news-wtf

[news-wtf]

Windows 11 24H2 users who were confused by a mysterious empty folder appearing on their system drive after applying the latest update for the OS should be aware that this is not a bug, but an intentional move – and that said folder shouldn’t be deleted.

In case you missed it, last week Windows 11 24H2 received its cumulative update for April 2025, and it created an ‘inetpub’ folder that was the source of some bewilderment or annoyance for those who noticed it.

You may also recall that some folks advised that it was fine to just delete the folder, not an unreasonable conclusion to reach seeing as it was empty, didn’t appear to do anything, and was related to Microsoft’s Internet Information Services (IIS) web server software for developers (and was appearing for those who didn’t have IIS installed).

Still, at the time, I advised that you removed it at your own risk and that it might be best left alone – seeing as it was empty and appeared harmless (and also just because you never quite know what’s going on with Windows). It seems I was right, as Microsoft has now warned against removing the folder, as noted at the outset.

Microsoft told Windows Latest that the folder is created as part of a security fix for a vulnerability that “can let local attackers trick the system into accessing or modifying unintended files or folders.”

In its advisory for this security patch, Microsoft notes: “After installing the updates listed in the Security Updates table for your operating system, a new [inetpub folder] will be created on your [system drive]. This folder should not be deleted, regardless of whether Internet Information Services (IIS) is active on the target device. This behavior is part of changes that increase protection and does not require any action from IT admins and end users.”

[news-wtf]

In their court papers, Grindr lawyers maintain that signing an arbitration agreement is a prerequisite to creating a Grindr account and using the app and that Burrill could have opted out of the agreement and did not. A hearing on Grindr’s motion is scheduled April 22.

In a brief sworn declaration, Burrill says he may have used Grindr as early as 2012.

“I do not recall seeing an arbitration agreement with Grindr,” Burrill says. “Because I do not recall seeing an arbitration agreement, I also do not recall if I ever opted out of an arbitration agreement.”

In their court papers, Burrill’s lawyers state that there are no facts showing an enforceable arbitration agreement between Burrill and Grindr.

“Defendant presents no evidence of a signed agreement or any electronic data to verify that plaintiff, personally, clicked a word, checked a box or otherwise assented to an agreement,” Burrill’s attorneys argue in their pleadings.

[news-wtf]

“I had some suspicions when I was in line to board behind all of the Southend fans because they seemed to know each other and were making chants I didn’t understand.

“But I decided to board anyways because I figured if they checked tickets they would just turn me around and there would be no harm done.

“But they didn’t check tickets so I slipped on the boat undetected.”

Evan was soon welcomed by the group of Shrimpers supporters who then also took him to the game to add to his excitement.

And Evan now plans to watch Southend again this weekend.

“⁠I had a blast on the boat and at the Southend game,” said Evan.

This is the funniest headline because they used his name like we all know him😭

[news-wtf]

Researchers at King’s College London say the breakthrough could lead to patients regrowing lost teeth in future, offering an alternative to fillings or dental implants.

The team developed a material that mimics the environment needed for tooth development, allowing cells to send signals and begin forming a tooth.

Dr Ana Angelova-Volponi, director of regenerative dentistry at King’s College London, said the research has the possibility to “revolutionise dental care”.

The study says some animals like sharks and elephants have the ability to grow new teeth, but humans only have one set from adulthood.

The ability to regenerate teeth would therefore be a major leap forward for dentistry, researchers suggest.

Unlike implants and fillings, which are fixed and cannot adapt over time, the study outlines how a lab-grown tooth made from a patient’s own cells could integrate into the jaw and repair itself like a natural tooth.

[news-wtf]

[news-wtf]

As the state simultaneously raised wages for childcare workers, and became the first to base its subsidy reimbursement rates on the actual cost of providing such care, early childhood educators were also raised out of poverty. In 2020, 27.4% of childcare providers – often women of color – were living in poverty. By 2024, that number had fallen to 16%.

During the state’s recent legislative session, lawmakers approved a “historic” increase in funding for education, including early childhood education, that might improve those numbers even further.

“This is a big investment that we know is going to pay off,” said Elizabeth Groginsky, cabinet secretary of New Mexico’s nascent early childhood education and care department. She points to research from the Nobel-winning economist James Heckman that “every dollar spent on high-quality, birth-to-five programs for disadvantaged children can deliver a 13% per annum return on investment from better education and health outcomes for children, employment gains for parents, greater economic productivity and reduced spending on healthcare and crime.

“The governor has seen that this investment in our human capital is as important as all the investments we’re making in our infrastructure,” said Groginsky.

Despite the fact that widespread poverty has kept the state’s child wellbeing rates low, “New Mexico had, almost from statehood, a real culture around caring for children,” said Hailey Heinz, a senior research scientist and deputy director of the University of New Mexico’s Cradle to Career Policy Institute.

[news-wtf]

In an unexpected twist, the buzz around artificial intelligence (AI) has permeated the ubiquitous tea stalls of India. One tea-seller, or 'chaiwala', has concocted a quirky brew that's steeping hot on social media.

Dubbed 'ChaiGPT', the seller's tea stall has managed to smartly leverage the terminology associated with OpenAI's ChatGPT. In his version, 'GPT' stands for 'Genuinely Pure Tea', a clever play on words that gives the popular model a local twist.

A step further in the vendor's creative campaign is the inclusion of 'AI', referring to the classic Indian tea ingredients, Adrak (Ginger) and Ilaichi (Small Cardamom). In India, the addition of these spices to the tea adds an extra layer of warmth and flavor, elevating the humble beverage to a comforting ritual.

[news-wtf]

The CEO, Hanneke Faber, told the Verge’s Decoder podcast that the immortal mouse is still just a concept, but that one day Logitech could create a mouse that, like a nice watch, is useful in perpetuity—with the help of software updates. 

“I’m not planning to throw that watch away ever,” Faber said. “So why would I be throwing my mouse or my keyboard away if it’s a fantastic quality, well designed, software enabled mouse.”

Faber noted that Logitech was not “necessarily super far away” from making the forever mouse a reality, but added that the high price of its extreme durability may require the company to add a subscription model to help make it profitable.

The average price of a mouse or a keyboard is about $26, Faber said, and Logitech has the opportunity to create a higher priced, premium product that delivers more quality. While Faber acknowledged that consumers may be shocked by the concept of a subscription mouse, she said the quality is worth it.

“Imagine it’s like your Rolex. You’re going to really love that,” she told the Verge.

[news-wtf]

The incident happened Saturday in the park's New Orleans Square.

Workers tried to steer visitors away from the disturbing sight as the man climbed one of the buildings, exposing himself to people below. He was arrested shortly after for trespassing, public nudity and being under the influence of narcotics.

ABC7 reached out to Disneyland for a statement and they deferred to Anaheim police, who made the arrest. The agency said the man, who has not been identified, lives in Canada.

There were no reports of anyone being injured in the incident.

No further details were immediately known.

[news-wtf]

Audio-enabled traffic control crosswalk buttons across Silicon Valley were hacked over the weekend to include audio snippets imitating the voices of Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk. 

Videos taken by locals in Menlo Park, Palo Alto, and Redwood City in California show the crosswalk buttons were playing AI-generated speech designed to sound like the two billionaires.

“It’s normal to feel uncomfortable or even violated as we forcefully insert AI into every facet of your conscious experience,” said one crosswalk button, which was hacked to sound like Zuckerberg. “I just want to assure you, you don’t need to worry because there’s absolutely nothing you can do to stop it.” 

One crosswalk button that was hacked to sound like Musk said: “I guess they say money can’t buy happiness… I guess that’s true. God knows I’ve tried. But it can buy a Cybertruck and that’s pretty sick, right?”

“F—k, I’m so alone,” the Musk voice adds.

[news-wtf]

“Joining Perry as part of the all-female crew was Gayle King, “CBS Mornings” co-host; Lauren Sánchez, a former journalist who is Jeff Bezos’ fiancée; Aisha Bowe, a former NASA rocket scientist; Amanda Nguyen, a bioastronautics research scientist; and Kerianne Flynn, a movie producer.

The high-profile launch drew a crowd, with several famous faces in attendance, including Oprah Winfrey, NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps, former astronaut Mae Jemison, Kris Jenner and Khloé Kardashian.”

[news-wtf]

It's happened over 10 times and at no point have they thought to stop letting him roam so this doesn't happen. The cat is lucky that it's something so benign as a haircut as there's a lot worse that can happen to outdoor cats.

[news-wtf]

Coachella’s second day featured high-profile guests from Hollywood and Washington, D.C., an emotional performance from Weezer and a peaceful transfer of power between electropop stars. Then there was Flava Flav joining the Yo Gabba Gabba characters on-stage to rap “I love bugs!”

The cultural breadth of the influential Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was on full display Saturday at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California.

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida traveled from a Los Angeles rally to the desert to introduce Clairo, praising the 26-year-old singer-songwriter’s political activism.

[news-wtf]

European tourists who toted home bottles of water from a holy well in Ethiopia were likely hoping for blessings and spiritual cleansing—but instead carried an infectious curse and got an intestinal power cleanse.

Three people in Germany and four in the UK fell ill with cholera after directly drinking or splashing their faces with the holy water. Two required intensive care. Luckily, they all eventually recovered, according to a report in the journal Eurosurveillance.

The infections occurred in February after some of the patients reported taking independent trips to Ethiopia in January. Two of the German patients and three of the UK patients reported travel to the country, and several reported visiting a holy well called Bermel Giorgis (also spelled ‘Georgis’) in the Quara district. The German travelers and at least one of the UK travelers brought water home with them and shared it.

The well, named after Saint George, is considered a revered holy site by members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, who visit seeking "healing, spiritual clarity, and divine experiences," according to a travel site.

[news-wtf]

Kawasaki Heavy Industries has pulled the covers off perhaps the most outrageous concept vehicle we've ever seen. The Corleo is a two-seater quadruped robot you steer with your body, capable of picking its way through rough terrain thanks to AI vision.

I mean look, sure, you could go buy yourself a horse. But some horses are very cheeky, and have you seen what comes out the back end of those things? All that'll come out the back of the Corleo robot is fresh, clean water as a combustion product from its clean-burning, 150cc, hydrogen-fueled generator engine. Possibly chilled water, from an underslung dispenser – that'd be nice on a mountain picnic.

This is the latest concept vehicle from Kawasaki Heavy Industries – not the motorcycle division specifically, and I'm OK with that. I think the parent company would be wise to keep this machine far from any "Ninja" stickers that might give its AI brain the idea that it should learn martial arts.

[news-wtf]

Agri-Mark Inc., of Waitsfield, Vermont, recalled 189 cases of Cabot Creamery 8-ounce premium butter made with sea salt, according to a notice from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The butter was distributed in Arkansas, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont.

The recall was issued on March 26 and is ongoing, according to the FDA. It is classified as the lowest level of recall, Class III, which means it’s not likely to cause health problems in people.

Consumers should not eat or use the recalled butter, which has a best-by date of Sept. 9. It is identified as lot 090925-055, item 2038.

Agri-Mark officials said in statement that the company recovered 99.5% of the potentially contaminated lot before it was sold to consumers. The firm said that 17 packages of the butter were sold to consumers in Vermont.

[news-wtf]

It took only seconds for the judges on a New York appeals court to realize that the man addressing them from a video screen — a person about to present an argument in a lawsuit — not only had no law degree, but didn’t exist at all.

The latest bizarre chapter in the awkward arrival of artificial intelligence in the legal world unfolded March 26 under the stained-glass dome of New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division’s First Judicial Department, where a panel of judges was set to hear from Jerome Dewald, a plaintiff in an employment dispute.

“The appellant has submitted a video for his argument,” said Justice Sallie Manzanet-Daniels. “Ok. We will hear that video now.”

On the video screen appeared a smiling, youthful-looking man with a sculpted hairdo, button-down shirt and sweater.

“May it please the court,” the man began. “I come here today a humble pro se before a panel of five distinguished justices.”

“Ok, hold on,” Manzanet-Daniels said. “Is that counsel for the case?”

“I generated that. That’s not a real person,” Dewald answered.