08-02-Sci-Tech Top

Western AI Treaty Report Updates – September 2024

pgnewser September 10, 2024

Groundbreaking AI Treaty to be Signed by US, Britain, and European Union: Report – Finance Magnates

This treaty aims to balance the risks of AI with the promotion of responsible innovation and the protection of human rights.

The AI Convention differs from the EU’s AI Act in that it applies to a broader group of countries and emphasizes human rights.

United States, Britain, and European Union member states will sign the world’s first legally binding international treaty on artificial intelligence, Reuters reported. The treaty, developed over years of negotiations, aims to address the risks posed by AI while promoting responsible innovation.

The AI Convention, adopted in May, is the result of discussions among 57 nations spearheaded by the Council of Europe, a human rights organization. This agreement is focused on protecting the human rights of those affected by AI systems and ensuring that technological progress does not come at the expense of fundamental values like human rights and the rule of law.

While the treaty may share similar goals with the European Union’s recently enacted AI Act, it is distinct in scope and application. The EU’s AI Act, which came into force last month, focuses on regulating AI systems within the EU’s internal market.

CrowdStrike-Microsoft outage: China avoids disruption on back of cybersecurity drive– amp.scmp.com

CrowdStrike-Microsoft outage: China avoids disruption on back of cybersecurity drive– amp.scmp.com

pgnewser July 30, 2024

The CrowdStrike Update glitch that led to global systems shutting down, including airports and governments, may have cost $5.4 billion in collective losses, with healthcare, banking, and the airline industry being the most impacted. The shutdown occurred on July 19, 2024, after CrowdStrike pushed out an update to millions of computers worldwide.

The update was never intended to be pushed, but a bug in the system allowed an update in testing mode to be let loose into the whole system. The update essentially led to the blue screen of death for users. If you didn’t use CrowdStrike, an Internet Security provider, you were safe from the worldwide blue screens of death of 2024.

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Excerpt from amp.scmp.com

Insurers have begun calculating the financial damage caused by last week’s devastating CrowdStrike software glitch that crashed computers, canceled flights and disrupted hospitals all around the globe — and the picture isn’t pretty.

What’s been described as the largest IT outage in history will cost Fortune 500 companies alone more than $5 billion in direct losses, according to one insurer’s analysis of the incident published Wednesday.

The new figures put into stark relief how a single automated software update brought much of the global economy to a sudden halt — revealing the world’s overwhelming dependence on a key cybersecurity company — and what it will take to recover…

The global outage stemmed from the latest version of CrowdStrike’s Falcon Sensor software, which was meant to make the computer systems of its clients more secure against hacking by updating the threats it defends against. A faulty code in the update, however, resulted in one of the most widespread tech outages in recent years for many companies, including banks and airports, that use Microsoft’s Windows operating system and cloud computing services.

TikTok Need Not Fear a Trump Presidency

pgnewser July 24, 2024

Donald Trump let voters know he will not be pursuing a TikTok ban if he were to get elected, stating “Now [that] I’m thinking about it, I’m for TikTok, because you need competition. If you don’t have TikTok, you have Facebook and Instagram—and that’s, you know, that’s Zuckerberg.” He made this statement in an interview on Bloomberg Businessweek.

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Excerpt from gizmodo.com

Donald Trump appears to support TikTok and doesn’t plan on banning it if he gets into office. This change of heart comes as no surprise when you consider that one of the big investors of the app is also a mega-donor for Trump, the man really needs something to give younger voters, and the platform has become a haven for pro-Trump content in recent months.

In an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, Trump said he no longer plans on banning TikTok. His reasoning is that he doesn’t to reward his new favorite punching bag who he already threatened with prison time, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

“Now [that] I’m thinking about it, I’m for TikTok, because you need competition,” Trump told Bloomberg Businessweek in an interview conducted back in June and published on Tuesday. “If you don’t have TikTok, you have Facebook and Instagram—and that’s, you know, that’s Zuckerberg.”

Net Neutrality Rebirth Put on Hold

pgnewser July 16, 2024

A U.S. Appeals Court ruled Friday that it would temporarily halt the Biden FCC from implementing its revitalization of net neutrality rules, rules that govern how much bandwidth can and should be where. Net Neutrality was shut down by former President Donald J Trump. The revitalized net neutrality rules would have taken place July 22, 2024 had this ruling not occurred.

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Excerpt from www.communicationstoday.co.in

A US appeals on Friday said it was temporarily putting the Federal Communications Commission’s reinstatement of landmark net neutrality rules on hold until Aug. 5 as it considers industry legal challenges.

The FCC voted in April along party lines to reassume regulatory oversight of broadband internet and reinstate open internet rules adopted in 2015 that were rescinded under then-President Donald Trump. Those rules were set to take effect on July 22 until the order from the Sixth Circuit US Court of Appeals. Reuters

Elon Prepares for Second Neuralink Patient, Promises “Superpowers”

pgnewser July 11, 2024

Elon Musk has announced plans to insert another Neuralink implant into another patient. He also announced he intends on Neuralink to eventually give humans “superpowers.” Musk hopes to make AI a friend and not a threat to humanity, promising to develop “a closer symbiosis between human intelligence and digital intelligence.”

Imagine being able to manipulate much of the automated world around you with your mind alone. Imagine having perfect memory recall and the capacity to hold more facts in your mind within a single thought. These are just some of the things the hyperbolic PT Barnum of our day is promising in his push to gain traction with Neuralink.

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Excerpt from www.news18.com

Neuralink plans to implant its device into a second human patient in about a week, according to the company’s founder, Elon Musk. During a broadcast on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Musk shared that the company aims to have ‘high single digits’ of patients with the device by the end of the year. He and several Neuralink executives discussed the brain chip’s capabilities and future potential, such as treating paralysis and memory loss. They also addressed improvements for future surgeries to prevent issues encountered during the first implantation on Arizona man Noland Arbaugh. Musk emphasised that the long-term goal is to reduce the civilisational risk posed by AI by fostering “a closer symbiosis between human intelligence and digital intelligence.”

Elon Musk stated that the goal is “to give people superpowers,” as he announced that Neuralink will implement changes to address the issue of its electrode threads retracting from brain tissue in upcoming surgeries. To mitigate this problem, the proposed fixes include removing an air pocket that may have caused the threads to retract in the first surgery. Additionally, the company plans to insert the threads more accurately on the folds of the brain in future procedures, he explained.

Biden Government Signals Russia Election Interference Narrative with AI Bot Farm Bust-

pgnewser July 10, 2024

Merrick Garland’s Justice Department announced the successful taking down of a Russian AI Bot farm on Elon Musk’s X Platform, claiming the intention was to spread misinformation about the Ukraine War intended to create support for the Russian nation.

The statement from the Justice Department read, “The social media bot farm used elements of AI to create fictitious social media profiles — often purporting to belong to individuals in the United States — which the operators then used to promote messages in support of Russian government objectives.” This report follows claims from a U.S. intelligence official that Russia wants Trump to win.

The Russia election meddling narrative was something we all saw coming back in January 6, 2021, so don’t call me psychic for predicting it back then. The early deployment of the election meddling narrative does suggest, to this writer, that possibly the elites may have determined the level of cheat it would take to overcome what their internal reality is telling them might put their operations at too high a risk,

Therefore, they may be falling back on “winning” the House to keep the legal pressure on Trump, as well as to impede his legislative efforts, and bank on consolidating power once and for all in 2028. Most likely, not everyone would be onboard with this strategy, so it’s reasonable to assume to effort to remove Biden and find a “viable” candidate that can finish off America now will only be increasing. The recent exposure video of ABC Interviewer George Stephanopoulos “confessing” he doesn’t see Biden finishing another four-year term testifies to that possibility.

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Excerpt from www.themoscowtimes.com

The United States has disrupted a Russian disinformation campaign involving AI-powered bots used to create fake profiles on the social media platform X, the Justice Department said Tuesday.

Officials seized two internet domains and searched 968 social media accounts that Russian operatives allegedly used to create an artificial intelligence “bot farm” and peddle disinformation in the United States and other countries, the department said in a statement.

“The social media bot farm used elements of AI to create fictitious social media profiles — often purporting to belong to individuals in the United States — which the operators then used to promote messages in support of Russian government objectives,” the statement said.

The U.S. actions “represent a first in disrupting a Russian-sponsored Generative AI-enhanced social media bot farm,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray.

The campaign — aimed at sowing “discord in the United States and elsewhere” — was developed by a senior editor of RT, a Russian state-owned media outlet, financed by the Kremlin and aided by an officer of Russia’s FSB security service, the Justice Department said.

Japan is Beefing Up Navy with Railguns and Lasers

pgnewser July 9, 2024

It looks like Japan’s preparation for a potential war with China is going to include high-tech destroyers equipped with railguns and lasers. The destroyers are being developed by Japan’s Ministry of Defense’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency. They are receiving some technical assistance from Germany, France, and the U.S.

Japan’s military development in the last 10 years has been decidedly ramped up from previous decades where their non-aggression constitution prevented them from expanding as they have of late. It is in the best interests of those that wish to keep China in check to aid in the continuation of that increasingly militaristic trend.

Any hope of a one-superpower-reality with China on top is sure to be checked not just by the U.S., but by Japan as well, a growing power militarily that by herself might soon have the capacity to meet any expansionist threat from China.

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Excerpt from nationalinterest.org

Summary and Key Points: Japan is progressing towards equipping its future 13DDX destroyers with advanced electromagnetic (EM) railguns and high-powered lasers.

-Developed by Japan’s Ministry of Defense’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA), these destroyers aim to counter high-speed threats, including hypersonic missiles.

-Japan has been developing railgun technology since 2015, achieving a projectile speed of 4,470 mph in a 2016 demonstration.

-Collaborating with French and German authorities and seeking insights from the U.S. Navy, Tokyo aims to overcome the energy challenges associated with railguns, potentially succeeding where other nations have faltered.

Japan’s 13DDX Destroyers: Pioneering Railgun Technology for Future Warfare

It is no secret that Japan produces gizmos and gadgets on a scale not seen in the West. While its consumer products, from robot dogs to micro washing machines, may stand out to those who visit the Asian nation, military analysts are now watching another technology that Tokyo has gone all in on—namely, railguns, which could be employed on the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s (JMSDF) new class of destroyers.

International military analyst firm Janes reported that the JMSDF has begun to determine if it could acquire a new class of warships—the 13DDX future destroyer—that would be equipped with “electromagnetic (EM) railguns and high-powered lasers.”

The 13DDX was reportedly developed by Japan’s Ministry of Defense’s (MoD) Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA), and in addition to being armed with railguns and lasers, the future destroyers could be further equipped with other types of directed energy weapons (DEW) systems, which could be coupled with a multifunction radar platform. The system could be optimized to counter high-speed targets—and while not explicitly stated that could likely include hypersonic weapons.

Railguns: Big in Japan

As previously reported, Tokyo has been engaged in developing a railgun since 2015, with the aim of being able to stop incoming missiles—including the aforementioned hypersonic missiles—that could be fired at the island nation. The goal of the program has been to mount such a weapon on a warship to add greater flexibility to the system, and a 2016 demonstration of a railgun had a projectile reach a speed of approximately 4,470 mph, or 5.8 times the speed of sound.

On paper, the system offers great promise, but railguns have numerous hurdles to clear, particularly the energy required for the weapon to operate as advertised. The basic technology already exists, which includes a very large power source, a pair of parallel rails, and a moving armature. The concept itself is rather simple, but the basic problem has been one of obtaining enough power to actually launch a projectile in a controlled and reliable manner.

A railgun could require millions of amps to create a magnetic field required to launch the projectile.

Tokyo has already realized it probably can’t go it alone, and in May, the ATLA announced it had struck an agreement with French and German authorities to co-develop the technology that could lead to the successful employment of the platform. The French Ministry of Armed Forces, the German Ministry of Defense, and the French-German Research Institute of Saint-Louis (ISL) are among the entities that could work with ATLA on the future development of railguns.

Tokyo Looking to Washington

It was also in May that ATLA announced it had sent officials to Washington to glean additional insight from the United States Navy, which has also worked toward the development of a railgun.

The U.S. Navy invested upward of $500 million into its electromagnetic railgun (EMRG) program, which had a goal to develop a weapon that was capable of firing projectiles at hypersonic speeds of 4,500mph or more. Because of the high speed, mass, and kinetic energy, the projectile wouldn’t even need to contain explosives to inflict damage. However, after hundreds of millions of dollars were invested over a decade, the sea service effectively scuttled its efforts to develop the technology in 2021.

Perhaps the JMSDF will succeed where the U.S. Navy has failed.

Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: mailto:[email protected].

Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Nigeria Building a Blockchain Currency?

pgnewser July 9, 2024

Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to develop the “Nigerium,” a digital currency that is designed to give the Nigerian nation a back-up currency not so affected by the world currency market. The announcement was made by the NITDA’s Director-General, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi.

The prospect of nation-states developing digital currencies insulated from the volatility of world currencies is a two-edged sword to this writer. On one hand, digital currency gives small-scale communities a chance to create viable value-exchanges protected from the tyranny of large-scale powers.

On the other hand, government control of a digital currency means total government control over citizens’ lives, who must rely on their good standing with government to have access to exchanging value with others, has obvious risks. If the government allows small-scale communities the power to create their own independent digital currencies, then the threat is blunted.

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Excerpt from bitcoinke.io

National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) will develop the ‘Nigerium’ indigenous blockchain to safeguard national security, according to Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, Director-General, NITDA.

Abdullahi stated this when he welcomed a delegation from the University of Hertfordshire Law School, in Abuja, adding that that the ultimate goal is to unite the public and private sectors to develop a domestic blockchain.

The people from University of Hertfordshire Law School said that an indigenous blockchain would ensure that Nigerian data and personal information remain under local control, rather than being managed by international co-developers who may not prioritize Nigeria’s interests.

Moreover, they added that reliance on established blockchain platforms such as Ethereum places Nigeria at the discretion of international developers who do not operate under Nigerian law.

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SCOTUS Determines Americans Don’t have Standing to Challenge Biden Admin Pressuring Social Media Companies to Censor Americans

pgnewser June 27, 2024

In a ruling that made it clear to Americans that the problem of insurrection isn’t just a Democrat one, it’s also a Republican one, 6 Supreme Court Justices from both the left and the right gave the Biden administration the green light to continue to pressure private companies to silence their dissenters.

The court ruled that Americans don’t have standing to challenge the unconstitutional action, playing a semantic word game arguing this is not an affirmation of the action’s constitutionality but merely a rejection of the people bringing suit to bring suit in the first place. The ruling exposes the Uniparty level of corruption Americans face in their battle to restore the republic from foreign enemies, especially those from within our own nation, Democrats and Republicans siding with totalitarianism.

Amy Comey Barrett revealed she is either compromised or an insurrectionist plant all along, giving the majority opinion in words that defy fact and logic. She claimed, “Putting these requirements together, the plaintiffs must show a substantial risk that, in the near future, at least one platform will restrict the speech of at least one plaintiff in response to the actions of at least one Government defendant. Here, at the preliminary injunction stage, they must show that they are likely to succeed in carrying that burden. On the record in this case, that is a tall order.”

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Excerpt from legalinsurrection.com

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to toss Murthy v. Missouri, which accused President Joe Biden’s administration of pressuring social media companies to censor COVID “misinformation.”

Missouri and Louisiana, along with five citizens, filed a lawsuit against the administration in 2022.

Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Justice Amy Coney Barrett voted in the affirmative.

Italian Study Claims Global Warming is a Hoax

pgnewser June 21, 2024

A study conducted by two Italian researchers, Gianluca Alimonti and Luigi Mariani, claims the histrionics from the United Nations about the pending climate disaster is non-existent. One “proof” that man-made climate change is real and is posing an existential threat to the world is the increase in climate disasters, but their research shows climate disasters are DECREASING, not increasing.

The researchers claim, “We conclude that the patterns observed are largely attributable to progressively better reporting of natural disaster events. The above result sits in marked contradiction to earlier analyses by two UN bodies (FAO and UNDRR), which predicts an increasing number of natural disasters and impacts in concert with global warming. Our analyses strongly refute this assertion as well as extrapolations published by UNDRR based on this claim.”

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Excerpt from slaynews.com

A top study has confirmed that fearmongering claims made by the United Nations (UN) to support the “climate crisis” narrative are a hoax, directly contradicted by data.

Despite claims from the UN and other unelected globalists, the study has found that alleged “climate disasters” are not increasing.

In fact, eminent Italian researchers Gianluca Alimonti and Luigi Mariani found that the environment has been significantly improving in recent years, with climate-related events decreasing.

However, the researchers found that, while “climate disasters” have been decreasing, fearmongering studies and corporate media reports linking “global warming” to weather events have increased dramatically, creating the illusion of a “crisis.”