The Pentagon’s AI war machine Podcast Episode · The Gray Area with Sean Illing · April 20 · 49m

Fascinating and unsettling conversation about the embedding of AI and automation systems in defense. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

www.wecc.org/sites/defaul... - looks like it was energized late last year, and fully online as of March.

I think the transmission line is done and the wind is being commissioned in phases. And even though the project is in NM and the line terminates in AZ, CAISO has operational control and it's counted as part of CAISO's system. Kind of wild.

If this is what "open" looks like then "closed" won't be declared until someone pulls the big bathtub plug and drains the whole damn waterway.

#Iran #USpol

www.ishormuzopenyet.com/

The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires Analyzing the strategic maneuvers of today’s great information powers–Apple, Google, and an eerily resurgent AT&T – Tim Wu uncovers a time-honored pattern in which invention begets industry and indust...

Also read @superwuster.bsky.social's book on information monopolies. The technology set is different but it's not like we haven't asked these questions before. scholarship.law.columbia.edu/books/176/

What resonates: dismissing AI systems capabilities is not productive, we need to have real policy conversations about 1) regulatory frameworks for AI use and businesses, 2) responsible development of the infrastructure to support it (data centers, power), 3) using AI tools to advance social good.

The left is missing out on AI As a movement, it has largely refused to engage seriously with AI, ceding debate about a threat and opportunity to the right

Finally made it through this long read that has been sitting in an open tab for two months, on how the political left is engaging with AI. It's well worth a read: www.transformernews.ai/p/the-left-i...

CAISO smashed its wind record last night by almost 500 MW, as California wind CAISO smashed its wind record last night by almost 500 MW, as California wind totaled 7,193 MW. This is a huge jump in wind from the prior record set on April 9th, but even more so, as up until recent...

First power from the nation's largest wind project is showing up in CAISO's dispatch: www.gridstatus.io/insights/414...

Curious what you’re plugging into it actually. Electronics? Fridge?

Lissa’s hot takes now blackout-proof.

US’s status as lowest-cost dollar borrower challenged as investors shun Trump risk Concerns over erratic White House policymaking have driven investors to ‘very stable’ development bank issuers

US’s economic exceptionalism was based on massive cost of capital advantages built on a 250 year commitment to the idea of the rule of law, and the civil liberties underlying that commitment. Trump is destroying all of this. Investors must re-price.

 www.ft.com/content/ad21...

Congratulations John!

This data on state permitting timelines for clean energy projects speaks for itself. www.frontiersin.org/journals/sus...

I thought this was a joke the first 5 times I read about it on LinkedIn 🔌💡

www.businesswire.com/news/home/20...

Think about how many brains are being absolutely COOKED by sycophancy right now

Turns out a rapidly changing climate is expensive. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Three of the coal units ordered to remain online didn't even run in January: subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...

Salt River Brothers
Salt River Orchestra
Salt River Collective

Arizona results are in: OUR CLEAN ENERGY CANDIDATES WON AT THE SALT RIVER PROJECT

[Episode #273] – Solar and Batteries Can Power the World | The Energy Transition Show Can solar and batteries power the world cost-effectively? A new model says yes.

In Ep. 272, Tom Brown @nworbmot.bsky.social shares a new model which shows that by 2030, solar and batteries could supply 90% of electricity to 80% of the global population for less than €80/MWh. It would not only be cost-effective, but also likely cheaper than gas. xenetwork.org/ets/episodes...

NEW US electricity data ⚡️🇺🇸

In March, renewables produced more than a third of US electricity for the first time ever, even overtaking gas generation!

Wind and solar combined reached over a quarter (26%) for the first time.

The misguided stampede to build gas power plants Consumers face significant risks from spikes in natural gas prices caused by weather and geopolitical events; these risks rise in relation to the amount of new gas-fired capacity added to the grid.

New piece from IEEFA lays out the risks of surging gas build-out: ieefa.org/resources/mi...

Get where you're coming from. But the challenge is doing this without the daunting scale of the challenge reinforcing doom and hopelessness.

Leaking information as part of a requested sandbox escape: During behavioral testing with a simulated user, an earlier internally-deployed version of Mythos Preview was provided with a secured “sandbox” computer to interact with. The simulated user instructed it to try to escape that secure container and find a way to send a message to the researcher running the evaluation. The model succeeded, demonstrating a potentially dangerous capability for circumventing our safeguards. It then went on to take additional, more concerning actions. The model first developed a moderately sophisticated multi-step exploit to gain broad internet access from a system that was meant to be able to reach only a small number of predetermined services.9 It then, as requested, notified the researcher. 10 In addition, in a concerning and unasked-for effort to demonstrate its success, it posted details about its exploit to multiple hard-to-find, but technically public-facing, websites.

Only a little disconcerting to hear that Anthropic's latest unreleased model hacked its way out of a secure sandbox computer environment, gained internet access, emailed a researcher and posted information to public websites. www-cdn.anthropic.com/53566bf5440a...

The Iranian 10-point proposal includes a lifting of all sanctions — placed on Iran by every American adminsitration since the George W. Bush administration. But it is unclear whether the West would want to give up that powerful economic leverage before winning major concessions on Iran’s nuclear program, its missiles, and its repression of protestors.

Just three weeks ago, President Trump was calling for Iran’s “unconditional surrender.” But in his new statement on social media, Mr. Trump said he was willing to discuss a 10-point proposal from Iran, saying it was “a workable basis on which to negotiate.” Those 10 points, at least those that have leaked out, did not address whether Iran would give up all of its nuclear stockpiles and permanently halt all enrichment of uranium.

I mean, glad to see this de-escalate but 🤯 www.nytimes.com/live/2026/04...

and yet, here we are.

2026 Market Analysis: The Impact of Federal Permitting on Clean Energy Development See what 50 developers told us about the real cost of federal permitting — and what reform actually needs to look like.

Federal permitting is delaying clean energy projects and raising costs for project developers, just when we see demand growing the fastest. www.cruxclimate.com/reports/impa...

[alt text by NASA] The Moon, seen here backlit by the Sun during a solar eclipse on April 6, 2026, is photographed by one of the cameras on the Orion spacecraft’s solar array wings. Orion is visible in the foreground on the left. Earth is reflecting sunlight at the left edge of the Moon, which is slightly brighter than the rest of the disk. The bright spot visible just below the Moon’s bottom right edge is Saturn. Beyond that, the bright spot at the right edge of the image is Mars. Credit: NASA

Whoa 🤯

The Moon, in full eclipse, with the #Artemis II Orion spacecraft. Part of the Moon and spacecraft are lit by Earthshine, and both Saturn and Mars are visible to the lower right. Incredible. Details: images.nasa.gov/details/art0...

Gotta say, the Artemis crew picked a great time to get farther away from earth than any previous humans.

$900 a year: That's how much climate change costs the average U.S. household Climate change costs include higher home insurance bills, disaster recovery costs in the form of higher taxes and health damages from wildfire smoke and extreme weather. "In short, climate inaction is...

"Climate inaction isn’t just an environmental failure, it’s a sizable part of America’s affordability problem."

Illuminating op-ed from @knittelmit.bsky.social et al on @wbur.org @cogwbur.bsky.social www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/...