AND finally;
Don't leave anything for later.
Later, the coffee gets cold.
Later, the day turns into night.
Later, life goes by.
Later, you regret not doing something...
When you had the chance.
Tuesday, November 4
The World We Live In
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> College basketball returns today, with women's reigning NCAA champion UConn Huskies favored to win again, Florida Gators aiming for a back-to-back men's title; see live updates (More) | See men's schedule (More) | See women's schedule (More)
> Kenya’s Hellen Obiri sets a new record for women in the New York City Marathon, winning in 2 hours, 19 minutes, 51 seconds; Kenyan Benson Kipruto wins men's competition with the closest-ever finish (More) | Marathon 101 (More)
> Xania Monet becomes the first AI-based artist to chart on the Billboard radio charts with "How Was I Supposed to Know?" reaching No. 30 on Adult R&B Airplay (More)
Science & Technology
> AI startup Perplexity launches tool to speed up patent research, letting users search databases using natural language queries instead of keywords (More)
> Researchers to launch personalized gene-editing clinical trial aimed at curing ultra-rare diseases; approach modeled after successful treatment of "Baby KJ," who suffered from a one-in-a-million disorder, revealed in May (More) | The best resources we've found on CRISPR (1440 Topics)
> NASA carries out first test flight of the X-59, designed to fly at speeds greater than the sound barrier while reducing the sound of a sonic boom (More)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close up Friday (S&P 500 +0.3%, Dow +0.1%, Nasdaq +0.6%); Amazon shares jump 9.6% after company reports 20% increase in quarterly cloud computing revenue (More)
> OPEC+ countries agree to raise oil production by 137,000 barrels a day in December, won't increase output through the first quarter of 2026 (More) | Everything we've learned about OPEC (1440 Topics)
> Berkshire Hathaway reports a record high in cash and equivalent holdings of nearly $382B; Warren Buffett-owned company has sold more stocks than purchased for 12 straight quarters (More) | Who is Warren Buffett? (1440 Topics)
Politics & World Affairs
> Tens of thousands of people feared killed by UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces over the past week in el-Fasher, capital city of Sudan's North Darfur state (More)
> Assailant wounds 11 people in a mass stabbing attack on a train in Cambridge, England; UK police rule out terrorism as a motive, with a suspect in custody (More)
> Two more suspects are charged in connection with last month's Louvre heist, in addition to two men already charged; see details about the suspects (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
Honor - Integrity - Dignity
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I have witnessed, knowingly or otherwise, 28, 472 mornings and 28, 472 evenings, so far during my lifetime. For those of you who are not good at math that is 78 years plus two days. This does not include the 9 months inside my mother's womb.
Some might say that I must remove 2-3 years of data because I was not aware of what I was witnessing which is why I said KNOWINGLY OR OTHERWISE.
Can you imagine what kind of book I would have if I had been able to take photographs of both my mornings and my evenings during those 78 years or even 70 of those 78 years or quite possibly 60 of even 50 of those 78 years.
The photos would not have to be that great... the greatness would be demonstrated by the consecutive nature of the photographs.
If not photos, then I could have written a diary every day for 50-60-70 years describing what I saw or what I did.
It's fun but also tragic to look back at one's life and see what one has or has not accomplished.
- the wealth
- the assets
- the friends
- the knowledge
- the experience
- the children
- the grandchildren
- the animals as pets
Of course, there are those who do not look at accomplishments but how one lived, especially since one does not have to be wealthy to live with honor, integrity, and dignity, hurting no one and allowing no one to hurt you.
What comes to mind when I think like that are NATIVE AMERICANS, especially those living on a reservation and not trying to experience WHITE MAN'S SUCCESS.
Maybe the time of the BUFFALO needs to return.
A radical vision of quantum reality
Many have pinpointed the birth of quantum mechanics to the small, treeless island of Helgoland, where a young Werner Heisenberg went in the summer of 1925. There, he sketched out the basics of what would become our most brilliant and successful way of explaining reality. At the heart of his approach was the decision to focus exclusively on what observers would find when they measured particles.
It was a flash of genius – but it has also tied physicists up in knots for 100 years. Much of the trouble comes down to questions about what an observer is and what exactly constitutes an observation. Are we to believe that reality is somehow contingent on us looking at it?
Monday, November 3
Headlines
Francis Scialabba
Government shutdown enters fifth week, with more consequences. More than 65,000 children are at risk of losing access to Head Start, the national childcare and early childhood learning program for low-income families, as more funding lapses hit centers in multiple states. Local Head Start programs receive their annual funding at different times of the year. Those that receive their annual budget on Oct. 1 have already been disrupted. Now, those scheduled to receive funding on Nov. 1 have been impacted, as will those with Dec. 1 funding dates if the shutdown continues. And yesterday, on CBS’s Face the Nation, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that he would not fire air traffic controllers who do not show up to work without pay during the government shutdown, and “We will slow traffic down, you’ll see delays, we’ll have flights canceled to make sure the system is safe” if there aren’t enough ATCs to cover shifts. And on CNN’s State of the Union, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the Trump administration “could” make SNAP payments by Wednesday. If the shutdown continues until Wednesday, it will be the longest ever.
The Dodgers bested the Blue Jays to win the World Series. It all came down to Game 7 on Saturday night in Toronto. With a tie in the ninth inning, the Dodgers called in relief pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who had pitched six innings the day before and had never before pitched on consecutive days as a professional. Yamamoto proceeded to throw a perfect defensive inning in the 10th and helped clinch the final outs in the 11th inning to secure victory for Los Angeles, 5–4, and the title. Yamamoto was named World Series MVP. After the game, fellow Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani said of Yamamoto, “I have no idea how he pulled it off. I really believe he is the No. 1 pitcher in the whole world.” The Dodgers will bring the Commissioner’s Trophy to the victory parade today in Los Angeles. City officials are anticipating high levels of fan delirium: Hearings scheduled for Monday at downtown Los Angeles courthouses have been postponed due to street closures and expected crowd sizes.
Las Vegas gets largest fleet of police Cybertrucks from billionaire tech donor. Investor Ben Horowitz, who co-founded Andreessen Horowitz, and his wife, Felicia, donated 10 black-and-white Cybertruck patrol vehicles to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. The couple is prominent in the area. Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill called the vehicles “the future of policing” at a press conference and said 400 officers had been trained to operate the truck, which will roll out onto the streets of Vegas within the next two weeks. McMahill said the vehicles have been updated with extended battery capacity, ladders, shields, and shotguns. The gesture by the philanthropists has raised concerns about private-interest donations in the public sphere.—HVL
Robert Reich
How we build a better future despite Trump and his Republican lapdogs (Part 1)
Friends,
We don’t have to rely on the federal government — which remains shuttered, whose Republican-controlled Congress remains dysfunctional, whose Supreme Court emits elusive mutterings from its shadow docket, and whose president is nuts — to advance a progressive agenda. Several states are taking up the baton.
Case in point: I recently joined with one of California’s most powerful unions (SEIU’s United Healthcare Workers West, whose members work in hospitals and clinics across the state) and one of the nation’s most respected economists (Berkeley’s Emmanuel Saez) to unveil a 2026 California state ballot measure that would establish the nation’s first wealth tax.
It’s an emergency tax on billionaires, to make up for the $100 million hit to California’s Medicaid program that Trump and his Republican Congress made in their One Big Beautiful (big ugly) bill. That bill, you’ll recall, cut taxes mainly for the wealthy and paid for it by reducing federal appropriations for Medicaid.
At A Glance
Nature's best science images from October.
The moon is as close as it can be in 2025 this week.
Ranking countries by how connected they are to nature.
Looking back at the $75M "Spider-Man" flop on Broadway.
See Heidi Klum's elaborate Medusa costume.
Sotheby's to auction solid gold toilet beginning at $10M.
German museum showcases 81 scents throughout history.
Furloughed IRS lawyer runs hot dog stand.
Clickbait: World's oldest Quarter Pounder turns 30.
Historybook: American sharpshooter Annie Oakley dies (1926); Journalist and fashion icon Dame Anna Wintour born (1949); The Soviet Union launches first animal into space (1957); US arms sale to Iran revealed (1986); One World Trade Center officially opens on former site of Twin Towers (2014).
In The NEWS
Scrapes with Death
Near-death experiences, 101
A near-death experience usually occurs in the wake of a traumatic physical event or a reversible clinical death, such as when someone is revived after a heart attack. While the experience varies, NDEs commonly feature a feeling of detachment from the body, visions of bright lights, a warped sense of time, or religious experiences.
Records of NDEs go back to the ancient Greeks and are found across cultures all over the world. The first known clinical observation was recorded in 18th-century France. In the 1970s, psychiatrist Raymond Moody pioneered the academic study of NDEs as medical events after an acquaintance relayed his own near-death experience.
Roughly 5% of the population is estimated to have a memory of an NDE, with common reports of a feeling of peacefulness (80%), followed by bright lights (69%) and encountering other people or spirits (64%).
... Read our full explainer on NDEs here.
Also, check out ...
> An avowed rationalist discusses his near-death experience. (More)
> A look at the connections between religious experience and NDEs. (More)
> The nation's premier NDE research institute is in Virginia. (More)
> "Terminal lucidity" describes the clarity experienced during NDEs. (More)
Preserving Assets
What are trusts?
Trusts are estate planning tools used to designate assets to specific beneficiaries (read 101). They can hold a wide range of assets, including cash, real estate, stocks, businesses, and more. If a trust holds cash, that pool of cash is often considered a “trust fund,” although the definition of “trust funds” in particular is nebulous. See the many kinds of trusts here.
The concept of trusts dates back to ancient Rome, though they were further developed in medieval England. During the Crusades, when crusaders left for battle, they would often leave their land and other assets behind to “trusted” friends.
Trusts are often associated with the ultrawealthy, though many personal finance experts argue that individuals of various net worths should consider establishing a trust. The median trust fund contains roughly $285K.
... Read our full write-up on trusts here.
Also, check out ...
> The pet owners leaving behind trusts for their pets. (More)
> Trusts can reduce tax liability on estates. (More)
> Social Security is handled through two trust funds. (More)
> Infamous scammer Anna Sorokin lied about having a $67M trust fund. (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
Becoming an Elder
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Life as an elder is not always what they (the doctors) tell you it is going to be...
However, there are some elders who manage to reach 60-70-80+ and experience NO HEALTH CONCERNS... and their retirement years are FRIGGING WONDERFUL with family, friends, traveling, and grandchildren.
The data shows that a vast majority of ELDERS do not escape experiencing medical difficulties after they retire, preventing them from having a satisfying retirement.
What is it like being an elder?
- People no longer respect you
- People look down on your age
- Your physical abilities decline
- Your immune system weakens
- It takes longer to heal
- You are more prone to sickness
- Your digestive system changes
- Your reflexes are not as quick
- Your memory fades
Body builders like Arnold Schwarzenegger, unless they keep lifting weights, which gets harder and harder to do with age, will have their MUSCLES TURN TO FAT.
Can you imagine how unattractive that will be for a female bodybuilder?
In addition to contracting cancer which many of us will do, other issues happen to elders as they age:
- Heart Disease
- Arthritis
- Colon Issues
- Liver Disease for alcohol drinkers
- Lung Disease for cigarette smokers
- Hip Replacement
- Shoulder Replacement
- Knee Replacement
- COPD for cigarette smokers
- Obesity issues
The problem with most people is that they DONT GIVE A DAMN ABOUT OLD AGE until they reach old age...
New nuclear reactor spider robot triples weld inspection speed, claims Russia
Developed by Atommash, the company’s mechanical engineering division, the system is designed to perform ultrasonic inspections of welds up to 30 centimeters thick in nuclear power plant reactors and steam generators, an essential process to ensure critical equipment’s structural integrity and safety.
Ultrasonic testing, a widely used non-destructive technique, helps detect invisible internal defects during visual inspections. Traditionally, this process involves technicians manually moving scanners across the surface of the welds, a time-consuming and physically demanding task. The new robot automates this movement, allowing inspections to be completed far more quickly and with improved accuracy.
Ultrasonic testing, a widely used non-destructive technique, helps detect invisible internal defects during visual inspections. Traditionally, this process involves technicians manually moving scanners across the surface of the welds, a time-consuming and physically demanding task. The new robot automates this movement, allowing inspections to be completed far more quickly and with improved accuracy.
Sunday, November 2
Wonderings 30
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- Were you able to answer these questions?
- Who am I?
- What do I know/not know?
- What is my purpose?
- Why am I who I am?
- Is there an afterlife?
- Is there just the Human Race?
- Do you believe in extraterrestrials?
- Do you ask questions?
- Have you learned to think?
Thinking - Pondering - Wondering
One of the tasks I used to ask my business students on the first day of class were these question...
- What did you learn from your previous business class?
- Who are you and what do you know/not know?
They had three hours to complete this in-class assignment and if they needed to take it home to complete, they could; in fact, they had until the end of the semester to turn it in if they needed the time. If they took it home it had to be typed.
For Homework on that first day of class, their assignment to create a list of bullet points on how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, assuming the starting point was entering the kitchen. They had to have between 250 and 300 bullet points to receive a grade of "C".
Most, if not all of my students complained about both assignments; some went as far as complaining to the Dean causing the Dean to seek me out questioning the efficacy of my assignment for business students. What this told me was that the Dean had been promoted to his level of incompetence and would probably go no further.
The assignment stood and I continued to give that assignment to business students until I retired three years later.
THINKING...
That is what life is missing...
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