Spy agencies brief people in power. We brief you. Each week weâll bring you one story that matters, plus a few that donât!
Your Brief for September 15, 2024: King of Scotland Yard, the world's largest car collection, Polaris Dawn and more!
News
OpenAI o1
OpenAI just unveiled its latest AI model, OpenAI o1, marking its first major release since the debut of GPT-4o in May. What sets OpenAI o1 apart is its enhanced "reasoning" capability. Unlike other models, o1 breaks down queries into smaller steps before generating answers, refining responses more effectively. Trained using reinforcement learning, a system of rewards and penalties, the model has surpassed GPT-4o in math and coding tasks. The latest model does not have web access. With over 200 million people using ChatGPT monthly, OpenAI continues to dominate, holding nearly 60% of the market share. As the company seeks further growth, it's also raising funds, with a staggering valuation of $150 billion.
Image Credit: Shutterstock/QubixStudio
Science
Easter Island Discovery
Was Easter Island's population collapse a myth?
A new genomic study, conducted by an international team of geneticists, challenges the long-standing theory that the people of Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, suffered a catastrophic collapse due to overusing their resources. Contrary to past estimates of a population peak of 15,000, the study suggests that the population steadily grew to about 3,000 by the 1860s, with no signs of "ecological suicide" as previously thought. Researchers analyzed the genomes of 15 Rapa Nui natives from the last two centuries and found no evidence of a genetic bottleneck, which would have indicated a major collapse.
The data contradicts the popular belief that resource depletion led to the islandersâ downfall before European contact. The study also revealed an unexpected cultural twistâRapa Nui natives appear to have mixed with Native Americans as early as the 13th century, long before Europeans arrived! The findings shed new light on the island, famous for its iconic moai statues, and offer a fresh perspective on how its population sustained itself despite extreme isolation.
True Spies
King Of Scotland Yard
Could you keep a VIP safe in one of the most dangerous places on earth?
Itâs 2007, towards the end of the war in Iraq, and at a British army base, the UK Secretary of State for Defense, Des Browne, is handing out medals. The desert air crackles with polite applause, but, in Baghdad, peace is never guaranteed for long⊠Moments later the base is under attack from Iraqi insurgents. Two body-armored protection officers immediately cover the Secretary of State as the insurgents let fly mortar after mortar; the agents putting their backs in the way of the incoming shrapnel! Maintaining their focus despite the incoming fire, the officers rush Browne into a secure building. The protectee is safe and the team has done their job well. One of the agents is Carlton King, a senior protection officer with the Metropolitan Police Special Branch.
Back in 2003, the coalition forces had taken the capital city of Iraq, Baghdad. A conference was held to portion out the contracts to sustain the occupation. The United Kingdom sent a minister to negotiate their share - but the war-torn city was too dangerous for him to travel alone! Enter Carlton King⊠With no time, 3 handguns, and a broken sat-phone, Carlton and his tight-knit team must prepare the ground for the Ministerâs visit.
Could you guarantee his safety? Join Carlton King in this weekâs podcast selection, âKing of Scotland Yardâ to find out what it takes!
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Technology
Polaris Dawn
How far can civilians go in space?
SpaceXâs âPolaris Dawnâ mission launched on the morning of September 10th from NASAâs Kennedy Space Center, taking its four-person civilian crew to new heights. The craft sent the crew 870 miles above Earth, marking the farthest distance humans have traveled since NASAâs Apollo moon missions. The group, led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, includes retired Air Force Lt. Col. Scott Poteet and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon. Two days later, the team made history when billionaire Jared Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis completed the first private spacewalk. Exiting the Dragon capsule roughly 450 miles above Earth, the pair donned newly designed SpaceX spacesuits.
Before stepping into the void, the crew underwent a two-day pre-breathe process, breathing pure oxygen to remove nitrogen from their bloodstreams, minimizing the risk of decompression sickness. In addition to the historic spacewalk, they tested SpaceXâs Starlink laser-based communication system and new medical technologies. The craft safely returned to Earth this morning, touching down off the coast of Florida.
Image Credit: SpaceX
Quirky
The World's Largest Car Collection
How might one man keep a car company afloat?
Owned by the secretive Sultan of Bruneian, the worldâs largest car collection is an estimated 7,000 cars worth more than $5bn! Itâs private, so unless youâre a friend of the absolute ruler of this tiny oil-rich state on the north coast of the island of Borneo, youâll never see his cars; a shame because there are some amazing machines, including many one-offs, specially commissioned by the Sultan or his equally car-mad younger brother, Prince Jefri.Heâs such an important car collector and buyer that itâs thought the Sultan kept Rolls-Royce and Bentley afloat during their darkest days! About half of all Rolls-Royces and Bentleys sold in the early and mid-1990s went to the Sultan and his family, and many were bespoke... See rare images of the Sultanâs collection, and discover what cars lie within, in this SPYSCAPE article.
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Itâs the winged scales of an orache moth, one of many shots taken by Photographer Thorben Danke in a series of captivating insect portraits! His work, highlighted in Smithsonian Magazine, brings the minute intricacies of the insect world into sharp focus. The images feature the feather-like hind leg of a water bug known as the common backswimmer, a stunning portrait of a black and purple dor beetle, and the eye of a pale fiant horsefly! Other shots include a vibrant cuckoo bee and the quirky neon yellow body of the deathâs-head hawkmoth. Dankeâs work sheds light on the beauty and complexity of these often overlooked creatures, offering a glimpse into a world many never get to see up close. Explore the collection here.
Image Credit: Thorben Danke
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