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Animal shelter owner Andrea Cisternino has vowed to stay in Kyiv to protect his rescue animals from harm's way - and said he would 'rather die' than leave them behind As Ukrainians braces for "more violence" from Vladimir Putin's army, many residents have been fleeing their homes in search of safety elsewhere. While others have chosen to stay behind to protect those unable to help themselves. Andrea Cisternino, who owns an animal shelter near Kyiv, has reportedly said he would "rather die" than leave behind his 400 rescue animals - including dogs, goats, cows and horses. He said on Facebook : “I will stay with my animals and the shelter. I won’t abandon them after saving them." Despite seeing Russian military helicopters fly over his shelter in recent days, Italian-born Andrea has been stocking up on supplies for his animals and ensuring their safety throughout the attacks in Kyiv and Kharkiv. He has been labelled a "hero" by animal lovers who have been supporting his "mission to save abused and abandoned animals", with many sending their "hope and prayers" his way. One said on Twitter : "For the past two days, I haven’t stopped thinking about Andrea Cisternino, the animal shelter owner in Ukraine who refused to leave his 400 animals behind." Another said: "Andrea Cisternino stays in the Ukraine to protect stray dogs. Even in war, he will not give up his mission. God forbid! What a wonderful human being." A third said: "He says he will rather die than abandon his animals. Please keep Andrea and his rescue in our prayers." Hoping "common sense will prevail in the end among all", Andrea says he can now only update his followers when something major happens - but has thanked them all for their well wishes. Andrea worked as a professional fashion photographer for 20 years before moving to Ukraine in 2010. Swapping fashion for animal welfare, he opened a photography studio in Kyiv and released his first photo album dedicated to homeless animals and people one year later. Touched by his work, an Italian couple donated a 40,000-square-metre plot of land to Andrea to provide him with a place to help the animals he captured on film. During the invasion so far, Russia has announced 4,500 of its solders have died and 16 Ukrainian children have been killed. Andrea added: "This morning the sky around the refuge was red. Continuous artillery firing even through the night, can't sleep. "I saw 15 minutes ago an artillery shot falling far from the refuge but I could smell the gunpowder well. I heard military columns in the distance they moved, planes flew by." It comes as Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, this morning warned the world should "brace ourselves for what may come next, which could be ruthless, indiscriminate bombing of cities and propelling forward of soldiers and huge casualty levels". Mr Wallace told BBC Breakfast: "[Russia] are behind schedule, they are taking significant casualties and they are feeling public rejection in parts of the Russian system itself; we've seen many protests. "But the Russian handbook is to then get more violent and commit more forces because fundamentally in the Russian, sort of, doctrine the lives of their own soldiers matter much less than in other armed forces." Mr Wallace said President Putin's nuclear threats were part of a "battle of rhetoric" but insisted the UK would take his warnings very seriously. "We don't see or recognise in the sort of phrase or the status he described as anything that is a change to what they have currently as their nuclear posture," he said. "This is predominantly about Putin putting it on the table just to remind people, remind the world, that he has a deterrent." He added: "We will not do anything to escalate in that area, we will not do anything to feed any miscalculation, we take it very, very seriously. "But at the moment this is a battle of rhetoric that President Putin is deploying, and we just have to make sure we manage it properly." Mr Wallace said the UK "will do everything we can to support the Ukrainians", with more details due later today. Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Tom Tugendhat said senior ministers had indicated the UK could follow the EU in taking in Ukrainian refugees for up to three years. Asked whether the UK had gone far enough, the Tory MP told the BBC: "I've been speaking to ministers this morning and I can tell you there are many who are hopeful that this will be something that's reviewed in the coming days." https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/brave-hero-stays-ukraine-protect-26347000

COLOMBO (News 1st): The Ministry of Energy expects two more ships carrying Diesel from Singapore to reach Sri Lanka on Monday (Feb. 28). One tanker contains 28,500 metric tonnes of Auto Diesel, and 9,000 metric tonness of Jet fuel; the second tanker contains 30,300 metric tonnes of Auto Diesel and 7000 metric tonnes of Super Diesel, K. D. R. Olga, the Secretary to the Energy Ministry told News 1st. Arrangements are being made to pay for the fuel shipments with the assistance of the Central Bank, the Energy Ministry said. According to the Energy Ministry, a shipment of 30,000 metric tonnes of Furnace Oil for electricity generation will arrive in Sri Lanka on the 8th of March and Letters of Credit worth USD $20 million have been opened for this shipment. Meanwhile, arrangements have been made to unload 38,400 metric tonnes of fuel, for which Letters of Credit worth USD $30 million was opened. Accordingly, the distribution process will begin from Tuesday (March 01). Secretary to the Ministry of Energy, K. D. R. Olga assured that there is NO shortage of Petrol in the country. https://www.newsfirst.lk/2022/02/28/diesel-shipments-from-singapore-to-reach-sl-today-28/

Following a well-received debut last February, Wendy's Crispy Panko Fish Sandwich is now back for a limited time. The new sandwich includes a wild-caught Alaskan pollock fillet coated in panko breading, topped with lettuce, American cheese, pickles, and creamy dill tartar sauce. Prior to the initial release of this menu item, Wendy's offered a different fish sandwich, which featured wild-caught North Pacific cod along with the same toppings. However, according to the chain's blog, The Square Deal, many customers "remarked on how the [pollock] sandwich's texture, flavor, and crispiness is improved compared to the cod sandwich," which prompted the company to bring the newer version back. The launch comes just two days before the start of the Lenten season, accommodating those who will not be eating meat on Fridays for the next six weeks, as well as on Ash Wednesday. Additionally, some locations may offer this sandwich year-round, according to The Square Deal. While prices vary depending on location, the Crispy Panko Fish Sandwich has a suggested price of $4.29. Wendy's isn't the only fast-food chain to add a fish sandwich to its menu this month. Last week, Popeyes relaunched its Flounder Fish Sandwich, which is made with a flakey flounder filet that has been fried and seasoned with Cajun spices. Available for the second time around, the sandwich comes in two varieties: Classic and Spicy. Another recent fish sandwich addition is Arby's new Spicy Fish Sandwich, which makes its first appearance alongside the return of two fan-favorite sandwiches: the King's Hawaiian Fish Deluxe Sandwich and the Crispy Fish Sandwich. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/po[CENSORED]r-sandwich-back-wendys-today-201444280.html

RIA Novosti, a Russian state-run news outlet, published an article saying Ukraine lost to Russia. "Ukraine has returned to Russia," said the article, which has since been removed. Ukraine and Russia are still in conflict. A Russian state-run news agency prematurely published an article that said Russia has taken back Ukraine. "Ukraine has returned to Russia," said the article, which ran on RIA Novosti and has since been taken down. "The West sees the return of Russia to its historical borders in Europe." The article praised the "return" of Ukraine to it's "natural state" as part of Russia. "The period of the split of the Russian people is coming to an end," the article reads. "Did someone in the old European capitals, in Paris and Berlin, seriously believe that Moscow would give up Kiev? That the Russians will forever be a divided people?" Last week, during a speech where he announced Russia would recognize two eastern provinces of Ukraine as independent states, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Ukraine has been a part of Russia since "time immemorial." But Ukraine and Russia have long been in what Poynter called "an extended tug-of-war over religion, language and political control." Ukraine is still in conflict with Russia. The US State Department on Monday accused Russia of "widespread" human rights abuses in Ukraine as its troops reportedly fired missiles at civilian areas. The RIA Novosti article — a copy of which can be seen on the WayBack Machine, a tool that documents changes across websites over time — also praised the "new era" of the "Russian World" with Russia, Belarus and Ukraine united a whole. "The West as a whole, and even more so Europe in particular, did not have the strength to keep Ukraine in its sphere of influence," the article reads. "In order not to understand this, one had to be just geopolitical fools." The article had an 8 a.m. timestamp and was scheduled to run on February 26, according to the archive. https://news.yahoo.com/russian-state-news-accidentally-publishes-181749692.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=tw&tsrc=twtr

Those who keep an eye on the machinations of the Chinese phone market might remember that Poco used to be the budget division of Xiaomi. Since the latter decided to spin out the former, Poco has been standing on its own two feet and bulking out the range of affordable handsets it offers to consumers. Today at MWC, the company is showing off a new flagship X4 Pro 5G, as well as a non-5G version of the M4 Pro. The X4 Pro 5G is packing a 6.67-inch, FHD+ display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a backlit capable of pumping up to 700 nits into your eyeballs. Poco is hoping to lure new customers in with the promise of a 108-megapixel, f/1.9 primary camera flanked by an 8-megapixel ultra-wide shooter and a 2-megapixel macro lens. Up front, meanwhile, is a 16-megapixel f/1.4 punch hole camera that gets little more than a nod in Poco’s press materials. Lurking inside, however, is the “premium midrange” Snapdragon 695 5G nestled alongside either 6GB RAM and 128GB storage, or 8GB RAM/256GB. Support for 1TB additional storage is offered, as well as a 67W charger which comes in the box — useful, since the 5,000mAh battery supports 67W fast charging. You may forgive the side-button fingerprint sensor if you’re an audiophile, too, since it is both hi-res audio certified and also still comes with the rare and beautiful treat of a 3.5mm headphone jack. If you’re looking for something a little gentler on your wallet, then Poco is today revealing a non-5G version of its M4 Pro. It’s packing a 6.43-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate, a 64-megapixel, f/1.8 rear camera and 5,000mAh battery with support for 33W charging. Powering the unit is a MediaTek Helio G96, which comes with a choice of 6GB RAM 128GB storage, or 8GB of the former and 256GB of the latter. As for right now, however, we don’t quite know if either of these handsets will be available to buy in the US and Europe, or how much they’ll cost. That said, a cached Amazon France listing suggests that the X4 Pro will at least reach that nation, priced at €350 (around $392). https://www.engadget.com/poco-mwc-2022-124513332.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmluZy5jb20v&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAE4qZ4AMQ8PF-e1AR0J8YG8mslQPNC4RRNoxEEOjfqG3YSluxrrYRzYVc_nyRD4jKVFDDXKwelAchZbgrdQaMP4PTzYvepuTKBXWVeacK9DKmtPPmdCE2vtSHF7h9r7BVa8V7pRjIhq3S-LRIhczqLKStUwcl-ivasJ1WaPVwT2g

Now that digitization has become the norm, government regulation seems to be following close behind. While many lament government regulation as an infringement on innovation, I believe increased scrutiny is a net positive for the future of the software industry. First, it’s important to recognize that increased regulation is a reflection and acknowledgment of the dramatic impact that software is having on economies and societies. As a result, programs running quietly in the background have now become the center of scrutiny and sometimes even controversy. It might be hard to remember in this age when companies like Facebook are subject to increasing government investigation, but for decades the technology industry generally existed and thrived outside the public eye. The biggest issues for regulators were related to what companies did with their market dominance (i.e., anti-competitive practices that stifled innovation, as was the case with AT&T, IBM, Microsoft and today’s tech titans) rather than how their software operated. Products and apps are increasingly driven by artificial intelligence and machine learning, especially those in sensitive areas that impact people’s lives and well-being. We see it most clearly in the public debate over consumer technology companies, but now the examination is moving deeper into the software stack. Show me a business that should not be regulated, and I will show you a dying business. Questions are being asked by regulators and consumers alike. And these questions aren’t just centered on what R&D labs are doing with the mountain of data they collect (and get for free from consumers), but how exactly these AI/ML algorithms are learning every second of every day. Indeed, according to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center, 56% of Americans now believe major technology companies should face more regulation. But despite the growing risk of regulation of the software industry, the capital markets continue to reward digital companies, including the larger companies that are under constant scrutiny regarding antitrust claims and consumer privacy. To me, this optimistic outlook by the capital markets trending toward more regulation is in many ways a positive indication for the future growth and evolution of industry-specific (e.g., fintech) software solutions. We at Cota Capital have a direct view inside the boardrooms across our portfolio companies, and we are seeing an uptick in concern about emerging technologies. But we believe this increased scrutiny is a strong and healthy indicator of their potential. While the concerns, of course, stem from the significant threats of deploying such innovations the wrong way, the potential of the technology to fundamentally change society for the better cannot be minimized. I’d venture that companies that reach unicorn status fastest have a higher likelihood of getting regulated. If regulators are not interested in a particular technology or significant applications of that technology, I’d take a closer look at whether the company in question is operating in the right space and going in the right direction. If there are no concerns about a technology, then there may also not be a significant opportunity for that technology. In other words, show me a business that should not be regulated, and I will show you a dying business. Therefore, the possibility of regulation itself creates significant opportunities for companies. To understand what I mean, let’s look at the global financial crisis of 2007-2008 and the ensuing regulation of the financial services industry. As policymakers attempted to address that crisis, financial services institutions throughout the world were hit by a torrent of new and complex rules and regulations. Banks were forced to respond by making new and significant investments in risk and compliance management systems. This, in turn, led to even greater investments in data and AI as financial institutions sought to gain a clearer understanding of their consumers and the overall operations of their business. Venture capitalists helped power this trend by enabling the creation of hundreds of unicorns and counting. In fact, the third quarter of 2021 alone saw the birth of 42 new fintech unicorns, according to CB Insights. Today, incumbent financial institutions, insurance carriers, and other industries that underwrite risk for a living now have to contend with these innovative new players and adapt to change if they want to survive. This is further accelerated by the mainstream adoption of technologies like blockchain, DeFi, cryptocurrencies and NFTs. Without appropriate and measured regulatory oversight and professional management teams that can navigate these complex landscapes, there is a chance that these innovations may implode before reaching their full potential. If regulation in the financial services industry is the model to be followed, we may be at an inflection point across the technology industry. Greater government oversight is a sign of the centrality of digital in our world and creates opportunities for sophisticated startups that can skillfully navigate a more regulated environment. In fact, startups that can anticipate and design changing regulatory requirements in their products and platforms will have the greatest potential to achieve hyper-growth. When it comes to regulation, resistance will not only be futile — it may also be fatal to all stakeholders. https://ca.news.yahoo.com/regulatory-scrutiny-good-future-software-150845413.html

Taito is a company with a rich history in the world of video gaming, and it's fair to say that if the Japanese veteran hadn't existed, the gaming landscape would look rather different today. Space Invaders arguably transformed interactive entertainment from a casual pastime into a global pop culture phenomenon, conquering not just its native Japan but the rest of the world, too. While Tomohiro Nishikado's seminal shooter is perhaps Taito's most famous accomplishment, its list of other classic titles is truly enviable. Bubble Bobble, Elevator Action, Darius, RayStorm, Qix, Rainbow Islands, Puzzle Bobble, Rastan, Chase H.Q., The Ninja Warriors… this is just a handful of the titles Taito has contributed to the medium over the decades and is barely scratching the surface. While Taito has been a subsidiary of Square Enix since 2005 and it's reasonable to say that the glory days of the firm have long since passed, the Taito name retains a considerable degree of cachet, even with modern players. It's fitting, then, that the latest in the recent line of 'mini cabinets' – which includes the Neo Geo Mini and Sega Astro City Mini – should be focused on Taito's arcade output. Based on the company's iconic arcade system, the Egret II Mini is a tabletop console that features its own screen and controls but requires external power (via USB-C) to function. It offers HDMI-out functionality and boasts a robust micro-switched joystick and responsive buttons. Now, as we've just briefly mentioned, Taito isn't the first to produce such a device. SNK's Neo Geo Mini arrived in 2018 and wasn't bad for starters, while Sega's more recent Astro City Mini offered a much-improved experience by including better controls and superior TV-out image quality. The Egret II Mini has a few neat surprises of its own, the most notable of which is the fact that the display has a mechanism that allows it to be manually rotated 90 degrees to accommodate the arcade titles that used 'TATE' setups in their original form (Sega's upcoming Astro City Mini V will also boast a vertical screen, but not one that can be manually changed to a horizontal setup). The mechanism is incredibly satisfying to use and merely involves pushing the screen inwards with two fingers and then turning it before giving it a second push to lock it into position. The on-screen visuals rotate automatically, so there's no chance of you playing with the wrong orientation. It's an ingenious engineering solution to the issue of arcade titles using different screens, and we'd imagine it accounts for the Egret II Mini's rather steep cost when compared to its direct rivals. Even so, we feel that the extra expense is ultimately worth it, as the only other option would have been to play TATE mode games with black borders down the sides of the screen. The Egret II Mini's other party trick is that it has an SD card slot which allows you to load up extra games. The only way to use this at present is to shell out more cash for the paddle and trackball controller, which plugs into one of the USB ports on the back of the machine. When you have both the SD card and controller connected, you gain access to 10 additional titles, all of which make use of one of these analogue control options. More Info: https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2022/02/hardware-the-taito-egret-ii-mini-is-a-doorway-into-true-gaming-history

V2: Effects & text

Happy Birthday

Foreign secretary Liz Truss has refused to disclose the number of refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine Britain will accept. It follows ferocious criticism over the Home Office’s failure so far to relax the visa requirements for Ukrainian nationals. When asked if the government will waive the rules for Ukrainians coming to the UK, she said: “It is a desperate situation. We’re working with the United Nations, we’re working with the Red Cross, to keep humanitarian corridors open. “And of course Britain has always welcomed refugees fleeing from war, and we’re urgently looking at what more we can do to facilitate that.” It comes as shadow foreign secretary David Lammy called the visa restrictions imposed on those seeking sanctuary in the UK from Ukraine “totally unacceptable”. He added: “It’s insisting that people demonstrate salaries, that they have family ties in this country. “People are fleeing with their children in their arms. Why would you ask people how rich they are to enter our country? Of course, there are some people who may not have family ties, but want to come into this country.” https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-latest-liz-truss-sanctions-foreign-legion-b2024336.html

A lot has changed since the zoo made its debut in 1914. The San Antonio Zoo announced in February the monumental return of gorillas, back to the menagerie after the noble creatures' 30-year absence from the grounds. Three decades may appear to be a long time, but the history of the zoo itself extends far past the day it was decided that the last gorilla would exit San Antonio for good (or so they thought) and renest at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. So when did the San Antonio Zoo first open its doors, and how did it evolve into what it is today? Keep reading for a historical look back at one of the oldest zoos in the country, which also happens to be among the city’s most po[CENSORED]r family attractions. The opening of the San Antonio Zoo The year 1914 is when the zoo in Brackenridge Park owes its entrance into the world. San Antonio is Military City, USA , the aphorism goes, so it's fitting that the over 100-year-old institution was molded by a serviceman. Col. George W. Brackenridge deeded the park to the city in 1899. Brackenridge, a man about town, was also known for serving as the longest-serving Regent for the University of Texas. Fifteen years after the park was born, he officially donated his collection of animals and the zoo came to be, built from the limestone quarries that San Antonio settlers used to construct some of San Antonio's historic locations. Brackenridge's arc, different than Noah's, included buffalo, elk, deer, monkeys, a pair of lions and four bears. From there, the attraction caught motion. However, before this motley crew ever came together, other zoological endeavors were already operating in the city. While it may not look like one now, the zoo formerly occupying San Pedro Springs Park is credited to be be the first municipally-owned zoo in town. It officially functioned from 1910 to about 1915, however according to archival news articles, animal exhibits existed in the park as early as the mid 1800s. In addition, a small collection of animals — namely ostriches and alligators — also existed at Hot Wells, which at the time operated as a luxury destination for Hollywood elite. By November 1929, two of the first "cageless" exhibits in the nation debuted at the zoo we know today. The Barless Bear Terraces and Primate Paradise offered visitors a no-holds-barred viewing experience of bears and primates — curious creatures for our subtropical southern enclave. The addition of the Friedreich Aquarium The post-war year of 1948 was another landmark for the San Antonio Zoo, as it was the year the Friedreich Aquarium was first established — dedicated in the name of Richard Friedrich, president of the San Antonio Zoological Society. When it first came onto the scene, it was said to "enhance the reputation of the Alamo City." The aquarium was the only one occupying the city until SeaWorld opened its doors to the public in 1988. "Already the queen city for the Army and the Airforce, San Antonio's new aquarium built by the San Antonio Zoological Society is the second such exhibit west of the Mississippi River and one of 12 in the United States," read the San Antonio Express on November 13, 1948. That same year, local newspapers described some of the zoo's other po[CENSORED]r attractions. At the top of the list was a fast-talking, nine-year-old Indian Myna bird named Jackie. One June write-up from the San Antonio Express described the relationship between the bird and zoo curator and educator, Fred Starke through his eyes. https://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/article/san-antonio-zoo-16848227.php

In 2020, Tata introduced its first ever premium hatchback, Altroz. The Altroz became po[CENSORED]r with buyers for its looks and quality build, as well as its 5-star crash test rating from Global NCAP. Although the government has made vehicle customization illegal in India, this has not stopped automobile enthusiasts from customizing their vehicles. We have shown many modified vehicles on our site. Today we have a modified Altroz from KitUp which looks very sporty. Matte black wrap covers this Altorz completely with sporty red graphics all over. All chrome parts have also been blackened out, except for the Tata logos on the nose and tail, which are finished in bright red and black. The hatchback also gets aftermarket black alloy wheels and low-profile tyres. There's bright red lettering that says Altroz just below the brand's logo on the tailgate. The red brake callipers at the front wheels further give this premium hatchback a sporty appeal. No changes have been made to the interior, although we are not certain. Among the standard features, the top-of-the-line variant offers a floating type touchscreen infotainment system, automatic climate control, a multi-function steering wheel, cruise control, and so on. Tata Altroz comes with three engine options: a 1.2-litre naturally aspirate Revotron petrol engine producing 86 PS of power and 113Nm of torque, a 1.5-litre turbocharged Revotorq diesel engine developing 90 PS of power and 200 Nm of torque and a 1.2 turbo petrol engine from Nexon which produces 121 PS of power and 140 Nm of torque. Transmission-wise, the Tata Altroz only comes with a 5-speed manual gearbox, but if rumours are to be believed, Tata Motors is currently working on a 7-speed dual clutch transmission or DCT for the Altroz. https://www.msn.com/en-in/money/topstories/this-modified-tata-altroz-looks-sporty-and-eye-catching-check-pics/ar-AAUn9bu?ocid=BingNewsSearch

“My go-to collagen routine is adding Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides in my morning cup of coffee or smoothie — so easy to use," says Jennifer Aniston, chief creative officer of Vital Proteins. Collagen is an important ingredient for creating supple skin, along with strong hair and nails, which is why so many people include collagen supplements in their beauty and wellness routines. Jennifer Aniston is one of them — and she loves one brand so much she signed on as chief creative officer of the company. It's called Vital Proteins and, today only, Amazon has slashed prices up to 40 percent off select Vital Proteins supplements — including one that Aniston calls her "go-to." Save up to 40 percent off collagen supplements today. If you have Amazon Prime, you’ll get free shipping, of course. Not yet a member? No problem. You can sign up for your free 30-day trial here. (And even those without Prime get free shipping on orders of $25 or more). There are a bunch of collagen supplements on sale today, but you definitely don't want to miss out on these. These easy-to-use packets contain unflavored bioavailable organic collagen peptides powder sourced from grass-fed, pasture-raised cows. They're easily absorbed by your body for next-level benefits, including improving the health of your hair, skin and nails. Just add a pack to any kind of hot or cold liquid, like a smoothie or coffee. “My go-to collagen routine is adding Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides in my morning cup of coffee or smoothie — so easy to use," Aniston says. "Love this stuff, use it every day," a five-star fan says. "The single packs are convenient for travel, and I love that it helps get some extra protein in in the mornings. I put a packet or two in my coffee every day. ...I definitely notice a difference in my nails when I run out for a week or forget to pack it." More Info: https://www.aol.com/lifestyle/jennifer-aniston-approved-collagen-supplements-124624344.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmluZy5jb20v&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAN3b9SdoEs9eZzxIT3_GYP2zoRYEQFVbnQGftsPO5fO_4xrxWbMoV6aI9tKTrFdCF-nnKFskuEbY-kJpOmRUzRCcxKg_HO6cXEXO-0Xh9avOFxn7bzbYdRDkqfwD1EcEgzaL_lz8hpZK_IHLHY1XL-kho75h4Qrlzav6fsKdsMcm

Two photographs tell the story of Cardinal News, a start-up news site in a mostly rural section of Virginia. One shows a lawn chair and small table set up just outside the Fincastle branch of the Botetourt County public library. It’s where editor Dwayne Yancey sometimes goes to use the broadband Internet access that he lacks at his nearby home. When he needs to upload big digital files — particularly photographs he wants to publish on the news site — his mobile hotspot can’t get the job done. The other photo is of the ravaged interior of Patty Coleman’s home in Hurley, a community close to the Kentucky and West Virginia state lines, where a flood and mudslide destroyed dozens of homes and caused one death last summer. After Yancey sent Megan Schnabel, one of Cardinal’s two reporters, to Hurley for several days, along with a photographer, their in-depth reporting about the devastation brought much-needed attention to Hurley’s suffering residents — and may help them get $11 million of state aid. “Without that story, we wouldn’t have had the awareness we needed,” said Will Morefield, a state legislator who has proposed a funding bill that is moving forward; the money is sorely needed after the Federal Emergency Management Agency denied the state’s request for financial help to individual homeowners. “It’s incredible what they’re doing with such a small staff.” Like many similar start-ups around the nation, Cardinal — named for Virginia’s state bird — is helping to fill the gap left by the shrinking of traditional local news organizations, particularly newspapers. Most of the staff came from the Roanoke Times. Yancey made the move after watching the Times scale back its staff in recent years, especially after its sale by longtime owner Landmark Communications in 2013. Now the Times, like many other Virginia newspapers, is in the hands of Lee Enterprises, which has been fighting off a takeover bid by Alden Global Capital, a hedge fund that is perhaps the worst newspaper owner in the country. Newspapers, of course, are in trouble just about everywhere. More than 1,800 local papers have closed since 2004 as print advertising revenue plummeted and reader habits shifted to online sources. The shuttering of those papers, along with the shrinking of other local news sources, is having profound negative effects on society. What happens to society — and our democracy — when community and regional journalism dries up “It was depressing,” Yancey said. “The job I had was great, but all around me, things were collapsing. It was like living in a grand old mansion with the roof falling in.” Yancey was the paper’s editorial page editor; his section was a one-man operation. Cardinal’s executive director and chief development officer, Luanne Rife, was a longtime health reporter there. Cardinal’s board of directors includes a former Roanoke Times publisher, Debbie Meade. The paper’s former chief financial officer, Tonya Hart, has helped with finance and budget matters. “It was basically like getting the band back together,” Yancey told me last week. They have also been joined by Markus Schmidt, the Cardinal’s second reporter, who is a veteran of the state politics beat at the Richmond Times-Dispatch. He remains based in Richmond, focused on reporting government news of particular interest to Cardinal’s part of the state. Rife told me she took a buyout from the Roanoke paper after she was told she would no longer be able to do many in-depth stories on the health beat, even in the midst of a pandemic. “I had always enjoyed my work, but I was burned out,” she told me. “I would go to my keyboard in the morning and start to feel tears rolling down my face.” When a foundation approached her about a reporting project it wanted to fund, it lit a spark of inspiration for her — and she started exploring whether she could start her own project, one that would be more ambitious and permanent. Cardinal’s territory extends far beyond the Roanoke metro area; its mission is to cover the huge swath of the state described as “Southwest and Southside Virginia,” or what Yancey calls “Cumberland County to the Cumberland Gap.” Much of it is considered part of Appalachia — “an easy part of the state to stereotype,” Yancey noted. Cardinal’s mission includes providing a more nuanced picture of the region to the rest of the state. With no paywall, the site’s funding comes from foundations, businesses and individual donors; it has applied for nonprofit status. Rife says she’s heartened by the way those contributions have grown from a handful when the site launched last September to more than 700. A new grant will allow Cardinal to add a reporter soon in Danville, along the North Carolina border; Rife also would like to hire an education reporter and one dedicated to health coverage. “We’ve been amazed, overwhelmed and humbled by the support,” Rife told me. The other day, she picked up the mail to find five checks — one for $25, another for $10,000. Cardinal lists its donors on the site and discloses in stories if a person or organization it writes about is a significant contributor. In Cardinal’s first big story about the devastation in Hurley, Schnabel describes Coleman’s house: “A blue tarp partially draped the door frame where the mud had rushed in. The floor had caved in, and mold and mildew covered the walls.” The house was beyond repair. Coleman didn’t have flood insurance; she did have a homeowner’s policy, but the insurer, according to the story, had given her the crushing news that nothing would be covered. Now there may be help on the way after all. And a tiny news start-up with big ambitions will have made a difference. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/this-rural-news-start-up-has-two-reporters-and-an-editor-with-no-broadband-already-its-made-an-impact/ar-AAUn4UL?ocid=BingNewsSearch

Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six Siege is still one of the best multiplayer games on PC and it’s about to hit Year 7 Season 1 – now officially revealed as Demon Veil. It’s also about to get a new operator with a game-changing gadget, but to get to this the team prototyped several operators with unique gadgets – including one with a “pile of green goo” called Flubber. Earlier this month the Rainbow Six Siege team revealed Demon Veil and the new operator Azami, a Japanese defender with a meta-busting gadget called the Kiba Barrier – which can repair walls and other breaches. Azami’s the first operator that can do this, although Ubisoft informed us of two other cancelled operators that led to Azami – nicknamed Patcher and Flubber. We spoke with creative director Alex Karpazis and asked him about Azami’s development journey, who told us the operator had “a long and storied past” – primarily “because the idea behind her gadget to repair destruction or patch holes is so integral to Siege”. Siege has always been about destruction, but the idea to create an operator around repairing breaches “has always been there”, apparently. “I think five years ago,” Karpazis says, “we had a prototype called Patcher, where it was a bit like a ranged Castle, you would essentially shoot Castle barricades at windows and doors, and on the reinforced double walls as well”. The reason Patcher never happened, Karpazis explains, is because “we couldn’t find a great way to make it feel really unique and really stand out versus what Castle was doing before”. More recently, just over a year ago, the team tried another operator nicknamed Flubber with a gadget that “was essentially Ela’s Grzmot Mines that you would throw, and just kind of explode into a radial pile of green goo. You could stack the flubbers all over the place and that gave us a lot of the organic kind of new direction that we really, really enjoyed”. While Karpazis didn’t reveal to us a particular reason why Flubber never happened – other than a certain Robin Williams-starring Disney movie – the operator that eventually became Azami took longer due to the need to change the game’s sound engine. The team “never anticipated the need to organically block sound, from holes that were destroyed from the floor, from the walls. And so it meant that we had to go back and, and do a lot of homework if we wanted to get it right”. Shortly after this, the team began working out how to get Azami’s barrier gadget going. “We’re getting kind of the metrics right, we’re getting a lot of the creativity right,” Karpazis explains, “and on the tech side, we’re answering things like blocking audio or blocking sound passing through the barrier as well. So honestly, it’s been an incredible journey for the team. It’s been on-off for a long time.” https://www.pcgamesn.com/rainbow-six-siege/cancelled-gadget-flubber

The planet goes one way, gadget-mad humans and crypto bros go the other. This story was originally published by High Country News and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. The gradual shift of life away from the three-dimensional space to cyberspace once promised a Jetsons-style efficiency, a tidy transition from physical stuff’s environment-harming ways to a clean and impact-free digital world. We would telecommute through cyberspace rather than along dirty highways in polluting cars, working in paperless offices where no trees were sacrificed to print memos and correspondence. And, instead of using coins made from mined metals, we’d switch to digital currency—no mines, no blasting, no gouging required. The Jetsons had it right, sort of: The Covid-sparked Zoom Boom has left many physical offices empty and drastically reduced mind-numbing, gas-guzzling commutes. Cash and coins are increasingly passé. And when was the last time you received a paper interoffice memo? The mass migration from physical to digital, however, has yet to take all the pressure off the physical environment. That’s because what happens in cyberspace doesn’t stay in cyberspace. Every office email, every social media “like,” every credit card transaction and telecommuter call still has to be processed by physical computers—real machines that use real energy and water and have real environmental impacts. Even cryptocurrency, or Bitcoin, which lacks a physical presence of its own, must be “mined” in an energy-intensive way. "Thousands of servers, storage units and network devices stacked in warehouses across the West suck juice from the grid to process millions of transactions." Thousands of servers, storage units, and network devices stacked up in sprawling warehouses across the West—on the fringe of Phoenix, Arizona, along the Columbia River, and even in Wyoming’s hinterland—suck juice from the grid to process millions of transactions. The electricity becomes equipment-straining heat, which must be shed using water or more electricity. Instead of seeking veins of gold or silver, cryptocurrency miners chase cheap energy—even setting up shop on oil and gas pads to utilize methane that otherwise would be flared—because more power use equals greater computing capacity, which equals higher profits. As is the case with any sort of profligate energy use, the impacts depend upon where the electricity comes from. Google, Amazon and Facebook purchase solar and wind power, even build their own renewable energy facilities, to run their data centers. And a few Bitcoin miners have promised to power their operations entirely with excess solar power during times of low grid demand. That would certainly help solar—but so far the promise has yet to be realized on any large scale. More Info: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2022/02/energy-power-hogging-water-sucking-crypto-mining-big-tech-data-centers-graphics-charts-visualization/

In our “hardware development gets serious” news, we’ve recently learned about AllSpice, a startup building hardware development collaboration infrastructure for companies. Hardware developers are great at building hardware tools for themselves, but perhaps not always so when it comes to software, and AllSpice aims to fill that gap at the “hardware company” level. Nowadays, what commonly happens is that software development tools and integrations are repurposed for hardware needs, and the results aren’t always as stellar as they get in the software world. In other words, AllSpice is learning from the positive outcomes of software industry and building a platform that takes the best parts from these tools, aiming to get to similarly positive outcomes in areas where currently hardware team experiences are lacking. What AllSpice is building seems to be an umbrella platform designed to augment, integrate and hook into a slew of different already-developed platforms like GitHub, GitLab, Jira (and some other ones), and add much-needed features that large-scale hardware developers can’t afford to maintain and develop themselves. “Design review by screenshot” isn’t unheard of in hardware circles, and likely a thing that everyone of us with hardware collaboration experience has partaken in. On a company scale, there’s a myriad of hardware-related problems like that to solve and polish over. When trying to scale your project into a product, you might eventually find yourself in a team of people all working on the same hardware project. In collaboration like that, there’s a simple principle – you need to have tools that improve communication among all the people involved, and having a platform that’s hardware-tailored is paramount for that, especially when your product grows into a slew of different revisions and SKUs. Just like GitHub has integrations for compiling and testing your code when someone sends you a pull request, the tools we use for collaborative hardware development should keep track of our BOM, PCB and schematic changes in a developer-friendly way. If this project doesn’t grow into a platform that us mere mortal hackers can use, we shall hope it at least it becomes influential enough to positively influence the tools we currently use for our hardware collaboration needs. We cover collaboratively developed products every now and then, and there was even a “developed on Hackaday” series at some point! An ever-po[CENSORED]r example of collaborative design project are conference badges, each one typically a fruit of many people’s labor. Talking about the “growing into a product” aspects, an unexpected number of us hackers make a living from that, either through selling on Tindie or through otherwise going big with our products. https://hackaday.com/2022/02/27/allspice-building-a-hardware-development-ecosystem-for-companies/

Balyasny Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC – Get Rating) by 60.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,046 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 84,776 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Paycom Software worth $27,785,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in Paycom Software by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 5,390,072 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $2,672,128,000 after buying an additional 198,947 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Paycom Software by 189.6% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,632,393 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $809,259,000 after purchasing an additional 1,068,686 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Paycom Software by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,478,690 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $733,060,000 after purchasing an additional 304,054 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Paycom Software by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 954,181 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $471,858,000 after purchasing an additional 17,279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Paycom Software by 29.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 853,432 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $423,088,000 after purchasing an additional 192,835 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.78% of the company’s stock. A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Paycom Software from $655.00 to $450.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 21st. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Paycom Software in a research note on Tuesday, February 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $335.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Paycom Software from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $550.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 27th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Paycom Software from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Paycom Software in a research report on Tuesday, February 1st. They set a “market perform” rating and a $335.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Paycom Software currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $433.21. PAYC stock opened at $335.64 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $353.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $437.41. The stock has a market cap of $20.21 billion, a PE ratio of 113.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Paycom Software, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $296.68 and a fifty-two week high of $558.97. Paycom Software (NYSE:PAYC – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 8th. The software maker reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $284.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.84 million. Paycom Software had a net margin of 17.31% and a return on equity of 22.57%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.41 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Paycom Software, Inc. will post 3.16 EPS for the current fiscal year. Paycom Software Profile (Get Rating) Paycom Software, Inc provides comprehensive, cloud-based human capital management (HCM) software solutions delivered as Software-as-a-Service. It provides functionality and data analytics that businesses need to manage the complete employment life cycle from recruitment to retirement. Its solutions requires virtually no customization and is based on a core system of record maintained in a single database for all HCM functions, including talent acquisition, time and labor management, payroll, talent management and human resources management applications. https://www.etfdailynews.com/2022/02/27/paycom-software-inc-nysepayc-shares-sold-by-balyasny-asset-management-llc/