Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> First leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals kick off, with more matches today; see full schedule and results (More)

> NCAA men's basketball championship game brings in nearly 15 million viewers, a 4% increase from last year but behind the nearly 19 million who viewed Sunday's women's championship game (More)

> YouTube stars Dude Perfect, known for their trick shot videos, get $100M investment from Highmount Capital to expand outside traditional video content (More)


Science & Technology
In partnership with EnergyX

> Google Cloud announces new custom-built processor as part of effort to meet rising AI demand, says chip is 30% more efficient than comparable products from Amazon Web Services and Microsoft (More)

> New platform allows study of factors influencing dendritic translation, a key process involved in the formation of new memories (More) | How memories are created (More)

> Scientists discover bristle worm species with eyesight on par with mice, which may be able to detect ultraviolet light; complex vision comes despite the animals having rudimentary nervous systems (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close mixed (S&P 500 +0.1%, Dow -0.0%, Nasdaq +0.3%) ahead of today's March inflation data; economists predict consumer price index report to show growth of 0.3% month-over-month and 3.4% year-over-year (More)

> Gold prices hit record, surpassing $2,300 per ounce (More) | Costco selling as much as $200M in gold bars per month, Wells Fargo estimates; Costco began selling gold bars in August, reporting $100M in sales in its first quarter (More)

> Boeing reports Q1 passenger plane deliveries fell to 83—the lowest level since mid-2021—amid scrutiny following door plug blowout in January (More) | Federal Aviation Administration investigating whistleblower complaint over safety and quality concerns at Boeing (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Arizona's Supreme Court rules 1864 near-total abortion ban is enforceable, superseding 15-week abortion ban passed in 2022, effective in two weeks; signatures being gathered for potential ballot measure allowing abortions up to 24th week of pregnancy (More) | Read the opinion (More)

> US House members to deliver articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate next week; Democrats expected to vote to dismiss charges (More) | See previous write-up (More)

> The Environmental Protection Agency issues ruling requiring over 200 chemical plants to reduce toxic emissions, claims cancer cases near plants expected to fall by 60% (More) | Norfolk Southern agrees to pay $600M to settle class-action suit over 2023 train derailment in eastern Ohio that released toxic chemicals (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

East Tennessee

 

I have lived in Alexandria, Virginia, Burlington, North Carolina, East Tennessee, and North Kentucky over my 76 years of life.  Thirty-four of these years have been spent in East Tennessee, almost half of my life.

As a North Carolinian by birth, one would expect that my allegiance would be to that state but it is to Tennessee instead, specifically the Tennessee Valley of East Tennessee.

Many people think that Tennessee is backwards, uneducated, and full of rednecks that marry their cousins.  I assure you that this is a misconception and could not be father from the truth; although. there are undesirables living in all states I suppose.

What makes East Tennessee so attractive?

• Its close proximity to the Smoky Mountains
• Its abundance of land and beauty
• Its parks and recreation opportunities
• Its low cost of living that includes no state taxes
• Its friendliness of community and neighbors
• Its mild winter climate and warm summers
• Its lack of crime and violence and drugs
• Its support and trust of law enforcement
• Its availability of competent doctors and medical facilities
• Its availability of fine cuisine and numerous restaurants
• Its free community college education
• Its geographical location
• UT Medical has the ability to perform stem cell transplants

What I especially like about East TN is that there is not much automobile traffic except at RUSH HOUR and not many people that cause you to have to wait in long lines in retail stores and restaurants.

• We are four hours from Atlanta
• We are four hours from Nashville
• We are an 90 minutes from the Great Smoky Mountain
• We are 2 hours from Cherokee Gambling
• We are an hour from McGhee Tyson Airport

What I also like about this area of East TN is that I can purchase a 1,500 square foot home (not including an acre of land) for HALF of what I would have paid in North Carolina on average.  The acre land just makes the opportunity more attractive.

East TN is not perfect - we have crime and violence and drugs in our schools and we have illegal immigrants living in certain areas as well.  The issue is that WE DON'T HAVE THE SAME LEVEL OF THESE PROBLEMS AS ONE MIGHT FIND IN OTHER STATES...

Sling Shot

 

Predicting Everything

A breakthrough in theoretical physics is an important step toward predicting the behavior of the fundamental matter of which our world is built. It can be used to calculate systems of enormous quantities of quantum particles, a feat thought impossible before.


The new University of Copenhagen research may prove of great importance for the design of quantum computers and could even be a map to superconductors that function at room temperature. The paper is published in the journal Physical Review X.

On the fringes of theoretical physics, Berislav Buca investigates the nearly impossible by way of "exotic" mathematics. His latest theory is no exception. By making it possible to calculate the dynamics, i.e., movements and interactions, of systems with enormous quantities of quantum particles, it has delivered something that had been written off in physics. An impossibility made possible.  READ MORE...

Jumpin' Jack Flash

 

Smoke on the Water

 

Gigantic Ocean Discovered Beneath the Ocean

Imagine the vast expanse of the world’s oceans. Now, picture an underwater realm three times that size, not across the globe’s surface, but tucked away deep beneath it, at a depth of 700 kilometers. 

This isn’t the plot of a sci-fi novel but the startling discovery made by a team of scientists, unraveling the mysteries of our planet’s water origins.

Unveiling Earth’s Hidden Hydrosphere
The quest to pinpoint the origins of Earth’s water has led researchers to a monumental find—a colossal ocean ensconced within the Earth’s mantle, over 700 kilometers below the surface. 

This hidden ocean, concealed within a blue rock known as ringwoodite, challenges our understanding of where Earth’s water came from. The size of this subterranean sea is so vast that it triples the volume of all the planet’s surface oceans combined.  READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> "Cowboy Carter" becomes Beyoncé's eighth album to top the Billboard 200 chart; Beyoncé is also first Black woman to top country album chart (More)

> National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, an athletic governing body for mostly small colleges, bans transgender women from competing in women's sports (More)

> Actor Jonathan Majors avoids jail time following conviction of misdemeanor assault of his ex-girlfriend (More) | Country artist Morgan Wallen arrested in Nashville for allegedly throwing a chair off a six-story building (More)


Science & Technology
In partnership with Timeline

> Commerce Department awards US subsidiary of Taiwanese chipmaking giant TSMC $6.6B in grants, $5B in loans to build a third semiconductor production facility in Arizona (More)

> Lab-grown "mini-kidneys" successfully grafted into live mice; method will allow the study of polycystic kidney disease, which affects about 1 in 1,000 people (More) | What are organoids? (More, w/video)

> Engineers develop spring-like skeleton to act as muscle tissue scaffolding for biohybrid robots; approach can be used for a wide variety of robots regardless of shape or application (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close almost flat (S&P 500 -0.04%, Dow -0.03%, Nasdaq +0.03%) as investors await consumer price index report tomorrow (More)

> People traveling to see total solar eclipse in the US estimated to have spent up to $1.6B, including on housing, food, and gas, according to consulting group (More)

> 99 Cents Only files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, plans to close all 371 US stores this week, citing inflation as a contributing factor (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sets date for Israel's ground invasion of Gaza's border city of Rafah but doesn't disclose date, says eliminating Hamas battalions in Rafah is essential (More) | US submits new plan seeking release of 40 hostages in exchange for six-week cease-fire in Gaza (More)

> Former President Donald Trump says abortion laws should be determined by US states, declines to endorse nationwide ban in video posted to Truth Social (More) | See overview of state abortion laws (More) | The Vatican reaffirms opposition to surrogacy, gender-affirming surgery, and gender theory in new document (More)

> Criminal trial begins for 27 people charged in worldwide money laundering case tied to the 2016 "Panama Papers"—a leaked trove of 11.5 million files that exposed how the world's wealthiest hide their assets (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

Genders

 

I am not a religious person - don't attend Church - don't really pray each day but if I did, if would not be these long prayers or asking for an athletic or military victory, it is would the simple prayer we were told to pray by Jesus.  Not because it was requested by Jesus but because simplicity makes sense.

I do believe in a CREATOR (not the Biblical God) because it makes logical sense that our universe was created and not the result of the BIG BANG.  You cannot create something out of nothing unless you have the powers of a CREATOR.

With that said, you can see I am more spiritual than religious.  And I mention all of this because I strongly believe that we have only two genders:

• Males
• Females

However, there are males that want to be females and females that want to be males but they will always be their biological gender no matter what they cut off or add on.

I am also aware that there are babies born that have both male and female genitalia...  and that is a mystery as to why a Biblical God would allow this to happen.  My belief that a Biblical God would not allow this to happen if that Biblical God had the power to stop it from happening...  obviously, it cannot be stopped.

Therefore, it must natural for it to happen every once in a while.

BUT, aside from that anomaly, we only have males and females and there is a reason that our DNA only allows those two genders to be born.

There may be cultures in the universe that are different from us and give birth to babies that are neither male or female.  That seems self-defeating because there is no way to perpetuate the species unless birth happens in a different way.

Biological males should not compete in female sports and biological females should not compete in male sports.

If you need to address the EGOS of these transpeople then create a special third category for the TRANS where they compete with each other.

Everyone has a right to be who they want to be, but everybody does not have the right to compete in an athletic category that is different from their biological assignment.

Tympani

 

Six Flux Composite Fermions

A team of physicists at Purdue University has discovered a new particle, the six-flux composite fermion, expanding the understanding of the fractional quantum Hall effect beyond the known two-flux and four-flux states. This significant finding highlights the critical role of high-quality semiconductor materials and supports the advancement of quantum physics research.

If the fractional quantum Hall regime were a series of highways, these highways would have either two or four lanes. The flow of the two-flux or four-flux composite fermions, like automobiles in this two- to four-flux composite fermion traffic scenario, naturally explains the more than 90 fractional quantum Hall states that form in a large variety of host materials.

Physicists at Purdue University have recently discovered, though, that fractional quantum Hall regimes are not limited to two-flux or four-flux and have discovered the existence of a new type of emergent particle, which they are calling six-flux composite fermion. They have recently published their groundbreaking findings in Nature Communications.    READ MORE...

Gimme Shelter

 

You Don't Know How It Feels

 

Ancient Japanese Art

Inspired by Kintsugi, scientists at PPPL have developed a method to manage plasma in fusion reactors by utilizing magnetic field imperfections, enhancing stability and paving the way for more reliable and efficient fusion power. Credit: SciTechDaily.com




Scientists take advantage of imperfections in magnetic fields to enhance fusion plasma.

In the Japanese art of Kintsugi, an artist takes the broken shards of a bowl and fuses them back together with gold to make a final product more beautiful than the original.

That idea is inspiring a new approach to managing plasma, the super-hot state of matter, for use as a power source. Scientists are using the imperfections in magnetic fields that confine a reaction to improve and enhance the plasma in an approach outlined in a new paper in the journal Nature Communications.  READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
In partnership with OneKind

> Singer and rapper Jelly Roll wins video of the year at the 2024 Country Music Television awards; see full list of winners here (More)

> Oregon Powerball player wins nearly $1.33B jackpot, ending three-month run without a winner; jackpot, equal to $621M if taken in a lump sum, was the eighth largest in US history (More)

> Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg retires; the 35-year-old pitcher was the 2019 World Series MVP and former overall No. 1 draft pick but suffered multiple injuries and medical issues (More)


Science & Technology
> Engineers determine technical issue causing Voyager 1, launched in 1977, to return garbled communications beginning late last year, raising hope of a potential fix (More) | The space probe is the most distant human-made object from Earth, having entered interstellar space; see current location (More)

> University of Rochester discloses findings from probe into high-profile academic fraud scandal by physicist Ranga Dias, alleged to have faked room-temperature superconductivity results (More) | See case overview (More)

> Semaglutide, the key ingredient in new weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, has been shown to reduce symptoms and physical limitations in patients with a common type of heart failure (More) | How Ozempic works (More, w/video)


Business & Markets
> Markets rebound Friday, closing up (Dow +0.8%, S&P 500 +1.1%, Nasdaq +1.2%); Dow sees worst week in 2024 despite Friday's gains (More)

> Tesla reportedly suspends plans to build a low-cost entry-level sedan; decision comes amid slowing US electric vehicle market and competition from China (More) | CEO Elon Musk denies reports, also says company will unveil a robotaxi vehicle Aug. 8 (More)

> Retail giant Target launches paid membership program, including one- or two-day shipping, in bid to compete with Amazon Prime and Walmart+ (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Israel reduces its troop presence in the southern Gaza Strip, leaving one brigade reportedly to rest and resupply troops; the move comes at the six-month mark of the war and at the onset of renewed cease-fire talks with Hamas (More) | See updates on the war here (More)

> Los Angeles heist at a money storage facility believed to yield $30M over Easter weekend in one of the largest cash thefts in US history; FBI reportedly investigating the incident (More)

> Trump campaign raises $50.5M at Florida fundraiser over the weekend, surpassing $26M haul from a late March fundraiser held by the Biden campaign (More) | See current polls (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

You Don't Need College Debt

First of all, if you have natural athletic abilities, then attend the college that offers you the best scholarship.

Second, IF YOU MUST GO TO COLLEGE BE SMART ABOUT IT... especially if you don't have athletic abilities.

1. Go to a community college first - it's cheaper
2. Move to a state like TN where the community college is free
3. Work while you are attending the community college and attend classes at night
4. It is easier to be accepted into a big named college in your third year
5. Use the money you saved while working to pay for your last two years
6. If you need to work a part-time or full-time job
7. Graduate from college DEBT FREE

PERSONALLY...  I really think college is over-rated and many graduates never find jobs in their major nor do they use 80% of what they learned in college - they get jobs (not on their GPAs) based upon a perceived value to the company that can result in increased revenues, market shares, or new products.

JOINING THE MILITARY - is a viable option to college providing you do not join the Army or the Marines...  The best career is in the Air Force, Coast Guard, and then Navy.  If you are clever, the military will send you to school in:

• aircraft maintenance
• auto maintenance
• Computers/programming
• Cyber Security
• Electricity/Electronics
• Intelligence 
• Culinary 

After spending 20 years in the Air Force (18-38) you are eligible for a pension and full medical benefits and you have plent of time to work another twenty years (39-59) and be eligible to receive Social Security.

Your retirement income will include:

• a military pension with medical
• social security with Medicare
• whatever you have saved or invested

This is just what is possible if you were to go into the military...

BUT....  you could always think about managing a store like:

• restaurants
• Lowes
• WalMarts
• Target

However, you will have to pay your dues that is to say, start out at the bottom and work your way up.  These types of stores have high turnover because the work is hard, but if you can grin and bear it, in 5-10 years you are assistant manager, in 10-15 years you are manager, and in 15-20 years, you may end up having the chance to buy the franchise.

If you think I am kidding, I know a franchise owner of restaurant that started out as a bus boy and worked his way up.  Now, he owns three restaurants and hires managers.  All he does is visit them each day to make sure they are doing what he wants them to do.

Cat & Dog