Australia to spend $1.1bn on underwater'Ghost Shark' attack drones Australia will spend 1.7 billion Australian dollars ($1.1bn) on a fleet of extra-large underwater "Ghost Shark" attack drones, in a move that officials said would supplement the country's plans to acquire sophisticated nuclear-powered submarines. Australian Minister for Defence Richard Marles said on Wednesday that the Ghost Shark autonomous underwater vehicles will complement Australia's naval surface fleet and submarines to provide "a more capable and more lethal navy". "We have consistently articulated that Australia faces the most complex, in some ways, the most threatening, strategic landscape that we have had since the end of the second world war," Marles said. The government said it signed the $1.1bn, five-year contract with Anduril Australia to build, maintain and develop the uncrewed undersea vehicles in Australia. "This is the highest tech capability in the world," Marles said, adding that the drones would have a "very long range" as well as stealth capabilities.

How is Russia replenishing its military? What is a'coalition of the willing'? How China forgot promises and'debts' to Ukraine How are Europe, the US pulling apart on Ukraine? Polish and NATO forces have shot down drones violating the country's airspace during a Russian aerial attack on neighbouring Ukraine. Fighter jets were scrambled early on Wednesday as more than a dozen drones entered Polish airspace, the Polish military said.

More than 1,000 people across the UK with suspected dementia are to be offered a blood test for Alzheimer's disease which it is hoped could revolutionise diagnosis of the disease. The blood test can detect biomarkers for rogue proteins which accumulate in the brains of patients with the condition and will be used in addition to pen and paper cognitive tests, which often misdiagnose it in its early stages. Scientists leading the trial at University College London believe the blood test will improve the accuracy of diagnosis from 70% to more than 90% and want to see how that helps patients and clinicians. Patients will be recruited at 20 memory clinics as part of the study, which aims to see how well the test works within the NHS. Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia and is associated with the build-up in the brain of two rogue proteins - amyloid and tau - which can accumulate for up to 20 years before symptoms emerge.

Deploying a Machine Learning (ML) training pipeline into production requires good software engineering practices. Unfortunately, the typical data science workflow often leads to code that lacks critical software quality attributes. This experience report investigates this problem in SPIRA, a project whose goal is to create an ML-Enabled System (MLES) to pre-diagnose insufficiency respiratory via speech analysis. This paper presents an overview of the architecture of the MLES, then compares three versions of its Continuous Training subsystem: from a proof of concept Big Ball of Mud (v1), to a design pattern-based Modular Monolith (v2), to a test-driven set of Microservices (v3) Each version improved its overall extensibility, maintainability, robustness, and resiliency. The paper shares challenges and lessons learned in this process, offering insights for researchers and practitioners seeking to productionize their pipelines.

What do we know about alleged Trump signature on Epstein letter? A birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein from 2003, allegedly signed by Donald Trump, has been released by US lawmakers. The White House has said, the president did not write this letter, he did not sign this letter, but Democrats believe it is authentic. There has been a particular focus on the signature - BBC Verify's Jake Horton has been examining it, with the help of handwriting experts. The BBC's Tom Bateman spoke with Patrick Scallen who lives near the Annunciation Church and ran towards the sound of gunfire.

After 25 years at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Cindy Cohn is stepping down as executive director. In a WIRED interview, she reflects on encryption, AI, and why she's not ready to quit the battle. After a quarter century defending digital rights, Cindy Cohn announced on Tuesday that she is stepping down as executive director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Cohn, who has led the San Francisco-based nonprofit since 2015, says she will leave the role later this year, concluding a chapter that helped define the modern fight over online freedom. Cohn first rose to prominence as lead counsel in, the 1990s case that overturned federal restrictions on publishing encryption code. As EFF's legal director and later executive director, she guided the group through legal challenges to government surveillance, reforms to computer crime laws, and efforts to hold corporations accountable for data collection. Over the past decade, EFF has expanded its influence, becoming a central force in shaping the debate over privacy, security, and digital freedom. In an interview with WIRED, Cohn reflected on EFF's foundational encryption victories, its unfinished battles against National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance, and the organization's work protecting independent security researchers.

London-listed miner Anglo American and Canada's Teck Resources plan to merge, marking the sector's second-biggest mergers and acquisitions deal ever and forging a new global copper-focused heavyweight. Under the proposed deal, which will require regulatory approvals and was announced on Tuesday, Anglo American shareholders will own 62.4 percent of the new company, Anglo Teck, while shareholders in Teck would hold 37.6 percent. The deal to form the world's fifth-largest copper company is also a big bet on copper by Anglo. Glencore's $90bn merger with Xstrata in 2013 remains the largest mining deal in history. Copper, used in the power and construction sectors, is set to benefit from burgeoning demand spurred by electric vehicles and artificial intelligence.

Apple has announced several new products, including its new slimmer iPhone "Air" model with a "high-density battery" and a brand new processor, as well as an iPhone 17, the latest upgrade to its flagship smartphone . The tech giant, based in Cupertino, California in the US, unveiled the iPhone Air model as the star of the annual product launch event on Tuesday, with CEO Tim Cook calling it a "game-changer". The company said the base model iPhone 17 will have a brighter, more scratch-resistant screen. It also said the device will feature a new A19 processor chip, which will be made with three-nanometre (3nm) chipmaking technology and have improved capabilities for on-device artificial intelligence features. Apple said the iPhone 17 will also have a better front-facing camera with a differently shaped sensor to make horizontal selfies look better.

Is Chicago the violent crime capital of the US? Why did India-US relations decline so fast? Why is the US expanding in the Caribbean? The United States Environmental Protection Agency has proposed new measures aimed at speeding construction of infrastructure needed for the rapid buildup of data centres for artificial intelligence that would enable companies to start building before obtaining air permits. The EPA announced its new proposal on Tuesday.

In the critical 72 hours after an earthquake or explosion, a race against the clock begins to find survivors. When a powerful earthquake hit central Italy on 24 August 2016, killing 299 people, over 5 000 emergency workers were mobilised in search and rescue efforts that saved dozens from the rubble in the immediate aftermath. The pressure to move fast can create risks for first responders, who often face unstable environments with little information about the dangers ahead. But this type of rescue work could soon become safer and more efficient thanks to a joint effort by EU and Japanese researchers. Rescue organisations, research institutes and companies from both Europe and Japan worked together from 2019 to 2023 to develop a new generation of tools blending robotics, drone technology and chemical sensing to transform how emergency teams operate in disaster zones.