Tuesday, December 31, 2024

"Brain Rot" and "Bed Rotting", What Do They Mean?

Brain Rotting
The Oxford University Press’s word of 2024 was "brain rot." The year also gave us a flurry of TikToks documenting "bed rotting." What's with all this rotting — and is it a trend we should be taking into 2025?

"'Brain rotting' typically refers to the idea of engaging in mindless content consumption, like scrolling social media or binge-watching TV shows, which over time, feels like numbing or dulling your brain," explains mental health therapist Brittany Cilento Kopycienski, who owns Glow Counseling Solutions. "'Bed rotting’ involves spending excessive time lying in bed, contributing to physical and mental stagnation."

Both activities, it seems, are about checking out of whatever your reality is at the moment — and checking into the often good feeling of doing nothing. Is that good for our mental health? Here's what experts say.

"Let’s face it—bed rotting or brain rotting is not a style of lazy living. It’s about escape," psychologist Caitlin Slavens tells Yahoo Life. "The world is noisy, chaotic and often overwhelming. 'Rotting' is like pressing a giant snooze button on life. When you’re inundated with expectations (of work, family or even yourself), shutting down might seem your only option."

She adds, "These trends are a response to a world that’s made us feel like we must be performing in every moment of our lives — for work, for social media, for each other’s expectations. The rise of rotting says we’re burnt out, together."

That may be especially true for younger adults. "Our brains are experiencing unprecedented levels of stimulation through constant notifications, social media and digital engagement," Sophia Spencer, a social psychology and mental health therapist, tells Yahoo Life. "For Gen Z and millennials in particular, they are the first generations to live like this from a young age and for this to be their norm. Essentially, their brains are subject to a level of information that was once unthinkable, and not what our brains are designed for."

But others argue that this urge to disassociate from life isn't new, but rather something past generations have also felt as they settle into adulthood.

"Do you remember the 'adulting' movement?" Slavens points out.

"People began to celebrate even the most basic life tasks, like doing laundry or paying bills, as if they were a win in a world so large it felt overwhelming. Or hygge — the Scandinavian midcentury concept of warm living — where we all collectively agreed that it was candles and blankets we needed to feel better when burned out. "All of these trends speak to the same need: to ease up, to take a breath, to feel fine about not doing it all."

Monday, December 30, 2024

Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey Labelled With Trigger Warnings?

Homer
Homer’s epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey were labelled with trigger warnings by a university for "distressing" content and criticisms are mounting.

The University of Exeter has come under fire after telling undergraduates they may "encounter views and content that they may find uncomfortable" in their Greek mythology studies.

In what has been branded as a "parody" and "bonkers", students enroled on the "Women in Homer" module are told material could be "challenging".

With references to sexual violence, rape and infant mortality, undergraduates are also advised they should "feel free to deal with it in ways that help (eg to leave the classroom, contact Wellbeing, and of course talk to the lecturer)" if content is "causing distress".

However, the advice, which was obtained by the Mail on Sunday via Freedom of Information laws, has been ridiculed by both classics-loving Boris Johnson and experts alike.

The Iliad depicts the final weeks of the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by Greek city-states, while The Odyssey describes Odysseus’s successful journey back to Ithaca, set over multiple locations, timelines and alternative homelands.

Johnson, who read classics at the University of Oxford and is a fan of Homer, said the ancient works provided the "foundation of Western literature".

Reacting to news of the university’s warning, the former prime minister described the policy as "bonkers", telling the paper: "Exeter University should withdraw its absurd warnings. Are they really saying that their students are so wet, so feeble-minded and so generally namby-pamby that they can’t enjoy Homer?

"Is the faculty of Exeter University really saying that its students are the most quivering and pathetic in the entire 28 centuries of Homeric studies?"

Historian Lord Andrew Roberts said students shouldn’t be "wrapped in cotton wool and essentially warned against ancient but central texts of the Western canon".

Frank Furedi, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Kent, added: "A university that decides to put a trigger warning on Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey has become morally disoriented to the point that it has lost the plot."

The warnings on Homer’s work come amid an increasing number of works being slapped with trigger warnings.

Last week, it emerged that John Steinbeck’s "Of Mice and Men" was removed from the Welsh GCSE curriculum for the "psychological and emotional" harm caused by its racial slurs.

In October, the University of Nottingham received similar criticism for warning students of "The Canterbury Tales" and its "expressions of Christian faith".

Sunday, December 29, 2024

Magnus Carlsen Quits After Dress Code Violation

Magnus Carlsen
The World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen quit the World Rapid Chess Championship last 27 December after he refused to change out of the jeans he was wearing.

The International Chess Federation (FIDE) also added that, Carlsen, who has won five world rapid and seven world blitz titles in the last 10 years, withdrew from the World Blitz Championship which follows the tournament.

FIDE said in a statement that Carlsen breached the tournament’s dress code by wearing jeans, then declined to change his clothes after the Chief Arbiter requested him to and issued a fine of US$ 200.

As a result, Carlsen would not have been paired for round nine, though he could have returned for the rest of the tournament had he not decided to walk away, per Chess.com.

Since he had performed poorly in the earlier rounds, there was little chance that Carlsen could have defended his title regardless.

"This decision was made impartially and applies equally to all players," FIDE said, adding that fellow competitor Ian Nepominatchi also breached the dress code by wearing sports shoes but continued to play once he had changed.

The standoff became "a matter of principle" for Carlsen, he told chess channel Take Take Take. "I haven’t appealed, honestly I’m too old at this point to care too much, if this is what they want to do … nobody wants to back down, if this is where we are, that’s fine by me," he said. "I’ll probably head off to somewhere where the weather is a bit nicer than here and that’s it."

He explained that he had been at a lunch meeting before heading to the tournament’s second day and "barely had time to go the room, change, put on a shirt, jacket and honestly I didn’t even think about the jeans.

"I got here and I don’t know if it was after the first game or the second game … I got a fine, which is fine, and then I got a warning that I would not be paired if I didn’t go change my clothes," he said.

"They said I could do it after the third round today. I said I'll change tomorrow, if that's ok, I didn't even realise today. But they said you have to change now." Relations between Carlsen, chess’ most famous player, and FIDE, the sport’s governing body, have been growing more strained recently.

Friday, December 27, 2024

Inappropriate Apps For Children In App Store

Children Apps
There is a new report published by the child safety groups Heat Initiative and ParentsTogether Action that described in detail the alarming presence of inappropriate apps that are rated as suitable for children as young as four years old on Apple’s App Store.

According to Endgadget, the groups worked with a researcher to review as many apps as possible in the span of 24 hours, and say they ultimately identified over 200 apps that contained "concerning content or features" given the ages they were rated for — including stranger chat and AI girlfriend apps, gaming apps with sexual or violent prompts and imagery, and AI-powered appearance rating apps.

The research focused on apps with assigned age ratings of 4+, 9+ and 12+ in categories considered to be "risky": chat (including AI and stranger chat apps), beauty, diet and weight loss, unfiltered internet access (apps for accessing schools’ banned sites) and gaming.

Among the findings, the report says at least 24 sexual games and 9 stranger chat apps were marked as appropriate for kids in these age groups. The research also identified 40 apps for unfiltered internet access and 75 apps relating to beauty, body image and weight loss carrying these age ratings, along with 28 shooter and crime games.

Collectively, the roughly 200 offending apps spotted during the 24-hour investigation have been downloaded over 550 million times, according to Heat Initiative.

About 800 apps were reviewed in all, and the research found that some categories were more likely than others to carry apps with inappropriately low age ratings. For stranger chat apps and games, "fewer were rated as appropriate for children," the report says.

In most cases, they were 17+. But in the categories of weight loss and unfiltered internet access, "nearly all apps reviewed were approved for kids 4+." The report calls on Apple to do better when it comes to child safety measures on the App Store, urging the company to use third-party reviewers to verify apps’ age ratings before they become available to download, and to make its age rating process transparent to consumers.

Tuesday, December 24, 2024

"Skibidi Toilet" Continues To Get Popularity Boosts

Skibidi Toilet
"Skibidi Toilet" is already an internet sensation and now its about to get even more exposure.

The YouTube series, created by animator Alexey Gerasimov, is an unusual worldwide hit with more than 17 billion views. It features human-headed toilets engaged in a war with humanoids in a cinema style known as machinima.

"Skibidi Toilet" is also controversial because some parents have worried its potty humor wrapped in elements of horror and violence aren’t appropriate for kids who have become diehard fans of the viral series. (Think an older “Baby Shark” crossed with dystopia and a dash of Stephen King.)

But that’s not preventing "Skibidi" from being developed for TV and film treatment by director Michael Bay and former Paramount Pictures president Adam Goodman, according to a report by Variety.

"We are absolutely in talks right now, both on the television side and the earliest conversations right now on the film side," Goodman told the publication. "But it’s not a be-all, end-all for us."

Monday, December 23, 2024

Soccer Top Players Not A Fan Of FIFA's Grueling Schedule

Rodri Injury
Rodri is the 2024 Ballon d’Or recipient for best male player of the year. He is also the the most outspoken critics against the increasingly congested soccer calendar.

The Manchester City and Spain midfielder issued a warning that the lack of downtime was detrimental to players’ performance and health. Then, just a month before the 28 October award ceremony, he tore his ACL during a seemingly routine run in a Premier League game against Arsenal.

Though such injuries have occurred throughout the history of the sport and aren’t necessarily linked to overplaying, Rodri’s season-ending injury became a visual representation of the physical toll of modern soccer at a time when the busy match schedule is facing legal challenges and the possibility of strike action.

Top footballers are now routinely playing more than 60 games per season for club and country, while the game is getting faster and more intense. Injuries are on the rise. Already pushed to their limits, some players say FIFA’s newly expanded Club World Cup, to be held in the United States next year, is the last straw.

Players say they are "at breaking point, that they are at the limit, that it’s actually too much," Alexander Bielefeld, from global players' union FIFPRO, told The Associated Press.

The new Club World Cup is a supersized version of what used to be a short tournament with only seven teams. The new edition includes 32 teams from around the world and will be held every four years, starting next summer in the United States from 14 June 14 to 13 July. As its name suggests, it’s envisioned to be club version of the World Cup for national teams.

That means top players will have a monthlong tournament on top of their domestic league season three out of every four years. With more games also added to the Champions League in Europe this season as well as the next World Cup in 2026, the soccer calendar is filling up quickly.

"It’s something that worries us because we are the guys who suffer," Rodri said in September, just days before he was injured. He said players may have no choice but to refuse to play if the trend continues.

He’s not the only one feeling frustrated.

In a post on X last year, Raphael Varane, a member of France's World Cup winning squad in 2018, said the schedule was putting players’ physical and mental well-being at risk.

"Why are our opinions not being heard?" asked the 31-year-old Varane, who retired from the national team two years ago and from playing altogether in September this year following an injury.

In July, England and Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham described the schedule as "crazy."

"It’s difficult on the body — mentally and physically you are exhausted," he said after England was runner-up at the European Championship.

Sunday, December 22, 2024

Pres. Biden Scrapped Pending Regulations On Student Debt

President Biden
U.S. President Joe Biden has abandoned his previous efforts to seek some protections for transgender student athletes and cancel student loans for more than 38 million Americans. This was allegedly the first steps in an administration-wide plan to jettison pending regulations to prevent President-elect Donald Trump from retooling them to achieve his own aims.

The White House expects to pull back unfinished rules across several agencies if there isn’t enough time to finalize them before Trump takes office. If the proposed regulations were left in their current state, the next administration would be able to rewrite them and advance its agenda more quickly.

Even as the Biden administration moves to pull back the rules, it pushed ahead with cancellation through other avenues last 20 December. The Education Department said it was clearing loans for another 55,000 borrowers who reached eligibility through a program known as Public Service Loan Forgiveness, which was created by Congress in 2007 and expanded by the Biden administration.

As the pending Biden regulations are withdrawn, nothing prevents Trump from pursuing his own regulations on the same issues when he returns to the White House, but he would have to start from scratch in a process that can take months or even years.

"This isn’t the way I wanted it to end," said Melissa Byrne, an activist who has pushed for student debt cancellation. "Unfortunately, this is the most prudent action to take right now."

She blamed Republicans for putting the Biden administration in this position. "It’s a bummer that we have a GOP that is committed to keeping working-class Americans in debt," Byrne said.

The withdrawals are beginning as Washington braces for a potential government shutdown that could further complicate efforts by the Biden administration to tie up loose ends.

In documents withdrawing the student loan proposals, the Education Department insisted it has the authority to cancel the debt but sought to focus on other priorities in the administration’s final weeks. It said the administration would focus on helping borrowers get back on track with payments following the coronavirus pandemic, when payments were paused.

"The department at this time intends to commit its limited operational resources to helping at-risk borrowers return to repayment successfully," the agency wrote.

For the regulation on transgender students, the department said it was withdrawing the proposal because of ongoing litigation over how Title IX, the landmark law preventing sex discrimination, should handle issues of gender identity. In addition, the department said there were 150,000 public comments with a range of feedback, including suggestions for modifications that needed to be considered.

Saturday, December 21, 2024

Female Suffered Brain Bleed After Trans Hit Her With Volleyball

Payton McNabb
A bilogical female volleyball player claimed that she suffered a traumatic brain injury and lost her peripheral vision after being knocked unconscious by a transgender opponent.

Payton McNabb, now 19, was allegedly left with life-threatening injuries after a transgender player on the opposing team smashed a volleyball into her head, causing her to black out for 30 seconds.

The incident occurred in 2022 in a match for Hiwassee Dam High School in Murphy, North Carolina.

McNabb has now spoken out about the episode in a new documentary as she campaigns to prevent biological males from participating in women’s sports.

"If my story can, in any way help prevent this from happening to at least just one woman or girl, then it was all worth it," she told The New York Post.

Volleyball Incident
After McNabb was struck on the forehead, she was rushed off the court with a concussion, neck injury and two black eyes while everyone else continued to finish the game, she said.

The teen said the full extent of her injuries only became clear weeks later, when she was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, a brain bleed, partial paralysis and loss of peripheral vision on her right side.

She also allegedly suffered ongoing memory loss, confusion and severe headaches.

McNabb said the incident was completely avoidable and claimed her teammates were aware of a transgender player on the opposing team before the game, but were afraid to raise their concerns.

"We never thought we would ever be put in this position to begin with," she told the NY Post, adding that her teammates didn’t know what to do.

Thursday, December 19, 2024

The Attractiveness Of A Thigh Gap

Thigh Gap
Why are men attracted to a woman’s thigh gap?

Here are the three main reasons:

  1. Traditionally, a woman’s thigh gap has only ever been shown to a man behind closed doors.
  2. It shows that she is a female because there are no hanging balls.
  3. It looks good when coupled with another one of her feminine features; her hips.
Traditionally, a woman’s thigh gap has only ever been shown to a man behind closed doors

Traditionally, women haven’t shown that area of themselves before. It has always been covered up by a big dress in most cultures around the world. If you look at 1500s fashion, you’ll see that it’s covered up. If you look to the 1600s, you’ll see that it’s covered up, the 1700s, it’s still covered up the, 1800s, etc.

Women haven’t been showing that area of themselves and it’s only an area that a man usually gets to see when the woman is naked in his bedroom.

It shows that she is a female because there are no hanging balls

The male and female body is actually very similar apart from obvious feminine features from the woman and obvious masculine features from a man.

For a woman, some obvious feminine features are her hips, her breasts and if she has a thigh gap, her thigh gap. A subtle feminine feature can also be her face if she has a very feminine looking face. To be clear, the attractiveness of a woman’s thigh gap has more to do with what is going on above her knees.

It doesn’t matter if her knees touch or even if her thighs are slightly touching because the most attractive feature of a thigh gap is the pussy gap. What attracts men to a woman’s thigh gap the most is that flat line in between her legs or the subtle mound.

It looks good when coupled with another one of her feminine features; her hips

The angle of a woman’s hips is an obvious feminine feature which automatically attracts men in a subtle way.

If she also has a thigh gap that showcases the fact that she doesn’t have balls and a dick in between her legs, it’s a double attraction hit.

To be clear here, there are also men out there who prefer a woman without a thigh gap.

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Japanese Scientists Test Drug That Regrows Teeth

Regrowinng Teeth
To those who have missing teeth, there is a good news. Japanese dentists are currently testing a pioneering drug they hope will offer an alternative to dentures and implants by growing new ones.

Unlike reptiles and fish, which usually replace their fangs on a regular basis, it is widely accepted that humans and most other mammals only grow two sets of teeth. However, under those gums are the dormant buds of a third generation, according to Katsu Takahashi, head of oral surgery at the Medical Research Institute Kitano Hospital in Osaka.

Takahashi's team launched clinical trials at Kyoto University Hospital in October, administering an experimental medicine to adult test subjects that they say has the potential to jumpstart the growth of these concealed teeth.

It's a technology "completely new" to the world, Takahashi told AFP.

Prosthetic treatments used for teeth lost to decay, disease or injury are often seen as costly and invasive.

So "restoring natural teeth definitely has its advantages", said Takahashi, the project's lead researcher.

Tests on mice and ferrets suggest that blocking a protein called USAG-1 can awaken the third set, and the researchers have published lab photographs of regrown animal teeth.

In a study published last year, the team said their "antibody treatment in mice is effective for tooth regeneration and can be a breakthrough in treating tooth anomalies in humans".

For now, the dentists are prioritising the "dire" needs of patients with six or more permanent teeth missing from birth.

The hereditary condition is said to affect around 0.1 percent of people, who can have severe trouble chewing, and in Japan often spend most of their adolescence wearing a face mask to hide the wide gaps in their mouth, Takahashi said.

"This drug could be a game-changer for them," he added.

Tuesday, December 17, 2024

Lucrative "Pei Pa" Service, Lures Young And Attractive Chinese Men

Pei Pa
There is a new outdoor trend in China that dominated the social media recenty. It involves hiring a "climbing buddy," most likely a young biological man with extensive outdoor experience to accompany and support lone young women her to their 5,000-foot peak goal.

Known in Chinese as "pei pa" (meaning "accompany to climb"), these are young Chinese men who join strangers on their journeys up popular mountains for a price. The trend has gained momentum this year, as hashtags related to "climbing buddy" have had over 100 million views on Chinese social media.

Young, athletic individuals, often university students or even military veterans, advertise themselves on social media platforms like Xiaohongshu and Douyin, with profiles featuring their height, fitness level and hiking experience. They usually charge between 200 to 600 yuan (US$ 30 to US$ 85) per trip.

During the climb, these "buddies" will do anything to distract their clients from feeling exhausted and push them to keep going: from singing, telling jokes, playing music, verbal encouragement, going so far as carrying their bags, holding their hands, and pulling them.

Wendy Chen, was one of those ladies who decided to challenge herself by climbing Mount Tai, a well-known mountain in eastern China, together with a "pei pa".

Though Chen paid a typical price for a climbing buddy, she acknowledges that more good-looking buddies can command higher rates.

"Attractiveness is also part of their strength," she says.

Climbing buddies’ main customers tend to be single young women, but that’s slowly changing.

A video of a strong male university student carrying a three-year-old effortlessly up a steep mountain — while the toddler’s mother trailed far behind — went viral this summer.

Chen Wudi, who works as a "pei pa" has this as a serious job.

After quitting a stressful sales role in April, the 27-year-old embraced his love for hiking and became a full-time climbing buddy.

Currently, Chen is taking nearly 40 bookings and earning around 20,000 yuan (US$ 2,800) per month. That’s more than double the average monthly salary in China, according to recent government data. Business is so good that he has moved to Tai’an City, right by the foot of Mount Tai.

However, the popularity of paid climbing buddies has caused some concerns. Currently the market is unregulated. Critics warn about potential safety risks, especially for young single women or those with small children.

Some worry that unverified guides could lead amateur climbers into potentially dangerous situations on the mountain. On top of that, the trend has opened the door to possible crimes, with some reports of customers being scammed.

Still, with China’s youth unemployment rate remaining high and many young people facing a prolonged search for stable work after graduation or in between jobs, becoming a climbing buddy offers a way to make money quickly while figuring out their long-term plans.

Monday, December 16, 2024

"Dozens Dead" In Tragic Soccer Stampede In Guinea

Soccer Stampede
Tragedy fell on dozens of people who were killed last 1 December in clashes between fans at a soccer match in Nzerekore, Guinea’s second-largest city, hospital sources said, describing scenes of mass carnage.

"There are bodies lined up as far as the eye can see in the hospital. Others are lying on the floor in the hallways. The morgue is full," one doctor said on condition of anonymity, because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

"There are around 100 dead," he said, with bodies filling the local hospital and morgue.

Another doctor said there were "dozens of dead."

Videos circulating on social media, which Agence France-Presse was unable to immediately verify, showed scenes of chaos in the street outside the match and numerous bodies lying on the ground.

Angry demonstrators also vandalized and set fire to the Nzerekore police station, witnesses said.

"It all started with a contested decision by the referee. Then fans invaded the pitch," a witness said, asking that his name be withheld for safety reasons.

Local media said the match was part of a tournament organized in honor of Guinea’s junta leader, Mamadi Doumbouya, who seized power in a 2021 coup and has installed himself as president.

Such tournaments have become common in the West African nation, as Doumbouya eyes a potential run in presidential elections expected next year and political alliances form.

Doumbouya seized power by force in September 2021 by overthrowing then-Guinean president Alpha Conde, who had placed the then-colonel in charge of an elite force tasked with protecting the head of state from such coups.

Under international pressure, he pledged to hand power back to a civilian government by the end of this year, but has since made clear he will not.

The military leader "exceptionally" promoted himself to the rank of lieutenant general in January and last month he elevated himself to the rank of army general.

Friday, December 13, 2024

"Raw Dogging" Gains Traction Among Male Travelers

Raw Dogging
Michael Ceely once spent a four-hour flight just zoning out – no magazines, no movies, no podcasts, just looking out the window and watching the flight map.

Ceely, a therapist in California who specializes in working with men, believed it was a form of digital detox and meditation. But a growing contingent of young men on the internet are doing the same practice but branding it in a very different way: it’s called "raw dogging."

"I was tired of the usual routine of watching a movie or reading a book (onboard) so I said, 'I'm just going to kind of stare off into space, and use it is a Zen meditation.'" Ceely says of his experience chilling out on a plane.

He says that it can be difficult to get some men to embrace meditation, mindfulness, or anything else that could be considered "spiritual." While he tells CNN he’s not familiar with the term "raw dogging" being used in this particular way, he can see why the eyebrow-raising moniker appeals to a certain kind of traveler.

"Men do like challenges," he says. "It's definitely more socially acceptable for men to brag about something like this. Also I think it might be more of a male psyche kind of thing: I like a challenge, let me see if I can get through this. It’s an acetic practice, but branding it with bro-speak."

Thursday, December 12, 2024

Caitlyn Clark Is Named TIME 2024 Athlete of the Year

Time Atlete Of The Year
WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark is adding to her accolades after being named TIME’s 2024 Athlete of the Year.

The current WNBA Rookie of the Year owns the NCAA women’s scoring record and has already set assist records in her rookie season with the Indiana Fever in the WNBA. Clark’s career as an Iowa Hawkeye brought unprecedented interest and TV viewership to the college game, even though an NCAA title eluded her.

The TIME article, written by Sean Gregory, focuses on Clark’s record-breaking year and her impact.

"Good luck naming another player who altered the trajectory of their entire team sport within five months on the job," Gregory wrote.

"It’s one thing to rally around athletes during global spectacles like an Olympics or a World Cup. It’s quite another to turn routine regular-season games in the WNBA, a league neglected for far too long over its 27-year history, into appointment viewing."

The interview with Clark included her thoughts on the transition from the college game to the WNBA. Clark spoke about a gap in IQ.

"Professional players and professional coaches — this is no disrespect to college women’s basketball — are a lot smarter… If you go back and watch the way people guarded me in college, it’s almost, like, concerning… A lot of those women will never go on to play another basketball game in their life. They don’t have the IQ of understanding how the game works."

Clark also discussed her exclusion from the Paris Olympic roster as a "blessing" and that she’d use it as motivation throughout her entire career.

Although she missed out on a gold medal, Clark’s rookie season benefited from the month-long rest while Team USA competed and won gold in Paris. Her scoring, assists and shooting percentages all improved after the break, and Indiana went 9-5 to secure its first playoff berth in eight seasons. Playing in the Olympics remains a high priority for Clark.

She said making the team in 2028 is a "huge, huge goal." Given Clark’s rapid rate of improvement during her first pro season, it’s hard to imagine that her inclusion in 2028 will be controversial.

Wednesday, December 11, 2024

Universities Have Started Offering AI Degrees

AI Degrees
Many universities are evolving their offerings in the age of artificial intelligence. Now, students have the option to pursue a full degree primarily dedicated to AI.

As more colleges introduce an AI major, it means the computer science degree, long viewed as a pipeline into Big Tech, has some more competition.

The new AI majors arrive as the industry goes through change, with many tech companies investing heavily in LLMs and generative AI products while simultaneously tightening their belts and trimming staff.

The battle for top AI talent — researchers and engineers at the top of their game — is fierce, with CEOs personally trying to woo hires.

A degree in AI may prove tempting for current and future students hoping to get training and experience with LLMs and generative AI early in their careers. While computer science degrees can cover a wide array of fields, including computer programming, data science, computer systems analysis, and more, AI jobs can require more specific skills in machine learning and algorithms.

Universities are quickly looking to step in and fill that gap.

Professor David Garlan, the associate dean for Carnegie Mellon's computer science master's program, told Business Insider that as the AI revolution continues to sweep industries, education is also adapting to keep up.

"You'll see AI sort of permeating pretty much any curriculum these days," he said. "That's here to stay."

Carnegie Mellon is one institute that has already created a bachelor of science in artificial intelligence, a trend that is already picking up steam across other universities.

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

Lawmaker Suggests Deportation Of Anti-Semitic Students

Columbia University
There were students at Columbia University who are distributing an antisemitic newspaper called "The Columbia Intifada," and one New York lawmaker is calling for consequences.

Copies of the newspaper launched by students who are part of an anti-Israel club were handed out on campus. They contain articles with the titles "Zionist Peace Means Palestinian Blood" and "The Myth of the Two-State Solution," the New York Post reported, noting that the authors' identities are not disclosed.

"If @Columbia cannot protect Jewish students on their campus, they should lose federal funding and have their tax-exempt status revoked," Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., posted to X. "And for those students here on a visa engaged in an ‘intifada’ against American students of the Jewish faith? Deport them."

Images of the newspaper were posted to the Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine X account, with the group calling it their "official newspaper."

Columbia issued the statement about the paper last 6 December.

"Using the Columbia name for a publication that glorifies violence and makes individuals in our community feel targeted in any way is a breach of our values," it reads. "As we have said repeatedly, discrimination and promoting violence or terror is not acceptable and antithetical to what our community stands for. We are investigating this incident through our applicable offices and policies."
Anti-Israel protests plagued the Ivy League university during the spring semester, prompting the school to cancel its university-wide commencement and make campus safety changes ahead of the start of the new academic year, which began earlier this fall.

Monday, December 9, 2024

Makynlee Cova Is The New Wrestling Sensation

Makynlee Cova
California’s under-14 state freestyle wrestling champion, Makynlee Cova, is not only an emerging force to be reckoned with on and off the mat, but also an internet sensation.

The wrestling champion has trended recently with an Instagram video showing her struck a confident pose mid-match while holding her opponent in a leg cradle. The clip showcases not only Cova’s athletic talent but also her charismatic personality and has amassed over an astonishing 500,000 likes.

While clinching the state freestyle title last June, senior Cova has amassed 47-20 wrestling marks, with 33 via fall. With skill and finesse, Cova dominates many of her opponents, with a large following online who believe she may be the perfect combination.

Fans and fellow wrestlers hailed Cova as a ‘future star of youth wrestling’. As her social media fame rises, the young champion appears to be proving she isn’t just a competitor but an emerging trailblazer in her sport.

Saturday, December 7, 2024

"Dilbert" Author Withdrew His Support For Berkeley

Dilbert Creator
After they were enable to protect the right to free speech and prevent protesters from destroying school facilities, UC Berkeley is facing the possibility of sponsor withdrawal.

Scott Adams, the East Bay-based creator of the syndicated comic strip "Dilbert," isn’t happy with his alma mater following a violent campus protests in response to a scheduled appearance by right-wing Republican Milo Yiannopoulos a few years ago.

On his blog, Adams announced that he, too, doesn’t feel "safe or welcome on campus" because of his political views, so he said he would no longer support the public institution where he earned his MBA.

"I have been a big supporter lately, with both my time and money, but that ends today," he wrote. "I wish them well, but I wouldn't feel safe or welcome on the campus."

Over the course of the presidential election, Adams provoked controversy and alienated "Dilbert" fans with his essays and tweets, the Washington Post reported in late October. He praised Donald Trump's talent for persuasion, was one of the few public figures to predict the celebrity mogul's presidential victory and continues to dispute the tendency on the left to compare the president, with his perceived autocratic tendencies, to Adolf Hitler.

At one point, Adams endorsed Trump, saying he only ever endorsed Clinton out of concern for his "personal safety" because he lives in California. But he switched his allegiance to Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson following the leak of the 2005 "Access Hollywood" recording in which Trump was heard boasting about groping women. Adams called both Trump and Clinton "100 percent unfit for office" and said neither candidate represented his political views.

With regard to the protests at Berkeley, Adams said he had decided to side "with the Jewish gay immigrant who has the African-American boyfriend," referring to Yiannapoulos, rather than the "the hypnotized zombie-boys in black masks who were clubbing people who hold different points of view."

Thursday, December 5, 2024

List Of Highest-Paid Female Athletes Now Includes Caitlyn Clark

Caitlyn Clark
Adding up her annual salary, bonus and multiple major endorsements as a record-breaking rookie with the Indiana Fever, Caitlin Clark earned US$ 11.1 million in 2024, making her the 10th highest-paid female athlete in the world.

Sportico released its annual rankings Wednesday, which revealed the15 highest-paid female athletes will earn an estimated US$ 221 million in 2024, up 27 percent from last year. Eleven athletes made at least $10 million, compared with six in 2023.

Topping the list for the second straight year was tennis star Coco Gauff with US$ 30.4 million from prize money and endorsements. Gauff is only the third woman in sports history to earn more than US$ 30 million in one year, joining fellow tennis players Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams.

Clark, the lone basketball player on the list, was paid an annual salary of US$ 76,535 by the Fever in 2024, but she made up the US$ 10 million difference by signing more than 10 commercial deals.

Nike is Clark's most lucrative endorsement, according to Sportico, an eight-year deal she signed in April worth more than US$ 3 million a year on average. Other companies partnering with Clark are Gatorade, State Farm, Panini, Wilson, Hy Vee, Xfinity, Gainbridge and Lilly.

Tennis players took up nine spots on the list of 15, with golf adding three. The remaining three were skier Eileen Gu, gymnast Simone Biles and Clark.

Wednesday, December 4, 2024

Book Revealed Muslim Sex-Gang Groomers in Britain

Sex-Gang Groomers
In his riveting book, "Easy Meat: Inside Britain's Grooming Gang Scandal" (World Encounter Institute/New English Review Press, 2016. 328 pp., $17.20) author Peter McLoughlin explains how multiculturalism-inspired political correctness along with its companion, willful blindness concerning Islamic doctrine, has jeopardized the safety and well-being of children.

McLoughlin posits that, since 1988, this nationwide sexploitation has resulted in the shattering of lives of between 100,000 to 1 million girls.

According to the article of Janet Levy of the American Thinker, the author documents how the fear of being deemed racist and facing criminal charges, dismissal or even threats of violence, has led to suppression of information and a stunning lack of intervention on behalf of young victims. In essence, an extensive, insidious operation that targets children for sexual grooming and enslavement has been covered up because of political correctness and fear of Muslim retribution.

The book’s title comes from former UK Home Secretary, Jack Straw, who saw Muslim perpetrators viewing non-Muslim British victims as "easy meat." Indeed, some Muslim sex-gang groomers actually blame the girls, some as young as 11 years old, for being purposely alluring and sexually advanced to corrupt Muslims.

In his research on Muslim groomers, McLoughlin uncovered an unusual distinction between them and non-Muslim pedophiles. Non-Muslim pedophiles are typically lone adults who groom children for sex in reclusive secrecy, worry about being prosecuted by law enforcement, meet accusations with defensive denial and worry about being discovered, shamed, and criticized by friends or relatives. Muslim perpetrators, however, work in gangs, see nothing wrong with their shariah-sanctioned activities, receive collusive support from their communities and feel they are above the law. During his investigations, McLoughlin found not one case of non-Muslim men grooming Muslim girls, although 95% of men in Britain are non-Muslims.

News coverage of the crimes has been mostly obfuscated by a complicit media that characterizes the overwhelmingly Muslim perpetrators as generic "Asians." According to McLoughlin’s research, limited press coverage by mainly self-censoring journalists and lenient, if any, criminal charges have enabled the gangs to act with relative impunity since 1988.

The author describes how Muslim flesh-peddlers operate as part of a well-organized extensive network of taxi drivers, shop and restaurant owners, and security guards. Girls, mainly between the ages of 11 and 14, the majority from state-run children’s homes, are ensnared while traveling from school to home, at shopping malls, restaurants, bus stations and similar public venues. They are enticed with flattery, feigned friendship, gifts, alcohol and drugs. Alarmingly, a footnote in the book references a quotation from a city outreach worker with the Children’s Society who states, "every girl living in a children's home in the city of Birmingham is being sexually exploited."

McLoughlin makes reference to the staggering profitability of the sex grooming enterprise for the Muslim community. He cites a 2007 expose, Mothers of Prevention by Julie Bindel, a feminist writer and founder of the legal reform group, Justice for Women.

Bindel estimated that a pimp can make US$ 325,000 to US$ 550,000 annually with one 16-year-old girl. From that, Bindel extrapolated that over the average 15-year-per-girl pimping period, the annual value of this criminal activity could amount to approximately £300 million or US$ 425 million.

McLoughlin does a good job of portraying the frustration and desperation of victim’s families who have sought help to no avail for well over a decade from local councils, law enforcement, child care professionals and journalists. Remarkably, for the most part, UK authorities have failed to warn parents that young girls are at risk or to recommend extra supervision and vigilance. No organized programs to educate girls and parents exist and authorities have largely refused interviews with the media on the topic. Teachers and school administrators have failed to secure the school perimeter to stop sex grooming gangs from lying in wait for girls outside of school premises.

The author reports that police routinely dismiss parents’ concerns and have failed to set up surveillance operations at strategically significant locations. Police have even arrested parents for trying to save their children. In one such case, fathers, who were able to track down their daughters and tried to rescue them were arrested by police. In fact, McLoughlin discloses that law enforcement officers have actually returned wayward girls to their pimps.

McLoughlin reveals that local authorities – social workers, teachers' unions, educational organizations and childcare agencies – have made no effort to intervene or draw public attention to the pervasive threat. He submits that feared charges of racism preclude their mandated responsibility for the protection of children. In fact, the author reports how major teachers' unions are behind an organization – Unite Against Fascism – that blocks the publicizing of the sex grooming gang phenomenon and its Muslim community participation.

In 2008, a taxpayer-funded national education film, "My Dangerous Loverboy," commissioned by the United Kingdom Human Trafficking Centre, was produced ostensibly to warn and educate girls about generic sex grooming gangs. But no mention was made of Muslim involvement or the victims’ young ages.

According to McLoughlin, the film has been difficult to obtain and has not been shown to the intended audience: girls, parents, social workers, police officers, school nurses, doctors, teachers, youth workers, sexual health practitioners. Levy's own extensive, month-long efforts to locate a copy were unproductive and met with denials of the crimes’ Muslim connection.

In Easy Meat, McLoughlin laments the very limited prosecution of Muslim sex grooming and pimping crimes. In the rare instances of successful criminal litigation, typical sentences are minimal and usually partially served, if at all, despite existing sentencing guidelines. Gang members have been known to assert Muslim supremacy, make accusations of Muslim victimhood and racism, and threaten retaliation against the girls and their families. Some have clearly cited religious motivations for their crimes in court.

Astonishingly, few victims receive any special protection during the trials. Protection of defendants' rights supersedes that of victims, even with child victims. The 1989 Children’s Act, a statute requiring the child’s welfare be the court’s paramount consideration, doesn’t seem to make the slightest difference in the proceedings and outcome. More distressing is the fact that the greater the Muslim population density in an area, the lower the conviction rate.

The backdrop for sexual grooming and enslavement of children lies in Islamic doctrines outlined by McLoughlin. He reviews the pervasive slave-taking history of Islam from the 7th century, as well as Islamic doctrine from the Koran citing Islam's view of non-Muslims, its treatment of women and sexual slaves, and the permissibility of sex with children by Mohammed’s example with his nine-year-old third wife, Aisha. McLoughlin explains how sex as rape has historically been used as a weapon of war to assert Islamic supremacy. Islamic doctrine encourages the rape and enslavement of non-Muslims, even with married infidel women as a legal and moral enterprise.

Further, the required first and foremost allegiance to the Umma, or Muslim community, and the inbred obligation of enmity toward non-Muslims facilitates the pimping of non-Muslim girls and hinders any attempts at exposing its criminality and eventual prosecution. Sexual slavery has historically been used as a religious weapon to advance the domination of Islam.

In Easy Meat, McLoughlin details how the sexploitation and enslavement of girls, once viewed as a great evil in Western society, has become a pervasive, routine, and almost pedestrian part of everyday life in the UK.

On this issue, the courageous author effectively deals with the contention that Western civilization is fighting for its very existence in a clash between civilization and barbarism. His book serves as a grave warning for other countries as they consider increased levels of Muslim immigration.

Tuesday, December 3, 2024

Drunken Tourists Are Delivered Back To Their Hotels In A Trolley

Binge Drinkers
Binge drinking among tourists is not uncommon in Thailand, but the way these drinkers passedn out and delivered to their hotels is something that many considered unique and embarassing. They are being piled into wheelbarrows by police and taken back to their hostel.

Recently, two women wearing swimwear were photographed unconscious in trolleys being pushed by a policeman on party island Koh Phi Phi in Krabi, Thailand, last 29 November.

The German and Australian women, aged 19 and 23 respectively, were reported to have been found unconscious at a nearby bar before Sergeant Major Saneg Jualaong came to their aid with a pushcart.

The scenes come after warnings over drinks laced with methanol in neighbouring Laos, which left six foreign tourists dead last month.

Local authorities are still investigating the deaths of the six backpackers in Vang Vieng, including 28-year-old British lawyer Simone White, whose friend later urged travellers to "avoid all local spirits" after their group had drunk free shots at one of the bars.

After wheeling the two women in Thailand back to their hostel, Sergeant Major Jualaong said: "I know what it’s like to have a daughter and how much we worry about them.

"I thought about their parents back at home. They were both too drunk to speak and too drunk to stand up.

"In that condition, they could have an accident, such as falling into the sea or falling down steps.

"I made sure they returned safely to their beds."

Police Colonel Surasak Jaidee, superintendent of Koh Phi Phi Police Station, added that a trolley had been used because all the routes were pedestrianised and a motorcycle was "unable to transport unconscious passengers".

Monday, December 2, 2024

MrBeast Teams Up With Sports Greats For The Contest

MrBeast Contest
The popular YouTuber MrBeast has just released his latest video last 30 November and it's a collaboration with some of the world's top athletes taking on regular people in various competitions.

Seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, Olympic gold medalist Noah Lyles, Philadelphia Phillies slugger Bryce Harper, two-time U.S. Open golf champion Bryson DeChambeau, and soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo all take part.

Each contestant could take home US$ 100,000 if they won their event. If they lost, the money would go to a charity of the athlete's choice.

The Ronaldo competition had a bigger prize to it: US$ 1 million if his opponent won.

Here's the full event listing, which saw a few of them end up closer than you might assume.

  • High school quarterback Jake took on Brady in an event where the winner had to pop four balloons from various yardages away.
  • MrBeast's friend, Jonah, took on Lyles in a 200-meter race. Lyles later would race online streamer IShowSpeed in a 50-meter sprint.
  • Social media sensation Big Justice faced off with Harper in a home run derby.
  • Amateur golfer Aaron battled with DeChambeau on a single golf hole to see who could get a better score.
  • Finally, Ronaldo took on soccer fan Khalid in the $1 million target shootout.

Sunday, December 1, 2024

"Pose 28" Is Becoming A Viral Internet Pose

Pose 28 Trend
You now strike a pose virtually, but if you are not familiar with this new trend, then you are probably not a teen.

"Pose 28" comes from the Roblox minigame "Dress to Impress," a popular internet game that pits users against each other in a runway contest, creating virtual outfits and striking poses to win votes from other users.

Players of the game have a variety of poses to choose from while walking the catwalk, but fans of the game have given pose 28 a life beyond the virtual world. Many TikTok videos about it have surfaced since the game’s initial popularity in the summer of 2024 as fans have re-created the pose in real life.

With an average of 88.9 million daily users and 58 percent of users under 16, Roblox is a massive online gaming platform that allows players to create their own minigames and share their creations with others.

One of its most popular minigames is "Dress to Impress," a dress-up competition between virtual users racing against time to pick out their best runway outfits to make the bronze, silver or gold positions on the podium.

After picking out a variety of virtual garments and accessories, users walk the catwalk with their avatars, making various poses of their choosing to sway voters.

According to the game’s wiki page, there are 35 "starter poses" that users get for free while strutting the catwalk with their avatar.

Among the poses, pose 28 is the most popular because it received attention from older internet streamers who discovered this unique pose during the peak of its internet buzz. As Urban Dictionary explains, the pose "involves the character leaning back with their hands clasped behind their back."

The new players included Twitch's most subscribed streamer, Kai Cenat, who re-created the game in real life in a YouTube video with his group, AMP.

Streamers were quick to find out about the silly and awkward nature of pose 28.

A sound mashup of the game's theme song and Lana Del Ray's "Say Yes to Heaven" became widely used on TikTok in September 2024, with some videos getting tens of millions of views.

One fan of the game pointed out than an Olympic athlete in the 2024 Paris Olympics accidentally struck pose 28 after throwing a javelin.