ISSUE #01
GENERAL HEADLINES
Amazon but it’s not Prime?
This week Amazon just got served. The FTC and 17 states accused the trillion-dollar e-commerce company of being an illegal monopoly. This is the 4th lawsuit against Amazon from the FTC this year and probably the one with the most severe consequences. Yup, the company that can procure a Ryan Gosling cutout in 24 hours is being accused of violating US antitrust legislation.
So, what is Amazon being accused of? Allegedly, Amazon abused its power by punishing sellers who offered lower prices on competitor platforms, which then resulted in higher prices for consumers. Additionally, sellers were also allegedly forced to use Amazon’s logistics and advertising services or face penalties such as reduced visibility.
What will it take to satisfy the FTC? The FTC has asked for a permanent injunction so that Amazon can put a stop to the alleged misconduct. However, an Amazon spokesperson replied that if the FTC wins, prices will increase, and delivery speeds will slow down.
Let ChatGPT cook!
ChatGPT aficionados this snippet is for you, OpenAI recently revealed an update to ChatGPT earlier last week that enables it to speak to you which can result in conversations that are more complex than “(Insert AI assistant name here), what is 2 + 2.”
What makes ChatGPT different?
• ChatGPT is based on a large language model (an algorithm trained on vast amounts of data), allowing it to have a free-flowing, seemingly endless dialogue with its human prompter.
• Meanwhile, most digital assistants have only been programmed with responses to a narrow set of questions. Amazon and Apple are racing to infuse large language models into their products, but OpenAI beat them to it. ChatGPT has another edge on the competition because its five voices sound much more like people.
According to OpenAI, the feature is rolling out to ChatGPT Plus customers in the next two weeks and will be accessible to everyone else “soon after.” Along with giving ChatGPT a voice, OpenAI also enabled the chatbot to respond to images you show it. So, in a use case that would be totally beneath our readers (nudge, nudge, wink, wink), you could theoretically take a picture of your math homework and have ChatGPT solve it for you.
Cheers to Google
Earlier last week, the company responsible for one of the world’s most used web browsers celebrated its 25th birthday. Google has been around for longer than I have and has been many people’s partner in plagiarization.
By Samar Shah
MEDICAL
A workout from home, without moving a muscle?
Earlier on this week a new drug has been put under animal testing and the results found are shocking. A team of researchers led by a University of Florida professor of pharmacology have trialed a compound known as an estrogen receptor-related (ERR) agonist called SLU-PP-332. This drug was tested on a group of obese mice with one group given the drug through injection, and the other, the control group, treated normally. Both groups consumed the same amount of food and exercised equally, however, the group that had been given the drug through two doses a day for a month saw a 10x decrease in fat gain and an overall 12% loss in bodyweight. As well as this, the drug also saw that the affected mice could run for 70% longer when on the drug and 40% when off.
But how does this miracle drug do this?
SLU-PP-332 works not by affecting appetite or mood, but by acting as an “exercise memetic”, a class of drug that affects the body in a similar way to exercising. The drug accesses a natural metabolic pathway and has an effect similar to working out everyday as said by Thomas Burris (Professor leading the research) - “This compound is basically telling skeletal muscle to make the same changes you see during endurance training,”.
So what’s next, when can I get a hand on this stuff?
As of now, there have not been many noticeable large side effects, however, this field of drugs are currently still being studied and are hard to bring to the market due to their need for many years of studying. The current focus for the drug is to make it more accessible than an injection, potentially into a consumable, to which this drug will also be trialed on a plethora of other animals first before human testing begins, quoted from Dr. Heinz “Improved versions of SLU-PP-332 are in development and are being optimized so that they can enter clinical trials in the near future,” and so for now we can only hope and look towards the horizon as new medical research is sure to come forward in the future.
By Rami Alfahad
WAR & CONFLICT
Israel attacked again on its holiest day on the Jewish Calendar.
The surprise rocket and infiltration attacks from Hamas on Israel come on the 50th anniversary of the 1973 War, a surprise attack by Israel's Arab neighbors which began on October 6, 1973. Israel calls the war the Yom Kippur War, as the blitz began on Yom Kippur.
The conflict began with Egypt and Syria sending in troops in the hopes they could retake territory in the Golan Heights and the Sinai Peninsula previously seized by Israel in June of 1967 during the Six-Day War.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia, Sudan, Morocco and Jordan aided Egypt and Syria with troops, financial assistance and weapons. The Soviet Union airlifted supplies to the Arab combatants, while the United States provided aid to Israel.
The war ended with Israeli troops approaching Damascus and an entire Egyptian army surrounded.
5000 rockets fired at Israel, killing 40 people and injuring 200.
Now Hamas vows to seek revenge for what it calls “the illegal occupation of Palestine ”. So they launched a surprise attack on Israel. Launching 5000 unguided rockets in 20 minutes from the Gaza Strip and infiltration attacks on civilians.
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated, “we are at war”. In retaliation, Israel launched Operation "Swords of Iron" following Hamas attacks. The focus of the mission is to destroy Hamas. The IDAF or the Israeli Air Force has conducted a series of “precision bombings” of Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip as a result killing 196 people and injuring thousands.
By Tang Li
ECONOMICS
Inflation is at a decades-high in many countries around the world, driven by factors such as supply chain disruptions, the war in Ukraine, and strong consumer demand. Ukraine is known for being one of the top producers for wheat in the world, producing roughly 25 million tons of wheat in 2020. Since this an agricultural commodity, its demand is typically inelastic. Along with this, Ukraine is also key in producing oil; oil and gas accounts for 90% of all Ukrainian production, or at least it did before the devastating impacts of the war. Russia’s invasion decreases supply in Ukraine, causing a worldwide shortage in these commodities, and leading to an increase in price overall as a result of excess demand.
Central banks around the world are raising interest rates in an effort to combat inflation. This could make it more expensive for businesses to borrow money and invest, and could also lead to a slowdown in economic growth.
By Vihaan Poddar
SPORT
The Ryder Cup tournament comprises 28 18-hole matches played over three days, with each match worth one point. Matches can be won, lost, or tied, with tied matches earning each team half a point. Friday and Saturday include one session each of foursomes and fourball matches.
In the NBA an expected trade agreement was made between the Portland Trailblazers, Milwaukee, and the Phoenix Suns. Portland Trail Blazers receive: Jrue Holiday, Deandre Ayton, Toumani Camara, a 2028 first-round pick swap from Milwaukee, a 2029 first-round pick from Milwaukee and a 2030 first-round pick swap from Milwaukee Milwaukee Bucks receive: Damian Lillard Phoenix Suns receive: Jusuf Nurkić, Nassir Little, Keon Johnson and Grayson Allen This is an overall balanced trade as the trailblazers were able to get Jrue Holiday(all-star) and the 2016 number 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton who has been a solid player for the suns the past few seasons. The Bucks were able to get Damian Lillard who is one of the best point guards in the league, averaging over 32 points this season. And the Suns were able to get Allen and Nurkic who are both solid players.
By Ji Li
COMPUTER THEORY
System backup
In this article, we will discuss the importance of system backup and the consequences of data loss. Firstly, data loss is caused by a multitude of problems ranging from user error to natural disasters. We will discuss each of these, the reasons why they happen and how to prevent data loss effectively
User error – an employee or user could accidentally delete, overwrite or forget to save a file. This can be prevented through training but mistakes are inevitable meaning it can’t be countered indefinitely
Malicious activity – a third party could try to physically break your device storage which would corrupt all data. However, protecting your device and keeping watch of it can easily minimize the risk of this
Data theft – someone could physically or digitally steal data by stealing a storage device or hacking into a system. Physical safety through locked doors in the company headquarters accompanied by a strong firewall can mitigate these risks
Viruses and malware – trojan horses can be used which has the appearance of a useful software but carry out undesired and possibly harmful activities on the system in the background. Similarly, worms can be used which are a type of malware which duplicates itself once on the system which can be detrimental to a computer system. Both of these can be used for data corruption or theft meaning effective antivirus is necessary on a computer system to mitigate these risks. Users should also be trained to not be deceived by these and to avoid suspicious links or downloads.
Hardware malfunction – some pieces of hardware can have defects which, once crashed, can cause data corruption or loss. This can be prevented by having routine checkups on the system and ensuring all hardware is up to date by replacing legacy systems once ineffectiveness is detected. Cloud storage could be used to access data from anywhere with a stable internet however this creates a privacy risk through hacking and a risk of data loss if the cloud service provider is hacked or goes out of business.
Natural disasters – natural disasters can destroy servers or physical storage of data and can’t be prevented. However, the effects can be mitigated using cloud storage so data can be accessed remotely as well as securing backups of important files in safe locations which aren’t prone to damage by disasters.
The consequences of data loss are endless as loss of medical records could pose a serious health risk to the person due to the unavailability of valuable data relating to harmful conditions or allergies. Banking records contain personal data including a person’s name, address and more. If this data is stolen it poses the risk of identity theft which can be detrimental to one’s reputation or personal life. Similarly, user privacy can be leaked if a big company is hacked which creates a loss of trust between client and firm. As personal data is leaked users might switch allegiances to competitors which has financial implications on the company. These risks show the importance of system backups and why all computers should have effective systems to protect against data loss.
By Ayaan Cassim
