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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 8:43:21 GMT -8
If your boyfriend doesn’t appreciate fresh fruit puns, let that mango.
The QOP is Making Campaign Ads for the Democrats
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 8:59:20 GMT -8
Finding Ice on the MoonBuilding a space station on the Moon might seem like something out of a science fiction movie, but each new lunar mission is bringing that idea closer to reality. Scientists are homing in on potential lunar ice reservoirs in permanently shadowed regions, or PSRs. These are key to setting up any sort of sustainable lunar infrastructure. In late August 2023, India’s Chandrayaan-3 lander touched down on the lunar surface in the south polar region, which scientists suspect may harbor ice. This landing marked a significant milestone not only for India but for the scientific community at large. For planetary scientists like me, measurements from instruments onboard Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander and its small, six-wheeled rover Pragyan provide a tantalizing up-close glimpse of the parts of the Moon most likely to contain ice. Earlier observations have shown ice is present in some permanently shadowed regions, but estimates vary widely regarding the amount, form and distribution of these ice deposits. My team at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics has a goal of understanding where water on the Moon came from. Comets or asteroids crashing into the Moon are options, as are volcanic activity and solar wind. Each of these events leaves behind a distinctive chemical fingerprint, so if we can see those fingerprints, we might be able to trace them to the source of water. For example, sulfur is expected in higher amounts in lunar ice deposits if volcanic activity rather than comets created the ice. Like water, sulfur is a “volatile” element on the Moon, because on the lunar surface it’s not very stable. It’s easily vaporized and lost to space. Given its temperamental nature, sulfur is expected to accumulate only in the colder parts of the Moon. Scientists suspect there’s ice hiding on the Moon, and are searching for itLosing Ice on EarthTop scientists say the world’s ice sheets are melting more rapidly than expected and that world leaders must ramp up their climate ambitions to avoid a catastrophic rise in sea levels. A report released Thursday from the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative, a network of policy experts and researchers, pleads with world leaders to heed their warnings as they gather for the United Nations’ COP28 climate conference later this month. The report says if global average temperatures settle at 2 degrees Celsius above the preindustrial baseline, the planet could be committed to more than 40 feet of sea-level rise — a melt that would take centuries and reshape societies across the globe. The collapse of ice sheets and ice shelves has been a major point of uncertainty within the climate science community. But a flurry of new research suggests that dangerous tipping points are nearer than once thought and that there is likely less room in Earth’s carbon budget than expected. 2 degrees, 40 feet: Scientists who study Earth’s ice say we could be committed to disastrous sea level rise
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:04:01 GMT -8
What Are People In Arab Countries Readgin? Aljazeera's Take on Weapons in the Hospital
What has Israel ‘found’ in Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital?
The Israeli military claims it has found rifles, grenades and military vests — but so far, no Hamas command centre.
Israel on Thursday raided Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital for a second day in a row.
On Wednesday, Israeli troops had raided the coastal enclave’s largest medical facility, starting at 2am. Israel has long claimed that Hamas was using the hospital as a command centre. The Israeli army has said the raid has helped it find evidence to back up its assertion.
So what does Israel claim to have found?
What was found in the hospital?
The Israeli military released video footage from inside an undisclosed building within the medical complex.
The video showed three duffel bags that the military claims were found hidden in an MRI lab, each containing an assault rifle, grenades, Hamas uniforms and flak jackets.
Additionally, the army showed assault rifles without ammunition clips and a laptop that it said were found.
Israeli military spokesperson Jonathan Conricus said: “These weapons have absolutely no business being inside a hospital,” adding that he believed the material was “just the top of the iceberg.”
What about Hamas tunnels and military command?
In the days leading up to the raid, Israel insisted that Hamas was operating tunnels underground al-Shifa Hospital. It also claimed that the hospital was a command centre and military post for Hamas.
Israel’s claims were also backed by United States President Joe Biden, who accused Hamas of committing war crimes by having its military headquarters under the hospital.
Yet, more than 24 hours after Israel’s raid started, the Israeli army has not shown evidence of either Hamas-run tunnels or a military command centre under the hospital.
Are there holes in Israel’s claims?
Mustafa Barghouti, the general secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative, said that what Israel had shown in videos from under al-Shifa Hospital so far could easily have been planted by the army itself.
“All they’ve shown is a Kalashnikov and a laptop that they could have put there easily and claim that it was found there,” the veteran Palestinian legislator told Al Jazeera.
On X, formerly Twitter, the Israeli army first posted a video of Conricus taking viewers on a tour through parts of al-Shifa, which it said was without any edits or cuts.
But it deleted that post and then republished a near-identical video, with some tweaks. On social platforms, that further fuelled questions about the veracity of Israel’s claims.
How has Hamas responded?
Hamas has denied and dismissed the latest statements by the Israeli military.
“The occupation forces are still lying … as they brought some weapons, clothes and tools and placed them in the hospital in a scandalous manner,” Qatar-based Hamas senior member Ezzat El Rashq said.
He added that Hamas has repeatedly called for a committee from the United Nations, the World Health Organization and the International Committee of the Red Cross to verify Israel’s claims of Hamas tunnels under Gaza hospitals.
Barghouti said Israel has constantly rejected these calls for an independent, international team to investigate the situation in al-Shifa. “Israel doesn’t want that because they know that they are lying,” he said.
What is happening in al-Shifa now?
Israel’s military continues to attack al-Shifa, with troops deployed on all sides of the hospital, Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reported from Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
The Israeli military has destroyed the specialised surgeries building in the medical facility. The partitions, walls between the rooms and all the medical equipment inside the building have been completely demolished, he said.
Hundreds of patients, doctors and nurses, and more than 2,000 others sheltering at al-Shifa are still believed to be at the hospital.
“What we see today is that this war is about attacking civilians and attacking hospitals and destroying medical facilities,” said Barghouti.
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:05:50 GMT -8
The Proud Boys Just Lost a Prized Recruit
An Iowa teen convicted in the 2021 beating death of a high school Spanish teacher was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison with a possibility of parole in 25 years.
A judge sentenced Jeremy Goodale for his role in killing Nohema Graber, a 66-year-old teacher at Fairfield High School. Goodale, 18, and a friend pleaded guilty earlier this year to first-degree murder in the beating death of Graber.
The two high school students used a bat to kill Graber after stalking her as she took her daily walk in a large park in Fairfield, a small Iowa city about 100 miles southeast of Des Moines.
Before being sentenced, Goodale apologized to the teacher’s family, the community and his own family.
“I’m sorry, truly sorry. What I’ve taken can never be replaced,” Goodale said, at times through sobs. “Every day I wish I could go back and stop myself, prevent this loss and this pain that I’ve caused everyone.”
Prosecutors said Goodale and his friend Willard Miller, both 16 at the time, decided to kill Graber because of a bad grade she had given Miller. Prosecutors have said Miller first suggested the two kill Graber after becoming worried that the poor grade would prevent him from participating in a study abroad program.
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:08:49 GMT -8
Higgins is a Lot Scarier Than Ghost Busses
Rep. Clay Higgins is one of those Republicans you might forget about for long stretches, but the moment you are reminded he exists, you know something particularly groan-worthy is coming. That is just what happened on Wednesday, when FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the House Homeland Security Committee. Higgins started grilling him about “ghost buses” supposedly “filled with FBI informants dressed as Trump supporters” on Jan. 6, 2021.
Higgins opened this line of questioning with a quote from an FBI informant who claimed that he had marched to the Capitol with “fellow Proud Boys members” while “communicating with his FBI handler while people were entering the U.S. Capitol. Can you confirm that the FBI had that sort of engagement with your own agents embedded within to the crowd on Jan. 6?”
“If you are asking whether the violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6 was part of some operation orchestrated by FBI sources and/or agents, the answer is emphatically not,” Wray responded.
That’s when Higgins really got going, barking, “You’re saying no? You’re saying no?”
”Are you familiar with, with … you know what a ghost vehicle is? You’re the director of the FBI, you certainly should. You know what a ghost bus is?”
”A ghost bus?” Wray responded, a touch incredulously.
”Ghost bus!”
”I’m not sure I’ve used that term before,” Wray said, keeping a straight face.
”Okay,” Higgins said in a tone oozing with disbelief. “It’s pretty common in, in law enforcement. (No it's not.) It’s a vehicle that’s, that’s used for secret purposes. It’s painted over.” He then brought up a photo of the backs of several buses, and indicated the ones in the middle.
“These two buses in the middle here, they were the first to arrive in Union Station on Jan. 6th, 0-500, I have all this evidence, I’m showing you the tip of this iceberg.” Higgins was then interrupted for a point of order, but he later resumed to claim, “These buses are nefarious in nature and were filled with FBI informants dressed as Trump supporters deployed unto our Capitol on Jan. 6. Your day is coming, Mr. Wray.”
I Found a Ghost Bus
The Ghost Bus is a concept from Japanese horror creator Michaelty Yamaguchi, who has worked on haunted houses and in the film industry. The bus does not move during the experience, and guests remain seated. The bus is equipped with a variety of audiovisual and sensory effects and deploys a cast of actors to deliver frights and thrills.
"The Ghost Bus is an exciting experience that has been a favorite for people of all ages in Japan for many years," said Kenji Takahashi, general manager of Travel Plaza Transportation, a subsidiary of the company behind the new attraction, JTB Hawaii. "It has been a tough couple of years, and I think people are ready to travel and have fun. I want people to join us on the Ghost Bus and release their stress. We can see it. People are screaming on the bus, and after they leave the attraction, everybody is smiling."
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:15:51 GMT -8
Big News in MedicineThe world's first gene therapy for sickle cell and thalassemia has been approvedBritain's medicines regulator has authorized the world's first gene therapy treatment for sickle cell disease, in a move that could offer relief to thousands of people with the crippling disease in the U.K. In a statement Thursday, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency said it approved Casgevy, the first medicine licensed using the gene editing tool CRISPR, which won its makers a Nobel prize in 2020. The agency approved the treatment for patients with sickle cell disease and thalassemia who are 12 years old and over. Casgevy is made by Vertex Pharmaceuticals (Europe) Ltd. and CRISPR Therapeutics. To date, bone marrow transplants, extremely arduous procedures that come with very unpleasant side effects, have been the only long-lasting treatment. “The future of life-changing cures resides in CRISPR based (gene-editing) technology,” said Dr. Helen O'Neill of University College London. “The use of the word ‘cure’ in relation to sickle cell disease or thalassemia has, up until now, been incompatible,” she said in a statement, calling the MHRA's approval of gene therapy “a positive moment in history.” Both sickle cell disease and thalassemia are caused by mistakes in the genes that carry hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carry oxygen. In people with sickle cell — which is particularly common in people with African or Caribbean backgrounds — a genetic mutation causes the cells to become crescent-shaped, which can block blood flow and cause excruciating pain, organ damage, stroke and other problems. In people with thalassemia, the genetic mutation can cause severe anemia. Patients typically require blood transfusions every few weeks, and injections and medicines for their entire life. Thalassemia predominantly affects people of South Asian, Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern heritage. The new medicine, Casgevy, works by targeting the problematic gene in a patient's bone marrow stem cells so that the body can make properly functioning hemoglobin. Gene Therapy Could Cure Many, Many Genetic Conditions
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:18:21 GMT -8
This Was a Black Kid Shooting a White Teacher. Would the Outcome for the Mother Have Been Different If the Races Were Reversed?
The mother of the 6-year-old boy accused of shooting his first grade teacher during class in Newport News, Virginia, in January was sentenced on Wednesday to 21 months in prison on federal charges.
Deja Taylor was charged with using marijuana while in possession of a firearm and making a false statement about her drug use during the purchase of the firearm, both felonies, in the wake of the January shooting at Richneck Elementary School.
She pleaded guilty to the charges in June.
Federal prosecutors had asked for a 21-month sentence. She faced a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison.
Police say the 6-year-old student brought a gun into his classroom and intentionally shot and wounded his teacher, Abby Zwerner, on Jan. 6. Zwerner sustained a gunshot wound through her hand and into her chest.
Federal prosecutors said the firearm used in the shooting was purchased by Taylor in July 2022. ATF agents never found a lockbox, a trigger lock, or a key for the gun, prosecutors said.
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:20:00 GMT -8
Joe Biden Is Likely to Lose the New Hampshire Primary
New Hampshire on Wednesday officially set the date of its presidential primary for Jan. 23, defying a plan pushed by U.S. President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party to have the state give up its first-in-the-nation primary.
New Hampshire will remain first on the primary calendar, but faces punishment from the Democratic National Committee, including the loss of delegates to the Democratic convention.
The dispute between New Hampshire and the Democratic Party also means Biden’s name will be missing from the New Hampshire presidential primary ballot this year.
Biden ousted Iowa and New Hampshire from the first spots on the party's nominating calendar in favor of South Carolina, a more diverse state. Biden credits South Carolina and its large Black population with catapulting him to the White House in 2020.
The move forces any Democratic challenger to Biden to compete first in South Carolina instead of Iowa and New Hampshire, two largely white states that rejected him in 2020. The winner of the New Hampshire primary is not expected to get any delegates necessary to secure the nomination, making South Carolina the first vote of any consequence.
The official date sets the table for the Republican nomination for the candidates seeking to challenge Biden in the general election. They will compete in the Iowa caucuses on Jan. 15 before turning to New Hampshire, followed by the Nevada caucuses on Feb. 8 and South Carolina’s primary on Feb. 24.
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:20:54 GMT -8
A Lot of Dead Russians
Russia has suffered one of its deadliest days since President Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to Kyiv's military.
Moscow is reported to be losing a large number of troops and equipment as Kyiv pushes on with a counteroffensive to reclaim its occupied territory, and as clashes intensify in Avdiivka, an industrial hub in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.
Figures released by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Thursday state that Russia lost 1,330 military personnel in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of Russian casualties since February 24, 2022 to 315,620.
It marks the highest daily estimate by Ukraine's military since October 19, when it said that Russia had lost 1,380 troops.
Newsweek couldn't independently verify the figures. Estimates of casualty numbers vary, with Kyiv's figures usually exceeding those of its Western allies. Russia rarely releases information on troop losses, but in September 2022, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said 5,937 troops had been killed in the war.
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Post by mhbruin on Nov 16, 2023 9:23:17 GMT -8
This Congress Is Doing Less Than Harry Truman's "Do-Nothing Congress"
With only 21 bills making it into law halfway into November, the 118th Congress, controlled by Republicans in the House and Democrats in the Senate, is on the most sluggish pace to make law since the Congress that met during 1931 and 1932.
Back then, Herbert Hoover was president, the Great Depression had started and talking movies were still new.
The lack of productivity puts a punctuation mark on the first half of a Congress that has managed to do the bare minimum ― fund the government, raise the debt ceiling ― while also embarrassing itself with the first-ever ouster of a House speaker mid-session, a subsequent three-week long search for a new one and most recently, a threatened fight between a senator and a committee witness.
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