China’s provinces are secretly building coal plants in defiance of the national government

In 2017, plans to cancel or slow construction on 151 planned or underway coal projects were announced. But in many cases, the rules were ignored entirely, and in others, construction plans were simply “delayed” until after 2017. 

Cool polymer paint saves on air conditioning

Air conditioning accounts for 10% of global energy consumption. Now researchers at Columbia University and Argonne National Laboratory in the US have produced a polymer “paint” capable of cooling surfaces to around 6 °C below ambient temperatures without using any energy at all. 

#DearCatalonia

Write letters to the Catalan politicians and civic movement activists who have been imprisoned for their political beliefs or actions.

The possibility of faster than light travel

We see them all the time in the best science fiction stories — ships with warp drives that make it possible for the characters to explore new planets and new galaxies. These crafts would go even faster than the speed of light except, if general relativity taught us anything, it’s that nothing can exceed the speed of light. Right? After all, light has no mass and thus it can move at 299,792,458 meters per second.

Christine Blasey Ford’s use of the word “sequela” wasn’t accidental

In Blasey Ford’s case, the originating trauma she’s referring to is what she saw as Kavanaugh’s attempt to rape her, while drunk, with his friend Mark Judge watching and jumping in to participate. She describes making eye contact with Judge in the hopes he’d help her while, she said, Kavanaugh groped at her clothes and was deterred only by her one-piece bathing suit and his inebriation.

Artist Candice Breitz Called Out a Düsseldorf Museum for Its Male-Dominated Show. More Than 1,000 People Agreed With Her *

The letter sharply criticizes the exhibition, organized by curators Florian Waldvogel and Alain Bieber, for including work by 12 male artists, three collectives (one of which is all male), and two women. Originally, there was only one female artist on the list, but British artist Suzanne Treister was added after an initial outcry on social media about the gender disparity. 

* Surely much more dozens of thousands will agree with her.

The decline in Facebook usage is a symbol of a corrupt internet

Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon now have employee camps and internal discontent to worry about. We went from over-sharing to over-consuming to not caring at all. 

Helena Almeida (1934 – 25 September 2018)

Almeida used shutters or blinds which transformed into paintings. Her goal is to break down the ideas of a painting. 

Geta Brătescu, Romanian multidisciplinary artist, has died, aged 92

Brătescu’s artistic practice included performances, drawings, textiles, films, installations, photography and printmaking. 

Is contemporary art the kale of the art world?

In fact, if one truly wishes to understand many diverse cultures, the place to start is with their respective histories, not the contemporary art of an ever more homogenous world. 

European Court: Parliamentarian Allowances Are ‘Personal’

The European Parliament has no obligation to tell the public what its 751 members do with their tens of millions of Euros annually in tax-free allowances, according to a verdict released Tuesday by the European Court of Justice (EC).

Japan developing supersonic glide bombs to defend Senkaku Islands

The ministry is promoting the deployment of surface-to-ship guided missile units on Okinawa’s Miyako and Ishigaki islands in response to the Chinese military, which has stepped up its activities in the East China Sea, including waters around the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands.

China unilaterally declared the ADIZ over the waters in 2013, a declaration that stoked concern at the time but which has largely been ignored by Japan and the United States.

“GAN-ism”

“Because they create instant gratification even if you have no deeper knowledge of how they work and how to control them, they currently attract charlatans and attention seekers who ride on that novelty wave,” 

Planet Earth Wobbles As It Spins, and Now Scientists Know Why

The melting of the Greenland ice sheet was a particularly important contributor, the researchers found. That's because Greenland has released a large amount of water that was once locked up on land into the oceans, where its mass has been redistributed, 

Jorge Peixinho - "Deux Pièces Meublées"

Over half of Dutch bishops shielded priest-abusers

A sensational new report on sexual abuse in the Netherlands claims over half of the bishops in the country from 1945-2010 were involved in either covering up abuse or abusing children themselves.

Pussy Riot activist in hospital after being poisoned

Over a period of two hours “he got worse exponentially”, Veronika Nikulshina, a member of Pussy Riot who is in a relationship with Verzilov, told Meduza. “First his sight, then his ability to speak, then even his ability to walk.”

"Lama" Ogyen Kunzang Dorje/Ogyen Kunzang Choling Community: kidnapping of children, torture, sexual abuse, fraud, falsification of documents, money laundering, and tax evasion

Litigation has been pending against Robert S. in Belgium since Livia and others filed suit in 1997. However, the wheels of the Belgian court system grind slowly, and the group of accusers have been almost helpless against Robert S.’s team of lawyers. Though new accusations have been added to the file over the years, the proceedings only began to really move again in 2015, when Ben took over the reins and began mobilising the various participants. The file contains accusations of over 170 crimes, including kidnapping of children, torture, sexual abuse, fraud, falsification of documents, money laundering, and tax evasion.

In September 2016, Robert S. was convicted in abstentia by a Brussels court in the first instance, and given a four-year suspended sentence. Now 76 years old, he did not appear in court, citing health reasons. He stayed in his villa in Spain and sent eight lawyers in his place, recalls Ben. The accusers were able to pay their lawyer twelve thousand euros thanks to a crowdfunding campaign. Despite the meagre sentence, Robert S. appealed. Almost twenty years have passed since the first claims were filed, and no end is in sight. There is still no news as to when the appeal will be heard.

Ben has had to undergo a long and painful process. He had to break out of the mental prison that he grew up in, and had no opportunities, no money, no social insurance and no basic education. Many former members are in the same position. Any money that they had was donated to the OKC, leaving them with no savings

The collapse of the European Union

The European Parliament just endorsed the article 11 (or the "Link Tax"). "Union" is just a word that, in the present situation, is no more than a joke: UE is divised as it was never before. As the US is no longer the "security umbrella" of Europe, we start to realise the the enemy is now inside doors. Never mind whats the "eurocrates" do vote - even if they may be  sometimes allright: the European Union is fatted to collapse and the European Parliament to disappear. We saw the powerful lobbies pushing many european regulations; we saw huge fines for ones (Google) and blind eyes for others (Facebook's unremovable "apps" inside the system of the devices); we realised that, even with the elected European Parliament and despite all the rhetorics,  the "real" citizens were the very last concern for the "eurocrates". "Eurocrates" that still bullying the british, because they voted to abandon the wreck called European Union (where the real "union" literally lacks). Today you voted against the link. Even if there are three links (*) in this article, it is my own writing, basically to tell you that your vote was completely wrong and may prevert the internet, and, if it happens, perhaps the European Union  will disappear for good of our internet. (anyway, some day it will collapse for any or many different reasons, not least because European Union is allowing Spain to continue holding Catalonia's political prisoners. In the other side, UK, that is now leaving this "club" of totalitarians and corrupts, did allow Scotland's referendum - what a difference of civilizations!)

(* actually four more one)

How Russia is Tormenting Political Prisoners Sentsov and Kolchenko

Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg  Sentsov and activist Sasha Kolchenko were both detained in occupied Crimea on May 10, 2014. They were accused of plotting terrorist acts, taken to Russia and convicted. Kolchenko was sentenced to 10 years in prison and Sentsov – 20 on fabricated charges and based on testimonies given under tortures.

Two other Ukrainians – Gennadiy Afanasiev and Oleksiy Chirniy – were arrested with Sentsov and Kolchenko. Afanasiev was released in a 2016 prisoner exchange, and Chirniy is still in a penal colony in Magadan.

"I no longer believe that I will soon walk free and that we will all live happily in Kyiv,” Kaplan quoted Sentsov as writing in a letter he sent her from prison.

Trump Administration Wants to Make It Easier to Release Methane Into Air

The Trump administration, taking its third major step this year to roll back federal efforts to fight climate change, is preparing to make it significantly easier for energy companies to release methane into the atmosphere.

Constança Capdeville - Momento I

Air pollution causes ‘huge’ reduction in intelligence

It found that high pollution levels led to significant drops in test scores in language and arithmetic, with the average impact equivalent to having lost a year of the person’s education.

“Aggregation: One Thousand Boats Show” - Yayoi Kusama

At Kusama’s 1963 “Aggregation: One Thousand Boats Show” at New York’s Gertrude Stein Gallery, Warhol allegedly told her how impressed he was with the work, which covered the floor, walls, and ceiling with a repeated photograph of the exhibition’s only sculpture. Fast-forward three years later, and the Pop art legend installed Cow wallpaper at Leo Castelli. “Andy picked up what I did and copied it for a show!” Kusama said.

Russia joins forces with China in largest war games since Soviet era

With 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 vehicles, 1,000 aircraft and 80 ships, the Vostok exercises in eastern Russia will be even bigger than the USSR's 1981 Zapad training, according to defence ministry claims. They will last a week and take place across nine training grounds as well as in the Sea of Japan and near the Bering Strait.

New study raises red flags on tax haven role in environmental destruction

Tax havens – and the financial secrecy they provide – may bolster industries tied to Amazon deforestation and the unsustainable management of natural resources, a new study has found.

Ocean Cleanup project sails out to sweep Pacific plastic

A supply ship towing a long floating boom designed to corral ocean plastic has set sail from San Francisco for a test run ahead of a trip to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Alien Life Could Exist on Worlds Overflowing with Water

Red dwarfs are dimmer than our own sun, but if planets are close enough to the star, they could, theoretically, have water on their surfaces and meet the conditions for habitability. 

The dark side of creativity: Depression + anxiety x madness = genius?

"The sun began to set - suddenly the sky turned blood red," he wrote. "I stood there trembling with anxiety - and I sensed an endless scream passing through nature."

Can the EU actually protect itself against Russia?

The EU itself is becoming weaker rather than stronger amid rising nationalism and populism, and even those countries that favor a stronger, more united Europe — namely France and Germany — disagree over who should lead it. Europe’s more realistic politicians — including Merkel — understand this, which is why they have emphasized the need for continuing trans-Atlantic cooperation on security and other issues, and cautioned against precipitating a decisive break.

Atlanticism has long been a convenient myth

“Atlantic” designates not a real set of values so much as an empty form that can be filled with whatever meaning its organisers want: liberal democracy, the diplomatic partnership between the US and Europe, or the simple continuation of structures set up after the second world war and not redefined since.