The Linkielist

Linking ideas with the world

Why cats prefer to sleep on their left side may be part of a survival strategy

Posted on by Robin Edgar

An international research team that analyzed several hundred YouTube videos of sleeping cats found that they prefer to sleep on their left side. The researchers see this bias as an evolutionary advantage because it favors hunting and escape behavior after waking up. The team from the University of Bari Aldo Moro (Italy), Ruhr University Bochum, Read more about Why cats prefer to sleep on their left side may be part of a survival strategy[…]

Security pro counts the cost of Microsoft dependency

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A sharply argued blog post warns that heavy reliance on Microsoft poses serious strategic risks for organizations – a viewpoint unlikely to win favor with Redmond or its millions of corporate customers. Czech developer and pen-tester Miloslav Homer has an interesting take on reducing an organization’s exposure to security risks. In an article headlined “Microsoft Read more about Security pro counts the cost of Microsoft dependency[…]

The Blue Screen of Death Is Dead. All hail the black screen of death.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Microsoft’s iconic Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) is dead after 40 years. RIP to the most panic-inducing screen a Windows user can encounter. Now, get ready to fear the Black Screen of Death. In a blog post on its website today, the company revealed it’s ready to go live with an error screen redesign it’s Read more about The Blue Screen of Death Is Dead. All hail the black screen of death.[…]

Join the EU stakeholder consultation on classification of AI systems as high-risk

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The EU is asking for feedback on how the AI act classifies and handles high risk AI systems This consultation is targeted to stakeholders of different categories. These categories include, but are not limited to, providers and deployers of (high-risk) AI systems, other industry organisations, as well as academia, other independent experts, civil society organisations, Read more about Join the EU stakeholder consultation on classification of AI systems as high-risk[…]

A review of the impacts of boredom: A review of the best evidence

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Undoubtedly, one of the most important social issues is the discussion of boredom and disillusionment, which is currently observable in many societies, and perhaps many individuals, as well as our loved ones, have encountered it and are seeking treatment to be relieved of it and resolve the crisis. The issue of boredom is a perennial Read more about A review of the impacts of boredom: A review of the best evidence[…]

Federal judge sides with Meta in lawsuit over training AI models on copyrighted books, close on Federal judge ruling for Anthropic

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A federal judge sided with Meta on Wednesday in a lawsuit brought against the company by 13 book authors, including Sarah Silverman, that alleged the company had illegally trained its AI models on their copyrighted works. Federal Judge Vince Chhabria issued a summary judgment — meaning the judge was able to decide on the case Read more about Federal judge sides with Meta in lawsuit over training AI models on copyrighted books, close on Federal judge ruling for Anthropic[…]

Vitamin C flips your skin’s “youth genes,” reversing age-related skin thinning

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] “VC seems to influence the structure and function of epidermis, especially by controlling the growth of epidermal cells. In this study, we investigated whether it promotes cell proliferation and differentiation via epigenetic changes,” explains Dr. Ishigami, while talking about this study. To investigate how VC affects skin regeneration, the team used human epidermal equivalents, Read more about Vitamin C flips your skin’s “youth genes,” reversing age-related skin thinning[…]

Brain reboot: Gene therapy reverses Alzheimer’s memory loss in mice

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine have developed a gene therapy for Alzheimer’s disease that could help protect the brain from damage and preserve cognitive function. Unlike existing treatments for Alzheimer’s that target unhealthy protein deposits in the brain, the new approach could help address the root cause of Alzheimer’s disease Read more about Brain reboot: Gene therapy reverses Alzheimer’s memory loss in mice[…]

PNG is updated! After 20 years, Exif data and animations are possible

Posted on by Robin Edgar

PNG is back to its former glory after its progress stalled for over two decades. Did you know the U.S. Library of Congress, Library and Archives Canada, and the National Archives of Australia recommend PNG? It is important that we keep PNG current and competitive. After 20 years of stagnation, PNG is back with renewed Read more about PNG is updated! After 20 years, Exif data and animations are possible[…]

Cisco fixes two critical make-me-root bugs

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Cisco has dropped patches for a pair of critical vulnerabilities that could allow unauthenticated remote attackers to execute code on vulnerable systems. Tracked as CVE-2025-20281 and CVE-2025-20282, Cisco assigned them both maximum 10/10 severity ratings, although the former was reduced to 9.8 by the National Vulnerability Database. Both bugs affect Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) Read more about Cisco fixes two critical make-me-root bugs[…]

Swarms of tiny nose robots could clear infected sinuses and more, researchers say

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Swarms of tiny robots, each no larger than a speck of dust, could be deployed to cure stubborn infected sinuses before being blown out through the nose into a tissue, researchers have claimed. The micro-robots are a fraction of the width of a human hair and have been inserted successfully into animal sinuses in pre-clinical Read more about Swarms of tiny nose robots could clear infected sinuses and more, researchers say[…]

HDMI 2.2 is here with new ‘Ultra96’ Cables — up to 16K resolution, higher maximum 96 Gbps bandwidth than DisplayPort, backwards compatibility & more

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The HDMI Forum has officially finalized HDMI 2.2, the next generation of the video standard, rolling out to devices throughout the rest of this year. We already saw a bunch of key announcements at CES in January, but now that the full spec is here, it’s confirmed that HDMI 2.2 will eclipse DisplayPort in maximum Read more about HDMI 2.2 is here with new ‘Ultra96’ Cables — up to 16K resolution, higher maximum 96 Gbps bandwidth than DisplayPort, backwards compatibility & more[…]

Google to Gemini Users: We’re Going to Look at Your Texts Whether You Like It or Not

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…]As highlighted in a Reddit post, Google recently sent out an email to some Android users informing them that Gemini will now be able to “help you use Phone, Messages, WhatsApp, and Utilities on your phone whether your Gemini Apps Activity is on or off.” That change, according to the email, will take place on Read more about Google to Gemini Users: We’re Going to Look at Your Texts Whether You Like It or Not[…]

UK doesn’t learn lesson, buys more lemon F-35s to Go Nuclear With – is the US blackmailing it?

Posted on by Robin Edgar

After years of speculation, the United Kingdom has finally announced it will buy conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) F-35A stealth fighters to operate alongside the short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) F-35B models it already uses. The F-35A offers a number of advantages over the F-35B, but the U.K. Ministry of Defense specifically highlights its Read more about UK doesn’t learn lesson, buys more lemon F-35s to Go Nuclear With – is the US blackmailing it?[…]

Anthropic wins key US ruling on AI training in authors’ copyright lawsuit, but should only have used legally bought books.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A federal judge in San Francisco ruled late on Monday that Anthropic’s use of books without permission to train its artificial intelligence system was legal under U.S. copyright law. Siding with tech companies on a pivotal question for the AI industry, U.S. District Judge William Alsup said Anthropic made “fair use” , opens new tab Read more about Anthropic wins key US ruling on AI training in authors’ copyright lawsuit, but should only have used legally bought books.[…]

Judge Denies Creating ‘Mass Surveillance Program’ Harming All ChatGPT Users after ordering all chats (including “deleted” ones) be kept indefinitely

Posted on by Robin Edgar

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: After a court ordered OpenAI to “indefinitely” retain all ChatGPT logs, including deleted chats, of millions of users, two panicked users tried and failed to intervene. The order sought to preserve potential evidence in a copyright infringement lawsuit raised by news organizations. In May, Judge Ona Read more about Judge Denies Creating ‘Mass Surveillance Program’ Harming All ChatGPT Users after ordering all chats (including “deleted” ones) be kept indefinitely[…]

Scientists use bacteria to turn plastic waste into paracetamol

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Bacteria can be used to turn plastic waste into painkillers, researchers have found, opening up the possibility of a more sustainable process for producing the drugs. Chemists have discovered E coli can be used to create paracetamol, also known as acetaminophen, from a material produced in the laboratory from plastic bottles. “People don’t realise that Read more about Scientists use bacteria to turn plastic waste into paracetamol[…]

We finally may be able to rid the world of mosquitoes. But should we? (hell yes! And ticks please!)

Posted on by Robin Edgar

They buzz, they bite, and they cause some of the deadliest diseases known to humanity. Mosquitoes are perhaps the planet’s most universally reviled animals. If we could zap them off the face of the Earth, should we? Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. The Read more about We finally may be able to rid the world of mosquitoes. But should we? (hell yes! And ticks please!)[…]

ESA – “The models were right”: astronomers find ‘missing’ matter

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Astronomers have discovered a huge filament of hot gas bridging four galaxy clusters. At 10 times as massive as our galaxy, the thread could contain some of the Universe’s ‘missing’ matter, addressing a decades-long mystery. The astronomers used the European Space Agency’s XMM-Newton and JAXA’s Suzaku X-ray space telescopes to make the discovery. Over one-third Read more about ESA – “The models were right”: astronomers find ‘missing’ matter[…]

Traceable random numbers from a non-local quantum advantage

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The unpredictability of random numbers is fundamental to both digital security1,2 and applications that fairly distribute resources3,4. However, existing random number generators have limitations—the generation processes cannot be fully traced, audited and certified to be unpredictable. The algorithmic steps used in pseudorandom number generators5 are auditable, but they cannot guarantee that their outputs were a Read more about Traceable random numbers from a non-local quantum advantage[…]

16 billion passwords exposed in colossal data breach

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] , the Cybernews research team discovered a plethora of supermassive datasets, housing billions upon billions of login credentials. From social media and corporate platforms to VPNs and developer portals, no stone was left unturned. Our team has been closely monitoring the web since the beginning of the year. So far, they’ve discovered 30 exposed Read more about 16 billion passwords exposed in colossal data breach[…]

UK data watchdog fines 23andMe £2.3M over incompetently handled 2023 DNA megabreach

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The UK’s data watchdog is fining beleaguered DNA testing outfit 23andMe £2.31 million ($3.13 million) over its 2023 mega breach. Among the various security failings demonstrated by the genetics company were: Unsatisfactory authentication measures, including lack of mandatory MFA and unsecure password requirements No measures taken to prevent accessing and downloading raw genetic data No Read more about UK data watchdog fines 23andMe £2.3M over incompetently handled 2023 DNA megabreach[…]

MiniMax M1 model claims Chinese LLM crown from DeepSeek and is completely open source

Posted on by Robin Edgar

MiniMax, an AI firm based in Shanghai, has released an open source reasoning model that challenges Chinese rival DeepSeek and US-based Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google in terms of performance and cost. MiniMax-M1 was released Monday under an Apache software license, and thus is actually open source, unlike Meta’s Llama family, offered under a community license Read more about MiniMax M1 model claims Chinese LLM crown from DeepSeek and is completely open source[…]

Silicon Valley Execs Join the Army as Lt Colonel Officers (But Won’t Have to Attend Boot Camp)

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The U.S. military recently announced that four executives from some of the top tech companies in Silicon Valley have joined the Army Reserve as direct-commissioned officers. The move is part of a push to speed up the adoption of technology in the military, but as the news outlet Task & Purpose points out, it’s pretty Read more about Silicon Valley Execs Join the Army as Lt Colonel Officers (But Won’t Have to Attend Boot Camp)[…]

Makers of air fryers and smart speakers told to respect users’ right to privacy in UK

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Makers of air fryers, smart speakers, fertility trackers and smart TVs have been told to respect people’s rights to privacy by the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). People have reported feeling powerless to control how data is gathered, used and shared in their own homes and on their bodies. After reports of air fryers designed Read more about Makers of air fryers and smart speakers told to respect users’ right to privacy in UK[…]