(Image: Hawking.org) It’s a pet obsession that both physicist Stephen Hawking and entrepreneur Elon Musk — two people credited with pushing the boundaries of technology and science in pioneering ways — have in common: Rampaging intelligence, borne within machines, could end the human race if utilized dangerously. “I believe there is no real difference between what can be achieved by a biological brain and what can be […]
Authored by Jeffrey Snider via Alhambra Investment Partners, Back on March 10, the New York Fed’s attempt at real-time GDP forecasting predicted that the Q1 2017 estimate would be 3.2%. That would have qualified as another decent quarter, the second out of the past three and somewhat in keeping with “reflation.” As we know today, the advance figure calculated by the Commerce Department amounted to just 0.69% […]
This story was originally published on Medium and is being republished here with the permission of its author. Two years ago in Hong Kong, I sat around a conference table with some of the finest journalists to have worked in the Chinese media in the past two decades. Left and right of me were reporters who had broken major stories of corruption, malfeasance and cruelty, and who […]
President Donald Trump’s populist views, reality television stardom, and penchant for Twitter insults all but guaranteed an out-of-the-ordinary first 100 days for the billionaire political neophyte. A look at the data reveals how Mr Trump compares with previous Oval Office occupants. Bills signed into law Enacted legislation for last seven presidents in first 100 days Source: govtrack.us The White House touts that Mr Trump has accomplished more […]
Ransomware incidents have surged 50 percent from a year ago, educational institutions are becoming a playground for cyber espionage and 68 percent of healthcare security threats are internal, according to Verizon’s 2017 Data Breach Incident Report (DBIR). The DBIR is based on data from 65 organizations, 42,068 incidents and 1,935 breaches in 84 countries. At a high level, Verizon’s DBIR isn’t that surprising. One of the recent […]
A Malta magistrate is investigating explosive claims of money laundering and corruption that have put New Zealand in the middle of a global cash trail from the family of Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliyev. President Aliyev’s daughter, Leyla Aliyeva, is alleged to have channelled more than $1.5 million to senior figures of the Malta government, including Prime Minister Joseph Muscat’s wife. These include alleged payments to Panama companies […]
Breitbart News hit a wall Tuesday in its campaign to storm the ramparts of the media establishment when one of the most influential press associations in Washington, D.C. denied its application for credentials to cover Congress because of concerns over the site’s funding, staffing, workspace and independence. The decision by the Standing Committee of Correspondents of the House and Senate Press Gallery — a body chaired by […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for April 27, 2017, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. Ellen Fortini rounds up 10 things to do today in the UAE. Want to see your event listed here? Email us with the details and contact information at [email protected] newslide Abu Dhabi Art exhibition Catch […]
In the month of April, two different verdicts from two different cases were passed in two very different courts in Pakistan. Two different men were on trial accused of two different crimes. One was let off easy for now, while the other was declared as guilty as guilty could be. Safe to say both verdicts were the cause of consternation and confusion. One of course, was the […]
The boss of Etihad Airways, which owns 49 percent of troubled Italian airline Alitalia, said he deeply regretted a decision by Alitalia staff to reject a last-ditch restructuring deal, blocking a recapitalisation and sparking fears that the carrier may be grounded for good. The future of Alitalia was in doubt on Tuesday, with James Hogan, president and CEO of the Etihad Aviation Group and vice chairman of […]
Photo A rebel-held neighborhood in Daraa, Syria, after air strikes on Sunday. Members of a United Nations commission investigating war crimes in Syria have not been allowed to visit the country. Credit Mohamad Abazeed/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images The chairman of a United Nations commission investigating possible war crimes in Syria has met that country’s ambassador only once, he said. It happened during a chance encounter in […]
File Photo Uber has denied any wrongdoing following reports that the mobile devices of former users were tracked even after the Uber app was deleted. Uber has had more than a share of criticism of late. Uber CEO Travis Kalanick was recently caught engaged in a shouting match with one of his drivers, allegations of a toxic and sexist corporate environment have been made by a former […]
Dubai’s transport authority has revealed details of a major expansion of the city’s public bus network. The Public Transport Agency of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) opened 11 new bus routes including 10 metro feeder services, and improved 13 other routes starting from last Saturday. “The move is intended to bring more happiness to public transport users in general and bus riders in particular. It also […]
A model demonstrates the Welwalk WW-1000, a wearable robotic leg brace designed to help partially paralyzed people walk at the main system with treadmill and monitor, at Toyota Motor Corp.’s head office in Tokyo, Wednesday, April 12, 2017. Toyota Motor Corp.’s Welwalk WW-1000 system is made up of a motorized mechanical frame that fits on a person’s leg from the knee down. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) Toyota is […]
ABU DHABI // A delay in the construction of a much-anticipated sports complex and ways to resolve long-running problems between Emirati homeowners and builders will be discussed by the Federal National Council this week. During the FNC sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday, Ahmed Al Nuaimi from Ras Al Khaimah will ask about the status of a sports complex to be built in the emirate. “The plans were […]
Image: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images By Chloe Bryan, Tricia Gilbride, and Laura Vitto2017-04-23 13:09:48 UTC All dogs are good, but some dogs are the best. Using a unique and complex algorithm that we cannot disclose (just kidding, we picked 50 dogs from the American Kennel Club website, gave each a score out of 10, then argued with each other in the case of a tie), we have ranked […]
The Power of Networks: Six Principles that Connect Our Lives • By Christopher G. Brinton and Mung Chiang • Princeton University Press • 310 pages • ISBN: 978-0-691-17071-8 • £27.95 We don’t normally think of our lives this way, but each of us is enmeshed in myriad networks — the real-life one of people, social media like Twitter and Facebook, and technical networks (internet, cellular). According to […]
It’s been a busy week: Samsung and Google partnered on special version of Google Play Music and White House staffers’ favorite secure messaging app might not be that secure. Oh, and Facebook wants you to talk and listen your skin. Luckily, we’ve kept up for you. Each week, we round up the latest app news, along with a few of our favorite new and updated products, to […]
The recent split judgment of the Pakistan Supreme Court, giving the country’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif breathing space by appointing a joint investigation team (JIT) to probe the Panama Papers’ claims of financial irregularities by him and his family, has changed the strategic scenario in the country. The JIT comprises members of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan […]
There were five huge boxes sitting at the loading dock of The Poynter Institute yesterday, waiting for the FedEx truck to pick them up. They are filled with more than 125 file boxes containing the literary effects of Donald M. Murray, in my opinion the most influential writing teacher America has ever known. The precious content of those boxes — including 100 of Murray’s experimental daybooks — […]
The welcome After some confusion finding the valet parking service – the entrance is not where you would expect and signage is not straightforward – when I eventually pull up, I am attended to promptly and efficiently. At the reception counter, I’m greeted with a smile, but despite requesting an early check-in and having it confirmed before arrival, the room is not ready. After a 10-minute wait […]
Photo President Trump met with Aya Hijazi in the Oval Office on Friday. Credit Gabriella Demczuk for The New York Times WASHINGTON — President Trump welcomed Aya Hijazi, an American aid worker detained for three years in Egypt, to the Oval Office on Friday after quietly working to secure her release this week. “We are very happy to have Aya back home and it’s a great honor […]
Just when you thought it was over – after Trump ‘Tomahawks’ Putin’s pal Assad, and Tillerson trounces Lavrov – and the media had stopped the constant “Russia did it” narrative, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (which seems like as big an oxymoron as can occur) has called numerous current (and former) officials to testify once again on Russia’s “active measures during the 2016 election.” As […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for April 21, 2017, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. Ellen Fortini rounds up 10 things to do today in the UAE. Want to see your event listed here? Email us with the details and contact information at [email protected] newslide Abu Dhabi Kids’ fun Take […]
It isn’t the first time that imprisoned Palestinian activist Marwan Barghouti has written a controversial comment-article for a major newspaper in the United States. In fact, it isn’t even the first time that, in giving him a platform in the western media, an American newspaper has glossed over some details of the life of a man who is now 13 years into five life sentences handed down […]
A few months ago, staff at The Minneapolis Star Tribune did something journalists don’t always have the time to do: think way ahead. One year in advance, staff photographers shot images of the Minnesota winter for next winter’s StarTribune Magazine. The quarterly magazine debuted Sunday, marking a new product for a newsroom that’s worked hard over the last year to become more digital. But that new product […]
newslide Actor Kevin Spacey will host Broadway’s Tony Awards, the year’s honours for actors on stage This is the first time Spacey will host the event, which will take place in New York on June 11. Recent hosts Neil Patrick Harris, Hugh Jackman and James Corden all won raves from critics but apparently were unavailable to do the honours again this year. “I was their second choice […]
A giant jail ship with thousands of pods similar to the ‘sky cells’ that kept Tyrion Lannister prisoner in Game of Thrones has been designed by architects. Designers have drawn up plans for a giant boat that could hold 3,300 prisoners in its paper sails. They say the ship is designed to be a prison for the tax-avoiders named and shamed in the Panama Papers. A giant […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for April 5, 2017, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. Ellen Fortini rounds up 10 things to do today in the UAE. Want to see your event listed here? Email us with the details and contact information at [email protected] newslide Abu Dhabi Comedy show Attend […]
AIRPORT DUTY A woman immigration officer welcomes arriving passengers at Ninoy Aquino International Airport. —LYN RILLON The Bureau of Immigration will assign more employees to the airports to deal with a staff shortage caused by mass resignations and leaves of absence involving immigration officers. President Duterte’s order to stop payment for overtime work has led to the departures, according to Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II. Malacañang said […]
