Just Making Sure You Saw My Thing

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Just Making Sure You Saw My Thing     Hey, there, just dropping you a note to make sure you saw my thing. It went up last week, my thing did. You may have seen it on my Web site, or in my e-mail blast, or maybe on one of the various content feeds I update regularly with my things and also short, enticing snippets of my things.Real quick: please understand that these thing-snippets don’t do justice to the thing-wholes, but I’m hoping they draw enough viewers and entrant-tier subscribers to justify the time I spend maintaining eleven separate social-media platforms, which each has its own formatting guidelines and vibe. Continued here

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Ruapehu has had a great ski season - but we need to reimagine the future of NZ's iconic volcano     Holidaying with my family last week, we fell in love with the natural terrain of both the Whakapapa and Tūroa fields – the latter enjoying the biggest snow base in the world at the time.We were not alone. A strong winter season has seen many thousands making the most of the great conditions: 5,614 guests on Whakapapa’s busiest day of July 15, and 3,500 at Tūroa on July 28. Continued here

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Nobody knows how consciousness works - but top researchers are fighting over which theories are really science     Science is hard. The science of consciousness is particularly hard, beset with philosophical difficulties and a scarcity of experimental data. So in June, when the results of a head-to-head experimental contest between two rival theories were announced at the 26th annual meeting of the Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness in New York City, they were met with some fanfare. Continued here

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Who is Jacinta Allan, Victoria's new premier?     With the sudden announcement that Daniel Andrews will be stepping down as premier of Victoria at 5pm today, the Labor Party has been working to find the best replacement. Deputy Premier Jacinta Allan, from the Socialist Left faction, was widely tipped to become the next premier, especially as she had Andrews’ endorsement. But some late challenges from the Right made it more complicated, with Transport Minister Ben Carroll also throwing his hat in the ring. Continued here

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Is TikTok right - will eating three carrots a day really give me a natural tan?     A beauty trend gaining popularity on TikTok, dubbed the “carrot tan”, claims eating three carrots a day will give you a natural tan. Carotenoids are natural pigments that give red, orange and yellow colours to fruits and vegetables. Think of them as nature’s paint. Continued here

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Does AI have a right to free speech? Only if it supports our right to free thought     The world has witnessed breathtaking advances in generative artificial intelligence (AI), with ChatGPT being one of the best known examples. To prevent harm and misuse of the technology, politicians are now considering regulating AI. Yet they face an overlooked barrier: AI may have a right to free speech.Under international law, humans possess an inviolable right to freedom of thought. As part of this, governments have a duty to create an environment where people can think freely. Continued here

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'The Creator' Review: A Half-Baked Attempt at Sci-Fi Originality     The Creator is the embodiment of our originality-starved movie landscape — for better and for worse.When Gareth Edwards first signed on to direct and write The Creator (originally titled True Love), he cited Blade Runner, Akira, E.T., and Apocalypse Now as inspirations. The astonishingly ambitious The Creator certainly wears those comparisons on its sleeves, but those inspirations ultimately become the albatross around the movie’s neck. Continued here

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Family vlogs can entertain, empower and exploit     YouTube channels belonging to American content creator Ruby Franke were recently scrubbed from the site after the YouTuber was charged with child abuse. Franke was known for making parenting videos on her YouTube channel, 8 Passengers. Her videos frequently featured content on the family and her six children.Police in Utah said the charges were laid after Franke’s 12-year-old son climbed out of the window of a home and went to a neighbour to ask for food and water. Police said the boy and his younger sister were found emaciated and required hospitalization. Continued here

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Joe Biden's Visit to a U.A.W. Picket Line Was a Powerful Political Gesture     At lunchtime on Tuesday, Joe Biden became the first sitting U.S. President to join a picket line. Outside General Motors' Willow Run Redistribution Center, in Belleville, Michigan—not far from Detroit—Biden greeted a group of striking members of the United Auto Workers union. He told the workers that they had saved the automobile industry during the economic crisis of 2008-09 and made a lot of personal sacrifices. (These included taking wage cuts.) Now that the auto industry was doing "incredibly well," Biden said through a bullhorn, "you should be doing incredibly well, too."It wasn't a new message. The day the strike began, Biden said that record profits at the Big Three U.S. automakers—Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis—should mean record pay contracts for the U.A.W. workers. But it's one thing to deliver remarks sympathetic to a union from behind a White House lectern. Flying on Air Force One to Detroit, taking a Presidential limousine to the Willow Run facility, standing alongside the striking employees, and appealing to the Big Three to "step up"—that is something else completely. Continued here

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20 Years Later, the Most Underrated Final Fantasy Sequel Still Deserves More Credit     If there’s one thing that defines Final Fantasy, it’s that no two games are quite alike. Mechanics and settings change with every release, giving each installment its own unique character. So when the sequel to Final Fantasy Tactics — a game about class struggle, conflict, and the malleability of history — opened with a group of school kids having a snowball fight, it shouldn’t have been too surprising.Final Fantasy Tactics Advance came to North America on September 8, 2003, six years after Final Fantasy Tactics. In that time, the original game had become a critical darling, and players were already looking forward to a sequel. The game that succeeded the mature RPG couldn’t have looked more like a departure from its predecessor, but the way Final Fantasy Tactics Advance uses its childlike appearance to draw in players and subvert their expectations should garner it a lot more credit. Continued here

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Word from The Hill: Assessing Daniel Andrews, the extraordinary Pezzullo story, senators give Qantas chiefs a hard time     As well as her interviews with politicians and experts, Politics with Michelle Grattan includes “Word from The Hill”, where she discusses the news with members of The Conversation’s politics team.In this podcast Michelle and politics editor Amanda Dunn discuss Victorian premier Daniel Andrews’ exit, as well as the revelation of extraordinary texts from leading public servant Mike Pezzullo promoting his views to the Coalition government through a Liberal insider. Continued here

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Wildland firefighters face a huge pay cut without action by Congress - here's how physically demanding this lifesaving job is     Radios crackle with chatter from a wildfire incident command post. Up the fireline, firefighters in yellow jerseys are swinging Pulaskis, axlike hand tools, to carve a fuel break into the land.By 10 a.m., these firefighters have already hiked 3 miles up steep, uneven terrain and built nearly 1,200 feet of fireline. Continued here

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Citizen scientists collect more nature data than ever, showing us where common and threatened species live     Citizen science isn’t new anymore. For decades, keen amateur naturalists have been gathering data about nature and the environment around them – and sharing it. But if anyone can contribute data, how do you know it’s reliable? Was it really an antechinus, or was it a black rat? Despite the growing success in collecting data, there has long been scepticism over how reliable the data are when used to, say, estimate how abundant a threatened species is. Continued here

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New study shows we can create value from food waste by turning it into a highly desirable material - nanocellulose     Food waste is a global problem with approximately 1.3 billion tonnes of food wasted each year throughout the food lifecycle – from the farm to food manufacturers and households.Across the food supply chain, Australians waste around 7.6 million tonnes of food each year. This costs our economy approximately A$36.6 billion annually. Continued here

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12 Years Later, 'Ahsoka' May Have Sneakily Fixed Star Wars' Strangest Canon Problem     The Chosen One has always been Star Wars’ major theme. It’s central to the franchise’s original story, it’s integral to the Force’s mythological roots, and later, in the prequels, the idea becomes literal. But if Anakin truly is the Chosen One, then how did he bring balance to the Force? The answer may lie in Ahsoka Episode 5, and Ahsoka Tano herself could play a role. In Episode 5, we see Anakin in a mystical dark realm fans have assumed is the otherworldly plane known as the World Between Worlds, which was introduced in Rebels. But Anakin never actually visited the World Between Worlds. Instead, in The Clone Wars, we see Anakin and Ahsoka on another strange, metaphysical world: Mortis, where three deities ruled over the Force. Is that where Episode 5 took place? Continued here

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Are seniors being pressured into retirement homes by lack of community services?     Ads for retirement homes often feature an older couple relaxing in comfortable surroundings, playing a board game or enjoying a meal with friends. They look well — and young for their age — with broad smiles and perfect silver hair. These ads offer worry-free, active retirement living at its fullest, complete with delicious and nutritious food. It looks like a wonderful lifestyle choice. Continued here

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China's new anti-espionage law is sending a chill through foreign corporations and citizens alike     Earlier this year, China updated its anti-espionage law amid an intensifying rivalry with the US and growing distrust of the Western-led international order. The law broadens the scope beyond what it originally sought to prohibit – leaks of state secrets and intelligence – to include any “documents, data, materials, or items related to national security and interests.” Continued here

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What do we know about long COVID in kids? And what do I do if I think my child has it?     While COVID in children has generally been milder than in adults, there are concerns long COVID may be a major consequence for children and young people arising from the pandemic.Long COVID, also known as “post-COVID condition” is an umbrella term for a range of symptoms that can persist for months after the initial acute phase of COVID. Long COVID may include fatigue, post-exertional malaise, disordered sleep, cognitive difficulties, pain, anxiety and depression. These symptoms can impact people of any age, including children. Continued here

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Rethinking the Luddites in the Age of A.I.     On December 15, 1811, the London Statesman issued a warning about the state of the stocking industry in Nottingham. Twenty thousand textile workers had lost their jobs because of the incursion of automated machinery. Knitting machines known as lace frames allowed one employee to do the work of many without the skill set usually required. In protest, the beleaguered workers had begun breaking into factories to smash the machines. “Nine Hundred Lace Frames have been broken,” the newspaper reported. In response, the government had garrisoned six regiments of soldiers in the town, in a domestic invasion that became a kind of slow-burning civil war of factory owners, supported by the state, against workers. The article was apocalyptic: “God only knows what will be the end of it; nothing but ruin.”The workers destroying the lace frames were the group who called themselves Luddites, after Ned Ludd, a (likely fictional) knitting-frame apprentice near Leicester who was said to have rebelled against his boss by destroying a frame with a hammer. Today, the word “Luddite” is used as an insult to anyone resistant to technological innovation; it suggests ignoramuses, sticks in the mud, obstacles to progress. But a new book by the journalist and author Brian Merchant, titled “Blood in the Machine,” argues that Luddism stood not against technology per se but for the rights of workers above the inequitable profitability of machines. The book is a historical reconsideration of the movement and a gripping narrative of political resistance told in short vignettes. Continued here

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'Loki' Season 1 Deleted Scene Could Reveal a Surprising Season 2 Cameo     Loki (Tom Hiddleston) has come a long way from his first moments in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. He may be Marvel’s most loveable anti-hero now, but he started as a tragic foil to his golden boy brother, Thor Odinson (Chris Hemsworth). It’s hard to see one without thinking of the other; they were virtually inseparable throughout Marvel’s Infinity Saga. Wherever Thor was, Loki was never far behind, at least until his untimely demise. While Thor continues his journey in Marvel’s main continuity, Disney+ series Loki has given the God of Mischief a new lease on life. Season 1 went a long way in establishing Loki as a solo player, but as it returns for its second season, it may just reunite Loki with his estranged brother — or, more accurately, one of his variants. Continued here

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Furious Rupert Murdoch Returns to Fox After Network Accidentally Broadcasts Fact     NEW YORK (The Borowitz Report)—An irate Rupert Murdoch has returned to the helm of Fox News after the network accidentally let a fact slip into its evening programming.Speaking to reporters, the visibly seething mogul refused to identify the alarming nugget of reality that set him off, but said that it was “truthful enough” to make him reverse his week-old decision to retire. Continued here

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Reclaiming Dada women's art history shouldn't mean amplifying orientalism and sexism     Digital archives have become powerful platforms for women artists who were excluded from official art history, allowing them to claim their rightful place posthumously. However, amid the legitimate excitement of bringing overlooked female artists into the foreground through archival work, there are problems when digital copies of archives proliferate and aren’t critically contextualized. Continued here

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Trump's mugshot to Burning Man: Six of the most striking images of 2023 so far     It was the mugshot heard around the world. The booking photo of Donald Trump, taken at an Atlanta jail after the former US president was indicted for conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Georgia, was released moments after it was taken on 24 August. The portrait's penetrating stare instantly seared itself into cultural consciousness, and Trump made the most of it, with his campaign website selling mugshot-branded mugs, t-shirts and drink coolers within hours. The mugshot in the US has a mystique all its own and an arresting allure that Andy Warhol seized upon almost 60 years ago in a series of 13 super-sized portraits he fashioned from the New York Police Department's list of most-wanted individuals, which the Pop Artist provocatively plastered to the side of a pavilion in the New York State Fair in 1964, causing a scandal. It was quickly painted over.About shadows they were never wrong, the Old Masters. If the 16th-Century Italian painter Caravaggio were alive today, perhaps he would have found intriguing the conspiracy of darkness and light in a photo caught on the floor of the US House of Representatives in January. Here, the controversial Republican congresswoman and ally of former President Trump, Marjorie Taylor Greene, attempts to persuade a colleague, Matt Rosendale from Montana, to speak to Trump, whom she has on hold on her smartphone. The gadget's glow, Greene's outstretched arm, Rodendale's raised hand in refusal and rumples of dark fabric that frame the scene echo the contours and contrasts of Caravaggio's own chiaroscuro canvases. Continued here

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Millie Bobby Brown's debut novel is a bestseller. Does it matter that the 19-year-old actor didn't write it?     Stranger Things actor Millie Bobby Brown’s debut novel, Nineteen Steps, revolves loosely around true events. In 1943, the Bethnal Green tube disaster claimed the lives of 173 Londoners, due to faulty stairs in the station used as an air raid shelter.This tragedy, the UK’s largest loss of civilian life in the second world war, was one Brown’s own grandmother survived. Brown describes her novel as a “really special project” inspired by her family’s WWII history. Continued here

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India's beloved mosur dal     The everyday dish of simmered lentils known as dal is more than just food to most Indians; it is comfort, it is nourishment and very often, it is the taste of home."For me, dal is comfort food and I have it every day. When I am tired, or when I'm having a bad day, dal with rice uplifts my mood in a way that nothing else can, not even coffee or chocolate," said cookbook author Archana Pidathala. Continued here

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7 ways to look after yourself and your community before and after the Voice referendum     The lead-up to the Voice referendum is already affecting the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. These impacts will likely worsen during and after the vote.A quick search of any social media platform about the Voice referendum reveals a range of strong perspectives on voting “yes” or “no”. But in the loosely regulated world of social and news media, many conversations are becoming toxic and racist, and turning into hate speech. Continued here

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An entry fee may not be enough to save Venice from 20 million tourists     Venice’s history, art and architecture attract an estimated 20 million visitors every year. The city, a Unesco World Heritage site, is often crammed with tourists in search of special memories. But for the people who actually live there, this level of tourism has become unsustainable. So from 2024, day-trippers will be charged a €5 (£4.31) fee as part of an attempt to better manage the flow of visitors. Continued here

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Sheikh el mahshi: Aubergines filled with ground beef     In the Levant, there's a diverse array of dishes called mahshi (stuffed vegetables), including kousa bil labn (stuffed courgette cooked with yoghurt), beitenjan mahshi (aubergine simmered in a rich tomato sauce), malfouf (rolled cabbage leaves) that resemble delicate fingers, and waraq einab (grape leaves) that are similar to dolma eaten in Turkey, Greece, the Balkans and Iraq.What all these mahashi (the plural of mahshi) share in common is that they are filled predominantly with rice then layered inside a big pot to be covered in steaming broth or sauce and cooked on the stove until tender. Continued here

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Here's What You Need to Know Before Jumping Into Phantom Liberty's Dogtown     In three years, Cyberpunk 2077 has gone from a broken mess to one of the must-play RPGs of the generation, and a big part of that is the massive expansion Phantom Liberty. This standalone story takes heavy inspiration from spy thrillers like Mission Impossible and features a set of new characters, including sleeper agent Solomon Reed, played by Idris Elba. As you might expect from a CD Projekt Red game, Phantom Liberty is a lengthy adventure that you’ll need to set aside time to play through. Here’s how long you can expect to take with Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty. Continued here

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Online abuse could drive women out of political life - the time to act is now     It is becoming increasingly evident that life in modern politics is presenting women with a stark choice – endure almost constant online threats and abuse or get out of public life. Jacinda Ardern, the former prime minister of New Zealand, and Sanna Marin, the former prime minister of Finland, are the two highest profile cases, but the problem is widespread. Continued here

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Queer film in Africa is rising - even in countries with the harshest anti-LGBTIQ+ laws     Yes, the last decade has seen a proliferation of these films. Nigeria’s Nollywood has produced a considerable body of films portraying queer lived experiences. Although most of these experiences remain largely formulaic and moralistic, there have been films like the 2020 lesbian love story Ife which offer positive images of queerness in Nigeria. With its long history of queer representation in film, South Africa continues to produce work that highlights the diversity of LGBTIQ+ experiences. Christiaan Olwagen’s coming-of-age war musical Kanarie appeared in 2018. The following year saw Moffie by Oliver Hermanus, set in the apartheid army. And Bonnie Sithebe’s 2022 lesbian drama Valley of a Thousand Hills is set in traditional rural South Africa. Continued here

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Lithium-ion battery fires are a growing public safety concern - here's how to reduce the risk     In today’s electronic age, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are ubiquitous. Compared with the lead-acid versions that have dominated the battery market for decades, lithium-ion batteries can charge faster and store more energy for the same amount of weight.These devices make our electronic gadgets and electric cars lighter and longer-lasting – but they also have disadvantages. They contain a lot of energy, and if they catch fire, they burn until all of that stored energy is released. A sudden release of huge amounts of energy can lead to explosions that threaten lives and property. Continued here

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Canada's House speaker quits: What the Hunka scandal reveals about Second World War complexities     Anthony Rota, the speaker of Canada’s House of Commons, has resigned from his post after inviting “war hero” Yaroslav Hunka to Parliament to take in the recent appearance of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.That invitation — and the two subsequent standing ovations Hunka received from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, MPs of all parties and Zelenskyy — ignited an international uproar. Continued here

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What's the carbon footprint of owning pet fish? An expert explains     While the environmental impact of having dogs and cats as pets has been examined to some extent, the impact of keeping pet fish has remained unexplored – until now. Dogs in particular have a significant carbon “pawprint”. An average-size dog (weighing 10-20kg) in Europe is responsible for between 349 and 1,424kg of CO₂-equivalent emissions per year – compared with between 150kg and 251kg of CO₂-eq for an average-size cat (weighing 2kg-6kg). Continued here

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What to Know About 'Honkai Impact 3rd Part 2' Post-Kiana     Before the global success of Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, HoYoverse was known for its action RPG Honkai Impact 3rd. Seven years after the game's initial release in 2016, Honkai Impact 3rd is still going strong, and now a new chapter is on the horizon. After concluding the story of protagonist Kiana, HoYoverse announced Honkai Impact 3rd Part 2 on September 22. While it won’t be an entirely new game, Part 2 will see major changes to the story and combat systems. Here’s everything you need to know about Honkai Impact 3rd Part 2. Continued here

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Israel-Palestine: the legacy of Oslo and the future of a two-state solution - podcast     Despite the promise of the Oslo accords in the early 1990s, the negotiations that followed never cemented an Israel-Palestine peace deal. What lessons do they hold for the future? In the third and final part of Inside the Oslo Accords, a special series from The Conversation Weekly podcast, we assess the legacy of the Oslo peace process, 30 years on. And we ask two insiders to the negotiations: Palestinian political and civil society leader, Hanan Ashrawi, and Israeli former deputy foreign minister and minister of justice, Yossi Beilin, what future they see for the two-state solution. Continued here

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What are APIs? A computer scientist explains the data sockets that make digital life possible     APIs, or application programming interfaces, are the gateways to the digital world. They link a wide array of software applications and systems. APIs facilitate communication between different software systems, and so power everything from social media – think of the share buttons on webpages – to e-commerce transactions. At a simple level, APIs are like electrical sockets. A software application that you’re using, say the playback controls for a video on a webpage, is like an appliance. The system that provides data or services that the application needs, say YouTube, is like the electrical grid. The API, in this example the YouTube Player API, is like the standard electrical outlet that lets any appliance plug in to the grid. Continued here

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Remote workers are more aware of cybersecurity risks than in-office employees: new study     Workers who telecommute tend to be more aware of cybersecurity threats than those who spend most of their time in a physical office and are more likely to take action to ward them off, according to our new peer-reviewed study. Our findings are based on Amazon Mechanical Turk survey data collected from 203 participants who recently switched to full-time remote work, as well as from 147 in-office workers, across multiple organizations within the United States. We didn’t collect data on hybrid workers. Continued here

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Why Aperol Spritz is the drink of the summer     This summer, Aperol Spritz has been flowing from the counters of the most enchanting venues in New York City, from the rooftop of the Independent Art Fair in Tribeca to the flamingo-themed new bakery on my Brooklyn block. In Singapore, you can take an Aperol Spritz bar crawl, and in Paris, it's now a fixture at most cafes next to the local pastis and kir.It seems that aperitivo (Italy's cherished pre-dinner drink) has become the new happy hour. And yet, the current popularity of Aperol Spritz leaves us Venetians slightly perplexed. How did a drink that, until 20 years ago could only be found in our region's humble osteria (tavern) and cheap local bars, conquer the world? Continued here

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Playful whales can use seaweed as a hat - or exfoliant. This "kelping" behaviour is more common than we realised     If you’re a whale, there’s often not too much to see out in deeper water. Perhaps that’s why so many whales get playful with kelp and other seaweed. Once might have been chance. But we’ve collected over 100 examples on social media of whales playing with seaweed, known as “kelping”. It’s not just one species –  gray whales, southern and northern right whales, and humpback whales all do it. Continued here