Free Republic

A tiny town in North Carolina that’s just been devastated by hurricane Helene could end up severely disrupting the global supply chain for microchips and solar panels. Nestled in the Appalachian mountains, the community of Spruce Pine, population 2,194, is known for its hiking, local artists and as America’s sole source of high-purity quartz. Helene dumped more than 2 feet of rain on the town, destroying roads, shops and cutting power and water. But its reach will likely be felt far beyond the small community.

In March, a Wharton professor who studies artificial intelligence and start-ups claimed on X, “The modern economy rests on a single road in Spruce Pine, North Carolina. The road runs to the two mines that are the sole supplier of the quartz required to make the crucibles needed to refine silicon wafers.” Ethan Mollick noted at the time, “There are no alternative sources known” if supply disruptions were seen in Spruce Pines.

Tesla CEO compared incoming Recall feature to an episode of Black MirrorNew Recall feature will be coming to Copilot+ PCs from JuneIt takes screenshots of everything you do on-screenSnapshots are analysed by AI on-device so they can be searchedElon Musk has announced plans to disable the feature on his PCPrivacy campaigners have also flagged concernsUK privacy watchdog has launched an investigation into RecallElon Musk has criticised a controversial new AI feature coming to Windows 11 devices this summer. Known as Recall, it takes screenshots of everything on-screen so you can scroll back in time and resume work on anything from...

The CEO and founder of the encrypted social media app, Telegram, Pavel Durov, was arrested on August 24 at Le Bourget airport near Paris as he was departing his private jet.Durov's arrest has triggered a heated debate with most influencers seeing it as an onslaught on free speech. A hashtag #FreeDurov popped up on X. Former US presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tweeted: "France just arrested Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of the encrypted and uncensored Telegram platform. The need to protect free speech has never been more urgent."Naomi Seibt, a German conservative political activist, dubbed anti-Greta by the...

Rumble CEO Chris Pavolvski announced on Sunday that he has escaped France and departed communist Europe. Pavlovski, who runs one of the largest social media companies in the world in Rumble, has always vowed to make his platform an oasis for free speech unlike the far-left tyrants at Google-YouTube who allow leftists to spew unlimited amount of lies but will not allow conservative voices a voice on the platform without restrictions. Pavlovski wrote on X: Chris Pavlovski: I’m a little late to this, but for good reason — I’ve just safely departed from Europe. France has threatened Rumble, and now...

Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov was arrested in France on Saturday after his private jet landed at Le Bourget Airport, French media reported.Durov was arrested under a warrant related to “various violations of his encrypted messaging service,” according to a report by Le Monde. The 39-year-old, who became a French citizen in 2021, is expected to be brought to court on Sunday.French authorities are accusing Durov of a “lack of moderation” involving Telegram. The messaging app is reportedly under attack in Europe for the “viral circulation of false information.”“Telegram has shielded itself from state moderation rules, at a time...

A judge on Monday ruled that Google’s ubiquitous search engine has been illegally exploiting its dominance to squash competition and stifle innovation in a seismic decision that could shake up the internet and hobble one of the world’s best-known companies. The highly anticipated decision issued by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta comes nearly a year after the start of a trial pitting the U.S. Justice Department against Google in the country’s biggest antitrust showdown in a quarter century. After reviewing reams of evidence that included testimony from top executives at Google, Microsoft and Apple during last year’s 10-week trial, Mehta...

On July 6, due to an ongoing electric power issue, Amtrak canceled service between Boston and New York City for the remainder of the day. Amtrak is communicating directly with impacted customers about this service interruption and offering options for rebooking their travel plans. Amtrak apologizes for any inconvenience caused by the disruption. Our crews are working hard to correct the issues.

World Economic Forum (WEF) founder Klaus Schwab has told his unelected globalist organization’s so-called “Young Global Leaders” that they will continue to live on even after they die. According to Schwab, WEF members can continue to expect to enjoy more than just a “career of 50 years.” Through the use of technology and “injections,” Schwab says WEF Young Global Leaders “will continue to live.” Schwab promises young globalists that, even after they die, their brains “will be replicated through artificial intelligence and algorithms.” He made the comments in a leaked video which was recorded during a private indoctrination session for...

Fisker Group Inc., the EV startup founded by famed designer Henrik Fisker, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection — a capstone to months of problems with its Ocean SUV that included recalls and dozens of lemon law lawsuits. The California-based company, which filed for bankruptcy in Delaware District Court, had been seeking a deal with another automaker in a last-ditch effort to rescue the enterprise. The company estimated assets of $500 to $1 billion and liabilities of between $100 million and $500 million, according to the filing. Fisker reported between 200 and 999 creditors, including SAP, Adobe, Salesforce and Ansys,...

Boeing Leaks After years of delays and technical problems, Boeing's Starliner finally made it to the International Space Station with NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on board last week. But when exactly it'll be able to undock and deliver its crew of two back to the surface remains to be seen.

Tomorrow, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, a Boeing-built spacecraft is set to blast off toward the International Space Station, carrying a human crew for the first time. The astronauts have been in preflight quarantine, getting some extra practice for the historic ride through flight simulations. The rocket stands tall on the launchpad, with the spacecraft, Starliner, perched on top. The weather forecast looks nearly perfect.

WASHINGTON — An F-35B test jet crashed shortly after takeoff from Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico Tuesday afternoon, according to a statement from the base. The jet’s pilot ejected and was injured. The aircraft arrived at the base 1 p.m. on Tuesday, stopping over for fuel on the way from plane maker Lockheed Martin’s facilities in Fort Worth, Texas, according to the Kirtland statement. It crashed at 1:48 p.m. southwest of Kirtland, which is in the Albuquerque area and adjacent to the city’s airport. The fighter was on its way to Edwards Air Force Base north of Los...

Mathematicians think abstract tools from a field called symplectic geometry might help with planning missions to far-off moons and planets. In October, a Falcon Heavy rocket is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral in Florida, carrying NASA’s Europa Clipper mission. The $5 billion mission is designed to find out if Europa, Jupiter’s fourth-largest moon, can support life. But because Europa is constantly bombarded by intense radiation created by Jupiter’s magnetic field, the Clipper spacecraft can’t orbit the moon itself. Instead, it will slide into an eccentric orbit around Jupiter and gather data by repeatedly swinging by Europa—53 times in total—before...

Telecommunications giant Frontier Communications on Thursday informed the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that certain systems were shut down following a cyberattack. The incident, the company said in a regulatory filing with the SEC, was identified on April 14, when a third-party “gained unauthorized access to portions of its information technology environment”. Frontier said it immediately initiated its incident response protocols and took steps to contain the incident, including shutting down certain systems, which “resulted in an operational disruption that could be considered material”. According to Frontier, the attack was likely the work of a cybercrime group that gained access...

For decades, scientists and inventors have flirted with the concept of a water engine, but their attempts often hit insurmountable roadblocks. However, Elon Musk, known for pushing the boundaries of technology, has provided a fascinating insight. His revelation might just revolutionize the transportation industry at all levels. But people are asking exciting questions. Is water a viable source of fuel? What other innovative solutions are available for transportation problems? Join us as we unravel how Elon Musk went public with the new engine that changes everything. Transcript Follow along using the transcript. Show transcript

Tesla's price CUTS in Australia follow the company's decision on April 3 to announced 0% financing for new orders of the Model 3 and Model Y in China. The incentive runs through the end of April and is Tesla's first interest-free promotion for China, the world's biggest EV market.Meanwhile, Tesla INCREASED its U.S. prices for all Model Y trims on April 1. Tesla RAISED prices on Europe Model Y vehicles on March 22. In China, Tesla also HIKED prices on its entire Model Y line by around $690 on April 1, even as some incentives expired.

Salvage efforts to remove the MV Dali from Baltimore’s Key Bridge were delayed indefinitely yesterday after a high-pressure subsea natural gas pipeline was discovered under the wreckage. Yesterday, the Maryland Port Authority held a meeting at the unified incident command center located at the Maryland Cruise Terminal in Baltimore. The Army Corps of Engineers and the US Coast Guard outlined their priorities: firstly, to open the shipping channel; secondly, to secure and remove the MV Dali; and thirdly, to initiate salvage operations “from the inside out”.

Microsoft Corp. plans to build a supercomputer with millions of processors to support OpenAI’s research, The Information reported today. The system will be geared toward running artificial intelligence workloads. Reportedly codenamed Stargate by Microsoft executives, the supercomputer is believed to be part of a broader initiative that is also set to see the company build several other AI clusters. The project is expected to cost as much as $100 billion. OpenAI already uses Microsoft infrastructure to train its AI models. In 2020, the cloud computing and software giant disclosed that it had built an Azure-hosted supercomputer with 10,000 graphics cards...

A new documentary on climate change by Martin Durkin, "Climate: The Movie", was posted online today (March 21st, 2024). The film presents a different perspective on climate change from the standard narratives promoted by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).