The Pixel 10a is official, though details are limited. On Wednesday, Google posted a teaser video showing the mid-range phone dancing around colorful backgrounds. You can pre-order the Pixel 10a on February 18.
Google hasn't yet revealed the phone's specs. In the short video, we can see a blue model that's virtually indistinguishable on the outside from the Pixel 9a. And alleged leaks point to a phone with few changes on the inside. That (unconfirmed) list includes a 6.285-inch display, dual rear cameras (48MP wide and 13MP ultra-wide) and a 5,100mAh battery.
The teaser's tagline appears to be an attempt to assure Pixel fans that there will, in fact, be meaningful upgrades. "A phone with more in store, in store soon," it reads. Hopefully, its pricing and specs will be "in store" for us soon as well.
In the meantime, you can visit the Google Pixel website to register for more info.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/you-can-pre-order-the-pixel-10a-on-february-18-180712018.html?src=rss
Attackers are exploiting a critical SolarWinds Web Help Desk bug - less than a week after the vendor disclosed and fixed the 9.8-rated flaw. That's according to America's lead cyber-defense agency, which set a Friday deadline for federal agencies to patch the security flaw.…
Software stocks have taken a beating over the last month as investors grow concerned that AI could put vertical SaaS vendors out of business.…
When There Is No Sun draws on the Arkestra's 2022 album Living Sky, as well as a 2023 release celebrating Sun Ra's poetry
Ricardo Villalobos has curated a new remix compilation of work by Sun Ra Arkestra.
The 12-track When There Is No Sun sees the likes of Underground Resistance, Calibre, Chez Damier, A Guy Called Gerald and Villalobos himself rework material from the Arkestra's 2022 album Living Sky. The compilation also makes use of 2023 release My Words Are Music: A Celebration Of Sun Ra's Poetry, which saw the likes of Saul Williams, Tara Middleton and Mahogany L. Browne deliver spoken word pieces inspired by the late musician's poetry.
Listen to Underground Resistance's Saul Williams-featuring take on 'When Angels Speak' below.
Omni Sound...
The post Ricardo Villalobos, Underground Resistance and More Rework Sun Ra Arkestra on New Compilation appeared first on The Quietus.
London-based sound studio Mastery has released Wata Igarashi's 'Mineral' as the lead single from their upcoming 'Quantum Sound' compilation, the project is also their first recorded music release, developed in partnership with fabric imprint Houndstooth. 'Mineral' features downtempo production with stripped-back elements, sustained strings, arpeggiating synth notes, and an ethereal soundscape. The full compilation arrives […]
Mastery & Houndstooth share Wata Igarashi's 'Mineral' ahead of full VA release
MotoGP tests are schizophrenic affairs. There is a lot of waiting around as it feels like nothing is happening, and there is a lot of frantic chasing around trying to figure out what is happening. Sometimes, both of these are going on at the same time. It is only after you have sat down after a test and had time to think about what went on that you can begin to get a handle on it.
This is not just a roundabout way of saying that a fuller analysis of what people are testing will have to wait until I can sit down in my hotel room on Friday and type up everything I think I learned. It is also a chance to say that Wednesday was one of those days where nothing and everything happens at the same time.
First, the big news of the day. And of the test really. And perhaps the biggest news of MotoGP for as long as I can remember. Bigger than when Yamaha was forced to request a change to their valves in 2020. As you will have undoubtedly heard, unless you have been confined in an isolation chamber for the past day, Yamaha have paused participation in the rest of the Sepang test, after engineers analyzed a technical problem with Fabio Quartararo's bike on Tuesday afternoon and found that it could be dangerous, both for the Yamaha riders, and for other riders on track.
David Emmett Wed, 04/Feb/2026 - 17:23
The band's second album is getting an updated release to mark its 45th anniversary
Clock DVA's 1981 album Thirst is getting reissued.
Marking 45 years since its original release, the band's second studio LP has been newly remastered especially for the updated edition. The reissue will also include live and alternate versions of tracks from the record.
Speaking about Thirst, Clock DVA's Adi Newton said in a statement: "We set out to form a new sound combination; to combine acoustics and electronics, merging the German electronic wave with the edge of The Stooges, the avant-garde of the French GRM musique concrète, and the pioneering audio-visual creativity of The Velvet Underground. To create a harder form of electronic music with real energy."
Listen to the...
The post Clock DVA Unveil 'Thirst' Reissue appeared first on The Quietus.
YouTuber Oceanliner Designs shares an amazing new view of Nazi Germany's most powerful warship, from nearly 16,000 feet deep, on the bottom of the Atlantic, where Royal Navy forces left her.
The Bismarck was one of the largest and most powerful warships ever built. — Read the rest
The post Incredible ROV footage of the German battleship Bismarck appeared first on Boing Boing.
A Republican Senate candidate tried to buy Donald Trump's endorsement with free tickets to Melania's Brett Ratner-directed bomb. Evidently, it's clear that policy, principle, or actual competence won't sway the Orange Menace, only grift.
Republican candidate for Senate in Kentucky, Andy Barr, used campaign funds to buy out a showing of the movie, offered free tickets to anyone who showed up, and staged a bunch of photos to make it look like people really wanted to see the movie. — Read the rest
The post GOP hopeful tries to buy Trump's favor with free Melania movie tickets appeared first on Boing Boing.
The number of children who are homeless and in temporary accommodation in Scotland has passed 10,000.
The latest figures from the Scottish Government show that, in the six months to 30 September 2025, 10,480 children were in temporary accommodation.
People experiencing homelessness increasingIn total, there were 18,092 households in temporary accommodation, a 9% increase from 16,634 in 2024. This is also a new record high. Households spent an average of 237 days in temporary accommodation.
There was also a 4% increase in the total open homeless applications. The figure now stands at 33,006.
The number of people sleeping rough has also reached its highest in over a decade - at 1,083. This means that one in 10 applicants was sleeping outside.
One notably higher figure is the number of households not being offered temporary accommodation. The number has risen from 7,565 in 2024 to 10,710 in 2025. Most of these were in Glasgow (6,815 out of 10,710). The local authority also reported high numbers in Edinburgh - with 3,585 instances over the six months.
A figure that has improved is the number of breaches of the unsuitable accommodation order. This states that:
the maximum number of days that local authorities can use unsuitable accommodation for any homeless person is 7 days and has the effect of ending stays in unsuitable accommodation, such as B&Bs, apart from in emergency situations.
In the last 6 months, there were 3,635 breaches, which is a 12% improvement.
Changing characteristicsOf the homeless applicants, 16% were from households that had been granted either refugee status or leave to remain. This allows non-UK nationals to stay lawfully in the UK following an application made from within the country.
In total, 2% of all applications cited "left asylum accommodation" as the reason for them being homeless.
There was also a decrease in the number of white applicants, specifically white Scottish applicants. Conversely, there was an increase in the number of African, Caribbean, Black, Asian, and Arab applicants.
This comes as the number of refugees experiencing homelessness across the UK has more than doubled in the last two years. In total, 4,434 refugees and migrants were accommodated from 2024-25, the largest number on record. Of these, 2,008 were refugees — a 106% increase on the previous year.
In September, Màiri McAllan, Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Housing, pledged funding for affordable housing, along with measures to support people in moving out of temporary housing.
Additionally, the Scottish government said it planned to invest up to £4.9bn over the next four years. This would help it achieve its target of delivering 36,000 affordable homes by 2030.
In a statement, McAllan said:
The figures do speak to the severe pressure that services are under due to the Home Office's mismanagement of the asylum system, particularly in Glasgow.
Featured image via Centre for Homelessness Impact
By HG
Campaigner and singer Feargal Sharkey has, once again, dressed down the privatised water companies.
Water companies: taking the p*ssOn social media, Sharkey said:
You'll want to be sitting down for this bit. Water companies are currently £82.7 billion in debt, have paid themselves £85 billion in dividends, leak over a trillion of litres of water per year, dump sewage for almost 4 million hours per year, have been convicted of over 1,200 criminal acts since 1989 and an average of 35% of your bill goes on nothing but paying more interest and yet more dividends. And not a single company has ever lost their operating licence.
When the water companies were privatised in 1989 under Margaret Thatcher, they were debt free. Since then, they have accumulated £82.7 billion in debt, as Sharkey notes. At the same time, they have failed to invest in infrastructure to fix our dated sewage system. Instead, they dump sewage in our rivers and the ocean for millions of hours a year. And they haven't just creamed cash rather than investing. Water companies sold off 35 reservoirs in just five years, making £26 million from flogging what were public assets.
On top of that, as Sharkey points out, a University of Greenwich study for We Own It found a "privatisation tax" of 35% on our water bills. In other words, we're spending over one-third more than we need to every time we turn on the taps.
Privatisation: 140 years into the pastWater was brought into public ownership in the late 1800s. Even back then, people knew it was a natural monopoly and a daily essential for all humans. Selling it off just means one then rents it at higher cost.
Thatcher's government and then the neoliberals in Labour, Reform and the Tories maintaining privatisation of water, have brought us 140 years into the past.
Sharkey is spot on to take down the polluting profiteers.
Featured image via the Canary
By James Wright
The US left mountains of high-tech weaponry behind when it fled Afghanistan in defeat in 2021 - now, those weapons have flooded neighbouring Pakistan. And the resulting instability might be stopping the US mining the very rare Earth resources it craves.
The US has its sights on vast copper mines just ten miles inside Pakistan. CNN reported that China is already accessing the nearby Muhammad Khel Copper Mine in northern Waziristan.
For a sense of the scale of that mine, watch this:
But nearby, in south Waziristan:
lies another copper mine that Pakistan says can yield almost ten times as much, equivalent to a fifth of the copper America uses every year.
CNN said:
The prospect is so appealing to a Washington administration also hungry for resources that it has put up more than a billion dollars to get things moving.
So what is stopping them? In short, the imperial blowback of vast amounts of lost US military gear.
Billions in lost US armsThe US and her allies cut and run from Afghanistan after two decades of occupation in 2021. Today the Taliban rule the country once again. But that US chaotic exit mean up to $7bn worth of weapons and equipment were simply left behind.
Remarkable footage emerged back then of US troops trying to destroy - or 'deny' - military gear ahead of the US collapse:
But later Taliban footage made clear that weaponry, vehicles, and even helicopters were left behind:
The Foundation for Economic Education broke down some of the numbers involved. They said the giant arsenal included:
includes up to 22,174 Humvee vehicles, nearly 1,000 armored vehicles, 64,363 machine guns, and 42,000 pick-up trucks and SUVs.
There were mind boggling amounts of smalls arms - and even artillery:
the list of allegedly abandoned weaponry includes up to 358,530 assault rifles, 126,295 pistols, and nearly 200 artillery units.
Since the US was forced out the abandoned arms have been sold on - potentially fueling other conflicts.
In April 2025, the BBC was told:
Half a million weapons obtained by the Taliban in Afghanistan have been lost, sold or smuggled to militant groups
A UN report also warned that group including Al Qaeda:
were accessing Taliban-captured weapons or buying them on the black market.
But what are the implication in Waziristan with its rich resources?
Blowback againAs well as copper, CNN reported there were other minerals and metal in Waziristan which the US craves:
Pakistan says there is much more wealth beneath its soil -- an estimated $8 trillion in copper, lithium, cobalt, gold, antimony and other critical minerals.
This mineral reality has:
oiled an unlikely friendship with US President Donald Trump, who has put mineral acquisition at the heart of US foreign policy.
But CNN reporters who went to the region say they were shown:
hundreds of US-made rifles, machine guns and sniper rifles -- all leftovers from Washington's war next door, and all seized from a new breed of jihadists and insurgents.
In fact, the reporters claimed, following a recent attack on a Pakistani military college 50 miles from the Muhammad Khel Copper Mine:
a colonel laid out a blood-soaked bandana and three M-16 rifles recovered from the militants. Written on the bandana, in Urdu and English, were slogans indicating the wearer's readiness for martyrdom.
And:
stamped on the rifles were the words: "Property of US Govt. Manufactured in Columbia, South Carolina."
In Peshawar, CNN recorded images of dozens of American weapons captured after raids:
And US weaponry has also been found in Balochistan in the hands of local insurgents. Defence analyst Muhammad Mubasher told the outlet American arms were now involved "in almost every encounter that happens".
Following a recent suicide attack in Balochistan which killed 33 people provincial minister Sarfaraz Bugti said there was:
no doubt that most of the weapons used were US made that originated from Afghanistan.
Past US imperial adventures seem to be hindering new ones…
Trump's Pakistan charm offensiveDespite the instability in the region - instability fueled by US blowback- President Donald Trump and Pakistani leaders have been getting cozy over potential mineral deals.
CNN reported that
Pakistan's prime minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir took an unusual prop on their first joint visit to the White House in September [2025] -- a chest containing a trove of rare earths they said had been dug from Pakistan's soil.
Adding:
Trump was charmed. The following month he praised Munir in public -- naming him: "My favorite field marshal."
Pakistani politicians have been schmoozing ever since: they vocally supported Trump's failed Nobel Peace Prize bid in July 2025, calling him a great peacemaker after recent India-Pakistan clashes. And their first shipment of rare earth minerals arrived in the US just a month after their September 2025 meeting.
Trump wants Pakistani resources. And the Pakistani government seem more than willing to give them up. The problem is that the war in Afghanistan has flooded the region with high tech US-made arms and equipment, fueling a new set of insurgencies. Trump proclaims himself a 'Peace President', but he clearly isn't getting off the imperialist carousel quite yet.
Featured image via the Canary
By Joe Glenton
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) paramilitaries are leaving custom-made ace of spades 'death cards' at the scene of migrant snatch operations. The ghoulish practice has imperial origins. US troops used to stuff cards into the mouths of the Vietnamese dead. The practice - consider yourself trigger warned here, please - was even filmed for use in official military propaganda.
The truth is this isn't the first example of long-ago wars inflecting US immigration policy. America's imperial past and present is so deeply interwoven into Trumpian policy that we don't always see it. Yet these cards are one of several crystal-clear examples lately.
ICE leave death cardsThe Intercept's Nick Turse picked up the story on 3 February. It appears to have originally been reported on 22 January 2025 by Latino community organisation Voces Unidas. After a snatch mission in Eagle Country, Colorado, relatives searching for their kidnapped family members found the cards at the scene:
After detaining 10 Latino community members, ICE agents left ace of spades cards—widely known as the "death card"—inside the abandoned vehicles. The cards, later found by family members, clearly identify ICE's Denver Field Office.
The US used the ace of spades design because it supposedly had particular cultural power in Vietnam.
As Turse explained:
During the Vietnam War, U.S. troops regularly adorned Vietnamese corpses with "death cards" — either an ace of spades or a custom-printed business card claiming credit for their kills.
Adding:
A 1966 entry in the Congressional Record noted that due to supposed Vietnamese superstitions regarding the ace of spades, "the U.S. Playing Card Co. had been furnishing thousands of these cards free to U.S. servicemen in Vietnam who requested them."
After Vietnam, as Voces Unidas pointed out, the cards were adopted:
by white supremacist groups to demean people of color.
On the face of it, this makes a lot of sense. ICE's recruiting strategy is less about nods to racism and more about openly using fascist imagery, mottosm and even songs to attract recruits who align with a mission to ethnically purify the US.
Long history of racial violenceAlex Sánchez, president and CEO of Voces Unidas said:
We are disgusted by ICE's actions in Eagle County. Leaving a racist death card behind after targeting Latino workers is deliberate intimidation rooted in a long history of racial violence.
He added:
This is an abuse of power, and it has no place in any society that claims to value human dignity.
Sanchez said family members of the disappeared had the cards in their possession. He confirmed they appeared custom-made and meant to terrify ICE's targets:
These were not from a doctored deck of cards. These were designed with this legacy in mind. They were printed on some sort of stock paper and cut in the dimensions of a card.
Neither ICE nor the Department of Homeland Security deigned to explain the cards.
The term 'imperial boomerang' has used liberally to describe what is happening in the US - and correctly so. Trump's war on immigration is a cover for a war on the left and on migrant labour. He seeks to both create an enemy and eliminate rivals, not just at home but also abroad, as we've seen with Venezuela and Iran.
But there is more to it. Let's not forget that a senior Border Patrol official invoked the Confederacy - the slave-owning losers of the Civil War - in a recently discovered email chain.
In truth, the whole spectacle is alive with fascist nostalgia about lost wars. It feels like fascists - many of whom are clearly now in ICE - are trying to correct various imperial and colonial emasculations through racist violence. Trump has given them the permission, the weapons and the authority to do so. At the very least, they are drawing on those vengeful energies.
From the War on Terror to the Confederate fantasy of a 'lost cause' and, now, Vietnam, the ghosts of America's violent past are restless.
Featured image via Voces Unidas
By Joe Glenton
Evil tech giant and NHS leech Palantir has links with wealthy sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. And Labour MP Dawn Butler has rightly called for scrutiny.
Butler insisted we should "not ignore" the connection between Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel and Epstein, particularly because it has infiltrated our public health system:
We can not ignore the fact that Peter Thiel co-founder of Palantir is featured numerous times in the Epstein files https://t.co/QXoz6C94D1
— Dawn Butler
A pack of hounds from the Middleton fox hunt has run amok through a woodland burial site in North Yorkshire. The incident happened during the last week of January 2026.
Footage captured by national animal welfare charity the League Against Cruel Sports shows the hounds marauding through the Mowthorpe Garden of Rest within the Howardian Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The hounds ran across graves with the hunt failing to stop or divert them.
This is the same Middleton Hunt that the Canary witnessed a couple of weeks earlier. On that occasion, the hunt was behaving violently and showing no sign of laying a trail. Unless the law changes, and it may do before long, fox hunts can still ride out. But, legally, they can only 'trail hunt'. This means following a scent trail, rather than actual foxes.
However, until the government moves decisively to ban them for good, fox hunts are continuing to cause havoc across the countryside.
The League's chief executive Emma Slawinksi has slammed the hunt for its actions:
It beggars belief that the hunt would have laid a trail through a burial site so either the Middleton Hunt has no regard for the sanctity of this site or, as is more likely, the hounds were on the trail of a fox.
They have desecrated this burial site in a bid to carry on with a blood sport that was banned 20 years ago.
Hunts are behaving in an appalling way, intent on chasing and killing foxes and not caring about their anti-social behaviour and the impact they are having on local communities and the people who live in the countryside.
The hounds were also caught terrorising local wildlife with two deer filmed fleeing for their lives.
'Trail hunting a smokescreen for fox hunts'The footage of the Middleton Hunt is being released the day after Channel 4 News aired footage gathered by the League of the same hunt's hounds chasing a fox on Christmas Eve 2025.
The League released figures ahead of Boxing Day showing an increase in the number of reports of hunts chasing foxes and wreaking havoc on rural communities.
Chief superintendent Matt Longman, the national lead on fox hunting crime, has described trail hunting as a "smokescreen for illegal fox hunting". He also described illegal hunting as "prolific".
The government has announced it will launch a consultation to ban trail hunting, though this has suffered delays.
Slawinksi added:
I would urge the public who are sick and tired of the behaviour of fox hunts to take part in the government's hunting consultation.
The time for change is now. We want to see trail hunting banned, the loopholes in the law removed, the end of so-called 'accidental' hunting, and jail sentences introduced to act as a deterrent for those who would break new stronger fox hunting laws.
Featured image via the Canary
By The Canary
Almost 400 medicines are vulnerable to shortages in the UK, according to a new list produced by NHS England and Medicines UK. Among the drugs on the list are treatments for blood clots, stroke, and several cancers.
The medicines were identified as at-risk because they have either a single supplier, or no supplier at all. Often, drug companies stop producing specific medicines because they no longer see them as commercially viable.
Having identified this vulnerability, NHS England and its partner organisations are taking steps to mitigate the problem. They're calling the initiative 'Project Revive', providing incentives for drug companies to manufacture the medicines on the list.
Whilst undoubtedly an important step towards ensuring the resilience of the medical supply system in the UK, this is a treatment for a symptom, rather than a cure.
We're in this mess in the first place because we treat drug manufacture as a commercial market, where companies can compete, patent, price gouge, and drop drugs when they stop making money. That commercialisation of healthcare costs lives.
NHS shortage of 'products of critical priority'In total, NHS England identified 378 drugs on its list of vulnerable medicines. Of these, around 80 no longer have a supplier at all, meaning that the currently existing supply is all that remains.
The medicines on the list include bendamustine, a chemotherapy drug used for several cancers; flupentixol, which is used for schizophrenia; and urokinase, a treatment for pulmonary embolism. The prices that the UK pays for these drugs could soar if demand starts to outpace supply.
NHS England produced its list alongside Medicines UK, a trade body representing manufacturers of generic medicines. Mark Samuels, Medicines UK's chief executive, said:
The list includes products of critical priority and the ambition is to target those medicines representing the most serious risk to supply resilience, which could lead to shortages affecting patient care.
Drugs which have faced shortages across the UK in recent years include estradiol, an element of hormone replacement therapy; lisdexamfetamine, an ADHD medication; and Creon, which is used to treat cystic fibrosis.
Project ReviveHowever, NHS England, Medicines UK, and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) plan to tackle the problem of shortages through 'Project Revive'. This scheme will provide incentives like fast-tracked license approvals to enable manufacturers to supply the 378 drugs on the list.
The pilot of Project Revive will run for 12 months. Then, in 2027, coordinators plan to instate a long-term iteration of the same scheme. Samuels explained that:
We have long stated that medicine shortages cannot be solved in isolation, and this project shows what can be achieved by working together. By working with NHS England and MHRA, we hope that this new model provides more certainty to enable companies to produce and supply medicines for use in the NHS.
Fiona Bride, interim chief commercial officer for NHS England, echoed that sentiment:
Treating the symptomEnsuring a resilient and stable supply of medicines is fundamental to delivering patient care, with pharmaceuticals being the most common healthcare intervention in the NHS, and this collaborative pilot initiative aims to strengthen that supply chain by incentivising more companies to become NHS suppliers, or deepen existing partnerships.
The news of Project Revive comes after medicine pricing issues hit the headlines last year. Several of the world's biggest drug manufacturers announced that they were ditching their UK projects.
Critics from within the industry blamed uncompetitive prices for new medicines, low levels of government investment, and Trump's tariffs adding to supply prices.
Then, in September 2025, science minister Patrick Vallance argued that the NHS would have to pay higher prices for medicines to prevent pharmaceutical investors from abandoning the UK.
This is a problem inherent to introducing a profit motive to any aspect of healthcare, all across the world. Treating medicine as a capitalist exercise creates a host of problems for patients, who should always have been the center of the issue.
Meanwhile, the global pharmaceutical industry has raked in profits at higher margins than practically any other sector.
Profit over patientsAs NHS England showed in the Project Revive research, drug companies can cease supply of individual medicines if their profits aren't high enough. This can leave patients without crucial medications that they need.
Likewise, manufacturers can also raise their prices artificially if they aren't faced with competition from other companies, or if other countries are willing to pay higher prices. Patents and intellectual property rights for individual drugs can also allow companies to create artificial scarcity.
Even beyond this, the profit motive causes problems with the development of new medicines. Companies aim to develop medicines in profitable sectors, particularly cancer and rare diseases. This, in turn, sees less-profitable diseases neglected in terms of research and development.
Likewise, even the idea of curing a disease can be anathema to a profit motive. In a choice between being paid once to cure a patient, or being paid again and again to treat a disease without curing it, the latter is the profitable choice. For example, one damning Goldman Sachs report stated that:
The potential to deliver 'one shot cures' is one of the most attractive aspects of gene therapy, genetically-engineered cell therapy and gene editing. However, such treatments offer a very different outlook with regard to recurring revenue versus chronic therapies…. While this proposition carries tremendous value for patients and society, it could represent a challenge for genome medicine developers looking for sustained cash flow.
Project Revive looks like an important step towards strengthening the UK's drug supply chain. However, it's a band-aid on a problem which will take far more work to heal.
In the UK, we fear the loss of socialised healthcare through the NHS, but the private sector already has its hooks in the system at every level.
There's no easy fix for the problem of private profiteering in medicine. Capitalism itself is an enemy of good healthcare. It sounds glib, we know, but it's also true. Failing to recognise that fact will mean that we're trapped in a cycle of treating the symptoms, whilst neglecting their cause.
Featured image via the Canary
24 live code of conduct cases rock council [ 04-Feb-26 5:21pm ]
Peterborough City Council is facing an extraordinary wave of complaints against local councillors with a staggering 24 live cases currently being investigated for alleged breaches of the council's code of conduct.
The revelations, detailed in a report to the constitution & ethics committee on Monday, expose a council grappling with accusations ranging from bullying and harassment to bringing the council into disrepute.
Authors of the report said its purpose was to offer an update on current complaints against city and parish councillors on alleged/potential breaches of the council's code of conduct, which are being dealt with by the monitoring officer. It did not specify which of any of the complaints involve parish councillors.
The numbers behind the scandal- Bullying, harassment, and discrimination: 18 complaints
- Disrepute: 16 complaints
- Disrespect: 15 complaints
- Abuse of position: 13 complaints
- Impartiality breaches: 4 complaints
- Confidentiality breaches: 4 complaints
"Some complaints refer to multiple breaches, so these figures do not tally with the total number of complaints," says the report's authors, Rachel Edwards, Head of Constitutional Services & Deputy Monitoring Officer, and Matt Makin, Senior Democratic Services Officer
Two of the most serious cases have already been escalated to external legal investigators, while one case has reached the council's own ethics sub-committee, with findings now published for public scrutiny.
No one above the law - the crackdown beginsThe council's monitoring officer, supported by an independent person, is leading the charge to restore standards and public confidence. Every complaint is subject to rigorous assessment, and those found in breach of the code face a range of potential penalties.
What happens to rule-breakers?
Potential penalties for breaching the code of conductWhile the report itself does not specify penalties, under the Localism Act 2011 and standard council practice, councillors found guilty of breaching the code can face:
- Formal censure or reprimand: A public statement of disapproval.
- Removal from committees or outside bodies: Councillors can be stripped of key roles or responsibilities.
- Requirement to apologise: Both public and private apologies may be mandated.
- Mandatory training: Offenders can be ordered to undergo further ethics or conduct training.
- Referral to full council: In serious cases, recommendations can be escalated for further action.
- Publication of findings: Names and details of breaches may be published, damaging reputations.
In extreme cases, if criminal conduct is suspected (such as failure to declare pecuniary interests), matters can be referred to the police, potentially resulting in prosecution and disqualification from office.
Public demands answersThe constitution & ethics committee has vowed to keep these issues in the public eye, promising regular updates, and a zero-tolerance approach to misconduct.
NOTE: This story is based on the official "Report on Code of Conduct Issues" presented to the Constitution & Ethics Committee, 2 February 2026, by Rachel Edwards and Matt Makin, under the direction of Satinder Sahota, Head of Legal, and Deputy Monitoring Officer and Cabinet Member Councillor Mohammed Jamil
This article is republished with kind permission of CambsNews. Read the original here.
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Bylines Network Gazette is back!
With a thematic issue on a vital topic - the rise child poverty, ending on a hopeful note. You will find sharp analyses on the effect of poverty on children's lives, with a spotlight on the communities that are on the front line of deprivation, with personal stories and shared solutions. Click on the image to gain access to it, or find us on Substack.
Journalism by the people, for the people.
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Anthropic has announced that its chatbot Claude will remain ad-free. This is in direct contrast to rival company OpenAI, which recently brought ads to ChatGPT for many users.
The company says that "including ads in conversations with Claude would be incompatible" with the chatbot becoming a "genuinely helpful assistant for work and for deep thinking." The reasoning here is rather simple. People tend to share personal details with chatbots, for better or for worse, and getting ads based on that stuff would be creepy. Imagine asking for mental health advice and getting an ad for St. John's wort or something.
Anthropic notes that other conversations "involve complex software engineering tasks, deep work or thinking through difficult problems. The appearance of ads in these contexts would feel incongruous—and, in many cases, inappropriate."
The company said that integrating advertising would "work against" the Claude Constitution, which counts "being generally helpful" as a core principle. "Introducing advertising incentives at this stage would add another level of complexity. Our understanding of how models translate the goals we set them into specific behaviors is still developing; an ad-based system could therefore have unpredictable results," it writes in a blog post.
There are some real world concerns here. AI companies gobble up all money in sight and the returns haven't exactly been stellar. Ads are an easy way to recoup some of that investment, which is likely why OpenAI went that route. Engadget reached out to Anthropic to inquire about any kind of forthcoming financial hurdles that could force it to change course. A representative pointed to today's blog post and said it's "all the information we have to share at this time."
We do know that Anthropic remains committed to commerce-based agentic AI. It said it will "continue to build features that enable our users to find, compare or buy products, connect with businesses and more."
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/anthropic-says-it-wont-bring-ads-to-claude-unlike-rival-chatgpt-171243642.html?src=rssThe most hyped tech is often also the most expensive: flagship smartphones, ultra-powerful gaming laptops, immersive VR headsets and the like. But it would be wrong to assume that those are the only pieces of technology worth gifting. You don't have to drain your wallet to get someone a cool gadget that will both be useful and make their lives easier. There are more solid, affordable gadgets out there now more than ever, but that also means you'll discover some junk along the way. We've collected our favorite pieces of tech under $25 that make great gifts and help you to stick to a budget.
Best gifts under $25
Check out the rest of our gift ideas here.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/the-11-best-gifts-under-25-for-2026-140042019.html?src=rss
It's bot versus bot! Just in time for the predicted rise of AI-made biological and chemical weapons, the US Army has plans to fight autonomy with autonomy by getting its hands on some bot-based chemical weapon cleanup tech.…
Datacenter servers will face a double whammy this year as CPU supply constraints pile on top of an already severe memory shortage. Even so, shipments are still expected to grow at a double-digit rate.…
A theater in Lake Oswego tried to garner some ticket sales for Melania's Brett Ratner-directed bomb with clever marquee jokes. Amazon became so offended that they yanked the theater's license to show the film.
"Got a call that the higher ups (i.e.,
The post Amazon pulls rights to Melania film after theater mocks it appeared first on Boing Boing.
My dad, John Barkham, who has died aged 82, was an inspirational teacher of ecology and a lifelong naturalist. As the first ecologist to join the new University of East Anglia in 1969, he taught students over three decades in the pioneering School of Environmental Sciences.
After studying the person-centred theories of Carl Rogers, whom he visited in California, John experimented with bold new teaching techniques, one year informing baffled students that they would design their own syllabus and teach themselves.
Continue reading...
Arctic ice samples show how concentrations of an abundant forever chemical have changed over recent decades. WizartoProduction/ShutterstockWhen the phaseout of ozone-destroying chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) was first agreed in 1987, the world narrowly avoided an environmental catastrophe. However, the replacement of CFCs is causing the pollution of the Earth's surface with a "forever chemical" that could remain in the environment for centuries.
The chemical trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) is a breakdown product of numerous chemicals, including CFC replacement gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning, pharmaceuticals such as gases used in inhalation anaesthesia, pesticides, solvents and other forever chemicals from a class known as per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
Concentrations of TFA have been increasing in rainwater, drinking water, soil and plants over the past two decades. Environmental removal of any of the thousands of different PFAS chemicals is extremely challenging because existing removal technology is difficult to scale up.
If emissions aren't restricted, the projected cost of PFAS removal has been estimated at €100 billion (£86 billion) per year for Europe. Some researchers have labelled TFA as a "planetary boundary threat" which means it could disrupt Earth's natural systems beyond repair and threaten our survival.
While some PFAS have been linked to numerous cancers and fertility problems, the long-term health effects of TFA on humans and wildlife remains unknown. However, it has been detected in human blood, breast milk and urine, and is being considered for classification as toxic to reproduction by German government agencies.
While understanding of its consequences continues to develop, increasing TFA pollution urgently needs to be addressed.
Read more: The last ozone-layer damaging chemicals to be phased out are finally falling in the atmosphere
A better understanding of the many TFA sources and their relative contributions to environmental levels is required to inform targeted policy.
Evidence from ice cores can offer clues to help detangle these sources. TFA concentrations in Arctic ice over recent decades match the their increasing use. In 2020, Canadian researchers hypothesised that some CFC replacement gases which are known to break down to produce TFA in the atmosphere could be a major source.
These CFC replacements - known as hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) - are commonly used in refrigeration, air conditioning and for making insulating foams. They eventually leak into the atmosphere as gases and can travel vast distances. These CFC replacements break down to form TFA and other gases. TFA can be either dissolved in clouds then washed out of the atmosphere through rain or deposited directly from air onto the Earth's surface.
Our new study, published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, quantified the contribution of these CFC replacements and also inhalation anaesthetics to global TFA production. We found that one-third of a million tonnes of TFA (335,500 tonnes) has been deposited to the Earth's surface from these sources between 2000 and 2022.
The forever chemical TFA is transported vast distances in the air and can end up washing back to the Earth's surface in rain.
Astrid Gast/Shutterstock
HCFCs and HFCs have now been phased down under various amendments to the 1987 Montreal protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer, because they are potent greenhouse gases. Despite this, TFA production increased over the period with the peak production projected to be anywhere between 2025 and 2100.
By comparing the amounts of TFA in our model to Arctic ice core records, we found that these sources can explain virtually all of the TFA deposited in the Arctic. This is particularly concerning because it highlights the ability of TFA pollution to spread around the globe. Emissions from highly populated regions in the northern hemisphere can have a big effect on far-flung regions once considered to be pristine, such as the Arctic.
Read more: What's the forever chemical TFA doing in the UK's rivers?
Peak TFA
However, when we compared our model results to rainwater concentrations closer to emissions regions in developed countries with extensive infrastructure or manufacturing, we found that the sources in our model could not explain all the observed TFA. We questioned whether this missing TFA could be explained by a refrigerant known as HFO-1234yf. This chemical is increasingly used in vehicle air-conditioning because of its low impact on global warming.
While often promoted as a sustainable climate-friendly alternative to HFCs, hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) can produce TFA much more quickly than HFCs (this process takes days for HFOs and years for HFCs). This may mean that the HFOs don't travel as far in the atmosphere before breaking down, so more TFA gets deposited back on land closer to the regions they are emitted from.
By adding estimated emissions of HFO-1234yf to the model, we were able to considerably explain the gap between the predicted and actual measurements of TFA.
Emissions of HFOs are highly uncertain, so there may be other unknown sources contributing to the TFA observed in rainwater. But with the increasing use of HFOs, TFA will certainly continue to accumulate in the environment. The peak of TFA emissions from these sources will be well into the future if left unregulated now.
Given the risk of its irreversible accumulation in the environment, animals and people, plus a growing understanding of its effects on human health and nature, preventing pollution at source is the safest and healthiest option.
Don't have time to read about climate change as much as you'd like?
Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation's environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 47,000+ readers who've subscribed so far.
Lucy Hart receives funding from Natural Environment Research Council ECORISC CDT.
Ryan Hossaini receives funding from the Natural Environment Research Council
You can find a lot of good deals for Presidents' Day, but to say it's a tech-deal boon would be an overstatement. The best Presidents' Day deals are usually on mattresses, appliances and furniture, but you can find some decent tech sales thrown in as well. This year, Presidents' Day comes right after Valentine's Day and Super Bowl 2026, which means there are even more chances to save as sales and discounts overlap. If you're looking for a new streaming device, a fresh iPad or an upgraded vacuum so you can enter the spring-cleaning season properly, we have you covered. These are the best President Day sales on tech we could find this year.
Presidents' Day deals under $50
Roku Streaming Stick Plus 2025 for $24 (40 percent off): This is one of the most affordable ways to get 4K streaming on almost any TV set. The dongle has a sleek design, it comes with handy remote that can also control your TV's power and volume and the device gives you access to Roku's TV operating system, which has tons of ways to watch free content.
Anker Nano 45W USB-C charger for $30 ($10 off): Anker's latest 45W charger has a small smart display on it that can show you real-time charging stats. It's compact design is great for travel, as are its foldable prongs.
Blink Mini 2K+ — 2 cameras for $45 (50 percent off): Blink's latest plug-in security cameras support 2K video and improved audio quality. Like previous versions, these cameras have two-way talk, motion alerts and support for Alexa voice commands.
TurboTax Deluxe for $45 (44 percent off): While it pains us to recommend Intuit's software, it may be the best (and cheapest) option for some this tax season — particularly those who don't qualify for Free File.
Anker Nano 5K ultra-slim magnetic power bank for $46 (16 percent off): This Qi2 power bank measures less than a half inch thick and snaps onto the backs of the latest iPhones for wireless charging. Its 5K capacity will be enough to top up your phone when it's close to empty, preventing you from searching for a charger or outlet.
Presidents' Day deals on Apple devices
Apple iPhone Air MagSafe battery pack for $79 (20 percent off): This magnetic power bank will add up to 65 percent additional battery charge to the iPhone Air, but note that it only works with Apple's new, ultra-slim smartphone. We've tested plenty of others that also work with other iPhone and smartphone models.
Apple Watch Series 11 for $299 ($100 off): The latest flagship Apple Watch has excellent performance, a boosted battery life and a lightweight design that you can comfortably wear all day long — and even into the night to track sleep.
iPad mini (A17 Pro ) for $399 ($100 off): The updated iPad mini runs on the A17 Pro chip for improved performance, plus it has an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display, a 12MP ultra wide camera with Center Stage, USB-C charging and compatibility with the Apple Pencil Pro.
Beats Studio Pro for $170 (51 percent off): Beats updated these cans to have improved sound quality, and you can really hear the difference from models that came before it. These headphones also have solid Transparency mode, good voice performance and USB-C audio.
Beats Solo 4 headphones for $130 (35 percent off): These on-ear headphones support spatial audio and dynamic head tracking, and they have up to 50 hours of battery life. The "fast fuel" feature allows them to get up to five hours of playback time with just a quick 10-minute power-up.
More Presidents' Day deals on tech
Disney+ and Hulu bundle (one month) for $10 ($3 off)
Shark Steam & Scrub steam mop for $125 (22 percent off)
Levoit LVAC-200 cordless vacuum for $150 (25 percent off)
Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 earbuds for $179 (22 percent off)
Roku 55-inch 4K smart TV for $248 (29 percent off)
Sonos Beam Gen 2 soundbar for $369 ($130 off)
Sony WH-1000XM6 headphones for $398 (13 percent off)
Anker Nebula Capsule 3 projector for $540 (28 percent off)
Hisense 75-inch QD7 Mini-LED 4K smart TV for $548 (16 percent off)
DJI Mini 3 Fly More Combo drone bundle for $575 (20 percent off)
Google Pixel 10 Pro for $899 (18 percent off)
Sony 55-inch Bravia XR8B 4K smart TV for $998 (9 percent off)
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/presidents-day-sales-2026-the-best-tech-deals-from-apple-sony-roku-and-others-163000379.html?src=rss
So we've been noting how the Trump administration has been helping Larry Ellison wage war on Netflix's proposed merger with Warner Brothers. Not because they care about antitrust (that's always been a lie), but because they want Larry Ellison to be able to dominate media and create a safe space for unpopular right wing ideology.
After Warner Brothers balked at Larry's competing bid and a hostile takeover attempt, Larry tried to sue Warner Brothers. With that not going anywhere, Larry and MAGA have since joined forces to try and attack the Netflix merger across right wing media, falsely claiming that "woke" Netflix is attempting a "cultural takeover" that must be stopped for the good of humanity.
With hearings on the Netflix merger looming, MAGA has ramped up those attacks with the help of some usual allies. That includes the right wing think tank the Heritage Foundation, which has apparently been circulating a bogus study around DC claiming that Netflix and Warner Brothers are "engineering millions of Americans into a predisposition to accept preferred leftwing ideological dogma":
"Without ever saying Warner Bros or bid rival Paramount by name, the Oversight Project's analysis, titled Fedflix: Netflix, The Federal Government, and the New Propaganda State, insists that "relevant federal agencies must scrutinize with extreme intensity any potential Netflix acquisitions of other media and entertainment companies to take into account the full ramifications of the impacts on American society and the health of the Constitutional Republic."
Again, the goal here is to ensure that Larry Ellison can buy Netflix (and HBO and CNN). Larry, as we've seen vividly with his acquisitions of CBS and TikTok, is buying up new and old media to create a propaganda safe space for America's increasingly unhinged and anti-democratic extraction class. Like Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter, the goal is propaganda and information control.
And like any good propagandists, MAGA has tried to invert reality, and is increasingly trying to claim it's Netflix that covertly wants to create a left-wing propaganda empire that spreads gayness and woke:
"With its subtitle of "The Weaponization of Entertainment for Partisan Propaganda," the report is tailored for the MAGA base. Full of talking points and and mentions of Stranger Things, the Lena Dunham-produced Orgasm Inc: The Story of OneTaste, the controversial Cuties docu from 2020, and the Obamas-produced American Factory, the 47-page report takes repeated swipes at any expansion of the streamer and its library of "leftwing and progressive" content."
Of course that's nonsense. Netflix has demonstrated that they're primarily an opportunist, and will show whatever grabs eyeballs and makes them money (from gay military dramas that upset the pentagon to washed up anti-trans comedian hacks). And they're certain to debase themselves further to please the Trump administration in order to gain approval of their merger.
That's not to say that the Netflix Warner Brothers merger will be good for anybody. Most media consolidation is generally terrible for labor and consumers as we've seen with the AT&T->Warner Brothers->Discovery mergers. They almost always result in massive debt loads, tons of layoffs, higher prices, and lower quality product.
Enter an old MAGA playbook: try to convince a bunch of useful idiots that the authoritarian corporatist MAGA coalition somehow really loves antitrust reform and is looking out for the little guy, despite a long track record of coddling corporate power and monopoly control.
That's again the game plan here by Heritage and administration mouthpieces like Brendan Carr; pretend you're obstructing the Netflix deal for ethical and antitrust reasons, when you're really just trying to help Larry Ellison engage in the exact sort of competitive and ideological domination you're whining about.
Among the folks helping this project along is former Trump DOJ "antitrust enforcer" Makan Delrahim, who is now Paramount's Chief Legal Officer. Delrahim played a starring role during the first Trump term in rubber stamping the hugely problematic Sprint T-Mobile merger, and attempting to block the AT&T Time Warner deal (to the benefit of Rupert Murdoch, who opposed the tie up).
And now here we are again, with many of the same folks joining forces to try and scuttle Netflix's latest merger, simply to ensure their preferred, anti-democratic billionaire wins the prize.
Ideally, again, you'd block all media consolidation.
Since that's clearly not happening under the corporation-coddling Trump administration, activists — and the two or three Democratic lawmakers who actually care about media reform — are probably better served by aligning themselves with Netflix. It's most definitely a lesser of two evils scenario, with, as the chaos at CBS shows, greater Larry Ellison control of media being the worst possible outcome.
In any case, expect right wing propagandists and right wing media to start really lighting into Netflix in the weeks and months to come. You know, because they just really love truth and freedom and hate consolidated corporate power.
An Estonian government IT agency is trialling European alternatives to US software providers, even as it moves many of the country's civil servants to a centrally-managed cloud computing service provided by Microsoft.…
Tom the Dancing Bug: Are You a Dangerous Criminal? A Handy Quiz
Another day, another big move for the US solar industry as Voltage Energy announces expansion in North Carolina.
The post US Solar Industry Innovators Are Quiet-Quitting US Energy Policy appeared first on CleanTechnica.
Orion Energy Systems recently announced it will install 105 fast EV chargers for Boston Public Schools on a $4 million contract. EV chargers at schools often means chargers for electric buses, not hybrids, and that's the case here. CleanTechnica has published many articles about electric school buses because they have ... [continued]
The post 105 Fast EV Charging Stations Coming To Boston Public Schools appeared first on CleanTechnica.
Mark Zuckerberg (41) paid $19 billion for WhatsApp in 2014. Today it has 3 billion users, 150 billion daily messages, and 400 million businesses using it.
He could have made it the universal platform for AI access - every small business from Brazil to Bangladesh, every merchant in India, accessing AI through the tool they already use daily. 80% customer satisfaction. Zero learning curve.
Instead: poured billions into the metaverse. Meanwhile the infrastructure to democratize AI sits unused.
This isn't just Meta. The pattern repeats:
- Sam Altman (40), Zuckerberg (41), Sundar Pichai (52)
- All building for tech-savvy 25-year-olds
- Ignoring that 40+ demographics control 70%+ of global wealth
- Missing obvious opportunities in favor of "prestige" projects
I'm 40. I just spent a week running open-source AI (Gemma 3 12B) on a $1500 machine and replaced $200/month subscriptions. 90% of business tasks work fine. The technology to democratize this exists NOW.
But the decision-makers can't see it because they're optimizing for impressing other nerds, not serving billions of people who just want technology that works.
The article covers:
- Why knowledge has never stayed locked up in history (printing press → AI)
- How open-source models closed the gap from 18 months to 6 months
- The "water company future" they're all missing
- Why the greatest innovations came from diverse teams (Bletchley Park vs Silicon Valley monoculture)
This is collapse in real-time: having the tools to solve problems, the infrastructure to distribute solutions, and decision-makers too insulated to see what's right in front of them.
submitted by /u/hungry-for-things[link] [comments]
