By Lambert Strether of Corrente.

Fowl Music of the Day

Northern Mockingbird, South Shore of Pueblo Reservoir, Pueblo, Colorado, United States. Begins slowly, however turns into fairly virtuosic.

In Case You May Miss…

1. Trump: Time’s “Particular person of the 12 months.”
2. Why Ernst modified her thoughts on Hegseth; some hypothesis.
3. Thumbs down on UCLA’s AI-designed textbook cowl.

Search for the Helpers

“How a center schooler discovered a brand new compound in a bit of goose poop” [Phys.org]. “A gaggle of younger college students turned bonafide biomedical scientists earlier than they even began highschool. By way of a partnership with a close-by college, the center schoolers collected and analyzed environmental samples to search out new antibiotic candidates. One distinctive pattern, goose poop collected at a neighborhood park, had a bacterium that confirmed antibiotic exercise and contained a novel compound that slowed the expansion of human melanoma and ovarian most cancers cells in lab assessments. Inequities in academic sources, particularly these in science, engineering, expertise and math (STEM), the place experiments are costly, have saved some college students underrepresented in these fields. By participating a bunch of those college students early in actual, high-quality analysis, a group from the College of Illinois at Chicago led by Brian Murphy is offering younger learners an opportunity to see themselves as scientists and discover careers in science with hands-on expertise. The group partnered with a Boys and Women Membership in Chicago to carry center schoolers right into a 14-week utilized science program.” • So being on a flyway has its benefits…

My electronic mail deal with is down by the plant; please ship examples of there (“Helpers” within the topic line). In our more and more determined and fragile neoliberal society, on a regular basis regular incidents and tales of “the communism of on a regular basis life” are what I’m on the lookout for (and never, say, the Crimson Cross in Hawaii, and even the UNWRA in Gaza).

Politics

“So most of the social reactions that strike us as psychological are in reality a rational administration of symbolic capital.” –Pierre Bourdieu, Classification Struggles

Biden Administration

“Biden commutes roughly 1,500 sentences and pardons 39 folks in greatest single-day act of clemency” [Associated Press]. “President Joe Biden is commuting the sentences of roughly 1,500 individuals who have been launched from jail and positioned on residence confinement in the course of the coronavirus pandemic and is pardoning 39 People convicted of nonviolent crimes. It’s the biggest single-day act of clemency in fashionable historical past…. Biden mentioned he can be taking extra steps within the weeks forward and would proceed to evaluation clemency petitions…. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., and 34 different lawmakers are urging the president to pardon environmental and human rights lawyer Steven Donziger, who was imprisoned or underneath home arrest for 3 years due to a contempt of court docket cost associated to his work representing Indigenous farmers in a lawsuit in opposition to Chevron. Others are advocating for Biden to commute the sentences of federal loss of life row prisoners…. Extra clemency grants are coming earlier than Biden leaves workplace on Jan. 20, however it’s not clear whether or not he’ll take motion to protect in opposition to attainable prosecution by Trump, an untested use of the ability.”

Trump Transition

Nicely, who else?

Donald Trump is TIME’s Particular person of the 12 months https://t.co/IjP5W2otV5 pic.twitter.com/CVHX9o0DB3

— TIME (@TIME) December 12, 2024

Trump to Time cowl artist: ‘Ensure my palms are large!”

“Donald Trump 2024 TIME Particular person of the 12 months” [Time]. “Trump has a prepared rationalization for his inconceivable resurrection. He even has a reputation for its climactic remaining act. ‘I known as it 72 Days of Fury,’ he says because the interview will get underneath method. ‘We hit the nerve of the nation. The nation was indignant.’ It wasn’t simply the MAGA trustworthy. Trump harnessed deep nationwide discontent in regards to the financial system, immigration, and cultural points. His grievances resonated with suburban mothers and retirees, Latino and Black males, younger voters and tech edgelords. Whereas Democrats estimated that a lot of the nation needed a President who would uphold the norms of liberal democracy, Trump noticed a nation able to smash them, tapping right into a rising sense that the system was rigged.” • Or, to place issues extra concisely: “These parasites had it coming.” That’s, Trump could also be browsing a extra highly effective wave than he, or anybody else, is aware of. It might be a darkish historic jest if Trump turned out to be this century’s Kerensky.

* * *

“Pete Hegseth Will Be Confirmed” [Mark Judge, Splice Today]. “Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), who was reluctant to assist Hegseth, emerged from a gathering not too long ago saying Hegseth ought to get an opportunity to make his case at a public affirmation listening to. ‘We’re having actually good discussions, and we mentioned a number of gadgets that have been actually vital to me,’ Ernst mentioned. That is exceptional coming from Ernst, somebody thought of a frontrunner within the battle in opposition to sexual assault within the army. Hegseth was accused of sexually assaulting a lady in 2017…. So what modified? Joni Ernst is a survivor of sexual assault. Why did her opinion shift so abruptly? I don’t know the reply to that query, however I’m keen to make a guess. I feel that in 2017 Hegseth was extorted by DNC goons who set him up. I feel, now free of any non-disclosure settlement, Hegseth has been capable of discuss in regards to the extortion. I feel that’s what the FBI and senators know and what turned the tide.” • Massive if true. Within the creator’s view, he was arrange in comparable style in the course of the Kavavanaugh hearings. And see Water Cooler again in November: “Democrats are enlisting high-powered attorneys, whereas opposition researchers on the Democratic Nationwide Committee are compiling dossiers of incoming federal officers.” And oppo the Hegseth tales (true or not) actually have been.

* * *

“Billion greenback squirrel: Trump impact fuels crypto’s ‘memecoin’ growth” [Financial Times]. “Cryptocurrencies representing a euthanised gray squirrel, a Thai pygmy hippopotamus and a cartoon canine have exploded in worth since final month’s US presidential election, as Donald Trump’s victory triggers a surge in hypothesis in so-called memecoins. The marketplace for tokens representing on-line viral moments has expanded quickly since early November as merchants wager that Trump’s administration will usher in additional crypto-friendly attitudes and regulation in Washington. There are thousands and thousands of memecoins, which might simply be arrange utilizing on-line memecoin mills. They don’t have any enterprise mannequin, money movement or elementary worth, and don’t give their house owners a share of any bodily asset. As an alternative, these extremely risky tokens depend on their reputation amongst merchants to generate liquidity. ‘They don’t have any worth, they by no means may have worth,’ Charles Hoskinson, co-founder of the Cardano blockchain, mentioned about memecoins not too long ago. ‘There’s no utility behind them, no one needs them — after they lose their lustre they go to zero.’” • Look, the Thai pygmy hippopotamus (“Moodeng”) known as election 2024. If that’s not “worth, I don’t know what’s.

* * *

“Save a Reagan Initiative From Musk and Ramaswamy” [Wall Street Journal]. The deck: “The Division of Authorities Effectivity might search to slash the Nationwide Endowment for Democracy’s funding.” • What’s incorrect with slashing funding for the spooks?

“Blow Up Washington” [Tablet]. “All the historical past of the republic has taken place in opposition to the backdrop of regular growth within the scope and focus of energy on the federal degree…. Whereas too many new presidents have embraced this course of, Reagan sought to reverse it, solely to sluggish the sprawl for just a few years. Is the lesson, then, that Washington will proceed to broaden on the expense of the remainder of the nation? Is that this course of unstoppable? It needn’t be. Whereas placing a steadiness between the attributions of the federal and state governments is sophisticated, controlling the bodily location of presidency exercise is far more simple. Let’s disperse the federal government companies away from the gridlocked highways and overpriced actual property of the Washington, D.C., space to the economically depressed areas of the nation they serve, recycling the federal finances again to the financial system from which it got here. If the companies are in reality dispersed all through the nation that helps them, recycling tax {dollars} into the native economies from which they got here, it might not solely be useful to the nation at giant, but in addition, in contrast to the well-intentioned however solely quickly efficient reforms of the Reagan period, it might show irreversible. As soon as the federal government companies that now crowd Washington and its suburbs are relocated to Appalachia, the Rust Belt, and the poverty pockets of the West, the states that might welcome them will battle within the halls of Congress to maintain their share of the $60 billion-plus payroll from returning to the banks of the Potomac.” • A lot relies on the areas chosen. One may argue, for instance, {that a} (hypothetical) Dental Floss Safety Company needs to be positioned within the midst of the alabaster waves of dental floss fields within the heartland (to be “nearer to the shoppers”). However may that result in extra trade seize, moderately than much less?

* * *

“Chris Wray folds like low-cost swimsuit. Don’t be Chris Wray” [Public Notice]. “FBI Director Christopher Wray turned the newest public official to take away his personal backbone and dissolve right into a puddle of genuflecting goo for the larger glory of MAGA along with his announcement Wednesday that he’ll resign earlier than Trump’s inauguration. FBI administrators are purported to be unbiased, and Wray nonetheless has greater than two years left on his time period…. Wray mentioned that, in mild of Trump’s animosity, his resignation was ‘the easiest way to keep away from dragging the Bureau deeper into the fray.’ For Wray, apparently, the looks of resistance is a bridge too far, so it’s finest simply to let the fascist win so he can impose the swift, unilateral peace of autocracy.” • I love “fascist”; it reveals a dedication to the bit few Democrats have. Extra centrally: “You’re gonna need to study your clichés.” One folds “like a deckchair” (an affordable swimsuit might wrinkle, however it doesn’t fold). The “low-cost swimsuit” snowclone (phrasal template) works like this: “The ____ have been throughout ___ like an affordable swimsuit.” The blanks could possibly be crammed in with, say, “press” and “me.” Or “spooks” and “the Trump marketing campaign.” Or “enterprise capitalists” and “AI.”

“A Scandalous Resignation” [The Atlantic]. “However a scandal it most actually is. By , FBI administrators serve 10-year phrases, a norm designed to insulate the FBI from stress to serve the president’s whims.” • The Norms Fairy sheds a tear…..

2024 Publish Mortem

Democrats en déshabillé

“Democrats can work with DOGE. I do know precisely the place to begin.” [Ro Khanna, MSNBC]. ” I stay up for working with the Division of Authorities Effectivity (DOGE) to scale back waste and fraud on the Pentagon, whereas strongly opposing any cuts to packages like Social Safety, Medicare, the Division of Veterans Affairs or the Shopper Monetary Safety Bureau. There are a number of areas of waste and abuse that I hope DOGE will deal with.” • And the CIA Black Finances. Observe, nonetheless: “DOGE co-chair Elon Musk.” Musk is just not the co-chair of something, as a result of DOGE is just not an formally constituted entity of any form (“Hey children! Let’s placed on a present!” doesn’t meet that criterion). And when (if?) it turns into one, I might wager it should conform to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), identical to HICPAC. From GAO:

Federal advisory committees are created by Congress, Presidents, and government department companies to realize experience

and coverage recommendation from people outdoors the federal authorities. Establishing an advisory committee might also permit the federal authorities to offer a discussion board the place doubtlessly controversial subjects could also be mentioned by specialists outdoors the political area and cut back the workload of government department workers and Congress.

That positive feels like DOGE’s use case to me. Elon can opine and gather ideas on the Twitter all he needs, however sooner or later DOGE must, because it have been, interact the clutch and start transmission to the federal government; FACA is the apparent API for that. In any other case, Elon is simply jawboning, and I wouldn’t give a lot for his possibilities of success, even when he does handle to induce the occassional DOGEpile on some hapless civil servant.

Syndemics

“I’m in earnest — I can’t equivocate — I can’t excuse — I can’t retreat a single inch — AND I WILL BE HEARD.” –William Lloyd Garrison

Covid Sources, United States (Nationwide): Transmission (CDC); Wastewater (CDC, Biobot; consists of many counties; Wastewater Scan, consists of drilldown by zip); Variants (CDC; Walgreens); “Iowa COVID-19 Tracker” (in IA, however nationwide knowledge). “An infection Management, Emergency Administration, Security, and Normal Ideas” (particularly on hospitalization by metropolis).

Lambert right here: Readers, thanks for the collective effort. To replace any entry, do be happy to contact me on the deal with given with the crops. Please put “COVID” within the topic line. Thanks!

Sources, United States (Native): AK (dashboard); AL (dashboard); AR (dashboard); AZ (dashboard); CA (dashboard; Marin, dashboard; Stanford, wastewater; Oakland, wastewater); CO (dashboard; wastewater); CT (dashboard); DE (dashboard); FL (wastewater); GA (wastewater); HI (dashboard); IA (wastewater studies); ID (dashboard, Boise; dashboard, wastewater, Central Idaho; wastewater, Coeur d’Alene; dashboard, Spokane County); IL (wastewater); IN (dashboard); KS (dashboard; wastewater, Lawrence); KY (dashboard, Louisville); LA (dashboard); MA (wastewater); MD (dashboard); ME (dashboard); MI (wastewater; wastewater); MN (dashboard); MO (wastewater); MS (dashboard); MT (dashboard); NC (dashboard); ND (dashboard; wastewater); NE (dashboard); NH (wastewater); NJ (dashboard); NM (dashboard); NV (dashboard; wastewater, Southern NV); NY (dashboard); OH (dashboard); OK (dashboard); OR (dashboard); PA (dashboard); RI (dashboard); SC (dashboard); SD (dashboard); TN (dashboard); TX (dashboard); UT (wastewater); VA (wastewater); VT (dashboard); WA (dashboard; dashboard); WI (wastewater); WV (wastewater); WY (wastewater).

Sources, Canada (Nationwide): Wastewater (Authorities of Canada).

Sources, Canada (Provincial): ON (wastewater); QC (les eaux usées); BC (wastewater); BC, Vancouver (wastewater).

Hat tricks to useful readers: Alexis, anon (2), Art_DogCT, B24S, CanCyn, ChiGal, Chuck L, Festoonic, FM, FreeMarketApologist (4), Gumbo, hop2it, JB, JEHR, JF, JL Joe, John, JM (10), JustAnotherVolunteer, JW, KatieBird, KF, KidDoc, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, sq. coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3).

Keep protected on the market!

Maskstravaganza

“An Interview with Zhou Liang, the Creator of Zimi Masks” [CovidAware]. LIANG: “I began designing and producing masks in 2013. Zimi is my third entrepreneurial venture… Zimi masks = body + filter component. The body is made from plastic, doesn’t include steel, and is on the market in a wide range of sizes. The body has elastic properties and might be reused till it breaks or cracks. This time is just not fastened. For instance, when you ask me, how lengthy can your telephone case final? The filter component is especially composed of filter materials and sealing materials. The filter materials is a polypropylene-based fiber materials with static cost. It has a number of layers, and static electrical energy is continually consumed throughout use. The sealing materials is a brand new composite materials with a 2+1 construction. There’s a layer of hermetic materials within the center, so it’s comfy and doesn’t permit air to penetrate. The filter component might be changed after use….. As of December 2024, Zimi masks have 4 frames, and the frames for XS and XL sizes are accomplished inside a month….” • Fascinating to hearken to a working engineer!

Sequelae: Covid

“How Covid Can Change Your Intestine” [New York Times]. “We don’t have good estimates for what share of individuals with Covid go on to develop persistent gastrointestinal signs, however some restricted and small research counsel they are often between 16 and 40 %…. One idea about how the coronavirus may trigger these signs is that it might ramp up irritation within the gastrointestinal tract. Covid may also disrupt the intestine microbiome, Dr. King mentioned, leading to fewer of the ‘good’ microbes that tamp down irritation and extra of the ‘unhealthy’ ones that trigger irritation. Over time, irritation can injury the liner of the gut, making it extra permeable or ‘leaky,’ Dr. Chey mentioned. That leakiness might permit molecules from meals to flee from the intestine, inflicting immune cells to mount an allergy-like response to meals. Covid-induced irritation might also ‘chew away’ on the nerves that management contractions and ache alerts within the intestine, mentioned Dr. Braden Kuo, a neurogastroenterologist at Massachusetts Normal Hospital. This may trigger the nerves to ship ache alerts to the mind, even when digestion is working usually, he mentioned. Nervousness and melancholy usually worsen intestine signs, too.” • If the Instances is overlaying this, it have to be unhealthy…

TABLE 1: Each day Covid Charts

Lambert: CDC’s wastewater web page loaded. No Thanksgiving surge that I can see.

Wastewater
This week[1] CDC December 2	Final week[2] CDC (till subsequent week):
Variants [3] CDC December 7	Emergency Room Visits[4] CDC November 30
Hospitalization
New York[5] New York State, knowledge December 10:	Nationwide [6] CDC December 5:
Positivity
Nationwide[7] Walgreens December 9:	Ohio[8] Cleveland Clinic November 23:
Vacationers Knowledge
Positivity[9] CDC November 19:	Variants[10] CDC November 4:
Deaths
Weekly Deaths vs. % Positivity [11] CDC November 20:	Weekly Deaths vs. ED Visits [12] CDC November 20:

LEGEND

1) ★ for charts new as we speak; all others should not up to date.

2) For a full-size/full-resolution picture, Command-click (MacOS) or right-click (Home windows) on the chart thumbnail and “open picture in new tab.”

NOTES

[1] (CDC) Excellent news!

[2] (CDC) Final week’s wastewater map.

[3] (CDC Variants) XEC takes over. That WHO label, “Ommicron,” has performed an important job normalizing successive waves of an infection.

[4] (ED) Down.

[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Leveled out.

[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). Really improved; it’s now one of many few charts to point out your complete course of the pandemic to the current day.

[7] (Walgreens) Down.

[8] (Cleveland) Down.

[9] (Vacationers: Positivity) Leveling out.

[10] (Vacationers: Variants). Positivity is new, however variants haven’t but been launched.

[11] Deaths low, positivity leveling out.

[12] Deaths low, ED leveling out.

Stats Watch

Employment Scenario: “United States Preliminary Jobless Claims” [Trading Economics]. “US preliminary jobless claims soared by 17,000 from the earlier week to 242,000 on the primary week of December, effectively above market expectations that they’d fall to 220,000, to mark the sharpest rely of recent claims since October.”

Inflation: “United States Producer Costs” [Trading Economics]. “Producer Costs in america elevated to 146.49 factors in November from 145.94 factors in October of 2024.”

Manufacturing: “Inside Boeing’s wrestle to make its best-selling airplane once more” [Reuters]. “Boeing’s cautious strategy, following criticism that the planemaker for years rushed manufacturing, has garnered reward from regulators and a few airline CEOs. Nevertheless it additionally has some smaller suppliers who minimize jobs or working hours in the course of the strike hesitating to staff-up once more, creating additional uncertainty in an already fragile provide chain, based on three suppliers, one analyst and an trade supply…. On the manufacturing facility, day by day duties are paired with exacting efforts to scrub up and take steps to keep away from error, with note-taking FAA officers carrying clipboards and donning reflective vests a daily sight, they mentioned…. [FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker] informed Reuters that Boeing has a protracted journey to realize its focused security tradition. ‘, as you’ll count on, however they’re frank about the truth that they’ve obtained a protracted option to go,’ he mentioned….. Seattle-area provider Rosemary Brester hoped she and her husband would be capable to get their steel plane parts processed extra rapidly following the top of the strike, however delays persist… ‘Till I see some actual stability, I’m not going to rent anyone,’ Brester mentioned.” • The plant wasn’t clear? The thoughts reels. After I purchased printing, I all the time made positive to go to the candidates. Beer bottles underneath the tables have been a powerful no. And the press ought to all the time be operating (“time is cash”). If “cleaner” means what I feel it means, it feels like if Boeing have been a printer, I might have gone elsewhere. And never a monopoly participant, in fact. Can any readers verify?

Manufacturing: “A Nearer Take a look at Boeing’s Choices Market Dynamics” [Benzinga]. “Excessive-rolling buyers have positioned themselves bullish on Boeing, and it’s vital for retail merchants to take word. This exercise got here to our consideration as we speak by Benzinga’s monitoring of publicly accessible choices knowledge. The identities of those buyers are unsure, however such a big transfer in BA usually alerts that somebody has privileged info. In the present day, Benzinga’s choices scanner noticed 10 choices trades for Boeing. This isn’t a typical sample. The sentiment amongst these main merchants is cut up, with 60% bullish and 40% bearish. Amongst all of the choices we recognized, there was one put, amounting to $227,500, and 9 calls, totaling $410,750.” • I don’t play the ponies, however when you do…

Manufacturing: “Boeing’s India exports stay excessive, climbing over $1.25 billion” [BusinessLine]. “World development of civil aviation, together with excessive home demand, has led aerospace main Boeing to stay the biggest exporter of plane elements and software program from India. Talking solely to businessline, Boeing India and South Asia President Salil Gupte cited that the aerospace main’s annual sourcing from India has grown considerably over the previous decade, rising from $250 million to over $1.25 billion yearly. ‘This marks a considerable improve, pushed by the growth of the provider community and developments in manufacturing capabilities,’ Gupte informed businessline. “It’s also truthful to say that this development is really exceptional contemplating that the manufacturing of the aeroplanes themselves on the civil facet has been a lot decrease than earlier than the pandemic.’”

Manufacturing: “Opinion: Why Embraer May Be Prepared To Take On Airbus And Boeing” [Aviation Week]. “A lot focus has been on China’s Comac. Typical knowledge holds that China’s speedy advances in army propulsion and area finally will prolong to business aviation…. I’m not so positive. Within the close to time period, Comac doesn’t must be a world participant for its new C919 narrowbody to succeed. China’s home market is large enough to absorb most of Comac’s restricted manufacturing capability. Growing a really aggressive worldwide product would require certification within the West and the creation of a world upkeep and assist community, no small duties. The continuing decoupling of the Chinese language and Western provide chains poses one more problem. The corporate to regulate in 2025 is Embraer, the feisty Brazilian producer that was virtually purchased by Boeing after which jilted on the altar. With glorious engineers and visionary leaders, Embraer has constructed world-class airplanes for many years whereas defending the mental property of its suppliers. It’s actually able to upgauging to an even bigger airplane that might problem the duopoly. Aviation Week has discovered that a number of giant airways within the U.S. and Europe have informed Embraer they’ll collectively order a whole bunch of airplanes if a brand new program is launched.” Hoo boy. However: “A key query, in fact, is whether or not Embraer can play within the large leagues. It has 1/twentieth the income of Boeing and thus would wish a monetary accomplice with billions of {dollars} to develop a brand new product. Discuss has centered on buyers from the Center East, notably Saudi Arabia. One other problem is that Embraer’s enterprise mannequin depends closely on outsourcing main parts.”

Manufacturing: “GM to retreat from robotaxi operations as soon as championed by CEO Mary Barra” [Business Standard]. “With the choice to fold Cruise into the father or mother firm, GM is giving up on hopes of reworking itself right into a multi-platform expertise firm that focused bringing in $50 billion in income from robotaxi fares and subscriptions by 2030. The carmaker had hoped to double its income by 2030 on the dual pillars of autonomy and electrical automobiles. That aim, which GM has known as “aspirational,” additionally now seems to be distant with out Cruise as a brand new enterprise and after GM scaled-back its EV manufacturing targets.” • Ah, “aspirational.”

In the present day’s Concern & Greed Index: 51 Impartial (earlier shut: 48 Impartial) [CNN]. One week in the past: 56 (Greed). (0 is Excessive Concern; 100 is Excessive Greed). Final up to date Dec 11 at 1:27:47 PM ET.

Christmas Pre-Recreation Festivities

“Demonic Christmas Show at State Home Destroyed” [NH Journal]. “Neglect St. Nick; somebody in Harmony might find yourself on Devil’s naughty listing after The Satanic Temple’s Baphomet statue was destroyed Monday evening in an act of yuletide mayhem. Harmony Deputy Police Chief John Thomas informed NHJournal that whereas the investigation into the vandalism is energetic and ongoing, he can rule out not less than one attainable suspect. ‘Santa wouldn’t do that,’ Thomas mentioned. ‘Santa loves all people.’ The statue of the hooded demon was discovered damaged in half round 7 p.m. Monday evening, just a few hours after the marble slab exhibiting The Satanic Temple’s seven ideas was cracked. State Rep. Ellen Learn (D-Newmarket), who helped arrange The Satanic Temple’s show, was noticed gathering up the damaged shards of the goat-headed determine Tuesday morning after getting a name in regards to the destruction. She’s undecided if members of The Satanic Temple plan to place their monster model again collectively.”

Zeitgeist Watch

“Tactical beard oil.” The responses are nice.

“Argument escalates when man visits neighbor with sword and firebomb, Florida cops say” [News & Observer]. I’ll say! “When interviewed, the 36-year-old man confirmed utilizing a bottle with some gasoline in it and brandishing a sword ‘to make a degree,’ police mentioned. The suspect mentioned ‘he went to the residence to ship a message concerning disrespect to a member of the family,’ police mentioned. Particulars of that incident weren’t launched.”

Groves of Academe

“UCLA’s new AI-designed literature course has the worst-looking textbook cowl I’ve ever seen” [Literary Hub]. “UCLA introduced the opposite day that ‘Comp Lit 2BW would be the first course within the UCLA School Division of Humanities to be constructed across the Kudu synthetic intelligence platform. The textbook: AI-generated. Class assignments: AI-generated. Educating assistants’ sources: AI-generated.’ The professor’s rationalization of why any of that is good doesn’t make any sense to me — she appears to be describing normal instructing practices like discussing texts and placing collectively a syllabus, however now AI is concerned. Which to me all the time seems like a looming labor challenge — I wouldn’t be shocked to see this software program cited as justification to fireplace professors or TAs, or cut back their pay.” Plus ça change…. Extra “However what actually obtained me fuming was the horrible, horrible textbook cowl that was extruded for this course.” • Right here it’s:

Concluding: “This cowl sucks, it’s so unhealthy. Have some dignity folks, we don’t need to stay like this.” • UCLA directors: “Sure, you do.”

Poetry Nook

A villanelle (?):

“The villanelle has been famous as a kind that steadily treats the topic of obsessions, and one which appeals to outsiders; its defining characteristic of repetition prevents it from having a standard tone.” Perhaps the poet is an outsider now….

Class Warfare

“Seattle street signal’s message raises questions after CEO’s taking pictures” [KOMO (PI)]. “It isn’t but identified who was answerable for programming the signal or which company operates it — Washington State Division of Transportation (WSDOT), Seattle Division of Transportation (SDOT) — or a non-public firm.” • Wowsers:

These swing voters are getting actually antsy….

Information of the Wired

“Practically half of US teenagers are on-line ‘consistently,’ Pew report finds” [Associated Press]. “Practically half of American youngsters say they’re on-line “consistently” regardless of issues in regards to the results of social media and smartphones on their psychological well being, based on a brand new report printed Thursday by the Pew Analysis Middle. As in previous years, YouTube was the one hottest platform youngsters used — 90% mentioned they watched movies on the location, down barely from 95% in 2022. Practically three-quarters mentioned they go to YouTube each day. There was a slight downward pattern in a number of widespread apps teenagers used. As an illustration, 63% of teenagers mentioned they used TikTok, down from 67% and Snapchat slipped to 55% from 59%. … X noticed the most important decline amongst teenage customers. Solely 17% of youngsters mentioned they use X, down from 23% in 2022, the 12 months Elon Musk purchased the platform. Reddit held regular at 14%. About 6% of youngsters mentioned they use Threads, Meta’s reply to X that launched in 2023.” • In all probability excellent news, truly, on Musk’s hellsite (as its customers have affectionately dubbed it).

Contact info for crops: Readers, be happy to contact me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, to (a) learn the way to ship me a examine in case you are allergic to PayPal and (b) to learn the way to ship me photographs of crops. Greens are tremendous! Fungi, lichen, and coral are deemed to be honorary crops! In order for you your deal with to look as a credit score, please place it in the beginning of your mail in parentheses: (thus). In any other case, I’ll anonymize by utilizing your initials. See the earlier Water Cooler (with plant) right here. From AM:

AM writes: “My favourite evergreen tree with a half moon shining between the branches on the left – Roger Williams Park.”

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