The bill to reauthorize Section 702 passed by a 60-34 vote

Chad Young from Horror Movie BBQ shares his love for promotional collectors cups with Adam from the 80’s and 90’s‚ while praising the innovations in collectors cup technology in the 21st century. Plus‚ Adam reveals CONTINUE READING... The post Geek Out&;#33; Podcast‚ Ep. 2: Collectors Cups with Chad Young appeared first on The Retro Network.

Housing Costs Are Crushing The American Middle Class‚ But How Can We Fix The Problem&;#63;

The Fourth Turning: America can no longer avoid the final turn of the screw…..

Dear Diary‚ It’s Me‚ Jessica: Part 8

When Did Self-Immolation Come Into Style in America&;#63;

From June through to November each year‚ the Atlantic witnesses its hurricane season‚ when powerful tropical storms are most likely to occur in the basin. This year’s season‚ however‚ is set to be an “extremely active” one according to new predictions from Colorado State University (CSU) forecasters.The team has predicted a total of 23 named storms during the season‚11 of which they have forecast to be hurricanes. Out of these‚ they’ve predicted that 5 could reach major hurricane strength – aka Category 3 or above. It’s expected that 62 percent could make landfall for the entire US coastline.This is the highest number of hurricanes predicted by the CSU hurricane team during its April outlook since it began producing April forecasts 41 years ago. It also marks a season with hurricane activity set to be 170 percent of the average from 1991 to 2020 – last year’s was 120 percent.The forecast was developed using a statistical model and computer simulations of hurricanes‚ which take into account a number of metrics‚ including wind shear‚ sea surface temperatures‚ and moisture levels. This year’s calculations also continued the use of a newer metric called accumulated cyclone energy or ACE‚ which considers factors like storm frequency‚ intensity‚ and duration.El Ni&;ntilde;o was also taken into consideration‚ and is part of the reason why the season has been forecast to be so active. &;quot;Current El Ni&;ntilde;o conditions are likely to transition to La Ni&;ntilde;a conditions this summer/fall‚ leading to hurricane-favorable wind shear conditions‚&;quot; the team writes in the report. &;quot;Sea surface temperatures in the eastern and central Atlantic are currently at record warm levels and are anticipated to remain well above average for the upcoming hurricane season. A warmer-than-normal tropical Atlantic provides a more conducive dynamic and thermodynamic environment for hurricane formation and intensification.&;quot;That being said‚ the researchers were keen that some caution should be exercised in interpreting the results. A lot can change in both the atmosphere and the ocean before the hurricane season reaches its peak – a forecast is just a best estimate.However‚ they also calculated a higher-than-normal confidence level in the results‚ helped along by the observation that the 2024 hurricane season so far appears to be showing some of the same characteristics as other active seasons‚ such as 2010 and 2020.“Our analog seasons were all very active Atlantic hurricane seasons‚” said Phil Klotzbach‚ lead author of the report in a statement. “This highlights the somewhat lower levels of uncertainty that exist with this outlook relative to our typical early April outlook.”Whether or not the upcoming hurricane season turns out to be as active as predicted‚ it’s recommended that people take necessary precautions‚ particularly on the coast. “As with all hurricane seasons‚ coastal residents are reminded that it only takes one hurricane making landfall to make it an active season. Thorough preparations should be made every season‚ regardless of predicted activity‚” the report concludes.The full forecast is available here.

Being able to see underwater can prove to be tricky‚ so for creatures such as the blue whale‚ using sound to get about and communicate is far handier. But just how far can these marine giants hear&;#63;Blue whales are generally pretty solitary creatures. However‚ they need to chinwag with others eventually‚ particularly when it comes to finding a group to migrate with‚ or a mate to make massive babies with. Sadly‚ whales can’t use Tinder (actually‚ they’re probably better off when it comes to this one) or a telephone‚ so they’ve got to have more than a decent level of hearing in order to be able to chat with one another across vast expanses of ocean.It turns out that “more than a decent level” doesn’t even cut it; blue whales can hear sounds emitted by other whales up to 1‚000 miles (1‚600 kilometers) away in good conditions. If we compare that to humans‚ that’s roughly the same as if you were in St Louis‚ Missouri‚ and could hear your pal shouting at you from New York.Of course‚ sound does travel faster and further in water than in air‚ but it probably helps that blue whales are also among the loudest animals‚ if not the loudest. Some sources say that title belongs to sperm whales‚ but they make their 230-decibel sounds in short bursts‚ so not everyone counts it. Blue whales‚ on the other hand‚ can reach 188 decibels – that’s even louder than a jet engine at take-off‚ which is typically between 125 to 155 decibels.If you’re worried about ending up in the unlikely situation of being nearby when a blue whale makes such a sound‚ you can put your concerns aside. It might sound like a contradiction for one of the loudest sounds‚ but we can’t actually hear it. Blue whale sounds are made in the infrasonic range‚ which is too low for humans to hear.A recent study found that baleen whales – a group of 16 species to which blue whales belong – have evolved unique structures in order to make such low frequency and complex vocalizations.In the human larynx‚ the vocal cords are attached to a pair of tiny‚ pyramid-shaped cartilages called the arytenoids‚ which allow the cords to move. However‚ in baleen whales‚ these have changed into a pair of elongated cylinders that fuse together to form a U-shape‚ spanning nearly the entire length of the larynx.“This is probably to keep a rigid open airway when they have to move huge amounts of air in and out during explosive surface breathing‚” explained study author Professor Tecumseh Fitch in a statement.“We found that this U-shaped structure pushes against a big fatty cushion on the inside of the larynx. When the whales push air from their lungs past this cushion‚ it starts to vibrate and this generates very low frequency underwater sounds‚” added fellow author Professor Coen Elemans.It’s not just their vocal and hearing abilities that make blue whales impressive though – they’ve recently taken back the crown as the heaviest animal ever to live on Earth.All “explainer” articles are confirmed by fact checkers to be correct at time of publishing. Text‚ images‚ and links may be edited‚ removed‚ or added to at a later date to keep information current. 

Some time between 115‚000 and 130‚000 years ago‚ a Neanderthal living in a cave in Poland etched a series of markings into a bear bone. Despite consisting of just 17 lines‚ the engravings converted the bone into one of the oldest known symbolic items in Europe and one of the earliest to be associated with Neanderthals.Originally discovered in the 1950s‚ the decorated forelimb bone has previously been cited as evidence for the emergence of advanced cognitive abilities in this extinct human species‚ but had never been properly studied until now. However‚ using techniques including microscopy and X-ray computed tomography‚ the authors of a new study were able to finally get a closer look at the ancient object.While it’s obviously impossible to illuminate the thought process of the prehistoric carver‚ the researchers point out that “the marks found on the bone are an ordered set‚ the organization of which does not resemble traces associated with butchering‚ cutting or accidental formation.” Rather‚ their arrangement “clearly demonstrate the intentionality and systemic organization of the incision making process‚” thus hinting at their symbolic function.With this in mind‚ the authors conclude that the markings “display some qualities consistent with the principles of perceptual organization indicative of the advanced cognitive and reflective abilities of their maker.” Despite being unable to decipher these etchings‚ the researchers go on to explain that other similar examples have been tentatively interpreted as either “numerical notation” or decorative aspects.And despite the presence of these other items‚ the authors state that Neanderthal artifacts of this nature do not show up in the archaeological record prior to 130‚000 years ago‚ making this “one of the earliest traces of symbolic culture recorded in Eurasia.”Coincidentally‚ a second study published this week has identified the earliest evidence for bear butchery by Neanderthals in western Europe. The authors analyzed dozens of bones found in a cave in France‚ at least seven of which belonged to cave bears while a minimum of five were attributed to brown bears.Dated to between 130‚000 and 300‚000 years ago‚ the ancient remains display markings that are consistent with butchering and skinning‚ indicating that the animals were hunted for their meat and fur. Putting this find into context‚ the authors explain that the hacked bones “represent the sole evidence of large carnivore and in particular bear exploitation by Neanderthals on the middle western bank of the Rh&;ocirc;ne River and constitute one of the oldest indications of this behavior in Europe.”The two studies have been published in the Journal of Archaeological Science and Quaternary Science Reviews.