https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/05/magazine/climate-change-activism-renewable-energy.html?unlocked_article_code=1.jk8.S0zE.XxTc8LSWx0j8

Solar and batteries are already cost competitive with gas when it comes to adding new, 24 hour, firm generation. Mileage does vary by location, but many cities (globally) could get to 60-99% powered by solar + battery while being just cheaper than a new gas power plant. This is using numbers from 2024, and both of these technologies are in a cost free fall* and have been for a long time.

*tariffs not included, but they are arbitrary BS

Solar+storage is so much farther along than you think

On how plummeting battery prices make 24/7 solar power a reality today.

^{David Roberts (Volts)}

• HTML;
• Inline Viewer.

Elon Musk, already the world’s richest person, could become the first trillionaire after the Tesla board unveiled a massive new pay package for its CEO to keep his focus on the troubled EV maker.

The package would grant him additional shares of Tesla stock if the company is able to grow far beyond its current value, with a market capitalization far greater than any company has ever approached. Musk’s previous pay package, which added significantly to his massive wealth, also laid out ambitious growth plans that once appeared to be a reach – but which Tesla proved able to reach easily.

The new pay package could grant Musk 423.7 million additional shares of Tesla stock. Those shares would be be worth $143.5 billion at today’s stock value.

But Musk would get those shares only if the value of Tesla stock increases significantly in coming years. The company stock would need to reach an overall value of $8.5 trillion for Musk to get all the shares, significantly above the current market capitalization of $1.1 trillion

Those 423.7 million new shares that Musk would get under this package would be worth close to $1 trillion should the company hit the increased valuation targets spelled out in Friday’s proxy statement.

If Tesla shares are able to reach the $8.5 billion market capitalization value, it could become the most valuable company ever. It would be worth roughly double the current market value of Nvidia (NVDA), the current most-valuable company on the market. Tesla is already the most valuable automaker by a large margin, even though legacy automakers, like second-most valuable automaker Toyota, sell far more vehicles and now make more profits.

Tesla proposes Elon Musk pay package that could make him the world’s first trillionaire

Elon Musk could become the world’s first trillionaire if shareholders adopt a new proposal that would give him unprecedented sums of money if the company reaches certain ambitious milestones.

^{Chris Isidore (CNN)}

Im old and only recall TPB for torrents. Also what are private trackers and how can i get in on that? I have a lot of potentially rare media to share as well and I wanna seed.

I realize the wiki may explain this but I didn't feel like digging.

cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/36936958

The Block BEARD Site-Blocking Act, recently introduced to address foreign piracy in the United States, did not emerge from a vacuum. It is the result of a multi-year effort that began with a non-public proposal in 2022. This initial version became stranded when stakeholders were unable to reach an agreement, but remnants of the early proposal remain visible today.

Pro

2025-09-05 19:13:37

Behind the Curtain: The Three-Year Journey to the Block BEARD Site Blocking Act

The Block BEARD Site-Blocking Act, recently introduced to address foreign piracy in the United States, did not emerge from a vacuum. It is the result of a multi-year effort that began with a non-public proposal in 2022. This initial version became stranded when stakeholders were unable to reach an agreement, but remnants of the early proposal remain visible today.

Behind the Curtain: The Three-Year Journey to the Block BEARD Site Blocking Act * TorrentFreak

The recently introduced Block BEARD Site-Blocking Act did not emerge from a vacuum. Its origins lie in a 2022 non-public anti-piracy proposal.

^{Ernesto Van der Sar (TF Publishing)}

I'm putting together a provisional (cheap & quick) studio setup, to get on with photographing ceramics & sculpture in the first instance but the option to reuse for portrait work would be a plus.

What should I look at in terms of backdrops? Are the cheap ones from amazon viable? There is a good haberdashery locally who have rolls of fabric - what should I look for if I enquire there?

I'm a competent DIYer but want to avoid false economies and, if poss, too much redundant kit when I upgrade. I also need to crack on with it asap!

What is your advice?

::: spoiler Comments
- Reddit;
- Hacker News.
:::

Report.

The new Social Security War Room investigation found that, in addition to gutting the Social Security workforce and degrading key functions of the agency, Trump’s Social Security Administration(SSA) has removed 48 benchmarks of critical information and data from its website, including: (1) disability benefits processing data; (2) retirement, survivor, and Medicare claims processing data; (3) key phone metrics; (4) information on staff reductions; and (5) information that helps Americans understand or modify their Social Security. The dashboard changes have occurred — without notice — while Social Security Administration(SSA)’s leadership has continued to peddle false claims about wait time data.

In June, reports revealed that Social Security Administration(SSA)’s online performance dashboard had been removed from the agency’s website shortly after Commissioner Bisignano took office. The dashboard had displayed key information including metrics on processing times for benefits and live wait time data for the agency’s 800 number. When Social Security Administration(SSA) relaunched the dashboard in mid-June, the site was significantly pared down.

Warren Investigation Reveals Trump’s Social Security Administration Removed Key Metrics, Information from Website | U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts

The Official U.S. Senate website of Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts

^{www.warren.senate.gov}

This is a "crônica", a uniquely Brazilian format that emerged in Brazilian newspapers in the 19th century. The crônica is very short. It is characterized by a mix of fact, subjectivity, and often fiction that is supposed to reflect or say something about reality (this one has no fiction). Oddly enough, I wrote this crônica directly in English. It was an interesting experience to write something so profoundly Brazilian in English.

Crônicas are often slice-of-life.

Ben-Hur on a computer screen

^{Davi Ramos}

E: apparently it needs to be said that I am not suggesting you switch to Linux on your phone today; just that development needs to accelerate.

Android has always been a fairly open platform, especially if you were deliberate about getting it that way, but we've seen in recent months an extremely rapid devolution of the Android ecosystem:

1. The closing of development of an increasing number of components in AOSP.
2. Samsung, Xiaomi and OnePlus have removed the option of bootloader unlocking on all of their devices. I suspect Google is not far behind.
3. Google implementing Play Integrity API and encouraging developers to implement it. Notably the EU's own identity verification wallet requires this, in stark contrast to their own laws and policies, despite the protest of hundreds on Github.
4. And finally, the mandatory implementation of developer verification across Android systems. Yes, if you're running a 3rd-party OS like GOS you won't be directly affected by this, but it will impact 99.9% of devices, and I foresee many open source developers just opting out of developing apps for Android entirely as a result. We've already seen SyncThing simply discontinue development for this reason, citing issues with Google Play Store. They've also repeatedly denied updates for NextCloud with no explanation, only restoring it after mass outcry. And we've already seen Google targeting any software intended to circumvent ads, labeling them in the system as "dangerous" and "untrusted". This will most certainly carry into their new "verification" system.

Google once competed with Apple for customers. But in a world where Google walks away from the biggest antitrust trial since 1998 with yet another slap on the wrist, competition is dead, and Google is taking notes from Apple about what they can legally get away with.

> Android as we know it is dead. And/or will be dead very soon. We need an open replacement.

It truly can't be overstated how important this will be in the coming years, given the current trends of Android towards being a closed ecosystem.

Samsung One UI Removed Bootloader Unlock – What It Means for Users in 2025

Samsung One UI removed bootloader unlock officially in latest update. Learn what this change means for custom ROM users, developers, and how it affects Android enthusiasts.

^{Pavithran (TrendsLife)}

Amid reports the Justice Department is weighing banning transgender people from owning firearms in response to last month’s mass shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic church, the National Rifle Association said Friday it will oppose any blanket rule that limits Second Amendment rights.

Their declaration comes after CNN and other outlets reported that Justice Department leadership is considering whether it can use its rulemaking authority declare that people who are transgender are mentally ill and can lose their rights to possess firearms.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/05/politics/nra-transgender-gun-control

Is AI's hype cycle leading us into a trough of disillusionment? Dive into the reality behind GPT-5's launch and its impact on the tech world.

A recent MIT report on AI in business found that 95 percent of all generative-AI deployments in business settings generated “zero return.”

GPT 5's Rocky Launch Highlights AI Disillusionment

^{Matthew S. Smith (IEEE Spectrum)}

The Block BEARD Site-Blocking Act, recently introduced to address foreign piracy in the United States, did not emerge from a vacuum. It is the result of a multi-year effort that began with a non-public proposal in 2022. This initial version became stranded when stakeholders were unable to reach an agreement, but remnants of the early proposal remain visible today.

Behind the Curtain: The Three-Year Journey to the Block BEARD Site Blocking Act * TorrentFreak

The recently introduced Block BEARD Site-Blocking Act did not emerge from a vacuum. Its origins lie in a 2022 non-public anti-piracy proposal.

^{Ernesto Van der Sar (TF Publishing)}

This past June, I put together a write-up about two major approaches to backfilling conversations. The ability to properly backfill conversations means we will be able to make major inroads toward solving the feeling that the fediverse is quiet.

I, alongside several other members of the SWICG Forums and Threaded Discussions Task Force (ForumWG) have been working toward building implementor support for Conversational Contexts — the ability to explicitly classify a set of objects as belonging to a conversation, whether that be a topic, reply tree, or similar.

I am happy to report that we have made some wonderful inroads this past few months!

• jesseplusplus@mastodon.social has been working closely with the Mastodon team to allow software to backfill from Mastodon — this pull request has now been approved! :white_check_mark:
• I have been working with both nutomic@lemmy.ml and rimu@piefed.social to allow software to backfill from Lemmy and Piefed, respectively. (Lemmy PR, Piefed issue) :white_check_mark:

This marks a major milestone in the adoption of conversational contexts. With Mastodon on board backfill will be possible with the majority of the microblogiverse. With Lemmy and Piefed on board, backfill will be possible with the majority of the threadiverse.

Remember that pfefferle@mastodon.social was an early adopter of conversational contexts, and we have been able to backfill from WordPress blogs for quite awhile now (so that's the blogiverse too) :blush:

I for one, am eagerly awaiting the next version of all of these softwares!!

Implement FEP 7888: Part 1 - publish conversation context by jesseplusplus · Pull Request #35959 · mastodon/mastodon

I would like to upstream my fork's implementation of FEP-7888, which groups conversations or threads together. I have decided to split the implementation into two parts: adding the context prop...

^GitHub

President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics once ran an offensive Twitter account that posted misogynistic and homophobic abuse and entertained conspiracy theories, according to a report.

EJ Antoni, 37 – an economist with the Heritage Foundation, the conservative think-tank behind the Project 2025 agenda for Trump’s second term – ran the account from 2015 to 2020 but it has since been deleted, CNN reported.

The network said the account – which existed under multiple names at different times, beginning with his own – was used to make degrading and sexist remarks about female Democratic politicians, including Kamala Harris, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar.

Trump’s nominee to lead BLS accused of trolling top Democrats with offensive Twitter account

EJ Antoni, a Heritage Foundation economist, allegedly used social media platform to dish out abuse and entertain conspiracy theories

^{Joe Sommerlad (The Independent)}

The Texas Senate voted against delaying a controversial East Texas groundwater export project on the same day the company behind it hired one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s top advisors as a lobbyist.

Conservation Equity Management, a company affiliated with Dallas investor Kyle Bass, hired Allen Blakemore on Tuesday, the same day the legislation hit the Senate floor, according to lobbying records filed at the Texas Ethics Commission. Blakemore is Patrick’s political consultant and has also worked on the campaigns of several Republican senators.

Company behind East Texas water grab hires Dan Patrick-linked lobbyist

Conservation Equity Management hired Allen Blakemore, a political consultant to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, on the same day the legislation hit the Senate floor.

^{Megan Kimble (Houston Chronicle)}