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To Woo a Cockatoo, Make Sure the Beat is Right (Maria)
The authors write, “Wild palm cockatoos live in remote parts of far northern Australia, lowland New Guinea and some offshore islands. Females lay a single egg every two years. Given all this, the females are pretty picky about which male they mate with. Enter the spectacle that is the male palm cockatoo mating display. The display begins with a whistle and a puff of the chest. There are many calls that ensue, and along the way, ‘he’s blushing his red cheeks and he’s bobbing and dancing on the branch, twirling — doing everything he can to get her attention,’ says Rob Heinsohn, a conservation biologist at Australian National University. For the big finale: a drum solo using a freshly fashioned drumstick.”
How Expansive Mail-in Voting Policies and an Efficient US Postal Service Increase Voter Turnout (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “A recent study, conducted and written by Washington State University assistant professor of political science Michael Ritter, illustrates how pro-voting policies, like universal and no-excuse mail-in voting, along with a better performing U.S. Postal Service leads to higher voter turnout in U.S. elections. The report, which Ritter provided to Democracy Docket, was published in the Election Law Journal in June of this year. Ritter’s study uses data dating back to 2012 to predict how different voting policies and Postal Service performance could have changed turnout in the 2018 and 2020 elections.”
The Man Behind Putin’s Warped View of History (Russ)
The author writes, “Starting this month, all high school students in Russia have a new history textbook. On its pages, they’ll find a strikingly simplistic account of the past 80 years — from the end of World War II to the present — that all but comes with the Kremlin’s signature. Revisionism doesn’t begin to cover it.”
The Roots of the Global South’s New Resentment (Sean)
From Foreign Affairs: “The COVID-19 era encompassed only a few of the litany of broken promises between the global North and the global South. But as richer countries struggle to understand the global South — and especially African nations’ ambivalent reaction to Russia’s war on Ukraine — the lingering effect of abandonment during the pandemic is underappreciated. Two kinds of failings defined the COVID-19 era for low-income countries: the global North’s hesitation to share resources equitably and its unwillingness to treat global South countries as equal partners in addressing a shared crisis. Until wealthy countries take concrete steps toward repair, the rift will only grow deeper.”
States Are Criminalizing Environmental Protest (Laura)
From Sierra: “In some states, protesting against an oil pipeline is a felony.”
Antarctic Sea-Ice at ‘Mind-Blowing’ Low Alarms Experts (Mili)
From the BBC: “The sea-ice surrounding Antarctica is well below any previous recorded winter level, satellite data shows, a worrying new benchmark for a region that once seemed resistant to global warming.”
Largest US Newspaper Chain Is Hiring Taylor Swift and Beyoncé Reporters, Drawing Interest and Ire (Al)
The authors write, “[Last] week the United States’ biggest newspaper chain posted to its site two unusual job listings: a Taylor Swift reporter and a Beyoncé reporter. Gannett, which owns more than 200 daily papers, will employ these new hires through USA Today and The Tennessean, the company’s Nashville-based newspaper. The chain is looking for ‘modern storytellers’ adept in print, audio and visual journalism, said Michael Anastasi, The Tennessean’s editor and Gannett’s vice president for local news.”
