Nasa’s Kepler Space Telescope, using gravitational microlensing, might have found evidence of Earth like planets floating in the universe, that are not orbiting a star.
Our observations pointed an elderly, ailing telescope with blurred vision at one the most densely crowded parts of the sky, where there are already thousands of bright stars that vary in brightness, and thousands of asteroids that skim across our field.
From that cacophony, we try to extract tiny, characteristic brightenings caused by planets, and we only have one chance to see a signal before it’s gone. It’s about as easy as looking for the single blink of a firefly in the middle of a motorway, using only a handheld phone.
Iain McDonald, University of Manchester
“Kepler has achieved what it was never designed to do, in providing further tentative evidence for the existence of a population of Earth-mass, free-floating planets,” said Eamonn Kerins, also from the University of Manchester, who was a co-author on the study.
Researchers believe that these planets were first formed around a star before being thrown out of orbit.
ScienceAlert
Kepler Seems to Have Detected a Bunch of Rogue Planets Drifting Through The Galaxy
When a star is born, the leftover dust and gas in the cloud from which it formed doesn’t just sit there. It clumps together, forming other cosmic objects – asteroids and comets and meteors and, yes, exoplanets. We’ve detected many of these exoplanets
I was on a call with Huawei last week on security and Huawei’s unenviable problem of being a proxy for China in the emerging cold war between China and the US. At the heart of Huawei’s problem is the US’s FUD attack on Huawei’s reputation, which seems to be focused on arguing that Huawei could do bad things in the future while lacking any evidence they did anything wrong in the past. The one crime that the US does seem to have where Huawei used US funds for an Iranian project plays like manufactured entrapment given the US influenced the bank used and could have directed the bank to commit the crime that allegedly implicated Huawei.
FUD, a tactic largely attributed to IBM when dominant through the 1980s, is a reputation attack. It depends on perceptions, not reality, challenging but not impossible to counter. However, that is against another company; against a country, the degree of difficulty goes up substantially.
Reputation attacks can happen to individuals as well. While firms like Cyber Investigations can help with individual and small company FUD attacks when you move to significant firms and governments, defenses become far more marketing-oriented. Success may require other governments to come to your defense.
Let’s explore defending against FUD attacks this week in the context of Huawei’s not so unique problem.
What Is A FUD Attack?
FUD stands for Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt, and it is an effective marketing tool for defending against an upstart taking market share away from you. Typically it consists of a set of believable but not necessarily true facts that make potential buyers distrust the attacked firm to the degree that it adversely impacts that firm’s sales.
It works best when the relative strength of the two entities is very different, and the more prominent firm is executing the attack. This result is because to make a FUD attack properly, the attacking firm has to sustain the attack without being attacked similarly. That can only be successfully done if the attacking firm is substantially more significant than the attacked firm. If the attacked firm is larger and more powerful, their eventual response could be devastating, and at the same size, the result could be significant damage to both firms.
The related massive power disparity attacks by a government like the one Huawei is experiencing is extremely problematic because the ability of a government to make and sustain false claims is well outside a company’s ability, even a large company’s ability, to defend against using conventional means.
FUD Defense
At the heart of a FUD, the attack is trust and credibility, which an established large company may have in spades, but a small company may not. Ironically, the US government doesn’t have an excellent reputation for telling the truth, which has provided Huawei with some top cover. Still, it can pass rules that can and have crippled Huawei’s growth and potential.
But with governments, individual politicians can be encouraged to fight on behavior through support and effective lobbying. Through investment or merger, the cost of a FUD attack on the entity may exceed the value shifting the effort to another company.
Given a government is a political entity, the best defense isn’t to attack the government, which will only strengthen their resolve. It is to find a path that creates an incentive and a visible cost that makes the existing attack unacceptably costly. Google embedding itself in the Obama administration provided such protection, but it was tactical by nature and didn’t survive the change in administrations.
IBM has been far more effective, both embedding itself in government projects and creating a reputation of inclusion and diversity, making it a hazardous firm to attack. Microsoft altered the behavior that initially attracted government scorn and then promoted initiatives that the government also supported. Lenovo created split leadership, creating a unique balance of power and staffing, which enabled the firm to sell in both China and the US while remaining independent of both governments.
Huawei Potential Paths
The US has several critical imperatives with the infrastructure program, which contains a significant build-out of network access the least fraught with pitfalls and where the firm could bring its strength. Offering to provide and build technology in the US for the Cell towers needed while putting in place or acquiring a Lenovo like presence in the US that could resist potential Chinese or US government inappropriate influence could be seen as attractive by the current administration and take them off the list of firms being blocked from complete access to US technology.
Creating a unique partnership with Qualcomm to both assure the security of the result and create a unique solution that could be sold both inside and outside the US would not only potentially benefit both firms economically but create a cooperative structure that neither country would want to hazard and a possible way forward for both countries to work themselves out of the current costly dispute. Finally, how Huawei is structured where the employees own the company could showcase that rather than being a threat, the company can better blend labor and management into a cooperative, less abusive whole.
These elements would defuse the existing complaint, provide political capital to both Chinese and US government entities, and showcase a level of labor/management blend that should appeal sincerely to the current administration. These efforts would, if done correctly, improve Huawei’s image in the US, not hurt their image in China, and create new economic opportunities that are collaborative and build a foundation that could be defended as government administrations change.
Wrapping Up:
FUD as a weapon is generally ill-advised as it forces a tradeoff between trust, a strategic asset, and an income that is tactical by nature. Defending against FUD typically requires a heavy marketing influence to fix the brand and image damage and create an offensive threat to remove FUD as a viable weapon for a competitor. Government FUD, however, requires a far more subtle approach that is multi-faceted, blending lobbying, material support for popular government initiatives, and an active effort to remove the causes for the attack in the first place.
IBM, Microsoft, Lenovo, and more recently Google and Amazon have all executed efforts that have, to some degree or other, countered or eliminated Government FUD. While challenging, Huawei could follow a similar path using a blend of these other firms’ practices successfully executed.
Phone manufacturer OnePlus admits deliberately throttling the performance of most apps to improve battery life on its latest models OnePlus 9 and Pro.
The issue was detected by Anandtech when they observed strange results in their benchmark tests compared to other devices using the Snapdragon 888 chip.
In testing, I had encountered something which really perplexed me, and caught my attention; seemingly inexplicable slow browser benchmark figures which were not in line with any other Snapdragon 888 device in the market, getting only a fraction of the scores and performance of other devices.
Andrei Frumusanu – Anandtech
Apparently OnePlus is actively blacklisting most of the prominent Android apps, with the exception of some games.
Examining OnePlus’ Performance Behaviour: Optimization or Misrepresentation?
If you are addicted to working out and are passionate about helping others learn how to work out responsibly as well, then becoming a personal trainer might just be the right career for you. The best part is, whiles you do what you love at your own hours, you are equally helping others get in shape and become healthier.
Though the path to becoming a personal trainer is not too cumbersome, you will need to put in a lot of work. From building the personal trainer mindset to the variety of personal trainer courses at your disposal, the choices are many. And this article will help you become a personal trainer. Read on.
Acquire the personal trainer mindset.
Once you make a decision to become a personal trainer, you have to change your mindset from being an amateur trainer into someone who helps others realize their workout and health goals. And what is this mindset? A people person, inspiring, patience, and motivated. These qualities will not just help you wake up every day with a refreshed body and mind to help others realize their goals, it will also build confidence and trust between you and whoever decides to hire you as a personal trainer. But just having a mindset won’t solve everything.
You need a certification
In your quest for a personal training certification, you will come across a range of personal trainer courses. Remember, however, that not all courses and certifications are the same. Whiles some do not give you recognition beyond your local jurisdiction, other certifications are nationally and internationally recognized, and your choice should depend on the type of trainer you would want to be. These are the things to consider in your certification journey:
Type of Certification: Are you looking for strength and conditioning certifications, diet and nutrition certifications or certifications for a certain type of activity such as running, yoga, pilates or CrossFit for example. Determining the type of certification you’re after is a great place to start.
Certification Requirements: What are the selection criteria? At least 18 years old, already acquired an AED and CPR certification, and other examining certifications? You should always check this before making your decision.
The certifying body: Are certifications local, national or international? – You don’t know when you might need to move out of your current location, so it’s always good to chose national or international
Mode of Examination: is it online or offline?
Getting a personal trainer job
After you’ve acquired your certification, your next stop is to get to work. As a personal trainer, you will have a lot of options at your disposal, including working as an independent trainer with your own studio or start off as an instructor at a public gym, a personal training studio, your local community center, cruise ships, as well as spas and resorts.
You might want to specialize after a while
As you go through the personal training career, you will come to love certain types of training sessions as well as develop the hate for others. This should be a good gauge for your next steps as a specialist. There are many specialties, including becoming a Pilates instructor, where you might need to take a Pilates instructor course or you might prefer athletic personal trainer. Whatever you develop liking for during training should be your guiding principle in getting a specialty knowledge and moving up the ladder.
Conclusion
There are a lot of jobs for personal trainers, either as independent contractors or as workers for a public gym, hospital or even a sports team. Your ultimate goal is to get into the field by preparing yourself, getting certified, and then moving up the ladder to becoming a professional in your chosen specialty.
The most formidable threat to the security of IT networks and resources isn’t malware or ransomware. It’s the people who have access to them. Human error is responsible for the lion’s share of information loss, outages, and data breaches.
Whenever IT managers take systematic steps to reduce errors, organizations can prevent many problems tied to outages and data loss. When data is both accurate and secure, clients don’t lose their trust in a company. The organization’s image and reputation remain intact. Employees gain confidence in their abilities while learning new skills.
From tech fixes to training, here are five ways to limit human errors when transferring, securing, and storing data.
1. Take Advantage of Tech Solutions
Enterprise-level technology solutions such as integration platform as a service (IPaaS) can prevent the introduction of human errors. Utilizing IPaaS, your IT staff isn’t solely responsible for transferring data from one app to another. Solutions such as this move information between applications automatically, ensuring data gets entered correctly and consistently the first time.
An overwhelming 70% of data center outages are due to human error. Outages can end up leading to days of downtime and millions in lost revenue and recovery costs. IPaaS solutions can help employees pinpoint errors, including information inconsistencies across applications and systems. By automating the transfer of information and identification of issues, IPaaS can prevent and mitigate downtime.
2. Train Employees at Regular Intervals
We all know that humans make mistakes, often because of physical or mental fatigue. Sometimes carelessness or rushing through a job will cause problems, but a lack of updated knowledge is also a common culprit.
Cybercriminals frequently manipulate employee weaknesses to gain access to networks and other company resources. The main cause of data breaches and the loss of sensitive information is human failures linked to social engineering. CIOs and other C-suite executives cite human error as the source of breaches 53% of the time.
Whether breaches or losses involve customer or employee data, these events end up costing more than lost revenue. Employee turnover can exacerbate the expenses associated with breaches and data losses tied to human mistakes. Data breaches can prompt executives and other staff to be fired, resign, or actively begin looking for another job.
Thorough training can lower the chances that employees make errors. Training can be both general and specific to various positions within an organization’s structure.
For example, all employees can be schooled to recognize phishing and social engineering. Workers whose roles involve securing networks and IT resources can take advanced courses such as Security+ certification. Employees should also go through refresher courses and retraining whenever new tools, threats, and security protocols emerge.
3. Control Access to Sensitive Data and Systems
Sensitive information and documents can get into the wrong hands due to simple oversights and mistakes. An employee may unwittingly send confidential files through email and file-sharing sites that aren’t encrypted. Data with personal identification details can wind up on a thumb drive that someone later loses.
Allowing employees to bring their own devices (BYOD) and use personal USB drives exposes an organization’s network to risk. It’s relatively easy for malware and ransomware to infect a USB drive while the employee is at home. When that USB drive gets plugged into a company computer connected to the network, an infection can spread quickly.
Training can reduce the possibility of these scenarios, but so can implementing security policies and restricting access.
Many organizations do not allow BYOD devices to connect to company networks or online resources. Others create a separate public Wi-Fi network these devices can connect to, helping to isolate access and potential problems. A public Wi-Fi network can be shut down temporarily without impacting the rest of the network.
Using tools such as Active Directory, IT departments can also control employees’ access to internal resources. One way to leverage these tools is to grant access to various folders and folder structures according to job roles. Proprietary data related to these roles can go into separate folders that employees without sufficient network permissions can’t access.
IT staff can also set up permission groups to add and remove employees as needed with user management tools. Many organizations implement policies that require written permission from managers of departments that deal with sensitive data. IT staff shouldn’t grant access to staff members simply because they request it.
Once a system administrator gets written permission from an employee’s manager, they can permit access to the folder. These types of policies and protocols do require periodic auditing in cooperation with IT and departmental leadership.
4. Rigorously Assess All Third-Party Vendor Protocols
Organizations of all sizes rely on external vendors to help manage networks and IT resources. This creates a separate source of risk and potential human errors that companies need to manage.
Third-party vendors have also been the cause of infamous data breaches in the past, including the massive Target breach in 2013. That breach compromised Target customer’s personal financial information and ended up costing the company $202 million.
Vetting external vendors through risk and security assessments can reveal security gaps and potential problems. Restricting vendors’ access to internal resources and networks is another layer of security organizations use.
Many companies also set up oversight committees composed of internal and external members. These committees create and help implement overall security programs, periodically conducting audits and identifying ways to further strengthen security measures.
5. Run Your People Through Data Breach Simulations
A good way to root out network vulnerabilities is to test your staff, existing resources, and security measures. Have your employees run through simulations that replicate unwanted intrusions, phishing attacks, and other common mistakes. These replications of real-life scenarios can uncover areas that need attention.
As noted, your employees should receive training to help them recognize social engineering tactics. You may need to add additional steps to the IT staff’s response to suspicious network activity. Your BYOD policy could very well need to be revamped. Regardless of what the simulation results reveal, they can be instrumental in preventing problems before they start.
Whenever data breaches, losses, and outages appear to originate from an external threat, it’s natural to focus on firewalls and other “castle wall” solutions. However, human error also needs to be seen as your single-greatest vulnerability. While human error will never be 100% avoidable, organizations can reduce mistakes through automated solutions and comprehensive training. Restricting access to network resources, vetting third-party vendors, and testing security measures can prevent even more sources of human miscalculations.
Windows PC is narrowing built-in wallpaper options, especially the animated desktop background. In this post, we present the most concise instructions on how to set live wallpapers for Windows PC. The four apps are also categorized according to their advantages. Continue reading to find the most interesting information!
Live wallpapers for windows
How To Set Live Wallpapers For Windows PC
Method 1: Using VLC Player
Setting live wallpapers for Windows PC by VLC Player is the easiest way and totally free for you. To do it, just follow the steps below:
Step 1: Download and install the VLC Player by right-clicking VLC Player and choosing Run As Administrator.
Step 2: After successfully downloading and installing,open the VLC Player. At this stage, tap on Tools on the menu bar and navigate to Preference. You will see the Show Setting open. Click on All as the option for Show Setting.
Step 3: The Advanced Setting is opened after step 2 is completed. Scroll down to the bottom of the box and select Output modules. Now, look at the right side of the box and select DirectX (DirectDraw) video output from the drop-down menu. Finally, click savebutton & exit VLC.
Step 4: Play the video you want to set live wallpaper for windows PC under the VLC media player.
Step 5: Once the video is playing, find & click on Video located on the menu tap. Select Set as Wallpaper. You will then set live wallpapers for Windows PC by VLC Player successfully.
Using VLC Player to set live wallpapers
Method 2: Using Push Video Wallpapers
If VLC Player isn’t convincing enough, you can check out Push Video Wallpapers which comes with a free trial version before you buy.
Push video wallpapers provide a user-friendly interface for easy installation of a video desktop background. Like other live wallpaper for windows, it is a one-time purchase app. It also features a number of sample videos as wallpaper while still allowing you to browse your favorite video from the computer.
One of its advanced features that you will like is playing multiple videos selected and saved on the list. Further than that, you can pause the video in order to not interfere with other apps.
Next, we will guide you through the steps to install it:
Step 1: Download and install Push Video Wallpapers.
Step 2: The screen of Push Video Wallpapers is open. You can select one of the animated wallpaper samples or create your own list.
Step 3: Click on the Playlist icon and tap on New. Next, enter your playlist name and hit the OK button.
Step 4: Choose the new playlist you have created from the drop-down menu.
Step 5: Add videos by clicking on the+icon on the bottom right corner.
Similarly, to add a Youtube video, click on the URL icon and paste the link.
That’s all you need to play a background video for Windows PC.
Set Live Wallpapers For Windows PC With Push Video Wallpaper
Method 3: Using Plastuer
Next, we introduce Plastuer, one of the most popular apps written for live wallpapers on Windows PC.
Plastuer is an additional Window Application for setting GIFs, videos, and webpages as wallpaper. It supports GIFs, Videos, DreamScenes, WebGL, and Webpage. The app automatically sets the last wallpaper you saved and can pause animation once playing games.
Here, we continue guiding you on setting live wallpapers for windows PC using Plastuer.
Step 1: Download and open Plastuer for your computer.
Step 2: Paste the GIF URL link in the “Enter Valid URL” field. Alternatively, you can navigate the GIF video saved on your PC and right-click on it to “Select File”. Then, hit the button Save.
Step 3: Next, the Plastuer’s display is open for you to choose the GIF you like as an animated Gif background. Click on the Save button again to complete setting live wallpapers on Plastuer.
Settings Desktop Live Wallpaper With Plastuer
Method 4: Using Wallpaper Engine
Like Plastuer, Wallpaper Engine is a third-party paid software. With its most affordable price of US$ 5, the animated wallpaper on the desktop is inspiring enough for a full working day.
The file formats Wallpaper Engine supports are MP4, providing you various choices for live wallpapers and your own customized videos in WebM, AVI, M4V, MOV, and WMV. Now, let’s get started on the installation steps.
Step 1: Download Wallpaper Engine Software.
Step 2: Tap on the icon of Wallpaper Engine once the download is completed. Followed by, select “Create Wallpaper” and then choose “New Video Wallpaper”.
Step 3: Now, let’s give a name for your new video wallpaper and upload the file.
Step 4: The Welcome display is open for you to change the video setting if you like. To do it, please click on New Video Wallpaper and adjust the settings.
Step 5: Finally, click the button Apply And Voila to complete the installation progress.
Set Live Wallpapers For Windows PC With Wallpaper Engine
Which Is The Best App For Setting Live Wallpapers For Windows PC?
All four apps that we introduced above have their own advantages. VLC is definitely a great choice for totally free apps, while the others are paid. From our standpoint, we highly recommend the three paid apps due to the following aspects:
Push Video Wallpaper is an awesome app for a free trial version, and best to play Youtube Video on a loop.
Plastuer is the option for GIFs animated background you can’t miss.
Wallpaper Engine is more superior to its rivals, thanks to its high capacity in customization.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you can easily choose the app that best suits your needs by following the quick steps on How To Set Live Wallpapers For Windows PC, along with a concise review of the top 4 animated wallpapers.
A software development team is not just an ordinary team but is a group of experts who will do magic for your IT project. If you are a non-technical product owner then you might feel that some of the development terms are foreign but you will learn them. Hiring a great team is the first step towards your successful project. You must know what kind of experts you need to complete your project.
Create a right team structure
Hiring the right people for the right position is extremely important as the success of your project depends on their job roles. Every person in the team has specific roles and responsibilities to create the best product. It is impossible to not face some challenges but with the right team, they become easy, smooth, and projects run according to plan.
Front End Developer
Everything that users see is created by a front-end developer. The role and responsibility of a front-end developer is to make sure that the user gets a pleasant experience while scrolling your website without any foul experience. They are responsible for the quality of everything which is shown to users from texts to buttons, navigation bar, and animations. The quality of everything depends on the skills of the front-end developer.
Back end developer
Backend developers are not just coders but they are consultants who know how to make your application amazing as well as efficient and powerful at the same time. They are the people who are responsible for planning and developing the whole application architecture, deciding which database and service will communicate how API and external integration should work as well as how to make the whole product stable and secure.
Quality assurance engineer
Software development is not everyone’s cup of tea and the most skilled developers are unable to implement the perfect solution as there will be some errors while typing the code. That is why you need a quality assurance engineer.
A quality assurance engineer is a specialist who will rectify the bugs and errors so that developers can work on them. QA pays special attention to product performance, portability, usability, security and checks the product as per the end-users point of view. It is their responsibility to testify the product that it meets the requirement, create test cases and write documents.
DevOps Engineer
Before releasing your app you might have asked your family and friends to check it and they fell in love with it as your team has created a flawless app, and you decided to release it without any second thought. But, after releasing it, you found out that the app is slower than you tested it and crashed many times. Here comes the DevOps engineer, who will save you from such horror. Their responsibility is to take the code infrastructure to new heights. They make sure that your application is fast, secure, and accessible to people all around the globe. They will make sure that your app can stand its ground strong if there are any sudden spikes in user activity without being overloaded and stay online even if the whole server warehouse is crashing down.
So, if you are thinking about outsourcing your project then you must know what kind of resources you need to complete your project. The top development software companies already have all kinds of experts that are needed in a software project as they handle many projects at one time. If you don’t want to hire every individual then hire a software company as they have all skilled professionals.
The U.S. military confirms a drone attack in northern Iraq, near a base that houses American troops.
U.N. military spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve said the drone attacked Erbil airport with explosives, according to a Reuters report.
The base is adjacent to Erbil’s civilian airport, which is home to American troops and the American Embassy in Baghdad, which was attacked by a drone in a separate attack on Monday, the military said Tuesday night.
No injuries, casualties or damage have been reported from the attack.
Reuters
Explosive-laden drone hit Erbil airport in Iraq, aimed at U.S. base -security sources
A drone attacked Erbil airport in northern Iraq with explosives on Tuesday, aimed at the U.S. base on the airport grounds, Kurdish security sources said.
U.S. says no losses from new Iraq attack, militia claims to have caused deaths
“If the enemy does not admit its losses, we will tell him the number of Zionists who were killed in the Erbil operation tonight,” Iraq’s Saraya Awliya al-Dam militia said.
Employers have a legal duty and responsibility to provide a safe and healthy environment to their employees. At times, employers fail to meet this duty resulting in work-related injuries.
As an employee, you’re entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for injuries you suffer at work. Every employer is required by law to provide such insurance coverage to their employees.
However, the compensation isn’t automatic. And your actions or inactions may deny or reduce the amount you get as compensation.
Follow these steps to protect your legal rights to compensation.
1.File an Accident Report
Different states have varied timelines by which an employee must file an accident report. Failure to adhere to these timelines may see you lose on the case. You don’t want this to happen. Therefore, report any accident you’re involved in on the job whether you’re injured or not.
Even if you don’t sustain any injuries, the accident may cause the employer to implement new safety measures to prevent a future accident on its employees. Further, filing the incident report protects you if you don’t experience symptoms until months after the accident.
2.Focus on The Injury
It’s the most important thing that you should do. Immediately after the accident, seek first-aid services at the employers’ first aider. The law requires every employer to have a first aid kit and a designated first-aider. Depending on the nature of your injury, you may find the first-aider or demand that a colleague summons the first-aider to you.
And yes, the injuries may appear minor, but don’t rely on this to discard medical attention. Even a small injury may become a long-term illness without proper and timely treatment. Therefore, ensure you get a comprehensive assessment by a competent medical practitioner.
3.Engage a Lawyer
A workplace accident can be confusing. In the tough job market, some employees may fear reporting their injuries to their boss for fear of reprisal. Others don’t know that their employer is responsible for covering some or all medical costs emanating from the injury.
At Queens, NY injury lawyer James Galleshaw understands how frightening it is when you’re hurt and can’t report to work anymore. Therefore, the attorney does everything possible to ensure you get the best possible compensation for your case.
4.Take Evidence
Do you want to make a compensation claim for the injuries sustained at the workplace? Then take photos and video evidence of the injuries and the location where the accident occurred. Having this evidence may prove vital when arguing your case in court.
Remember; there’s nothing like too much evidence. Therefore, if in doubt, take photos and record them. No one will criticize you for taking the evidence.
5.Ask a Reliable Colleague for Help
Depending on the extent of your injuries, you may need to take some days off from work. At this time, the employer will make some changes to the systems of work and work equipment. While this is necessary to prevent future injuries, sometimes it may be done as a cover-up. Therefore, you need a reliable colleague who can update you on these changes.
6.Make a Diary Entry of All Symptoms
You must keep an updated list of symptoms emanating from the accident. That’s because doctors, nurses, and other medical practitioners don’t record all the symptoms.
Yes, you may sustain several injuries in your body. However, the hospital will only concentrate on the serious ones at that time. But do you know that the minor injury today might turn into a long-term debilitating condition in the future-perhaps the biggest injury on the claim,
Conclusion
The last thing you want is to sustain a workplace injury. If the unfortunate event happens, engage a competent lawyer to help protect your rights. Further, follow these steps to ensure you get the right compensation.
China’s central bank says it has called for the shutdown of a company that “was suspected of providing software services for virtual currency transactions.”
In May, China banned financial institutions and payment companies from providing crypto-related services.
In June, there were mass arrests in China of people suspected of using cryptocurrencies in nefarious ways, and Weibo, the Twitter of China, suspended crypto-themed accounts.
Half of the world’s bitcoin miners have now gone dark following Beijing’s call for a severe crackdown on bitcoin mining and trading.
According to the Bitcoin Mining Council member Fred Thiel, the government is doing everything they can to ensure that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies disappear from the Chinese financial systems and economy.
In 2013, the country ordered third-party payment providers to stop using bitcoin and its own crypto-users to stop selling it.
Bitcoin News
China Shuts Down Software Maker Over Suspected Crypto-Related Activity, Issues Industry-Wide Warning – Regulation Bitcoin News
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC), the country’s central bank, has shut down a software firm over suspected involvement in cryptocurrency transactions. The central bank also warned organizations not to “provide premises, commercial display, advertising … and other services for cryptocurrency-related business activities.”
China in recent weeks has stepped up efforts to rein in the country’s cryptocurrency industry, banning crypto mining operations and ordering major banks not to do business with crypto companies.
The latest move came Tuesday as the government acted against a company for allegedly providing cryptocurrency-related services.
Analysis: Limited capacity, logistics to slow Chinese bitcoin miners’ global shift
Large bitcoin miners fleeing China to escape a state crackdown will take many months to start operating again, as data centres from Texas to Siberia scramble to secure space and power for them, while many smaller players may struggle to move at all.
U.N. Special Rapporteur Anaïs Marin compares Belarus to a totalitarian state.
U.S. envoy hints at possibility of further economic sanctions against Minsk.
Authorities have cracked down hard after massive anti-government protests erupted last summer over voter fraud allegations at an election that handed Alexander Lukashenko a new term as president.
Three opposition election candidates remain behind bars and tens of thousands of Belarusians flee to seek refuge abroad, Anaïs Marin said in her annual report to the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland.
The United States announced targeted sanctions against key members of the Belarusian government in May after the forced landing of a passenger jet and arrest of a dissident blogger in Minsk in May.
Several other delegates also criticized the plane incident at the council debate, including the UK’s ambassador, Simon Manley, who described it as “outrageous”.
The U.K. ambassador to the Geneva-based forum said it would consider further actions as necessary, in reference to sanctions against the former Soviet Republic’s government members of Minsk‘s forced landing in May.
DW.COM
UN expert slams ‘purge’ in Belarus | DW | 05.07.2021
The recent forced landing of a passenger plane to arrest a regime critic is symptomatic of Belarus’ treatment of dissenters, a top UN expert has warned. She said the rights situation there was going from bad to worse.
Russia-linked group REvil cybercrime gang, allegedly known for extorting $11 million from the meat-processor JBS after a Memorial Day attack, infected thousands of victims in at least 17 countries on Friday.
The FBI said in a statement that while it was investigating the attack, its scale may make it so that they are unable to respond to each victim individually.
President Joe Biden suggested Saturday the U.S. would respond if it was determined that the Kremlin is at all involved.
A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin said no, but suggested it could be discussed by the two countries in consultations on cybersecurity issues for which no timeline has been specified.
Fox Business
Hackers demand $70M to restore data held by companies hit in cyberattack: blog
Hackers suspected to be behind a mass extortion attack that affected hundreds of companies worldwide late on Sunday demanded $70 million to restore the data they are holding ransom, according to a posting on a dark website.
The world around us is one that becomes far more exciting all the time. In a world where we have more access to materials and tools that we have never had before, the opportunities are limitless for what we are able to achieve and how we are willing and able to work towards a bolder and better future for us all. Practically every aspect of life as we know it and every corresponding industry has been and continues to be impacted by the rising pools of modernization and the interest and investment that come alongside it and that form the foundational basis for the longevity and success of modern marvels as they are introduced.
Today, it almost goes without saying that technological advancement and enhancement is the new name of the game in practically every aspect of our lives. The introduction and ongoing advancement of digital and technological inclination across the board and around the globe are focused on providing us more meaningful and sustainable ways to move forward. And when it comes to life at home, it is the introduction and open embracement of technologies that is truly revolutionizing the way that we live our lives at home.
The rise of the tech-driven lifestyle
Practically every aspect of life has transformed. This much we know for certain. And the rise of the sustainable lifestyle is all about understanding and appreciating it but the more that we become comfortable and familiar with technologies.com.au the more reliant we are on them. And the rise of technologies in every aspect of our lives (including life at home of course) is all about working towards a more convenient and efficient way to live our lives and to welcome the future.
The rise of home technologies
In recent years especially, home technologies have of course become bolder and smarter. We have seen more interest and investment in home technologies in recent years than we have in their entire introduction to the world. The rise of home technologies across the board and around the globe comes hand in hand with the rising awareness and understanding that embracing and empowering these technologies forward, onward, and upward is going to be key to creating a sustainable future that we can truly thrive and have a positive impact on the planet around us.
More homeowners finally embracing home technologies
There is such a monumental amount of attention to detail and overall focus on this goal and while this is really positive, we still have quite a long way to go. Even so, more homeowners are finally embracing home technologies like smart home systems and EcoTech Windows (to name just a few examples of the many home technologies emerging and strengthening today). And as we step forward into the future and beyond, there is every likelihood that the future for home technologies and the homes and homeowners that embrace and implement them, is going to be brighter and smarter all the time.
Wash@Home is an innovative, game-changing laundry app that connects individuals looking to earn extra money with time-strapped parents and professionals seeking to offload their laundry needs. Creating impressive earning opportunities for people with their own transport and/or laundry equipment, the simple-to-navigate Wash@Home app enables washees to offload their laundry, freeing up precious time for more enjoyable or important tasks.
With fast turnaround times, competitive prices, and flexible collection and delivery times, Wash@Home delivers exceptional value, enabling washees to outsource their laundry needs in minutes.
Suitable for both Android and iPhone smartphones operating Android 5 or iO13 and above, the Wash@Home app is available for download from both Google Play and the App Store.
Washers
Anyone with access to laundry equipment can take advantage of exciting opportunities to create an additional income stream via the Wash@Home app, becoming a Laundry Hero and saving the day for those who want to avoid the laundry day routine while earning impressive sums in the process. Washers make money on their own terms, creating their own schedule and taking as few or as many orders as they want to. The easy-to-navigate app enables washers to track their payments, cashing out seamlessly and securely.
Washers choose which laundry services they wish to offer, from straightforward washing and drying to folding and hanging, ironing, and dry cleaning, earning up to $1,500 a month for their efforts. In fact, it can be even more than this amount – the more a washer washes and provides extra services, the more they can earn.
Wash@Home aims to provide washers with as much work as they want, depending on current active orders and washing machine and drier capacities. There is no limit on how many – or how few – orders a washer can take each day, within reason, giving washers complete control of their workload.
Washers who choose to may offer couriering services too, boosting their earning potential. Once the washer’s profile is approved, they can begin receiving orders, earning extra cash from the comfort and convenience of their own home.
Couriers
Anyone with their own mode of transport – be it a bike, van, or car – can create an attractive additional income stream using the Wash@Home app, picking up and dropping off laundry for time-strapped washees.
Like washers, couriers can earn up to $1,500 via the secure Wash@Home app (and it can be even more than this amount; the more a courier picks up and drops off orders, the more they can earn), tracking payments and cashing out earnings as it suits them. Couriers also have complete control over their schedules, earning money on their own terms; accepting as few or as many delivery orders as they want to.
With Wash@Home collection and delivery services running from 7am to 11pm daily, couriers can choose to work mornings, afternoons or evenings, picking and choosing the hours that suit them.
Both couriers and washers must be 18 years old or over and have no criminal convictions. In addition, couriers and washers must provide proof of US employment authorization.
Washees
Outsourcing your laundry needs could not be easier. After downloading the Wash@Home app, washees simply add garments to their virtual laundry basket, selecting the pick-up and delivery locations and times that are convenient for them before completing their order.
In the United States today, the average family completes around 10 loads of laundry each week. With each load taking up to 87 minutes from wash to dry, this represents a considerable burden, eating away at precious family time or the working day. Wash@Home enables those who want to avoid the laundry day routine to offload their laundry in minutes, freeing up their time for more enjoyable or important tasks.
Washees can choose from washing, drying, hanging, folding, ironing, and dry cleaning services, making payment via Android Pay, Apple Pay, PayPal, or debit/credit card. With a minimum spend of just $10 and no maximum on the number of orders a washee can place, Wash@Home sets its prices according to the washee’s location and the item of clothing selected.
‘Normal’ services take 48 hours to complete, although Wash@Home also offers an ‘Express’ service speed, enabling washees to receive their freshly laundered items back within 24 hours.
When people talk about Cryptocurrency, most of them are talking about the financial system that works using such digital currency. However, when people talk about Cryptocurrency tracing and recovery services, they are referring to the investigation of crimes that happened using such digital currencies. As time passed by, more people came to realize that it is not easy to get their hands on such valuable metals unless they resort to illegal means such as theft and money laundering.
This has created a huge problem for law enforcers and other security and investigative personnel. They cannot just rely on their standard sources of gathering and investigating this data.
After all, they cannot just grab anybody off the streets and arrest him without any solid evidence that can be used in court. They also have to be very careful with whom they trust and associate themselves. That’s why most investigative bodies still prefer to work with professionals instead of private investigators. Private investigators are very expensive and they need a lot of time to get their job done.
Professional Forensic Investigator:
When it comes to recovering lost or stolen crypto funds, the services of a professional forensic investigator may be required. There are many advantages that an effective investigator and Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency tracing and recovery services can bring to a law enforcement agency. For one thing, they do not take up a lot of time since they already have access to different tools and resources that can make the job much easier. They can be a great source of reliable evidence, especially if such recovered funds involve large amounts of money.
In addition, they can give the investigator a high level of confidentiality which will serve as a shield from any accusations of mishandling or inappropriate behavior on the part of the company or government agency that hired them. Because of this, it can be pretty much assured that the investigation that will be conducted is legally sound and free of any accusations of corruption or other irregularities. As a result, the work of a forensic accountant will prove to be successful. All in all, the work of such experts will prove to be very effective.
Legal Proceedings:
Aside from providing good and effective evidence in cases of theft or money laundering, they can also provide support during any legal proceedings that might be filed against a certain company. They can be hired to conduct interviews, research the history of the company, check the registration details, and search for any signs of crypto-related fraud.
Through Cryptocurrency tracing and recovery services, the company will be able to prove its innocence before the court of law. This is very important especially when the company has been accused of stealing or misbehaving because they will be able to show evidence that they were only doing what they should have been doing under the rules and regulations of the country where they operate their business.
Bitcoin tracing and recovery services are also used in the prevention of crypto frauds. Many people make use of the Internet to run scams and other illegal activities. If the investigation company finds out that an online business is being operated from a place that does not have enough regulation to protect customers from crypto scams, they will be able to trace and arrest the person involved. This service will also help the company to prevent any future incidents of this type from happening.
So, if you think that you can’t handle the task of protecting yourself from crypto fraud on the cryptocurrency, then you should get yourself a specialist in Cryptocurrency tracing and recovery. You can check the website of a Cryptocurrency tracing and recovery company to see what services they offer. Many companies specialize in providing forensic accounting services. And some of them even offer a free consultation to determine whether or not you need their services.
Playing trivia board games with family and friends is a great way to relax, share fun experiences, and create memories. When the day settles down, and the night has fallen, what better way to enjoy the company of others than through games?
If you have a basement in your home, consider converting it into a game room. It’s easier than you think. Here are some tips to help you put together the perfect game room.
1 – Invest in Lighting Solutions
Light is a critical aspect of any room, and for a game room, the proper light is crucial. Tables and game boards should be well-lit, it’s not fun squinting or having to get closer to something to properly see it. Cool ambient light from lamps can fill the rest of the room and give it a nice touch.
2 – Use the Ideal Furniture
Your furniture should be based on what types of games you will play in your game room. Do you have a bar area or pool tables in your game room? Get some stools. How about a dartboard? Use a rug or mat that designates the gaming spot.
3 – Be Clever with Your Space Usage
Decide how you want your game room to look with a layout. Think about the types of games you’ll be playing in the room and the people you’ll have in it. Make sure to space your game tables, or chairs adequately to avoid issues and feeling like you are all being packed in like sardines.
4 – Use Proper Seating
There’s no reason you can’t get creative with your design and furnishings, such as furniture that can double as a seat. Ideally, you want easy to move furniture to allow guests to move them wherever they need them to be.
5 – An Entertainment-Friendly Layout
Your layout should be suitable for several guests if you plan to host more than a few people. Some games are just more fun with more participants and you want your game room to be able to accommodate. If you’re planning to have two or more TV sets, make sure you’ve set aside proper spacing for them and considered overlapping volume levels.
6 – Movie Theatre Environment
Creating a combined space where you and your guests can enjoy movies and popcorn together is a great shared experience for weekend relaxation. After all, you can’t go to the movies without getting popcorn. A big-screen theater experience is more possible these days than ever before.
7 – Go All-In on Your Theme
If you’re designing a game room to be mostly enjoyed through video games, consider choosing a game that you and your friends love and decorate the room in that style. Use your favorite characters and locations from that game, or several games, and give your game room some flavor.
8 – Make it Multi-Purpose
You can combine many of the things you and your guests love to create the most enjoyable, and coolest, atmosphere to relax in. Pool tables, perhaps some music instruments, karaoke machines, big screen TV, game chairs, and other elements can help make sure that the room is able to accommodate various types of entertainment. Be creative with your design and what you decide to put in your game room.
It was the third time Israel has carried out airstrikes in Gaza since the end of the 11-day war it fought with Hamas in May.
Each came after activists mobilized by Hamas launched incendiary balloons that caused fires in nearby Israeli farming communities.
There were no immediate reports of casualties from the strike, the military says.
Israel has vowed to respond to even minor attacks and in recent days, has eased restrictions to allow in Qatar-funded fuel, extend Gaza’s fishing zone, and permit increased cross-border commerce.
Egyptian and international mediators have been trying to shore up the informal cease-fire that ended the most recent war in May.
Israeli air raids target Gaza for third time since May ceasefire
No casualties reported in attack that Israel has said was in response to launching of ‘incendiary balloons’ from Gaza.
After 2 weeks of quiet, arson balloons launched from Gaza start 4 fires in south
Firefighters gain control of blazes before they cause damage; new government has been quicker to respond to such actions, striking Hamas targets in Gaza in response
The NFL is fining the Washington Football Team $10 million following the conclusion of an investigation of sexual misconduct in the organization.
The fine is the largest the league has ever handed down as a form of punishment to any NFL team or individual.
Last year, The Washington Post reported that as many as 40 women who worked for the organization came forward and described the team’s workplace as toxic and demeaning toward female employees over the last decade.
The women alleged that they dealt with sexual harassment and sexual discrimination in the workplace. However, the D.C. Football Team had no suspensions or no loss of draft picks from the investigation, the league announced Thursday.
The league said that the fine is not a violation of any kind of contract. It is not the first time it has ever been handed down by the league.
The money will be donated to charity or any other organization that has been suspended or penalized for sexual misconduct.
CNN
NFL fines Washington Football Team $10 million after workplace culture investigation
The investigation concluded that franchise owner Dan Snyder was responsible for the club’s unprofessional and intimidating culture.
The NFL has fined the Washington Football Team $10 million and owner Dan Snyder is stepping away from day-to-day operations after an independent investigation into the franchise’s workplace culture.
Washington Football Team’s fine ‘a slap in the face’ to women who voiced concerns, attorneys say
The lawyers representing former Washington Football Team employees who accused the organization of fostering a toxic workplace environment and sexual harassment blasted the NFL on Thursday.
Facebook Gaming has announced a broader rollout of its cloud gaming service.
The service has been slowly adding more free-to-play games to its initial library of Asphalt 9: Legends, PGA Tour Golf Shootout, Solitaire: Arthur’s Tale, and WWE SuperCard.
Over 25 games are now supported, and Facebook says it now has over 1.5 million users playing cloud-streamed games each month.
Facebook plans for support for cloud gaming to completely cover the mainland US by the fall, and in addition to expanding coverage in Canada and Mexico over time, it hopes to reach Western and Central Europe by early next year.
Unfortunately, coverage is still limited to Android only, with Apple’s ongoing restrictions of what it considers to be within its storefront preventing cloud gaming services like Facebook from reaching iOS users.
Facebook also committed to not charging customers or subscription fees for services. The service is now more widely available through the Facebook Gaming app on Android or web browsers.
IGN
Facebook Gaming Expands Its Cloud Platform to Most of US, Begins International Rollout – IGN
Facebook Gaming has announced a broader rollout of its cloud gaming service, bringing support to over 98% of mainland United States and beginning to open availability to users in Canada and Mexico as well.
Facebook ‘still working’ to bring cloud gaming service to iPhone and iPad – 9to5Mac
Facebook has announced a major expansion of its cloud gaming service, bringing the free platform to over 98% of people in the United States beginning today. But despite this expansion, the platform is still unavailable to iPhone and iPad users over a dispute between Facebook and Apple regarding App Store policy. Jason Rubin, Facebook’s gaming […]
Working with a host of others, IBM launched an autonomous ship that was to showcase how an AI could more quickly, safely, and efficiently navigate to a destination than a human crew. However, this effort failed in June but not because of the AI, software, or anything to do with the solution that was being tested. It failed, much the same way we might see an autonomous car failure because the ship’s powerplant had a problem.
With a human captained ship, the crew, which could consist of one person, would generally have the capability to diagnose and fix the problem. Much like with a car, if a problem results, the driver can attempt to fix the problem, diagnose the problem, and, if needed, call for remote or in-person help.
But with this Autonomous Ship, the AI not only couldn’t institute a repaint but also wasn’t even equipped to analyze the problem so that someone could go to the ship and fix it, let alone have the ship fix itself.
I think this is an oversight on how we are building autonomous vehicles; we also need to consider either high-speed remote help or include the ability for the car to diagnose the problem and either fix the problem itself or guide the passenger/driver through the fix. Let me explain.
The Autonomous Missing Link
The week I’m writing this, where I live, is setting heat records, which means were you to break down on the side of the road, you wouldn’t be able to sit in your car, or you’d bake, and without water or cell service, you’d be in real trouble and in danger of getting heatstroke and dying from it.
There is a running joke on the internet about how drivers back when I was growing up knew how to do essential maintenance, and now drivers need to be warned not to drink gasoline. I still recall sitting outside drinking coffee 20 years ago and having two kids drive up, tell me not to talk down to them because they knew a lot about cars, and then proceed to ask me what the air cleaner on top of their engine did (they used the technical term “circular thing with the trumpet sticking out of it.”
At least when you are driving your car, you can often feel that things aren’t going. Write and stop at a gas station and check to see if you have a problem. But with an autonomous car, you’ll be sleeping, reading, watching a movie, teleconferencing, or doing anything but driving and figure the car knows how to take care of itself.
The car will have tons of sensors, will be able to use the in-car network to provide early warning of an automotive failure, and should (but currently doesn’t) have the ability to anticipate a future problem and prioritize going to the closest gas station, dealership, or relevant shop to get the problem fixed.
But, ideally, over time, it would be building in the capability, either through redundancy or robotics, to take care of the problem automatically. It helps that autonomous cars are going electric, and autonomous trucks are expected to travel in convoys with one or two people providing in-transit support and security. Still, one of those people likely should also be a mechanic so that the cargo isn’t put at extended risk due to a fixable mechanical failure.
Wrapping Up: The Mechanical Missing Link
Collectively the skills needed to maintain a car are being taught to drivers less and less often. As we begin to turn cars into horizontal elevators, these skills will continue to decline, but a danger to drivers will only increase. This increase will be because as people stop driving, their ability to notice a stalled car will be reduced, let alone knowing how to help the stalled driver diagnose the problem, get the driver to safety, and get the problem fixed as expeditiously as possible.
Due to this skill decline, autonomous driving cars will need a far higher level of redundancy so passengers can rely on this form of transportation and so we don’t start hearing about a lot of drivers who have been stranded in unsafe locations due to an unanticipated mechanical problem.
By initially building in deeper diagnostics so that problems can be caught and corrected before they become catastrophes, the industry can better assure the entire safety promise of autonomous cars. If this isn’t done, the increasing number of stories where autonomous cars caused deaths, like the Tes; Autopilot stories, could damage the related brands. Assuring that doesn’t happen means the industry needs to take a deeper look at solutions that provide not only autonomous driving but the redundancy and anticipatory diagnostics to assure you don’t wake up in your autonomous car in 110-degree weather, in a dead cell area, and no one around to help.
