Wednesday, July 13, 2022

Fish Biodiversity, Oregon Water Quality, Gmail, More: Wednesday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 13, 2022

Fish Biodiversity, Oregon Water Quality, Gmail, More: Wednesday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 13, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

Tohoku University: A New Database Visualizing Fish Biodiversity Opens to the Public. “Tohoku University professor Michio Kondoh has spearheaded the launch of ANEMONE DB – a new public database of fish biodiversity based on environmental DNA (eDNA)…. Unlike traditional biological surveys, where fish must be collected to be observed, eDNA surveys are straightforward, inexpensive and can detect rare or nearly extinct species. A simple sample of water taken from rivers, seas or oceans picks up DNA left behind by organisms and reveals crucial information, like population sizes and distribution.”

State of Oregon: DEQ launches tool to improve public access to water quality data . “The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has released a new online tool that will give the public greater access to water quality monitoring data. The Pesticide Stewardship Partnerships Data Viewer is an interactive tool that displays monitoring data collected by Oregon’s Pesticide Stewardship Partnerships, a voluntary program co-managed by DEQ and the Oregon Department of Agriculture.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Ars Technica: Gmail users “hard pass” on plan to let political emails bypass spam filters . “Earlier this month, Google sent a request to the Federal Election Commission seeking an advisory opinion on the potential launch of a pilot program that would allow political committees to bypass spam filters and instead deliver political emails to the primary inboxes of Gmail users. During a public commenting period that’s still ongoing, most people commenting have expressed staunch opposition for various reasons that they’re hoping the FEC will consider.”

KnowTechie: TikTok now shows you which topics it thinks you care about. “TikTok has added a section to its settings and privacy features that shows users exactly what the app thinks they are interested in for the purpose of targeted advertising. Additionally, users now have the ability to opt-out of targeted ads based on the different categories.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

The Verge: Read the memo Google’s CEO sent employees about a hiring slowdown. “Google has told employees that it’ll be ‘slowing down the pace of hiring for the rest of the year,’ according to an internal memo Tuesday by CEO Sundar Pichai obtained by The Verge. Pichai says the company will have to ‘be more entrepreneurial’ and work with ‘greater urgency, sharper focus, and more hunger than we’ve shown on sunnier days.’ You can read the full memo below.”

Local Journalism Initiative: Virden hopes to create dynamic oil museum in near future. “The Manitoba Oil Museum has been a corporation since 1992, and has evolved a lot since then, from a brick-and-mortar museum to a presence at trade shows. A provincial Petroleum Branch worker reached out to [Liza] Park recently, telling her they’d hired a researcher to look through the archives of the museum and compile information for an online website.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

The Conversation: Email scams are getting more personal – they even fool cybersecurity experts. “The infamous ‘prince of Nigeria’ emails are falling out of fashion. Instead, scammers are scouring social media, especially business-related ones like LinkedIn, to target people with tailored messages. The strength of a relationship between two people can be measured by inspecting their posts and comments to each other.”

Denver Post: “Digital dragnet” or necessary tool? Denver police’s use of controversial Google search technique in deadly arson draws legal fight. “More than three months had passed since five family members died in an arson fire and investigators still had no leads on who set the house ablaze on the quiet street in northeast Denver. They’d authored nearly two dozen search warrants since the Aug. 5, 2020, fire with no luck. But on Nov. 19, 2020, Denver police served a warrant asking Google to turn over information about anyone who had searched the address of the burned house in the Green Valley Ranch neighborhood during the 15 days prior to the fire.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

New York University: Gender Bias in Search Algorithms Has Effect on Users, New Study Finds. “Gender-neutral internet searches yield results that nonetheless produce male-dominated output–results have an effect on users by promoting gender bias and potentially influencing hiring decisions.”

Johns Hopkins University: New Project Will Lay Groundwork For Open Access To Massive Windfarm Simulations. “Dennice Gayme, an associate professor in the Whiting School of Engineering’s Department of Mechanical Engineering and Charles Meneveau, the Louis M. Sardella Professor in Mechanical Engineering at WSE, have started a new project to create a public database of windfarm simulations, which will allow anyone with an internet connection to easily access and analyze the data in order to conduct research, generate knowledge, and evaluate models or wind field data to be used in wind farm planning or development projects.” Good afternoon, Internet…

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July 14, 2022 at 12:27AM
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BLOOM AI, Black History & Culture Collection, Kentucky Community Resources, More: Wednesday ResearchBuzz, July 13, 2022

BLOOM AI, Black History & Culture Collection, Kentucky Community Resources, More: Wednesday ResearchBuzz, July 13, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

MIT Technology Review: Inside a radical new project to democratize AI. “Unlike other, more famous large language models such as OpenAI’s GPT-3 and Google’s LaMDA, BLOOM (which stands for BigScience Large Open-science Open-access Multilingual Language Model) is designed to be as transparent as possible, with researchers sharing details about the data it was trained on, the challenges in its development, and the way they evaluated its performance. OpenAI and Google have not shared their code or made their models available to the public, and external researchers have very little understanding of how these models are trained.”

Globe Newswire: Getty Images Launches Initiative to Elevate Black History and Empower Storytellers. “Getty Images, a preeminent global visual content creator and marketplace, today launched the Black History & Culture Collection (BHCC), an initiative created to provide free non-commercial access to historical and cultural images of the African/Black Diaspora in the US and UK from the 19th century to present day.”

WLKY: Louisville nonprofit launching new app to bring free resources to those in need across Kentucky. “The website pulls together resources across Kentucky for everyday needs like housing, health and education. Users have the ability to narrow down what they are looking for and see options located in their area.”

Houston Chronicle: The Houston Chronicle’s executive editor wants you to read these stories while the paywall is down. “Our stories that were tucked behind a paywall will be available to you from now until July 14. That means all of the Houston Chronicle’s impactful, useful, inspiring journalism is yours to read for the next three days— for free.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

CNN: Twitter sues Elon Musk to force him to complete acquisition. “Twitter has sued billionaire Elon Musk in an effort to force him to follow through with his deal to buy the social media company. The lawsuit, filed in the Delaware Court of Chancery on Tuesday, comes after Musk said in a letter to Twitter’s top lawyer late Friday that he wants to terminate the blockbuster $44 billion acquisition agreement.”

Washington Post: Twitter went easy on Trump because it ‘relished’ the power, ex-employee says. “A former Twitter employee told the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection that the company gave former president Donald Trump more lenient treatment because it enjoyed the ‘power’ his stature lent to the social network.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

New York Times: Musk’s Damaged Goods. “Twitter has operated at a loss for seven of the nine years it has been a public company. It received no rival offers while Musk was trying to buy it. Its board determined that Musk’s offer of $54.20 a share was the best it could obtain, suggesting it saw no way to reach that price on its own. And since Twitter accepted Musk’s offer, its stock has lost over a third of its value.”

Vox: TikTok is full of shady secret advertisements. “Influencer Marketing Factory bills itself as ‘the influencer marketing expert’ and did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The company says it has done TikTok campaigns for everything from fitness apps to mushroom coffee. Some influencers labeled those posts as ads or partnerships. Many didn’t. All of them should have, according to truth in advertising rules that are supposed to be enforced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and state attorneys general.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

The Guardian: Tech platforms face UK ban on blocking news providers before appeal. “A change to the online safety bill means that articles in breach of a service’s terms and conditions cannot be removed or hidden until the publisher has been notified and has received the verdict of any appeal to the platform. The amendment to the legislation is intended to avoid a repeat of an incident last year when YouTube suddenly banned the digital station TalkRadio from its platform for violating its content guidelines. It was reinstated 12 hours later.”

Daily Beast: Feds Nab Louisiana Woman Who Tried to Rent a Hitman on RentAHitman.Com. “A Louisiana woman found herself on the wrong end of an FBI sting operation after attempting to hire a contract killer via a parody website ‘linked directly’ to the bureau’s internet crime squad, according to a federal complaint first obtained by The Daily Beast.”

Neos Kosmos: Archbishop Makarios sues blogger for defamation. “Archbishop Makarios Grinezakis claims a blogger has falsely accused him of misappropriating millions of church dollars to fund a palatial apartment on Sydney Harbour and luxurious lifestyle while covering up abuse and dealing in bribes. The head of the Orthodox Church in Australia has appeared often on Greek Flash News blog penned by Alkis Morelas.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Higher Ed Dive: College Board no longer disclosing AP test results by ethnicity, state. “The College Board in an emailed statement did not address why it removed demographic data. It said that it provides that information to schools, districts and state departments of education and that it has already sent it to the former two groups. Researchers can also request AP data online, the College Board said.” Good morning, Internet…

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July 13, 2022 at 05:31PM
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Tuesday, July 12, 2022

Court System Access, ByteDance, Amazon Photos, More: Tuesday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 12, 2022

Court System Access, ByteDance, Amazon Photos, More: Tuesday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 12, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

Wesleyan University: New Database Shows Court Change that Impact Access to Justice. “A new database created by Alyx Mark, assistant professor of government, documents the often mundane, yet vitally important changes courts made to their policies and procedures over the course of the global pandemic, changes that directly impact ordinary people’s access to justice.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

South China Morning Post: TikTok owner ByteDance to launch new social media app for young users that will rival Instagram-like service Xiaohongshu. “ByteDance, owner of global hit short video app TikTok and its Chinese version Douyin, is gearing up to launch a new social media platform designed for young users to share their lifestyle and hobbies, according to the tech unicorn’s latest corporate registration.”

USEFUL STUFF

PC Magazine: Amazon Photos Still Has Free, Unlimited Storage: How to Manage, Share Your Pics. “Looking for a reliable online service where you can back up, store, and share your photos? Amazon Photos is one option worth considering, especially if you’re an Amazon Prime(Opens in a new window) subscriber, or you’re looking for a good Google Photos alternative.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

CTV News: Google Maps incorrectly suggests weeks-long closure on major B.C. highway. “The provincial agency said in a notice last week that Google Maps inaccurately listed a weeks-long closure on the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt…. The Transportation Ministry has posted similar warnings about errors in recent weeks, with at least four issues noted in a month-long period.”

The Guardian: ‘They couldn’t even scream any more. They were just sobbing’: the amateur investors ruined by the crypto crash. “Last month, major coins including bitcoin and ethereum dropped by more than one-third in just a week. While bitcoin has tumbled significantly on several occasions, this bear run – meaning a period of declining prices – feels different. The industry is larger and more interconnected than ever, with retail and institutional investors jostling for space in what was, until last year, a $3tn market. (The crash has wiped $2tn off the market’s value.)” I feel that cryptocurrency is not just a discrete phenomenon but an expression of Internet culture as it is now. I believe something like it (as seismic and potentially destructive) will happen again. I’m indexing these articles in the hope that we learn what it looks like ahead of time.

SECURITY & LEGAL

CNN: Apple plans new feature to protect journalists and human rights workers from spyware. “Apple on Wednesday said it will release a new feature this fall for iPhone, Mac and iPad operating software that is designed to protect high-risk users such as journalists and human rights workers from sophisticated spyware that has been linked to human rights abuses.”

PublishersWeekly: Publishers, Internet Archive File Dueling Summary Judgment Motions in Scan Suit. “The battle lines have now been drawn in a potentially landmark lawsuit over the scanning and lending of books.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

University of Southern California: Largest ever study of tobacco content on social media links exposure to tobacco use . “People who have viewed tobacco content on social media are more than twice as likely than non-viewers to report using tobacco and, among those who have never used tobacco, more likely to be susceptible to use in the future. Researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC analyzed data from 139,624 participants in a meta-analysis of 29 studies.”

UK Government: New poll finds 7 in 10 adults want social media firms to do more to tackle harmful content . “Four in five adults (78 per cent) want social media companies to be clear about what sort of content is and isn’t allowed on their platform. In a stark warning to social media companies, 45 per cent of respondents also said they will leave or reduce the amount of time they spend on their platforms if they see no action.”

OTHER THINGS I THINK ARE COOL

NewsWise: Operating a ‘smart home’ by breath control. “Researchers at Case Western Reserve University have created a simple prototype device that enables users to control ‘smart home’ technology by changing their breathing patterns. The self-powered unit fits into the nostrils and has the potential to enhance the quality of life for people with limited mobility or inability to speak clearly. It also can be programmed provide automatic alerts to medical personnel if an individual has trouble breathing.” Good afternoon, Internet…

Do you like ResearchBuzz? Does it help you out? Please consider supporting it on Patreon. Not interested in commitment? Perhaps you’d buy me an iced tea. I love your comments, I love your site suggestions, and I love you. Feel free to comment on the blog, or @ResearchBuzz on Twitter. Thanks!



July 13, 2022 at 12:28AM
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Monday, July 11, 2022

Ivy Plus Libraries Confederation, James Webb Space Telescope, Google Image Search, More: Monday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 11, 2022

Ivy Plus Libraries Confederation, James Webb Space Telescope, Google Image Search, More: Monday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 11, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

Ivy Plus Libraries Confederation: IPLC launches new resource sharing software. “Beginning in the summer of 2022, the Ivy Plus Libraries Confederation (IPLC), a partnership of 13 academic research libraries, will launch ReShare Returnables, a new resource sharing software offering enhanced inter-library open sharing capabilities.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

NBC News: Biden to unveil first photo from James Webb Space Telescope. “President Joe Biden will unveil the much-anticipated first full-color image from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope on Monday, agency officials confirmed. The image, known as ‘Webb’s First Deep Field,’ will be the deepest and highest-resolution view of the universe ever captured, showing myriad galaxies as they appeared up to 13 billion years in the past, according to NASA.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Futurism / The Byte: Googling “Desk Ornament” Returns Images Of Nazi Paraphernalia. “The saga stared yesterday, when former Cracked editor and scifi author Jason Pargin asked followers if they, too, were getting tons of images of Nazi memorabilia when Googling the phrase ‘desk ornament.’ Turns out a bunch of them were — including Futurism, where we were still experiencing the bizarre results at press time — and the problem is so big it elicited an official response from the company.” This article is over a week old, so I did the search myself to see if I got Nazi imagery in my results. I did. I also got screenshots of articles like this one.

Engadget: Hitting the Books: Modern social media has made misinformation so, so much worse. “In his new book Tyrants on Twitter: Protecting Democracies from Information Warfare, David Sloss, Professor of Law at Santa Clara University, explores how social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok have become platforms for political operations that have very real, and very dire, consequences for democracy while arguing for governments to unite in creating a global framework to regulate and protect these networks from information warfare.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

New York Times: Defense Firm Said U.S. Spies Backed Its Bid for Pegasus Spyware Maker. “Spokesmen for L3Harris and NSO declined to comment about the negotiations between the companies. A spokeswoman for Avril Haines, the director of national intelligence, declined to comment on whether any American intelligence officials quietly blessed the discussions. A spokesman for the Commerce Department declined to give specifics about any discussions with L3 Harris about purchasing NSO.”

Eater San Francisco: Scammers Are Trying to Extort Bay Area Restaurant Owners With Torrents of One-Star Reviews. “For the last week or so, high-profile restaurants throughout the Bay Area including Nightbird, Acquerello, 3rd Cousin, Sons and Daughters, Californios, and Lucho’s have received a torrent of one-star reviews on Google, accompanied by pleas to send $75 to would-be scammers.” This is happening elsewhere, including in Texas.

Reuters: Brazil police raids gang allegedly using crypto to launder illegal gold mining. “Brazil’s federal police on Thursday carried out an operation against an alleged criminal gang that it said used crypto tokens to launder money made from illegal gold mining. Police arrested five people and served 60 search and seizure warrants in the operation.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Brookings Institution: How China uses search engines to spread propaganda. “Users come to search engines seeking honest answers to their queries. On a wide range of issues—from personal health, to finance, to news—search engines are often the first stop for those looking to get information online. But as authoritarian states like China increasingly use online platforms to disseminate narratives aimed at weakening their democratic competitors, these search engines represent a crucial battleground in their information war with rivals.”

Creative Commons: CC Supports Internet Archive’s Efforts to Ensure Public Access to Books. “At CC, we believe libraries — and cultural heritage institutions in general — should be empowered to serve as a meaningful access point for publicly funded collections. Free and open access to knowledge stimulates creativity, is essential for research and learning, and constitutes a bedrock principle of free and democratic societies.”

OTHER THINGS I THINK ARE COOL

The Guardian: ‘Portals will be as important as the car’: the architects exploring gateways to new dimensions . “Following a period of intensive research during the pandemic, experimental architectural duo Space Popular have unveiled the Portal Galleries, a beguiling immersive exhibition that explores the history and future of portals… Using a combination of virtual reality films and physical exhibits, alongside drawings from the collection, the show charts the role of magical thresholds in fiction, film, television and gaming, and speculates on the fundamental role they will play in the coming virtual world.” Good afternoon, Internet…

Do you like ResearchBuzz? Does it help you out? Please consider supporting it on Patreon. Not interested in commitment? Perhaps you’d buy me an iced tea. I love your comments, I love your site suggestions, and I love you. Feel free to comment on the blog, or @ResearchBuzz on Twitter. Thanks!



July 12, 2022 at 12:13AM
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Astronomical Photograph Plates, Bern Will Brown Photography, Historical Maps, More: Monday ResearchBuzz, July 11, 2022

Astronomical Photograph Plates, Bern Will Brown Photography, Historical Maps, More: Monday ResearchBuzz, July 11, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

University of Erlangen–Nuremberg: Web archive with astronomical photographic plates goes online. “A major share of the total of 94,090 plates is accounted for by the 40,000 photographic plates from the Dr. Karl Remeis Observatory Bamberg, Astronomical Institute of FAU. These include photographs taken by Franconian researchers between 1963 and 1976 at observatories in the southern hemisphere. These unique images show the southern sky, and are the only ones of their kind available anywhere in the world, as no other astronomical projects documented this part of the sky during this period.”

Government of Northwest Territories, Canada: NWT Archives launches 13,000 photographs by Bern Will Brown. “The Department of Education, Culture and Employment (ECE) is pleased to announce the public launch of more than 13,000 photographs by Bern Will Brown. The Northwest Territories (NWT) Archives collection consists of pictures showing northern life through Brown’s lens over decades of living in and travelling the territory.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Ars Technica: Google tests battery-conserving feature perfect for hoarding tabs. “Google is testing a method to boost the battery life of Chromebooks by changing how they work with the Chrome web browser. It’s shaping up to be a potentially attractive update for users who leave a lot of tabs open on their Chromebooks.”

USEFUL STUFF

WIRED: Travel Back in Time With Street View and Map Archives. “As more data is collected and digitized, another opportunity opens up: being able to take a step back in time—whether one year or a hundred years—to see how a place looked in the past. Whether you’re investigating the spread of urban sprawl, or you just want to know what your street looked like before the turn of the millennium, these are three key resources you should be using.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Slate: Crypto Town. “… Miami isn’t alone in trying to bring some laser-eyed panache to the typically vanilla work of local governance. A wave of smaller cities has begun to accept cryptocurrencies for payments, create their own NFT projects, and even install crypto mining operations. Their efforts, if anything, display an openness to technological innovation in cities of various locales and political contexts. What they don’t show is whether this particular innovation is able to accomplish much of anything at all.”

Council for British Research in the Levant: Launch of the Islamic Jerusalem Archive Project 2022/2023. “At an event held on 23 June 2022 to mark the re-opening of the Kenyon Institute following renovations, we were delighted to announce the launch of one of the cornerstone projects of CBRL’s new digital archive plans: the Islamic Jerusalem Archive Project (IJAP).”

Boing Boing: “Primitive building” videos deemed fraudulent. “Ever watched the many ‘primitive building’ videos emulating John Plant’s Primitive Technology in a peculiar muddy way? Each shows a couple of guys quietly, quickly making a tiny house, pool or other charming environment from clay with simple tools. Alas, they are not what they seem.” I should note that the authenticity of John Plant’s channel is not challenged by anyone.

SECURITY & LEGAL

Bleeping Computer: US govt warns of Maui ransomware attacks against healthcare orgs. “The FBI, CISA, and the U.S. Treasury Department issued today a joint advisory warning of North-Korean-backed threat actors using Maui ransomware in attacks against Healthcare and Public Health (HPH) organizations. Starting in May 2021, the FBI has responded to and detected multiple Maui ransomware attacks impacting HPH Sector orgs across the U.S.”

The Mainichi: Alarm raised over online disinformation about ex-PM Abe’s assassin . “A hate speech legal expert and others have warned against believing disinformation circulating on social media claiming that ‘Zainichi’ Korean residents of Japan were behind the July 8 assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

New York Times: The Robot Guerrilla Campaign to Recreate the Elgin Marbles. “Few cultural disputes inflame British passions more than the disposition of the Parthenon Marbles. Public debate about the statuary has raged since the early 1800s, when the sculptures and bas-reliefs, which date from 447 B.C. to 432 B.C., were stripped from the Parthenon and other Classical Greek temples on the Acropolis of Athens by agents of Thomas Bruce, a Scottish statesman and seventh earl of Elgin…. Roger Michel, executive director of the Institute of Digital Archaeology, believes the long-running dust-up can be resolved with the help of 3-D machining.”

Tuskegee University: Tuskegee University and UC Berkeley data science partnership announced. “Tuskegee University and UC Berkeley recently announced the Berkeley-Tuskegee Data Science Initiative, a multi-year partnership to develop curriculum and collaborative research opportunities for students and faculty at both institutions.”

OTHER THINGS I THINK ARE COOL

Syracuse University: The Art of Science: Students Participate in University’s First-Ever Bio-Art Class. “Bio-art first came to the University in 2018, when Rossa and Hehnly established the Bio-Art Mixer in collaboration with the Canary Lab in VPA’s Department of Film and Media Arts. The open forum includes faculty, graduate students and members of the general public from different scientific and artistic backgrounds who share innovative research, foster ideas for new art and research projects, and view new science-inspired artworks from leading bio-artists from around the world.” Good morning, Internet…

Do you like ResearchBuzz? Does it help you out? Please consider supporting it on Patreon. Not interested in commitment? Perhaps you’d buy me an iced tea. I love your comments, I love your site suggestions, and I love you. Feel free to comment on the blog, or @ResearchBuzz on Twitter. Thanks!



July 11, 2022 at 05:30PM
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Sunday, July 10, 2022

BTS Army, Google Doodles, Twitter, More: Sunday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 10, 2022

BTS Army, Google Doodles, Twitter, More: Sunday Afternoon ResearchBuzz, July 10, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

The Verge: Google celebrates Army’s anniversary with BTS street view tour. “July 9th marks the ninth birthday of the BTS Army (specifically, the official announcement of its name). As Twitter celebrates the anniversary, Google has released a new street view experiment through its Arts & Culture platform in collaboration with the band. The BTS x Street Galleries exhibition brings viewers on a virtual tour of the group’s favorite artworks.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

CNET: Google Announces State Winners of Its Doodle for Google Contest. “Google on Thursday announced the state and territory winners of its annual Doodle for Google contest, which invites schoolkids from kindergarten through the 12th grade to design their own variation of the company’s famous logo.”

New York Times: The Elon Musk-Twitter Saga Now Moves to the Courts. “Now that Elon Musk has signaled his intent to walk away from his $44 billion offer to buy Twitter, the fate of the influential social media network will be determined by what may be an epic court battle, involving months of expensive litigation and high-stakes negotiations by elite lawyers on both sides.”

USEFUL STUFF

MakeUseOf: Try Python in Your Browser With These Free Online Interactive Shells. “To start coding in Python as quickly as possible, you can use an online interactive shell. This is a website that lets you write and run Python code in your browser, with instant results. There’s no need to install anything. Whether you’re exploring Python functions or reviewing the basics of arrays and lists, you can do so right in your browser. You’ll find these online Python interpreters highly valuable.”

Mashable: How to watch NASA reveal the first stunning James Webb telescope images. “The James Webb Space Telescope, a powerful $10 billion observatory run by NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency, has chilled down to its optimal temperature. Engineers have finished calibrating its scientific instruments. Now the telescope with a 21-foot-diameter mirror is open for business. Get ready for stunning astronomical photos and data, scientists say.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

CNN Style: A photographer cataloged all 12,795 items in her house. This is what she found. “After going through a divorce and moving home for the 11th time, Barbara Iweins decided to take stock of her life — and everything in it. Going from room to room, she spent almost five years documenting every single object she owns, from loose Lego bricks and old keychains to remote controls, kitchen utensils and miscellaneous knick-knacks.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

Ars Technica: Man set up fake ISP to scam low-income people seeking gov’t discounts, FCC says. “An Ohio man created a fake broadband provider in order to scam low-income consumers who thought they were getting government-funded discounts on Internet service and devices, according to the Federal Communications Commission. In a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture released Friday, the FCC proposed a fine of $220,210 against alleged scammer Kyle Traxler.”

ZDNet: Singapore still working on rules to tighten social media enforcement. “Singapore still is mulling over new rules that will, amongst others, instruct social media platforms to disable access to content it deems harmful. It will not, however, bar the use of hyperlinks in SMS or other messaging apps as doing so will not eliminate the risk of someone falling prey to phishing attacks.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

The Next Web: Social media companies should be converted into nonprofits. “Social media companies like Twitter have morphed — whether their founders intended them to or not — into important social institutions with grave consequences for both the future of democracy and the human condition. Yet these platforms still remain constrained by their structures as for-profit companies with a duty to their shareholders.”

Tech Xplore: Tracking crypto pump-and-dump operations on social media. “Cryptocurrency scammers have found a way to make a quick profit through social media platforms like Twitter and Telegram, using the pump and dump method. In short: they buy coins when the price is low, team up to create the buzz and get the price of this coin to rise, then sell theirs for a profit. Researchers at USC’s Information Sciences Institute (ISI) have conducted a study to track and shut down this phenomenon.” Good afternoon, Internet…

Do you like ResearchBuzz? Does it help you out? Please consider supporting it on Patreon. Not interested in commitment? Perhaps you’d buy me an iced tea. I love your comments, I love your site suggestions, and I love you. Feel free to comment on the blog, or @ResearchBuzz on Twitter. Thanks!



July 11, 2022 at 12:13AM
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Australia Shark Attacks, Smithsonian Science Education Center, Twitter, More: Sunday ResearchBuzz, July 10, 2022

Australia Shark Attacks, Smithsonian Science Education Center, Twitter, More: Sunday ResearchBuzz, July 10, 2022
By ResearchBuzz

NEW RESOURCES

Flinders University: Historical dataset could help scientists better understand sharks. “For the first time, the longest-running historical record of human-shark interactions in Australia is now accessible online. This follows a growing trend to make scientific datasets accessible, maximising the use and impact of the data. Taronga’s Australian Shark-Incident Database (ASID) describes more than 1000 shark-human interactions that have occurred in Australia over the past 230 years.”

EVENTS

Smithsonian: SSEC Convenes Experts, Researchers and Educators Around the World for the Smithsonian K–12 Science Education Action Planning Institute. “The Smithsonian Science Education Center will host its third annual K–12 Science Education Action Planning Institute to bring together educators around the world to explore how innovation, inclusion and sustainability are shaping STEM education in 2022 and beyond. This year’s free virtual institute will be held July 25–27 and brings together subject-matter experts, formal and non-formal educators, school administrators and educational researchers to explore timely issues within K–12 STEM education.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

CNET: Twitter Is Testing Out Custom Timelines From Third-Party Developers. “Twitter is testing custom timelines that may be curated by the social-media company or third-party developers and are centered on common interests and events.”

New York Times: Even in Death, Internet Explorer Lives On in South Korea. “On Google Chrome, you can’t make business payments online as a corporate customer of one of the country’s largest foreign-owned banks. If you’re using Apple’s Safari, you’re unable to apply for artist funding through the National Culture and Arts website. And if you’re a proprietor of a child care facility, registering your organization with the Health and Welfare Ministry’s website is not possible on Mozilla’s Firefox. In all these cases, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, or a similar alternative, is the required browser.”

USEFUL STUFF

Make Tech Easier: 7 Android Accessibility Tweaks to Set Up a Phone for Seniors. “It’s getting increasingly complicated to use Android devices, thanks to newer models that come with a bunch of advanced features. This is especially frustrating for senior citizens. However, you can help them out by making their phones easier to use. All it requires is a few Android accessibility tweaks like the ones we discuss below.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Penn State: Project receives grant to inventory School of Theatre’s Fashion Archive. “Carolyn Lucarelli, manager of the Center for Virtual/Material Studies (CVMS) in the College of Arts and Architecture, has received the 2022 Visual Resources Association (VRA) Project Grant. She will use the $3,000 grant to create a digital inventory of the Fashion Archive in collaboration with co-principal investigator Charlene Gross, assistant professor of costume design in the Penn State School of Theatre.”

Slashgear: Your Lock Screen Is No Longer Safe. “Lock screen ads aren’t a brand new concept, to be sure, but they’re not a popular one either — at least not with the people who have to see them. Once upon a time, this was tied to app permissions and could be turned off (provided you were okay with disabling lock screen notifications from specific apps), but what Glance is offering with its ‘reimagined’ lock screen is something a bit different.”

BBC: Australia floods: Unfounded cloud seeding claims spread online. “For the third time this year, Sydney has been hit by major floods. Scientists blame intense rainfall on a combination of factors – but, on social media, unfounded allegations of ‘weather manipulation’ have spread widely.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

The Register: Marriott Hotels admits to third data breach in 4 years. “Crooks have reportedly made off with 20GB of data from Marriott Hotels, which apparently included credit card info and internal company documents. The unnamed crew behind the theft told DataBreaches it broke into a server at the Marriott hotel at Baltimore-Washington International Airport in Maryland late last month.”

The Verge: Japan to start jailing people for online insults. “Posting ‘online insults’ will be punishable by up to a year in prison time in Japan starting Thursday, when a new law passed earlier this summer will go into effect. People convicted of online insults can also be fined up to 300,000 yen (just over $2,200). Previously, the punishment was fewer than 30 days in prison and up to 10,000 yen ($75).”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Ars Technica: Internet shutdowns cost global economy $10B so far in 2022, VPN report says. “According to a report from Top10VPN, the cost of government-ordered Internet shutdowns in 2022 has cost the global economy more than $10 billion. That figure nearly doubles 2021 costs, and it’s only halfway through the year.”

EurekAlert: Citizen scientist leads discovery of 34 ultracool dwarf binaries using archive at NSF’s NOIRLab. “A citizen scientist has searched NSF’s NOIRLab’s catalog of 4 billion celestial objects, known as NOIRLab Source Catalog DR2, to reveal brown dwarfs with companions. His intensive investigation led to the discovery of 34 ultracool dwarf binary systems, nearly doubling previously known samples.” Good morning, Internet…

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July 10, 2022 at 05:32PM
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