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aptronym
@aptronym.bsky.social
660 followers 890 following 9.1K posts
Mental detritus etc and so forth. As seen on the internet since last century. Occasional Flathead Valley Police Blotter amanuensis. Gadigal, Australia.
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aptronym.bsky.social
What Are People Still Doing on X?

archive.md/wrwlC
Header of article WHAT ARE PEOPLE STILL DOING ON X? IMAGINE IF YOUR FAVOURITE NEIGHBOURHOOD BAR BECAME A NAZI HANGOUT.
May 24, 2025 at 9:45 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Moderna pulls application for COVID-flu combination shot

archive.md/h6GKx
May 21 (Reuters) - Moderna (MRNA.O), opens new tab said on Wednesday it has withdrawn an application seeking approval for its flu and COVID combination vaccine candidate to wait for efficacy data from a late-stage trial of its influenza shot, which is due later this year. The delay was largely expected after Moderna said earlier this month that it does not anticipate approval of the shot until 2026 due to the need for more data on the flu vaccine. Its shares, which have fallen over 30% this year, were marginally higher at $24.20 in premarket trading. However, the application withdrawal is the latest sign of increased regulatory scrutiny of the vaccine approval process since Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took the top U.S. health job earlier this year. Moderna's decision comes a day after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it would require new clinical trials for approval of annual COVID-19 boosters for healthy people under 65. The combination shot comprises a new COVID vaccine and an influenza vaccine, both under development by Moderna. The company has previously said it does not expect a delay in the FDA's decision for the next-generation COVID vaccine, which is due by the end of the month. Shares of the company have been battered by declining COVID revenue as well as investor concerns spurred by the appointment of Kennedy, who is a vaccine skeptic, as secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Moderna has been banking on revenue from newer mRNA shots to make up for falling sales of its COVID vaccine and less-than-expected uptake of its respiratory syncytial virus vaccine. The FDA last week approved rival Novavax's NVAX.O COVID-19 vaccine more than a month after missing the deadline for the shot's approval, and limited its use to people with conditions that put them at risk due to the illness.
May 23, 2025 at 2:17 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Thanks for the reminder. I haven't (re)read them in eons. Maybe it's time to revisit.
Books by Sjöwall & Wahlöö on a shelf. Various publishers.
May 22, 2025 at 3:27 PM
aptronym.bsky.social
So far this year. Most of them are from two places.
List of my street/ free community library book acquisitions to date this year.
May 22, 2025 at 2:14 PM
aptronym.bsky.social
I've not read any Cusk, but I picked these up at a street library a few months ago.
KUDOS and OUTLINE by Rachel Cusk. Faber editions.
May 22, 2025 at 1:59 PM
aptronym.bsky.social
Books read in 2025 No.30 - The Tower of London - Natsume Sōseki (trans. and introduction/ afterword Damian Flanagan). Engaging and sometimes melancholy tales from his two years in London, including a lot about boarding houses.
Cover of THE TOWER OF LONDON by Natsume Sōseki (transl. Damian Flanagan), Published by Peter Owen. Cover painting of the Tower against blue sky. Calligraphy by Kosaka Misuzu. Back cover of THE TOWER OF LONDON by Natsume Sōseki (transl. Damian Flanagan), Published by Peter Owen. Map of Sōseki's London, showing where he lived and places of note from his stories.
May 22, 2025 at 11:58 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
[WILD]

A software company that handles sensitive data for nearly every US federal agency was the victim of a cyber breach earlier this year due to a "major lapse" in security measures, allowing two employees, convicted hackers, to delete databases, according to internal documents.

archive.md/LMb41
Probe Found Security Lapses Led to US Contractor’s Data Breach Failures in cybersecurity practices at a software company that helps federal agencies manage investigations and FOIA requests allowed two convicted hackers to delete databases, according to internal documents. A software company, Opexus, was breached by two employees, twin brothers Muneeb and Suhaib Akhter, who had previously been convicted of hacking into the US State Department. The brothers, who were hired by Opexus despite their criminal records, accessed sensitive documents and compromised or deleted dozens of databases, including those containing data from the Internal Revenue Service and the General Services Administration.
May 22, 2025 at 5:24 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth led a Christian prayer service in the Pentagon’s auditorium on Wednesday morning, during working hours, in which President Trump was praised as a divinely appointed leader.

archive.md/gf2Sw
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth led a Christian prayer service in the Pentagon’s auditorium on Wednesday morning, during working hours, in which President Trump was praised as a divinely appointed leader. The event, billed as the “Secretary of Defense Christian Prayer & Worship Service,” was standing room only and ran for about 30 minutes, with Brooks Potteiger, the pastor of Mr. Hegseth’s church in Tennessee, as the main speaker. Mr. Hegseth said he intended that the prayer service become a monthly event. It is unclear whether the Defense Department has hosted similar religious events outside of the Pentagon’s chapel, which was added after the 9/11 attack, but the service is part of an increasing infusion of overt Christian evangelization in official government events during Mr. Trump’s second term. The Pentagon press secretary, Sean Parnell, did not immediately respond to a question about whether the monthly services will include non-Protestant pastors, Catholic priests, rabbis or imams. Mr. Trump has long dismissed concerns that his words and actions as president may violate the First Amendment’s prohibition of establishing a state religion. On the campaign trail in 2024, Mr. Trump pledged to champion his followers’ brand of conservative Christianity across American life and government, and he signed an executive order in February banning “anti-Christian bias” in the federal government. “This is precisely where I need to be, and I think exactly where we need to be as a nation, at this moment,” Mr. Hegseth, standing at a lectern bearing the seal of the Defense Department, said in his opening remarks: “in prayer, on bended knee recognizing the providence of our lord and savior Jesus Christ.” He added, “Knowing that there’s an author in heaven overseeing all of this, who’s underwritten all of it, for us, on the cross, gives me the strength to proceed.” The defense secretary said that attendance at the prayer service was voluntary, but encouraged the uniformed military personnel and civilian employees there to tell their co-workers about it. “King Jesus, we come humbly before you, seeking your face, seeking your grace, in humble obedience to your law and to your word,” Mr. Hegseth prayed after asking attendees to bow their heads. “We come as sinners saved only by that grace, seeking your providence in our lives and in our nation. Lord God, we ask for the wisdom to see what is right and in each and every day, in each and every circumstance, the courage to do what is right in obedience to your will. It is in the name of our lord and savior, Jesus Christ, that we pray. And all God’s people say amen.” The assembled worshipers, including at least one general, repeated “Amen.” Tami Radabaugh, a deputy assistant to Mr. Hegseth who attended the service, wrote on X, “Grateful to have a @POTUS @realDonaldTrump @SecDef and administration who love the Lord as I do.” Editors’ Picks The 22 Best Pizza Places in New York Right Now Everybody Knew His Name: ‘Norm!’ What Travelers Should Know About This Messy Memorial Day Weekend Mr. Potteiger’s church, the Pilgrim Hill Reformed Fellowship in Goodlettsville, Tenn., is a member of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches — the governing documents of which say that church leadership roles are reserved for men, that homosexuality is “unbiblical” and that women should not participate in combat. Mr. Hegseth said in a podcast appearance before his nomination to lead the Pentagon that women have no place in military combat units, but appeared to soften that stance during his confirmation hearing in January. In his sermon, the pastor said, “We pray for our leaders who you have sovereignly appointed — for President Trump, thank you for the way that you have used him to bring stability and moral clarity to our land. And we pray that you would continue to protect him, bless him, give him great wisdom.” He added: “We pray that you would surround him with faithful counselors who fear your name and love your precepts.” Mr. Hegseth said Mr. Potteiger had “long been a mentor of mine, of my wife and I, of our family,” and he described him as “just a Bible-believing, rock steady minister.” The defense secretary said that he had participated in Bible studies with the pastor “long before anything like this seemed possible.” “And now here we are,” Mr. Hegseth added.
May 22, 2025 at 2:02 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
I've not read any Janette Turner Hospital or Kiran Desai, so I took these from a street library and hope to get to them at some point.
OYSTER by Janette Turner Hospital and HULLABALOO IN THE GUAVA ORCHARD by Kiran Desai. Cover of first is footsteps in sand. Cover of second is a monkey mid jump.
May 21, 2025 at 9:27 AM
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Europe’s Farm Sector Loses €28 Billion a Year From Climate Risks

archive.md/FOCdl
The European Union’s agriculture industry is losing €28 billion ($31.5 billion) a year due to increasing climate risks, such as droughts and flooding, according to a new study. Those losses from adverse weather equate to about 6% of production, according to a report published Tuesday by the European Investment Bank and the European Commission. Climate-related damages, which are mostly uninsured, could climb to €40 billion by mid-century, it said. Extreme weather in recent years has led to wash-out harvests and threatened food security at a time when European nations are seeking to shore up supply chains against shocks. Following protests by farmers, the 27-nation bloc set out a new vision for agricultural policy and simpler financing. “Climate change and its consequences could restrict farmers’ access to finance, as banks could become even more reluctant to take risks than they are today,” Christophe Hansen, the EU’s commissioner for agriculture and food, said in a statement, urging action to counter climate risks in the sector. Europe can do more to mitigate losses, including through the use of catastrophe bonds and public-private reinsurance arrangements, according to the study. It also proposed a rapid response fund and improved climate insurance coverage.
May 21, 2025 at 7:45 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Gets worse. Look at this screenshot.
Fetterman, Hassan, Kaine, Kim, Peters, Shaheen, and Slotkin all voted to approve this absolute embarrassment and it should be an albatross around their necks for the rest of their political careers. They should never win another election with a D next to their name. JFC
May 20, 2025 at 3:40 PM
aptronym.bsky.social
Comté-gate: environmental criticism of France’s beloved cheese sparks national debate @noodlefish.bsky.social

archive.md/LyL5W
Article headline "Comté-gate: environmental criticism of France’s beloved cheese sparks national debate Supporters of Comté argue that its production standards are already among the most environmentally ambitious in Europe and view the criticism as part of a broader attack on livestock farming."
May 20, 2025 at 11:28 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Sōseki's London
Map of Sōseki's London. From TOWER OF LONDON by Natsume Sōseki. Published by Peter Owen. Map with locations of where he stayed and other important sites as mentioned in the book.
May 20, 2025 at 9:34 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Durham University’s Prof Chris Stokes, lead author of the study, said: “We’re starting to see some of the worst-case scenarios play out almost in front of us. At current warming of 1.2C, sea level rise is accelerating at rates that, if they continue, would become almost unmanageable before the end of this century, [which is] within the lifetime of our youn The world is on track for 2.5C-2.9C of global heating, which would almost certainly be beyond tipping points for the collapse of the Greenland and west Antarctic ice sheets. The melting of those ice sheets would lead to a “really dire” 12 metres of sea level rise. Today, about 230 million people live 1 metre above current sea level, and 1 billion live 10 metres above sea level. Even just 20cm of sea level rise by 2050 would lead to global flood damages of at least $1tn a year for the world’s 136 largest coastal cities and huge impacts on people’s lives and livelihoods.
May 20, 2025 at 9:25 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...
Assignment: Colombia's webcam women The Documentary Podcast Colombia’s second largest city, Medellín, is booming and one of the biggest industries revolves around the city’s webcam studios which live stream women performing sex acts.  It’s estimated there are hundreds of studios in the city employing thousands of women and turning over millions of pounds as men – primarily in the US and Europe – pay to watch the women. The work is legal with studios running glossy websites to attract models and even hosting their own annual trade show. Crossing Continents meets two women who have contrasting experiences working in the industry. Sofia Bettiza asks if their work is exploitation or a pragmatic way to earn a living in a country where wages for women are often low and opportunities limited.
May 20, 2025 at 9:09 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
The deal means US soldiers will be in Denmark under US jurisdiction, meaning that if they were to commit a crime anywhere in Denmark they would in the first instance be punished under the US, not Danish, legal system. It also gives US soldiers access to Danish airbases in three Danish cities – Karup, Skrydstrup and Aalborg – and gives American soldiers and military police powers over Danish civilians at these locations and outside them. And it allows the US to carry out military activities in and from Denmark – including stationing personnel, storing military material and equipment, maintenance, training and exercise activities. “If the bill is passed, we risk that American soldiers will have the right to crack down on a demonstration outside one of their bases, in order to maintain security and control of the base,” Peter Vedel Kessing, a senior researcher at the Danish Institute for Human Rights, which has advised the defence committee on legal issues, told the Guardian. “If armed American soldiers use excessive force against demonstrators, Denmark will not have the possibility to prosecute them.”
May 20, 2025 at 2:20 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Amid rice shortage, farm minister comes under fire for saying he gets plenty.

“I have never bought rice. My supporters give me so much rice that, in the food pantry of my house, I have enough to sell it”

archive.md/fD4na
Agriculture minister Taku Eto is facing criticism for making insensitive remarks about rice at a time when prices for the staple grain have doubled over the past year. “I have never bought rice. My supporters give me so much rice that, in the food pantry of my house, I have enough to sell it,” Eto reportedly said at a fundraising party of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in Saga Prefecture on Sunday. His remarks were first reported in the Saga Shimbun, a local newspaper. Eto added that the release of government-stockpiled rice, which is unpolished, is expected to improve supply and lower prices since the grain can be sold in that form. He also apologized for his ministry's inability to bring down prices. “It may not be intentional, but there are all kinds of things mixed in the rice we receive, like black pebbles and other things,” he was quoted as saying at the fundraiser, adding that his family sieves these out before getting the rice polished in a machine. Some also consider this remark as offensive to farmers. Despite the release of approximately 310,000 metric tons of rice from the government’s stockpiles, prices remain high. The average price of a 5-kilogram bag of rice sold at supermarkets was ¥4,214 ($29) in the week from April 28, about twice the amount from the same period last year, according to government data. Last week, the government announced additional measures to improve the supply of rice, including offering incentives for bidders to sell the rice quicker after securing the grain at auctions and extending a buyback period to five years. Currently, the government buys back the same amount of stockpiled rice sold to distributors within a year. Another batch of stockpiled rice is expected to be released later this month. In response to questions over his remarks, Eto on Monday afternoon admitted that his words lacked regard for consumers. He said that in making the remarks, he only intended to encourage people to consider purchasing non-polished rice amid the current supply tightness. “I regret very much causing trouble with remarks that do not reflect my actual situation,” he told reporters, adding that his household actually purchases rice regularly. Opposition parties have seized on Eto’s comments and accused him of being tone-deaf. “He’s bragging to suffering consumers and he’s rude to (rice) producers,” Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan veteran lawmaker Ichiro Ozawa wrote on social media platform X. “The reason behind the rice shortage is this minister who’s out of touch with reality.” Eto, who has been representing a largely rural constituency in Miyazaki Prefecture since 2003, is regarded as an expert on agricultural policy. He previously served as agriculture minister for a year from 2019, and has headed both a Lower House agriculture committee as well as an LDP panel on the sector. KEYWORDS
May 20, 2025 at 1:24 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
A place I walked past on the weekend.
www.property.com.au/nsw/pyrmont-...
Exterior of 165 Harris St., Pyrmont with for sale sign outside. Sold sticker on top of sign. Turns out it sold before auction for 3.3 million.
May 19, 2025 at 9:17 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Walked past this a few weeks ago.

www.therubinsteingroup.com/property/55-...
Power substation next to a small house for sale graffiti tagging on the substation. Exterior of house for sale in Surry Hills
May 19, 2025 at 9:13 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Squat pink building with tags (graffiti) on front. No window. Doorway with open sign visible above. Entry direction with arrow pointing around the corner.
May 19, 2025 at 9:06 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
Walmart Is Preparing to Welcome Its Next Customer: The AI Shopping Agent

As consumers begin to use AI agents to do their shopping, retailers are trying to figure out how to market to bots in addition to humans

www.wsj.com/articles/wal...
Walmart is preparing for sweeping changes in the way consumers shop, investigating how to make products appealing not just to human consumers, but also to the AI agents that will one day shop on their behalf. AI bots, able to perform tasks autonomously, have the potential to transform online shopping, completely bypassing traditional online search and promotional tricks aimed at attracting human beings. “It will be different,” said Walmart U.S. Chief Technology Officer Hari Vasudev. “Advertising will have to evolve.” Already AI has already changed the way consumers research products on search engines, with results now serving up AI-generated summaries. But the idea of shopping agents operating without human intervention is another thing entirely. At some point in the future, shoppers will deploy an agent, like OpenAI’s Operator, and tell it they want to restock on groceries or buy a new flat-screen TV. Operator will then scan the internet and surface relevant products based on what it knows about the user’s preferences. Ultimately, agents will even be able to complete the purchase, including payment. It’s a step change that will force retailers to rethink the way they advertise, describe their products online and even price them, said Robert Hetu, vice president analyst for retail at market research and consulting firm Gartner. And retailers risk losing control of the direct customer relationship if the checkout process moves from their own website to that of the third-party agent, like Operator or others to come. Walmart is building its own shopping agents that customers can access on its app and website. These agents will be able to execute basic repetitive tasks like re-ordering weekly groceries, and also fill a shopping basket in response to prompts like “I want to plan a unicorn-themed party for my daughter,” Vasudev said. In its first-quarter earnings, Walmart reported a 22% jump in its e-commerce business. But the company is also anticipating that consumers might instead use third-party shopping agents developed by tech companies, and is preparing for that scenario. Looking ahead, Vasudev foresees the establishment of an industry protocol that enables those third-party shopping agents to communicate with retailers’ own agents, he said, handing over product recommendations from the retailer’s website based on user preferences. Some of these agent-to-agent protocols are already being developed, but they’re not yet ready. Third-party agents could also scan the retailers’ websites without interacting with the store’s agents, similar to the way a human in-store shopper might not necessarily ask a sales clerk for help finding given items in the store, Vasudev said. Still, when third-party agents are used, retailers are to some extent at the mercy of their algorithms. A user could specifically tell its agent to shop at Walmart, or tell its agent to just find the lowest price on a certain item, Vasudev said. But some of the nuances of what customers get shown will also come from the agents themselves. For instance, one factor Open AI’s Operator uses is how prominently a page is ranked in web searches. Highly ranked pages, including paid ads and sponsored posts on search, can make content more likely to appear on Operator, the company said, noting that the model still heavily considers a user’s prompt and prior behavior and preferences. Even then, the way a bot shops is fundamentally different from the way a human shops, meaning retailers should think carefully about the way they display products on their sites, said Gartner’s Hetu. For one, agents may be less likely to be attracted to images or visuals designed to elicit an emotional response. Retailers may also have to make split-second decisions on pricing and when to offer agents discounts versus letting them nab the same option cheaper elsewhere in an instant, Hetu said. To be sure, a nominal amount of shopping today is already being done by agents, which still have a lot of room to grow, Hetu said. At present, over 80% of shopping still happens in bricks-and-mortar stores rather than via any digital channel, he said. “This is going to take time to transform,” he said.
May 19, 2025 at 3:56 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
This being aptronym adjacent, I obviously had to check if it was real.

archive.md/zWQ8s
Dino Grandoni Washington, D.C. Reporter covering wildlife, biodiversity and other climate and environmental issues Education: Columbia University, BA in economics and political science; Columbia University, MA in science journalism Dino Grandoni is a reporter covering wildlife, biodiversity and other climate and environmental issues. He is the author of Animalia, a column exploring the strange and fascinating world of animals and the ways in which we appreciate, imperil and depend on them. Previously, he covered the Environmental Protection Agency and was the author of a daily tipsheet on energy and environmental policy, The Energy 202. Before joining The Post, he worked for BuzzFeed News and Huffington Post and was a reporting fellow at the New York Times and the Atlantic. He also co-wrote a series on ExxonMobil’s early Read more
May 18, 2025 at 1:10 PM
aptronym.bsky.social
Books read in 2025 No.29. The Liar - Martin A. Hansen (trans. Paul Larkin) @nyrb-imprints.bsky.social
Cover of THE LIAR by Martin A. Hansen. NYRB. Image from painting HIDDEN TELEVISION by Pierre Alechinsky. Green snake with red tongue. Back cover of THE LIAR by Martin A. Hansen (trans. Paul Larkin). NYRB. Blurb from the Sydney Morning Herald.
May 18, 2025 at 12:48 PM
aptronym.bsky.social
Read this.
One of the maps shows the flow of data and knowledge out of 39 African nations to subcontractors, mostly located in the United Arab Emirates, North America, and Europe, with four outsourcing firms in Africa. From there, it goes on to clients such as Meta, OpenAI, and Samsung. The research was conducted by the African Content Moderators Union (ACMU) and Switzerland-based nonprofit, Personaldata.io. A second map shows some clients of the outsourcing firms that employ African digital workers. While there may be additional clients in other regions, including within Africa, this map highlights that the primary beneficiaries remain Western companies. Subcontractors can profit from hiring workers in countries where rights are less strictly enforced, Jessica Pidoux, director of Personaldata.io, told Rest of World. “These companies go to African countries, like Kenya, where the government is a bit fragile, the economy, the politics, [are] complicated,” she said.
May 18, 2025 at 7:41 AM
aptronym.bsky.social
@drng.bsky.social @noodlefish.bsky.social
One of the maps shows the flow of data and knowledge out of 39 African nations to subcontractors, mostly located in the United Arab Emirates, North America, and Europe, with four outsourcing firms in Africa. From there, it goes on to clients such as Meta, OpenAI, and Samsung. The research was conducted by the African Content Moderators Union (ACMU) and Switzerland-based nonprofit, Personaldata.io. A second map shows some clients of the outsourcing firms that employ African digital workers. While there may be additional clients in other regions, including within Africa, this map highlights that the primary beneficiaries remain Western companies. Subcontractors can profit from hiring workers in countries where rights are less strictly enforced, Jessica Pidoux, director of Personaldata.io, told Rest of World. “These companies go to African countries, like Kenya, where the government is a bit fragile, the economy, the politics, [are] complicated,” she said.
May 18, 2025 at 7:39 AM