Links for you. Science:

Two daring slave escapes, two descendant families and a DNA mystery
Gene therapies with ties to Boston hold promise for congenital deafness
Weird ancient tree from before dinosaurs found in Canadian quarry
‘Incredibly rare’ discovery reveals bedbugs came to Britain with the Romans
“Deoxy” to be or “Desoxy” not to be—a century-old tale in the history of DNA nomenclature
We Finally Know How Ancient Roman Concrete Was Able to Last Thousands of Years

Other:

Some Further Thoughts on Jan 6th; The Merrick Garland Question (excellent; gift link)
D.C. sent $10,800 to dozens of new moms. Here’s how it changed their lives.
Cast as Criminals, America’s Librarians Rally to Their Own Defense
12-year-old swings large snake in the air to save her pet guinea pig (Australia now has its new Warrior Queen)
Days of Darkness: How one woman escaped the conspiracy theory trap that has ensnared millions
Northern Ireland gets its first Sinn Fein first minister in historic shift
Pressed by Moms for Liberty, Florida school district adds clothing to illustrations in classic children’s books (such fucking weirdos)
The Tree of Life synagogue I knew is gone. But a rebirth is coming.
I (do not) like big books, and I cannot lie
D.C. Council prepares to take first vote on sweeping anti-crime legislation (this is a bad bill that won’t get at two fundamental problems: cops are making half of the arrests they used to, and the federal prosecutors–the mainland colony doesn’t choose its own prosecutors–aren’t charging and convicting)
Driving While Trans Now Illegal In Florida
30 Things Joe Biden Did as President You Might Have Missed (the ordering of policies is very revealing about Politico’s priorities…)
Very Ordinary Men: Elon Musk and the court biographer
The Residents of Eagle Pass, Texas, Just Want Their Town Back. Greg Abbott is fighting Joe Biden over a small border town’s community park—and the Supreme Court is refereeing. It’s turned life there upside down.
The Money and Drugs That Tie Elon Musk to Some Tesla Directors
Why Wall Street Won’t Stop Trump: American business elites would prefer a strong economy without a resurgent labor movement, which is exactly what Trump is offering.
How Spoutible’s Leaky API Spurted out a Deluge of Personal Data
The Objection: “But He Hasn’t Been Convicted Of Anything”
Why despite everything, I still think the two-state solution is the best alternative in the Israeli-Palestinian context.
Do We Think That’s Going To Work?
MY SUBHUMAN RESPONSE TO J.D. VANCE
Durbin still can’t quit blue slips, so the judiciary will continue to suffer
D.C. Proposes $200 Million To Prevent Metro Service Cuts
Republicans Pushing To Impeach Alejandro Mayorkas Say They’re ‘Deporting’ Him From His Job (fucking Republican pigs)
Look who moved in Nextdoor: Another spying, suspicious, paranoid snoop