Alicia Eler at the Star Tribune reports: “Experts in New York … may have discovered a previously unknown Vincent van Gogh portrait of a fisherman. … the painting first surfaced a few years ago at a garage sale in Minnesota and was sold to an antiques collector for less than $50.” Via MinnPost

Two Feeding Our Future defendants plea guilty as trial approaches Brothers Abdulkadir Nur Salah and Abdi Salah admit to stealing a few million dollars in federal money earmarked to feed underprivileged children. by Joey Peters https://sahanjournal.com/public-safety/feeding-our-future-guilty-plea-aimee-bock-trial/

Stage adaptation of Coraline cancelled after allegations against Neil Gaiman Producers say it is ‘impossible to continue’ with musical that was due to be staged at Leeds Playhouse from April Nadia Khomami Arts and culture correspondent https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jan/29/stage-adaptation-of-coraline-cancelled-after-allegations-against-neil-gaiman

Minnesota Pride group raises $50,000 after dropping Target as a sponsor Non-profit that organizes annual Minneapolis festival cut ties with retailer after 18 years after it drops DEI policies Lauren Aratani https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/29/minnesota-twin-cities-pride-target-sponsor

It’s too bad we don’t do medical research no more! ‘Groundbreaking’: scientists develop patch that can repair damaged hearts Cells taken from blood and ‘reprogrammed’ into heart muscle cells may help patients with heart failure Nicola Davis Science correspondent https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jan/29/scientists-develop-patch-repair-damage-heart-failure

Watch: Shetland skies set alight in Europe’s largest fire festival
https://bbc.com/news/videos/czrl1yn3032o

‘We see young Philippa return to her home village, exhausted after countless rounds of brutal fighting, tasked now with severing her personal attachments, which she succeeds at by giving her family a painful, slow death by infodump.’
http://www.nerds-feather.com/2025/01/what-hell-star-trek.html?m=1

I’ve heard that US AI firms are accusing Chinese DeepSeek AI of stealing their stolen, err, purloined IP for training.

Happy New Year! BBC weather presenter Sabrina Lee explains what Lunar New Year is and why many people around the world will be celebrating it. https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/ce8j08q95e7o