Impressive! Get ready for some Dim Sum, Panda and Kangaroo bonds! 😊
Wednesday, August 19, 2026
Foreign Borrowers Rush Into Asia/Australia Bond Markets
Growing fears of Moscow seizing money to fund war, Russians are withdrawing cash money from their bank accounts
Good news! Finally, the apathetic and lethargic Russian Slav(e)s are doing something to stop the war and perhaps even to topple Putin the Terrible!
Why the World’s Largest Megaproject NEOM in Saudi Arabia Collapsed
Recommendable! Was the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman delusional as suggested by Wall Street Journal?
China’s Yuan Is Challenging The Dollar In Africa with Palki Sharma
Very recommendable!
"Libya is set to join China’s CIPS framework, giving it a route to make payments directly in yuan and reduce reliance on SWIFT, where the dollar dominates. The shift is being driven by cost, speed and access to Chinese capital. Kenya has already converted some dollar loans into yuan, cutting interest costs. Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa have currency swap arrangements with China. The dollar still dominates Africa’s overseas debt, but Beijing is steadily expanding the yuan’s role across the continent."
Bernd Prange: CDU-Bürgermeister einer Kleinstadt in Sachsen-Anhalt spendet 10.000 Euro an AfD
Schlagzeilen aus der Bananenrepublik D, die es in sich haben! Das ist der Hammer!
"Ende Juli verkündete der AfD-Kandidat für Sachsen-Anhalt, Ulrich Siegmund, bei einer Wahlveranstaltung, dass ein CDU-Politiker 5000 Euro an die AfD gespendet habe. „Er hat diese Summe gespendet, weil er möchte, dass wir als Alternative für Deutschland unsere wunderschöne Heimat, unser Land, vor diesem links-grünen Kurs der CDU schützen“, so Siegmund.
Bei dem CDUler handelt es sich um den amtierenden CDU-Ortsbürgermeister Bernd Prange, der seine Spende sogar auf 10.000 Euro verdoppelt hat. Besonders brisant: In einer persönlichen Erklärung ruft er dazu auf, die AfD zu wählen, um dem Linkskurs der CDU entgegenzuwirken."
Bernd Prange (59) sitzt für die CDU im Kreistag von Stendal und ist Bürgermeister in der Gemeinde Altmärkische Höhe
The UAE announced that it would halt all trade and financial transactions with Iran.
Good news!
"The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is intensifying economic pressure on Iran to discourage Iranian efforts to control or disrupt navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
The UAE announced on August 18 that it would halt all trade and financial transactions with Iran. The announcement comes after the UAE accused Iran of launching missiles from Iranian territory toward the UAE on August 18. The UAE later said the missiles unsuccessfully targeted vessels to disrupt ”maritime navigation. ...
The UAE’s decision will further weaken Iran’s already deteriorating economy by restricting both its access to essential imports and its ability to repatriate export revenues and circumvent sanctions. Roughly one-third of Iran’s imports have come from the UAE, and the largest proportion of Iranian imports in the last five years come from the UAE have made the UAE. ..."
A guide to Elul: The Jewish last month of year is for reflection and repentance
Food for thought! I knew the Jewish week is very different from the Western week, but I forgot or was not aware that the Jewish calendar is also very different, except for Yom Kippur.
"... The Jewish calendar differs fundamentally from the Gregorian calendar because it is a lunisolar system rather than a purely solar system. ...
Starting Epoch: The Gregorian calendar counts from the estimated birth of Christ. The Jewish calendar counts from the calculated date of Creation (3761 BCE), meaning the year 2026 CE falls during the Jewish year 5786. ...
The Jewish calendar has a different beginning and end of the year because it follows two distinct biblical tracking tracks—one for the agricultural/civil cycle and another for the historical/religious cycle. This is vastly different from the Gregorian calendar, which relies on a single, fixed civil New Year on January 1st that was arbitrarily set by Roman politics. ..." (Google Search/AI)
"It may be the middle of summer on the Gregorian calendar right now, but on the Jewish calendar, we are approaching the end of the year. The month of Elul begins this year at sundown on August 13. Although Elul contains no major Jewish holidays, it is quite an important period of reflection and preparation for the High Holidays, which begin with Rosh Hashanah on the first of the following Hebrew month, Tishrei. ...
However, asking Hashem for forgiveness is not enough when we have wronged another person. For those transgressions, we must take responsibility, make amends, and seek forgiveness directly from the person we have hurt. ...
Eleazar of Worms, a 12th-century Jewish scholar also known as the Rokeach, points to a connection between Elul and a verse from the Song of Songs: אֲנִי לְדוֹדִי וְדוֹדִי לִי (Ani L’dodi V’dodi li), meaning “I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me.” The verse is an acronym for the Hebrew month of Elul — אלול — using the first letter of each word to form the name of the month. ..."
Unregulated online trade of mummfied remains is the real ‘mummy’s curse’. Really!
Nice try of a scare tactic by the AAAS! Even bolstered by a research article! I bet many individuals involved in this kind of trade are aware of the dangers involved.
If these mummified remains for sale were obtained or shipped illegally it should be primarily a case for law enforcement.
"... Today, one can find mummified animal and human remains for sale online, part of a growing—and often illicit—global trade. As scientists report in a recent study, dangerous pathogens growing on these items could be exposing sellers, buyers, and postal workers alike to a real mummy’s curse . The researchers analyzed 128 online posts from social media platforms, e-commerce sites, webstores, and auction houses, finding numerous examples of mummified remains showing visible signs of deterioration and fungal growth. Even though some specimens may appear undamaged, the authors warn that any mummified remains with surviving soft tissue will harbor microbes, a risk that is amplified when remains are incorrectly stored. ..."
From the abstract:
"The rise of the internet, especially social media, has amplified international trafficking and driven demand for unique cultural heritage, including mummified humans and animals.
However, these preserved remains pose health and biosecurity risks due to the toxicity of embalming methods and/or suboptimal storage that can promote microbial growth.
This article investigates these risks by analyzing 128 online posts from Meta platforms, e-commerce sites, webstores, and auction houses.
We reveal that mummified remains sold online exhibit signs of biodeterioration, yet sellers provide no safety guidance, suggesting limited awareness or deliberate disregard of hazards.
Posts also reveal noncompliance with postal regulations, underscoring the need for clearer and consistently enforced shipping policies.
Until more effective measures are implemented, the public should remain vigilant and report sales of mummified remains to relevant authorities and professional bodies.
Improved oversight and education are therefore essential to safeguard public health and preserve archaeological remains."
Can missing, natural indigo light explain the ‘myopia boom’ in children spending too much time indoors?
Amazing stuff! Good news! A very clever experiment.
"Efforts to explain rising rates of myopia, or nearsightedness, in children worldwide have made two things clear: More time spent outdoors seems protective, and more time spent indoors increases risk.
A new study in tree shrews now suggests a key to preventing myopia may be the indigo portion of sunlight. ...
In the new study, researchers first induced myopia in tree shrews—diurnal mammals that can serve as a model for primate visual systems—by fitting them with tiny spectacles that focus light at a point behind the retina, tricking it into growing longer to compensate.
The team found that indigo light (wavelengths between 419 and 446 nanometers) activated a light-sensing protein on the tree shrews’ retinas called OPN5, linked in mouse models to myopia prevention.
These indigo wavelengths are more abundant in natural sunlight than modern indoor lighting, and increasing their presence in the lights illuminating the animals’ indoor enclosure prevented myopia induced by the spectacles.
The results have not yet been confirmed in humans, but some of the authors are involved in companies developing classroom lighting and LED-equipped glasses that aim to give children’s eyes a steadier diet of indigo."
From the highlights and abstract:
"Highlights
• Indigo light suppresses lens-induced myopia in tree shrews
• The most protective wavelength range is 419–446 nm
• Tree shrew lens filtering shifts effective OPN5 stimulation to indigo
• Built environments may lack protective indigo wavelengths
Summary
Today, about 2.8 billion people worldwide suffer from myopia (nearsightedness), and projections place the 2050 burden at 4.8 billion people (the “myopia boom”). Myopia results from abnormal elongation of the eye, which causes images to focus in front of the retina.
Building on prior work in mouse models assessing the non-visual opsin OPN5, we test the hypothesis that insufficient exposure to short-wavelength light increases myopia susceptibility.
We use the tree shrew, a near-primate model for human myopia. Our findings show that indigo light in the range of 419–446 nm, when used to supplement a warm white light-emitting diode (LED), completely suppresses myopia induced by minus-lens wear.
A large body of genetic and epidemiological evidence suggests that the “myopia boom” has an environmental cause.
Our findings align with this evidence and suggest that one contributing factor is the relative absence of indigo light in built environments where we spend 86% of our time."
Myopia and Indigo Light: Grytz Pushes Boundaries in Vision Research (a related, but older original news release from August 2025)
Graphical abstract
Figure 1 Expression of OPN5 in ganglion cells of the tree shrew retina
Die woke Welt ertrinkt in ihrer eigenen Lächerlichkeit (oder der gefährlichste Mann Deutschlands) von Roland Tichy
Schlagzeile des Tages! Sehr gelungen! Köstliches aus der Bananenrepublik D!
"Vor der wichtigen Landtagswahl in Sachsen-Anhalt liegt die AfD mit 42% weit vorne. Zeit, den beliebten Spitzenkandidat Ulrich Siegmund zu zerlegen. Dachte sich wohl der Spiegel. Heraus kam irgendwas Unentschlossenes zwischen sehr herzigem Fandom und sich selbst dafür auf die Finger schlagen. ...
Der Spiegel konnte mit seiner Titelgeschichte kaum mehr unter Beweis stellen, wie wenig seine Autoren noch von der Welt um sie herum verstehen. Zu sehr ist man mit Einordnen beschäftigt, als unvoreingenommen zuzuhören. ...
Der Vorgang erzählt vor allem auch sehr viel über den Zustand eines untergehenden Leitmedien-Journalismus, der politische Erklärung zu lange, zu exzessiv, zu dumm durch Dämonisierung ersetzt hat. Über 40 Prozent für die AfD in Sachsen-Anhalt verlangen eine Auseinandersetzung mit den Gründen. Was treibt so viele Wähler zu Siegmund? Welche Erwartungen verbinden sie mit ihm? Warum glaubt niemand mehr, dass CDU, SPD, Grüne und Linke noch irgendwas ändern? Warum sind die Menschen so dermaßen fertig mit den Altparteien? ..."
Eine bessere Wahlwerbung kann man sich vor einer Wahl als Politiker/Kandidat kaum wünschen! (Quelle)
Lena Schilling (MdEP) zu PFAS-Risikoanalyse: „Diese Drastik hat mich echt beeindruckt!“ Wirklich!
Wer hat den diese dumme und naive junge Frau (25 Jahre alt) ins Europa Parlament direkt oder indirekt gewählt!
Wie gefährlich sind eigentlich diese sog. Ewigkeitschemikalien? Viel Demagogie und Aberglaube! Plastophobia ist eine ernste Krankheit, bitte gehen sie sofort zum Arzt!
Lena Schilling
Sacked Ukrainian defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov calls for presidential election
That's a way to start a come back! Is he thereby helping to undermine the so far very successful defense effort by the Ukraine against Putin the Terrible?
Is war time, a good time for democratic elections? What historical examples for that do we have? The UK, for example, did apparently not hold major elections during WW II (Google AI). "Yes, the United States held both presidential and congressional elections on schedule during World War II." (Google AI) However, except for Hawaii, the mainland of the US was not under direct attack by the so called Axis Powers (Spain, Italy, Germany nor by Japan.
No wonder he was sacked?
"Ukraine's popular ex-defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for wartime elections, in what is widely seen as the biggest challenge to Volodymyr Zelensky's presidency since Russia's full-scale invasion four and a half years ago.
"Democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia," said Fedorov, 35, in a video posted to YouTube on Tuesday, adding that Ukraine is fighting "precisely because we want to remain a free European state". ..."
"... Fedorov made the remarks in a video address posted to his YouTube channel, saying Ukraine needs a “legal, safe, and realistic mechanism” for holding elections during a prolonged conflict, while also safeguarding voting rights for soldiers, Ukrainians living abroad, and residents of frontline regions. ..."
Fedorov Calls for Wartime Elections, Says Putin Shouldn’t Set the Timeline "In brief: Former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for Ukraine to develop a mechanism to hold elections during the war, arguing Russia should not be able to dictate when Ukrainian citizens vote. His remarks came hours after President Volodymyr Zelensky nominated a permanent replacement for the post on Aug, 18."
56 million years ago fossil forest during the PETM offers chilling window into climate change future. Really!
This demagoguery and alarmism and hysteria was again spread quickly by many of the usual climate change religion suspects (like e.g. the AAAS)!
When medieval superstition trumps science!
Some of this research seems to be speculative, e.g. "possible tree mortality" and other vague terms.
The climate demagogues try hard to link a 56 million years ago event to today's warming by stressing the "anthropogenic" cause of higher CO2 in the atmosphere. Let's not forget CO2 is only a minute trace gas in our time!
Notice also this study appears to be based on computer modeling not on hard facts. Has any third party validated these computer model scenarios? Computer models and their 100 year forecasts also play a major role in the propaganda of the global warming hoax/climate change religion.
Very strange, notice these climate demagogues don't tell what the approximate CO2 and methane concentration in the atmosphere was 56 million years ago. Either they don't know or it was so much higher than today that they better not disclose it or otherwise their demagoguery would be exposed immediately! What if it was not higher CO2 that caused the warming period 56 million years ago?
"Palaeontologists have reconstructed a 56-million-year-old forest, offering a sobering view of what happens in a period of rapid warming due to rapid increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide.
The Palaeocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) came at the end of the Palaeocene epoch. Over this period, global average temperatures rose by 5–8°C over just a few thousand years.
This warming was triggered by a massive, rapid release of carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere and oceans primarily through volcanic activity which would have been intensified through feedback loops, including melting permafrost and large-scale wildfires.
Research published in the journal Science shows how the PETM impacted on an ancient forest fossilised in rocks in US state Wyoming and vegetation globally.
The team found reduced canopy cover and plant species migrating toward the poles. ..."
"“We are putting CO₂ into the atmosphere faster than any known natural process,” [???] says paleobotanist Dr. Regan Dunn, Assistant Deputy Director and Associate Curator of the Samuel Oschin Global Center for Ice Age Research at La Brea Tar Pits and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. “The Earth has never experienced a carbon release at the pace we're creating today." ..."
"... This sudden warming event, called the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), was one of the most notable climatic upheavals in Earth’s history. The volume of CO2 released [??? so how much was released?] during that period is thought [???] to be roughly equivalent to the total human emissions that would [???] be released by the end of the twenty-first century under a pessimistic scenario. The ancient surge of CO2 raised global average temperatures by between 5 and 9 °C, changing the climate for more than 150,000 years. ..."
"... Understanding how forest structure changed during the PETM is really important, because it tells us about how plant growth, biomass and productivity are affected by adding a lot of carbon dioxide [??? how much?] to the atmosphere,” Currano [Ellen Currano, senior author of the study] says. “It turns out that too much carbon dioxide is a bad thing for forests, because the accompanying warming and drying stresses the trees and kills many of them.” ..."
From the editor's summary and abstract (Notice, the abstract does not mention the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere):
"Editor’s summary
Predicting the effects of climate change depends on complex feedbacks between climate and vegetation. Although elevated carbon dioxide from anthropogenic emissions could make photosynthesis more efficient, leading to greater vegetation productivity and carbon storage, coincident warming and drought can reduce primary productivity. Dunn et al. examined how these factors interacted to influence forest productivity in another period with elevated carbon dioxide and 5° to 9°C of global warming, the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, which occurred about 56 million years ago. Based on an analysis of leaf cuticles from fossils, the researchers found that there was elevated canopy opening early in this period, possibly due to tree mortality, which occurred along with major vegetation and hydrological changes. ...
Abstract
Uncertainty remains regarding the impact of rapid anthropogenic [???] warming on forest ecosystem structure, biodiversity, and function.
As an analog [???], we reconstruct forest canopy density and compositional change in Wyoming, USA, through the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), an interval of abrupt carbon increase and warming ~56 million years ago. We develop a proxy to quantify leaf area index and assess shifts in floral composition using palynomorphs.
Forest canopies opened abruptly at onset of PETM warming, landscape erosion increased, and vegetation shifted from broad-leaved angiosperm to fern- and palm-dominated ecosystems.
When combined with regional data, these patterns suggest that continental-scale changes in plant communities cause landscape destabilization. These shifts also have implications for multimillennial-scale hydrologic and carbon cycle feedbacks in the climate system."
Ancient global warming drove forest canopy decline and ecosystem restructuring "A widespread dieback of forests due to climate change 56 million years ago has parallels with today [???]."
Ancient rise in CO2 was catastrophic for forests: what that means for today’s plants
Paleocene Eocene Thermal Maximum Carbon Release Study "A Tar Pits researcher reconstructed forests of 56 million years ago—with chilling parallels for our warming planet: climate change led to a widespread browning of Earth's landscapes—against a backdrop of elevated atmospheric CO₂, global warming, and reduced rainfall triggered by volcanically driven carbon release—and trees are at the root of these drastic changes."
UW’s [University of Wyoming] Currano Helps Reconstruct Ancient Wyoming Forest Canopy (original news release)
(Left) Fisheye view of a forest canopy above a corresponding estimate of forest structure. (Top Right) Leaf cuticle collected from modern forest soil. (Bottom Right), Fossilised leaf cuticle from the Hanna Basin.
Satellite data shows a browning trend across the planet since around the turn of the century. [Demagogues like to use shocking photos like this]
South Carolina Police Department Says young female Officer Used Flock Cameras to Stalk Ex-Boyfriend 166 Times
Another Me Too event! Welcome to the Age of Gender Equality!
Men watch out!
What was the police officer's standard issue weapon? A Glock? Just kidding!
About the transgender medical industry in the US
Yes, it is a very disturbing development in Western countries! How much of it is medical quackery?
To call this often times medical malpractice/butchery "gender affirming care" is one of the most horrible euphemisms since "Arbeit macht frei" written over the entrance gate of a German concentration camp!
Why are there apparently so many more transgender women than transgender men? Are the transgender men hiding somewhere? Who benefits more?
How guilty are some of the parents who had their daughter undergo double mastectomy or their son castration? Why is nobody calling it genital mutilation as they would when something like it happens to girls in e.g. Africa (double standard?)?
How many juveniles and adults have already detransitioned (another euphemistic term)? We learn very little about it. Why?
"The Department of Health and Human Services recently issued a scathing indictment of the entire transgender medical scheme in a report titled "Wolves in White Coats: How Doctors and Hospitals Pushed and Profited from the Fraud of 'Gender Medicine.'"
Here's what the report reveals:
- 225+ American hospitals launched pediatric gender programs.
- $50 million in puberty blocker claims—billed as an "unspecified endocrine disorder."
- $11 million more for teenagers 13 to 17—billed as early puberty.
- "Gender dysphoria" is NOT an endocrine disorder. And a 17-year-old is NOT in early puberty.
They swapped the codes: insurers got a bill that said "hormone problem," but what they were actually paying for was puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and irreversible, life-altering surgeries on healthy kids.
Why?
FOLLOW THE MONEY.
Here's what the hospital's billing department sees when they treat a "transgender" child:
- Puberty blockers: $16,385 per child, per year
- Lifetime hormone therapy: $25,000 to $75,000—before a single surgery
- Mastectomy: $12,680
- Vaginoplasty: $53,645
- Phalloplasty: $133,911
..."
University of Arizona together with the Gila River Indian Community to open nation's first MD medical school on tribal land near Phoenix
Good news!
"University of Arizona plans to open a medical school branch on tribal land southeast of Phoenix, the first MD-granting medical school within a sovereign tribal nation."
"... Program Structure & Details
- Launch Date: Begins in July 2027.Class Size: Admits 10 students annually.
- Curriculum: A three-year MD Primary Care Accelerated Program. Students spend the first 18 months in Phoenix and the final 18 months doing clinical training in Sacaton.
..." (Google Search)
"Today [8/18/2026], the University of Arizona and Gila River Health Care (GRHC), the Gila River Indian Community's tribally operated healthcare system, announced a long-term partnership to establish the nation's first MD-granting medical school branch located on the lands of a sovereign Tribal Nation. ..."
"Gila River Health Care will invest more than $25 million to establish a University of Arizona medical school branch on the Gila River Indian Community, a long-term workforce investment aimed at training and retaining physicians within tribal and rural health systems.
The tribally operated health system has committed the funding through 2034 for faculty positions, full-tuition scholarships and educational infrastructure. The partners say the University of Arizona College of Medicine–Phoenix Regional Medical Branch will be the nation’s first MD-granting medical school branch located on the lands of a sovereign tribal nation. ..."
Gila River Health Care
Trump Administration Moves to Open nearly 45 Million acres of National-Forest Acres to Logging and road construction to prevent wildfires
Good news! Bravo President Trump! The federal government owns way too much land anyway! This is not about "pristine" or "untouched" "national forests" as some media outlets want us to believe.
It appears most news media spread disinformation about this latest move by President Trump! According to US Department of Agriculture this rule change serves primarily to improve forest management and to prevent wildfires! This seems to make a lot of sense!
Yes, maybe a large number of wildfires are human caused (incl. arsonists), but better forest management can reduce the damage caused by wildfires by removing the fuel.
"The Trump administration is proposing to rescind the Roadless Rule, a 25-year-old policy that bars development like road construction and logging on nearly 45 million acres of national forest land, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Tuesday. ...
In a letter published last fall, more than 30 leading forest science researchers from across the country refuted the administration’s claims. The researchers found over the last three decades across all Forest Service lands, the density of wildfire ignitions was lowest in wilderness and roadless areas. Their analyses also showed that the highest number of wildfire ignitions came from land in close proximity to roads. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, nearly 85% of wildfires are human-caused. .."
"Today [8/18/2026], Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced the U.S. Forest Service has filed a proposed rule to rescind in its entirety the national 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, a one-size-fits-all restriction that has frustrated land managers and served as a barrier to wildfire risk reduction work across large swaths of America’s national forests. ...
For 25 years, the 2001 Roadless Rule restricted road construction and limited the Forest Service’s ability to carry out critical active management work within inventoried roadless areas. Today, that includes more than 44 million acres of the 193-million-acre National Forest System. The rescission is intended to prioritize local agency decision-making over regulatory rules that are the same across the country, regardless of specific land management issues and needs. ...
“Active forest management is not an option. It’s essential,” said Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz. “More than 40% of inventoried roadless areas, primarily in the West, have high or very high wildfire hazard potential. And only 5% of those areas have received hazardous fuels reduction treatments since 2014. At the same time, more than a quarter of these lands—11.3 million acres—are already near existing roads. Acting now, thoughtfully and decisively, is the best way to restore the balance, reduce wildfire risk, and secure the long-term health of our forests and neighboring communities.” ..."
Trump administration moves to repeal Roadless Rule "Nearly 45 million acres of national forest land could be opened to logging and development."
USDA acts to remove roadless rule restrictions that exacerbate rising wildfire risk (original Trump administration news release)
IBM Connects Its First Modular Cryogenic Systems in Milestone Toward Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computing
Good Big Blue news! From punch card mainframe to quantum computing! What a business story!
"
• New cryogenic quantum fridges designed to link hundreds of quantum chips.
• Cooled to below 15 millikelvin, more than 180 times colder than deep space, the build out marks a step forward in the engineering required for future quantum computers.
• Advances IBM’s quantum roadmap to deliver the world’s first fault-tolerant quantum computer in 2029.
...
it has successfully joined and cooled down two cryogenic modules into a single environment. The new architecture is designed to scale into the modular, shared, and ultra-cold system required to link hundreds of quantum chips into a more powerful quantum computer capable of solving large problems. Its deployment is a milestone on IBM's path to delivering IBM Quantum Starling in 2029, which is expected to be the world's first fault-tolerant quantum computer and will integrate advances across error correction, processor design, decoding, and systems engineering. ...
IBM’s plans for Starling were introduced last year with a new error correction code that dramatically reduces the physical resources required for fault tolerance. Since then, the company’s progression has remained on course, including the demonstration of core hardware components and breakthroughs in efficient error-correction decoding. ..."
A cryogenic quantum fridge?
IBM Nostalgia, one of the first Personal Computers from 1984 (Source)
The Educated Republic: Scott Atlas on Thomas Jefferson
Recommendable!
"... Jefferson composed his own epitaph, listing three achievements: author of the Declaration of Independence, author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, and father of the University of Virginia. He did not mention his two terms as president. Most people find that omission curious. I find it clarifying. Jefferson believed the university mattered more to the republic’s survival than anything he accomplished in office. ...
A republic whose citizens cannot reason, evaluate evidence, or resist manipulation is not genuinely self-governing—it is a republic in name only. “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization,” he wrote in 1816, “it expects what never was and never will be.” The university was not a cultural amenity or tool of job certification. It was the mechanism by which free government reproduces itself across generations. ..."
Thomas Jefferson (Source)
Russia has continued to provide direct military support to Iran through weapons and weapons components transfers.
Serious stuff! How rogue state governments help each other!
Where are the coward European powers when you need them (as a minimum for minesweeping and to escort cargo ships)!
"... NBC News reported on August 18 that Russia has transferred drone components, ammunition, and TNT explosives to Iran via the Caspian Sea as of July 2026, citing a European government document that NBC obtained and an unspecified Western official verified. ...
Russia’s drone component transfers to Iran are indicative of the active military support that Russia has provided Iran and its drone program in recent months. Iran has reportedly used “Russian-enhanced versions” of Shahed drones and Russian targeting intelligence to attack US forces and assets during the war, according to US intelligence officials. ...
Iran and Russia have historically used the Caspian Sea to trade military and non-military goods.
Israel struck sites in Bandar Anzali, including facilities to disrupt Russian shipments of military equipment to Iran, earlier in the war.
Ukraine more recently struck several sanctioned cargo vessels in the Caspian Sea on July 25 that Russia reportedly used to transport military cargo between Russia and Iran. ..."
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (D) formally warns private property owners not to lease parking to ICE
What a headline! More news from the Dimocratic Party!
"Mayor Michelle Wu contacted garage and lot owners to ask them to reject ICE requests to use their property for “surge parking,” saying it would constitute an “unwarranted escalation” in federal immigration enforcement in Boston. ..."
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (official photo)
Tuesday, August 18, 2026
What Drove Life Into The Trees during evolution?
Recommendable!
The host's silver shining nose ring is a little distracting! 😊
Meta’s $200b-$1 trillion lawsuit could change social media forever
This seems to be more of a government shakedown and it reeks of government paternalism!
Other, Western countries have implemented stupid social media bans for children!
Meta will have a very tough stand to defend against so much government power and the claim it is harmful to children.
What about e.g. the responsibility of parents?
"Thirty US states are suing Meta for over $1 trillion, accusing it of knowingly designing Instagram and Facebook to be addictive and harmful to children, while concealing what it knew."
What's Behind India's 'Record' Social Media Takedowns in India? with Palki Sharma
Rising government censorship in India? A controversial issue not only for India!
Time For India's electronic payment system UPI in Qatar
Good news! Impressive!
"The Indian diaspora in Qatar is the largest foreign community in the country, numbering approximately 830,491 people according to official figures from the Ministry of External Affairs India." (Google Search)
"Qatar's total population is approximately 3.18 million people" (Google Search)
President Trump is serious: Hormuz could become U.S. territory. Really!
Many of the news media outlets had fit over one of his latest remarks by President Trump! This president is having too much fun irking journalists!
Not to mention that he also threatened to bomb Oman!
Where are the coward European powers when you need them (e.g. for mine sweeping and escorting cargo ships etc.)!
President Trump certainly has a way of keeping the news media busy and breathless! It is a lot of fun to watch!
"President Trump doubled down Monday on the idea of declaring the Strait of Hormuz U.S. territory, arguing that American forces already have "total control" of the critical waterway as Iran threatened military action to break the U.S. blockade. ..."
The One Big Beautiful Bill restored 100 percent expensing for machinery and equipment, immediate expensing for domestic research and development, and temporary full expensing for qualifying factory structures
Good news! Bravo President Trump! This could become a booster for the US economy!
"... And, importantly, it made this permanent.
Instead of deducting the cost of a machine over many years, a business can take the deduction immediately. This lowers the after-tax cost of investment and rewards companies for acting now.
Tariffs raise the return on producing in the United States and eliminate the threat of predatory dumping from abroad, while deregulation and faster permitting make it easier to get factories built. ..."
Copper is new king for Australia's BHP as profit jumps 30%
Headline of the day! Good news!
BHP has copper smelting and refining operations at Olympic Dam in South Australia, where it mines significant deposits of the red metal, as well as uranium.
One of the most egregious mistakes in journalism: Comparisons with same period last year
On a daily basis tons of news media articles are published including such annual comparisons per month, quarter, semi annual.
Often times this information is rather useless or even disinformation! What if e.g. last year's number was an aberration from normal or an extreme value or unique for some reason. Some journalists note this deviation from normal, but often without further analysis.
Much better would be comparisons to some normal value e.g. moving averages or monthly/quarterly,semiannual averages over several years etc. Practical suggestions: A 12 months moving average for monthly data and a 16 quarters moving average for quarterly data. You get the idea!
Given that it is now the second quarter of the 21st century with so many data sources and analytics easily available, this journalistic failure is even more difficult to excuse!
However, too many journalists are lazy or lack understanding!
Deregulation Before Privatisation: Fixing Pakistan’s Power Market
Good news!
A famous question regarding privatization of state owned enterprises: What comes first, privatization or market deregularization/liberalization? Most agree both are necessary for more free markets.
"The Government of Pakistan has begun the phased privatisation of three state-owned power distribution companies to minimise sector losses and address recurring debt.
Privatisation can certainly enhance efficiency when firms operate in a competitive and well-functioning market. However, Pakistan’s energy sector continues to be operated in a single-buyer structure, with strict administrative controls over pricing, market access, and electricity transactions.
This raises a critical question about the order of reform: should the power sector move towards privatising distribution companies before creating the conditions necessary for competition? PRIME’s (2024) report “Breaking Monopolies Deregulation Before Privatisation” argues that deregulation should proceed [precede?] privatisation.
Without market liberalisation and required market reforms, privatisation risks replacing public monopolies with private ones, leaving consumers with limited choices and weak competitive pressures. ..."
Inheritable, fragmented DNA can transfer from mammalian cell to neighboring cell and change how they function via tunneling nanotubes
Amazing stuff! This could be a major milestone!
"... A new study ... reveals just that: an alternate, previously unknown, route for DNA to travel between cells. Scientists ... found that in some cases when chromosomes failed to divide equally, DNA fragments remained behind in tiny sacs called micronuclei, which float in the cell's cytoplasm rather than the nucleus. Using fluorescently tagged ... cell lines, the researchers observed these micronuclei migrating from one cell to another carrying their DNA passengers with them, which was a surprising discovery. ...
“This has been well-established in organisms such as bacteria through a process called horizontal gene transfer, where bacteria share DNA with neighboring bacteria, allowing them to acquire a new function, such as resistance to antibiotics,” ... “But we were not aware of this type of transfer before in human cells.” ...
in cases of genomic instability, donor cells transferred micronuclei to recipient cells through bridge-like structures called nanotubes. The transfer occurred across multiple human cell types, including retinal pigment epithelial cells, kidney cells, and cancer cells. ...
To test whether this new DNA that came from another cell had a functional impact on the new cell, the scientists engineered donor cells with resistance to a specific antibiotic. After combining donor and recipient cells in culture and inducing chromosome damage, they found that recipient cells acquired the same antibiotic resistance – direct evidence that mammalian cells can trade genetic material through simple cell-to-cell contact. ..."
"In a recent Cell paper ... show that genomic instability drives human cells to transfer fragmented chromosomes to neighbors via tunneling nanotubes (TNTs), with heritable functional consequences, raising fundamental questions about intercellular communication, genome surveillance, and cancer evolution."
From the highlights and abstract:
"Highlights
• Genomic instability generates micronuclei and chromosome fragments in the cytoplasm
• Direct cell-cell contact triggers intercellular transfer of genomic DNA
• Transferred DNA fragments are functional and maintained within recipient cell genomes
• Intercellular DNA transfer can confer heritable phenotypic changes
Summary
The mammalian genome is safeguarded within the confines of the interphase nucleus. However, genomic instability can trigger the mislocalization of nuclear DNA to the cytoplasm within micronuclei or as fragmented chromosomes.
Beyond activating cell-autonomous signaling programs, whether such cytoplasmic DNA can elicit non-cell-autonomous consequences to nearby cells remains unclear. Here, we show that cytoplasmic DNAs undergo intercellular transfer through contact-dependent, cytoskeleton-based nanotube structures connecting adjacent human cells.
Diverse sources of genomic instability—including exposure to mitotic spindle poisons, ionizing radiation, and Cas9-induced chromosome breakage—promote nanotube-mediated DNA transfer in both cancerous and non-cancerous cells. Transferred DNA fragments are stably inherited as functional extrachromosomal genetic elements in the recipient host genome, thereby conferring heritable phenotypic traits to the recipient cell.
Our findings uncover a horizontal gene transfer-like mechanism through which direct cell-cell contact can propagate genomic instability and reshape mammalian genomes."
Broken chromosomes don’t stay home: Tunneling nanotubes carry damaged DNA between human cells (no public access)
Human cells can exchange genomic DNA that alters cell behavior (original news release) "Children’s Research Institute scientists discover that DNA transferred between cells can be inherited, remain biologically active"
Graphical abstract
Figure 1 Intercellular DNA transfer via nanotube-like connections in human cells
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