ICT news

• ASML Says Ex-China Employee Stole Chip Data

  15-02-2023 23:40 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNBC: ASML, one of the world's most critical semiconductor firms, said Wednesday that it recently discovered that a former employee in China had misappropriated data related to its proprietary technology. The Dutch firm said that it does not believe the alleged misappropriation is material to its business. "We have experienced unauthorized misappropriation of data relating to proprietary technology by a (now) former employee in China," ASML said in its an
  
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• SEC Proposal Could Bar Investment Advisers From Keeping Assets at Crypto Firms

  15-02-2023 23:00 via news.slashdot.org
  
  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed a rule that would effectively require registered investment advisors (RIA) to go outside the crypto industry for storing digital assets, according to its first formal policy push that leans heavily into the cryptocurrency sector. From a report: The rule, approved in a 4-1 vote by the SEC on Wednesday, would expand the agency's existing regulations that say an investment adviser needs to keep customers' money and securities with a "qualif
  
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• Audiobook Narrators Complain Apple May Have Used Them To Train AI Voices

  15-02-2023 22:21 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Customers of Spotify's audiobook narration firm say that they were not adequately informed of a contract clause that they agreed to, that ultimately allowed Apple to use their voices in its AI training. From a report: Apple quietly released a range of audio Apple Books in early January 2023, which were narrated by voices entirely generated by Artificial Intelligence. Publishers and professional voice actors objected that this was removing a major source of income, but Apple claimed it was still
  
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• ChatGPT Lookalikes Proliferate in China

  15-02-2023 21:41 via slashdot.org
  
  ChatGPT is big in China, even though it's not officially available there. From a report: China's obsession with ChatGPT runs deeper than curiosity. Search giant Baidu is preparing to launch its own competitor, Ernie Bot, in March. It'll embed the tool initially into its search services and smart speakers. Amid the fervor, Alibaba, NetEase and Tencent each promised similar initiatives in the span of a few days, stirring Chinese tech stocks from a years-long slump. The government in Beijing, where
  
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• Google CEO's New Memo To Employees: Put Two To Four Hours Into Improving Bard Chatbot

  15-02-2023 21:01 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai sent an internal memo to Googlers on Wednesday asking them to contribute 2-4 hours of their time to helping improve Bard, the company's AI chatbot that it intends to integrate into search. From a report: The email signals how Google's urgency in moving to win the next generation of AI-based search. The company has found itself on its back foot as Microsoft took the spotlight for its investment in OpenAI. OpenAI created the popular ChatGPT, a chatbot released in late 20
  
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• US Escalates Apple Probe, Looks To Involve Antitrust Chief

  15-02-2023 20:20 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  The Justice Department has ramped up work in recent months on drafting a potential antitrust complaint against Apple, WSJ reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. From the report: The investigation into whether Apple has monopoly power that it abuses began in 2019, but enforcers have escalated their efforts in recent months, with more litigators now assigned to the case and new requests for documents and consultations with companies involved, the people said. The Justice Depar
  
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• Justice Department Says John Deere Should Let Farmers Repair Their Tractors

  15-02-2023 19:41 via news.slashdot.org
  
  President Biden's Department of Justice has formally made its position known on a class action filed against John Deere over farmers' right to repair their tractors. From a report: John Deere owns 53 percent of the market share for tractors in the U.S. and has become notorious among farm workers for using monopolistic practices when it comes to repairs. Last month, Forest River Farms launched a class action lawsuit against John Deere accusing them of violating antitrust laws with its repair poli
  
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• These Companies Are Making Solar Cells Out of Fake Moon Dirt

  15-02-2023 19:02 via science.slashdot.org
  
  The idea of using dirt on the Moon to manufacture solar cells, which could power a permanent human settlement, may seem outlandish, but two companies say they've made big progress on that front: they each say they've already made solar cells using fake Moon dirt. From a report: Jeff Bezos' company Blue Origin says it's been making solar cells this way since 2021 but just made that information public in a blog post on Friday. Separately, Lunar Resources, which aims to develop technologies for the
  
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• Zantac's Maker Kept Quiet About Cancer Risks for 40 Years

  15-02-2023 18:23 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Glaxo says the heartburn drug doesn't cause tumors. But the company was warned by its own scientists and independent researchers about the potential danger. From a report: The small British company was sometimes called Glaxo University, because it conducted important pharmaceutical research that rarely resulted in profitable drugs. Then the scientists at Glaxo Laboratories created a molecule they called ranitidine, and in 1978 the company was granted a US patent. The molecule was new, but not no
  
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• A Third of Companies Linked To Deforestation Have No Policy To End It

  15-02-2023 17:52 via news.slashdot.org
  
  A third of the companies most linked to the destruction of tropical rainforests have not set a single policy on deforestation, a report reveals. From a report: Research by Global Canopy has found that 31% of the companies with the greatest influence on tropical deforestation risk through their supply chains do not have a single deforestation commitment for any of the commodities to which they are exposed. Many of those who have set policies are not monitoring them correctly, meaning deforestatio
  
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• Amazon's Twitch Gaming Channel Is Exaggerating Its Popularity

  15-02-2023 17:07 via slashdot.org
  
  Comparatively few people follow the Crown channel or participate in its chats -- suggesting they aren't engaging with the programming. From a report: When Amazon launched the Crown Channel on its livestreaming platform Twitch in 2019, the e-commerce giant was looking to flex its entertainment chops in the buzzy world of video games -- an arena the company had been trying to break into for years. Resembling a traditional television network, Crown offers a range of ad-supported original programmin
  
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• Latest Attack on PyPI Users Shows Crooks Are Only Getting Better

  15-02-2023 16:43 via it.slashdot.org
  
  More than 400 malicious packages were recently uploaded to PyPI (Python Package Index), the official code repository for the Python programming language, in the latest indication that the targeting of software developers using this form of attack isn't a passing fad. From a report: All 451 packages found recently by security firm Phylum contained almost identical malicious payloads and were uploaded in bursts that came in quick succession. Once installed, the packages create a malicious JavaScri
  
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• Adobe's $20 Billion Figma Deal Faces EU Antitrust Probe

  15-02-2023 16:00 via slashdot.org
  
  Adobe's proposed $20 billion takeover of design firm Figma risks a lengthy European Union probe after the bloc's antitrust watchdog warned of potential concerns over the deal. From a report: The European Commission said it had received requests from a number of national regulators to look into the deal, even though it falls below the normal revenue thresholds to warrant an EU-level review, according to a statement Wednesday. The agency said the deal could "significantly affect competition" in th
  
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• Male Birth Control Stopped Sperm In Mice, Study Found

  15-02-2023 14:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Wall Street Journal: A drug aimed at treating eyes immobilized sperm and prevented pregnancy in mice, encouraging researchers that it might work as a contraceptive for men. Injected into male mice, the drug was 100% effective in preventing pregnancy for 2 1/2 hours and about 91% effective for up to 3 1/2 hours, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications. The male mice were fertile after a day, the study found. The new
  
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• Netflix Drops 'Surprise Me' Shuffle-Play Button

  15-02-2023 12:30 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Netflix has removed its "Surprise Me" button, a feature introduced in 2021 to alleviate the modern burden of choosing something to watch from thousands of titles. MarketWatch reports: The company discontinued the feature last month because of relatively low use, according to a spokeswoman. Netflix found that users tend to come to the service with a specific show, movie or genre in mind, undermining the appeal of a function such as "Surprise Me," the spokeswoman said. "We will continue to explore
  
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• Lufthansa Says IT System Issues Are Grounding All Its Flights

  15-02-2023 11:05 via it.slashdot.org
  
  Deutsche Lufthansa has grounded all of its flights because of company computer issues. From a report: A Lufthansa spokesman said Wednesday the company is urgently investigating the matter. It wasn't immediately clear whether Lufthansa flights that were already airborne were instructed to land. Lufthansa's stable of airlines includes its namesake brand and the national flag-carriers Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Swiss. The company also operates low-cost carrier Eurowings as well as oth
  
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• Google Fiber Launches 5Gbps Service

  15-02-2023 11:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Google Fiber is launching the 5Gbps internet plan it began testing in October. Engadget reports: The service will initially cover four cities, but Google says the $125-per-month service will expand to other areas later this year. The new plan is available today in Kansas City, West Des Moines and Fiber's Utah cities. It has symmetrical upload and download rates, an upgraded 10 Gig Fiber Jack (the small box housing the fiber cable's entrance into your home), professional installation, a WiFi 6 ro
  
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• WHO Abandons Investigation Into Origins of COVID-19 Pandemic

  15-02-2023 08:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Bruce66423 shares a report from Nature: The World Health Organization (WHO) has quietly shelved the second phase of its much-anticipated scientific investigation into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, citing ongoing challenges over attempts to conduct crucial studies in China, Nature has learned. Researchers say they are disappointed that the investigation isn't going ahead, because understanding how the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 first infected people is important for preventing future outbreak
  
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• Antarctic Researchers Say a Marine Heatwave Could Threaten Ice Shelves

  15-02-2023 04:30 via news.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares an article that originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit independent news organization that covers climate, energy, and the environment. It was republished with permission via Ars Technica. Here's an excerpt: Research scientists on ships along Antarctica's west coast said their recent voyages have been marked by an eerily warm ocean and record-low sea ice coverage -- extreme climate conditions, even compared to the big changes of recent decades, when the
  
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• Steep Declines In Data Science Skills Among Fourth- and Eighth-Graders Across America, Study Finds

  15-02-2023 03:02 via news.slashdot.org
  
  A new report (PDF) from the Data Science 4 Everyone coalition reveals that data literacy skills among fourth and eighth-grade students have declined significantly over the last decade even as these skills have become increasingly essential in our modern, data-driven society. Phys.Org reports: Based on data from the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress results, the report uncovered several trends that raise concerns about whether the nation's educational system is sufficiently prepa
  
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• KDE Plasma 5.27 Released

  15-02-2023 02:25 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Long-time Slashdot reader jrepin writes: Plasma is a popular desktop environment, which is also powering the desktop mode on the Steam Deck hand-held gaming console. Today, KDE Community announced release of KDE Plasma 5.27, a Long Term Support (LTS) release and the final release in the Plasma 5 series which is based on Qt 5.This release brings a welcome wizard, which will guide you through setting up the desktop, and a new tiling system for KWin window manager, allowing you to set up custom til
  
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• Amazon Plans To Eventually 'Go Big' On Physical Grocery Stores

  15-02-2023 01:45 via slashdot.org
  
  Amazon CEO Andy Jassy told the Financial Times that the company intends to "go big" on its brick-and-mortar grocery store business. Engadget reports: Amazon bought Whole Foods in 2017 for $13.7 billion, but the company is far from dominating the grocery market like it has so many other sectors. The company's physical store division accounts for 3.4 percent of overall business and has grown only around 10 percent since the Whole Foods acquisition. "We're just still in the early stages," Jassy tol
  
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• Viral TikTok Challenge Forces Hyundai and Kia To Update Software On Millions of Vehicles

  15-02-2023 01:02 via it.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge: Hyundai and Kia are offering free software updates for millions of their cars in response to a rash of car thefts inspired by a viral social media challenge on TikTok. The so-called "Kia Challenge" on the social media platform has led to hundreds of car thefts nationwide, including at least 14 reported crashes and eight fatalities, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Thieves known as "the Kia Boyz" would post instru
  
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• 50% Rejection Rate For iPhone Casings Produced In India Show Scale of Apple's Challenge

  15-02-2023 00:20 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  A 50% rejection rate for iPhone casings produced by an Indian company is a stark illustration of the difficulties Apple faces in reducing its dependence on China. 9to5Mac reports: Apple's target for casings that fail to pass quality control is 0%, with Chinese suppliers reportedly getting extremely close to this. The attitude of Indian suppliers is also said to compare poorly with the can-do approach of Chinese companies, with one former Apple engineer saying that there is no sense of urgency in
  
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