Tootfinder

The Trump administration has paused construction of border infrastructure in Big Bend National Park in Texas following public criticism of the controversial project.
Crews were filmed bulldozing pristine desert wilderness earlier this month, sparking rare bipartisan pushback.
The construction is part of a larger plan for the Big Bend region to build hundreds of miles of walls, vehicle barriers and other border infrastructure.
The Department of Homeland Security waived req…

Bipartisan Outcry Forces Trump to Pause Border Security Project in Big Bend National Park in Texas
The Trump administration has paused construction of border infrastructure in Big Bend National Park in Texas following public criticism of the controversial project. Crews were filmed bulldozing pristine desert wilderness earlier this month, sparking rare bipartisan pushback. The construction is part of a larger plan for the Big Bend region to build hundreds of miles of walls, vehicle barriers and other border infrastructure. The Department of Homeland Security waived requirements that federal …

Jack Bech Makes Feelings Clear Entering Second Raiders Season https://heavy.com/sports/nfl/las-vegas-raiders/jack-bech-feelings-clear-second-season/

Analysis: OpenAI and Anthropic employees are donating to campaigns more heavily and cohesively than Google, Meta, and Airbnb employees did post-IPO (Alexandra Lindsay/The San Francisco Standard)
https://sfstandard.com/2026/07/18/ai-s-…

AI’s new political donor class is already outspending Big Tech’s last one
Campaign filings show AI employees donating faster, more heavily, and more in sync than three prior tech-IPO donor classes. Here’s where the money is going.

Cowboys’ CeeDee Lamb Expressed His Blunt 4-Word Feelings Before Commanders Game https://heavy.com/sports/nfl/dallas-cowboys/ceedee-lamb-4-word-feelings-commanders/

I've just finished #LibraryBingo. My picks were:
Non-fiction: On Sheep, Diary of a Swedish Shepherd
Genre you usually avoid: graphic novel Persepolis
One word title: Nonesuch
Book set in a foreign country: The Quiet American
Book made into a film: Murder on the Orient Express
Book chosen on cover alone: The Hazelbourne Ladies' Motorcycle and Flying …

Generative AI’s per-query footprint can be small compared to flying, eating meat, or even Zoom. Until agents show up and compute goes through the roof.
How I updated my AI footprint calculator accordingly https://jonippolito.substack.com/p/agents-are-where-ais-energy-bil…

"A sprawling expanse of white #marble waste in #India is drawing tourists, filmmakers and social media enthusiasts to a landscape that looks more like a snow-covered valley than a dumping ground"
(h/t drsadhbh on bsky) #quarry

India marble waste dump turns unlikely tourist attraction
A sprawling expanse of white marble waste in India is drawing tourists, filmmakers and social media enthusiasts to a landscape that looks more like a snow-covered valley than a dumping ground.

1.5 weeks into a 3 week holiday* and I can feel now just how much I needed it.
And how little I want to go back to work in August.
Let's hope the second half of the holiday fixes that.
#AcademicChatter
*yes I know, I am incredibly fortunate to get to take 3 weeks of summer holiday off, but the feeling of utter burnout is also real.

Filing: SK Hynix plans a ~$29B share buyback, repurchasing and canceling up to 24M treasury shares, in a bid to calm worries about the durability of AI spending (Denny Thomas/Bloomberg)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-…

Former Department of Government Efficiency, (or DOGE), employees are working on an artificial intelligence takeover of federal government services for the Trump administration. 
The Washington Sun reports that the staffers are setting up an AI-driven website,
America.gov,
to help Americans with everything from obtaining and renewing passports to potentially preparing and filing taxes for free.
(The latter is still under discussion and would be a reversal from the Whit…

DOGE Staffers Are Back—and Leading AI Takeover of Government Services
The DOGE goons who drove federal agencies into the ground last year are back, including that dude who goes by “Big Balls.”