Sunspots 927

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to others*:

Environment: The Bradford, or Callery pear (it has other names), though attractive, is an invasive pest, according to a discussion in The Conversation.

Sargasso weed mats are growing quickly in the Atlantic Ocean, and it's not clear what should be done, according to The Guardian.

Health: NPR reports that changing our clocks, as most of us probably did a few days ago, may harm our health.

Science: A mathematician suggests that, in addition to pi day (March 14) we celebrate e day, the golden ration day, and perhaps other useful mathematical concepts and constants.

A writer for The Conversation discusses how bees learn the dancing language that points other bees to external resources.

The Scientist reports that a wiring diagram for the brain of a larval fruit fly has been developed. It's complicated.

Thanks for reading.

 

Sunspots 907

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to others*:

Christianity: Heart, Mind, Soul and Strength has posted a word cloud, showing how often a word is used, based on use of words in Proverbs. There are (to me, anyway) some surprises.

Computing: Gizmodo reports that Russia is assessing fines on Internet companies, mostly for disagreeing with the Russian characterization of the war with Ukraine.

Environment: NPR reports that fires in California and elsewhere in the west make storms in other parts of the US worse.

Politics: A Conversation writer examines trends in crime in the US. Is crime rising? It's complicated.

Science: A Conversation writer discusses the presence of virus genes in the human genome. There are a lot of them.

The Scientist reports that scientists have been able to determine what words a subject is thinking of, by scanning the subject's brain, non-invasively, under experimental conditions.

The Scientist also reports that swarms of bees can produce a substantial electric charge.

Gizmodo says that if you live in Pennsylvania, or states near it, you have probably seen spotted lanternflies. They are easy to identify, and, as far as I'm concerned, rather pretty. They are also destructive pests, eating several kinds of trees. I have seen them in Maryland and Pennsylvania. Here's the Wikipedia article on the insect.

NPR reports on a study that indicates that a protective mutation helped people survive the black death. It is still found in human populations, and makes carriers more susceptible to auto-immune diseases.

Sports: A Conversation writer tells us that abuse by coaches, and people with similar positions, is not just individual bad behavior, but part of the whole atmosphere of sports.

*I try not to include items that require a password or fee to view.

Thanks for reading.

Sunspots 867

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to others*: 

The Arts: Listverse tells us about 10 literary locations that you can actually visit, in the UK.

Computing: Gizmodo reports that Gettr, a social network that claims not to censor user's posts, is deeply connected to Facebook and Google.

Environment:  Gizmodo has posted a slide show of the 9 worst invading species in the US, including one plant.

Finances: ABC News reports that the 10 richest men in the world doubled their worth during the pandemic, while the rest of us mostly lost worth.

History: NPR reports that authorities may have finally discovered the name of the person who turned in Anne Frank and her sister and parents to the Nazis. For more on Anne Frank, go here.

Humor:  (or something) Lego has released a build-it-yourself globe that can spin, according to Gizmodo.

Politics: According to NPR, the Supreme Court justices aren't getting along very well, and there was a time in the past when they got along even more poorly.

Science: Gizmodo reports on analysis of horse bones from the Middle Ages, that indicates that war horses from that time were smaller than modern horses.

SciTechDaily reports that a huge fish nesting area (60 million nests, from one species, estimated) has been found near Antarctica.

The graphic used in these posts is from NASA, hence, it is free to use like this.

*I try not to include items that require a password or fee to view.

Thanks for reading.

Sunspots 779

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Environment: Gizmodo reports that deep-sea mining damages the ocean floor ecosystem for years, maybe decades, to come.

Health: FiveThirtyEight tells us why scientists don't believe that the current dangerous virus came from a lab in Wuhan, China.

Politics: FiveThirtyEight says that Mr. Biden probably won't announce his running mate for quite a while.

President Trump's favorability ratings, among white evangelical Christians, took a plunge in April, according to Relevant.

FiveThirtyEight discusses the "Never Trump" (Republicans, or former Republicans) voters, who are unhappy with Mr. Trump.

Science: Fossil bones of a number of giant sloths (about the size of an elephant!) have been found in Ecuador.

Gizmodo tells us about giant hornets, which, among other things, feed on honeybees they have killed.

The graphic used in these posts is from NASA, hence, it is free to use like this.

Thanks for looking!