EUGENE VOLOKH, reason, The Volokh Conspiracy; Analyzing Indictment of James Comey for "86 47" Post
"I think this prosecution is unjustified, and will get thrown out. Let me quickly analyze why."
Tuesday, April 28, 2026
(Some of) The newest stuff at the Library!; Library of Congress Blogs, April 28, 2026
Neely Tucker, Library of Congress Blogs; (Some of) The newest stuff at the Library!
"Walk into the Library’s annual showcase of new acquisitions and the question always hits you right in the face: Where to start?
What about with this slim copy of Silver Surfer No. 1, the origin story of Marvel Comics’ “Sentinel of the Spaceways,” from the groovy year of 1968? How about this massive law book that’s more than 500 years old? The “Tombstone Edition” of a Philadelphia newspaper from 1765, which documented and amplified the American Colonies loathing of the Stamp Act and presaged the American Revolution?
There’s never really a wrong place to start. This year’s two-hour show-and-tell, held last week, brought hundreds of staffers and guests to look over intriguing displays of the Library’s recently acquired treasures, items spanning the nation, the globe and centuries of time. Many added to already impressive collections of historic figures...
It was a crowded, noisy, upbeat afternoon of discovery and explanation. Conversations buzzed and overlapped; staff experts and curious viewers leaned over display tables from opposite sides, heads together, talking loudly to be heard, gazing down at maps, manuscripts, records, artifacts and things you couldn’t have known existed."
‘The cost of compute is far beyond the costs of the employees’: Nvidia executive says right now AI is more expensive than paying human workers; Fortune, April 28, 2026
Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune ; ‘The cost of compute is far beyond the costs of the employees’: Nvidia executive says right now AI is more expensive than paying human workers
"Recent tech layoffs would initially appear to indicate the great labor shift from human workers to AI may already be happening."
‘Weak Case’: Fox’s Jonathan Turley Deeply Skeptical of Trump DOJ’s New Indictment of James Comey; Mediaite, April 28, 2026
Isaac Schorr, Mediaite; ‘Weak Case’: Fox’s Jonathan Turley Deeply Skeptical of Trump DOJ’s New Indictment of James Comey
"Is showing a picture of shells that say ’86 47′ is that-, I mean, that could be could be taken as a threat, but does it amount to one to you?” followed up John Roberts.
“In my view, it would very likely be viewed as protected speech if it was the basis of a criminal indictment. That alone would have a hard time standing up in court,” answered Turley. “I’ve seen that reporting, and we’ll have to see how they would stick that landing in an indictment, but just showing a picture like that would be a very difficult foundation, a very unstable foundation for a prosecution, because right out of the gate will come a First Amendment challenge that the court, I think, would consider first and foremost.”"
Judge Says Maurene Comey Can Sue the Trump Administration for Firing Her; The New York Times, April 28, 2026
Benjamin Weiser and Jonah E. Bromwich , The New York Times; Judge Says Maurene Comey Can Sue the Trump Administration for Firing Her
Ms. Comey, a former federal prosecutor who handled cases against Jeffery Epstein and Sean Combs, claimed in her suit that she was fired for political reasons.
"Maurene Comey, a former federal prosecutor who accused the Trump administration of firing her last year for political reasons, may proceed with a lawsuit in federal court over the government’s objection, a Manhattan judge ruled on Tuesday.
Ms. Comey, a daughter of James B. Comey, the former F.B.I. director and one of President Trump’s best known adversaries, said in her suit that there was no plausible explanation for her abrupt July 2025 dismissal other than Mr. Trump’s enmity toward her father or her “perceived political affiliation and beliefs, or both.”
The Trump administration had asked the judge, Jesse M. Furman of Manhattan federal court, to dismiss Ms. Comey’s suit against the government, saying it had to be pursued first before the Merit Systems Protection Board, an independent agency that hears complaints from federal workers about employment actions.
But Judge Furman held that her claim was “outside the universe of cases” that Congress intended the board to resolve, and therefore the court had jurisdiction to consider the suit. The judge did not rule on the merits of Ms. Comey’s claim."
Trump Administration Secures New Indictment Against Comey; The New York Times, April 28, 2026
Devlin Barrett and Tyler Pager , The New York Times; Trump Administration Secures New Indictment Against Comey
The new case stems from a social media post showing seashells on a North Carolina beach that the Trump administration characterized as a threat against the president.
"The Justice Department has secured a new indictment of James B. Comey, the former F.B.I. director, over a social media post, after an indictment effort spurred by President Trump last year ended in failure.
An indictment filed in North Carolina charges Mr. Comey with making a threat against the president, and transmitting a threat across state lines, according to court records.
The new case represents another twist in the department’s tortured efforts to satisfy the demands of Mr. Trump to pursue criminal charges against Mr. Comey, a longtime target of the president’s wrath. The first indictment against Mr. Comey was thrown out by a judge, and other prosecutorial efforts against Trump targets have faltered in the face of grand juries or judges."
Celebrating World IP Day 2026: Sports, Innovation and Intellectual Property; JDSupra, April 24, 2026
Baker,Hostetler, Jeffrey Lyons, JDSupra; Celebrating World IP Day 2026: Sports, Innovation and Intellectual Property
"Another year, another opportunity to celebrate intellectual property (IP) on World Intellectual Property Day! This year, the World Intellectual Property Organization turns the global spotlight on “IP and Sports: Ready, Set, Innovate,” highlighting how IP rights support innovation, creativity and investment in sports...
As sports continue to intersect with artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics, immersive media and global brands, IP considerations will only grow in importance. World IP Day is a reminder that innovation does not happen in isolation; it depends on legal structures that reward creativity while enabling responsible growth.
Happy World IP Day 2026!"
Taylor Swift files to trademark her voice, likeness to ward off AI deepfakes; Reuters, April 27, 2026
Brad Brooks , Reuters; Taylor Swift files to trademark her voice, likeness to ward off AI deepfakes
"Pop superstar Taylor Swift filed trademark applications for two audio clips and one image of herself in what a trademark attorney said is an attempt to protect her voice and likeness from deepfake videos and audio created by artificial intelligence.
The applications were filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Friday and list Swift's TAS Rights Management as being the owner of the audio clips and image."
Pompeii archaeologists use AI to reconstruct man killed in volcano's eruption; Associated Press via NPR, April 28, 2026
Associated Press via NPR; Pompeii archaeologists use AI to reconstruct man killed in volcano's eruption
"Archaeologists and researchers at the ancient Roman site of Pompeii have used artificial intelligence for the first time to digitally reconstruct the face of a man killed in the AD 79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius that smothered the city, offering a new way to understand one of history's most famous natural disasters.
The digital portrait represents a man whose remains, along with those of another person, were discovered as they attempted to flee the city toward the coast of what is now Italy during the volcanic eruption. Researchers believe the man died early in the disaster, during a heavy fall of volcanic debris...
The digital portrait was created using AI and photo-editing techniques designed to translate skeletal and archaeological data into a realistic human likeness.
"The vastness of archaeological data is now such that only with the help of artificial intelligence will we be able to adequately protect and enhance them. If used well, AI can contribute to a renewal of classical studies," Pompeii park director Gabriel Zuchtriegel said in a statement.
The project aims to make archaeological research more accessible and emotionally engaging for the public while maintaining a scientific foundation, researchers said."
Man charged with killing Florida doctoral students allegedly consulted ChatGPT; The Guardian, April 27, 2026
Anna Betts , The Guardian; Man charged with killing Florida doctoral students allegedly consulted ChatGPT
"The man charged with killing two University of South Florida doctoral students from Bangladesh allegedly asked ChatGPT about what happens if a person has been put in a garbage bag and “thrown in a dumpster”, according to prosecutors in a court filing."
Printify Releases Guide on How to Avoid Copyright Infringement with T-shirts; The National Law Review, April 28, 2026
Press Release, The National Law Review; Printify Releases Guide on How to Avoid Copyright Infringement with T-shirts
"Printify, a leading print-on-demand platform, has announced the release of a comprehensive new guide designed to help entrepreneurs understand how to avoid copyright infringement when creating and selling custom apparel. As the t-shirt business continues to attract new creators, the risk of legal missteps—ranging from cease-and-desist letters to costly lawsuits—has become a major concern across the industry.
The guide delivers a clear, practical breakdown of intellectual property rules, helping sellers navigate the complexities of copyright, trademark, and publicity rights. By combining legal fundamentals with actionable advice, Printify aims to give entrepreneurs the confidence to create and scale their businesses without unnecessary risk.
Launching a t-shirt business has never been more accessible, but legal awareness remains one of the most overlooked aspects of success. With this release, Printify places itself at the center of a safer, more informed approach to building apparel brands."
Monday, April 27, 2026
CU Boulder team competes in 2026 National Ethics Case Competition; Colorado Law, April 27, 2026
Colorado Law; CU Boulder team competes in 2026 National Ethics Case Competition
"A team of law and computer science students from the University of Colorado Boulder traveled to Washington, D.C., in April for a competition requiring them to resolve complex business and ethical dilemmas before a panel of judges.
The CU Boulder team, which included J.D. student Ben Shatz, Master of Studies in Laws student Baat Enosh, and computer science graduate students Amit Kiran Rege and Ayushi Sabnis, advanced to the semifinals of the National Ethics Case Competition, where they faced 18 other teams at the Bush School of Government and Public Service...
The event included a formal presentation and question-and-answer session testing their abilities to defend principle-based solutions to complex ethical challenges.
“The competition was unique because there was no single ‘right’ answer,” said Rege, the team’s captain. “The primary challenge was synthetizing a wide range of perspectives into a cohesive conclusion that remained bold and opinionated without becoming generic.”
Although Cornell University left with the top prize, the CU Boulder team earned the “Most Innovative Solutions” award for its essay, which proposed a comprehensive governance framework for AI model companies.
The competition is led by Texas A&M University in partnership with the Denver-based Daniels Fund."
Trump’s anti-DEI movement comes for AI; Politico, April 27, 2026
AARON MAK , Politico ; Trump’s anti-DEI movement comes for AI
"The legal crusade against affirmative action is coming for artificial intelligence.
On Friday, the Justice Department intervened in xAI’s challenge to Colorado’s “Consumer Protections for Artificial Intelligence” law. In its complaint, the DOJ argues the law’s provisions curbing algorithmic bias violates people’s 14th Amendment right to be treated equally under the law.
The intervention is in some ways an outgrowth of the movement to eradicate all race-conscious policies after the landmark Supreme Court case Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard in 2023 struck down affirmative action in college admissions."
Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI seen as a ‘test case’ for AI ethics; The Christian Science Monitor, April 27, 2026
Caitlin Babcock , The Christian Science Monitor; Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI seen as a ‘test case’ for AI ethics
"A dispute between ChatGPT’s parent company, OpenAI, and one of the company’s founders – billionaire and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk – will play out in a federal court in Oakland, California, beginning April 27.
Mr. Musk, who left the company in 2018, is suing OpenAI, claiming its leaders manipulated him into thinking he was contributing money to a nonprofit. He wants the company returned to its nonprofit status and seeks monetary compensation.
OpenAI says Mr. Musk, who has since raised billions through the launch of his own for-profit company xAI, is misrepresenting facts to gain a competitive edge."
Decoding the 2026 White House AI Blueprint: U.S. AI Policy Starts to Take Shape; ReedSmith, March 24, 2026
Tristan J. Albrecht, ReedSmith; Decoding the 2026 White House AI Blueprint: U.S. AI Policy Starts to Take Shape
"The White House's March 2026, National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence highlights a central tension: while AI adoption is accelerating, the United States still lacks a comprehensive federal AI regulatory regime. The framework sets out legislative recommendations aimed at balancing innovation, economic growth, and risk mitigation, while proposing federal preemption of state laws that “impose undue burdens" or undermine the national strategy to achieve “global AI dominance”.
The White House framework focuses on seven priority areas:...
Intellectual Property: A measured approach that defers key copyright questions, whether AI training on copyrighted material constitutes fair use in the courts. The Administration states it “believe that training of AI models on copyrighted material does not violate copyright laws” but supports judicial resolution. The framework also contemplates collective licensing frameworks and protections against unauthorized digital replicas of individuals’ voice or likeness...
As AI capabilities rapidly evolve, the White House framework signals a federal preference for light-touch regulation and industry standards over rigid compliance mandates in clear contrast to approaches like the EU AI Act. In the absence of comprehensive legislation, organizations must continue navigating a dynamic and fragmented regulatory landscape, with careful attention to how preemption may reshape the field."
From LLMs to hallucinations, here’s a simple guide to common AI terms; TechCrunch, April 12, 2026
, TechCrunch; From LLMs to hallucinations, here’s a simple guide to common AI terms
"Artificial intelligence is a deep and convoluted world. The scientists who work in this field often rely on jargon and lingo to explain what they’re working on. As a result, we frequently have to use those technical terms in our coverage of the artificial intelligence industry. That’s why we thought it would be helpful to put together a glossary with definitions of some of the most important words and phrases that we use in our articles.
We will regularly update this glossary to add new entries as researchers continually uncover novel methods to push the frontier of artificial intelligence while identifying emerging safety risks."
A town of 7,000 planned so many data centers, it’s like adding 51 Walmarts; The Washington Post, April 26, 2026
Tim Craig, The Washington Post ; A town of 7,000 planned so many data centers, it’s like adding 51 Walmarts
"Throughout Archbald, a northeastern Pennsylvania town of 7,000 people tucked in a valley near the Pocono Mountains, residents are asking similar questions as the community emerges as one of the latest frontiers in the nation’s increasingly chaotic battles over data centers.
Developers plan to build six of the sprawling campuses in Archbald to power the demand for artificial intelligence, eventually covering about 14 percent of the town’s land. Those campuses would include 51 data warehouses — each about the size of a Walmart Supercenter — including seven buildings encompassing more than a million square feet near Bachak’s home...
Three of the four council members who resigned have now been replaced by data center opponents, with one seat still vacant.
It could be months or years before any data centers are built in Archbald. Once plans are approved by the local planning board, state and local permits are needed before construction can start...
Larry West, a local activist and new borough council member, said the tree cutting revived the “wounds” and “hidden scars” in a community where it took decades for the coal dust to be cleared. The town’s trees, West noted, cover abandoned mines.
“Now, it’s happening again but this time it’s data centers,” he added.
Bachak also believes his property will never be the same, even if the Project Gravity site is never completed. He recently installed blinds on his enclosed patio in an attempt to dull the pain he felt whenever he looked out at what used to be the forest lining his backyard.
“No one wants this,” Bachak said, “except the people making money off it.”"
Sunday, April 26, 2026
Braiding knowledge: how Indigenous expertise and western science are converging; The Guardian, April 4, 2026
Lela Nargi , The Guardian; Braiding knowledge: how Indigenous expertise and western science are converging
"Rather than dismissing Indigenous knowledge, more western scientists are discovering its viability for themselves and adjusting their research goals to embrace it.
That represents a “massive shift”, according to Kyle Whyte, a professor of environmental justice at the University of Michigan and a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. Historically, western scientists have considered themselves rigorous and empirical, while they have classified traditional Native thought as mythic, religious or plain made-up, he said.
In fact, a long-overdue “braiding” of Native and western knowledge is becoming ever more common. Prominent Native authors such as Vine Deloria Jr have pointed out Native environmental practices in books for popular audiences. They’ve theorized, as the Alaskan native scholar Oscar Kawagley described it, “native ways of knowing”. More Indigenous people – Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass, is a notable example – are entering academia and changing it from the inside, while some tribal nations have hired their own scientists. Non-Native institutions are seeking to undo their erasure of Indigenous cultures; the Brooklyn Botanic Garden has started to include labeling that highlights Lenape names and uses for food plants like persimmons. International environmental organizations also increasingly recognize the importance of including Indigenous voices in discussions around the climate crisis. Since 2022, there’s even been federal funding to study ways to combine Indigenous and western sciences, so each part remains distinct while being strengthened by the other."
Book bans and culture wars came for libraries. They’re still standing strong. ; The 19th, April 24, 2026
Nadra Nittle , The 19th; Book bans and culture wars came for libraries. They’re still standing strong.
During National Library Week, librarians throughout the country fight for books, jobs and truth.
"When students ask why books with LGBTQ+ themes need to be included in the collection, DeMaria tells them to consider the limited number of movies, books and other media that portray queer people.
LGBTQ+ students “deserve that representation,” she said. “If it sits on the shelf because at that moment I don’t have a student who needs that mirror, that’s where it stays until I do.”"
This Is How We Get Moral A.I. Companies; The New York Times, April 26, 2026
The New York Times; This Is How We Get Moral A.I. Companies
"Artificial intelligence can be wondrous, but the technology underneath is more than a little monstrous. It eats up all the words in the world, from blogs to books, often without permission. It burns whole forests’ worth of energy, digesting that raw material into its models, and gulps billions of gallons of water to cool down. These are the same qualities we perceive in Godzilla, but distributed. Is it any wonder that the Japanese word “kaiju,” or strange beast, has “AI” smack in the middle?...
The entire culture of American technology is built around two terms: disruption and, of course, scale. But ethics are constraints on disruption and scale. Truly ethics-bound organizations — the U.S. justice system, the American Medical Association, the Catholic priesthood — have hard scaling limits. Their rules run deep, and their requirements to serve are so onerous that only a few people can do the job. Punishments for transgressors include losing their licenses, being defrocked and being disbarred. Software industry people might have good degrees and are often good people, but they are making it up as they go along. They take no oath, are inconsistently certified and can only be fired, not exiled from the trade."
Teen, 14, Invents AI-Powered Device to Help Detect, and Potentially Treat, Crossed Eyes; People, April 26, 2026
Toria Sheffield, People; Teen, 14, Invents AI-Powered Device to Help Detect, and Potentially Treat, Crossed Eyes
"An 8th grader in California has invented an AI-powered device to help detect — and potentially treat — strabismus, a condition commonly known as crossed eyes.
Aaryan Balani of Cerritos said he opted to develop the device since he personally suffers from strabismus. The 14-year-old developed the condition after bumping his head when he was five years old...
The young science aficionado decided to develop EYEVA, a device that looks like a visor and alerts the wearer when their eye begins to wander.
"It will beep … and you're like, ‘Okay, now I need to be aware of my face," Balani explained, adding that, in theory, it could help the wearer permanently retrain their eyes.
Balani said he developed the device with a 3D printer, small cameras and AI. It went through five different prototypes and four months of tweaking."
Devious New AI Tool “Clones” Software So That the Original Creator Doesn’t Hold a Copyright Over the New Version; Futurism, April 26, 2026
Victor Tangermann , Futurism; Devious New AI Tool “Clones” Software So That the Original Creator Doesn’t Hold a Copyright Over the New Version
"The advent of generative AI continues to undermine the very concept of copyright, from entire books shamelessly ripping off authors to tasteless AI slop depicting beloved characters going viral on social media. The sin is foundational: all today’s popular AI tools were built by pillaging copyrighted material without permission.
Even software isn’t safe. As 404 Media reports, a new tool dubbed Malus.sh — pronounced “malice,” to give a subtle clue where this is headed — uses AI to “liberate” a piece of software from existing copyright licenses, essentially creating a “clean room” clone that technically doesn’t infringe on the original code’s copyright."
Pope Leo has stirred awake a progressive Christianity. It can rise again; The Guardian, April 26, 2026
Bill McKibben, The Guardian; Pope Leo has stirred awake a progressive Christianity. It can rise again
"I hope that this fight – between the clergy and ICE, between the pope and the president – continues, because it’s providing a theological education to the public at large."
To teach in the time of ChatGPT is to know pain; Ars Technica, April 13, 2026
SCOTT K. JOHNSON , Ars Technica; To teach in the time of ChatGPT is to know pain
"Let me explain why students are the ones losing the most in this environment and why instructors like me feel pretty much powerless to fix the problem.
Do or do not, there is no AI
Students often carry misconceptions about coursework. They may view an instructor as an opponent standing in the way of the grade they want. And they see “getting the right answers” as the goal of education because that’s how you secure that grade.
But that’s no more true than thinking that logging a count of reps is the goal of bodybuilding. The hard work of lifting weights is the point because that yields physical results. A popular analogy is that using an LLM to write your essay is like driving a forklift into the weight room. Weights get lifted, sure, but nothing is accomplished. I’m not hoping you can answer the exam question for me—I don’t need your essay to get me out of a jam. The process of doing the work was what you needed to walk away with something.
In a recent video about how easy Sora has made it for users to generate relatively realistic but deeply problematic videos, Hank Green rubbed his eyes as he shouted in the figurative direction of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, “The friction matters, Sam!”...
I’m not alone in feeling exasperated by this predicament. A survey of about 3,000 college faculty showed that 85 percent felt LLMs “make students less likely to develop critical thinking abilities,” and 72 percent reported challenges managing LLM use.
Predictably, the response from higher education administrators―who are busy signing contracts for institutional LLM subscriptions to show how future-first their thought leadership is―has been to tell instructors that their job is to teach students “how to use AI effectively.”...
A few months ago, I overheard some college students talking about their classes. One was complaining about an assignment they needed to do that night, and another incredulously asked why they wouldn’t just have ChatGPT do it. The first replied, “This is my major, I actually need to learn stuff in this class. I use AI for my other classes.”"
Saturday, April 25, 2026
Measles Is Back. What Comes Next Will Be Worse.; The New York Times, April 25, 2026
The Editorial Board, The New York Times; Measles Is Back. What Comes Next Will Be Worse
"The resurgence of measles — a terrible disease that can swell the brain and cause permanent disabilities or death — is alarming enough on its own. There have been more than 1,700 cases reported in the United States already this year, up from about 70 per year in the early 2000s. Three children died last year.
The rise of measles may also be a harbinger of something even worse, public officials say. “Measles is basically a canary in the coal mine for our entire system,” says Dr. Scott Harris, the state health officer in Alabama’s Department of Public Health. “When it surges like this, it signals that our vaccination programs are starting to fail, and that other diseases won’t be far behind.” Already, cases of whooping cough have surged, too. And after two Florida children died of Hib, a bacterial infection, epidemiologists worry that disease is resurgent.
The most maddening aspect of this situation is that it was almost certainly avoidable. It stems in large part from a yearslong scare campaign by vaccine conspiracists including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who now serves as President Trump’s secretary of health and human services."
'Too Dangerous to Release' Is Becoming AI's New Normal; Time, April 24, 2026
Nikita Ostrovsky, Time; 'Too Dangerous to Release' Is Becoming AI's New Normal
"On April 16, OpenAI announced GPT-Rosalind, a new AI model targeted at the life sciences. It significantly outperforms their current publicly available models in chemistry and biology tasks, as well as experimental design. As with Anthropic’s Claude Mythos and OpenAI’s GPT-5.4-Cyber, also released this month, the model is not available to the general public—reserved, at least initially, for “qualified customers” through a “trusted access program.”
The releases signal a new and concerning trend of AI companies deeming their most capable models too powerful to entrust to the general public. “I think frontier developers are restricting access to their most capable models because they are genuinely worried about some of the capabilities these models have,” says Peter Wildeford, head of policy at the AI Policy Network, an advocacy group.
It is unclear why OpenAI decided to restrict access to GPT-Rosalind in particular. An OpenAI spokesperson said in an email that giving access to trusted partners allows the company to “make more capable systems available sooner to verified users, while still managing risk thoughtfully.”
Who decides?
The rapid advance of AI capabilities raises the question of whether private companies should be making the increasingly weighty decisions about whether and how potentially dangerous AI models should be built, and who should be allowed to use them."
The 85-Year-Old Widow Snagged by Trump’s Immigration Crackdown; The New York Times, April 25, 2026
Catherine Porter, The New York Times; The 85-Year-Old Widow Snagged by Trump’s Immigration Crackdown
"Her story gives a glimpse into the opaque labyrinth of immigrant-detention sites operated by the Trump administration, where many like her see no lawyer, have no sense of where they are and understand little of why they are held or, in her case, later released. It also raises questions about how that system may be weaponized: A judge said in a ruling that she believed that Ms. Ross-Mahé’s stepson Tony Ross, who had been fighting with her over her late husband’s estate, instigated her arrest.
The New York Times could not independently confirm the details of her experience in detention, but it aligns with the accounts of others who have been detained in similar circumstances. Tony and his brother, Gary Ross, did not respond to requests for comment, nor did their lawyer.
The experience stunned Ms. Ross-Mahé, who previously considered herself a supporter of President Trump and so admired his policy to deport illegal immigrants that she thought it should be adopted in France.
“I didn’t think these things existed,” she said of the immigration facilities she was held in. “I thought that when we arrested them, we would treat them properly. It really shocked me.”
She added, “They treat them like dogs, not in a human way.”
Asked for comment, the Homeland Security Department said in a statement that “all detainees are provided with proper meals, quality water, blankets, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with their family members and lawyers.” It added that “ICE has higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens” and is “regularly audited and inspected by external agencies.”"
Trump ousts National Science Board members; The Washington Post, April 25, 2025
Carolyn Y. Johnson , The Washington Post; Trump ousts National Science Board members
"Multiple scientists who serve on an independent board established to guide the nation’s nearly $9 billion basic science funding agency were terminated from their positions Friday by President Donald Trump.
Members of the National Science Board, which helps govern the National Science Foundation, were dismissed in a message from the Presidential Personnel Office thanking them for their service, according to screenshots shared with The Washington Post: “On behalf of President Donald J. Trump, I’m writing to inform you that your position as a member of the National Science Board is terminated, effective immediately.”
The National Science Board was established in 1950 to guide the governance of the National Science Foundation, in an unusual structure within the federal government that echoes the setup of a company board in the private sector. It helps guide an agency that operates Antarctic research stations, telescopes, a fleet of research vessels and supports basic science research in laboratories across the United States.
The NSF has a long history of supporting technology and research that powers many innovations the world relies on today. The agency helped language-learning app Duolingo get its start. NSF research has also helped evolve technology used in MRIs, cellphones and LASIK eye surgery.
The board’s members are scientists and engineers from universities and industry and are appointed by the president, but they serve six-year terms, ensuring overlap between different administrations. There are typically 25 members, but some slots are empty — including the NSF director, which has been vacant since the former director who was appointed during the first Trump administration, Sethuraman Panchanathan abruptly resigned a year ago."
Your Patent Will Expire. Here’s What You Need to Do Next to Keep Innovating Legally.; Entrepreneur, April 24, 2026
THOMAS FRANKLIN|EDITED BY CHELSEA BROWN, Entrepreneur; Your Patent Will Expire. Here’s What You Need to Do Next to Keep Innovating Legally.
"Lasting protection comes not from one filing, but from a pipeline of innovation supported by a structured patent portfolio — most often built through multiple patent families. A patent family links related applications around a common inventive core with interlocking priority claims. Early filings anchor protection, while later filings capture details in line with the market as it evolves."
Q&A: In the age of AI, what is a library for?; UVAToday, April 15, 2026
Alice Berry , UVAToday; Q&A: In the age of AI, what is a library for?
"Q. Where do you fall on the AI enthusiast to AI detractor spectrum?
A. A faculty member at another university asked me recently whether it was defensible to ban AI in her course. I said yes.
That probably isn’t what people expect from someone who spent the last three years building a framework for AI literacy. But it was the honest answer for now. She believed her students needed to develop a specific skill that AI use would short-circuit, and banning it was the right call for that course.
What I would ask of faculty who choose that path is to stay open, keep up with how the technology is developing, and be willing to try approaches others have tested. That is part of what the lab is for: to produce case studies that give faculty something real to work from when they are ready to revisit the question.
I’m wary of the two confident positions on AI in higher education right now: the people certain it will transform teaching, and the people certain it will destroy it. Both are getting ahead of what we actually know about what’s happening in our classrooms.
Q. What is the function of a library in this AI age?
A. A research library has always done two things: help people find information, and help them judge it. AI changes the tools, not the mission. If anything, the mission gets sharper. The library is also one of the few places in a university built to convene across disciplines, and AI literacy requires exactly that: technical knowledge, ethics, critical thinking, practical skill, and societal impact all at once. No single department owns that combination.
A library can hold it together. That is why we are launching the AI Literacy and Action Lab here. Dean Acampora and I share the conviction that AI is an opportunity for the liberal arts, not a threat to them. The lab is built on that shared premise: AI literacy is a liberal arts problem as much as a technical one, and a university that treats it only as technical will get the answer wrong."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)