China Covid: Shocking protests are huge challenge for China’s leaders | BBC News

November 30, 2022November 27, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Acts of dissent are not unusual in China.

Over the years, sudden, local explosions of defiance have been triggered by a range of issues – from toxic pollution to illegal land grabs, or the mistreatment of a community member at the hands of the police.

But this time it’s different.

There is one subject at the forefront of Chinese people’s minds, and many are increasingly fed up with it – prompting widespread pushback against the government’s zero-Covid restrictions.

This has come in the form of residents smashing down barriers designed to enforce social distancing, and now large street protests in cities and university campuses across the country

Amazon recruiters were laid off. AI tech might fill their roles. | Mashable

November 28, 2022November 27, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The fear of every person who reads too much sci-fi labor dystopia might be coming true: Robots could be replacing workers.

Last week, Amazon extended hundreds of its recruiters’ buyout opportunities in just one part of a very long, very trying cycle of layoffs expected from the shopping giant. And some of those jobs might have been lost to some new artificial intelligence technology the company has been experimenting with for a year, according to a confidential internal document viewed by Recode.

Amazon’s AI technology — known internally as Automated Applicant Evaluation or AAE — works by predicting which job applicants have the highest potential of being successful in certain roles, and then fast-tracking them to an interview all without a human recruiter’s oversight. According to Recode, it works by finding the middle part of a venn diagram between current Amazon employees and job applicants applying for similar jobs. Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Mashable.

New gene therapy restores night vision of people with inherited eye disorder | Live Science

November 23, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Two people with a rare inherited eye disorder have had their night vision restored by an experimental gene therapy, researchers say.

These two individuals are part of an ongoing clinical trial(opens in new tab) testing the safety and effectiveness of the new gene therapy, the research team wrote in a report published in October in the journal iScience(opens in new tab). This and additional trials will need to be completed before the therapy can be approved for widespread use. Still, these early data hints that the treatment can spur “remarkable gains” in patients’ night vision, the scientists wrote.

The trial participants have a genetic disorder called Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), which affects an estimated 3 in 100,000 babies, according to the University of Florida Health(opens in new tab), one of the institutes involved in developing the therapy.

American Airlines baggage fee lawsuit. Am I owed money? | Fast Company

November 21, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

There is perhaps no greater annoyance in the nickel-and-dime economy than surprise airline fees. From extra leg room to booze to unaccompanied minors, carriers seem to be finding increasingly creative ways to squeeze a little extra profit out of every last warm body in the air. And since they own the airplanes, what can we really do?

Well, some savvy flyers fought back in court, and now American Airlines has agreed to pay $7.5 million to settle a lawsuit over what the passengers said were illegitimate baggage fees. In a lawsuit filed early last year, the plaintiffs claimed that they were incorrectly charged to check their luggage, despite being part of a loyalty program that promised free bag checks or being promised free bag checks via email.

Google to pay a record $391m privacy settlement | BBC News

November 16, 2022November 15, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Google will pay $391.5m (£330m) to settle allegations about how it collects data from users.

The technology giant tracked the location of users who opted out of location services on their devices, 40 US states said.

Google has been told to be transparent about location tracking in the future and develop a web page telling people about the data it collects.

It is the largest privacy-related multi-state settlement in US history.

A Google official said: “Consistent with improvements we’ve made in recent years, we have settled this investigation, which was based on outdated product policies that we changed years ago.”

Uber, Lyft to pay NYC drivers more by end of year | TechCrunch

November 16, 2022November 15, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Uber and Lyft will have to increase the minimum pay rates for drivers in New York City by the end of the year, Engadget reports. The fare increase comes amid a driver shortage post-pandemic, in large part due to rising operational costs.

The city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) voted to increase the per-minute rates of ride-hail drivers by 7.42% and per-mile rates by 23.93%. Yellow and green cab rates will also increase by 23% by the end of this year.

The commission is hoping that increasing the pay rates will attract more taxis and drivers to the roads in order to serve increasing passenger demand.

Nike Will Let People Design and Sell Sneakers for the Metaverse | WIRED

November 15, 2022November 14, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

THE ICONIC BRAND’S latest venture is a metaverse play called .Swoosh, a Web3-enabled platform where people will be able to buy its virtual products. It’s essentially a marketplace, which makes sense because the breathlessly hyped internet of the future is much like the internet of the present: dominated by commerce.

Swoosh exists on a domain named “.nike” and will be an experimental digital space for registered members. It’s currently in beta, and registration to join opens on November 18.

Report: Amazon To Lay Off 10,000 Employees | Entrepreneur

November 15, 2022November 14, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Amazon became the latest technology giant that’s likely to conduct large-scale layoffs, according to the New York Times. On Monday, the outlet reported that the company planned to lay off some 10,000 people, citing “people with knowledge of the matter.”

It’s the latest post-pandemic labor rout in the tech industry. Earlier this month, Twitter laid off roughly 3,000 employees. Meta laid off over 11,000 people last week. Google, Apple, and Disney have announced plans to cut costs or slow down hiring.

Analysis: Silicon Valley’s greatest minds misread pandemic demand. Now their employees are paying for it. | CNN Business

November 11, 2022November 10, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

In the early months of the pandemic, Facebook only grew bigger and more central to our lives. With lockdowns spreading, countless people began shopping, socializing and working on Facebook and other online platforms. As CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in March 2020, usage was so high that the company was “just trying to keep the lights on.”

Against that backdrop, Zuckerberg’s company went on a remarkable hiring spree. Facebook, which later rebranded as Meta, went from 48,268 staffers in March 2020 to more than 87,000 as of September of this year. In other words, it hired another Facebook’s worth of staff. And it looked like the company would only keep hiring to support its ambitious plans to build a future version of the internet called the metaverse.

CDC warns of Listeria outbreak tied to deli meats and cheeses | Live Science

November 11, 2022November 10, 2022 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A Listeria outbreak likely caused by contaminated deli meats and cheeses has sickened at least 16 people in six U.S. states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(opens in new tab) (CDC) announced Wednesday (Nov. 9). Of those affected, 13 people were hospitalized for the bacterial infection and one died.

These illnesses occurred between April 17, 2021, and Sept. 29, 2022, with four of the 16 cases taking place this year, according to the CDC’s timeline(opens in new tab). Seven cases were identified in New York state; two each in Illinois and Massachusetts; one each in New Jersey and California; and three in Maryland, where the one reported death occurred. One person caught the infection during pregnancy, resulting in a pregnancy loss, public health officials found.