Michio Kaku: Why there are higher dimensions
Nuremberg prosecutor Ben Ferencz interviewed by UN’s human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein
Court orders Trump EPA to ban harmful pesticide
The Hill reports: A federal appeals court has ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ban the pesticide chlorpyrifos, which former Administrator Scott Pruitt refused to do last year. The decision is a major win for environmentalists and health advocates. The EPA’s own research, as recently as 2016, linked chlorpyrifos to developmental and neurological disorders, especially in children and infants. The Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit said the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, the federal law governing…
Melania Trump’s parents become U.S. citizens, using so-called ‘chain migration’ Trump hates
The New York Times reports: President Trump has repeatedly and vehemently denounced what he calls “chain migration,” in which adult American citizens can obtain residency for their relatives. On Thursday, his Slovenian in-laws, Viktor and Amalija Knavs, became United States citizens in a private ceremony in Manhattan by taking advantage of that very program. Asked if the Knavses had obtained citizenship through “chain migration,” their lawyer, Michael Wildes, said, “I suppose.” He said chain migration is a “dirtier” way of…
Audiences love the anger: Alex Jones, or someone like him, will be back
By Michael J. Socolow, University of Maine Confrontational characters spouting conspiracy theories and promoting fringe ideas have been with us since the invention of American broadcasting. First on radio, then on television, the American audience has consistently proven eager to consume the rants of angry and bitter men. Before Alex Jones and InfoWars, there was Glenn Beck. A decade ago, Beck was hawking his conspiracy theories on HLN and Fox News. Beck eventually left HLN and lost the Fox News…
The lifesaving power of gratitude (or, why you should write that thank you note)
An attitude of gratitude may relieve stress, which in turn may lead to better health. michaelhelm/Shutterstock.com By Richard Gunderman, Indiana University Gratitude may be more beneficial than we commonly suppose. One recent study asked subjects to write a note of thanks to someone and then estimate how surprised and happy the recipient would feel – an impact that they consistently underestimated. Another study assessed the health benefits of writing thank you notes. The researchers found that writing as few as…
Thinking about emergence
Paul Humphreys writes: If you construct a Lego model of the University of London’s Senate House – the building that inspired the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell’s novel Nineteen Eighty-Four – the Lego blocks themselves remain unchanged. Take apart the structure, reassemble the blocks in the shape of the Great Pyramid of Giza or the Eiffel Tower, and the shape, weight and colour of the blocks stay the same. This approach, applied to the world at large, is known…
Music: Tom Misch — ‘Disco Yes’ (feat. Poppy Ajudha)
We are witnessing the birth pains of a new and vile authoritarianism in Syria
HA Hellyer writes: Domestic officials’ records in Syria are being updated and so many Syrians who have been worrying about missing loved ones are finally getting a bit of closure. But it is a bittersweet type of transparency – because the regime is declaring that many of those who were missing have actually been killed. As one Syria expert, Dr Thomas Pierret, put it, there has been “bulk delivery of death notifications to families of Syrian prisoners” by the Assad…
How war has changed Syrian society
An essay penned collectively by Synaps’ Syria team says: Syria’s war has transformed the country in both shattering and subtle ways. While many evolutions are for the worse, others inspire cautious optimism: Syrians have shown relentless ingenuity in adapting to every stage of a horrendous conflict, salvaging remnants of dignity, solidarity and vitality amid nightmarish circumstances. They have generally done so on their own terms, grappling with changes ignored by virtually everyone who claims to help or represent them. These…
Let’s call Islamophobia what it is – mainstream, anti-Muslim racism
Zubaida Haque writes: Tommy Robinson, lately the cause célèbre of the so-called “alt-right”, isn’t the only person to rally a small band of fundamental libertarians, fruitcakes and closet racists behind him while the public looks on in despair. Who’s the other one? Step forward Boris Johnson. Who else? This week, even the Prime Minister was moved to call on the ex-foreign secretary to apologise for claiming Muslim women in burqas “look like letter boxes” and comparing them to “bank robbers.”…
Rashida Tlaib, with primary win, is poised to become first Muslim woman in Congress
The New York Times reports: By the time Rashida Tlaib was finished, not a dry eye remained in the room. “I want people across the country to know that you don’t need to sell out,” Ms. Tlaib said early Wednesday morning. “You don’t have to change who you are to run for office — and that is what this country is about.” Ms. Tlaib is poised to become the first Muslim woman ever elected to Congress, after she narrowly defeated…
Pharma’s investment in boosting profits more than health
Clayton Dalton writes: Just a few years ago, infection with the hepatitis C virus guaranteed a slow and certain death for many. Available treatments were effective in about half of all patients, and the side effects could be awful. Things changed in 2014, when a new medication called Harvoni was approved to treat the infection. With cure rates approaching 99 per cent and far fewer side effects, the medication became an instant blockbuster. Sales topped $13.8 billion in 2015. But…
Anthropocene vs Meghalayan: Why geologists are fighting over whether humans are a force of nature
Many scientists believe it is impossible to ignore the human impact on the planet when defining the geological age we live in today. Shutterstock By Mark Maslin, UCL and Simon Lewis, UCL The Earth discovered it was living in a new slice of time called the Meghalayan Age in July 2018. But the announcement by the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) confused and angered scientists all around the world. In the 21st century, it claimed, we are still officially…
Brains keep temporary molecular records before making a lasting memory
Like the day’s newspaper, the brain has a temporary way to keep track of events. TonTonic/Shutterstock.com By Kelsey Tyssowski, Harvard University The first dance at my wedding lasted exactly four minutes and 52 seconds, but I’ll probably remember it for decades. Neuroscientists still don’t entirely understand this: How was my brain able to translate this less-than-five-minute experience into a lifelong memory? Part of the puzzle is that there’s a gap between experience and memory: our experiences are fleeting, but it…
Music: John Abercrombie — ‘Timeless’