Tootfinder

Ukrainian filmmaker Oleh Sentsov promoted to battalion commander: https://benborges.xyz/2025/09/15/ukrainian-filmmaker-oleh-sentsov-promoted.html

Complex three-dimensional rearing environments amplify compensatory plasticity following early blindness https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.05.02.651847v1 "underscoring the role of experience in directing compensatory plasticity following early sensory loss.&q…

Complex three-dimensional rearing environments amplify compensatory plasticity following early blindness
The neocortex has a remarkable capacity to alter its functional organization and connectivity in response to sensory loss, particularly if this loss occurs early in life. A key question is whether this cross-modal reorganization is driven by sensory deprivation itself or through enhanced use of the spared senses. We investigated how different rearing environments shape neural responses in primary somatosensory cortex (S1) of short-tailed opossums ( Monodelphis domestica) , following elimination…

"How microbes could help solve the world's plastic pollution crisis"
#Pastic #Plastics #Pollution

How microbes could help solve the world's plastic pollution crisis
With conventional waste management systems falling short, many scientists are turning to nature for innovative solutions to the issue of plastic waste. One promising avenue is microbial degradation: harnessing the natural abilities of certain bacteria and fungi to break down plastics in ways that current technologies cannot.

Late fluid flow in a primitive asteroid revealed by Lu–Hf isotopes in #Ryugu: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09483-0.epdf?sharing_token=VL8QMH3tVOhYxVKrJmTozdRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0NPQK0_mk8K7IgOT-Cto7Eo7Wz9oQUxzQKpjpaa2UdwuGYA71rDYG1QYVuwa4CBanwmb6BgPdujtT03FRKF28qp9SvV40dGHc0Iym5wGaWv9y5L1cy7JRyggjQSwsNVGH3F-1iVtnCEQSNlhTHKNgPPvBXSpsvARNlTBSiShsCbG-LtNUXW4tLcBP54GvJC6VQ=&tracking_referrer=www.space.com -> Scientists find evidence of flowing water on Ryugu’s ancient parent asteroid: https://www.space.com/astronomy/asteroids/scientists-find-evidence-of-flowing-water-on-ryugus-ancient-parent-asteroid-it-was-a-genuine-surprise

Fear of flying therapy is about reframing the flight experience;
if my mind’s eye squints,
I can almost interpret my sweating palms and pounding heartbeat as a kind of buzz.
But this requires repeated, strenuous effort,
and the result is a mental exhaustion that makes the worst-case scenario appealing:
succumbing to my fears and never flying again.
I imagine this as analogous to what many Americans, aerophobic or not, are feeling.
It’s simply easier…

Winging It | Noelle Mateer
For those trying to overcome their fears of flying, it’s been . . . a challenging time to say the least.

Sometimes I wake up to the liberating feeling that no one holds authority over me. If only the world would recognize this freedom and dismantle all forms of oppression!
#Anarchism #Syndicalism

In some UK woodlands, every young tree has died. What’s going wrong? https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jul/10/britain-ancient-woodlands-failing-regenerate-forests-climate-drought-heat-dis…

Cutsets in ${\mathcal P}(X)$
John Ginsburg, Bill Sands
https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.10221 https://arxiv.org/pdf/2508.10221

Cutsets in ${\mathcal P}(X)$
For any set $X$, ${\mathcal P}(X)$ denotes the collection of all subsets of $X$, ordered by inclusion. A {\it cutset} in ${\mathcal P}(X)$ is a subset of ${\mathcal P}(X)$ which meets every maximal chain of ${\mathcal P}(X)$. A cutset is non-trivial if it does not contain $X$ or the empty set. Our main result is the following. Theorem 1: Let $X$ be an infinite set of cardinality $κ$. Every non-trivial cutset in ${\mathcal P}(X)$ contains a chain of cardinality $κ^+$ and an antichain of card…

In his op ed in the WaPo,
Jay Bhattacharya has shown that he should not be taken seriously. He’s DEFINITELY not a real scientist.
If people don’t like science should we ignore the potential it has?
That’s not how it works.
Science doesn’t care about your feelings.
https://

The Los Angeles field office director for the Department of Homeland Security
testified on Monday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers
desperately needed the help of military personnel in carrying out arrests.
The question is whether Donald Trump‘s deployment of armed forces goes against U.S. law that generally prohibits the president from using the military to police domestic affairs.
Ernesto Santacruz Jr. testified at the start of a three-day trial in S…

Trial to start over National Guard deployment to Los Angeles
A federal judge in San Francisco will hear arguments on whether military troops deployed this summer by the Trump administration to Los Angeles violated a federal law that bars troops from conducting law enforcement duties within the country. Judge Charles Breyer will decide whether the Posse Comitatus Act, an 1878 law that prevents the president from using the military as a domestic police force, was violated by the 4,700 California National Guard members and Marines sent following protests. T…