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☆ Washington Man Pleads Guilty to Making Numerous ‘Swatting’ Calls
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-27 | by ( Emily Schmall | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A man in Washington State has pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from several hoax calls he made to law enforcement agencies in which he falsely reported bombs, shootings and other threats that sometimes led police officers to enter victims’ homes with their weapons drawn, prosecutors said. The man, Ashton Connor Garcia, 21, pleaded guilty to two counts of extortion and two counts of threats and hoaxes regarding explosives, federal prosecutors said on Thursday. From June 2022 through March 2023, Mr. Garcia made 20 “swatting” calls to police in several states and Canada, according to court records. Mr. Garcia, who described himself as a “cyberterrorist,” would often broadcast these calls on the social platform Discord to “encourage others to watch and participate,” according to the plea agreement.

Persons: Ashton Connor Garcia, Garcia, ” Locations: Washington State, Canada

The genetic testing company 23andMe is being accused in a class-action lawsuit of failing to protect the privacy of customers whose personal information was exposed last year in a data breach that affected nearly seven million profiles. The lawsuit, which was filed on Friday in federal court in San Francisco, also accused the company of failing to notify customers with Chinese and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage that they appeared to have been specifically targeted, or that their personal genetic information had been compiled into “specially curated lists” that were shared and sold on the dark web. The suit was filed after 23andMe submitted a notification to the California Attorney General’s Office that showed the company was hacked over the course of five months, from late April 2023 through September 2023, before it became aware of the breach. According to the filing, which was reported by TechCrunch, the company learned about the breach on Oct. 1, when a hacker posted on an unofficial 23andMe subreddit claiming to have customer data and sharing a sample as proof. The company first disclosed the breach in a blog post on Oct. 6 in which it said that a “threat actor” had gained access to “certain accounts” by using “recycled login credentials” — old passwords that 23andMe customers had used on other sites that had been compromised.

Persons: 23andMe, ” Organizations: California Attorney General’s, TechCrunch Locations: San Francisco, California

☆ Electric Car Owners Confront a Harsh Foe: Cold Weather
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Emily Schmall | Jenny Gross | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

With Chicago temperatures sinking below zero, electric vehicle charging stations have become scenes of desperation: depleted batteries, confrontational drivers and lines stretching out onto the street. Mr. Spencer, 27, said he set out on Sunday for a charging station with 30 miles left on his battery. Within minutes, the battery was dead. “When I finally plugged it in, it wasn’t getting any charge,” he said. Recharging the battery, which usually takes Mr. Spencer an hour, took five hours.

Persons: ”, Javed Spencer, Uber, Bolt, Spencer Locations: Chicago

☆ Chicago’s Latest Attraction? A Rat-Shaped Hole.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-13 | by ( Emily Schmall | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Winslow Dumaine was heading to a store on Chicago’s North Side when he saw it: a hole in the sidewalk on Roscoe Street with an uncanny resemblance to a rodent. Mr. Dumaine, who is an artist and comedian, said the hole represented two themes often present in his work: morbidity and whimsy. “Had to make a pilgrimage to the Chicago Rat Hole,” he wrote in a social media post this month, including a close-up photo of the concrete cutout. The post, which has since been viewed five million times, inspired an untold number of Chicagoans to make their own excursions to a quiet residential area of Roscoe Village, a neighborhood known for its cozy taverns, independent boutiques and old-fashioned bakeries.

Persons: Winslow Dumaine, Dumaine, “, ” Locations: Roscoe

Residents in Billings, Mont., woke up to a temperature of minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit. In Des Moines, homeowners were digging out snow from a blizzard and facing wind gusts of 45 miles per hour. Towns and cities along the East Coast were bracing for possible flooding from yet more rain. And communities near the Gulf Coast are preparing for a deep freeze. MidwestAs of Saturday morning, blizzard warnings were in effect for most of Iowa, as well as for North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.

Organizations: National Weather Service Locations: Billings, Mont, Des Moines, Towns, East, United States, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska

One adjective was invoked more than any other to describe Sandra Day O’Connor immediately after her death at 93 on Friday: “trailblazing.”Justice O’Connor, the first woman on the United States Supreme Court, paved the way for generations of women in politics and law. Raised on a remote Arizona ranch, Justice O’Connor was remembered as much for being first as for her rugged independence on the court. Shortly after her death was announced by the Supreme Court, public figures from across the political spectrum praised Justice O’Connor on social media for her fearlessness, both in crashing through the judiciary’s glass ceiling and in casting swing votes on some of the nation’s most polarizing cultural issues, including abortion and affirmative action. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., a fellow conservative whose voting record on the court often echoes Justice O’Connor’s, praised her on Friday as a “fiercely independent defender of the rule of law.”

Persons: Sandra Day O’Connor, “, O’Connor, John G, Roberts, Justice O’Connor’s, ” Organizations: United States Supreme, Supreme Locations: Arizona

There are moments in life that stick in memory as a fulcrum between before and after. Rohit, Arti’s new husband, was with her, his presence a tangible sign of his support. But even as Arti awaited the starting gun, the crowd of candidates beside her made painfully clear how much competition she faced. So many candidates had traveled to the exam site, on a remote campus in Uttar Pradesh State, that there was nowhere to house them all. Arti, Rohit and Meena had slept in a local gurudwara, a Sikh place of worship, packed in with the other hopefuls and their chaperones.

Persons: Arti Kumari’s, Meena, Rohit, Arti’s, Arti Organizations: Uttar Pradesh State Locations: Uttar Pradesh

For Nasreen, getting to New Delhi after she ran away from her family and the betrothal they had arranged for her was a daring feat. In the winter, the air pollution was among the worst in the world, clinging to skin and choking lungs. In her family’s flat, she cooked on a stove that added to the heat and smoke. When she could get outside, she had to walk a gantlet of leering men who lined the sidewalks. Delhi inspired her to dream of a bigger life and connected her to people who could help her reach for it.

Persons: Nasreen, Bindu Locations: New Delhi, Delhi

For Indian families, a modest wedding is an oxymoron. It was no different for Arti Kumari’s parents, despite their limited means as an NGO worker and a subsistence farmer. As the wedding day grew closer, Arti was still waiting for notice of the date of her athletic test for the federal security force job she hoped to win. She would be marrying without a job — not the future she and her mother had worked so hard for. Nevertheless, her wedding would be an ornate, multiday affair.

Persons: Arti Kumari’s, Meena, Anil, Arti Locations: India’s

Arti Kumari, 22, crouched on a dusty dirt track in a runner’s lunge, waiting to spring forward as soon as her mother started the clock. Although Arti had risen before dawn to train, the oppressive heat bore down on her. It was May, and northern India was experiencing its worst heat wave in 45 years. She, like millions of other young people in India, dreamed of getting a job with India’s central government. Arti had already beaten the odds and passed the written exams for India’s Central Industrial Security Force, or C.I.S.F., a paramilitary corps responsible for guarding critical infrastructure.

Persons: Arti Kumari, Arti Organizations: Central Industrial Security Force Locations: India

As Nasreen Parveen ran, her mind focused on nothing but putting one foot in front of the other. Occasionally, for the briefest flash, she remembered the high window ledge and her decision not to jump. Finally, after more than four miles of running on torn, blistered feet, Nasreen reached the bus station. From there, a bus brought her to a train station in the nearest city. Staring at the ticket counter, Nasreen could think of only one place to go: New Delhi, India’s capital, where she had lived with her family.

Persons: Nasreen Parveen, Nasreen Locations: New Delhi

☆ What I Read and Watch to Decompress
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Amanda Taub | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

“India’s Daughters,” the special newsletter series that I created with my colleagues Emily Schmall and Shalini Venugopal Bhagat, premiered last week. There will be a new chapter on Friday, and you can catch up with the first installment here if you missed it. Longtime readers will probably guess that “Pride and Prejudice,” by Jane Austen, is at the top of my decompress-and-disconnect list. As someone who isn’t a particularly fervent fan of even real tennis matches, I find fictional ones pleasantly untaxing. I want to hear about things you have read (or watched or listened to) that you recommend to the Interpreter community.

Persons: “, ”, Emily Schmall, Venugopal Bhagat, I’ve, Jane Austen, that’s, Lydia Bennet, Witch, Melinda Taub, Amal El, Mohtar, “ Beckham, ” Netflix’s, David Beckham, Will, Kirsten Dunst, Paul Bettany, Nora Ephron, Margot Miller, Mohamed Mbougar Sarr Organizations: The Times, Times, Wimbledon Locations: Israel, Gaza, Geneva, ”, “ Beckham, Easton , Md

Nasreen Parveen decided to run for her life at the same moment she decided not to end it. But as she prepared to jump, she looked out and received a stunning, seemingly impossible glimpse into the future. The young woman plummeted to the ground, hit hard on her back and then lay in the dirt, grievously injured. Nasreen decided that the step into thin air, the drop and the dirt were not for her. But she was equally certain that she could not live the life that her family was trying to bind her to.

Persons: Nasreen Parveen, Nasreen

☆ Volkswagen has set up half of EV fast chargers planned until 2025
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

A Volkswagen logo is seen during the New York International Auto Show, in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMUNICH, Sept 4 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE), Europe's largest carmaker, is making progress with the rollout of its network of electric vehicle fast chargers, the group's board member in charge of technology said on Monday. Thomas Schmall told journalists at the IAA car show in Munich that half of the 40,000 fast chargers Volkswagen plans to install until 2025 had already been set up. Reporting by Victoria Waldersee; Writing by Christoph Steitz; editing by Friederike HeineOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Thomas Schmall, Victoria Waldersee, Christoph Steitz, Friederike Heine Our Organizations: New York, REUTERS, Rights, IAA, Thomson Locations: Manhattan , New York City, U.S, Munich

Elon Musk’s Unmatched Power in the Stars The tech billionaire has become the dominant power in satellite internet technology. Today, more than 4,500 Starlink satellites are in the skies, accounting for more than 50 percent of all active satellites. 53% of active satellites are Starlink.” The Starlink satellites are highlighted and are all operating in low-Earth orbit. How Starlink customers connect to the internet Starlink satellites orbit at much lower altitudes than traditional satellite internet services. “Everywhere on earth will have high bandwidth, low latency internet,” Mr. Musk predicted on the Joe Rogan podcast in 2020.

Persons: Elon Musk’s, Mark, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, Elon Musk, Zaluzhnyi, General Zaluzhnyi, Musk, Musk’s, ”, Starlink’s, ” Mykhailo Fedorov, Mr, Biden, ” Dmitri Alperovitch, Sir Martin Sweeting, Sweeting, Mike Blake, Patrick Seitzer, Rafael Schmall, Joe Rogan, Jeff Bezos, Starlink, Russia —, Fedorov, —, Clodagh Kilcoyne, Nancy Pelosi, Colin H, Kahl, Lynsey Addario, messaged Mr, Lloyd Austin, Gregory C, Allen, we’ve, Mykhailo Podolyak, Volodymyr Zelensky, Jason Hsu, Hsu, “ Elon, Michael McCaul of, Tsai Ing, Tsai, Audrey Tang, Mariana Suarez, Thierry Breton, SpaceX, Chérif El, Amazon Organizations: Joint Chiefs of Staff, Ukraine’s Armed Forces, SpaceX, Tesla, Twitter, Mr, U.S . Defense Department, NASA, Senior Pentagon, The Defense Department, Starlink, European Union, Silverado, Accelerator, Surrey Satellite Technology, Reuters, Airbus, Earth, Getty, Satellite, University of Michigan, National Science Foundation, Rivals, Amazon, Origin, Viasat, Pentagon, CNN, The New York Times, U.S, Defense Department, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Elon, Harvard Kennedy School, Republican, House Foreign Affairs, OneWeb, Agence France, European, United Nations Locations: Ukraine, United States, Iran, Turkey, Japan, Starlink, Crimea, Russian, Starlinks, Europe, Taiwan, China, Beijing, British, Colorado, Cape Canaveral, Fla, —, California, Florida, Latin America, Africa, Nigeria, Mozambique, Rwanda, Ukrainian, Russia, Kreminna, Aspen, Colo, Kherson's, Kherson, Dnipro, Shanghai, Taipei, Michael McCaul of Texas, del, Uruguay, European Union

☆ Volkswagen: battery unit PowerCo will be 'investor-ready' early next year
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, June 16 (Reuters) - Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE) battery unit PowerCo will be ready for investors at the beginning of next year, battery chief Thomas Schmall said at a roundtable in Berlin on Friday. Schmall's statement followed comments made last month by Chief Financial Officer Arno Antlitz that onlookers "shouldn’t be surprised if in 2024 there might be a first step taken with a strategic investor" in the unit. The battery chief declined to give further information on Friday, stating more would be disclosed at Volkswagen's capital markets day next Wednesday. Antlitz said in May that interest in the unit was high but the carmaker was evaluating how long to keep it on its books. Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Jan Schwartz Editing by Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Thomas Schmall, Arno Antlitz, shouldn’t, Antlitz, Victoria Waldersee, Jan Schwartz, Miranda Murray Organizations: Thomson Locations: BERLIN, Berlin

☆ VW masters dry-coating battery process with potential to slash cell costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, June 16 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) and a technology partner have mastered a battery manufacturing process called dry coating which if scaled up could cut the cost of cell production by hundreds of millions of euros a year, its battery chief said on Friday. "No-one else can do this today," battery chief Thomas Schmall said at a media roundtable. Dry-coating eliminates that step with an adhesive that does not require drying, Schmall explained. Together with scaled-up production and cheaper raw materials, the carmaker hopes the procedure will help bring down cell costs by around 50%, Schmall said. Reporting by Victoria Waldersee; Editing by Rachel More and Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Koenig, Thomas Schmall, Schmall, Tesla, Sebastian Wolf, Victoria Waldersee, Rachel More, Jan Harvey Organizations: Bauer AG, Maxwell Technologies, Reuters, Volkswagen, Thomson Locations: BERLIN, Germany, Spain, Canada

☆ From Rap Star to Engineer to Young Mayor Demolishing Swaths of Kathmandu
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Emily Schmall | Bhadra Sharma | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

KATHMANDU, Nepal — Before he aspired to Kathmandu’s highest office, Balendra Shah appeared on the city’s rooftops, a singer facing off in rap battles or filming music videos. His songs, which focused on poverty, underdevelopment and the rot he saw at the root of Nepal’s entrenched political culture, drew an avid following among the country’s youth. One song, “Balidan,” meaning “sacrifice” in Nepali, has drawn seven million views on YouTube. People supposed to protect the country are idiotsLeaders are all thieves looting the country“There’s a diss culture in hip-hop music,” he said in a recent interview. Balen, as he is known in Nepal, made an unlikely bid for mayor of Kathmandu, the Himalayan country’s capital, last May.

☆ Volkswagen Canada battery plant targets 90 GWh capacity, its biggest yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrives to attend a news conference to announce details on the construction of a gigafactory for electric vehicle battery production by Volkswagen Group's battery company PowerCo SE in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada April 21, 2023. REUTERS/Carlos OsorioCompanies Volkswagen AG FollowBERLIN, April 21 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) is targeting 90 gigawatt-hours of capacity at its planned battery factory in Ontario, Canada, the carmaker said on Friday, its largest planned battery plant to date. The carmaker is investing up to C$7 billion ($5.17 billion) in the plant, a statement said. The plant will cover most of the battery capacity it needs in North America, which battery chief Thomas Schmall said in March was between 60-100 gigawatt hours. ($1 = 1.3528 Canadian dollars)Reporting by Victoria Waldersee Editing by Madeline ChambersOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Volkswagen to invest in mines in bid to become global battery supplier
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Victoria Waldersee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Europe's biggest carmaker wants its battery unit PowerCo to become a global battery supplier, not just produce for Volkswagen's own needs, Thomas Schmall told Reuters in an interview. Long-term, Volkswagen plans to build enough cells to meet half its global battery needs, with most production capacity located in Europe and North America, according to Schmall. "The bottleneck for raw materials is mining capacity - that's why we need to invest in mines directly," he said. Volkswagen released on Thursday the details of a 25,000-euro EV it aims to sell in Europe from 2025. Asian producers like CATL, LG Chem and Samsung SDI dominate global cell production, with almost half of planned battery cell capacity in Europe by Asian players.

☆ Volkswagen invests in batteries, raw materials in race for affordable EV
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Victoria Waldersee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Over two-thirds of the company's five-year investment budget announced on Tuesday is allocated to electrification and digitalisation, including up to 15 billion for batteries and raw materials. Volkswagen, Europe's top carmaker, is striving to close a gap with electric vehicle (EV) pioneer Tesla (TSLA.O) by expanding its slice of the growing market for battery-powered cars. Buzz EV car, on the day of the annual news conference of the Volkswagen Group at DRIVE.Volkswagen Group Forum, in Berlin, Germany March 14, 2023. Volkswagen met analysts' expectations in 2022 on revenues but missed the consensus estimate for earnings before interest and taxes by 3%. The most likely actual stock market candidate is battery unit PowerCo.

☆ Volkswagen to invest $193 billion over 5 years to hit EV target
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Victoria Waldersee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] The logo of carmaker Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles is pictured at the IAA Transportation fair, which opened its doors to the public on September 20, 2022, in Hanover, Germany, September 19, 2022. The investments come as Volkswagen, Europe's top carmaker, tries to close a gap with electric vehicle (EV) pioneer Tesla (TSLA.O) by expanding its slice of the growing market for battery-powered cars. In the latest investment plan, up to 15 billion euros is ringfenced for battery plants and raw materials. VW outperforms EU rivalsThe investment decisions are targeted towards fulfilling a 10-point plan developed by Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume after he took the helm in September. The most likely actual stock market candidate is battery unit PowerCo.

☆ Volkswagen to invest $193 bln over 5 years to help meet EV target
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Victoria Waldersee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies Volkswagen AG FollowBERLIN, March 14 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) plans to invest 180 billion euros ($192.76 billion) over the next five years in areas including battery production and its North American operations, it said on Tuesday, with spending on combustion engines to decline from 2025. In the latest plan, 15 billion euros is ringfenced for battery plants and raw materials and 2 billion euros will be put toward a plant in North Carolina for its Scout brand. Later on Tuesday, Volkswagen is also expected to share the results of a 'virtual equity story' exercise instigated by Blume. On Monday, Volkswagen announced its first battery cell plant outside of Europe would be in Canada, with production to start from 2027. ($1 = 0.9338 euros)Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Editing by Rachel More and Jamie FreedOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Volkswagen to invest $193 billion to hit EV target, picks Canada for battery cell plant
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Volkswagen plans to invest 180 billion euros ($193 billion) over five years in areas including battery production and the sourcing of raw materials in a bid to cut electric vehicle costs and protect its market share, it said Tuesday. Over two-thirds of the company’s five-year investment budget is allocated to electrification and digitalization, including up to 15 billion ($16 billion) for batteries and raw materials. Volkswagen board member Thomas Schmall Ronny Hartmann/AFP/Getty Images/FileOn Monday, board member Thomas Schmall also announced that Volkswagen’s first North American battery cell factory would be in Canada, with production starting in 2027. The carmaker is still aiming to bring an affordable EV — costing around 25,000 euros ($26,795) at today’s prices — to market by 2025. The most likely actual stock market candidate is battery unit PowerCo.

SummarySummary Companies Move comes shortly after Scout plant announcementPlant in Canada can also qualify for IRA subsidiesBASF also picked Canada for EV battery materials plantWOLFSBURG, Germany, March 13 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) chose Canada to build its first battery cell plant outside Europe, granting its cars access to both Canadian and U.S. subsidies as it works to localise electric vehicle production chain in the region. Canada, home to a large mining sector for minerals including lithium, nickel and cobalt, is trying to woo companies involved in all levels of the EV supply chain via a multi-billion-dollar green technology fund as the world seeks to cut carbon emissions. The Canadian federal innovation minister, Francois-Philippe Champagne, called the VW battery plant a "home run for Canada" and said it was "the largest single investment in the auto sector in the history of Canada", without giving details. "I think all the big manufacturers understand that if you need to green the supply chain, Canada is the place to do that," said Champagne. Chemicals giant BASF (BASFn.DE) a year ago also secured land in Canada for a planned battery materials facility to better serve electric vehicle markets in the U.S. and Mexico.

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