Notices by VM (Vicky) Brasseur (vmbrasseur@social.vmbrasseur.com)

"Established in 1996, the IMLS is the only federal agency that provides resources to museums and libraries…Also under its purview are the Institute of Museum Services and the Library Programs Office…

"As an agency, the IMLS is legally bound to support libraries and report important issues to Congress. Slashing programs that are supported by federal funds and failing to operate as was originally laid out, however, violates these laws."

https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/institute-of-museum-and-library-services-restraining-order-overturned-1234744651/

"The study results showed the co-location of solar farming with sheep grazing is not negatively impacting wool production, even in the case of pre-existing high-quality standards. Some parameters even indicated an improvement in wool quality, although conclusive benefits require further long term measurement.”

https://cleantechnica.com/2025/05/25/agrivoltaics-with-sheep-solar-benefit-all-especially-the-sheep/

“The dark patterns and disregard for consent has been endemic in tech for too many years.”

https://soatok.blog/2025/05/04/tech-companies-apparently-do-not-understand-why-we-dislike-ai/

@evan I did, despite that strict budget. ;-)

• https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691174761/the-usefulness-of-useless-knowledge (the book that lead to my discovery of the sale)
• https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691239392/stellar-english (I'm a sucker for a grammar)
• https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691263564/the-beekeepers-guide (I'm bee curious 🐝)

“Following a request by Pope Francis, the vehicle used during his visit to Bethlehem in 2014 is being refitted with everything needed for frontline care in a war zone, charity organisation Caritas, which is overseeing the project, said.”

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c934r9nw4r9o

@evan Ooh. Those all look like great reads. I'm glad I'm on a strict budget right now. 😅

@evan Oh, fantastic. Which ones did you get? (if you're OK to share)

I'm really (well, kinda; well, actually not at all) sorry to do this to y'all, but Princeton University Press has nearly all their books 50% off right now.

There's a whooooole lotta interesting things to read in there…

https://press.princeton.edu

#Bookstodon

Your doctor called. They said you’re not getting enough beans in your online diet. Here, have a serving of pinks.

#Caturday

This is a _very_ cool project that just landed on @crowdsupply. Had I not been laid off last week (hire me! #GetFediHired) I'd definitely order one.

"Using its high-quality sensors, Air Lab measures CO2, temperature, relative humidity, air pollutants (VOC, NOx), and atmospheric pressure. The device can record measurements for multiple days, which you can analyze directly on-device—no computer or smartphone required.”

https://www.crowdsupply.com/networked-artifacts/air-lab

“Here’s the headline stat: a single 5-megawatt community solar project can generate around $14 million in local economic activity and support nearly 100 local jobs. And when scaled up? The potential impact is massive.”

https://cleantechnica.com/2025/04/15/community-solar-is-booming-and-bringing-big-economic-benefits-with-it/

“Paper receipts from major retailers in the US are so laden with bisphenol S that holding one for 10 seconds can cause the skin to absorb enough of the highly toxic chemical to violate California’s safety threshold, new research has found.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/14/paper-receipt-chemical-bisphenol-s

Timeline rest stop.

Pause to boop the snoot.

#CatsOfMastodon #Catstodon

Another terrible blow struck to science.

https://www.404media.co/open-source-genetic-database-opensnp-shuts-down-to-protect-users-from-authoritarian-governments/

Dear conference organisers,

Please stop hosting your events in Texas (yes, even Austin).

It's become far too dangerous for a lot of people to attend the event, and many of the rest of us will avoid it to support our besieged LGBTQA+ colleagues.
https://masto.ai/@n0m0time/114150270163428794

At my yearly checkup yesterday, I asked my dr for a measles serology test & learned that I really need a refresher to that vax. Which I'm getting this afternoon. 💪💉🥰

This post is a public service announcement that if it's been a while since you got ‘em, you, too, can ask for serology tests for your vaccinations.

“Food waste starts at the very source: the farm. Up to 16 percent of a crop can be wasted due to factors completely out of a farmer’s control.”

https://grist.org/food-and-agriculture/gleaning-the-ancient-practice-fighting-modern-food-waste/

@itgrrl 🥰 Thank you!

@kyle “We stick by our values, like keeping known toxic people on our board, so give us money."

No, thanks.

So…what happened that the #FSF founders/board felt the need to publish this rambling, back-patting, perplexing post?

It reads rather like a CYA.

https://www.fsf.org/news/anchoring-the-fsf-in-its-values