The world in the hourglass: The physics of sandy atmosphere
Why humans are obsessed with numbers that are too big to understand Gizmodo
The End of Fugitive Limits Elsewhere
Climate/Environment
New spark plumes in May show El Niño is rapidly intensifying, with eight out of 10 models indicating a super event and four predicting the strongest on record.
The average temperature for all 693 ensemble members reached +2.8 °C, coinciding with the strongest El Niño on record. pic.twitter.com/9pDxNxAkXz
— Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) May 10, 2026
Coal shipments soar as countries seek alternatives to gas supply disruptions FT
exxon climate uncensored
Undersea video-acoustic monitoring of Greenland’s glacial fjords records high benthic fauna, backward-swimming fish, and narwhals PLOS One
hantavirus
Do we understand WHO correctly?
…and all high-risk contacts will be required to isolate in a designated facility or at home (depending on each country’s capacity) for 42 days from the last known infection…
…And for the passengers and crew of the MV Hondius, the final day of exposure will be the day of disembarkation. pic.twitter.com/in6TNzCq5M
— Cat in the Hat 🐈⬛ 🎩 🇬🇧 (@_CatintheHat) May 10, 2026
Meanwhile, the CDC…
No mandatory quarantine for US passengers: CDC official ABC News
American passenger stops at facility in Nebraska before returning home from cruise ship infected with hantavirus. Here’s what CNN knows
I spoke to the ship’s doctor earlier today and he confirmed something. The CDC message continues to say “prolonged close contact,” which contradicts 1) what the literature says and 2) what is happening on this ship.
–> Doctor told me that there are actually some people who got infected/died… https://t.co/noQOKi76lL
— Joseph Allen (@j_g_allen) May 9, 2026
Dr. Gustavo Palacios led the 2018 Andean HV outbreak study in Argentina
He said the infection mainly occurred two days before and two days after the onset of symptoms.
He was interviewed on CBC this week – watch up to 9 minutes https://t.co/mMtUD6QjGT
—Barry Hunt (@BarryHunt008) May 10, 2026
French people evacuated from hantavirus-hit ship have ‘symptoms’: French Prime Minister AFP
pandemic
Historically, the left has at least claimed to care about collective welfare, protection of workers, and protection of the vulnerable.
Then, faced with mass-disabling pathogens, huge sections abandoned even the most basic infection ethics the moment it became socially inconvenient.
— James Throt MBBS, MD, FRCPath (@JamesThrot) May 10, 2026
toilet
America’s water crisis will be in full swing this summer
U.S.-Israel joint venture announces plans for $1 billion desalination plant in South Texas Engineering News
China?
China confirms Xi-Trump meeting postponed due to Iran war Business Times
ChatGPT as a security threat: The US-China security dilemma in the generative AI race The British Journal of Politics and International Relations
Bernie Sanders invited two Chinese AI researchers to discuss security cooperation. Here’s what they said: Peking studies
How Silicon Valley sold Washington an AI racing transformer
The long lessons of Confucian peace diplomacy
Southeast Asia
Iran war decimates Asian farmers, threatens global food supply WaPo
India
PM Modi pushes for return to working from home, less international travel, less gold purchases as concerns grow over West Asia conflict Economic Times
syrakistan
Medic included among 51 people killed in Israeli attack on Al Jazeera in Lebanon
Inside Israel’s AI targeting system: How data from your phone could be a death sentence Los Angeles Times
Agricultural Sabotage: Israel’s War on Lebanon’s Food Security Al-Mayadeen
Israel builds and defends secret Iranian base in Iraq WSJ
Big Tech is moving data from the Gulf to other countries through Iraq’s oil pipelines
old blighty
Mr Starmer faces a fight for survival as Mr Streeting and Mr Rayner’s leadership bid for the Guardian
discord in europe
“Are we really that stupid anymore?”
Slovak Prime Minister Fico spoke about the EU’s decision to cut off direct energy from Russia to the EU in 2027 and then buy the same Russian energy from the United States at American surcharges.
Full statement
May 10, 2026
Prime Minister of Slovakia Roberto Fico: pic.twitter.com/ulamZnjdMY
— Lemniscat (@theLemniscat) May 10, 2026
Europe’s rearmament program is collapsing from within when Ukraine needs it most Intellinews
Marriage for Power: The Alliance of Men and Women in the Mafia PLOS One
A new war that’s not so cold war
Zelenskyy comes off the ledge again as Russia’s V-Day parade simplifies as planned
The war has only escalated in the last year, from Trump’s all-out war effort against Russian oil to increased military involvement in Azerbaijan, where the Baltic states have established air routes for Ukrainian drones and Starlink provides territory for Ukrainian drone bases. https://t.co/8AuwODBthX
— Russians with Attitude (@RWApodcast) May 10, 2026
Ukraine’s 1st Azov Corps is conducting AI-assisted drone strikes deep in Mariupol, up to 160 km behind the front lines. These mark what they call the symbolic “return” to the city of Azov from the sky.
The attack will use Hornet fixed-wing loitering ammunition developed by a US company. pic.twitter.com/HAbMn9qr6t
— DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) May 10, 2026
Latvian defense minister resigns after Ukrainian drone hits oil tank TVP World
Masha and the “old man” events in Ukraine
Ukraine and “white supremacy 3.0” Azov Robbie’s blog
There was an absurd incident in Berlin, where a German government spokesperson apparently did not want to say definitively who liberated Germany from Nazism in 1945.
After Chancellor Friedrich Merz celebrated German Liberation Day without mentioning the Red Army or the Soviet Union… pic.twitter.com/7mzMM8UQTa
— Brian McDonald (@BrianMcDonaldIE) May 9, 2026
south of the border
A US intelligence gathering flight appears on CNN off the coast of Cuba. Same as before the operation to kidnap President Maduro.
Trump 2.0
Trump administration launches Moms.gov on Mother’s Day
President Trump’s federal job cuts disproportionately impact women and people of color Fast Company
Democrats are the worst
Democrats no longer need to campaign on climate change: New York Times
Buttigieg and Slotkin join Canada’s Carney at Liberal strategy meeting Semaphore
Nostalgic Summons New Left Review
imperial collapse watch
China’s democracy perception ranking soars as US and Israel plummet: Cradle poll
“Which country do you think poses the greatest threat to the world?”
The new Democracy Perceptions Index report shows that 65 out of 84 countries surveyed cite the United States as the biggest threat. In fact, the United States ranks among the top named threats within the United States. pic.twitter.com/wBXZfaBLKv
— Jason Hickel (@jasonhickel) May 9, 2026
Last but not least, the most interesting insight from this report is the complete collapse in the global public’s perception of the United States.
According to the ranking of the report on this, the United States is currently in the top five worst countries recognized in the world, along with Israel (worst), the North… pic.twitter.com/B0VvjXhKTo
— Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) May 10, 2026
police state surveillance
White House’s 2026 Counterterrorism Strategy Makes Millions of Americans Potential Targets Free Thought Project
big brother is watching you
A Phoenix neighborhood was hit by a sandstorm thanks to an Amazon drone. Remember: Amazon drones don’t just deliver packages, they map your neighborhood and sync it to the same AWS cloud contracted by the NSA and CIA. pic.twitter.com/jsPXdbIVPc
— Jason Bassler (@JasonBassler1) May 10, 2026
sports desk
What we can learn from New Jersey’s battle for the World Cup
A.I.
Misplaced Panic Over AI Advances Gary Marcus
Data center drains 30 million gallons of water without realizing it – until residents complain about low water pressure, Politico
Marylanders slam $2 billion grid upgrade bill for out-of-state AI data centers; state complains to federal energy regulators, claims additional costs will be offset by ‘ratepayer protection pledge’ Tom’s Hardware
Blood in the Machine: The crisis facing AI-influenced artists in four charts
Was the AI called by Cthulhu? unhardened
economy
Chartbook 447: The US Economy in May 2026 – How Much Cognitive Dissonance Can You Deal with?Adam Tooze
President Trump could develop oil under US military bases, driving strategic stockpile oil prices to the top
JP Morgan released the most frightening oil chart I’ve ever seen.
World inventories are rapidly decreasing.
And even if this line reaches 6.8, the global energy system will not slow down.
It will break. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/w4ha2t3URe
— Qassem Al Ali (@AlaliQasem) May 9, 2026
basil
The myth of AI: If we can destroy the world, imagine what we can do for your hedge fund FAIR
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