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Yesterday β€” 17 May 2024Main stream

New Star Wars Plan: Pentagon Rushes to Counter Threats in Orbit

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Eric Lipton
17 May 2024 at 18:31
Citing rapid advances by China and Russia, the United States is building an extensive capacity to fight battles in space.

Β© Craig Bailey/Florida Today, via Associated Press

A rocket carrying the Pentagon’s secretive X-37B crewless space plane launching last year from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

Taiwan, on China’s Doorstep, Is Dealing With TikTok Its Own Way

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Meaghan Tobin and Amy Chang Chien
16 May 2024 at 20:55
The island democracy was early to ban TikTok on government phones, and the ruling party refuses to use it. But a U.S.-style ban is not under consideration.

Β© An Rong Xu for The New York Times

For years, Taiwan has been one of the world’s top targets of online disinformation, much of it originating in China.
Before yesterdayMain stream

U.S. Suspends Funding for Group at Center of Covid Origins Fight

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Benjamin Mueller
15 May 2024 at 16:17
The decision came after a scorching hearing in which lawmakers barraged EcoHealth Alliance’s president with claims of misrepresenting work with Chinese virologists.

Β© Ting Shen for The New York Times

Peter Daszak, the president of EcoHealth Alliance, faced a barrage of questions during a congressional hearing this month.

Senators Propose $32 Billion in Annual A.I. Spending but Defer Regulation

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Cecilia Kang and David McCabe
15 May 2024 at 05:00
Their plan is the culmination of a yearlong listening tour on the dangers of the new technology.

Β© Kenny Holston/The New York Times

From left, the senators behind a plan for federal legislation on artificial intelligence: Martin Heinrich, Todd Young, Chuck Schumer and Mike Rounds.

U.S. Awards $120 Million to Polar Semiconductor to Expand Chip Facility

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Madeleine Ngo
13 May 2024 at 05:01
The grant is the latest federal award in a series stemming from the CHIPS and Science Act meant to ramp up domestic production of vital semiconductors.

Β© Kristoffer Tripplaar/Sipa USA, via Associated Press

The federal award will go toward a project to expand the Polar Semiconductor facility in Bloomington, Minn.

Biden Announces $3.3 Billion Microsoft AI Center at Trump’s Failed Foxconn Site

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Erica L. Green
8 May 2024 at 16:27
The president’s visit to Wisconsin celebrated the investment by Microsoft in a center to be built on the site of a failed Foxconn project negotiated by his predecessor.

Β© Tom Brenner for The New York Times

President Biden at the Intel campus in Chandler, Ariz., in March. His β€œInvesting in America” agenda has focused on bringing billions of private-sector dollars into manufacturing and industries such as clean energy and artificial intelligence.

TikTok Sues US Government Over Potential Ban

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Sapna Maheshwari and David McCabe
7 May 2024 at 16:03
The social media company and its Chinese parent, ByteDance, sued to challenge the new law, saying it violated users’ First Amendment rights.

Β© Rozette Rago for The New York Times

TikTok’s office in Culver City, Calif. The company has said a new U.S. law requiring its sale is essentially a ban.

OpenAI Releases β€˜Deepfake’ Detector to Disinformation Researchers

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Cade Metz and Tiffany Hsu
7 May 2024 at 06:00
The prominent A.I. start-up is also joining an industrywide effort to spot content made with artificial intelligence.

Β© Jim Wilson/The New York Times

OpenAI’s offices in San Francisco. The company said that its new detector can identify 98.8 percent of images created by DALL-E 3, its own generator.

TikTok, Facing US Ban, Tells Advertisers It Won’t Back Down

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Sapna Maheshwari
3 May 2024 at 14:04
Hundreds of marketers and ad agency types flocked to TikTok’s annual sales presentation after a new law put its future in question.

Β© Olivier Anrigo/Getty Images

Blake Chandlee, TikTok’s president of global business solutions, last June. In Manhattan Thursday, he said: β€œWe believe the facts and the law are clearly on our side and that we will ultimately prevail.”

Campus Protests Give Russia, China and Iran Fuel to Exploit U.S. Divide

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Steven Lee Myers and Tiffany Hsu
2 May 2024 at 16:32
America’s adversaries have mounted online campaigns to amplify the social and political conflicts over Gaza flaring at universities, researchers say.

Β© Amir Hamja/The New York Times

A protester with a Palestinian flag on a Columbia University building on Monday. So far, there is little evidence that U.S. adversaries have provided material or organizational support to the protests.

Republicans Step Up Attacks on Scientist at Heart of Covid Lab Leak Theory

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Benjamin Mueller
1 May 2024 at 18:54
A heated hearing produced no new evidence that Peter Daszak or his nonprofit, EcoHealth Alliance, were implicated in the Covid outbreak.

Β© Ting Shen for The New York Times

Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, testifying during a hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

UnitedHealth’s CEO Slammed Over Cyberattack

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Reed Abelson and Noah Weiland
1 May 2024 at 15:54
Several lawmakers questioned whether the company had become so large β€” with tentacles in every aspect of the nation’s medical care β€” that the effects of the hack were outsize.

Β© Ting Shen for The New York Times

Andrew Witty, the chief executive of UnitedHealth Group, acknowledged before the Senate Finance Committee that hackers had found a weakness in its cybersecurity that forced the shutdown of a vast billing and payments system.

Energy Dept. Releases New Efficiency Rules for Water Heaters and Other Appliances

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Hiroko Tabuchi
30 April 2024 at 16:59
The Biden administration is tightening efficiency rules for water heaters, stoves and other appliances, and conservative politicians are dialing up their criticisms.

Β© Beth Hall for The New York Times

The new rules will save nearly $1 trillion over 30 years, the D.O.E. said. Conservatives counter that machines will cost more up front.

Biden Delays Ban on Menthol Cigarettes

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Christina Jewett and Noah Weiland
26 April 2024 at 19:55
The proposal had been years in the making, in an effort to curb death rates of Black smokers targeted by Big Tobacco. In an election year, the president’s worries about support among Black voters may have influenced the postponement.

Β© Mario Tama/Getty Images

Public health groups supporting the ban of menthol cigarettes cited years of data suggesting that the cigarettes, long marketed to African American smokers, make it more palatable to start smoking and more difficult to stop.

TikTok Broke the Tech Law Logjam. Can That Success Be Repeated?

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Cecilia Kang
25 April 2024 at 08:57
For years, federal lawmakers have tried to pass legislation to rein in the tech giants. The TikTok law was their first success.

Β© Haiyun Jiang for The New York Times

Experts on tech legislation say that the unique speed of the passage of the TikTok legislation is highly unlikely to be repeated.

Biden’s New Power Plant Rules: 5 Things to Know

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Coral Davenport and Lisa Friedman
25 April 2024 at 14:00
The administration issued a major climate regulation aimed at virtually eliminating carbon emissions from coal, the dirtiest of the fossil fuels and a driver of global warming.

Β© Chris Carlson/Associated Press

Republican-led states and the coal industry are all but certain to challenge the rules in court.

Biden Signs TikTok Ban Bill Into Law. Here’s What Happens Next.

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Sapna Maheshwari and David McCabe
24 April 2024 at 16:00
President Biden has signed the bill to force a sale of the video app or ban it. Now the law faces court challenges, a shortage of qualified buyers and Beijing’s hostility.

Β© Haiyun Jiang for The New York Times

TikTok supporters on Capitol Hill last month. The proposed law would allow TikTok to continue to operate in the United States if its Chinese owner sold it within about nine months.

Supreme Court Arguments on Idaho’s Abortion Ban: 5 Takeaways

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Pam Belluck
24 April 2024 at 15:19
The court’s ruling could extend to at least half a dozen other states that have similarly restrictive bans, and the implications of the case could stretch beyond abortion.

Β© Haiyun Jiang for The New York Times

Idaho’s attorney general, RaΓΊl Labrador, speaking outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

Elon Musk Clashes With Australian Court Over Violent Videos on X

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Kate Conger
24 April 2024 at 14:35
Mr. Musk’s defiance over removing content is testing the boundaries of international legal systems.

Β© Mark Baker/Associated Press

Security officers standing guard outside a church in Sydney this month after a bishop was stabbed during a YouTube livestream of the service.

On TikTok, Potential Ban of App Leads to Resignation and Frustration

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Yiwen Lu
24 April 2024 at 14:28
While Congress says the social app is a security threat, critics of the law targeting it say it shows how out of step lawmakers are with young people.

Β© Kent Nishimura for The New York Times

Supporters of TikTok gathered near the Capitol last month as the House of Representatives voted to pass a bill to force TikTok to cut ties with its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or risk being banned in U.S. app stores.

Dairy Cows Transported Between States Must Now Be Tested for Bird Flu

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Noah Weiland， Benjamin Mueller and Emily Anthes
24 April 2024 at 16:36
Since a new form of bird flu arrived in 2022, federal officials have sought to reassure Americans that the threat to the public remained low.

Β© Patrick T. Fallon/Agence France-Presse β€” Getty Images

The C.D.C. maintained Wednesday that the risk for the public was still low, with no changes in the genetic makeup of the virus that would allow it to spread more easily to or between humans.

Biden Signed a Bill That Could Ban TikTok. Here’s What Happens Next.

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Sapna Maheshwari and David McCabe
24 April 2024 at 11:20
President Biden has signed the bill to force a sale of the video app or ban it. Now the law faces court challenges, a shortage of qualified buyers and Beijing’s hostility.

Β© Haiyun Jiang for The New York Times

TikTok supporters on Capitol Hill last month. The proposed law would allow TikTok to continue to operate in the United States if its Chinese owner sold it within about nine months.

Abortion Data Wars: States and Cities Debate How Much Information to Collect

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Pam Belluck and Emma G. Fitzsimmons
23 April 2024 at 05:01
Some states with Republican-controlled legislatures want more data, while some controlled by Democrats want less, fearing it could be used to target patients or providers.

Β© Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters

Abortion rights supporters say they are especially concerned about the potential for anti-abortion states to use data to track patients who travel out-of-state for abortions or receive pills shipped from other states.

Nina Jankowicz Forms New Group to Defend Disinformation Research

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Steven Lee Myers and Jim Rutenberg
22 April 2024 at 17:32
The group intends to fight what its leader, Nina Jankowicz, and others have described as a coordinated campaign by conservatives and their allies to undermine researchers who study disinformation.

Β© Jason Andrew for The New York Times

Nina Jankowicz of the American Sunlight Project, a new advocacy group in Washington, D.C., that aims to push back against disinformation online.

Apple Says It Was Ordered to Pull WhatsApp From China App Store

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Tripp Mickle and Mike Isaac
19 April 2024 at 14:23
Apple said it removed WhatsApp and Threads from its China app offerings Friday on Beijing’s orders, amid technological tensions between the U.S. and China.

Β© Hector Retamal/Agence France-Presse β€” Getty Images

A recently-opened Apple Store in Shanghai’s Jing’an district in March. Apple said it removed WhatsApp and Threads, which are owned by Meta, from its app store in China.

Heat-Related ER Visits Rose in 2023, CDC Study Finds

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Noah Weiland
18 April 2024 at 15:41
As record heat enveloped the nation, the rate of emergency room visits increased compared with the previous five years, a sign of the major health risks of high temperatures.

Β© Matt York/Associated Press

The sun setting in July over Phoenix. Last year was the warmest on Earth in a century and a half, with the hottest summer on record.

Land Under B.L.M. Management to Get New Protections

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Catrin Einhorn
18 April 2024 at 14:32
The measure elevates conservation in a number of ways, including by creating new leases for the restoration of degraded areas.

Β© Jemal Countess/Getty Images

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland in 2021. She said the new rule announced on Thursday β€œhelps restore balance to our public lands.”

Micron Will Receive $6.1 Billion to Build Semiconductor Plants

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Madeleine Ngo and Don Clark
18 April 2024 at 13:59
The grant to the memory chipmaker is the latest federal award aimed at boosting U.S. chip manufacturing.

Β© Steve Helber/Associated Press

Micron officials have said the investment is expected to create roughly 50,000 jobs, including about 9,000 direct positions at its plants.

TikTok’s Origin Story: Court Files Show Role of GOP Megadonor Jeff Yass

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Mara Hvistendahl and Lauren Hirsch
18 April 2024 at 06:12
Court records, mistakenly made public, tell a story about the birth of ByteDance, its bumpy road to success and the role of the Republican megadonor Jeff Yass’s firm.

Β© Greg Baker/Agence France-Presse β€” Getty Images

The former headquarters of ByteDance, the parent company of the video sharing app TikTok, in Beijing.

Interior Department Rejects Ambler Road Project in Alaska

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Lisa Friedman
17 April 2024 at 13:05
A mining company wants to build a 211-mile industrial road through Alaskan wilderness to reach a large copper deposit. The Interior Department says it would harm wildlife and communities.

Β© Ken Hill/National Park Service, Alaska

The headwaters of the Ambler River in the Noatak National Preserve of Alaska, near where the proposed access road would end.

Royalties for Drilling on Public Lands to Increase

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Coral Davenport
12 April 2024 at 15:27
For the first time since 1920, the government has raised the rates that companies pay. The fossil fuel industry says it will hurt the economy.

Β© Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

Pumpjacks operate at the Kern River Oil Field in Bakersfield, Calif.

Youth Gender Medications Limited in England, Part of Big Shift in Europe

βœ‡NYT: Science
By: Azeen Ghorayshi
10 April 2024 at 09:46
Five European countries have recently restricted hormone treatments for adolescents with gender distress. They have not banned the care, unlike many U.S. states.

Β© Tori Ferenc for The New York Times

The Tavistock Gender Identity Development Service in London, which until recently was the National Health Service’s sole youth gender clinic. In 2018, 10 clinicians there complained that they felt pressure to quickly approve children for puberty blockers.

What Happened When a German Car Factory Went All Electric

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Jack Ewing
9 April 2024 at 11:45
Volkswagen’s plant in Zwickau stopped producing Golfs and switched to electric vehicles, illuminating the risks and opportunities for factory towns and cities.

Β© Ingmar Nolting for The New York Times

The Volkswagen factory in Zwickau, Germany, which makes six electric car models.

TSMC Will Receive $6.6 Billion to Bolster U.S. Chip Manufacturing

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Madeleine Ngo and Don Clark
8 April 2024 at 14:47
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company plans to build an additional factory and upgrade another planned facility in Phoenix with the federal grants.

Β© T.J. Kirkpatrick for The New York Times

A new Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company plant under construction in Phoenix, Ariz., in December 2022.

An A.I. Researcher Takes On Election Deepfakes

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Cade Metz and Tiffany Hsu
2 April 2024 at 13:07
Oren Etzioni was once an optimist about artificial intelligence. Now, his nonprofit, TrueMedia.org, is offering tools for fighting A.I.-manipulated content.

Β© Kyle Johnson for The New York Times

Oren Etzioni at The AI Institute.

Is Garry Tan San Francisco’s β€˜Twitter Menace’ or True Believer?

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Heather Knight
29 March 2024 at 13:21
The deep pockets of the tech investor Garry Tan are valued by his allies, but his pugnacious online habits are creating plenty of enemies in the city he says he wants to save.

Β© Mike Kai Chen for The New York Times

The tech investor Garry Tan has courted San Francisco’s moderate Democrats and angered its progressives.

A.I. Leaders Press Advantage With Congress as China Tensions Rise

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Cecilia Kang
27 March 2024 at 12:59
Silicon Valley chiefs are swarming the Capitol to try to sway lawmakers on the dangers of falling behind in the artificial intelligence race.

Β© Jason Andrew for The New York Times

Jacob Helberg, a senior adviser to Palantir, is organizing a conference for tech leaders and Washington lawmakers on May 1.

TikTok Bill Would Complicate ByteDance Investments if Passed

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Lauren Hirsch
26 March 2024 at 14:21
Major U.S. investment firms such as General Atlantic, Susquehanna and Sequoia Capital own stakes in ByteDance, the parent of TikTok. Their investments are increasingly under fire.

Β© Joseph Nair/NurPhoto, via Getty Images

A confluence of politics and economics means ByteDance is also unlikely to go public soon, which would enable its shares to trade.

The Government’s Struggles With Outsourcing Software Development

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: Ian Austen
23 March 2024 at 06:00
The bloated cost of the ArriveCAN app and new investigations into possible fraud have highlighted some problems with turning to outside companies.

Β© Blair Gable/Reuters

Jean-Yves Duclos, the procurement minister, blamed paper contracts for a potential multimillion-dollar fraud.

The Trustbuster Who Has Apple and Google in His Sights

βœ‡NYT: Technology
By: David McCabe
22 March 2024 at 05:02
Jonathan Kanter, the head of the Justice Department’s antitrust division, made his boldest move on Thursday by accusing Apple of antitrust violations.

Β© Alyssa Schukar for The New York Times

Jonathan Kanter, far left, during an awards ceremony at the Justice Department in December, two years after he started leading its antitrust division.
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