Slashdot is powered by your submissions, so send in your scoop

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror

Comment Re:Such a strange system (Score 1) 86

Thats technically illegal, they would have to drive on the wrong side of the road first. A few years ago had a deputy go around our street (think cul-de-sac but in the shape of a capital P) ticketing cars parked "the wrong way" on the street. Technically he was correct in the tickets that were issued, but when the Sheriff found out, he told the straight out of the academy deputy to calm down and canceled those tickets.

Submission + - Meta buried 'causal' evidence of social media harm (reuters.com)

Submitted by joshuark
joshuark writes: In a 2020 research project code-named “Project Mercury,” Meta scientists worked with survey firm Nielsen to gauge the effect of “deactivating” Facebook, according to Meta documents obtained via discovery. To the company’s disappointment, “people who stopped using Facebook for a week reported lower feelings of depression, anxiety, loneliness and social comparison,” internal documents said.

Rather than publishing those findings or pursuing additional research, the filing states, Meta called off further work and internally declared that the negative study findings were tainted by the “existing media narrative” around the company. Despite Meta’s own work documenting a causal link between its products and negative mental health effects, the filing alleges, Meta told Congress that it had no ability to quantify whether its products were harmful to teenage girls.

The allegation of Meta burying evidence of social media harms is just one of many in a filing by Motley Rice, a law firm suing Meta. Broadly, the plaintiffs argue the companies have intentionally hidden the internally recognized risks of their products from users, parents and teachers.

Meta spokesman Andy Stone said the study was stopped because its methodology was flawed and that it worked diligently to improve the safety of its products. “The full record will show that for over a decade, we have listened to parents, researched issues that matter most, and made real changes to protect teens,” he said.

"We strongly disagree with these allegations, which rely on cherry-picked quotes and misinformed opinions,” Stone said.
The underlying Meta documents cited in the filing are not public, and Meta has filed a motion to strike the documents. Stone said the objection was to the over-broad nature of what plaintiffs are seeking to unseal, not unsealing in its entirety.
A hearing regarding the filing is set for January 26 in Northern California District Court.

Submission + - PHEVs look great on paper, but real world data says otherwise (theguardian.com)

Submitted by shilly
shilly writes: PHEV manufacturers and advocates claim it’s easy to drive mainly using the cars’ batteries, keeping gas in reserve for long trips. That may be true in theory, but in practice, data from 800,000 PHEVs in Europe shows that between 2021 and 2023, these vehicles were driven using their batteries for just 27% of the time, instead of the 84% figure used in official estimates. It turns out that merely providing the option for driving on batteries in a car isn’t enough to persuade people to plug in, and that EV proponents, who have long argued that PHEVs are not a viable solution, have a point after all.

Submission + - Sanders plans AI tax legislation to save jobs (washingtonexaminer.com)

Submitted by sinij
sinij writes:

Sen. Bernie Sanders is planning to introduce artificial intelligence legislation that would impose a "robot tax" on large corporations that replace workers with AI or automation.

It makes sense, as corporations pay taxes (SS contributions, etc.) for having workers, so agentic AI should be also taxed in some form. Otherwise it will create additional incentives to replace workers.

Comment Sensationalist headline (Score 3, Insightful) 23

I was all up in arms the way the title and excerpt portray the situation. If you read the article you finally get down to this statement:

A Cardiff University spokesperson said: “We reject the suggestion that we’ve put students ‘under surveillance’. The protest was posted on a public-facing social media account. This was picked up as part of our day-to-day media monitoring.

“We routinely monitor mentions of Cardiff University, including those made on social media platforms, to measure engagement with our communications activity and in relation to reputation management. This type of activity is not unique to Cardiff University and is used by other universities and organisations.”

Submission + - The remarkable rise of eBird—the world's biggest citizen science project (phys.org)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: A wave of blue suddenly forms and moves south and begins to trickle, then flood, into Australia. Starting at Cape York, the closest point to Papua New Guinea, the wave of blue flows steadily all the way down the east coast as far as Victoria.

By the end of January, the transfer is complete: not a single koel remains in PNG, while about half of Australia is now red, indicating that they were breeding when the record was made.

It's a spectacular presentation. And it isn't simply an artist's impression of the bird's movements. Although the colors are an artifact, what is displayed are actual locations where the birds were seen: 86,149 times ordinary birdwatchers made the observation and sent it to eBird.

In 2022, its 20th anniversary year, a total of more than 1.3 billion records had been received from more than 820,000 participants. In the month of August this year, reports eBird, 123,000 birders submitted 1.6 million lists of sightings. It has now hit a total of 2 billion bird observations since inception.

Submission + - Why Annabelle, Chucky and dolls in general creep us out (phys.org)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: The "uncanny valley" effect was an observation by scientist Masahiro Mori that people's empathy for human-looking objects initially climbed as the objects grew more lifelike before dipping into revulsion.

"There's an area of the brain that is specific for the recognition of the faces of humans," says Yarossi, jointly appointed assistant professor in physical therapy, movement and rehabilitation sciences and electrical and computer engineering.

"The firing is different for things in the uncanny valley," he says.

Submission + - Apple removes ICE tracking apps after pressure by Trump administration (reuters.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: WASHINGTON, Oct 3 (Reuters) — Apple said on Thursday that it had removed ICEBlock and other similar ICE-tracking apps from its App Store after it was contacted by President Donald Trump's administration, in a rare instance of apps being taken down due to a U.S. federal government demand.
Alphabet's Google also removed similar apps on Thursday for policy violations, but the company said it was not approached by the Justice Department before taking the action. The app alerts users to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in their area, which the Justice Department says could increase the risk of assault on U.S. agents.

ICE has been a central part of Trump's hardline immigration agenda. Its agents have regularly raided and arrested migrants, and rights advocates say free speech and due process are often being infringed in the government's deportation drive.
Apple's action may increase scrutiny of tech firms' growing ties to the Trump administration. Many companies, including the iPhone maker, have sought to avoid clashes with a White House that has not been shy about issuing threats — particularly around tariffs — against specific firms.
"Based on information we've received from law enforcement about the safety risks associated with ICEBlock, we have removed it and similar apps from the App Store," Apple said in an emailed statement. Fox Business first reported the app's removal by Apple on Thursday. The Justice Department later confirmed that it had contacted Apple to pull the app and that the company complied.

Google said its policies prohibit apps with a high risk of abuse. ICEBlock was never available on Google's Play Store. "ICEBlock is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs, and violence against law enforcement is an intolerable red line that cannot be crossed," U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. Joshua Aaron, the Texas-based creator of ICEBlock, disputed that characterization and criticized Apple's decision. "I am incredibly disappointed by Apple's actions today. Capitulating to an authoritarian regime is never the right move," Aaron told Reuters. Now even launching a website would likely be met with takedowns, he said, adding that his legal team will decide on the next steps. Bondi has previously argued that Aaron is "not protected" under the Constitution and that they are looking at prosecuting him, warning him to "watch out."Civilian surveillance of federal immigration agents has grown more assertive since Trump returned to office, with activists saying they aim to protect their communities from aggressive ICE enforcement. In cities such as Washington, residents also rely on encrypted chats to share enforcement updates, though how often apps like ICEBlock actually alerted neighbors remains unclear. Six legal experts have told Reuters that surveillance of ICE is largely protected under the U.S. Constitution — as long as the activists don't interfere with that work. Courts have long held that recording law enforcement activities in public areas is legal.

Comment Re: Quit pretending it's about cost (Score 1) 107

I was going to say the same, its a really good exhibit. There is so much done inside the mock up shuttle to show you what its like (especially the cockpit), I doubt I would pay again just to "see the real thing". Take a look at these old photos right before they put it on the carrier plane https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.io?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.collectspace.com%2Fn...

Submission + - Cyberattack Takes Down Asahi - Japan's Largest Beer Brewer (theregister.com)

Submitted by cold fjord
cold fjord writes: A cyberattack has disrupted operations at the Asahi Group, the largest beer brewer in Japan. The attack is reported to have stopped operations at 30 plants in Japan, responsible for 50% of company profits. The time to restore service is currently not known. Operations at facilities outside of Japan are reportedly unaffected. In addition to well known Japanese brands Asahi Super Dry Beer, Nikka Whisky and Mitsuya Cider, the Asahi Group owns brands such as the UK's Fuller's brewery chain, Peroni, Grolsch, and others. The attack on Ashi follows attacks in April that cost Marks and Spencer an estimated $300 million, and an attack on the Co-operative Group which cost it an estimated $108 million.

Submission + - Gavin Newsom Signs First-In-Nation AI Safety Law (politico.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a first-in-the-nation law on Monday that will force major AI companies to reveal their safety protocols — marking the end of a lobbying battle with big tech companies like ChatGPT maker OpenAI and Meta and setting the groundwork for a potential national standard.

The proposal was the second attempt by the author, ambitious San Francisco Democrat state Sen. Scott Wiener, to pass such legislation after Newsom vetoed a broader measure last year that set off an international debate. It is already being watched in Congress and other states as an example to follow as lawmakers seek to rein in an emerging technology that has been embraced by the Trump administration in the race against China, but which has also prompted concerns for its potential to create harms.

Submission + - The sweetpotato's DNA turned out stranger than anyone expected (sciencedaily.com)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: The research revealed surprising complexity. The sweetpotato genome is a mosaic assembled from multiple wild ancestors, some of which have yet to be identified. About one-third comes from Ipomoea aequatoriensis, a wild species found in Ecuador that appears to be a direct descendant of a sweetpotato progenitor. Another significant portion resembles a wild Central American species called Ipomoea batatas 4x, though the actual donor may still remain undiscovered in the wild.

"Unlike what we see in wheat, where ancestral contributions can be found in distinct genome sections," says Shan Wu, the study's first author, "in sweetpotato, the ancestral sequences are intertwined on the same chromosomes, creating a unique genomic architecture."

This intertwined genetic heritage means that sweetpotato can be tentatively classified as a "segmental allopolyploid" — essentially a hybrid that arose from different species but behaves genetically as if it came from a single one. This genomic merging and recombination gives sweetpotato its remarkable adaptability and disease resistance, traits crucial for subsistence farmers worldwide.

Submission + - Synthetic magnetic fields steer light on a chip for faster communications (phys.org)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: The team achieved this by systematically altering the symmetry of tiny repeating units in silicon photonic crystals. Adjusting the degree of local asymmetry at each point allowed them to "design" pseudomagnetic fields with tailored spatial patterns, without breaking fundamental time-reversal symmetry. Both theoretical analysis and experiments confirmed that these engineered fields can guide and manipulate light in versatile ways.

To demonstrate practical applications, the researchers built two devices commonly used in integrated optics. One was a compact S-shaped waveguide bend that transmitted light with less than 1.83 decibels of signal loss. The other was a power splitter that divided light into two equal paths with low excess loss and minimal imbalance.

In a final test, the devices successfully transmitted a high-speed data stream at 140 gigabits per second using a standard telecommunications modulation format, showing that the technique is compatible with existing optical communication systems.

Slashdot Top Deals

Your good nature will bring you unbounded happiness.

Close