Critics warn staff cuts at federal agencies overseeing US dams could put public safety at risk
COULEE DAM, Wash. (AP) — Experts are warning that Trump administration workforce cuts at federal agencies overseeing U.S. dams are threatening their ability to provide reliable electricity, supply water to farmers and protect communities from floods. The Bureau of Reclamation provides water and hydropower to the public in 17 western states. Nearly 400 agency workers have been cut through Trump administration reductions. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also operates hundreds of dams across the country and its workforce also faces cuts. Dam safety experts say without these dam operators, engineers, hydrologists and emergency managers, public safety will be put at risk.
Driverless ‘bus of the future’ is tested in Barcelona
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Renault is testing a new driverless mini-bus in Barcelona this week. The autonomous vehicle is running on a circular route of just under 1.5 miles, with four stops in the center of the Spanish city. The French carmaker unveiled the driverless bus at the French Open venue last year, but is now testing it on the open road in Barcelona. It also has testing in Valence, France and at the Zurich airport. Europe generally lags behind the United States and China in field of driverless vehicle technology. Barcelona city officials say they’ve had no reports of accidents caused by the experimental bus.
Don’t click on those road toll texts. Officials issue warnings about the smishing scam
WASHINGTON (AP) — State officials are warning Americans not to respond to a surge of scam road toll collection texts. The texts impersonating state road toll collection agencies attempt to get phone users to reveal financial information, such as credit or debit cards or bank accounts. They’re so-called smishing scams — a form of phishing that relies on SMS texts to trick people into sending money or share sensitive information.
One Tech Tip: Wasting too much time on social media apps? Tips and tricks to curb smartphone use
LONDON (AP) — If you’ve got a smartphone, you probably spend too much time on it. It can be hard to curb excessive use of smartphones and social media, which are addictive by design but there are tips and tricks. First, delete any apps you’ve been wasting time on. You can always install them if you need to. Also, both iPhones and Android devices have onboard controls to help regulate screen time. Change your phone display to grayscale from color so that it doesn’t look so exciting. There are also many third-party apps, like Jomo, Opal, Forest, Roots and LockMeOut that are designed to cut down screen time.
Meta to start testing crowd-sourced fact-checking, based on X example, next week
Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta Platforms Inc. says it will launch its crowd-sourced fact-checking program, called Community Notes, on March 18. It will initially based on a ratings system used by Elon Musk’s X. Meta ended its fact-checking program in January. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said at the time that fact-checkers had become “politically biased,” using some of the language that conservatives have long used to criticize his platforms. But media experts and those who study social media were aghast at Meta’s policy shift.
Intel hires former board member as new CEO in struggling chipmaker’s latest comeback attempt
Struggling chipmaker Intel has hired former board member and semiconductor industry veteran Lip-Bu Tan as the latest in a succession of CEOs to attempt to turn around the company that helped define Silicon Valley. Tan, 65, will take over the daunting job next Tuesday, more than three months after Intel’s previous CEO, Pat Gelsinger, abruptly retired amid massive layoffs and questions about the chipmaker’s ability to survive as an independent company. Intel has been led by interim co-CEOs, David Zinsner and Michelle Johnston Holthaus, after Gelsinger walked away from a job that he undertook in 2021.
Blizzard Entertainment president says ‘there’s a game for you’ no matter what type of player you are
IRVINE, Calif. (AP) — Johanna Faries took on her role as president of Blizzard Entertainment just over one year ago. She joined Activision Blizzard in 2018 and came to the company “through the ‘Call of Duty’ doors.” Faries discussed gaming’s growing popularity in pop culture, and why the medium is at the forefront of entertainment, with comedian Conan O’Brien at the SXSW Film & TV Festival in Texas on Tuesday.
Federal student loan site down Wednesday, a day after layoffs gutted Education Department
WASHINGTON (AP) — An hours-long outage on StudentAid.gov, the federal website for student loans and financial aid, has underscored the risks in rapidly gutting the Department of Education. Hundreds of users reported FAFSA outages to Downdetector starting midday Wednesday, saying they were having trouble completing the form, which is required for financial aid at colleges nationwide. The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators said it had received reports of users having trouble with FAFSA. The developers and IT support staff who worked on the FAFSA form were hard hit in the Education Department’s layoffs on Tuesday. In all, the Education Department has reduced its staff by half, to roughly 2,000, since Trump took office.
Vance hopeful ‘high-level’ TikTok deal will be completed by early April
Vice President JD Vance said Friday that he was hopeful a deal to keep TikTok operating in the U.S. will be wrapped up by the early April deadline. During an interview with NBC News, Vance said he expects there to “be a high-level agreement” that satisfies the national security concerns the U.S. has about the popular platform. The news outlet noted that Vance did not offer details on who the potential buyers could be. But he said that some issues could push a final agreement past the April 5 deadline. Trump has previously said the deadline on a TikTok deal could be extended further if needed.
Greece says ambitious Mediterranean power cable project is on track despite setbacks
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece has pledged that a major underwater electricity cable project connecting Greece with Cyprus and Israel by the end of the decade will overcome a series of setbacks and move forward as scheduled. Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis met his Israeli and Cypriot counterparts, Gideon Saar and Constantinos Kombos, in Athens on Thursday to discuss significant challenges, including financial disagreements. The project has also been complicated by ongoing maritime boundary disputes between Greece and Turkey. Backed by European Union funding, the project aims to link the power grids of the three Mediterranean nations through a submarine cable spanning some 1,210 kilometers (750 miles).
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