Physical layer management for digital subscriber line transceivers

Architecture and specification of data communication network

Timing and synchronization aspects in packet networks

Procedures for the identification and selection of common modes of operation between data circuit-terminating equipments (DCEs) and between data terminal equipments (DTEs) over the general switched telephone network and on leased point-to-point telephone-type circuits

Serial asynchronous automatic dialling and control

Procedures for establishing communication between two multiprotocol audiovisual terminals using digital channels at a multiple of 64 or 56 kbit/s

Modification to SSE reason identifier codes to support voice band data and text relay

Procedures for supporting voice-band data over IP networks

ToIP and new SPRT data types support

Serial asynchronous automatic dialling and control

a modem operating at data signalling rates of up to 28 800 bit/s for use on the general switched telephone network and on leased point-to-point 2-wire telephone-type circuits

Operational and interworking requirements for modems operating in the text telephone mode

List of definitions for interchange circuits between data terminal equipment (DTE) and data circuit-terminating equipment (DCE)

Electrical characteristics for balanced double-current interchange circuits operating at data signalling rates up to 10 Mbit/s

A 48/56/64 kbit/s data-circuit terminating equipment standardized for use on digital point-to-point leased circuits

Support by an ISDN of data terminal equipment with V-Series type interfaces with provision for statistical multiplexing

Support of data terminal equipments with V-Series type interfaces by an integrated services digital network

Procedure for DTE-controlled call negotiation

Procedures for the end-to-end connection of analogue PSTN text telephones over an IP network utilizing text relay

Electrical characteristics for unbalanced double-current interchange circuits for general use with integrated circuit equipment in the field of data communications

Electrical characteristics for balanced double-current interchange circuits for general use with integrated circuit equipment in the field of data communications

Support by an ISDN of data terminal equipment with V-series type interfaces with provision for statistical multiplexing

Support of data terminal equipments (DTEs) with V-series type interfaces by an integrated services digital network (ISDN)

Transmission of start-stop characters over synchronous bearer channels

List of definitions for interchange circuits between data terminal equipment (DTE) and data circuit-terminating equipment (DCE)

Automatic answering equipment and/or parallel automatic calling equipment on the general switched telephone network including procedures for disabling of echo control devices for both manually and automatically established calls

Automatic calling and/or answering equipment on the general switched telephone network (GSTN) using the 100-series interchange circuits

Electrical characteristics for unbalanced double-current interchange circuits

A family of 2-wire, duplex modems operating at data signalling rates of up to 9600 bit/s for use on the general switched telephone network and on leased telephone-type circuits

A modem operating at data signalling rates of up to 33 600 bit/s for use on the general switched telephone network and on leased point-to-point 2-wire telephone-type circuits

New Annex B - Use of data signal detection and silence insertion in voiceband data, and new Annex C on use of V.21 preamble for echo canceller control in a V.152 gateway

Interworking between ITU-T T.38 and ITU-T V.152 using IP peering for real-time facsimile services

Asynchronous serial command interface for assistive and multi-functional communication devices

Implementers' Guide for Recommendation ITU-T V.152 (Procedures for supporting voice-band data over IP networks)

Procedures for supporting voice-band data over IP networks

Various extensions to V.250 basic command set

List of definitions for interchange circuits between data terminal equipment (DTE) and data circuit-terminating equipment (DCE)

F.745 and H.625: Proposed Amendments
Source: National Institute of Information and Communications Technology
Study Questions: Q21/16

LS/i on draft new Report on production, emission and exchange of closed captions for worldwide language character sets (Latin and non-Latin) [from ITU-R WP6B]
Source: ITU-R WP6B
Study Questions: Q26/16

Workshop on e-Health Standards for Interoperable Services
Source: Rapporteur Q28/16
Study Questions: Q28/16

UX designers rejoice! This Black Friday, our friends over at the Interaction Design Foundation (IxDF) have a gift for you: 25% off UX design courses on new memberships and a $200 discount on UX Bootcamps for new and existing members. The offer is now open and ends at midnight on Cyber Monday, 29 November.        […]

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When it comes to testing your user experiences, there are plenty of methods you can use that will get you the information you need. From interviews to assistive technology testing, these methods offer a more streamlined and beneficial process capable of revealing the insights you need to revolutionize your UX. But how can you know […]

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User Interface (UI) design serves as the critical link connecting users with digital products, culminating in seamless and delightful experiences. UI design is more than just entertaining visuals; it’s the magic wand that transforms digital interactions into seamless and pleasant experiences. Whether you’re a seasoned UI design expert or someone just beginning to explore this […]

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DNA-testing company 23andMe (Nasdaq: ME), once an industry leader that attracted millions of customers, including rapper Snoop Dogg and investor Warren Buffett, has announced significant cuts to its operations, with plans to lay off 200 employees or roughly 40% of its workforce. The company also said it will discontinue development of its therapeutic programs. Here’s what to know about the latest development and what led up to it.

Board exodus

The latest move comes as the company looks to stabilize after facing significant challenges, including the resignation of all seven independent board members in October.

Data breach

Last year, 23andMe suffered a massive data breach when hackers accessed the personal information of 6.9 million users. The incident led to a class-action lawsuit, which, in September, 23andMe agreed to settle for $30 million.

The problem with SPACs

In 2021, 23andMe went public through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. It later expanded into drug-discovery and weight-loss sectors. However, as DNA test kit sales declined, so did its financial health. By fiscal 2023, it reported a $312 million net loss, with its stock down 98% since going public, currently at about $4 after a reverse stock split in October 2024.

Separate reports have found that things have often not ended well for companies that took advantage of the pandemic-era SPAC boom, which led to billions in losses for investors and a number of bankruptcies for companies.

What’s next for 23andMe and its employees?

The layoffs are expected to result in $12 million in severance, termination, and transition-related costs and are part of a broader plan to streamline the business and achieve annual cost savings of $35 million.

The company says it is exploring various strategic options for its therapeutic programs, including potential licensing agreements and the sale of assets in its development pipeline.

“We are taking these difficult but necessary actions as we restructure 23andMe and focus on the long-term success of our core consumer business and research partnerships,” said Anne Wojcicki, cofounder, CEO, and chair of the board, in a statement.

Shares of 23andMe were up almost 6% to $4.87 on the news, which was announced late yesterday. The stock is down more than 73% year to date.

The Vatican and Microsoft on Monday unveiled a digital twin of St. Peter’s Basilica that uses artificial intelligence to explore one of the world’s most important monument’s while helping the Holy See manage visitor flows and identify conservation problems.

Using 400,000 high-resolution digital photographs, taken with drones, cameras and lasers over four weeks when no one was in the basilica, the digital replica is going online alongside two new on-site exhibits to provide visitors—real and virtual—with an interactive experience.

“It is literally one of the most technologically advanced and sophisticated projects of its kind that has ever been pursued,” Microsoft’s president Brad Smith told a Vatican press conference.

The project has been launched ahead of the Vatican’s 2025 Jubilee, a holy year in which more than 30 million pilgrims are expected to pass through the basilica’s Holy Door, on top of the 50,000 who visit on a normal day.

“Everyone, really everyone should feel welcome in this great house,” Pope Francis told Smith and members of the project’s development teams at an audience Monday.

The digital platform allows visitors to reserve entry times to the basilica, a novelty for one of the world’s most visited monuments that regularly has an hours-long line of tourists waiting to get in.

But the heart of the project is the creation of a digital twin of St. Peter’s Basilica through advanced photogrammetry and artificial intelligence that allows anyone to “visit” the church and learn about its history.

The ultra-precise 3D replica, developed in collaboration with digital preservation company Iconem, incorporates 22 petabytes of data—enough to fill five million DVDs—Smith said.

The images have already identified structural damage and signs of deterioration, such as missing mosaic pieces, cracks and fissures invisible to the naked eye, with a speed and precision far beyond human capabilities.

Francis has called for the ethical use of AI and used his annual World Message of Peace this year to urge an international treaty to regulate it, arguing that technology lacking human values of compassion, mercy, morality and forgiveness were too great.

On Monday, he thanked the Microsoft team and basilica workers responsible for the project and marveled at how modern technology was helping spread an ancient faith and preserve a piece of world patrimony, which celebrates the 400th anniversary of its consecration in 2026.

“This house of prayer for all peoples has been entrusted to us by those who have preceded us in faith and apostolic ministry,” he told Smith and the delegation. “Therefore, it is a gift and a task to care for it, in both a spiritual and material sense, even through the latest technologies.”

Smith declined to give a price tag for Microsoft’s investment in the project, saying only it was “substantial” and was borne of Francis’ initiative in 2018 to bring tech companies together to promote ethnically minded AI.

He said Microsoft had done similar AI projects at Mont Saint-Michel in France and Ancient Olympia, in Greece.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

—Nicole Winfield, Associated Press

Shares of Shopify (NYSE: SHOP) are skyrocketing in early-morning trading after the company announced its Q3 2024 results, which beat expectations. As of the time of this writing, SHOP stock is up an impressive 23% to above $110 per share. 

However, Shopify’s stock isn’t on fire only because of its good Q3. There are some other reasons why Shopify is exciting investors this morning. Here’s what to know:

Shopify’s ‘outstanding’ results

Shopify would probably disagree with the statement that the company had a good Q3. As the company’s president, Harley Finkelstein, said in a press release, the results were “outstanding.”

Why was the quarter so outstanding? A big part of it was the company’s Q3 revenue, which came in at $2.16 billion. That represents a whopping 26% year-over-year growth rate from Q3 2023.

As Reuters notes, it even surpassed many analysts’ lofty expectations of $2.11 billion in revenue, leading to the ninth time in a row that the company has beat analyst expectations on sales.

Not only did Shopify beat analyst expectations again, but its 26% revenue growth for this quarter marked “our sixth consecutive quarter of greater than 25% revenue growth excluding logistics,” Shopify CFO Jeff Hoffmeister said.

In a slide deck, Shopify also announced that as of Q3 2024, the company had facilitated $1 trillion in global sales since the platform’s inception and that it now has a 10% share of the U.S. e-commerce market.

Okay, but why did Shopify have such a good Q3?

As also noted by Reuters, Shopify attracted more merchants to its online e-commerce platform this quarter. One of the attractions for the merchants seems to be a new artificial intelligence tool Shopify started rolling out in June called Sidekick.

Sidekick is an artificial intelligence assistant currently in early access for some merchants. Shopify says the AI bot “will act as your very own advisor, guiding you with tailored, skilled advice to make your business stronger.”

It does this by shouldering some of the mundane but necessary tasks that any businessperson needs to do to manage their business. Sidekick can help easily keep track of a merchant’s inventory, generate myriad reports that reveal new insights about your business, and even suggest ways to attract more customers to a storefront.

Sidekick is in addition to another AI tool Shopify offers, this one called Shopify Magic, which helps merchants create product images for their wares, write product descriptions, and even help them generate FAQs for their stores.

These AI tools are making it easier than ever for customers to manage their storefronts, and their availability is clearly a draw for some merchants.

The future looks promising, too

But Shopify’s stock isn’t only surging because the company had a terrific Q3. If anything, investors seem most excited about what the company has predicted will happen next.

Shopify’s current quarter, Q4, is arguably the most important of the year for the company and its merchants. This is the all-important holiday shopping quarter—and Shopify has anounced it has strong hopes for the period.

The key metric that Shopify has forecast is its revenue expectations for Q4, which the company says it expects will “grow at a mid-to-high-twenties percentage rate on a year-over-year basis.”

That’s music to investors’ ears, as it means Shopify expects it may do even better in Q4 than its just-completed outstanding Q3. That revenue growth estimate is also more than the 22.7% revenue growth many analysts were expecting, noted Reuters.

A resurgent stock

Shopify’s stock started 2024 with prices hovering in the high seventies before dropping to the low sixties over the summer. But since the beginning of the fall, SHOP shares have been on an upswing. Today’s 23% surge means SHOP shares are actually up over 38% year-to-date.

However, despite the resurgent stock, SHOP shares are nowhere near their all-time high of above $152 per share. Those highs were achieved in mid- to late-2021 when e-commerce was enjoying a pandemic boom as more people preferred online shopping over brick-and-mortar stores.

Something bad is happening in Oz.

Last week, fans of Wicked, the musical-soon-to-be-movie, headed to retailers including Target, Walmart, and Macy’s to pick up Mattel’s limited-edition Wicked Barbie dolls ahead of the film’s release on November 22. At first, it seemed like any other Mattel collaboration—until a few fans started searching the URL printed on the back of the box, which led not to the Wicked movie website, as intended, but to a parody porn site of the same name. 

Mattel has apologized for the mix-up and promised to “remedy” the error, but that hasn’t stopped fans from speculating about how such an egregious typo could’ve made its way to the box in the first place. One popular theory, which has garnered more than 62,000 likes on X, is that the mistake had something to do with AI.

In an email to Fast Company, Mattel’s Barbie & Dolls director of global brand communications wrote, “I can confirm AI was not used on packaging for Mattel Wicked collection dolls.”

Though AI has been the culprit of plenty of misguided marketing snafus, the tweet demonstrates a misunderstanding of how Mattel is actually using AI tools in its packaging development process—and shows that, even as AI gains popularity with creative teams as a production tool, human error is alive and well.

The official Mattel Wicked dolls link to a porn site on the box ???????? pic.twitter.com/iW4mNVAlPE

— just2good (Sarah Genao) (@just2goodYT) November 9, 2024

Can we blame a chatbot for this?

In June, Fast Company covered Mattel’s announcement that it planned to use Adobe Firefly, a generative AI software, as part of its packaging development process. At the time, Mattel’s chief design officer Chris Down clarified that the tech would be used to help visualize fantastical new concepts and speed up time-consuming processes, like fine-tuning a background in Photoshop. The company’s guidelines around generative AI tools specified that Firefly could not be used to generate subject matter itself, like the actual doll (or, in this case, the accompanying text). 

Nevertheless, an X user shared Fast Company’s original headline alongside the news of the Wicked typo with the caption “Smash cut to four months later.” One commenter under the post wrote, “how did I know this mistake happened bc they’re using AI.” Another added, “The future is so, so dumb.”

Mattel has previously been open about how it’s used AI for doll packaging. In early October, the first Mattel packaging featuring input from Adobe Firefly hit shelves. The company explained to AdAge at the time that its new Holiday Barbie and Sue Bird Barbie packages incorporated backgrounds generated by Firefly, which had then been touched up by human designers. It’s important to note that, for a brand as wide-reaching as Mattel, AI is not being used in the design process without guardrails around both IP and image quality. Any visuals provided by Firefly are vetted and edited by multiple human designers before they ever reach the actual box.

At this stage, it’s highly unlikely that Mattel would trust an AI software to write the final copy for their packaging. It appears that the Wicked Barbie typo was a plain old instance of human error—if a somewhat inconceivable one. As of this writing, Mattel hasn’t responded to Fast Company‘s request for comment on how the mistake may have been made during the design process.

The fallout

In a statement on the Wicked packaging misprint, Mattel shared, “We deeply regret this unfortunate error and are taking immediate action to remedy this. Parents are advised that the misprinted, incorrect website is not appropriate for children. Consumers who already have the product are advised to discard the product packaging or obscure the link and may contact Mattel Customer Service for further information.” 

While it’s unclear exactly what steps Mattel plans to take to “remedy” the issue, retailers including Target, Walmart, Amazon, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, and Macy’s had already pulled the dolls from shelves as of midday Monday. 

Meanwhile, there are a few parties benefitting from the unfortunate situation. Variety reports that the mistakenly shared porn site has seen a 12-year surge in traffic after the incident, and several eBay users have taken this opportunity to massively mark up their Wicked dolls in original packaging. One pack of seven different dolls, advertised as “IN MISPRINT ERROR BOX,” is currently going for $3,500. 

Mattel is sure to take a financial and reputational hit from this incident. Still, the news pick-up, social media speculation, and pricey eBay reselling demonstrate how a simple mistake can turn a run-of-the-mill product drop into something fans will remember—for better or worse.

AARP has tapped Dr. Myechia Minter-Jordan as its new CEO while promising a “new chapter” of advocating for Americans who are 50 and older and their families, the group said on Tuesday. The organization, which claims nearly 38 million members, touted Minter-Jordan’s career as a physician and public health advocate, and as a business leader who has worked to improve the health and wellness of individuals and communities.

While AARP repeatedly touts its nonpartisan status—it neither supports nor opposes candidates for offices—it devoted a rather significant portion of its announcement to highlighting the voting trends of older Americans. Since last week’s election, AARP has been dissecting how voters ages 50-plus cast their ballots.

In a statement, Minter-Jordan pointed to the association’s legacy over the past 65-plus years of helping to improve the lives of older Americans, age on their terms, and live their lives to the fullest, while teasing some changes in its future. 

“This is a pivotal moment for AARP and the nation,” she said. “As AARP looks ahead, we have exciting opportunities to empower, uplift, and make a positive impact on the health, wealth, and wellness of the more than 110 million Americans ages 50 and older and the entire country.”

Working to protect Social Security and Medicare

AARP long ago distanced itself from a direct connection with retirees—in 1999, it officially rebranded as AARP in lieu of the American Association of Retired Persons—and has since opened up membership to adults 18 and older. But the core of its advocacy still focuses on older Americans, including to protect Social Security and Medicare, support family caregiving, lower the costs of prescription drugs, and shift public narratives on aging.

Minter-Jordan joins Washington-based AARP after serving in previous executive leadership roles at three Boston-based healthcare organizations. Most recently, she launched the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health in 2021 and served as president and CEO until July, according to her LinkedIn profile.

In September, a Boston Globe columnist included Minter-Jordan among an “alarming pattern” of at least 10 Black CEOs who had recently left prominent leadership posts in the past year. 

Minter-Jordan attended Brown University for her undergraduate studies and medical degree and completed an MBA at Johns Hopkins University. She succeeds Jo Ann Jenkins, who announced in March that she would be stepping down when her contract is up at the end of the year, after a decade leading AARP.

Influencers have played a big role in this election cycle. Hundreds of typically nonpolitical content creators have been using their platforms to endorse candidates on both sides of the political spectrum. Funnily enough, those who said nothing on election day actually ended up being the loudest. 

“Speaking as an influencer, a lot of your favorite influencers are fucking embarrassing,” said TikToker Kate Glavan. “To be a woman in America with a huge fucking platform and a huge audience and post nothing yesterday, just business as usual, ‘I’m going to my Pilates and I’m going to my brunch . . . ’ No one gives a fuck about your Amazon storefront or your fucking makeup routine.” 

The comment section of her video is filled with people calling out the names of influencers who have been notably silent throughout the election. “Me finding out which influencers voted [Republican] cause they are the ones who are strangely silent and acting like its a regular day,” posted another TikTok user last week. 

For influencers, posting who they voted for is a lose-lose situation. Pick a side and they risk alienating a large section of their audience. Stay silent and they risk alienating a large section of their audience. While it makes sense that followers want to know who their favorite influencer voted for, should we expect—or even want—political activism from people whose job involves posting their Sephora hauls and workout routines?

With apologies to Voltaire, with great virality comes great responsibility. Unlike media outlets, which are subject to regulation, there is little oversight of social media, meaning influencer posts can reach millions and have huge sway over their followings. During the 2024 election cycle we have seen influencers and internet personalities being paid on behalf of groups backing both Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump to court their followers’ votes, cashing in on thousands—sometimes millions—for a single post. 

Social media influencers have more influence than they are often given credit for, according to research published in the journal Management Information Systems Quarterly. In fact, research by Pew shows that more than half of U.S. adults (54%) turn to social media for news at least some of the time, putting influencers in direct competition with traditional news outlets for audience attention. To stand out in this crowded space, influencers are incentivized to exaggerate their messages, often leading to polarized followers. If their audience ends up blindly following what they say instead of examining the candidate’s or party’s policies for themselves, it can result in diminished critical thinking in voters. 

Influencers are human and will have a political opinion whether they choose to share it or not. Being pressured into posting about politics can sometimes end up causing more harm than good. At the same time, choosing not to post anything at all during such a divisive election is a choice. So is following an account.

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to “pursue energy dominance” to “make the United States the artificial intelligence capital of the world,” he said in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday.

Looking forward to getting straight to work as part of President Trump's Cabinet to unleash US energy dominance, make America the AI capital of the world, bring American auto jobs back home, and so much more. pic.twitter.com/zGGLIRMrd6

— Lee Zeldin (@leezeldin) November 12, 2024

Trump announced Monday that he would nominate former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to helm the nation’s top environmental agency, which regulates emissions, when he takes office in January. During Trump’s third presidential campaign, he spoke often of deregulating industries and ensuring environmental protections aren’t hampering businesses.

“[Zeldin] will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards,” Trump said on his social media platform, Truth Social, when announcing the appointment.

Trump’s last go-round in office had wide impacts on the environment. He picked a coal lobbyist to lead the EPA, rolled back more than 100 environmental protections, and exited the Paris climate accord.

It now appears that making sure AI and its energy-sucking data centers won’t be held back are top of mind for the incoming leader. Artificial intelligence is notorious for requiring massive compute to train systems. That, in turn, increases carbon emissions. Goldman Sachs Research estimated in May that data center power demand will grow 160% by 2030 as the AI revolution gathers steam and efficiency gains wane.

The Biden administration has also embraced artificial intelligence. The Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security conducted AI pilots to address vulnerabilities in government networks, the Department of Justice and Department of Education worked to combat AI-generated image-based sexual abuse, and the administration issued a first-ever National Security Memorandum on AI “to ensure the United States leads the world’s development of safe, secure, and trustworthy AI.”