Новости за 26.12.2023

Experts are warning that the spread of misinformation could get worse in the coming presidential election contest. The safeguards that attempted to counter the bogus claims the last time are eroding, while the tools and systems that create and spread them are only getting stronger. Artificial intelligence tools have made it far cheaper and easier to spread the kind of misinformation that can mislead voters and influence elections. And social media companies that once invested heavily in correcting the record have shifted their priorities. Читать дальше...

Disney has filed a lawsuit claiming that the oversight government for Walt Disney World, which was taken over by appointees of Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year, has failed to release documents and properly preserve records in violation of Florida public records law. Disney said in the lawsuit filed last Friday that the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District has been so slow in fulfilling its public records duties that it has failed to respond completely to a request the company made seven months ago. Читать дальше...

Apple is filing an emergency motion asking a court to let it keep selling two of its most popular watches until a final decision on its broader appeal in a patent dispute is decided. In the motion, Apple said it would suffer “irreparable harm” if the previous orders were kept in place for the two weeks that it said the U.S. International Trade Commission will take to respond to its appeal. On Oct. 26, the ITC determined that Apple infringed on two patents owned by Masimo Corp. and Cercacor Laboratories... Читать дальше...

The administration of Argentine President Javier Milei says the government won’t renew contracts for more than 5,000 employees hired this year before he took office. The move was part of a sweeping plan of cutbacks and devaluations announced by the right-wing libertarian since he took office on Dec. 10 to transform Argentina’s struggling economy. Other government positions will be placed under review. With inflation expected to reach about 200% by the end of the year, Milei had pledged to reduce government regulations and payrolls... Читать дальше...

In a statement, Spirit Airlines said the boy was under the care and supervision of an airlines employee the entire time.

Mastercard SpendingPulse said Tuesday that holiday sales rose this year. The indicator, which tracks all kinds of payments including cash and debit cards, found sales from the beginning of November through Christmas Eve climbed 3.1%, a slower pace than the 7.6% increase from a year earlier. The sales growth this year was a bit lower than the 3.7% increase Mastercard SpendingPulse had expected back in September. The data released Tuesday excludes the automotive industry and is not adjusted for inflation. Читать дальше...

Israel is apparently preparing to expand its ground offensive in Gaza into a third section of the territory. Residents said that Palestinian refugee camps were bombarded in central Gaza. The Health Ministry in Gaza says that more than 20,600 Palestinians have been killed. The ministry says two-thirds of them are women and children, have been killed. The ministry doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants among the dead. About 1,200 people were killed after Hamas raided southern Israel on Oct. Читать дальше...

She’s an important figure behind today’s artificial intelligence boom, but not all computer scientists thought Fei-Fei Li was on the right track when she came up with the idea for a giant visual database called ImageNet that took years to build. Li, now a founding director of Stanford University’s Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, is out with a new memoir that recounts her pioneering work in curating the dataset that accelerated the computer vision branch of AI. She told The Associated... Читать дальше...

Online, direct-to-consumer health care has grown well beyond its roots mostly treating hair loss and acne or selling birth control pills. Companies like Hims & Hers and Ro have started weight loss programs. Rival Lemonaid Health has added seasonal affective disorder treatments to a care lineup that includes help with depression and insomnia. These companies provide quick access to specialists and prescription deliveries for a regular fee. Their approach offers solutions to two common difficulties in the U.S. health care system... Читать дальше...

The forecourt of Paris City Hall sparkles with activity this holiday season, including a Christmas market and huge signs advertising the 2024 Olympics. It also hosts dozens of migrant families searching for a roof over their heads. About 50 families with children between three months and 10 years old gathered on City Hall plaza on Christmas evening. Aid workers distributed food, blankets and diapers and helped find temporary lodging. A similar scene plays out most nights at this site overlooking the Seine River. Читать дальше...

TOKYO (AP) — Daihatsu, a unit of Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp., has shut down production lines at all its four factories in Japan while transport ministry officials investigate improper tests for safety certifications.

Asian markets are mostly higher in holiday-thinned trading, with some markets in the region closed for holidays. U.S. futures and oil prices edged higher. Shanghai's benchmark led losses in Asia on heavy selling of technology and computer chip-related shares as worries revived over trade tensions with the U.S. and other western countries. U.S. and European markets were closed on Monday and many will remain closed for Boxing Day. On Friday, Wall Street closed its eighth straight winning week with... Читать дальше...

PALU, Indonesia (AP) — The death toll following the explosion of a smelting furnace at a Chinese-owned nickel plant on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island rose to 18 on Tuesday, as police ordered the plant to stop operations until an investigation into the incident is completed.

A new program that allows groups of U.S. citizens to name the specific refugees they would like to sponsor to come to America is giving a family in Texas hope of a reunification. Several years ago, Jacob Mabil was able to bring his mother from a refugee camp in Africa to his home in suburban Fort Worth. Now the family also hopes that Mabil's two nieces, now young women who his mother had raised since they were babies, can join them. The transformation of the refugee resettlement process in the U.S.... Читать дальше...

A distillery in southwestern China is aiming to tap a growing taste among young Chinese for whisky in place of the traditional “baijiu” liquor used to toast festive occasions. The more than $100 million distillery owned by Pernod Ricard at the UNESCO World Heritage site Mount Emei launched a pure-malt whisky, The Chuan, earlier this month. The French wine and spirits group says it is produced using traditional whisky-making techniques combined with Chinese characteristics. A centuries-old drink, whisky is relatively new to China... Читать дальше...

President Joe Biden has ordered retaliatory strikes against Iranian-backed militia groups after three U.S. servicemembers injured in a drone attack in Northern Iraq.National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said one of the U.S. troops suffered critically in the attack that occurred earlier Monday. The Iranian-backed militia Kataib Hezbollah and affiliated groups, under an umbrella of Iranian-backed militants, claimed credit for the attack. Biden, who is spending Christmas at the presidential retreat at Camp David... Читать дальше...

Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has been targeted with another swatting attempt at her Georgia residence. The Rome Police Department in Georgia quickly verified that the call was a hoax and did not send officers to Greene's house. A man in New York called the Georgia suicide hotline on Christmas morning claiming that he had shot his girlfriend at Greene’s home and was going to kill himself next. Police say they contacted Greene’s security detail to confirm she was safe and that there was no emergency. Читать дальше...

Beyoncé’s childhood home caught fire early on Christmas morning in Houston. The family that currently lives there escaped safely. The fire was reported at about 2 a.m. Monday. The Houston Chronicle reports that the Houston Fire Department arrived on the scene of the two-story brick house within three to five minutes. Beyoncé Knowles’ family bought the home on the 2400 block of Rosedale in 1982 and Beyoncé lived there until she was 5 years old. She was seen taking photos of the property when she was... Читать дальше...