News of the Cyber World

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YouTuber Trevor Jacob Sentenced to Six Months in Federal Prison for Crashing Plane in Publicity Stunt

Jacob confessed to “intentionally crashing his single-engine airplane in a California national forest to gain views for a sponsorship deal, resulting in potentially serious legal trouble.”

“Jacob’s admission came as part of a plea agreement filed in federal court in Los Angeles, where he pleaded guilty to the charge of destruction and concealment with the intent to obstruct a federal investigation,” it reported at the time.

The offense carried a potential of 20 years in prison. Jacob received only six months. KTLA 5 provided some history of the event:

Prosecutors say Jacob waited two days to report the crash to the National Transportation Safety Board which told him to preserve the wreckage. He stalled the investigation by telling NTSB officials that he didn’t know where the plane went down, according to the DOJ.

More than two weeks after the crash, he and a friend flew a helicopter to the crash site and airlifted the wreckage to Rancho Sisquoc in Santa Barbara County, where it was loaded onto a trailer attached to Jacob’s pickup truck.

The U.S. Department of Justice accused Jacob of cutting up and destroying “the airplane wreckage and, over several days, deposited the detached parts of the wrecked airplane into trash bins at the airport and elsewhere.”

The FAA also revoked Jacob’s pilot’s license.

Nicolas Maduro Brands Left-Wing Wikipedia an ‘Enemy’ of Venezuela

Wikipedia, which presents itself as “the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit,” has faced heavy criticism for the left-leaning bias of its editors. The website has, among other actions, blacklisted Breitbart in 2018, engaged in censorship, and modified its contents to favor the Biden administration.

Wikipedia drew the ire of Maduro during the latest episode of the dictator’s television show Con Maduro Más (“With Maduro Plus”). Maduro described the website as “incorrigible” for its “manipulated” content regarding the sham referendum on Sunday, in which the socialist regime claimed that over 95 percent of Venezuela voted to create a state out of a plot of land that represents about two-thirds of the territory of Guyana.

Venezuela’s National Electoral Center (CNE), the nation’s top electoral authority completely under the control of the socialist regime, claimed that more than 10 million votes were cast in favor of creating a new state for Venezuela by annexing the Essequibo region.
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The head of CNE, Elvis Amoroso, also announced two contradicting results over the past two days, which has further raised questions about the veracity of the regime’s claims. On Sunday evening, Amoroso announced that some 10.5 million votes were registered, while on Monday afternoon, he announced that 10.4 million votes had been logged without giving any explanation that justifies the over 100,000 vote reduction in CNE’s “official” results.

Maduro accused Wikipedia of collaborating with the “enemies” of Venezuela by reflecting the lack of confidence Venezuelans have in the CNE’s claims.

At press time, Wikipedia’s Spanish-language page on the Maduro regime’s sham referendum shows a disclaimer that reads, “There are doubts or disagreements about the accuracy of the information in this article or section.”

“I was sent this by a lot of people on WhatsApp, an incredible thing that they put in Wikipedia; they are incorrigible, they had already put other things that are incredible as how they manipulate in social networks, in the same internet lying,” Maduro rambled, “then they say the two things that are the two big lies that have said the enemies of Venezuela, internal and external enemies.”
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Maduro then accused Wikipedia of claiming that only 2 million people voted in Sunday’s referendum, trying to pass the number as “official.”

McDonald’s Works with Google to Make ‘Hotter, Fresher Food’ with AI

The Verge reports that McDonald’s recently announced a collaboration with Google to deploy generative AI in thousands of its stores. This technological integration involves both hardware and software upgrades, including enhancements to McDonald’s ordering kiosks and mobile app. The primary goal of this partnership is to leverage AI for analyzing vast amounts of operational data, leading to tangible improvements in service quality. A key expected outcome, as highlighted by McDonald’s, is the delivery of “hotter, fresher food” to customers.

The details of how AI will specifically improve food service are not entirely clear, but the partnership indicates a significant step towards more AI-driven automation in the fast-food industry. This AI integration will function both in-store through hardware and software upgrades and via services provided through Google Cloud. Managers will benefit from this system, which is designed to promptly identify and resolve business disruptions.

While McDonald’s has not detailed the extent of AI’s role in potentially replacing human workers, they emphasize its utility in simplifying operations for store crews and enhancing customer and crew experiences. This move is similar to initiatives by other fast-food chains, like Wendy’s, who have also started experimenting with AI, albeit on a smaller scale.
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Inevitably, as with every product involving Google, data collected and analyzed by the system will likely be used by the company to generate profits in different ways.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX Passes Military Starlink Trials Opening Door to Pentagon Contracts

Bloomberg reports that SpaceX Starlink has emerged as a valuable asset in the realm of military communications following its successful completion of extensive U.S. Air Force tests in the Arctic. This achievement  paves the way for potential Pentagon contracts, potentially enhancing the strategic communications infrastructure in the increasingly competitive Arctic region.

The series of tests, which concluded in June, were focused on evaluating Starlink’s effectiveness in meeting the Pentagon’s operational needs in harsh Arctic conditions. Brian Beal, a principal engineer at the Air Force Research Laboratory, confirmed that Starlink provided “reliable and high-performance communication,” particularly in on-the-move scenarios, despite challenging environmental conditions including high winds and extreme cold.

Starlink’s success in these tests is critical given the strategic importance of the Arctic, a region where the U.S. is keen to expand its influence in the face of growing competition from Russia and China. The Arctic’s challenging climate and remoteness have historically limited communications capabilities, a gap that Starlink’s portable terminals are well-positioned to fill.

Additionally, the Air Force is also evaluating London-based Eutelsat OneWeb for similar capabilities in the Arctic, with its testing phase set to conclude in the coming months. The success of these tests represents a significant advancement in military satellite communications, offering faster and more reliable options for strategic operations.