Sunspots 933

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

Christianity: Christianity Today reports that an important source of congregational songs, especially in Southern Baptist churches, is ceasing to publish.

Environment:  NPR discusses those Canadian wildfires.

A Conversation article on how important rip currents are. (They aid the ocean's ecology.)

Another Conversation article examines recycling in depth. We aren't doing very well at it.

Food: (and finances) Fortune tells us why hamburgers are relatively cheap, compared to salads.

Health: A Conversation article discusses the dangers of exposure to heat.

Science: Gizmodo reports that two new species of sabertooth cats have been discovered.

The Smithsonian reports that we discover a new species of dinosaur nearly every two weeks.

An article in the Conversation tells us about huge freshwater fish, some weighing 500 pounds or more.

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

Thanks for reading.

Sunspots 906

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

Environment: Gizmodo discusses recycling. There isn't nearly as much of it as the labels on containers would imply.

CNN reports that the Mississippi River is very low. It's possible to walk (dry-footed) out to rock formations that are normally not visible, because they are under water.

Health: NPR contradicts some common misconceptions about how much water to drink.

Politics: A Christianity Today author argues that Herschel Walker has shown no sign of repentance, and he should have.

Science: The Scientist describes teaching an array of cells to play Pong, a simple video game.

The Scientist also discusses research on placing human nerve cells into rat brains. They functioned.

Phys.org reports on research into an insect pest. The pest was found to have incorporated several genes from a host plant into the insect's genome.

CNN reports on studies of two very hot exoplanets, in orbit around the same star.

Gizmodo reports that the attempt to change the trajectory of an asteroid worked -- it was changed

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

Thanks for reading.

Sunspots 883

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

The Arts: Christianity Today reports that the lead that holds stained glass pieces together, in decorative windows, from the late 1800s, is in danger of no longer being able to do so, because of slow oxidation.

Christianity: NPR reports that Orthodox churches, some of which are backing Putin, in the US are attracting far-right people.

Education: (sort of) FiveThirtyEight on laws to prevent teaching about racism.

Environment: A small dolphin, living in the Gulf of California, has a population of about 10 animals, according to Gizmodo.

Gizmodo reports that recycling doesn't really work.

Gizmodo reports that Emperor penguins are in serious danger of extinction, caused by global climate change.

Health: The Scientist reports that taking oral antibiotics may have profound effects on the microbes that normally live in the gut.

Politics: FiveThirtyEight shows us the results of some recent polls on abortion.

Science: The Scientist reports that sunscreen can damage coral reefs.

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 850

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

Christianity:  Christianity Today reports that former President Trump no longer calls himself a Presbyterian, but a non-denominational Christian, and that there are many other people who have made similar changes.

Environment: Gizmodo reports that California law now requires companies to prove that objects they manufacture are actually recycled before they can be labeled as recyclable. The report says that less than 20% of supposedly recyclable plastics are actually recycled.

Gizmodo also reports on a study showing that young people are pessimistic about the future of the world's environment, and angry at governments for doing so little about this.

Health: FiveThirtyEight reminds us that the anti-vaxx movement has been around since long before COVID, and that, although now Republicans are more anti-vaxx, years ago, the parties had about the same number of vaccine-rejecters.

Science: Gizmodo reports that Komodo dragons, and many other species, are in danger of extinction.

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 842

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

Education: Grammarphobia discusses the origin of the phrase "tossing and turning."

Environment: NPR on recycling plastic -- what really helps, and what doesn't.

Gizmodo on why TV news does such a bad job at reporting on climate change.

Gizmodo also reports that poor neighborhoods, all over the USA, suffer more from heat waves.

And Gizmodo reports on how wild hogs are having a serious effect on climate.

Gizmodo also reports on the environmental costs of shipping goods into North America.

Ethics: (and Science) Gizmodo reports on guidelines for human genetic engineering, produced by a World Health Organization group. In summary, the group is not ready to approve such procedures.

Science: (or something) Relevant reports on a survey that indicates that most couples become romantically involved after months or years as friends, rather than falling in love the first time they see each other.

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 715

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

 
Christianity: Unfortunately, there are many allegations of sexual abuse by ministers from the Southern Baptist church.

Environment: NPR tells us what's what about plastic waste and recycling (or not).

Health: NPR reports that many people in metropolitan areas around the Great Lakes can't afford to have water in their homes.

Catherine Rampell tells us that people are taking better care of their hearts than they used to, and that's saving us money.

Politics: Scientific American asks if a woman can sound presidential.

National Public Radio reports that the so-called Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is continuing to remove regulations aimed at protecting people who get loans from payday lenders.

FiveThirtyEight compares former Presidential candidates by previous office (not many mayors have been elected, for example).


Science: Listverse reports on 10 different animals (all but one of them mammals) that humans have tried to domesticate, but failed to do so.


The graphic used in these posts is from NASA, hence, I believe, it is public domain.

Thanks for looking!

Sunspots 683

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

Christianity: A Christianity Today editorial on immigration.

Christianity Today also reports that multi-ethnic Protestant congregations are becoming more common, especially among evangelicals.


Computing: Gizmodo discusses the frequent failure of governments web sites, and the causes.

Health: (or something) FiveThirtyEight points out that using a phone hands-free while driving can also be dangerous. And so can the car's complicated controls.

Earther reports that, until now, most plastic waste that's recycled goes to China for such treatment. However, the Chinese are clamping down on importing plastic.

National Public Radio reports that an analysis published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that, US county by county, there is a strong correlation between opioid over use and voting for President Trump in 2016. This does not prove cause. Both phenomena may have been caused by something else, such as the local economy.

An article on the use of superlatives in reports of cancer research. Claiming too much happens a lot.

Politics: Sojourners discusses an analysis of word use in Vice-President Mike Pence's recent speech to the Southern Baptist Convention. He used "President" 61 times, "Trump" 12 times, but "God" 9 times and "Christ" twice. Some Southern Baptists, including leaders, were not happy with his speech.

The Washington Post tells us where President Trump got his figure of 63,000 people killed by illegal immigrants. Someone basically made it up.

Science: ListVerse tells us 10 interesting things about salt.

Gizmodo reports on the real cause of the "drip, drip, drip" sound made by a leaky faucet, and on how to stop that sound quickly and easily.

National Public Radio discusses the advantages of increasing the beaver population of the Western US.

Sports: The Associated Press says that pitchers are throwing fewer fast balls, and why.
Thanks for looking!

Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 500

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:
Christianity: A video rendering of John Michael Talbot's "Holy is His Name," which is a modernization of the Magnificat, from Luke 1, sung by a young lady. The lyrics are here.
Relevant names seven prominent Christians who have struggled with doubt. You probably have, too.
Computing: Gizmo's Freeware points us to an on-line Color Scheme Generator. It looks like a fine tool.
Wired points out that "many devices are all but impossible to recycle efficiently." The article points out why this is true, and notes some manufacturers that are making recycling easier.
Science: (And photography) A collection of amazing close-ups of insects and their relatives, collected (but not photographed) by me. To see the individual photos, which, sometimes, have a description of what you are seeing, right-click on the photo and open it in a new tab.
Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 371

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

Science:  USA Today tells us that recycling cigarette butts has become important.

The Arts: (sort of) Wired has an article, with photos, on trends in office/cubicle design. The article also tells what happened to one paperless office.

Computing: From Gizmo's Freeware, some tricks to recover files you have mistakenly deleted, in Windows 7.

Christianity: Ken Schenck finishes a series on how to read the Bible. The last post deals with the context.

Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 198

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

Science:
(or something) Slate says that we shouldn't wash out recyclable items before putting them in containers to be recycled, and explains why.

Wired on how leafcutter ants regulate traffic (for example on a narrow twig).

Wired on what are claimed to be the oldest animal fossils.

Politics:
(or something) An insightful post on tolerance.

Sports:
Congratulations to Pat Summitt, head coach of the Tennessee women's basketball program since 1975, on her thousandth win as a head coach, the most in history of any coach in major college basketball. I watched part of the game, including some of the celebration after it was over. Summitt (then Pat Head) began as a graduate assistant at age 22, and her first game in Knoxville was in front of a crowd of 53. The crowds are much larger now. Summit said that she thanked God for the opportunities she has had, and that she was blessed. All of the players who have stayed with the program for four years have graduated, a remarkable statistic. Here's the Sports Illustrated article on the game and its significance.

Image source (public domain)