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Other voices: Election Day was a welcome rebuke to extremists of both parties

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

Tuesday was a very good day if you support common sense in American politics.On both the right and the left, voters and politicians embraced candidates and positions that represent the centrist tendencies that for much of this republic’s history have defined its politics.Most notably, Republicans continued to get waxed at the polls on the issue of eliminating or sharply restricting abortion rights. Ohio voters easily passed a referendum enshrining a woman’s right to choose in that red state’s constitution.Kentucky Democrat Andy Beshear cruised to reelection as governor in a state Donald Trump won with 62% of the vote in 2020. Abortion access was a key reason for his victory, with a powerful ad down the stretch featuring a woman who had been raped by her stepfather at age 12.In Virginia, what had been perceived as an opportunity for Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin to propel his party to control the state legislature foundered in part on his proposal to ban most abort...

Cruise grew fast and angered regulators. Now it’s dealing with the fallout.

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Two months ago, Kyle Vogt, the CEO of Cruise, choked up as he recounted how a driver killed a 4-year-old girl in a stroller at a San Francisco intersection. “It barely made the news,” he said, pausing to collect himself. “Sorry. I get emotional.”To make streets safer, he said in an interview, cities should embrace self-driving cars like those designed by Cruise, a subsidiary of General Motors. They do not get distracted, drowsy or drunk, he said, and being programmed to put safety first meant they could substantially reduce car-related fatalities.Now Vogt’s driverless car company faces its own safety concerns as he contends with angry regulators, anxious employees and skepticism about his management and the viability of a business that he has often said will save lives while generating billions of dollars.On Oct. 2, a car hit a woman in a San Francisco intersection and flung her into the path of one of Cruise’s driverless taxis. The Cruise car ran over her, bri...

Chatbots may “hallucinate” more often than many realize

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — When San Francisco startup OpenAI unveiled its ChatGPT online chatbot late last year, millions were wowed by the humanlike way it answered questions, wrote poetry and discussed almost any topic. But most people were slow to realize that this new kind of chatbot often makes things up.When Google introduced a similar chatbot several weeks later, it spewed nonsense about the James Webb telescope. The next day, Microsoft’s new Bing chatbot offered up all sorts of bogus information about the Gap, Mexican nightlife and singer Billie Eilish. Then, in March, ChatGPT cited a half dozen fake court cases while writing a 10-page legal brief that a lawyer submitted to a federal judge in Manhattan.Now a new startup called Vectara, founded by former Google employees, is trying to figure out how often chatbots veer from the truth. The company’s research estimates that even in situations designed to prevent it from happening, chatbots invent information at least 3% of the time ...

Colorado startup NovoHydrogen secures $20M commitment, role in DOE regional energy hub

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

A Colorado startup is playing a part in providing a key piece of the puzzle when it comes to fueling economic sectors that are hard to “decarbonize,” such as shipping, steel-making and other heavy industrial uses.NovoHydrogen in Golden has secured a $20 million equity commitment from Modern Energy, which invests in and partners with businesses working to transition from fossil fuels.The U.S. Department of Energy also selected the company to participate in one of seven regional hubs for the development of hydrogen as an energy source. NovoHydrogen will participate in the hub to be established in the Pacific Northwest.Colorado joined Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming in a bid for one of the regional hubs and a share of the roughly $8 billion included in the federal infrastructure bill, but wasn’t chosen.After working for years with renewable energy and battery storage, Matt McMonagle founded NovoHydrogen in October 2021. The company works only on so-called “green hy...

Can Delta-8 Dampen Aches and Pains?

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

Read the original article about Delta-8 for Aches and Pains at Real Tested CBD.It’s getting common to see many people “spread the good news” about delta-8’s effects. From Reddit forums to cannabis-focused websites, many users are opening up about their experiences with hemp-derived delta-8 products. Although surveys suggest most people use delta-8 for stress, there’s a growing number of delta-8-related testimonialsfrom the arthritis community.According to some anecdotal reports, delta-8 can have a positive impact on arthritis-related symptoms. However, patients must know there’s not enough scientific data on using delta-8 for arthritis. While delta-8 may have therapeutic potential, arthritis patients must listen to their doctor’s advice before trying this cannabinoid.How Should Arthritis Patients Use Delta-8 THC?Unfortunately, there’s no clinical data on how delta-8 affects people living with arthritis. However, a few preliminary trials show delta-9 THC might relieve arthritis-relat...

49ers-Jaguars preview: 5 keys to beating NFL’s hottest team

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Brandon Aiyuk and Arik Armstead talked the other day about where the 49ers are headed. It wasn’t so much about a  destination as it was the NFL season’s autumn wind.“November, December football is a time when the dogs, the real boys, come out to play football,” Aiyuk said. “We’re excited for this time, because we know how important the next few months are for where we want to be.”October got messy. The 49ers morphed from 5-0 world power into a mortal combatant on a three-game losing streak. Emerging from last weekend’s bye, they’ve made changes and plotted a familiar path.First up is cross-country, 10 a.m. PT kickoff to take on the NFL’s hottest team, the Jaguars, who entered their own bye last weekend on a five-game win streak. They have an AFC South-best record of 6-2, and they’ve won 11 of their past 13 regular-season games.Looking back on the 49ers’ second-half surge last season, they went from 4-4 at the bye to a 13-4, NFC West-winning mark, en route ...

Borenstein: Bay Area Democrats should cease attack on elections chief

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

With former President Donald Trump and his right-wing conspiracy followers attacking election officials nationwide, it’s disappointing to see Democratic Party activists piling on in the Bay Area.The attack from the left targets Tim Dupuis, the Alameda County elections chief, calling for his removal and claiming he has been unresponsive and responsible for ballot mistakes.To be sure, there’s room for improvement of the county elections office. But there is no evidence that Dupuis and his staff are undermining the vote. Quite the contrary.Rather than attack Dupuis with thin and misleading claims, the activists would better serve the election process by constructively seeking improvements. For buried in their accusations is a legitimate beef that Dupuis has too many responsibilities.Dual rolesUnlike in Contra Costa County where the elections chief is selected by voters, and in Santa Clara County where the head of the office reports to the county executive, Dupuis officially reports dir...

Opinion: Gov. Newsom would rather ‘transform’ San Quentin than fix it

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

On each of the five floors of the west block building at San Quentin State Prison is a maintenance sheet that lists year-round problems.“Water leaking in cell from chase again” was written by a prisoner on a maintenance sheet on the first floor. “Sink drain needs cleaned (sic) out,” another wrote. “Wall, sink, toilet area leaking,” wrote an occupant of another cell.Steven Baumgartner’s toilet does not flush properly.“It’s been doing it ever since I’ve been here, and I’ve been here for a year,” he said. He reported it six months ago. “In fact, I was going to report it again.”There are so many unhealthy conditions of confinement that have existed so long that they’re practically invisible to men there. Well, invisible to some.Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to convert San Quentin into a rehabilitation center does not address the deplorable living conditions at the 171-year-old prison.The list of problems on the maintenance sheets in the west block span time periods from a few days to several...

Biden and Xi are set to meet next week at the APEC summit. No detail is too small to sweat

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — When President Joe Biden meets Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Wednesday, there will be no such thing as a small detail.How they greet? If they eat? Where they sit? Will there be flowers? Bottled water or in a glass? “Pretty intense,” senior administration officials say of navigating delicate protocols. Any encounter involving the president and a foreign leader means managing tricky logistics, political and cultural, and every occurrence or utterance can potentially jolt the world order. But few nations are more attuned to etiquette than the Chinese, and the often-conflicting interests between Washington and Beijing might mean the seemingly trivial becomes meaningful. There’s probably “very detailed planning of the actual choreography of who enters a room where, if there will be pictures taken and all of that,” said Bonny Lin, senior fellow for Asian security and director of the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Bid...

Marsh powers Australia to 8-wicket win over Bangladesh at Cricket World Cup

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:46:53 GMT

Mitchell Marsh recorded his career-best score as Australia beat Bangladesh by eight wickets in the Cricket World Cup on Saturday.Marsh reached 177 not out off 132 balls as Australia registered its highest successful run-chase in World Cup history.He put on 175 runs off 135 balls for the unbeaten third wicket with Steve Smith, who scored 63 not out as Australia finished with 307-2 in 44.4 overs.This was after Adam Zampa picked 2-32 in 10 overs to help restrict Bangladesh to 306-8.It was Australia’s seventh straight win in the tournament. The five-time champions had started slow with losses to India and South Africa, but bounced back in style to confirm a semifinal spot.Australia finished third in the standings with 14 points — equal with second-placed South Africa but lower on net run-rate.The Aussies will play South Africa in the semifinals on Thursday in Kolkata. The two sides had also met in the 1999 World Cup semifinal at Edgbaston, where Australia advanced after a thrilling tied...