Russia: U.S. Controlling an “International Terrorist Alliance”
September 29th, 2016Via: CBS:
Senior Russian officials blasted the United States on Thursday for what they said were Washington’s “invitations to use terrorism as a weapon against Russia.”
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and others were reacting to comments made the previous day by Pentagon spokesman John Kirby, who suggested terrorists could use the chaotic battleground in Syria to plot and launch attacks “against Russian interests, perhaps even Russian cities.”
Kirby was explaining why the U.S. believes Moscow has an interest in halting the bloodshed in Syria’s more-than-five-year civil war, which has only escalated during the past week.
But Russian media quoted Ryabkov as saying his nation could not “interpret this as anything else apart from the current U.S. administration’s de facto support for terrorism,” according to the Reuters news agency.
“These thinly disguised invitations to use terrorism as a weapon against Russia show the political depths the current U.S. administration has stooped to in its approach to the Middle East and specifically to Syria,” Ryabkov said.
Defense Ministry spokeswoman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said later Thursday that Kirby’s statement amounted to “the most frank confession by the U.S. side so far that the whole ‘opposition’ ostensibly fighting a ‘civil war’ in Syria is a U.S.-controlled international terrorist alliance.”
“What makes Kirby’s statement particularly shocking is that the scale of direct U.S. influence on terrorists’ activity is global and reaches as far as Russia.”
China’s Passion for Foreign Property
September 29th, 2016Via: Guardian:
“I think it is just beginning,” says Li, of the amount of money pouring into property around the world from mainland China. “You do the figures: China has a population of 1.4 billion. If you target only 1% of China’s population, that’s 14 million people – so it’s already almost two Londons.”
AI Legion of Doom: Facebook, Amazon, Google, IBM and Microsoft Form AI Partnership
September 28th, 2016Via: Tech Crunch:
The world’s largest technology companies hold the keys to some of the largest databases on our planet. Much like goods and coins before it, data is becoming an important currency for the modern world. The data’s value is rooted in its applications to artificial intelligence. Whichever company owns the data, effectively owns AI. Right now that means companies like Facebook, Amazon, Alphabet, IBM and Microsoft have a ton of power.
In an act of self-governance, these five companies came together today to announce the launch the new Partnership on AI. The group is tasked with conducting research and promoting best practices. Practically, this means that the group of tech companies will come together frequently to discuss advancements in artificial intelligence. The group also opens up a formal structure for communication across company lines. It’s important to remember that on a day-to-day basis, these teams are in constant competition with each other to develop the best products and services powered by machine intelligence.
Luxury Bunkers for L.A.’s Superrich
September 28th, 2016Via: Hollywood Reporter:
Everyone I’ve talked to thinks we are doomed, no matter who is elected.
Power Outage Grips Entire State of South Australia
September 28th, 2016Via: Stuff:
The entire state of South Australia is currently without power, with the region in the grip of what could be one of the most extreme weather systems to hit in 50 years.
A mass blackout began on Wednesday afternoon, with the a “weather event” behind the unprecedented outage.
Premier Jay Weatherill said the storm took down three transmission lines and nine towers in the Port Augusta region, forcing the electricity connection between South Australia and Victoria – known as an “interconnector” – to be shut down.
Wind turbines, which make up an estimated 40 per cent of the state’s power generation, were unable to operate as winds were too high.
Weatherill told a media conference it was the “usual protocol” to isolate South Australia from the National Electricity Market in a situation where there is a “large frequency drop”.
Elon Musk: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species
September 28th, 2016Via: Space:
At a conference in Mexico today (Sept. 27), the SpaceX founder and CEO unveiled the company’s Interplanetary Transport System (ITS), which will combine the most powerful rocket ever built with a spaceship designed to carry at least 100 people to the Red Planet per flight.
If all goes according to plan, the reusable ITS will help humanity establish a permanent, self-sustaining colony on the Red Planet within the next 50 to 100 years, Musk said at the International Astronautical Congress in Guadalajara.
World’s First Baby Born with Controversial New ‘Three-Parent’ Technique
September 28th, 2016Via: Independent:
The world’s first child created using a controversial “three-parent” baby technique has been born in Mexico, it has been announced.
Limited details about the birth were revealed ahead of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine’s scientific congress in Salt Lake City next month, where it will be discussed more fully.
According to critics, the procedure is tantamount to genetic modification of humans or even “playing God”. But supporters say it allows women with a particular type of genetic disease to have healthy children who are related to them.
A report in the New Scientist magazine said the baby was now five months told. His parents are Jordanians and the work was carried out by a team of experts from the US.
The child’s mother has Leigh syndrome, a fatal disorder that affects the developing nervous system and would have been passed on in her mitochondrial DNA.
Although she is healthy, two of her children have died as a result of inheriting the disease: a girl who lived until she was six and an eight-month-old baby.
The Internet Is No Place for Public Elections
September 26th, 2016Via: MIT Technology Review:
Despite what your local election officials may tell you, you can’t trust the Internet with your vote.
This election year we’ve seen foreign hackers infiltrate the Democratic National Committee’s e-mail system as well as voter databases in Arizona and Illinois. These attacks have reinforced what political scientists and technical experts alike have been saying for more than a decade: public elections should stay offline. It’s not yet feasible to build a secure and truly democratic Internet-connected voting system.
Off Topic: Speed Queen Washing Machines
September 25th, 2016Yesterday, our 19 year old Fisher & Paykel washing machine blew up. Before anyone suggests fixing it, know this: SmartDrive motor melted (several coils fused into a single black blob), the boards up on the console fried and the drum was punctured—not necessarily in that order. It looks like someone fired a .22 from the inside out near the top right on the front. Don’t worry, nobody died!
For my purposes, it’s GAME OVER on that one.
Since Fisher & Paykel stopped making appliances in New Zealand, we don’t see any reason to stick with the brand. By all accounts, Fisher & Paykel isn’t as good now. The Consumer writeup on the Fisher & Paykel models we’re interested in are not at all compelling.
Since my early 20s, I’ve wanted to own a Speed Queen. I did my laundry in those machines in various laundromats and apartment complexes until I got married and moved to New Zealand.
In NZ, though, people seem resigned to buying junk washing machines. We can’t afford to buy junk. We need the thing to last. The problem is, Speed Queen machines are extremely (absurdly) expensive in NZ.
Here’s my question to Speed Queen owners out there: Has your top load Speed Queen washing machine lived up to the legendary reputation? Has anyone used one past ten years? Fifteen years? Longer? How much service has it needed?
We’re looking at NZ$2300 for this thing, and that’s actually a great deal because there are no dealers in our area. They are even more expensive at stores. That’s hair on fire insane, but we’re prepared to do it if that’s the most reliable option in NZ.
You might be wondering: Why?
Why consider a machine like this?
We live in a rainy, rural area with three very active small children. Crap from the Warehouse isn’t up to this.
Self-Driving Trucks Threaten One of America’s Top Blue-Collar Jobs
September 25th, 2016Via: Los Angeles Times:
Carmaking giants and ride-sharing upstarts racing to put autonomous vehicles on the road are dead set on replacing drivers, and that includes truckers. Trucks without human hands at the wheel could be on American roads within a decade, say analysts and industry executives.
At risk is one of the most common jobs in many states, and one of the last remaining careers that offer middle-class pay to those without a college degree. There are 1.7 million truckers in America, and another 1.7 million drivers of taxis, buses and delivery vehicles. That compares with 4.1 million construction workers.
While factory jobs have gushed out of the country over the last decade, trucking has grown and pay has risen. Truckers make $42,500 per year on average, putting them firmly in the middle class.
