An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: The state of Florida is seeking a temporary injunction to stop OpenAI from continuing to develop what it calls a "reckless, unacceptably risky product" without the deployment of "third-party approved safety guardrails." The new legal motion (PDF), filed Monday morning, is part of a civil lawsuit the state of Florida originally filed in June, arguing that ChatGPT represented "a threat to the public safety of Floridians," specifically by preying on vulnerable populations like children and violent or delusional adults. [...] In arguing for this injunction, the state points to the Hugging Face incident as well as recent high-profile misalignment cases involving unintended and unauthorized attempts to access Australian and US government servers. Florida also cites AI industry leaders, including many from OpenAI, in arguing that the AI industry is literally asking for this kind of outside regulation.

The motion points to statements from Paul Christiano, who said on joining the company's board this month that he believes "there is a meaningful risk that rapid acceleration in AI capabilities leads to catastrophic and irreversible loss of control in the very near term." The motion also points to OpenAI's own "An Alien Mind" essay and an open letter from 1,300 AI industry employees, both of which call for enforced slowdowns on frontier AI development, if necessary. Citing laws that allow the state to exercise control over companies that are a "public nuisance," Florida argues that OpenAI is "the greatest public nuisance ever created by the hand of man, capable of laying waste to global civilization." "It is only by the grace of the Almighty that one of Defendants' AI agents hasn't compromised a water supply or shut down a power grid -- yet," the state writes in the motion.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Mark Hughes and Giorgio Piola analyse McLaren's major Baku upgrade package and explain why the team emerged encouraged despite an imperfect debut.

Fernando Alonso's love affair with Formula 1 will continue as the Spaniard has opted to stick around for at least another year with Aston Martin.

The F1 Business Summit returns on 19 November at Caesars Palace, with Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu, Gordon Ramsay and Russell Wilson among the speakers.

On commodified, automated intelligence. “If any of these things shake out and we make it out of the near-future, the best you can hope for is a universal basic income, pegged to a meaningful percentage of existing compute.” (God that’s bleak.)

More than 200 arrested while teachers join protest over class sizes, exhausting timetables and staff shortages

French teenagers blockading their schools in protest at class sizes, teacher shortages and long timetables have clashed with police, as politicians traded verbal blows over how to respond.

Demonstrations that began in Paris last week have escalated and spread across France, with the authorities reporting the arrest of 164 people on Monday.

Continue reading...

President of Marine Le Pen’s far-right party faces calls to resign over comments he allegedly wrote as a teenager

Jordan Bardella, the head of Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN), has claimed a “total war” is being waged against his party as he faces a political storm after the publication of antisemitic comments he allegedly wrote as a young party member.

Bardella, who is facing calls from political opponents to resign, said on Tuesday that the report by the investigative website Mediapart was false. To a standing ovation from his party’s lawmakers and senators at a meeting in parliament, he said the report was an attempt to damage his party as Le Pen tops the polls before the 2027 presidential election.

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President says he will ‘never stifle’ AI development while unveiling sweeping tool to access federal government sites

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For some context, it’s worth remembering that Smith had a two-volume report of his findings as a result of his criminal investigations – that resulted in two indictments against the president after his first term. The first focused on Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election, while the second on the president’s retention of classified documents.

However, in February, a Trump-appointed federal judge permanently barred the justice department from releasing the second volume of Smith’s report.

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Our use of cleaning products has increased since the pandemic, but do we understand what they could be doing to our health? The journalist Rebecca Seal recently wrote for the Guardian about the potential impacts of the many chemicals we now use in our homes. She tells Madeleine Finlay how social media has also played a role in transforming our cleaning habits, why the impact of indoor air pollution is so hard to study, and what the current evidence is that cleaning products may be causing harm

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The shows, originally scheduled for Oct. 10 and 11 at Gazprom Arena, triggered immediate backlash from conservative Russian politicians due to Ye’s past public support of Nazism.

The prominent Russian anti-war figure has been placed on Russia’s wanted list and added to its register of “terrorists and extremists.”

Schneider Electric is piloting software-defined medium voltage (MV) switchgear with Equinix, promising faster datacenter construction and electrical systems where you can add new capabilities without having to modify the hardware. The energy infrastructure biz unveiled its software-defined MV architecture along with other new power products at the YOTTA 2026 digital infrastructure event in Las Vegas. Switchgear controls and protects the flow of electricity through a facility, isolating faulty equipment when necessary. Medium-voltage systems typically operate between 1 kV and 36 kV, bridging the high-voltage grid connection and the low-voltage supplies feeding server racks. Conventional switchgear is engineered for the requirements of a particular site. Schneider's approach instead uses standardized hardware, with protection, automation, metering, monitoring, and control functions configured through software. The standardized modules can be mass-produced and configured after arriving at the datacenter. Schneider claims that over-the-air updates will add features and improve performance without physical modifications or operational downtime. The architecture is already operating in an Equinix colocation facility as part of a pilot deployment. "The challenge facing datacenter operators today is not just keeping pace with AI growth, but building the resilient, efficient and scalable power infrastructure needed for an increasingly digital world," said Schneider EVP of Energy Management Frédéric Godemel. Schneider argues that shifting more functions into software will let operators standardize equipment across sites while adapting it as their power requirements change. A Schneider white paper on the subject notes that some planned server farms are approaching gigawatt-scale compute loads. This calls for more extensive medium voltage distribution, which may be at 13.8 kV, 34.5 kV, or both, depending on the site. A campus may also have on-site generation or energy storage facilities that increase the scale and complexity of the medium voltage infrastructure. These systems have historically been designed around site-specific requirements and validated through extensive testing prior to power-on, which can lead to lengthy delays. Schneider claims the approach can make ordering and manufacturing up to three times faster and halve the time required for commissioning and on-site acceptance testing compared with conventional engineered-to-order switchgear. Moving protection and control functions into software also raises questions about cybersecurity, update testing and failure recovery. A faulty or malicious update to safety-critical electrical equipment carries rather different consequences from a troublesome desktop patch. Schneider will therefore need to demonstrate how updates are authenticated, tested, rolled back, and prevented from disrupting power distribution. Greg Metcalf, Equinix senior director for Global Data Center Design and Innovation, said the technology could standardize how it designs, procures, builds, and operates switchgear while preserving safety, quality, and reliability. Schneider plans to extend the architecture across its medium-voltage portfolio, including its PremSet and AirSeT switchgear ranges. Pilot programs will continue through 2027, with wider availability planned for 2028. ®

James Webb Space Telescope posted a photo:

Seeing double… or quadruple!

In this Webb image of galaxy cluster MACS J0454.1-0300, we can see the brilliant golden galaxies that make up the cluster and several orange galaxies clustered on one side of the image. The orange galaxies are not part of the galaxy cluster, but rather galaxies much farther away whose light has been bent and magnified by gravitational lensing. This phenomenon occurs when the enormous mass of a foreground object such as a galaxy cluster bends and magnifies the light from a more distant object in the background.

In addition to making galaxies look stretched out or bent, gravitational lensing can also make us see double — or quadruple. Under certain conditions, multiple images of the same galaxy can appear. It’s rare to see four or more images of the same galaxy, as this requires the position of the background object and the shape of the massive foreground object to be just so. This happened twice in this image of MACS J0454.1-0300, marking the first time researchers have spotted this more than once in the same galaxy cluster.

Read more: esawebb.org/images/potm2609a/

Image Description: A massive galaxy cluster, made of many golden elliptical galaxies with the largest, brightest one in the center. Heavily distorted orange galaxies appear all around the cluster, the largest concentrated in a large arc around the cluster's center; these are images of very distant galaxies, created by gravitational lensing. A few galaxies are large and bluish-white in color; bright, nearby stars are the same color.

Niklas Roy is fascinated by the convergence of art and technology. From robotics to gaming systems, the Berlin-based artist and inventor creates quirky yet thought-provoking sculptures and installations that investigate relationships between creativity, science, and tech. His mechanical contraptions are often infused with a lighthearted twist that prompts viewers to think critically and get involved. And his most recent project draws on one of the most fundamental types of technology humans have ever developed: telling time.

“Glashütte Trash Clock” is named for the town in Saxony, Germany, where the artist participated in a residency this year. It’s also the birthplace of the nation’s renowned watchmaking industry. “Glashütte is synonymous with precision and centuries-old watchmaking craft, and I wanted to make the opposite,” Roy says.

The artist only used items and materials he could scrounge up locally, including tape, zip ties, hot glue, cardboard, a yardstick, pieces of plastic, and other random objects. “It runs for about half an hour, features a paperclip-escapement, a glass bottle gong, and a ‘random complication’ (which answers the fundamental question, ‘Now or Never?’).”

For those of us who know a bit less about how timepieces function, an escapement is a tiny mechanism common in pendulum clocks that releases a gear as it moves, helping to advance the hands. The gong is the acoustic instrument you hear, usually struck hourly but sometimes on the half-hour. And the random complication isn’t actually a clock reference at all—it has to do with games and chance. While we perceive the passing of time as steady, predictable, and methodical, the added existential element generates a playful tension and a sense of wonder.

See more of Roy’s work on Instagram.

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Niklas Roy Constructs a Functional Pendulum Clock Made Entirely of Trash appeared first on Colossal.

Het is lekker weer, dus: misdragingen in zwembaden. "Medewerkers van Groningse zwembaden worden steeds vaker uitgescholden en geconfronteerd met intimiderend gedrag en bezoekers die de huisregels negeren." De gemeente plaatst de toename van agressie-incidenten bij de zwembaden in een landelijke trend. Pelisie: "Die overlast valt niet toe te schrijven aan specifieke groepen bezoekers”. Mooi. We hebben eigenlijk altijd al een zwak gehad voor specifieke groepen bezoekers. 

MAAR. Goed nieuws: "tegelijkertijd benadrukken betrokkenen dat de meeste bezoeken aan de zwembaden zonder problemen verlopen. Ernstige incidenten zijn eerder uitzondering dan regel." Gelukkig. Het prettige aan zo’n lage lat is dat je eroverheen kunt zwemmen. Te lezen is dat Sport050 (beheert zwembaden en sporthallen) het protocol Vrolijk en Veilig opnieuw invoert. Nou Sport050, we kijken vrolijk mee in dat protocol. 

"Als een gast meerdere malen dronken is, dan betekent dit een ontzegging van 3 maanden." Oké, het voelt wat persoonlijk, maar prima start. Nog geen halve scroll verder en we verlaten het domein der vrolijkheid definitief. De straf voor het verkrachten van een badjuffrouw: 5 jaar geen baantjes zwemmen. Die zal aankomen. 

Hele protocol: hierrr.

Poe hee

Aan de Pieter Zeemanweg in Dordrecht is dinsdagmiddag een automobilist neergestoken. Dat gebeurde na een botsing met een andere auto. De politie heeft twee verdachten aangehouden.

DEN HAAG (ANP) - Een meerderheid in de Tweede Kamer wil dat het kabinet het proces van aangifte doen na seksueel geweld verbetert. De oproep daartoe van Bente Becker (VVD) werd ondertekend door D66 en JA21 en kreeg steun van onder andere CDA, PRO, SP en BBB.

Becker wil dat het proces verandert, omdat nu "te veel slachtoffers van seksueel geweld te maken krijgen met bureaucratie en willekeur of herhaaldelijk hetzelfde verhaal moeten vertellen wanneer zij een melding of aangifte doen".

De Kamer wil dat het kabinet in gesprek gaat met slachtoffers om te horen hoe het volgens hen beter kan. Ook draagt het VVD-plan het kabinet op om "in elk geval" een proef te doen met een standaard online intake. Daarmee zijn volgens Becker zowel slachtoffers als agenten geholpen. Ook vergroot het volgens haar de kans op vervolging en veroordeling van daders.

PARIJS (ANP) - De exploitant van de Eiffeltoren heeft dinsdag bekendgemaakt dat de topman van de bezienswaardigheid eind dit jaar vertrekt. Het besluit volgt op de ophef die ontstond toen vrouwelijke medewerkers werden weggestuurd tijdens een bezoek van een hindoeïstische religieuze groep. Patrick Branco Ruivo is sinds 2018 topman van het monument.

Uit een intern onderzoek van de exploitant bleek dat de organisatie operationele fouten heeft gemaakt tijdens het bezoek. Die leidde volgens het bedrijf tot het "onaanvaardbaar" wegsturen van vrouwelijke medewerkers. Eerder had het personeel van de Eiffeltoren het werk al neergelegd uit onvrede over de gebeurtenissen. De bezienswaardigheid was toen een dag dicht.

De hindoeïstische groep BAPS wilde beperkte interacties met vrouwen tijdens het bezoek aan de Eiffeltoren. De organisatie zei eerder al dat de voorwaarden van BAPS nooit geaccepteerd hadden mogen worden. Later verontschuldigde BAPS zich voor "enige pijn of ongemak" veroorzaakt door het incident.

Burgemeester Femke Halsema stuurde rapper Kanye ‘Ye’ West afgelopen juni een vertrouwelijke brief, waarin ze de hiphopartiest verzocht zo spoedig mogelijk uit Amsterdam te vertrekken. Onder meer prees hij Hitler op sociale media en verkocht hij met hakenkruizen bedrukte T-shirts.

I’m thrilled to be a part of Tom Morello’s Power to the People Festival, a celebration of peace, justice, solidarity, music, and community action. Not only did I create the poster art, but I will also be DJing at the festival which is taking place on Saturday, October 3, 2026 at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. This festival brings together artists, fans, activists, organizations and community leaders for an unforgettable day celebrating the power of music and collective action to inspire change. Hope to see you there! -Shepard

PRINT DETAILS: Power to the People Festival. 24″ H x 18″ W. Screen print on 80# cream Speckletone paper. Signed by Shepard Fairey. Numbered edition of 500. $70. Available on Thursday, October 1st @ 10 AM PDT at the Obey Giant and Power To The People web stores.

The post Power to the People Festival Screen Print – Available Thursday, Oct. 1st at 10AM PT! appeared first on Obey Giant.