Österreichische Post AG has rolled out over 11,000 handhelds from February to July 2024.

An architectural project in Sutton aims to tackle the housing crisis while promoting sustainable development and social inclusion.

The behavior of catalysts that promote chemical reactions is not always straightforward. Using a combination of experiments and computer simulations, scientists now understand how oxygen affects the way the catalyst copper oxide reacts with hydrogen versus carbon monoxide gases and how to control and enhance related chemical reactions.

After major refurbishments, the old Johannesburg Planetarium has been transformed into the state-of-the-art Wits Anglo American Digital Dome.

1. Daylight assault on doctor inside Chennai hospital leaves medical fraternity in shock  The Hindu
2. Chennai hospital stabbing: IMA demands ‘overhaul of security atmosphere’  Hindustan Times
3. As Stalin orders inquiry, opposition criticises govt  The Times of India
4. Government doctors to go on indefinite strike in Tamil Nadu after doctor stabbed  Deccan Herald
5. TN will up security for doc safety  The Times of India

1. Toptalent van Real zet op amper 19-jarige leeftijd punt achter carrière: "6 september 2022 veranderde mijn leven"  sporza.be
2. Real Madrid-talent (19) moet nu al stoppen met voetballen: ‘Ik ben bevoorrecht geweest’  AD
3. Zeer treurig nieuws uit Spanje: Real-talent (19) moet noodgedwongen stoppen  VoetbalPrimeur.be
4. Real Madrid-talent (19) gedwongen te stoppen: 'Ik heb alles gegeven'  Voetbal International

“Dit wordt echt het pretpark van oom Dagobert”: kritiek alom nu kerstparade in Disneyland Parijs plots (deels) betalend wordt  Het Laatste Nieuws

1. Aantal abonnees Spotify groeit met 12 procent in een jaar - Beeld en geluid - Nieuws  Tweakers
2. Spotify klimt naar record  De Tijd
3. Spotify niet langer verliesgevend, maakt voor het derde kwartaal op rij winst  NU.nl
4. Muziekstreamer Spotify wipt over kwart miljard betalende gebruikers  De Tijd
5. Spotify winst derde kwartaal 2024 overtreft verwachtingen  Business AM

Hannah Deau’s rental apartment has envy-inducing architectural features like a brick wall, high ceilings, French doors, Spanish tiles, and around 20 plants. READ MORE...

The city has repeatedly pressed for a special regulation from the national government

The airline reported a revenue decrease of $61m compared to the same time last year

A unique population of ventral tegmental area (VTA) neurons co-transmits glutamate and GABA. However, the circuit inputs to VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons are unknown, limiting our understanding of their functional capabilities. By coupling monosynaptic rabies tracing with intersectional genetic targeting in male and female mice, we found that VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons received diverse brainwide inputs. The largest numbers of monosynaptic inputs to VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons were from superior colliculus (SC), lateral hypothalamus (LH), midbrain reticular nucleus, and periaqueductal gray, whereas the densest inputs relative to brain region volume were from the dorsal raphe nucleus, lateral habenula, and VTA. Based on these and prior data, we hypothesized that LH and SC inputs were from glutamatergic neurons. Optical activation of glutamatergic LH neurons activated VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons regardless of stimulation frequency and resulted in flee-like ambulatory behavior. In contrast, optical activation of glutamatergic SC neurons activated VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons for a brief period of time at high frequency and resulted in head rotation and arrested ambulatory behavior (freezing). Stimulation of glutamatergic LH neurons, but not glutamatergic SC neurons, was associated with VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ footshock-induced activity and inhibition of LH glutamatergic neurons disrupted VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ tailshock-induced activity. We interpret these results such that inputs to VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons may integrate diverse signals related to the detection and processing of motivationally salient outcomes.

The activation of autonomic and hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) systems occurs interdependently with behavioral adjustments under varying environmental demands. Nevertheless, laboratory rodent studies examining the neural bases of stress responses have generally attributed increments in these systems to be monolithic, regardless of whether an active or passive coping strategy is employed. Using the shock probe defensive burying test (SPDB) to measure stress-coping features naturalistically in male and female rats, we identify a neural pathway whereby activity changes may promote distinctive response patterns of hemodynamic and HPA indices typifying active and passive coping phenotypes. Optogenetic excitation of the rostral medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) input to the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray (vlPAG) decreased passive behavior (immobility), attenuated the glucocorticoid hormone response, but did not prevent arterial pressure and heart rate increases associated with rats’ active behavioral (defensive burying) engagement during the SPDB. In contrast, inhibition of the same pathway increased behavioral immobility and attenuated hemodynamic output but did not affect glucocorticoid increases. Further analyses confirmed that hemodynamic increments occurred preferentially during active behaviors and decrements during immobility epochs, whereas pathway manipulations, regardless of the directionality of effect, weakened these correlational relationships. Finally, neuroanatomical evidence indicated that the influence of the rostral mPFC->vlPAG pathway on coping response patterns is mediated predominantly through GABAergic neurons within vlPAG. These data highlight the importance of this prefrontal->midbrain connection in organizing stress-coping responses and in coordinating bodily systems with behavioral output for adaptation to aversive experiences.

The sudden appearance of a visual distractor shortly before saccade initiation can capture spatial attention and modulate the saccade trajectory in spite of the ongoing execution of the initial plan to shift gaze straight to the saccade target. To elucidate the neural correlates underlying these curved saccades, we recorded from single neurons in the frontal eye field of two male rhesus monkeys shifting gaze to a target while a distractor with the same eccentricity appeared either left or right of the target at various delays after target presentation. We found that the population level of presaccadic activity of neurons representing the distractor location encoded the direction of the saccade trajectory. Stronger activity occurred when saccades curved toward the distractor, and weaker when saccades curved away. This relationship held whether the distractor was ipsilateral or contralateral to the recorded neurons. Meanwhile, visually responsive neurons showed asymmetrical patterns of excitatory responses that varied with the location of the distractor and the duration of distractor processing relating to attentional capture and distractor inhibition. During earlier distractor processing, neurons encoded curvature toward the distractor. During later distractor processing, neurons encoded curvature away from the distractor. This was observed when saccades curved away from distractors contralateral to the recording site and when saccades curved toward distractors ipsilateral to the recording site. These findings indicate that saccadic motor planning involves dynamic push–pull hemispheric interactions producing attraction or repulsion for potential but unselected saccade targets.

The prefrontal cortex is critical for decision-making across species, with its activity linked to choosing between options. Drift diffusion models (DDMs) are commonly employed to understand the neural computations underlying this behavior. Studies exploring the specific roles of regions of the rodent prefrontal cortex in controlling the decision process are limited. This study explored the role of the prelimbic cortex (PLC) in decision-making using a two-alternative forced-choice task. Rats first learned to report the location of a lateralized visual stimulus. The brightness of the stimulus indicated its reward value. Then, the rats learned to make choices between pairs of stimuli. Sex differences in learning were observed, with females responding faster and more selectively to high-value stimuli than males. DDM analysis found that males had decreased decision thresholds during initial learning, whereas females maintained a consistently higher drift rate. Pharmacological manipulations revealed that PLC inactivation reduced the decision threshold for all rats, indicating that less information was needed to make a choice in the absence of normal PLC processing. μ-Opioid receptor stimulation of the PLC had the opposite effect, raising the decision threshold and reducing bias in the decision process toward high-value stimuli. These effects were observed without any impact on the rats’ choice preferences. Our findings suggest that PLC has an inhibitory role in the decision process and regulates the amount of evidence that is required to make a choice. That is, PLC activity controls "when," but not "how," to act.

Basolateral amygdala (BLA) neurons are engaged by emotionally salient stimuli. An area of increasing interest is how BLA dynamics relate to evolving reward-seeking behavior, especially under situations of uncertainty or ambiguity. Here, we recorded the activity of individual BLA neurons in male rats across the acquisition and extinction of conditioned reward seeking. We assessed ongoing neural dynamics in a task where long reward cue presentations preceded an unpredictable, variably time reward delivery. We found that, with training, BLA neurons discriminated the CS+ and CS– cues with sustained cue-evoked activity that correlated with behavior and terminated only after reward receipt. BLA neurons were bidirectionally modulated, with a majority showing prolonged inhibition during cued reward seeking. Strikingly, population-level analyses revealed that neurons showing cue-evoked inhibitions and those showing excitations similarly represented the CS+ and behavioral state. This sustained population code rapidly extinguished in parallel with conditioned behavior. We next assessed the contribution of the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), a major reciprocal partner to the BLA. Inactivation of the OFC while simultaneously recording in the BLA revealed a blunting of sustained cue-evoked activity in the BLA that accompanied reduced reward seeking. Optogenetic disruption of BLA activity and OFC terminals in the BLA also reduced reward seeking. Our data indicate that the BLA represents reward-seeking states via sustained, bidirectional cue-driven neural encoding. This code is regulated by cortical input and is important for the maintenance of vigilant reward-seeking behavior.

Catherine, from the UK, joined an OM team in July to host a dental clinic and outreach for the residents of Pădureni.

Rose (Scotland) as been developing a growing ministry among residents at a local retirement community. What started with a single conversation has grown into a ministry that impacts many lives through friendship and community outreach.

(Source: Italian Evangelical Alliance) North African refugees flooding into Lampedusa are now being moved to various centres throughout Italy. The Italian Evangelical Alliance and their partner organisations are working to reach out to these displaced peoples.

The coordinator of OM Italy’s anti-trafficking ministry describes the birth of the ministry through meeting a Nigerian woman forced into prostitution in Rome.

Danish students gain perspective and experience with OM Italy.

To counter negative effects caused by lack of jobs and activities in the local area, OM Italy now offers free football games.

The experience of a group of young people going on an outreach in Italy after Transform 2013.

A Transform 2013 outreach team in Vasto, Italy, uses samba music and sports to connect with children.

Tesori Raggianti, OM Italy's anti-trafficking ministry, hosts a 'Nefarious' screening in a local theatre.

Artists present visual and performing arts during the international art Festival Week hosted by OM Arts International’s Incarnate programme.

The anti-trafficking efforts by OM Italia are developing as they work to involve the local church in this outreach.

An outreach to Arab tourists in Switzerland opens up doors to talk about Jesus' love.

Logos Hope crew member Tom Critchley spent three months in Finland. He shares about contemporary Christian music in Finland, focusing on the metal band Terapia.

OM Ecuador team members work with people living with HIV and AIDS in a children's hospital in Guayaquil.

CBS EcoMedia CEO Paul Polizzotto's latest company wants to make donating to nonprofits easier

If you don't know about the role and make-up of a digital team, and how it can impact customer experience and brand success, Matt Harris of Sendwithus has the answers

Your digital assets are the building blocks for brand voice. Use them wisely

Podcasts are looking like an increasingly viable channel to engage with customers

By Bob O’Donnell, president and chief analyst of TECHnalysis Research While much of the technology world is still searching to find easily measurable productivity improvements with generative AI, it turns out there’s another tech trend that’s already driving very impressive results today: digital twins. The idea behind digital twins is to create a complete replica of a physical system in software and then use that digital copy to run simulations and other tests before building a physical implementation of the device or system in the “real world.” Software-Based Systems As you can easily imagine, the ability to create, refine, and test complex configurations of various elements in software before committing to a hardware design offers incredible benefits to a system’s designers. In addition to ensuring that a given design works as intended, a digital twin offers the opportunity to refine the entire system or any combination of individual elements. Organizations can focus on optimizing a design for the best possible performance, most efficient energy usage, or any number of other targets that a company may have for a specific product. Digital twins can also be used for testing under conditions that aren’t practical in the real world, such as crashing a car or jet engine thousands of times in thousands of different situations. In addition, one of the more intriguing new applications of GenAI is to use it to help refine this system optimization process. Appropriately trained foundation models can run through billions of permutations and help ensure that a digital twin of a given system is as good as it can be by “solving” for the best potential outcome. They can also create design performance levels that existing methodologies don’t even begin to meet. The real trick in getting this all to work is finding the right software solution to build the digital twin. Not surprisingly, the type of device being “modeled” in digital form impacts this decision, but one of the most important overarching demands is the ability for a tool to faithfully replicate in software how individual elements behave in the real world, both on their own and in combination with other elements. It turns out that tools originally designed to digitally create some of the most complex and sophisticated devices that humankind has ever conceived—the semiconductor chips powering today’s digital devices—are extremely well suited to this digital system emulation task. Why Cadence? That’s why a company like Cadence, which was founded to create and is best known for its EDA (electronic design automation) chip design software, has become an important force in the world of digital twins. In solving the technical challenges associated with the chip design process, Cadence created software capabilities that can be applied to building an enormous range of sophisticated systems, including jet and automobile engines, manufacturing equipment, computing systems, and much more. Much of the work is focused on what the company refers to as computational software—that is, software that can solve the immensely complex physical and computational problems that underly and mathematically “describe” how the different elements in a system function on their own and in combination with other elements. It is these capabilities that allow Cadence software tools such as Allegro X Design Platform and Clarity 3D Solver to accurately emulate in software the real-world functionality and performance of systems that integrate various components. In the case of systems like jet engines that need to function well in volatile real-world environments, companies can use Cadence’s Fidelity CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) Platform . This allows designers to see how their designs operate in different types of weather, at different altitudes, in dangerous conditions that can’t be replicated in the real world, and much more—again, all before committing to an expensive hardware prototype. Of course, the EDA tools that Cadence is best known for—like Virtuoso Studio and Xcelium Logic Simulator —allow these capabilities to be brought to individual semiconductor chip designs. Before they go into production, all the world’s biggest chip companies use Cadence tools to create, refine, and digitally test their latest generation chips. With the move to chiplet architectures that bundle together multiple individual chips into larger, more sophisticated SoCs (system on chips) in 3D packages, Cadence has a tool called Integrity 3D-IC Platform for creating chiplet designs. Once it comes time to create customized chips for some of these applications, Cadence also offers hardware platforms such as Palladium Emulation and Protium Enterprise Prototyping that organizations can use to prototype and validate their designs before they commit to manufacturing. On top of that, many companies then use other Cadence tools like the aforementioned Allegro X Design Platform to link together multiple independent chips and other elements into a computing system design. Building even further, Cadence has recently released a set of tools called Cadence Reality Digital Twin Platform for modeling the performance, power consumption levels, and operation of data centers that integrate thousands of different computer systems. Given the enormous power demands that today’s GPU-rich cloud and enterprise data centers have, the ability to optimize the overall data center design for more power efficiency is an absolutely essential need. Biological Systems What’s fascinating is that these system-level design capabilities extend beyond the world of hardware into fields like biology and drug discovery as well. In fact, Cadence’s 2022 acquisition of OpenEye and the new product efforts associated with it are centered around modeling how complex biological systems will react to newly created drugs. In this case, Cadence tools such as Orion Molecular Design Platform essentially create digital twins of various types of human cells and then model how various molecules from a new type of drug will interact with those cells. Using these types of technologies, companies can rapidly expand the range of different molecules that they test in the digital domain without going through the very difficult and time-consuming task of creating and testing physical samples of these new molecules. While the work is still in its early phases, the potential of combining this technology with appropriately trained GenAI models could lead to significantly faster drug discovery efforts. Given the computational power now available to us—thanks in no small part to the impact that EDA tools like the ones from Cadence have had over the last several decades—the ability to emulate complex systems completely in software through the process of digital twinning has never been more compelling. From designing individual ICs (integrated circuits), through compute systems, and even into areas like computational fluid dynamics and drug discovery, the possibilities that digital twins—and the tools that create them—have enabled offer the potential to dramatically impact industries of all types and sizes. It’s going to be exciting to see how their impact continues to grow. Bob O’Donnell is the president and chief analyst of TECHnalysis Research, LLC , a market research firm that provides strategic consulting and market research services to the technology industry and professional financial community. You can follow him on Twitter @bobodtech .

Court removes temporary freezing order on DF Advocates after decreeing that the law firm could not be found criminally guilty

Vitals inquiry expert Miroslava Milenović faces heated scrutiny over qualifications and methods for her role in uncovering complex financial links

Antonio Palumbo, owner of Palumbo Shipyards, fully acquitted by Messina Court of Appeal, which ruled his actions in alleged illegal dumping did not constitute a crime

The World Bank (WB) has approved a new $750-million development policy loan aimed at helping the Philippine government ramp up its digital transformation efforts, marking its second financial aid of this type to a country where the internet economy has seen rapid expansion. The multilateral lender said on Wednesday that its second digital transformation package […]...

Keep on reading: World Bank oks $750-M PH digital transformation program

Biden and Trump have sharply criticized each other for years, and their respective teams hold vastly different positions on policies from climate change to Russia to trade.

Yitzhak Rabin spoke of the importance of manpower and mobilizing reservists following the Yom Kippur War, echoing modern sentiments.

CIA official Asif W. Rahman held top-secret security clearance and had access to sensitive information, the New York Times reported.

Residents of India’s capital New Delhi choked in a blanketing toxic smog Wednesday as worsening air pollution surged past 50 times the World Health Organisation’s recommended daily maximum.

Many in the city cannot afford air filters, nor do they have homes they can effectively seal from the misery of foul-smelling air blamed for thousands of premature deaths.

Cooler temperatures and slow-moving winds trap deadly pollutants each winter, stretching from mid-October until at least January.

At dawn on Wednesday, “hazardous” pollutant levels in parts of the sprawling urban area of more than 30 million people topped 806 micrograms per cubic metre, according to monitoring firm IQAir.

That is more than 53 times the WHO-recommended daily maximum of fine particulate matter — dangerous cancer-causing microparticles known as PM2.5 pollutants that enter the bloodstream through the lungs.

By midday, when air usually is at its best, it eased to about 25-35 times above danger levels, depending on different districts.

The city is blanketed in acrid smog each year, primarily blamed on stubble burning by farmers in neighbouring regions to clear their fields for ploughing, as well as factories and traffic fumes.

‘Alarming’

But a report by The New York Times this month, based on air and soil samples it collected over five years, revealed the dangerous fumes also spewing from a power plant incinerating the city’s landfill garbage mountains.

Experts the newspaper spoke to said that the levels of heavy metals found were “alarming”.

Swirling white clouds of smog also delayed several flights across northern India.

The India Meteorological Department said that at least 18 regional airports had a visibility lower than 1,000 metres (1,093 yards) — dropping below 500m in Delhi.

India’s Supreme Court last month ruled that clean air was a fundamental human right, ordering both the central government and state-level authorities to take action.

But critics say arguments between rival politicians heading neighbouring states — as well as between central and state-level authorities — have compounded the problem.

Politicians are accused of not wanting to anger key figures in their constituencies, particularly powerful farming groups.

City authorities have launched several initiatives to tackle pollution, which have done little in practice.

Government trucks are regularly used to spray water to briefly dampen the pollution.

A new scheme unveiled earlier this month to use three small drones to spray water mist was derided by critics as another “band-aid” solution to a public health crisis.

The WHO says that air pollution can trigger strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and other respiratory diseases.

It is particularly punishing for babies, children and the elderly.

A study in The Lancet medical journal attributed 1.67m premature deaths to air pollution in the world’s most populous country in 2019.

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) on Tuesday hosted a consultation session on its virtual private networks (VPNs) registration framework, which aimed to foster a “secure environment for the IT and e-commerce sectors in Pakistan”, a press statement said.

VPNs are widely used around the world to access content that may be inaccessible or blocked for internet users in their home country. In the case of Pakistanis, VPNs are used to access X, among other restricted websites.

The move comes days after multiple internet users from across the country reported they were experiencing “restricted access” to VPNs, alongside poor internet connectivity.

Digital rights activists termed the disruption the government’s attempt to “enforce strict censorship and surveillance over citizens”. The PTA, however, dismissed users’ claim that it was “throttling” VPNs and said the disruptions were caused by a “technical glitch”. It also urged users to register their VPNs.

According to the statement, today’s meeting was attended by representatives from the Ministry of IT & Telecommunication (MoIT&T), the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB), and the Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA).

“The PTA introduced a streamlined VPN registration process, allowing legitimate users to register their VPNs through a new online portal at ipregistration.pta.gov.pk,” the statement said.

The authority claimed that this simplified framework “supports uninterrupted access for IT companies, freelancers, and other stakeholders, reinforcing PTA’s commitment to Pakistan’s expanding digital economy”.

Participants also addressed concerns about the potential use of VPNs for “illegal activities.”

“As a proactive measure, companies and freelancers will be encouraged to register their VPNs to ensure smooth operations and mitigate disruptions,” it added.

“This consultation process underscores PTA’s dedication to creating a safe, accessible, and compliant digital landscape, empowering the country’s IT sector while safeguarding national security,” the statement concluded.

In August, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) was clamping down on VPN usage, aiming to prevent access to the already banned social media platform X.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said in September that X had been banned due to national security issues, not to curb freedom of expression. He added that “separatists and terrorists” were using the platform against Pakistan, which could not be allowed.

In the same month, the PTA dispelled rumours and clarified that VPNs in the country were not being blocked.

1. Oncologist stabbed at Chennai govt hospital ‘by 26-year-old whose mother is undergoing cancer treatment’  The Indian Express
2. Video: Chennai man calmly walks away after stabbing doctor, wipes knife  India Today
3. Indian Medical Association condemns brutal attack on doctor in Chennai  The New Indian Express
4. Daylight assault on doctor inside Chennai hospital leaves medical fraternity in shock  The Hindu
5. 'No law and order': BJP, AIADMK attack ruling DMK after government doctor stabbed in Chennai  The Times of India