Martin Ruskov @mapto@qoto.org

“The European Commission’s explicit recognition of ‘Public Money? Public Code!’ in this strategy, nine years after the FSFE launched the initiative, could become a major step forward for software freedom in Europe. However, the Commission still falls short on concrete goals, milestones, and secure funding for Free Software. The procurement reform will be a test: ‘Public Money? Public Code!’ must become a mandatory requirement for public tendering. Redirecting even half of Europe’s €264 billion in public IT spending from proprietary lock-in to Free Software would boost European tech sovereignty”,

says Johannes Näder, FSFE Senior Policy Project Manager.

Your phone screen can't reproduce the full range of colors the human eye can see, and AI-generated images may widen that gap even further.

A design and media arts scholar with deuteranomaly, a form of color blindness that remaps rather than removes color distinctions, dives into the complications.

https://theconversation.com/your-phone-screen-doesnt-have-the-same-color-range-as-the-human-eye-and-ai-widens-the-gap-between-digital-images-and-the-real-thing-283252

I signed this declaration about AI in mathematics, and you might also want to:

https://leidendeclaration.ai/

I had a comment about this passage:

"Technologies which affect the way in which mathematics is practiced may disturb the current system of incentives. The use of artificial intelligence — and thus also the sort of problems which it can address — may become incentivized for its own sake, disrupting our mechanisms for hiring, funding, and recognition."

Though I'm sure it wasn't meant to, this comes across as a bit complacent. Our current system of incentives is seriously flawed, so we should be working to improve it, not merely defending the status quo. We don't want AI companies to be twisting the incentives in mathematics - but university administrators, big journal oligopolies, and the military have been doing this for a long time, and that's no good either.

How can open source AI support public administrations while staying transparent, reusable, interoperable and aligned with public values?

Before you say: 'It can't', join OSOR workshop 'Driving public value through open source artificial intelligence'.

We’ll explore:
🔹 open source AI in the public sector
🔹 real use cases for public services
🔹 barriers to adoption and scaling
🔹 practical ways forward for governments

📅 30 June 2026, 10:00–12:00 CEST

Register here 👉 https://interoperable-europe.ec.europa.eu/form/driving-public-value-through-ope

In Iran war’s shadow, Israel’s renewed Lebanon campaign risks repeating failed lessons – and occupations – of the past
https://theconversation.com/in-iran-wars-shadow-israels-renewed-lebanon-campaign-risks-repeating-failed-lessons-and-occupations-of-the-past-284052

Your phone screen doesn’t have the same color range as the human eye – and AI widens the gap between digital images and the real thing
https://theconversation.com/your-phone-screen-doesnt-have-the-same-color-range-as-the-human-eye-and-ai-widens-the-gap-between-digital-images-and-the-real-thing-283252

Bat in the house? 🦇

A bat biologist walks through the steps for persuading a bat to leave your home, and what to do when a whole family decides to roost in your attic.
https://theconversation.com/bat-in-the-house-heres-how-to-remove-it-safely-283456

Tyrannosaurus Rex and Other Terrifying Predatory Dinosaurs Had Itty-Bitty Arms. Scientists May Have Finally Figured Out Why
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/tyrannosaurus-rex-and-other-terrifying-predatory-dinosaurs-had-itty-bitty-arms-scientists-may-have-finally-figured-out-why-180988803/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub

Posted into Smartnews @smartnews-Smithsonianmag

Scientists Used A.I. to Redesign a Microbe’s Machinery to Function Without a Key Ingredient of Life
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-used-ai-to-redesign-a-microbes-machinery-to-function-without-a-key-ingredient-of-life-180988802/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub

Posted into Smartnews @smartnews-Smithsonianmag

Atlantic hurricane season starts Monday, and preparedness experts say older adults living alone face added risks during major storms.

5 key steps to help your loved ones prepare:
https://theconversation.com/5-tips-for-hurricane-disaster-planning-with-aging-parents-starting-now-before-the-storms-254917

Via Neel Krishnaswami (https://semantic-domain.blogspot.com/2013/04/john-c-reynolds-june-1-1935-april-28.html):

"So this was John [Reynolds]'s definition of a successful language design: if you have a user who has used it to write a program you couldn't have, your language has succeeded, since it has helped a fellow human being solve one of their own particular problems.

I've always liked his definition, since it manages to avoid an obsession with nose-counting popularity metrics, while still remembering the essentially social purpose of language design."

Nearly 1/3 of urban water is lost before it reaches the tap 🚰

A new study explores circular water systems and shows that fixing leaks and recycling treated wastewater could reduce urban freshwater withdrawals by 60%.

Learn more 👉 https://link.europa.eu/cN7fQ9

#WaterWiseEU
---
https://nitter.net/EU_ENV/status/2059217613666849222#m

There is no digital sovereignty without ODF

"The HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee was forced in 2020 to rename dozens of human genes – including SEPT1 and MARCH1 – because Excel kept silently converting their symbols to dates. Rather than going to Microsoft and demanding a bug fix, scientists preferred to throw years of established nomenclature down the drain to avoid upsetting Redmond. A revealing precedent."

https://blog.documentfoundation.org/blog/2026/05/15/no-digital-sovereignty-without-odf/
@resist

Killing a country’s leader may disrupt a government for a moment, but history shows it rarely makes the government collapse.
https://theconversation.com/the-war-in-iran-again-points-to-the-strategic-shortcomings-of-assassination-as-policy-of-foreign-affairs-282743

In Italia nel 2025 più di 220 morti in bici, in Spagna 46. Quale paese modifica le leggi per migliorarne la sicurezza?

Ovviamente la Spagna, perché 46 (su 48 milioni di abitanti) sono comunque considerate troppi.
Visto che molti muoiono su strade extraurbane, la nuova legge consente di trasformare le spalle della strada in ciclabili segregate per aumentare la #sicurezzaStradale:

https://www.eldiario.es/motor/boe-abre-puerta-impulsar-carriles-bici-segregados-carreteras-estatales-pm_1_13229457.html

Da noi invece mettiamo le targhe ai monopattini: una misura inutile, per un mezzo coinvolto in percentuali omeopatiche degli scontri stradali 🤦‍♂️

@ciclismo #violenzaStradale