Watch Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band reunite for ‘SNL’ performance
Just because – they have played together for decades – they are alive…and they still…rock live, like no other band that is still making music that moves people in quite this way. They played two new songs from the latest album – and they truly love what they do. And this Springsteen collaboration with the Bleachers is remarkable music. Enjoy.
BBC Future: “Our modern world is dependent upon natural resources extracted from the ground, but there could be another source of rare and valuable metals by giving our houses a spring clean. With so many of us now stuck in our homes during the pandemic, long-postponed jobs such as clearing out the loft or attic may seem like a good way of keeping the monotony at bay. Perhaps sorting through the “drawer of junk” in the kitchen or cleaning out that over-stuffed cupboard in the spare room are rising up your to-do list. If you need a little extra motivation for the spring clean, though, there’s probably treasure hidden in there. Locked inside the old products we hoard in dusty corners are valuable metals and minerals. These are the same, much-needed natural resources that our modern world runs on. Collectively, our homes and backyards are an “urban mine” filled with these essential materials that are just waiting to be dug out.
Around the world there are millions, if not billions, of unused electronic devices in our homes – old mobile phones, neglected games consoles, ancient stereos, outdated computer equipment and defunct printers to name a few. Each of these contains copper, silver and even gold, along with a wide range of valuable rare earth elements. The key, however, is getting people to get rid of their old devices in a way that means these metals can be extracted, recycled and reused…”
Court Rules For Museum, Against Heirs In Case Of Kandinsky Bought Under Nazis
“In a decision watched closely by restitution experts, a court in Amsterdam ruled on Wednesday that the Stedelijk Museum there can retain a Wassily Kandinsky painting that it acquired during World War II and which came from a Jewish collection. The 1909 work, Painting with Houses, has been the focus of a restitution battle that has been viewed as a litmus test for Dutch restitutions policy.” – The New York Times
The Most Lethal Virus is Not COVID. It is War
My personal Oscar goes to Peter Hartcher of the Sydney Morning Herald,whose unrelenting rousing drivel about the “existential threat” (of China/Russia, mostly China) was illustrated by a smiling Scott Morrison, the PR man who is Australia’s prime minister. Continue reading
Saturday’s good reading and listening for the weekend
What people in other forums are saying about public policy Continue reading
Kangaroos can learn to communicate with humans, researchers say Reuters
Deadly ‘brain-eating amoeba’ has expanded its range northward Live Science
Coinbase picks Goldman Sachs to lead listing plans -source Channel News Asia
Federal Reserve frees up US banks to resume share buybacks FT
Fast Company, JR Raphael – “I spend more time thinking about email than any reasonably sane human should. From advanced Gmail settings to intricate tab training techniques, I’ve tried just about everything under the sun (and then some) to keep my inbox under control. Now, as another new year approaches, I’m taking on a strategy that seems almost absurdly at odds with the sea of folders, labels, and other email organizing systems in front of us. Those tools, I’ve come to realize, are often doing more harm than good. And that’s why I’ve decided to manage my email by mostly just ignoring them—and doing absolutely nothing. All right—so “nothing” might be a little misleading. I’ll still answer emails, as needed (and only with mild disgruntlement), and I’ll archive messages as I deal with them. But in terms of actual ongoing organization, I won’t devote any meaningful time or energy to marking my emails in any particular way or filing them away in any specific manner. In other words, I’m embracing a deliberately disorganized inbox in the name of email efficiency. And counterintuitive as it may seem on the surface, there’s a reasonable argument that it might just be a sensible strategy for success—one that you, too, would be wise to adopt. Let me explain…”