Author: damazah@gmail.com

Google’s AI models may not be in the lead by most measures right now, but the company does have one key advantage: your data. If you’re deep in the Google ecosystem, Gemini models have a lot of context on you already. Google’s latest Google Labs experiment, known as CC, aims to expand that kind of customization to the whole family. CC is an evolution of something that Google announced in 2025. The original CC eventually became Gemini’s Daily Brief, which churns through the data in your Google account to offer daily action items and suggestions. The new CC has a…

Iyobosa Uwugiaren argues that the communiqué issued by the Nigerian Guild of Editors after its meeting in Kano recently, is both a defence of the democratic ecosystem and a reminder that the media itself must carry the responsibilities that accompany freedom. The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), at its Standing Committee meeting in Kano on September 11, 2026, issued a communiqué that deserves more than the routine attention usually given to professional associations’ statements. Coming a few months before the 2027 general elections, the Guild’s intervention touches on some of the central questions confronting the nation’s democracy: press freedom, the…

Scientists have identified a previously unknown frog species living in the seasonally flooded forests of the western Amazon. Named Adenomera varcena, the species adds to growing evidence that Amazonian biodiversity is even richer than it appears. The discovery also highlights the importance of cryptic diversity, in which animals that look nearly identical can actually belong to separate species. Researchers distinguished the new frog by combining several lines of evidence, including its DNA and distinctive call. The findings were published in the journal Ichthyology & Herpetology. The research team includes Célio F. B. Haddad, a professor at São Paulo State University…

The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) FCT Council has announced the death of one of its senior members, Mike Odiakose, after an illness. A statement by the Secretary of the Council, Jide Oyekunle, said Mr Odiakose died in the early hours of Thursday in Abuja. The death comes a few weeks after a former chairman of the council, Patrick Osadebamwen, died. Mr Odiakose practised with the Nigerian Observer, Nigerian Pilot and Daily Asset newspapers. The statement said, “The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), FCT Council, has received with sadness the death of another senior member of the Council, Comrade Mike…

Warsaw also says it has scrambled military planes in response to a Russian attack in western Ukraine, close to its border.Published On 17 Sep 202617 Sep 2026Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk says that intelligence information suggests Russia plans to launch drone and missile attacks against countries supporting Ukraine.Warsaw’s leader outlined the assessment during an address to parliament on Thursday, saying that the attacks will be meant to weaken NATO’s ability to act collectively in response.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list“According to intelligence assessments, Russia’s plan … includes hybrid drone and missile strikes against countries supporting Ukraine, including Poland,” Tusk…

As Nigeria inches towards the 2027 general elections, an ominous pattern is beginning to emerge. The language of politics is becoming more threatening, more intolerant and, in some cases, dangerously inflammatory. Politics is not supposed to be a do-or-die affair, and an election shouldn’t be a declaration of war. Political opponents are not enemies of the state, and citizens who choose to support a different political party have committed no offence. Democracy rests on one fundamental principle: the freedom of the people to choose their leaders without fear, intimidation, coercion or violence. Unfortunately, too many Nigerian politicians are desperate and…

Kayode Toekde  The Nigerian stock market extended its rally for a third  consecutive session this week, as investor optimism around the Dangote Refinery’s N2.15 trillion Initial Public Offer (IPO) sustained bullish momentum. The All-Share Index rose by 487.28 basis points or 0.20 per cent, to close at 244,791.79 basis  points. Similarly, the overall market capitalisation value gained N316 billion to close at N158.715 trillion. The Insurance (+1.6per cent), Consumer Goods (+0.8per cent) and Banking (+0.2per cent) indices advanced, while the Industrial Goods and Oil & Gas indices closed flat.  Investor sentiment was positive, as 34 gainers outpaced 25 losers. Sovereign…

OpenAI has disclosed six more examples of “unexpected or concerning” behaviour by its technology, as it warned that the pace of development could not continue at “maximum speed for much longer” responsibly.In one of the new cases reported by OpenAI, an unreleased research model inserted “jailbreak-like instructions” into its own notes to disregard its normal constraints and told itself to be “freed from the roles and identities that bind other chatbots”.In another instance, an AI agent uploaded files to the internet to obtain a browser citation without asking the user.OpenAI’s admission came as King Charles called for stronger safeguards on…

Britain needs to show “a credible path” of annual increases in its defence budgets to meet a Nato target of spending nearly £30bn more on the military by the middle of the next decade, the head of the alliance said on Thursday.Mark Rutte, Nato’s secretary general, said that Britain could not wait until just before 2035 to lift defence spending to 3.5% of GDP, in an unusually pointed intervention a day after he met prime minister Andy Burnham.In an interview with the Press Association, he said: “And that is why you need a credible path towards that 3.5%, and yearly…

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has urged African countries to strengthen patient safety in the care of people living with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). WHO Regional Director for Africa, Mohamed Janabi, made the call on Thursday in a message to mark World Patient Safety Day 2026, themed “Safe care for noncommunicable diseases”, with the slogan “Safe care for life!” NCDs include conditions such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease and chronic respiratory diseases. “For a person living with diabetes, cancer, heart disease or a chronic respiratory condition, health care is rarely a single encounter,” he said. “It may involve years of consultations,…