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04 Jun 12:41

Foo Fighters Will Release New Album In November

by Will Oliver

Foo Fighters

Foo Fighters have announced that their new album will be released this November. It’s currently untitled, but will be released via Roswell/RCA. It was recorded in eight different cities (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, Washington, D.C., Nashville, New Orleans, and Seattle).

That aspect ties into the band’s HBO series: Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways, which documents the recording of the album through the various cities.  The album, the bands eighth, is their most ambitious yet; with at least one song from the album having been recorded in each of the cities, with local legends of the city sitting in on the sessions. Dave Grohl would hold off from putting down words to the songs until the final day of each session, in order to write lyrics inspired by the experiences.

HBO has released a teaser for the series, which features a sample of a new song that we can only assume is from the album. Find that below.

02 Jun 13:52

Bias Claims for Insurers in Coverage of H.I.V.

by By KATIE THOMAS
Two health care advocacy groups filed a complaint against CoventryOne, Cigna, Humana and Preferred Medical Plan for what they said was discrimination in Florida.
11 Feb 20:09

Millennials Are the Fix-It Generation, Says Better Homes & Gardens — Design News

by Tara Bellucci
Pin_it_button

Better Homes & Gardens conducted a survey on Millennials and home ownership. 82% of those asked prefer to do their own home improvements, 77% would rather have an "essential" home to a "luxury" one, and 56% believe technology is more important than curb appeal.

READ MORE »

07 Feb 13:56

Huge Leak of Coal Ash Slows at North Carolina Power Plant

by By MICHAEL WINES and TIMOTHY WILLIAMS
The massive leak of toxic coal ash into the Dan River had dwindled, but workers had yet to seal the breach in a drainage pipe where the leak was detected more than four days ago.
    
07 Jan 21:16

What happens when you don't get vaccinated

by Jason Kottke

Amy Parker grew up with super health-conscious parents who provided her with a healthy diet and active lifestyle. But they also didn't vaccinate her and she was sick all the time as a kid.

As healthy as my lifestyle seemed, I contracted measles, mumps, rubella, a type of viral meningitis, scarlatina, whooping cough, yearly tonsillitis, and chickenpox. In my 20s I got precancerous HPV and spent six months of my life wondering how I was going to tell my two children under the age of 7 that Mummy might have cancer before it was safely removed.

This is the part that really gets to me: Parker wasn't vaccinated but was given so many antibiotics for her childhood illnesses that she became immune to them! [Hair-tearing-out noise]

My two vaccinated children, on the other hand, have rarely been ill, have had antibiotics maybe twice in their lives, if that. Not like their mum. I got so many illnesses requiring treatment with antibiotics that I developed a resistance to them, which led me to be hospitalized with penicillin-resistant quinsy at age 21 -- you know, that old-fashioned disease that supposedly killed Queen Elizabeth I and that was almost wiped out through use of antibiotics.

Update: Slate has corrected the passage above, taking out the part about Parker's resistance to antibiotics. It now reads:

My two vaccinated children, on the other hand, have rarely been ill, have had antibiotics maybe twice in their lives, if that. Not like their mum. I got many illnesses requiring treatment with antibiotics. I developed penicillin-resistant quinsy at age 21 -- you know, that old-fashioned disease that supposedly killed Queen Elizabeth I and that was almost wiped out through use of antibiotics.

People do not develop antibiotic resistance, microorganisms do. I regret the idiotic error and tearing out my hair. (thx @chrismize)

Tags: Amy Parker   medicine   vaccines
06 Jan 16:20

962. A Thank-You Note - Wislawa Szymborska

by Bookgleaner
Translated from the Polish by Joanna Trzeciak

I owe a lot
to those I do not love.

Relief in accepting
others care for them more.

Joy that I am not
wolf to their sheep.

Peace be with them
for with them I am free
––love neither gives
nor knows how to take these things.

I don't wait for them
from window to door.
Almost as patient
as a sun dial,
I understand
what love never could.
I forgive
what love never would.

Between rendezvous and letter
no eternity passes,
only a few days or weeks.

Our trips always turn out well:
concerts are enjoyed,
cathedrals toured,
landscapes in focus.

And when seven rivers and mountains
come between us,
they are the rivers and mountains
found on any map.

The credit's theirs
if I live in three dimensions,
in a non-lyrical and non-rhetorical space,
with a real, ever-shifting horizon.

They don't even know
how much they carry in their empty hands.

"I owe them nothing,"
love would have said
on this open topic.
25 Oct 12:38

CDC official: we've reached "the end of antibiotics"

by Jason Kottke

In an interview accompanying a Frontline episode on drug-resistant bacteria, an associate director for the CDC, Dr. Arjun Srinivasan, says that "we're in the post-antibiotic era".

The more you use an antibiotic, the more you expose a bacteria to an antibiotic, the greater the likelihood that resistance to that antibiotic is going to develop. So the more antibiotics we put into people, we put into the environment, we put into livestock, the more opportunities we create for these bacteria to become resistant. ...We also know that we've greatly overused antibiotics and in overusing these antibiotics, we have set ourselves up for the scenario that we find ourselves in now, where we're running out of antibiotics.

We are quickly running out of therapies to treat some of these infections that previously had been eminently treatable. There are bacteria that we encounter, particularly in health-care settings, that are resistant to nearly all -- or, in some cases, all -- the antibiotics that we have available to us, and we are thus entering an era that people have talked about for a long time.

For a long time, there have been newspaper stories and covers of magazines that talked about "The end of antibiotics, question mark?" Well, now I would say you can change the title to "The end of antibiotics, period."

We're here. We're in the post-antibiotic era. There are patients for whom we have no therapy, and we are literally in a position of having a patient in a bed who has an infection, something that five years ago even we could have treated, but now we can't.

You know how when you first hear a joke it's the funniest thing ever and then you hear it a second time and it's less funny and then a third, fourth, and fifth times and it just keeps getting less and less funny until you're not laughing at all and it actually becomes annoying? That's how antibiotics work across the entire human population. And if Dr. Srinivasan is correct, we're transitioning into the not laughing stage and the annoying stage where lots of people start dying can't be far behind (unless we get some new jokes/treatments).

Yesterday, Mark Sample tweeted about disasters, low-points, and chronic trauma:

"Low point" is the term for when the worst part of a disaster has come to pass. Our disasters increasingly have no low point.

After the low point of a disaster is reached, things begin to get better. When there is no clear low point, society endures chronic trauma.

Disasters with no clear low point: global warming, mass extinction, colony collapse disorder, ocean acidification, Fukushima.

To which I would add: drug-resistant infectious diseases. (via digg)

Tags: Arjun Srinivasan   Mark Sample   medicine   science
25 Sep 19:12

NC agency rejects federal funds for fracking study

by The Associated Press

North Carolina has returned a federal grant which would have helped monitor water quality in streams and wetlands that could be impacted by drilling for natural gas.

23 Sep 12:05

[new]: Azealia Banks – Count Contessa

by Will Oliver

Azealia Banks - Count Contessa

Azealia Banks’ debut (studio) album Broke With Expensive Taste isn’t coming out until next January, as it has gone through a few delays. She’s planning even further ahead announcing that she will release another next year titled Fantasea II: The Second Wave on July 11, 2014.

You can already take a listen to one track from the mixtape. It’s called “Count Contessa” and it features a sample of “Aquamarine” by Lone. It’s got a smooth chill vibe, leaving room for a dancy vibe and flow from Miss Banks.

Take a listen below.

18 Sep 19:59

Frosting or Icing? Firefly or "Peenie Wallie"? Brew-Thru, Beverage Barn, or "I Have Never Heard of This Concept"?

by Jia Tolentino
by Jia Tolentino

I have taken this regional dialect quiz from N.C. State University four times in the last week (the short version changes up its questions), and it has pegged me exactly every time as a person who grew up in Houston. That is crazy! Continental Americans: can it pin you down, too?

This quiz overloads if too many people are on it at once, so if you can't get to it, a perhaps even more interesting substitute is the distribution map created from the answers to each question. Did you know that, in a few coastal parts of New England, people say "Mary," "merry" and "marry" with different vowels for each word? I also had always thought all Texans said "feeder" for the access road to the highway ("freeway" for me, incidentally), but apparently it's just Southeast Texas. And it appears that in my new home of Michigan, the night before Halloween is called "devil's night"!

[Dialect Quiz]

77 Comments
13 Sep 12:15

Slideshow

Points to anyone who hacks the Flickr devs' computers to make their text editors do this when you click on anything.
12 Sep 12:19

Steam users will soon be able to share and borrow games with the new Steam Family Sharing program.

by Andy Orin

Steam users will soon be able to share and borrow games with the new Steam Family Sharing program. Up to ten authorized computers will be able to share a library of games, but you might need to be patient: only a limited beta will soon have access. Read more here.

Read more...


    






12 Sep 12:18

Never Trash Old Clothes Again With This Defuzzing Trick

by Emily Co

I can't count how many tearful goodbyes I've said to my favorite clothes just because I've worn them out to the point where they have unsightly fuzz. Your favorite apparel has a high risk of pilling because it rubs against surfaces more often, so loose fibers push themselves out from the surface. You'll also wash them more if you wear them a lot, which aggravates the fuzz.

But there's a handy solution that will salvage your favorite article of clothing. Take a clean razor and shave the pills off your clothes. This can be a tedious and long process, but totally worth making your favorite sweater looking brand-new again! Here are a few quick tips to keep in mind:

  • Give it gentle, short strokes to avoid accidentally shaving a tiny hole in your clothing.
  • Use a sharp razor, so you don't have to keep shaving the same area.
  • Place the item on a flat surface, preferably on an ironing board. This is so the cloth won't bunch up, which can snag your razor while you're shaving and accidentally cause a nick. I would advice to pull it over an ironing board, so you can shave one layer at a time.
  • Smooth out the material well so that it's completely flat before you shave.
11 Sep 17:50

"I can do only two things for them/ describe this flight/ and not add a last line"

by Jia Tolentino
by Jia Tolentino

From Wislawa Szymborska's "Photograph from September 11," translated by Clare Cavanagh and Stanislaw Baranczk:

Each is still complete,
with a particular face
and blood well hidden.

There’s enough time
for hair to come loose,
for keys and coins
to fall from pockets.

They’re still within the air’s reach,
within the compass of places
that have just now opened.
I can do only two things for them—
describe this flight
and not add a last line.

Also at the Poetry Foundation, here's a Mark Doty essay from 2006, prompted by this Szymborska poem and addressing the difficult "poem of witness," which "requires a profound understanding of the ways in which pain refuses articulation and horror cancels out speech."

At the New Yorker, a selection of poems that appeared in the magazine in the months after the attacks, and a slideshow of the magazine covers that have addressed 9/11.

1 Comments
05 Sep 17:59

KnowEm Tracks Down All the Sites You've Registered a Username

by Thorin Klosowski

KnowEm Tracks Down All the Sites You've Registered a Username

It's not easy to remember which services you signed up for in the past. If you need a little help tracking them down so you can delete them, reader Mike.Sims recommends using the username search site KnowEm to hunt down your accounts.

Read more...


    






05 Sep 12:13

Two Perfect Poems by a Third-Grader Named Darius

by Jia Tolentino
by Jia Tolentino

I taught my first college class yesterday, and it made me think about all the times I've ended up teaching almost accidentally, like when I stumbled into an amazing gig doing weekly creative-writing workshops for third-graders, through Writers in the Schools in Houston. One of my students, Darius, was super quiet, and he consistently turned out these lovely, clear, absurdist poems. Here are two of my favorites: this first one was prompted by the green colors in the Cy Twombly painting to the right.

The Strangest of Them All

There I lay, strangest
of them all. I don’t
have anything, not even a
little ball. Oh, I forget, my name is
Caesar. I’m the strangest
alligator. When people are
talking I don’t mind but
when they leave me out
for a party, that is unfine.
They overlook me
because I’m small. But
what when we leave, out
the door, they slam my
face and now it’s
sore. There’s nothing
anymore.

Football Game

The smallest
player ran
a touchdown.
The unruly
coach laughed.
When he looked
up he was in
the back of a
police car. He screamed,
“I’m 60 years old. I’m too
young to go to jail.”

15 Comments
28 Aug 12:11

What Else Rhymes With "Hug Me"?

by Emma Carmichael
by Emma Carmichael

Puppy. Bubbly. Kentucky. Etc.

5 Comments
22 Aug 12:08

Maternidad transparente

by Cristina Arboleda
Una carta para Dante Nicolás

 I


33 semanas. 
Silenciosamente, como un ovillo enrollándose, 
he sentido que te haces más y más grande en mis entrañas.

Semilla. 
Te abriste y cojiste impulso para volverte fruta madura que se mece y columpia hasta que llegue el instante de caer del árbol.

Primero eras una burbuja. 
Un ojo de agua que brotaba de mi tierra. Una esfera de jabón en la panza.

Luego, un pez rojo que nadaba haciendo cosquillas a las aguas más tranquilas.

Después fuiste un pájaro. 
O una mariposa (siempre de colores, nunca color búho, nunca tandacucha). 
Y las alas de plumas o de polvo arcoiris se batían adentro 
como un viento-promesa-de-huracán.

Ahora eres un sobresalto de huesos. 
Nos hablamos. Con pequeños golpes, nos hablamos. 
Somos piel contra piel. 
Con mis manos trato de adivinar si lo que siento son patadas, 
manotazos, rodillazos o besos.

Mis dedos te imaginan. Te dibujan, Dante. 
Te leen a través de las caricias y te miro en ellas como en un espejo opaco.

Me pregunto si entiendes lo que pienso. 
Mis buenas y malas ideas. 
Mi humor agrio y negro. 
Las emociones que me mojan, 
el asfalto en la garganta, 
la indignación que hace rechinar mis dientes. 
Mis pequeñas perversiones y mi egoísmo.

Oscuridad y luz, mis 29 colores.

Soy transparente y camaleónica, hijo mío.

Aunque la angustia de tenerte en mis manos, 
de que respires mi aire y bebas mi sangre 
me tienta a encerrarte en una celdilla de cristal o jaula de oro; 
prefiero optar por mi propia transparencia. 
Pongo mi franqueza por encima del miedo.

A ti no puedo mentirte. 
Menos ahora que aún somos uno y dos, dobles individuales.

Elijo mi imperfección. Mi verdad agridulce.

Me miras por dentro. Me miras y me escuchas. 
¿Qué ves? ¿A qué suena mi tambor?

Soy tu mamá, amado Dante 
y tu mamá es imperfecta y errática como la vida, 
que por inoportuna e imprevisible también es hermosa.


El rostro de Dante


II
  
No comas ají, no tomes café. No subas gradas. Mejor toma el ascensor.
Cuidado te asustes con esa escena, no veas esas películas.

En el velador están algunos libros a medio ojear. 
"El vuelo de la ceniza" me recuerda mis ganas de leer una novelita negra, típica historia de suciedad humana.

Los seres humanos son estúpidamente complicados, Chester, 
le digo al perro que suspira a mi lado porque no apago la lámpara y ya es hora de dormir.

Hoy vi el documental de la muerte de Roldós y pensé que no me había afectado tanto.

Pero sí, me resuena la historia en la cabeza, los discursos con ese tono épico de Roldós o de Allende. Esas voces de antes cuando se pensaba que el cambio era posible por la vía democrática. Me temo que no, que siempre se entra a jugar con las reglas del juego chuecas. Hay que ensuciarse las manos, tranzar, contaminarse, empeñar en algo la conciencia. Y eso no puede ser democracia ni cambio. Pero de lo contrario terminas como un mártir, como un muerto calladito y de buenos modales para que el festín continue... ¡Quién sabe!

A tu mamá le afectan muchas cosas, Dante. 
Pero no te inquietes.

A tu mamá también le da por irse mucho por las nubes, se pone aérea y nostálgica. 
Pero no te inquietes.

Este mundo es hermoso. Jodido y hermoso, hijo. 
La loca de tu mamá también es jodida.

Y tú eres lo más hermoso que tiene el mundo: 
hay en ti un mar en potencia. 
Serás lo que quieras y podrás poblar tus aguas de olas, remansos, 
peces y perlas, sirenas o monstruos, amaneceres y tempestades.

Esta soy yo, Dante, 
con las manos desnudas y el alma libre.
Esta soy yo, la que escoge amarte 
hasta que volvamos a ser polvo cósmico.
19 Aug 12:36

'Moral Monday' protests head to Charlotte

by The Associated Press

A Moral Monday demonstration is headed to a downtown Charlotte park.

16 Aug 12:12

Adorable new mammal species found 'in plain sight'

by By SETH BORENSTEIN

Imagine a raccoon with a teddy bear face that is so cute it's hard to resist, let alone overlook. But somehow science did — until now.

16 Aug 12:12

NC State wins $60 million NSA data partnership

by By MICHAEL BIESECKER

North Carolina State University has won a $60 million federal contract to partner with the National Security Agency on a new center dedicated to researching the challenges of collecting, sorting and storing massive amounts of computer data.

16 Aug 12:11

Young McCrory staffers get big government salaries

by By MICHAEL BIESECKER

Young Republicans who helped elect North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory have been rewarded with big salaries in his new administration.

16 Aug 12:11

Five Things We Learned: Bears-Chargers

by Jeff Dickerson
CHICAGO -- Here are five things we learned in the Chicago Bears' 33-28 victory over the San Diego Chargers on Thursday: 1. Matt Forte pumped life into the offense: After an inauspicious opening drive that lost 18 yards in three plays (two sacks, one negative rush) Forte ignited the offense with a 58-yard run around left end that showcased the tailback's speed, power and elusiveness in the open field. Forte then scored from 3 yards out on the Bears’ final drive of the first quarter, a rare feat for the former Pro Bowler, whom the Bears routinely took out of the game in the red zone in recent years.
10 Aug 13:50

gynotician

A politician who feels more qualified than women and their doctors to make women's health care decisions. A combination of the words gynecologist and politician.

Republican governors such as Scott Walker and Rick Perry who impose draconian limitations on abortion clinics and attempt to limit access to HPV vaccinations, contraception and women's health care in general by shutting down Planned Parenthood clinics even though they do not perform abortions. They, and people like them, are gynoticians.

09 Aug 19:57

The trees of Chernobyl

by Jason Kottke

This is what the trees look like near Chernobyl when you cut them down. It's a biiiit tricky but see if you can spot when the nuclear plant disaster happened...

Chernobyl trees

Not surprisingly, researchers have found evidence that the radiation has affected the growth of trees near the accident site. From the paper:

Mean growth rate was severely depressed and more variable in 1987-1989 and several other subsequent years, following the nuclear accident in April 1986 compared to the situation before 1986. The higher frequency of years with poor growth after 1986 was not caused by elevated temperature, drought or their interactions with background radiation. Elevated temperatures suppressed individual growth rates in particular years. Finally, the negative effects of radioactive contaminants were particularly pronounced in smaller trees. These findings suggest that radiation has suppressed growth rates of pines in Chernobyl, and that radiation interacts with other environmental factors and phenotypic traits of plants to influence their growth trajectories in complex ways.

Tags: biology   Chernobyl   science
09 Aug 18:20

‘The monster,’ ‘the kitty,’ ‘the scratch,’ ‘the gift that keeps on giving.’

by Choire Sicha
by Choire Sicha


Nancy Downing, director of advocacy and legal services at Covenant House New York, a youth shelter, has also learned of kids who consider getting infected with HIV/AIDS as a means of survival. “It’s bone-crushing,” she says. “It’s unbelievable that kids have to go those lengths to get the services they need. Young people are sometimes not looking at their long-term future — they can see only the short-term future — and that is a developmental issue. It’s going to have an impact on them for the rest of their lives. Some might not even take the medication, because at their age — again, developmentally — they might not see the need.”

Who wants to feel fairly bad but very informed about something today? HERE YOU GO.

3 Comments

The post ‘The monster,’ ‘the kitty,’ ‘the scratch,’ ‘the gift that keeps on giving.’ appeared first on The Awl.

15 Jul 12:04

941. Could Have - Wislawa Szymborska

by Bookgleaner
Translated from the Polish by Stanislaw Baranczak and Clare Cavanagh

It could have happened.
It had to happen.
It happened earlier. Later.
Nearer. Farther off.
It happened, but not to you.

You were saved because you were the first.
You were saved because you were the last.
Alone. With others.
On the right. The left.
Because it was raining. Because of the shade.
Because the day was sunny.

You were in luck–––there was a forest.
You were in luck–––there were no trees.
You were in luck–––a rake, a hook, a beam, a brake,
a jamb, a turn, a quarter inch, an instant.
You were in luck–––just then a straw went floating by.

As a result, because, although, despite.
What would have happened if a hand, a foot,
within an inch, a hairsbreadth from
an unfortunate coincidence.

So you're here? Still dizzy from another dodge, close shave, reprieve?
One hole in the net and you slipped through?
I couldn't be more shocked or speechless.
Listen,
how your heart pounds inside me.


(Thank you missprincesscouture)
12 Jul 19:51

McCrory says he will sign House abortion bill

by By Craig Jarvis
GOP_CONVENTION_03

Gov. Pat McCrory on Friday said he will sign the House version of the abortion bill, but that he would veto the Senate's version if it comes to his desk. Abortion-rights groups say he has reneged on his campaign pledge not to sign any new restrictions into law.

    11 Jul 16:59

    A Taste of the 2013 Taste of Chicago

    by Dennis Lee

    From Chicago

    Slideshow

    VIEW SLIDESHOW: A Taste of the 2013 Taste of Chicago

    [Photographs: Dennis Lee]

    The Taste of Chicago is an essential part of summer here in the Windy City. Most natives grumble about it, wave their hands, and say, "I went once and I'll never go back!" while tourists happily pack Grant Park to enjoy eating bits and pieces of the city we love. I somehow get dragged back every year (psst, Nick made me do it) and I get to present this year's slideshow.

    Rainbow Waffle Cone from the Original Rainbow Cone

    There are 35 vendors with four pop-up restaurants that rotate each day (making the total tally 39), most of which are regular Taste of Chicago veterans, but a few of the new restaurants include Tony Hu's Lao Ma La, Bombay Spice Grill & Wine, and Flip Crepes.

    I do have a tip, though: bring plenty of friends. Despite the sun and crowds, having a bunch of friends around to share food with makes the Taste of Chicago a lot of fun, no matter what some of you grouchy Chicagoans might think.

    So without further adieu, enjoy the slideshow!

    11 Jul 14:07

    Dreamy Summer Mini-Playlist: Vance Joy, Mr Little Jeans, San Fermin

    by Jia Tolentino
    by Jia Tolentino

    Here are three wistful, triumphant indie stunners for a (hopefully) sunny summer morning. None of these songs are quite new, but they're a wee bit under radar and too pretty to be missed, and they share the DNA strands of viscerally satisfying production, big choral moments and a great top line.

    Vance Joy, "Riptide"

    Mr Little Jeans, "Oh Sailor"

    San Fermin, "Sonsick"

    8 Comments