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Samsung ordered to pay $118 million for infringing Netlist patentsThe Alex Fraser Research Forest (AFRF) and partners are stirring things up for Cariboo woodworkers who on Dec. 12 were invited to visit the research forest’s main office in Williams Lake. It’s all part of a new initiative known as the Cariboo Wood Innovation Training Hub (CWITH), an opportunity for the Cariboo to strengthen its wood industry by coming together and sharing ideas. “We’re hoping to start offering courses in January, but I think that will just be the first step,” said Stephanie Ewen, manager of the AFRF, the University of British Columbia’s research forest. What the innovation hub will come to be is not entirely clear, but there are ideas, and the team of bright minds supporting the project, which includes the Cariboo Regional District, are encouraging others to contribute their own ideas. Hence the Dec. 12 event, an open house where folks learned about the project, asked questions and added their own thoughts and knowledge to a brainstorm for the initiative. “We know that there’s opportunity, but it needs traction,” said Brock Smith, owner of Smith Timber Works which specializes in the design and fabrication of architectural timber. Smith and co-worker Martin Doerig were just some of the industry folks who stopped in at the event, where idea boards were set up for visitors to share their thoughts on what CWITH could be. One read: “dream board for courses,” another asked how people would define “value-added,” and yet another asked: “what is the most significant opportunity for value-added wood product development or innovation in the Cariboo?” A map was also set up on the wall and visitors were encouraged to identify their own value-added activities, creating a trail of innovative wood projects across the Cariboo. Getting creative with value-added wood products With its abundant access to trees, the wood industry plays an essential role in the Cariboo economy. There’s a whole realm of possibility when it comes to adding value to wood, with a more typical example being to create furniture. Every step along the way from tree to plank to chair, for instance, adds value to the wood, and with that comes opportunity for economic development. “As the city person, I’m always looking to diversify the economy,” Beth Veenkamp, manager of economic development with the city of Williams Lake, told the Tribune. Veenkamp has been involved in the project since its beginnings in 2018, when the idea to create a centre for the Cariboo wood industry first began to brew. Veenkamp ran a survey on economic development in the Cariboo from which the idea around a training hub for value-added manufacturing emerged. Examples of value-added products provided at the open house got creative, with Ewen explaining to the Tribune wood chips can be pressed or individual wood planks combined to create a beam. A simple idea, but an effective alternative as massive trees typically used for beams are becoming few and far between. Ewen also explained how unused portions of trees, such as their narrow tops, can be used to generate power. This is especially relevant to remote forestry communities where shipping in diesel can be a huge expense, making the available wood a viable alternative to producing power. “That’s to me one of the low hanging fruit for adopting this technology,” Ewen said while giving a tour of the AFRF’s very own 40-kilowatt power plant which relies on gas made from wood chips. The power plant takes about four-and-a-half cubic metres to run at full capacity, or two-and-a-half cubic metres to run at 30 per cent capacity. While the technicalities of using this sort of power plant are not fully ironed out, the hope is that by operating this power plant the AFRF can learn how it really works and help others adopt the technology. The road to a thriving Cariboo wood industry In today’s climate, value-added wood is an even greater attraction as sustainable practices become ever more pertinent, and finding ways to reduce waste and maximize profits is essential. So too is the need to support and uplift those working with wood or looking to enter the industry. But brilliant ideas can’t all come from one person, and it’s all the more difficult when the nature of the industry means those involved are scattered far and wide. CWITH will be a way to connect the industry, thereby enabling the exchange of ideas while also creating a hub where folks can go to learn and develop their skills. When the AFRF purchased its Williams Lake property in 2020, the team working to build CWITH thought it would be an ideal location where the project could operate. The city of Williams Lake ended up including the initiative in its economic development strategy, but its 2022 application to the Northern Development Initiative Trust for funding was denied. However, the project continued to develop, and in 2023 the Fraser Basin Council (FBC) came on to support the initiative and, as a nonprofit, was able to secure $500,000 in funding through the province’s Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program. Stephanie Huska was then hired in August as an independent contractor to help identify industry needs and design the hub along those lines. Since she was hired, Huska has gone around to speak with different manufacturers across the Cariboo to see what people are up to and to find out how CWITH could best serve them. “It’s incredible the stuff that’s happening right now,” she said. However, Huska said manufacturers aren’t engaging with each other, despite often relying on one another. She also said there’s little public awareness around what is really happening in the Cariboo when it comes to value-added wood projects. In fact, she said she can already identify more value-added projects taking place in the Cariboo than what she could find in provincial directories. “There’s a great opportunity there to share what people are doing” Huska said, hoping that CWITH can help build systems through which industry partners can work together and build a thriving industry. She envisions running talks and tours and enabling wood workers to collaborate, rather than focus completely on competition. The main goal, Huska said, is to provide education for those who want to upgrade their skills, change their focus or looking to enter the industry. CWITH will offer courses by pulling from different resources which already exist, whether it’s setting something up with local innovators, or bringing in courses from Thompson Rivers Univeristy (TRU) and from the Centre for Advanced Wood Processing. “The thing that is a little bit tricky is finding people that want to teach,” Huska said, adding teaching locations may also be a challenge as not all courses would necessarily take place at the AFRF. But it’s all part of the process, and the CWITH team is hopeful that by holding open houses, connecting industry partners and starting to offer courses in the new year, things will really start to kick off. The CWITH team is preparing to distribute a survey in the new year, informed by what they’ve learned during the open house, to gather more feedback from the community. Courses will also be starting up in the new year.Dearborn Ford in Kamloops celebrates 100 years in business, looks ahead to more (Think Local)spin ph333 。

The only thing faster than fibre-connectivity in Tiny Township is municipal staff putting together a request on why the township hasn’t received full high-speed internet installation as of yet. During the recent committee of the whole meeting, Coun. Dave Brunelle raised the topic of attending the 2025 Rural Ontario Municipal Association conference in January as a delegate, but wanted fellow council members to put together a reason to ask the province to help Tiny Township. “I know we did a delegation at AMO; it was quite successful and productive,” said Brunelle, referencing a joint-meeting with Midland which resulted in a potential solution to septage issues the township faced. When asked by Mayor Dave Evans what the timeline would be to craft a delegation proposal, members of council replied five business days which resulted in muted laughter from many in the room. Evans asked CAO Robert Lamb if it would be feasible have something within that period, which Lamb affirmed. Conversation went to various topics that the township could address to provincial ministers in attendance, but Brunelle cautioned that their suggestions were on a higher provincial level such as municipal insurance, increased OPP billing costs, reduced infrastructure funding and others; Brunelle asked that something tailored more to Tiny specifically be considered. After further consideration, Lamb proposed that Tiny could request an update on the Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (or SWIFT) project introduced in 2022, a non-profit, municipally-led broadband expansion project aimed at bringing high-speed internet to rural communities across Ontario. Many locations along the Georgian Bay shoreline received fibre installation in recent years, but not many interior areas of Tiny Township. “There are large portions of our community still that we have been waiting, for I think almost three years now,” said Lamb, “...for applications that were submitted to bring a form of high-speed (internet) to all of our concession roads.” He added: “The provincial government has just made a big deal out of a $100-million deal with Elon Musk with his satellite stuff, yet there are very easy wins that wouldn’t cost nearly that much to be getting – even if it’s fibre on the poles rather than buried on the ground on a lot of our concession roads. Lamb stated that a request could be submitted within the timeframe, which the committee of the whole accepted. Following the meeting, MidlandToday asked Lamb about the importance of high-speed internet in rural areas. Lamb replied that the Simcoe County Access Network was an early form of high-speed that connected municipal offices with libraries, schools and hospitals, and it was time to fill remaining gaps. “One of the largest adopters of technologies that you have out there is actually the agricultural community,” said Lamb. “When you see the large production farming that takes place now, the technology those farms are utilizing – and then not having the ability to potentially download that information and get it as quickly as they would – it has productivity means to it as well.” The 2025 ROMA conference delegation correspondence can be viewed on the agenda page on the Township of Tiny website. Archives of council meetings are available to view on the township’s YouTube channel.Nike's Black Friday sale is offering up to 60% off sneakers, including Dunks, Air Max 90s, and Air Jordan 1s

Conor McGregor's rape accuser flees home after masked men break in and stab boyfriend - The MirrorJewelry conference and exhibition heldMCKINNEY, Texas , Dec. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hartwater Aesthetics ® , a leading medical aesthetic brand, announced an expansion of its clinical and leadership team with the addition of a new aesthetic provider and a new practice manager at its location in McKinney, TX. The Hartwater Clinical team is joined by Tiffany Byres , LMA, a licensed Medical Aesthetician, Certified Laser Technician, and Laser Safety Officer with 13 years of experience in the plastic surgery and medical aesthetics space. Byres brings to Hartwater an extensive knowledge of skin care techniques and protocols as well as expertise with numerous laser technologies and other treatments to provide top-quality care to patients. Joining the leadership team as Practice Manager is Lauren Parker , an experienced operational and sales leader in the beauty industry. Parker will oversee daily operations at the practice and ensure the continued delivery of a seamless, patient-focused experience. This growth reflects Hartwater's ongoing commitment to delivering exceptional care and innovative services to its patients. The team expansion marks an exciting new chapter for Hartwater Aesthetics ® as it continues to set the standard for medical aesthetic care. About Hartwater Aesthetics ® Hartwater Aesthetics ® is a premier medical aesthetic practice offering industry-leading treatments for the face, body, and skin. It is home to a team of world-class aesthetic providers and uses the most state-of-the-art technology to offer patients the highest quality of care available. Media Contact: pr@h artwatera esthetics.com View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hartwater-aesthetics-expands-team-302337620.html SOURCE Hartwater Aesthetics

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By Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times (TNS) Every day millions of people share more intimate information with their accessories than they do with their spouse. Wearable technology — smartwatches, smart rings, fitness trackers and the like — monitors body-centric data such as your heart rate, steps taken and calories burned, and may record where you go along the way. Like Santa Claus, it knows when you are sleeping (and how well), it knows when you’re awake, it knows when you’ve been idle or exercising, and it keeps track of all of it. People are also sharing sensitive health information on health and wellness apps , including online mental health and counseling programs. Some women use period tracker apps to map out their monthly cycle. These devices and services have excited consumers hoping for better insight into their health and lifestyle choices. But the lack of oversight into how body-centric data are used and shared with third parties has prompted concerns from privacy experts, who warn that the data could be sold or lost through data breaches, then used to raise insurance premiums, discriminate surreptitiously against applicants for jobs or housing, and even perform surveillance. The use of wearable technology and medical apps surged in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic, but research released by Mozilla on Wednesday indicates that current laws offer little protection for consumers who are often unaware just how much of their health data are being collected and shared by companies. “I’ve been studying the intersections of emerging technologies, data-driven technologies, AI and human rights and social justice for the past 15 years, and since the pandemic I’ve noticed the industry has become hyper-focused on our bodies,” said Mozilla Foundation technology fellow Júlia Keserű, who conducted the research. “That permeates into all kinds of areas of our lives and all kinds of domains within the tech industry.” The report “From Skin to Screen: Bodily Integrity in the Digital Age” recommends that existing data protection laws be clarified to encompass all forms of bodily data. It also calls for expanding national health privacy laws to cover health-related information collected from health apps and fitness trackers and making it easier for users to opt out of body-centric data collections. Researchers have been raising alarms about health data privacy for years. Data collected by companies are often sold to data brokers or groups that buy, sell and trade data from the internet to create detailed consumer profiles. Body-centric data can include information such as the fingerprints used to unlock phones, face scans from facial recognition technology, and data from fitness and fertility trackers, mental health apps and digital medical records. One of the key reasons health information has value to companies — even when the person’s name is not associated with it — is that advertisers can use the data to send targeted ads to groups of people based on certain details they share. The information contained in these consumer profiles is becoming so detailed, however, that when paired with other data sets that include location information, it could be possible to target specific individuals, Keserű said. Location data can “expose sophisticated insights about people’s health status, through their visits to places like hospitals or abortions clinics,” Mozilla’s report said, adding that “companies like Google have been reported to keep such data even after promising to delete it.” A 2023 report by Duke University revealed that data brokers were selling sensitive data on individuals’ mental health conditions on the open market. While many brokers deleted personal identifiers, some provided names and addresses of individuals seeking mental health assistance, according to the report. In two public surveys conducted as part of the research, Keserű said, participants were outraged and felt exploited in scenarios where their health data were sold for a profit without their knowledge. “We need a new approach to our digital interactions that recognizes the fundamental rights of individuals to safeguard their bodily data, an issue that speaks directly to human autonomy and dignity,” Keserű said. “As technology continues to advance, it is critical that our laws and practices evolve to meet the unique challenges of this era.” Consumers often take part in these technologies without fully understanding the implications. Last month, Elon Musk suggested on X that users submit X-rays, PET scans, MRIs and other medical images to Grok, the platform’s artificial intelligence chatbot, to seek diagnoses. The issue alarmed privacy experts, but many X users heeded Musk’s call and submitted health information to the chatbot. While X’s privacy policy says that the company will not sell user data to third parties, it does share some information with certain business partners. Gaps in existing laws have allowed the widespread sharing of biometric and other body-related data. Health information provided to hospitals, doctor’s offices and medical insurance companies is protected from disclosure under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act , known as HIPAA, which established federal standards protecting such information from release without the patient’s consent. But health data collected by many wearable devices and health and wellness apps don’t fall under HIPAA’s umbrella, said Suzanne Bernstein, counsel at Electronic Privacy Information Center. “In the U.S. because we don’t have a comprehensive federal privacy law ... it falls to the state level,” she said. But not every state has weighed in on the issue. Washington, Nevada and Connecticut all recently passed laws to provide safeguards for consumer health data. Washington, D.C., in July introduced legislation that aimed to require tech companies to adhere to strengthened privacy provisions regarding the collection, sharing, use or sale of consumer health data. In California, the California Privacy Rights Act regulates how businesses can use certain types of sensitive information, including biometric information, and requires them to offer consumers the ability to opt out of disclosure of sensitive personal information. “This information being sold or shared with data brokers and other entities hypercharge the online profiling that we’re so used to at this point, and the more sensitive the data, the more sophisticated the profiling can be,” Bernstein said. “A lot of the sharing or selling with third parties is outside the scope of what a consumer would reasonably expect.” Health information has become a prime target for hackers seeking to extort healthcare agencies and individuals after accessing sensitive patient data. Health-related cybersecurity breaches and ransom attacks increased more than 4,000% between 2009 and 2023, targeting the booming market of body-centric data, which is expected to exceed $500 billion by 2030, according to the report. “Nonconsensual data sharing is a big issue,” Keserű said. “Even if it’s biometric data or health data, a lot of the companies are just sharing that data without you knowing, and that is causing a lot of anxiety and questions.” ©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

"Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum." Section 1.10.32 of "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum", written by Cicero in 45 BC "Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo. Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem. Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?" 1914 translation by H. Rackham "But I must explain to you how all this mistaken idea of denouncing pleasure and praising pain was born and I will give you a complete account of the system, and expound the actual teachings of the great explorer of the truth, the master-builder of human happiness. No one rejects, dislikes, or avoids pleasure itself, because it is pleasure, but because those who do not know how to pursue pleasure rationally encounter consequences that are extremely painful. Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure. To take a trivial example, which of us ever undertakes laborious physical exercise, except to obtain some advantage from it? But who has any right to find fault with a man who chooses to enjoy a pleasure that has no annoying consequences, or one who avoids a pain that produces no resultant pleasure?" 1914 translation by H. Rackham "But I must explain to you how all this mistaken idea of denouncing pleasure and praising pain was born and I will give you a complete account of the system, and expound the actual teachings of the great explorer of the truth, the master-builder of human happiness. No one rejects, dislikes, or avoids pleasure itself, because it is pleasure, but because those who do not know how to pursue pleasure rationally encounter consequences that are extremely painful. Nor again is there anyone who loves or pursues or desires to obtain pain of itself, because it is pain, but because occasionally circumstances occur in which toil and pain can procure him some great pleasure. To take a trivial example, which of us ever undertakes laborious physical exercise, except to obtain some advantage from it? But who has any right to find fault with a man who chooses to enjoy a pleasure that has no annoying consequences, or one who avoids a pain that produces no resultant pleasure?" To keep reading, please log in to your account, create a free account, or simply fill out the form below.Knicks flip-flop, get flattened in loss to Mavericks