A Southern California school board has resolved a dispute with Gov. Gavin Newsom over a social studies curriculum

Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management and digital-asset manager 21Shares amended their application for a US spot-Bitcoin exchange-traded fund

An ad launched by Progress Action Fund launched, showing an elderly Republican congressman interrupting a couple in the bedroom, has now been banned on X, formerly known as Twitter. According to the Progress Action Fund, which aims to defeat Republicans in red states, the platform “has censored” its account as well as the ad, called “Keep Republicans Out Of Your Bedroom.” In addition, the platform has “placed a ‘Search Ban’ and a ‘Search Suggestion Ban’ on the account.” As of Wednesday afternoon, the account did not show up on the social media platform, yet the ad could still be seen on X through retweets from other accounts. The Progress Action Fund said it contacted the platform’s legal department and “appealed the decision, which was denied.” Joe Jacobson, Founder and Executive Director of Progress Action Fund, took a stab at X’s owner: “Elon Musk loves free speech, but only when it’s convenient for him and his far-right political agenda.” “Political speech is protected under law and Musk’s competitors clearly agree that our ad should not be censored,” he continued. “When releasing ads in the future, we’ll be taking them to other platforms, which many others are already doing given Elon Musk’s frantic and poor leadership at Twitter.” The Independent has reached out to X for comment. The ad features a scene in which a woman asks a man if he has a condom. He reaches for the condom in a bedside table drawer, and another suit-covered arm appears, reaching for it as well. “Sorry, you can’t use those,” says an older man, clad in a black suit and red tie, while standing beside the bed. When the woman asks who he is, he replies: “I’m your Republican congressman. Now that we’re in charge, we’re banning birth control.” The ad urges voters to “vote no” on 8 August, in reference to State Issue 1, which would require proposed amendments to Ohio’s constitution “receive the approval of at least 60 per cent of eligible voters voting on the proposed amendment,” rather than a simple majority. Since acquiring Twitter, Mr Musk, a self declared “free speech absolutist”, has touted free speech as a pillar of the platform. As part of this shift during the takeover, he reinstated Donald Trump’s account after a two-year ban, which was “due to the risk of further incitement of violence” after the January 6 Capitol riot. He also reinstated at least 11 accounts belonging to prominent far-right and anti-trans influencers. On 23 November, the platform announced it “is no longer enforcing the Covid-19 misleading information policy.” As recently as April, the platform claimed to strive to “promote and protect the public conversation. We believe Twitter users have the right to express their opinions and ideas without fear of censorship.” In May, he wrote: “I am adamant about defending free speech, even if it means losing money.” Read More Democratic PAC unveils ‘steamy and horrifying’ ad with GOP lawmaker interrupting couple in bedroom Elon Musk slammed for pushing anti-vax conspiracy in response to LeBron James’ son Bronny suffering cardiac arrest Elon Musk takes control of @X account from user who had held it for 16 years Elon Musk slammed for anti-vax rant in response to LeBron James’ son’s cardiac arrest Fox News promotes conspiracy theory linking Bronny James collapse to Covid vaccine Anti-vaxxers claim Bronny James’s cardiac arrest is suspicious. Here’s why it isn’t

The Pump is back in Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 3, but its damage has been nerfed from the original OP version and the weapon is now called the Sharp Tooth Shotgun.

TL;DR: A wide range of AI and ChatGPT courses are available for free on edX.

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 24, 2023--

Scientists have seen one of the mysterious “dark spots” on Neptune from Earth for the first ever time. Researchers spotted the feature using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope, or VLT. Using that telescope, astronomers were able to examine a large dark spot – which was joined by a smaller, bright spot, they said, of a kind that has never seen before. Scientists still do not know why those spots form on Neptune’s blue atmosphere. But they hope that the new observations could help answer questions about their origin. “Since the first discovery of a dark spot, I’ve always wondered what these short-lived and elusive dark features are,” said Patrick Irwin, professor at the University of Oxford and lead investigator of the study. It has already helped rule out one possibility: that the dark spots are caused when the clouds on the planet clear. The observations instead suggest that the spot is formed when air particles make a layer below the main one go darker, caused by ice and haze mixing in the atmosphere. Understanding the spots has been difficult because they leave the planet’s surface as mysteriously as they arise. They have also been difficult for researchers to actually examine, given the difficulty of spotting them through telescopes. Previously, scientists were forced to send spacecraft to see the spots, and the first was observed in 1989, when Nasa’s Voyager 2 flew past. It disappeared a few years later. In recent years, scientists have been able to examine them with the Hubble Space Telescope, which has seen more spots on the atmosphere. When it did so, astronomers were able to point ground-based telescopes towards them, allowing for more detailed research. “This is an astounding increase in humanity’s ability to observe the cosmos,” said Michael Wong, a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley and a co-author on the paper. “At first, we could only detect these spots by sending a spacecraft there, like Voyager. “Then we gained the ability to make them out remotely with Hubble. Finally, technology has advanced to enable this from the ground.” The new observations allowed scientists to examine the spot using the VLT’s Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer, which let them split the light from Neptune and the spot into its component colours. That in turn means that astronomers can understand the height at which the spot sits, and how the atmosphere is composed. As well as helping examine the dark spots, scientists also saw a surprise result: another, entirely new kind of bright spot. “In the process we discovered a rare deep bright cloud type that had never been identified before, even from space,” said Wong. The work is described in a new paper, ‘Cloud structure of dark spots and storms in Neptune’s atmosphere’, published in Nature Astronomy. Read More Mysterious dark spot on Neptune detected from Earth for the first time We just received the first ever pictures taken near the Moon’s uncharted south pole Chandrayaan-3 mission rover exits Moon lander to explore lunar south pole Mysterious dark spot on Neptune detected from Earth for the first time We just received the first ever pictures taken near the Moon’s uncharted south pole Chandrayaan-3 mission rover exits Moon lander to explore lunar south pole

The United Auto Workers union announces a strike at another General Motors plant, Nelson Peltz's push for board seats at Disney gets a boost, and results from Apple are a highlight on this week's busy earnings calendar.

China, the world’s largest emitter of methane, said it will boost monitoring, reporting and data transparency to reduce

WhatsApp has introduced a new feature that will bring generative artificial intelligence tools to the platform for the first time. The world’s most popular messaging app, which counts close to 3 billion monthly active users around the world, will allow a limited number of people to create custom stickers using a new AI-powered ‘Create’ button. The latest feature follows similar generative AI tools from other messaging platforms, with Snapchat introducing a ‘My AI’ chatbot in February powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT technology. Instagram, which is also owned by Meta, is reportedly planning its own AI chatbot that will come with up to 30 different personalities for users to choose from. Meta did not respond to a request from The Independent for more details about Instagram’s AI plans, though leaked images reveal options for asking questions, seeking advice and offering writing assistance. “Bring AI to your chats for a more fun and engaging experience,” stated text on the leaked images. “Chat with 30 AI personalities and find which one you like the best.” The new WhatsApp update, first spotted by WaBetaInfo, means WhatsApp users do not require external tools or specific design skills in order to create stickers. They will simply need to enter a text-based command in order for the stickers to be generated, similar to image generator tools like Midjourney and OpenAI’s Dall-E. “AI stickers are generated using a secure technology offered by Meta,” the WhatsApp news site noted. “It’s important to note that this feature is optional and those AI stickers are easily recognisable. This means that the recipient may understand when a sticker has been generated by the AI technology from Meta.” The Independent has reached out to Meta for more information about WhatsApp’s latest AI tool, though the company typically does not comment on features before they are released publicly. Currently only Android users signed up to WhatsApp’s Google Play Beta Program have access to the custom sticker creator tool. Read More WhatsApp update: App finally launches new way to transfer chat history, fixing major security issue

LAUSANNE, Switzerland & NEWARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 31, 2023--

Advertisers are refusing to return to X – formerly Twitter – after the platform’s owner Elon Musk told them to “go f*** yourselves” if they try to pull their marketing from the microblogging site. After Mr Musk was accused of antisemitism last month, a number of the world’s biggest companies and X’s biggest advertisers, including Apple and IBM, pulled their marketing from the platform. While the Tesla chief initially said he was “sorry” and denied any suggestion he was antisemitic, he later added that advertisers who withdrew their marketing from X because of his tweet should “go f*** yourselves”. “If someone is going to try to blackmail me with advertising, blackmail me with money? Go f*** yourself. Go f*** yourself. Is that clear? I hope it is,” Mr Musk said at the New York Times’ Dealbook Summit. “The whole world will know that those advertisers killed the company and we’ll document it in great detail,” he added. Now, a number of marketing agencies say the brands they represent are firmly against returning to advertising on X. “Thank you Elon Musk, for making it very clear how seriously you take advertisers concerns... Advertisers, judge for yourselves if this is a man who you can do business with,” Lou Paskalis, the founder and chief of the marketing consultancy AJL Advisory, posted on X. “There is no advertising value that would offset the reputational risk of going back on the platform,” Mr Paskalis told NYT. Advertisers are unlikely to step in to support X, said Ruben Schreurs, the chief strategy officer at marketing firm Ebiquity. The row began last month after Mr Musk endorsed a post claiming that Jewish people “have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them” as the “actual truth”. In response, a number of top companies, including Apple, Disney and Coca Cola, have since removed paid ads from X – moves that could slash the company’s revenue by millions of dollars. Watchdog Media Matters also published a report alleging that ads on X were being placed next to posts supporing Nazism, in response to which the social media company filed a defamation claim against the group. Mr Musk’s rank at the Dealbook Summit came come on Wednesday. “I will certainly not pander,” the multibillionaire said. He even took a direct jab at Disney chief Bob Iger who had earlier explained why the entertainment company had pulled advertising from X. Just hours after Mr Musk’s expletive-laden comment on Wednesday, X chief Linda Yaccarino attempted to soften the damage, sharing the owner’s apology on the platform and appealing to advertisers to return. “Here’s my perspective when it comes to advertising: X is standing at a unique and amazing intersection of Free Speech and Main Street — and the X community is powerful and here to welcome you,” Ms Yaccarino said. “Businesses are simply full of people, and people like to be treated well, respected and dealt with with dignity,” Steve Boehler, founder of marketing management consultancy Mercer Island Group, told NYT. Read More Everything we know about Tesla’s Cybertruck after first cars are delivered Musk says antisemitic tweet was ‘foolish’ – but blames media for angry reaction Elon Musk believes OpenAI may have made ‘dangerous’ discovery OpenAI may have made a ‘dangerous’ artificial intelligence discovery, Elon Musk says Elon Musk publicly tells advertisers to ‘go f*** yourselves’ Elon Musk mocked for trying to resurrect QAnon Pizzagate conspiracy