Links 7/8/26

Posted on July 8, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science:

Palantir Has a Hand in NIH’s Most Ambitious Health Initiative
Why the CDC refusing to publish covid vaccine research is so worrying
Two Duluth biologists fired by EPA file lawsuit against the agency
Scientists Thought These Upside-Down Whales Might Be Sick. They Were Wrong

Other:

Lessons From the Graham Platner Disaster
Ken Paxton Vowed to Crack Down on “Illegal Voting.” He May Have Violated Texas Election Law.
Even fans who don’t speak Spanish are watching the World Cup on Telemundo. Here’s why
The US had the biggest opportunity in the history of American soccer. They wasted it
D.C. minimum wage is now $18.40 per hour
Show Your Papers
Will Lizzo Expand Go-Go’s Audience?
How did a dirtbag get this far?
Pod Save Patriarchy (or Whatever That Sorry Platner Spectacle Was)
Trump’s plans for racist renovations to the Smithsonian are unbelievable
AP-NORC poll: About 3 in 10 US adults believe Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians
Afghan national who fought with U.S. forces died of allergic reaction in ICE custody

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Links 7/7/26

Posted on July 7, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science:

Why AI Doesn’t Think, Cannot Reason, Isn’t Intelligent and Will Never Achieve Consciousness
The Spectacular Regrowth of New England’s Forests
Don’t abolish the NIH. Fix it.
Why U.S. measles outbreaks have grown harder to extinguish. The nation is already nearing last year’s record case total, and experts say the virus is forcing doctors to relearn a disease many thought had been consigned to history.
The Disturbing Truth About How Extreme Heat Affects the Body
WHO warns as record Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak surpasses 1,400 cases
Voters Oppose Letting the White House Overrule Scientists on Research Funding

Other:

Once Again, Trump Poisons Everything He Touches. For a moment there it looked like he wasn’t going to ruin the World Cup. Alas…
Jessica Burbank on the Rise of Flock Safety and America’s Surveillance State
The Truth About the A24 A.I. Panic
What Private Credit Is, and Why Investors Are So Worried About It
Colorado Fight Club
Ambani-Trump Jr. investigation encountered a Google AI surprise
Chris Van Hollen’s Opus
This land was your land
Want to know how they quickly got 400 extremists in DC? (interesting hypothesis, but in an area of a couple of million people who can access mass transit, there are a whole bunch of candidates for this, including defense contractors, intelligence contractors etc.)
Metrobus network redesign was a catalyst, but full story remains untold
Supreme Court decision loosening campaign finance rules could be boon for Paxton in Senate race
Basics: The Transit Ridership Recipe
Mainstream media gets nothing from caving to Trump
Courses will be required at University of Iowa Center for Intellectual Freedom. Gov. Reynolds signed a law requiring students to take courses at the new center pushed by conservatives
ICE’s Internal Watchdog Is Now Investigating Online Critics
White House Criticizes Smithsonian Museum for ‘Extreme Political Activism’
Footage Shows Cop Stalking Woman He Met on a TV Set After Surveilling Her With a License Plate Reader
Montana GOP Senate Nominee Kurt Alme Let Child Sex Offender Off The Hook
This Simple White Line Is America’s Greatest Unsung Innovation
‘The View’ throttles back political candidate bookings following FCC inquiry
National Guard troops fatally shoot a man in downtown Memphis
Biden rips Trump over Reflecting Pool, other DC projects: ‘What a loser’
It Took a While, but Americans May Have Found Something We All Hate
Kansas GOP leaders’ alarming plot to cancel U.S. Senate elections unfolded in plain sight last year
Abundance politics may not win over conservative Christian voters
They Can’t Help Themselves, Can They?
Plan to ease rules on mailing guns could help company Trump Jr. has stake in
A Venezuelan man was accused of attempting to choke an ICE officer to death in Bellevue. Bystander video tells a different story

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Oddly Enough, the HR Women Were Right About Platner

Posted on July 7, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

As of this morning, I have no idea if Graham Platner will drop out of the Maine senate race in time for Maine Democrats to appoint someone else. But maybe the next time there’s a Democratic candidate with a constant trickle of right-wing adjacent–or just right wing–statements and actions, listen to the ‘HR ladies‘ and other supposed hysterics who tell you that’s a sign of poor character and also of worse to come.

What it says about the Professional Politics Knowers who thought otherwise is left mostly as an exercise for the reader, though I would add that the subset of professional supporters who could be characterized as self-loathing college-educated middle-aged men who are handling aging poorly should not be listened to ever again.

While we’re at it, unless one is a professional interviewer, meeting candidates in person usually makes it harder rather than easier to observe the reality–superfically charismatic people can often hoodwink you over short periods of time or in ‘set piece’ encounters.

What a clusterfuck.

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Links 7/6/26

Posted on July 6, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science:

U.S. science is in chaos (I think this overestimates the organic nature of the opposition)
Convergent Cysteine Enrichment in Diverse Gut Phage Capsids Suggests Gut-Associated Structural Adaptation
The war against ‘woke’ could end US science as we know it

Other:

The Sane NYC DSA vs the Crazy National DSA- A Guide for the Perplexed
Demand That Candidates Say “Expand the Court”
The Lis Smith Magic
Who Will Save the Internet From Disappearing?
Trump’s Anti-Patriotic Trap
The Great American State Fair’s Main Exhibit Is Trump Corruption
A Local Parade Gets Its Moment. The National Independence Day Parade was canceled. This D.C. neighborhood saved the day.
‘I’m Mad at Trump’: Even Trumpers Can’t Stand How Shoddy the Great American State Fair Is
AI Debt Deluge Makes Credit Market Look Safer While Masking Risk
Prediction Markets Let You Bet on Whether a Wildfire Will Burn Down Your Town
Better Than Winning
National Guard troops fatally shoot a man in downtown Memphis
White House report brands Smithsonian leadership as radical activists who can’t be trusted
‘Guard, go home!’ Hegseth ceremony in DC’s Meridian Hill Park met by protest

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Trump’s Red Card

Posted on July 6, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

What Trump’s intervention in the sacrosanct, incorruptible affairs of FIFA does is remind the rest of the world that Trump is not just a dim-witted buffoon, but a truly psychologically screwed up person.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that Trump and his minions attempted to have Balogun’s red card overturned. For Trump, along with many of his cotravellers, rules and laws, never mind a sense of fair play or honor, are for other people. Trump views intervening in the red card suspension as the right thing to do because he wanted to do it and he was able to do it. He can’t even conceive how what he is doing is inappropriate–if he wants something, he takes it (Trump is a man whose highest impulse is ME WANT HAMBURGER). And his narcissism makes utterly incapable of perceiving how other people view events because everything is always about him.

As to openly admitting he did this, this too is part and parcel of Trump’s damaged psychology. Trump is a narcissist, and so, of course, he is going to tell everyone he did this, especially since he thinks he did nothing wrong (see the previous paragraph). He runs his stupid mouth all the time when doing so is counter to his interests, because what is most important to him isn’t the objective, but the adulation.

In other words, this is just another day in the life of Trump, but now he’s dragged the fans one of the world’s favorite sports along for the ride.

Update: Belgium has been granted the right to appeal the decision, but I have no idea what that actually means in any practical sense. If the red card unsuspension does get overturned, it will be another instance where Trump’s need for gratification superseded his policy objectives.

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Links 7/5/26

Posted on July 5, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science:

New Theory of Smallest Human: Not a Hunter, But Eater of Lizard Leftovers
EU Funding Huge Project on the Origins of the Dead Sea Scrolls
This 17th-Century Flemish Painting Held A Gnarly Bat Secret
SOLVED: The Case of the Missing Megalodon
This spray-on powder can stop life-threatening bleeding in 1 second
If You Want to Save a Whale, Don’t Call a Millionaire
Former CDC official says RFK Jr.’s response to measles outbreak “not based on science or reality”

Other:

Our Revolutionary Birthright: Trump v. Barbara and its Meaning
Are MAGA and MAHA Heading for Divorce? Robert F. Kennedy Jr. promised ambitious plans to make Americans healthier. But insiders say as soon as he was named health secretary, the problems between the coalitions began
My hopes for the rabbi who envisions my defeat — and for a better Jewish future
What Zionism Has Always Meant
RFK Jr.’s plan to boost peptide access just got more complicated
Immigrants Are Good, Actually
These Justices Are Not Impartial. Why such a slim Supreme Court majority upheld birthright citizenship
NYC Mayor Mamdani Approves Record $323M Funding for Culture
Then and now: See what Boston looked like in 1776, 2026, and everywhere in between
Celebrate America’s Birthday by Fighting a Wannabe King
The DSA Challenger Who Could Actually Cost Democrats A Seat
For Larry Ellison, Buying Trump Is the Bargain of the Century
Unlike The Defendants, One Of The Prairieland Judges Is Part Of An Organized Cell Of Extremists
Impeachment is the only answer to Trump’s behavior
Scientists Asked AI to Impersonate 112 Public Figures. What Happened Next Is a ‘Dire’ Warning
Before the Democrats can free immigrants, they must free themselves from the GOP
I Have Thoughts About That Kylie Jenner Meta Glasses Ad
Nearly a Million Investors Lost a Total of $3.8 Billion on Trump Crypto Coin
A ‘new Progressive Era’? Not with a corrupt Supreme Court
Gracie The Giraffe Is Back Home. Now Rich Guys Can Buy Her.
The Master Race
Only A Complete Asshole Would Get Married At Madison Square Garden
How Donald Trump hijacked America’s birthday
Tidal Says It Won’t Pay Royalties for AI-Generated Music
“Nuclear Family Month” shows that MAGA is still coming for same-sex marriage
Scammers Sell Seeds for Exotic AI-Generated Flowers That Don’t Exist
Neo-fascist group Patriot Front parades Confederate flag in Washington DC on Fourth of July
Professor denounces mass AI fraud on an exam at Brown University: ‘Academic integrity is at risk’
Masked men with Confederate flags seen chanting, marching, riding Metro in DC
Journalists float astonishing theory around silence surrounding Mitch McConnell’s health
Kash Patel’s Late Stock Disclosure Raises STOCK Act Questions

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In Case You Missed It…

Posted on July 5, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

…a week of Mad Biologist posts:

Time for Some Left-Wing Cletus Safaris

Democratic Moderates Have a Turnout Problem

One Airman Dead in Influenza Outbreak

A Great Week for Crime Stats in D.C.

Posted in Weekly Roundup | Leave a comment

Links 7/4/26

Posted on July 4, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science:

The ‘Parasite of Parasites’ Has Been Discovered in the Tropical Forests of Borneo. A newly identified species of fungus attacks the famous “zombie mushrooms” that control ants.
My Peer Review of The 1%. I wanted to like QED’s new 1% ranking. I don’t.
The fall of the theorem economy. How AI could destroy mathematics and barely touch it
We Need to Retrofit the Planet. The Heat Wave Proves It.
More Than Half of CDC Centers Lack Permanent Leadership
Provision buried in controversial U.S. rule change would help people legally challenge ‘woke’ federal research
Science, Interrupted: The Lasting Impact of Terminated Grants

Other:

Three Hundred Fifty-Four Fireworks per Second. Organizers promise 850,000 fireworks in roughly 40 minutes over the National Mall this Saturday. I did what a mathematician does with a big number: I divided. It did not make the show look better.
Dead Country Fair
Falling Home Prices Are a Measure of Success, Not Failure
Trump wrecked America’s 250th in DC, but other blue cities will save it
Trump’s Huge Windfall Has Few Known Global Precedents. President Trump’s earnings in office are at a level once unimaginable for any leader of a liberal democracy, particularly a sitting American president.
Mayor Mamdani Delivers Address Marking America’s 250th Birthday
Companies Are Making Claude and Codex Talk Like Cavemen to Stop AI’s Soaring Costs
Trump administration moves to gut energy efficiency rules for home appliances
Moral Leadership
Dem Colorado gov nominee calls out DSA candidate for antisemitism comment
Colorado Governor Fires Officials Who Opposed Freeing Election Denier
IRS agrees to stop stealing workers’ pro-union decorations. The National Treasury Employees Union sued the agency earlier this month after multiple instances in which management confiscated and disposed of flyers and other decorations from employees’ workstations and communal bulletin boards.
U.S. warned Iran about Israel’s aims to assassinate leaders
The Incumbent Democrats at Risk of Losing to Progressive Challengers
DALLAS DING-DONG: Shocking moment member of Egypt World Cup team is violently pushed by US cop in fiery altercation while meeting fans
Altercation between Dallas police and Egpyt staff goes viral, DPD says they were called
Afraid of getting booed, Trump bails on World Cup
Elon, Elon, what a killer
New York Times Badly Misleads Readers on Trump Accounts
Abortion Has Always Been an American Tradition
The DC Bar Is Refusing to Investigate Chief Justice John Roberts Over a $10 Million Scandal
What Is Roberts Up To?
Trump bought as much as $5 million in Axon stock before ICE sought $220 million Taser deal
Of Course a Confederate Flag Showed Up at the Great American State Fair
Most Metro Fare Evasion Cases in D.C. Are Thrown Out
You Can’t Solve Half a Problem
The Great American State Fair feels rushed, simulated and oddly sterile
Centrists Concede Patriotism to the Right
Big Tech: AI Data Center Opposition Is An UnAmerican Criminal Conspiracy
Big, If True

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Links 7/3/26

Posted on July 3, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science:

Capital punishment is not a breeding program. No, medieval execution didn’t “genetically pacify” Europe
DC’s fireworks supershow this year could be a smoke-filled mess
SARS-CoV-2 saltational events are recurrent and trace to persistent human infections
Confirmed Detections of New World Screwworm
6 things to know about heat illness
New disease threats follow Trump administration’s health program cuts

Other:

Bystander “Shot by Taser by US Marshals” in Columbia Heights
Five Words That Changed America
The Kingmaker Mayor: Mamdani just taught Democrats an important lesson on Tuesday—will they listen?
Neither Victory nor Liberation: After Three Years of War, We Need a Palestinian State Side by Side With Israel
Egg producers will pay $3.3M and donate 53 million eggs to settle price-fixing claims
Grand jury indicts Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill
Mom Claimed Vaccines Killed Her 18-Month-Old Twins. Now She’s Charged with Murdering Them
Trump Has Made the National Mall a Tribute to His Squalid Corruption
Tom Kean Jr. Sought Help for Depression. He Hasn’t Made It Easy for Others to Do the Same.
The Key Ways Trump’s Financial Interests Intersect With Government Policy
How Trump Plans to Crush Fast-Food Workers
The AI Industry Is Losing
‘Rush Project at Request of POTUS’: Money once used for crucial national-park repairs is now financing Trump’s redecorating projects.
Michigan’s Mega-Deals Are a Warning to Everyone. Billions of dollars for only hundreds of jobs.
What do you get for the world’s richest man? A wildlife refuge.
MAHA is breaking up with Trump. Now what?
Crypto, real estate, watches: How Trump made over $1 billion last year
Small Towns Struggling to Celebrate July 4 After DOGE Axed Their Funds
Trump’s not an urbanist president. Do we have to say this?
Donors were misled by Trump-backed Freedom 250, House Democrats allege. The lawmakers’ report alleges that Trump allies worked to divert funds away from America250, a bipartisan effort to mark the nation’s semiquincentennial. Freedom 250 denies the allegations.
The violence specialists
Some thoughts from the parking lot of RFK Stadium
Trump Administration Delivers Lucrative Win for Its Kratom Allies
Silicon Valley’s Reactor Projects
Michigan lawmakers weigh safety measures after Temple Israel attack

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A Great Week for Crime Stats in D.C.

Posted on July 3, 2026 by mikethemadbiologist

As of 9am today, D.C. had reported no homicides this week, bringing the total for the year to 42* (apparently, one homicide is no longer considered a homicide, so technically we were never at 43 homicides). Last year, during the same time period, we had 83 homicides, and in the surge year of 2023, there were 119 homicides. After increasing last week, most other crimes trended down this week.

We are still well on pace for another 33 percent drop in homicides for the third straight year.

Hopefully, the heat won’t lead to any murders (it’s hot out there!), and we’ll have another great week next week.

*Three of the 45 murders reported this year actually occurred in other years (e.g., a missing persons case from 2023 turned into a homicide case this year with new evidence).

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