Dollar Risk to Facebook, Google: Story of 21st Century Blasphemy

Sydneysiders are being warned to prepare for one more day of scorching heat before a cool change brings relief from the hot temperatures tomorrow. The temperature is set to reach 38C in the city today, with it getting to 40C in Penrith and Richmond. A late gusty change is set to sweep through, easing hot temperatures.Tomorrow will be a lot cooler with a maximum temperature of 25C...
Exclusive: How frigid polar vortex blasts are connected to global warming PhysOrg

Today is your last chance to opt-out of the government's digital health record

Despite privacy concerns remaining, Thursday is the last day you can opt-out of the $2b My Health Record system.

The commission's report found river allotments were driven by politics and accused the basin authority board of maladministration over its disregard for science

Royal Commission

 South Australian Premier Steven Marshall described the report as "complex""That state of affairs exists today, and is the principal reason why there are serious doubts whether the current senior management, and board, of the MDBA are capable of fulfilling their statutory obligations and functions."






Murray Darling Basin Politics over Science

Russian senator arrested in Parliament in murder probe

Rauf Arashukov is accused of ordering two murders in 2010 in his home region of Karachayevo-Cherkessiya in Southern Russia.

Randwick Council urges halt to stadium demolition, rules out legal fight

Randwick City Council echoes concerns from two neighbouring councils about the controversial demolition of the Moore Park stadium.

Labor's 'putting people first', again

Insiders at Sussex Street tell us there was some concern about the repeated use, but those were promptly dismissed with a quip about forgetful voters.

Court’s Biometrics Ruling Poses Billion Dollar Risk to Facebook, Google

Fortune: “The Supreme Court of Illinois on Friday ruled that an amusement park, Six Flags Great America, must pay damages to a boy for collecting his thumbprint without proper consent. The decision in the closely-watched case opens the door for the possibility of huge payouts in related cases against technology companies whose face-scanning policies breached a state law known as the Biometric Information Privacy Act.

In the Six Flags case, a mother named Stacey Rosenbach filed a lawsuit upon learning the amusement park scanned and stored her son’s thumbprint as part of its annual pass program. The case soon became a key test of the law, known as BIPA. The crucial issue is whether a person must show they suffered actual harm when a company collects biometrics without permission, or if it’s enough just to show that the act took place. In a 7-0 ruling, the Illinois court agreed with Rosenbach that the purpose of the law, which provides for a $1,000 to $5,000 penalty, is to deter companies misusing consumers’ biometrics. This meant that Rosenbach’s son counts as an “aggrieved person” in the language of BIPA. This ruling comes as a blow for Google and Facebook, both of which are ensnared in BIPA lawsuits of their own…” 

Inside an Arab monarchy's secret hacking team of US mercenaries

Two weeks after leaving her position as an intelligence analyst for the US National Security Agency, Lori Stroud found herself in the Middle East.

While it’s fantastic that Asia Bibi’s legal ordeal is over, the forces, mindset and entrenched bigotry that went after her is still very much at large. There is still a long journey ahead.

Asia Bibi, a 47-year-old farm worker, was convicted of blasphemy against Islam in 2010, after an argument over whether she could share the same water glass as her Muslim co-workers.

She was sentenced to death by hanging, but the Supreme Court acquitted her on appeal in October last year.

Pakistani court dismisses petition against Christian's blasphemy acquittal

IS THERE ANYTHING IT CAN’T DO?  Coffee promotes DNA repair, which may be why it extends life.

Also, caffeine is a weak, nonspecific phosphodiesterase inhibitor.  PDE5 inhibitors,like Viagra and Cialis, seem likely to have significant life-extension and anti-cancerproperties. There are a lot of other PDE receptors whose function we don’t really know, though PDE4 inhibitors are now used to fight inflammatory diseases. And PDE inhibitors are being looked at for numerous other ailments.

So it’s possible that some of the mechanism is here, too. I’d like to see more research.



E-Day and the beauty parade: how two elections will hit the public service
VERONA BURGESS: Two of the nation's biggest elections could trigger another round of politically favoured musical chairs at the top of the public service.

Bullying remains high among Tasmanian public servants
WORKPLACE: A recent survey of 8675 state public servants returned a mixed bag of results suggesting workplace bullying, stress and struggles to maintain a good work-life balance are persistent issues.

Labor promises permanent jobs in regional Human Services hubs
DECENTRALISATION: The opposition has taken up the idea of decentralisation as a vehicle for regional development, but gone further than the government with a promise of 300 full-time Human Services jobs based in North Queensland.
Unchained: challenges ahead for soon-to-be-dismantled Uluru climb
NT: After years of negotiations, dismantling the climb still has a few hurdles yet.