Jazz Gem - Give It One (feat. Eric Miyashiro and Wayne Bergeron)

Final Olympics results per capita

Final results of the 2026 Winter Oympics -
Number of gold medals per 10M people:
Norway 32.03
Slovenia 9.44
Sweden 7.50
Switzerland 6.69
Austria 5.48
Netherlands 5.45
Czechia 1.88
Italy 1.69
Canada 1.20
France 1.20
Australia 1.13
Germany 0.95
South Korea 0.57
Kazakhstan 0.48
GB 0.43
Japan 0.40
United States 0.35
Spain 0.20
Brazil 0.04
China 0.03

I got the new Covid shot this morning ...

Had to travel quite a ways out-of-state, since my state is one of the 16 where the shot is not available (for now/ever?), and had to pay out-of-pocket, since it wasn't covered by Medicare Part B or Part D (for now/ever?), but got it done. I'm hoping to get reimbursed by Medicare if/when Medicare covers the cost, but not counting on it.

Shipping is one of the world's dirtiest industries - could this invention finally clean up cargo fleets?

"
Freighters emit more greenhouse gases than jets, but a tech startup believes a simple and effective technique can help the industry change course

An industrial park alongside the River Lea in the London suburb of Chingford might not be the most obvious place for a quiet revolution to be taking place. But there, a team of entrepreneurs is tinkering with a modest looking steel container that could hold a solution to one of the world’s dirtiest industries.

Inside it are thousands of cherry-sized pellets made from quicklime. At one end, a diesel generator pipes fumes through the lime, which soaks up the carbon, triggering a chemical reaction that transforms it into limestone.

With this invention, Seabound, the company behind it, hopes to capture large amounts of carbon directly from the decks of cargo ships, and help clean up this strikingly polluting industry. More than 50,000 cargo ships are at sea at any moment, producing 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions – more than aviation.
"
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/26/global-shipping-emissions-invention-clean-up-cargo-fleets-net-zero

New quantum theory of gravity developed

"
Researchers at Aalto University have developed a new quantum theory of gravity which describes gravity in a way that's compatible with the standard model of particle physics, opening the door to an improved understanding of how the universe began.

"If this turns out to lead to a complete quantum field theory of gravity, then eventually it will give answers to the very difficult problems of understanding singularities in black holes and the Big Bang," he says.

Although the theory is promising, the duo point out that they have not yet completed its proof. The theory uses a technical procedure known as renormalization, a mathematical way of dealing with infinities that show up in the calculations.

So far Partanen and Tulkki have shown that this works up to a certain point—for so-called 'first order' terms—but they need to make sure the infinities can be eliminated throughout the entire calculation.
"
https://phys.org/news/2025-05-quantum-theory-gravity-sought-crucial.html

Witchcraft accusations putting hundreds at risk of "physical attacks or even death" in Ghana, Amnesty says

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Hundreds of people suspected of witchcraft in Ghana, especially older women, face rampant human rights abuses including murder, Amnesty International said Monday, asking the government to criminalize accusations and ritual attacks.

In 2023, the Ghanaian parliament passed a bill making it a criminal offense to declare, accuse, name, or label someone as a witch but the bill is yet to be signed into law.

"The accusations, which can lead to threats, physical attacks or even death, usually start within the family or among community members following a tragic event such as an illness or a death," Amnesty said.

"Older women living in poverty, with health conditions or disabilities are at greater risk, as well as women who do not conform to stereotypical gender roles. In some cases, accusers even base their claims on having had a bad dream about a person," it added.
"
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/witchcraft-accusations-hundreds-risks-ghana-amnesty-international/

We should work with trade partners that don't 'blackmail' us: EU agriculture commissioner

Source: France 24

Asked whether agriculture will be dragged into the current trade dispute between the Trump administration and the EU, Hansen says: "This cannot be excluded, so we have to prepare for it. We have the experience from the first Trump administration when there were tariffs on our agricultural products. And in our Vision (for Agriculture and Food) we clearly refer to a unity safety net, meaning that we can strike back and react to coercion and blackmail, as it happened before. We are strong when we are united, but when this unity is challenged we are very weak, and this something we definitely need to address."

The commissioner elaborates: "We need to get into new markets. In June we have a high-level mission to Japan with our agriculture and food-producing sector in order to get them into those markets, so that they have alternatives and are not being blackmailed, as happened before."

On that issue of alternative markets to the US, Hansen underlines the importance of the Mercosur agreement with Latin American countries. Negotiations on the deal have concluded, but it has not yet been finally adopted. "We have a very positive export balance in trade," Hansen explains. "Our milk and cheese sectors would benefit from such an agreement. Wines and spirits are currently under pressure in the European Union, and they would benefit from it. The whole [agricultural] sector would benefit from it. What is important is that we give fair conditions to our farmers."

Read more: https://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/talking-europe/20250228-we-should-work-with-trade-partners-that-don-t-blackmail-us-eu-agriculture-commissioner

The search for the missing Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 has resumed once again

Source: NPR

Recently, Malaysia's Transport Minister, Anthony Loke, announced that a new search for the missing flight has resumed. The exact details of the contract with the maritime exploration firm conducting the search are still being finalized.

On Tuesday, Loke announced to reporters that this search was officially back on. Officials hope that technological advancements will improve the chances of locating the aircraft this time around.

According to Kim's reporting, the search will operate on a "no find, no fee" principle, meaning Ocean Infinity will only be compensated if the aircraft's wreckage is discovered. The reward stands at $70 million, as reported by the Associated Press.

This new search will concentrate on a different location covering 15,000 square kilometers (or 5,800 square miles), in the southern Indian Ocean, based on the "latest information and data analyses conducted by experts and researchers," Loke said. He did not provide details on how long the search is expected to last, as those negotiations are still underway.

Read more: https://www.npr.org/2025/02/26/g-s1-50862/the-search-for-the-missing-malaysian-airlines-flight-has-resumed-once-again

Judge sides with Illinois attorney general in lawsuit over Chicago Trump Tower's water use

Source: The Hill

A Chicago court ruled this week that the Windy City’s Trump Tower violated the Illinois environmental protection law with its use of water from the Chicago River.

In his ruling, Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thaddeus L. Wilson sided with a 2018 lawsuit from Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul (D) and a coalition of environmental groups. Raoul’s office filed the suit based on a referral from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA), which accused the building of neglecting to obtain necessary Clean Water Act permits for its cooling water intake system.

In the summary judgment, Wilson ruled the Trump Organization “liable on all counts.” Raoul’s office said in a statement that it intended to seek an injunction and civil penalties at a future hearing, which has not yet been scheduled.

“The recovery of the Chicago River into the healthy heart of our downtown is a major accomplishment for the people of Chicago and the Clean Water Act,” said Sierra Club Illinois Director Jack Darin. “Trump Tower openly violated the Clean Water Act for years, putting the river and the wildlife that call it home at risk. We’re proud to hold these scofflaws accountable, and applaud our pro bono attorneys and the Attorney General for stepping up to protect our river and its recovery.”

Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/4876809-trump-tower-chicago-lawsuit-environmental-violation/

US Marshals rescue 200 missing children over six weeks

Source: ABC News

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July 1, 2024, 4:40 PM

The U.S. Marshals Service rescued and located 200 missing or endangered children over a six-week period, the agency announced on Monday.

"Operation We Will Find You 2" focused on several hot spot cities such as Phoenix, Arizona, and Miami, Florida, where there were kids missing, it said.

"Whenever a child is missing, whether we cannot explain how they went missing, whether we think it was a family abduction, or whether it's a runaway, they are at risk of being in danger and at risk of being trafficked, at risk of being hurt, we need to take it very, very seriously," U.S. Marshals Service Director Ronald Davis told reporters on Monday.

The Marshals worked with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to help find and locate the children it was tasked with finding.
"


Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/us-marshals-rescue-200-missing-children-weeks/story?id=111591679