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Humpback Whale Songs Are Structured Like Human Language: Study (Maria)
The author writes, “The mysterious grunts and moans of the humpback whale have long captivated humans — so much so that we put recordings of them onto the Voyager spacecraft to convey the sounds of Earth to other life forms. A new study published today in Science reveals an unexpected similarity between human and humpback vocalizations: The songs have a statistical structure similar to that of human language.”
The Water Unexpectedly Released From Dams on Trump’s Order Didn’t Help Farms or LA (Reader Steve)
The authors write, “Days after President Trump startled some of his most ardent supporters in California’s San Joaquin Valley by having the Army Corps of Engineers suddenly release water from two dams, many in the region and beyond were still perplexed. Acting on an order from Washington, the corps allowed irrigation water to flow down river channels for three days, into the network of engineered waterways that fan out among farm fields in the San Joaquin Valley. Coursing from rivers to canals to irrigation ditches, much of the water eventually made its way to retention basins, where it soaked into the ground, replenishing groundwater.”
Trans Women in Federal Custody Face the Terror of Being Transferred to Men’s Prisons (Laura)
From The Intercept: “Last Friday afternoon, Kara Sternquist, a trans woman in custody at a federal women’s prison in Fort Worth, Texas, was taken from her unit. … She is one of almost a dozen trans women who have been taken from the general population at FMC Carswell and moved into an administrative segregation unit. … The women were told they would be moved to a men’s prison … under President Donald Trump’s anti-trans executive order, which directs the Bureau of Prisons to ensure ‘that males are not detained in women’s prisons’ and that inmates don’t receive gender-affirming health care using federal funds.”
New Target of Trump Anger: South Africa (Reader Jim)
The author writes, “Add South Africa to the list of nations in President Trump’s dog house. On Sunday, Trump threatened to cut off all aid to the nation after claiming it was confiscating land from farmers, which the South African government says is a distortion of the truth. Another wrinkle in the debate: Trump ally Elon Musk is a native of South Africa who accuses its government of racism against white people.”
Black Residents Liken Mississippi’s New Court System to ‘Modern Day Slavery’ (Dana)
From Capital B: “Jackson, Mississippi, resident and organizer Rukia Lumumba is frustrated with a federal appeals court decision that allows Mississippi to move forward with its separate, state-run court system in her hometown. Backed by a mostly white, Republican-controlled Legislature, Gov. Tate Reeves signed into law last year HB 1020 and SB 2343, which respectively establish a separate judicial system and increase police presence in the majority-Black capital city. Lawmakers claimed the bills would reduce crime in Jackson. But, organizers like Lumumba, the executive director of the People’s Advocacy Institute, say it’s an attempt to undermine the authority of the Black leadership and voting power of residents.”
Elon Musk Wants What He Can’t Have: Wikipedia (Gerry)
From The Atlantic: “Musk and other right-wing tech figures have been on a campaign to delegitimize the digital encyclopedia. What happens if they succeed?”
First In-Depth Analysis of NASA’s Bennu Sample Return Reveals Conditions for Life Were Widespread in Early Solar System (Sean)
The author writes, “Asteroid Bennu is a part of a long-lost wet, salty world which originated at the dawn of the solar system. Scientists found that evaporated water left a briny broth where salts and minerals allowed the elemental ingredients of life to intermingle and create more complex structures. The discovery suggests that extraterrestrial brines provided a crucial setting for the development of organic compounds.”
