Veritasium

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, Jan 22-28, 2023

/ Melanie Marttila

Welcome to February, my writerly friends! It’s time, once again, to get your mental corn popping.

Betsy Golden Kellem: finding Krao Farini. How sideshow “bearded ladies” reveal the racial biases underpinning Darwinian theory and (white) public perception. JSTOR Daily

2.8-billion-dollar settlement reached in class-action lawsuit over residential schools. CBC

Computer model of H1N1 virus shows universal vaccine promise. UC San Diego

Inori Roy reveals the mental health crisis on the other end of the phone. The Walrus

Wearable sensor uses ultrasound to provide cardiac imaging on the go. UC San Diego

Will Sullivan: these ants were trained to sniff out cancer. The Smithsonian Magazine

The stickiest non-sticky substance. Veritasium

Cory Doctorow discusses the “enshittification of TikTok. He knows his, er, shit 🙂 Wired

RaiBo is a versatile robo-dog that runs over sandy beach at three metres per second. Tech Xplore

Ben Turner reports that radio signal from eight billion light-years away could reveal secrets of universe’s “dark age.” Live Science

Alexandra Witze wonders, has Earth’s inner core stopped its strange spin? Nature

What if alien life was silicon-based? PBS Space Time

Matthew Weaver: digital scans unwraps secrets of 2,300-year-old mummy. The Guardian

Jennifer Ouellette: archaeologists discover a new papyrus of the Egyptian Book of the Dead. Ars Technica

Bridget Alex unpacks the jungle realm of the snake queens. Archaeology

Rachel Bronson wonders how close are we to the end of the world? The Doomsday Clock. The Walrus

Thanks for visiting. I hope you found something to inspire a future creative project.

Until my next chapter weekly update, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, Aug 28-Sept 3, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

We’re rounding the bend and almost to the weekend. Pour on that last bit of speed by getting your mental corn popping!

Dr. Torvi, mid-operation.

No charges in police killing of Rayshard Brooks. BBC

How did Al Sharpton become a joke? Princess Weekes

Yessica Fisch reports that Russia, Ukraine trade claims of nuclear plant attacks. Associated Press

Dave Lawler: Ukraine launches counteroffensive to retake Russian-occupied Kherson. Axios

Jamey Keaten and Edith M. Lederer announce that the UN cites possible crimes against humanity in China’s Xinjiang. Associated Press

Jessica Stillman explains how to spot an emotional vampire and a 5-step process to defeat one, when you do. Inc.

Dr. Patricia Lockwood: scientists pinpoint the brain area responsible for effortful helping behaviour (AKA altruism). The University of Birmingham

Bill Hathaway wonders what makes the human brain different? Yale neuroscientists reveal clues. Yale News

Stefan Van der Stigchel reveals what the science says about daydreaming and concentration. The MIT Press Reader

Guy Kawasaki interviews Fran Houser about how to kindly, gently, and powerfully embrace your work. The Remarkable People Podcast

Laura Ungar: zombie cells central to quest for active, vital old age. Associated Press

The world’s highest jumping robot. Veritasium

Tariq Malik reports that NASA calls off Artemis I moon rocket launch over engine cooling issue. Space.com

Webb inspects the heart of the phantom galaxy. The European Space Agency

Hannah Devlin reveals historic JWST images showing exoplanet in unprecedented detail. The Guardian

S.N. Johnson-Roehr: Caroline Herschel claims her comet. JSTOR Daily

The ominous reason Phobos has lines on it. SciShow Space

Mount Sinai Hospital researchers find spaceflight may be associated with DNA mutations, increased risk of heart disease, and cancer. Phys.org

Dinah Voyles Pulver: melting Greenland ice sheet will raise sea levels nearly a foot, study finds. USA Today

Leo Sands reports on the Pakistan floods: one third of the country is under water, minister says. BBC News

Abir Ahmar: parched UAE turns to science to squeeze more rainfall from clouds. Reuters

Sarah Keartes explains how giant isopods got supersized. Hakai Magazine

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you found something to inspire a future creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, July 31-Aug 6, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

It is time, my writerly friends, to get your mental corn popping!

Dylan Lovan reports that feds charge four police officers in fatal Breonna Taylor raid. Associated Press

“A specific form of anti-Black racism”: scholars want Canadian apology for slavery on Emancipation Day. CTV News

Saba Aziz: hate crime reports in Canada surged during covid-19 pandemic: StatCan. Global News

Wency Leung wonders, is there a covid-19 endgame still in sight with BA.5 spreading fast? Not with vaccines alone. The Globe and Mail

Natalia Zinets says there’s a glimmer of hope as Ukraine grain ship leaves Odessa port. Reuters

Matthew Lee, Nomaan Merchant, and Aamer Madhani: Biden declares killing of al-Qaida leader is long-sought “justice.” Associated Press

The four things you need to be an expert. Vertasium

Arthur C. Brooks explains how to embrace doing nothing. Like literally. The Atlantic

Tracy Brower: this is how job stress can worsen your health, according to science. Fast Company

Lindsay Kohler explains why boredom at work is more dangerous than burnout. Forbes

Clark Quinn wonders if learning and development (L&D) language is limiting? Learnlets

Harold Jarche is navigating complexity (in personal knowledge management).

How Fahrenheit fails you. Answer in Progress

Ashley Strickland: rare type of galaxy dazzles in new Webb telescope image. CNN

Why is puberty so weird? Be Smart

Ian Sample reports that scientists create world’s first synthetic embryos. It’s more about understanding how organs develop in a fetus and the potential for growing transplants from stem cells like bone marrow for leukemia patients. The Guardian

Jill K. Robinson: in Polynesia, tattoos are more than skin deep. National Geographic

Allyson Chiu says when celebrities use private jets excessively, it’s a climate nightmare. The Washington Post

True facts: the self-sacrificing amoeba. Ze Frank

Thank you for visiting. I hope you took away something to support a future creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, May 29-June 4, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to get your mental corn popping!

Kelly Hayes: hope is not a given. We must cultivate it together. Truthout

Patrick Washington says that white supremacy is America’s love language. Word in Black

Ashawnta Jackson explains how Black radio changed the dial. JSTOR Daily

Ali Breland unpacks mass shootings and our never ending doomcycle. Mother Jones

A message from the Future II: The Years of Repair. The Intercept

100 days of war in Ukraine: a timeline. France 24

Andrea Woo and Marcus Gee report that BC to decriminalize possession of small amounts of “hard” drugs, like cocaine, fentanyl, and heroine. The Globe and Mail

Guy Kawasaki interviews Jennifer Kerns about women’s rights. The Remarkable People Podcast

Janice Gassam Asare interviews Dr. Raquel Martin talks race-related stress and why burnout must be treated as a systemic issue. Forbes

The euphoria of Elliot Page. Esquire

Ina Fried predicts the future of the office could look like a Starbucks. Axios

Douglas Perry: clinging to an 8-hour workday? Research suggests 5 hours is better. The Seattle Times

Clark Quinn recommends that instead of asking what’s in it for me, ask, what’s in it for them? Learnlets

Forgetting doesn’t reverse the learning process. Neuroscience News

Livia Gershon: scientific seances in twentieth-century Iran. JSTOR Daily

The absurd search for dark matter. Veritasium

Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne reports that a new law unchains fusion energy. Phys.org

Princeton University reveals that electrons in a crystal found to exhibit linked and knotted quantum twists. Phys.org

This machine makes hurricanes! Be Smart

Olivia Box considers the imperiled inland sea. JSTOR Daily

Craig Welch: will the oldest tree on Earth survive climate change? National Geographic

Thank you for visiting, and I hope you took away something to inspire a future creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, July 4-10, 2021

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s that time of week again. Get your mental corn popping and celebrate the coming of another glorious weekend.

Jelani Cobb: Derek Chauvin’s trial and George Floyd’s city. The New Yorker

Karen Attiah says that the challenge for educators amid the critical race theory backlash is how to fight hot air. The Washington Post

Richard Alba, Morris Levy, and Dowell Myers bust the myth of the majority-minority America. The Atlantic

Sasha Banks reveals the problem with patriotism. The Atlantic

The lost graves of Louisiana’s enslaved people. The New York Times

Etant Dupain, Gerardo Lemos, Ivana Kottasová and Caitlin Hu: Haiti president Jovenel Moise assassinated in attack on his residence. CNN

Serpent River First Nation celebrates their first Pride: living their truth. CBC

First woman elected as grand chief of Mohawk council of Kahnawake. CBC

RoseAnne Archibald to lead Assembly of First Nations as national chief. CTV News

Catharine Tunney and John Paul Tasker: Inuk leader Mary Simon named Canada’s first Indigenous Governor General. CBC

Kayla Rosen reports that the Manitoba Métis Federation signs agreement with Canada to advance right to self-governance. CTV News

John Tonin: Lower Post holds ceremonial demolition of its residential school. Yukon News

In Spain, police probe suspected hate crime targeting gay man. Associated Press

Ben Leeson reports that the Jeno Tehanyi Olympic Gold Pool at Laurentian University is unlikely to open this year; mayor vows to help save facility. The Sudbury Star

You are not a visual learner. Veritasium

Cal Newport explains how to achieve sustainable remote work. The New Yorker

Jackie Flynn Morgensen says, the pandemic made science more accessible than ever. Let’s keep it that way. Mother Jones

Philip Wang: the “eye of fire” that erupted in the Gulf of Mexico is under control, says Mexican-owned oil company. CNN

Becky Ferreira: a massive lake suddenly vanished in Antarctica. Vice

The Moral of Flowers was an illustrated Victorian encyclopedia of poetic lessons from the garden. Brain Pickings

Are some species more important than others? | In our nature |It’s okay to be smart

Elise Kjørstad reveals that wolf packs don’t have alpha males or females; it’s just a misunderstanding. Phys.org

Thanks for visiting, and I hope you found something to inspire a future creative project. Let it percolate. A good story takes time to brew 🙂

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, May 16-22, 2021

/ Melanie Marttila

Happy Friday eve! Get your mental corn popping in anticipation of a lovely weekend!

Laurel Wamsley: prosecutor says deputies were justified in their fatal shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. NPR

The University of Washington reveals that almost all kinds of air pollution affect people of color hardest. Futurity

Khari Johnson: Black and queer AI groups say they’ll spurn Google funding. Wired

Fedora Abu introduces us to Britain’s first Black aristocrats. BBC

Kim Tran shows you the Asian American activism you won’t see on Instagram. Refinery 29

Geeta Pandey reports that India’s holiest river Ganges is swollen with covid victims. BBC

You can’t prove everything is true. Veritasium

Yuliya Talmazan reveals that BBC’s Martin Bashir used “deceitful” methods to secure Princess Diana interview. NBC

The neuroscience of tongue-twisters. SciShow Psych

Randy Pascal: Alex Baumann adds voice to Laurentian pool discussion. The Sudbury Star

Kayla Barron joins NASA’s SpaceX Crew-3 mission to space station. NASA

What the crater from the extinction of the dinosaurs taught us about Mars. SciShow Space

Sierra Garcia wonders what green hydrogen will mean for international relations. JSTOR Daily

Patrick Barkham introduces us to the farmers putting trees back into UK fields. The Guardian

Related: Olivia Box also touts silvopasture, or, why are there cows in the woods? JSTOR Daily

Karen Zamora explains how a fungus is making cicadas sex-crazy (side-effect, dismemberment). NPR

Richard Luscombe says that sharks use Earth’s magnetic field as guidance system. The Guardian

Thank you for taking the time to visit, and I hope you found something to inspire a future creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, 21-27, 2021

/ Melanie Marttila / 1 Comment

No April fools today! Just an opportunity to get your mental corn popping.

Illinois becomes the first city to offer Black residents reparations. Associated Press

Kim Barker, Mike Baker, and Ali Watkins: in city after city, police mishandled Black Lives Matter protests. The New York Times

Ashawnta Jackson explains how Mary Fields became “Stagecoach Mary.” JSTOR Daily

Lawrence Hurley: SCOTUS expands the ability to sue police for excessive force. Reuters

Related: Jacob Blake file excessive force lawsuit against officer who shot him in the back. CBS News

Whittney Evans reports that Virginia becomes the first southern state to repeal the death penalty. NPR

Li Zhou: the Atlanta shootings can’t be divorced from racism and misogyny. Vox

Kareem Fahim reports that Erdogan pulls Turkey out of European treaty aimed at protecting women from violence. The Washington Post

Nahal Toosi: US, UK, EU, and Canada announce sanctions on China for Uighur genocide. Politico

This is why we can’t have nice things. Real conspiracies. Veritasium

Ian Austen highlights Winnipeg’s new showcase and meeting place for Inuit art and artists. The New York Times

The history of throwing shade. The Take

Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal win a humble prize for architecture. Christian Science Monitor 

Breakthroughs in artificial wombs and growing heart valves. SciShow News

Jenny Stevens offers some big vagina energy: the return of the Sheela na gig. The Guardian

The biggest lie about nuclear energy. ASAP Science

In honour of World Water Day, Nina Munteanu writes about water protectors.

“Our biggest challenge? Lack of imagination: the scientists turning the desert green. Steve Rose for The Guardian.

Stuart Clark: Elsa-d mission to clean up space debris set for launch. The Guardian

Robin George Andrews: scientists spot a “space hurricane” for the first time. National Geographic

Thank you for taking the time to visit, and I hope you took away something to inspire your next creative project.

This weekend, I should be posting my March next chapter update.

Until then, be well and stay safe, my writerly friends!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Jan 24-30, 2021

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s Thursday, and you know what that means. Tomorrow is Friday! Prepare yourself for the weekend by getting your mental corn popping.

Dalton Walker reports how the “parade across America” has an Indigenous touch. Indian Country Today

Mali Obomsawin: this land is whose land? Indian country and the shortcomings of settler protest. Smithsonian Folklife

Mildred Europa Taylor wants you to meet the eight-year-old neuroscientist who teaches online from a lab in her bedroom. Face2Face Africa

Russell Contreras: Biden picks up his pen to change the tone on racial equity. His first set of executive orders puts a “down payment” on the promise of racial justice in America. Axios

John Haltiwanger notes that Biden administration speeding up process to put Harriet Tubman on $20 bill. Business Insider

Maudlyne Ihejirika announces that the Emmett Till childhood home is now an official city landmark. Chicago Sun Times

Stephen Humphries reveals the new museum celebrating African American music from Ella to Beyoncé. Christian Science Monitor

Amir Vera and Raja Razek: two Kenosha police officers, on administrative leave since the Jacob Blake shooting, are back on duty. No justice. CNN

Doha Madani reports that the Black woman whose children were handcuffed and held at gunpoint by police sues Aurora, Colorado. NBC News

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin demands US military sexual assault reports. The Guardian

Lauren Frayer: protesting farmers flood India’s capital, storm historic fort. NPR

The pandemic that lasted 15 million years [Say what, now?] | PBS Eons

L.D. Burnett posits that there is no such thing as cancel culture. Only culture, shapeshifter that it is. Arc Digital

Kim Fahner responds to Bell’s let’s talk day: of whales, icebergs, and mental health … The Republic of Poetry

Sara Jaffe: notes on queer conception and the redefinition of family. JSTOR Daily

Dr. Becky shares the new evidence against dark matter.

Robert Z. Pearlman shares that Axiom Space names the first private crew to visit the ISS. Scientific American

Earth has a second magnetic field. SciShow

Fiona Harvey: global ice loss accelerated at record rate. The Guardian

These pools support half the people on Earth. Veritasium

Cal Flyn reports that as birth rates decline, animals prowl out abandoned “ghost villages.” The Observer

Nina Munteanu: when nature destroys … and creates.  

Thank you for spending some time with me. I hope you took away something to inspire your next creative project.

This weekend, I should be posing my January 2021 next chapter update.

Until then, be well and stay safe, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Dec 27, 2020-Jan 2, 2021

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to get your mental corn popping.

The Skimm summarizes the year in racial justice in the US.

Rich McKay reports that an Ohio police officer is fired for fatally shooting an unarmed Black man. The criminal investigation is ongoing. Reuters

It takes a community to eradicate hate | Wale Elegbede TED

Saudi women’s rights activist Loujain Alhathloul sentenced to nearly 6 years in prison. CBC

South Africa surpasses one million infections as cases surge. BBC

Pfizer reports no data to support that a single dose of their vaccine offers protection after 21 days. Axios

Natalie Neysa Alund, Yihyun Jeong, and Brinley Hineman report that Anthony Warner, identified as the bomber, died in the Nashville explosion he set off. The Tennessean

Kelly Boutsalis looks into teaching Indigenous star stories with Wilfred Buck. The Walrus

Doggerland: a real-life Atlantis. SciShow

Why we can’t measure the speed of light. Veritasium

Jess Romeo: you don’t catch colds from being cold! On the persistence of folk belief. JSTOR Daily

Blake Stilwell recounts that time when Jimmy Carter saved Canada from nuclear destruction. We are the Mighty

Thank you for visiting, and I hope you took away something to inspire your next creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories.

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Aug 23-29, 2020

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time, once again, to get your mental corn popping.

Michael Tesler reports that support for Black Live Matter surged during the protests but is now waning among white Americans. FiveThirtyEight

Sarah Midkiff goes inside the Portland protests, separating fact from fiction. This is almost a month old. I think election hijinx are overtaking #BLM related news. Until this past weekend, when protests took precedence again. Refinery 29

Black lives matter: NBA walkout sparks historic sports boycott in US; Osaka withdraws, tennis halted. The boycott was short-lived, but sports teams are attempting to use their platforms to keep the message of #BLM front and centre. The Scroll

The national anthem protests, part 1, with Roger Goodell. Uncomfortable conversations with a Black man

And part 2.

Rebecca Ruiz explains why everyone should understand racial trauma right now. Mashable

N’dea Yancey-Bragg reveals five things you didn’t know about the March on Washington and MLK’s “I have a dream” speech. USA Today

Amy McKeever says that voter suppression has haunted America since its founding. National Geographic

Related: Matthew Wills reviews the suppression of Native American voters. JSTOR Daily

Jasmine Baker moved into her dorm at UNC Chapel Hill at the beginning of August. Two weeks later she, and just about everyone she knew, had covid-19. Slate

Matthew M.F. Miller explains how the pandemic has immeasurably altered our relationship with tech. Shondaland

Mary Mammoliti explains what it’s like to be blind in a socially distanced world. Refinery 29

Naomi Scherbel-Ball: Africa declared free of wild poliovirus. BBC

Katherine Ellison wonders who’s caring for the carers. Knowable

Zaria Gorvett explains why modern medicine ignores transgendered people. BBC

Abigail Bassett helps you determine whether someone is actually “toxic.” Shondaland

Is success hard work or luck? This actually plays into our perception (or lack thereof) of our privilege. Veritasium

Martha Mendoza and Frank Baker: massive northern California wildfires rage on. AP

Nell Greenfield Boyce: water, water, everywhere—and now scientists know where it came from. NPR

Joshua Sokol profiles the worst animal in the world: the mosquito. The Atlantic

Lesley Evans Ogden reports on the sea otter rescue plan that worked too well. BBC

Eva Botkin-Kowacki: herd community means there’s more to cows than we thought. Christian Science Monitor

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you were able to take away something to inspire your next creative project.

This weekend, I should be posting my August next chapter update. Until then, be well and stay safe.

ThoughtyThursday2019