So-called de-extinction draws the same moral hazard as carbon capture's license to pollute. It makes driving species to extinction less awful bc, well, we can always keep a copy & de-extinct later. But can we? Truth is, the Dire Wolf was not "brought back". The animals have millions of base pairs of difference from Dire wolves. Julie Meachen (Vertebrate Paleontologist from Des Moines Uni) puts it well: “We have a mostly gray wolf that looks like a dire wolf" https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/have-dire-wolves-which-went-extinct-more-than-10000-years-ago-really-been-brought-back-to-life-180986385/
An ok overview of security considerations & mitigating controls to protect privacy and reduce risk of harm when crossing the US border. The author misses some utterly crucial details however. 1) When your encrypted device is on, it is in an *unlocked* state. Only by powering off such a device is it in an encrypted state. Further, MicroSD cards are often unencrypted. Check before you fly, and power off before the border. 2) (next post)
the Guardian
How to protect your phone and data privacy at the US border
With reports of people being turned away at airports over messages found on devices, here’s what to do to minimize risks
 #privacy #infosec
Soon, all human rights and environmental protest in the US may be deemed illegal. Universities may be purged.
Gizmodo
State Department Will Use AI to Search for ‘Pro-Hamas’ Students to Deport
The new move is part of a broader attack by the Trump administration on free speech and free expression.
 The machine has been started. It will now follow its own logic.
Guardian article in advance of forthcoming series on UK spy cops. It details how 1/5th of those sent to infiltrate political movements ended up in intimate relationships with women therein, some even fathering children while using fake identities. In my work for defenders of human rights & the environment I hear many awful stories as regards infiltration - the worst of social engineering. Arguably the UK has among the lowest, most disgraceful history within this space
the Guardian
Revealed: at least 25 UK ‘spy cops’ had sex with deceived members of public
Total shows scale of dishonesty in undercover operations over more than three decades
"The real problem of humanity is the following: we have paleolithic emotions; medieval institutions; and god-like technology. And it is terrifically dangerous, and it is now approaching a point of crisis overall." - E. O. Wilson
"If the Earth's Energy Imbalance trend extrapolates into the future… then we can expect as much warming in the next 20 years as we have had in the last 40 years, which is quite a marked acceleration" - Chris Merchant, University of Reading, quoted in the article.
New Scientist
Surge in ocean heat is a sign climate change is accelerating
The rate of warming in the oceans has more than quadrupled since 1985, suggesting global warming in general has undergone a marked acceleration
 #climate #planet
An excellent read. "At the height of the dotcom mania in the 1990s, many critics warned of a creeping reactionary fervor. “Forget digital utopia,” wrote [...] journalist Michael Malone, “we could be headed for techno-fascism.” Elsewhere, the writer Paulina Borsook called the valley’s worship of male power “a little reminiscent of the early celebrants of Eurofascism from the 1930s Their voices were largely drowned out by the techno-enthusiasts of the time."
the Guardian
‘Headed for technofascism’: the rightwing roots of Silicon Valley
The industry’s liberal reputation is misleading. Its reactionary tendencies – celebrating wealth, power and traditional masculinity – have be...
“The definition of fascism is the marriage of corporation and state.” ― Benito Mussolini
Rafah, Gaza, Jan 20, 2025. Photograph: Ashraf Amra/Anadolu/Getty Images image
We walked up rivers, climbed and nearly got lost twice, but finally we found this beautiful giant Rata. Estimated to be over 1000 years old, it was a sapling long before Genghis Khan was in nappies. Even more wondrous, it was in bloom.