Thursday, October 9
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Twenty-five finalists for the 2025 National Book Awards announced; winners in each of the five categories will be announced Nov. 19 (More)
> Thirty original paintings by TV host Bob Ross to be auctioned off to raise funds for public television stations (More) | Ross' landscape paintings had been notoriously difficult to find on the open market (Watch)
> WNBA Finals continue tonight (8 pm ET, ESPN) with the Las Vegas Aces taking on the Phoenix Mercury in Game 3 (More) | ... and MLB Division Series continues; see latest schedule and bracket (More)
Science & Technology
> Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to trio of US-based scientists for 1980s quantum mechanics discoveries that laid the groundwork for digital communications and advanced computing (More) | Nobel Prize in Chemistry to be announced this morning at 5:45 am ET (More)
> Engineers develop 3D-printed aluminum alloy five times stronger than traditionally manufactured aluminum, potentially enabling lighter aircraft parts; machine learning accelerated search for optimal compositions (More)
> Chinese chipmakers bought nearly $40B in chipmaking gear from the US and its allies last year—66% jump from 2022—despite US efforts to restrict access (More)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close down (S&P 500 -0.4%, Dow -0.2%, Nasdaq -0.7%) (More) | Gold soars past $4K per ounce for first time, signaling investor anxiety; precious metal has gained more than 50% this year (More)
> Intercontinental Exchange, owner of the New York Stock Exchange, to invest up to $2B in Polymarket, a crypto-based predictive markets platform valued at roughly $8B (More)
> Tesla unveils two cheaper car models—both with starting price tags below $40K—amid faltering sales; shares fall 4.5% (More) | Ford Motor shares fall 6.1% on news aluminum plant fire will likely disrupt production for months (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before Senate Judiciary Committee in oversight hearing on Justice Department; topics covered include Epstein files, DOJ probes (More)
> US envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner to arrive in Egypt today as indirect peace talks between Israel and Hamas continue; Israel marked second anniversary of Oct. 7, 2023, attacks yesterday (More)
> First National Guard troops from Texas arrive in Illinois a day after Chicago and Illinois sued the Trump administration for deploying federalized troops (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
Kill or be Killed
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We live in a society marked by violence and by the rhetoric of violence... and while Americans are very familiar with violence, especially in the larger cities, today's violence is altogether different.
Politicians are wishing their opponents should be shot and killed along with their spouse and children.
We expect this kind of rhetoric from criminals but not from politicians. I am sure this was meant figuratively but the fact remains, it was stated and shared, and the spotlight is now on the person and party who thought this kind of language was fine.
I am old enough to remember the assassination of JFK and how that shocked the country, especially when his brother Bobby was shot and then MLK Jr.
Our country mourned the death of all three and when we finally put that behind us and thought we were living in a country that had more respect for human life, we come to find out that AMERICANS are just as vile and evil as everyone else...
The difference is, we try to HIDE that side of our personality and/or control it from going wild...
But not anymore.
It seems we live in a society where it is kill or be killed and whatever side you are one, does not seem to matter in 2025.
We Emit a Visible Light That Vanishes When We Die, Says Surprising Study
Life truly is radiant, according to an experiment conducted by researchers from the University of Calgary and the National Research Council of Canada.
An extraordinary experiment on mice and leaves from two different plant species has uncovered direct physical evidence of an eerie 'biophoton' phenomenon ceasing on death, suggesting all living things – including humans – could literally glow with health, until we don't.
The findings might seem a little fringe at first glance. It's hard not to associate scientific investigations into biological electromagnetic emissions with debunked and paranormal claims of auras and discharges surrounding living organisms.
Wednesday, October 8
Wonderings 5
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By any stretch of the imagination that is a frigging big distance to imagine or even conceive in our minds. Just one light year is a frigging ton of miles...
Now,
imagine that human beings are the only living entities in this vast universe...
OR,
imagine that EARTH is the only planet with a breathable atmosphere...
With all this on paper, we know the universe is expanding an ever-increasing amount of spacetime that is created as it is needed.
Religion teaches us that there is only one set of God's creatures in the universe He made, and that of those creatures, the Jews were/are His chosen people. This implies that God has favorites. Why did the Bible not share with its readers that God created an expanding universe?
Man was created in God's image and yet the Kingdom of Jesus is not of this world as stated by him when talking with Pilot.
Is Jesus an extraterrestrial?
Is God?
Where is this Kingdom of which Jesus spoke?
Why did God create such a large universe?
Is it logical that in such a large universe that only one species of Human Beings exists?
Should there not be others?
One light year is 6 trillion miles.
The US is 3000 miles from east to west.
The circumference of earth is 24,901 miles,
The circumference of the Earth is approximately 0.00000043% of a light-year, or roughly 1/236,000,000th of the total distance of a light year in miles.
Headlines
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
SCOTUS likely to rule against ban on conversion therapy. Following oral arguments, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared to side with a faith-based Christian therapist who said that a Colorado law banning LGBTQ+ conversion therapy for kids violates her First Amendment rights. The state’s lawyer, meanwhile, argued that all therapy in the state is subject to regulation and cited a “mountain of evidence” from medical groups that the practice can not only be harmful to children, but is also ineffective. The ruling, expected next year, will carry implications for the 20+ other US states that currently prohibit conversion therapy for minors.
Tesla unveiled a cheaper version of the Model Y. The more affordable version of its top-selling car will cost $39,990 (11% cheaper than the base model), which the automaker hopes will counteract the loss of the US’ tax incentives to buy EVs. Tesla enjoyed a record quarter in Q3 as consumers rushed to purchase electric vehicles before the $7,500 tax credit expired, but it’s now expected to struggle due to a decline in demand. Investors have long hoped that the company would introduce a lower-priced version of its signature car and were alarmed when CEO Elon Musk instead prioritized robots and self-driving tech, according to Bloomberg.
Minerals company skyrockets after White House buys 10% stake. If you hadn’t heard of Trilogy Metals, now you have. After the Trump administration said it was investing $35.6 million in Trilogy to boost US supply of critical minerals from Alaska, the company’s stock ballooned by more than 200%. Trump’s investment and approval of mining permits reverse the Biden administration’s rejection of the project over environmental concerns. China remains the world leader in critical minerals, producing nearly 70% of its supply of rare earths, per CNBC.—AE
Robert Reich
Flying to the end of the shutdown
Friends,
As I said last week, the shutdown ends when air traffic controllers have had enough.
That’s already started. Federal Aviation Administration advisories yesterday showed there were no air traffic controllers at Hollywood Burbank Airport in California, causing delays.
Staffing issues are also linked to delays at the Newark, Phoenix and Denver airports.
According to the flight-tracking website FlightAware, more than 6,000 U.S. flights were delayed Monday.
Even before the shutdown, controllers were under great stress from more crowded skies and fewer controllers to manage them.
And, just to remind you, they’re not getting paid now. Trump is even making noises about not giving government workers the back pay they deserve when the shutdown ends.
At A Glance
The number of friends our brains can handle.
The 200-year-old history of Oktoberfest. (via YouTube)
Why sports fandoms may be bad for your body.
Math explains why world records are getting harder to beat.
The disputed origins of basmati rice.
Rock's 80 most iconic guitar intros. (w/video)
The minimum net worth of middle-class 40-somethings.
Bandit apologizes for stealing Claire the dinosaur.
How to give your cells new life.*
Clickbait: Vacuum planet gobbles interstellar gas and dust.
Historybook: American politician John Hancock dies (1793); Great Chicago Fire begins, killing about 300 people and destroying most of the city (1871); Actress Sigourney Weaver born (1949); "Cats" debuts on Broadway (1982); Office of Homeland Security is created in the wake of 9/11 attacks (2001).
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> The 2025-26 NHL regular season kicks off tonight; see preview and predictions for all 32 teams (More) | LeBron James to make major announcement today (12 pm ET), speculated to be regarding his basketball future (More)
> Jilly Cooper, renowned bestselling British romance author and journalist, dies at age 88 (More)
> Canadian rock band Rush announces 2026 summer reunion tour, their first concerts since 2015 (More) | Instagram announces Rings awards, which will honor the platform's top creators (More)
Science & Technology
> Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to trio of American and Japanese immunologists for discoveries underpinning new autoimmune and cancer therapies (More) | Nobel Prize in Physics to be announced this morning at 5:45 am ET (More)
> Deadly tornado that hit North Dakota in June upgraded to strongest classification, marking the first such rating in the US since 2013; winds reached 210 mph, and width peaked at more than 1 mile (More)
> Researchers link fathers' exercise regimens to endurance and metabolic health of children, suggesting sperm microRNAs transmit benefits of physical activity (More)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close mixed (S&P 500 +0.4%, Dow -0.1%, Nasdaq +0.7%) as the federal government shutdown enters its second week (More)
> OpenAI to purchase computing capacity from chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices for artificial intelligence data centers; AMD shares close up 23.7% (More)
> Fifth Third Bancorp to buy Comerica in $10.9B all-stock deal, creating ninth largest US bank; operations will span the Southeast, Texas, California, and the Midwest; Comerica shares close up 13.7% (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> US Supreme Court declines to hear an appeal by Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted sex trafficker and former associate of Jeffrey Epstein (More)
> Federal government shutdown enters seventh day after Senate fails to pass either of two competing stopgap bills; Republican-led bill failed 52-42, with Democratic bill failing 50-45 (More)
> Rescue efforts begin to save hundreds of hikers stranded on Mount Everest in Tibet amid heavy snowfall, at roughly 16,000-foot elevation (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
Real Estate Planning
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Twelve years later (1962), that house sold for $250,000, eighteen (1980) years later it sold for $1.5 million. I have no idea what it might have sold for recently.
While we had an Alexandria mailing address, we were actually four miles outside of the city proper, and eight miles outside of Washington, DC proper... so, the location was perfect.
I now live in East Tennessee with my second wife, and we purchased a home for $125,000 in 2002 and sold it for $375,000, twenty-one years later in 2023. While it was not the growth that my parents experienced, it was still substantial growth for East Tennessee. We felt very good about our investment.
Real estate has always been a good investment for families to make and if they are mindful about what they are doing and are willing to move into a new house every three to five years, it is possible to trade up to your dream house in less than twenty years.
Twenty years may seem like a long time, but it goes by very quickly.
When making improvements to your house, those improvements should only be made in the Kitchen and bathrooms. Adding a large deck or a pool, or a spa does not really help with the resale value of the house.
What helped my parent's home increase so much in value was LOCATION. Hard to beat being right outside the Nation's Capital... but location is key as is a good school system. Remember city school systems offer much more than country school systems do.
Another issue to consider is buying a mostly brick house or mostly a siding house with just a little brick. Homeowner's will be less if your house is mostly brick.
Most important, have a plan that is fluid that is to say flexible so that it can be easily changed as your life changes and don't worry if you change your goals during the life span of that plan.
New Optics Tech Could Revolutionize Gravitational-Wave Astronomy
Gravitational-wave science is on the verge of a major step forward, thanks to a new instrumentation breakthrough led by physicist Jonathan Richardson at the University of California, Riverside. In a study published in Optica, researchers describe the creation and successful testing of FROSTI, a full-scale prototype designed to control laser wavefronts at extremely high power inside the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO).
LIGO is the facility that first confirmed the existence of gravitational waves, ripples in spacetime produced by massive accelerating objects such as merging black holes. This discovery provided key evidence in support of Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. The observatory relies on two 4-kilometer-long laser interferometers in Washington and Louisiana to capture these faint signals, giving scientists new ways to study black holes, cosmology, and the physics of extreme matter.
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