I have friends. They are all in my head. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/6-year-old-matildas-covid19.html

A TikTok investigation pic.twitter.com/raBSfI6Zg3

 Taylor Lorenz (@TaylorLorenz) April 22, 2020

It seems like everyone on the planet has seen this gray-rooted coronavirus protester complaining that she can't go to a hairdresser. But someone on Tik Tok looked at the length of her roots and determined that she has not had her hair done since October, many months before they stay at home order went into effect. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/covid-protestor-has-not-had-he.html

I was already intimidated by his bloodcurling yell. (I just learned that's called a k'ihap in Korean or a kiai in Japanese.) Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/watch-this-incredible-taekwond.html

I'm always suspicious when people say canned food lasts forever, and @DinosaurDracula proves my fear. Granted, the can was rusted, which may have caused more damage to the food than a can in pristine condition would do. Still, this can of Chef Boyardee Spider-Man pasta from 1995 emitted "noxious fumes" after the first twist of the can opener, and what was revealed inside will have me inspecting the expiration dates on all my pantry cans as soon as I'm finished with this post.

I put the can opener to work, unsettled by the rust, but emboldened by the lack of noxious fumes. I turn the knob and wince, unable to rule out the possibility that the contents have mutated into something alive & malevolent. (2/5) pic.twitter.com/IBmJXBWZI2

 Dinosaur Dracula (@DinosaurDracula) April 16, 2020

They say tragedy plus time equals comedy, but there's nothing funny about 15 ounces of Spider-Man Pasta reduced to a rotted 3-ounce chunk. Recalling the fate of Jordy Verrill in Creepshow, I'm thankful for my rubber gloves. (3/5) pic.twitter.com/W5WqQ7wEHs

 Dinosaur Dracula (@DinosaurDracula) April 16, 2020

I think I notice something, but consult the label on the can to be sure. Indeed, there's poor Spider-Man, trapped in this godforsaken toxic monstrosity. I'm sorry, Peter. With old pasta comes great instability.

Thank you all for taking this journey with me. (5/5) pic.twitter.com/6UcfRcN9tz

 Dinosaur Dracula (@DinosaurDracula) April 16, 2020

[Via Mental Floss] Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/what-happens-when-you-open-a-c.html

Jaguar Health makes Mytesi, an antidiarrheal medication for people with HIV/AIDS. A 60-pill bottle used to cost $668.52. That was before the drugmaker ask the FDA to give it an emergency authorization to use Mytesi for people with the coronavirus. On April 9, Jaguar Health more than tripled the price of the drug to $2,206.52.

According to Axios, "Jaguar Health isn't the only drug company that has raised prices amid the outbreak. The U.S. drugmaker of chloroquine doubled the price of its product last month, the Financial Times reported."

On April 7 the FDA denied Jaguar Health's request, but the drugmaker is still talking to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to evaluate the effectiveness of Mytesi.

Photo by Hal Gatewood on Unsplash Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/jaguar-health-triples-price-of.html

In 1993, Trekkers took to public access cable television channel Citytv in Toronto with Ten Forward, a talk show all about Star Trek. In the above collection of clips, the hosts calmly deal with "weenoid" prank callers who apparently plagued the show. Note the fellow's finger expertly poised on the phone's "disconnect" button.

(via r/ObscureMedia) Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/watch-the-hosts-of-a-star-trek.html

In this video, The Q Cut a small hole in a cardboard box and placed a small piece of meat in it for his cat to take. Then, he put a new piece of meat in the box, a little farther away, to see if the cat would be able to reach it. He repeated the experiment several times, increasing resistance each time.

Image: YouTube Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/how-far-will-a-cat-reach-to-ge.html

Trump signed an executive order Wednesday that suspends some residency applications, a measure far short of his earlier promise to block all immigration. It even fails to end the guest visa program for foreign laborers, the hot button he was attempting to press in the first place.

The measure is expected to stop the practice of green card holders sponsoring their extended families for permanent US residency, which the president calls chain migration. But it makes an exception for American citizens' spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21. ... Also exempt are the hundreds of thousands of green card applicants already living and working in the US, and those seeking entry to work as doctors, nurses or other healthcare professionals. Another exception is the hundreds of thousands of temporary guest visas issued each year to such applicants as farm labourers and skilled workers in the H-1B visa programme.

Some media just ran with their hurriedly recast "immigration banned!" headlines and stories, leading with the White House claims and barely touching upon (or simply not finding out about) the array of exemptions. The deepest problem with media is not false balance, bias or fake news. It is the speed and frequency at which things must be posted. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/trump-backs-off-immigration-su.html

If you purchased a smart phone app that doesn't meet your expectations, Popular Science has a guide for how to get your money back. The first thing to try is contacting Google or Apple and explaining why you want your money back. The last resort is complaining on Twitter. One thing not to do is give the app a one star review before you try to get your money back, or you will lose any leverage you might have.

Similarly, the terms and conditions on iTunes and the Google Play Store also include refund requests, although in the case of Apple’s store terms are rather opaque. You have to log in to the Report a Problem portal, find the app you have an issue with, request a refund selecting what you feel is a valid and appropriate reason, briefly explain why, and hope it gets approved by the inner-bureaucracy.

Google’s policies are a bit clearer, although hedged with ifs and maybes. Within 48 hours of purchasing an app you can request a refund from Google by logging into your Play Store account, going to Order History, selecting Request a Refund on the app you want to return, and explaining why. If you miss that 48-hour window, you have to contact the developers directly.

Photo by Rami Al-zayat on Unsplash Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/23/how-to-get-a-refund-on-an-app.html

Google Apps Script might be one of the most popular “cheat codes” in all of programming. Of course, it’s not really a cheat, per se. It’s actually just a lightweight, simplified coding method for integrating the vast wealth of data in Google’s suite of apps, everything from Google Sheets to Gmail to Google Docs to YouTube, right into your own build.

If you’re building an app and want to access import data from a CSV file into a Google Sheet spreadsheet, or you want to automate mailings from a Gmail account or any of dozens of simple, yet efficient processes, then Google Apps Script should be in your skillset. The training in The Increase Your Google App Productivity with Google Script Bundle can show you all you need to know to navigate the entire scene like a pro.

The training starts the introductory level Google Apps Script Complete Course: Beginner to Advanced. Here, even first time users get a velvet glove experience learning Script, how it operates and the ways you can use it to power up your app projects immediately.

Three follow-up courses take that baseline knowledge and offer up different Script projects to highlight the wealth of abilities available to users. In Google Apps Script Projects, students follow the steps for creating virtual databases within a Google spreadsheet. Then Google Apps Script 2020: Build 16+ Fun Projects Sites takes the learning further with easy-to-follow projects like creating auto-response emails, incorporating YouTube Video and more.

Finally, Google Apps Google Script: Content System Web App Project focuses on bringing in other coding staples, including source code from HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, and Bootstrap that can add multiple layers of extra productivity to any app. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/google-script-brings-the-full.html

I'm listening to X's new album, released today on Bandcamp, and it's amazingly good -- loaded with energy and Billy Zoom's mind-warping guitar. It's the original line-up and the band's first album in 35 years. It's called Alphabetland and the cover is by artist Wayne White.

From Rolling Stone:

In interviews, the band members have expressed mixed emotions about making a new album. All of them except for Zoom said they would want to make a new one in a 2017 Rolling Stone profile of the group.

“Families are complicated,” Doe said at the time, carefully choosing his words. “There’s certain … Yeah, I’m not gonna go there.”

“It wouldn’t work,” Zoom said. “The chemistry wouldn’t be right. [Some band members] are in different places and stubborn, and I don’t want to go into detail, but it wouldn’t sound like an X record.” The band has yet to explain the change of heart.

. Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/x-releases-their-first-album-i.html

Carla ordered these cheap Bic mechanical pencils. I tried one out and I actually like it a lot. The lead diameter is 0.9 mm and it has a number 2 lead inside. It also contains one extra lead in the barrel. A 24-pack sells for about $.25 a pencil. They are supposed to be disposable, but why not buy a bunch of 9 mm lead for cheap and keep using the pencil? You can even get colored leads! Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/a-darn-good-25-cent-mechanical.html

After 22 days of being hospitalized with symptoms of COVID-19, and developing pneumonia, singer and counter-cultural icon, Marianne Faithfull, has been released from the hospital. Her official Facebook page writes:

We are really happy to say that Marianne has been discharged from hospital today, 22 days after being admitted suffering from the symptoms of Covid-19. She will continue to recuperate in London. Marianne thanks you all for your kind messages of concern which have meant a great deal through what is a such a difficult time for so many. She is also very grateful to all the NHS staff who cared for her at the hospital and, without doubt, saved her life.

In celebration, enjoy this tribute song that Marianne wrote upon the passing of her lifelong friend, Anita Richards (Keith's ex).

"Forever loving you," Marianne.

Image: YouTube Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/marianne-faithfull-survives-co.html

Speaking of Gary Numan, I just discovered these basement session videos from 2014 on the YouTubes. I especially like this version of "Are Friends Electric?"

There only seems to be three performances available. I assume there are more.

Image: YouTube Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/shut-in-sounds-gary-numans.html

Doctors say the disease caused by the novel coronavirus appears to be causing strokes in young adult patients, some who didn't even know they were infected.

If these early reports bear out, it is possible that this could cause the official known toll of the pandemic to be lower than reality -- if patients in their 30s and 40s are dying of stroke, they may not be counted as having died of COVID-19, the thinking goes.

From CNN's Maggie Fox:

Dr. Thomas Oxley, a neurosurgeon at Mount Sinai Health System in New York, and colleagues gave details of five people they treated. All were under the age of 50, and all had either mild symptoms of Covid-19 infection or no symptoms at all.

"The virus seems to be causing increased clotting in the large arteries, leading to severe stroke," Oxley told CNN.

"Our report shows a seven-fold increase in incidence of sudden stroke in young patients during the past two weeks. Most of these patients have no past medical history and were at home with either mild symptoms (or in two cases, no symptoms) of Covid," he added.

"All tested positive. Two of them delayed calling an ambulance."

Other doctors have also reported that people are reluctant to call 911 or go to emergency rooms because of the pandemic. It is not common for people so young to have strokes, especially strokes in the large vessels in the brain.

"For comparison, our service, over the previous 12 months, has treated on average 0.73

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/covid-19-may-cause-sudden-stro.html

You might say she was willing to gamble with their lives.

It's been quite a week for politicians saying awful things that reveal how little they care about the human beings they govern. Latest case in point, the mayor of Las Vegas.

In this CNN clip with Anderson Cooper, Mayor Carolyn Goodman of Las Vegas, Nevada offers her city as a “control group” -- she says, "we offer to be a control group" (!!!) -- to find out how many people will become infected with coronavirus and die without social distancing.

She is a supporter of impeached president Donald Trump, who is pushing states and mayors to lift social distancing guidelines. Trump is also tweeting erratic commands to his armed supporters about liberating states, and it's all very weird.

Watch the clip:

Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman calls for businesses to reopen, while saying she won't provide social distancing guidelines on how to do so safely.

"They better figure it out. That's their job. That's not the mayor's job." https://t.co/lx4A6WuB0P pic.twitter.com/fEedR19LYX

 CNN (@CNN) April 22, 2020

The brouhaha over her televised comments may be for naught -- there are reports she has no such jurisdiction, anyway.

The Las Vegas Strip is not in the City of Las Vegas.

She is the mayor of the City of Las Vegas, not the Las Vegas Strip.

Turns out the mayor has no control over the Las Vegas strip. From @ThisAlexTin: "City of Las Vegas doesn't actually have any jurisdiction over the Las Vegas Strip.

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/las-vegas-mayor-offers-city-as.html

• Dr. Rick Bright, head of the agency responsible for vaccines in the Trump administration, released a statement Wednesday that blames political motives for his abrupt reassignment.

• "I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science – not politics or cronyism – has to lead the way."

WASHINGTON: Dr. Rick Bright, a leading official at the United States Department of Health and Human Services, says he was demoted for fighting efforts to “fund potentially dangerous drugs promoted by those with political connections,” and for opposing hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malarial drug touted by Trump as a coronavirus treatment.

Bright says he wants an investigation by the Inspector general, and has hired a whistleblower lawyer.

Here is the full statement from Bright:

"Yesterday, I was removed from my positions as the Director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and HHS Deputy Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response by the Administration and involuntarily transferred to a more limited and less impactful position at the National Institutes of Health. I believe this transfer was in response to my insistence that the government invest the billions of dollars allocated by Congress to address the COVID-19 pandemic into safe and scientifically vetted solutions, and not in drugs, vaccines and other technologies that lack scientific merit. I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science -- not politics or cronyism -- has to lead the way.

"I have spent my entire career in vaccine development, in the government with CDC and BARDA and also in the biotechnology industry.

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/rick-bright-hhs-official-say.html

Impeached U.S. president Donald Trump says his administration plans to soon reopen the country's national parks and other public lands, with details to be announced on specific sites in coming days.

“We will begin to open our national parks and public lands for the American people to enjoy,” Trump announced at an Earth Day event at the White House, offering no further information.

Some national parks have actually remained open throughout the whole COVID-19 pandemic, but many have been closed.

Here is the White House announcement.

We're committed to conserving the wonders of God's creation by protecting our national parks and public lands! pic.twitter.com/0gGl245a7S

 The White House (@WhiteHouse) April 22, 2020

Gotta get some God in there.

Here is a statement from Trump's acting secretary of the Interior.

President @realDonaldTrump, @VP and I are committed to working with governors and local public health officials to gradually reopen our National Parks in a safe manner for the American people to once again enjoy. #NationalParkWeek pic.twitter.com/MaUObBJtRK

 Secretary David Bernhardt (@SecBernhardt) April 22, 2020

From Reuters:

Representatives for the White House referred questions to the Department of Interior, which oversees public lands, including federal parks.

“More details will be provided in the coming days on plans for the reopening of specific parks following guidance from OMB (Office of Management and Budget) and the President’s plan for Opening Up America Again,” representatives for the department said in a statement.

Trump’s comment comes as some U.S. states move forward with plans to restart economic activity as soon as this week despite concern from public health officials and others about the potential for a spike in coronavirus cases.

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/trump-says-u-s-national-parks.html

Two cats in New York are reported to have been infected with the novel coronavirus. Both had mild respiratory symptoms and are expected to make a full recovery.

"These are the first pets in the United States to test positive," the US Department of Agriculture said Wednesday in a joint statement with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

There is no evidence that cats, dogs, or other pets are spreading coronavirus in the United States.

“There is no justification in taking measures against companion animals that may compromise their welfare,” they said.

Translation: Don't abandon or crate your pets because you fear they will get you sick with COVID-19.

From CNN:

The two cats were tested after they showed respiratory symptoms, according to the agencies, and they join the ranks of a lion and a tiger in New York who were previously confirmed to be infected.

A veterinarian tested the first house cat after it showed mild respiratory signs, but none of the humans in its household were confirmed to have the virus.

It's possible, officials said, that the cat was infected by somebody outside the home.

Someone inside the house, with mild or no symptoms, could have also transmitted the virus.

The second cat, in a separate area of New York, was also tested after it showed signs of respiratory illness. The owner of that cat tested positive for Covid-19 before the cat became ill, but another cat in the household has shown no signs of illness.

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/in-ny-2-cats-are-infected-wit.html

On Wednesday, Facebook said it will label posts from popular accounts to reveal their geographic origin, an attempt to limit election-year political misinformation by foreign entities.

Often, such accounts attempt to trick the user into believing they are legitimate groups and political parties based in the United States.

Today we're beginning to show the location of high-reach Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts on *every post they share.* Really proud of the teams continuing to increase transparency like this. https://t.co/jwFg34bttp pic.twitter.com/w3UdYkQ1NS

 Nathaniel Gleicher (@ngleicher) April 22, 2020

Here is the official announcement from Facebook.

More from AP:

The new policy will apply to popular pages about elections, entertainment and other topics and will stamp every post they make on Facebook and Instagram with its origin. For instance, an Instagram account targeting U.S. voters but based in Brazil will have every post labeled with “Based in Brazil.” Users then can swipe to find out more information about the account.

It’s the social network’s latest attempt to fight election-related misinformation. Russia and other countries have been using social media to try to influence political discourse in the U.S. and elsewhere, often by masquerading as local interest groups.

Facebook will initially target pages based outside of the U.S. that reach a large number of people inside the U.S. The labels, the company says, will help people “gauge the reliability and authenticity” of what they see.

Read the rest:Facebook to label national origin of popular posts Read the rest

https://boingboing.net/2020/04/22/facebook-says-it-will-show-geo.html