News of the Cyber World

[kyonides]

Florida Doctor Reinstated

After Losing Board Certification

for Criticizing COVID-19 Vaccines

The doctor had been uploading videos on a couple of platforms only to see how they took it down in no time.

A Florida physician known for being outspoken about COVID-related topics has regained his board certification that was stripped because he publicly criticized COVID vaccines.

Now, Dr. John Littell is moving forward from the experience with plans to help future physicians defend themselves when disciplined for voicing viewpoints that are not in the majority, he told The Epoch Times.

Dr. Littell, a longtime family physician in Ocala and a medical school professor, began posting videos sharing his thoughts about COVID-19 testing, treatments, and vaccines early in the pandemic. He was frustrated to find his content often was pulled down from his YouTube channel.

But he fought against what he saw as censorship by moving the content to other platforms, such as Rumble, he said.

Then, in January 2022 and again five months later, he received warning letters from the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM), the organization that issued his certification for his medical specialty.

The letter stated that his videos on YouTube and Rumble spread “medical misinformation” and could put his board certification in jeopardy, he said.

The ABFM declined to comment on the matter because the board's "policy indicates we are unable to comment about professionalism cases," an unidentified spokesperson said in an email to The Epoch Times.

Electric Vehicles Exposed to Saltwater
Can Burst Into Flames, Authorities Warn

Hurricane Idalia and subsequent floods have created an electric vehicle (EV) fire risk in Florida as batteries exposed to saltwater become susceptible to combustion, based on statements from one of the fire departments in the state.

“WARNING. If you own a hybrid or electric vehicle that has come into contact with saltwater due to recent flooding within the last 24 hours, it is crucial to relocate the vehicle from your garage without delay. Saltwater exposure can trigger combustion in lithium-ion batteries. If possible, transfer your vehicle to higher ground,” Palm Harbor Fire Rescue (PHFR), Florida, said in an Aug. 31 Facebook post.

“This includes golf carts and electric scooters. Don’t drive these through water. PHFR crews have seen numerous residents out in golf carts and children on scooters riding through water.”

The issue with saltwater is that even if the water dries off, the residue can remain, potentially triggering electrical connections within the EV battery, which eventually sparks into a fire. In the post, PHFR pointed to two Tesla EVs in Dunedin that had caught fire.

EV fires in the wake of the storm are not an unforeseen occurrence. Prior to the storm surge, Florida Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis warned citizens that saltwater from the storms can trigger fires in electric vehicles “which cannot be easily suppressed.”

“The best fire teams can do is keep water on the battery until the fuel burns out,” he said. “If you’re evacuating and leaving an EV, or other lithium-ion powered devices like scooters or golf carts in your garage, you’re creating a real fire threat for your home, your communities, and first responders.”

90% of Online Content May Be AI-Generated Garbage by 2026

Futurism reports that a recent study by Europol suggests that by 2026, up to 90 percent of online content could be artificially generated. This staggering figure has sent ripples through various sectors, from journalism and art to technology and law enforcement. Synthetic media, which refers to content generated or manipulated using artificial intelligence, is not a new phenomenon. However, its rapid proliferation has raised eyebrows and concerns alike.

“In most cases, synthetic media is generated for gaming, to improve services or to improve the quality of life,” the report states. While AI-generated content has its merits — such as enhancing user experience in gaming or streamlining customer service — it also opens the door to more nefarious uses. “The increase in synthetic media and improved technology has given rise to disinformation possibilities,” the report adds.

The report states: “On a daily basis, people trust their own perception to guide them and tell them what is real and what is not. Auditory and visual recordings of an event are often treated as a truthful account of an event. But what if these media can be generated artificially, adapted to show events that never took place, to misrepresent events, or to distort the truth?”

The report also raises existential questions for artists, writers, and other content creators. In a world increasingly dominated by AI-generated content, what is the role of human creativity? Will artists and writers adapt to this new landscape, or will they be overshadowed by algorithms that can produce content at scale?
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Decrypt reports that when professor Jane Friedman discovered books she didn’t write being attributed to her on Amazon, she was met with initial resistance from the e-commerce giant, which did not want to remove the bogus titles from sale. The titles, which Friedman referred to as “garbage books,” were likely created using generative AI and included guides like “Your Guide to Writing a Bestseller eBook on Amazon,” “Publishing Power: Navigating Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing,” and “Promote to Prosper: Strategies to Skyrocket Your eBook Sales on Amazon.

Tesla Faces Federal Scrutiny for Mysterious ‘Project 42’
to Build Elon Musk a Glass Mansion

The Wall Street Journal reports that Tesla has found itself under the microscope of both the DOJ and SEC. The federal agencies are probing into a hush-hush initiative within the company, internally referred to as “Project 42.” The project, described as a “house for Chief Executive Elon Musk,” is under scrutiny for its use of company funds and whether it serves any personal benefits to Musk.
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Inside Tesla, “Project 42” was known for its ambitious plans to erect a dramatic glass-walled building near the company’s headquarters. One design featured a structure resembling a twisted hexagon on waterfront property with Tesla’s factory in the distance. Other designs showed a large glass box with a residential area that appeared to include a kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms. This reportedly reminded people of Apple’s Fifth Avenue store in Manhattan.

However, the project drew attention and scrutiny from within the company. The company placed orders for specialized glass — the type of large-format panels used on building facades — totally millions of dollars. These orders sparked concern among some employees about what the materials would be used for. These concerns led to an internal investigation by Tesla’s board members to determine whether company resources had been misused and if Musk himself had a role in it.

According to sources, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York is seeking information related to personal benefits that given to Elon Musk. They are also interested in knowing how much money Tesla spent on a project that involved constructing a large glass structure in the Austin, Texas region, and for what purpose it was intended.