2023-09-02
(travelling, apologies for any missing sections but if I don’t push some of this out then the next one will be huge)
Readings
Booklash, a (long) report from Pen America, on how recent activist culture is stifling the practice of writing (and reading): https://pen.org/report/booklash/
Concerns that the Deep Space Network is not adequately provisioned to support the current slate of space missions: https://arstechnica.com/space/2023/08/nasas-artemis-i-mission-nearly-broke-the-deep-space-network/amp/
Interesting to see a company working on cleaning up the increasingly prevalent bits of space debris rapidly orbiting our planet and causing difficulties for things we want to be up there: https://www.space.com/nasa-contract-space-debris-transastra
New chemical methods to recycle polyurethane: https://phys.org/news/2023-08-recycling-plastics-life-rebuild-polyurethane.amp
Chemical finds by India’s new rover mission at the South Pole of Luna: https://phys.org/news/2023-08-india-moon-rover-sulfur-elements.amp
Better sequencing of the human Y Chromosome: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-08-scientists-remnants-human-genome-chromosome.amp
New methods to try to observe chemical reactions at very small timescales: https://phys.org/news/2023-08-scientists-quantum-device-simulated-chemical.amp
Epigenetic mechanisms for plants: https://phys.org/news/2023-08-genetic-memories.amp
A piece on what it takes to do a portrait well: https://photofocus.com/photography/unveiling-the-soul-of-portraiture-capturing-the-essence-of-a-subject/
Thoughts
Private mercenary groups like Academi and Wagner probably should be outlawed and treated as criminal organisations, ideally universally by treaty (but even if just the US does it, the impact would be big enough to hamper them significantly). The reasoning being that private mercenaries are not accountable to diplomatic pressure the way that state actors are, and that if they ever get power that rivals nations it’d be really bad for the world.
I am broadly comfortable with signing agreements I have no intent of honoring, having moved from the “my word is something I’ll treat with honor” except in matters where it is with another person outside a business contract not custom-written for us. The reason being that firstly contract law doesn’t work that way, and secondly that often businesses routinely place unjust demands on employees and I think taking these obligations seriously is letting them write the rules to one’s life (and mind). I think it makes sense to treat a personal promise seriously, but beyond that, not so much.
Current Events
Ukraine continues to advance in the south and the east in reclaiming land formerly occupied by Russia; right now the conflict largely is occuring outside of towns and cities, while Ukraine is using drone warfare in areas of Russian neighbouring Ukraine.
China’s policy over the last few years of attempts to use strongarm diplomacy to claim large amounts of ocean and then “resolve it through dialogue” is coming to a head. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/8/31/malaysia-rejects-new-china-map-claiming-entire-south-china-sea
The UK may be (rightly) moving towards officially recognising Taiwan as a country: https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-parliament-calls-taiwan-independent-country-report-says-james-cleverly-visit-china/
Tharman Shanmugaratnam, a technocratic economist, is elected to be the next President of Singapore, and will be the first person of non-Chinese descent to hold the position
The West African nation of Gabon had a military coup shortly after the reelection of President Ondimba (whose family has held power for an unconscionable length of time)
Policy Focus
The University System of Georgia has barred diversity statements in hiring ( https://www.ajc.com/education/university-system-of-georgia-bars-diversity-statements-in-hiring/XBZTRISZLBCRFCE7A6W3XKCC2Q/ ) - I welcome this change, as I think diversity statements are an overreach (whatever sector they come in, although the public sector has a legal remedy) because they impinge on freedom of thought and because they indirectly oppose the colourblind way issues of race and gender are best approached.
NYC is set to eliminate the need for permits that mosques required to broadcast a call to prayer ( https://gothamist.com/news/new-rule-allows-nyc-mosques-to-broadcast-muslim-prayer-call-without-requiring-a-permit ) - I don’t think that religious origins of a practice should ever increase its permissibility; if someone random can’t blast something out equally loud at those hours, mosques should not be permitted. Tolerance should not amount to special license or consideration.
Reviewlets
Armored Core 6 (video game) - Not a great intro. Weird and arbitrary bars limiting where one can go in an area that looks like it should be way more open, a slow depletion of ammo with no way to refill it, and then a tough boss fight while one is still figuring out the controls. Review may continue in future newsletters. Hoping it grows on me; I had a similar experience with Nier Automata and that turned out to be one of the best games I’ve ever played
9 Years of Shadows (video game) - A bit on the simple side, and maybe straddling the line between hard and annoying. Explores some interesting ideas and it’s pretty, but the gameplay isn’t making me hurry to get back to this
Sea of Stars (video game) - Solidly good in most ways, it reminds me a bit of chrono trigger (as it does everybody), maybe mixed with bravely default, but more gimmicky yet. Enjoyable so far. I’m a good ways into it and I’ve found the difficulty to be enticing too.
Amusements
“BBC News Pidgin” is pretty funny (some years back I think they had a similarly funny version in “Scots” but maybe that’s no longer a thing). I’m guessing it’s not meant to be funny, but: https://bbc.com/pidgin
More enthused than amused, but this is Pratt’s Starter kit, which seems like a great kit with which to start a certain phase of one’s intellectual life: https://www.pratt.edu/foundation/homepage/foundation-starter-kit/
A great “Letters Live” from someone describing a really bad time and asking for more consideration in insurance: