The lost seal pup in this photo, taken by tourist boat operator William McPhee is fine. It was floating unconscious in the water after being parted from its mother, writes the BBC, and was lucky someone chanced across it.She "would certainly have drowned" if not for their "quick thinking and efforts", a Tynemouth Seal Rescue Unit spokesman said. Read the rest

Wouldn't it be great if Trump were busy keeping his promises to America instead of making secret ones to foreign leaders?The Washington Post reports tonight the whistleblower complaint that triggered a showdown between the intelligence community and Congress has to do with President Donald Trump's communications with a foreign leader, and a “promise” Trump is said to have made to that leader.The Washington Post cites two former U.S. officials familiar with the matter as its source, and they told the paper Trump’s interaction with the foreign leader included a “promise” so troubling, “it prompted an official in the U.S. intelligence community to file a formal whistleblower complaint with the inspector general for the intelligence community.”As this story breaks, POTUS is on Air Force One flying back from California, where he held fundraisers for his 2020 re-election campaign.Excerpt:It was not immediately clear which foreign leader Trump was speaking with or what he pledged to deliver, but his direct involvement in the matter has not been previously disclosed. It raises new questions about the president’s handling of sensitive information and may further strain his relationship with U.S. spy agencies. One former official said the communication was a phone call.The White House did not respond to requests for comment. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence and a lawyer representing the whistleblower declined to comment.Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson determined that the complaint was credible and troubling enough to be considered a matter of “urgent concern,” a legal threshold that requires notification of congressional oversight committees. Read the rest

Now folks who fly fish have the opportunity to pay it forward, thanks to the Flybrary Project. Much like the little book lending libraries, at "flybraries" people can leave a fly to share, or take one if they need one. And they are encouraged to create their own flybrary which they can then add to the project's growing registry. From the backside of signs at boat ramps in South Florida to river-side signs in Alaska, The Flybrary Project connects fly fishers across the world with one another—educating visitors of the fisheries and promoting comradery amongst strangers who share the same passion. View this post on Instagram @hallmost_heaven just put up a new Flybrary in WV. Karma is good. #haveoneleaveone #needonetakeone #flyfishing #communityloveA post shared by The Flybrary Project (@flybraryproject) on Sep 10, 2019 at 3:54am PDT View this post on Instagram @flylife83 took a more organic route and cobbled together a fantastic Flybrary location. A breath of fresh air! #flybraryproject #haveoneleaveone #buildcommunity #diy #flyfishingA post shared by The Flybrary Project (@flybraryproject) on May 24, 2019 at 11:09am PDT(Thanks, Mark Krawczuk!)screenshot via the Flybrary Project Read the rest

Now, here's some wallpaper that is meant to get your attention. Tom Maryniak's "Farting Victorians" depicts flatulating turn-of-the-20th-century men, women, and critters, a digitization of a linoleum block he hand-carved. You can get rolls of it for £125.00 each at his website. A wallpaper for the loo, showing dogs, fish, cats, birds and people passing gas.(RED) Read the rest

Lex is a "wearable" chair, an apparatus that attaches to your thighs and waist. The legs are shaped to conform to your legs when you're walking around, but become stable struts when you sit back. The LEX is a bionic wearable that enhances posture, comfort, and life. It is designed to let you relax anywhere with a perfect sitting posture and protect your shoulders while on the move by making the backpack feels almost weightless.It was Kickstartered in 2018 and apparently went out, with follow-up rounds on Indiegogo. But I don't see any reviews or even testimonials. Anyone got one? Do you waddle around and suffer crippling back pain? Read the rest

Not only is the purported "healing" power of crystals total bullshit, but most of these "magical" talismans come from mines rife with exploitation, danger, environmental ruin, and shady business practices. Good vibes, eh? Tess McClure investigates for The Guardian:Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in the world, but beneath its soil is a well-stocked treasure chest. Rose quartz and amethyst, tourmaline and citrine, labradorite and carnelian: Madagascar has them all. Gems and precious metals were the country’s fastest-growing export in 2017 – up 170% from 2016, to $109m. This island country of 25 million people now stands alongside far larger nations, such as India, Brazil and China, as a key producer of crystals for the world. And in a country where infrastructure, capital and labour regulation are all in short supply, it is human bodies rather than machinery that pull crystals from the earth. While a few large mining companies operate in Madagascar, more than 80% of crystals are mined “artisanally” – meaning by small groups and families, without regulation, who are paid rock-bottom prices....Landslides are not the only danger for miners. Smashed rocks create fine dust and quartz particles can penetrate deep into the lungs. There, they fester, inflaming surrounding cells, increasing the risk of lung cancer and silicosis. Child labour is also widespread: the US Department of Labor and the International Labour Organization estimate that about 85,000 children work in Madagascar’s mines."Dark crystals: the brutal reality behind a booming wellness craze" (The Guardian)image: "Mineral Quartz Crystal" by Ken Hammond (Public Domain) Read the rest

I don't have this particular make of stovetop espresso maker, but they all work the same way. It quickly makes several cups of strong coffee. I wouldn't call it espresso - just strong coffee. No filter is needed. If you've never tried this kind of coffee maker before, now is your chance: Amazon is selling the 3-cup model for and the 6-cup model for . Read the rest

These AI agents played millions of games of hide-and-seek to learn the best strategies for using different tools (ramps and barricades).From OpenAI:We’ve observed agents discovering progressively more complex tool suse while playing a simple game of hide-and-seek. Through training in our new simulated hide-and-seek environment, agents build a series of six distinct strategies and counterstrategies, some of which we did not know our environment supported. The self-supervised emergent complexity in this simple environment further suggests that multi-agent co-adaptation may one day produce extremely complex and intelligent behavior. Read the rest

The first part of this video is hard to watch, but it has a happy ending. via Gfycat Read the rest

The plaintiff's attorneys have informed Spacey that the massage therapist accusing him of sexual assault has passed away. It is unclear if the case will proceed.Hollywood Reporter:An anonymous massage therapist who claims to have been sexually assaulted by Kevin Spacey has died, according to a notice filed in court by the actor's attorneys.The individual, suing as a "John Doe," filed claims in September 2018 with the allegation of being forced to grab the actor's genitals twice during a massage two years earlier at a private residence in Malibu. In May, a federal judge in California allowed the case to move forward despite Spacey's objection that the plaintiff's identity was being shielded.Now, just a month after the parties came to a plan for proceeding in the suit that detailed prospective discovery and envisioned a seven- to 11-day trial, the plaintiff's attorney has informed Spacey that the client "recently passed."No further detail is provided, and a request to the plaintiff's attorney for more information has not been answered. Read the rest

If you take him at his word, Trump just said he wants to nuke Iran. The man is nuts, the man is also President. Are we going to start another war? No one knows. Speaking to reporters in Los Angeles today with his new national security adviser Robert O'Brien, Donald Trump said some weird and disjointed things about U.S. mideast policy including the statement that he is considering the 'ultimate option' for Iran.Trump tells reporters the "ultimate option" is among the options he is considering for Iran.— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) September 18, 2019"It's very easy to attack," Trump, in California, said when asked about Iran, but "how did going into Iraq work out?"“If we have to do something, we’ll do it without hesitation.”“There are many options. There’s the ultimate option,” he said. https://t.co/1abmVr4EdJ— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) September 18, 2019Trump speaks to reporters on LAX tarmac with newly minted national security adviser Robert O’Brien. POTUS says he’s actively considering a military strike on Iran. pic.twitter.com/6gUNY1KOrt— Philip Rucker (@PhilipRucker) September 18, 2019On new US sanctions he ordered imposed on Iran, Pres says he'll announce details in next day or two. Says there are many options including the "ultimate option," but then made clear he's not talking about war. But says US is in "a very powerful position" re: Iran. pic.twitter.com/G4iPQcpKFo— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) September 18, 2019.⁦@realDonaldTrump⁩, with his new national security adviser, says the ultimate option with Iran is war, but that there are other options. Read the rest

What Shane Gillis and his supporters seem to not understand is that free speech means others can respond to what you say in ways that might not make you happy. From comic Maeve Higgins essay in The New York Times:Comedy, like so many of our cultural institutions, remains dominated by men, usually straight and white men. I’ve seen countless versions of Shane Gillis and his material truly spread all over the world, and I’m not about to wrestle the mic from them. I have no problem with anybody speaking their piece, even when it’s lazy and xenophobic. I’m not going to listen, but please, get that off your chest, son! If the most absorbing and insightful thing Mr. Gillis and his buddies have to sound off on is that they find Chinatown to be ugly, then by all means, go right on ahead.The problem is when Mr. Gillis — and the others like him — frame their words as bold and boundary pushing and brave. What would really be shocking, what would really be exciting and edgy to watch, would be a person climbing down from their safe height and fighting the powerful in a situation where there’s a chance they will lose more than a role on a show. I’m not saying comics need to get into fistfights. We’re too out of shape and anxiety-ridden for that. But a little real bravery wouldn’t hurt.When anyone disagrees with something a comic says, or there are repercussions for their behavior, the comic too often seems genuinely shocked. Read the rest

According to a zany new profile in the Wall Street Journal today, WeWork (We Co) CEO Adam Neumann has told people...• He'd like to be Israel's Prime Minister• Interested in being “president of the world”• Wants to be the world's first trillionaire• He hopes to live forever. “This account is based on interviews with current and former employees, investors and friends who interacted with Mr. Neumann as he built We.”The Wall Street Journal today published this exhaustive (exhausting, even!) profile of Adam Neumann, the wacky bro CEO who founded office-rental giant WeWork, which filed its S-1 as We Co. You must read it.Adam Neumann, ladies and gentlemen, a story told in excerpts from this WSJ piece:• He told at least one person directly that his ambitions included becoming Israel’s prime minister. More recently, he said that if he ran for anything, it would be president of the world, according to another person who spoke with him.• Mr. Neumann has told several people over the past two years that a personal goal is to become the world’s first trillionaire.• In a 2015 investment round, Mr. Neumann sold tens of millions of dollars of shares. Soon after, the company launched a buyback program offering to purchase employees’ shares too. But the company gave employees a different arrangement, giving them a payout per share worth substantially less than what Mr. Neumann was paid, people familiar with the sale said. Mr. Neumann’s sale wasn’t publicized within the company. Read the rest

They unbent the staple.As one YouTuber put it, "Geez you would think a cure to all cancer was just unveiled."Stick around for the executive's statement that reveals the deep meaning behind this earth-shattering new logo. Read the rest

Donald explains to his son-in-law how to make money the Trump way and stay out of prison.This makes it clear that if a "pee tape" ever does surface, it will be dismissed as a deepfake.Image: YouTube Read the rest

First it was vinyl, then it was cassette tapes -- now the latest old media that's being praised for offering warmer, richer, higher-quality experiences? Cathode-ray-tube displays, for video games.To be fair, the arguments in this article seem pretty solid. For example, because a CRT is a light gun painting a screen, the computer doesn't need to engage in as much processing to produce bigger image -- so you can lower the resolution in the game settings, still have a good-looking game, and enjoy the knock-on boost in game responsiveness.As Richard Leadbetter writes at Eurogamer: The advantages of CRT technology over modern flat panels are well-documented. CRTs do not operate from a fixed pixel grid in the way an LCD does - instead three 'guns' beam light directly onto the tube. So there's no upscaling blur and no need to run at any specific native resolution as such. On lower resolutions, you may notice 'scan lines' more readily, but the fact is that even lower resolution game outputs like 1024x768 or 1280x960 can look wonderful. Of course, higher-end CRTs can input and process higher resolutions, but the main takeaway here is that liberation from a set native resolution is a gamechanger - why spend so many GPU resources on the amount of pixels drawn when you can concentrate on quality instead without having to worry about upscale blurring?The second advantage is motion resolution. LCD technologies all use a technique known as 'sample and hold' which results in motion rendering at a significantly lower resolution than static imagery. Read the rest

Documents on an unprotected, network-connected drive owned by an employee of Nokia shed light on the inner workings of Russia's networked surveillance system known as SORM (Russian: COPM). SORM (COPM) is an acronym for the government's “system for operative investigative activities,” The network was first developed in 1995 as a way for the Federal Security Services (FSB, formerly KGB) to access any communications data it wanted on Russian citizens. The data leak exposes SORM surveillance activity inside Russia's top telco, and illustrates clearly how Russian authorities get access to phone calls, text messages, and internet browsing data of people who are customers of Russia's top phone carrier, Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) .The documents Techcrunch published today were discovered on an unprotected backup drive owned by an employee of Nokia Networks (formerly Nokia Siemens Networks), “which through a decade-long relationship maintains and upgrades MTS’s network — and ensures its compliance with SORM,” reports Techcrunch:The documents show that between 2016 and 2017, Nokia planned and proposed changes to MTS’s network as part of the telecom giant’s “modernization” effort.Nokia planned to improve a number of local MTS-owned phone exchanges in several Russian cities — including Belgorod, Kursk and Voronezh — to comply with the latest changes to the country’s surveillance laws.TechCrunch reviewed the documents, which included several floor plans and network diagrams for the local exchanges. The documents also show that the installed SORM device on each phone network has direct access to the data that passes through each phone exchange, including calls, messages and data. Read the rest

Rep. Jaime Andrade (D-Chicago) was giving a TV interview about the pigeon poop problem at a train station when a pigeon promptly illustrate the lawmaker's point. "I'll just have to go clean up," Andrade said. "That's what happens to my constituents. They get [expletive] on all time."(UPI) Read the rest

From Toby's "Tibees" YouTube channel:"A math lesson about logarithms inspired by the legendary painter Bob Ross." Read the rest

The Tony Martini Variety Hour returns to The Three Clubs this Saturday night! I'm going!Mark Fite, Renee Albert, Jim Turner and a cast of vaudevillians, burlesque dancers and god knows what are getting together to put on a couple of hours of good old fashioned variety! A form of entertainment largely thought dead by the early 1980s!Tony Martini, your host, and titular lounge singer-y guy is portrayed by Los Angeles' comedic hurricane Mark Fite. Mark sings, jokes, and frequently falls flat on his face. Luckily, Martini is accompanied by his super talented wife, Bananas Foster. Foster could only be played by rock and roll accordion grand master Renee Albert. Boing Boing favorite Jim Turner plays their less than kind and understanding manager.Produced by Steven Espinosa, the cast is joined by a veritable mob of Los Angeles finest variety acts: Michael Rayner, Pam Severns, Karl Herlinger, April Showers, Hannah Beavers, Sarah Elizabeth Pace and the always mindbending contortionist Bonnie Morgan.Live music will be performed by Ben Jaffe.Bar opens at 7:30, show starts sometime thereafter. Tickets and more info here.I'll be drinking heavily in the back. Read the rest

At 1AM last Sunday two men were enjoying a ride in their Amish buggy with a banging stereo and enjoying a 12-pack of Michelob Ultra when the cops showed up! Rather than discuss their apparently aberrant behavior with representatives of local law enforcement, the two revel-seeking reportedly Amish gents took to the woods! Leaving their horse, beer and stereo laden buggy ambling on down the road.Mlive:The men were drinking a 12-pack of Michelob Ultra that was settled atop the buggy while blasting music and riding through North Bloomfield, Ohio, deputies said. There were several open bottles in the buggy.The Amish community is generally known for shunning high technology and typically avoids alcohol.While the men ran into the trees, the horse continued down the road, police said. The horse and buggy were eventually caught. The buggy was towed while the horse was turned over to someone who can take care of it until the owners come forward. Read the rest

For this funny advertisement, CleanMyMac dressed up a fellow as a public pile of trash and when people dropped their litter on his back, he sprung up to surprise them. Read the rest

The FBI are seeking help in their search for the "Mummy Marauder" who robbed First Convenience Bank in Harris County, Texas on Friday the 13th. From CNN:The suspect wrapped white gauze around his face and arms, the FBI said. He also wore a wig and baseball cap.No other information about the robbery was released.He then fled the bank before getting into a black Mitsubishi Montero SUV with an undisclosed sum of money.Of course the real problem is that without the gauze, he's invisible. Read the rest

Move over, Popeyes and Chick-fil-A! Fast-food giant KFC is trialing a new menu item in Pittsburgh and Richmond. The Chicken Donut is a slab of deep-fried chicken sandwiched between two glazed donuts. Consumers are increasingly seeking novel, crave-able flavor combinations that give them the best of both sweet and savory worlds to create a unique taste experience. Through this test market, KFC is evaluating consumer appetite for bringing this growing food trend to its customers on a national scale.Business Insider reports on the carb bomb. The chicken-and-doughnut meal will cost $5.50 for one doughnut and $7.50 for two doughnuts. The sandwich is priced at $6, or as a combo meal for $8. KFC said customers can also add a doughnut — served hot — to any meal for $1.KFC said in a press release that it was using the test to evaluate whether customers are craving chicken and doughnuts on a national scale.According to a representative, the doughnuts will arrive at stores already cooked, and when a customer orders them, the doughnuts will be dipped in the fryers and glazed with a vanilla icing to ensure they are hot and fresh. Read the rest

The life of reviled Hollywood sex pest and alleged rapist Harvey Weinstein is "ruined".An attorney for Harvey Weinstein lamented that “his whole life has been ruined” and defended the accused serial sexual abuser and disgraced movie mogul against the more than 70 women — including former employees and Hollywood stars — who have accused him of sexual assault by blaming them instead.“No matter what happens to Harvey Weinstein, he will pay the biggest price there is. Even if he wins, Gayle, his whole life has been ruined, toppled, damaged,” Donna Rotunno told “CBS This Morning” host Gayle King in an interview that aired Tuesday. “And whether it’s by his own doing or others, that’s the fact. And the fact is that no matter what we do ― and we can walk out of that courtroom with a ‘not guilty’ and walk him out onto those courtroom steps, and he never gets to be Harvey Weinstein ever again.”Such a shame. Read the rest

The Bridge Inn in Middleton-in-Teesdale, England, has not only been closed since 2011, it's been demolished and replaced by housing. So who was giving it bad reviews on TripAdvisor? "We were looking for old photos of the pub on Google and the reviews came up. We found it quite funny," Mr Goodall, managing director of New Era Regeneration, told the BBC."I did contact TripAdvisor on their website and advised them that the reviews were impossible as the pub wasn't trading and they were slow to respond."The reviews are still on the TripAdvisor websiteIt's easy and cheap to be cynical, but armies of accounts with names like 634JimJones and Charl3s, stock art avatars and brief positive or negative remarks that could apply to anything? TripAdvisor is a derelict mannequin factory.Which UK:The travel website TripAdvisor is failing to stop fake reviews boosting the rankings of top-rated hotels, Which? has claimed.The consumer organisation analysed almost 250,000 reviews for the 10 top-ranked hotels in 10 popular tourist destinations around the world, finding one in seven had “blatant hallmarks” of fake reviews.Which? Travel reported 15 cases to TripAdvisor and claimed that the site admitted 14 of the hotels had already been caught with fake positive reviews in the last year.User-generated content sites with frictionless signup and a paragraph-long content model are an easy target for fakery. The rot spreads faster than the pain, so when it gets so bad they have to clean it up, it's already too late. Read the rest

Your smartphone's GPS is a modern necessity for some trips, but how do you use it safely? It's been a problem ever since phones went mobile. A certain phone mount even shelled out the money for a commercial during the Big Game, so clearly there's a market for the solution.Turns out there are a lot more solutions than that one, in fact. Here are 10 products that let you mount your phone in the car safely and easily (not to mention cheaply).U-Grip Cup Holder Car Mount for Phones and TabletsHere's a holder that's big enough to fit your phone or even your tablet, if you need a bigger picture. What's more, it fits neatly into any standard or large-size cup holder. The U-Grip Cup Holder Car Mount for Phones and Tablets is now $12.99, down 78% from the retail price.ExoMount Magnet Air Universal Smartphone Car MountPrefer a more close-up view? This holder anchors onto any type of air vent and latches onto your phone magnetically. For there, you can rotate and swivel your phone 360 degrees, locking it in place exactly where you need. Right now, you can get the ExoMount for 23% off at just $22.95.Universal Dash Smartphone Clip MountThis simple, secure mount stretches to fit most smartphones or digital cameras, and its silicone pad keeps your device of choice steady and accessible on top of the dash. Easy to use, easy to remove. Pick up the Universal Dash Smartphone Clip Mount for $11.99, a full 69% off the list price. Read the rest

After researching dozens of Nicolas Cage-themed pillows, we found that the DoubleUSA Nicolas Cage Rainbow pillow [Amazon] is the best option for most users. Featuring two-sided high-definition printing, a hidden zipper and a contemplative yet intense Nicolas Cage, it offers a whimsical 20x30" dose of hypoallergenic polyester.HIGH DEFINITION – The Most Advanced Printing Technology Ensures The Best Definition Image Of The Pillowcase.ZIPPER – Hidden Zipper Closure At The Side To Keep Pillow From Sliding Out, And For Style, Comfort And Better Fit.100% Polyester – Hypoallergenic, Long Staple Yarns Woven in a Sateen Weave Make These Pillowcases Incredibly Soft and Luxurious. Read the rest

In the 19th century, an enormous hedge ran for more than a thousand miles across India, installed by the British to enforce a tax on salt. Though it took a Herculean effort to build, today it's been almost completely forgotten. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe this strange project and reflect on its disappearance from history.We'll also exonerate a rooster and puzzle over a racing murderer.Show notesPlease support us on Patreon! Read the rest

Tom the Dancing Bug, IN WHICH we run a fun an experiment to find out if environmental catastrophe is inevitable

I've been using these steel taco holders for a few years now and they are a big hit with the family. They hold tacos upright, making it easy to add fillings. And when you serve them, the fillings don't fall out. Plus, they are just fun to use. Amazon has them for the sale price of Read the rest

There's a rule of thumb that says if a cat can get its head through a hole, its body will also squeeze through it. To test the rule, Maru and Hana's owners built a doorway barrier with a series of increasingly narrower gaps. I don't think they learned much from the experiment, but the video is entertaining.[via Neatorama] Read the rest

It costs $13 million per year to house each of the 40 prisoners at Guantánamo Bay detention camp, according to The New York Times. The US military stations 45 troops per prisoner there.The estimated annual cost of $540 million covers the 12-month period that ended last Sept. 30 and does not include expenses that have remained classified, presumably including a continued C.I.A. presence. But the figures show that running the range of facilities built up over the years has grown increasingly expensive even as the number of prisoners has declined.Image: Sgt. Cassandra Monroe - https://www.dvidshub.net/image/991485, Public Domain, Link Read the rest

How much money does a YouTuber make from 1,000,000 views? Anywhere between $500 - $10,000, but the average is $2,000. This is according Shelby Church, who has 1.3M subscribers. This particular video has over 4 million views.Her advice for making more money on YouTube? Make videos that are over 10 minutes long (because you can include more ads).[via Doobybrain]Image: Shelby Church/YouTube Read the rest

Absolutely do not scroll down if you are afraid of heights, falling, or the idea of zooming off a cliff into the water freaks you out. Don't go any further.Okay.Have you seen this video? It's astonishing. I can't believe the guy survived, but I'm glad he did.While motorcycling in Colorado, Rich Hogge survived a fall off of a cliff into water below. It was all captured on a camera attached to his helmet, which was shooting footage the whole time. So glad he's okay, wow.Here's an excerpt from the footage, in GIF form.More at Coloradoan and USA Today, which has the uncut video. IMGUR has a duplicate here.Motorcyclist falls off colorado cliff,splashes into water and survives[via IMGUR] Read the rest

Scroll down, now you have!This is amazing.Ever seen a cicada hatch, I'm 37 yrs old 1st time for me.All photos and video by IMGURian D28martin. Read the rest

These four notes from a 13th-century funeral song can be heard during emotional scenes in countless movies.From Vox:Think back to some of the most dramatic scenes in film history — from The Lion King, The Shining, It’s a Wonderful Life. Besides being sad or scary, they have something else in common: the dies irae. “Dies irae” translates from Latin to “Day of Wrath” — it’s a 13th-century Gregorian chant describing the day Catholics believe God will judge the living and the dead and send them to heaven or hell. And it was sung during one specific mass: funerals.As Catholicism permeated world culture, the melody of the chant was repurposed into classical music, where it was used to convey a deathly, eerie tone. From there it worked its way into films — and if you don’t already know it, you’ve almost certainly heard it before: It’s played over and over in our scariest and most dramatic cinematic moments. Image: Vox/YouTube Read the rest

The world can be a loud, scary, chaotic place. You may need this.Haburu and their owner are delightful. This video, “Meowsage,” was first published on Apr 27, 2019. It's making the viral rounds again this week, and any time is a great time to discover Haburu anyway.They're on Facebook and YouTube.My hands were extremely tired this timeSome of Haburu's most favorite songs:- The best lullaby for cat (Meowssage)- Proud of MEOW- Brahms' Lullaby for Meow- Always with MEOW- Masterpiece Mashup for MEOW- Piano sheet Read the rest

Indianans are allowed to smoke rope, despite a state ban against smokable hemp products (which contains only a trace of THC), ruled a federal judge.Via Hemp Industry Daily:Smokable hemp flower is one of the most in-demand hemp products in the industry. But law enforcement officials in several states have complained that smokable hemp looks and smells too much like marijuana to adequately enforce.Law enforcement’s confusion over hemp versus marijuana doesn’t mean states can consider some forms of hemp a controlled substance, wrote U.S. District Judge Sarah Evan Barker.“The fact that local law enforcement may need to adjust tactics and training in response to changes in federal law is not a sufficient basis for enacting unconstitutional legislation,” she wrote.She granted an immediate injunction blocking the law, saying the companies shouldn’t have to wait to find out how much a smokable-hemp ban would cost them and then sue later.Image: Photo by GRAS GRÜN on Unsplash Read the rest

“My dad built a bee vacuum!”We've featured The Bush Bee Man, an awesome wild beekeeper from Australia, before.This clip is from a web series this beekeeping dad and his son make about the dad's journey into beekeeping.IMBURian JohnDeCaux4 says, of this wonderful video: “[It' a] custom made Bee Vacuum for collecting wild beehives. This allows them to be rehoused and fewer bees are left behind.”My dad built a bee vacuum! Custom made Bee Vacuum for collecting wild beehives. This allows them to be rehoused and fewer bees are left behind. Read the rest

Gears of War 5 is absolutely the 5th game in the Gears of War series.I loved the first Gears of War game. The story was interesting and the commercial for it remains my favorite video game commercial of all time -- even better than the live action Halo stuff. However, everything great about this game series was in that first commercial.Gears of War is beyond repetitive. You basically run on a track around a map, hiding and ducking behind things, popping up to take shots, and occasionally throwing a hand grenade. There isn't a lot of playing the game and it feels a lot like button mashing to me! This gameplay was fun when the story was fresh and interesting. Doing the same thing 5 games later, with the same story being played basically over and over again? Dull.The graphics are beautiful. The game runs so smoothly on my Xbox One X it makes me wonder why other games do not. The game itself is OK to play through with friends but is limited by a campaign mode that stops at 3 people. Fortnite lets very large groups of players play together. Fortnite is also more fun.I do like Gears, but this is getting tired. Read the rest

Days since last Facebook scandal: Zero.

It's Donald's first time visiting Silicon Valley since 2016. Who's going?

In Neverseen Shannon Messenger continues to torture young Sophie Foster like I've never seen.Sophie Foster is a very confused teen and some sort of Elven genetic experiment to create a Messiah gone-marginally awry, but maybe she is still the Messiah! Everything bad that can happy to Sophie does. The Elves who claim to be her family and biggest supporters are total sociopaths. Living lives of lies within lies, I am constantly entertained to see what horrible thing the author will do next.Book Four does not disappoint!Twice Sophie almost tells a boy she has romantic feelings for them inappropriate of a 12-year-old, and in both instances the boy nearly dies. Imagine having just stopped short of telling your big crush you like him, then watching a giant beetle pierce his heart with a horn?That is Sophie's life.Sophie copes with it while also stretching her rebellious wings and only sort of gets permission for some of her pre-teen schemes to save all life on Earth.While coping with constant lies, deception, and betrayal Sophie does meet one person who both loves her and tells her the truth. That person is removed from her life by the end of the book.I am already well into Book 5 and HOLY SMOKES does it start off with some baffling stuff!Neverseen (Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 4) Read the rest

There's been an explosion and fire at the Russian State Centre for Research on Virology and Biotechnology (Vector), a facility near Novosibirsk in Siberia that happens to hold live samples of smallpox. Vector officials say there's currently no risk of contamination. Vector and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are the only two approved labs known to hold live samples of smallpox. The World Health Organization certified the eradication of smallpox in 1980 thanks to a global immunization effort. However, concern remains that the deadly virus could still be used as a bioweapon. From CNN:In its statement, Vector said that no biohazard material was being stored in the room where the explosion took place. The city's mayor also insisted that the incident does not pose any biological or any other threat to the local population, according to TASS...Dr. Joseph Kam, Honorary Clinical Associate Professor at the Stanley Ho Centre for Emerging Infectious Diseases (CEID) told CNN that rules for storing viruses are very strict and highly dangerous diseases such as Ebola and smallpox would be stored in the highest "Level 4" laboratory.Access to the samples would be limited, special containers are used and the storage mechanism is different from other laboratories, Kam said.He added that while fire would be hot enough to destroy viruses, an explosion could risk spreading the virus and there would be a danger of infecting those in the room or contaminating the immediate area. Read the rest

Enjoy this beautiful song "Everyone Hides" from Wilco's forthcoming 11th album, Ode To Joy, out on October 4.The album is also available in a limited-edition vinyl box set designed by my Grammy-winning pal Lawrence Azerrad who co-produced the Voyager Golden Record: 40th Anniversary Edition with Tim Daly and me. Check out the specs on this extravagant and exquisite objet d' art:Exclusively available through the Wilco store, the Ode to Joy Deluxe Vinyl Box Set features a limited edition hand-numbered slipcased pop-up art book which includes: • Ode To Joy LP on 180 gram vinyl• LP jacket and inserts exclusive to this edition• A 22-page clothbound hardcover embossed book printed on 100 point archival paper. The book features collages and unique hand assembled paper constructions that animate and reveal album lyrics including pages engineered with pull out die cut pockets, spinning wheels, paper doors, and unfolding gatefold spreads.• Autographed by the band.Produced in Chicago, IL with six color printing, metallic inks and collages designed by Wilco’s long-time collaborator Lawrence Azerrad, the limited edition Ode To Joy art book is a rare archive of this work. Read the rest

In 2012, James Cameron went in a submarine down to the floor of the Mariana Trench, one of the deepest parts of the world's oceans. He says he dove down 10,908 meters. Last May, Victor Vescovo went down into the Trench -- and reached 10,924, precisely 16 meters deeper.But as Matt Simon writes in Wired, precision is incredibly hard to measure in waters that deep -- so there's still quite an argument about who went deeper.Why is it hard to measure things down that far? Well ...... if you wanted, you could drop a 11,000-meter-long cable down into the Challenger Deep and measure depth that way, but the thing will be buffeted by 7 miles of currents, obliterating any pursuit of accuracy.Instead, scientists and explorers typically rely on sound or pressure to measure depth, or both. Pressure, of course, increases as you go deeper. “Pressure is probably the best way to get an absolute measure of depth,” says Mark Zumberge, a research geophysicist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. But that alone won’t suffice, because water pressure can fluctuate as you descend—it depends in part on the water’s density, which changes up and down the water column based on temperature and salinity.“To convert pressure to depth, you need to know the water density over the full water column and also the local value of gravity, which varies by about half a percent over the surface of the Earth,” Zumberge says. And if you’re trying to be really precise, it’s worth noting that gravity “even varies by a couple hundredths of a percent from the sea surface to the bottom of the ocean.”The other way to measure depth is using sonar, but that comes with its own complications. Read the rest

On average, you consume between 74,000 and 121,000 microscopic pieces of plastic every year. Probably much more. Where does it come from? According to new research from Penn State Behrend chemist Sherri Mason, 60 percent of the microplastics in our freshwater comes from laundry lint making its way from your washing machine through wastewater treatment plants. From American Scientist:As we clean our clothing, sheets, and towels, tiny threads—commonly called microfibers—break off and wash away. To better understand how microbeads and microfibers—collectively making up microplastics—move through the Great Lakes and other freshwater systems, we wanted to understand whether they are removed at wastewater treatment plants.After collecting and analyzing 90 samples taken from 17 different facilities across the United States, we confirmed that microplastics travel through wastewater treatment plants. On average, each wastewater treatment facility was releasing more than four million pieces of microplastic into U.S. waterways every day: 60 percent fibers, 34 percent beads, and 6 percent films and foams. With 15,000 such facilities in continual operation around the United States, billions of microplastic particles are finding a pathway through our wastewater from our homes to the fresh water we rely on.(via Scientific American)image: Amy/Bunnyfrogs (Flickr) Read the rest

I was perfectly satisfied with the OG Battlestar series. The 1st remake's pilot and first season or two were great!Verge:NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock, will launch next April with a substantial number of fan favorites and original series, including a reboot of Battlestar Galactica from Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail.This isn’t a remake of Ronald D. Moore’s Syfy version of Battlestar Galactica that drew in a dedicated fan base in the early 2000s. Still, Esmail’s version of the show will be inspired by Moore’s, according to The Hollywood Reporter, not Glen A. Larson’s original 1978 series. The new series is supposed to have a more modern focus, but details on the reboot are being kept under wraps. Read the rest