WEBVTT - Tech News: Twitter and Facebook Shut Down Pro-US Propaganda Campaign 0:00:04.400 --> 0:00:07.800 Welcome to Tech Stuff, a production from I Heart Radio. 0:00:11.880 --> 0:00:14.520 Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host 0:00:14.640 --> 0:00:17.880 Jonathan Strickland, Diamond Executive producer with I Heart Radio and 0:00:17.920 --> 0:00:21.080 how the tech are you. It's time for the tech 0:00:21.160 --> 0:00:26.560 news for Thursday, August twenty twenty two. We got a 0:00:26.560 --> 0:00:29.760 lot to get through. Let's do it. Twitter and Facebook 0:00:29.800 --> 0:00:34.280 recently shut down a network of fake accounts spreading propaganda 0:00:34.680 --> 0:00:37.519 that was attempting to portray a foreign country in a 0:00:37.600 --> 0:00:42.240 positive light in various regions. The twist to this story 0:00:42.760 --> 0:00:47.120 is that for the first time, this campaign was pushing 0:00:47.200 --> 0:00:51.320 a pro US perspective in places like Asia in the 0:00:51.360 --> 0:00:54.880 Middle East. We've seen efforts like this originating out of 0:00:55.120 --> 0:00:58.040 other places like China or Russia, that this is the 0:00:58.080 --> 0:01:00.840 first time we're talking about this some lar campaign that 0:01:00.920 --> 0:01:03.080 appears to have been based out of the United States 0:01:03.480 --> 0:01:08.560 and the United Kingdom. The effort used lots of recently 0:01:08.880 --> 0:01:13.800 established fake accounts, all pushing pro US narratives in these 0:01:13.840 --> 0:01:18.240 regions while also criticizing everything from Russia's war against Ukraine 0:01:18.640 --> 0:01:22.080 to human rights violations in China. But the use of 0:01:22.120 --> 0:01:27.200 fake accounts is against Facebook and Twitter's policies. No matter 0:01:27.319 --> 0:01:30.560 what the messaging is, and so those platforms have been 0:01:30.560 --> 0:01:33.479 taking an active stance in weeding out and shutting down 0:01:33.560 --> 0:01:37.640 these profiles. Also, NBC reports that the campaign appeared to 0:01:37.680 --> 0:01:40.800 have a minimal impact and that the posts didn't have 0:01:40.880 --> 0:01:44.679 much engagement from the general public. Most activity belonged to 0:01:44.680 --> 0:01:48.680 other fake accounts in an effort to boost visibility. Fortune 0:01:48.720 --> 0:01:53.480 reports that major companies like Apple, Honda, and Mazda are 0:01:53.520 --> 0:01:57.800 reevaluating their supply chain strategies. At the heart of the 0:01:57.800 --> 0:02:01.960 matter is the dependence upon in China. The cheap labor 0:02:02.080 --> 0:02:06.440 and manufacturing costs in China have long attracted major companies, 0:02:06.760 --> 0:02:10.080 which look to save on costs while making their products 0:02:10.240 --> 0:02:14.040 in order to maximize profit, but relying on China for 0:02:14.080 --> 0:02:18.920 manufacturing has become less attractive in recent years. The country's 0:02:18.960 --> 0:02:22.720 no tolerance approach to COVID means that operations are routinely 0:02:22.800 --> 0:02:26.600 interrupted as a region goes into lockdown with every outbreak. 0:02:27.080 --> 0:02:31.200 The deteriorating relationship between China and the United States is 0:02:31.320 --> 0:02:34.760 a big threat to the optics are also not great 0:02:35.120 --> 0:02:38.600 due to the aforementioned human rights violations in China. That's 0:02:38.600 --> 0:02:44.239 a very real thing. Propaganda campaigns aside, and in Central China, 0:02:44.440 --> 0:02:47.639 where a lot of these factories are located, a camastrophic 0:02:47.720 --> 0:02:51.960 drought has dried up rivers. That means that dams are 0:02:51.960 --> 0:02:55.080 not able to generate enough electricity through hydro power to 0:02:55.160 --> 0:03:00.200 supply factories, which has forced more interruptions in manufacture ring. 0:03:01.080 --> 0:03:03.720 And there's this real old saying that I'm sure all 0:03:03.760 --> 0:03:05.799 of you have heard that says don't put all your 0:03:05.880 --> 0:03:09.040 eggs in one basket. But the truth is, for a 0:03:09.080 --> 0:03:13.640 long time, many companies have essentially ignored that age old 0:03:13.680 --> 0:03:17.480 wisdom when it comes to the supply chain, and as 0:03:17.480 --> 0:03:21.480 a result, a disproportionate amount of the work involved in 0:03:21.680 --> 0:03:25.840 many supply chains happens in China. And now we're starting 0:03:25.840 --> 0:03:29.840 to see companies explore strategies meant to diversify the supply chain, 0:03:30.200 --> 0:03:34.440 something that has really become critically important as we've seen 0:03:34.600 --> 0:03:37.880 so many disruptions in supply chains reek havoc on company 0:03:37.920 --> 0:03:40.680 plans and consumer experiences over the last couple of years. 0:03:41.480 --> 0:03:45.000 Does this mean we'll see much more robust supply chains 0:03:45.000 --> 0:03:48.160 in the future. I'm kind of skeptical because I expect 0:03:48.240 --> 0:03:51.720 most companies will seek out the next cheapest, viable solution 0:03:52.040 --> 0:03:55.840 to their manufacturing needs, rather than truly diversify their approach 0:03:55.880 --> 0:03:59.080 to spread out risk. In an ideal world, we would 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:02.200 see supply chains that are as robust as the Internet is. 0:04:02.440 --> 0:04:05.119 Should one part of the supply chain falter, you would 0:04:05.160 --> 0:04:08.240 be able to route around it with minimal disruption, But 0:04:08.360 --> 0:04:12.720 I think that's being overly optimistic. Nine to five MAC 0:04:12.720 --> 0:04:16.160 reports that Apple maybe on the verge of allowing users 0:04:16.200 --> 0:04:19.039 to delete the Apple Wallet app, which would be a 0:04:19.080 --> 0:04:22.719 pretty big deal as Apple routinely integrates its own apps 0:04:22.800 --> 0:04:26.880 into iOS in fundamental ways and doesn't allow users to 0:04:27.040 --> 0:04:30.679 delete them from their iOS devices. So why would Apple 0:04:30.920 --> 0:04:34.240 take this step giving users the chance to switch to 0:04:34.440 --> 0:04:39.440 some other digital wallet, particularly when doing so raises problems 0:04:39.440 --> 0:04:42.800 when users want to make a purchase through Apple pay Well. 0:04:42.839 --> 0:04:46.360 This is likely due to the European Union's recent pressure 0:04:46.720 --> 0:04:50.040 on Apple. The argument is that Apple's integration of Apple 0:04:50.080 --> 0:04:54.039 Wallet and its refusal to grant other digital wallets the 0:04:54.120 --> 0:04:59.800 same level of interoperability with Apple processes amounts to anti competitiveness, 0:05:00.360 --> 0:05:03.279 and actually it reminds me of the massive antitrust lawsuit 0:05:03.360 --> 0:05:06.280 that Microsoft faced in the nineties, which focused on how 0:05:06.279 --> 0:05:10.120 Microsoft made its own Internet Explorer browser and integrated part 0:05:10.200 --> 0:05:14.280 of Windows. That led Netscape to accuse Microsoft of engaging 0:05:14.279 --> 0:05:18.520 in anti competitive behavior, particularly since at that time Microsoft 0:05:18.520 --> 0:05:21.680 Windows was by far the dominant operating system in the 0:05:21.680 --> 0:05:26.400 consumer market. Courts actually agreed, and Microsoft was very nearly 0:05:26.440 --> 0:05:29.680 forced to break up into separate companies, but a subsequent 0:05:29.760 --> 0:05:33.799 court decision would reverse that course anyway. One major issue 0:05:33.839 --> 0:05:37.719 the EU has is that Apple doesn't allow any other 0:05:37.800 --> 0:05:41.640 digital wallet app but it's own to use the NFC 0:05:41.720 --> 0:05:46.200 technology that's built into iPhones. NFC is near field communication 0:05:46.360 --> 0:05:49.120 and this is the short range wireless tech that allows 0:05:49.120 --> 0:05:54.800 for small data transfers, you know, like contactless payments, and 0:05:54.839 --> 0:05:57.440 the EU has argued that Apple holding back access to 0:05:57.520 --> 0:06:02.200 NFC amounts to anti competitive behavior. So we haven't seen 0:06:02.240 --> 0:06:04.960 anything official yet, at least not as the recording of 0:06:04.960 --> 0:06:06.640 this podcast, but we're going to keep our eyes on 0:06:06.640 --> 0:06:09.520 this to see if Apple does allow users to actually 0:06:10.400 --> 0:06:14.200 fully remove Apple Wallet from their iOS devices. Speaking of 0:06:14.240 --> 0:06:18.720 Apple and anti competitive allegations, the company Match Group, which 0:06:18.760 --> 0:06:22.960 owns the dating slash hook up app Tender, has filed 0:06:23.000 --> 0:06:27.800 an antitrust lawsuit against Apple, this time in India. Match 0:06:27.880 --> 0:06:31.679 Group says that Apple treats dating apps unfairly, that Apple 0:06:31.880 --> 0:06:37.240 has this in app commission required for any purchase that's 0:06:37.279 --> 0:06:41.000 made within an app, uh, and that it doesn't do 0:06:41.040 --> 0:06:44.839 this for some other types of companies like righte haling companies, 0:06:45.120 --> 0:06:48.560 and I find that argument kind of interesting. See Apple 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:52.760 and Google too for that matter. Has restricted its commission 0:06:53.240 --> 0:06:56.760 to only applying to apps that have in app digital purchases. 0:06:56.800 --> 0:06:58.840 It does not charge a commission on apps that are 0:06:58.880 --> 0:07:03.000 designed to purchase real world stuff. So, if you're playing 0:07:03.120 --> 0:07:06.040 a digital game and you want to pay for some 0:07:06.160 --> 0:07:09.200 in game content, while Apple will take a cut of that, 0:07:09.640 --> 0:07:12.320 but if you're ordering a real world pizza to be 0:07:12.400 --> 0:07:15.320 delivered to your home using an app, Apple does not 0:07:15.520 --> 0:07:18.880 take a cut of that transaction. Well, what match Group 0:07:18.920 --> 0:07:22.440 is saying is that right hailing companies get a pass 0:07:22.640 --> 0:07:25.640 from Apple. Apple does not take a commission if you 0:07:25.680 --> 0:07:29.040 were to use an app like Lift or Uber. But 0:07:29.200 --> 0:07:32.600 match Group says that that doesn't make sense because they 0:07:32.640 --> 0:07:36.280 get charged for Tender but not for Lift or Uber, 0:07:36.400 --> 0:07:39.640 and that in all cases, these apps are really just 0:07:39.720 --> 0:07:44.080 about bringing together people in the real world. You know, 0:07:44.120 --> 0:07:47.120 when you hail a ride, it's about arranging to meet 0:07:47.200 --> 0:07:50.360 someone at a specific place at a specific time. So 0:07:50.480 --> 0:07:53.880 match Group argues, that's what dating apps are doing too, 0:07:53.920 --> 0:07:55.800 and so why should it be fair for Apple to 0:07:55.840 --> 0:07:59.280 take a cut of tenders in app purchases but not 0:07:59.400 --> 0:08:02.960 a cut from right hailing company transactions. Now, I'm not 0:08:03.080 --> 0:08:05.760 convinced that that line of argument is bulletproof, because I 0:08:05.760 --> 0:08:08.120 think there's a case to be made that right hailing 0:08:08.200 --> 0:08:11.800 is definitely more than just bringing two or more people 0:08:11.840 --> 0:08:14.840 together in the same place at the same time. But anyway, 0:08:15.120 --> 0:08:18.400 match Group is hoping that India's competition regulator will force 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:21.880 Apple to change its policies, similar to how regulators in 0:08:21.920 --> 0:08:24.800 the EU and in the US are pressuring Apple to 0:08:24.880 --> 0:08:29.320 allow apps to offer alternative payment systems outside of Apple's 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:32.960 own system. And Video is getting ready to announce a 0:08:33.000 --> 0:08:36.439 new generation of graphics processing cards in September. According to 0:08:36.480 --> 0:08:39.360 The Verge, rumor has it, We're going to get a 0:08:39.360 --> 0:08:43.680 new generation of GPUs designated by the prefix for zero 0:08:43.800 --> 0:08:47.280 or forty. So right now you have cards like thirty 0:08:47.360 --> 0:08:50.800 eight and thirty ninety that are dominating in Video's portfolio 0:08:51.040 --> 0:08:53.960 from a performance perspective, that's like the top of the 0:08:54.040 --> 0:08:58.880 line of Invidios products and recently, we've actually seen more 0:08:58.920 --> 0:09:01.880 availability for those cards. You know, for a couple of years, 0:09:01.920 --> 0:09:05.120 in Video's most powerful cards were really hard to get 0:09:05.160 --> 0:09:07.600 hold of, and if you could find one, it was 0:09:07.760 --> 0:09:09.800 chances are it was on the aftermarket and it was 0:09:09.840 --> 0:09:13.560 at a huge markup. And this was largely because of 0:09:13.600 --> 0:09:20.760 cryptocurrency miners, specifically ether miners as an ethereum miners. This 0:09:20.920 --> 0:09:23.760 was a thing that we saw a lot. Bitcoin had 0:09:23.760 --> 0:09:27.280 actually reached a level where bitcoin miners were not relying 0:09:27.280 --> 0:09:29.720 on GPUs anymore. They were not powerful enough. They had 0:09:29.720 --> 0:09:34.040 switched to a SAC or application specific integrated circuit poward 0:09:34.120 --> 0:09:38.319 riggs at that time. But cryptocurrency has gone into a 0:09:38.320 --> 0:09:41.120 massive recession or a collapse or whatever you want to 0:09:41.120 --> 0:09:44.360 call it, and that meant that the return on investment 0:09:44.400 --> 0:09:50.160 for running a power hungry mining operation really became too low. 0:09:50.440 --> 0:09:52.640 I mean, if it costs you more money to run 0:09:52.679 --> 0:09:56.520 your computer system then you are making out of the 0:09:56.679 --> 0:09:58.960 mining operation. That's just not a good deal. It means 0:09:58.960 --> 0:10:02.400 you're just losing money. So this meant that there was 0:10:02.600 --> 0:10:06.160 less demand for those GPUs, and in Video actually found 0:10:06.240 --> 0:10:12.160 itself overstocked on graphics cards because demand had dropped and Finally, 0:10:12.200 --> 0:10:14.720 gamers actually have a decent chance to get their hands 0:10:14.800 --> 0:10:18.240 on these things as close to m s r P 0:10:18.520 --> 0:10:23.240 or manufactured suggested retail price, so at the asking price 0:10:23.280 --> 0:10:25.920 for these things instead of those crazy markups. However, all 0:10:25.960 --> 0:10:30.160 that being said, with the possible debut of a new 0:10:30.240 --> 0:10:36.160 generation of graphics cards within sight, presumably with much greater capabilities, 0:10:36.640 --> 0:10:39.320 it's probably not the best time to scoop up that 0:10:39.440 --> 0:10:42.760 thirty eight or thirty nine card if you want the 0:10:42.800 --> 0:10:46.280 best of the best. And keep in mind the that 0:10:46.520 --> 0:10:49.440 m s RP is still pretty day expensive for the 0:10:49.480 --> 0:10:52.000 top of the line models. So the Verge reminds us 0:10:52.280 --> 0:10:55.520 that there might be a significant gap between when in 0:10:55.679 --> 0:10:59.560 Video announces this next GPU architecture, which has the code 0:10:59.600 --> 0:11:02.760 name love Lace. I think that's great, and when consumers 0:11:02.800 --> 0:11:05.040 will actually have a chance to buy a card based 0:11:05.120 --> 0:11:08.960 off that architecture. So if you've been waiting to finally 0:11:09.000 --> 0:11:13.959 get one of these top performance cards, you might want 0:11:13.960 --> 0:11:16.800 to actually wait a little bit longer just to see 0:11:17.000 --> 0:11:20.760 what comes next and whether that's something you want. Also, 0:11:21.800 --> 0:11:25.160 when new cards come out, there's a chance, not a guarantee, 0:11:25.160 --> 0:11:28.360 but there's a chance that those thirty eight and thirty 0:11:28.440 --> 0:11:31.840 ninety models might get a price reduction. Um kind of 0:11:31.840 --> 0:11:35.000 hard to say, because when you're talking about teetering on 0:11:35.120 --> 0:11:39.640 economic recession and supply chain issues and all these other 0:11:39.679 --> 0:11:43.600 economic issues that are affecting the world, you cannot guarantee 0:11:43.600 --> 0:11:45.680 that you're going to see a price come down. But 0:11:45.800 --> 0:11:48.960 it is a possibility. All Right, We've got some more 0:11:49.000 --> 0:11:51.120 stories to cover, but before we get into that, let's 0:11:51.120 --> 0:12:03.800 take a quick break. The threat analysis group at Google 0:12:04.040 --> 0:12:08.400 is warning us that a tool called hyper skate can 0:12:08.440 --> 0:12:13.359 give hackers the ability to download a target's entire email inbox, 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:17.720 and that this tool works with Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo Mail, 0:12:18.000 --> 0:12:21.960 and others. Also, this tool does not require the hacker 0:12:22.000 --> 0:12:25.520 to trick someone into downloading some malware. However, it does 0:12:25.600 --> 0:12:28.560 mean the hacker does have to get access to the 0:12:28.600 --> 0:12:33.040 target's account somehow, So that could mean using some other 0:12:33.200 --> 0:12:36.520 kind of malware in order to get access, or you know, 0:12:36.600 --> 0:12:40.040 trying to guess or find a target's account password. You 0:12:40.040 --> 0:12:41.439 know a lot of times if you ever get those 0:12:41.480 --> 0:12:45.840 messages that your your password might have been compromised in 0:12:45.920 --> 0:12:49.240 a database breach. This is one of the reasons you 0:12:49.240 --> 0:12:52.200 should definitely pay attention to that and change those passwords, 0:12:52.240 --> 0:12:57.600 because if someone has just a file of passwords, they 0:12:57.640 --> 0:12:59.360 might be able to get access to your account and 0:12:59.360 --> 0:13:02.319 then download all of your email using a tool like this. 0:13:03.200 --> 0:13:06.640 So this is also a reason, by the way, why 0:13:06.679 --> 0:13:10.719 you should always enable multi factor authentication if it's available. 0:13:11.280 --> 0:13:13.680 I know it can be a hassle, but it really 0:13:13.800 --> 0:13:16.600 is useful. It means that if someone does attempt to 0:13:16.640 --> 0:13:19.880 log in as you, they're gonna have a harder time 0:13:19.920 --> 0:13:22.440 doing it. I'm not gonna say it's impossible, but i 0:13:22.480 --> 0:13:26.040 will say it's harder, and you are likely to get 0:13:26.080 --> 0:13:28.839 an alert that's saying something hinky is going on, which 0:13:28.880 --> 0:13:32.320 gives you a chance to take action. So activate that 0:13:32.520 --> 0:13:38.000 m F a option in in everything that offers it, y'all. Anyway, 0:13:38.320 --> 0:13:41.360 the team over at Google reports that it looks like 0:13:41.720 --> 0:13:44.760 most of the targeting activity that's using hyper escape right 0:13:44.800 --> 0:13:50.280 now is happening inside Iran. Now to me, that suggests 0:13:50.320 --> 0:13:54.120 that this could be a state sponsored campaign in order 0:13:54.160 --> 0:13:58.800 to gain access to high profile targets email accounts. No 0:13:58.920 --> 0:14:02.679 word on whom be responsible. I've got a few ideas, 0:14:02.760 --> 0:14:05.319 but you know it would just be pure speculation, so 0:14:05.480 --> 0:14:09.839 I'll save them for myself. The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure 0:14:09.960 --> 0:14:15.280 Security Agency is urging companies and organizations to be super 0:14:15.400 --> 0:14:20.240 proactive when it comes to adopting a post quantum cryptography standard. 0:14:21.240 --> 0:14:25.320 What what alright? So on Tuesday I talked about a 0:14:25.400 --> 0:14:28.720 Japanese company and its plans to enter the quantum computer 0:14:28.880 --> 0:14:33.320 market with a sixty four cubit machine, And on that episode, 0:14:33.320 --> 0:14:37.760 I mentioned that quantum computing has the potential to drastically 0:14:37.920 --> 0:14:44.040 simplify a certain subset of computational problems that traditionally are 0:14:44.160 --> 0:14:49.280 extremely difficult for classic computers to solve. So a classic 0:14:49.280 --> 0:14:53.680 computer might take hundreds or thousands of years to solve 0:14:53.760 --> 0:14:58.640 some of these problems. But because quantum computing uses a 0:14:58.920 --> 0:15:02.880 different approach, one that if you have the right algorithm, 0:15:02.920 --> 0:15:06.800 the right program, you could solve these kinds of problems 0:15:07.080 --> 0:15:11.480 in a relatively fast and trivial manner. That means things 0:15:11.480 --> 0:15:16.880 are poised to change drastically and soon. One of those 0:15:17.120 --> 0:15:21.760 things is really important. It's encryption. It's how we encrypt 0:15:21.960 --> 0:15:26.720 data so that people can't just see what that data is. Now. 0:15:26.760 --> 0:15:29.720 I'm not going to launch into a full explanation of 0:15:29.760 --> 0:15:33.440 digital encryption here. I have done full episodes about that topic. 0:15:33.600 --> 0:15:37.680 But I will oversimplify a little bit and say that 0:15:37.720 --> 0:15:41.840 you can think of modern encryption essentially depending upon taking 0:15:41.840 --> 0:15:48.640 two very very large prime numbers with hundreds of digits, 0:15:49.320 --> 0:15:51.680 and then taking these two prime numbers, then performing a 0:15:51.720 --> 0:15:56.120 mathematical operation on the two which gives you a third number, 0:15:57.080 --> 0:16:00.720 and you use that to encode data, and to decode 0:16:00.760 --> 0:16:03.120 the data, you need to know at least one of 0:16:03.160 --> 0:16:06.280 the prime numbers that were used to make that third number. 0:16:06.840 --> 0:16:10.800 Um really you need both, but you have that ability 0:16:10.880 --> 0:16:14.800 to decode to reverse the process that was used to 0:16:15.000 --> 0:16:18.920 encrypt the information. Now, because we're talking about two really 0:16:18.960 --> 0:16:23.160 really really big prime numbers, figuring out which prime numbers 0:16:23.160 --> 0:16:26.880 were used to encrypt something is really hard to do. 0:16:27.000 --> 0:16:29.840 For a classic computer essentially has to go, you know, 0:16:30.000 --> 0:16:33.440 case by case doing prime number, prime number, prime number, 0:16:33.480 --> 0:16:36.160 prime number, until it figures out the ones that were 0:16:36.240 --> 0:16:40.239 used to encrypt, and that can take thousands of years. 0:16:40.280 --> 0:16:44.840 But a quantum computer, again, if paired with the right algorithm, 0:16:45.160 --> 0:16:49.640 could do the same process fairly quickly, at least with 0:16:49.720 --> 0:16:54.440 a certain percentage of uh certainty. So you might get 0:16:55.240 --> 0:17:00.920 a response that says it's, you know, certain that this 0:17:01.000 --> 0:17:06.840 particular solution applies to the problem, and that's that's that 0:17:07.240 --> 0:17:11.720 stands to completely change encryption. It means that should someone 0:17:11.800 --> 0:17:15.520 actually have access to a quantum computer and that kind 0:17:15.520 --> 0:17:20.520 of algorithm, they could potentially decrypt everything that's ever been 0:17:20.640 --> 0:17:24.640 encrypted up to now and have free access to all 0:17:24.680 --> 0:17:28.840 the secret information that's ever been on digital platforms. So 0:17:30.119 --> 0:17:34.320 that's obviously a huge security issue, right, I mean, it's 0:17:34.359 --> 0:17:38.880 the biggest security issue. You can have no more secrets. 0:17:38.920 --> 0:17:43.159 So this agency is telling companies that they need to 0:17:43.480 --> 0:17:47.639 start working on migrating to a post quantum encryption strategy, 0:17:48.119 --> 0:17:52.320 one that's fundamentally different from what we use for today's encryption, 0:17:52.680 --> 0:17:55.960 and the agency has been working to standardize so far 0:17:56.240 --> 0:18:01.159 for post quantum encryption algorithms. That in itself is not easy. 0:18:01.200 --> 0:18:03.640 You might remember from a recent news item that one 0:18:03.760 --> 0:18:08.760 proposed post quantum computing algorithm turned out to be vulnerable 0:18:08.880 --> 0:18:12.760 to a classic computer attack. A researcher actually found a 0:18:12.760 --> 0:18:17.120 way to exploit that algorithm in a non quantum approach, 0:18:17.400 --> 0:18:20.320 So while it might have been robust from a quantum 0:18:20.320 --> 0:18:25.080 computing approach, it wasn't from another angle. So making a 0:18:25.160 --> 0:18:29.320 robust encryption process is pretty darned tricky. Today, the US 0:18:29.440 --> 0:18:32.760 state of California is issuing rules that regard the state's 0:18:32.840 --> 0:18:37.280 transition to a ban on new internal combustion engine vehicles 0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:40.679 or the sale of them, I should say, so, the 0:18:40.800 --> 0:18:44.520 plan is to have a total ban on the sale 0:18:44.560 --> 0:18:48.680 of new ice vehicles by five but this is going 0:18:48.720 --> 0:18:54.440 to happen in stages. So starting in TWI of all 0:18:54.520 --> 0:18:57.160 new vehicles sold in the state of California will need 0:18:57.200 --> 0:19:00.760 to be free of carbon emissions, so we're mainly talking 0:19:00.800 --> 0:19:05.159 about things like electric vehicles here By it will need 0:19:05.240 --> 0:19:08.520 to be sixty eight percent of all new vehicles sold 0:19:08.560 --> 0:19:13.560 in California, and by all new vehicles sold in California 0:19:13.600 --> 0:19:17.560 will need to be free of carbon emissions in their operation. Obviously, 0:19:17.960 --> 0:19:22.480 the manufacturing of vehicles itself creates carbon emissions, but that's 0:19:22.520 --> 0:19:26.719 a thing for another podcast. The used car market, as 0:19:26.800 --> 0:19:28.920 far as I can tell, is going to be unaffected. 0:19:29.000 --> 0:19:32.520 So in other words, yes, you cannot buy a new 0:19:32.560 --> 0:19:38.359 internal combustion engine vehicle in California starting in but theoretically, 0:19:38.359 --> 0:19:40.000 at least you would still be able to buy used 0:19:40.119 --> 0:19:44.280 vehicles in California. Now it's possible that we're gonna see 0:19:44.280 --> 0:19:48.960 other states follow California's lead. California traditionally is the most 0:19:49.040 --> 0:19:53.000 progressive when it comes to these kinds of of measures 0:19:53.000 --> 0:19:56.359 that are meant to tackle stuff like carbon emissions, you know, 0:19:56.440 --> 0:19:59.280 the climate that kind of thing. But even if other 0:19:59.320 --> 0:20:03.520 states are low to adopt California's approach, the size of 0:20:03.640 --> 0:20:07.880 California alone, you know, they have a huge driving population 0:20:08.359 --> 0:20:12.320 that's going to really force automakers to shift to more 0:20:12.480 --> 0:20:16.480 e V production. That's one of the reasons why we're 0:20:16.520 --> 0:20:19.360 seeing that kind of stuff happen right now, with companies 0:20:19.400 --> 0:20:25.520 like Ford undergoing dramatic transformations, including thousands of layoffs. Unfortunately, 0:20:26.000 --> 0:20:30.880 as these companies adjust towards producing more electric vehicles. In Germany, 0:20:30.960 --> 0:20:35.119 in the state of Lower Saxony, fifteen diesel trains have 0:20:35.240 --> 0:20:39.080 been retired and have been replaced with trains running on 0:20:39.280 --> 0:20:43.720 hydrogen fuel cells. So the diesel trains were responsible for 0:20:43.760 --> 0:20:47.520 the consumption of more than four hundred twenty thousand gallons 0:20:47.560 --> 0:20:51.720 of diesel fuel each year, and of course diesel engines 0:20:51.800 --> 0:20:56.359 are a source of carbon emissions. Hydrogen fuel cells do 0:20:56.440 --> 0:21:00.840 not release carbon dioxide. Instead, the byproducts of a hydrogen 0:21:01.080 --> 0:21:06.639 fuel cell our heat, electricity, and water, typically water, vapor, 0:21:06.680 --> 0:21:10.359 because fuel cells operate at a fairly high temperature, so 0:21:10.400 --> 0:21:14.560 the water tends to be emitted as steam. Now you 0:21:14.640 --> 0:21:19.440 might wonder why we don't rely more on hydrogen fuel cells. 0:21:19.520 --> 0:21:23.280 The technology is old, it's proven. There are vehicles out 0:21:23.280 --> 0:21:26.400 there that are fuel cell vehicles, but we don't see 0:21:26.400 --> 0:21:29.159 them all over the place. Why is why is it 0:21:29.200 --> 0:21:32.000 that fuel cells are not the standard if they operate 0:21:32.040 --> 0:21:36.320 at such a clean level. Well, the big sticking point 0:21:36.960 --> 0:21:39.359 is that it can get hard to get your hands 0:21:39.480 --> 0:21:44.800 on pure hydrogen. So hydrogen is the most plentiful element 0:21:45.080 --> 0:21:49.960 in the universe. However, it's also super friendly. By that, 0:21:50.040 --> 0:21:54.600 I mean it's eager to bond with other elements. When 0:21:54.600 --> 0:21:58.760 that happens, that effectively locks hydrogen away. It forms these 0:21:58.800 --> 0:22:02.119 molecular bonds. It is not going to let go of 0:22:02.160 --> 0:22:04.920 those without putting up a fight. So we have to 0:22:04.960 --> 0:22:08.240 actually spend energy in order to free hydrogen up, to 0:22:08.359 --> 0:22:12.119 harvest it and then use it. Right now, Germany is 0:22:12.160 --> 0:22:16.560 harvesting hydrogen as it is produced as a byproduct in 0:22:16.640 --> 0:22:21.520 various chemical processes. But in the future, Germany says the 0:22:21.560 --> 0:22:26.159 plan is to use renewable energy to generate hydrogen. And 0:22:26.200 --> 0:22:29.359 my guess is that they're going to use electrolysis, that 0:22:29.480 --> 0:22:33.439 is where you direct a an electric current into water 0:22:34.040 --> 0:22:37.320 in an effort to break those molecular bonds between hydrogen 0:22:37.400 --> 0:22:42.439 and oxygen and then you harvest the hydrogen. Um. Yeah, so, like, 0:22:42.520 --> 0:22:46.200 it's it's not that hydrogen is a bad fuel to use, 0:22:46.320 --> 0:22:49.920 especially in fuel cells. It's just that finding the right 0:22:50.040 --> 0:22:55.520 strategy to free hydrogen from whatever else is tricky. You know, 0:22:55.560 --> 0:22:58.680 we are also living in a world where getting access 0:22:58.720 --> 0:23:02.360 to water can be tricky. You know, look at at 0:23:02.440 --> 0:23:06.159 places that are undergoing massive drought, like the middle of 0:23:06.240 --> 0:23:11.560 China or the American Southwest. It is tough to sell 0:23:11.680 --> 0:23:15.720 the idea of using water to generate hydrogen so that 0:23:15.840 --> 0:23:18.560 you can have fuel cells when you have people who 0:23:18.600 --> 0:23:22.560 are depending on just a drinking source of water. So, yeah, 0:23:22.720 --> 0:23:26.680 this is a complicated issue. It's not something that's so 0:23:26.720 --> 0:23:30.440 simple to solve. It's too bad because again, hydrogen being 0:23:30.520 --> 0:23:34.520 so plentiful, if we could easily access a source of 0:23:34.520 --> 0:23:39.560 it without these other consequences, that would be a huge, 0:23:40.160 --> 0:23:45.119 huge thing. We would clearly see countries migrating over to 0:23:45.240 --> 0:23:50.360 hydrogen based economies. We just haven't really found the right 0:23:50.440 --> 0:23:53.280 balance for that yet. All right, we've got a couple 0:23:53.359 --> 0:23:55.919 more stories that we want to cover. Let's take another 0:23:56.000 --> 0:24:08.520 quick break. Mhm. One thing that I've learned about Japan, 0:24:09.320 --> 0:24:12.840 and full disclosure, I have yet to visit the country, 0:24:12.960 --> 0:24:15.440 but I really want to go. But one thing I've 0:24:15.520 --> 0:24:22.600 learned is that people are dependent upon and and count 0:24:22.680 --> 0:24:26.840 upon trains running on time. Like the fact that Japan 0:24:27.280 --> 0:24:32.240 is so good most of the time at operating trains, 0:24:32.960 --> 0:24:35.320 that the various companies in Japan do a really good 0:24:35.400 --> 0:24:39.639 job of operating trains. It becomes, you know, second nature 0:24:39.680 --> 0:24:42.280 to just assume that your train is going to be 0:24:42.440 --> 0:24:47.159 at the station on schedule. It's a huge deal in Japan. 0:24:47.240 --> 0:24:51.320 Commuters rely on trains heavily in Japan, and they expect 0:24:51.320 --> 0:24:53.600 the train to be at the station precisely when it's 0:24:53.600 --> 0:24:56.840 supposed to be, and to leave the station not a 0:24:57.000 --> 0:25:01.280 second early or late. In fact, there was an incident 0:25:01.359 --> 0:25:04.399 in two thousand and seventeen in which a train left 0:25:04.480 --> 0:25:10.800 a Japanese station twenty five seconds early, and the company 0:25:11.119 --> 0:25:15.280 was obligated to apologize to commuters because a few were 0:25:15.359 --> 0:25:18.160 left behind on the platform and they had to wait 0:25:18.200 --> 0:25:21.119 for the next train which got them to their destination. 0:25:21.520 --> 0:25:25.440 Six minutes late. Meanwhile, I'm over here in Atlanta, Georgia, 0:25:25.760 --> 0:25:30.280 and sometimes when I go to the public transportation system nearby, 0:25:30.480 --> 0:25:33.080 the display will say that the next train will arrive 0:25:33.160 --> 0:25:37.760 sometime in all right, well, let's get back to the news. 0:25:38.119 --> 0:25:41.679 The Japanese company j R. East, in an effort to 0:25:41.920 --> 0:25:47.639 modernize operations, chose to digitize train time tables, and then 0:25:47.680 --> 0:25:51.600 they supplied train drivers with tablets that are meant to 0:25:51.720 --> 0:25:54.880 access these new timetables. In fact, that's the only thing 0:25:54.920 --> 0:25:57.520 these tablets are meant to do. The drivers actually have 0:25:57.560 --> 0:26:01.200 other tablets for other tasks. So the thought was these 0:26:01.200 --> 0:26:05.159 timetables could be updated in real time automatically and the 0:26:05.200 --> 0:26:07.520 operators would just have to refer to their tablets to 0:26:07.600 --> 0:26:11.399 stay on schedule. But a driver for the Fukushima Line 0:26:12.119 --> 0:26:16.240 UH forgot their password to their tablet, so they weren't 0:26:16.240 --> 0:26:20.920 able to access the digital timetable, and that gummed everything up. 0:26:20.960 --> 0:26:23.359 The driver actually had to refer to timetables posted in 0:26:23.440 --> 0:26:28.720 various stations along the route, and delay started to chalk up, 0:26:28.840 --> 0:26:32.639 and by the time they got to the final destination 0:26:32.680 --> 0:26:35.560