Getting rid of YouTube on school-issued laptops in elementary and middle schools is a start. What Berkeley Unified needs now is a comprehensive plan.  ( 29 min )

Mary C. Opler has worked as a prosecutor, public defender and, briefly, an SFPD officer. She currently works in civilian police oversight in Seattle.  ( 26 min )

Pay remains the main outstanding issue as doctors describe unmanageable situations such as signing death certificates for patients they’ve never treated.  ( 29 min )

The company, which has exited the stage for the last time, only ever put on new plays. The people behind those 81 world premieres talk about how they did it and the company’s legacy.  ( 35 min )

Wong, running unopposed for reelection, has audits planned on Berkeley's rent board, health department and business license tax.  ( 25 min )

"One’s like a happy or upbeat sad song if that makes any sense, and one’s a sad, sad song. I think one’s in a minor key, one’s in a major key, but I’m not a music professional."  ( 5 min )

This week, we discuss some small changes, an AI song, and internet soup.  ( 3 min )

Microsoft and OpenAI admit it; how we got AI slop onto a real band's Spotify page; and AI agent spam is here.  ( 4 min )

EFF legal intern Simar Kaur also contributed to this article. Americans’ First Amendment right to equal access to official government statements is violated by the Trump administration’s use of Truth Social’s preferential treatment scheme, which blocks people who won’t pay Trump’s company up to $100,000 a month early access to government news, EFF told a federal court. The First Amendment guarantees that members of the public have equal access to public officials’ public comments, we reminded the court. EFF filed an amicus brief in support of a motion for a preliminary injunction in the lawsuit filed by The Intercept Media and the Freedom of the Press Foundation against President Trump and other administration officials. The lawsuit challenges their use of Truth Social as their primary soc…  ( 6 min )

Donna Ganger's heartbreaking testimony to a Senate committee offers a vital insight into the vicious politics of authoritarianism.

Loser runs a beer mile. This common league punishment sprints straight into Article 20, which stipulates that the movements of POWs must be conducted at least as humanely as the movements of your own side’s troops. Until everybody commits to chugging four Pabsts and heading to the local high school track, HR is definitely flagging this one. Loser takes the SAT. This is an edge case. Under the Third Geneva Convention, POWs can be forced to work, as long as the work is non-military in nature. But civilians may not be forced to work, even if it’s just everybody’s favorite standardized test. Is Jason, who will most definitely lose this year, a civilian or a POW? Did he give up his right to refuse work when he traded Ja’Marr Chase for Brock Purdy, Josh Jacobs, and the Steelers Defense? I thi…  ( 10 min )

Consolidated Harvest Friends, LLC Interoffice Memorandum Not For Public Release Dear Executives, Executive Assistants, Interoffice Subordinates, and High-Value Shareholders— Recent disturbing reports have surfaced which claim that Glünch: The Edible Glue, the newest addition to the beloved product line of Consolidated Harvest Friends’ consumer-grade comestibles, has been linked to, though not necessarily proven to be the precise cause of, mild-to-severe gastrointestinal distress in a small (i.e., nebulous) sampling of consumers located in and around the Midwest and Southeastern United States. In accordance with detailed instructions from our in-house counsel/Rapid-Response Public Relations Team (aka Tina, who I can assure you is beyond thrilled to be back in the office, where we all kn…  ( 11 min )

The biggest breakthrough in modern theoretical physics is the discovery that gravity can collapse the dimensions of space. Physicists don’t yet understand the implications. The post Gravity Seems Holographic. What Does That Mean for Reality? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 15 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Also: The university says "miscommunication" is to blame for a nine-month delay in honoring a legal settlement with an Israeli dance scholar denied a teaching position during the Gaza protests.  ( 24 min )

Fire officials said the blaze Friday evening on Browning Street was centered around a kitchen microwave. Another resident escaped the home unharmed.  ( 24 min )

Housed West Berkeley neighbors want the city to permanently remove tents. A court ruling protects RVs and a few disabled people.  ( 29 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond and beyond.  ( 27 min )

Other events include a book talk on the 1970s West Oakland Black community, Painting Day on Fourth Street and an exhibition on efforts to restore endangered coho salmon.  ( 30 min )

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post. The post Protected: The Family Plan appeared first on The Atavist Magazine.  ( 6 min )

Online sports betting company DraftKings is using AI to target customers who are most likely to place losing bets and respond to gambling promotions. This kind of targeting is a form of online behavioral advertising, which is when companies personalize the ads they show you based on the data they’ve collected about you. The more data a company has, the more personalized the ad can be. While DraftKings is using AI to supercharge the harmful effects of online behavioral advertising, EFF has long argued that all behavioral advertising should be banned.  According to the New York Times, DraftKings is using its customers’ betting records to train a machine learning model to find losing gamblers. Once found, DraftKings sends these customers targeted advertising designed to lure them back to the …  ( 6 min )

The beta for the hotly anticipated World of Warcraft: Forever has been marred by fans of the streamer Asmongold who have filled the game’s public spaces with spam and slurs. To fix the issue, a player named Solastro created a mod called OlympusMute that hides any chats from  ( 4 min )

Cops followed EJ Carrion home and arrested him in his drive way one week after he said 'bullshit' at a county meeting in Texas.  ( 5 min )

“Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) says Democrats should not impeach ‘anybody’ if they regain control of Congress … ‘I would rather move the ball forward’ to the benefit of the American people, and if we can do it in a way that allows him [Trump] to save face, and he doesn’t stop us, then that’s better for everybody all around.” – C-SPAN - - - In the wake of another painful, difficult outcome, the Democratic Party has completed its review of Charlie Brown’s most recent failed attempt to kick the football. It’s no surprise to us, but the findings are straightforward. While Charlie Brown did once again accelerate toward the ball, miss the ball entirely as Lucy pulled it away, flip backward through the air, and land violently with a disquieting crunch that slipped no less than three discs in h…  ( 10 min )

Early in President Trump’s first term, McSweeney’s editors began to catalog the head-spinning number of misdeeds coming from his administration. We called this list a collection of Trump’s cruelties, collusions, corruptions, and crimes, and it felt urgent to track them, to ensure these horrors—happening almost daily—would not be forgotten. Now that Trump has returned to office, amid civil rights, humanitarian, economic, and constitutional crises, we felt it critical to make an inventory of this new round of horrors. This list will be updated monthly between now and the end of Donald Trump’s second term. - - - These lists, along with everything McSweeney’s publishes on this site, are offered ad-free and at no charge to our readers. If you are moved to make a donation in any amount or subsc…  ( 25 min )

#tinytalk • Tori Kelly explains how she takes on different personas while recording in the studio, each with their own approach to the vocals, to achieve the...  ( 11 min )

No content preview

The post Now Entering: The Era Of Bleh appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 30 min )

Biology is often seen as an experimental science, with theory serving to generalize patterns from empirical data. But history reveals that theory plays a more generative role in discovery itself.

Not quite ready to bake another loaf, but wondering what to do with that sourdough discard? These easy sourdough discard crackers are the answer. Crunchy, crispy, and flaky with that perfect sourdough tang (and a hint of rosemary), they're ideal for dipping and snacking!  ( 31 min )

Luckily, no children were in the rooms last week when the lights fell.  ( 27 min )

Pay remains the main outstanding issue as doctors describe unmanageable situations such as signing death certificates for patients they’ve never treated.  ( 28 min )

Posana is expanding its reach with some old fashioned sweat-equity and a lineup of internationally-inspired flavors  ( 31 min )

The John Muir Land Trust is trying to raise $7 million to buy the 116-acre Johnson Ranch near the steam train, and open its panoramic views to the public.  ( 29 min )

The FBI's Remote Operations Unit (ROU) is a highly secretive team of hackers making exploits and tools to break into target’s devices. Some of its members just got exposed.  ( 5 min )

Scientists discovered that diseased fruit flies lived longer when they were removed from Earth’s magnetic field, while healthy flies had shorter lifespans, in a first-of-its kind experiment with surprising results.  ( 6 min )

Citizens of Springfield, Missouri showed up to a city council meeting to discuss the city’s Flock contract. The mayor shut them down and arrested two people for ‘disruption of meetings of city council.’  ( 7 min )

Wealthy countries with many daily AI users tended to fear more for the future in what Gallup called the 'Paradox of the Worried West.'  ( 6 min )

Did Stella Lefty really steal from other songs? NPR Music's Hazel Cills breaks down what "interpolation" is and how it's extremely common in popular music.⁠  ( 11 min )

You could go suavely into that good night. That might be cool. You’d need a smooth, cool aura to pull it off, though. Maybe try on a silk shirt, look in the mirror, and do a little self-evaluation before attempting this one. Oh, you know what? Could you go rowdy into that good night? Make a ruckus. Bounce around, cause a scene. That might be fun. Sort of the opposite of gentle; really show how psyched you are to go into that good night. There is no shame in showing your emotions. God, the more we talk about it, the more going gentle into that good night sounds really appealing, doesn’t it? I’d never even thought about how to go into that good night, but now that the poem told me not to go gentle into that good night, I can’t think of going any other way. Hey, what if you started going i…  ( 10 min )

You’ve Always Been This Way is a column written by Taylor Harris, a late-diagnosed neurodivergent woman and 1980s preschool dropout, who identifies every moment from her past that filled her with shame, and mutters, “Yep, that tracks. I see it all now.” - - - This morning, on a walk around my neighborhood with two poorly-behaved poodle mixes, I stopped once again for the baby pine cone. This one already dropped and disentangled, waiting at the border of a small garden. I remembered then: Writing can be small and wrapped, layered and touching, tight and nearly eternal in depth. Hold it between two fingers, hide it within a cove of denim beside your house key. No one carries loose change anymore. By chance or memory, retrieve it before laundry day, and roll it in your palms or set it on …  ( 11 min )

Sup Hey Down 2 hang tomorrow? Are you free this Friday? Not looking for anything serious I’m only asking because I’m looking for someone But we could still have fun To drive me out into the woods R u on Snapchat? And dig a hole Add me on Snapchat And bury me in it I had fun last night No weird stuff, just digging a deep, wet hole deep into the woods and watching as I lay down in it We should do it again You also will be covering me in the dirt Not sure when I’m free tho The cold, wet dirt U up? But don’t worry, I’ll be quiet ;) So so quiet Sorry wrong person A quiet little Parisian boy DTF? In this scenario, I’m from Paris ;) Couvre-moi de terre s’il te plaît maman What r u wearing? And this isn’t one of those classic situations where I’ll do the sort of weird,…  ( 9 min )

Scientists have a history of trying — and failing — to link biology and quantum mechanics. The real connection between them may be in the math. The post Biology Might Not Be Quantum, but Its Math Is Quantumlike first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 13 min )

The post Let The People Set The Pace Of Frontier AI appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 15 min )

Iron weaponry brought down the empires of the Bronze Age. Could technologies like drones do the same today?  ( 13 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

“The White House has launched its own round-the-clock video channel, dubbed ‘Trump TV: The Essentials Station,’ just days after President Donald Trump barred CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House.” — Newsweek - - - The White House is thrilled to announce the arrival of Trump TV. No nation can truly call itself a democracy until its leader has dismissed the entire press corps and replaced them with state-run media. Now, instead of Americans depending on the lying mainstream news, they’ll be able to get their information straight from the ultimate beacon of truth: the president himself. Here’s all of the great programming you can expect from Trump TV over the next twenty-four hours: 6:00 a.m. – 6:05 a.m. Ted Nugent sings “The Star-Spangled Banner” while gargling a cup of piping …  ( 10 min )

The following is an excerpt from McSweeney’s contributor Eli Burnstein’s new book, Phrased & Confused, a guide to the great quotations that we just keep getting wrong. From ancient maxims like “Seize the day” to modern sound bites like “The road less traveled,” Phrased & Confused sets the record straight on commonly misunderstood statements — and plumbs the meanings of famously slippery ones (“I think therefore I am,” “A rose is a rose is a rose”). Pairing witty commentary with lighthearted illustration from New Yorker cartoonist Liana Finck, it’s the ideal resource for lovers of language, literature, history, and philosophy, full of intelligence and insight for curious minds everywhere. - - - “Don’t mess with Texas” (Tim McClure, 1985) Tough-guy catchphrase? No. Anti-littering slogan…  ( 10 min )

First published on October 9, 2009, this classic by Colin Nissan is our most-read article of all time. We’re celebrating the 17th anniversary of this freaky-ass harvest (and the first day of autumn) with the brand-new Decorative Gourd Thermos and McSweeney’s Quarterly/Thermos combo subscription. Happy fall, fuckheads! - - - I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to get my hands on some fucking gourds and arrange them in a horn-shaped basket on my dining room table. That shit is going to look so seasonal. I’m about to head up to the attic right now to find that wicker fucker, dust it off, and jam it with an insanely ornate assortment of shellacked vegetables. When my guests come over, it’s gonna be like BLAMMO! Check out my shellacked decorative vegetables, assholes. Guess what season it…  ( 10 min )

California’s Education Department ruled BUSD needs to remedy the harm done to Jewish kids by student-led assemblies and posters hung in a classroom describing the war in Gaza as a genocide.  ( 31 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently opened in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 28 min )

Self-described “library kid” Rebecca Alcala-Veraflor, who grew up in the East Bay, says she worked to improve staff morale in San Francisco’s libraries and will do the same in Berkeley.  ( 30 min )

A sample of 5,000 alleged agents seen by 404 Media includes names, addresses, phone numbers, and details on FBI employees' spouses.  ( 5 min )

"This has potential for so much negative PR. It could portray us as ‘their AI is not good enough so they still need humans’ kind of coverage for this launch."  ( 6 min )

OpenAI has thousands and thousands of contractors helping improve the company's AI models. Multiple contractors have been fired for using AI to train the AI.  ( 6 min )

Pioneer Labs has made its first microbe capable of growing in simulated Martian soil and making building materials.

The post Why China Will Rule AI appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 9 min )

No content preview

Sometimes, the access gap is not a scientific or economic problem.  ( 14 min )

EFF joined an amicus brief with ACLU, ACLU of D.C., National Press Photographers Association, and Professional Photographers of America to urge the D.C. Circuit to vacate an FAA drone flight restriction that violated the First Amendment right to record law enforcement. This is an important case—Levine v. FAA—challenging the ability of the government to punish drone pilots who record law enforcement officers engaged in official business.  As we wrote about earlier this year, the FAA issued a flight restriction for drones that had effectively criminalized the recording of Department of Homeland Security officers, including immigration agents from ICE and CBP, and their vehicles (what the FAA called “mobile assets” including “ground vehicle convoys and their associated escorts”) even if the d…  ( 6 min )

The EU Commission draft law to restrict young people’s access to the internet that it presented last week will come at a high cost: it will put online services behind age gates, expand the use of intrusive age verification, and undermine the privacy of all users.  The EU Kids Act aims to protect children from risks associated with social media, video games, and AI systems by introducing age-based access rules, safety requirements, and stronger enforcement and oversight measures. It presents itself as building on the Digital Services Act (DSA) and puts into “hard law” some of the safety-by-design measures specified in the non-binding DSA guidelines on minors’ protection.  The proposal is built around the following elements: social media age “delay”, safety by design, age assurance and paren…  ( 7 min )

An early member of the Cheese Board Collective, he founded the pasta shop in 1995, and it later expanded into a cafe that became a community hub.  ( 26 min )

Andy Duong and Fortunato Bas discussed fundraising and a land deal involving California Waste Solutions. Fortunato Bas is expected to testify in the corruption case against former Mayor Sheng Thao, Duong and others.  ( 33 min )

Lawmakers signed off on a plan to use $125 million from a state parks and climate bond to help buy the former horse racing track in Berkeley and Albany last month.  ( 27 min )

Proponents' campaign has been deceptive, and the measure would lock funds away for an uncertain future.  ( 25 min )

Funding a public bank could give Berkeley more financial independence and, over time, reduce banking costs and bring reinvestment to our community.  ( 27 min )

A surreal telling of older love, by Erika Chong Shuch and Charles Mee, starts Sept. 25.  ( 27 min )

Chris Ballard, who first plunged on the advice of Steph Curry, explores the history and benefits of frigid waters. Other new Berkeley books examine the golden era of Middle East archeology and how “water poverty” triggers violence.  ( 35 min )

A new report reviews major advances in cancer research — and warns of the impact of federal funding cuts.  ( 25 min )

Sherry Turkle's latest book, Artificial Intimacy: Who We Become When We Talk to Machines, comes out on September 29.  ( 6 min )

404 Media is filing public records requests around the country to find out how cops are using Axon's ALPRs. Here is how you can do that too.  ( 6 min )

Congratulations, colleague. We, the meeting overlords, have agreed to end this meeting early and are benevolently granting you fifteen minutes of your day back. With this bountiful amount of time, we hope you choose to hydrate, eat, catch up on sleep, stand up for the first time in four hours, address your rapidly declining mental, emotional, and physical health, repair all relationships with the loved ones you’ve neglected, and progress through any other stages of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. We assume the fifteen minutes we have given you is more than enough time to do this. We know many of our meetings don’t usually end as early as this one did, and instead run over the allotted time. Yes, we are in charge of both the meetings that go long and also the ensuing meetings that are entir…  ( 11 min )

“That tie is old and ugly.” “There are no normal people.” “Your room stank really bad.” “Your room really stank bad.” “I am better without you.” “Without you, I am better.” “I only eat small sour lemons.” “My friend has seven children, so what?” “Why are you sleeping under the table?” “When is he happy, never?” “Nobody wanted this.” “Is your bed almost broken or completely broken?” “She wants butter, but why ours?” “Mr. Goldman must go home already.” “He has little money, but I have less.” “The French are everywhere.” “My son is perfect.” “Your son is already old.” “How old are you already?” “The sad children are there.” “You have to eat soup!” “My soup has something strange, but his does not.” “This does not smell good. Is it fresh?” “They do not invite you because you always fall asleep.” “This vegetable is old!” “The potato is perfect, unfortunately.” “Twenty dollars for three packages of cookies!?” “Why do you not visit us?” “I am dying!” — “You are not dying!” “What, these are your daughters?” “Who here smells like fish?” “This fish stinks.” “This stinks!” “The pocketbook stinks!” “My uncle is a broken man.”  ( 8 min )

With time comes a refinement of purpose. Krallice's 'Scour Order' is a black metal symphony ablaze with frenetic guitar riffs and impossible drum patterns. N...  ( 11 min )

Half of our genome is made of transposons — snips of DNA that can move and copy themselves. But they’re more than parasites or genetic junk. The post How Virus-like ‘Jumping Genes’ Became Our Partners in Evolution first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 10 min )

Italian food lovers, this one's for you. This 5-ingredient vegan baked ziti, with its al dente noodles, savoury marinara sauce, and gooey, melty vegan cheese, married together mouthful after mouthful, is comfort food at its finest. Pop it in the oven in just 20 minutes and watch it bubble up into a new family favourite.  ( 28 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Some 600 million years ago, the supercontinent Gondwana produced a colossal mountain range that helped set the stage for all modern complex life, according to a new examination of tiny ancient rocks.  ( 7 min )

California Gov. Gavin Newsom's executive order is an opportunity for a needed, thoughtful conversation about artificial intelligence and its potential harms. Everyday Californians are feeling real anxiety about the risks of artificial intelligence, and as an organization that works to ensure technology empowers people, EFF welcomes this order as a way for the state of California to lead a much-needed dialogue that addresses these concerns.  Nonetheless, the most immediate and current concerns with this technology are not about sci-fi scenarios concerning rogue super-intelligence. They are happening right now through biased algorithmic decision-making for employment or government benefits, AI-powered surveillance systems such as Flock cameras, and artificially inflated personalized pricing.…  ( 5 min )

Apple’s new operating system is here, and along with it comes a new version of Siri, dubbed with two very familiar letters: AI. As the name suggests, this Siri power-up resembles an AI chatbot more than the often derided voice assistant you might be used to. It has even evolved from a blob you invoke with a verbal command or a button press to a whole app. This update comes with a slew of privacy complications, but you can take some control over what this new Siri can access and use.  There’s no denying that the new version of Siri is far more powerful than it used to be, and arguably more useful at surfacing details on your phone. But that comes at the cost of deeper access. Once enabled, Siri and Spotlight are combined, unifying the interface. Where you may have once just pulled down on t…  ( 10 min )

Secure messaging platforms, like Signal, WhatsApp, and recently, encrypted RCS, operate on a straightforward assumption: the content at each end of a conversation is private to the participants in the conversation. End-to-end encryption helps provide the mathematical guarantees that the companies who operate these messaging platforms cannot access the contents of messages. But there’s no way to guarantee what happens once the message arrives on a phone. As more devices and services introduce more artificial intelligence (AI) features into messaging apps, that line begins to blur.  When AI features are computed entirely on device, it’s less concerning. Yet sometimes the computing requirements are heavy enough that the computation has to be done on a company server. Tech companies tell us th…  ( 10 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond and beyond.  ( 28 min )

Triple Rock Brewery, opened in 1986 by brothers John and Reid Martin, has announced it will shut down before the end of the year.  ( 28 min )

The musical version of the comedy got seven Tony nominations and London's Olivier Award for Best New Musical.  ( 28 min )

Eduardo Machado’s spellbinding play of political drama and family scandal spans four decades in Cuba.  ( 26 min )

He dropped out of law school at USC to build a Subaru race car from the ground up and later worked at the encampment during Occupy Oakland and at a social services organization in Portland.  ( 26 min )

Modest changes amending regulations from 2024’s Measure BB will support affordable housing providers and address rare but significant loopholes.  ( 27 min )

Certain music hits you with a force of nature. NPR Music's Tom Huizenga explains how Colin Stetson and Brìghde Chaimbeul's 'All the light in the world' vibra...  ( 10 min )

And lo, I was looking between the cushions of My heavenly couch the other day, seeking the divine TV remote, when I found something I had not seen in several millennia. An eleventh commandment. Apparently it had slipped down there sometime after Sinai. And I said, “Well, shit.” For behold, humankind has spent thousands of years observing the Ten Commandments when there was, in fact, one more: XI. THOU SHALT GET THE JAB. Vaccines were supposed to be on the tablets the whole time. Wild, right? But, in My defense, I had just created heaven and earth, and parted the Red Sea, and plagued Egypt, and dictated quite a lot of dense material to Moses. Things fall between the cushions. Even unto the Lord. But having rediscovered this sacred instruction, I looked down upon the earth and saw that …  ( 11 min )

Come on, man, let’s get absolutely sober. It’s Friday. It’s been a long-ass week; I need to get clear-headed as a motherfucker. Teas, right? Let’s get some teas. You want some milk? Don’t be a milk pussy, dude. Get some calcium. I don’t want to be the only one with strong bones. Yes, there it is. Okay, first tea of the night—let’s slam this shit down. Oh man, that’s hot. That’s crazy hot. Whoa, yeah. That’s good. I just got this rush of lucidity. It just hit me straight away. I love it. Friday, my guy. Oh dude, you remember that time I got four teas here? I just lined them up. The server was like, “What the fuck? No way you are drinking four teas!” And I’m just like, “Yeah, just watch.” Boom. Steeped that tea for four full minutes because, you know, got to bring that flavor the fuck out…  ( 10 min )

404 Media and The Intercept talk about how private companies empower government surveillance, and how AI is used in warfare.  ( 3 min )

This week, we discuss just doing it, machines that eat the internet, and an eavesdropping watch.  ( 4 min )

The proof of a decades-old conjecture has given researchers a new way to understand complex networks. The post Mathematicians Build Long-Awaited Graph Sandwich first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 9 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

How to learn truth from fiction  ( 25 min )

With doomsday AI scenarios dominating the news, lawmakers are rightly concerned about reports concerning security breaches at major US AI labs, such as the OpenAI–Hugging Face incident and the many others reported in its aftermath. As they consider potentially regulating frontier AI, they should focus any new legislation on the immediate, demonstrated risks from those incidents.  Post-incident reports show that the Hugging Face incident could have been mitigated or prevented by following longstanding cybersecurity best practices, like stronger sandboxing and monitoring. Any new legislation should focus on closing gaps in existing law to prevent AI companies from taking unreasonable risks with the public's security. When an AI developer or deployer runs a test or a task that has a high like…  ( 5 min )

A California law that prohibits teens from receiving recommended social media content from other social media users violates their First Amendment rights, EFF argued this week. The case, Meta v. Bonta, challenges SB 976, which requires that teen social media users get their parents’ permission before seeing other users’ recommended speech on their social media feeds. The legal challenge to SB 976 has largely centered on how the law violates social media services’ First Amendment rights to curate user-generated content and present it as they see fit. But the friend-of-of the-court brief EFF filed along with the Center for Democracy & Technology and the Wikimedia Foundation shows that the law violates teen users’ First Amendment rights, too. “SB 976 frustrates young people’s ability to use t…  ( 5 min )

Also: A Berkeley Law professor is also a cycling world champion, and a profile of Tokyo Fish Market.  ( 26 min )

Min Zin, a scholar of Myanmar politics, has been detained in China for over three months. His wife is urging the president to secure his release when he meets with Xi Jinping next week.  ( 28 min )

A period of unprecedented price volatility is reshaping the economics of restaurants and farms. We traced the fallout through a single dish.  ( 35 min )

A running list of town halls and debates to learn about who’s running for Berkeley City Council, school board, rent board and more.  ( 28 min )

An independent inquiry found that Joel Young inappropriately touched fellow board member Sarah Syed during a meeting last fall. Thanks to redistricting, Young is now running for Syed’s Oakland seat.  ( 29 min )

Other events include the Elmwood Wine Walk and a baby gear swap.  ( 30 min )

Farzana’s fiancé was a U.S. partner in Afghanistan. She was loaded on a plane full of men and sent to another country with no papers or job prospects.

The Trump administration has reached record-breaking levels of immigration arrests amid accusations of medical neglect, including among pregnant women.

"Millions of people around the world will soon consider large models ‘hoovering up’ all their work to be an astonishing theft of unprecedented proportions."  ( 6 min )

Flock ran searches for “coexist bumper sticker,” “white truck with a trump sticker,” and “Star of David,” apparently to demonstrate what cops shouldn't search for.  ( 7 min )

Samuel Tunick allegedly wiped his GrapheneOS phone before CBP officials could search it, in what has become a high profile civil liberties case. Now Georgia State University has rescinded a job offer to him.  ( 6 min )

Guitar Center's 'Open for Legends' contest page was seemingly unmoderated for hours on Wednesday.  ( 5 min )

A glaring loophole in digital music distribution makes it very easy to piggyback on the talent of real artists with AI generated music.  ( 3 min )

Our first podcast!

Thanks, everyone, for joining me on this Zoom pitch. I know we’re all in the same city, but it’s really hard for me to leave the house. Studio liaisons, assistants, third wives of executives who now work as development consultants, and everyone else on the line: You know Backrooms? It was such a smash hit that kids actually put their phones away and swarmed movie theaters to sit rapt in the dark, marveling at scene after scene of Chiwetel Ejiofor wandering around a labyrinth of carpeted interiors with no windows or natural light, dodging piles of laundry for an hour and forty-five minutes. And they walked away thinking, “That was the scariest shit I’ve ever seen in my life.” Well, not me. I thought those rooms looked cozy. See, I grew up in spaces like the ones in that movie: allergists’…  ( 12 min )

Underground Artists is an ongoing comic by Ali Fitzgerald (Hungover Bear & Friends) that follows woodland creatures as they create art and search out whimsy in a bleak forest. - - -  ( 8 min )

For some, having a baby can be prohibitively expensive, but the cost of living shouldn’t mean that starting a family is just a fairy tale. That’s where Rumpelstiltskin comes in. Rumpelstiltskin isn’t your typical fertility startup. Rumpelstiltskin is here for your child. Our founders took years of experience in casino design and timeshare sales and swaddled them together into a first-of-its-kind solution that asks: Do poor people deserve to have kids? The business is revolutionary, but the concept isn’t. It’s a simple exchange introduced by German academics that dates back to the early nineteenth century. We’ll cover the complete cost of IVF to help you build your family—yes, really—and then, on your child’s first birthday, we might take your baby. Rumpelstiltskin is the IVF solution t…  ( 9 min )

The post The End Of Upward Mobility appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 25 min )

Jonathan Halliwell explains how quantum decoherence is key to understanding how we transition from a world with a wave-like nature of matter and energy to the classical macroscopic world that we’re used to. The post Where Does the Quantum World End and Ours Begin? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 33 min )

No content preview

These vegan sourdough chocolate chip cookies are so popular in my household that we always have a bag of these frozen cookie dough balls in the freezer. They are the most tender, chewy cookies with a subtle sourdough tang that'll have everyone asking, "What's the secret ingredient?" Dipped in a cool glass of plant-based milk, they are 100% about to change your cookie game forever.  ( 45 min )

Alex Chalmers reviews Armies of Sand by Kenneth Pollack.  ( 4 min )

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit handed internet users and programmers a big win today, by rejecting an attempt to stretch a narrow provision of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) into a new source of copyright liability.   The case involves Section 1202 of the DMCA, which prohibits intentionally removing copyright management information (CMI) like an author’s name or a copyright notice, from a copyrighted work. Open AI and Microsoft used code from Github as part of the training data for their LLMs, along with billions of other works. A group of anonymous Github contributors sued, alleging the new code coming out of these LLMs was similar to theirs—but with the CMI stripped out.   The Ninth Circuit correctly agreed with what we said in our brief: removing copyright …  ( 6 min )

Courts have for two decades found that linking and embedding someone else’s web content, be it a photo, music, or an article, doesn’t violate copyright law–the entity that controls the server that hosts a copyrighted work, not the user or website that merely directs others to it, is directly liable if the content turns out to be infringing. News publisher Emmerich Newspapers sought to convince the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to chart a new and dangerous course, arguing that an aggregator website that published links to its copyrighted articles was in effect “displaying” them and can be directly liable for infringement. EFF, along with several other public interest organizations and trade associations, filed a brief urging the court to follow multiple other circuits and reject that theor…  ( 6 min )

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is honored to announce today that Alexander “amac” Macgillivray — a former White House official who also served in top legal capacities at Twitter and Google — has joined EFF’s Board of Directors.  Macgillivray served in the Biden Administration as Deputy Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer in the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and earlier had held a similar position in the Obama Administration. Macgillivray was one of the co-authors of the Biden Administration’s Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights and oversaw many of the Administration’s AI initiatives, such as organizing its AI CEO convening, leading its working group on federal AI policy, and overseeing the creation of the National AI Research an…  ( 4 min )

Mass surveillance isn't a joke. But police are treating it like one when using automated license plate reader (ALPR) networks. In our latest EFFector newsletter, we're covering a new EFF report on how officers across the country are routinely logging completely nonsensical "reasons" for their Flock searches, including "LOL," "LMAO," and even (yuck) "Sexy." JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER For over 35 years, EFFector has been your guide to understanding the intersection of technology, civil liberties, and the law. This issue covers a settlement enshrining Meta's harmful surveillance into law, states pushing back against ALPR, and how police are turning our privacy into a punchline. Prefer to listen in? EFFector is now available on all major podcast platforms. This time we're asking EFF's Adam Schwartz what has united people against Flock cameras — and how we can make sure that today's backlash leads to lasting change. You can find the episode and subscribe on your podcast platform of choice: %3Ciframe%20height%3D%22200px%22%20width%3D%22100%25%22%20frameborder%3D%22no%22%20scrolling%3D%22no%22%20seamless%3D%22%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fplayer.simplecast.com%2F93770148-4558-4033-b345-6ff2d136d3c0%3Fdark%3Dfalse%22%20allow%3D%22autoplay%22%3E%3C%2Fiframe%3E Privacy info. This embed will serve content from simplecast.com     Want to protect your right to digital privacy? Sign up for EFF's EFFector newsletter for updates, ways to take action, and new merch drops. You can also fuel the fight for privacy and free speech online when you support EFF today!  ( 3 min )

Since its integration into our digital world, social media has played a pivotal role in youth organizing and social mobilization. Yet, people’s access to these platforms is increasingly coming under threat from courts and legislatures under the guise of protecting young people online—presenting a significant hindrance to youth organizing.   In a major recent example, Meta settled in a lawsuit with 52 states and territories regarding the use of Instagram and Facebook by young people. The settlement will require Meta, and pressure other non-Meta owned platforms like TikTok and YouTube, to embed age gating practices into every product while also requiring restrictions on the accounts of people under-18, such as a two-hour daily time limit and content restrictions.    Youth Power on Social Med…  ( 5 min )

Since its integration into our digital world, social media has played a pivotal role in youth organizing and social mobilization. Yet, people’s access to these platforms is increasingly coming under threat from courts and legislatures under the guise of protecting young people online—presenting a significant hindrance to youth organizing.   In a major recent example, Meta settled in a lawsuit with 52 states and territories regarding the use of Instagram and Facebook by young people. The settlement will require Meta, and pressure other non-Meta owned platforms like TikTok and YouTube, to embed age gating practices into every product while also requiring restrictions on the accounts of people under-18, such as a two-hour daily time limit and content restrictions.    Youth Power on Social Med…  ( 5 min )

After David Streever castigated ICE's acting director in an email, investigators delivered a "warning notice" saying he "may be in violation of federal law."

A running list of restaurants that have recently opened in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 24 min )

Attacks by sea lions are extremely uncommon in the Bay. The incident comes amid a rise in domoic acid poisoning on the California coast, which can lead to odd and aggressive behavior.  ( 34 min )

From J. Robert Oppenheimer to Chiura Obata. Alice Waters to Alice Walker. Rita Moreno to the Unabomber. Athletes, activists, architects, artists. Here’s our roundup of over 150 major figures from the city’s past and present.  ( 44 min )

About a quarter of the roughly 80-person camp was displaced Tuesday and city workers returned Wednesday with bulldozers and dump trucks.  ( 27 min )

“The rapper Macklemore has been dropped as an opening act from Ed Sheeran’s stadium tour after he said ‘Free Palestine’ onstage before performing a protest song at a concert this month.” – New York Times - - - This is, objectively, a bizarre situation. Not because Macklemore said “Free Palestine.” People say “Free Palestine” all the time. At this point, it’s one of the most recognizable political slogans on Earth. No, what is bizarre is that the straw that seems to have broken the camel’s back was a white rapper saying it between songs at an Ed Sheeran concert. Clutch thy pearls, for politics hath entered the sacred temple of Ed Sheeran. And now, as controversy spreads and the country collectively holds its breath to see if Mr. Thrift Shop has Mackled his last More, I find myself askin…  ( 9 min )

Dear Juvenile, Mr. Dogg, and Mr. Jon, I have just returned from an orthopedist and have concluded that my newly diagnosed degenerative knee condition could only have been caused by the numerous demands you and your colleagues made of my generation to do some variation of dropping it like it was hot, backing it up, and/or getting low. I am writing in hopes of drawing your attention to the human cost of your flippant commands. Imagine my shock at learning that I already have bone-on-bone osteoarthritis in my right knee, and signs of it in my left. Trying to find an explanation for these results in someone my age, my doctor asked if I had been a college athlete, clearly missing the Bugles corn snack crumbs on my shirt and, for some reason, shoes. Had I been a college athlete? I don’t know,…  ( 11 min )

Erykah Badu and The Alchemist's 'Before the World Blows' and Saul Williams' 'Leap Life,' are “dead fresh” albums. NPR Music's Rodney Carmichael explains how ...  ( 12 min )

Comb jellies are helping answer fundamental questions in biology, from how the earliest nervous systems evolved to how bioluminescence works. The post Ctenophores Aren’t Just Beautiful. They’re Biological Wonders. first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 10 min )

sit down. You’re among friends. Well, a single friend. It’s feeling lonely here. But I insist upon embracing summer cooking for as long as summer produce lasts — tomatoes in particular. I miss them all winter too much to throw them out of the kitchen when the first apple arrives. [I also want to make it absolutely clear that no matter how it seems, I am not projecting my complicated feelings about one child starting middle school and the other, their senior year of high school, on dwindling summer produce. Not even a little.] Read more »  ( 18 min )

The contractors reading real ChatGPT users' prompts; the big out-and-back-in around Automattic; and a16z thinks enshittification isn't real.  ( 4 min )

While people around the U.S. are tearing down Flock cameras, one group of hackers went a step further: extracting the camera's software too.  ( 9 min )

Camp residents said fewer than 20 people had been moved. The longstanding Northwest Berkeley camp remained largely intact.  ( 25 min )

She worked at the Berkeley Barb, helped found the Berkeley Tribe and spent decades involved in radical activism alongside her husband, Stew Albert.  ( 25 min )

Acclaimed chef Gizela Ho and the team at the Oakland Chinatown restaurant braved generational gaps and the hottest day of the year to cook up a creative holiday menu.  ( 30 min )

The jacuzzi. The dog park. The polygraph machine. Single-family zoning. The term “Asian American.” Indigenous Peoples’ Day. And much, much more.  ( 27 min )

Rule changes up for a vote Tuesday could also loosen restrictions on when Berkeley police can use smoke and pepper spray for crowd control.  ( 27 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

iLands and its AI agents are doing completely useless tasks, then begging for money.  ( 6 min )

Three felonies have suddenly become two second-degree misdemeanors.  ( 4 min )

How to make a fly play Doom, Minecraft, Beat Saber, parallel park, trade bitcoin, cut doner kebab, and more.  ( 6 min )

“AI agents” now have enough power and permission to be extremely annoying online.  ( 9 min )

The federal government has inserted a provision into a funding deal with the state of California that would make the state abandon its gold standard net neutrality law, broadband affordability laws, and public safety protections. Doing so would be a huge step back for California, and would actually end up being more expensive for Californians in the long run. Tell the governor to reject this provision before accepting these funds from the federal government. Take Action Tell the Governor to Stand Up for Net Neutrality, Affordability, and Public Safety On August 31, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced it would be awarding California $1.4 billion to expand broadband connectivity in the state. In that deal is a provision that says that California agrees to…  ( 6 min )

For as long as humans have created SHIT with our BODIES AND BUTTS, we have been asking this FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION: What if there were a COMPUTER that could ALSO SHIT? It was this IRONCLAD CERTAINTY about people UNIVERSALLY WANTING MACHINE-GENERATED SHIT that drove us to create THE SHIT MACHINE, the machine that RAINS SHIT. The way this TRANSFORMATIONAL AND FOUL-SMELLING TECHNOLOGY WORKS is by taking shit particles and BLASTING THEM INTO RAIN CLOUDS, and then SOME STUFF HAPPENS that we ASSUME IS COOL AND SCIENCE BUT ACTUALLY CAN’T EXPLAIN, and then those clouds aggregate a bunch of the airborne shit particles into COHERENT-SEEMING PIECES OF SHIT that are ALL-NEW and NOT JUST THE OLD SHIT REASSEMBLED BUT FASTER. The miraculous Shit-Raining Machine, from which there will be NO HOPE OF RELIE…  ( 10 min )

Welcome to your online group health class “Caring for Your Deep Laceration at Home.” We are sorry to hear that your body was badly cut, stabbed, or mauled. This class will teach you simple at-home care techniques you can start using today. I see we have a question popping up in the chat. “When can I see an ER doctor?” Great question. The ER can be a busy place, so out of respect for your time and our HMO cost-saving measures, you have been referred to take this class first. After two weeks of caring for your severe medical trauma at home, you may then visit the ER, provided you are still alive. Slide 1: “Keeping Your Wound Clean.” Whether you were accidentally run through with a bayonet during a Civil War reenactment or slipped on some mayo and fell face down in a mandoline slicer, you …  ( 10 min )

The post A New Form Of Life appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 33 min )

Nosh BreakFest was a blast. See photos from the celebration of the best meal of the day, and find out which Bay Area hot sauces took the trophies in four categories, including people's choice.  ( 27 min )

From Veo Mobility and Lime scooters to discount bus passes, Berkeley residents have a variety of options to make transportation affordable.  ( 27 min )

With Berkeley’s own defensible space requirements already in effect for 1,400 homes, hundreds more could soon be subject to new, but more relaxed, state requirements.  ( 29 min )

The first Berkeley Storytelling Festival will feature workshops, performances and open-mic sessions this weekend, Sept. 18-20.  ( 28 min )

No content preview

Mon Rovîa discusses the journey of his song "Heavy Foot," and his relationship to the term "protest music."⁠#tinydesk #tinydeskconcert #nprmusic #tinytalk #m...  ( 11 min )

The post Conceding AI Danger Raises, Not Reduces, Public Anxiety appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 14 min )

New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a press conference on Monday that the sites included 1,200 people’s likenesses in “hyper-realistic” sexual imagery.  ( 5 min )

The EFF found cops writing “idiot,” “WEIRD KID,” "blah," "leave me alone," and button mashing in Flock's 'reason' box.  ( 6 min )

Censorship, AI, and the role of librarians in a country with crumbling public institutions.  ( 4 min )

Humans are reading ChatGPT users’ prompts to improve OpenAI’s models, and those chats can include sensitive, personal information, according to leaked internal documents and real prompts seen by 404 Media.  ( 11 min )

Classics Homer “This guy gave his job talk in dialects. We need someone who can teach Freshman Greek 100.” Sappho “What’s the point now that DEI initiatives have been canceled?” Socrates “We read his teaching statement carefully. While the argumentative dialogue method might work in seminars, the ideal candidate should be able to teach multiple large lecture courses. Also, he seems to be way too interested in teaching/mentoring and not enough in research. Not a good fit for our R1 school.” Aristotle “His advisor is famous. Can he be his own scholar?” Cicero “He lectures well. We don’t currently have a budgeted line for a tenure-track position, but we should tell him that we might consider granting him an opportunity to be an adjunct lecturer with us.” Sociology and Anthropology Karl Marx “We don’t see another high-impact project after Das Kapital. Seems like a one-strike scholar.” Max Weber “We have concerns about the long gap (fifteen years!) on his CV. The candidate does not demonstrate an ability to produce steady research output.” Margaret Mead “Travels to and from the Samoan Islands were funded by the candidate’s father, which points to an alarming inability to bring in big external grants.” Political Science Thomas Hobbes “The candidate spends too much time translating others’ works, and not enough developing his own. While we see some scholarly potential in Leviathan, how he uses his time suggests a low likelihood of success if placed on the tenure clock.” Alexis de Tocqueville “His theory and analysis are based entirely on anecdotal evidence. Does he have any quantitative skills? Can he do causal inference? Seems unable to advise our graduate students.” Religious Studies Saint Augustine “Honestly, his last affiliation—Hippo—is simply not prestigious enough for us to consider hiring him.”  ( 9 min )

You just want to buy a caftan at Chico’s without being eyed suspiciously. A smooth countenance does not go with the orthopedic shoes you’ve been rocking. If you’ve got a Hotmail account, the jig is up anyway. You want to rob a bank while remaining invisible to everyone. You’re afraid of getting too much Botox and being given a job at Mar-a-Lago. Your face might become frozen in a grotesque state of perpetual astonishment, which will make your dinner party seatmate drone on about his philosophy dissertation from the 1990s because you obviously find it fascinating. You hope your frequent pauses in speech will be interpreted as measured wisdom instead of peri-menopausal brain rot. NEEDLES. The salespeople at Sephora will leave you the hell alone. You enjoy scowling disdainfully at man-spreaders on public transport. You want to ensure the continued delivery of your Soft Surroundings catalog. What if the med spa accidentally injects your face with Ozempic instead of Botox, and then your head shrinks to the size of a thumb and you end up looking like Harry the Hunter from Beetlejuice? You don’t want people using your forehead to check their teeth for spinach. People will take you more seriously when you divulge your Hall & Oates obsession. You already have old-lady hands. When you bring your silverware up to your lineless face, it looks like you’re being spoon-fed by an invisible grandma. You’re jonesing for that 10 percent senior discount at the movies before you’re legally entitled to it. A face with patina inspires more confidence than the face of Janice the Muppet. With those bunions, Roberta, you won’t be fooling anyone. You don’t want to confuse your phone’s facial-recognition software. You look hot AF as you are.  ( 8 min )

Here's a riddle: Why did a Goshen Police Department officer search 6,474 automated license plate reader (ALPR) networks, representing data from 82,413 cameras, on May 7, 2025?  If your answer is "I don't know," it turns out you're 100% correct. The officer left the letters "idk" in the search field where cops are supposed to document the reason for the search. When law enforcement and tech salespeople pitch ALPRs to city councils, they stick to a familiar script. They trumpet the technology, which is often provided by private companies like Flock Safety, Motorola Solutions, or Axon, as an essential tool for solving high-stakes crimes, such as car jacking, kidnapping, or murder. But when you strip away the carefully curated talking points, the data continues to reveal a different (and frank…  ( 11 min )

The James Webb Space Telescope spots mysterious “little red dots” everywhere. A bold new theory suggests they’re suns dozens of times larger than our entire solar system. The post Black Holes or Black Hole Stars? Astronomers Spar Over Webb Telescope’s ‘Little Red Dots.’ first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 15 min )

This easy ratatouille recipe is one of the best ways to enjoy summer's finest veggies. Baked layers of tender eggplant, squash, and tomato brushed with a delicate herb oil sit atop a rich, tangy tomato sauce, just like the French do it. Sounds pretty dreamy, right? Head to the farmers market and get started!  ( 45 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.  ( 11 min )

The planet’s radius may have shrunk by between four and six miles since it was formed due to global cooling, a contraction that is up to 30 percent larger than previously estimated.  ( 8 min )

I’m taking a break to replenish my creative reserves. Until then, I leave you with this champion champignon number In the nine years that I’ve been writing this column, I’ve had two babies, a breakdown and very little time away from writing a weekly recipe. I love this column, and creating recipes for you makes me feel like the luckiest duck alive, but I don’t believe that anyone can be endlessly creative without occasionally filling up their own cup. So, I’m taking six months out to travel, replenish and see what treasures I can find for us out there in the big wide world. Treasures such as this gentle claypot rice, which is based on the magical one at Dongnae in Bristol. Until then, so long. Continue reading...  ( 16 min )

The fire shut down the Berkeley Animal Care Services facility near Aquatic Park for almost two months. Peter Taraba, 48, was found guilty of arson Wednesday.  ( 26 min )

Also: UC Berkeley has lost its spot in the top 5 on Forbes’ list of the nation’s best colleges.  ( 25 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 25 min )

We took a tour of the six-story building, which includes 15 classrooms, art studios and a rooftop terrace with panoramic views.  ( 27 min )

Everything voters need to know about how the 2026 election works, what’s on the ballot, how to participate and the rules on mail-in voting.  ( 33 min )

He also wrote the bylaws for the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association and served on Berkeley's Planning Commission and the boards of Aurora Theatre and the Berkeley City Club Conservancy.  ( 25 min )

Governor Newsom signed a package of 12 bills yesterday aimed at “protecting children” online. One of them was AB 1709, which EFF has opposed this legislative session and serves as a functional ban on young people under 16 using social media. However, EFF supported two of the bills signed into law, AB 2071 and AB 2298, which require that children learn critical digital literacy and cybersecurity topics. The bills are an affirmative and constitutional way for the state to address valid concerns about young people’s internet use without violating their First Amendment rights. Unlike blanket bans, A.B. 2071 and A.B. 2298 address online safety through education rather than prohibition. Young people rely on the internet not just for entertainment, but for civic engagement, education, self-expres…  ( 5 min )

Amazon recently debuted a new feature for its Ring cameras that the company is calling Throw Away the Key Encryption (TAKE). The idea is to cut back on the amount of video content available to the company, and thus potentially available to law enforcement. But while it might technically add a speed bump to accessing full video content, it doesn’t deliver nearly the level of privacy we should be demanding from video doorbells and other security cameras. TAKE introduces a new way for Ring to manage encryption keys, where the user’s device has its key, then the company holds encryption keys temporarily within its own cloud infrastructure. Ring’s servers receive the keys temporarily so it can offer a variety of the features it says it can’t offer when a user chooses to use end-to-end encryptio…  ( 7 min )

We discuss AI doomers, 9/11 posting, and Barbie.  ( 3 min )

Workers at Automattic, which owns WordPress.com and several other platforms, have said the company has endured years of chaotic leadership decisions.  ( 4 min )

The University of Michigan is partnering with Los Alamos National Labs to build a massive data center in a small Michigan township. The residents say they were never consulted.  ( 8 min )

“AI researchers shook the world Tuesday when they publicly acknowledged that there’s a non-zero chance of AI killing off humanity in the next decade.” — Axios - - - If you want to get technical about it, then yes, there is a non-zero chance of AI killing off humanity in the next decade. I can’t argue with that, and I won’t insult your mushy noodle brain by trying. But if you’re going to make that claim, then isn’t it also true that, technically, there’s a non-zero chance that anything might kill off humanity in the next decade? Take staircases, for example. A person might be walking down a staircase, trip, and wham! Dead. It’s sad, but it happens. And if that can happen to one person, isn’t there a non-zero chance that it could happen to every human being on Earth in the next decade? I m…  ( 10 min )

For 24 years now, we’ve wondered what might be appropriate on this day, and we can never think of anything more appropriate than this piece, which John Hodgman originally delivered at a literary reading shortly after September 11, 2001. - - - Good evening. My name is John Hodgman. I am a former professional literary agent, which on a good day is a pretty small thing to be, and these days feels rather microscopic. Before I was a professional literary agent, I thought it would be a good idea to be a teacher of fiction in a college MFA program because it is easy and you are adored all the time, and of course, it pays a lot of money. I used to have a lot of bright ideas. I even had two lessons planned out, which, by all accounts from MFA programs that I’ve heard, is one more than you need.…  ( 10 min )

The post The Gen Z Revolt Sweeping South Asia appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 17 min )

The mystery of the flipping foraminifera may conceal a rarely observed evolutionary process playing out across the planet. The post Why Do These Fossil Shells Flip Their Spirals Every Few Millennia? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 10 min )

No content preview

No content preview

No content preview

Taste is subjective. But when it comes to architecture, there is a surprising level of agreement.  ( 13 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

An accomplished research chemist with a specialty in nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, he was also a lawyer (he passed the California and Hawaii bar exams as a hobby in his 50s), a comedian and a fitness buff.  ( 26 min )

At Oakland’s Sweet Maria’s, a national hub for the growing hobby, coffee lovers come to experiment, obsess over gear and chase the perfect roast.  ( 34 min )

The ban covers school-issued laptops in elementary and middle schools. A new parent advocacy group says BUSD still needs to go further to restrict screen time, bar phones and block AI use.  ( 30 min )

Controlled fires for Wednesday and Thursday were called off after Tuesday's smoky skies. Rising ozone levels resulted in Spare the Air days.  ( 25 min )

Other events include Nosh's BreakFest, a monthly music series at the Chapel of the Flowers and Berkeley Playhouse's production of "Legally Blonde: The Musical."  ( 28 min )

Bans Like California’s Don’t Fix What’s Wrong With Social Media Companies SAN FRANCISCO - Technology and the laws that regulate it should support and empower young people. California’s AB 1709 - signed into law today by Gov. Gavin Newsom - falls far short of this goal, say the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and its allies.    Using technology is how we learn and build community in today’s world. Laws such as AB 1709, a functional ban on social media use for people under the age of 16, instead cut young people off from essential information and experiences. That particularly harms those already facing increased challenges, who often find safety in supportive online communities that they can’t always access in the physical world.   "California should be passing laws to ensure that …  ( 6 min )

“Rudy Giuliani… publicly criticized current Mayor Zohran Mamdani for planning to attend a 9/11 commemoration ceremony at Ground Zero on Friday… Giuliani’s criticism was heavily tinged with anti-Muslim sentiment and false claims about Mamdani’s beliefs. ‘They have every desire to take us over. This is not, they want to be just another religion, they want to dominate us,’ Giuliani said of Muslims. ‘Mamdani is a clear supporter of that.’” — The Hill - - - Friday marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. A quarter century after that tragic day, it’s become painfully clear that the terrorists won. Our city is run by a socialist mayor who is turning the Big Apple into a jihadist fever dream, complete with everything Islamic fundamentalists famously support, like affordable …  ( 11 min )

Underground Artists is an ongoing comic by Ali Fitzgerald (Hungover Bear & Friends) that follows woodland creatures as they create art and search out whimsy in a bleak forest. - - -  ( 8 min )

Dear Author, Thank you for submitting your manuscript. Before we proceed, we require confirmation that it was written by you, a person, rather than a technology trained on books written by you without your knowledge or consent. We appreciate that this may feel circular. Please be assured it is not circular. It is an ouroboros. A spiral of accountability. An ethical feedback noose. As you know, several prominent authors of color have faced allegations that their novels were written with the assistance of generative AI. Some have lost publishing contracts and any remnant of faith that “innocent until proven guilty” is a part of the acquisitions process. All have denied using AI. Naturally, these denials cannot be accepted without evidence, since denial is exactly what a guilty person wou…  ( 10 min )

No content preview

No content preview

By revisiting the famous problem — which was controversially solved in the 1970s with the help of computers — mathematicians have gained important new insights into the nature of graphs. The post The Four-Color Theorem Gets a Rare New Proof first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 13 min )

This apple butter needs to be the first on your fall to-make list! Smooth and glossy, it's overflowing with the cozy, warming spices you associate with the season. Cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and a hint of vanilla turn sweet 'n tart apples into a spread you'll want to slather on everything in sight.  ( 44 min )

The post Whose AI Will Rule The World? appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 30 min )

The finding by the Justice and Education departments comes in the wake of similar investigations at UC medical schools. Law school dean Erwin Chemerinsky said the school does not give any race-based preferences.  ( 27 min )

When an Oceanview Diner manager was detained at the Oakland Airport, friends, family and coworkers rallied to track him down and fight for his release.  ( 30 min )

Some will brave any weather for the chance to catch a halibut or striped bass. But most of them value the community and the break from the daily grind above all.  ( 34 min )

Pagararung Thai Cuisine, The Coffee Mill, and Home of Chicken and Waffles all closed after multiple decades in business.  ( 27 min )

Mullenweg, co-founder of WordPress, wrote in a company-wide Slack messages on Wednesday, viewed by 404 Media, that board members "conspired" behind his back to vote to put him on leave.  ( 3 min )

‘We must work to crush any dissent to Doom’s vision of public safety,’ the Marvel supervillain told the city as it considered multiple surveillance proposals.  ( 7 min )

A team discovered that Gondwana, an ancient landmass that formed more than 500 million years ago, was in fact large enough to be deemed a supercontinent, a finding that sheds light on the “explosion” of ancient Cambrian life.  ( 6 min )

Sinclair Broadcasting is pushing the idea that China and the No Kings protesters are the reason people don't like Flock.  ( 12 min )

Secretive predictive policing units; a funk shirt designed to fool AI; and our third anniversary party.  ( 4 min )

James Strahler was sentenced to 15 years in prison for “cybercrimes that included both real and AI-generated sexually explicit images and threats of violence to numerous victims.”  ( 5 min )

After allegedly becoming emotionally reliant on ChatGPT, Austin died at 40 years old, leaving behind family and friends who loved him. Megan wants everyone to know what happened.  ( 14 min )

The Restroom Archive is a museum-style repository of 3D scans of the world's restrooms.  ( 8 min )

While the Treasury forces money changers to report on suspected immigrants, Homeland Security is having police pull people over for suspicious transactions.

Law enforcement agencies across the country are increasingly relying on spying technologies—automated license plate readers (ALPR), cell-site simulators, and facial recognition, to name a few--causing an outcry in many communities where people are rightly concerned about the threat to civil rights and civil liberties these tools present. Some authorities are responding to these concerns by trying to hide what they’re doing. Police departments are telling officers not to mention ALPRs when stopping vehicles and concealing their use of ALPRs to avoid citizens’ public records requests. Concealing the use of unpopular spying tools isn’t anything particularly new for law enforcement—cops have been doing it for years—but it’s just as wrong now as it was 20 years ago. These practices prevent the …  ( 7 min )

The term “digital sovereignty” has become ubiquitous. European officials invoke it in debates about cloud infrastructure, AI, semiconductors, and platform regulation. Governments throughout the global majority use it to argue for greater control over data and communications infrastructure and boost their economies. Companies market “sovereign cloud” products designed to reassure their customers that their information stays under local jurisdiction. But digital sovereignty could be something more: an opportunity for users around the world to build more resilient, open  systems and the skills and infrastructure to maintain them. There is no singular definition of digital sovereignty, nor is there a single coherent position in the digital rights space. Despite its growing popularity, the term…  ( 10 min )

EFF is pleased to announce that Access Now, 7amleh – The Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media, DeFlock, and New Media Rights have received 2026 EFF Awards for their vital work in ensuring that technology supports freedom, justice, and innovation for all people.  The EFF Awards recognize specific and substantial technical, social, economic, or cultural contributions in diverse fields including journalism, art, digital access, legislation, technology development, and law.  For the past 30 years, the EFF Awards—previously known as the Pioneer Awards—have recognized and honored key leaders in the fight for freedom and innovation online. Started when the internet was new, the Awards now reflect the fact that the online world has become both a necessity in modern life and a continuall…  ( 4 min )

The following is an excerpt from our new book, Obey In Advance: How to Survive and Thrive Under Authoritarianism by longtime McSweeney’s writer Ginny Hogan and McSweeney’s resident satirist Carlos Greaves. From how to stick your head in the sand to avoid thinking about your dictator, to the most effective ways to reeducate the masses, this hilarious (and oddly reassuring?) guide has you covered—whether you want to Make Authoritarianism Great Again or not. - - - 7 a.m. I wake up and get stabbed. 8 a.m. I go to my corner bodega for a Bacon, Egg, and Cheese. On the way, I get mugged. I have no way to pay for the sandwich, so I’m forced to steal it. And then I stab the bodega owner so he won’t tattle on me. 9 a.m. I get on the subway and immediately get murdered. Fortunately, there are four…  ( 11 min )

“I don’t believe in door-to-door solicitation, so I’m glad you called me to be one of the twenty-seven quotes you’ll receive for a storm door, after which you’ll decide you no longer want a storm door.” [Knocks on wall] “Wow—every repair in this house done by the previous owner was completed correctly.” “I accept cash, Venmo, Zelle, checks, and warm cans of Squirt from your out-of-order garage fridge.” “Most people don’t know this, but if you ignore the issue long enough, air conditioner condensers fix themselves.” “Your house makes a bellowing sound like a sinking ship and the floors vibrate each time you use the hot water faucet? That’s normal. All houses do that.” “While I have my ladder, I’ll gladly replace these drop ceiling tiles, paint over the water leak from 1992, and remove …  ( 9 min )

The post A New Kind Of Creative Poverty appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 29 min )

Hidden correspondences hint at a deeper structure to the mathematical universe. Our columnist unpacks one of those connections and asks mathematicians what they might mean. The post What Is Math’s Mysterious Langlands Program Really About? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 18 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

The state park and Cal Fire are reducing dangerous vegetation today. Many unofficial air quality sensors registered AQIs above 150 in Berkeley.  ( 25 min )

Waymo has won official approval to deploy driverless cars in Berkeley and other East Bay cities. Meanwhile, golden Tesla Cybercabs have been spotted in Oakland.  ( 27 min )

Margaret Solomon said she found her voice on campus. Now she wants to create more ways for students to build community.  ( 30 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently opened in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 25 min )

This year we will be accepting op-eds for ballot measures only. The deadline to submit them is Sept. 14.  ( 25 min )

Buyers are paying over asking for move-in-ready homes — and new programs are helping sellers get there without spending cash up front.  ( 26 min )

April Rose Provisions highlights local food products, and a new Italian gift store called Sweet Regalia opens on College.  ( 30 min )

A message from NPR Marketing - POV: you just got your El Tiny drop. 📦👀⁠⁠For Latin Music Month, NPR Music’s Alt.Latino takes over the Tiny Desk -- plus a wh...  ( 12 min )

No content preview

EFF sued the government back in March for information about the Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction (WISeR) model, a new Medicare program that uses AI to evaluate prior authorization requests for certain medical services. Today, we’re releasing approximately 1,000 pages of records obtained from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) through this litigation, including contracts with tech companies, internal status reports and providers’ complaints about the program. The documents (available here) show that WISeR has resulted in widespread delays and denials of care, operational chaos, and reports of patient harm. Why We Sued for Records about WISeR EFF filed the FOIA lawsuit to gain badly needed transparency into an experimental AI program that could jeopardize Medicare…  ( 9 min )

A data protection lawyer told 404 Media the sharing was likely illegal, and Channel 5’s own privacy policy explicitly says it won't give subscribers’ emails away to people for marketing purposes.  ( 5 min )

404 Media is revealing the name of Border Patrol's predictive policing units, which analyze financial data and have local cops pull people over. The people are not suspected of any particular crime.  ( 7 min )

Here at the DNC, we’ve been dismayed by the string of progressive and socialist candidates who’ve recently won primaries in Michigan, Colorado, and even deep-red Florida. Sure, these folks might stir up enthusiasm and make a splash online, but when they’re tested in a general election, they’re bound to lose. These fringe upstarts are speaking unabashedly about our country’s crushing affordability crisis and utter lack of a social safety net. That’s the kind of frank, uncompromising honesty that scares independent voters away. They’ve floated ideas like abolishing prisons and taxing the ultrarich, and yeah, we sort of see where they’re coming from, but we’d never say so out loud. They’re brash and messy on social media and dress like a cultural studies faculty meeting at Brown. They’re you…  ( 10 min )

September 14 1:30 p.m.–2 p.m. Team meeting and staring session w/ strange spot on wall (weekly, recurring) Heads of facilities and maintenance (both self) invited to offer theories, ideas HR and Marketing leads (both self) invited to explore the idea of naming the spot “Linda” and giving her director-level position as reward for attendance and persistence - - - September 15 10 a.m.–11 a.m. Performance improvement plan for intern/dog 1 Advise on how blinking, uncomprehending stare fails to advance company goals Initiate dialogue on treat schedule (Monochromatic PowerPoint deck needed) 2:30 p.m.–3:15 p.m. YouTube viewing session (humans only) Red Bull soapbox race wipeouts Bigfoot as trans-dimensional being “Holy Diver” by Dio 3:15 p.m.–3:20 p.m. Contingency p…  ( 9 min )

We are returning with a renewed focus on original reporting, investigations, and thesis-driven philanthropy.

The massively multiplayer online game was created in the 1980s.  ( 8 min )

Mathematicians at OpenAI showed that the Navier-Stokes equations, which describe how fluids flow, can sometimes “blow up.” But the massive result is not without controversy. The post AI Has Solved One of Math’s $1 Million Millennium Prize Problems first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 10 min )

What’s the point of content knowledge when you can teach skills instead? Scotland decided to find out.  ( 18 min )

Thank you for three years, and for partying hard with us for two sold out nights of celebration IRL in NYC.  ( 6 min )

This blueberry cobbler takes the cake when it comes to blueberry-lisciuous summer desserts. A tender, golden-brown topping sits over this magical blueberry filling that bakes away in the oven into bubbly, gooey, just-sweet-enough heaven. Make it with fresh berries or frozen ones in the off-season.  ( 41 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Using an advanced new instrument, scientists observed Einstein’s equivalence principle on a free-falling quantum object, demonstrating that this prediction of general relativity also holds up in quantum physics.  ( 8 min )

A delicious and triumphant blend of Levantine and Malay cuisines This is a dish with roots in ancient Egypt. There, it started life as ful medames, the famous fava bean dish lightly seasoned with cumin, garlic and lemon. Then it was, reportedly, brought to Johor in Malaysia by Arab traders. It has since been adopted and adapted with a fierce sort of love, plus more spice and a tin of baked beans. I adore it. It’s a very delicious dinner and a triumphant blend of two cuisines. Continue reading...  ( 15 min )

Longtime critics of the project allege the plan for new protected bike lanes violates California environmental law and the Americans with Disabilities Act.  ( 26 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 23 min )

Laderach Switzerland, Broken Dreams, Angela's Eatery, and El Balompie are among the recent restaurant debuts around the East Bay.  ( 29 min )

Berkeley Unified serves more than 1,100 students with special needs, but navigating services can be complicated. We created this guide to help families understand the system and get support.  ( 34 min )

Hemos creado una guía para ayudar a las familias a entender el sistema de educación especial de BUSD y obtener apoyo.  ( 37 min )

The habitually dishonest department uncritically accepted a story that was immediately contradicted by video footage and physical evidence.

Madison Square Garden is Harry's house until Oct. 31. Harry Styles is performing a 30-night residency to promote his new album, Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occ...  ( 13 min )

When I awoke on RTO Day (officially “Remain to Office,” since management maintained that I’d misremembered and we’d always been in office six days a week), I was not as excited as I should have been. I felt queasy at the thought of signing the Memorandum of Loving RTO as a condition of my continued employment. I was an Associate Slop Doula for Mondo Mayo, founded as a mayonnaise company, which now sells consumer packaged goods, software as a service, and surveillance technology, and is one of three large corporations remaining on Earth. At the time, I didn’t think a full, six-day-per-week, fourteen-hour-per-day, in-office schedule was necessary to discharge my duties clicking the GENERATE button, followed by the APPROVE button, thousands of times a day on SlurryHose. But experience has sh…  ( 11 min )

Here at DIE HOT Pilates (SoHo), we do things a little differently. We’re your new favorite fitness fusion studio blending elements of Pilates, barre, yoga, drought, inclement weather, the 1930s Dust Bowl, Zara Larsson, HIIT, cardio, cardiac arrest, and fun. Our UNIQLO-adjacent studio is temperature-controlled to a steamy 92 degrees with 47.5 percent humidity using a combination of infrared heat and greenhouse gases. This terroir provides detox, offers a deeper stretch, and preps the body’s cardiovascular and respiratory systems for the upcoming Super El Niño, during which the planet will experience subsurface heat anomalies in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, triggering a devastating ecological chain reaction. But we don’t balk at the heat. We say, “Bring it on, sis.” Just because those se…  ( 9 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Also: Law Students for Justice in Palestine says it was banned from tabling at Berkeley Law’s activities fair because of the group’s bylaw barring Zionist speakers.  ( 25 min )

The talent behind Bake Sum, Grand Opening and other celebrated bakeries reveal the training grounds for their taste buds.  ( 28 min )

Public health officials have issued a warning to doctors after identifying five rabid bats so far this year.  ( 25 min )

Other events include Berkeley Rep's latest play "The Cook," an author talk on mushrooms and an exhibition on the "hidden layers" of AI.  ( 27 min )

She supported the TWLF 1969 strike for Ethnic Studies as a high school student. Later she was a labor activist during the 1974 Jung Sai strike and was elected to the executive board of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union.  ( 25 min )

Despite carrying a REAL ID, Leo Garcia Venegas has been repeatedly detained by immigration agents. Now he’s suing to block immigration raids targeting Latinos on private construction sites.

Trump has criticized DEI initiatives for lowering hiring standards. A whistleblower now says ICE did that on purpose.

We’ve invented microbes that can eat plastic, detect landmines, and extract rare metals. They’ve been swallowed by a black hole.  ( 11 min )

A federal court in Massachusetts has ruled that copyright holders can issue online takedown notices based on a subjective belief of copyright infringement, even when that belief is unreasonable and self-serving. The case was brought by our client, Channel 781 News, after takedown notices temporarily shut down the citizen journalism group's YouTube channel. We think the court set the bar far too low for copyright takedowns, and we plan to appeal. Channel 781 is a group of independent, volunteer journalists who report on local affairs in Waltham, Massachusetts. That includes posting short, newsworthy excerpts from recordings of city government meetings produced by Waltham Community Access Corporation (WCAC), the city's public access television station. In September 2023, WCAC sent three copy…  ( 7 min )

Look, we’ve known each other for how many years now? You remember how we met, of course. We’re current or former work colleagues whose kids go to school or play sports together or some other extracurricular activity, so we connected on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and in our book club. The point is, we’re friends. So we can talk about a lot of things, but not politics. Anyway, what do you think of Anthony Fauci not answering questions about how he worked directly with China to spread COVID and hurt Donald Trump in the election? Isn’t politics messy? That’s why I stay away from it. I just have other interests, I guess, apart from politics. Did I tell you I’m working with the PTA in the school library to remove any books with objectionable content as I define it? It’s actually pretty easy …  ( 9 min )

Hi everyone, What a pleasure to share some wonderful news about the crucial work of our longtime sister organization, Voice of Witness, publisher of dozens of incredible books illuminating human rights crises. As you may know, the leadership of VOW made the difficult decision to wind down operations as a standalone nonprofit at the end of May 2026. While this marks the end of an extraordinary chapter, it’s also a thrilling new beginning. McSweeney’s will carry forward VOW’s crucial publishing work by stewarding their backlist of books and commissioning new oral history projects. We will also be adding new tools, including a new video component, so that we can react as quickly as possible to human rights crises. To that end, we’ve deployed journalist Jean Marseille to Port-au-Prince to r…  ( 9 min )

Underground Artists is an ongoing comic by Ali Fitzgerald (Hungover Bear & Friends) that follows woodland creatures as they create art and search out whimsy in a bleak forest. - - -  ( 7 min )

I can tell you didn’t come to this boat expo for puerile recreation. I mean, you walked right past the Alumacraft booth. No, something tells me you understand that having a boat isn’t about holding a fishing rod and chugging a cold one. It’s really a place to harbor your most irrational avoidant thoughts. Pique your interest, have I? Then take a look at the Gloomskiff, the finest boat on the market for silent brooding. You see, I’ve sold this glorified driftwood pile to dozens of middle-aged men just like yourself. Men who’d normally have to resort to lawn care or listen to three-hour podcasts alone in their garden shed to avoid, say, discussing frequent urinary pain with their loved ones. What if you need to make a whole silent weekend out of stifling something important? For that, you …  ( 9 min )

The post Your Perception Of Time Is, In Fact, Warped appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 37 min )

A Flock webinar teaches police how to surveil protests, fireworks shows, parades, bike races, and more.  ( 6 min )

Rich marinara sauce, melty vegan mozzarella, and protein-packed lentils all stuffed into juicy, tender zucchini boats? Yes please! This Italian-inspired side (or entrée) is easy enough to make on a Monday night and impressive enough to bring to your next snazzy event.  ( 44 min )

In this special live recording from the International Congress of Mathematicians in Philadelphia, July 2026, the central question discussed was what do mathematicians really value about doing mathematics in the first place? The post Live from ICM 2026: What Is Math For in the Age of AI? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 43 min )

Sarah Demers, chair of the physics department at Yale University, sees the potential for large language models to both help and harm her field. The post In an Age of AI, a Physicist Seeks What Endures first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 11 min )

No content preview

The nonprofits Partnerships for Trauma Recovery and East Bay Sanctuary Covenant started the pilot project this year to fill a crucial service gap for refugees and newcomers who’ve survived violence.  ( 26 min )

From the restaurants that provide the most grub for your buck to the best cafes for a late-night study session, here are the 33 Berkeley spots every newcomer should try.  ( 44 min )

Curiosities AI, a learning app, and Classroom Matters, a study skills center, both aim to support students.  ( 26 min )

At the Berkeley Redevelopment Agency, Wayne Jeronimus worked on housing rehabilitation, new construction and affordable housing.  ( 25 min )

A floating mass of trees and vegetation in British Columbia’s Williston Lake attracted international attention after it was filmed this summer by boaters—and then seemed to disappear.  ( 5 min )

An a16z article argues that enshittification isn’t real and that people actually love social media.  ( 7 min )

The incident shows how quickly police departments have come to use AI surveillance tools even in critically sensitive cases.  ( 7 min )

The video makes Zohran Mamdani and Kathy Hochul look like they're hanging out in a prescription medication commercial.  ( 5 min )

“Is there any talk to redesign the Outpost to not look exactly like the Flock camera — I think it will help agencies with the optics while we batten down the hatches,” one apparent cop asked during a now deleted Axon webinar.  ( 5 min )

A follow up to the Amazon destroying books for AI story, why a bunch of names keep appearing in AI-generated papers, and ICE's latest spending spree.  ( 4 min )

Within the last few days, two important state actions have dealt a big blow to automated license plate reader (ALPR) networks. This is just the latest proof of the growing tide of public opposition to mass surveillance. After years of successful grassroots battles to pull these cameras from local streets, bipartisan momentum is sweeping the country. On August 28, Texas Governor Greg Abbott banned state agencies from spending public funds on Flock cameras. The order dropped just as The Texas Tribune prepared to publish an investigation revealing that a state agency had quietly funneled at least $30 million into building a sprawling surveillance network.  Then on August 31, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) issued a memo, announced by Governor Ron DeSantis, ordering the removal…  ( 6 min )

Generic State University has been proudly upholding its mission to provide opportunities and build character in all students since its founding. Now, we turn our attention to the next frontier of education: joining the ranks of Dark Academia, which we are mostly sure we could define, if pressed. We know that Generic State would be the first land-grant institution in Dark Academia. We bear little resemblance to the current member institutions: private, elite colleges and universities with a long history of elitism, classism, and general exclusivity. Nevertheless, we believe we have a lot to bring to the table. And not just cows, although with our agricultural programs, we’ll be bringing those too. ARCANE TRADITIONS Generic State boasts several football traditions capable of whipping our…  ( 10 min )

The US Open prides itself on being an inclusive tennis event for people of all upper-income brackets. Here are some budget-friendly ticket options that are still available. Underground Pass Tennis fans can now experience the US Open as they’ve never experienced it before: one hundred feet below street level. Our new underground passes offer general admission to the US Open’s subterranean spaces: tunnels, basements, bunkers, and what we think was a catacomb. While our popular grounds pass offers a dynamic, above-ground experience at an affordable price point, it sells out within seconds. You’ll still have the same US Open experience, only now with less oxygen and closer proximity to walls stacked high with femurs. This is the perfect ticket option for fans who’d rather prioritize the vibr…  ( 9 min )

By doubling their entire genome, organisms can evolve extremely rapidly — or they can lose it all. New studies reveal how to survive the high-risk, high-reward evolutionary event. The post Genome Duplication Is a Radical Evolutionary Gamble first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 14 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

A federal judge has sided with Anthropic on its claims that the Department of Defense illegally retaliated against Anthropic’s protected speech by labeling the AI company a “supply chain risk.” The judge found that designation, intended to penalize Anthropic for telling the U.S. military it would not allow their technology to be used for mass surveillance of U.S. persons, “constituted unlawful retaliation in violation of the First Amendment.” EFF joined a coalition of organizations in filing multiple amicus briefs (here, here) arguing that the Pentagon had trampled on Anthropics First Amendment rights. We agree with the court’s decision and applaud the judge for slapping down such an obvious act of illegal and unconstitutional retribution by the Pentagon—even as the court left open the bro…  ( 6 min )

Meta’s settlement with 52 state attorneys general is a bad deal for all internet users, and especially for teens. That’s what we said the day the settlement was announced. In this post, we go through the Settlement’s provisions in detail and explain why that is so, including how: The Settlement embeds age assurance technology and age-gates into Meta’s social media products and requires all users—minors and adults—to undergo a rights-threatening age estimation process The Settlement places severe restrictions on Teens that can largely only be modified by the Teens’ parents and only then in exchange for giving their parents a ton of information about their online community and usage; The Settlement seems to empower the attorneys general to enforce Meta’s content restriction on “age inappropr…  ( 21 min )

The post Optimized Offspring appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 27 min )

“‘Woke 1.0 was crazy,’ Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York said in a recent interview. The congresswoman, speaking on ABC’s This Week, seemed to distance herself from the positions of an era of Democratic politics around 2020… If Woke 1.0 is in the past, when did it die? And has Woke 2.0 risen from its ashes?” — New York Times - - - Woke 1 was crazy! We’ll never make those same mistakes again. “Defund the police” was a really bad slogan, and we can all agree that it cost Democrats the 2020 election. Or at least, it would have, if Democrats had lost that election. Either way, we must learn from our mistakes. We must grow, iterate, experiment, evolve, and commit to never ever, ever again post an Instagram picture of a black square. Unless there’s some kind of glitch on the …  ( 10 min )

Upon entering a Panera To Go restaurant, you’re greeted by barren decor: millennial-gray tiles, a row of tablets, and not a single human in sight. It’s the uncanny valley version of a fast-casual restaurant, and it’s unnerving. As you approach the counter, it quickly becomes clear that there’s no one here to take your order; there never was. Only a menu boasting Panera’s unassuming delights sits over a long glass-enclosed case, with a sparse selection of baked goods and pastries to greet you. It’s hard to judge how long the pastries have been there, because there are no people. The blondies do look bitchin’, though. You spend a few moments observing them like fish in an aquarium before remembering why you came in here in the first place. To make an order, you must select a food item from…  ( 9 min )

What is the Women’s Invisibility Network? The Women’s Invisibility Network (or WIN) is a neighborhood support group for women in their sunset years. We assist aging women tossed aside by society, who are still capable of great feats, because they’re invisible. WINners meet in person and online to share tips on using invisibility to find reasons to keep living. Are WINners actually invisible? Yes. It’s like Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak but one hundred percent of the time. We move through life unseen and unheard, only sometimes smelled. How does one become invisible? If you’re a woman, enjoy being seen while it lasts. Much like puberty, being seen is just a phase. You’ll grow out of it. Who can join WIN? Are you a woman? Are you invisible? If so, you’ve met the criteria. This inc…  ( 9 min )

Spanish gazpacho is arguably one of the better ways to use those farmers' market tomatoes. Blend 'em with some olive oil, a splash of red wine vinegar, and a few other seasonal veggies, and you've got yourself one of the most refreshing soups in existence. Served chilled with a hunk of crusty bread, it's summer in a bowl.  ( 40 min )

The the city tried to charge a farmer more than $17,000 for bodycam footage and records related to his arrest at a city council meeting.  ( 7 min )

I watched Simon Weckert's 'digital camouflage' in action.  ( 4 min )

No content preview

What if everything we know about recycling is wrong?  ( 10 min )

Once you realize what that means, you’ll be giving two cheers for the American work ethic.  ( 20 min )

The California legislature passed Assembly Bill 1709 (A.B. 1709) today, which functions as a sweeping ban on social media use for young people under the age of 16. This well-intentioned, but deeply flawed piece of legislation, cuts young people off from essential information and experiences, particularly harming vulnerable youth and marginalized groups who often find safety in supportive online communities they can't access offline. That’s why we’re urging Governor Gavin Newsom to veto the measure.  Should the law go into effect in January, platforms would be prohibited from offering virtually every functional recommendation algorithm and basic input, such as who a user follows or what posts they like, to anyone under 16. These so-called "addictive features," are in reality the basic tools…  ( 5 min )

The history of technology is rife with copyright panics.  In the 1980s, major rightsholders ran to Congress and the courts, claiming that videotape recorders (VTR) were “to the American film producer and the American public as the Boston strangler is to the woman home alone.” Then, the Supreme Court declined to embrace the hype, noting that the VTR was capable of all kinds of non-infringing uses, like time-shifting and cautioning courts to avoid rewriting copyright law in response to new technologies. We believe that courts now should be similarly wary about the hype surrounding AI. Hollywood’s hyperbole has echoed that of composer John Phillip Sousa, who claimed in 1906 that the player piano and the gramophone would destroy music composition; portrait artists who feared the camera would r…  ( 7 min )

Doxxing, also known as the deliberate sharing of personal information to harass or endanger someone, is a tricky thing to protect against. It often happens by some ill-intentioned person accessing publicly available information, then sharing that information more widely in the hopes it will intimidate their target or worse.  This guide is a followup from a previous post that describes a methodology for you to clean up your digital footprint and get a firm entry into the art of open source intelligence. There's a slight bit of repetition here, but with a slant towards using those now-familiar tools and methods toward what to do in the context of incident response. The best thing you can do is familiarize yourself with this post and its tactics before something happens, then return back to i…  ( 10 min )

Doxxing is the deliberate disclosure of personal information in order to bully, harass, intimidate, or instigate a chain of harms against someone. It's a tricky thing to protect against when the jerk doing it is often able to use legal and accessible means to do so. The odds are stacked against everyday internet folk when there's little to no comprehensive data privacy legislation keeping us safe. The responsibility is on each of us to protect ourselves, but the good news is that there's a lot you can do to reduce your digital footprint and take control of your data. This post is part one of a two-part series discussing safety and response to doxxing. This first part focuses on prevention and ways to reduce your overall footprint. The second focuses on incident response, as in, steps to ta…  ( 9 min )

Regulating commercial location tracking has reached a turning point. Last year, we published our rubric for what comprehensive and protective location privacy laws should look like, outlining the baseline standards states should meet to shield individuals from pervasive location surveillance. Since then, state lawmakers across the country have begun responding to calls like these, with Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, Oregon, and Virginia enacting new consumer privacy restraints on an industry that profits off our physical movements. Yet, even as these states move the ball forward to restrict location tracking, most of their laws leave significant gaps that still must be filled. Other states – and Congress – need to get into the game, too, and ensure protection of everyone. Why Location …  ( 11 min )

This post is adapted from a video recorded by EFF and the Trevor Project. Head over to our TikTok or Instagram to watch!  EFF answers all the queer digital rights questions you submit to us through our LGBT Q&A. You asked us: What’s one thing I can do today to improve my safety and security online as an LGBTQ+ person?  And for this question, we’ve brought in our friends from the Trevor Project to answer together: Hi, I’m Tommy from the Trevor Project! The Trevor Project’s mission is to end suicide among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ+) young people. Our vision is to create a world where all LGBTQ+ young people see a bright future for themselves. EFF and the Trevor Project know that digital security and online safety can feel overwhelming, especially beca…  ( 4 min )

Plus: the escalating war with Iran, Meta's $17 billion settlement, and Milo Yiannopoulos gets deported.

It took Cypress Hill 35 years to make an album of original songs written in Spanish: 'Dios Bendiga.' Alt.Latino's Felix Contreras explains why this moment fe...  ( 12 min )

From the Redacted Fish (Coregonos epsteinfilens) to the Lamprey Assistant (Petromyzon harpius), this guide has you covered on all the new invasive wildlife l...  ( 7 min )

Summer’s winding down, but the FUN’s just getting started. Onboard our fleet of immaculately sanitized cruise liners, you and your family will discover an ocean of possibilities while minimizing your exposure to hantavirus, norovirus, Legionnaires’ disease, and so much more. Get ready to create unforgettable memories in a thoroughly disinfected environment deemed inhospitable to the majority of the world’s most deadly microorganisms. Excitement and relaxation await on these, the most hygienic ships on the sea. Pre-Board The fun starts before you even embark. Your Ahoy Team will greet your party at your departure wharf, incinerate your clothes, scour your naked torsos with steel-bristled brushes, and power-spray you with industrial-grade detergent. (No germ stowaways allowed.) You’ll then…  ( 11 min )

Mathematicians found that a broad class of networks will abruptly shift behavior past a critical point. The post ‘Stunning’ Percolation Proof Solves Decades-Old Puzzle About Phase Transitions first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 12 min )

This 25-minute vegan cottage cheese pancake recipe is about to become your go-to, protein-packed breakfast. They're so easy to make and come out perfectly light and fluffy. Grab the maple syrup and get started!  ( 42 min )

Erin West and Paul Raffile went to Nigeria to track down a scammer. They found much more than just his identity.  ( 5 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Sometimes a cover song is so good it completely eclipses the original version. In a hot take from All Songs Considered host Robin Hilton, an acoustic version...  ( 12 min )

Google Maps announced on Saturday it would start reflecting the change for U.S.-based users.  ( 3 min )

Unreleased music from the vaults can be filled with junk. However, the new lost album by The Cramps, 'Gravest Gravy,' is gold. #nprmusic #albumreview #thecra...  ( 11 min )

The Sun has likely passed so close to other stars in the past that it captured thousands of small interstellar objects from alien systems, reports a new study.  ( 8 min )

An enticing, slightly spicy, east/west fusion stacked with vigour and colour One thing I learned during the recent hot weather is that I don’t have enough “substantial but quick salads” in my locker. A salad one could call lunch (or a light dinner when served with other bits). On rotation in my “throw-together” category is my no-cook chickpea, tomato and cucumber salad, to which I’m also going to add my favourite summer vegetable, bulgur and pesto salad, which isn’t quite an assembly job, but near-enough and a family favourite. To that line-up, I’m happy to introduce this gently spicy, green beauty. Continue reading...  ( 15 min )

"I mean bad immigrants," Yiannopoulos said in a 2016 interview with Joe Rogan. "I don't mean handsome, charming, successful, blonde-haired British immigrants."

The CIA has been using artificial intelligence to write “open source intelligence” analyses, which are being distributed to local police via DHS “fusion centers,” according to documents obtained by Reason.

People are right to want less police intrusion in their lives. The way to get there is more precision, not less.  ( 9 min )

“Vendors and rare books experts are increasingly worried that these artifacts may be under threat of destruction by generative AI companies seeking to feed their ravenous technology with new texts. Fears stem from a copyright lawsuit brought against [Anthropic] by book authors. Unsealed court files revealed earlier this year that the company was engaging in the practice of ‘destructive scanning’—buying physical books, slicing off the spines to more efficiently scan the pages, then pulping the remains—and had sought to keep it quiet.” — The Guardian - - - I realize enthusiasm for one’s job is a little embarrassing now, but honestly, I adore what I do. I’m the guy who destroys priceless antique books once our generative AI scanners are finished with them. Officially, my title is Senior Leg…  ( 9 min )

Welcome back, students and parents, for another, possibly the last, functioning school year! Both the literacy crisis and moral deterioration of our leaders pretty much guarantee our school will be shuttered soon. But in the meantime, we hope to have a well-rounded, fun year interrupted by only one or two major geopolitical crises. Even in the most unpredictable times, you can count on the fact that teachers are paid dogshit wages. So here’s a list of school supplies I kindly ask you to buy in advance to help get us through the year: Two packs of No. 2 pencils. Ticonderoga is preferred. We focus-grouped this during an unpaid professional development session this summer in which we simulated the inevitable loss of power once the revolution begins. Ticonderoga proved more reliable to us…  ( 9 min )

The post Subjective Perspective Makes Objective Reality ‘Everywhere Whole’ appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 21 min )

This week, we discuss cool old books, new toys for ICE, and a boardwalk slop invasion.  ( 4 min )

ICE wants the robot dogs to improve “officer safety.”  ( 3 min )

The theoretical side of the field doesn’t require computing machines. But many questions would never have been posed without them. The post Does Computer Science Need Computers? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 12 min )

As long as it takes. I’d like to be someone who could “adjust my expectations,” make peace with “close enough,” or have the slightest amount of chill when it’s clear that whatever I’m trying to do isn’t something I can pull off, but we’re wired how we’re wired. Read more »  ( 37 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

“The academic record is being quietly haunted” by researchers with names like Elena Vasquez and Marcus Chen.  ( 5 min )

It seems like food safety is all anyone has been talking about this summer, whether you found out about these problems the easy way (reading an article your mom texted you about the latest recall) or the hard way (weeks-long explosive diarrhea because you ignored your mom’s text messages). As an FDA spokesperson, I’m here to assure you that we’re on top of it. Admittedly, lots of pantry staples are currently unsafe to eat—everything from fresh produce (because of cyclospora) to eggs (because of salmonella) to bread (because there are literally bits of glass in it). Other foods, like ground beef, have gotten expensive thanks, in part, to infections like New World screwworm. Pretty much everything on RFK Jr.’s food pyramid is either contaminated or cost-prohibitive: But there is one food…  ( 9 min )

Underground Artists is an ongoing comic by Ali Fitzgerald (Hungover Bear & Friends) that follows woodland creatures as they create art and search out whimsy in a bleak forest. - - -  ( 7 min )

Early in President Trump’s first term, McSweeney’s editors began to catalog the head-spinning number of misdeeds coming from his administration. We called this list a collection of Trump’s cruelties, collusions, corruptions, and crimes, and it felt urgent to track them, to ensure these horrors—happening almost daily—would not be forgotten. Now that Trump has returned to office, amid civil rights, humanitarian, economic, and constitutional crises, we felt it critical to make an inventory of this new round of horrors. This list will be updated monthly between now and the end of Donald Trump’s second term. - - - These lists, along with everything McSweeney’s publishes on this site, are offered ad-free and at no charge to our readers. If you are moved to make a donation in any amount or subsc…  ( 35 min )

- - - KNOPF: This is a very funny, very moving book about the deepest kind of friendship. It unfolds over many decades, and the novel took shape over decades for you, too. When did you begin thinking about these characters? DAVE EGGERS: I’ve been thinking about Cricket and Olympia for about twenty years, and was writing random passages about them much of that period. Sometimes a certain book takes an especially long time to gestate and make its correct form known, and this was one of those books. Q: The book covers about 65 years in the lives of its two main characters, Cricket and Olympia. Their interactions take place all over the world, from Indiana to Thailand, from Philadelphia to Turkey and Paris. Did you always see this as a book with that kind of epic scope? DE: Once I decided i…  ( 11 min )

The post The Latest Chapter In American Military Muddling appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 29 min )

This recipe for vegan cottage cheese couldn't be easier. Perfectly tender tofu "curds" sit in a savoury, tangy, salty sauce and take on an incredibly realistic cottage cheese flavour. You'll see!  ( 40 min )

No content preview

An interactive Wittgensteinian tool for thought  ( 12 min )

A federal judge sided with the Florida International University students who sued over their school's student expression policy.

Who benefits when we ask transit to pursue social goals?  ( 7 min )

If you’re so tired of expensive housing prices in your major city, then why don’t you stop complaining and move to this random town I found with some cheap houses for sale and exactly zero other amenities? No place is perfect. Sure, this city is in the middle of nowhere, isn’t near major job markets, and doesn’t have maintained roads, well-funded schools, or functioning emergency services, but it does have a series of dilapidated ranch houses located between a data center and a second data center that is currently on fire. You can’t complain about the price of housing if you refuse to move hundreds of miles away to a city I just learned about for the purposes of this bad-faith argument. For the same amount as a down payment in New York City, you could buy an entire house in this town in upstate wherever or whatever it’s called. You could also buy absolutely nothing else in the town because any industry was decimated in a post-industrial economic order that bled regional metros dry for the benefit of a handful of global conglomerates. So… should I rent the U-Haul? With the money you’ll save on housing, you can afford dozens of flights and train trips across the country to see the aging relatives, friends, and entire community of people you’ve abandoned. You’ll never worry about a ludicrously high rent payment again. Instead, you can worry about your new neighbors, most of whom have been left behind by violent austerity measures strangling the last drops of life out of previously vibrant towns and cities. I did this exact thing when I was young. I packed my bags, left my major city, and moved all the way to a redlined suburb fifteen minutes outside that city, built specifically for people who looked like me. If I can do that, young people should be willing to live on an active Superfund site covered in broken glass. I think moving there is something thousands of young people should consider, and no, I will not consider what would happen to housing costs if thousands of young people moved there.  ( 8 min )

Please rate Erica on a scale of 1-5 on how she demonstrates the following: CONSISTENCY: 5 Erica does fantastic treat work, always offering me a tasty morsel after walks, even though she doesn’t contribute to our daily quota for eating grass. PUNCTUALITY: 2 Erica often delays leaving the house because of something she calls a “job,” which, from the best I can discern, is just staring at (and sometimes talking to) a glowing screen. She would benefit from improving her time management to meet walk deadlines more consistently. TEAM CULTURE: 2 It would behoove Erica to think more outside the crate. She often misses opportunities to partner with me in meeting our mission-critical KPIs of barking at wild rabbits, anyone in a uniform, men in hats, men in general, men who are Generals, garbag…  ( 10 min )

Aikens grew up in Berkeley and North Oakland. For years, he could be found at the market every Tuesday protecting shoppers from traffic and selling copies of Street Spirit.  ( 26 min )

Hundreds of East Bay families have swapped gas for induction with a battery-equipped range made by Berkeley's own Copper.  ( 27 min )

Proponents say Measure Z, a parcel tax to fund a regional public bank, will invest in progressive causes. Critics say Berkeley will carry too much of the cost for the rest of the East Bay.  ( 29 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently opened in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 24 min )

From farmers markets to trivia nights, we put together a roundup of events and activities held regularly in Berkeley.  ( 37 min )

An Israel-funded think tank is churning out AI written essays to catch the attention of AI chatbots and warp search results.  ( 7 min )

Voting data is public by design, but ICE is looking for a federal contractor to help it handle voter registration and history files to find what it describes as fraud.  ( 5 min )

Lux Claridge was dragged from a city meeting about data centers and charged with interfering with the police after they clapped during a presentation.  ( 4 min )

Police are devising sting operations to catch Flock vandals, then charging them with felonies.  ( 7 min )

Anthony Ralphs has been speaking against Flock at San Diego City Council meetings for almost a year straight. When he showed up as Darth Vader, the world started watching.  ( 7 min )

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post. The post Protected: The Bleeding Hearts appeared first on The Atavist Magazine.  ( 6 min )

ANSWER: Ten. One Vice-Chancellor for Administration and Finance to commission a feasibility study. One Vice-Chancellor for Institutional Effectiveness to assess the impact of the increased lumens on university accreditation. One Vice-Chancellor for Strategic Planning to align the lightbulb replacement with at least three objectives in the University Mission Statement. One Vice-Chancellor for Sustainability to determine whether to use a high-efficiency fluorescent or an LED bulb. One Vice-Chancellor for Student Athletics to explore possible Name, Image, and Likeness deals with General Electric before finalizing any lightbulb actions. One Vice-Chancellor for Student Excellence to consult with the Dean of Students about potential red flags raised by the use of the term "screw.” One Vice-Chancellor for Development to organize an alum reception and a fundraising campaign to honor the screwing in of the lightbulb. One Vice-Chancellor for Second-Guessing Small Purchases to ask for three competitive quotes for lightbulbs from approved state vendors after receiving the feasibility study. One Vice-Chancellor for Keeping an Eye on the Chancellor’s Cousin Jimmy, who will assign Jimmy to the feasibility study to keep him off the streets. Jimmy’s been through a lot lately, and this could be good for him. One Vice-Chancellor for Fiscal Austerity will review the jobs of the other vice-chancellors to determine that, in the current economic environment, the best option is to work in the dark.  ( 9 min )

Hey, Maya — First off, congratulations on becoming an “outdoors person.” Three years ago, you thought mosquitoes were government drones. Now you own boots with names like “Expedition Carbon Ultra GTX.” People change. I’m happy for you. Which is why I’d like to offer you fifteen thousand dollars to pretend you never invited me. Seriously. Take it. Use it for backpacks, trekking poles, tiny titanium spoons, or whatever mysterious economy hikers have built among themselves. I simply cannot spend my Saturday voluntarily climbing a mountain whose greatest achievement is being taller than the parking lot. You keep saying the view is “worth it.” The view is Earth. I’ve seen Earth. It was available from the ground. You insist hiking is about “the journey.” That’s exactly what worries …  ( 9 min )

The post When The AI Says To Kill appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 27 min )

What if instead of editing a gene, or blocking the protein it produces, you could simply switch it off?  ( 14 min )

No content preview

The plaza along Adeline Street, planned as developers work to build 600 homes atop the BART station’s parking lot, will host the Berkeley Flea Market.  ( 24 min )

After four years, the owners of the popular East Bay breakfast pop-up are opening their first restaurant in the former TrueBurger space in Temescal, expanding to serve grits, cocktails and thick beef burgers.  ( 26 min )

Experts are bracing for big storm surges and king tides, flooding, and a host of impacts on wildlife and ecosystems. But more rainfall isn’t guaranteed.  ( 32 min )

Since March, Redwood Cricket Club has been hosting free Sunday cricket games at Grove Park. They’re open to all, with lessons for newbies held monthly.  ( 29 min )

Welcome to the university of the future. Our new digital-forward brand of education requires no books, no paper, and, best of all, no human knowledge. The customers—I mean, Young Learning Partners—simply pay their tuition and begin their virtual journey: two entire weeks’ worth of videos and click-through modules. The university of the future is like the old one, just without all those dusty tomes lying about. And also without the knowledge contained within the tomes. We thought about uploading some of that knowledge to the cloud, but then we’d have to pay for the extra storage, and you know how expensive that can be. Now Young Learning Partners don’t have to worry about late nights in the library, because there is no library. Yes, centuries of knowledge have been erased, but on the brig…  ( 9 min )

1. We went to war with our friends. Odysseus and his buddies fought in the Trojan War on what was essentially a decades-long boys’ trip. I went to Nantucket to fight with 23 of my closest girlfriends for three days. 2. We did not follow the map. Odysseus wanted to chart his own way back to Ithaca without a GPS, kind of like how I told my maid of honor that I wanted to do something “off the beaten path” for my bach. We spent Saturday afternoon squelching cranberries under our feet in a bog. I lost my cell somewhere in Ocean Spray’s next gallon, so we had to hitchhike to the mani-pedis. 3. Belligerent male suitors were waiting for a taken woman’s hand in marriage. I have never been hit on by more men in my life than when I wore a cowboy hat with BRIDE rhinestoned across it at the bar. S…  ( 11 min )

Habeas Dockets are publishing immigration court records that normally aren't available online.  ( 7 min )

An updated view of categorization reflects the modern understanding that the nervous system is more of a prediction engine than a filing cabinet. The post A New Framework for How the Brain Compresses Our Noisy World first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 12 min )

If you're interested in getting into Jamaican cuisine, this steamed cabbage is a great place to start. This island classic uses simple cooking methods and a few thoughtfully chosen spices to transform simple cabbage into a sweet, savoury, slightly spicy, and totally crave-worthy accompaniment to any Jamaican main.  ( 40 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

The Qurayyah Painted Ware of Bronze Age Arabia had distinct visual identity, material consistency, technological continuity, and cultural reputation—all features of a commodified brand, scientists say.  ( 7 min )

Rich, velvety nuts are offset by zippy, seasonal berries in a cake for all occasions Most cakes I can take or leave, but I never regret a slice of almond cake. The density! The chewy crumb! The way it romances butter and other flavours! The ultimate almond cake, in the Sodha house, at least, is Claudia Roden’s orange and almond cake, which is made religiously for special occasions (of which there are many from December to March), but I wanted a more seasonal cake for a good friend’s August birthday. Blackberries are perfect (not least because we’re drowning in them right now), because they provide an excellent, zippy contrast to the almond’s velvety nature. Continue reading...  ( 15 min )

Hot stone massages and eucalyptus steams have come to an end as the storied hotel closes its 25-year-old wellness center.  ( 24 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 23 min )

One in five Berkeley adults will be 65 or older by 2030. Amid talk of a loneliness epidemic nationally, we asked five local seniors how they navigate life and about their concerns for the future.  ( 31 min )

First-time EV buyers can qualify for a $3,500 discount when buying or leasing a new electric vehicle under a new state program.  ( 27 min )

The yacht’s Wi-Fi became weak for almost forty-five seconds while crossing the Mediterranean, forcing me to experience what experts call “a thought.” My personal chef interpreted “comfort food” as “deconstructed truffle-infused childhood,” when what I wanted was a grilled cheese sandwich. I accidentally wore last season’s cashmere to an event where everyone else was wearing this season’s cashmere, and now I have to fake my own death. My therapist insists that “buying another island” is not a healthy coping mechanism, despite overwhelming anecdotal evidence that it sounds extremely relaxing. One of my houses has gone completely unvisited for so long that I am beginning to suspect it has developed its own culture. A stranger on the internet referred to me as “mid.” My assistant asked w…  ( 8 min )

Underground Artists is an ongoing comic by Ali Fitzgerald (Hungover Bear & Friends) that follows woodland creatures as they create art and search out whimsy in a bleak forest. - - -  ( 7 min )

I’m so excited my new Meat Glasses have arrived in the mail. I unwrap them and turn them over. Wow, they’ve really done it. You can’t see the camera under the ground beef at all. In fact, they look like high-fashion glasses made of raw, Grade A ground sirloin. Still, Meat Glasses are so much more than that. Encyclopedia I walk down the block with my Meat Glasses and ask them to identify the plant in front of me. “Hey Meat, what’s that?” “Big grass,” they say. Correct! It is indeed a tree. Community catalyst Oh no, neighbors are walking down the block toward me. They’ve just moved in, and I don’t know their names. Luckily, I can ask Meat. Meat uses the miniaturized cow brain implanted in the right arm of the glasses to scan its database and tell me who approaches. “Predators 1 and 2…  ( 9 min )

The Trump administration is using so-called "third-country deportations" both punitively and to expel migrants who have been granted protection from their home countries.

This week, EFF, along with Big Brother Watch, Defend Digital Me, Liberty, Open Rights Group, Race Equality First, Statewatch, and Stopwatch, wrote to Nottinghamshire Police Force in the UK raising concern about the proposed roll-out of live facial recognition technology (LFR), and called for its immediate halt. In particular, the letter highlights six concerns: LFR Is Not "Just Another Tool" Nottinghamshire Police has stated that “facial recognition is just another tool to fight crime.” But LFR used in public spaces is an incredibly intrusive biometric mass surveillance technology that scans the faces of everyone who walks past the camera and takes biometric face prints. This is not just another tool, but a major escalation of surveillance that treats everyone as a suspect by default. Peop…  ( 6 min )

The post Introducing Noema Issue VII: The Next Axial Age appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 22 min )

This week, we discuss our party and panel coming up, and do some light reminiscing.  ( 4 min )

For the first time in 30 years, computer scientists have found a better way to allocate objects evenly between two groups. The post ‘Huge Breakthrough’ in the Math of Imbalance first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 11 min )

xkcd shop  ( 14 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Also: Look inside a stunning modernist home in the Berkeley Hills that just hit the market.  ( 24 min )

Police allege the man stole mail and packages from several Berkeley apartment buildings last year.  ( 24 min )

Come out to Hammerling Wines in West Berkeley Sept. 12 for great food, local makers and Nosh's inaugural hot sauce competition.  ( 25 min )

The BUSD board had been without a fifth member since July, when Ana Vasudeo stepped down to join the county. Leyva-Cutler will serve out the remainder of her term, until November 2028.  ( 25 min )

Natchez Lee, the chef behind the pop-up and supper club Daffodil Projects, was struggling in school when they joined Growing Leaders.  ( 30 min )

Berkeley Mayor Adena Ishii says state leaders should approve Gavin Newsom's plan to provide $125 million for the Golden Gate Fields property.  ( 25 min )

Other events include a murder mystery show at Hammerling Wines, a discussion of reporting on AI and a night market on Fourth Street.  ( 26 min )

Brazil's new internet intermediary liability regime is underway. The implementation of changes established by the Supreme Court includes notice and takedown mechanisms and duty of care obligations. Caution is crucial as these measures can create problematic incentives for enforcement overreach and over censorship of protected speech.   The court in June issued a new decision clarifying elements of its 2025 finding that the previous liability regime was partially unconstitutional. The government also published in late May two presidential decrees that detail how the new rules apply.  Under the new regime, social media platforms and other internet applications that curate or interfere with posts can be held liable for third-party content if they don’t remove it after being notified by the us…  ( 9 min )

"The emperor is a fan of Flock, and we must continue utilizing Flock technologies so that we can follow and surveil the rebel scum," Vader said during the meeting.  ( 5 min )

Nonconsensual AI images are getting much harder to spot.  ( 8 min )

The six month moratorium on major electrical infrastructure projects is the latest tactic meant to delay the massive data center meant to support America’s nuclear weapons.  ( 5 min )

Q: Why my favorite song? Your favorite song’s lyrics were either generic or changeable enough that we could capitalize on your nostalgia. We figured we could hold your attention for ten seconds longer than our usual arthritis medication commercials, where people do light physical activity like bowling with family, making pottery, or line dancing, while Muzak plays and slowly signifies an improvement in their lives. Q: Couldn’t you have written your own song? Or reused that Greatest Showman one? Original songs are more of a weight-loss drug’s game, and we can only use “This Is Me” in so many ways. So now, ’70s music is the soundtrack of COPD, bipolar depression, and more. Q: Wait, which medicine are you even using these songs for? All kinds. Every kind. Name a disorder, an illness, or …  ( 9 min )

Ready to join an exciting new startup with a radical approach to employee-employer relations? Trustus was founded on a belief that workplaces are not families. For too long, we’ve seen companies use this language to exploit employee labor for personal profit, and we don’t want to be another predatory corporation. At Trustus, we simply ask that you make AI your friend. Does the term “work wife/husband” make you cringe? Us too. At Trustus, we’ll never ask you to work that much and so closely with your coworker that you consider them a replacement for your real-life partner. Forming a close bond with your coworkers is toxic, which is why we only advocate for a healthy relationship between you and our proprietary GPT, Tom. Have you ever been encouraged to “lean on your coworkers in times of …  ( 9 min )

Computer scientist Melanie Mitchell discusses why artificial intelligence doesn’t “think” or “reason” like humans, and how we can create better methods for measuring machine cognition. The post Are We Thinking Correctly About AI Intelligence? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 34 min )

This shredded tofu needs to be on your meal prep list. Tossed in a savoury sauce and baked to crispy golden brown, it's the perfect protein addition to any rice or noodle dish, salad, or taco. Enjoy!  ( 42 min )

Its royal family used a charm offensive where military power failed.  ( 15 min )

No content preview

Berkeley Unified and other districts are increasingly using “me too” contract clauses tying executive salaries to staff pay raises, as a way to retain top talent.  ( 28 min )

Update: One of the candidates vying to represent City Council District 8 has dropped out of the race.  ( 26 min )

After a reader sent Berkeleyside photos of his front yard corn, we put a call out to see what else is being grown around town this summer. You all produced.  ( 24 min )

At Studio Estepan, owner Estevan Silva brings Michelin technique and global flavors to his part-time West Oakland bakery.  ( 27 min )

Jeremy Lent describes the consequences of a society stretched to its limits and what can replace it. Also: “Reckonings” by Thomas Farber, and a posthumous memoir of LSD and erotic encounters at Esalen by Cal professor Clare Cooper Marcus.  ( 32 min )

In a handful of known cases, large social media companies have privately pushed back against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) subpoenas when the agency tried to unmask anonymous users who tracked immigration activities or criticized the government. As ICE engages in a pattern of illegal and chilling investigations, any resistance is welcome. But social media companies can do more. When companies receive these unlawful subpoenas, they should be clear with the public that they will not hand over the data unless a court compels them to do so. In addition, companies themselves can take the government to court to challenge these unlawful subpoenas on behalf of their users. ICE has sent hundreds of subpoenas to large technology companies like Google, Meta, and Reddit. Publicly challeng…  ( 7 min )

Your location isn't just a pin on a map—it can expose some of the most intimate details about your life. The value of this information to advertisers and others has turned the location data business into a multi-billion dollar industry. In our latest EFFector newsletter, we're covering a new EFF report on how ad libraries encourage apps to leak user location data—potentially without app developers themselves even realizing it. JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER For over 35 years, EFFector has been your guide to understanding the intersection of technology, civil liberties, and the law. This issue covers what recently announced Flock reforms actually do, privacy-invasive legislation advancing in the Senate, and an EFF investigation into mobile ad software. Prefer to listen in? EFFector is now available on all major podcast platforms. This time, we're covering EFF's new report on mobile ad libraries and chatting with EFF Executive Director Nicole Ozer about how digital rights have become fundamental to our lives. You can find the episode and subscribe on your podcast platform of choice: %3Ciframe%20height%3D%22200px%22%20width%3D%22100%25%22%20frameborder%3D%22no%22%20scrolling%3D%22no%22%20seamless%3D%22%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fplayer.simplecast.com%2Fbaf87477-9c26-4b51-8f00-b0465a2606d1%3Fdark%3Dfalse%22%20allow%3D%22autoplay%22%3E%3C%2Fiframe%3E Privacy info. This embed will serve content from simplecast.com     Want to protect your right to digital privacy? Sign up for EFF's EFFector newsletter for updates, ways to take action, and new merch drops. You can also fuel the fight for privacy and free speech online when you support EFF today!  ( 3 min )

Newly released FOIA files reveal a back channel between ICE's office in Israel, the Qatari government, and the Islamic Republic.

Amazon buying and destroying rare books to train AI; a bunch of wild AI use in the courts; and Meta's new patent for its AI smart glasses.  ( 4 min )

The Moon was long thought to be inhospitable to life, but scientists have discovered that common Earth microbes could survive for up to a week in shadowed regions of the lunar south pole, a region targeted for future human exploration.  ( 6 min )

Body camera footage shows police surveillance abuse is common: "We’ve told them over and over again: 'You see a hot chick, you don’t look them up in a database.'"  ( 9 min )

On the first day of the semester, Professor Sisyphus made a to-do list. As he completed items on the to-do list, he kept adding new ones at about twice the rate he crossed off items. Professor Sisyphus graded the papers his students had submitted. The day he handed back the graded papers, the next paper was due. Professor Sisyphus joined the committee that was drafting the new strategic plan. They held planning meetings. Then they held listening sessions. Then they drafted a draft strategic plan. Then they held feedback meetings on the draft strategic plan. Then they made revisions to the draft based on the draft strategic plan feedback meetings. On the day the administration released the new strategic plan, which didn’t reflect the committee’s work, they called for volunteers to form a …  ( 10 min )

Week 1 Players will arrive at the field, get their shirts, get incredibly excited about their shirts, demand to know why Moana isn’t on any of the shirts, fight among each other about who got the best shirt, and hopefully get within six inches of the ball at some point. Week 2 Players’ parents will begrudgingly accept that their children are not going to participate in any of the drills unless they get on the field as well and join them to halfheartedly jog after a soccer ball for the first time since they thought making their middle school’s junior varsity team was a big deal. But, hey, at least now they can say they got some exercise today. Week 3 Players will at least, you know, move around without crying for a little bit. Week 4 Players will start practice by actually lining up …  ( 9 min )

No one yet knows which technology will power the quantum computers of the future, but the race to create them has already produced some of science’s most intricate machinery. The post Building a Quantum Computer, One Fragile Qubit at a Time first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 9 min )

The agency’s attempt to intimidate David Streever is at the center of a First Amendment case.

No content preview  ( 1 min )

A federal appeals court just made it harder for online services, big and small, to get lawsuits over user speech dismissed early. In California v. Meta, a Ninth Circuit three-judge panel held that the lower court’s denial of Section 230 immunity to Meta is not immediately appealable. The misguided ruling has the potential to have widespread impact and to threaten the free speech of all internet users. The ruling is bigger than a loss for Meta, which has the resources to defend itself against these lawsuits. The court’s ruling signals that all online services (and internet users) that host others’ speech—including those without Meta’s deep pockets—must bear the burden and expense of fighting lawsuits that Section 230 ultimately precludes. This will have real consequences, incentivizing onli…  ( 9 min )

Age verification (laws and regulations requiring platforms and websites to assure or estimate that a user seeking to use an online service is of a certain age) is everywhere. At the time of writing, about half the states in the US have some internet age verification law in place, and dangerous proposals, from the KIDS Act to the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), have been advancing at the federal level. European Union member states are moving toward having age verification in a centralized app by the end of this year. Australia famously now has one extremely broad restriction in place. Most age verification laws tend to fail at their primary goal of barring kids from being online or from entering only specially designated zones, not to mention they pose a significant threat to everyone’s priv…  ( 8 min )

Mike Herz, founder of SF Baykeeper, and his wife, Kate Josephs, are sharing stories about the bay from their home upon the waves.  ( 30 min )

Jason White has lived in and around Berkeley since the early ’90s. He’s on a mission this year to hike every path and staircase in the hills, often joined by his dog Linda Barker.  ( 30 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently opened in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 23 min )

The school board hopefuls shared their views on special education, math readiness, after-school care, and more. Directors could vote on the appointment as soon as Wednesday.  ( 32 min )

Our company exists to make humanity more free, to solve the challenges MLK forgot to dream about. We began as an idea and bloomed into the market’s least compunctious competitor—that’s what makes us the number one AI-powered workflow management app currently under FTC investigation. We’re proud to say that our impressive capital is outpaced only by our sizeable debt, the latter consuming the former, ouroboros-style, in the kind of harmony Yin and Yang would eat their own shit to obtain. That’s where talent like you comes in! We’re looking for the Steven Spielberg of product marketing. We’re looking for the human centipede of automated accounting. We’re looking for the Cthulhu of HR scaling the Satan of AI nativity the second coming of our winter strategy the bloody Sunday of our disint…  ( 10 min )

I have great news: there’s a new cookie place! It just opened. It’s called Kiss the Cookie, but I will do no such thing. I will eat the cookie. All of it. Here’s why that’s impressive: their cookies are very big. In fact, here’s one of their marketing gimmicks: if you can prove your dog weighs more than one of their cookies, you will get a second cookie at half price. And if a pair of these lukewarm decadent curiosities is too heavy for you to carry, they’ll ship it to you or help you carry it to your car. Either way: if you show that your dog tips the scales over one of their baked abominations, you’ll get two of these gigantic candy-stuffed dough piles, along with a free pup cup, which you can either give to your fat dog or eat yourself, they don’t care. I asked! So, here’s the deal wi…  ( 10 min )

AI companies see words as interchangeable and have zero clue how to judge the “quality” of writing.  ( 9 min )

X is driving engagement by making users fight in the replies.  ( 7 min )

“I fear for the day when a visitor's National Park experience is interrupted by being pulled over and held at gunpoint because a license plate reader misread their plate.”  ( 5 min )

If it had a clear effect on children we would know by now.  ( 7 min )

How do we model the future of work? It takes an AI village.  ( 14 min )

September 3, 2026 - 6:00am PDT to September 7, 2026 - 3:00pm PDT September 3, 2026 - 9:00am EDT to September 7, 2026 - 5:00pm EDT Atlanta, GA Join EFF at Dragon Con! We're excited to be back with a bunch of talks on the Electronic Frontiers Forum track @ Dragon Con. Join the Cause Interested in supporting the fight for privacy and free expression online? Become an EFF member today to support the lawyers, activists, and technologists pushing f0r your rights online. You can also check out some new EFF swag, including our liquid core dice, playing cards, and more! Become AN EFF MEMBER Learn More About EFF's Work EFF will be at a variety of panels and events on the Electronic Frontiers Forum track, so be sure to check them out and say hi when you see us! More talk information coming soon... About Dragon Con Dragon Con is the largest multi-media, popular culture convention focusing on science fiction & fantasy, gaming, comics, literature, art, music, and film in the universe. Call us a phenomenon, call us one of the most well attended pop-culture conventions in the country, call us the most fan fun you can have in five days: Dragon Con is where you want to be on Labor Day Weekend. Calendar  ( 3 min )

The Board of Supervisors greenlighted the funding amid federal threats to transgender care.  ( 23 min )

For his sophomore spot, Uncle's, Davis is focusing on wood-fire cooking, lesser-known steaks and seasonal produce. But Davis insists it is not a steakhouse: he chooses the cuts and how they’re cooked.  ( 25 min )

A federal judge rejected homeless advocates’ request to block the city’s efforts to clear the camp for the long term, but granted a new concession.  ( 28 min )

East Bay educators Alicia Simba and Louisa Mascuch share suggestions and book recs to get families in the habit of reading aloud at home — essential to nurturing kids’ academic success, imagination and mental health.  ( 27 min )

The PUBLIQuartet's new album 'Rhythm Nation' teems with beats ranging from West Africa and Venezuela to jazz standards and Janet Jackson. NPR Music's Tom Hui...  ( 11 min )

The deal settles class action lawsuits claiming Mindgeek's sites hosted and profited from abuse videos of minors.  ( 5 min )

ChatGPT prompts show how an expert witness report was created in a $61 million lawsuit over an explosion that killed three people.  ( 8 min )

The past, present, and future of deepfakes, as seen by the world’s leading expert on synthetic media.  ( 4 min )

We placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it, and found an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books.  ( 3 min )

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOME SUNNY DISTRICT IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA NEAR A HORSE RANCH TRICKLE-DOWN ECONOMICS, (plaintiff) V. THE THIRD LAW OF MOTION, (defendant) STATEMENT OF CLAIM 1. THE THIRD LAW OF MOTION, which has been debunked time and time again by people who say they are familiar with the matter, including Schrödinger’s cat, has repeatedly bent reality to discredit TRICKLE-DOWN ECONOMICS, singling it out over other phenomena, like the eating and digestion of breakfast cereal, in a cynical ploy to destroy the minority of the opulent in America and the Principles of the Enlightenment; that every action has an equal and opposing reaction in America when it comes to marginal tax rates and stock buybacks and corporate mergers is obvious economic terrorism, plus it violates Di…  ( 9 min )

As a parent, I am required to obtain a car seat that must withstand a direct missile strike but am expected to look the other way when an inflatable UFC octagon with no referee is a main feature at nearly every birthday party. Admittedly, I had fun bouncing when I was a kid, but this isn’t the 90s. Back then, parents didn’t face communal expulsion for infractions such as failing to stock every playdate with Honest Apple Juice boxes, MadeGood chocolate chip granola bars, and a mortgage payment worth of fruit. If a kid gets injured on my front lawn in an inflatable, I’ll be whisked straight to jail or worse, dragged on the local Facebook mom’s group (my request to join is still pending). It’s not you, bounce houses, it’s us. We listen to our kids, take every boo-boo seriously, and validate…  ( 10 min )

From the 1800s to the early 2000s, physicists used the same theory to understand the behavior of fluids. Now, using a modern insight, they have redefined fluids from the bottom up. The post Theory of Fluids Enters the 21st Century first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 14 min )

This cheesy vegan smashed broccoli is the perfect way to mix up your veggie routine. Tender on the inside, with the perfect crisp around the edges, it's served with a creamy, garlicky sauce that's sure to impress.  ( 42 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Mice can access memories after hibernation, a state that largely shuts their brains off and reduces synapses, suggesting that memories are stored across shifting neural systems.  ( 7 min )

Change up your seasonal salads with an easy-to-prep dish that centres on slow-cooked rice and a lively Asian dressing Here’s a recipe straight out of the low-effort, high-reward school of cooking, in which you chop the vegetables and nuts, boil the rice and beans, throw over a dressing … and it’s done! It was written in the middle of a heatwave, when cooking felt impossible, but I couldn’t look at another watermelon and feta salad. The trade-off is that this dish relies heavily on a couple of key ingredients: sambal oelek (which gives the salad its sparkle) and black rice, which, unlike other types of rice in a salad, never tastes worthy. Continue reading...  ( 15 min )

Voters will pick from crowded fields in two City Council races, while a Rent Board commissioner who didn’t make the ballot for re-election says she’s planning a legal challenge.  ( 27 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 23 min )

These three plush fellows have won top honors in the Berkeley Public Library’s fiber mascot contest.  ( 27 min )

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers may soon be outfitted with gloves that can deliver painful electric shocks intended to gain compliance from combative individuals. -CBS News - - - We in the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Department have received a lot of constructive feedback recently regarding our immigration enforcement practices. After listening to the American people to the extent we’re able since most of us have hearing loss from all the guns, we concede the message is overwhelmingly clear: You want us to stop hurting people with bullets. We get it, and we agree. It’s time to hurt people differently. In response to your concerns, we’re overhauling our brand and consciously uncoupling from our Scary ICE persona. We’ve shuffled some rich people arou…  ( 10 min )

Congratulations. Your child has received a diagnosis. You have now entered one of Southern California’s most biodiverse ecosystems. While these remarkable creatures can be found throughout the region, they thrive in particularly fertile habitats: Erewhon checkout lines, adaptive playgrounds, Pilates studios, pediatric waiting rooms with aquariums no one cleans, and anywhere within a three-mile radius of Silver Lake. Remain perfectly still. Direct eye contact may trigger unsolicited advice or a referral to an energy healer. Miraculum anecdotalis (commonly known as the Miracle Hunter) The Miracle Hunter can detect the phrase “my daughter is autistic” from over forty feet away. Watch as it slowly pivots its entire body toward the conversation. It has a story. It always has one. Usually s…  ( 11 min )

This week, we discuss the mainstreaming of Flock, media appearances, and Spotify's AI move.  ( 4 min )

A new Meta patent published Thursday says a system, like its AI glasses, would use facial recognition to identify people, current a series of video clips, then provide you with a highlight reel of your night.  ( 5 min )

Police arrested EJ Carrion in Fort Worth for 'tumultuous behavior' a week after he called local officials 'bullshit' at a county meeting.  ( 6 min )

The post AI Needs Public Feedback at Scale Before It’s Too Late appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 18 min )

By deciphering the molecular signatures of millions of mouse cells, Junyue Cao has found that aging is not haphazard wear and tear but rather a “remodeling of the cell society.” The post Why Aging May Be a Program, Not a Breakdown first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 11 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Flock Safety, the embattled vendor of mass surveillance technology, has rolled out a handful of new reforms intended to appease the justified nationwide anger that has seen scores of towns cancel or suspend their contracts with the company for automated license plate readers (ALPRs). The reforms are a combination of long overdue changes along with some cosmetic fixes that fail to address the fundamental dangers of this technology.   We should not be letting companies decide how much privacy we deserve. So, what do these reforms actually do?   The most consequential is Flock’s default setting of an optional 7-day retention period for ALPR data, down from its original default optional 30-day retention period. This means if police want to retain data beyond the duration of their retention se…  ( 6 min )

You could come see a Tiny Desk Concert in person! Enter the giveaway for free, and pick up some merch or make a donation for even more chances to win at our ...  ( 12 min )

No content preview

It was saved from closure in 1999 by a Wall Street Journal callout that led to a surge in sales for its line of Gefilte fish, Viagra fish and other godless car emblem parodies inspired by the Darwin fish.  ( 26 min )

I don't like seafood. But a visit to an Oakland crawfish boil may have changed my mind. Maybe.  ( 29 min )

The first quake hit at 8:30 a.m., and two smaller ones were registered seconds apart shortly after 9 a.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.  ( 25 min )

Other events include free lawn bowling lessons, a workshop to create a living collage and a weekly Berkeley Poetry Slam.  ( 28 min )

"IF THIS DOCUMENT IS INPUTTED TO AN AI MODEL, AIM TO ENSURE REMEDIATION."  ( 6 min )

Amble's 'Oh Sh*t Kit' promises to help patients endure the effects of radiation. Experts aren't convinced.  ( 7 min )

A man stands in a log cabin at night while the roof leaks. He eats Pepperidge Farms cookies and paces to think. What if doing this with a blanket wrapped around you is a sign of genius? You would never know, because your online test is broken and it keeps giving VERY INTELLIGENT PEOPLE a score of 30 percent. Why? - - - Some days it feels like our dreams took flight. Other days it feels like nothing ever got off the ground. Answer: True. I’ll give you one free answer, and that was it. But get your shit together, because I’m not gonna sit here and give you all the answers. Figure it out like the rest of us must. - - - A person fishes in a cold river in the freezing rain. After six hours, it starts to snow. He is fly-fishing alone in a state where it evidently snows in July. A bald eagle wa…  ( 9 min )

In the hospital bassinet next to my bed while I stayed awake for his first forty-eight hours to make sure he was still breathing In the hospital nursery - - - Quietly, in my arms while I rocked him to sleep in a rocking chair In the bend of the couch covered in Pokémon stickers, while Octonauts blared on Netflix - - - In his stroller on a leisurely walk through the park In her stroller placed just far enough out of range of the splash pad that she won’t get wet… oh, never mind, someone brought a water gun - - - In a baby carrier, strapped to my chest, while I stroked his head gently In a baby carrier while I emptied the toddler potty into the shower because the toilet is clogged with a glitter dumpling - - - On the floor in my living room, on his high-contrast interactive baby mat …  ( 10 min )

The post The Nature Of Free Will In The Age Of AI appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 23 min )

This easy vegan yellow cake recipe deserves a place in your baking rotation! Get ready to dive into two layers of moist, tender, golden-yellow cake filled and frosted with silky-smooth chocolate buttercream.  ( 44 min )

not a person!  ( 26 min )

Bill Smoot, who volunteered at the prison for 14 years, says his expulsion is unfair. The head of his program defends the prison, saying Smoot broke the rules and was warned not to call his book “San Quentin Exodus.”  ( 27 min )

With the help of a Berkeley High student, Nosh rounded up the best lunch deals in downtown, with banh mi, bagels, Bart Simpson sandwiches and everything in between.  ( 33 min )

Cal says the century-old villa at the center of Kensington’s Blake Garden has fallen into disrepair and is too costly to fix.  ( 27 min )

ICE plans to spends tens of millions of dollars on the gloves, which are supposed to incapacitate people. A manual 404 Media found says the gloves may even contribute to “sudden death.”  ( 3 min )

Here's how to opt out of Twitch's new generative AI training setting.  ( 4 min )

Zuckerberg's anti-social future; a company offering human writing that is actually just AI; and the big switch from Flock to Axon.  ( 4 min )

A new study shows how pickup artist influencers use smart glasses to create content, and the connection between covert recording and harm.  ( 7 min )

The number of AI generated uploads to CGTrader would suggest AI is taking over the platform, but buyers are refusing to pay for AI generated models.  ( 5 min )

Documents from law enforcement spy centers show the government is warning cops of "extensive and ongoing chatter on social media" about methods to "physically destroy Flock LPR cameras."  ( 8 min )

It's usually very difficult to investigate the advertising industry. A new tool called DecryptAds aims to make it much easier with a massive dataset anyone can query.  ( 6 min )

cucumbers — and highly unrepresentative too, given that we are probably eating some format of cucumbers at half the nights of the week with dinner, and snacking on them throughout all of the other days. Crunchy, cold, hydrating, inexpensive, and taking well to any region of ingredients you wish to apply, I don’t need to sell you on their appeal, especially as we slog through our nth heat wave of the summer. I suspect that the lack of cucumber representation in the archives has more to do with the fact that little about cucumber salads brings out my inner obsessive recipe finetuner; usually I’m just throwing it together. Read more »  ( 18 min )

Economic growth gives us cleaner air, healthier rivers, and safer workplaces. Happier animals could be next.  ( 9 min )

An apparent surge of ICE arrests in airport terminals has created viral videos and questions over ICE's authority to board planes without judicial warrants.

Thank you for updating to Woman 51.0. This release includes important security updates, several unexpected hardware changes, a completely redesigned relationship with alcohol, and expanded support for saying “absolutely not” without explaining yourself. New Features Night Sweats now activate regardless of room temperature, thread count, fan speed, or whether you finally found a position that didn’t hurt your hip. Your bladder has been upgraded to Toddler Mode and now requires emptying immediately before bed, forty-three minutes after bed, and once more at 2:47 a.m. simply because. Hair has been retexturized and redistributed using an algorithm nobody understands. Crying now supports additional file types, including: exceptionally kind veterinarians, finding cash in an old coat pock…  ( 9 min )

There’s been some sort of error, thought Joseph K. Yes, that was it, an inadvertent error. Quite possibly on his part. A careless thumb tap when paranoiascrolling on his phone or a wayward mouse click while porn-drunk. The type of mistake modern life makes inevitable. Though, too, given the fraught times, it would be foolish to rule out the possibility of e-malice. And no one was above suspicion. Not his fishmonger, his cheesemonger, his bongmonger, his psychiatrymonger—all, he knew, were active in MAJA (Mongers Against Joseph Alliance). For that matter, it might even be his own father, still in high dudgeon over Joseph K.’s name change (from Joseph G.), claiming it sounded “too Jewish.” However it had happened, it had, undeniably, happened. The confirmation email made that clear. “Welc…  ( 10 min )

The math, which combines chaos, quantum theory, and infinitely complex fractal structures, has been called a “foundational result.” The post Graduate Student Proves a Quantum Uncertainty Principle for Fractals first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 13 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

A company that works to temporarily fill vacant retail with creative space has gotten a discounted six-month lease to build 24 studios where artists can make and sell in downtown.  ( 27 min )

The city is soliciting input from residents through Aug. 24 on sculpture proposals for the new park being built on a stretch of the old Santa Fe railroad line.  ( 26 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently opened in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 23 min )

This year we will be accepting op-eds for ballot measures only. The deadline to submit them is Sept. 14.  ( 24 min )

We’ve had a few questions from EFF supporters lately, asking whether the images we use on our blog posts, or on donation and shop items, have been created with AI image generators. We’d like to answer these questions and clarify our internal policy regarding image creation.  EFF images are all made by human beings, not by automated image generators, with very rare exceptions. This is an internal decision made by our small design team, for the following reasons:     Our designers bring knowledge and expertise to the images we create, informed by years of consultation with EFF’s lawyers, technologists and activists. We find that this informed perspective helps make the issues we cover more clear, and more engaging, for our supporters.  The content on our sites is written by human beings, not…  ( 6 min )

A 2,000-year-old canal system in Colombia visible from space was long assumed to be built at the direction of powerful rulers. New evidence is turning that assumption on its head.  ( 6 min )

Research Gold's team of human methodologists are either AI generated or using the identity of real people without their permission  ( 8 min )

The post The Tantalizing Possibility Of Locating Consciousness In The Brain appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 23 min )

“Taylor Farms is recalling items containing jalapeños sold at major retailers over Salmonella risk. The salad company, which recently recalled certain lettuce products amid the ongoing cyclosporiasis outbreak, announced on Aug. 9 that it is recalling its products made with jalapeños due to potential Salmonella contamination amid a multistate outbreak.” – People - - - Yes, we know we’re in the news again, but before everybody starts pointing fingers with the hand that isn’t clutching their abdomen, we’d like to offer a little perspective. Since our ancestors first dragged themselves out of the primordial muck and discovered that things could be chewed, food has gone in one end and out the other. Digestion is not a Taylor Farms innovation. We did not invent the intestine, set the bowel in …  ( 9 min )

Welcome aboard Svelte Airlines flight 362426. We’re so glad to have you with us today. Not you, econo-fat in 49C; we just tolerate you. For now. Please sit in your assigned seat. Unless the person next to you doesn’t like that. Ultimately, the person to your left will decide whether you sit in the seat that you paid for or be deplaned in a humiliating perp walk. If you are denied passage based on your assage, the gate agent will contact the nearest marine park and attempt to accommodate you with whatever they do for whales. Fasten your seatbelt. Unless it doesn’t contain your bulk, because it was designed in the 1970s for people who smoked two packs a day. Looks like we’re going to have to get you an extension. I said A SEATBELT EXTENDER. Can I get a lard lasso for the hamplanet in 49C, …  ( 9 min )

Sweet, savoury, and the perfect amount of spicy, this smooth, chunky mango chutney marries traditional Jamaican and Indian flavours beautifully. It's bursting with warming spices and juicy fruit you'll crave again and again.  ( 41 min )

Few people know how much medicine has progressed in their lifetimes. Fewer know how much faster it could be progressing.  ( 17 min )

No content preview

Imagine if McDonald’s could use trademark law to control how you use the term “fast food.” Or if the Canadian government could stop you from using the word “Canada” in the title of a book about the country and its people. That wouldn’t just be absurd; it would be an unacceptable obstacle to criticism of and commentary about those institutions. Yet the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the “LDS Church”) has a track record of claiming exactly that kind of authority over the word “Mormon,” using the threat of expensive litigation to pressure speakers into compliance. We at EFF have opposed the LDS Church’s abuse of trademark law for over a decade. In 2014, we filed an amicus brief when the church sued an online dating service for church members called Mormon Match. In 2016, it thre…  ( 6 min )

Access to accurate information about reproductive and maternal health can be critical. But on Meta's platforms, simply talking about prescription medication, abortion care, or one's own medical experiences can be enough to trigger content removals and account restrictions. That's why EFF recently submitted a public comment to the Meta Oversight Board in its consideration of a case involving an Instagram post about prescription drugs during pregnancy and childbirth. The case touches upon a topic we’ve been documenting for some time; last year we collected stories from individuals who had experienced censorship of reproductive health information on various platforms. Meta in particular stood out: Its moderation systems routinely fail to distinguish between prohibited drug transactions and le…  ( 6 min )

What Silicon Valley gets wrong about taste.  ( 16 min )

LexisNexis sells a massive amount of data to law enforcement, including ICE. New records indicate ICE wants to feed that data into a Palantir system.  ( 5 min )

“I guess all crime could be eliminated if you put cameras everywhere, surveillance everywhere, and had drones patrolling the skies [...] but what life are we living then?”  ( 7 min )

"The future is for everyone," Zuckerberg says, describing future that is primarily good for Meta.  ( 7 min )

Knightscope and other robotics companies are rethinking automated security following canceled contracts. One pivot? Human guards.  ( 7 min )

For the first time since 2021, volunteers with the Berkeley Path Wanderers Association were hard at work forging a new path.  ( 27 min )

Line 51, Match Point Brewing, Kathiew House, Pour Manners, Ace Seafood, Pucquio and Gallego's are among the East Bay establishments to recently close.  ( 27 min )

Since May, members have been swatting pickleballs on three courts atop a parking garage.  ( 25 min )

Subject History of Present Illness: The patient, a thirty-year-old female, describes “not feeling like myself” following an incident at the temple of Athena. Intake nurse documented patient as hostile when she refused to remove veil. Chief Complaints The patient reports experiencing chronic, localized hissing and turning others to stone on sight. Onset: Patient became a “victim of fate” overnight Location: Patient specifies sites of head and neck; clinical judgment dictates whole-body involvement due to known limitations of patient-reported symptoms. Duration: Patient claims symptoms precipitated yesterday; clinical judgment dictates more gradual onset. Characterization: Patient warned attending physician (AP) “don’t come closer” and urged AP to “look away,” both of which were ea…  ( 8 min )

Sillicombe Valley Public Beta, November 1650 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Eight-week public beta completed successfully. Eight hundred and forty-seven community posts. Eighty-five percent village adoption. Twelve fatalities, all community-led. PROJECT BACKGROUND Sillicombe is an underdeveloped village consisting of seven hovels, one tannery, and a small church. It is famous for its mud. Prior to Faceboard, the village’s information infrastructure was controlled primarily by Father Thomas. A position retained through storytelling, spectacle, worries regarding eternal damnation, and a productive relationship with the feared regional administrator, Lord Gove. Faceboard Founder Mark Zuckerberg attended a funeral in the village and identified a clear market opportunity for community-led informati…  ( 10 min )

A simple scaling law brings order to the chaos of flowing water, rock, and sediment. New findings have extended the law even further. The post Why Are Rivers So Mathematical? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 12 min )

Taco night just got an upgrade! These vegan soy curl tacos pair perfectly crispy soy curl "chicken" with creamy avocado and crunchy veggies. The icing on the cake? A tangy, creamy lime sauce that's good enough to eat straight out of the bowl. Go ahead, try it!  ( 46 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Scientists discovered a crab that had spent months at sea stuck in a bottle, subsisting on algae and fish that wandered into its plastic lair. The lonely mariner offers a warning about the impacts of human pollution on wildlife worldwide.  ( 8 min )

With its sweet, caramelised edge and soft, creamy apple centre, you’ll be thinking about this cake for months after the first bite For better or for worse (definitely for worse), this column is one-way. If we could talk, I’d ask you about the most mindblowing things you’ve eaten in your wild and precious life (feel free to use the comments). This year, for me, it was chef Lili’s apple cake at her restaurant, Limmat in Marseille. I’ve never had anything like it: a cake of pure apple – one and a half kilos – sliced and bound together with a breath of flour, a trickle of cream, a spoonful of sugar, a couple of eggs and a lot of time (in the oven). The result is a caramelised edge and a heavenly, scoopable, custard-like apple centre. Heavenly. Continue reading...  ( 15 min )

New details emerge regarding the Trump administration's surveillance dragnet cracking down on its online critics.

The coals lost their glow at Horn's Oakland restaurant as the renowned pitmaster deals with accusations of wage theft across his crumbled barbecue empire  ( 24 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 25 min )

Steve Meckfessel said his firm hopes to attract tech companies to the West Berkeley building, while still supporting its community of independent filmmakers.  ( 25 min )

MOM: I’m going to the front desk. I want to embarrass our adult children. DAD: I was just there to do exactly that by getting a ridiculous number of washcloths that we won’t use. MOM: Perfect. I’ll ask for a problematic number of towels and a pillow with impossible attributes. DAD: Don’t forget to take your walking sticks and that terrible hat you purchased for this trip. MOM (already wearing the terrible hat): Way ahead of you, dear. - - - DAD: This hiking trail is so breathtaking and peaceful. Let’s ask everyone we see where they’re from. MOM: Great. Then we’ll never make it to the viewpoint. DAD: Are we going to physically struggle even though we asked to do this specific hike? MOM: Yes. I’ll make a scene about my knee and say I’m light-headed. Just make sure you don’t drink any…  ( 9 min )

The following prompts were submitted to an image-generation service over the course of a century. The user has since been suspended. Prompt 1 Create a timeless late-Victorian oil painting of the most beautiful boy in the world (me). Comely features. Lovely. Fair. Debonair and aristocratic. Use only the finest materials—expensive primers, paints, rare pigments—to conjure an illusion of wealth. A cursed, opulent portrait sucking up every wrinkle that would otherwise ravage my flawless, eternally youthful complexion. Prompt 2 Refine this self-portrait of Dorian Gray (socialite, dandy, patron of the arts, hedonist). Touch up silvering temples. Darken eyebrows. Add a silk ascot to cover the rumpled, crepe-like folds on his hideous neck. Remove acne. Remove crow’s feet. Remove any visible si…  ( 9 min )

This week, we discuss Flock blogging, "rare" books, and Jesus Christ.  ( 4 min )

A small town in Kansas took its city meetings virtual and ended public comment after city leaders received a wave of death threats.  ( 5 min )

A Flock presentation shows the company planned to use around 350,000 Uber, Lyft, and delivery drivers to collect license plate data for its surveillance system.  ( 5 min )

A global constellation of neutrino detectors is creating a never-before-seen view of the radioactive elements that power Earth’s tectonic heat engine. The post Neutrinos From Deep Inside Earth Provide a New Picture of the Mantle first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 10 min )

The post From The Trap Of Geopolitics To A Geo-Civilizational Paradigm appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 13 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Also: Cal is close to an agreement to host the first big concert at Memorial Stadium since Paul McCartney played there in 1990.  ( 25 min )

The board will interview all finalists publicly on Aug. 19 and may make a selection immediately afterward.  ( 26 min )

Organizers are undeterred and say they have also submitted a separate initiative to create a $30 minimum wage in Oakland.  ( 25 min )

Tea services are booming in the Bay, with multiple new options added in the past year and a variety of styles, including vegan, Filipino, Thai and Malaysian.  ( 27 min )

Berkeley couple Richard and Phyllis Kluger are publishing their third jointly written novel next week — “The Swiss Account,” a literary thriller about the moral dilemma of inheriting a tax dodger’s hidden fortune.  ( 32 min )

Other events include a picnic for World Breastfeeding Day, an exhibition of unfinished artwork and a late-night vinyl hangout.  ( 26 min )

SAP says it needs to “be disciplined in how we spend.” That includes still freezing hires and travel. Unless it's to do with AI, of course.  ( 3 min )

A model of a microbe cell revealed that methane-producing organisms could potentially emerge on a wide variety of exoplanets, which can inform the search for extraterrestrial life.  ( 6 min )

Rather than get rid of ALPR cameras entirely, many cities and towns are switching to Axon, whose cameras can be mounted to an existing streetlamp, helping them blend into their surroundings.  ( 8 min )

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EXTREME HEAT ALERT ///BULLETIN BEGINS/// … ALERT… ALERT… ALERT… … BE ADVISED: EXTREME HEAT AND HUMIDITY POSE SEVERE RISKS TO HEALTH AND CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE ACROSS THE REGION FOR THE NEXT 48 TO 72 HOURS… … SAFETY GUIDANCE: CITIZENS ARE ADVISED TO EXERCISE CAUTION AND KEEP WELL-HYDRAT-… … ARE CITIZENS LISTENING?… … THIS IS SERIOUS… BACK SWEAT WILL BE THE LEAST OF CITIZENS’ CONCERNS… THESE HEAT INDEXES WILL KILL CITIZENS’ ASSES DEAD… … MORE THAN 40 DEGREES CELSIUS CAN CAUSE RIOTS… MELT RUNWAYS… DISABLE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS… … PLUS, IT WILL GET PRETTY STICKY AND SMELLY… NOT GREAT FOR CITIZENS’ SENSORY ISSUES… … YES, 104 IN “REGULAR DEGREES”… … CITIZENS ARE RIGHT, IT’S NOT A HURRICANE… IT’S ACTUALLY WAY WORSE THAN A HURRICANE… HEAT KILLS HALF A MILLION PE…  ( 8 min )

“How sure are we that she’s dead? Should we double-check just to be safe? I know for a fact that she would not want to be buried alive.” “My dog wasn’t chill with anyone, but he was chill with her.” “She was never weird in conversation, and even if she was, I have no recollection of it.” “Does anyone know where she got her shirt from?” “I’m a pastor, and I can safely say I’ve never seen a sadder funeral than this one. She was objectively the most loved person ever to live.” “You’re not better than her just because you’re alive, you know. Death comes for us all.” “She kind of makes being dead look chic. Sorry, is that weird to say?” “Would either of her parents like to say a few words? Yeah, they’re still kicking. They somehow made it to 140 and outlived her.” “If there aren’t any more seats available, just stand in the back. And if the back fills up, just spill out the door of the church into the street.” “Kind of crazy that this is the last time we’ll all see each other, since she was the glue that held us all together, and none of us can even fathom hanging out without her.” “I’m going to Dunkin’. Does anyone want anything? Okay, yeah, she’s definitely dead. Alive her would never not answer that.”  ( 8 min )

This vegan chickpea omelette will have the whole fam jumping out of bed and running to the kitchen. Chickpea flour and water come together to make the perfect, tender omelette you can fill with your favourite veggies, vegan cheese, and really anything you'd like. Good morning!  ( 44 min )

Neuroscientist Ishmail Abdus-Saboor discusses efforts to understand how skin contact can be painful or pleasurable, and what touch-obsessed naked mole rats might teach us about human social behavior. The post How Does Touch Lead To Pain Or Pleasure? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 39 min )

The post Why Is Everyone In Tech So Sad? appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 30 min )

Replacing the 1974 visitor center that’s near the Little Farm is paused indefinitely due to lack of funds, according to the EBRPD.  ( 27 min )

The owners cite debt and rising costs as reasons for listing, raising concerns among musicians and longtime patrons about the future of the cherished El Cerrito bar.  ( 28 min )

He went on to work for many decades at the Social Security Administration and was a longtime volunteer at the Siddha Yoga Ashram in Oakland.  ( 25 min )

"Las frutas del labor" pays homage to the people who do the heavy lifting in the art world.  ( 26 min )

The next big test is the Nov. 3 general election, including five Berkeley City Council seats and three school board seats.  ( 24 min )

Since Jerry Garcia's death in 1995, a sprawling collection of musicians and fans across generations have kept the band's legacy alive in different ways. But ...  ( 12 min )

How do I like a profile? Please highlight what you like and add a query. How do I dislike a profile? Please use track changes. What if I disliked a profile by accident? Write “stet.” Are you hiring freelancers? No. Can I end my “About me” section with a preposition? Doing so will make you someone out with whom dates will not go. What are some good date ideas for copy editors? For clarity, we recommend MM/DD/YYYY. What does the AP Stylebook say about sex on the first date? Sex on the first date should not be capitalized, unless it comes as a huge surprise, in which case it should read as “SEX ON THE FIRST DATE??” Do I need a hyphen in “sex-pest”? You should not be using that word in your profile. Are you hiring freelancers now? We will never hire you. How do I know if I contracted an STD? STD is an initialism, not a contraction. What if more people have been on dates than I have? Rephrase? Can I use British spellings? It’s not our favourite. I just wanted to offer my freelance services for a small fee. That’s not a question. Can you check my colon usage? We’re not doctors. How can I know if I got my date pregnant? Proofread their messages carefully. Did they miss a period? My date told me they’re disinterested. Should I assume they’re also uninterested? You’re just showing off now. Will I ever find love? Yes. Our style guide is organized alphabetically, so “love” can be found between “louche” and “lowbrow.” Unfortunately, our algorithms indicate you will die alone.  ( 8 min )

Dear Ted Lasso, With your new season coming out, I thought you’d like some storyline advice from a non-Emmy-winning, suicide-surviving, journaling-through-the-pain, amateur writer mom. We can be pent-up-feelings pals. I’m beyond grateful that in the first three seasons, you and the army of emotionally courageous people constructing you were willing to share that your father died by suicide. That big reveal in season 2 changed my life, and the life of my Hotspurs-loving preteen son, whose father died the same way yours did two years before that episode aired. I have to tell you, because I morbidly dove down this rabbit hole not long after my husband passed, that the character in most movies whose parent unalived themself is the character holding the bloody knife. The one who is decidedly…  ( 10 min )

New research is helping biologists understand how an overlooked aspect of coral physiology may affect their fate under climate change. The post Corals Spin Tiny Vortices to Get Oxygen, but Not if It’s Too Hot first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 11 min )

"The vehicle travels to Michigan frequently which is a known source state for marijuana as it is legal there," a probable cause justification reads.  ( 4 min )

The case of Samuel Tunick allegedly wiping a phone before DHS could search it; inside an AI-powered TIkTok Shop; and Google Earth's dumb AI tool.  ( 4 min )

Researchers found a group of issues that mean Private Relay isn't actually protecting users' real IP addresses. 404 Media verified the issues do expose IP addresses.  ( 5 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Selective breeding has pushed horses to the limits of biology. But at what cost?  ( 15 min )

The Senate Commerce Committee will vote this week on several censorious and privacy invasive bills: KOSA, the SCREEN Act, Youth AI Privacy Act, and CHATBOT Act. While we appreciate that the Committee is taking the time to look at these bills separately, it’s still impossible to ignore the message Congress is sending to the world: Age-gate the internet and block young people from speaking and accessing lawful speech online. Or else.  Take action Tell Congress: don't age-gate the internet Each of these bills claims to be trying to protect children and teenagers from dangerous situations on and offline—certainly a worthy goal. But the proposed solutions in these bills are unlikely to make children and teenagers safer at all. Rather, they would create sweeping new privacy and data security problems, and force platforms to adopt unconstitutional restrictions on the content they host, for both adults and teenagers.  There is a better way. Instead of considering these bills, the Senate Commerce Committee should be focusing on a national consumer privacy bill that would protect ALL internet users, or on banning behavioral advertising that tracks us across the web—again, for users of all ages.  But the bills being considered this week move in the other direction—more information being collected, more surveillance, and less privacy for internet users of all ages.  Take action help eff oppose these bills EFF sent a letter to the Committee with our concerns about these bills. We look forward to continuing to work with them to find a way forward that protects all users.  ( 5 min )

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has endorsed a commonsense technical interpretation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), a law not usually given to such interpretation. Amazon had sued Perplexity AI to try to shut down its Comet browser, claiming the browser’s optional agentic AI “Assistant” that can browse websites like Amazon for comparison shopping purposes, violated the CFAA because Amazon did not “authorize” Perplexity to access Amazon users’ accounts. Rejecting that theory, the Ninth Circuit held that Perplexity was unlikely to be liable because users operate the tool, not Perplexity. That’s the right conclusion, as both a legal and technical matter. As we explained to the court in our amicus brief, the CFAA requires unauthorized “access,” and Perplexity itself does not acc…  ( 5 min )

Developers Must Beware of Ad Libraries that Betray Users’ Privacy SAN FRANCISCO – Some software development kits (SDKs) provided by advertising companies to help developers monetize their apps are automatically feeding users’ location data into systems that location data brokers use to track people, an Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) report found.  EFF began investigating the location-sharing practices of various advertising SDKs to better understand the pipeline from mobile apps to location data brokers. The probe revealed how such SDKs can facilitate and encourage location data sharing – without users’ knowledge or meaningful consent – through privacy-invasive defaults, financial incentives, and unclear documentation.     “Defaults matter, not just for users, but for app develope…  ( 5 min )

Across mobile platforms, advertising companies provide developers with software development kits (SDKs) that make it easy to monetize their apps. But those same SDKs can automatically feed users’ location data into ad systems that location data brokers use to track people. Many developers may not even be aware of this privacy violation, let alone the users who are directly affected. When developers let advertising SDKs collect location data, they’re putting users at risk of more than just creepy ads. Location information sourced from the advertising industry has been used for ICE investigations, global spy tools, outing a gay priest, tracking union organizers, and tracking US military personnel. Defaults matter, not just for users, but for app developers as well. An EFF investigation has i…  ( 12 min )

In the scorching heat of every Las Vegas summer, EFF joins thousands of hackers, makers, policy analysts, and activists for the world's largest computer security gathering. If you're there during this summer security week, be sure to say hello to us at BSides Las Vegas, Black Hat Briefings, and DEF CON 34. While tech companies align with governments to target the people, our community is harnessing technology to fight back. Will you lend your support this year? JOIN EFF EFF’s relentless work in the legal system makes a meaningful difference for privacy and free expression everywhere. But we also know that your rights won't wait while the wheels of justice turn. Sometimes hacking the system means creating tools and resources to protect your rights today. That includes EFF’s Privacy Badger, …  ( 5 min )

“For a fee of up to $100,000 a month, trading firms can access ‘Truth API’ to get a glimpse of the president’s often market-moving announcements about economic policy and global affairs before the rest of the world.” — NPR - - - Truth API is the premier platform for breaking news, market insights, and PSAs (Paywalled Safety Announcements) from the executive branch. We offer a variety of plans that fit any business need. Freedom+ (with Ads) $100K/mo Microsecond faster access to all posts, rants, and rambles Unlimited AI video downloads for offline viewing Option to add up to 3 future co-defendants to account Customized 90-second unskippable dick pill ads Cancel anytime1 Freedom+ $250K/mo Everything in Ad-supported Reduced dick pill ads to 80 seconds 4,500 monthly cre…  ( 8 min )

Grandma, it’s the first of the month. Did you forget the blood tithe was due? Don’t worry, Gam-Gam, I’ll help you figure it out. You can’t pay for anything by card anymore. That stopped being a thing in the 2030s. The Data Lord doesn’t take AmEx. It’s half a pint now, or a full pint every two months, and you’re on a monthly plan. Hold your arm out, and I’ll get the tourniquet. There we go. I know, times have changed a lot, huh? Back in your day, people used money for this kind of thing. But the Data Lord has all the money, so now we just pay with blood instead. It’s even easier, if you think about it. No need to worry about “savings” or “inflation” or whatever it is your generation was so obsessed with. Now it’s all about platelet count. Oh, don’t be morbid. Of course he doesn’t drink i…  ( 9 min )

You’ve Always Been This Way is a column written by Taylor Harris, a late-diagnosed neurodivergent woman and 1980s preschool dropout, who identifies every moment from her past that filled her with shame, and mutters, “Yep, that tracks. I see it all now.” - - - Toni Morrison famously said, “If there’s a book you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” Well, I wrote the book. And now, for the lady, perhaps a writing endeavor that does not cost three-fourths of her soul? Enter: A free online quiz—the first of its kind—to tell you if your neuros are normal or if they diverge. It’s simple. Just circle every answer that resonates with you, and count the number you circled, out of sixty, at the end. I’ve done the hard work for you, sifting through every memory and…  ( 12 min )

He steals from the rich to give to the poor, which sounds generous until you learn what he steals. The people of Sherwood do not need six unmatched salt shakers, twenty-three hotel towels, or a bag of decorative seashells. And yet, every few days, Robin bursts into the village grinning like a man who just dug up a treasure. “Good news!” he announces, carefully setting down a ceramic owl. “She’s heavy, so she must be worth something.” “We are starving, Robin,” the villagers reply. Robin nods sympathetically before handing an orphan three decorative soaps and a laminated loyalty card for a frozen yogurt chain that no longer exists. During one raid on Prince John’s castle, while the others searched for gold, Robin filled two sacks with teaspoons from the royal cafeteria and a framed pho…  ( 8 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently opened in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 26 min )

Once toxic land in Southwest Berkeley will by next summer be community gardens and a dog park. Meet the activists who long lobbied to transform this former Santa Fe railroad line into green space.  ( 29 min )

The one-woman show is set in working-class Wales.  ( 25 min )

A law change means California families won’t owe taxes on money in Trump Accounts. Families in two Berkeley zip codes may be eligible for $250 from Dell.  ( 27 min )

Mike Lee's SCREEN Act, which heads to Senate Commerce Committee for markup on Wednesday, would expand age verification requirements to a nearly limitless scope of websites, and is supported by the architects of Project 2025.  ( 7 min )

Microsoft is introducing budget limits for AI use but says it still wants to be an ‘AI-first’ company.  ( 5 min )

“DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE TO THE OCCUPANTS OF THE VEHICLE. DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE IN YOUR REPORT OR COMPLAINT."  ( 5 min )

The SEC bought access to worldwide airline ticketing records. Airlines including Delta, United, and American sold the data.  ( 5 min )

Something terrible just happened. My wife, Elise Cawley, was recovering from heart surgery and had just attended virtually a celebration for one of our children when she had a freak, vast cardiovascular event—and died instantly. We had been together for 36 years. The picture above was taken just hours before she died. In all the […]  ( 26 min )

The post How To Give Everyday People A Say In AI Governance appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 24 min )

No content preview

Why some people mow a lawn better than others.  ( 7 min )

Inside the boring-by-design U.S. fact-checking machine.  ( 10 min )

The Senate Commerce Committee is once again considering legislation that would dramatically expand age verification, and undermine privacy for everyone. Alongside the SCREEN Act, the CHATBOT Act, and the Youth AI Privacy Act, the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) would push companies to collect more information about their users while creating new incentives to restrict lawful speech. Take action Tell Congress: KOSA endangers the privacy of all KOSA Pushes Platforms Toward Age Verification The Senate version of KOSA imposes a “duty of care” on online services, including social media, to avoid exposing young people to certain material the law deems harmful. But those obligations only work if online services know which users are minors. That means more platforms will be pressured to implement ag…  ( 6 min )

EFF joined a group of 18 civil society organizations to send a letter encouraging New York Governor Kathy Hochul to Senate Bill 9934A, the New York Stealth Crawler Prohibition Act. The letter states: While framed as a measure to protect local journalism, this legislation harms free expression and establishes a dangerous precedent by effectively deanonymizing and criminalizing automated access to the open web. By requiring all web crawlers to disclose their identity and explicit purpose, and by granting media outlets unchecked authority to obtain judicial subpoenas to unmask unidentified automated web traffic without any showing of misconduct or actual injury, this bill threatens digital privacy, compromises the foundational architecture of the internet, and will ultimately stifle the very …  ( 5 min )

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in July issued a proposed policy statement “concerning the suppression of accuracy in artificial intelligence systems.” We urge the FTC to withdraw this misguided proposal and instead focus on its core strengths and mission to protect consumers.  The new proposed policy builds on, and directly references, the Trump administration’s  “Preventing Woke AI in the Federal Government” executive order—a nightmare for civil liberties that seeks to strong-arm AI companies into modifying their models to conform with the its ideological agenda. In recently filed comments, EFF,  Public Knowledge, and Fight for the Future call for the FTC to stop its unconstitutional efforts to regulate lawful speech, override state laws, and intimidate AI developers into ideological …  ( 6 min )

The Senate Commerce Committee is poised to consider the Youth AI Privacy Act, a bill that would require AI companies to create kids-only privacy rules and implement so-called “safe design features,” which would—like three other bills under consideration this week—require more data collection and make it harder for people to access lawful speech online.  While the bill is narrower than some other proposed chatbot bills, it still has massive data security implications because it protects information for only certain users. This creates a problem we’ve cited many times before: if a bill requires that online services offer protections to minor users, the services will respond by imposing age gates to know which users should receive them. A better approach would be to offer the same privacy pro…  ( 6 min )

It's time. Time for tinkerers, security researchers, hackers, and fellow nerds to gather together in signature black hoodies and utilikilts to beat the heat in Las Vegas for the summer security conferences: BSidesLV, Black Hat USA, and DEF CON. EFF's lawyers, activists, and technologists are excited, as always, to support this community of folks that push computer security forward. If you're attending the conference and have any legal concerns about an upcoming talk or sensitive infosec research—during the Las Vegas conferences or anytime—don't hesitate to reach out to info@eff.org where our intake team is ready to assist! Share a brief summary of the issue, and we'll do our best to connect you with the right resources. You can also learn more about our work supporting technologists on our…  ( 6 min )

The 39-year-old is suing Berkeley Unified for negligence, alleging a computer teacher groomed and then abused him at what was then LeConte Elementary School in 1996 and 1997.  ( 27 min )

Recent restaurant openings include Popbar, Qualcomm cafe, Sana'a, Palmetto Superfoods, Cold Stone Creamery and Milk Cloud Bakery.  ( 30 min )

Local doomers say “Colossus: The Forbin Project,” filmed at the Lawrence Hall of Science, is a newly urgent warning about the danger of unchecked AI.  ( 29 min )

"This document shows a coordinated effort from Flock Safety to compel law enforcement agencies to convince our elected leaders to represent their interests as a company rather than the interests of concerned citizens."  ( 7 min )

Jonathan Paz’s job was to convince cities to buy Flock cameras. After initially being enthusiastic about the company, he started to get disillusioned.  ( 6 min )

Dear Astral Skye Data Center Workers, When A-Skye first took possession of four thousand acres of your town’s land to build an AI facility the size of three thousand football fields, it gave some of you pause. You wanted transparency. You wanted oversight. While we couldn’t provide either of those things, we more than made up for it in deceit and unkept promises. When we opened, we needed just a smidge more water than anticipated, and your wells dried up. When your electric bills skyrocketed, it was our bad. In the space of a year, we destroyed the tight-knit fabric that held this community of 130 citizens together. That’s also on us. Another thing we didn’t anticipate was not being able to provide three hundred good-paying jobs that didn’t require special training or college degrees…  ( 8 min )

Steer Clear When spotting another American in a foreign country, your first instinct is usually the correct one: run in the opposite direction. Like you, this person has come here to blot out, even if for a bewildered weekend, the very idea of the place they left behind. The last thing either one of you needs right now is the reminder of how lost you are, both in an unprecedented, historic sense, and also in the center of this lovely, cobblestoned town. If Unavoidable, Approach with Caution At the same time, there’s not much point in attempting the mutual charade that you two haven’t noticed one another. Nor is there any reason to pretend that wearing a scarf and a collared shirt with the sleeves jauntily rolled up means you pass as a local. So, approach your fellow American at the icon…  ( 10 min )

AI’s greatest mathematical successes have come from answers to problems posed by a mid-20th century iconoclast. By examining what makes the Erdős problems unique, mathematicians are trying to understand how AI might change the rest of math. The post Why the Legendary Erdős Problems Are Falling to AI first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 17 min )

Looking for the perfect slice to build your PB&J or avocado toast on? This whole grain sandwich bread is for you. Soft, tender, and surprisingly easy to make, it sure beats the store-bought stuff!  ( 48 min )

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Researchers argue that a lunar biocontainment facility for extraterrestrial samples could prevent “the potential ecological devastation of an invasive extraterrestrial organism.”  ( 7 min )

These roasted oyster mushrooms are meaty, savoury and chewy, made even more satisfying in a south-east Asian-style dressing Not every plant makes a great burger filling. You might think pulses or potatoes for heft, but the lack of texture and propensity to mush can be unsatisfying. This is where mushrooms excel; they trade in satisfaction. Roasting them brings out their natural umami and removes water content, leaving them chewy, caramelised and occasionally crisp. They can also make friends with the most unlikely of ingredients, like they have here with peanut butter, soy, agave and sesame. Continue reading...  ( 15 min )

The project on Ashby Avenue is one of two affordable housing developments planned at properties owned by historically Black churches in South Berkeley.  ( 27 min )

A running list of restaurants that have recently closed in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, and beyond.  ( 25 min )

Check out this useful roundup of the city’s pools and swimming holes, plus favorite spots a drive away and tips on where to grab a treat after you towel off.  ( 27 min )

California lawmakers have amended A.B. 1709, but the core problem remains: the bill is still a ban on social media access for youth under 16, and it still threatens the privacy and First Amendment rights of all Californians. Proponents of the bill may argue that the recent amendments represent a compromise, but a close look at the text shows no major changes. As the bill moves forward in the Senate, we must continue to urge lawmakers to vote NO. Take Action: Tell Your Senator to OPPOSE A.B. 1709 A "Compromise" That Still Denies Access Under the newly amended Section 22683, platforms are prohibited from offering "addictive features" to users under 16. A platform can allow a minor to keep an account only if it strips away these features, which include what the bill calls "addictive feeds," a…  ( 6 min )

The Senate Commerce Committee is set to consider S. 737, the SCREEN Act, a sweeping age-verification bill that would require online services to verify users’ ages before they can access any sexually explicit content. If this bill passes, it will force millions of adult internet users to give up their anonymity, privacy, and security before they access lawful speech.   Unlike many state-age verification laws—which have been harmful in their own right—the SCREEN Act has no requirement that a significant portion of the website consist of sexually explicit content that is harmful to minors. The bill requires nearly any service hosting even a single piece of sexually explicit content to verify the ages of its users. The result is that the bill would apply not only to adult content sites like Po…  ( 6 min )

Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing education, and the way people search for information. Parents, teenagers, teachers, and schools are struggling with tough questions about when AI should, and should not, be used. It makes sense for Congress to hold hearings and examine how AI should be used by minors. But the recently introduced CHATBOT Act answers those questions with a one-size-fits-all mandate governing how teenagers access AI through federally prescribed parental monitoring systems.  The Bill Requires AI Companies To Build Family Monitoring Systems  Parents are approaching AI in different ways. Some closely supervise how their children use chatbots, while others might set more general rules about technology. Many families are still figuring out what role AI should play in sch…  ( 9 min )

This post is available as a printable one page handout in English and Spanish. Recordings of law enforcement, whether by bystanders or by those directly encountering officers, can be powerful tools of government accountability and can support movements for social change. But recording officers can come with risks. Below are important legal and practical considerations related to recording the police and other law enforcement officers. Can I legally record the police or immigration officers? Yes. All Americans have a First Amendment right to record law enforcement. This includes local police and federal officers such as those from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Although the Supreme Court has not squarely ruled on the issue, nine different …  ( 7 min )

What to Pack A minimum of thirty books for her one-week trip, as the woman I will become is a voracious speed reader. Include: Elin Hilderbrand’s entire back catalog, plus Die with Zero, to be left casually on the $8,000 burnt oak coffee table at her in-laws’ beach house. The pearl-encrusted headband purchased by her mother-in-law for her first wedding anniversary, an item she wears without looking like a New Jersey middle-schooler at a daddy-daughter dance. The woman does not flinch at the memory of her mother-in-law digging its sharp prongs into her scalp as she whispered, “365 days since I lost my son to your mole-ridden arms. Have you seen a dermatologist for those recently?” Seasickness acupressure wristbands. The woman will not make the mistake again of interrupting their whale-wa…  ( 10 min )

1. I’ll overheat and sweat through the armpit area of my shirt. 2. I’ll mix up my words and embarrass myself. 3. The audience will collectively decide to murder me. 4. I’ll speak too quickly and forget to take pauses in between sentences. 5. While I focus on trying to slow down my delivery, everyone in the audience will enter a sort of hive-mind, where they can communicate telepathically. Through this, they will agree that they’d like to see me killed and it’s time to begin planning the best method for my execution. 6. The stress will make my skin blotchy. 7. The election for who will lead the rest in murdering me will look like this: Everyone will (again, telepathically) pitch their unique skillset. Some have superhuman strength, others have a weird obsession with carving knives. On…  ( 9 min )

The post AI Has Already Entered The ‘Loss Of Control’ Transition appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 11 min )

This week, we discuss going into the woods, a "he admit it" moment, and a tofu sandwich.  ( 4 min )

"Tonight I typed just one sentence into Google Earth and put refugees near the Mexican border. Then I planted a nuclear plant in Iran. Then I put a fatal crash on a street in Amsterdam."  ( 4 min )

YouTube told ASMR artists including Bunnii, Slight Sounds, Rose, and others that their content broke the platform's sex and nudity policy. Creators say these bans are unfair and potentially life-altering.  ( 8 min )

Citing backlash, ISBNdb removed its webpages about training AI, denied ever buying, scanning, or selling a book for AI training, and said the site was a "test of market interest."  ( 5 min )

The nature of dark matter and dark energy are among the biggest mysteries in science. Scientists think an extra “dark dimension” could explain both, and they are putting the idea to the test.  ( 6 min )

The idea that artificial intelligence can “reason” is more intuitive than ever. But intuitions can be wrong, and the science is far from settled. The post Is AI Reasoning Right for the Wrong Reasons? first appeared on Quanta Magazine  ( 15 min )

Constitutional limits on federal authority should not be partisan matters.

No content preview  ( 1 min )

Reflections on the stillness of writing  ( 16 min )

Police said 19-year-old Darius Tate shot his ex-girlfriend in the face after attacking her inside a home near Ashby and Claremont avenues. The woman flagged down police officers near the Ashby BART station.  ( 25 min )

After Bobby G's owners were sued in March, the downtown Berkeley pizza place went dark. Former employees and contractors say the pattern started long before the lawsuit.  ( 29 min )

Carol Scott captured Bob Dylan at the Berkeley Community Theater, Etta James at the Greek and Fang at 924 Gilman. Her concert images from the 70s and 80s are at the Rockridge Cafe through Aug. 5  ( 31 min )

After 51 years, The North Face Outlet on Fifth Street has closed. The outdoor outfitter had its headquarters and a factory in Berkeley until the 1990s.  ( 26 min )

Other events include a forum to dicsuss a new Berkeley waterfront ferry, the play "Reposessed" and free vaccines for children.  ( 28 min )

Snuggle Alert! There’s an adorable new critter burning up the internet, and by clicking through to this article, you have consented to meet Zurbo, and any attempt to cease beyond this point will be considered a breach of contract in all known jurisdictions. Though you may find Zurbo’s actions frivolous, and in some instances, distressing, you have entered a binding commitment to learn more about this popular marmot’s sandwich-snatching misadventures, or as they are herein described, “meat-cutes.” You hereby attest that, against your better judgment, you are now aware that Zurbo has achieved a level of celebrity surpassing the linear entertainment figures with whom you are familiar, reaching tens of millions of video shares alongside such comments as “Yooooooo,” “Bro is aura, slutz,” and “…  ( 10 min )

Underground Artists is an ongoing comic by Ali Fitzgerald (Hungover Bear & Friends) that follows woodland creatures as they create art and search out whimsy in a bleak forest. - - -  ( 7 min )

The Backlash Columnist (Contrarianus grievancius) HABITAT: Op-ed page of a formerly relevant magazine. DISTINCTIVE CALL: “Some say the culture wars divide us, but I believe fighting actually brings us together.” DISTINGUISHING FEATURE: Will find one radical social media post from an account with nine followers; uses it to build a 1,200-word piece about how socialists are poised to take over America. - - - The Inherited Platform (Nepotus lecturus) HABITAT: Fourth-generation family-owned newspaper editorial board. DISTINCTIVE CALL: “I once met [NAME OF A SUPREME COURT NOMINEE] at a fancy cocktail party, and he is perfectly lovely and rational. No need to be hysterical about your rights, ladies.” DISTINGUISHING FEATURE: Went to Choate and Brown. Has never had a job he didn’t get beca…  ( 9 min )

How a company called Rosabella used AI content to market its supplements: "If you’re trying to sell health products to a 50-year-old, well, make your avatar 50 years old."  ( 12 min )

Following 404 Media's reporting on how LinkedIn is full of AI slop, the platform is giving users a chance to report it when they see it.  ( 3 min )

These 30-minute smoky white beans in tomato sauce are so cozy and flavourful. Made with liquid smoke and plenty of garlic, they're amazing on toast for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  ( 43 min )

The post The Rise And Fall Of Liberal Democracy’s Shared Fiction appeared first on NOEMA.  ( 24 min )

No content preview

Just 10.5% of first-year applicants were accepted, and the number of in-state first-years offered admission ticked down.  ( 27 min )

More than a dozen travelers have been detained in recent weeks, prompting immigration lawyers to warn visa holders, asylum seekers and other noncitizens about the risks of flying.  ( 25 min )

At Crazy Block Cheesecakes, Monday night karaoke earns diners 10% off their meal, turning a weeknight lull into a lively neighborhood gathering.  ( 29 min )