How the U.S. Senate represents the land but not the people
I think it's time we started talking about this. pic.twitter.com/pmpzwJawBQ — max bergerđ„đč (@maxberger) November 11, 2018
The health of an ecosystem (including your home) depends on its biodiversity
William Foster writes: Rob Dunn invites us on a safari in pursuit of the wildlife teeming on our bodies and in every corner of our homes. For him, the creatures that sprawl in the human navel and under the bathroom shower head elicit the kind of wonder most of us would feel only on seeing the denizens of Tanzaniaâs Ngorongoro Crater or the Great Barrier Reef off Australia. Dunn is more than an informed and entertaining commentator, a David Attenborough…
In remembering WWI, Macron warns of resurging ‘old demons’ of nationalism
The Associated Press reports: World leaders with the power to make war but a duty to preserve peace solemnly marked the end of World War Iâs slaughter 100 years ago at commemorations Sunday that drove home the message ânever againâ but also exposed the globeâs new political fault lines. As Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and dozens of other heads of state and government listened in silence, French President Emmanuel Macron used the occasion, as its host, to sound a powerful…
Saudis close to crown prince discussed assassinating enemies a year before Khashoggi killing
The New York Times reports: Top Saudi intelligence officials close to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman asked a small group of businessmen last year about using private companies to assassinate Iranian enemies of the kingdom, according to three people familiar with the discussions. The Saudis inquired at a time when Prince Mohammed, then the deputy crown prince and defense minister, was consolidating power and directing his advisers to escalate military and intelligence operations outside the kingdom. Their discussions, more than…
Wave of violence against Brazil’s indigenous communities follows Bolsonaroâs election
Grist reports: Even before Jair Bolsonaro won Brazilâs Presidential race last week, many environmentalists were on high alert. The far-right politicianâs positions on agriculture and economic development (heâs gone back and forth on whether heâll keep environment ministries and agriculture ministries separate) could open up Brazilâs precious rainforests to deforestation and economic exploitation. But itâs not just the Amazon thatâs threatened â the lives of many of Brazilâs indigenous peoples are under siege as well. A little over a week…
In cave in Borneo jungle, scientists find oldest figurative painting in the world
The New York Times reports: On the wall of a cave deep in the jungles of Borneo, there is an image of a thick-bodied, spindly-legged animal, drawn in reddish ocher. It may be a crude image. But it also is more than 40,000 years old, scientists reported on Wednesday, making this the oldest figurative art in the world. Until now, the oldest known human-made figures were ivory sculptures found in Germany. Scientists have estimated that those figurines â of horses,…
Music: Louis Cole — ‘Thinking’
Matthew Whitaker: An attack dog with ambition beyond protecting Trump
The New York Times reports: President Trump first noticed Matthew G. Whitaker on CNN in the summer of 2017 and liked what he saw â a partisan defender who insisted there was no collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign. So that July, the White House counsel, Donald F. McGahn II, interviewed Mr. Whitaker about joining the presidentâs team as a legal attack dog against the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III. At that point, the White House passed, leaving…
FBI is investigating Florida company where Whitaker was advisory-board member
The Wall Street Journal reports: The Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting a criminal investigation of a Florida company accused of scamming millions from customers during the period that Matthew Whitaker, the acting U.S. attorney general, served as a paid advisory-board member, according to an alleged victim who was contacted by the FBI and other people familiar with the matter. The investigation is being handled by the Miami office of the FBI and by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, according…
Tape of Khashoggiâs killing has been given to U.S., Saudi, Europeans, Erdogan says
The Washington Post reports: An audio recording tracking the dying moments of journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul has been shared with Saudi Arabia, Britain, France and Germany in addition to the United States, the leader of Turkey said Saturday. âWe gave it to Saudi Arabia,â President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at the Ankara airport before departing for Paris for commemorations to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. âWe gave it to…
Britain funds research into autonomous drones that select who they kill, says report
The Guardian reports: Technologies that could unleash a generation of lethal weapons systems requiring little or no human interaction are being funded by the Ministry of Defence, according to a new report. The development of autonomous military systems â dubbed âkiller robotsâ by campaigners opposed to them â is deeply contentious. Earlier this year, Google withdrew from the Pentagonâs Project Maven, which uses machine learning to analyse video feeds from drones, after ethical objections from the tech giantâs staff. The…
Doctors have become the tools of their tools
Atul Gawande writes: A 2016 study found that physicians spent about two hours doing computer work for every hour spent face to face with a patientâwhatever the brand of medical software. In the examination room, physicians devoted half of their patient time facing the screen to do electronic tasks. And these tasks were spilling over after hours. The University of Wisconsin found that the average workday for its family physicians had grown to eleven and a half hours. The result…
Navigation through the world and through the mind may involve the same neural pathways
Steven Novella writes: Have you ever been in a semi-familiar location but couldnât quite place where you were, then suddenly the landmarks line up and you know where you are? This might happen when entering a familiar location from an unusual direction, for example. Also (a seemingly unrelated question), when you visualize abstract ideas, do you arrange them physically. For example, do you visualize time (like days, weeks, months, years), and if so is there a particular physical relationship by…
Music: Al Jarreau — ‘Distracted’
Trump played central role in cover-up of his affairs with Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal
The Wall Street Journal reports: As a presidential candidate in August 2015, Donald Trump huddled with a longtime friend, media executive David Pecker, in his cluttered 26th floor Trump Tower office and made a request. What can you do to help my campaign? he asked, according to people familiar with the meeting. Mr. Pecker, chief executive of American Media Inc., offered to use his National Enquirer tabloid to buy the silence of women if they tried to publicize alleged sexual…
After calling acting AG a ‘great guy,’ Trump now says ‘I don’t know him’
The Associated Press reports: Matthew Whitakerâs future at the helm of the Justice Department appeared uncertain at best Friday as President Donald Trump denied even knowing the man he had named acting attorney general just two days earlier. The Senateâs top Republican predicted a permanent replacement could be named soon for Whitaker, who is now overseeing the Trump-Russia probe. In addition to the negative comments from Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Whitakerâs past business ties and comments on…