Umerov: More than $260 million in violations discovered at Defense Ministry

Internal audits and investigations at Ukraine's Defense Ministry over the past four months have uncovered more than Hr 10 billion ($260 million) in violations committed previously, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov announced on Jan. 8.

Two major corruption scandals preceded the ousting of previous Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, one regarding inflated prices for food supplies and the other connected to low-quality winter jackets.

When introducing Umerov as Reznikov's successor in September 2023, President Volodymyr Zelensky named increased transparency in defense procurement as one of the new minister's key tasks.

https://news.yahoo.com/umerov-more-260-million-violations-221449040.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9zdHJhbmdlc291bmRzLnN1YnN0YWNrLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAEIq1uBeNFn8dmxkg7eysE71Kj-CuaRqFd_0GF2d-H-emuIcwBa6mx5rXl5rrhuwz-UL_b8Gq6ukuBoF0MZ4V-MNUdVlWY8eXZgoQleKQOpPrCVEFhpWJ9uqEfHqTt_N-Q09d0wHAKqTIXT2Z0Mgi9jquevGBi3GxwEkEcXI_O9d

Swiss Senate Commission rejects using Russian assets for Ukraine reconstruction

Russian assets, frozen as part of the international sanctions on Moscow, are causing division in the Swiss parliament.

A Senate commission has rejected a series of motions from the House of Representatives urging the Swiss government to commit to allowing Ukraine to use these funds for reconstruction.

Last September, the House of Representatives largely adopted a series of similar motions supported by all political groups, except the Swiss People’s Party. According to these motions, the frozen assets of the Russian state and related entities should be able to be paid as reparations to Ukraine. The Federal Council (executive body), which was in favour of this proposal, should take steps to establish the necessary legal frameworks at the international level.

https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/business/swiss-senate-commission-rejects-using-russian-assets-for-ukraine-reconstruction/49114294

Former president of northern B.C. pride organization charged with committing child-sex crimes

Sean Gravells faces sexual interference, exploitation and child pornography charges: B.C. Prosecution Service

The former president of a northern British Columbia pride organization has been arrested and charged with committing sex crimes against children under 16, according to the B.C. Prosecution Service.

The charges against Sean Gravells, 39, include touching a person under 16 for sexual purposes, sexual interference of a person under 16, possession of child pornography, and importing or distributing child pornography, BCPS spokesperson Dan McLaughlin told CBC News in an emailed statement on Monday.

The alleged offences all took place in or near Fort St. John, B.C., about 800 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, McLaughlin said. The interference and exploitation charges are for alleged offences on Dec. 29, 2023, while the child pornography charges occurred on Dec. 31, he added.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/fort-st-john-man-charged-with-child-sex-crimes-1.7076997

In 41 US States, Richest 1% Pay Lower Tax Rates Than Everyone Else

"Almost nobody says we should have the richest pay the least. And yet when we look around the country, the vast majority of states have tax systems that do just that."

Nearly every state and local tax system in the U.S. is fueling the nation's inequality crisis by forcing lower- and middle-class families to contribute a larger share of their incomes than their rich counterparts, according to a new study published Tuesday.

Titled Who Pays?, the analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) examines in detail the tax systems of all 50 U.S. states, including the rates paid by different income segments.

In 41 states, ITEP found, the richest 1% are taxed at a lower rate than any other income group. Forty-six states tax the top 1% at a lower rate than middle-income families.

"When you ask people what they think a fair tax code looks like, almost nobody says we should have the richest pay the least," said ITEP research director Carl Davis. "And yet when we look around the country, the vast majority of states have tax systems that do just that."

https://www.commondreams.org/news/in-41-us-states-richest-1-pay-lower-tax-rates-than-everyone-else

Putin's anti-aging guru dead at 77 as wrench thrown into dictator's plan to live to 120

Russian President Vladimir Putin's anti-aging guru, Professor Vladimir Khavinson of the St. Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology, has died, throwing a wrench in the dictator's plans to rule for decades

Russian President Vladimir Putin's anti-aging guru died suddenly this week at the age of 77, throwing a massive wrench into the dictator's quest to prolong both his life and his dictatorial rule over the country.

Vladimir Khavinson, the director of the St. Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology, was found dead earlier this week. An official cause of death has not been revealed, but his passing could set back Putin's quest by years and harm his efforts to "win" re-election to another six-year term that could see him rule until 2030 or beyond, when he'll be nearing and entering his 80s.

Khavinson became famous for claiming that he was developing a groundbreaking anti-aging treatment that would allow anyone to live to 110 or even 120 years old by counteracting the process of aging. That claim led to Putin honoring the scientist with an award in 2017 in an elaborate ceremony at the Kremlin.

https://www.themirror.com/news/world-news/putins-anti-aging-guru-dead-275760

New material found by AI could reduce lithium use in batteries

A brand new substance, which could reduce lithium use in batteries, has been discovered using artificial intelligence (AI) and supercomputing.

The findings were made by Microsoft and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), which is part of the US Department of Energy.

Scientists say the material could potentially reduce lithium use by up to 70%.

Since its discovery the new material has been used to power a lightbulb.

Microsoft researchers used AI and supercomputers to narrow down 32 million potential inorganic materials to 18 promising candidates in less than a week - a screening process that could have taken more than two decades to carry out using traditional lab research methods.

The process from inception to the development of a working battery prototype took less than nine months.

The two organisations achieved this by using advanced AI and high-performance computing which combines large numbers of computers to solve complex scientific and mathematical tasks.

Executive vice president of Microsoft, Jason Zander, told the BBC one of the tech giant's missions was to "compress 250 years of scientific discovery into the next 25".

"And we think technology like this will help us do that. This is the way that this type of science I think is going to get done in the future," he said.

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-67912033