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There's unprecedented international anxiety about the safety of Ukraine's nuclear reactors, but many European countries are also turning to nuclear power to secure energy supplies.

A kedden késő este elvégzett mérések alapján az előírásoknak megfelelő, a határértéken belüli a Sziget fesztivál zajszintje. Erről Kádár Tamás, a rendezvény főszervezője tájékoztatta az MTI-t.

Die griechische Präsidentin Katerina Sakellaropoulou forderte am Dienstag (9. August) eine Ermittlung im Abhörfall von Telefongesprächen eines Spitzenpolitikers durch den Geheimdienst (EYP).

Itinéraires d'esclaves sexuels de la Roumanie au Royaume-Uni
La Roumanie, principal fournisseur de travailleuses du sexe en Europe
Roumanie : du rêve d'une vie meilleure à l'esclavage moderne
Les féministes, la police et le mythe de la « Roumanie sauvage »
Prostitution en Roumanie : le cercle infernal de la violence
Roumanie : Iana Matei, un long combat contre la prostitution juvénile

/ Courrier des Balkans, Mediapart, Roumanie, Femmes violences, Société, Défense, police et justice, Gratuit

Tourisme : en Turquie, les « vacances parfaites » des Albanais
« Les touristes serbes deviennent des ambassadeurs de l'Albanie »
Tourisme en Albanie : « étranger cherche maison pas chère avec vue sur mer »

/ Courrier des Balkans, Albanie, Société, Défense, police et justice

Tourisme : en Turquie, les « vacances parfaites » des Albanais
« Les touristes serbes deviennent des ambassadeurs de l'Albanie »
Tourisme en Albanie : « étranger cherche maison pas chère avec vue sur mer »

/ Courrier des Balkans, Albanie, Société, Défense, police et justice

More than 90% of polling stations have reported, but the official result may not be known for days.

Written by Andrés García Higuera.

A recently published Panel for the Future of Science and Technology (STOA) study examines the impact of biases on datasets used to support decision-making systems based on artificial intelligence. It explores the ethical implications of the deployment of digital technologies in the context of proposed European Union legislation, such as the AI act, the data act and the data governance act; as well as the recently approved Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act. It ends by setting out a range of policy options to mitigate the pernicious effects of biases in decision-making systems that rely on machine learning.

Machine learning (ML) is a form of artificial intelligence (AI) in which computers develop their own decision-making processes for situations that cannot be directly and satisfactorily addressed by available algorithms. The process is adjusted through the exploration of existing data on previous similar situations that include the solutions found at the time. The broader and more balanced the dataset is, the better the chances will be of obtaining a valid result; but there is no a priori way of knowing whether the data available will suffice to collect all aspects of the problem at hand. The outputs of systems based on AI can be biased owing to imbalances in the training data, or if the data source is biased itself with respect to ethnicity, gender or other factors.

Biases are commonly considered to be one of the most detrimental effects of AI use. In general, therefore, serious commitments are being made to reducing their incidence as much as possible. However, the existence of biases pre-dates the creation of AI tools. All human societies are biased – AI only reproduces what we are. Therefore, opposing this technology for this reason would simply hide discrimination and not prevent it. Our task must be to use the means at our disposal – which are many – to mitigate its biases. In fact, it is likely that at some point in the future, recommendations made by an AI mechanism will contain less bias than those made by human beings. Unlike humans, AI can be reviewed and its flaws corrected on a consistent basis. Ultimately, AI could eventually serve to build fairer, less biased societies.

Rather than increasing regulation, it is crucial to ensure that existing rules, such as the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), cover all new aspects that may appear as the technology evolves. European legislation such as the proposed AI act (together with the data act proposal and the data governance act) may apply not only to algorithms but also to datasets, thereby enforcing the explainability of decisions obtained through systems based on ML. The idea of setting up AI ethics committees to assess and provide certification for the systems or datasets used in ML is also proposed by organisations such as International Organization for Standardization (ISO) or European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CEN). The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) follows similar lines in its recommendations on AI. While setting up standards and certification procedures seems a good way to progress, it may also lead to a false impression of safety, as the ML systems and the datasets they use are dynamic and continue to learn from new data. A dynamic follow-up process would therefore also be required to guarantee that rules are respected following the FAIR principles of data management and stewardship (FAIR: findability, accessibility, interoperability and reusability).

The STOA report begins by providing an overview of biases in the context of artificial intelligence, and more specifically of machine-learning applications. The second part is devoted to the analysis of biases from a legal point of view, which shows that shortcomings in this area call for the implementation of additional regulatory tools to address the issue of bias adequately. Finally, the study, and its accompanying STOA options brief, put forward a range of policy options in response to the challenges identified.

Read the full report and STOA options brief to find out more. The study was presented by its authors to the STOA Panel at its meeting on 7 July 2022.

Your opinion counts for us. To let us know what you think, get in touch via stoa@europarl.europa.eu.

Polen könnte sich gegen die Europäische Union zur Wehr setzen, wenn Warschau seinen Anteil an den EU-Geldern aus dem Wiederaufbaufonds nicht erhält, so Politiker der Regierungspartei.

Voir en ligne : www.moov-africa.bj

A series of diplomatic wins, capped by the deal to resume Ukraine's grain exports, provides some respite for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan from Turkey's economic strife and offers a blueprint of his campaign strategy for elections due next year.

Residence permits issued for the first time in the European Union climbed close to pre-pandemic levels last year, with Poland leading the bloc due mostly to work-related immigration while France largely attracted students, the bloc's statistics office said on Tuesday (9 August).

Belgium on Tuesday (9 August) extended an order to recall certain Haagen-Dazs ice-creams from sale after the discovery of traces of a chemical linked to cancer, such as lymphoma and leukemia.

Poland could hit back at the European Union if Warsaw does not get its share of pandemic recovery funds, ruling party politicians said, after Brussels signalled it was not satisfied with the country's latest judicial reforms.

Notre premier sondage en vue des votations montre que l’initiative contre l’élevage intensif est bien lancée, avec une majorité de oui.

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou called on Tuesday (9 August) for an investigation into tapping a political leader's phone by the intelligence service (EYP).

Latvia has formally asked to join Ukraine's case against Russia at the European Court of Human Rights over Moscow's invasion, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday (9 August).

Selon notre premier sondage, les Suisses accepteraient d’augmenter l’âge de la retraite des femmes. Mais ces dernières disent largement non.

A senior Ukrainian official suggested a series of explosions at a Russian air base in Crimea could have been the work of partisan saboteurs, as Kyiv denied any responsibility for the incident deep inside Russian-occupied territory.

Americas

General Dynamics Land Systems won a $99.8 million deal for M1 Abrams tank sight units with containers. This was a competitive acquisition with one response received. The M1A1/2 Abrams main battle tank is manufactured by General Dynamics Land Systems. Work will take place in Alabama. Estimated completion date is December 31, 2029.

The US Navy has carried out a demonstration of the MQ-8C Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO) concept during Exercise Resolute Hunter. The exercise took place at San Clemente Island from June 21 to July 1. HSC-23 flew the unmanned rotorcraft for 23 hours during this period. It had taken off from Point Mugu and flown to San Clemente before control was handed over to a Portable Mission Control Station (MCS-P) deployed there. “Fire Scout is the Navy’s only unmanned helicopter with the ability to deploy from a ship or land with ISR&T at the extended range required for future warfighting,” said Capt. Dennis Monagle, Fire Scout program manager.

Middle East & Africa

The US Army awarded Textron Systems a $9 million modification  for an Aerosonde MK4.7 aircraft. Work will be performed in Hunt Valley, Maryland, with an estimated completion date of September 27, 2023. Fiscal 2021 Foreign Military Sales to Nigeria in the full amount were obligated at the time of the award.

Europe

The Czech Republic starts negotiations with Israel to purchase three Heron drones including ground control stations, data terminals, and shipping containers. The acquisition comes as part of the Czech Army’s “Capability Building Concept,” an initiative to build up the service’s unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) capabilities for aerial reconnaissance, combat support, and ground unit protection.

Asia-Pacific

An air combat training programme for Australia’s Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet and E/A-18G Growler aircrews has been upgraded and extended. The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) inked a new five-year, $76.4 million contract to enhance the ground-based training of pilots and personnel.

Austal has delivered its second of eight Evolved Cape Class patrol boats to the Royal Australian Navy after completion in Henderson, Western Australia. The ship was commissioned as the ADV Cape Peron under the Commonwealth of Australia. The first of its class, the ADV Cape Otway, was delivered to the navy in March after 18 months of construction. The six remaining units are still under production at the shipyard, with a scheduled completion in 2024.

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