Notices by Minoru Saba (minorusaba@toad.social), page 21

@quoll funnily they are tiles just with shadow 😅

"Rosemary Fowler, 98, discovered the kaon particle during her doctoral research under Cecil Powell at the University of Bristol in 1948, which contributed to his Nobel prize for physics in 1950"
"But she left university without completing her PhD to marry fellow physicist Peter Fowler in 1949"
"She has now been awarded an honorary doctor of science by the University of Bristol chancellor, Sir Paul Nurse"
https://www.theguardian.com/science/article/2024/jul/22/physicist-rosemary-fowler-honoured-doctorate-75-years-after-discovery
#physics #Bristol

Japanese TV news show said last time incumbent US President decided not to seek re-election was LBJ in 1968.
Olympics starting this week will serve as major excuse for media in #Japan to give scant coverage to "boring"/"complicated" events that will have long term consequences even in Japan in a highly interconnected world.
Hoping US doesn't experience another Hubert Humphrey event and vainly hoping Japanese journalists acted more like canaries than parrots.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1968_Democratic_Party_presidential_primaries

I'm absolutely furious.

"Generally, I don’t think rich people believe anything besides: 1. they are basically good; 2. they deserve their money and no one should take it; and 3. anything that threatens ideas 1. and 2. is bad. Everything else is pretty flexible."

-Elizabeth Lopatto

https://www.theverge.com/2022/12/2/23488770/elon-musk-texas-twitter-politics-republican

Meanwhile, the NASA Artemis II Orion Spacecraft has been undergoing testing in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout building at KSC in Florida.

Recent testing included end-to-end performance verification of its subsystems, checking for leaks in its propulsion systems, and electromagnetic testing. Next up - vacuum chamber qualification testing.

https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/2024/06/28/nasas-artemis-ii-orion-spacecraft-prepares-for-vacuum-testing/
#NASA #Artemis
6/n

Note that a significant input to that disclaimer boilerplate is the history of shipwreck salvage.

Basically, software vendors claim that they are no more responsible for their software not working than if they sold you a saltwater-flooded EV they found washed up on a beach. https://bsd.network/@cynicalsecurity/112819827542225590

"...chaos caused by the global IT outage last week underlines the risk of moving towards a cashless society"
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/jul/20/cash-global-it-outage-cashless-society-dangers-payment-choice-alliance
🔸Japan's govt acknowledged importance of cash in a nation prone to natural disasters when introducing new banknote designs, but:
"...exposure to Chinese cashless payment options has caused a sense of crisis in #Japan and a fear that the Japanese economy is falling behind"
https://eastasiaforum.org/2019/11/12/challenges-facing-a-cashless-japan/
🔸Doesn't completely explain the govt's push towards cashless society

Infection status
Released July 12, 2024.
- As of period from July 1, 2024 - July 7, 2024 -

No. of patients per medical facility (nationwide) 11.18
Change from prev. week +3.11
[Source: Health-Labor-Welfare Ministry weekly report]
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/001276781.pdf
🔸Tenth week of increases. Saga at 29.46, Tokyo at 7.56, Chiba at 12.77, Akita at 3.13, Hokkaido at 4.82. Kagoshima at 31.75, Okinawa at 28.57
#Influenza monitoring paused by Health-Labor-Welfare Ministry until Sept.
#CovidIsNotOver #Japan

@RoboticistDuck Japan is probably seen mainly as a geographical thorn in the backside blocking clear access to the Pacific by both China & Russia.
Japan as porcupine fish might persuade the bigger fish to go elsewhere for lunch.

@David
It seems that William Adams, who arrived in Japan in 1600 and became an advisor to Ieyasu, opened a path for trade with England, so Ieyasu might have heard about Shakespeare amongst all the other info on Europe he wanted from a different viewpoint than those of Catholic Spain and Portugal.
https://oxfordandempire.web.ox.ac.uk/article/bodleian-shuinjo-early-english-trade-japan-1613-1623

Still think they're the only people manipulated by propaganda? 🤔 🙄

"Tokyo has for the first time sounded a direct warning against the growing risk of a grave situation akin to Russia’s invasion of #Ukraine occurring in East Asia...clearly a reference to a possible #Taiwan contingency"
"Tokyo also expressed grave concerns about [the] intensifying China-Russia joint military drills around Japan"
"Regarding Russia, Tokyo also expressed “a strong security concern.” "
https://thediplomat.com/2024/07/japans-defense-white-paper-sounds-alarm-over-china-north-korea-russia/
#Japan #geopolitics

"...a majority of both US and Taiwan experts [on China's invasion of #Taiwan] assessed that a crisis is either likely or very likely in 2024 [and] the Japanese strategic community generally believes that the Taiwan Strait contingency will spill over to #Japan"
"...US-China strategic nuclear power balance [shifting] toward parity continues to add uncertainty to US Taiwan policy"
as seen per US stance re Russia invading #Ukraine.
https://global.upenn.edu/perryworldhouse/news/japans-response-chinese-invasion-taiwan-four-year-outlook
🔸Best option for Japan: become inedible?

h/t to @mattblaze for his news prediction skills. #LasVegas #COVID19

"Ravenous sharks, two-headed snakes, and alligators that appear overly eager for a snack are notably less frightening in the hands of Lorien Stern. Armed with a bright color palette and exuberant style, the Mojave Desert-based artist creates a bold ceramic menagerie of some of the most menacing creatures on Earth"
https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/lorien-stern-ceramics/
#art #LorienStern #Mojave

@tuban_muzuru
Beautiful cuties! 😻🫶✨

"PM Kishida held bilateral talks with representatives from Pacific island nations such as Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu and Vanuatu, with Japan scheduled to hold the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting in Tokyo for three days through Thursday (18 July 2024)"
https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20240717/p2g/00m/0in/002000c
#PALM10 #Japan #geopolitics

Remembered it's the local "plastic packaging trash collection day".
Checked for sleeping geckos before slipping on shoes.
Hauled out 20L monthly bag of plastic waste to collection point.
0.7L/day of wrappers, egg-cartons, etc...way too much plastic.
Seems that about 60% gets "thermally recycled" i.e. burnt for power generation; only 21% gets materially recycled, but 3/4 of that is exported.
Doesn't seem sustainable.
https://www.pwmi.or.jp/ei/siryo/ei/ei_pdf/ei52.pdf
#Tokyo #Japan #plastic #sustainability

"A Trump presidency is concerning to Tokyo because... Japan’s economy suffered greatly [from Trump's trade war with China]"
"#Japan will also be worried about its regional security outlook"
"Trump’s relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un [could force] Japan and South Korea [towards] developing nuclear weapons"
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/11/japan-worried-about-transactional-trump-presidency-pesek-says.html
🔸Needs must when the devil drives could force Japan to align with the regional top dog if Trump withdraws US support.