No two minds work alike. Some function best when they focus, immerse in an idea and marinate in it a bit. Others stay open and know a eureka moment of inspiration is right around the corner, ready to pounce when it’s least expected. Some curate ideas and stockpile them for the perfect moment. Some attack when faced with a problem-solving event.If you’re like Kevin McCallister, maybe your ideation and problem-solving come with a very tactile, straight-forward solution. But for those who want to develop rock-solid plans and flesh out their best ideas logically, framework is often key. The MindMaster mind mapping software offers that framework to create fresh new ideas without losing momentum or critical details.Mind mapping can help bring all your thoughts, plans, and ideas from your brain into a visual reality, so MindMaster makes it easy to structure those thoughts and ideas, find connections, gather supporting data, and help bring form to your great notions.MindMaster lets you catalog your brainstorms in the way that works best for you. You can choose from 12 different structures like a tree map, a timeline, a circle map, or others. You can construct it using 33 different themes, each suited to a particular style from business mapping to more personal pursuits. And users have access to over 700 different clipart images to customize your mind map any way you like.Meanwhile, each bullet point on your map can be supported with important details, like callouts, relationships, summaries, marks, notes, hyperlinks, and more. Read the rest

David Icke, the longtime UK conspiracy theorist who finally became a social media star thanks to the the coronavirus pandemic, was banned today by YouTube.His sudden rise on the platforms became embarassing proof of their distinterested enforcement of anti-misinformation policies. But Facebook finally took action yesterday, with Google following suit today. He's still ranting away happily on Twitter. Read the rest

A species of giant hornets native to Asia, nicknamed “murder hornets,” with mandibles that look like spiky shark fins they use to bite the heads off honeybees. People who've been stung by these hornets say their venom and stingers feel like hot metal driving into skin. They make an appearance in the viral video above, by YouTube persona Coyote Peterson. “Murder hornets” have arrived in the United States. And scientists fear they may further destroy fragile honeybee populations, reports Mike Baker in the New York Times. The story opens with a beekeeper realizing his hive has been decimated by the 'murder hornets':With queens that can grow to two inches long, Asian giant hornets can use mandibles shaped like spiked shark fins to wipe out a honeybee hive in a matter of hours, decapitating the bees and flying away with the thoraxes to feed their young. For larger targets, the hornet’s potent venom and stinger — long enough to puncture a beekeeping suit — make for an excruciating combination that victims have likened to hot metal driving into their skin.In Japan, the hornets kill up to 50 people a year. Now, for the first time, they have arrived in the United States.Mr. McFall still is not certain that Asian giant hornets were responsible for the plunder of his hive. But two of the predatory insects were discovered last fall in the northwest corner of Washington State, a few miles north of his property — the first sightings in the United States. Read the rest

Man, 2020 is weird. And it's only May.Kim Jong Un and Brett Kavanaugh star in the latest reelection video promo for impeached and unfit U.S. President Donald Trump.Here's the original Trump tweet with the video. Read the rest

The U.S. government spent $30 billion last month in stimulus payments last month to most healthcare providers that billed Medicare last year, part of the $2.3 trillion CARES Act passed by Congress to address the economic damage of the coronavirus pandemic.“That speed resulted in taxpayers’ money flowing to some companies and people facing civil or criminal fraud investigations,”. Reuters reports, citing “defense lawyers and others representing more than a dozen firms and people facing such inquiries.”“I have an enormous amount of frustration with the way the Trump administration is distributing these dollars, and examples like these magnify the consequences of the White House’s efforts to limit transparency and stonewall oversight,” Senate Finance Committee ranking member Senator Ron Wyden told Reuters. Excerpt:Reuters interviewed six defense lawyers and others representing more than a dozen healthcare providers facing civil or criminal inquiries who received the money, including a pain medicine doctor who recently settled a civil false claims case, and an operator of an assisted living facility who is planning to plead guilty to healthcare fraud.“The left hand does not know what the right hand is doing,” said Joel Hirschhorn, an attorney who represents the pain medicine doctor and the operator of the assisted living facility.The lawyers who spoke to Reuters declined to identify their specific clients, citing confidentiality rules.The surprise deposit of funds has led attorneys to scramble to warn clients to be ready to return the money.“There is no such thing as a windfall from the government,” said Sam J. Read the rest

It’s going to be a very unusual, and likely a somewhat subdued Mother’s Day this year. Unless you live with your Mom, there’s a better than average chance you haven’t seen her in a while. And with everyone practicing social distancing, it really isn’t a good idea to make a surprise appearance or take her out for a celebratory meal...assuming there were any places you could even take her right now.Moms all get it. They understand their kids won’t be there this year. But if we’re being honest, that still won’t make it any easier.While many are in rough times financially right now, we’d suggest this might be a good year to make a little bit of an extra effort for Mom. And while flowers are a perennial favorite for a reason, they likely won’t survive quarantine, so no one other than Mom will get to see them.Instead, get her a special little something from New York-based Rose Box. Rose Box will send Mom one or more of their gorgeous, Ecuadorian-sourced roses, all preserved to stay fresh for one whole year. Rose Box roses are dipped in natural plant dyes and a non-toxic mixture to enhance their vibrant color and maintain their beauty for 12 months. Then, they’re dried, boxed, and delivered right to your Mom’s doorstep.Rather than flowers that come and go in a week, your Mom’s arrangement can be a focal point of her kitchen, mantle or dining room for an entire year. And in addition to making her happy every time she sees it until next Mother’s Day, just think of what a constant 12-month reminder of your dutifulness and love could do for your stock. Read the rest

The New York Times reports on a new pest from abroad, Vespa mandarinia, AKA the murder hornet or the yak-killer.With queens that can grow to two inches long, Asian giant hornets can use mandibles shaped like spiked shark fins to wipe out a honeybee hive in a matter of hours, decapitating the bees and flying away with the thoraxes to feed their young. For larger targets, the hornet’s potent venom and stinger — long enough to puncture a beekeeping suit — make for an excruciating combination that victims have likened to hot metal driving into their skin.In Japan, the hornets kill up to 50 people a year. Now, for the first time, they have arrived in the United States.Tracking the ‘Murder Hornet’: A Deadly Pest Has Reached North America [New York Times] Read the rest

Nebula-75 is a new "puppet lockdown drama" being made by some of the folks at Century 21, the Gerry Anderson studio that was responsible for "Supermarionation" programming in the 60s (and beyond), with such shows as Thunderbirds, Stingray, Supercar, and Fireball-XL5. Nebula-75 is also being filmed in "SuperIsolation" and Lo-Budget!Nebula-75 charts the exploits of Commander Ray Neptune and the crew of the spaceship NEBULA-75 as they make their way across the stars, encountering strange worlds and forms of life hitherto unknown by mankind. It has been created and produced by a small group of filmmakers during the British lockdown on 2020. Although team members from around the world contributed remotely to pre and post production, the entirety of the filming for Nebula-75 was undertaken by a crew of three who happened to already live together in a small flat in London. Their living room was transformed into a makeshift movie studio – with bookshelves, cardboard boxes, and other household objects becoming the interior of the show's hero spacecraft. This flat was also fortunately home to many of the puppets, props, and costumes that have been accumulated over the course of different productions.It might be a slight exaggeration--but not by much--that shows like Thunderbirds and Fireball-XL5, and the other Gerry Anderson shows of my youth, laid the groundwork for much of what still obsesses me today (sci-fi, space exploration, modeling, miniatures, making, and dreaming). These shows were like magic spells on my imagination that have never waned. Read the rest

It’s tough to know what to believe with certainty about the insidious nature of coronavirus, mostly because even scientists haven’t determined all the hard and fast rules of this surging illness.One thing we do know with some assuredness is that cleanliness and avoidance is one of our most important weapons against infection. A recent study found that the virus can survive up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to two to three days on plastic and stainless steel.But no matter how long the virus can live on a given surface, your risk of infection drops if you just don’t touch those infected objects. The Safe Finger Hook is a contactless keychain tool that makes sure your exposed fingers actually touch as few doors, handles, countertops, and tables as possible, thereby massively decreasing your chance of contracting the illness.The Safe Finger is about 3.5 inches long, made of brass, and it’s ergonomically engineered to help you reduce germ exposure.The Safe Finger is equipped with a door hook, a flat stylus tip, and a finger hole so it can open door handles, pull levers and sliding doors or act as your finger to press touchscreens at the bank, during store checkouts or whenever you need to digitally sign anything on a display.Not only does a Safe Finger key reduce your direct contact with objects by over 99 percent, but its aluminum construction also resists and reduces bacteria infection by up to that same 99 percent, cutting your risk of infection to essentially zero. Read the rest

"We've just come up a ridge here, and this whole little plateaux-ey thing is covered in Hecastocleis, and ... while we're looking, there's a plane wreck over there" Read the rest

The Sumida Aquarium in Tokyo is pleading with the public to video-chat their garden eels starting on Sunday, because they are forgetting that humans exist. BBC: "Could you show your face to our garden eels from your home?"Yes, they're asking people to call in for a sub-aqua video chat and remind the eels that humans are friendly."Creatures in the aquarium don't see humans except keepers and they have started forgetting about humans," the aquarium wrote on Twitter."Garden eels in particular disappear into the sand and hide every time the keepers pass by."The eels are particularly sensitive - and the aquarium is keen to reacquaint the 300 eels it homes with humans so they can carry out important health checks on them.From May 3 to 5, you can use your iPhone or iPad (no Androids or PCs) to FaceTime these sensitive creatures. The aquarium will have five tablets pointed at the eels and ask that you (Google-translated from Japanese):1) Open the app from the iPhone or iPad, please take a video call by entering the following one of the gmail address to the destination...Helpchin001attogmail.ComHelpchin002attogmail.ComHelpchin003attogmail.ComHelpchin004attogmail.ComHelpchin005attogmail.Com2) After the beginning of the tablet terminal and a video call that was placed before the aquarium, to the spotted garden eel Shake or call while showing your face. Please refrain cry loudly ※.3) terminal to be installed is five. When you can see your face for about 5 minutes, hang up the call for the next person. Read the rest

You’ve probably heard somebody say it the past few weeks. If you leave the house after quarantine without at least one new professional skill under your belt, you wasted a prime opportunity.Of course, there are plenty of reasons a worldwide pandemic may not have been the best time to learn to be a web developer or how to edit video, but there’s no denying the opportunity is there to put a potentially impactful new bullet point on your resume.LearnNow has been delivering top-flight online educational experiences for a quarter-century. Now, with this LearnNow Complete Developer and IT Pro Library offer, you can essentially open that vault of endless learning options — and pick the bone clean.LearnNow is a go-to training resource for companies that want their employees to become versed in all the latest apps and digital procedures — companies like Microsoft, Intel, AT&T, and more. That’s why LearnNow has created a stockpile of more than 1,000 courses, covering almost any conceivable IT and software development training available anywhere.With that kind of volume, you’ll not only be prepared to find instruction in the subject you want, but all kinds of associated training opportunities as well to truly flesh out the experience. The back catalog of LearnNow courses covers virtually any topic users ever need to learning, Whether you’re looking for cloud expertise with AWS or Azure, coding tutorials on Python, C# or others, app and hardware background like Linux training or SQL database proficiency, or skill-based courses in cybersecurity and more, they’re all here. Read the rest

Celebrated poet and publisher, Janaka Stucky (Ascend Ascend), has launched a very unique and promising project on Kickstarter. It's called Ekphrastic Beasts.What the hell does ekphrastic mean? Ekphrastic writing "is the vivid, often dramatic description of visual art."Janaka has teamed up with four illustrators, Ellie Gill, Jeremy Hush, Joe Keinberger, and Nathan Reidt. Each of them will dredge up creatures from the depths of their subconscious and render what they invoke. Janaka will then take that art and create the names, backstories, and stat blocks for each creature, suitable for play in 5e Dungeons & Dragons. Hence, Ekphrastic Beasts.I'm in! Read the rest

Archive.org contributor Windsinger is uploading their entire VHS collection of MTV recordings from the channel's finest era, from its launch on August 1, 1981 until 1989 (with a few 1991 episodes of 120 Minutes thrown in for good measure). It's remarkable how the channel has evolved (?) from its pioneering earliest days filled with new music, youth culture, and visual experimentalism to its current form."I've been collecting recordings of full, unedited, WITH commercials & especially the VJs for years," Windsinger writes. "I've found these videos from old websites, torrent sites, sharing things, The Original MTV VJs facebook page, and of course the Archive."Above are the first four hours of MTV."80s MTV VHS Recordings 1981 to 1989 Collection" (Archive.org) Read the rest

No one really knows where Kim Jong-un is right now, but the New York Post and The Sun speculate that the supreme ruler of North Korea is at his seaside resort consorting with his "pleasure squad" of 2,000 sex slaves some as young as 13. "Foreign intelligence services think he's actually sheltering from the coronavirus pandemic in a secure luxury compound," reports The Sun:The Pleasure Squad or Kippumjo began during the reign of North Korea's founder, Kim Il-sung, who is still considered the country's Eternal President, despite dying in 1994.In the late 1970s, at the height of his power, he sent out his officials to scour the nation for its most attractive young women and girls to act as singers and dancers.Some of them also began working as maids, but the most sexually attractive were ordered to become "comfort women" for powerful officials.Many were aged around 13 and 14, and were sometimes even recommended for the sick service by their schools.KCNA reports North Korea leader Kim Jong Un resuming public activity https://t.co/Xp8MwHCT5E pic.twitter.com/f8vbOlx1q2— Reuters (@Reuters) May 1, 2020Image: Korean Central News Agency/Flickr Public Domain. Read the rest

This is my ex-husband, Alex Jones, graphically describing how he'll kill his neighbor to f e e d my kids:Homicidal. Terrifying.I lost my kids for tweeting about injustice. This is UNJUST to my kids.This is a mom's worst nightmare.Court must act.Help RT pic.twitter.com/vCxaVcros6— Kelly Jones (@RealKellyJones) May 1, 2020"I'm literally looking at my neighbors now. I'm going I'm ready to hang them up and gut them and skin them and chop them up. You know what, I'm ready. My daughters aren't starving to death... I will eat your leftist ass like corn on the cob." -- Internet tough guy Alex Jones Read the rest

That is one very large furry baby.Just a “Mama bear and cub taking a nap in my yard.”What a surprise this must have been for IMGURian @BruceNorris.Mama bear and cub taking a nap in my yard. Read the rest

MacRumors iPhone SE camera showdown helped me decide to wait.Apple's new iPhone SE is reportedly the high powered, low-cost wunderphone but the thing that matters most to many of us is 'How does the camera compare?' It is pretty good.The new iPhone SE sports the same CPU as the top of the line models but uses the camera hardware from the iPhone 8. MacRumors gives up a detailed study of how the extra CPU helps the older sensor.In the end, you get something in between the best and what was. As everything is constantly being upgraded only you can decide what phone is the right one for you.Camera Comparison: 2020 iPhone SE vs. iPhone 8 and iPhone 11 Pro Read the rest

“I will never lie to you. You have my word on that.” Trump toady Kayleigh McEnany said this to Associated Press reporter Jill Colvin, during McEnany's first press briefing as press secretary on FridaySeems legit.McEnany also said that impeached President Donald Trump has never lied to the American people, which is of course another lie.Clip below of the line in question:"I will never lie to you. You have my word on that." -- Kayleigh McEnany during her first press briefing as press secretary (bookmark this) pic.twitter.com/PqUhRAWiun— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 1, 2020Of course she means it.Some reactions from skeptical Twitter below."I will never lie to you," Kayleigh McEnany said from White House briefing room podium— Michael Tackett (@tackettdc) May 1, 2020Remember this:AP's Jill Colvin: "Will you pledge to never lie to us?"Kayleigh McEnany: "I will never lie to you. You have my word on that."— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 1, 2020Reporter: "Can you promise us that you'll never lie from the podium". Kayleigh McEnany: "Yes, I promise I will never lie from the podium. Also, did you know China developed COVID-19 as a biological weapon and aliens are real and also Biden kills babies and puppies?"— Holly Figueroa O'Reilly (@AynRandPaulRyan) May 1, 2020Reporter: “Will you pledge never to lie to us from that podium?” Kayleigh McEnany: “I will never lie to you, you have my word as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh.”— Randy Rainbow (@RandyRainbow) May 1, 2020As @PressSec, Kayleigh McEnany vows, "I will never lie to you, you have my word on that." Read the rest

“Music hath charms to soothe a savage breast, to soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak.” ― William Congreve, 1697We assume William Congreve didn’t have the ability to see the future, but he probably wouldn’t be shocked over 300 years later to see you singing along exuberantly to The Ramones at the top of your lungs in your car. Granted, he might be shocked about the car. But the singing...no, we’ve known about the therapeutic value of music for literally centuries.With tech advances, we’re now at a point where the self-healing power of music can be served up right into your ears through your favorite apps. And we don’t mean Spotify. Streaming services are great and all, but only dedicated services like Humm.ly are designed to bring you spiritual well-being through the science of music therapy.Endorsed by Grammy.com and a certified no. 1 App of the Day in the Apple App Store, Humm.ly is the first and only app to serve up more than 200 tracks of music and guided meditation created by board-certified music therapists and world-class music producers to help brighten your day, reduce stress and anxiety and help you sleep better.Convinced music can change our mental state and impact our ability to connect with others, Humm.ly’s mood-based track sessions are created by playing music that matches someone's current mood, then shifts it gradually to the person’s desired emotional state. Whether you want to unwind and relax, relieve pain and spark joy, or conquer challenges and thrive, Humm.ly’s Read the rest

Well, looks like the reopening of Florida is going great, just great today.Ron DeSantis opened Florida's beaches, and lifted other anti-COVID-19 restrictions throughout most of the state on Friday. Friday is also the day Daniel W. Uhlfelder, a lawyer and resident in Walton County, launched his “Grim Reaper Beach Tour” of the state's beaches.Here he is above, being interviewed on WMBB News 13.Uhlfelder has been dressing up as The Grim Reaper in a hilariously shitty costume for a while now, and hanging out on beaches (social distancing!) to remind people that this shit is real.Many of you have asked if I am willing to travel around Florida wearing Grim Reaper attire to the beaches and other areas of the state opening up prematurely. The answer is absolutely yes. Beginning May 1 we will hit the road here in state. Please retweet and spread the word. pic.twitter.com/UO7QKg161n— Daniel Uhlfelder (@DWUhlfelderLaw) April 22, 2020He says he is doing this to draw attention to how dangerous coronavirus is, and how people aren't taking precautions seriously. Busy day pic.twitter.com/uBmjaHmp2r— Daniel Uhlfelder (@DWUhlfelderLaw) May 1, 2020Uhlfelder says he is most worried about people from hard-hit areas of the South.Uhlfelder launched a website where people can contribute to his tour.Stay home Florida pic.twitter.com/MV4fyAXvwu— Daniel Uhlfelder (@DWUhlfelderLaw) May 1, 2020More coverage from the Pensacola News-Journal, below.holy shit pic.twitter.com/rVw24plXTp— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) May 1, 2020How's reopening going in Florida, you ask? pic.twitter.com/PT6detKiYj— Vera Bergengruen (@VeraMBergen) May 1, 2020[via @VeraMBergen] Read the rest

In the latest edition of High Weirdness author Erik Davis's essential e-newseltter The Burning Shore, he points us to this wonderfully rare live recording of a complete Kraftwerk concert from a 1975 performance in Canada. It's charging my battery and now I'm definitely full of energy. Erik writes:...It captures the newly-christened touring quartet of Schneider, Hütter, Flür, and Bartos stretching their electronic wings on their first full international tour. Delicate, playful, and unpretentious, having fun with their goofy machines and modest vocal chops, the group enters a low earth orbit with a “robot pop” sound that remains organic, improvisatory, and still friendly toward the flute. We open with the diaphanous cascades of “Kling Klang”, pass through the galactic drift of “Komentenmelodie 1”, and close with a 25-minute “Autobahn” that manages to both ride the groove and break down in all the right ways. The home-cooked rhythm rigs are particularly charming, constantly shifting timbres and patterns while forging the revolutionary conjunctio of electronics and The Beat. At a time when most prog bands were sludgy with cleverness, this music enacts a genuinely progressive marriage of kosmiche slop and electronic futurism, deployed with the lightest of radioactive touches.image: "Kraftwerk concert in Zürich, 1976" by Ueli Frey (CC BY-SA 3.0) Read the rest

The Snarkout Boys & the Avocado of Death AND The Snarkout Boys & the Baconburg Horror, two of the most wonderful books ever written are available 'free' via Kindle Unlimited.Absurdist literature for kids? I can not remember a time when I was not a huge fan of Daniel Pinkwater's incredible storytelling... and 'the Snarkout Boys' stories are my favorite.Snarking Out, or the practice of making late-night pilgrimages to a third-rate theater showing fifth-rate movies at the end of their projectable lifespan, has always sounded like the best idea. A lot of interesting folks do it. Join Winston Bongo, The Mighty Gorilla, Nosferatu the parakeet, Chicken Man, and an incredible cast of characters in what served as The Master and Margarita for a youthful me.The Snarkout Boys & The Avocado of Death Kindle Edition via Kindle UnlimitedThe Snarkout Boys & The Baconburg Horror via Kindle Unlimited Read the rest

Media rating council says Facebook could be denied accreditation

Today, Robert Fripp launched Music for Quiet Moments, a 50-week series of ambient tracks he'll be recording and releasing at home. If the first piece is any indication, this will be a welcome comfort. I found it seriously lovely and soothing. Healing, even.About the series, Robert writes:"Quiet moments are when we put time aside to be quiet. Sometimes quiet moments find us. Quiet may be experienced with sound, and also through sound; in a place we hold to be sacred, or maybe on a crowded subway train hurtling towards Piccadilly or Times Square. Quiet Moments of my musical life, expressed in Soundscapes, are deeply personal; yet utterly impersonal: they address the concerns we share within our common humanity."Image: YouTube Read the rest

I've had a busy few weeks of moving and renovating my home in the middle of a pandemic while also trying to work a full-time. So naturally, I decided to relax by … making a 4-song live EP of protest songs about unions and workers, to raise money for the Massachusetts COVID-19 Relief Fund for essential workers. Today in particular is not only International Worker's Day, but the music site BandCamp is also waiving their fees their day — so 100% of money you send my way for this pay-what-you-want album will go directly to workers in need.There are worse ways to celebrate May Day, in my humble opinion.Essential Songs for Essential Workers — Live From Quarantine [Thom Dunn / BandCamp]Massachusetts COVID-19 Relief Fund Read the rest

Nastaran Mohit is the organizing director of the NewsGuild of New York, which represents more than 24,000 journalists and media workers in the US and Canada. I've met her through her work with the Wirecutter Union, and she's also helped to organize workers at The New Yorker, New York Magazine, Buzzfeed, and more.Teen Vogue recently published a great piece on Mohit, breaking down a day in her life — which is, as one might imagine, made even more complicated by the coronavirus pandemic. But Nas keeps fighting the good fight, doing crucial work at a time when media layoffs are more and more common. Solidarity matters, and there is power in a union.Nastaran Mohit: A Day in the Life of a Union Organizer [Allegra Kirkland / Teen Vogue] Read the rest

Every time I go back and watch an episode of Dinosaurs, I realize just how far ahead of its time it was (See: "What Sexual Harris Meant." Also the series finale.)Also Tim Curry voiced a bunch of parts, which has nothing to do with the show's cleverly subversive political nature, but is wonderful nonetheless.Here he is as the Devil in the fourth season episode "Life In The Faust Lane," in which Earl sells his soul in exchange for a collectible mug. Curry also played the voice of a very sassy jacket on another episode. Read the rest

If you are looking for a way to quickly remove corn from corn cobs, grab yourself an old office chair and a drill and go to work.[via Core77] Read the rest

Today, the Boston Globe's investigative reporter Deirdre Fernandes reports that sex offender and accused child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein had his very own personal office at Harvard University, and visited dozens of times in the years after he was released from his 2008 prison sentence -- all the way through 2018. Epstein died of suicide in his Manhattan jail cell in 2019. Investigations into his crimes are still pending.According to the Boston Globe story, Jeffrey Epstein was given "his own office in a Harvard University department."He "visited there more than 40 times after he was released from jail in 2010.""The university received $9.2 million from Epstein between 1998 and 2007."Seems perfectly normal.Read the full story at the Boston Globe.Jeffrey Epstein had his own office at Harvard, and visited more than 40 times after he was released from jail in 2010. Those are some of the details in a new report released today on his ties to the university. https://t.co/ujvCjPxekQ— Jason Tuohey (@jtuohey21) May 1, 2020Well, @harvard has finally released its report regarding its own (i.e. not an independent) investigation into its links to Jeffrey Epstein https://t.co/WMpotdjaLA— Jonathan Eisen (@phylogenomics) May 1, 2020Jeffrey Epstein had his own office at Harvard and visited dozens of times in the years after he was released from his 2008 prison sentence — visits that continued until 2018https://t.co/kQk8AYln0m by @fernandesglobe— Mike Baker (@ByMikeBaker) May 1, 2020Jeffrey Epstein's Harvard ties were extensive, a new report reveals. Read the rest

On Thursday, NASA announced that it has selected commercial space technology firms firms SpaceX, Blue Origin and Dynetics to build lunar landing systems that can carry astronauts to the moon by 2024. Elon Musk is the founder of SpaceX, and Jeff Bezos is behind Blue Origin. The manned lunar mission is part of the Trump White House’s accelerated timeline for a NASA moon-to-Mars campaign.“The three companies, which include firms of tech billionaires Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, will share $967 million from NASA, though specific amounts each company will receive were not immediately known,” reports Reuters.Excerpt:“This is the last piece that we need in order to get to the moon,” NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine told reporters on Thursday, calling the agency’s first lunar lander procurement since 1972 “historic”.Unlike the Apollo program that put astronauts on the moon nearly 50 years ago, NASA is gearing up for a long-term presence on Earth’s satellite that the agency says will eventually enable humans to reach Mars, leaning heavily on private companies built around shared visions for space exploration.Picking three providers allows NASA to have redundancy in case one company falls behind in development, Lisa Watson-Morgan, NASA’s human landing system program manager, told reporters on Thursday. READ MORE:Musk's SpaceX, Bezos' Blue Origin land contracts to build NASA's astronaut moon lander[Joey Rouelette, reuters] Read the rest

オンライン飲み会から緊急脱出できるマシーンを作りました pic.twitter.com/gB2Ur6f21i— 藤原 麻里菜 | Marina Fujiwara (@togenkyoo) April 29, 2020Marina Fujiwara created this useful little gadget to trick zoomers into thinking your Internet connection is buggy so you can leave a videochat whenever you feel like it. Read the rest

OpenAI · Rock, in the style of Elvis Presley - OpenAI JukeboxOpen AI, the same organization that created the GPT-2 language model (try it here) which generates coherent stories from a text prompt, just released a new application called Jukebox, "a neural net that generates music, including rudimentary singing, as raw audio in a variety of genres and artist styles."Some of the songs are pretty good, and very strange as only neural nets are.Photo by Spencer Imbrock on Unsplash Read the rest

Amazon.com is facing an antitrust investigation.The House Judiciary Committee on Friday informed Jeff Bezos he needs to agree to testify at a hearing on Amazon's alleged misuse of third-party seller data, or the CEO faces a potential subpoena if he declines.READ THE LETTER FROM HOUSE JUDICIARY HERE [PDF]From the Washington Post:The dramatic escalation between members of Congress and the e-commerce giant follows reports that Amazon employees tapped data from third-party sellers in its marketplace to make decisions about launching its own competing products, despite initially telling Democrats and Republicans it did not engage in such practices.Lawmakers on the House’s top competition-focused panel specifically pointed to statements that Amazon made starting last July, when officials explicitly told Congress that “we do not use any seller data to compete with them." Lawmakers raised the potential that Amazon might have committed perjury during its earlier testimony on Capitol Hill.“In light of our ongoing investigation, recent public reporting, and Amazon’s prior testimony before the Committee, we expect you, as chief executive officer of Amazon, to testify before the committee," said Rep. David N. Cicilline (D-R.I.), the chairman of the antitrust subcommittee. He was joined by Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), the House Judiciary Committee’s Democratic chairman, and F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.), the second most senior member of the House, indicating the early, wide support such a hearing has garnered in Congress.“Although we expect that you will testify on a voluntary basis,” lawmakers continued, "we reserve the right to resort to compulsory process if necessary.” Read the rest

Jeremy Barnes is a former police officer. He moved his family to rural Idaho, a half mile away from the Utah border. He set up a private investigator practice in Utah, but because he does not live in Utah, the state's Department of Public Safety will not let him work as a detective there. You have to be a resident of the state to have a license to be a private investigator. Barnes has retained a lawyer and is suing the department. Utah is the only state that requires a residency requirement for a professional occupation, and this law in unconstitutional, says his lawyer. In this video Barnes' lawyer is interviewed by the Institute for Justice. Read the rest

On his blog, Cory Doctorow alerted me to the news that science fiction author Marc Laidlaw has started a YouTube channel and is re-reading his short fiction. He does an excellent job creating voices for the characters in his stories. Marc has also released his novels as Kindle editions, and if you have a Kindle Unlimited membership (try a month for free) you can read them as part of your membership. Read the rest

“The ICANN Board finds that the public interest is better served in withholding consent as a result of various factors that create unacceptable uncertainty.”ICANN, the entity that oversees web addresses, said on Friday it voted against a $1.1 billion deal to sell control of .org domains to a private investment firm. The decision follows persistent protest and activism “from internet pioneers and officials including California’s attorney general [Xavier Becerra],” reports Joe Menn at Reuters on Friday. This means the dot-org domain WILL NOT be sold to the private equity firm Ethos Capital, a story we've been covering here on Boing Boing since the beginning. Excerpt from Reuters:The surprise plans by the Internet Society to sell the Public Interest Registry to a newly formed for-profit firm, Ethos Capital, announced in November, provoked alarm from many of the more than 10 million entities that use the .org suffix, associated with non-profit organizations.ICANN, the Internet Corp for Assigned Names and Numbers, which gave the assignment of .org to the Internet Society and retains some rights, said on Thursday it was rejecting the deal.In particular, it cited concerns that there would be a drive to reward Ethos stockholders while repaying $300 million in debt taken on during the transaction. You can read the official announcement from ICANN here. It's a little hard to follow, unless you're used to reading legalese -- so here are some tweets from observers and reporters who've been following the dot-org potential sale controversy for a long time. Read the rest

David Icke is a UK conspiracy theorist who's been swimming at the reptile-illuminati deep end for a long time. After latching onto Covid-19, he finally found a truly explosive audience as social media companies struggled with shutting down the biggest engagement-generators in years. Facebook has taken action, however, banning Icke for good.Facebook has taken down the official page of conspiracy theorist David Icke for publishing "health misinformation that could cause physical harm".Mr Icke has made several false claims about coronavirus, such as suggesting 5G mobile phone networks are linked to the spread of the virus.In one video, he suggested a Jewish group was behind the virus.Following the ban, his Twitter account posted: "Fascist Facebook deletes David Icke - the elite are TERRIFIED."You'll have to head to Twitter for your fix of Bill Gates Annukai Tyranny Empty Hospitals.Icke, a former footballer and broadcaster, was a likeable presence on UK TV when he got into the whole "Queen-Is-An-Alien-Reptile" business, and his status as a household name gave him a large platform to publicize his viewpoints before he was marginalized. Here's a classic interview with Terry Wogan that gave prime-time BBC viewers their first taste of something new and magical in popular culture.Wogan regretted being mean to him. Read the rest

Once you run out of toilet paper–and you will–make sure you keep the empty rolls so you can try making fantastic molecular models! Physicist and 3D software engineer Ricky Reusser flattened and linked the cardboard tubes into models of buckminsterfullerene and carbon nanotubes! He's even written a software simulator so you can keep making these even once you've used your toilet paper rolls in place of the toilet paper you can't get. From his guide, Toiletpaperfullerenes and Charmin Nanotubes: Toilet paper tubes have the curious property that you can flatten them, cut out loops, and link the loops together without fasteners[...]My brand is regular Trader Joe's toilet paper, though I have no reason to believe anything about the brand is particularly important, beyond consistency—with the exception of those cowards who make tube-free toilet paper rolls. Those won't work. I've considered side-stepping material collection and waiting to buy tag board when shelter-in-place eases, though to be honest, the recycled nature of the raw materials is no small part of what draws me to this project.(via Kottke) Read the rest

Bradford Pears look beautiful in spring, but have a unique odor described by one source as fish and semen. Southern Living is taking action against "the worst tree".For years, the Bradford Pear has been an iconic Southern tree (simply because they're everywhere). Grumpy Gardener Steve Bender is here to tell you that this stinky, oversized tree is not worth the hassle.In 1966, Southern Living was created to highlight the beauty and culture of the growing South. In the decades since its inception, Southern Living, published monthly, has become one of the largest lifestyle magazines in the country. With characteristic Southern hospitality, Southern Living is committed to sharing the region we love with our readers, no matter where they may live.Mitchell and Webb had a good sketch featuring America's inexplicable love of cum trees. Read the rest

Behold the pig's foot pillow [Amazon], an easily-cleaned item of home furnishing sure to impress visitors. Printed with an image of juicy, glistening meat, it comes in five sizes, from 20cm to 80cm, with even larger sizes (and other meats) from other sellers.It is suitable for children,your children must be like it,it can be as toy and pillow,even be a decoration in your home or office.Toys can be enrich your daily spare life,you can use it when you are sleeping or resting and so on. Via Rob Sheridan, who remarks "what if David Cronenberg had a gift shop?" Read the rest

Selfie 2 Waifu takes photos of people and draws an anime-style portrait. The results are outstanding. In this example, a completely normal-looking person is transformed into a ridiculous cartoon character. See the twitter thread below for more examples.Selfie 2 waifu. Official Tensorflow implementation of U-GAT-IT: Unsupervised Generative Attentional Networks with Adaptive Layer-Instance Normalization for Image-to-Image Translation (ICLR 2020)https://t.co/3zFxCp669q pic.twitter.com/KdNn80IzKP— tkasasagi? (@tkasasagi) April 15, 2020Based on U-GAT-IT: Unsupervised Generative Attentional Networks with Adaptive Layer-Instance Normalization for Image-to-Image TranslationBased on the official pretrain modelBasic principle: we will not save your selfie without your permission, all privacy-related actions will be clearly notified.Contact me: creke at creke.net Read the rest

There are plenty of productive ways to spend time while stuck indoors. While it’s undoubtedly fun to binge all 15 seasons of Supernatural or sink days of playtime into an Overwatch campaign, learning something new is definitely a more meaningful and long-term beneficial use of open hours.And if you’re going to invest time in learning something new, you better make sure it sticks. More than half a million Apple App and Google Play users have given the Babbel Language Learning system a 4.6 out of 5-star rating for its innovative and impactful methods in helping students learn a new language. So you know it works.Right now, they’re making their award-winning services available again at 60 percent off the regular lifetime subscription price, just $159.With this deal, you can learn 14 of the world’s most popular languages at your own pace with Babbel, the top-grossing language learning app around the globe.Developed by over 100 linguistic experts, Babbel even says they’ll help you start speaking confidently in your new language in only 30 days. Just choose the language you’d like to learn, and you’ll immediately get access to more than 8,500 hours of high-quality language education.Before you get overwhelmed, all those hours are broken down into easily digestible 10- to 15-minute lessons, so you can also find time to fit them into your day naturally.The focus of the Babbel method is building your basic conversational skills, working you through real-world scenarios on real-world subjects like your family, your business, ordering a meal, booking transportation, and more. Read the rest

Matt M. McKnight pulled over on Washington State Route 240 to film this amazing yet menacing "tumbleweed tornado".OMG TUMBLEWEED TORNADO! ? Saw this approaching and pulled over along WA-240 a few minutes ago near Hanford Site. #wawx pic.twitter.com/NL9Nny1j7a— Matt M. McKnight (@mattmillsphoto) April 30, 2020 Read the rest

Cops and store owners in Illinois are asking people to "tip" coronavirus masks -- remove them or pull them aside briefly -- so cops and store cameras can see people's faces. Do not do this: experts say it obviates the purpose of the mask and exposes the wearer to the virus. If the wearer is infected, it will expose others to the virus, perhaps for hours.They're claiming it's to prevent racial bias, but offer no reason why making people remove masks prevents racial bias.Authorities' long-standing dislike of masks and anonymity, however, is well-established. If this were an attempt to obviate new laws in the state that encourage masking and make wearing masks mandatory where social distancing is impossible, no-one would be surprised.You cannot account for others' stupidity or their contempt for public health. Police chiefs supporting this program include East Moline Chief of Police Jeff Ramsey, Rock Island Chief of Police Jeff VenHuizen and Silvis Chief of Police Mark VanKlaveren. If you don't want to choose between your health and not antagonizing hostile cops, stay away from the Quad Cities. Read the rest

Can't believe I had never seen this before! My pal Michelle posted it the other day on Facebook and I had to know the story behind it. It took me a minute, but THIS is what I learned:So, in 1985, Queen re-created their iconic 1974 "Queen II" album cover (see also: "Bohemian Rhapsody" music video), morphing the old into the new for the music video of their single "One Vision." Well-l-l, this gif of Freddie (picking his nose, no less!) and the boys goofing around is an outtake from that. What I wasn't able to find was the source video of this fine gif, just the "One Vision" video itself. Maybe one of you Happy Mutants will have better luck finding it..?! Standing by. Read the rest

So what the heck is a soft skill, anyway? Well, by contrast, hard skills are teachable, quantifiable abilities like the basics you learned in school — reading, writing, arithmetic, and the like. They may not always be easy, but hard skills are usually fairly simple to identify and measure.Which means soft skills are the talents that are often a lot tougher to grade. It’s your emotional intelligence. It’s your leadership ability. It’s how well you listen and understand what co-workers are telling you. With a name like soft skills, these attributes sound...well, soft. And maybe not as critical as hard talents.But these intangibles are often the real difference makers in any organization — or in the course of a career. The Ultimate 2020 Soft Skills Career Hacker Bundle not only can help you shore up those areas of your professional game, but it’s as comprehensive and deep a training package as you’ll find anywhere.This collection brings together a massive 128 courses that dig into every facet of improving your shot at a successful career, regardless of the industry. It’s all here -- nearly 2,900 lectures covering more than 150 hours of instruction. Business ethics and etiquette? Covered. Attention management and anger management? Covered. Courses to develop your office support skills, likability, problem-solving and critical thinking are all included. So are goal setting, coaching, customer relations, and communication strategies. And once you’re through with all those courses, you’ve still got dozens and dozens more, enough to keep you busy for months....literally. Read the rest

Too soon? By way of Donald Bell's Maker Update comes this game where you send a shopping cart into a market in search of TP. The simulation was designed by Jelle Vermandere. You can either play the game in a browser or Jelle shows you how he used an Arduino Uno and motion sensing to create a shopping cart handle controller for that true invisible zombie apocalypse adrenaline rush.Image: YouTube Read the rest

"because we come from nothing"

Two of the largest U.S. airlines, American Airlines and Delta, said Thursday they will require travelers to wear face masks on U.S. flights, joining JetBlue to address coronavirus. Excerpt:Delta’s new rules start May 4, while Frontier’s start May 8 and American’s requirements begin May 11. The policies exempt young children from wearing masks or other facial coverings. Other airlines like United Airlines (UAL.O) are providing masks to travelers, but not requiring their use. Many U.S. airlines are also requiring pilots and flight attendants to use facial coverings while on board aircraft.(...) Delta said the airline will require face coverings “starting in the check-in lobby” and at “Delta Sky Clubs, boarding gate areas, jet bridges and on board the aircraft for the duration of the flight – except during meal service.”Delta added their use “is also strongly encouraged in high-traffic areas, including security lines and restrooms. People unable to keep a face covering in place, including children, are exempt.”American said the rules will prioritize “customer and team member well-being.” Read more:American Airlines, Delta to require facial coverings on U.S. flights[reporting by David Shepardson, Tracy Rucinski] Read the rest