'They just have to ruin everything good'

'Protecting his own interests'

Is nuclear energy the clear path to the future? Many people would say so, and in recent years, there’s been a renewed interest in producing small, efficient nuclear reactors. However, in 2024, the Prohibiting Uranium Imports Act issued a blow to the industry. Suddenly, the demand for domestic enriched uranium skyrocketed. LIS Technologies is rising […]

News Tron: Ares Tron: Ares Wonders: What if AI Took on Kaiju-Sized Proportions? By Vanessa Armstrong | Published on April 7, 2025 Credit: Walt Disney Studios Comment 0 Share New Share Credit: Walt Disney Studios Tron: it’s not just inside your computer anymore! That’s the premise of the befuddling film Tron: Ares, the latest installment in the franchise that is Tron. In this latest movie, we see the digital world step outside the digital realm and into the big city, as evidenced by scenes in the recently released trailer. In it, we see Tron’s iconic cycles cut a police car in half, and some super-large, kaiju-esque creature thunder through skyscrapers as people look up in terror.Here’s the official logline of the film, which puts these moments in context: Tron: Ares follows a highly sophisticated Program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind’s first encounter with AI beings. The movie is helmed by director Joachim Rønning, whose previous credits include Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Maleficent, and Young Woman and the Sea. It stars Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Hasan Minhaj, Jodie Turner-Smith, Arturo Castro, and Cameron Monaghan. Gillian Anderson also plays a part (and we have the good fortune to see a glimpse of her in this trailer), and Jeff Bridges also reprises his role as Kevin Flynn, the protagonist of the original 1982 film. The trailer teases an original score by Nine Inch Nails, if you were looking for further inklings on the vibe this film is going for. Tron: Ares downloads into theaters on October 10, 2025. Check out the trailer below. [end-mark] The post <i>Tron: Ares</i> Wonders: What if AI Took on Kaiju-Sized Proportions? appeared first on Reactor.

Movies & TV Yellowjackets The Yellowjackets Going Home Isn’t “How the Story Ends” (Yet) Yellowjackets never say die… unless the Wilderness wants it. By Natalie Zutter | Published on April 7, 2025 Credit: Kailey Schwerman/Paramount+ with Showtime Comment 0 Share New Share Credit: Kailey Schwerman/Paramount+ with Showtime Shauna tries to be queen bee in both timelines, Tai and Other Tai duke it out, and Natalie Scatorccio finds a new way to break our hearts. Recap Credit: Kailey Schwerman/Paramount+ with Showtime Melissa does in fact eat the piece of her own flesh that Shauna helpfully bit off, but then she one-ups her ex by spitting shreds of skin in her face and making a run for it in her car… which is, as her wife reminded us last week, out of gas. At the hospital, Van has a vision of her teen self imploring her to embark on a hero’s journey like in The Goonies, so she unhooks herself from the hospital bed and rallies Tai and Misty out the door. On their way to Alex’s house, they run into Melissa, stranded on the side of the road, literally tackling her and dragging her back to her own house, where Shauna is trying to clean up the signs of their fight while neglecting to wipe the blood off her own face first. (I think it’s comforting.) Shauna and Melissa basically state their respective cases to the rest of their former teammates, who don’t appreciate having to clean up another one of Shauna’s messes; and now Melissa knows about Adam, which makes Shauna all but threaten to murder her. In the Wilderness, Shauna’s pronouncement has predictably split the team into two factions. Tai’s clarification that they should leave at some point, just not right now since they have cannibalism evidence to clean up, doesn’t convince anyone, not when Shauna is stalking around the camp with the rifle and a scowl. So the Yellowjackets settle back in for now: putting Kodi and Hannah (sans shoes) in the animal pen, Nat conferring with Akilah and Gen, Misty trying (unsuccessfully) to play double agent to suck up to Shauna and co. The Wilderness’ various couples confer over the dubious decision to stay. In the woods, Van begs Tai to change her mind, reminding her that they all blocked out what last winter was like. “We survived,” Tai says with a look in her eyes that indicates Other Tai might be speaking. “We ate a fucking kid,” Van grates out, becuase yes, it bears repeating. In the village, Shauna snaps at Melissa for daring to strike up a rapport with Hannah, which only gets worse when Melissa mentions Hannah’s kid. When Melissa refuses to be cowed like the others, Shauna makes an example of her, shooting a bullet to graze her sleeve and causing her to wet herself. (Ugh, the public humiliation of it all.) In the present, Misty peels off to meet up with Walter via a helicopter ride to his lavish cabin retreat, where he makes her a chocolate martini and she swipes Lottie’s cloned phone before once again ditching her fellow citizen detective. Melissa pulls the flue shut so that the house will be filled with carbon monoxide, but it’s unclear whether she intended to incapacitate everyone, herself included, or actually kill them. Van and her oxygen machine save the day, as she heroically drags them out one-by-one, reviving them with the oxygen; in the case of Tai, it finally banishes Other Tai (at least for now) and the real one gets to kiss her beloved before it’s too late. Because then Van cuts Melissa’s bonds so that they can be face-to-face when Van kills her as the latest Wilderness sacrifice. Yet when it comes down to it, she can’t be a cold-blooded killer… but apparently Melissa can! She stabs Van, who confronts her death alongside her teenage self back on the plane just like Nat last season. Speaking of cold-bloodedness, Nat sneaks a knife to Hannah to cut their bonds at night and escape with them. But her fear at being caught, coupled with paranoia over whether Kodiak is who he says he is, prompts Hannah to stab him through the eye (!) and pretend like he was the mastermind of the escape. Teen Misty’s antics as double agent between the factions pays off unexpectedly when she spots Van sneaking off to the plane wreckage looking for anything to repair the satellite phone with. Of course, only Misty knows where the transponder (that she destroyed) is; and apparently, the crucial part is left intact. A horrified Nat stumbles upon Misty’s knowledge of the transponder, but Double 0 Quigley is just beaming as she says, “I know how to get us home!” Commentary Credit: Kailey Schwerman/Paramount+ with Showtime RIP Kodiak, though I’m impressed by Hannah’s quick thinking in aligning herself with the Yellowjackets’ pack after she saw how much he and Shauna clashed. Having watched her buddy up to Melissa makes it clear that this is all manipulation; she establishes herself as an authority, praises the Yellowjackets’ survival tactics as greater than even the horny frogs, and appeals to them as a woman who made it out of adolescence and even has a daughter of her own. As a side note, I don’t think that teen Shauna takes it seriously that Hannah has a kid, but it seems obvious during her conversation with Melissa that she feels some jealousy, at the idea of this interloper gets to be a mother, gets to claim a living child, gets to be regarded as someone not grieving an empty space like Shauna is. The Yellowjackets have historically not really respected their elders out here, but Hannah’s mix of scientific and sociological perspective is very savvy, playing an older sister or even maternal role with them. While I have my theories that she might be Pit Girl, I’m very curious to see how much she embeds herself into the group before then. Or… could she even become the Antler Queen?! The confirmation that teen Van has been practicing sleight-of-hand with the cards adds extra weight to her and Tai’s adult selves playing Wilderness hunt games in public. It had definitely seemed as if something were going on when Tai picked the card to shoot Ben, but knowing for sure that Van could decide who to save—and who to hunt and eat—while letting the others absolve themselves by believing it was all entirely random is a gutting revelation. No wonder adult Van has looked so haunted since last season, and seems to be making her peace with death finally claiming her. Jeff and Callie’s plotline has been a whole lot of sitting around at the motel, this week sharing a joint, but I did notice a new dimension to their interactions in this episode. Putting aside the Joels’ creepy assumption from last week that Jeff was having an affair with a younger woman, there is clearly an odd nostalgia factor in their father/daughter hangouts. Jeff gets to regress to his teen self, unencumbered by marital issues and furniture company competition, in a way that he couldn’t even as a kid when he was embroiled in Jackie and Shauna’s love triangle. Callie is like a younger Shauna (don’t make it weird), but without as much emotional baggage. What do we think teen Van meant when she said “surviving this was never the reward”—this being the Wilderness? The past season starting with the blackmail and Lottie’s cult? At any rate, Van’s death still falls more on the side of senseless, though Autostraddle’s recap does make a keen point about the fact that poor Van has been in a bit of a Final Destination loop with several near-death experiences since the plane crash. Melissa murdering Van didn’t really land, not least because of her convoluted wording about the Wilderness. Considering that she never much bought into the rituals, and that she was actively trying to atone for her survivor’s guilt, making a sacrifice just doesn’t carry the same weight for her. If she were worried about one of the Yellowjackets outing her to Alex and their child, she’s just ensured that they’ll blow up her life out of spite. But since she goes on the run, maybe she’s hoping the Wilderness will protect her on the road à la Lottie and the pit. A bit of a baffling moment, that, but I’m hoping there’s a rational explanation. Like maybe she has tested out this pit before (albeit before the addition of the stakes) and knew how lightly to step. I don’t buy that the Wilderness was protecting her from becoming prey, but I also see how she could lead Travis to reinvest his belief in the supernatural through her. What do we think Misty saw on Lottie’s cloned phone? Potentially proof that Walter murdered her, as Misty was poking holes in his story and bolted with the phone while he wasn’t looking. Though that also could have been her being so single-minded that she left after she got what she needed. It tracks that Nat would be the one to know about Misty and the transponder, and that she would carry that secret with her throughout their adult lives. The visual of teen Nat sobbing as the first winter flurries slowly came down was devastating in how it communicated her dread and almost (almost!) dampened my enthusiasm for the next stage of the Yellowjackets’ Wilderness rituals. Fingers and Ears Credit: Darko Sikman/Paramount+ with Showtime How in the world would Misty recognize Melissa twenty-five years later and without her trusty backwards hat? I hope that Jeff’s stoned “ladies who lunch”/“look at this leg” bit was improv, but either way it was delightful. Between Van’s Goonies reference and his unhinged phone cameo in The White Lotus, now I want to see Ke Huy Quan get cast next season. Next week’s season finale teases the hunt we saw in the pilot…![end-mark] The post The <i>Yellowjackets</i> Going Home Isn’t “How the Story Ends” (Yet) appeared first on Reactor.

Conservative media outlet Newsmax took center stage last week as CEO Christopher Ruddy rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, marking a major milestone for the news company.  The NYSE welcomes @NEWSMAX in honor of its IPO. $NMAX https://t.co/B48I6iaQZi— NYSE ? (@NYSE) April 3, 2025 In a feature last week, Britain’s Financial Times described Newsmax as a “credible” player with significant potential for growth and “one of the most interesting entrepreneurial bets of the Trump era.”  Newsmax reached an impressive market capitalization of nearly $30 billion during its opening week on the exchange, indicating strong investor interest.  Financial Times warned not to “discount the network’s influence in right-wing circles” or the “opportunity to build a meaningful business over time.”  Despite the general decline in viewership of traditional cable television, the Financial Times stated, “Billionaire founder Christopher Ruddy is simply wagering that even a dying industry can support a new entrant, if it produces content people want.”  With over 40 million regular American viewers and recognition by the Reuters Institute as one of the top 12 U.S. news brands last year, Newsmax is proving to be a formidable competitor in a crowded market.  The Financial Times said Newsmax’s shows “stack up well against Fox News,” but that the company has barely begun monetizing its subscribers.   “Expect Newsmax to begin charging distributors a sum that is more in line with its own ratings and that of the peers it is already challenging in viewership figures,” the Times wrote, citing the company’s ability to grow its cable licensing fees in the next few years.  The report also highlighted Newsmax’s upcoming streaming platform, which is currently in the works. Newsmax will capitalize on the lucrative digital market by offering a subscription tier costing $4.99 per month.  In a June 2024 interview with The Daily Signal, Ruddy explained “the biggest reason” for bringing Newsmax to the stock exchange: “We thought, wouldn’t it be great to have tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, of co-owners [and] partners with Newsmax that are fighting for us [and] have a stake in our success?”  Ruddy started Newsmax in 1998 after working as a journalist for the New York Post and Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He has since shaped the company into one of the top news platforms in the U.S. and a rising force reshaping the landscape of conservative media.  The post Bell Rung, Gauntlet Thrown: Newsmax Takes on Fox with $30B Market Cap appeared first on The Daily Signal.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. With a necessary reality check, a UK tribunal has told the government that, no, it cannot hold a secret legal battle against Apple over encryption. The Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), the body meant to oversee the country’s surveillance powers, has dismissed efforts by the Home Office to keep the entire case hidden from public view. And in doing so, it has delivered a quietly important win for press freedom and digital rights. Although, things are far from over. The case revolves around Apple’s Advanced Data Protection system, or ADP. It’s a security feature that gives users the option to encrypt their iCloud data in a way that even Apple itself cannot access. Not through a backdoor, not with a master key, not at all. It’s the kind of robust end-to-end encryption that governments around the world have grown increasingly nervous about. The UK, it turns out, is no exception. More: UK’s iCloud Encryption Crackdown Explained: Your Questions Answered on Apple’s Decision and How it Affects You The Home Office had tried to argue that even disclosing the existence of the case could jeopardize national security. But the tribunal wasn’t persuaded. In its published ruling, it said: “It would have been a truly extraordinary step to conduct a hearing entirely in secret without any public revelation of the fact that a hearing was taking place.” The government’s request challenged press freedom, veering into the territory of democracy-by-blindfold. The tribunal concluded that sharing “the bare details of the case” would not, in fact, bring down the roof on national security. We obtained a copy of the judgement for you here. So now, the legal battle moves into the public eye, where it belongs, and where the dangerous surveillance law can be challenged. Apple’s stance has been consistent. The company says it has no technical means to access ADP-protected data, and it does not intend to build one. The rationale is simple: once you create a vulnerability in encryption, you’ve weakened the system for everyone. Law enforcement may be the intended user, but malicious actors don’t tend to respect boundaries. Earlier this year, Apple pulled ADP from UK devices entirely, after pressure from the government. It then filed a legal challenge in March, drawing a firm line in the sand over what it’s willing to compromise. The Home Office, for its part, insists that it isn’t trying to snoop on the public. It reiterated that any attempt to access encrypted material requires a warrant, signed off by a court. “There are longstanding and targeted investigatory powers that allow the authorities to investigate terrorists, pedophiles, and the most serious criminals and they are subject to robust safeguards including judicial authorizations and oversight to protect people’s privacy,” it said. That’s all fine in principle. However, the government’s attempt to keep this particular legal process secret has made its definition of “robust safeguards” look worryingly vague. Transparency, it turns out, is not optional when it comes to decisions that affect the rights of millions of people. The implications of this case don’t stop at the UK’s borders. As governments around the world weigh stronger surveillance powers in the name of public safety, Apple’s refusal, and the tribunal’s decision to force the case into the open, set a precedent. Weakening encryption isn’t simply a matter of local law enforcement convenience. It’s a global issue that affects anyone who relies on secure communication. The IPT has also confirmed it will hear the case brought by Privacy International, Liberty, and two individuals who are challenging the legality of the Home Secretary’s decision to use her powers to secretly compel Apple to compromise its own security systems. If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post UK Tribunal Blocks Government’s Attempt to Keep Apple Surveillance Case Secret appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

Big Anti-Trump, Anti-Musk Protests Around the Country

Credit: Center for Big Bend StudiesIn a remote cave system within West Texas’s San Esteban Rock, researchers have made an extraordinary discovery: a 6,500-year-old cache of ancient hunting equipment, buried deep within the cavern. This remarkable collection includes weapons and personal items that offer a rare and vivid glimpse into the tools and daily practices of the region’s prehistoric inhabitants. The excavation, conducted by the Center for Big Bend Studies (CBBS) with support from the University of Kansas’ Odyssey Archaeological Research Fund, has yielded a complete set of hunting tools that archaeologists had previously only hypothesized about. Among the artifacts are stone points crafted for use with atlatls—spear-throwing devices that allowed hunters to launch projectiles with greater force and accuracy. Devin Pettigrew, a weapons expert and associate professor at CBBS, noted the significance of the find: “While we’re missing the proximal end of the atlatl handle, the surviving pieces provide enough context to reconstruct its likely appearance and function.” Adding to the cache’s historical importance are four wooden points, which may have been designed to deliver poison, along with broken dart tips and a rare straight boomerang—an unusual artifact for this region and time period. What makes this discovery particularly exceptional is the astonishing preservation of the materials. Unlike many fragmented archaeological finds from this era, these hunting tools remain in a condition that allows researchers to study their construction and use in unprecedented detail. Beyond weaponry, the site contained a folded reindeer hide, still retaining patches of hair, as well as traces of human waste. These findings suggest that the cave served not only as a storage site for weapons but also as a temporary living space. The hide’s edges bear small holes, indicating traditional hide-working techniques—likely evidence of hunters softening the material by stretching it on a frame. The folded hide, preserved across millennia, offers an intimate connection to the daily lives of these ancient people. Meanwhile, the deliberate arrangement of the artifacts—particularly the broken dart tips—hints that they may have held symbolic or ceremonial significance beyond their practical use. Louis Bond of Texas Parks and Wildlife described the mechanics of the atlatl system: the spear’s front end was fitted into a socket on the main shaft, while its tip aligned with the atlatl’s spur, enabling hunters to launch darts with both power and precision. This sophisticated technology underscores the deep knowledge early peoples possessed, allowing them to track and hunt large game in the challenging environment of ancient Texas. Bryon Schroeder, director of CBBS, hailed the discovery as “monumental” for its ability to fill critical gaps in the archaeological record. “What we have here are incredible snapshots of life—glimpses into how these people lived, the environment they navigated, and how they adapted to it,” he explained. The post 6,500-Year-Old Hunting Kit Found in West Texas Cave appeared first on Anomalien.com.