It's interesting (but expected) that the Virginia counties closest to DC, and thus likely to have a high percent of federal employees, went big time for the measure they hope will help Democrats retake the US House.
#Virginia #Redistricting
www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...
Insider trading is hard to prove, but it sure LOOKS like Trump admin insiders and confidants are profiting from advance knowledge of major events.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Columbine.
Unfortunately, chipmunks like to eat the flowers. They'll bend the stems over to get them.
In a surprise move, Trump nominates a QUALIFIED candidate to lead the Centers for Disease Control.
#CDC #Trump
arstechnica.com/health/2026/...
Slowly growing climate change will render some areas more and more unlivable (like the American South).
This is not yet causing people to move to cooler areas...
But extream climate-related events DO slow migration INTO the most affected areas.
#Climate #Migration
www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/18...
Defense of the Boundary Waters will now need to move to the permitting process.
#Minnesota
insideclimatenews.org/news/1604202...
The Montana Supreme Court rules that Transgender discrimination is, by definition, sex discrimination.
Further that any law targeting transgender citizens must meet the highest level of judicial scrutiny, due to historical discrimination.
#Discrimination
www.erininthemorning.com/p/montana-su...
A little WD-40 into the switch helped, too.
The "Department of War" is a branding and public relations name, but it has no legal basis, so it can't be used in any legal document or setting.
#War #Defense
www.newsweek.com/trumps-attem...
My father gave me this Everready penlight circa 1990. We would now say that it has a "retro" look. It has been unused for a long time (with batteries out so they would not leak).
I recently renovated it.
It now has an LED bulb (5 watt incandesescent equivalent) and USB rechargable AA batteries.
“Get rid of the endless advertising and substantially shorten the long pre-shows."
Moviegoers often show up a half hour late to avoid all the commercials meaning that many don’t even see the promotional trailers for upcoming films.
#Movies
variety.com/2026/film/ne...
First mushrooms in the yard. I don't know what type they are.
#Mushrooms #Photography
When people (like Trump supporters) face information conflicting with their deeply held beliefs, they tend to reduce their mental discomfort by denying the allegations, focusing on policies over behavior, or claiming that other politicians commit similar acts.
#MAGA
www.psypost.org/cognitive-di...
The Mirror Universe, or Picard Season 2.
A squirrel tries to get at a birdfeeder, without success.
Life can be so difficult sometimes.
#Squirrel #Photography
Having the tribes and Forest Service cooperating on managing the wilderness area around Black Elk Peak seems like a smart thing.
The mountain in the Black Hills is the highest point between the Rocky Mountains and the European Alps.
www.buffalosfire.com/agreement-se...
A recent analysis of Google's AI Overviews found that they were accurate approximately nine out of 10 times. But with Google processing more than five trillion searches a year, this means that it provides tens of millions of erroneous answers every hour.
#AI
www.nytimes.com/2026/04/07/t...
Here's a link to the NASA Flickr page where you can find the high-resolution versions of the Artemis II photos and others.
#Artemis #NASA #Photography
www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2...
Certificate of Excellence This certifies that MICHAEL MAREK, Wayne State College, USA, is awarded the 2025 Most Impactful Papers of the Year Award for the exceptional impact of the open access article: Teacher Experiences in Converting Classes to Distance Learning in the COVID-19 Pandemic, in the International Journal of Distance Education Technologies during the 2025 volume year.
The Associated Press, long known for providing news to newspapers and broadcasters, is changing its mission.
“We’re not a newspaper company and we haven’t been for quite some time,” said Julie Pace, executive editor and senior vice president of the AP.
#Journalism
apnews.com/article/news...
New podcast!
This time we look at the first of the JJ Abrams Star Trek movies, simply titled "Star Trek."
We conclude that there's a lot to like in this movie, but don't try to connect it too tightly to long-term Star Trek continuity.
#StarTrek #Podcast
creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
Existing scholarship outlines two broad categories of decision-making:
#1 - fast, intuitive, and affective (emotional) processing
#2 - shaped by slow, deliberative, and analytical reasoning
Scholars now see a third system - uncritical outsourcing to AI.
#AI
arstechnica.com/ai/2026/04/r...
It's kind of hard to find out what the Artemis II capsule is like inside, but this tour of a simulator does a pretty good job. For example, the seats where the astronauts ride for takeoff and landing fold out of the way to open up a lot of space.
#Artemis
youtu.be/wVYwFFzaPp0?...
In spite of renewables generating nearly half of world electricity needs, there is still pressure to build out new fossil fuel infrastructure because of...
Data centers!
#ClimateChange #Electricity
www.theregister.com/2026/04/01/r...
Watching streaming feeds leading up to the Artemis II launch and (that are bloated with promotional hype) and thinking
"Walter Cronkite, where are you when we need you?"
#NASA #Artemis
"The revival is part of a national trend toward old-school testing methods like in-class pen-and-paper exams and oral tests to prevent AI use for assignments on laptops."
#AI #NoPhoneZone
apnews.com/article/type...
The goldfinches have found the bird feeder I put out the other day.
(Yes, I should clean the window.)
More AI means less critical thinking.
In the past, cognitive offloading meant using a calculator for math or a notebook for a grocery list.
Generative AI platforms take this a step further by performing the actual thinking, analyzing, and problem-solving.
#AI
www.psypost.org/chatgpt-acts...
