It’s that time again….time for me to go off the rails.
Let’s start the weekend with a bang….well that is just my opinion….all the news that has been underreported…..
All the American football fanatics rejoice the college games start today.
The season for everything pumpkin spice is starting and we will be bombed with a bunch of ads for this or that….I hate pumpkin spice.
Local–As usual it is extremely hot but we did get about an hour’s worth of rain on Wednesday and then again Thursday morning for about 4 hours of light rain….the first real rain in a couple of months.
This week Alabama, Gulf Shores, will held an event for those Jeep owners it is called Gulf of America Jeep fest (a nod to that idiot in the White House)….
Gulf Shores is preparing to welcome Jeep enthusiasts from across the region for a four-day gathering on Alabama’s Gulf Coast. Gulf of America Jeep Fest will feature Jeep activities, live entertainment, and vendors. Local businesses will also participate. Charitable fundraising will be a major part of the event.Gulf of America Jeep Fest 2026 will run Sept. 24-27 in Gulf Shores. Presented by The Hangout, the festival will gather Jeep owners, families and visitors for activities throughout the weekend.
https://www.obawebsite.com/gulf-of-america-jeep-fest-rolls-into-gulf-shores-for-four-day-celebration
A lot of Jeep owners in the South are also MAGA morons…..just ‘can’t fix stupid’
Personal–Pretty uneventful week….no doctors or probing or tests…so all in all fairly relaxing all week…..but next week the visits and stuff begins again….joy.
Some news on the health front….
Doctors are a step closer to being able to use a simple blood draw to help confirm an Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis. The Food and Drug Administration has announced that it has cleared a new test from Roche that employs a single protein in the blood as a marker for amyloid plaque in the brain, long tied to Alzheimer’s, the Washington Post reports. The test “has the potential to transform how Alzheimer’s is assessed across primary and specialty care,” said Dan Malarek, Roche’s president and CEO, per the Hill.
This isn’t a screening tool; the test is intended for people already showing cognitive issues, giving doctors another way to support or rule out an Alzheimer’s diagnosis without resorting to PET scans or spinal taps. Roche, which developed the test with Eli Lilly, said primary care doctors will be able to order it, potentially speeding up referrals and treatment decisions, per the Post. The agency previously authorized a different blood test in 2025 that measures two proteins; Roche bills its version as the first to rely on just one amyloid-linked biomarker.
Hopefully this will improve the treatment of this debilitating disease.
This is for all the retired old farts that depend on Medicare….
President Trump told attendees that the federal government can’t pay for programs like Medicare and Medicaid while fighting the war with Iran.
“It’s not possible for us to take care of daycare, Medicaid, Medicare, all these individual things,” he said. “They can do it on a state basis. You can’t do it on a federal. We have to take care of one thing: military protection. We have to guard the country.”
Trump’s remarks, as well as his past actions toward Medicare, should be concerning for anyone on or soon to be on Medicare, since they may significantly impact your retirement plan.
This isn’t the first time that the Trump administration has cut funding to Medicare. According to Medicare Advocacy, when Trump signed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), into law on July 4, 2025, the bill cut over $1 trillion from health programs. It was the largest rollback of federal health care support in history.
Just amazing how badly he hates us old farts.
Remember the big rush to buy TP? Well it could happen again…..
Stocking up on bathroom basics may soon hit Americans in the wallet. With the trade fight between the US and Canada escalating, both sides are slapping steep new tariffs on each other’s goods—including the raw materials behind US-made toilet paper and tissues, reports the Guardian. Ottawa plans 25% to 50% tariffs on US paper products starting Sept. 8, mirroring Washington’s 50% hike, even as the US leans heavily on Canada’s lumber to keep Charmin and other brands rolling. The US tab for toilet paper imported from Canada in 2024 was $328 million, making Canada the US’ biggest foreign source.
The clash stretches well beyond paper, notes MTLBlog. Trump has imposed 50% tariffs on Canadian cars, steel, and most dairy; Canada has answered with tariffs on US dairy, cheese, fish, seafood, and toilet paper, plus new levies on American liquor in some provinces. US officials insist consumers won’t feel much, but analysts warn the costs could pile up fast. MTLBlog has a complete list of the products affected here.
Wallet will get lighter and more US trees will give their lives so we can safely wipe.
Science is at it again..
A flying machine weighing less than a grain of sand has lifted off without carrying a conventional motor, gears, or onboard electronics. Instead, it gets its thrust from sound.
Researchers at EPFL have built hollow, 3D-printed structures that turn sound waves into thrust, pushing boats across water and sending ultralight “microfliers” into the air. The work suggests a new way to actuate tiny robots at scales where motors, batteries, and other conventional hardware quickly become cumbersome.
More sciencey stuff….this time it is bacteria…….
Under fluorescent light, the device looks less like a computer than a tiny constellation of dots. The specks are actually bacteria glowing red and green across a slab of agar that can perform mathematical computations. One colony receives a chemical message. Another decides whether to let it pass. Others relay it down the line.
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have engineered bacteria to perform the job of transistors, then arranged colonies of those bacteria into what amounts to a living circuit board. In the new Nature Chemical Biology study, the team used just five engineered strains to build circuits that could route information, add two binary inputs and perform a full-adder operation involving three inputs.
The striking part is not simply that bacteria can compute. Synthetic biologists have made cells perform logic for years. It is that the researchers can change the computation without redesigning the bacteria themselves. Two strains serve as biological transistors and three as relays. Rearrange those five building blocks on the plate, and the circuit does something different.
Not sure where this will go but you can bet your butt if there is a buck to be made….where there is a will there is a way.
Recently there has been a wealth of reports about our plastic problem….well here is another for you to consider….
The future of food is looking a little grim.
In the event we turn all arable land on this planet into a barren heath incapable of growing food, humankind may have to resort to reaping what we sowed by eating our own plastic pollution.
A team of researchers at Southern Illinois University Carbondale just demonstrated that this was possible by using specially engineered yeast to create tasty — and yes, edible — cookies which they 3D printed out of plastic waste.
The yeast breaks down the components of plastic compounds and agricultural byproducts like discarded plant stalks into proteins, fats, acids, and flavorings that we can eat. When these are combined together, the mixture is fed into a 3D printer that spits out cookies of any desired shape.
The researchers chose to print their cookies as the Greek letter µ, creating what they call “µBites” — or micro bites. They haven’t actually eaten one of their µBites yet, as they wait for university approval, but they’re not hedging their bets: the cookies will be safe and tasty. The David Cronenberg film “Crimes of the Future” may prove to be a prophecy after all.
https://futurism.com/future-society/plastic-waste-edible-cookies
Sounds yummy….I can hardly wait.
And now from the lunatic fringe….
Interest in a mysterious ‘lost continent’ where believers claim an advanced civilization once existed has been rekindled after claims its true location has been discovered.
Known as Lemuria, the hypothetical continent was proposed in the 19th century to explain why similar lemur fossils had been discovered in India and Madagascar, despite the countries being separated by the Indian Ocean.
Believers now claim that Lemuria, and perhaps the ruins of an ancient pre-human civilization, may lie beneath the ocean. Scientists are working to establish the boundaries of a genuine sunken landmass in the region, although no evidence links it to Lemuria or an advanced civilization.
The lost continent has become associated with bizarre theories involving ‘starseeds’ who supposedly carry alien DNA, egg-laying humanoids and even a prehistoric nuclear war.
Some believers have seized upon research into the ancient subcontinent of Mauritia, remnants of which lie beneath the Indian Ocean, as proof that the Lemuria legend was true.
Finally a few words from Bill Gates….
Bill Gates can’t believe that no one is worried about AI as much as he is.
In a new blog post — and accompanying media blitz — the billionaire suddenly sounded alarmed about how the technology is shaping our future after being blindly optimistic about it for years, warning that it’ll annihilate jobs and desolate the economy.
“AI will either be the greatest equalizer ever invented, or the worst source of injustice,” he wrote in the nearly 6,000 word essay (which, incidentally, isn’t the only 6,000 word AI screed from a major tech leader this month.)
“Even under the best circumstances,” he added, the “transition to this new AI era will be one of the most turbulent times in human history.”
Ever the protagonist, the Microsoft founder is astonished that no one else is as panicked about it as he is.
https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/bill-gates-concerned-ai
Two things….there were many of us that saw problems from the start but I guess he means his rich buddies. Second he is a douche in my mind.
That does it for me on this Saturday at the end of August….I hope everyone has a great day and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Bill Gates has never provided a legitimate explanation for suggesting in that infamous TED Talk the necessity of 12-15% of the world’s population to go away, – expressing optimism on the TED Talk stage over the 12-15% depopulation having become possible with the development so-called “life-saving vaccines”.
Premier Fascist eugenicist Bill Gates has “some splainin’ to do”…
Don’t hold your breathe.
I have never been a fan of his…..chuq
Plenty of money for tax breaks, ballrooms, arches, rebuilding the city of Washington D.C., with presidential projects, new and bigger naval ships to be known as the Trump Class….but none for social safety net concerns? They have diverted Public Park money for other purposes, why can’t they find something else to divert money from so they can continue with Medicare and Medicade?
From his many wars comes to mind…..chuq
Maybe age is also included in his DEI-A program? Disabled people—the A stands for accessibility—are considered woke by this regime. 🤷♀️
Don’t give them any ideas….chuq
I have no love for modern Jeeps or for the MAGA who love them. But, I loved having the opportunity last year to drive a real WWII-era Willy’s jeep. It was exhilarating, and I felt an emotional connection to my father who was a jeep driver during that war.
Best wishes for your medical work next week. Hopefully, my doctors will make a decision on appendectomy surgery on September 9th. I’m struggling right now.
Biological transistors, bio-computers, and artificial organisms? What could possibly go wrong?! Such technology requires the wisdom on how to use it. We do not possess that level of wisdom, not even close. I say NAY!
My uncle had an old Willys pick-up I loved it….I hope you hear something soon I would imagine it is getting uncomfortable….my thought exactly….what could possibly go wrong. chuq
Always a very entertaining weekend read – many things to be hopeful about, inspired by, and of course enraged over….it’s Lake Ontario Frumpheads, let’s stop embarrassing ourselves to the rest of the world!
John I do not think he is capable of not embarrassing himself or the country. chuq
Eliminating Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, SNAP (food stamps) and all other forms of assistance has always been a number one goal of the GOP for the last 30 or more years. They won’t admit it publicly, of course. In fact they will deny it vehemently. But just look back at the statements that have been made over the years by Republican politicians who claimed it was necessary to make drastic changes to the programs, all intended to reduce funding or even eliminate them entirely. The only reason they haven’t done it yet is because it would be political suicide if they tried to outright eliminate them. But they keep chipping away, cutting funding, adding in onerous and almost impossible to meet qualification requirements, etc.
GF I believe most of it began with Reagan in 1980 and spiraled with every election after….the chipping has now become a sledge hammer approach. Have a great Sunday. chuq
Yeah, a lot of this can be traced directly back to the Reagan administration. That seems to be when a ot of the rot that’s infected the Republican party originated.
Yes it is and that is why it was the last time I voted for either party. chuq
Jeeps haven’t been actual Jeeps for a very, very long time. I owned a 2013 Jeep for a couple of years and it was frankly a piece of absolute junk. I bought it brand new, with all of the “goodies” like winches, lift kit, off road tires. It was ridiculously fragile. Bits and pieces fell off it every time I took it out in a field. There were 6 recalls on it while I had it. The last straw came when I got a recall that the outside heated mirrors could catch on fire. Seriously. And Chrysler wasn’t going to do a fucking thing to correct it. We were told to pull the fuse that worked the mirrors and just suck it up. The day after I got that letter in the mail I was down at the Chevy dealership signing the papers trading it in for the Corvette.
GF JEEP stands for Junk Each and Every Part…..chuq
That’s about it, yes. All show and no go as the saying puts it. My neighbor made the mistake of buying one of those Jeep pickup trucks. He bought it brand new. The engine blew up within six months. Had less than 10,000 miles on it. They replaced the engine under warranty but it was in the shop for 6 weeks while they waited for parts. It’s been in the shop almost more than it’s been in his driveway.
Yep Junk is the best I can say….I worry that the new Bronco is going to became a thing like the Jeep and it will be ruined….kinda like the PT Cruiser….chuq
hmm, looks like I hit the limit for direct replies to that thread but about the Bronco, I agree. I’m not sure what the new Broncos are like but they certainly look good. They’ve managed to keep the same visual appeal while still updating the look so it doesn’t look old fashioned. I have no idea what they’re actually like mechanically, though.
I’m looking forward to this relatively inexpensive electric truck Ford is supposedly going to be coming out with soon, the “Fathom”. Hmm, did the marketing people at Ford have a dictionary to look up what the word “fathom” means? I’m not sure that a term that means sunk under water is a good name for a vehicle.
Anyway it’s supposed to be under $30,000, a relatively small size, reasonable amount of range. But they’ll probably only release it in a 4 door model so the actual truck bed will be uselessly small. I need something I can fit a 4×8 sheet of plywood in.
I agree with the appearance but I fear some sort of cult will pop up. I will be interesting to see the new truck and it’s performance. You got through so there is that. chuq