NEW RESOURCES

The Crown Estate: 200 terabytes of free-to-access marine data gives UK offshore development the edge. “Since the emergence of the first operational offshore wind farms in the UK just over 20 years ago, The Crown Estate’s offshore wind customers have agreed to share data collated throughout the lifecycle of their projects, in a bid to support the future sustainable growth of the offshore renewables industry. This led to the creation of the online Marine Data Exchange (MDE) in 2013, which has grown to become the biggest database of offshore renewables survey data in the world, holding over 200 terabytes of survey data from offshore projects across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.”

Deseret News: Church History Library merges pioneer and missionary records into new biographical database. “The Church History Library has merged its Pioneer Database and Missionary Database into a single, combined research tool called the Church History Biographical Database…. The new database maintains the same information, functionality and ease of use as before but with new features and plans to add datasets in the future, said Elder Curtis, who referenced his own ancestors in demonstrating the features of the database.”

PR Newswire: MyHeritage Releases LiveStory, A Groundbreaking Feature That Automatically Creates Video Biographies, Using D-ID Pioneered AI Technology (PRESS RELEASE). “MyHeritage, the leading global service for discovering your past and empowering your future, and Creative Reality™ startup D-ID, announced today the release of LiveStory, a groundbreaking new feature that creates captivating video biographies. LiveStory automatically produces an animated video of a user’s ancestor telling their life story, weaving together photos and details of their life into a narrative that is told by a speaking portrait of the person.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

The Verge: Wikimedia says it ‘will not back down’ after Russia threatens Wikipedia block. “The Wikimedia Foundation has issued a statement supporting Russian Wikipedia volunteers after a censorship demand from internet regulators. On Tuesday, tech and communications regulator Roskomnadzor threatened to block Wikipedia over the Russian-language page covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, claiming it contained ‘false messages’ about war casualties and the effects of economic sanctions, among other things.”

Wall Street Journal: Russia Demands Google Block ‘False’ Ads About Ukraine War. “Russia demanded that Google stop showing online-video ads it described as ‘false political information’ about Ukraine, stepping up its efforts to block access to information about its invasion of that country that contradicts its official narrative.”

New York Times: Twitch Says It Will Bar Chronic Spreaders of Misinformation. “Twitch will target only channels that meet a handful of criteria. To fall afoul of the new policy, users must be persistently sharing harmful misinformation that has been widely debunked, the company said, adding that it had ‘selected these criteria because taken together they create the highest risk of harm, including inciting real-world harm.'”

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

The Atlantic: The Ugly, Embarrassing Spectacle of ‘Milling’ Around Online. “We are all just chattering away in restless and confused excitement as we try to figure out how to think about what’s happening. We want to understand which outcomes are most likely, and whether we might be obligated to help—by giving money or vowing not to share misinformation or learning the entire history of global conflict so as to avoid saying the wrong thing. We are milling.”

How-To Geek: That Paypal Balance on Social Media Was Faked, Here’s How. “You may have seen people posting screenshots of their PayPal balances with incredible amounts reflected. While the screenshots are really of the PayPal page, the amount has been faked! These balances are used for scams, but anyone can make them.”

Reuters: Czech Group Shifts From Documenting Historical Nazi, Soviet Traumas to Aiding Ukraine’s Defence. “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has given new purpose to a Czech group, switching its focus from documenting memories of the past under Nazi and Soviet domination to supplying flak jackets, drones and helmets to Ukrainians defending their country…. Memory of Nations has run an online database of testimonies since 2008 documenting stories of people from when Czechs and Slovaks lived under Nazi occupation during World War Two or four decades of Soviet-dominated Communist rule that ended in 1989.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

CNN: Group of attorneys general announce investigation into TikTok’s impact on young Americans. “A nationwide group of state attorneys general announced an investigation into TikTok’s impact on young Americans Tuesday, adding to the steady drumbeat of political pressure being applied to social media platforms. The probe zeroes in on TikTok’s user engagement techniques and alleged risks that the platform may pose to the mental health of children, according to announcements by the states.”

The Local Denmark: Denmark criminalises social media impersonation of others. “A large majority in the country’s parliament passed the new law on Thursday, the Ministry of Justice said in a statement. ‘It is a breach of personal boundaries and deeply unpleasant to have one’s identity misused on social media. We as a society must not accept this type of behaviour and we must give better protection to victims,’ Justice Minister Nick Hækkerup said in the statement.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

Space: Your name can fly around the moon on NASA’s Artemis 1 mission. “NASA is inviting people to put their names on a flash drive that will launch on the agency’s Artemis 1 mission, which will send an uncrewed Orion capsule around the moon and back a few months from now.” Good morning, Internet…

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