Hello,
These have been accumulating at a rapid rate. I'm on the road in Portland and Eugene, so thought I better have a clean slate when I get home. There are some real gems in this firehose of info.
I hope to write a bit about the Hoedads, a forestry worker cooperative I was part of in the 70's and 80's. We helped change some forestry practices and it is heartening to see some of those changes become incorporated into policy. Others things we fought for, not so much. One of the reasons I'm visiting in Oregon is to participate in a Hoedad video and mural painting. (And to eat some excellent food.)
fred
THREE INTERESTING NEWSLETTERS
PASTA MYSTERY SOLVED!MIT scientists have solved a decades-old mystery of why spaghetti breaks into more than 2 pieces when you snap it in half. When you bend a long, thin rod of pasta (or, for that matter, some other material) and it snaps in two, the initial break will cause a snap back that causes a vibration that causes additional fractures. But a new paper in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows MIT researchers cracked a way to crack pasta in two cleanly: by twisting about 270 degrees before bending, both Barilla No. 5 and Barilla No. 7 were made to snap cleanly in two.
MORE ON MEAT
If a livestock animal dies in America, there’s a pretty solid chance Tyson was holding the knife. The company produces one out of every five pounds of meat consumed domestically, kills about 1.8 billion animals a year, producing $15 billion in beef, $11 billion in chicken, $5 billion in pork and $8 billion in various prepared food products. But the company is eyeing what comes after the abattoir, investing in a number of startups and companies that seek to develop protein cuisine that doesn’t require a death. Tyson’s fund for sustainable tech is $150 million, admittedly a slim chunk of the meat biz, but even the strongest critics of the company — I assume people who recently saw Okja — are pleased to see the industry back alternatives. Amanda Little, Bloomberg Businessweek
INTERESTING COMMENTARIES ON WHAT'S HAPPENING ON THE INTERNET
These four minute vids explore several topics; femization of bots and women looking like bots; how hands are depiceted in media; pepe the frog; the appropriation of blackness for expressing white emotions. Give a look if you have the time for cultural explanations of what is happening electronically.
BLOCKING SPAM CALLS This helps if you are getting a lot of spam calls. For Android or iPhone. We have ATT and it works fairly well cept for some of the spoofing. (calls from random numbers) https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/15/smarter-living/how-to-block-spam-calls-texts.html?em_pos=small&emc=edit_ct_20180816&nl=technology&nl_art=0&nlid=55736694emc%3Dedit_ct_20180816&ref=headline&te=1
Deficit The U.S. budget deficit through the first 10 months of this fiscal year is $684 billion, up 20.8 percent from the same period last year. Projections have the deficit up 33.7 percent at the end of the year.
CBS, The Associated Press
THE EVOLUTION OF TRIP ADVISOR
ARIZONA TEACHERS
HOW WHAT IS READ CHANGES YOUR BRAIN
40 PRODUCTS MADE IN ARIZONA
YOO HOO YAHOO/AOL USERS: Your emails are scanned
“Yahoo’s owner, the Oath unit of Verizon Communications Inc., has been pitching a service to advertisers that analyzes more than 200 million Yahoo Mail inboxes and the rich user data they contain, searching for clues about what products those users might buy, said people who have attended Oath’s presentations as well as current and former employees of the company, ” Wall Street Journal 8/28 (have to be a subscriber)
OPT OUT OF NETFLIX NEW ADS Similar to messages from the Emergency Broadcast System cutting in during your TV viewing, Netflix has begun showing trailers for its shows in between the episodes you are currently watching or bingeing. To be clear, it is only testing what amounts to in-house ads on only a segment of its subscribers at the present, but all users are automatically opted in to the test. Thankfully, you can politely and quickly opt out of these trailers interrupting your binge watch.
To opt out, you will need to access Netflix in a browser on a computer, tablet or phone; you can't opt out of of the ads with the Netflix app.
With Netflix open in a browser, tap the hamburger button in the top left (on mobile) or click your profile picture in the top right (on a computer) and then choose Account. On the Account page, scroll down to the Settings section and select Test participation. You will see a single toggle switch for Include me in tests and previews. Toggle it Off and then click or tap Done.
BACKYARD SCIENCE
Bats? AZ Fish and Game, UoA, and the town of Marana are trying to monitor foraging patterns of bats. You can fill out a form with your sightings here:
Rain? Reporting rain is a helpful way to monitor patterns throughout the year and years. Rain guages are inexpensive $5-$30. For more info and how to participate go to rainlog.org
Plant Observation? In your yard pick a plant or several and monitor it weekly. Go here for more info and how to: usanpn.org/natures_notebook
The Starry Sky? Globe at Night is a program asking citizens to monitor the brightness of the night sky. More info at: globeatnight.org
Kissing Bugs? Catch but no touchy! Researchers at UofA's College of Medicine are asking people to participate in a program that tracks exposure to, and bites of, Kissing Bugs. They are hoping to identify insect patterns and to see if kissing bugs are infesting human dwellings. They will also test collected specimens for Chargas disease, a chronic disease that results in heart problems. kissingbug.medicine.arizona.edu to get the scoop.
INTRODUCING OLD FRIENDS TO BATTLE DEE MENCHA
The Netherlands is pioneering different treatments for those souls that are losing touch with the day-to-day. The underlying strategy is to reduce stress and thereby reduce medication and forcible restraints. An interesting, humane, approach.
WANNA MAKE A BATCH OF FOOD?
Check out the vid cooking 100 chicken legs....
DAILY LIVING MADE EASIER
Pens/scissors/and more, this is a good source of those things that give small tinglings of pleasure while using.
SPORTS, RACISM, AND THE GREATER GOOD
A reflective column from Kareem Abdul Jabbar.
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