opération
Amazon Japan is now transporting packages on Shinkansen bullet trains
It's part of Amazon's efforts to reach net-zero carbon across its operations in the coming years. Amazon Japan has started using the country's iconic bullet trains to move packages between facilities across different regions. The company said teaming up with Japan Railway is part of its efforts to cut both delivery times and carbon dioxide emissions. Japan's Shinkansen can reach speeds of up to 200 mph and can cut down travel times, say, from Tokyo to Osaka from around 8 hours to two-and-a-half hours. They also run on electricity delivered by an overhead electrical system. Back in 2019, the company launched an initiative that aims for net zero carbon emissions for deliveries.
U.S. strikes Iran again after Trump denies deal on Strait of Hormuz
Iran and U.S. trade airstrikes after Trump dismisses report of Hormuz deal DUBAI/WASHINGTON - Iran's Revolutionary Guard said on Thursday it targeted a U.S. airbase after the U.S. military carried out what a Washington official said were strikes targeting an Iranian drone operation near the Strait of Hormuz, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump rejected a report he was close to a compromise deal with Tehran. The escalation in hostilities highlighted threats to the tenuous ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran that took effect in early April, dampening hopes for a peace deal and sending oil prices surging again. A U.S. official, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about military operations, said the military shot down four Iranian attack drones and struck a ground control station in the port city of Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right. With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories.
Waymo Takes Its Self-Driving Cars to Virginia
Best Power Banks Best Smart Rings Routers vs. Modems Choose the Right Laptop Smart Sprinklers Deals Delivered The company is mapping Alexandria and, soon, Arlington--right across from the power center of Washington, DC. Self-driving cars aren't yet permitted to operate in Virginia. But Alphabet-owned Waymo began transporting its cars to the state last week, a Waymo representative told Virginia officials, to map Arlington and Alexandria, in the northern part of the state. For most autonomous vehicle companies, mapping, or the creation of sensor-aided and ultra-precise digital representations of streets and the features around them, is the first step required to launch a local robotaxi service. Drivers will operate the mapping vehicles for now, Waymo says.
Quaternion Self-Attention with Shared Scores
Yamauchi, Shogo, Nitta, Tohru, Tamori, Hideaki
Quaternion neural networks are parameter-efficient and model multidimensional dependencies by representing four related features as a single entity. However, existing quaternion self-attention computes component-wise scores and applies independent softmax operations to each component, which increases the computational cost and allows attention distributions to diverge across components. We propose a shared-score quaternion self-attention mechanism that computes a single real-valued score using the quaternion inner product and applies a shared attention distribution across all components. This reduces score-computation multiplications by 75% and the number of softmax operations from four to one. We prove that, when queries and keys are produced by quaternion linear projections that induce component pre-mixing, the component-wise and shared scores lie in the same interaction subspace, indicating that independent component-wise attention primarily re-parameterizes the same interactions rather than expanding the feature interaction space. In speech enhancement, our method reduces inference time by up to 44.3% on a GPU and 58.1% on a CPU while maintaining quality, with consistent trends across vision and natural language processing.
On London's streets, facial recognition tests the balance between security and liberty
On London's streets, facial recognition tests the balance between security and liberty Temporary street signs warn pedestrians of a Metropolitan Police live facial recognition operation in London on May 11. | REUTERS London - Tourists, shoppers and office workers on a busy London street on an ordinary weekday found themselves part of a digital identity check as live facial recognition cameras scanned faces against a police watchlist. The operation was an example of a technology the Metropolitan Police say is transforming policing, helping officers arrest around 2,500 wanted people since the start of 2024, including suspects accused of violent and sexual offences. Critics, however, say live facial recognition undermines the presumption of innocence underpinning British law by treating every passerby as a potential suspect. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
How ISWAP and Boko Haram are reshaping the Lake Chad Basin
The killing of Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, the second-in-command of ISIL (ISIS), by United States and Nigerian forces marks a notable achievement for "counterterrorism". Yet for analysts observing the Lake Chad Basin, it highlights how persistent and complex insecurity in the region has become. Al-Minuki, a Nigerian national from Borno State, was operating out of a compound near Lake Chad, at the centre of one of the world's most active armed group theatres. Perhaps equally significant is the parallel resurgence of Boko Haram, which quietly rebuilt itself while security agencies primarily focused on the more dominant ISWAP. "While regional forces focused on countering ISWAP's threats, partly due to the group's advanced drone capabilities, Boko Haram appears to have taken advantage of the relative attention on its rival to regroup," Nimi Princewill, a security expert in the Sahel, told Al Jazeera.
Three near-death experiences that convinced doctors the soul may exist
SNL season finale cold open sees ghost of Jeffrey Epstein played by Will Ferrell'haunt' Trump as dark jokes leave viewers shocked Jordon Hudson blasts double standards over Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini'affair' scandal: 'What is going on?' No one wants to hang out with her': Why Meghan and Harry have been ditched by A-list friends as insiders reveal Oprah's merciless snub, why the Clooneys now want nothing to do with them - and how SHE'S the problem Truth about Kate Middleton's past before Prince William... we Americans see this for what it is: KENNEDY Kim Kardashian roasted over'ridiculous' outfit at Gucci show as she sits front row with Anna Wintour and Mariah Carey I was on track to make $1 million... then I quit my job and moved into an off-grid tiny home with no running water or electricity Professional tasters decide best and worst fast food cheeseburger - do you agree? Hamptons cancer cluster: Rates are spiking in summer enclave of New York's wealthy elite... and doctors think they know the tragic reason why Disturbing trove of images woke Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass doesn't want you to see: Filthy truth is so much worse than people think... Taylor Swift dazzles in glittering gown as she and Travis Kelce steal the spotlight at friend's wedding in NYC Golf star becomes instant fan favorite after stopping to smoke a cigarette with crowd in the middle of the PGA Championship: 'Man of the people' New kind of penis enlargement surgery will add inches, claims the doctor set to offer it... but there is a gruesome detail that may make some think twice She was every bit the adoring mother... then a leaked video exposed a'sadistic' secret even cops said'will bring tears to your eyes' I saw a 40-year-old middle-class mom in a psychiatric ward after a single hit of this drug. Her symptoms were terrifying but it's so common now... here's what you must know: DR MAX PEMBERTON Expert reveals the best way to cut the bread - and why you should never leave a'hinge' 'I saw things I can never unsee': Man who snuck into Air India crash morgue reveals what he saw... why it could blow apart the pilot suicide theory... and what happened when we visited the lone survivor Many people have reported near-death experiences, but in some cases, survivors appeared to bring back something far more unsettling than memories. Some survivors claimed they saw and heard things that should have been impossible while they were clinically dead, including conversations in operating rooms and objects located far outside their hospital beds. Several of the most famous cases involved patients whose brains allegedly showed little or no measurable activity at the time of their experiences.
Thousands of officers deployed as crowds gather for London protests
More than 4,000 police officers have been deployed to London, as crowds start to gather for two rival protests in the capital. Police will use drones, police horses and dogs and have armoured vehicles on standby. Officers will also manage a so-called sterile zone between the Unite the Kingdom march, organised by far-right figure Tommy Robinson, and a pro-Palestinian demonstration. The Metropolitan Police has called it one of the most significant policing operations in years. In addition to the protests, tens of thousands of football fans are expected at Wembley Stadium for the FA Cup Final on Saturday afternoon.