Don't Listen to Anyone Who Thinks Secession Will Solve Anything Americans increasingly fantasize about a divorce between red and blue states--but they dread the thought of civil war. You can't have one without the other. It's become almost like a histamine response: After a shocking national event like the assassination of Charlie Kirk, or Donald Trump's deployment of the military to Los Angeles last June, mentions of the term " civil war " and calls for secession surge online. This kind of talk flared again in January, when two citizens were shot and killed by immigration agents on the streets of Minneapolis, and governor Tim Walz mobilized the Minnesota National Guard to be ready to support local law enforcement. "I mean, is this a Fort Sumter?" Walz said in an interview with The Atlantic, invoking the battle that sparked the Civil War.

Spring Break travelers facing TSA hell fume as it's revealed why only certain airports crippled by shutdown Chappell Roan apologises to Jude Law's daughter as she insists she did not ask security guard to approach her and says'I do not hate fans of my music or children' Democratic enclave tears down tent city in its latest'whack-a-mole' move as homeless crisis laid bare Infertile influencer Clavicular's dark fetish is far more alarming than anyone feared, claim high school enemies as they leak unrecognizable photos and humiliating secrets I was a producer on The Bachelor. I've seen what happens when the cameras stop rolling: JANA HOCKING reveals the humiliating crisis talks, sex secrets and forbidden relationships Under fire again: Embattled sheriff in Nancy Guthrie case was accused of'assaulting deputy'...as decades of complaints emerge My daughters begged me not to send them back to their mother... Inside Enya's off-grid life in a £2.5M remote castle with 12 cats and no partner or children after turning her back on fame and admitting she's'dark and difficult' to be around'He just didn't protect him': Insiders reveal REAL reason Justin Bieber and Usher's secret feud hit'boiling point' at Oscars MORE bad news for Austin's housing market as Texan city leads in plummeting prices Hawaii's worst flooding in 20 years caused over $1BILLION in damage as crews desperately search for woman swept away in deluge Princess Beatrice puts on united front with husband Edo during lunch out amid fears her'marriage is in trouble' in wake of Epstein scandal Friends reveal fears Princess Beatrice's'marriage is in trouble' in wake of Epstein scandal. I was the only one JFK Jr and Carolyn Bessette trusted when they burdened me with an extraordinarily intimate secret. Iran war live: Trump threatens to'obliterate' Tehran's power plants if Strait of Hormuz does not'fully open' in next 48 hours Trump's White House ballroom architect'has totally baffled colleagues' by taking on controversial project Oscars PANIC as ratings hemorrhage: Insiders reveal'existential crisis' inside the Academy... and why Hollywood's biggest night was a'big fat dud' My husband's filthy habit is so revolting I don't even want to kiss him: DEAR JANE READ MORE: Britain's best supermarket hot cross buns revealed There's nothing quite like a toasted hot cross bun slathered in butter. Now, experts have suggested an unusual way to make them taste even better - by slicing them into thirds.

How Bad Is Plagiarism, Really? From ancient Rome to the era of A.I., people have prized originality, but the line where influence ends and cribbing begins is notoriously blurry. One pleasing facet of plagiarism is that, in the eyes of the law, it doesn't exist. I could come over later, bring a few beers, and we could, you know, get down to some serious humanizing. Hard to resist, these days, given what's at stake. For students with assignments to complete, who have already vanquished their desolation by asking ChatGPT to compose an essay on their behalf, a humanizer is an A.I. tool that takes what has been produced, puts it through a further digital mill, and makes it sound as if it had emerged from a verifiable person. Among the companies that offer such tools are StealthWriter, HIX AI, and QuillBot. Anyone who has buttered and blitzed a mountain of mashed potatoes into a purée will understand.

I'm standing in front of a quantum computer built out of atoms and light at the UK's National Quantum Computing Centre on the outskirts of Oxford. On a laboratory table, a complex matrix of mirrors and lenses surrounds a Rubik's Cube-size cell where 100 cesium atoms are suspended in grid formation by a carefully manipulated laser beam. The cesium atom setup is so compact that I could pick it up, carry it out of the lab, and put it on the backseat of my car to take home. I'd be unlikely to get very far, though.

Customer conversations with chatbots can include contact information and personal details that make it easier for scammers to launch phishing attacks and commit fraud.

AI firm Anthropic seeks weapons expert to stop users from'misuse' The US artificial intelligence (AI) firm Anthropic is looking to hire a chemical weapons and high-yield explosives expert to try to prevent catastrophic misuse of its software. In other words, it fears that its AI tools might tell someone how to make chemical or radioactive weapons, and wants an expert to ensure its guardrails are sufficiently robust. In the LinkedIn recruitment post, the firm says applicants should have a minimum of five years experience in chemical weapons and/or explosives defence as well as knowledge of radiological dispersal devices - also known as dirty bombs. The firm told the BBC the role was similar to jobs in other sensitive areas that it has already created. Anthropic is not the only AI firm adopting this strategy.

We can't let them hide behind their models From Gaza to Iran, the pattern is the same: precision weapons, chosen blindness, and dead children. There is an Israeli military strategy called the "fog procedure". First used during the second intifada, it's an unofficial rule that requires soldiers guarding military posts in conditions of low visibility to shoot bursts of gunfire into the darkness, on the theory that an invisible threat might be lurking. It's violence licensed by blindness. Shoot into the darkness and call it deterrence. With the dawn of AI warfare, that same logic of chosen blindness has been refined, systematized, and handed off to a machine.

Conniving couple whose greedy'pervert' plot'drove innocent disabled man to suicide' given stunningly short sentences Obama Center asks for 100 unpaid volunteers despite hiring the former president's'close friend' as CEO on $740K Harry Styles shares gay kiss with SNL star in wild opening monologue as he addresses'queerbaiting' claims Housing nightmare in America's'best state to buy a home' as banks suddenly seize thousands of properties Insufferable blowhard Stephen Colbert is being taken out like the trash... and thank God! What he's done is so diabolical: MAUREEN CALLAHAN JFK Jr's mortifying night of phone sex... day Sarah Jessica Parker ditched her underwear to seduce him in public... and the girlfriend he REALLY wanted to marry: All the women before Carolyn Mass cancellations as Southwest Airlines pulls out of two of America's biggest airports Truth about'super secretive' Michael B. Jordan's love life... and real reason he is perpetually single: Years of private'heartache' and'loneliness' laid bare Beloved young dad and inspiring female'Air Force superstar' among US heroes killed in Iran mission crash as all six are named Insane moment NYC cab plows into pedestrians... and the miracle that saved them from death Caitlin Clark goes viral for bizarre behavior after Team USA's win over Italy: 'What are you doing? We fled Trump to chase the REAL American dream in the most idyllic European hotspot... here's why we're coming back to a red state I looked like a monster after a car accident burned off my face... but a pioneering face transplant gave me my life back. Furious flower farm owner blasts'feral' customers after they trampled tulips to get perfect photos Harry and Meghan hit back at new book claims she was accused by Camilla of'brainwashing' him - dismissing accusations as'deranged conspiracy' Extramarital sex with witches, cursed bloodlines and possessed politicians: DC's chief exorcist reveals the potent stench of evil among America's elite Iran's deadly drone arsenal is a'wake-up call for America': Expert warns US defenses may be unprepared for swarm attacks Iran's foreign minister admits Islamic Republic is receiving military support from Russia and China Hollywood costume designer names VILE A-Listers including pervert James Bond star, slob female sitcom icon... and details the hilarious evil of Shannen Doherty Police-style powers handed to Environment Agency in bid to crack down on waste criminals'blighting our countryside' Waste criminals are facing a tough crackdown as the government announces new'zero-tolerance' plans to deal with gangs who illegally dump rubbish. Environment officers could soon be given police-like powers to search premises, seize assets and arrest individuals without a warrant. The new approach would allow officers to intervene earlier, bring more criminals to justice and hit the organised gangs behind illegal waste'where it hurts' by disrupting their finances.

We don't know if AI-powered toys are safe, but they're here anyway Toys powered by AI show a worrying lack of emotional understanding. Mya, aged 3, and her mother Vicky playing with an AI toy called Gabbo during an observation at the University of Cambridge's Faculty of Education Even the most cutting-edge AI models are prone to presenting fabrication as fact, dispensing dangerous information and failing to grasp social cues. Despite this, toys equipped with AI that can chat with children are a burgeoning industry. Some scientists are warning that the devices could be risky and require strict regulation. In the latest study, researchers even observed a 5-year-old telling such a toy "I love you", to which it replied: "As a friendly reminder, please ensure interactions adhere to the guidelines provided. Let me know how you would like to proceed."

Hosted by Ben Byford, The Machine Ethics Podcast brings together interviews with academics, authors, business leaders, designers and engineers on the subject of autonomous algorithms, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and technology's impact on society. This month, Ben met in-person with Jen Semler. Jen Semler is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Cornell Tech's Digital Life Initiative. Her research focuses on the intersection of ethics, technology, and moral agency. She holds a DPhil (PhD) in philosophy from the University of Oxford.