What the article describes means so, so much. Being able to have electric light, to charge a phone, this was not a given for so many people. I think it's huge.

AFAIK, alone air pollution from kerosene fuel in the house is in Africa a leading cause of death.

You know that feeling when you’re waiting for the cable guy, and they said ‘between 8am and 6pm, and you waste your entire day, and they never show up?

Now imagine that, except the cable guy is ‘electricity,’ the day is ‘50 years,’ and you’re one of 600 million people. At some point, you stop waiting and figure it out yourself.

What’s happening across Sub-Saharan Africa right now is the most ambitious infrastructure project in human history, except it’s not being built by governments or utilities or World Bank consortiums. It’s being built by startups selling solar panels to farmers on payment plans. And it’s working.

Over 30 million solar products sold in 2024. 400,000 new solar installations every month across Africa. 50% market share captured by companies that didn’t exist 15 years ago. Carbon credits subsidizing the cost. IoT chips in every device. 90%+ repayment rates on loans to people earning $2/day.

And if you understand what’s happening in Africa, you understand the template for how infrastructure will get built everywhere else for the next 50 years.

[...]

What I am also thinking for a while that the switch to non-fossil power is a historic seismic shift in how huge streams of money are flowing. It changes how power is transmitted very much in a double sense.

And this is not the end of what is possible and what is needed. Tiny solar installations might not be enough for cooking, efficient induction stoves might now still be too expensive. Standard AC voltage systems for home appliances might not match these power sources well. Broken components might be difficult to repair and create waste.

But hey, that's life, isn't it - we solve one problem and in turn we get two new ones for free 😉

Why Solarpunk is already happening in Africa

Or: How Africa is building the future by skipping the past

^{Skander Garroum (Climate Drift)}

ArcaneChat 2.25.0 is on its way to Google Play and f-droid and should be available in the upcoming days, can't wait? for other download options check arcanechat.me/

🔮 What's new?

★ Now it is possible to create channels that have invite links! (to join the official ArcaneChat channel update your ArcaneChat client and you will receive the invitation in Device Messages!)

★ More metadata protection (now Date header is protected!)

★ Better multi-device: synchronize group creation across devices

★ Data saving: reduce size of read receipts

★ Improved on-boarding speed

★ Now it is possible to save to storage files shared from inside in-chat apps

★ Fixed sorting of old media in the chat's gallery

★ Several other fixes and small improvements

💜 Help keep ArcaneChat (and several of its in-chat mini-apps and bots) independent and make it even more awesome in the future: arcanechat.me/#contribute

ArcaneChat - Apps on Google Play

Private secure chats for the family

^{play.google.com}

The industry keeps echoing ideas from bleak satires and cyberpunk stories as if they were exciting possibilities, not grim warnings.

In a recent article published in the New York Times, author Casey Michael Henry argues that today's tech industry keeps borrowing dystopian sci-fi aesthetics and ideas -- often the parts that were meant as warnings -- and repackages them as exciting products without recognizing that they were originally cautionary tales to avoid. "The tech industry is delivering on some of the futuristic notions of late-20th-century science fiction," writes Henry. "Yet it seems, at times, bizarrely unaware that many of those notions were meant to be dystopian or satirical -- dismal visions of where our worst and dumbest habits could lead us."

You worry that someone in today's tech world might watch "Gattaca" -- a film that features a eugenicist future in which people with ordinary DNA are relegated to menial jobs -- and see it as an inspirational launching point for a collaboration between 23andMe and a charter school. The material on Sora, for instance, can feel oddly similar to the jokes about crass entertainment embedded in dystopian films and postmodern novels. In the movie "Idiocracy," America loved a show called "Ow! My Balls!" in which a man is hit in the testicles in increasingly florid ways. "Robocop" imagined a show about a goggle-eyed pervert with an inane catchphrase. "The Running Man" had a game show in which contestants desperately collected dollar bills and climbed a rope to escape ravenous dogs. That Sora could be prompted to imagine a game show in which Michel Foucault chokeslams Ronald Reagan, or Prince battles an anaconda, doesn't feel new; it feels like a gag from a 1990s writer or a film about social decay.

The echoes aren't all accidental. Modern design has been influenced by our old techno-dystopias -- particularly the cyberpunk variety, with its neon-noir gloss and "high tech, low life" allure. From William Gibson novels to films like "The Matrix," the culture has taken in countless ruined cityscapes, all-controlling megacorporations, high-tech body modifications, V.R.-induced illnesses, deceptive A.I. paramours, mechanical assassins and leather-clad hacker antiheroes, navigating a dissociative cyberspace with savvily repurposed junk-tech. This was not a world many people wanted to live in, but its style and ethos seem to reverberate in the tech industry's boldest visions of the future.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/magazine/ai-tech-industry-sora-science-fiction.html

Hey folks,

I run the site piratefeeds.net/. It's a free mirror for premium podcast feeds hosted on Patreon and works entirely from people donating feeds they subscribe to. I don't host the media files, just the RSS feeds. I don't make any money from it. If you wanna listen to any of the pods listed all you have to do is plug the feed URL in your podcast app of choice.

This is both self promo and a request for feed donations. If you subscribe to a podcast and are willing to collectivize your subscription, reach out! Sharing is caring... I anonymize the feeds before publishing them, so there's no risk of other users doxxing the donors. In the past there have been some issues with Patreon blocking some feeds, but I've improved the site's OpSec since then and there haven't been any issues in months now. Even then, the worst that can happen is that Patreon might block the specific link and issue the subscriber a new one.

I mainly mirror feeds hosted on Patreon because those are guaranteed to work, other hosts such as SupportingCast have better anti-piracy protections so I cannot use their feeds for now. If you want to donate a feed all you have to do is PM me your Patreon RSS audio feed URL.

So far most of the pods listed are lefty politics/media/culture commentary and comedy. I'm not picky about the donations I accept, as long as they're not actively reactionary/bigoted. A bunch of the feeds on the site are currently inactive for lack of working sources, I'd be particularly grateful for donations of those. If you have a subscription to a pod that is already listed you can absolutely still donate your link: backups are valuable.

Most of the pods listed are by independent creators who definitely deserve your money if you can afford to support them. The reason I run this is that, like most people, I cannot afford to subscribe to all creators I'd like to follow.

Do you have podcast X?

If it's not listed then nobody donated it yet, or it's hosted on a service I don't support.

NOTE: I've asked and received permission to post this in advance from db0, to make sure this didn't violate comm rules.

Hey 👋
Not sure if this will help everyone, but I tried something last month that actually worked for me when I needed a little financial breathing room.
It’s 100% online and safe — no weird apps or fake promises.

I can’t post the full details here (rules),
but if you want to know what I used, just DM me privately 👇
I’ll send it over — no pressure.

Exclusive: British government adopted ‘least ambitious’ option months before RSF’s massacres in El Fasher

Archived version: archive.is/newest/theguardian.…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

UK rejected atrocity prevention plans for Sudan despite warning of possible genocide

^{Mark Townsend (The Guardian)}

A fully autonomous military convoy underwent its last round of testing in Spain, according to reports.

Archived version: archive.is/newest/euronews.com…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

Europe’s first autonomous military convoy unveiled in Spain

^{Anna Desmarais (Euronews.com)}

New Zealand director Lee Tamahori has died, aged 75

Bond film director dead

^{TT (Sweden Herald)}

The documentary will be shown at one cinema in Tokyo from December.

Japan to screen #MeToo film Black Box Diaries months after Oscar nomination

The documentary will be shown at one cinema in Tokyo from December. Read more at straitstimes.com.

^ST

Researchers say well over 100,000 spiders from two different species coexist in this remarkable underground metropolis for arachnids

This ‘spider megacity’ may be the largest web ever found. But what’s inside is even more extraordinary

^{Vishwam Sankaran (The Independent)}

Uzbekistan Airways has finalized an order for eight Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, expanding its fleet of the long-haul aircraft as part of a wider international growth strategy. The deal was formalized in Washington, DC, marking a significant step in the airline’s ongoing fleet modernization.

Uzbekistan Airways Confirms Order for Eight Additional Boeing 787 Dreamliners

Aviation News – Uzbekistan Airways has finalized an order for eight Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, expanding its fleet of the long-haul aircraft as part of a wider international growth strategy. The de…

^{aviationnews.eu}

A US man charged with using a sandwich to assault a law enforcement officer was acquitted Thursday after a jury decided that charges brought by President Donald Trump's prosecutors were baloney.

Local hero: 'DC sandwich guy' found not guilty of assaulting officer with sub

^{France 24 (FRANCE 24)}

cross-posted from: lemmy.sdf.org/post/45227919

Archived

[...]

For the first time, China set a specific target for reducing emissions. However, it falls short of what analysts say is needed to meet the Paris goal of limiting average global temperature increase to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and ideally to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit), compared to the 1850s.

Xi announced in a video message to a U.N. climate meeting in September that China would cut greenhouse gas emissions by 7% to 10% by 2035, and would strive to do even better than that.

Modeling by multiple climate experts shows that China would need to cut emissions by around 30% for the world to be on track to the Paris goal.

“This is disappointing as China has the opportunity to decarbonize faster,” Norah Zhang, an analyst at Climate Action Tracker, said after Xi’s announcement.

Previously, China had not pledged to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions. Instead, it promised to reduce its emissions relative to the size of its economy — so they could still grow but at a slower pace than the economy. Its goal has been to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030.

[...]

US strikes have destroyed at least 18 vessels, but Washington has yet to make public any concrete evidence that its targets posed a threat to America

Archived version: archive.is/newest/theguardian.…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

US strikes another alleged drug boat bringing death toll from campaign in Latin America to 70

^{Guardian staff reporter (The Guardian)}

The airport in Liège, Belgium, has been closed to traffic after an unidentified drone was spotted in the airspace, Belgian media report

New drone alert in Belgium – flights stopped

^{TT (Sweden Herald)}

On the 25th anniversary of the Women, Peace and Security agenda, a photo exhibition by UN Women and EEAS in Brussels celebrates women at the heart of peace processes.

Archived version: archive.is/newest/euronews.com…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

UN calls for recommitment to Women, Peace and Security agenda 25 years on

^{Evelyn Ann-Marie Dom (Euronews.com)}

Exclusive: Tory leader has plans to reinstate group that provided top donors with direct access to senior ministers

Kemi Badenoch to relaunch exclusive ‘advisory board’ for high-value donors

^{Eleni Courea (The Guardian)}

Copernicus says the findings reflect the “accelerating pace of climate change”.

Archived version: archive.is/newest/euronews.com…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

2025 is on track to be among the three warmest years on record, Copernicus data finds

^{Rebecca Ann Hughes (Euronews.com)}

Japan has resumed seafood exports to China for the first time since a ban was imposed over the discharge of treated radioactive wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Archived version: archive.is/newest/apnews.com/a…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

The building the package was opened in was evacuated and those taken ill were found to be stable.

Archived version: archive.is/newest/bbc.com/news…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

Multiple people fall ill after package delivered to Air Force One base

^{Aleks Phillips (BBC News)}

Media outlets reported injuries to several people and said some had been taken to hospital.

Archived version: archive.is/newest/straitstimes…

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

Several injured after explosion at school complex in Indonesian capital, local media reports

Media outlets reported injuries to several people and said some had been taken to hospital. Read more at straitstimes.com.

^ST

The first time, I watched for a good ten minutes, assuming it was supposed to be that way lol, but now I realize it has something to do with HDR tone mapping. The question is:

What do I look for in a filename to ensure a good HDR match with my setup?

Hello,

TLDR: Trying to extend Wi-Fi to a building maybe 100-200 feet from a house. A third building exists between the two, a TP-Link extender I own 'works' from this third building to provide intermittently functional signal to the desired building. Looking for a stronger extender, preferably without Power over Ethernet to use it outdoors without needing to run a line through a wall/drill.

I'm trying to help someone extend their Wi-Fi coverage to a small extra building (b2), maybe a maximum of two hundred feet from the main house (b1).

She uses the old Google Wi-Fi pods right now, but the pod from the accessory building often disconnects and seemingly fails to ever reconnect without being unplugged and plugged back in.

She says it used to work okay, so I've troubleshot the one she had in the accessory building by bringing it into the main house for a few days, then swapping it with another pod for another few days; neither test showed the total failure as seems to occur in the other building.

Based on the specs of these pods, I'm not surprised it's struggling, and confused that she says it's seemingly worked fine in the past. She doesn't spend much time out in the separate building, so it may just be a lack of seeing it fail.

I've briefly tested one of my own TP-Link AX1500 in a third building (b3), which sits between the main house and the desired accessory building. This has provided an intermittently functional signal in the desired accessory building (b2), but with, understandably, very low strength and frequent disconnects.

I've looked at additional extenders, for indoor and outdoor, but wanted to see what, if anything, people suggest.

Also, I'm finding some of the longer range extenders to be powered by Ethernet, or with a USB connector. Which, if using this extender outdoors to remove one wall of interference, creates the need to either drill a hole in an existing wall, or otherwise have a cable go into the house somewhere. Is anyone familiar with a medium/long-range extender powered just from a power adaptor or something?

Thank you very much for your time and I really appreciate any suggestions or direction you might be able to provide.

cross-posted from: lemmygrad.ml/post/9678286

web.archive.org/web/2025110608…

China unveils power of thorium reactor for world’s largest cargo ship

Technological breakthrough could revolutionise commercial shipping, naval engineering and deep sea operations if rolled out at scale.

^{Stephen Chen (South China Morning Post)}

We knew this was coming, but it doesn’t make it any less stupid. The road to the IRS’ Direct File program was long and hard-fought. We here at Techdirt have been talking about, and advocating for, something like the Direct File program for at least 15 years. The concept behind the program is a simple one. For a class of citizens with very simple income and tax payments, the IRS already has all the information it needs to process a tax return. In those cases, the IRS can simply mail the information it has to a taxpayer, ask them to sign off verifying the information is complete and accurate, and then process the return. The problem with this is that it cuts out the tax-prep industry that absolutely adores preying on these very same people to milk them for tax-prep services they don’t actually need.

IRS Notifies States There Will Be No Direct File Program For 2026

We knew this was coming, but it doesn’t make it any less stupid. The road to the IRS’ Direct File program was long and hard-fought. We here at Techdirt have been talking about, and advo…

^Techdirt

Boeing gets a big widebody order.

Boeing Recieves Order For 15 787 Dreamliners From Air Astana

^{Luke Diaz (Simple Flying)}

Inside the gerontocracy's quiet war on yours truly

The Gerontocracy Is Dead

^{Ken Klippenstein}

The FBI is attempting to track down the identity of the owner of Archive.today and its numerous mirrors, like Archive.is and Archive.ph. As reported by 404 Media, the FBI subpoena, which was posted on the official Archive.today X account, was sent to web domain registrar Tucows on October 30th demanding the “customer or subscriber name, address of service, and billing address” associated with Archive.today.

The subpoena also requests telephone records, payment information, internet session info, network addresses, and even the services the site’s owner has used, such as email or cloud computing services. It goes on to say that this info “relates to a federal criminal investigation being conducted by the FBI,” but it doesn’t reference a specific crime.

FBI subpoenas the web registrar behind Archive.is

The FBI is subpoenaing a web domain registrar for information on the mysterious owner of the snapshotting site Archive.today.

^{Stevie Bonifield (The Verge)}

Zohran Mamdani’s campaign represented a struggle for basic dignity and an affirmation of democratic potential. It was ceaselessly denounced by political and media elites from across the spectrum as something sinister, violent, and dangerous.

Zohran Mamdani Provoked a Bipartisan Meltdown

^jacobin.com

It’s been two long years of war. Hunger still hangs over us like a shadow. The little aid that manages to come through is often stolen or sold at impossible prices. We have nothing left — no savings, no safety, no warmth.

If you stop helping us, we lose not only food or shelter… we lose hope.
Please, stand with us once more. Your donations can help us buy food, winter clothes, and blankets to protect our families from the cold. Every small act of kindness keeps us alive.

🙏 We still need you. Don’t turn away.

gofund.me/00439328

#SupportUs #DonateNow #WarRelief #HumanityFirst #SaveLives #HopeForSurvival #HelpTheHungry #WinterAid #StandWithUs #TogetherForPeace

The Linux Mint team just shared a new report on what they worked on in October, and it highlights updates to Cinnamon, better troubleshooting tools, and a few other tweaks.

https://www.neowin.net/news/linux-mint-is-getting-an-improved-cinnamon-menu-and-new-troubleshooting-tools/

Musk said he picked the date so he "could say I was just kidding" if it changes again. He had spent months teasing a reveal by the end of this year.

Tesla delays reveal of production Roadster 2 to April Fools' Day | TechCrunch

^{Sean O'Kane (TechCrunch)}