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Publishers Race Against Google Zero Doomsday Clock (Maria)

The author writes, “Publishers are racing to readjust their businesses as the threat of ‘Google Zero’ — a world where Google no longer distributes meaningful traffic to publishers — looms large. Traffic referrals from chatbots aren’t expected to come close to offsetting traffic from traditional search. Publishers need to find new ways to make money now that one of their most reliable revenue streams is quickly evaporating.”

US Considered Charging Minnesota Judges, Lawyers in Immigration Crackdown (Reader Steve) 

From Reuters: “The US Justice Department explored bringing criminal charges against Minnesota judges and defense lawyers who discussed requesting virtual court hearings to protect defendants from being arrested by federal immigration officers, according to five people familiar with the matter. In February, FBI agents in Minneapolis opened a preliminary inquiry into whether local judges and defense attorneys obstructed immigration enforcement by requesting virtual hearings, and the concept was also pitched to law enforcement officials in Minneapolis and Washington, D.C., said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal Justice Department deliberations.”

Coffee Prices To Spike as Brazil Faces 50% Tariffs Under Trump (Dana) 

The author writes, “If tariffs hit on Aug. 1, it could be a few months before customers feel price increases at cafes or restaurants. That’s because those businesses generally buy in bulk and have a stock of coffee that could last them a while — stockpiles like this could last a few months…People who buy their coffee beans at the grocery store could feel the tariff impacts more quickly.”

Scientists Just Resurrected the 1918 ‘Spanish Flu’ Virus — Here’s What They Found (Mili) 

From ScienceDaily: “Scientists in Switzerland have cracked open a century-old viral mystery by decoding the genome of the 1918 influenza virus from a preserved Zurich patient. This ancient RNA revealed that the virus had already adapted to humans at the very start of the pandemic, carrying mutations that made it both more infectious and more immune-resistant. By pioneering a new method to recover fragile RNA from preserved tissue, researchers gained rare insights into how flu viruses evolve. The study not only revives the history of one of humanity’s deadliest outbreaks but also arms us with critical knowledge to face future pandemics with smarter, science-based strategies.”

Trump’s Son Just Went Public With His Company and It Flopped Spectacularly (Sean) 

The author writes, “‘To be able to come back to the New York Stock Exchange and actually take a gun company public feels like such a vindication of all the insanity, all of the ‘woke’ nonsense that we’ve been watching and facing for the last decade in America,’ Trump Jr told Fox Business before the markets opened. After ringing the opening bell — but not before starting a chant of ‘USA! USA!’ — Trump Jr got a front-row seat to watch his pet project plummet into the ground. Though shares of GrabAGun opened at $21.40 — under the cutesy ticker ‘PEW,’ no less — they quickly dropped around 24 percent after a short spike, ending the day at $13.20.”

Humans Have Shifted Earth’s Rotation, Scientists Discover. Here’s How (Laryn) 

From 404 Media: “According to a recent study published in Geophysical Research Letters, humans have pulled Earth’s poles slightly off-kilter by building huge dams. The results shed light on how future forces like ice melt, sea level rise, and continued dam construction might shape our planet’s rotation. In an ideal model, Earth’s geographic poles in the Arctic and Antarctic align exactly with its axis of rotation. In reality, the poles drift from the axis because they are sensitive to the constant redistribution of mass on the planet’s surface and in its interior. This drift, called true polar wander, is critical to our daily lives, as it influences navigation and timekeeping technologies like GPS, as well as astronomical observations.”