#spectrum summit

[robpegoraro]

Weekly output: wireless broadband rises, tech vs. trust, national spectrum strategy, Mozilla non-gift guide, AI meets robotics, robotics-startup fundraising, Qualcomm's on-device AI pitch, Starship flight test

This year’s business travel is in the books for me: With my return from Web Summit in Lisbon Friday, the rest of 2023 has no more out-of-town conference badges or hotel keys left. That’s pretty exciting, even if CES looms seven weeks away. 11/13/2023: T-Mobile Within Striking Distance of Becoming Fifth-Largest US ISP, PCMag The way 5G has brought choice and competition to millions of American…

[bathask]

大人の発達障害アスペルガー/自閉スペクトラム症の就労継続支援B型事業所通所前に6月6日早朝の世界開発者会議WWDC23で障害の有無に関係ないバリアフリーなアクセシビリティ導入他,新機能等のiOS17発表予想を控えiOS16.5にアップデート。自閉症スペクトラムASDの作業所通所服洗濯G7広島サミット動画視聴

[dchan87]

The day after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz was announced as Kamala Harris’s choice for vice president, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told a crowd of lawmakers in Louisville, Kentucky, that a Harris administration would spell certain doom for the Republican Party. “Let’s assume our worst nightmare—the Democrats went to the White House, the House, the Senate,” McConnell said during his keynote speech at the National Conference of State Legislators Legislative Summit last week, according to Spectrum News. “The first thing they’ll do is get rid of the [Senate] filibuster. Second, you’ll have two new states: D.C., Puerto Rico. That’s four new Democratic senators in perpetuity.”

Puerto Rico will vote on a nonbinding ballot measure in November to determine the territory’s future political status, with voters being given three options, all of which would change its official status: statehood, independence, or independence with free association. It will be the seventh time that the island’s 3.2 million people vote to define their political relationship with the United States. Harris has not yet taken an official stance on the vote.

McConnell insisted that next on the historically moderate Democrat’s agenda would be to place as many liberal justices on the Supreme Court as possible, noting that doing so would be “unconstitutional”—while apparently ignoring the fact that that’s exactly what Donald Trump did to achieve SCOTUS’s current conservative supermajority.

“If they get those two new states and pack the Supreme Court, they’ll get what they want,” McConnell said.

Ultimately, McConnell believes that the Harris-Walz ticket “represents the far left of the Democratic Party.

“And by the way, that’s most Democrats today,” he added.

Following the address, Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers broke down the Republican perspective on why Harris turned to Walz as her right hand.

“They’re trying to appeal to a rural voter that they have not appealed to in years,” Stivers said, reported Spectrum. “Now, whether they can or they can’t, that becomes a good question, and I think that will be based on the policies that they put forward. And hopefully, that’s what we get into.”

[desmorotu]

more redacted headcanons!!!

some might be angsty? most of them?

꒱࿐♡ ˚.*ೃ

- i saw a hc where milo isn’t necessarily short, but the other guys are just unbelievably tall. in my head milo is 5’11, ash is 6’5, and david is 6’9. tank is the only one who looks deceiving bc they’re like 5’10 in my head but their wolf is as big as david’s. ppl from the outside make the joke that shaw security is secretly a tall person club

- guy was a music major before he switched to writing. i mentioned it in his playlist post but i get those vibes HARD. he also writes honey poetry because he knows they secretly like it

- i like the idea that darlin and angel came from a rough family upbringing because 1. it’s relatable to a lot of ppl and 2. it would explain why tank shoves themselves into harms way and why angel is so outgoing now. it shows different responses to trauma imo.

- babe sometimes has crippling panic attacks on the thought of angel being a latent empowered and leaving them alone as the unempowered person of the group, but in my mind babe is the latent one and they’re a fire elemental.

- sweetheart feels guilty sometimes for being empowered while the other mates aren’t. they know it has absolutely nothing to do with them and that they can’t do anything about it, but sometimes they feel a pang in their heart at the fact that the other two won’t feel their core swell and warm up when looking at their mates.

- starlight has night terrors about the time they fell down—both times. they also think about when avior fell and they can’t help but intrusively picture what he looked like when he finally landed. it makes them physically ill. avior has to be extra careful when talking back about their experiences sometimes.

- lovely is still goes to therapy every week to work through the trauma of adam, dying, and now they’ve added the summit on top of that. they’re withering away into a husk of themselves. they’re so exhausted with dealing with all of this pressure, but they’d do anything for vincent (and i think that’s going to be their downfall).

- gavin has been brought to tears on multiple occasions at the thought that freelancer loves him for him and not just because he’s an incubus. he’s had to muffle his sobs because he genuinely does not know how he deserved someone so loving. he hasn’t brought it up to them yet.

- i think that freelancer is on the ace spectrum (greysexual maybe?) and that gavin was the only person they’ve ever really had sex with, or wanted to have sex with. they trusted him enough to “show them the ropes” and he built their confidence to where it is now. gavin helped build their relationship with sex and while they’re still on the spectrum, they’re more positive about it and they enjoy that kind of intimacy with him.

꒱࿐♡ ˚.*ೃ

that’s all that i can squeeze out of my brain rn >:( i haven’t been on tumblr that much and UGH it’s just bc my real life is more interesting than my redacted life (which is a very good thing, but still it makes me sad) and i have no motivation to post 💔 but here are some hcs that have been on my mind lately :3 i hope they make sense

k byeee 💟

[waitineedaname]

I have caved. here is my pitch for why Shigeo "Mob" Kageyama needs to win the @autismswagsummit (or at the very least get to the finals)

people have already talked about his intense autism coding (difficulty reading social cues, low empathy/high compassion, strict moral code, flat affect, bluntness, hyperfixating, emotional dysregulation/emotions being all or nothing) but I'm going to put my English degree to good use and talk about the narrative importance of Mob's autism

the entire plot of Mob Psycho 100 would not exist without Mob's autism

first and foremost, the 100 in Mob Psycho 100? it's a symbol of Mob's emotional dysregulation. the narrative uses a percentage counter as a device to indicate Mob's emotional state -- the percentage till Mob's "explosion." emotions and psychic powers are directly related within the narrative, and because he fears the strength of his emotions/powers, he's been repressing his emotions since he was a child. however, as anyone who tries to repress their emotions can tell you, that only works for so long. the percentage meter indicates the build up of emotions until he cannot repress them anymore -- until he essentially has an emotional meltdown through a psychic explosion. these explosions aren't strictly negative emotions either; they can range a wide spectrum of emotions, from rage and sadness to gratitude and trust. any buildup of emotions can be overwhelming and trigger a meltdown

aside from that, the core thesis of the series is self-acceptance. Mob starts off the series with painfully low self-esteem, for a number of reasons -- he dislikes that he doesn't fit in, he feels massive guilt for allowing his psychic powers to hurt his brother when they were little. he wishes he didn't have these powers (which, I cannot emphasize enough, are a metaphor for autism) and he wishes he could just be "normal." over the course of the series, it is emphasized over and over that psychic powers are normal, they're just another trait a person can have. there's good parts of them and bad parts, but at the end of the day, they are a neutral trait. you can understand why "your autism is a normal part of you, not something to be hated or feared" is an important message

which brings us to the final arc of the series. Mob Psycho 100 does not end with a climactic battle with some big bad, but rather with a confrontation between Mob and the part of himself he's locked away. this other part of him symbolizes a lot of things, but most importantly it symbolizes his psychic powers and his autism. since he realized as a child that his psychic powers (autism) could potentially hurt someone if he's not careful, he's been shoving that part away from him and attempting to mask and be "normal." this manifestation of his psychic powers/autism is, understandably, pretty bitter and angry about this. at the end of the day, he just wants to be accepted for who he is -- not for the face he presents to the world, but for who he really is on the inside. the culmination of the whole story comes through his loved ones showing him that they love him in his entirety, even when he's volatile or upset. they love Mob as who he is, and because his psychic powers (autism) are part of him, they love that part of him too. the resolution comes when Mob finally accepts all parts of himself, even his psychic powers (autism) because they're nothing to be feared or hated. they're just part of him.

genuinely, Mob Psycho 100 is the best representation of autism I've ever seen. Mob isn't the only autistic coded character in the series (I could go on and on about Serizawa's adult autism or the relationship between Ritsu's gifted kid syndrome and his undiagnosed autism) but his autism is definitely the most important to the plot of the show. his autism is presented realistically, with kindness and nuance and, most importantly, with neutrality. even if you don't vote Mob in the autism summit (which, you should. come on.) if you're ever wanting a show about autism and self acceptance that is kind without being saccharine, I cannot recommend Mob Psycho 100 enough

also if this isn't a damning indication of the importance of autism in Mob Psycho 100, I don't know what is

@autismswagreblogs

[stardustto-dust]

Why you should vote Abed Nadir in the 2023 autism swag summit

I've seen people do this for other polls and it is vital that Abed Nadir from the 2009-2015 NBC comedy Community wins this one.

Vote him round one here.

Does he fit the first part of the statement? Yes, Abed is canonically autistic.

When he realised autistic fans related to him, creator Dan Harmon did as much research as he possibly could into autism as to not let those fans down.

While doing said research, Harmon realised himself was likely on the spectrum. Meaning that Abed is a canon autistic character created by an autistic person. How often does that happen?

Due to the above facts, he is a very well researched and developed autistic character, with both traits more commonly shown in the media, such as blunted affect and difficulties reading faces and less commonly shown traits, such as hyperempathy and sensory issues.

From the time Abed first appeared on screen to the present day, there have been many blog posts, magazine articles and even scholarly articles written about how good rep he is. I have seen him on many a neurodiversity advocacy Instagram account. (If you want me to link some I will!)

OK, we have established the autism. What about the swag? Well, first of all, as Donald Glover summarised it "Abed fucks". There is a whole episode dedicated to his friends trying to get him a girlfriend and worrying about his self-esteem and in the end it turns out he gets plenty of girls and, as he says, he has "self-esteem falling out (his) butthole." He also gets guys hitting on him. And how can we mention Abed without his boyfriend soulmate best friend Troy. who canonically wants to have his "gentle and mysterious" "other half"'s children. In short, bisexual king.

Of course, swag is not limited to just sexual and romantic prowess, as the amount of aroace people I know with limitless swag testifies to. Swag can also be measured by commitment to the bit, for example. And, boy, is Abed known for his commitment to the bit.

Abed is Batman, Han Solo and Jesus. He is a mafia boss. He is a cartoon man discovering the meaning of Christmas. He is the narrator and the cameraman. Like, not metaphorically or in archetype. He realises a need for these characters in the story and becomes them.

[GIF- Abed as Batman, applying lip balm, possessing undeniable amounts of swag]

9. "How does he realise the need for the these things in the story?" you may ask. Well, his special interest is film and TV. He is a filmmaker. Thus, he frames his life in terms of genre, often seeming aware of the fact he is in a sitcom. However, this often changes, and, the show branches off into completely different genres, which Abed points out. These shifts in genre explore character dynamics and also are super awesome. Abed is so genre-aware, he changes the entire genre of the show. That is swag.

10. The Community fandom here on Tumblr.com, and throughout the web, is quite small. It will make us very happy. Plus, for the first time in 8 years, there likely will be new Abed content this year, due to the release of the movie. (Due to one of Abed's many catchphrases "Six seasons and a movie!")

11. Please please please please I love him so much and i am very cool you should listen to me please please please.

So yeah, that's it! If you have anything to add, please do!

Click below for some Abed gifs.

[GIF- "Evil Abed" (Abed with a goatee and sunglasses) walking through his college being evil. He hangs up someone's payphone call, pops a girls balloon with his cigarette and then dumps said cigarette into a woman's coffee]

[GIF- Two gifs. One is of Troy, topless, leaning out of an airvent. He looks down and says "I love you". Next is of Abed, looking up at him. He says "I know", before being grabbed by a zombie in a kilt]

[GIF- Abed, wearing sunglasses, saying "movie reference". Jeff is there too and also wearing sunglasses]

[GIF- Abed saying "Cool. Cool cool cool"]

Ok there are so many more GIFs I want to put but I kinda have work soon lol. You get the gist, he is amazing. Vote Abed!

[inside0ut-dotnet]

Ready, Set, Pride! Last Minute Celebration Ideas

With only 24 hours left until Pride Month kicks off, it's time to start planning how you're going to celebrate with your fabulous love bugs! Are you hitting up a major pride celebration in a city near you, hosting a virtual pride event, or just keeping it low key with your partner or friends? Whatever your plans may be, get ready to show your pride and spread the love!

Join the Parade or Party

If you're lucky enough to live near a city hosting a major pride celebration, why not join the parade or party? Put on your brightest rainbow outfit, grab some glitter, and get ready to dance the day away with your LGBTQ+ community. It's a time to be loud, proud, and unapologetically yourself!

Mid South Pride (May 2-June 2) in Memphis, Tennessee: A huge celebration including Memphis Pride Fest Weekend, a Drag N Drive event, a Big Gay Dance Party, and a Pride Parade.

Gay Days at Disney World (May 30-June 3) in Orlando, Florida: Over 150,000 LGBTQ+ Disney fans attend this annual event at the Magic Kingdom, featuring parties, a Gay Days Expo, Bear pool parties, and special guest performers.

Provincetown Pride (May 31-June 2) in Provincetown, Massachusetts: Enjoy a Pride festival, Queer Comedy showcase, Feet Over Front Street Pride 5K, and more. This year, there’s also “Reimagining Queer Africa” with art, technology, and outreach from Lagos, Nigeria.

New York City Pride (June 30) in New York, New York: The largest Pride Parade in North America, drawing thousands of participants and spectators in Greenwich Village.

Washington, D.C. Capital Pride (June 8-9): Events throughout the month, including a Night of Queer Expression and a rooftop pool party.

Twin Cities Pride Festival (June 28) in Minnesota: Minnesota’s second-largest festival, featuring LGBTQIA+ entertainment, vendors, and community resources. These events celebrate our collective queer joy, honor LGBTQ+ activists, and provide safe spaces for everyone to express their queerness and sexuality. 🌈✨

Host a Virtual Pride Event

Can't make it to a physical pride celebration? No problem! Host a virtual pride event with your friends and loved ones. Get creative with rainbow-themed decorations, plan some fun activities or games, and don't forget to blast some empowering LGBTQ+ anthems. It's a great way to show your pride from the comfort of your own home!

Pride Summit 2024 by Lesbians Who Tech and Allies:

Date: June 11th - 13th

Description: A week-long virtual summit with thought-provoking discussions, learning experiences, and professional development opportunities.  Speakers include tech luminaries and cultural leaders like Gabrielle Union and Sam Altman.

WorkPride 2024:

Date: June 17th - 21st

Description: A global virtual Pride conference focused on workplace equality. It’s free for professionals, graduates, and inclusive employers.

Brooklyn Pride Virtual Drag Bingo:

Date: June 4th

Remember to check out these events and celebrate Pride Month! 🌈

Keep it Low Key

Not in the mood for a big celebration? That's totally okay! Pride Month is all about celebrating love and acceptance in whatever way feels right for you. Whether you're spending a quiet evening with your partner, having a small gathering with friends, or simply reflecting on what pride means to you, there's no wrong way to celebrate.

Pride Month is a wonderful time to celebrate the beautiful spectrum of gender and sexuality while advocating for equality and justice in the LGBTQ+ community. Here are thoughtful and meaningful ways to celebrate Pride Month at home:

Decorate with LGBTQ+ Art and Decor:

Refresh your home’s interior design by proudly hanging a rainbow flag in your front yard or windows. You can also support LGBTQ+ interior designers by incorporating their art and decor into your living spaces.

Create an Outdoor Cinema:

Set up an outdoor movie night in your backyard or balcony. Choose LGBTQ+ films or documentaries that resonate with you. Invite friends or family (virtually, if needed) to share the experience.

Design a Reading Nook:

Curate a cozy reading corner with books by LGBTQ+ authors. Dive into their stories and explore diverse perspectives. It’s a great way to celebrate Pride while enjoying some quiet time.

Get Creative in the Kitchen:

Use your culinary skills to make festive creations. Bake rainbow-themed cookies, cupcakes, or a colorful cake. Share your delicious treats with loved ones or enjoy them yourself.

So, tell us, how are you planning to celebrate Pride Month this year? No matter how you choose to show your pride, remember that love is love and you are valid, fabulous, and deserving of all the happiness in the world. Happy Pride Month, love bugs!

[mariacallous]

Let’s get one thing clear: the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, was never the border czar, despite her political opponents’ attempts to label her as such. If Harris has ever had a Biden administration czarship—not with an official title but with broad authority to coordinate and direct multiple agencies, organizations, and departments on a multi-faceted policy priority—it was in artificial intelligence (AI). Strangely, this doesn’t seem to have come up a lot in the 2024 presidential contest, despite the presence of AI everywhere else these days. In fact, this role doesn’t even merit a passing mention on the “Meet Vice President Kamala Harris” page of her website even as she prepares to formally become the party’s presidential candidate at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

AI might lack the political resonance of the border today, but it is time we reconsider its significance to the average voter. As Harris graduates from a vibes campaign to one with more substance, the vice president should put a spotlight on the AI in her record. When AI is recast as a sweeping change that could affect jobs, income equality, national security, and the rights of ordinary citizens, it is rather quickly transformed from esoterica to an everyday concern. The Trump-Vance campaign has received support from the likes of Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and Marc Andreessen—all major Silicon Valley and AI influencers and investors—but it is Harris, not former President Donald Trump, who has actual fingerprints on AI policy. So, what has been Harris’s track record in this area? And where is the vice president likely to take AI policy if she wins the White House?

Harris’s role as AI czar may be the political season’s best-kept secret. But if one were to trace AI policy development in the world’s leading AI-producing nation, all signs point to Harris. Remarkably, AI policy development has been led by the White House rather than the U.S. Congress. In fact, Congress has done precious little, despite the growing need for AI guardrails, while the White House, with Harris as the seniormost public official involved, has helped frame and follow up on its October 2023 executive order on AI.

That order was designed to ensure the “safe, secure, and trustworthy development and use of AI.” In addition, Harris has made a broader commitment to “establishing a set of rules and norms for AI, with allies and partners, that reflect democratic values and interests, including transparency, privacy, accountability, and consumer protections.” Significantly for a technology disproportionately reliant on a handful of industry players, Harris suggested and has led the important first step of bringing these players together to commit to a set of AI practices and standards that advances three critical objectives: safety, security, and trust.

Given the disproportionate influence of the United States on AI used around the world, it is critical for the country to have its public position clarified in international fora. Harris has represented the United States in key international convenings and led the country’s global advocacy efforts on ensuring safe AI, such as at the AI Safety Summit in Bletchley Park, England. At the other end of the stakeholder spectrum, Harris has also met with the communities most directly affected by the wider adoption of the technology, including consumer protection groups and labor and civil rights leaders, to discuss protections against AI risks.

Harris’ contact with AI has another dimension, too. As the ultimate political unicorn—a woman of color, an underrated and parodied vice president in the Biden administration, and an overnight sensation as presumptive presidential nominee of the Democratic Party after U.S. President Joe Biden stepped aside from the 2024 race—Harris’s narrative has been defined largely by others, whether it is through AI-assisted disinformation campaigns or viral memes. She has been personally targeted by deepfake videos of her supposedly making garbled statements, such as, “Today is today, and yesterday was today yesterday.” An AI-aided voice synthesis that led to a demeaning parody of her presidential campaign advertisement was reposted by Musk himself on X. Trump has also falsely claimed that the large crowds at Harris’s campaign rallies were AI generated. In other words, Harris can legitimately claim to have had AI weaponized against her personally.

Finally, Harris hails from the global capital of AI. As former attorney general and senator of California, she has been financially supported by many in the tech industry; more than 200 Silicon Valley investors have backed her run for the White House. One of her closest confidantes is her brother-in-law, Tony West, Uber’s chief legal officer (now on leave to work for the Harris campaign). It is legitimate to ask if she would be willing to confront the industry on difficult issues; at the same time, her closeness with industry leaders could help with greater government-industry collaboration.

What can we learn from Harris’s record as to what she would do in the presidency on this issue? As AI czar, Harris showed some clear patterns. For one, her primary focus has been promoting safety and addressing the risks of unregulated AI use, which can lead to bias or abuse. Second, the White House under her stewardship has accomplished a wide range of safety-, security-, and trust-enhancing actions since the issuance of the executive order—from AI testbeds and model evaluation tools developed at the Department of Energy to the Office of Management and Budget-issued government-wide policy on AI, the latter with safeguards to assess and monitor AI’s societal impact. There have been pilots at the departments of Defense and Homeland Security using AI to protect vital government software and a call to action from the Gender Policy Council and Office of Science and Technology Policy to combat AI-generated image-based sexual abuse. Harris has also been the seniormost official behind the release of a Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights, outlining principles for the ethical design and use of AI.

Another of Harris’s initiatives has been aimed at promoting authenticity as concerns about AI-generated content skyrocket. This includes proposing international standards for tracing authenticity of government-produced digital content and identifying AI-generated or manipulated content, through digital signatures, watermarking, and labeling.

While Harris is not, any means, an expert on AI, and much work remains to get a full-throated AI policy in place, the numbers tell a tale of steady early accomplishment. A list of 100 action items following the executive order has been completed by various federal agencies on issues ranging from developing new technical guidelines for AI safety to evaluating misuse of dual-use foundation models and developing frameworks for managing generative AI risks. Harris has obtained voluntary commitments from 15 companies to ensure safe, secure, and transparent development of AI technology. 31 nations have joined the United States in endorsing a declaration establishing norms for responsible development, deployment, and use of military AI capabilities. And the U.S. government has won commitments of up to $200 million from 10 leading foundations to fund work around five pillars that cover issues from democracy and rights to improving transparency and accountability of AI.

Harris’s campaign rests on the idea of looking to the future and “not going back.” The Democratic National Convention in Chicago presents an opportunity for Harris to communicate more to the public about a key part of that future: AI’s economic and societal implications and her role in influencing them. Time is running out on conveying this issue’s importance, especially to the working class. While the impact of AI on different occupations is a matter of debate, some argue that, in the near-term, higher-income workers are more likely to benefit from productivity improvements due to AI and the share of income going to capital is likely to increase at the expense of the share that goes to labor. Both trends would contribute to an increase in income inequality.

As for the impact on jobs, there are different schools of thought. Some believe AI could help make many services, such as medical care, or currently elite job responsibilities, such as research, writing. graphics design and software coding more accessible to the middle class. Others see a plausible scenario of a hollowing out of specialized job functions. Policy and election promises need to show how a Harris administration would help steer toward the former outcome.

On the global stage, there are numerous existential risks associated with AI. Autonomous lethal weapons are a critical concern as multilateral agreements to ban such weapons have failed. Tensions with major AI-producing nations such as China are escalating, with no roadmap for getting to common ground as both the United States and China have declared their aspirations to become the world’s AI leader. A recent seven-hour meeting between top officials of the two countries in Geneva advertised as a dialogue on managing AI risks reportedly ended with no concrete agreements or follow-up meetings scheduled.

In parallel, the atmosphere has only become more tense with U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports and restrictions on the export of high-end chips to China. The Commerce Department is considering further restrictions on exporting proprietary AI models to China. Meanwhile, Beijing and Moscow are discussing a strategic partnership on various issues, including technology, while the Chinese embassy in Washington has accused the United States of “economic coercion and unilateral bullying.” If mishandled, these tensions can escalate.

Harris’s campaign can distinguish her candidacy with an acknowledgement of her track record and momentum on AI policy development. It must make the case for at least three sets of issues her administration would address. First: understanding AI’s impact on jobs and the resulting impact on economic inequality, and setting forth a plan to mitigate risks and protecting the most vulnerable. Second: developing a strategy for harnessing AI that addresses key kitchen-table concerns, such as accessible healthcare and education and skill-building. And third: crafting a vision for U.S. leadership in AI that advances responsible innovation, reduces geopolitical tensions, and preserves American national security interests.

Going from czar to president is unusual and comes with unusual challenges. Czars are usually not formally appointed as such—Harris was never officially designated AI czar despite the clear czar-like nature of her involvement—but can work to bring multiple parties together, often doing so outside public view. Then-Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, for example, played a key role as de facto climate czarin increasing cooperation on that issue with China without much fanfare.

In other instances, and when they are brought in during an acute crisis, czars come with enormous expectations: The city of Boston awaits a rat czar, and residents want to see quick results. Czars do not have executive powers but have the respect of many, which is the calling card that allows them to convene parties with differing agendas. Presidents enjoy none of these luxuries. They own the problems they take on and they do so in public view.

There’s no escaping the reality that we are—and this election is being held—firmly in the age of AI. It is important that Harris’s team conveys the significance of AI to people’s lives and lets voters know how Harris would build on her unique track record. American voters have a choice to make for the nation’s next president this November, and on this one critical issue at least one of the candidates has a running start.

[vague-humanoid]

We’re coming up on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Battle of Seattle, the confrontation between police and demonstrators at the meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in late 1999 that shut the conference down. Diplomats from around the world went home having accomplished nothing. Biennial summits of trade ministers go on, disputes are adjudicated, negotiations undertaken, but nothing has happened in the way of a major rewrite of global trade rules since.

I’ve been an active producer of punditry around the event for the full quarter-century. I was there, wrote a daily journal, reported with The Nation crew, for both print and radio. And I wrote about its twentieth anniversary for Jacobin. At the time, it seemed very important, and continued to for some years. Is it now? Almost a third of the U.S. population hadn’t been born when it happened, and only half had reached the age of political consciousness, which I’m arbitrarily setting at fifteen. An informal survey of my social media universe found mixed views, ranging from variations on “still vivid and important” to “huh, what?” The great radical activist and writer Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz said on Facebook, “It seems so long ago, another century, so hopeful, seems like a dream, leaving no footprint, quaint and innocent.”

One Week to Change the World is an ambitious attempt to gather perspectives from across this spectrum. Thinking about it involves considering not only the politics of Seattle but the adequacy of the book to the task. Its form is unusual—an oral history consisting of short passages drawn from interviews with actors both major and minor. I’m not convinced it’s the best form for this story. But more on that later.

[unhonestlymirror]

TOP Lithuanian news which made me laugh like crazy:

Woman on autistic spectrum drank a little during a flight to Barcelona and accidentally woke up in Kaunas. She had to return back to the UK through Riga. "I cried a lot, it was my worst nightmare." It is still unclear why the airport staff and transfer didn't prevent the voyage. (Personally, I don't see anything worthy of being upset here, Kaunas is a beautiful city with the beautiful, the only in the world Museum of Demons.) (What if you: wanted to go to Barcelona - but God said: go to Kaunas✨)

The President of Canada said out-loud "Slava Ukraini" on the summit - but every single news wrote it was the President of Lithuania.

[twosides--samecoin]

long time running x @yeehawgust day 22: horse girl

[snippet from chapter 15]

Instead of a black-and-white morality of kindness and bloodshed on antithetical ends of a straight line, Olivia's spectrum seemed bent into a horseshoe; a crosshair with ends that almost converged, opposites closer to each other than either was to the far-off zenith of their shared iron-gray meridian.

Each time RJ found himself in the middle of this reticle and was quite certain she’d kill him, there was some concession in the form of a reward. 

Though she ensured his time in the Rocky Mountains wasn’t easy, at least she had a pattern he could anticipate. Climbing up a glacier against polar winds was rewarding when she balanced his trouble with warmth. Thaw necessitated frostbite; he wanted to breathe in arctic air and allow it to freeze him from the inside out, then wake up in the relative safety of Vault 150 once again.

If Olivia surrounded Mount Fay in a radstorm to eradicate the Brotherhood, at least she allowed RJ into the tempest’s calm center. If she was a 'real wild radhorse' like Hancock said, at least she was willing to share the grasslands.

RJ scoffed at the comparison. She didn’t mind me in the pasture until Jack threw on the saddle while she was distracted.   

Though it took a few days, his anger toward her subsided. Tangible memories of their time together, combined with his own sense of liability, overruled the images he conjured when Hancock divulged the truth about what happened in Goodneighbor. 

There wouldn’t have been a Goodneighbor or Raiders for her to get mixed up with if he hadn't involved her in his affairs. She galloped across the continental divide, crossed the hundredth meridian and left her prairies behind to help an ailing Duncan; Boston punished her, and RJ was complicit. 

He returned to Sanctuary with a report on events in north-east Boston and high hopes to make nice with Olivia. 

If, in order to exact revenge on the Brotherhood, she wanted to overflow Moraine Lake with rain, then flood the world up to surface tension at the cols between the Bow Range’s summits, he wanted to wedge that heavy metal door open so she could drown everyone in the bunker. 

If yellowing late-summer grass in the shadow of Boston’s skyline was a poor substitute for the verdant montane valley she left behind, maybe he could scout the Commonwealth for a meadow and pond protected by a bulwark of hills and miles of forest. 

Maybe, through some cooperation of preparing for the weather and turning her loose someplace she felt accommodated, RJ could begin to make up for his latest regret - that he and Jack took advantage of her kindness; that she had no space or time to think through negotiations when she agreed to leave her beloved Rocky Mountains for the Commonwealth Wasteland.

She trusted him; he encumbered her with his many burdens.

So, RJ returned to Sanctuary, determined to ensure she never felt the heft of a saddle or a cold bit in her mouth ever again. He arrived ready to begin a long atonement for stabbing his spurs in an already frightened mare's side.

After all, it was his fault she was forced to spend all of her time running to begin with.

[mywifeleftme]

298: Wolf Parade // Apologies to the Queen Mary

Apologies to the Queen Mary Wolf Parade 2005, Sub Pop

Apologies to the Queen Mary is on the short list of ‘00s indie records that I’d consider masterpieces. The funny thing is that my list, as someone who was there (or there-adjacent), is pretty well fixed in time, whereas the consensus among Zoomer critics continues to morph in ways I’d never have figured. (Or maybe it’s not funny, really—just always how time and memory work.) In 2008, I would’ve bet my left pinkie that TV on the Radio (and especially Return to Cookie Mountain) would be the defining band of the era. Meanwhile, in 2024 the Killers are still riding the same five songs to a second greatest hits record and fifty times TVotR’s monthly residuals; the National have tween fans; and I hold a mug weird. Time clowns us all and Wolf Parade are a dad band now, owners of a few anthems from the era before genuinely weird indie bands could near the summits of the pop chart, economically compelled to continue touring small theatres together despite both Boeckner and Krug having been more invested in other, even less profitable projects for some time now.

Wolf Parade is one of those bands with two lead singers who sound indistinguishable before you know the group well, and instantly identifiable thereafter (like John and Paul of the Beatles, or Felix and Will of Chapo Trap House). They’re both yowlers who let their voices crack pubescently as shorthand for the frayed emotional spectrum they traffic in, given to barking and hooting to help drive their bric-a-brac compositions forward. Boeckner is a lanky post-punk looking fuckboy in roughly the Richard Hell mould, given to posing sweatily in torn undershirts and starting projects with a succession of raven-haired keyboard players he’s also dating. He loves motorik dance rock and Wire, but also has a substantial helping of Bruce Springsteen in his songwriting. Krug is a stocky, normal-looking guy who doesn’t really meet your eyes and self-deprecatingly called his solo project Moonface. He writes lyrics that sound like philosophy and love letters translated from an alien language, and prefers his music to both thwack and quaver.

Their similarities give Wolf Parade coherence, but much of their dynamism comes from how the two singers pass the controls back and forth. Backed by electronics tinkerer Hadji Bakara and Arlen Thompson, a drummer (crucially) capable of serving as a rhythm section unto himself, Krug and Boeckner find the perfect balance between Krug’s experimental art collective predilections and Boeckner’s slyly sexual rock ‘n’ roll heart. Krug leads with the empty warehouse strut of “You Are a Runner and I Am My Father’s Son”; Boeckner parries with the hooky acoustic rocker “Modern World”; Krug closes with the brittle seven-minute dirge “Dinner Bells”; Boeckner responds with the pinkly-hued Suicide-Springsteen collab “This Heart’s on Fire.”

Both Boeckner and Krug have made wilder, stranger music elsewhere, and there are plenty of other brilliant Wolf Parade songs to be found across their subsequent records. But Apologies remains the greatest blend of their particular talents they ever managed, a perfect example of two guys pushing each other to do their best work. With luck, a future generation will reconsider Wolf Parade and its many, many satellites (Sunset Rubdown, Operators, Handsome Furs, Frog Eyes, Swan Lake, Divine Fits…) as one of the most interesting micro-scenes the whole post-alternative rock era produced. And if not, I’ll still be here spinning the record a few times a year, believing in it all all over.

298/365

[tatasoom]

Only Boo "cursed" ep 11

and why it's the best

The truth is we love all these bl series, especially GMMTV series, because of what it is. Including classic episode 11 "curse" when two main characters face the most dramatic and tragic events just to end up together in the end of the show. The "curse" in fact is just a climax of any story. It happened somehow that these shows put it into ep 11 (out of 12) despite the pacing of the story and characters' development making that plot twists contrived.

And that's why I LOVE what we've seen in Only Boo!

The real "curse" had already happened by the time ep 11 started. Moreover, from the very first episode we can expect things to turn bad. It's a story where the author reassures us over and over again that the miracle is possible. Moo himself makes us believe that one person can be stronger than the rules of the whole world. And then... bam! They convinced us it's an idealistic cute fiction story just to remind about stupid idol contracts we have in real life.

I love the whole episode of dealing with a grief. Psychologies say that breaking up with someone you love actually feels like experiencing someone's death. I'm not sure if seeing Moo on screen somehow made it easier for Kang. But I'm absolutely sure that Moo who could only keep Kang in memories felt the whole spectrum of loss. You can't easily accept someone's death when you haven't seen the body. And romantic relationships definitely has no body.

I love the whole episode of change. At first it seems a year later we have the same Moo, maybe just a little bit less childish. Then we see Moo telling Tae about searching for Kang in different places, unsuccessfully. What Moo didn't tell is that he was playing piano with shaking hands thinking about Kang's face, Kang's kisses, Kang's voice, and tears was running down his cheeks. Moo only told it'd made him sad. Moo only told it had been okay. So much okay that after one meeting with Kang we see Moo shaking, breaking, slipping off on the floor with that frozen khai palo. Again, no one sees him like this. That's how ep 11 told us that Moo has changed - he's learned to hide his feelings, he's learned to lie.

I love the whole episode of trying. There could be much more dramatic names for "cursed" episode, but ep 11 of Only Boo has a name "We all try". I swear this should be a slogan for living this life. Especially when you're an ADHD teenager like our Moo (don't tell me you can't see his neurodivergency!). The characters, they all try. To forget, to learn, to grow. To reach the summit of Everest. In case of Moo, he has been climbing for almost all his not so long life just to spend last year trying to be stronger than ever. But in the end...

His life without Kang is like constantly trying to live breathing in that thin air of the summit.

[ruminate88]

I love ALL MUSIC (accept heavy metal and not a huge country music fan) BUT I’ll always have a special spot in my heart for trance/edm 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻 Something about it just makes me awake inside and makes me feel so deep. The emotions do run very deep ❤️‍🩹🔥 (She may be sad but she got good taste in music)

Some of the BEST SONG EVER ⬇️⬇️⬇️

[takingstockofwhatmattersmost]

HOW???

Let me start this post with a quote...

"There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call The Twilight Zone." Rod Serling.

I don't even know where to begin folks. I'm going Worldwide! Five of my pieces are going to be shown at the Spectrum Miami Art Fair in December, the Paris International Art Fair in September, the (un)fair Milan Art Exhibit in March of 2024, and the Monaco Art Fair in August of 2024!!! WTAF???? I was contacted this morning with the contract offer...I don't even know what to say.

My works will be displayed digitally on NEO QLED 4K Quantum Dot Matrix Displays in Quantum HDR...available for sale on demand. SO...if you happen to be traveling this upcoming year!

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

roundbreaking Achievement: NSF Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope Produces its First Magnetic Field Maps of the Sun’s Corona

Groundbreaking Achievement: NSF Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope Produces its First Magnetic Field Maps of the Sun’s Corona

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, the world’s most powerful solar telescope, designed, built, and operated by the NSF National Solar Observatory (NSO), achieved a major breakthrough in solar physics by directly mapping the strength of the magnetic field in the solar corona, the outer part of the solar atmosphere that can be seen during a total eclipse. This breakthrough promises to enhance our understanding of space weather and its impact on Earth’s technology-dependent society.

The Corona: The Launch Pad of Space Weather

The Sun’s magnetic field generates regions in the Sun’s atmosphere, often rooted by sunspots, that store vast amounts of energy that fuel explosive solar storms and drive space weather. The corona, the Sun’s outer atmosphere, is a superheated realm where these magnetic mysteries unfold. Mapping coronal magnetic fields is essential to understanding and predicting space weather – and to protect our technology in Earth and space.

Why It Matters

Earth’s magnetic field shields us from solar winds, protecting our atmosphere, and making life possible. However, the electromagnetic fields and energetic particles from extreme solar eruptions can disrupt satellites, power grids, and other systems we need in our increasingly technological society. Understanding these dynamic interactions, which change on timescales ranging from days to centuries, is crucial for safeguarding our infrastructure and current way of life.

Measuring the corona’s magnetic properties has long challenged astronomers and the limits of technology. Today, the Inouye Solar Telescope is the most advanced facility designed to study the corona, and has made a crucial first step in resolving these mysteries by producing its first coronal magnetic field maps – the most detailed to date.

Since the 1950s, solar physicists have mapped the magnetic fields on the Sun’s surface, providing valuable insights. However, maps of the magnetic field in the zones above the surface, like the corona, have long been sought as it is in these locations that solar storms originate. The Inouye, located near the summit of Maui’s Haleakalā in Hawai’i, now provides the capabilities to meet this critical need.

The Inouye has created its first detailed magnetic field maps of the solar corona using the Zeeman Effect, which measures magnetic properties by observing spectral line splitting. Spectral lines are distinct lines that appear at specific wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum, representing the light absorbed or emitted by atoms or molecules. These lines act like “fingerprints,” as they are unique to each atom or molecule, allowing scientists to identify the chemical composition and physical properties of celestial objects by looking at their spectra. When exposed to a magnetic field, like in the Sun, these lines split, which gives us an insight into the object’s magnetic properties. Previous attempts at detecting these signals, last reported two decades ago (Lin et al. 2004), lacked the detail and regularity needed for extensive scientific investigation. Today, the Inouye’s unmatched capabilities allow for detailed, regular studies of these crucial signals.

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, the world’s most powerful solar telescope, operated by the NSF National Solar Observatory (NSO), achieved a major breakthrough in solar physics by successfully producing its first detailed maps of the Sun’s coronal magnetic fields. This milestone, led by NSO Associate Astronomer Dr. Tom Schad, was recently published in Science Advances, and promises to enhance our understanding of the Sun’s atmosphere and how its changing conditions lead to impacts on Earth’s technology-dependent society. The corona, or the Sun’s outer atmosphere, greatly influences solar winds and space weather events like solar flares and coronal mass ejections. However, the magnetic forces that drive these events and the corona are challenging to measure.

Technological Marvel

Typically, one can only view the Sun’s corona – a region one million times fainter than the solar disk – during a total solar eclipse, when most of the Sun’s light is blocked and Earth’s sky goes dark. The Inouye, however, uses a technique called coronagraphy to create artificial eclipses, allowing it to detect extremely faint polarized signals – a billion times fainter than the solar disk – highlighting its unparalleled sensitivity and solidifying its status as a unique window to our home star.

The Inouye accomplishes this with its Cryogenic Near-Infrared Spectropolarimeter (Cryo-NIRSP), one of the telescope’s primary instruments used to study the corona and map its magnetic fields. This instrument was designed and built by the University of Hawai‘i Institute for Astronomy.

Dr. Tom Schad’s Research

“The Inouye’s achievement in mapping the Sun’s coronal magnetic fields is a testament to the innovative design and capabilities of this trailblazing unique observatory,” said Tom Schad, scientist at NSO, and first author of the study. “This breakthrough promises to significantly enhance our understanding of the solar atmosphere and its influence on our solar system.”

Future Prospects

This milestone marks the beginning of a new era in solar physics. The Inouye’s success in mapping the Sun’s coronal magnetic fields reaffirms its vision and mission, and opens new frontiers in understanding the Sun’s influence on space weather.

“Just as detailed maps of the Earth’s surface and atmosphere have enabled more accurate weather prediction, this thrillingly complete map of the magnetic fields in the sun’s corona will help us better predict solar storms and space weather,” says Dr. Carrie Black, NSF program director for the NSO. “The invisible yet phenomenally powerful forces captured in this map will propel solar physics through the next century and beyond.”

Christoph Keller, NSO Director, remarks that “Mapping the strength of the magnetic field in the corona is a fundamental scientific breakthrough, not just for solar research, but for astronomy in general.” He anticipates that “This is the beginning of a new era where we will understand how the magnetic fields of stars affect planets, here in our own solar system and in the thousands of exoplanetary systems that we now know about.”

Ongoing and future studies will refine diagnostic tools and techniques, leading to deeper insights into the Sun’s magnetic environment and its impact on Earth and our solar system.

TOP IMAGE: The NSF Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope presents its first map of the solar coronal magnetic field signals as measured using the Zeeman Effect. The Zeeman Effect polarizes the coronal emission, which requires the advancements of the Inouye Solar Telescope to measure as its signals are only a few parts per billion of the Sun’s surface brightness. The background image identifies the region observed in detail by Inouye as imaged by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory in ultraviolet light. Credit: NSF/NSO/AURA

CENTRE IMAGE: The NSF Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope presents its first map of the solar coronal magnetic field signals as measured using the Zeeman Effect. The Zeeman Effect polarizes the coronal emission, which requires the advancements of the Inouye Solar Telescope to measure as the signals are only a few parts per billion of the Sun’s surface brightness. Credit: NSF/NSO/AURA

LOWER IMAGE: The NSF Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope’s Cryo-NIRSP instrument charted the telescope’s first coronal magnetic field maps. Cryo-NIRSP operates in the near-infrared to reveal the faint corona. It maintains a cryogenically cooled environment to achieve the high sensitivity, precision, and stability required for advanced observations of the corona. (Designed and built by the University of Hawai‘i Institute for Astronomy). Credit: NSF/NSO/AURA