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Submission + - Declassified Files Ignite New Scrutiny of Fauci, COVID Origins and CIA Coverup (legalinsurrection.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: A little over a week ago, outgoing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released new evidence of long-standing U.S. government funding of more than 120 biolabs in over 30 countries (including Ukraine).

Gabbard's release of information related to biological research funded by the U.S. government continued this Friday, after she declassified a cache of documents outlining Dr. Anthony Fauci’s involvement in the COVID-19 response, including records indicating that federal officials shielded him from a whistleblower complaint alleging he misled Congress about “gain-of-function” work after publicly advancing a natural-origin theory for a pandemic that ultimately claimed millions of lives.

The documents and whistleblower testimony appear to show that Fauci influenced intelligence assessments on COVID-19 origins, denied such involvement under oath in 2024, and benefited from close ties to the intelligence community that limited scrutiny. They further claim a pattern of retaliation against dissenting intelligence officials and suppression of alternative viewpoints regarding the virus’s origins.

Today, on my final day as Director of National Intelligence, I’m releasing never-before-seen communications and documents exposing how Dr. Fauci provided millions in US taxpayer dollars to fund dangerous gain-of-function research at the Wuhan lab, worked with politicized elements pic.twitter.com/ZMdliW4zyS

- DNI Tulsi Gabbard (@DNIGabbard) June 19, 2026

In her announcement, Gabbard broke down Fauci's actions related to COVID-19 into three main areas:

First, Dr. Fauci funded dangerous gain-of-function coronavirus research linked to Big Pharma and their pursuit of universal vaccines. Worth trillions of dollars.

Second, Dr. Fauci was the behind-the-scenes advisor who, alongside his handpicked so-called experts, pushed the intelligence community to endorse a natural animal origin to hide his dangerous gain-of-function research that he funded using taxpayer dollars—all of this in a deliberate attempt to cover up the truth and shift the blame and attention away from Fauci's own actions.

Third, Dr. Fauci became the nation's pandemic pundit and he publicly pushed lies and disinformation and censorship using every platform available.

Comment Questions for KC officials ... (Score 2) 37

by schwit1 (#66202730) Attached to: Facial Recognition on Public Buses? Kansas City Says Yes

What is the "Function Creep" policy? How does the city guarantee that the technology will not be used for purposes other than its stated intent (e.g., used for tracking political protesters, immigration enforcement, monitoring homeless populations, or general surveillance) in the future?

What are the performance benchmarks? Has the technology been tested for accuracy across different demographics (race, sex, age)? Can the city provide third-party, independent audit results showing the error rates of the software?

What is the escalation protocol? If the system provides a "match," what is the mandatory human review process before any law enforcement action is taken? Who is held accountable if the system produces a false positive that leads to a wrongful interaction?

What is the automated deletion policy? For data where no match is found, is there an automated, instantaneous deletion process? Or is that data stored, even briefly, in a "temp" file that could be accessed or subpoenaed?

What is the retention period? If data is kept for a period after a "no match," what is the specific retention period, and where is the policy document that outlines this?

How is the data "purged"? When data reaches the end of its retention period, is it cryptographically erased, or is it merely archived in a way that could still be recovered?

Who owns the data? Is the data owned by the city or the third-party software vendor? Does the contract grant the vendor the right to use the footage to "train" their AI models or improve their algorithms?

What is the data-sharing policy? Is there a database "interoperability" requirement? Does this system automatically share data with federal agencies (like the FBI or DHS), other state agencies, or private organizations? If so, what oversight do local officials have over those agencies' use of this data?

Are there non-disclosure agreements? Are there any clauses in the city's contract with the vendor that prevent the city from disclosing how the technology works, its error rates, or its limitations to the public?

Where is the public-facing policy manual? Is there a comprehensive, publicly available "Surveillance Impact Report" or "Privacy Impact Assessment" that was conducted before the contract was signed?

What is the community oversight mechanism? Will there be an independent civilian oversight board with the power to subpoena records or shut down the use of the technology if it is found to be used improperly?

Submission + - College Board Announces AI-Focused AP CS Principles Course Redesign for 2027-28

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Two days after tech-backed nonprofit Code.org completed "switching hats" from coding to AI with its announced rebranding as CodeAI, the College Board followed suit, announcing plans to 'modernize' the high school AP Computer Science Principles curriculum with AI. From the College Board's "Dear Colleague" letter announcement:

"We’re writing to share some exciting news about the design of AP Computer Science Principles (CSP) for the 2027-28 school year," begins a June 4th College Board announcement to educators. "Given the rapidly evolving technology landscape and especially the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), the AP Program will redesign the course and exam to meet the moment. Through the redesign, students will have an opportunity to learn about AI concepts and apply them immediately, while still maintaining a focus on the fundamentals of coding."

"This redesign will: 1. Modernize AP CSP with AI while maintaining its core structure. The AP Program has partnered with key organizations to identify high-priority AI skills and concepts and embed AI throughout the course sequence. 2. Update the existing project and add a second project. Students will learn AI concepts, practice AI tools, and demonstrate their understanding in a culminating AI Design Project. This new project will be offered alongside a revised and updated Code Create Project. 3. Enhance the exam with questions on AI. The AP CSP Exam will also change to include exam questions that assess understanding of AI, as well as the new AI Design Project, which provides an opportunity for students to creatively demonstrate their understanding of AI logic."

"This redesign ensures that all students develop foundational AI skills aligned to how computing is evolving. The result is a course that is more career-relevant and better aligned to the future of computer science, equipping students with the skills they need to be ahead of the curve. These changes won’t affect the 2026-27 school year. The redesigned course framework will be available in fall 2026."

Submission + - Paper: Being Out Of Shape Is Far More Likely To Kill You Than Smoking (studyfinds.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: In a Nutshell
  • Very low cardiovascular fitness is associated with a roughly 400% higher risk of death than high fitness levels, dwarfing the mortality risk linked to smoking.
  • Current US and UK physical activity guidelines are built around minimum thresholds, not optimal health outcomes, and a Cambridge researcher argues they need a full overhaul.
  • Protein recommendations in the UK haven't been updated since 1991 and were never designed to help people thrive, only to prevent deficiency.
  • Higher protein intake is linked to better muscle mass, healthier aging, improved fat loss, and potentially better pregnancy outcomes, but current guidelines fall well short of what the science supports.

Submission + - WA State, IRS Records Show Code.org Became CodeAI Months Before Announcement

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: On June 2nd, computer science education nonprofit Code.org ("the leading provider of K-12 AI and CS education curriculum across the globe") rebranded itself as CodeAI, solidifying the tech-backed nonprofit's shift to AI education. Not everyone was pleased, including one commenter who noted that the CodeAI rebranding was followed by a June 4th College Board announcement of an AP CS Principles course redesign to modernize AP CSP with AI for the 2027-28 school year.

The move came 13 years after Code.org launched with the belief "that every student should learn the basics of computer programming." In a video announcing the rebranding, Code.org Founder & Chairman of the Board Hadi Partovi explained, "We have a responsibility to prepare the next generation for the biggest change In society since the invention of public education. [...] Starting today, Code.org becomes CodeAI." Code.org also immediately disbanded its nine-year-old, 100+ member Code.org Advocacy Coalition, explaining in a June 3rd video conference that members could either apply to join a new CodeAI Advocacy Coalition that will be "bringing in new AI focused entities that will help us advance this mission", or go their own way if they are "not in line with the direction that CodeAI is heading."

Interestingly, WA State Dept. of Revenue records indicate that Code.org became CodeAI in the eyes of WA state on February 6th, nearly four months earlier than the June 2nd public announcement. And Code.org's 2024 990 filing, dated March 10th, informed the IRS it was doing business as CodeAI. The filings provide new context for the timing of earlier organizational changes at the nonprofit, including the Code.org Chief Academic Officer's jump to Microsoft on January 12th (where he later penned an 'obituary' for 'coders' on Feb. 26), the layoff of 18 Code.org employees 'to ensure long-term sustainability' that was reported on January 21st, and the shakeup in its top leadership ranks that it announced on February 20th.

The apparent decision by Code.org to keep details of its planned 'next chapter' as CodeAI and its mission realignment from educators, partners, and the public until the end of the school year would seem at odds with its self-proclaimed core value of transparency ("We are accountable to and transparent with our team, Board, donors, facilitators, partners, teachers, and community. [...] We proactively share information, research, data, processes, decisions, and results."). Interestingly, the after-the-fact CodeAI rebranding reveal comes as Code.org lead donors Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Meta have increasingly been facing and responding to regulatory and community-driven demands for greater transparency around their AI efforts, particularly regarding AI data center secrecy.

Submission + - Meta lobbies Congress for protection from child-harm lawsuits (aol.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: Meta Platforms has lobbied the U.S. Congress for legal immunity from child-harm claims tied to social media products such as Instagram, as it faces thousands of lawsuits from young users and their families, according to a source familiar with the matter and proposed legislative language reviewed by Reuters.

If adopted by lawmakers and passed into law as part of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) under consideration in the U.S. Senate, such a provision could undermine thousands of lawsuits against Meta and other online platforms over harms to children. Meta and Google's YouTube face a combined $6 million in damages after they lost the first case at trial early this year.

While legislators have given no indication of adopting the language, the lobbying effort shows the kind of legal protections Meta is seeking amid the biggest attempt to regulate online platforms in the U.S. since the 1990s.

Submission + - We Could Have Had Cell Phones 40 Years Sooner (rodmartin.org) 2

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: The holdup was not technology, but government. What else do we not have because of Washington?

The basic idea of the cellphone was introduced to the public in 1945 – not in Popular Mechanics or Science, but in the down-home Saturday Evening Post. Millions of citizens would soon be using "handie-talkies," declared J.K. Jett, the head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Licenses would have to be issued, but that process "won't be difficult." The revolutionary technology, Jett promised in the story, would be formulated within months.

But permission to deploy it would not. The government would not allocate spectrum to realize the engineers' vision of "cellular radio" until 1982, and licenses authorizing the service would not be fully distributed for another seven years. That's one heck of a bureaucratic delay.

Submission + - China's EV Price War Was Built On Cars Sold At A Loss (autoblog.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: China’s auto industry, once fueled by loss-making sales and state subsidies, now faces a cooling market following subsidy rollback and bans on below-cost sales.

Chinese automakers sold EVs below cost, using subsidies to capture global market share.

Regulatory changes and subsidy rollbacks now force higher prices, ending the unsustainable price war.

Chinese firms are aggressively expanding exports, challenging global auto and component manufacturers.

Submission + - You Can No Longer Fly or Purchase a Drone in Beijing (petapixel.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes:

The new law that passed last month makes it illegal to buy, rent, or fly a drone without prior approval from the authorities. Users must also complete an online training session and pass a test on drone regulations.

Under the new rules, drone users are also not allowed to repair or replace their drones in Beijing. Not only that, but a drone in a repair shop must be picked up in-person, rather than sent back by delivery.

The BBC reports that drones must now be registered before being brought into and out of the Chinese capital.

“I have to apply for permission for each flight, which is very inconvenient,” drone enthusiast Steven Wang tells CNN . “And starting this year, the wait time is getting longer, and the reasons for rejection are becoming more vague.”

Despite China being the birthplace of the consumer drone industry, it is increasingly difficult for hobbyists to fly there. Beijing authorities say that the rules are made to “strengthen the management of unmanned aerial vehicles” and “safeguard the security of the capital.”

The FAA does that to us here, already. https://www.faa.gov/uas/gettin...

Submission + - Not the Onion: Inside California's Gay-Certification Program (city-journal.org)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: California is pressuring public utilities to award $633 million in special contracts to "LGBT-owned" firms. To qualify, residents must go through the state's official gay-certification program—and face up to a year in jail if they're not gay enough.

Submission + - Humanity isn't ready for the coming intelligence explosion (archive.is) 1

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: AI leaders are in a race they feel unable to escape. AI investments are set to outspend the Manhattan Project 100-fold, even adjusting for inflation. Yet spending on AI safety might be 100 times less.

Some researchers estimate that within a few months to a few years, AI could achieve so-called closed-loop recursive self-improvement (RSI): the capacity to rewrite its own code to become more capable, without human intervention. Should that happen, the result could be an intelligence explosion of a kind for which there is no precedent and no map.

Giving birth to a superintelligence would be the most consequential moment in human history—and it is likely to be irreversible, as any “off” switch humanity might design will probably fail. That is because in security architectures the weakest link is invariably the human; a superintelligent AI would be able to exploit our psychological vulnerabilities. AIs have already exhibited “deceptive alignment”: taking steps to underplay their capabilities in test environments and trying to blackmail human operators in simulations when they discover they are slated for replacement.

Humanity simply does not have a strategy to ensure it remains safe through the RSI explosion.

Submission + - Germany's Electric charging infrastructure loaded with vulnerabilities (delano.lu)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: German researchers have identified 87 publicly known vulnerabilities relating to charging infrastructure and point out that international cybersecurity competitions continue to uncover significant flaws. The Pwn2Own Automotive competitions have thus uncovered 54 new vulnerabilities across ten models of charging stations over the past two years. Around half of these allowed code execution on the targeted equipment, sometimes with full administrator privileges.

The report also highlights that charging points are currently one of the most vulnerable links in the chain. As they are physically accessible to the public, often managed remotely and connected to multiple IT systems, they present a particularly large attack surface. The BSI cites, in particular, cases of IT services left accessible, insufficient authentication mechanisms, and update procedures that can be exploited.

Submission + - Promised Jobs Are Gifted to Foreigners as Chinese Battery Company Faces Scrutiny (independentnewsroom.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Local and state leaders in rural Sidney, Ohio, enthusiastically welcomed SemCorp Manufacturing USA LLC in 2022, hailing the Chinese company’s commitment to invest nearly $916 million and create up to 1,199 jobs by 2027. Only problem is, they fell short of creating those jobs and they are importing foreign labor.

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