It really says something about the USA that a miniature kei car is "too dangerous" for public roads, but a lifted 8,000-lb pickup is just fine.

arstechnica.com/cars/2024/08/s…

#cars #safety #policy

The Matrix.org Foundation joins the FOSS community and advocates of digital sovereignty in calling on the European Commission to sustain its funding for the Next Generation Internet program.

The European Union must keep funding free software: matrix.org/blog/2024/07/17/ngi…

#Advocacy #Policy #EU #FOSS #OpenSource

The European Union must keep funding free software

Matrix, the open protocol for secure decentralised communications

^{Josh Simmons (matrix.org)}

"What made me put my coffee down this morning was 'synthetically generating music', which apparently now falls under 'needs to disclose'.

Them’s fighting words.

Let’s say I fiddle with some knobs on my Eurorack setup (that’s a music synthesizer if you don’t know), and decide to upload it in the background of a video. Am I now making 'altered content?'"

#MusicProduction #MusicTech #AI #Policy #YouTube #Deepfakes

vkc.sh/youtubes-bad-ai-disclos…

Falsehoods programmers believe about… Biometrics

(For the new reader, there is a famous essay called Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Names. It has since spawned a long list of Falsehoods Programmers Believe About....)

Everyone has fingerprints!

The BBC has a grim tale of a family with a genetic mutation which means they have no fingerprints. It det

shkspr.mobi/blog/2021/01/false…

#/etc/ #design #falsehoods #policy #security

If you're an #EU citizen, I strongly encourage you to take a look and consider signing this European Citizen's Initiative (ECI) that calls for the establishment of a #tax on great #wealth to fund a just ecological and social transition: citizens-initiative.europa.eu/…

Boosts very welcome.

#environment #policy #taxation #TaxTheRich

Avoiding USB-C on iPhones may get harder for Apple as Brazil considers mandate

arstechnica.com/?p=1863422

#smartphones #Policy #Brazil #iphone #apple #USB-C #Tech #USB

Avoiding USB-C on iPhones may get harder for Apple as Brazil considers mandate

Brazil joins EU and efforts from US politicians in universal charger push.

^{Ars Technica}