All posts tagged: Local

Man at City Council Meeting Makes Devastating Case Against Proposed Local Data Center

Man at City Council Meeting Makes Devastating Case Against Proposed Local Data Center

Published by José Betancourt

Sign up to see the future, today Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech The growing anger over the AI industry’s obsession with building massive and resource-intensive data centers across the country is as palpable than ever. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center highlighted widespread public concern over the facilities’ environmental harms, effects on home energy costs, and the quality of life of nearby residents. These concerns do seem justified. Experts have found that data centers can spike local electricity prices, generate copious amounts of greenhouse gases, and place a major strain on freshwater resources. Now, a self-described content creator and digital artist named Will Hollingsworth who spoke up during a city council meeting in Ravenna, Ohio — a small town of 11,000 residents — is turning heads with his passionate argument against data centers. The council’s chambers became overwhelmed with a crowd of almost 100 people during the April 10 meeting, which hosted a debate over a proposed 12-month moratorium on data center construction in the area inspired by …

Indian Oil Refiners Lining up Oil Cargoes to Meet Local Demand, Official Says

Indian Oil Refiners Lining up Oil Cargoes to Meet Local Demand, Official Says

Published by Sam Flores

NEW DELHI, ⁠April ⁠17 (Reuters) – Indian ⁠oil refiners are ​doing their best ‌to line-up oil ‌cargoes ⁠to ⁠meet local demand, an Indian ​government official said on Friday, ​after the United States ⁠decided ⁠not to ⁠extend a ​waiver from sanctions on ​crude ⁠purchases from Russia and Iran. The ⁠U.S. waiver for sanctioned Russian oil purchases ⁠expired on April 11 and the exemption on Iranian oil is due to end on ⁠April 19. (Reporting by Nidhi Verma, writing by Shilpa ​Jamkhandikar; Editing by ​YP Rajesh) Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters. Photos You Should See – April 2026 Source link

Replace Paid AI Subscriptions With Google’s Local Gemma 4

Replace Paid AI Subscriptions With Google’s Local Gemma 4

Published by skeptic

Google has introduced Gemma 4, an open source AI model designed to operate entirely offline, as highlighted by Zinho Automates. Based on Google’s Gemini LLM research, Gemma 4 allows users to process text, images, audio and video without requiring internet connectivity. Released under the Apache 2.0 license, it is free for both personal and commercial use. This offline functionality enhances data privacy and eliminates the need for subscriptions or external APIs, making it a practical option for industries requiring secure and cost-effective AI solutions. Discover how Gemma 4 supports tasks like document summarization, HTML generation, and visual data analysis while running locally on your device. Gain insight into its compatibility with platforms such as Google AI Studio and its four size configurations, E2B, E4B, 26B and 31B, that cater to different hardware capabilities. This breakdown will also examine its applications in sectors like healthcare, government and small business, focusing on how it integrates into workflows with an emphasis on security and efficiency. What Sets Gemma 4 Apart? TL;DR Key Takeaways : Offline Functionality: Gemma 4 …

I tried an abliterated local LLM and it feels nothing like the others

I tried an abliterated local LLM and it feels nothing like the others

Published by skeptic

Local LLMs are great for privacy; they run locally and require no subscription. That is, until you realize they suffer the same problems their cloud counterparts do: extremely restricted safety guardrails. Safety measures online are one thing, but if you’re running your AI model locally, bypassing them should be easy, right? Turns out, it actually is. If you’ve ever gone down the local LLM rabbit hole, you must have come across abliterated models. Local LLMs have already made cloud versions obsolete for certain tasks, and once you run them without restrictions, you’ll never look at regular models the same way. What abliterated LLMs actually are Stripped-down models with their guardrails removed Yadullah Abidi / MakeUseOf AI models go through a process called RLHF or reinforced learning from human feedback before launch. This process trains the model to refuse requests it deems harmful or sensitive. The model learns a specific direction in its activation space that teaches it what requests to refuse, hence implementing safety guardrails that prevent it from abuse when implemented in online services. …

Spanberger veto blocks Fairfax casino vote amid clash over local control

Spanberger veto blocks Fairfax casino vote amid clash over local control

Published by skeptic

Abigail Spanberger has stepped into a growing fight over gambling policy in Virginia, rejecting a bill that would have pushed Fairfax County toward a public vote on a proposed casino. The legislation, Senate Bill 756, focused on Tysons Corner and would have required the county’s Board of Supervisors to schedule a referendum, even though local leaders had already made clear they were not on board. By vetoing it, Spanberger sided with local officials and warned against letting the state override those decisions. Great news for Fairfax County, Northern Virginia and local control. Thank you @GovernorVA and thank you @JenniferBoysko and @WalterAlcornFFX for you leadership from the start https://t.co/2qFtgjsjmI — Barbara Comstock (@BarbaraComstock) April 9, 2026 “Local governing boards should lead on proposed casino development, as has happened in every locality that now has a casino,” said Spanberger in a press release. “But in Fairfax County, the Board of Supervisors has explicitly opposed this legislation, and an overwhelming majority of the General Assembly members who represent Fairfax voted against it.” Her move stops an effort by …

EastEnders’ Vicki and Zack caught out amid affair story by mystery local

EastEnders’ Vicki and Zack caught out amid affair story by mystery local

Published by Daniella Wilson

It was only a matter of time before someone else caught Vicki Fowler (Alice Haig) and Zack Hudson (James Farrar) in the act. The EastEnders love triangle story is in full swing, and despite Kathy Beale’s (Gillian Taylforth) earlier reservations and warning against it, the two just can’t resist one another. This is despite the fact Vicki is engaged to Ross Marshall (Alex Walkinshaw), and their wedding prep is seemingly full steam ahead with the organisation of hen and stag parties. Denise, Kim and Chelsea Fox (Diane Parish, Tameka Empson and Zaraah Abrahams) turned up on Vicki’s doorstep in today’s episode, dressed up in ’60s style wigs and costumes. They told her to turn up at Harry’s Barn that evening, though she couldn’t help but feel that it wasn’t an appropriate time to celebrate. She’d learnt that Ross’s son Joel (Max Murray) – who almost killed her last year – had only received six months in a young offenders institute and therefore would be returning to Walford sooner than expected. Although she told Ross that …

Our local universe’s expansion rate doesn’t add up, astronomers find

Our local universe’s expansion rate doesn’t add up, astronomers find

Published by Jenni Sidey

A difference of a few kilometers per second might not sound like much. In cosmology, it has become one of the field’s most stubborn problems. An international team of astronomers has now delivered one of the sharpest direct measurements yet of how fast the nearby Universe is expanding, and the answer again lands on the high side. Their new value for the Hubble constant, the number used to describe that expansion rate, is 73.50 ± 0.81 kilometers per second per megaparsec. That is just over 1% precision. It also keeps the long-running Hubble tension very much alive. The result, published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, comes from the H0 Distance Network Collaboration, or H0DN. The project grew out of a March 2025 workshop at the International Space Science Institute in Bern, Switzerland, where researchers from across the field worked to build a shared framework for combining local measurements of cosmic distance. This graphic represents the tension that exists between measurements of the expansion rate of the late, nearby Universe, versus what would be expected based on …

Starmer forced into new local elections climbdown

Starmer forced into new local elections climbdown

Published by Sam Flores

Sir Keir Starmer has made another U-turn over when local elections can be held in a further victory for The Telegraph’s Campaign for Democracy. Labour is to change the law to prevent the Government from postponing local elections for more than a year for councils undergoing local government reorganisation. The amendment has been laid to its English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, limiting any delays to a maximum of 53 weeks. The Telegraph’s Campaign for Democracy forced the Prime Minister to abandon his controversial plans to delay 30 contests across the country, denying 4.6 million people the right to vote on May 7. Opposition parties claimed Labour was cancelling the contests, some for the second year in a row, to avoid embarrassing defeats at the ballot box. Exclusive polling for The Telegraph revealed Labour majorities on 10 of the councils would be wiped out if the elections went ahead. Reform UK launched a judicial review into the delays and, in February, Steve Reed, the Local Government Secretary, reversed the decision. Ministers had argued councils could …

How to Safely Install OpenClaw Local vs VPS

How to Safely Install OpenClaw Local vs VPS

Published by skeptic

OpenClaw is an AI assistant designed to simplify task management and enhance productivity through automation. With features like persistent memory and dual modes—“Plan” for organizing tasks and “Do” for executing them—it adapts to your preferences over time, making it a versatile choice for both personal and professional use. In a detailed guide by Howfinity, you’ll find step-by-step instructions for installing OpenClaw, whether locally on a dedicated machine or on a virtual private server (VPS). Each method offers unique benefits, such as greater control with local setups or enhanced security and uptime with VPS deployment, making sure you can tailor the installation to your specific needs. This guide also provide more insights into practical applications and best practices for using OpenClaw effectively. Learn how to integrate it with platforms like WhatsApp or Telegram, configure custom workflows and implement security measures such as isolating installations on dedicated devices. Additionally, you’ll discover how to expand its functionality by adding skills for tasks like email summarization or team collaboration. By the end, you’ll have a clear understanding of how …