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Wealthy AI workers send San Francisco house prices soaring

BBC Tech News - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 7:11pm
The median cost of a home in the city is now $1.7m, a record high, according to the latest figures.

A Silent Workspace In Claude Mirrors Key Features of Human Consciousness

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 7:00pm
oumuamua writes: Anthropic researchers have identified an internal activation subspace, J-space, that acts as a functional digital equivalent to the human brain's global workspace. The significance of this discovery lies in demonstrating that Claude's internal architecture satisfies five key cognitive properties of human conscious access -- verbal report, directed modulation, internal reasoning, flexible generalization, and selectivity -- meaning it processes complex, deliberate reasoning within this workspace while routing automatic tasks outside of it. Suppressing this J-space severely degrades Claude's capacity for inference, creative composition, and multi-step logic, while also altering its stream-of-consciousness self-narration. The tool to inspect J-space, Jacobian lens or J-lens, has profound implications for AI safety and alignment auditing, as it allows researchers to read the model's silent, strategic reasoning, detect situational awareness in "blackmail" scenarios, identify hidden malicious dispositions in reward-hacking models, and observe how post-training installs a self-monitoring "point of view." Another way to think of it is as an ocean, reports VentureBeat. "If the mind is an ocean, as the paper's authors write in their opening line, they have spent the last year charting its currents in a system that has no biology, no evolution, and no body -- and found, beneath the surface, a structure that looks unsettlingly like the one we use to think."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

John Deere Agrees To 10-Year Right-To-Repair Deal In FTC Antitrust Lawsuit

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 6:00pm
John Deere has agreed to a 10-year FTC-supervised right-to-repair settlement requiring it to provide farmers and independent repair shops with the same repair resources available to authorized dealers. The deal resolves antitrust claims from the FTC and five states alleging Deere monopolized equipment repair services, contributing to higher costs and delays for farmers. Wired reports: The full statement (PDF) lays out obligations for John Deere's repair services, requiring the company to give farmers and third-party repair shops access to the same equipment and repair resources it provides to official John Deere dealers. This includes software capabilities, such as reading and resetting codes and pairing with other software, which customers have long had limited access to, creating delays when diagnosing equipment problems. Delayed fixes can mean delayed harvests, which many farmers saw as a fundamental threat to their livelihoods. Under the agreement, John Deere will be required to provide this level of access, equipment, and services for the next 10 years, monitored by the FTC. [...] John Deere has maintained that it already has robust repair resources for its customers, including service manuals and diagnostic equipment. In John Deere's press release, the company says the settlement is in line with what it has been doing all along, saying that "the agreement reinforces Deere's continued innovation toward more flexible repair options, emphasizing increased access and transparency for customers. It formalizes Deere's ongoing commitment to expanding access to diagnostic and repair tools."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Meta's Glasses Will Turn Off the Camera If You Tamper With the Privacy Light

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 5:00pm
Meta is rolling out an update that will disable the camera on its smart glasses if the device detects that someone has tampered with or destroyed the privacy LED. "The update is meant to address modders who have taken actions such as physically drilling into the LED light," reports The Verge. "Meta has previously tried to discourage tampering with the LED light. For example, starting with its second generation glasses, blocking the light with tape or other objects will trigger a prompt asking users to uncover the recording light. However, many modders have found various workarounds for that particular measure."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

6 ways to cut your electricity use during a heat wave

Portland Press Herald Business - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 4:58pm
Actions as simple as closing the curtains and grilling your dinner outdoors can trim summertime power costs.

Electricity use spiked during the July 4th heat wave. Here’s what that tells us.

Portland Press Herald Business - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 4:55pm
Demand grew as the holiday weekend approached and many Mainers turned on their air conditioners, pushing peak loads well above a typical summer day.

A cat named Sunshine Larry runs the streets of Bath

Portland Press Herald Business - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 4:51pm
'Sunny' has been frequenting local establishments for years, winning hearts along the way, inspiring many to give him the honorary title of mayor.

The FTC Settlement With John Deere Is a Huge Win for the Right-to-Repair Movement

Wired Top Stories - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 4:27pm
After more than a decade of pushback, farmers and repair advocates have won access to equipment and services John Deere had long kept under its control.

Cape Elizabeth restaurant will reopen with rebrand

Portland Press Herald Business - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 4:19pm
The Good Table will open on Friday as a pizza joint.

Apple Says It Will Spend $30 Billion To Design US-Made Broadcom Chips

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 4:00pm
Apple says it will spend $30 billion to design US-made Broadcom wireless connectivity chips, part of its broader push to diversify its supply chain and support domestic chip production. CNN reports: The agreement with Broadcom will lead to the production of 15 million chips in United States and allow Broadcom to invest $1.5 billion to expand and modernize its manufacturing facilities in Fort Collins, Colorado. It is part of Apple's commitment in August to invest $600 billion as part of its "American Manufacturing Program" which it said is dedicated to bringing even more of the company's supply chain and advanced manufacturing back to the US.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Windows Drops Under 60% in Global Desktop OS Share

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 3:00pm
StatCounter's June 2026 data shows Windows made up 56.55% of global desktop OS usage, dropping Microsoft's share below 60% for the first time in years. Linux, meanwhile, reached 4.39%, "one of its strongest recent showings in the company's desktop OS statistics," reports Linuxiac. From the report: Apple's desktop platforms also remain a major part of the picture. StatCounter lists OS X at 11.89% and macOS at 4.48% for June 2026, meaning Apple's combined desktop presence remains comfortably ahead of Linux in the global chart. Chrome OS follows with 1.21%. Of course, StatCounter's numbers should be read for what they are: web usage statistics, not a direct count of installed operating systems. The company calculates its Global Stats from page views across websites using its tracking code, analyzing details such as browser, operating system, and screen resolution. In other words, the figures reflect measured web activity rather than the number of machines actually installed worldwide.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Former Ri Ra employee files lawsuit alleging racism, sexual harassment

Portland Press Herald Business - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 2:56pm
A former employee is suing the restaurant in U.S. District Court.

'Knockoff' Browser Extension Hides Sketchy Brands On Amazon

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 2:00pm
alternative_right shares a report from 404 Media: A software developer made a Chrome and Firefox extension called Knockoff that automatically hides, grays out, or filters products from sketchy brands on Amazon, which highlights just how many shady brands are on the platform and how commonly they show up on searches for basic items. In just a few minutes of using the extension, Knockoff dimmed product listings for screwdrivers made by "SUNHZMCKP," spoons made by "SACATR," and a lamp made by "ROTTOGOON." In a tweet announcing the extension, developer Josh Pigford wrote "Sorry to brands like WNPETHOME, EHEYCIGA, YXYL, LU&MN, JOYIN, TOMY, GODONLIF, YOOJEE, LINGTENG, LANEIGE, VISCOO, BIODANCE, COOFANDY, BALENNZ, TOSY, and LUENX." The extension can also hide all sponsored product listings. The extension quickly went viral as a much-needed filter for people who still use Amazon and, for those who don't use Amazon because of its horrendous labor practices and other concerns, it is evidence of what an incredible wasteland the platform has become.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Apple Loses EU Fight Over App Store Gatekeeper Label

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 1:00pm
Europe's General Court dismissed Apple's challenge to the EU's designation of its App Stores and iOS as "gatekeepers" under the Digital Markets Act. The ruling means Apple remains subject to DMA obligations requiring it to allow alternative app stores, support interoperability with rival services, and avoid favoring its own services over competitors. MacRumors reports: Apple took its case to Luxembourg's General Court in 2024 after the European Commission designated its five App Stores -- on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Watch -- as a single core platform service under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a label that brings with it a set of strict obligations. Designated "gatekeepers" are prohibited from favoring their own services over those of rivals, and are prevented from combining personal data across different services. They also have to give users the option to use alternative app stores. Apple also challenged the EU's designation of iOS as a gateway platform, a status that requires the operating system allows rival services to interoperate with it. The company also disputed the classification of iMessage as a number-independent interpersonal communications service, or NIICS, which would subject the app to EU telecoms rules. But the General Court said Apple's actions regarding the iMessage service are inadmissible.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Valve Releases Proton 11 With Huge Linux Gaming Improvements

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 12:00pm
BrianFagioli writes: Valve has released Proton 11.0-1, a major update to its Windows compatibility layer for Linux that makes more games playable while fixing a long list of bugs affecting existing titles. The release restores compatibility for many EA games after a recent EA App update, moves classics like Resident Evil (1996), Resident Evil 2 (1998), Dino Crisis, and SHOGUN: Total War from Proton Experimental into the stable release, and adds support for games including Gothic 1 Classic, X-Plane 12, Breath of Fire IV, and Deadly Premonition. Valve also fixed crashes in HELLDIVERS 2, restored No Man's Sky VR support, improved Steam Overlay compatibility with EA games, addressed KDE and GNOME desktop issues, and rebased Proton on Wine 11.0 with updated graphics components. The full list of changes can be found here.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Mysterious Spheres Found In Australia Are Likely Space Debris

Slashdot - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 11:00am
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the New York Times: An Australian beach community was confused -- and later delighted -- by the discovery of six metallic-looking spheres that washed ashore last week. The mystery, and the ensuing attention, prompted a bunch of alien jokes from local residents and businesses. But Australia's space agency put the speculation to rest on Monday, saying that the spheres appeared to be rocket debris that had recently re-entered the atmosphere from orbit. The objects were found on Forrest Beach in the northeastern state of Queensland over the weekend, the state's fire department said. Residents described them as being about twice the size of a basketball. "The recovered objects appear to be pressure vessels from a space launch vehicle," the Australian Space Agency said in a statement, adding that they were "consistent with debris from a foreign rocket body." The agency said that it had identified the likely source of the objects, without providing further details, and was working with international authorities to confirm the vehicle from which the debris originated.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Foam Era Has Changed Pickleball—Here Are the Top 2 Pickleball Paddles Right Now

Wired Top Stories - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 8:32am
New tech has changed the game with the latest generation of pickleball paddles. Here's what to know and what to buy.

Outcry as Meta lets users make AI images from public Instagram profile pics

BBC Tech News - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 8:28am
The tech giant said people can opt out - but privacy campaigners called it a "recipe for disaster".

The Best MagSafe Power Banks for iPhone and Android, Plus Ones to Avoid

Wired Top Stories - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 8:01am
Keep your iPhone or Qi2 Android phone topped up with one of the best portable chargers.

LG Micro RGB Evo Review: Brilliant, Bright, Not Budget-Friendly

Wired Top Stories - Wed, 07/08/2026 - 7:01am
It’s hard to say if the pricey LG Micro RGB Evo television is worth shelling out for compared to its cheaper competitors, but you’ll probably enjoy its color-popping display.

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