Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Duncan Smith

paris martineau @paris.nyc · 6h

two of the products we tested — Huel's Black Edition meal replacement powder and Naked Nutrition's vegan mass gainer — had enough lead that our experts caution against using them at all

a single serving of these protein powders contained between 1,200 and 1,600% of CR’s level of concern for lead

Two plant-based protein powders contained enough lead that our experts advise against consuming them. Naked Nutrition’s Mass Gainer powder contained 7.7 micrograms of lead per serving, which is roughly 1,570 percent of CR’s level of concern for the heavy metal. One serving of Huel’s Black Edition powder contained 6.3 micrograms of lead, or about 1,290 percent of CR’s daily lead limit.

Two other powders contained lead between 400 and 600 percent of CR’s level of concern: Garden of Life’s Sport Organic Plant-Based Protein and Momentous’ 100% Plant Protein. Consumers should limit these to once a week, Akinleye says. (See company responses below.)

The only non-plant-based protein powder with lead detected at over 200 percent of CR’s level of concern was MuscleMeds’ Carnivor Mass powder. Six additional plant-based powders, five dairy-based powders and shakes, and one beef powder contained lead above CR’s level of concern.

We also found measurable levels of cadmium and inorganic arsenic in some products. One serving of Huel’s Black Edition plant-based protein powder contained 9.2 micrograms of cadmium, more than double the level that public health authorities and CR’s experts say may be harmful to have daily, which is 4.1 micrograms.

Another plant-based option, Vega’s Premium Sport powder, had enough cadmium that one serving would also put you just over that level. In one dairy-based product, Optimum Nutrition’s Serious Mass whey protein powder, we also detected 8.5 micrograms per serving of inorganic arsenic, which is twice the limit of what our scientists say is safe to consume daily.

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

ℳatt @matttomic.bsky.social · 7h

And naturally, once this technology is out there, it's a ticking time bomb until someone jailbreaks the filters and turns this into a full-blown deepfake porn generator to be used against your enemies or colleagues or classmates. So not only is it useless for good, it's a nuclear bomb for bad.

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Carly Goodman @carlygoodman.bsky.social · 7h

I do tend to think: this is not a consumer product, this is a weapon marketed and sold to states and militaries, and nobody is pretending otherwise

ℳatt @matttomic.bsky.social · 7h

Why, on God's green earth, would I ever upload a 3D likeness of my face and voice to a software so that strangers could make deepfakes of me.

Unlike the original Sora, Sora 2 isn’t a mere video-generation platform; it’s a social app with a TikTok-style feed of short AI-generated clips, and it allows you to authorize a “cameo” of yourself so friends can drop your likeness into their skits—and to revoke it later once you’ve seen too many videos of yourself fleeing police or crying on game shows.

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Mark Chadbourn @chadbourn.bsky.social · 9h

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte: “If China were to move against Taiwan, it's likely China would force its junior partner in that relationship, being Russia, under Vladimir Putin, to move against NATO to keep us busy.”

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Cycling UK Official @cyclinguk.bsky.social · 8h

🚲 How can we expect more people to cycle?

BTP won’t investigate bikes left for over 2 hours or worth under £200. We’ve written an open letter urging them to rethink this low-risk, high-reward approach to bike theft.

🧡 Help us fight back: cyclinguk.org/btp-donate
📜 cyclinguk.org/btp-open-letter

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

𝚃𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚜 𝙶𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚘𝚎 🚇 @taras-grescoe.com · Dec 11

CAR-CRAZY FACT OF THE DAY.

Every 24 hours, US drivers run over 15 children in parking lots and driveways.

jalopnik.com/u-s-drivers-...

U.S. Drivers Run Over 15 Children Every Day In Parking Lots And Driveways

Tall vehicles and long hoods contribute to increasing number of "frontover" incidents.

jalopnik.com

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 16h

To be effective, protest must be noisy, obstructive, annoying. No longer is this allowed. Now the last attribute of effective dissent – persistence – is also to be banned. But the moment protest ceases to be effective is the moment democracy dies. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Here’s what you need to know about Starmer’s illiberal protest curbs: they would have killed the Labour party at birth | George Monbiot

The rights we enjoy in the UK, and the movement the PM purports to lead, were built on protest. Those rights are in dire peril, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Bob Marshall @bobmarshall.co.uk · 15h

Hi #PortfolioDay!

I'm an Architectural Illustrator from Edinburgh. I visually reconstruct heritage buildings and monuments in #Blender3D guided by archaeology, measured survey data, and by working in collaboration with historians and archaeologists.

Website: bobmarshall.co.uk

ALT: A speculative digital reconstruction of the Bass of Inverurie - a late twelfth-century timber and earthwork castle held by the Earls of Garioch (pronounced "Geary" in the local tongue)- members of the extended royal family of Scotland and the ancestors of King Robert the Bruce. Personal project © Bob Marshall 2017. CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Speculative digital reconstruction of Tor Alvie hillfort near Aviemore, Scottish Highlands. The site was identified as a hillfort in 2010-11 (Historic Environment Record: MHG55341). The reconstruction model was created in Blender 3D using a combination of high-resolution digital terrain data obtained from Ordnance Survey, which I used to create my backdrop of the Cairngorm Mountains. Although the fort has never been excavated, the line of its rampart walls can broadly be determined by a stony bank that encloses an area of roughly 85m x 30m, bearing immediate similarities in size and shape to Craig Phadrig hillfort near Inverness. However, unlike Craig Phadrig, there is no evidence that Torr Alvie was vitrified. It is difficult to know how thick the ramparts were, whether there were timber palisades, and how many entrances the fort had, so imagination plays a large part in this visualisation. With grateful thanks to Eve Boyle and Adam Welfare of Historic Environment Scotland and Professor Gordon Noble of the University of Aberdeen for their input and assistance. © Bob Marshall / badenochstorylands.com 2020.

A speculative digital reconstruction of the early sixteenth-century chancel screen of St Mary's parish church in Youghal, Ireland. Using survey measurements, I developed a computer model to help me work out a possible design for the screen and its loft. Its form is guided by the information written in historical documents and from a single piece of decorated timber, which may have been part of this original screen, found underneath the church floor during recent archaeological investigations. I have combined influences from some surviving medieval screens found in churches in several English counties. The depiction of the Last Judgement painted above the chancel arch is imaginary, and also influenced by similar mural paintings found in several medieval English churches. The Last Judgement, sometimes also referred to as a ‘Doom’, was a common feature of medieval churches. It was an instrument for highlighting the contrasts between the rewards of heaven and the agony of hell, intended to guide Christians away from sin and misbehaviour.

A digital reconstruction of Brougham Castle shows how it may have looked in 1388 following the additions and alterations made by Roger Clifford, 5th Baron of Westmoreland. This view of the castle in wintertime is from the northwest. Artist: Bob Marshall. © Historic England / English Heritage Trust. Contact Historic England Archives for Licensing enquiries.

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

The New York Times @nytimes.com · 1d

The UN health agency found that one in six infections worldwide was resistant to the most commonly available antibiotics. “Antibiotic resistance is widespread and threatening the future of modern medicine,” one WHO official said.

W.H.O. Warns of Sharp Increase in Drug-Resistant Infections

The U.N. health agency found that one in six infections worldwide was resistant to the most commonly available antibiotics.

nyti.ms

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Duncan Smith @dnmns.bsky.social · 1d

Looking for the same.

Duncan Smith @dnmns.bsky.social · 1d

Submarine getting closer…closer…<plink> no internet connection.

Reposted by Duncan Smith

The People's Fabric @peoplesfabric.com · 1d

Imagine going back in time to tell 2015-you that in 2025 armed masked secret police are driving around Chicago, asking to see papers, kidnapping dozens of people a day, and arresting citizens who record them, while launching tear gas into neighborhood streets.

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Pam Jarvis @drpam.bsky.social · 1d

But if evidence emerges that someone on the breadline has filled in a form wrong, they have to pay it back and they will be arrested if it looks like it may be intentional. This is outrageous. So arrest him, and interview him under caution.

Boris Johnson breached rules designed to stop abuse of contacts made in public office, watchdog finds

Johnson found to have breached rules after refusing to answer specific questions about allegations published by the Guardian

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Jason Rabinowitz @airlineflyer.net · 1d

I, for one, welcome our new Chinese vehicle safety regulation overlords.

WIRED @wired.com · 1d

Proposed regulations in China would mean the end of flush handles on car doors, with precious little time to roll out the changes. www.wired.com/story/new-ru...

New Rules Could Force Tesla to Redesign Its Door Handles. That’s Harder Than It Sounds

Proposed regulations in China would mean the end of flush handles on car doors, with precious little time to roll out the changes.

www.wired.com

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Senator Scott Wiener @scottwiener.bsky.social · 1d

The level of kleptocratic corruption in this regime is breathtaking, e.g.:

—Selling off Freddie Mac & Fannie Mae to big banks

—Bribes from ABC & CBS

—TikTok sale to Ellison

—Everything Qatar: the plane gift, the Idaho military base

—Whoever has bribed him by buying his scam meme coins

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The Register @theregister.com · 1d

We're all going to be paying AI's Godzilla-sized power bills

Even if you never use it, you'll be paying for it thanks to datacenters' never-ending hunger for electricity Opinion When I was a wet-behind-the-ears developer running my programs on an IBM 360, a mainframe that was slower than a Raspberry Pi Zero W, my machine used about 50 kilowatts (kW). I thought that was a lot of power. Little did I know what was coming.…

dlvr.it

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 2d

It's hard to help Americans left behind because so much of US identity is rooted in individualism. The average American conservative holds all three positions at once:

— Virtue signals about supporting US manufacturing
— Against raising the minimum wage
— Buys foreign imports because they're cheap

HardPass4 on Twitter tweets: "I'm willing to pay more for quality products if they are made in America, by Americans, who are paid a decent income." The tweet shows Norman Rockwell's "Freedom of Speech" painting, which is often used to show the tweeter is expressing a brave opinion.

HardPass4 on Twitter tweets: "MINIMUM WAGE JOBS WERE NOT MEANT TO BE A CAREER. Why does no one understand this? Entry level jobs are STEPPING STONES to better jobs. No one wants to work towards that though."

HardPass4 on Twitter tweets: "Buy $5 gloves instead of $50 ones. Trust me." The tweet shows a box of "Gorilla Grip" gloves.

The label on Gorilla Grip gloves show they're made in China.

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

Zack Labe @zacklabe.com · 2d

Unfortunately still no #Arctic sea ice thickness and volume update for the month of September on my website... data issues from the U.S. government shutdown

PIOMAS notice: psc.apl.uw.edu/research/pro...

Screenshot that says "August 2025 Monthly Update [September update delayed due to US Govn’t shutdown resulting in unavailable data]"

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Prem Sikka @premnsikka.bsky.social · 2d

Private equity wrecked UK high street, says Iceland Foods boss

PE model - low wages, cut staff/investment, high debt, profiteering, tax abuse.

PE devoured Debenhams, Maplin, Byron Burger, Cath Kidson, Comet, Flybe, Poundworld, Toys R Us.

Controls care homes, vets, supermarkets.
archive.ph/tJVkV

Private equity has wrecked the high street, says Iceland boss

Richard Walker says private buyers take out costs and fail to invest then sell to the highest bidder in a cycle that makes retailers steadily worse

www.thetimes.com

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Slurmsadako MacKenzie @slurmsmackenzie.bsky.social · 2d

GenAI truly was the worst technology to come along at this moment.

An energy and water guzzler when we most urgently need to take climate action.

A disinformation machine as our journalism fails.

A bias machine as fascism takes root.

A job killer in a cost of living crisis.

Bria "tries to write a book" Horses @thevoidencore.bsky.social · 7d

The "cognitive decline and brain damage from repeat COVID infections" and "easy to use robot that makes slop and melts your critical thinking skills" is a hell of a combo in a post-fact media ecosystem

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

John Skiles Skinner @skiles.blue · 3d

There is background radiation all over the internet and it feels like war to me. Nearly every website is getting slammed with traffic that appears to be from AI scrapers? But no one really know where it's all coming from. These days you can hardly run a small website without a CDN to shield you.

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Reposted by Duncan Smith

John Skiles Skinner @skiles.blue · 3d

Meanwhile Pete Hegseth thinks the wars of the future will be a soldier beauty pageant and pushup contest. Ignoring the actual ways in which war is being fought, right now, in Ukrane, Gaza, and across worldwide computer networks.

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God @thegodpodcast.com · 3d

When Obama was president the right wing acted like masked government agents were coming to kidnap them and take all their rights away.

Then Republicans get elected and actually do that shit for real.

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Professa Murray @kalimurray.bsky.social · 3d

What drives me nuts about this dialogue: diversity and inclusion training was a corporate response to the statutory requirements civil rights laws. None of these laws have been repealed by Congress. Congress can pass the laws under Section 5 of the 14th Amendment, which has also not been repealed.

Anna Gifty @itsafronomics.bsky.social · 3d

lol gentle reminder that DEI is not illegal. Supporting marginalized groups is not illegal. Anyone reneging on support is making a CHOICE to do so.

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Disability Rights Watch (US) @disrightswatch.bsky.social · 3d

Breaking: per internal sources, the entire Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), including OSEP and RSA beneath them, was RIFed last night at the Department of Ed. Developing story. DoEd union says may take 1-2 days for all affected employees to receive official notice.

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