Latest news with #UniversityofArkansas
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Celtics hire Drew Nicholas as executive director of player personnel
As a player, Nicholas was a backup guard for Maryland's 2001-02 national championship team and averaged 17.8 points per game as a senior the following season. He had a lengthy career overseas that included one EuroLeague scoring title and two championships. Last month, longtime Celtics assistant general manager Austin Ainge was hired as president of basketball operations for the Jazz. And in April, director of scouting Remy Cofield was named deputy athletic director and general manager for athletics at the University of Arkansas. Advertisement Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at
Fast Company
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Fast Company
YouTube Shorts algorithm steers users away from political content, study finds
YouTube Shorts, the shortform platform from Google-owned video giant YouTube, has seen massive success since its launch in September 2020. Today, an estimated 1% of all waking human hours are spent watching Shorts, with videos amassing around 200 billion views daily. But what users watch is ultimately shaped by YouTube's algorithm—and a new study published in the Cornell University preprint server arXiv suggests that the algorithm nudges viewers away from politically sensitive content. 'When you start [watching] a political topic or specific political topics, YouTube is trying to push you away to more entertainment videos, more funny videos, especially in YouTube Shorts,' says Mert Can Cakmak, a researcher at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, and one of the study's authors. Cakmak and his colleagues scraped between 2,100 and 2,800 initial videos across three themes: the South China Sea dispute, Taiwan's 2024 election, and a broader 'general' category. They then followed 50 successive recommendations for each video under three viewing scenarios, which varied how long a simulated user watched: 3 seconds, 15 seconds, or the full video. The researchers tracked how YouTube presented 685,842 Shorts videos. Titles and transcripts were classified by topic, relevance, and emotional tone using OpenAI's GPT-4o model. When engagement began with politically sensitive themes like the South China Sea or Taiwan's 2024 election, the algorithm quickly steered users toward more entertainment-focused content. The emotional tone, as assessed by AI, also shifted—moving from neutral or angry to mostly joyful or neutral. Early in the recommendation chain, videos with the highest view counts, likes, and comments were favored, reinforcing a popularity bias. 'Maybe some people were aware of this, but I'm sure the majority of people are not aware what the algorithm is doing,' Cakmak says. 'They are just going and watching.' Neither YouTube nor its parent company, Google, responded to Fast Company 's request for comment on the study's findings. Cakmak doesn't believe this is a deliberate effort to suppress political discourse, but rather a design choice focused on user engagement. 'What YouTube is trying to do,' he says, '[is] remove you from that area or topic, and push you [to a happier] topic so that it can increase . . . engagement [and] earn more money.'
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Construction soon to begin busy stretch of College Avenue in Fayetteville
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — College Avenue, from Dickson Street to North Street, is set to get repaved starting in the next few weeks. The construction will reduce traffic to one lane in each direction to have it completed by the time University of Arkansas students return for the fall semester, which is set to start Aug. 18. Chris Brown, Fayetteville's public works director, said the city's patched potholes and sealed cracks along the 4,000-foot stretch before, but officials have decided the safest and most cost-effective course of action is a repave, a project that's estimated to cost $951,000. 'Once you start seeing the pavement crack, and many times it'll crack every 10, 15, 20 feet,' Brown said. 'Once you see those cracks develop, then the water can infiltrate the pavement, and once that happens, it really starts to come apart even faster.' Speed-enforcing cameras help save lives in Washington County Brown said each segment of city road is subject to its Pavement Condition Index, an algorithm that factors in the asphalt's condition and traffic volume to determine the level of need for a repave. He estimates up to 25,000 cars drive along College Avenue from Dickson Street to North Street every day. The city has contracted Tomlinson Asphalt Company to complete the project. Brown said Tomlinson will use what's called a super pave mix, which contains a higher aggregate of rocks and less sand. Brown hopes the road can hold up for 10 to 15 years before further major repairs are needed. Bethany Douglas said she travels along College Avenue every day to get to her job on the Fayetteville Square and is expecting to be 'annoyed' driving during the construction. She's planning on taking an alternate route on her daily commute. 'I would probably go around a longer way just to avoid that, and then that's going to back up the side streets as well,' Douglas said. Brown is urging drivers to stay safe and be aware of construction workers during the duration of the project. 'Drivers, as they navigate through the work zone, we'd appreciate them watching out for our workers and just taking it slow,' Brown said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
International Business Times
15-07-2025
- International Business Times
University of Arkansas Professor Accused of Downloading, Possessing Child Pornography
A professor at the University of Arkansas was arrested and accused of possessing child sexual abuse material, according to the Washington County Prosecutor's Office. Joshua McGee, 34, serves as the (EDUC)-Education as Teaching Assistant Professor of Exercise Science at the University of Arkansas. McGee Had a Thumb Drive with the Child Sexual Abuse Material Organized into Different Folders, Also Stored it in a Hidden Folder on His Phone Fayetteville police started investigating McGee when they learned an IP address registered in his name had downloaded child sexual abuse material, according to the affidavit of probable cause. McGee talked with police and admitted to viewing the material. Investigators found a thumb drive that had child sexual abuse material organized into folders. They also found a hidden folder application on his cell phone. The material depicted children as young as infants, according to the affidavit. McGee Faces Up to 20 Years in Prison In Arkansas, possession or use of child sexual abuse material is a Class B felony. If convicted of the charges McGee up to 20 years in state prison and a $15,000 fine. In addition, a law passed in 2024 mandates no parole or early release for anyone convicted of CSAM possession. McGee has been released on a $5,000 bond, according to online jail records.
Time of India
06-07-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Who are the Africanized ‘killer bees' spreading across the U.S.?
Across parts of the U.S., a hybrid bee species is turning everyday moments—like mowing the lawn or hiking a trail—into near-deadly encounters. Africanized honey bees, commonly (and ominously) known as 'killer bees,' have slowly spread into 13 U.S. states, leaving behind a growing list of victims and warnings. They look nearly identical to the gentle European honeybees we rely on for pollination, but don't be fooled—these bees don't back down. As per a report by USA TODAY, in the past few months alone, these bees have been responsible for several terrifying incidents: a man was fatally attacked while mowing his lawn, three hospitalized after disturbing a tree-bound hive, hikers were chased a mile, and three horses killed after being swarmed by thousands of stings. Why are these bees so aggressive? Scientists say the bees' temperament is a defense mechanism to ward off predators. And since honey bees die after stinging, these acts are sacrificial, meant to protect their colony. But to unsuspecting humans, killer bees sure seem aggressive, spiteful, and terrifying. They've been known to follow victims for up to a mile—even chasing cars and trucks—and can sting through regular beekeeping suits. How did they get here? Africanized honeybees are a cross between Western honeybees from Europe and East African lowland honeybees. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Though they look like European honeybees, they are known for their aggressive defensive behavior, including swarming, pursuing intruders over longer distances, and attacking in larger groups. Africanized honeybees first arrived in South America in 1956. A Brazilian geneticist, Warwick Kerr, brought East African lowland honeybees to Brazil to hybridize with Western honeybees. A year later, 26 Africanized queen bees were accidentally released into a nearby forest, and they thrived. The hybrid species reached South Texas in 1990 and has been moving northward ever since. Where are they found now? Africanized honeybees are now present in 13 states, mainly across the South and Southwest. Feral colonies are common in Southern California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and especially Texas. They've also been seen in southwest Arkansas, southern Utah, and about two-thirds of Oklahoma, according to Allen Szalanski, professor of entomology at the University of Arkansas. They prefer warm, dry climates and don't survive in areas with cold winters or high rainfall, creating natural geographic limits. How dangerous are Africanized bees? Their danger lies not in the venom itself, but in the numbers. A Western honeybee colony might defend itself with a few dozen stings. But Africanized bees? They send out hundreds or even thousands. Each bee dies after stinging, but collectively, the attack can be fatal. Researchers say the LD50 (lethal dose for 50% of people) is about nine stings per pound of body weight. So for someone weighing 150 pounds, 1,350 stings could be deadly—a real possibility with Africanized swarms. What should you do if you encounter them? Run. Don't swat. Don't jump into water. Just run. Tethered pets or livestock are at greater risk, as they can't escape. Loud machinery like mowers can also put people in danger by agitating nearby colonies without warning.
