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A Chapter In U.S. History Often Ignored: The Flight Of Runaway Slaves To México
Roseann Bacha-Garza (left), a borderlands historian, stands with Olga Webber-Vasques at the grave of the latter’s great-great-grandfather, the abolitionist John Ferdinand Webber, in the family cemetery. – By John Burnett/NPR 2021 Feb 28 Heard on All Things Considered 13-Minute Listen Download – In …
The misogynist incel movement is spreading. Should it be classified as a terror threat?
Violence linked to the ideology has killed as many as 50 people in the US and Canada and sparked debate among counterterrorism experts and police. Demonstrators hold portraits during a rally to commemorate the Montreal mass shooting of 14 female engineering students in …
The Great Dying: Earth’s largest-ever mass extinction is a warning for humanity
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/global-warming-led-to-ancient-mass-extinction-event-scientists-say/ – By Jeff Berardelli, Katherine Niemczyk CBS News 2021 Mar 04 – Right now our planet is in the midst of what science says is an unprecedented rate of change, unlike anything seen in tens of millions of years. Overconsumption, unsustainable practices …
Did a Viking Woman Named Gudrid Really Travel to North America in 1000 A.D.?
The sagas suggest she settled in Newfoundland and eventually made eight crossings of the North Atlantic Sea As historian Nancy Marie Brown points out, “Asking not ‘Are the sagas true?’ but ‘Are they plausible?’” is a far better barometer for testing the Viking …
Deep Nostalgia: ‘creepy’ new service uses AI to animate old family photos
Service from MyHeritage uses deep learning technique to automatically animate faces. ‘Some people love the Deep Nostalgia feature and consider it magical, while others find it creepy and dislike it,’ MyHeritage says. Photograph: MyHeritage.com – Alex Hern UK technology editor @alexhern Last modified …
Falling sperm counts ‘threaten human survival’, expert warns
Epidemiologist Shanna Swan says low counts and changes to sexual development could endanger the human species. Swan offers advice on how to protect themselves from damaging chemicals and urges people to ‘do what we can to safeguard our fertility, the fate of mankind, …
As USPS delays persist, bills, paychecks and medications are getting stuck in the mail
Consumers are inundating lawmakers with stories of late bills — and the late fees they’ve absorbed as a result. A U.S. Postal Service letter carrier delivers mail to a snow covered neighborhood last week in Richardson, Tex. (Smiley N. Pool/Dallas Morning News/AP) – …
The Once-Classified Tale of Juanita Moody
On the brink of nuclear war, America’s bold response to the Soviet Union depended on an unknown spy agency operative whose story can at last be told. In the background, a photograph taken by an American U-2 spy plane over Cuba on October …
A Poisonous Legacy – New York City and the persistence of the Middle Passage.
Detail of The Slave Ship by J.M.W. Turner. (Barney Burstein / Corbis / VCG via Getty Images) – By Gerald Horne 2021 Feb 24 – In the middle of 1856, the soon-to-be-celebrated poet Walt Whitman visited an impounded slave ship in Brooklyn. The …
75 years ago, the world’s first modern computer made its public debut
ENIAC was built to compute gunnery tables. US Army – By David Szondy 2021 Feb 25 – Seventy five years ago, the world was introduced to ENIAC, the first ever electronic, programmable, general purpose, digital computer, in a demonstration that not only ushered in …
Claudette Colvin: the woman who refused to give up her bus seat – nine months before Rosa Parks
It was a spring afternoon in 1955 when a teenager’s spontaneous act of defiance changed US history. Why did it take 40 years for her to get any credit? Claudette Colvin: ‘It felt as if Harriet Tubman’s hand was pushing me down on …
Keeping trees in the ground where they are already growing is an effective low-tech way to slow climate change
A mix of public and private forests in Oregon’s Coast Range. Beverly Law, CC BY-ND – Authors: Beverly Law, Professor Emeritus of Global Change Biology and Terrestrial Systems Science, Oregon State University – William Moomaw, Professor Emeritus of International Environmental Policy, Tufts University …
Reversal of Earth’s magnetic poles may have triggered Neanderthal extinction — and it could happen again
During this time, Earth’s inhabitants would have been subjected to some dazzling displays — northern and southern lights, caused by solar winds hitting the Earth’s atmosphere, would have been frequent. – By Amy Woodyatt, CNN Updated 2021 Feb 19 – The reversal of …
Massive sunken heads take up residence on the seabed
The Underwater Museum of Cannes consists of six head-like sculptures, each of which weighs 10 tons. Jason deCaires Taylor – By Adam Williams 2021 Feb 15 – Any unsuspecting swimmers diving off the coast of Cannes, France, may think they’ve stumbled onto some kind …
Ultraviolet TV could provide a better understanding of animals’ vision
A clownfish checks out the programming on the UV-TV. University of Queensland – By Ben Coxworth 2021 Feb 19 – Unlike us, many animals can see ultraviolet light. If you’re using a video screen to study their visual perception, therefore, that screen really ought …
Mysteries of massive holes forming in Siberian permafrost unlocked by scientists
Massive craters have been appearing in parts of the Russian Arctic. This one appeared between May 15 and June 9, 2020. – By Katie Hunt, CNN Updated 2021 Feb 17 – The massive crater appeared violently and explosively in the Siberian tundra last …
The Story of Perú’s Cloud Warriors
What can be known about Perú’s pre-Incan civilisation? Chachapoya sarcophagi, Perú. Alamy. – By Brendan Sainsbury | Published in History Today Volume 71 Issue 2 February 2021 – Recent archaeological discoveries have shed new light on the history of Perú’s Chachapoya people. Until …
Power outages across the Plains: 4 questions answered about weather-driven blackouts
Icicles on a bush in downtown Houston, Feb. 15, 2021. Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images – By Michael E. Webber, Josey Centennial Professor of Energy Resources, University of Texas at Austin 2021 Feb 16 – Editor’s note: Amid record cold temperatures and skyrocketing …
Farm Babe: Sorry, but there’s no such thing as vegan
Image by xamnesiacx84, Shutterstock – Michelle Miller, Farm Babe 4 weeks ago – When you think of the word “vegan,” what do you think of? – You might imagine someone who doesn’t eat animals or consume other foods related to animals (like milk, …
Waterborne microplastics grow bio-coatings to sneak into living cells
A new study has shown how microplastics in water can develop coatings of biomolecules, which make them much more likely to be internalized by living cells. University of Bayreuth – By Nick Lavars 2020 Dec 10 – Microplastics are starting to turn up in …
U.S. Postage Stamp Will Honor the ‘First Lady of Physics’
Chien-Shiung Wu’s experiment in 1956 helped her colleagues win the Nobel Prize while her role was only mentioned in the acceptance speech. Chien-Shiung Wu received numerous awards and honors throughout her life, including having an asteroid named after her in 1973 and receiving …
Congress could use an arcane section of the 14th Amendment to hold Trump accountable for Capitol attack
If the Senate acquits former President Donald Trump in the upcoming impeachment trial , there’s an obscure other way to punish him. iStock /Getty Images Plus – Author: Gerard Magliocca, Professor of Law, IUPUI 2021 Jan 29, Updated 2021 Feb 11 – …
Venetian Glass Beads May Be Oldest European Artifacts Found in North America
Traders likely transported the small spheres from Italy to northern Alaska in the mid-15th century. Crafted in Venice, these blue beads traveled all the way to northern Alaska in the mid-15th century. (M. L. Kunz et al. / American Antiquity) – By Nora …
The Real Story of the “Football” That Follows the President Everywhere
Take a peek at the mysterious black briefcase that has accompanied every U.S. president since John F. Kennedy. From the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, the nuclear “Football.” (Jamie Chung) – By Michael Dobbs Smithsonian Magazine | Subscribe 2014 Oct – It …
$1.6 Million Grant Will Support Digitization of Native American Oral Histories
The newly announced funding will help universities make decades-old interviews widely available The Covid-19 pandemic has exacted a heavy toll on Native American communities. In this May 2020 image, Navajo elder Emerson Gorman (R) sits with his (L-R) daughter Naiyahnikai, wife Beverly and …
Will Insurrection Lead to Terrorism?
Daniel Zender – By Martha Crenshaw SOURCE: New York Times 2021 Feb 10 – Dr. Crenshaw, the author of Countering Terrorism, has been teaching and writing about political science and terrorism since 1972. She is a senior fellow emerita at the Center for …
Smell-free stainless steel compost bin uses smart airflow technology
Kamaro Products’ stainless steel compost bin keeps your kitchen looking and smelling great. – 2021 Feb 11 – By now we should all know how important composting is for the environment, but many people are put off by the smell of rotting food …
Hyundai’s wild robot-car-on-legs gets an unmanned, air-liftable cousin
The TIGER looks pretty zippy on a smooth piece of road, but when the legs come out it can get over, around or through just about anything. Hyundai View 7 Images – By Loz Blain 2021 Feb 09 – Hyundai dropped a lot of …
Not the First Mob Attack on the Government in D.C.
JohnTyler – Image 179070 – By Stan M. Haynes 2021 Feb 07 – Stan M. Haynes, a Baltimore attorney and historian, is currently working on a book of historical fiction set during the Tyler presidency. – An angry mob marches up Pennsylvania Avenue …
Someone tried to poison a Florida city by hacking into the water treatment system, sheriff says
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri speaks at a press conference on Monday, February 8, about the attempted hacking of the city of Oldsmar’s water treatment system. – By Amir Vera, Jamiel Lynch and Christina Carrega, CNN Updated 2021 Feb 08 – A hacker …
Who Can Claim to be the United States’ First University?
Anglican Rev. James Blair secured Willam and Mary’s royal charter in 1693. – By Tom McSweeney, Katharine Ello and Elsbeth O’Brien 2021 Feb 07 – Thomas J. McSweeney is the Robert and Elizabeth Scott Research Professor of Law at William & Mary Law …
The True History and Swashbuckling Myth Behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Namesake
Pirates did roam the Gulf Coast, but more myths than facts have inspired the regional folklore. Taken in 1922, the ship José Gaspar passes the Lafayette Street Bridge in Tampa during the Gasparilla Festival (University of South Florida Library) – By Nora McGreevy …
Did Trump and His Supporters Commit Treason?
Few events in American history have matched the Framers’ definition as clearly as the insurrection of January 6th. Photograph by Tayfun Coskun / Anadolu Agency / Getty – By Jeannie Suk Gersen SOURCE: The New Yorker 2021 Jan 28 – For years, Carlton F. W. …
Everything Was Fake but Her Wealth
Ida Wood, who lived for decades as a recluse in a New York City hotel, would have taken her secrets to the grave—if her sister hadn’t gotten there first. Herald Square circa 1907, when Ida Wood first moved into the Herald Square Hotel. …
Chile Pepper Compound Increases Solar Cell Efficiency
Adding capsaicin, the chemical responsible for making chile peppers spicy, improved the efficiency of solar cells in experiments. A group of perovskite solar cells that have been treated with capsaicin. (Jin Yang) – By Alex Fox SmithsonianMag.Com 2021 Feb 02 – New research …
North Korea targeted cybersecurity researchers using a blend of hacking and espionage
North Korea has a long history of hacking targets in the U.S. Chris Price/Flickr, CC BY-ND – By Paulo Shakarian, Associate Professor of Computer Science, Arizona State University 2021 Feb 04 – North Korean hackers have staged an audacious attack targeting cybersecurity researchers, …
Target joins other retailers in dropping Chaokoh coconut products over forced monkey labor allegations
PETA alleged last year that its investigators found young monkeys were chained and trained to pick coconuts at multiple farms in Thailand. Following appeals from PETA and two PETA Asia undercover investigations into the use of captive monkeys, who are kept chained and …
The Free Press and Democracy in a “Murder the Media” Age
The ugly message “Murder the media,” etched into a door of the Capitol by an angry mob of violent Trump supporters January 6, reflects the deep lack of trust in American journalism stoked by a demagogic President and his enablers over the last …
US Army-funded research results in self-propelled materials
Scientists have developed materials that can propel themselves, such as this self-jumping polymer shell. Yongjin Kim, UMass Amherst – By Nick Lavars 2021 Feb 01 – Inspired by the way plants like Venus flytraps can snap closed and reset themselves, scientists have developed new …
Thawing permafrost is full of ice-forming particles that could get into atmosphere
Permafrost is thawing across the Arctic, releasing microbes and organic materials that have been trapped in the frozen ground for thousands of years. NOAA via Wikimedia Commons – Authors: Jessie Creamean, Research Scientist, Colorado State University – Thomas Hill, Research Scientist, Colorado State …
A Chapter In U.S. History Often Ignored: The Flight Of Runaway Slaves To México
Roseann Bacha-Garza (left), a borderlands historian, stands with Olga Webber-Vasques at the grave of the latter’s great-great-grandfather, the abolitionist John Ferdinand Webber, in the family cemetery. – By John Burnett/NPR 2021 Feb 28 Heard on All Things Considered 13-Minute Listen Download – In …
The misogynist incel movement is spreading. Should it be classified as a terror threat?
Violence linked to the ideology has killed as many as 50 people in the US and Canada and sparked debate among counterterrorism experts and police. Demonstrators hold portraits during a rally to commemorate the Montreal mass shooting of 14 female engineering students in …
The Great Dying: Earth’s largest-ever mass extinction is a warning for humanity
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/global-warming-led-to-ancient-mass-extinction-event-scientists-say/ – By Jeff Berardelli, Katherine Niemczyk CBS News 2021 Mar 04 – Right now our planet is in the midst of what science says is an unprecedented rate of change, unlike anything seen in tens of millions of years. Overconsumption, unsustainable practices …
Did a Viking Woman Named Gudrid Really Travel to North America in 1000 A.D.?
The sagas suggest she settled in Newfoundland and eventually made eight crossings of the North Atlantic Sea As historian Nancy Marie Brown points out, “Asking not ‘Are the sagas true?’ but ‘Are they plausible?’” is a far better barometer for testing the Viking …
Deep Nostalgia: ‘creepy’ new service uses AI to animate old family photos
Service from MyHeritage uses deep learning technique to automatically animate faces. ‘Some people love the Deep Nostalgia feature and consider it magical, while others find it creepy and dislike it,’ MyHeritage says. Photograph: MyHeritage.com – Alex Hern UK technology editor @alexhern Last modified …
Falling sperm counts ‘threaten human survival’, expert warns
Epidemiologist Shanna Swan says low counts and changes to sexual development could endanger the human species. Swan offers advice on how to protect themselves from damaging chemicals and urges people to ‘do what we can to safeguard our fertility, the fate of mankind, …
As USPS delays persist, bills, paychecks and medications are getting stuck in the mail
Consumers are inundating lawmakers with stories of late bills — and the late fees they’ve absorbed as a result. A U.S. Postal Service letter carrier delivers mail to a snow covered neighborhood last week in Richardson, Tex. (Smiley N. Pool/Dallas Morning News/AP) – …
The Once-Classified Tale of Juanita Moody
On the brink of nuclear war, America’s bold response to the Soviet Union depended on an unknown spy agency operative whose story can at last be told. In the background, a photograph taken by an American U-2 spy plane over Cuba on October …
A Poisonous Legacy – New York City and the persistence of the Middle Passage.
Detail of The Slave Ship by J.M.W. Turner. (Barney Burstein / Corbis / VCG via Getty Images) – By Gerald Horne 2021 Feb 24 – In the middle of 1856, the soon-to-be-celebrated poet Walt Whitman visited an impounded slave ship in Brooklyn. The …
75 years ago, the world’s first modern computer made its public debut
ENIAC was built to compute gunnery tables. US Army – By David Szondy 2021 Feb 25 – Seventy five years ago, the world was introduced to ENIAC, the first ever electronic, programmable, general purpose, digital computer, in a demonstration that not only ushered in …