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Comment The scary part - for me, anyway (Score 2) 442

by blahblahwoofwoof (#61857005) Attached to: Newly-Published Evidence Undermines China Lab-Leak Theory

I don't think we'll ever know, definitely, anything, other than Wuhan is where it started.

The scary part is the discussion as to whether or not it was created in a lab. I never read or saw in any live discussion that it was impossible to create - just that it was likely to be of natural origin. It would be prudent to assume then, that a deadly virus could be built entirely in a lab environment.

I accept that Covid-19 is almost certainly an animal-to-human transfer. The next pandemic is likely to start the same way. But given CRISPR-Cas9 and other advances in genomics, and looking forward fifty years, someone, somewhere, will build something viral and very deadly. Because Humans.

Submission + - Google's 'hypocritical' remote work policies anger employees (cnet.com)

Submitted by nray
nray writes: The rancor intensified last week, when Urs Hölzle, one of the company's longest-tenured and most senior executives, announced plans to work remotely from New Zealand, according to an email he sent to employees that was viewed by CNET. News of Hölzle's relocation especially stung because he has been particularly vocal against remote work, employees said. De Vesine, the resigning Googler, said Hölzle had a policy of not letting people work remotely unless they were assigned to an office and that he wouldn't consider remote work for people who hadn't reached a certain level of seniority. t's unclear if Hölzle's salary will be adjusted to the local market, as required for other employees relocating to a new place. The Google spokesman declined to comment on his compensation. If the rule applies to Hölzle, he would likely be taking a pay cut. Mountain View, California, where Hölzle is based, is 18% more expensive than Auckland, New Zealand's biggest city, according to Expatistan. (It's unclear what city Hölzle is moving to.)

Submission + - Google charged with new antitrust lawsuit over Play Store fees (ciobulletin.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: In a fresh action against Google, a coalition of state attorneys general has launched a new antitrust lawsuit, which accuses Google of abusing its control on the Android app store. The lawsuit, filed by 36 states and Washington, DC, in California federal court, challenges Google’s policy forcing Google Play app developers to pay a 30 percent commission fee on sales made through the app.

Google charges commission over digital goods purchased through apps listed on the store. It recently expanded the fees to cover more digital goods purchased on the Play Store, targeting few apps that have previously been evading the tax. The complaint lists the defendants as Google, Alphabet, and subsidiaries in Ireland and Asia.

“It’s strange that a group of state attorneys general chose to file a lawsuit attacking a system that provides more openness and choice than others,” Google wrote in a blog post responding to the lawsuit. “This complaint mimics a similarly meritless lawsuit filed by the large app developer Epic Games, which has benefitted from Android’s openness by distributing its Fortnite app outside of Google Play.”

The lawsuit comes amid growing federal pressure on Google, which is already facing three federal antitrust lawsuits, including monopoly practices in search advertising. In recent hearings, lawmakers and regulators have repeatedly questioned Apple and Google’s ability to make their app store the defaults on mobile devices.

Submission + - iOS 15 Features Finally Take Advantage Of The Mobile App (appfillip.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The Neural Engine has been in the iPhone since the release of the iPhone X in 2017. However, I don’t think most of us have felt the effects of this processor at all over the four years since its initial release.

Submission + - Microsoft is giving employees a $1,500 pandemic bonus (theverge.com) 1

Submitted by AmiMoJo
AmiMoJo writes: Microsoft is gifting its employees a $1,500 pandemic bonus. In an internal memo seen by The Verge, the software giant says this one-time bonus “is in recognition of the unique and challenging fiscal year that Microsoft just completed.” Microsoft’s chief people officer, Kathleen Hogan, announced the gift to employees today, and it will apply to all eligible employees in both the US and internationally. Microsoft is gifting this bonus to all staff below corporate vice president level that started on or before March 31st, 2021, including part-time workers and those on hourly rates. It follows similar employee gifts from big companies over the past year, including Facebook gifting its 45,000 employees $1,000 each, Amazon’s $300 holiday bonus for frontline workers, and BT gifting its 60,000 employees £1,500 each (approximately $2,000). Vox Media, owner of The Verge, also gifted employees a $1,000 bonus late last year.

Submission + - Giant pandas no longer endangered but still vulnerable, says China (bbc.com)

Submitted by AmiMoJo
AmiMoJo writes: Giant pandas are no longer classified as endangered but are still vulnerable, Chinese officials say. The classification was downgraded as their number in the wild has reached 1,800. Experts say that the country managed to save its iconic animal through its long-term conservation efforts, including the expansion of habitats. China considers pandas a national treasure, but have also loaned them to other countries as diplomatic tools. The latest classification upgrade "reflects their improved living conditions and China's efforts in keeping their habitats integrated", said Cui Shuhong, head of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment's Department of Nature and Ecology Conservation at a news conference. The new classification comes years after the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) had already removed the animal from its endangered species list and re-labelled it as "vulnerable" in 2016.

Submission + - SPAM: Death Rates Are Declining For Many Common Cancers In US

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Death rates are declining for more than half of the most common forms of cancer in the U.S., according to a sweeping annual analysis released Thursday. The new report — released by the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other collaborators — found that between 2014 and 2018, death rates dropped for 11 out of 19 of the most common cancers among men and 14 of the 20 most prevalent cancers among women.

Accelerating declines in lung cancer deaths may account for much of the overall progress seen in recent years, the authors of the report said. Over the past two decades, the death rate for lung cancer has declined even faster than the rate at which patients are diagnosed with the disease. And while part of the early success in preventing lung cancer can be attributed to the massive drop in smoking rates, the authors note the most recent downward trends seem to correspond with the approval of new treatments for non-small cell lung cancer that improved the likelihood of survival. Death rates from melanoma also saw an accelerated decline in the past decade, despite a growing number of diagnoses. Like in lung cancer, authors point to the introduction of novel treatments around the same time as the turnaround on the death rate. New targeted and immune checkpoint inhibitors were approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2011, one year before major declines in death rates were seen in women and two years before they were seen in men.

While the report showed improved survival rates for many patients over recent years, others, such as prostate, colorectal, or female breast cancers, have seen progress stalled or stopped. Breast cancer continues to be one of the three deadliest cancers for women of all races, and the most frequently fatal cancer for Hispanic women. While the rates of death from breast cancer are declining, the pace of the decline has slowed over the past two decades, according to the report. And across the board, racial health disparities persist. Black women and white women are diagnosed with breast cancer at similar rates, but the mortality rate for Black women is 40% higher. Overall, cancer is more common among white individuals than Black individuals, but Black people die from cancer at higher rates. [The report] emphasized the importance of preventive measures for certain cancers, noting that while cancers related to smoking have continued to decrease, those related to excess body weight have increased. Early and consistent access to screenings has also been critical, as demonstrated by the apparent effect of adapted screening guidelines for colorectal cancer.
Link to Original Source

Submission + - German region to fine Tesla for illegal construction (reuters.com)

Submitted by Rei_is_a_dumbass
Rei_is_a_dumbass writes: The environment ministry for Brandenburg, the state that surrounds Berlin and in which the factory will be located, had found that Tesla had constructed tanks on the territory for which it had no authorisation, wrote Tagesspiegel newspaper, which first reported the fine.

Submission + - Californians Fleeing and 'Millionaire Flight'? Just a Myth, Massive Study Finds (sfgate.com) 2

Submitted by Charlotte Web
Charlotte Web writes: Despite the popular belief that residents are fleeing California, there is not in fact a statewide exodus, new research out of the University of California finds... For one, while residents are moving out of state, they are not doing so at "unusual rates." Similarly, the research found no evidence of "millionaire flight" from California and notes that the state continues to attract as much venture capital as all other U.S. states combined, despite the recent exodus of Hewlett-Packard and Oracle.

The report did reveal net migration out of San Francisco during the pandemic. However, about two-thirds of people who left the city remained in the Bay Area, while 80% stayed in California, which is consistent with earlier trends...

A recent survey by UC San Diego, included in the project, found that the percentage of Californians who plan to leave the state has remained static for two years. In fact, only 23% of California voters said they were seriously considering leaving the state, which is lower than the 24% who said the same in a 2019 survey conducted by UC Berkeley...

The myth of "millionaire flight" from California, the project also found, is just that — a myth... an analysis of almost two decades of Franchise Tax Board data by Stanford University and Cornell University found that there has been no millionaire flight from California, despite recent tax increases levied on higher earners.

Comment Live Taxed and Die - Life in Maryland (Score 1) 79

I live in Maryland. Humorous mottoes here are variations on "Live Taxed and Die", and "Welcome to Maryland. Now give us your paycheck." The point being, if there is a way for the Maryland state government to tax something, they will. They even tried to tax rainfall a few years back. (https://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbrown/2014/01/03/when-it-rains-it-pours-tax-dollars-in-maryland/?sh=246e20b37c69)

As you might expect, there's a local TV ad war going on in the state now fighting the proposed online ad tax. The argument is it impacts small businesses in a time when they are under severe stress from the pandemic.

The Governor, Larry Hogan (R), vetoed it. The battle is now a state legislature veto override. Given Maryland's recent history, override is likely.

Comment Re:Crunch for 1 Year?!? (Score 1) 112

PM is at least part of the problem.
I'm just finishing study of both the Project Management and Technical Management disciplines. From OP/TFA it's clear both baselines, Program Execution and Technical Requirements were significantly underestimated.
This inevitably leads to schedule slip, if not outright project failure. Labor hours are increased while labor costs stay flat or are decreased. "Crunch" yields both because the labor is salaried, and total cost of labor within the project decreases inversely with hours. Project failure being a death blow to a company that has already marketed the product, schedule slip and crunch are the only way out.

Game Release Slip also has the company-saving grace of a consumer that has been pre-conditioned to it.

Overall, it's a clear indication of leadership failure in the C-suite. All too common in the Gaming Industry.

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