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Peer To Peer Loans Are About To Get A Whole Lot Cheaper

Companies such as LendingClub Corp. that arrange Internet loans to consumers seem destined to be forced into lowering interest rates for certain borrowers following a U.S. Court of Appeals ruling.

The U.S. Court of Appeals in Manhattan, New York, has refused to reconsider its earlier decision that restricts “marketplace lenders” for sidestepping state laws by forming partnerships with banks in states where no such rules exist.

This ruling will stop the practice lenders can make a loan to a borrower for as as example in New York where for most loans interest rates cap out at 16 per cent – by originating it in a state like Utah, where no usury limits exist.

Companies such as Prosper Marketplace Inc , and Lending Club which are referred to as peer-to-peer lenders because they began by directly linking funders and borrowers over the Internet, matchup loan seekers with investors like hedge funds.

Without a successful appeal ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, the lower court’s ruling means some of these peer-to-peer lender’s current loans may be deemed contradicting state interest-rate caps. That presents a risk to loans already sold into securities that are assisting to finance the industry’s growth, and lays out an obstacle to future originations of high-yielding credits, which attract the most investor demand.

Richard Eckman, a partner at Pepper Hamilton LLP said the decision “may create a catastrophe” for investors and companies trying to trade in the debt.

The largest marketplace lender LendingClub in August calculated that 12.5 percent of its consumer-loan portfolio could be affected by the court’s decision. Since 2011, it has originated $11.2 billion in loans and may now have to lower interest rates it charges on those loans to comply with state laws, or face the prospect of the loans being classified as null and void.

LendingClub declined to comment on the latest court ruling which was also unpopular news for debt investors such as RiverNorth Capital Management LLC, and others that look for high returns for investors. Last month Moody’s warned that such a ruling posed a credit risk to current securities tied to the debt, as investment companies such as BlackRock Inc. bundled loans to be sold as bonds.

RiverNorth declined to comment.

Alan Birnbaum and Matias Langer, both Moody’s analysts, wrote in a report “If interpreted broadly, interest rates on some loans backing marketplace lending asset-backed securities transactions could be reduced, or the loans themselves be void.”

Chief executive officer of Cross River Bank, Gilles Gade, said investors have warned they would simply turn down loans to borrowers in certain states, because they didn’t yield as much or they may be affected by the court decision. The New Jersey-based bank is an origination partner for more than twelve lending platforms.

Isaac Boltansky, Compass Point Research & Trading LLC analyst said the case at present is applicable only in Vermont, Connecticut and New York but may have wider implications as the market “begin to question” marketplace lenders’ origination structures.

Big Media Companies Sued For Using YouTube Clip Without Permission

CNN and Canada’s CBC and will face legal action after the two media houses allegedly took a 31 second video clip from YouTube and utilized it in their news broadcasts without permission. Besides allegations of copyright violation, the media giants face accusations that they infringed the anti-circumvention provisions of the DMCA copyright law.

While millions of members of the online community upload video clips daily without expecting anything in return, it is possible for trendy content to generate much revenue through YouTube’s account monetization plan.

Alfonzo Cutaia, a resident of New York, used the program in 2014 when he observed that he had a trendy video, but some news organizations allegedly failed to play by the rules and unfortunately, things have turned out messy.  

It all started to unfold last year when winter storm ‘knife’ concealed sections of New York and its environs under many feet of snow. On November 18th, from his Buffalo office, Cutaia was watching the snowstorm flowing over Lake Erie and he thought it wise to record the unusual events using his mobile phone.

Realizing the potential of his video to attract interest, Cutaia decided to upload his 31 second video to YouTube. He named it “Buffalo Lake Effect” and chose to make revenue through the account monetization plan. Cutaia chose “Standard YouTube License” and watched the number of hits grow by the hour.

The video performed extremely well and after one day, the recording had more than 513000 views. On the second day, things changed so spontaneously with the clip attracting 2.3 million views and soon, Cutaia was receiving many requests from news organizations including ABC, CBS, CNN, AP, and Reuters – to be allowed to use his recording.

However, according to a court case that Cutaia filed this week in a New York court, on November 18th, CBC aired the recording on the internet without authorization, with the organization’s logo superimposed.

After a series of complains to CBC about the persistent illegitimate use of the video, last month, CBC told the New York resident that it acquired the recording from CNN on a license valid for 10 days. However, Cutaia maintained that CBC and its partners had used the video for many months, after obtaining the license from CNN, who were also not licensed to use the clip.

In his lawsuit, Cutaia seeks lawful injunctions against the two media giants to stop further illegal and unauthorized use of his recording. Seeking appropriate damages, Cutaia also alleges that the news houses willfully and intentionally infringed copyrights.

Amusingly, the court case also claims that both CNN and CBC were in violation of the DMCA when the news organizations ‘liberated’ the video directly from the YouTube website and made it available for viewing elsewhere.

The lawsuit reads, “In order to infringe the Storm Video, CBC [and CNN] circumvented Cutaia’s technological measures limiting access to the Storm Video, without authorization, in violation of 17 U.S.C. § 1201(a)(1)(a).”

It continues to say, “By its reproduction and alteration to the Storm Video, CBC [and CNN] intentionally removed and/or altered the copyright management information of the Storm Video, without authorization, in violation of U.S.C. § 1202(b)(1)”

The two media houses are also facing legal action for distributing the recording despite having full knowledge that copyright was being violated.

Summarily, Cutaia seeks lasting injunctions against the two internationally recognized media houses, blames them of varying extents of copyright intrusion, and demands a jury trial to establish the damages.

Meanwhile “Buffalo Lake Effect” is performing extremely well on the YouTube system. By July the recording had 3.68m hits.

Whistleblowers Accuse Leading Anti-Virus Company Of Infecting Competitors

Two former employees of Kaspersky Lab, one of the largest online security companies in the world, have come forward with claims that the Moscow-based company used to mess with its competitors by purposely deceiving their antivirus software programs. The former employees claim that Eugene Kaspersky himself (the company’s cofounder) ordered these attacks to retaliate against companies he believed were stealing his software rather than developing their own.

The alleged deception occurred when the trickster, whoever it was, took an important piece of software commonly found in computers and “injected” it with a piece of bad code so that the harmless file looked like it was infected. Then, when security companies ran the doctored file through their virus detection programs, the file would be flagged as a potential virus. For example, Microsoft’s antimalware research director Dennis Batchelder reported to Reuters in April that he could remember a time in the spring of 2013 when several customers contacted Microsoft complaining that a simple printer code was flagged as dangerous and put into quarantine. Batchelder said it took him several hours to realize that the printer code looked very similar to a piece of code already ruled malicious by Microsoft. Because the doctored code and the normal printer code looked so similar, both were quarantined by the antivirus software.

Batchelder stated that he never sought to find the culprit. Because antivirus software manufacturers share so much information (in order to effectively combat security threats), it was always a risk. “It doesn’t really matter who it was. All of us in the industry had a vulnerability, in that our systems were based on trust. We wanted to get that fixed.”

Because Kaspersky is so respected in his field and because his company is one of the most popular antivirus software makers in the world, competitors often flag as dangerous any file that Kaspersky flags as dangerous – without conducting their own research. In 2010, Kaspersky Lab complained openly and often about copycats, requesting greater respect for intellectual property as the process of data sharing became more prevalent in the industry. The complaints did not lead to major changes.

Even though Kaspersky made no secret that he believed competitors were benefitting from his hard work, he vehemently denies that he ever sent doctored files to competitors in order to trick their systems. “Our company has never conducted any secret campaign to trick competitors into generating false positives to damage their market standing. Such actions are unethical, dishonest and their legality is at least questionable.” He stated that Kaspersky Lab too had been a victim of such a trickster attack in the fall of 2012 when an unknown party tricked Kaspersky into misclassifying normal, safe files as malicious.

As a result of the deceptive practices, securities companies are now less likely to accept a competitor’s classification of a file as malicious as the absolute truth. Companies are now spending more time and money in developing programs that weed out false positives. Security analysts claim that false positives are much less of a problem today than they were a few years ago.

In further defending his company, Kaspersky stated that, “Although the security market is very competitive, trusted threat-data exchange is definitely part of the overall security of the entire IT ecosystem, and this exchange must not be compromised or corrupted.”

An official release went on to say “Contrary to allegations made in a Reuters news story, Kaspersky Lab has never conducted any secret campaign to trick competitors into generating false positives to damage their market standing. Such actions are unethical, dishonest and illegal. Accusations by anonymous, disgruntled ex-employees that Kaspersky Lab, or its CEO, was involved in these incidents are meritless and simply false.”

In the official denial the company said they did similar activities on a limited scale in 2010 to test competitors but did not directly refute the claims of later suspicious activities.

Indian Farmers Celebrate Independence Day By Asking To Hang Themselves

In the United States cash strapped farmers can seek government assistance and even charity dollars through fundraising efforts like Farm Aid, but in India, 25,000 farmers have sought permission to commit suicide tomorrow, by hanging, in protest for lack of compensation for having their land seized for a major construction project.

The Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, farmers over the last 17 years have had their land confiscated by the country’s Government for the construction of the Gokul Barrage, valued at $123,480 for the 700 acres of their land. Whenever the farmers have protested about lack of payment through conventional means, they have been meet with violence from the police including beatings, been fired upon, and jailed without trial..

Not only have the Mathura farmers not received compensation for the seized land, they have also faced crop damage from seasonal rains leading to 40 farmers committing suicide in despair.

Now in a bizarre PR effort to draw attention to their plight, farmers have written to the Government “asking” for permission to hang themselves, because they say death is better than the life they will face because the Government has reneged on promises to pay them for the land it has seized. They have said they would like to carry out the mass hangings tomorrow, the 69th anniversary of India’s Independence.

25,000 farmers, belonging to 11 different villages in Mathur wrote to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, just months after they were promised electricity, water and “soil health cards”  which never saw the light of day.

In their letter, under the banner Bharatiya Kisan Sanghl, they said “Despite several assurances and the matter being raked up in Parliament, the state government continues to turn a blind eye to the sufferings of the farmers”.

Now in a desperate move to get action, the farmers have written another letter to the President seeking permission to commit suicide.

One of the farmers, Roop Singh said “We have lost all and want to end our lives. We want the president’s permission,”

Government officials have asked the farmers to wait a “few days” until a court can review the matter. They said some farmers are owed money but not all of the 25,000 suicidal farmers are entitled to compensation.

Meet The Ecocapsule, The Future Of Green Living

Nice Architects is giving customers a glimpse of the future with their high-tech Ecocapsule home. The ambitious project could mark a transition to a more minimalist future driven solely by clean energy.

The small, egg-shaped home is a low-energy house designed for one or two people. It comes complete with a solar panel and wind-turbine to produce its own energy. A prototype has already been completed and the first units are planned to be shipped as early as Spring 2016.

Despite its small size, the Ecocapsule includes such amenities such as storage space, a kitchenette, a double bed, shower and a bathroom complete with toilet that collects bio waste. The mobile home contains a 9744Wh battery, which can be powered by a silent wind turbine of 750W or solar panels of 600W.

Having the two sources of energy allows the dwelling to cope with times there are no wind or no sun. These additions make the Ecocapsule ideal for off-grid travel. Rainwater is also collected by the home and filtered for use within.

The architects suggest the micro dwelling is designed for people wanted to travel off of the grid for long periods of time or for young people living in areas of high rent. The Ecocapsule measures 7.9 feet in width, 14.6 feet in length and 8.2 feet in height. It boasts 86 square feet of living space.

Pre-orders will be available towards the end of 2015, when the company will announce prices for the dwelling. The company is currently working on reducing the weight and size of the home to increase the ease of transportation. Estimated shipping costs hover around $2500 from Slovakia to New York and $1700 from Slovakia to Melbourne. Nice Architects plans to offer customizations of the unit after the first ones hit the market.

ecocapsule_exterior

ecocapsule_interior

Charged Flash Crash Scapegoat Released From Prison Amid Extradition Fight

Navinder Singh Sarao, a patsy charged in the 2010 flash stock market crash, is being released after spending four months in a London prison. Sarao is now fighting extradition after a judge changed his terms of bail.

The trader’s release was secured as he revealed around $39 million USD worth of assets that were invested in Switzerland. The U.S. will now seize the money that Sarao was charged with making illegally. As the money becomes available, Sarao will pay the court just under $4 million from the Swiss assets.

Sarao was arrested and charged with market manipulation and fraud as he allegedly played was behind one in five sell orders on May 6, 2010, as almost $1 trillion vanished from the U.S. stock market in a few minutes. Yet the claims, as we’ve covered before, raise a series of tough questions as Sarao was one single individual using a retail brokerage account.

Sarao merely beat high frequency traders at their own game and sought to have his trades fairly executed. What ensued was financial chaos, caused by a cascading series of algorithms launched by large high frequency trading (HFT) firms. The incident exposed serious weaknesses in the financial system introduced by predatory electronic trading, where one single trader can destroy $1 trillion of wealth in a keystroke.

Yet Sarao has been in jail since authorities placed him in custody in April at his house in London and the big HFT firms like Citadel and Vertu haven’t been asked to account for their much larger role in the crash.

The original bail was set at just under $8 million based on the amount in Sarao’s trading account. There were two unsuccessful attempts at getting the security waived as the U.S. claimed he had made over $60 million in profit. However, the disclosure of the $39 million in Switzerland was enough to satisfy authorities that eventually granted the renewed bail.

According to Sarao’s lawyers, the trader was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome in the past. They cite this as a key reason against his extradition.

Currently, Sarao is unable to leave the greater London area. He is also unable to access the Internet for any “fiscal” purposes.

The next scheduled hearing for his extradition is for September although his lawyers are asking for a delay.

The most recent hearing lasted 45 minutes and was free from the drama that marked the May court appearance. Sarao shouted that he was only guilty for being good at his job, which appears to be the truth.

Whether HFT giants like Citadel and Vertu will let that truth out remains to be seen. Its far more convenient for them to let Sarao hang than shine light on the murky world of their dirty dealings. Thus far regulators in the United States, who are notoriously close to Citadel, have refused to publicly examine the issue. UK authorities also seem unwilling to get involved beyond Mr. Sarao.

Mercedes, BMW Are Latest Vehicles Vulnerable To OwnStar Hack Attack

A device that takes control of cars and thought to only affect General Motors cars has evolved to include BMW, Mercedes and Chrysler motor vehicles. A Los Angeles based security analyst has come up with an improved version of the OwnStar device that can now wirelessly hack into any of these vehicles and remotely start them.

Samy Kamkar stirred the auto industry when he revealed that an upgraded OwnStar device he created can hack into the operations of GM, BMW, Mercedes and Chrysler vehicles. Speaking at the DefCon Security conference in Las Vegas this week, Kamkar attributed the hack to mobile software communications channels that exposed the car user’s details and could be intercepted by OwnStar.

Kamkar revealed that the OwnStar device, originally developed for GM’s RemoteLink OnStar communications, can detect mobile-car signals and inject packets of data that enable the hacker to receive the communication streams and even access user credentials. It is those user credentials that are used to access the car user’s OnStar account, and with that, the car’s full functionality.

Today, OwnStar has moved beyond GM and has adapted the tools for hacking other car applications including BMW’s Remote, Chrysler’s Uconnect and Mercedes Benz’s mbrace.

According to Kamkar, all the device needs to execute an attack is to be stationed in a portable case next to a target vehicle. From there, it can capture the credentials from exposed communication streams, remotely unlock, lock down and even start a vehicle, completely overriding owner controls.

Early in August, Fiat Chrysler recalled 1.4 million vehicles over security fears after random hackers demonstrated they could hack into the car and completely take control of the vehicle’s functions including starting, air conditioning, seat belts, accelerating, decelerating and even braking.

Kamkar said he was in talks with BMW, Mercedes and Chrysler to improve on the cars’ security.

Vehicle owner security was thrown in the limelight when Fiat Chrysler recalled over a million vehicles due to security concerns. Electric carmaker Tesla Motors also recently found itself the victim of vehicle hacking attacks and promptly poached Google’s head of security to secure its almost fully-wired cars.

The new OwnStar device shows that likely many more vehicles can be hacked into. Automakers are now faced with placing increased attention on guaranteeing end user safety for the millions of ordinary citizens on the road using wired cars.

UK Starts Trials Of Roads That Charge Electric Cars As They Drive

The United Kingdom, through the group Highways England, is developing technology that will charge electric vehicles as they are driven across the country’s highways. The group plans to test the technology on nonpublic roads in order to tweak the design and to ensure it actually works. In the near future, electric vehicle drivers may not have to worry about running out of charge on long road trips.

After testing several approaches, Highways England has identified systems that work and are manufacture-ready. The technology works by a process known as Shaped Magnetic Field in Resonance. Basically, the technology system contains power lines connected to metal coils under the road’s surface, which then transmit the generated electricity through the air to a receiver coil in the vehicle. By driving down the stretch of highway in a compatible electric or hybrid vehicle, its battery will be charged on the fly.

As announced by Highways England, the power transfer could likely work with all vehicle types. Since the technology is placed under the surface of the road, the building of structures above ground is unnecessary, an important factor in avoiding possible collisions or electric shocks. The wireless system is less obtrusive than the overhead cables currently used for city trolleys and trains.

Transport Minister Andrew Jones says the U.K. government is committed to spend approximately $780 over the next five years in order to develop rechargeable low-emission vehicles and related technology, aiming to “keep Britain at the forefront of this technology. . . The potential to recharge low emission vehicles on the move offers exciting possibilities. As this study shows, we continue to explore options on how to improve journeys and make low-emission vehicles accessible to families and businesses.”

As part of this initiative, the off-road trials will begin later in 2015 and continue for 18 months while the government works on cost and feasibility studies of bringing it to the country’s main roads. Britain is very excited about the technology and hopes it transforms England’s existing “brutal, crass and ugly” highway system into something “beautiful and award-winning,” according to transport minister John Hayes. He further articulated that, “We want roads to be based upon principles of good design. From maintaining the right proportions in construction to use of street lighting, signage and other roads ‘furniture’ and from delivering better air quality and biodiversity.”

Pentagon Officials Admit Russia Could Capture All Of Europe If It Wanted To

In a move designed to either give Moscow a false sense of security, or give the U.S. military a wake up call, the Defense Department has “admitted” its forces are not prepared for an all out war with Russia in Europe.

The admission by two defense officials follows a review of several classified exercises over the last few months which showed, among other things, the number of precision-guided munitions available to U.S forces was below what would be needed, and that it would be hard to sustain a large troop presence in some conflict zones if Russia attacked NATO allies.

“Could we probably beat the Russians today in a sustained battle? Sure, but it would take everything we had,” one of the defense official said. “What we are saying is that we are not as ready as we want to be.”

In June, the U.S. military also took part in Allied Shield, four major field exercises with 19 NATO partners 15,000 troops and in March, while on the other side of the coin, Russia had in April conducted military exercises deploying 80,000 personnel.

One of the officials said as well as the on-ground exercises, a “tabletop exercise”, a kind of in-office war game, “told us that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have depleted our sustainment capability.”

During the height of the Cold War, there were 250,000 U.S. military personnel deployed in Europe. After the first Gulf War, that fell to 91,000 and today there are just 31,000.

Military experts over the last few months have been saying that Russia under President Putin was an “existential threat” to the U.S. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has not quenched that view.

Yet these views are not shared by all within the Pentagon, at least not “officially”. Everyone acknowledges that Russia has 4,000 nuclear weapons, and an increasingly erratic leader, but there appears to be little agreement on how big a threat Russia is to the U.S.  

One U.S. intelligence official said “A war between Russian and NATO is an unlikely scenario given the severe repercussions Russia would face. In addition to the overwhelming reaction it would provoke, Russia’s aging military equipment and strained logistical capabilities make a successful offensive attack a very difficult proposition for them. “In short, direct conflict with Russia is a low probability, high-risk situation. The challenge of Putin’s erratic leadership is that low probability events are slightly more probable.”

Military experts said the U.S. still holds the winning cards in many ways but there are severe limits to that advantage. For example its air power would be relying on well used fighter pilots and limited maintenance abilities for their planes, with surveillance drones needing to be transferred from other conflict zones.

One expert said “Against an adversary like Russia, we can’t take the kind of air dominance we’ve had in conflicts since 9/11 for granted. Any conflict of significant magnitude against an adversary like Russia means we’d need to commit airmen and resources that are now operating in other parts of the world at a rate that minimizes their ability to train for that kind of fight.”

He added, “We may very well be able to provide the airpower that would allow us and our allies to prevail in a high-end fight, but the current state of our air forces definitely doesn’t make that a sure bet.”

One of the military experts said the focus of the recent military exercises was on “what each side sees as its most exposed areas, with NATO concentrating on the Baltic States and Poland whilst Russia is focusing primarily on the Arctic and High North, Kaliningrad, occupied Crimea, and its border areas with NATO members Estonia and Latvia,”

Outgoing Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army, Army Gen. Raymond Odierno, in his final briefing with reporters, said NATO exercises conducted in Europe showed ” even small challenges” that could have “outsized impact”  in a war against Russia.

“One of the things we learned is the logistical challenges we have in Eastern Europe. For example, Eastern Europe has a different gauge railroad than Western Europe where U.S. has traditionally trained, so moving supplies is more difficult. So we are learning.” he said

Odierno also warned that  “only 33 percent” of the U.S. Army’s brigades were currently sufficiently trained for a war with Russia.

But despite the fears expressed within the Pentagon, many other Government officials are not as worried. They say the Pentagon’s stated worries are a way of seeking leverage against budget cut threats.

Senior fellow at the Washington D.C. based Center for American Progress, Lawrence Korb said the Pentagon was using Russian aggressions over recent years to fight budget battles.

He said the U.S. spends $600 billion on defense compared to Russia’s $60 billion, Russian weapons are not as modern, and that Putin has laid to rest his planned $400 billion military upgrade.

“We’d clean their clocks.[Russian troops are not that good. They are not as modern. I think the military took advantage of recent Russian aggression because it has become clear we would not use large ground armies” to confront groups like the self proclaimed Islamic State.” he said.

New Study Points To Terrifying Future For World’s Oceans

The oceans as we know them will be radically different and irreparably damaged by 2100 according to scientists. The results will mean fantastic changes for coastal cities, marine life and the environment as we know it.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, NOAA, likes to say, “There is only one global ocean.” Through pollution, overfishing and downright neglect for our waters, we have progressively charted it to a future that can only been compared to a scene from a Hollywood post-apocalyptic movie.

According to climatologist Michael Mann, who recently published a landmark study on the world’s oceans, “in a worst case scenario, i.e. one in which we pursue business-as-usual through the end of the century, the oceans will look something out of a post-apocalyptic Hollywood flick. We are talking about the depletion of fish populations by overfishing, the massive die-off of much other sea life due to water pollution and ocean acidification, the destruction of coral reefs by the twin impacts of ocean acidification and bleaching by increasingly warm ocean waters.”

Climatologists have mapped the changes to occur in various forms. According to Mann, the first manifestation will be rising tides. As it stands, the oceans are growing because of two factors: melting Arctic ice and thermal expansion.

The world’s oceans absorb over 90 per cent of the excess heat from the earth. This causes sea expansion that is worsened by the thawing of ice at the Arctics.

Scientists have predicted that if this goes on, by 2100, ocean levels will have risen by 5 feet, meaning most of New Orleans, Miami and New York will be swallowed by water. In other coastal cities around the world, the damage will be colossal.

Hot water is the other manifestation. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), “Over the last 39 years, oceans have warmed at average rates of >0.1˚C per decade in the upper 75 meter and 0.015˚C per decade at 700 m depth.”

The increased heating causes coral to bleach. Combined with increased acidification from pollutants, “Nearly every coral reef could be dying by 2100 if current carbon dioxide emission trends continue,” says a report published on the journal Science.

The hot water will produce terrifyingly powerful storms, heightened and frequent flooding, increased low-oxygen marine dead zones and the homelessness of millions of polar and aquatic animals.

But it gets worse. Acid splash is another forthcoming effect. Up to 40 per cent of all carbon emissions are drawn back to earth where they form carbonic acid. Predictions have placed the ocean’s acidity to increase by over 150 per cent more than during the industrial era. This will spell certain death for up to 96 per cent of marine life.

Columbia University Scientist taro Takahashi said, “I agree with their prediction for the magnitude of acidification: the pH of surface ocean water decreases from today’s about 8.1 to about 7.75 by 2100 (an increase of 225 percent in the hydrogen ion concentrations).”

The new study paints a picture of oceans that are fast depreciating. If things do not change, our children and their children may never get to swim, surf or even come close to the open seas, which by that time will become a toxic swamp. The research shows that radical steps need to be taken immediately to safeguard our planet’s future. The good news is, this doesn’t have to be our future, we can change things. Assuming world leaders have the will to do so.

A Century Later, DNA Tests Prove President Warren Harding Had An Illegitimate Child While In Office

Dismissed as a “degenerate,” denounced as a “pervert’ and publicly shamed for what was termed as a diabolic campaign to tear away at the legacy of former U.S. President Warren G. Harding, Nan Britton can now rest in peace after science has proven she did in fact have a child with the former President. The revelation will both legitimize her family and give her historical prominence.

Before Lucy Mercer or Monica Lewinsky, there was Nan Britton. Britton was rebuked by an entire nation for publishing “falsehoods” about their beloved president. Her claim that she had an affair with the president and that she even sired a daughter with former President Harding were labeled “diabolical” and that she was intent on ruining the legacy of America’s 29th president.

Nan died having never found recognition and her family line has never gotten to know the truth until recently when ancestral DNA testing proved the two did have a daughter together.

The genetic tests revealed that Elizabeth Ann Blaesing, Britton’s daughter, was indeed the daughter of President Harding.

Peter Harding and Abigail Harding, great nephew and great niece of the former president made contact with James Blaesing, grandson to Britton and conducted a genetic DNA test.

Testing by AncesryDNA, an Ancestry.com division, revealed that Blaesing was indeed the second cousin to Peter and Abigail, proving beyond all doubt that Elizabeth Ann Blaesing was truly Harding’s daughter.

Abigail said, “I have no doubts left. When he’s related to me, he’s related to Peter, he’s related to a third cousin – there’s too many nails in the coffin, so to speak. I’m completely convinced.”

Nan Britton grew up in Marion where her father knew Harding. Britton was sprung by Harding, who was 30 years her senior. She hung pictures of him on her wall and even sought his help in finding a job. Harding agreed to meet her in New York in 1917 when she was 20 and ever since she became “Mr. Harding’s bride.”

Harding, at the time, was married but childless, something that made him very attractive back then. Britton’s affair with Harding went on even after he became president. The two found time to meet and even “made love” in “a small closet in the anteroom.” Later on, she became pregnant with his daughter.

Britton said Harding never met their daughter but he did provide financial support.
When Harding died in office in 1927, Britton was devastated. She was more shocked to realize she could neither get recognition nor financial support for her daughter. She resorted to publishing a tell-all book “The President’s Daughter,” leading to years of public rebuking and outright condemnation.

For Blaesing’s family, the truth has finally brought validation to their extended family. For avid American historians, history can finally be rewritten.

Jeb Bush Says He Wouldn’t Rule Out The Use Of Torture If Elected In 2016

2016 Presidential hopeful Jeb Bush announced he will not completely rule out the use of torture as an interrogation technique. Bush said that though the method was inappropriate, there were circumstances where the use of such tactics would be necessary for the safety of the American people, though he refused or conveniently chose not to state when that would be the case.

Bush was speaking before an Iowa audience organized by Americans for Peace, Prosperity and Security, a group chaired by former Republican Mike Rogers. Bush was responding to a question on whether he would continue President Barack Obama’s standing order banning the CIA’s use of enhanced interrogation techniques.

“I don’t want to make a definitive, blanket kind of statement,” he said. Though acknowledging that the methods were largely “inappropriate”, Bush refused to rule out their use if he was President, saying that in some circumstances, the measures would be necessary for the safety of the American people.

“That’s why I’m not saying in every condition, under every possible scenario,” he added.

Torture as an interrogative technique was largely banned by Jeb’s older brother, former President George W. Bush, towards the end of his tenure. President Barack Obama enforced an executive order banning the CIA’s use of the enhanced techniques on Al Qaeda operatives.

A 2014 Senate report indicated that the CIA had been using waterboarding, nudity, humiliation, sleep deprivation and other inhumane methods of questioning to get information from their prisoners. The methods could not be used by the U.S. military on their prisoners of war under international law. The report also added that the methods were ineffective, with no information that would enhance America’s safety being divulged.

The report revealed that not only did the CIA lied about the methods they used while extensively grilling prisoners, they also chose not to disclose certain techniques they used to the public.

After his comments Bush said there was a difference between torture and enhanced interrogation techniques. He refused to elaborate on his interpretation of the difference and the extent to which he would allow it.

Foreign policy is quickly shaping up to be a hot issue on the 2016 race to the White House. Jeb Bush recently attacked Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton for supporting a “premature” departure from Iraq in 2011 as former Secretary of State, a move he says contributed to the emergence of the Islamic State.

Bush said he would not deploy additional troops into Iraq but he would authorize special operatives in form of “forward spotters” to help identify the enemy.

Bush approached the issue of torture carefully being that it was a particularly thorny issue for his elder brother in his last days on the hill. An undefined definition of torture could be interpreted to justify inhumane acts by the CIA, acts that could ultimately be used against American citizens.

Robots Are Starting To Steal Jobs In China’s Factories And Workers Are Freaking Out

In the industrial city of Dongguan, China, there are the beginnings of a technologic revolution. At Changying Precision Technology Company, some 600 manufacturing workers have recently been replaced by just 60 industrial robots, in a shift that is part of the nation’s new “Robot Replace Human” program. Scheduled to have finished over 1,000 similar programs throughout Dongguan by 2016, there is the potential for dramatic increases in productivity yet with that increased productivity comes the possibility of technological unemployment. Such gains in productivity often lead to so-called “jobless growth.”

At Changying, the new workforce has resulted in increased production of 250%, in addition to a reduction in defects from 25% down to 5%. What few human employees that do remain at the plant are merely for monitoring purposes. These numbers are all according to the People’s Daily, the official paper of the Chinese Communist Party, so should be taken with some skepticism. However, according to the German-based International Federation of Robotics, a non-profit which advocates for the advancement of robotics in society, China is expected to double the number of industrial robots in use by 2017, from 200,000 to 400,000.

China is still early in its adoption of robot labor, utilizing only 30 robots per 10,000 manufacturing workers. This ratio ranges from five to eleven times greater in places such as North America, Germany and Japan. In addition, four out of five robots in China are foreign-made, usually from Japan or Germany.

If the “Robot Replace Human” policy is implemented throughout Dongguan on a similar scale as the Changying factory, it will lead to some 1 million workers losing their jobs. Whether or not those people find a new career remains anyone’s guess. For the legions of workers currently employed in China’s factories the future looks grim as even former critics of the theory of technological unemployment are starting to reverse their positions.

Former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers stated in 2014 that he no longer believed automation would always create new jobs. A survey among participants of the 2014 World Economic Forum meeting in Davos found that 80% of respondents agreed that technology was driving jobless growth. If jobless growth becomes a growing trend, all nations will have to decide on a strategy to prepare for their growing populations of unemployed citizens. The effects will be most acutely felt in the world’s most populous nations, especially China and India, raising fresh policy challenges for their governments.

Apple Postpones Rollout Of Live Streaming Television Service

Consumers anxiously awaiting Apple’s internet based, live streaming television service will continue to wait until at least 2016. Apple Inc. was supposed to unveil its streaming TV service at the upcoming September launch of the company’s new products. However, trouble with securing content deals as well as difficulties creating a computer than can handle the required capacity have slowed progress. Therefore, service will likely be delayed until next year.

Apple is facing television content licensing problems that it did not face when it took over the music industry several years ago. Back when iTunes was created, music artists and industry executives were in the throes of dealing with pirated music and peer-to-peer music sharing practices. Services like Napster allowed users to download music for free and, in turn, artists made no money. So when iTunes came along and actually offered to pay the artists a very tiny fee for their music, the music industry jumped at the deal. Conversely, the television industry is in a much different position. Presently, Apple is new to the market and cable companies, satellite television providers and services like Netflix and Amazon Prime dominate the field.

Networks like the idea of another service paying for their content, but they are in a position to hold out for the right price. Eddy Cue, Apple senior vice president of Internet software and services said earlier this spring that, “TV is a hard problem to solve. One of the problems you have with TV is you have a disparate system with a bunch of providers. There’s no standards. There’s a lot of rights issues.”

Apple is trying to find the right combination of channels to appeal to an increasing number of cord-cutters (those cancelling their traditional cable and satellite television subscriptions) while charging a reasonable subscription fee, likely in the $30-$40 range.

Apple also has had trouble developing a network that ensure a bug-free, fast viewing experience throughout the entire country. In order to make the process economically feasible, Apple needs to “store” popular shows near the viewers as opposed to storing everything in its four data centers in California, Oregon, North Carolina and Nevada. Nick Del Rio, an analyst with Moffettnathanson LLC observed that, “Apple could send every bit from one central point, but the bandwidth costs would be exorbitant. Plus, the service would be terrible.”

So, as Apple works on its television streaming service, it will continue to promote its Apple Music streaming service (which presently is not doing as well as expected) and its Apple Pay mobile-wallet platform (which also is not doing very well). It remains to be seen whether Apple TV will revolutionize the television industry as iTunes revolutionized the music industry.

Kerry To Raise U.S. Flag At Reinstated Havana Embassy

John Kerry, the U.S Secretary of State, will travel to Havana to raise the U.S flag at the American embassy. The move is a significant sign of the softening relations between the two nations, which were once cold-war enemies.

The event, which will see the American flag erected on the embassy house for the first time in 54 years, takes place approximately four weeks after Cuba and the U.S officially improved their diplomatic undertakings to embassies.

The Cubans held their flag-raising event in Washington on July 20th, but the Americans had to wait until the Secretary Of State, John Kerry, could travel.

Kerry, the only U.S. secretary of state to go to Cuba in 70 years, will go in the company of members of Congress, aides and three U.S. Marines who lowered the American flag in Havana in January 1961. Washington detached diplomatic relations with Havana as affairs got bitter soon after the infamous 1959 Cuban Revolution.

Cuba’s mansion in Washington and the seven-story waterfront building in Havana were closed down from 1961 until 1977, when they were restored as ‘interests sections’, a step below official embassies.

In a bid to end the long hostile relations, U.S. President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro announced that they would reinstate diplomatic relations, work to stabilize ties and re-establish the embassies. The moves pave the way for the once flourishing trade between the two countries to re-open.

President Obama has employed his official powers to ease some of the U.S trade and travel restrictions, but the Republican-dominated congress has restrained his efforts to put to an end America’s comprehensive economic embargo.

Obama’s government says Washington’s extensive strategy of trying to impose change in the communist-governed country of Cuba through isolation was not effective. Speaking to Univision television ahead of his trip, Kerry said he hoped to see notable “transformation” start to take place.

Kerry said, “More people will travel. There will be more exchange. More families will be reconnected. And hopefully, the government of Cuba will itself make decisions that will begin to change things.”

Kerry plans to meet Cuban dissidents at the embassy of the U.S. on Friday afternoon in Havana. The dissidents were not asked to the dawn flag-raising in reverence to the Cuban administration, which sees dissidents as U.S.-backed mercenaries.

Reinstated diplomatic ties mean that the U.S diplomats will travel without restraint and increase personnel. Cuba has also cut down the number of security officers who keep an eye on Cubans moving in and out.

The duty of regulating overall ties is more complicated.

Cuba wants the U.S. to return the navy base at Guantanamo Bay, lift the trade embargo and halt television and radio signals beamed to the small communist country.  

The Americans want the Cubans to review their human rights record, work on the return of fugitives enjoying asylum and respond to the claims of American citizens whose property was publicized after Fidel Castro took power.

Tribes Making Contact With Outside World Force South American Policy Re-Think

Government officials as well as Indian activists are being forced to reconsider their “no contact” policies as indigenous tribes are beginning to initiate contact with the outside world. In Peru and parts of Brazil, the Amazon rainforest is beginning to shrink, reducing the area that such indigenous tribes used to hide in isolation.

José Carlos Meirelles, an activist who has worked to protect the isolated tribes of the Amazon rainforest for over 40 years told National Geographic, “The people are coming out. I believe we’re going to see a succession of first contacts in the coming ten years.”

As contacts with locals are becoming more frequent, Peruvian officials sent an expedition to make a “controlled contact” with the Mascho-Piro tribe that was initiating the contact.

Before, several locals had filmed and taken pictures of themselves interacting with members of the tribe. While most of the interactions were harmless, one 22-year-old man was shot in the heart with an arrow and died in the village. The reason for the altercation is still unknown.

The Mascho-Piro tribe first began making their appearances in the area around 3 years ago. Tensions are beginning to rise between the tribe and other inhabitants of the area that aren’t used to sharing space.

The goal of the controlled expedition sent by the Peruvian government is to usher the Mascho-Piro into contact with the outside world. This way there is some sense of control over the inevitable, as the contact now appears certain to happen.

Movements to initiate contact are being met with harsh criticism, as some believe it will destroy the protection of other indigenous tribes. An adviser to the Ministry of Culture, Luís Felipe Torres told National Geographic, “We’re between the sword and the wall. This is an emergency that requires a concrete response.”

As the rainforest around Peru and Brazil will continue to decrease in the next few decades, more and more tribes will be exposed to contact with the outside world. The “no contact” policies that were once in place are no longer an effective way of dealing with the tribes.
Officials and activists will now have the tough task of respecting the tribes while worrying about the protection of them as well as their neighbors in the outside world.

TV Network CBS Eyes Streaming Live NFL Football Games

At a conference this week public TV network CBS again mentioned the possibility of the NFL offering games on its streaming service CBS All Access.

Joe Ianniello, CBS COO said, “The math from where we sit, is pretty exciting. There’s definitely upside value. The $6 seems to be the right price point without it, and we’ll see where it goes if we can obtain it.”

CBS claims it will be a “win-win”. The consumer, the NFL and CBS will all have an upside in the deal. These announcements were made at Nomura’s Media & Telecom Conference.

Clearly, the deal between the NFL and CBS is moving slowly as CBS CEO Leslie Moonves announced five months prior his goal to use CBS All Access to host NFL games. Although negotiations are in process, it will be unlikely that fans see this season’s games on CBS All Access. Thus far only Yahoo Inc. has agreed to terms with the NFL to stream a single game, the league’s annual visit to London.

As Walt Disney and Viacom suffered over the last week, media stocks suffered noticeably. Ianniello assured consumers on Thursday that despite the nature of the stock market, CBS cannot lose with their CBS All Access as its network will certainly not be left out of cable bundles. He stated, “Any successful new tier, new package, we’re going to be part of it.”

It turns out CBS All Access is more lucrative than when traditionally televised. The network only receives a $2 fee for each sub while the streaming device receives $5.99 per sub. In addition, ads can’t be skipped on All Access and a CBS makes money on a CPM basis.

In order to keep the whole CBS package only available through CBS, Ianniello has purposefully spread the content around and not focused it in one area.

According Ianniello, CBS All Access isn’t hurting for subscribers as it outnumbers, SlingTV, the streaming service offered by Dish Network. Defending Netflix from being called a monopoly, he said that CBS makes much more money from licensing content internationally than to Netflix.

Once Advocating Transparency, Etsy Joins In Use Of Secret Irish Companies To Hide Information

Etsy Inc., the popular marketplace for artisan goods, is making moves to ensure its offshore tax cutting set-up remains a secret. The Brooklyn, New York based company recently took advantage of some laws in Ireland by designating their Irish subsidiary as an unlimited liability company, a tactic often used by big internet companies.

The company that once claimed to be a forerunner for business transparency has now successfully found a loophole allowing them to keep basic financial information private from the public eye.

With this transition, Etsy joins a long list of companies including LinkedIn Corp. and Google Inc. that are able to shroud the shift of their profits to tax-free locations such as Isle of Man or Bermuda.

To take advantage of this loophole offered in Ireland, Etsy simply rerouted a majority of its revenue through its Irish subsidiary. The company announced that any users outside of the US would enter into the terms of agreement not with the parent company but with Etsy Ireland.

Nondisclosure is the primary objective that companies such as Etsy and Google Inc. are achieving when making the move to an unlimited liability company. Under this new moniker, these companies don’t have to publically disclose financial information such as income statements or balance sheets.

With the number of companies taking advantage of this scheme increasing at an alarming rate, 18 percent since 2009, consumers should start asking themselves why companies feel the need to conceal such information.

In an e-mailed statement, Etsy justified their change in tax structure by citing the “increasing amount of revenue and intellectual property outside of the US.” The company stated, “After careful consideration and consultation, we have evolved our tax structure to accurately account for the value of that property. We pay taxes at the local rate and make all required filings in the jurisdictions in which we operate.”

Right now, Ireland’s laws provide a sort of tax shelter for these companies allowing them to keep their tax information private. This activity usually involves moving revenue to offshore, tax-free locations. Ireland announced that the laws allowing this tax shelter would gradually be abolished. In the meantime, Etsy and similar companies are enjoying the benefits of greater privacy and lower taxes while their consumers are kept in the dark.

Single Lawnmower Found To Have Caused Massive Oregon Wildfire

On Thursday, fire commanders said that the $22 million Oregon wildfire was started by a single lawnmower and the culprit may find himself on the hook for millions of U.S. dollars.

The July 30 Stouts Creek fire started on the outer edges of Umpqua National Forest, which lies to the east of Canyonville. According to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center, the fire, which was 63 percent contained by Thursday, has already consumed about 23,841 acres, posing a serious threat to 158 homes.

According to the agency, complete suppression is not anticipated until Aug. 22nd or later.

On Thursday, investigators associated the wildfire with a human cause saying it was “related to an individual mowing grass” during prohibited hours.

The Forestry Department said, “Because of the violation, the individual may be liable for fire suppression costs and damages resulting from the fire.”

The fire will be a costly affair as there are more than 1,500 firefighters from three Canadian provinces and 23 states tackling the raging fire with 21 bulldozers, 46 engines, 30 water tenders and 10 helicopters. The bill currently stands at $22.4 million, and is expected to rise.

Deputy Incident Commander Russ Lane said, “Despite the success we’ve had, this is still a big fire with a lot of life and potential in it.”

According to officials from the fire department said that there was an approximate 45 miles of fire hose designed to deliver water to the fire personnel on the line. In total, there are 1900 men and women fighting to contain the fire which broke out near Milo, the small community lying approximately 14 miles southeast of Roseburg.

The Stouts Fire was Oregon’s largest at an approximated 24,000 acres and that most of the fire’s most recent intensification came from burnout activities to leave the fire without fuel.

Hillary Clinton Turns Over Email Servers That Reveal She Was Reading A Book On How To Delete Emails

Hillary Rodham Clinton abided by the requests of Justice Department to access her severs — by turning over a chunk of junk.

Barbara Wells, an attorney representing Platte River Networks said that the much-sought-after server turned in by Clinton “was blank.”Wells was speaking on behalf of the Denver based computer company that maintained the server for Clinton.

Speaking to Washington Post, Wells said, “The information had been migrated over to a different server for purposes of transition.” She added, “To my knowledge, the data on the old server is not available now on any servers or devices in Platte River Networks’ control.”

Addressing the Washington Post, computer professionals said that by eliminating the content, Clinton made it complicated, but not impossible to retrieve her mails.

A reliable federal law-enforcement officer informed the Post, “If you delete a large file and then write over it with a smaller file, then you may be able to ¬retrieve the data that was not written over.” Explaining the technicalities, the experts said, “If somebody uses software program to scrub the hard drive clean, that’s problematic.”

However, another specialist said the FBI agents have successfully captured data in cases where the suspects thought it was not retrievable.

According to Clinton, she gave the state department access to her office emails and then cleaned her server.

Clinton wiped off about 30,000 individual emails but was keen to back-up the official ones on thumb drives that were part of the package turned over to the authorities.

Complying with an order of the federal court, advocates for a couple of Clinton’s top aides, Cheryl Mills and Huma Abedin, promised a judge on Wednesday that the aides will not get rid of any of their formal emails.

On Thursday, Clinton’s campaign said there is nothing to be retrieved from her server. In a statement, the campaign said, “As David Kendall [Clinton’s lawyer] said in March, we do not believe any e-mails from her time as secretary exist on the server.”

The Denver-based computer firm, Platte River said it began working for Clinton after she left office, in June 2013, to secure, manage and upgrade her email server.

According to the company spokesperson, Andy Boian, the company moved the server from her home in New York and had it housed at a New Jersey data center.

Wells could not be reached on phone for information on whether the content was still retrievable. The time of wiping the server clean and migrating to a new server remains unclear.

One security specialist said a lot of questions remain unanswered. “They are saying they migrated that data somewhere. Where is the somewhere?” asked the security specialist, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of legal consequences from his bosses. “What happened to the data that was transferred, and is the new server following any of the regulations it’s supposed to?” he wondered.

The FBI is now investigating whether another copy is still in existence or was also destroyed. Of interest to investigators is Hillary’s request for the book ‘SEND: Why People Email So Badly And How To Do It Better’ by David Shipley. Chapter six of that book covers how to delete email such that it cannot be recovered.

ISIS Is Now Using Chemical Weapons Against Kurdish Forces In Iraq

Reports citing anonymous U.S officials alleged that militants of the Islamic state used the poisonous mustard gas against Kurdish military forces in Iraq.

Speaking on Thursday night, U.S Central Command spokesperson, Air Force Col. Pat Ryder said, “We’re looking into the reports.”

Anonymous intelligence officials reported the accusations about the militants of the Islamic State, commonly referred to as ISIS or ISIL.

In an email, Alistair Baskey, the National Security Council spokesman, said “As in previous instances of alleged ISIL use of chemicals as weapons, we are aware of the reports and are seeking additional information.”

“We continue to monitor these reports closely, and would further stress that any use of chemicals or biological material as a weapon is completely inconsistent with international standards and norms regarding such capabilities,” he added.

The ISIL militias have been accused of using the hazardous chlorine gas in weaponry in the past.

Mustard gas is a dangerous substance that was widely used in the First World War, causing injuries to the lungs and the skin. The deadly agent can be distributed using rockets or artillery shells.

Signs indicate the militants’ potential source of mustard gas was Syria. President Bashar Assad’s regime admitted possessing mustard gas in 2013, when it decided to surrender its deadly chemical arsenal, the newspaper reported. It has since been linked to a number of gas attacks which include the use of chlorine and mustard gases.

The Kurds were the biggest victims of a huge 1988 chemical assault when the dictatorial regime of former Iraq president Saddam Hussein let loose its chemical weapons in Halabja town, killing thousands.

According to Aljazeera, German and United States officers have announced that they are looking to investigate findings that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants used the deadly mustard gas against Kurdish forces in Iraq.

Pay TV Service HBO Courts Children With Sesame Street Deal

Sesame Street a long time stable of the free Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), will now be screened on premium cable network HBO, part of a push by the network to expand its audience.

The network has announced a five-year deal with the nonprofit educational group behind “Sesame Street” to carry new seasons of the long running, popular children’s show which means the next five seasons of “Sesame Street” will be shown exclusively on HBO and its streaming services HBO Now and HBO Go.

In a statement HBO said the partnership would allow Sesame Workshop to produce twice as much new content as previous seasons. The shows would be released for free to PBS stations nine months later.
Sesame Workshop would also produce a “Muppet” spinoff series and develop a new original educational series for children for HBO.

Netflix and Amazon will no longer be able to screen old episodes of “Sesame Street,” said Steve Youngwood, chief operating officer at the nonprofit Sesame Workshop.

Television industry experts say the Sesame Street deal could help HBO attract more subscribers as TV viewing continues to move online and at a time when Amazon and Netflix have been expanding their children’s TV programming. It also removes a key piece of children’s programming from the rival networks.

In 2011, Netflix started a section for children aged 12 and under, featuring TV shows and Disney Channel movies. DreamWorks has agreed to create 300 hours of original kids programs for Netflix.

BTIG Research analyst Rich Greenfield said Netflix is retaining subscribers by adding more children’s content, with HBO now following this strategy to keep subscribers interested in its online service. He said adding children’s programing also made it harder for families with children to cancel cable service.

“They have to expand the programming to make it stickier,” he said. “Otherwise it’s too easy when a show ends to disconnect for a few weeks,” he said.

Drone Racing Is Set To Be The Next Big eSport

America looks set to have a new past-time that incorporates the fast-growing drone market and good old fashioned racing. Drone racing, a hot new eSport, uses First Person View (FPV) which sees contestants take a drone’s eye view in a race around a pre-defined course. Pilots wear FPV goggles that display a live feed from the drone’s camera, with speeds reaching up to 100 mph in some cases.

While once a hobby of drone enthusiasts, it has begun to transition from underground sensation to a highly publicized affair with the creation of the Drone Racing League (DRL). Looking to have its first public race later this year, the DRL is hoping to attract a mix of online gaming fans and technophiles.

Considering the fact that in 2014, viewership for the online game League of Legends was greater than Game 7 of the World Series and the final game of the NBA Championship, and you will realize the reasoning behind venture-capital firm RSE Ventures $1 million investment into the DRL. With a phenomenon like online gaming, part of the attraction for viewers is that nearly anyone can pick up the game and invest the time to have some degree of skill, and the same is true with FPV racing.

With the so-called “250 Class” of drones costing between $300 and $500 and reaching speeds of up to 70 mph, a DRL viewer could be operating a model similar to those used during a DRL race. Venues for upcoming DRL races will include abandoned factories and parking garages.

DRL founder Nick Horbaczewski described it as a “completely immersive experience,” and created the league after working as Chief Revenue Officer for Tough Mudder, an obstacle-racing event.

Horbaczewski expanded on what he believes the appeal of the DRL will be, “I felt drone racing could be a sport that resonated with people because it touches on the heritage of racing, but also brings in the benefits of new technology.” With online gaming packing venues like Madison Square Garden, the future for drone racing looks promising.

SEC Admits Its Powerless To Curb Stock Buyback Fraud

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has admitted it has no intention or ability to enforce rules designed to prevent manipulation of the market when companies buy back their own stocks according to its chair Mary Jo White.

White’s comments came in response to questions on stock buybacks raised by Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc., one of a growing band of politicians which includes presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton who are saying buybacks are cases of deliberate financial manipulation that keeps the rich wealthy and stagnates the financial situation of the working class.

Financial experts say stock buybacks are becoming a common practice through which corporations take profits, and instead of putting them back into the business buy shares of their own stock on the open market, building boosting demand and driving up the share price. Last year Companies bought back half a trillion dollars’ worth of their own shares.

The experts say share buy backs create short-term rewards for executives paid in stock options and stocks. The practice also makes corporations look good by limiting outstanding shares and raising reported ratio of earnings-per-share.

In responding to Sen Baldwin’s quiry White admitted the SEC did not collect data that would show if companies were breaching allowed buyback limits.

“Performing data analyses for issuer stock repurchases presents significant challenges,” White said “because detailed trading data regarding repurchases is not currently available.”

William Lazonick, an economics professor at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, said  “The companies have that information, but the SEC doesn’t collect it.”

In her written response to Baldwin, White said his query asking for a list of all investigations undertaken by the SEC into possible violations of buy back rules could not be provided because companies had the option of reporting fully or not, effectively giving them a do-not-go-to-jail-card because even if they did not comply with request for buyback data, they did not violate any rules.

“I wouldn’t have thought that she would put it that way, but she said it,” said Lazonick.

White did however provide a list of  a number of enforcement actions by the SEC against stock market manipulation, including “pump and dump” schemes, through which companies make  false statements to boost their stock prices.  

In an issued  media statement Sen. Baldwin said, “While I am concerned that the SEC lacks the tools to properly evaluate this issue, I am also disappointed that the SEC’s official response does so little to even acknowledge the stock buyback phenomenon we are seeing in financial markets.”

In 2014 companies spent $553 billion to buy back shares. and over recent years business giants like General Motors, Apple, McDonald’s, Microsoft and Pfizer,  have taken part in buy back share operations. Also in 2014 returning profits to shareholders accounted for 95 percent of all earning. A Roosevelt Institute study shows under 10 percent of company earnings are reinvested.

Earlier this year, Sen Baldwin attempted to pass legislation required the SEC to investigate share buy backs but this was blocked by the Republican majority  in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Bernie Sanders in an op-ed in the Boston Globe wrote “We must demand an end to stock buybacks.”and  Hillary Clinton has vowed to increase disclosure by forcing companies to deliver buyback information.

Lazonick said “More disclosure might start a discussion about what manipulation is, but we’re way beyond that. Why not recognize that this is manipulation, and say this is something we shouldn’t allow?”

NSA Grant To Secure Internet Of Things Raises Suspicious Eyebrows

The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has received a $229,000 one year grant from the National Security Agency (NSA) to develop security for a “safer” Internet of Things (IoT).

Although the official reason for the grant from the often controversial U.S. Intelligence agency is to create a lightweight and secure architecture for IoT systems such as smart meters and inter-enabled cars, security experts believe there may be a more sinister reason. They say given the NSA’s history of intercepting the supply chain of routers to plant backdoor security bugs, one could suspect the grant to UAH may be more for wanting to learn how to breach IoT devices rather than secure them.

Experts say that up to now little thought has been given to security of loT systems at the design phase, giving rise to security breaches from weak crypto and authentication systems, as well as almost obvious built-in web console flaws. This has resulting in, among other things, cars being remotely hacked and home routers being left vulnerable.

UAH’s computer science department faculty member Dr Etzkorn said experts in automotive systems and embedded systems will work together on the project, hopefully resulting in security applications for cloud-based systems as well. He said the research phase of the project will bring together multiple disciplines from the electrical and computing department and the computer science department, giving expertise in embedded systems, cyber security, hardware-software co-design, automotive systems and secure processing.

“With the Internet of Things, one expects various ‘things’ – that is, embedded systems – to connect to the cloud. We are examining security methodologies that can apply both at the embedded systems level and the cloud level,” said Etzkorn

Two graduate student researchers will assist Etzkorn along with three full time faculty from UAH’s electrical and computer engineering department, and two faculty members from its computer science department.

The project will begin next month and run through to the summer of 2016.

Deutsche Bank Hit By Yet Another Scandal, This Time Involving Carbon Credits

Prosecutors in Frankfurt have indicted one former and seven current workers of notoriously corrupt financial institution Deutsche Bank for participating in a conspiracy aimed at evading tax. Deutsche Bank’s latest scam to come to light was in its carbon emission trading business and took place about five years ago.

Prosecutors did not expressly mention Deutsche Bank on Thursday, but reliable sources familiar with the scandal recognized it as the organization involved. The bank’s head offices in Frankfurt were invaded by approximately 500 police officers and tax inspectors in 2012, associated with inquiries into the carbon trading industry.

Prosecutors in Frankfurt have examined more than twenty former and current employees at the bank, Germany’s largest, including co-CEO Juergen Fitschen and retired finance head Stefan Krause, who had endorsed the lender’s declarations of tax.

In a statement, Deutsche Bank said, “Our investigation into the C02 (carbon trading) situation is continuing. We are cooperating with authorities.”

The carbon market of European Union was severely affected by so-called carousel business in 2009 and 2010, when buyers imported emissions certifications in one EU nation without properly paying value-added tax (VAT) and sold them to one another, adding VAT to the value and creating tax reimbursements when no tax had actually been paid.

More than 14 people have been sentenced to jail in three nations so far for their participation in carbon trading scandals. Europol, the European police agency, has approximated such an offense has cost taxpayers money amounting to more than €5-billion in lost income since 2008.

Prosecutors in Frankfurt said in May they were closely examining 26 former or current staff at Deutsche Bank – five for money laundering, 17 on suspicion of tax elusion and four for obstruction of fairness and justice.

During the inquiry, the bank paid back €220-million for refunds wrongly claimed in the issue.

On Thursday, the prosecutors mentioned that those implicated in the 865-page condemnation included business executives and a member of the bank’s tax section.

The ages of the suspects range from as low as 33 to a 64-year-old retiree. All except the retired old man have been temporarily dismissed from their formal duties, a spokesperson for the prosecutor’s’ office said.

None of the suspects were identified by name. It is currently up to a judge to take charge of the criminal case, based on the accusations of the prosecutor.

Apple’s Airdrop App Being Used For Smartphone Sex Crimes

Perverts have taken to using Apple Inc.’s Airdrop feature to flash themselves on unsuspecting victims’ smartphones. British police report they are investigating several cases where rail commuters received indecent images on their phones as they traveled to and from work on busy commuter trains.

Gill Murray, of the British Transport Police (BTP), said that while cyberflashing was new it was still a crime and she urged victims to report all incidents to police.

One victim, Ms Crighton-Smith, told police she was cyber flashed while travelling to work on a train in south London.

“I had Airdrop switched on because I had been using it previously to send photos to another iPhone user – and a picture appeared on the screen of a man’s penis, which I was quite shocked by. So, I declined the image, instinctively, and another image appeared, at which point I realized someone nearby must be sending them, and that concerned me. I felt violated, it was a very unpleasant thing to have forced upon my screen,” she said

Airdrop is an app specific to Apple’s Mac and iOS devices. It uses wi-fi and Bluetooth to transfer items to other devices like iPhones. The app has default settings for “contacts only” but settings can be changed to “everyone”, meaning anyone in range can send to users of the app.

“I was also worried about who else might have been a recipient, it might have been a child, someone more vulnerable than me. My name on Airdrop says Lorraine so they knew they were sending it to a woman. The images were of a sexual nature and it was distressing.”

Ms Crighton-Smith immediately used the same phone she had been flashed on to call the British Transport Police as she was worried about the perpetrator’s motives.

“What’s the next stage from sending a naked photograph to a stranger, what happens next, was he getting any sort of gratification from it?” she asked.

Although investigating the incidents Supt Gill Murray said because Ms Crighton-Smith had not “accepted” the penis photos, police had no technological evidence to work on.

Supt Murray said the police had dealt with similar cases involving Bluetooth but the Airdrops incidents are “new to us”.

“Receiving an indecent image from someone you don’t know must be very distressing and something we would take very serious — our advice would be to remain calm, retain the image and report the matter to police as soon as possible,” she said.

“We have a dedicated Cyber Crime Unit who can analyse mobile phones and track data transfers back to suspects’ devices. By linking this to physical evidence, such as CCTV footage or witness statements, we can catch offenders and bring them to justice through the courts.”

Cybersecurity consultant Ken Munro of Pentest Partners said “This means that typically in a train carriage, or tube carriage, you can see other devices.That’s what’s happened in this particular case, someone has enabled everyone and then hasn’t then set it back. As a result anyone within wi-fi or Bluetooth range can send something to you that’s quite horrible.”

Munro said Apple could help by making Airdrop return to the “contacts only” default setting if it had not been used for a specified amount of time.

Apple has declined to comment as of yet.

Self Driving Lawn Mower Cleared For Sale In The United States

While self driving cars are still some years off, America’s yard work is about to get a whole lot easier after U.S. regulators gave robot maker iRobot Corp clearance to make and sell a self driving robotic lawn mower.

Known for its Roomba robot vacuum cleaner, iRobot has created a robotic lawn mower that wirelessly connects with stakes placed in the ground operating as signal beacons. Like its Roomba vacuum robots, the mower cuts the lawn while staying within the beacon stakes.

Europe has enjoyed automated lawn mowers in recent years but in the U.S. competitors only offer hands-free mowers that need underground fences or other complicated safety setups.

But iRobot’s new stake system needed a waiver from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to ensure transmissions between its machines and the stakes wouldn’t interfere with other electronics that use the same frequencies.

IRobot’s lawn mower beacons fell in the category of “fixed outdoor infrastructure” transmitting low-power radio signal without a licence, which the FCC usually prohibits.

The company’s waiver request was fought by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory who argued the lawn mowers would interfere with its telescopes. The FCC was unmoved, opting to waive the rules for iRobot because its beacon design will be safe with limitations imposed on signal strength, height and use in residential areas.

“The FCC’s assessment agrees with our analysis that the technology will not have a negative impact on radio astronomy,” said iRobot spokesman in a statement approving of the FCC’s ruling.

“The FCC’s decision will allow iRobot to continue exploring the viability of wideband, alongside other technologies, as part of a long-term product exploration effort in the lawn mowing category.”

NASA Just Successfully Tested The Engine That Will Put Us On Mars

NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS), the first exploration class vehicle in almost 40 years, took a huge step forward Thursday afternoon after NASA successfully test fired the RS-25 rocket engine, which is slated to be the backbone of the next generation heavy rocket. The test was conducted at the Stennis Space Center, located in Hancock County, Mississippi, near the Mississippi–Louisiana border

The powerful engine, which burns liquid hydrogen, fired for 535 seconds – the exact amount of time it will take the fully completed SLS to reach orbit. It is the sixth of seven slated tests of the massive engine.

Four RS-25s will launch astronauts into orbit aboard the agency’s Orion spacecraft on missions to an asteroid placed in lunar orbit, and eventually to Mars.

The series of tests is evaluating the performance of a new engine controller – a unit that controls engine valve settings to produce efficient combustion, and communicates with the vehicle to accept throttle settings and send sensor data.

Here’s some pictures of the earth shaking action:

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Screenshot from 2015-08-13 17:02:06

Listening To Music Found To Significantly Improve Recovery After Surgery

British scientists established on Thursday that listening to music before, during and after surgery eases the pain of the patient, reduces anxiety and minimizes the need for painkilling drugs.

After evaluating results from around 7,000 patients, the researchers concluded that people undergoing surgery should even be given the opportunity to select the music they prefer to hear to capitalize on the benefit.

However, they were quick to warn that the music should not get in the way of the medical team’s communication during the surgery.

Catherine Meads from Brunel University, who co-headed the study said, “Music is a non-invasive, safe, cheap intervention that should be available to everyone undergoing surgery.”

The panel performed a meta-analysis of all available randomized attempts focusing on how music works, and compared the results to typical care or other non-drug intercessions such as relaxation and massage in making recovery effectual in adults after surgeries.

The outcomes, published in The Lancet journal, established that patients were considerably less nervous after operations and reported more contentment after listening to some music. They also asked for less pain-relieving drugs and reported less pain than the controls.

While the research established that listening to some music seemed effective at any time, the trend indicated that the outcomes were better if the patients listened to it before surgery.

Further, the research established that there was a larger reduction in pain when the patients were given the opportunity to choose their own music.

According to Martin Hirsch of Queen Mary University of London, who co-headed the study, “We have known since the time of Florence Nightingale that listening to music has a positive impact on patients during surgery, by making them feel calmer and reducing pain.” Explaining the background of the study, he added, “However, it’s taken pulling together all the small studies … into one robust meta-analysis to really prove it works.”

Paul Glasziou of Australia’s Bond University observed that the outcomes held an obvious message: “Music is a simple and cheap intervention,” read his comment in The Lancet. “A drug with similar effects might generate substantial marketing,” he added.

The panel now intends to make a follow-up pilot scheme that will introduce music at The Royal London Hospital for women having hysteroscopy and female patients having Caesarean sections.

Patients will be required to present their playlist on a gadget of their choosing to be linked to a pillow with integral speakers, and the scientific researchers will then evaluate the efficiency of introducing this in practice.