Monthly archives: December, 2019

In Hearing, Scholars Debate Whether Trump’s Conduct Was Impeachable

The New York Times – The Impeachment Inquiry into President Donald J. Trump: Constitutional Grounds for Presidential Impeachment – “The House of Representatives on Wednesday, December 4, 2019 opened a critical new phase of the impeachment proceedings against President Trump, featuring legal scholars vigorously debating whether his conduct and the available evidence rose to the …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents, Legal Research

Study finds North American birds getting smaller

Reuters: “Since 1978, researchers have scooped up and measured tens of thousands of birds that died after crashing into buildings in Chicago during spring and fall migrations. Their work has documented what might be called the incredible shrinking bird. A study published on Wednesday involving 70,716 birds killed from 1978 through 2016 in such collisions …

Subjects: Climate Change, Environmental Law

Benchmarking Accessibility in Cities- Measuring the Impact of Proximity and Transport Performance

The International Transport Forum.OECD: “…This report presents a new urban accessibility framework. It identifies which destinations can be reached on foot, by bicycle, public transport or car within a certain time (accessibility). It then measures how many destinations are close by (proximity). The comparison between accessible destinations and nearby destinations show well each transport mode …

Subjects: Transportation

Norway Has The Safest Roads in the World

Forbes: “Only two road traffic deaths per 100, 000 inhabitants were reported in Norway in 2019, making the Scandinavian nation the best-performing country for road safety.  In comparison, the risk of being killed in a crash was six times higher in Argentina than in Norway, and the United States ranked 33 (out of 40), following …

Subjects: Transportation

Top 25 News Photos of 2019

The Atlantic: “As we approach the end of a year of unrest, here is a look back at some of the major news events and moments of 2019. Massive protests were staged against existing governments in Hong Kong, Chile, Iraq, Iran, Venezuela, Haiti, Algeria, Sudan, and Bolivia, while climate-change demonstrations and strikes took place worldwide. …

Subjects: Knowledge Management

Firefox 71 arrives with better Lockwise and tracker blocking

VentureBeat: “Mozilla today launched Firefox 71 for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. Firefox 71 includes Lockwise password manager improvements, Enhanced Tracking Protection tweaks, and Picture-in-Picture video on Windows. There isn’t too much else new, possibly because Mozilla is getting ready to speed up Firefox releases to a four-week cadence (from six to eight weeks) …

Subjects: Cybersecurity, Internet, Privacy

Mozilla removes Avast and AVG extensions

ZDNet – “Mozilla removed today four Firefox extensions made by Avast and its subsidiary AVG after receiving credible reports that the extensions were harvesting user data and browsing histories. The four extensions are Avast Online Security, AVG Online Security, Avast SafePrice, and AVG SafePrice. The first two are extensions that show warnings when navigating to …

Subjects: Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Internet, Privacy

House Intelligence Committee Releases Draft Report As Part of Impeachment Inquiry

“Today, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence released the draft report – “The Trump-Ukraine Impeachment Inquiry Report” – to all Members and the public. The Committee will vote tonight [the vote was 13-9] to issue the report, before the Chairman of the Committee transmits it and any accompanying materials to the House Judiciary Committee …

Subjects: Congress, Defense, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research

Mobile apps developed in Russia are potential counterintelligence threats

One more time – “For all of you that used the FaceApp to see what you would look like in old age, the FBI just told @SenSchumer that “the FBI considers any mobile application or similar product developed in Russia, such as FaceApp, to be a potential counterintelligence threat…” [via Frank Thorpe – producer and off-air …

Subjects: Congress, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Defense, E-Records, Privacy, Social Media

A blog about apples

An  A-Z exploration of varieties available in some states and regions, and not others, from a Massachusetts blogger who really knows his apples – hence the name of the blog, Adam’s Apples. Postings include his photos of the wonderful examples of each apple by name, information on its provenance, taste, appearance, trademarks and patents (yup …

Subjects: Copyright, Food and Nutrition, Patent and Trademark

Libraries 2020 – campaign to support libraries

“Libraries 2020 is a national campaign to build support for local libraries in order to help them keep their doors open. But how does a national campaign and fundraising for EveryLibrary benefit local libraries like yours? We are dedicated to working in conjunction with other library advocacy organizations and to providing all of our tools, …

Subjects: Congress, Economy, Education, Knowledge Management, Libraries

Release of World’s First Internet & Jurisdiction Global Status Report

“The Secretariat of the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network launched the world’s first Internet & Jurisdiction Global Status Report at the United Nations Internet Governance Forum on November 27, 2019, during a Special Session. It presents a first-of-its-kind mapping of internet jurisdiction related policy trends, actors and initiatives. The pioneering Internet & Jurisdiction Global Status Report …

Subjects: Government Documents, Intellectual Property, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research