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RestOfWorld.org reports on "a global crisis nobody anticipated when governments started subsidizing electric vehicles..." "EVs can lose almost half their driving distance when temperatures drop, and the billions spent on improving technology have failed to fix this fundamental limitation." In January, Seattle-based Recurrent, a company that tests and analyzes EVs, found an average range loss of 20% in extreme cold... Lithium-ion batteries rely on chemical reactions that slow dramatically in cold weather. When temperatures plunge, the electrolyte thickens, ions move sluggishly, and charging becomes not just inefficient but potentially dangerous. Charging in cold weather has been identified as a primary cause of thermal acceleration, which can lead to fires... The failure pattern repeats globally wherever cold weather meets inadequate infrastructure. Manufacturers, too, have acknowledged the problem. Chinese EV maker BYD's user manual, for instance, advises drivers to charge indoors, with the heating on. That advice is useless for farmers parking in open courtyards. In fact, research across 293 Chinese cities "found that many drivers in colder regions buy EVs only as supplementary vehicles," according to the article, "while still relying on gasoline-powered cars during winter." The article also tells the story of an apple grower chilly Kashmir, India who discovered that his Chinese three-wheeler lost 60% of its 10-hour charge overnight. This made it impossible to begin the 56-kilometer (35-mile) trip on a route with no charging stations — and prevented him from selling his produce while it was fresh (to earn the highest prices). And the problem affects the entire region: Desperate drivers have formed WhatsApp groups, such as "EV Apple Transporters" and "Battery Help Kashmir," sharing increasingly absurd workarounds. Some have wrapped batteries in quilts; others have hauled power packs weighing 90 kilograms (over 200 pounds) into their homes for the night. One driver parked his battery in the living room. "The blankets caused overheating on the road; water bottles leaked into the circuits," [orchard owner] Sajad Ahmad said. "We became mechanics, engineers, and fools all at once." EVs are also not considered cost-efficient. "Diesel vans are expensive, but they can do four or five trips a day," Mohammad Yaseen, a driver based in Shopian, told Rest of World. "With EVs, one half-trip and you're stuck." Norway, where winter temperatures average minus 7 degrees Celsius (19 degrees Fahrenheit), achieved 89% EV market share with its comprehensive infrastructure. It offers more than 200 models for year-round usage. "The ability to preheat batteries upon fast charging in winter is by far the most important improvement we have seen in the past five years," Christina Bu, secretary-general of the Norwegian EV Association, told Rest of World. "These features are standard in Norway's mature market, but remain absent from basic models exported to developing countries."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

One important question remains.

The British singer, 34, flaunted her jaw-dropping figure in a daringly plunging yellow and white gown which also boasted a racy thigh-high split.

The White Lotus star Walton Goggins was 'reluctant and wary' with wife Nadia Conners at the Emmy Awards. Daily Mail has since spoken exclusively to experts about the exchange.

Ahead of the US President's State visit to the UK this week, Business Secretary Peter Kyle said he was 'looking at ways' to support Kyiv 'assertively' and 'imaginatively'.

Writing in Monday's Daily Mail, the Conservative leader warned that 'offending someone has effectively been turned into a crime ' and said policing has become politicised.

Stephen Low, from Norwich, shared how he was mistaken for a spy and held at gunpoint whilst hiking along the North and South Korea border - after wandering into a restricted military testing zone. 

The boxing icon, 46, sent the inspirational video to schoolboy Louie after he was targeted by cruel bullies.

CHRISTOPHER STEVENS: For the fans who adored his quick wit and generous spirit, his dark side was tragic to witness.

The initial deportation of small-boat migrants is due to take place as early as today. Ministers are gearing up for the first removal flights as part of the 'one in, one out' deal with France.

Pints and pooches, for some there is no better combination. However, not all pubs cater for those wanting to bring their dog along whilst they grab a drink.

The Hollywood actress, 53, and Good Charlotte rocker, 46, who are notoriously private, married in 2015 and are parents to one-year-old son Cardinal and five-year-old daughter Raddix.

Nora Ephron got there first, of course, with her essay I Feel Bad About My Neck. Now I'm there too, along with most of my 50-plusser friends.

It's a moment that will be etched on my brain forever. It was just after my husband Robin died almost four years ago.

When I played tennis for a living, I was good at reading my opponents, their strengths and weaknesses.

It is 2.30pm outside a Wetherspoons pub and Clement Moyo is showing off a GPS ankle tag which means he can be monitored round the clock by immigration officials.

PLUS: China's Great Firewall springs a leak; FBI issues rare 'Flash Alert' of Salesforce attacks; $10m bounty for alleged Russian hacker; and more

Infosec In Brief  15 ransomware gangs, including Scattered Spider and Lapsus$, have announced that they are going dark, and say no more attacks will be carried out in their name.…

Last year Amazon's robotaxi service Zoox held a training session for 20 Las Vegas firefighters, police officers, and other first responders, reports the Washington Post, calling it "a new ritual for emergency workers across the country, as autonomous vehicles begin to spread beyond the handful of cities that served as initial testing grounds..." Questions that came up included: What can first responders do if the nearly 6,000-pound vehicle is blocking a roadway? (Better to pull, not push.) What happens if the vehicle loses its connectivity? (It's designed to pull over.) And can first responders manually shut off the vehicle? (Not yet, but Zoox is working on it....) The vehicles' operators claim they drive more safely than humans, but anything can happen on public roads, and first responders need to know how to intervene if a robotaxi is caught in a collision that traps passengers, catches fire or gets caught doing something that demands a traffic stop... Alphabet's Waymo, which has more than 2,000 vehicles completing hundreds of thousands of paid trips each week across San Francisco and Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Austin and Atlanta, has trained more than 20,000 first responders in how to interact with its vehicles, the company said. Tesla didn't respond to a request for comment on how many first responders the company has trained, but a representative from the Austin Police Department confirmed that fire, police and transit workers were trained on the company's Robotaxi before the company launched commercial service in June. Tesla, Waymo and Zoox say their vehicles can detect the lights and sirens of emergency vehicles and automatically attempt to pull over. Waymo says its vehicles can interpret first responders' hand signals.... The first responders appeared excited about the potential of the company's artificial intelligence technology to ferry visitors up and down the Vegas Strip without concern that a driver might be inebriated. They were also wary of problems that might unfold: Autonomous vehicles are electric, and when electric vehicles catch fire, they're difficult to extinguish, the firefighters said. The first responders also worried that a secondary air bag deployment could injure an emergency responder, a common concern with conventional vehicles. And if a police officer wanted to view the footage a Zoox vehicle captured on the road, would the company be willing to share it? Turning over footage would require a subpoena, a Zoox official responded. But "those who've been through the trainings and have seen large-scale commercial rollouts say it's difficult to anticipate all the potential issues in a specific market," the article points out. Darius Luttropp, former deputy chief of operations for the San Francisco Fire Department, told the Post last year that Waymo vehicles had blocked city firefighters from leaving and entering firehouses, and also crashed into their equipment. Lt. William White of the Austin Police Department told the Post that more than once Waymo vehicles failed to recognize an officer on a motorcycle with their police lights activated.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

While the saga of the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein has dominated Washington and the media in recent months, Kirk's assassination has now taken center stage.

The hardware is now compelling, sales are rising, and there's the chance to create a new experience

hands on  Folding smartphones have been with us for six years without winning much market share, but after two weeks using Samsung's latest model, and recent reports of surging sales in the category, it feels to me like dual-screened devices are something developers now need to consider.…