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takyon writes:

Microsoft Announces PowerShell 7

Microsoft has just announced PowerShell 7, a new major release that comes only a few days after the company originally introduced version 6.2

And while it naturally makes more sense for the company to roll out PowerShell 6.3 rather than a whole new version 7.0, the company explains in a blog post that it's all as part of the efforts to align the versions of all platforms.

Steve Lee, Principal Software Engineer Manager, PowerShell, explains that Microsoft noticed a growing usage pattern on Linux, but not on Windows.

"Windows usage has not been growing as significantly, surprising given that PowerShell was popularized on the Windows platform," Lee explains. [...] The next version of PowerShell will thus be available on Windows, Linux, and macOS, and the company explains it'll be available with LTS (Long Term Servicing) and non-LTS plans.

Also at ZDNet.

Previously: MS Releases Powershell SDC - to Manage Config for.... Linux
Powershell for Linux
Your wget (and curl) is Broken and Should DIE, GitHubbers Tell Microsoft

Original Submission

takyon writes:

UK will hold social networks accountable for harmful content

The UK government plans to penalize tech companies like Facebook and Google that fail to curb the spread of harmful content on their platforms. As promised, the country is seeking to empower an independent regulator to enforce the rules which target violent material, posts encouraging suicide, disinformation, cyber-bullying, and child exploitation. Over the coming weeks, the government will consult on the types of punishments available to the new watchdog, including fines, blocking access to sites, and holding senior members of tech companies accountable for their failures.

Both Facebook and Google have previously denied responsibility for the content published on their sites, evoking the communications act in the US to overcome lawsuits accusing them of enabling terrorism and spreading extremist views. But calls for big tech to be regulated have grown in recent years following a spate of controversial incidents, the most recent of which was the live-streaming of the mass shooting in New Zealand on Facebook.

Related: UK Security Agents Get Censoring Privs at Youtube
UK ISPs Block Sites that List Pirate Bay Proxies
Website Blocking and Unblocking on Opposite Sides of the World
UK Prime Minister Repeats Calls to Limit Encryption, End Internet "Safe Spaces"

Original Submission

takyon writes:

US Army shows how it will use HoloLens in the field

When Microsoft employees balked at the company's $479 million HoloLens contract with the US Army, it raised a question: just what would this system look like? You now have a better idea. The Army has given CNBC an early demo of its Integrated Visual Augmentation System, which uses a modified HoloLens 2 to provide both combat assistance and training. It reportedly feels like a "real-life game of Call of Duty" -- you can see your squad's positions on a map, a compass, and even your weapon's reticle. Thermal imaging would help you see in the dark without as much of a telltale glow as existing night vision headsets.

Previously: U.S. Army Awards Microsoft a $480 Million HoloLens Contract
Microsoft Announces $3,500 HoloLens 2 With Wider Field of View and Other Improvements
Microsoft Misrepresented HoloLens 2 Field of View, Faces Backlash for Military Contract

Original Submission

An Anonymous Coward writes:

A hot thread on openSUSE's forums titled "Does openSUSE track users?" started with the discovery of the OP that openSUSE creates a UUID (Universally Unique IDentifier - Wikipedia) for each installed system and that is automatically reported to SUSE "for statistical purposes" without even informing the installer that such feature exist. The OP raised valid concerns that the IP address is personal data and when combined with an UUID creates an even more distinguishable unique identifier, so he argued that this must be clarified during installation and be an opt-in, rather than silently enforced, because it creates a possibility for fingerprinting/profiling.

Admins explained that it can be disabled by deleting /var/lib/zypp/AnonymousUniqueId. Obviously this is a post-factum possibility as one cannot do it during installation. Or to avoid it - one must be disconnected and install from DVD, then delete the file before running any software update.

Forum users commented on the website itself too. The OP found that SUSE's terms and the site tools for personal data control are not GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation - https://eugdpr.org/, Wikipedia) compliant. He shared his observations that:

- too much data is required during account registration which is technically not necessary for just writing in the forums or reporting bugs (physical address, phone, job, zip etc). He reported that in a bug report which was closed as "RESOLVED DUPLICATE" of a similar bug which itself was closed earlier as INVALID. Although he reopened the referenced bug, so far it didn't catch anyone's attention.

- personal data is shared with multiple third party entities in a catch-all agreement without that being technically necessary which also contradicts the GDPR principle of data processing minimisation

- there is no possibility for granular opt-in/out for any of this but just one single catch-all forced consent which one must accept which in fact enforces one to accept multiple policies of third parties (Google, Live Chat, Facebook etc) because of the 3rd party resources the sites of SUSE use

- the privacy policy of SUSE is misleading as it justifies "legitimate interest" basing it on Article 6(1)(f) of GDPR while ignoring an essential part of the same article - that legitimate interest cannot overpower fundamental rights, one of which is the right to personal data protection

- there are no tools for one to control one's personal data as the GDPR mandates (download, erase, restrict processing etc)

The OP even filed a request for erasure as per Article 17 of GDPR but neither SUSE's privacy team, nor SUSE's DPO replied to him so far (for more than a week) although GDPR says that such requests must be handled "without undue delay". Meanwhile Microfocus replied to him that his data has been erased but it was not - he could still login and see all his profile data.

A mod locked the thread claiming that "further discussion is pointless" and "you have legal choices" missing the essential point - that SUSE failed to provide those choices as it must and leaves only one choice: to lodge a legal complaint against the data controller.

All this is quite similar to what most sites and companies do. Perhaps to make GDPR count we should all be more active in lodging complaints.

A link to the thread:

https://forums.opensuse.org/showthread.php/535322-Does-openSUSE-track-users

Original Submission

RandomFactor writes:

Borophene, a single-atom material similar to graphene, but comprised instead of boron atoms, has researchers excited because of

the extraordinary range of applications that borophene looks good for. Electrochemists think borophene could become the anode material in a new generation of more powerful lithium-ion batteries. Chemists are entranced by its catalytic capabilities. And physicists are testing its abilities as a sensor

Originally theorized in the 1990s, borophene was first successfully synthesized in 2015 using vapor deposition on a silver substrate.

Borophene turns out to be stronger than graphene, and more flexible. It a good conductor of both electricity and heat, and it also superconducts. These properties vary depending on the material’s orientation and the arrangement of vacancies. This makes it “tunable,” at least in principle. That’s one reason chemists are so excited.

it is a promising material for anodes in Li, Na, and Mg ion batteries due to "high theoretical specific capacities, excellent electronic conductivity and outstanding ion transport properties”

Hydrogen atoms also stick easily to borophene’s single-layer structure, and this adsorption property, combined with the huge surface area of atomic layers, makes borophene a promising material for hydrogen storage. Theoretical studies suggest borophene could store over 15% of its weight in hydrogen, significantly outperforming other materials.

There is also

borophene’s ability to catalyze the breakdown of molecular hydrogen into hydrogen ions, and water into hydrogen and oxygen ions. “Outstanding catalytic performances of borophene have been found in hydrogen evolution reaction, oxygen reduction reaction, oxygen evolution reaction, and CO2 electroreduction reaction,” say the team. That could usher in a new era of water-based energy cycles.

There are multiple challenges however. First the stuff is hard to make in any quantity. Similar to difficulties seen with graphene early on. Also it is reactive and subject to oxidation, so it is hard to handle.

Look forward in the coming months for the inevitable 'Borophene (is there anything it can't do)' articles coming to a news site near you as researchers explore and periodically share their findings on this amazing new material.

Original Submission

NotSanguine writes:

Jon Brodkin at Ars Technica reports that the House Energy And Commerce committee approved the Save The Internet Act, which rolls back the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC)^* 2017 repeal of its 2015 order on network neutrality[PDF].

The Ars Technica article states:

Democrats in the US House of Representatives yesterday rejected Republican attempts to weaken a bill that would restore net neutrality rules.
[...]
Commerce Committee Republicans repeatedly introduced amendments that would weaken the bill but were consistently rebuffed by the committee's Democratic majority. "The Democrats beat back more than a dozen attempts from Republicans to gut the bill with amendments throughout the bill's markup that lasted 9.5 hours," The Hill reported yesterday.

Republican amendments would have weakened the bill by doing the following:

• Exempt all 5G wireless services from net neutrality rules.
• Exempt all multi-gigabit broadband services from net neutrality rules.
• Exempt from net neutrality rules any ISP that builds broadband service in any part of the US that doesn't yet have download speeds of at least 25Mbps and upload speeds of at least 3Mbps.
• Exempt from net neutrality rules any ISP that gets universal service funding from the FCC's Rural Health Care Program.
• Exempt ISPs that serve 250,000 or fewer subscribers from certain transparency rules that require public disclosure of network management practices.
• Prevent the FCC from limiting the types of zero-rating (i.e., data cap exemptions) that ISPs can deploy.

[amendment links above are all PDF]

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for SoyCow1984

Google dissolves AI ethics board just one week after forming it

Google today disclosed that it has dissolved a short-lived, external advisory board designed to monitor its use of artificial intelligence, following a week of controversy regarding the company’s selection of members. The decision, reported first today by Vox, is largely due to outcry over the board’s inclusion of Heritage Foundation president Kay Coles James, a noted conservative figure who has openly espoused anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and, through the Heritage Foundation, fought efforts to extend rights to transgender individuals and to combat climate change.

The advisory board, called the Advanced Technology External Advisory Council (ATEAC), included a number of prominent academics in fields ranging from AI and philosophy to psychology and robotics. But it also included those with policy backgrounds, like James and members of former US presidential administrations.

The goal was ostensibly to inform Google’s AI work and to ensure it was following its AI Principles, set out last year by CEO Sundar Pichai after revelations the company was participating in a Pentagon drone project that made use of the company’s machine learning research. Google has since said it will stop working on the project and has pledged never to develop AI weaponry or work on any project or application of AI that violates “internationally accepted norms” or “widely accepted principles of international law and human rights.”

“It’s become clear that in the current environment, ATEAC can’t function as we wanted,” a Google spokesperson told The Verge. “So we’re ending the council and going back to the drawing board. We’ll continue to be responsible in our work on the important issues that AI raises, and will find different ways of getting outside opinions on these topics.”

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for SoyCow1984

MIT and NASA engineers demonstrate a new kind of airplane wing

A team of engineers has built and tested a radically new kind of airplane wing, assembled from hundreds of tiny identical pieces. The wing can change shape to control the plane's flight, and could provide a significant boost in aircraft production, flight, and maintenance efficiency, the researchers say.

The new approach to wing construction could afford greater flexibility in the design and manufacturing of future aircraft. The new wing design was tested in a NASA wind tunnel and is described today in a paper in the journal Smart Materials and Structures, co-authored by research engineer Nicholas Cramer at NASA Ames in California; MIT alumnus Kenneth Cheung SM '07 Ph.D. '12, now at NASA Ames; Benjamin Jenett, a graduate student in MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms; and eight others.

Instead of requiring separate movable surfaces such as ailerons to control the roll and pitch of the plane, as conventional wings do, the new assembly system makes it possible to deform the whole wing, or parts of it, by incorporating a mix of stiff and flexible components in its structure. The tiny subassemblies, which are bolted together to form an open, lightweight lattice framework, are then covered with a thin layer of similar polymer material as the framework.

The result is a wing that is much lighter, and thus much more energy efficient, than those with conventional designs, whether made from metal or composites, the researchers say. Because the structure, comprising thousands of tiny triangles of matchstick-like struts, is composed mostly of empty space, it forms a mechanical "metamaterial" that combines the structural stiffness of a rubber-like polymer and the extreme lightness and low density of an aerogel.

Jenett explains that for each of the phases of a flight—takeoff and landing, cruising, maneuvering and so on—each has its own, different set of optimal wing parameters, so a conventional wing is necessarily a compromise that is not optimized for any of these, and therefore sacrifices efficiency. A wing that is constantly deformable could provide a much better approximation of the best configuration for each stage.

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for SoyCow1984

Young Astronomer Uses Artificial Intelligence To Discover 2 Exoplanets

A team of astronomers led by an undergraduate student in Texas has discovered two planets orbiting stars more than 1,200 light-years from Earth.

Astronomers already knew of about 4,000 exoplanets, so finding two more might not seem like huge news. But it's who found them and how that's getting attention.

Anne Dattilo, a senior at the University of Texas, Austin, found the planets by using an artificial intelligence program to sift through a mountain of data collected by NASA's Kepler space telescope. By using AI, the 22-year-old is helping to usher in a new era in astronomical research.

Dattilo got involved in the project about a year and a half ago, after astronomer Andrew Vanderburg gave a talk during one of her classes. Vanderburg uses data from Kepler to hunt for planets orbiting distant stars.

"And at the very end, he said, 'I'm taking undergrads if any of you want to do research on this subject finding planets,' " Dattilo recalls. "I decided that's what I wanted to do, so I emailed him."

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for boru

The Event Horizon Telescope may soon release first-ever black hole image

No, you can’t actually take a picture of a black hole. But astronomers have promised to do the next best thing: To image the seething chaos just outside the black hole, known as its event horizon. To capture this region, just on the cusp of the black hole itself, astronomers have had to link telescopes from across the globe and focus them on the closest, most massive black holes known: Sagittarius A* (pronounced “A-star”), which resides at the center of our own Milky Way galaxy, as well as the even larger supermassive black hole that sits at the center of nearby galaxy M87.

The result, known as the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) had its big observing run in April of 2017. Researchers warned that it would take time to piece together the data. And the team has repeatedly dropped hints that the results could be ready soon, only for the project to continue on. But based on their upcoming press event, set for April 10, it seems that time may have come, and that viewers are about to see the first-ever picture of a black hole’s event horizon.

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Elizabeth Warren wants jail time for CEOs in Equifax-style breaches

In 2017, criminals stole the personal data of about 143 million people from the credit rating system Equifax. It was a huge embarrassment for the company and a headache for the millions of people affected. Equifax's then-57-year-old CEO Richard Smith retired in September 2017, weeks after the breach was discovered, with a multi-million dollar pay package.

Massachusetts US Senator turned Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren wants to make sure that CEOs who preside over massive data breaches in the future don't get off so easily. On Wednesday, she announced the Corporate Executive Accountability Act, which would impose jail time on corporate executives who "negligently permit or fail to prevent" a "violation of the law" that "affects the health, safety, finances or personal data" of 1 percent of the population of any state.

A CEO could get up to a year in prison for a first offense. Repeat offenders could get three years.

The penalty only applies to companies that generate more than $1 billion in annual revenue—Equifax had $3.4 billion in revenue in 2017. It also only applies to companies that are either convicted of violating the law or settle claims with state or federal regulators. Equifax may qualify on this score, too, since the company signed a consent decree with state regulators last year.

With that said, it seems that most data breaches probably wouldn't trigger criminal penalties under the proposed new law. A CEO would only face jail time if a data breach was the result of illegal activity by the company and if prosecutors can show that the CEO was negligent in failing to prevent it. And under current law, merely being the victim of a data breach isn't a crime.

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for fyngyrz

10 projects to try on your Raspberry Pi using this unusual programming language

Coding club body CoderDojo has put together a guide to projects you can try out using the Wolfram Language.

If you recently bought a Raspberry Pi and are wondering what to do with it, the Raspberry Pi Foundation and CoderDojo have published 10 projects you can try using the Wolfram Language.

The Wolfram Language is different from your typical programming language, in that has a large number of built-in functions for carrying out high-level tasks, such as looking up stock prices or classifying images for facial recognition.

Language creator Stephen Wolfram has explained what he considers sets the language apart.

"It's a new kind of thing. It's what I call a knowledge-based language, it's a language where a vast amount of knowledge about how to do computations and about the world is built right into the language," he said.

"So, right within the language there are primitives for processing images or laying out networks or looking up stock prices or creating interfaces or solving optimization problems."

This broad sweep of built-in capabilities gives the language abilities that aren't found in most other languages out of the gate, for example, typing currentImage[] captures the current image from the computer's camera.

As such, the language is suited to tasks such as retrieving and working with a wide range of data, everything from written language to geographic information, as well as visualizing that data using relatively few lines of code.

Original Submission

RandomFactor writes:

Researchers are reporting that the bacterium Porphyromonas gingivalis, the cause of the most serious form of gum disease, "can travel throughout the body, exuding toxins connected with Alzheimer's disease, rheumatoid arthritis and aspiration pneumonia."

While previous researchers have noted the presence of P. gingivalis in brain samples from Alzheimer's patients, [new research from the team of Jan Potempa, PhD, DSc, a professor at the University of Louisville School of Dentistry and head of the department of microbiology at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland], in collaboration with Cortexyme, Inc., offers the strongest evidence to date that the bacterium may actually contribute to the development of Alzheimer's disease. Potempa will present the research at the American Association of Anatomists annual meeting during the 2019 Experimental Biology meeting, held April 6-9 in Orlando, Fla.

The research confirmed higher incidence of the bacteria in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease vs. those without, and also showed in mice studies that P. gingivalis can migrate from the mouth to the brain. Potential blocking pathways are already being studied to prevent this.

P. gingivalis commonly begins to infiltrate the gums during the teenage years. About one in five people under age 30 have low levels of the bacterium in their gums. While it is not harmful in most people, if it grows to large numbers the bacteria provoke the body's immune system to create inflammation, leading to redness, swelling, bleeding and the erosion of gum tissue.

The bacterium is also implicated in other ailments such as autoimmune disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and aspiration pneumonia.

General dental hygiene is the best approach to prevent the bacteria from growing out of control. You know the drill - Brush, floss, and see your dentist regularly.

Original Submission

martyb writes:

Microsoft is finally taking some steps to address some issues that users have been complaining about with respect to Windows 10's update process. Though the changes are welcome, I have to ask whether they are enough. Also, what side-effects can one expect from these changes? How can I see if there are updates available without also starting the "update timer clock"?

I find it sad that after years and years of nudging friends, family, and co-workers that they should update "early and often" so as to be as safe as possible from security vulnerabilities, and their actually starting to embrace that paradigm, Microsoft's single-handedly severely damaged that outlook with how it presented and handled getting Windows 10 installed. I mean, clicking the "x" in the upper right hand corner of a dialog window to dismiss it was taken to mean "Yes, please update my computer to Windows 10".

Call me cautiously optimistic about the progress, but I'm waiting to see how this will all shake out and what issues may arise. Read on for more information from the official Microsoft Blog posting on this change. There's more info in the actual blog entry, so (contrary to common practice here) I strongly suggest actually reading the entire story.

Improving the Windows 10 Update Experience With Control, Quality and Transparency:

martyb writes:

SpaceX Falcon Heavy Launch with Arabsat Reset for Tuesday:

SpaceX's Falcon Heavy launch with the ArabSat 6A satellite aboard has been reset for Tuesday after a test fire was completed Friday, SpaceX has confirmed.

The launch window was previously 6:36 to 8:35 p.m. EDT Sunday, based on airspace closure warnings. A similar time is expected for the new date. Delays or postponements can happen because of weather, technical problems or other issues.

Arabsat 6A is a communications satellite for the Riyahd, Saudi Arabia-based company of the same name. It is to lift off from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center.

[...] On the Falcon Heavy's maiden voyage into space in February 2018, also on a Tuesday, an estimated 100,000 visitors came to watch. That launch had the additional pizzazz of being the biggest rocket since the Saturn era ended in the 1970s. It was carrying Elon Musk's red Tesla Roadster with the crash dummy Starman at the wheel.

Two side boosters will attempt to fly back to twin landing pads at Kennedy Space Center.

Original Submission

RandomFactor writes:

Treatments that increase levels of the protein Thromobspondin-1 could help livers to recover from an overdose of Acetaminophen.

While safe at therapeutic levels, overdose of candy-like Acetaminophen taken accidentally or intentionally to harm oneself, "is the leading cause of quickly-developing — or acute — liver failure in the U.S." Sadly, this can lead into liver transplant and a lifetime of anti-rejection drugs.

[Matthew McMillin, PHD.], an assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin and research biologist at Central Texas Veterans Health Care System, will present the research at the American Society for Investigative Pathology annual meeting during the 2019 Experimental Biology meeting to be held April 6-9 in Orlando, Fla.

McMillin and his colleagues found that mice with acute liver failure from acetaminophen toxicity had higher levels of thrombospondin-1 than mice with normal liver function. When they administered acetaminophen to genetically modified mice that lack thrombospondin-1, the liver injury and loss of liver function was more severe compared to unmodified mice. The researchers also observed impaired liver regeneration and increased cell death in the mice without thrombospondin-1.

According to McMillin, "We were able to identify cell communication pathways that do not work properly during acetaminophen-induced liver injury and thus lead to worse outcomes."

The only current remedy for acute Acetaminophen overdose, N-acetylcysteine (NAC) or 'Acetadote', must be taken early, before the liver is damaged.

Acetylcysteine protects against acetaminophen overdose-induced hepatotoxicity by maintaining or restoring hepatic concentrations of glutathione. It does this by producing the glutathione precursor L-cysteine. Glutathione is required to inactivate an intermediate metabolite (N-acetyl-p-benzoquinoneimine or NAPQI) of acetaminophen that is thought to be hepatotoxic.

Remember to keep drugs well out of reach of small children and as they get older and self medicate, consider stacking the odds in their favor with less tasty, overdose- and damage-prone pain relievers.

Original Submission