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‘Goldmine’ of Wheat Samples From 100 Years Ago May Help Feed World: Scientists (Maria)
The author writes, “A hundred years ago, plant scientist Arthur Watkins launched a remarkable project. He began collecting samples of wheat from all over the globe, nagging consuls and business agents across the British empire and beyond to supply him with grain from local markets. His persistence was exceptional and, a century later, it is about to reap dramatic results. … Scientists have created a genetic goldmine by pinpointing previously unknown genes that are now being used to create hardy varieties with improved yields that could help feed Earth’s swelling population.”
Republicans to Putin: We’re Done with Ukraine (Dana)
From The Bulwark: “The opening night of the 2024 Republican National Convention sent a clear signal: The balance of power within the GOP has shifted. This is now an isolationist party. And if Republicans win this year’s presidential election, the first victim of this retreat from the world will be Ukraine. … Trump is already well known as a Putin sympathizer and opponent of aid to Ukraine; his selection of Vance [as vice president nominee] reinforces that disposition. Vance was by far the most anti-Ukraine candidate on Trump’s vice-presidential short list. As a senator, he has fought against aid to Ukraine and has made clear that he isn’t particularly interested in defending Europe. Two years ago, shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Vance shrugged, ‘I don’t really care what happens to Ukraine one way or the other.’”
Poland Must Prepare Army for Full-Scale Conflict, Army Chief Says (Sean)
From Reuters: “Poland needs to prepare its soldiers for all-out conflict, its armed forces chief of staff said [last week], as the country boosts the number of troops on its border with Russia and Belarus. Poland’s relations with Russia and its ally Belarus have deteriorated sharply since Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops into neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, starting a war that is still being fought. … In May, Poland announced details of ‘East Shield,’ a 10 billion zloty ($2.5 billion) program to beef up defenses along its border with Belarus and Russia, which it plans to complete the plans by 2028.”
Mystery Over Trump’s Diagnosis and Treatment After Assassination Attempt (DonkeyHotey)
The authors write, “Donald Trump arrives in Milwaukee enveloped in the glow of surviving an assassination attempt. He’s also trailed by a litany of questions over his condition as he prepares on Monday to name his running mate, the person who would be a heartbeat away from the presidency should he prevail in November. Neither the Trump campaign nor the hospital where he was treated on Saturday in Butler, Pa., have released any information on the former president’s treatment, diagnosis or condition.”
The MAGA Plan to End Free Weather Reports (Gerry)
From The Atlantic: “In the United States, as in most other countries, weather forecasts are a freely accessible government amenity. The National Weather Service issues alerts and predictions, warning of hurricanes and excessive heat and rainfall, all at the total cost to American taxpayers of roughly $4 per person per year. Anyone with a TV, smartphone, radio, or newspaper can know what tomorrow’s weather will look like. … Charging for popular services that were previously free isn’t generally a winning political strategy. But hard-right policy makers appear poised to try to do just that should Republicans gain power in the next term. Project 2025—a nearly 900-page book of policy proposals published by the conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation—states that an incoming administration should all but dissolve the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, under which the National Weather Service operates.”
For India’s Garbage Pickers, a Miserable and Dangerous Job Made Worse by Extreme Heat (Laura)
The authors write, “The putrid smell of burning garbage wafts for miles from the landfill on the outskirts of Jammu in a potentially toxic miasma fed by the plastics, industrial, medical and other waste generated by a city of some 740,000 people. But a handful of waste pickers ignore both the fumes and suffocating heat to sort through the rubbish, seeking anything they can sell to earn at best the equivalent of $4 a day. ‘If we don’t do this, we don’t get any food to eat,’ said 65-year-old Usmaan Shekh. ‘We try to take a break for a few minutes when it gets too hot, but mostly we just continue till we can’t.’ Shekh and his family are among the estimated 1.5 to 4 million people who scratch out a living searching through India’s waste — and climate change is making a hazardous job more dangerous than ever.”
Yr Hobyd: Tolkien’s the Hobbit To Be Published in Welsh (Al)
From Nation.Cymru: “A Welsh publisher is to release a new translation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic fantasy novel The Hobbit in Welsh. One of the most popular and most-translated books of the twentieth century and the prelude to The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit was originally published in 1937 and has since been translated into dozens of languages, including other Celtic languages such as Irish and Scottish Gaelic. Until now, however, the celebrated novel has never before been available in Welsh—perhaps surprisingly, given author J.R.R. Tolkien’s own interest in the Welsh language, upon which he drew for some elements of the fictional languages he invented in his works.”
