Victoria Fox's Blog, page 50

No middlemen wanted, daily newspaper Junge Welt, 17 September 2024

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Is everything in order? Parliamentary group leader Mützenich and Chancellor Scholz (Berlin, 12 September 2024)

The Ukrainian embassy is once again criticizing the timid considerations of individual German politicians trying to find a way to achieve a ceasefire in Ukraine. In particular, the plan of Rolf Mützenich, the leader of the SPD parliamentary group, has drawn the ire of the Ukrainian ambassador to Germany, Olexij Makejew. Mützenich met at the weekend Lineish Post He called for the creation of an international contact group to begin a peace plan in the Ukraine war. “To get closer to real peace, we need not a ‘contact group’ but the next peace conference, inviting all the countries of the world to work for a just peace,” Makeev said. Editing Network Germany (Monday edition). “If we are going to strike back for peace and force Russia to make peace diplomatically, we need allies, not mediators,” Makeev said.

The only way to a just and lasting peace is the 10-point plan put forward by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. But this “peace plan” actually presupposes a complete military defeat of Russia. This includes, among other things, the withdrawal of Russian troops from Crimea, annexed in 2014, and the payment of Russian reparations.

Mützenich also mentioned Zelenskiy along with his developments. Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and the Ukrainian president explained that they agreed that “now is a good time to step up efforts for peace talks and that Russia should also participate in the next peace summit.” This also opens up the opportunity for other countries to become more committed to ending hostilities. “I think it is time for the Western allies to start a contact group to start the process,” the SPD politician said.

Asked about possible members of such a contact group, Mützenich said he sees countries such as China, India, Turkey and Brazil as responsible. In these countries, there is a growing conviction that “a war of aggression by Russia could be a burden.” Therefore, the work of the contact group could be “very promising” and play an important mediating role.

Scholz has actually said he supports stronger diplomatic efforts to end the recent war in Ukraine. He confirmed this plan during a Q&A session with citizens of Prenzlau, Brandenburg. “It is also time to find out what is happening,” he said. The basis for a peace solution, the chancellor added, is “Putin realizing that he cannot eat up all of Ukraine.” Scholz is also urging Russia to attend the follow-up to the “peace conference” in Switzerland in June. Russia was not invited to the Lucerne conference, and Moscow’s most important ally, China, has also withdrawn.

But it was not just Mützenich who drew the Ukrainian ambassador’s ire, but also SPD member of the Bundestag Ralf Stegner and BSW founder Sahra Wagenknecht who had also been stripped of their fat. Makeev accused Stegner of wanting to speak at a peace demonstration scheduled for October 3 in Berlin. Wagenknecht is also scheduled to appear on stage at a rally organized by various peace movement actors.

“The fact that a Democrat joins Wagenknecht’s chamber of horrors after visiting Ukraine requires special mental gymnastics,” Makeev said. The German debate is filled with “self-proclaimed peace activists who have no idea about Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine,” the diplomat said. Wagenknecht is among them. “Since 2022, they have demanded nothing but the legalization of the Russian occupation under the pretext of ‘peace,’” the diplomat said. But occupation is not peace.

Wagenknecht wants to extradite Ukraine and its inhabitants, “sell them houses that are not theirs and hand over the inhabitants to violence.” With her “brokerage work for Moscow,” she is ultimately harming the entire European home. The BSW boss wants to “rip apart” the European security architecture according to the Kremlin’s instructions. The ambassador said it was a shame that Wagenknecht’s rhetoric was now echoing in other parties, referring to Stegner.

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The Senate will vote again on IVF protections during the election year

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WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate will vote for the second time this year on legislation that would establish a nationwide right to in vitro fertilization – the latest effort by Democrats in an election year to force Republicans to take a defensive stance on women’s health issues.

The bill, which the Senate will vote on Tuesday, has little chance of passing this Congress because Republicans blocked a similar bill earlier this year. But Democrats hope to use the extra vote to pressure Republican congressional candidates and create a contrast between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump in the presidential race, especially since Trump has called himself the “IVF leader.” “

The push began earlier this year when the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law. Several clinics in the state suspended IVF treatments until the GOP-led Legislature rushed to enact legislation to provide clinics with legal protection.

Democrats quickly capitalized and held a vote in June on Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s bill, warning that the U.S. Supreme Court could pursue the procedure next after it struck down abortion rights in 2022. The legislation would also increase access to the procedure and lower costs.

“The hard right has set its sights on a new target,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in remarks Monday.

All but two Republicans voted against the Democratic legislation, arguing that the federal government should not tell states what to do. They said the bill was a serious effort.

Still, Republicans have sought to stand up to Democrats on the issue, and many have made it clear they support IVF treatments. Trump announced plans last month to require health insurance companies or the federal government to pay for shared fertility treatment, without further details.

In a conversation with Harris earlier this month, Trump said he was a “leader” in the case and spoke of a “very negative” ruling by an Alabama court that was later overturned by the legislature.

But the issue has threatened to become a vulnerability for Republicans because some state laws passed by their own party grant legal personality not only to fetuses but to any embryos that are destroyed in the IVF process.

Duckworth, a military veteran who used fertility treatments to have two of his children, has led the Senate’s legislative effort. “How dare you,” he said in comments to his GOP colleagues after the first vote to block the bill.

Republicans have tried to push for alternatives to the issue, including legislation that would prevent states from enacting express treatment bans, but Democrats have blocked those bills, saying it’s not enough.

Republican Sens. Katie Britt of Alabama and Ted Cruz of Texas tried in June to pass a bill that would threaten to withhold Medicaid funding in states where IVF is banned. Sen. Rick Scott, Republican of Florida, said in a speech at the time that his daughter was currently undergoing IVF treatment and proposed expanding flexibility in health savings accounts.

Cruz, who is running in Texas, said it showed that Democrats’ efforts to pass the legislation were a “cynical political decision.”

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AI and more. Wirtualnemedia.pl discusses the digital future

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The participants in our discussion were: agree that artificial intelligence and other tools that automate activities in the digital area are not just innovations with limited application, but are significantly changing the entire market. – We are intertwined with algorithms. This is a change that we cannot stop. An extremely narrow path. And if some companies aren’t on it yet, they’re falling without even knowing it – said Anna Gruszka, chief growth officer at adQuery.

Gracjan Chagowski, Sales Director for Poland at Teads, highlighted that currently 80% of all marketing campaigns use technologies such as AI or machine learning. – We are no longer in the research or experimental phase, but in the AI ​​revolution phase: implementation and adaptation to this environment. Either you ride this train or watch it go. – he pointed.

In online media, changes are a bit slower when it comes to AI-powered content creation. – GPT Chat and its subsequent versions and other large language models in English already work well, but in Polish they are still very imperfect and the market has not yet fully adapted them. This revolution is still to come. We are at the beginning, in a somewhat experimental phase – admitted Marcin Bartnicki, innovation director at Wirtualna Polska Media. – I believe that next year there will be a major breakthrough that someone in the market will be proud of, and in the next two, three, five years the media will work differently.. Large language models will find many applications, he predicts.

AI accelerates and supports

Booksy Polska has been using technologies like machine learning to analyze its users’ preferences for years. Przemysław Barszcz, the company’s country manager in Poland, noted that there is currently no legal framework for AI. “Today we are asking ourselves where the ethical and legal limits of AI are. Since companies can absorb everything, there is a great temptation to know practically everything about their customers and users,” he said, warning against the social media industry’s well-known mistakes in regulating AI.

READ ALSO: “Influencers 2024” – what awaits us in the project

AI is already changing the media and marketing job market a lot because it significantly speeds up content creation. Marcin Bartnicki pointed to copywriters as an example. “If someone knows how to skillfully use tools to support text creation, they will create more texts. If someone doesn’t do this, they will fall behind, earn less and leave the profession,” he explained. “The same will happen with other specializations in the sector,” he noted.

In marketing companies, artificial intelligence replaces people in repetitive activities and in analyzing large data setsthat helps in planning and implementing campaigns based on various parameters. If only companies would adapt to this early enough, like the organization I represent. We have invested in machine learning teams for a long time, said Anna Gruszka. Gracjan Chagowski, on the other hand, highlighted that Teads uses AI not only to determine the main parameters of the campaign, but also to analyze advertising creations. – These are solutions that speed up certain tasks and thus free up employees’ time. But they do not exclude the work of a graphic designer or creative strategist, they only support it, he said.

In the case of Booksy, automation also frees up the time of hairdressers or beauty salons who collaborate with the platform, as it helps them to quickly obtain information at any time. “We have implemented a chatbot tool. Currently, around 50 percent of the questions we receive are answered in real time,” Przemysław Barszcz described.

Human control required

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Of course, automated tools will not solve all the problems reported by a client or complete all the stages of advertising activities. – Every business is very much based on relationships, even if at first it is an online relationship, sooner or later there will be some kind of interaction with a person. This human factor will not be eliminated, artificial intelligence will support it – said Przemysław Barszcz.

– Hallucinations or confabulations are inherent to artificial intelligence – they are a feature of it, not just a flaw. Therefore, we should always expect that these AI algorithms can “spit out” something inappropriate. If we do not have our own technologies that check in real time whether brand safety and anti-fraud systems are maintained, then we may have a problem – said Anna Gruszka.

Marketers and publishers need to be careful when using AI-generated content, too, because there is a lack of regulatory regulation in this area. They also have to compete with entities that exploit these vulnerabilities. “We have content inflation in the market, which is the result of the fact that you can generate an entire sitemap on a specialized topic and fill it with content instantly. The entry threshold is low,” Marcin Bartnicki noted. “This is a challenge for the entire market, also for tech giants like Google, which enable such mechanisms to work,” he noted.

Artificial intelligence is also used for cyber attacks. – Various types of actions, campaigns that try to extort data, money or other information from us. This is a very big challenge in terms of customer service. Today we receive calls from bots pretending to be company employees, our colleagues who work with us from desk to desk – described Przemysław Barszcz.

One of the main threats in the media is fake news, the creation of which is greatly facilitated by AI. – Fake news is older than artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence can increase its credibility, but it is impossible for the trained eye to distinguish them. Journalists will not be convinced. The problem is the broad media competences of the entire society, said Marcin Bartnicki.

The strategy of technology providers like AI is also important. “The more transparent these companies are with us, the users who actually use these solutions, the more we start to trust them,” said Gracjan Chagowski.

Not only AI

Participants in the discussion expect that AI will not be the only rapidly growing technology in the near future. Anna Gruszka pointed to green technology and Web 3.0. – Despite some fluctuations in the currency market, this is still a trend, at least for the next few years – she noted.

For Gracjan Chagowski, adaptability is essential. – Nowadays, users are bombarded from many sides, so if we, as marketers and companies, want to follow these users and adapt the message to the way they behave, we must follow this path very carefully – he stated. In his opinion, the importance that omnichannel and CTV strategies will benefit.

Przemysław Barszcz also mentioned hyper-personalization. – This means even better personalization of the recipient of my service or product. Cloud computing will develop very strongly because companies need and want as much data as possible, he noted.

According to Marcin Bartnicki, other solutions will emerge – for both recipients and advertisers – based on large language models. – I think that if we develop what we are working on now and come up with some more interesting things, the media will undergo a significant transformation, not seen for at least a decade – he predicts.

Next Thursday at 10:00 am there will be another debate in the “Influencers 2024” series – entitled “New horizons in e-commerce”. The speakers will be Jakub Biczkowski from nazwa.pl, Magdalena Kubisa from BLIK, Michał Mel from Google Polska, Zbigniew Nowicki from the Chamber of Electronic Commerce and Damian Wiszowaty from Gonito. The debate will be led by Patryk Pallus, editor-in-chief of Wirtualnemedia.pl.

The debate will be available for viewing on the homepage and social media profiles of Wirtualnemedia.pl.

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Ukraine Live Blog: ++ 100 million euros of winter aid for Ukraine ++

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Live Blog

As of: 8:57 AM, September 17, 2024

Foreign Minister Baerbock announced 100 million euros worth of winter aid to Ukraine. Russia said it shot down 16 Ukrainian drones over the border area this evening. All developments on our live blog.

Germany provides €100 million in winter aid to UkraineRussia: 16 Ukrainian drones shot down near borderZelensky: Showing Russians the Real Face of War

8:57 am

Germany provides €100 million in winter aid to Ukraine

Germany is providing Ukraine with an additional 100 million euros for winter assistance. Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock announced this during her visit to the Republic of Moldova in Chisinau.

“It is clear that autumn is coming and winter is just around the corner,” Baerbock said ahead of the Moldovan Partnership Platform meeting in the former Soviet republic’s capital. Russia is planning another winter war to make life as miserable as possible for the Ukrainian people.

8:04 am

Russian air strikes on Sumy energy facilities

Ukraine has reported another large-scale Russian drone attack. The air force said its air defenses shot down 34 of the 51 Russian drones overnight. They were used in five areas. According to local authorities, the attacks also targeted energy infrastructure in the northeastern region of Sumy. There alone, 16 Russian drones were intercepted. No information on casualties or damage was initially provided.

07:35 am

Russia: 16 Ukrainian drones shot down near border

Russia says it shot down 16 Ukrainian drones in the Bryansk-Kursk border area. The Moscow Defense Ministry announced via the short message service Telegram that 15 drones were intercepted over Bryansk during the night, and one over Kursk.

Source the parties to the dispute

In the current situation, it is impossible for an independent agency to directly verify information provided by the Palestinian and Israeli conflicting parties on the course of the war, shelling, casualties, etc.

6:09 AM

Baerbock attends Moldova Supporters Conference.

Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is attending an international conference today to support the Moldovan state bordering Ukraine. The conference, held in the capital Chisinau, is the fifth meeting of the so-called Moldovan Partnership Platform, which was launched by Germany, France and Moldova’s neighbor Romania shortly after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The war in Ukraine has raised fears of Russian influence in Moldova, while the small southeastern European country has taken in many Ukrainian refugees. According to the Foreign Ministry, the meeting will focus on Moldova’s economic development, energy security and rule of law reform. A German-Moldovan cybersecurity cooperation agreement is expected to be signed to help protect the small country from Russian influence.

07:35 am

Zelensky: Showing Russians the Real Face of War

The Ukrainian government wants to give the Russian people a realistic picture of the war situation and undermine the propaganda loyal to the Kremlin in the neighboring country. “It is important for us that the perception of the Russian war is worsening,” Russian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening video address. Russian society should learn what negative consequences the policies of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin have had.

At the same time, Zelenskyj spoke about his government’s “victory plan”, which he hopes to present to US President Joe Biden during his visit to the United States in the coming days. The president said that serious military issues should not be ignored. “Of course, we are also preparing for the next operation by Russia on the front,” Zelensky said. The Ukrainian leadership is constantly working to secure enough troops and resources to produce and deliver drones.

With the U.S. presidential election just seven weeks away, Facebook company Meta is working to block the spread of Russian government propaganda through media outlets including the TV channel RT. RT (formerly Russia Today) and several affiliated organizations will be banned from the company’s apps globally, Meta announced. In addition to Facebook, the group also includes Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads.

RT has been blocked in the EU since spring 2022 due to its disinformation campaign surrounding Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine. Last Friday, the US government accused RT of interfering in “sovereign affairs of nations around the world.” The state-run broadcaster is engaged in covert influence operations and is cooperating with the Russian military, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

04:57

Monday’s Live Blog for Reading

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A missed opportunity for a genuine reform of the Polish Academy of Sciences [OPINIA]

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Many important arguments have already been raised in the discussion on the proposed changes to the Law on the Polish Academy of Sciences (consolidated text: Journal of Laws of 2020, item 1796), but it seems that some of them have not been sufficiently heard. The proposed change focused on the issues of control and supervision, but it is important to underline that from the point of view of the activities of the PAS scientific institute, such a reform concept is simply a missed opportunity.

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Sofia Vergara “Didn’t Get an Emmy But” Still Wins the Internet for LOL Mail

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New Delhi:

Sofia Vergara, who was nominated for lead actress in a limited or anthology series or movie for her role in Griseldadidn’t win any Emmys this year, but what she did win is the Internet’s heart. After the ceremony, the actor shared a video of himself tucking into a burger. She wrote in the message: “I didn’t get an Emmy, but I got a burger.” The internet loved Sofia’s message. One user wrote: “Who needs an Emmy when you’ve got a burger.” The fast food chain Wendy’s commented on its post “Pretty sure you won.” Another user commented: “I love you. You killed it in Griselda.”

Similar thoughts were echoed in the comments section of Sofia Vergara’s post. “You’re still a winner…haha,” the user commented. “You got robbed,” added another. Another Instagram user wrote: “It’s a win.” A Sofia Vergara fan left this comment: “You’re a winner no matter what.” Some added that the actress was “robbed” of her Emmy. “You deserved a #robbedEmmy,” wrote one. “You should get all the Emmys for Griselda… you were fantastic,” another wrote.

See Sofia Vergara’s message here:

Sofia Vergara, who is best known for appearing in popular TV series Modern familyhas also acted in films such as New Year’s Eve, Chef, Bottom of the Ninth, Woman’s Brain, Con, Bent, Machetes, Wild Card and Madea Goes to Jail to name a few. Sofia Vergara also appeared as one of the judges America’s Got Talent. He recently starred in a Netflix series Griselda.

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More rust on the support columns below the main viewing area

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The condition of the concrete columns under the townhouses continues to deteriorate. During the annual monitoring, experts identified an additional 41 supports in two parking decks at Berliner Platz that need to be upgraded, the press office confirmed in response to a GA inquiry. Work is already underway. A number of supports and parking areas have been blocked.

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Greek hotels can’t keep up with Airbnb. The number of holiday apartments is growing rapidly

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In the years 2014-2023, the number of beds in short-term rental facilities in Greek Attica increased by 751 percent, while the number of hotel beds increased by only 16 percent – ​​calculated by the Institute for Tourism Research and Forecasting (ITEP) based on data from AirDNA – a provider of data and analytics for the short-term rental sector. The results of this study are cited by the website money-tourism.gr.

In 2014, there were 16,083 beds in Attica in 4,049 “Airbnb-type” accommodations, by the end of 2023 these numbers had increased to 136,813 and 34,037 respectively.

In turn, the number of hotel beds was 58,197 and hotel beds 644, and a decade later it increased to 67,398 and 698, respectively.

This means that the capacity of holiday apartments in Attica grew at an average annual rate of 24 percent, while hotel capacity grew by just 1 percent.

In 2014, there were 2,209 vacation rentals in Athens, with a total of 7,809 beds. In 2023, 18,454 such establishments offered 67,953 beds for rent.

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iOS 18 Now Available for iPhone Users: How to Download, Supported iPhone Models

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iOS 18 was rolled out globally, including in India, by Apple on Monday. The new iPhone update was first unveiled at the 2024 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June, and several developer updates and public betas were released in the following weeks. It is now available for download for iPhone users in India and brings improvements across the system, including new ways to customize the Home and Lock screens, revamped apps, and more. Apple will bring features powered by Apple Intelligence, the company’s artificial intelligence (AI) suite, to supported iPhone models next month.

iOS 18 Update: How to Download

In a newsroom post, Apple announced that iOS 18 is now widely available for download worldwide, including India. It can be installed by following these steps:

Open Settings on your iPhoneGo to General bookmark to find Software update optioniPhone will automatically check if there are any pending updates availableClick on Download and install option, read the regulations and accept themThen iOS 18 will be downloaded and installed on your iPhoneiOS 18 Update: Eligible Devices

Apple says that all iPhone models that have received the iOS 18 developer and public beta updates are eligible for the public version of iOS 18. This includes Apple’s latest flagships, like the iPhone 15 Pro Max, as well as older models like the iPhone XR. The iPhone 16 series, which goes on sale on September 20, will also come with the new iOS 18 update out of the box. The full list of devices includes:

iPhone 16 SeriesiPhone 15 SeriesiPhone 14 SeriesiPhone SE (2022)iPhone 13 SeriesiPhone 12 seriesiPhone 11 seriesiPhone XS MaxiPhone XSiPhone XRiPhone SE (2020)iOS 18: Is Apple Intelligence included?

While iOS 18 is already available to download, Apple Intelligence will not be included in the update. The Cupertino tech giant heavily touted its new AI suite at the WWDC 2024 event, as well as alongside the new iPhone 16 models. However, features like the writing tools, object removal tools, and web summaries will not arrive until next month’s iOS 18.1 update. In the meantime, some of the most anticipated features, like the new AI-powered generative Image Playground, will be available to users late next year.

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Rare 50p coins to look for – including the ‘holy grail’.

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Just know, if you’re a coin collector, you could be sitting on a gold mine.

Recently, we’ve seen several models fetch huge sums on eBay or even at auction. Just recently, collectors were stunned when a penny sold for a whopping £200,000.

Now it’s not just the 1p coins that are causing a stir, but so are the 50ps in your collection. TikTok user @CoinCollectingWizard has highlighted a series of 50p coins to keep an eye on.

In a message to his 197,000 followers, he said: “Do you have 50p coins with different designs? They could be worth a fortune.”

He began by mentioning the 2017 Royal Shield of Arms coin, designed by Matthew Dent, which is double its face value of £1 as it has a circulation of less than 2 million.

The 2009 Kew Gardens 50p coin is considered the “holy grail” of the 50p.

He said: “Only 210,000 were minted and it’s worth an amazing £150 if you can find this in change.”

He then mentioned the 2017 Isaac Newton 50p designed by Aaron West, which has a mintage of over 2 million and is valued at £4.

Later in the video, he shared: “Jemima Puddle Duck 50p from 2016 designed by the talented Emma Noble, just over 2 million were produced. It’s worth £8 and another 50p designed by Emma Noble in 2018 was Mrs Tittlemouse.”

He continued: “This one has a mintage of 1.7 million and can fetch a nice £3. The 2018 Flopsy Bunny 50p is again designed by Emma Noble, only 1.4 million were made and is worth £5.”

After sharing the news, the video garnered 200 likes and dozens of comments. One user exclaimed: “I might have a few,” while another asked: “Where do you sell them?” The original poster replied: “on eBay.”

We recently revealed that you could be sitting on a fortune if you own one of these silver coins.

Important details were then revealed about the coveted 1851 Florin or Two Shilling Piece, of which only 1,500 will be produced and which can fetch up to £7,000 in mint condition.

Meanwhile, the scarce 1828 Six Pence was also mentioned with a limited run of 15,000 coins and a potential value of £500. A TikTok user said: “The 1851 shilling produced around 470,000 coins and is worth around £700.”

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