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November 4: Democrats Take Congress as France Stops Blood Bank Cyberattack
U.S. midterms
Democrats have won control of both the House and Senate, ending Republicans’ sole control of Washington and delivering a major setback to President Donald Trump. Democrats flipped seats in several solidly Republican states. Republicans also failed to capture most of the Democratic-held seats targeted through Trump-backed redistricting and lost other seats they expected to hold.
Politico reports that voters ages 18 to 29 backed Democrats 70 percent to 28 percent. Among young men, 58 percent supported a Democratic House candidate. Trump won 56 percent of young men’s votes in the 2024 presidential election.
U.S. stocks rose sharply Wednesday following the election results. The Dow was up 1,500 points, while Brent crude fell below $95 a barrel.
Hungary’s secret police files
Hungary released communist-era secret police files Wednesday, identifying up to 60,000 former informants. The release opens records from the country’s repressive past.
Pakistan’s missile test
Pakistan’s military announced November 3 that it successfully flight-tested Fa’az, which it describes as the country’s first locally developed air-to-air missile. Released footage shows a JF-17 fighter launching the infrared-guided variant, not the separately developed radar-guided version. Pakistan has not released engagement parameters or results against an aerial target, or said when the missile might enter service.
France’s blood bank cyberattack
French authorities say a cyberattack on several blood banks attempted to raise storage temperatures to extremely high levels. Authorities say the attack was stopped before it could damage any blood products or samples.
A chip for separating light
Stanford says its engineers and collaborators have demonstrated the first chip that separates partially coherent light into independent beams. Researchers say the fingernail-sized device could support communication, computing and imaging. Tests used infrared lasers and required mathematically independent beam patterns. Proposed applications involving microscope samples or light from distant galaxies were not tested.
Anonymity in a defamation case
The Fifth Circuit has thrown out a ruling denying anonymity to a woman sued for defamation by a man she accused of sexual assault. The appeals court said being a defendant should not count against her request, and accidental disclosures did not waive her ability to seek anonymity. The lower court must reconsider the request and address the man’s argument that anonymity would prejudice him.
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