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Europe Pledges $600M for Clean Energy Projects in Africa (Maria) 

The author writes, “Africa needs energy. Nearly 600 million Africans — half the continent’s population — are without electricity, largely because of the continent’s limited distribution network…The European Union wants to change this. At the end of September, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, announced a $636M investment package to support renewable energy and electricity in Africa.”

Russ Vought Is Going To Damage Trump Even More Than Elon Musk Did (Reader Jim) 

From The New Republic: “Even if the shutdown doesn’t have long-term political ramifications—it will likely be forgotten by the 2026 midterms—Vought’s actions may play decisive roles in 2025 races, such as close gubernatorial contests in Virginia and New Jersey. The threat to deny back pay to federal workers (and the shutdown more broadly) will hit particularly hard in Virginia, a state with a disproportionately high number of federal workers thanks to its proximity to Washington, D.C. Vought also suspended billions in funding for the Gateway Tunnel, which would connect Newark, New Jersey, and New York City—a project that is very popular with commuters.”

A New ‘Nanoparticle Vaccine’ Prevented Cancer in Mice, Study Says (Sean) 

From 404 Media: “It’s too early to know if this breakthrough will ever be applicable to human cancer prevention or treatment, but the successful demonstration in mice is a promising result for the team’s so-called “super-adjuvant” vaccine. This approach uses nanoparticles made of fatty molecules to deliver two distinct ‘adjuvants,’ which are substances in vaccines that enhance an immune response.”

Advocates Raise Alarm Over PFAS Pollution From Datacenters Amid AI Boom (Laura) 

The author writes, “Datacenters’ electricity demands have been accused of delaying the US’s transition to clean energy and requiring fossil fuel plants to stay online, while their high level of water consumption has also raised alarm. Now public health advocates fear another environmental problem could be linked to them – PFAS ‘forever chemical’ pollution. Big tech companies like Google, Microsoft and Amazon often need datacenters to store servers and networking equipment that process the world’s digital traffic, and the artificial intelligence boom is driving demand for more facilities. Advocates are particularly concerned over the facilities’ use of PFAS gas, or f-gas, which can be potent greenhouse gases, and may mean datacenters’ climate impact is worse than previously thought.”

CBS News Just Made a Terrible Mistake (DonkeyHotey) 

From Dame Magazine: “Here’s the thing about moral panics: They don’t require accuracy. They require momentum. And The Free Press provided that momentum by publishing a first-person account that hit all the right emotional notes — troubled kids, worried whistleblower, doctors playing God — without doing the basic journalism of verifying whether any of it was true. Now Weiss gets to do this at CBS News, except with infinitely more reach and the institutional credibility of one of the country’s oldest news organizations.”

The Surprising Benefits of Switching to ‘Lamb Mowers’ (Gerry) 

The author writes, “‘Lawn mowers’ were once synonymous with hoofed livestock — goats, sheep, horses and other herbivores — that foraged grasses, seedlings and what are now called weeds. By constantly mowing and fertilizing, they created open pastures and lawns. A variety of storied lawns have relied on grazing to keep up appearances. Starting in 1863, sheep were a common sight in New York’s Central Park — the ‘Sheep Meadow’ was not a metaphor. Flocks could be found munching on public parks in London, Boston and Chicago. In 1914, more than 100 sheep were invited to the nation’s capital to graze near the Lincoln Memorial, and later the White House grounds. Then they promptly disappeared as machines assumed their role.”