Tag Archives: acting

FEMA’s Acting Administrator Steps Down

Posted on by
Reply

David Richardson, who served as the acting administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, tendered his resignation on Monday after approximately six months in the role, as confirmed by two administration officials to NBC News.

Richardson’s short tenure as FEMA administrator occurred during a challenging period for the agency. Under President Donald Trump’s administration, significant budget cuts were proposed, and Trump publicly suggested the agency be phased out following the end of hurricane season in late November.

In a statement released Monday, FEMA along with the Department of Homeland Security, which governs the agency, expressed their “sincere appreciation” for Richardson’s “dedicated service.”

A DHS spokesperson announced that Karen Evans, currently serving as FEMA’s chief of staff, will take on the position of acting administrator effective December 1st.

Richardson mentioned on Monday that he had agreed to serve as acting superintendent during this critical period, indicating that his resignation stemmed from a desire to return to the private sector.

“I took on the role of acting administrator during hurricane season when no one else was available,” Richardson stated. “Hurricane season concludes on December 1st. The threats are nearly over, so it’s time for me to explore another opportunity.”

The White House directed all inquiries regarding Richardson’s resignation to the Department of Homeland Security.

During his time at FEMA, Richardson faced significant criticism for his delayed response to the catastrophic floods in July that struck the Texas Hill Country. He was unreachable for more than 24 hours after over 130 individuals, including 27 girls and their counselors, perished at Camp Mystic, a Christian youth summer camp, on July 4.

Texas Department of Public Safety personnel assess debris at Camp Mystic following flash flooding in Hunt, Texas.
Julio Cortes / AP File

It was later disclosed that Mr. Richardson lacked experience in emergency management prior to his role as acting FEMA administrator. I was on a weekend vacation.

Richardson, a former Marine Corps officer, was appointed to lead FEMA on an interim basis in May after the previous acting administrator, Cameron Hamilton, was removed from the position following a brief tenure. During his time at FEMA, Richardson also served simultaneously as assistant secretary for the Office of Weapons of Mass Destruction Countermeasures at DHS.

This year, FEMA has faced increased scrutiny regarding its effectiveness in responding to hurricanes, floods, and other disasters, particularly as climate change has heightened the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.

In a phone interview on Monday night, Richardson remarked that he understood his role at FEMA was to “shut things down” upon his arrival.

However, he noted that the agency’s experiences dealing with flooding in Texas and severe flooding in western Alaska underscored the agency’s necessity, albeit on a smaller scale.

“We need to empower states,” he asserted. He believes states can accomplish more but also trusts that Trump will implement reforms to the agency.

In an open letter issued in August, around 200 FEMA employees criticized the Trump administration’s disaster preparedness and emergency management effectiveness after the Texas floods.

The signatories expressed that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s request for the office to evaluate FEMA spending exceeding $100,000 impeded the agency’s response to the deadly disaster. They also pointed out that both Richardson and Hamilton lacked the “legal qualifications, Senate confirmation, and proven background” required for the role of FEMA administrator.

Following the publication of the letter, at least 21 FEMA employees faced suspension for signing it.

Richardson stated on Monday night that the $100,000 spending cap would not hinder FEMA’s response.

“If lives were in danger, we wouldn’t have surpassed the $100,000 limit,” he asserted.

Richardson succeeded Hamilton shortly before the commencement of hurricane season, after Hamilton testified on Capitol Hill claiming he believed it was not in the American people’s best interest to abolish FEMA.

This stance opposed President Trump’s proposal to dismantle FEMA and instead allow states to manage disaster responses.

Kristi Noem informed NBC News’ “Meet the Press” in June that President Trump aimed to reform the agency rather than eliminate it altogether.

Some of Richardson’s detractors, including former FEMA communications director Rafael Lemaître, expressed relief at his resignation on Monday. Lemaître is a member of the advisory board for Sabotaging Our Safety, an organization focused on disaster preparedness and emergency management issues.

“Choosing someone with no disaster management experience to lead FEMA is akin to putting a person in the cockpit of a plane during a hurricane who has never flown,” he commented in a statement.

Democratic members of the House Homeland Security Committee also welcomed the news of Richardson’s resignation.

“David Richardson was incompetent, inexperienced, and ill-suited to lead FEMA,” the group stated. “He will be remembered for vanishing when Texas families needed him the most. Thank you for your service.”

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Frustrating Autocorrect: Why is My iPhone Acting Strange?

Posted on by
Reply

Rest assured, you’re not experiencing madness.

Your iPhone’s AutoCorrect has been unusually erratic, unexpectedly altering words like: “Come” to “Cola” and “Winter” to “W Inter”. If you’ve encountered this, you’re not on your own.

Many online comments reveal that others share your frustrations. Hundreds of internet users express concern, fearing this issue might persist indefinitely.

Following the release of its latest operating system, iOS 26, in September, conspiracy theories began to emerge. A video showing a user’s iPhone keyboard changing “thumb” to “thjmb” has gained over 9 million views.

“Autocorrect manifests in various forms,” states Jan Pedersen, a statistician known for his pioneering work on autocorrect at Microsoft. “It’s somewhat challenging to identify the technology behind user predictions, as it operates beneath the surface.”

An early pioneer of autocorrect suggested that those seeking explanations may remain in the dark concerning this recent change, primarily due to Apple’s approach.

Kenneth Church, a computational linguist who developed foundational autocorrect techniques in the 1990s, remarked, “Apple’s operations have consistently been shrouded in secrecy. The company excels at maintaining confidentiality over most others.”

For several years, the internet has been buzzing about autocorrect issues, long before the launch of iOS 26. Notably, there is at least one significant distinction between today’s autocorrect and its earlier versions: the incorporation of artificial intelligence, or what Apple refers to as such. The introduction of iOS 17 brought “on-device machine learning language models” designed to adapt based on user input. However, this can encompass a variety of interpretations.

In response to inquiries from The Guardian, Apple stated that it has continually updated AutoCorrect using the latest technological advancements, asserting that the keyboard complications showcased in the video aren’t linked to autocorrect.

Autocorrect has evolved from earlier spell-checking technology, which originated in the 1970s. This initial spell-checking featured a primitive command in Unix that identified all misspelled words within a text file. It simply compared each word against a dictionary and alerted users to any discrepancies.

“One of my initial tasks at Bell Labs was to obtain the rights to the British dictionary,” Church recalls. He utilized these dictionaries during his early research into autocorrect and speech synthesis programs.

The task of autocorrecting words—such as suggesting “them” instead of “they” in real time—is far more complex. It involves mathematical calculations, wherein the computer statistically evaluates whether “graph” is more likely to refer to a giraffe (just a couple of letters apart) or a homophone like “graph.”

In more complex scenarios, autocorrect must discern if the actual words used align with the context. For instance, figuring out whether your teenage son excels at “math” rather than “meth.”

Until recently, cutting-edge technology relied on N-grams. This system was sufficiently effective that most users took it for granted. If I suspected that a unique name might not be recognized, I would replace any expletives with bland alternatives (a tactic that could be frustrating), or introduce randomness. This led to amusing text changes, like altering “I delivered the baby in a taxi” to “I devoured the baby in a taxi.”

Skip past newsletter promotions

In simple terms, an N-gram serves as a rudimentary version of contemporary LLMs like ChatGPT. They statistically anticipate what you’re inclined to say based on your previous words and common sentence completions. Various engineering approaches affect the data utilized by N-gram autocorrect, according to Church.

Yet, they are no longer at the forefront of technology. We have entered the AI era.

Apple’s innovative Transformer Language Model signifies a more advanced technology than conventional autocorrect, as Pedersen explained. Transformers represent significant progress behind models such as ChatGPT and Gemini, making these models more adept at handling human inquiries.

The implications for the new autocorrect remain ambiguous. Pedersen notes that whatever Apple incorporates will likely be significantly smaller than widely-recognized AI models, making it feasible for mobile devices.

However, grasping what is malfunctioning with the new autocorrect may prove more challenging than with prior models due to the inherent difficulties of interpreting AI.

“A vast domain of explainability and interpretability exists, and people desire clarity regarding how mechanisms operate,” Church stated. “Old methods can still yield insights into actual operations. The latest innovations appear somewhat magical—they outperform older systems, yet when they don’t function correctly, the results can be dire.”

Source: www.theguardian.com

Olivia Williams Advocates for ‘Nude Rider’ Style Regulations for AI Body Scanning in Acting

Posted on by
Reply

In light of rising apprehensions regarding the effects of artificial intelligence on performers, actress Olivia Williams emphasized that actors should handle data obtained from body scans similarly to how they approach nude scenes.

The star of Dune: Prophecy and The Crown stated that she and fellow actors often face mandatory body scans by on-set cameras, with scant assurances on the usage and destination of that data.

“It would be reasonable to adhere to the ‘Nude Rider’ standard,” she noted. “This footage should only be used within that specific scene; it must not be repurposed elsewhere. Furthermore, any edited scenes must be removed across all formats.”

Williams drew attention to a vague provision in contracts that seems to grant studios extensive rights to use images of performers “on every platform currently existing or created in the future worldwide, indefinitely.”

A renewed conversation about AI’s impact on actors has been ignited by widespread criticism of the development of an AI performer named Tilly Norwood. Actors fear their likenesses and poses will be utilized to train AI systems, potentially threatening their employment.

Actors, stunt performers, dancers, and supporting actors relayed to the Guardian that they felt “ambushed” and compelled to participate in body scans on set. Many reported there was little time to discuss how the generated data would be handled or whether it could be used for AI training purposes.

Ms. Williams recounted her unsuccessful attempts to eliminate the ambiguous clause from her contract. She explored options for obtaining a limited license to control her body scan data, but her lawyer advised her that the legal framework was too uncertain. The costs of trying to reclaim the data were prohibitively high.

“I’m not necessarily looking for financial compensation for the use of my likeness,” she remarked. “What concerns me is being depicted in places I’ve never been, engaging in activities I’ve never done, or expressing views I haven’t shared.”

“Laws are being enacted, and no one is intervening. They’re establishing a precedent and solidifying it. I sign these contracts because not doing so could cost me my career.”

Williams expressed that she is advocating for younger actors who have scant options but to undergo scans without clear information regarding the fate of their data. “I know a 17-year-old girl who was encouraged to undergo the scan and complied, similar to the scene from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Being a minor, a chaperone was required to consent, but her chaperone was a grandmother unfamiliar with the legal implications.”

The matter is currently under discussion between Equity, the UK performing arts union, and Pact, the trade body of the UK film industry. “We are urging for AI safeguards to be integrated into major film and television contracts to prioritize consent and transparency for on-set scanning,” stated Equity Executive Director Paul W. Fleming.

“It is achievable for the industry to implement essential minimum standards that could significantly transform conditions for performers and artists in British TV and film.”

Pact issued a statement saying: “Producers are fully aware of their responsibilities under data protection legislation, and these concerns are being addressed during collective negotiations with Equity. Due to the ongoing talks, we are unable to provide further details.”

Source: www.theguardian.com

The Earth’s Rotation is Acting Strangely – The Explanations Revealed

Posted on by
Reply

For the past two decades, the rotation of the Earth has shown unusual behavior. Scientists have now identified a surprising cause for this phenomenon: the loss of water from the land.

A recent study published in Science reveals that significant changes in the Earth’s axis since the early 2000s, resulting in a wobble of about 45 cm, were not due to changes in the core, ice loss, or glacial rebound. Instead, they were caused by underestimated changes in soil moisture across the planet.

Between 2000 and 2002, over 1,600 Gigatonnes of water were lost from the soil worldwide. This water, when discharged into the ocean, impacted the Earth’s balance and influenced its rotation.

According to Professor Clark Wilson, a geophysicist at the University of Texas at Austin and co-author of the study, there was a period in the early 2000s when significant water losses occurred from the continents, aligning with certain climate models’ predictions.

Research led by Professor Ki-Weon Seo from Seoul National University in Korea used satellite radar data and soil moisture models to track changes in Earth’s water reservoirs from the late 20th to early 21st centuries. They discovered a sudden drop in soil moisture between 2000 and 2002, contributing to a yearly rise in the global sea level.

This decrease in soil moisture continued from 2003 to 2016, with an additional loss of 1,000 Gigatonnes of water. By 2021, soil moisture levels had still not recovered, indicating a significant and lasting shift in Earth’s land water storage.

The study emphasizes how changes in terrestrial water, particularly soil moisture, can influence Earth’s axis and rotation, leading to observable effects on the planet’s vital signs. The researchers suggest that this trend of drying soil is likely irreversible and could have far-reaching consequences on global water security, agriculture, ecosystems, and climate patterns.

Experts Involved

Clark Wilson: Professor Emeritus at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in Earth and Planetary Sciences.

Ki-Weon SEO: Associate Professor at Seoul National University with a focus on ice mass losses and sea level rise.

Jay Famiglietty: Global Futures Professor at ASU’s School of Sustainability, specializing in water innovation and sustainable food systems.

This study highlights the importance of improving climate models to better understand and predict future climate conditions in the face of changing water dynamics on Earth.

Source: www.sciencefocus.com