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‘Please regulate AI:’ Artists push for U.S. copyright reforms but tech industry says not so fast

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

Country singers, romance novelists, video game artists and voice actors are appealing to the U.S. government for relief — as soon as possible — from the threat that artificial intelligence poses to their livelihoods.“Please regulate AI. I’m scared,” wrote a podcaster concerned about his voice being replicated by AI in one of thousands of letters recently submitted to the U.S. Copyright Office. Technology companies, by contrast, are largely happy with the status quo that has enabled them to gobble up published works to make their AI systems better at mimicking what humans do. The nation’s top copyright official hasn’t yet taken sides. She told The Associated Press she’s listening to everyone as her office weighs whether copyright reforms are needed for a new era of generative AI tools that can spit out compelling imagery, music, video and passages of text.“We’ve received close to 10,000 comments,” said Shira Perlmutter, the U.S. register of copyrights, i...

Climate change is hurting coral worldwide. But these reefs off the Texas coast are thriving

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

OFF THE COAST OF GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — Divers descending into azure waters far off the Texas coast dip below a horizon dotted with oil and gas platforms into an otherworldly landscape of undersea mountains crusted with yellow, orange and pink coral as far as the eye can see.Some of the world’s healthiest coral reefs can be found in the Gulf of Mexico, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) off the Texas coast. Sheltered in a deep, cool habitat far from shore, the reefs in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary boast a stunning amount of coral coverage. But scientists say that like all reefs, they are fragile, and their location will only offer protection for so long in the face of a warming climate.“To see that much coral in one place is really magnificent — an experience that most people don’t get on reefs in this day and age,” said Michelle Johnston, the acting superintendent and research coordinator for the federally protected area.The sanctuary had some moderate ble...

New hardiness zone map will help US gardeners keep pace with climate change

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Southern staples like magnolia trees and camellias may now be able to grow without frost damage in once-frigid Boston. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ” plant hardiness zone map ” was updated Wednesday for the first time in a decade, and it shows the impact that climate change will have on gardens and yards across the country. Climate shifts aren’t even — the Midwest warmed more than the Southeast, for example. But the map will give new guidance to growers about which flowers, vegetables and shrubs are most likely to thrive in a particular region. One key figure on the map is the lowest likely winter temperature in a given region, which is important for determining which plants may survive the season. It’s calculated by averaging the lowest winter temperatures of the past 30 years.Across the lower 48 states, the lowest likely winter temperature overall is 2.5 degrees (1.4 degrees Celsius) warmer than when the last map was published in 2012, according to ...

Saturday Forecast: Sunny, warmer, mid 50s

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

Saturday: Sunny & a bit warmer. WSW 5-15 G20 mph. Air quality is Good to Moderate for Chicagoland. High: 55Saturday Night: Mostly clear & seasonally chilly. WNW  0-5 mph. Low: 35Sunday: Mostly sunny & not as breezy. NE 5-10 mph. High: 56Chicago Weather | Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center's Forecast (wgntv.com)Extended outlook calls for some rain late in the day on Monday with highs a bit cooler near 50. Cold Tuesday morning with a slight chance of rain/snow showers. Afternoon temps in the mid 40s. Wednesday high temps only near 40 with mostly cloudy skies. Thanksgiving looks cold with high temps only in the mid 30s. 

Thanksgiving dinner hacks for a smoother meal

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Thanksgiving will be here before you know it.While it may seem too early to even think about it, it's just two weeks away. Whether this is your first time hosting, or you're a veteran of preparing for the holiday, here are some hacks to help save some time and help your dinner go smoother.SpreadsheetsI am far too unorganized as a person to ever resort to the use of spreadsheets for anything outside of work or a budget, but my wife loves them. If organization or spreadsheets are your jam, or if you have trouble keeping track of everything, a spreadsheet can be a huge help. Keep track of how long each dish will take to prepare, what time something needs to go into the oven, and what time guests will arrive. Give yourself wiggle room for mistakes and disasters, just in case, but keeping things organized will make everything go smoothly. Make an inventory of every pot, pan, dish, piece of equipment, etc., that you are going to need on the big day. Is there a dif...

ERCOT cancels program aiming to increase power reserves ahead of winter

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) –  ERCOT canceled a program, which sought additional power from energy companies ahead of winter, due to limited responses from those companies. ERCOT announced the program in October to increase operating reserves and maintain grid reliability during the upcoming peak season. Still, without the additional resources, ERCOT said it does not expect any issues for the upcoming 2023-2024 winter.  MORE: ERCOT trying to increase operating reserves ahead of winter “The request for additional capacity was an extra layer of precaution to mitigate higher risk during extreme weather this winter,” said ERCOT President and CEO Pablo Vegas. “ERCOT is not projecting emergency conditions this winter and expects to have adequate resources to meet demand.”ERCOT said it has made many improvements to the grid since the deadly 2021 winter storm that left hundreds of thousands of Texans without power days. Some of those improvements include weatherization inspections of ele...

Other voices: Big Sister? Speech, even anonymous speech, must be protected, not banned

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

In the name of national security, former South Carolina governor and current Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley said she wanted to use government authority to ban anonymous speech on social media platforms. “Every person on social media should be verified by their name,” she told Fox News.No matter how many nefarious images of Russian or Chinese disinformation agents one conjures up, this is a no-good, very bad idea.Anonymous speech is a hallowed American tradition. It’s hardly an exaggeration to say that if it had never been permitted, the United States as we know it may never have existed. Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania, secretly penned by John Dickinson, were instrumental in uniting colonists against British misrule. Alexander Hamilton, John Jay and James Madison published their stirring Federalist essays defending the proposed U.S. Constitution under the pseudonym “Publius.” Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson regular...

Local pancreatic cancer survivor raising awareness with hockey

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

CAPITAL REGION, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month. Steve McCarthy, a pancreatic cancer survivor, plays on a local hockey team at the Bethlehem YMCA. The team is bringing awareness to pancreatic cancer by wearing special purple jerseys to mark the month. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! The National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program estimates that 64,050 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the U.S. in 2023.McCarthy sat down with Giuliana Bruno to discuss his experience with pancreatic cancer and how that's inspired him to take the cause onto the ice. You can watch the full interview in the player above.

NYSP search Vermont woods for evidence in 30-year-old homicide investigation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

POWNAL, VT (WSYR-TV) -- New York State Police began a search on Nov. 11 in the woods in Pownal, Vermont, for evidence in the killing of Sara Anne Wood. Sara disappeared when she was 12 years old back in 1993 while riding her bike in Frankfort. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Lewis Lent Jr. then pled guilty in 1996 to abducting and killing Sara but never revealed the whereabouts of her body. State Police and their K9s searched through 29 acres of woods, along with the Vermont State Police and New York Forest Rangers. The search came to an end on Nov. 16, but no new evidence was found, NYSP said. They continue to search for Sara's remains.

Under the weather: Coach Prime’s CU Buffs hit low point at Wazzu

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:38 GMT

PULLMAN, Wash. – Deion Sanders barely got through a game on Friday night because of flu-like symptoms that had impacted him all day.“I’m a little under the weather so this is gonna be a little foggy for me,” the Colorado head coach said as he sat down for a postgame press conference.The illness was hardly the worst thing he dealt with, though.Sanders’ struggling Buffaloes hit their low point at Gesa Field, thumped by host Washington State 56-14 in a game that was every bit as disastrous as that score would indicate.“Great win by our opponents,” Sanders said. “They played a heck of a game, coached a heck of a game. They came to play handily from the start to the finish. Obviously it don’t look like we did.”CU (4-7, 1-7 Pac-12) is now in sole possession of last place in the conference after its fifth straight loss. The first four games in this current losing streak came by a combined 25 points, but this one was never really close, despite Washington State coming in riding a six-game l...