[1]Announced this week at RustConf 2025 in Seattle, the new Rust Innovation Lab will offer open source projects "the opportunity to receive fiscal sponsorship from the Rust Foundation, including governance, legal, networking, marketing, and administrative support."

And their first project will be the [2]TLS library Rustls (for cryptographic security), which they say "demonstrates Rust's ability to deliver both security and performance in one of the most sensitive areas of modern software infrastructure." Choosing Rustls "underscores the lab's focus on infrastructure-critical tools, where reliability is paramount," argues [3]explains WebProNews . But "Looking ahead, the foundation plans to expand the lab's portfolio, inviting applications from promising Rust initiatives. This could catalyze innovations in areas like embedded systems and blockchain, where Rust's efficiency shines."

Their article notes that the Rust Foundation "sees the lab as a way to accelerate innovation while mitigating the operational burdens that often hinder open-source development."

> [T]he Foundation aims to provide a stable, neutral environment for select Rust endeavors, complete with governance oversight, legal and administrative backing, and fiscal sponsorship... At its core, the Rust Innovation Lab addresses a growing need within the developer community for structured support amid Rust's rising adoption in sectors like systems programming and web infrastructure. By offering a "home" for projects that might otherwise struggle with sustainability, the lab ensures continuity and scalability. This comes at a time when Rust's memory safety features are drawing attention from major tech firms, including those in cloud computing and cybersecurity, as a counter to vulnerabilities plaguing languages like C++...

>

> Industry observers note that such fiscal sponsorship could prove transformative, enabling projects to secure funding from diverse sources while maintaining independence. The Rust Foundation's involvement ensures compliance with best practices, potentially attracting more corporate backers wary of fragmented open-source efforts... By providing a neutral venue, the foundation aims to prevent the pitfalls seen in other ecosystems, such as project abandonment due to maintainer burnout or legal entanglements... For industry insiders, the Rust Innovation Lab represents a strategic evolution, potentially accelerating Rust's integration into mission-critical systems.



[1] https://rustfoundation.org/media/rust-foundation-launches-rust-innovation-lab-with-rustls-as-inaugural-project/

[2] https://github.com/rustls/rustls

[3] https://www.webpronews.com/rust-foundation-launches-innovation-lab-at-rustconf-2025-for-key-projects/

[1] ScienceAlert reports :

> It's no secret that excessive alcohol consumption damages the liver, but a new study reveals a previously unknown vicious cycle that makes that damage worse. Chronic alcohol use makes it easier for bacteria to leak out of the gut and migrate to the liver, causing further harm.

>

> The new study, led by scientists at the University of California San Diego, examined human liver biopsies as well as mouse models of alcohol-associated liver disease. [2]The team found that chronic alcohol use impaired the production of a cellular signaling protein called mAChR4 in the small intestine. Lower levels of this protein were found to interfere with the formation of what are called goblet cell-associated antigen passages (GAPs). These specialized structures play a key role in teaching the immune system to respond to microbes, particularly those that escape the gut into other parts of the body, where they don't belong...

>

> The researchers found that if they restored the function of mAChR4, GAPs would form again, which in turn repaired the immune system's response to wayward gut bacteria, reducing liver damage. This could be done either by using drugs to directly activate mAChR4 or by targeting related pathways that end up having the same effect...

>

> The research was published [3]in the journal Nature .



[1] https://www.sciencealert.com/vicious-cycle-revealed-how-alcohol-helps-gut-bacteria-attack-your-liver

[2] https://today.ucsd.edu/story/alcohol-opens-the-floodgates-for-bad-bacteria

[3] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09395-z

This week Finland [1]inaugurated the world's largest sand battery , according to the Independent, "capable of storing vast amounts of energy generated from renewable sources like solar and wind."

The battery "will enable residents to eliminate oil from their district heating network, thereby cutting emissions by nearly 70%," [2]notes EuroNews :

> Euronews Green previously spoke to the young Finnish founders, Tommi Eronen and Markku Ylönen, who engineered the technology... Lithium batteries work well for specific applications, explains Markku, but aside from their [3]environmental issues and expense, they cannot take in a huge amount of energy. Grains of sand, it turns out, are surprisingly roomy when it comes to energy storage... The sand can store heat at around 500C for several days to even months, providing a valuable store of cheaper energy during the winter... The battery's thermal energy storage capacity equates to almost one month's heat demand in summer and a one-week demand in winter in Pornainen, Polar Night Energy says...

>

> Polar Night Energy has big ambitions to take its technology worldwide, and is currently in "active discussions" with both Finnish and international partners.

This project (in the Finnish city of Pornainen) "is really important for us because now we can show that this really works," a spokesperson for Polar Night [4]told Clean Technica :

> The profitability of the sand battery is based on charging it according to electricity prices and Fingrid's reserve markets. Its large storage capacity enables balancing the electricity grid and optimizing consumption over several days or even weeks... "The Pornainen plant can be adjusted quickly and precisely," explained Jukka-Pekka Salmenkaita, vice president of AI and special projects at Elisa Industriq, "and it also has a remarkably long energy buffer, making it well suited for reserve market optimization. Our AI solution automatically identifies the best times to charge and discharge the Sand Battery and allocates flexibility capacity to the reserve products that need it most. Continuous optimization makes it a genuinely profitable investment."

Thanks to Slashdot reader [5]AleRunner for sharing the news.



[1] https://www.the-independent.com/tech/sand-battery-renewable-energy-finland-b2818348.html

[2] https://www.euronews.com/green/2025/06/15/sand-batteries-could-be-key-breakthrough-in-storing-solar-and-wind-energy-year-round

[3] https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/02/01/south-america-s-lithium-fields-reveal-the-dark-side-of-our-electric-future

[4] https://cleantechnica.com/2025/08/30/finnish-city-inaugurates-1-mw-100-mwh-sand-battery/

[5] https://www.slashdot.org/~AleRunner

BMW unveiled its new iX3 — [1]with nearly 500 miles of range and ultra-fast charging. The EV news site Electrek reports:

> To maximize range, BMW gave it a clean, aerodynamic design with very few lines... The BMW iX3 offers an impressive WLTP range of up to nearly 500 miles (800 km). On the EPA scale, it's expected to deliver around 400 miles of range.

>

> Based on an 800V architecture, the BMW iX3 can deliver charging speeds of up to 400 kW. According to BMW, that means it can add over 230 miles (370 km) in just 10 minutes.

It's also BMW's first EV with bidirectional charging, according to the article.

But MotorTrend calls it " [2]BMW's Biggest Reinvention Since the '60s ."

> The decision to move forward in every aspect — design, architecture, technology, software, and manufacturing — was made five years ago... The new Neue Klasse architecture will start out with EVs only, but aspects of this new vision will be adopted by 40 vehicles — SUVs, sedans, coupes, maybe even a supercar — with an assortment of powertrains by the end of 2027. In other words, Neue Klasse will touch and influence everything BMW does going forward... The design philosophy for the Neue Klasse vehicles is that they should look like they skipped an entire generation.

From [3]BMW's announcement for the iX3 :

> Physical controls are on hand, including for the windscreen wipers, turn signal indicators, exterior mirrors, volume control, gear selector, parking brake, hazard warning lights, rear window heating and defrost function. Other functions have been optimised for use by touch and voice command or via the multifunction steering wheel... [ MotorTrends notes "you must use the screen to adjust the air vents."]

>

> The BMW Panoramic Vision projects information across the full width of the windscreen, from A-pillar to A-pillar. The content in the centre and on the front passenger side can be adapted to personal tastes and requirements. Key driving information appears in the driver's field of vision. And above the BMW Panoramic Vision, the BMW 3D Head-Up Display (if specified) can now also show integrated navigation and automated driving displays on the road with spatial depth. The free-cut-design Central Display with matrix backlight technology is located in an ergonomically ideal position next to the steering wheel. On the driver's side, vertically arranged widgets enable fast and direct access to particularly frequently used functions using QuickSelect tech. The new multifunction steering wheel serves as the primary physical control point. Its button panels help the driver and vehicle to work together symbiotically using illuminations, a relief-like surface and haptic feedback.

Some [4]details from MotorTrends : There's an avatar for the intelligent personal assistant, activated by saying, "Hey, BMW." The BMW roundel morphs into a blue circle with big, expressive eyes and eyebrows. It looks like an amiable alien that turns to face the person addressing it, and it's programmed to wink, blush, and more, as well as to not stare too long at anyone. The assistant is quick to respond, using Alexa tech and a male or female voice to provide directions, answer questions, and perform functions.

MotorTrends adds that the iX3 "is BMW's first software-defined vehicle, meaning it can use over-the-air updates to fix problems and add features and functions, keeping it fresh over its lifetime with software that BMW developed itself."

BMW's announcement also notes "the latest [5]systems for automated driving optimise symbiotic human-vehicle interaction ..."

> Whenever the driver wants to accelerate, brake or steer, their inputs merge seamlessly and intuitively with AI-enabled software... The functionality offered by the City Assistant includes traffic light detection, where the car automatically stops and then moves off again.



[1] https://electrek.co/2025/09/05/bmw-ix3-debuts-with-500-miles-range-ultra-fast-charging/

[2] https://www.motortrend.com/news/2027-bmw-ix3-first-look-review

[3] https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/article/detail/T0451998EN/the-start-of-a-new-era-the-new-bmw-ix3?language=en

[4] https://www.motortrend.com/news/2027-bmw-ix3-first-look-review

[5] https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/article/detail/T0451998EN/the-start-of-a-new-era-the-new-bmw-ix3?language=en

According to the [1]Financial Times (paywalled), OpenAI is [2]preparing to launch its first in-house AI chip in 2026 through a partnership with Broadcom. From a report:

> OpenAI plans to put the chip to use internally rather than make it available to external customers [...]. Last year, Reuters reported that OpenAI was [3]working with Broadcom and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co to develop its first in-house chip to power its artificial intelligence systems, while also incorporating AMD chips alongside Nvidia chips to meet the surge in infrastructure demands. At the time, OpenAI had examined a range of options to diversify chip supply and reduce costs.

>

> Broadcom CEO Hock Tan said on Thursday that the company expects artificial intelligence revenue growth for fiscal 2026 to "improve significantly," after securing more than $10 billion in AI infrastructure orders from new customer, without naming it. A new prospect placed a firm order last quarter, making it into a qualified customer, Tan said on an earnings call.



[1] https://www.ft.com/content/e8cc6d99-d06e-4e9b-a54f-29317fa68d6f

[2] https://www.reuters.com/business/openai-launch-its-first-ai-chip-2026-with-broadcom-ft-reports-2025-09-05/

[3] https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/24/10/29/2022236/openai-builds-first-chip-with-broadcom-and-tsmc-scales-back-foundry-ambition

Europe on Friday inaugurated [1]Jupiter , its first exascale supercomputer and the [2]most powerful AI machine on the continent . Built in Germany with 24,000 Nvidia chips, the 500-million-euro system aims to close the AI gap with the US and China while also advancing climate modeling, neuroscience, and renewable energy research. France 24 reports:

> Based at Juelich Supercomputing Centre in western Germany, it is Europe's first "exascale" supercomputer -- meaning it will be able to perform at least one quintillion (or one billion billion) calculations per second. The United States already has three such computers, all operated by the Department of Energy. Jupiter is housed in a centre covering some 3,600 meters (38,000 square feet) -- about half the size of a football pitch -- containing racks of processors, and packed with about 24,000 Nvidia chips, which are favored by the AI industry.

>

> Half the 500 million euros ($580 million) to develop and run the system over the next few years comes from the European Union and the rest from Germany. Its vast computing power can be accessed by researchers across numerous fields as well as companies for purposes such as training AI models. "Jupiter is a leap forward in the performance of computing in Europe," Thomas Lippert, head of the Juelich centre, told AFP, adding that it was 20 times more powerful than any other computer in Germany. [...]

>

> Yes, Jupiter will require on average around 11 megawatts of power, according to estimates -- equivalent to the energy used to power thousands of homes or a small industrial plant. But its operators insist that Jupiter is the most energy-efficient among the fastest computer systems in the world. It uses the latest, most energy-efficient hardware, has water-cooling systems and the waste heat that it generates will be used to heat nearby buildings, according to the Juelich centre.



[1] https://www.fz-juelich.de/en/ias/jsc/jupiter

[2] https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250905-europe-s-fastest-supercomputer-to-boost-ai-drive

Apple's $3,500 Vision Pro is [1]finding real traction in niche enterprise use , like CAE's pilot training, Lowe's kitchen design visualization, and Dassault's engineering workflows. "Over the last few weeks, I had an opportunity to try out some of those applications, and they are game-changers, albeit within their specific domains," writes Steven Rosenbush via the Wall Street Journal. "Companies should pay attention now to what's going on in these niche markets. Based on what I saw, these systems are having an impact on the way users integrate content development and engineering, which has implications for the way companies approach roles, teams and workflow." From the report:

> Home-improvement retailer Lowe's has deployed the Vision Pro at five locations in the San Francisco Bay Area and five locations in the Austin, Texas area. Customers use them to visualize how design ideas will look in their actual kitchen. The company plans to scale the effort to 100 of approximately 1,700 stores by the end of the year, eventually ramping up to 400 locations in markets with sufficient scale to justify the investment, Chief Digital and Information Officer Seemantini Godbole told me. [...]

>

> Dassault Systemes, the French industrial software company, has long created virtual worlds for commercial use. Scientists, manufacturing experts, product managers and others use its platforms to design and engineer molecules for drug development, as well as data centers, factories, aircraft and electric cars. The 3DExperience platform was launched more than a decade ago, pulling together a range of Dassault brands including 3DExcite on the premise that "everything is going to become an experience," 3DExcite Chief Executive Tom Acland said. In February, Dassault Systemes and Apple announced a collaboration to produce the 3DLive App, which went live February 7. Users include Hyundai, Virgin Galactic and Deutsche Aircraft, he said.

>

> [...] Canadian aircraft training company CAE is using Vision Pro to provide pilot training that complements full-motion flight simulator experience required for certification and recurrent checks, according to Chief Technology and Product Officer Emmanuel Levitte. The company has employed mixed reality and immersive training for at least 10 years. The Vision Pro has unlocked new capabilities, he said. The display is as sharp and readable as the controls in a real cockpit, which Levitte found not to be the case with other devices. The haptic feedback and audio quality also contribute to a more realistic training experience, he said. Remote crew members will also be able to be co-located virtually, enabling training that was previously only possible when individuals were physically in the same cockpit, according to Levitte.



[1] https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/shopping/apple-s-vision-pro-gaining-traction-in-some-niches-of-business/ar-AA1LO35W

[1]Grady Martin writes:

> [2]Natron Energy has announced the [3]immediate cessation of all operations , including its [4]manufacturing plant in Holland, Michigan , and plans to build a [5]$1.4 billion "gigafactory" in North Carolina . A company representative cited "efforts to raise sufficient new funding [being] unsuccessful" as the rationale for the decision.

>

> When previously covered by Slashdot, comments on the merits of sodium-ion included the ability to use aluminum [6]in lieu of heavier, more expensive copper anodes ; [7]a charge rate ten times that of lithium-ion ; and [8]Earth's abundance of sodium -- though at least one anonymous coward [9]predicted the cancellation of the project .



[1] https://slashdot.org/~Grady+Martin

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natron_Energy

[3] https://www.wral.com/story/battery-maker-natron-closes-shop-killing-plans-for-1-000-jobs-in-north-carolina/22144342/

[4] https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/24/05/03/2317204/lithium-free-sodium-batteries-exit-the-lab-enter-us-production

[5] https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/24/11/09/0414255/americas-first-sodium-ion-battery-gigafactory-announced-cost-14-billion

[6] https://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?cid=64934601&sid=23515293&tid=154

[7] https://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?cid=64447116&sid=23311752&tid=154

[8] https://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?cid=64448130&sid=23311752&tid=154

[9] https://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?cid=64934511&sid=23515293&tid=154

Longtime Slashdot reader [1]sinij shares a report from CBC News:

> Prime Minister Mark Carney is [2]delaying a plan to force automakers to hit minimum sales levels for electric vehicles . The move is part of a series of measures the government announced Friday to help the sectors most affected by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs. The EV mandate will be paused as the government conducts a 60-day review of the policy, and will be waived for 2026 models. Sources told CBC News that the review will look at the entire mandate and next steps.

>

> "We have an auto sector which, because of the massive change in U.S. policy, is under extreme pressure. We recognize that," Carney said at a news conference in Mississauga, Ont. "They've got enough on their plate right now. So we're taking that off." The government is using the review as part of broader look at all the government's climate measures, he added. [...]

>

> Brian Kingston, president of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association, called it "an important first step." "The EV mandate imposes unsustainable costs on auto manufacturers, putting at risk Canadian jobs and investment in this critical sector of the economy," he said in a statement. "A full repeal of the regulation is the most effective way to provide immediate relief to the industry and keep it competitive."



[1] https://slashdot.org/~sinij

[2] https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/carney-ev-mandate-pause-1.7625992

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Deadline:

> Anthropic has [1]agreed to pay at least $1.5 billion into a class action fund as part of a [2]settlement of litigation brought by a group of book authors. The sum, disclosed in a court filing on Friday, "will be the largest publicly reported copyright recovery in history, larger than any other copyright class action settlement or any individual copyright case litigated to final judgment," the attorneys for the authors wrote.

>

> The settlement also includes a provision that releases Anthropic only for its conduct up the August 25, meaning that new claims could be filed over future conduct, according to the filing. Anthropic also has agreed to destroy the datasets used in its models. The settlement figure amounts to about $3,000 per class work, according to the filing.

You can read the terms of Anthropic's copyright settlement [3]here (PDF). A hearing in the case is scheduled for Sept. 8.



[1] https://deadline.com/2025/09/anthropic-ai-lawsuit-settlement-1-5-billion-1236509423/

[2] https://yro.slashdot.org/story/25/07/17/1548245/judge-allows-nationwide-class-action-against-anthropic-over-alleged-piracy-of-7-million-books-for-ai-training

[3] https://deadline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/anthropic3_Redacted.pdf

Mozilla [1]announced today that they will [2]end 32-bit Linux support for Firefox in 2026 , with version 144 being the last release and ESR 140 as the fallback option. Phoronix reports:

> Firefox has continued providing 32-bit Linux binaries even with most other web browsers and operating systems going all-in on x86_64 support. But given that 32-bit Linux support is waning by distributions and the vast majority of distributions aren't even shipping i686 install images anymore, they will be removing 32-bit Linux builds in 2026.



[1] https://blog.mozilla.org/futurereleases/2025/09/05/firefox-32-bit-linux-support-to-end-in-2026/

[2] https://www.phoronix.com/news/Firefox-Ending-32-bit-Linux

Researchers from Nanjing University and the University of Sydney [1]developed an AI-powered bug-hunting agent that mimics human vulnerability discovery, validating flaws with proof-of-concept exploits. The Register reports:

> Ziyue Wang (Nanjing) and Liyi Zhou (Sydney) have expanded upon [2]prior work dubbed A1, an AI agent that can develop exploits for cryptocurrency smart contracts, with A2, an AI agent capable of vulnerability discovery and validation in Android apps. They describe A2 in [3]a preprint paper titled "Agentic Discovery and Validation of Android App Vulnerabilities."

>

> The authors claim that the A2 system achieves 78.3 percent coverage on the Ghera benchmark, surpassing static analyzers like APKHunt (30.0 percent). And they say that, when they used A2 on 169 production APKs, they found "104 true-positive zero-day vulnerabilities," 57 of which were self-validated via automatically generated proof-of-concept (PoC) exploits. One of these included a medium-severity flaw in an Android app with over 10 million installs.



[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/04/boffins_build_automated_android_bug_hunting/

[2] https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.05558

[3] https://arxiv.org/pdf/2508.21579v1

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters:

> President Donald Trump said on Thursday his administration would [1]impose tariffs on semiconductor imports from companies not shifting production to the U.S. , speaking ahead of a dinner with major technology company CEOs. "Yeah, I have discussed it with the people here. Chips and semiconductors -- we will be putting tariffs on companies that aren't coming in. We will be putting a tariff very shortly," Trump said without giving an exact time or rate.

>

> "We will be putting a very substantial tariff, not that high, but fairly substantial tariff with the understanding that if they come into the country, if they are coming in, building, planning to come in, there will not be a tariff," Trump told reporters. "If they are not coming in, there is a tariff," Trump said in his comments on semiconductors. "Like, I would say (Apple CEO) Tim Cook would be in pretty good shape," he added, as Cook sat across the table.

Further reading: [2]Trump Basks in Tech Leaders' Spending Vows at White House Dinner



[1] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-impose-tariffs-semiconductor-imports-002239511.html

[2] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-basks-tech-leaders-spending-005921620.html

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press:

> LSD [1]reduced symptoms of anxiety in a midstage study published Thursday, paving the way for additional testing and possible medical approval of a psychedelic drug that has been banned in the U.S. for more than a half century. The results from drugmaker Mindmed tested several doses of LSD in patients with moderate-to-severe generalized anxiety disorder, with the benefits lasting as long as three months. The company plans to conduct follow-up studies to confirm the results and then apply for Food and Drug Administration approval. [...]

>

> For the study, researchers measured anxiety symptoms in nearly 200 patients who randomly received one of four doses of LSD or a placebo. The main aim was to find the optimal dose of the drug, which can cause intense visual hallucinations and occasionally feelings of panic or paranoia. At four weeks, patients receiving the two highest doses had significantly lower anxiety scores than those who received placebo or lower doses. After 12 weeks, 65% of patients taking the most effective LSD dose -- 100 micrograms -- continued to show benefits and nearly 50% were deemed to be in remission. The most common side effects included hallucinations, nausea and headaches.

>

> Patients who got dummy pills also improved -- a common phenomenon in psychedelic and psychiatric studies -- but their changes were less than half the size those getting the real drug. The research was not immune to problems seen in similar studies. Most patients were able to correctly guess whether they'd received LSD or a dummy pill, undercutting the "blinded" approach that's considered critical to objectively establishing the benefits of a new medicine. In addition, a significant portion of patients in both the placebo and treatment groups dropped out early, narrowing the final data set. It also wasn't clear how long patients might continue to benefit.

If the two trials are successful, Mindmed will submit them for FDA approval.

"It's possible that some people may need retreatment," said Dr. Maurizio Fava of Mass General Brigham Hospital, the study's lead author and an adviser to Mindmed. "How many retreatments, we don't know yet, but the long-lasting effect is quite significant."

The study has been [2]published in the Journal of the American Medical Association .



[1] https://apnews.com/article/lsd-psychedelics-study-anxiety-fda-drugs-trump-8821f7f3683051506d47864db5e5edcf

[2] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/10.1001/jama.2025.13481?guestAccessKey=f420494d-a51d-442c-9d7c-4d14dbbe1aae&utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_content=tfl&utm_term=090425

Microsoft is giving away Microsoft 365 Personal subscriptions [1]to all US college students . From a report:

> This subscription gives students free access to Microsoft's Office apps and the Copilot AI assistant integration for a year, after which the students are eligible for a 50 percent discount to continue the subscription.

>

> While most students have access to education versions of Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, Microsoft's offer is for student's own personal Microsoft accounts, and is available to claim until October 31st. Microsoft 365 Personal is usually $99.99 a year, or $9.99 a month, and includes 1TB of OneDrive cloud storage.



[1] https://www.theverge.com/news/772385/microsoft-365-personal-free-us-college-students

A first-of-its-kind global research expedition has extracted freshwater samples from beneath the Atlantic Ocean floor off Cape Cod, [1]documenting a massive aquifer stretching from New Jersey to Maine . The three-month Expedition 501, funded at $25 million by the National Science Foundation and European Consortium for Ocean Research Drilling, drilled up to 1,289 feet into the seabed at sites 20-30 miles offshore.

Samples registered salinity as low as 1 part per thousand -- meeting U.S. freshwater standards -- with some readings even lower. Scientists collected nearly 50,000 liters for laboratory analysis to determine whether the water originates from ancient glacial melt or current terrestrial groundwater systems. The UN projects global freshwater demand will exceed supply by 40% within five years.



[1] https://apnews.com/article/freshwater-expedition-ai-501-cape-cod-5d62cae0f040d369b16d8400202f0a88

An investigation has identified more than [1]1,500 research articles produced by a network of Ukrainian companies that could be one of Europe's largest paper mills -- businesses that produce fake or low-quality research papers and sell authorships. Nature:

> Anna Abalkina, a research-integrity sleuth and social scientist at the Free University of Berlin, discovered the paper mill in 2022 after spotting papers with author e-mail addresses that had domains that did not match the geographical locations of academic affiliations. She dubbed the paper mill 'Tanu.pro' after the most frequently used of these unusual domains.

>

> Abalkina later teamed up with Svetlana Kleiner, a research integrity officer at the publisher Springer Nature, who is based in Leiden, the Netherlands. Together, they traced more than 60 suspicious e-mail domains that were linked to Tanu.pro and appeared among the author e-mails of 1,517 papers published between 2017 and 2025, listing more than 4,500 researchers affiliated with around 460 universities across 46 countries. The majority of authors were in Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Russia.



[1] https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-02809-y

Networks of pipes and heat exchangers can transfer excess heat from buildings into nearby bodies of water -- but as the world warms, the [1]cooling potential of some water courses is now diminishing, Wired reports. Paris's district cooling network, which pipes Seine river water to cool 800 buildings including the Louvre Museum, faces diminishing returns as climate change warms water temperatures. The system achieves coefficients of performance between 4 and 15 -- significantly higher than conventional air conditioning -- by transferring building heat through heat exchangers to the river. The Seine briefly exceeded 27C this summer, approaching the 30C regulatory limit for returned water.

The network currently spans 100 kilometers of pipes and will expand to 245 kilometers by 2042 to serve 3,000 buildings. Similar installations operate in Toronto using lake water from 83-meter depths and at Cornell University drawing 4C water from Lake Cayuga at 76 meters. Rotterdam and other cities are developing comparable systems as cooling demand rises.



[1] https://www.wired.com/story/people-are-so-proud-of-this-how-river-and-lake-water-is-cooling-buildings/

Alphabet's Google was [1]hit with a $3.45 billion EU antitrust fine on Friday for anti-competitive practices in its lucrative adtech business, marking its fourth penalty in its decade long fight with EU competition regulators. From a report:

> The move by the European Commission was triggered by a complaint from the European Publishers Council and comes amid a threat by U.S. President Donald Trump to retaliate against the European Union for any push against Big Tech.

>

> The EU competition enforcer had originally planned to hand out the fine on Monday but opposition from EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic on concerns about the impact on U.S. tariffs on European cars derailed EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera's plan. The Commission said Google favored its own online display technology services to the detriment of rivals and online publishers and that it abused its market power since 2014 until today.



[1] https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/google-hit-3-45-billion-152109490.html

Panasonic's market value has remained flat at approximately $25 billion over the past decade while rivals Hitachi, Sony and NEC have increased their valuations sixfold during the same period. The Osaka-based conglomerate announced a restructuring plan in May 2025 to [1]eliminate 10,000 positions and streamline operations across its six operating companies and hundreds of product lines. The company generates $57 billion in annual revenue and maintains dominant positions in several markets. Financial Times [2]reports :

> Within Panasonic's six operating companies and hundreds of product lines are industrial technology gems. The company supplies 70 per cent of the world's in-flight entertainment systems, its facial recognition technology is being used to measure brain health, and its EV battery plants are among the world's most efficient, according to auto industry insiders.

Panasonic chief said in January that AI-driven hardware and software solutions would constitute 30% of revenues by 2035, compared to approximately 10% currently. But Goldman Sachs analyst Ryo Harada wrote recently that investors are seeking a growth strategy beyond the announced reforms.



[1] https://slashdot.org/story/25/05/09/0911253/panasonic-to-cut-10000-jobs

[2] https://www.ft.com/content/f1ff7284-3e7b-40f1-bf31-ccf1c4056fa6