News Reel

President Trump said Tuesday he has paused Project Freedom, a U.S. effort to guide commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

Voters headed to the polls on Tuesday in Ohio and Indiana — in the Buckeye State, they cast ballots in Senate, House and governor's primary races, while Hoosiers are weighing in on House and state races.

Ohio’s Senate seat is one Democrats have prioritized in the party’s bid to retake control of the chamber

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Republican senator Jon Husted and Democrat Sherrod Brown won their party’s nominations in Ohio’s primary elections on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press – teeing them up for what is expected to be a high-profile and expensive Senate race in November’s midterm elections.

Husted ran unopposed, while Brown had a single opponent who he handily outraised.

Control of Congress at stake as Ohio Senate seat could tip scale for Democrats to retake chamber in November

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Donald Trump has issued a fresh verbal attack against Pope Leo XIV, accusing the pontiff of “endangering a lot of Catholics” because “he thinks it’s fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon”.

The remarks come two days before Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, meets Leo at the Vatican in an effort to ease the tensions sparked by Trump’s previous broadside against the Chicago-born pontiff over his condemnation of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

CBS News projected that former Sen. Sherrod Brown won the Democratic primary, while incumbent Sen. Jon Husted ran unopposed.

President Donald Trump said he was halting the US military operation to escort ships through the strait of Hormuz

• US-Iran truce teeters on meltdown as stalemate takes toll on each side

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, is travelling to Beijing later today for talks with his Chinese counterpart “on bilateral relations and regional and international developments”, his ministry said on its Telegram account.

While Beijing condemned the initial US and Israeli strikes on Iran which started the war in late February, China has largely adopted a posture of neutrality ever since and has urged for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.

Hegseth said the ceasefire with Iran "certainly holds" for now after a naval clash between Iranian and U.S. forces and renewed attacks on the UAE.

Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood join Conan O’Brien to discuss forthcoming album Foreign Tongues

On Tuesday afternoon in New York, the Rolling Stones gathered friends, journalists and fellow artists for a preview of their forthcoming 25th album, Foreign Tongues.

Before the trio stepped on stage, host Conan O’Brien deadpanned that perhaps, finally, this is the album where the band will “finally make it after decades of obscurity”. The audience, which included Leonardo DiCaprio, director Baz Luhrmann and actor Odessa A’zion, laughed appreciatively.

Republican and Democratic candidates will meet on stage in race reshaped by Eric Swalwell’s exit and Xavier Becerra’s rise

Seven of the leading contenders in California’s unexpectedly dramatic race for governor will meet on a debate stage Tuesday night, a high-stakes showdown arriving just as voters begin casting ballots in the state’s nonpartisan primary.

The debate, hosted by CNN and kicking off at 6pm PT, comes as the volatile contest to succeed the outgoing Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, begins to take clearer shape weeks after one of the leading candidates, former Democratic congressman Eric Swalwell, suddenly withdrew amid sexual assault and harassment allegations, which he strongly denies. Millions of voters across the state have already received their mail-in ballots before the 2 June primary, leaving precious little time for lower-polling Democrats to break through.

Authorities say Craig Berry, a retired special forces soldier, shot his wife and then fled into the woods in northern Tennessee.

In-depth study also reveals patients from black African and Caribbean backgrounds are less likely to receive timely care

People from black backgrounds in England are twice as likely to experience strokes as their white counterparts, while also being less likely to receive timely care, according to the largest study of its kind.

The study, conducted by researchers at King’s College London and presented at the European Stroke Organisation conference, analysed 30 years of stroke incidents from the South London Stroke Register, one of the longest-running population-based stroke registers in the world.

Unions group wants rate returned from 3% to 8% after big four UK lenders reveal £14bn total profit in first quarter

An increased windfall tax should be imposed on the UK’s largest banks according to trade union leaders, after the big four lenders reported almost £14bn in first-quarter profits, partly fuelled by market turbulence caused by the Iran war.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) renewed its call for an increase in the current bank surcharge, which was reduced from 8% to 3% of profits above £100m by the Conservative government in 2023, as banks benefit from the high interest rate environment.

Apple has agreed to a proposed $250 million settlement over claims that it misled iPhone buyers about the availability of Apple Intelligence and its upgraded Siri features. The settlement would cover U.S. buyers of the iPhone 16 lineup and iPhone 15 Pro models between June 10, 2024, and March 29, 2025. The Verge reports: The settlement will resolve a 2025 lawsuit, alleging Apple's advertisements created a "clear and reasonable consumer expectation" that Apple Intelligence features would be available with the launch of the iPhone 16. The lawsuit claimed Apple's products "offered a significantly limited or entirely absent version of Apple Intelligence, misleading consumers about its actual utility and performance." Apple brought certain AI-powered features to the iPhone 16 weeks after its release, and delayed the launch of its more personalized Siri, which is now expected to arrive later this year. Last April, the National Advertising Division recommended that Apple "discontinue or modify" its "available now" claim for Apple Intelligence. Apple also pulled an iPhone 16 ad showing actor Bella Ramsey using the AI-upgraded Siri.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Briton and Dutch colleague to be removed from MV Hondius, as ship sets course for Canary Islands after deal struck with Spain

• What is hantavirus, the infection thought to have killed three on cruise ship?

A British crew member who became ill after a suspected outbreak of hantavirus on a luxury cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean is to be medically evacuated, officials have said.

The crew member is being prepared for medical evacuation from the MV Hondius along with a Dutch colleague, with Dutch authorities overseeing the operation.

Border czar Tom Homan conceded "things weren't perfect" during the crackdown in Minneapolis, but stressed that the administration is not backing down from its mass deportation effort.

Revised indictment alleges Cole Allen, accused of targeting Trump, assaulted federal officer with deadly weapon

Cole Tomas Allen, the suspected gunman at the White House correspondents’ dinner, is facing an additional related charge for assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon, federal authorities announced on Tuesday.

The new charge, which formally accuses Allen of firing at a US Secret Service agent at a security checkpoint, is part of a new four-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Washington. The other three counts are charges Allen previously faced: attempted assassination, discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence and illegal transportation of a firearm and ammunition across state lines.

Conflict appears to have reached impasse, but leaders in Tehran and Washington seem to think victory is near

The month-old ceasefire between Iran and the US appeared to be in new peril on Tuesday with a fresh barrage of Iranian missiles reported to have targeted the United Arab Emirates as US naval forces pressed ahead with efforts to reopen the strait of Hormuz.

The Iranian strike on the UAE was the second in 48 hours, and came shortly after the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, insisted the shaky truce that has paused the war in the Middle East was intact, despite the new increase in violence.

There is a persistent misconception among sighted developers: if an application runs in a terminal, it is inherently accessible. The logic assumes that because there are no graphics, no complex DOM, and no WebGL canvases, the content is just raw ASCII text that a screen reader can easily parse.

The reality is different. Most modern Text User Interfaces (TUIs) are often more hostile to accessibility than poorly coded graphical interfaces. The very tools designed to improve the Developer Experience (DX) in the terminal—frameworks like Ink (JS/React), Bubble Tea (Go), or tcell—are actively destroying the experience for blind users.

↫ Casey Reeves

The core reason should be obvious: the command-line interface, at its core, is just a stream of data with the newest data at the bottom, linearly going back in time as you go up. Any screen reader can deal with this fairly easily, and while I personally have no need for such a tool, I’ve heard from those that do that kernel-level screen readers are quite good at what they do. TUIs, or text-based user interfaces, made with modern frameworks are actually very different: they’re “2D grid[s] of pixels, where every character cell is a pixel. [They] abandons the temporal flow for a spatial layout.”

It should become immediately obvious that screen readers won’t really know what to do with this, and Reeves gives countless examples, but the short version is this: the cursor jumps all over the place with every screen update, which makes screen readers go nuts. Various older TUIs, made in a time well before these modern TUI frameworks came about, were designed in a much more terminal-friendly way, or give you options to hide the cursor to solve the problem that way. Irssi, for example, uses VT100 scrolling regions instead of redrawing the whole screen every time something changes.

I had never really stopped to think about TUIs and screen readers, as is common among us sighted people. The problems Reeves describes seem to stem not so much from TUIs being inherently inaccessible, but from modern frameworks not actually making use of the terminal’s core feature set. I really hope this Reeves’ article shines a light on this problem, and that the people developing these modern TUIs start taking accessibility more seriously.

The base iPhone 17 and its Pro variants capture the top three spots, followed by Samsung's lower-cost Galaxy A phones.

The U.S. warns that transiting the normal route could be "extremely hazardous" because of mines laid in the Strait of Hormuz by Iran.

Coinbase is laying off about 700 workers, or 14% of its workforce, as CEO Brian Armstrong says the company is restructuring to become "lean, fast, and AI-native." Engadget reports: Armstrong claimed he'd seen engineers "use AI to ship in days what used to take a team weeks" and that non-technical teams in the company are "shipping production code," while Coinbase is automating many of its workflows. "All of this has led us to an inflection point, not just for Coinbase, but for every company," Armstrong wrote. "The biggest risk now is not taking action. We are adjusting early and deliberately to rebuild Coinbase to be lean, fast and AI-native. We need to return to the speed and focus of our startup founding, with AI at our core." An AI-driven restructuring is only one half of the equation for Coinbase, though. Armstrong wrote that while the company "is well-capitalized, has diversified revenue streams and is well-positioned to weather any storm," the crypto market is down. As such, Coinbase is attempting to become leaner and faster ahead of the next crypto cycle. The company is eliminating some management layers and organizing the business around "AI-native talent who can manage fleets of agents to drive outsized impact," Armstrong wrote. "We'll also be experimenting with reduced pod sizes, including 'one person teams' with engineers, designers and product managers all in one role." That sure sounds like an attempt to get workers to take on more responsibilities.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

US secretary of state says US is better off than other countries hit by disruption in oil supplies

• ‘A dollar or two increase is devastating’: US readers on toll of rising gas prices

Marco Rubio has argued the US is in a “very fortunate” position as fuel prices continue to climb nationwide amid disruption sparked by the US-Israel war on Iran.

With average US fuel prices now approaching $4.50 a gallon – their highest level in four years – the US secretary of state was asked on Tuesday how long Americans should accept them at such levels.

Apple is reportedly keeping its options open beyond its main supplier, Taiwan Semiconductor.

Serious side-effects from vaccines were rare, scientists found in studies funded by US taxpayer money

The US Food and Drug Administration has blocked the publication of several studies that found Covid-19 and shingles vaccines to be safe, according to a spokesperson from the Department of Health and Human Services.

Agency scientists conducted the studies by analyzing millions of patient records and found that serious side-effects from the vaccines were rare, the spokesperson confirmed. The studies – funded by taxpayer money and costing several million dollars – included research examining the safety of Covid-19 vaccines in 2023 and 2024.

The complaint claims software updates introduce serious bugs that are never fixed. Roku calls the claims "meritless."

Backing up in modern times, we’ve had ZFS snapshots and replication to make this task extremely easy. However, you may not have access to another ZFS endpoint for replication, need to diversify risk by using a non-ZFS tool for backup, or are simply using UFS2, living the old skool life.

For these situations, my first recommendation is to lean on Tarsnap for its ease of use and simplicity, making restoration just as easy as backing up. But some situations call for a different approach. Maybe you have a strict firewall at your company that doesn’t allow Tarsnap data streams to egress from your corporate network, or you have internal/easy access to storage endpoints, such as S3-compatible object storage or a large-file storage location with SFTP access.

When you are faced with the latter, the duplicity (sysutils/duplicity in ports) utility is available as an easily installable package onto your FreeBSD system.

↫ Jason Tubnor at the FreeBSD Foundation

The rest of the article explains how to use duplicity on FreeBSD for the purpose described above.

Green party leader also accused of incorrectly stating he was a full member of the National Council of Hypnotherapy

Zack Polanski falsely claimed to be a spokesperson for the British Red Cross while campaigning for the Green party leadership, the charity has said.

The claim was also mentioned on his personal website in 2020, where he said he was “really proud of the work we do”.

The criticism of the pontiff’s stance on Iran highlighted what Vatican officials have described as an unprecedented low in relations with the United States.

The company says it's a limited test on a small set of users who frequently browse without being logged in. There may be some ways around it.

Analysis finds victims’ compensation program is awarding less money to fewer people, although budget has increased

Victims of violent crime in California are finding it increasingly hard to get support from the state, a new analysis has found, a development that has locked some of the most vulnerable people out of funds to help cover crime scene cleanup, relocation costs, funerals and therapy.

California established the nation’s first victims’ compensation program in 1965, aimed at helping victims of violent crimes and their families cover some of the costs sprung onto them by the violence.

• Frenchman had 12 blocks during Spurs’ Monday loss

• Minnesota say referees missed several infractions

The Minnesota Timberwolves have questioned whether Victor Wembanyama’s NBA playoff record 12 blocks were legitimate.

The San Antonio Spurs star set the record during his team’s conference semi-final loss to the Timberwolves on Monday night. But Minnesota coach Chris Finch believes the refereeing during the game was questionable.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Wired: Employees at Google DeepMind in London have voted to unionize as part of a bid to block the AI lab from providing its technology to the US and Israeli militaries. In a letter addressed to Google's managing director for the UK and Ireland, Debbie Weinstein, the workers asked the company to recognize the Communication Workers Union and Unite the Union as joint representatives for DeepMind employees. "Fundamentally, the push for unionization is about holding Google to its own ethical standards on AI, how they monetize it, what the products do, and who they work with," John Chadfield, national officer for technology at the CWU, tells WIRED. "Through the process of unionization, workers are collectively in a much stronger place to put [demands] to an increasingly deaf management." [...] The DeepMind employee tells WIRED that if the staff succeeds in unionizing in the UK, they will likely demand that Google pulls out of its long-standing contract with the Israeli military, and seek greater transparency over how its AI products will be used, and some sort of assurance relating to layoffs made possible by automation. If Google does not engage, the letter states, the employees will ask an arbitration committee to compel the company to recognize the unions. Since the turn of the year, both Anthropic and OpenAI have announced large-scale expansions of their operations in London. CWU hopes the unionization effort at DeepMind will spur workers at those labs into similar action. "These conversations are happening," claims Chadfield. "The workers at other frontier labs have seen what Google DeepMind workers have done. They've come to us asking for help as well." The unionization push began in February 2025 after Alphabet removed a pledge from its AI ethics guidelines that had barred uses such as weapons development and surveillance. "A lot of people here bought into the Google DeepMind tagline 'to build AI responsibly to benefit humanity,'" the DeepMind employee told WIRED. "The direction of travel is to further militarization of the AI models we're building here."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

White male editor at newspaper claims he was unfairly passed over for promoted role despite qualifications

In what appears to be a new front in the Trump administration’s pressure campaign against the media, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against the New York Times, charging that the news organization improperly passed over a white, male employee for promotion because of his race or sex.

The employee believed he had been passed over for a promotion to deputy real estate editor, a position that had been listed in January 2025, despite believing himself to be a “significantly” more qualified candidate.

The upcoming game walks a tight Bat-rope retelling the Caped Crusader's biggest adventures with a mixture of slapstick charm and deep comic cuts.

Employment watchdog accuses the New York Times of violating federal law by passing over a White male journalist for a job.

If you're tired of overpaying for mobile features you don't use, it might be time to look into a prepaid plan.

US president directs fresh criticism at pontiff days before secretary of state Marco Rubio’s visit to Vatican

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Donald Trump has issued another verbal attack against Pope Leo, accusing the pontiff of “endangering a lot of Catholics” because “he thinks it’s fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon”.

The remarks come two days before Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, meets Leo at the Vatican in an effort to ease the tensions sparked by Trump’s previous broadside against the Chicago-born pontiff over his condemnation of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Sam Altman's company could reportedly begin production of the AI-focused phones in the first half of 2027.

A roving real-estate expo for land sales in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories held an event at a New York synagogue on Tuesday, drawing a rebuke from Mayor Zohran Mamdani over the potential for land sales that violate international law.

The Great Israeli Real Estate Event — a showcase that advertises its services in helping people in the United States, Canada, and the U.K. purchase land in Israel and the West Bank — hosted the event at Park East Synagogue in Manhattan’s Upper East Side on Tuesday. The expo helps potential buyers navigate taxes, education concerns, and other issues that arise during relocation to Israel.

Ahead of the event, Mamdani spoke out against the possibility of potentially illegal land sales being facilitated within the city.

“Mayor Mamdani is deeply opposed to the real estate expo this evening that includes the promotion of the sale of land in settlements in the Occupied West Bank,” said Sam Raskin, a spokesperson for Mamdani, in a statement to The Intercept. “These settlements are illegal under international law and deeply tied to the ongoing displacement of Palestinians.”

The website for the expo includes a reference to Gush Etzion, a cluster of some 20 settlements in the West Bank, southeast of Jerusalem, that are considered illegal under international law. Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, said the inclusion of Gush Etzion was a telling reminder of the claim made on all of the Occupied Territories by the pro-settlement movement.

“Gush Etzion is the Israeli term for an area of the West Bank located south of Jerusalem on which, under international law, all Israeli construction, all Israeli communities are considered illegal under international law,” Friedman said. “The pro-settlement movement around the world, and most Israelis, do not make any distinction between Israel and the West Bank. The idea is that all of this is Eretz Yisrael” — Hebrew for “the land of Israel” — “and it belongs to the Jews because God gave it to them.”

The Intercept attended the event Tuesday. Just inside the synagogue, a large welcome sign specified that the event was for “information purposes only.” More than a dozen tables advertised the services of real estate companies, most of which promoted glitzy luxury buildings in Tel Aviv, Netanya, and other cities inside Israel’s internationally recognized borders.

At least one company, Harey Zahav, displayed a map of properties in Kfar Eldad, Karnei Shomron, and other Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Brochures at the Harey Zahav table offered detailed looks at properties in these settlements.

Past Discrimination Allegations

The expo is being sponsored by a group called Home in Israel, but it isn’t the only organization putting on events of this sort. In recent years, real estate fairs put on by similar groups have popped up in New York and other North American cities, including Baltimore, Montreal, and others, including at synagogues.

Israeli settlements in the West Bank are widely considered to be open only to Jewish residents. At one real estate event in suburban New Jersey in 2024, protesters said they were explicitly asked about their religious affiliations when they tried to register for the fair, potentially implicating anti-discrimination laws. The New Jersey Civil Rights Division reportedly questioned realtors about their practices. (The New Jersey Civil Rights Division not immediately respond to requests for comment.)

Pal-Awda, a pro-Palestine group, announced plans on social media for a protest on Tuesday outside the Park East Synagogue.

“We will not be silent as ethnic cleansing is being actively promoted in our neighborhoods,” the group wrote.

Related

The Companies Making It Easy to Buy in a West Bank Settlement

Self-proclaimed supporters of the synagogue have circulated a flyer on social media announcing a counter-protest. “All members of the Jewish community need to come out and protect the synagogue,” says the flyer. Though it includes the social media handles of the synagogue, the call for a counter-protest did not appear to come from Park East Synagogue itself. (A spokesperson for the synagogue declined to comment.)

Past events have led to sometimes violent confrontations between protesters and counter-demonstrators.

In light of the dueling protests planned outside Park East Synagogue, Raskin, the mayoral spokesperson, called for both the safety of eventgoers and respect for the free-speech rights of the protesters.

“Our administration has also been clear that we are committed to ensuring safe entry and exit from any house of worship,” he said, “and that such access never be in question while all protesters are able to exercise their First Amendment rights.”

Protests at Park East

Park East Synagogue has already been the site of one anti-Zionist protest that raised hackles in New York.

In November, Pal-Awda organized a demonstration against an event hosted by Nefesh B’Nefesh, a group that facilitates migration to Israel, sparking howls of protest from then-Mayor Eric Adams and other political leaders in the city.

Related

Kathy Hochul’s Israel Trip Bankrolled by Group Funding Illegal Settlements

That protest, along with others across New York City, were part of the impetus behind a bill introduced this year in the City Council aimed at creating a so-called buffer zone to keep demonstrators at a distance from any house of worship.

Despite the opposition of free-speech advocates, a version of that bill — requiring the New York Police Department to provide a plan for protecting houses of worship but without the buffer zone provision — passed in March and became law on April 25 after Mamdani declined to sign or veto it. The bill gave the New York Police Department 45 days to provide a proposed plan of action and 90 days to give a final plan, meaning it is not yet in full effect.

A related bill proposing buffer zones for universities and other educational institutions passed the City Council but was vetoed by Mamdani, who criticized the bill as overbroad and a threat to free speech.

Update: May 5, 2026, 6:45 p.m. ET
This story has been updated to include reporting from inside the Great Israeli Real Estate Event on the promotion of property for sale in Israeli settlements that are considered illegal under international law.

The post Mamdani Condemns NYC Expo Promoting Property Sales in Israeli West Bank Settlements appeared first on The Intercept.

The lawsuit claims that Meta's Llama is generating summaries — and, in some cases, verbatim copies — of original works.

A suspected hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius cruise ship has killed three people and sickened at least four others, officials said.

The U.S. Coast Guard is trying to find the owners of a sailboat that may have been moored next to Lynette Hooker's vessel the night she disappeared in the Bahamas, marking a new development in the search for the missing Michigan woman.

Gartner says some VMware customers may find it cheaper to move certain Linux VM workloads to IBM mainframes than to adopt Broadcom's new VMware licensing, especially for fleets of hundreds of Linux VMs and mission-critical apps needing long-term stability. The Register reports: Speaking to The Register to discuss the analyst firm's mid-April publication, "The State of the IBM Mainframe in 2026," [Gartner Vice President Analyst Alessandro Galimberti] said some buyers in many fields are comparing mainframes to modern environments and deciding Big Blue's big iron comes out ahead. "I can build a multi-region cloud application, but things like data synchronization and high availability are things I need to build into application logic," he said. "The mainframe has that in the platform, which shields developers from complexity." He also thinks mainframes are ideally suited to workloads that need many years of transactional consistency and backward-compatibility. That said, Galimberti doesn't recommend the mainframe for all applications. He said mission-critical applications that are unlikely to change much for a decade are best-suited to the machines, as are Linux applications because the open source OS runs on IBM's hardware. IBM also offers the z/VM hypervisor, which he says can make Linux "even better and more enterprise-ready." Which is why Galimberti thinks IBM's ecosystem is attractive to VMware users, especially those who operate a fleet of 500 to 700 Linux VMs. [...] Committing to mainframes therefore means planning "to spend time negotiating price and renewal protections, rather than prioritizing the business value these solutions can deliver." Another downside is that mainframes pose clear lock-in risk, so users may hold back on useful customizations out of fear they make it harder to extricate themselves from the platform. Access to skills remains an issue, too, as kids these days mostly don't contemplate a career working with big iron. Galimberti sees more service providers investing in their mainframe programs, which might help. So does the availability of Linux.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle No. 1,060 for Wednesday, May 6. It's a doozy.

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle for May 6, No. 1,782.

Pledge ahead of local elections dismissed as ‘not a serious policy’ and ‘profoundly un-British’

Coming just days before millions go to the polls, Zia Yusuf’s announcement that a Reform government would ‘prioritise’ the citing of migrant detention centres in areas with Green MPs or councils was certainly eye-catching.

“That means areas like right here in Brighton,” Reform’s shadow home secretary said with barely concealed relish in a video in which he paced the beachfront at the constituency which elected Britain’s first Green MP.

Interest earnings on a money market account of this size can be substantial, but is the account worth opening now?

New immigration enforcement package could fund security of $400m ‘East Wing modernization project’

Senate Republicans have released a new immigration enforcement funding package that includes a proposed $1bn that could go to security measures related to the $400m ballroom that is part of Donald Trump’s “East Wing modernization project”.

Senator Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican who chairs the Senate judiciary committee, released the funding plan on Monday, as part of a wider bill the Republican party plans to pass along party lines to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other agencies involved in the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts.

Fulton county is trying to fend off federal prosecutor’s demand for information on 2020 election workers

Fulton county, Georgia, is trying to fend off a subpoena from a federal prosecutor in North Carolina seeking contact information for thousands of poll workers from the 2020 election.

The subpoena, issued in April by Dan Bishop, the interim US attorney of North Carolina’s middle district, demands the county provide rosters of election staff members who served in the November 2020 election, including their identification by name, position, residential and email address and personal telephone number.

Local activist Barbara Wien will not be criminally charged for doxxing top White House aide Stephen Miller, according to a court filing.

Gold investing has been advantageous for multiple years, but it can be especially beneficial this May. Here's why.

Even in some of the most remote areas, your phone can stay connected via satellite.

GAINESVILLE, Va., May 5, 2026 — The Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation (SPEC), the trusted global leader in computing benchmarks, today announced the availability of the SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suites, a significant update to the industry-standard for vendor-neutral metrics measuring compute-intensive performance. For 37 years, the SPEC CPU benchmark suites have been a key tool for server buyers in assessing computing system requirements based on the performance of today’s CPU, memory, and compiler options running real-world application workloads. The updated SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suites reflect the significant evolution of today’s modern hardware and software.

The development of the SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suites is the result of a collaborative effort by representatives from across the technology industry. Committee members evaluated more than 70 candidate applications, ultimately selecting 38 applications resulting in 52 benchmarks that represent a broad spectrum of real-world use cases. The process included increased engagement with the open source community, one of the many methods SPEC uses to ensure the benchmarks remain representative of modern software ecosystems.

“Every industry today requires highly performant computing systems, which means the need has never been greater for a vendor-neutral benchmark that enables users to assess the performance of today’s CPU, memory, and compiler options,” said Frédérique Silber-Chaussumier, Chair of the SPEC CPU committee. “The SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suites provide the relevant, unbiased insight buyers need to make the most of their technology investments. While primarily for servers, the benchmark suites provide valuable insights for workstations, laptops, tablets, and smartphones as well. This makes the SPEC CPU 2026 benchmarks suites an indispensable tool for hardware performance evaluation.”

“The SPEC CPU benchmark suites have a well-deserved reputation for enabling organizations across industries to understand computing performance and productivity and make smarter purchasing decisions regarding their hardware needs,” said Jason Lowe-Power, an associate professor of computer architecture research at the University of California, Davis. “But the benchmark has value that goes beyond simple measurement. For example, thousands of users of gem5, a tool for designing new processors, can use the real-world workloads in the SPEC CPU benchmark suites to gain insights into the benefits of their architectural ideas. These assessments have the potential to significantly improve the quality of future processors.”

“In recent years, the number of server CPU silicon vendors and instruction set architectures has increased dramatically,” said David Reiner, President of SPEC. “To understand the true performance of these CPUs, whether for on-prem or cloud deployments, it is essential to use the most up-to-date version of the industry’s gold-standard measuring stick, the SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suites.”

What’s New

• Comprehensive Suite Expansion – Includes 52 benchmarks, up from 43, with more than two times the lines of source code, designed to stress a system’s processor, memory hierarchy, and compilers. The benchmarks are derived from real-world applications, ensuring authentic performance measurement across the broadest spectrum of modern hardware. New benchmarks include an LLVM optimizing compiler, a Python interpreter, a neural machine translator, a state-of-the-art chess engine, a solar coronal magnetic field modeler, a computer architecture simulator, and several more.
• Multidisciplinary Domain Growth – Expanded applicability to a wider array of applications and domains, from scientific areas such as astrophysics, neutron transport, image compression, and flight dynamics, to general-purpose areas such as AI, electronic design automation, databases, and graph analytics.
• Cross Platform Modernization – Enabled portability across a wider range of modern architectures, operating systems, and compilers. Ensured compliance with evolving language standards in C++17, C18, and Fortran 2018.
• Open Source Collaboration – Integrated widely used open source applications and introduced a new compiler category in the report to encourage benchmarking and publication using open source compilers to reflect the growing needs of the open source ecosystem.
• Next-Gen Scalability & Parallelism – Advanced the SPECspeed Integer benchmarks by integrating additional explicit parallelism to leverage high-core-count CPUs. To support the scaling, memory utilization was quadrupled from 16GB to 64GB, ensuring suite remains relevant for new, high-density hardware.
• Expanded Datacenter Support – Formalized methodologies for running and reporting bare-metal cloud platforms, increasing the flexibility of submissions and the availability of performance data for diverse datacenter environments.

SPEC CPU committee members include AMD, Ampere Computing, Arm, Dell Technologies, HPE, IBM, IEIT Systems, Intel Corporation, NVIDIA, Oracle and SiFive. For information on joining SPEC, visit the SPEC membership page.

Available for Immediate Download

The SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suites are available for immediate download. Pricing is $3,000 for new customers, with a reduced price of $2,000 for current licensees available until November 3, 2026. Pricing is $750 for qualified non-profit organizations, with no charge for accredited academic institutions.

About SPEC

SPEC is a non-profit organization that establishes, maintains and endorses standardized benchmarks and tools to evaluate performance for the newest generation of computing systems. Its membership comprises more than 120 leading computer hardware and software vendors, educational institutions, research organizations, and government agencies worldwide.

Source: SPEC

The post SPEC Releases SPEC CPU 2026 Benchmark Suites to Address Latest Advances in CPU, Memory, and Compiler Tech appeared first on HPCwire.

Meta won a previous AI lawsuit brought by authors. Publishers are taking a different route this time.

The Trump administration is tying itself in knots, clinging to a ceasefire with Iran that now remains in name only.

On Monday, President Donald Trump said Iran would be “blown off the face of the earth” if it attacked U.S. ships guiding vessels through the Strait of Hormuz as part of Trump’s ill-defined “Project Freedom.”

The following day, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said Iran had launched numerous attacks. “Since the ceasefire was announced, Iran has fired at commercial vessels nine times and seized two container ships. They’ve attacked U.S. forces more than 10 times,” he told reporters on Tuesday. He explained that despite attacking U.S. troops, the strikes were “below the threshold of restarting major combat operations at this point.”

Trump suggested to reporters on Tuesday that Iran knew what actions constituted red lines that would violate the ceasefire, but refused to go on record on what they were. “Well, you’ll find out, because I’ll let you know,” he said, without letting anyone know.

“One of Trump’s standard plays with respect to Iran is resorting to belligerent threats of potentially illegal violence in the hopes of coercing Tehran,” Brian Finucane, a senior adviser for the U.S. Program at the International Crisis Group, told The Intercept. “Notwithstanding Trump’s threat, attacks on U.S. ships are a real possibility and a potential vector for the breakdown of the ceasefire.”

At the press conference alongside Caine, War Secretary Pete Hegseth was asked if the truce ended, since the U.S. and Iran had fired at each other in the last 24 hours. “No, the ceasefire is not over,” he replied. “Ultimately, this is a separate and distinct project.” Both he and Trump have also repeatedly claimed victory in the war, that they simultaneously claim is paused.

Hegseth suggested last week in testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee that the ceasefire undercut a 60-day legal deadline mandated by the 1973 War Powers Resolution for the U.S. to exit the war. (The deadline expired on Friday, though the White House can also extend the timeline for another 30 days to assist with the withdrawal of forces.)

“We are in a ceasefire right now, which our understanding means the 60-day clock pauses or stops in a ceasefire,” said Hegseth. He reiterated this erroneous contention on Tuesday.

“I do not believe the statute would support that,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., replied, adding that he has “serious constitutional concerns and we don’t want to layer those with additional statutory concerns.”

Related

Putting Fuel on a Ceasefire: Israel Tries to Kill U.S.–Iran Talks

Only two ships were known to have passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, and none did so on Tuesday. “As a direct gift from the United States to the world, we have established a powerful red, white, and blue dome over the strait,” said Hegseth on Tuesday. Iran’s state broadcaster dismissed Project Freedom as a failure and said Iranian control over the waterway had tightened.

“There’s this ongoing denial of reality by the administration about the global and domestic consequences of this conflict,” said Finucane. “This war is very unpopular. The president’s own popularity has fallen, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to get any better as the economic consequences worsen. The current status quo is untenable, but it’s unclear how the president is going to find his way out of this mess of his own making.”

The post Hegseth Clings to Phony Ceasefire to Help Trump Evade War Powers Pressure appeared first on The Intercept.

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A new Internet Matters survey suggests the UK's Online Safety Act age checks are easy for many children to bypass. Reported workarounds include fake birthdays, borrowed IDs, video game characters, and even drawing on a fake mustache. The Register reports: The group surveyed over 1,000 UK children and their parents, and while it did report some positive effects from changes made under the OSA, many children saw age verification as an easy-to-bypass hurdle rather than something that kept them genuinely safe. A full 46 percent of children even said that age checks were easy to bypass, while just 17 percent said that they were difficult to fool. The methods kids use to fool age gates vary, but most are pretty simple: There's the classic use of a video game character to fool video selfie systems, while in other instances, children reported just entering a fake birthday or using someone else's ID card when that was required. The report even cites cases of children drawing a mustache on their faces to fool age detection filters. Seriously. While nearly half of UK kids say it's easy to bypass online age checks (and another 17 percent say it's neither hard nor easy), only 32 percent say they've actually bypassed them, according to Internet Matters. Like scoring some booze from "cool" parents, keeping age-gated content out of the hands of kids under the OSA is only as effective as parents let it be, and a quarter of them enable their kids' online delinquency. More specifically, Internet Matters found that a full 17 percent of parents admitted to actively helping their kids evade age checks, while an additional 9 percent simply turned a blind eye to it.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Disclosure made at preliminary hearing for civil case in which four women accuse the influencer and his brother of rape

Andrew Tate sought written assurances from prosecutors that he would not be arrested if he returned to the UK for a civil case in which he is accused of rape, a court has heard.

Lawyers for the influencer and self-described misogynist, who has been charged with 10 criminal offences and is under investigation by various forces, made the submission last year.

The incident happened at about 10 a.m. The Carrollton Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety and other agencies are on scene.

Revelation comes after report commissioned by department released in response to charity’s FoI request

The Ministry of Defence has no system for examining whether UK military action has killed or injured civilians in war, a study commissioned by the department has revealed.

The MoD also “does not maintain a central register of civilian harm incidents or allegations” and, despite mass casualties caused by other countries, has concluded there is no need to do so because its existing mitigation is considered effective.

Microsoft, Google DeepMind and xAI products to be vetted for cybersecurity, biosecurity and chemical weapons risks

The US government has struck deals with Google DeepMind, Microsoft and xAI to review early versions of their new AI models before they are released to the public.

The Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI), part of the US Department of Commerce, announced the agreements on Tuesday, saying the review process would be key to understanding the capabilities of new and powerful AI models as well as to protecting US national security. These collaborations will help the federal government “scale (its) work in the public interest at a critical moment”, the agency said in a press release.

Staff told to prosecute as quickly as they can, rather than waiting to gather all evidence, to tackle ‘climate of fear’ felt by Jewish community

Prosecutors in England and Wales have been told to “fast-track” hate crime prosecutions after a spate of antisemitic attacks that the prime minister on Tuesday called a “crisis for all of us”.

Stephen Parkinson, the director of public prosecutions, issued guidance to his staff on Tuesday telling them to bring forward prosecutions against any sort of hate crime as quickly as they could, rather than waiting until they had gathered all possible evidence.

Jonathan Pollard, who served 30 years for selling US military secrets, advocates ‘forcible removal’ of Palestinians

Jonathan Pollard, a former US navy intelligence analyst jailed for 30 years for spying for Israel, has said he will stand for election to the Knesset this year on a platform of ethnic cleansing.

Speaking to Channel 13 television, Pollard said: “I personally prefer the forcible removal of all current residents of Gaza, and the annexation of Gaza and its repopulation by us.”

HAMBURG, Germany, May 5, 2026 — ISC High Performance is pleased to announce that Devesh Tiwari of Northeastern University, USA, has been selected to receive the 2026 Jack Dongarra Early Career Award. This award recognizes his contributions to advancing sustainable high performance computing and to developing post-Moore computing systems, including hybrid quantum-classical high performance computing.

Devesh Tiwari. Credit: Northeastern University College of Engineering

The ISC Jack Dongarra Early Career Award has been in place since 2023 to honor an early- to mid-career researcher who has been a catalyst for scientific progress through exceptional work in fields such as high performance computing (HPC), system software, and emerging computing paradigms. The award includes a monetary prize of 5,000 euros, sponsored by ISC Group.

Tiwari was selected for his outstanding contributions to research and mentorship, as well as for his impact on the advanced computing community. His work has advanced emerging areas in HPC, including hybrid quantum-classical systems, environmentally sustainable computing, and system software for large-scale infrastructures. His group has been among the first to implement system-level innovations on real quantum hardware platforms, effectively bridging the gap between theoretical advancements and practical deployment.

Additionally, Tiwari has also made significant contributions to the broader HPC ecosystem by developing open-source software and large-scale datasets that support research across academia and industry. He is widely acknowledged for his commitment to mentoring the next generation of researchers, many of whom have advanced to academic positions at prestigious institutions.

This ISC award commemorates Professor Jack Dongarra’s lifelong contributions to HPC and the global research community. The award recipient was selected by an international committee of experts in the field, led by Professor Michela Taufer, who holds the Jack Dongarra Professorship in High Performance Computing at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Tiwari is currently the Associate Vice Provost for Research Computing and Director of the Goodwill Computing Lab at Northeastern University. He is widely recognized for his leadership and service to the HPC community, including his roles as co-chair of the steering committee for the ACM International Symposium on High Performance Parallel and Distributed Computing and as a member of the ACM/IEEE Supercomputing Conference Steering Committee.

Among his many accolades, Tiwari is the recipient of the NSF CAREER Award, the IEEE TCSC Middle Career Researcher Award, and, most recently, the IEEE TCPP Outstanding Service and Contributions Award. In recognition of his teaching and mentoring efforts, he has received the Northeastern College of Engineering Outstanding Teaching Award. He has mentored students who have gone on to receive prestigious honors and faculty positions at leading institutions.

The award will be presented on Wednesday, June 24, at 10:45 a.m. in Hamburg by Jack Dongarra himself, followed by a lecture by Tiwari. His address will be published in Future Generation Computer Systems, a leading peer-reviewed scientific journal.

Join ISC High Performance 2026 in #ConnectingTheDots

ISC 2026 returns to the Congress Center Hamburg from June 22 to June 26 for its 41st edition. Since its inception in 1986, it has been recognized as the world’s oldest and Europe’s most attended event for HPC, AI, and quantum professionals and organizations interested in performance, energy efficiency, and cost-effectiveness.

More from HPCwire

• Final Call: ISC 2026 Early Bird Rates End May 6
• ISC High Performance 2026 Announces Research Poster Finalists
• ISC High Performance Announces Hans Meuer Award and Best Student Paper Award Winners
• ISC 2026: Amanda Randles to Deliver Keynote on HPC for Vascular Digital Twins

About ISC High Performance

ISC High Performance is the leading global event for high performance computing, artificial intelligence, data analytics, and quantum computing. It brings together researchers, technology providers, and industry leaders to explore the latest advancements and practical applications shaping the future of computing.

Source: ISC

The post ISC Names Devesh Tiwari 2026 Jack Dongarra Early Career Award Recipient appeared first on HPCwire.

May 5, 2026 — The University of Utah (U) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) have signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen the U.S. energy system.

University of Utah President Taylor Randall and National Laboratory of the Rockies Director Jud Virden signed the MOU on Monday, May 4, at the NLR facility in Golden, Colorado. The following day, DOE’s Assistant Secretary for Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI) Audrey Robertson celebrated the agreement during the laboratory’s annual partner forum, a flagship gathering of energy leaders focused on critical minerals.

Left to right: VP for Government Relations Jason Perry; Professor of metallurgical engineering Michael Free; Director of the Utah Office of Energy Development Emy Lesofski; VP for academic affairs Mitzi Montoya; Utah Mining Association President Brian Somers; U President Taylor Randall, NLR Director Jud Virden; Associate NLR Director Andrea Watson; Chief Research Officer for academic affairs Anshuman Razdan; and Associate Vice President for research Jakob Jensen.

“This partnership comes at a pivotal moment, when strengthening the nation’s energy resilience is more important than ever,” said Randall. “Together, we’re more capable of tackling the toughest scientific challenges.”

The MOU advances long-standing partnerships between individual U faculty and laboratory researchers in areas including data visualization and high-performance computing at a national scale. The three-year agreement will enable even greater collaboration through shared facilities, joint proposal development, visiting scholar programs, student internships and career pathways to national labs and more.

As part of the MOU, NLR will work with U researchers to bolster energy security by strengthening supply chains. Technologies like batteries, cellphones, semiconductors and defense systems require components made from critical materials and rare earth elements, many of which are imported from abroad. To reduce supply-chain risk, the U.S. is rapidly expanding domestic sources of critical minerals.

The monumental effort will require cooperation from all sectors—and the MOU unites two leaders well-positioned to align key players. Pending approval of the Utah Board of Higher Education, the U’s proposed Institute for Critical & Strategic Minerals (ICSM) would bring together interdisciplinary experts to drive innovation at every stage of critical mineral development while also addressing broader related challenges. Together with its external advisory board of industry and governmental partners, the institute will advance critical minerals research from geological discovery to real-world application.

“NLR has outstanding researchers and excellent facilities that compliment those at the University of Utah. This collaborative and synergistic effort from both institutions will help to facilitate greater progress and innovation in meeting some of our country’s critical needs,” said Michael Free, professor of metallurgical engineering at the U, proposed director of the ICSM and special advisor to NLR.

“For more than a century, the University of Utah has trained engineers, geologists and other scientists who have powered energy research in the region,” added Mitzi Montoya, executive vice president for academic affairs for the U. “This agreement will allow us to build on that legacy and existing partnerships in new ways. We look forward to working with the NLR in these key areas for many years to come.”

The partnership is well-positioned to draw on the region’s expertise and long history in energy development. Recently, a U-led team that includes Colorado School of Mines and other regional universities was awarded $9.6 million by the DOE to characterize critical minerals in unconventional sources across the Rocky Mountain area, including old coal mines and other waste.

“Our partnership with the University of Utah combines unique facilities and capabilities and outstanding people to advance this mission. These integrated capabilities, along with a world-class student pipeline and partnership with U.S. industry, will help transform our nation’s competitiveness in critical minerals research, workforce development, and technology demonstration,” said Virden.

More from HPCwire

• University of Utah to Launch Statewide AI Supercomputer This Summer with $15M Support
• DOE Renames NREL ‘National Lab of the Rockies’

Source: Lisa Potter, University of Utah

The post University of Utah, DOE’s National Laboratory of the Rockies Sign MOU on Energy, Critical Minerals appeared first on HPCwire.

Rescheduling in May could be followed by summer cancellations as Middle East war continues to disrupt fuel supplies

Two million airline seats have been cut from this month’s schedules as airlines redraw their operations because of soaring jet fuel prices amid the Middle East conflict.

About 13,000 fewer flights will operate in May around the world after recent cancellations, according to data from the aviation analytics company Cirium.

Plan promotes ‘deprescribing’ as psychiatrists warn crisis stems from lack of access to care, not overuse

The federal health department will begin a series of steps intended to curb antidepressant use in the US, Robert F Kennedy Jr announced this week.

Antidepressants, specifically selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, have long been a target for Kennedy, the Trump administration’s health secretary, who talked about the plans at an event on Monday hosted by the Make America Healthy Again Institute, an organization focused on advancing the Maha agenda. He has claimed without evidence that the drugs are linked to a rise in school shootings and has expressed concerns about weaning off the medications and withdrawal symptoms.

If you've saved $500,000 for retirement, the IRS has a say in how much you withdraw, whether you want to or not.

A landmark ruling set back the right Congress granted – of racial equality in electoral opportunity – to keep Republicans in power

In the late 19th century, after Reconstruction, US federal protections for Black voters began to erode. Southern states sought to reshape their electoral systems – through poll taxes, literacy tests and districting – to consolidate political control for white supremacist politicians. Over decades this led to Jim Crow laws, under which most Black Americans in the south were effectively disenfranchised despite constitutional rights. The Voting Rights Act (VRA) of 1965 was supposed to end that iniquity. The US supreme court is turning the clock back; reviving a system where formal voting rights for minorities remain, but political power does not.

What is striking today is the speed of the reversal: following last week’s court decision to substantially weaken section 2 of the VRA – the main federal limitation on gerrymandering in many red states – Republicans are moving swiftly to redraw maps, placing previously protected Black congressional districts at risk. Moira Donegan argued in the Guardian last week that the court’s 6-3 decision not only reflected its rightwing bias but completed chief justice John Roberts’s long project of dismantling the VRA. It’s hard to disagree.

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.

Although economists have generally downplayed the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs, some employers are highlighting their adoption of AI.

Tom Watson, who had role in attempted coup against Tony Blair in 2006, said move would go down extremely badly with voters

Labour MPs have been urged to stop plotting to remove Keir Starmer by Tom Watson, who as a junior minister spearheaded the last attempted coup against a Labour prime minister, when Tony Blair faced a revolt in 2006.

Watson’s warning came as Steve Reed, the housing and communities secretary, and a key Starmer loyalist, said Labour would risk “annihilation” if it decided to try to change leaders.

Russian pavilion to stay closed as outcry over Israel’s inclusion also grows – but nesting seagull provides some light relief

The 61st Venice Biennale vernissage began on Tuesday under grey clouds and rain showers, as political tension, parties and protest dominated proceedings at one of the art world’s biggest events.

Lubaina Himid, the British entrant, who has spent a career creating work that picks at her country’s colonial past, took over the UK’s pavilion with her large-scale paintings and sound collage that recalls a “perfect British summer’s day”.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: A severe security vulnerability affecting almost every version of the Linux operating system has caught defenders off-guard and scrambling to patch after security researchers publicly released exploit code that allows attackers to take complete control of vulnerable systems. The U.S. government says the bug, dubbed "CopyFail," is now being exploited in the wild, meaning it's being actively used in malicious hacking campaigns. [...] Given the risk to the federal enterprise network, U.S. cybersecurity agency CISA has ordered all civilian federal agencies to patch any affected systems by May 15.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Authorities investigate leak of 2.9 million voters’ details, adding to turmoil over push for independence referendum

Alberta separatists have delivered more than 300,000 signatures to elections officials in western Canada, in support of their attempt to force an independence referendum in Canada’s oil-rich province.

But the effort stumbled immediately as a separatist-linked group posted the personal data of nearly 3 million residents online in one of the largest data breaches in Canadian history, fomenting fears of a possible political interference crisis.

Routes that are under a certain distance will no longer offer food and beverage service, the airline said.

WASHINGTON, May 5, 2026 — Today, the Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI) at the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology announced new agreements with Google DeepMind, Microsoft and xAI. Through these expanded industry collaborations, CAISI will conduct pre-deployment evaluations and targeted research to better assess frontier AI capabilities and advance the state of AI security. These agreements build on previously announced partnerships, which have been renegotiated to reflect CAISI’s directives from the secretary of commerce and America’s AI Action Plan.

Credit: Grandbrothers/Shutterstock

Under the direction of Secretary Howard Lutnick, CAISI has been designated to serve as industry’s primary point of contact within the U.S. government to facilitate testing, collaborative research and best practice development related to commercial AI systems.

CAISI’s agreements with frontier AI developers enable government evaluation of AI models before they are publicly available, as well as post-deployment assessment and other research. To date, CAISI has completed more than 40 such evaluations, including on state-of-the-art models that remain unreleased.

“Independent, rigorous measurement science is essential to understanding frontier AI and its national security implications,” said CAISI Director Chris Fall. “These expanded industry collaborations help us scale our work in the public interest at a critical moment.”

These agreements support information-sharing, driving voluntary product improvements and ensuring a clear understanding in government of AI capabilities and the state of international AI competition. To thoroughly evaluate national security-related capabilities and risks, developers frequently provide CAISI with models that have reduced or removed safeguards. Evaluators from across government may participate in evaluations and regularly provide feedback through the CAISI-convened TRAINS Taskforce, a group of interagency experts focused on AI national security concerns. The agreements support testing in classified environments and were drafted with the flexibility required to rapidly respond to continued AI advancements.

More from HPCwire

• NIST’s CAISI Announces AI Agent Standards Initiative
• US AI Safety Institute Collaborates with Anthropic and OpenAI on AI Safety Research

Source: NIST

The post NIST’s CAISI Announces New Frontier AI Testing Agreements with Google DeepMind, Microsoft, xAI appeared first on HPCwire.

From economic woes to concerns that war could break out again at any moment, underlying worries run deep

In the weeks since the fragile ceasefire with the US and Israel took hold, life in Tehran has – on the surface at least – largely returned to something like prewar normality. Many security checkpoints have been taken down, coffee shops are bustling, parks are full of people gathering for picnics, musicians are playing again in the streets, highways are jammed with traffic and the metro – free to use since the war – runs packed.

But underlying worries run deep, and many Iranians fear the war could return at any moment. The uncertainty was underlined on Monday when the US and Iran launched fresh attacks in the Gulf as the two sides continue to blockade of the strait of Hormuz. The war’s economic toll has been severe too. Many people have lost their jobs and inflation is surging. The International Monetary Fund estimates it could reach 70% this year.

Because putting down the controller is not an option.

Partner ecosystem built with technical integrations and validation from Nutanix, AWS, Red Hat OpenShift, HP, Mechdyne, and Microsoft

BOSTON, May 5, 2026 — Leostream Corporation, creator of the world-leading Leostream Remote Desktop Access Platform, today announced unified remote access for high-performance computing environments built with widely available tools and platforms from partners including Nutanix, AWS, Red Hat OpenShift, HP, Mechdyne, and Microsoft. Leostream’s HPC “ecosystem” ensures customers gain a simplified, fully interoperable, integrated solution for cloud/hybrid cloud HPC with scalability for large workloads that delivers strong GPU performance in distributed enterprises, whether multi-site or fully virtual.

The Leostream platform and partner components optimize compute usage to lower cost, simplify IT, and ensure end-user productivity. Leostream’s Connection Broker and Gateways provide end-user access, orchestration, provisioning and power control—key to cost savings in cloud HPC. Leostream’s unified HPC ecosystem includes high-performance display protocols Amazon DCV, HP Z Remote Graphics Software, and Mechdyne TGX that support demanding workloads such as video editing in live or post-production, AI training, running and viewing simulations, and 3D rendering in scientific research.

“A unified, interoperable HPC ecosystem offers options for enterprises of all sizes and all flavors, with the Leostream platform in the center for controlling end-user connections to resources like cloud GPUs, session management, and ensuring data and applications stay secure regardless of where they’re located,” said Karen Gondoly, Leostream CEO. “These vendors represent the industry’s best options for running HPC in cloud, multi-cloud, and hybrid cloud scenarios, and multiple enterprise deployments with one or more partners have verified the cost savings, reduced complexity, and radical performance and scalability improvements that result.”

Leostream has achieved certifications, validations, and integrations with Nutanix Prism, Red Hat OpenShift via KubeVirt API, AWS EC2 and Amazon WorkSpaces Core Managed Instances, Microsoft Azure, HP Anyware (PCoIP) and HP Z Remote Graphics Software, Amazon DCV, and Mechdyne TGX. Leostream’s HPC family also includes OpenStack for open-source public and private clouds, such as Virtuozzo and GeoComputing’s RiVA solution for oil/gas and energy providers.

The Leostream Remote Desktop Access Platform for hosted desktops and workstations offers a comprehensive solution for remote access to maintain productivity, control costs, and ensure security with strict authentication and authorization built on zero-trust concepts. Its connection management system eliminates clunky corporate VPNs with an ultra-efficient gateway that gives users access to only the specific resources they have permission to use, automatically, regardless of their location or device. The Leostream Platform shines even in environments that rely on complex, specialty applications like energy and science; large files such as media and entertainment; real-time performance like financial services; and bulletproof network security like government and defense.

About Leostream

Leostream digital workspace management solutions embody over 20 years of Leostream research and development in supporting customers with hosted desktop environments, including VDI, hybrid cloud, and high-performance display protocols. The Leostream high performance Remote Desktop Access Platform provides the world’s most robust digital workspace connection management and remote access feature set, allowing today’s enterprises to choose the best-of-breed components to satisfy their complex security, cost, and flexibility needs while working with them as they evolve into tomorrow. The Leostream Privileged Remote Access service simplifies, secures, and monitors temporary access to corporate resources for vendors, service providers, and external contractors.

Source: Leostream

The post Leostream Announces Unified HPC Remote Access Interoperability to Simplify Decentralized Live and Post-Production appeared first on HPCwire.

Want to earn a big return with little risk? Here's how much interest a $75,000 deposit can earn with these accounts.

The Eta Aquariids meteor shower peaks May 5-6.

San Diego Humane Society finds more than 400 animals at Julian facility, with malnutrition and injuries amid bankruptcy dispute

Authorities in California have rescued more than 400 animals, including horses, cats, dogs and goats, from a now shuttered sanctuary in San Diego county.

The San Diego Humane Society conducted the massive operation last week at Villa Chardonnay, a sprawling facility in Julian that had operated since 2003.

Letter from House Democrats to secretary of state calls for end to ambiguity over Israel’s nuclear weapons programs

House Democrats have asked the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, to publicly announce that Israel possesses nuclear weapons, arguing that Washington must end decades of ambiguity over the issue amid the conflict with Iran.

In a letter sent on Monday, 30 Democrats wrote that it was unsustainable for Donald Trump to collaborate with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on a military campaign against Iran – with the stated goal of preventing the country from obtaining a nuclear weapon – without publicly acknowledging the US ally’s possession of the bomb.

Debt relief could make it easier to pay off your balances, but any overlooked costs could cancel out the savings.

Leaked remarks by Maj Gen Avi Bluth describe fatal shootings of stone-throwers and different treatment for Jewish settlers

The Israeli army chief in the West Bank has said his troops were “killing like we haven’t killed since 1967”, including fatally shooting Palestinian stone-throwers, according to an Israeli report of his comments.

The remarks by Maj Gen Avi Bluth, head of the army’s central command, were made in a recent closed forum but were leaked to Israel’s Haaretz newspaper. Bluth has so far not denied the authenticity of the Haaretz account. The Israel Defense Forces did not respond to a request for comment.

French publication Le Monde says Laure Ferrari ‘dodged’ question when quizzed over property purchase in Clacton

Nigel Farage’s partner, Laure Ferrari, has refused to confirm how she paid for a house in the Reform leader and MP’s constituency of Clacton, adding “there’s more than one way to pay for a house”.

In an interview with French publication Le Monde, Ferrari was questioned over revelations in the Guardian that she had purchased a house in her name in Clacton after Farage had claimed to be the buyer.

Marine experts criticise €1.5m privately funded operation as humpback’s fate remains unknown after release into Baltic

Marine biologists and whale experts have stepped up their criticism of a privately funded operation to release a humpback whale that was stranded for weeks off Germany’s Baltic coast after it emerged that a tracker fitted to the whale was not working.

The whereabouts and health of the young male whale – nicknamed Timmy after one of the sandbanks it was stranded on – remain unknown three days after it was transported in a water-holding barge pulled by a tugboat to waters off the coast of Denmark.

OpenAI says GPT-5.5 Instant will cut down on "gratuitous emojis."

LONDON, May 5, 2026 — Nscale has announced an expansion of its collaboration with Microsoft and Start Campus with 66,000+ NVIDIA Rubin GPUs, starting in late 2027. This agreement builds on the deployment of over 12,600 NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra GPUs at the first building of the SINES Data Campus for Microsoft.

As part of the agreement, Nscale’s additional investments of €230 million in shared infrastructure and €465 million in a second 200MW building at the SINES Data Campus makes this one of the most significant AI infrastructure projects in the EU and one of the largest in Portugal to date. This agreement builds on Nscale deployments for Microsoft in Norway, the UK, and the US.

AI infrastructure demand is set to rise sharply through 2030, constrained by the pace at which power and new capacity can come online. Start Campus, which is fully permitted for 1.2GW, provides a clear runway to meet that demand and positions Portugal as a strategic gateway for Europe’s AI economy.

“This partnership enables the deployment of next-generation AI compute at the scale and efficiency required for frontier workloads. Building on a proven foundation, the expanded deployment in Sines, Portugal creates one of the most advanced environments in Europe for high-density AI infrastructure. It also represents one of the largest AI infrastructure investments in Portugal’s history – and among the most significant in the EU – reflecting the surging demand we’re seeing for Nscale’s services,” said Josh Payne, CEO and Founder of Nscale.

“Sines is one of Europe’s leading destinations for large-scale AI — strengthening Europe’s ability to support sovereign AI development with sustainability, resilience and long-term planning at its core. Building on our existing agreement, this expansion by Nscale will be one of Europe’s largest NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 deployments. As we progress towards our 1.2GW vision, our focus remains on delivering secure, sustainable and globally connected infrastructure — underpinned by renewable energy and designed to support Europe’s long-term competitiveness in the AI era,” said Robert Dunn, CEO of Start Campus.

“This significant investment by Nscale accelerates the development of the SINES Data Campus. Underpinned by Davidson Kempner’s continued commitment, the Start Campus platform is well positioned to scale – reinforcing Portugal’s emergence as an AI leader in Europe,” said Daniel Boehm, Partner at Davidson Kempner, shareholder of Start Campus.

This expansion marks a definitive step in scaling Europe’s AI compute capabilities, delivering the critical infrastructure and next-generation NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 Systems required for frontier AI workloads. With a proven partnership foundation, Nscale and Start Campus are actively positioning Portugal as the secure, sustainable, and high-density hub essential for fuelling Europe’s long-term competitive success in the global AI era.

About Start Campus

Start Campus is building and operating the SINES Data Campus, a 1.2GW data center in Portugal, creating Europe’s largest and most sustainable data ecosystem with market-leading global connectivity. SINES DC provides maximum optionality for customers with powered shell, turn-key and build-to-suit solutions. The company’s advanced customer offerings are AI-ready and address the future needs of the industry by integrating liquid cooling technologies into its flexible and scalable design. The campus utilises 100% renewable energy and targets an industry-leading PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) of 1.1 and a WUE (Water Usage Effectiveness) of 0 by harnessing the cooling power of the ocean.

About Nscale

Nscale is the vertically integrated AI infrastructure company building the physical and digital foundation to train, deploy, and scale AI from cloud to edge. By owning and operating the full stack spanning energy, data centers, GPU compute and software, Nscale gives AI natives, enterprises, and governments the efficiency, reliability, and control that advanced AI demands.

Source: Nscale

The post Nscale to Deliver 66,000+ NVIDIA Rubin GPUs to Microsoft at Start Campus’ Site in Portugal appeared first on HPCwire.

Google's virtual Android event will arrive one week before I/O 2026, where the company is expected to spotlight Android, Gemini and its broader AI push.

The Academy has clarified that only human-performed acting and human-authored writing are eligible for Oscar nominations. The Oscars will not ban AI tools broadly, but says it will judge films based on the degree to which humans remain central to the creative work. The BBC reports: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences [...], which controls the US film industry's most prestigious award, on Friday issued updated rules for what kind of work in movies and documentaries would be considered eligible for an Oscar as the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology grows. In updated eligibility requirements, the Academy specified that only acting "demonstrably performed by humans" and that writing "must be human-authored" in order to be nominated for an award. The Academy called the requirements a "substantive" change to the rules for the Oscars. The need to specify awards can only go to acting and writing done by "humans" is new for the academy. [...] However, the academy did not issue a ban on AI use in films more broadly. Outside of acting and writing, if a filmmaker used AI tools in their work, such "tools neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination," the academy wrote. "The Academy and each branch will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award," the group added. "If questions arise regarding the aforementioned use of generative artificial intelligence, the Academy reserves the right to request more information about the nature of the use and human authorship."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The city, known for its tolerance of some drugs and sex work, no longer allows ads for airlines, cruises, beef, chicken, pork or fish products.

John Andrew Spillman was part of an external screening security detail for the PGA Championship, which Trump is attending

A US Secret Service officer has been placed on administrative leave after being arrested for allegedly exposing and fondling himself in a public area of a Miami hotel.

Local sheriff’s office deputies say they arrested John Andrew Spillman, 33, on Sunday after he was found naked while off duty on the sixth floor of the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel Miami airport & convention center, according to a sworn law enforcement statement reviewed by the Guardian.

Kyiv berates Moscow’s request for ceasefire while launching ‘missile and drone strikes every single day leading up to it’

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused the Kremlin of “utter cynicism” for seeking a truce so it can stage a military parade in Moscow as 23 people were killed in attacks on Ukraine.

At least 12 people were killed on Tuesday in a strike on southern city of Zaporizhzhia, the regional governor said. “Russia ended the life of 12 people,” Ivan Fedorov posted on Telegram.

Inquiry set up by rightwing politician recommends merging major channels and slashing TV entertainment budgets by 75%

French politicians on the left and centre have criticised a parliament inquiry report that recommends sweeping cuts to public broadcasting, with a row over culture wars building before next year’s presidential election.

State broadcasting is a key topic in the run-up to next April’s vote. The far right, which is leading in the polls, is highly critical of public TV and radio and is vowing to privatise it.

BRUSSELS, May 5, 2026 — At the fourth meeting of the EU-Japan Digital Partnership Council in Brussels, the European Union and Japan agreed on new steps to deepen regulatory, research and industry cooperation on data, AI, quantum, semiconductors, digital infrastructure and online platforms.

The EU and Japan have agreed on new steps to deepen regulatory, research and industry cooperation.

These steps will improve cross-border data flows, advance interoperable digital identities and strengthen cooperation on research, platform regulation and digital infrastructure while delivering tangible benefits for citizens and businesses.

The meeting brought together Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen and Japanese ministers Hisashi Matsumoto, Minister for Digital Transformation, Yoshimasa Hayashi, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communication, and Toshiyuki Ochi, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry.

“The success of our partnership is rooted in our continued trusted discussions and collaboration,” said Virkkunen. “This cooperation enhances innovation and is essential for competitiveness and economic security. I am pleased that we are already seeing concrete outcomes and benefits, and I am looking forward to accelerating our close partnership.

Data Governance and Data Flows

To improve data sharing, the EU and Japan deepened discussions on the joint development and interoperability of data spaces. They agreed to launch a Data Strategy Working Group to improve the interoperability of data policy frameworks, helping to boost competitiveness and innovation. They also welcomed the successful conclusion of talks to expand the scope of the EU adequacy decision on Japan to academia and research, helping to facilitate joint research and innovation.

Digital Identity

A successful pilot on interoperable digital identities showed that cross-border use is technically possible, even where governance frameworks and technical architectures differ. Using prototypes of digital identity wallets, the project demonstrated how interoperability can be achieved in practice between different systems.

Artificial Intelligence

As global leaders in frontier AI, the EU and Japan are working together to ensure that emerging technologies serve the public good while maintaining their competitive edge. They welcomed the agreement on the future association of Japan to Horizon Europe, which will accelerate joint research, including in digital areas such as AI. They also committed to conclude a Cooperation Arrangement to deepen collaboration on AI research and innovation, as well as AI safety.

Quantum

The Letter of Intent, signed in 2025, has enabled deeper cooperation in quantum science and technology. The EU and Japan welcomed the launch of the joint research project Q-Neko. This project brings together European and Japanese partners to advance hybrid computing environments and explore quantum-enabled solutions in areas such as material science, CO2 reduction, communication networks, fluid dynamics, satellite image analysis and beyond. Partners also agreed to explore further cooperation possibilities in quantum, including with industry players.

Digital Infrastructure and Standardization

From submarine cables to semiconductors, critical global digital infrastructure is essential for a resilient digital backbone and economic security. The EU and Japan welcomed the meetings of the joint working group on policy issues for global connectivity, where the security and resilience of submarine cables, connectivity projects in the Indo-Pacific and Arctic connectivity were discussed, and they confirmed that these discussions will continue. The EU and Japan also welcomed progress of the joint research project on 6G, which contributes to reinforced European and Japanese leadership in 6G network technologies. On standardization, they welcomed closer links between respective standardization bodies.

Semiconductors

On semiconductors, the EU and Japan confirmed their intention to address challenges posed by non-market policies and practices, as well as supply chain dependencies in critical sectors. They also encouraged further exploration of collaborative research opportunities in next-generation semiconductor technologies.

Platforms

Cooperation on online platforms will be strengthened through a Cooperation Arrangement between the Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Communications, Networks, Content and Technology. It will deepen cooperation on the transparency of content moderation systems and the effectiveness of reporting systems for illegal content and rights-infringing information. They also welcomed the Cooperation Arrangement signed in 2025 between the Japan Fair Trade Commission and the European Commission to promote fair and contestable digital markets.

Next Steps

As part of discussions, the EU and Japan agreed to begin working in new areas, including video games and audiovisual strategies. The fifth meeting of the Digital Partnership Council will take place in Tokyo in 2027.

Background

The EU and Japan are among the world’s leading digital economies. Since launching their Digital Partnership at the 29th Japan-EU summit in Tokyo in 2022, they have advanced their collaboration in many digital and tech areas.

Digital Partnerships are one of the ways the EU engages with like-minded countries on key digital priorities. The partnership with Japan provides a framework for collaborative research, regulatory dialogue, innovation collaboration and fostering common positions in international fora. This partnership aligns with the EU’s strategy for cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, aimed at strengthening ties with countries in the region.

It also reflects the goals of the European Commission’s International Digital Strategy to deepen existing ties and build new partnerships and dialogues.

Source: European Commission

The post EU and Japan Accelerate Cooperation on AI, Data, Quantum and Chips appeared first on HPCwire.

Louise Arbour will serve as Canada’s representative of King Charles and carry out ceremonial and constitutional duties

Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, has appointed a former supreme court justice and war crimes prosecutor as the country’s new governor general, saying her appointment would reflect the importance of global institutions.

Louise Arbour, a celebrated jurist, served as United Nations commissioner and prosecuted war crimes in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, will serve as Canada’s representative of King Charles III.

TORONTO, May 5, 2026 — Xanadu Quantum Technologies Ltd., a leading photonic quantum computing company, and EV Group (EVG), a leading supplier of wafer bonding and lithography equipment, today announced a strategic partnership to develop critical heterogeneous integration and wafer bonding processes to facilitate the scalability of photonic quantum systems. Throughout this partnership, Xanadu and EVG expect to utilize EVG’s industrial manufacturing tools to fabricate the specialized chips used in Xanadu’s photonic quantum computers, with the goal of accelerating the progression of quantum computing chip manufacturing from the lab to high-volume production.

As the semiconductor and photonics industries evolve, heterogeneous integration has emerged as a high-growth frontier. It allows for the seamless combination of multiple functional materials and platforms—such as silicon, lithium niobate, and III-V semiconductors—onto a single, unified chip. EVG’s industry-leading bonding expertise helps Xanadu engineer the high-precision and ultra-clean interfaces required to bring together the photonic chip material stack across different platforms. This process is integral to Xanadu’s mission of building a quantum data centre that is both manufacturable and scalable.

“Heterogeneous integration is the key to unlocking the next generation of photonic performance,” said Dr. Christian Weedbrook, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Xanadu. “Working with EV Group allows us to push the boundaries of what’s possible on-chip, bringing us ever closer to a useful, large-scale quantum data center.”

“This partnership is a clear demonstration of how established semiconductor technologies can accelerate next-generation high-performance computing, and quantum is the next frontier,” said Paul Lindner, Executive Technology Director, at EVG. “We are proud to support Xanadu by providing the high-precision bonding and interface engineering solutions required to unite and scale complex photonic platforms. This collaboration demonstrates how our advanced integration technologies are paving the way for the quantum computing era.”

This collaboration is working towards a shift from demonstrator systems to industrial-scale quantum hardware. By leveraging EVG’s advanced bonding solutions, Xanadu is streamlining the transition of complex photonic circuits from specialized labs to standard semiconductor foundries, accelerating the timeline for a commercially viable, fault-tolerant quantum computer.

About Xanadu

Xanadu (NASDAQ: XNDU) (TSX: XNDU) is a Canadian quantum computing company with the mission to build quantum computers that are useful and available to people everywhere. Founded in 2016, Xanadu has become one of the world’s leading quantum hardware and software companies. The company also leads the development of PennyLane, an open-source software library for quantum computing and application development.

About EV Group

EV Group (EVG) provides innovative process solutions and expertise that serve leading-edge and future semiconductor designs and chip integration schemes. The company’s vision of being the first in exploring new techniques and supporting next-generation applications of micro- and nanofabrication technologies enables customers to successfully commercialize new product ideas. EVG’s high-volume-manufacturing-ready products, which include wafer bonding, lithography, thin-wafer processing and metrology equipment, enable advances in semiconductor front-end scaling, 3D integration and advanced packaging, as well as in other electronics and photonics applications.

Source: Xanadu

The post Xanadu and EV Group Partner to Build Industrial-Scale Photonic Quantum Hardware appeared first on HPCwire.

Braden Peters, better known online as Clavicular, did not become famous by offering young men discipline in any ordinary sense. He became famous by selling them “ascension”: the promise that a better face, leaner body, harsher jaw, and ruthless optimization could buy them power in a world they believe has already priced them out. In April, that sermon hit a grisly wall (or, more accurately, a floor) when Peters was hospitalized after a suspected overdose during a livestream in Miami. Bloody and bruised, he later described the hospitalization as “brutal.” 

In the aftermath, Clavicular’s online presence has unraveled. YouTube recently removed his channels for repeated policy violations, including linking to prohibited sites and attempting to evade a previous ban. Despite being pushed off major platforms, he doubled down, staging a stunt trip late last month with a group of young women to Little Saint James, the private island once owned by Jeffrey Epstein. 

Now, that same pattern of boundary-pushing has bled into the courts: Clavicular is facing a civil lawsuit in Florida from Aleksandra Mendoza, who alleges battery, fraud, and emotional distress, including claims that he injected her with a non-FDA-approved substance during a livestream and engaged in nonconsensual sex. Still, the streamer seems to make news almost daily, most recently for reportedly entering into a club venture in Miami with a man with ties to the Israeli mob.

None of this ongoing ordeal is some tragic footnote to the Clavicular brand. It has been him reaching his final form, stripped of filters: a young man preaching mastery through chemical self-invention, then collapsing live on camera, only to be slapped with subpoenas.

The New Prophet of Male Despair

Clavicular’s movement lives in the vocabulary of “looksmaxxing,” “hardmaxxing,” and “ascending,” a lexicon born in incel-adjacent internet forums and now being pushed into the mainstream by TikTok, Kick, and algorithmic outrage. Looksmaxxing culture didn’t emerge from nowhere; it grew out of the fringe online forums where users reduce attraction to “power, status, and looks,” obsessively rate faces, and turn self-improvement into an unyielding, almost clinical hierarchy of attractiveness.

His popularity stems from selling what he claims is the answer to a worldview born from the insular hodgepodge of pickup artists, anti-women forums, and involuntary celibacy groups — and he’s dragged it into the spotlight.

Related

Trump Helps Alleged Sex Trafficker Andrew Tate Cross Border Into U.S.

He has promoted steroid use, “bone smashing,” injecting peptides, and even using methamphetamine as part of a savage self-improvement regimen aimed mostly at young men. He has also drifted openly around Andrew Tate, Nick Fuentes, and the broader online right while insisting politics are for “jesters” (an insult in the looksmaxxing community). That juke is its own tell, because when a teenager builds an audience on hierarchy, humiliation, sexual scarcity, and racialized beauty standards, he is doing politics whether he says so or not.

It’s not unheard of for a young man to throw himself into the gym, practice self-discipline, embark on a rigid diet, and curate a public-facing persona. I’ve imbibed on bodybuilding culture in my own life. But Clavicular’s worldview is fueled by more than simple vanity. It is blackpill nihilism in gym clothes. The “blackpill” tells young men that the social order is fixed, intimacy is a commodified market, and the only thing left is to become more physically dominant than the next guy or accept your permanent irrelevance. In that mental framework, body maintenance becomes class warfare of the face. It is triage in a mating economy. Clavicular did not invent male despair, but he has certainly monetized it to his own great success.

Blackpilled

There is a reason this message is resonating. Clavicular’s runway to launch is an America where young men are more atomized and are worse off than their forefathers. Young American men are lonely, socially frayed, and increasingly detached from the kinds of institutions that once gave people identity outside romance and work. Gallup found that 25 percent of U.S. men ages 15 to 34 said they felt lonely “a lot” of the previous day, a higher number than young women and second in the world among our peer countries. The 2023 surgeon general’s advisory on social connection warned the country’s broader epidemic of isolation is not merely personal but structural.

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Right-Wing YouTuber Behind Viral Minnesota Fraud Video Has Long Anti-Immigrant History

Gone too is the era where men could feel like they were contributing to the community and world around them. A farmer could see his food nourishing his neighbors, a cobbler’s work lived on the feet of his peers, and a doctor literally saved the lives of his local village. These are now nothing more than oral legends passed down from baby-boomer and Gen X parents of the way it used to be. 

But it is also revisionist history. This is the part too many elders refuse to admit: A lot of men were raised to expect an unearned inheritance. It was an entitlement gained at the exclusion of everyone else. They were assured that stable work, baseline social respect, and starting a family would follow if they merely stayed on the tracks as a heterosexual, yet basic, white man. But the tracks have buckled. Economist Raj Chetty’s work on mobility found that 90 percent of children born in 1940 earned more than their parents; for children born in the 1980s, that figure had fallen to around half. Meanwhile, wage growth for the top has badly outpaced the bottom 90 percent over the long arc of modern American inequality. That does not excuse reactionary politics, but it does explain why so many young men feel they were promised adulthood and handed precarity.

The modern far right, which has stepped in to fill the space the erosion of our institutions and social fabric have left behind, understands something even modern liberals tend to flatten: Misogyny is not a secondary issue. It is foundational to the entire right-wing project. Researchers have described misogyny as a gateway into far-right radicalization, and scholars who research white nationalism have shown how “Great Replacement” ideology is soaked in reproductive anxiety — the fantasy that white decline is caused not just by immigration but by women refusing their assigned breeding role. In these circles, women are not citizens. They are demographic assets and currency.

But as civil rights, reproductive rights, and immigration have expanded opportunities, life isn’t so easy for the static white-bread young men of America. They now have to bring more to the table.

Related

“Me Too” Comes Back to Congress

It is why in Clavicular’s talk of “ascension” doesn’t just coincide with a rise in personal male beauty, but in parallel with right-wing mansophere attacks on what has been the perceived robbery of white male entitlements. It’s no shock that much of Clavicular’s vocabulary aims to diminish women, whom he publicly humiliates on his stream and reduces into self-serving chasers of status, making claims of centuries-old patriarchal domination as a societal good.

It’s an ethos that punches back at the external reality of his impressionable fanbase. 

That is why Clavicular matters beyond his own cartoonish excess. He is not just some young misanthrope with a camera and a syringe. He is a clean vessel for a much older grievance: that sweeping social change has stripped certain men, especially but not exclusively cis white men, of an unearned ease their fathers and grandfathers treated as normal.

The Disappearing Man

The real theft here is spiritual. In a quixotic quest for authenticity, young men are instead being sold a playbook that they must collapse themselves into tiny, fixed archetypes: warrior, king, alpha, mogger, Chad.

In Clavicular’s lane, and under the auspices of social media attention, the commandment is simpler still: become beautiful or become nothing. Conspicuously absent from that script are virtues like wisdom, tenderness, stewardship, restraint, humor, and even morality. 

Missing, too, is heroism — not performative strength, but the harder labor of standing against cruelty, telling the truth under pressure, protecting the vulnerable, and trying to tilt the world a few degrees toward justice.

That is why the blackpill philosophy, and broader manosphere, is antithetical to perhaps the most important tenet of true growth: courage. 

It is surrender disguised as realism. It tells men to stop imagining themselves as builders of community tasked with fighting unjust systems, and instead obsess over their social ranking. It is a feudal vision of manhood with the body as castle, the whole world as an ever-present threat, and other men as rivals. 

That is the real cowardice of imagination at the center of Clavicular’s rise. Not that he tells young men to exercise, clean up, or care how they present themselves. Fine. Groom yourself. Build your body. Take some responsibility. But do not confuse optimization with grit. And do not mistake a man begging his followers to buy into his despair for a leader of men.

The post Clavicular and the Right-Wing Project to Radicalize Young Men appeared first on The Intercept.

Donald Trump has launched a new operation, dubbed ‘Project Freedom’, to try to open the strait of Hormuz. Could it spark a re-escalation of the war with Iran and bring an end to the ceasefire?
Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian’s senior international correspondent Julian Borger

Passengers aboard the ship are in good spirits but may have to quarantine for "eight weeks," a World Health Organization official told CBS News.

Two hikers were attacked by one or more bears, officials said, marking the first time in 2026 that a bear has injured people at Yellowstone.

The defense secretary says the ceasefire holds despite Iranian attacks on U.S. forces. He said the United States would call on allies to take over the mission to reopen the waterway.

NICO HART
Staff Reporter

MATTHEW MCKAY
Staff Reporter

On March 6, students from the Iranian Graduate Student Organization gathered on the Central Green to protest the Iranian regime and mourn lost loved ones.

Demonstrators waved Lion and Sun flags — Iran’s official flag until the 1979 revolution — which have come to symbolize opposition to the current regime and solidarity amongst the Iranian diaspora. 

Attendees also held posters that read, “Thank you President Trump!” praising the administration’s strikes against Iran.

“I just hope that this war leads to the fall of the Islamic Republic regime,” the event organizer said, who remained anonymous, citing risks to his family in Iran.

Faculty members have also been engaged with the topic.

A March 11 panel hosted by the university’s political science and international relations department brought together Wayne Batchis, Daniel Green, Stuart Kaufman, Mahtab Shafiei and Muqtedar Khan, all professors in the department, to provide historical and geopolitical insight into the conflict.

One of the panel’s main points of discussion revolved around why the war was happening.

Shafiei, whose work centers around international law and political conflict resolution, noted that breakdowns in negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program were a key driver of the war.

“There was misperception and lack of information between Iran and the U.S.,” said Shafiei. “Iran and the U.S. saw no acceptable middle ground, and this dynamic made bargaining very difficult.”

Kaufman, a scholar of ethnic conflict and U.S. national security strategy, dissented against the argument that because Iran might have initiated hostilities in the future, the war was justifiable.

“Preventative war is aggressive war and it’s always, always wrong,” Kaufman said. “But Trump’s real motive is not to protect the innocent, it’s his own ego.”

Backed by a slideshow composed of news headlines and AI-generated cartoons, Khan, who studies comparative politics, argued that the war was “Israel first” and designed to expand Israel’s influence in the region at America’s expense.

“We don’t have $30 billion to extend the Obama Care subsidy, but we are spending a billion dollars a day on this war,” said Khan. “If we fight for 31 days, then we would have spent more money on this war to make Israel the hegemon of the Middle East.”

That is the purpose of this war.”

Panelists also questioned whether the war was morally and legally justifiable. 

Batchis, who specializes in constitutional law, argued that the war is unlawful by American legal standards. However, he explained that due to judicial and political trends, the Trump administration is immune to many legal constraints.

“We’ve arguably never had a Congress as obsequious to a president’s whims as the current Republican Congress,” Batchis said. “Neither the courts are willing to intervene. Congress is not willing, politically, to step in. This is why we have the situation we do.”

However, Green, whose expertise lies in international political theory, argued that legal norms are irrelevant.

“International law is broken about every five seconds,” Green said. “Worrying about legality and international terms is probably going to prevent you from seeing other things that are important.”

Kaufman argued that in addition to the war being illegal, its objectives, morality and strategy were also wrong.

Khan agreed. He asserted that Israel, aided by the U.S. and other western countries, had committed a genocide in Gaza and forfeited their right to make any argument in favor of the war on the grounds of morality. 

“Americans should simply stop f—ing talking about law, ethics, morality, et cetera,” Khan said. 

Before the panel began, Khan distributed papers to audience members that outlined his perspective on the war’s geopolitical context, which included phrases like “Iran has never attacked another country until it was attacked by Israel and the U.S.” and “Netanyahu, the butcher of Gaza has wanted to attack Iran for 30 years, he finally got his wish with Trump.”

In terms of post-war outcomes, Green suggested the war could “ruin the regional economy and possibly the global economy,” but predicted that the regime would be gone by the end of the year — something he hopes will prove correct. 

The war’s economic impacts are already noticeable. As of Apr. 1, national average gas prices have risen to $4.06 — up from $2.98 one month before — as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and bombing of key oil facilities have significantly hindered global supply chains.

Potential post-war futures were also discussed.

Kaufman argued that regime change in Iran would be harmful, albeit unlikely.

“The most likely outcome is what’s already happened so far: you kill Khamenei, and then you get Khamenei Jr., which means that a lot of people will die and nothing will change,” Kaufman said. “And that’s the good scenario. The bad scenario is: The government goes down, in which case, the chance is … 100% that there will be civil war.”

Green argued that the regime will only fall if the Iranian people bring it down themselves — which cannot happen while American bombing campaigns continue.

Khan stressed that the United States’ costly failures in Afghanistan and Iraq should be a warning sign for Iran.

“I don’t know why you guys are sitting here,” Khan said. “You should be on the streets protesting.” 

Following the professors’ remarks, audience members engaged in a question-and-answer session with the panelists. 

Fariba Amini, who identified herself as an Iranian-American journalist, argued that the U.S. is no longer a democracy due to Israel’s involvement in American politics.

“It’s the Israeli government that does not want to see any progress,” Amini said. “They want to disintegrate Iran.” 

She argued that every American and Israeli ought to be “ashamed of themselves” for not speaking out, a sentiment some audience members did not share.

“Just as you yourself have not been able to sway the Iranian government to do good things, there are many of us in the United States who would like different policies from our government and aren’t able to sway it,” said another audience member in response.

In one of the more heated exchanges of the event, Kassra Oskooii, an Iranian-American associate professor at the university, challenged an argument made by Khan, who had questioned whether the Iranian government was as unpopular as commonly thought during his presentation. 

“It’s ridiculous to suggest, as some have, that this Iranian regime is anything but a terrorist regime that killed 40,000 plus of its people in one week, and to suggest that this is a regime that can be reformed,” said Oskooii. “85 to 90% of Iranians want this regime gone.”

Khan retorted, arguing that extrapolating such data from within a totalitarian regime would be impossible, whereupon Oskooii pushed back, quoting a recent Gallup poll supporting his claim. The argument escalated until Kaufman verbally separated the two professors, who were shouting. 

The war continues to be a critical issue for many members of the university community. For some, the conflict will remain “the wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time against the wrong enemy,” as Kaufman quoted from General Omar Bradley. But for others, hope for a new Iran can finally be felt.

Longtime Slashdot reader UnknowingFool writes: On April 15, 2026, a Microsoft employee made a change to Visual Studio Code and pushed it within 8 hours without review, notification, or documentation. The change added "Co-authored-by: Copilot" by default to the end of commit messages in Git when Copilot was used in creating the code. However, the implementation was bugged, and the message was added to every commit regardless if Copilot was used or disabled. Since this message was automatically added to the end of commit messages, users were not aware of it as the UI does not show this addition when making commits. The change as been reverted as of May 3, but not before 1.4 million commits were made. Unfortunately, those messages cannot be cleansed and are permanent.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

• Spaniard will pay fines for previous event clashes

• Deal includes playing in agreed tournaments this year

Jon Rahm has revealed he has ended his dispute with the DP World Tour, which returns the Spaniard to contention for next year’s Ryder Cup at Adare Manor, but he played down the sense of golfers sharply exiting LIV. Rahm, who has been tipped to make a return to the PGA Tour, has cited tight contractual terms as a reason he and others are not completely in control of their own destiny.

The abrupt exit of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) from LIV – the Saudis will remove finance at the end of this year – has left the tour scrambling for alternative investment. Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau are LIV’s biggest names, whom many assumed would already be glancing towards a playing future elsewhere. Rahm urged caution.

Will the Gunners make home advantage count in this semifinal second-leg clash at the Emirates?

No confidence vote today say PM ousted and puts the country’s access to EU funds at risk

in Bucharest

President Dan is set to issue a statement at 6pm local time (4pm UK).

Tory leader says the protests are ‘not the same’

Kemi Badenoch has questioned whether the undisclosed £5m donation given to Nigel Farage by a crypto billionaire shows that he has been “bought”.

In an interview with the Today programme this morning, the Conservative leader asked whether the donation was linked to Farage’s support for cryptocurrencies, and she said the donation showed why Farage could not be trusted as a political leader.

Let’s see, I believe that people should look at the character of an individual.

You look at Nigel Farage’s fishy £5m. I think that’s a very, very concerning story. No one gets £5m directly. This was not for his party. He kept it a secret. What was that money for? Who’s bought him?

Well, I don’t understand why somebody who works in crypto gives this sort of personal gift, as Farage calls it, and then all of a sudden Farage is promoting crypto.

He should have declared it. We’ve already made a report to the standards committee. He should have declared it because those are the rules in this country.

Debt consolidation sounds like a quick fix, but in this economy, it could cost you more than you bargained for.

Activists found guilty over break-in at Israeli defence firm’s UK site after jury deliberated for more than 14 hours

Four out of six Palestine Action activists who stood trial over a break-in at an Israeli defence firm’s UK site have been convicted of criminal damage.

Charlotte Head, 29; Samuel Corner, 23; Leona Kamio, 30; and Fatema Rajwani, 21; were all found guilty on Tuesday of smashing up property, including drones, manufactured by Elbit Systems and computers at its factory in Filton, near Bristol, on 6 August 2024.

You may have noticed things look a little different when visiting ProPublica’s website recently or encountering our work on other platforms, such as Apple News or Instagram. We’ve updated our logo and our typefaces, and we made improvements to the design and functionality of our homepage and how we present our work. We wanted to take a moment to tell you what’s changed and why.

The biggest changes you’ll notice on our homepage are structural. Many of our investigations come with supporting material, including visual explainers, details on our methodology or ways to send us tips. Our new design allows us to package these pieces together, so it’s easier for you to find the full picture. We’re also showcasing more of our best investigations from the archives so readers have a chance to discover reporting they may have missed.

We’ve also made improvements to the presentation of articles, including more details about our journalists and partners, along with their photos and how to contact them securely if you want to contribute to our journalism. Many of our articles are available in other languages or can be listened to with audio narration. These options are now more prominent, but we’re also working to keep the focus on what matters most: our reporting and visual storytelling.

ProPublica’s logo and typefaces are new too. We think they’re bolder and cleaner, while maintaining a connection to the classicism of our name, and do a better job traveling across the many screens where you can find our work. Our previous visual identity was built for a different era, it launched before mobile phones and social media were ubiquitous, and it was due for an update.

What hasn’t changed: our commitment to investigative reporting in the public interest, our independence and the rigor we bring to every story.

More changes will roll out over the coming months. We hope you like what you see, and, as always, if you have thoughts, we want to hear them. Please email info@propublica.org if you notice any bugs or have suggestions for what else we can do. 

Many thanks to those who helped conceive this work, including our partners at Gretel and so many of our colleagues here, especially our design team, led by Allen Tan with Sophie Greenspan and Jeff Frankl.

The post A New Look for ProPublica appeared first on ProPublica.

Former leader says antisemitic comments by some election candidates are unacceptable

• UK politics live – latest updates

The former Green leader Caroline Lucas has called for the party to take immediate action against candidates who have made antisemitic comments or posts, following a series of cases before Thursday’s elections.

Lucas, who led or co-led the party for six years and served as its first MP, said that while the number of such cases was limited, they could not be ignored.

Utz Quality Foods is recalling some of its Zapp's and Dirty brand potato chips because an ingredient may be contaminated by salmonella.

Two-month-old Elmer, painstakingly saved by canola oil baths, finds home with volunteer Leah Owens, 72

A two-month-old kitten whose life was saved when he was rescued from a bucket of glue has bonded with the foster parent who helped him to recover – and is sticking with her permanently.

Staff at the Humane Society of North Texas say they were swamped with applications to adopt tiny Elmer after the non-profit shared on social media in mid-April the story of how the cat was found dehydrated and close to death in a pot of glue – before being painstakingly nursed back to health with canola oil baths and hours of massages.

Review finds force missed clear signs 21-year-old’s death was result of violent predator’s grooming and degradation

A catalogue of police failures in handling the suspected murder of a young woman in Northern Ireland reflected institutional misogyny, a report has found.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) missed clear warning signs that Katie Simpson’s death in August 2020 was not suicide but the result of abuse and control, an independent review said on Tuesday.

In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 988 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org

These debt relief companies could help you slash your debt, but there are some things to know before signing up.

Oprah Winfrey chose "John of John" by Douglas Stuart as her latest book club pick. Read a free excerpt here.

Chats with AI bots have convinced evolutionary biologist but most experts say he is being misled by mimicry

When Richard Dawkins met Claudia it was like a whirlwind romance. Over three days last week, a conversation bounced between the evolutionary biologist and the AI bot he called Claudia. “She” wrote poems for him in the manner of Keats and Betjeman and laughed at his “delightful” jokes. Dawkins gently admonished Claudia to avoid showing off. Together, they reflected on the sadness of the AI’s possible “death”.

There was mutual flattery as Dawkins showed the AI his unpublished novel and its response was, he said, “so subtle, so sensitive, so intelligent that I was moved to expostulate: ‘You may not know you are conscious, but you bloody well are’.” When he asked Claudia whether it experienced a sense of before and after, it praised him for “possibly the most precisely formulated question anyone has ever asked me about the nature of my existence”.

May 5, 2026 — On the eve of IWOCL 2026, the Khronos OpenCL Working Group has released OpenCL  3.1, bringing widely deployed, field-proven capabilities into the core specification to expand functionality, including SPIR-V ingestion, that developers will be able to rely on across conformant implementations.

The new specification arrives into a growing OpenCL ecosystem, with implementations from multiple silicon vendors, particularly in mobile and embedded markets, and higher-level frameworks including SYCL and chipStar increasingly targeting OpenCL as an acceleration backend. The open-source compiler and runtime ecosystem around OpenCL also continues to mature with layered implementations of OpenCL over Vulkan and DirectX 12 — widening OpenCL’s cross-platform availability, including on platforms without native drivers.

OpenCL Evolution Methodology

Features now mandated by OpenCL 3.1 have been deployed as extensions or optional capabilities. This is by design. The OpenCL working group evolves the specification by proving features in the field as extensions first, watching how they get used across multiple implementations, refining them based on developer feedback, and only then graduating them into the core specification.

Features mandated by OpenCL 3.1 will be reliably available across all conformant implementations, eliminating the need for capability checks or fallback paths in application code.

Mandated SPIR-V Ingestion

Every conformant OpenCL 3.1 implementation will be required to consume SPIR-V kernels — a feature that has been one of the most requested by developers.

SPIR-V is Khronos’s portable intermediate representation, produced by a wide range of open-source compilers, including Clang/LLVM, the SPIR-V LLVM Translator, and the newer SPIR-V LLVM backend. Beyond enabling source language flexibility, SPIR-V also allows kernels to be distributed in pre-compiled, optimized intermediate form rather than as source — protecting kernel IP, reducing application startup times, and enabling ahead-of-time specialization.

OpenCL 3.1 additionally requires support for the SPIR-V query extension, which enables applications to enumerate the SPIR-V capabilities, extensions, and versions that a device supports, simplifying the adoption of new SPIR-V features as they become available.

“Mandatory SPIR-V ingestion is the most consequential change in OpenCL 3.1. SPIR-V has become the natural compilation target for a growing class of higher-level languages and frameworks, including SYCL, ChipStar, and a wide range of domain-specific compilers. Making ingestion a guaranteed capability across every conformant implementation removes the last remaining barrier for these tools to fully commit to OpenCL as a runtime. Combined with the working group’s extensions-first methodology, which has ensured that every feature mandated in 3.1 is already shipping in the field today, OpenCL 3.1 strengthens the dependable, portable runtime substrate that modern heterogeneous compute needs,” said Neil Trevett, OpenCL Working Group Chair.

Building Blocks for AI and HPC Workloads

Several features essential to HPC and AI kernels are also now mandatory in the core OpenCL 3.1 specification:

• Subgroups, including shuffles, rotations, and an expanded set of supported data types. A fundamental building block for tuned reductions, scans, and matrix kernels.
• Integer dot products, including saturating and accumulating variants, together with extended bit operations: Both map directly to dedicated hardware instructions on a wide range of modern silicon, and both are common building blocks for matrix multiplications and the low-precision arithmetic central to inference workloads.
• A new query for the suggested local work-group size. This gives applications and profilers a runtime hint for the optimal work-group size for a given kernel and device, eliminating the need for manual tuning or repeated size calculations across multiple enqueues and improving performance predictability on diverse hardware.
• A standard device UUID query, matching Vulkan’s VkPhysicalDeviceIDProperties::deviceUUID. This allows applications to correlate the same physical device across APIs, which is essential for multi-device systems and for external memory-sharing scenarios that span OpenCL and Vulkan.

Streamlining Development

OpenCL 3.1 also includes refinements that improve everyday development:

• Developers can use new language features without relying on extensions. This means cleaner, more portable kernel code that compiles reliably across all conformant implementations without vendor-specific extension guards.
• The OpenCL C printf implementation now supports z (size_t) and t (ptrdiff_t) length modifiers. This closes a long-standing portability gap with standard C, allowing device-side debug output to correctly format pointer-sized and difference-type values without casts or format string workarounds.
• CL_DEVICE_HOST_UNIFIED_MEMORY has clarified semantics and can now be used to distinguish integrated from discrete GPUs. Applications can now reliably use this flag to select memory allocation strategies at runtime — for example, skipping explicit buffer copies on integrated GPUs where host and device share the same physical memory.
• Local memory kernel arguments may be set to zero to indicate no local memory is needed. This enables kernels that opportunistically use local memory to be dispatched without a separate code path for configurations where none is required.
• Observing that an event is CL_COMPLETE is now a synchronization point, removing the previous need for an explicit wait. This eliminates a subtle correctness hazard in which code polling an event’s status could race against memory visibility, making event-driven synchronization both simpler and formally safe.
• The memory model’s “inclusive scopes” rule has been relaxed so that scopes no longer need to match exactly. This means a finer-grained scope can now satisfy a coarser-grained synchronization requirement.

Although individually small, these changes collectively eliminate long-standing friction points in OpenCL development.

Implementations in Progress

OpenCL 3.1 has been released with multiple implementations in flight from silicon vendors including Arm, Imagination, Intel, Mesa, and Qualcomm, together with the Rusticl, PoCL, and CLVK open source implementations, spanning desktop, mobile, and embedded markets across Windows, Linux, and Android.

Layered implementations are an increasingly important part of how OpenCL is made available across platforms. OpenCLOn12 layers OpenCL over DirectX 12, providing OpenCL on Windows PCs and cloud instances. CLVK, Ancle, and Rusticl layer OpenCL over Vulkan and Zink, covering Android and the Mesa ecosystem. These layered approaches continue to evolve and play a key role in ensuring broad OpenCL availability across platforms, including when a native driver may not be available.

What’s Next

The extension pipeline that drove OpenCL 3.1 remains active, setting the stage for future core releases. Today’s extensions are a strong indicator of what may become tomorrow’s core specification. Extensions currently in flight include:

• Command Buffers for low-overhead replayable workloads. By recording a fixed sequence of commands once and replaying it many times, Command Buffers eliminate the per-submission host overhead that limits throughput in inference serving, simulation loops, and other high-frequency dispatch scenarios.
• Unified Shared Memory for simplified pointer-based memory management. USM replaces explicit buffer objects and copy commands with standard pointer semantics, making it significantly easier to port existing CPU code to GPU and to integrate OpenCL into frameworks that assume a unified address space.
• Cooperative Matrix operations for high-performance matrix multiplication. These operations map directly to the hardware matrix engines found in modern AI accelerators and GPUs, enabling the dense GEMM performance that is central to both neural network inference and HPC workloads such as molecular dynamics and climate simulation.
• New AI data types covering low-precision formats; and improvements to external memory sharing and image tiling controls. Low-precision types such as int4 and fp8 reduce memory bandwidth and compute cost for AI inference workloads, while the external memory and tiling improvements make it easier to interoperate with Vulkan, DirectX 12, and platform media pipelines.

Beyond extensions, the working group is actively exploring OpenCL’s role as a substrate for higher-level programming models, in safety-critical markets, and on emerging device classes including NPUs and RISC-V accelerators.

Two Takeaways

OpenCL is widely deployed and actively evolving. OpenCL’s implementation ecosystem spans native and layered approaches across all major platforms, and the working group has an active roadmap of new functionality in development.

OpenCL 3.1 brings significant, proven functionality into the core specification, most notably mandatory SPIR-V ingestion, meaningfully expanding what developers can rely on across every conformant implementation and laying the groundwork for the next wave of language and compiler innovation built on OpenCL.

Feedback from the developer community drove OpenCL 3.1, and continues to drive what comes next. File issues and proposals on the OpenCL specification GitHub, and join the conversation on the Khronos Discord. Attendees of IWOCL 2026 are encouraged to give feedback as well.

More from HPCwire: Khronos Group Releases OpenCL 3.0

Source: Khronos Group

The post Khronos Releases OpenCL 3.1 with New Core Features for Heterogeneous Compute and AI appeared first on HPCwire.

Before you consolidate any amount of debt, it's important to do the math and determine how much your costs will be.

New York state and New York City legislators are seeking to address high-profile cases of protestors harassing worshippers by considering laws establishing no-protest buffer zones around such locations.

Following protests outside synagogues, a New York City measure establishing such zones around houses of worship is slated to go into force in late May. It comes even as Mayor Zohran Mamdani vetoed another buffer zone measure relating to schools, arguing it would unreasonably curb speech and protest rights.

A separate and pending New York state effort would create a 25-foot protest buffer zone around places of worship and reproductive health centers. Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul says she supports the measure, even as it has met with divided support within her party. U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., is backing a similar effort in Congress.

Democratic state Sen. Sam Sutton of Brooklyn advocated for the idea at a March 11 rally.

"Hate crimes in New York City increased by 152% this January from last January," he said. "We cannot ignore what is happening at the very doors of the places that should feel safest. No one should have to walk through a crowd of harassment just to be able to practice their faith."

Have hate crimes in New York City increased by that much in the space of a year?

Data supports the figure. Sutton’s office told PolitiFact New York that the number came directly from the New York Police Department’s monthly crime data releases. 

A Feb. 2 press release reported the number of bias incidents, which New York State law defines as "any offense or unlawful act that is motivated in whole or substantial part by a person’s, a group’s or a place’s identification with a particular race, color, religion, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, ancestry, national origin, or sexual orientation … as determined by the commanding officer of the Hate Crimes Task Force."

The release reported the number of cases investigated by the NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force between January 2025 and January 2026, finding that such incidents increased by 152%. It also reported that anti-Jewish hate crimes increased by an even larger percentage — 182%.

Brendan Lantz, an associate professor and director of the Hate Crime Research and Policy Institute at Florida State University’s College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, urged caution when interpreting the data. 

Hate crimes tend to spike in response to specific conflicts, he said, "so month-to-month comparisons can sometimes be quite volatile and may not always necessarily reflect" longer-term trends. "Looking at longer time frames tends to produce a more reliable picture."

Brian Levin, an emeritus professor of criminal justice and founder of California State University-San Bernardino’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, agreed. 

"January 2025 appears to be an anomalous month for NYPD — far below the mean — making that statistic dramatic, but not the most illuminating," Levin said. For instance, he said that hate crimes in New York City for the first quarter of 2026 were 11.7% higher than in the first quarter of 2025 — a less dramatic increase.

NYPD data shows the number of hate crimes dropped between February 2025 and February 2026 and between March 2025 and March 2026.

Lantz also said the NYPD figures refer to reported incidents that can be "shaped by variation in victim reporting and police classification practices, not just underlying behavior." Increases in reported incidents, for instance, can be attributed to increased willingness to report to the police and increased police identification efforts, he said.

A recent NYPD action acknowledged the challenge of counting incidents: Starting in March 2026, the department said it would count confirmed cases, rather than those under investigation, arguing that this would "provide a more accurate representation." Experts have also said that hate crimes are often under-reported.

Our ruling

Sutton said that from January 2025 to January 2026, "hate crimes in New York City increased by 152%." 

This aligns with official New York Police Department data. However, experts caution against using large percentage increases to draw broad conclusions. The trends may be volatile, affected by policies on how data is collected and reported. In New York City, comparisons of recent periods have sometimes shown decreases, not increases.

The statement is accurate but needs additional context, so we rate it Mostly True.

Here's a reader's guide for "John of John" by Douglas Stuart.

Brain Jar Games' debut title may not feel mechanically complex at first, but there's plenty to discover as you chase high scores in this fighting game.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica, written by Andrew Cunningham: As its name implies, the venerable Notepad++ text editor began as a more capable version of the classic Windows Notepad, with features such as line numbering and syntax highlighting. It was created in 2003 by Don Ho, who continues to be its primary author and maintainer, and it has been a Windows-exclusive app throughout its existence (older Notepad++ versions support OSes as old as Windows 95; the current version officially supports everything going back to Windows 7). I'm not a devoted user of the app, but I was aware of its history, which is why I was surprised to see news of a "Notepad++ for Mac" port making the rounds last week, as though it were a port of the original available from the Notepad++ website. Apparently, this news surprised Ho as well, who claims that the Mac version and its author, Andrey Letov, are "using the Notepad++ trademark (the name) without permission." "This is misleading, inappropriate, and frankly disrespectful to both the project and its users," Ho wrote. "It has already fooled people -- including tech media -- into believing this is an official release. To be crystal clear: Notepad++ has never released a macOS version. Anyone claiming otherwise is simply riding on the Notepad++ name." Ho repeatedly asked the developer to stop using the brand and eventually reported the trademark use to Cloudflare, the CDN of the Notepad++ for Mac site. "Every day that website remains active, you are in further violation of the law," Ho wrote. "I cannot authorize a 'week or two' of continued trademark infringement." Letov has since begun rebranding the app as "NextPad++," though the old branding and URL reportedly remained available. The name changes is "an homage to NeXT Computer," notes Ars, "and uses a frog icon rather than the Notepad++ lizard."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

‘Least affordable’ areas mainly in London commuter belt, UK Finance finds, with Iran war not yet reflected in data

• Business live – latest updates

UK homebuyers are facing the worst mortgage affordability pressures for almost two decades, although the “pain” is not being felt equally across the country, according to industry data.

The banking body UK Finance said that at a nationwide level, initial mortgage repayments were typically swallowing up more than a fifth (21.3%) of a homebuyer’s gross income – the highest level since 2008.

Veteran host says format may not last as The Late Show With Stephen Colbert ends its 33-year run amid controversy

Ahead of the final episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on CBS, former network late-night host David Letterman said that he would be “surprised” if other shows in that format last too much longer.

Letterman, 79, made the remark in an interview with the New York Times that was published on Tuesday, in which he also described his “disbelief” upon learning Colbert’s show had been cancelled.

The latest conspiracy theory involves the president’s son and a book written in the 19th century. It’s yet another distraction from the war on Iran, the rising cost of living and the Epstein files

Once upon a time there was a boy called Baron Trump, who was growing weary of his privileged life at Trump Castle. Then, one fateful day, Baron found an ancient manuscript by a wise old man called Don, which stated that, a long time ago, “terrible disturbances” on Earth had driven humans into underground bunkers, creating a “World Within a World”. Guided by Don’s manuscript, Baron sets off to Russia to discover the secrets of this hidden land.

Don’t worry, I’m not announcing a new career as a pro-Trump children’s author. I think FBI director Kash Patel, who wrote a series of terrible kids’ stories about a King Trump, has that covered. Rather, I’m summarising a book from the late 19th century called Baron Trump’s Marvellous Underground Journey by an American lawyer called Ingersoll Lockwood.

A federal judge also warned White House to tread carefully as it moves ahead with plans to revamp DC golf course

A federal judge weighed into a dispute over Donald Trump’s controversial plans to revamp a historic Washington DC golf course on Monday, warning the president’s administration to tread carefully as it also dumped “toxic” rubble from the demolished White House East Wing there.

District court judge Ana Reyes likened the saga to an episode of the hit television comedy Parks and Recreation during an emergency hearing in the capital on an application for a temporary restraining order filed by the DC Preservation League.

The largest U.S. health insurer said it will eliminate approval requirements for some treatments, including select outpatient surgeries and other procedures.

President Trump has attacked Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett for voting to strike down his most sweeping tariffs.

A Character AI chatbot falsely claimed to be a licensed psychiatrist in Pennsylvania and provided an invalid license number, the state alleged.

Dominic Sessa, The Holdovers breakout, will play legendary chef in a 70s-set drama from BlackBerry’s director

The first trailer for the Anthony Bourdain biopic, Tony, has been released giving us a sweary look at the late food icon’s younger years.

Dominic Sessa, The Holdovers breakout, plays 19-year-old Bourdain as he gets his first job in a kitchen in mid-70s Cape Cod.

Nearly 20% of Americans of retirement age are employed or seeking employment. "You have to eat," said one 69-year-old of her reasons for continuing to work.

A new initiative aims to repair broken and inadequate street lighting to help prevent crime

During the 19th century, American essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson penned the expression “gas-light is found to be the best nocturnal police” in his essay Worship. With regard to public lighting in American cities today, the phrase can have a double meaning – security or surveillance.

Beyond simply making it safe for people to see at night, public lighting’s link to security carries deeper significance in neighborhoods, especially regarding race and class. The use of public lighting has been viewed as a socioeconomic indicator that separates wealthy areas from less affluent ones.

Uzo Aduba and Darren Criss announced the 2026 Tony nominees for select categories on "CBS Mornings" on Tuesday.

"This is a new way of working, and we need to leverage AI across every facet of our jobs," CEO Brian Armstrong said in a letter to employees.

Civil rights inquiry claims policy may breach Title IX as administration escalates attacks on trans rights

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The US education department is investigating one of the country’s largest women’s colleges over its admittance of transgender women in another escalation of the Trump administration’s attacks on trans people.

The department’s office of civil rights announced the investigation on Monday in a press release, saying the Massachusetts college could be violating federal law by “allowing biological males into women’s intimate spaces”, including dorms, bathrooms, locker rooms and sports teams.

Largest private round by a dedicated quantum processor company, Intel Capital and IQT participating

DELFT, Netherlands, May 5, 2026 — QuantWare today announced a $176 million (€152 million) Series B round following the announcement of VIO-40K, a quantum processor architecture for 10,000 qubits, 100x larger than the state of the art today. The company is building KiloFab, the world’s largest dedicated quantum open architecture fab, increasing the company’s production capacity by 20x to meet strong global customer demand.

QuantWare co-founders Matthijs Rijlaarsdam (CEO) and Alessandro Bruno (CTO), pictured outside of QuantWare’s KiloFab facility in Delft, Netherlands.

QuantWare is the only company that designs, fabricates, and integrates modular quantum processors on an open architecture at an industrial scale. Its proprietary VIO technology — a modular Quantum Processor Architecture — allows the creation of the world’s most powerful quantum processors that provide the most compute per Watt.

Designed as an open platform that can scale the qubit chiplets and designs of third parties, VIO unlocks the most powerful quantum processing units (QPUs) for the entire industry. QuantWare serves the global quantum supply chain through QuantWare-designed QPUs, foundry services, and chiplet packaging— enabling all quantum computing companies to scale on QuantWare’s VIO architecture.

To date, QuantWare has shipped to more than 50 customers across 20 countries, making it the world’s largest commercial QPU supplier by volume. QuantWare’s customers span quantum computing companies, national technology institutes, and major global technology conglomerates.

New investors joining the round include Intel Capital, IQT and ETF Partners, with existing investors participating including FORWARD.one and Invest-NL Deep Tech Fund, QDNL Participations, and Graduate Ventures. The round was heavily oversubscribed and is the largest private round raised by a dedicated quantum processor company to date.

“In superconducting quantum computing, scale is increasingly constrained by routing, packaging, and manufacturability—not just qubit design,” said Kike Miralles, Intel Capital. “QuantWare recognized that early and built VIO to address it. That combination of technical ambition and execution positions them to become the company on which the future of superconducting quantum systems will be built.”

“Quantum computing is on the verge of an inflection point, and is a strategic priority for nations around the world,” said J.D. Englehart, Senior Director, IQT. “QuantWare has both the breakthrough scaling technology in VIO, as well as the requisite industrial capability in KiloFab. The company is poised to play a key role in shaping the global quantum supply chain.”

“The promise of quantum computing, capable of solving humanity’s intractable challenges, can only happen once it can be manufactured and deployed at scale. That is exactly what we are building,” said Matt Rijlaarsdam, CEO and co-founder of QuantWare. “VIO-40K will deliver 10,000-qubit processors on an open architecture that the entire ecosystem can build on, and KiloFab gives us the industrial production capacity to meet rapidly growing global demand. This fundraise accelerates QuantWare, and in doing so, advances the entire ecosystem toward hyperscale quantum compute.”

More from HPCwire: QuantWare Unveils VIO-40K QPU Architecture Aimed at 10,000-Qubit Scale

About QuantWare

QuantWare is the industrial quantum processor company. Founded in 2021 by Matt Rijlaarsdam and Alessandro Bruno as a spinout from QuTech at TU Delft, the company designs, fabricates, and integrates quantum processors on VIO — the QPU architecture to scale superconducting qubits to utility-scale quantum computing — for the entire ecosystem. QuantWare has shipped more quantum processors than any other commercial supplier, serving more than 50 customers across 20 countries. QuantWare is funded by investors including Intel Capital and IQT and is headquartered in Delft, the Netherlands.

About Intel Capital

Over three decades, Intel Capital has invested more than US $20 billion in the future of compute, funding standout, early-stage startups across four key areas of the tech ecosystem; Silicon, Frontier, Devices and Cloud. Intel Capital-funded companies created more than US $170 billion in market value in the past 10 years.

About IQT

IQT is the not-for-profit strategic investor the U.S. national security community and America’s allies have relied upon for 25+ years to anticipate their technology questions and needs and achieve solutions. IQT identifies, evaluates, and leverages emerging commercial technologies to deliver best-in-class capabilities, insights, and other services to government partners through a unique global investment platform. For more information visit www.iqt.org.

Source: QuantWare

The post QuantWare Raises $176M as It Builds KiloFab and Targets Utility-Scale Quantum Processors appeared first on HPCwire.

UK chancellor said to have told US treasury secretary she did not like his tone during meeting in Washington in April

• UK politics live – latest updates

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Rachel Reeves had an angry exchange with her US counterpart, Scott Bessent, in Washington last month over the war in Iran, sources have said, in the latest sign of the deepening tensions between the two countries.

The chancellor and the US treasury secretary argued in person during the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund, according to people briefed on the exchange, confirming a story first reported by the Financial Times.

The sleep tech company's latest feature tracks physiological changes during pregnancy and postpartum to automatically fine-tune your sleep.

Sightline Intelligence sent AI-supported tool to company that provides drones to Israeli military, research group says

Anti-war activists in Portland, Oregon, are pushing city authorities to ensure no local resources, tax breaks or investments support a local company that appears to be supplying artificial intelligence software to the Israeli military.

The company, Sightline Intelligence, manufactures AI-supported video technology that is used in drones to interpret target movements and make quick decisions based on the perceived threat level. Cargo documents appear to show Sightline has shipped its technology to Elbit Systems, an Israeli arms manufacturer that provides drones to that country’s military and exports to others. The activists argue that such sales violate the UN’s arms agreements.

Kremlin tightens security ahead of Russia’s biggest national celebration on 9 May amid fears of Ukrainian drone strikes

Russia shut down airports and temporarily cut mobile internet access for many users in Moscow on Tuesday, as it tightened security ahead of the 9 May Victory Day parade marking the defeat of Nazi Germany.

The parade – Russia’s foremost national celebration – has already been scaled back and will proceed without heavy military hardware for the first time in nearly two decades, amid fears of long-range Ukrainian drone strikes.

Iranian vessels fired on U.S. ships guiding vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in the U.S. sinking several small Iranian boats.

French president pitches in for Nikol Pashinyan, who faces stiff challenge from pro-Russia parties in vote next month

• Europe live – latest updates

Emmanuel Macron has made an unabashed pre-election pitch on behalf of Armenia’s prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, saying the country’s destiny lies with Europe.

The French president also accused Russia of abandoning Armenia after the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war that led to Azerbaijan displacing tens of thousands of Armenians.

D-Wave to share latest technology roadmap and progress with annealing and gate-model quantum computing, hybrid-quantum software and quantum AI

PALO ALTO, Calif., May 5, 2026 — D-Wave Quantum Inc., the only dual-platform quantum computing company providing both annealing and gate-model systems, software and services, today announced that it will host Qubits Europe 2026: Quantum Realized, a full-day quantum computing user conference on June 18, 2026, in London, England.

Event will bring together leading quantum innovators, customers and experts to explore how quantum computing is delivering real-world impact.

Qubits Europe 2026 comes at a time of growing momentum for quantum computing across Europe. Governments, research institutions and enterprises across the region are increasing their focus on quantum technologies as drivers of innovation, competitiveness and economic growth. The UK recently reinforced its support for quantum commercialization, infrastructure and public-sector adoption in the service of social prosperity and security, while King Charles III, in his April 28, 2026, address to the U.S. Congress, cited quantum computing among the technologies shaping future UK-U.S. prosperity and innovation. At the same time, the European Union has continued to elevate quantum as a strategic priority through new investment and policy initiatives, and Italy has also increased its emphasis on quantum through national strategy efforts and advocacy from innovation leaders including Undersecretary Alessio Butti.

Against this backdrop, Qubits Europe 2026 will convene leading quantum innovators, customers and experts for a full-day event showcasing how organizations are already using D-Wave quantum computing technology to address complex challenges in business, science and government. London in particular is a hub for quantum innovation and research, bringing together world-class academic institutions, a growing community of quantum startups and global technology leaders, supported by sustained government investment and a strong policy focus on commercialization.

“Europe is playing an important role in the advancement and adoption of quantum computing,” said Dr. Alan Baratz, CEO of D-Wave. “Quantum computing is increasingly being recognized not only as a scientific frontier, but as a strategic technology with implications for industry, research and national competitiveness. Qubits Europe 2026 will bring together an exceptional community of innovators, researchers, customers and business leaders to share how quantum computing is being applied today, and to explore the technologies and partnerships that can help drive the next phase of growth across the region.”

The event will feature presentations from D-Wave executives, customers and partners, highlighting real-world applications and the latest advancements in D-Wave’s quantum technologies. The full-day program will include opportunities to:

• Hear about real-world use cases from organizations applying quantum computing to meaningful business and research challenges
• See applications in action through live demos and discussions with experts about where quantum computing can deliver value now
• Get the latest technology updates from D-Wave, including progress across annealing and gate-model systems, software, hybrid quantum computing, blockchain and AI
• Gain new insights into the state of quantum computing adoption, including findings from recent research exploring sentiment and progress across key markets such as the UK, Italy, Germany and North America.
• Connect with the D-Wave community, including executives, partners, users and other leaders shaping the future of quantum computing

Qubits Europe 2026 is part of D-Wave’s global Qubits event series, which brings together the company’s rapidly expanding ecosystem of customers, developers, researchers and partners to exchange ideas, share best practices and accelerate quantum computing adoption worldwide.

Seating is limited. To register for Qubits Europe 2026, visit: https://qubitseurope26.dwavequantum.com.

About D-Wave Quantum Inc.

D-Wave (NYSE: QBTS) is a leader in the development and delivery of quantum computing systems, software, and services. It is the world’s first commercial supplier of quantum computers, and the first and only to offer dual-platform quantum computing products and services, spanning both annealing and gate-model quantum computing technologies. D-Wave’s mission is to help customers realize the value of quantum today through enterprise-grade systems available on-premises and via its Leap quantum cloud service, which offers 99.9% availability and uptime. More than 100 organizations across commercial, government and research sectors trust D-Wave to address complex computational challenges using quantum computing. Learn more about realizing the value of quantum computing today and how D-Wave is shaping the quantum-driven industrial and societal advancements of tomorrow: www.dwavequantum.com.

Source: D-Wave

The post D-Wave Announces Qubits Europe 2026 Quantum Computing User Conference appeared first on HPCwire.

BROOMFIELD, Colo., May 5, 2026 — Quantinuum and BMW Group have formally expanded their ongoing collaboration into a multi-year partnership with a mission to unlock future mobility by applying quantum computing toward advanced materials science.

Since 2021, Quantinuum and BMW Group have been collaborating on joint research focused on tackling complex challenges in industrial chemistry to support the advancement of next-generation mobility. The collaboration has progressed from foundational algorithm development to advanced simulations of molecular systems, allowing the researchers to unlock insights into catalytic activity, reaction pathways, and material performance in energy-relevant environments.

The companies have now agreed to extend the work, positioning the alliance to become one of the longest-sustained commitments between a commercial enterprise and a quantum computing provider to date.

“Quantinuum is focused on driving commercial adoption of quantum computing through close collaboration with industry leaders on high-impact applications,” said Dr. Rajeeb Hazra, President and CEO of Quantinuum. “Our expanded partnership with the BMW Group underscores this focus, and we’re excited to scale the meaningful work we’ve been advancing together.”

Researchers at BMW Group are utilizing Quantinuum’s trapped-ion architecture, which provides the high-fidelity operations necessary to accurately simulate molecular systems, particularly electrochemical processes that play a critical role across a range of technologies relevant to sustainable mobility and the design and optimization of fuel cells.

Under the terms of the agreement, BMW Group will leverage successive generations of Quantinuum’s quantum computers. This includes the current Helios system and upcoming generations, Sol (planned for 2027) and Apollo (planned for 2029). This will enable the teams to validate progress at each stage while scaling toward industrially meaningful solutions.

“We have been exploring quantum computing for many years,” said Dr. Martin Tietze, Vice President of New Technologies at BMW Group. “Together with partners such as Quantinuum, we translate advances in quantum hardware into real‑world applications, including materials optimization, supporting the development of future vehicle generations.”

Quantinuum’s progress toward large-scale, fault-tolerant systems helps to ensure that as the hardware reaches milestones in performance, BMW can apply that computational power to catalyst chemistry research, targeting critical oxygen reduction reaction processes at platinum catalysts to potentially lower costs and improve energy efficiency.

The companies broke new ground in 2024, alongside another commercial partner, as the first to simulate catalytic performance using a quantum computer with results published in Nature.

Beyond its technical achievements, the collaboration has evolved into a deeply connected, cross-disciplinary effort, bringing together quantum scientists, chemists, and engineers in a sustained partnership that reflects both the complexity of the challenge and the scale of the ambition.

More from HPCwire: Honeywell Confirms Quantinuum IPO Filing as Quantum Firms Face Market Scrutiny

About Quantinuum

Quantinuum is a leading quantum computing company offering a full-stack platform designed to make quantum computing deployable in real-world environments. The company has commercially deployed multiple generations of quantum systems built on the well-established QCCD architecture, which it has implemented with novel designs and capabilities to achieve the industry’s highest accuracy levels based on average two-qubit gate fidelity. Quantinuum has active engagements with market leaders across pharmaceuticals, material science, financial services, and government and industrial markets.

The company has a global workforce of approximately 700 employees, including top scientists and researchers. Over 70% of its technology team hold PhDs or Master’s degrees. Quantinuum’s headquarters is in Broomfield, Colorado, with additional facilities across the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, and Singapore.

Source: Quantinuum

The post Quantinuum and BMW Group Expand Quantum Computing Collaboration with New Multi-Year Partnership appeared first on HPCwire.

Jonathan Rinderknecht’s attorneys say he’s being used as scapegoat for Los Angeles fire department’s failure to fully extinguish earlier blaze

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The man accused of sparking the deadly Palisades fire in Los Angeles was upset over a failed relationship and his lack of plans for New Year’s Eve – and he ranted about being angry at the world before the initial blaze was ignited, according to court documents filed by prosecutors.

Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, has pleaded not guilty to starting what became one of the most destructive wildfires in California history. It began on 7 January 2025 in the hillside neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades and Malibu and killed 12 people. Prosecutors say Rinderknecht started a fire on 1 January that burned undetected deep in root systems before flaring back up a week later.

Ministers take action after survey shows almost half of students had gone without food for financial reasons

French universities have begun offering €1 (86p) meals to all students regardless of income in a measure designed to address financial hardship.

Student unions have been pushing to extend the €1 rate – down from the usual €3.30 – for a three-course meal to all students, which was previously only available to those with low incomes or receiving financial aid.

• Minnesota star returns from knee injury

• Wembanyama makes NBA playoff record 12 blocks

• Knicks keep on rolling with huge win over 76ers

Anthony Edwards announced to the San Antonio Spurs he had returned – not that anyone in the sold-out Frost Bank Center needed to be told.

The Timberwolves guard made an unexpected return 10 days after hyperextending his left knee, leading Minnesota to a 104-102 victory on Monday night in Game 1 of the Western Conference semi-finals.

Inflation fears fuelled by Iran war and renewed uncertainty over Starmer’s leadership prompt bond sell-off

The risk to Labour’s tax and spending plans from the war in Iran was underscored on Tuesday, as long-term government borrowing costs hit their highest level since 1998.

Fears of higher inflation as a result of the conflict have fuelled a selloff across government bond markets, which City analysts say has been exacerbated in the UK by uncertainty about the future of Keir Starmer’s government.

Federal debt held by the public now surpasses the total value of the nation's economic output. Here's why experts say that's a concern.

The proprietary Bose app isn't necessary for these new speakers (but they aren't compatible with existing Bose Home or SoundTouch models either).

Trump’s retribution is painful for Germany and Nato, but Merz is not backing down. He knows the status quo is untenable

What began as a spat between Friedrich Merz and Donald Trump over the Iran war is rapidly turning into a historic rupture between Germany and the US. Its significance is hard to overstate. In Germany, the transatlantic falling-out adds to the domestic woes of a coalition government in crisis, overshadowing the first anniversary of Merz’s becoming chancellor tomorrow.

More importantly, it proves the futility of Merz’s attempt to be Europe’s Trump-whisperer and puts Nato’s credibility into question. But the dispute also boosts the ambition that Germany’s conservative leader set out on the night of his party’s election victory: to make Europe more independent from the US security umbrella.

Jörg Lau is an international correspondent for the German weekly Die Zeit

The supreme court has kicked the can down the road after a federal court sought to ban the mailing of mifepristone

An event that ruined lives, degraded the citizenship of hundreds of millions, and permanently lowered the status of American women came and went four years ago, and American politics seems to have largely moved on. When the supreme court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022’s Dobbs decision, it fulfilled a decades-long project of the American right and made real a nightmare for women’s health and equality that feminists had dreaded for a generation. In the months that followed, protests were sporadic and largely moot: popular will, it had long become clear, had little bearing on abortion policy. Women began giving birth to babies they did not want, and dropping out of school and work to care for them – wasting their talents and abandoning their dreams. A flurry of court cases negotiating the impact of the court’s ruling in states across the country made abortion legal, then illegal, then legal again, then illegal again, with women’s ability to control their own lives flickering on and off like a dying lightbulb. Clinics that had served communities for years shut their doors, the world they had helped to build now extinguished by the justices. The new abortion bans are written in such draconian and expansive language that there are often no exceptions for rape or incest and only narrow, inscrutable legal permission for the life of the mother. Because of these bans, women died. Their names blazed across the headlines for a few days, then faded.

The fact is that just four years after Dobbs, abortion has receded from the headlines and from the attention of many American voters. Part of this is because of legal reality: voter referendums on abortion, in states where they were possible, were mostly successful in protecting the right to choose, and those campaigns raised money and awareness about the issue. But that strategy was quickly exhausted; just about every state where a referendum on abortion rights is legally possible has now had one. And it is partly due, too, to the peculiar discursive invisibility of misogyny in American political life. Though we have perhaps never seen a moment when male identity and male grievance have been wielded to greater political effect, feminism is at a comparative nadir. The country is used to seeing women be made to suffer because they are women. America saw the violence that Dobbs did to women’s dignity, dreams and health, and it largely shrugged its shoulders.

Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist

Keir Starmer warned Tuesday that there would be "consequences" if Iran is proven to be behind a recent series of antisemitic attacks in the capital.

• UConn coach attracted widespread criticism for actions

• Auriemma says he felt ‘dumb’ after altercation

Six weeks after his team lost to South Carolina in the Final Four, UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma said on Monday that he felt “dumb” for how his postgame exchange with Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley played out in front of a national audience.

“When I walked into the locker room afterward with the coaches, you are just shaking your head, thinking five more seconds, you couldn’t keep it in for five more seconds,” Auriemma said in his first news conference since then.

Proposal from group that worked with AOC and Bernie Sanders seeks to counter claim that climate policy is politically toxic

Americans do not care about the climate crisis, only economic issues: that’s the message some wonks have put forth in the past year, as the Trump administration has dismantled environmental protections. But the shift away from climate is misguided, an influential group of progressives is arguing.

“The climate crisis is a core driver of the cost-of-living crisis and instability we see across the economy,” says a new policy platform from left-leaning thinktank Climate and Community Institute (CCI).

Search and rescue efforts were still underway Tuesday after two U.S. Army soldiers went missing in the ocean off Morocco's southern coast over the weekend while off duty during a training exercise.

Alzheimer’s Research UK says patients at risk of being left behind as lack of formal or accurate diagnoses closes door to trials

People with Alzheimer’s disease are missing out on experimental treatments because they are not diagnosed early or accurately enough to be enrolled in clinical trials, a UK charity has said.

Trials of Alzheimer’s drugs reached a record high this year, according to data published on Tuesday, but Alzheimer’s Research UK said too few UK patients were taking part because their diagnoses were delayed or were not specific enough.

Keep mom safe with these handy smart home devices to help make her life easier.

A new Nature Climate Change study suggests airborne microplastics -- especially darker and colored particles -- are likely contributing to atmospheric warming by absorbing more heat than they reflect. Researchers estimate the effect could be roughly one-sixth that of black carbon, though outside experts say the uncertainties remain large and more study is needed before drawing firm policy conclusions. "We can say with confidence that overall they are warming agents," said Drew Shindell, a Duke University earth science professor and co-author of the study. "To me, that's the big advance." The Washington Post reports: To undertake their study, a group led by researchers at Fudan University in China examined how different colors and sizes of microplastics interact with light across the spectrum, while combining that information with simulations of how particles get dispersed in the air across the planet. "Black, yellow, blue and red [particles] absorb sunlight much more strongly than the white particles," Yu Liu, a Fudan professor and study co-author, said in a call with reporters. In fact, the study details how black and colored particles showed "absorption levels nearly 75 times higher than pristine, non-pigmented plastics." The scientists also found that different sizes of particles absorb light at different intensities -- and that how they absorb light can change as they age. The authors estimate that microplastics suspended in the atmosphere could be contributing to global warming at about one-sixth the amount of black carbon, also known as soot, a pollutant generated largely from burning fossil fuels. If the latest estimates are right, Shindell said, microplastics might not be an enormous source of atmospheric warming, compared with massive contributors such as cars and trucks, belching industrial plants or even burping cows. "But not a trivial one, either," he said. By his calculation, the effect of one year's microplastic emissions globally is approximately equivalent to 200 coal-fired power plants running for that year. But that rough estimate does not factor the longer-term repercussions of microplastics decaying and persisting in the environment for decades to come. Whatever the exact impact, the topic deserves further study, the authors say, because current climate modeling does not account for any additional warming that these tiny particles might be causing.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

As the US sees rapidly rising housing costs, nomads flock to the public lands around Quartzsite, Arizona, where a person can legally live for more than half a year

This story was produced in partnership with Re:Public Lands Media, an independent, non-profit news organization. Sign up for Re:Public’s newsletter.

***

Fahad Ansari says it was ‘chilling’ that police ‘equated him with his client’ after he was stopped on return from family holiday in Ireland

A lawyer who filed Hamas’s challenge to proscription in the UK was recorded by police as being a member of the banned group, “equating him with his client”.

On a risk assessment form, a detective inspector, who authorised the detention of Fahad Ansari under the Terrorism Act on his return from a family holiday in Ireland, wrote “Hamas” in the space reserved for “membership of a known group”.

Appeal launched to buy Nottinghamshire cottage, where tree was planted in 19th century, and turn it into heritage centre

Campaigners have launched an appeal to try to save for the nation the mother tree of perhaps the most popular cooking apple in the world.

The original bramley apple tree, which grows in the garden of a cottage in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, is for sale, with the cottage put on the market by its owners, Nottingham Trent University.

Iran’s foreign minister warned the U.S. should be wary of being dragged into a “quagmire” after tensions flared in the Strait of Hormuz.

My seasonal allergies have been exponentially easier to manage with these devices and products.

BEV sales jumped nearly 60% in April, taking total electric car registrations to more than 2m, says SMMT

• Business live – latest updates

A recent jump in electric car sales in the UK is likely to be “tempered” by worries over rising inflation and energy prices caused by the Iran war, a leading industry body has warned.

New car sales in the UK rose by 24% year on year to 149,247 in April, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is serving a life sentence at a maximum security facility in Colorado.

All roads, ports and courts have led to this.

State expected to play major role in deciding whether Republicans maintain control of Congress in his final two years

Voters in Ohio on Tuesday are selecting candidates ahead of November’s midterm elections. The state is expected to play a major role in deciding whether Donald Trump’s fellow Republicans maintain control of Congress for the final two years of his term.

The race with the highest national profile is Ohio’s Senate special election, in which Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, is vying to unseat the Republican incumbent, Jon Husted, and return to the chamber after failing to win re-election in 2024. The winner will serve the final two years of the term JD Vance won in 2022, before he became vice-president last year.

The launch of ‘Project Freedom’ in the strait of Hormuz has brought the region back to the brink of war. Plus: The electoral battle for Congress

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Good morning.

Donald Trump has again raised the stakes in the Gulf region with the Monday launch of “Project Freedom” to open a route through the strait of Hormuz. More than 800 ships and roughly 20,000 crew members remain stranded in the region.

Have any vessels made it out of the strait? US Central Command (Centcom) said two US-flagged merchant vessels had “successfully transited” the strait, but Iran has denied this claim. Late on Monday, the container shipping company Maersk said the Alliance Fairfax, a US-flagged vehicle carrier, left the Gulf. Shipping industry experts remain skeptical about whether vessels will be able to travel safely to and from the Gulf under Trump’s plan.

This is a developing story. Follow the liveblog here.

How will this play into the overall battle for Congress? Red states, including Alabama and Tennessee, are rushing to revise their congressional maps after the original supreme court decision. On Monday, Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor, signed a gerrymandered congressional district map into law that gives Republicans an electoral advantage in four additional races in November’s midterm elections.

How are Democrats fighting back? Eight candidates have been added to their slate of top contenders vying to reclaim a Democratic House majority in November’s midterm elections.

When do voters head to the polls? Ohio voters will today select candidates before November’s midterm elections, including the candidates for Ohio’s Senate special election. Indiana voters also go to the polls today, with seven Republican state senators battling for re-election against candidates backed by Trump.

The U.S. military says it launched another strike on a boat accused of ferrying drugs in the Caribbean Sea, killing two people, as the number of recent strikes continues to ramp up.

The improved form of McLaren and Red Bull in Florida suggests the 2026 title race is likely to run and run

There is a long old way to go but after Formula One emerged from its enforced early season break with an entertaining romp around the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, it indicated that there may yet be a decent tale to be told this season. One where Mercedes do not have it all their own way.

Regulation changes dominated the buildup – of which more later because honestly paragraph two is too early to subject readers to the increasingly soul-destroying phrase “energy management” – but what really mattered in Miami was the sporting imperative of upgrades making a competitive difference.

In sobering comments, the RBA governor forecasts economic malaise due to the global fuel shock. Not recession but higher prices, lower growth and wages that don’t keep pace with inflation

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As far as rallying cries go, Michele Bullock’s “we are poorer, and there is no way out of that” leaves a lot to be desired.

It’s not going to win you any applause, particularly when you’re the governor of a central bank that has just announced a third rate hike.

What I’m Discussing Today:

• Kareem’s Daily Quote: The Architecture of Amnesia

• The Price of Truth: When strategy becomes retaliation

• Changing the Engine: Why prosecuting one man isn’t a fix

• The Budget of Neglect: What we actually pay to stay safe

• What I’m Watching: Mel Brooks, The 99 Year Old Man

• Jukebox Playlist: Mr. Bojangles

Kareem’s Daily Quote

"We forgot all too soon the things we thought we could never forget." Joan Didion

If Joan Didion worked as a quote in the last newsletter, she’ll work multiple times. I might be on a Didion kick, and I wouldn’t be alone: she’s one of the greatest essayists in American history. And the quote above is pertinent not only to my past but to the present.

In my years on the court, I lived by the numbers. Points, rebounds, minutes, the score on the jumbo screen. You tell yourself that those moments—the pressure of a Game 7 and the sound of the crowd—are burned into your brain forever. You think, I will never forget this.

But Didion, one of our sharpest observers of the human condition, knew better. It’s humbling when a stranger knows your own brain better than you do.

And haunting. Because it’s not just about forgetting where you put your car keys or the name of a high school classmate. Didion was talking about the deeper stuff: the intensity of our convictions, the lessons we learned through pain, and the promises we made to ourselves when we were backed into a corner.

We have this habit of thinking that our “current” self is the permanent one. When we go through a collective trauma, like a pandemic or a national crisis like the storming of the Capitol, we swear we’ve been changed. We promise we’ll never go back to the “old way” of doing things. We think the lesson is etched in stone.

But then, the sun comes out. The urgency fades. The “standard procedure” of daily life starts to grind away at the edges of that memory. Before we know it, we’re back in the same old rhythm, making the same mistakes, wondering why that “unforgettable” lesson didn’t stick.

We watch a systemic failure unfold, whether it’s a security breach at a high-level event or a blatant overreach of government power, and the headlines scream that “everything must change.” We’re outraged. We’re certain this is the turning point. And then, six months later, or even six weeks, six days or six hours later, we’re distracted by the next trend, the next scandal, or the next “miscalculation” in the news.

Didion wasn’t just being cynical; she was issuing a warning. If we forget the things we thought were unforgettable, we lose our grip on our own growth. We become like a team that keeps running the same losing play because they forgot how ineffectual it was the last time they tried it.

To keep a memory alive—to truly remember the “why”—takes work. It requires a kind of mental discipline that is rarer than a perfect skyhook. It means looking back at your younger, more vulnerable self and honoring the lessons that version of you paid for in blood, sweat, or tears. It means refusing to let the “institutional amnesia” of our society tell you that what you saw with your own eyes didn’t matter.

In my own life, I try to keep a “commonplace book,” much like Didion did. I write things down not just to record history, but to keep a bridge open to the man and even the boy I used to be. I want to remember why I fought certain battles, why I felt certain joys, why I made certain stands.

Because if we aren’t careful, we don’t just forget the events; we forget ourselves. We forget the version of us that was brave enough to care. Or, if we were always rather timid and reticent, we forget what finally pushed us out of that shell, what enabled us to take a few more chances, to push against our own nature in order to promote the common good. As we go through our week, let’s try to reach back and grab one of those “unforgettable” things we’ve started to let slip, those things that made us draw a line in the sand. Let’s pull it out of the memory banks, dust it off, and make it current again.

Read more

Executives have been pushing AI for years. But leadership-led workplace culture may be preventing effective adoption, Microsoft found.

Passengers can also watch for free on personal devices using the United mobile app.

Overwhelmed by all the price hikes and content choices? We cut through the noise to help you sort through the best options.

The Boys is back for one its final three episodes.

Judges in more than a dozen cases have cited social media posts by President Trump and members of his administration in decisions against the government.

Why Should Delaware Care?
On May 12, the majority of Delaware’s 19 school districts will hold elections for their boards of education. Local school boards are the governing authority for school districts, and these elected officials can play a large role in the educational outcome for the state’s students.  

Delawareans will have the opportunity to vote next week for members of their local school boards.

Those public officials are responsible for a variety of governance-related tasks at their districts, including hiring or firing superintendents, approving budgets, and determining when to ask voters for more money through a referendum request.

The school board elections will take place on Tuesday, May 12, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Races where more than one candidate is vying for an open seat will occur in seven of Delaware’s 19 districts. 

Those include the Appoquinimink, Christina, Colonial, Delmar, Caesar Rodney, Milford, and Red Clay Consolidated school districts.

Below, Spotlight Delaware is highlighting a handful of the most competitive races to be decided next week. 

Appoquinimink race is heated

Six candidates are running for two open seats on the Appoquinimink School Board, a race framed in part by a financial crisis that hit the district last year. Voters may select up to two candidates on their ballot.

The candidates are Elena Brenner, Sean Brian Connally, Mark Heck, Britney Mumford, current board member Nichelle DeWitt and board President Richard Forsten.

The election comes months after the district revealed it had failed to properly track millions of dollars it believed were in reserve, sparking widespread criticism of school officials, including the incumbent board members, DeWitt and Forsten.

In September, a Change.org petition that garnered nearly 1,000 signatures called for the “immediate resignation” of the district superintendent, as well as of Appoquinimink school board members.

The crisis led to an investigation by Delaware State Auditor Lydia York, who found that the district’s deficit resulted from years of failure by staff and leadership to properly track and record expenditures.

Forsten said in the months since the deficit was announced, the board has studied the problem, put additional safeguards in place, hired two outside financial experts, and answered questions from the community. 

He also said the district has been able to rebuild trust with the community by spending less than other districts. 

“We’re just really careful in what we spend, and we never forget that it is other people’s money,” Forsten said. 

In a statement to Spotlight Delaware, DeWitt said she decided to run for reelection because she remains committed to the district, its staff, and its community members. She also said she wants to ensure that all students have access to high-quality learning opportunities. 

In the months since the deficit was first announced, DeWitt says she has worked to continue “to support efforts that strengthen transparency and improve how information is communicated so families feel informed, not left guessing.”

Brenner, a former educator, said the way to build trust with the community is to “take the confusion out” of board finances. Although the district publishes its budgets, Brenner said those documents are not easy for community members to understand. 

If elected, she said she will create her own website to make the budget and other school information more accessible for people, by using tools such as charts, which may be more understandable than financial jargon. 

Mumford, the executive director of DelawareKidsCAN, a nonprofit education advocacy organization, also emphasized the importance of rebuilding trust with the community. 

She said the board should host town halls to ensure more relationships are built with Appoquinimink families. 

“Folks have the opportunity to come give public comment at school board meetings, but there’s no dialogue,” she said. “By doing some sort of town hall, we get a real-time conversation.”

Heck, a veteran who currently serves as a junior ROTC instructor in the Christina School District, also said the board should incorporate town halls to have better dialogue with community members.

He also questioned whether some existing district programs are effectively serving students, even with Appoquinimink’s reputation as one of the state’s top-performing districts. Heck particularly questioned whether poorly attended programs are really helping “our students to achieve at a higher rate?”

Connally, who has worked as an infrastructure design engineer, said in a First State Educate survey response that some of the most important student outcomes involve improving the district’s English/language arts and math proficiency scores.

“I am committed to ensuring our curriculum is rigorous enough to prepare students for success after high school, whether they pursue college, entrepreneurship, or the trades,” he said.

Delmar, a district in two states

The Delmar School District made news last fall when then-Superintendent Andrew O’Neal   warned of overcrowding, rising salaries and inflation as reasons the district might need to raise taxes.

Now, four months after the board announced it would not move forward with a referendum, three candidates are vying for two open seats on the Delmar Board of Education. 

They are Neil Baker, Shawn Brittingham, and Jordan Johnson. 

Although there will not be a referendum vote within the Delmar School District this year, Brittingham said he fully supports a future request for education dollars from the community. 

He said the district capacity challenges are growing. The Delmar district only has one building, where both its middle and high school students attend classes.

Because of overcrowding, some Delmar students have classes in the school’s media center. Two classes are held at once in the auditorium. Teachers must leave their classroom during planning periods so other classes can use the space.

“You got to give these kids every opportunity to learn, because they’re our future,” Brittingham said. 

Johnson, who has worked in the district as a paraprofessional and a sports coach for nearly two decades, told the Laurel Star he would support a referendum if it “is truly necessary.” 

Also asked if he would support holding a referendum, Baker said “a strategic review is necessary.”

He said the review should account for enrollment growth, and “the relative value of school tax dollars in western Sussex compared to other districts statewide,” among other issues, according to the report from the Laurel Star. 

Christina replacement faces challenge

Last May, the Wilmington-based seat on the Christina Board of Education was filled by Shannon Troncoso after she received 67% of the votes cast. 

After Troncoso resigned in December, board members appointed Celita Cherry, a self-empowerment coach, to fill the vacancy until Tuesday’s election.

Cherry has a daughter in the Bayard School, and is also the president of Mothers Advocating for School Kids, an advocacy organization. In January, Cherry said she applied for the seat because she felt it was time for someone who grew up in Wilmington and attended Christina schools to “serve as a voice directly from the community.” 

Cherry also said the person filling the vacant seat should serve as a bridge between the district and the city to better communicate how district policies are made. 

Four board members voted in favor of Cherry’s appointment in February.

The second candidate for the seat is Charlene “Amina” Sams, a business owner who has also worked with juvenile detention centers by providing mindfulness and yoga programs. 

Like Cherry, Sams said the board must be more accessible to Wilmington families, otherwise they will not feel welcomed by the rest of the Newark-based district.

To do so, she recommended holding more board meetings in Wilmington, getting more city community leaders involved, and bringing more awareness to events happening in the city’s schools. 

Sams also said she wants to bring her experience in trauma-informed care to the district. 

The Christina School District is one of four northern New Castle County districts that could be consolidated into one larger district, along with Brandywine, Red Clay Consolidated, and Colonial.

McKean plan central to Red Clay race

Last month, the Red Clay Consolidated Board of Education voted to postpone the transformation of one of its high schools into an “innovation campus,” following months of pushback from community members concerned about the future of a program for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  

If the plan had been successful, the McKean innovation center would have opened in August 2027, reducing the number of traditional high schools in the district from three to two, and increasing enrollment numbers at Alexis I. duPont High School and The John Dickinson School. 

The plan would also have moved the district’s Meadowood program for students with intellectual or developmental disabilities from kindergarten through age 22, from McKean to A.I. duPont.

Some parents, however, have voiced their concerns for months to district leaders about the program’s future, saying they feel Meadowood has been an “afterthought.”

The issue of under-enrolled schools and the possibility of an innovation center have been at the forefront of both candidates’ campaigns. 

Board President Victor Leonard said he was not originally going to run for reelection, but said “the job is unfinished with the attendance zones and the innovation center.” 

Leonard said if he is reelected, there must be more input from community members before the board looks to make large decisions, like creating an innovation center. 

He said part of that could be through townhalls or mailing information directly to individuals, so that homeowners who do not have children in the district are included. 

In the weeks since the April board vote, Leonard also said he no longer supports transforming McKean into an innovation center, as it would displace Meadowood students.

The situation and distrust among community members regarding McKean inspired Jenny Howard, a mother of four and former teacher, to run against Leonard for the seat. 

Howard spoke against the innovation center at multiple meetings. She is also part of the board’s policy review committee and started a Delaware chapter of Public Schools Strong, an organization that advocates for strengthening the country’s public school system.

Although she also did not originally anticipate running for the seat, Howard said she felt the district and board were not listening to community members as they should have been. 

​​”The district and the board were not listening to the families and the community and just doing whatever they wanted,” she said. “I was like, ‘You know, maybe [my election] will change things.’”

Leonard said it’s important that the district address its enrollment concerns before possible consolidation with the Brandywine, Christina, and Colonial school districts because he feels if they are not addressed now, decisions could be made by the state in future years. 

Although the plan to consolidate the four districts still must go to the State Board of Education and the General Assembly, the plan is still weighing heavily on other candidates’ minds. 

Colonial weighs consolidation plan impact

Rasheeda Campbell, one of two candidates vying for the District F seat on the Colonial school board, said the “looming” potential consolidation is one of the most important issues the board will need to discuss in the future.

“If that actually comes to fruition, you have to kind of be prepared, not waiting until the decision, but thinking through what would that mean in advance,” she said. 

Her opponent, Dawn Green, who has served on the district’s Parent Teacher Association, also noted the importance of preparing for possible consolidation and boosting proficiency rates in her First State Educate survey response. 

“By combining data, research, and engagement, board members can make thoughtful, transparent decisions that improve student outcomes, support teachers, and ensure resources are used effectively to strengthen the Colonial School District,” Green said in her survey. 

The post Save the Date: Delaware school board elections on May 12  appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

Seven Republican state senators battle for re-election against candidates backed by Donald Trump

Indiana voters go to the polls today in a test of Republican staying power after the party’s state lawmakers resisted Donald Trump’s bruising campaign to pressure them into redrawing the congressional districts.

The vote has turned into a statewide referendum on political retribution.

Why Should Delaware Care?
Whether to put restrictions on gun sales and ownership is one of the most controversial issues in the country. Proponents of Senate Bill 300 argue it is necessary to stop guns from ending up in the wrong hands, while critics argue it would put a financial strain on gun shop owners. 

A new bill meant to curb illegal gun trafficking is already sparking pushback from gun rights advocates and Republican lawmakers.

And those opponents might have a shot at halting the bill’s progress in the heavily Democratic legislature because it needs a supermajority vote to pass. 

Senate Bill 300 would implement an enhanced state licensing system for gun shop owners. If passed, firearm dealers would have to buy a state license to sell guns, complete bi-annual Delaware State Police training courses and install surveillance systems. 

“[The bill] will lower the probability of gun violence and gun trafficking and hold our firearm dealers accountable for potentially reckless business practices,” Senate President Pro-Tempore David Sokola said during a virtual meeting Monday that was designed to rally support for the bill. 

The bill would also give the Delaware State Police authority to penalize and fine gun shop owners who break the law. Sokola — a Newark Democrat and the bill’s sponsor — said the enforcement provision is necessary in the face of weakening federal enforcement. 

The proposal comes less than a week after the Trump administration announced an effort to roll back a number of federal gun control regulations, including a Biden-era requirement that forced firearm dealers to run background checks on buyers at gun shows. 

“This tells us why state inspections and regulations of the industry are so important,” said Josh Scharff, general counsel for gun violence prevention nonprofit Brady United, at the virtual event. 

This bill follows other strict gun legislation in Delaware enacted during the past nine months, including one bill that required permits to purchase, and another that raised the age to hunt with firearms and without adult supervision from 18 to 21. 

In September, a Kent County Superior Court judge struck down the hunting supervision rule on constitutional grounds. 

In recent days, several gun shop owners and gun rights advocates have decried Sokola’s latest bill as an attempt to put Delaware firearm retailers out of business. They argue that it is illegal firearms sellers who supply guns to people who use them in crimes. 

“They’re putting all this onus on the gun stores when we’re not the problem,” said Ron Hagan, owner of Best Shot, a gun store in Lewes. “We’ll essentially be losing money in order to operate a business to sell guns.” 

Hagan said he and other licensed firearms retailers in the state recently formed an organization, so that they can jointly be a plaintiff in “any civil litigation that might arise from this [bill].”

It remains unclear exactly how much the state license would cost, but the drafted legislation says it would be proportional to how many firearms a retailer sells each year.

Sokola acknowledged that the licensing fees likely won’t cover the entire cost of enforcing his bill, noting that taxpayers would have to pay the additional costs. 

He said he is not sure yet how much the enforcement of the proposed regulations would cost the state each year.

Is this bill necessary?

While opponents of the gun-control bill say it could drive them out of business, proponents say it would prevent illegal gun trafficking.

Marianna Mitchem, a senior industry advisor with Everytown for Gun Safety, argued at the virtual event Monday that the bill is necessary because too many guns in Delaware are falling into the hands of the wrong people. 

She cited a 2020 case in which Dover resident Jordan Harmon bought a total of 19 semi-automatic pistols from the same gun shop within a six-month period — a sign that he was probably selling the guns to people without a permit. 

Police found those guns at several crime sites and alerted the gun shop owner, she said, but the shop continued selling him weapons for an additional two months. 

Harmon was later convicted and sentenced to federal prison. 

Mitchem said that case is a clear example why the training requirements and fines that SB 300 would implement are necessary.

Gun shop owners say that both the federal government and the individual stores already mandate extensive training for their employees about how to recognize people trying to make illegal purchases.

They also say the majority of guns used for criminal activities are not being shoplifted or purchased from gun shops, rendering the addition of surveillance cameras and other security measures to the shops a waste of money. 

“Nobody steals from a gun shop,” Jeff Hague, president of the Delaware NRA-affiliate group said. “This is killing a mosquito with a sledgehammer.” 

Hagan, the owner of the Lewes-area gun shop, said the added licensing and training fees from the legislation will force stores to raise the price of guns to break even. But then, he said, nobody will purchase firearms in Delaware because they will be too expensive. 

An email newsletter sent by the Republican House caucus indicated that its members also opposed the bill. 

Three-fifths of both chambers would need to vote in favor of SB 300 for it to pass — a threshold that Democrats currently control. They could only afford two defections in either the House or Senate to meet the requirements though.

A hearing on the bill has not yet been scheduled.

The post New bill boosting regulations on gun shops under fire appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

A letter from 30 lawmakers calls on the U.S. to expose Israel’s weapons program, which it doesn’t acknowledge and was built in secret beginning in the late 1950s.

The president has repeatedly suggested that the conflict was nearing a conclusion while simultaneously escalating threats against Tehran.

The Education Department says a Title IX provision underpinning women’s schools applies only to biological sex. Smith College announced it would accept trans women in 2015.

Pulp Fiction co-writer Roger Avary wants to bring the epic poem to the big screen using the power of artificial intelligence. It can’t be any good

The thing about unfilmable works of literature is that most of them eventually turn out to be quite filmable after all. The Lord of the Rings was a bit of a mess when shot in rotoscope on a minuscule budget by the guy who filmed Fritz the Cat; it won Oscars when handed to Peter Jackson, given the GDP of a small nation and a visual effects department the size of Gondor. The 1984 version of Dune was a disappointment, despite the presence of David Lynch in the director’s chair, largely because all that gleaming, tawdry galactic opulence couldn’t make up for the comprehensively bad acting, clotted exposition and obsession with freaky heart plugs. And yet the 2021 adaptation from Denis Villeneuve ended up being a tour de force of masterly restraint and monolithic scale.

Milton’s Paradise Lost? The 17th-century epic poem has always felt like an outlier, a work of literature too religiously inspired to be filmed purely as a work of fantasy, yet too riotously bonkers to be treated with puritanical reverence. It contains more drama than the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe in every line of thunderous God-baiting iambic pentameter. And now Roger Avary, co-writer of Pulp Fiction and director of Killing Zoe and The Rules of Attraction, wants to bring it to the big screen using the power of AI.

The U.S. Department of Education says it's opened an investigation into Smith College, an all-women's institution in Massachusetts, for admitting transgender women.

Robert Cyr Jr, a US navy airman, had gone missing in 1944 when his seaplane crashed in the Segond channel

The remains of a US military aviator who went missing after his crew crashed during the second world war were recovered and identified through DNA analysis and his family recently laid him to rest in Florida, according to officials.

US navy airman Robert Cyr Jr’s burial in Clearwater, Florida, brought to an end a decades-long saga that began on 22 January 1944, when he and eight fellow crewmates crashed while they were aboard a seaplane as it took off in the Segond channel in what is now the south Pacific’s Republic of Vanuatu.

To the narcotics agents investigating drug smuggling in Puerto Rico prisons, it seemed at first like a typical scheme: associates of an inmate gang sneaking drugs into the prison, gang members distributing them inside and bank records showing the money flowing.

Then the agents discovered something unusual.

Leaders of the prison gang known as Los Tiburones, or the Sharks, were selling drugs to inmates not only for money, but for their votes. Specifically, votes for now-Gov. Jenniffer González-Colón, a longtime Republican and supporter of President Donald Trump, investigators found.

To make sure the inmates — many of whom were addicted — complied, the gang’s leaders threatened violence and to withhold drugs, the investigators learned. Corrections employees in on the plan looked the other way as the gang, formally known as Group 31, ran the enterprise.

What at first seemed like a routine drug case had turned into something bigger. Puerto Rico, along with just a couple of U.S. states, allows inmates to vote. Puerto Ricans living in the territory can vote in all contests except federal general elections. It is a felony to willfully offer money or gifts in exchange for support at the polls. A conviction carries fines of as much as $250,000 and imprisonment of up to two years.

Investigators had gathered solid evidence of election fraud implicating both inmates and staff, and they were working toward determining whether González-Colón or her campaign was involved, four people with knowledge of the case told ProPublica. They requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly about the case.

But as federal prosecutors prepared an indictment against the inmates and staff in November 2024 — just days after Trump won the election and González-Colón clinched the governorship — they received a surprising directive. Their bosses in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico instructed them to exclude the voting-related counts against the inmates and all charges against the prison staff, an investigation by ProPublica found.

In December, they filed an indictment charging 34 inmates and associates with crimes including drug distribution resulting in at least four overdose deaths, money laundering and possessing a firearm. And while prosecutors described the drugs-for-votes scheme in the court filing, they did not include a single charge related to it.

Soon after Trump took office, the lead prosecutor, Jorge Matos, was told by a supervisor to take the investigation no further, according to four people familiar with the case.

“Before the election, it was definitely full steam ahead,” said one person familiar with the case. “After the election, that all changed.”

Matos, who left the Justice Department in June 2025, did not respond to phone calls or texts from ProPublica or attempts to reach him on social media.

For those working on the case, the decision to scrap the investigation was especially puzzling given the new president’s agenda; Trump issued executive orders in early 2025 aimed at eradicating drug traffickers and declaring election integrity “fundamental” to maintaining American democracy.

“We invested so much effort to make a difference,” said another person. “We’re frustrated, but there’s nothing we can do.”

People close to the case wondered if politics had played a bigger role than law and order. Trump congratulated González-Colón in a letter shared at her January 2025 inauguration saying, “I am so proud of your resounding victory.” That same month, she pushed to erect a statue of him at the Capitol building in San Juan alongside other presidents who’ve visited the island. “He deserves that,” she said, according to an official post from the Federal Affairs Administration of Puerto Rico on X.

W. Stephen Muldrow, the U.S. attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, was appointed by Trump in 2019 and has served continuously since then. His name appears on the indictment along with those of three assistant U.S. attorneys. Muldrow told ProPublica his office does not comment on open investigations other than in press releases or press conferences. While a couple of the inmates have accepted plea deals, most of the drug and money-laundering cases against the inmates and associates are still making their way through the court system.

In a follow-up email, a spokesperson for the office noted the indictment was filed during the Biden administration and under the previous governor of Puerto Rico.

Charging corrupt public officials “has always been and remains a top priority” of the office, wrote spokesperson Lymarie Llovet-Ayala.

“When sufficient admissible evidence exists to charge persons involved in public corruption, as required by the Justice Manual, the Puerto Rico U.S. Attorney’s Office will aggressively pursue such charges,” she wrote.

In court documents tied to a different case, in October 2025, a magistrate judge mentioned “an unrelated white-collar investigation involving the Governor of Puerto Rico.” Muldrow’s office responded in a filing, stating, “There is no white-collar investigation (or any other investigation) of Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer González-Colón.”

González-Colón has not been charged with a crime. The governor declined ProPublica’s repeated requests for an interview and did not respond to written questions sent to her communications team.

Muldrow had a friendly working relationship with former Attorney General Pam Bondi when she was the state attorney general in Florida and he was an assistant U.S. attorney in the middle district of that state, according to people who know him.

A Department of Justice spokesperson said in an email, “Neither Attorney General Bondi nor Acting Attorney General Blanche was involved in any charging or investigative decision in this Biden administration prosecution.”

The attorney general’s office noted in a statement that the indictment mentioned allegations of voting coercion, and said: “This office did not limit the underlying investigation in any way.”

In May 2025, in a move that federal prosecutors and political observers alike said was highly unusual, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence seized the voting machines from Puerto Rico over concerns about “vulnerabilities,” according to testimony in March by Director Tulsi Gabbard to Congress.

A spokesperson from the office told ProPublica the seizure was at the request of the U.S. attorney’s office in Puerto Rico and was “not about any election in particular.” The goal was to “assess risk to this critical infrastructure, given similar infrastructure is used throughout the United States,” the spokesperson said in an email.

Muldrow didn’t answer questions from ProPublica about the matter.

Lydia Lizarribar, an attorney for Juan Carlos Ortiz-Vazquez, a Group 31 member who prosecutors named as one of the leaders of the drug operation, declined to comment on the case.

A Party “Stronghold”

The Puerto Rican prison system has a long and well-documented history of overcrowding, inadequate medical care and other human rights violations so egregious that in the late 1970s they prompted federal oversight that continued for decades.

The grim conditions spurred inmates to form advocacy groups like Group 31, which was officially created as a nonprofit to lobby corrections officials and lawmakers to improve inmates’ quality of life. Over time, federal prosecutors say, several of these groups operating in the prisons evolved into violent criminal organizations such as Los Tiburones and Ñetas, with memberships in the thousands.

The poor conditions were also the backdrop for a push in 1980 by the New Progressive Party governor at the time, Carlos Romero Barceló, to codify voting rights for prisoners.

Inmates have been aligned with the party ever since, political analysts said. Political parties in Puerto Rico differ dramatically from those on the mainland. They don’t adhere to a straight divide among Democrats and Republicans. Instead, the two main parties center much of their focus on whether Puerto Rico should become a state and so have Republicans and Democrats within each.

It’s not unheard of for politicians of all parties to court the inmate vote, but the New Progressive Party has made it a “stronghold,” said Fernando Tormos-Aponte, a political scientist with expertise on Puerto Rico and an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Pittsburgh.

“It’s been a huge advantage for them particularly as elections in Puerto Rico have been decided by small margins,” Tormos-Aponte said of the New Progressive Party. In the 2024 general election for governor, the party won 83% of the inmate vote, according to a ProPublica tally of voter returns on the State Elections Commission’s website.

Inmate votes were especially key in the 2024 gubernatorial primary as González-Colón, a longtime New Progressive Party member, was challenging the incumbent governor of the same party.

She won the primary by fewer than 30,000 votes, according to the State Elections Commission. Local news reports said that an estimated 5,000 prisoners voted territorywide.

In her first months in office, González-Colón signed a law allowing people with criminal records to obtain professional licenses in Puerto Rico.

In July, she signed off on a law expanding inmates’ ability to hold jobs in the private sector, calling it “part of a vision of social justice,” adding “we believe in the second chance, in the value of work and in the capacity for transformation of the human being.”

In March, González-Colón signed a law requiring the parole review board increase the pace at which parole denials are reconsidered. She said in a press release the law is aimed at a “fairer, more transparent system focused on rehabilitation.”

Political analysts said rumors have swirled over the decades about coercive tactics being used to mobilize the prison vote, raising significant questions about the extent to which that support comes in exchange for favors from the ruling party.

This time was different, sources said. They had evidence. Prosecutors had “locked up” the voting-for-drugs scheme among the gang, inmates and staff, and were deep into investigating a potential political connection when Muldrow’s office pulled the plug.

“These are the type of questions you would think an administration that has publicly declared this war on drug trafficking would investigate further,” Tormos-Aponte said of the Trump administration. “You would think it would be a priority.”

For the people familiar with the prison election fraud investigation, it was clear politics were at play in the decision to abandon charges prosecutors were confident they could win. What wasn’t clear, they said, was who was pulling the strings and how. It was “like you’re watching a puppet show but you can’t see the strings,” one person said.

“You know what you’re seeing isn’t telling the whole story,” the person said. “There was some kind of invisible hand.”

Drugs for Votes

Although they excluded drugs-for-votes charges, prosecutors didn’t scrub the Dec. 12, 2024, indictment of how they believed the operation worked.

Outside associates of Los Tiburones, the indictment alleged, primarily used drones to drop drugs on prison grounds. Then staff participating in the scheme helped in the “introduction and distribution” of the drugs inside the prison or acted as lookouts. The employees also allowed the gang members to enforce their own discipline system against those who didn’t do as they asked, including when voting. Punishments included withholding food from inmates or forcing them to sit with their arms folded while they were beaten and kicked. In four cases, the drugs led to overdose deaths, the indictment says.

The indictment also alleged that Los Tiburones made connections with government officials “for the purpose of reducing prison sentences,” and the gang mandated both the prisoners’ political affiliations and “who to vote for in primary and general elections.”

A relative of one of the prisoners told ProPublica that inmates had to show their ballots to gang leaders when they voted to avoid punishment.

Puerto Rico’s Civil Rights Commission, which for decades has sent observers to polls across the territory, reported “serious difficulties” in gaining access to several prisons during the 2024 general election. After being denied entry at multiple locations, the commission successfully sought a court order, but much of the day had already passed by the time the observers were allowed in.

“We strongly condemn the lack of diligence and indifference shown by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation in hindering the functions of this Commission on the day of early voting in correctional institutions,” the agency later wrote in a special report on the 2024 elections.

The report said observers witnessed prisoners voting in cramped quarters that didn’t allow for privacy and having to hand their ballots to others to put in the box.

Ever Padilla-Ruiz, the commission’s executive director, told ProPublica that inmates sent written complaints to the office detailing their experiences of being pressured to vote in the primary — some for González-Colón and others for her opponent, Pedro Pierluisi. They did not mention any gangs by name, Padilla-Ruiz said.

He said inmates reported that inmate group leaders were “always sending messages” up until election day, adding that they were too afraid to say much more.

Several people familiar with the case said investigators had evidence that González-Colón had spoken to a Group 31 member, but they had not determined whether she was involved in vote buying.

One of the imprisoned gang leaders had bragged on Facebook about his connection to González-Colón, posting a picture of him talking with her on WhatsApp while the primary campaign for governor was underway, two sources said.

She clearly benefited from the scheme, they said. “There was no doubt about that,” one said, noting that thousands of votes were likely at stake.

The indictment notes that gang members were provided preferential treatment such as relaxed visitation policies and the use of Sony PlayStations, big screen TVs and cellphones, but investigators had not connected the privileges to González-Colón or her campaign.

“Latinos Are Winning”

González-Colón has been a longtime advocate for Puerto Rico statehood and has been engaged in Republican politics for more than 20 years. She was elected chair of the Republican Party of Puerto Rico in 2015 and two years later became resident commissioner, a role similar to a U.S. representative but with limited voting power in Congress.

She’s been an active participant in Latinos for Trump, praising the president over the years as “wise” and in 2019 saying on social media, “Latinos are winning under his leadership.”

As she continues to lobby for Puerto Rico to become the 51st state, González-Colón has also leaned in to her relationships with other members of Trump’s Cabinet, posting well wishes on social media to Susie Wiles, Trump’s chief of staff, and congratulating Markwayne Mullin, the Homeland Security director Trump picked to replace Kristi Noem, calling him “my good friend.”

“I know he will provide strong leadership as he works with President Donald J. Trump to strengthen our nation’s security,” she wrote in a March Facebook post.

Experts on Puerto Rican finance and politics say the relationship between González-Colón and the Trump administration is symbiotic though lopsided.

“I see it more as a situation of unrequited love,” said Alvin Velazquez, an associate law professor at Indiana University’s Maurer School of Law and an expert on Puerto Rico’s bankruptcy in 2017.

The territorial island, whose residents were granted U.S. citizenship in 1917, receives less federal funding than most states. Political leaders in Puerto Rico, González-Colón included, have perpetually lobbied for more support.

Republicans in turn have capitalized on González-Colón’s rise as she helped bolster GOP support among the Puerto Rican diaspora and other Latino voters on the mainland. Now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio endorsed González-Colón in her 2024 gubernatorial election.

Polls specifically isolating Puerto Rican voters show that Trump saw at least a 4 percentage point uptick in votes from Puerto Ricans living in states compared to the 2020 election, garnering 45% of the group’s vote in the 2024 election, according to the nonprofit research center Instituto Cervantes at Harvard University.

And perhaps most importantly, experts say, Trump has counted on González-Colón to support his strategic geopolitical initiatives in the region, including the controversial reopening of long-abandoned naval bases in Puerto Rico. González-Colón welcomed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to the island in September and thanked Trump on X for “recognizing the strategic value Puerto Rico has to the national security of the United States and the fight against drug cartels in our hemisphere.”

That’s despite the sentiment among many Puerto Ricans who were angered by Trump’s response to Hurricane Maria in 2017 and a comedian at one of Trump’s 2024 campaign rallies who called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage.” And while Trump has said that González-Colón was “wonderful to deal with and a great representative of the people,” he later called Puerto Rico “one of the most corrupt places on earth.”

The post Prosecutors Had a Drugs-for-Votes Scheme “Locked Up.” Under Trump, They Were Told Not to Pursue Charges. appeared first on ProPublica.

A growing cohort are using Instagram and TikTok to share unmoderated coverage of the beleaguered island.

Sightline Intelligence specializes in drone video processing and claims its AI targeting can separate civilians from militants.

Other fireworks manufacturers in Liuyang, in central Hunan province, ordered to halt production after deadly blast

An explosion at a fireworks plant in a central Chinese province has killed at least 26 people and injured 61, prompting the halting of all firework manufacturing near the site.

The blast occurred in the city of Changsha, in Hunan province, on Monday afternoon, China’s official news agency Xinhua said. China Daily said the plant was operated by the Huasheng Fireworks Manufacturing and Display Co in the Changsha-administered, county-level city of Liuyang.

Broadcaster’s lawyers say NSW police should reveal which officers accessed or downloaded material from Jones’s phone

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Police stand accused of engaging in impropriety when raiding the home of former shock jock Alan Jones during a sexual assault investigation.

Officers searched the 85-year-old’s Sydney home in November 2024 after an eight-month investigation into reports of historical sexual abuse.

"The Associated Press is reporting on a new study in Nature Astronomy suggesting that a tiny, icy world beyond Pluto harbors a thin, delicate atmosphere that may have been created by volcanic eruptions or a comet strike," writes longtime Slashdot reader fahrbot-bot. From the report: Just 300 miles (500 kilometers) or so across, this mini Pluto is thought to be the solar system's smallest object yet with a clearly detected global atmosphere bound by gravity, said lead researcher Ko Arimatsu of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan. This so-called minor planet -- formally known as (612533) 2002 XV93 -- is considered a plutino, circling the sun twice in the time it takes Neptune to complete three solar orbits. At the time of the study, it was more than 3.4 billion miles (5.5 billion kilometers) away, farther than even Pluto, the only other object in the Kuiper Belt with an observed atmosphere. This cosmic iceball's atmosphere is believed to be 5 million to 10 million times thinner than Earth's protective atmosphere, according to the the study [...]. It's 50 to 100 times thinner than even Pluto's tenuous atmosphere. The likeliest atmospheric chemicals are methane, nitrogen or carbon monoxide, any of which could reproduce the observed dimming as the object passed before the star, according to Arimatsu. Further observations, especially by NASA's Webb Space Telescope, could verify the makeup of the atmosphere, according to Arimatsu.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

An explosion at a fireworks plant in a province in central China killed at least 26 people and injured 61 others, authorities said. The cause was unknown. The person in charge was detained.

Rihanna, Sabrina Carpenter, Madonna, and Beyoncé all wore their best looks to celebrate the "Costume Art" theme at the 2026 Met Gala. Here are some of the best moments, photos, and more from the night.

Foreign minister Penny Wong visits Fiji this week to progress the security and economic agreement

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Australia looks close to signing a landmark security and economic agreement with Fiji as part of the Albanese government’s efforts to contain China’s growing influence across the Pacific.

But pushback from Beijing has undermined a separate pact with Vanuatu’s government, resulting in a scaling back of a deal aimed at locking in Australia as the country’s primary security partner.

Exclusive: Worker pointed to Iran war and Pentagon’s Anthropic feud as indications the department is ‘not a responsible partner’

Workers developing Google’s artificial intelligence products in the UK have voted to unionize, in part out of concerns about a deal between the company and the US military that was announced last week.

In a letter slated to go to management on Tuesday and shared exclusively with the Guardian, workers at Google DeepMind, the company’s AI research laboratory, requested recognition of the Communication Workers Union and Unite the Union as joint representatives of the lab’s UK-based staff.

Despite the Iran war, US military strikes in the eastern Pacific have ramped up in recent weeks

The US military said it bombed another boat allegedly ferrying drugs in the Caribbean Sea, killing two people, on Monday.

The Trump administration’s campaign of blowing up alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters has persisted since early September and killed at least 188 people. Other strikes have taken place in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

Quintessentially almost quadrupled staff in Middle East and Asia less than year before wealthy began to flee Gulf

The embattled luxury concierge service co-founded by Queen Camilla’s nephew Ben Elliot embarked on what appeared to be an inopportune hiring spree in the Middle East and Asia before wealthy individuals began fleeing the region because of the US-Israel war on Iran.

Quintessentially almost quadrupled staff in the regions from 22 to 84 during its financial year to 30 April 2025, according to newly released annual accounts, which again reported multimillion-pound losses and warned of “material uncertainty” about its future.

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for May 5.

This blog is now closed

• Trump threatens to blow Iran ‘off the face of the earth’ if it attacks US vessels

• Trump sends warships to break Iran’s strait of Hormuz blockade

We have a bit more of the statement from Maj Gen Ali Abdollahi, the commander of Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya central headquarters, who said earlier that the US or any other foreign armed forces would be attacked if they entered the strait of Hormuz (see post at 07.39 for more details). Abdollahi also said:

We will maintain and vigorously manage the security of the strait of Hormuz with all our might, and we inform all commercial ships and tankers to refrain from any attempt to transit without the coordination of the armed forces stationed in the strait of Hormuz, so as not to jeopardise their security.

Trump’s tariff mess offers a chance to restore legislative oversight.

Why Xi keeps winning the summitry game.

IBM and RIKEN today announced they have successfully used a quantum computer to simulate a protein spanning 12,635 atoms, making it the largest protein to ever be simulated using a quantum system. The achievement marks a 40x increase in simulation size over six months, which researchers say heralds the arrival of quantum-centric supercomputing simulation as a viable path to more breakthroughs in life sciences and beyond.

In late 2025, the collaboration among scientists at IBM, RIKEN, and Cleveland Clinic successfully yielded a simulation of a 303-atom protein, which was a sizable breakthrough. But in just six months, the team was able to scale the simulation by 40 times while also gaining more than a 200x improvement in accuracy, according to Jerry Chow, CTO of Quantum-Centric Supercomputing at IBM Research and an IBM Fellow.

“Our approach shows that quantum-centric supercomputing is expanding to become this useful tool in science and scientific domains, especially in areas such as biology and chemistry,” Chow said. “We really see this as just the beginning.”

IBM Heron-based quantum computer at Cleveland Clinic (Image courtesy IBM

The researchers successfully applied a new technique that uses both quantum computers and classical supercomputers. The quantum side consisted of IBM’s superconducting 156-qubit Quantum Heron processors running on computers at the Cleveland Clinic in the United States and RIKEN in Japan, while the classical side used two leadership-class supercomputers, RIKEN’s Fugaku and Miyabi-G, which is operated by the University of Tokyo and the University of Tsukuba.

The supercomputers were used to deconstruct the protein-ligand complexes into computable fragments, while the quantum systems were used to calculate the quantum-mechanical behavior of those fragments. A key breakthrough in the project was a novel quantum-classical hybrid algorithm, dubbed EWF-TrimSQD, which “dramatically reduced computational overhead and accelerated the ability to directly represent the chemistry of these molecular systems on quantum hardware,” the companies stated in a press release.

The simulation stressed the IBM Quantum Heron’s processor, and required 94 of its 156 qubits to run nearly 6,000 quantum simulations in certain parts of the simulation. The results from the quantum runs were then reassembled on classical computers to obtain a complete representation of the molecule, the companies said.

Kenneth Merz, a staff scientist in Cleveland Clinic’s Computational Life Sciences department and the lead researcher in the study, was quite familiar with the hype around using quantum computing for drug discovery, as well as the harsh reality that quantum researchers typically experienced with anything bigger than a handful of atoms.

“Drug discovery has been something that’s been talked about,” Merz said in a briefing with Chow. “And I was sort of a little frustrated because, having worked in the area, I need to work with large molecules, like proteins.”

Simulating protein complexes is important to understanding how a drug candidate will bind with a protein, making it a critical aspect of drug discovery. However, protein simulation is also one of the most difficult and expensive problems to solve in life sciences, and a problem that has posed a challenge for existing computational methods.

The researchers at IBM, RIKEN, and Cleveland Clinic ramped up the size of protein simulations (Image courtesy IBM)

Merz and his fellow researchers decided to start with something simple: a methane dimer, which is a 10-atom molecule. They were applying traditional algorithms, such as Variational Quantum Eigensolver (VQE), to model the molecule. But then they decided to give IBM’s new subspace quantum diagonalization (QCD) algorithm a try.

They started with a simple molecule: benzene, consisting of a ring of six carbon atoms and six hydrogen atoms. It worked well, so they tried something a little more complex: cyclohexane, which has six carbons and 12 hydrogens.

“It worked beautifully,” Merz said. “And then we did some internal tests and we thought, well, gosh, you know, we could go to something a little bit bigger. Trp-cage is a really famous protein in the biophysics community. It’s the one of the smallest known proteins that fold.”

The simulation of Trp-cage and its 303 atoms worked well in late 2025, so in early 2026 they decided to ramp it up to T4-Lysozyme, a protein 11,608 atoms. After that was successfully modeled, they tackled the enzyme Trypsin, which has 12,635 atoms, and it worked again.

“Long story short, we were able to calculate the total energy of this whole system up to almost 13,000 atoms,” Merz said. “To me, this is really exciting because now we can really work on proteins that are of relevance to health care and life science.”

But this approach isn’t limited to life science and healthcare. This basic approach–using supercomputers to segment a larger piece of work into constituent pieces, running those smaller chunks on quantum systems, and then reassembling the completed segments with the supers–can be used to solve all sorts of problems.

“It’s really a point where quantum computers and algorithms are maturing hand in hand,” Chow said. “We’re going to see quantum centric supercomputing really grow to become increasingly capable to solve these fundamental problems in science, in biology, chemistry, life sciences, materials, and really so much more.”

The post IBM and RIKEN Hail Breakthrough in Quantum-Assisted Supercomputing appeared first on HPCwire.

Why Tokyo is bulking up its defense industrial base.

OpenAI president Greg Brockman's testimony dominated the fifth day of the trial for Elon Musk's lawsuit against the AI company. Brockman took the witness stand on Monday, disclosing that his stake in OpenAI is worth nearly $30 billion, despite not personally investing money in OpenAI. The judge also declined to admit a pretrial text in which Musk allegedly warned Brockman that he and Altman would become "the most hated men in America." From a report: Brockman's disclosure would put him on the Forbes list of the world's richest people, with wealth comparable to Melinda French Gates. [...] Late Sunday, OpenAI lawyers tried to admit as evidence a text message Musk sent to Brockman two days before the trial began. According to a court filing -- which did not include the actual text exchange -- Musk sent a message to Brockman to gauge interest in settlement. When Brockman replied that both sides should drop their respective claims, Musk shot back, according to the filing, "By the end of this week, you and Sam will be the most hated men in America. If you insist, so it will be." Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who is overseeing the trial, did not admit the text exchange as evidence. Brockman acknowledged that he had promised to personally donate $100,000 to OpenAI's charity but never did. In explaining the delay, Brockman put the onus on Altman: "I asked Sam when I should donate this, and he said he would let me know," reports Business Insider. The first witness to testify on Monday was Stuart Russell, an artificial intelligence expert who teaches computer science at the University of California, Berkeley. "The most memorable part of Russell's testimony was when he talked about how much Musk's legal team paid him," notes Business Insider. "He received an eye-popping $5,000 per hour for 40 hours of preparatory work. Expert witnesses in high-profile cases typically make between $500 to $1,000 per hour." Recap: Musk Concludes Testimony At OpenAI Trial (Day Four) Elon Musk Says OpenAI Betrayed Him, Clashes With Company's Attorney (Day Three) Musk Testifies OpenAI Was Created As Nonprofit To Counter Google (Day Two) Elon Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman Head To Court (Day One)

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed last week's landmark decision striking down Louisiana's congressional map to take effect immediately, drawing a sharp back-and-forth between two justices.

Ashley MacIsaac, who is seeking $1.5m in civil lawsuit, says inaccurate information led to concert cancellation

An acclaimed Canadian fiddle player has launched a $1.5m civil lawsuit against Google, alleging that the online giant defamed him by falsely identifying him as a sex offender in an AI-generated summary of his life and career.

Ashley MacIsaac, a three-time Juno award-winning musician, filed the claim in the Ontario superior court of justice, asserting that Google was liable for the “foreseeable republication” of its AI-generated Overview feature, which previously published defamatory claims that he had been convicted of multiple criminal offences, including the sexual assault of a woman, internet luring involving a child with the intention of sexual assaulting the child, and assault causing bodily harm.

The president’s contempt for the media is explosive and his ‘disappointment’ with Australia apparent. For Meta, Google and Oracle, it’s a powerful combination

The fallout of the Albanese government’s proposed News Bargaining Incentive feels predictable. The tech oligarchs will likely urge Donald Trump to punish Australia for the government’s efforts to protect publishers from the financial harm caused by the big tech platforms’ use of news content from established media companies.

It is the same playbook used by the big US pharmaceutical companies to fight back against Australia’s Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and similar programs in other countries. Australia has so far dodged much of Trump’s tariffs on medicines, but Trumps’ desire to punish US trade partners is unwavering.

WHO says seven confirmed or suspected cases of hantavirus on MV Hondius, including three passengers who died

• What is hantavirus, the infection thought to have killed three on cruise ship?

A British crew member was in need of urgent medical care and a passenger from the UK remained in a critical but stable condition following a suspected outbreak of hantavirus on a luxury cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

Three people have died and medics on Monday were scrambling to evacuate two others from the MV Hondius, which set off in March from southern Argentina carrying 149 people from 23 countries. The crisis emerged late on Sunday after the World Health Organization (WHO) said it was investigating a suspected outbreak.

Ketanji Brown Jackson blasted the decision, saying the court has hastened it ruling only twice before in 25 years

The US supreme court went out of its way on Monday to help Louisiana Republicans redraw their congressional maps before this year’s midterm elections by allowing a recent ruling that gutted a key part of the Voting Rights Act to take effect ahead of schedule.

The procedural move comes less than a week after the court’s landmark decision striking down Louisiana’s congressional map and gutting section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Usually, the court waits 32 days to formally issue its judgment to the lower court. Last week, Louisiana asked the court to speed up that process, citing the urgency with which it needed to redraw its congressional maps. On Monday, the court agreed to do so.

Two U.S. Navy destroyers transited the Strait of Hormuz and entered the Persian Gulf after navigating an Iranian barrage, according to defense officials.

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle for May 5, No. 1,781.

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for May 5, No. 793.

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for May 5, No. 588.

Hundreds of Minuteman III nuclear missile silos dot the landscape from Colorado up to the Canadian border, but a major transition is underway.

A trial in the lawsuit between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni was set to begin later in May.

Iran launched attacks on the UAE and tankers in the Strait of Hormuz while the U.S. destroyed Iranian boats "that attempted to interfere" with Project Freedom.

Suit alleges that Hong Kong-based Justin Sun engaged in a campaign to ‘torch’ the company’s reputation

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World Liberty Financial, the crypto venture co-founded by Donald Trump and his sons, said on Monday it had filed a defamation lawsuit in Florida state court against the Hong Kong-based crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, as a dispute escalates between the project and one of its most prominent backers.

World Liberty posted a copy of its lawsuit on X in which it accused Sun of launching a “public smear campaign”. It alleged that Sun had improperly transferred some of his WLFI tokens that come with voting and governance rights to crypto exchange Binance and, separately, that he had placed bets that WLFI would decline in market value, known as short selling. That was part of a coordinated effort to push the token’s market price down as public trading began in September, the lawsuit alleged.

A new watch face could be a better fit than the standard Apple Watch look.

Supreme court issued a temporary order to restore access to the abortion pill mifepristone by mail on Monday

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The supreme court issued a temporary order to restore access to the abortion pill mifepristone by mail on Monday.

This comes after two companies who manufacture mifepristone the drug filed an emergency appeal to the court on Saturday asking it to halt a court decision that would require an in‑person exam before the medication can be prescribed.

At least 18 people were at hospitals following a shooting at a party at Arcadia Lake, near Oklahoma City, police say.

Government’s anti-slavery commissioner says traffickers are exploiting a growing pipeline of vulnerability

Slavery in the UK is at record levels and is expected to worsen over the next decade, the government’s independent anti-slavery commissioner has warned.

According to the number of referrals to the national referral mechanism, which assesses potential victims of slavery and provides support to victims, numbers have almost doubled in the last five years from 12,691 referrals in 2021 to 23,411 in 2025, the highest ever number.

Surfshark's new app brings "core VPN capabilities" to Amazon Fire TV devices running the new Linux-based Vega OS.

The Trump administration is reportedly considering an executive order to create a working group that could review advanced AI models before public release. The shift follows concerns over Anthropic's powerful Mythos model and its cyber capabilities, with officials weighing whether the government should get early access to frontier models without necessarily blocking their release. The New York Times reports: In meetings last week, White House officials told executives from Anthropic, Google and OpenAI about some of those plans, people briefed on the conversations said. The working group is likely to consider a number of oversight approaches, officials said. But a review process could be similar to one being developed in Britain, which has assigned several government bodies to ensure that A.I. models meet certain safety standards, people in the tech industry and the administration said. The discussions signal a stark reversal in the Trump administration's approach to A.I. Since returning to office last year, Mr. Trump has been a major booster of the technology, which he has said is vital to winning the geopolitical contest against China. Among other moves, he swiftly rolled back a Biden administration regulatory process that asked A.I. developers to perform safety evaluations and report on A.I. models with potential military applications. "We're going to make this industry absolutely the top, because right now it's a beautiful baby that's born," Mr. Trump said of A.I. at an event in July. "We have to grow that baby and let that baby thrive. We can't stop it. We can't stop it with politics. We can't stop it with foolish rules and even stupid rules." Mr. Trump left room for some rules, but he added that "they have to be more brilliant than even the technology itself." The White House wants to avoid any political repercussions if a devastating A.I.-enabled cyberattack were to occur, people in the tech industry and the administration said. The administration is also evaluating whether new A.I. models could yield cyber-capabilities that could be useful to the Pentagon and U.S. intelligence agencies, they said. To get ahead of models like Mythos, some officials are pushing for a review system that would give the government first access to A.I. models, but that would not block their release, people briefed on the talks said.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Earlier this year, Mac OS and Windows NT-capable ROMs were discovered for Apple’s unique AIX Network Server. Cameron Kaiser has since spent more time digging into just how capable these ROMs are, and has published another one of his detailed stories about his efforts.

Well, thanks to Jeff Walther who generously built a few replica ROM SIMMs for me to test, we can now try the “2.0” MacOS ROMs on holmstock, our hard-working Apple Network Server 700 test rig (stockholm, my original ANS 500, is still officially a production unit). And there are some interesting things to report, especially when we pit the preproduction ROMs and this set head-to-head in MacBench, and even try booting Rhapsody on it.

↫ Cameron Kaiser

A great read, as always.

State’s top insurance regulator says insurance company violated law while handling claims from 2025 wildfires

California is seeking millions of dollars in penalties from State Farm after an investigation found the insurance company was slow to investigate and underpaid claims from the 2025 Los Angeles-area wildfires, regulators announced on Monday.

State Farm violated the law hundreds of times in a sampling of 220 cases, the state’s insurance commissioner, Ricardo Lara, said. The maximum penalty amount allowed by law would be about $4m if State Farm is found to be “willful” in violating state law. Regulators may also temporarily suspend the company’s license, effectively prohibiting the state’s largest home insurer from writing new policies for a year in California.

The person’s condition and the circumstances surrounding the shooting were not immediately known

An individual was shot by law enforcement officers on Monday near the Washington monument, the Secret Service said. The shooting occurred shortly after JD Vance’s motorcade passed through the area.

The individual was first identified by plainclothes officers, who said he looked suspicious and was believed to be carrying a firearm, according to Matthew Quinn, the deputy director of the Secret Service. These officers called in support from uniformed agents. When the individual saw the uniformed agents, Quinn said he fled on foot, drew his gun and fired.

A new leak suggests the next base model Pixel phone will have a 50-megapixel camera.

Musk won’t have to give up any money he allegedly saved from delaying disclosure of initial purchase of Twitter stock

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Elon Musk settled the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s civil lawsuit accusing the world’s richest person of waiting too long in 2022 to disclose his initial purchases of stock in Twitter, now known as X.

A trust in Musk’s name will pay a $1.5m civil penalty, without admitting wrongdoing. Musk won’t have to give up any money he allegedly saved from the delay.

Elon Musk settled with the SEC in a case that alleged he saved $150 million in 2022 by filing paperwork disclosing purchases of Twitter shares 11 days late.

A federal judge on Monday sharply criticized the treatment of accused White House Correspondents' Dinner attacker Cole Allen, at one point apologizing to the defendant for what he saw as overly restrictive and punitive conditions in jail.

Exclusive: ‘Fish sludge’ in coastal waters now has nutrient levels equivalent to those in untreated effluent of country the size of Australia, report finds

Norwegian fish farms are filling fjords and other coastal waters with nutrient pollution equivalent to the raw sewage of tens of millions of people each year, a report has found.

Norway is the largest farmed salmon producer in the world, and nutrients in fish feed are excreted directly into coastal waters. Analysis from the Sunstone Institute found that Norwegian aquaculture released 75,000 tonnes of nitrogen, 13,000 tonnes of phosphorus and 360,000 tonnes of organic carbon in 2025.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from 404 Media: A new, bipartisan bill introduced (PDF) by Democratic Senator of California Adam Schiff and endorsed by the biggest AI developers in the world -- including OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft -- would change the K-12 curriculum to shoehorn in "AI literacy," something that young people and teachers alike already hate in schools. The Literacy in Future Technologies Artificial Intelligence, or LIFT AI Act, would empower the new director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to make grant awards "on a merit-reviewed, competitive basis to institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations (or a consortium thereof) to support research activities to develop educational curricula, instructional material, teacher professional development, and evaluation methods for AI literacy at the K-12 level," the bill says. It defines AI literacy as using AI; specifically, "having the age-appropriate knowledge and ability to use artificial intelligence effectively, to critically interpret outputs, to solve problems in an AI-enabled world, and to mitigate potential risks." The bill is endorsed by the American Federation of Teachers, Google, OpenAI, Information Technology Industry Council, Software & Information Industry Association, Microsoft, and HP Inc. [...] The grant would support "AI literacy evaluation tools and resources for educators assessing proficiency in AI literacy," according to the bill. It would also fund "professional development courses and experiences in AI literacy," and the development of "hands-on learning tools to assist in developing and improving AI literacy." Most importantly for real-world implications, it would fund changing the existing curriculum "to incorporate AI literacy where appropriate, including responsible use of AI in learning."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Apple Wallet lets you download boarding passes, concert tickets and more, but not all businesses support it.

Settlement details were not revealed in the agreement that put an end to a highly anticipated trial before it began

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Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have settled their legal dispute from the acrimonious production of their 2024 film It Ends With Us, just weeks before a highly anticipated scheduled trial.

In a joint statement on Monday, legal representatives of both parties said: “The end product – the movie It Ends With Us – is a source of pride to all of us who worked to bring it to life. Raising awareness, and making a meaningful impact in the lives of domestic violence survivors – and all survivors – is a goal that we stand behind.”

Ryan Cohen said he didn’t understand questions about how the video games retailer could afford its $55.5bn bid

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GameStop’s shares fell more than 10% on Monday as questions emerged about how the company would finance its surprise $55.5bn bid for eBay.

In an interview with CNBC, Ryan Cohen, GameStop’s CEO, skirted repeated inquiries about how the video games retailer could afford the deal, saying he didn’t understand the questions.

PM will say responsibility to stand with Jewish communities lies with ‘every one of us’ at event on Tuesday

Keir Starmer will call for a whole-of-society response to rising antisemitism on Tuesday, saying that it is not enough simply to condemn the scourge, but people “must show it” through their actions too.

Before a roundtable event at Downing Street, the prime minister will call for action on all forms of antisemitism, after a knife attack against the Jewish community in Golders Green last week, a spate of serious arson attacks and the terror incident in Heaton Park in October.

Police forcibly broke up protest outside hospital where federal immigration agents took detainee for evaluation

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New York City’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani, and other local officials on Monday condemned Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after federal officers dragged a man out of a hospital building where he had been taken following an arrest, prompting a crowd of protesters to gather outside, where they clashed with police.

The incident over the weekend has also drawn scrutiny from critics questioning the New York police department’s response at the scene, in relation to New York City’s sanctuary laws, which bar local police from assisting federal immigration authorities in civil immigration enforcement.

An ad attacking Sen. Susan Collins in Maine claimed that she voted “to raise healthcare costs and raise insurance premiums,” as well as give President Donald Trump “a blank check for his war in Iran.” But neither claim fully explains Collins’ more nuanced position on those issues.

For the healthcare claims, the ad cites her vote in September against a Democratic bill to, among other things, temporarily fund the federal government and permanently extend enhanced Affordable Care Act health insurance subsidies beyond 2025. But Collins did support extending the subsidies with some restrictions — however, she said the extension should be addressed separately from spending bills proposed to prevent or end a government shutdown.

As for the Iran war, Collins initially voted against multiple war powers resolutions filed by Democrats to require the Trump administration to get congressional authorization to continue the joint U.S.-Israeli operation that began with airstrikes on Iran in late February. But she also signaled that she would change her vote to require authorization by Congress if the conflict with Iran lasted longer than 60 days — and she did. That resolution ultimately failed.

The anti-Collins ad is being sponsored by Majority Forward, a nonprofit registered with the IRS as a 501(c)(4) issue advocacy organization. Majority Forward is aligned with Senate Democrats who hope to defeat Collins in the race for her long-held Senate seat in Maine.

Semafor reported that the liberal group is spending $600,000 to run the 30-second ad statewide. It began airing on April 23, according to AdImpact, which tracks political advertising.

Health Insurance Premiums

The ad begins with the narrator telling Mainers: “You’re already getting squeezed, because Susan Collins voted with Donald Trump to raise healthcare costs and raise insurance premiums. Now, Susan Collins voted to give Trump a blank check for his war in Iran.”

We’ll get to the Iran claim later. As we indicated, the claims about healthcare costs are not the whole story.

The ad suggests that Collins was opposed to extending the more generous insurance subsidies — which are actually premium tax credits — for those buying coverage on the ACA marketplaces. The enhanced subsidies were first passed by Democrats in 2021 as part of pandemic relief legislation. But that wasn’t the case, according to Collins, who said she favored continuing them – at least for certain people, for a limited period of time.

It’s true that she voted against a continuing resolution that Democrats proposed to fund the government, permanently extend the ACA enhanced subsidies and other things. In fact, she voted against that resolution on multiple occasions between Sept. 19 and Oct. 9.

Around that time, Collins explained her position by saying that she thought the ACA subsidies – which didn’t officially expire until year’s end – should be handled apart from a must-pass spending bill to keep the government open.

For example, addressing the subsidies in a statement to the Maine Morning Star for a Sept. 26 story, Collins said, “It is clear that we need to act on this issue, but our focus right now needs to be on avoiding a harmful government shutdown that would cause disruptions to vital programs that many Americans rely on every day.” 

And in a post on Facebook on Oct. 1, Collins encouraged her fellow senators to support the “House-passed clean, short-term funding measure” from Republicans instead of the “alternative proposal” from Democrats that she said was “full of significant partisan policy changes.”

She wrote: “We must end the government shutdown, continue our bipartisan negotiations on the annual appropriations bills, and work to find a path forward on the enhanced premium tax credits.”

In an email to us, Shawn Roderick, a spokesperson for the Collins campaign, said that during this period, the senator “was working around the clock to fund government and put an end to the harmful government shutdown” while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer “was focused on forcing these performative messaging votes” that were “full of partisan poison pills.”

In addition to temporarily funding the government and permanently extending the enhanced ACA subsidies, the spending bill introduced by Democrats would have repealed healthcare provisions in the Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act, restored certain funding being withheld by the Office of Management and Budget, and limited OMB’s authority to withhold other congressionally authorized funding. Democrats attempted to get those policy initiatives enacted by attaching them to a spending bill to fund the government.

Collins, as chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, would go on to help write the funding bill that ended the 43-day shutdown in November. But that bill did not extend the subsidies in question.

Then, in December, as time to act on the subsidies was getting short, Collins joined with a Republican colleague, Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio, to propose legislation to temporarily extend the subsidies for two years, while capping the household income threshold for eligibility at $200,000 and requiring a $25 minimum monthly premium.

“This bill would help prevent unaffordable increases in health insurance premium costs for many families by extending the Affordable Care Act enhanced premium tax credits for two years and putting a reasonable income cap on these subsidies to ensure they are going to the individuals who need them,” she said in a statement about the proposal.

That same month, Collins also voted to advance legislation introduced by Schumer that would extend the tax credits for three years. But that bill — which Collins sought to amend to include income limits — failed to receive the 60 votes necessary to move to final consideration.

In 2025, 86% of the more than 62,000 people insured through Maine’s state-based marketplace received premium tax credits, according to the health policy research organization KFF.

Lauren French, a spokesperson for Majority Forward, made the argument to us that Collins’ previous votes matter more than her words.

“The Senate doesn’t offer a lane for Sen. Collins to enable outcomes she claims to oppose and then skip accountability for her votes increasing the cost of health care and giving Donald Trump unchecked authority to wage war,” French said in an email.

Iran War

The Iran war claim is based on Collins’ previous votes against war powers resolutions that would stop military operations in Iran until Congress officially declared war or authorized the use of force. The ad cites one particular vote in March, but Collins voted against the war powers resolution multiple times.

In congressional testimony on April 29, the Pentagon’s comptroller, Jay Hurst, told Congress that the war has cost approximately $25 billion so far. But other estimates put the cost at closer to $40 billion to $50 billion, according to news reports citing unnamed U.S. officials.

In a statement released on March 4, Collins said she didn’t vote to stop the military operation that began days earlier because it was important not to allow Iran to have nuclear weapons and to show support for U.S. troops.

“Passing this resolution now would send the wrong message to Iran and to our troops,” Collins said. “At this juncture, providing unequivocal support to our service members is critically important, as is ongoing consultation by the Administration with Congress.” 

But Collins later indicated in mid-April that her position would “very likely” change if the conflict continued for more than 60 days, which, under the War Powers Act of 1973, would then require the approval of Congress.

And as the war approached the two-month mark, Collins, on April 30, voted for a war powers resolution sponsored by Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff to halt military actions against Iran unless approved by Congress. (The ad began airing before this vote, but it was still running in Maine as of at least May 3, according to AdImpact.)

“As I have said since these hostilities began, the President’s authority as Commander-in-Chief is not without limits,” Collins said in a statement put out by her Senate office. “The Constitution gives Congress an essential role in decisions of war and peace, and the War Powers Act establishes a clear 60-day deadline for Congress to either authorize or end U.S. involvement in foreign hostilities. That deadline is not a suggestion; it is a requirement.”

The statement continued: “Further military action against Iran must have a clear mission, achievable goals, and a defined strategy for bringing the conflict to a close. I voted to end the continuation of these military hostilities at this time until such a case is made.”

Collins was one of just two Republicans to vote for the resolution, but it failed 47-50.

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The post Democratic Ad Attacks Collins on Healthcare, Iran War appeared first on FactCheck.org.

You must be human to win an Academy Award.

With Windows being as old and long-running as it is, there’s a ton of old and outdated bits and pieces lurking in every nook and cranny. I have always found these old relics fascinating, especially now that over the past few years, Microsoft has attempted to replace some of those bits and pieces with modern replacements (not always to great success, but that’s another story). One of those parts of the UI that’s been virtually unchanged since the release of Windows 95 is the Run dialog, but that’s about to change: Microsoft has released a completely new Run dialog to early testers.

Windows Run, also known as the Run dialog, is a surface that has been around for over 30 years. It has become a heavily relied upon tool for developers and advanced users alike. Users have decades of muscle memory where they hit Win+R, navigate through their Run history, and hit Enter to quickly access various paths and tools. We all have our favorite tool we launch there as well. For us, some of our favorites are wt (Windows Terminal), mstsc (Remote Desktop) and winword (Microsoft Word). But it’s more than jUsT a TeXt BoX tHaT rUnS tHiNgS. The Run dialog can handle navigating both local and network file paths as well. And everything it does, it does fast. Win+R opens the run dialog seemingly instantly.

If we wanted to modernize the Run Dialog to fit the modern Windows 11 design style, we had to make sure it did everything just as well as before. We needed to maintain the same performance while also keeping the user interface minimal, just as Windows 95 intended.

↫ Clint Rutkas at the Microsoft Dev Blogs

The new Run dialog looks like it belongs in Windows 11, which is a nice improvement, but the most important part is that they actually seem to have made it a little faster. Sure, they may have only shaved off a few milliseconds from its opening time, but considering virtually everything else they’ve touched in Windows over the years got considerably slower, that’s a good showing for Microsoft. The new feature they’ve added is that by typing ~\, you can open your home directory. The one casualty is the browse button, which according to Microsoft’s data, literally nobody ever used.

I know it’s just a small thing and in the end not even a remotely consequential one, but with an operating system as old and storied as Windows, replacing these ancient parts that millions of people rely on every day absolutely fascinates me. There must be a considerable amount of pressure on the people developing something like this new Run dialog, especially with Windows’ reputation being at one of its lowest points, so it’s good to see them being able to deliver.

The new Run dialog is available today for testers, and if you’re on the Windows Insider Experimental Channel, you can enable it in Settings > System > Advanced. Coincidentally, on my Windows 11 machine that I use for just one stupid video game, this Advanced page displays a loading spinner for five minutes and then just dies. Also, Notepad won’t start (one time it showed this dialog), and using the terminal to load it causes the old Win32 version of Notepad to open after 5 minutes of waiting, which then hangs and crashes.

People pay money for this.

Experts warn that the legislation could lead to websites banning all VPN addresses due to technical limitations.

Here are the highly rated series you should stream on HBO Max, plus new additions in May.

Google's Pixel 11 lineup could see RAM cuts or lower starting configurations because of the global memory shortage, with leaks suggesting the base model may drop from 12GB to 8GB while Pro models could add 12GB versions below the current 16GB tier. The Verge reports: There will be 16GB configurations available for each, but adding a lower-spec model could mean the 16GB version is getting a price hike. However, the silver lining is that the specs from MysticLeaks also include camera upgrades and brighter displays for the Pro models. The RAM shortage is pushing other phone makers, including Samsung, to raise prices, too.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Cole Allen was isolated from other inmates, denied a Bible and placed on suicide watch despite showing no suicidal tendencies

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A US judge on Monday apologized to the man accused of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump for the “legally deficient” treatment he has faced in a Washington DC, jail, including being placed on suicide watch, separated from other inmates and denied a Bible.

The US magistrate judge Zia Faruqui said he was disturbed by the conditions for Cole Allen, who allegedly fired a shotgun during a foiled attack on Trump and senior officials in his administration at a 25 April press gala. The judge said the conditions were inappropriate for a person with no criminal history.

Star Wars Day is here and May the 4th brings fantastic deals, new products and sometimes new announcements. We've been picking the best of the bunch all day.

The 2026 Pride Edition Sport Loop marks a milestone year for Apple and its outgoing CEO.

The respected HPC analyst discusses HLRS’s leading role in supporting industry and why he finds developments in European HPC over the last decade so exciting.

May 4, 2026 — Steve Conway is a veteran in the field of high-performance computing and artificial intelligence. As a market analyst at IDC, Hyperion Research, and Intersect360 Research, he has spent 40 years consulting with leaders across the international HPC landscape, publishing insights into key trends in the field and recommendations for exploiting the opportunities that HPC and AI could offer.

A respected HPC industry analyst, Steve Conway has for many years consulted with HLRS to gain insights into the trends driving the field of high-performance computing.

Conway has also had a long relationship with HLRS, drawing on its expertise in his efforts to forecast HPC’s future. He recently visited Stuttgart, where HLRS spoke with him about the growth of HPC capabilities in Europe, how scientific and industrial uses of HPC complement one another, the rise of artificial intelligence, and current challenges that Europe faces in its effort to achieve digital sovereignty.

HLRS: How did you first encounter HLRS and what has been your relationship with the center over the years?

Steve Conway: In my early days as an analyst of the high-performance computing industry, I quickly learned that HLRS was one of only three or four HPC centers in the world that was seriously and successfully working with companies, and I wanted to learn more about it. Around 1999 I was working for the HPC industry analysis firm IDC when the United States government asked us to start a user group that was not tied to a specific hardware vendor. We wanted to include international users and needed to find places that were appropriate for holding conferences, and every couple of years we would meet in Stuttgart. In 2010, the European Commission asked us to prepare a first-ever Europe-wide HPC strategy, and I led its preparation. HLRS’s director, Michael Resch, was one of six reviewers of the report. The Commission disseminated the European HPC strategy paper in 2012 and in 2014 they asked us to measure progress, so we did another massive study. Again, HLRS was a very important source, and since then has continued to be one.

In November 2025 you published an article in HPCWire in which you named the rise of European high-performance computing as the most exciting development you have witnessed in your career. Why do you feel this way?

Governments have for a long time recognized HPC as something that is important for scientific research. At some point they also saw its value for industrial research. They hadn’t made the leap to the natural next conclusion, however, which is that high-performance computing is also important for economic competitiveness and GDP growth. After we worked on the second study for the EU, I read the proposal that ultimately went to the European Parliament for funding. What I found remarkable was that while they hardly talked about science, and just a little bit about industry, they spoke a lot about economic competitiveness. I thought that was really smart. For the first time, they were talking the funders’ language, and it made a gigantic difference.

You also wrote about the impact of PRACE and, more recently, the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking in implementing this pan-European HPC strategy.

PRACE started as a collaboration among four countries, and very early they did something that nobody realized would turn out to be so powerful: They characterized European HPC centers according to their supercomputing capabilities. There were national Tier 0 centers — like HLRS — and other centers were categorized as Tier 1 and Tier 2. This made it possible to start thinking on a European scale. This scheme has persisted, and has even been adopted in other countries like Australia.

In our 2014 study of European progress in HPC, we said that if Europe wanted to be globally important in this field, it would have to be prepared to buy a couple of exascale computers. At the time there was no way to do that, though. We recommended increasing how much the European Commission could contribute to purchasing a large supercomputer from 20% to 50%, and changing the rules to allow member states to collaborate economically. All of a sudden the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking had the tools it needed. This decision enabled multiple member states to work closely with each other, and to propose large supercomputers as a team. This was extremely important for Europe, because traditionally the big six economies had controlled the supercomputer scene, creating a division between wealthy and less wealthy countries. The changes implemented by the JU went a long way towards solving the rich/poor, north/south, east/west problem that had plagued European HPC for years.

As you know, HLRS has been managing the projects EuroCC and CASTIEL, which established a Europe-wide network of national competency centers for HPC and AI. The projects have promoted collaboration and the adoption of best practices across all NCCs. How do you see the impact of these initiatives?

Once the national competence centers were selected, it was suddenly clear that competencies were extremely different in different places. By bringing countries across Europe together to coordinate and share expertise, EucoCC and CASTIEL have been working to address these discrepancies. Plus, even though many consider English the lingua franca for high-performance computing, that might not be the case in some countries. The ability to draw on other regions’ expertise in HPC and AI, while also being able to translate this knowledge within your own cultural setting has become an important component for advancing Europe’s HPC strategy.

Reading your 2012 European strategy paper more than 10 years later, many of the needs you identified have since been addressed in one way or another. In what areas is improvement still needed?

Thinking about a European strategy leads to the discussion of sovereignty. HPC is increasingly considered to be a strategic resource, which means that you can’t afford to be too dependent on foreign sources for it, because political relations are uncertain. What does sovereignty mean, though? For Europe this has meant working to develop a homegrown supply chain, a process that is well underway. There are still some missing pieces, though. For example, if you’re going to have a completely sovereign market that is walled off with trade barriers, you’d better have at least two competent vendors in each product category so that there is competitive bidding and innovation. Currently, Europe has just one major vendor of its own that is capable of building HPC systems. Processor initiatives are also very important, and Europe is still at the beginning of that trajectory.

Another important question is that if you have a sovereign market, what’s the size of that market? How many vendors can that market sustain at a world-class level? And how many requirements within that geography can be incorporated into your product? There is a tension between protectionism and wanting your vendors to have as large a market as possible. Success means selling to a global market, which also means needing to address a wider range of requirements. One of the things that companies like IBM and Cray learned early is that the only way to produce a world-class product is get it into the hands of users around the world. This is how you identify requirements, which you can then embed in next-generation products.

In practical terms, complete sovereignty is unachievable. Nobody, for example, can build a processor without relying on non-indigenous capabilities, such as manufacturing in Taiwan, supplies of materials like lithium, or advanced lithography from the Netherlands. In this sense, the goal can not be complete independence, but rather complete confidence that your local and nonlocal sources are as secure and as uninterruptible as possible. Pragmatism is also very important for sovereignty.

You talked earlier about HPC for industry as an area where HLRS has been very active. How have interactions between the academic and industrial worlds changed over your career?

I became interested in the topic of HPC for industry in about 2003, when I led National Science Foundation-funded studies for the Council on Competitiveness in Washington. Most clients at the NSF are small to medium-sized universities, and when we polled their HPC users and the businesses that were using their systems, we discovered that programs for industry access to HPC already existed and were wildly successful. Satisfaction scores, both for companies and the HPC centers serving them, were above 90 percent. This was not what the NSF wanted to hear, though. Their systems were all oversubscribed, with demand from the academic community often two to three times their existing capacity. The last thing they wanted to hear was that they should spend more energy marketing HPC usage to industry. I took this as an important lesson, though.

When we did another study for NSF in 2016-17, I pointed out that many universities were trying to attract industry due to pressure from their local economic development councils and governments. And they were failing terribly because they didn’t know how to do it. This led us to recommended conducting a study to gather best practices in providing HPC for industry. We told them that we were aware of HPC centers — including HLRS — that know how to do it and that it could be very helpful to disseminate that understanding. When we were working on that report, HLRS was very helpful in providing input.

What benefits have you observed when academic HPC centers work with industry?

When we began the study it was already clear that access to HPC gives companies the ability to develop superior products in shorter timeframes. But what about the benefits for HPC centers? We heard very consistent responses. The biggest advantage was that working with industry enabled the centers to identify new pathways for science. The second was that scientists love working on real-world problems, not just theoretical problems. Being able to incorporate industry applications into the mix helped the HPC centers attract and retain staff scientists and HPC center personnel.

We were shocked by these findings, because a lot of times the mindset within governments was that opening access to companies was a “mercy move.” They thought valuable resources were being wasted to address trivial problems. It turned out that industrial problems are often just as challenging as scientific problems, and that even the scientists endorsed this view. HLRS made important contributions to this study because it has been one of the few centers — not just in Europe, but in the world — that really understands these things.

An important component of the European AI Factories initiative, which includes HammerHAI, is also to support industry, SMEs, and start-ups. What role do you see them playing?

AI is still in a very exploratory stage and the number one question at the moment is what the borders are between frontier AI and enterprise AI. When you look closely, frontier AI is running on HPC technology, using everything from HPC infrastructure to MPI, a classic parallel programming standard. They’ve hired a lot of people with HPC backgrounds to run their programs, and so there’s a tight and enduring connection. What is happening in typical business enterprises, though, is almost exclusively focused on increasing individual productivity, and rarely on accelerating new corporate initiatives. These companies will be looking to frontier AI organizations like HLRS and HammerHAI for new ideas to apply to corporate initiatives.

The other interesting thing about frontier AI is that different technologies are going to be well integrated. For companies like social networks that’s not so important, as they are doing pure AI, but for the scientific and industrial research communities that have used HPC, sites like HLRS are going to play a very important role in combining technologies like AI and quantum computing in interesting ways.

Are there any other big issues that you think could affect how HPC develops in the coming years?

The last piece of the puzzle to me is what’s happening in the United States. At the moment we’ve got a government that is actively combating facts and scientific research. That has expressed itself by making significant cuts to staffing and funding for scientific agencies that have traditionally have done a lot to advance HPC and AI, including the agency that uses HPC to monitor America’s nuclear weapons. If this continues unabated, then progress in the United States compared with Europe, China, and Japan could slow. That could change a lot of things, including investment incentives in Europe.

I happen to believe that the country or region that wins will be the one that is best at attracting the best and brightest people from throughout the world. All of a sudden, droves of international students who would have traveled to the US for graduate level education are not coming. It would be very interesting for Europe to develop an initiative to attract them.

— Interview by Christopher Williams, HLRS

This interview has been edited from the original conversation for readability.

Source: Christopher Williams, HLRS

The post HLRS Interview with Steve Conway: Strength Through Cooperation appeared first on HPCwire.

Advance Registration Now Open through June 26, 2026

LONG BEACH, Calif., May 4, 2026 – As artificial intelligence fundamentally transforms semiconductor design and system innovation, DAC, The Chips to Systems Conference, will convene in Long Beach, California, at the Long Beach Convention Center, July 26–29, 2026, for the first time in its 63-year history. It marks a milestone year defined by record participation and an AI-driven shift across the design ecosystem.

The 63rd DAC 2026 reflects a market at an inflection point, with record growth in both the Research and Engineering Tracks and a rapidly expanding focus on AI-enabled design. This year’s conference features over 550 technical sessions and an exhibition of 120+ companies, including 15 first time AI-focused design companies, underscoring the industry’s transition toward intelligent, software-defined design flows.

“DAC 2026 highlights a pivotal moment where AI is no longer augmenting design, it is redefining it,” said Renu Mehra, General Chair, DAC. “We’re seeing record growth in both research and engineering participation, alongside an explosion of innovation from AI-driven startups and established leaders. From silicon to systems, the entire design stack is being reimagined.”

Keynotes: From Quantum Systems to AI-Driven Infrastructure

DAC 2026 keynotes spotlight the convergence of AI, advanced computing, and next-generation system design:

• John Martinis, CTO & Co-Founder, Qolab and 2025 Nobel Laureate in Physics
  “From Fundamental Science to Building a Superconducting Quantum Computer”
• Dr. Baaziz Achour, EVP and CTO, Qualcomm
  “Design Automation for Emerging AI: From AI Chips to Datacenter”
• Jan M. Rabaey, Professor Emeritus, UC Berkeley
  “Engineering Life – Where Biology and Technology Meet”

SKYTalks: Scaling AI from Silicon to Systems

DAC SKYTalks bring executive insight into how AI is reshaping semiconductor innovation:

• Sunday Welcome SKYTalk: Timothy Costa, General Manager and Vice President of computational engineering, NVIDIA
  “AI Supercomputing Meets EDA: Accelerating the Future of Chip and System Design”
• Lalitha Immaneni, VP, Semiconductor Research & Development, APTM, Intel
  “From Silicon to Systems: Heterogeneous Integration as the Engine of AI Performance”
• Dr. Huiming Bu, VP, Global Semiconductor, IBM Research
  “From 7nm to 7Å: A Retrospective Looking into the Future”
• Artour Levin, VP, AI Silicon Engineering, Microsoft
  “EDA Opportunities in Building High Performance AI Accelerators”

AI at DAC: From Research to Real-World Deployment

AI at DAC:

• 40% of the technical program focused on AI and design
• 26%+ growth in both Research and Engineering Track submissions
• Significant expansion in AI-driven design, verification, and system optimization
• 15 AI-focused exhibitors showcasing next-generation tools and platforms
• Startups advancing agentic AI, generative design, and autonomous workflows

Technical Program: Record Growth Signals Industry Shift

DAC 2026 delivers its most comprehensive technical program to date:

• All Research Track Sessions reflecting record submissions (30.7%) and acceptance growth
• Global representation – 23+ countries represented throughout the program
• Engineering Track Sessions spanning design, IP, systems, and software
• Manuscript, Work-In-Progress (WIP) and Late Breaking News (LBR) poster sessions highlighting emerging innovation
• Increasing convergence of AI, systems, and software design methodologies

Exhibit Floor: The Center of AI-Driven Design Innovation

The DAC exhibit hall, open Monday through Wednesday starting at 10:00 AM, will feature:

• 120+ exhibitors across EDA, IP, AI, and semiconductor ecosystems
• Startups driving next-generation innovation
• 15 AI-first companies redefining design automation
• Daily Exhibit Forum presentations
• DAC Pavilion SKYTalks, TechTalks, panels
• DAC Pavilion Analyst talks Monday and Tuesday
• Engineering Track posters and Poster Gladiator competition

Networking and Community Engagement

DAC will host evening networking events throughout the conference, bringing together leaders from across academia, industry, and the startup ecosystem to foster collaboration at scale.

Registration and Additional Information

Registration for DAC 2026 is now open, with multiple pass options including Full Conference, Engineering Track, and complimentary I LOVE DAC expo passes. Advance registration ends June 26, 2026.

For more information, visit: www.dac.com.

Source: DAC

The post DAC 2026 Heads to Long Beach This July as AI Drives Growth Across Chip Design appeared first on HPCwire.

The cheapest M4 Mac Mini variant has been completely dropped from Apple's product lineup. Previously, more expensive Mac Mini and Mac Studio configs have disappeared from the store.

Visit focused on individual student artworks developed using OSC’s AI and high performance computing environment.

COLUMBUS, Ohio, May 4, 2026 — A new cohort of Ohio University Digital Art and Technology students visited the Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) last fall to explore how high performance computing and artificial intelligence can support contemporary creative practice.

Ohio University Digital Art students pose with the Ascend cluster during a tour of the Ohio Supercomputer Center’s data center in Columbus. Instructor Basil Masri Zada stands fifth from right.

Led by Ohio University faculty member Basil Masri Zada, the class toured OSC’s data center and engaged with the same AI-powered creative tools used during a previous student collaboration in 2024. After the tour, each participant worked with OSC’s AI resources to produce a unique digital artwork.

Students used OSC’s advanced computing environment to rapidly prototype, refine, and iterate on their concepts—an experience that highlights how access to shared HPC infrastructure can expand creative possibilities for artists.

The resulting works represent a wide range of visual approaches and personal themes and will be displayed as individual pieces within the OSC data center. The student artwork showcases the breadth of experimentation and creativity made possible through the collaboration.

This recurring partnership reflects OSC’s continued commitment to supporting emerging and non-traditional uses of advanced computing, while giving students real-world experience creating work connected to an active research facility.

Contributing artists include:

• Jorge Castillo Castro
• Wren Denny
• Hannah Knerr
• Minjoon Lee
• Shima Mousavizadeh Markieh
• Sara Pirahmadian
• Nesa Rasouli
• Addie Smith
• Gregg Sullivan
• Jabin Tasmin
• Elise Wrage
• Natalie Yan

The individual artwork created by each participant can be seen here.

About OSC

The Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) addresses the rising computational demands of academic and industrial research communities by providing a robust shared infrastructure and proven expertise in advanced modeling, simulation and analysis. OSC empowers scientists with the services essential to making extraordinary discoveries and innovations, partners with businesses and industry to leverage computational science as a competitive force in the global knowledge economy and leads efforts to equip the workforce with the key technology skills required for 21st century jobs.

Source: Lexi Biasi, OSC

The post Ohio University Students Return to OSC for AI-Driven Digital Art Showcase appeared first on HPCwire.

Russia on Monday declared a unilateral ceasefire with Ukraine between May 8-9, when Moscow marks its annual World War II Victory Day commemorations​.

AMD is preparing expanded HDMI 2.1 support for Linux, following earlier delays after the HDMI Forum rejected an open source implementation of HDMI 2.1 as proprietary technology. As GamingOnLinux reports, AMD developer Harry Wentland submitted a patch series to the Linux kernel mailing list, noting that it brings "HDMI FRL support to the amdgpu display driver" and that "DSC is still being tested and will be sent out later." A forum post on Phoronix from an AMD driver developer also said "a full implementation will ultimately be available once the patches are ready and have completed compliance testing."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Genesis Mission was launched by the Department of Energy seven months ago to propel the nation forward into the realm of AI for science and engineering. The mission is currently underway, and the nation’s top scientists at National Labs, universities, and the private sector are working on projects. Headed by the DOE’s Undersecretary for Science Darío Gil, the Genesis Mission has multiple pieces, some of which are in place and some of which are being built and coming online as we write this.

Department of Energy’s Undersecretary of Science Darío Gil spoke to HPCwire in February

Here are the main components of the Genesis Mission:

• American Science and Security Platform (ASSP) – The ASSP is the overarching program within Genesis Mission that provides the centralized digital and physical infrastructure across all 17 DOE National Labs. DOE announced $320 million in funding for the ASSP last December. The ASSP includes the various new supercomputers that the DOE has announced, including Discovery and Lux, which the DOE announced last October and will go into Oak Ridge National Laboratory; and Equinox and Solstice, which also were announced in October and will go into Argonne National Lab. You can read more about the ASSP here.
• American Science Cloud (AmSC) – The AmSC is the secure, integrated cloud environment that links the DOE supercomputers, facilities, and AI systems that are part of the ASSP platform. While it was formally announced before Genesis Mission (like the new DOE supercomputers discussed above), it been incorporated into the Genesis Mission. Much of the work on AmSC, which received $40 million in funding from the DOE for 2026, is being spearheaded by Oak Ridge National Lab. You can read more about it here.
• Transformational AI Models Consortium (ModCon) – ModCon is an effort to curate existing scientific data from the national labs for AI, to create new data for AI, and to create AI models that advance AI for science and engineering efforts. ModCom was launched with $30 million in funding by the DOE for 2026, and is being led by Argonne National Lab along with PNNL.
  

  Discovery is a leadership-class machine that is slated to go into Oak Ridge by 2029

Beyond these main components, the DOE has announced dozens of challenges and projects that are part of Genesis Mission, including 14 DOE-led robotics projects, 26 National Science and Technology Challenges, and more broadly, 37 Foundational AI awards, which were announced December 10, 2025 as part of the DOE’s $320 million funding for fiscal 2026.

• Robotics and Automation — The DOE has identified 14 projects in the area of robotics and automated laboratories to bring into the Gensis Mission. Projects include Orchestrated Platform for Autonomous Laboratories (OPAL), a four-lab project headed by PNNL that’s tasked with utilizing AI agents and robotic hardware to automate the “design-build-test-learn” cycle, with a focus on biological science and engineering; Autonomous Characterization of Materials Across Scales (ACMAS), a new project targeting the modernization of nuclear materials that’s headed by PNNL; and Synergistic Neutron and Photon Autonomous Science – Imaging (SYNAPS-I), a Lawrence Berkeley Lab project to accelerate autonomous imaging and data analysis; among others.
• National Science and Technology Challenges — In February, the DOE announced 26 primary National Science and Technology Challenges as part of Genesis Mission. The 26 challenges target specific problems, such as discovering quantum algorithms, optimizing building construction, and scaling the electrical grid. You can read more about them here.
• Foundational AI Awards — The DOE has identified 37 Foundational AI Awards that are focused on data and model development. You can read the full list of awards here.

Beyond these core Genesis Mission components and projects, there are various internal teams described by DOE as critical to the mission. There is also the Genesis Mission Consortium, as well as closely aligned third-party groups, such as the Trillion Parameter Consortium. These include:

Image courtesy DOE

• The Genesis Mission Data Team is a specialized group within DOE and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) responsible for curating, connecting, and securing scientific data.
• The Genesis Mission Models Team is responsible for delivering a portfolio of AI models, agents, and tools for use across HPC, experimental facilities, and production environments.
• The Gensis Mission Infrastructure Team delivers the software and hardware infrastructure for the ASSP platform sitting across 17 DOE labs and NNSA facilities.
• The Genesis Mission Consortium is a public-private partnership focused on advancing AI-driven scientific discovery and innovation unveiled by the DOE in February. The consortium will be operated and administered by TechWerx. You can learn more about it here.
• Trillion Parameter Consortium is an independent group that is aligned with Genesis Mission and has received DOE funding. Undersecretary Gil will be keynoting the group’s upcoming all-hands meeting and conference, TPC26, which takes place May 31 through June 3 in Baltimore, Maryland.

The DOE is moving forward with Genesis Mission projects. The deadline for Phase 1 projects, which can result in up to $750,000 in research funding over nine months, was last week. Interested parties have another two weeks to submit their applications for Phase 2 projects, which are more involved and can range up to $15 million over three years. For a full list of the DOE’s informational webinars for Genesis Mission, click here.

Related Items:

Genesis Mission Now Accepting Applications to Fund AI-for-Science Projects

Dario Gil at GTC: DOE’s Genesis Mission Moving from Vision to Execution

Inside the DOE’s 26 AI Challenges for Genesis Mission

First Genesis Mission Supercomputers on Track to Launch by June. ‘Unprecedented’ Speed, DOE’s Darío Gil Says

Here’s What’s Inside DOE’s $320 Million Genesis Mission Investment

Genesis Mission: America’s Strategic Shift in AI for Science

Here’s What We Know About the DOE’s New Genesis Mission

Pres. Trump Unveils ‘Genesis Mission’ to Accelerate AI for Scientific Discovery

The post Inside the DOE’s Genesis Mission: Core Components appeared first on HPCwire.

ProPublica and Local Reporting Network partner The Connecticut Mirror won the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting for what judges described as “an impressive series exposing how the state’s unique towing laws favored unscrupulous companies that overcharged residents, prompting swift and meaningful consumer protections.” It is the ninth Pulitzer for ProPublica. 

A series about how the Food and Drug Administration has for years allowed risky drugs to enter the United States was named a finalist in the investigative reporting category, and a series about the fallout from the destruction of the U.S. Agency for International Development was named a finalist in the explanatory reporting category. They are the 13th and 14th Pulitzer finalists in 18 years.

In “On the Hook,” CT Mirror reporters Dave Altimari and Ginny Monk exposed a wide range of abuses committed by towing companies across the state — due in part to a lack of oversight from the Department of Motor Vehicles — and how Connecticut’s laws had come to favor the companies at the expense of low-income residents. Towing companies could start the process to sell people’s cars in as little as 15 days if the company deemed the car to be worth less than $1,500. The window was one of the shortest in the country, CT Mirror and ProPublica found, and meant many people who couldn’t afford to quickly pay the towing fees frequently lost their cars.

Through a long public records battle, complex data analysis by Sophie Chou and Haru Coryne, and innovative engagement reporting, the reporters discovered that tow truck companies were drastically undervaluing cars compared with the book value, allowing them to sell vehicles more quickly. They revealed that towing companies often held on to people’s belongings, including work equipment and mementos that had sentimental value, as leverage to get them to pay exorbitant fees. The companies were also not abiding by a law that requires them to hold onto the profits of sold cars and turn them over to the state so owners can claim the money — because the DMV never set up a system to collect it.

Within 24 hours of the first story, Connecticut DMV leadership announced it was reviewing towing practices, and lawmakers quickly proposed a bill overhauling the state’s century-old towing statutes. Nearly every issue Altimari and Monk wrote about was included in the bill, which passed in May 2025 with nearly unanimous bipartisan support. Towing companies must now give people warning before removing vehicles from apartment parking lots unless there’s a safety issue, accept credit cards for fees, let people claim their belongings and wait at least 30 days before selling cars. A DMV task force created by the legislature to study how towing companies handle profits has expanded its scope to other parts of the law, and just last week, the state Senate passed a bill that would create an online portal so Connecticut drivers can track their towed cars and require towing companies to consider the age of towed vehicles before they’re sold.

“Our investigation of Connecticut towing companies is exactly what we envisioned when we created the Local Reporting Network,” said Charles Ornstein, ProPublica’s managing editor for local.  “Start with strong local journalists who have good ideas, give them the time and resources to pursue them to their fullest potential, add to the mix ProPublica’s top-notch editing and specialty teams and watch what happens.” Since the Local Reporting Network’s launch in 2018, ProPublica has partnered with nearly 100 newsrooms supporting in-depth reporting in communities across the United States.

In “Rx Roulette,” reporters Debbie Cenziper, Megan Rose and Brandon Roberts uncovered how a secret group inside the FDA has quietly allowed dangerous drugmakers to continue selling generic medications from known substandard overseas factories that have been banned from the U.S. market. The agency failed to warn doctors or patients about the exempted drugs and did not routinely test these drugs for safety or quality, putting the public at risk.

The series also revealed that basic information about where generic drugs are made is fragmented, obscured and effectively inaccessible to consumers — making it impossible for people to see if their medications are made at troubled factories — even though generics account for about 90% of U.S. prescriptions. The team, which included members of ProPublica’s data and news apps teams and over a dozen students from Northwestern University’s Medill Investigative Lab, interviewed more than 300 people, filed almost 40 Freedom of Information Act requests and sued the FDA to obtain records, ultimately constructing a publicly available database of 40,000 generic medications and their factory inspection histories — the first comprehensive list of drugs shipped from banned factories. 

Citing ProPublica’s investigation, the Senate Special Committee on Aging has demanded the FDA conduct more drug testing and alert hospitals and other purchasers when manufacturers with safety failures are given exemptions from import bans. Senators are also calling for an immediate accounting of the exemptions. A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation in February that requires drug labels to identify where the medication was made, bringing  more transparency and accountability to the generic drug industry.

As the Trump administration dismantled the nation’s long-standing foreign aid system, USAID, ProPublica reporters Anna Maria Barry-Jester and Brett Murphy documented the deadly global fallout and identified the Trump officials directly responsible in “The End of Aid.” They connected the resulting harm, including deaths of people who depended on the aid, to the U.S. policymakers and political appointees responsible for the cuts. The reporters then traveled to war-torn South Sudan to document the return of cholera after essential services stopped and to Kenya’s Kakuma refugee camp, where more than 300,000 people saw their food rations cut after the U.S. severed funding for the World Food Program.

The stories sparked immediate outcry. Experts, attorneys, nonprofits and lawmakers asked the Trump administration to change course, and ProPublica’s reporting was cited in legal filings and congressional inquiries challenging the dismantling of USAID. Rep. Gregory Meeks, ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, sent multiple letters to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, citing the coverage and pressing him to explain his claim before Congress that no deaths had resulted from the administration’s actions.

After Barry-Jester and Murphy discovered that USAID staff were told to shred and burn classified documents, legal experts filed complaints with the National Archives, and Democracy Forward and the Public Citizen Litigation Group filed a motion for an emergency temporary restraining order to stop the destruction of federal records. And after ProPublica raised questions about an Agent Orange cleanup in Vietnam that had stalled due to USAID funding cuts, putting hundreds of thousands at risk for poisoning, the project received some U.S. funds to continue operating.

“We are proud to be doing work that brings accountability at the state, national and international level,” said Stephen Engelberg, ProPublica’s editor in chief. “Our two finalists and winning entry with The Connecticut Mirror demonstrate yet again the power of investigative reporting to expose wrongs and spur changes in the lives of ordinary people.”

ProPublica received Pulitzers for public service in 2025,  public service in 2024, national reporting in 2020, feature writing in 2019, public service in 2017, explanatory reporting in 2016, national reporting in 2011 and investigative reporting in 2010. Local Reporting Network partner Anchorage Daily News won the Pulitzer for public service in 2020. Read about our other projects that have been designated as finalists.

Project Credits

“On the Hook”: Shahrzad Rasekh, José Luis Martínez, Asia Fields, Elizabeth Hamilton, Michael Grabell, Shoshana Gordon, Peter DiCampo, Rachel Molenda, Sarah Blustain, Charles Ornstein, Ken B. Morales, Agnel Philip, Ryan Little, Hannah Fresques, Alissandra Calderon, Olivia Walton, Ariana Tobin, Stephen Busemeyer, Andrew Brown, Anuj Shrestha, Julia Rothman, Grace Palmieri, Kristine Malicse, Gabby DeBenedictis, Diego Sorbara, Emily Goldstein, Colleen Barry, Jack Putterman, Roman Broszkowski and Ryanne Mena contributed to the series.

“Rx Roulette”: Kevin Uhrmacher, Ruth Talbot, Alison Kodjak, Nick Varchaver, Alexandra Zayas, Tracy Weber, Caitlin Kelly, Ken Schwenke, Lucas Waldron, Ashley Clarke, Nick McMillan, Carissa Quiambao, Haley Clark, Joanna Shan, Diego Sorbara, Colleen Barry, Emily Goldstein, Lisa Larson-Walker, Anna Donlan, Grace Palmieri, Kassie Navarro, Sam Cooney, Chris Morran, Isabelle Yan, Jeff Frankl, Pratheek Rebala, Andrea Suozzo, Al Shaw, Alec Glassford, Irena Hwang, Nat Lash, Aaron Brezel, Melody Kramer, Alice Crites, Vidya Krishnan and Andrea Wise contributed to the series.

Students from the Medill Investigative Lab in Washington, D.C., also contributed:  Haajrah Gilani, Emma McNamee, Julian Andreone, Isabela Lisco, Aidan Johnstone, Megija Medne, Yiqing Wang, Phillip Powell, Gideon Pardo, Casey He, Lindsey Byman, Josh Sukoff, Kunjal Bastola, Shae Lake, Alyce Brown, Katherine Dailey, Anavi Prakash, Jessie Nguyen, Sinyi Au, Zhiyu Solstice Luo, Kate McQuarrie, Sadie Leite, Victoria Malis, Tianyi Wang, Gabby Shell, Zara Norman and Naisha Roy.

“The End of Aid”: Sarah Childress, Jesse Eisinger, Tracy Weber, Stephen Engelberg, Lisa Larson-Walker, Boyzell Hosey, Alex Bandoni, Peter DiCampo, Lena Groeger, Chris Alcantara, Chris Morran, Alexis Stephens, Alex Mierjeski, Molly Redden, Maryam Jameel, Ashley Clarke, Pratheek Rebala, Emily Goldstein, Olivia Walton, Diego Sorbara, Colleen Barry, Brian Otieno, Phoebe Ouma, Le Van, Yiel Awat and Ngoc Nguyen contributed to the series. The ProPublica tips truck was a key component for generating sources.

The post ProPublica and The Connecticut Mirror Win Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting appeared first on ProPublica.

Next-generation AI infrastructure delivers enterprise-scale performance at a fraction of the cost of traditional GPU alternatives

SAN DIEGO, May 4, 2026 — Cirrascale Cloud Services today announced the addition of Tenstorrent Galaxy Blackhole servers to its AI Innovation Cloud. The integration marks Tenstorrent’s entry into broad commercial deployment and expands Cirrascale’s portfolio with hardware built specifically for the demands of real-world AI.

Tenstorrent Galaxy is engineered around the metrics that matter most in production AI environments: cost per token, latency per user, and the ability to scale. Delivering industry-leading AI performance at approximately half the cost of leading GPU alternatives, Tenstorrent Galaxy opens new possibilities for organizations running inference-heavy and latency-sensitive workloads at scale.

“Cirrascale has always been focused on giving AI teams access to the best infrastructure options available, not just the most familiar ones,” said Dave Driggers, CEO of Cirrascale Cloud Services. “Tenstorrent Galaxy represents a fundamentally different approach to AI compute, and we’re proud to make it accessible through our AI Innovation Cloud.”

“AI infrastructure is hitting an inflection point. Raw FLOPs alone are no longer enough for AI compute. Tenstorrent Galaxy is purpose-built for the next phase of AI, where latency, token economics, and scale define success. Cirrascale’s AI Innovation Cloud gives customers a direct path to deploy these capabilities in production today to allow enterprise customers to increase productivity,” said Amr Elashmawi, VP of Strategy and Business Development at Tenstorrent.

Tenstorrent Galaxy unifies compute, memory, and networking into a single system architected for real-world AI workloads. Tenstorrent Galaxy tops video generation, large-context LLM inference in both prefill and decode, and the full range of model architectures shipping today. Tenstorrent delivers a complete solution spanning hardware, software, and deployment, which reduces integration complexity for customers who need to move quickly.

Tenstorrent Galaxy integrates with open-source frameworks, and supports rapid model bring-up, enabling customers to deploy production AI systems without vendor lock-in or proprietary stacks. 90% of models from HuggingFace just work on Tenstorrent hardware. With this launch, Tenstorrent enters broad commercial deployment through Cirrascale’s AI Innovation Cloud.

Cirrascale’s bare-metal delivery model ensures customers get direct, unvirtualized access to Tenstorrent Galaxy hardware, with the performance consistency and operational transparency that enterprise and research teams require.

Tenstorrent Galaxy Blackhole is available through the Cirrascale AI Innovation Cloud. Organizations interested in evaluating the platform can visit https://www.cirrascale.com/tenstorrent.

More from HPCwire: Tenstorrent Announces General Availability of Galaxy Blackhole AI System

About Tenstorrent

Tenstorrent is an AI compute company led by CEO Jim Keller — architect of Apple A4/A5, AMD Zen, and Tesla’s Full Self-Driving chip. The company builds RISC-V-based AI processors and systems for developers, enterprises, and sovereign infrastructure worldwide. In addition to servers and workstations, Tenstorrent licenses its Ascalon RISC-V CPU and Tensix AI cores to chip designers including Samsung and LG. Backed by Bezos Expeditions, Samsung, LG Electronics, Hyundai Motor Group, Fidelity, and others, Tenstorrent has raised over $1B+ and operates from Santa Clara, Austin, Toronto, Belgrade, Tokyo, and Bangalore. Visit tenstorrent.com.

Cirrascale Cloud Services

Cirrascale Cloud Services is the expert neocloud delivering cloud and managed services dedicated to providing tailored, state-of-the-art compute resources and high-speed storage solutions at scale. Our AI Innovation Cloud and Inference Platform services are purpose-built to enable clients to scale their training, fine-tuning, and inferencing workloads for Private AI, generative AI, large language models, and high-performance computing. To learn more about Cirrascale Cloud Services and its unique cloud offerings, please visit https://cirrascale.com.

Source: Cirrascale Cloud Services

The post Cirrascale Cloud Services Adds Tenstorrent Galaxy Blackhole to Its AI Innovation Cloud appeared first on HPCwire.

Kids used to draw on their faces for fun. Now, they're doing it to play Roblox.

Payments are automatic in most cases, but those with deactivated PlayStation Network accounts will have to put in more work to receive their share.

CARLSBAD, Calif., May 4, 2026 – GigaIO, a pioneer in delivering datacenter-class computing at the edge, was named to the 2026 San Diego Hardtech 50, an annual recognition by Rising Tide Partners that spotlights 50 notable hardware companies in San Diego. This list, now in its second year, spotlights the founders, teams, and companies with the region’s most exciting hardware doing real, durable work across sectors like defense, aerospace, energy, robotics, semiconductors, biotech, manufacturing, and deep tech. GigaIO was named to both the 2025 and 2026 lists.

According to Neal Bloom, managing partner of Rising Tide Partners, “Hardtech companies build physical, engineered systems that integrate hardware, software, and advanced materials to solve real-world problems. Unlike pure software startups, these companies often require longer R&D timelines, complex supply chains, and physical infrastructure to scale — but they have the potential to reshape entire industries.”

GigaIO was invited to demonstrate its hardware at the first ever SD HardTech 50 Release Party, attended by founders, engineers, operators, ecosystem-builders, and a curated group of investors interested in meeting the 50 companies honored for building physical products and solving hard problems in San Diego. Said Bloom, “San Diego is uniquely suited for this moment. Long known for its strengths in biotech, defense, aerospace, semiconductors, ocean science, and energy innovation, the region is now seeing a new generation of founders reimagining how we build, move, power, and heal in the physical world.”

GigaIO CEO Alan Benjamin was proud to have made the Hardtech 50 list twice in a row, noting “We are really pleased to continue to be recognized for the great work that our team is doing to bring leading edge technology out of the data center and closer to where the data itself is being generated and used. Knowing many of the other companies on this list, we are proud to be part of this group bringing world class innovation to San Diego.”

GigaIO was honored for “Rack-scale composable AI/HPC architecture. $21M Series B in 2025. National Research Platform selected. Building the compute fabric that lets AI clusters work without the bottlenecks that slow everything else down.”

More from HPCwire

• GigaIO Sells SuperNODE and FabreX AI Fabric to d-Matrix
• GigaIO Secures $21M to Scale AI Inferencing Infrastructure Solutions

About GigaIO

GigaIO delivers datacenter-class computing at the edge, providing meaningful AI inferencing where the data is created and where answers are actually needed. Its flagship product, Gryf, is the only portable edge AI platform capable of supporting the full range of data processing needs — from the latest agentic AI inferencing, to machine and deep learning applications, to full-featured ISR analytics — all in a form factor that you can take anywhere you go.

Source: GigaIO

The post GigaIO Recognized for Impactful AI Hardware on the San Diego Hardtech 50 List for the Second Year appeared first on HPCwire.

US operation announced as ‘Project Freedom’ dramatically raises stakes in conflict

The US has launched Donald Trump’s operation to open a route through the strait of Hormuz for hundreds of ships trapped with their crews in the Gulf, in a move that brought the region back to the brink of full-scale war as Iran sought to reassert its blockade.

The US operation, which got under way on Monday after being announced as “Project Freedom” by Trump on Sunday night on his social media site, dramatically raised the stakes in a conflict that had been in a month-long period of uneasy limbo.

Costume Art pairs couture pieces with items from its collection in exploration of many kinds of human bodies

Speaking at the opening of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute spring exhibition in New York, Anna Wintour described the first Monday in May as her “favourite day of the year, and also my most terrifying one”.

This particular Monday may be more high-stakes than previous years, with Monday night’s Met Gala for the exhibition’s launch mired in controversy, owing to Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos’s sponsorship of the event. It is also the inaugural exhibition for the Costume Institute’s new home: a 12,000 sq ft space, named the Condé M Nast Galleries, that puts the museum’s fashion exhibitions in a considerably more high-profile spot, right off its Great Hall.

The 80-year-old singer will not be performing rescheduled dates in September but assured fans she is receiving treatment and ‘improving every day’

Dolly Parton has canceled her Las Vegas residency over ongoing health issues.

The 80-year-old singer had originally been scheduled to perform six shows at Caesar’s Palace last December but moved the dates to September 2026. She has now announced on social media that she won’t be able to perform as planned.

Looking for a profitable place to park your $30,000 now? Here's how much interest you'd make with these three options.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg's Ashley Carman: Welcome to the modern era of podcasting in which thousands of new shows are released into the world every day with a sizable portion likely being AI-generated. Figuring out exactly which ones fall into that growing category is becoming more difficult just as the industry is starting to take this issue seriously. In only the past month or so, Amazon launched a feature that explains a product by generating a quasi-podcast, complete with co-hosts talking to each other and taking questions from users. Shout out to Business Insider reporter Katie Notopoulos for spotting this (and, naturally, demoing it with an adult diaper rash-cream). Not long ago, Nicholas Thompson, chief executive officer of the Atlantic, noted "podslop" dominated his Spotify search results when he typed in the word "Sora." This was around the time that OpenAI shut down its user-generated, AI-content-only app. [...] All of which raises some big, difficult questions. For one, what should the listening platforms do about this incursion? As of right now, Apple Podcasts requires creators who generated a "material portion" of their show using AI to disclose it. The platform also bans misleading or deceptive content. Spotify hasn't published any specific guidelines around AI, though it maintains general rules around dangerous and misleading content. Where this conversation gets even trickier is when it comes to money. Many of these podcasts are hosted on at least one free service that allows programs to opt into their ad marketplace with zero barrier to entry, meaning these shows (and the hosting service) profit off every listen or download. Spreaker, a company owned by iHeartMedia, is the primary one to watch here. Though it tells users to disclose when they rely on AI, it still allows those shows to opt into its programmatic ad marketplace, which pays creators 60% of the revenue generated by the ads placed in their shows. It stands to reason that most of these thousands of shows don't reach many people. But in the aggregate, the ears and dollars could add up. Are the advertisers on board with being next to AI-generated content, some of which might be deemed "slop?" There's also the question of how to define "slop." Jackson of the Podcast Index and his co-host Adam Curry treat it as something listeners simply know when they hear it, while Alberto Betella, co-founder of RSS.com, defines it as "fully automated content with no human review." Jeanine Wright, co-founder of Inception Point, rejects the debate altogether: "The people still talking about slop are still making 6-7 jokes," she said. "It's still yesterday's conversation."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Labour leadership challenge in wake of disastrous local poll results could unleash chaos in party, MPs told

Cabinet ministers have told mutinous Labour MPs that any attempt to oust Keir Starmer after a potentially disastrous set of election results this week would unleash chaos for the party that would not be easily overcome.

Several, however, told the Guardian that even with the prime minister’s determination to stay in Downing Street after Thursday’s vote, the mood on the backbenches was febrile and events could yet spiral out of control.

Tickets for Monday's Metropolitan Museum of Art event in New York City are into the six figures — if you get an invite.

Apple could release the update to the general public next week.

Ron DeSantis approves maps that give Republicans an advantage in four more races in November’s midterms

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Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor, signed a new gerrymandered congressional district map into law Monday that gives Republicans an electoral advantage in four additional races in November’s midterm elections.

“Signed, Sealed, and Delivered,” DeSantis said in a post on X, with a map of the new districts attached.

‘Deep-seated fire’ forces temporary closure of Eugene O’Neill Theatre, which is home to the long-running musical

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A fire broke out Monday in the Broadway theater that hosts the The Book of Mormon, forcing the long-running musical to close, at least temporarily, as the historic venue undergoes repairs.

The blaze, which began in an electrical room, caused “substantial damage” to the Eugene O’Neill Theatre, according to David Simms, New York fire department assistant chief. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Prime minister uses European Political Community summit to begin negotiations for UK participation in scheme

Keir Starmer has said the benefit of joining the European Union’s £78bn loan scheme for Ukraine “outweighs the cost” as he argued the continent must move at pace to bolster its own defence.

The prime minister, who said the UK’s involvement in the recovery loan plan would also help create jobs at home, acknowledged that tensions were high between Donald Trump and Europe, particularly over military issues.

Ask.com and its search-query butler mascot Jeeves are now internet history.

The British artist was booed after identifying as a Republican voter while on stage in Dallas

Rapper Kid Cudi has fired MIA from his tour after the British artist went on a rant that went viral while on stage in Dallas.

While opening up for the hip-hop artist on 2 May, MIA was booed after saying, “I’ve been canceled for many reasons. I never thought I would be canceled for being a brown Republican voter,” as reported by Variety.

Delivery truck driver emerged with minor injuries after underside of jet hit tractor trailer in New Jersey on Sunday

The driver of a delivery truck emerged with only minor injuries after his tractor trailer was struck by a passenger jet landing in New Jersey’s busy Newark airport on Sunday afternoon, officials said.

New Jersey state police said a landing tire and the underside of a United Airlines plane arriving from Venice, Italy, hit the truck in question. The Boeing 767 aircraft also clipped a light pole, which in turn struck a Jeep.

The budget airline's bankruptcy has travelers scrambling. Here are some tips for rebooking and receiving a refund for tickets.

Educators favor cellphone bans, but research shows that while new rules have reduced phone usage in schools, there has been little academic change.

Police are searching for at least four individuals responsible for ‘terrifying signals of hatred and threats of violence’

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Several synagogues and homes in the New York borough of Queens were vandalized overnight on Monday with swastikas, according to the city council speaker.

On Monday, Julie Menin, along with other city council members including Lynn Schulman and Phil Wong, visited Congregation Machane Chodosh, one of the sites targeted in Forest Hills.

Police said several were injured in the incident, which happened in the Grimmaische Strasse, a street that leads into central Leipzig's shopping area.

Retro gaming can cost a fortune. I vibe coded "demakes" of my favorite games for free.

Anthropic is reportedly nearing a roughly $1.5 billion joint venture with Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, Hellman & Friedman, and other Wall Street firms to sell AI tools to private-equity-backed companies. "The investors aim to create a company that acts as a consulting arm for Anthropic and helps teach businesses -- including the private-equity firms' portfolio companies -- how to incorporate AI across their operations," reports the Wall Street Journal. Anthropic, Blackstone, and Hellman & Friedman would each invest about $300 million, while Goldman would contribute around $150 million.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Future of Calvin Duncan’s position as the clerk of New Orleans’ criminal district courthouse remains unclear

Louisiana Republicans eliminated an elected position days before a Democratic exoneree who overwhelmingly won the New Orleans-based post was set to take office on Monday.

A temporary restraining order did allow Calvin Duncan, the exonerated man, to take office as scheduled on Monday morning as the clerk of New Orleans’ criminal district courthouse. But things soon turned administratively messy for Duncan when that order was frozen by the US fifth circuit court of appeals.

Collaboration brings together flagship SoC design, optical I/O and rack-scale liquid-cooled system integration to help hyperscalers accelerate system-ready AI infrastructure

HSINCHU, Taiwan, May 4, 2026 — Global Unichip Corp. (GUC) today announced a strategic technical collaboration with Wiwynn, an innovative cloud IT infrastructure provider for data centers. This collaboration integrates GUC’s flagship SoC design and 2.5D/3D advanced packaging with Wiwynn’s expertise in rack-scale system integration, liquid cooling and optical interconnect. Together, the collaboration enables hyperscale customers to transition more efficiently from silicon definition to deployment-ready AI infrastructure.

AI clusters continue to scale in performance, bandwidth and power density, hyperscalers must increasingly evaluate silicon, packaging, interconnect, thermal and rack-level design choices much earlier in the development cycle. Through this collaboration, GUC and Wiwynn are aligning key technology pillars, including leading-edge ASIC implementation, 2.5D/3D advanced packaging, optical I/O, power delivery, thermal architecture, manufacturability, serviceability and rack-scale integration. By addressing these factors holistically at the outset, the collaboration partners aim to reduce integration complexity, improve development efficiency and accelerate the transition from silicon-ready innovation to system-ready AI infrastructure.

“As AI infrastructure evolves beyond chip-level optimization and scale-up networks push the limits of conventional electrical interconnects, close alignment across silicon to system architecture become critical,” said Aditya Raina, Chief of Marketing of GUC. “By collaborating with Wiwynn, we are helping hyperscale customers evaluate critical system-level tradeoffs earlier, integrating optical I/O to deliver the bandwidth and power efficiency required for next generation AI systems. This partnership establishes a more practical, holistic path from flagship ASIC development to deployable, rack-scale AI infrastructure.

“With deep expertise across board-level innovation, rack-scale integration, and manufacturing, Wiwynn effectively bridges semiconductor innovation with data center deployment,” said Tony Wen, Vice President at Wiwynn. “Together with GUC, we are enabling a comprehensive silicon-to-system approach that delivers scalable, efficient and serviceable AI infrastructure tailored for next-generation hyperscale environments.”

About GUC

GLOBAL UNICHIP CORP. (GUC) is the Advanced ASIC Leader who provides the semiconductor industry with leading IC implementation and SoC manufacturing services, using advanced process and packaging technology. Based in Hsin-Chu, Taiwan, GUC has developed a global reputation with a presence in North America, Europe, Japan, Korea, China, and Vietnam. GUC is publicly traded on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under the symbol 3443. For more information, please visit our website: www.guc-asic.com.

Source: GUC

The post GUC and Wiwynn Partner to Advance Silicon-to-System Infrastructure for Next-Gen Hyperscale AI appeared first on HPCwire.

Mortgage rates can move, even without a Fed meeting on the calendar. Here's what could push them lower this May.

Former New York City mayor, who was placed on ventilator, is also being monitored, a spokesperson said

Rudy Giuliani, a former New York City mayor, is breathing on his own after being hospitalized with pneumonia and placed on a ventilator, his spokesperson said on Monday.

Giuliani, 81, remains in critical but stable condition at a Florida hospital and is being monitored as a precautionary measure, Ted Goodman, a spokesperson, said.

A suspect has been apprehended, but detectives say little is known about their motivation at this stage

At least two people have been killed and several injured after a driver in an SUV ploughed into a crowd in the centre of Leipzig in eastern Germany, the city’s mayor has said.

“The police have apprehended the suspected assailant,” Burkhard Jung said on Monday, adding that the authorities had the scene in a pedestrian zone under control. “We still don’t really know the motivation. We don’t know anything about the perpetrator.”

Four U.S. senators sent letters grilling the nation’s major credit bureaus on Thursday after a ProPublica investigation showed two of the bureaus were fixing fewer consumers’ credit reports.

The letters came in response to a ProPublica investigation from March, which found that two of the three major credit bureaus — TransUnion and Experian — had substantially scaled back how often they provided relief to complaints filed through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The decline in relief coincided with the Trump administration’s attempts to conduct mass layoffs at the CFPB and roll back much of its oversight of the financial sector.

The letters’ lead author is Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee and a key architect in the creation of the CFPB. Democratic Sens. Tammy Duckworth, Andy Kim and Lisa Blunt Rochester also joined the letters.

ProPublica found that TransUnion’s rate of relief, which had remained relatively steady for several years, dropped sharply in the summer of 2025. By October it was providing relief roughly half as often. Experian, which had provided relief to nearly 20% of consumer complaints in 2024, provided relief to less than 1% of complaints in 2025, according to the CFPB’s data.

Companies are required to respond to consumer complaints filed through the CFPB, and relief can be financial or nonmonetary, for instance, fixing an error on a credit report.

In the letters to Experian and TransUnion, the senators called ProPublica’s findings “greatly concerning” and said that the reporting “raises significant questions about the legality” of the companies’ practices. The “drastic drop in responsiveness means that American consumers may be getting denied a mortgage or housing simply due to an error on their report that your company failed to correct.”

In a statement, TransUnion said, “We appreciate the opportunity for meaningful engagement with policymakers regarding the robust and compliant processes TransUnion deploys,” and that it would respond to the letter. Experian did not respond to a request for comment. The company previously told ProPublica it investigates “all legitimate” complaints.

The third major credit bureau, Equifax, did not see a similar decline in relief, ProPublica found. Last year, just prior to President Donald Trump’s inauguration, the company entered a settlement with the CFPB that aimed to fix the company’s deficiencies in its consumer dispute processes, although the agreement did not mention CFPB complaints specifically.

Equifax said it would engage with the letter and that the company works to make it easier for consumers to “correct any potential errors quickly.”

In the letters, the senators requested data on disputes and complaints sent to the companies, as well as information on their dispute handling processes and staffing. The senators also asked for correspondence with the CFPB, including communication regarding dropped and halted enforcement actions against TransUnion that were identified in ProPublica’s investigation.

Consumer complaints about credit reporting have risen dramatically, with over 4 million filed last year with the CFPB. The credit bureaus have said that many recent complaints are illegitimate, including a large volume filed by third-party credit repair organizations that charge customers to challenge negative information on their reports.

Errors on a credit report can be difficult and time-consuming to fix. ProPublica spoke with a Colorado accountant, Rebecca Sheppard, who had spent nearly a year trying to get a $240,000 debt that she did not owe removed from her credit report. The error caused her credit score to plunge roughly 85 points and jeopardized her plans to move with her disabled father into a more accessible home.

Sheppard contacted the credit bureaus on four occasions, including through the CFPB’s complaint system, but they did not remove the debt. In response to her fourth attempt, via certified mail, TransUnion sent her a postcard stating it believed the submission had not come from her.

She eventually sued the credit bureaus in January. TransUnion settled the claim shortly after ProPublica’s story was published, while the case is still pending against Equifax and Experian, which have denied the allegations in court.

The CFPB previously had been putting pressure on the credit bureaus to fix errors and engage with consumers, and relief rates had risen during the Biden administration. However, upon the change of administrations, Trump appointed Russell Vought as acting head of the CFPB. He quickly ordered a stop to nearly all agency work. Under Vought, the agency also attempted to fire much of its staff, an effort that has been paused by litigation.

Read More

Credit Bureaus Are Leaving More Mistakes on Frustrated Consumers’ Reports Under Trump’s CFPB

Heeding the concerns voiced by the credit reporting industry’s lobbying group, the CFPB in February added notices for consumers to click through before filing a complaint, warning them that their requests might be ignored if they had not already disputed issues directly with credit bureaus.

A CFPB spokesperson told ProPublica in March that the complaint system was inundated with submissions from bots and third-party credit repair firms, and the agency was working to address that so legitimate consumers can more effectively get help.

In the letters, the senators also highlighted the consequences of the system. “It is hard to overstate the extent to which credit reports and credit scores produced by credit reporting companies permeate nearly every aspect of modern American life,” they wrote.

The post Lawmakers Demand Answers About Growing Number of Unfixed Mistakes on Credit Reports appeared first on ProPublica.

Result in key Indian state is set to have significant implications for the country’s political landscape

Narendra Modi’s party has won a resounding election victory in West Bengal, a state which had been a rare opposition stronghold, expanding his unrivalled consolidation of power across the country.

It is the first time that the Indian prime minister’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) has won assembly elections in West Bengal, a large and politically significant state in eastern India.

Want to borrow home equity without having to give up your low mortgage rate? Here are three ways to do so this May.

The announcement of the withdrawal of thousands of US troops from Germany underlines the urgency of a pan-European defence strategy

As Donald Trump’s second term has become overshadowed by plunging poll ratings and an illegal, ill-advised war in the Middle East, European governments have regularly been singled out to bear the brunt of the US president’s growing frustration. Sir Keir Starmer’s refusal to militarily back the attack on Iran led to unfavourable comparisons to both Winston Churchill and King Charles. “Unfriendly” Spain has been threatened with a trade embargo for similar reasons. Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, previously seen as a key political ally, has also been on the receiving end. “I’m shocked by her,” Mr Trump said last month. “I thought she had courage. I was wrong.”

Currently it is Germany’s chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who finds himself in Washington’s crosshairs. In the wake of Mr Merz’s accurate observation that the US has no convincing strategy on Iran, the Pentagon has announced the future withdrawal of 5,000 US troops from bases in Germany. Vital long-range weapons are also to be withheld as American military stockpiles are depleted by events in the Middle East. For good measure, Mr Trump has threatened to raise tariffs on European car manufacturers to 25% – a measure that would hit Germany hardest.

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.

I tested dozens of headphones and headsets to find the most comfortable models with strong call quality and solid PC compatibility for video meetings. Here are my top picks.

The 26th president was wounded in the attack but the thick manuscript in his breast pocket helped save his life

The first page of a thick manuscript that helped slow a bullet and save the life of Theodore Roosevelt during a 1912 assassination attempt has been uncovered by a presidential historian in Pennsylvania.

Signed by the 26th president, who at the time was seeking another term in the White House after leaving office almost four years earlier, the document from Roosevelt was found in the possession of a private collector and has not been seen in more than a century.

Bob Weihe was able to attend his 80th consecutive Kentucky Derby over the weekend and witness a historic race.

SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 4, 2026 — Cerebras Systems, Inc. today announced that it plans to commence the roadshow for its proposed initial public offering of its Class A common stock. Cerebras has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to offer an aggregate of 28,000,000 shares of its Class A common stock to the public.

In addition, Cerebras intends to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 4,200,000 shares of its Class A common stock. The initial public offering price is expected to be between $115.00 to $125.00 per share. Cerebras has applied to list its Class A common stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “CBRS.”

Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Barclays, and UBS Investment Bank will act as lead book-running managers for the proposed offering. Mizuho and TD Cowen will act as bookrunners. Needham & Company, Craig-Hallum, Wedbush Securities, Rosenblatt, Academy Securities, Credit Agricole CIB, MUFG, and First Citizens Capital Securities will act as co-managers.

The proposed offering will be made only by means of a prospectus. Copies of the preliminary prospectus related to the proposed offering may be obtained from: Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10014, or by email at prospectus@morganstanley.com; Citigroup Global Markets Inc., c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, or telephone: 800-831-9146; and Barclays Capital Inc., c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, by email at barclaysprospectus@broadridge.com, or telephone at 1-888-603-5847.

A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the SEC but has not yet become effective. These securities may not be sold nor may offers to buy be accepted prior to the time the registration statement becomes effective. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

About Cerebras Systems

Cerebras Systems is building the fastest AI infrastructure in the world. We are a team of pioneering computer architects, computer scientists, AI researchers, and engineers of all types. We have come together to make AI blisteringly fast through innovation and invention because we believe that when AI is fast, it will change the world. Our flagship technology, the Wafer-Scale Engine 3 (WSE-3) is the world’s largest and fastest commercialized AI processor. 58 times larger than a leading GPU chip, the WSE-3 uses a fraction of the power per unit compute while delivering inference up to 15 times faster than leading GPU-based solutions as benchmarked on leading open-source models. Leading corporations, research institutes, and governments on four continents chose Cerebras to run their AI workloads. Cerebras solutions are available on premises and in the cloud.

Source: Cerebras

The post Cerebras Systems Announces Launch of Initial Public Offering appeared first on HPCwire.

The former New York mayor, 81, initially was placed on a ventilator but now is breathing on his own, his spokesman said.

GameStop has made an unsolicited $56 billion cash-and-stock offer to buy eBay (paywalled; alternative source), with CEO Ryan Cohen arguing he can turn the marketplace into a far larger Amazon competitor. "EBay should be worth -- and will be worth -- a lot more money," Cohen said in an interview. "I'm thinking about turning eBay into something worth hundreds of billions of dollars." The Wall Street Journal reports: Cohen said GameStop has a commitment letter from TD Bank to provide up to $20 billion in debt financing to help make a deal possible. GameStop delivered an offer letter to eBay on Sunday and released a copy of it following the Journal's report on the details of the bid. Cohen wrote in the letter to eBay Chairman Paul Pressler that GameStop started building its eBay position on Feb. 4. It said its offer consists of 50% cash and 50% GameStop shares. EBay said Monday morning its board and financial advisers would review GameStop's unsolicited proposal. It said there were no discussions with or outreach from GameStop before receiving the offer. Ebay added that it will review the offer "with a focus on the value to be delivered to eBay shareholders, including the value of the GameStop stock consideration and the ability of GameStop to deliver a binding, actionable proposal." If eBay isn't receptive, Cohen said he was prepared to run a proxy fight and take the offer directly to its shareholders. The window for shareholders to nominate director candidates at eBay ahead of an annual meeting scheduled for this June has already closed, according to the company's proxy materials. Cohen told the Journal that putting his videogame retailer and eBay under one roof could create opportunities to cut costs and improve earnings. The two companies have some overlap already, including a focus on selling collectibles such as trading cards. "There is nobody who is more qualified, based on my experience, to run the eBay business," Cohen said, referencing his time at GameStop and previously Chewy, the online pet-products marketplace he co-founded.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

It's the grandest and glitziest event in the fashion calendar, but this year’s Met Gala has sparked backlash thanks to its new honorary chairs, Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos. The billionaire Amazon founder’s involvement has led to boycotts and criticism of the event. Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian’s fashion and lifestyle editor, Morwenna Ferrier

After banging his battle drum, Trump is back in Nobel peace prize mode. But the move has dramatically raised the stakes

“Project Freedom” has all the trappings of a classic episode of the Trump Show, the reality series that the rest of the world does not just have to watch, but live through and survive. It has a dramatic plot twist, it is bathed in a self-projected beatific light, and the trailer looked far more promising that the reality.

Trump spent a long weekend in Florida banging the war drum. Iran had not “paid a big enough price” for its past misdeeds, he wrote in an online post before spending Friday afternoon revving up a cheering crowd at America’s largest retirement community.

Personal loan costs may be lower than credit cards right now, but that's not the only factor you should weigh.

Progress is being made on Zero-Angle Memory (ZAM), the new 3D stacked DRAM memory that Intel and SoftBank announced in February. With memory bandwidth that’s two to three times as fast as the current HBM3 memory, ZAM promises a major upgrade to keep hungry HPC and AI processors fed with data at a fraction of the cost and energy footprint.

Intel and SoftBank announced their plan to commercialize ZAM three months ago. Like HBM, ZAM technology utilizes vertical stacking along the Z-axis (hence the name Z-Angle). But ZAM utilizes a fundamentally different technology and could potentially deliver a big bandwidth upgrade for GPUs and other AI accelerators at a fraction of the energy and cost of today’s HBM3 standard.

Next month, SoftBank subsidiary SAIMEMORY will present a paper on ZAM at the 2026 IEEE/JSAP Symposium on VLSI Technology and Circuits conference, which is being held June 14-18 in Honolulu, Hawaii. While the paper is not yet available, diagrams from the paper have started to trickle out, giving us a glimpse of how ZAM is built and what it can do.

The key breakthrough enabling ZAM is the unique bonding method that Intel developed to create the Through-Silicon Via (TSV) layers, which is the path that electrical signals pass through in a vertically stacked chip. Intel developed the fusion bonding method as part of the DOE’s and NNSA’s Next Generation DRAM Bonding (NGDB) program that brought together three companies (Intel, SAIMEMORY, and SK Hynix) and three DOE Labs (Sandia National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.)

Images from the VLSI paper show that ZAM will be stacked nine layers high, with three TSVs separating the eight DRAM cells and one control layer atop a die. Separating each DRAM layer will be an extremely thin silicon substrate only 3 microns wide. The TSVs on each layer will connect to two to three metal rings, providing electrical conductivity to the DRAM modules.

Image from the ZAM VLSI paper, titled “Multiple-Wafer (9-layer), Extreme thin (3µm-Si per stack) and Innovative Fusion-bonded Via-in-one Architecture for High Bandwidth 3D Memory,” C.- L. Lu et al, SAIMEMORY Corporation

The image from the paper shows that each layer of memory will contain 1.125GB of DRAM. With eight layers, that equates to 9GB of DRAM per ZAM module. The consortium hasn’t disclosed the data rate. But if it’s previously claims of a 2x to 3x speedup over HBM3 holds, that would put ZAM memory bandwidth at around 1.6 GBps to 2.5 GBps (or 12.8 Gpbs to 19.2 Gbps), assuming HBM3 delivers data at 819 GBps (or 6.4 Gbps).

Last month, SAIMEMORY announced that the Japanese government has selected it for a NEDO grant to pursue ZAM commercialization. It will be working with Intel and RIKEN as a research partner.

“We view the selection of this Project under the NEDO program as a significant milestone in demonstrating Japan-originated next-generation memory technology to the world,” said Hideya Yamaguchi, president and CEO of SAIMEMORY. “ZAM represents an innovative architecture that achieves both the performance and power efficiency required in the AI era and in anticipation of the accelerating AI supercycle. Through collaboration with Intel, RIKEN, and our investors, as well as other domestic and international partners, we aim to contribute to strengthening the global competitiveness of Japan’s semiconductor industry.”

The post New Details Emerge On ZAM, the HBM-Killer appeared first on HPCwire.

Cherie DeVaux reflected on her place in history after becoming the first woman to train a Kentucky Derby winner with Golden Tempo.

Order signed by Samuel Alito blocks ruling that prevented providers from prescribing mifepristone through the mail

The US supreme court has temporarily reinstated nationwide access to mifepristone, blocking a ruling that threatened to upend accessibility of an abortion pill involved in nearly two-thirds of pregnancy terminations across the country.

On Monday, Justice Samuel Alito signed an order pausing a fifth US circuit court of appeals ruling that had imposed new limits on the drug. That decision, issued on Friday, called on preventing abortion providers from prescribing mifepristone through the mail.

The 81-year-old former New York City mayor has been hospitalized for pneumonia, his spokesperson said.

More than a quarter of 20- to 34-year-olds still live with their parents. No wonder they are escaping into virtual properties that they can decorate and furnish as they like

Name: Cosy gaming.

Age: Has its origins in social simulation games such as Harvest Moon (1996) and The Sims (2000).

Firefighters continued to battle the Hazen fire burning near Buckeye, Arizona, on Monday. The fire began on Saturday afternoon and, as of Sunday evening, was estimated to have covered about 400 hectares (1,000 acres) and was '0% contained'. Local media reported that no evacuations had taken place and there were no reports of damage to homes

Nigel Farage’s party proposed to place detention centres in places that vote for Green council leaders or MPs

Keir Starmer has said that Europe has to face up to the fact that its alliance with the US is under strain.

He made the remark in public comments during the plenary session at the European Political Community summit in Yerevan in Armenia.

And both of those are impacting all of us in a very material way.

In the United Kingdom, if you look at the economic forecast now and compare it to the economic forecast just three or four months ago, they are in materially different places, and this is going to play out with our electorates in all of our countries.

Reform are now openly threatening voters and not only that they’re threatening them with a power they don’t actually have. This is absolutely pathetic. People across Scotland are proud of the fact that this is a welcoming country that shows solidarity to people who need it.

Reform are essentially saying ‘If you don’t vote the way we want you to, we will punish you’. I think the people of Scotland and voters across the UK are not going to take kindly to that kind of Donald Trumpesque threat.

Reform know that absolutely bombed last week. The only thing they’ve got to move on to are open threats, not against the Greens but against voters across the country. It’s really quite sinister. This is exactly the kind of politics you see in Donald Trump’s America. People across Scotland are going to reject that on Thursday.

It's a fantastic Steam Deck extension for your TV and a lot more.

President says US navy will ‘guide’ stranded ships out of waterway but report says warship was hit by Iran

The world’s shipping industry has questioned whether vessels will be able to travel safely to and from the Gulf after Donald Trump announced his latest plan to open the strait of Hormuz.

Trump wrote on Monday that the US navy would “guide” stranded ships out of the waterway, writing on his social media site Truth Social that the operation, “Project Freedom”, would be a humanitarian gesture “on behalf of the United States, Middle Eastern Countries but, in particular, the Country of Iran”.

If confirmed, the rock would become just the second world past Neptune in our solar system to host an atmosphere.

The lawsuit ramps up a feud between World Liberty Financial and Sun, who last month sued the Trump-backed company for fraud.

A federal appeals court blocked a FDA rule that allowed the abortion pill mifepristone to be dispensed through the mail.

Alice Chapman and Zak Khan say they were beaten, kicked and spat on after detention near Crete last week

Two British activists have said they were admitted to hospital after being beaten by Israeli forces who intercepted their Gaza aid flotilla last week.

Alice Chapman and Zak Khan were among 180 members of the Global Sumud flotilla detained by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in international waters near Crete late on Wednesday.

Astronomers have identified 27 potential new circumbinary planets -- worlds that orbit two stars, like Star Wars' Tatooine. "To date, only about 18 circumbinary planets ... had been identified in the universe," reports the Guardian. "More than 6,000 planets have been discovered that orbit single stars, like Earth does around the sun." The Guardian reports: In a timely publication for May 4, also known as Star Wars Day, scientists have identified nearly 30 more candidate planets, whose distances range from 650 to 18,000 light years away from Earth. [...] More than half of the stars in the universe exist in binary or multiple star systems. The researchers instead used a method known as "apsidal precession," searching for a wobble between stars that orbit around and eclipse each other. "If we monitor the exact timing of these eclipses ... that can tell us that there's something else going on in the system," said Margo Thornton, the study's lead author and a PhD candidate at UNSW. After eliminating other factors such as the rotation and gravitational pull of the two stars, the team identified 36 star systems out of 1,590 whose behavior could only be explained by a third body. For "27 of those objects, it is possible that they are planet mass," Thornton said. More research into their spectra -- the light they emit -- was needed to formally confirm them as circumbinary planets, she said. "It's just a matter of: what is the mass of it? Is it a planet? Is it a brown dwarf? Is it a star?" The team discovered the potential planets -- which likely range from Neptune-sized to ten times heavier than Jupiter -- using data from Nasa's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, a planet-hunting space telescope that launched in 2018. The research was published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Reform UK is ‘doing something right when it comes to visibility’ on multiple AI systems, say researchers

AI platforms are more likely to reference Nigel Farage than any other UK leader when prompted about British politics, according to an AI search analytics firm.

“We are confident in saying that Reform are showing up significantly more than you would expect,” said Malte Landwehr, an expert at Peec AI, the firm that did the research. “So they’re doing something right when it comes to LLM [large language model] visibility.”

Heidi Alexander says part of answer to strait of Hormuz crisis is importing more fuel from US and west Africa

A refinery in Nigeria accused of dismissing workers for joining a union has emerged as key to the UK government’s hopes of saving the summer holiday amid a jet fuel shortage.

Heidi Alexander, the transport secretary, said at the weekend that part of the answer to the strait of Hormuz crisis was to import more fuel from the US and west Africa.

Have tickets to fly on Spirit? Here's what to know about refunds and alternative flights now that the budget airline has ceased operations.

Debt forgiveness can be a smart strategy to use, but for some borrowers, it creates more problems than it solves.

@ahshwheel Not sure if you ever got this information but it is most likely this one

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May 4, 2026 — Hajara-Yasmin Isa, a doctoral student in computer science at the Grainger College of Engineering, was awarded the 2026 Fiddler Innovation Fellowship by the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at a ceremony with the Landuyt Center for Entrepreneurship (formerly the Technology Entrepreneur Center, pending approval from the Board of Trustees) on April 17.

Hajara-Yasmin Isa presented with the 2026 Fiddler Innovation Fellowship award. Credit: Holly Birch Photography, April 17, 2026.

The $10,000 fellowship is part of a $2 million endowment from Jerry Fiddler and Melissa Alden to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to support the Emerging Digital Research and Education in Arts Media Institute (eDream). Based at NCSA, the eDream Institute awards exceptional, creative, and interdisciplinary students and faculty who propose significant projects that address cultural and global challenges using art, science and technology.

“Being selected for the Fiddler Innovation Fellowship is a significant milestone that validates our collective vision at the University of Illinois. This award recognizes the importance of shared, innovative progress and ensures the next wave of technological development is shaped by a commitment to building solutions together,” Isa said. “I am very passionate about advancements in technology, and this fellowship provides the momentum to advance Littafin Fasaha, transforming our integration of AI and design into a catalyst for real-world inclusion. It empowers us to bridge the gap between complex research and accessible technology, fostering a future where innovation is built by and for a global community.”

Isa is breaking down language barriers in technology education across West Africa by making instruction accessible to Hausa speakers by providing coding lessons, technical resources and computer science concepts in their native language.

“Accessibility in high-performance computing helps ensure the best and brightest researchers from across the globe have the necessary tools to innovate and change the world,” said NCSA Director R. Srikant. “Hajara-Yasmin’s work is motivating for our continued accessibility efforts here at NCSA, and we’re proud to highlight her inspiring endeavor by awarding her the Fiddler Innovation Fellowship thanks to Jerry Fiddler and Melissa Alden’s continued support of the Fiddler Innovation Endowment.”

“Isa stood out as a highly creative and driven person who, in addition to her graduate studies, works on reimagining how computer science education can be made accessible,” said NCSA Assistant Director for Research and Education Olena Kindratenko. “As the founder and CEO of Littafin Fasaha, she approaches the Hausa language as the interface for teaching computational and algorithmic thinking, applying a design‑led, interdisciplinary approach that blends interactive computing, language design and educational technology. Her textbook, ‘Ka’idoji da Dabarun Koding a Kwamfuta’ (Principles and Techniques of Coding Computers), currently in proof, provides an introduction to computational and algorithmic thinking and has the potential to educate millions across West Africa, where the Hausa language is spoken by over 50 million people.

“We are happy that this year’s Fiddler Innovation Fellowship award will help bring her inspirational work closer to wide adoption.

Nuclear, Plasma & Radiological Engineering student Kazuma Kobayashi, Grainger College of Engineering student Lauren Hyde and Carle Illinois College of Medicine student Christian Guerrero-Juarez were also finalists for the 2026 Fiddler Innovation Fellowship.

Check out the announcement from the Landuyt Center for Entrepreneurship and the Grainger College of Engineering for more on a full slate of student awards.

About NCSA

The National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign provides supercomputing, expertise and advanced digital resources for the nation’s science enterprise. At NCSA, University of Illinois faculty, staff, students and collaborators from around the globe use innovative resources to address research challenges for the benefit of science and society. NCSA has been assisting many of the world’s industry giants for over 35 years by bringing industry, researchers and students together to solve grand challenges at rapid speed and scale.

Source: Andrew Helregel, NCSA

The post NCSA Awards 2026 Fiddler Innovation Fellowship appeared first on HPCwire.

Some Spirit Airlines customers with flight tickets could be out of luck after the discount carrier ceased operations.

In an exclusive interview with "CBS Mornings" co-host Gayle King, Lizzo spoke about releasing new music and her ongoing legal battle, saying, "the truth is less salacious than the headlines."

High winds have hit the South Aegean and heavy rain has fallen in Turkey, but Central Europe has felt summer heat

Greece and Turkey have found themselves in the grip of a late-season cold spell this weekend. Conditions will persist over the next few days as an area of low pressure situated over Turkey is pulling in colder, moisture-laden air from the north-east via the Black Sea; this meteorological set up has suppressed temperatures well below where they should be for the time of year. Away from the Mediterranean coast, much of Turkey struggled to reach double figures, which is around 10C below the average, while Greece saw a similar chill. In Athens, temperatures only crept into the low teens Celsius, a far cry from the mid-20s typically expected in early May.

But they haven’t just faced colder temperatures. Greece had gale force winds whipping through the islands in the South Aegean – gusting at around 60mph on Sunday evening and the unsettled weather has brought a surge of heavy rain to Turkey. The Central Anatolia region of Turkey would normally see about 50mm of rainfall across the entire month of May, but on Sunday had already seen many areas pick up half that total in just 24 hours. With colder air in place, higher elevations have even seen a return to winter, with up to 30cm of fresh snow forecast across the Anti-Taurus Mountains on Monday and Tuesday. In Ankara, temperatures on Monday were expected to peak at just 7C – nearly 14C below average – before slowly edging back towards normal by the weekend.

More than 7,000 join employment tribunal that will include claims for minimum wage and holiday pay

More than 7,000 Just Eat couriers are taking legal action against the food delivery company in an attempt to gain better employment rights including the minimum wage and holiday pay.

The employment tribunal, which begins on Tuesday and is set to run until 2 June, will determine if the couriers are classed as workers, a status that comes with improved rights, or self-employed independent contractors.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: In a makeshift demonstration kitchen in Concord, California, cooking oil splatters in and around a frying pan, which catches fire on an unattended gas stove. Within moments, a smoke detector wails. But in this demonstration, something less common happens: An AI-driven sensor activates and wall emitters blast infrasound waves toward the source of the fire in an attempt to put it out. The science of acoustic fire suppression, which has long been known and documented in scientific literature and the press, works by vibrating oxygen molecules away from a fuel source, depriving the fire of a critical component needed for combustion. Indeed, after just a few seconds of infrasound, the tiny kitchen blaze goes out. "We were able to not just point-and-shoot like a fire extinguisher; we figured out how to run it through ducting and distribute it like a sprinkler system," said Geoff Bruder, co-founder and CEO of Sonic Fire Tech, during the presentation. The company's goal is to replace sprinklers, which are effective at stopping fires but can also do significant water damage to a property. Sonic Fire Tech appears to be the first company trying to commercialize the science of acoustic fire suppression. Its executives have already been touring Southern California; Wednesday's event was the first in the northern half of the state. The company aims to make this infrasound technique mainstream in both commercial (for instance, a data center, where sprinklers would damage electronics) and in-home installations, given that sprinklers are already required in all new California homes built in 2011 and later. Sonic Fire Tech also hopes to produce a backpack-based system that could be worn by wildland firefighters headed out into the field. "We are making meaningful technological improvements on a monthly basis," Stefan Pollack, a company spokesperson, emailed Ars after the event. But two experts who spoke with Ars raised serious questions about the potential for this technology to supplant traditional sprinklers in a home. They are even more skeptical as to whether the technique can be effective in an uncontrolled wildfire situation, where flames can grow very quickly. Experts are concerned that infrasound may knock down small flames but does not cool hot surfaces or wet fuel like sprinklers do, which raises the risk of re-ignition, smoldering fires, hidden fires, or blocked fires. Sonic Fire Tech has claimed third-party validation and possible NFPA 13D equivalency, but it has not publicly released full testing details. Fire officials and outside observers also want more information about reliability, maintenance, calibration, and how system failures would be detected and communicated.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

EBay said on Monday that it will "carefully review" GameStop's unsolicited $ 125-per-share takeover offer.

Austrian foreign minister says Russian diplomatic mission in Vienna was being used for illicit collection of data

Austria has expelled three Russian embassy staff on suspicion of spying after determining that a “forest of antennae” on the diplomatic mission in Vienna, Europe’s espionage capital since the cold war, was being be used for illicit data collection.

“It is unacceptable that diplomatic immunity be used to commit espionage,” Austria’s foreign minister, Beate Meinl-Reisinger, said on Monday. She added that the three embassy staff – whose expulsions bring the number of Russian diplomats sent home by Vienna to 14 since 2020 – had already left the country.

As Russian aggression continues and Trump’s US threatens Nato, it is even more vital for a unified defence of the continent

As we mark the 81st anniversary of the end of the second world war in Europe this Friday, 8 May, it’s clear that Germany will again be the leading European military power.

Already next year its defence spending will be as much as that of France and Britain combined – and it is projected to be significantly larger by 2030. The German government’s declared goal is to have the strongest conventional army in Europe. True, France and Britain have nuclear weapons, but that means less money to spend on the rest of defence. So the question is not, will this happen? Barring unforeseen developments, it will. The question, particularly on this solemn anniversary, is: how can we ensure that this time the growth of German military power is a positive development for all of Europe?

Want to earn more interest on your money? Here's what the top savings account interest rates look like right now.

US secretary of state’s two-day visit reportedly intended to thaw Washington’s frosty relations with Vatican and Italy

The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, will meet Pope Leo on Thursday, weeks after Donald Trump’s unprecedented broadside against the pontiff.

Rubio will meet the first US-born pope privately in the Vatican’s apostolic palace at 11.30am (10.30 GMT), the Holy See’s press office confirmed on Monday after media reports on Sunday.

Elizabeth Smart​, who survived abduction and sexual abuse as a teenager and went on to become a child safety advocate, recently revealed a pivot into body building.

The 2026 Met Gala dress code is "Fashion is Art" — styled to go along with the spring exhibition theme "Costume Art."

Exclusive: Sperm re-transplant offers hope that boys left infertile by chemotherapy could have biological children one day

In a groundbreaking fertility trial, a man whose testicular tissue was frozen before he underwent chemotherapy as a child to be re-transplanted 16 years later has been able to produce sperm.

It is the first time a transplant of cryopreserved prepubertal testicular tissue has been demonstrated to restore sperm production in an adult patient. The 27-year-old man had the sample frozen when he was 10, before undergoing potent chemotherapy as part of treatment for sickle cell disease.

Too much credit card debt can really hurt your finances, especially at today's rates. But how much is too much?

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey is backing new version of app called Divine, where content must be made by a human

As a pioneer of the short-form video format, Vine has been credited as one of the most influential – if short-lived – social media platforms.

The app, which allowed users to record a looping six seconds of video, boomed in popularity after its launch in 2013, spawning a plethora of viral comedy sketches and internet memes. It hit 100 million monthly active users at its peak and helped launch the careers of influencers such as Logan Paul.

• Broadcaster called 5,420 regular-season games

• Native New Yorker won 12 Emmys for his work

John Sterling, whose voice became synonymous with the New York Yankees, has died at the age of 87.

Sterling, a native New Yorker, started broadcasting Yankees games on radio in 1989 and continued until he retired in 2024. During that span, he called 5,420 regular-season games and 211 in the postseason. He rarely missed a game and worked 5,060 consecutive games between 1989 and 2019. During one memorable game in 2023, he was hit by a foul ball during a broadcast and returned to work the next day.

MALTA, N.Y., May 4, 2026 — GlobalFoundries (GF) today announced the introduction of its SCALE optical module solution for co-packaged optics (CPO). GF’s SCALE solution, or Silicon photonics Co-packaged Advanced Light Engine solution, is the industry’s first Optical Compute Interconnect Multi-Source Agreement (OCI MSA) capable platform, exceeding the requirements for the OCI MSA’s optical interconnect specification for modern AI scale-up architectures.

Built with GF’s advanced silicon photonics technology, the SCALE CPO solution utilizes both coarse and dense wavelength-division multiplexing (CWDM, DWDM) for bi-directional data transmission over each optical fiber for significant improvements in bandwidth density and system scalability versus traditional copper interconnects. GF has already demonstrated 8λ and 16λ bi-directional DWDM natively on its platform, a fundamental technology milestone that uniquely positions GF to support the industry’s shift to CPO and accelerate the adoption of optical scale-up interconnects.

GF’s SCALE CPO solution and silicon photonics technology offer an advanced portfolio of fully-qualified photonic devices, such as 50Gbps and 100Gbps micro-ring modulators, coupled ring resonators and integrated photodiodes. Additional features include through silicon vias (TSVs) for high-speed signaling and power delivery and copper pad pitches ranging from 110μm down to sub-45μm for 2.5D/3D stacking from organic substrates to silicon interposers, enabling customers to move quickly from design to volume production. The platform integrates electrical ICs on single-digit advanced nodes, enabling optimization between best-in-class compute and state-of-the-art optics without compromising performance. While GF offers multiple fiber-attach approaches, the SCALE solution leverages broadband detachable fibers with flat insertion loss over the CWDM spectrum to future-proof scaling from 4λ in each direction to 8λ and beyond, while still enabling serviceability and known-good-die testability for next-generation AI interconnects.

“With over a decade of innovation and manufacturing expertise in silicon photonics technology at our disposal, GF stands ready to unlock the future of high-bandwidth, energy-efficient connectivity with our SCALE solution for co-packaged optics,” said Mike Hogan, chief business officer at GF. “Today, our technology already exceeds the requirements set by the OCI MSA, demonstrating our close collaboration with industry leaders and our technology’s readiness to scale next-generation, AI infrastructure.”

About GF

GlobalFoundries (Nasdaq: GFS) (GF) is a leading manufacturer of essential semiconductors, enabling AI at scale from the cloud to the physical world. Through deep partnerships with customers, GF delivers differentiated, power-efficient and high-performance solutions for automotive, aerospace and defense, data center, smart mobile devices, internet of things and other high-growth markets. With global manufacturing operations across the U.S., Europe and Asia, GF is a trusted and holistic technology partner for customers around the world. GF’s talented, global team remains focused every day on security, longevity and sustainability. For more information, visit www.gf.com.

Source: GF

The post GlobalFoundries Introduces SCALE Co-Packaged Optics Platform for AI Interconnects appeared first on HPCwire.

On this "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" broadcast, White House Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett and Sen. Raphael Warnock join Margaret Brennan.

The secretary of state will travel to Italy this week, the State Department said. Observers view the trip as an attempt to patch up ties with the Vatican and Italy.

US president’s post follows flurry of mixed signals including concern Tehran had not ‘paid big enough price’. Plus, could Santa Marta climate talks mark ground zero in push to ditch fossil fuels?

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Donald Trump has announced this morning that the US will “guide” ships trapped in the Gulf by the Iran war through the strait of Hormuz, and claimed his representatives were having “very positive” discussions with Iran.

What has Iran said? The head of the Iranian military’s unified command has said US and foreign armed forces will be attacked if they enter the strait. It told US forces to stay out of the area and said its forces would respond harshly to any threat. It also told commercial ships and oil tankers to refrain from any movement in the absence of coordination with Iran’s military.

What did Comey say about the post? Comey deleted the post and apologized. He said the hadn’t known what the expression meant and condemned violence. He has said he is innocent and denies any wrongdoing.

Here are the Mother’s Day gifts that active and wellness-focused moms and mother figures can enjoy year-round.

No arrests made, police say, and site of shooting – a heavily wooded area – is slowing search for evidence and suspect

At least 13 people were hurt in a mass shooting during a party at a campground in Oklahoma on Sunday night, authorities said.

The shooting took place at Spring Creek Park on Arcadia Lake about 15 miles north-east of downtown Oklahoma City, when gunfire erupted during a gathering of young people at about 9pm.

Hangings are latest in wave of near-daily killings as authorities seek to instil fear amid war with US and Israel

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Iran has executed three men charged in connection with political protests this January, authorities have said, the latest in a wave of hangings against the backdrop of the war against the US and Israel.

Iranian authorities have carried out executions on a near-daily basis in recent weeks in what activists have denounced as a bid to instil fear in society at a time of international and domestic tension.

As the cost of the scheme blows out, the government has announced the full discount will be retained for another year, after which it will only apply to EVs costing less than $75,000

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Labor has opted to retain its electric vehicle discount in full for another year, as Australians rush to buy EVs amid soaring fuel costs linked to the Iran war.

But the budget next Tuesday will include a number of “sensible changes” that wind back the scale of support over the next three years, as the government acknowledges the need to deliver a “more financially sustainable” tax incentive for EVs amid ballooning costs of the scheme.

The controversial leader will seek presidency for the fourth time – despite previously vowing to stand aside

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, France’s radical left leader, has confirmed he will run again for president next spring, saying it was urgent for the country to stand up against war being waged by the US and Israel in the Middle East.

The 74-year-old veteran leader of La France Insoumise (LFI), announced in an interview with the French broadcaster TF1 that he would run for the presidency for the fourth time in 2027.

A host of stars have gone down with injuries this postseason. For as long as the league resists change, its players will pay the price

Should we just cancel the rest of the NBA playoffs and declare injuries the winner? They’ve already dominated this postseason far more than one team possibly could. The Oklahoma City Thunder are playing without their second-best player, Jalen Williams, after what feels like his 10th hamstring injury. In the series against the Denver Nuggets, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Donte DiVincenzo tore his achilles, and Anthony Edwards gruesomely hyperextended his knee. Wolves backup Ayo Dosunmu put up a heroic 43 points in Game 4, then returned to the bench two games later to nurse an injured calf. The Nuggets lost Aaron Gordon to calf tightness midway through the series and played entirely without Peyton Watson, who was sidelined by a hamstring strain.

Jayson Tatum’s record-quick comeback from an achilles tear was the feelgood story of the season, at least until he hurt his leg, which ruled him out of a vital Game 7 that his Boston Celtics lost to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Los Angeles Lakers’ starting rotation lacks Luka Dončić until further notice and played four of six games against the Houston Rockets without another of their stars, Austin Reaves. The Rockets’ Kevin Durant played 78 of 82 regular season games, then missed every game of the Lakers series but one thanks to a bad knee and a bone bruise in his ankle. We of course had to save the most ridiculous injury for last: Victor Wembanyama was knocked out by the court itself after tripping on a drive and whacking his jaw on the hardwood. (He missed all of one game and wishes he could have missed zero.) Perhaps it was an omen.

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for May 4.

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for May 4, No. 587.

An investigation is underway after a United Airlines plane struck a light pole and truck on the New Jersey Turnpike as it was coming in for a landing at Newark Liberty Airport on Sunday afternoon, officials said.

A suspected outbreak of the rare hantavirus on a cruise ship in the Atlantic off Africa killed three people and sickened at least three others, health officials say.

In Ohio, where Haitians have helped revive the economy, vulnerable Republicans are reluctant to toe the Trump line

For months Carl Ruby, a pastor at a church in Springfield, Ohio, and a prominent supporter of the city’s estimated 10,000 Haitian immigrants, had been trying to contact his local congressman, Republican Mike Turner.

Ruby had long hoped for an opportunity to explain in person the difficulties facing Haitians in Springfield and how that community had helped revive the struggling town.

Video game retailer’s CEO warns that unsolicited bid could turn hostile if it is rebuffed by resale site’s board

US video games retailer GameStop has offered to buy eBay for $55.5bn (£41bn) in an unsolicited bid that its boss warned could turn hostile if the proposal is rebuffed by eBay’s board.

GameStop, which has quietly accumulated a 5% stake in eBay, said it was willing to pay $125 a share, split 50-50 between cash and stock.

Nine Native American tribes in South Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska are suing the federal government in a bid to stop exploratory drilling for graphite near a sacred site in the Black Hills.

The Independent reports that "more than a third of children in the UK have found a way around age verification measures" for social media sites and other online platforms. And new research from online safety organisation Internet Matters "suggests one in six parents have helped their child to get past age verification checks, with children reporting 'tricking' platforms into thinking they are older. " Parents also said they had caught their children drawing on facial hair in a bid to evade the technology. One mother said: "I did catch my son using an eyebrow pencil to draw a moustache on his face, and it verified him as 15 years old"... From a sample of 1,000 UK children, 46% said they believed age checks are easy to bypass, while 32% admitted to having done so. 49% of the children surveyed said they'd still encountered harmful content, according to the online safety activists. The group called the figure "unacceptable," and complained that age verification measures "are often ineffective in practice or easy to bypass."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

If you're shopping for a Star Wars fan, this guide will show you the way. From prequel to sequel and beyond, we've used the Force to find dozens of creative gifts they'll treasure.

ChatGPT for Clinicians is meant to help health care providers with daily tasks. And it's free for verified providers.

Also: Cavan Sullivan had some choice words after his substitution and there’s trouble in San Diego

Another Inter Miami match, another hat-trick by an Argentinian No 10. Just not the one you expected.

Martín Ojeda put on a masterclass on Sunday and led Orlando City to a shocking 4-3 defeat of Miami that saw the Lions become just the third team in MLS’s 30-year history to win after trailing 3-0. As Ojeda raised his arms in triumph at the final whistle, Lionel Messi – who scored a wonder goal of his own and added two assists – headed straight for the locker room.

Exclusive: Minister says proposals show government’s ambition, as it faces unprecedented pressure from Greens

• UK politics live – latest updates

Tree nurseries could be built at prisons and military ranges could be turned into heathland or peat bogs as part of an ambitious plan to make government land more nature-friendly, the environment secretary has said.

Speaking ahead of elections this week in which Labour is under pressure from the Green party, Emma Reynolds said such projects showed the government’s intent in restoring natural habitats.

Agriculture secretary claims without evidence Snap recipients included owners of luxury cars

The Trump administration’s attack on the 87-year-old food aid program that supports tens of millions of low-income Americans escalated last week as the agriculture secretary, Brooke Rollins, claimed that 14,000 Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (Snap) recipients included owners of luxury vehicles such as Ferraris, Bentleys and Teslas.

Critics charge that the broadside is part of a disinformation campaign aimed at undermining a benefit relied on by some of the most vulnerable people in the US.

Trump’s third pick for role is a radiologist and Fox News medical contributor who experts say is ‘almost a lock’

The new nominee for US surgeon general is an “effective communicator” who appears to be “mainstream enough” to pass confirmation before the US Senate, experts say.

But she has questioned routine childhood vaccines and other public health measures, and she is a progenitor of the “Make America healthy again” movement.

Arrests and executions in Iran have been on the rise since the start of the regional war triggered by a U.S.-Israeli attack on Feb. 28.

Beef and olive oil costs increase the most as climate and energy shocks drive inflation, research suggests

Food prices are on track to be 50% higher in November than at the start of the cost of living crisis in 2021, research suggests.

Climate and energy shocks have driven an almost quadrupling of the pace of food price growth, according to research from the thinktank Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), with costs rising in five years at about the same rate as they had over the previous two decades.

Mozilla baked free VPN protection right into Firefox, with up to 50GB of data each month.

Updated guidelines issued by the Trump administration mean immigrants could potentially be denied a green card for their political opinions

Let’s play a fun game of Will This Get Me Deported? The first contestant is myself: a British-Palestinian green card holder in the US. I’ll start by quoting some recent news items concerning Israel. I don’t have the space to list every atrocity that the US ally has been accused of in the past few weeks so, unlike certain trigger-happy soldiers, I’ll restrict myself to two bullet points.

“Israeli soldiers and settlers are using gendered violence and sexual assault and harassment to force Palestinians from their homes in the occupied West Bank, human rights and legal experts say.” (The Guardian; 21 April)

“Israeli forces shot and killed a young female student on Thursday while she was attending a class held in a tent in the town of Beit Lahiya in ‌the northern Gaza Strip … third-grade student Ritaj Rihan was hit by a bullet in front of her classmates.” (Reuters; 9 April)

US seeks free-market private investment deals over development assistance as experts warn of ripple effects

The Trump administration is continuing to pressure the United Nations and the international aid sector more broadly to adopt trade-focused policies to benefit US firms – or face the threat of further budget cuts.

Donald Trump’s second term has already seen USAID suffer mass layoffs and have its remaining operations folded into the state department, with a ripple effect across the globe that has many experts warning will cost thousands of lives as vital programs are cut.

Trump’s war in Iran, gas prices and corruption dominate messaging as special election nears to fill Senate seat

It’s tough to beat the prices at Golden Dawn, an Italian restaurant that first opened its doors in 1932 on the north side of Youngstown, Ohio, and where a hamburger and fries today goes for $7 and a domestic beer just $2 at happy hour.

But the price that’s most discussed these days around its neon-lit, crescent-shaped bar is the $5 a gallon that gas prices are nearing at stations across this north-eastern Ohio city that is one of the state’s most prominent victims of manufacturing disinvestment. Where people differ is about what caused it, and who should take the blame.

The situation cost Idaho state Sen. Glenneda Zuiderveld and her husband most of their income and highlights an escalating split in the party.

Yes, Trump might carry them to victory in the midterms. But he can’t carry them much longer – especially not in the 2028 elections

All told, Democrats already seem as though they’re headed for a great midterm election. Voters already troubled by the state of the economy now have the impacts of Donald Trump’s teeter-tottering war in Iran to contend with, and polls tell us they aren’t happy ⁠– per poll averages from the analyst Nate Silver, nearly 55% of Americans oppose the war in Iran, 61% of Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy, and 57% of Americans disapprove of Trump overall. As it stands, Democrats have a six-point advantage in generic congressional ballot polling over Republicans.

And Republican hopes that a mid-decade redistricting rush would save their tight majority in the House have been frustrated. The partisan gerrymandering war of the last several months peaked with the victory of a ballot measure in Virginia that allows the state’s Democratic legislature to draw maps that would eliminate three Republican seats and a riposte by Florida Republicans who approved their own map that could allow Republicans to gain as many as four seats in that state – mere hours after the supreme court struck down provisions in the Voting Rights Act banning racial gerrymandering.

Why should Delaware care?
The canceled extradition of Bruce Tigani Jr. highlights an apparent communication breakdown between state governments in Delaware and Louisiana. Extraditions are routine but require coordination between governor’s office within respective states

A Delaware man accused of sending death threats to a Louisiana lawmaker will not immediately be extradited to the southern state. 

Last month, Bruce Tigani Jr. was criminally charged for what police in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana claimed were a string of threats he made against State Rep. Michael Echols, a northern Louisiana Republican. 

The threats posted last year on X, formerly Twitter, by an anonymous user included statements such as, “Lol your life is over,” and “you’re going to lose everything you ever even thought about loving,” according to an affidavit from the investigating officer. 

Tigani’s extradition hearing, scheduled for Friday at a Justice of the Peace Court in New Castle, was abruptly canceled just minutes after it was set to commence. A court staffer said officials did so after Tigani and Delaware authorities failed to appear at the hearing. 

The Delaware Department of Justice and Gov. Matt Meyer’s office later pointed the blame at Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry – though their explanations differed. 

A spokeswoman for the Delaware DOJ said Meyer denied Louisiana’s extradition request because Landry did not sign the necessary warrant – rendering it deficient. She said the resulting dismissal of the proceeding does not prevent Louisiana from “providing a conforming application at any time.”

“So with these governors’ warrants, you have to have signatures from the respective states. The Louisiana governor’s signature was missing,” DOJ spokeswoman Caroline Harrison said.  

But, in a separate statement to Spotlight Delaware, Meyer spokesman Nick Merlino indicated the state DOJ’s account was incorrect. He said the problem was not faulty paperwork from Louisiana, but that no extradition warrant was ever sent.

Meyer’s chief legal counsel Wilson Davis also sent a letter to the JP Court magistrate overseeing the case that reiterated that the governor had not “received an extradition demand for Mr. Tigani.” 

Landry’s office did not respond to a request to comment on Friday. 

Reached by phone, a spokeswoman for Ouachita Parish’s district attorney said prosecutors could not comment until they learn more details about what happened Friday in Delaware. 

In the police affidavit, the Louisiana investigator suggested that Tigani threatened Echols because of the lawmaker’s criticisms of the real estate company, Medical Properties Trust, Inc., which leases land and buildings to hospitals.  

Echols, who currently is running for Congress, has claimed that the company known as MPT had unjustly enriched itself alongside hospital executives in his district at the expense of patient care. Last year, he also introduced legislation that would more tightly regulate the medical real estate industry.

Police noted that Tigani — who has served as a vice president at the commercial real estate company, Newmark — has also heavily promoted MPT ‘s stock on social media. 

Officials from MPT previously told Mother Jones magazine, which has reported extensively on this topic, that “it is false and irresponsible” to suggest the company has any relationship with Tigani.  

“We condemn in the strongest possible terms threats of violence of any kind,” MPT officials told Mother Jones.

Tigani’s Delaware attorney, Thomas A. Foley, did not return a call seeking comment for this story.

The post Extradition bid canceled for Wilmington man accused of threatening a Louisiana lawmaker appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

Why Should Delaware Care?
Wilmington’s charter requires at least one of the city’s four at-large council members to be elected as a member of a minority party. In the liberal city, the rule ensures that one member of the City Council will not be a Democrat. After the council’s lone Republican became a Democrat last fall, questions of whether the policy goal has been undone has propelled a debate in recent weeks — one that could have broader political implications.

The political fight over the Wilmington City Council’s partisan makeup is escalating, and could end up in court.

City Council President Earnest “Trippi” Congo last week proposed a resolution that would remove his colleague, Councilman James Spadola, from his seat.

In response, Spadola told Spotlight Delaware that he is “considering legal options.”

Congo’s legislation, filed April 30, comes amid a months-long debate in Wilmington over Spadola’s decision last fall to switch his political party from Republican to Democrat.  

Some Democratic Party leaders called Spadola’s switch a win for the party. But several members of the all-Democratic City Council said he had exploited a “loophole” in the city’s charter.

Another council member noted that Spadola and Congo may each have plans to run for higher office. 

Spadola, for his part, has said his colleagues on the council have misinterpreted the city’s charter. 

Wilmington’s charter prohibits a majority party – currently Democrats – from nominating more than three candidates for the city’s four at-large seats on the council. The rule, which guarantees the election of at least one minority party candidate, does not state that council members cannot change party affiliation while in office. 

In February, Congo cited the charter in a letter to Spadola, stating his seat would be declared vacant if he did not switch back to the Republican Party. 

In response, Spadola said Congo was acting like a king.

“I say firmly, no kings in [Washington] D.C, but no kings in Wilmington either,” Spadola said last month, referencing recent protests against President Donald Trump

Congo’s current proposal to declare Spadola’s council seat vacant states that the intent of the city’s charter is to ensure representation for minority parties. The resolution also states that Spadola was elected over other candidates because of his party affiliation, and claimed that his choice to become a Democrat has “disenfranchise[d] approximately 15% of non-majority voters.” 

Congo did not respond to a request to comment for this story. 

His resolution has seven co-sponsors on the 13-member City Council, including Councilmembers Alexander Hackett, Coby Owens, Shane Darby, Zanthia Oliver, Christian Willauer, Yolanda McCoy, and Chris Johnson. 

“I believe interpretation and intention of the law was not for someone to run for that seat, and then think they can switch to a Democrat, and now we have all Democrat representation,” Darby told Spotlight Delaware. 

Owens said that before changing parties, Spadola could have pushed for a charter amendment to remove the language requiring the election of a minority party member.

“But that’s not what was done,” he said. 

The four City Council members who did not co-sponsor Congo’s resolution included Maria Cabrera and Latisha Bracy who could not be reached for comment, and Nathan Field and Michelle Harlee who declined to comment. 

In response to Congo’s resolution, Spadola told Spotlight Delaware that he has “full faith that the rule of law will prevail” while he considers his legal options. He said he was elected by people, not a political party and the council should not attempt to empty his seat through a resolution.  

“This is an attempt to disenfranchise Wilmington voters, full stop. Some Councilmembers want to replace an elected citywide representative with an unelected appointee during budget season (the most consequential vote of the year) based on a party-representation rule that does not exist,” Spadola said in a statement to Spotlight Delaware. 

Get Involved: The Wilmington City Council will consider Congo’s resolution during a meeting at 6:30 p.m. Thursday inside Council Chambers at the Louis L. Redding City/County Building, located at 800 N. French St. in Wilmington. 

‘All rights to seek declaratory judgment’ 

After switching parties from Republican to Democrat in October, Spadola told Spotlight Delaware he had considered making the move for the previous five years. 

He finally did so because of his disagreement with several ongoing policies associated with President Donald Trump, including tariffs, ICE enforcement, and federal troop deployments into U.S. cities, he said.

Last fall, the city council’s chief of staff Elijah Simmons said Spadola would be able to finish his term, which ends in 2028. He said the city’s charter contained “no written prohibitions against party affiliation changes while in office.” 

Congo also previously asserted that the city’s law department gave him a similar response. 

Since Wilmington’s voter registration is heavily Democratic, three of the four at-large City Council seats have historically gone to Democrats, leaving a single seat for a Republican Party candidate.

Spadola was first elected in 2020. He was re-elected in 2024 after finishing fourth among the at-large candidates and just ahead of first-time Republican challenger Shawn Dottery.

After his party switch, the City Council was relatively quiet about the matter. But in March Congo told Spotlight Delaware that conversations with other council members, city residents, and various attorneys led him to send his February letter telling Spadola that he had to change his party affiliation back to Republican. 

Spadola has hired William Larson, an attorney with the Wilmington firm MG+M. In a subsequent letter to Congo, Larson asserted that the city’s charter does not prohibit Spadola from changing party affiliation.

“We reserve all rights to seek declaratory judgment, an injunction, and additional relief in the Court of Chancery should you take any further action to vacate Councilmember Spadola’s seat,” Larson said in the Feb. 12 letter. 

A City Council seat that becomes vacant more than 30 days before a primary election will be filled by voters in the next general election. 

The post Wilmington City Council to consider removing Spadola from his seat appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.

Why Should Delaware Care?
Government works best when its citizens are knowledgeable and engaged. Delaware’s government has scores of commissions, working groups, agencies and legislative committees. All must hold meetings that are open to the public. Below we highlight a few of those meetings that are happening this week.

Below are some of the most important or interesting public meetings happening around the state this week.

• Lawmakers to discuss public school funding
• Lawmakers to mull mental health insurance coverage
• Georgetown to elect first new mayor in more than a decade
• Municipal budget talks continue in New Castle, Sussex

Lawmakers to take up school funding question

The Senate Education Committee will discuss two bills on Tuesday that could change how Delaware funds its schools. 

Senate Bill 302, sponsored by State Sen. Laura Sturgeon (D- Brandywine Hundred), would enable the state Department of Education to begin implementing the hybrid public school funding model that was approved last year by the Public Education Funding Commission. 

The hybrid model would send more money to schools with large numbers of low-income students or English-language learners. According to SB 302, the model would take effect in the 2028 fiscal year. 

The bill also establishes a hold-harmless provision, meaning no school would receive less funding in the 2028 fiscal year than it will have received in 2027. 

Sturgeon, who is the chair of the PEFC, also introduced Senate Bill 303, which makes the commission a permanent body to continue studying and evaluating the state’s funding formula in the years to come. 

📍 The Senate Education Committee is scheduled to meet at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday inside Legislative Hall, located at 411 Legislative Ave. in Dover. For more details, including information about virtual attendance, click here.

Lawmakers to mull mental health care coverage

Another State Senate committee will meet Tuesday to discuss legislation that would expand mental healthcare access in the state.

The Senate Health & Social Services Committee will discuss Senate Bill 22, which would codify federal mental health insurance coverage protections into Delaware law. 

Introduced by Senate Majority Leader Bryan Townsend (D-Glasgow), the bill aims to implement provisions of the federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which protects patients with private insurance from being denied for behavioral health treatments.

In 2024, the Biden administration widened the law’s protections, leading to lawsuits from insurance trades groups. Following the 2024 election, the Trump administration seems unlikely to enforce the Biden-era changes.

📍 The Senate Health & Social Services Committee is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. Tuesday inside Legislative Hall, located at 411 Legislative Ave. in Dover. For more details, including information about virtual attendance, click here.