The Macklemore problem

This … for lack of a better word … nonsense ... surrounding Ed Sheeran and one of his opening acts - Macklemore - is just another example of how messed up we are as a society.

Let me preface this by saying that the entire situation in the middle east as it relates to Israel and Palestine is complex.  I don't think there is a "right" answer, and support or distrust of one element doesn't automatically mean that you are taking a stand.  And to be clear, no matter what, there is a humanitarian crisis.  

So, Macklemore says something.  And people lose their minds.  Doesn't he have a right to free speech, too?  Yes, he has a public forum, and maybe he's abusing it in a way.  But IMHO the conversation should be about whether that's the right forum - not whether he should be saying such things. And arbitrating that he's wrong.

Then Robert Kraft got involved, and it blew up.  He told Sheeran that "you can't use my stadium"  - which is also a complicated statement.  The world of professional stadiums is just a mess.  Like all stadiums, he took public funds to build it, and continues to get tax incentives and other considerations to continue to operate it.  So while he will tell you he owns it, it's not quite that simple since it was a very nebulous "public-private partnership"... I would argue that he's speaking on behalf of the taxpayers who contributed to it.  Which just makes this all somehow worse.

In the end, we all just need to settle down. Stop focusing on *what* the guy said and the kneejerk to it (seemingly based on politics by the way) - and focus instead on there being a large humanitarian crisis with no easy answers... but where people are dying based on actions outside of their control, with no way out.

BASF sues Apple in US, says iPhones infringe face authentication patents | Reuters

The world of corporate intellectual property is always interesting to me. 

Here’s a case where BASF created a means to detect people’s faces, and patented it. 

And Apple is accused of having stolen it for use in iPhones. They filed suit and the most likely outcome is that Apple winds up licensing it from BASF. Of course it’s also possible they created a new piece of technology, and they get the case dismissed.  

But one thing to keep in mind: when Apple first invented the iPhone, much of their camera technology was “likely” infringing on some things Kodak had developed. But Kodak was a little disorganized at that time and also had some financial difficulties. So they chose not to pursue legal action. Thus letting Apple “steal” some of their work (or so would seem). 

https://www.reuters.com/world/basf-sues-apple-us-allegedly-infringing-its-face-authentication-patents-2026-09-03/

Never Forget the Space Monkeys That Made It All Possible

Although the stories are not well chronicled, and they aren’t all that well known, monkeys played a critical part in understanding human space flight. 

This story summarizes their contributions. I would like to note that among them, Bonnie is perhaps the most interesting one. And that’s because they wanted to study longer term effects in space, but Bonnie’s condition deteriorated rapidly and they had to abort the mission - and this was concurrent with the moon landing. Surely this was a concern among scientists. 

And second, the public reaction to using Bonnie in this situation caused nasa to re-think how they handle primates in experimentation. 

https://www.vice.com/en/article/five-important-ape-o-naut-moments/

Farmers let 200 wind turbines go up across their corn ground in Iowa, and instruments in the rows found the crop running a degree and a half cooler by day and up to three degrees warmer at night

Well, would you look at that?

In addition to creating clean (and at least mostly free) energy, the wind turbines have a net positive effect on the crops where they stand. 

The still layer is stirred out. Heat leaves faster, moisture leaves faster, and gases exchange with the atmosphere faster in both directions.

A little science, yo!

A flow of air is good for the crops. So in the end we also get better yields. 

Why are people opposed to this? Are we that dumb?

https://www.ecoportal.net/en/farmers-let-200-wind-turbine-cornfield/30378/

Flocking cameras!

Technology has evolved to the point where cameras and data are all connected to provide surveillance literally everywhere.   We are, for all intents and purposes, a police state.  

The information is used for some legitimate purposes, but its also misused, too.  By organized groups, factions of government, and even what might be considered rogue police officers.

And there's not much we can do to stop this.  Sure, there are moves to limit the use of flock cameras, but the companies that run them are working to undo those limits and in some cases to simply re-brand as another name; make no mistake, they're still installing them just with a different logo.

Do you have any idea how many there are in your community?  Well, here are some tools to find out.  The first is information about how much is being spent and where they are located.  The second tracks the details of where they are installed.  You can also get a sense of how quickly the number of them is growing.

I live in a small town near Ft. Lauderdale.  5 years ago, we had zero cameras.  Today, we have 48!  The city and police tell us its for safety.  The city was relatively safe 5 years ago - and appears to be about the same today.  So please enlighten me on why this surveillance is needed?

 

https://mytownview.com/flock-cameras-near-me

https://maps.deflock.org/

Strange times

The mid-term election may still be more than a month away, but "the machine" is in full swing.  What I find strange, though, is that all of the things I see are from one point of view.  Yeah, I pretty much only see "stuff" from the MAGA-aligned groups and candidates.

This election feels different than others.  I don't know what to make of it exactly, and the question I have is *why* so many ads are essentially hating on one person, distorting the truth, and fear mongering.  

And then there's the matter of the FCC not allowing for a democratic candidate to be interviewed on network television, while allowing his opponent to go on unfettered and say whatever he wanted.  

Of course, you also have captain tangerine poopy pants offering $5,000 to every adult if his party retains the house.  I mean, he's promised money to Americans several times, and of course reneged every time.  Why should this be any different?  And let's not forget that its not up to him; congress must approve it and appropriate the funds.  And if you do the math, this would be nearly a TRILLION dollars removed from the treasury.  Meaning we move further into a deficit.  Couldn't that money be used for some other good?  And isn't the party (and him) *against* welfare?  I mean that's what this is, isn't it?

Sigh.  Here's to hoping people have indeed already made up their minds, and this election swings the pendulum back a little.  

But don't rest on that!  Remind people you know to check on their voting status and to make a plan to actually vote.  

Simon Weckert creates Digital Camouflage to avoid AI surveillance

Stylish (!!) and hides you from surveillance. That’s remarkable. 

https://www.dezeen.com/2026/08/25/digital-camouflage-shirt-ai-video-surveillance-simon-weckert/

Lambs grazing beneath an Oregon solar array gained weight at statistically similar rates despite 38 percent lower pasture production, as higher forage quality helped offset the smaller crop

Hmmmm. From an agriculture perspective, the pasture did better with the solar array, due to shade and other factors. 

Maybe we should use more of these arrays to provide a clean power source AND helps the environment, and by extension could help with food production. 

Just saying. 

https://spacedaily.com/b-lambs-grazing-under-an-oregon-solar-farm-had-38-percent-less-grass-in-front-of-them-than-lambs-in-the-open-field-alongside-and-they-put-on-the-same-weight-to-the-gram-because-shade-makes-a-pasture-g/

Bad Bunny Wins First Primetime Emmy for 2026 Super Bowl Halftime Show

Suck it, people who hated the show. 

It was a beautiful, and heartfelt performance by an American citizen by birth … who speaks Spanish as his first language.  

https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/bad-bunny-wins-primetime-emmy-super-bowl-halftime-show-1236334994/

Texas Alzheimer’s patient who saw brain plaque disappear shares story in national campaign - YouTube

While I am encouraged by this news, I find it odd that it hasn’t gotten much attention.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87yKM-A0ua4

Even the organization that’s said to be using her story for national awareness isn’t quite doing that.  

https://www.brightfocus.org/home/hope-after-an-alzheimers-diagnosis-teri-and-gails-story-of-resilience/

The drug company isn’t saying that they have a cure, but are having encouraging results in early trials, with repeated treatments. Here’s a doctor summing it up: 

https://www.facebook.com/BrightFocusFoundation/videos/for-decades-alzheimers-disease-treatment-meant-managing-symptoms-thats-changing-/758293067241697/

Again, it’s a cautious note to look beyond the headline and understand the nature of the story itself. 

This El Niño Will Be Unlike Any in the Past Eight Decades - The Atlantic

This story is about the climate event called el niño. It is an area in the pacific that has a direct effect on the global weather. Understanding it is an important part of planning for the weather. It delves into some of the science behind what it tells us - and the reality is that our worth will be “worse” this year. 

But there’s a little subtext. While the US lags behind in climate science, the rest of the world is picking up the slack. 

The article is behind a paywall, but you can read it here. 

https://archive.is/2026.09.01-021630/https://www.theatlantic.com/science/2026/08/el-nino-effects/688429/

Luca McGill - Society for Science

Here’s a student who wanted to know more about CO2 emissions. Was there a higher concentration at different altitudes? Was it different in rural versus urban settings?

So he used a drone and a raspberry pi fitted with a detector to find out. 

I won’t spoil the results, but will tell you he learned something along the way. 

Curiosity and a little effort made for an interesting experiment that was well thought out and he did a good job of conducting it. 

https://www.societyforscience.org/jic/2025-student-finalists/luca-mcgill/

ground-breaking-invention-could-revolutionize-the-bioplastic-industry-f202608-n/

A student saw an opportunity to go beyond recycling.  She invested $2,500 to find an environmentally friendly enzyme that can break down PET plastics. 

Her success won her the 2026 eco grand prize, which included some money to continue to invest into other compounds and expand her work. 

https://en.as.com/latest_news/meet-the-18-year-old-student-whose-ground-breaking-invention-could-revolutionize-the-bioplastic-industry-f202608-n/

1.3m plastic bottles collected in a day in global volunteer ocean cleanup | Plastics | The Guardian

There’s an adage to “think globally, but act locally.”

Back in the 1980s, a group called “ocean conservancy” held an event to clean up the beaches along Texas’s coastline. They managed to signup 2,800 volunteers and spent a weekend cleaning up. 

They were on to something, and grew the organization. It currently consists of 19.7 million people, across 166 countries. 

It’s not just a weekend of activity, but lots of individual events held throughout the year. 

And to date, they estimate that they have managed to collect 184,000 tons of waste, with much of the 439 million items being plastic water bottles. 

The great part is that you don’t have to belong to the group to contribute (though certainly you can). You can head down to a local beach (or a park that may have pollution) by yourself or with a group and just start collecting things and dispose of them properly. 

The earth thanks you. 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/aug/26/plastic-bottles-coastal-cleanup-ocean-conservancy

Panda Express's Founders Built a $7 Billion Empire. Now They're Helping 55,000 Employees Become Homeowners

The summary of the attached article is that Panda Express is privately owned. They are touting that they help employees to become homeowners. Sounds nice, right?

The company made $7 billion last year and has about 55,000 employees - most of which are hourly people making a little above minimum wage. 

There are some managers in the ranks, and they start at $65k, while the higher level managers can make as much as $200k. 

And this “help” they provide is in the general benefits package. It teaches people what it takes to buy a house and suggests ways to save money for a down payment and how to afford monthly payments. 

It strikes me that this kind of thing really should be in every company’s benefits package. It’s nothing special, really. 

And it’s a sad statement on the nature of things that greasy chicken from a mall food court is an industry this large - and the owners just rake in that money. 

By the way, the company does run a children’s charity. But it’s not funded by the company or its owners. Rather, they ask customers to “round up” and that money goes to the charity. 

So it’s not like the owners are doing much, really… 

https://www.inc.com/amaya-nichole/panda-express-founders-built-7-billion-dollar-empire-now-helping-employees-become-homeowners/91396527

Words to live by.

In the memoir by Gladys West, she talks about her upbringing, and her faith. 

There’s a passage where she reminds us that this bible - that many conservatives seem to have never read yet claim to have - has some passages about being better, benefitting others, and in her estimation sharing one’s knowledge and wealth. 

In 2017, SpaceX proposed flying passengers from New York to Shanghai in 39 minutes by sending Starship through space and landing it vertically near the destination—and while that service remains speculative, the rocket architecture behind it has now flown through space and survived re-entry.

I’ve talked about this before. Among the (seemingly crazy) ideas that Elon had, was one whereby you could board a rocket in, say, Texas, and it would go up and you might land in Singapore within an hour or two. 

The notion is intriguing - even if it’s far fetched. 

https://spacedaily.com/t-spacex-earth-to-earth-new-york-shanghai-39-minutes/

A Teen Reporter Searched for His Community in the Epstein Files. Adults Freaked Out. - Longreads

This is a good read. A student journalist looked into the Epstein files and found the name of a local woman. The editorial staff decided to publish. The woman threatened to sue … and everyone kind of freaked out. Because of course they did. 

The student reporter was the most rational and mature person in the room. Everyone else was acting essentially like a child. 

https://longreads.com/2026/07/24/redwood-high-school-bark-epstein-journalism/

From Marlon Brando’s private island to a thriving wildlife sanctuary, Tetiaroa records 15,614 turtle hatchlings | Sea and Job

This is pretty cool. In 1966, after filming Mutiny on the Bounty in Polynesia, Marlon Brando purchased an island and turned it into a wildlife sanctuary. 

And what do you know? A large number of turtle hatchlings are born there each year. 

https://www.seaandjob.com/from-marlon-brandos-private-island-to-a-thriving-wildlife-sanctuary-tetiaroa-records-15614-turtle-hatchlings/