đź”— Articles: Thu 29.Feb.2024
CBC: Brian Mulroney, former prime minister, dead at 84
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney has died. He was 84.
His daughter Caroline Mulroney shared the news Thursday afternoon on social media.
NYT: Darién Gap Migration Is Halted After Colombia Arrests Boat Captains
Nearly a million people have crossed the Darién since 2021, according to the authorities at the end of the route in Panama, helping to fuel an immigration crisis in the United States.
Renewables Now: Epic Energy signs grid connection deal for 100-MW Aussie battery
ElectraNet, the owner of South Australia’s high-voltage transmission network, has signed an agreement for the interconnection of a new 100-MW/200-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in the Aussie state.
The transmission company said on Wednesday that the contract is for domestic infrastructure company Epic Energy’s Mannum project, to be installed next to its local substation and adjacent to recently-built solar farms.
WashPo: Idaho fails to execute serial killer Thomas Creech by lethal injection
Authorities in Idaho halted the execution of serial killer Thomas Eugene Creech on Wednesday after medical workers were unable to insert an IV for lethal injection.
Creech was brought into the execution chamber and strapped down, according to Josh Tewalt, director of the Idaho Department of Correction. “The team attempted eight times, through multiple limbs and appendages, to establish IV access,” he said at a news conference, but those efforts were unsuccessful and the execution was called off.
“Our first objective is to carry this out with dignity, professionalism and respect,” he added.
Barbaric.
NYT: Supreme Court to Hear Trump’s Immunity Claim, With Arguments Set for April
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to decide whether former President Donald J. Trump is immune from prosecution on charges of plotting to overturn the 2020 election, further delaying his criminal trial as it considers the matter.
The justices scheduled arguments for the week of April 22 and said proceedings in the trial court would remain frozen, handing at least an interim victory to Mr. Trump. His litigation strategy in all of the criminal prosecutions against him has consisted, in large part, of trying to slow things down.
The Supreme Court’s response to Mr. Trump put the justices in the unusual position of deciding another aspect of the former president’s fate: whether and how quickly Mr. Trump could go to trial. That, in turn, could affect his election prospects and, should he be re-elected, his ability to scuttle the prosecution.
Slow-walking it.
WashPo: The future of AI video after Sora is impressive — and flawed
This is Sora, a new tool from OpenAI that can create lifelike, minute-long videos from simple text prompts. When the company unveiled it on Feb. 15, experts hailed it as a major moment in the development of artificial intelligence. Google and Meta also have unveiled new AI video research in recent months. The race is on toward an era when anyone can almost instantly create realistic-looking videos without sophisticated CGI tools or expertise.
The Economist: The violence of “Power Slap” is part of its allure
In January 2023 Dana White, president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (ufc), a mixed martial-arts firm, launched a new sporting endeavour: Power Slap, America’s first official slap-fighting league. Slap fighting is simple. Two competitors, usually beefy men, slap each other. Hard. The bout typically ends when only one of them is conscious. As recently as a year ago the sport was obscure, watched largely on social media in eastern Europe. Now slap-fighting franchises are starting to hit the mainstream.
The league’s first televised slap fight last year between two welterweights, Chris Thomas and Chris Kennedy, gave a sense of what was to come. Mr Thomas’s initial strike was mighty, rippling Mr Kennedy’s face and sending him to the mat, where he started displaying the fencing response. This is when a person’s arms are extended after a blow. It can be a sign of brain injury. Officials rushed to him and explained, when Mr Kennedy came to, that he had just been knocked out. “Knocked out doing what? Was I fighting?” he asked.
UPI: Alcohol-related deaths rise sharply in U.S., hitting women hardest
Between 2016 and 2021 (the latest numbers available), “the average number of U.S. deaths from excessive alcohol use increased by more than 40,000 [29%], to 178,000 per year,” reported a team from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Put another way, during 2020 and 2021, an average of 488 Americans died each day from excessive drinking, the report’s authors concluded.
Electrek: Mullen sees better than testing results from solid-state batteries
According to Mullen Automotive, its latest solid-state battery development and testing phase began in January when the EV automaker installed an energy-dense pack in one of its electric vans.
The initial tests measured the system compatibility between the pack of solid-state cells and the vehicle itself. Due to the higher energy density of the technology, Mullen shared it was able to increase the EV’s overall capacity from 42 kWh to 72 kWh using the same space in the platform.
On February 26, Mullen began road testing the solid-state powered van in Troy, Michigan, projecting a range increase from 110 miles to 190 miles (73% improvement). However, real-world testing saw even greater results as the Mullen ONE van delivered 205 miles on a single charge, equating to an 86% increase.
Electrek: Ford’s Tesla Supercharger adapter is now available to order for free
Last May, Ford was the first automaker to announceits plans to adopt Tesla’s charge connector, now known as the North American Charging Standard (NACS). In addition to adding Tesla’s connector to its own EVs in 2025, Ford also said it would make a free adapter available to existing Ford EV owners.
Starting today, Ford says that eligible Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning owners can request their free CCS to NACS adapter. The first deliveries are slated to begin shipping in March. Ford is also starting to roll out a software update that unlocks Tesla Supercharger support for Mach-E and Lightning vehicles.
Only free until June 30.
Kottke: What To Do After You Finish the NY Times Crossword Puzzle
I love playing the NYT crossword, but I only recently discovered Rex Parker Does the NY Times Crossword Puzzle, a blog of daily puzzle reviews, full of spirit and bile. And although like Jason I’m a little put off by how negative the reviews can be – I don’t want the thing I’m so proud to have just finished be considered “toothless” or “dead in the water”!! — they’re also funny. So maybe it’s fine, or actually better. For instance, from his review of Tuesday’s puzzle: …
Electrek: Utility solar dethrones coal as the cheapest power source in Asia
Renewable energy costs in Asia last year were 13% cheaper than coal and are expected to be 32% cheaper by 2030, according to a new study.
According to Wood Mackenzie’s latest analysis of the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, the LCOE from renewables reached a historic low in 2023. This is significant because it marks a shift toward making renewables increasingly competitive with coal, a mainstay in APAC’s energy mix. The driving force behind this trend is the substantial reduction in capital costs for renewable energy projects.
You’ll pay more if you smoke, vape, or are looking to get behind the wheel of an EV.
Last Updated: 29.Feb.2024 18:31 EST