What Is a Stoat? Five Fun Facts About the Adorable Weasel Winter Olympic Mascot

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What Is a Stoat? Five Fun Facts About the Adorable Weasel Winter Olympic Mascot (Maria)

The author writes: “Olympic mascots date back to the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. Shuss, an abstract man on skis, showcased unofficially as the character to represent the games. Since then, almost every subsequent Olympics has revealed a mascot. … Two mascots will represent the action at 2026 Winter Olympics: a pair of sibling stoats named Milo and Tina. Tina, who represents the Olympic Games, is named after Cortina d’Ampezzo, one of the Italian host cities, while her younger brother Milo, representing the Paralympic Games, is named after Milan, the other host city.”

This Tool Searches the Epstein Files for Your LinkedIn Contacts (Sean)

From 404 Media: “A new tool searches your LinkedIn connections for people who are mentioned in the Epstein files, just in case you don’t, understandably, want anything to do with them on the already deranged social network. 404 Media tested the tool, called EpsteIn — as in, a mash up of Epstein and LinkedIn — and it appears to work.” 

The Real Meaning of Those ICE Masks, as Blurted Out in a WA Hearing (Reader Steve)

From The Seattle Times: “Whatever one might feel about bombastic Pierce County Sheriff Keith Swank, he is one of the few elected officials around liberal Puget Sound who embodies the true spirit of MAGA. In that sense, he’s worth listening to. He’s like a MAGA whisperer. If you want to know what the group currently running the United States truly thinks, deep down, Swank is the one around here who just might be channeling it. It was he, then, who blurted out the true reason federal immigration agents suddenly showed up wearing makeshift balaclavas and other masks.”

Washington Post Raid Is a Frightening Reminder: Turn Off Your Phone’s Biometrics Now (Laura)

The author writes, “The recent federal raid on the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson isn’t merely an attack by the Trump administration on the free press. It’s also a warning to anyone with a smartphone. Included in the search and seizure warrant for the raid on Natanson’s home is a section titled ‘Biometric Unlock,’ which explicitly authorized law enforcement personnel to obtain Natanson’s phone and both hold the device in front of her face and to forcibly use her fingers to unlock it. In other words, a judge gave the FBI permission to attempt to bypass biometrics: the convenient shortcuts that let you unlock your phone by scanning your fingerprint or face.”

It’s 2026 and You’re Uninsured. Now What? (Dana)

From KFF Health News: “Health policy changes in Washington will ripple through the country, resulting in millions of Americans losing their Medicaid or Affordable Care Act coverage. But there are still ways to find care.”

The Evolutionary Brilliance of the Baby Giggle (Russ)

The author writes, “My son was 14 weeks old when he made his first unmistakable whole-body belly laugh. In the months that followed, his laughter was accompanied by playful provocations — grabbing my hair and shrieking with delight, blowing mouthfuls of mashed bananas skyward and squealing when they landed on the floor. These incidents signaled something more than laughter: An early sense of humor was emerging, initiated by him, months before the other milestones that parents await in the first year. For me as a mother, this was delightful, but as a developmental psychologist, I was perplexed. Despite my Ph.D., I’d never come across research on infant laughter or humor.”