Government denies new cybersecurity measures responsible for up to 40% drop in internet speeds across the country For the free online tech skill classes advertised, there were hundreds of Facebook “likes” and in the end 1,500 people signed up. But on the first day last week, only a handful of those registered managed to log in to the live session. The internet was working at a snail’s speed. “We received hundreds of complaints,” says the course tutor, Wardah Noor, founder of the IT training firm XWave, based in Layyah, in the Pakistani province of Punjab. Continue reading...

As demand for the tin ore cassiterite soars, special forces units of Brazil’s Ibama environment agency must play a cat and mouse game with the thousands of illegal miners pouring into Yanomami reserves In the back yard of the federal police headquarters in Roraima, the northernmost state of Brazil, giant sacks lie strewn and overflowing with a jet-black, gravel-like mineral: cassiterite. Although less high-profile than other items seized during a crackdown on illegal mining in this Amazon state – including a Sikorsky S-76 helicopter painted in the colours of the Brazilian flag – cassiterite has become so sought-after that it is nicknamed “black gold”. Cassiterite is the chief ore of tin, a less heralded but critical mineral for the energy transition. It is used in coatings for solar panels, lithium-ion batteries and solder for electronics, including wind turbines, mobile phones, computers and industrial alloys. Continue reading...

While ultrasound services are normal practice in many countries, software being tested in Uganda will allow a scan without the need for specialists, providing an incentive for pregnant women to visit health services early on Mothers-to-be have become used to the first glimpse of their baby via the fuzzy black and white ultrasound scan, an image that can be shown to friends and family. But it remains a luxury in many parts of the world. Now AI is being used to develop technology to bring the much-anticipated pregnancy milestone to women who are most in need of the scan’s medical checkup on a baby’s health. A pilot project in Uganda is using AI software to power ultrasound imaging to not only scan unborn babies but also to encourage women to attend health services at an earlier stage in their pregnancies, helping to reduce stillbirths and complications. Continue reading...