A technical analysis of the top 4 podcasts about podcasting looking at the audio production, file formats and embedded meta-data used by each podcast

The post A Quasi-technical Analysis of the Top Podcasts about Podcasting appeared first on Richard Farrar.

NARELLAN Vale mixed martial arts fighter Danny “Lil Reaper” Roberts trained for weeks before his World Kick Boxing Federation title fight last month.

WARRINGAH Greens candidate Clara Williams Roldan says as many as one-third of young voters will vote for the Greens because the major parties have ignored youth issues.

Up for a potential fast-track vote next week in the House of Representatives, the Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act, also known as H.R. 9495, would grant the secretary of the Treasury Department unilateral authority to revoke the tax-exempt status of any nonprofit deemed to be a “terrorist supporting organization.” “It basically empowers the Treasury secretary to target any group it wants to call them a terror supporter and block their ability to be a nonprofit,” said Ryan Costello, policy director at the National Iranian American Council Action, which opposes the law. “So that would essentially kill any nonprofit’s ability to function. They couldn’t get banks to service them, they won’t be able to get donations, and there’d be a black mark on the organization, even if it cleared its name.”

Over the past month I’ve been exploring the rapidly evolving world of Large Language Models (LLM). It’s now accessible enough to run a LLM on a Raspberry Pi smarter than the original ChatGPT (November 2022). A modest desktop or laptop supports even smarter AI.

I don't care about the Royal Family, but the Kate Middleton (Princess of Wale) story is wild: - In high school, she and her sister (Pippa) were called the "Wisteria Sisters" for being shameless social climbers.   - She got into a relatively prestigious college (Edinburgh) and then switched to a less prestigious school (St. Andrews) after it was announced that Prince William would be attending. - She delayed starting by a year to be in the same class as William, and then changed her major to Art History to match his.  - She dumped her boyfriend after being told that Prince William said she was "hot." - Her mom gave William an ultimatum that he needed to propose, which Kate then helped plan.  Mission accomplished.

granny shots - grny

BlackHole is a modern macOS virtual audio driver that allows applications to pass audio to other applications with zero additional latency. Perfect for Streamers, Podcasters, and Online Instructors.

YouTuber Jake Paul and boxing heavyweight legend Mike Tyson are finally set to battle in their much-anticipated match at AT&T Stadium in Dallas on Friday night.

The post ‘I’m a Natural-Born Killer’: Mike Tyson Highlights the Difference Between Him and YouTuber Jake Paul appeared first on Breitbart.

It was a special night of songs and storytelling as Debbie Gibson closed out her Acoustic Youth tour in Chicago on Monday, October 28, 2024.

An eBay phishing scammer trying to pique your curiosity.

IRMGF (Inspiration Mining Corporation) pump and dump stock spam

Je website is in deze tijd vaak de plek waar potentiële klanten een eerste indruk van je krijgen. En zoals ze zeggen: de eerste indruk is enorm belangrijk. Een gebruiksvriendelijke website kan het verschil maken tussen een klant die bij jou blijft of verder zoekt naar een concurrent. Helaas worden er nog steeds veel fouten […]

More Ozzy TV- Arctic Monkeys 'Four Out Of Five' Video, Muse Concert Film Preview, Cliff Burton Documentary, Sevendust, Free Volbeat Show and more

Gypsy Pistoleros just released a new video and single called 'Like Tears In The Rain' from their forthcoming album, 'Duende A Go Go Loco!'. Gypsy Lee Pistolero tells us about the new song to celebrate

Breaking down California’s tough-on-crime measure Prop 36. Also, an update on the 2022 voter-approved Sacramento Children's Fund: Measure L. Finally, the parking lot saga at Trader Joe’s.

Real Boston Richey delivers his newest music video today, 'Come Outside (So Sick)',

Divine Grave just released the new single 'Grief' and to celebrate we asked the mysterious metalcore act to tell us about the track

I had the privilege of taking a closer look at Agnitum's Internet Security Suite called Outpost Security Suite Pro. This security suite has quite a lot under the hood so there are plenty of things to discuss. Please note that version 7.5.2 will be released soon, so I will update my review where necessary when the latest version is released.

Read our review of Outpost Firewall Pro, the best software firewall solution in the industry.

By Fran Kritz, NPR

The ancient scourge of tuberculosis for years was the deadliest infectious disease. Then SARS-CoV-2 came along and grabbed the notorious title of #1 killer: In 2020, COVID-19 was responsible for 3.5 million deaths worldwide vs 1.5 million for TB.The 2024 Global Tuberculosis Report, published last week by the World Health Organization, puts TB back in the top slot with 1.25 million deaths in 2023 compared to 320,000 COVID-19 deaths. There's also been an increase of hundreds of thousands of new TB cases in 2023 compared to the year prior.

The 1.25 million TB deaths in 2023 is down from 2022’s number of 1.32 million (which that year was second to the COVID toll). But it's still indefensibly high, say public health leaders.

“The fact that TB still kills and sickens so many people is an outrage, when we have the tools to prevent it, detect it and treat it,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general, in a statement issued on October 29.

According to the report, approximately 8.2 million people were newly diagnosed with TB in 2023 — the highest number since WHO began global TB monitoring in 1995 and a “notable increase” from 7.5 million people newly diagnosed in 2022.

TB sleuths are trying to figure out the reasons behind the increase. Anand Date, global TB branch chief at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says population growth may account for the increase in cases last year -- and that it may take until the 2024 to find out if that is so or if the leap in 2023 reflects an undercount of annual TB totals during the pandemic.

“Disruptions to TB programs during the height of the pandemic led to more people going undiagnosed and untreated for TB. [And] guidance to shelter in place may have also limited the spread of TB, says Yogan Pillay, who heads efforts to improve TB program delivery at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (which is a funder of NPR and this blog).

COVID-19 did trigger a new setback in the effort to control TB. But most of the reasons the infection persists are frustratingly well-known, says Lucica Ditiu, executive director of the Stop TB Partnership. There's too little money for research, treatment. and patient care needs. And there's stigma that can keep the most common victims of TB, impoverished people including migrants and sex workers, from seeking help or being offered treatment.

In addition, health conditions like malnutrition, diabetes and smoking that can exacerbate TB and keep medications from being fully effective, says Luke Davis, a TB and HIV specialist at the Yale School of Public Health. “TB is unusual,” says Davis, in that most people who are exposed to the bacteria won’t progress to infectious TB. Only about 10% do, and they are usually among the world’s poorest people often with poor health to begin with, which exacerbates their condition.”

So what's the solution?

And that brings us to the Tedros point. The world knows how to vanquish TB — but is not doing a good job.

Money reigns as perhaps the biggest obstacle to conquering tuberculosis. A spokesperson for WHO tells NPR: “Compared with global funding targets for TB set at the 2023 U.N. high-level meeting on TB, there are large funding shortfalls for TB research as well as prevention, detection and treatment services. To close these gaps, more funding is needed from both domestic sources in the countries most impacted by TB and from international donors.”

Global funding for TB prevention and care decreased in 2023 from $6 billion in the three previous years to $5.7 billion and remains far below the yearly target of $22 billion, according to WHO.

What would more money bring? WHO cites expanded rapid diagnostic testing as critical. Then treatment can start sooner. And people wouldn’t have to travel long distances to a clinic then wait for days for the results.

Increased funding would also help reimburse families for lost wages and food and travel expenses incurred as they go for treatment. Those costs keep some patients and their families from seeking care.

The WHO report and other investigations also say that countries burdened by TB also have to step up and spend more money on prevention, diagnosis and treatment. A report by MSF/Doctors Without Borders published last month, for example, found that, only 5 out of 14 countries have adapted their guidelines — based on WHO recommendations -- to initiate TB treatment in children when symptoms strongly indicate TB disease, even if bacteriological tests are negative.

And increased funding would speed up the pace of research says the CDC’s Date. Funding for TB research has stagnated at around $1 billion per year, constraining progress, according to WHO. The target at the U.N. meeting: $5 billion per year by 2027. “The world also has the most promising R&D pipeline of new TB tools in decades,” says Pillay. “What’s needed now is greater investment to deliver on the promise of that pipeline and ensure patients and those at risk of TB have affordable and equitable access to these tools when they are available.”

Vaccines in the works

Pillay says there are more than a dozen TB vaccine candidates in clinical trials, including one whose late stage (stage 3) clinical trial is sponsored by the Gates Medical Research Institute. The trial began recruiting patients last March. That vaccine candidate is called M72/AS01E and if proven effective would be the first new TB vaccine in 100 years. The lone TB vaccine available now is not predictably effective in adults, and can cause a false positive result on TB skin tests.

But even an effective vaccine won’t do that much good if there aren’t funds to purchase it for countries impacted by TB. Janeen Madan Keller, deputy director of the Global Health Policy Program at the Center for Global Development, based in Washington, D.C., says that while Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance, pays for [a variety of] vaccines in some of the poorest countries such as Afghanistan, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, some countries with high rates of TB are middle income countries, like Indonesia, and no longer eligible for support. Ahead of a TB vaccine’s approval, says Keller, there needs to be a better match of policy and funding.

“Often it seems that when we find a way to help vanquish TB,” says Lucica Ditiu, “we also find another barrier.”

Fran Kritz is a health policy reporter based in Washington, D.C., and a regular contributor to NPR. She also reports for the Washington Post and Verywell Health. Find her on X: @fkritz

By Laura Fitzgerald

Updated Nov. 8, 4:30 p.m.

Polls are closed in California. Elections officials are beginning to process and count millions of mail-in ballots from California’s General Election.

The Secretary of State’s Office website shows an estimated 10,728,985 ballots had been counted by Friday at 4:30 p.m.

Every registered California voter was sent a mail-in ballot. The process offers greater convenience for voters, but also delays results because election staff must spend more time verifying signatures and handling late-arriving ballots.

Leading up to the election, statewide ballot returns were slightly lower compared to the 2020 General Election. On Monday, roughly 42% of ballots had been returned; in 2020, that number was closer to 49%, according to election firm Political Data, Inc.

County election officials have until Dec. 5 to process and count ballots. The Secretary of State will certify the results of the election on Dec. 13.

This page will be updated as results come in. See full California election results here. 

Presidential race

Vice President Kamala Harris won California’s 54 electoral college votes, according to a call by the Associated Press. (California’s electoral college lost one member after the 2020 census.) Harris’s projected win was called immediately after polls closed, far from a surprise in California. 

U.S. Senate

Democratic Representative Adam Schiff has won the race to fill the U.S. Senate seat held for decades by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, according to a call made by the Associated Press shortly after polls closed. He had 57.6% of the preliminary results on Friday afternoon. 

Republican challenger (and former Los Angeles Dodgers baseball star) Steve Garvey had 42.4% of early results Friday afternoon.

A special election to fill the remainder of Feinstein’s senate term also appeared on the ballot this election. The seat is currently held by Sen. Laphonza Butler, who was appointed as a caretaker by Governor Gavin Newsom shortly after Feinstein’s death. 

Schiff was also announced as the winner of this race, per the Associated Press.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in California, fields questions after voting in the state's primary election, March 5, 2024, in Burbank, Calif.AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File

U.S. House of Representatives

District 3: 

Republican incumbent Rep. Kevin Kiley won the race Congressional District 3, according to a race call by the Associated Press. He led with 57.2% of the vote on Friday afternoon.

Democratic challenger Jessica Morse followed with 42.8% of early results Friday afternoon. Morse previously ran against Rep. Tom McClintock in 2018.

Morse conceded in a message to supporters posted on social media on Friday.

"Although we didn't have the outcome we wanted in this race, I am proud to have stood at a critical juncture in history with you," she said. "We sounded the alarm, mobilized neighbors and awoke civic engagement in our community. I know it feels like a red tsunami has come to wipe out our freedoms. But our work together over the previous year, knocking doors, making calls, writing postcards, has communicated directly to our community and helped reinforce the foundations of our democracy." 

District 6:

Democratic incumbent Ami Bera won the race for Congressional District 6, according to a race call from the Associated Press. He had 57.3% of early results on Friday. Bera, who was first elected in 2012, has served on the Science, Space and Technology and Foreign Affairs committees, among others, during his time in Congress.

Republican realtor and financial investigator Chris Bish followed with 42.7% of early results Friday.

District 7: 

Democratic incumbent Doris Matsui won her 11th two-year term in the House, according to a call by the Associated Press. Matusi, who was elected in 2005, had 65.4% of early results Friday afternoon.

Republican challenger Tom Silva followed with 34.6%. Silva served as a member of the armed forces for 33 years and on the school board in his hometown of Galt.

California’s 7th Congressional District includes central and south Sacramento neighborhoods including Downtown, Midtown, Arden-Arcade, Lemon Hill and Florin along with the cities of West Sacramento and Elk Grove.

Congresswoman Doris Matsui talks with attendees of the ground breaking for the Hanami Line, a cherry blossom park being built along the Sacramento River, Thursday, June 29, 2023.Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

California state Assembly

District 6:

Early results show Democrat Maggie Krell leading with 65.6% in the race to replace Assembly member Kevin McCarty, who is running for Sacramento mayor. Krell currently serves as a Deputy Attorney General in the California Department of Justice, and has also been a lawyer for Planned Parenthood.

Republican trade advocate Nikki Ellis follows with 34.4% of early results Friday afternoon.

The 6th Assembly District spans from Sacramento’s Land Park neighborhood to Natomas, including downtown and Midtown, East Sacramento, and parts of Arden-Arcade. 

District 7:

Early results show Republican incumbent Josh Hoover is leading with 53.6% in the race for the 7th Assembly District, a region that includes much of northeastern Sacramento County, including Fair Oaks, Rancho Cordova, Folsom, Citrus Heights and North Highlands. It also includes portions of Rosemont and Carmichael.

Democratic challenger Porsche Middleton follows with 46.4% of early results Friday afternoon.

District 10:

Democratic incumbent Stephanie Nguyen has 66.1% of the early results in the race to represent California’s 10th Assembly District. Nguyen was first elected to the role in 2022 and previously served on Elk Grove City Council. 

Retired engineer Vinaya Singh follows with 33.9% of early results Friday afternoon.

The 10th Assembly District spans much of southern Sacramento County.

By Claire Morgan

Updated Nov. 8, 4:15 p.m.

Sacramento County results arrived in three separate waves on election night, with the first released shortly after the polls closed at 8 p.m., another around 10:15 p.m. then finally again around midnight. 

The county will release another batch of results later this week and will continue to issue reports every Friday and Tuesday until all the ballots are counted.

As of Friday at 4:10 p.m., county data estimated roughly 411,809 ballots had been counted.

See full California primary election results here.

Sacramento mayor

Early results show Assembly member Kevin McCarty holds a lead with 54% of the 113,724 ballots counted so far. Epidemiologist Dr. Flojaune Cofer follows with 45%.

McCarty told supporters he was feeling grateful during an Election Night watch party in a restaurant Downtown.

"[I'm] just completely appreciative of where we're at, the campaign we ran, talking to a lot of people, laying out our vision for Sacramento," he said. "Thanking everybody that helped us on this campaign: our volunteers, our endorsers, our supporters, our contributors."

Cofer also expressed gratitude during her own Election Night watch party at pub Downtown. She says homelessness was a top issue among voters she spoke to throughout her campaign.

"They were excited that we had a plan, that we were talking about not needing more money but needing to use the money that we had and make sure that we are coordinating services across our different agencies, that we have clear goals and outcomes," she said.

Sacramento City Council District 2

Early results show Former state Assembly member Roger Dickinson is in the lead with 61% of the 7,739 ballots counted so far. Del Paso Heights native Stephen Walton follows with 38% of the vote.

District 2 includes Del Paso Heights, Hagginwood and Woodlake. 

Council member Shoun Thao has represented District 2 since April, after he was appointed to temporarily fill the seat until the winner of this election takes office. Thao is serving the remainder of former Council member Sean Loloee’s term. Loloee resigned in January after pleading not guilty to a 25-count federal indictment related to his Viva Supermarket grocery store businesses. 

Local ballot measures

Measure D: 

Early results show out of 80,168 ballots counted, 71% were for and 28% were against Sacramento City Unified School District’s request to issue $543 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure D would be used to upgrade facilities at Earl Warren Elementary School, Elder Creek Elementary School and Hiram Johnson High School, among other projects. 

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure E: 

Early results show out of 112,104 ballots counted, 72% were for and 27% were against renewing and combining two existing library parcel taxes into a single tax with no expiration date. If passed, Measure E would generate approximately $9.6 million yearly for Sacramento County library services.

The measure requires a two-thirds majority to pass.

Measure G: 

Early results show out of 27,897 ballots counted, 61% were against and 38% were for imposing an additional 1-cent sales tax on items sold in Folsom. Funds raised through Measure G would be spent on first responder services, public infrastructure and economic development.

The measure requires a simple majority to pass. 

Measure H: 

Early results show out of 7,483 ballots counted, 54% were for and 45% were against Galt Joint Union Elementary School District’s request to issue $27 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure H would go towards upgrading infrastructure at Marengo Ranch Elementary School, Lake Canyon Elementary School and River Oaks Elementary School, among others.

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure J: 

Early results show out of 714 ballots counted, 51% were for and 48% were against Elverta Joint Elementary School District’s request to issue $4.3 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure J would be used to upgrade infrastructure across its three schools.

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure K:

Early results show out of 9,520 ballots counted, 56% were against and 43% were for San Joaquin Delta Community College District’s request to issue $598 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure K would go towards facilities improvements like lab upgrades, asbestos removal and new classroom construction.

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure L: 

Early results show out of 11,270 ballots counted, 61% were for and 38% were against Orangevale Recreation and Park District’s request to issue $24 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure L would go towards making security improvements, upgrading playgrounds and renovating the district’s 60-year-old Youth Center, among other projects.

The measure requires two-thirds approval to pass.

Measure M: 

Early results show out of 1,588 ballots counted, 50% were against and 49% were for Arcohe Union School District’s request to issue $5.8 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure M would be used to upgrade school safety, repair aging facilities, expand classrooms and build a joint-use community center.

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure N: 

Early results show out of 84,125 ballots counted, 58% were for and 41% were against Elk Grove Unified School District’s request to issue $542 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure N would go toward renovating, upgrading and rehabilitating school facilities, among other projects. 

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure O: 

Early results show out of 177,787 ballots counted, 68% were for and 31% were against Sacramento Metropolitan Fire Department’s request to issue $415 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure O would go toward upgrading facilities and vehicles and completing a new training facility.

The measure needs two-thirds of the vote to pass, unless Proposition 5 is approved, which would lower the threshold to 55%.

Measure P: 

Early results show out of 101,115 ballots counted, 59% were for and 40% were against San Juan Unified School District’s request to issue $950 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure P would go towards building new school facilities, upgrading classrooms and improve the safety of drinking water on campuses.

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure Q: 

Early results show out of 6,248 ballots counted, 72% were for and 27% were against Fulton-El Camino Recreation and Parks District’s request to issue $24 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure Q would go toward upgrading restrooms, adding lighting and improving accessibility at parks, among other projects.

Measure R: 

Early results show out of 11,809 ballots counted, 65% were for and 34% were against Folsom-Cordova Unified School District’s request to issue $144 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure R would go towards improvements at elementary schools across the district.

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

Measure S:

Early results show out of 11,733 ballots counted, 64% were for and 35% were against Folsom-Cordova Unified District’s request to issue $144 million in bonds. Funds raised through Measure R would go towards improvements at middle and high schools across the district.

The measure requires 55% approval to pass.

By Claire Morgan

"Although I love him like a cousin, he can be a bit creepy, like he makes sexual comments out of the blue for no reason."

Thousands of homes across Colorado remained without power Sunday morning, according to Xcel. During the snowstorm's peak Friday, 52,000 were powerless.

Beat Deion. Because if Jay Norvell can notch CSU's first Rocky Mountain Showdown win since 2014, the load of those first two seasons lightens considerably.

Don't get caught with your pants down. This exhibit runs for a full year in Denver.

He's the guy behind the Radio Disney versions of metal songs we all love.

Seems like it'll get announced this week.

Southbound Interstate 25 is once again open in Pueblo after a vehicle struck and killed a pedestrian Saturday morning, shutting down the roadway.

It may not feel like it when the worst stomach flu of your life has you in its grip, but often, the best thing to do when you have E. coli is to rest and keep drinking beverages with electrolytes.

A recent spate of Xcel power outages across metro Denver has prompted the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to consider opening an investigation.

The Colorado Public Utilities Commission is looking into recent power outages reported by Xcel Energy customers.

Xcel Energy plans to spend $45 billion on capital investments in the next five years with about $22 billion of that earmarked for Colorado as the utility prepares for what it calls a historic shift in energy demand.

Denver restaurants offer holiday meal options, from turkey with traditional sides to pork loin and lasagna.

Westminster is the second community surrounding the 6,200-acre federal property to withdraw from an intergovernmental agreement supporting construction of a tunnel and bridge into Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge.

Films include the Boulder-shot "Elevation," starring Anthony Mackie, and "The Order," based on a book by Denver's Kevin Flynn

A look at how the first round of the CHSAA state football playoffs played out in Class 5A and 4A.

Stop your self-centered whining, and let’s get on with the job of building more badly needed housing. And thank the Kroenkes’ for investing in Denver’s housing stock.

"Hundreds of voting machine passwords were accidentally released but what exactly was Secretary of State Jena Griswold doing to address the security breach?" -- The Denver Post Editorial Board