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Submission + - Non-US made WiFi Routers Banned by FCC (pcmag.com)

Submitted by phatrabt
phatrabt writes: The FCC has now banned any WiFi routers not made in the US from being sold unless granted a waiver from the Pentagon or Homeland Security. PC Mag says:

"Late on Monday afternoon, the FCC announced the order, based on a White House determination that foreign-made routers introduce “supply chain vulnerabilities” that hackers and cyberspies can exploit. Specifically, the commission updated its “covered list,” which acts as a blacklist of telecom equipment deemed to pose an unacceptable risk to US national security. It now includes “all consumer-grade routers produced in foreign countries.”

However, the FCC stresses, “This action does not affect any previously purchased consumer-grade routers. Consumers can continue to use any router they have already lawfully purchased or acquired.”

“Nor does it prevent retailers from continuing to sell, import, or market router models approved previously through the FCC’s equipment authorization process,” the commission adds.

Submission + - Rapper Afroman wins defamation lawsuit against police officers about rap videos (billboard.com)

Submitted by UnknowingFool
UnknowingFool writes: Rapper Afroman, born Joseph Edgar Foreman, famous for his 2000 hit "Because I Got High", has won a defamation lawsuit that seven Ohio police offers filed against him. A jury found he did not defame the officers in music videos he made about a 2022 police raid of his home. In August 2022, Adams County Sheriff's Department raided Afroman's home on suspicion of drug trafficking and kidnapping. Neither drugs nor kidnapping victims were found, and charges were never filed. However local officials would not pay for damages occurred during the raid including a broken front door and a video surveillance camera. Afroman used his home security footage of the raid to create music rap videos criticizing the police over the incident; "Will You Help Me Repair My Door?", "Why You Disconnecting My Video Camera?", and "Lemon Pound Cake". He posted the videos on YouTube.

In March 2023, seven officers filed a lawsuit against Afroman for invasion of privacy and the unauthorized use of their images from the security footage in addition to defamation claims. The officers requested an injunction for Afroman to stop speaking about them or using their photos. The officers also wanted all proceeds from the videos, song sales, performances, and merchandise claiming they had suffered “emotional distress” due to the videos. Afroman's defense included Freedom of Speech rights to criticize public officials. The ACLU filed an amicus brief supporting the rapper arguing that the lawsuit was a SLAPP suit only meant to silence criticism. In October 2023, the court agreed and dismissed the invasion of privacy, "right of publicity”, and “unauthorized use of individual’s persona” claims but allowed the defamation case to proceed.

Defamation claims by the officers included the allegation Afroman repeatedly had sex with the wife of Randolph L. Walters, Jr. When Afroman's lawyer asked Walters “But we all know that’s not true, right?”, the officer replied he did not know. Defamation from emotional damages requires that harm arise from a false statement; however, if a statement is so outrageous that no one would believe it to be true, then reputational damage cannot be a result.

Submission + - Japan approves stem-cell treatment for Parkinson's in world first (france24.com)

Submitted by fjo3
fjo3 writes: Pharmaceutical company Sumitomo Pharma said it received the green light for the manufacture and sale of Amchepry, its Parkinson's disease treatment that transplants stem cells into a patient's brain.

Japan's health ministry also gave the go-ahead to ReHeart, heart muscle sheets developed by medical startup Cuorips that can help form new blood vessels and restore heart function, media reports said.

The treatments could be on the market and rolled out to patients as early as this summer, reports said, citing the health ministry, becoming the world's first commercially available medical products using (iPS) cells.

Submission + - CATL unveils 1.1M mile EV battery, charges in 12 min, retains 80% @ 3,000 cycles (interestingengineering.com)

Submitted by fahrbot-bot
fahrbot-bot writes: Interesting Engineering is reporting that CATL, formally known as Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited, has introduced a new fast-charging electric vehicle battery platform designed to significantly reduce charging times while maintaining long-term durability.

The company released performance data for its 5C battery, stating it can fully charge in about 12 minutes while supporting extended cycle life.

The engineering focus behind the platform centers on enabling ultra-fast charging without accelerating battery degradation. A 5C charge rate allows a battery pack to accept high power input, enabling rapid replenishment comparable to short refueling stops.

According to the company’s testing, the battery retained at least 80 percent of its original capacity after 3,000 full charge and discharge cycles under standard temperature conditions. This translates to a projected driving lifespan approaching 1.5 million miles.

The battery was also evaluated under high-temperature conditions to assess real-world endurance. At 140F, it maintained 80 percent capacity after 1,400 cycles, indicating sustained performance even under thermal stress, though with reduced cycle life compared to moderate conditions.

Material innovations underpin the system’s performance. The cathode features a protective coating to reduce structural breakdown during rapid cycling, while the electrolyte contains additives that detect and seal microscopic cracks that could accelerate degradation.

The separator incorporates a temperature-responsive coating that moderates ion movement during heat buildup, helping stabilize the cell during repeated fast charging.

Submission + - Norwegian Consumer Council Targets 'Enshittification' (forbrukerradet.no) 1

Submitted by DeanonymizedCoward
DeanonymizedCoward writes: The Norwegian Consumer Council, an independent, governmentally funded organization that advocates for consumer’s rights, has released a report addressing the trends of 'enshittification' in consumer goods and services and laying out some steps consumers can take to buck the trends.

"It should be easy for consumers to make sustainable choices every day. Consumers have the right to be protected against exploitation – both financially and digitally. To ensure this, we work to provide easy access to information, enforceable rights, and sufficient redress options when something goes wrong," says the organization.

They have also released a YouTube video making light of the matter,

Submission + - Robot clean-up crews tackle litter on Europe's seabed (phys.org)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: EU researchers are developing AI-guided robot fleets to take over the dangerous, dirty work of finding and removing marine litter from the sea floor. A ship with a crane floats in the Mediterranean sun at a marina in Marseille, France. The crane whirs as it hauls waste from the seabed and, when the wire breaks the surface, the gripper at the end is clutching a rubber tire covered in algae.

Submission + - F-35 Software Could Be Jailbreaked Like An iPhone: Dutch Defense Minister (twz.com)

Submitted by Koreantoast
Koreantoast writes: As relations between the US and its NATO allies experience greater political strain, European nations are openly discussing plans on what to do if the Trump administration cuts off access to US military support. One of the key weapon systems of concern is the fifth generation F-35 fighter — the aircraft's tremendous capabilities come in large part from connection to the global mission planning and logistics planning software and historical data controlled by the US. TWZ explains:

It’s this mission planning data package that is a major factor to the F-35’s survivability. The ‘blue line’ (the aircraft’s route into an enemy area) that is projected by the system is based on the fusion of a huge number of factors, from enemy air defense bubbles to the stealth and electronic warfare capabilities of the aircraft, as well as onboard sensor and weapons employment envelopes and integrated tactics between F-35s and other assets. To say the least, it is one of the F-35’s most potent weapons.

The Dutch Defense Minister, Gijs Tuinman, is now openly discussing the possibility of "jailbreaking" the software, to ensure the system can still be operated even if cut off from the US networks and data. Even if the aircraft's software was "jailbroken", the aircraft's capabilities would be diminished without access to US mission planning systems and data, let alone other critical aspects like access to spare parts. As TWZ notes:

Without [access to data], the aircraft and its pilot are far less capable of maximizing their potential and, as a result, are more vulnerable to detection and being shot down.

However, the step could help mitigate risks for European operators if the once unthinkable happens.

Submission + - First Sodium-ion Batteries in Commercial EVs (insideevs.com) 1

Submitted by Geoffrey.landis
Geoffrey.landis writes: While lithium-ion chemistry is currently ubiquitous in commercial batteries, an alternative chemistry, the sodium-ion battery, has projected advantages by using a lower-cost, more abundant material, with potentially a lower fire hazard. Chinese battery manufacturer CATL and automaker Changan Automobile are preparing to put the world’s first passenger car powered by sodium-ion batteries on public roads by mid-2026. The CATL Naxtra sodium-ion battery will debut in the Changan Nevo A06 sedan, delivering an estimated range of around 400 kilometers (249 miles) on the China Light-Duty Test Cycle. “The launch represents a major step in the industry’s transition toward a dual-chemistry ecosystem, where sodium-ion and lithium-ion batteries complement each other to meet diverse customer needs,” CATL said in a press release. Studies show that sodium-ion batteries carry no risk of thermal runaway and are far less sensitive to extreme temperatures. From an energy density standpoint, the Naxtra battery is competitive but not revolutionary, at 175 watt-hours per kilogram, lower than nickel-rich Lithium-ion chemistries but roughly on par with LFP. That makes it more suitable for low-cost and low-range EVs as well as stationary energy storage. It reportedly operates well at cold temperatures, retaining more than 90% of its range at -40 degrees C (-40 degrees F).

Submission + - SpaceX wants to launch a constellation of a million satellites to power AI needs (engadget.com) 1

Submitted by technology_dude
technology_dude writes: Kessler Syndrome Scheduled

Elon Musk and his aerospace company have requested to build a network that's 100 times the number of satellites that are currently in orbit. On Friday, SpaceX filed an application with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to launch a million satellites meant to create an "orbital data center."

Submission + - Cheap green tech allows faster path to electrification for the developing world (japantimes.co.jp)

Submitted by Mr. Dollar Ton
Mr. Dollar Ton writes: According to a new report from a think tank, "Ember", the availability of cheap green tech can have developing countries profit from earlier investment and skip steps in the transition from fossil to alternatives.

India is put forward as an example. While china’s rapid electrification has been hailed as a miracle, by some measures, India is moving ahead faster than China did when it was at similar levels of economic development. It’s an indication that clean electricity could be the most direct way to boost growth for other developing economies.

That’s mainly because India has access to solar panels and electric cars at a much lower price than China did about a decade ago. Chinese investments lowered the costs of what experts call "modular technologies” — the production of each solar panel, battery cell and electric car enables engineers to learn how to make it more efficiently.

India's per-capita consumption of oil for road transport is 60% lower than when China hit that milestone. As a result India’s peak road-oil consumption per person will likely never reach Chinese levels.

Submission + - How Bright Headlights Escaped Regulation — and Blinded Us All (autoblog.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: Modern LED technology promised safer roads. Instead, it’s creating a blinding menace that regulators refuse to address.

- Headlight brightness has doubled in a decade, with widespread driver complaints and frustration.
- Regulatory loopholes allow manufacturers to increase brightness because of outdated federal standards.
- Regulations capping maximum brightness for LED headlights have still not been formulated.

Submission + - NTP Solicits Donations 2

Submitted by ewhac
ewhac writes: Coming on the heels of FFmpeg having to cope with slop bug reports from Google (without attendant fixes), the Network Time Foundation, the stewards of the Network Time Protocol (NTP) and reference software implementation that keeps billions of computers' internal clocks set to the correct date and time, is having a donation drive. Depending on which page you look at (ntp.org or nwtime.org), the Foundation's goal is to raise a king's ransom of... $11,000.00. Yes, eleven thousand dollars.

Submission + - Why Solarpunk is already happening in Africa (substack.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: You know that feeling when you’re waiting for the cable guy, and they said ‘between 8am and 6pm, and you waste your entire day, and they never show up?

Now imagine that, except the cable guy is ‘electricity,’ the day is ‘50 years,’ and you’re one of 600 million people. At some point, you stop waiting and figure it out yourself.

What’s happening across Sub-Saharan Africa right now is the most ambitious infrastructure project in human history, except it’s not being built by governments or utilities or World Bank consortiums. It’s being built by startups selling solar panels to farmers on payment plans. And it’s working.

Over 30 million solar products sold in 2024. 400,000 new solar installations every month across Africa. 50% market share captured by companies that didn’t exist 15 years ago. Carbon credits subsidizing the cost. IoT chips in every device. 90%+ repayment rates on loans to people earning $2/day.

And if you understand what’s happening in Africa, you understand the template for how infrastructure will get built everywhere else for the next 50 years.

Submission + - Student handcuffed by police after AI 'mistakes bag of Doritos for gun' (independent.co.uk)

Submitted by Bruce66423
Bruce66423 writes: 'Taki Allen was approached by armed officers at Kenwood High School following football practice, who ordered him to the ground and cuffed him before realising he had no weapon.

'The school's Omnilert AI gun detection system, which uses cameras to identify potential weapons, generated an alert that was then forwarded to the school resource officer and police.

'While the student's family and local officials have expressed concern and called for a review of the system, the school superintendent defended its operation, stating it "did what it was supposed to do".

'This incident follows a previous failure of the Omnilert system in January, where it did not detect a gun used in a fatal shooting at a Nashville high school due to camera proximity issues.'

A false positive follows a catastrophic false negative. The price we pay for safety? How big a price should we pay?

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