Alarmed

With election denialists installed in key positions, officials using series of measures to change voting rulesThe Trump administration is waging war on voting rights using justice department lawsuits, FBI investigations, and an executive order to limit voting by mail, moves mirroring the US president’s false claims he lost the 2020 election due to voting fraud, say election experts and ex-officials.Since Donald Trump began his second term, numerous 2020 election denialists have been installed in key agencies such as the DoJ, the FBI and elsewhere to pursue widely discredited claims of fraud, which can intimidate election workers and voters in swing states that Trump lost to Joe Biden in 2020. Continue reading...

• China's AI industry is facing a talent drain as top researchers are lured by high salaries offered by US giants like Meta and OpenAI. • To counter this "talent war," Beijing has implemented travel curbs and restrictive measures to prevent domestic experts from migrating to American firms. • This struggle highlights the strategic importance of AI leadership and the growing geopolitical tension over intellectual property and technical expertise.

Conservation groups warn slashing Darwin Initiative will put species and habitats in jeopardy, and set back efforts to halt decline in natureOne of the UK’s longest-standing funds for global nature protection is being drastically cut back, the Guardian has learned.At least 89 countries will lose eligibility for funding for biodiversity projects under the Darwin Initiative, in a round of cuts that conservationists warned would put species and habitats in jeopardy, and set back global efforts to halt the precipitous decline in nature. Continue reading...

Scientists warn of ‘new reality’ of heat extremes that claim three times more lives than car crashes and 16 times as many as murderersMalcolm Mistry knew it was going to get “very warm, very quickly” on Monday morning but a slow start out of bed delayed his plans for an early game of cricket with his son. It was already 10am by the time the pair arrived at the sun-soaked nets of their local club in south-west London, and to the embarrassment of the 48-year-old scientist, who played cricket in his youth, his body was struggling after just half an hour of bowling.Had he continued for another hour, Mistry reckons he would have probably suffered from heatstroke. Had he and his son stayed until noon, they would have found themselves straining their bodies in direct sunlight while a nearby weather station logged the UK’s hottest May temperature since records began. Continue reading...

LA28 set aside tickets for LA and Oklahoma City residents, but some say they faced exorbitant prices and high feesSince tickets for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles went on sale for local residents on 2 April, excitement for the Games has given way to sticker shock among some Angelenos over what they describe as exorbitant prices and an unexpected service fee.LA28 had made a wave of slots in the presale ticket lottery available for residents throughout southern California, where the majority of contests will take place, and in Oklahoma City, which will host the canoe slalom and softball events. Tickets ranged in price from $28 into the thousands. Continue reading...