Linkee-poo our so-called leaders speak, with words they try to jail ya

I don't know who put in the large order for t-shirts, or even if you read this blog, but I love you. Thanks.

Mary Robinette Kowal on the importance of self-care. Seriously, your body is giving you feedback all the time. And if you don't head it's call, it will fuck you up. That's what pain is, it's the feedback circuit that "something is wrong." Also, go to the doctors. Seriously. But yes, it's all too easy to ignore it because, well, you've got things to do and expectations to meet.

"(Lenovo) recently announced a Star Trek USS Enterprise high-end computer at its Tech World Conference in Beijing. This uniquely designed computer could become a must-have for Trekkies around the world." Unfortunately for my Trekkie friends it probably won't be seen out of China. (Grokked from John)

Apple Park (aka the Mothership) in Lego. (Grokked from Dan)

"For years, the names of Wi-Fi standards have been needlessly complex. It can be hard to remember which one your router supports – is it 802.11n or 802.11ac? Thankfully, the Wi-Fi Alliance – the organization which certifies Wi-Fi products – has introduced a simpler nomenclature that should make it easier to tell these standards apart." You mean 802.11ac wasn't clear? Now if we could get Apple to stop this "Late 2015 revision" bullshit.

"About 8,000 light-years away, a giant planet circles an aging star, marching once around its sun in a single Earth-year. But that planet, called Kepler 1625b, might not be traveling completely alone." Well, it is the size of Neptune.

"Since Sept. 15, the Curiosity rover, originally launched in 2012, has encountered a few technical issues. It's struggling to send back to Earth much of the science and engineering data it has collected. That small hiccup has seen engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory decide to switch to Curiosity's second brain."

I was noticing this just the other day that there seemed to be a few women winning Nobels this year. "Today, the committee that dishes out the world’s most prestigious science awards is signalling to women and younger researchers that their discoveries will be appreciated rather than appropriated. This will help the Nobel committee in its struggle for relevance, now that it has serious rivals on the gongs-for-geeks circuit." To which I say, about damn time. I will also note here that I was looking for articles on the women who won. I found a number of them about the men and their research, but only notices that they won the Nobel for the women (which is why I hadn't posted anything about it yet - especially about Dr Frances Arnold). (Grokked from Kathryn Cramer)

"American Frances H. Arnold has won half of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her work in changing how chemists produce new enzymes, sharing the prize with another American, George Smith, and Sir Gregory Winter of the U.K for research that has led to new pharmaceuticals and cancer treatments."

"Bay wrote, 'The results of the study show that among those who address The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson directly on Twitter to express their dissatisfaction, more than half are bots, trolls/sock puppets, or political activists using the debate to propagate political messages supporting extreme right-wing causes and the discrimination of gender, race or sexuality. A number of these users appear to be Russian trolls.'" My Russian friends, why do you hates The Star Wars? I know, I know, it's all about the rubles. (Grokked from Annalee Flower Horne)

"China has long been suspected — but rarely directly implicated — in en masse spy campaigns based on hardware made there. The majority of electronic components used in U.S. technology are manufactured in China. Companies including component manufacturers Huawei and ZTE, as well as surveillance camera maker Hikvision, have all fallen under intense suspicion and scrutiny from the U.S. government in the past year." Ah, I see the "Chinese Are Spying" contingent has arrived. But, yes, there have long been stories about equipment "calling home", and that home being in China.

Why being a part of "low information voters" and politicians is a dangerous thing. "The United States ambassador to NATO nearly set off a diplomatic incident on Tuesday when she suggested that the United States might 'take out' Russian missiles that it views in violation of a longstanding arms control treaty."

"Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Thursday said Russia’s deployment of nuclear-capable missiles in violation of an arms treaty is 'untenable' and unless Moscow changes, the U.S. will have to match that military capability." You know, I like the music, but I really don't miss the 80s this much.

"The Dutch defense minister on Thursday accused Russia’s military intelligence unit of attempted cybercrimes targeting the international chemical weapons watchdog and the investigation into the 2014 Malaysian Airlines crash over Ukraine."

Remember in 2016 as the economy looked pretty good, it conservatives and especially the current president said you had to look at The Real Economy™? And now they're all saying how wonderful our garden of capitalism is. Yeah, turns out still not so much for The Real Economy™. (Grokked from Cat Rambo)

"Rising optimism over the strength of the US economy sent the benchmark US government bond yield to a seven-year high on Wednesday, as investors girded for further interest rate increases from the Federal Reserve." I remember several times when the economy was doing this well. They include 1990, 2001, 2007… Or Lewis Black on the Great Recession (graphic language warning).

"The trauma of sexual assault or harassment is not only hard to forget; it may also leave lasting effects on a woman's health. This finding of a study published Wednesday adds support to a growing body of evidence suggesting the link." Anybody who has lived this, knows this.

"Frustrated potential witnesses who have been unable to speak with the F.B.I agents conducting the investigation into sexual-assault allegations against Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, have been resorting to sending statements, unsolicited, to the Bureau and to senators, in hopes that they would be seen before the inquiry concluded." (Grokked from Brent Bowen)

"Members of the Senate are set Thursday to begin reviewing the supplemental FBI background file for Brett Kavanaugh as the White House says the additional interviews from the FBI show no corroboration of allegations against the embattled Supreme Court nominee." If the report was actually exculpatory, they would be handing out (redacted) copies on the steps of the Capital.

"'I urged the president to nominate a different individual. I urged the president to nominate a woman,' (Sen. Ben) Sasse said." Not that he won't vote for Kavanaugh if the nomination isn't withdrawn. But you gotta play both sides and appear to "be tough" in your newsletter home.

"Special counsel Robert Mueller is trimming more attorneys from his office, another sign his team of prosecutors is winding down parts of their investigation into potential ties between Russia and President Donald Trump’s campaign."