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2024 US Presidential Contest Could Be First "AI Election", Warns CEO

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2024 US Presidential Contest Could Be First 'AI Election', Warns CEO

The AI boss predicted foreign powers are likely to get involved.

In an era where technology blurs the lines between reality and fiction, the spectre of deepfakes created by artificial intelligence (AI) tools casts a long shadow over the democratic process. With the upcoming US presidential election looming, the spread of AI deepfakes poses a grave threat to the integrity of the electoral system. And the CEO of a prominent AI company has suggested that the technology could “threaten democracy” in the US unless it is controlled. Many prominent voices, including Elon Musk, have raised concern against the rapid spread of AI and Simona Vasyte is the latest to join the list.

“We’ve seen an AI-generated video of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ‘asking’ Ukrainian soldiers to lay down their weapons. It’s entirely possible to see similar generated videos of presidential candidates right before the election,” Ms Vasyte, the head of Perfection42, told Newsweek.

“Another tactic might be to encourage youth voters not to vote in the election with fake videos on TikTok… If the election is close, it might become a determining factor, and that is definitely concerning,” she added.

The AI boss predicted foreign powers are likely to get involved.

The incident Ms Vasyte talked about happened in March 2023, when an unknown group – believed to be hackers – uploaded a deepfake video onto a Ukrainian news website of Mr Zelensky telling his soldiers to stop fighting. It was debunked, but the news renewed concerns around how deepfakes could be used to influence politics.

Ms Vasyte pointed towards Russia, hinting it might interfere with the election using AI.

“It’s important to note that AI can be used not only for malicious but also for positive content generation, so in that case, it might be the first major ‘AI election’ where both parties will try to keep up with the changing game of campaigning,” she said while speaking to Newsweek.

“The closer the race, the bigger the impact of AI will be during the election period,” Ms Vasyte added.

The tech entrepreneur called for a strong legislation to check the rapid spread of deepfakes.

Hyderabad

Telangana: Morning jogger’s close shave with rogue elephant

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Still shocked over his near brush with death, Sudhakar recalled that he managed to reach a relative’s house out village outskirts and climbed atop it.

Published Date – 4 April 2024, 06:12 PM


Telangana: Morning jogger’s close shave with rogue elephant


Kondapalli: What was supposed to be an invigorating morning jog on Thursday, turned out to be a scary experience for Elkari Sudhakar, who managed to run away from a charging rogue elephant that trampled to death two villagers in the last 48 hours.

Forty-five-year Sudhakar, a former sapanch, was on his regular morning jog when he noticed a tree shaking violently signalling the presence of the tusker, near the farm where a villager Karu Posham was trampled to death minutes before.

“I realised I am going to face a problem. I began sprinting across the fields as the elephant, just about 10 yards away started charging. I managed to outpace it”, Sudhakar recounted his harrowing experience.

Still shocked over his near brush with death, Sudhakar recalled that he managed to reach a relative’s house out village outskirts and climbed atop it.

From the rooftop, he could see two other unsuspecting morning joggers Upasi Sanjeev and Srikanth. Alerted by his shouts, they ran back into the village.

It was Sanjeev and Srikanth, who mustered their courage later after the wild elephant disappeared and went into the fields. They found the twisted body of Posham, who was attacked by the pachyderm.

They later alerted the police and forest officials. The villagers who noticed the elephant recalled that it had trumpeted at least four times.

Interestingly, it did not damage a water melon and other crops through which it passed before attacking the farmer

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Alaya F advocates for return of platform shoes, dislikes ‘tiny heels’

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Alaya expressed her desire to revive the trend of platform shoes, emphasizing proper platform heels. She particularly admires the platform sneakers being embraced by Gen-Z, admitting her obsession with them.

Updated On – 4 April 2024, 03:18 PM


Alaya F advocates for return of platform shoes, dislikes ‘tiny heels’


Mumbai: Actress Alaya F has talked about a fashion trend she would like to bring back and said it would be “platform shoes and heels”.

The actress also shared that she is “obsessed” with platform sneakers and wears them all the time.

Talking to IANS about style, Alaya said: “A fashion trend that I would like to bring back is platform shoes. Proper platform heels. I think Gen-Z’s are bringing platform sneakers that I love. I am obsessed with platform sneakers.”

“I wear platform sneakers all the time and now that it is back in fashion there are so many options for nice platform sneakers,” she added.

The 26-year-old actress reveals why she is happy to see “platform heels” coming back to the spotlight.

“Although we are also seeing platform heels sort of coming back to the spotlight because I love a nice big heel. There’s nothing that irritates me more than those really tiny heels. What is the point of it also? So, yeah, nice big chunky heels (is what I like).”

Hyderabad

TSDCA nabs quacks prescribing expensive antibiotics to patients

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During the course of the raids, the TSDCA seized substantial stocks of antibiotics, steroids, analgesics, anti-diabetics, anti-hypertensive etc. worth Rs 47, 000.

Updated On – 4 April 2024, 05:44 PM


TSDCA nabs quacks prescribing expensive antibiotics to patients


Hyderabad: Continuing its crackdown on unqualified medical practitioners, the drug inspectors of Telangana State Drug Control Administration (TSDCA) raided premises of two quacks, one in Dammannapet, Warangal and another in Adilabad, who were treating patients and prescribing expensive antibiotics.

The quacks Abbidi Subash Reddy, Dammannapet village, Wardhannapet mandal, Warangal and Shaik Fareed from KRK Colony, Adilabad, without medical qualification were prescribing medicines and had stocked 31 and 21 varieties of different medicines respectively. During the course of the raids, the TSDCA seized substantial stocks of antibiotics, steroids, analgesics, anti-diabetics, anti-hypertensive etc. worth Rs 47, 000.

The TSDCA has warned wholesalers/dealers who supply medicines to such unqualified persons/unlicensed entities, who are stocking and selling drugs without a drug license that they are also punishable under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, and stringent action shall be taken against them.

“Wholesalers/Dealers should mandatorily ensure that the recipient entities hold a valid drug license before supplying medicines to them. The DCA, Telangana, issues drug licenses for the stocking and selling of medicines in accordance with the provisions of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and stocking drugs to sell is punishable,” DG, DCA, Kamalasan Reddy said.

Drug seizures for misleading advertisements

Meanwhile, the TSDCA during raids on Wednesday and Thursday at a medical shop in Palvancha, Bhadradri-Kothagudem district, detected a Homeopathic medicine ‘FEVO GO Syrup,’ manufactured by LDD Bioscience Pvt. Ltd., IMT Manesar, Gurugram, Haryana, circulating in the market with misleading claim on its label that it treats ‘all types of fever and typhoid’, which is a contravention of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954.

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"Pace Is Not Bought In Market": Rabada's Ultimate Praise For Mayank Yadav

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Mayank Yadav bowled the fastest delivery of the IPL, clocked at 156.7 kmph.© BCCI

Punjab Kings (PBKS) pacer Kagiso Rabada reserved big praise for young Indian tearaway quick Mayank Yadav, following an impressive start to his Indian Premier League (IPL) career. Mayank bowled the fastest delivery of the IPL, clocked at 155.8 kmph, on his debut for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) agaisnt Rabada’s PBKS. A couple of nights later, he bettered that mark with a searing 156.7 kmph delivery against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

Rabada praised Mayank for his raw talent and said that “pace cannot be bought from the market”.

“It’s just raw pace, man. He is really sharp, that’s obvious. It’s a massive weapon. He will always rush the batsman. And he’s showing some good control too. He was born with the pace. Pace is not bought in the market. That’s his genuine weapon,” Rabada told Hindustan Times in an interaction.

Rabada feels the teams will have to plan well against Mayank, who is making most of the two-bouncer rule in an over.

“The two bouncers are helping. He’s banging it in on a back of a length. And batters are trying to take him on but ending up hitting it up. It also messes up their footwork. They’re not quite getting forward. Unless they come forward, they’ll find it hard to get on top of him. Raw pace goes a long way. Teams will have to plan carefully against him,” he added.

With back-to-back player of the match performances in his debut season, the 21-year-old has emerged as the find of season. However, IPL is only a means to an end for Mayank.

“Feel really good, two Player of the Match awards in two matches. I am happier that we won both the matches. My goal is to play for the country. I feel this is just the start. I enjoyed Cameron Green‘s wicket the most,” said Mayank after LSG’s win over RCB.

Mayank had missed the last season due to injury and he fully knows the importance to fitness.

“There are a lot of factors to bowl quick – diet, sleep, training. I am focusing a lot on my diet and recovery – ice bath,” he said.

(With PTI Inputs)

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Hyderabad

TSDCA raids unauthorized drug manufacturing unit in Hyderabad

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DCA officers detected 19 drums containing stocks of 87 Kgs of Itraconazole 35 percent Pellets and 800 kilograms of Activated Charcoal 250 mg and Simethicone 80 mg Pellets, worth Rs 23.93 lakh.

Published Date – 4 April 2024, 05:28 PM


TSDCA raids unauthorized drug manufacturing unit in Hyderabad

DCA officers detected 19 drums containing stocks of 87 Kgs of Itraconazole 35 percent Pellets and 800 kilograms of Activated Charcoal 250 mg and Simethicone 80 mg Pellets, worth Rs 23.93 lakh.

Hyderabad: The Drug Inspectors of TS Drug Control Administration (TSDCA) conducted raids at Ovoid Pharmachem, Subashnagar, Jeedimetla, Medchal-Malakjgiri on Thursday and Wednesday and detected that the facility was manufacturing drugs unauthorizedly.

During the raid, DCA officers detected 19 drums containing stocks of 87 Kgs of Itraconazole 35 percent Pellets and 800 kilograms of Activated Charcoal 250 mg and Simethicone 80 mg Pellets, worth Rs 23.93 lakh, manufactured without a drug licence. The Director, Ovoid Pharmachem, Narasapally Ramudu, was present during the TS DCA raids.

DG, TSDCA, V B Kamalasan Reddy in a statement said drugs can only be manufactured under a license issued by TSDCA in compliance with the standards prescribed under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. “Drugs manufactured in an unlicensed manner may not meet the quality standards, and these products may pose serious implications for public health,” he added.

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World's First Pig Kidney Transplant Patient Discharged From US Hospital

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World's First Pig Kidney Transplant Patient Discharged From US Hospital

Richard “Rick” Slayman of Weymouth, Massachusetts was battling end-stage kidney disease

In a medical first, a 62-year-old man has been discharged from Massachusetts General Hospital after receiving a successful kidney transplant from a genetically modified pig, BBC reported. This breakthrough, following past unsuccessful attempts using pig organs, is hailed by scientists as a historic milestone that could revolutionize organ transplantation.

The news was shared in a press release on Wednesday by MGH, which is Harvard Medical School’s largest teaching hospital in the US city of Boston.

The hospital said the patient Richard “Rick” Slayman of Weymouth, Massachusetts, was battling end-stage kidney disease and required an organ transplant. On March 16, his doctors successfully transplanted a genetically-edited pig kidney into his body over a four-hour-long surgery.

The doctors said that Mr Slayman’s kidney is now functioning well and he no longer requires dialysis. 

Mr Slayman in a statement said that being able to leave the hospital and go home was “one of the happiest moments” of his life.

“I’m excited to resume spending time with my family, friends, and loved ones free from the burden of dialysis that has affected my quality of life for many years.”

In 2018, he underwent a kidney transplant from a dead human donor. However, last year, the transplanted kidney started to deteriorate, prompting doctors to suggest the possibility of a pig kidney transplant.

“I saw it not only as a way to help me, but a way to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive,” he said.

The new pig kidney he received was modified by Cambridge-based pharmaceutical company eGenesis to remove “harmful pig genes and add certain human genes to improve its compatibility with humans,” it said.

The hospital noted that for this procedure, it leveraged its legacy as the pioneer of the world’s first successful human organ transplant – a kidney – in 1954. Additionally, it referenced ongoing research conducted in collaboration with eGenesis on xenotransplantation (the transplantation of organs between different species) over the preceding five years.

The Food and Drug Administration approved the procedure under a single Expanded Access Protocol, commonly known as compassionate use, typically reserved for patients with life-threatening conditions to grant them access to experimental treatments.

The transplant team celebrated this milestone as a historic advancement that could offer a promising solution to the global organ shortage, particularly benefiting ethnic minority communities who are disproportionately affected by the shortage.

“An abundant supply of organs resulting from this technological advance may go far to finally achieve health equity and offer the best solution to kidney failure – a well-functioning kidney – to all patients in need,” said Winfred Williams, Mr Slayman’s doctor at MGH.

Hyderabad

JD Foundation helps a poor family to run an eatery in Bhadrachalam

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He said that the activities by JD Foundation for the last three years in the name of Upadhi Bharosa aimed at making the poor financially self-reliant and stand on their own feet were laudable, he said

Published Date – 4 April 2024, 05:32 PM


JD Foundation helps a poor family to run an eatery in Bhadrachalam

Members of JD Foundation, Bhadrachalam helped a a poor family to start a small scale food business.

Kothagudem: The members of JD (Join for Development) Foundation, Bhadrachalam have come to the rescue of a poor family and helped the family to start a small scale business. Shailaja and Mahesh, a couple who work as daily labourers in the old market, earn a meagre income and the foundation members wanted to help them to start their own business. The members provided a push cart and utensils required for running a small scale food business.

The Chamber of Commerce secretary Kambhampati Suresh Kumar inaugurated the hotel. He said that the activities by JD Foundation for the last three years in the name of Upadhi Bharosa aimed at making the poor financially self-reliant and stand on their own feet were laudable, he said.

Suresh Kumar said that in two Telugu states it was at Bhadrachalam the foundation for the first time started Upadhi Bharosa and similar activities were being carried out by other NGOs after being inspired by JD Foundation, he said.

JD Foundation convener Murali Mohan Kumar informed that it was the 19th shop the foundation set up in Bhadrachalam and surroundings. Upadhi Bharosa programme was being carried out with a slogan ‘bye bye to freebies, jai jai for those who work hard’.

The foundation coordinator Hansi Pawan Kumar, Vinila Devi, Kadali Nagaraju, Konjerla Nagesh and others were present.

Middle East

Pro-Palestine naval drill held in Iran, 4 countries

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At 10:00 am Tehran local time on Thursday, more than 3,000 variants of traditional wooden vessels and motor boats took part in the naval exercise held by Basij maritime units in Bandar Abbas in support of the Palestinian Intifada.

These vessels are deployed over an area from the Persian Gulf to Oman Sea. In this regard, the Martyr Abu Mahdi warship based in the north of the Persian Gulf in Arvand River, Martyr Soleimani warship based in Bushehr Port and Martyr Sayad Shirazi based in the Strait of Hormuz will lead the parade of vessels under the command of IRGC Navy commander Admoiral Alireza Tangsiri.

The naval drill in support of the Palestinian Intifada was also held simultaneously in the four other countries in the region including Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Lebanon to mark the occasion of the International Quds Day.

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