— Science Girl (@ScienceThing5) July 18, 2026
Are prediction markets doomed to failure? Contrarian research
Prowling towards war: While Vienna’s coffeehouses fostered modernism, intrigue and anger grew in Belgrade’s kafana. Their collision consumed Europe’s ions
Humanoid robots in 2026: What will actually be deployed Technology.org
Archaeologists identify first classical Maya astronomer credited by name ZME Science
Scientists detect atmosphere for the first time on rocky habitable planet, raising hopes for alien life Gizmodo
New coronavirus infection/pandemic
New coronavirus variants lead U.S. as cases rise in 27 states, emergency visits increase
CDC warns of global dietary threat after 22 million infants missed out on vaccines during pandemic CTV News
Climate/Environment
What you need to know about wildfires in Canada and the US and their impact BBC
Algeria urgently summons civil protection workers after more than 100 wildfires
Wildfires, droughts and storms hit Europe despite heat wave recession Reuters
Interactive map predicts agricultural decline due to climate change by end of century Euronews
south of the border
Defense official considers military options for Cuba CBS News
Venezuela earthquake kills more than 5,000; IMF provides reconstruction funds France 24
Colombia: A cracked society under US influence, counterpunch
China?
Fun fact.
BYD’s new factory in Zhengzhou will occupy an area of 50 square miles, larger than San Francisco’s 46.9 square miles. pic.twitter.com/dXWwJ3xxiT
— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) July 17, 2026
China’s AI model is shrinking Yahoo Finance, the US leader
China plants billions of trees, scientists discover unexpected benefits of these new forests ZME Science
Did China steal 2020 US election data, as President Trump claims? Al Jazeera
China’s BeiDou satellite system is a game changer in the war between Iran and the US’ Larry Johnson Substack
India
India successfully launches first private orbital rocket Phys.org
New Delhi air pollution index further boosts EV adoption in India Clean Technica
India’s monsoon rains depend on where the air is clean Phys.org
Africa
New malaria vaccine helps in Africa but faces challenges: all four doses completed Medpage Today
South Africa faces persistent anti-immigrant tensions as migrants await repatriation Xinhua
Women die in Africa as US steps up global fight against abortion AP
discord in europe
Why the EU’s so-called anti-chat law has privacy experts up in arms Euronews
EU proposes slowing down of companies cutting carbon emissions BBC
EU targets 46% electrification by 2040 to save $296 billion annually Turkiye Today
old blighty
Reverse Brexit? The political winds in Britain are blowing towards Europe. Christian Science Monitor
Dark day for Britain as Andy Burnham doubles down on disaster New York Post
Israel vs. Gaza, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Iran
This is Houla in southern Lebanon – before and after the Israeli massacre.
An ancient village that has been around for over 2000 years.
Israel wiped it off the map.
It’s a war crime. It’s a crime against history. pic.twitter.com/3BCCvztIaO
— Sarah (@sahouraxo) July 16, 2026
Israeli army destroys three schools in southern Lebanon, minister tells Al Jazeera
Israeli army kills 8 Palestinians, expands occupied Gaza despite ceasefire, Andor News Agency
US rushes Israeli aerial refueling fleet in preparation for expanded attacks on Iran Military Watch Magazine
Israeli ministers announce plans for new illegal settlements in Gaza and West Bank The Guardian
A new war that’s not so cold war
The European right is attacking Ukraine’s UnHerd
Ukraine’s Defense Minister intervenes in Zelensky corruption scandal Responsible State Strategy
10 people killed in Russia and Ukraine as protests continue over Al Jazeera over Kiev defense revamp
big brother is watching you
Susan Shelley: From license plate readers to phone tapping, privacy rights are disappearing OC Register
‘The company failed to implement basic defenses’: 23andMe data breach victims finally receive compensation, but bankruptcy could reduce financial payout
imperial collapse watch
More security: Walmart shoppers smoke ‘anti-theft beef’ as supermarket chain ups steaks The US Sun
WATCH: Massive homeless camps in New York City fuel backlash against Mamdani NY Post
Trump 2.0
Can you ever lose the same war twice? With Trump, anything is possible The New Republic
The world’s greatest danger is not Iran but Trump. He’s a weapon of mass destruction The Guardian
Trump administration lifts ban on trapping and trapping of endangered species Andre Agency
Trump’s rhetoric is more dangerous than flawed voting machines, experts say at Politico
musk is important
Elon Musk’s AI startup is a disaster; futurists behind the scenes
SpaceX has lost $1 trillion in market capitalization since mid-June – financially, the stock has fallen as Musk canceled its first post-IPO rocket launch
Elon Musk says your Tesla will start learning your personal preferences Teslati
Democratic Party Death Watch
Rahm Emanuel’s pro-Israel ‘no’ to Israel American conservative
‘It’s scary’: Scandal sends Wisconsin Democrats into panic over gubernatorial race Politico
immigration
Stephen Miller says Trump administration is moving ahead with policies to close bank accounts for illegal immigrants FOX News
‘Treat like animals’: Immigration detainees face harsh conditions at Miami federal prison Miami Herald
fox news
Our press is no longer free
Trump administration drastically cuts visa requirements for foreign journalists The Guardian
6abc is warning viewers that the FCC has revoked its television license. I’ll explain what’s going on. philadelphia inquirer
Mr. Market is in a bad mood.
Citi raises Brent outlook for 2026. If Hormuz turmoil continues, oil could hit $150 EnergyNow
Unanswered questions driving stock market declines
The increasing economic burden of climate change is becoming impossible to ignore over time.
A.I.
AI is changing what we can do. Who we become is still our choice Humanist Review
Marc Andreessen played Logan for over three hours. Here are 17 things worth noting.
1. In your view, AGI already exists. He crossed that line about three months ago with GPT-5.5, Claude 4.6, Gemini 3, and Grok 4.3, but says the field moved so fast that no one noticed. https://t.co/kNcZEYmH0t pic.twitter.com/yddmZnJ6Wr
— CyrilXBT (@cyrilXBT) July 18, 2026
Google launched a one-hour course on agent engineering from scratch.
00:00 – How to build your first AI agent
08:24 – Building agent memory (short, persistent, long)
28:34 – Agent loop, long-running AI agent
40:04 – How to build MCP (MCP and API)
1:00:22 – Multi-agent… https://t.co/P5jrVeQvaO pic.twitter.com/uVbN2z1EHs
— Rahul (@sairahul1) July 11, 2026
Letting AI take over Google TV for a week – Solved your biggest streaming problem Android Authority
AI accelerates the pace of scientific discovery: Nobel Prize winner Bastille Post Global
basil
Fraud expert warns AI is helping criminals outnumber governments: ‘We don’t have the right tools’ FOX News
The data to spot Medicaid fraud already exists, but no one is using it
guillotine watch
most expensive sneakers
Which of the following brands have you used? pic.twitter.com/g8mTtjQZzU
— Darcie (@Darcie1387) April 10, 2026
Abstract socks are about to overturn the world’s most expensive socks.
It has already flipped most luxury brands.
2nd place after Burberry. pic.twitter.com/8GplUaOoxJ
— Nezuron (@nezuron_) February 1, 2025
Antidote (via)
See yesterday’s link and antidote here
