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Nearly three years after rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, the false election conspiracy theories that drove the violent attack remain prevalent on social media and cable news: suitcases filled with ballots, late-night ballot dumps, dead people voting. Experts warn it will likely be worse in the coming presidential election contest. The safeguards that attempted to counter the bogus claims the last time are eroding, while the tools and systems that create and spread them are only getting stronger. Many Americans, egged…

South African aerospace startup Cloudline has secured $6 million in funding as it aims to lead the global frontier of carbon emissions-free autonomous flight. Schmidt Futures, the philanthropic venture founded by ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Wendy Schmidt, is an investor in the seed round. Other backers include pan-African funds such as the Raba Partnership, Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures, 4Di and other venture firms.  When Cloudline founder and CEO Spencer Horne started the company six years ago, he intended to…

As the year winds down and Hollywood’s focus shifts to the triumphs and defeats of the awards circuit, the most surprising upset of the season has instead taken place at the box office.This past weekend, Hayao Miyazaki’s probably-final-but-we-never-really-know-do-we film The Boy and the Heron flew away with the No 1 spot, besting the IP vehicles Trolls Band Together and The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes as both slowed in their fourth week of release. However the latest marvel from Studio Ghibli may have…

Jennie Stephens, dean’s professor of sustainability science & policy and director of strategic research collaborations at Global Resilience Institute. Credit: Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University Environmental nonprofit organizations that have diverse leadership and work in equity-deserving communities receive considerably less philanthropic support than conventional, mainstream nonprofits, according to new research…

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Social media posts that abuse female athletes can remain unmoderated on the official social media accounts of major sports clubs, new research has shown. The study, by the University of Stirling Management School, Chester Business School, Bournemouth University, Durham Business School and the…

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain New research by the University of Warwick has found that disabled young people in England experience institutional and structural discrimination in mainstream schools, with two thirds fewer achieving level 2 qualifications compared to non-disabled peers. Academics argue that these experiences are a key barrier to educational and occupational attainment.…

Consequently, leading gaming firms are now looking at India not only as a hotspot for download numbers, but as a more significant player. On 19 May, Korean gaming major Krafton had relaunched Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), following a clearance by the ministry of electronics and information technology (Meity). The game, which was launched as an India-specific title after the erstwhile PUBG Mobile was banned, was suspended in July 2022. Soon after,…

Data proliferation and business demand prompt new approaches to app development.  Westend61/Getty ImagesNearly 9 out of 10 IT leaders believe generative AI will have a prominent role in their organizations in the near future, according to the State of IT report from Salesforce.For the third edition of the State of IT report, Salesforce surveyed more than 4,000 IT decision-makers worldwide to learn more about shifting priorities and success metrics; the role of automation and AI; perspectives on security threats; and…

Just two days ago, a spokesperson for BBC Radio 1 was explaining why Kylie Minogue’s Padam Padam hadn’t made its playlist, despite the writhing electropop song being her first Top 10 single in 12 years and now bordering on a national obsession. (Last week, it even made it into Hansard, referenced by Labour MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle in a speech about Pride: “And finally Mr Deputy Speaker, in the words of Kylie, padam.”) “Each track is considered for the playlist based on its musical merit and whether it is right for our…

Images of former President Donald Trump hugging and kissing Dr. Anthony Fauci, his ex-chief medical adviser. Pornographic depictions of Hollywood actresses and internet influencers. A photo of an explosion at the Pentagon. All were found to be “deepfakes,” highly realistic audio and visual content created with rapidly advancing artificial intelligence technology. Those harmed by the digital forgeries—especially women featured in sexually explicit deepfakes without consent—have few options for legal recourse, and…