Last fall, the Golden State Warriors got an early indication that Brandin Podziemski was no average rookie, and it had nothing to do with his basketball skills. The 6-foot-5 guard, playing in one of his first scrimmages with the team, yelled at Draymond Green -- yes, Draymond Green -- for committing a turnover that cost them the game. While some probably held their breath in anticipation of Green's reaction, the verbal lashing only elicited one feeling in the fiery 12-year veteran: Respect. "Here we are playing a pick-up game, a game to get me ready [to return from injury] and he's yelling at me," Green told The Athletic . "That, to me, said a whole lot. I was like, 'You know what? No problem. But make sure you speak up like that all the time.'" Not a problem. Despite being just 21 years old and in his second NBA season, Podziemski has already become one of the vocal leaders on a team that features the venerated voices of Green and Stephen Curry . As his chestnut tendrils bob up and down above his headband while he dribbles down the floor, Podziemski confidently gesticulates and shouts toward teammates in order to get them organized. His role off the bench is partly why the Warriors have raced out to a 12-4 start, tied for the best record in the Western Conference. "I think the biggest strides I've made is as a leader," Podziemski told CBS Sports. "Being a point guard on the floor, guys -- no matter their age or their status in the league -- kind of look at you on the floor to know what's going on. And so, learning a lot from Steph and seeing how he went about things, learning a lot from Chris Paul last year and how he went about it, helped me now." From the way he dealt with Green early in his career, to the way he answers questions, to simply the way he stands -- goateed chin held high and shoulders assertively back -- Podziemski exudes confidence well beyond his years. Last season, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr even went as far as to call him "cocky," meant as the best compliment possible. But Podziemski's self-assured nature doesn't mean he thinks he's perfect. Far from it. And a good example is the smile he prominently displays when his team accomplishes something brilliant on the court. Podziemski is using Invisalign treatment to straighten out the teeth that, to him, could use some improvement. He had braces as a young man but they didn't quite do the trick. "With anything that you want done for yourself, or things that you're doing, when you feel good, you're more confident," Podziemski told CBS Sports in an interview set up by Invisalign. "And so, yeah, I'm a confident person, but there's always room for improvement." Podziemski's smile may already be looking better, but he hasn't had much reason to display it on the court this season. An All-Rookie selection last year, he's shooting just 37% from the field and a jarring 18.5% from 3-point range, down 20% from his accuracy rate from deep as a rookie. Kerr has made headlines for playing 11- or 12-man rotations all season long, which means Podziemski's playing time has also been inconsistent. He's averaged 19 minutes over his last nine games, often playing in the 15-16 range. That's not much time to make an impact, especially if the shots aren't falling. Coming in and going 0-for-5 on 3s, as he did in a recent win over the New Orleans Pelicans , would test the confidence of even the most self-assured veteran, let alone a guard in his early 20s. But Podziemski has found a way to impact winning despite his dreadful early shooting numbers. He's averaged 7.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists, and the Warriors are plus-60 in his minutes, which ranks fifth on the team. "I think it's the maturity piece. You do what's best for the team," Podziemski told CBS Sports. "You obviously have personal, individual goals that you want to live up to, just coming off the season I had last year. But I think an immature player would be, 'It's all about me, me, me, and it only works if I'm successful.' And I think through team success, individual success is a lot easier." While many players of his age and talent would be playing 30-plus minutes per night on a losing team, Podziemski needs to make an impact in whatever time Kerr decides to put him on the floor. "Obviously, 15-16 minutes, you want to play more, and that's just a given in competitive nature," Podziemski said. "But if you're winning, you know, what is there to say? Right? You could argue that X, Y, Z should play more or play less, but if you're winning, I think that kind of takes care of a lot of problems, a lot of questions." In terms of the poor shooting, Green recently issued a message to Podziemski through the media which essentially amounted to: who cares? To Green -- who has certainly struggled with his own jumper throughout his Hall of Fame career -- Podziemski does so many other important things on the court, that making shots is just a bonus and he needs to stop putting so much pressure on himself. "If the one thing that you're struggling with is your shot, but you're doing five or six other things great, I think that will outweigh your shot," Green said of Podziemski's struggles. "And he should appreciate that, lean into that. If he leans into that, the shots will fall." Podziemski has also received advice from the greatest shooter to ever live, who happens to be a couple lockers down from him. Curry pointed to his own preseason shooting woes, and that he's been in the league long enough to know that eventually he'll get on a hot streak and the average will settle where it's supposed to be. Podziemski has taken that to heart and is focusing on "the things I can control" in order to help the Warriors maintain one of the best records in the league. And as far as the deep rotation, Podziemski sees it as a blessing in the long run, even if it means his minutes get cut down a bit. "We all bring something different, and I think that's the difference between last year," Podziemski said. "Last year, there's only so many lineup combinations he could throw out there, given what players bring, what they need around them to be successful. And I think now we have so many diverse pieces that can be plugged and played in so many different lineups that it makes it easier."
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Defending national champion South Carolina women defeated by UCLA 77-62 for their first loss since the 2023 Final Four.Almost every second business lacks confidence in deepfake detection, according to a new industry assessment. This particularly relates to uncertainty with detection, leaving firms vulnerable to rising fraud risks. The study also uncovers significant gaps in preparedness, particularly in the Financial Services sector, where the threat is growing. The study comes from Regula , a global developer of identity verification solutions. The key message is a gap in preparedness: nearly half of businesses admit they are only partially confident in their ability to detect deepfakes, leaving them vulnerable to escalating fraud risks. Based on Regula’s study, “ The Deepfake Trends 2024 ,” 59 percent of businesses consider video deepfakes a serious threat, while 58 percent feel the same about audio deepfakes. Certain industries and regions feel the impact more acutely : In the Financial Services sector, 66 percent of respondents rank audio deepfakes as a moderate to significant risk. Traditional banks are among the least confident, with only 49 percent feeling prepared. In contrast, FinTech companies report the highest confidence levels at 63 percent. In terms of national trends, Mexico leads globally in deepfake threat perception, with 83 percent concerned about video deepfakes and 85 percent about audio deepfakes. By contrast, only 50 percent of U.S. organizations express concern about video deepfakes; meanwhile, Germany ranks slightly higher, with 57 percent of organizations worried. Germany leads in uncertainty, with only 47 percent of businesses expressing strong confidence in their defenses, while the UAE (63 percent) and the U.S. (60 percent) show the highest levels of confidence. Notably, businesses that have previously experienced identity fraud are twice as likely to view deepfake threats as a major concern. Despite widespread awareness, on average, 42 percent of businesses admit they are only “somewhat confident” in their ability to detect deepfakes. To address the issue, the study reveals that businesses adopting online identity verification (IDV) early are significantly more prepared. Those with seven years of IDV experience report 20 percent higher confidence than recent adopters. However, tackling deepfakes in-house can backfire. Companies building their own IDV systems reported higher average losses—$515,000 compared to $444,000 for those using ready-made solutions—underscoring the complexity of fighting fraud effectively. The report also uncovers a disconnect between owners and managers where 76 percent of business owners are confident in their ability to manage deepfake threats. Yet only 47 percent of managers feel the same, reflecting the day-to-day challenges of mitigating fraud. Dr. Tim Sandle is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for science news.Tim specializes in science, technology, environmental, business, and health journalism. He is additionally a practising microbiologist; and an author. He is also interested in history, politics and current affairs.
Exeter, Newcastle and Leicester register cup wins
ATLANTA (AP) — As she checked into a recent flight to Mexico for vacation, Teja Smith chuckled at the idea of joining another Women’s March on Washington . As a Black woman, she just couldn’t see herself helping to replicate the largest act of resistance against then-President Donald Trump’s first term in January 2017. Even in an election this year where Trump questioned his opponent’s race , held rallies featuring racist insults and falsely claimed Black migrants in Ohio were eating residents’ pets , he didn't just win a second term. He became the first Republican in two decades to clinch the popular vote, although by a small margin. “It’s like the people have spoken and this is what America looks like,” said Smith, the Los Angeles-based founder of the advocacy social media agency, Get Social. “And there’s not too much more fighting that you’re going to be able to do without losing your own sanity.” After Trump was declared the winner over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris , many politically engaged Black women said they were so dismayed by the outcome that they were reassessing — but not completely abandoning — their enthusiasm for electoral politics and movement organizing. Black women often carry much of the work of getting out the vote in their communities. They had vigorously supported the historic candidacy of Harris, who would have been the first woman of Black and South Asian descent to win the presidency. Harris' loss spurred a wave of Black women across social media resolving to prioritize themselves, before giving so much to a country that over and over has shown its indifference to their concerns. AP VoteCast , a survey of more than 120,000 voters, found that 6 in 10 Black women said the future of democracy in the United States was the single most important factor for their vote this year, a higher share than for other demographic groups. But now, with Trump set to return to office in two months, some Black women are renewing calls to emphasize rest, focus on mental health and become more selective about what fight they lend their organizing power to. “America is going to have to save herself,” said LaTosha Brown, the co-founder of the national voting rights group Black Voters Matter. She compared Black women’s presence in social justice movements as “core strategists and core organizers” to the North Star, known as the most consistent and dependable star in the galaxy because of its seemingly fixed position in the sky. People can rely on Black women to lead change, Brown said, but the next four years will look different. “That’s not a herculean task that’s for us. We don’t want that title. ... I have no goals to be a martyr for a nation that cares nothing about me,” she said. AP VoteCast paints a clear picture of Black women's concerns. Black female voters were most likely to say that democracy was the single most important factor for their vote, compared to other motivators such as high prices or abortion. More than 7 in 10 Black female voters said they were “very concerned” that electing Trump would lead the nation toward authoritarianism, while only about 2 in 10 said this about Harris. About 9 in 10 Black female voters supported Harris in 2024, according to AP VoteCast, similar to the share that backed Democrat Joe Biden in 2020. Trump received support from more than half of white voters, who made up the vast majority of his coalition in both years. Like voters overall, Black women were most likely to say the economy and jobs were the most important issues facing the country, with about one-third saying that. But they were more likely than many other groups to say that abortion and racism were the top issues, and much less likely than other groups to say immigration was the top issue. Despite those concerns, which were well-voiced by Black women throughout the campaign, increased support from young men of color and white women helped expand Trump’s lead and secured his victory. Politically engaged Black women said they don’t plan to continue positioning themselves in the vertebrae of the “backbone” of America’s democracy. The growing movement prompting Black women to withdraw is a shift from history, where they are often present and at the forefront of political and social change. One of the earliest examples is the women’s suffrage movement that led to ratification in 1920 of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution , which gave women the right to vote. Black women, however, were prevented from voting for decades afterward because of Jim Crow-era literacy tests, poll taxes and laws that blocked the grandchildren of slaves from voting. Most Black women couldn’t vote until the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Black women were among the organizers and counted among the marchers brutalized on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Alabama, during the historic march in 1965 from Selma to Montgomery that preceded federal legislation. Decades later, Black women were prominent organizers of the Black Lives Matter movement in response to the deaths of Black Americans at the hands of police and vigilantes. In his 2024 campaign, Trump called for leveraging federal money to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs in government programs and discussions of race, gender or sexual orientation in schools. His rhetoric on immigration, including false claims that Black Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating cats and dogs, drove support for his plan to deport millions of people . Tenita Taylor, a Black resident of Atlanta who supported Trump this year, said she was initially excited about Harris’ candidacy. But after thinking about how high her grocery bills have been, she feels that voting for Trump in hopes of finally getting lower prices was a form of self-prioritization. “People say, ‘Well, that’s selfish, it was gonna be better for the greater good,''' she said. “I’m a mother of five kids. ... The things that (Democrats) do either affect the rich or the poor.” Some of Trump’s plans affect people in Olivia Gordon’s immediate community, which is why she struggled to get behind the “Black women rest” wave. Gordon, a New York-based lawyer who supported the Party for Socialism and Liberation’s presidential nominee, Claudia de la Cruz, worries about who may be left behind if the 92% of Black women voters who backed Harris simply stopped advocating. “We’re talking millions of Black women here. If millions of Black women take a step back, it absolutely leaves holes, but for other Black women,” she said. “I think we sometimes are in the bubble of if it’s not in your immediate circle, maybe it doesn’t apply to you. And I truly implore people to understand that it does.” Nicole Lewis, an Alabama-based therapist who specializes in treating Black women’s stress, said she’s aware that Black women withdrawing from social impact movements could have a fallout. But she also hopes that it forces a reckoning for the nation to understand the consequences of not standing in solidarity with Black women. “It could impact things negatively because there isn’t that voice from the most empathetic group,” she said. “I also think it’s going to give other groups an opportunity to step up. ... My hope is that they do show up for themselves and everyone else.” Brown said a reckoning might be exactly what the country needs, but it’s a reckoning for everyone else. Black women, she said, did their job when they supported Harris in droves in hopes they could thwart the massive changes expected under Trump. “This ain’t our reckoning,” she said. “I don’t feel no guilt.” AP polling editor Amelia Thomson DeVeaux and Associated Press writer Linley Sanders in Washington contributed to this report. The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.The Maharashtra excise department on Sunday cancelled the permit for serving alcohol at actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh’s concert at Kakade Farms in Kothrud, an official said. The department cancelled the permit after people from different quarters, including Kothrud’s newly elected BJP MLA Chandrakant Patil, objected to plans to serve liquor at the programme. The excise department informed that Suryakant Kakade, owner of Kakade Farm, had himself given a letter in this regard. “A team from the excise department submitted a report to the superintendent’s office in this regard. Taking note of the relevant report and Kakade’s letter, permission for the sale of liquor at the venue has been denied,” said Charan Singh Rajput, state excise commissioner. Calling the event a ‘social menace’ Patil, said that he has instructed Pune police commissioner Amitesh Kumar, Rajput, state excise commissioner, and district collector Suhas Diwase to take necessary steps after complaints from local about noise pollution and traffic in the area. Patil in a statement said, “...My opposition is not only aimed at the sale of liquor at the event but also at the traffic congestion and excessive noise that such an event would cause. I have instructed the police commissioner, excise department, and district collector to take immediate action to cancel this event... Events like this lead to traffic jams, and cause sound pollution which disturbs peace and environmental harmony in the society.” Former Kasba MLA Ravindra Dhangekar in a post on X stated, “Despite protests from Kothrud residents, Dosanjh’s show has been allowed to take place. No parking arrangements for nearly 40,000 persons attending the event at the venue which is adjoining the residential neighbourhood have been made which will cause untold suffering to the area residents. The administration and concerned officials responsible for giving permission and allowing the event to take place will be responsible for any untoward incident.”
Google’s Online Ad Antitrust Trial In The US Draws To Close
Lumber stocks rise as analysts see price hikesUS effort to curb China's and Russia's access to advanced computer chips 'inadequate,' report finds
A MUCH-LOVED football store is the latest to shut its doors to customers after almost two decades. Everything Buckeyes, located in the Eastwood Mall in Niles, Ohio , is set to close for good in March. Until then, customers can enjoy discounts of 30 per cent, with deals across most of the retailer’s products. Owner Jeff Lyda said the company had decided to shift gears and focus on their other store, Party On!, according to local news station WKBN First News in Youngstown. While the retailer is remaining open for another few months, it has requested all gift cards are redeemed by the beginning of February. A sign posted on the store’s wall thanks customers, reported WKBN. The speciality sports shop was founded in November 2006 and has been open for 18 years. Read more on closures It stocks licensed Ohio State and Cleveland Browns merchandise for adults and children, including hoodies, T-shirts, jackets and pants. According to the website: An Ohio State fan can outfit him or herself with sophisticated dress casual shirts and sweaters or show their true school spirit from head to toe with a scarlet and grey wig, face paint, and Buckeye beads. “Beyond apparel, EverythingBuckeyes.com sells furniture and accessories that can transform any room in your home into a scarlet and grey heaven.” In response to a post about the closure on the Everything Buckeye’s Facebook page, the retailer said it was time for a new chapter. Most read in Money “Back in 2019 we expanded our main store called Party On! at the Eastwood Mall complex. “Our website and balloon decor has grown a lot over the last few years and we have decided to focus more on those projects. “We will be expanding our offering of Ohio State merchandise at Party On! in the coming months.” STORE CLOSURES Everything Buckeyes is the latest retailer to announce its closure in the past few weeks. The retail landscape in the US is set for big changes following news that Big Lots is permanently closing all of its remaining 963 stores , after filing for bankruptcy last September. Another major player, Walgreens , revealed it is shutting three of its California locations before the end of January. The term has now become common usage to reference the downfall of physical stores as online giants grow. The term "retail apocalypse" was used by Dennis Dick, a trader at Las Vegas -based Bright Trading LLC in May 2022. At the time, Walmart's quarterly profit fell 25 percent, missing Wall Street expectations, and Dick told Reuters : "This is a little bit of a retail apocalypse." Dick added: "It was Walmart, and everybody thought it was a one-off." "Now that Target missed earnings [by] a lot more than Walmart even did, they're scared that the consumer is not as strong as everybody thinks," said Dick. The stores are three out of at least 1,200 that are due to be axed , as confirmed by Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Tim Wentworth last October. Other popular chains that resorted to mass closures, as reported in the US Sun , include CVS , Family Dollar and BuyBuy Baby. By November 2024, there were 7,100 projected store closures, which marked a 69% increase compared to the same time frame in 2023, according to Newsweek . This is the largest surge in closures since the Covid pandemic . Read More on The US Sun Meanwhile shoppers in Somerset, Kentucky, were dismayed to learn their local Subway had shut down. And the news that Aldi is possibly taking over a Winn-Dixie location in Luling, Louisiana sparked indignation on Facebook.4 Eagle Valley volleyball players earn Western Slope all-league honors
NoneWatchdogs want state comptroller to audit Western Regional OTB