Sunspots 960

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to others*

Environment: NPR discusses the decline in the axolotl population.

Health: (or something:) A Conversation writer discusses bullying.

NPR reports that there are no effective remedies for the common cold.

Politics: NPR reports that reporting on climate change can lead to harassment, even death threats, to government scientists and TV weather personnel.

A Conversation writer tells us about the different ethnic groups among Jews in Israel.

Science: ScienceAlert reports that we have not understood how bees keep warm enough in winter.

Gizmodo reports on research indicating that chinstrap penguins take thousands of very short naps every day, apparently a behavior that helps keep them safer.

*I try not to include items that require a password or fee to view

Thanks for reading.

 

Sunspots 926

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to others*:

Computing: Gizmodo reports that the US Marshals have been hacked.

Gizmodo also reports that there's a printer that prints chocolate constructions.

Gizmodo also reports that Chuck-E-Cheese is still using floppy disks to run its game machines!

Finances: (or something) A Conversation writer argues that buses are the cure for urban transportation woes.

(and humor) NPR posts about tooth fairy inflation.

Health: (and ethics) A woman is to be arrested for refusing to be effectively treated for tuberculosis.

The Conversation discusses in-family aggressive behavior -- in other words, bullying a sibling. It is actually more common than "regular" bullying.

Politics: A Yahoo! commentator takes on Marjorie Taylor Greene's suggestion that the US split into two countries.

A Conversation article tells us that the caste system is, unfortunately, alive and well in the US.

(and computing) Gizmodo reports on lots of Twitter bots, backing former President Trump, and attacking various non-Trumpists.

Science: Gizmodo reports on the development of really white paint (which really cuts down on the amount of heat absorbed from sunlight.)

USA Today reports that Japan has hundreds of tiny islands that it didn't know were there.

Gizmodo reports that some humans were riding domesticated horses about 5000 BC.

(and ethics) NPR reports on discussions of whether to alter human genes.

*I try not to include items that require a password or fee to view.

Thanks for reading.

Sunspots 594

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Christianity: Benjamin L. Corey claims that the US is not hostile toward Christianity, but hostile toward Christians who try to bully others into certain kinds of behavior.


Computing: Several companies in the information sector are working together with public representatives to develop ethics guidelines for artificial intelligence, according to reports by National Public Radio and other sources.

Gizmo's Freeware has posted an updated and annotated list of the best free apps, including, for example, substitutes for Word and Excel, and games, and many more.

Finance: Scientific American reports that Congress, with a bill backed by members of both parties (!) will probably pass legislation that helps prevent people who have lost property in a flood from continuing to receive federally backed insurance payments when they re-build in the same place. The worst case mentioned is a home that has had 34 damage claims in 32 years, whose owner has been paid about ten times the property's value over that time period.

Food: Cup noodles are 45 years old. NPR reports on their history and culture (and also on Ramen noodles).

Health: National Public Radio reports on the value of walking for health, especially in older people.

History: Listverse presents 10 amazing stories of survival in the Arctic.


Humor: (or not) The Conversation on why some of us think clowns are creepy.

Real humor: An amazing rope trick video.




Politics: NPR reports on the question of whether fact checks matter.
Science: NPR reports that an environmentally cleaner car may actually cost less.
Scientific American reports that 8-month-old babies are able to understand more than we might expect, and to use communication with adults.

Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 591

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Christianity: Benjamin L. Corey explains how God can change His mind (there are several examples in the Bible) and still be unchanging.

Relevant discusses the meaning of "lukewarm."

A Christianity Today columnist discusses the church's indifference to the working, white, poor in the US.



Health: Scientific American on why leisure, naps, sabbaticals and vacations are so important.

Politics: (or something) FiveThirtyEight examines the so-called "skills gap" -- companies claiming that they can't find workers with the proper skills -- and finds that it's mostly imaginary.

Science: FiveThirtyEight on why it's so hard to find other planets like the earth.

ListVerse on amazing facts about babies.


FiveThirtyEight on earthquakes in Oklahoma, and the oil and gas industries.

Scientific American and other sources report that there is not one, but four different species of giraffe (and several subspecies) according to recent DNA analysis. Most of these are endangered.

Scientific American also reports on a study that shows that children raised by permissive parents, or harsh parents, are more likely to be bullies than children raised by parents who are neither.

An animated guide to breathing, in humans, birds, and insects.

Image source (public domain)