This woman provided food for the peacock…
And he expressed his gratitude in a beautiful way. pic.twitter.com/Ns6LfBfdtY
— Science Girl (@sciencegirl) April 18, 2026
Close pair of supermassive black holes detected for the first time? TECHNOLOGY.ORG
Ancient mummy teeth could rewrite the script for scarlet fever in New World nautiluses
The collapse of Hampshire College is another blow to creative, outside-the-box options in higher education
America’s most dangerous extremist movement has no ideology The Cipher Brief
New coronavirus infection/pandemic
La Jolla Institute for Immunology Answering Big Questions About New Influenza and SARS-CoV-2 Virus Variants
I developed Long Coronavirus while working in the medical field. There was no place for me in this system. chic era
Climate/Environment
Wildfires used to “go to sleep” at night. With climate change, they are changing to the best burning time PHYS.ORG
South Carolina nuclear bomb factory’s rising costs and environmental impact spark rare tour
south of the border
Can Cuba continue to deter the United States? G zero
Mexico Country Profile Population and Demographics The World in Data
Election date not yet set in Venezuela; US presses regime to allow Machado to return Miami Herald
China?
The Unitee H1 robot also has a turbo sprint mode, which allows it to run faster than a real human. This is impressive.
The robots are doing their final training for the final official half marathon in Beijing tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/rskH2ZJfZN
— Li Zexin 李泽欣 (@XH_Lee23) April 18, 2026
China’s moon race narrows to a few months as Chinese government builds satellite city Cryptopolitan
The Malacca Maneuver: How China’s oil choke strategy backfires on President Trump NDTV
Chinese EV companies don’t just make great cars. They are making money in EVs
The rare earth trap: How China outsmarted the entire Western defense industry OILPRICE.COM
India
Opposition parties accuse Narendra Modi government of using quotas as cover for redrawing electoral maps The Guardian
Indian refiner settles Iranian oil deal for renminbi? Center says ‘nothing is wrong’ NDTV
On the road to fourth place, how India slipped to sixth place The Times of India
Africa
War sends Africa’s debt costs soaring Semaphore
Pope slams foreigners exploiting Africa BBC
Why taxing mobile money is backfiring across Africa Pan African Visions
discord in europe
This week’s security news: It takes two minutes to hack the EU’s new age verification app Wired
Spain, Slovenia, Ireland call on European Commission to discuss suspension of EU-Israel Association Agreement Andor Agency
EU’s foreign trade surplus falls by 60% in February Emirates News
old blighty
Starmer’s Weaponized Incompetent Workers Are Not Working – Avoiding Responsibility UnHerd
More than half of UK voters support rejoining the EU, survey finds
Israel vs. Gaza, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Iran
🔻Israel was forced to accept a temporary ceasefire due to Hezbollah’s continued operations.
Israel is expected to violate this ceasefire.
✍️ PS Israel destroyed a public high school in Marwahin, southern Lebanon, during the war. pic.twitter.com/bFYAQMEXhS
— Masaf International 🌎 (@masaf_intl) April 17, 2026
Lebanese refugees return home after Israeli shelling violates ceasefire in southern Al Jazeera
Bibi lashed out at U.S. support for Israel for a generation.
pic.twitter.com/LqTRsAOmAD
Unreleased footage of war crimes and damage #hospital Continue #Israel and #united states of america airstrike #Iran. 2001/03/26
See the courage of medical staff saving a patient’s life. ”#Red_Crescent_Society
— Toolbox 87 (@toolbox87) April 18, 2026
Bombing has slowed, but Israel controls every aspect of our lives in Gaza
As tensions rise, Turkey warns it could become Israel’s ‘next enemy’ RFI
A new war that’s not so cold war
Ukraine to increase procurement of ground drones for frontline forces to 25,000 over next six months – Photo Ukraineska Pravda
Moscow bombs Ukraine, Kiev targets Russian oil facilities Euronews
Russia’s new threat to Europe comes from long-range attacks in Ukraine Al Jazeera
Russian airstrike leaves 380,000 people without power in northern Ukraine TVP World
big brother is watching you
5 scary privacy clauses hidden in smart home devices Fox News
Lawsuit filed against Flock Safety over privacy concerns WGME.com
imperial collapse watch
US Navy personnel dispatched to warships in the Middle East report severe food shortages Marine Insight
Significant increase in homeless camp fires in Los Angeles delays emergency response and leads to deadly outcomes FOX News
Trump 2.0
Pope Leo says feuding with President Trump over Iran war is ‘absolutely unprofitable’ NY Post
President Trump signs order to expedite review of hallucinogens, including controversial drug ibogaine CNBC
Trump’s claims about Iranian concessions spark questions and rejection on Tehran Al Jazeera
President Trump’s new budget proposal signals the end of ‘Emancipation Day’ The Hill
musk is important
Elon Musk’s false call for ‘universal high income’ reason
Elon Musk drives Terafab at ‘light speed’ – staff have contacted various suppliers and are reportedly willing to pay a premium to get priority rights to Tom’s hardware
Musk’s SpaceX is shaping up to be the biggest IPO in history. It also means bending the rules to do so.
Democratic Party Death Watch
Gradual upset in New Jersey: Analilia Mejia wins big, challenges Trump and establishment Democratic allies
US: Who won the DNC’s latest meeting? More news on Israel, ethnic cleansing and genocide
immigration
Poll: President Trump’s message on immigration has changed. Voters’ opinions have not changed. political
New ICE arrest statistics reveal who authorities are targeting in American society American Immigration Council
Our press is no longer free
Judge orders Justice Department, DHS to stop censoring anti-ICE social media groups The Washington Times
Present the facts. A student journalist’s perspective on censorship Ball State Daily News
Mr. Market is in a bad mood.
Iran war shatters oil price compass Arab Weekly
Prepare for a potential stock market crash The Motley Fool
How the Iran war will accelerate the US dollar’s decline Money Week
A.I.
Millions of Americans are turning to AI instead of going to the doctor, giving them horribly flawed medical advice
Anthropic mocks up Claude design to create flashy new pink slips for marketing team The Register
All businesses face hacker targets with AI tools doubling in capacity every four months, tech secretary warns Daily Mail
Age reversal is the tech industry’s holy grail — can AI make it happen? New York Post
How can we create genius children to thwart the threat of AI? (Yes, really.) Mother Jones
basil
New York doctor admits to exploiting coronavirus pandemic to steal at least $24 million from insurance company Syracuse.com
SEC indicts Bitcoin Latinum founder on $16 million investor fraud charge Crypto Briefing
guillotine watch
most expensive golf club in the world
world. #belite #fyp #golf #ribgolf #PGA Champ #PGAT Tour #tigerwood #justin #Euro2024 #useopenwomen #champion pic.twitter.com/YBQVhXRDeW
— Belighte (@Belightegolf) June 5, 2024
The most expensive golf club ever sold ($181,000) is also the oldest known golf club. A long-nose putter from the 1700s, handcrafted by Andrew Dixon and engraved with his personal stamp. pic.twitter.com/GTyJKKO6Lx
— Golf Bowling (@golfballingpod) June 4, 2025
Antidote (via)
See yesterday’s link and antidote here
