Mock Turtle world

[Mock Turtle]

World faces ‘deathly silence’ of nature as wildlife disappears, warn experts

Loss of intensity and diversity of noises in ecosystems reflects an alarming decline in healthy biodiversity, say sound ecologists

www.theguardian.com

Sounds of the natural world are rapidly falling silent and will become “acoustic fossils” without urgent action to halt environmental destruction, international experts have warned. As technology develops, sound has become an increasingly important way of measuring the health and biodiversity of ecosystems: our forests, soils and oceans all produce their own acoustic signatures. Scientists who use ecoacoustics to measure habitats and species say that quiet is falling across thousands of habitats, as the planet witnesses extraordinary losses in the density and variety of species. Disappearing or losing volume along with them are many familiar sounds: the morning calls of birds, rustle of mammals through undergrowth and summer hum of insects. Today, tuning into some ecosystems reveals a “deathly silence”, said Prof Steve Simpson from the University of Bristol. “It is that race against time – we’ve only just discovered that they make such sounds, and yet we hear the sound disappearing.” “The changes are profound. And they are happening everywhere,” said US soundscape recordist Bernie Krause, who has taken more than 5,000 hours of recordings from seven continents over the past 55 years. He estimates that 70% of his archive is from habitats that no longer exist. Prof Bryan Pijanowski from Purdue University in the US has been listening to natural sounds for 40 years and taken recordings from virtually all of the world’s main types of ecosystems. He said: “The sounds of the past that have been recorded and saved represent the sounds of species that might no longer be here – so that’s all we’ve got. The recordings that many of us have [are] of places that no longer exist, and we don’t even know what those species are. In that sense they are already acoustic fossils.”

I Could Never Go Vegan review – cheerfully persuasive film about the plant-based lifestyle

Thomas Pickering blends approachable narration with well-presented information in a welcome reminder of the Michael Moore method

www.theguardian.com

Pickering is a vegan who was brought up by vegans and sets out to answer the anti-vegan remarks he hears from his friends all the time; they could never go vegan because meat is too delicious, or because climate change isn’t real, or because plant-based diets don’t deliver the protein, or because these days free range or organic meat industries make animals’ lives better. Pickering dispenses with each and every one, with the help of compelling testimony from Guardian columnist George Monbiot among others. The one about meat being delicious is difficult to combat, and Pickering’s garish closeups of a sinful fry-up, intended to dismay and disgust, had me thinking … mmmmm, yum. (Perhaps Pickering should have interviewed vegan and comedian Romesh Ranganathan who is funny and insightful on this subject.) Vegan recipes are certainly getting better all the time, and Pickering also dispenses with the notion that “free range” farming is a Shangri-La of happiness for animals. It is a little bit better than non-free-range, maybe, but the animals are still kept in grim conditions and the distinction has basically been invented to create a spurious “luxury” consumer tier. Pickering’s style isn’t perfect. I could have done without his goofy and staged-looking phone calls to his mum, and I also think he could have given us a basic run-down of what exactly he eats for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, along with the inter-meal snacks. The film is tasty, though.

Drug shortages, now normal in UK, made worse by Brexit, report warns

Some shortages are so serious they are imperilling the health and even lives of patients with serious illnesses, pharmacy bosses say

www.theguardian.com

Drug shortages are a “new normal” in the UK and are being exacerbated by Brexit, a report by the Nuffield Trust health thinktank has warned. A dramatic recent spike in the number of drugs that are unavailable has created serious problems for doctors, pharmacists, the NHS and patients, it found. The number of warnings drug companies have issued about impending supply problems for certain products has more than doubled from 648 in 2020 to 1,634 last year. Mark Dayan, the report’s lead author and the Nuffield Trust’s Brexit programme lead, said: “The rise in shortages of vital medicines from rare to commonplace has been a shocking development that few would have expected a decade ago.” The UK has been struggling since last year with major shortages of drugs to treat ADHD, type 2 diabetes and epilepsy. Three ADHD drugs that were in short supply were meant to be back in normal circulation by the end of 2023 but remain hard to obtain. Some medicine shortages are so serious that they are imperilling the health and even lives of patients with serious illnesses, pharmacy bosses warned. Health charities have seen a sharp rise in calls from patients unable to obtain their usual medication. Nicola Swanborough, head of external affairs at the Epilepsy Society, said: “Our helpline has been inundated with calls from desperate people who are having to travel miles, often visiting multiple pharmacies to try and access their medication.”

And rather plain to see, when one just happens to want some particular medicine but that day it appears absent from the shelves.

Boat-sinking orcas are on the move – and scientists don’t know why

But are they just playing?

metro.co.uk

The boat-sinking orcas are on the move. Since 2020, orcas has been attacking boats in southwest Europe, and were recently spotted circling a ship in Spain for the first time this year. However, the most recent sighting of one such pod is hundreds of miles from where they should be this time of year, suggesting the group is changing its tactics – and scientists have no idea why. The group is made up of 40 orcas who live off the coast of Spain and Portugal, as well as in the Strait of Gibraltar, and since 2020 some of the orcas have been approaching and occasionally attacking boats. The most recent sinking happened on October 31, 2023, but the orcas have sent at least three other boats to the bottom of the sea, although thankfully no humans have been injured or killed. But just a few days ago, on April 10, three of the orcas were spotted swimming near a large yacht in northern Spain, a local news site reported.

Trump lawyer's unbelievable claim about him after he appeared to fall asleep

Ex-President Donald Trump's lawyer Alina Habba gave a bizarre response to reports he fell asleep during his hush money trial.

metro.co.uk

She said: ‘I was not there. I find that a remarkable story at best. President Trump, you know, he reads a lot.

Well that is news - that he can read.

Second US civil war becoming 'increasingly likely'

Society is at breaking point.

metro.co.uk

The possibility of a second US civil war is becoming ‘increasingly plausible’ according to a new study – with additional insurrections even more likely. There are also ‘striking similarities’ between the 1850s – the decade before the first civil war – and today, according to the team from California State University, San Bernardino. The American Civil War broke out on April 12, 1861, and lasted until April 26, 1865. It followed the secession of 11 Southern states following decades of arguments over slavery. However, other issues that sparked the conflict included government reach, states rights and taxes. Writing in the journal Administration and Society, the team said: ‘Here, our purpose is to compare the zeitgeist of the divisive decade before the Civil War on the one hand with today’s hyper-partisan era on the other, demonstrating the two periods do indeed have extensive, striking similarities.’ In the US of today, society is again split over many issues, such as abortion, immigration, gun ownership, identity politics and, almost four years on, the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election. On January 6, 2021, supporters of the then-president Donald Trump stormed the Capitol building, the US’s equivalent to the Houses of Parliament, claiming the previous November’s election had been ‘stolen’. Nine people died as a result of the insurrection, either during or after the event.

From what I am seeing I tend to agree, and no doubt Russia and China, amongst others, will be laughing their socks off - especially as the GOP seem to be doing their work for them.

What happens to your body every time you vape - and whether cigarettes differ

Swathes of Brits have ditched tobacco for fruit-flavoured vapes - but what actually happens to your body every time you inhale on an e-cigarette, and does it actually differ from smoking traditional cigs?

www.mirror.co.uk

In 2022, UK experts reviewed international evidence and found that 'in the short and medium term, vaping poses a small fraction of the risks of smoking'. The NHS says because vaping hasn't been around for long, it's hard to know the risks of long-term use. Dr Khan agrees that more research is needed for us to have a better understanding - but says some evidence suggests potential health risks associated with chronic vape use. "Prolonged exposure to the aerosolised particles from vaping products may contribute to chronic lung damage and respiratory issues," he told the Mirror. "Although the risks might be lower compared to traditional smoking due to the absence of combustion, long-term vaping could lead to reduced lung function over time, resulting in symptoms such as shortness of breath. This could potentially limit an individual's ability to engage in physical activities and exercise." Long-term vaping can also lead to skin problems such as dehydration and irritation, as well as fine lines and wrinkles around the lips - just like smoking standard cigarettes.

No matter the warnings, people will seemingly pay to be addicted to something worthless.

'I refused to give up first class seat so child could sit with their family'

A woman has sparked a fierce debate after she refused to give up her first-class seat on a plane for a child who wanted to sit with their family - and she's not the only one who feels this way

www.mirror.co.uk

My particular experience was similar - a booked seat on a train and where I evicted the young girl sitting there - but subsequently I would have acted differently if another seat was easily found, given it hardly mattered where I sat but more important for her to be near her family. But I believe I was a bit different then.

Brits have tiny window to see UK's ancient city this summer before it's buried

Work to uncover the Ness of Brodgar archaeological site on the Orkney Islands in Scotland will finally finish this summer, before it is covered in soil and hidden

www.mirror.co.uk

 

[Mock Turtle]

Israel launches strikes against Iran causing explosions near nuclear sites – latest

Israel’s military has not confirmed strike and Iranian officials maintain ‘no damage’ in Isfahan

www.independent.co.uk

Thus following their buddy Russia's lead. Not aiding their claims to being the most moral - both.

Novelty flip phone strips out almost every feature possible

Only good for calls and texts pretty much, and that's no mistake

www.theregister.com

Kremlin-backed actors spread disinformation ahead of US elections

To a lesser extent, China and Iran also peddle disinfo in hopes of influencing voters.

arstechnica.com

Why Feathers Are One of Evolution’s Cleverest Inventions

Fossil and living birds reveal the dazzling biology of feathers

www.scientificamerican.com

Manchester nightlife videos: Women 'feel unsafe' after being secretly filmed

The videos taken of women on nights out without their knowledge have gained millions of views.

www.bbc.co.uk

"It's just not nice at all, and obviously not just in a selfish way, but also towards the other women. A lot of them will be really, really young girls, maybe even underage girls not knowing that they were being recorded. "There's videos of girls like falling over and having their underwear on show and stuff. And then being posted online like that, something really needs to be done about it."

Might make them wake up to realising how vulnerable they might be, and as to placing themselves in danger, especially if they might be drunk enough to fall over. And it might be some doing this to highlight the bad ways of Westerners - given that it is often the religious who like to shout about us all going to Hell with such behaviours.

GMP said although it is not illegal to film people in public, if the action is causing distress or harassment it could be considered criminal. PCs Ellison and Seu from GMP said it could be difficult to spot people filming due to the technology they use.

Does this apply to the ubiquitous CCTV in most cities?

Suffering is not enough: Assisted dying for people with mental illness

Persons with mental disorders who are resistant to evidence‐based treatment can be referred to as patients with severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI). Some patients with SPMI develop a strong wish for assisted dying. Switzerland has the ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

It’s hard to find the truth when authoritarians like Putin ‘factcheck’ their own propaganda | Maxim Alyukov

Bad actors know that factchecking sites are a vital democratic tool – that’s why they’ve launched their own dishonest versions, says academic Maxim Alyukov

www.theguardian.com

China’s cities are sinking – because there are too many people in them

There's a 'sinking belt'.

metro.co.uk

Although not mentioned, Bangkok has a similar problem, and probably more pressing.

Boston Dynamics have built a new robot and it's their scariest yet

No robots were hurt in the making of this video.

metro.co.uk

The three threats that could spark World War Three

Will the UK go to war with Russia, China or Iran? Threat of World War 3 looms as Putin takes action and British public face conscription.

metro.co.uk

'Aliens from another dimension took my eggs after beaming me to their ship'

Sherry Wilde claims she has spent most of her life communicating with aliens and was first visited by them when her car stalled and she saw four of them standing in the road

www.mirror.co.uk

Yes dear, now take the medicine as requested.

 

[Mock Turtle]

The Cybertruck's failure is now complete

Tesla's latest vehicle was widely mocked even before its accelerator pedal problem. Now it's a national joke.

mashable.com

Crucially for Tesla's future, we may have reached a tipping point: The Cybertruck has become a punchline in a way that its owners cannot get out from under. The joke is that they are dupes who paid through the nose for an extremely expensive vehicle that looks like it was designed by a child and does not actually perform many of the functions we expect from a truck, and that they'll put up with any design flaw whatsoever.

I think this is what many thought when they first saw it - and not, ooh, I'd like one of those.

BBC Radio 4 - Sliced Bread - Can cooking with an air fryer save you money?

Seven things to consider before investing in an air fryer

www.bbc.co.uk

It wouldn't save me money - probably would lie unused, as per so many other such items I have.

Israel’s strike has exposed Iran’s fatal weakness

It was vital for the Israelis to show their combat superiority over Tehran

www.telegraph.co.uk

Oxford shuts down institute run by Elon Musk-backed philosopher

Nick Bostrom’s Future of Humanity Institute closed this week in what Swedish-born philosopher says was ‘death by bureaucracy’

www.theguardian.com

'Story never over' for parents of Columbine school massacre victims 25 years on

The Columbine school massacre has left a haunting mark on the US but 25 years on parents of the victims are still fighting against gun rights in memory of their slaughtered children

www.mirror.co.uk

Catastrophizing

Catastrophizing is a cognitive distortion that prompts people to jump to the worst possible conclusion, usually with very limited information or objective reason to despair. When a situation is upsetting, but not necessarily catastrophic, they still feel like they are in the midst of a crisis.

www.psychologytoday.com

Catastrophising: How toxic thinking leads you down dark paths

Expecting the very worst to happen in any given situation can harm mental health. How do we stop these toxic-thinking spirals?

www.bbc.com

 

[Mock Turtle]

Forbidden names: Which names are banned around the world? - BBC Bitesize

We find out why Nutella, Justice and Tom were banned as baby names in some countries.

www.bbc.co.uk

‘He erased the entire project’ … the book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read to be published

Half a century since the perfectionist director vowed to block it, a critique that dared to discuss flaws in his films is to be published

www.theguardian.com

Sex offender banned from using AI tools in landmark UK case

The decision could set a precedent for future monitoring of people convicted of indecent image offences

www.theguardian.com

WHO Warns Growing Spread of Bird Flu to Humans Is 'Enormous Concern'

The World Health Organization voiced alarm Thursday at the growing spread of H5N1 bird flu to new species, including humans, who face an "extraordinarily high" mortality rate.

www.sciencealert.com

The A (H5N1) strain has become "a global zoonotic animal pandemic", Farrar said. "The great concern of course is that in… infecting ducks and chickens and then increasingly mammals, that virus now evolves and develops the ability to infect humans and then critically the ability to go from human to human." So far, there is no evidence that the influenza A(H5N1) virus is spreading between humans. But in the hundreds of cases where humans have been infected through contact with animals, "the mortality rate is extraordinarily high", Farrar said.

Scientists Discover 2 Key Brain Systems Behind Psychosis

Researchers have identified dysfunctions in two specific brain systems in people who have psychosis – systems that help us filter attention to important internal and external information and predict or anticipate rewards.

www.sciencealert.com

You Can Actually Order Your Very Own Invisibility Shield Right Now

It's not every day the future arrives early.

www.sciencealert.com

Too Much Junk Food Could Cause Lasting Damage to The Brain

The evidence that junk food isn't good for our bodies, let alone our brains, is piling up just like a cheeseburger stacked with all the toppings.

www.sciencealert.com

But perhaps those who rely on such are 'brain-damaged' already?

Physicists Think The Infinite Size of The Multiverse Could Be Infinitely Bigger

Not only does God play dice, that great big casino of quantum physics could have far more rooms than we ever imagined.

www.sciencealert.com

Physicists Say The Ultimate Battery Could Harness The Power of Black Holes

The quest to generate more energy from less material while avoiding burning any more fossil fuels than our planet can handle is spawning some, let's say, creative ideas.

www.sciencealert.com

AI Can Transform the Classroom Just Like the Calculator

AI can better education, not threaten it, if we learn some lessons from the adoption of the calculator into the classroom

www.scientificamerican.com

AI could allow for customized learner support - adapting to the individual pace and learning style of each student, helping to make education more inclusive and tailored to specific needs. Generative AI can better the humanities by making reading and writing more accessible to diverse students, including those with learning disabilities or challenges with traditional writing methods.

This could become the norm - as to education individually geared to each student, and perhaps where some don't actually slip through the net, as I apparently did.

The Science of Reducing Prejudice in Kids

Making schools more welcoming for all can make for a fair and just society

www.scientificamerican.com

Microsoft’s VASA-1 can deepfake a person with one photo and one audio track

YouTube videos of 6K celebrities helped train AI model to animate photos in real time.

arstechnica.com

We had a case of this on the new UK BGT series seemingly, where images of the judges were used to perform live for one act.

DARPA’s AI test pilot successfully flew a dogfight against a human

After flying against simulated opponents, the AI agent has taken on humans.

arstechnica.com

Daniel Dennett, philosophical giant who championed “naturalism,” dead at 82

Part of the "New Atheist" movement, best known for work on consciousness, free will.

arstechnica.com

In his later years, Dennett wasn't shy about sounding the alarm regarding AI, even writing an article for The Atlantic last year on the topic about the dangers ahead, particularly with the advent of large language models like ChatGPT. "The most pressing problem is not that they’re going to take our jobs, not that they’re going to change warfare, but that they’re going to destroy human trust," he told Tufts Now. "They’re going to move us into a world where you can’t tell truth from falsehood. You don’t know who to trust. Trust turns out to be one of the most important features of civilization, and we are now at great risk of destroying the links of trust that have made civilization possible."

Quite possible too, given what we have seen so far.

 

[Mock Turtle]

Claims that smart motorways tech leaves drivers at risk

Figures obtained by the BBC reveal worries about the reliability of the tech behind smart motorways.

www.bbc.co.uk

The technology behind England's smart motorway network stops working on a regular basis, the BBC has discovered. Figures obtained by Panorama have revealed hundreds of incidents when crucial safety equipment was out of action. A traffic officer who works on the network told the programme he no longer considers it safe. National Highways - the agency in charge of smart motorways - denies the claims. Smart motorways are stretches of road where technology is used to try to regulate traffic flow and ease congestion. There are 193 miles of what's called "all-lane-running" motorway - this means the hard shoulder has been permanently removed to provide an extra lane.

I've only ever broken down once on a motorway (the M1), when they did have hard shoulders (late 1960s), and in an old and cheap A35 van - student days, and going home to London. The engine conked out, possibly due to an oil leakage, and it seemed terminal. I managed to push it back to the nearest exit, which fortunately wasn't that far away, and left it to be collected later. Which happened shortly afterwards when I bought another cheap car (Morris Minor van) and towed the A35 to a scrapyard - never did like it.

Four pounds for the scrap value and five pounds for the new car left me with a one pound car - which took myself and two others down through France and across Spain for a nice holiday later. Plus a few bits and pieces obtained from scrapyards during its life to make sure it was generally quite reliable. Being an engineer in training at the time and doing all the necessary work myself helped with the costs. Ah, those were the days.

Without technology or a hard shoulder, smart motorways become very dangerous, says Edmund King, president of the AA. "If you haven't got that technology, it's not even a basic motorway because you haven't got the hard shoulder," he says. "It means that you're playing Russian roulette with people's lives."

I'm tempted to agree with this - given that failures of technology are always likely, and when no safety options are available, like hard shoulders, then people will be injured or killed - as has already happened to many.

It’s not Gen Z who need to be protected from social media – it’s boomers

From getting cancelled to being scammed and taken in by fake news, those who didn’t grow up with the internet could be most at risk from certain online threats, writes Helen Coffey

www.independent.co.uk

It was obviously a hugely upsetting experience for victims. But it’s also one way in which, contrary to popular opinion, baby boomers might just need protecting from the risks posed by social media more than Generation Z. Much has been made of the fact that the younger generation can’t get off their phones and struggle with IRL interactions; that they’re all addicted to TikTok and regularly get sucked down YouTube rabbit holes pushing ever-more polarising viewpoints. But, in some ways, they are best adapted to digital life – there’s an argument that, having grown up online, they understand its pitfalls better than their older counterparts.

Being pre-Boomer I couldn't give a toss, but many Boomers grew up with computers and the earliest forms of social media far earlier than the younger lot so aren't necessarily that gullible - and they are probably more sensible in not being so tied to social media anyway.

George Mallory’s final letters to wife published 100 years after fatal Mount Everest climb

British mountaineer died trying to reach summit in 1924 with his colleague, Sandy Irvine, whose body has never been found

www.theguardian.com

Ice age climate analysis reduces worst-case warming expected from rising CO2

A detailed reconstruction of climate during the most recent ice age, when a large swath of North America was covered in ice, provides information on the relationship between CO2 and global temperature. Results show that while most future warming estimates remain unchanged, the absolute...

www.sciencedaily.com

Summary: A detailed reconstruction of climate during the most recent ice age, when a large swath of North America was covered in ice, provides information on the relationship between CO2 and global temperature. Results show that while most future warming estimates remain unchanged, the absolute worst-case scenario is unlikely.

Skyrmions move at record speeds: A step towards the computing of the future

Scientists have discovered that the magnetic nanobubbles known as skyrmions can be moved by electrical currents, attaining record speeds up to 900 m/s. Anticipated as future bits in computer memory, these nanobubbles offer enhanced avenues for information processing in electronic devices. Their...

www.sciencedaily.com

Summary: Scientists have discovered that the magnetic nanobubbles known as skyrmions can be moved by electrical currents, attaining record speeds up to 900 m/s. Anticipated as future bits in computer memory, these nanobubbles offer enhanced avenues for information processing in electronic devices. Their tiny size provides great computing and information storage capacity, as well as low energy consumption. Until now, these nanobubbles moved no faster than 100 m/s, which is too slow for computing applications. However, thanks to the use of an antiferromagnetic material as medium, the scientists successfully had the skyrmions move 10 times faster than previously observed. These results offer new prospects for developing higher-performance and less energy-intensive computing devices.

Can animals count?

Researchers have made a groundbreaking discovery regarding number sense in animals by confirming the existence of discrete number sense in rats, offering a crucial animal model for investigating the neural basis of numerical ability and disability in humans.

www.sciencedaily.com

Summary: Researchers have made a groundbreaking discovery regarding number sense in animals by confirming the existence of discrete number sense in rats, offering a crucial animal model for investigating the neural basis of numerical ability and disability in humans.

Number sense is a fundamental ability in animals' perception of the world and increases their chances of survival. It is also an important cognitive ability, which is fundamental to mathematical aptitude, a hallmark of human intelligence. About 3% to 7% of people suffer from dyscalculia, a learning disability that affects the ability to learn arithmetic and mathematics of people of normal intelligence; a deficit in number sense is one of the major symptoms.

And where perhaps the intelligence of someone might be underestimated.

Mountain chickadees have remarkable memories. A new study explains why

Mountain chickadees have among the best spatial memory in the animal kingdom. New research identifies the genes at play and offers insight into how a shifting climate may impact the evolution of this unique skill.

www.sciencedaily.com

Summary: Mountain chickadees have among the best spatial memory in the animal kingdom. New research identifies the genes at play and offers insight into how a shifting climate may impact the evolution of this unique skill.

These half-ounce birds, with brains slightly larger than a pea, stash tens of thousands of food items like seeds in tree bark, under dead leaves and inside pinecones across the mountains. When winter arrives, they can recall the exact locations of their caches, a skill that helps them survive the bitter cold and deep snow.

AI's relentless rise gives journalists tough choices

The rise of artificial intelligence has forced an increasing number of journalists to grapple with the ethical and editorial challenges posed by the rapidly expanding technology.

techxplore.com

AI a 'fundamental change in the news ecosystem': Expert

Artificial intelligence is shaking up journalism and in the short term will cause "a fundamental change in the news ecosystem", media expert David Caswell told AFP.

techxplore.com

3 in 5 parents play short order cook for young children who don't like family meal

While most parents of preschool and elementary aged children strive to give their children a balanced, nutritional diet, some of their strategies to promote healthy eating may backfire, a national poll suggests.

medicalxpress.com

 

[Mock Turtle]

Playgirl Ran a 'Sleep with Donald Trump' Contest in 1990?

An X (formerly Twitter) post stated, "That one time #Trump was in Playgirl for anyone to win a trip to his bed."

www.snopes.com

It's fine of course - since he was asleep too.

Trump lashes out after prosecutors outline ‘election fraud’ scheme in trial

Former National Enquirer boss David Pecker became the first witness to take the stand to testify in the former president’s historic hush money trial, after the defence and prosecution delivered opening statements

www.independent.co.uk

Anne Hathaway says she had to kiss 10 men during ‘gross’ chemistry auditions

‘It was just a very different time and now we know better,’ said Hathaway

www.independent.co.uk

No doubt it was a lot different before this and not so nice either for many.

Paedophiles create nude AI images of children to extort from them, says charity

Internet Watch Foundation has found a manual on dark web encouraging criminals to use software tools that remove clothing

www.theguardian.com

Paedophiles are being urged to use artificial intelligence to create nude images of children to extort more extreme material from them, according to a child abuse charity. The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) said a manual found on the dark web contained a section encouraging criminals to use “nudifying” tools to remove clothing from underwear shots sent by a child. The manipulated image could then be used against the child to blackmail them into sending more graphic content, the IWF said. “This is the first evidence we have seen that perpetrators are advising and encouraging each other to use AI technology for these ends,” said the IWF. The charity, which finds and removes child sexual abuse material online, warned last year of a rise in sextortion cases, where victims are manipulated into sending graphic images of themselves and are then threatened with the release of those images unless they hand over money. It also flagged the first examples of AI being used to create “astoundingly realistic” abuse content. The anonymous author of the online manual, which runs to nearly 200 pages, boasts about having “successfully blackmailed” 13-year-old girls into sending nude imagery online. The IWF said the document had been passed to the UK’s National Crime Agency.

Someone needs to reassess their morality, as this is just so despicable.

The IWF has also said 2023 was “the most extreme year on record”. Its annual report said the organisation found more than 275,000 webpages containing child sexual abuse last year, the highest number recorded by the IWF, with a record amount of “category A” material, which can include the most severe imagery including rape, sadism and bestiality. The IWF said more than 62,000 pages contained category A content, compared with 51,000 in the prior year. The IWF found 2,401 images of self-generated child sexual abuse material – where victims are manipulated or threatened into recording abuse of themselves – taken by children aged between three and six years old. Analysts said they had seen abuse taking place in domestic settings including bedrooms and kitchens. Susie Hargreaves, the chief executive of the IWF, said opportunistic criminals trying to manipulate children were “not a distant threat”. She said: “If children under six are being targeted like this, we need to be having age-appropriate conversations now to make sure they know how to spot the dangers.”

And perhaps parents/carers need to be monitoring children more.

Can AI image generators be policed to prevent explicit deepfakes of children?

As one of the largest ‘training’ datasets has been found to contain child sexual abuse material, can bans on creating such imagery be feasible?

www.theguardian.com

Blow for Putin as key warlord ally 'has incurable pancreatic disease'

'Moscow must now decide operationally how to maintain stability when the tough Chechen dictator is no more.'

metro.co.uk

Let's hope his suffering is soon over.

Children under five are being treated in hospital for vaping

This is a 'totally predictable consequence of the Tory government’s decision to allow a vaping free for all'.

metro.co.uk

Toddlers are becoming so ill from vaping that they are ending up in hospital, the latest NHS England statistics have revealed. There were 50 admissions for vaping related disorders involving children in 2023 – including 11 aged four or under. Professor of paediatric respiratory medicine at Queen Mary University of London, Jonathan Grigg, warned this is a ‘totally predictable consequence of the Tory government’s decision to allow a vaping free for all’. In 2020, no pre-schoolers were given hospital treatment for using the e-cigarettes – and only six children needed hospital help. But total admissions of all people – kids and adults – for such disorders has soared by 276% in the four years since 2020. In 2020, admissions of kids made up just 6% of total admissions, but last year 14% of the 365 vape-related hospital admissions related to patients aged 19 and under.

https://www.itv.com/watch/news/girls-team-go-unbeaten-for-a-whole-season-in-a-boys-league/bn7f1wr

Well done to these girls - That's the way to do it! etc.

 

[Mock Turtle]

Adobe Photoshop's latest beta makes AI-generated images from simple text prompts

Adobe will now let you use AI to generate images directly within Photoshop. That's just the beginning.

www.engadget.com

Glitter: The Popstar Paedophile review – a most sickening nostalgia trip

This relentless documentary takes us back in time to meet the women abused by glam-rock star Gary Glitter as children … and the roadies who tried to stop him (and set his wig on fire) 25 years before he finally got caught

www.theguardian.com

Like anything regarding Savile, one feels it necessary to watch programmes like this, perhaps to recognise how so many do exploit their fame or celebrity status to get into positions so as to abuse children. Fortunately I had better things to do than listen to his music and those associated with the Glam-Rock genre.

Diaries by Franz Kafka review – caught in the act

His uncensored journals disclose a messier, more sexual, complex figure – and reveal much about the process of writing

www.theguardian.com

Try something new to stop the days whizzing past, researchers suggest

Researchers find memorable images make time feel slower because we are trying to gather more information about them

www.theguardian.com

The spam came from inside the house: How a smart TV can choke a Windows PC

The curious case of a living room screen making Windows' Settings app disappear.

arstechnica.com

Best to stay away from anything that claims to be Smart - when such is more likely to simply promote advertising and such.

Windows vulnerability reported by the NSA exploited to install Russian malware

Microsoft didn't disclose the in-the-wild exploits by Kremlin-backed group until now.

arstechnica.com

High-speed imaging and AI help us understand how insect wings work

Too many muscles working too fast had made understanding insect flight challenging.

arstechnica.com

The Science of Reducing Prejudice in Kids

Making schools more welcoming for all can make for a fair and just society

www.scientificamerican.com

And doing away with faith schools will undoubtedly aid this.

Even some animals have a sense of what is wrong, as ethologist Frans de Waal of Emory University and others have demonstrated. In an experiment de Waal conducted with Sarah F. Brosnan, now at Georgia State University, a capuchin monkey became furious when she got a piece of cucumber as a reward for handing the experimenter a rock while another monkey instead got a real treat: a grape.

An Epitaph for Daniel Dennett, Philosopher of Consciousness

Is consciousness nothing more than an illusion? That idea defined the work of Daniel Dennett (1942–2024)

www.scientificamerican.com

Soviet-Era Pseudoscience Lurks behind ‘Havana Syndrome’ Worries

Dodgy studies and fantastic claims have long powered a belief in devious Russian brain weapons, from mind control to microwave devices

www.scientificamerican.com

Perhaps this is garbage but we know that the Russians are rather fond of the more exotic means for disposing of their enemies - perhaps because it seem as kudos to them but merely shows their silliness in being found out and wasting resources on such things when more conventional murder will do suitably, like shoving someone out of a high window - which they probably also do.

A Skin-Deep Wound Can Trigger Gut Bacteria Changes

Damage to the skin isn't always just surface-level.

www.sciencealert.com

It's Official: Scientists Finally Confirmed What's Inside The Moon

Well, the verdict is in.

www.sciencealert.com

 

[Mock Turtle]

Scotland is worst in world for teenage boys smoking cannabis

Nearly a quarter of boys aged 15 in Scotland said they had tried the Class B drug at some point.

www.bbc.co.uk

Fifteen-year-old boys in Scotland have the highest rate for smoking cannabis according to a new report from the World Health Organisation (WHO). The study, external found that nearly a quarter (23%) of boys aged 15 in Scotland surveyed said they had tried the Class B drug at some point. In one of the largest studies of its kind the WHO examined data from 280,000 children aged 11, 13 and 15 from 44 countries around the world. The survey also suggested that the UK has more of an issue with under-age vaping than many other countries. The survey asked children living in Europe, Central Asia and Canada about their use of cigarettes, vapes, alcohol and cannabis. It found that children in Scotland and Wales are more likely to have smoked cannabis than those in many other countries. Both countries are in the top five globally. From the Scottish sample, which involved 4,000 teenagers, 23% of 15-year-old boys said they had smoked cannabis within their lifetime, while 16% of girls the same age said the same. Canadian girls ranked highest with 25% saying they had smoked the drug. Just 13% of boys and 6% of girls in Scotland said they had used cannabis, also known as weed, in the last 30 days.

The study also looked at trends in smoking, vaping and drinking alcohol among the three age groups. It found two-fifths of girls in England and Scotland have vaped by the age of 15. That is higher than in other countries such as France, Austria, Germany, Albania, Spain, Canada and Norway. The study found 40% of 15-year-old girls in Scotland, and 33% of boys have used an electronic cigarette. Of those, 30% of girls said their use was in the 30 days prior to the 2022 survey, while for boys the figure was 20%. "Vaping in the UK is higher than the average across all the countries that took part in the survey as a whole," said Dr Inchley. “Steep increases in vaping among young people in the UK threaten to reverse some of the positive trends we’ve seen in substance use in recent years with overall declines in alcohol use and cigarette smoking since the 1990s," she said. "Rates of vaping have doubled in the last four years among girls in Scotland. "Vapes are far too readily accessible to young people and the health risks are underestimated. New legislation to ban single use vapes is an important step forward but further action is needed to address these worrying trends,” she added.

England child alcohol use tops global chart, finds WHO report

The World Health Organization also finds higher rates of drinking and vaping among teenage girls.

www.bbc.co.uk

A third of 11-year-olds and more than half of 13-year-olds in England have drunk alcohol - putting it top out of 44 countries examined in a report by global health experts. Girls were found to be more likely than boys to be drinking and getting drunk aged 15 in England, Wales and Scotland. The World Health Organization (WHO) report said alcohol, which can damage children's brains, has been normalised. It called on countries to introduce more measures to protect children. The report looked at data from about 4,500 school-age children from each country in Europe, central Asia and Canada in 2021-22 on cigarette smoking, vaping, alcohol and cannabis habits among adolescents. The UK has always had relatively high alcohol use among young people but it has been declining for some time.

Labour promises rail nationalisation within five years of coming to power

Party pledges to bring all passenger rail – but not rolling stock – into public ownership as contracts with train operators expire

www.theguardian.com

Not sure that the UK could ever manage to have a decent nationalised rail service but I'm of the opinion that all transport services as well as all major utilities should be nationalised - purely from the regulatory, consistency, integration (of transport systems), and stability aspects. And we could no doubt learn from countries such as France, Germany, and Switzerland as to running transport services - at least when I have visited them, and even if they are not nationalised.

Plant apocalypse: how new diseases are destroying EU trees and crops

From ancient olive groves to root vegetables, foreign pests introduced via the bloc’s open import system are causing damage worth billions – and outbreaks are on the rise

www.theguardian.com

World’s billionaires should pay minimum 2% wealth tax, say G20 ministers

Brazil, Germany, Spain and South Africa sign motion for fairer tax system to deliver £250bn a year extra to fight poverty and climate crisis

www.theguardian.com

I'm sure many of us would prefer an even higher tax than this.

UK has worst rate of child alcohol consumption in world, report finds

Study by World Health Organization shows more than half of children in Britain had drunk alcohol by age 13

www.theguardian.com

AI At The Edge: From Theory To Practice

The Internet of Things (IoT) has shown significant growth and promise, with data generated by IoT devices alone expected to reach 73.1 zettabytes by 2025.

www.nextplatform.com

Building a New Narrative on Child Sexual Abuse Prevention

It's Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Month, and there's still a lot of work ahead.

www.psychologytoday.com

How Sugar Gliders Got Their Wings

Several marsupial species, including sugar gliders, independently evolved a way to make membranes that allow them to glide through the air

www.scientificamerican.com

Alcohol-Protective Genes Linked to Other Health Conditions, Scientists Discover

Genes that offer protection against excessive drinking – and the health issues related directly to it – are also linked to other health conditions such as heart disease and mental health, a new study shows.

www.sciencealert.com

MAIDEN WINS McINTYRE OCEAN GLOBE

Turning the tide for ordinary sailors with a dream

oceangloberace.com

Maiden UK (03) has won the McIntyre Ocean Globe Race taking first in IRC handicap rankings against a 14 strong fleet of very experienced and committed sailors. They have also been written into the history books as the first ever all-women crew to win an around the world yacht race.

Well done to them!

 

[Mock Turtle]

Northumberland pensioners try to save red squirrels

Grey squirrels are spreading to the north of England and wiping out the native red squirrels.

www.bbc.co.uk

Tricky question - as to culling invasive species - even if we might have preferences and where one species apparently is an introduced one.

Does ejaculating often reduce your risk of prostate cancer?

The link between ejaculation and prostate cancer explained.

theconversation.com

We know how to deter British children from alcohol, say experts, after concerns over WHO report

Study found Great Britain had worst rate of child alcohol consumption in world, but youth drinking is said still to have ‘declined sharply’

www.theguardian.com

Severi said that the evidence was clear on what could further be done to discourage alcohol consumption, particularly among young people, across the UK. “We have known for decades how to reduce alcohol harm: reduce its affordability through duty increases and minimum pricing policies, give local areas control over its availability and restrict alcohol marketing,” Severi said. “We know that alcohol marketing leads to children starting to drink from an earlier age and at heavier levels than they would have done.”

And should they do this with regards smoking, vaping, and recreational drugs?

Barclaycard change could mean much higher interest for some customers

Credit card holders who make minimum repayments warned they could be in debt for years longer

www.theguardian.com

I should be so lucky. All my credit cards have gone out of date from lack of use.

Woman who pulled girl's skirt down to shame her is charged with sexual battery

The aftermath of the altercation was caught on camera.

metro.co.uk

Live and let live? Oh no, she seemingly has to push her beliefs, and probably being religious, as to how others should behave.

Physically fit woman plans to euthanize herself on her 34th birthday

Jolanda Fun plans to legally euthanise herself in the Netherlands on her 34th birthday.

metro.co.uk

Schoolgirl, 9, went to bed 'happy' but woke up with complete personality change

Ava Holden had gone to bed her normal, cheery self - but woke up with a complete personality change that caused her to have outbursts of rage, panic attacks and extreme anxiety

www.mirror.co.uk

A schoolgirl who had a complete personality change overnight had to wait 18 months to find answers for the mystery condition. Ava Holden, nine, always loved school and had gone to bed her normal, cheery self. But when she woke up, she suddenly refused to go. She began to have outbursts of rage, panic attacks, extreme anxiety and phobias – including terrifying thoughts about germs, vomit and psychosis. Ava also started to kick, bite and scream and refused to sleep on her own, while car journeys saw her attempting to open the door while the vehicle was moving. Parents Claire, 38, and Simon, 39, told doctors it was like a “light switch” transformation. Ava was out on the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) waiting list and is still yet to be seen, Devon Live reports. But 18 months after the sudden change, a school nurse managed to find answers for the change. She suggested Ava should be examined for paediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders such as PANDAS. PANDAS is a rare condition associated with streptococcal infections. Young people with common infections that lead to a misdirected immune response and brain inflammation can pick up PANDAS.

Mum-of-two Claire said: "It has been absolutely horrendous for the whole family, in particular, of course, for Ava. When I asked her what it felt like going through it she said, 'it was like my brain was on fire and I was sad all of the time'. It's just so heartbreaking she was in that state. For such a long time we didn't know what it was. PANDAS presents in patients with sudden extreme anxiety and some can develop ticks or even can't walk. Others have regression in their speech and it is all caused by the inflammation of their brain due to an infection." The family now hope to raise awareness of the condition, with so few people knowing about PANDAS. Claire said: "We desperately wanted help but it felt like we had just been left on a list and had to deal with it alone at home. The terrifying part about it is that many children are misdiagnosed and are being treated for mental health conditions or told they have special educational needs when actually their body is trying to fight infection. "In Ava’s case, it was caused by streptococcus infections but we have learnt from other parents viruses such as chicken pox and Covid can also cause it. Both times the infection Ava had was missed as she was asymptomatic. The only reason we knew something was wrong was because of her sudden dramatic change in behaviour. Ava was just the total opposite of what she had been like before. You couldn't compare the two as it was like completely different children. "Her behaviour was off-the-scale rage and panic like she was in the fight or flight stage in her brain. She no longer liked being in the car and tried opening the car door when we were moving. There were numerous times when we had to call the mental health crisis team as she was having psychotic episodes that could last over an hour. It was utterly terrifying and nothing we seemed to do could calm her."

Escape the vapes: Scientists call for global shift to curb consumer use of disposable technologies

Scientists have called for a concerted global effort to stem the tide of disposable electronic technologies—such as vapes—contributing to international waste accumulation and environmental degradation.

phys.org

Besides the fact of the health issues from those taking up such silliness at an early age might cause, or even those old enough who might know better.

Meta-analysis reveals having a dialect or accent may disadvantage applicants in recruitment processes

People who speak a regional dialect or who have an accent may be at a disadvantage in personnel selection processes. This is the result of a new meta-analysis carried out by researchers at Freie Universität Berlin, the Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences, and Ulm University.

phys.org

Hardly news, since heavy accents can often be less understandable (or take one's attention away), and given that who wants to decipher heavily laden speech, in news bulletins for example, when a more neutral tone would convey the information much more readily. Neil Nunes, BBC (off to play Othello soon?, take note) - and for me it is merely his deep voice seemingly taking away from what he is trying to present - which in my view is a deficit rather than benefit.

Voice from Jamaica divides Radio 4 listeners

His voice has appalled and delighted Middle England's Radio 4 listeners in equal measure. And Neil Nunes, the continuity announcer whose Jamaican accent caused the controversy, is finding life in the front line less than appealing.

www.independent.co.uk

First experimental proof for brain-like computer with water and salt

Theoretical physicists at Utrecht University, together with experimental physicists at Sogang University in South Korea, have succeeded in building an artificial synapse. This synapse works with water and salt and provides the first evidence that a system using the same medium as our brains can...

phys.org

Tyre Extinguishers: Anger after SUV tyres deflated by activists

One resident says she was unable to see her mother, who is in end-of-life care, due to the action.

www.bbc.co.uk

Owners of some sports utility vehicles (SUVs) in north London have said their car tyres were deflated by an environmental group. A leaflet left on the vehicles by the group Tyre Extinguishers, in Islington on Tuesday, said SUVs and 4x4s were "a disaster for our climate".

Is it my brain-fade or did we have this scenario several decades back and where people were seemingly shamed into not buying these vehicles? Or is that with electric vehicles they all tend to be bigger and heavier now, so why bother?

 

[Mock Turtle]

The fake news items that make it look like Ukraine was involved in the Crocus Hall attack in Russia

The Russian government continues to insist that Ukraine played a role in the terrorist attack that took place on March 22 in Crocus City Hall in a Moscow suburb – even though the Islamic State group…

observers.france24.com

New research shows 2p pill could stop cancer as well as dementia

The researchers found taking the vitamin improved immune resistance to cancer - the NHS already advocates taking supplements in winter to stop Alzheimer's

www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk

New research has found a possible link between vitamin D and improved immunity to cancer. The study in mice found that the vitamin encourages the growth of a type of gut bacteria which gives the animals better immunity to the disease. The researchers found that mice given a diet rich in vitamin D had better immune resistance to experimentally transplanted cancers, and improved responses to immunotherapy treatment. Caetano Reis e Sousa, head of the Immunobiology Laboratory at the Francis Crick Institute, and senior author, said: “What we’ve shown here came as a surprise – vitamin D can regulate the gut microbiome to favour a type of bacteria which gives mice better immunity to cancer. “This could one day be important for cancer treatment in humans, but we don’t know how and why vitamin D has this effect via the microbiome. More work is needed before we can conclusively say that correcting a vitamin D deficiency has benefits for cancer prevention or treatment.”

‘Dismissing global warming? That was a joke’: Jeremy Clarkson on fury, farming and why he’s a changed man

The former Top Gear presenter claims his controversialist persona was just a caricature, and he’s really a reformed character living the good life. But do old habits die hard?

www.theguardian.com

I'm sure many of us suspected such, just as it might apply to so many others too, but it's a risky strategy when many will have doubts as to such. But I'm sure so many liked Top Gear from the interactions between the three of them, being quite different, and the situations they got into, and not the same with different people in my view.

Urgent warning for anyone using scarily accurate 'AI death calculator'

All may not be as it seems.

metro.co.uk

Girl, 12, murdered whole family with 'werewolf' boyfriend - now she's free

In 2006, the Richardson family tragedy unfolded in Medicine Hat, Alberta, as their daughter Jasmine and her older boyfriend, Jeremy Steinke, orchestrated their brutal murders

www.mirror.co.uk

On April 23, 2006, the bodies of Marc Richardson, 42, his wife Debra, 48, and their 8-year-old son Tyler were discovered in their basement and upstairs rooms, respectively. Their 12-year-old daughter Jasmine was missing, raising fears that she too might have been a victim. The next day, Jasmine was found in Leader, Saskatchewan, 130 kilometres away from the crime scene. She was in the company of 23-year-old Jeremy Steinke and in a shocking turn of events both were arrested and charged with the murders. As the investigation unfolded, disturbing details emerged about the couple's relationship. Jasmine's friends revealed that her parents had grounded her for dating Steinke due to their significant age difference. Despite criticism from friends and family, Steinke proposed to Jasmine shortly after her arrest, and she accepted. Steinke, with his unsettling fascination with the supernatural, claimed to be a 300-year-old werewolf. He wore a vial of blood around his neck and frequented the website VampireFreaks.com. Jasmine had a profile on the same site, leading to speculation that they had met online. However, an acquaintance later revealed they had met at a punk rock concert earlier that year. Days before the murders, Steinke and his friends watched the film "Natural Born Killers," a violent tale of a couple on a killing spree. Steinke expressed admiration for the film, suggesting that he and Jasmine should carry out their plans in a similar fashion. During his trial in November 2008, Steinke admitted to the murders in conversations with undercover officers. He was found guilty and sentenced to three life sentences, eligible for parole after 25 years.

Bad Lolita - or just another young person enticed away by someone older and apparently a lot nastier/disturbed/psychopathic?

UK's Investigatory Powers Bill approved to become law

Only minor changes from original proposals that kicked up privacy storm

www.theregister.com

Naturally, privacy campaigners strongly oppose the IPB and the changes that it brings to UK law, saying they expand an already robust arsenal of tools to collect data on UK citizens in bulk. Tech trade body techUK said in a March statement that it had "substantial concerns" about the Bill, which was being "rushed" through parliament without proper scrutiny. It believes the IPB will weaken the safety rails that guide the intelligence services when collecting data in bulk, and that it could lead to the wider data harvesting of millions of facial images, internet records, and social media data. techUK told The Register this week: "As the Investigatory Powers (Amendment) Bill receives Royal Assent, we are disappointed that the government did not address the widespread concerns about its potential negative impacts. "We remain concerned that these reforms will weaken privacy protections, expand surveillance powers, hinder security innovation, and risk exacerbating international conflicts of law without sufficient safeguards. "As we look towards the next steps for this legislation, with consultations on how these regulations will work in practice, we look forward to further engagement to ensure a more workable and proportionate regime."

ByteDance would rather torpedo TikTok than sell it – claim

As app boss vows to nuke America's divest-or-ban law in the courts

www.theregister.com

Between shutting down or selling TikTok, owner ByteDance would prefer doing the former. This according to Reuters, which cites four sources. ByteDance's worst-case-scenario decision comes after President Joe Biden signed a bill forcing TikTok's Chinese parent to either sell the social media platform to an entity that satisfies Uncle Sam, or have its video-sharing app banned from US software stores. There is a fear stateside that China-based ByteDance could be forced by Middle Kingdom mandarins to manipulate TikTok, one of the biggest social media platforms in the United States, to spread misinformation or snoop on Americans. The House, Senate, and Biden all rubber-stamped the sell-or-ban bill.

Russia stands alone in vetoing UN resolution on nuclear weapons in space

"The United States assesses that Russia is developing a new satellite carrying a nuclear device."

arstechnica.com

I'm surprised China isn't there along with Russia.

 

[Mock Turtle]

How often should you wash yourself - and your things? - BBC Bitesize

What the experts saying about cleaning your toes, your sheets, your clothes - and almost everything else.

www.bbc.co.uk

'Trump f----ed you, idiot', Stormy Daniels' lawyer told tabloid

The lawyer who negotiated Stormy Daniels’ hush money deal told a tabloid editor who helped Donald Trump kill stories of alleged affairs “he f----d you, idiot”.

www.telegraph.co.uk

How can Labour fix Britain’s ‘economic failure’ without rejoining the EU? | William Keegan

Starmer wants to make Tory policy on the economy a central theme of its election campaign … without mentioning Brexit

www.theguardian.com

Now, let me get this straight. We have a fissiparous [having a tendency to divide into groups or factions], Brexit-supporting government, many of whose MPs are stepping down, convinced that their party is heading for its wilderness years. Correspondingly, we have a Labour opposition that is riding high in the polls, led by Keir Starmer, who – unlike his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn – played a noble part in the remain campaign and argued passionately for a second referendum. Proponents of a second referendum hoped that the country would acknowledge its historic mistake, and return to the European Union it should never have left. I was one of them. We failed.

Which is another reason why I was not enamoured with Corbyn, apart from his delusional notion that his left-wing credentials would ever get him elected. Given that the UK populace, much like the USA, are more likely to vote for selfish things, that the right-wing tends to promote so as to obtain votes, than that which will benefit the country as a whole. And I was more questioning as to the size of the win not necessarily giving any government the right to act on such.

Since that failure, what we were worried would manifest itself has indeed manifested itself. Brexit is an economic disaster, with the Office for Budget Responsibility and National Institute of Social and Economic Research estimating the hit to the nation’s GDP at anything between 4% and 6%. There are daily reports now of the bureaucratic disruption at customs to what was once the ordinary course of business for small and medium-sized firms. Exports and imports alike are affected. There are mounting supply chain shortages; costs are rising as a direct result of Brexit, with more disruption to come. Farmers who voted for Brexit now regret not having been more careful about what they wished for. As for those famous trade deals, promised as substitutes for deals with our nearest and largest market, they have been replaced by – er, well, let’s face it, they have not been replaced. It’s pathetic: a national example of self-harm that makes us an international laughing stock. But the disaster is not just about business, trade and the economy. It embraces people’s rights, privileges and opportunities – made possible, indeed taken for granted, via our membership of the EU. This is especially bad for the young, not least for the 60% of 18- to 24-year-olds who, surveys indicate, think leaving the EU was a mistake.

Blame the nasty EU for this of course - if one has no integrity but simply staunch beliefs.

Billy Bragg: ‘There’s nothing like going out there singing your truth. That ain’t changed’

The activist singer-songwriter on fighting for trans rights, his 40 years in the music business and his forthcoming tour with his son

www.theguardian.com

The singer-songwriter’s brand of stubborn protest songs with a strain of tenderness has kept him relevant for 40 years. Here he talks about why he’s fighting for trans rights, his late-night tweeting habit and his forthcoming tour – with his son.

Nowt wrong wid young Billy!

Grooming gang sentenced to nearly 350 years for rape of eight young girls

The last seven of some 24 members of the West Yorkshire sexual predator ring were sentenced on Friday.

metro.co.uk

Given that the vast majority of these were probably Muslims, one has to wonder if their beliefs as to age suitability played a role, or simply because they saw these girls as 'Western whores' to be treated as they liked.

Potential Trump running mate brags about killing 14 month old puppy

Kirsti Noem’s name has been floated as a prospect for standing alongside the embattled former president at the November election.

metro.co.uk

A woman thought to be a potential running mate for former President Donald Trump at the November election has admitted to killing a dog she thought was ‘worthless’. Conservative South Dakota governor Kristi Noem made the claims in her new book, No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward. She wrote how she ‘hated’ Cricket, the dog she killed, further describing it as ‘untrainable’, ‘dangerous’ and ‘less than worthless as a hunting dog.’ Noem then details how she took the animal to a gravel pit on her farm and shot it dead. On the same day, she claims to have also killed an unruly goat, botching her first attempt before finishing the animal off with a shotgun. In recent weeks Noem has sought to model herself as a suitable candidate for embattled former President Trump, who enjoys her unconditional support.

A nasty dimwit - seems like an ideal running mate for old Trumpy!

 

[Mock Turtle]

No more 12345: devices with weak passwords to be banned in UK

Makers of phones, TVs and smart doorbells legally required to protect devices against access by cybercriminals

www.theguardian.com

Should make this compulsory for ISPs too - rather than them accepting or making some have 'Password1' or similar then.

The Piano review – cockle-warming TV with a major problem at its core

As people play their hearts out on station platforms, this is undoubtedly stirring stuff – but there’s always been something terribly odd plaguing it too

www.theguardian.com

This seems to have the same issues as BGT - that emotional tugging will often dominate over sheer talent - but then this is perhaps what the majority might want to witness.

‘I still think Tony was right on Iraq’: Labour’s Ben Bradshaw on Blair, Brexit and battling homophobia

Elected in the 1997 landslide, Westminster’s answer to Hugh Grant was one of the first out gay MPs – and a firebrand on TV. After 27 years, he reveals why he’s leaving politics behind

www.theguardian.com

After Ben Bradshaw was selected as the Labour candidate for Exeter in 1997, Peter Mandelson apparently said: “Bloody hell, where did you come from?” Bradshaw had been a journalist, BBC Radio’s man on the ground at the fall of the Berlin Wall. He won the seat, at the age of 36, surfing the wave of enthusiasm for Tony Blair. Perhaps more importantly, as an openly gay candidate – only the second in British parliamentary history – he proved that the country had had enough not just of the Tories in general but of raging homophobes. Adrian Rogers, whose majority he overturned, notoriously described homosexuality as a “sterile, disease-ridden and God-forsaken occupation”.

Fortunately times have changed, and I doubt any would be voted in if they said this now - other than so many in the more backward countries, like Russia, or other such.

He served his time under Blair, the first term as a backbencher and the second as a junior minister. He’s known as a Blairite – you could even call him an arch-Blairite, depending on your mood – but was personally closer to Gordon Brown, in whose cabinet he served as a health minister, and later as secretary of state for culture, media and sport. He has been on the backbenches for almost 14 years – not a fan of Ed Miliband (“He was never going to win. I remember thinking very strongly: ‘We’ve chosen the wrong brother’”) or of Jeremy Corbyn, whom he held at least partly responsible for Brexit.

Much like me then - as to being more appreciative of Blair than most - where the Tories would likely have done much the same as to Iraq if they had been in power, and that it was mainly the Americans who fouled it up by not planning sufficiently as to what might happen after Iraq was defeated and Saddam Hussein was gone. We now have the same issue with Iran likely having nuclear weapons soon and being even more aggressive as to pushing their particular Islamic doctrine. Blair might be as hated as Thatcher but whereas Thatcher deserved this, I don't see Blair deserving of the same - Iraqi deaths or not.

Russell Brand getting baptised and considered the River Thames after rape claims

Brand has been exploring Christianity.

metro.co.uk

Oh dear, this will likely make many go off him even quicker than the allegations of sexual abuse might have done. Still, forgive and forget, after all, that is what God apparently does (after repenting and confessing one's sins - for so many Catholics).

Gay sex between animals evolved for a very important reason

More than 1,500 species hook up with the same sex.

metro.co.uk

Homosexual behaviour between animals may have evolved to ‘keep the peace’ in species where social conflict can lead to death.

Note the 'may'.

However, given the prevalence of same-sex sexual behaviour in both males and females across a wide range of animals, the authors noted their study does not exclude other theories behind its evolution. Same-sex behaviour has only been studied in a minority of mammal species, and so further research is required to better understand its evolution and benefits. In addition, the authors stress their findings are unrelated to the evolution of sexual orientation in one particular primate species – humans. This is because the study only considers the short-term physical interactions involved in same-sex sexual behaviour, not permanent sexual preference.

And as to such being unrelated to humans or as to 'sexual preference'.

Thousands of mobile phones and smart meters will become 'useless' this year

The 3G network is being switched off in the UK this year to make room for 4G and 5G - leaving thousands of mobile phones obsolete. Smart meters could also be affected

www.mirror.co.uk

Thousands of customers on Three and O2 will begin to lose their 3G connection in the coming months. Those with giffgaff, Tesco Mobile, Sky and iD Mobile will also be affected, reports the Sun. Three plans to shut off its 3G signal before the end of the year, while O2 says that it will start in 2025. All mobile networks are required to shut down their 2G services by 2033, making any device without 4G-capabilities obsolete.

Oh goody, my dumb 2G phone might be OK to 2033, but my Android phone seems to spend more time on 3G than 4G, so that might have problems.

Common mistake when drying clothes causing energy bills to soar

Drying clothes indoors can be tricky, but you may be causing a surge in your energy bills warns experts at Which? As they shared some easy ways to make sure you're doing it the most cost-effective way

www.mirror.co.uk

I find the easiest way is to have two rooms slightly more warm on washing days (once a week) and to hang clothes in the doorways via those multiple hanger thingies - apart from towels or bedsheets, the latter going in the dryer and the former hung up in the conservatory with the door open. Fine for one no doubt but not so easy for more.

 

[Mock Turtle]

Moldova eyes energy lever to topple Kremlin puppet regime in Transnistria

For the first time, Moldova can cut an energy link to its breakaway territory. Yet doing so risks Moscow’s threats and a possible humanitarian crisis.

www.politico.eu

The pet I’ll never forget: Brighton Yellow, the budgie that interrupted dinner parties chirping, ‘Right! That’s enough!’

This legendary little featherball did impressions of my mum, refused to stay in his cage and even learned to play football.

www.theguardian.com

Von der Leyen criticises European far right for being ‘Putin’s proxies’

Commission president, who is seeking another term, took aim at group that includes AfD and National Rally in pre-election debate

www.theguardian.com

First scientist to publish Covid sequence in China protests over lab ‘eviction’

Zhang Yongzhen stages sit-in protest, as government attempts to avoid scrutiny over handling of outbreak

www.theguardian.com

Immigrant battling cancer 'blessed' by winning $1,300,000,000 lottery jackpot

An immigrant from Laos fighting cancer for eight years won the Oregon Lottery $1.3billion Powerball jackpot and will 'hire a good doctor'.

metro.co.uk

Perhaps his best bet, if the cancer cannot be cured, is to go for cryogenic suspension - given the amount of money he has and which could be invested - and where in the future his condition might be easily treated. And because he is only 46 at the moment - but then there is always the gamble that the current means of doing cryogenic suspension will just not work so as to enable resurrection.

Vaping could stunt brain growth in teenagers because of these toxic chemicals

Would you rather a collapsed lung or a smaller brain?

metro.co.uk

Forget about collapsing lungs and heart failure, vaping could be stunting the growth of teens’ brains due to toxic metals like lead and uranium. Children as young as four have ended up in hospital with vape-related conditions like collapsed lungs as vaping fast becomes a ‘youth epidemic’. Roughly 15% of children aged 11 to 15, and more than a third of 16 to 17-year-olds in the UK have vaped, according to an Action on Smoking and Health survey. The problem has got so bad, that a Scottish schoolteacher had to install vape alarms in toilets to stop students puffing between classes. This could be stunting the growth of their brains and other organs due to higher levels of toxic chemicals found in their bodies, a new study warns. It may also harm children’s school achievement by limiting their cognitive and behavioural development. Vapes are full of metals like lead and uranium that also cause cancer, breathing problems and cardiovascular disease in children at an age when they’re most damaging.

Quite likely that those younger who do vape just will not heed any warnings - just as most smokers didn't decades ago.

Paedophile agrees to be castrated after getting girl, 14, pregnant

Glenn Sullivan, 54, chose to undergo physical rather than chemical castration as part of a plea deal which also involves a lengthy prison sentence.

metro.co.uk

A 54-year-old man who raped a 14-year-old girl in the US is set to be physically castrated as part of his punishment. Glenn Sullivan Sr, from Springfield, Louisiana, groomed the girl and ‘used threats of violence against her and her family’ to stay quiet, state prosecutors say. After the girl came forward and told detectives he had raped her ‘multiple times’, it was discovered she was pregnant and DNA evidence confirmed Sullivan was the father. Sullivan was sentenced to 50 years in prison and ordered to undergo castration as part of his plea agreement with prosecutors. Louisiana laws allow for judges to sentence a man to chemical or physical castration if he’s convicted of certain rape offences. In chemical castration cases, the rapist is given a drug which reduces testosterone levels while the treatment continues in order to lower his libido. Physical castration involves surgically removing the gonads, permanently reducingtestosterone levels and causing the offender to become sterile.

He might be a nasty rapist but he's not strictly a paedophile. Apart from this, many states in the USA apparently don't have a minimum age for such things.

Martin Freeman, 52, responds to backlash over Jenna Ortega, 21, sex scenes

Martin Freeman and Jenna Ortega play a teacher and student in tense drama Miller's Girl - which went viral earlier this year as cinema fans were startled by a sex scene between the pair

www.mirror.co.uk

Where attraction to those younger hardly leaves many males - and where these two are ACTING!

Jade Halley Bartlett directed the film and has previously explained that Jenna somewhat took the lead while filming scenes. She told What To Watch: “Jenna, I mean she’s a savant. You watch her heart break in real-time and then you watch her calcify, you watch the scales grow over her and it’s a very subtle thing that I think is quite terrifying. I mean she scared the s**t out of me. She definitely went to places with Cairo that… it’s even tricky to explain. Cairo thinks she is such an adult, but she’s not. She’s an isolated young woman who is a ghost in her house. Her entire education about romance is from 18th and 19th-century literature and old movies, which are inherently problematic. But she thinks she is such a grownup.” The director added: “And there are some moments that Jenna has when she is looking at Jonathan or when she is talking to him when she is like I almost believe… she’s like a vampire, like a 900-year-old vampire. There’s something very ancient that she does that really scares the s**t out of me.”

Children who are banned from bringing phones into class get better GCSEs - study

A Policy Exchange report has called on headteachers to bring in complete phone bans after finding it could boost GCSE results and improve schools' Ofsted inspection rates

www.mirror.co.uk

What a surprise.

Children who are banned from bringing their mobile phones into classrooms get better GCSE results, a study has found. The report discovered that schools with a ban in place are twice as likely to be rated 'outstanding' by Ofsted. Think-tank Policy Exchange found kids get GCSE results that are one or two grades higher if they're separated from their phones all day. Some 43% of secondary schools with an effective mobile phone ban - requiring children to leave their phone at home or in a locker all day - were rated 'outstanding'. This is more than double the 21% average in England. Professor Jonathan Haidt, a social psychologist at New York University who believes smartphones are a threat to children’s mental wellbeing, described allowing them in classrooms as "utter madness". He added: "We must stop doing it." Prof Haidt went on: "Phones must be locked up at the start of each school day in phone lockers or locked pouches, from which they are retrieved at the end of the day… We can give them six or seven hours each school day in which they can be fully present to learn, connect, and flourish."

Girl, 6, savaged by 'beastly' bulldogs in back garden as furious mum hits out

Ruby Kelly, six, was attacked by two English bulldogs who ripped at her skin for more than five minutes in an attack in a garden in Glasgow, as he mum called for changes to dog laws

www.mirror.co.uk

Brian Cox says Bible is one of the 'worst books ever' as he slams 'propaganda'

Succession's Logan Roy star Brian Cox has shared his thoughts on how he believes the Bible is one of the 'worst books ever' as he slams propaganda and lies in a podcast interview

www.mirror.co.uk

Succession star Brian Cox has said that the Bible is the "worst book", in his opinion, as it is filled with "propaganda and lies". Brian, 77, who is known for playing Logan Roy in the hit HBO series, recently sat down with Rich Leigh from The Starting Line Podcast , with them chatting about all kinds of topics from religion, God and spirituality. Asked by Leigh if religion holds humanity back, the beloved actor responded: "Oh considerably, yes - I think religion does hold us back because it's belief systems which are outside ourselves." He went on: "They're not dealing with who we are, we’re dealing with, 'Oh if God says this and God does that', and you go, 'Well what is God?' We’ve created that idea of God, and we’ve created it as a control issue, and it’s also a patriarchal issue ... and it’s essentially patriarchal - we haven’t given enough scope to the matriarchy." Brian continued: "The mothering thing is the thing which is the real conditioning of our lives, our fathers don't condition ourselves because they're too bloody selfish, but our mothers have to, because they have an umbilical - that’s what the umbilical cord is about... "Even though it’s cut away, there’s an umbilical relationship to your child, and the women have that, men do not have that, they're just sperm banks."

He certainly has a point as to the patriarchy dominating so many religions, and where in fact it is the matriarchy that usually performs the most useful role.

BBC stars on why popular dark comedy has been hauled off the air after a decade

Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith have been talking about the imminent end of Bafta-winner Inside No 9 and they hope to going out with a bang as the final series nears

www.mirror.co.uk

I've always found this series worth watching.

 

[Mock Turtle]

Trump trial live updates: Trump held in contempt of court for violating gag order

Keith Davidson, former lawyer for adult film star and Playboy model Karen McDougal, testifies about details of hush money agreements

www.independent.co.uk

Judge Juan Merchan began proceedings began on Tuesday by saying he would give the trial a day off to allow Mr Trump to attend his son Barron Trump’s high school graduation before ruling that he found the former president in contempt of court on nine of the first ten violations of the gag order, fining him $1,000 for each. Further violations may result in “an incarceratory punishment”.

Do us all a favour and put him away now.

The air-frying lessons I learnt the hard way

This appliance has revolutionised the way I cook – but learning how to best use it was a long process, littered with fails. Here are all the mistakes I’ve made, so you don’t have to.

www.bbc.co.uk

Trump threatens to prosecute Bidens if he’s re-elected unless he gets immunity

Time magazine called the ex-president’s plans ‘an imperial presidency that would reshape America and its role in the world’

www.theguardian.com

Donald Trump has warned that Joe Biden and his family could face multiple criminal prosecutions once he leaves office unless the US supreme court awards Trump immunity in his own legal battles with the criminal justice system. In a sweeping interview with Time magazine, Trump painted a startling picture of his second term, from how he would wield the justice department to hinting he may let states monitor pregnant women to enforce abortion laws. Trump made the threat against the Biden family in an interview with Eric Cortellessa of Time, in which he shared the outlines of what the magazine called “an imperial presidency that would reshape America and its role in the world”. Trump made a direct connection between his threat to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the Bidens should he win re-election in November with the case currently before the supreme court over his own presidential immunity. Asked whether he intends to “go after” the Bidens should he gain a second term in the White House, Trump replied: “It depends what happens with the supreme court.” If the nine justices on the top court – three of whom were appointed by Trump – fail to award him immunity from prosecution, Trump said, “then Biden I am sure will be prosecuted for all of his crimes, because he’s committed many crimes”.

One would have to be really dumb or have no morals ever to vote for this despicable piece of work, in my view.

Astronauts could run round ‘Wall of Death’ to keep fit on moon, say scientists

Researchers suggest cylinder to prevent astronauts losing muscle mass in low gravity environment

www.theguardian.com

Just like our little mice or hamster friends might do within their cages - but actually quite a useful idea.

England scraps 50% rule on faith school admissions

Allowing 100% faith-based access would be divisive and likely penalise disadvantaged children, say campaigners

www.theguardian.com

Faith schools in England will no longer have to offer up to half of their places to children who don’t belong to their religion, under changes to state school admissions rules announced by the government. Currently, new faith schools can only fill a maximum of 50% of their places using faith-based admissions criteria, but the change announced by the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, will allow them to turn away other children.

Personally I would prefer they banned faiths schools altogether - given they don't fulfil any useful function but merely endorse divisions.

Boy, 3, shoots himself in foot with his cop mom's gun as she cooked

The son of a Miami-Dade County Schools police officer shot himself accidentally with her gun as she prepared food in their Florida home.

metro.co.uk

Another item added to the - Only in America - list.

Daniel Radcliffe breaks silence on J.K. Rowling's swipe and her anti-trans views

Daniel Radcliffe has responded to J.K Rowling's latest anti-trans comments, with the Harry Potter actor pledging to 'continue to support the rights of all LGBTQ people'

www.mirror.co.uk

Daniel Radcliffe has broken his silence on J.K Rowling 's recent comments about himself and his Harry Potter co-star's. The dad-of-one, 34, says in a new interview that the author's controversial views on transgender people and their allies make him "really sad" and he will continue to support "the rights of all LGBTQ people" going forward. Radcliffe also addressed claims he "owes" his career to Rowling - something the actor's critics often say in response to his support of the LGBTQ community - and stated "nothing in my life would have probably happened the way it is" without Rowling penning the Harry Potter series. The Woman In Black actor's comments follow Rowling expressing her disappointment with Radcliffe and his Harry Potter co-star Emma Watson last month, stating "I will never forgive" them for their staunch support of the transgender community.

As if these actors owe her anything! Rowling went down in my opinion when she used her celebrity status to express her views, as happens with so many.

Man with sword 'screamed five chilling words' after 'stabbing boy to death'

Locals in the suburb of Hainault, northeast London have shed new light on the terrifying rampage that saw a "very respectful" teenage boy killed and four other people wounded

www.mirror.co.uk