RA Publishes Sectoral Review Report
The Regulatory Authority of Bermuda [RA] released its sectoral review, with a focus on the electricity sector. A spokesperson said, “Fulfilling legislative obligations and aligning with mandates, the Regulatory Authority of Bermuda [RA] has released its sectoral review, with focus on the electricity sector. This periodic review, conducted every three years as per the Regulatory Authority Act 2011 [RAA], aims to optimise the efficiency of the existing regulatory framework. “This essential exercise ensures regulatory alignment with evolving sector needs,” stated Richard Ambrosio, Interim Chief Executive of the RA. He continued, “In our commitment to transparency, we’ve concluded the sectoral review preliminarily report.
Source:The Nation
January 29, 2024 19:33 UTC
Watch a house-sized space habitat (intentionally) burst
Source: phys.orgWe live in an age of renewed space exploration, colloquially known as Space Age 2.0. Unlike the previous one, this new space age is characterized by inter-agency cooperation and collaboration between space agencies and the commercial space industry (aka.
Source:The Nation
January 29, 2024 18:01 UTC
Research reveals quantum entanglement among quarks
Source: phys.orgCollisions of high energy particles produce "jets" of quarks, anti-quarks, or gluons. Due to the phenomenon called confinement, scientists cannot directly detect quarks. Instead, the quarks from these collisions fragment into many secondary particles that can be detected.
Source:The Nation
January 29, 2024 14:34 UTC
Bitcoin Ordinals Inscription Marks First Individual Poem Sale by Sotheby's
Last week, a poem by Ana Maria Caballero sold for 0.28 Bitcoin or $11,430 at Sotheby’s. The poem by Caballero, "Cords," was featured in an online auction of Bitcoin Ordinals inscriptions called Natively Digital. The significance of the Sotheby's auction for "Cord" was not lost on Caballero, who called it an opportunity to affirm written poetry's inherent worth. Other artists in the Natively Digital auction included FAR, XCPinata, Nullish, Rudxane, Jennifer and Kevin McCoy, Popoki, Shroomtoshi, Des Lucréce, and Claudia Hart. Along with Kalen Iwamoto and Sasha Stiles, Caballero launched the digital poetry and NFT gallery theVerseverse in 2021.
Source:The Nation
January 29, 2024 04:03 UTC
Climate change behind extreme Amazon drought: study
Source: phys.orgClimate change was the chief driver of the devastating drought that gripped the Amazon last year, say researchers, as warming threatens one of the world's most important ecosystems for stabilizing the global climate.
Source:The Nation
January 28, 2024 17:18 UTC
Stanley and other drink cups contain lead. Should you be worried?
Published at 3:00 pm, January 27, 2024(CNN) — First, Stanley cups were all over social media because so many people wanted them. Videos on social media sites such as TikTok show people breaking out a lead testing kit and trying it on their Stanley cups and other travel flasks. And Stanley cups are everywhere. Stanley cups are in the hands of beauty bloggers, the cars of parents at school pickup, and even on the Christmas lists of many kids this past year. The main source of lead exposure in the United States comes from inhaling dust or eating particles contaminated by paint chips.
Source:The Nation
January 28, 2024 10:29 UTC
The need for judicial review of laws passed
The need for judicial review of laws passed View(s):Does the country’s Online Safety Bill that was passed this week amidst opposition legislators alleging that amendments directed by the Supreme Court had not been reflected in the Bill and new clauses had been slipped into the bill, meet standards of best practices and good governance? In fact, conferring Sri Lankan courts the power to review enacted laws will prevent ugly allegations such as those raised in the House this week over the Online Safety Bill. The independence of the proposed Online Safety Commission must be further tightened and loosely worded terms that run through the bill must be fittingly revised. A bad Online Safety law for Sri Lanka would be worse than no law at all. Uganda’s UN ambassador was quick to disown his compatriot on the World Court pointing to Uganda’s voting pattern in support of Palestine at the UN.
Source:Sunday Times
January 28, 2024 05:12 UTC
Two-pronged strategy for fiscal consolidation: Up the revenue and bring down Govt. expenditure
Two-pronged strategy for fiscal consolidation: Up the revenue and bring down Govt. Fiscal consolidation must be achieved through a two-pronged strategy of increasing revenue and reducing government expenditure. Two-pronged strategyThe reduction in the fiscal deficit or fiscal consolidation must be achieved by both a reduction in government expenditure and an increase in revenue. Summary and conclusionThe reduction of the fiscal deficit, or fiscal consolidation, is imperative for economic stability and growth. The government should adopt a more equitable and pragmatic tax strategy to increase revenue and reduce the fiscal deficit.
Source:Sunday Times
January 28, 2024 03:23 UTC
Pastor accused of defrauding investors of $3.2 million
A Colorado pastor and his wife face civil fraud charges They're accused of marketing a 'practically worthless' cryptocurrency Pastor allegedly said God told him investors would become wealthy(NewsNation) — A Colorado pastor is accused of defrauding investors of more than $3 million by marketing a “practically worthless” cryptocurrency to Christian communities and claiming God told him investors would become wealthy. Colorado Security Commissioner Tung Chan filed civil fraud charges against Eli and Kaitlyn Regalado, INDXcoin, LLC, Kingdom Wealth Exchange and others. Eli Regalado is accused of marketing and selling the cryptocurrency INDXcoin, which was available through the Kingdom Wealth Exchange — an online exchange the Regalados created and operated, according to a news release. Investigators allege that from June 2022 to April 2023, INDXcoin raised nearly $3.2 million from more than 300 people, according to the civil complaint. The couple is accused of using investments into the “illiquid and practically worthless” cryptocurrency to support their “lavish” lifestyle, according to the release.
Source:The Nation
January 27, 2024 19:25 UTC
Weirdest Chatbots on OpenAI’s GPT Store, Ranked
After months of waiting, OpenAI finally launched its GPT Store, where paying subscribers can now access a library of custom AI chatbots. The store promotes some practical, helpful AI tools up front, but there are some deeply strange GPTs lurking in corners of the store. Gizmodo ventured into those dark, musty corners and compiled a list of the strangest GPTs we’ve come across, and now I’m questioning AI altogether. There are over three million AI chatbots, but OpenAI already banned a handful of GPTs that it’s deemed so strange, so taboo, that they should not be allowed to exist in its new world. It was inevitable that folks were going to create some fairly strange robot assistants, given free rein, but now that the GPT Store is live, it’s out there for anyone to see.
Source:The Nation
January 26, 2024 18:01 UTC
Kerry and Xie exit roles that defined generation of climate action
But over the years, Kerry and Xie forged a remarkable level of trust and respect in the world of international climate negotiations. The annual U.N. climate summit was being held in Copenhagen later that year, and Kerry was eager to talk about it with Chinese officials. Stern said the deal “ricocheted around the climate world" and convinced countries that “we can actually get this done.”The importance of the deal became evident one month later. It was the relationship with China, Kerry said afterward, that helped “change the paradigm.”——-The warm feelings were short-lived. Donald Trump was elected president in 2016, and he promptly withdrew the U.S. from the Paris agreement after taking office.
Source:The Nation
January 26, 2024 12:31 UTC
Shaping the dawn of the quantum age
Source: phys.orgElectrons that spin to the right and the left at the same time. Particles that change their states together, even though they are separated by enormous distances. Intriguing phenomena like these are completely commonplace in the world of quantum physics. Researchers at the TUM Garching campus are using them to build quantum computers, high-sensitivity sensors and the internet of the future.
Source:The Nation
January 26, 2024 06:00 UTC
HP Enterprise discloses hack by suspected state-backed Russian hackers
FILE - A sign marks the entry way into Hewlett Packard Enterprise, May 24, 2016, in Andover, Mass. Hewlett Packard Enterprise disclosed Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, that suspected state-backed Russian hackers broke into its cloud-based email system and stole data from cybersecurity and other employees. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistribu)BOSTON – Hewlett Packard Enterprise disclosed Wednesday that suspected state-backed Russian hackers broke into its cloud-based email system and stole data from cybersecurity and other employees. It said it believed the hackers were from Cozy Bear, a unit of Russia's SVR foreign intelligence service. It said the Russian hackers accessed accounts of senior Microsoft executives as well as cybersecurity and legal employees.
Source:The Nation
January 25, 2024 13:32 UTC
SEC Delays Decision on BlackRock's Spot Ethereum ETF Application
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has delayed a decision on BlackRock's spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund application. BlackRock, the world's biggest fund manager, applied in November for a spot Ethereum (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF). Other high-profile firms such Ark Invest, Fidelity, and Grayscale want to introduce their own ETH ETF. ETH ETF hype comes after the SEC's approval of spot BTC ETFs after a decade of denying the products. Senior Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Eric Balchunas has said he is 70% confident that a spot ETH ETF will be approved by May.
Source:The Nation
January 25, 2024 10:00 UTC
Update: Online Safety Bill passed with amendments
Update: Online Safety Bill passed with amendmentsNewsThe Online Safety Bill was passed in Parliament this evening with amendments. At the end of the debate on the Second Reading of the Bill, at around 5.00 pm today, Chief Opposition Whip, Lakshman Kiriella called for a division. Accordingly, 108 votes were cast in favor of the Bill and 62 votes were cast against it. Thus, the Second Reading of the Bill was passed by a majority of 46 votes. Accordingly, 51 votes were cast in favor of the amendment and 92 votes were cast against.
Source:Sunday Times
January 24, 2024 21:10 UTC