The Micro Blog

This will be my last daily compendium of the odd assortment of headlines to catch my interest. I hope they’ve been some help or amusement to others. Thank you to everyone who sent me feedback.

Technologizer (Harry McCracken): The raccoons who made computer magazine ads great

If you remember the computer magazines of this era at all, you recall how thick they were—hundreds and hundreds of pages an issue in the case of the most successful ones. The majority of those pages were ads, not editorial content. And a sizable chunk of those ads were catalog-y in the extreme. Pages and pages were devoted to lists of products and prices in teensy type, with 1-800 numbers you could call to place an order.

About a gazillion mail-order houses did business this way. The April 1991 PC World, for instance, includes advertisements for outfits such as Advanced Computer Products, Arlington Computer Products, Bulldog Computer Products, Computer Bazaar, Fast Micro, Kenosha Computer Center, NSI Computer Products, Paradise Computer Products, Telemart, and United Computer Express. Only the names and slightly varying levels of ad-design proficiency served to distinguish most of them.

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Behind the scenes, PC Connection really was a small-town success story. The company was founded by Patricia Gallup and David Hall, who’d met by chance in 1975 when both were hiking the Appalachian Trail. Gallup ended up working at Hall’s family business, a mail-order purveyor of professional audio components in Marlow. When the IBM PC came along in 1981, the company bought one to computerize its business.

Alexandra’s Kitchen: The Best, Easiest Focaccia Bread Recipe

Cold, refrigerated dough is the secret to making delicious focaccia! Allowing the dough to rest 18 to 48 hours in the fridge will yield extra-pillowy and airy focaccia, though if you are pressed for time, you can make this start-to-finish in 3 hours. This 4-ingredient recipe requires only 5 minutes of hands-on time. Video guidance below!

via Cheri Baker

Last Updated: 25.Apr.2025 19:52 EDT

Thursday’s articles

Follow along as new links are added to today’s list

This will be my last daily compendium of the odd assortment of political headlines to catch my interest. I hope they’ve been some help or amusement to others. Thank you to everyone who sent me feedback.

Guardian: Supported housing in England on brink of financial crisis, charities warn

More than 150 organisations, including Age UK and Refuge, have warned the supported housing sector is on the precipice of a financial crisis that could plunge tens of thousands of vulnerable people into homelessness.

In a letter to the government being delivered on Friday, public bodies, charities and housing associations called for urgent action to save the sector, which provides homes for 500,000 people across England with complex needs.

They said funding cuts and rising costs had pushed providers to breaking point, and that organisations providing nearly one in five (18%) of all supported homes are on the verge of closing down services – which would lead to the loss of 70,000 homes.

Globe: Poilievre’s Nova Scotia campaign stop highlights growing rift between federal Conservatives, provincial PCs

About two thousand supporters flocked to see Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre in a Progressive Conservative heartland this week – the Central Nova riding of former prime minister Brian Mulroney, and former federal cabinet ministers Elmer MacKay and his son, Peter MacKay, in northeastern Nova Scotia.

As the rally unfolded in Trenton, a small community nearly a two-hour drive from Halifax, one person wasn’t there: Nova Scotia’s PC Premier, Tim Houston.

“Premier Houston sends his best. He would be here tonight but he’s a busy man,” Peter MacKay told a cheering crowd, though Mr. Houston was in the province with no publicly scheduled appearances.

Last Updated: 25.Apr.2025 02:56 EDT

Thursday’s political articles

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TorStar: Conservatives pour resources into Pierre Poilievre’s riding

The federal Conservatives are funnelling resources into Pierre Poilievre’s local campaign, shoring up volunteer support in the leader’s Ottawa-area riding over concerns that winning his seat is not guaranteed, the Star has learned.

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Carleton, which borders the Nepean riding where Carney is running, has also become the target of the Longest Ballot initiative, a protest movement aimed at drawing attention to electoral reform, which has led to a total of 91 candidates appearing on the riding’s ballot.

Globe: Pierre Poilievre pledges to scrap electric vehicle sales mandates if elected

Canada has mandated that 20 per cent of all new vehicles sold must be electric by 2026 and 100 per cent by 2035.

Electric vehicles made up just shy of 12 per cent of the Canadian sales in 2023, but government rebate programs meant to encourage people to buy EVs came to an end in January.

UPI: NHL legend Dominik Hasek says he received death threats from ex-Russian president

Hasek has been a prominent voice against Russian players playing in the NHL due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He has also been a vocal critic of Washington Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin, a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin who has used his celebrity in the hockey world to promote the Russian leader and previously disseminated disinformation about Ukraine.

Hasek has frequently criticized the NHL’s decision to allow Russian players to compete for the Cup, calling it “a huge amount of advertising to Russia for its war and crimes.”

“And that costs a lot of lives,” he said on X. “The NHL has to pay Ukraine for this.”

ABC: Hegseth used Signal app connected to ‘dirty line’ on personal computer in Pentagon office: Sources

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used the Signal app on a personal computer in his office that was connected to the internet on an unsecured commercial line, what’s known as a “dirty line,” two sources confirmed to ABC News Thursday.

A “dirty line” is the nickname given to a commercial internet line that is used to connect to websites that would not be available on the Pentagon’s unclassified (NIPR) or classified (SIPR) lines.

This dirty line was installed at Hegseth’s request so he could use the Signal app on the personal computer, the sources said.

Globe: Andrew Coyne: There are some interesting ideas in the party platforms. It’s a pity no one will read them

The platform is to be distinguished from the fiscal plan that accompanies it. The platform is where the parties list all the mad, unaffordable or unworkable promises they have made to targeted voter groups, most of which will never be implemented. The fiscal plan is where they attach made-up costs and fantasy revenues to each of these, then congratulate themselves because the long column of little numbers adds up to the big number at the bottom.

Last Updated: 24.Apr.2025 23:11 EDT

Wednesday’s political articles

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ScienceAlert: 84% of Earth’s Coral Reefs in Crisis as Worst Bleaching Event on Record Hits

An unprecedented coral bleaching episode has spread to 84 percent of the world’s reefs in an unfolding human-caused crisis that could kill off swathes of the essential ecosystems, scientists warned Wednesday.

Since it began in early 2023, the global coral bleaching event has mushroomed into the biggest and most intense on record, with reefs across the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans affected.

Coral turns ghostly white under heat stress and the world’s oceans have warmed over the last two years to historic highs, driven by humanity’s release of planet-warming greenhouse gases.

Reefs can rebound from the trauma but scientists told AFP the window for recovery was getting shorter as ocean temperatures remained higher for longer.

Manton Reece: AI web search

If you haven’t been following the latest AI models closely, you may have missed what is happening with integrating web search results into answers.

Inside Climate News: A Grim Signal: Atmospheric CO2 Soared in 2024

Scientists are worried because they can’t fully explain the big jump, but they think it might mean that carbon absorption by forests, fields and wetlands is slowing down—a major problem for the world.

HowToGeek: Netflix’s New Dialogue-Only Subtitles Won’t Clutter Your Screen

Streaming services, TV networks, and movie studios generally use SDH/CC as the be-all-end-all subtitle format. Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH/CC) contain dialogue along with ancillary information like speaker names, noises, and descriptions of music. But viewers who aren’t hard of hearing may prefer simplified captions, especially if they’re using a large font size or solid-color background that takes up a lot of space on their screen (yeah, Netflix lets you customize subtitle size and color).

According to Netflix’s internal data, half of all American viewing hours are with subtitles enabled. A decent number of these subtitle-loving viewers are deaf, hard of hearing, or have mild hearing loss (which is far more impactful than the name would suggest), but most of them just have trouble hearing dialogue because modern TV speakers are terrible and studios are obsessed with theatrical audio (quiet dialogue with stupidly loud sound effects). So, a dialogue-only subtitle option makes a lot of sense.

InsideEVs: Slate’s Affordable EV Truck Has No Screens, Uses Your Phone For Updates

It sports an index-card-sized display that shows basic info like your speed, and that’s about it. There’s no infotainment system or speakers, which also means no radio. The truck even lacks an internet connection, something that’s common in modern cars for things like remote access, map updates and media streaming. This all tracks with Slate’s goal of making a “back-to-basics” vehicle that costs less than $20,000 after federal EV incentives. That meant cutting nearly all the fat, save for stuff that doesn’t help the truck go or make it safer.

Last Updated: 24.Apr.2025 23:41 EDT

Wednesday’s articles

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Having troubles with Drafts not syncing between devices so poor headline coverage persists.

CBC: Bryan Adams announces 19 shows across Canada

Adams has already completed a New Zealand and Australia leg of this tour, with dates scheduled for the U.K. and Ireland next month and further European dates throughout the summer.

Homegrown band the Sheepdogs will join Adams on most of his Canadian dates, except in Calgary and Kelowna, B.C., where Amanda Marshall will appear. 

Windsor and Peterborough but not Kingston?!

Last Updated: 23.Apr.2025 22:24 EDT

Tuesday’s articles

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Wikinews: Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah sworn in as Namibia’s first female president

Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, 72, former vice president of Namibia, was sworn in as Namibia’s first female president on Friday. She won the presidential election in November 2024 as the candidate of the ruling South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO).

SWAPO secured 53% of the parliamentary vote in the election, winning 51 out of 91 seats. The opposition party, Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), secured 20 seats.

Nandi-Ndaitwah became the second woman to hold a presidential position in Africa. Dignitaries from across the continent were present at her inauguration, among them seven sitting African presidents and nine former heads of state.

CBC: Conservatives update platform to include omitted ‘anti-woke’ promise

The Conservative Party has republished the English-language version of its platform after what it says was a “publishing oversight” resulted in the omission of a previous commitment to crack down on “woke ideology” in the public service and federal funding for university research.

Earlier in the campaign, the Conservatives had promised as part of their Quebec platform to “put an end to the imposition of woke ideology in the federal civil service and in the allocation of federal funds for university research.” 

When the party released its full national platform on Tuesday, that commitment was repeated in the French-language version, but it was missing from the English version.

Last Updated: 23.Apr.2025 23:46 EDT

Tuesday’s political articles

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NYT: Trump Administration Continues to Defy Judge’s Orders in Abrego Garcia Case, Lawyers Say

In refusing to reveal much of anything about the administration’s efforts, department lawyers insisted the information constituted state secrets that needed to be protected.

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The White House’s repeated resistance to court orders – not only in Mr. Abrego Garcia’s case, but in other legal proceedings as well – has edged the administration ever closer to an open showdown with the judicial branch in a way that could threaten the constitutional balance of power.

Three courts — including the Supreme Court and the federal appeals court that sits over Judge Xinis — have directly told the Trump administration to “facilitate” the release of Mr. Abrego Garcia. They have instructed the administration to devise a way of handling his case as it should have been handled if the government had not erroneously flown him to El Salvador on March 15 in violation of an earlier court order.

Last Updated: 22.Apr.2025 22:14 EDT

Monday’s political articles

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CBC: Will offshore wind ever come to the Great Lakes

Wind turbines in the Great Lakes have the potential to produce huge amounts of clean energy in one of the most populated regions in North America.

But offshore wind has been banned by a moratorium in Ontario since 2011 and faces headwinds in the U.S.

Still, the Ontario Clean Air Alliance thinks it’s time to reconsider, arguing offshore wind could end the province’s reliance on natural gas imports from the U.S. for its gas-powered generators at a time when the U.S. threatens Canada with punishing tariffs and talk of annexation.

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Beyond reducing reliance on U.S. natural gas, Gibbons said the cost of wind turbines has come down due to technology improvements since 2011, and they would certainly be more affordable than the new nuclear power plants that the province is building, including four that would be imported from the U.S. and fuelled on enriched uranium imported from the U.S.

He said wind power in the Great Lakes could provide Ontario with more than 100 per cent of its total electricity needs. (Peak electricity demand in Ontario is close to 24 GW, according to the province’s Independent Electricity Sysetm Operator.)

Unfortunately nothing’s going to happen as long as there is a dogmatic PC government in Ontario.

MacRumors: M2 iPad Air Runs Windows 11 ARM via Emulation, Thanks to EU Rules

A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect.

As spotted by Windows Latest, NTDev shared an instance of the emulation on social media and posted a video on YouTube (embedded below) demonstrating it in action. The achievement relies on new EU regulatory changes that make it easier to sideload apps on iOS and iPadOS devices. Under the DMA, users can now download third-party app stores like “AltStore Classic,” which enables the installation of UTM with JIT (Just-In-Time) compilation support.

BBC: Mystery of Welsh medieval cemetery deepens

A medieval cemetery unearthed near Cardiff Airport is continuing to confound archaeologists, as the mysteries surrounding it are multiplying.

The discovery of the site, dating to the 6th or 7th Century, was announced last year, with dozens of skeletons found lying in unusual positions with unexpected artefacts.

Now researchers have learned nearly all of those buried in the cemetery are women, and while their bones show signs of wear and tear - indicating they carried out heavy manual work - there are also surprising signs of wealth and luxury.

Last Updated: 22.Apr.2025 23:58 EDT

Monday’s articles

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Guardian: Pope Francis obituary

The break with tradition that Francis, who has died aged 88 after suffering from double pneumonia, represented even managed to trump the shock value of the resignation of Benedict, who was the first pope for 600 years to take that option rather than die in office. Immediately, Bergoglio signalled unambiguously that he intended to be a different kind of pope, one for the 21st century. He boldly chose to be known as Francis, becoming the first pontiff to take on the name of the radical saint from Assisi who had turned his back on privilege and status in this world, and lived with and for the poor. No more pomp and ceremony, the new pope seemed to be saying, but sleeves rolled up and joining the fight for social and economic justice.

NYT: Hegseth Said to Have Shared Attack Details in Second Signal Chat

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared detailed information about forthcoming strikes in Yemen on March 15 in a private Signal group chat that included his wife, brother and personal lawyer, according to four people with knowledge of the chat.

Some of those people said that the information Mr. Hegseth shared on the Signal chat included the flight schedules for the F/A-18 Hornets targeting the Houthis in Yemen – essentially the same attack plansthat he shared on a separate Signal chat the same day that mistakenly included the editor of The Atlantic.

Last Updated: 21.Apr.2025 12:48 EDT

Sunday’s political articles

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Guardian: London Gatwick is UK’s worst airport for flight delays, figures show

CAA data shows flights departed more than 23 minutes late last year, with Birmingham and Manchester second and third-worst.

Remember: avoid Gatwick.

NYT: Wirecutter: The Trick to Less Laundry? Doing It the Right Way.

Once you start doing your laundry correctly, you’ll probably have to do less of it — your machines will run better and your clothes are likelier to get stain-free on the first try. Below, our experts, who have spent many, many hours testing detergents, hampers, washing machines, dryers, and more, will walk you through a few of their best tips and tricks at every stage of the process — some of which might surprise even the most seasoned laundry-doers.

Electrek: Elon Musk breaks his own Tesla (TSLA) earnings rule in desperate move

This is happening amid a significant crisis at Tesla. The company experienced its first year of declining sales in 2024, and the decline accelerated in 2025 amid boycotts and protests over Musk’s involvement in politics.

Tesla’s sales are declining, gross margins are shrinking, the Cybertruck is proving to be a commercial flop, and Tesla owners are selling their vehicles in mass to distance themselves from the increasingly more controversial CEO.

Last Updated: 21.Apr.2025 18:19 EDT

Sunday’s articles

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Guardian: Terry Garcia: I served on the Deepwater Horizon inquiry commission. Trump has us headed for a new disaster

Last month, I joined nearly 500 former and current employees of National Geographic, where I was executive vice-president and chief science and exploration officer for 17 years, urging the institution to take a public stance against the Trump administration’s reckless attacks on science. Our letter pointed out that the programs being dismantled are “imperative for the success of our country’s economy and are the foundation of our progress and wellbeing. They make us safer, stronger and more prosperous.” We warned that gutting them is a recipe for disaster.

In the face of this danger, none of us can remain silent.

I say this from the unique perspective of having been closely involved in the two most significant environmental disasters in US history: the Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon oil spills_. _Fifteen years ago this Sunday, an enormous explosion tore through the BP Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and unleashed an environmental catastrophe that devastated the Gulf of Mexico. The explosion triggered the release of more than 3m barrels of oil that polluted 1,300 miles of coastline from Louisiana to Florida. Eleven lives were lost, ecosystems were ravaged and the economic toll soared into the billions.

CBC: Poilievre dodges questions about repealing national handgun ban

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre dodged questions Sunday about whether he would repeal the federal government’s handgun ban, a measure brought in to tamp down on the diversion of legal firearms into the hands of bad actors.

Poilievre hasn’t said much during this campaign about what he would do with the Liberal firearms legislation he voted against while in Parliament, but he has blasted the last government’s “assault-style” firearm buyback program as a “gun grab” that he would scrap.

Reason enough not to vote Conservative.

Last Updated: 20.Apr.2025 16:29 EDT

Saturday’s political articles

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ScienceAlert: Brains That Age Faster May Drive Schizophrenia, Research Finds

What causes schizophrenia? This severe mental illness, which affects over 20 million people worldwide and is characterised by recurrent hallucinations and delusions, often begins to emerge in the period from adolescence to early adulthood. It’s a complex disorder that affects almost every area of life.

Current theories about why schizophrenia develops suggest it may be linked to changes in brain development during this critical period of emerging adulthood.

Schizophrenia is also thought to be similar to conditions such as dyslexia, autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD), which are neurodevelopmental but usually manifest in childhood.

However, our research suggests that accelerated brain ageing could be another potential driver in the development of schizophrenia – and this can be measured using a simple blood test.

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Noticeable symptoms of normal, healthy brain ageing might include a bit more forgetfulness, slower reaction time, and difficulty juggling multiple tasks. Such changes are very different from the patterns seen in illnesses like schizophrenia where, our study shows, the decline is faster and more severe, indicating an older brain age than would be expected from the patient’s chronological age.

UPI: Three more states confirm measles cases

Louisiana and Virginia confirmed their first cases of the illness on Saturday after Missouri added their names to the list of states with confirmed cases a day prior. Each state confirmed one case and all had recent history of international travel.

Last Updated: 20.Apr.2025 23:58 EDT

Saturday’s articles

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Guardian: Jordana Timerman: Trump has found in El Salvador a model for the repressive state he wants to build – and he’s just getting started

The Terrorism Confinement Center (Cecot) maximum security prison in El Salvador is the crown jewel of President Nayib Bukele’s efforts to quash not only criminal gangs, but also criticism and political opposition to his government. The “mega-prison” is also one of the more visible destinations in the emerging map of American deportations — a sprawling archipelago that includes conservative US districts, the Guantánamo military base and Central American waypoints connected by a tangle of military and charter flights.

That the two states have connected their penal architecture is no coincidence. Donald Trump’s aggressive policies towards foreigners build on Bukele’s infamous iron fist crackdown against criminal gangs: it’s a political toolkit that leverages anti-establishment anger to justify an authoritarian slide. In deploying strongman tactics to address social concerns, both leaders also cultivate a chilling culture of fear.

Bukele’s visit this week to Washington DC — where Trump urged him to build more prisons in order to receive US citizens convicted of crimes — showcased the results of the alliance: the internationalisation of the Bukele method.

Vox: The Supreme Court signals it’s lost patience with Trump’s illegal deportations

The Court’s late night order in A.A.R.P. appears to be crafted to ensure that this notice and opportunity for a hearing mandated by J.G.G. actually takes place. It is just one paragraph, and states that “the Government is directed not to remove any member of the putative class of detainees from the United States until further order of this Court.” It also invites the Justice Department to respond to the ACLU’s application “as soon as possible.”

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented from the A.A.R.P. order. Though neither has explained why yet, the order says that a statement from Alito will come soon.

Guardian: Protesters fill the streets in cities across the US to denounce Trump agenda

Organizers call for 11 million people to march and rally in this weekend’s effort to ‘protect democracy’

Last Updated: 19.Apr.2025 23:56 EDT

Friday’s political articles

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Guardian: ‘Immediate red flags’: questions raised over ‘expert’ much quoted in UK press

Some of the reporters who have quoted her said they received comments through companies that connect journalists with experts. Some cited one such service, ResponseSource. The company has now launched an investigation and suspended the PR agency that handled Santini, and is planning a peer review system that allows journalists to rate an expert they have featured.

Santini also briefly featured on Qwoted, another platform connecting experts to journalists. Shelby Bridges, its director of user success, said the profile was removed after it found “immediate red flags pertaining to credentials and where the account was being accessed from”. She added: “Due to our inability to fully validate her credentials, we disabled the account shortly after it was created.”

I have wondered about the range of sources that the CBC sometimes uses for “expert quotes”. Do they use such services?

CBC: Records for Poulin, Desbiens as Canada downs Finland 8-1 in world hockey semifinal

Poulin’s first-period goal in Saturday’s 8-1 semifinal win over Finland for her 87th career point in the tournament passed Hayley Wickenheiser for the most by a Canadian. The 34-year-old Poulin from Beauceville, Que., later added an assist for her 88th.

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The 31-year-old Desbiens of Clermont, Que., stopped 19 of 20 shots to become the winningest goalie of all time in the tournament with her 22nd career victory in world championships, which surpassed Florence Schelling of Switzerland.

Desbiens was injured shortly before the world championship, but played her third game Saturday and will start against the U.S. on Sunday.

Last Updated: 19.Apr.2025 23:55 EDT

Friday’s articles

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Mediaite: Conservative NYT Columnist David Brooks Calls for ‘National Civic Uprising’ to Defeat Trumpism

In a blistering piece published on Thursday, Brooks wrote that modern civilization is buttressed by several pillars, including “Constitutions to restrain power, international alliances to promote peace, legal systems to peacefully settle disputes, scientific institutions to cure disease, news outlets to advance public understanding, charitable organizations to ease suffering, businesses to build wealth and spread prosperity, and universities.”

He went on to say that Trump threatens all of these because the president is only interested in the acquisition of power “for its own sake” and is engaged in “a multifront assault to make the earth a playground for ruthless men.”

CNN: US citizen says he and his wife detained without explanation after returning from Canada

An American citizen says he and his wife were detained for hours by US border agents when they returned to the United States after a short trip to Canada.

Bachir Atallah told CNN he and his wife, Jessica, were driving back into the US Sunday evening after visiting family in Canada for the weekend when U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents stopped them for a secondary inspection at the Highgate Springs checkpoint in Vermont.

Atallah, who is originally from Lebanon, said he was told to park his Range Rover and hand over his keys. When he asked the officer why, the officer placed his hand on his gun and told him to exit his vehicle, Atallah said. He said he was then handcuffed and led into a cell, where his belongings were confiscated. He said his wife was put into a cell across from his.

Last Updated: 18.Apr.2025 21:15 EDT

Wednesday’s political articles

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MacRumors: Apple TV+ Available at Significantly Lower Price Until Next Week

In the U.S., new and qualified returning customers can subscribe to Apple TV+ for just $2.99 per month, for three months. Afterwards, regular pricing of $9.99 per month applies. The offer is available in the Apple TV app, and at tv.apple.com, through April 24. Unfortunately, existing subscribers are not eligible to receive the discount.

The promotion is running in other countries, too. In Canada, for example, the special price is set at $3.99 per month. In the U.K., it is set at £2.99.

Wales Online: ‘We’re dreading it’ Toilet-free trains being introduced in Wales despite concerns

“The drivers and conductors are gobsmacked and dreading the day these trains are put into service.”

Last Updated: 18.Apr.2025 23:34 EDT

Thursday’s articles

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pv magazine: Texas Senate passes anti-solar, wind bill

The Texas Senate voted 22-9 to pass Senate Bill 819. The bill places restrictions on solar and wind power projects, requiring new permits, assessing fees, adding new regulatory requirements and placing new taxes on the projects.

The legislation “adds onerous requirements to new solar projects that would not apply to other energy sources except wind,” said the Solar Energy Industry Association (SEIA).

Texas has the nation’s largest utility-scale solar market – a $50 billion industry that has enough solar installed to power nearly 5 million homes. The bill is expected to slow development, raise Texans’ utility bills, harm rural economies, worsen grid reliability and encroach on private property rights.

It’s really hard to understand Texas politicians’ goals here other than to support large donors from the oil industry.

NBC: What happens if a president and the federal government fail to follow a judge’s orders?

The Trump administration has been accused of ignoring or flat-out defying recent federal court orders, with two judges now weighing contempt findings against officials.

Washington-based District Judge James Boasberg ratcheted up the pressure Wednesday when he announced there is probable cause to find the government in contempt. Officials had shown “willful disregard” for his order that planes carrying Venezuelan alleged gang members be returned to the United States before they could be deported to El Salvador, Boasberg wrote.

Separately, the federal judge presiding over the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the man the government wrongly deported to El Salvador, chastised the administration Tuesday for its inaction amid signs she would also consider whether to hold officials in contempt.

The Conversation: Canada’s federal election doesn’t seem like it’s about climate change, but it actually is

A defining feature of the ongoing federal election campaign has been the apparent marginalization of the environment and climate change as top-of-mind issues due to threats by the United States against Canadian sovereignty, security and trade.

But how Canada responds to U.S. President Donald Trump’s actions will also have profound implications for its future greenhouse gas emissions and its economy.

The current federal election is very different from those held in 2015, 2019 and 2021. In those elections, the environment and climate were central issues. Each time, more than 60 per cent of Canadian voters chose parties (Liberal, NDP, Bloc Québécois and Green) that advocated for strong climate action, including some form of carbon pricing.

Last Updated: 17.Apr.2025 22:45 EDT

Wednesday’s political articles

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Guardian: Toothpaste widely contaminated with lead and other metals, US research finds

Toothpaste can be widely contaminated with lead and other dangerous heavy metals, new research shows.

Most of 51 brands of toothpaste tested for lead contained the dangerous heavy metal, including those for children or those marketed as green. The testing, conducted by Lead Safe Mama, also found concerning levels of highly toxic arsenic, mercury and cadmium in many brands.

About 90% of toothpastes contained lead, 65% contained arsenic, just under half contained mercury, and one-third had cadmium. Many brands contain a number of the toxins.

Last Updated: 17.Apr.2025 23:22 EDT

Wednesday’s articles

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CBC: Green Party dropped from leaders' debates for not running enough candidates

Leaders' Debates Commission says party’s decision to remove candidates for strategic reasons led to the move.

Another consequence of the archaic first-past-the-post electoral system.

UPI: Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump’s ‘personal vendetta’ against law firm

U.S District Court for the District of Columbia Judge Loren AliKhan during an hour-long hearing on Tuesday called President Donald Trump’s recent executive order targeting the [Susman Godfrey] law firm a “personal vendetta” and accused Trump of “abusing the powers of his office,” the Washington Post reported.

She temporarily blocked most of the sanctions against the law firm pending the outcome of the federal lawsuit, including the ban on the law firm’s attorneys entering federal buildings and requiring federal agencies to cancel contracts they might have with Susman Godfrey.

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The law firm represented Dominion Voting Systems in its defamation lawsuit against Fox News and secured a nearly $778 million settlement over [false] claims that the electronic voting systems were compromised during the 2020 election.

Last Updated: 16.Apr.2025 13:53 EDT

Tuesday’s political articles

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NYT: Astronomers Detect a Signature of Life on a Distant Planet

Further studies are needed to determine whether K2-18b, which orbits a star 120 light-years away, is inhabited, or even habitable.

Last Updated: 16.Apr.2025 02:02 EDT

Tuesday’s articles

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PBS: Trump reiterates desire to expand deportation plans to include U.S. citizens

President Donald Trump has said openly that he’d favor El Salvador taking custody of American citizens who’ve committed violent crimes, a view he repeated Monday.

“We have bad ones too, and I’m all for it because we can do things with the president for less money and have great security,” Trump said during the meeting with Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador. “And we have a huge prison population.” It is unclear how lawful U.S. citizens could be deported elsewhere in the world.

Before the press entered the Oval Office, Trump said in a video posted on social media by Bukele that he wanted to send “homegrowns” to be incarcerated in El Salvador, and added that “you’ve got to build five more places,” suggesting Bukele doesn’t have enough prison capacity for all the U.S. citizens Trump would like to send there.

CBC: Canadian university teachers warned against travelling to the United States

Advice includes researchers ‘at odds with the position of the current U.S. administration’.

Isn’t this just insane?!

CBC: Honda denies reports that it intends to move auto production out of Canada

Honda Canada says it is not planning to move production out of Canada to the U.S., contrary to reports from a Japanese news outlet. 

Nekkei newspaper reported Tuesday that Honda is working on plans to switch some car production from Mexico and Canada to the U.S., after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a 25 per cent auto tariff last month. 

Ontario Premier Doug Ford and a spokesperson for federal Minister of Industry Anita Anand said early Tuesday those reports were not accurate.

Then in a statement Tuesday afternoon, a Honda Canada spokesperson said the company “can confirm that our Canadian manufacturing facility in Alliston, Ont., will operate at full capacity for the foreseeable future and no changes are being considered at this time.”

Last Updated: 15.Apr.2025 15:54 EDT

Monday’s political articles

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MacRumors: OpenAI Launches New Coding-Focused GPT-4.1 Models

OpenAI today announced the launch of three new GPT models that are available through the OpenAI API. Called GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, and GPT-4.1 nano, the models are not available for ChatGPT at the current time.

GPT-4.1 includes major improvements in coding, instruction following, and long context, according to OpenAI. The models outperform GPT-4o and GPT-4o mini in all tasks, especially coding tasks. The new models support up to one million tokens of context, and can use that for better long-context comprehension.

pv magazine: Australian state backs 20 GWh pumped hydro project

The Queensland government in Australia is set to invest AUD 50 million ($31.8 million) into a pumped hydro project with an energy storage capacity of up to 20 GWh as it works to develop a new five-year energy roadmap that is to be delivered by the end of 2025.

We hear a lot about solar and wind generation with batteries but less about pumped hydro storage.

How to Geek: You Can Buy an Exoskeleton Today For Less Than You Think

• Robotic exoskeletons help make you stronger or reduce strain for under $1,000.
• Slim, wearable exoskeletons enhance physical abilities like hiking.
• Medical exoskeletons like the ReWalk assist with rehabilitation but can be costly.

Business Insider: You Should Still Learn to Code, Says GitHub CEO

“I strongly believe that every kid, every child, should learn coding,” Thomas Dohmke said in a recent podcast interview with EO. “We should actually teach them coding in school, in the same way that we teach them physics and geography and literacy and math and what-not.”

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Dohmke isn’t the only tech leader to have identified the potential for leaner workforces – Garry Tan, the CEO and president of the famed Silicon Valley incubator Y Combinator, previously said he believed AI-assisted coding, or “vibe coding,” now allows 10 or so engineers to build what would’ve once required the efforts of “50 or 100.”

CBC: Police warn of gold scam targeting the elderly

In three local cases, the scam started as a pop-up on an Apple device, telling the user they have a virus and providing a number to call, according to Ottawa police Const. Shaun Wahbeh.

After the victim called the number and provided banking information, they received a second call from a scammer pretending to be their bank.

The second caller claimed the victim’s money was compromised and told them they have 48 hours to get it out or lose it, Wahbeh explained.

The victims were told not to talk to friends, family, or other bank employees about the situation. Scammers directed victims to buy gold and told them the bank would pick it up and take it to a warehouse for safekeeping.

Forget Apple gift cards! Gold!

Globe: Live coverage of Sweden’s moose migration draws millions of viewers

Before Swedish slow TV hit The Great Moose Migration began airing Tuesday, Ulla Malmgren stocked up on coffee and prepared meals so she doesn’t miss a moment of the 20-day, 24-hour event.

“Sleep? Forget it. I don’t sleep,” she said.

Malmgren, 62, isn’t alone. The show, called Den stora älgvandringen in Swedish, and sometimes translated as The Great Elk Trek in English, began in 2019 with nearly a million people watching. In 2024, the production hit nine million viewers on SVT Play, the streaming platform for national broadcaster SVT.

CleanTechnica: GM & Mary Barra Place A $35 Billion Bet On EVs

When I saw the recent article on the early GM electric car prototypes, it reminded me of how the company over the years has been way out in front of its peers from an engineering perspective, but failed to turn that first mover advantage into success in the showroom. When the Detroit Big Three finally decided to address the challenge of the Japanese imports, Ford and Chrysler came up with parts bin specials like the Falcon and Valiant that were as exciting as week-old Wonder bread. GM countered with the Corvair, which although saddled with a flawed rear suspension, featured a lot of creative new thinking. It was the first mass production car in America to offer a turbocharged engine — a decade or more ahead of its peers.

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Now GM is bringing compelling electric cars to market like the Cadillac Lyriq, the Chevy Equinox EV, and the Chevy Blazer EV. The next generation Chevy Bolt is nearing production, while the electric Hummer, Silverado, and Suburban will be on sale soon. All those cars are going to need batteries, and for that GM has partnered with LG Energy Solution to build a new battery manufacturing facility near Nashville, Tennessee. When completed, that factory and another one in Ohio will be able to produce enough cells to make a new EV battery pack every minute. Already they are producing more battery cells than Tesla, according to Bloomberg Hyperdrive. Josh Tavel, the head of project engineering and manufacturing at GM, told Bloomberg recently, “If the market wants more EVs, we can make them.”

Mary Barra has been making a lot of good moves in a challenging sector.

Last Updated: 15.Apr.2025 21:58 EDT

Monday’s articles

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David Johnson: On Hedge Laying

James Rebanks, author of Pastoral Song : A Farmer’s Journey (do read it!), shared this photograph on BlueSky of a hedge being laid. I am guessing that it is on his farm in the Lake District in England?

Filed under “TIL”. So pleasant.

Last Updated: 15.Apr.2025 01:50 EDT

Sunday’s articles

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Stuff: Donald Trump says CBS and 60 Minutes should ‘pay a big price’ for going after him

US president Donald Trump bitterly attacked 60 Minutes shortly after the CBS newsmagazine broadcast stories on Ukraine and Greenland on Sunday, saying the network was out of control and should “pay a big price” for going after him.

“Almost every week, 60 Minutes … mentions the name ‘TRUMP’ in a derogatory and defamatory way, but this Weekend’s ‘BROADCAST’ tops them all,” the president said on his Truth Social platform. He called on Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr to impose maximum fines and punishment “for their unlawful and illegal behavior.”

The network had no immediate comment.

NYT: Harvard Will Not Comply With a List of Trump Administration Demands

Harvard University said on Monday that it had rejected policy changes requested by the Trump administration that would have placed “unprecedented” demands on the institution, setting up a showdown between the administration and the nation’s wealthiest university.

A letter to Harvard from the Trump administration on Friday demanded that the university reduce the power of students and faculty members over the university’s affairs; report foreign students who commit conduct violations immediately to federal authorities; and bring in an outside party to ensure that each academic department is “viewpoint diverse,” among other steps.

“No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue,” said Alan Garber, Harvard’s president, in a statement to the university on Monday.

Finally!

Cornell Daily Sun: Cornell Sues DOE for ‘Unlawful’ Cuts to Indirect Costs for Research Grants

The University joined litigation against the U.S. Department of Energy and DOE Secretary Chris Wright, according to a Monday email from President Michael Kotlikoff and Provost Kavita Bala. The plaintiffs of the case are alleging that proposed immediate cuts to indirect costs for University research grants are unlawful by violating federal regulations.

This is the second time this semester that the University has had to take “the unprecedented step of seeking emergency judicial intervention after a federal agency abruptly breached the negotiated rate for indirect costs,” the administrators wrote.

The lawsuit was officially filed by the Association of American Universities, the American Council on Education, the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities and eight other land grant institutions against the DOE and its secretary, Chris Wright, on Monday. It was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

When research is conducted through a grant, indirect costs “are necessary for the research to occur but harder to attribute to individual projects,” according to the lawsuit.

Good for them! Amazing that it is necessary.

NYT: Trump Moves to Put New Tariffs on Computer Chips and Drugs

The Trump administration took steps on Monday that appear likely to result in new tariffs on semiconductors and pharmaceutical products, adding to the levies President Trump has put on imports globally.

Federal notices put online Monday afternoon said the administration had initiated national security investigations into imports of chips and pharmaceuticals. Mr. Trump has suggested that those investigations could result in tariffs.

Last Updated: 14.Apr.2025 18:41 EDT

Sunday’s political articles

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Hjertnes: Aiko

I love this app. It is just a super simple app to dump an audio file on to get a transcript from it.

Been using it for at least a year at this point. Really great when you want to go back and reference something in a podcast instead of having to skip-search for it etc. …

PopMech: A Man Spent 6 Years Searching the Same Farm — and Finally Discovered a 1,900-Year-Old Roman Treasure

It’s unclear why a metal detectorist had his sights set on a specific farm near the English town of Dudley, but after six years of diligent searching its fields, his determination was rewarded with a one-of-a-kind find.

Ron Walters, 76, unearthed a rare Roman coin that dates back to 69 A.D., but it wasn’t pure happenchance. He spent six years scanning the same fields in Wall Heath near Dudley every spring and fall until he uncovered the 1,900-year-old coin, considered the first of its kind found in the United Kingdom.

Tom’s Guide: DuckDuckGo’s new AI Search offers a crucial advantage over Google

While Google’s AI-enhanced search leverages user data to deliver personalized experiences, DuckDuckGo’s AI Search distinguishes itself by steadfastly prioritizing user privacy without sacrificing powerful functionality.

NewsNation: Campbell’s soups, Molly’s Kitchen products may be contaminated with wood

According to a statement from The Campbell’s Company, the Campbell’s products involved were not sold in cans or bowls offered on retail shelves. They are food service varieties sold in restaurants and other institutions.

“The soups are not sold in cans, they are distributed either frozen or fresh (refrigerated) via foodservice channels,” according to the statement.

I wonder how much of the food we eat in restaurants these days is actually prepared from original ingredients there?

IndieWire: North of North: How Community & Netflix Created Canadian Production

With the globalization of content on streamers, local and specific stories tend to resonate widely. In Canada, that’s true of Netflix-hosted second-window runs of series like “Schitt’s Creek” and “Kim’s Convenience,” so it was only a matter of time before the streamer invested in a unique Canadian story of its own.

Enter “North of North,” a brand-new Inuk comedy from Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril that filmed in Iqaluit, Nunavut (the largest and northernmost territory of Canada), last year. The project is a co-commission from Netflix and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), in association with the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN).

Last Updated: 13.Apr.2025 20:16 EDT

Saturday’s articles

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