Author: NCIJ NETWNCIJ NETWORK

In The Sheep Detectives, Mopple has a superpower: The anthropomorphic sheep can’t forget anything. He joins a long line of fictional characters with some version of photographic memory — a strikingly useful skill, or at least a key plot device. Sherlock Holmes uses perfect recall to solve crimes (as long as, in the case of the BBC television series, it’s in his mind palace). And medical student Joy Kwon’s ability comes to the rescue in The Pitt, remembering patient room numbers, symptoms and treatments after the ER loses access to electronic medical records. But our brains don’t really work that way. Sign…

In an interview with Mongabay, Mozambican social activist Olga Muthambe advocates agroecology as a response to the challenges confronting rural women affected by extractive industries and armed conflict.Muthambe is a co-founder of NGO Hikone Moçambique, a civil society organization that has been active in the African nation for over a decade. Since its inception, the organization has connected more than 5,000 women to socioeconomic training initiatives.According to Muthambe — who currently serves as the NGO’s executive director — agroecology enables women to produce pesticide-free food for both family consumption and trade, thereby improving food security and generating income.See All…

Brazil’s state-owned energy giant Petrobras has notched a new production milestone, with one of its oil fields surpassing 4 billion barrels of cumulative output as the pre-salt, now entering its third decade, cements its status as the company’s production powerhouse in Brazilian waters. FPSO P-67 operates on the Tupi field within the ultra-deep pre-salt layer of the Santos Basin, roughly 260 kilometers off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Credit: Andre Motta de Souza/Agencia Petrobras Petrobras has revealed that its Tupi field in the pre-salt layer of the Santos Basin reached a cumulative production of 4 billion barrels of oil equivalent…

It’s been a long, dreary winter. I am at dinner with a group of friends when someone wonders aloud when the first day of summer is. Lizzie insists it’s 21 June, Cleo is equally sure it’s 1 June. Sylvie says she is willing to bet her coveted The Row flip-flops on Cleo’s answer. The social rewards from “arguing” over this far outweigh knowing a trivial piece of information that no one at the table will remember. And yet, we can’t help ourselves.Invariably, someone pulls out their phone, does a not-so-quick search online, and then declares, as though she has uncovered…

Zambia’s electoral commission has suspended the counting of votes from Thursday’s presidential, parliamentary and local elections over alleged attacks on polling staff.The authority said the process would be halted nationwide with immediate effect as it expressed concern over reports of violence that had “resulted in the theft of marked ballot papers in ballot boxes”.President Hakainde Hichilema is seeking a second five-year term. Brian Mundubile is the main opposition candidate among 13 challengers.The electoral commission had previously set itself the target of announcing the results by the end of Sunday.Counting got under way immediately after polls closed on Thursday but no…

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, called the UK “the Islamic republic of Britain” in a podcast interview, where he also described the country as the “first Islamic republic to get a nuclear weapon”.His comments, made during an interview for Israel’s army radio, played into a common far-right Islamophobic trope about Britain’s small Muslim population.Netanyahu praised positive coverage of Israel by the journalist Randolph Churchill, the son of former prime minister Winston Churchill, over half a century ago, then said: “Go find that in today’s Britain, in what is called the Islamic republic of Britain.”Rather than challenge Netanyahu’s comments, the…

Disabled and terminally ill campaigners have written to Prime Minister Andy Burnham urging him to reform social and palliative care before assisted dying legislation is introduced in England and Wales.The Assist Us To Live group says people are currently being “failed by society” and “introducing assisted dying in these circumstances will put sick and disabled people’s lives at risk”.Burnham believes the funding of palliative and social care should be “fixed” before assisted dying is considered. The government is likely to remain officially neutral, but the PM’s remarks suggest he personally will not back the bill proposed by Labour MP Lauren…

Other Wireless Chargers We TestedThere are a lot of wireless chargers. Here are a few more we like, but for one reason or another don’t warrant a place above.Photograph: Simon HillKrafted Couch Wireless Charger for $52: I thought this wireless charger that’s designed to be draped over the arm of your couch was a great idea when I saw it, but the ridges failed to keep it in place on my velvety couch, so it kept slipping down the side. The silicone finish with the Krafted logo is also a bit ugly. It’s just a silicone mat with a magnetic…

SecurityWeek’s weekly cybersecurity news roundup offers a concise overview of important developments that may not receive full standalone coverage yet remain relevant to the broader threat landscape. This curated summary highlights key stories across vulnerability disclosures, emerging attack methods, policy updates, industry reports, and other noteworthy events to help readers maintain a well-rounded awareness of the evolving cybersecurity environment. Here are this week’s highlights:  Government AI platform deal sparks outrage The Defense Department’s recent award of an $821 million contract to Accenture Federal Services for its War Data Platform (WDP) is drawing criticism for allegedly undermining goals to rapidly adopt…

Bitcoin (BTC) long positions are “facing liquidation” as volatility shows signs that a range breakout is finally coming.Key points:Bitcoin long positions face multiple threats as BTC price action heads toward new August lows, analyst warns.The correlation between Binance open interest and price reached 0.25 on Thursday as both fell.The Bitcoin bull market is not ready to make a comeback, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju says.Bitcoin longs feel the squeeze as price dropsInsights published on onchain analytics platform CryptoQuant by community analyst “BorisD on Thursday said that leveraged long BTC positions are being flushed out as BTC/USD targets month-to-date lows.BTC/USD one-hour…