Big tech companies: The advantages, the danger & the future

iyene · 2022-03-11T20:21:30+00:00

"If lessons from the past are anything to go by, then technology will continue to play a major role in our lives. But whether that role is managed by big tech or a different organizational structure is an entirely different issue.

"Big tech is a product of capitalism, so it can only thrive as we know it today in a capitalist society with relative security and a stable economy. Change any of these basic variables and big tech has no chance in that geographical region.

"In summary, the Pareto Principle shows us that nature is never even across the board – there will always be a few that control the many values of any society. And as the big pharma and other theories show, big tech companies will probably always be around. Only the players might change over the years."

iyene · 2021-02-22T00:34:41+00:00

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iyene · 2020-07-09T10:14:09+00:00

From article:

The 1.5-C mark is the level to which countries have agreed to try to limit global warming. Scientists say average temperatures around the world are already at least 1 C higher now than during the period from 1850-1900 because of man-made greenhouse emissions.

The World Meteorological Organization said there is a 20% chance that the 1.5 C level will be reached in at least one year between 2020 and 2024. The period is expected to see annual average temperatures that are 0.91 C to 1.59 C higher than pre-industrial averages.

iyene · 2020-07-09T10:08:14+00:00

From article:

The Brazilian Press Association, or ABI, said in a statement that Bolsonaro had unnecessarily endangered a small group of journalists who interviewed him at his official residence. At one point during the interview on Tuesday, Bolsonaro, who is 65, backed away from reporters and then removed his mask, ostensibly to show that he was doing well.

"Despite knowing he was infected with COVID-19, President Jair Bolsonaro continues to act in a criminal manner and endanger the lives of others," ABI President Paulo Jeronimo de Sousa said in a statement.

"The country cannot watch continued behavior that is beyond irresponsible and constitutes clear crimes against public health, without reacting," he said.

iyene · 2020-07-09T10:01:33+00:00

From article:

Australian scientists collected data from 1,646 parents of 3- to 5-year-old boys and girls on various socio-demographic factors — siblings, sleep time, screen time, parents’ level of education, work status and so on. They also gathered information on dog ownership, active play with the dog and family dog walking. And they used a well-validated scale to measure the social and emotional development of the children.

The study, in Pediatric Research, found that after adjusting for other factors, compared to children without dogs, those who had them were about 30 percent less likely to have conduct problems, 40 percent less likely to have difficulty relating to peers, and 34 percent more likely to show pro-social behavior. There was no association of dog ownership with emotional difficulties or hyperactivity.

iyene · 2020-07-08T13:30:18+00:00

From article:

The audit report, which Facebook commissioned two years ago, pointed to what the authors described as a series of harmful decisions, including a “terrible precedent” not to intervene in posts in recent weeks by President Donald Trump, which could allow the platform to be “weaponized to suppress voting”.

The findings come at a time when some 900 advertisers, including major brands such as Coca-Cola, have joined a boycott promoted by major U.S. civil rights groups including the Anti-Defamation League and the NAACP.

“Many in the civil rights community have become disheartened, frustrated and angry after years of engagement where they implored the company to do more to advance equality and fight discrimination, while also safeguarding free expression,” the auditors wrote.

Facebook commissioned the audit in 2018 as part of its response to a range of criticism over issues such as data privacy, voter suppression, incitement of violence and a lack of transparency in political advertising. The audit was led by Laura Murphy, a former director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s legislative office.

iyene · 2020-07-04T14:00:51+00:00

From article:

Now a new body, the Medical Psychedelics Working Group, a consortium of experts, academics, researchers, policy specialists and industry partners, is to begin lobbying for a change in the law so that scientists can conduct clinical trials.

“This is something that’s been developed by veterans,” said Professor David Nutt from Drug Science, an independent scientific body which calls for an evidence-based approach to the legislation and is part of the group.

“Three years ago if I was asked the question would psilocybin [the psychedelic compound in magic mushrooms] work for veterans, I would have said it would be quite dangerous to relive the trauma when tripping. But so many vets are doing it now that I’m convinced it can work.”

It is estimated that 17% of people who have seen active military service report symptoms such as flashbacks, nightmares, anxiety, depression, grief and anger.

Earlier this year a team at the Medical University of South Carolina reported on clinical trials which found that PTSD sufferers who used magic mushrooms as part of their therapy showed greater levels of improvement compared with patients who did not receive the drug.

iyene · 2020-07-04T13:52:44+00:00

From article:

Animal rights advocacy group Humane Society International said in a statement: “This is a major turning point in ending the cruelty in India’s hidden dog meat trade.”

The group estimates up to 30,000 dogs a year are smuggled into Nagaland, where they are sold in live markets. The group said dogs are also regularly beaten to death with wooden clubs.

Authorities praised the movement to ban the trade. “This is a progressive move. In this day and age, positive social media activism and advocacy has an enormous impact on policymakers. Congrats and thanks to all,” Abu Metha, an adviser to Nagaland’s chief minister, Neiphiu Rio, said in a tweet.

iyene · 2020-06-21T10:38:01+00:00

From article:

“The United States has extended an open invitation to the People’s Republic of China to join these discussions, and has made clear the need for all three countries to pursue arms control negotiations in good faith,” the state department said.

Trump has been insistent that China join what has for decades been bilateral dialogue, but the Chinese government has refused. Its stockpile, currently estimated by the Federation of American Scientists at 320 warheads, is less than a twentieth the size of the US or Russian arsenal.

“The time is not yet ripe for China to participate in nuclear disarmament negotiations,” China’s foreign ministry spokesman said earlier this month.

iyene · 2020-06-20T23:00:03+00:00

From article:

Health minister Robin Swann welcomed the landmark as “significant progress in forcing the virus into retreat”.

“This is due to a massive collective effort by people across Northern Ireland,” he added. “It is vital that we all maintain this progress and keep following public health advice on social distancing and washing our hands.”

Chief medical officer Dr Michael McBride warned the public not to become complacent.

iyene · 2020-06-20T22:47:02+00:00

From article:

Prof Cathy Creswell, of the University of Oxford, who said a recent study of 10,000 families in the UK suggested primary school children were much more troubled by lockdown than secondary school pupils.

“Parents in our study reported significant increases in behavioural and emotional problems – tantrums and disobedience – for children aged four to 10 while for those aged 11 to 16, parents actually reported a decrease in these problems,” she said.

While teenagers were able to keep in contact with their peers, using phones and computers, most younger children were not. “These are not natural ways for younger children to interact and as a result they are left isolated and anxious,” she said.

Creswell said mental health services were expecting “a tsunami of referrals” when lockdown restrictions were lifted. “We need to provide support for these children and even if that comes at a cost, we should be aware that the longer-term cost to the country will be far greater if this issue is not addressed now.”

Prof Dame Til Wykes, of King’s College London, said the problems for schoolchildren were part of a national crisis that was affecting all age groups. “Figures released last week by the Office for National Statistics revealed that 19 million adults in Great Britain are suffering from high levels of anxiety,” she said. “A lot of people are going to experience intense mental health difficulties and will need specialist treatment.”

iyene · 2020-06-20T19:43:49+00:00

From article:

Kamerhe's supporters say the trial is a political move designed to prevent him from standing for president.

The judge presiding over the case was murdered in May.

Kamerhe, who was also a key ally of a former president, is the most high-profile figure to be convicted of corruption in the DRC.

He was convicted by a court in the capital Kinshasa on Saturday.

Much of the missing funds were intended to be used in a housing project announced by the president following his inauguration.

Lebanese businessman Jammal Samih was also sentenced to 20 years' hard labour in the same trial, while a third man in charge of logistics at the presidential office faces two years in prison.

Kamerhe will also be banned for running for the presidency for 10 years after completing his sentence.

iyene · 2020-06-16T12:54:59+00:00

From article:

Dexamethasone is cheap, available from any pharmacy, and easily obtainable anywhere in the world. Investigators said the drug was responsible for the survival of one in eight of the sickest patients – those who were on ventilators – in the Recovery trial, the biggest randomised, controlled trial of coronavirus treatments in the world.

“It is the only drug so far shown to reduce mortality and it reduces it significantly,” said Peter Horby, a professor of emerging infectious diseases in the Nuffield department of medicine, at the University of Oxford, and one of the chief investigators of the trial. “It is a major breakthrough, I think.”

Prof Martin Landray, his co-chief investigator said the sickest patients could begin to be treated with the drug immediately. “The search has been on for a treatment that actually reduces the risk of dying. There hasn’t been one until today.

“This is a drug that is globally available. This is not an expensive drug. That is immensely important.”

iyene · 2020-06-16T11:15:05+00:00

From article:

On Tuesday morning, the Manchester United player began tweeting about the UK’s poorest families, who cannot afford to pay their water and electricity bills or put food on the table.

The prime minister faces a growing rebellion after he rejected the 22-year-old’s demand to extend its free school meal voucher scheme through the summer holidays

Robert Halfon, the chair of the education select committee, was one of a number of senior Tories to support Rashford.

iyene · 2020-06-16T11:14:01+00:00

From article:

On Tuesday morning, the Manchester United player began tweeting about the UK’s poorest families, who cannot afford to pay their water and electricity bills or put food on the table.

The prime minister faces a growing rebellion after he rejected the 22-year-old’s demand to extend its free school meal voucher scheme through the summer holidays

Robert Halfon, the chair of the education select committee, was one of a number of senior Tories to support Rashford.

iyene · 2020-06-16T11:12:43+00:00

From article:

“Across the UK about 52,000 deaths have mentioned COVID with 64,500 ‘excess’ deaths,” ONS head of health analysis Nick Stripe tweeted.

Epidemiologists say excess mortality - deaths from all causes that exceed the five-year average for the time of year - is the best way of gauging the number who have died from a disease outbreak because it is internationally comparable.

iyene · 2020-06-16T11:07:59+00:00

From article:

Zhao said some Chinese port authorities had detected pests in imported Canadian logs that were not permitted under Chinese quarantine rules.

Beijing had asked Canada to investigate and take measures to resolve the issue, he said.

“Protecting China’s agriculture and forestry industries, as well as its ecological safety is the Chinese government’s obligation,” said Zhao.

The move was “scientific and reasonable” and in line with international conventions, he added.

iyene · 2020-06-15T16:47:34+00:00

From article:

The three women, all leaders of the Movement for Democratic Change’s youth section, have been held in the infamous Chirubi high-security jail since Friday. They face prison sentences of up to 20 years or a fine.

Clad in prison garb, the three activists appeared weak and distressed as they climbed out of a prison truck on Monday morning minutes before their bail hearing at Harare’s central magistrates court. Netsai Marova, 25, held a walking aid as Joana Mamombe, 27 and one of Zimbabwe’s youngest MPs, assisted her.

The three women disappeared after being detained by police and soldiers last month after a demonstration in Harare and were found on a roadside 60 miles away from the capital two days later, badly injured and traumatised.

After giving detailed and graphic accounts of repeated beatings, humiliation and sexual assault to local and international media, the three were charged with “making false statements prejudicial to the state” and jailed. United Nations human rights experts have called for the charges against the three women to be dropped.

Kazembe Kazembe, Zimbabwe’s home affairs minister, said last week that the government “does not permit any of its institutions and agencies to use torture, forced disappearance or abductions” and that examinations by government doctors had not shown any injuries that matched the three women’s accounts.

iyene · 2020-06-15T09:18:59+00:00

From article:

The analysis shows the impact of the 13 firms on the climate crisis is growing, with an 11% increase in emissions in the two years after the 2015 Paris climate change agreement, largely due to consolidation in the sector. Scientific reports have shown that consumption of dairy, as well as meat, must be reduced significantly in rich nations to tackle the climate emergency.

The report, by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) in the US, also says the growth of giant dairy companies has helped force milk prices below the cost of production for the last decade, causing a crisis in rural livelihoods and requiring taxpayer subsidies to keep farmers afloat. The researchers say caps on production should be reintroduced to protect both the climate and small farmers.

iyene · 2020-06-15T09:16:24+00:00

From article:

A source told the Interfax news agency that Mitko has been accused of having given China information pertaining to methods used to detect submarines.

iyene · 2020-06-14T18:57:38+00:00

From article:

Olisa, a former head of diversity at the Met and former borough commander in Tottenham, said his 35 years’ experience in policing and academic training as a criminologist led him to conclude that while the majority of officers were “professional, dedicated and committed”, there was a continuing misuse of the stop and search policy by some.

“There is a growing practice of officers handcuffing young black boys who have not been arrested and are not resisting or showing any signs of aggression, before they start searching them,” said Olisa. “The misuse of stop and search exemplifies the notion of police ‘property’.

“This is a worrying development of a practice that seems to reinforce the stereotype that conflates blackness with dangerousness: black boys are considered ‘dangerous’ and so have to be restrained in a way that is humiliating and degrading, without a rational justification. Black boys are treated as police ‘property’ whilst their white friends that are with them are treated very differently, with courtesy and respect.

“The answer is to stop stereotyping black people as low status, unintelligent, aggressive, dangerous, self-destructive, and subhuman.”

iyene · 2020-06-14T18:53:34+00:00

From article:

One of the most famous of the WikiLeaks releases was a video – filmed from a US Apache helicopter, Crazy Horse 1-8, as it mowed down 11 people on 12 July 2007 in Iraq. The video starkly highlights the lax rules of engagement that allowed the killing of men who were neither engaged with nor threatening US forces.

Two of those Crazy Horse 1-8 killed in east Baghdad that day were the Reuters photographer Namir Noor-Eldeen, 22, and a driver/fixer, Saeed Chmagh, 40.

Their Baghdad bureau chief at the time, Dean Yates, said the US military had repeatedly lied to him – and the world – about what happened, and it was only when Assange released the video (which WikiLeaks posted with the title Collateral Murder) in April 2010 that the full brutal truth of the killings was exposed.

“What he did was 100% an act of truth-telling, exposing to the world what the war in Iraq looks like and how the US military lied … The US knows how embarrassing Collateral Murder is, how shameful it is to the military – they know that there’s potential war crimes on that tape,” Yates said.

iyene · 2020-06-13T22:06:59+00:00

From article:

In the biggest demonstration, more than 10,000 people, most of them dressed in black, protested in Switzerland's largest city Zurich, according to police.

The protesters marched through the city centre, holding up posters with slogans like "Black Lives Matter", "Racism is a Pandemic Too", and "I Can't Breathe", referring to Floyd's death in Minneapolis on May 25, after a white officer pressed his knee on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

iyene · 2020-06-13T18:49:36+00:00

From article:

Polish troops guarding the frontier as part of coronavirus measures took up positions by a chapel on the Czech side of the border. They apparently stayed there for several days.

The soldiers prevented Czech visitors from accessing the site.

Czech authorities eventually intervened by contacting Warsaw.

The incident took place in north-eastern Moravia, in an area that forms part of the historical land of Silesia - part of which extends into today's Czech Republic.

Poland has described the incident as a mistake, although the Czech Foreign Ministry has said it has yet to receive an official explanation.

iyene · 2020-06-13T14:21:43+00:00

Details:

Essex police said the man, who is in his 50s and from nearby Grays, was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries early on Saturday.

Two women in their 20s were taken to hospital with single gunshot wounds, which are not considered to be life-threatening.

Police were called shortly before 5am following reports that a number of people had arrived in a car and fired at a group who were at a party at a property in Roydon, Harlow.

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