Show HN: 8Bit Computers Book Hi everybody! Due to Covid 19 pandemic I was forced in my home, so I revamped my book https://ift.tt/3eFzU1X It is a huge collection of information about the 8bit comnputer era (1980-1985) up to the NES console. I collected information from various source including “The 8bit Guy” videos and specific site (like C64 wiki, nesdev etc). I am using docusaurus to give a pleasnt look to the whole site. Please give me you feedback (and happy new year btw)! December 31, 2021 at 12:59PM
Show HN: Hoppscotch (Postman alternative) now support Team Collaboration Hoppscotch is an open-source API development ecosystem - an online alternative to Postman API tool. Today we're launching Teams Collaboration support in Hoppscotch. • Unlimited teams • Unlimited shared collections • Unlimited team members • Role-based access control • Cloud sync • Multiple devices GitHub: https://ift.tt/3kVgcRJ Web app: https://hoppscotch.io Read more on our blog: https://ift.tt/3mGEBgn December 29, 2021 at 11:25AM
Show HN: A Reassuring Parables Generator (like from that Xkcd comic) https://twitter.com/Hellisotherpe10/status/1475687199739813890 December 28, 2021 at 09:39AM
Show HN: I made a website that help creator to show their products or services I'm a creator,i made a web page that show your products,visit here https://www.afterdo.com December 23, 2021 at 02:36PM
Show HN: Extract email attachments into shareable links Link = https://ift.tt/3qdtrkt After having to upload images/json files one too many times to S3, I decided to build a process which allowed me to email files to a set email address and have the files appear in s3 with a shareable link. I can see a product like this being useful as a headless CMS, sharing a files outside Dropbox/GDrive, config files for web and IoT projects, and general backup. Let me know what you think, HN. Link = https://ift.tt/3qdtrkt December 19, 2021 at 11:57AM
Show HN: Platform that lets you generate source code of end to end apps Hi HN, My name is Ravi Sojitra and i'm working on a Dev Tool product named DhiWise, that let you generate production ready source code(For Node.js,Laravel,Flutter,Kotlin,Swift) in few mins with ready to get synced in your GitHub/GitLab or Download. Let me explain like you're five. Imagine you want to bake a cake and you have all the raw materials you need such as flour, baking powder, eggs. Now, you give us those materials and we will bake you the ready-to-serve cake of your choice. With this product's context, with just minimal technology specific inputs, this builder is going to generate source code to boost developers’ productivity time by twofold. Check few of many features we have to offer, Node.js Builder: - User Auth (with passport) / Social Logins - All CRUD Apis with many combinations - Role Permissions with different platforms - Hooks, Middlewares, Policies - Deploy Code on sandbox - Download source code in MVC or Clean Code architecture. Figma to Flutter/Kotlin/Swift: - Auto identified Components (AppBar,TabBar,Drawer,Maps,Calendar,Form Inputs,Stacks,Grids etc) - Auto/Manual Page navigation - API Integrations - Firebase Support - All Screen Resolutions Support in Generated code - Download source Code in MVVM architecture We have lots of things in our upcoming roadmap. If you're interested, feel free to sign up at https://ift.tt/3EFLzJI and play around with tool. December 14, 2021 at 07:51AM
The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised against using plasma containing Covid-19 antibodies to treat patients with the virus, finding it to be ineffective and a waste of resources.
In an advisory published by the BMJ on Monday night, WHO experts warned that “a transfusion of blood plasma from someone who has recovered from covid-19” – known as convalescent plasma therapy – “is not recommended for patients with covid-19.”
The organization issued a particularly “strong recommendation” against the therapy for those with mild illness from Covid-19 and a general recommendation against it for those with a severe or critical illness.
“Despite its initial promise, current evidence shows that it does not improve survival nor reduce the need for mechanical ventilation, and it is costly and time-consuming to administer,” the advisory declared, citing evidence from 16 trials and over 16,000 patients.
The US National Institutes of Health made a similar ruling in August, revealing that clinical trials showed the therapy “did not prevent disease progression in a high-risk group of outpatients with COVID-19, when administered within the first week of their symptoms.”
Clifton Callaway, M.D., Ph.D., who worked on the trial, said researchers were hoping that the plasma therapy “would achieve at least a 10% reduction in disease progression,” but instead observed a reduction of less than 2%.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency use authorization for convalescent plasma therapy in August 2020, however it went on to limit its use in February to only “hospitalized patients with COVID-19 early in the disease course or hospitalized patients who have impaired humoral immunity.”
New Zealand will not send its diplomats to the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing, the country’s deputy prime minister said, explaining that the move is “mostly” motivated by Covid-19 hours after the US declared its own boycott.
Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson told local media on Tuesday that diplomatic representatives from the island would not attend the Olympics, set for February, noting that decision was conveyed to Beijing back in October.
“We’ve already made clear that we won’t be there at a ministerial level,” Robertson told Television New Zealand. “We made that clear to China I think in October, and so for us that’s a decision we’ve already made.”
He added that the move was driven by a “range of factors… mostly due to Covid,” but nonetheless stated “we’ve made clear to China on numerous occasions our concerns about human rights issues.” By all indications, Kiwi athletes will still compete in the Olympics and only officials will remain home.
Earlier on Monday, the US government similarly announced that it would boycott the games, but cited alleged “crimes against humanity” and rights abuses committed by Beijing, rather than dangers linked to the pandemic.
Medina Spirit, the horse that was disqualified for failed drug tests after winning this year’s Kentucky Derby, has died after a routine training run in Southern California.
The colt collapsed on Monday after running five furlongs (1,006 meters) at Santa Anita Park, east of Los Angeles, according to a statement by trainer Bob Baffert. Medina Spirit had already died by the time a veterinarian reached him on the track. Santa Anita said the likely cause of death was a heart attack.
Blood, hair and urine samples were immediately taken and sent to the California Horse Racing Board. Results of a full necropsy and toxicology studies will be released by the board, Santa Anita said.
“All I can say is that he gave us the ride of our lives and brought everyone together. We are mourning this loss, Bob [Baffert], myself, our team and Johnny [Velazquez], as well. We are all very sad.” - Amr Zedan https://t.co/wt7Xzg5mjR
“All I can say is that he gave us the ride of our lives and brought everyone together,” said Amr Zedan, the colt’s owner. “We are mourning this loss, Bob, myself, our team and [jockey] Johnny [Velasquez] as well. We are all very sad.”
Medina Spirit won the Kentucky Derby, America’s most prestigious horse race, last May despite being a 15-1 longshot. But he tested positive for betamethasone, an anti-inflammatory steroid, and was later stripped of his title and $1.8 million prize. Baffert was suspended for two years at Churchill Downs, the Kentucky Derby venue.
But the disqualification remained in dispute just days before Medina Spirit’s death. Lawyers for Baffert and Zedan said last week that a recent lab test showed that the betamethasone in Medina Spirit’s system came from a topical injection, not from the acetate form. Such an ointment, which can be used to treat a skin lesion, isn’t prohibited at the Kentucky Derby.
“Zedan is proud to have stood by Bob and is ecstatic that Medina Spirit will receive the honor of his great victory,” lawyer Clark Brewster said on Friday. As it turns out, if Medina Spirit’s name is ever cleared by racing officials, it will have to be done posthumously.
More Americans would vote for former President Donald Trump than President Joe Biden if an election was held today, according to a new poll which shows Biden’s popularity dwindling.
A survey of 1,989 registered voters conducted by Harris Poll and Harvard’s Center for American Political Studies (CAPS) found that 48% of those polled would support Trump if an election between the 45th president and Biden were held today. 45% said they would support Biden, while 8% were unsure who to vote for.
Men were much more likely to support Trump by 50-43, while Trump and Biden received 46% each from women. The survey indicated that though Biden would take a majority with urban and suburban voters, Trump would lead in the country by 33%.
The poll also showed Trump to be the most popular choice for Republican candidate in 2024, with 67% of Republicans in support of him running again. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on the other hand, who has repeatedly been referenced in polls and the media as the most likely Republican candidate in 2024, received just 8% – one point less than former Vice President Mike Pence, who angered many Trump supporters for confirming Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election.
Biden’s approval rating has been consistently low since his inauguration as president in January, with a Trafalgar Group poll last week placing his current approval rating at just 36.3%. 59.1% of those surveyed said they disapproved of Biden’s performance as president.
Polls have also showed that voters are upset with Biden’s inability to curb high gas prices. 83% of Americans said last week that rising gas prices were a serious problem and only 26% thought Biden had done a good job with his response.
To make matters worse for the 46th president, a Politico and Morning Consult poll last month showed only 40% of Americans think Biden is in good health while 48% did not believe Biden was mentally fit to be president.
Biden’s Vice President, Kamala Harris, has performed even worse in polls, with a November survey revealing that just 27.8% of Americans think Harris has done a good job.
Chicago actor Jussie Smollett denied accusations that he paid two Nigerian brothers to help him stage a fake crime in January 2019, saying a $3,500 check he gave the men was for diet and exercise advice.
“There was no hoax,” Smollett said on Monday, as he took the stand in his trial on six felony charges stemming from allegedly false reports that he made to police. His lawyers have suggested that the two brothers accused the ‘Empire’ star of orchestrating his own attack as part of a plot to extort $2 million from him.
Lawyer Nenye Uche also claimed last week that the two men were motivated by homophobia and their dislike of Smollett, who is gay and black. But the actor testified on Monday that he had a sexual relationship with one of the brothers, Abimbola Osundairo, who worked on the set of ‘Empire,’ and did drugs with him. He added that he also met Olabinjo Osundairo but didn’t trust him and noted that “he kind of freaked me out.”
The Osundairos previously testified that Smollett had paid them with a $3,500 check to carry out the fake attack on him and gave them $100 to buy bleach and rope to make a noose. The brothers were caught on surveillance video buying the supplies, including a red hat to resemble supporters of then-President Donald Trump. Jurors last week were shown video of Smollett and the Osundairo brothers staging an alleged “dry run” days before the attack.
Smollett described his attackers to police as two white men and said they yelled anti-gay and racist slurs at him, as well as proclaiming “This is MAGA country,” in the 2 am assault. He alleged that they threw bleach on him and put a noose around his neck, which he was still wearing when police arrived at his apartment about an hour after the attack.
The story made international headlines as media outlets and Democrat politicians pounced on the incident as an example of rampant bigotry and hate crimes in Trump’s America. Smollett did a tearful interview with ABC News anchor Robin Roberts, expressing his outrage that some people doubted his story and suggesting that the attackers were motivated by his public criticism of Trump.
Smollett added that he would have faced less skepticism if he had said his attackers were Muslim, Hispanic or black.
“It's not necessarily that you don’t believe that this is the truth,” he told Roberts. “You don’t even want to see the truth.”
After two dozen detectives spent about 3,000 man-hours investigating what was initially believed to be a high-profile hate crime, they concluded that Smollett was lying. The city of Chicago sued the actor in April 2019, alleging false reports and demanding that he pay back more than $130,000 in investigation costs.
A port near the city of Latakia, Syria was targeted in an Israeli air raid, Syrian state media reported, with unconfirmed photos of the scene purporting to show a sizable fire erupting just off the Mediterranean coast.
Bombs fell on the country’s chief port city, Latakia, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), which added that blasts were heard in the vicinity of the port while dubbing the strikes “Israeli air aggression.”
“The Israeli enemy carried out an air aggression with several missiles from the direction of the Mediterranean, southwest of Latakia, targeting the container yard in the commercial port of Latakia,” an unnamed military source told SANA.
Footage shared on social media alleged to show the air raid in progress, while images were also alleged to show a fire that ignited at a portside storage area.
Syrian air defenses were also reportedly activated in response, though it is unclear if any munitions were intercepted.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) rarely acknowledges air operations over Syria, and has yet to confirm the reports, though officials in Tel Aviv have previously noted that “hundreds” of similar strikes had been carried out throughout Syria’s decade-long battle with Islamist rebel groups.
Leading mobile chip manufacturer Qualcomm has defended a new always-on feature in the ‘selfie camera’ found in next-gen phones powered by its tech. It says the devices would know “to act different when you’re not looking back.”
Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon processor powers many of the 2022 smartphone models soon to be rolled out in stores, including Sony, Motorola and OnePlus. The company has offered smartphone manufacturers the option to keep the forward-facing selfie-camera always on, so as to constantly be scanning for the owner’s face.
It may not be clear to smartphone owners why such a feature would be considered desirable, but Qualcomm VP Judd Heape argued during the company’s Tech Summit in November that it gives owners an “advantage.”
“Your phone’s front camera is always securely looking for your face, even if you don’t touch it,” he explained.
The feature is being touted for enabling the phone to unlock itself when it “sees” the user’s face, lock it when they glance away, and even hide notifications if the camera spots someone else around.
Heape seemed surprised in a conversation with the Washington Post, published on Monday, that no one had thought of designing a phone this way before, insisting the tech was completely safe and privacy-oriented. “What’s happening here is detecting a binary: is there a face, or is there not a face,” he pointed out, arguing “there is not a photograph taken. There is no video being recorded.” None of the data being analyzed for the presence of a face actually leaves the chip, he insists.
It’s not clear how many of the features that the company included in its press release for the latest Snapdragon processor actually exist yet. It would in theory be up to the smartphones’ manufacturers whether to build them into their devices.
Defenders of Qualcomm’s always-on camera appear to position it as the lesser of two evils rather than attempt to defend the kind of 24/7 real-time surveillance it makes possible. Moor Insights & Strategy analyst Anshel Sag suggested that microphones – constantly feeding sound to the cloud – were “far more invasive” than their video equivalents.
Qualcomm is also apparently spinning the new feature as a useful new habit: its Tech Summit presentation showed a man baking in his kitchen, merely glancing at the phone to unlock it rather than getting his phone dirty in order to find out the next step of the recipe.
While some smartphone users who reacted on online forums seemed unwilling to trade their privacy for even the most extreme convenience, others seemed no to mind, suggesting that the feature was as trivial as Apple’s Face ID.
Beijing has shot back after Washington declared a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics, saying American leaders weren’t invited to the event to begin with while blasting the move as “political manipulation.”
Asked about the boycott announced by the Joe Biden administration earlier on Monday, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in the US, Liu Pengyu, told Reuters that the decision contradicts the “spirit” of the Olympics, though added that it would have no negative effect on the games, set for China in February.
“Such a pretentious act is only a political manipulation and a grave distortion of the spirit of the Olympic Charter. In fact, no one would care about whether these people come or not, and it has no impact whatsoever on the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics to be successfully held,” he said.
No invitation has been extended to US politicians whatsoever, so this 'diplomatic boycott' simply comes out of nowhere.
Politicians calling for boycott #2022BeijingOlympics are doing so for their own political interests and posturing. In fact, no one would care about whether these people come or not, and it has no impact whatsoever on the #Beijing2022 to be successfully held.
Liu went even further in a follow-up post on Twitter, sharing a graphic with text denouncing the “State of Democracy in the United States,” which went on to say the American system is based on “a game of money in politics,” rule from a “minority elite” and a “trust crisis” – all seemingly in reaction to the boycott.
While the Biden administration noted that American athletes would still be permitted to compete in the Olympics, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said US officials would not attend, citing alleged “crimes against humanity” against ethnic and religious minorities in China’s Xinjiang province and “other human rights abuses.”
The Chinese Foreign Ministry denounced the move soon after it was announced, with spokesman Zhao Lijian blasting it as “grandstanding” and warning of “resolute countermeasures.” Beijing’s embassy in the Czech Republic has also sparred with its American counterpart online, telling Washington to “stop self-flattering” while also suggesting US officials weren’t invited in the first place
Biden officials had discussed a potential boycott publicly for some time, though it was unclear whether the administration would move ahead on the idea after a relatively amicable virtual meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month. Despite calls from Beijing to pursue more “positive” ties as recently as last week, Biden is apparently taking a more confrontational approach, having repeatedly labeled China the US’ top “competitor” and a threat that must be countered in the Indo-Pacific.
Former House Intelligence Committee chair, California Republican Devin Nunes, will leave Congress before the midterms to become chief executive of TMTG, former President Donald Trump’s social media and technology venture.
“The time has come to reopen the Internet and allow for the free flow of ideas and expression without censorship. The United States of America made the dream of the Internet a reality and it will be an American company that restores the dream,” Nunes said, announcing the move on Monday.
He is supposed to resign from the House in the next few weeks and take over as CEO of the Trump Media and Technology Group in January 2022.
Trump called Nunes “a fighter and a leader” who will make an “excellent CEO.”
“Devin understands that we must stop the liberal media and Big Tech from destroying the freedoms that make America great. America is ready for TRUTH Social and the end to censorship and political discrimination,” the 45th president added.
Truth Social is the name of the upcoming TMTG social media platform. TMTG also plans to provide a video streaming service that would offer “non-woke entertainment, news, documentaries, podcasts and more.”
It is distinct from Gettr, a Twitter rival launched earlier this year by former Trump aide Jason Miller. While Trump leveraged his social media presence to bypass legacy US media in 2016, most Silicon Valley companies banned him in January 2021 – while a sitting president – on grounds that he allegedly incited and promoted violence at the US Capitol riot.
As chair of the House Intelligence Committee until 2018, Nunes played a key role in finding that the FBI had relied on the manufactured 'Steele Dossier' to justify spying on Trump’s campaign and presidency. His departure would leave California’s 22nd congressional district either without representation until the November 2022 midterms, or require a special election to fill the seat.
President Vladimir Putin’s visit to India, where he met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has yielded multiple new deals. A joint statement released by the Kremlin reveals just how wide-ranging the Russian-Indian interests are.
The joint Russian-Indian statement, released on the Kremlin website after the Monday talks, contains 99 points highlighting the ongoing and planned cooperation between the two countries.
Putin and Modi apparently discussed a vast number of issues during the Monday talks, ranging from military and economic cooperation to strengthening their partnership in the international field.
Some 28 new agreements – business deals and state-to-state program documents – were signed during the talks.
The two leaders “appreciated the resumption of the positive trajectory of bilateral trade, with trade registering an increase of about 38% in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020 despite the pandemic-related restrictions,” the joint statement reads.
Trade in pharmaceutical products remains “one of the main items of India’s exports to Russia,” with the two countries seeking to bolster their cooperation in the field even further.
The Covid-19 crisis has, in fact, provided more opportunities for the nations to cooperate, with the two leaders expressing “gratitude to each other’s countries for timely assistance during the pandemic.”
India’s Serum Institute, which is the world's largest vaccine maker, has been making a localized version of Russia’s pioneering Sputnik V vaccine, aiming to produce 300 million doses a year.
Military cooperation remains among the centerpieces of Russia-India ties. During the talks, Putin and Modi finalized the deal to produce some 600,000 AK-203 assault rifles in India, as well as discussed the continued supply of S-400 anti-aircraft systems.
“Military and military-technical cooperation has traditionally been the pillar of special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia,” the statement reads, noting that it is currently “reorienting presently to joint research and development, co-development and joint production of advanced defense technology and systems.”
Producing sophisticated military and civilian hardware has been one of the cornerstones of Modis’ policies for years, and Moscow has been a major contributor in that endeavor.
“The Indian side encouraged participation of Russian companies in the 13 key sectors … under the ‘Atmanirbhar’ and ‘Make in India’ program,” the statement reads.
Nuclear energy, oil and joint development of trade routes were some of the other key areas Putin and Modi have agreed to reinforce. The two leaders have noted “significant progress achieved in the construction of the remaining nuclear power plant units at Kudankulam,” carried out by Russian specialists, and pledged to cooperate further in the conventional energy field.
“The sides reaffirmed their commitment for increasing sourcing of Russian crude oil on long term contracts through preferential pricing, strengthening LNG imports to India, and the possible utilization of the Northern Sea Route for energy supplies,” the statement reads.
US drugmaker Pfizer is denying any wrongdoing after a British TV documentary showed a presentation on its behalf had criticized the rival Covid-19 vaccine AstraZeneca as potentially dangerous and unsafe.
Teasers for a Channel 4 Dispatches investigative report, shown Monday, say that a Pfizer presentation described AstraZeneca’s vaccine against Covid-19 as unsafe for patients with compromised immune systems and potentially causing cancer. The speech took place in Canada sometime last year, but it was unclear whether it was a one-off event or if the speaker made the claim multiple times.
The full report, titled ‘Vaccine Wars: The Truth About Pfizer,’ is due to air on Friday.
Pfizer reacted by saying the presentation was “wrongly attributed” to them and was done by a third party.
“We refute any suggestion that Pfizer has sought to undermine others’ scientific endeavors,” a company spokesman told the Daily Mail. “Our priority has always been getting high-quality, well-tolerated and effective vaccines to patients all over the world as quickly as possible and to help put an end to this deadly pandemic.”
The spokesperson explained that Pfizer had paid a third-party agency to create an educational program about vaccines in Canada, after the government in Ottawa approved Pfizer’s product for use in the country.
Channel 4 also said that Pfizer’s manufacturing costs were just 76 pence per jab ($1.01) but the company was charging the UK government £22 ($29.17) per dose, in what would amount to a 3,000% markup.
Pfizer said the estimate was “grossly inaccurate” and did not account for the cost of clinical studies, “manufacturing on a massive scale” and global distribution.
AstraZeneca, which developed its jab in cooperation with Oxford University, has reportedly sold its vaccine at cost for £3.60 ($4.77), losing out on £21 billion ($27,84bn) in potential revenue, while Pfizer has seen a windfall from the vaccines. However, the AZ jab has been dogged by reports of potentially fatal blood clots in certain populations, and the UK has since ordered twice as many Pfizer vaccines.
Fresh off losing his job at CNN, Chris Cuomo has announced that he will also be leaving his SiriusXM radio program, citing family concerns.
“The way my time ended at CNN was hard,” Cuomo said on Monday. “While I have a thick skin, I also have a family, for whom the past week has been extraordinarily difficult.”
Cuomo said he will be focusing on “what comes next” and promised to be “back in touch” with his listeners soon.
Cuomo was temporarily suspended last week and ultimately fired over his reported role in helping his ex-New York governor brother defend himself against sexual misconduct allegations. Cuomo said he was “hurt” over the way his time at CNN ended, when addressing the controversy on his now-former radio show.
Former ABC News reporter Brian Ross filled in as host on Monday for Cuomo’s ‘Let’s Get After It’ show. It is not clear if Ross or someone else will continue hosting the show for future episodes.
Ghislaine Maxwell’s family has petitioned the attorney general to demand better treatment for the suspected sex trafficker, whose trial continues, as she is allegedly denied time with her lawyers, and basic food and hygiene.
In a letter sent Monday to US Attorney General Merrick Garland, a representative for Maxwell’s family claimed she is receiving “minimal sustenance” during her trial and has bruising and “unnecessary trauma” from having to wear her shackle restraints.
The family has requested authorities cease using four-point restraints on Maxwell and provide her more time with her attorneys, as well as a daily pack with food and soap.
Maxwell’s family has pleaded her case and blasted her alleged conditions before, arguing for her release ahead of her trial, which is now headed into its second week. Maxwell is accused of helping the late billionaire Jeffrey Epstein procure and sexually assault underage women.
“Ghislaine’s physical welfare and her right to have proper and timely access to her counsel during the trial have been entirely overlooked,” the latest complaint states, arguing Maxwell has only been allowed to confer with her lawyers in spaces where prosecutors could overhear them.
In an interview ahead of her trial, Maxwell herself alleged unfair treatment at the New York detention center where she is kept. She has been in custody for the last 17 months, with bail requests repeatedly being denied.
Numerous accusers have alleged Maxwell was directly involved in their Epstein encounters, with the latest accuser on Monday testifying she had been recruited for Epstein by Maxwell in London at the age of 17.
A teenage figure skater and her fiance have reportedly died instantly in a violent impact when their car went into an opposite lane on a motorway and crashed at speed into another vehicle.
Former Junior World Championships competitor Elly Mattiuzzo and her partner, Daniele Volanti, who is also 18, are said to have been driving a Fiat 500 near San Marino when the crash took place.
Their vehicle had a "very violent" impact with a Volkswagen Golf heading in the opposite direction, according to Gazzetta.
The outlet said that the driver of the other car suffered injuries which are not life-threatening.
A third car, a BMW, is also said to have been involved in the high-speed collision.
Car fan Mattiuzzo discovered her passion for figure skating after moving to San Marino, where she attended art school.
She took part in the 2019 championships in Neuchatel, Switzerland with the 'Hot Shivers' group.
Friends of Mattiuzzo were quoted as saying she was "enjoying herself" when the crash happened.
“She was a girl who loved being together with her companions, who relates perfectly to them... we are destroyed and incredulous," one told Italy24.
A mother of one of Mattiuzzo's teammates said that the group would “send a single message, all together, to make her feel our closeness."
“Elly was a wonderful girl," she added. "We spent many days together and shared wonderful moments.
“I’m sorry not to have [spoken to her] in recent months. I will never forget her.”
A mourner on social media wrote: "Rest in Peace, dear Elly. We'll never forget you."
Sports Illustrated model Christen Harper couldn't contain her excitement and said it had been her "best day ever" after she was told of boyfriend Jared Goff's heroics during an NFL game.
It took Goff's Detroit Lions quite a while to register their first win of the NFL season – 12 games, in fact – but when the former first pick in the NFL Draft drilled a last-second pass into the midriff of receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown to seal an unlikely 29-27 win against the Minnesota Vikings, it wasn't just the fans inside Ford Field who couldn't quite believe their eyes.
Sports Illustrated model Harper, who has been dating Goff since 2019, was hundreds, or maybe even thousands of miles away from Detroit for Goff's pinpoint touchdown pass.
The buxom beauty reacted with unbridled glee when when she was shown a video of the dramatic moment.
"This is their first win," Harper can be heard saying in the clip. "This is crazy."
The clip continues with one of the photography assistants showing Harper – who is decked out in a revealing yellow bikini – the clip of Goff's bullet pass.
"Oh my God, this is going to make me cry," she adds. "That is the best."
Goff, who was selected first in the 2016 NFL Draft, played the first five years of his career with the Los Angeles Rams and was traded to Detroit before the start of this season in exchange for veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford.
The move, though, hasn't gone entirely to plan so far, with the Lions enduring a winless campaign until Sunday's last-second miracle pass from Goff.
After the win, head coach Dan Campbell dedicated the win to members of the Oxford Township in Michigan following last week's deadly school shooting.
"You hope to be a light for those people and a positive thing that they can have fun watching today," Goff added afterwards.
"I hope they were all watching today and were able to enjoy that win and we can take their minds off it for, whatever it may be, three hours."
In a joint post with Sports Illustrated to her Instagram following of more than 373,000, Harper said: "Couple goals: when your boyfriend throws the winning touchdown pass while you’re shooting your rookie year [for the magazine].
"Yes, we’re all crying. Best day ever. Any given Sunday, baby. Dreams coming true."
Trust in the US military has dropped so far that most Americans don’t have strong confidence in their armed forces, and the trend has accelerated since Joe Biden took office as commander-in-chief, the results of a new poll show.
The latest national defense survey by the Ronald Reagan Institute, released late last week, showed that just 45% of Americans have a “great deal” of trust and confidence in their military. The finding marked the first time that fewer than half of respondents to the survey have expressed strong trust in the troops.
Public confidence has tumbled 25 percentage points, from 70%, in the past three years. The rating has plunged 11 points in just the past nine months, under Biden, and the figures for other institutions are even lower. Only 19% of Americans polled had strong trust in the presidency as of November – down from 30% in February, the Reagan Institute survey showed. The same rating for law enforcement has dropped to 33% from 50% in the past three years, while media outlets have retained the confidence of just 10%, down from 16% in 2018.
Among those survey respondents who expressed little or no confidence in the US military, the most common reason cited was “political leadership,” the institute said. Those who expressed strong confidence were most influenced by their high regard for rank-and-file servicemembers.
Just 42% of Americans have a great deal of confidence in the military’s ability to win an overseas war, the survey found. Similarly, 40% strongly trust that the military will act in a “professional and nonpolitical manner.” Asked which country has the best military, 69% chose the US, while 17% picked China. Nearly one-third (32%) said the US uses the military in too many situations where diplomacy would be better.
The Pentagon has come under criticism this year for its alleged embrace of “anti-racism” ideology and for prioritizing social-justice initiatives, such as ending a ban on transgender troops, over fighting readiness. The Biden administration’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, in which 13 US service members were killed and hundreds of American citizens were left stranded in the Taliban-controlled country, triggered more public outrage.
The Reagan survey showed that 62% of Americans polled disapprove of how the Afghanistan exit was handled. Nearly half of respondents blamed Biden’s poor judgment, while 20% cited poor military planning.
The poll also found diminishing support for “active global leadership” by the US. Just 42% believe America should be “more engaged and take the lead” in world affairs, down from 51% in February. More than one in four Americans (27%) want the military to reduce its presence overseas and only deploy troops in response to aggression.
China was overwhelmingly identified as the greatest foreign threat to the US, at 52%, up from just 21% three years ago. More than seven in 10 Americans (72%) polled said they believe that the Covid-19 virus leaked from a Chinese lab and that Beijing lied to cover it up. Fears over Russia have declined sharply, with 14% of those surveyed seeing it as the greatest threat, down from 30% in 2018.
A Russian invasion of Ukraine could quickly turn into a catastrophic and bloody disaster like Afghanistan, a leading American senator has said just months after a hurried US withdrawal left Kabul in the hands of the Taliban.
“If Russia does decide to move further into Ukraine, it would be a mistake of historic proportions for Moscow,” said Chris Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in an appearance on CNN on Sunday. “Right now they occupy the eastern flank of the country. That’s a part of the Ukraine that doesn’t have the same sense of Ukrainian nationalism that the rest of the country does.” Moscow denies it maintains forces in the war-torn Donbass region, which has been held by troops loyal to two self-declared breakaway republics, which Russia considers to be part of Ukraine.
“Ukraine could become the next Afghanistan for Russia if it chooses to move further,” he said, referring to the Soviet-Afghan War of 1979-1989 that left thousands of Red Army soldiers dead. “It’s up to us in the Congress to make clear that we are going to be diplomatic, political, and military partners with Ukraine, that we are going to provide them with increased military assistance so that they can defend themselves. And I hope that we take steps in Congress in the next week to make that clear.”
Nikolai Patrushev, the head of Russia’s Security Council, argued earlier this year that there are similarities between the US’s relationship with Ukraine and its backing of the government in Afghanistan that was overthrown by the Taliban this summer. He accused the United States of abandoning its allies in the Middle East, and said that Kiev could meet a similar fate in the future.
“Was the ousted pro-American regime in Kabul saved by the fact that Afghanistan had the status of a US ally, while not being part of NATO?” he asked. “A similar situation awaits supporters of the American choice in Ukraine. Where neo-Nazis are capable of coming to power, the country is heading for disintegration, and the White House at some point will not remember its Kiev supporters.”
Tensions on the border between Russia and Ukraine have been worsening for weeks, with American and Ukrainian intelligence services reporting that they suspect a possible Russian invasion in the near future. Moscow has denied any plans to invade, dismissing the allegations as American misinformation and accused Ukraine of building up forces along the contact line with the Donbass.
Asked whether he thought the invasion was likely, senator Murphy responded, “I’ve been in Ukraine six times. I’ve seen the intelligence, the threat is serious. I do think that there’s no substitute for person-to-person diplomacy. And so I hope this virtual meeting between President Biden and President Putin can bear fruit.”
The Kremlin and the White House announced Saturday that Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, is scheduled to speak with Joe Biden, the American president, in a video call this Tuesday. The White House, in its statement, said that “President Biden will underscore U.S. concerns with Russian military activities on the border with Ukraine and reaffirm the United States’ support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
Last week, in an appearance at the “Russia Calling” forum, Putin made clear that he considers the deployment of American weapons in countries bordering Russia to be a “red line” that his country will not permit to be crossed. He has said that he will seek specific guarantees that NATO will not expand further eastwards as part of his talks with Biden.
The Department of Justice is suing Texas over redistricting, which it claims violates citizens’ voting rights by specifically targeting minorities. This is the second recent lawsuit against the state from the federal government.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the lawsuit on Monday, alleging that Texas is in violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits voting measures that discriminate based on race.
According to DOJ officials, recent redistricting in Texas has the effect of restricting ballot access to minority communities.
Attorney General Merrick Garland announces DOJ is suing Texas for redistricting plans discriminating against “Latino and Black voters to vote on account of their race, color or membership in a language minority group.” pic.twitter.com/pD299xCgRf
The redistricting “refused to recognize the state’s growing minority electorate,” according to the department, and does not give equal representation to “black and Latino” voters.
Some districts, Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta said during Monday’s announcement, were “drawn with discriminatory intent” – something she and Garland say they are confidant they can prove in court. Gupta specifically pointed to voting maps being drawn in such a way that they deny communities with majority-minority populations from electing their own representatives and significantly impacting congressional races.
The population of Texas grew by four million people from 2010 to 2020, officials argued, with much of this increase coming from “minority populations,” whose “voting strength” is “diluted” by the state’s 2021 redistricting plans.
Texas’ attorney general’s office responded to the lawsuit by saying redistricting approved by state officials was “lawful” and deemed the DOJ’s legal action as “the Biden Administration’s latest ploy to control Texas voters.”
The Department of Justice's absurd lawsuit against our state is the Biden Administration's latest ploy to control Texas voters. I am confident that our legislature's redistricting decisions will be proven lawful, and this preposterous attempt to sway democracy will fail.
The DOJ lawsuit is the latest effort by the current administration to target new state-enacted voting laws, many of which they argue are restricting voting access. The department even previously filed a separate lawsuit against Texas over a voting bill aimed at reducing fraud, though officials similarly argue the measures in the bill unfairly target minority voters.
The US will not send troops into a conflict between Russia and Ukraine, but is prepared to “bolster” NATO allies, Washington said ahead of the phone call between US President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
“We do not know whether Putin has made a decision about further military escalation in Ukraine, but we do know he's putting in place the capacity to engage in such escalation should he decide to do so,” a senior Biden administration official told reporters in a background briefing on Monday.
The US is not seeking a scenario in which its military would be used in a conflict between Moscow and Kiev, but would be “prepared to bolster allies on NATO’s eastern flank,” the official said, according to Reuters. The idea of Russian troops preparing for an “invasion” into Ukraine, replicated in mainstream media over the past few days, has been rubbished by the Kremlin.
Biden intends to tell Putin there will be “very clear costs” if Russia attacks Ukraine, the official added. It was also revealed that US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, will speak to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky prior to the phone call with Putin, and Biden himself will call him afterwards.
Moscow has rejected claims by US intelligence that Russia is preparing to attack Ukraine in late January as “fake news.”
“We are seeing a lot of fake news about the allegedly planned ‘aggression’ of Russia against Ukraine being peddled,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told RT in an exclusive interview ahead of the presidential phone call.
“We are seeing NATO exhibiting an extremely hostile stance, we are hearing rhetoric from [NATO Secretary General Jens] Stoltenberg, rhetoric of various representatives of the US,” saying that NATO can and will do whatever it wants and not recognize any of Russia’s “red lines,” Peskov added.
Meanwhile, he noted, there is not a single word of warning from the West to Ukraine not to attempt to resolve the dispute with two eastern provinces by force.
The two self-proclaimed Donbass republics, Donetsk and Lugansk, broke off from Ukraine after a Western-backed coup overthrew the government in Kiev in February 2014. The following month, Crimeans voted in a referendum to secede from Ukraine and rejoin Russia.
Myanmar’s deposed state counsellor, Aung San Suu Kyi, has been sentenced to four years in prison on the first charges leveled against her by the ruling military junta. Former President Win Myint received a similar sentence.
Suu Kyi was found guilty on Monday of inciting unrest and violating Covid-19 restrictions, a source familiar with the case told the media. The proceedings were closed to journalists and other spectators.
The incitement charge was reportedly linked to posts the National League for Democracy party shared online after its leaders, who had included Suu Kyi, were detained by the military in early 2021. In them, the party had called on other nations not to cooperate with the junta.
The purported Covid-19 rules violation occurred during an election campaign event in November 2020. Suu Kyi denied she had broken the rules of her house arrest by waving to a National League for Democracy party campaign convoy that had passed in front of her house in the capital, Naypyidaw.
The 76-year-old politician, who won the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize for her non-violent struggle against military rule, faces a total of 11 charges, including anti-corruption law violations and misappropriating funds, which could see her being sentenced to up to 102 years behind bars, according to some reports. The UN has previously denounced the trial as politically motivated.
Suu Kyi’s co-defendant, ousted president Win Myint, was also sentenced to four years in jail. Suu Kyi became the state counsellor – a post equivalent to prime minister – after her party won a landslide victory in the 2015 parliamentary elections.
In 2020, her party won the election again, but the military declared the results to be fraudulent and deposed Suu Kyi’s government in a coup d’état on February 1, 2021. There has been public resistance to the military administration ever since, with Suu Kyi’s supporters staging mass protests that sparked violent crackdowns by the junta.
On Sunday, during one such protest in Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon, a security forces vehicle rammed the crowd, killing five protesters.
When news first broke a few years ago that Russia's state nuclear energy company was working on a floating nuclear power plant, some took it as a joke. Others mocked it as the worst idea ever.
But it turns out it wasn't such an outlandish idea after all. The Akademik Lomonosov started operating in 2019. It looks like what it was meant to be: a source of reliable energy in a region so harsh that building any other kind of power supply system would be a challenge.
The Akademik Lomonosov sits off the town ot Pevek in Chukotka. Chukotka is an autonomous region in the northern part of Russia's Far East.
It also happens to be full of gold, copper, and lithium, among other metals.
The Financial Times wrote earlier this week how Russia was fueling its Arctic ambitions with nuclear power. And the ambitions include taking full advantage of the opening up of the Northern Sea Route thanks to the changing climate and also of its metal and mineral wealth.
Take copper, for example. Copper demand is set to soar in the coming years if the energy transition continues at the current clip. The metal is the default choice for electrical wiring thanks to its superb conductivity and is also used in significant amounts in power generation, transmission, and distribution, including from wind turbines and solar installations.
It is also used abundantly in electric vehicles—if the average internal combustion engine contains about 20 kilos of copper, the average electric car contains as much as four times that. No wonder, then, that copper demand from the EV industry alone – in EV charging alone, according to BloombergNEF – is set to grow by a whopping 1,000% between 2020 and 2030.
It may well be the case that while everyone is too busy watching natural gas prices in Europe and wondering what Moscow will do next, Moscow is in fact focusing on metals and minerals – some of which, incidentally, have been called “the oil of tomorrow.”
According to the FT article, Chukotka is rich in lithium reserves. Just how rich is hard to pinpoint, but it might be enough to be worth developing. Russia also has lithium deposits in eastern Siberia and Yakutia, also in the Far East, and has plans to become the source of 3.5% of the world's lithium by 2025.
The Arctic seems to be the modern version of the treasure cave in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. There is everything in the Arctic in terms of natural resources, but the harsh climate and lack of even basic infrastructure in most of it have interfered with the development of these resources. There has also not been much need for them in a fossil fuel-based economy.
Now, with the surge in demand expected for most basic metals and certain minerals considered critical for the energy transition such as cobalt, for example, or the group collectively known as rare earths, there seems to be strong motivation, at least in Russia, which has most of the Arctic, to push ahead with resource development in the inhospitable northern region.
Rosatom, the company behind the Akademik Lomonosov, plans to build five more floating nuclear power plants, all to supply mining projects. The nuclear option was preferred by the Kremlin to Novatek's idea for floating gas-fired power plants. The five floating power plants will cost $2.2 billion.
Floating power plants are the first step that needs to be made on the road to the development of Russia's metal and mineral wealth in the Arctic. Without electricity, the task of building roads and other vital infrastructure for a mining project is a lot more challenging. With electricity, the first big problem is solved.
“Russia should expand through the Arctic, as this is where it has its main mineral resources,” President Vladimir Putin said back in 2017 and has made sure since then that progress is being made.
“The world economy is aimed at a gradual transition to low-carbon energy, and this is already a new reality,” said Russia's Prime Minister, Mikhail Mishustin, earlier this year.
“It is necessary to prepare for a step-by-step reduction in the use of traditional fuels: oil, gas, coal. [It is necessary] to improve energy efficiency, develop alternative energy, build appropriate infrastructure,” Mishustin also said.
Russia, in other words, is beginning to prepare for a post-fossil fuel world, or at least a world that needs less of the hydrocarbons that have fuelled it for close to 200 years now. This world will replace hydrocarbons with metals and minerals. Fortunately for Russia, it has a lot of both hydrocarbons and metals and minerals. Unfortunately for those without a lot of metal and mineral resources, they might once again find themselves dependent on imports from the country that now holds their gas supply in its hands.
Two Brazilian babies have ended up in hospital after a nurse confused the vials and mistakenly injected them with Pfizer coronavirus vaccine instead of their intended infants’ jabs.
The shocking blunder was first reported by the media and officially confirmed on Sunday by local authorities in the Sorocaba municipality of Brazil’s Sao Paulo state.
A two-month-old girl and a four-month-old boy had arrived at a medical facility in the area last Wednesday to get the shots of the pentavalent vaccine that protects children from Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Hepatitis B, and Hib.
However, shortly after returning home the babies developed a high fever, vomited and refused to drink milk. The medicine given to them by their parents failed to improve their condition.
The families were then contacted by Sorocaba’s health secretary, Vinicius Rodrigues, who informed them that a mistake had been made and the children were injected with Covid-19 vaccine.
“My life turned upside down,” the girl’s mother told CNN Brazil about the moment she learnt the news.
The babies were placed in the local Gpaci hospital late on Thursday. They’re now reportedly feeling better, but won’t be able to return home for some time. The local authorities contacted Pfizer and were told that the children should be monitored for the next 10 to 15 days.
The girl and the boy are now being tested every 48 hours, with blood samples taken from them and ultrasound and ECG exams performed. So far, no complications that could’ve been caused by the Covid-19 jab were found. The two will also get their pentavalent vaccines while in hospital.
Health care personnel discovered that the babies got the wrong immunization the day after the injections as they were checking their vaccine stocks. The responsible nurse said she confused the vials because they looked too similar. She had been suspended pending the investigation.
“I know everyone makes mistakes, but a mistake like that is unacceptable,” the affected girl’s mother insisted. “I don't want to punish the nurse, but I want this incident to serve as a warning to other medics and other moms: tell them to double-check what they’re giving to your kids.”
The US, the UK, and Canada should “visibly” deploy troops in Ukraine near the Russian frontier as support for Kiev to deter a potential military conflict with Moscow, Ukrainian Defense Minister Alexey Reznikov has said.
Speaking to Toronto’s The Globe and Mail on Sunday, Reznikov called on “the Anglo-Saxon allies” to provide assistance to Ukraine outside of NATO structures, including sending more military trainers to the country.
“It would be nice if the Canadian instructors… would be deployed in Kharkiv, Mariupol, Kramatorsk, Odessa, and Zminiy Island,” the defense minister said. All the named locations are in the east and south of Ukraine, close to the border with Russia.
“Together with United Kingdom guys, with United States guys, in bilateral platforms, without NATO. Three flags – the flag of Canada, the flag of the United States and the flag of the UK – should be flying around these territories. It would also be a good sign for the Russians – that you are here,” he told the newspaper.
According to the Resnikov, Kiev has focused on requesting help from the Anglosphere and does not expect military assistance from Germany and France, because these two nations intend to preserve their economic relations with Russia.
Reznikov’s request comes amid increasing fears over an alleged military buildup on the Russian border with Ukraine. Since the start of November, some Western media outlets have claimed that Moscow is planning an invasion of its neighbor. While the Kremlin has repeatedly denied the accusation, pointing out that Russia is simply moving troops within its own territory, Kiev has asked the US-led NATO bloc for military support in response.
However, according to some experts, Reznikov’s suggestion would only make things worse. Writing on Twitter, political analyst Vladimir Frolov slammed the idea.
“This will make things worse, not better, apart from being militarily pointless,” he said.
In recent times, Washington and its NATO allies have increased military activity in the area, including in the Black Sea. This has been a cause for concern for Moscow, which has repeatedly opposed foreign military presence in the region. Last week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that the bloc has been encouraging “unplanned drills… in the immediate proximity of [Russian] borders.”
