Author: Reporter

The Biden administration announced more than $80 million of funding in late April in a push to produce more solar panels in the U.S., make solar energy available to more people, and pursue superior alternatives to the ubiquitous sparkly panels made with silicon. The Department of Energy highlighted a community solar site in Washington. Community solar refers to a variety of arrangements where renters and people who do not control their rooftops can still get their electricity from solar power. The Biden administration said the effort was the largest community solar iniative ever in the United States. Now it...

Toyota plans to make an all solid-state battery as part of its ambitious plans for battery electric vehicles, the company said in June amid mounting criticism Japan’s top automaker needs to do more to fight climate change. Toyota Motor Corp. aims for a commercial solid-state battery as soon as 2027. Charging time, one of the main drawbacks of electric vehicles, will get shortened to 10 minutes or less, the company said in a statement. It plans to deliver 1.5 million EVs in 2026 by expanding its battery EV lineup and developing technology. “With the evolution of the vehicle’s operating...

Artificial intelligence imaging can be used to create art, try on clothes in virtual fitting rooms or help design advertising campaigns. But experts fear the darker side of the easily accessible tools could worsen something that primarily harms women: nonconsensual deepfake pornography. Deepfakes are videos and images that have been digitally created or altered with artificial intelligence or machine learning. Porn created using the technology first began spreading across the internet several years ago when a Reddit user shared clips that placed the faces of female celebrities on the shoulders of porn actors. Since then, deepfake creators have disseminated...

Jimmy Carter tried like no president ever had to put human rights at the center of American foreign policy. It was a turnabout dictators and dissidents alike found hard to believe as he took office in 1977. The U.S. had such a long history of supporting crackdowns on popular movements — was his insistence on restoring moral principles for real? The Associated Press reached out to several former political prisoners, asking what it was like to see his influence take hold in countries oppressed by military rule. They credit Carter with their survival. Michèle Montas witnessed the impact from...