There's a fresh attempt to break end-to-end encryption over in the US. The "Cooper Davis Act" proposes that "social media companies and other web communication providers" have to give the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) info on drug dealers using their platforms if they have "actual knowledge" of that activity. The platform could simply say that their use of end-to-end encryption means we they no idea what's going on, so fuck off - but the lawmakers thought of that and added a "deliberately blind" clause that will punish the companies if they aren't actively looking into people's communications. Sneaky fucks.
A range of AI companies, including OpenAI, Microsoft, Google, Meta, Amazon, Anthropic, and Inflection, have told the US President that they are gonna "commit to developing robust technical mechanisms to ensure that users know when content is AI generated, such as a watermarking system" among a wider range of cybersecurity measures and research into how AI impacts society. These are voluntary measures, there's no detail exactly how such a watermarking system will work and it's not like these companies are beyond lying to the government, so lets see what actually happens before getting too excited.
Our European friends have passed a law that mandates fast EV chargers every 60km along their major highways by 2028. These chargers must have an output of at least 600kW (e.g: 2x 300kW, 6x 100kW units, 10x 60kW, etc.) along with "prices must be clearly displayed to the customers: in euros per kW or per minute/session" and "must be able to pay with cards or contactless devices". The EU will also develop a "a public database of charging stations, with information on pricing, availability, and waiting times". Australia should copy and paste this legislation ASAP. They've done all the hard work for us!
Those of you who have known me for a while know that I love the McRib. Yes, the McDonald's sandwich featuring reconstituted pork "meat" and an unholy BBQ sauce conjured up in a lab by the finest food scientists in the world. I'm salivating just thinking about it... anyway, while browsing my bookmarks on the weekend I found this tweet I saved from 2021 where McDonald's was flogging a McRib NFT. The website its hosted on is long dead, but the tweet remains. Good luck explaining this to your kids one day.
Apple's guide to "Creating A Healthy Work Environment". Important health-related information about the use of your Macintosh or Apple II computer system. 1991. (Jongleur / Internet Archive)
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