere to get the basic facts right, and in the opening minutes of the film, the screenplay debunks the common “one Mississippi” method of calculating a storm’s distance (in case you’re not familiar, here’s an explanation); casually references Lagrangian mechanics; and features a memorable PSA on why you should never use an overpass for shelter during a tornado. Twisters protagonists work for, or use taxpayer-funded technologies from, NOAA, the National Weather Service, and the military — a particularly meaningful inclusion at a time when government-funded science is under open threat by one of the leading candidates for highest office.
Even Twisters’ lack of focus on climate change is relatively accurate: While it might feel odd for there not to be an obvious climate nod in a weather disaster movie, scientists still haven’t demonstrated a strong correlation between global warming and tornadoes. Suggesting otherwise might actually have done more damage to public understanding by blurring the line between a frightening enough reality and Hollywood fiction in the name of topical relevance.
Still, Twisters does take some dramatic liberties. At one point, a weaker EF1 tornado breaks the blade off a wind turbine, which probably wouldn’t happen. The most egregious liberty, however, comes at the end of the film, when a tornado runs through an oil and gas refinery and wreaks havoc on the town of El Reno, Oklahoma. “The shelters are full; we’ve got to get everyone to the movie theater!” one character shouts when it becomes clear El Reno is on the verge of catastrophe. (I bet Warner Bros. loved that one.) But at just the moment when the tornado rips out the wall of the theater, turning the defacto shelter full of innocent people into the suck zone, Edgar-Jones’ character Kate is able to deploy a technology that decreases the moisture inside the twister, making it instantly collapse and dissolve.
To be clear, this is about as scientifically accurate as a Sharknado. Though the mechanics are real — Kate shoots the tornado with silver iodide, currently used in cloud seeding, to induce moisture, then saps the storm of water using sodium polyacrylate — the amount of absorbent material required to actually “tame” a tornado would be impossible to deploy. A twister also wouldn’t vanish instantly even if enough chemicals somehow could disrupt its moisture content. As Kevin Kelleher, a scientist who consulted on both Twister(s), told The New York Times, it would likely take closer to 15 to 20 minutes for a storm to — again, theoretically — collapse.
What is more interesting than Twisters’ dubious tornado-taming technique, though, is that it’s a rare positive example of geoengineering in an American film. Prior to Friday, the most memorable example of geoengineering in a widely seen movie was in Snowpiercer, where an attempt to correct global warming goes so awry that Chris Evans is forced to live on a train and eat babies. (This is a safe space from discussion of Geostorm.)
Twisters never reaches the point of exploring the ethics or potential downsides of Kate’s geoengineering experiment, and the credits roll over magazine and newspaper articles lauding her for “Taking Weather Science by Storm.” But Chung, the director, doesn’t let the moment pass entirely unremarked upon, either. The movie showing in the theater when the tornado hits El Reno is Frankenstein — perhaps our most famous parable about the hubris of playing God.
Movies don’t need to be accurate to be good, but Twisters nevertheless makes research and data the objective, nerds the hot heroes, and real-life scientists the background extras. In keeping with its dedication to science, it also takes geoengineering out of the realm of the dystopic; while there are plenty of people still staunchly opposed to climate modification, it is also no longer “one of climate science’s biggest taboos,” as my colleague Robinson Meyer has written.
Far more importantly, though, Twisters is a blast. It never tries to be anything more than what it is: a popcorn-worthy romantic disaster movie. Accuracy is just the cherry on top for us weather nerds in the audience; as one character rightly puts it: “Smile man — science is fun.”
https://heatmap.news/culture/twisters-movie-silver-iodide
Apple’s Clamshell iBook G3 at 25 – not just a pretty case
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Remembering when laptops could be fun and fixable
It is 25 years since Apple’s Clamshell iBook G3 arrived, replete with iMac styling and an innovation – optional Wi-Fi connectivity via Apple’s AirPort.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/apple_clamshell_ibook_g3_25/
Humanity’s Most Abundant Material Is a Huge Climate Problem
date: 2024-07-24, from: Heatmap News
Jesse is on vacation until August, so this is a special, Rob-only summer episode of Shift Key.
The world uses about 30 billion tons of concrete every year — more than any other material except water. It is the most ubiquitous human-made substance in the global economy. It’s also a huge climate problem. Producing cement, which is the key ingredient in concrete, generates roughly 8% of global annual greenhouse gas emissions.
Cody Finke has a plan to change that. He is the chief executive officer and cofounder of Brimstone, a startup that says it can cheaply produce ordinary Portland cement — the kind used in construction worldwide — without carbon emissions. This week, Rob chats with Finke about why cement’s carbon emissions aren’t from fossil fuels, why there are fewer cement plants than you might think, and the all-important difference between cement and concrete.
This episode of Shift Key is hosted by Robinson Meyer, the founding executive editor of Heatmap.
Subscribe to “Shift Key” and find this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also add the show’s RSS feed to your podcast app to follow us directly.
Here is an excerpt from our conversation:
Robinson Meyer: Concrete is such an archetypal big machine problem in decarbonization. Because not only is it carbon intensive, but also — like car engines or like plane engines but, notably, unlike power plants — maybe like power plants — the technology to do it is extremely dispersed. There are hundreds of thousands of concrete plants around the world, and they all have to be replaced to decarbonize this process. It’s just a huge, huge scaling endeavor, and one that, forces you to reckon with the material implications of decarbonization in a way that, I think, it can often be easier to skip over or, just think, in the form of electricity: Oh, we can just drop new power plants in, we can build renewables. But that’s not how decarbonizing concrete will work.
Cody Finke: I would actually want to challenge that slightly.
Meyer: Perfect.
Finke: So, for many solutions, that’s the case because you’re absolutely right, there are hundreds of thousands of concrete plants. But there are not hundreds of thousands of cement plants. Cement is the binder in concrete, and for the listeners —
Meyer: Yeah, let’s actually do this because clearly I also don’t fully understand.
Finke: Concrete’s the building material. It is the most consumed material on the planet. We make 40 to 50 billion tons of it every year as humans. Concrete is sand, gravel, water, and cement — cement is the glue. Without cement, concrete would just be a pile of sand and gravel — a wet pile of sand and gravel. Cement is essential for turning that pile of sand and gravel into a pourable rock.
But cement is only about 10% of concrete — 10% to 20% — and it’s made in large, centralized facilities that are located basically around big population centers. There are only 2,000 or 3,000 cement plants in the world. So it depends on your solution, right? If your solution is making a novel material, then it may require working at the concrete level, which can be good and bad. There’s a lot of those facilities, but they’re also a bit cheaper. There’s good and bad attributes of that.
But if you were to do something like what Brimstone is doing, which is making ordinary Portland cement, then what you have to do is replace those 2,000 or 3,000 cement plants, which is still a big number —
Meyer: It is still a big number, but actually not a very big number.
This episode of Shift Key is sponsored by …
Watershed’s climate data engine helps companies measure and reduce their emissions, turning the data they already have into an audit-ready carbon footprint backed by the latest climate science. Get the sustainability data you need in weeks, not months. Learn more at watershed.com.
As a global leader in PV and ESS solutions, Sungrow invests heavily in research and development, constantly pushing the boundaries of solar and battery inverter technology. Discover why Sungrow is the essential component of the clean energy transition by visiting sungrowpower.com.
Music for Shift Key is by Adam Kromelow.
https://heatmap.news/podcast/shift-key-episode-25-brimstone
Raleigh Solmonson | Safety Issue on the Bike Paths
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
I was born and raised in the Santa Clarita Valley. Having lived here for 15 years, I consider it my home, and enjoy living here. One of my favorite activities […]
The post Raleigh Solmonson | Safety Issue on the Bike Paths appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/raleigh-solmonson-safety-issue-on-the-bike-paths/
Richard Myers | Two Questions on the Lighter Side
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
With all the turmoil going on in the world, I’d like to get the answer to two simple questions. Not about politics or wars, but simple questions: First, who was […]
The post Richard Myers | Two Questions on the Lighter Side appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/richards-myers-two-questions-on-the-lighter-side/
TrackPack: a smart backpack for horse riders
date: 2024-07-24, from: Raspberry Pi News (.com)
TrackPack is a smart backpack designed for horse riders, featuring turn signals, automatic lights, and route tracking.
The post TrackPack: a smart backpack for horse riders appeared first on Raspberry Pi.
https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/trackpack-a-smart-backpack-for-horse-riders/
Dan Walters | California Image to Be Election Weapon
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
“Alright, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up.” Fading movie star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) utters those words in the final scene of “Sunset Boulevard,” Billy Wilder’s 1950 film noir […]
The post Dan Walters | California Image to Be Election Weapon appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/dan-walters-california-image-to-be-election-weapon/
The Savvy Senior | Kitchen Ideas for Aging in Place
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
Dear Savvy Senior, My 77-year-old mother, who loves to cook, has had several kitchen-related accidents over the past year. What tips can you recommend for making a kitchen safer and […]
The post The Savvy Senior | Kitchen Ideas for Aging in Place appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/the-savvy-senior-kitchen-ideas-for-aging-in-place/
School gets an F for using facial recognition on kids in canteen
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Watchdog reprimand follows similar cases in 2021
The UK’s data protection watchdog has reprimanded a school in Essex for using facial recognition for canteen payments, nearly three years after other schools were warned about doing the same.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/essex_school_facial_recognition/
In Indianapolis, Harris addresses Black sorority, a key campaign mobilizer
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
Indianapolis — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a speech to a historically Black sorority in Indianapolis on Wednesday, marking one of her first public appearances since President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsed her for the Democratic Party nomination on Sunday.
Speaking at the biennial gathering of the Zeta Phi Beta (ZPB) sorority, Harris delivered a speech that closely echoed remarks made on the campaign trail, though the event was part of her official duties as vice president.
Founded in 1920 at Harris’ alma mater, Howard University, ZPB is one of the nation’s largest historically Black sororities — social organizations with female-only memberships at colleges and universities whose purpose is to foster community, academic achievement and career development, among other things.
In remarks during the visit, announced as an official White House stop before Biden dropped out, Harris lauded the president, saying that “we are deeply, deeply grateful for his service to our nation.”
“He cares about the future, he thinks about the future,” Harris said. “He has extraordinary determination and profound compassion for the people of our country.”
Earlier this month in Dallas, Texas, Harris spoke to more than 20,000 members and alumnae of her own sorority at Howard University, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., at its national convention.
Sorority figures play key roles in the group Win With Black Women, which organized a Zoom call with 44,000 attendees just hours after Biden endorsed Harris. The group said it raised more than $1.5 million for her campaign in just a few hours.
A similar effort by Win With Black Men raised more than $1 million, adding to the $100 million raised by the Harris campaign in less than 48 hours. This is in addition to money raised by political action committees separate from the campaign. The largest one, the Future Forward PAC, reported $150 million in commitments in the first 24 hours.
Sororities and fraternities
There are nine historically Black sororities — and fraternities, their male equivalent — known as the “Divine Nine.”
Sororities and fraternities are among the most important networks in the African American community, said Steve Phillips, founder of the political media organization Democracy in Color, and author of several books on demographic shifts in the American electorate.
“Members are passionate, energetic and engaged throughout their entire lives,” he told VOA, so these pre-existing and highly involved groups can swiftly emerge as formidable campaign resources.
“We saw some of this with [Barack] Obama in 2007 and 2008, and I expect it to be another order of magnitude fundraising and volunteering with Harris,” he said.
Sororities are pathways to another key resource — Black female celebrities.
These groups are actively recruiting notable figures and celebrities as honorary members, said Samantha N. Sheppard, Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Performing and Media Arts at Cornell University.
With Hollywood big names including Kerry Washington, Viola Davis, Jenifer Lewis and others pledging support for Harris, the “groundswell of Black women celebrity activism” has already begun, she told VOA.
Harris’ run for the nation’s top job has energized African American voters, a key Democratic constituency whose enthusiasm waned when Biden was on top of the ticket. However, amid the rampant racist and sexist attacks on Harris online, they are also bracing themselves.
“It’s critical for Black women with platforms to work together to rise above the misogynoir that Harris will face,” Sheppard said, using a term that combines racism and sexism to describe the oppression of Black women.
Attacks are already being launched at Harris for traveling to Indianapolis and declining to preside over Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to Congress, also happening Wednesday.
From Indianapolis, Harris heads to Houston, Texas, to speak in front of the American Federation of Teachers on Friday. After landing in Houston, Harris is scheduled to meet with local emergency response officials for a briefing on the Hurricane Beryl recovery efforts, where she will reiterate the administration’s commitment to delivering resources to affected communities.
Dylan Ebs contributed to this report.
Apple Lisa Pascal compiler sources
date: 2024-07-24, from: Hans Otten’s, Pascal for small machines
I found an archive with the source of the early Lisa Pascal by Silicon Valley Software. The archive contains images of Lisa disks in dc42 format. In these disk images are the sources (and more) of the Silicon Valley Software Pascal compiler for the Lisa. Andy McFadden (of Ciderpres fame) analyzed this and found out […]
http://pascal.hansotten.com/2024/07/24/apple-lisa-pascal-compiler-sources/
‘Data embassies’ promise bubbles of digital sovereignty, but India just cooled on the idea
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Scratch the surface and they look more like a sales pitch – or a soft power play
Embassies are bubbles of sovereignty that local authorities cannot freely enter and in which certain communications are privileged – an arrangement that is generally agreed as essential to facilitate international relations. And now the same protections are being suggested as needed to create a “data embassy” – datacenters that local authorities can’t access and in which nations can store info and run software on foreign shores.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/data_embassies/
Will Kamala Harris Hold The Powerful Accountable?
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Lever News
As Harris locks in her presidential nomination, here’s her record on monopolies and financial power.
https://www.levernews.com/will-kamala-harris-hold-the-powerful-accountable/
Classifieds – July 24, 2024
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The Daily Trojan features Classified advertising in each day’s edition. Here you can read, search, and even print out each day’s edition of the Classifieds.
The post Classifieds – July 24, 2024 appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/07/24/classifieds-july-24-2024/
Anti-war protesters gather at US Capitol ahead of Netanyahu address to Congress
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
https://www.voanews.com/a/netanyahu-seeking-to-rally-support-in-address-us-congress/7710667.html
Today in SCV History (July 24)
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
1864 – Walker/Reynier family patriarch Jean Joseph Reynier, then 15, arrives in Sand Canyon from France; eventually homesteads 1,200 acres [story
https://scvnews.com/today-in-scv-history-july-24/
Forget security – Google’s reCAPTCHA v2 is exploiting users for profit
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Web puzzles don’t protect against bots, but humans have spent 819 million unpaid hours solving them
Updated Google promotes its reCAPTCHA service as a security mechanism for websites, but researchers affiliated with the University of California, Irvine, argue it’s harvesting information while extracting human labor worth billions.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/googles_recaptchav2_labor/
curl 8.9.0
date: 2024-07-24, from: Daniel Stenberg Blog
Numbers the 258th release11 changes63 days (total: 9,623)260 bugfixes (total: 10,531)423 commits (total: 32,704)0 new public libcurl function (total: 94)1 new curl_easy_setopt() option (total: 306)4 new curl command line option (total: 263)80 contributors, 38 new (total: 3,209)47 authors, 16 new (total: 1,288)2 security fixes (total: 157) Download the new curl release from curl.se as always. … Continue reading curl 8.9.0
https://daniel.haxx.se/blog/2024/07/24/curl-8-9-0/
US investigates Delta flight cancellations, response to global tech outage
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
CrowdStrike blames a test software bug for that giant global mess it made
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-25, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Something called ‘Content Validator’ did not validate the content, and the rest is history
CrowdStrike has blamed a bug in its own test software for the mass-crash-event it caused last week.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/crowdstrike_validator_failure/
CrowdStrike blames a test software bug for that giant global mess it made
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Something called ‘Content Validator’ did not validate the content, and the rest is history
CrowdStrike has blamed a bug in its own test software for the mass-crash-event it caused last week.…
Security biz KnowBe4 hired fake North Korean techie, who got straight to work … on evil
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
If it can happen to folks that run social engineering defence training, what hope for the rest of us?
Cybersecurity awareness and training provider KnowBe4 hired a North Korean fake IT worker for a software engineering role on its AI team, and only realized its mistake once the guy started using his company-provided computer for evil.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/knowbe4_north_korean/
What’s the outlook for global food production this year?
date: 2024-07-24, from: Hannah Richie at Substack
So far, USDA projections suggest a big year of production for our key crops.
https://www.sustainabilitybynumbers.com/p/global-food-outlook-2024
Vehicle pursuit heads north on I-5
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
Law enforcement entered a pursuit on Interstate 5 with a vehicle suspected of being involved in a carjacking that originated Tuesday night in Stevenson Ranch, according to California Highway Patrol […]
The post Vehicle pursuit heads north on I-5 appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/vehicle-pursuit-heads-north-on-i-5/
VMware sends vSphere 7 into extra time by extending support for six months
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
A nice surprise, but some other vAdmins have an August 1 deadline to sort out subscriptions
VMware users have had a little win, as the Broadcom business unit has extended the supported life of its flagship vSphere software.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/vsphere_7_eos_date_extended/
All Evacuation Orders and Warnings Lifted for Lake Fire
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
The fire remains at 38,644 acres and 90 percent containment, with 925 firefighters remaining in the fire zone.
The post All Evacuation Orders and Warnings Lifted for Lake Fire appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/23/all-evacuation-orders-and-warnings-lifted-for-lake-fire/
Harris promises compassion over ‘fear and hate’ in debut campaign rally
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
MILWAUKEE — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris assailed Donald Trump on Tuesday at her first campaign rally since replacing President Joe Biden as the Democratic presidential candidate.
In a 17-minute speech, Harris went after Trump’s vulnerabilities, comparing her background as a former prosecutor to his record as a convicted felon.
Harris ticked through a list of liberal priorities, saying that if elected she would act to expand abortion access, make it easier for workers to join unions, and address gun violence, drawing a sharp contrast with Trump, the Republican nominee for president in the November 5 election.
“Donald Trump wants to take our country backward,” she told a cheering crowd of several thousand at West Allis Central High School in a Milwaukee suburb in Wisconsin, a battleground state with a pivotal role in deciding the election outcome.
“Do we want to live in a country of freedom, compassion and rule of law, or a country of chaos, fear and hate?”
The raucous rally was a notable contrast to the smaller, more subdued events Biden held, underscoring Democrats’ hope that Harris, 59, can revive what had been a flagging campaign under Biden, 81. The audience danced and waved Harris signs, while chants of “Ka-ma-la!” broke out when she took the stage.
She emphasized her commitment to reproductive rights, an issue that has plagued Republicans since the U.S. Supreme Court — powered by three Trump-appointed justices — eliminated a nationwide right to abortion in 2022.
Trump and his allies have tried to tether Harris to some of Biden’s more unpopular policies, including his administration’s handling of the surge of migrants at the southern border with Mexico.
In a conference call with reporters on Tuesday, Trump expressed confidence in his ability to defeat Harris, noting that her previous presidential run in 2020 did not even survive until the first statewide nominating contest.
Trump offered to debate Harris multiple times. Trump and Biden had one more debate scheduled on September 10 after their encounter on June 27. Biden’s poor performance that night led to Democratic calls for him to step aside.
“I want to debate her, and she’ll be no different because they have the same policies,” Trump said.
Harris swiftly consolidated her party’s support after Biden abandoned his reelection campaign under pressure from members of his party who worried about his ability to beat 78-year-old Trump, or to serve another four-year term.
Harris has received pledges from enough delegates to win the nominations, the campaign said. But nothing is certain until next month’s Democratic National Convention, when the delegates will vote to determine the nominee.
Her campaign said it had raised $100 million since Sunday.
Most Democratic lawmakers have lined up behind her candidacy, including the party’s leaders in the Senate and House, Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries, who endorsed Harris on Tuesday at a joint press conference.
Harris’ rise dramatically reshapes an election in which many voters were unhappy with their options. As the first Black woman and Asian American to serve as vice president, she would make further history as the first woman elected U.S. president.
Wisconsin is among a trio of Rust Belt states, along with Michigan and Pennsylvania, that are critical to Democrats’ chances of defeating Trump.
Alyssa Wahlborg, 19, vice chair of the Whitewater College Democrats, said Harris had reenergized young voters, particularly women who want Harris to break the ultimate U.S. glass ceiling.
“I talked to my grandmom. We are both excited that she may live to see the first woman president,” said Wahlborg while attending Tuesday’s rally. “It’s taken too long.”
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling and title of Alyssa Wahlborg.
Demonstrators protest Netanyahu’s US visit, military aid to Israel
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
washington — Protesters against the Gaza war staged a sit-in at a U.S. congressional office building on Tuesday, ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress. Capitol Police made multiple arrests.
Netanyahu arrived in Washington on Monday for a visit that includes meetings with President Joe Biden and a Wednesday speech before a joint session of Congress. Dozens of protesters rallied outside his hotel Monday evening, and on Tuesday afternoon, hundreds staged a flashmob-style protest in the Cannon Building, which houses offices of members of the U.Sl House of Representatives.
Organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, protesters — wearing red T-shirts that read “Not In Our Name” — took over the building’s rotunda by sitting on the floor, unfurling signs and chanting “Let Gaza Live!”
After about a half-hour of clapping and chanting, officers from the U.S. Capitol Police issued several warnings, then began arresting protesters — binding their hands with zip ties and leading them away one-by-one.
“I am the daughter of Holocaust survivors and I know what a Holocaust looks like,” said Jane Hirschmann, a native of Saugerties, New York, who drove down for the protest along with her two daughters — both of whom were arrested. “When we say ‘Never again,’ we mean never for anybody.”
Anger aimed at US president
The demonstrators focused much of their ire on the Biden administration, demanding the president immediately cease all arms shipments to Israel.
“We’re not focusing on Netanyahu. He’s just a symptom,” Hirschmann said. “But how can (Biden) be calling for a cease-fire when he’s sending them bombs and planes?”
As of 8 p.m. Tuesday, the Capitol Police said they did not have a final tally of the number of people arrested. But JVP said in a statement that 400 people, “including over a dozen rabbis,” had been arrested.
Mitchell Rivard, chief of staff for Representative Dan Kildee of Michigan, said in a statement that his office called for Capitol Police intervention after the demonstrators “became disruptive, violently beating on the office doors, shouting loudly, and attempting to force entry into the office.”
Kildee later told The Associated Press that he was confused why his office was targeted, saying he had voted against a massive supplemental military aid package to Israel earlier this year.
Netanyahu’s U.S. visit has touched off a wave of protest activity, with some demonstrations condemning Israel and others expressing support but pressuring Netanyahu to strike a cease-fire deal and bring home the hostages still being held by Hamas.
Families of some of the remaining hostages held a protest vigil Tuesday evening on the National Mall, demanding that Netanyahu come to terms with Hamas and bring home the approximately 120 Israeli hostages remaining in Gaza.
About 150 people wearing yellow shirts that read “Seal the Deal NOW!” chanted “Bring Them Home” and listened to testimonials from relatives and former hostages. The demonstrators applauded when Biden’s name was mentioned, but several criticized Netanyahu — known by his nickname “Bibi” — on the belief that he was dragging his feet or playing hardball on a proposed cease-fire deal that would return all of the hostages.
“I’m begging Bibi. There’s a deal on the table and you have to take it,” said Aviva Siegel, 63, who spent 51 days in captivity and whose husband, Keith, remains a hostage. “I want Bibi to look in my eyes and tell me one thing: that Keith is coming home.”
Anticipating protests, security boosted
Multiple protests are planned for Wednesday, when Netanyahu is slated to address Congress. In anticipation, police have boosted security around the Capitol building and closed multiple roads for most of the week.
Biden and Netanyahu are expected to meet Thursday, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the White House announcement. Vice President Kamala Harris also will meet with Netanyahu separately that day.
Harris, as Senate president, would normally sit behind foreign leaders addressing Congress, but she’ll be away Wednesday on an Indianapolis trip scheduled before Biden withdrew his reelection bid and she became the likely Democratic presidential candidate over the weekend.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he would meet with Netanyahu on Friday.
Google keeps the cost of AI search flat, and kids are lovin’ it
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
As the G-Cloud brings in big bucks and plentiful profit
Google has managed to cap the costs it incurs when using AI to generate results.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/alphabet_q2_2024/
‘Eye Candy’ opens Aug. 2 at SCAA Gallery
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
News release Three award-winning local artists, Harriette Knight, Patty Haft and Georgette Arison, are inviting the public to an opening reception of their art show, “Eye Candy,” from 5 to 8 […]
The post ‘Eye Candy’ opens Aug. 2 at SCAA Gallery appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/eye-candy-opens-aug-2-at-scaa-gallery/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-07-24, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Blues Legend John Mayall Is Dead at 90.
https://www.vanityfair.com/style/story/blues-legend-john-mayall-is-dead-at-90
Fire Department responds to multiple reports of fires around SCV
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
Personnel with the Los Angeles County Fire Department responded late Tuesday afternoon to reports of a pair of brush fires in Agua Dulce and a vehicle fire on the southbound […]
The post Fire Department responds to multiple reports of fires around SCV appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/fire-department-responds-to-multiple-reports-of-fires-around-scv/
SCAA to host 34th Annual Art Classic Sept. 28
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
News release Santa Clarita Artists Association is scheduled Sept. 28 to hold its annual Art Classic Gala, a fundraiser and celebration of fine arts in the Santa Clarita Valley. The […]
The post SCAA to host 34th Annual Art Classic Sept. 28 appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/scaa-to-host-34th-annual-art-classic-sept-28/
County ethics commission proposal clears first step
date: 2024-07-24, from: The Signal
L.A. County 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger said her motion to get the ball rolling on establishing an independent ethics commission for the county is about “reforms to improve our […]
The post County ethics commission proposal clears first step appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/07/county-ethics-commission-proposal-clears-first-step/
Sols 4253-4254: Pit Stop for Contact Science
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
Earth planning date: Monday, July 22, 2024 Last week we wrapped up activities at Fairview Dome and started heading south towards our next potential drill location in the Upper Gediz Vallis ridge campaign. We had about a 29-meter (about 95 feet) drive over the weekend, which set us up nicely for contact science and remote […]
https://science.nasa.gov/blogs/sols-4253-4254-pit-stop-for-contact-science/
Paris 2024 Olympics: The Summer Games
date: 2024-07-24, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
New sports like breakdancing and kayak cross ahead, while the surf will be up in French Polynesia, but don’t expect to see the Russian or Belarusian flag.
The post Paris 2024 Olympics: The Summer Games appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/07/23/paris-2024-olympics-the-summer-games/
Biden returns to White House as Harris soars on campaign
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
President Joe Biden returned to the White House Tuesday after an eventful news week that he spent entirely out of the spotlight – yet still managed to dominate with news of his exit from the presidential race. Meanwhile, his vice president hit the road launching her presidential campaign. VOA’s Anita Powell reports from the White House.
https://www.voanews.com/a/biden-returns-to-white-house-as-harris-soars-on-campaign/7710581.html
Harris’ campaign starts search for running mate
date: 2024-07-24, from: VOA News USA
washington — Who will she pick? That’s the big political question in America after U.S. President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who has quickly collected a critical mass of Democratic Party support and funding.
The selection in question is Harris’ running mate, the person who would step into the role she will shed if the Democrats are victorious in November’s presidential election against Republicans Donald Trump and J.D. Vance.
Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and his law firm are vetting Harris’ potential vice presidential candidates, according to media reports.
The campaign has requested vetting materials from five Democratic governors — Roy Cooper of North Carolina, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Tim Walz of Minnesota and J.B. Pritzker of Illinois — and one U.S. senator, Democrat Mark Kelly of Arizona, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Those who pass the vetting “will probably have a one-on-one conversation with Harris and then she’ll make a choice, probably in the week or so before the convention,” William Galston, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told VOA. “The danger of an accelerated process is that you know things will be overlooked. Mistakes will be made that a more leisurely process would have prevented. But she has no choice. She has to do it fast and get it right.”
Quest to balance ticket
It “is most likely” that Harris, as the daughter of a Black father and a mother who emigrated from India, will choose a white man to be her number two, according to Joel K. Goldstein, a scholar of U.S. vice presidents and the Vincent C. Immel professor of law emeritus at the St. Louis University School of Law.
Geographical balance is another factor. Harris, who is from California, a solidly Democratic state, likely desires someone who can boost the party’s chance in one of the critical swing states — territory that spans westward from Pennsylvania to Michigan, as well as the southern state of Georgia.
“Someone from the Midwest or even from the South would be a good choice,” said Jay Chen, Democratic National Committee delegate from California and co-chair of Taiwanese Americans for Progress.
“Andy Beshear, he’s a governor from Kentucky. I think he would make a good choice. We want to make sure that we’re balancing out the ticket, because we have someone [Harris] from California,” said Chen. “I think we do have to make sure that folks in the Midwest on the East Coast from the South, that they don’t feel like they’re going to be ignored by this administration and this is an excellent opportunity to try to try to balance out the ticket.”
Historically, geographic balance “was perhaps the most common type of balance that you would see on tickets,” according to Goldstein. Nowadays, “the idea of geographic balance is not really as important a calculation as some other things.”
The governors of both Pennsylvania and Michigan, who are Democrats, endorsed Harris on Monday. That quashed any speculation that Shapiro or Whitmer might challenge Harris for delegates ahead of the party’s national nominating convention next month. It also appeared to automatically place them into consideration to be the vice presidential nominee.
Pennsylvania in play
Pennsylvania is practically a must-win for either party. The Keystone State offers 19 electoral votes — the most of any 2024 battleground state — of the 270 required to reach the threshold for victory in a U.S. presidential election.
In an on-air conversation about Shapiro, CNN chief national correspondent John King said the governor is a contender, but “he’s Jewish. There could be some risks with putting him on the ticket.”
Commentators on social media quickly responded that Harris may be hesitant to select Shapiro, who is a strong supporter of Israel, as he could jeopardize her chances in Michigan, where there has been a primary election backlash against the Biden-Harris ticket from Arab American voters because of the president’s support for Israel’s war against Hamas.
“It says a lot about the state of American politics, and perhaps especially in progressive circles that one of the ‘cons’ of Kamala Harris selecting” Shapiro as her vice president, is that he is Jewish and the pushback this might receive, Arsen Ostrovsky, CEO of the International Legal Forum, a global network of lawyers supporting Israel, wrote on X on Sunday.
Harris’ husband, second gentleman Douglas Emhoff, is Jewish.
There has never been a Jewish president or vice president in the United States. Democrat Al Gore in 2000 selected a Jewish U.S. senator, Joe Lieberman, as his running mate on the ticket that lost to Republicans George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.
Jews comprise less than 3% of the American population but play an outsized role in academia, business, law, the U.S. Congress, popular culture and, as has been the case with other minorities, traditionally faced institutional discrimination. Antisemitism has resurged in recent years on both the far left and far right.
The Illinois governor is also Jewish. Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt Hotels fortune, runs a state that has a large bounty of 19 electoral votes and is considered reliably blue (Democratic).
Pritzker denied in an MSNBC interview on Tuesday that he had received a request for vetting materials from the Harris campaign. Asked if he is interested in running with her, he avoided giving a direct answer.
“I love being the governor of the state of Illinois, and I’ve been out on the campaign trail fighting hard for Democrats to win,” he responded.
A possible first
The governor of Michigan (15 electoral votes) on the ticket with Harris would present an unprecedented combination — female candidates for both president and vice president.
Whitmer on Monday dampened such speculation.
“No, I am not planning to go anywhere,” she told a reporter from WLNS TV on Monday, who asked Whitmer if she would be willing to accept an offer to join Harris on the party ticket. “I am not leaving Michigan.”
No other woman is known to be under consideration by the Harris campaign.
The Republicans once nominated a woman as their vice presidential candidate. Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was selected by Senator John McCain in the 2008 election that saw Barack Obama, a Democrat, elected as the country’s first African American president.
The Democrats are also the only major party to have nominated a woman for president. Hillary Clinton, who was secretary of state and the wife of former President Bill Clinton, won the popular vote in 2016, but Trump captured the most electoral votes, thus becoming president.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, a Democrat, was elected in 2016 and again in 2020, despite Trump winning the state on the same ballot both times. Cooper is term-limited and cannot seek reelection in the Tar Hill State, which holds 16 electoral votes.
Cooper was asked repeatedly during a Monday appearance on MSNBC whether he would consider the Number 2 spot if offered by Harris.
“I appreciate people talking about me,” he said, “But I think the focus right now needs to be on her this week.”
Then there is Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky (eight electoral votes), whose state some decades ago turned reliably Republican red in presidential contests. The last time a majority of Kentuckians chose a Democrat for president was in 1996, when Bill Clinton, successfully running for reelection, bested former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole in the Bluegrass State.
Some suggest a nonpolitician
Senator Mark Kelly is the sole non-governor known to be under consideration. Arizona is a Southwestern swing state with 11 electoral votes. A former Navy combat pilot and retired astronaut, Kelly is married to former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who resigned in 2012 due to severe brain injury caused by an assassination attempt.
There are suggestions Harris should think outside the box and choose a nonpolitician, such as a retired general, to bolster her chances with conservative-leaning independent voters concerned about Trump returning as commander-in-chief.
Law professor Goldstein, author of two books about the evolution of the role of the American vice presidency, does not expect that will happen.
“Every first-time vice presidential pick since 1940 has been either a current or former United States senator, governor, member of the House of Representative or a person who held high federal executive office,” he said. “So, it would be surprising if the choice was somebody who came from the military.”
These days, Goldstein told VOA, the primary consideration for selecting a vice presidential candidate is whether they have “the caliber that they are plausible as president, at least in the eyes of people who might support the ticket, or they have the stature and the ability [that] they can take on the sort of assignments that Vice President Harris has the last three and a half years.”
Stella Hsu and Kim Lewis contributed to this report.
https://www.voanews.com/a/harris-campaign-starts-search-for-running-mate/7710235.html
Philippines wipes out its legit online gambling industry to take down scammers
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
President apologizes in advance for job losses
The Philippines has decided to dismantle the worst of its offshored industries: the bits that run gambling and scam operations.…
SCV Food Pantry in Need of Volunteers
date: 2024-07-24, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The SCV Food Pantry is in need of volunteers to help sort food, stock shelves, fill bags and distribute food to its residents in need Monday through Thursday and Saturday of each week.
https://scvnews.com/scv-food-pantry-in-need-of-volunteers/
Sols 4250-4252: So Many Rocks, So Little Time
date: 2024-07-24, from: NASA breaking news
Earth planning date: Friday, July 19, 2024 As usual with our weekend plans, we are packing a lot of science into today’s three-sol plan. I had the fun of planning a complex and large set of arm activities as the Arm Rover Planner today. Since we did not drive in Wednesday’s plan, we still are […]
https://science.nasa.gov/blogs/sols-4250-4252-so-many-rocks-so-little-time/
Mistral: Are LLMs Commodities Now?
date: 2024-07-24, updated: 2024-07-24, from: Tom Kellog blog
Mistral 2 Large is out, and it’s right up there with GPT-4o, …and Llama 3.1, and Claude Sonnet 3.5, and…yeah, there’s a lot of them. These “Frontier Models” are starting to look more like commodities. And with that shift, we need to adjust AI strategy to match. There’s strong arguments to make for using an operator that doesn’t also train models. Read more!