Links 21/01/2024: Microsoft Breach Still Spun as "Russia" Something
Contents
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Leftovers
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Hackaday ☛ Street Photography, With RADAR!
As the art of film photography has gained once more in popularity, some of the accessories from a previous age have been reinvented, as is the case with [tdsepsilon]’s radar rangefinder. Photographers who specialized in up-close-and-personal street photography in the mid-20th century faced the problem of how to focus their cameras. The first single-lens reflex cameras (SLRs) were rare and expensive beasts, so for most this meant a mechanical rangefinder either clipped to the accessory shoe, or if you were lucky, built into the camera.
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New York Times ☛ Runner in Iconic Boston Marathon Bombing Photo Dies at 89
Mr. Iffrig had run in more than 50 marathons but gained national attention in 2013 for being photographed after the blast knocked him to the ground.
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Science
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Science Alert ☛ 'Like an Early Earth': Scientists Find Planet Drowned in Ocean of Lava
A window to the past?
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Science Alert ☛ Just One Molecule Allows Us to See Millions More Colors Than Our Pets
An astonishing discovery.
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Science Alert ☛ The Forces That Drive Evolution May Not Be as Random as We Thought
Are mutations actually predictable?
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Science Alert ☛ Your Body Has a Built-in Weight Loss System You May Not Know About
A natural version of the wonder drugs.
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New York Times ☛ What Are We So Afraid Of? Here’s the Expert to Ask.
Christopher Bader studies Americans’ prevailing fears. If you guessed “clowns,” you’re not entirely wrong.
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New York Times ☛ A Plant That Flowers Underground Is New to Science, but Not to Borneo
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, hailed pinanga subterranea, a palm native to the island, as a discovery, but it has long been known to local Indigenous people.
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Hardware
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Hackaday ☛ Erasing EEPROMs Isn’t Always As Easy As It Seems
When is 14 volts not actually 14 volts? Given [Anders Nielsen]’s recent struggles with erasing an old-school EEPROM, it’s when you really need it that things tend to go pear-shaped.
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Hackaday ☛ The Giant LEGO You Always Wanted To Play With
The interlocking LEGO bricks are probably one of the most versatile toys to come out of the 20th century, but aside from the Duplo larger-sized version for smaller kids, they don’t come in what you might term grown-up sizes. This has not deterred [Veranda Vikings] though, who have come up with the fantastic idea of giant LEGO bricks made from snow.
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Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
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MIT Technology Review ☛ Scientists are finding signals of long covid in blood. They could lead to new treatments.
For many people, covid is an illness that blusters in and out of our lives as cases spike and recede. But for tens of millions of others, a case of covid is the beginning of a chronic and sometimes debilitating illness that persists for months or even years.
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New York Times ☛ The Heart Surgery That Isn’t as Safe for Older Women
Coronary artery bypass grafting, the most common cardiac procedure in the United States, was studied mostly in men. Women are paying the price.
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Off Guardian ☛ It’s Cold in Davos
Sylvia Shawcross Well, heaven help us—the Gods of Mount Davos are meeting again. We’re now at Wefcon2. Run! Run! But I digress. Not. So let us just examine this with an open mind just so that we the mooing herds can have some idea of how this new year is going to unravel. I do …
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Off Guardian ☛ Understanding Power Dynamics & Moving Beyond Divisions: Covid19, Ukraine & Israel/Palestine
This piece – originally published by UKColumn – challenges the position of OffG (and others) on the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel.
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Off Guardian ☛ WATCH: Beware the “Dream Team” Narrative Police
As the WEF and WHO drum up fear of “Disease X” there is a new set of narrative gatekeepers assembling a phony Dream Team of ‘covid dissidents.’ The trouble is most of them supported all the mandates! This video from Amazing Polly makes some excellent points.
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JURIST ☛ Sri Lanka anti-drug operation to continue amid human rights concerns
In a press conference Sri Lanka’s Public Security Minister Tiran Alles, one of twelve members of Parliament’s Select Committee to deal with the “drug menace,” vowed to continue the controversial anti drug campaign Yukthiya amid human rights concerns. The campaign was announced in early December 2023 via press conference.
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New York Times ☛ The Growing Private-Sector Involvement in Canadian Public Health Care Systems
Ontario announced plans this week to further expand services offered through privately owned clinics under its health plan.
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YLE ☛ Finnish minister proposes ban on vapes and tobacco substitutes for minors
Under the current legislation, schools do not have the authority to confiscate vapes and tobacco substitute products from minors, unless their use interferes with teaching.
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Security
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Privacy/Surveillance
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Defence Web ☛ South Africa’s new intelligence bill is meant to stem abuses – what’s good and bad about it
When South Africa became a constitutional democracy in 1994, it replaced its apartheid-era intelligence apparatus with a new one aimed at serving the country’s new democratic dispensation. However, the regime of former president Jacob Zuma, 2009-2018, deviated from this path. It abused the intelligence services to serve his political and allegedly corrupt ends.
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Defence/Aggression
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Defence Web ☛ US strikes more Houthi weapon sites; US bulk carrier bombed by drone
The US military reports that Central Command (CENTCOM) forces conducted further strike actions against Houthi missile launch sites on Wednesday 17 January.
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France24 ☛ Pakistan moves to de-escalate crisis with Iran after deadly airstrikes
Pakistan's political and military leaders on Friday moved to de-escalate tensions with Iran after this week's deadly airstrikes by Tehran and Islamabad that killed at least 11 people and marked a significant escalation in fraught relations between the neighbors.
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RFERL ☛ Iran Says Two Suspects Killed, More Detained In Connection With Deadly Kerman Attacks
Iran’s Intelligence Ministry says two people were killed in a shoot-out and several others detained during a sweep to arrest suspects in connection with the deadly suicide bombings earlier this month in the southern city of Kerman that killed at least 91 people.
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France24 ☛ Pakistan holds emergency security meeting after trading strikes with Iran
Pakistan's Prime Minister will hold an emergency security meeting on Friday with military and intelligence chiefs after trading deadly air strikes with Iran on militant targets this week.
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CS Monitor ☛ Pakistan and Iran blame mineral-rich warlords for missile strikes
Tensions flared this week after Iran and Pakistan exchanged missiles, killing a total of nine people. Both nations have taken steps to turn down the dial. Pakistan expressed a readiness to work with Iran “based on spirit of mutual trust and cooperation.”
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ China calls for an end to ‘harassment’ of civilian ships in Red Sea
China called for an end to “harassment” of civilian vessels in the Red Sea on Friday after attacks on ships by Huthi rebels in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
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New York Times ☛ U.S. Strikes More Houthi Targets in Yemen
The strikes, the sixth round in 10 days, targeted Houthi missiles that were poised to attack merchant and military vessels in the Red Sea, according to a White House official.
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RFERL ☛ U.S. Carries Out Fresh Strikes Against Yemen's Huthis
The U.S. military on January 19 carried out another round of strikes against Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels, targeting missile launchers that were preparing for attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, the White House said.
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RFERL ☛ Iran Rejects Dutch Claim That Infant Killed In Iraq Strikes
Iran has rejected a claim by the Netherlands that a Dutch infant was killed in Tehran-ordered air strikes this week on Iraqi Kurdistan.
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JURIST ☛ Sweden summons Iran diplomat over detentions and missile strike
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Sweden issued a statement on Wednesday confirming the summoning of an Iranian diplomat to Stockholm. The move comes in response to the ongoing legal disputes between the two nations, particularly regarding the arbitrary detention of Swedish citizens in Iran and the recent missile strike on Erbil, Iraq.
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JURIST ☛ Kentucky House committee approves toughened criminal justice bill
A Kentucky House committee approved a bill Thursday that establishes tougher penalties for various criminal offenses. One of the main components of House Bill 5 is its three-strikes provision, which would have people convicted of three violent felonies face life in prison.
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RFA ☛ Two civilians die as fighting continues in northern Myanmar
Airstrikes prevented aid organizations retrieving the bodies.
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New York Times ☛ Taiwan’s Doubts About America Are Growing. That Could Be Dangerous.
Will deepening skepticism about the United States as a trustworthy nation diminish Taiwan’s belief that it could fend off China?
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Techdirt ☛ Iowa Sues TikTok For Being More Raunchy Than It Lets On
The state-based attacks on social media take all different forms. And the specific attacks on TikTok are some of the most notable in how little state officials seem to care about basic concepts like the 1st Amendment. The most obvious example is Montana’s failed attempt to just outright ban TikTok, but we’ve also seen other states looking for whatever sliver of authority it might have to limit TikTok.
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The Straits Times ☛ Philippines' Marcos draws ire for helicopter use for Coldplay concert
Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr drew flak on social control media for his use of a presidential helicopter to attend a concert by British rock band Coldplay in a province north of the capital, Manila.
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New York Times ☛ Taiwan’s Democracy Draws Envy and Tears for Visiting Chinese
People with personal ties to China, on a tour to see Taiwan’s election up close, learned of the island’s path to democracy — messy, violent and, ultimately, inspiring.
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RFA ☛ Airfields are disappearing, suggesting a shift to drones
Satellite imagery shows 9 airfields have vanished or been converted into farms or horseback-riding fields.
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Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
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The Straits Times ☛ Putin shows intention to visit Pyongyang soon, North Korea says
Russia thanked North Korea for its support and solidarity in the Ukraine war.
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Latvia ☛ Keeping watch along Latvia's border with Belarus
Largely snow-covered with picture-postcard scenes of snowy fields and solitary forests: the countryside near the small village of Silene in the very southeast of Latvia is extremely beautiful in the winter.
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Meduza ☛ FT: Russia may be planning large-scale offensive for summer 2024 — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Wives of Russian draftees gather at Putin’s campaign headquarters, calling for mobilized soldiers to return home — Meduza
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New York Times ☛ Lev Rubinstein, Russian Poet and a Critic of Putin, Is Dead at 76
He helped found a defiant avant-garde movement fusing art and prose and was outspoken against the invasion of Ukraine. He died after being hit by a car in Moscow.
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Meduza ☛ State of emergency declared in Russia’s Novosibirsk after third major heating system accident in recent days — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ ‘Freedom for Fail Alsynov!’ Why a Bashkir activist’s prosecution was enough to spark major protests in 2024’s Russia — Meduza
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YLE ☛ Hundreds of construction vehicles exported to Russia via Finland
A Finnish defence expert says it is highly likely that Russia has also used equipment meant for commercial markets for military purposes.
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Meduza ☛ Russia’s Internal Affairs Ministry has reportedly begun calling transgender people in for questioning — Meduza
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New Yorker ☛ Lev Rubinstein, a Devoted and Defiant Lover of Language
The Russian poet and essayist was a founding member of the Moscow conceptualist movement, an “implausibly social” presence in Moscow, and a firm believer to the end in the possibility of living in Russia with dignity and decency.
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RFERL ☛ Bashkir Singer's Whereabouts Unknown After His Home Was Raided By Security Forces
Bashkir singer Altynay Valitov, a supporter of activist Fail Alsynov who was sentenced to four years on January 17 for "inciting ethnic hatred," has gone incommunicado after his domicile in Ufa, the capital of Russia's Bashkortostan republic, was raided by security forces.
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RFERL ☛ State Of Emergency Announced In Russia's Novosibirsk As Heating Pipes Burst During Cold Snap
Authorities in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk on January 19 announced a state of emergency after another heating pipe burst -- the third such accident in the last 24 hours and the fourth this week.
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RFERL ☛ Prosecutors Seek 28 Years In Prison For Woman Charged In Killing Of Pro-Kremlin Blogger
Prosecutors have asked a military court in the Russian city of St. Petersburg to sentence Darya Trepova, who is accused of being involved in the killing of prominent pro-Kremlin blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, to 28 years in prison on charges of terrorism and forgery.
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RFERL ☛ Gas Explosion Kills Four Members Of One Family In Russia's Daghestan
Four members of one family were killed after an explosion caused by a gas leak ripped through a house in the capital of Russia's Daghestan, Makhachkala.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Holds Talks With Senior Hamas Member
Russia's Foreign Ministry said Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov held talks with Mousa Abu Marzouk, a senior member of Hamas, to discuss the "ongoing tension in the zone of the Palestine-Israel conflict" and "the humanitarian crisis in Gaza sector that has reached catastrophic scales."
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RFERL ☛ Leader Of Uzbek Diaspora In Russia Detained Over Meme
A Moscow court on January 19 sent a leader of the Uzbek diaspora in Russia, Usman Baratov, to pretrial detention for at least two months on a charge of inciting hatred with his online posts.
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RFERL ☛ More Than 42,000 Russian Troops Killed In Ukraine Since Launch Of Full-Scale Invasion
At least 42,284 Russian military personnel have been killed since the start of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, according to research by journalists from Mediazona and the BillBC Russian Service who have established the deceased soldiers' identities.
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New York Times ☛ Ukraine Targets Russian Oil Plants, Aiming to Disrupt Military Operations
Kyiv hit an oil depot on Friday, the latest in recent attacks on such facilities as it seeks to inflict damage away from the largely deadlocked front line.
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Meduza ☛ ‘Russia ruined my old age’: In frontline areas, elderly Ukrainians want nothing more than to outlive the war — Meduza
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New York Times ☛ With Deal Close on Border and Ukraine, Republican Rifts Threaten to Kill Both
A divided G.O.P. coalesced behind a bit of legislative extortion: No Ukraine aid without a border crackdown. Now they are split over how large a price to demand, imperiling both initiatives.
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RFERL ☛ Shooter Of Enlistment Officer In Siberia Gets 19 Years In Prison On Terrorism Charge
Ruslan Zinin, who shot a military commissioner at an enlistment center in Siberia in 2022 amid protests against a military mobilization for the war in Ukraine, has been sentenced to 19 years in prison.
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RFERL ☛ West Must Be Prepared For War With Russia, NATO Official Warns Ahead Of Major Military Drills
NATO has warned that the West should step up preparations for the unexpected,including a war with Russia, as Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine is nearing the two-year mark amid worries over possible political fatigue among some of Kyiv's Western allies.
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LRT ☛ Lithuanian citizen killed in Ukraine while fighting on Russian side – media
A Lithuanian citizen fighting on the Russian side was killed in Ukraine, TV3 television reported on Thursday.
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RFERL ☛ Ukraine Border Service Says Traffic Resumes At One Of Three Blocked Crossings With Romania
Ukraine's Border Service says traffic has resumed through one of three border crossings with Romania blocked by protesting haulers and farmers.
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RFERL ☛ Siberian City Cancels Concert At Request Of NGO That Supports Russia's War In Ukraine
Authorities in the Siberian city of Ulan-Ude on January 19 announced that a concert by popular singer Kristina Orbakaite scheduled for March 13 has been canceled due to a request by the Brothers-in-Arms NGO, which supports Moscow's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
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LRT ☛ EU agreement on Ukraine aid could be reached in February – Breton in Vilnius
Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė and visiting European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton say they hope that the European Council will agree on a support package for Ukraine in early February, despite opposition from Hungary.
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France24 ☛ Ukraine claims new drone attack on oil depot in Russia
A Ukrainian drone struck an oil storage depot in western Russia on Friday, causing a massive blaze, officials said, as Kyiv’s forces apparently extended their attacks on Russian soil ahead of the war’s two-year anniversary.
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France24 ☛ Macron urges French defence firms to boost production to support Ukraine
French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday urged defence manufacturers to boost production and innovation as Europe struggles to increase arms supplies to buttress Ukraine.
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Latvia ☛ Baltic parliaments reaffirm strong support for Ukraine
The Presidium of the Baltic Assembly (BA) on Friday, January 19, adopted a statement of support for Ukraine until its complete victory.
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RFERL ☛ Ukraine's Yermak Rejects Idea Of Pivoting To Defense Strategy
The head of Ukraine’s presidential office dismissed the idea of pivoting to a defensive posture, saying it would only lead to a persistent stalemate.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Parliament To Consider Seizing Property Of Citizens Who Criticize War
The head of Russia's parliament said he plans to submit legislation next week that would allow the state to seize the property of "scoundrels" who criticize the war in Ukraine.
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RFERL ☛ Romanian Gendarmes Break Protesters' Blockade Of Border Crossing With Ukraine
Romanian gendarmes overnight broke a blockade by protesting farmers and truckers of a northeastern border crossing point with Ukraine, Romanian media reports said on January 20.
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RFERL ☛ Ukraine Declares Air-Raid Alert For Entire Country After Overnight Russian Drone Attacks
Ukraine on January 20 declared an air-raid alert for its entire territory as Russian MiG 31 warplanes were spotted taking off from the Mozdok airfield in North Ossetia.
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New York Times ☛ Radio Station Captures Fears of Ukrainian City Under Siege
Kharkiv, in northern Ukraine, is under almost daily bombardment. Radio Boiling Over serves as a megaphone for residents’ fears and frustrations.
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Meduza ☛ Russian court acquits soldier accused of killing fellow serviceman in Ukraine — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Seven contract soldiers in Russia’s Far East sent to prison for refusing to fight in Ukraine — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Zelensky’s chief of staff says Ukraine not considering transition to defense — Meduza
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RFERL ☛ Russia Seeks To Rip Up 1956 Agreement With Britain On Fishing Rights
The Russian government has submitted a bill to parliament to annul a 1956 agreement on fishing rights between the Soviet Union and Britain.
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RFERL ☛ Slovakia To Resume Cultural Cooperation With Russia
Slovakia’s Culture Ministry said on January 20 that it will resume cooperation with Russia and Belarus.
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RFERL ☛ Moscow To Introduce Mandatory Consular Registration For Russians Living Abroad
The Russian government is to introduce mandatory consular registration for Russian citizens living abroad and will also create a “digital profile” for foreigners coming to the country.
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YLE ☛ Niinistö downplays war fears amid Nato's largest exercise in decades
The Nato exercise will bring thousands of US troops to Finland, simulating a potential Russian attack on Finland and triggering Nato's Article 5 clause.
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Environment
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Energy/Transportation
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YLE ☛ VR cancels 6 trains due to severe frost
Cold weather in Finland has been a problem for rail service all month.
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Wildlife/Nature
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ HKFP Yum Cha: Astrid Andersson on Hong Kong’s critically endangered cockatoo population
When Astrid Andersson tells people what she does for a living, she is often met with incredulity. “People don’t believe me when I say I’m a cockatoo researcher,” Andersson said on the latest episode of HKFP’s podcast Yum Cha. “But it’s true.”
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AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
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New York Times ☛ Macron Shifts Rightward, and Charts a New Course
With a decisive turn toward youth and conservative ideas, the French president sets a path for his reshuffled government.
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New York Times ☛ Inside CNN’s Debate Over Airing Trump’s Iowa Caucus Victory Speech
Tensions over the network’s airing of 10 minutes of the former president’s speech after he won the Iowa caucuses on Monday burst into the open during an internal call.
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New Yorker ☛ Pramila Jayapal: Biden’s “Coalition Has Fractured”
Can Joe Biden put the Democratic Party back together again in time for the 2024 election? Plus, E. Jean Carroll on her case against Trump.
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Censorship/Free Speech
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JURIST ☛ ECHR finds France conviction in defamation trial violated right to free speech
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled Wednesday that France had infringed upon the rights of a woman who was found guilty of defamation after accusing a company executive of sexual harassment at her workplace. The accusations were emailed to six individuals, including internal and external members of her company.
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Reason ☛ Democratic Attorneys General Support Censorship
In an amicus brief filed in Murthy v. Missouri, they ignore basic tenets of First Amendment law in order to quash online speech they don't like.
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New York Times ☛ When States Try to Take Away Americans’ Freedom of Thought
Government moves to limit what people can say are an escalation after years of policing speech in other ways
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Stanford University ☛ Freedom of thought is being threatened by states, big tech and even ourselves. Here’s what we can do to protect it.
This blog was originally published on The Conversation on January 8, 2024 The idea of free speech sparked into life 2,500 years ago in Ancient Greece – in part because it served a politician’s interests.
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Civil Rights/Policing
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YLE ☛ Flights set to be grounded across Finland as airport workers join February strike
The two-day political strike will affect operations at all major Finnish airports from 1 February.
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YLE ☛ IL: February strike will affect many daycare centres
The Early Childhood Education Teacher´s Union of Finland has announced that it plans to join political strike action on 1 February.
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Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
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Thomas Koch: Rebuild search with trust
A mildly technical computer user (able to install software) has access to a search engine that provides them with superior search results compared to Surveillance Giant Google for at least a few predefined areas of interest.
The exact algorithm used by Surveillance Giant Google Search to rank websites is a secret even to most Googlers. However I assume that it relies heavily on big data.
A distributed search engine however can instead rely on user input. Every admin of one node seeds the node ranking with their personal selection of trusted sites. They connect their node with nodes of people they trust. This results in a web of (transitive) trust much like pgp.
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Patents
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ A present assignment of future continuation applications
In Roku, Inc. v. ITC, the Federal Circuit has affirmed determinations by the International Trade Commission (“ITC”) favoring the patent monopoly holder Universal Electronics, Inc. (“Universal”). The most interesting part of the case for me is the assignment issue – whether the patents had been properly assigned at the appropriate time. This can become in cases like this because Universal has created a large patent monopoly portfolio that all claim back to original priority documents from more than a decade ago. While most of patents are attributable to both joint-inventors, some are only attributable to one or the other. Here, though the Federal Circuit supported the simple approach of a “hereby assigns” transfer of rights that includes future continuations. The decision is lacking though because the court does not ground its decision in any particular contract or property tradition.
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Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ China’s new Patent Term Extension: A Welcome Change for Innovators [Ed: Innovators of aggressive lawyers? Innovators don't need patents.]
On December 21, 2023, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) issued the final version of the revised Implementing Rules for the Patent Law and the Guidelines for Patent Examination, which will become effective on January 20, 2024.
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JUVE ☛ Ones to Watch UK 2024: Andrew Wells [Ed: Marketing SPAM from JUVE; they've quit journalism and are not posting SPAM for firms that pay them. They even promote crimes and lies for those same firms.]
Every year, JUVE Patent carries out extensive research in the UK patent monopoly market, culminating in the publication of the UK patent monopoly ranking. Our latest research highlighted Andrew Wells, partner at Herbert Smith Freehills [...]
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JUVE ☛ Gulde & Partner strengthens offices in Berlin and Düsseldorf [Ed: More SPAM from JUVE or marketing junk disguised as 'article']
Gulde & Partner, a mixed firm of patent monopoly attorneys and lawyers, has further expanded its Berlin headquarters following a merger with the smaller Berlin patent monopoly firm, Jungblut & Seuss. The latter firm consists of two patent monopoly attorney, who are the firm’s name partners.
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Software Patents
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Unified Patents ☛ Atlantic IP entity Lionra Technologies cybersecurity patent monopoly challenged
On January 18, 2024, Unified Patents filed an ex parte reexamination proceeding against U.S. Patent 9,264,441, owned by Lionra Technologies Ltd, an Atlantic IP entity. The ‘441 patent monopoly relates to detecting vulnerability exploits of a network using a virtual machine and has been asserted...
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Unified Patents ☛ $2,000 for Jeffrey M. Gross entity Lightning Fitness sensor patent monopoly prior art
Unified Patents added a new PATROLL contest, with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on at least claim 1 of U.S. Patent 9,818,285, owned by Lightning Fitness Systems, LLC, an NPE and Jeffrey M. Gross entity. The ‘285 patent monopoly relates to methods and apparatuses for facilitating learning and multitasking through movement. It encompasses devices that collect sensory input such as audio, visual, and tactile information related to a user's actions and provide feedback.
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Trademarks
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TTAB Blog ☛ TTAB Affirms Refusal to Register Blue Bundle of Dental Floss Due to Lack of Acquired Distinctiveness
The Board upheld a refusal to register the proposed product configuration mark shown below, for "dental floss," the mark comprising "the presentation and 3-Dimentional (sic) appearance of a dental floss product, specifically comprising an arbitrary bundle of blue looped dental floss." The Board ruled that the mark could not be inherently distinctive (Wal-Mart), and found that it lacked acquired distinctiveness and therefore failed to function as a trademark. In re Loops, LLC, Serial No. 97069982 (January 16, 2024) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge David K. Heasley).
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Copyrights
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Digital Music News ☛ Estate of Notorious B.I.G. Settles Long-Running Photography IP Dispute
The Estate of the Notorious B.I.G. settles a long-running trademark and right of publicity dispute with a late photographer.
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Digital Music News ☛ Irving Azoff’s Global Music Rights Sues Vermont Broadcast Associates Over Alleged Copyright Infringement
Global Music Rights (GMR) has officially filed a copyright monopoly infringement lawsuit against radio station operator Vermont Broadcast Associates (VBA) and its owner, Bruce James. The Irving Azoff-founded performance rights organization (PRO) just recently submitted the straightforward complaint to a Vermont federal court.
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Digital Music News ☛ Remember Natasha Bedingfield’s ‘Unwritten’? — Song Blows Up on Fentanylware (TikTok) 20 Years Later
Thanks to sync licensing in a hit film and subsequently blowing up on TikTok, Natasha Bedingfield’s 20-year-old hit ‘Unwritten’ is on track for a UK Top 20 spot. Do you feel the rain on your skin?
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Techdirt ☛ Copyright Remains A Complete Mess: A Tale In Two Stories
Here are two separate stories regarding the mess that is modern copyright law, that is now mostly “mediated” by companies that half-ass randomly deal with things and sometimes do not. While this is, perhaps, a better setup than stupidly suing kids for daring to like or share a song, it still suggests the entire copyright framework of today is broken. Both stories involve experts in copyright law finding that the system sucks, even when you know the system.
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Gemini* and Gopher
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Personal/Opinions
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I share a name with a real person
Every morning, they wake up at 6AM--or at least, they try their best to. Usually, they cook an egg, a hash brown, or some kind of homemade bean burger, and they make a sandwich with which to drink their coffee. They stare out the window somewhat absentmindedly, watching the snow fall, or the early-risers walk their dogs, or the cars drive by. And once they're done, they move to the couch, open their laptop, and they start to write.
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Will forests still be beautiful if they're gone?
I'm taking a class on forest science and management this semester, which is really exciting. It's the closest thing I've taken to a course on ecology at this university thus far, which is more or less the reason why I got into environmental science in the first place.
This week, we were talking about the value of forests: ecological, social and economic. One of these values, my professor explained, is aesthetic. Naturally, forested landscapes look more pretty than deforested landscapes--especially when they aren't converted for some other use and just get left there.
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Art that's meant to be understood
Yesterday after I finished lunch I started walking to class. My class didn't start for another hour but it was getting pretty loud in the cafeteria and I had nowhere else to go.
When I made it to the space outside my lecture hall I still had 30 minutes or so and there really wasn't any space available to sit down. Every table was stacked with like, two people sitting equidistant from each other and the edges of the table, so sitting down with them would have been kind of weird. I didn't really know where to go, so I just kept walking.
"A few days ago my partner came down with a really, really bad... flu? We don't really know what it is. It hasn't registered as COVID on rapid tests, but it does remind me a lot of what I experienced when I got COVID." gemini://njms.ca/gemlog/2024-01-16.gmi -
Going to class with a dangerous respiratory illness
A few days ago my partner came down with a really, really bad... flu? We don't really know what it is. It hasn't registered as COVID on rapid tests, but it does remind me a lot of what I experienced when I got COVID.
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Technology and Free Software
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State of things
This post has had a while in the making. At present it is still an assortment of points with no obvious coherence, but at some point I have to pin it down.
I think my biggest issue with computers is... the web browser. There is so much about the web that I dislike, it seems like it systematically hurts my aesthetic sense. Here is one such example, where it just likes to ruin the party for everybody: I like the plan9 system, it's unix cleaned and rebooted. But when discussing operating systems mostly nobody uses it, because it "lacks a modern web browser"; I'm not kidding, this is a common complain about non-mainstream operating systems. Don't get me wrong, HTML is fine, even css I think is nice. The problem starts with ECMAscript, and the horrendous ecosystem that has developed around it. Anyway, there exists this misconception that an operating system is only as useful as it's ability to port this oversized voracious inutility, which is what I would like to challenge. People still confuse the web with the internet, especially on the web. I have set up my box so it doesn't run any of that crap, and I can be fully functional. I must admit of cheating by having an android tablet by myside with a full web browser, and use it heavily for reference, but even that I am migrating away from. I could use links/lynx for all my html needs , and I plan to do just that at some point. Hopefully, I won't ever have to look at a cloudflare screen again, or recaptcha. As of now, I just get one for porn and piracy, the only two things the modern web is good for anyway. Kind of makes you think how these guys make a living. But I digress. What was I saying?
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EOL
I remember when I was younger, my mother would always talk about how she had shelves of photographs taken over the course of a lifetime. She was worried that all it'd take is one fire for them to be gone within an afternoon. She told me that when she retired, she'd make a project out of them: to photocopy them, or to scan them, so that they'd last into the future. It'd take weeks of tedium, carefully feeding these old, sacred photographs into a scanner. It wouldn't be easy, but they mattered. Preserving them mattered.
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Monopolies/Monopsonies
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* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.