Russian Typhoon-class Submarines

Summary: Tom Clancy's "The Hunt for Red October" features the Soviet Typhoon-class submarine, chosen for its formidable size and capabilities, which outstripped even America's Ohio-class in terms of terror potential. These submarines, built for absolute destruction, were equipped with nuclear and conventional armaments, and featured unique designs like saunas and swimming pools for crew comfort. 

Portrayed as a doomsday weapon in the film, the Typhoon-class represented the pinnacle of Soviet naval engineering, embodying the Cold War era's fears and strategic dynamics. Decommissioned in 2021, they've since been replaced by the more advanced Borei-class submarines.

“British intelligence obtained these pictures two days ago. She’s the Red October. The latest Typhoon-class,” Jack Ryan explained, laying out the grainy black-and-white surveillance images of the latest Soviet undersea behemoth. 

“She’s a big son of a b----!” Admiral Greer huffed, as he reviewed the blurred images splayed across the square oak able in his office on the seventh floor at CIA headquarters in Langley. “Twelve meters longer than the standard Typhoon. Three meters wider.” Ryan continued matter-of-factly.   READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> French actor Gérard Depardieu to face criminal trial in October in France over alleged sexual assault on a film set in 2021; Depardieu has been accused by more than a dozen women of sexual misconduct (More)

> English Premier League clubs agree in principle to salary cap; plan could become official this summer (More) | Mike Tyson's boxing match with YouTube influencer Jake Paul (July 20) to be classified as a sanctioned, professional fight (More)

> US actress Lily Gladstone, French actress Eva Green, and six others join filmmaker Greta Gerwig for competition jury at 2024 Cannes Film Festival (May 14-25) (More)


Science & Technology
In partnership with NativePath

> OpenAI strikes deal with UK news publisher the Financial Times; deal allows OpenAI to use content to train models, provide Financial Times content in ChatGPT responses (More)

> James Webb Space Telescope captures highest resolution of the Horsehead Nebula to date; interstellar dust cloud sits about 1,400 light-years away in the Orion constellation (More) | Zoom into the Horsehead Nebula (More, w/video)

> Researchers discover mechanism in fetal mice that heals damaged cartilage cells; discovery may lead to new treatments for joint and bone damage in humans (More)

Business & Markets
> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +0.3%, Dow +0.4%, Nasdaq +0.4%); Dow set to finish April down nearly 4%, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq down nearly 3% (More)

> Paramount CEO Bob Bakish steps down as Paramount weighs merger with Skydance Media; Bakish will be replaced by trio of executives (More) | Royal Philips shares close up 27% after the Dutch medical devices giant agrees to pay $1.1B to settle US lawsuits over its recalled sleep apnea machines (More)

> Tesla shares close up 15% after China clears way for electric vehicle maker to deploy its advanced self-driving software (More) | US Supreme Court declines to hear Elon Musk's appeal over settlement agreement requiring US Securities and Exchange Commission to vet Musk's social media posts (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Four officers killed, four others wounded in Charlotte, North Carolina, while serving arrest warrant; suspect found dead (More) | Federal court rules North Carolina and West Virginia's state healthcare plans are discriminatory for excluding certain care for transgender people; cases likely headed to Supreme Court (More)

> Roughly 50 people killed in western Kenya after dam collapses following heavy rain and flooding; more than 100 people have been killed due to flooding in Kenya in the past month (More)

> Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez says he will not resign after announcing last week he was considering stepping down amid a corruption probe against his wife, Begoña Gómez (More)

SOURCE:  1440  News

Computer RIP OFF

 

Nowadays, if you are going to function in society at all, you need a smart phone and/or a computer:  laptop, ipad, or desktop...  although desktops are usually business oriented not for personal use at home since most of us are extremely mobile.

If you buy GEEK SQUAD protection at Best Buy, that service is only good for non-hardware related issues, primarily viruses and/or hacking issues.  So, if you want hardware protection, then you must sign another deal with the manufacturer.

And this is where the BIG RIP OFF OCCURS...

First of all, not all virus protection software will safe you from all hacking situations, therefore, you are put into a bind and forced to get GEEK SQUAD protection.  The alternatives are more expensive.

Just a few years ago, when you purchased a laptop, there was seldom a problem with the hardware, so GEEK SQUAD protection was all that you needed.

BUT...  the last three laptops that I have purchased, I have had keyboard issues.  Fortunately, these keyboard issues arrived when the laptops were almost three years old so it was time to replace anyway.  However, my latest laptop, a Dell Vostro, was purchased from DELL ONLINE and in less than a year, the laptop started developing keyboard issues.

Keyboard issues can be solved by attaching an external keyboard, but that sorta defeats the purpose of having a laptop...   the whole point of a laptop is because most of us are mobile and like to have a computer with us wherever we go and don't want to carry around an external keyboard.

So, it seems that not only do you need GEEK SQUAD protection from hackers and viruses, you now need hardware protection because the damn computer was not manufactured that well from the getgo.

Hardware protection for the first year came from Dell, so I am covered but I purchased an extended warranty for a year in order to keep my laptop protected...  mainly because I am not sure what else might CRAP OUT.

After two years, I don't give a shit because it is tim to upgrade anyway.

BUT THE COMPUTER INDUSTRY HAS THE CONSUMER BY THE BALLS AND THEY KNOW IT...  AND IT WOULD APPEAR THAT THEY DON'T CARE...

Bath Time

 

Atoms Morph into Quantum Waves

In the 1920s, the pioneering physicist Erwin Schrödinger formulated an equation that fundamentally transformed our understanding of the universe. Schrödinger's equation describes how particles can behave like waves, a concept that underpins much of quantum mechanics. 

Now, nearly a century later, researchers have made a remarkable advancement that perfectly recreates Schrödinger's predictions in the laboratory: capturing single atoms morphing into quantum waves.

A Historic Moment in Quantum Imaging
The recent breakthrough involves capturing images of individual atoms exhibiting wave-like behavior. This is a historic achievement, as it provides the clearest image ever seen of atoms behaving like quantum waves, just as predicted by Schrödinger's equation. 

This discovery opens up exciting possibilities for studying and understanding the exotic and often mysterious behavior of atoms at the quantum level.  READ MORE...

RFK Jr.

 

TED Talks

 

Clean Fusion Energy

A stellarator may sound like something cooked up in the laboratory of a supervillain, but a breakthrough with this device may help bring us clean fusion energy at an affordable price.

As detailed by Interesting Engineering, a team at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) developed the first stellarator with permanent magnets rather than electromagnets.

In other words, scientists created a device that generates a fusion reaction — the process that powers the sun and other stars — with refrigerator magnets.

"Using permanent magnets is a completely new way to design stellarators," graduate student Tony Qian explained to the online platform. "This technique allows us to test new plasma confinement ideas quickly and build new devices easily."  READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> The 2024 NFL Draft wrapped over the weekend; see draft grades for all 32 teams (More) | See complete list of all 257 picks (More)

> Harvey Weinstein hospitalized following his 2020 rape conviction being overturned by appeals court last week (More) | Taylor Swift scores her 14th Billboard No. 1 album with "The Tortured Poets Department," tying Jay-Z for most ever for a solo act (More)

> Two-time WNBA MVP Candace Parker announces retirement (More) | NBA postseason continues; see latest bracket (More)



Science & Technology
In partnership with Global Air Cylinder Wheels

> Newly unveiled humanoid robot powered by generative AI learns new tasks in less than one day; previous generation from startup Sanctuary took two weeks (More, w/video) | Apple resumes talks with OpenAI to incorporate ChatGPT into its next mobile operating system (More)

> One in five samples of retail milk analyzed revealed traces of bird flu, likely from current outbreak among dairy cows; officials say products are safe to consume, no recalls issued (More) | See outbreak stats (More

> Researchers find link between Laron syndrome, which causes a rare form of dwarfism, and cardiovascular benefits; findings challenge conventional theory of the condition, point to potential treatments for other diseases (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close higher Friday (S&P 500 +1.0%, Dow +0.4%, Nasdaq +2.0%); gains driven in part by Alphabet and Microsoft earnings, and Alphabet's announcement of first-ever dividend as well as $70B stock buyback (More)

> Paramount board to reportedly fire CEO Bob Bakish; announcement expected as Paramount works toward merger with Skydance Media in coming weeks, including expected appointment of Skydance CEO David Ellison to lead Paramount (More)

> The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation closes Pennsylvania-based Republic First Bank Friday, the first lender to fail this year following Citizens Bank in November 2023; an estimated four to five regional banks close each year in strong economy (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Hamas delegation to visit Egypt today; Israel's latest proposal reportedly offers cease-fire in exchange for the release of hostages (More) | World Central Kitchen to restart operations in Gaza weeks after Israel's deadly April 1 strike (More)

> Iraq's parliament passes law imposing a 10- to 15-year prison sentence for same-sex relations and one- to three-year sentence for gender-transition surgery (More) | More than 60 countries have laws criminalizing homosexuality (More)

> US health officials document the first known cases of HIV transmission via cosmetic needles; case occurred at an unlicensed medical spa in New Mexico (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

The Great America

 

The USA has been involved in 12 major wars, has had 46 Presidents, numerous Congresses and Supreme Court justices and has survived a CIVIL WAR.  

After WWII, the USA pretty much rebuilt and refinanced all the major countries in the world.  Until recently, the USA has had the best K-12 education in the world and has more patents and copyrights than any other country in the world.  

Even though, China is rapidly growing its military, the MIGHT of the USA is superior to any other country in the world, including its nuclear power.  The USA has more natural resources than any other country in the world and FINALLY, the USA has MORE FREEDOMS than any other country in the world.

Case in Point:   Is it possible to go to any country in the world, other than the USA and stand in the street with a group of people chanting:

                            DEATH TO AMERICA

Could you do this in Iran?  Russia?  China?   Lebanon?  Syria?  North Korea?  and,  not  be immediately arrested and thrown in jail without a trial?

Obviously, the answer is NO...

Only in American can you do this shit and get away with it and this happens here because of our FREEDOMS.

Do you think we are bothered by 1,000 people chanting DEATH TO AMERICA?  or by 5,000?  or by 10,000?  or by 100,000?

What do you think those people chanting DEATH  TO AMERICA are going to replace America with?  Will they replace it with China?  Russia?  Iran? be Hamas?  Hezbollah?

Many Americans are saying if you hate America so much, why don't you leave and go back to where you came from?

Do you think your chanting on College Campuses is going to change American's Points of View?

You need to understand something...  college students are idealistic, naive, emotionally and mentally inexperienced with the way that society works...  not to mention what it is like to be a combat soldier in war.

By the time the college students are THIRTY, they will look back and wonder why they acted so STUPIDLY.  BUT, it is good that they acted stupidly in the Great America because no other country would have allowed them to do that!!!

Flower

 

The Universe & Dark Matter

Physicists have long theorized that our universe may not be limited to what we can see. By observing gravitational forces on other galaxies, they've hypothesized the existence of "dark matter," which would be invisible to conventional forms of observation.


Pran Nath, the Matthews Distinguished University Professor of physics at Northeastern University, says that "95% of the universe is dark, is invisible to the eye."


"However, we know that the dark universe is there by [its] gravitational pull on stars," he says. Other than its gravity, dark matter has never seemed to have much effect on the visible universe.    READ MORE...

Misunderstood ENTROPY

 

Emerging Technologies

 

Advanced Humanoid Robot AMECA

The National Robotarium has bought Ameca, often called “the world’s most advanced” humanoid robot. This acquisition by the UK’s company for Robotics and artificial intelligence, based at Heriot-Watt University and in collaboration with The University of Edinburgh.

This will mark the predominant moment of a successful accomplishment towards attaining aimed goals that consider the need to engage the public with Humanoid Robot Ameca pioneering robotics accessibility and public trust

The establishment of Ameca at the Nation’s Robotarium is a major part of a comprehensive action plan that is designed to simplify the complications of robotics and AI technology areas. The human-like robot will be equipped with cutting edge technologies to let him interact with his friends in a very realistic and natural way.  READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

Living Life

While I am writing my thoughts down in this article, there are a variety of people all over the world engaged in the following activities:

• Drinking alcohol
• Sleeping
• Going somewhere
• committing a crime
• having sex
• killing others
• studying
• earning a living
• Dying
• Meditating

And more than likely, involved in hundreds of things not listed above.  So, what is my point here?

What I am trying to come to terms with is the MEANING and/or PURPOSE of LIFE...

If we simply look at what others are doing as a basis from which we will draw our conclusions, those conclusions could be filled with holes.  Especially since, people do what they have to do or think they must do, not really what they want to do.

THEREFORE, I can say that PURPOSE and MEANING is not the result of what you think you should be doing...

Now...  to door is open to the meaning and/or purpose of life from a not what you think you should be doing perspective...

With this door open, we can look at the following,

The Purpose/Meaning of life is to seek:

1. Religion Faith & Understanding
2. Wealth/Power/Influence
3. Self -Edification
4. Just Living
5. Helping Others
6. Enlightenment (whatever that means?)

Most of the people (on average) I think would say to JUST LIVE which includes a little bit of religion, wealth, self-edification, helping others, and enlightenment.

Life is about all of these, not just one.  It cannot just be about one because life is not that simple, it's complex with a variety of interactions.   Sometimes, these interactions are so subtle that we hardly, if at all, realize we are being influenced.   

•  

Eagles