Friday 26th April 2024

Trump Is Getting What He Wants

At today’s hearing on Donald Trump’s claim of absolute immunity from criminal prosecution, the Republican-appointed Supreme Court majority appeared poised to give him what he most desires in the case: further delays that virtually preclude the chance that he will face a jury in his election-subversion case before the November election.

But the nearly three hours of debate may be even more significant for how they would shape a second Trump term if he wins reelection. The arguments showed that although the Court’s conservative majority seems likely to reject Trump’s claim of absolute immunity from criminal prosecution, four of the justices appear predominantly focused on limiting the possibility that future presidents could face such charges for their actions in office, with Chief Justice John Roberts expressing more qualified sympathy with those arguments. Among the GOP-appointed justices, only Amy Coney Barrett appeared concerned about the Court potentially providing a president too much protection from criminal proceedings.


Continued here

Philosophical reflection often begins with a disruptive mood | Psyche Ideas

is a psychologist with a PhD in philosophy. He combines philosophy and a range of psychotherapeutic approaches in his private practice. He is based in Sydney, Australia, and has clients from different parts of the world. He runs professional development courses on the significance of philosophy for psychotherapy.

It’s often thought that philosophy begins and ends with abstract and rational thinking. Like science, it’s seen as a methodology of logic that allows the philosopher to be detached, disengaged, free from the irrationality and subjectivity of emotion, and precise in the pursuit of objective truth. However, the history of philosophy shows that disruptive emotions and moods are central to the experience of philosophising. Philosophy means love of wisdom. It includes a care of the self, and our attitude towards the world is extremely important for wellbeing.

Continued here

Ancient Maya Royals' Remains Were Burned in a Public Ceremony to Mark a New Political Regime

Archaeologists discovered charred remains of former rulers tossed “haphazardly” into a tomb in present-day Guatemala, suggesting they had been removed from their original burial sites

In the ancient Maya kingdom of K’anwitznal—a lowland city located in present-day Guatemala—dead royals weren’t always treated with reverence, archaeologists say.

Continued here

Historic Borax Wagon Destroyed in Blaze at Death Valley National Park

Beginning in 1883, 18 mules and two horses hauled wagons full of borax across eastern California

In the 1880s, workers began extracting borax from the ground in Death Valley. To haul the valuable compound to the nearest train station in California, they attached 18 mules and two horses to a set of wooden wagons—two loaded with borax and a third carrying water. Many years later, these “20-mule teams” remain an enduring image.

Continued here

Skies Over Athens Turn a Martian Orange Amid Saharan Dust Storm

Strong winds brought desert dust and heat across the Mediterranean this week, sparking health advisories and fires in Greece

The city of Athens was transformed into an orange, Mars-like landscape this week as strong winds carried in clouds of dust from the Sahara Desert. The Greek capital’s buildings, homes, mountains and famous historic sites became draped in a low-light, pumpkin glow on Tuesday.

Continued here

Metal Detectorists Unearth Tiny Bronze Portrait of Alexander the Great in Denmark

Researchers think the 1,800-year-old artifact could be linked to a Roman emperor who was “obsessed” with the Macedonian conqueror

A one-inch bronze portrait of Alexander the Great dating to around 200 C.E. has been unearthed on an island in Denmark.

Continued here

These Massive, Extinct Salmon Had Spiky Teeth Like a Warthog's Tusks

For decades, scientists thought the teeth pointed downward, similar to those of a saber-toothed cat, but now they believe the fish’s chompers jutted out sideways

Between 5 million and 12 million years ago, enormous salmon swam through the waters of what is now the Pacific Northwest. Weighing up to 400 pounds and measuring more than eight feet long, these hulking creatures—the largest salmon that ever lived—had a pair of long, curved teeth protruding from the top jaw.

Continued here

Lost 17th-Century Painting Returns to an Oxford Gallery Four Years After It Was Stolen

“A Rocky Coast, With Soldiers Studying a Plan” was recovered from a man in Romania who alerted the authorities

In March 2020, thieves broke into the Christ Church Picture Gallery at the University of Oxford and stole three artworks, which were together worth approximately $12 million. Now, four years later, one of those works has been returned: A Rocky Coast, With Soldiers Studying a Plan, a 17th-century landscape painting by Salvator Rosa. 

Continued here

What Does Milk Do for Babies? | Quanta Magazine

Milk is more than just a food for babies. Breast milk has evolved to deliver thousands of diverse molecules including growth factors, hormones and antibodies, as well as microbes.

Elizabeth Johnson, a molecular nutritionist at Cornell University, studies the effects of infants' diet on the gut microbiome. These studies could hold clues to hard questions in public health for children and adults alike. In this episode of "The Joy of Why" podcast, co-host Steven Strogatz interviews Johnson about the microbial components that make breast milk one of the most wondrous biofluids found in nature.

Continued here

Does AI Know What an Apple Is? She Aims to Find Out. | Quanta Magazine

Ellie Pavlick stands in Brown University's Computer History Museum. Her work on how large language models understand concepts often merges philosophy with science.

Start talking to Ellie Pavlick about her work — looking for evidence of understanding within large language models (LLMs) — and she might sound as if she's poking fun at it. The phrase "hand-wavy" is a favorite, and if she mentions "meaning" or "reasoning," it'll often come with conspicuous air quotes. This is just Pavlick's way of keeping herself honest. As a computer scientist studying language models at Brown University and Google DeepMind, she knows that embracing natural language's inherent mushiness is the only way to take it seriously. "This is a scientific discipline — and it's a little squishy," she said.

Continued here