News Reel

Iran's state media say the regime has rejected points suggested by the Trump administration as the basis of a potential peace deal.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Vanity Fair: Focus Features is releasing The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist in theaters on March 27. If you're even slightly interested in what's going on with AI, it's required viewing: The film touches on all aspects of the technology, from how it's currently being used to how it will be used in the near future, when we potentially reach the age of artificial general intelligence, or AGI. AGI is a theoretical form of AI that supposedly would be able to perform complex tasks without each step being prompted by a human user -- the point at which machines become autonomous, like Skynet in the Terminator franchise. [...] [Director Daniel Roher] interviews nearly all the major players in the AI space: Sam Altman of OpenAI; the Amodei siblings of Anthropic; Demis Hassabis of DeepMind (Google's AI arm); theorists and reporters covering the subject. Notably absent are Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. "Have you seen that guy speak? He's like a lizard man," Roher says regarding Zuckerberg. "Musk said yes initially, but it was right when he was doing all the stuff with Trump, and we just got ghosted after a while," adds [codirector Charlie Tyrell]. Altman, arguably AI's greatest mascot, is prominently featured in the documentary. But Roher wasn't buying it. "That guy doesn't know what genuine means," he says. "Every single thing he says and does is calculated. He is a machine. He's like AI, and it's in the service of growth, growth, growth. You can be disingenuous and media savvy." [...] How, exactly, is Roher an apocaloptimist? "We are preaching a worldview," he says, "in a world that's asking you to either see this as the apocalypse or embrace it with this unbridled optimism." He and his film are taking a stance that rests between those two poles. "It's both at the same time. We have to try and embrace a middle ground so this technology doesn't consume us, so we can stay in the driver's seat," says Roher -- meaning, it's up to all of us to chart the course. "You have to speak up," says Tyrell. "Things like AI should disclose themselves. If your doctor's office is using an AI bot, you have to say, I don't like that." The driving message behind the film is that resistance starts with the people. That position is shared by The AI Doc producer Daniel Kwan, who won an Oscar for directing Everything Everywhere All at Once and has been at the forefront of discussions about AI in the entertainment industry. [...] Roher and Tyrell both use AI in their everyday lives and openly admit to it being a helpful tool. They also agree that this technology can make daily tasks easier for the average consumer. But at the end of our conversation, we get into the economics of AI and how Wall Street is propping up the industry through huge evaluations of these companies -- and Roher gets going yet again. "This is all smoke and mirrors. The entire economy of AI is being propped up by a Ponzi scheme. The hype of this technology is unlike any hype we've seen," he says. "I feel like I could announce in a press release that Academy Award winner Daniel Roher is starting an AI film company, and I could sell it the next day for $20 million. It's fucking crazy." [...] "These people are prospectors, and they are going up to the Yukon because it's the gold rush."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Getting the cold shoulder from candidates? The problem might not be the market. It could be the job post itself.

Today show co-host appeared in pre-taped interview as her mother, Nancy Guthrie, has been missing for seven weeks

Savannah Guthrie, the co-host of NBC’s Today show, has described her family’s ordeal as “agony” in her first interview since her mother’s disappearance over seven weeks ago.

“Someone needs to do the right thing. We are in agony. We are in agony. It is unbearable,” Guthrie said through tears in a preview of the pre-taped interview with her co-host, Hoda Kotb, which previewed on Wednesday.

Sources suggest Iran unhappy with US’s 15-point list but it is unclear whether it has rejected it outright

Iranian nationals with valid Australian tourist visas will be blocked from entering the country for six months, Australia’s home affairs minister said, citing concern some may decide to stay longer than they’re allowed.

Tony Burke said the direction was necessary as there was a risk Iranians on tourist visas visiting Australia may be unable or unlikely to leave when their visa expires.
The order only applies to people with a valid tourist visa outside of the country.
The government said “sympathetic consideration” would be given to citizens with Iranian parents.

The government said it would closely monitor global developments and adjust settings as required.

If you’re just joining us, here’s a quick recap of the day:

An Iranian military spokesperson mocked US attempts at a ceasefire deal, insisting Americans were only negotiating with themselves. Lt Col Ebrahim Zolfaghari’s statement came after the Trump administration reportedly sent a 15-point ceasefire plan to Iran through Pakistan.

Even as Donald Trump claimed productive negotiations to end the war were ongoing with Tehran, Iran’s relentless bombardment of the Gulf states showed no sign of relenting. Kuwait and Bahrain were both hit with damaging strikes on Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning, as the patience of the Gulf states after rebuffing constant attacks for almost a month began to wear thin.

The World Trade Organisation warned disruptions to international fertiliser supplies caused by the closing of the strait of Hormuz will cause food scarcity and high prices. A third of the world’s fertilisers normally transit the strait.

Oil prices fell nearly 6% and Asian shares gained, after reports Donald Trump had sent a peace plan to Iran fuelled optimism in the market. A barrel of Brent crude was down 5.92% at $98.30, while benchmark US oil contract, West Texas Intermediate, was down 5.01% at $87.72.

Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed nine people, state media reported. Citing the health ministry, Lebanon’s official National News Agency said strikes had killed people across towns and a Palestinian refugee camp.

News that Trump had approved the deployment of more than 1,000 soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East further undermined the US president’s repeated claims of successful peace talks. Iran has previously threatened to mine the gulf surrounding the island if the US appeared to be landing troops.

Pakistani intermediaries deliver 15-point plan but some proposals proved intractable in previous negotiations

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Iranian officials expressed initial disapproval of a US ceasefire plan on Wednesday, even as intermediaries suggested direct talks between the two could start as early as this weekend.

Representatives from Pakistan who reportedly delivered the US plan to Iran told the Associated Press that it was a 15-point proposal that would include sanctions relief for Iran, dismantling Iran’s nuclear programme, restricting its use of missiles and reopening the strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for about 20% of the world’s oil.

Archeologists believe remains found in Maastricht, Netherlands, may be of real-life soldier who inspired novel character

More than three-and-a-half centuries after a musket ball to the throat put an end to decades of exemplary swashbuckling, the French soldier who inspired Alexandre Dumas and went on to be immortalised on the stage and screen – not to mention as a plucky cartoon dog – may rise again.

Workers repairing a church in the Dutch city of Maastricht have discovered a skeleton that could belong to the 17th-century Gascon nobleman Charles de Batz-Castelmore – better known as d’Artagnan – whose exploits led Dumas to make him the hero of the Three Musketeers.

Steve Reed makes statement to MPs following the Rycroft review into political funding

Here is the list of MPs down to ask a question at PMQs.

Wes Streeting, the health secretary, has urged people to reject “conspiracy” theories about the loss of Morgan McSweeney’s phone.

Some airports advise travelers to arrive four hours before their scheduled flights as TSA staff, who have been working without pay for over a month, are not reporting for duty

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Top officials at agencies affected by the ongoing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown are testifying on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. The lapse in funding for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Coast Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), has lasted 40 days with little end in sight.

During opening remarks, the Republican chair of the House homeland security committee, Andrew Garbarino, said that the shutdown has caused “massive disruptions” across airports, “weakened our nation’s cybersecurity posture” and “left states unsupported with less than 100 days until the start of major events across the United States, such as FIFA World Cup”.

The NBA’s board of governors voted to move forward with the cities as targets for its first expansion since 2004. Here’s what it means for the future of the league

The NBA has moved a step closer to adding teams in Seattle and Las Vegas.

The league’s board of governors met this week and voted to explore bids and applicants for teams exclusively in those two cities, beginning the process for its first expansion in more than two decades. Bids are expected to be in the $7bn to $10bn range per franchise.

Markets in Asia, Europe and US move higher after Iran says it will permit ‘non-hostile’ ships through strait of Hormuz

• Business live – latest updates

The price of oil has dipped and stock markets around the world have moved higher on reports that the US has sent a 15-point framework for peace to Iran, amid hopes of a ceasefire in the Middle East.

Positive sentiment may also have been bolstered by reports that Iran had announced it was permitting “non-hostile” ships to pass safely through the strait of Hormuz, in a move that could help to reopen the vital shipping lane.

Senate Democrats are still pushing for reforms to ICE on Day 40 of the DHS shutdown and plan to put forward a counteroffer. Follow live updates.

Some Iranians who'd hoped for regime change say the realities of the U.S. and Israel's war have been a "rude awakening," and they just want it to stop.

Neither Mette Frederiksen’s leftwing bloc nor rightwing parties won a majority in Tuesday’s election

• Europe live – latest updates

Denmark is braced for lengthy and challenging coalition talks after neither Mette Frederiksen’s leftwing bloc nor the rightwing parties managed to obtain a majority in Tuesday’s election.

After a bruising night for her Social Democrat party, which despite remaining the biggest party in the Danish parliament had its worst general election since 1903, the prime minister went to Amalienborg palace on Wednesday morning to submit her government’s resignation to the king.

France’s National Rally missed key targets in local elections ahead of next year’s seismic presidential vote – and the mainstream is doing OK elsewhere, too

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The Rassemblement National is not invincible. A year out from a make-or-break presidential vote, that might be the main lesson (though there are others, which may prove more significant) from last weekend’s local elections in France. What’s more, news elsewhere – Giorgia Meloni’s referendum defeat in Italy, Janez Janša beaten in Slovenia, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán in trouble, the left bloc largest in Denmark – might suggest the rest of Europe’s far right are not having it all their own way, either.

But let’s focus first on France – if only because while local elections are rarely a wholly accurate guide to future national outcomes, these ones seem to provide some pointers – and the stakes in the country’s next major election are vertiginously high.

Former Olympic rower to lead corporation as it hammers out future funding model with government

Matt Brittin, Google’s former top executive in Europe, has been named the BBC’s next director general.

Brittin, who stepped down as Google’s president in Europe, the Middle East and Africa last year, will replace Tim Davie at a crucial time for the corporation, as it hammers out its future funding model with the government.

Industry fears strait of Hormuz closure could disrupt shipping of crucial parts for UK and German North Sea projects

• Business live – latest updates

A string of large offshore wind projects in Europe are facing potential delays as the Iran war threatens to disrupt shipping of crucial parts manufactured in the Gulf.

Industry sources are concerned that components ordered from suppliers in the United Arab Emirates could become trapped if shipping remains effectively blocked through the strait of Hormuz.

Temporary ban on crypto donations is being introduced after review into countering foreign interference in politics

• UK politics live – latest updates

Ministers are introducing a temporary ban in cryptocurrency donations following an official review.

Philip Rycroft, a former senior civil servant, made the recommendation as part of a review into countering foreign financial influence and interference in UK politics.

Man credited with cooling Greenland tensions with Donald Trump is poised to play central role in any coalition deal

• Europe live – latest updates

At the end of a long, gruelling night for the biggest parties on the right and left, there was one veteran of Danish politics who came out of Tuesday’s general election with a smile on his face – and a pipe in his mouth.

Lars Løkke Rasmussen, the two-time prime minister whose Moderates party is not aligned with the country’s left or right-leaning political blocs, is poised to play a central role in any coalition deal reached in the coming weeks.

Debt consolidation can slash interest charges, but how much you actually save depends on your balance and rate.

Greater London Authority seeks £6m refund for uncompleted fire safety work on destroyed Spectrum Building

• UK politics live – latest updates

People who lost their homes when a tower block in Dagenham burned down say they are being made to pay for the building’s fire safety works after the government demanded its money back.

Former leaseholders of the Spectrum Building, a seven-storey block of flats which was demolished after a major fire in August 2024, said it was “absolutely outrageous” the Greater London Authority (GLA) was seeking to reclaim £6m for the safety works because the blaze meant they were never completed.

The Supreme Court ruled that internet service provider Cox Communications cannot be held liable for copyright infringement by its subscribers.

The price of gold per ounce has changed considerably in recent weeks. Here's where it stands as of March 25, 2026.

Contributing to the early application of quantum computers in drug discovery and new material development

TOKYO, March 25, 2026 — Fujitsu Limited and the Center for Quantum Information and Quantum Biology at The University of Osaka today announced the development of a new technology designed to accelerate the industrial application of quantum computers in the era of early fault-tolerant quantum computing (early-FTQC).

Credit: Sergiy Palamarchuk/Shutterstock

By combining ver. 3 of the STAR architecture, a unique highly efficient phase rotation gate quantum computing architecture, with a novel molecular model optimization technique, researchers have significantly reduced computational resource requirements. This breakthrough will enable the energy calculations for chemical material design such as catalyst molecules, within a realistic timeframe using early-FTQC quantum computers.

These kinds of calculations are currently not possible using current computers, and would take millennia even using previous versions of the STAR architecture. The technologies are expected to contribute to solving various societal challenges, including accelerating drug discovery, improving the efficiency of ammonia synthesis processes, and advancing carbon recycling technologies.

Background

Quantum computing holds significant promise across a wide range of industries, including drug discovery, cryptography, and finance. However, current quantum systems are highly error-prone, and practical applications are generally believed to require quantum computers with millions of qubits.

In addition, the accurate calculation of complex molecular chemical energies for practical applications has required excessive computational resources, with prior methods limited by insufficient computational power or impractical timeframes.

Future plans

Fujitsu and The University of Osaka will continue to advance the STAR architecture and molecular model optimization technology, expanding the practical application range of quantum computers in the early-FTQC era. The partners aim to contribute to solving societal challenges by applying these technologies across various industrial fields, including drug discovery, new material development, and finance.

More information can be found here.

About Fujitsu

Fujitsu’s purpose is to make the world more sustainable by building trust in society through innovation. As the digital transformation partner of choice for customers around the globe, our 113,000 employees work to resolve some of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Our range of services and solutions draw on five key technologies: AI, Computing, Networks, Data & Security, and Converging Technologies, which we bring together to deliver sustainability transformation. Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated revenues of 3.6 trillion yen (US$23 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025 and remains the top digital services company in Japan by market share.

Source: Fujitsu

The post Fujitsu and University of Osaka Develop New Tech for Chemical Material Energy Calculations on Early-FTQC Quantum Computers appeared first on HPCwire.

NATO members Estonia and Latvia say Russian drones hit their territory amid one of Moscow's biggest assaults on Ukraine.

Longtime Slashdot reader cusco writes: A private company in China has developed hypersonic missiles that cost the same as a Tesla Model X. This missile, the YKJ-1000, is being marketed for sale at a reported price of $99,000, and it's in mass production now after successful tests. That is far below what countries will spend to target and shoot down the missile if it's heading their way. Besides the low cost, they can be launched from anywhere. The launcher looks like any one of the tens of millions of shipping containers floating around on the ocean, or sitting at ports, or riding along on trucks, or sitting on industrial lots. The launchers for these missiles are hiding in plain sight, in other words. Whatever tactical advantages great-power countries have in ballistics is going away, fast; 1,300 kilometers is 800 miles, and so the range is anything within 800 miles of wherever someone can send a shipping container. To keep the price down, the missile is reportedly using civilian-grade materials and widely available commercial parts, along with simpler manufacturing methods like die-casting. There are also broader savings from tapping mature supply chains and using China's large-scale civilian industrial base.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

BOULDER, Colo., March 25, 2026 — Atom Computing today announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Cisco to explore how neutral-atom quantum computers can be linked together through quantum networks to enable distributed quantum computing architectures.

Under the terms of the MOU, Atom Computing and Cisco will collaborate to address critical challenges in distributed quantum computing, including physically linking neutral-atom quantum computers via quantum networks. By combining Cisco’s quantum networking hardware, software, and expertise in networking protocols with Atom Computing’s cutting-edge neutral-atom quantum hardware, the collaboration aims to accelerate the development of scalable, distributed quantum systems.

“Neutral‑atom quantum computers are uniquely suited for modularity and scaling,” said Dr. Ben Bloom, CEO and Founder of Atom Computing. “By integrating them into advanced quantum networks, we can begin to realize architectures capable of supporting the next era of quantum applications.”

As part of the collaboration, Atom Computing and Cisco will evaluate opportunities to integrate Atom Computing’s hardware into Cisco’s quantum networking infrastructure and network-aware distributed quantum computing compiler, enabling more a tightly coupled full-stack distributed quantum platform.

Areas of collaboration under the MOU include:

• Software and Algorithms: Extending Cisco’s network-aware distributed quantum computing compiler to support distributed workloads across neutral-atom systems.
• Transduction and Hardware Integration: Jointly investigating technologies required to interface neutral-atom quantum processing units (QPUs) with Cisco’s quantum networking systems, aligned with Cisco’s broader quantum networking roadmap.

“Scaling quantum computing to its full potential is a challenge the entire industry must tackle together,” said Ramana Kompella, VP & Head of Cisco Research. “At Cisco, we believe the future of quantum lies in distributed systems that connect many smaller processors, instead of relying solely on a single massive machine. This collaboration with Atom Computing allows us to explore how advanced networking technologies can help turn that vision into reality.”

The MOU reflects the shared commitment of Cisco and Atom to advancing the global quantum ecosystem and driving progress toward utility‑scale quantum computing. Additional details about the collaboration will be announced as the partnership evolves.

About Atom Computing

Atom Computing is developing large-scale quantum computers to enable companies and researchers to achieve unprecedented computational breakthroughs. Utilizing highly scalable arrays of optically trapped neutral atoms, the company has developed systems with over 1,000 qubits, featuring advanced capabilities towards fault-tolerant quantum computing. Atom Computing’s on-premises systems provide customers with new computational tools and logical qubit capabilities to address increasingly complex applications and to grow their quantum ecosystem.

Source: Atom Computing

The post Atom Computing Partners with Cisco to Advance Scalable, Networked, and Distributed Quantum Computing appeared first on HPCwire.

Former prisons minister pleads guilty to four drugs charges stemming from raid on his Surrey home

The former justice minister Crispin Blunt has been fined £1,200 for possessing illegal drugs after he told a court he entered the world of chemsex parties to help inform government policy.

Blunt, 65, a former Conservative MP for Reigate, pleaded guilty at Westminster magistrates court to four charges of possessing methamphetamine – commonly known as crystal meth – cannabis and the chemical sedative GBL.

D'Artagnan was killed during the siege of Maastricht in 1673. His final resting place has remained a mystery ever since.

The proposal offered sanctions relief to Iran in return for the removal of all its enriched uranium and other U.S. demands, the officials said.

The Minnesota mom of two and U.S. soldier was days from returning home from her tour in Kuwait when she was killed in an Iranian strike.

Savannah Guthrie said her family is in agony as she made a tearful plea for someone "to do the right thing" nearly two months after Nancy Guthrie disappeared.

An internal watchdog report in the Department of Homeland Security identified serious vulnerabilities in TSA's screenings at airports nationwide.

• Lead runners were led off course by guide vehicle

• World Athletics gives runners special entry

Three runners who were led off course in a race that served as a qualifier for the World Road Running Championships have been given entry into the upcoming competition.

Jessica McClain, Emma Grace Hurley and Ednah Kurgat were leading the USA Track & Field Half Marathon Championships in Atlanta earlier this month when the guide vehicle took the trio off course. Molly Born, who had been more than a minute behind the leaders, came through to win the race, with Carrie Ellwood and Annie Rodenfels in second and third. McClain, Hurley and Kurgat finished in ninth, 12th and 13th respectively, around two minutes behind Born.

Human Rights Watch and others say they have documented use of weapon in civilian areas during war on Gaza

When the M825-series 155mm artillery projectile airbursts, expelling its felt wedges containing white phosphorus, it leaves a distinctive knuckle-shaped plume. That is how Human Rights Watch (HRW) researchers said they were able to verify that Israel was again using the notorious weapon over south Lebanon, reigniting accusations that it is breaking the laws of war.

The New York-based rights group said it had verified and geolocated eight images showing airburst white phosphorus munitions exploding over residential areas in the southern Lebanese town of Yohmor in the opening days of Israel’s assault during the war on Gaza.

Rising inflation and unemployment mean effects of Iran war could be even worse than the post-Covid cost-of-living crisis

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As diesel prices make history by passing $3 a litre in nearly every capital city around the country, the stresses of high fuel costs are beginning to show.

Truckies are warning they will go out of business if they can’t renegotiate their contracts with customers; farmers are warning the same, telling families that food in our supermarkets could soon cost more.

The orphaned bear cubs will receive intensive care even as their exposure to humans is limited, the San Diego Humane Society said.

The Amazon Big Spring Sale is the first major sale of the year. Amazon has deals on just about anything you could want, from vacuums to TVs and anything in between.

"This is the first time I've experienced something like this in my entire life," one traveler said as TSA lines snaked through George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

UK urged to tackle transnational repression, as dissidents say Beijing has targeted them with tax bills and other threats

“I didn’t feel safe, even though I’m not based in Hong Kong any more,” said Christopher Mung Siu-tat after getting tax bills from Hong Kong authorities. “The regime can reach me by their long arms wherever I am.”

Siu-tat, the executive director at the Hong Kong Labour Rights Monitor, a UK-based NGO, fled Beijing’s sweeping national security laws years ago. The letters are the latest example of a series of transnational repression (TNR) tactics the 54-year-old has faced in recent years.

Change raises age limit from 35 and removes barrier for entry for recruits who have a legal conviction for cannabis

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The US army has raised the maximum enlistment age to 42 years old and scrapped a barrier for potential recruits who have a legal conviction for marijuana or drug paraphernalia possession.

People aged up to 42 can now enlist in the army, the army national guard and the army reserves, according to the new US army regulation, lifting the previous ceiling of 35 years old.

Seventeen states could break daily temperature records on Wednesday, as the heat wave that has been scorching the West expands into the central U.S.

Move comes after judge voided Kennedy’s ACIP picks, leaving key flu, Covid and RSV vaccines in limbo

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Amid upheaval to the US vaccine advisory committee Robert Malone, the former co-chair and controversial figure who has opposed vaccines, says he has been pushed out and will not be involved in any future decisions. The move comes after a federal judge stayed the appointment of 13 members of the advisory committee on immunization practices (ACIP), essentially invalidating their roles on the committee and the decisions they have made.

Those new advisers were all hand-picked by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, after he fired the previous 17 members of the ACIP in June – but the judge ruled they were unqualified and not selected properly.

Legislation initiated by far-right Otzma Yehudit party drew mounting criticism from opponents and rights groups as it moved through the Knesset

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Israel’s parliament has advanced a contentious bill to impose the death penalty on Palestinians convicted of terrorism to its final vote, after the Knesset’s national security committee approved the measure on Tuesday.

The legislation, initiated by the far-right Otzma Yehudit party led by the national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has drawn sharp criticism from opponents who warn it would mark a significant escalation in Israel’s penal policy. Members of Otzma Yehudit have worn noose-shaped pins in support of the bill.

HELSINKI, March 25, 2026 — atNorth today announced that its heat reuse partnership with Kesko Corporation went live in November 2025 and is delivering waste heat generated at atNorth’s FIN02 data center in Espoo to a neighboring branch of the Finnish retail giant.

The project marks a significant milestone in atNorth’s ongoing commitment to integrating circular economy principles into its operations. By repurposing excess heat generated by the data center’s infrastructure, the collaboration will supply almost all of the heating required by the adjacent Kesko store, reducing reliance on district heating and lowering emissions for both organizations.

For Kesko, the project supports its target of achieving a 58.8 percent reduction in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, a large portion of which results from heating its buildings. The recycled heat from FIN02 is expected to reduce Kesko’s emissions from district heating use by approximately 200 tons of CO₂ equivalent per year, representing around 0.9 percent of Kesko’s district heating emissions.

“Reducing emissions from the heating of our properties is a key priority within our sustainability strategy,” said Antti Kokkonen, Director of Energy at Kesko. “Through this collaboration with atNorth, we are able to significantly cut emissions at one of our stores while demonstrating how innovative partnerships can accelerate the transition to lower-carbon operations.”

The initiative also highlights the broader role data centers can play in supporting local energy ecosystems. By capturing and repurposing surplus heat, the project enhances the energy efficiency of the FIN02 facility while contributing to Finland’s wider circular economy ambitions.

“As demand for AI-ready digital infrastructure continues to grow, it is essential that data centers scale responsibly,” said Erling Gudmundsson, COO of atNorth. “This project demonstrates how data centers can become active contributors to local energy systems. By recycling excess heat, we can reduce our client’s environmental footprint while supporting our partners’ sustainability goals and delivering tangible benefits to the surrounding community.”

The FIN02 facility is part of atNorth’s expanding presence across the Nordics and forms a key element of the company’s strategy to develop sustainable digital infrastructure across the region. The business continues to explore innovative partnerships that reuse excess heat and support circular energy solutions.

The launch of the Kesko initiative follows several other heat reuse collaborations across atNorth’s portfolio, including a new community greenhouse in Akureyri, Iceland and also partnerships with waste-to-energy company Vestforbrænding in Denmark and Stockholm Exergi in Sweden to provide heat for the local district heating networks. These initiatives reinforce the company’s commitment to responsible and community-focused data center development.

About atNorth

atNorth is the leading Nordic data center company that offers cost-effective, scalable high-density colocation and built-to-suit services trusted by industry-leading organizations. With sustainability at its core, atNorth’s data centers run on renewable energy resources and support circular economy principles. All atNorth sites leverage innovative design, power efficiency, and intelligent operations to provide long-term infrastructure and flexible colocation deployments. atNorth is headquartered in Reykjavik, Iceland and operates eight data centers in strategic locations across the Nordics, as well as a ninth under construction in Kouvola, Finland, a tenth site in Ølgod, Denmark and an eleventh campus in Stockholm, Sweden. The business has also announced a new mega-site development in the Sollefteå Municipality in Sweden.

Source: atNorth

The post atNorth Brings Data Center Heat Reuse Online with Kesko in Finland appeared first on HPCwire.

About 111 million Americans are carrying credit card balances, a 17% increase in five years, new research shows.

Most of Shark's cordless vacuum models are on sale during Amazon's Big Spring Sale, and I've tested quite a few. These two deals stand out.

• Shiffrin holds off challenge from Germany’s Emma Aicher

• US star ties record set by Annemarie Moser-Pröll in 1970s

Mikaela Shiffrin secured a record-tying sixth women’s overall World Cup skiing title by holding off a challenge from Germany’s Emma Aicher in the final race of the season.

Shiffrin needed only to finish in the top 15 of Wednesday’s giant slalom in Lillehammer, and the American secured that before Aicher had even began her second run. Shiffrin finished 11th and Aicher – who needed to win the race and hope that Shiffrin finished 16th or worse to clinch her first title – finished 12th.

“It’s quite emotional,” Shiffrin said. “This thing sums up a whole season of work and fighting with the whole team and I have to say to Emma that her skiing has been just outstanding and today it was just so cool to watch her, especially on the first run.

“I think the outcome of this day is that she can do this. And I think that’s the coolest thing about ski racing – that anything is possible,” Shiffrin added.

Starmer’s handling of Trump and Iran reflects public opinion, but shows the limits of UK power Expert comment jon.wallace 25 March 2026

The war threatens the UK prime minister’s hopes for economic recovery and heaps pressure on US relations he has worked hard to maintain. A long war will see his problems mount.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has navigated the early weeks of the Iran war relatively well. 47 per cent of all UK voters believe he has managed the response to the war badly, according to recent polls. But a majority of Labour and Liberal Democrat voters believe he is doing well. 

And with 59 per cent of all UK voters opposing the Iran conflict, Starmer’s decision to deny the US military access to British bases for their initial attacks seems to have reflected wider public opinion. Starmer also had the satisfaction of seeing domestic political rivals like Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage having to rapidly U-turn on their initial enthusiasm after seeing the war’s unpopularity.

Internationally, the picture has been more mixed. The prime minister’s position aligned with European and other Western allies. But it prompted anger and repeated insults from US President Donald Trump. 

Beyond the US, the war has frayed the UK’s relations with Cyprus, whose president has called for a ‘frank discussion’, about the future of British bases on the island after it was targeted by Iranian drones. The slow deployment of a Royal Navy destroyer, HMS Dragon, to help protect Cyprus has raised further concerns about Britain’s military credibility.  

Similarly, while UK forces have helped defend allies from Iranian attacks, some Gulf officials have expressed frustration at their limited nature. The UK’s decision to remove its only mine-hunting ship from Bahrain for maintenance in the weeks before the war, despite the US’s obvious build up, fed into these criticisms.

The longer the war drags on, the more challenges emerge. President Trump’s capriciousness means it would be equally unsurprising if he declared the war over tomorrow or dramatically escalated it, through an action like occupying Kharg Island or attacking Iran’s power infrastructure. But the Iranian regime has also proven itself unpredictable and may expand and/or prolong the conflict whatever actions the US and Israel take. Yemen’s Houthis may also decide to intervene, threatening trade routes in the Red Sea.

Two big problems for the prime minister

None of this is good for Starmer, as the continuing conflict threatens to undermine two of his core goals. The first is economic recovery. Starmer and his chancellor, Rachel Reeves, have bet their political fortunes on achieving sufficient growth to repair public finances and reduce the cost of living. 

The war may have already shattered those hopes for 2026. The Bank of England did not cut interests rates in March, as it had been expected to do, citing the effects of the conflict. Energy bills, mortgage costs, petrol prices and food bills are all rising. The fear for Starmer and the chancellor is that things will get even worse as the war continues – a situation beyond their control dealing a significant blow to their electoral hopes.

A second goal for Starmer – and one of his few achievements in office so far – has been to maintain strong ties with Trump. Cracks were appearing before the war, as London stood by Denmark over the White House’s public threats to seize Greenland.

But Iran has worsened relations. Starmer has tried to tread carefully, seeking to fulfil Britain’s alliance obligations as much as possible without being sucked into the conflict. This has meant gradual concessions: initially denying the US access to British bases but then later permitting their use to defend allies against Iran’s retaliations.

Related work

UK arguments for US operations from its bases blur the line between lawful self-defence and unlawful war on Iran 

Similarly, the UK belatedly allowed Washington to use the joint airbase on Diego Garcia in ‘limited and defensive’ Iran operations, having initially refused. But London has been slow to commit to protect shipping through the Strait of Hormuz as Trump has publicly demanded, creating a significant row.

Starmer may hope that, just as the ‘special relationship’ survived Harold Wilson’s unwillingness to send forces to Vietnam, it can also endure his refusal to engage in Iran – if he simply ignores Trump’s insults. Donald Trump though, is not Lyndon B. Johnson. He may forgive Starmer and other allies should the war end well for him. But if things go wrong, Britain may have to deal with a humiliated, vengeful and unpredictable president.

Bigger questions for Britain

These are not Starmer’s only concerns. Another is to support key Gulf allies like Bahrain, Oman, and the UAE, and to ensure the safety of the UK citizens living there. The UK has done a good job of getting its people out of harm’s way rapidly, with over 100,000 evacuated within days. 

But the UK armed forces have not projected reassuring power in the region as they once could. Small numbers of RAF Typhoon and F35 aircraft are intercepting Iranian attacks in the region. And the UK is reportedly considering deploying assets to help secure the Strait of Hormuz once the war is de-escalated. But the absence of minesweeping assets at the outbreak of war highlighted significant reductions to Royal Navy capability, according to some Gulf observers.

Beyond this, the war could affect the UK in ways currently unforeseen. Regime collapse or civil war in Iran could lead to migration crises or increased international terrorism, as did the Syria conflict a decade earlier.

But even the foreseeable challenges pose difficult questions. Might the need to limit the economic impact of the war force Britain into a more active role? And might this result in more British assets being targeted by Iran, as Cyprus and Diego Garcia have already been?  

The war also raises bigger, long term strategic questions for British foreign policy. When the US begins a war that the prime minister judges not to be in the national interest, is it better to remain distant and try to manage the fallout or stay close in the hope of shaping decisions? 

Former Prime Minister Tony Blair reportedly argued that Starmer should have ‘backed America from the very beginning’ and supported the use of UK bases for attacks on Iran. Though this criticism, from a figure whose legacy in the region is the source of significant unpopularity, may lead Starmer to conclude he is pursuing the right course.

Calls for the UK to make serious plans for greater strategic autonomy, as recently argued by the UK’s Liberal Democrat party, may look increasingly convincing.

Britain’s future in the Gulf and wider Middle East also looks uncertain. Will the economic shockwaves of the war mean Britain tries to insulate itself better from future shocks, by decreasing its dependence on fossil fuels? Or should it reverse its recent distance from the region and play a fuller role securing price and supply?

The woman was arrested at routine ICE check-in and separated from two children, aged 18 months and four

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A Venezuelan mother of two who was allegedly trafficked to the US has been unlawfully detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and could soon be deported, according to her lawyers.

The woman has applications in process for asylum and a visa designed for victims of trafficking.

Yes, you should absolutely marathon them.

In House depositions, disgraced financier’s associates say they were not contacted after his 2008 plea deal

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Jeffrey Epstein’s accountant and his attorney have both said that federal government investigators never interviewed them about the late financier’s crimes and their work with him, according to deposition videos released by the House of Representatives’ oversight committee.

Richard Kahn, Epstein’s accountant, and Darren Indyke, Epstein’s lawyer, said in hours of closed-door interviews with the committee that they did not witness, nor were involved in, any wrongdoing relating to Epstein, who died in 2019 after being charged with child sex trafficking.

This Eureka outperformed the competition during our tests, and it currently has a meaty discount during Amazon's Big Spring Sale.

As physical media makes an unlikely comebac​k​ among younger gamers, the humble VHS emerges as an unexpected archive of gaming’s messy, magical evolution​ that I saw first time around

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As I am nostalgic and of a certain age, I recently bought a VHS video recorder, just for the retrospective thrill of it; then I won a 32-inch CRT television at an auction in Shepton Mallet. Partly, this was to play a few old videos I had found in my loft, including one of me appearing in a 1990s youth TV show talking about sexism and Tomb Raider. (I was against the sexism, to be clear). But it was also because I wanted a new way of spending my money on fragile video-game nostalgia.

The rise of the games industry in the 1980s and 90s coincided with the explosion of the home-video business, and the two crossed paths in lots of interesting ways. There are the obvious treasures I want to get hold of: VHS copies of Street Fighter: The Movie and the 1993 Super Mario Bros. movie, naturally, as well as early games-inspired hits such as The Last Starfighter, The Wizard and WarGames. I rented most of these from my local video shop in the 80s – which, like many others, also sold computer games by the budget publisher Mastertronic, another interesting (at least to me) crossover between these two entertainment formats.

Huge cuts announced this week show that truly no developer working in games is safe from corporate whims

The video game industry is currently experiencing a seemingly endless bout of ruinous deja vu. Every month, another publisher posts an all too familiar statement about job losses in its development studios. There will be airy expressions of regret and platitudes praising the skill and contribution of the imminently jobless; it is all filtered through layers of corporate doublespeak intended to disguise the human cost of downsizing.

On Tuesday, it was the turn of Epic Games, creator of Fortnite, one of the most successful titles on the planet. In a note posted online, CEO Tim Sweeney announced that more than 1,000 jobs would be lost – this followed the cutting of 830 staff in September 2023.

Wael Sawan warns of pressure on diesel and petrol if strait of Hormuz does not reopen to oil and gas shipping

• Middle East crisis – live updates

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Europe could face a shortage of energy and fuel as soon as next month without a reopening of the strait of Hormuz, Shell’s chief executive has said.

The boss of Europe’s biggest oil company said it was working with governments to help them address the oil and gas supply crisis, which has already led to energy rationing in Asian countries.

With Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents deployed to more than a dozen airports across the U.S. and border device searches growing increasingly common, it’s more important than ever to consider your digital security before you travel.

The risks are real. Customs and Border Protection agents have the authority to examine travelers’ devices. In June, for instance, federal agents denied a Norwegian tourist entry to the U.S. after looking through his phone. (Authorities claim they turned him away for admitted drug use; he says it was over a meme depicting Vice President JD Vance as a bald baby.)

Immigration and Customs Enforcement have already started targeting travelers, with agents in plain clothes forcefully detaining a mother in front of her young daughter at San Francisco International Airport on Sunday after a tip from the Transportation Security Administration.

If you’re flying, take these steps to reduce the likelihood that your sensitive information is compromised at the airport.

Don’t Bring Your Usual Devices

The only surefire way to keep your devices from being searched and seized is to simply not bring them with you on your trip. If you can’t leave them at home, consider mailing them to and from your destination.

Related

Marine Detained in Minneapolis Says Feds Copied His Phone Without a Warrant

Another option is to leave devices that contain sensitive information at home and instead bring throwaway travel devices you’re willing to have searched or confiscated. This doesn’t need to be an expensive proposition. You can reformat and repurpose an old phone or tablet, or purchase refurbished older models that are comparatively cheap. Then buy a temporary SIM card or eSIM so that you’re not using your usual number. Remember to let contacts know that for the duration of your trip you’ll be reachable at a different number.

Create a travel account for these devices. You can do so by starting a fresh account in the App Store or Google Play. This should ensure that if you’re forced to log into your device by authorities at the airport, the only information they’ll find is data you’ve put on this specific piece of hardware. CBP agents are supposed to only be able to look at data that’s local on the phone.

If you have anything sensitive in your accounts (say, emails from confidential sources) or anything you believe federal agents could consider damning (such as party pics or memes), be sure not to sync your apps, files, and settings onto your travel devices.

Disable Biometrics and Power Off

Regardless of whether you opt to bring your usual devices or specialized travel burners, take these steps to lock down your devices.

Related

Washington Post Raid Is a Frightening Reminder: Turn Off Your Phone’s Biometrics Now

First and foremost, disable any biometrics, like using your face or fingerprint, to unlock your phone. Instead, set up a unique and random alphanumeric passcode; eight characters consisting of random digits and numbers is a good start. Be cautious of entering your passcode in open view of surveillance cameras. Use one hand to shield your screen, and the thumb of your other hand to put in your passcode. Consider using privacy screens on your devices to further diminish the chance of wandering eyes noticing things that are none of their business.

When going through security checkpoints, turn your devices completely off. Don’t just put them to sleep — fully shut them down. Though having a locked device is better than having it be unlocked, turning it off is best, as this makes it much harder for data to be forensically recovered from your devices.

That means you’ll need to print out paper copies of boarding passes, rather than rely on digital versions stored in a device wallet or via your airline’s app.

If you’re asked to unlock your devices, you can say “no.” But doing say may result in being delayed and hassled, and your device could be confiscated. You should receive paperwork attesting to the confiscation and establishing chain of custody (this is called CBP Form 6051D, or a custody receipt for detained property). As the Electronic Frontier Foundation points out, it may be months before your devices are returned — or even for an indefinite period of time if agents believe there is evidence of a crime.

Delete Files and Log Out

To practice what’s known in security circles as “defense in depth,” it’s best to think of your digital security as an onion: If an outer layer is peeled off, you want there to be a good second layer to minimize the damage to the core. To that end, assume that even if you have a strong passphrase and have powered off your device, someone may still be able to find a way in. Your travel devices should, therefore, minimize the amount of sensitive information they store. In that case, even if someone manages to break through the outer layer, the information exposed would be trivial.

If you use a password manager — a specialized app that securely stores your passwords — put it into a “travel mode,” limiting the passwords it will reveal for the duration of your trip. Remove access to sensitive accounts that you very likely won’t have a reason to need to access during your travels; for example, removing your work email if you’re going on vacation, or leaving and deleting and sensitive Signal chats, like local ICE watch groups.

Log out of or delete apps you won’t need while traveling. You can reinstall and log back in when you are safely away from the airport. Remember to remove them once again when you’re on your way back — and keep in mind that this may lead to some apps deleting your history.

Finally, be sure to prune your contacts to remove any that are sensitive, such as sources, if you’re a journalist. If you have sensitive materials on your devices that you’ll need to access during your travels, use a tool like Cryptomator to encrypt them and upload them to a cloud drive, then delete the files from your devices. You can download them when you reach your destination.

These extra steps are undoubtedly a bit of a pain, but any inconvenience would pale in comparison to the potential damage if sensitive information is disclosed during your time in the airport.

The post How to Keep ICE Agents Out of Your Devices at Airports appeared first on The Intercept.

Any Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon will work to Hezbollah’s advantage Expert comment jon.wallace 25 March 2026

The Lebanese government has failed to effectively confront Hezbollah. But a prolonged Israeli incursion will only reenergize the group.

As many focus on the US/Israeli war on Iran, another related conflict is intensifying in Lebanon. On 2 March Hezbollah fired rockets and drones into Israel in retaliation for the attacks on Iran. Since then, the Israeli military has attacked Beirut, the Beqaa Valley, the Baalbek-Hermel governorate, and the south. 

More than 1,000 people have been killed and 2,500 injured and over one million (almost a fifth of the population) have been displaced. On 22 March, Lebanon’s leadership warned of the threat of invasion. On 24 March, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz announced that Israel intends to seize control of southern Lebanon up to the Litani River to create a ‘defensive buffer’. 

The war on Iran may yet see the US declare victory relatively early, perhaps in a matter of weeks, and disengage. But the conflict unfolding in Lebanon is unlikely to see Israel walk away any time soon.

Instead, it reflects Israel’s shift towards a longer-term struggle for regional primacy after Hamas’s cross border attacks of 7 October – one that Lebanon’s fragile state may not endure.

Hezbollah’s role in the Lebanese state

For decades since its formation, Hezbollah operated a parallel state in Lebanon, with significant logistical and financial support from Iran. The group wielded a veto over the country’s politics and maintained a military force far stronger than the Lebanese army. 

The situation changed after 7 October 2023. Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel the very next day in support of Hamas, and conflict between the group and Israel quickly intensified. 

That culminated in a sequence of attacks in September 2024 which saw Israel decapitate Hezbollah’s senior leadership, including long-time secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah. In November, a fragile ceasefire was agreed, though in practice it remained tenuous, with Israeli operations continuing and the terms only partially observed.

Related work

Hezbollah’s refusal to disarm makes direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel more likely

For a time afterwards, Hezbollah seemed to be in decline, with public perception shifting, as Hezbollah was seen by many Lebanese as having unnecessarily exposed the country to conflict. 

The technocratic Lebanese government that took office fifteen months ago appeared to offer something different. Led by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam alongside President Joseph Aoun, the former head of the Lebanese Armed Forces, it moved quickly to assert that it alone should hold the monopoly on arms in the country. That push was strongly encouraged by the US and Israel as part of a broader plan to dismantle Hezbollah. 

The new government deployed the army south of the Litani River for the first time in decades, reasserted control over Beirut’s airport, and signalled a harder political line, including efforts to curb the language and symbols of ‘resistance’ that had long normalized Hezbollah’s armed presence in the state. 

These early moves suggested a government that was attempting to reclaim control of territory and establish legitimacy.

The Hezbollah dilemma

Yet the limits of that push were clear. Hezbollah has refused to disarm north of the Litani River and continues to wield political influence. US Special Envoy for Syrian Affairs Tom Barrack recently called it a ‘legitimate political party in Lebanon’ (though the US has designated it a Foreign Terrorist Organization since 1997). 

Reportedly, Hezbollah has been reconstituting and adapting, returning to a more dispersed, guerrilla-style organization rooted in asymmetric warfare and a mission of long-term resistance. Crucially, it still commands loyalty across much of Lebanon’s Shia community. 

These realities point to the Lebanese state’s continuing structural fragility. The country’s sect-based political system fragments authority and, combined with decades of political corruption and mismanagement, undermines coherent governance. 

Hezbollah has filled gaps left by the government within Shia communities, providing social services, education, healthcare and local support. As a result, in these areas, citizens still tend to turn to Hezbollah rather than the government to meet their everyday needs. 

Disarming Hezbollah illustrates the government’s dilemma. It can insist that arms belong in the hands of the state and declare Hezbollah’s military arm illegal. But any attempt to use force to disarm the group would likely lead to civil war. There is little political or public appetite for that, in a country still marked by the memory of fifteen-years of civil war in the 1970s and 80s. 

Others will believe that disarming Hezbollah leaves the country even more exposed to Israeli attacks, given the weakness of Lebanon’s army. 

The Lebanese people are paying the price

The Lebanese people have not yet had the chance to recover from a series of devastating events. An economic collapse in 2019 was followed by rampant inflation, the port explosion of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Israeli bombing and ground incursions of 2024. 

Populations that had only recently returned to their homes now once again find themselves displaced or forced to live exposed to Israeli attacks. Communities remaining in the south of the country are now at risk of being cut-off, with Israel destroying bridges across the Litani River and intent on creating the ‘defensive buffer’ announced by Katz.

Those who have been displaced are now homeless or sheltering in cramped or unfit facilities. The Lebanese government is making efforts to track displaced people and provide shelter and relief items. Its response is a marked improvement compared to previous crises. However, with no end to the fighting in sight the state is having to rely on civil society and international actors to provide support to communities in need.

What next for Lebanon?

Israel’s strategy risks undermining what little possibility remains of a coherent Lebanese state operating in place of Hezbollah. 

Parliamentary elections, due in May 2026, were postponed for two years due to the violence, with some parties already using developments to stoke sectarian divisions and further party interests. The gains made by independent parliamentarians and the fragile new government hang in the balance. 

A prolonged Israeli military presence will likely deepen instability and further weaken Lebanese state institutions. It will also create the conditions for Hezbollah to reconstitute its military capabilities and rebuild popular support.  

The first step should be a ceasefire by both sides and an end to Israeli incursions into Lebanon. But this now looks highly unlikely in the near term. 

That means the only viable path to keep Hezbollah weakened and potentially one day disarm it is to build the Lebanese government’s capacity to provide reliable public services and to protect the entire population, including Shia communities, both of which the government has historically struggled to do. US and international engagement should therefore be concentrated on this objective. 

A first step would be tying international reconstruction assistance to visible state delivery, ensuring that aid reaches all affected communities through government channels. Diplomatic efforts toward a broader regional settlement should also address the external flows of support, namely from Iran, to Hezbollah that have long undermined the Lebanese government’s authority over its own territory.

In the meantime, in the event of Israel seizing territory in the south, Lebanon’s government will have limited options. It can transmit messages of national solidarity. And it can deploy the army to Beirut to signal stability there and deter civil tensions.  

But the damage being done will make the government’s job even harder: it was already unclear how it would pay to rebuild infrastructure destroyed in 2024. Dealing with the destruction and displacement caused by this new fighting will need more time and money, something which the government does not have, and which will be hard to raise. 

The Lebanese government will also need to carefully assess the risk of if and how to confront Hezbollah. The government banned Hezbollah’s military activities on 2 March and expelled the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon on 24 March. But challenging Hezbollah while the group is fighting Israel could inflame internal tensions and increase the risk of civil war. 

Meanwhile the displaced will be vulnerable to exploitation, creating possible public health risks, forcing children to stay out of school and adults out of work, creating possible tensions with local residents, and compounding decades of trauma. 

Regardless of when the fighting stops, Lebanon and its citizens will be left picking up the pieces for years to come.

Prime minister expected to remain as caretaker and told supporters she was ‘ready to take on the responsibility’ of the role for next four years

Speaking at the debate, Frederiksen confirms she has submitted her government’s resignation as it is clear the outgoing three-party government will not have enough mandates to continue.

But she stresses the urgency of the task to form the new government, as “the world is not waiting for us out there and it has only become more unsettled since the election was called.”

Government’s pilot ban for under-16s accompanies consultation as peers vote on Australia-style restrictions

Hundreds of UK teenagers will trial social media bans, digital curfews and time limits on apps under a government pilot, which will run alongside a consultation to decide whether the UK should ban access to social media for the under-16s.

During the test, led by the UK government, a proportion of 300 teens across all four nations of the UK will have their social apps disabled, “mimicking the enforcement of a social media ban at home”.

FedEx said it will give customers the option of two-hour or end-of-day delivery, including for large and oversized packages.

While market conditions are raising the cost of these Galaxy A phones, Samsung's hopes fast charging speeds, improved water resistance and camera features will provide value for price-conscious buyers.

A handful of moments at SXSW had me wondering: How much of AI is me playing a game and how much is it a game playing me?

Apple's iPhone 17E is closer than ever to its $799 sibling. But can you save $200 when upgrading from an older base iPhone?

As US raids spread, a grassroots pantry delivers food, medicine and basics to immigrant families too afraid to leave home

Last summer, months before Memphis became overrun with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, local activists and Latino leaders came together to figure out how to best meet their community’s needs. The Trump administration’s expansion of ICE was still nascent; the agency had conducted raids in Los Angeles, but hadn’t yet begun its operations in Chicago or Minneapolis.

Amber Hampton and another member of Indivisible Memphis, a volunteer-run chapter of the nationwide civil rights organization, attended the meeting. Though neither of them spoke much Spanish, and many of those gathered from the Latino community spoke little English, they understood each other, Hampton told the Guardian.

From Nokia and BlackBerry to LG and Russia's YotaPhone, these phones tried some questionable things.

Iran has targeted Israel and Gulf states while denying Trump’s claims that any negotiations are taking place. Plus, Democrats flip seat in district that includes Mar-a-Lago

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Good morning.

The US appeared poised to deploy airborne troops to the Middle East, according to reports, as strikes intensified across the region.

What is the 15-point framework? Diplomats with knowledge of the talks believe it is likely to be a rehashed version of a proposal put forward by Trump’s negotiating team during nuclear talks in May 2025.

What is happening with the strait of Hormuz? Iran has announced it is permitting “non-hostile” ships to pass safely through the strait.

This is a developing story. Follow our liveblog for the latest updates.

Looking to track your heart rate? These are the most reliable monitors you'll want in your arsenal.

Why Should Delaware Care?
As New Castle County faces another difficult budget year, officials are proposing a significant property tax increase to close a projected shortfall while prioritizing funding for public safety initiatives.

In his annual budget address Tuesday, New Castle County Executive Marcus Henry proposed a 17% property tax hike on residents – a major increase that officials say will only partially close a $42 million budget deficit facing the county in the coming fiscal year.   

Henry’s remarks follow a year in which county officials repeatedly had to pull money from reserves to cover expenses amid a drop off in federal funding and fallout from the county’s recent property tax reassessment. 

If the New Castle County Council approves Henry’s proposed budget, the next fiscal year would become the first since 2019 to feature a tax rate increase for the county’s share of property taxes. 

“It’s time, unfortunately,” Henry told reporters during a budget briefing on Monday. 

Asked then about budget conversations he had with the outgoing county executive — now-Gov. Matt Meyer — Henry took a deep breath and laughed. Then he said he didn’t know in late 2024 that the deficit was going to be as large as it is today.

“I was presented information that showed us in a deficit, but it ended up being much, much larger than what I was shown,” Henry said. 

Tuesday marked Henry’s second budget address, after entering office in 2024. 

Henry also said the county kept “revenue neutrality” following a 2024 property reassessment, meaning it did not take in additional tax dollars. The county’s share of property tax bills is a little under 20% of the total, Henry said. The rest goes to school districts. 

If approved, the tax hike will bring in about $23 million for the county to cover the $42 million gap between expected costs and revenues for the next fiscal year, which begins in July.

The county will also split tax rates for commercial and residential properties for another year, according to Henry’s budget.

The proposed operational budget totals just over $387 million — a 4.4% increase over the 2026 fiscal year. 

Henry said the county had been in a budget deficit for several years, but costs were previously covered by one-time federal appropriations that the county received as a result of the COVID pandemic. 

Budget cuts and increased fees

To restore fiscal balance over the long-term, county officials have described a “multiyear approach,” which includes some plans to increase spending, such as on workforce training and in public safety and public works.

Henry also said the county is going to work with state legislators in Dover to diversify its sources of revenue. County officials also said they want to convince the General Assembly to allow them to shift the responsibility of school tax billing and collections back to the school districts.

“This structural deficit was built over several years, and that’s what we’re trying to cure,” Henry said.

After relying on reserves for the past year, officials also say those backup funds are under strain.

If approved, Henry’s budget would reduce the general fund tax stabilization reserve to roughly $25 million and the real estate transfer tax reserve to about $22.5 million, according to County Chief Financial Officer David Del Grande.

And in order to make ends meet, county officials are also raising fees. 

The county will begin charging credit card fees for sewer bills and land use permits. Sewer consumption rates would also be increased by 5%.

Additionally, a total of 56 positions of the county’s full-time workforce, which Del Grande called “back office” positions, will also go unfunded for 2027, saving the county nearly $6 million in expenses.

The county currently has a hiring freeze on all “non-essential” employees. 

“It’s also health care that we don’t need to provide for 56 people, which is actually the burden.” Del Grande said.

Henry asserted that there will be no layoffs or salary reductions for existing employees as part of the new budget proposal. 

County officials have also decided to cut $2.5 million for open space and Agricultural Preservation. DelGrande and Henry noted that both projects currently have funds in them, so they are not being eliminated.

The county is also cutting $2.8 million from the Community Services Department, with a portion of that from a reduction for part-time employees. 

Almost $1 million has also been cut from some of the county’s special events, some of which, like New Castle’s annual Sleep Under the Stars event, will be paused for a year. 

Finally, libraries also will be impacted. Under Henry’s budget, the county will close libraries to the public one day a week, though no two locations will close on the same day, allowing residents to still access services. The closures will contribute to almost $900,000 in avoided costs.

Separately, in its capital budget, the Glasgow Library project will be pushed back for a year. The proposed capital budget has also been reduced by 10% to more than $75 million.

Budget increases

This year, Henry wants to focus on public safety. 

For fiscal year 2027, the county will propose an allocation of almost $4 million for union-negotiated wages, reflecting contracts covering about 84% of the workforce. It also added a little over $5 million to public safety to maintain service levels and support filling vacancies, such police, paramedics, and 911 operators.

“Keeping people safe is our priority,” Henry said. 

The county will also allocate $1 million toward its property assessment office to add 10 more positions.The additions, if approved, would bring the office total to 39 positions. The County Council recently approved adding the first five positions to the office.

Rounding out the increases in spending is a $1 million increase for wastewater treatment, and $4 million for county employee healthcare premiums. 

The County Council is set to vote on the budget on May 26.

The post New Castle County proposes 17% tax hike to partially close deficit appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

Israel and Gulf states targeted by Iran while Tehran denies any negotiations with US to end war

• Middle East crisis – live updates

The US is poised to deploy airborne troops to the Middle East as strikes intensified on Tuesday, signalling that it may consider boots on the ground despite Donald Trump’s claims of “very good” talks with Iran, as it was reported that the US president had delivered a 15-point negotiation plan to Iran via Pakistan.

Early on Wednesday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had launched a new wave of attacks against locations in Israel including Tel Aviv and Kiryat Shmona, as well as US bases in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain. Drones hit a fuel tank and sparked a fire at Kuwait international airport, the Gulf state’s civil aviation authority said.

Ruling linked to takeover of Autonomy in 2011 comes two years after tech tycoon died in superyacht disaster

The estate of the late British tech tycoon Mike Lynch has been ordered to pay £920m to the technology company Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) two years after he died in a superyacht disaster.

The ruling by London’s high court said the estate was liable to pay the sum as compensation, costs and interest for the acquisition of Lynch’s firm Autonomy by Hewlett-Packard (HP), after a UK legal ruling in 2022 that he duped the US company into paying £8.2bn for the software firm.

Paul Kovacich's defense team contends that long-suppressed evidence debunks claims that he killed his dog weeks before his wife disappeared.

The US is recklessly spreading economic havoc among global friends and foes while suffering little harm itself

To shield ordinary Indians from the war in Iran, the government in Delhi redirected supplies of liquefied gas to Indian families, for which it is the main cooking fuel, limiting supplies to the plastics industry. The Nepalese government rationed gas and the Philippines trimmed the government workweek to four days. Bangladesh closed universities and rationed fuel.

They have been hardest hit by Iran’s closure of the strait of Hormuz. Economies in Asia import over a third of the energy they consume, on average. Korea imports four-fifths; Japan nine-tenths; Thailand 55%. Most of this comes from the Gulf. About 80% of oil and oil products transiting through the strait in 2025 was destined for Asia, according to the International Energy Agency. But traffic through its waters has collapsed by 90%.

The world of soccer throws up no shortage of questions. Today, Graham Ruthven endeavors to answer three of them.

Twenty-six minutes. That’s all the game time Gio Reyna has played in 2026. He hasn’t played at all for Borussia Mönchengladbach in the last two months. For any other player, this surely would’ve kept them off the US roster for the upcoming friendlies against Belgium and Portugal. US manager Pochettino has consistently repeated the point that club form matters when building these squads. Reyna, however, isn’t any other player.

The president promised to spill the beans about little green men. Is that why the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency registered the domains alien.gov and aliens.gov?

There are some very important files sitting in a US government building right now, full of shocking details that certain entities would prefer to keep hidden. For far too long the public has been kept in the dark but, thanks to the self-proclaimed “most transparent administration in history”, the truth could be about to be revealed.

Obviously I’m not talking about the Epstein files. I’ve got a funny feeling we’re never going to see the rest of those. FBI agents have been paid nearly $1m in overtime to work on the “Epstein Transparency Project”, also referred to as the “Special Redaction Project”, but even with all that special redacting, more than 2m documents have reportedly not been released. No, I’m talking about proof of alien life – which is far less fanciful than the idea that powerful people might actually face accountability.

Mildred Danis-Taylor dropped everything to advocate for the release of her husband, Rodney Taylor. A brutal year of legal and health challenges led her to Capitol Hill

Shortly after 1pm on 4 March, in a crowded hearing room on Capitol Hill, Mildred Danis-Taylor and two of her daughters stood up from their seats so that Kristi Noem could see them.

As they looked across the chamber at the homeland security secretary, the Georgia representative Lucy McBath took the mic to describe the neglectful and dangerous conditions Danis-Taylor’s husband said he had experienced during 14 months of being locked up at ICE’s Stewart detention center in south Georgia.

Idris Robinson says Texas State violated his constitutional rights over off-campus talk seized on by pro-Israel activists

Philosophy professor Idris Robinson has sued Texas State University officials, asserting that the school violated his constitutional rights by ending his contract after he gave a talk on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict off-campus in another state where a fight broke out, the Guardian has learned.

Perhaps in part because Robinson did not introduce himself as connected to Texas State at the event, it took several pro-Israel social media accounts a year to identify him and launch a campaign to get Robinson fired, targeting the school’s leadership and accusing him of being a terrorist and inciting violence.

Lawmakers say moratorium on construction would buy time to create strong, federal guardrails for AI

Amid an unprecedented energy crisis and the rapid buildout of artificial intelligence infrastructure, progressive lawmakers have unveiled a new policy to place a moratorium on the construction of AI datacenters.

The policy, announced by Bernie Sanders, an independent senator from Vermont, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democratic representative, on Wednesday morning, aims to ensure the AI boom protects the environment and communities, and benefits workers instead of harming them. A temporary ban, the lawmakers say, would give the US government time to create strong federal safeguards for AI, which is “affecting everything from our economy and wellbeing to our democracy, warfare and our kids’ education”.

alternative_right shares a report from Phys.org: Astronomers have an answer for a long-running mystery in astrophysics: why is the growth of supermassive black holes so much lower today than in the past? A study using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and other X-ray telescopes found that supermassive black holes are unable to consume material as rapidly as they did in the distant past. The results appeared in the December 2025 issue of The Astrophysical Journal. [...] The team ran tests of the three main possible scenarios currently being considered for the slowdown of black hole growth. These options were: could the decline in black hole growth be caused by less efficient rates of consumption, or by smaller typical black hole masses, or by fewer actively growing black holes? Their analysis of the data, extending over billions of years of cosmic history, led them to the conclusion that black holes are indeed consuming material less rapidly the later they are found after the Big Bang. The researchers expect this trend of slower-growing black holes to continue into the future.

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Why Should Delaware Care? 
School referendums are the only time that Delawareans can have a direct say in their taxation rate, but they also make it harder for school districts to meet rising costs. One year after the Smyrna School District’s referendum attempt failed, and eight months after staff members began picketing board meetings, the district and Smyrna Education Association have come to an agreement regarding staff pay increases. 

A yearlong standoff between the Smyrna School District and its union of teachers and other school staff has ended with a small pay raise for employees.

Following the agreement last week, the two sides released a joint statement saying the deal “serves both parties fairly.” 

The statement also noted that the district will likely ask voters to increase school taxes in the near future. If successful, the referendum would fund staff retention and recruitment, as well as other items, according to the statement. 

“The parties look forward to a successful operating revenue referendum in the near future and will work collaboratively toward this goal,” the district and union said in the statement. 

The statement comes in sharp contrast from what was months of turmoil in the district that sits along the Kent and New Castle county line. Sometimes it was obvious to the public with protests outside of school board meetings. Other times, a quieter tension existed as the two sides engaged in months in mediation or other formal negotiations.   

Now, with a deal secured, employee raises will be based on their years of experience. The newest workers will receive a $150 raise per two-week pay period, while the most senior employees will get $420 increases, according to a memorandum obtained by Spotlight Delaware.

The increases take effect immediately, and carry forward into the 2027 fiscal year beginning in July, but there will be no additional increases.

Those raises cannot exceed 4% for any employee, according to the memorandum.

Smyrna Board of Education President Jonathan Snow told Spotlight Delaware that the board has not planned when the district will hold its next referendum vote, but conversations about future referendum plans will start this summer. 

“Given our financial situation and the escalating cost associated with running schools in the state of Delaware at the moment, another referendum will have to happen,” Snow said.

What led to this?

The deal resolves what has been an ongoing fight between the district and its employees’ union since a referendum request failed last year, leaving schools struggling to pay their bills.

More than half of the $5.4 million that could have been raised by the 2025 referendum in its first year would have paid for staff salaries, with teachers receiving raises during the subsequent two years.

It also would have funded extracurricular activities, technology upgrades, utilities costs, and the hiring of additional school constables.

Still, nearly 60% of district voters rejected the referendum last year. In their joint statement last week, school officials did not say how they will try to convince voters to approve a referendum next time. 

In the wake of the vote last year, school staff claimed the district backtracked on promised pay increases, while district officials said they needed to ensure their schools remained financially stable. 

While the Smyrna Education Association is not legally allowed to strike, union members picketed district board meetings last fall, with dozens of teachers wearing black shirts, and some holding signs that said “Worth More Than 0%.” 

The signs referenced the district’s decision to not increase the educators’ pay scale. 

In October, the Smyrna Board of Education released a statement in response to the ongoing protests, stating it would be “fiscally irresponsible” to provide raises with “non-sustainable funding.” 

The board also cited recent inflation in its statement, saying Smyrna schools will have to spend $750,000 more this year just to maintain the level of services they previously provided.

In Delaware, educators’ salaries are funded by a combination of state and local tax revenue, with the state paying approximately 70% of an individual’s total salary.

The post Smyrna School District, teachers union reach deal on pay raises  appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

As the number of people with cameras on their dashboards and doorbells has grown, so have reports of such sightings.

If you’re looking for the best hair dryer for your specific hair type and budget, we tested popular models from Shark, Dyson and more.

Federal health officials posted a warning about misleading statements by biotech billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong about his company's bladder cancer drug Anktiva.

Apple has the cutting-edge sci-fi you're looking for.

The 37-year-old may come across as corny and gauche. But he’s already won one NBA championship and it probably won’t be his last

The Boston Celtics’ head coach, Joe Mazzulla, is a very odd man. He is also a very good coach.

Take, for example, a story Celtics guard Derrick White told in an interview last November. According to White, the first sound at one Celtics practice wasn’t a whistle.

Trump’s oil blockade is starving the island of vital resources. His brute force isn’t making America great again – it’s breeding resentment across the globe

The US has become a power that knows only how to destroy. In the Ramón González Coro maternity hospital in Havana, Cuba, I saw what that looks like in human terms.

Maria lies on a hospital bed, wrapped in a dark blue blanket, two friends at her side. She is 50, with terminal cervical cancer, and nothing but praise for her doctors. But she is also a victim of a decades-long US siege, drastically intensified by Donald Trump’s decision earlier this year to threaten tariffs against countries that deliver fuel to Cuba. The result has been no fuel imports for three months, meaning the island is running out of diesel and fuel reserves. The electricity grid is collapsing and life is grinding to a halt.

Owen Jones is a Guardian columnist

Tony Burke says decisions about permanent stays should be ‘deliberate decisions of the government, not a random consequence of who booked a holiday’

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Iranian tourists will be banned from entering Australia for the next six months after the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, triggered tough new immigration laws over concerns visitors may not be able to return to Iran.

The ban could apply to up to 7,200 Iranians with valid tourist visas – though some may still be given the chance to enter the country under special consideration.

Report by Verdant says rooting out waste, fraud and tax avoidance would save money that could help improve public services

A “Doge of the left,” could save up to £30bn a year for taxpayers by rooting out waste, fraud and tax avoidance, according to the first report from a new green thinktank.

Launched amid growing interest in the future manifesto of Zack Polanksi’s Green party, the Verdant thinktank will be co-chaired by James Meadway, a former adviser to Labour shadow chancellor John McDonnell, and civil society campaigner Deborah Doane.

Dayton Webber’s former playing partner says: ‘Dayton has a great family, and I care about that family. Yet obviously, there is somebody [who] died’

The former doubles partner of a professional, championship-winning cornhole player who had his four limbs amputated in his infancy and is now accused of a deadly shooting says he was shocked to learn about the case, calling it an instance of at least two families being torn apart in one fell swoop.

“I’ve been mad, sad – it sucks,” Mike Hoffman said of his past cornhole teammate Dayton Webber during a telephone interview on Tuesday.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek is on the verge of giving the Portland Trail Blazers a major gift: hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars to overhaul the team’s arena in an effort to keep the Blazers’ incoming owner, billionaire Tom Dundon, from moving the NBA franchise to a new city.

The deal came together with little public discussion of how Oregon and other states in 2020 landed a $550 million settlement with the car loan company where Dundon built his wealth. The settlement followed an investigation into lending practices that Oregon’s then-attorney general, in a news release, described as “predatory and harmful.”

Now, Oregon Public Broadcasting and ProPublica have obtained documents that reveal the role Dundon played in pushing some of the key company practices that regulators later presented as problematic.

Specifically, the documents show that Dundon, as the company’s CEO, was behind what regulators called an “aggressive push” at Santander Consumer USA in 2013 to waive requirements that car dealers prove borrowers had enough income to afford loans. The company would then charge more for those loans to ensure profit even in cases where borrowers ultimately failed to keep up with payments, according to internal emails and a slide deck that described findings in the multistate investigation.

Oregon officials wrote in their 2020 court complaint against Santander Consumer that many customers took out loans under the “false pretense” that they were acquiring a car they’d eventually own, when in fact the terms of the loans were so onerous that they would “almost certainly” result in the loan defaulting and the car getting repossessed.

Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, when asked about Dundon’s call for waiving proof of income on car loans when he was at Santander Consumer, said in a statement: “Proof of income requirements exist for a reason — they protect borrowers from being sold loans they cannot afford. When those guardrails get waived, dealerships win in the short term, and consumers lose.”

Rayfield, who was elected in 2024, is working with other state attorneys general in a continuing investigation into another auto loan company, Exeter Finance, where Dundon’s website lists him as an investor and where he has served as chairman of its board. Dundon left Santander Consumer in 2015.

“Working families put a lot on the line when they take out a loan,” Rayfield said, “and they deserve lenders who treat them fairly and follow the law.”

Read More

Before Tom Dundon Agreed to Buy the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Accused the Company He Created of Predatory Lending

Dundon, whose deal to buy the Trail Blazers is expected to close on March 31, did not answer emails sent to his investment firm from OPB and ProPublica that included a copy of the newly obtained records and a list of questions. When provided separately with an overview of the story via text to his phone, he responded simply: “Can talk after 3/31.”

Exeter has said in regulatory filings that it is cooperating with the current multistate investigation. A spokesperson for Exeter declined to comment. 

Asked for comment by OPB and ProPublica, Santander Consumer referred back to the statement it gave the newsrooms for an October story: “Operating in a highly regulated industry, we have robust processes in place that are designed to protect customers and adhere to all regulatory requirements and industry best practices.”

Lawmakers recently approved $365 million in public funding to renovate Portland’s 30-year-old Moda Center, home to the Blazers, one of Oregon’s most prominent businesses. The bill awaits Kotek’s signature. Combined with city and county money, the total proposed public backing has reached $870 million, far exceeding what the team originally asked for.

Kotek’s office did not respond when asked when she became aware of the investigations into businesses connected to Dundon and whether it affected her position on giving public money to the team. Instead, a spokesperson pointed to public remarks Kotek made in support of public funding for the Blazers arena as the Legislature adjourned.

“This is a great first step,” Kotek told reporters at the time. “We’re going to get the best deal possible for Oregon, and the economic impact of keeping not only the Blazers but all the activity at Moda is really important for the state.”

The chief sponsor of the bill, Senate President Rob Wagner, a Democrat representing the Portland suburb of Lake Oswego, also declined to answer when asked if he was aware of Oregon’s investigations into Dundon’s businesses.

“The Oregon Legislature does not have a role in who owns the Trail Blazers,” Wagner said in a statement. “Our goal all along has been to support the renovation of Oregon’s Arena so it can remain an economic and entertainment hub for the region.”

But a prominent critic of the deal with the Blazers said Dundon’s history with regulators is troubling.

State Sen. Khanh Pham, a Portland Democrat who cast one of just six no votes in the 30-person chamber, wrote at the time that she supported a public investment in the arena but worried the Legislature wasn’t including enough protections for taxpayers. She tried unsuccessfully to win amendments that would require the state to negotiate a private investment and revenue sharing with the Blazers.

Pham said she wasn’t aware of Dundon’s history in Oregon until OPB and ProPublica asked her about the newly obtained emails.

“This new information affirms that guardrails on public-private partnerships are important in all instances and especially this one,” Pham said in a statement.

“Ignoring This Internal Concern”

Dundon was known as a key player in the rise of subprime lending to car buyers, a niche that supporters say makes car ownership possible for people with poor credit. He sold the subprime company he founded to a Spanish firm in 2006, retaining a 10% stake and becoming CEO of the newly formed company.

In January 2013, he took a step that would keep the company’s lending from being slowed down by people having to prove they could afford the cars they were buying. He set a plan in motion that would let the company advertise to car dealers that Santander Consumer wasn’t going to ask anymore for proof of income, or “POI,” in order to issue a loan.

“Lets do a test,” Dundon wrote to two of his senior employees, Karthik Chandrasekhar and Steve Zemaitis. “I want to waive poi more often.”

As the plan moved forward, Santander Consumer’s chief risk and compliance officer, Michele Rodgers, sent an email on Jan. 21, 2013, to Zemaitis and various senior executives expressing worry the company’s plan could violate federal law.

Rodgers identified potential concerns surrounding anti-money laundering and identity theft laws. She also noted that federal regulators were less than a year from implementing a new rule for another type of loan — home mortgages — requiring those lenders to “determine the consumer’s ability to repay both the principal and the interest over the long term.”

But the records collected by the attorneys general indicate the plan proceeded.

Two weeks after Dundon’s email, Santander’s marketing and sales teams got involved, records show.

Matt Fitzgerald, Santander Consumer’s executive vice president of sales and marketing, described a conversation with Dundon about “stips,” or statements stipulating the borrower’s income, address and phone number have been verified.

“I just rode up the elevator with TD and he wants us to market (fax, e-mails, sale handout) the waiving of stips to all dealers,” Fitzgerald wrote on Jan. 30, 2013. “And he wants to see these communications by the end of the day.”

He added: “We can serve it up to dealers that due to their good performance of the loans, we have decided to waive these certain stips to make it easier for you to close deals.”

Mark Williams, a former Federal Reserve regulator who teaches finance at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business, reviewed the state’s summary of the company’s correspondence and said it was troubling that internal concerns seemed to go unheeded.

Williams described proof of income as one of the pillars of bank lending.

“To say, ‘Sure, I’ll give you a loan and we don’t even care whether you make income or not,’ or, ‘You don’t even have to state your income,’ that’s counter to just sound banking practices,” he said.

By early February of that year, the company was days away from announcing its new plan to car dealers, including a fax-based marketing plan and promotional flyer, ready for final approval.

“Flyer looks good,” Robert O’Brien, senior vice president at Santander, wrote on Tuesday, Feb. 5, “however the POI change will not be in the system until Thursday.”

He suggested holding off a couple of days. Then Rodgers, the company’s chief risk and compliance officer, chimed in again with a question.

“What is the POI Change?” she asked.

“Tom wants to waive POI as much as possible and build in pricing to cover the incremental risk,” O’Brien wrote back. O’Brien said that their tests showed the stated income was correct on most loans, and that they would continue to require proof of income for dealers with a history of problems. He said they found that requiring proof of income “reduces capture especially in the nearprime segment.”

In other words, the company felt it was limiting its business opportunities by forcing potential customers to prove they could afford to pay back a car loan. Any increase in risk created by the new approach would be made up through fees and interest rates.

“I am just trying to ensure we aren’t disparately treating any of our customer base,” Rodgers wrote to O’Brien on Feb. 5, 2013. Under fair lending laws, companies are not allowed to enact policies that would have disparate impacts on certain groups of customers, such as people of a particular race or gender.

Dundon is not listed as a recipient on the emails that Rodgers sent, and the degree to which her concerns may have been shared with him is unclear from the company emails obtained by OPB and ProPublica. 

However, in the slide presentation regulators gave to Santander Consumer, they  said the remarks O’Brien and Fitzgerald described Dundon making showed he continued to push for waiving proof of income even after Rodgers raised red flags on Jan. 21. The slides characterized Dundon as “ignoring this internal concern” from his company’s risk and compliance officer.

Oregon’s subsequent 2020 legal complaint against the company alleged Santander Consumer did not, as O’Brien’s email suggested it would, continue requiring proof of income from dealers with a history of fudging borrowers’ incomes as it launched its new approach.

“When Santander rolled out this change to its funding requirements, Santander did not bar those dealers identified as ‘problematic’ by Santander from using stated income on loan applications,” Oregon’s attorney general wrote in the 2020 complaint. “Santander’s decision to broadly market its new stated-income policy, even to dealers with a history of misstating income, led to a significant spike in the number of early payment defaults.”

Dundon’s 2015 departure from Santander Consumer came with a separation agreement of more than $700 million, including cash for stock he owned, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

Rodgers, Zemaitis and Chandrasekhar all left Santander Consumer and are currently listed as senior executives at Exeter Finance, a subprime car lender where a number of top Santander Consumer employees have landed.

They did not respond when OPB and ProPublica sent copies of the Santander Consumer correspondence in which they are named and requested comment. O’Brien and Fitzgerald are no longer alive.

Santander Consumer did not admit any wrongdoing as part of the settlement it paid to 33 states — including Oregon — and the District of Columbia.

Private Business, Public Money

Six years after the settlement, Dundon and his associates are playing hardball in negotiations with state and city leaders to secure public money to revamp Portland’s Moda Center.

Although sports arena renovations in some cities have been 100% taxpayer-financed, at least 10 — including in Atlanta; Phoenix; Jacksonville, Florida; and Cleveland — have been funded wholly or partially with private money during the past decade. Just north of Portland, Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena opened in 2021 after $1.15 billion in renovations that were entirely privately financed.

That same precedent exists in Portland: When the Moda Center opened in 1995 — back then it was Portland’s Rose Garden — Blazers owner Paul Allen got $34.5 million from the city of Portland but financed the rest of the $262 million construction himself.

Dundon, too, has offered private dollars as part of arena renovations in the past. In 2023, he agreed to a new arena lease in Raleigh, North Carolina, for his professional hockey team, the Carolina Hurricanes. Raleigh put $300 million toward the arena while Dundon committed to investing $800 million over 20 years toward developing an entertainment district in the surrounding area.

Portland was a different story.

According to a January chat group message from a city employee whose job is to manage sports venues, a consultant for the team and Dundon’s billionaire ownership group was asking for the public to cover 100% of the cost to renovate the Moda Center.

A phalanx of lobbyists hired by the Blazers, meanwhile, were telling state lawmakers they’d need a total of $600 million, starting this year.

“The assumption that the incoming ownership group can finance an additional $600 million for Moda Center — which is now a publicly-owned community asset is not possible,” lobbying materials from the Blazers stated.

After state and local leaders concluded that the team’s initial ask wasn’t nearly enough to cover rising construction costs, they bumped up the investment to $870 million.

Team representatives wrote in the lobbying material that the Blazers’ future in Portland was at stake — and that a departure would threaten the city’s turnaround from pandemic-era headlines about downtown retail vacancies and crime.

“If the Portland Trail Blazers leave Rip City,” team officials stated, “we are losing far more than the tax revenue the Blazers generate for the General Fund. It would have a devastating impact on the City’s national and international reputation and would feed the ‘doom loop’ narrative we have all been working to refute.”

The Blazers did not respond to emailed questions. When asked about the lobbying effort in a March 17 interview on OPB’s “Think Out Loud,” the Blazers’ President of Business Operations Dewayne Hankins said Dundon’s ownership group never explicitly told the team it would move without a public investment. But he noted that other cities are pushing hard to get an NBA team and said the Blazers had “heard rumblings” of interest.

“You have a team that has very few years left on their lease,” Hankins said of the Blazers. “You have a team that could potentially be portable.”

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson declined to say whether Dundon’s business history would affect the city’s ongoing negotiations with the Blazers after the late Paul Allen’s sister agreed to sell the team. The council plans to take up the issue of arena funding no later than this summer.

“Jody Allen chose to sell the team to the ownership group led by Tom Dundon,” Wilson said in a statement, echoing a point made by Oregon’s Senate president. “The City is not a decision maker in the process of approving franchise ownership changes; that authority lies exclusively with current team ownership and the NBA. The City will work in good faith with whoever owns the Trail Blazers.”

John Van Alst, senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center, said state and local officials should use caution in negotiating with someone whose business the state previously accused of violating consumer protection laws.

“If they’re willing to violate those rules, I’d be concerned about doing business with them,” Van Alst said.

Van Alst said leaders in Portland, far more so than people buying a car through a subprime lender like Santander Consumer or Exeter, have options at their disposal as they negotiate for the Blazers’ future.

“They have more resources to make good choices, hopefully, than a lot of folks do who get themselves tangled up in really bad subprime auto financing,” Van Alst said.

The post New Portland Trail Blazers Owner Played Key Role at Company Oregon Accused of Predatory Lending appeared first on ProPublica.

Concern that Iran was amassing missiles to overwhelm defenses was a key factor in the push for war, officials said, and recent strikes laid bare Israel’s vulnerability.

Susie Wiles was on plane and witnessed event, according to files shown to House judiciary committee

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Federal prosecutors examined whether Donald Trump showed a classified map to people on his plane after his first term, including to his now White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, according to justice department materials produced to the House judiciary committee.

The incident was described in a 13 January 2023 briefing memo prepared for the then attorney general, Merrick Garland – roughly six months before special counsel Jack Smith charged Trump with retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago club.

Triple J signed off with the hip-hop anthem Express Yourself while other radio and TV networks filled the air with BBC broadcasts, re-runs and soothing music

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Broadcasters had warned their audiences that the ABC would look “a bit different” on Wednesday – and as the clock struck 11am, they weren’t wrong.

As more than 2,000 ABC staff walked off the job for the first time in two decades in protest of their working conditions, the public broadcaster’s news channel switched over to the BBC.

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The fragility of the global food system fills me with dread – and the war with Iran has exposed just how close to collapse it is

The fate of environmentalists is to spend their lives trying not to be proved right. Vindication is what we dread. But there’s one threat that haunts me more than any other: the collapse of the global food system. We cannot predict what the immediate trigger might be. But the war with Iran is just the right kind of event.

Drawing on years of scientific data, I’ve been arguing for some time that this risk exists – and that governments are completely unprepared for it. In 2023, I made a submission to a parliamentary inquiry into environmental change and food security, with a vast list of references. Called as a witness, I spent much of the time explaining that the issue was much wider than the inquiry’s scope.

George Monbiot is a Guardian columnist

NASA is reportedly halting work on the lunar Gateway in favor of a more direct push to build a lunar base. The new plan would cost tens of billions over the next decade, though the change could face hurdles because Congress previously funded Gateway specifically. SpaceNews reports: "Starting today, we're building humanity's first deep space outpost," said Carlos Garcia-Galan, program executive for NASA's moon base effort. The lunar base will take place in three phases. Phase 1, running from 2026 to 2028, "is all about getting to the moon reliably," he said. That includes a significant increase in the cadence of lander missions through the Commercial Lunar Payload Services and other programs. It will also focus on developing enabling technologies and getting "ground truth" for potential base locations at the lunar south pole. Phase 2, from 2029 through 2031, starts building the base, he said. That would include building out communications, navigation, power and other infrastructure, developing larges CLPS cargo landers and supporting two crewed missions a year. Phase 3, beginning 2032, will enable "long distance and long duration human exploration" on the moon, he said, with routine logistics missions to the moon and uncrewed cargo return missions from the moon. Garcia-Galan said NASA foresees spending $10 billion each on Phases 1 and 2. Phase 3, lasting to at least 2036, would cost an additional $10 billion or more. The base would leverage existing programs, although with some changes. NASA is planning to revamp the Lunar Terrain Vehicle program after concluding the current approach would take too long to get a crew-capable rover to the moon. "We were projecting a delivery on the lunar surface by 2030," he said. The agency is instead issuing a draft request for proposals for simplified rovers that could be quicker and easier to develop but could be upgraded later. The base, though, would include some new capabilities and technologies. One example Garcia-Galan provided was MoonFall, a drone that would be able to hop from one location to another on the lunar surface. The drones will be "built on the legacy" of Ingenuity, the small Mars helicopter. "We're going to take everything that we learned from Ingenuity's systems, the avionics, all of that, to build this."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

President urges people to reduce consumption after power line passing through Ukraine damaged by drones; Moscow spring offensive steps up. What we know on day 1,491

Moldova declared a state of emergency in the energy sector after a key power line with Europe was disconnected following Russian strikes in Ukraine. The declaration comes into effect on Wednesday and lasts for 60 days. The prime minister, Alexandru Munteanu, appealed to people to “avoid unnecessary consumption, especially during peak hours” and “stay united”, according to a statement from parliament. The former Soviet republic imports electricity from neighbouring EU member Romania, mostly via a power cable that passes through southern Ukraine. Moldovan authorities said crashed drones had been identified in Ukraine near the line and that “demining operations” were needed before repairs could be done. Restoring the power line itself was expected to take up to seven days, the energy minister, Dorin Junghietu was quoted by the Moldovan media outlet Ziarul de Gardă as saying. “Russia alone bears responsibility,” the Moldovan president, Maia Sandu, wrote on X, while the foreign ministry also condemned the Russian attacks. Russia has frequently targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since it invaded its neighbour in 2022.

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has accused Russia of “absolute depravity” after Moscow fired an unprecedented daytime barrage across Ukraine, including on the historical centre of the western city of Lviv. “Iranian ‘shaheds’ [attack drones], modernised by Russia, are striking a church in Lviv – this is absolute depravity, and only someone like [Vladimir] Putin could find this appealing,” Zelenskyy said in his daily address. “The scale of this attack makes it abundantly clear that Russia has no intention of actually ending this war,” Zelenskyy added, vowing that Ukraine “will certainly respond to any attacks”.

Russia’s military said on Wednesday it had shot down 389 Ukrainian drones overnight in one of the largest attacks to date. Russian regions bordering Ukraine, as well as Moscow and northwestern Leningrad were the main areas targeted, according to the military.

Moscow appears to be stepping up a spring offensive intended to break Ukrainian resistance, writes Pjotr Sauer. Ukrainian officials said Moscow fired nearly 400 long-range drones and 23 cruise missiles overnight, followed by another 556 drones in an unusual daytime assault on Tuesday, hitting cities across the west of the country and killing at least seven people. Taken together, the barrage marks one of the largest aerial bombardments of Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion more than four years ago. One Russian drone struck the Bernardine monastery, a 16th-century church in Lviv’s Unesco-listed medieval centre, causing damage, local authorities said.

North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, said his country would always support Russia in a thank-you letter to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. Ties between the two have grown closer since Putin began the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with Pyongyang sending ground troops and weapons systems to aid Russia’s war effort. “I express my sincere thanks to you for sending warm and sincere congratulations first on my reassumption of the heavy duty as president of the state affairs,” Kim said in the message on Tuesday, the official Korean central news agency said. “Today the DPRK and Russia are closely cooperating to defend the sovereignty of the two countries,” Kim said, using the initials of the North’s official name. “Pyongyang will always be with Moscow. This is our choice and unshakable will,” he added. South Korean and western intelligence agencies have estimated that the North has sent thousands of soldiers to Russia, primarily to the Kursk region, along with artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems. Analysts say the assistance has been provided in exchange for Russia’s provision of food and weapons technologies.

President’s declaration allows officials to tackle fuel hoarding or profiteering, while energy secretary says country will lean more heavily on coal

• Middle East crisis – live updates

The Philippines president, Ferdinand Marcos, has declared a state of “national energy emergency” as a result of the Middle East war, which his administration said posed “an imminent danger of a critically low energy supply”.

The state of emergency, which will initially last for a year, was declared just hours after the country’s energy secretary said the Philippines planned to boost the output of its coal-fired power plants to keep electricity costs down as the war wreaks havoc with gas shipments.

• American No 4 seed beats Belinda Bencic 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 in quarter-final

• Gauff next faces 13th seed Karolína Muchová for a place in final

Coco Gauff may be struggling with an unfamiliar arm injury, indifferent form and the pressure of attempting to transform her serve with the entire tennis world watching, but the one quality that will never evade her is her fighting spirit.

Under far from ideal circumstances, Gauff’s mental toughness continues to guide her through the Miami Open draw and to her best ever result at her home town tournament. She navigated a path into the semi-finals for the first time in her career with an arduous 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 win over Bencic.

Dozens of former Israeli military, police and spy chiefs describe situation as ‘organised Jewish terrorism’

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Israel has not prosecuted its citizens for killing Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank since the start of this decade, a Guardian analysis of legal data and public records show, creating impunity for a campaign of violence.

Attacks have spurred former prime minister Ehud Olmert to call for an intervention by the international criminal court (ICC), to “save the Palestinians and us [Israelis]” from state-backed settler violence, carried out with the complicity and sometimes participation of the police and military.

I had to deal with energy shock in Germany after Putin invaded Ukraine. The solution now is the same: buy ourselves out of the fossil fuels trap

Yes, there are big differences between the war of aggression that Russia has now been waging against Ukraine for four years and the war the US and Israel launched against Iran. The biggest difference: the US is still a democracy. Even a president who considers himself all-powerful is not. From scathing press coverage to anger over high oil prices, fear of the midterm elections and – the capitalist form of democracy – falling stock prices, what people think makes a difference. That is why the US president is occasionally forced to change his mind. That is not the case in Russia.

Vladimir Putin had a clear plan: Russia wanted to occupy the whole of Ukraine and turn it into a satellite state or annex its territory. Putin was preparing for this war for years, in my view; this included a cheap energy trap into which he successfully lured Germany through the construction of Nord Stream 2 and the purchase of gas storage facilities and refineries by Gazprom and Rosneft.

A California sheriff running for governor has seized more than half a million ballots cast in a November special election from county election officials, saying he's investigating a ballot count discrepancy.

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• JD Vance role touted as Pakistan attempts to broker US-Iran peace talks

In Australia, the number of petrol stations running out of fuel continues to climb as the Middle East war drags on, with at least 184 dry across the country’s three most populous states.

On Tuesday, 51 service stations in the state of New South Wales were out of fuel and 164 out of diesel, compared with 38 and 131 respectively the previous day, premier Chris Minns said.

Moscow’s missteps offer a warning—and an opening—for Washington.

A pliant autocracy in Iran won’t solve America’s problems in the region.

How America and China can avoid the blunders that led to World War I.

The Justice Department's investigation of a $2.5 billion renovation project at the Federal Reserve found no evidence of a crime, a federal prosecutor privately conceded under questioning by a judge.

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 25.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: Hong Kong police can now demand phone or computer passwords from those who are suspected of breaching the wide-ranging National Security Law (NSL). Those who refuse could face up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $12,700, and individuals who provide "false or misleading information" could face up to three years in jail. It comes as part of new amendments to a bylaw under the NSL that the government gazetted on Monday. The NSL was introduced in Hong Kong in 2020, in wake of massive pro-democracy protests the year before. Authorities say the laws, which target acts like terrorism and secession, are necessary for stability -- but critics say they are tools to quash dissent. The new amendments also give customs officials the power to seize items that they deem to "have seditious intention." Monday's amendments ensure that "activities endangering national security can be effectively prevented, suppressed and punished, and at the same time the lawful rights and interests of individuals and organizations are adequately protected," Hong Kong authorities said on Monday. Changes to the bylaw was announced by the city's leader, John Lee, bypassing the city's legislative council. The NSL also allows for some trials to be heard behind closed doors.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Grammy winner seeks more than $20m in damages over mistranslation of The Lion King chant

A Grammy-winning South African composer who wrote and performed the opening chant in Circle of Life for Disney’s The Lion King is suing a comedian for allegedly damaging his reputation by intentionally misrepresenting the song’s meaning on a podcast and in his standup routine.

Lebohang Morake’s lawsuit accuses the Zimbabwean comedian Learnmore Mwanyenyeka, known as Learnmore Jonasi, of intentionally mistranslating the chant, which launches the 1994 movie and is central to staged versions as well as Disney’s 2019 remake.

Lawmakers and President Trump appear to be edging closer to a framework to wrap up the Department of Homeland Security shutdown — but a breakthrough has remained out of reach. CBS News contacted every House and Senate office to ask what they're doing to end the shutdown.

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Gregory Bovino, the customs and border protection (CBP) commander who led the agency’s aggressive anti-immigration push in Minneapolis before being sidelined by the White House, has decided to go out with a bang it would seem.

Having announced his forthcoming retirement from the CBP, the publicity-hungry Bovino – known for his florid statements – has given an interview to the New York Times that stresses defiance over contrition.

The report also recommends government do more to make tech companies liable for ‘psychosocial harms’

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Australia’s climate change and energy “information ecosystem” is fuelling conflict in communities, with misinformation and disinformation confusing the public, slowing renewable energy projects and undermining policy responses to the climate crisis, a cross-party Senate inquiry has concluded.

The inquiry’s final report, released on Tuesday evening, recommended the government do more to make tech companies liable for “psychosocial harms” spread on their platforms.

Panel denies attorney general’s bid after Riverside county sheriff Chad Bianco seized 650,000 special-election ballots

A three-judge panel has denied a filing by California’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, seeking a court order to stop the Riverside county sheriff’s department from continuing its recount of ballots from the November 2025 special election.

The LA Times reported that Bonta filed a petition with the fourth appellate district on Monday, writing that “the sheriff’s misguided investigation threatens to sow distrust and jeopardize public confidence” in upcoming elections.

March 24, 2026 — The Computing Research Association (CRA) Board of Directors has selected Dan Reed — Emeritus Presidential Professor in Computational Science at the University of Utah — as the recipient of the 2026 CRA Distinguished Service Award, recognizing his sustained and transformative contributions to the computing research community through technical innovation, national policy leadership, and extensive professional service.

Dan Reed

Across more than four decades, Reed has helped shape the evolution of high-performance computing, national cyberinfrastructure, and U.S. science and technology policy, with leadership roles spanning academia, industry, and government.

“Professor Reed’s contributions to the computer research community, coupled with his innovative individual research, extensive policy service, and his collaborative spirit have had significant positive impact for our community, sustained over four decades,” said Charlie Catlett, Senior Computer Scientist at Argonne National Laboratory.

Reed’s influence on the field has been widely recognized.

“Dr. Reed has been a global thought leader in advanced scientific computing for forty years,” said Jack Dongarra, Research Professor Emeritus at the University of Tennessee.

Through his technical achievements and policy leadership, Reed has played a pivotal role in advancing high-performance computing from a specialized capability into foundational infrastructure for science, commerce, and society.

A Career of Transformative Service

Reed’s career reflects a rare combination of deep technical impact and national leadership in computing research.

His contributions include:

• Shaping the Computing Research Community: As a member of the CRA Board of Directors (1998–2009) and Board Chair (2005–2009), Reed helped guide federal computing research strategy and led the proposal to create the Computing Community Consortium (CCC), fostering high-impact research and community visioning.
• Advancing National Cyberinfrastructure: As Director of NCSA and chief architect of the NSF-funded TeraGrid, Reed helped design one of the nation’s first distributed supercomputing infrastructures, laying the groundwork for today’s NSF XSEDE and ACCESS programs serving thousands of researchers.
• Influencing Science and Technology Policy: Reed has served on PITAC, PCAST, and numerous National Academies activities, and most recently chaired the National Science Board, where he helped secure passage of the CHIPS and Science Act while guiding NSF strategy on workforce, competitiveness, and research priorities.
• Bridging Academia, Industry, and Government: During his tenure at Microsoft, Reed led the Technology Policy Group and helped pioneer partnerships enabling NSF to provide Azure cloud resources to support academic research.

Supporters also emphasized the breadth of Reed’s impact across research, policy, and community leadership.

“Professor Reed (Dan) is an outstanding scientist, a community leader, and a mentor. His many foundational and translational research contributions, coupled with his policy leadership and national and community service, have helped transform the field of high-performance scientific computing over the years and helped shape national policy,” said Manish Parashar, Presidential Professor and Director of the Scientific Computing and Imaging Institute at the University of Utah.

About the Award

The CRA Distinguished Service Award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding service contributions to the computing research community in government affairs, professional societies, publications, conferences, and leadership.

The CRA Committee on Awards – Selection reviews nominations and recommends recipients to the CRA Board of Directors, which votes on the awardees at its February Board meeting.

Recognizing a Computing Research Leader

Please join CRA in celebrating Daniel A. Reed’s exceptional contributions to the computing research community. If you have worked with him or benefited from his leadership, consider sharing this announcement and reflecting on how his work has helped shape the field.

More from HPCwire: 35 HPC Legends Daniel Reed

Source: Matt Hazenbush, CRA

The post Dan Reed Wins 2026 CRA Distinguished Service Award appeared first on HPCwire.

The orders follow weeks of speculation about whether the 82nd Airborne Division would join the war, after its headquarters unit abruptly pulled out of a training exercise this month.

President continues to tout ‘very good’ talks with Iran, which Iranian officials continue to deny – key US politics stories from 24 March 2026 at a glance

Donald Trump declared victory in his war on Iran on Tuesday amid reports that the US is in the process of deploying about 1,000 more soldiers to the region as the president touts “very good” talks with Iran are ongoing. Iranian officials continue to deny that.

Iranian barrages targeted Israel, Gulf Arab states and northern Iraq on Tuesday, while Israeli and US warplanes continued to carry out strikes across Tehran and on other targets in the Islamic Republic. Israel indicated that it planned to occupy control over swaths of southern Lebanon in what one Hezbollah official told Reuters was an “existential threat” to the Lebanese state.

Sophomore season brings new characters, more energy and more blood, making for a can't-miss watch.

Growing numbers of young voters are signing up to the Māori electoral roll as debate flares over the need for dedicated seats ahead of November’s election

More young people have signed up to vote in Māori electorates, new figures from the electoral commission show, as New Zealand prepares for an election this year.

The rise comes after years of tense relations between Indigenous New Zealanders and the centre-right coalition government. The latest figures show 58% of eligible 18- to 24-year-olds have registered for the Māori roll, up from 50% in 2023.

The pilots killed in a collision between a jetliner and a fire truck on a New York runway have been identified as Capt. Antoine Forest and First Officer Mackenzie Gunther.

Arielle Konig took the stand to testify against her husband, anesthesiologist Gerhardt Konig, exactly one year after he allegedly tried to kill her by pushing her off a cliff during a hike in Hawaii.

Democrat Emily Gregory won a special election for a Florida state House seat on Tuesday, flipping a district that is home to President Trump's estate, Mar-a-Lago.

This Android smartphone with a tactile QWERTY keyboard has already raised over $2.1 million.

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle for March 25, No. 1,740.

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for March 25 #1018.

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for March 25, No. 752.

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for March 25 No. 548.

President Trump said several members of his administration were involved in talks with Iran about the ongoing war.

A judge sharply questioned a lawyer for the federal government on Tuesday over the Pentagon's efforts to cut Anthropic's AI out of its classified systems.

Centre-left coalition appears likely as Social Democrats and other left-leaning parties win 84 seats, while right-leaning bloc wins 77 seats

Mette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats and Denmark’s other left-leaning parties appear to have failed to win enough votes to gain a clear mandate to form a government in an election fought amid geopolitical tensions with the US over Greenland.

With 100% of the vote counted in the early hours of Wednesday morning, the prime minister’s party won the most votes but performed worse than expected, with nearly 22% of the vote, leaving the Social Democrats and the other left-leaning parties that form the “red bloc” with 84 seats short of a majority in the 179-seat parliament.

Apple is testing a standalone Siri app, a new interface and deeper AI features for this year's software update, Bloomberg reports.

Democrats have vowed to keep forcing votes on the issue as they seek public testimony from administration officials.

Mette Frederiksen’s red bloc wins 84 seats, blue bloc wins 77 seats and Moderates win 14 seats

• Denmark election: far right has slowed under Frederiksen – but at what cost?

in Copenhagen

The far-right Danish People’s Party (DPP) is attempting to win over voters by paying for their petrol.

“We would like to contribute to the debate about fuel prices, but we do not really have a desire to be party political.”

The landmark decision comes after a nearly seven-week trial. Jurors sided with state prosecutors who argued that Meta prioritized profits over safety.

Democrats are pushing for reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement as the Senate appeared to be closing in on a deal to fund the Department of Homeland Security.

New Mexico hails ‘historic’ win after jury finds firm misled consumers over safety and enabled harm against users

A New Mexico jury on Tuesday ordered Meta to pay $375m in civil penalties after it found the company misled consumers about the safety of its platforms and enabled harm, including child sexual exploitation, against its users.

This is the first jury trial to find Meta liable for acts committed on its platform.

Nathan Newby set to receive George Medal for stopping a potential atrocity with an act of kindness

A hospital patient who managed to talk a man out of detonating a bomb in a maternity wing said the would-be attacker “asked for a cuddle” before standing down.

Nathan Newby, who stopped an atrocity through an act of kindness, spoke publicly for the first time about his encounter with Mohammad Farooq before receiving the George Medal for bravery.

Nearly a thousand pounds of steak went into the meaty effort, and TSA agents, unpaid for weeks, ate the results

Philadelphia has set a world record for the “Longest Line of Cheesesteaks”, with 1,200ft of the city’s iconic sandwich stretching across the B/C connectors at the Philadelphia international airport (PHL).

The airport achieved the record on Tuesday with help from more than 100 employees and volunteers, who assembled foot-long rolls using 990lbs of Philly’s Best Steak and 225lbs of cheese sauce. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the full line took about an hour to complete.

DoD announces ‘interim’ policy for journalists decried by newspaper as ‘end-run around the court’s ruling’

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The New York Times on Tuesday accused the Pentagon of disobeying a judge’s ruling that undid much of the restrictive agreement journalists were forced to sign or lose access to the building.

The judge, Paul Friedman, granted an injunction on Friday that overturned much of the language in the “media in-brief” document that had so concerned many news organizations that cover the Pentagon that almost all journalists chose instead to give back their press badges. He also ordered that seven journalists from the Times be returned their badges.

Linux gamers are seeing massive performance gains with Wine's new NTSYNC support, "which is a feature that has been years in the making and rewrites how Wine handles one of the most performance-sensitive operations in modern gaming," reports XDA Developers. Not every game will see a night-and-day difference, but for the games that do benefit from these changes, "the improvements range from noticeable to absurd." Combined with improvements to Wayland, graphics, and compatibility, as well as a major WoW64 architecture overhaul, the release looks less like an incremental update and more like one of Wine's most important upgrades in years. From the report: The numbers are wild. In developer benchmarks, Dirt 3 went from 110.6 FPS to 860.7 FPS, which is an impressive 678% improvement. Resident Evil 2 jumped from 26 FPS to 77 FPS. Call of Juarez went from 99.8 FPS to 224.1 FPS. Tiny Tina's Wonderlands saw gains from 130 FPS to 360 FPS. As well, Call of Duty: Black Ops I is now actually playable on Linux, too. Those benchmarks compare Wine NTSYNC against upstream vanilla Wine, which means there's no fsync or esync either. Gamers who use fsync are not going to see such a leap in performance in most games. The games that benefit most from NTSYNC are the ones that were struggling before, such as titles with heavy multi-threaded workloads where the synchronization overhead was a genuine bottleneck. For those games, the difference is night and day. And unlike fsync, NTSYNC is in the mainline kernel, meaning you don't need any custom patches or out-of-tree modules for it work. Any distro shipping kernel 6.14 or later, which at this point includes Fedora 42, Ubuntu 25.04, and more recent releases, will support it. Valve has already added the NTSYNC kernel driver to SteamOS 3.7.20 beta, loading the module by default, and an unofficial Proton fork, Proton GE, already has it enabled. When Valve's official Proton rebases on Wine 11, every Steam Deck owner gets this for free. All of this is what makes NTSYNC such a big deal, as it's not simply a run-of-the-mill performance patch. Instead, it's something much bigger: this is the first time Wine's synchronization has been correct at the kernel level, implemented in the mainline Linux kernel, and available to everyone without jumping through hoops.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

After breaking heat records in 14 states, the heat wave pummeling the Southwest is moving eastward.

A command element and some ground forces are expected to be part of the Middle East deployment, according to a source familiar with the planning.

Tech firm ‘says goodbye’ to Sora, made publicly available in 2024, just six months after its launch of a stand-alone app

In an abrupt announcement on Tuesday, OpenAI said it was “saying goodbye” to its AI video generator Sora. The move comes just six months after the company’s splashy launch of a stand-alone app where people could make and share hyper-realistic AI videos in a scrolling social feed.

“To everyone who created with Sora, shared it, and built community around it: thank you,” the company wrote in a post on X. “What you made with Sora mattered, and we know this news is disappointing.”

The New Mexico ruling comes as a Los Angeles jury is still debating whether Meta's social media platforms are addictive to children.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has said the SAVE America Act “could disenfranchise over 20 million American citizens,” while Republicans dispute that the voter registration and ID bill would block any legitimate voters. Election experts say the bill, which isn’t expected to pass, would make it difficult for some unknown number of voters to register and cast a vote.

At times, Schumer has used more definitive language about the bill’s impact, saying that “more than 20 million legitimate people … will not be able to vote under this law” or that it “would disenfranchise tens of millions of people.”

Walter Olson, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute’s Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies, told us the legislation wouldn’t meet the dictionary definition of “disenfranchise,” which is to “deprive a person of the right to vote.” But it would, as described by Democratic Sen. Patty Murray, “‘make it harder and more expensive for [many people] to [register and] vote,'” Olson said in an email. “That extra hassle and expense would mean that some citizens eligible to register and vote will in practice not complete the needed process even though the bill does not take away their legal right to register or to vote.

“How many eligible people will fail to complete the process? Any estimate is guesswork at this stage in part because it depends on factors that the bill itself leaves unspecified,” he said.

Schumer’s 20 million figure comes from an estimate of the number of voting age Americans who don’t have easy access to citizenship documents that the bill would require to register to vote. According to a 2023 survey by New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice and other groups, more than 9% of Americans of voting age, or 21.3 million people, wouldn’t be able to “quickly find” documents such as a passport, birth certificate or naturalization papers if they “had to show it tomorrow.” More than 3.8 million of those people don’t have those documents, the survey found.

That doesn’t mean that at least some of those Americans couldn’t obtain or find proof of citizenship in order to register to vote under the legislation. But some could find the process too onerous to complete, experts say. Under the bill, citizenship documents also would need to be presented in person to an election official if registering to vote for the first time or reregistering after moving, changing one’s name or making other changes to voter registration.

Eliza Sweren-Becker, deputy director of the voting rights and elections program at the Brennan Center for Justice, told us that “it’s definitely safe to say that millions of Americans would be blocked from voting” by the bill’s registration requirements, among other provisions. She noted that tens of millions of Americans register or update their registrations in the two years before elections. More than 103 million did so in the two years before the 2024 election, according to survey reports by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

“As many as 21 million could be stopped from voting” under the SAVE America Act, she said, because they lack ready access to a passport, birth certificate or naturalization document required under the bill for voter registration.

Schumer has repeatedly used the 20 million estimate, adding that these voters could be purged from the voter rolls and not know about it until they showed up to vote, at times linking this to a requirement under the bill for states to use a Department of Homeland Security database to remove noncitizens. “Our objection is it’s a voter suppression bill. Twenty million, maybe more people, when they show up to vote … will be told, you’re off the rolls. That’s the problem with the bill,” Schumer said in a March 17 press conference.

On the Senate floor the same day, the Democratic leader said, “It could purge millions of American citizens from the voter rolls through a screening algorithm designed by Elon Musk’s DOGE squad. It could disenfranchise over 20 million American citizens.”

The DHS database is known to have wrongly flagged as noncitizens some Americans who are, in fact, citizens. But the extent of those flaws is unclear — as is how voters might be notified and purged from voter rolls under the legislation.

Republican Sen. John Cornyn objected to Schumer’s remarks. On the Senate floor on March 19, Cornyn said that Schumer’s “general argument that American citizens would be denied the opportunity to vote is patently false. Thirty-eight states, including states like Georgia and Rhode Island, currently represented by Democrats, require voter ID. Are those states suppressing the vote? Is the minority leader suggesting that 38 out of our 50 states are actively engaged in voter suppression? Well, that is preposterous on its face.”

“So the idea that the SAVE America Act will disenfranchise legitimate voters is a bald-faced—well, let me try to be generous. It is not true, and he knows it,” Cornyn said, adding that Schumer was telling “people who may not be informed about the details of this that we are trying to take away their right to vote.”

Cornyn is nearly correct on the number: 36 states have some form of voter ID laws. But the requirements in the bill before the Senate are “stricter” than most of those state laws, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

We’ll explain what the bill would require for registering and casting votes, and how this could affect voters. (For more, see our article “Q&A on the SAVE America Act.”)

The SAVE America Act passed the House in February, and the Senate began debate on the bill on March 17. Similar legislation in recent years has failed to pass the Senate. A proposed Senate amendment would impose more restrictions on voting by mail, eliminating universal mail-in voting and only allowing mail ballots in certain cases, such as illness or disability, travel, or military service. Here, we describe the bill as it passed the House.

Registering to Vote

Republicans say the bill is needed to prevent noncitizens from voting in federal elections, though election experts say, and state audits have shown, this is rare.

Current federal law requires those registering to vote to attest that they are citizens under penalty of perjury. The SAVE America Act would require documentary proof, presented in person to election officials, for those registering or reregistering to vote.

This would happen “any time you conduct what we call a registration transaction, which usually comes from a life event, a move or a change of name,” David Becker, founder and executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation & Research, which works with election officials throughout the country, said in a March 18 media briefing.

For most people, this would likely mean showing a U.S. passport or a certified birth certificate along with a driver’s license or government-issued photo ID. As we’ve explained, the bill stipulates elements the birth certificate must have, such as a government seal.

Some voters could prove citizenship with other documents. A REAL ID driver’s license doesn’t typically show citizenship, but five states issue REAL IDs that do. Also acceptable under the bill: a military ID and service record that says the person was born in the U.S., or a government-issued photo ID that shows a U.S. birthplace. Those with government-issued photo IDs that don’t indicate citizenship would also need either the certified birth certificate or a hospital birth record, adoption decree, a consular birth report, a naturalization certificate, or an American Indian card with the classification “KIC,” which designates U.S. citizenship for Mexican-born members of the Kickapoo tribes of Texas and Oklahoma. 

As we said, surveys show millions of Americans could have trouble producing the proper citizenship documents. In addition to the 2023 survey Schumer has cited, the Bipartisan Policy Center, in analyzing the 2024 Survey on the Performance of American Elections, found that 12% of registered voters, the equivalent of 28.4 million citizens of voting age, lacked either a valid passport or a birth certificate they could easily find along with a valid government-issued photo ID.

For those who do have the proper documents, the requirement to show them “in person” could dissuade others from registering to vote. The bill says that people registering by mail won’t be registered unless they present “documentary proof of United States citizenship in person to the office of the appropriate election official.”

Sweren-Becker said that this in-person requirement would be “especially hard” for “working parents, people with disabilities, elderly voters, voters who live in rural areas.”

The bill calls for states to make unspecified “reasonable accommodations” for people with disabilities.

Republican Sen. Mike Lee said on the Senate floor on March 19 that claims about the legislation disenfranchising voters were wrong. “Ideally” Americans have the proper documents, he said, but “even if you do not have a single shred of documentation as to your citizenship — you can’t find it, it burned down, whatever it is — all you have to do is swear an affidavit.”

“The state is in a very good position to track down the details of the affidavit and easily confirm or refute what the person says,” Lee said.

The bill does provide a process for those who don’t have the required documents. It says: “Subject to any relevant guidance adopted by the Election Assistance Commission, each State shall establish a process under which an applicant who cannot provide documentary proof of United States citizenship … may, if the applicant signs an attestation under penalty of perjury that the applicant is a citizen of the United States and eligible to vote in elections for Federal office, submit such other evidence to the appropriate State or local official demonstrating that the applicant is a citizen of the United States and such official shall make a determination as to whether the applicant has sufficiently established United States citizenship for purposes of registering to vote in elections for Federal office in the State.”

The election official making that determination also would need to sign an affidavit “swearing or affirming the applicant sufficiently established United States citizenship for purposes of registering to vote.”

There’s a similar process for people whose names differ from their documents, such as married women who changed their names. They can provide “additional documentation” on the name discrepancy or sign an affidavit.

Olson said there’s uncertainty about these alternative methods of citizenship verification. Will they “be relatively easy and generous, accepting common sorts of documents and an uncomplicated sworn statement that most eligible persons will feel comfortable signing?” he asked.

States’ procedures will be governed by guidance from the Election Assistance Commission, the bill says, an independent agency that has two commissioners appointed by Trump and two appointed by former President Barack Obama.

“In short, we aren’t going to find out what the bill does on many key questions until after we pass it into law and the EAC begins issuing guidance,” Olson said. “One of the reasons I am critical of the bill is that I don’t believe we should be asked to take it on faith that the EAC will issue practical guidance in good faith. If the EAC is going to issue guidance that causes an uproar because it sets requirements many legitimate voters cannot meet, we should know that now, not later.”

Sweren-Becker said that the affidavit method “is only available if a state or local election official deems that the registered has sufficiently established U.S. citizenship … so it leaves an enormous amount of discretion in local and state election officials’ hands.” The bill also would impose criminal penalties and civil liability on election officials who register someone “who fails to present documentary proof of United States citizenship,” the legislation says. “So in practice,” she said, election officials “will face a lot of pressure to construe it [the affidavit method] very, very, very narrowly out of rightful concern about their own liability,” Sweren-Becker said.

Becker, in the March 18 briefing, said the legislation “would incredibly negatively impact voters across the political spectrum. … I don’t think there’s anyone who can say definitively, if this were to pass, which party would be hurt more by it,” he said. “I think it’s highly likely that Republicans would likely be more hurt” than Democratic voters, “because a lot of the voters who have difficulty digging up their documentary proof of citizenship are Republicans.”

Casting a Vote

In pushing back on Schumer’s comments about disenfranchisement, Cornyn spoke about the bill’s photo ID requirements for casting a vote. “Thirty-eight states, including states like Georgia and Rhode Island, currently represented by Democrats, require voter ID,” he said.

As we said, 36 states do have some form of voter ID laws, but the SAVE America Act is “stricter” than most of them, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The Republican bill would require “a valid physical photo identification” in order to cast a ballot in person. Those voting by mail would need to submit a copy of a photo ID, or the last four numbers of their Social Security number and an affidavit saying that they couldn’t obtain a copy of their ID.

A valid photo ID under the bill includes: a state-issued driver’s license or ID card issued by the motor vehicle agency that includes a photo and expiration date, a U.S. passport, a military ID, or a photo ID issued by a tribal government that includes an expiration date. There are exceptions for overseas uniformed services members and those who have the right to vote absentee via the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act.

The NCSL said most states’ laws are less strict. “Currently, each state determines the types of ID acceptable to vote, and that often includes student IDs, hunting and fishing licenses or other state-specific identification cards,” it said in a post on its website updated in March.

Thirteen states also accept non-photo identification, such as a bank statement. NCSL classified 10 of the voter ID states as having “strict photo ID” laws.

Georgia is one of them, but it still accepts a broader range of documents than the SAVE America Act would. Georgia accepts a student ID from a public college in the state, an expired state driver’s license, an employee photo ID from a government entity, or a free voter ID card issued by the state, among other documents, the Georgia Secretary of State’s office explains. To get an absentee ballot, a voter submits the number on a driver’s license or state-issued ID card, or a photo or copy of another listed ID, or a document that shows a name and address, such as a utility bill, bank statement or paycheck.

NCSL puts Rhode Island in its “non-strict photo ID” category, along with 13 other states. Rhode Island also issues free voter ID cards and accepts “ID issued by a U.S. educational institution,” the state Board of Elections says. No ID is required to cast a ballot by mail.

When we asked Cornyn’s office about his comments, a spokesperson pointed to some of his other remarks, including a March 19 post on X, which said: “These tactics are nothing more than fearmongering by Dems who are objecting to this because they want to make it easier for people to cheat. In a country with citizens bright enough to put a man on the moon and to build the strongest, most powerful military & the greatest economy the world has ever known, Americans are smart enough and capable enough to be able to locate their driver’s license when they cast a ballot and to establish their citizenship in order to qualify to vote. Any suggestion to the contrary is ridiculous.”

Purging Voter Rolls

Schumer also objected to the bill’s provision requiring states to submit their voter rolls to DHS’ Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements program and remove noncitizens from their rolls. The legislation “could purge millions of American citizens from the voter rolls,” Schumer said in the March 17 press conference. He later added: “Our objection is it’s a voter suppression bill. Twenty million, maybe more people, when they show up to vote … will be told, you’re off the rolls.”

On the Senate floor that same day, he repeated the idea that people could be removed from voter rolls and not know about it until they try to cast a vote. “The way this works, you don’t have to be notified if you’re kicked off the rolls. You show up on Election Day and they say, ‘We’re sorry Mr. Smith, Ms. Jones, you’re not on the rolls anymore.’ And then they make it impossible to re-register. Certainly, on that day you lose your right to vote,” the senator said.

In March 15 remarks, he said the bill’s requirements for states to use the DHS system “will purge tens of millions of people from the voter rolls. Once purged, you don’t even know it.”

There are a couple of provisions regarding purging voters. The first requires states to use the DHS system “for the purposes of identifying individuals who are not citizens of the United States and taking the necessary steps to remove such individuals who are not citizens from the official list, after notice is given to such individuals and such individuals are given the opportunity to provide documentary proof of United States citizenship.” As we’ve explained, the DHS system has been shown to have flaws and has wrongly identified people as being noncitizens.

When we asked Schumer’s office about the language in the bill, a spokesperson said the bill included “a requirement that they [voters] be told they have been flagged,” but no requirements about what form the notice would take or the “length of time” people would be given to respond. And there’s “no language in the bill about notice to the voter that they have been purged,” the spokesperson said.

The bill doesn’t provide more details on how states should give “notice” and an opportunity to dispute incorrect information before removing people from the rolls; nor does it say people should be notified again before being purged.

There’s another provision in the bill that says states could remove someone “at any time.” It says: “A State shall remove an individual who is not a citizen of the United States from the official list of eligible voters for elections for Federal office held in the State at any time upon receipt of documentation or verified information that a registrant is not a United States citizen.” That provision doesn’t say anything about a notice given before removing someone.

Election experts told us there’s ambiguity in the bill regarding these provisions. We reached out to the offices of Sen. Lee and Rep. Chip Roy, the authors of the legislation, about this issue, but we haven’t yet received a response.

“[I]t’s not obvious that all of the ways people will be removed from the rolls will be subject by the SAVE Act to notice and an opportunity to respond,” Justin Levitt, a professor of constitutional law at Loyola Marymount University’s law school, told us in an email. “I’d think there are constitutional protections that would kick in, but they’re not explicit in the statute, and that’d take someone litigating.” Levitt, who briefly was a White House senior policy adviser on voting rights during the Biden administration, said the bill “seems to contemplate at least some people being kicked off the rolls without being told,” though this could be a mistake in the drafting of the bill.

“As for how many, it’s a question I can’t answer,” he said, explaining that it depends on the accuracy of the SAVE database and how the process of comparing voter rolls works.

Olson told us that the provision on using the DHS SAVE system “appears to establish protections (notification and a chance to contest removal by supplying documents)” for voters flagged for removal under that system. But “some other persons removed from the voter rolls may not have rights to notification and challenge unless their states have separately legislated to provide such rights,” he said, pointing to the provision on states removing noncitizens “at any time.”

“So far as I can tell, this means that anyone, including the federal government or some private person or group, can send ‘documentation or verified information’ to a state that a certain person, or a list of persons, on its voter rolls are not U.S. citizens. The state then ‘shall’ remove them,” Olson said. “So long as this is not being done by the method carved out for the SAVE database and its intersection with state voter rolls in federal possession, I don’t see where the bill provides any assurance of notification.”

Sweren-Becker had the same reading of the bill. “Absolutely, I think that the second provision … indicates that people could be removed, but on the basis that something has flagged them as a noncitizen, without notice to the voter or an opportunity to provide evidence of their citizenship,” she told us. “And it is also important to note that it is very unclear what ‘documentation or verified information’ means” and from what sources. “I think there’s a risk that election officials may receive, essentially, purge lists generated by activist groups who are not doing careful list matching.”

As for how many legitimate voters could be removed from voter rolls through this process, “I don’t know how to hazard a guess there,” Sweren-Becker said, noting that “shoddy” purge lists by activist groups have listed thousands of people.

Schumer, however, has gone as far as saying that, under the bill, 20 million could be wrongly purged without knowing they were removed from the voter rolls. But that figure comes from the estimate of those lacking easy access to a passport, birth certificate or naturalization papers. It’s not an estimate of voters who could be purged without their knowledge.

Editor’s note: FactCheck.org does not accept advertising. We rely on grants and individual donations from people like you. Please consider a donation. Credit card donations may be made through our “Donate” page. If you prefer to give by check, send to: FactCheck.org, Annenberg Public Policy Center, P.O. Box 58100, Philadelphia, PA 19102. 

The post Competing Claims on SAVE America Act Disenfranchising Voters appeared first on FactCheck.org.

OpenAI said Tuesday that it will discontinue the company's Sora app, which let users create AI-generated videos.

LaGuardia’s air traffic control tower failed to recognize it had granted permission for a plane and an emergency vehicle to use the same runway, officials said.

Google is expanding Android Automotive from the infotainment screen into the broader non-safety "brain" of software-defined vehicles. With its new Android Automotive OS for Software-Defined Vehicles, the in-car experience will feel "much more cohesive and the latest features will reach your driveway faster," Matt Crowley, Android Automotive's group product manager, writes in a blog post. "From a truly integrated voice experience to proactive maintenance reminders, your car will become a true extension of your digital life," Crowley adds. The Verge reports: With its new software, Google is promising faster over-the-air software updates, better voice assistants, and more proactive vehicle maintenance alerts. Non-driving functions like climate control, lighting, and seating adjustment would fall under Android's control. And the system would move beyond basic infotainment to create a unified ecosystem for features like remote cabin conditioning, digital key management, and personalized driver profiles. For automakers, the new system promises less expensive software development costs and an opportunity to focus on what matters most to them: branding. By providing the "foundational code and a common language for their software," Google says automakers will be free to design cool experiences for their customers. Google says its already working with companies like Renault Group and Qualcomm to bring its new software-defined vehicle version of Android Automotive to more cars. A variety of automakers already use regular Android Automotive, like Volvo, Polestar, General Motors, Nissan, and Honda.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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March 24, 2026 — There’s a pattern in how complex technology matures. Early on, teams make their own choices: different tools, different abstractions, different ways of reasoning about failure. It looks like flexibility but at scale it reveals itself as fragmentation. The fix is never just more capability; it’s shared operational philosophy. Kubernetes proved this. It didn’t just answer “how do we run containers?” It answered “how do we change running systems safely?” The community built those patterns, hardened them, and made them the baseline.

Credit: Shutterstock

AI infrastructure is still in the chaotic phase. The shift from “working versus broken” to “good answers versus bad answers” is a fundamentally different operational problem, and it won’t get solved with more tooling. It gets solved the way cloud-native did: open source creating the shared interfaces and community pressure that replace individual judgment with documented, reproducible practice.

That’s what Microsoft is building toward. Since the last update at KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2025, Microsoft has continued investing across open-source AI infrastructure, multi-cluster operations, networking, observability, storage, and cluster lifecycle. At KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe 2026 in Amsterdam, the company is sharing several announcements that reflect that same goal: bring the operational maturity of Kubernetes to the workloads and demands of today.

Building the Open Source Foundation for AI on Kubernetes

The convergence of AI and Kubernetes infrastructure means that gaps in AI infrastructure and gaps in Kubernetes infrastructure are increasingly the same gaps. A significant part of the upstream work this cycle has been building the primitives that make GPU-backed workloads first-class citizens in the cloud-native ecosystem.

On the scheduling side, Microsoft has been collaborating with industry partners to advance open standards for hardware resource management. Key milestones include:

• Dynamic Resource Allocation (DRA) has graduated to general availability, with the DRA example driver and DRA Admin Access also shipping as part of that work.
• Workload Aware Scheduling for Kubernetes 1.36 adds DRA support in the Workload API and drives integration into KubeRay, making it more straightforward for developers to request and manage high-performance infrastructure for training and inference.
• DRANet now includes upstream compatibility for Azure RDMA Network Interface Cards (NICs), extending DRA-based network resource management to high-performance hardware where GPU-to-NIC topology alignment directly affects training performance.

Beyond scheduling, Microsoft has continued investing in the tooling needed to deploy, operate, and secure AI workloads on Kubernetes:

• AI Runway is a new open-source project that introduces a common Kubernetes API for inference workloads, giving platform teams a centralized way to manage model deployments and adopt new serving technologies as the ecosystem evolves. It ships with a web interface for users who shouldn’t need to know Kubernetes to deploy a model, along with built-in HuggingFace model discovery, GPU memory fit indicators, real-time cost estimates, and support for runtimes including NVIDIA Dynamo, KubeRay, llm-d, and KAITO.
• HolmesGPT has joined the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) as a Sandbox project, bringing agentic troubleshooting capabilities into the shared cloud-native tooling ecosystem.
• Dalec, a newly onboarded CNCF project, defines declarative specifications for building system packages and producing minimal container images, with support for SBOM generation and provenance attestations at build time. Reducing attack surface and common vulnerabilities and exposures at the build stage matters for any organization trying to run AI workloads responsibly at scale.
• Cilium also received a broad set of Microsoft contributions this cycle, including native mTLS ztunnel support for sidecarless encrypted workload communication, Hubble metrics cardinality controls for managing observability costs at scale, flow log aggregation to reduce storage volume, and two merged Cluster Mesh Cilium Feature Proposals (CFPs) advancing cross-cluster networking.

What’s New in Azure Kubernetes Service

In addition to Microsoft’s upstream contributions, Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) has new capabilities across networking and security, observability, multi-cluster operations, storage, and cluster lifecycle management.

From IP-based controls to identity-aware networking

As Kubernetes deployments grow more distributed, IP-based networking becomes harder to reason about: visibility degrades, security policies grow difficult to audit, and encrypting workload communication has historically required either a full-service mesh or a significant amount of custom work. Microsoft’s networking updates this cycle close that gap by moving security and traffic intelligence to the application layer, where it’s both more meaningful and easier to operate.

Azure Kubernetes Application Network gives teams mutual TLS, application-aware authorization, and detailed traffic telemetry across ingress and in-cluster communication, with built-in multi-region connectivity. The result is identity-aware security and real traffic insight without the overhead of running a full-service mesh. For teams managing the deprecation of ingress-nginx, Application Routing with Meshless Istio provides a standards-based path forward: Kubernetes Gateway API support without sidecars, continued support for existing ingress-nginx configurations, and contributions to ingress2gateway for teams moving incrementally.

At the data plane level, WireGuard encryption with the Cilium data plane secures node-to-node traffic efficiently and without application changes. Cilium mTLS in Advanced Container Networking Services extends that to pod-to-pod communication using X.509 certificates and SPIRE for identity management: authenticated, encrypted workload traffic without sidecars. Rounding this out, Pod CIDR expansion removes a long-standing operational constraint by allowing clusters to grow their pod IP ranges in place rather than requiring a rebuild, and administrators can now disable HTTP proxy variables for nodes and pods without touching control plane configuration.

Visibility that matches the complexity of modern clusters

Operating Kubernetes at scale is only manageable with clear, consistent visibility into infrastructure, networking, and workloads. Two persistent gaps Microsoft has been closing are GPU telemetry and network traffic observability, both of which become more critical as AI workloads move into production.

Teams running GPU workloads have often had a significant monitoring blind spot: GPU utilization simply wasn’t visible alongside standard Kubernetes metrics without manual exporter configuration. AKS now surfaces GPU performance and utilization directly into managed Prometheus and Grafana, putting GPU telemetry into the same stack teams are already using for capacity planning and alerting. On the network side, per-flow L3/L4 and supported L7 visibility across HTTP, gRPC, and Kafka traffic is now available, including IPs, ports, workloads, flow direction, and policy decisions, with a new Azure Monitor experience that brings built-in dashboards and one-click onboarding. For teams dealing with the inverse problem (metric volume rather than metric gaps) operators can now dynamically control which container-level metrics are collected using Kubernetes custom resources, keeping dashboards focused on actionable signals. Agentic container networking adds a web-based interface that translates natural-language queries into read-only diagnostics using live telemetry, shortening the path from “something’s wrong” to “here’s what to do about it.”

Simpler operations across clusters and workloads

For organizations running workloads across multiple clusters, cross-cluster networking has historically meant custom plumbing, inconsistent service discovery, and limited visibility across cluster boundaries. Azure Kubernetes Fleet Manager now addresses this with cross-cluster networking through a managed Cilium cluster mesh, providing unified connectivity across AKS clusters, a global service registry for cross-cluster service discovery, and intelligent routing with configuration managed centrally rather than repeated per cluster.

On the storage side, clusters can now consume storage from a shared Elastic SAN pool rather than provisioning and managing individual disks per workload. This simplifies capacity planning for stateful workloads with variable demands and reduces provisioning overhead at scale.

For teams that need a more accessible entry point to Kubernetes itself, AKS desktop is now generally available. It brings a full AKS experience to the desktop, making it straightforward for developers to run, test, and iterate on Kubernetes workloads locally with the same configuration they’ll use in production.

Safer upgrades and faster recovery

The cost of a bad upgrade compounds quickly in production, and recovery from one has historically been time-consuming and stressful. Several updates this cycle focus specifically on making cluster changes safer, more observable, and more reversible.

Blue-green agent pool upgrades create a parallel pool with the new configuration rather than applying changes in place, so teams can validate behavior before shifting traffic and maintain a clear rollback path if something looks wrong. Agent pool rollback complements this by allowing teams to revert a node pool to its previous Kubernetes version and node image when problems surface after an upgrade (without a full rebuild). Together, these give operators meaningful control over the upgrade lifecycle rather than a choice between “upgrade and hope” or “stay behind.” For faster provisioning during scale-out events, prepared image specification lets teams define custom node images with preloaded containers, operating system settings, and initialization scripts, reducing startup time and improving consistency for environments that need rapid, repeatable provisioning.

Connect with the Microsoft Azure Team in Amsterdam

The Azure team is excited to be at KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe 2026. Here are a few highlights of where to connect with the Azure team on the ground:

• Building cross-cloud AI inference on Kubernetes with OSS—Wednesday, March 25, 2026, 1:15 PM CET with Jorge Palma, Principal PDM Manager, Microsoft and Anson Qian, Principal Software Engineer, Microsoft.
• Visit booth #200 for live demos and conversations with the Azure and AKS team.
• Or browse the full schedule of sessions by Microsoft speakers throughout the week.

Source: Brendan Burns, Microsoft

The post Microsoft Advances Open-Source AI Infrastructure on Kubernetes at KubeCon Europe 2026 appeared first on HPCwire.

Lens Plus subscribers can put themselves into a wide variety of AI situations.

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Police are revisiting a closed investigation into the theft of Morgan McSweeney’s phone after admitting they recorded the wrong address when he reported the crime.

Keir Starmer’s former chief of staff told the Metropolitan police that his phone was stolen in central London when he was returning home from a restaurant on 20 October last year, the Times reported.

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After Anthropic refused to let its AI to be used in autonomous weapons systems, Trump ordered US agencies to quit using it

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Anthropic faced off against the Department of Defense in a federal court on Tuesday afternoon, as the artificial intelligence company seeks a temporary pause on the government’s decision to bar the US military and any contractors from using its technology. The two sides have been locked in an escalating feud over Anthropic’s refusal to allow its Claude AI chatbot to be used for domestic mass surveillance and fully autonomous lethal weapons. Donald Trump has ordered all US government agencies to stop using Anthropic’s tools, which the company is also contesting.

Representatives for the AI firm and the government appeared in a northern California district court, where Judge Rita Lin presided over the hearing for a temporary injunction. The hearing is one of the first steps in Anthropic’s lawsuit against the defense department, which it filed earlier this month after Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defense, declared the company a supply chain risk – a designation that Anthropic alleges will cause irreparable harm and cost hundreds of millions or more in revenue.

Survey puts Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco ahead with Democratic vote split between large field of candidates

Republicans continue to lead the California governor’s race amid a crowded field of Democrats, a new poll commissioned by the state’s Democratic party found, fueling concerns of a conservative win in the famously liberal state.

The party on Tuesday published the results of a large-scale poll of 2,000 likely voters conducted by Evitarus Research that revealed that 16% of participants would back the conservative political commentator Steve Hilton in the upcoming primary, while 14% would support Chad Bianco, the Riverside county sheriff.

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OpenAI is shutting down Sora, its generative-AI video creation platform it launched in December 2024. "The move is one of a number of steps OpenAI is taking to refocus on business and coding functions ahead of a potential initial public offering as soon as the fourth quarter of this year," reports the Wall Street Journal. CEO Sam Altman announced the changes to staff on Tuesday. "We're saying goodbye to Sora," the Sora Team said in a post on X. "To everyone who created with Sora, shared it, and built community around it: thank you. What you made with Sora mattered, and we know this news is disappointing. We'll share more soon, including timelines for the app and API and details on preserving your work." Last week, OpenAI announced plans to combine its Atlas web browser, ChatGPT app, and Codex coding app into a singular desktop "superapp." "We realized we were spreading our efforts across too many apps and stacks, and that we need to simplify our efforts," said CEO of Applications, Fidji Simo. "That fragmentation has been slowing us down and making it harder to hit the quality bar we want." This could behind the decision to kill Sora as the company redirects its resources and top talent towards productivity tools that benefit both enterprises and individual users.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The crackdown on foreign-made routers labeled a "national security risk" affects most major router brands.

Why Should Delaware Care?
Georgetown Mayor Bill West has been the subject of substantial criticism in recent months from a group of residents who have questioned his approach to housing and homelessness policy. His impending retirement will open the top seat in Sussex County’s seat, just as it seeks to address those concerns.

Longtime Georgetown Mayor Bill West, who has been the target of criticism amid a heated town debate over homelessness services, announced Monday night that he will retire at the end of his current term in May.

West’s announcement comes after several tumultuous months for elected officials in the Sussex County seat, which have devolved into shouting matches at town council meetings and frequent social media attacks. 

Since last fall, West and other members of the town council have often found themselves at odds with a growing group of vocal residents who have criticized the town’s approach to homelessness. That group has repeatedly said it would seek candidates to run against West and other council members up for re-election later this spring.

Much of the tension in town has centered on the effectiveness of two homelessness service providers — the Shepherd’s Office and Springboard Delaware’s Pallet Village — and the town government’s consideration of a proposal by the nonprofit Little Living to build cottage homes in town.

West’s support for the homelessness service providers and the Little Living tiny homes drew a strong reaction from residents in opposition to those initiatives. 

West, however, who has been mayor since 2014, said his decision to not seek re-election is not related to the pressure he has faced. Rather, he said it is time for him to lean into retirement and focus on his health and spending time with his family. 

“You get to the point where your kids want to see more of you, your grandkids want to see more of you,” West told Spotlight Delaware before he made his official announcement at the March 23 town council meeting. “And somebody will continue that job after I’m gone.” 

Next leader to be determined

Town council members and residents supportive of West’s tenure as mayor say he worked tirelessly to bring more development to Georgetown.

“It’s going to be hard shoes to fill, as far as the amount of time that Bill has put in and the things that he’s accomplished in town,” resident Dennis Winzenreid said. “He’s a tough act to follow.” 

West’s opponents, however, say they are relieved to see their pressure campaign pay off, and that there will be a new town leader for the first time in 12 years. 

Members of the ballooning Facebook group in opposition to West’s government, Make Georgetown Great Again, which has grown to more than 5,000 members since early October, have coined the phrase “May is on the way” to rally support for new candidates in the upcoming May election. 

Only one candidate, Geoffrey Walker, had filed for the mayoral election as of March 24, Town Manager Gene Dvornick told Spotlight Delaware. No candidates had filed for the two open council seats, currently held by Penuel Barrett and Eric Evans. But Dvornick said that is unsurprising, as candidates often wait until “five minutes before the filing deadline” to declare their candidacy. 

The deadline to file for the May 9 town election is 5 p.m. Friday, April 17.

Tyler Scott, who created the Make Georgetown Great Again Facebook group and has been a prominent West critic, declined to say who, if anyone, his group plans to put up for election.

Scott said he is not worried about finding candidates, though, because his group still has “some time to see what’s going to happen” before the April filing deadline. Scott said he hopes to keep Barrett in office, but would like to find candidates for both West’s and Evans’ seats. 

A number of members of the Make Georgetown Great Again Facebook group responded to West’s announcement with posts on the page Monday night, some praising West for his service to the town, and others expressing relief at his decision to step away. 

West told Spotlight Delaware that he has asked five people in town whether they would be interested in running to take his place, but each person declined.

“Nobody wants any part of it,” West said.

In the 2024 mayoral election, West defeated Angie Townsend, who was a town council member at the time, by a narrow margin of 34 votes.

Councilwoman Christina Diaz-Malone, who is currently serving as West’s vice mayor, praised the “one-on-one care for the people in town” that West has provided during his tenure.

But Diaz-Malone said she has no interest in running for mayor herself. She plans to step away from her position on the town council when her term is up in May 2027, she added.

Evans said he has still not decided whether he will run again, and it depends on whether any other candidates toss their hat in the ring. 

“If nobody runs, then yeah, I’ve got to step up to continue on,” Evans said. “Somebody’s got to do it.” 

Council members Penuel Barrett, who is up for re-election this spring, and Tony Neal, whose term runs through May 2027, did not respond to Spotlight Delaware’s request for comment. 

West’s tenure

Reflecting on his time as the leader of Georgetown’s government, West said he is proud of the work he has done to encourage cohesion between the diverse communities in town, and bring more commercial and residential development within town limits. He brushed off the criticism he has faced in recent months as something he has experienced at various points during his time in office.

“Every town is going through the same thing right now,” West said. “I’ve not let it worry me because I stay focused on things that I need to do to improve this town of Georgetown.” 

West took office as mayor in May 2014, following a two-year term as a member of the town council. Before serving in municipal government, West worked for 25 years as a state trooper. 

He highlighted some of the organizations that have come to town during his tenure, such as PAM Health Rehabilitation Hospital, the new Sussex County Family Court House building and some restaurants near the Delaware Technical Community College Owens campus, which he said have incentivized people to stay in town, instead of moving elsewhere. 

Diaz-Malone, West’s vice mayor, said she has seen how the relationships West has cultivated with state lawmakers and Delaware’s federal delegation have been key to bringing more funding and opportunities to the town. 

“He knows a lot of people,” she said. “Bill likes to experiment with solutions.” 

West has also served as the president of the Sussex County Association of Towns for the past six years and the vice president of the Delaware League of Local Governments since 2022. 

After his term as mayor ends, West wants to continue to be involved with a couple projects that began when he was in office, including the building of a new ChristianaCare campus in Georgetown and helping to advise the town police department. 

While the mayorship is considered to be a part-time position, West said he would encourage the next mayor to approach it as a full-time endeavor, as he has, to really be successful in bringing change to the community.

“You can’t just sit in the town hall,” West added. “You have got to be out. You have got to be talking to people.”

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Geoffrey Walker’s name. A previous version incorrectly referred to the Georgetown mayoral candidate as Jeffrey Walker.

Maggie Reynolds is a Report for America corps member and Spotlight Delaware reporter who covers rural communities in Delaware. Your donation to match our Report for America grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://spotlightdelaware.org/support/.

The post Georgetown Mayor West will retire, opening May election appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

March 24, 2026 — Two of the world’s leading quantum technology conferences will join forces in Chicago this year as the Q2B26 x Chicago Quantum Summit, hosted by QC Ware and the Chicago Quantum Exchange.

Event will be held December 8 – 10 at Marriott Marquis Chicago and McCormick Place

The event, to be held December 8–10 at the Marriott Marquis Chicago and McCormick Place, combines Q2B’s quantum business, practical application, and investor strength with the Chicago Quantum Summit’s integrated focus on research, scale-up, and economic development, offering opportunities for participants to engage with thought leaders, explore partnerships, and build skills across the full discovery-to-deployment spectrum.

“After building Q2B into the pre-eminent quantum conference in Silicon Valley, we wanted to explore a new partnership and location for the US edition of Q2B. Chicago was obvious choice,” said Matt Johnson, the co-founder and CEO of QC Ware, a leading software and development firm that launched Q2B in Mountain View, California, in 2017. “The region’s local stakeholders are deeply committed to building a Midwest quantum hub and bringing together global leaders in the sector. All of that is supported by the unparalleled research and innovation ecosystem.”

The partnership reflects both the growing strength of the Quantum Prairie, a globally recognized quantum hub that spans Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana, and the evolution of the fast-growing quantum sector, which is on the cusp of commercial utility.

“At this pivotal time in our sector’s development, it is more important than ever to foster the collaboration that will drive our sector toward real-world impact,” said David Awschalom, the University of Chicago’s Liew Family Professor of Quantum Engineering and Physics and the founding director of the CQE, an intellectual hub that advances the science and engineering of quantum information, prepares the quantum workforce, and drives the quantum economy in collaboration with leading universities, national labs, and industry partners. “This partnership is an opportunity to further integrate the full spectrum of elements that will shape the sector’s growth, from cutting-edge breakthroughs, startup support, and supply chain security to workforce development, investment strategies, and policymaking. By thinking and working comprehensively, we create an efficient path to a revolutionary quantum future.”

Q2B x Chicago Quantum Summit will feature three days of intense networking, cutting-edge discussions, exclusive announcements about products and initiatives, and hands-on demonstrations from the forefront of the quantum industry and academic research. Attendees will hear from thought leaders across government, academia, and Fortune 500 corporations who are shaping the quantum future and building the roadmap to quantum value.

The event also will feature the Boeing Quantum Creators Prize competition and presentations, a trainee poster session, and other key Summit offerings. The CQE will also host the 2026 Chicago Quantum Recruiting Forum on Monday, December 7, the day before the Summit opens.

The CQE, which launched the Summit in 2018, is based at the University of Chicago and anchored by the US Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Northwestern University, and Purdue University and includes nearly 70 corporate, nonprofit, international, and regional partners.

Learn more on the CQE event page and on the Q2B website.

For media inquiries, contact Tyler Prich or q2b@qcware.com.

Source: CQE

The post QC Ware and CQE to Co-Host Q2B x Chicago Quantum Summit appeared first on HPCwire.

The commercial-free service is now available as an add-on subscription.

“Take a picture of a bus, if you see one, because it’s the last one you’ll see here in Cuba,” my taxi driver said. We were headed into Havana in his Chinese electric car during a trip I made to the island earlier this month.

The car is a novelty on Cuba’s crumbling streets, which are crowded with bikes and electric motorcycles and flanked by new solar parks and in-demand diesel generators. It’s also a lifesaver now more than ever amid a near-total oil blockade that has plunged the island’s residents into a profound state of uncertainty, fear, and hopelessness.

As the Trump administration starves Cuba of fuel in an attempt to force political and economic change on the island, conditions on the ground have grown more dire than I’ve ever witnessed in the 11 years I’ve been traveling there — including several years working as a journalist during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the country’s tourism-dependent economy was brought to a standstill.

Signs of the oil blockade are everywhere you look. Street corners are turning into trash dumps, transportation is prohibitively expensive, inflation is climbing, food is rotting in ports and refrigerators, and access to running water is intermittent, at best. 

A friend will not get to see his child be born, as his wife — one of many Cubans with dual Spanish citizenship — has flown across the Atlantic to give birth in Spain due to the dire state of Cuba’s state-run hospitals, once among the region’s best. 

Another friend with severe cataracts, who had undergone months of tests and lab work ahead of a surgery finally scheduled for February, learned the week before that it had been postponed indefinitely. Now, she can no longer see out of her left eye.

A third friend saw the cost of the wedding for which he’d been saving up for years double from one day to the next, as prices soared when the small reserves of fuel his vendors had got down to the last drops.

The Trump administration’s wager that depriving Cuba of oil would either provoke a mass uprising, browbeat the island’s authorities into subservience and a change in leadership, beget a free-market paradise — or some ill-defined combination of the three — is just the most recent in a series of “maximum-pressure” actions Secretary of State Marco Rubio has devised in an attempt to dislodge Cuba’s rulers from power, a longtime goal for him and for many Cuban Americans. 

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Pentagon Reveals Attacks in Latin America Are Just the Beginning

This campaign has been ongoing since Trump’s first term, when Rubio, the president’s de facto secretary of state for Latin America, helped restrict Americans’ ability to travel and send money to the island; cut off Cuba’s access to international finance; shutter the U.S. Embassy in Havana; and deploy dozens more sanctions over everything from hotel contracts and cruise lines to banking and investment, most of which were kept in place under the Biden administration. 

Now, in Trump’s second term, the maximum-pressure strategy for which Rubio has taken full credit has accelerated into full gear. Not only has the administration coerced Venezuela and Mexico, until recently Cuba’s two largest fuel suppliers, into halting oil shipments to the island, it has also pressured Central American and Caribbean countries to drop their medical services contracts with Cuba, privately encouraged regional neighbors to sever diplomatic ties with the country, and stopped issuing most visas for Cuban nationals, including for family reunification, scientific and business exchanges, humanitarian parole, and other purposes.

In part due to these sanctions, the island’s economy is projected to shrink by more than 7 percent in 2026, while over the past several years, Cuba’s infant mortality rate has nearly doubled, and some 20 percent of its population has left.

And yet, the Cuban people — adaptive, proud, and resilient as ever — have found ways to eke out a living on the island, despite being subjected to the longest and most comprehensive U.S. sanctions regime anywhere on Earth and stymied by insufficient Cuban government efforts to kickstart an outdated economy.

Thousands of private businesses, which have also been hamstrung by Trump’s oil siege, continue to sell imported, even American, goods, albeit at prices that are exorbitant for the majority of the population. Community projects, churches, and civil society organizations organize ad-hoc soup kitchens to feed the most vulnerable. Foreign governments, even those that have buckled under U.S. pressure like Mexico, continue to send vital aid to the island, as do U.S.-based activists, religious groups, and Cuban Americans.

Despite limited access to the most basic supplies, engineers are rolling out new solar infrastructure faster than any other country in the world, electrical technicians are restoring the country’s collapsed power grid even quicker than before, doctors are saving lives against all odds, and Cubans are inventing workarounds to conditions that seem totally unworkable.

Trump’s gambit is to once again make the island dependent on the United States by simultaneously engineering state collapse while controlling the resources entering the country’s nascent private sector. This strategy will only exacerbate rising inequality on the island by drawing clear lines around who gets to live and who is condemned to die.

Related

What Does Trump Want With Cuba?

As the president floats “taking over” Cuba by means “friendly” or not — amid secret negotiations rife with speculation, misinformation, and trial balloons — it’s those who depend the most on public services to survive, rather than well-connected, middle-class entrepreneurs, who will have no other choice but to seek refuge on U.S. shores or perish before making it that far, if the state collapses.

Despite these dire circumstances, Cubans are increasingly optimistic that a negotiated solution with the U.S. that avoids military action and tangibly improves quality of life on the island — not entirely dissimilar from the one President Barack Obama pursued a decade ago — might be possible.

While Rubio has disputed recent reports that the U.S. only seeks to remove Cuba’s president and keep the rest of its power structure intact, he also indicated he may be open to gradual, economic reforms on the island, as opposed to the maximalist, unconditional political changes he has long demanded — a red line for Cuban authorities. To prevent outright humanitarian collapse, the administration has authorized fuel sales, including from Venezuela, to Cuba’s private sector — some of which are already arriving — and sent humanitarian aid to hurricane-stricken eastern Cuba through the Catholic Church.

Cuban authorities — with their backs up against the wall and no assurances that a Russian crude oil tanker barreling toward the Caribbean won’t be intercepted by U.S. Coast Guard cutters off the island’s northeast coast — have responded to U.S. pressure by releasing political prisoners, loosening restrictions on private enterprise, and making important, if long-overdue, overtures to Cuba’s diaspora to reconcile with their homeland. Rubio has responded that these changes aren’t “dramatic” enough and the island needs “new leaders,” while other administration officials prepare indictments against Cuban leaders and threaten that the switch from negotiation to military action could be imminent.

No matter what agreement, if any, ultimately emerges between the two governments, what’s clear is that the Cuban people want a deal — whether economic or political — to happen now, not later. As the situation on the ground becomes increasingly unsustainable for the Cuban people, that may mean leaving in place for the time being the regime that Trump has promised to topple and allowing fuel to flow once again in exchange for a few meaningful concessions, even if further-reaching reforms get pushed down the road.

As prominent Republicans grow concerned about the potential for humanitarian catastrophe and a migration crisis brewing just off U.S. shores, nothing is stopping Trump from achieving the deal with Cuba he has always wanted — one that’s hammered out, as Rubio has said, by “mature and realistic” negotiators on both sides who understand the country “doesn’t have to change all at once.”

With tensions continuing to mount, military preparations underway on both sides, and Trump assuring he’ll be turning to Cuba “very soon,” it’s more urgent than ever that an agreement — the contours of which are still not publicly known — be reached as soon as possible. Countless Cuban lives may very well depend on it.

The post U.S. Oil Blockade Could Condemn Cubans to Die Without a Deal appeared first on The Intercept.

OpenAI is pushing to build more business- and coding-centric tools, the kind Anthropic excels at.

The new Pokemon game will provide the standard battle format for the 2026 Pokemon World Championships.

Tania Warner says she has documents showing she is in the US legally, but immigration agents were not swayed

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A Canadian woman who has been imprisoned with her seven-year-old daughter by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has cautioned other immigrants that they are at risk of detention, even if they follow the correct legal process – and warned them to keep out of sight for as long as Donald Trump is president.

“Don’t go anywhere near a checkpoint, and if your papers are in processing, just lay low. Trump meant what he said – he is trying to get rid of everyone, whether they are good or bad,” said Tania Warner, 47, who is currently held with her autistic daughter, Ayla, at the Dilley immigration processing center in south Texas.

Senate leader proposes compromise to fund homeland security shutdown amid chaotic scenes at airports

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Donald Trump on Tuesday swore in Markwayne Mullin as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), while Senate Republicans unveiled a compromise that would restart funding to most of the agency but appears to exclude reforms to immigration enforcement Democrats have demanded.

The two parties have been at an impasse over DHS funding since mid-February, after Democrats insisted any legislation include new guardrails on immigration enforcement after federal agents killed two US citizens in Minneapolis.

• Board and players unanimously approve new CBA deal

• Seven-year agreement runs through end of 2032 season

• Free agency, expansion draft now come in quick rush

• Explained: what the new deal means for players

The WNBA’s board of governors unanimously ratified the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement on Tuesday.

Their vote came a day after the players also unanimously approved the seven-year CBA, which will begin this season and run through 2032. It represents a landmark labor deal for the WNBA and its players. Under the terms of the new deal, the minimum salary for the league will be $270,000 – last season the maximum salary was about $250,000. There will be hefty rewards for the best players, with the supermax salary coming in at $1.4m. The salary cap for each team this coming season will be $7m, up from $1.5m in 2025.

In an on-going overhaul of NASA's Artemis program, agency officials say it will take seven years to build a sophisticated base on the moon.

Trading in crude oil futures spiked only minutes before President Trump postponed an ultimatum on Iran, causing oil prices to drop and stocks to surge.

A Venezuelan man who was deported from the U.S. and detained at CECOT prison in El Salvador has become the first known ex-prisoner to sue the U.S. for damages.

Some airlines are issuing waivers for travelers eager to avoid hours-long waits for TSA security screening. Here's what to know.

Former congressman David Rivera, accused of secretly lobbying for Nicolás Maduro’s government in Venezuela, climbed Miami politics alongside Marco Rubio.

Because putting down the controller is not an option.

Arm unveiled its first self-developed data center chip, the AGI CPU, designed for handling agentic AI workloads. The new chip was built in partnership with Meta and manufactured by TSMC. Other customers for the new chip include OpenAI, Cloudflare, SAP, and SK Telecom. Reuters reports: The new chip, called the AGI CPU, will address data-crunching needed for a specific type of AI that is able to act on behalf of users with minimal oversight, instead of responding to queries as part of a chatbot. For years, Arm, majority-owned by Japan's SoftBank Group has relied only on intellectual property for revenue, licensing its designs to companies such as Qualcomm and Nvidia and then collecting a royalty payment based on the number of units sold. "It's a very pivotal moment for the company," CEO Rene Haas said in an interview with Reuters. The new chip will be overseen by Mohamed Awad, head of the company's cloud AI business, and Arm has additional designs in the works that it plans to release at 12- to 18-month intervals. TSMC is fabricating the device on its 3-nanometer technology and is made from two distinct pieces of silicon that operate as a single chip. Arm plans to put it into volume production in the second half of this year but has received test chips that function as expected. In addition to the chip itself, Arm is working with server makers such as Lenovo and Quanta Computer to offer complete systems.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Argonne’s chip compresses and processes detector data instantly, letting scientists analyze results and steer experiments as they happen

March 24, 2026 — Every second, scientific experiments produce a flood of data — so much that transmitting and analyzing it can slow down even the most advanced research. To help scientists better manage this data deluge, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have developed a new computer chip that rapidly compresses and processes the huge amounts of data generated by advanced X-ray detectors, like those at the Advanced Photon Source (APS), a DOE Office of Science user facility at Argonne. By compressing data right at the source, like shrinking a movie or song to make it easier to send, this technology makes experiments faster, more efficient and more insightful than ever.

Silicon chip that integrates both imaging sensors and data compression, shown next to a U.S. penny and resting on grains of sand. This chip was co-designed by Argonne and SLAC. Image credit: Antonino Miceli/Argonne National Laboratory.

When X-rays or electrons hit a sample, detectors capture the resulting signals — much like a digital camera captures light to produce photos. These signals are converted into electrical pulses and then digitized into numbers that computers can process. But with modern detectors, the amount of data generated is enormous. Every frame, even those with little useful information, is sent out for storage and analysis. This can overwhelm computer systems and slow down research, making it harder for scientists to find what matters most.

“Our goal is to bring more computing right where the data is generated,” said physicist Antonino Miceli of Argonne and the University of Chicago. ​“In our earlier work, we showed how advanced mathematical techniques could shrink data while keeping the important parts for analysis. Now, using new chip technology and improvements in microelectronics, we’ve built a chip that puts the math right inside the detector. Using data collected at the APS 8-ID beamline, the detector can compress the data instantly as it’s acquired.”

This means scientists can do key calculations directly on the compressed data, without needing to decompress it first. Consequently, they can analyze results and get feedback much faster, even while the experiment is still running.

Guided by data: Chips That Learn from Experiments

Building on their work, the team has now implemented a fast, compact matrix-math processor into the detector chip itself. Instead of sending every pixel off the instrument, the chip distills each image into a compact set of numbers that preserves the most important features for scientists. The output is always the same size and streams in real time, making it easier to manage and send.

To make the chip even more useful and flexible, it can be customized for each experiment. Before or during an experiment, scientists can upload preset ​“weights” — settings that tell the chip what features to keep. This process is similar to training an artificial intelligence (AI) model. Using sample data, the chip can be programmed to focus on what is most relevant for each experiment.

“In essence, the chips can be trained on what’s most important for the experiment, so it can compress and reduce data on the fly,” explained Tao Zhou, an Argonne scientist who works on the beamline shared by the APS and the Center for Nanoscale Materials (CNM). ​“The hardware is flexible and can be adapted for different types of compression or data reduction such as radial integration.” CNM is a DOE Office of Science user facility at Argonne.

Tests and design studies show this on-chip approach can reduce data by about 100 to 200 times, while running at speeds of up to a million frames per second. That means less data to move, lower power use and fewer cables, making experiments cheaper, more efficient and easier to scale up.

By combining smart data compression with fast hardware, scientists can get answers in real time and adjust their experiments right away. This helps speed up the cycle of discovery and makes the most of every minute at the beamline. The Argonne team is now working to move this chip from the design stage to large-scale fabrication and use in real experiments.

“Experiments at the APS will benefit significantly from this technology,” Miceli said. ​“Often, the detector, not the X-ray source, is the limiting factor. To fully use the capabilities of the source, we need technology like this. This work also shows how collaborations between detector developers and domain scientists can be very impactful.”

The results of this research were published in the Journal of Instrumentation.

Other contributors to this work include Rami Rasheedi, Mohamed Adel Gharib and Salma Abdelzaher (Argonne, University of Illinois Chicago); Nicholas Contini (Argonne, Ohio State University); Mike Hammer and Henry Shi (Argonne, University of Chicago); Senthil Gnanasekaran, Sebastian Strempfer, Tejas Guruswamy, Kazutomo Yoshii and Angelo Dragone (Argonne); Yu-Sheng Chen (University of Chicago); Lorenzo Rota, Dionisio Doering and Angelo Dragone (DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory).

This study was funded by the DOE Office of Science, Advanced Scientific Computing Research and Basic Energy Sciences (BES). This work was primarily supported by the AUREIS project, part of Microelectronics Energy Efficiency Research Center for Advanced Technologies, and the Morpheus project, supported by DOE BES/Scientific User Facilities Division’s Accelerator and Detector R&D program.

Source: Amber Rose, Argonne National Laboratory

The post Argonne: New Chip Tech Enables Real-Time Insights from Scientific Data appeared first on HPCwire.

PM’s most costly quarter for travel was in last quarter of 2025, with the most expensive trip to Cop30 in Brazil

Keir Starmer’s government is spending an increasing amount on foreign trips, with almost 40 visits abroad adding up to more than £4m since he took office, the latest transparency figures have showed.

The prime minister had his most costly quarter for foreign travel in the last three months of 2025, with eight trips adding up to £1.2m.

COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 24, 2026 — Vertiv, a global leader in critical digital infrastructure, today announced four new or expanding manufacturing facilities in the Americas, growing the company’s production capacity for infrastructure solutions, power management, and integrated cabinets. As data center operators focus on scaling quickly and time to first token speed, Vertiv is uniquely positioned to help meet the rapidly evolving infrastructure and services requirements for AI factories, through its focus on innovation and manufacturing footprint.

“Vertiv sees AI as a long-term, secular trend, and we are accelerating our capacity expansions to anticipate the continued growth in demand,” said Vertiv CEO Giordano Albertazzi. “Today’s announcement represents the most recent steps in our continuous capacity planning and deployment approach, as we further increase our regional and global footprint. We remain committed to our strategy of delivering future-ready, high-density solutions that enable our customers to plan confidently for multiple generations of compute ahead.”

• In South Carolina, two additional manufacturing facilities focus on Vertiv infrastructure solutions technologies vital to data center deployment speed and are expected to increase regional capacity by ~7x when fully ramped. Vertiv integrated power modules are complete modular power infrastructure that can speed deployment of power systems by up to 50% over traditional builds, while Vertiv SmartRun converged, prefabricated white space infrastructure solution is designed to greatly accelerate and optimize data center white space fit-out. Vertiv SmartRun is delivered as a unified system for high-density busway, liquid cooling piping, networking, and containment, with on-site deployment time up to 85% faster than traditional methods.
• Vertiv’s racks and containment business in Pennsylvania launched an additional facility to increase manufacturing capacity of cabinets with integrated cooling systems for AI applications in high-density data centers. These cabinets enable simplified, repeatable, and accelerated deployment compared to traditional onsite integration.
• An expansion in Mexicali, Mexico is anticipated to increase regional capacity by ~45% for power conversion, conditioning and distribution technologies for high-density AI applications and more traditional loads.

Vertiv’s innovation and portfolio strategy reflects the demands of the AI revolution, which requires infrastructure that works as one integrated system. From grid to chip and chip to heat reuse, Vertiv delivers end-to-end infrastructure where power, cooling, IT, and services operate in unison and are built for multiple compute generations ahead. Backed by the recent regional manufacturing capacity and an industry-leading end-to-end portfolio, Vertiv is enabling customers to deploy efficiently and scale seamlessly.

For more information on Vertiv’s end-to-end power and cooling systems and services, innovative infrastructure solutions, and validated AI reference designs, visit Vertiv.com.

About Vertiv

Vertiv (NYSE: VRT) brings together hardware, software, analytics and ongoing services to enable its customers’ vital applications to run continuously, perform optimally and grow with their business needs. Vertiv solves the most important challenges facing today’s data centers, communication networks and commercial and industrial facilities with a portfolio of power, cooling and IT infrastructure solutions and services that extends from the cloud to the edge of the network. Headquartered in Westerville, Ohio, USA, Vertiv does business in more than 130 countries. For more information, and for the latest news and content from Vertiv, visit Vertiv.com.

Source: Vertiv

The post Vertiv Expands Americas Manufacturing Capacity with 4 Facilities for AI Data Center Infrastructure appeared first on HPCwire.

CAMBRIDGE, England, March 24, 2026 — Arm Holdings plc today announced the next evolution of the Arm compute platform, extending into production silicon products for the first time in the company’s history. This begins with the launch of the Arm AGI CPU, an Arm-designed CPU for AI data centers, built to address a rising class of agentic AI workloads.

Credit: Shutterstock

For more than three decades, the industry has innovated on the Arm compute platform to deliver scalable, power-efficient computing across hundreds of billions of devices. As AI transforms global computing infrastructure, partners across the ecosystem are asking for ways to deploy Arm technology at scale. In response, Arm is expanding its platform strategy beyond IP and Compute Subsystems (CSS) to include Arm-designed silicon products – giving partners the broadest set of options to build on Arm and enabling faster innovation across the AI ecosystem.

“AI has fundamentally redefined how computing is built and deployed. Agentic computing is accelerating that change,” said Rene Haas, CEO, Arm. “Today marks the next phase of the Arm compute platform and a defining moment for our company. With the expansion into delivering production silicon with our Arm AGI CPU, we are giving partners more choices all built on Arm’s foundation of high-performance, power-efficient computing, to support agentic AI infrastructure at global scale.”

Agentic AI is Reshaping AI Infrastructure, Driving More Demand for CPUs

The rise of AI agents is driving a major inflection point in global computing. As AI shifts from training models to deploying continuously running agents that reason, plan and act, the volume of tokens generated across AI systems is rapidly increasing and requires significantly more CPUs to handle reasoning, coordination and data movement.

As organizations scale agent-driven applications, data centers are expected to require more than 4x the current CPU capacity per GW* — driving the need for significantly more compute within the same power envelope. This is driving demand for a new class of CPUs designed for AI-scale infrastructure — delivering the performance needed to sustain high token throughput, the efficiency required to operate within real-world power constraints and a simplified architecture built without the overhead and complexity of x86 processors.

Extending the Arm Platform into Production Silicon

To help partners move faster in this new environment, Arm is introducing the Arm AGI CPU, which is expected to be the foundation for agentic data centers. The expansion into silicon products provides the ecosystem with greater flexibility in how they build and deploy Arm-based infrastructure — whether licensing Arm IP, adopting Arm CSS, or deploying Arm-designed silicon.

The Arm AGI CPU delivers:

• Performance: Up to 136 Arm Neoverse V3 cores per CPU, delivering leading performance per core, SoC, blade and rack*, with 6GB/s memory bandwidth per core at sub-100ns latency.
• Scale: 300-watt TDP with a dedicated core per program thread enables deterministic performance under sustained load, eliminating throttling and idle threads.
• Efficiency: Supports high-density 1U server chassis that supports air-cooled deployments with up to 8,160 cores per rack, and liquid-cooled systems delivering 45,000+ cores per rack.

These capabilities translate into greater workload density, improved accelerator utilization and more usable compute within existing power envelopes — critical advantages as AI infrastructure scales. The Arm AGI CPU delivers more than 2x performance per rack versus x86 CPUs, enabling up to $10B in CAPEX savings per GW of AI data center capacity*.

Broad Ecosystem Support for Arm AGI CPU

Meta serves as the lead partner and co-developer, leveraging Arm AGI CPU to optimize infrastructure for its family of apps and working alongside Meta’s own custom silicon, called Meta Training and Inference Accelerator (MTIA), enabling more efficient orchestration in large-scale AI systems. Arm and Meta are committed to collaborating across multiple generations of the Arm AGI CPU roadmap.

“Delivering AI experiences at global scale demands a robust and adaptable portfolio of custom silicon solutions, purpose-built to accelerate AI workloads and optimize performance across Meta’s platforms,” said Santosh Janardhan, head of infrastructure, Meta. “We worked alongside Arm to develop the Arm AGI CPU to deploy an efficient compute platform that significantly improves our data center performance density and supports a multi-generation roadmap for our evolving AI systems.”

Alongside Meta, Arm has confirmed additional commercial momentum with partners including Cerebras, Cloudflare, F5, OpenAI, Positron, Rebellions, SAP, and SK Telecom. These customers will deploy the Arm AGI CPU for key agentic CPU use-cases including accelerator management, control plane processing, and cloud and enterprise-based API, task and application hosting.

To accelerate this ramp, Arm is partnering with lead OEMs and ODMs including ASRock Rack, Lenovo, Quanta Computer, and Supermicro, with early systems available now and broader availability expected in the second half of the year.

More than 50 leading companies across hyperscale, cloud, silicon, memory, networking, software, system design and manufacturing are supporting the expansion of the Arm compute platform into silicon. That momentum includes industry leaders such as AWS, Broadcom, Google, Marvell, Micron, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Samsung, SK hynix and TSMC, alongside many others.

A New Era for the Arm Compute Platform

For decades, the industry has built on the Arm compute platform through its industry-leading IP and, more recently, Arm CSS, grounded in a foundation of high-performance, power-efficient computing. The expansion into production silicon with the Arm AGI CPU marks the next phase of that evolution, extending Arm into data center silicon and bringing its power-efficient architecture to AI infrastructure at scale.

“Our partnership began nearly two decades ago and since then, Arm’s adaptability has made it possible for us to integrate Arm across all of our platforms and for all different phases of AI,” said Jensen Huang, Founder and CEO of NVIDIA. “Together we’re creating one seamless platform, from cloud to edge to AI factories. We look forward to building the future with Arm.”

“Datacenter AI workloads are evolving, and we are seeing more demand than ever for efficient, scalable compute, driving deeper collaboration across every layer of the ecosystem—from silicon design to manufacturing innovation,” said Dr. Kevin Zhang, SVP and Deputy Co-COO at TSMC. “As the Arm AGI CPU manufacturer, we are excited to support this breakthrough platform. By leveraging our advanced 3nm process technology, the new Arm AGI CPU delivers significant performance and energy efficiency and is expected to play an important role in enabling the next generation of AI infrastructure across the datacenter ecosystem.”

*Based on estimates.

About Arm

Arm (NASDAQ: ARM) is the industry’s highest-performing and most power-efficient compute platform with unmatched scale that touches 100 percent of the connected global population. To meet the insatiable demand for compute, Arm is delivering advanced solutions that allow the world’s leading technology companies to unleash the unprecedented experiences and capabilities of AI. Together with the world’s largest computing ecosystem and 22 million software developers, we are building the future of AI on Arm.

Source: Arm

The post Arm Introduces AGI CPU, Expands Compute Platform into Data Center Silicon appeared first on HPCwire.

Diplomats say US president’s latest claimed plan probably based on now dated framework put forward in May 2025

• Middle East crisis – live updates

The 15-point framework plan for peace with Iran that Donald Trump has said is being discussed is based on a proposal put forward by his negotiating team during nuclear talks almost a year ago, diplomats knowledgable about the talks believe.

That original 15-point plan was the basis for negotiations in late May 2025, shortly before the talks collapsed due to Israeli airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear programme.

SPARKS, Nev., March 24, 2026 — Crusoe and Redwood Materials today announced a significant expansion of their partnership to scale renewable-powered AI computers.

Following the successful deployment of a Redwood Energy 12 megawatts / 63 megawatt-hour (MWh) microgrid in June 2025, the companies are expanding the campus deployment from 4 to 24 Crusoe Spark modular data centers, bringing total compute capacity to nearly 7x the original deployment.

The project originally debuted as the largest second-life battery system in the world, combining solar and repurposed electric vehicle (EV) batteries to power four Crusoe Spark modular data centers on Redwood Materials’ campus in Sparks, Nevada. Since commissioning, the system has delivered 99.2% operational availability over seven months of continuous operation with minimal unplanned downtime, exceeding reliability expectations and demonstrating consistent, around-the-clock performance.

That performance also validates a core premise behind the partnership: that repurposed EV batteries can be orchestrated through Redwood Energy’s Pack Manager technology to deliver reliable, 24/7 power for high-performance compute workloads like Crusoe Spark modular AI factories for Crusoe Cloud.

“Since launch, the Redwood Energy and Crusoe system has demonstrated that repurposed EV batteries can reliably power high-performance compute workloads at scale,” said JB Straubel, Founder and CEO of Redwood Materials. “Achieving 99.2% uptime validated our approach and gave us the confidence to expand compute capacity nearly sevenfold on the same energy infrastructure. Together with Crusoe, we’re demonstrating a faster, more flexible, and lower-cost way to build and power AI infrastructure.”

“By expanding our work with Redwood Energy to 20 megawatts, we are proving that the ‘AI factory’ of the future can be quickly scaled through the convergence of innovative energy solutions and modular infrastructure deployment,” said Cully Cavness, Co-Founder, President and Chief Strategy Officer of Crusoe. “This expansion allows us to quickly and predictably deliver high-performance Crusoe Cloud compute capacity to our customers through Crusoe Spark modular data centers.”

Key highlights of the expanded partnership:

• 7x increase in compute: The deployment is expanding from four to 24 total Crusoe Spark modular data centers.
• Proven reliability: The existing 12 MW / 63 MWh microgrid has maintained 99.2% operational availability since its June 2025 launch.
• Sustainable resource efficiency: The project continues to utilize Redwood Energy’s second-life EV battery systems integrated via Redwood’s Pack Manager technology, combined with on-site solar power.
• Rapid scalability: The modular nature of both Crusoe Spark data centers and Redwood Energy’s storage systems allows for deployment in months rather than typically year-long construction builds, offering a blueprint for rapid, responsible AI infrastructure growth.

About Crusoe

As the AI factory company, Crusoe is on a mission to accelerate the abundance of energy and intelligence. The company provides a reliable, scalable, cost-effective, energy-first solution for AI infrastructure. By harnessing large-scale energy sources, building AI-optimized data centers, and delivering a powerful AI cloud platform, Crusoe empowers its customers and partners to build the future faster.

About Redwood Materials

Redwood Materials, founded by JB Straubel, is creating a circular supply chain to make batteries sustainable and affordable. Redwood Energy, its newest division, repurposes used EV battery packs into low-cost, large-scale energy storage systems, helping to power the energy transition and the age of AI.

Source: Crusoe

The post Crusoe and Redwood Materials Expand AI Data Center Deployment to 24 Modular Units in Nevada appeared first on HPCwire.

The much-teased feature is rolling out now to Premium users on Android and iOS.

Minnesota officials allege they're being blocked from probing the shootings of Renee Good, Alex Pretti and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis by federal agents.

Suella Braverman presses the FA to scrap diversity and inclusion policies, which she claims are ‘racist’

Reform UK has been accused of seeking to insert “toxic politics” into football after the party pressed the Football Association in England to scrap diversity and inclusion policies.

Suella Braverman wrote to the FA on Tuesday to ask for a meeting to discuss the governing body’s diversity policies, which Reform’s equalities spokesperson described as “utter woke nonsense”.

Maj. Gen. Brandon Tegtmeier, the chief of the 82nd Airborne Division, and his headquarters staff have been ordered to the Middle East as the War Department awaits a White House decision about the deployment of the unit to the Middle East for possible ground operations in Iran, two government sources tell The Intercept.

The deployment includes the division’s “headquarters element,” support staff, and some personnel who manage logistics, planning, and command operations, the sources said.

The order comes as the Pentagon is weighing the broader deployment of the 82nd Airborne’s “Immediate Response Force,” a 3,000-soldier brigade capable of deploying anywhere in the world within a day, which was first reported by the New York Times on Monday. It also comes as thousands of Marines are headed to the region along with at least three more ships, including the USS Boxer, an amphibious assault ship with F-35 attack jets with vertical takeoff and landing capability, as well as attack and transport helicopters.

Open source reporting suggests dozens of transport aircraft used to ferry troops and cargo have been flying out of airfields used by America’s most elite commandos, including the Army’s Delta Force and the Navy’s SEAL Team 6.

U.S. ground troops could be employed to carry out a number of varied missions from more conventional combat operations to specialized commando missions. These could include seizing Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export hub, or securing that country’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

“We got two Marine expeditionary units sailing to this island. We did Iwo Jima. We can do this,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said on Fox News Sunday over the weekend. “I don’t know if you take the island or you blockade the island. But I know this: the day we control that island, this regime, this terrorist regime, has been weakened. It will die on a vine.”

“People are going to have to go and get it,” said Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this month when asked about Iran’s uranium.

The potential expansion of Operation Epic Fury into a ground campaign would be another major escalation of President Donald Trump’s expanding world war.

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Sources Briefed on Iran War Say U.S. Has No Plans for What Comes Next

One of the U.S. officials, who has been briefed on Operation Epic Fury, speculated that Trump’s fixation on and fascination with the supposed success of Operation Absolute Resolve — in which the U.S. attacked Venezuela and abducted the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro — might prompt something similar in Iran.

Orders for the deployment of thousands more members of the division may come within hours, said one of the officials on Tuesday afternoon.

The Office of the Secretary of War referred questions about the deployment of ground forces in Iran to the White House, which did not immediately return a request for comment.

Last week, Special Operations Command chief Adm. Frank M. Bradley said that he has long viewed Iran and its proxies threatening the freedom of navigation in and around the Middle East as “the most dangerous crisis” facing the United States. “I would anticipate that along those same lines, the ability to project force into increasingly contested environments where U.S. national interests are threatened is the characterization of the next most dangerous crisis,” he told the House Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations. “That is why that we have made our ability to do that our top modernization priority. If you look at the operation conducted under Absolute Resolve into Venezuela, I would argue it’s the most sophisticated integrated inter-agency joint force raid ever conducted.”

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“Liberate Their Bodies From Their Souls”: The Lies That Sell the Iran War

The U.S. forces being sped to the Middle East will augment more than 40,000 troops already stationed in the region and forces brought in before the Trump administration began its latest war with Iran on February 28. This included dozens of fighter jets, bombers, and other aircraft, as well as two carrier strike groups. (The USS Gerald R. Ford had to since abandon the fight and travel to port, following a fire on the ship.)

The Pentagon has already requested $200 billion in supplemental funds to pay for its war on Iran. The ultimate cost of the war is expected to run into the trillions of dollars.

The post Leaders of Elite Paratrooper Unit Ordered to Middle East as Trump Weighs Iran Ground War appeared first on The Intercept.

HELOC interest rates are continuing to decline. Here's how much an $80,000 line of credit costs monthly now.

Defence chiefs have been discussing how to unblock the conduit for about a fifth of the world’s oil supplies

The UK has offered to host an international security summit to draw up a “viable, collective plan” to reopen the strait of Hormuz as economic fallout from the Iran conflict continues.

Defence chiefs have been discussing how they could unblock the vital shipping lane, through which about 20% of global oil supplies usually pass, amid the Middle East crisis unleashed by the US and Israel.

Medicare Advantage open enrollment is ending soon, and there are a few things to know before that window closes.

High performance computing is a potent tool that allows researchers to peer beneath the surface to understand fundamental scientific phenomenon. But getting access to an HPC system remains out of reach for many who could benefit from it. That’s the premise behind a new program at the University of California, San Diego, which is providing undergraduate students with access to a campus supercomputer to help elevate their studies, and familiarize them with cutting-edge HPC techniques along the way.

The program involves UC San Diego’s School of Computing, Information and Data Sciences (SCIDS) and the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC), who are working together to enable access to Expanse, a supercomputer that’s supported by U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) ACCESS allocations.

One class that’s getting access to Expanse is a course titled “Modeling of Nanoscale Systems.” According to a “UC San Diego Today” story by Kimberly Mann Bruck and Scott Paton, students use Expanse to understand how model how atoms and molecules interact, and how tiny shifts in molecular structure “might change whether a material conducts electricity, repels water, traps heat, breaks down pollution or binds to a target in the human body.”

UCSD grad student Gaurav Guru uses SDSC’s Expanse to teach undergraduate students (Image courtesy SDSC)

“This course is about giving students a realistic view of how modern engineering discoveries happen,” said Wan-Lu Li, who leads the class and is assistant professor in chemical and nano engineering department. “Not just on paper, but through hands-on modeling where you can test ideas, make predictions and learn from the data the system gives you.”

The course gives undergrad engineering students the opportunity to get hands-on HPC access to learn critical engineering concepts, including molecular mechanics, energy minimization, statistical mechanics, molecular dynamics simulations, and Monte Carlo simulations.

“The future of nanoengineering won’t be built only by people who can use instruments,” said course instructor Gaurav Guru, who is a graduate student at the school’s mechanical and aerospace engineering department. “It also will be built by people who can model and simulate nanoscale systems, interpret the data and use those insights to engineer new materials.”

The course is funded through an NSF allocation for Expanse, which is often used as a teaching platform to bridge classroom theory with real-world practice. Expanse is a 5-petaflop supercomputer that features more than 93,000 CPU cores, 208 Nvidia V100 GPUs, 220 TB of DRAM, and 810 TB of NVMe storage. The GPUs are connected via NVLink while the entire system is connected with a 100 GB/s HDR InfiniBand interconnect.

According to SDSC Director Frank Würthwein, providing undergrad access to Expanse not only enriches the students’ experience while in school, but also prepares them to use the computational tools in use by academia, government, and industry.

SDSC’s Expanse system (Image courtesy SDSC)

“Through courses that run large-scale simulations and data-intensive workflows on SDSC’s HPC systems, UC San Diego aims to graduate students who are not only comfortable working at research scale, but who can carry these skills directly into AI- and data-driven careers in graduate school, national labs and industry,” Würthwein said. “At SDSC, we are weaving AI into undergraduate experiences by giving students access to the same GPU-accelerated and data-centric infrastructure that powers cutting-edge research, and by partnering with educators across the University of California, California State University and California Community College systems, we are democratizing access to HPC and AI so that students see these capabilities as part of their everyday toolbox, not a rare privilege reserved for a few specialists.”

The post UCSD Aims to Make HPC an ‘Everyday Toolbox’ for Undergrads, Not a ‘Rare Privilege’ appeared first on HPCwire.

British investigators are circumspect but experts and security officials say incident has hallmarks of Iranian intelligence

• Middle East crisis – live updates

From Golders Green, where four ambulances belonging to a Jewish charity were set alight in the early hours of Monday, a tangled trail probably leads across two continents to Tehran.

British investigators are circumspect. Speaking at an event on Monday evening, Mark Rowley, the head of the Metropolitan police, described a “very relevant and rolling threat” from Iran to the UK, and specifically to Jewish targets, but warned it was still too early to attribute the attack in north London to Tehran.

Former Brazil president, serving 27 years over attempted coup, given initial 90-day period that could be extended

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Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro has been granted permission to serve his 27-year sentence for a coup attempt at home instead of in prison because of his failing health.

The decision by supreme court justice Alexandre de Moraes followed Bolsonaro’s hospitalization since 13 March for pneumonia, one of several health problems the former leader has faced since he was stabbed by a man in 2018 before he was elected president.

Anthropic is testing a new Claude feature that lets users send a request from their phone and have the AI carry it out directly on their computer, such as opening apps, using a browser, or editing files. The move follows the viral spread of OpenClaw earlier this year, which has gained cult popularity among devs for the ability to run local, 24/7 personal workflows. CNBC reports: Users can now message Claude a task from a phone, and the AI agent will then complete that task, Anthropic announced Monday. After being prompted, Claude can open apps on your computer, navigate a web browser and fill in spreadsheets, Anthropic said. One prompt Anthropic demonstrated in a video posted Monday is a user running late for a meeting. The user asks Claude to export a pitch deck as a PDF file and attach it to a meeting invite. The video shows Claude carrying out the task. [...] Anthropic cautioned that computer use "is still early compared to Claude's ability to code or interact with text." "Claude can make mistakes, and while we continue to improve our safeguards, threats are constantly evolving," Anthropic warned. The company added that it has built the computer use capability "with safeguards that minimize risk," and that Claude will always request permission before accessing new apps. Users can use Dispatch, a feature it released last week in Claude Cowork. That lets users have a continuous conversation with Claude from a phone or desktop and assign the agent tasks.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Delta is temporarily halting specialty services for members of Congress, citing strain on its resources during the partial government shutdown.

Lawsuit argues XAI failed to disclose risks, limitations and exposure to harm that come with using chatbot

The mayor and city council of Baltimore, Maryland, filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk’s xAI company on Tuesday, alleging that its Grok chatbot violated consumer protections by generating nonconsensual sexualized images.

Baltimore’s lawsuit argues that xAI deceptively marketed Grok as a general-purpose AI assistant and X as a mainstream social media site, failing to disclose the risks, limitations and exposure to harm that come with using the platform and chatbot. The suit, filed in the circuit court for Baltimore city, argues that the court has jurisdiction over xAI given that the company advertises and operates in Baltimore.

For much of last year, Trump administration officials insisted that no Americans were caught up in the government’s immigration dragnet. 

ProPublica and many others repeatedly documented that is not true: Americans have even been kicked, dragged and detained for days by immigration agents.

On Tuesday, House and Senate Democrats are spotlighting a particularly troubling part of the crackdown: the American children who have been collateral damage in the deportation campaign. 

The forum the lawmakers are holding is part of an ongoing congressional investigation prompted by ProPublica’s report last fall that more than 170 U.S. citizens have been detained by immigration agents for some amount of time. That included Americans who have been handcuffed, held at gunpoint or simply prevented from leaving their location.

As of last October, more than 20 of those citizens were children, ranging from toddlers to teens. A toddler, a preschooler and a 7-year-old — all citizens — were deported despite their documented parents claiming they wanted to keep the children in the U.S. 

In response to questions, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Lauren Bis said in a statement that Immigration and Customs Enforcement “does NOT deport United States citizens or separate families,”

American children held along with their families will be sharing their stories at Tuesday’s forum. That includes two families whose accounts were featured in ProPublica investigations.

Eighteen-year-old Fernando Hernández García, who is using a pseudonym to protect the safety of his family in Mexico, is speaking on behalf of his 11-year-old sister. Both siblings are citizens. 

Last year, the family was driving to Houston to get emergency treatment for the girl, who was recovering from brain cancer. Border Patrol agents ignored a hospital letter that the family had used previously to go through checkpoints. This time, agents held the family until they were deported the next day to Mexico. With few other options, the American children went with their parents — except for Hernández García, who had not been detained and stayed to earn money and send medicine home.

The family’s lawyers say they have not been able to access the care they need for their daughter in Mexico, and they have applied for humanitarian parole to return. Customs and Border Protection previously told ProPublica the family’s account was inaccurate but declined to provide specifics.

Read More

We Found That More Than 170 U.S. Citizens Have Been Held by Immigration Agents. They’ve Been Kicked, Dragged and Detained for Days.

Some Americans Have Already Been Caught in Trump’s Immigration Dragnet. More Will Be.

We Found More Than 40 Cases of Immigration Agents Using Banned Chokeholds and Other Moves That Can Cut Off Breathing

Also speaking is 16-year-old Arnoldo Bazan. As ProPublica detailed earlier this year, Bazan was tackled and choked by immigration agents who were chasing his undocumented father in Houston.

Bystanders filmed the teen screaming that he was a minor and a U.S. citizen. After agents knelt on his neck and put him in a choke hold, then they handcuffed him.

Bazan told ProPublica that when he was in a choke hold, “I felt like I was seeing the light.” He said he’s now speaking up — including on Capitol Hill — to help keep others from going through the same. “I don’t think nobody’s safe anymore.” 

DHS said in its statement that Bazan elbowed an officer in the face as he was detained, which the teen denies. The agency’s spokesperson added that any allegations that agents assaulted Bazan “are FALSE.” 

It’s unclear exactly how many American kids have been held. The government doesn’t disclose how many Americans are detained, even briefly, during immigration enforcement. 

Former immigration officials told ProPublica that it used to be rare to encounter, let alone hold, American children for any amount of time. While the officials couldn’t recall a specific policy prohibiting it, they said past administrations just didn’t prioritize arresting families during immigration enforcement in the interior of the country. (A ProPublica investigation published Monday found that in his second term, President Donald Trump has deported mothers of U.S. children at four times the rate Biden did.) 

In a report shared with ProPublica, the minority staff from the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform compiled 128 cases of children — a mix of citizens and noncitizens — who were injured, left unattended or otherwise put at risk by enforcement operations conducted by Department of Homeland Security agents.

The review found that citizen children caught up in immigration operations were also exposed to chemical agents, were placed in restraints or required medical attention, and some were held at gunpoint, were left unattended when agents detained their parents, or were present when agents smashed car windows or rammed their vehicles. 

“The impact of all of these practices on children — the physical injuries but also the trauma — is really horrific,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told ProPublica. 

Several other citizen teens and mothers of U.S. citizens who were detained by immigration agents will be delivering testimony at the forum. 

Anabel Romero, an Idaho mother, recalled how she was detained with three of her children during a multiagency raid at an Idaho racetrack. The stated target of the raid was illegal gambling, but it ended with more than 100 people in ICE custody.

Officers pointed guns at Romero’s 14-year-old, SueHey Tello, and at her 8-year-old and 6-year-old. Tello said they dragged her from the truck and eventually zip-tied her, leaving bruises and marks.

Asked about the raid and agents’ conduct, DHS said, “ICE does not zip tie or handcuff children.” (Romero and Tello do not know which agency’s officers zip-tied them.)

Tello told ProPublica she was petrified and particularly worried for her younger siblings. “My little sister’s crying, my little brother’s scared,” Tello recalled. “I don’t know what to do. [I was] looking for any familiar face.”

Romero noted that the Trump administration has often said its immigration dragnet is keeping kids safe by going after predators and criminals. “They say they’re doing this to protect children,” recalled Romero. “But they hurt my children.”

The post How American Kids Have Been Collateral Damage in Trump’s Immigration Crackdown appeared first on ProPublica.

Markets and the Treasury are pricing a quick exit. Without a credible political endgame, Donald Trump cannot deliver one

Whatever else Donald Trump’s “pause” is, it is not a ceasefire. Iranian barrages targeted Israel, Gulf Arab states and northern Iraq on Tuesday, while Israeli and US warplanes struck across Iran. What Mr Trump’s statement did was to narrow US targets to exclude power plants and energy infrastructure to calm jittery markets. But the fighting continues. With reports that the US is considering boots on the ground, Washington is waging war while searching for an exit – without a credible or unified negotiating position, as Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu pursues his own agenda.

Mr Trump’s strategy, if he has one, might be to soothe markets now – and launch a massive escalatory strike over the weekend when trading desks are closed, in the hope of forcing the Iranian regime to fracture or capitulate. This rests on the idea that Tehran is brittle and will crack under American “shock and awe”. Sir Keir Starmer’s implicit judgment is that Iran will not cave. That disagreement may have been enough to send him to Mr Trump’s doghouse. Britain must stay out of US-Israeli adventurism. The war’s constraint is not capability – Washington has plenty of air power and Iran offers plenty of targets. But nothing can be resolved without a politically achievable objective.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.

Marco Rubio welcomes release of Dennis Coyle, who was detained in January last year for violating unspecified laws

Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities have released the American academic Dennis Coyle after holding him for over a year, with the foreign ministry saying the release came on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday that marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

A statement from the ministry said the academic researcher had been released in Kabul on Tuesday, following an appeal from his family and after Afghanistan’s supreme court “considered his previous imprisonment sufficient”.

Former Rep. David Rivera of Florida is accused of secretly lobbying for the Venezuelan government during the first Trump administration.

Markwayne Mullin was sworn in as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday, taking the oath of office at the White House one day after winning confirmation in the Senate.

At least seven killed as Moscow appears to step up spring offensive amid concerns focus on Iran war leaves Kyiv more vulnerable

Russia has launched a huge wave of nearly 1,000 drones at Ukraine, killing at least seven people, as Moscow appears to be stepping up a spring offensive intended to break Ukrainian resistance along the front.

Ukrainian officials said Moscow fired nearly 400 long-range drones and 23 cruise missiles overnight, followed by another 556 drones in an unusual daytime assault on Tuesday, hitting cities across the west of the country.

Hiring your first employees doesn't have to take long. Here's how to move quickly without making costly mistakes.

I Swear’s Kirk Jones set to direct film based on the 1970s cult animation about a ‘very ordinary man’ who accessed different worlds via a magical fancy dress shop

A live-action film based on the cult British kids’ cartoon Mr Benn is to go into production with I Swear director Kirk Jones at the helm.

Mr Benn first appeared on TV on the BBC in 1971, in a series created by David McKee, who died in 2022. The series followed the adventures of “a very ordinary man who could do extraordinary things” when he visited a magical fancy dress shop, which acted as a portal to different worlds. Only 13 episodes were made before the series ended in March 1972, though a one-off episode was broadcast in 2005 on the kids’ channel Nick Jr.

Apple is adding advertising to its Maps, Mail, Wallet and Siri services this summer.

Hopes of de-escalation dim as Israeli PM also vows to keep striking Iran, even as Trump talks up deal hopes

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Israel said on Tuesday it would seize parts of southern Lebanon to create what it called a “defensive buffer”, while Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to continue striking Iran, dimming hopes of de-escalation even as Donald Trump talked up the prospects of a deal to end the conflict.

During a meeting with the military chief of staff, Israel defence minister Israel Katz said Israeli forces would “control the remaining bridges and the security zone up to the Litani”, a river in Lebanon that meets the Mediterranean about 30km (20 miles) north of Israel’s border.

March 24, 2026 — The Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre has opened a new call for PULSE Collaborations (formerly Pawsey Uptake Projects), inviting Australian researchers to partner with Pawsey experts to accelerate the impact of their computational research.

The program supports projects that improve performance, scale, and efficiency using Pawsey’s infrastructure. Successful teams will receive up to 0.20 FTE of dedicated Pawsey staff support over six months to collaboratively improve research capability. Depending on the project’s needs, this support may draw on expertise from multiple Pawsey team members.

PULSE projects are intended to facilitate:

• Promoting collaborations between Pawsey researchers and staff.
• Uplifting research the scale and scope of scientific research using Pawsey infrastructure.
• Learning best practices and novel approaches for computational research.
• Skill development to improving the efficiency and performance of scientific workloads.
• Engagement with researchers from a wide range of scientific domains.

PULSE projects can span a wide range of activities, from benchmarking and code optimization to GPU acceleration, workflow improvements, advanced visualization, and hybrid quantum-classical approaches. Competitive applications clearly define their goals, outline team contributions, and effectively leverage systems such as Setonix, Australia’s largest and most energy-efficient supercomputer.

The call is open to researchers based at Australian universities, government agencies, and research institutions. Projects may also receive preparatory access to Setonix for development where needed.

Applications close: April 10, 2026 (End of Day, Anywhere on Earth)

For full details, eligibility criteria, and scope, visit the program page.

Apply here.

Source: Karina Nunez, Pawsey

The post Pawsey Opens Call for PULSE Collaborations to Accelerate Research Impact in Australia appeared first on HPCwire.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: A new hacking group has been rampaging the Internet in a persistent campaign that spreads a self-propagating and never-before-seen backdoor -- and curiously a data wiper that targets Iranian machines. The group, tracked under the name TeamPCP, first gained visibility in December, when researchers from security firm Flare observed it unleashing a worm that targeted cloud-hosted platforms that weren't properly secured. The objective was to build a distributed proxy and scanning infrastructure and then use it to compromise servers for exfiltrating data, deploying ransomware, conducting extortion, and mining cryptocurrency. The group is notable for its skill in large-scale automation and integration of well-known attack techniques. More recently, TeamPCP has waged a relentless campaign that uses continuously evolving malware to bring ever more systems under its control. Late last week, it compromised virtually all versions of the widely used Trivy vulnerability scanner in a supply-chain attack after gaining privileged access to the GitHub account of Aqua Security, the Trivy creator. Over the weekend, researchers said they observed TeamPCP spreading potent malware that was also worm-enabled, meaning it had the potential to spread to new machines automatically, with no interaction required of victims behind the keyboard. [...] As the weekend progressed, CanisterWorm [as Aikido has named the malware] was updated to add an additional payload: a wiper that targets machines exclusively in Iran. When the updated worm infects machines, it checks if the machine is in the Iranian timezone or is configured for use in that country. When either condition was met, the malware no longer activated the credential stealer and instead triggered a novel wiper that TeamPCP developers named Kamikaze. Eriksen said in an email that there's no indication yet that the worm caused actual damage to Iranian machines, but that there was "clear potential for large-scale impact if it achieves active spread." It's unclear what the motive is for TeamPCP. Aikido researcher Charlie Eriksen wrote: "While there may be an ideological component, it could just as easily be a deliberate attempt to draw attention to the group. Historically, TeamPCP has appeared to be financially motivated, but there are signs that visibility is becoming a goal in itself. By going after security tools and open-source projects, including Checkmarx as of today, they are sending a clear and deliberate signal."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Australian-born Maga influencer Nick Adams appointed to role for tourism, exceptionalism and American values

Donald Trump’s appointment of Nick Adams, the “alpha male” Australian turned American internet provocateur as a new special presidential envoy on Tuesday, could give fuel to theories that the White House is deliberately trolling the world.

The president nominated the Sydney-born Maga influencer, who has a history of theatrically inflammatory and Islamophobic comments, as ambassador to Malaysia in July, but the Senate returned the appointment without a confirmation vote in January and Trump did not re-submit him.

New Nasa chief outlines changes to moon programme Artemis including repurposing Lunar Gateway

Nasa is cancelling plans to deploy a space station in lunar orbit and will instead use its components to construct a $20bn base on the moon’s surface over the next seven years, its new chief, Jared Isaacman, said on Tuesday.

Isaacman, who was sworn in at the agency in December, made the announcement at the opening of a daylong event at Nasa’s Washington headquarters at which he outlinedchanges he is making to the agency’s flagship moon programme Artemis.

California governor backtracks and says he meant to apply term to Israel’s future if it continues on present trajectory

The California governor, Gavin Newsom, backtracked on earlier remarks likening Israel to an “apartheid state” in a new interview with Politico published on Tuesday.

In the interview, the Democrat, who is widely expected to launch a presidential bid in 2028, said that when he used the term three weeks ago, he meant it to apply to Israel’s future should it continue on its present trajectory.

The Swiss National Supercomputing Centre, in collaboration with the HPC-AI Advisory Council, will host the 17th annual Swiss Conference in Locarno, Switzerland, April 20-23, 2026.

March 24, 2026 — Hosted by the HPC-AI Advisory Council and the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS), the 17th annual Swiss Conference will bring together the global HPC, AI, and emerging-technology community in Locarno, Switzerland. The event serves as a forum for industry leaders, startups, and researchers to examine how advances in compute and storage are shaping science and industry.

Credit: CSCS

This year’s program expands its focus on artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and digital twins as interconnected areas of high-performance innovation. Technical sessions, workshops, and case studies will explore their convergence, from AI-accelerated HPC workflows and early hybrid quantum-classical models to large-scale digital twins used to design, validate, and optimize complex systems.

The conference opens with a dedicated tutorial day, followed by three days of keynotes, invited talks, panels, and interactive activities. Attendees will gain practical insights across HPC, AI, quantum computing, digital twin engineering, cloud architectures, containerized workflows, and more.

The full agenda of the meeting is available on the HPC-AI Advisory Council website.

Registration is required for all participants and includes a nominal attendee fee charged in advance. Registration also covers daily breaks and lunch, as well as a group outing, which requires confirmation during the registration process.

Source: CSCS

The post HPC-AI Advisory Council, CSCS to Host 17th Swiss Conference in Locarno appeared first on HPCwire.

You can download and 3D print the little spaceman from Project Hail Mary, and it's inspiring, like the movie itself.

White House is defending US authority to turn away asylum seekers when officials deem the border too overburdened

US supreme court justices indicated sympathy on Tuesday toward Donald Trump’s administration in its defense of the government’s authority to turn away asylum seekers when officials deem US-Mexico border crossings too overburdened to handle additional claims.

The legal dispute centers on a policy called “metering” that the Republican president’s administration may seek to revive after it was dropped by Trump’s Democratic predecessor Joe Biden in 2021. The policy allowed US immigration officials to stop asylum seekers at the border and indefinitely decline to process their claims.

• French superstar played 10 years for Atlético

• Forward will join Orlando in July on a deal through 2029

• Atlético plays Barcelona in Copa del Rey final in April

Orlando City SC completed the long-anticipated signing of Atlético Madrid superstar Antoine Griezmann on Tuesday.

The 35-year-old French attacker is signed from July 2026 through the 2027-28 season with an option for 2028-29. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Labour and Liberal Democrats welcome suspension of Chris Parry, the party’s Hampshire mayoral candidate, after derogatory remarks about Jewish group

The live feed from the Lib Dem local elections campaign launch did not last long, and it did not include footage of Ed Davey taking questions from reporters. But this is what the Lib Dems are saying about their five key campaign issues.

-Cut the cost of living: A plan to halve energy bills within a decade, saving households an average of £870 a year

-Fix the NHS and care: Guarantee the right to see a GP within seven days (or 24 hours for urgent cases) and ending 12-hour A&E waits.

-Rescue high streets: Give an emergency cut to VAT for hospitality businesses, to bring prices down and boost struggling high streets.

-Clean up rivers: Ban water companies from dumping raw sewage into local rivers and coastal areas.

-Restore community policing: Ensure visible, effective local policing to reduce crime.

Stitch puts UI design tools into the hands of anyone who can chat.

The seed reveals that people in France have been cultivating the popular variety of grape since at least the 1400s, scientists say.

Greg Bovino says Trump’s immigration crackdown hasn’t gone far enough in exit interview with the New York Times

As his retirement looms, Gregory Bovino, the US border patrol’s former commander-at-large, has contended that efforts to curb illegal immigration by Donald Trump’s administration have not gone far enough – showing no remorse over federal agents’ killings of two US citizens in Minneapolis in January.

“I wish I’d caught even more illegal aliens,” he told the New York Times on Tuesday in an exit interview, during which he also referred to the Republican president as “the Trumpster” and acknowledged his retirement at the end of March was not entirely voluntary.

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said that if the SAVE America Act becomes law, it will present a major hurdle for everyone already on the voter rolls.

"The SAVE America Act doesn’t ‘Save’ America,’ Kelly said in a March 17 X post. "And this isn’t about voter ID. This bill requires everyone to re-register to vote in person and your driver’s license, REAL ID, or military ID aren’t even good enough."

After Kelly repeated the statement on MS Now’s "Morning Joe," Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, one of the bill’s authors, said Kelly was wrong.

"Nothing in the SAVE America Act requires currently registered voters to re-register," Lee wrote in an X post. 

Millions of American voters newly register or update their registration each election and would face the new registration rules; but Kelly’s statement exaggerates the breadth of the bill’s effect. Lee’s comment, meanwhile, downplayed the measure’s potential impact on voters.

The House passed the proposal in February and the Senate is now debating it. The bill appears to lack the 60 votes needed in the Senate to proceed to a final vote.

President Donald Trump said lawmakers should not approve a deal to end the Homeland Security partial government shutdown until Democrats agree to pass the SAVE America Act — a priority of his during the midterm election year. 

People who move or change parties must reregister

The legislation does not say that everyone currently registered must reregister to vote. It says someone seeking to register to vote in federal elections shall present "documentary proof of United States citizenship in person to the office of the appropriate election official."

Eliza Sweren-Becker, deputy director for the voting rights and election program at the liberal Brennan Center for Justice, previously told PolitiFact that the documentary proof of citizenship requirements would apply not only to new registrants and those who moved to a different state, but also potentially to a lot of people who wouldn’t consider themselves new registrants.

For instance, depending on how a state interpreted the bill’s language, moving to another county within the same state or to a new voting precinct could count as a new voter registration and trigger the citizenship proof requirement.

States’ decisions on how to classify residential moves will affect whether the documents are needed, Sweren-Becker said.

In 2024, about 26 million people relocated within the U.S., which is almost 8% of the total population, according to North American Moving Services, a moving company. That data is likely an undercount because it might not include people who made short-distance moves without hiring a moving company. 

In the more than half of states where people register by party, people who want to change their party affiliation would have to update their registration. So would people who change their names after they get married.

Experts told us when major voting changes happen, there are bound to be errors that affect people’s registration. Such errors could force some voters to reregister.

Aaron Blacksberg, federal policy counsel at the Institute for Responsive Government, a group that works with election officials, told PolitiFact in an email that "it would not be correct to say that every voter would be required to re-register under the bill, but any registration update would require the voter to comply with the bill's proof of citizenship requirement."

Jacob Peters, a Kelly spokesperson, cited an article by the liberal Center for American Progress about the legislation. It said that "for a federal election cycle, approximately 80 million to 100 million Americans register to vote for the first time or for updates." The article said that means that every two years, 80 to 100 million Americans would be affected by the legislation. The center cited state voter registration data compiled by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission for the 2022 and 2024 elections.

In the 2024 election, there were about 211 million active registered voters. 

University of California-Los Angeles election law professor Rick Hasen said some of the questions about who would need to reregister would be hashed out in the courts if the legislation becomes law. But, he said, "I think it’s unlikely to be read to require everyone to re-register."

What documents can people use to register to vote? 

Kelly also said "your driver’s license, REAL ID, or military ID aren’t even good enough" to register to vote. This is more accurate.

The legislation says people need government documentation showing U.S. citizenship to register, such as a passport or birth certificate. It allows a U.S. military identification card but only if it is accompanied by a U.S. military record of service document showing that the applicant was born in the U.S.

Military service members and veterans can obtain their service records. But a spokesperson for VoteVets, a liberal advocacy group, said that not every military service record lists a place of birth. 

The legislation also accepts a form of identification consistent with the requirements of the REAL ID Act that shows U.S. citizenship. However, most states do not show such citizenship information on driver’s licenses or REAL ID.

A handful of northern border states offer an optional enhanced ID that is only available for U.S. citizens. For example, about 16% of Minnesota drivers have that ID. 

Separately, a few states have passed laws since 2023 requiring that drivers licenses show citizenship, but not all drivers have them. For example, in Montana, all U.S. citizens will have a citizenship marker — a black eagle in flight — displayed on new or renewed driver’s licenses and ID cards starting in 2026. In South Dakota since July 1, 2025, all driver’s licenses and ID cards show the REAL ID designation and U.S. citizenship status. Florida drivers licenses will include whether someone is a U.S. citizen in 2027 if Gov. Ron DeSantis signs a bill as expected.

Our ruling 

Kelly said the SAVE America Act "requires everyone to re-register to vote in person and your driver’s license, REAL ID, or military ID aren’t even good enough."

Many details about voter registration would depend on how states implement the legislation if it becomes law, which means many details remain unknown.

Based on the legislation, though, Kelly exaggerated the need for everyone to reregister. The legislation does not say that all registered voters need to reregister. However, every election cycle, tens of millions of Americans newly register or update their registrations when they move. This means they would be subject to the requirements of the proposed legislation.

Kelly was more accurate about driver’s licenses. REAL IDs do not automatically confirm U.S. citizenship; only a minority of states offer licenses that show citizenship. And military IDs must be accompanied by a military service record.

We rate this statement Half True.

Chief correspondent Louis Jacobson contributed to this fact-check.

RELATED: Fact-checking Chuck Schumer about SAVE America Act, how many Americans register to vote in person

RELATED: Voter suppression or little step? How the SAVE America Act affects married women who change names

RELATED: President Trump wants to slash voting by mail. About 1 in 4 Republicans voted that way in 2024

Security lines are stretching up to 6 hours at some airports amid TSA staffing shortages. Here's how to check wait times before you leave.

Where traditional religion once gathered people together, digital spirituality is now consumed in isolation, mediated by tech gods with opaque agendas

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Jim Pu’u didn’t set out to find God. His soul-searching began with a modest idea: to leave a record of his life in case something happened to him. His own father had died young, leaving behind only scraps of his memory, and he didn’t want his daughter to face the same void.

In December of 2024, Pu’u, who is 36 and runs a warehouse for a commercial flooring company in Las Vegas, turned to AI.

Epic Games is cutting more than 1,000 jobs as usage of its flagship title, Fortnite, falls. "The layoffs aren't related to AI," CEO Tim Sweeney noted. Reuters reports: The cuts, along with more than $500 million in savings from lower contracting and marketing spending and unfilled roles would put the company in "a more stable place," Sweeney said in a note to employees. [...] "We've had challenges delivering consistent Fortnite magic," Sweeney said, adding "market conditions today are the most extreme" since the early days of the company founded in 1991. The move marks Epic's second major round of layoffs in three years. In September 2023, the company cut about 830 jobs, or roughly 16% of its workforce. It was not immediately clear what percentage of staff would be impacted by Tuesday's announcement.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Exclusive: Group says measures to curb harmful content will also help to tackle violence against women and girls

Men and boys need as much protection as women and girls from harmful influencers and “the worst parts of the internet”, a group of MPs have told Ofcom as they called for the regulator to give specific guidance to online platforms.

More than 60 Labour MPs have written to the Ofcom chief executive, Melanie Dawes, urging her to protect men and boys from “manosphere” influencers who may expose them to gambling, sextortion and violent pornography.

The video game maker is cutting 1,000 workers as it struggles to keep players engaged with Fortnite.

Airline CEOs have urged Congress to restore funding to the TSA as lengthy security lines plague US airports

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Delta Air Lines is partly suspending its speciality service desk for members of Congress until funding for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is restored, the airline confirmed on Tuesday, as security lines stretch for hours at airports across the country due to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown.

The service desk is used to help members of Congress book flights at special government rates, secure airport escorts and make last-minute changes to flights.

If you're looking for a less-chunky phone to carry all day, Apple and Samsung have new slim options. Here's how they compare.

A controversial multimillion-dollar deal between New York City’s public hospital system and military contractor Palantir, first reported by The Intercept, is coming to an end, according to recent testimony before the city council.

Related

Palantir Gets Millions of Dollars From New York City’s Public Hospitals

The Intercept reported in February that the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, which operates a network of public health care facilities across the city, had paid Palantir almost $4 million since 2023 for data analysis services. NYCHH says it used Palantir’s software to boost its efficiency in billing Medicaid and other public benefits, which included the automated scanning of patient health notes.

The contract prompted protests from activists and local organizers who objected to the hospital system’s use of software from a company whose technology has facilitated lethal airstrike targeting, wide-reaching surveillance of American citizens, and deportation raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

At a March 16 meeting of the New York City Council, NYC Health + Hospitals CEO Mitchell Katz disclosed that Palantir’s contract will not be renewed come October. Katz defended the health care network’s collaboration with Palantir on the grounds that there was an “absolute firewall” between patient data and the company’s government customers, such as ICE, that would prevent information sharing. “We haven’t had any problems,” Katz said, “And we’re going to end the contract anyway because we always intended it to be a short-term solution.”

According to Katz, data analysis previously conducted with Palantir’s help will be brought in-house following the contract’s expiration.

Related

Alex Karp Insists Palantir Doesn’t Spy on Americans. Here’s What He’s Not Saying.

“Palantir makes money by enabling mass violence in the U.S. and around the world. They should have no place in our hospitals, our pension funds, or our government,” said Kenny Morris, an organizer with the American Friends Service Committee, which shared the contract documents with The Intercept.

“Our campaign against Palantir doesn’t stop in NYC,” Morris said. “We will continue to isolate this company and limit its destructive influence on our lives. In this city and around the world, communities are organizing to push more and more corporate clients, institutions, and politicians to cut ties with Palantir.”

The post Palantir Will No Longer Profit Off of New Yorkers’ Health Data appeared first on The Intercept.

Advocates say Lee Zeldin’s EPA has rolled back protections and cut staff and funding, putting health at risk

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More than 160 environmental and public health organizations on Tuesday called for Lee Zeldin, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator, to resign or be fired.

“No [EPA] administrator in history – Democratic or Republican – has so brazenly betrayed the agency’s core mission,” the groups wrote in an open letter. “EPA’s foremost purpose is to protect human health and the environment. With Administrator Lee Zeldin at the helm, EPA has abandoned its mission, creating damage that will take decades to address.”

One of T-Mobile's most popular perks started again Tuesday, and you have a week to redeem the offer.

Apple's higher-tier models dominate among owned iPhone 17 models, while the thin iPhone Air is more popular than last year's Plus model.

Overhead announcements at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport periodically advised those in line with departures within four hours to consider rebooking now.

The foreign ministry said in a statement it agreed after a letter from his family that Dennis Coyle "would be pardoned and released" for Eid.

A shadowy group claiming antisemitic attacks in Europe amid the Iran war tells CBS News it will target "U.S. and Israeli interests worldwide."

President Trump has long railed against mail-in voting, but used the method this month in a Florida election, public records indicate.

Parts of the Arabian Peninsula and Persian Gulf could be hit by strong thunderstorms later this week. Major highways and airports in the region could be inundated.

New submitter the_skywise shares a report from Reuters: The U.S. Federal Communications Commission said on Monday it was banning the import of all new foreign-made consumer routers, the latest crackdown on Chinese-made electronic gear over security concerns. China is estimated to control at least 60% of the U.S. market for home routers, boxes that connect computers, phones, and smart devices to the internet. The FCC order does not impact the import or use of existing models, but will ban new ones. The agency said a White House-convened review deemed imported routers pose "a severe cybersecurity risk that could be leveraged to immediately and severely disrupt U.S. critical infrastructure." It said malicious actors had exploited security gaps in foreign-made routers "to attack households, disrupt networks, enable espionage, and facilitate intellectual property theft," citing their role in major hacks like Volt and Salt Typhoon. The determination includes an exemption for routers the Pentagon deems do not pose unacceptable risks.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Bright Line Watch researchers see stabilization in democratic health but at lower levels after sharp decline

The health of American democracy, as measured by those who study it most closely, has settled into a diminished state – stabilizing after a sharp decline last year, but still well below the levels recorded before the start of Donald Trump’s second term, according to a new survey released on Tuesday.

The findings, by the non-partisan democracy-tracking project Bright Line Watch, which has surveyed hundreds of US scholars at American colleges and universities since 2017, suggest that the erosion of norms detected after Trump’s return to the White House last year has hardened into a new baseline. The public also holds a dim view of American democracy, the most recent survey found, but are sharply divided along partisan lines over how well the system is functioning.

A CD account will protect your money and grow your interest. Here's how much you can earn with a $2,500 deposit now.

GB Energy’s Jürgen Maier says production could bring economic benefits and give supply chains ‘time to transition’ to renewables

The head of the UK’s national green energy champion has joined other high-profile renewable energy leaders in making the case for more North Sea oil and gas production as the government braces for an energy cost crisis.

The GB Energy boss, Jürgen Maier, used a social media post on LinkedIn to reject the claim that more North Sea oil and gas could help to bring down energy costs, which have soared as the war in Iran has escalated.

Struggling to find the right buzzwords to adorn your CV, or to put a gloss on a series of professional setbacks? There’s a translation app for that

Name: LinkedIn Speak.

Age: One month old.

German rescue teams have been trying to ease the humpback’s path back into deeper waters without success

A 10-metre-long humpback whale stranded on a sandbar in the Baltic Sea is in danger of dying if rescue workers do not manage to help it move into deeper waters soon, experts have said.

Believed to be a young male, the mammal was spotted by guests of a hotel in Niendorf in Lübeck Bay, northern Germany, on Monday after they heard its deep moans and alerted police.

The alleged cyberattack has drawn attention from across the internet.

Four Persian Gulf states reported fresh missile and drone threats from Iran, as Israel pledged to keep up its attacks in Iran and Lebanon “with full force.”

Investigation continues into Iran-linked group’s claim it attacked Jewish charity’s ambulances in north London

The number of national security cases involving hostile states carrying out operations such as spying and sabotage in the UK has increased by half in six months, the head of counter-terrorism policing has said.

As the security services continue to investigate the potential involvement of an Iran-linked group in Monday’s attack on community ambulances run by a Jewish charity, the assistant Metropolitan police commissioner Laurence Taylor warned of a worrying trend.

Chancellor says package offered by Liz Truss’s government was unaffordable and any future help will be targeted

Rachel Reeves has ruled out universal support to deal with any future rise in energy bills, saying any government help would be targeted, and criticised the support offered by Liz Truss’s government as unaffordable and irresponsible.

The chancellor also said she would review the planned fuel duty rise in September, but did not commit to delaying or postponing it.

TAIPEI, Taiwan, March 24, 2026 — COMPUTEX organizer Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) today announced that Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan will deliver a keynote address at COMPUTEX 2026, one of the world’s leading technology exhibitions.

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan

Tan’s keynote will take place on June 2 at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, Hall 2, 7F, where he will share Intel’s vision for the next era of computing in the age of artificial intelligence.

As AI reshapes every industry, Tan will discuss how breakthroughs across silicon, systems, and software—combined with deep ecosystem partnerships—are enabling new levels of performance, efficiency, and scale. He will also highlight how Intel is working with customers and partners across the industry to define the future of heterogeneous computing and build the infrastructure required for the AI era.

COMPUTEX brings together global technology leaders, innovators, and partners to showcase the breakthroughs shaping the future of computing. Tan’s keynote will offer attendees insight into how collaboration across the technology ecosystem is accelerating innovation and unlocking new opportunities for businesses and developers worldwide.

Registration for COMPUTEX Keynote will open in the middle of April.

COMPUTEX 2026 with the theme “AI Together,” is set to take place from June 2-5, 2026, at Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center Hall 1 & 2, TWTC and TICC. This event will host 1,500 exhibitors across up to 6,000 booths, showcasing three major themes: AI & Computing, Robotics & Mobility, and Next-Gen Tech.

For more exhibition information:

• COMPUTEX: www.computextaipei.com.tw/en/index.html
• InnoVEX: www.innovex.com.tw

More from HPCwire

• COMPUTEX 2026 Brings the Global AI Ecosystem to Taipei
• COMPUTEX Forum 2026 Opens for Registration
• Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon to Kick Off COMPUTEX 2026 with Opening Keynote

About COMPUTEX

COMPUTEX was founded in 1981. It has grown with the global ICT industry and become stronger over the last four decades. Bearing witness to historical moments in the development of and changes in the industry, COMPUTEX attracts more than 40,000 buyers to visit Taiwan every year. It is also the preferred platform chosen by top international companies for launching epoch-making products.

Taiwan has a comprehensive global ICT industry chain. Gaining a foothold in Taiwan, COMPUTEX is jointly held by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council and Taipei Computer Association, aiming to build a global tech ecosystem. COMPUTEX has become a global benchmark exhibition for AI and startups, connecting global pioneers and enabling new sparks of breakthrough technology.

Source: COMPUTEX

The post Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to Deliver Keynote at COMPUTEX 2026 appeared first on HPCwire.

You might even be able to sneak past the crowd with a security-line reservation at certain airports.

President called practice ‘mail-in cheating’ at Monday event after voting in Florida House race via mail

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Donald Trump has described voting by mail as “cheating” at an event in Memphis, Tennessee, just days after casting a mail‑in ballot himself.

“Mail-in voting means mail-in cheating. I call it mail-in cheating, and we got to do something about it all,” the US president said on Monday, in remarks to a roundtable on his administration’s crime taskforce.

Workers are ‘in the middle of chaos from political games’ as Senate Republicans try to negotiate with Democrats to reopen DHS

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Workers with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) are reeling from the White House’s deployment of immigration law enforcement into airports as TSA workers enter their sixth week without pay as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown continues.

More than 400 TSA workers have quit since the shutdown began in February, with major US airports reporting high call-out rates among workers, leading to longer security wait times. On Sunday, more than, 3,450 TSA officers called out of work, with as many as 40% of officers at some airports calling out that day, according to DHS data.

Researchers in Cambodia surveyed dozens of previously unexplored caves and found several species never seen before, including a pit viper that is still being studied.

The rapper discussed his 2024 sexual assault lawsuit and the Kendrick-Drake beef in a new GQ cover story

Jay-Z has spoken out about his recent sexual assault lawsuit in a new interview.

The suit alleged that Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs raped a a 13-year-old girl at a party in 2000. Combs and Jay-Z denied all allegations after the lawsuit was filed in late 2024, and the case was voluntarily dismissed in February 2025.

New reports indicate it's easier than before for bad actors to surveil your iPhone. This is how you can easily secure your device.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: An appeals court invalidated the Biden-era Federal Trade Commission's attempt to punish Intuit for allegedly deceptive ads that pitched TurboTax as free. Under then-Chair Lina Khan, the FTC determined in 2024 that the TurboTax maker violated US law with deceptive advertising and ordered it to stop telling consumers, without more obvious disclaimers, that TurboTax or other products are free. The FTC's chief administrative law judge had previously found that Intuit's ads violated prohibitions on deceptive advertising because the firm "advertised to consumers that they could file their taxes online for free using TurboTax, when in truth, for approximately two-thirds of taxpayers, the advertised claim was false." Intuit appealed in the conservative-leaning US Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit and got a resounding victory on Friday in a 3-0 ruling issued (PDF) by a panel of judges. "Following the Supreme Court's decision in SEC v. Jarkesy, we hold that adjudication of a deceptive advertising claim before an administrative law judge violated the constitutional separation of powers," the 5th Circuit panel said. The Supreme Court's June 2024 ruling (PDF) in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy held that the SEC system for issuing fines violated the right to a jury trial. The 5th Circuit panel said the Jarkesy decision confirms that the FTC must pursue deceptive advertising claims in courts rather than its own administrative process. [...] The 5th Circuit ruling acknowledged that most people can't use TurboTax for free. "TurboTax 'Free Edition' has been part of the TurboTax range for more than a decade, available to taxpayers for what Intuit refers to as 'simple tax returns,'" the ruling said. "Most American taxpayers do not have 'simple tax returns.' The TurboTax website is designed so that any individual taxpayer can begin preparing a tax return in TurboTax Free Edition, but those who enter disqualifying information are prompted before filing to upgrade to a paid product." Although the court noted that Intuit stopped the specific ads challenged by the FTC, the ruling said the cease-and-desist order issued by the agency could have far-reaching effects on Intuit marketing. "The cease-and-desist order is remarkably broad: it prohibits Intuit for the next twenty years from advertising 'any goods or services' as free unless specific, extensive, and arguably unworkable requirements are satisfied. The order is not confined to tax-preparation solutions and extends to all products sold by Intuit," the ruling said. The 5th Circuit said the FTC's deceptive advertising claims are "traditional actions at law and equity and thus involve private rights that demand adjudication in an Article III court." The court rejected the FTC's argument that the claims involve public rights that may be adjudicated by administrative agencies. "In sum, there is overwhelming evidence that Section 5 of the FTC Act did not create a new duty for merchants to refrain from deceptive advertising," the 5th Circuit said. "That duty long predated the FTC Act and could be enforced by private parties in actions at common law or equity for fraud, deceit, or unfair competition."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Oahu residents face gruelling cleanup as floods damage hundreds of homes and losses are expected to top $1bn

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The worst flooding to hit Hawaii in two decades has swept homes off their foundations, floated cars out of driveways and left floors, walls and counters covered in thick, reddish volcanic mud.

Authorities said hundreds of homes had been damaged, along with some schools and a hospital. On Monday, new downpours set off a fresh round of flooding on Oahu’s south side while residents on the island’s North Shore cleaned up and assessed the destruction from last week’s torrents. The National Weather Service said showers and thunderstorms were expected to wane but the Big Island remained under a flash flood watch.

In addition, NVIDIA announced at KubeCon Europe a confidential containers solution for GPU-accelerated workloads, updates to the NVIDIA KAI Scheduler and new open source projects to enable large-scale AI workloads.

March 24, 2026 — Artificial intelligence has rapidly emerged as one of the most critical workloads in modern computing. For the vast majority of enterprises, this workload runs on Kubernetes, an open source platform that automates the deployment, scaling and management of containerized applications.

Credit: Shutterstock

To help the global developer community manage high-performance AI infrastructure with greater transparency and efficiency, NVIDIA is donating a critical piece of software — the NVIDIA Dynamic Resource Allocation (DRA) Driver for GPUs — to the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF), a vendor-neutral organization dedicated to fostering and sustaining the cloud-native ecosystem.

Announced today at KubeCon Europe, CNCF’s flagship conference running this week in Amsterdam, the donation moves the driver from being vendor-governed to offering full community ownership under the Kubernetes project. This open environment encourages a wider circle of experts to contribute ideas, accelerate innovation and help ensure the technology stays aligned with the modern cloud landscape.

“NVIDIA’s deep collaboration with the Kubernetes and CNCF community to upstream the NVIDIA DRA Driver for GPUs marks a major milestone for open source Kubernetes and AI infrastructure,” said Chris Aniszczyk, chief technology officer of CNCF. “By aligning its hardware innovations with upstream Kubernetes and AI conformance efforts, NVIDIA is making high-performance GPU orchestration seamless and accessible to all.”

In addition, in collaboration with the CNCF’s Confidential Containers community, NVIDIA has introduced GPU support for Kata Containers, lightweight virtual machines that act like containers. This extends hardware acceleration into a stronger isolation, separating workloads for increased security and enabling AI workloads to run with enhanced protection so organizations can easily implement confidential computing to safeguard data.

Simplifying AI Infrastructure

Historically, managing the powerful GPUs that fuel AI within data centers required significant effort. This contribution is designed to make high-performance computing more accessible.

Key benefits for developers include:

• Improved Efficiency: The driver allows for smarter sharing of GPU resources, delivering effective use of computing power, with support of NVIDIA Multi-Process Service and NVIDIA Multi-Instance GPU technologies.
• Massive Scale: It provides native support for connecting systems together, including with NVIDIA Multi-Node NVlink interconnect technology. This is essential for training massive AI models on NVIDIA Grace Blackwell systems and next-generation AI infrastructure.
• Flexibility: Developers can dynamically reconfigure their hardware to suit their needs, changing how resources are allocated on the fly.
• Precision: The software supports fine-tuned requests, allowing users to ask for the specific computing power, memory settings or interconnect arrangement needed for their applications.

A Collaborative, Industry-Wide Effort

NVIDIA is collaborating with industry leaders — including Amazon Web Services, Broadcom, Canonical, Google Cloud, Microsoft, Nutanix, Red Hat and SUSE — to drive these features forward for the benefit of the entire cloud-native ecosystem.

“Open source will be at the core of every successful enterprise AI strategy, bringing standardization to the high-performance infrastructure components that fuel production AI workloads,” said Chris Wright, chief technology officer and senior vice president of global engineering at Red Hat. “NVIDIA’s donation of the NVIDIA DRA Driver for GPUs helps to cement the role of open source in AI’s evolution, and we look forward to collaborating with NVIDIA and the broader community within the Kubernetes ecosystem.”

“Open source software and the communities that sustain it are a cornerstone of the infrastructure used for scientific computing and research,” said Ricardo Rocha, lead of platforms infrastructure at CERN. “For organizations like CERN, where efficiently analyzing petabytes of data is essential to discovery, community-driven innovation helps accelerate the pace of science. NVIDIA’s donation of the DRA Driver strengthens the ecosystem researchers rely on to process data across both traditional scientific computing and emerging machine learning workloads.”

Expanding the Open Source Horizon

This donation is just part of NVIDIA’s broader initiatives to support the open source community. For example, NVSentinel — a system for GPU fault remediation — and AI Cluster Runtime, an agentic AI framework, were announced at GTC last week.

In addition, NVIDIA announced at GTC new open source projects including the NVIDIA NemoClaw reference stack and NVIDIA OpenShell runtime for securely running autonomous agents. OpenShell provides fine-grained programmable policy security and privacy controls, and natively integrates with Linux, eBPF and Kubernetes.

NVIDIA also today announced that its high-performance AI workload scheduler, the KAI Scheduler, has been onboarded as a CNCF Sandbox project — a key step toward fostering broader collaboration and ensuring the technology evolves alongside the needs of the wider cloud-native ecosystem. Developers and organizations can use and contribute to the KAI Scheduler today.

NVIDIA remains committed to actively maintaining and contributing to Kubernetes and CNCF projects to help meet the rigorous demands of enterprise AI customers.

In addition, following the release of NVIDIA Dynamo 1.0, NVIDIA is expanding the Dynamo ecosystem with Grove, an open source Kubernetes application programming interface for orchestrating AI workloads on GPU clusters. Grove, which enables developers to express complex inference systems in a single declarative resource, is being integrated with the llm-d inference stack for wider adoption in the Kubernetes community.

Developers and organizations can begin using and contributing to the NVIDIA DRA Driver today.

Source: Justin Boitano, NVIDIA

The post NVIDIA Donates Dynamic Resource Allocation Driver for GPUs to Kubernetes Community appeared first on HPCwire.

Top prediction market sites usher in new guardrails after senators introduced bill that could limit booming industry

Kalshi and Polymarket, the two biggest prediction market sites, rushed to institute new industry guardrails and add new surveillance tools on Monday after two key senators announced legislation that could severely curtail the industry’s prospects.

Kalshi said it would ban political candidates from trading on their own campaigns, and it would pre-emptively block anyone involved in college or professional sports from trading contracts related to the sports they play or are employed by.

Lib Dems will focus on ‘rolling up their sleeves and getting things done’, leader says at launch of local election campaign

• UK politics live – latest updates

Ed Davey has accused Reform UK and the Conservatives of importing “Trump-style divisive politics” as he launched the Liberal Democrats’ 7 May local elections campaign, promising the party would focus on “fixing things for your community”.

He also raised concerns that energy bill support being considered by the UK government would not include people on middle incomes who he said were being “hammered” by price rises caused by the war on Iran.

NYPD have yet to catch suspect who appears to be on losing streak after stealing limited funds from Chase banks

An allegedly well-practiced New York bank robber is on a losing streak – and still on the run – after hitting six Chase branches across Queens, Brooklyn, Harlem and the Bronx over five consecutive days and coming away with just $605, according to authorities.

New York police have yet to catch the suspect, identified as 33-year-old Gustavo DeJesus Torres, who began holding up the banks on Friday, 13 March and informing tellers in a written note that they might get hurt if they didn’t hand over the cash he demanded.

Diplomatic sources say negotiations may begin in Islamabad next week, though no formal agreement is in place

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, says his country is ready to “facilitate meaningful and conclusive talks” to end the war in the Middle East amid attempts to push Islamabad as a possible venue for negotiations between the US and Iran.

Pakistani sources said the US vice-president, JD Vance, was being put forward as a probable chief negotiator from the US side if talks went ahead. Iranian sources have said they would refuse to sit down with Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, or Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who led the nuclear negotiations with Iran before the war.

• Shiffrin wins slalom to move 85 points clear overall

• Aicher must win Wednesday’s giant slalom finale

• American star eyes record-tying sixth overall crown

Mikaela Shiffrin v Emma Aicher for the most prestigious title in women’s skiing will go to the season-ending final race on Wednesday.

Shiffrin won yet another slalom on Tuesday – her ninth in 10 World Cup starts this season – by a massive margin of 1.32sec ahead of Wendy Holdener.

Debt won't disappear on its own — but with the right strategy, you could take back control faster than you think.

Mortgage interest rates have ticked up again this March. Here's why (and what borrowers should do next).

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt appointed energy executive Alan Armstrong on Tuesday to replace newly confirmed​ DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin in the Senate.

The latest CAD leaks and rumors are painting a clearer picture of what's coming and when the rumored iPhone Fold would arrive.

A study found correlation between the environment and long-term wellness in sample of 1,978 who attended college between 1940-80

Attending a historically Black college or university (HBCU) as a young adult may be linked with better later-life cognitive outcomes for Black Americans, according to a recent study. The authors sampled 1,978 Black American adults who attended college between 1940 and 1980 (35% attended an HBCU), and who attended a high school in a state with an HBCU. The conclusion? There may be a correlation between collegiate environment and long-term wellness.

During that time frame of attendance, two major policy implementations shaped schooling in the country: first, in 1952, Brown v Board of Education ruled that racial segregation in schools was unconstitutional; and second was the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which barred racial discrimination in school.

The Cyprus-based company is implementing a new technique for keeping Iranians, Russians and others online.

Big tech believes the future is AI while everyday Americans remain wary; and the dangers of riding in a Tesla Cybertruck

Hello, and welcome to TechScape. I’m your host, Blake Montgomery. This week in tech, we discuss a moment of divergence between Silicon Valley and everyday people; deep cuts at Meta to maximize spending on AI; writers caught using AI; and the frightening, fiery crashes of the Tesla Cybertruck.

How the FBI can conduct mass surveillance – even without AI

Kash Patel admits under oath FBI is buying location data on Americans

Why is the FBI buying people’s location data and how is it using the information?

Images and videos online showed large plume of smoke and flames billowing out from refinery, but no one was injured

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An oil refinery fire near the Texas coast was put out on Tuesday and a temporary shelter-in-place order was lifted, hours after a large explosion at the complex shot plumes of smoke into the air, officials said.

No one was injured in Monday’s explosion at the Valero refinery in Port Arthur, about 90 miles (145km) east of Houston, said Charlotte M Moses. The Port Arthur mayor had urged residents in parts of the west side of the city to stay put.

Nearly 12% of all TSA officers who were scheduled to work on Sunday called out — the most since the start of the partial government shutdown.

Nasa reports show repeated warnings of close calls before crash that killed two pilots and injured 41 others

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Pilot safety concerns about New York’s LaGuardia airport were filed to aviation officials months before Sunday’s collision between an airplane and a fire truck left two pilots dead and 41 other people hospitalized.

According to the aviation safety reporting system administered by the US space agency Nasa, a pilot using the airport in the summer wrote, “Please do something,” after air traffic controllers failed to provide appropriate guidance about multiple nearby aircraft.

Don't let retro tech clutter your space. Here's how and where you can dispose of it for free.

Polymarket tightened its rules after questions surfaced over whether some prediction market customers engaged in insider trading.

RENO, Nev., March 24, 2026 — CIQ today announced a collaboration with AMD to deliver optimized enterprise infrastructure solutions for AI and HPC workloads running on AMD datacenter solutions including AMD Instinct GPUs, AMD ROCm software platform and more. The collaboration begins with AMD-optimized Rocky Linux from CIQ builds featuring validated AMD drivers, ROCm support, and day-zero deployment capability, with plans to integrate AMD optimizations throughout CIQ’s infrastructure stack.

As enterprise AI moves from experimentation to production, the partnership establishes a foundation for delivering complete infrastructure solutions. CIQ’s portfolio spans operating system, automation, cluster management and AI-optimized distributions, complementing AMD datacenter solutions to deliver increasingly integrated, AMD-optimized solutions across the stack.

As adoption of AMD Instinct GPUs grows across AI training, inference and HPC, enterprises increasingly seek validated software foundations that match the performance and scalability of the hardware. Deploying AI and HPC software stacks at scale requires careful alignment of GPU drivers, libraries and dependencies across Linux distributions. This collaboration standardizes a validated foundation for AMD ROCm software to simplify deployment and lifecycle management. At cluster scale, image management and version alignment can slow deployments. Validated, reproducible OS builds reduce these operational bottlenecks.

The collaboration offers an alternative to proprietary Linux solutions and addresses a gap in the market for freely accessible, enterprise-grade Linux optimized specifically for AMD-powered deployments.

The collaboration aims to deliver an AMD-optimized Rocky Linux build that enterprises can deploy at scale with day-zero capability, while reducing technical complexity and procurement barriers. Free enterprise access also enables AMD to deliver optimizations to the broadest possible user base. For customers deploying AMD datacenter solutions for large language model training, scientific simulation and data-intensive analytics, this provides a reproducible, enterprise-grade Linux foundation designed to unlock peak accelerator performance without custom integration work.

Rocky Linux has become one of the most widely deployed Enterprise Linux distributions in the world. Fedora EPEL telemetry shows millions of Rocky Linux systems in use globally, figures that understate the true deployment scale in air-gapped and enterprise environments. Rocky Linux’s dominance in performance-intensive computing, combined with CIQ’s enterprise capabilities, made the AMD datacenter solutions choice clear.

“Enterprise customers expect to move from infrastructure deployment to workload execution quickly,” said Gregory Kurtzer, CEO of CIQ and founder of Rocky Linux. “This collaboration gives AMD a single, reproducible Linux foundation to optimize against, and it gives enterprises a path to deploy AMD datacenter solutions from day-zero, without procurement hurdles. Rocky Linux is already the OS of choice for performance-intensive computing. Adding AMD-specific optimization and keeping it freely accessible makes that combination even stronger for AI and HPC workloads.”

“AMD Instinct GPUs along with our other datacenter solutions are designed to deliver leadership performance for AI and HPC workloads,” said Chuck Gilbert, senior director system design engineering at AMD. “To fully realize that performance in production environments, customers need a validated, scalable software foundation. By collaborating with CIQ to optimize Rocky Linux for AMD datacenter solutions, we are reducing time-to-deployment, simplifying operations at scale, and strengthening the enterprise ecosystem around our AI platform.”

The AMD-optimized Rocky Linux image will be available with enterprise support and lifecycle management from CIQ, providing organizations with a production-ready foundation for AMD-powered AI and HPC environments. Additional enhancements focused on cluster-scale deployments are expected in future releases.

Following general availability of the AMD-optimized image, CIQ plans to incorporate ongoing AMD performance enhancements and extend support for AMD Instinct GPUs and the AMD ROCm software platform across its infrastructure portfolio, including Warewulf Pro for cluster management, Ascender Pro for IT automation, Apptainer for containerization, and Fuzzball for workload orchestration. The companies expect to continue advancing joint ecosystem initiatives throughout 2026 and beyond in response to customer demand.

CIQ and AMD are delivering a scalable, open alternative for organizations seeking high-performance AI and HPC solutions without proprietary lock-in.

About CIQ

CIQ is the founding support and services partner for Rocky Linux and a leading provider of enterprise Linux infrastructure. CIQ delivers commercially supported Linux offerings, high-performance computing solutions and AI infrastructure to enterprises, government agencies, research institutions and supercomputing centers worldwide. CIQ’s products include the Rocky Linux from CIQ Pro (RLC Pro) family of operating systems, Ascender Pro for IT automation, Fuzzball job-based container orchestration, Warewulf cluster provisioning and Apptainer, the leading container system for high-performance computing. For more information, visit ciq.com.

Source: CIQ

The post CIQ and AMD Collaborate to Deliver Optimized Enterprise AI and HPC Infrastructure appeared first on HPCwire.

West Ham’s 1970s striker gets due respect with a stellar lineup of talking heads in a film that explores the wider implications of racism in football

It may seem as, if in the streaming era, every conceivable football story has already been told. But that’s clearly not the case: here is an uplifting film that has important things to say about racism and empowerment in the game via the life story of Clyde Best, the barnstorming West Ham striker from the early 1970s. Best’s pioneering status as one of English elite football’s first black players is reasonably well-known – but not, of course, as well-known as it should be, which this film sets out to remedy. As well as, of course, the respect he is due for his pathfinder role for succeeding generations of black footballers in the UK.

No doubt that fact is behind the stellar lineup of talking heads who appear on camera to acknowledge the significance of Best’s career, from West Ham contemporaries including Geoff Hurst and Harry Redknapp to those who followed in Best’s tracks, like Viv Anderson, John Barnes, Les Ferdinand, Shaka Hislop and Garth Crooks. Anyone with hazy memories of Best thundering around the pitch from early 1970s editions of Match of the Day will be interested to learn of his remarkable journey to London from Bermuda as a 17-year-old for what was effectively a one-off trial session, after which he was signed by future England manager Ron Greenwood (who, in truth, comes out of this film pretty well). Best says he was quickly accepted by his West Ham teammates, but elsewhere it was less pretty; he found himself at the sharp end of some virulent racism in the post-imperial Enoch Powell 1970s, and it’s sobering to realise that when Alf Garnett yells gruesome abuse from the football terraces, it’s basically Best he is shouting at.

A patent dispute resulted in a ban on Ultrahuman selling its smart rings in the US. Now the company is back, with a new ring available to order immediately.

Riders in more parts of Las Vegas and San Francisco can take a self-driving ride with Zoox. Robotaxis are also coming to Miami and Austin, Texas.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the issue can reduce the driver's ability to detect hazards and increase the risk of a crash.

Conservationists celebrate second twin birth just two months after another set discovered in Virunga national park

A second set of mountain gorilla twins has been born in Virunga national park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in what conservationists are celebrating as an “extraordinary” event for the endangered primates.

Just two months after tiny twin mountain gorillas were discovered by rangers in the Virunga massif, in eastern DRC, another rare twin birth has been found by park wardens. This time, an infant male and female have been spotted in the Baraka family, a troop of 19 mountain gorillas that roam the region’s high-altitude rainforests.

The next version of Mozilla's Firefox will offer a free built-in VPN.

Park police chief says officer was ‘ambushed’ by two gunmen who fired as officer drove in unmarked vehicle

A US park police officer was seriously wounded on Monday evening in a shooting in Washington DC in what the park police chief called an ambush.

The park police chief, Scott Brecht, said in a press briefing that the unidentified officer was “ambushed” by two gunmen who fired at the officer as he drove by in an unmarked vehicle. The officer was working on a park police investigation when he was shot. The chief declined to give specifics of the investigation.

After listening to AI music, I'm more convinced than ever that AI is changing our culture.

Dayton James Webber, a quadruple amputee and professional cornhole player, was arrested and charged with murder in Maryland.

There is a political divide over AI but few leaders are taking a strong stand. It’s time for that to change

In December, the Trump administration signed an executive order that neutered states’ ability to regulate AI by ordering his administration to both sue and withhold funds from states that try to do so. This action pointedly supported industry lobbyists keen to avoid any constraints and consequences on their deployment of AI, while undermining the efforts of consumers, advocates, and industry associations concerned about AI’s harms who have spent years pushing for state regulation.

Trump’s actions have clarified the ideological alignments around AI within America’s electoral factions. They set down lines on a new playing field for the midterm elections, prompting members of his party, the opposition, and all of us to consider where we stand in the debate over how and where to let AI transform our lives.

Scheme expanded to four schools with known or suspected cases, as UKHSA figures show number has fallen to 23

The meningitis B vaccination programme will be expanded to include year 11 pupils at schools affected by the outbreak in Kent, health officials have said.

Figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) show the number of cases of the illness have fallen.

A large explosion at a Valero oil refinery near the Texas Gulf coast shot plumes of smoke into the air and forced some nearby residents to shelter in place.

PMI figure reveals impact on economy of rise in oil prices driven by Iran war

• Business live – latest updates

The UK’s manufacturers have suffered the sharpest one-month acceleration in costs since the aftermath of Black Wednesday in 1992, as conflict in the Middle East has driven up oil prices, new survey evidence shows.

The closely watched purchasing managers’ index (PMI) lays bare the impact of the conflict on the UK economy, with growth slowing sharply across manufacturing and services and costs rising.

Iran has dismissed the US president’s claim of talks, saying there had been none since Washington began bombing the country. Plus, how sleeping 11 minutes more can cut your risk of heart attack

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Good morning.

Donald Trump said there have been talks between the US and Iran over the past day in which the two sides had “major points of agreement” – but Tehran denied the claim, saying there had been no talks since the US began bombing Iran 24 days ago.

Why Should Delaware Care?
Delaware’s governor and his allies in the legislature unveiled a proposal to adopt a new set of banking reforms. The legislation places Delaware in a race with other states to attract a burgeoning, and potentially fast-growing, industry. Still unclear is whether it could thrust Delaware and its regulators – who pride themselves on a business-friendly ethos – into a debate between financial titans.

With two bills introduced Monday, Delaware could be among the first states to regulate a part of the disruptive cryptocurrency industry that is pushing to become a mainstream provider of card payments and savings accounts.

And, unlike in Congress where a bitter fight is raging over rules to govern the industry, Delaware’s proposal may avoid a lobbying clash between cryptocurrency firms and traditional banks.

The state’s proposal would create regulations allowing Delaware’s banking commissioner to issue licenses to cryptocurrency companies that take deposits and hold them in the form of stablecoins – which are digital currencies pegged to the dollar.   

The proposed rules build on efforts by lawmakers nationally, and in a handful of other states to formalize the cryptocurrency industry within the American financial system. Supporters say that could unlock massive flows of money to the industry and therefore democratize financial tools for everyday people. 

But critics argue it could boost a shadowy industry that too often facilitates money laundering and tax evasion. 

For Delaware, proponents hope the legislation will bolster the state’s reputation as a financial technology center.  

In a press conference at the University of Delaware on Monday, Gov. Matt Meyer said the regulations, if passed, could become as consequential to the state as its 1980s-era financial reforms that convinced credit card company executives to move thousands of jobs to the Wilmington area. 

Meyer said changes in technology since then have required the state to reform banking laws to make room for cryptocurrencies. In a reference to a rise in virtual payments, Meyer said that few people will “carry a piece of plastic in their wallet” in the future.

“While that creates a tremendous opportunity for many in the market, it also creates a threat to our state, to a bedrock industry in our state,” Meyer said. 

Also speaking at the press conference — held at UD’s  FinTech Innovation Hub — was Karyn Polak, president of the Delaware Bankers Association, who said she was proud to stand alongside Delaware officials pushing for the “critically important” reforms. 

“The financial landscape of today … looks very different from the environment that shaped our current statutes decades ago,” Polak said. 

Her comments were noteworthy because banks have ferociously opposed other draft legislation in front of Congress that they say would allow cryptocurrency companies to encroach on their business. 

A parallel fight in Congress

The key issue in those federal fights has centered around the question of whether stablecoin issuers should be able to pay their depositors a form of interest-like “rewards.” 

Pushing to make those legal – and in opposition to the banks – is Coinbase, one of the largest cryptocurrency trading platforms in the world. The company also is a primary investor in the stablecoin issuer, Circle. 

Unlike other forms of cryptocurrencies with volatile valuations, stablecoins are designed to be safer forms of everyday payments because their values are tied to traditional currencies, largely the United States dollar. Crypto companies maintain those dollar pegs by investing customer deposits into safe securities, such as U.S. Treasury bills.

Last summer, Congress prohibited stablecoin companies from offering interest to customers through legislation, called the GENIUS Act. President Donald Trump promptly signed the act into law. 

But that legislation didn’t end the fight. Earlier this month, Trump joined the crypto industry to criticize banks for lobbying against new legislation, known as the CLARITY Act, that could allow stablecoin companies to pay yields to people who use their accounts. 

In a post on Truth Social, Trump claimed that “Americans should earn more money on their money.” 

“The Banks are hitting record profits, and we are not going to allow them to undermine our powerful Crypto Agenda that will end up going to China,” Trump said in the post. 

Following guidelines under the GENIUS Act, Delaware’s legislation states that “a permitted payment stablecoin issuer may not pay interest or yield on payment stablecoins to holders.” 

It further says that if the federal government allows those interest-like payments in the future, then the state law would follow the new rules. 

Who’s lobbying for the legislation?

Asked who has lobbied for the proposed legislation, Meyer said the idea for the reforms originated within his office.

He also noted that a sponsor of the bills, State Sen. Spiros Mantzavinos (D-Elsmere), brought “similar but not identical thoughts of updating our financial regulation.”  

Pressed specifically about lobbying from Coinbase, the governor said he spoke with a company official a few months ago, but that conversation was about Coinbase’s decision at the time to move its legal headquarters out of Delaware.   

“I made it very clear that I thought they were taking actions that were not in Delaware’s interests,” Meyer said. 

When asked about potential pushback from Delaware banks, Meyer asserted that his goal is to protect families, grow jobs, and democratize finance. 

“Those are my three guiding principles. Who lobbies or calls or happens to sneak through a door and get a word into me edgewise doesn’t really matter,” Meyer said. 

As of Tuesday, Delaware’s database of lobbying activity lists no registered lobbyists as working on the stablecoin legislation.

Mantzavinos said in an interview with Spotlight Delaware that he began thinking about the legislation in 2024 while watching Discover – the last of the independent credit card companies that came to Delaware in the 1980s – be purchased by Capital One. 

Mantzavinos said ideas about the legislation formed more fully last year after Congress passed the GENIUS Act. 

At the time, he said he watched as other states make “moves in this space,” which prompted his work on what he described as a more measured set of rules for the industry. Notably, Wyoming, a state that has aimed to compete with Delaware in the financial space in the past, became the first to issue a stablecoin earlier this year.

“We started to get a sense of seeing where some states were getting out over their skis a little bit, and being like, ‘That’s not us, that’s not Delaware,’” he said.

The post Delaware proposes regulations on crypto, with licensing for stablecoins appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

Son-in-law of former United player is among 1,100 fans forced to give up prime seats under cash-boosting plans

A Manchester United fan said he feels “helpless and hopeless” after being evicted from the seat his family have held since just after the second world war to make way for £300-a-head VIPs.

Tony Riley, whose father-in-law played for United under Sir Matt Busby, is among 1,100 supporters forced to move under cash-boosting plans overseen by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Eugene de Kock testified that one of the police officers implicated in the killings had asked him to help assist with a cover-up.

Abel Ortiz was brought from Mexico to LA when he was just two months old and has been​ living undocumented​ ever since. Now 38, he has a full life​ cutting hair, building a community, loving​ a city that has never fully loved him back.​ ​In a time of escalating ICE raids and the ache of uncertainty, Abel has made a radical decision: he’s leaving – not because he has to, but to escape perpetual limbo and be free to see the world

Leon Botstein’s communications and relationship with Epstein under review by WilmerHale law firm, while Bard president says he never witnessed anything inappropriate

A victim of Jeffrey Epstein who had previous interactions with Leon Botstein said she believed the Bard College president, whose relationship with the late sex offender is currently under review, was part of a group of influential and accomplished men whose proximity to Epstein helped to rehabilitate his reputation.

Svetlana Pozhidaeva, a former Russian model who worked as a “staffer” for Epstein, told the Guardian in an interview that she saw Botstein with Epstein together “quite frequently” – including having flown with him on a trip to Epstein’s island in December 2012 – and that she believed his reputation as a “sophisticated intellectual” helped “legitimize” Epstein.

Experts say brutal temperatures in west threaten to melt sparse snowpack – and warn hot, dry conditions here to stay

A stunning heatwave that shattered records in the US west is threatening to rapidly melt the sparse snowpack and ramp up wildfire risks in the seasons ahead.

March has already been historically hot, but the early onset of summer weather across the region may be here to stay. There’s little reprieve in forecasts, which show more heat records may fall this spring.

We know it's tempting, but you shouldn't heat up your takeout leftovers in the container they came in.

BrianFagioli writes: Canonical has joined the Rust Foundation as a Gold Member, signaling a deeper investment in the Rust programming language and its role in modern infrastructure. The company already maintains an up-to-date Rust toolchain for Ubuntu and has begun integrating Rust into parts of its stack, citing memory safety and reliability as key drivers. By joining at a higher tier, Canonical is not just adopting Rust but also stepping closer to its governance and long-term direction. The move also highlights ongoing tensions in Rust's ecosystem. While Rust can reduce entire classes of bugs, it often depends heavily on external crates, which can introduce complexity and auditing challenges, especially in enterprise environments. Canonical appears aware of that tradeoff and is positioning itself to influence how the ecosystem evolves, as Rust continues to gain traction across Linux and beyond. "As the publisher of Ubuntu, we understand the critical role systems software plays in modern infrastructure, and we see Rust as one of the most important tools for building it securely and reliably. Joining the Rust Foundation at the Gold level allows us to engage more directly in language and ecosystem governance, while continuing to improve the developer experience for Rust on Ubuntu," said Jon Seager, VP Engineering at Canonical. "Of particular interest to Canonical is the security story behind the Rust package registry, crates.io, and minimizing the number of potentially unknown dependencies required to implement core concerns such as async support, HTTP handling, and cryptography -- especially in regulated environments."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Richard Nixon’s strategy was about shielding his own reputation. Now Trump needs a face-saving exit of his own

Donald Trump’s struggle to justify continuing his war with Iran reminds me of Richard Nixon’s quest for “peace with honor” in Vietnam. Nixon caused years of death and suffering in pursuit of his elusive goal. How much more devastation will Trump inflict before he cuts his losses and calls off this pointless conflict?

Nixon first called for “an honorable end” to the war in his acceptance speech at the 1968 Republican national convention. It became a centerpiece of his presidential campaign and his presidency. As it became clear that the South Vietnamese government could not survive US withdrawal from the war, Nixon sought to defend Washington’s credibility, cynically understood as a decent interval between America’s departure and Saigon’s collapse.

We asked an expert about the seven biggest mistakes plaguing you on laundry day.

Whether you have sensitive teeth or are looking for a fluoride alternative, these are the best dentist-recommended whitening toothpastes for your pearly whites.

Fintech company’s profits leap to £1.7bn as it gears up for US push after getting UK banking licence this month

• Business live – latest updates

The UK banking app Revolut has said it could face a backlash over its support for energy-intensive sectors such as crypto and AI, as it posted a 57% increase in profits for last year.

The fintech, which can now launch as a fully fledged UK bank after a five-year wait for regulatory approval, warned in its 2025 annual report that such activities posed a “reputational risk”. Revolut offers crypto trading.

Veracruz is one of a number of states that migrants have historically crossed to reach the U.S., and are preyed upon by cartels and other criminal groups.

Combination of US and Spanish companies would create $40bn fashion and beauty group

• Business live – latest updates

The US cosmetics company Estée Lauder is in talks over a potential merger with the Spanish group Puig, the owner of brands including Jean Paul Gaultier and Rabanne, to create a $40bn fashion and beauty giant.

Estée Lauder is one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of skin care, makeup and fragrances with a portfolio that includes Clinique, Bobbi Brown and Tom Ford Beauty.

Among the many new smartphones we’ve tested, the best cheap phones include the iPhone 17E, the Google Pixel 10A and the Motorola Razr.

There's an exact measurement espresso heads use when brewing. Here's how to nail it at your home coffee bar.

What I’m Discussing Today:

• Kareem’s Daily Quote: It’s Orwellian…appropriate, under the circumstances.

• Coined Message: Probably not what was ever meant by “Stay gold.”

• Video Break: Here’s why it’s called March Madness

• Enormous Stakes: The economic risks of a long war.

• Too Young to Die: A teen wrestler and two others executed in a public square.

• What I’m Watching: One Battle After Another

• Jukebox Playlist: The Byrds “Turn! Turn! Turn!”

  ---

Kareem’s Daily Quote

“The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.”
— Attributed to George Orwell

It’s starting to feel like my mission in life these days is to take very good quotes that are widely attributed to someone or other, and say “No, so-and-so never actually said this.” Which is the case here again with George Orwell. Orwell scholars have searched his novels (like 1984 and Animal Farm), along with essays, letters, and journalism, and the line doesn’t appear in any verified source. But it does capture Orwell’s themes of dissent and truth vs propaganda. Which makes the quote sound Orwellian.

What Orwell actually said was, “In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” But by now you’re probably thinking, Kareem, this is your newsletter, you could have written it any way you chose; so why didn’t you just use the correct quote in the first place?

Because in a sense, a misattributed quote is like a society drifting off course. It’s almost that…but it’s not. It’s good enough to pass, and it fits the bill, so why quibble? How big a deal is it anyway that George Orwell never said what we say he said? Facts become optional. Authors’ words are fabricated…not all of them, maybe, but just enough to muddy the waters. And anyone who insists on saying what’s real suddenly looks like a big fat troublemaker.

So let’s break down the real quote. “In a time of deceit.” Surely we’re living in such a time. As for “telling the truth is a revolutionary act”—it seems like such a stretch, but let’s look at our present circumstances. Anyone who dares go against the status quo is called a radical, a communist, or worse, and is threatened with fines and jail time. And if you don’t think we’re “there” yet, let’s not forget that a beloved director and his wife were accused of sowing the seeds of their own murder via “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” It doesn’t get any weirder or more degenerate than that.

This Orwellian pattern shows up every time a country decides that party matters more than reality. It’s the harmless “white” lie; it’s a good story that smooths over an uncomfortable fact; it’s a leader who discovers that withholding the truth get easier by the hour. But when the rich and powerful build lies upon lies in order to continue to gain fame and wealth and remain in power, the truth becomes not only inconvenient but dangerous.

It threatens to topple the power structure. It becomes a revolutionary act.

And once a society reaches that point, the people who insist on telling the truth stop being seen as honest or principled. They’re painted as disloyal, negative, or disruptive. They “aren’t patriotic.” They “don’t see the bigger picture.” It becomes easier to attack the person pointing out the problem than to confront the problem itself. Truth‑tellers become the enemy not because they’re wrong, but because they’re right in a way that exposes the stories people are invested in believing.

The irony is that most truth‑tellers aren’t trying to tear anything down. They’re trying to keep something standing—usually the idea that a society should be anchored in reality, not fantasy. But admitting the truth would mean admitting that the drift happened in the first place. And truth becomes something people fear instead of something they rely on. At that point, all we can hope for is that while most of us are watching the parade, a few will point to the Emperor and call out that he’s totally naked.

Read more

Save money on an offline word processor with LibreOffice, and it doesn't have Microsoft Copilot either.

Fantasy TV comes in many flavors, and Netflix has them all.

A new book explores the career of a player who many credit with inventing the curveball, and why he has been kept out of the Hall of Fame

The Civil War provides a host of baseball-related mysteries pertaining to pitcher James Creighton. By the time of his death at age 21 in 1862, Creighton had compiled a ledger of accomplishments, starring for one of America’s top teams at the time, the Brooklyn Excelsiors. His grave became a shrine to the player and the sport he dominated. Then the clouds came in – over the circumstances of his death, over the achievements of his career. He is not in the Hall of Fame, but baseball historian Thomas Gilbert makes a convincing case for his inclusion in a new book, Death in the Strike Zone: The Mystery of America’s First Baseball Hero.

“One hundred years ago, his impact was clear,” Gilbert says. “Until the turn of the 20th century, he was remembered and talked about … When Albert Spalding wrote his book on baseball in 1911, he said: ‘Obviously Creighton was the greatest, fastest pitcher ever.’”

Francesca Albanese recommended ICC arrests and investigations over Gaza. Who will be the administration’s next target?

We are North American university professors and human rights lawyers who teach, write, and speak about the human rights of people around the world, including Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. In a country that purports to value democracy and human rights, we never imagined that we could face civil penalties or imprisonment for our work. That sense of security has evaporated after the Trump administration issued a series of executive orders and memoranda that aim to stifle speech and demonize dissent – particularly when it comes to Israel’s crimes against Palestinians living in Gaza.

Let us be clear: the evidence that Israel has committed war crimes is overwhelming. Israel killed an estimated 20,000 children – including more than 1,000 babies – in two years of war. Israel used starvation and thirst as a war tactic, leading to widespread famine that indiscriminately targeted the civilian population. It kept civilians from accessing cancer treatment, neonatal and maternal care, and basic antibiotics and painkillers by blockading the delivery of medical equipment and medications. Israel destroyed Gaza’s entire healthcare system, including reproductive healthcare facilities and Gaza’s largest fertility clinic. Israel’s systematic attack on Gaza’s civilian population was accompanied by dehumanizing language by authorities at the highest levels of government comparing Palestinians to “‘human animals” and “children of darkness”.

Sandra L Babcock is a clinical professor and director of the International Human Rights Clinic at Cornell Law School. Susan M Akram is clinical professor and director of the International Human Rights Clinic at Boston University School of Law. Asli Bali is a Professor at Yale Law School and is the past President of the Middle East Studies Association of North America. Thomas Becker is the Legal and Policy Director at the University Network for Human Rights and teaches human rights at Columbia Law School. James Cavallaro is the Executive Director of the University Network for Human Rights and a visiting professor at the Yale Jackson School of Global Affairs

Why Should Delaware Care?
For years, local governments have been on the sidelines as millions of dollars meant to curb opioid overdose deaths have flowed into the state. But after leaders began to attend more meetings and carve out their share, a state commission is doling out awards. 

A Delaware commission responsible for managing funds devoted to combatting the opioid crisis awarded more than $475,000 to three local governments Monday to implement new programs in their jurisdictions. 

The Delaware Prescription Opioid Settlement Distribution Commission (POSDC), which awards grants from the $250 million won through legal battles against opioid manufacturers and distributors, approved three grants on Monday for Seaford, Wilmington and Newark. 

The awards mark the first funds to reach local governments after a committee meant to distribute money to municipalities sat idle for three years. 

The commission’s executive director, Brad Owens, applauded the local governments that have submitted applications in the short time since the commission approved their grant award process. 

“Given the fact that we were still designing this program, [the municipalities] took a shot anyway, and put some significant thought into this, and, I thought, put together some really good applications for us to consider,” Owens said. 

In November, the commission approved a new distribution process for local governments to collect their 15% of the annual distributions awarded through the program. 

The commission later approved specific 2026 dollar amounts for each of the local governments that were slated to receive funding:

• New Castle County: $626,850
• Kent County: $518,507
• Sussex County: $479,641
• Wilmington: $441,065
• Dover: $248,602
• Seaford: $271,907
• Milford: $196,862
• Middletown: $94,349
• Newark: $252,602
• Smyrna: $119,610

Two of the cities did not receive their entire budgeted amount on Monday, but can apply again at a later date for different programs. 

What grants did the commission award? 

During the meeting, commission members reviewed three applications from Seaford, Newark and Wilmington for new programs. 

The largest grant awarded on Monday went to Seaford to improve one of its local parks in partnership with two local advocacy groups. In total, the commission awarded the city $271,907 for an initiative to improve Nutter Park and work with two local nonprofits to do youth education and outreach. 

Some of those funds will also go to the city’s police department to install more streetlights and other environmental designs meant to deter people from using drugs at the park. 

Additionally, the city will give $100,000 of its grant to youth outreach nonprofit OUTLOUD DE and another $80,000 to the Sussex County Health Coalition. 

According to a presentation at the meeting, the two organizations will partner with the city to do youth education and outreach work, as well as track the success of the new programs. Some of these outreach initiatives included education about naloxone, as well as hosting community events and listening sessions.

The City of Newark received the second largest approval of the day with a $133,633 grant to expand its police department’s “Behavioral Health Unit.” The funds will go toward hiring a social worker and case manager through ChristianaCare. 

These staff members would work to redirect people using drugs away from the criminal justice system, and instead into treatment programs. The city still has an additional $118,969 in its allotment for the year to fund an additional program, but it has yet to submit another application to the commission for approval.

Lastly, the commission approved $90,000 for the City of Wilmington to fund new AEDs, or portable defibrillators, and kits of the overdose reversal agent naloxone. According to a presentation at the meeting, the city would spend $70,550 on 25 new AEDs for the Wilmington Police Department’s patrol vehicles. 

The commission’s vice-chair, Dave Humes, questioned whether funding AEDs is in compliance with the settlement agreement with the manufacturers that says governments cannot “supplant” existing programs.

But Owens said the AEDs were compliant. There has been some debate about AEDs across the country, but Owens said other states have approved their use so long as applicants can show the device has a strong connection to combatting opioid use disorder in tandem with the other parts of their application. 

“We’re not just going to pay for EMS equipment because we have the budget,” Owens said. “You have to show a strong connection to opioid use disorder.”

Wilmington’s program also will fund “Leave-Behind” kits for the department to hand out to community members that will include naloxone and educational materials. 

The city still has $351,065 for additional programs this year. 

The commission did not hear any other applications from the state’s local governments on Monday, and its Local Governments Committee, which hears applications from local leaders, is set to next meet in June.

The post Delaware approves $475K in opioid grants for local governments  appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

Hugo Holland’s aggressive legal tactics made him one of Louisiana’s most renowned prosecutors and helped turn Caddo Parish, a majority Black community in the northwest corner of the state, into one of the nation’s leaders in death penalty convictions.

His nearly 40-year career, though, has been marked by controversies.

In at least two death penalty cases, Louisiana judges found that Holland withheld evidence. In a third, he secured the conviction of a Black 16-year-old, comparing the boy to a dog and telling the jury to “get rid of it”; prosecutors later admitted that Holland and his team had failed to turn over evidence.

Defense attorneys have also accused him of racism, pointing, for example, to a capital murder case several years ago in which Holland emailed one of them to say he was going to spend Veterans Day in his pickup truck looking for “a Black guy or a Mex-can.” Holland called it a joke.

Holland, 62, is now running for judge in the First Judicial District Court in Caddo Parish, and his nascent campaign appears to have substantial backing. He has raised more than $61,000 in less than two months, according to the first campaign finance report released in February — twice the amount many candidates running for the 1st Judicial Court spend in an entire campaign, said Jeffrey Sadow, an associate professor of political science at Louisiana State University in Shreveport.

Holland’s donors include an assistant district attorney with the Caddo Parish DA’s office, the district attorney of neighboring Bossier and Webster parishes, a former state judge, and members of major law firms throughout the area.

Holland’s funding haul might prove to be so daunting that it scares off potential challengers, Sadow said, though candidates have until the end of July to enter the race. “It shows he’s got an awful lot of support and that he’s considered a quality candidate,” he said.

In addition to his robust campaign fundraising, Holland has been able to bring on the head of the local Republican Party, Matthew Kay, as his campaign chair. (Kay also served as an elector for Donald Trump in 2024.)

Holland declined multiple requests for comment about his candidacy and record as a prosecutor. Neither Kay nor nine of the 10 donors Verite News and ProPublica reached out to would respond or agree to speak about their support for Holland.

Charles Jacobs, the city attorney for Bossier City and a former state judge who has known Holland for nearly 20 years, described him as a “very fair” prosecutor who sticks to the facts and the letter of the law. Jacobs donated $2,500 to Holland’s campaign, saying that his extensive trial experience will serve him well on the bench.

“That guy cuts it right down the line — black or white, brown or yellow. He doesn’t care,” said Jacobs, dismissing defense attorneys’ allegations of racism.

Civil rights leaders and defense attorneys say they believe Holland lacks regard for the rights of the mostly Black defendants he prosecuted, and that makes him uniquely unfit to serve on the bench.

“He’s demonstrated that he is untrustworthy, unreserved in his aggression and without any judicial temperament,” said defense attorney Ben Cohen, who represented the 16-year-old in the death penalty case in which Holland withheld evidence. “He brings disrepute to the justice system in a way that undermines people’s faith in it.”

As an assistant district attorney in Caddo Parish from 1991 to 2012, Holland displayed a portrait of Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, an early leader of the Ku Klux Klan, in his office. Local and national coverage of Holland’s affinity for Forrest drew accusations of racism from Black residents and defense attorneys. Holland has insisted that he is not racist, claiming in interviews that he appreciated Forrest as a cavalry commander in the Civil War and not because he was a member of the Klan.

In another controversy, Holland was forced to resign from the district attorney’s office in 2012 after the state inspector general found that he and a colleague had submitted “false information” to obtain a cache of fully automatic M-16 rifles through a federal program. Holland said a special investigations unit needed the weapons for protection because “we routinely participate in high-risk surveillance and arrests,” a claim local law enforcement agencies refuted, according to the inspector general. Holland and his colleague told the inspector general that if they had the opportunity, they would word the justification differently, citing situations in which the weapons would be useful in protecting district attorney employees who work in dangerous areas and advise local law enforcement.

These scandals, however, did little to damage Holland’s career. After his resignation, he became a successful prosecutor-for-hire for more than a dozen district attorneys who lacked the staff or expertise to try high-profile murder cases on their own. In 2017, Holland was paid to lobby on behalf of the powerful Louisiana District Attorneys Association to stop a bill that would have eliminated the death penalty; the effort succeeded.

Caddo Parish secured more death penalty convictions per capi­ta than any oth­er coun­ty in the United States between 2010 and 2014, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Of the people sent to death row during that time period, 80% were Black, even though Black people made up just under half the parish population. (Nationally, Black people made up just over 40% of death row prisoners and 13% of the U.S. population at that time.)

Caddo Parish has long been a center of racial injustice, known from the Reconstruction era through the Jim Crow period as Bloody Caddo for having among the highest numbers of lynchings of any county in the country.

Theron Jackson, the pastor of Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church in Shreveport, the largest city in the parish, fears that a Holland victory would be a “step back” toward those days of Bloody Caddo, when the failure of elected officials to “protect and serve everybody’s community resulted in the victimization of Black people.”

Withholding Evidence

The doubts surrounding Holland’s death row convictions have taken on even more urgency since the election of Jeff Landry, who upon being sworn in as governor in 2024 said he wanted to execute every prisoner on death row as quickly as possible.

Of the at least 10 people Holland has sent to death row over four decades as prosecutor, one has been released, and two have had their sentences reduced to life in prison. Of the seven remaining on death row, at least two — Bobby Hampton and David Brown — are challenging their convictions after they discovered that Holland withheld evidence.

In 1997, Holland secured a death sentence against Hampton for a murder that happened during a liquor store robbery in Shreveport. The Louisiana Supreme Court later found that Holland had withheld grand jury witness testimony that someone else fired the fatal shot. The court nonetheless ruled that the omitted testimony would not have changed the verdict because prosecutors did hand over a similar statement the witness had made to police. But a dissenting court opinion pointed out that the grand jury witness testimony, unlike the police statement, was given under oath and unambiguously identified another person as the shooter. Hampton remains on death row.

Fourteen years later, a similar situation unfolded. The courts once again found that Holland failed to disclose evidence during his 2011 prosecution and conviction of Brown, one of five prisoners convicted of murdering a guard at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. Holland did not reveal that another prisoner had told prosecutors about a jailhouse confession from one of the five, who said he and another inmate — not Brown — had decided to kill the guard. As a result, a state judge vacated Brown’s sentence in 2014, but the Louisiana Supreme Court reinstated it after ruling that the withheld evidence would not necessarily have changed the jury’s decision; the confession, they said, did not preclude Brown’s participation in the killing.

Hampton and Brown maintain their innocence and are still challenging their convictions. Holland did not respond to requests for comment about the cases.

Holland withheld evidence in a third death penalty case, involving Corey Williams, a 16-year-old convicted in the fatal shooting of a pizza delivery man in Shreveport. Williams’ 2000 death sentence was reduced to life without parole because the boy has a severe intellectual disability, according to court documents. As a child, Williams was hospitalized for “extreme lead poisoning” and was institutionalized multiple times for mental health reasons, according to court documents filed by his attorneys.

Fifteen years after Williams’ conviction, his attorneys alerted the court that Holland had concealed a trove of evidence that they said proved his innocence: Witnesses on the night of the murder told police Williams was innocent, and detectives stated at the time that they believed several older men were responsible and trying to pin the blame on Williams, according to a court filing by Williams’ defense team.

The actions by Holland’s team led dozens of former U.S. Department of Justice officials and federal prosecutors to file a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court in support of efforts to overturn Williams’ conviction.

A former Caddo Parish district attorney, who took office on an interim basis 15 years after Williams’ prosecution, acknowledged in 2015 court filings that Holland and his team had withheld evidence, but insisted that it did not prove Williams’ innocence and would not have changed the verdict. Before the U.S. Supreme Court could take up the issue, however, Williams’ team agreed to a deal with prosecutors that allowed him to plead guilty to manslaughter and obstruction of justice in return for his 2018 release from prison. Holland has said he did not withhold evidence and maintained that Williams is guilty.

In other contexts, Holland questioned established law on the obligation to turn over evidence. Two years ago, a case came before the Louisiana Supreme Court to preserve a death sentence that defense attorneys claimed was secured after another prosecutor withheld key evidence. Arguing on behalf of the Rapides Parish district attorney, Holland expressed disdain for a 1995 U.S. Supreme Court ruling requiring prosecutors to turn over such evidence that could be considered favorable to defendants.

“It’s a very poorly written opinion because it leaves far too much to conjecture by people on the bench,” Holland said. “It’s got judges second-guessing juries.”

The state Supreme Court ultimately upheld the death sentence.

Matilde Carbia, a defense attorney representing a death row inmate whom Holland helped convict, said Holland’s antipathy toward transparency makes his candidacy dangerous. “If that is the kind of perspective that he would bring to the judiciary, that would be wholesale damaging to criminal defendants across the board,” Carbia said.

Holland’s unprofessional behavior in and outside of the courtroom is also a grave concern, she said. During a 2018 postconviction hearing for a murder case, Carbia said Holland claimed he couldn’t hear when she was questioning a witness, so he began following Carbia around the courtroom as she spoke.

“He’d come stand looming over my shoulder with his coattail pushed back so that you could see the firearm on his hip,” Carbia recalled in a recent interview.

In another incident, Carbia said Holland displayed an AR-15 rifle on his desk when she entered his office to review some files. “He was doing everything he could to attempt to intimidate me,” she said.

Holland did not respond to questions about these incidents. Verite News and ProPublica spoke with another attorney who witnessed the events and confirmed Carbia’s account.

An Evolving Caddo

Caddo Parish has changed since Holland last worked for the district attorney’s office, with Black voters now making up just over half of the parish population. With that increase has come more political influence.

In 2011, parish leaders removed a Confederate flag that had flown in front of the courthouse for decades. Eleven years later, the parish removed a monument featuring four Confederate generals that also stood before the courthouse steps.

The changes go beyond symbolic. Caddo voters elected the parish’s first Black district attorney in 2015 by a 10-point margin. Nine years later, voters elected the parish’s first Black sheriff by a similar edge.

Holland, however, will not be facing voters parishwide. There are 14 open judicial seats in the parish, and candidates choose among three districts in which to run. Only one is majority Black, according to Sadow, the political science professor. Holland hasn’t announced where he would run, but running in a majority white, conservative district would increase his odds of winning, Sadow said; Holland’s prospects would also be boosted in one of the majority white districts by not having to run against an incumbent, who is retiring.

Defense attorney Nick Trenticosta, who once faced off against Holland in a death penalty case, said he hopes voters will remember Holland’s ethical controversies and reject him as a relic of the past.

“Caddo is not the same Caddo it was 30 years ago,” Trenticosta said. “The voters know who he is.”

The post He Compared a Black Child to a Dog and Withheld Evidence in Death Row Cases. Now He’s Running for Judge. appeared first on ProPublica.

Arizona State’s head coach has turned around a losing program. Unsurprisingly, much of the discourse on the internet was not based on her leadership skills

In March 2025, the Arizona State women’s basketball team were looking for a coach who could end a drought that had seen them go without a NCAA Tournament appearance – or even a winning season – since 2019-20.

The choice was Molly Miller, a proven and successful head coach at Grand Canyon. Miller had led the Lopes to their first NCAA Tournament appearance and a 32–3 record in her final season with the team – a benchmark for the program and an important accomplishment within the broader scope of college basketball. She soon turned around Arizona State, leading them to a 24-11 record and a first appearance at the NCAA Tournament in six years. (Their season ended in the First Four.)

An eclectic coalition, including the MAHA call for “food freedom,” gave the law a second chance as backers push for immigrant assistance and entrepreneurship.

David Pocock says a flat 25% export levy on gas producers could redirect ‘wartime profits’ to struggling Australians

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Pressure is mounting on the Albanese government to help households struggling with fuel prices, with working from home and free public transport posited as possible solutions.

Nearly 150,000 New Zealand families will soon receive a weekly cash payment to help them afford petrol, believed to be the world’s first fuel relief package that directly pays citizens since the Israel-US war on Iran began.

Dayton Webber, 27, accused over shooting death of Bradrick Wells in Maryland, reportedly after argument inside car

A Maryland man who made history as the first quadruple amputee to compete in the professional televised American Cornhole League has been arrested on suspicion of shooting and killing a passenger in his car during an argument.

Dayton Webber – who became a champion cornhole player after losing his limbs and nearly dying from a bacterial infection in his infancy – faces murder charges in connection with the death of Bradrick Wells, authorities said on Monday.

Last week, hackers launched a cyberattack on an Iowa company called Intoxalock that left some drivers unable to start their court-mandated breathalyzer-equipped cars. Wired reports: Intoxalock, an automotive breathalyzer maker that says it's used daily by 150,000 drivers across the U.S., last week reported that it had been the target of a cyberattack, resulting in its "systems currently experiencing downtime," according to an announcement posted to its website. Meanwhile, drivers that use the breathalyzers have reported being stranded due to the devices' inability to connect to the company's services. "Our vehicles are giant paperweights right now through no fault of ours," one wrote on Reddit. "I'm being held accountable at work and feel completely helpless." The lockouts appear to be the result of Intoxalock's breathalyzers needing periodic calibrations that require a connection to the company's servers. Drivers who are due for a calibration and can't perform one due to the company's downtime have been stuck, though the company now states on its website that it's offering 10-day extensions on those calibrations due to its cybersecurity disruption, as well as towing services in some cases. In the meantime, Intoxalock hasn't explained what sort of cyberattack it's facing or whether hackers have obtained any of the company's user data.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

In today’s newsletter: Our diplomatic editor on how global instability feeds into conflict in so many parts of the world, and whether the threshold for a major global war has been met

Good morning. The world is at war. From the trenches of eastern Ukraine to the missile-streaked skies of the Gulf, a growing proportion of humanity is living under the horror of conflict. For some observers, there are gnawing fears that the worst is yet to come. The apparent collapse of the rules-based international order, the irrelevance of institutions designed to uphold it, and the interconnectedness of the fighting have sparked warnings that we could be at the beginning of a third world war. Indeed, half of Britons polled in a recent YouGov survey thought world war three was likely in the next five to 10 years.

On Monday, Donald Trump stepped back from deepening the US and Israel’s war with Iran, announcing that he would postpone military strikes on Iranian power plants for a five-day period after “very good and productive conversations” about the end to the fighting. Iran denied this version of events, claiming Trump had been scared off by their threats of attacks on water infrastructure in the Gulf. But, despite calmer stock markets and a sharp drop in the oil price, there is little sign that the fighting is near an end.

Middle East | The Israeli military said it had launched a new wave of strikes on Tehran, after Donald Trump signalled a pause in US attacks against energy infrastructure after what he said were productive talks with Iran.

UK Politics | Ministers are looking at providing support for household bills next winter, Keir Starmer said, as he suggested the energy price shock unleashed by the Iran conflict could continue for months to come.

London | Security agencies are investigating whether a group linked to Iran is behind an arson attack on four ambulances belonging to a Jewish charity in north London.

Climate crisis | More countries will face critical food insecurity if world heats up by 2C, analysis shows.

New York | The pilot and co-pilot of an Air Canada Express regional jet have been killed after it collided with a fire truck while landing at New York’s LaGuardia airport.

US president extends deadline over strait of Hormuz and speculates deal could soon be done to end war

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Donald Trump has claimed there have been talks between the US and Iran over the past day in which the two sides had “major points of agreement”, appearing to avert a potentially severe escalation of the conflict.

Tehran has denied the claim, in which Trump also speculated that a deal could soon be done to end the war. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said no talks had been held with the US since the bombing campaign began 24 days ago.

Internet Watch Foundation verified 8,029 pieces of realistic AI-made content, with 65% of videos in worst category

The amount of AI-generated child sexual abuse material found online rose by 14% last year, with the majority of videos showing the most extreme type of content, according to a safety watchdog.

The Internet Watch Foundation said it identified 8,029 AI-made images and videos of realistic child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in 2025. It added that there had been a more than 260-fold increase in videos.

Enslaved by debt, victims often feel compelled to sell an organ to repay loans – but can find themselves even worse off after the procedure

Shafeeq Masih* faced an impossible choice: remain trapped for ever by the debt he owed to the owner of the brick kiln where he worked, just outside the Pakistani city of Lahore, or try to pay it off by selling the only thing he had of any value: one of his kidneys.

The brick kiln owner was harassing him to repay the debt, which he claimed stood at 900,000 rupees (£2,420), but however hard he worked, it just kept growing. Masih knew the owner was fiddling the books but says, “whatever they put in writing, we can’t question that. They see us as slaves. We just have to obey.”

There are an estimated 20,000 brick kilns in Pakistan, employing as many as five million workers, the vast majority of whom are believed to be in debt bondage

Polling for anti-immigration DPP is relatively low, but many feel its ideas have been co-opted by Mette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats

Mayasa Mandia, a recent graduate living in the small Danish town of Kokkedal, will be voting for the left in Tuesday’s general election – but it won’t be for Mette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats.

The 23-year-old, a practising Muslim, says that under Frederiksen’s government far-right commentary has become normalised in the Danish mainstream. She has seen this, she says, at her own university, where there were discussions about banning prayers.

Shipments to Russian smelters from Aughinish Alumina have increased sharply since the invasion of Ukraine

A leading Irish metals refinery is part of an international aluminium supply chain that appears to conclude with shipments to arms producers feeding the Kremlin’s war machine in Ukraine, leaked records and public data suggests.

Trading records show that shipments to Russian smelters from Aughinish Alumina, which is located on the Shannon estuary in the west of Ireland and has been owned by the Russian aluminium group Rusal since 2006, have increased sharply since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

PM Sanae Takaichi says about 80m barrels of stockpiled oil to be provided to refiners – equivalent to 45 days of domestic demand

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Japan will begin the biggest-ever release of oil from its strategic reserves this week, the prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has said, as the country braces for possible shortages caused by the US-Israel war on Iran.

The government last week approved the release of 15 days’ worth of private-sector reserves, amid concern that the conflict in the Middle East will continue to hinder the flow of tanker traffic along the strait of Hormuz.

A military cargo plane crashed shortly after taking off in southwestern Colombia, the South American country's military said.

Ukraine president vows to respond to move that would draw Belarus more directly into the war; EU anger at Hungary over Russia information sharing. What we know on day 1,490

Why democracies love taxation—and autocracies hate it.

A desperate regime might go after soft targets.

As imbalances grow, a backlash is brewing.

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British prime minister Keir Starmer is set to chair an emergency meeting on the economic fallout from the war in Iran on Monday, with chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves and Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey also attending, the UK government has said.

Financial markets face another turbulent week after Iran said it would strike its Gulf neighbours’ energy and water systems if Donald Trump followed through on his threat to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants if it doesn’t fully open up the crucial strait of Hormuz.

Topics expected to be covered are the economic impact of the crisis on families and businesses, energy security and the resilience of industry and supply chains alongside the international response.

• 19-year-old taken to hospital after loss in California

• Knockout happened just 78 seconds into fight

The promoter and family of junior flyweight boxer Isis Sio say she is awake and breathing on her own after initially being placed in a medically induced coma following a knockout loss last weekend.

Sio is still in intensive care, but the 19-year-old is no longer on a ventilator, ProBox TV announced in a news release on Monday.

Policy begins on 1 April and is aimed to ease financial pressure as the price of fuel surges due to conflict in the Middle East

Nearly 150,000 New Zealand families will soon receive a weekly cash payment to help them afford petrol, the government has announced, in what is believed to be the world’s first fuel relief package that directly pays citizens since the Iran war began.

On Tuesday, prime minister Christopher Luxon and finance minister Nicola Willis announced roughly 143,000 families with children will get an extra NZ$50 ($29.20; £21.80) a week through a boost to the in-work tax credit – a payment to families with dependent children where at least one parent is in paid employment and neither parent receives benefits. Another 14,000 families on slightly higher incomes will also be eligible for payments, but will receive less than $50 per week.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from NPR: The Trump administration will pay $1 billion to a French company to walk away from two U.S. offshore wind leases as the administration ramps up its campaign against offshore wind and other renewable energy. TotalEnergies has agreed to what's essentially a refund of its leases for projects off the coasts of North Carolina and New York, and will invest the money in fossil fuel projects instead, the Department of Interior announced Monday. The Trump administration has tried to halt offshore wind construction, but federal judges overturned those orders. Environmental groups denounced the TotalEnergies deal as an alternate way to block wind projects. President Donald Trump has gone all in on fossil fuels, which he says is the way to lower costs for families, increase reliability and help the U.S. maintain global leadership in artificial intelligence. TotalEnergies pledged to not develop any new offshore wind projects in the United States. TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne said in a statement that the company renounced offshore wind development in the United States in exchange for the reimbursement of the lease fees, "considering that the development of offshore wind projects is not in the country's interest." Pouyanne said the refunded lease fees will finance the construction of a liquefied natural gas plant in Texas and the development of its oil and gas activities, calling it a "more efficient use of capital" in the U.S. After it makes those investments, TotalEnergies will be reimbursed, up to the amount paid in lease purchases for offshore wind, according to the DOI.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for March 24 No. 547.

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 24.

Senate talks aimed at ending the 38-day DHS shutdown hit a new roadblock after President Trump called on Republicans to hold out for passage of the SAVE America Act.

CCTV footage showed the moments before an Air Canada Express jet collided with a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia Airport. The pilot and co-pilot were killed in the collision. The crash injured dozens of passengers and led to hundreds of flight cancellations.

• Two pilots killed after Air Canada jet collision at LaGuardia in New York

Refusing to comply could lead to year in jail and hefty fine, while providing false information carries up to three years in prison

Hong Kong police can now demand that people suspected of breaching the city’s national security law provide mobile phone or computer passwords in a further crackdown on dissent.

The amendments to the law also empower customs officers to seize items that are deemed to have “seditious intention”, regardless of whether any person has been arrested for an offence endangering national security because of the items.

The Defense Department says it will issue new press credentials but remove media offices from the Pentagon, after a judge ruled that the military's new rules to get access to the Pentagon were unconstitutional.

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• Trump news at a glance: president touts ‘strong talks’ with Iran that Iran says have not happened

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Donald Trump has said ICE agents did not need to wear masks when deployed at airports.

ICE has repeatedly faced criticism for its agents hiding their faces during immigration raids. State officials across the US have said the face coverings add to a climate of fear in local communities and a lack of accountability.

I am a BIG proponent of ICE wearing masks as they search for, and are forced to deal with, hardened criminals, many of whom were let into our Country by Sleepy Joe Biden and his wonderful “Border Czar,” Kamala (she never even went to the Border!), through their absolutely INSANE Open Border Policy.

I would greatly appreciate, however, NO MASKS, when helping our Country out of the Democrat caused MESS at the airports, etc. Thank you! President DJT

Two pilots were killed and dozens of people were injured at New York's LaGuardia Airport late Sunday night when an arriving Air Canada Express plane and a fire-and-rescue vehicle collided, authorities said.

A civil jury in California found 88-year-old Bill Cosby liable for drugging and sexually assaulting Donna Motsinger in 1972, and awarded her nearly $60 million.

Exclusive: Pacific island’s new leader Lord Fakafānua discusses ‘exciting’ US partnership as critics fear impacts of seabed exploration

The recently elected leader of Tonga has described a deal to partner with the US on deep-sea mineral exploration as an “exciting development” amid concern in the small Pacific nation over the practice of seabed mining and the potential environmental impact.

Tonga is located in the South Pacific Ocean, a region attracting growing interest over whether critical minerals buried in the seabed could be extracted to help power industries and green technologies.

Solange Tremblay was ejected over 100 metres from the plane after collision at LaGuardia airport, her daughter says

• Two pilots killed after Air Canada jet collision at LaGuardia in New York

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A flight attendant on the Air Canada Jazz flight that collided with a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia airport on Sunday survived in what her daughter called a “complete miracle”, when she was ejected more than 100 metres from the plane while still strapped to her seat.

The CRJ-900 jet, operated by Jazz Aviation, collided with a fire truck as it landed, killing both the pilot and co-pilot. Nine people were sent to the hospital with injuries, including Solange Tremblay, a flight attendant.

Hawaii is just beginning the recovery from a pair of massive storms that unleashed up to 4 feet of rain in parts of O'ahu and Maui over the past week, Gov. Josh Green said.

Trump teased a deal could soon be reached to end his war on Iran, which Tehran denied – key US politics stories from Monday 23 March at a glance

Donald Trump has claimed there have been talks between the US and Iran over the past day in which the two sides had “major points of agreement”, appearing to avert a potentially severe escalation of the conflict.

Tehran has denied the claim in which Trump also speculated that a deal could soon be done to end the war. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said no talks had been held with the US since the bombing campaign began 24 days ago.

Oklahoma senator, confirmed in 54-45 vote, replaces Kristi Noem to lead president’s immigration crackdown

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The US Senate on Monday confirmed Markwayne Mullin to serve as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, elevating the Republican senator to a role where he will be among the public faces of Donald Trump’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

The Republican controlled chamber confirmed Mullin largely along party lines, with a vote of 54-45. Rand Paul of Kentucky was the only Republican to vote against him, while Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman and New Mexico’s Martin Heinrich were the sole Democrats to vote in favor.

In incident filmed by security cameras in Rio de Janeiro, group of attackers beat animal with sticks and iron bars

Police in Rio de Janeiro have arrested eight people for brutally beating a capybara – the world’s largest rodent.

Resembling a giant guinea pig, the light brown capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) is often seen roaming the Brazilian city, particularly near streams and lagoons.

Turo's ChatGPT app is the latest example of AI's rapid advance into every aspect of the automotive industry.

Transport plane carrying soldiers and crew crashed shortly after takeoff from Puerto Leguízamo, deep in Colombia’s southern Amazon region

A Colombian military transport plane with 121 people on board, mostly soldiers, crashed shortly after takeoff in the country’s south, killing at least 66 people, authorities said.

The defence minister, Pedro Sánchez, said the accident happened as the Lockheed Martin Hercules C-130 plane was taking off from Puerto Leguízamo, deep in Colombia’s southern Amazon region, on the border with Peru, as it transported troops from the armed forces.

The Oklahoma Republican portrayed himself as an experienced lawmaker ready to restore DHS’s credibility after a surge in immigration enforcement resulted in the killing of two U.S. citizens.

The project aims to build billions of chips and help make humankind a "galactic civilization," Musk says.

AT&T's new plans offer more data for less money, even at the high end, due to upcoming legacy plan increases.

From a shop owner in India to a community worker in New South Wales, rising fuel prices are forcing people to ration oil usage

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Alagesan, 35, needs liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to run his roadside drink and snack shop in Coimbatore, India, but with the fuel shortage since the US-Israel attacks on Iran, he worries his business could fold.

“I am far away from the Middle East, but my life is affected,” he said. “The gas cylinder is not available because of the war. I don’t know what to do.”

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle for March 24, No. 1,739.

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for March 24, No. 751.

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for March 24 #1017.

Out of the five terminals at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, only two had TSA staffing, and wait times could exceed four hours, the airport told travelers​.

Iranian state media said there was no "direct or indirect communication" with President Trump, but a senior Iranian official later indicated they'd received communication from a mediator.

As Iran threatens to mine the entire Persian Gulf, President Trump said his deadline for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen is postponed amid negotiations with Tehran.

Most of Shark's cordless vacuum models are on sale during Amazon's Big Spring Sale, and I've tested quite a few. These two deals stand out.

Since 1956, the majority of water and infrastructure spending has been by state and local governments.

Attorney general decries ‘outrageous federal overreach’ after government restarted pipeline closed over 2015 spill

California’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, said he has sued the US energy department to stop it from using a cold-war-era law to restart the long-disputed Sable Offshore pipeline system linking the Santa Ynez offshore platform to California refineries.

The US energy secretary, Chris Wright, earlier this month restarted the pipelines using powers granted to him by Donald Trump through an executive order that invoked the Defense Production Act to supersede state laws.

Officials defended the airport’s air traffic control staffing after the collision, which killed two pilots and hospitalized dozens of passengers.

Iran has received a message from the U.S. through mediators as a potential precursor to talks between the two warring countries, a senior Iranian Foreign Ministry official told CBS News, after President Trump suggested a deal is possible.

NTSB says investigation under way as nine people remain hospitalized after plane hit fire tuck on runway

• US politics live – latest updates

The pilot and co-pilot of an Air Canada Express regional jet have been killed after it collided with a fire truck while landing at New York’s LaGuardia airport, in an incident that closed the airport for several hours.

The Air Canada Express CRJ-900 plane, operated by Jazz Aviation, was carrying 72 passengers and four crew members from Montreal. Nine people remain hospitalized after the collision, which happened at about 11.45pm ET on Sunday as the firefighting vehicle was responding to a separate incident.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says he understands the concerns about "AI slop" with DLSS 5 but insists the feature preserves a game's underlying geometry and artistic intent. "I think their perspective makes sense, " said Huang during a recent appearance on the Lex Fridman podcast. "And I could see where they're coming from because I don't love AI slop myself. You know, all of the AI-generated content increasingly looks similar, and they're all beautiful... so I'm empathic toward what they're thinking. That's just not what DLSS 5 is trying to do." Tom's Hardware reports: Although Huang is striking a more conciliatory tone, much of his response is similar to what we heard at GTC [where Huang said gamers were "completely wrong."] The artist determines the geometry, we are completely truthful to the geometry... so every single frame, it enhances, but it doesn't change anything." There was some confusion about how DLSS 5 worked when it was first announced, and although the inner workings of it still aren't clear on a technical level, Huang has said that it isn't a general-purpose generative AI model. He describes it as "content-controlled generative AI." On the other end of the spectrum, Huang also said that it isn't a post-processing filter. The technical details of DLSS 5 live somewhere between that space, and we likely won't know them until later this year when the feature is set to release. "The question about enhancing, DLSS 5... in the future, you could even prompt it. You know, I want it to be a toon shader. I want it to look like this, kind of. You could even give it an example and it would generate in the style of that, all consistent with the artistry, the style, the intent of the artist," Huang continued. "All of that is done for the artist so they can create something that is more beautiful but still in the style that they want." Although the talking points about DLSS 5 remain unchanged, it seems that Huang has at least heard the criticism. "I think that they got the impression that the games are going to come out the way the games are... and then we're going to post-process it. That's not what DLSS is intended to do." Huang also made assertions that DLSS is "integrated" with the artist, and suggested that it would put the power of generative AI in the hands of artists working in game development [...]. Although DLSS 5 looks like it's doing a lot, Huang said that it's just another tool, not an essential feature. "The gamers might also appreciate that, in the last couple of years, we introduced skin shaders to game developers, and many of those games have skin shaders that include sub-surface scattering that makes skin look more skin-like... [DLSS 5] is just one more tool. They can decide what to use," Huang ended the conversation about DLSS 5. Immediately after, without missing a beat, he said 1993's Doom was the most influential video game ever made.

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The quantum-centric supercomputing method could pave the way to industry-relevant simulations of very large molecules for chemical, materials science, and medical research.

March 23, 2026 — For the first time, researchers have used quantum computing to simulate the electronic structure of a protein—a demonstration made possible thanks to novel quantum-centric supercomputing (QCSC) research. A joint Cleveland Clinic-IBM research team modeled the 303-atom miniprotein Trp-cage using a quantum-centric supercomputing workflow and an IBM Quantum Heron r2. The work is a result of progress designing and applying QCSC algorithms and workflows that combine quantum and high-performance classical computing to powerful effect.

Credit: IBM

Accurate electronic structure calculations on classical computers become increasingly challenging as system size increases. Classical methods alone can efficiently model certain aspects of protein behavior, but high-accuracy quantum-mechanical treatments of entire proteins remain impractical. If quantum computers eventually enable accurate modeling of large, biologically relevant molecules, this will significantly impact chemical, materials science, and medical research. This work represents a step in that direction.

“I’m sort of pinching myself that we were able to do it,” said Dr. Kenneth Merz, PhD, who leads the Merz lab at Cleveland Clinic.

Why Modeling Large Molecules Is Exciting

Trp-cage is useful for benchmarking computational chemistry methods. It’s relatively compact for a protein, but it has features that are common to much larger molecules in biochemistry, such as a water-repelling or “hydrophobic” core and hydrogen bonding between its constituent parts, allowing it to take on more complex structures. The researchers modeled both its unfolded and folded (i.e., stretched and contracted) states.

“Proving that this approach works for the Trp-cage is a Trp-cage is a step to larger molecules,” said Mario Motta, co-author of the paper.

The team was surprised at what they’d already achieved. “At first the plan was to simulate just a couple of amino acids,” Motta said. But as they tested their workflow, they found they were able to scale all the way up to Trp-cage and get meaningful results.

As these methods mature and scale, Merz said, he hopes they could support computational workflows for pharmaceutical research and related fields. He envisions a world where scientists use QCSC workflows to build databases of simulated molecular behavior. Then, when scientists need a new molecule for a particular purpose, they could use machine learning algorithms trained on those databases, asking for molecules that might behave in in the ways they need. From there, they could synthesize those molecules to test in real life.

A New Workflow for Simulating Large Molecules

The workflow, described in a recent preprint on arXiv, relies on a technique called wave function-based embedding (EWF) to fragment Trp-cage into computationally tractable pieces called “clusters.” In EWF, there are as many clusters as there are atoms in the molecule, but each cluster is more complex than a single atom: it encompasses a local region surrounding the atom and entangled with it.

In any given protein, some pieces or clusters are going to be much more complex than others. One atom may be all the way out on the edge of the protein, at the end of a covalent bond, and only entangled to one or two neighboring atoms. In those cases, researchers can find that cluster’s electronic structure efficiently using classical computational methods. Another might be closer to the molecular core, enmeshed in a more complex web of intermolecular interactions. These larger clusters are good problems for quantum computers to solve.

Stitched back together, the results of individual cluster calculations lead to a complete solution for the electronic structure of the molecule, which describes where its electrons are and how they interact—important information that determines how the molecule behaves. This approach, quantum computers load-sharing with classical computers in hybrid workflows, is an early look at quantum-centric supercomputing in action.

A New Generation of Quantum-Centric Algorithms for HPC

Merz has watched the development of quantum computing over a period of several years. Until a few years ago, it was clear that quantum computers could offer new approaches to solving hard chemistry problems, but what those approaches would look like remained an open question.

Merz said there was something of a eureka moment when he saw a group of IBM scientists present an algorithm called sample-based quantum diagonalization (SQD).

SQD belongs to an emerging set of algorithms built for quantum-centric supercomputing, where classical and quantum resources work together to solve problems, using the strengths of both paradigms. It addresses one of the fundamental challenges of electronic structure calculations: the number of possible configurations of a molecule’s electrons grows combinatorially with the molecule’s size.

In SQD, the quantum computer samples this vast space, identifying key configurations for the classical computer to focus on. The classical computer uses the resulting information to find a solution.

After learning about SQD, Merz said, “We sort of dropped everything. I met with a few people in my group over the weekend, and we decided to just go all in on SQD.”

They began putting the algorithm through its paces, testing it on a string of smaller molecules, beginning a chain of experiments that led to this Trp-cage simulation. The results so far have been extremely promising: already in this paper, the workflow performs competitively with classical approaches, approaching the accuracy of the most computationally demanding among them.

In principle, the scientists said, the combined EWF-SQD workflow can scale far beyond Trp-cage. As molecules get larger, the task of breaking them up, calculating their most complex clusters, and stitching them back together gets more complex. But solving for the electronic structure of complex clusters is a compelling problem for quantum computers. Already, the researchers are exploring what the next step looks like, eyeing even larger molecules as their targets.

As QCSC advances, it’s important that quantum and HPC researchers work together. This work was made possible by access to HPC resources at Michigan State University and Cleveland Clinic. Other recent collaborations between IBM and HPC leaders like RIKEN have also yielded exciting results.

Explore IBM’s newly published reference architecture for quantum-centric supercomputing.

More from HPCwire

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Source: IBM

The post Cleveland Clinic and IBM Debut New Quantum Workflow for Simulating Proteins appeared first on HPCwire.

People evacuated on Oahu and Maui as rains lifted houses and cars, swept through stores and left streets mud-clogged

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Hawaii is assessing the extensive damage left by the worst flooding the islands have seen in more than 20 years.

Heavy rains and floodwater forced thousands on the North Shore of Oahu to evacuate over the weekend and triggered evacuation orders for parts of Maui. Floodwater from rains lifted houses and cars, inundated farms and swept through grocery stores on the islands, leaving behind a thick layer of mud.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: Senators Adam Schiff (D-CA) and John Curtis (R-UT) introduced (PDF) a bill on Monday that could prevent prediction market platforms Kalshi and Polymarket from allowing users to wager money on sports events or play casino-style games. This bipartisan bill would not apply to FanDuel and DraftKings, which are subject to state-by-state gambling laws, rather than federal ones. "Sports prediction contracts are sports bets -- just with a different name. And yet, these contracts are currently offered in all fifty states in clear violation of state and federal law," Schiff said in a statement. Prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket are regulated under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which is why Schiff and Curtis are able to address them under federal jurisdiction, rather than leaving them to state-regulated sportsbooks. But these senators argue that there isn't much of a difference in practice between betting on sports via federally or state-regulated apps. Kalshi's Super Bowl trading volume, for instance, reached over $1 billion this year -- a 2700% increase year-over-year. "Too many young people in Utah are getting exposed to addictive sports betting and casino-style gaming contracts that belong under state control, not under federal regulators," Curtis said in a statement. The report notes that Kalshi is temporarily banned in Nevada and is facing criminal charges in Arizona. "Kalshi may brand itself as a 'prediction market,' but what it's actually doing is running an illegal gambling operation and taking bets on Arizona elections, both of which violate Arizona law," Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a statement last week.

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March 23, 2026 — How can complex industrial challenges be tackled through the interplay of classical and quantum computing? Researchers at Saarland University, together with the quantum computing start-up planqc and industry partners BMW and Infineon, are bringing both worlds together. Their shared objective is to develop new approaches to complex optimization problems in order to make industrial processes more efficient. The project is funded with €2.3 million by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR).

In industry—such as in the production and distribution of cars or semiconductor chips—highly complex mathematical problems arise that classical computers can still only solve approximately today, often requiring long runtimes and substantial computational resources. The algorithms used are typically inspired by real-world problems and exploit their structure heuristically.

“This works remarkably well. Algorithms that are theoretically slower than others can nevertheless be faster in practice,” said Peter P. Orth, Professor of Theoretical Physics of Quantum Information at Saarland University.

Yet despite their quality, these approaches often represent only the best solution achievable under current conditions. For Peter P. Orth, his colleague Markus Bläser, Professor of Computer Science and expert in complexity theory and algorithms, the industry partners Infineon and BMW, and the quantum computing start-up planqc, this is not sufficient.

They are therefore pursuing new paths within the research project QIAPO – Quantum-Informed Approximate Optimization on NISQ and Partially Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computers. A dedicated neutral-atom quantum computer built by planqc in Garching will be used to “shrink” highly complex industrial problems to a level where classical computers and their proven algorithms can handle them more effectively. Quantum computers can outperform conventional computers in certain cases because their basic units, qubits, can exist in superpositions of the states 0 and 1, whereas classical bits can only be either 0 or 1. This makes quantum computers particularly well suited to solving or simplifying highly complex mathematical problems that would overwhelm classical systems.

“QIAPO shows not only how far quantum computing has already progressed,” said Dr. Martin Kiffner, Head of Algorithms at planqc. “It also demonstrates today how industrially relevant problems can be translated into quantum algorithms—and ultimately tested on quantum computers.”

Once a mathematical problem has been simplified using quantum computing researchers can continue working with the many successful and well-established classical algorithms to complete the computation. Even with this hybrid approach, fully exact solutions will often remain out of reach, which is why the project explicitly focuses on approximate optimization. The aim is to solve existing problems through a combination of quantum and classical algorithms slightly better than is currently possible.

To illustrate with a simplified example: if a problem can currently be solved with around 80% accuracy, a hybrid quantum–classical approach could enable an efficient improvement to 85% or even 95%.

“This is where the quantum computer can step into the gap—improving accuracy and potentially delivering a quantum advantage,” said Peter P. Orth.

The project follows a realistic and pragmatic goal. “We will not solve the biggest problems overnight within the next three years,” said Orth. “But by the end of the project, we will very likely know whether our approach can, in principle, tackle such problems—and we can then pursue this direction further.” Even small efficiency gains in industrial production and logistics can have a major impact: as stated in the project description, “even minor resource savings can lead to substantial financial effects at high production volumes.”

Source: planqc

The post Saarland University, planqc Lead €2.3M Project on Hybrid Quantum–Classical Optimization for Industry appeared first on HPCwire.

Some Bay Area residents will be able to get groceries and meals delivered by drone.

President claims immigration agents could help manage long lines as TSA agents go unpaid during partial shutdown

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Security lines stretched for hours on Monday at US airports where unpaid Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) screening agents refused to report for duty and ICE agents deployed by Donald Trump were reportedly seen in a dozen cities.

The president claimed over the weekend that immigration agents could help manage long lines, but in Atlanta, little immediate impact of their presence could be observed. Meanwhile, airport staff were getting creative trying to herd thousands of discontented passengers.

The court, in an unsigned opinion, shielded a Vermont police officer from a claim that he used excessive force on a protester during a 2015 sit-in at the state’s capitol.

Demonstrations to be held across the US against ICE’s ‘reign of terror’ with flagship event in Minnesota’s Twin Cities

Millions of people are expected to protest the Trump administration at more than 3,000 No Kings events in cities and small towns across the country on Saturday. Ezra Levin, co-founder of Indivisible, one of the groups coordinating No Kings, said he expected it to be “the biggest protest in American history”.

This will be the third No Kings protest since Trump was re-elected. A flagship event will be held in Minnesota’s Twin Cities – Minneapolis and St Paul – after residents stood up to the surge of federal immigration agents the Trump administration sent into the region earlier this year. In January, agents killed two residents, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were observing Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) activities.

The full moon in April helps determine the date for Easter each year.

At Nvidia’s GTC conference last week, a fireside chat between Nvidia’s Ian Buck and U.S. Department of Energy Under Secretary for Science Dario Gil focused on a familiar theme for the HPC community: the convergence of advanced computing and scientific discovery. The conversation highlighted the next phase of the DOE’s Genesis mission, as the department begins turning its AI for science agenda into teams, systems and funded research programs.