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canopic jug writes:

The National Security Agency (NSA) has digitized and published a 1982 lecture by Rear Admiral (then Captain) Grace Hopper entitled, "Future Possibilities: Data, Hardware, Software, and People. The lecture was recorded on a now obsolete medium for which the NSA did not have playback capabilities any more. It was necessary to reach out to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to be able to transfer the recording to a current medium so that the NSA could review the material and approve it for public release.

The lecture, "Future Possibilities: Data, Hardware, Software, and People," features Capt. Hopper discussing some of the potential future challenges of protecting information. She also provided valuable insight on leadership and her experiences breaking barriers in the fields of computer science and mathematics.

and

On August 26, 2024, the National Security Agency (NSA) released a digital copy of a videotaped lecture, "Future Possibilities: Data, Hardware, Software, and People" that Rear Adm. Grace Hopper gave to the NSA workforce on August 19, 1982. This lecture highlights technological foundational principles, valuable perspectives on leadership and shared experiences overcoming challenges in computer science and math. The legacy of Rear Adm. Grace Hopper continues to echo across the intelligence community to light the path for women in STEM.

The NSA has published via YouTube but has hopefully learned from the experience and has retained a local archival copy.

Previously:
(2023) Misconceptions Put Women Off STEM Subjects
(2018) A Female Engineer's Opinion On Why Fewer Women Go In To Tech
(2017) Women in STEM - Recruitment Efforts Counterproductive

Original Submission

Story: https://soylentnews.org/article.pl?sid=24/08/25/0733206

Pavel Durov will appear in a French court today where some sources expect him to be charged. A warrant has also been issued for the arrest of his brother, Nikolai. Both warrants were issued in March of this year.

Latest Comment: https://soylentnews.org/comments.pl?noupdate=1&sid=61880&page=1&cid=1370342#commentwrap

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Rich writes:

The Japanese semiconductor manufacturer Renesas has completed the acquisition of PCB Layout Software Maker Altium (https://www.powerelectronicsnews.com/renesas-acquires-altium-as-part-of-its-digitalization-strategy/). Renesas paid $5.9bn for Altium, which had a revenue of $263m in 2023. Along with the PCB software, Renesas now have control of component search website Octopart, which Altium acquired in 2017.

This acquisition is aimed at enhancing its capabilities in digital device design and supporting its digital transformation. This move propels Renesas to become a comprehensive solutions provider rather than just a chip vendor, strengthening its position in the competitive landscape.

The industry media fails to mention KiCad (http://www.kicad.org/), a free PCB software that has become an increasingly serious competition for Altium in recent years. What do Soylentils think about the reasons why Renesas spent such a premium over the core business size?

Original Submission

owl writes:

From the "everything is ruined by advertising" comes this gem: https://www.vodxs.com/

Now some fool's decided to mount advertising screens to the tops of washroom faucets, because, well, I guess you got nothing better to do while washing your hands than look at a stupid ad at the same time.

How long do you think these will last in the real world before the users break the screens so they no longer have to look at the stupid ads?

I cannot imagine these lasting long in many public places. Perhaps in an office building or somewhere similar but elsewhere I would imagine their life will be measured in days. They will have to be powered so now each faucet will have to be wired up - never a good idea where water is involved. So what is the financial incentive for the place where they will be installed. Will somebody else will be getting free advertising from something that the installer has had to pay for? Who pays for their running costs? Does the manufacturer pay for the installation and upkeep? If so, how do they see this making them money?

Original Submission

fliptop writes:

IBM joins a growing list of Western tech companies that have been pulling out or scaling back their presence in the Chinese market:

IBM is in the process of shutting down its research and development (R&D) departments in China, local media outlets say, becoming the latest American tech giant to scale back its presence in the increasingly restrictive China-based market.

The decision by the Armonk, New York-based tech service provider will affect its more than 1,000 employees across China, local staff told multiple Chinese media outlets, including Jiemian, a news site owned by a Shanghai municipal government.

[...] IBM was among the first significant Western companies to invest in the Chinese market in the 1980s, according to China's state media.

In January 2021, IBM quietly closed its China Research Laboratory, a Beijing-based R&D center that focused on quantum computing, big data analysis, and other cutting-edge technology.

[...] IBM joins a growing list of Western tech companies that have been pulling out or scaling back their presence in the Chinese market amid increasing regulatory pressures from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

In response to the CCP's trade practices that have placed U.S. companies and workers at a competitive disadvantage, the Biden administration has significantly increased tariffs on imported electric vehicles, solar panels, and other imports hurting U.S. industries.

U.S. lawmakers are pushing the federal government to combat Beijing's other unfair trade practices, particularly the CCP's efforts to acquire American technological know-how. Through tactics including intellectual property theft and forced technology transfer, the CCP aims to leverage advanced technology to power its economy and advance its military.

Related:

• Yahoo Pulls Out of China Over "Challenging" Business Conditions
• Microsoft Will Shut Down LinkedIn in China

Original Submission

Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:

Antarctica's unique ecosystems could be threatened by the arrival of non-native marine species and marine pollution from Southern Hemisphere landmasses, new oceanographic modeling shows.

In a study published today in Global Change Biology, scientists from UNSW Sydney, ANU, University of Otago and the University of South Florida suggest that floating objects can reach Antarctic waters from more sources than previously thought.

"An increasing abundance of plastics and other human made debris in the oceans means there are potentially more opportunities for biota to reach Antarctica," says lead author Dr. Hannah Dawson, who completed the study as part of her Ph.D. at UNSW, and is now based at the University of Tasmania.

Non-native species—including a range of small marine invertebrates—can reach Antarctica by catching a ride on floating objects like kelp, driftwood, pumice, and plastic. Previously, scientists thought these species only drifted from remote and unpopulated islands in the Southern Ocean. However, this new research suggests they can reach the Antarctic coastline from all southern continents.

"We knew that kelp could raft to Antarctica from sub-Antarctic islands, such as Macquarie and Kerguelen Islands, but our study suggests that floating objects can reach Antarctica from much further north, including South America, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa," says Dr. Dawson.

Co-author Professor Crid Fraser from the University of Otago says that kelp could deal a potential double whammy blow to Antarctica's marine ecosystem.

"Southern bull kelp and giant kelp are very big—often more than 10 m long—and create forest-like habitat for a lot of small animals, which they can carry with them on the long rafting trips to Antarctica," she says. "If they colonize Antarctica, marine ecosystems there could change dramatically."

Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:

The guide price is $40,000 - $60,000; you will need a large spare room.

A transformative transistorized milestone in the history of computing could be yours, as an IBM 7090 Mainframe computer system has gone up for auction at Christie’s. Before the arrival of the IBM 7090, commercially available computers relied on valves rather than transistors, and this machine is said to have delivered a remarkable speed, efficiency, and reliability boost compared to its predecessor due to embracing the newest solid-state technology.

This auction lot is an extensive collection of IBM tech gear, cutting edge in 1959, and you would need a sizeable spare room or garage to house it all. Christie’s says the hardware on auction is from the Paul G. Allen (Microsoft co-founder) Collection, and he acquired it in 2017 from a ‘Weapons Research Establishment’ in South Australia. The mainframe is currently in Seattle, and the guide price is $40,000 - $60,000, with 19 days left of the auction period. Purchasing an IBM 7070 new, back in the 1950s, was a much bigger investment, at $813,000.

Despite the move away from vacuum tube technology, the IBM 7070 was still a hulking beast. Capable of processing about 229,000 instructions per second, the machine used approximately 14,000 Standard Modular System cards. These cards housed about 30,000 alloy-junction germanium transistors and 22,000 germanium diodes. Due to this bulk, an IBM 7070 system weighs over 23,000 pounds (10,430kg).

The mainframe system being sold by Christie’s includes many functional equipment and peripherals for the IBM 7070 user. According to the listing, the lucky auction winner will also end up owning:

• 1x IBM 7151 console control unit with IBM 7155 switch control console attached to side
• 1x IBM 711 card reader
• 2x IBM 7617 Data Channel Consoles
• 1x IBM 7608 power converter
• 13x IBM 729 magnetic tape units
• 1x IBM 1401 mainframe computer
• 1x IBM 7302 core storage
• 1x IBM 7606 multiplexer
• 1x IBM 7108 instruction processing unit
• 1x IBM 7109 arithmetic sequence unit
• 1x IBM 7607 I data channel
• 1x IBM 7607 II data channel
• 1x IBM 7618 power control
• 1x IBM 1403 printer
• 1x IBM 1402 card read punch
• 1x IBM 716 printer

upstart writes:

According to the Dutch data watchdog, Uber has violated the GDPR:

The Dutch data protection authority (DPA) has hit Uber with a €290mn fine for transferring personal European driver data to the US.

According to the DPA, the transfers constituted a "serious violation" of the EU's GDPR, as they failed to provide the necessary safeguards for data storage outside the block.

Following an investigation, the DPA found that, between August 2021 and November 2023, Uber was transferring and storing sensitive data to US servers without the additional protection tools required by the GDPR.

The data included taxi licences, account and payment details, IDs, photos, and even criminal or medical records.

[...] The investigation was prompted by a complaint from over 170 French drivers to local human rights organisation Ligue des droits de l'Homme (LDH). LDH then filed a complaint to France's data protection watchdog CNIL.

According to the GDPR, companies processing data across the EU must answer to a single privacy authority, located in the country where a business has its European headquarters. As Uber's base is in the Netherlands, the DPA led the probe.

The DPA said that Uber has now stopped the practice. It's also going to appeal the decision.

This is the third fine the Dutch watchdog imposes on Uber. In 2018, the DPA hit the company with €600,000 for failing to notify the agency on time over a data breach in 2016. And as of January this year, Uber is also facing a €10mn fine (again) for violating privacy rules, which it has appealed.

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AnonTechie writes:

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy revealed in a LinkedIn post on August 22 that the company was able to integrate Amazon Q, its generative AI assistant, into its internal systems to update its foundational software.

The result has been a "game changer," Jassy said.

"The average time to upgrade an application to Java 17 plummeted from what's typically 50 developer-days to just a few hours," he wrote. "We estimate this has saved us the equivalent of 4500 developer-years of work (yes, that number is crazy but, real)."

The AI is not only fast but seems pretty accurate, too, according to his post. Amazon developers shipped 79% of the AI-generated code reviews without any additional changes, Jassy wrote.

Business Insider India

[Also Covered By]: MSN Money

What do you make of this story ? Do you believe that this has more substance than hype ??

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Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:

Using bacteria to take a bite out of plastic pollution is not new. But can the same microbes be used as a food source?

In 2019, an agency within the U.S. Department of Defense released a call for research projects to help the military deal with the copious amount of plastic waste generated when troops are sent to work in remote locations or disaster zones. The agency wanted a system that could convert food wrappers and water bottles, among other things, into usable products, such as fuel and rations. The system needed to be small enough to fit in a Humvee and capable of running on little energy. It also needed to harness the power of plastic-eating microbes.

“When we started this project four years ago, the ideas were there. And in theory, it made sense,” said Stephen Techtmann, a microbiologist at Michigan Technological University, who leads one of the three research groups receiving funding. Nevertheless, he said, in the beginning, the effort “felt a lot more science-fiction than really something that would work.”

That uncertainty was key. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, supports high-risk, high-reward projects. This means there’s a good chance that any individual effort will end in failure. But when a project does succeed, it has the potential to be a true scientific breakthrough. “Our goal is to go from disbelief, like, ‘You're kidding me. You want to do what?’ to ‘You know, that might be actually feasible,’” said Leonard Tender, a program manager at DARPA who is overseeing the plastic waste projects.

[...] For years, scientists have also been experimenting with various species of plastic-eating bacteria. But DARPA is taking a slightly different approach in seeking a compact and mobile solution that uses plastic to create something else entirely: food for humans.

The goal, Techtmann hastens to add, is not to feed people plastic. Rather, the hope is that the plastic-devouring microbes in his system will themselves prove fit for human consumption. While Techtmann believes most of the project will be ready in a year or two, it’s this food step that could take longer. His team is currently doing toxicity testing, and then they will submit their results to the Food and Drug Administration for review. Even if all that goes smoothly, an additional challenge awaits. There’s an ick factor, said Techtmann, “that I think would have to be overcome.”

hubie writes:

Smart display will soon default to showing ads after three hours:

In September of 2023, Amazon announced the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition. It looked just like the regular Echo Show 8 smart display/speaker but cost $10 more. Why? Because of its ability to show photos on the home screen for as long as you want—if you signed up for a $2 monthly subscription to Amazon's PhotosPlus. Now, about a year after releasing the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition, Amazon is announcing that it's discontinuing PhotosPlus. That means Echo Show 8 Photos Edition users will be forced to see ads instead of their beloved pics.

As per The Verge yesterday, Amazon started sending PhotosPlus subscribers emails saying that it will automatically cancel all PhotosPlus subscriptions on September 12 and will stop supporting PhotosPlus as of September 23. PhotosPlus, per Amazon's message, "makes photos the primary home screen content you see on your Echo Show 8 and includes 25 GB of storage with Amazon Photos," Amazon's online photo storage offering. Users can continue using the 25GB of Amazon Photos storage after September.

However, users will no longer be able to make photos the indefinite home screen on the Alexa gadget. After September, their devices will no longer have the "photo-forward mode" that Amazon advertised for the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition. The photo-forward mode, per Amazon, let people make "selected personal photos the primary rotating content on the ambient screen" (photos rotated every 30 seconds). Now, Echo Show 8 Photo Editions will work like a regular Echo Show 8 and default to showing ads and promotions after three hours.

[...] But now people who bought into the Photos Edition could feel like the victims of a bait-and-switch. After paying $10 extra to get a device capable of displaying photos indefinitely instead of ads, they'll be forced into the same user experience as the cheaper Echo Show 8.

[...] Amazon may make more money selling ads than it has selling PhotosPlus subscriptions and relevant hardware. It was always somewhat peculiar that PhotosPlus only applied to one Amazon device. Amazon might have been considering extending PhotosPlus to other devices but didn't get enough interest or money from the venture. Getting people to pay monthly for a feature that some would argue the gadget should already support out of the box seems difficult.

Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:

Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs is warning residents of under-siege regions to switch off home surveillance systems and dating apps to stop Ukraine from using them for intel-gathering purposes.

Residents of the Bryansk, Kursk, and Belgorod regions were issued with the warnings amid what seems like Russia being thoroughly rattled by Ukraine's incursion into the country's southwest.

"The enemy is massively identifying IP ranges in our territories and connecting to unprotected video surveillance cameras remotely, viewing everything from private yards to roads and highways of strategic importance," said the ministry, according to Russian newswire Interfax. "In this regard, if there is no urgent need, it is better not to use video surveillance cameras.

"It is highly discouraged to use online dating services. The enemy actively uses such resources for the covert collection of information."

These warnings were just two of many included in a public memo aimed at protecting the identities of high-value Russian individuals, including military personnel, law enforcement agents, and nuclear energy workers.

They follow an unexpected table-turning offensive launched by Ukraine on August 6, during which it surged into Kursk Oblast, seizing hundreds of square miles of land within mere weeks.

[...] The memo's warnings appear to be driven by fears of Russians with knowledge of Ukrainian interest being captured and having their devices combed for intel.

The military was reminded to avoid opening links that come from anyone other than official sources, and, while they're at it, to avoid using devices at all if they contain a significant amount of state and/or personal information.

Russian police officials reportedly said: "It is necessary to control and moderate chats, and promptly delete from them the accounts of people who have been captured by the enemy, as well as the accounts of people whose phones the enemy has gained access to."

If using Telegram, users were urged to disable the app's feature allowing other users to identify people who are geographically close to them. Deleting all markers that tie an individual to a specific affiliation, such as soldiers, law enforcement workers, and those working in the energy sector – especially nuclear power – was advised too.

"If your number appears in search results as recorded by third parties as 'Lesha FSB,' 'Pasha Rosgvardia,' 'Misha 123 Regiment,' this number needs to be changed, it has been compromised."

Social media posts must be audited too, removing any images or posts that are geotagged, out of fear that they could be used to locate Russian troops.

Original Submission

DannyB writes:

There's a Problem With Rescuing the Stranded Astronauts: SpaceX and Boeing Spacesuits Aren't Compatible

While NASA and Boeing maintain that Starliner is ready to take the two crew members down to the surface in the case of an emergency — despite the possibility of several thrusters malfunctioning — even alternative rideshare options could expose Williams and Wilmore to considerable risks.

For one, Starliner's spacesuits aren't compatible with those used on board SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft. That means if the pair were to return on board the SpaceX capsule currently docked to the station, which is one rescue plan under consideration by NASA, they'd be flying without wearing a suit, as NASA confirmed during a teleconference call last week — an unfortunate reality for the space agency that will likely factor into its upcoming decision.

While "launch and entry" or intravehicular (IVA) spacesuits, unlike extravehicular activity (EVA) suits, are worn as a precaution inside spacecraft in case of cabin pressure loss, they could still prove life-saving if an emergency were to occur. They can also help with temperature regulation, and in some cases collect data and pass it on to the spacecraft's software.

[....] Even if Williams and Wilmore were to be loaded into an already fully occupied Crew-8 Crew Dragon, and they somehow had suits ready, Krishna explained, the capsule is only configured for four passengers, despite originally being designed to be occupied by a crew of seven. That means their suits wouldn't have anywhere to plug in anyway.

Fortunately, NASA has an entirely separate option to get the two astronauts back down to the ground: SpaceX's upcoming Crew-9 mission, which could be launched with just two, not four, crew members to make space for Williams and Wilmore, allowing them to return sometime in February.

Boeing should build it to be as safe as their aircraft.

Original Submission

Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:

Implantable technologies have significantly improved our ability to study and even modulate the activity of neurons in the brain. However, neurons in the spinal cord are harder to study in action.

“If we understood exactly how neurons in the spinal cord process sensation and control movement, we could develop better treatments for spinal cord disease and injury,” said Yu Wu, a research scientist who is part of a team of Rice University neuroengineers working on a solution to this problem.

“We developed a tiny sensor, spinalNET, that records the electrical activity of spinal neurons as the subject performs normal activity without any restraint,” said Wu, who is the lead author of a study about the sensor published in Cell Reports. “Being able to extract such knowledge is a first but important step to develop cures for millions of people suffering from spinal cord diseases.”

According to the study, the sensor recorded neuronal activity in the spinal cord of freely moving mice for prolonged periods and with great resolution, even tracking the same neuron over multiple days.

“Up until now, the spinal cord has been more or less a black box,” said Lan Luan, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and a corresponding author on the study. “The issue is that the spinal cord moves so much during normal activity. Every time you turn your head or bend over, spinal neurons are also moving.”

During such movements, rigid sensors implanted in the spinal cord inevitably disturb or even damage the fragile tissue. SpinalNET, however, is over a hundred times smaller than the width of a hair, which makes it extremely soft and flexible ⎯ nearly as soft as the neural tissue itself.

“This flexibility gives it the stability and biocompatibility we need to safely record spinal neurons during spinal cord movements,” said Chong Xie, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and bioengineering and a corresponding author of the study. “With spinalNET, we were able to get low-noise signals from hundreds of neurons.”

Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:

Failures

So we just wrote about how advertising on ExTwitter remains in freefall and is likely down between 75 and 85% from when Elon took over. And now the Wall Street Journal has a piece recognizing that the banks that financed about $13 billion of the $44 billion Musk needed are admitting that it may be one of the worst buyout deals of all time.

The headline of the article actually underplays the story, calling it “the worst buyout for banks since the financial crisis.” But that’s just based on the “hang” — the length of time the deal has remained on their books. You see, the way this normally works is that the big banks lend the money and then almost immediately turn around and sell off the debt to other suckers to deal with.

But, in the case of Musk and Twitter, the banks immediately rubber-stamped it on the basis of “Ooooh, that Elon, doesn’t he always make money?” and without doing much (if any) due diligence. The entities who would buy the debt actually care about the return (or lack thereof) and were quick to recognize that Musk was going to tank Twitter’s revenue potential.

Some of this was known before. Just as Musk was about to officially gain control of Twitter, it was reported that the banks were regretting their decision as they realized they couldn’t sell the debt. There was talk of them offering it to other investors for pennies on the dollar. Instead, they all just kept marking down the value of the debt.

To make matters worse for all involved, it has been reported that the banks agreed to a sell-down letter, preventing any bank from taking a deal that isn’t offered to the rest of them. But to make matters even worse for Elon specifically, he apparently promised the bankers they wouldn’t lose money on this deal. It’s unclear how binding that promise is, and Musk is somewhat infamous for breaking promises. But it certainly could impact his ability to borrow in the future.

That said, the WSJ article highlights that the banks have had to hang on to the (greatly devalued) loans for a record length of time.

Maybe the banks will think about due diligence next time? I mean, it was no secret that the basic ideas Musk laid out for how he was going to run Twitter were absolute nonsense from Day One.

But, while the headline and the beginning of the piece compare the performance of this deal to the financial crisis, they admit deeper in the article that it may just be one of the worst of all time...[.]

Original Submission