US Current Demographics

 

PEACE

 

BEST ONLINE GAMES

1. Minecraft
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The popularity of Minecraft is incredibly durable. What happened after Fortnite’s peak? It seems many returned to Minecraft.

There a reason: Minecraft is a beautiful, compelling and surprisingly deep game. At first it seems simply a blocky-looking survival game. Then it turns into a world-creator where you build an esoteric house not bound by the normal rules of physics.

The longer you play, the more complex systems you discover. People have done bizarrely incredible things in Minecraft, like remaking the entire of Pokemon Red for Gameboy within the game, and making working computer systems with its blocks. This is not only an online game, but your can share worlds with others.

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2. Elder Scrolls Online
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This is one of the best alternatives to World of Warcraft. It is set in the same world as The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, one of our best open-world games. But it naturally feels different, as a MMORPG.

Its core elements are similar to World of Warcraft's. You explore, level-up, head into dungeons and eventually take part in larger-scale raids. But Elder Scrolls Online offers better visuals, superior storytelling and arguably a more fleshed-out world that seems less of an empty vehicle for its play mechanics.

You don’t have to pay as much either. Elder Scrolls Online is not a free download, but you can play without a monthly subscription. There is a “Plus” membership that grants access to DLC chapters, and quicker progression, but you don’t have to sign up to it. You can even treat ESO like a single-player game if you like.
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3. GTA Online
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If you played Grand Theft Auto 5 in 2013, it probably seems a long, long time ago. You might be surprised to hear how much publisher Take-Two Games made off of its online segment, GTA Online, recently. Thanks to it, GTA 5 has generated more than $6 billion.

A few seconds of GTA Online gameplay looks like Grand Theft Auto V, but loads of modes have been added to it since 2013. These include racing sections inspired by Tron, Rocket League and Hot Wheels. This isn’t the most accessible online game to dive into so many years after its inception, but there’s a lot to try if you already own GTA V.
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4. World Of Warcraft
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One of the true icons of online gaming is now almost old enough to drive. But World of Warcraft still has millions of players in 2019.

It’s a third-person role-playing game in which you fight nasties, level up your character and eventually bulk-up enough to go on raids (big battles) with other players. And while there are many ultra-hardcore players online who have been into WoW for years, this is actually one of the easier online games to slip into.

You don’t have to play against other people, and publisher Blizzard offers a freebie download that lets you get your character to level 20. This is intended to give you a feel for World of Warcraft. After that you need to pay a £9.99 a month subscription (with discounts for longer subs).

The sub also gives you access to WoW Classic, a version of the game made to feel more like the 2004 version. It is arguably more fun for new players.
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5. Tetris 99
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Here's something completely different. Tetris 99 is a game played on Nintendo Switch, accessible when you sign up for the Switch Online service.

You play a game of Tetris, the classic block-dropper, but so do with 98 other players. As you clear rows of blocks, they are sent to other players, to fill up their screens and hopefully finish them off. You can see the other 98 games in action, across the Switch’s screen.

There’s a real sense of competing against a mass of other people, the tension runs high and you don’t have to play for ages to get something out of Tetris 99. Unlike several other picks here.

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6. Rocket League
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Here’s one to try if you have no interest in fantasy worlds, spells or gun-heavy gameplay. Rocket League is a fun, physics based car game. And, no, it’s not really a racer either.

This is football with cars. Matches take place in futuristic arenas rather than open fields. It’s fast, silly and fun, but as with any popular game, many people playing online have aced its mechanics and turned driving a rocket-powered car into an art form.

We recommend playing Rocket League with friends, as it’s a blast.

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7. Overwatch
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Blizzard is a master of online games. It made World of Warcraft, Hearthstone and Overwatch, which belongs to one of the classic online multiplayer sub-genres, the team-based first-person shooter.

It can seem like fast-paced chaos to the newcomer. But each player has a class that all-but mandates a particular style of play: the support, tank, offence and defence.

Overwatch becomes more fun once you know what you’re doing, so be prepared to put some time in to get through the initial confusion (and likely scorn from other players).
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8. PUBG
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PlayerUnknown’s PUBG, or Battlegrounds to use its real name, is the more “realistic” alternative to Fortnite. Its visuals seem closer to Call of Duty or the classic open-arena Battlefield series than the cartoonish Fortnite.

At the start of each round, you and 99 other players parachute into a large map. Ransack abandoned buildings for weapons and armour, then hunt down members of the other team.

As each round progresses, the play area shrinks to push you into combat.

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9. League Of Legends
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Riot Games’s League of Legends is our MOBA pick of the day. That stands for multiplayer online battle arena. And in this case you see the action from above, as two or more teams duke it out, often using finely honed strategy to take down each other’s bases.

You might not glean all that from watching a YouTube video of play, but League of Legends is one of the most popular competitive esport games. It’s quite intimidating to start, as the importance of strategy can quickly see you under fire form other players if you don’t know what you’re doing.

However, there is now a practice mode that lets you have a play without dealing with angry teenagers. Phew.
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10. Fortnite
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Fortnite broke into the mainstream like nothing since Pokemon Go. It was on the news and discussed on daytime TV.

That’s all the more surprising when it is at heart an arena shooter, played in bedrooms and living room just like every other “normal” game”.

Popularity was the killer story here. Fortnite had 10.7 million concurrent players at one point in early 2019, and that was after the pop culture spotlight had moved on.

Construction is the specific gameplay mechanic to note here. You run, gun and blast in Fortnite, but you also build, making defences against the other team’s players. It is also notable for its wide availability across platforms including consoles, PC and phones.


Fortnite has recently had a big shake-up with Fortnite Chapter 2, a brand new location featuring thick forests, lakes, mountains - all whilst keeping the number of urbanised areas to a minimum.

Growth of National Debt

 

2024 Budget

 

Exploring

 

Space Glass

Thanks to human ingenuity and zero gravity, we reap important benefits from science in space. Consider smart phones with built-in navigation systems and cameras.


Such transformational technologies seem to blend into the rhythm of our everyday lives overnight. But they emerged from years of discoveries and developments of materials that can withstand harsh environments outside our atmosphere. 

They evolve from decades of laying foundations in basic science to understand how atoms behave in different materials under different conditions.     READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
In partnership with Public Rec

> NBA Western Conference Finals kick off tonight (8:30 pm ET, TNT) with the Dallas Mavericks taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves (More) | NHL Eastern Conference Finals begin tonight (8 pm ET, ESPN) with the New York Rangers hosting the Florida Panthers (More)

> Pixar lays off 14% of workforce—175 employees—as Disney reduces content output for streaming and prioritizes theatrical releases (More) | Comcast unveils $15 per month streaming bundle including Peacock, Netflix, and Apple TV+ for Xfinity TV and internet customers (More)

> Los Angeles police are investigating source of ketamine that contributed to "Friends" actor Matthew Perry's death (More) | Fred Roos, Oscar-winning producer and casting director known for work on "The Godfather" trilogy, dies at 89 (More)


Science & Technology
> Volvo debuts self-driving version of its heavy truck, designed for long-haul transport; production-ready vehicle is certified at the fourth level of autonomous safety standards (More) | What are the five levels of self-driving safety standards? (More)

> European Space Agency plans nuclear-powered Martian rover that uses radioactive americium to stay warm, the first time such technology has been used on a spacecraft (More)

> Paleontologists discover fossil of feathered dinosaur with scaly skin, shedding light on the evolutionary transition from scales to feathers roughly 130 million years ago (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +0.3%, Dow +0.2%, Nasdaq +0.2%) with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq reaching new records; Nvidia's stock rises 0.6% in advance of earnings report today (More)

> Energy Department says it will release 1 million barrels of gasoline from a Northeast reserve in 100,000 barrel increments to lower gas prices this summer (More)

> San Francisco-based Scale AI—which specializes in data labeling for large-language models—raises $1B at a $13.8B valuation; its AI-powered decision-making tool Donovan is being used by the US Department of Defense (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> California voters cast ballots in special election to replace outgoing Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R, CA-20); McCarthy resigned after being ousted from speaker role in October, see results (More) | Defense rests in hush money case against former President Donald Trump; Trump opts to not take stand, closing arguments set for next week (More)

> Trial begins in Germany over alleged far-right plot in 2022 to launch a coup; nine people on trial include German aristocrat accused of planning to storm the parliament and arrest lawmakers (More)

> Nigerian army rescues 350 hostages, many of them women and children, from extremist group Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

TRUTH

We can argue about truth all day long but in the final analysis, truth is THAT WHICH CAN BE PROVEN IN A COURT OF LAW...

What do I mean by that?

Whoever or whatever controls perception controls the truth.

For example...

If you watch FOX News, you will be confronted with a version of the truth about Donald Trump that they believe.

However, if you watch CNN, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, or NPR, you will be confronted with an entirely different version of the truth about Donald Trump that they believe.

WHO IS TELLING YOU THE TRUTH???

OJ Simpson was found non-guilty in his criminal trial but everyone knew that the truth was he was guilty.

Which version is the truth?

You read about the CIVIL WAR in the USA and are told that the South left the union because they believed in slavery and the north did not.

Historians of that time period will tell you that the south left the union because they did not want to pay taxes and the reason for the war was not due to slavery but because the north believe that the USA needed those taxes to grow strong and powerful.

Which version is the truth?

Those organizations that publish the NEWS perceives that a majority of the general public is not just ignorant (perhaps stupid) but that they do not really know the difference between fake truth and real truth.

The American public is easily manipulated into believing what a majority of people want them to believe.

Additionally, our Founding Fathers did not trust the integrity or the intelligence of the general public so they created The Electoral College to actually decide who the President was going to be.

Most people don't know that FACT of TRUTH even though it was taught to them sometime during their K-12 education.

Finally, the Democrats have a different version of the TRUTH than the Republicans and each party tries to get the general public to BELIEVE THEIR TRUTH instead of the other truth.

Which one is actually telling the truth?

Expanding

 

Chinese Robot can Learn, Think, Work like Humans

Sometimes, you have to see it to believe it.

And in rare cases, like this one, it freaks out observers watching. In the ever-expanding world of humanoid robots, a new star is rising, and its name is Astribot.

The Chinese company’s latest creation, the S1 model, is turning heads with its astonishing speed and precision.

Astribot S1: How it’s breaking speed records
Imagine a robot that can move at a blistering pace of approximately 32.8 feet per second and handle a payload of 22 pounds per arm. That’s Astribot’s S1 for you. It’s like watching a superhero in action. Only this one is made of wires and metal.

The S1’s capabilities are not just impressive; they’re record-setting. The robot’s dexterity is showcased in a video where it performs tasks with such finesse that it can delicately shave a cucumber.    READ MORE...

Water Reflection

 

Born to be Wild

 

A Hydrogen Airbus by 2026

Aviation giant Airbus successfully completed testing of its ‘iron pad’ hydrogen fuel cell system and plans to test it on an Airbus A380 by 2026.  The A380 is a ZEROe test bed, which is a part of the ZEROe project.

But, what does ZEROe even mean?  The project aims to develop a sustainable fuel system under the company’s zero-emission initiative.

Currently, the fuel cell system can achieve a total power output of 1.2 megawatts.  Since it’s in its early stages, the engine was tested under life-like conditions in a facility instead of being put on a plane.

That doesn’t mean it didn’t have all the required parts, though.  It included electric motors and a gearbox but compensated a jet propellor with artificial electromagnetic load.  READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Sean "Diddy" Combs' music catalog streaming drops 52% amid multiple allegations of sexual assault; Combs apologized over the weekend after 2016 surveillance video surfaced showing him attacking his ex-girlfriend (More)

> Jim Otto, Pro Football Hall of Fame center known as "Mr. Raider," dies at 86 (More) | World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler's arraignment set for June 3; Scheffler was arrested and released without bail Friday before playing the second round of the PGA Championship (More)

> NBA Conference Finals begin tonight with Eastern Conference top seed the Boston Celtics taking on the Indiana Pacers (8 pm ET, ESPN); Western Conference Finals begin tomorrow night, with the Minnesota Timberwolves facing the Dallas Mavericks (More)



Science & Technology
> Apple and OpenAI partner to incorporate ChatGPT into upcoming iPhone 16 and iOS18 platforms, reports suggest (More) | Heard about generative AI, but don't know how it works? (More, w/video)

> James Webb Space Telescope makes first measurement of the inside of an exoplanet; WASP-107 b, roughly 200 light-years away, has a core 12 times larger than Earth's (More)

> Cockroach genetic study reveals the most common species evolved in Southeast Asia roughly 2,100 years ago before spreading worldwide; bugs likely traveled with humans in two distinct periods around 1,200 and 270 years ago (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close mixed (Dow -0.5%, S&P 500 +0.1%, Nasdaq +0.7%); Nasdaq hits record high in intraday trading as Nvidia shares rise 2% (More) | JPMorgan shares drop 4.5% as CEO Jamie Dimon signals upcoming retirement may be sooner than believed (More)

> Ivan Boesky, former Wall Street titan convicted of insider trading, dies at age 87; Boesky is believed to have been the inspiration for "Wall Street" movie character Gordon Gekko, who delivered the famous line "greed is good" (More)

> New York attorney general announces $2B settlement with cryptocurrency lending firm Genesis over claims it defrauded investors; company filed for bankruptcy in the wake of the 2022 FTX collapse (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Prosecutors rest case in hush money trial against former President Donald Trump; closing arguments expected to begin next week (More) | Key witness Michael Cohen admits to stealing from Trump Organization during tenure (More)

> WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange wins right to appeal Britain's decision to extradite him to the US to face espionage charges (More) | Legal case has been ongoing for 13 years, see timeline (More)

> Crews refloat cargo ship that destroyed Baltimore's Key Bridge in March; ship reportedly suffered four power blackouts in the hours leading up to the collision (More) | Watch video of the vessel tugged back to port (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

Live and Let Live

 

For those of you who have not been following this blog very long, let me share with you that I have had a blog up and running since before 2009 with a lifelong friend of mine who had since died of colon cancer.  It was called, We Were Just Wondering.  My poetry blog, Reflections:  White Scorpion was started in 2009 and this blog, My Writing Journal was started in 2020.

I am keenly aware that my readership is low because no everyone likes the topics that I post or appreciates the layout of my blog.  It is here that I would like to say that I DON'T WRITE OR POST OR DESIGN FOR YOU BUT FOR ME!!!

The year 2015 marked the year that my wife and I retired, and my blogs are attended to each day, so that I have something to do with my time.  I also watch FOX News, exclusive series on HULU, Netflix and Prime, write novels, exercise, pretend at being a chef, work outside, and travel.

My physical abilities are not like they used to be since I have had a heart attack, had 5 lower back disks fused, and have been treated for two different kinds of cancer for over 15 years.

My opinions are not accepted by many people - never have been.  In the 1960s with my hair below my shoulders, I was a liberal who did not give two shits about the law or any type of authority.  I experimented with drugs, never got addicted, and attended Woodstock.

Today, I am a LIBERAL CONSERVATIVE and am all about small government, a strong military, closed borders, and I am in favor of legalizing drugs and believe abortion is a right.  I don't want a lot of taxes.  I don't want the government telling me what to do.  I am NOT INTO WOKE - BLM - CRT and while I am against slavery, I am not responsible for what my relatives may or may not have done.

I think that anyone who needs to earn over $250,000 a year in salary is full of shit and is not worth that amount of money.  This includes athletes, Hollywood celebrities, and musicians.  There is nothing wrong with making a profit, but no one needs to have 100 million dollars or more.

Since my thoughts have not been adopted then I say, LIVE AND LET LIVE.

Underwater Curiosity

 

Chinese Launch Special EV

The electric vehicle market continues to excel as it addresses common anxieties about EV ranges. IM Motors is one of the latest companies introducing EVs with solid-state battery technology to increase their range and charging speeds.


Chinese automaker IM Motors — a joint venture of tech companies SAIC Motor and Alibaba — has just released a revolutionary new electric vehicle with a "semi-solid-state battery" that allows for better charging capabilities and a longer life cycle, according to Interesting Engineering.


The development of high-performance batteries is important because it can help reduce anxieties about EV ranges, proving that new technologies can eliminate drivers' fears about their EV batteries not lasting long enough.     READ  MORE...

Ten Years After

 

Black Sabbath

 

Unitree's New Robot

Popular Chinese robotics firm Unitree, known for its quadrupeds like Go2 and B2, entered the humanoid space last year by unveiling its H1 model.

Since then, it has rapidly advanced in the domain, with H1 showcasing remarkable agility after withstanding kicks, executing a backflip, and its ability to lift heavy items. In March, it also claimed to become the fastest humanoid robot, with its capacity to sprint at 7.38 mph.

The company has taken the game forward by introducing a new all-rounder general-purpose human
oid called G1 Humanoid Agent.

The $16,000 robot claims to offer remarkable flexibility, force-controlled dexterous hands, and an imitation and reinforcement learning-driven model that helps it blend into daily life.     READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Seize the Grey wins 149th Preakness Stakes with Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan finishing second (More) | Manchester City wins a record fourth straight English Premier League title (More)

> Dabney Coleman, Emmy-winning character actor, dies at 92 (More) | Alice Stewart, CNN political commentator and GOP political adviser, dies at 58 (More)

> Xander Schauffele edges Bryson DeChambeau to win 2024 PGA Championship, Schauffele's first major title (More) | Oleksandr Usyk defeats Tyson Fury to become boxing's first undisputed heavyweight champion in 24 years (More)



Science & Technology
In partnership with Miso Robotics

> Geologists discover evidence of a now-dry branch of the Nile River near the Giza Pyramids; may help explain the pyramids' location and how they were built (More) | Explore the 3,000-year history of ancient Egypt in three minutes (More, w/video)

> Study links gut microbes produced by high-fat diets to tumor progression in mice; may help explain the correlation between obesity and increased risk of certain cancers (More)

> Engineers develop thin film that can provide continuous monitoring of air quality and the presence of toxic gases in industrial or home environments (More)

Business & Markets
> US stock markets close mixed Friday (S&P 500 +0.1%, Dow +0.3%, Nasdaq -0.1%), with the Dow closing above 40,000 points for the first time after temporarily surpassing the benchmark Thursday (More)

> Disneyland’s character performers vote to join the Actors' Equity Association after calling for higher wages and more dependable schedules (More) | Mercedes-Benz workers in Alabama vote against joining union (More)

> Elon Musk launches Starlink satellite internet service in Indonesia to support nation's health service and education sector across the 17,000-island archipelago; details of the agreement were not made public (More)



Politics & World Affairs
> The US and Saudi Arabia progress toward binational security deal in talks over the weekend; deal—reportedly days away—would include defense guarantees and cooperation on nuclear energy for civilian purposes, with a pathway for Israeli-Saudi normalization pending Israel's recognition of a Palestinian state (More)

> Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani charged with conspiracy, fraud, and forgery in Arizona case involving electors who defied state voters to cast votes for former President Donald Trump over President Joe Biden (More)

> London's High Court to decide today whether Julian Assange will be extradited to the US to face espionage charges; determination rests on US assurances about Assange's First Amendment rights and protection from death penalty (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

Marriage

 

When I was growing up, those graduates who did not go to college, stayed home and worked and got married.

Many of those marriages ended in divorce 10-20 year later.

Why?

Those people who went to college and graduated, also got married after graduation as they began their careers and these marriages ended in divorce 10-20 years later as well.

Why?

Some of these divorces were caused by dramatic events, such as:

1. the death of a child
2. alcoholism or drugs
3. infidelity
4. a serious illness

For me, those are not really reasons for divorce, unless the seeds for the divorce had already been planted, and specific situations brought it to a head.

Most divorced people, BLAME the other person for the divorce, trying to convince themselves that they had very little to do with it.

That's BULLSHIT and could not be farther from the TRUTH.

Both parties are responsible for the divorce and while there can be exceptions, I suppose it is not the general rule.

The divorce rate in the USA is 50% and has been that way for several decades.

Living with another person is not easy especially someone who is of the opposite sex.

If divorced people get remarried, the odds are this second marriage will not last long either because neither party has changed themselves.  For example, if one spouse always finds fault with the other person and does not see that what they are doing is wrong, they will continue to display that behavior in all subsequent marriages.

When the first marriage lasts 25 years and the second marriages gets close to that 25-year period, it will start to break down as well.    However, in all likelihood, this second marriage will remain together because of the couple's age and financial situation.

This type of marriage will continue to be horrible until one member dies.

At 70 years old, not many people want to change who they are...

Musical

 

Mysterious Particle Called GLUEBALL

Scientists have long been on the lookout for 'glueballs', which are bound states of subatomic gluon particles on their own, without any quarks involved. Now, we may just have found them, hiding away in a particle accelerator experiment.


It promises to be a hugely significant breakthrough in physics, but for the benefit of everyone without a PhD in the subject, we'll start at the beginning. The main job of gluons is to hold quarks in place and keep atoms stable – quarks being the building blocks that make up protons and neutrons.


This role makes the gluon part of the strong nuclear force – one of the four fundamental forces of nature that hold the laws of physics together, along with gravity, electromagnetism, and the weak nuclear force.     READ MORE...READ MORE...

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