‘A lot of red flags’: plans for New Zealand’s first datacentre spark concern as locals demand greater transparency
People living near the site of New Zealand’s first planned AI datacentre are calling for more transparency about the project, especially about how the centre’s huge electricity and water use and potential noise pollution could affect them.
Singapore-based company Datagrid has secured approval to build a NZ$3.5bn (US$2bn) AI datacentre on a 49-hectare site in Makarewa, just north of New Zealand’s southern-most city, Invercargill. Construction is due to begin this year, with the centre becoming operational by 2028.
Morning glories reveal 96% drop in adaptation as pollinator pressure reshapes evolution
Facing both climate change and a crashing pollinator population, plants may be evolving to attract pollinators rather than adapting to a warming climate, and the trade-off has resulted in a steep decline in plants' rate of adaptation, according to a University of Michigan study. The researchers, studying morning glories, observed a 96% decrease in the population's rate of adaptation over nine years. The declining rate of adaptation could affect farmers, who deal with morning glory as an agricultural nuisance. The research is published in the journal Evolution Letters.
Don’t want to invest in Elon Musk? Two new ETFs explicitly exclude him
In the lead up to the SpaceX IPO, there were dozens of stories about early employees and investors who stood to make millions of dollars for betting on, or working for, Elon Musk.
But thanks to Musk’s work with DOGE, his public comments on X, and the infamous gesture he made at Donald Trump’s inauguration that looked a lot like a Nazi salute, someone realized there was money to be made by avoiding him.
‘We got it wrong’ on Gaza, says UK Labour’s Andy Burnham
UK’s likely next PM Burnham pushes for ceasefire, tougher sanctions over Gaza violence, and settlement trade bans.
The United Kingdom’s likely incoming next prime minister, Andy Burnham, has apologised for the Labour Party’s initial response to Israel’s actions in Gaza, saying “we got it wrong” while calling for further sanctions on those involved in violence in the besieged enclave.
“Many people feel that at the start of Israel’s military operation in Gaza, my party didn’t get it right and I am sorry about that,” Burnham said on Thursday in a video message posted on X.