A Sense of Doubt blog post #2020 - The Fifth Column Cometh - Weekly Hodge Podge for 2008.29
Welcome to the WEEKLY HODGE PODGE, the collection of whatever I find interesting over the last week, including the weekly pandemic report, and the final installment in the YEAR IN NUMBER feature in the last year of the 2010s.
“You must be bold, brave, and courageous and find a way…to get in the way.”
– Congressman John Lewis (1940-2020)
Lots of goodies in this edition, and not all about the political nightmare that is the prelude to the 2020 election and the state of the union in which Trump actually thinks that the White House is his house (judged by how he acted and how he hosted s a campaign rally there in defiance of the Hatch Act not what he paid lip service to).
There's some cool stuff on BOOKS and a GIF of a Collie reading a book. As always, there's some science stuff -- 50 new planets!! -- and there's a report from Iowa State University about a professor forced to change language in her syllabus against hate speech, which breaks with the 1915 Declaration of Academic Freedom.
Because Jacob Blake was shot and nearly killed but is instead paralyzed with his legs chained to the hospital bed (how is that for stupidity?), there's some outrage in here from his brothers and sisters in the NBA and Kamala Harris. Lots of LeBron James. An interview with Chris Paul and some truly inspirational comments (stark contrast to the occupant in chief) from soon to be VP Kamala Harris.
But first, this week's theme... we are the FIFTH COLUMN.
The banner image is for the Fifth Column podcast.
There's also an "adversarial" journalist called Beau of the Fifth Column.
It's a hot button term to be sure given its history. Here's the WIKI definition:
A fifth column is any group of people who undermine a larger group from within, usually in favor of an enemy group or nation. The activities of a fifth column can be overt or clandestine. Forces gathered in secret can mobilize openly to assist an external attack. This term is also extended to organised actions by military personnel. Clandestine fifth column activities can involve acts of sabotage, disinformation, or espionage executed within defense lines by secret sympathizers with an external force.
The podcast and Beau are here to subvert and undermine the hegemony. They both lean left. They both hate Trump. They both want to see change in our world.
And it's time for change.
We must band together in a Fifth Column and take down the fear mongering, dishonest, criminal organization that the Republican party has fully embraced in itself, more hateful and vicious than ever, under Trump.
THE FIFTH COLUMN
See also[edit]
- Alien infiltration
- Black propaganda
- Copperhead (politics)
- Demographic threat
- Entryism
- False flag
- Front organization
- Quisling
- Sleeper cell
- Stay-behind
http://wethefifth.com/
The Fifth Column Podcast, a libertarian-leaning podcast hosted by Kmele Foster, Michael C. Moynihan, Matt Welch.
https://twitter.com/wethefifth
About This Show
From their enclave in midtown Manhattan, Michael Moynihan (Vice), Matt Welch (Reason), and Kmele Foster (Freethink) dissect the news, interrogate guests, and question just about everything. The topics are broad, the insights are deep, and the jokes are off color. Reform the system, or burn it to the ground? They discuss... @wethefifth www.wethefifth.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Kmele Foster works here: https://www.freethink.com/
This image below shows what the Fifth Column in America was originally associated with.
My hope is that this is actually true to some extent. Maybe there is a secret cabal of toady Republicans who just silently ride the shit show of hate that is Donald Trump's America, and if he loses (when he loses?), they will flee the sinking ship, his petty temper tantrum to have an election that does not go his way over-turned will have no support from nearly everyone in the government, though I am still hoping he has to be dragged kicking and screaming out of the White House, which is not his or Melania's.
Another way to see the Fifth Column is the "foreign interference" aspect, though with our digital world "outside agitators" can stay in Russia or China and interfere with our elections and due process, with our very information, from afar.
I see the modern Fifth Column as progressives armed with the truth, with critical thinking, with science, with the political analysis of experts, with facts and data, with historical reference to combat the Republican party who has hitched its wagons to the demon spawn of stupidity and hate and has tried to weaponize the government against its own people.
We fight back with sabotage in the form of standing up for what's right, being outspoken for the good of all the people in our communities, fighting hate and bigotry with all that we have.
This video is buried so I am presenting it twice in this post:
We must be BETTER.
Also, we must be FREE THINKERS.
Fight the propaganda.
Use your brain for critical thinking. Corroborate supposed "facts" from multiple sources. Check in with trusted news networks with a high rating of factual accuracy, like Reuters and NPR, with less bias than most others.
BEAU OF THE FIFTH COLUMN
https://zandlslant.com/beau-of-the-fifth-column-interesting-perspective-crazy-times/
Of course, I had to dig into what this guy is about. Here’s what I’ve discovered so far.
His real name is Justin King. He’s what’s called an adversarial journalist. He’s also an ex-private military contractor. He comes from a military family, born in Japan. He’s spent time in jail as a result of some of his military “work.”
- He’s an activist and an anarchist. He’s left-leaning (I think) but as opposed to many left-leaning activists of the Democratic Socialist ilk who are agitating for more government involvement and caretaking, he’s looking for less. He’s more of a survivalist.
- He’s also heavy into conservation – especially of wolves.
- I’m still baffled as to exactly what he’s about. But for anyone who is curious about politics – both global and domestic – and who is skeptical about current news (from all sources and political leanings), this is an intriguing new voice to add to the mix.
- I was not expecting to hear what I heard him say based on how he looks and sounds (and he often references that disconnect).
- Please watch his videos (below) – I’ll be extremely curious to know what you think
https://thefifthcolumnnews.com/
About Our Sections
The
Fifth Column provides you with insights that aren’t available on other news
outlets. With a focus on long-form journalism and exclusive reports, The Column
strives for excellence in adversarial journalism. Our exclusive reports find
their way into one of our unique sections.
The Fifth Column
The
flagship section of
the outlet contains articles that you won’t find anywhere else. The Fifth
Column is filled with original investigative reporting, exclusive interviews,
and unique submissions.
JACOB BLAKE AND REACTIONS OF NBA PLAYERS (now a political organization according to Trump)
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29759939/nba-announces-playoffs-resume-saturday
Asked Friday night about how leagues and their players have reacted in the wake of the Blake shooting, President Donald Trump directed much of his response at the NBA, saying he believes what has unfolded is "very bad" for the league.
"It's terrible," Trump told reporters. "I think what they're doing to the NBA in particular is going to destroy basketball. I can't -- I don't even watch it. ... You know when you watch sports, you want to sort of relax, but this is a different world. ... You don't want to stay in politics. You want to relax."
"The shootings that continue to happen, it creates a lot of unrest. A whole lot of unrest," Paul said. "For us, to have a predominantly African American league, to see our Black brothers being shot and killed on a daily basis, it just doesn't make a lot of sense to us. Everyone expects us to go out and play. I get it. But we needed some time. All of us.
"We needed some time to refocus and understand that we can do that. We're human, at the end of the day. A lot of times people pass a lot of judgment about what we should do or what we shouldn't do, but I give our guys a lot of credit because they've been doing a hell of a job. A hell of a job down here performing and speaking on the different social injustices going on day in and day out. While trying to be a great athlete. While trying to be a great husband. While trying to be a great father."
One of Paul's focuses has been on voting. He says players are pushing NBA franchises and team owners to open arenas and practice facilities as voting locations, among other ideas to promote it. The NBA and NBPA released a joint statement Friday detailing a set of initiatives, including using arenas as polling sites.
While players discussed a myriad of things in their meetings with regard to continuing the season, Paul said the opportunity to remain at the forefront as visible voices for change was the biggest motivating factor to play on.
"We understand how strong our voice is, how powerful our voice is, and ultimately we decided if we go away from this stage we don't necessarily have that same platform," Paul said. "We stood in solidarity. We're going to continue to play, but we're also going to continue to make sure our voices are heard.
"The other thing is, not just making sure our voices are heard, we're about action. That's what our meeting was about, is the real action. Guys said, 'We've been saying this, we've been saying that, but what's the action?' So we had a big meeting with all the players and then we had a smaller meeting where two players from every team came. I think that was very informational and we got to talk to the different [team] governors and we told them the action that we wanted to see in place."
Paul said he spoke with Blake's father (who shares a hometown connection to Paul, having attended college in North Carolina at Winston-Salem State), reaffirming a call to action.
"I think for the young guys in our league, to get a chance to see how guys are really coming together and speaking and see real change, real action. Because guys are tired. Like, I mean, tired. When I say 'tired,' we're not physically tired, we're just tired of seeing the same thing over and over again, right?" Paul said.
"It's emotional, especially when you're a Black man and you know that, when [Milwaukee's] George Hill spoke, he talked about being a Black man and he was hurt. He was hurt. We're all hurt. We're all tired of just seeing the same thing over and over again, and everybody just expects us to be OK, just because we get paid great money. You know, we're human. We have real feelings. And I'm glad that we got the chance to get in a room together to talk with one another and not just cross paths and say, 'Good luck in your game today.'"
Asked what he hopes people understand from the perspective of players, Paul reiterated that it's not about them.
"Just understand that you got a league here that understands that it's not just about any one of us. Our WNBA ladies stood with us. All the other leagues -- whether it be baseball, whether it be hockey, whatever it is -- we're human, just like anybody else," Paul said. "We don't always do everything right.
"But I'll tell you, for me, it's been really tough. It's been really tough just for the simple fact that when things like this happen, I like to talk to my kids about it. I'm a long way from my kids. I can't explain to them why this video [of Blake being shot] is going all over the internet. I have an 11-year-old Black son. Black. Son. Who is witnessing this stuff day in and day out. And we're just trying. And once again I want to go back and just tell our players, 'Great job.' Great job. Keep doing what you're doing and we're going to continue to make change with action."
While the emotions were raw, Paul said maintaining a unified front toward achieving the same goal was always the objective for the players, and something that will stick with him.
"Fifteen years in this league and I've never seen anything like it," Paul said. "But the voices that were heard, I'll never forget it. I'll never forget it."
THE NEAR MURDER OF JACOB BLAKEKAMALA HARRIS FOLLOWS UP
PORTLAND VIOLENCE
Violence erupted in downtown Portland when demonstrators from anti-fascist and alt-right groups clashed on Saturday. Members of the alt-right came armed with handguns and baseball bats. Portland Police sent only 30 officers to the demonstrations, which began with fighting earlier in the day between the two factions of protestors. Later in the evening, 14 arrests were issued. Police said they did not engage “because those involved ‘willingly’ engaged, its forces were stretched too thin from policing 80+ nights of protests, and the bureau didn’t feel the clashes would last that long.” (OPB)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2020/08/28/march-on-washington-protest-dc/
Here are some significant developments:
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29735483/lebron-james-says-black-community-terrified-result-police-conduct
LeBron James says Black community 'terrified' of police conduct
Dave McMenaminESPN Staff Writer
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- In the wake of the shooting of Jacob Blake, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James said that the way the police conduct themselves makes him afraid to be a Black man in America.
"I know people get tired of hearing me say it, but we are scared as Black people in America," James said following the Lakers' Game 4 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday. "Black men, Black women, Black kids, we are terrified."
Blake, a Black man, was shot by police on Sunday in Kenosha, Wisconsin, as he tried to enter the driver's side door of his vehicle. Officers were responding to a domestic disturbance. Blake's father, also named Jacob Blake, told the Chicago Sun-Times that he was told his son was shot eight times and is paralyzed from the waist down. Doctors do not know if the paralysis will be permanent.
Video of the incident, taken from a window across the street, was distributed on social media and shared by Blake's attorney, Ben Crump.
"If you're sitting here and telling me that there was no way to subdue that gentleman or detain him or just before the firing of guns, then you're sitting here and lying to not only me, but you're lying to every African American, every Black person in the community," James said. "Because we see it over and over and over.
"If you watch the video, there were multiple moments where if they wanted to, they could've tackled him. They could've grabbed him. You know? They could've done that. And why, why does it always have to get to a point where we see the guns firing?"
James mentioned that Blake's three children -- ages 3, 5 and 8 -- were in the car, a fact corroborated by Crump.
"It's in broad daylight," James said.
James wondered aloud whether the shooting would have received national attention if not for the citizen filming the encounter, and he pointed out the lack of body camera footage from the responding officers. Kenosha mayor John Antaramian told reporters that Kenosha police were budgeted to add body camera equipment in 2022. Antaramian was unsure whether the dash camera on the police car was recording at the time of the shooting.
"Quite frankly, it's just f---ed up in our community," James said.
James' former teammate, George Hill of the Milwaukee Bucks, questioned Monday whether it was a prudent decision to restart the NBA season in Orlando, Florida, amid the social unrest that became a national conversation after the killing of George Floyd, a Black man, by a white Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, in May.
"We shouldn't have even came to this damn place, to be honest. I think coming just here took all the focal points off what the issues are. But we're here, so it is what it is," Hill said, referring to the NBA bubble. "We can't do anything from right here, but I think definitely, when it's all settled, some things have to be done."
James said he "didn't have any reaction" to Hill's statement. "Everyone has their opinion and reaction to what happened," James said. But he made it clear that he believes he can both compete in the NBA playoffs and be an agent for positive social change.
"I still have a job to do because I'm here. Because I committed. And when I commit to something, I feel like I have to come through. That's just who I am," James said. "But that does not mean that I don't see what's going on and I won't say anything or continue to use my platform, continue to use my voice and continue to uplift all of the other athletes to let them know that they can say and do what's right and not fear what other people's opinions are."
James mentioned the nonprofit organization More Than a Vote -- which he launched in June with a collection of Black athletes and entertainers in order to energize Black votes and thwart voter suppression -- as an example of the work that can be done while fulfilling his day job as a basketball player in NBA bubble.
The New York Times reported Monday that More Than a Vote is raising millions of dollars, in collaboration with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, to pay more poll workers to facilitate voting in Black electoral districts in November's general election. The hope is to identify and incentivize young people to work at the polls so as to not put elderly poll workers at risk while the COVID-19 pandemic persists.
"I hope I can continue to uplift my community, uplift communities all over America, uplift the Black community," James said. "It's not like it's going to happen tomorrow. But being organized and having a plan and keeping our feet on the gas pedal is something that we've got to do."
James' teammates echoed his sentiment, devoting postgame remarks to the broader issues that served as a backdrop to Blake's shooting.
"Our main focus is on social justice, and we are lucky to have a ton of guys who are public figures like Bron, [Chris Paul], all these guys who are always on the forefront and speaking out and able to kind of guide the younger guys and stand up in the right direction and kind of follow their lead," Lakers big man Anthony Davis said. "We are fortunate as an organization to have one on our team who loves to go out there and put his foot forward, and we kind of just follow his footsteps and kind of make sure we're doing the right things as well."
Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma turned his attention to the tactics used by the Wisconsin police officers.
"Quite frankly, it's disgusting to have multiple cops around and not even thinking about [using] a Taser. And forget about the Taser, [not thinking about] just simple combat and taking a man down instead of trying to shoot him," Kuzma said.
James said that fear exists in the Black community because of the seeming pattern of excessive force by the police.
"You have no idea how that cop that day left the house," James said. "You don't know if he woke up on the wrong side of the bed, you don't know if he had an argument at home with his significant other, you don't know if one of his kids said something to him and he left the house steaming. Or maybe he just left the house saying that, 'Today is going to be the end for one of these Black people.' That's what it feels like. That's what it feels like. It just hurts. It hurts."
Blake is in critical condition. James and others on the Lakers wished him a full recovery. After the spate of violent incidents involving the police and Black citizens -- Blake, Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others -- Lakers players also wished for better police training and gun control.
"I think firearms are a huge issue in America," James said. "I don't know how you clean that up. I'm not saying that I've got all the answers, but guns are -- they are a huge issue in America, and they're not used for just hunting that a lot of people do for sport. Right now for Black people, right now when you're hunting, we think you're hunting us."
James mentioned the video of a 10-year-old Black child, Elijah Pierre-Louis, hiding behind a car in his driveway when a police car drove down his street. The video went viral in June as an example of the pervasive fear that police presence causes in the Black community.
"The kid was in his [driveway] shooting baskets," James said. "And as soon as the damn cop was about to ride by, the kid walked behind his dad's truck and waited for the cop to go by. That s--- is sad. No kid should have to feel that threatened that he has to hide at his own house. That is sad, but I know what he's going through because I was one of those kids when I lived in the projects. When we saw a cop rolling, we went behind a brick wall and waited for it to roll out. And if we saw the cops lights come on, we ran ... even if we didn't do nothing wrong.
"Because we were just scared. It's tough."
EXTREME COLLEGE BULLSHIT
https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/23/us/iowa-state-professor-syllabus-blm-trnd/index.html
University forces professor to change syllabus that threatened to dismiss students who argue against BLM, abortion or same-sex marriage
(CNN)A professor at Iowa State University has come under fire for threatening to discipline students who submit projects or papers opposing abortion, the Black Lives Matter movement or same-sex marriage.
The threat was made in the professor's English 250 syllabus, which was posted online and released by the Young America's Foundation (YAF) on Monday. The conservative group said a "whistleblower" tipped them off about the threat.
In the syllabus, the professor says the course's goal is to help students "develop skills in written, oral, visual, and electronic communication."
It also includes a "GIANT WARNING" for students: "Any instances of othering that you participate in intentionally (racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, sorophobia, transphobia, classism, mocking of mental health issues, body shaming, etc) in class are grounds for dismissal from the classroom," the syllabus read
"The same goes for any papers/projects: you cannot choose any topic that takes at its base that one side doesn't deserve the same basic human rights as you do (ie: no arguments against gay marriage, abortion, Black Lives Matter, etc). I take this seriously."
Spencer Brown, YAF spokesman, characterized the warning as "profoundly anti-intellectual as well as unconstitutional."
"Higher learning ought to be about diversity of thought and the free and open exchange of ideas, not an echo chamber where those who engage in subjectively-defined 'wrong think' are dismissed from class," he said.
In a statement to CNN, the university said it took immediate "corrective action" and amended the syllabus. It did not name the professor.
"Iowa State University is committed to a learning environment where ideas and perspectives can be freely expressed and debated. The syllabus as originally written did not comply with the university's policies or values. Corrective action to revise the syllabus was taken on Monday, August 17, which was the first day of the fall semester, as soon as this issue came to our attention," the statement said.
The university added that it has since provided faculty members with "guidance on First Amendment protections for student expression in the classroom."
https://www.wonkette.com/tabs-fri-aug-28-2020
https://montrealsimon.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-senseless-cruelty-of-donald-trump.html |
https://www.wonkette.com/donald-is-cruel-maryanne-trump-barry-dishes-on-everything-we-already-know-about-her-brother
https://www.wonkette.com/trump-tells-ridiculous-lie-about-godless-communists-at-the-dnc-removing-god-from-the-pledge
https://www.wonkette.com/judge-says-trumps-gotta-pay-stormy-daniels-44-100-for-legal-fees
https://www.wonkette.com/new-unemployment-claims-tick-up-again-good-thing-we-renewed-emergency-bene-oh-sh-t
THE WEEKLY PANDEMIC REPORT
I want to add this link to the weekly report. It's important to remember:
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1983 - Is Coronavirus more contagious and more deadly than the flu? YES.
ALSO... I am seeing a big discrepancy between the Johns Hopkins data in death totals and WORLDOMETER data, which aggregates data from many more sources. Could this be the slow down due to the change in how the CDC obtains the data, having it filter first through Health and Human Services department.
WEEKLY PANDEMIC REPORT - JOHNS HOPKINS
Anyway, as usual, here's the weekly links to the data about cases (lower than reality) and deaths (lower than reality, also) due to COVID-19.
Data can be found here, as always:
This is also a good data site:
Last updated: August 31, 2020, 02:26 GMT
United States
Coronavirus Cases:
6,173,236
Deaths:
187,224
Recovered:
3,425,723
About Worldometer
Worldometer manually analyzes, validates, and aggregates data from thousands of sources in real time and provides global COVID-19 live statistics for a wide audience of caring people around the world.
Our data is also trusted and used by the UK Government, Johns Hopkins CSSE, the Government of Thailand, the Government of Vietnam, the Government of Pakistan, Financial Times, The New York Times, Business Insider, BBC, and many others.
Over the past 15 years, our statistics have been requested by, and provided to Oxford University Press, Wiley, Pearson, CERN, World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), The Atlantic, BBC, Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology, Science Museum of Virginia, Morgan Stanley, IBM, Hewlett Packard, Dell, Kaspersky, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Amazon Alexa, Google Translate, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), the U2 concert, and many others.
Worldometer is cited as a source in over 10,000 published books and in more than 6,000 professional journal articles and was voted as one of the best free reference websites by the American Library Association (ALA), the oldest and largest library association in the world.
https://www.historyextra.com/period/20th-century/spanish-flu-the-virus-that-changed-the-world/ |
Nevada Man Becomes First In the US To Catch COVID-19 Twice (nypost.com)
A Nevada resident is thought to be the first person in the United States to be infected twice by the coronavirus, according to findings released this week. The New York Post reports:The 25-year-old man, of Reno, experienced a sore throat, cough, headache, nausea and diarrhea -- and first tested positive for the COVID-19 on April 18, according to a study published to the website SSRN Thursday, which has yet to be peer-reviewed. His symptoms had resolved by April 27, and he tested negative for the virus twice in May, the study says. Then on May 31, he sought treatment again for the same symptoms, in addition to a fever and dizziness, according to the study. The patient was hospitalized five days later as his symptoms worsened to include muscle aches, a cough and shortness of breath. He then tested positive for the coronavirus a second time. Another test revealed he had antibodies against the infection.A Hong Kong man was the first patient ever confirmed to be reinfected with the coronavirus. Two European cases of COVID-19 reinfection were reported one day later.
https://www.wonkette.com/when-new-cdc-testing-guidelines-were-debated-dr-fauci-was-laid-up-like-a-common-john-ashcroft
https://science.slashdot.org/story/20/08/27/029200/breakthrough-ai-identifies-50-new-planets-from-old-nasa-data
Breakthrough AI Identifies 50 New Planets From Old NASA Data
British researchers have identified 50 new planets using artificial intelligence, marking a technological breakthrough in astronomy. CNN reports:Astronomers and computer scientists from the University of Warwick built a machine learning algorithm to dig through old NASA data containing thousands of potential planet candidates. It's not always clear, however, which of these candidates are genuine. When scientists search for exoplanets (planets outside our solar system), they look for dips in light that indicate a planet passing between the telescope and their star. But these dips could also be caused by other factors, like background interference or even errors in the camera. But the new AI can tell the difference.
The research team trained the algorithm by having it go through data collected by NASA's now-retired Kepler Space Telescope, which spent nine years in deep space on a world-hunting mission. Once the algorithm learned to accurately separate real planets from false positives, it was used to analyze old data sets that had not yet been confirmed -- which is where it found the 50 exoplanets. These 50 exoplanets, which orbit around other stars, range in size from as large as Neptune to smaller than Earth, the university said in a news release. Some of their orbits are as long as 200 days, and some as short as a single day. And now that astronomers know the planets are real, they can prioritize them for further observation.The findings have been published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
The research team trained the algorithm by having it go through data collected by NASA's now-retired Kepler Space Telescope, which spent nine years in deep space on a world-hunting mission. Once the algorithm learned to accurately separate real planets from false positives, it was used to analyze old data sets that had not yet been confirmed -- which is where it found the 50 exoplanets. These 50 exoplanets, which orbit around other stars, range in size from as large as Neptune to smaller than Earth, the university said in a news release. Some of their orbits are as long as 200 days, and some as short as a single day. And now that astronomers know the planets are real, they can prioritize them for further observation.The findings have been published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
https://science.slashdot.org/story/20/08/27/2251209/cerns-powerful-new-linear-accelerator-fires-up-ahead-of-lhc-upgrade
CERN's Powerful New Linear Accelerator Fires Up Ahead of LHC Upgrade (newatlas.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from NewAtlas:After an almost two-year shutdown for repairs and upgrades, CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is beginning to fire back up for its next phase of probing the mysteries of physics. Its newest particle accelerator, Linac 4, completed its first test run over the past few weeks, with the potential to provide much more energetic beams than ever before. The LHC paused operations in December 2018, beginning a massive overhaul called the High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC). When it's fully finished and finally fired up in 2026, the upgraded facility will be seven times more powerful and will collect around 10 times more data in the following decade than it did during the previous run.
And now, the first incremental stage of this upgrade is coming online. The new linear accelerator, called Linac 4, has been installed and tested over the last few weeks. This device is the starting point for accelerating protons, which are then injected into the Proton Synchrotron (PS) Booster and onto the rest of the accelerator complex. Linac 4 replaces Linac 2, which was in operation at CERN for 40 years. As you might expect the new model is significantly more powerful, injecting particles into the PS Booster at energies up to 160 MeV -- much higher than Linac 2's 50 MeV. By the time these beams are boosted, they'll reach energies of 2 GeV, compared to the 1.4 GeV that Linac 2 was capable of. This extra energy is thanks to the fact that scientists can tweak Linac 4's beams in much more detail than its predecessor.
In the three weeks up to mid-August, Linac 4 was tested with low-energy beams of negative hydrogen ions, running only through the first part of the accelerator. On August 20, it was finally cranked right up to maximum energy, with beams accelerated through the whole machine. These were then sent into a "beam dump" at the end, a device that catches and absorbs the particles.
And now, the first incremental stage of this upgrade is coming online. The new linear accelerator, called Linac 4, has been installed and tested over the last few weeks. This device is the starting point for accelerating protons, which are then injected into the Proton Synchrotron (PS) Booster and onto the rest of the accelerator complex. Linac 4 replaces Linac 2, which was in operation at CERN for 40 years. As you might expect the new model is significantly more powerful, injecting particles into the PS Booster at energies up to 160 MeV -- much higher than Linac 2's 50 MeV. By the time these beams are boosted, they'll reach energies of 2 GeV, compared to the 1.4 GeV that Linac 2 was capable of. This extra energy is thanks to the fact that scientists can tweak Linac 4's beams in much more detail than its predecessor.
In the three weeks up to mid-August, Linac 4 was tested with low-energy beams of negative hydrogen ions, running only through the first part of the accelerator. On August 20, it was finally cranked right up to maximum energy, with beams accelerated through the whole machine. These were then sent into a "beam dump" at the end, a device that catches and absorbs the particles.
nickwinlund77 shares a report from Phys.Org:A new study finds that Earth's water may have come from materials that were present in the inner solar system at the time the planet formed -- instead of far-reaching comets or asteroids delivering such water. The findings published Aug. 28 in Science suggest that Earth may have always been wet.
Researchers from the Centre de Recherches Petrographiques et Geochimiques (CRPG, CNRS/Universite de Lorraine) in Nancy, France, including one who is now a postdoctoral fellow at Washington University in St. Louis, determined that a type of meteorite called an enstatite chondrite contains sufficient hydrogen to deliver at least three times the amount of water contained in the Earth's oceans, and probably much more. Enstatite chondrites are entirely composed of material from the inner solar system -- essentially the same stuff that made up the Earth originally. "Our discovery shows that the Earth's building blocks might have significantly contributed to the Earth's water," said lead author Laurette Piani, a researcher at CPRG. "Hydrogen-bearing material was present in the inner solar system at the time of the rocky planet formation, even though the temperatures were too high for water to condense."
Researchers from the Centre de Recherches Petrographiques et Geochimiques (CRPG, CNRS/Universite de Lorraine) in Nancy, France, including one who is now a postdoctoral fellow at Washington University in St. Louis, determined that a type of meteorite called an enstatite chondrite contains sufficient hydrogen to deliver at least three times the amount of water contained in the Earth's oceans, and probably much more. Enstatite chondrites are entirely composed of material from the inner solar system -- essentially the same stuff that made up the Earth originally. "Our discovery shows that the Earth's building blocks might have significantly contributed to the Earth's water," said lead author Laurette Piani, a researcher at CPRG. "Hydrogen-bearing material was present in the inner solar system at the time of the rocky planet formation, even though the temperatures were too high for water to condense."
https://science.slashdot.org/story/20/08/27/2256253/bacteria-from-earth-can-survive-in-space-and-could-endure-the-trip-to-mars-says-study
Bacteria From Earth Can Survive In Space and Could Endure the Trip To Mars, Says Study
AmiMoJo shares a report from CNN:A type of bacteria that is highly resistant to radiation and other environmental hazards survived outside of the International Space Station for three years, according to a new study. The Japanese Tanpopo mission involved including pellets of dried Deinococcus bacteria within aluminum plates that were placed in exposure panels outside of the space station. Deinococcus bacteria is found on Earth and has been nicknamed Conan the Bacterium by scientists for its ability to survive cold, dehydration and acid. It's known as the most radiant-resistant life form in the "Guinness Book of World Records." It can resist 3,000 times the amount of radiation that would kill a human and was first isolated in cans of meat subjected to sterilizing radiation. This mission was designed to test the "panspermia" theory, which suggests that microbes can pass from one planet to another and actually distribute life. Tanpopo means dandelion in Japanese.The study has been published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology.
https://www.wonkette.com/is-lindsey-graham-trying-to-use-qanon-to-further-the-rights-war-on-social-media
Today’s how-to: Read local
Looking for something to add to your reading list?
Your fellow Bridgeliner readers have got you covered. We asked last week about your favorite books by Portland authors, and you all really delivered. Here’s what we heard:
- Angel Unfolding by Bettie Lennett Denny
- Burying My Dead by Bettie Lennett Denny
- The Change Code: A Practical Guide to Making a Difference in a Polarized World by Monica Bourgeau
- The Chronology of Water: A Memoir by Lidia Yuknavitch
- Geek Love by Katherine Dunn
- The Great Offshore Grounds by Vanessa Veselka
- Jump-Off Creek by Molly Gloss (plus shout-outs for the author’s other works: Falling From Horses, Wild Life, and Unforeseen)
- Kickdown by Rebecca Clarren
- Moorchild by Rebecca Clarren
- The More They Disappear by Jesse Donaldson Leave Me Alone by Vera Brosgol
- Libba: The Magnificent Musical Life of Elizabeth Cotten by Laura Veirs
- Portland Red Guide by Mike Munk
- The Royal Abduls by Ramiza Koya
- Volcanoes, Palm Trees, and Privilege: Essays on Hawaii by Liz Prato
- Zazen by Vanessa Veselka
We also heard shout-outs to local bookstores Belmont Books and Broadway Books.
Read local, shop local, and enjoy.
https://literati.com/book-clubs/stephen-curry/
Stephen Curry, through Underrated, brings forth stories of people who have defied the odds to become more than what others thought they were destined to be. In addition, Curry seeks to identify and spotlight authors with incredible talent but few opportunities. Through this lens, Underrated is composed of powerful stories that range from faith and family to sports and social justice.
Stephen Curry is an American professional basketball player for the NBA’s Golden State Warriors. Once overlooked as an undersized high school basketball player, Curry ascended to the top of the NBA to become a two-time MVP and three-time champion. He’s an avid reader and has a deep passion for promoting literacy in communities across the world.
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/20/08/30/054244/cory-doctorows-new-book-explains-how-to-destroy-surveillance-capitalism
Cory Doctorow's New Book Explains 'How to Destroy Surveillance Capitalism' (medium.com)
Blogger/science fiction writer Cory Doctorow (also a former EFF staffer and activist) has just published How to Destroy Surveillance Capitalism — a new book which he's publishing free online.
In a world swamped with misinformation and monopolies, Doctorow says he's knows what's missing from our proposed solutions:If we're going to break Big Tech's death grip on our digital lives, we're going to have to fight monopolies. That may sound pretty mundane and old-fashioned, something out of the New Deal era, while ending the use of automated behavioral modification feels like the plotline of a really cool cyberpunk novel... But trustbusters once strode the nation, brandishing law books, terrorizing robber barons, and shattering the illusion of monopolies' all-powerful grip on our society. The trustbusting era could not begin until we found the political will — until the people convinced politicians they'd have their backs when they went up against the richest, most powerful men in the world. Could we find that political will again...?
That's the good news: With a little bit of work and a little bit of coalition building, we have more than enough political will to break up Big Tech and every other concentrated industry besides. First we take Facebook, then we take AT&T/WarnerMedia. But here's the bad news: Much of what we're doing to tame Big Tech instead of breaking up the big companies also forecloses on the possibility of breaking them up later... Allowing the platforms to grow to their present size has given them a dominance that is nearly insurmountable — deputizing them with public duties to redress the pathologies created by their size makes it virtually impossible to reduce that size. Lather, rinse, repeat: If the platforms don't get smaller, they will get larger, and as they get larger, they will create more problems, which will give rise to more public duties for the companies, which will make them bigger still.
We can work to fix the internet by breaking up Big Tech and depriving them of monopoly profits, or we can work to fix Big Tech by making them spend their monopoly profits on governance. But we can't do both. We have to choose between a vibrant, open internet or a dominated, monopolized internet commanded by Big Tech giants that we struggle with constantly to get them to behave themselves...
Big Tech wired together a planetary, species-wide nervous system that, with the proper reforms and course corrections, is capable of seeing us through the existential challenge of our species and planet. Now it's up to us to seize the means of computation, putting that electronic nervous system under democratic, accountable control.
With "free, fair, and open tech" we could then tackle our other urgent problems "from climate change to social change" — all with collective action, Doctorow argues. And "The internet is how we will recruit people to fight those fights, and how we will coordinate their labor.
"Tech is not a substitute for democratic accountability, the rule of law, fairness, or stability — but it's a means to achieve these things."
In a world swamped with misinformation and monopolies, Doctorow says he's knows what's missing from our proposed solutions:If we're going to break Big Tech's death grip on our digital lives, we're going to have to fight monopolies. That may sound pretty mundane and old-fashioned, something out of the New Deal era, while ending the use of automated behavioral modification feels like the plotline of a really cool cyberpunk novel... But trustbusters once strode the nation, brandishing law books, terrorizing robber barons, and shattering the illusion of monopolies' all-powerful grip on our society. The trustbusting era could not begin until we found the political will — until the people convinced politicians they'd have their backs when they went up against the richest, most powerful men in the world. Could we find that political will again...?
That's the good news: With a little bit of work and a little bit of coalition building, we have more than enough political will to break up Big Tech and every other concentrated industry besides. First we take Facebook, then we take AT&T/WarnerMedia. But here's the bad news: Much of what we're doing to tame Big Tech instead of breaking up the big companies also forecloses on the possibility of breaking them up later... Allowing the platforms to grow to their present size has given them a dominance that is nearly insurmountable — deputizing them with public duties to redress the pathologies created by their size makes it virtually impossible to reduce that size. Lather, rinse, repeat: If the platforms don't get smaller, they will get larger, and as they get larger, they will create more problems, which will give rise to more public duties for the companies, which will make them bigger still.
We can work to fix the internet by breaking up Big Tech and depriving them of monopoly profits, or we can work to fix Big Tech by making them spend their monopoly profits on governance. But we can't do both. We have to choose between a vibrant, open internet or a dominated, monopolized internet commanded by Big Tech giants that we struggle with constantly to get them to behave themselves...
Big Tech wired together a planetary, species-wide nervous system that, with the proper reforms and course corrections, is capable of seeing us through the existential challenge of our species and planet. Now it's up to us to seize the means of computation, putting that electronic nervous system under democratic, accountable control.
With "free, fair, and open tech" we could then tackle our other urgent problems "from climate change to social change" — all with collective action, Doctorow argues. And "The internet is how we will recruit people to fight those fights, and how we will coordinate their labor.
"Tech is not a substitute for democratic accountability, the rule of law, fairness, or stability — but it's a means to achieve these things."
This is pretty to listen to...
THE YEAR IN NUMBER: 2020
So, we are now at the end of the series. This is the last year of the 2010s. It's this year.
It's been a really historic year: the worst global pandemic in our lifetimes (in over 100 years), pervasive protests against racism and police brutality more violent, large in size, and ongoing (Three months now) since the 1960s, and the 2020 election with more manipulations, crimes, hoaxes, lies, vitriol, malfeasance, and posturing than any other election that I know of, possibly mre than ever in history.
Some would call it a shit show.
Though I am frequently outraged, I see it as a historic year, the most significant from a historical perspective in my lifetime.
Even though the year is not over, here's a selection of the posts thus far that I feel are significant or demonstrative of my pandemic life.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1780 - "God is an Iron" by Spider Robinson
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1785 - Trans Rights Activist Julie Berman Murdered
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1787 - Feature Article Assignment - ENG 102 - LCC
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1804 - Kobe Bryant, daughter Gianna, and seven others die in helicopter crash
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1818 - Ashley Judd
One of the schools where I teach announced it was closing forever, and then there was a shutdown due to a pandemic...
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1820 - Concordia University - Portland - closing
And then Trump did not get removed from office as we all hoped...
Though as an LBTGQ rights activist, I don't want Pence in power either.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1822 - What Just Happened? Trump is still president - via Bitch Media
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1842 - COVID-19 - News and Perspectives
And then all the schools closed down and went online...ironically, on Friday the 13th...
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1851 - Friday the 13th - The Day it All STOPPED
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1853 - COVID-19 is Nothing Like Spanish Flu
And this...
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1855 - Welcome to Your Hastily Prepared Online College Course
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1862 - How to Touch your Face Less and be Socially Distant - THE OATMEAL
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1864 - Today would have been Baseball's OPENING DAY for 2020
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1867 - Stay in, Read Comics, Support Local Comic Shops: Comic book production suspended
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1873 - How to Spot Bad Science about COVID-19: Rebecca Watson
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1877 - "MR. TIGER" - Al Kaline dies - RIP
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1879 - THE FIRST DAY - Paul Weller rehearsal, NEW ALBUM, and more
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1884 - Michigan, I am so disappointed in you...
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1196 (SoD #1885) - No More Nighthawks - Throwback Thursday 2004.16 and Hodge Podgery
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1886 - SNL at home
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1891 - "Laziness Does Not Exist" and commentary for composition students
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1900 - Another milestone 1900 posts and blog recap
RIP Peter Mayhew, please send our love to Carrie Fisher. pic.twitter.com/QcBmzByEYb— David Leavitt (@David_Leavitt) May 2, 2019
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1903 - 2020: May the Fourth Be With You - Always
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1911 - Florian Schneider - KRAFTWERK - RIP
... and I finished this blog entry because I had a lot of time to write and a lot of time to read in pandemic quarantine...
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1915 - 2018-2019: Books Read
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1927 - White people are the problem - George Floyd RIP
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1928 - new BLOGGER interface - I don't like it
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1929 - Black people are being killed and there's still COVID-19 - Weekly Hodge Podge for 2005.30
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1930 - Comic Books Return - Comic Book Sunday for 2005.31
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1200 (SoD #1934) - BLACKOUT: EIGHT minutes and FORTY-SIX seconds
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1942 - What is ANTI-RACISM and why should I care?
Confronting predatory behavior by established professionals in our industry never going to be an easy conversation. It’s messy & uncomfortable, especially when the people we’ve looked up to, worked with or trusted are the predators. And we have a long road ahead of us.— Becky Cloonan 🔮 (@beckycloonan) June 17, 2020
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1949 - Warren Ellis accused of sexual coercion
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1203 (SoD #1956) - Dad's 85th Birthday
So I started this feature in which I added content to each post from a year of my life because I have now reached a point at which the numbers of the blog posts match the years of my life...
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1204 (SoD #1962) - The Year I Was Born
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1205 (SoD #1964) - Five Years Ago
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1965 - RIP DENNY O'NEIL - Comic book Sunday 2007.05
Like several of the school related posts I added to this year review, I am especially proud of this one. Because I have had a lot of time to write. And I didn't even add all the posts I am very proud of because it's a lot of them.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1967 - Always Have a Book With You, a feature article about chris
tower
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1976 - Using Journals for Creative Writing
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1206 (SoD #1977) - - Young and the Restless suspended production returns
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1981 - And now, the NEWS - WONKETTE - Mom Walls, Ratings Gold, and Accepting Elections
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1983 - Is Coronavirus more contagious and more deadly than the flu? YES.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1984 - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Just Stood Up For Every Woman In The Country
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1988 - Baseball is back! Or is it?
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1991 - AMPLIFIER- BLACK LIVES MATTER - BE THE CHANGE
A Sense of Doubt blog post #2006 - Your 2020 Personal Protection Equipment - WEEKLY HODGE PODGE for 2008.15
The selection of Kamala Harris as VP candidate brought me to tears, but her speech really made me cry, much like AOC's speech posted above.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #2011 - Democratic National Convention Day Three
And now another black man has been nearly killed by police... disgusting.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #2018 - ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!! End Police Murder! Black Lives Matter! JACOB BLAKE!
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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2008.29 - 10:10
- Days ago = 1884 days ago
- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
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