PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
Nobel Prize in Physics Awarded for Study of Humanity’s Role in Changing Climate (Maria)
The author writes, “Three scientists received the Nobel Prize in Physics on Tuesday for work that is essential to understanding how the Earth’s climate is changing, pinpointing the effect of human behavior on those changes, and ultimately predicting the impact of global warming. The winners were Syukuro Manabe of Princeton University, Klaus Hasselmann of the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology in Hamburg, Germany, and Giorgio Parisi of the Sapienza University of Rome. Others have received Nobel Prizes for their work on climate change, but the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said this is the first time the Physics prize has been awarded specifically to a climate scientist.”
The Revelations About Mike Pence’s Role in Jan. 6 Keep Getting Worse (Reader Jim)
The author writes, “It has become a ubiquitous question in our politics: How close did Donald Trump come to pulling off an actual coup? Efforts to grapple with this have been trapped largely in the zone of wild speculation. But guess what: We may actually get a real answer to it soon enough. Key to this is the figure who has been portrayed as a hero of this sordid tale, because he refused to use his position as vice president to interrupt the count of electors in Congress: Mike Pence. This remains poorly understood, but the Jan. 6 select committee is not just looking at the mob attack. It will also create a detailed account of how close we came to the unthinkable — to the procedural overthrow of a legitimately elected incoming government.”
Who’s Who In ‘Pandora’ Tax Dodge Revelations? Financial Secrets Revealed (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “A global investigation has revealed how the rich and powerful have being hiding their investments in mansions, exclusive beachfront property, yachts and other assets for the past quarter-century. Collectively these assets are worth trillions of dollars. The investigation, dubbed the Pandora Papers, was published late Sunday and involved 600 journalists from 150 media outlets in 117 countries. … Here is a look at some of some of those named in the investigation.”
Thousands of Haitians Prepare to Trek Through Panama’s Jungle and on to the US (Dan)
From NPR: “[Necoclí, Colombia’s] Caribbean beaches used to fill up with tourists but there’s no longer room. Instead, thousands of Haitian migrants who can’t afford the hotels have pitched tents on just about every patch of sand. Nearly 20,000 Haitians, who are on their way to the United States, are now holed up in Necoclí, forming a human bottleneck even bigger than the recent migrant logjams on the U.S.-Mexican border.”
Most US Latinos Say Global Climate Change and Other Environmental Issues Impact Their Local Communities (Mili)
The authors write, “Most Latinos in the United States say global climate change is an important concern, with a majority saying that it affects their local community at least some. Latinos broadly support an array of policy measures to address climate change and other environmental issues. And many say they are willing to help by making lifestyle changes, according to a Pew Research Center survey.”
‘No Fish Means No Food’: How Yurok Women Are Fighting for Their Tribe’s Nutritional Health (Inez)
The author writes, “Keeping salmon in her children’s diet is ‘an entire job,’ says Georgiana Gensaw, a Yurok Tribe member and mother of four in Klamath Glen, California, a community whose only easily accessible food store is a fried chicken shop attached to a gas station a few miles away. The nearest grocery store, Safeway in Crescent City, lies 24 miles away along a stretch of road frequently plagued by landslides and toppled redwoods — last summer it was closed for 20 hours a day after a washout — making queues to get through the roadworks up to five hours long.”
Trillion-dollar Platinum Coin Could Be Minted at the Last Minute (DonkeyHotey)
From Axios: “A trillion-dollar platinum coin could be minted ‘within hours of the Treasury Secretary’s decision to do so,’ Philip Diehl, former director of the United States Mint, tells Axios. Why it matters: Congressional solutions to the debt-ceiling problem could take weeks to implement, especially if the reconciliation process is used — and time is running out. In case of emergency, a trillion-dollar coin could be deployed to bridge any gap between the money running out and the debt ceiling being raised.”
