Pondering

 

Every morning, the first thing that I do after giving a treat to the cats make a cup of coffee using my Keurig coffee maker and a McCafe coffee pod.  !2 ounces of coffee, followed by three heaping spoonsful of sugar free cappuccino mix.

It is not anywhere close to the Starbucks Vanilla Cappuccino that I purchase when I have a gift card, but it is close enough for me.  With my coffee, I sit down in my lounge chair and begin to ponder.  I ponder all sorts of stuff from theoretical physics to cosmology, astrology, ancient aliens, politics, the weather, my health, finances, to our next vacation.

When I am not pondering, I am watching the news, a cable TV series or movie (which is seldom because most of the new ones are garbage), maintaining my blogs (like this one) or writing on a novel.

Currently, I have completed 10 novels (100,000+ words each) and have 6 that I have started but stopped and started writing on another idea.  I have decided to complete the ones I have started before attempting a new one again.  Although, if I get an idea, I will write the idea down, so it is now forgotten.

When it comes to politics, I belong to neither party because neither party had ever done what they promised...  this goes back to 1966 when I first got interested in politics.  We have the same problems today that we had in 1966 and neither the Republicans or the Democrats have done anything to change that and both parties have had several opportunities when they controlled the house and senate.  This lack of progress and unfulfilled promises leaves me wondering why we have a congress at all except to provide careers to some politicians.

Living in East TN, we experience fairly mild winters and even though we have some cold days, maybe snow and ice or sleet, our winters never last very long anymore.  In fact, today is probably going to be the transition day from winter to spring as we have a gradually increase in temps so that by next Tuesday, we are in the 60s.

In case you are wondering, I drink McCafe with sugar free cappuccino mix all day long...  stopping around 6:00 pm.

Dan Bongino

 

HOW TO SIMPLIFY HEALTHY EATING| Start with 3 simple steps!

Helen Zughaib - Artist

Helen Zughaib (/zəˈɡeɪb/ zə-GAYB;  born 1959) is an American painter and multimedia artist living in working in Washington, D.C. She was the daughter of a State Department civil servant. Her family left Lebanon in 1975 due to the outbreak Lebanese Civil War, and moved to Europe as a teenager, attending high school in Paris. She studied at Northeast London Polytechnic School of Art.

She moved to the United States to study visual and performing arts at Syracuse University graduating in 1981 with her BFA.  She first learned about gouache paints at SU and continues to use gouache as her primary medium, but also creates mixed media installations. Her themes are centered around hopefulness, healing, and spirituality, using visual arts to shape and foster positive ideas about the Middle East.  

She has served as cultural envoy to Palestine, Switzerland, and Saudi Arabia.  She has also been selected for the 2021-2023 inaugural social practice residency by the John Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.

¿Qué pasa?

 

Quick Clips

 

In The News

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Team USA hockey takes on Canada in 4 Nations Face-Off Final tonight (8 pm ET, ESPN) (More) | Hockey great Bobby Hull had Stage 2 chronic traumatic encephalopathy at the time of his death in 2023, reports suggest (More)

> Former Vice President Kamala Harris signs with talent firm Creative Artists Agency; CAA signed former President Joe Biden to a similar deal two weeks ago (More) | "Wicked" star Cynthia Erivo tapped to host 2025 Tony Awards (More)

> Seven men charged for roles in a string of robberies at athletes' homes, including Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Joe Burrow (More) | Los Angeles Chargers tapped to host Week 1 matchup in NFL's second-ever game in São Paulo, Brazil (More)


Science & Technology
> Nvidia and the Arc Institute release largest-ever AI model for biology, trained on the genomes of more than 100,000 animals; platform may identify disease-causing mutations, design new genomes, and more (More)

> Static electricity buildup in different materials depends on their history of being touched, study reveals; despite being a well-known phenomenon, the physics behind charge buildup in regular materials remains elusive (More)

> Paleontologists discover 120-million-year-old fossils of apex carnivores previously found in South America in Australia; the landmasses were connected in the early Cretaceous via Antarctica (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close up (S&P 500 +0.2%, Dow +0.2%, Nasdaq +0.1%) as investors digest Federal Reserve's meeting minutes; S&P 500 notches another record close (More) | Palantir shares close down 10% on reports the Trump administration is eyeing defense budget cuts (More)

> Tapestry to sell footwear brand Stuart Weitzman to Caleres—owner of brands like Sam Edelman and Famous Footwear—in $105M all-cash deal; sale allows Tapestry to focus on its handbag brands Coach and Kate Spade (More)

> Europe’s largest lender HSBC announces share buyback of up to $2B, reports annual profit in 2024 rose 6.5% (More) | Buybacks 101 (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Transportation Department rescinds approval of New York City’s congestion pricing program, which went into effect in January (More) | Judge hears arguments in Justice Department-led request to dismiss corruption charges against NYC Mayor Eric Adams (D) (More)

> Tensions rise between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the two leaders trade barbs over Ukraine-Russia war (More) | See war updates (More)

> Pope Francis has pneumonia in both lungs and remains hospitalized in Rome after suffering from bronchitis and a mix of respiratory infections, Vatican says (More)

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

Humanoid ROBOTS with AI

 

What is our future with humanoid robots with AI?

Whether we like it or not, humanoid robots with AI will be taking over some of our jobs...  there is no way of getting around that.

Some of those jobs are:

Transportation
Taxi and truck drivers
Couriers
Manufacturing
Assembly-line workers
Customer service
Customer service representatives
Office work
Receptionists
Data entry clerks
Bookkeepers

Other jobs
Market research analysts
Phone operators and telemarketers

NOTE:  This list created by AI

Why are humanoid robots with AI replacing jobs?

ANSWERS

• American wages/benefits are high
• Robots don't get sick
• Robots don't need vacation
• Robots don't take breaks
• Robots don't smoke or overeat (health)
• Robots don't have attitude issues
• Robots don't reduce productivity
• Robots constantly add value

I am sure that the govt will put some sort of tax on robots to offset the cost of taking care of all the unemployed workers.

Experts say that robots will create more jobs than they take, but I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT...  Every time experts tell you not to worry that is exactly when you should start worrying.

Somewhat Political

 

Largest Structure in the Universe

Is it possible to understand the universe without understanding the largest structures that reside in it? In principle, not likely. In practical terms? Definitely not. Extremely large objects can distort our understanding of the cosmos.


Astronomers have found the largest structure in the universe so far, named Quipu after an Incan measuring system. It contains a shocking 200 quadrillion solar masses.


Astronomy is an endeavor where extremely large numbers are a part of daily discourse. But even in astronomy, 200 quadrillion is a number so large it's rarely encountered. And if Quipu's extremely large mass doesn't garner attention, its size surely does. 

The object, called a superstructure, is more than 400 megaparsecs long. That's more than 1.3 billion light-years.     READ MORE...

The Beatles - Revolution

 

John Lennon

 

China's Alibaba

Revenue surge on
back of artificial
intelligence,
e-commerce

James Bond Shake-Up:

Amazon Takes Creative 

Control of Franchise 

From Broccoli Family

Real Clear Politics

Thursday, February 20


Democrats Are Learning: It's Not 2017 All Over Again

Byron York, DC Examiner

Was Bidenomics a Big Mistake?
Guida & Furman, Politico

Harris Made Me Cringe. Vance Shows We Deserved Better
Nicole Russell, USA Today

How Do You Solve a Problem Like Eric Adams?
Elie Mystal, The Nation

Dems Should Help Clean Up Illegal Immigrant Crime
Miranda Devine, New York Post

How About a Daily Democratic Message?
Robert Kuttner, American Prospect

Voter Rolls Like They Oughta Be
Doug Truax, RealClearPolitics

Leftist-Led WI Court 'Guts' Challenges to Election Violations
M.D. Kittle, Federalist

How Liberalism Became Uncool
Clare Haber-Harris, Slate

Pagans Infiltrated Society, Declared Everything Good Is Bad

Alex Karp, CNBC

Trump Is Back, and It's No Longer Business as Usual
Lou Barletta, RealClearPolitics

Why I'm Rooting for Rubio To Fail in Saudi Arabia
Bill Kristol, The Bulwark

After Insane Biden Era, Diplomacy Has Resumed
Glenn Greenwald, System Update

This Is a Key Test: Elbridge Colby Must Be Confirmed
Donald Trump Jr., Human Events

How Gutfeld Toppled Fallon and Colbert in the Ratings
Tatiana Siegel, Variety

Margaret Brennan's CBS Humiliation
Paul du Quenoy, The Telegraph

Organized Dissident Alumni Rise Against Campus Wokeness
John Murawski, RCI

I WARNED YOU

 

Offended

Morning

 

Al Jazeera

The reasons why America 

has abandoned democracy

BITCOIN

 

Dan Bongino

 

Gravy Train

 

Ultra Easy Healthy Meals | But Cheaper

Dana Awartani - artist

Dana Awartani (Arabic: دانا عورتاني; born 1987) is a Saudi visual artist, of Palestinian ethnicity.  She works in various mediums including painting, video art, and sand mosaic; and incorporates traditional methods of Islamic art. Awartani was born and raised in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia where she lives today.

Awartani employs a variety of media in her work, including painting, video and sand mosaics. Her work is unique in that it seeks to incorporate the traditional methods of Islamic art into a contemporary world.  Rich in geometric patterning and the most intricate of details, Dana’s work often integrates the patterning styles of Islamic art.  

Specializing in geometry as well as illumination, tile-work and parquetry, Awartani's work explores the relationship between geometry and nature, as well as how truths can be translated through art using geometric principles, visualizing a sacred language through a symbolic and multi-layered aesthetic. 

Her method that emerged over 1,000 years ago as a substitute for the forbidden depiction of divine figures. It is still being practiced, although less and less, today, by specialists such as Dana.

¿Qué pasa?

 

Quick Clips

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Rapper A$AP Rocky found not guilty in 2021 shooting; Rocky had faced two felony assault charges, which carried up to 24 years in prison if convicted (More)

> Racing legend Lewis Hamilton makes first public appearance with new Formula One team Ferrari at F1 75 season launch event in London; Hamilton will officially debut at the Australian Grand Prix (March 16) (More)

> Paul Simon announces four-month tour across 20 North American cities; Simon previously retired from touring in 2018 due to hearing loss (More) | China's "Ne Zha 2" hauls in $1.69B at box office to pass "Inside Out 2" as the highest-grossing animated film ever (More)


Science & Technology
> Elon Musk-owned xAI releases Grok 3, the latest version of its flagship AI model (More) | Former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati launches AI startup Thinking Machines Labs (More) | How generative AI works (1440 Topics)

> Engineers develop "bio-glue" by combining proteins extracted from the human body with polymers inspired by mussels; biomedical adhesive is water- and bacteria-proof (More)

> Researchers reveal how the bacteria that causes staph infection extracts iron from the hemoglobin in blood; discovery may help develop treatments for antimicrobial-resistant strains (More) | What are superbugs? (1440 Topics) | What's in our blood? (1440 Topics)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close roughly flat (S&P 500 +0.2%, Dow +0.0%, Nasdaq +0.1%); S&P 500 reaches new record (More) | Intel shares close up 16% in best day since March 2020 on report of Broadcom, TSMC exploring potential deals (More)

> Coca-Cola introduces prebiotic soda brand Simply Pop in the US Southeast and West Coast in bid to compete with startups Olipop and Poppi (More) | KFC moving headquarters from Kentucky to Texas (More) | Nike partners with Kim Kardashian's shapewear brand Skims to launch women's activewear brand this spring (More)

> Argentine President Javier Milei faces fraud probe for role in promoting cryptocurrency token $LIBRA, whose value collapsed shortly after launch (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Federal judge allows Department of Government Efficiency staff access to Department of Education databases, including federal student loan information (More) | White House says Elon Musk is not leading day-to-day DOGE operations, is a senior adviser to the president (More)

> Hamas to release six Israelis Saturday, return the bodies of four others Thursday; hostages would be the last freed under the first phase of current ceasefire (More)

> New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) to attend hearing today over Justice Department-led dismissal of corruption charges; seven federal prosecutors and four Adams aides have resigned over the fallout (More) | See previous write-up (More)

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

Social Media Platforms

 

BLUESKY is a liberal social media platform and TRUTH SOCIAL is a conservative social media platform.  Obviously, very few conservatives are users of BLUESKY and very few liberals are users of TRUTH SOCIAL.  When that does happen, the users of the platform BRUTALLY ATTACK the opposition in the hopes that they will leave.

Each platform only wants to be around other users that share their POINTS OF VIEW and opposing views disrupt the natural order of things.  Users are viscous, rude, and disrespectful to those who don't agree with them and show absolutely no signs of being civil with them.

What does that tell you about these USERS?

I am not a psychologist or a psychiatrist but what each side displays is a voluntarily and a willingness not to respect the other side without exception...  This voluntary willingness shows me that our country is so horribly divided that it is difficult to believe that anything will ever get better.

A divided country does not really progress into the future and if it does move forward, it is very slowly.  Examples:

• Trump undid everything Obama put into place
• Biden undid everything Trump put into place
• Trump undid everything Biden put into place
• In 2029, if POTUS is Democratic then everything Trump put into place will be undone

It does not take a nuclear physicist to see that NO PROGRESS or VERY LITTLE PROGRESS takes place.

Social Media Platforms are MICROCOSMS of the USA, and can be used, in my opinion, to predict our future to some degree,

Somewhat Political