ICT news

• Scientists Simulate First-Ever 'Black Hole Bomb' Laboratory Analog

  03-05-2025 23:43 via science.slashdot.org
  
  "Researchers have created the first laboratory analog of the 'black hole bomb'," reports ScienceAlert, "a theoretical concept developed by physicists in the 1970s..."
  There's no black hole involved; their experiment just simulates the "electromagnetic analogue" of the theoretical concept — the "exponential runaway amplification of spontaneously generated electromagnetic modes."
  Or, as ScienceAlert puts it, "It doesn't, just to set your mind at ease, pose any danger. It consists of a rotati
  
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• 'Unparalleled' Snake Antivenom Made With Antibodies From a Man Bitten 200 Times

  03-05-2025 22:43 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Long-time Slashdot reader piojo writes: Tim Friede, Wisconsin man, has been injecting himself with snake venom for 18 years to gain protection from his pet snakes. The antibodies he developed have formed two components of a three-part antivenom, which gives partial or total protection against 18 of 19 species of venomous snakes that were tested. Notably, the antivenom is ineffective against vipers.
  From Australia's public broadcaster ABC:The team's results have been published today in the journa
  
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• The Atlantic Warns Combining US Government Databases Could Create a 'Panopticon'

  03-05-2025 21:34 via news.slashdot.org
  
  America's federal government "is a veritable cosmos of information, made up of constellations of databases," warns the Atlantic. The FBI "has a facial-recognition apparatus capable of matching people against more than 640 million photos — a database made up of driver's license and passport photos, as well as mug shots. The Homeland Security department holds data "about the movements of every person who travels by air commercially". America's Drug Enforcement Administration "tracks license
  
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• Threads Jumps to 350 Million, Adding 30 Million Users in Three Months

  03-05-2025 20:34 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Threads has now grown to over 350 million monthly active users, reports TechCrunch, citing Mark Zuckerberg's comments on a company earnings call. That means Threads grew by 9.4% in roughly 90 days:
  That's an increase of 30 million users since the prior quarter, where Meta reported that Threads had 320 million users. The new figure represents increased growth, as Threads added 30 million in the first quarter of this year, compared with 20 million in Q4 2024.
  It's also worth noting that in a singl
  
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• May is 'Maintainer Month'. Open Source Initiative Joins GitHub to Celebrate Open Source Security

  03-05-2025 19:34 via news.slashdot.org
  
  May is Maintainer Month: Celebrating those who secure Open Source@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
  The Open Source Initiative is joining "a global community of contributors" for GitHub's annual event "honoring the individuals who steward and sustain Open Source projects."And the theme of the 4th Annual "Maintainer Month" will be: securing Open Source:Throughout the month, OSI and our affiliates will be highlighting maintainers who prioritize security in their projects, sharing their stories, and prov
  
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• Facebook's Content Takedowns Take So Long They 'Don't Matter Much', Researchers Find

  03-05-2025 18:34 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shared this report from the Washington Post:Facebook's loosening of its content moderation standards early this year got lots of attention and criticism. But a new study suggests that it might matter less what is taken down than when. The research finds that Facebook posts removed for violating standards or other reasons have already been seen by at least three-quarters of the people who would be predicted to ever see them.
  "Content takedowns on Facebook just don't matter all
  
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• New Gold-Creating Phenomenon Confirmed in Space Using 2004 Neutron Star Flare Readings

  03-05-2025 17:34 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Slashdot reader sciencehabit shares this excerpt from a new article in Science magazine:
  At first, astronomers knew of only one cosmic scenario that fit the bill for the violent formation of "jewelry shop" elements [gold and sliver]: the collision of two ultra-dense stellar corpses called neutron stars.
  Now, a second has stepped onto the scene.
  As they report this week in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, researchers have discovered signatures of this heavy element formation — called the
  
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• US National Security Official Caught Using 'Less-Secure Signal App Knockoff'

  03-05-2025 16:34 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Remember when U.S. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz mistakenly included a journalist in an encrypted chatroom to discuss looming U.S. military action against Yemen's Houthis?
  A recent photo of a high-level cabinet meeting caught Waltz using a "less-secure Signal app knockoff," reports the Guardian:The chat app Waltz was using appears to be a modified version of Signal called TM SGNL, made by a company that copies messaging apps but adds an ability to retain messages and archive them. The Whi
  
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• Google Plans To Roll Out Its AI Chatbot To Children Under 13

  03-05-2025 15:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the New York Times: Google plans to roll out its Gemini artificial intelligence chatbot next week for children under 13 (source paywalled; alternative source) who have parent-managed Google accounts, as tech companies vie to attract young users with A.I. products. "Gemini Apps will soon be available for your child," the company said in an email this week to the parent of an 8-year-old. "That means your child will be able to use Gemini" to ask questions, g
  
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• Man Pleads Guilty To Stealing 1.1 Terabytes of Disney's Slack Data

  03-05-2025 12:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  A 25-year-old from Santa Clarita has pleaded guilty to hacking a Disney employee's computer using malware disguised as an AI art tool, stealing over 1 terabyte of confidential Disney data and threatening to leak it under the guise of a fake Russian hacktivist group. Variety reports: Santa Clarita resident Ryan Mitchell Kramer, 25, pleaded guilty to two felony charges, including one count of accessing a computer and obtaining information and one count of threatening to damage a protected computer
  
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• Evidence of Controversial Planet 9 Uncovered In Sky Surveys Taken 23 Years Apart

  03-05-2025 09:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Astronomers may have found the best candidate yet for the elusive Planet Nine: a mysterious object in infrared sky surveys taken 23 years apart that appears to be more massive than Neptune and about 700 times farther from the sun than Earth. Space.com reports: [A] team led by astronomer Terry Long Phan of the National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan has delved into the archives of two far-infrared all-sky surveys in search of Planet Nine -- and incredibly, they have found something that could pos
  
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• First Driverless Semis Have Started Running Regular Longhaul Routes

  03-05-2025 05:30 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNN: Driverless trucks are officially running their first regular long-haul routes, making roundtrips between Dallas and Houston. On Thursday, autonomous trucking firm Aurora announced it launched commercial service in Texas under its first customers, Uber Freight and Hirschbach Motor Lines, which delivers time- and temperature-sensitive freight. Both companies conducted test runs with Aurora, including safety drivers to monitor the self-driving technolog
  
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• Microsoft Appoints Deputy CISO For Europe To Reassure European IT leaders

  03-05-2025 02:45 via it.slashdot.org
  
  Microsoft has appointed a Deputy CISO for Europe to address growing regulatory pressure and reassure EU leaders about its cybersecurity commitment. "The move also highlights strong fears from European IT execs and government officials that the Trump administration may exert significant influence on cybersecurity companies," reports CSO Online. From the report: Who that Deputy CISO will ultimately be is unclear. Wednesday's statement simply said that Microsoft CISO Igor Tsyganskiy is "appointing
  
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• US Asks Judge To Break Up Google's Ad Tech Business

  03-05-2025 02:02 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  The U.S. government is seeking to break up Google's advertising technology business after a judge ruled the company holds an illegal monopoly over ad tools for publishers, marking the second such antitrust case following a similar request to divest Chrome. The Guardian reports: "We have a defendant who has found ways to defy" the law, US government lawyer Julia Tarver Wood told a federal court in Virginia, as she urged the judge to dismiss Google's assurance that it would change its behavior. "L
  
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• Temu To Stop Selling Goods From China Directly To US Customers

  03-05-2025 01:20 via news.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: Temu has said it will stop selling goods imported from China in the US directly to customers from its platform. The online marketplace said sales would now be handled by "locally based sellers," with orders fulfilled from within the country. The move comes as a duty-free rule for low-value packages is closed.Temu, and rival Chinese retail giant Shein, had previously relied on the so-called "de minimis" exemption to sell and ship low-value items d
  
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• Uber Inks Robotaxi Deal With Chinese Startup Momenta

  03-05-2025 00:40 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Uber is partnering with Chinese autonomous driving startup Momenta to launch robotaxi services outside the U.S. and China, starting in Europe in early 2026 with safety operators onboard. CNBC reports: Uber said the goal is to combine its global ridesharing network with Momenta's technology to deliver safe and efficient robotaxi services. "This collaboration brings together Uber's global ridesharing expertise and Momenta's AI-first autonomous driving technology, paving the way for a future where
  
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