Friday, August 15
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> President Donald Trump announces 2025 Kennedy Center honorees, including KISS, Sylvester Stallone, George Strait, Gloria Gaynor, and Michael Crawford; says he was involved in selection, will present awards in December (More)
> University of Kansas receives $300M gift from US businessman David Booth, thought to be among the largest single donations in college sports history (More)
> The 77th Emmy Awards winners announced in select categories; Beyoncé wins first Emmy for costume design for Netflix's "Beyoncé Bowl" NFL halftime special (More)
Science & Technology
> US officials embed GPS trackers in various shipments of advanced AI chips to monitor illegal diversions of shipments to China, reports suggest (More)
> Passively powered flying devices can reach 45 miles above Earth, allowing researchers to study the mesosphere; atmospheric layer is too high for weather balloons but too low for satellites (More) | Visualize planet Earth, from core to atmosphere (1440 Topics)
> Physicists use sound waves to store quantum information; new approach can store quantum memory for 30 times longer than conventional techniques (More) | Explore the best resources we've found on quantum mechanics (1440 Topics)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close up (S&P 500 +0.3%, Dow +1.0%, Nasdaq +0.1%); S&P 500 notches record high as investors bet on potential interest rate cuts (More)
> CoinDesk owner Bullish shares close up more than 83% in NYSE debut, valuing the cryptocurrency exchange at roughly $10B; Bullish launched in 2021 and is backed by tech billionaire Peter Thiel (More)
> US tariff revenue reaches fresh monthly record of nearly $28B in July, up from $8B a year ago; US budget deficit grew to $291B last month (More) | How much federal revenue comes from tariffs (More) | Who pays for tariffs? (1440 Topics)
Politics & World Affairs
> Germany and allies pledge up to $500M in military aid to Ukraine via new NATO supply line (More) | President Donald Trump tells Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders he will push for a ceasefire in tomorrow's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska (More)
> Prosecutors seek retrial for a rape charge in Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein's New York sex crimes case, leaving Sept. 30 sentencing for a separate sexual assault charge in limbo (More)
> Air Canada suspends most flights through Saturday due to an ongoing labor dispute with its flight attendant union; cancellations are expected to impact approximately 130,000 passengers each day (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
Our Working Futures
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Obviously, to make money... but, isn't there oftentimes more to it than just that?
We work:
- to survive
- to get out of the house
- to have a career
- to contribute to society
- to raise a family
- to acquire more
- to go on vacations
What do you think it would be like if we did not have to work?
- We would get bored
- We might get into trouble
- We would get lazy
- We would become depressed
- We might rely on drugs
- We would have more children
- We would always be in the lower class
- We would complain
I am sure there are other negatives to mention but I just wanted to give you an idea of where I was going.
Would there be in pros to not working?
Yes, there would.
- We would have lots of free time
- We could explore hobbies
- Spend more time with family and friends
- We could spend time with a vege garden
- We could spend more time exercising
Again, these are just a few... you probably have other ideas and/or suggestions.
Why am I writing about this?
Because...
when humanoid robots arrive and take our jobs, most of us will be without a source of income unless our government provides us with a guaranteed minimum income, after unemployment insurance expires.
This minimum income will allow us to pay bills but have very few extras that work wages allowed us to buy.
The fact of the matter is that ROBOTS are coming and I believe it will be sooner than later and we all need to prepare ourselves for that eventuality.
You federal, state, and local leaders CAN NO LONGER STOP THIS FROM HAPPENING.
“Ancient Egypt’s Water Dam Just Changed Pyramid History”
In the arid expanses of the Egyptian desert, recent discoveries are revolutionizing our understanding of ancient engineering. Excavations around the Pyramid of Djoser have unearthed a sophisticated water management system, challenging long-standing beliefs about how the builders of the Old Kingdom achieved such monumental feats.
This intricate network of dams, basins, and shafts reveals a level of technical sophistication that suggests a profound understanding of hydraulic engineering. These findings compel historians and archaeologists alike to rethink the technological capabilities of ancient Egyptian civilization and its capacity for innovative problem-solving.
Thursday, August 14
Headlines
Anadolu/Getty Images
European leaders express Ukraine optimism after call with Trump. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said “there is hope for peace in Ukraine” after he, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and other European leaders spoke virtually with President Trump ahead of his meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska tomorrow. Trump characterized the call as “very good,” adding, “I would rate it a 10.” He reportedly agreed that any peace plan must start with a ceasefire and would not be negotiated without Ukraine’s involvement. Trump has recently voiced his frustrations with Putin’s effort to prolong the war and threatened “severe consequences” for not agreeing to a ceasefire, though some allies are concerned he could soften his stance after meeting in person with the Russian leader this week.
The New York AG is picking up the fraud lawsuit against Zelle. NY Attorney General Letitia James announced she is suing Zelle for allegedly allowing scammers to steal from users. The CFPB filed a similar suit during the Biden administration, but it was dropped this year once Trump took office. James argued the payments platform “failed to adopt basic safeguards” to prevent more than $1 billion in funds from being stolen from 2017 to 2023. Zelle called the lawsuit “a political stunt to generate press.” Trump’s Justice Department recently opened an investigation into James, who has become one of the president’s most high-profile opponents in law enforcement.
Air Canada is canceling flights as attendants go on strike. The Canadian flagship airline plans to start canceling flights today and suspend operations completely on Saturday after the union representing its flight attendants voted almost unanimously to go on strike. The union has asked for increased wages and an end to all unpaid work, saying the airline is “not interested” in resolving the dispute. CNN reported that Air Canada offered a 38% compensation increase over four years, among other benefits, but couldn’t reach an agreement after eight months of negotiations. Air Canada operates about 430 flights each day between Canada and the US.—AE
Robert Reich
Bread and Butter and Hope
It’s not just Mamdani
Friends,
It’s fitting that today — on the 90th anniversary of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s signing Social Security into law — we understand Zohran Mamdani’s remarkable win in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary in his simple progressive message: New York City is in an affordability crisis and the wealthiest New Yorkers must help respond.
Mamdani’s three main proposals to help working families cope with it are to make city buses free, freeze the rent for stabilized apartments, and expand free child care.
Under Mamdani’s plan, the financial burden of paying for these policies would largely fall on wealthy taxpayers and businesses (a stance that has put Mamdani at odds with many corporate Democrats — more on this in a moment).
For example, Mamdani estimates that the price tag for universal child care for infants and toddlers until they reach kindergarten age would be between $5 billion and $8 billion. To pay for this, he would push the state to increase taxes on residents making more than $1 million a year and hike taxes on large corporations.
At A Glance
Forty gender-neutral baby names.
Farmer’s Almanac warns of long, cold winter for most of US.
The hardest-to-pronounce town name in every state.
... and the wealthiest suburbs of the US' biggest cities.
Ten-year-old girl is youngest female to beat a chess grandmaster.
Giant octopus grabs camera and films itself.
The mathematical way to cut an onion.
How sharks help forecast hurricanes. (w/video)
Clickbait: Toothpaste made from human hair.
Historybook: Steve Martin born (1945); Magic Johnson born (1959); Halle Berry born (1966); Blackout in the US and Canada affects 53 million (2003); US Embassy in Cuba opens for first time in 54 years (2015).
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Taylor Swift announces her 12th studio album "The Life of a Showgirl"; Swift will appear on the "New Heights" podcast, cohosted by her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, tonight at 7 pm ET to discuss the album (More) | The rise of Taylor Swift (1440 Topics)
> UFC CEO Dana White says a fight night will take place at the White House next year on the Fourth of July as part of the recent streaming deal with Paramount (More)
> Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and his agent are accused in lawsuit of "sabotaging" $240M real estate project (More) | 2025 Little League World Series kicks off today; see complete bracket and schedule (More)
Science & Technology
> Elon Musk threatens lawsuit against Apple, claiming the company artificially boosts OpenAI's app in the App Store; Musk's xAI runs the Grok chatbot, a competitor to OpenAI's ChatGPT (More)
> Seventy-year-old Parkinson's drug shows effectiveness in boosting the body's immune system against tuberculosis; the world's deadliest infectious disease, TB kills an estimated 1.3 million people per year (More)
> Remains of Dennis Bell, an Antarctic researcher who disappeared in 1959, discovered by Polish team studying a receding glacier on King George Island (More)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +1.1%, Dow +1.1%, Nasdaq +1.4%), with S&P 500 and Nasdaq notching record highs (More)
> US consumer price index held steady at 2.7% in July from a year earlier; core inflation—excluding food and energy—rose 3.1% year over year, above forecast of 3% and June's 2.9% annual rise (More) | See breakdown (More)
> Spirit Airlines warns it might not be able to survive without more cash; comes five months after emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy (More) | How bankruptcy works (1440 Topics) | ... and Kodak warns the 133-year-old US film company may go out of business (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> DC National Guard troops arrest roughly two dozen people on first day of deployment to combat crime in the nation's capital; soldiers will not carry guns in most cases, per officials (More) | Mexico expels 26 high-ranking cartel figures wanted by US authorities in deal with Trump administration (More)
> Gunman who targeted Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters Friday died by suicide after shooting roughly 200 rounds at CDC buildings (More) | See previous write-up (More)
> South Korea's former first lady Kim Keon Hee is arrested on corruption charges, including bribery; her husband, former President Yoon Suk Yeol, is jailed on insurrection charges after briefly declaring martial law in December (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
Must have a Hobby
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It is absolutely necessary for you to have a hobby or something else in mind for you to do, once you are retired. My definition of being retired is not working any hours for compensation.
When I first became retired in 2015, I was still teaching classes at night for college students... therefore, I did not consider myself retired.
Being a volunteer is not considered working for compensation, either is playing golf, or helping someone build a deck; but those activities are temporary and short lived, and not really a hobby.
Hobby Ideas
- Scrapbooking
- Beekeeping
- Blogging
- Reading
- Writing
- Gardening
- Woodworking
- Pottery
- Painting
- Making things
I maintain two blogs daily that occupy about two hours of my day. I could double or triple that time by surfing the internet, getting ideas and material to put on my two blogs and maybe someday that is what I will do.
When my blogs are prepared, the rest of my day is spent writing novels, doing research for those novels, and researching ways to self-publish like on Amazon.
I lack 2-3 chapters of completing 13 novels during the nine and a half years of my retirement. If I concentrate, I probably could finish another 4 that have been partially written, giving me 17 in ten years or 1.75 each year. Again, if I hustle, I could probably have 20 completed novels in 11 years of retirement, almost two a year.
My novel writing is my hobby and so far I have not grown bored with it, although there was a time where I did not want to write anything for 6-9 months. I am not sure if I was burned out or had written too much too quickly. But now I am back on track and write each day when I feel like it which might be anywhere from 1-6 hours a day.
The rest of my day is spent on social media and watching TV Series and watch for how writers have put words in their mouths or directed their actions, and describe the situations unfold around them.
If my writing hobby dies then my focus will turn to painting, oils and acrylics more than likely, experimenting with colors and different types of brushes.
At my age, I doubt I will need a third hobby.
China’s 2027 fusion ambition leaves U.S. in the dust
China’s latest fusion project promises to generate five times more power than it consumes, setting a blistering pace unmatched by its American rivals. If successful, this could rewrite the playbook on fusion energy and edge the world closer to a carbon-free future.
At the heart of this endeavor lies the Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak—BEST for short—a doughnut-shaped vessel where hydrogen isotopes collide at temperatures hotter than the sun’s surface. I still recall the first time I learned that fusion mimics the processes powering stars; it felt like peeking behind the universe’s curtain.
Thanks to superconducting magnets and advanced cooling systems, the BEST reactor is engineered to sustain plasma long enough to achieve a genuine net energy gain, rather than simply breaking even.
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