Accurate, Focused Research on Law, Technology and Knowledge Discovery Since 2002

Daily Archives: August 2, 2022

Open-source flight trackers have been repeatedly used to break news over the last few weeks

Vice: “More than 700,000 people were tracking the flight path of the U.S. military plane believed to be carrying House Speaker Nancy Pelosi this morning. She touched down in Taiwan at 10:50 pm local time, making Pelosi the first high-ranking American official to visit the self-governing island in 25 years, amid threats of a military response from China. People were watching the flight’s progress on FlightRadar24, a flight tracking site that uses open-source data to track flights. FlightRadar24 and tools like it, such as ADS-B Exchange, have been particularly useful in recent weeks, as people have used it to track private jet routes live for celebrities such as Taylor Swift and Kylie Jenner to planes to Russian Oligarchs and now, Nancy Pelosi.  FlightRadar24 has had so much traffic today that the home page reads: “We are seeing a high demand in users wanting to access our services. As a temporary measure there is waiting room to prevent crashing. Paying subscribers can log in to bypass the waiting room.”

Walgreen Covid Test Results

Poynter: “The Walgreens drug store chain posts the results of the COVID-19 tests it oversees, and the picture is grim. More than a third of the tests are positive and some states have seen a spike of 25% in the last week. Click on the map, which is linked to an interactive for each state…” Continue Reading

The Fortune Global 500

“The rebound from COVID-19 created a huge tailwind for the world’s largest companies by revenue. Aggregate sales for the Fortune Global 500 hit $37.8 trillion, an increase of 19%—the highest annual growth rate in the list’s history. Walmart landed at No. 1 for the ninth straight year, trailed by Amazon, which reached its highest ranking… Continue Reading

How flood maps can illuminate the risk from toxic waste sites

Fast Company: Climate science is clear: “Floodwaters are a growing risk for many American cities, threatening to displace not only people and housing but also the land-based pollution left behind by earlier industrial activities. In 2019, researchers at the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigated climate-related risks at the 1,571 most polluted properties in the… Continue Reading

Time to update: Latest Google Chrome browser fixes 27 security flaw

ZDNet – “Google has released Chrome 104 stable with fixes for seven ‘high’ and 15 ‘medium’ severity flaws. Google has released Chrome version 104 for Windows, Mac and Linux, with fixes for 27 security bugs reported by third parties.  None of the flaws are listed as being actively exploited, but the release notes for Chrome… Continue Reading

Understanding Criminal Justice Innovations

Ryan, Meghan J., Understanding Criminal Justice Innovations (June 14, 2022). Journal of Law & Innovation (2022 Forthcoming), SMU Dedman School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper No. 562, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4136813 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4136813 “Burgeoning science and technology have provided the criminal justice system with the opportunity to address some of its shortcomings. And the… Continue Reading

Report – Hidden Harms: The Misleading Promise of Monitoring Students Online

Center for Democracy & Technology: “The pressure on schools to keep students safe, especially to protect them physically and support their mental health, has never been greater. The mental health crisis, which has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and concerns about the increasing number of school shootings have led to questions about the role… Continue Reading

New WorldCat.org sneak peak

YouTube: “Danielle Bromelia, OCLC Product Manager, provides a preview of the redesigned and soon-to-be-released WorldCat.org. The new, mobile-friendly site offers more ways to reach people in your community, including those who don’t currently use your library. You’ll learn how WorldCat.org helps people find unique collections and other resources in your library and other libraries nearby… Continue Reading