How America Will Improve Its Cybersecurity
President Joe Biden on Wednesday ordered a sweeping overhaul of the federal government's approach to cybersecurity, from the software that agencies buy to the security measures that they use to block hackers, as his administration continues grappling with vulnerabilities exposed by a massive digital espionage campaign carried out… Read More »
Posted on 15 May 2021 | 11:14 pmAnalyzing 30 Years of Brain Research Finds No Meaningful Differences Between Male and Female Brains
"As a neuroscientist long experienced in the field, I recently completed a painstaking analysis of 30 years of research on human brain sex differences..." reports Lise Eliot in a recent article on The Conversation. "[T]here's no denying the decades of actual data, which show that brain sex differences are tiny and swamped by the much greater… Read More »
Posted on 15 May 2021 | 9:34 pmPipeline Attacked by Ransomware Has Now Resumed Normal Operations
Though halted last week by ransomware, America's largest gasoline pipeline announced Saturday that it's resumed normal operations, reports the Associated Press, "delivering fuel to its markets, including a large swath of the East Coast." Georgia-based Colonial Pipeline had begun the process of restarting the pipeline's operations on Wednesday… Read More »
Posted on 15 May 2021 | 8:34 pmReport: 65% of Social Media Anti-vax Propaganda Comes From Just 12 People
Just 12 people account for the lion's share of anti-vaccination propaganda posted to three of the leading social media outlets, according to a study from a London-based group opposed to online hate and disinformation. A study (PDF file) conducted by the Centre for the Countering of Digital Hate… Read More »
Posted on 15 May 2021 | 7:34 pmUniversity Cancels $700,000 in Student Debt for 220 Graduates Affected by the Pandemic
Delaware State University -- also known as DSU -- "is cancelling more than $700,000 in student loans for recent graduates hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic," reports CNN: DSU will cancel $730,655 for more than 220 people, the school announced this week... "Too many graduates across the country will leave their schools burdened by debt, making… Read More »
Posted on 15 May 2021 | 6:34 pmIs Computer History Also a History of Physical Pains?
"Decades before "Zoom fatigue" broke our spirits, the so-called computer revolution brought with it a world of pain previously unknown to humankind," argues Laine Nooney (in a condensed version of a chapter in the 2022 book Abstractions and Embodiments: New Histories of Computing and Society.) Slashdot reader em1ly shares its observation that… Read More »
Posted on 15 May 2021 | 5:34 pm