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Why Big Tech, Cops, and Spies Were Made for One Another

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

Illustration: Jovana Mugosa for The InterceptCory Doctorow’s latest book is “The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation.”The techlash has finally reached the courts. Amazon’s in court. Google’s in court. Apple’s under EU investigation. The French authorities just kicked down Nvidia’s doors and went through their files looking for evidence of crimes against competition. People are pissed at tech: about moderation, about monopolization, about price gouging, about labor abuses, and — everywhere and always — about privacy.From experience, I can tell you that Silicon Valley techies are pretty sanguine about commercial surveillance: “Why should I care if Google wants to show me better ads?” But they are much less cool about government spying: “The NSA? Those are the losers who weren’t smart enough to get an interview at Google.”And likewise from experience, I can tell you that government employees and contractors are pretty cool with state surveillance: “Why would I worry a...

Pulsating Rugby World Cup quarterfinals highlight enduring strength of the southern hemisphere

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

South 3, North 1.Talk of a potential shift in the balance of power in world rugby toward the northern hemisphere might have been premature.According to the world rankings, the teams from Europe were favored to win the four quarterfinals in the Rugby World Cup over the weekend.Rugby is played on grass, though, not on paper. And after a quartet of titanic games with razor-thin margins, it’s the southern hemisphere which emerged — again — as the likelier to win the Webb Ellis Trophy.The semifinals are set: Argentina vs. New Zealand on Friday and England vs. South Africa on Saturday, both at the Stade de France outside Paris.The smart money is on a New Zealand-South Africa final on Oct. 28, a repeat of the 1995 title match and the latest episode of the ultimate rugby match and the biggest rivalry in the sport. Both are bidding for a record fourth world title.England and Argentina still have plenty to say about that but, on the evidence of the quarterfinals, the All Blacks and the ...

Washington Spirit misses playoffs and San Diego wins NWSL Shield on the final day of regular season

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

Jaedyn Shaw and Alex Morgan scored to give the San Diego Wave a 2-0 win against Racing Louisville on Sunday, earning the NWSL Shield for best record and the top seed for the playoffs.Megan Rapinoe scored two goals in three minutes at the start of the second half as OL Reign won 3-0 at the Chicago Red Stars and finished fourth. Jess Fishlock added a 59th-minute goal for the Reign, who assured one at least more home match at Seattle’s Lumen Field in the 38-year-old Rapinoe’s final season.San Diego finished 11-7-4 and as top seed has a bye for the opening round of the playoffs.Portland’s Sophia Smith won the Golden Boot with 11 goals.Eight teams entered Sunday in contention for four remaining playoff spots, with every NWSL game kicking off simultaneously. The Reign, North Carolina Courage, Angel City and Gotham secured those final four spots.The playoffs open on Friday with Angel City at the Reign. The winner advances to play at San Diego on Nov. 5 in the semifinals. ...

French authorities say high school where a teacher was fatally stabbed last week has been evacuated over a bomb alert

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

PARIS (AP) — French authorities say high school where a teacher was fatally stabbed last week has been evacuated over a bomb alert.Source

Muere a los 76 años la actriz Suzanne Somers, de la serie “Three’s Company”

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

CALIFORNIA – La actriz Suzanne Somers, la rubia protagonista de la exitosa serie de televisión “Three’s Company”, murió el domingo a los 76 años víctima de cáncer, informó la revista People. Según reveló a ese medio su publicista, Somers “falleció pacíficamente en su casa”, en Palm Springs, California, a primeras horas de hoy, tras sobrevivir durante más de 23 años a un agresivo cáncer de mama. La interprete murió un día antes de su cumpleaños. Nacida en San Bruno, California, la actriz comenzó su carrera entre fines de la década de 1960 y comienzos de la siguiente con pequeños roles, pero la fama le llegó con la serie de la cadena ABC “Three’s Company”, conocida en América Latina como “Tres son multitud”, o “Apartamento para tres”, en España. Muere a los 82 años Michael Gambon, el Dumbledore de Harry Potter ¿Avanza la lucha de Bruce Willis contra la demencia? Su es...

DC museum uses power of science to dispel myths about dyslexia 

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

The Planet Word museum in Northwest D.C. launched a new exhibit this month that explores the science behind dyslexia, the learning difference that makes reading difficult. It’s called Inside Look: Dyslexia, said Nikki DeJesus Sertsu, senior director of exhibits and special projects at the museum.The museum opened the exhibit because October is Dyslexia Awareness Month. “We want to be a place where people can unlock the magic of language and reading,” DeJesus Sertsu told WTOP. “In this installation, you will learn what it’s like to have dyslexia.”Researchers believe one in five people in the U.S. have the learning disorder. The exhibit also aims to dispel misconceptions about dyslexia and spark empathy for people dealing with it. Many times, students who struggle with the learning difference are misdiagnosed.“Dyslexia is often misunderstood, and because of that, it can be missed or misdiagnosed during the critical time when most children beco...

Colorado’s I-25 is partially closed after a coal train derailed off a bridge and killed a semi-truck driver, authorities say

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

(CNN) — A portion of Colorado’s Interstate 25 has been shut down in both directions after a coal train derailed off a bridge and onto the roadway Sunday afternoon, killing a semi-truck driver, state authorities said.Crews are working to clear toppled train cars and spilled coal at the the derailment site near the city of Pueblo, which lies about 45 miles south of Colorado Springs, the Colorado State Patrol said.The train operator, BNSF Railway, said its personnel are assisting in the cleanup.Images of the scene posted online by the state patrol show at least ten train cars had slid off the tracks and over the side of a bridge and nearby embankment, blanketing the ground with coal. The bridge, which extends over both lanes of the interstate, appears to be partially collapsed with a semi truck crushed underneath it.The male driver of the truck was killed, state patrol spokesperson Gary Cutler told CNN. No other details on the victim were provided. There were no reported injuries among...

Long-lost ‘Star Wars’ X-wing model fetches over $3.1 million at auction

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

(CNN) — A long-lost model of an X-wing fighter used in the original 1977 “Star Wars” movie sold at auction for over $3.13 million on Sunday.Used in the filming of the final battle in “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope” as the Rebel Alliance fight the Empire above the Death Star, the model represented “the pinnacle of Star Wars artifacts to ever reach the market,” Dallas-based auction house Heritage Auctions said ahead of the sale.The top two wings of the fighter are both painted with a single red stripe, identifying it as the squadron’s “Red Leader.”The model is part of a collection that belonged to the late Greg Jein, an Oscar- and Emmy-nominated miniature-maker known for his work on “Star Trek” and “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”Long known as “the missing X-wing,” it was discovered by a team of visual effects experts, including Gene Kozicki (“Face/Off” and “Flight of the Phoenix”), as they helped Jein’s family sift through his collection, Kozicki told the Hol...

Mickey Mouse Parliament? EU train to Strasbourg takes wrong turn, ends up at Disneyland

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

ON A (DIFFERENT) TRAIN FROM BRUSSELS TO STRASBOURG — A train carrying hundreds of MEPs and European Parliament officials briefly ended up at Disneyland on Monday, after taking the wrong turn on the way to Strasbourg. It was an incident that will do nothing to deter those who deride the institution as a Mickey Mouse Parliament. Every month the European Parliament charters trains exclusively for lawmakers and EU officials to get them between its two seats in Brussels and Strasbourg, in eastern France. It’s a monthly upheaval that is enshrined in EU treaties and is fiercely defended by France but often scoffed at as a traveling circus in which Goofy would be proud to participate.After departing from Brussels Midi station, the train left Charles de Gaulle Airport and headed to Marne la Vallée Chessy, where Disneyland is located — causing a 45-minute delay.“Team Disneyland,” wrote Dutch MEP Samira Rafaela in a photo she posted on X, showing her in the café carriage...

16-day partial Red Line shutdown gets first real test during Monday morning’s commute

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:10:13 GMT

The partial shutdown of MBTA’s Red Line will get its first real test on its third day Monday, when shuttle buses will temporarily replace trains between JFK/UMass and Ashmont stations and the Mattapan Trolley for the morning commute.The shutdown is slated to continue for 16 days and will make way for a series of repairs on the Red Line.The T has said work on the Red Line will involve upgrading light fixtures, updating stations and replacing nearly 1.5 miles of track with the goal of cutting down on slow zones where wait times have tripled for some riders.The Red Line is the lowest rated T line in speed and service, with trains last month running nearly 1.5 hours behind schedule, according to the watchdog group TransitMatters. In August, the group’s head said the Red Line could send the MBTA into a death spiral if repairs don’t fix its issues. The MBTA’s Fairmount Commuter Rail line will also be free during the closure.