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☆ India’s time zone: Why the world’s most populous country has a unique one
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Dhruv Tikekar | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

India’s half-hour zone dates back to colonial rule of India and the era when ever-faster steamships and trains were shrinking the world. The start of the 20th century saw some push from scientific associations to calibrate India’s time to GMT. That recommendation was rejected by the colonial government, which opted for a unified time that sat squarely in the middle: five and a half hours ahead of GMT. In 2015, North Korea moved out of sync with South Korea by creating “Pyongyang Time,” putting the country eight and a half hours ahead of GMT instead of nine. India’s colonial-era time zone decision making, however, reflected a chorus of political, scientific and commercial voices both from within the government and outside of it, Gordon says.

Persons: Hulton, ”, Geoff Gordon, Gordon, “, it’s, Wong Maye, Hugo Chávez, Nicolas Maduro, Terry Gilliam, Rube Goldberg, Maulik Jagnani, Jagnani Organizations: CNN, East India Company, Hulton Deutsch, University of Amsterdam, Madras, Washington D.C, Greenwich Meridian, Greenwich Observatory, Meridian, Royal Society, Prime Meridian, Physical Laboratory, Tufts University, NPL Locations: New York, London, Tokyo, Iran, Myanmar, Australia, India, British, Madras, Chennai, “, Bombay, Kolkata, Washington, London ., Greenwich, North Korea, South Korea, Korea, Pyongyang, Brazil, ”, Greenwich , London, China, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat

☆ The college-student heir to the Dutch throne said she secretly moved to Spain to avoid getting kidnapped
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Mikhaila Friel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Dutch princess faced a kidnapping threat while studying at the University of Amsterdam in 2022. AdvertisementThe heir to the throne of the Netherlands, Princess Amalia, said that her fear of being kidnapped forced her to move countries. AdvertisementShe moved to a regular accommodation block in 2020, even though the Dutch royals have a palace in Amsterdam. As a result, she moved back to the main Dutch royal residence in The Hague. Princess Amalia of The Netherlands at the University of Amsterdam on September 5.

Persons: Princess Catharina, Amalia of, Catharina, —, Princess Amalia, Amalia, Princess Amalia of The, van Katwijk, King Willem, Alexander, Per, Britain's Princess Anne, Michael Fagan, Fagan Organizations: University of Amsterdam, Service, BBC, Bild, Guardian, NOS, People, Royals, Royal Locations: Netherlands, Spain, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, Princess Amalia of The Netherlands, Corona, Madrid, Dutch, Buckingham

A key part of that lofty aspiration was the drafting of a convention that codified and committed nations to prevent and punish a new crime, sometimes called the crime of crimes: genocide. Now, in response to Israel's devastating military offensive in Gaza that was triggered by murders and atrocities perpetrated by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, South Africa has gone to the International Court of Justice and accused Israel of genocide. The ICC prosecutes individuals and is separate to the International Court of Justice, which rules in disputes between nations. At public hearings earlier this month and in its detailed written submission to the ICJ, South Africa cited comments by Israeli officials that it claimed demonstrate intent. Both Gambia and South Africa have filed ICJ cases in conflicts they are not directly involved in.

Persons: Reich, Mary Ellen O’Connell, Notre Dame University's, Israel, “, Joan E, Donoghue, ”, Marieke de Hoon, Said O’Connell, Malcolm Shaw, Serbia “, —, Radovan Karadzic, Ratko Mladic, Jean Paul Akayesu, Omar al, Bashir, Danica Kirka Organizations: —, United Nations, Nazi, Notre Dame, Notre Dame University's Kroc, International Court of, Criminal, ICC, International Court of Justice, University of Amsterdam, of Islamic Cooperation, Rwanda —, Yugoslav, Bosnian, Associated Locations: HAGUE, Netherlands, Nazi Germany, Germany, Eastern Europe, Russia, Gaza, South Africa, Israel, Pretoria, Africa, ”, Rome, Serbia, Srebrenica, Bosnian, Moscow, Ukraine, Gambia, Myanmar, That's, Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Arusha, Tanzania, Darfur, Cambodia, Khmer Rouge, London

☆ After 9 Years in Limbo, Treasures From Crimea Return to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( Nina Siegal | More About Nina Siegal | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hundreds of ancient artifacts from Crimea that were stored in a Dutch museum for nine years while Russia and Ukraine waged a legal battle over their ownership are now back in Ukraine, officials in Amsterdam said on Monday. The works arrived on Sunday at the Museum of Historical Treasures of Ukraine in Kyiv, said officials at the Allard Pierson Museum, an archaeological museum at the University of Amsterdam, which borrowed around 400 works from four Crimean museums in 2014 for the exhibition “Crimea: Gold and Secrets of the Black Sea.” The artifacts included gold jewelry, gold plaques, precious gems, Greek and Roman stone ornaments and ceramics. A month into the show’s run, Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula, and when it came time to send the objects back, a legal conflict emerged: Should they go back to the Crimean museums, now under Russian state control, or to Ukraine, which argued that the works were part of its national heritage? The nine-year struggle over the treasures became a kind of proxy war over national sovereignty and cultural property. Els van der Plas, the director of the Allard Pierson Museum, said in a statement that it was “a special case in which cultural heritage became a victim of geopolitical developments.”

Persons: Allard Pierson, Els van der Plas Organizations: Museum, Historical, Allard, Allard Pierson Museum, University of Amsterdam Locations: Crimea, Russia, Ukraine, Amsterdam, Kyiv, Crimean

☆ Far-right anti-Islam candidate clinches shock Dutch election win. Here's what comes next
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Dutch voters have gone to the polls today in one of the most tightly contested general elections in recent years. Next stepsForming a coalition in the 150-seat Dutch parliament is typically lengthy and difficult, even where the victor is not a political pariah. There is still no guarantee Wilders will become the new prime minister, even with his Freedom Party (PVV)'s 37 seats. On fiscal policy, Wilders' party has a "clear populist" bent, said Ester Barendregt, chief economist at Rabobank. Certainly one wish of Geert Wilders is to pay less to Europe.

Persons: Geert Wilders, Carl Court, shockwaves, Wilders, Mark Rutte, Sarah de Lange, Pieter Omtzigt's, de Lange, CNBC's, Ester Barendregt, Barendregt, Liza Mügge Organizations: Party for Freedom, Getty, European Union, Freedom Party, Department of Political Science, University of Amsterdam, Party, Rabobank Locations: SCHEVENINGEN, NETHERLANDS, Dutch, Scheveningen , Netherlands, Netherlands, Brussels, Ukraine, policymaking, U.S, China, Europe

☆ Wilders 'will have to give up' more radical stances, professor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailDutch far-right lawmaker Geert Wilders 'will have to give up' more radical stances, professor saysSarah de Lange, professor in the department of political science at the University of Amsterdam, weighs in on far-right lawmaker Gert WIlders' unexpected election win in the Netherlands.

Persons: Geert Wilders, Sarah de Lange, Gert WIlders Organizations: University of Amsterdam Locations: Netherlands

☆ Chatbots just showed scientists how to make social media less toxic
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Adam Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

AI bots, on the other hand, will do whatever you tell them to, practically for free. So researchers are starting to use chatbots as fake people from whom they can extract data about real people. In July 2020, Facebook introduced a walled-off simulation of itself, populated with millions of AI bots, to study online toxicity. His team created hundreds of personas for its Twitter bots — telling each one things like "you are a male, middle-income, evangelical Protestant who loves Republicans, Donald Trump, the NRA, and Christian fundamentalists." Scientists create experiments to be simpler than reality, to offer explanatory power uncomplicated by the messiness of real life.

Persons: chatbots, Donald Trump, Petter Törnberg, Törnberg, Emma, Terry Crews, mindlessly, we've, LLMs, Lisa Argyle, Joon, he's, Smallville's café, messier, it's, sims, Adam Rogers Organizations: ABC News, CNN, New York Times, Twitter, Institute, Logic, University of Amsterdam, Columbia University, Facebook, NRA, American, Election, Democratic, Chamber Twitter, Brigham Young University, Stanford University Locations: Alabama

☆ Airbnb used to be about crashing on a stranger's couch for cheap. Now Wall Street wants in.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Kelsey Neubauer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Airbnb started out with all mom-and-pop hosts, but now big firms are eyeing it as a money-maker. AdvertisementAdvertisementIt started buying up houses in Florida, and renting them out on Airbnb for hundreds of dollars a night, the Wall Street Journal recently reported . "The majority of Airbnb hosts share only one listing," according to a spokesperson. But the shift in operators from mom-and-pop hosts renting their spare bedrooms to major companies renting hundreds of units out has changed the guest experience, too, according to NerdWallet. AdvertisementAdvertisementShort-term rentals can be a volatile investmentRelying on Airbnb, though, can be risky for both mom-and-pop hosts and big-money investors.

Persons: Airbnb, —, Brian Chesky, AirDNA, Skift, Jelke Bosma, Jamie Lane, NerdWallet Organizations: TPG, Service, Wall Street Journal, Saluda, Investment, Davidson, Capital Management, University of Amsterdam Locations: Florida, San Francisco, New York, WEG, Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale

☆ Scientists unlock mysteries of magnetars, the most magnetic objects in the universe
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

But it could be explained by magnetic fields — fields that were, in fact, found to be so strong that it was determined to be the most magnetic massive star ever recorded. It even gave rise to a new definition: a “massive magnetic helium star.”Now, scientists suspect that one day, the star will collapse in a supernova explosion. But it’s a massive step forward in unlocking the mysteries of magnetars, which have confounded scientists for decades. The mysteries of a magnetic starThe massive magnetic helium star at the heart of the study is part of a two-star system called HD 45166. Scientists already knew that about 10% of neutron stars are also magnetars.

Persons: CNN —, ”, Tomer Shenar, “, ” Shenar, Julia Bodensteiner, “ It’s, gauss, —, ” Dr, Harsha Blumer, It’s, can’t, Shenar, there’s, that’s, you’d Organizations: CNN, Science, University of Amsterdam, West Virginia University Locations: Netherlands, Canada, France, Hawaii

☆ Artists are losing the battle against AI. Glaze, a tool that's found a way to trick algorithms, is giving them a fighting chance.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AI would soon be better than human artists, Beverly was told. In October, Beverly checked a website, HaveIBeenTrained.com, that reveals if an artwork or photo was used to teach AI models. That image can still be fed to AI learning models, but the data gleaned from it would be inaccurate, Zhao told Insider. His team conceptualized the program when they were contacted by artists worried that AI models were specifically targeting their personal work. That could theoretically lead to a pseudo-arms race, where AI companies and the Glaze team continually try to one-up each other.

Persons: they've, She'd, Gigs, Beverly, I'd, Glaze, Ben Zhao, Zhao, Jackson, Autumn Beverly, Beverly Glaze, Celso Flores, Flickr, It's, Van Gogh, Sarah Andersen, Andersen, she's, you've, that's, Haibing Lu, Lu, Martin Senftleben, Senftleben, Harry Potter, J.K, Rowling doesn't, I'm, Midjourney Organizations: University of Chicago, Autumn Beverly, of Liberty, The University of Chicago, Santa Clara University, Tech, University of Amsterdam, Artists Locations: Ohio, —

☆ Everyone Says Social Media Is Bad for Teens. Proving It Is Another Thing.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Claire Cain Miller | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Research has not yet shown which sites, apps or features of social media have which effects on mental health. It’s also hard to prove that social media causes poor mental health, versus being correlated with it. Most studies measure time spent on social media and mental health symptoms, and many, though not all, have found a correlation. But other researchers say measuring time spent isn’t enough: In these studies, it’s unclear if time on social media is the problem, or if it’s time away from other things like exercising or sleeping. It has found that time spent on social media is less of a factor than teenagers’ moods while using it.

Persons: ”, Sophia Choukas, Bradley, It’s, Awesome Organizations: Teen, University of Pittsburgh, University of Amsterdam, Erasmus University Locations: Rotterdam

☆ Flesh-eating bacteria on beaches: What to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Kristen Rogers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Out of more than 100 Vibrio species, about 12 — the most common in the US being Vibrio vulnificus, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio alginolyticus — can cause a human illness known as vibriosis. Vibrio vulnificus is the species that can cause flesh-eating infections, known as necrotizing fasciitis. Vibrio bacteria can enter through even minor wounds, including cuts, scrapes, scratches, recent piercings, new tattoos or surgical incisions. Even though the risk of a Vibrio vulnificus infection is low, if contracted the effects can be severe. Around 1 in 5 people infected with Vibrio vulnificus die, sometimes within a day or two of getting sick.

Persons: Daniel Slim, Vibrio, vulnificus, it’s, ”, Jae Williams, wasn’t, Tracy Mincer, “, Linda Amaral, Williams, “ It’s, ” Williams, parahaemolyticus, Hurricane Ian, Vibrio vulnificus, Don’t Organizations: CNN, Research, Florida Atlantic University, US Centers for Disease Control, CDC, Florida Department of Health, Florida, Branch Oceanographic Institute, University of Amsterdam Locations: Florida, United States, Africa, Gulf of Mexico, Cancun, AFP, Caribbean, Hurricane, sargassum

☆ 1.5-degree climate threshold won't prevent 'significant harm,' scientists report
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Rachel Ramirez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —For years, the world has been focusing on a key climate change threshold: limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. But even at that threshold – which could begin to be breached within the next five years – millions of people will still face “significant harm,” including death, displacement and food and water scarcity, an international commission of researchers reported Wednesday. In a study published in the journal Nature, the panel of more than a dozen researchers integrated environmental justice – the idea that climate thresholds should minimize significant harm – with climate science. And they said that the key climate threshold nations pledged to meet in the Paris Agreement in 2015 – one that would ensure a “safe and just” world – should have been 1 degree Celsius. “We argue that there is no safe planet without justice,” Gupta said, underscoring that incorporating justice to the Earth system’s boundaries reduces significant harm to communities and individuals.

Persons: ”, Johan Rockström, Joyeeta Gupta, “, ” Gupta, Kim Cobb, ” Cobb Organizations: CNN, Potsdam Institute, Climate Impact Research, Earth Commission, University of Amsterdam, Brown University Locations: Paris

☆ Earth is 'really quite sick now' and in danger zone in nearly all ecological ways, study says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Earth is in the scientific "danger zone" for all environmental measures by air pollution, according to a new study. If the planet got an annual check-up like a person, scientists say Earth is "really quite sick right now." Only air pollution wasn't quite at the danger point globally. About two-thirds of Earth don't meet the criteria for freshwater safety, scientists said as an example. "We are in a danger zone for most of the Earth system boundaries," said study co-author Kristie Ebi, a professor of climate and public health at the University of Washington.

Persons: U.S . West —, Kristie Ebi, Joyeeta Gupta, It's, Johan Rockstrom, Indy Burke, Rockstrom, Gupta, Chris Field, Lynn Goldman, George Washington Organizations: Service, Earth, U.S, University of Washington, Earth Commission, University of Amsterdam, Potsdam Institute, Climate, Research, Yale School of, Environment, Stanford Locations: guardrails, Eastern Europe, South Asia, East, Southeast Asia, Africa, Brazil, Mexico, China, U.S . West, Germany, Paris

☆ Protester runs at Macron during state visit to Netherlands
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMSTERDAM, April 12 (Reuters) - A protester running towards French President Emmanuel Macron during his visit to the Netherlands on Wednesday had to be bundled to the ground by security officers. The incident as Macron arrived at an event at the University of Amsterdam science campus, was the second day in a row his state visit had been disrupted by protests, after weeks of demonstrations at home against an unpopular pension law. While anger against his domestic policy has followed Macron to the Netherlands, the French president is also facing criticism from European and U.S. allies over his foreign policy. In a tweet on Wednesday, Macron reiterated that Europe must stand up for itself - without referring to his China comments. Back at home, French unions plan another nationwide day of protests on Thursday against the pension law.

☆ Tigers have personality traits similar to human extroverts and introverts, researchers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tigers have personality traits similar to extroversion and introversion in humans, researchers have found. Tigers that score higher on "majesty" eat more, have higher group status and mate more often. Tigers that scored for "majesty" were highly rated on words such as dignified, confident, and fierce and placed low on terms like withdrawn oterms feeble. "Steadiness" in tigers was associated with high ratings for words like friendly, gentle, and loving but ranked low for words such as aggressive or cruel. Abdellaoui told The Guardian that the words were all initially Chinese, and some of their meanings might be harder to translate.

☆ Barbara Corcoran says every successful person she knows has imposter syndrome: 'That's what drives them'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Megan Sauer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Corcoran, an entrepreneur and longtime investor on ABC's "Shark Tank," cited herself an example. And on "Shark Tank," it leads her to seek out entrepreneurs who question themselves. "Everyone's got self-doubt," Corcoran said. It may even be a shared experience among "Shark Tank" investors. Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to "Shark Tank."

☆ Climate protesters campaign by throwing food at art, but does that work?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( Leila Sackur | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

From cake smeared over the “Mona Lisa" to soup splashed over “Sunflowers,” recent climate protests at art galleries have grabbed international headlines but also raise questions about the effectiveness of these high-profile guerrilla tactics. But he said that war in Ukraine, the cost of living and energy crises had added urgency to the protests. While politicians have taken note of the protests, they have tended to criticize the way they have been carried out. Attacking defenseless works of art is not the right way,” Gunay Uslu, the Dutch culture and media minister tweeted Thursday. “What we’ve seen from Extinction Rebellion and other climate activist groups is that they’re very prepared to go to prison,” he said.

☆ Sure, Twitter and Facebook have deepened polarization — just not in the way you think
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Adam Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

The conventional wisdom blames social media for the widening divide because the timing lines up. Maybe the problem isn't that social media has driven us all into like-minded bubbles. Maybe it's that social media has obliterated the bubbles we've all lived in for centuries. On top of that, Törnberg adds, there's the way people react to all the new ideas that social media exposes them to. And as one leading social media and polarization researcher told me, the model is not empirical, which makes it hard to test.

☆ Dutch crown princess Amalia under heightened security
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMSTERDAM, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Dutch Crown Princess Catharina-Amalia is under heightened security due to concern that she could be targeted by criminals, Dutch news agency ANP reported on Thursday, citing her parents. "She can hardly leave the house," ANP quoted Queen Maxima as saying during a state visit to Sweden with her husband King Willem-Alexander. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterLast month, several Dutch media outlets reported that the princess, whose formal title is Princess of Orange, was under heightened security due to fears that criminal gangs may target her for kidnapping or an attack. Dutch police and the country's secret service have declined to discuss security arrangements around the Royal House. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Thursday evening said he could not specify the details of the threats.

☆ Fast-food workers are gaining millions of TikTok followers with on-the-job videos, but the trend has muddied the relationship between brands, creators, and consumers
▼ + stars: | 2021-07-24 | by ( Amelia Tait | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

In the last year, Mirg has accumulated over 4.4 million TikTok followers and 1.8 million YouTube followers who watch him cutting bread, arranging cheese, and tossing cucumber slices into their container. POV videos from service workers have become a huge TikTok trendNumerous fast-food workers have built followings of millions by filming themselves at work. 24-year-old Dylan Lemay began TikToking at Cold Stone Creamery in 2020 and now has 9.8 million followers. Starbucks employee Maya Smith has gained 2.1 million followers making videos mixing drinks. While there is an appetite for this format of content, advertising legislations (and perhaps some store managers) have yet to catch up.

☆ The fascinating story behind 'Earthrise' — the most famous picture of Earth ever taken — which turns 54 today
▼ + stars: | 2018-12-24 | by ( Dina Spector | Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

"Earthrise" is the first image of Earth captured by humans from space. The photo of Earth was taken aboard Apollo 8 on December 24, 1968, by lunar module pilot Bill Anders. Sign up for our newsletter to get the latest on the culture & business of sustainability — delivered weekly to your inbox. The mission was historic, but equally memorable was the famous "Earthrise" photo that resulted, showing Earth rising above the lunar landscape. "Space rookie William Anders, however, was in charge of taking the photos.

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