Russia, China, and North Korea could hand Trump a second term.

This one’s been bouncing around in my head since Trump announced he was going to meet with Kim Jong Un. Whether or not the Trump administration is working directly with Russia, I think it’s clear by now that Putin has been putting a fair amount of effort toward bolstering his own regime by wearing down any place that seems to have it better. It also seems clear to me that this kind of activity works to the benefit of any other kind of autocratic regime, like the one in North Korea

And so we come to my fear – If Trump’s regime is good for domestic politics from the point of view of Putin and Kim, then it would be trivially easy for them, probably along with China, to effectively stage a massive success for Trump that even he couldn’t screw up. The official end of the “Korean Conflict”, normalization of relationships with Pyongyang, and a promise to behave (now that they have nukes), or even a promise to dispose of their nukes, could easily be enough to get another majority in the Electoral College, if not in the popular vote.

I have no idea how likely this scenario is, but it seems to be well within the realm of possibility, and I find that worrisome.

Istanbul (Not They Might Be Giants)

So I just had my mind blown, and felt a need to share it with the world. This is some serious shit here. It turns out that They Might Be Giants did not write the song Istanbul (Not Constantinople)!

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the song, you can hear it here, and for those who need them, the lyrics are here. For all those who understand how crazy this is already, I would like to present to you the original Istanbul (Not Constantinople), by The Four Lads:

A new tool for creating better batteries

Any version of the future that includes the use of modern technology will need better batteries than we have today. Our current technology could support a lot more of our power grid than it does, but even if we could swap over to 100% renewable right now without any power storage problems, better batteries would still be a good thing. This article is not about a better battery design, though; it’s about how to find better materials for any battery that might be designed down the road.

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Behold the Crown Jewel of the Internet

So I’m not sure that an adequate introduction is even possible here. I found this, and I think it’s important for everybody to know it exists.

I don’t feel that this needs justification, but it does occur to me that an enterprising congressperson could enter this into the congressional record as part of a discussion on climate change. I’m almost tempted to make a transcript for a senator to use as a filibuster on the issue.

Partial description below for the hearing-impaired, or those who want to see my attempt at describing the sounds I’m hearing.

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American Government Dragged, Kicking and Screaming, a Little Closer to Realty

“The question of the last few years has not been do we have a case, but rather how far will the federal government go to prevent justice?”
-Kirnan Ooman

In 2015 a group of kids and young adults, with the support of Our Children’s Trust, filed a lawsuit accusing the American government of dereliction of its duty to safeguard the rights of the 21 plaintiffs, and by extension the generations they represent:

The federal government has known for decades that carbon dioxide pollution was causing catastrophic climate change and that massive emission reductions and a nation-wide transition away from fossil fuels was needed to protect plaintiffs’ constitutional rights.

The lawsuit has been progressing since then, going through the pre-trial discovery process, and resolving a number of issues between the two parties without input from the courts. Despite this progress, the government has been trying, without success, to get the whole thing dismissed. The latest attempt, now by the Trump administration, was to try for a “writ of mandamus”. Basically, their claim was that because the lawsuit was about policy and lack thereof, the plaintiffs’ attempt to seek justice through the courts actually threatened the separation of powers.

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Food’s Future of Sun and Sea

The picture shows an areal view of the greenhouse farm and its power source. The greenhouses are farthest from the camera, large, flat, white buildings. They form a sort of diamond shape on the ground, with the "bottom" point towards the camera, and the "top" farther back in the distance. In the foreground and to the right a couple rectangular holding ponds of some kind. Running up the other side of the diamond is the solar array. It's a field of mirrors, all computer-positioned to reflect sunlight onto a central tower, where a medium like molten salt is super-heated to generate power with conventional steam turbines.

The next few decades are going to see some significant changes in global agriculture. Not only will current breadbaskets get worse and worse for farming, but growing water shortages will force significant changes in how we irrigate, and what crops we can grow. Fortunately, I think that agricultural problems will be some of the easier ones to solve, and I’m expecting that we’re going to see a lot more food grown in places like the Sundrop Farm in Port Augusta, AU. [Read more…]

Fight Supremacy: Boston Defeats the Dread Gazebo!

Round 1

ED: You see a well groomed garden. In the middle, on a small hill, you see a gazebo.
ERIC: A gazebo? What color is it?
ED: (Pause) It’s white, Eric.
ERIC: How far away is it?
ED: About 50 yards.
ERIC: How big is it?
ED: (Pause) It’s about 30 ft across, 15 ft high, with a pointed top.
ERIC: I use my sword to detect good on it.
ED: It’s not good, Eric. It’s a gazebo.
ERIC: (Pause) I call out to it.
ED: It won’t answer. It’s a gazebo.
ERIC: (Pause) I sheathe my sword and draw my bow and arrows. Does itrespond in any way?
ED: No, Eric, it’s a gazebo!
ERIC: I shoot it with my bow (roll to hit). What happened?
ED: There is now a gazebo with an arrow sticking out of it.
ERIC: (Pause) Wasn’t it wounded?
ED: OF COURSE NOT, ERIC! IT’S A GAZEBO!
ERIC: (Whimper) But that was a +3 arrow!
ED: It’s a gazebo, Eric, a GAZEBO! If you really want to try to destroy it, you could try to chop it with an axe, I suppose, or you could try to burn it, but I don’t know why anybody would even try. It’s a @#$%!! gazebo!
ERIC: (Long pause. He has no axe or fire spells.) I run away.
ED: (Thoroughly frustrated) It’s too late. You’ve awakened the gazebo. It catches you and eats you.
ERIC: (Reaching for his dice) Maybe I’ll roll up a fire-using mage so I can avenge my Paladin.

Round 2

I don’t like going to protests, political rallies, and other things like that. I think they’re important, I think they are good things to go to, but I generally find the experience to be uncomfortable. That said, there are times when I think it’s important to bestir myself, and go participate.

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