Category Archives: Science

2025.06.04

From MPR News: “Tuesday’s smoke front produced the highest air quality index reading for wildfire smoke on record in the state of Minnesota.” Air quality is expected to improve markedly Wednesday and Thursday. Via MinnPost
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/06/03/smoke-storm-highest-smoke-level-ever-recorded-for-minnesota

From the Minnesota Star Tribune: “The hydroponic grower of year-round tomatoes in the northern clime of Owatonna, Minn., Bushel Boy Farms, has sold its assets and greenhouse to a new owner and operator. … Bushel Boy began as a greenhouse-grown tomato company in 1990 and had expanded in recent years to other fruits and vegetables, including strawberries and cucumbers.” Via MinnPost

US immigration officials push for increased detentions, including ‘collateral’ arrests
Exclusive: Ice officers encouraged to ‘push the envelope’ with arrests, including of undocumented people encountered by chance
José Olivares in New York
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/04/immigration-officials-increased-detentions-collateral-arrests

Proposed Republican cuts could undo opioid epidemic progress in Appalachia
Few other places in the US will see the effects of funding cuts felt more than in Appalachian communities
Stephen Starr in Huntington, West Virginia
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/04/opioids-appalachia-white-house-republicans

Trump keeps being overruled by judges. And his temper tantrums won’t stop that
Steven Greenhouse
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/04/trump-judges-law

Hegseth orders US navy to strip Harvey Milk name from ship amid Pride month
Timing of announcement on ship named after prominent gay rights activist and veteran is intentional, reports say
Maya Yang
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/03/harvey-milk-ship-name-hegseth

Are we heading for a recession? Show me your nails
Arwa Mahdawi
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/04/are-we-heading-for-a-recession-show-me-your-nails

How the use of a word in the Guardian has gotten some readers upset
Elisabeth Ribbans
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/04/use-word-gotten-some-readers-upset

Edmund White, novelist and great chronicler of gay life, dies aged 85
The American essayist, playwright and author of books including A Boy’s Own Story and The Married Man has died
Sian Cain
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jun/04/edmund-white-novelist-dies

2025.06.02

Much of Minnesota will be under an air quality alert, MPR News reports. The alert is expected to last until at least 6 p.m. Monday. “According to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, fine particle levels caused by large wildfires from Manitoba and Saskatchewan will push the air quality index to the red category, a level considered unhealthy for everyone, across the northern half of Minnesota. … For most of the southern and central part of Minnesota, the air quality index is expected to reach the orange category, which is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.”  Via MinnPost
https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2025/06/smoggy-times-canadian-wildfires-contribute-to-minnesota-haze/

Key US weather monitoring offices understaffed as hurricane season starts
National Weather Service offices are reeling from job cuts and a hiring freeze imposed by Trump
Oliver Milman
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/02/trump-national-weather-service-hurricanes

Half of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders faced hate in 2024, study finds
Exclusive: rampant anti-Asian hate in 2024 reflected divisive election season, survey finds
Minnah Arshad
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/02/aapi-hate-study

A ‘war on children’: as US changes Covid vaccine rules, parents of trial volunteers push back
Frustration and anger mount as Trump administration contemplates new trials and restrictions for Covid vaccines
Melody Schreiber
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/02/vaccine-rule-change-child-trial-volunteers

Loan plan in Republican bill could worsen doctor shortage, experts warn
Proposal to limit student loans for ‘professional programs’ risks driving people away from medicine, critics say
Jessica Glenza
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/01/republican-trump-bill-doctor-shortage

Is it true that … taking collagen supplements slows signs of ageing?
Many people take collagen powders and pills in the hope of looking younger for longer, but there are better ways to improve your chances
Kate Lloyd
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/02/is-it-true-that-taking-collagen-supplements-slows-signs-of-ageing

The deadlift difference: is this the exercise you need for an active and pain-free future?
Life is easier with a strong, flexible body – and this weightlifting move will help with everything from rearranging the furniture to picking up your groceries. You might even learn to love the barbell
Phil Daoust
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/01/the-deadlift-difference-is-this-the-exercise-you-need-for-an-active-and-pain-free-future

How electric scooters are driving China’s salt battery push
Xiaoying You
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250530-how-electric-scooters-are-driving-chinas-salt-battery-push

Stakes are high for US democracy as conservative supreme court hears raft of cases
Former critics now hope the justices have enough fealty to the US constitution to mitigate Trump’s assault on rights
Robert Tait in Washington
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/01/us-supreme-court-democracy

Parks, libraries, museums: here’s why Trump is attacking America’s best-loved institutions
Margaret Sullivan
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/02/national-parks-libraries-museums-trump

Trump’s tax bill helps the rich, hurts the poor and adds trillions to the deficit
Katrina vanden Heuvel
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/02/big-beautiful-tax-bill-deficit-trump

The women saving Japan’s vanishing cuisine
Michelle Gross
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20250530-the-women-saving-japans-vanishing-cuisine

Butt-naked Milton and a spot of fellatio: why William Blake became a queer icon
How did an ancient poet and painter who died in obscurity come to obsess everyone from Oscar Wilde to David Hockney, Robert Mapplethorpe, Derek Jarman and David Bowie? The writer of a new book explains his glorious allure
Philip Hoare
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jun/02/william-blake-queer-icon-bowie-wilde-mapplethorpe-jarman

2025.05.31

‘Breakthrough’ breast cancer therapy can slow advance of disease and prolong survival
Study shows combination treatment for aggressive breast cancer delays advance by average 17 months and chemotherapy by two years
Andrew Gregory Health editor, in Chicago
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/may/31/breakthrough-breast-cancer-therapy-can-slow-advance-of-disease-and-prolong-survival

Trump says he fired National Portrait Gallery chief in latest conflict with arts
President says director Kim Sajet has been fired but experts suggest president does not have legal grounds to do so
Robert Mackey
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/30/trump-fires-kim-sajet-national-portrait-gallery-director

Want to see where Trump’s tariffs are leading US business? Look at Georgia
The political swing state has a $900bn economy, with hospitality, industrial manufacturing – and movies
George Chidi in Atlanta
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/31/georgia-business-trump-tariffs

Four queer business owners on Pride under Trump: ‘Our joy is resistance’
As the first Pride month under Donald Trump’s second presidency approaches, LGBTQ+ businesses are stepping up
Jenna Zaza
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/31/pride-queer-business-owners

Tourist damages two of China’s terracotta warriors after jumping fence
The man ‘pushed and pulled’ the ancient clay warriors and damaged them to varying degrees, said authorities
Agence France-Presse
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/31/tourist-jumps-into-chinas-terracotta-army-damaging-ancient-warriors

Four tips for home care, from vacuuming your mattress to … cleaning your dishwasher?
I tried some of the advice from Kyshawn Lane of the wildly popular Instagram account Weekly Home Check
Buy an exclusive print from our Well Actually series
Madeleine Aggeler
https://www.theguardian.com/wellness/2025/may/30/four-tips-for-home-care

Are seed oils really bad for you?
Jessica Bradley
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250530-are-seed-oils-really-bad-for-you

Never before seen images of our Universe
https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p0lf3qdj/never-before-seen-images-of-our-universe

Loretta Swit, who played ‘Hot Lips’ Houlihan on MAS*H, dies aged 87
The actor, who won two Emmy awards, was best known for being one of longest-serving cast members on the hit series
Associated Press
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/may/30/loretta-swit-actor-dead

2025.05.30

Local News
These Minnesota cities were named among the top 250 “Best Places to Live” in the country
By Aki Nace
https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/minnesota-cities-best-places-to-live-2025/

Pfas detected in US beers in new study, raising safety concerns
Researchers point to contaminated water after ‘forever chemicals’ found in all but one of 23 sampled beers
Tom Perkins
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/30/beer-pfas-forever-chemicals

Over a barrel: lack of sugar throws Cuba’s rum industry into crisis
This year’s tiny harvest casts doubt on the spirit’s recent resurgence, once a bright spot in the island’s economy
Ruaridh Nicoll in Havana
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/may/30/over-a-barrel-lack-sugar-cuba-rum-industry-crisis-harvest

Is every memecoin just a scam? Experts on whether Andrew Tate and Trump are fleecing their followers
After I was turned into a memecoin, I looked into the hype behind the crypto that only a tiny percentage of people profit from
Matt Shea
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/may/30/is-memecoin-scam-crypto-trump

We’re minimizing the horror of Trump’s military birthday parade
Judith Levine
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/may/30/trump-military-parade-fascism

So long, Elon: the cuts didn’t go to plan, but you completely shredded your reputation
Marina Hyde
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/may/30/elon-musk-tesla-investors-doge

‘Death is not a mystery’: what happens to your body when you’re dying?
Experts say knowing more about death – or ‘death literacy’ – can actually help quell fears of dying
Katie Camero
https://www.theguardian.com/wellness/2025/may/29/what-happens-when-you-die

Remains of Mayan city nearly 3,000 years old unearthed in Guatemala
Pyramids and monuments suggest Los Abuelos was a significant ceremonial site, archaeologists say
Agence France-Press in Guatemala City u
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/29/mayan-city-remains-guatemala-los-abuelos-unearthed

2025.05.29

US federal court blocks Trump from imposing sweeping tariffs
Ruling from court of international trade in New York comes after slew of lawsuits arguing president exceeded authority
Kalyeena Makortoff and agencies
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/28/us-court-blocks-trump-tariffs

Donald Trump commutes sentence of former Chicago gang leader
Larry Hoover, 74, ex-chief of Gangster Disciples in Chicago, had been serving multiple life sentences for over 50 years
Léonie Chao-Fong
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/28/donald-trump-commutes-chicago-gang-leader-sentence

‘Flooding could end southern Appalachia’: the scientists on an urgent mission to save lives
Geologists race to collect perishable data as Kentucky residents ‘scared to death’ over floods amid Trump cuts
Nina Lakhani in eastern Kentucky with photographs by Jon Cherry
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/29/appalachia-kentucky-floods-research-trump-cuts

Scared advertisers, flag bans and Trump: the US is in for a troubled Pride 2025
Event organizers in red and blue states have seen an exodus of sponsors amid an anti-LGBTQ+ political climate. They insist the show will go on
Tim Teeman
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/29/pride-month-trump

Chinese paraglider survives accidental 8,000-metre-high flight above the clouds
A strong updraft propelled Peng Yujiang thousands of metres high, in line with flight paths and nearly as high as Mount Everest
Helen Davidson in Taipei
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/29/chinese-paraglider-peng-yujiang-survives-8000-metre-high-flight

Why does Switzerland have more nuclear bunkers than any other country?
Switzerland is home to more than 370,000 nuclear bunkers – enough to shelter every member of the population. But if the worst should happen, would they actually work?
By Jessi Jezewska Stevens
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2025/may/29/why-does-switzerland-have-more-nuclear-bunkers-than-any-other-country

Swiss village almost entirely destroyed after collapse of glacier buries it in mud
One person missing and Blatten devastated after huge cloud of ice and rubble inundates evacuated town
Guardian staff and agencies in Geneva
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/28/swiss-glacier-collapse-village-switzerland-blatten

Thousands in Canada’s Manitoba ordered to evacuate in wildfire emergency
There are more than 130 active wildfires across the country, half of which are considered out of control
Agence France-Presse
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/29/canada-wildfires-manitoba-province-fire-evacuation

‘Space travel is queer’: the unstoppable film-maker skewering Bezos and Musk’s macho fantasies
Cath Clarke
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/may/29/space-travel-bezos-musk-macho-fantasies-nelly-ben-hayoun-stepanian

Materialists to 28 Years Later: 10 of the best films to watch this June
Nicholas Barber
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250528-10-of-the-best-films-to-watch-this-june

2025.05.28

Feds arrest newest Feeding Our Future defendant at Twin Cities airport
Matt Sepid
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/05/27/feds-arrest-newest-feeding-our-future-defendant-at-twin-cities-airport

Trump cuts to NIH causing life-or-death delays in care: ‘Cancer shouldn’t be political’
Natalie Phelps, who has stage 4 colorectal cancer, has raised the alarm over how patients in the agency’s clinical trials are facing setbacks in treatment
Rachel Leingang
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/28/trump-cuts-nih-cancer-care

RFK Jr drops Covid-19 boosters for kids and pregnant women from CDC list
The move ends the CDC’s booster recommendation for healthy children and pregnant women, bypassing norms
Jessica Glenza
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/27/rfk-jr-covid-vaccine-kids-pregnant-women

Trump has no plan for who will grow US food: ‘There is just flat out nobody to work’
Farms rely on seasonal workers and undocumented immigrants, but the Republican’s plans to fill the gap would ‘legalize oppression’, advocates say
Tareq Saghie
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/28/farmworkers-h-2a-trump-agriculture

The Salt Path review – Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs hike from ruin to renewal
Marianne Elliott directs this affecting drama, based on Raynor Winn’s memoir, which builds steadily as the couple journey towards redemption
Cath Clarke
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/may/28/the-salt-path-review-gillian-anderson-and-jason-isaacs-hike-from-ruin-to-renewal

Spent by Alison Bechdel review – the graphic novelist faces up to midlife
In this playfully fictionalised memoir, Alison runs a pygmy goat sanctuary while making a name for herself on stage and screen
James Smart
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/may/28/spent-by-alison-bechdel-review-the-graphic-novelist-faces-up-to-midlife

Bovril: A meaty staple’s strange link to cult science fiction
Veronique Greenwood
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250527-bovril-a-meaty-staples-strange-link-to-cult-science-fiction

What to do if your laptop is lost or stolen – tips for when the worst happens
From remotely locking it using a locator, to backing up a replacement, steps to help you secure your data
Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/may/28/what-to-do-if-your-laptop-is-lost-or-stolen

Mirrored floors and mountain goats: photos of the day – Tuesday
Marissa Faessler leads her goats in Appenzell Innerrhoden,
The Guardian’s picture editors select photographs from around the world
Joe Mee
https://www.theguardian.com/news/gallery/2025/may/27/mirrored-floors-mountain-goats-photos-of-the-day-tuesday

Photos of Norway’s incredibly rare Viking ship discovery
https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p0ldt6yx/photos-of-norway-s-incredibly-rare-viking-ship-discovery

The return of Mexico’s famous Tequila Express train
Jamie Fullerton
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20250523-the-return-of-mexicos-famous-tequila-express-train

2025.05.22

Judge rules White House violated order by deporting migrants to South Sudan
Eight people apparently deported as their lawyers say the migrants are at ‘risk of harm’ and that there is ‘no clarity’
Maya Yang and Maanvi Singh
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/21/trump-deportations-south-sudan

DoJ moves to cancel police reform deals with Minneapolis and Louisville
Trump officials seek to dismiss Biden-era consent decrees reached after deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor
Rachel Leingang and agencies
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/21/justice-department-settlement-minneapolis-louisville

Alan Turing papers saved from shredder could fetch £150,000
Documents including signed copy of 1938 PhD dissertation to be auctioned after they were nearly thrown out
Jamie Grierson
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/may/21/alan-turing-papers-saved-from-shredder-could-fetch-150000

A huge Democratic victory in Omaha offers a lesson for the party
Katrina vanden Heuvel
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/may/21/omaha-election-win-democrats-lessons-john-ewing-jr

Australia approves new drug to treat early Alzheimer’s disease
Kisunla is first new treatment registered by TGA in 25 years but could cost patients more than $80,000 and less than one in five will be eligible
Natasha May Medical reporter
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/may/22/australia-approves-donanemab-kisunla-new-drug-treat-early-alzheimers-disease

Winners, resigners, guest dogs and royal losers – take the Thursday quiz
Questions on general knowledge and topical trivia, plus a few jokes, every Thursday. How will you fare?
Martin Belam
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/may/22/the-guardian-thursday-quiz-general-knowledge-topical-news-trivia-211

2025.05.21

Tribal cannabis dispensaries to open across Minnesota with White Earth Nation tribal-state compact
Melissa Olson
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/05/20/cannabis-dispensaries-now-allowed-off-tribal-lands-in-minnesota

Revealed: UnitedHealth secretly paid nursing homes to reduce hospital transfers
A Guardian investigation finds insurer quietly paid facilities that helped it gain Medicare enrollees and reduce hospitalizations. Whistleblowers allege harm to residents
George Joseph
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/21/unitedhealth-nursing-homes-payments-hospital-transfers

Moderna withdraws application for US approval of combined flu-Covid shot
After talks with Food and Drug Administration, company plans to resubmit vaccine application later this year
Reuters
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/21/moderna-withdraws-application-combined-flu-covid-vaccine

FDA says it will limit access to Covid-19 boosters for Americans under 65
Critics say shift will negatively affect people who are not high risk but want to be vaccinated against the disease
Lauren Gambino and Associated Press
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/20/fda-limits-covid-19-boosters

‘World-first’ gonorrhoea vaccine to be rolled out in England
Jab hailed as ‘landmark moment for sexual health’ and comes amid record cases of infection
PA Media
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/may/21/world-first-gonorrhoea-vaccine-rollout-england

A moment that changed me: I thought I’d never fit in in rural France – until a revelation at the boulangerie
I’d spent 10 years trying to be more like my goat-farming neighbours. What if I stressed my ‘Britishness’ instead?
Ian Moore
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/may/21/a-moment-that-changed-me-i-thought-id-never-fit-in-in-rural-france-until-a-revelation-at-the-boulangerie

Mexican navy says ship’s pilot in deadly bridge crash was from New York
Officials say ship must be operated by specialized harbor pilot as investigation into crash that killed two continues
Cy Neff
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/20/mexico-ship-brooklyn-bridge-new-york-crash

Amateur archaeologists unearth winged goddess at Hadrian’s Wall
Exclusive: Married volunteer diggers discover stone relief at site of Roman fort Vindolanda in Northumberland
Dalya Alberge
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/may/21/amateur-archaeologists-unearth-winged-goddess-hadrians-wall-vindolanda-victory

Lilo & Stitch review – Disney’s latest unnecessary remake is a monstrosity
The studio’s new attempt to generate more money from the same property hits an instant roadblock in ghastly misfire
Jesse Hassenger
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/may/20/lilo-stitch-review-disney

What to do if you can’t get into your Facebook or Instagram account
How to prove your identity after your account gets hacked and how to improve security for the future
Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/may/21/what-to-do-get-into-facebook-instagram-hacked-security

Finland is obsessed with saunas, but are they any good for you?
Erika Benke
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250520-are-saunas-and-cold-plunges-good-for-your-health

Only the shiniest and bestest:
Kristi Noem incorrectly defines ‘habeas corpus’ in Senate hearing
https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/ce8113z7k17o