Better Off Today than in 2020?

 When I watch FOX News each morning, a reoccurring theme is how many to most Americans are worse off today than they were in 2020...  and, this is blamed on Biden because he shut down the XL Pipeline project, allowed illegal immigrants to pour through our borders, and put so much money into the economy that it caused inflation and layoffs...

Biden blames all his problems on Trump because if Trump had not done what he did then Biden would not have had to do what he did.  Somehow that logic does not make sense to me, but that is what his administration is saying.

Granted, food prices have gone up and come down a little and gas prices have gone up and come down a little.  When we go out to a restaurant for brunch or dinner, we are paying $20 more than we used to pay.

But, we are using the same amount of money today each month that we were using in 2020... so, from a financial standpoint, I do not feel any financial pain.  However, there are other people who have claimed that they are in a great deal of financial pain since Biden took office...  and, there are retired people who have stated they have had to get a part time job.

I am sure they are telling the truth, but you don't know the specifics of their lifestyle and there might have been areas that they could have cut back...

In other words, I know that prices have increased but that increase has cause no burdens on us and we are spending overall what we used to spend and we are saving overall what we used to save.

I am against the Democrats because I don't support the green energy movement and believe our economy would be better off if we drilled for all the oil we could find.

I am also against illegal immigration.

I am also against our high and increasing National Debt

So, my point is this....  we are worse off today than in 2020 but not everyone feels the pain...

Elephant

 

Supercomputer that Simulates Entire Human Brain

A neuromorphic supercomputer called DeepSouth will be capable of 228 trillion synaptic operations per second, which is on par with the estimated number of operations in the human brain

A supercomputer capable of simulating, at full scale, the synapses of a human brain is set to boot up in Australia next year, in the hopes of understanding how our brains process massive amounts of information while consuming relatively little power.  READ MORE...

Rome's Forbidden Art

 

Learning From One's Past

 It is said that we learn from our past...  and without clarification, one is not completely sure what that entails.

Do we look back 20 years, I am now learning this from my past...  or do we learn as we age?  

We are constantly living in the present, if you had not thought much about it and that present is always pushing us towards our future, so from one second to the next, we have created a past - present - and a future.

I pick up my coffee cup and spill it because I was not paying attention to picking up the cup.  That action began in my present but immediately went into my past, as my present moved into the future.

So, I learned instantly.

I did not wait 20 years, look back and ask myself what did I learn from spilling my cup of coffee twenty years ago.

We can look at history and conclude that the actions taken 200 years ago were wrong...  but can we actually apply that learning process to similar actions 200 years later, since much has changed?  Obviously, we will make different decisions because of different circumstances and learned almost right away, if that was the right thing to do or not.

In other words, I don't think we actually learn that much from the past at all whether it is our past or someone else's past.

Pulp Fiction

 

In the NEWS

The Israeli military has reportedly begun pumping seawater from the Mediterranean into a complex tunnel network underneath Gaza. The operation, likely to take weeks, is part of Israel's efforts to destroy the roughly 300-mile-long infrastructure used by Hamas to transport supplies and personnel (see overview). Some of the 140 remaining hostages from Hamas' Oct. 7 attack are believed to be held inside the tunnels. See more war updates here.


Sports Illustrated's parent company, The Arena Group, announced it has ousted CEO Ross Levinsohn, the latest in a string of firings allegedly related to the company's reported use of artificial intelligence to produce content on its website.

The news comes two weeks after tech and culture site Futurism reported the sports publication appeared to be publishing articles written by AI and using headshots from an AI marketplace—without disclosing it to their readers—with many of the articles filled with errors. After initially denying the report, The Arena Group said the articles were product reviews and licensed content from an external, third-party company. Listen to an interview with the journalist who broke the news here.


Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), the video game industry's largest convention in North America, shutting down after 28 years (More)


Andre Braugher, Emmy-winning actor known for roles in “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” dies at 61 (More) | Bulelwa "Zahara" Mkutukana, iconic multiplatinum-selling South African singer-songwriter, dies at 36 of reported liver problems (More)


Researchers demonstrate a hybrid biocomputer, made with lab-grown brain tissue connected to conventional electronic circuitry; potential applications include use in future AI-powered robotics (More)


Blue Origin, the Jeff Bezos-owned space flight company, to make its first launch since last September next week; uncrewed flight will carry scientific research payloads (More)


Harvard Corporation, the top governing body of Harvard, backs university President Claudine Gay following controversial congressional testimony on campus antisemitism (More) | See previous write-up (More)


New York Supreme Court orders state lawmakers to redraw New York's congressional map, finding the 2022 redistricting violated state law; analysts say decision may determine which party controls the US House after the 2024 election (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

A Cosmology Mystery

A recent study proposes that the “Hubble tension,” a discrepancy in measurements of the universe’s expansion rate, can be resolved using the alternative MOND theory of gravity. This theory suggests local matter density variations account for the observed discrepancies.

Study by the Universities of Bonn and St. Andrews proposes a new possible explanation for the Hubble tension.

The universe is expanding. How fast it does so is described by the so-called Hubble-Lemaitre constant. But there is a dispute about how big this constant actually is: Different measurement methods provide contradictory values. This so-called “Hubble tension” poses a puzzle for cosmologists. Researchers from the Universities of Bonn and St. Andrews are now proposing a new solution: Using an alternative theory of gravity, the discrepancy in the measured values can be easily explained — the Hubble tension disappears. The study has now been published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS).
Understanding the Universe’s Expansion

The expansion of the universe causes the galaxies to move away from each other. The speed at which they do this is proportional to the distance between them. For instance, if galaxy A is twice as far away from Earth as galaxy B, its distance from us also grows twice as fast. The US astronomer Edwin Hubble was one of the first to recognize this connection.  READ MORE...

Food Worth Printing

 

American Made Value Has Been Dead Since the !960s

In 1967, I purchased a specialty ordered 1967 Plymouth Barracuda convertible with a 383, 4-barrel carburetor, and four on the floor...  standard was a 273, 2-barrel carburetor, and automatic.  

I kept that car for over 30 years.  Had the engine rebuilt at 200,000 miles, repainted in the original candy apple red pigment, a new top that glass in the back instead of plastic.  I also replaced the seats and carpet.  

This cost me about $2,500 and I paid $3,500 for the car so I had $6,000 invested in it.  The car had over 350,000 miles on it when it was sold...  maybe closer to 400,000 but I cannot be sure about that.

Before I sold it, I would take her out on the interstate and blow her out somewhere around 100-120 mph on a straight away.   It felt good to be driving that kind of power.

Today's cars are not like the cars they manufactured in the 1960s.  Not sure why that is because of all the advanced technology but once you hit 100,000 miles on a car, it is time to look for a new one.  However, Toyota has a reputation of going 200,000 to 300,000 miles before it starts to have problems.

When you think about this longevity issue for a while, it begins to make sense.  The consumer market is only so big...  one would call it finite even with an increasing birthrate.  So, the only way to continue that you can increase revenues year after year, is to make products that don't last long and need to be replaced.

This is not just true with vehicles but with appliances, hand tools, electronic equipment although this last one is replaced primarily because technology has improved and not because its components have worn out.

My parents kitchen appliances, washer and dryer, lasted over 30 years and were replaced not because they were not working but because my parents wanted the newer technology.

Somewhat Political

 

Living In a Computer Simulation

Physicists have long struggled to explain why the universe started out with conditions suitable for life to evolve. Why do the physical laws and constants take the very specific values that allow stars, planets and ultimately life to develop? The expansive force of the universe, dark energy, for example, is much weaker than theory suggests it should be – allowing matter to clump together rather than being ripped apart.

A common answer is that we live in an infinite multiverse of universes, so we shouldn’t be surprised that at least one universe has turned out as ours. But another is that our universe is a computer simulation, with someone (perhaps an advanced alien species) fine-tuning the conditions.

The latter option is supported by a branch of science called information physics, which suggests that space-time and matter are not fundamental phenomena. Instead, the physical reality is fundamentally made up of bits of information, from which our experience of space-time emerges. By comparison, temperature “emerges” from the collective movement of atoms. No single atom fundamentally has temperature.  READ MORE...

Gimme Shelter

 

Entropy in Physics

 

In the NEWS

 

The US Air Force announced disciplinary measures against 15 personnel yesterday, spanning ranks from staff sergeant to colonel, due to their failure to address questionable intelligence-related activities by accused leaker Jack Teixeira.


A federal civil trial began yesterday in Washington, DC, to determine punitive damages former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) must pay two election workers for defamation. Eight jurors were selected for the four-day trial, which could require Giuliani to pay up to $43M to the two women.


Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, who has been serving time in a penal colony east of Moscow on an array of charges, is reportedly missing. The 47-year-old was due to appear via video for a court hearing yesterday but failed to show up. His attorneys said they have been unable to get in touch with him for six days, while two penal colonies where Navalny was believed to be claimed he was not listed as an inmate.


What happens when you combine German engineering with the world’s most trusted name in hearing care? The biggest breakthrough in hearing technology in more than a decade. Introducing the Horizon hearing aid by hear.com.


"Barbie," "Oppenheimer," and "Succession" lead film and television nominees for 2024 Golden Globe Awards (Jan. 7); see full list of nominations (More)


Shohei Ohtani to defer $680M of his record-breaking $700M contract until 2034, allowing the Los Angeles Dodgers to sign other star players due to a lowered payroll (More)


Brenda Lee’s "Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree" tops Billboard's Hot 100 for second straight week, more than 65 years after its original release (More) | Members of K-pop group BTS begin mandatory South Korean military service (More)


Jury rules against Google in antitrust case brought by Epic Games, maker of the popular video game Fortnite, finding the Google Play app store and its billing requirements constitute an illegal monopoly (More)


BAE Systems receives first funding award made under last year's CHIPS Act, will be used to increase production of computer chips used in F-15 and F-35 jets (More) | New York to establish a $10B chip research center at the University of Albany (More)


Report claims Israel used US-supplied white phosphorus munitions in an October attack in southern Lebanon that injured at least nine civilians (More) | What is white phosphorous? (More) | Roughly 1.9 Palestinians have been displaced in Gaza from the Israel-Hamas war, UN says; see more war updates (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

First Humanoid Robot Factory

Per a recent write-up in Axios, a factory that produces humanoid robots is set to open in Salem, Oregon as early as 2025, with a number of massive implications for businesses and the general workforce. These bipedal bots are expected to be produced in the tens of thousands annually, with a number already set to ship to warehouse chains such as Amazon to assist with loading and unloading large boxes. The production of these automatons has been sped up by manufacturers citing competition from Beijing, China, where corporate interests project a mass production of robots by 2025.   READ MORE...

Screwed Up Values

 You have to ask yourself, what would the USA be like if all the wealthy people did not shelter their money in offshore bank accounts to avoid paying USA taxes.

• Would we have the national debt as high as it is?
• Would we be able to improve our infrastructure?
• Would we able to offer more social programs?
• Would we have a stronger military?
• Would we have better schools?

Because the wealthy have sheltered their money, the tax burden falls on the middle class...  and oddly enough, it is the middle class that provided the work for the wealthy to become wealthy.

You'd think some of the middle class would stand up and complain about that...

• We want to defund the police because there are a few police officers  that are racists.
• We want to change history because we don't like the fact that the USA was involved in slavery.
• We claim to have a society of white supremacists because there are more whites than blacks.
• We want the Federal government to take care of us instead of taking care of ourselves.
• We think that illegal immigration will solve all our problems by diluting our quality of life.
• We think the consumption of illegal drugs will help us find happiness.
• We think that crime and violence in our cities is caused by lack of proper education.
• We think the other side is EVIL because they do not agree with us.

The United States of America is the greatest country in the world which is the reason why the rest of the world HATES US...

Somewhat Political

 

Illegal Immigrants Want a Better Life

 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS BREAK THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES IN ORDER TO GET A BETTER LIFE INSIDE THE UNITED STATES...

That logic does not even make sense and is the reason that our prisons are full of Americans who wanted to have a better life by breaking the law...

Illegal Immigrants

1. have no technical skills
2. are not educated
3. do not speak English
4. have no sponsors
5. have no immunizations
6. have no pride of community
7. have no respect for the law
8. wants the taxpayers to take care of them
9. are ignorant about what is available to them in the USA
10. are not aware that many Americans don't want them here
11. are creating more harm than good by coming here
12. have no backup plan if they don't get what they want

AMERICANS are fooling themselves if they perceive anything GOOD is going to come from the flow of illegal immigrants into this country...

AMERICANS are fooling themselves if they think these illegal immigrants are going to contribute to our society and the growth of our economy...

AMERICANS are fooling themselves if they think illegal immigrants are going to help improve our quality of life and reduce our cost of living.

AMERICANS are fooling themselves if they think that humanoid robots with AI are not going to replace illegal immigrants first...

Building One's Home