Regarding the coronavirus pandemic that has killed at least 160,000 Americans, possibly more like 200,000 Americans, and counting, President Donald J. Trump tweeted tonight, Tuesday August 18: 'Tell the Dems that we have more Cases because we do FAR more Testing than any other Country! Tell the Dems that we have more Cases because we [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/trump-we-have-more-cases-be.html

VIDEO: Elon Musk's SpaceX successfully launched 58 additional Starlink internet satellites along with three small Earth-observation satellites, SkySats, on Tuesday August 18. [Associated Press]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/spacex-launches-58-starlink-in.html

Following a virtual roll call that spanned 50 states and 7 territories, former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was formally nominated as the Democratic presidential candidate. It is the honor of my life to accept the Democratic Party's nomination for President of the United States of America. #DemConvention  Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) August 19, 2020 [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/joe-biden-formally-nominated-a.html

We all know global data is growing exponentially. But when you sit back and really look at the numbers, you might still be surprised at exactly how fast all that data is piling up. By next year, the accumulated world data is expected to reach 44 zettabytes, a tenfold increase over the 4.4 zettabytes we've [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/get-over-400-hours-of-it-and-c.html

Firefighters battling the Williams Fork Fire near Fraser, Colorado said a change in winds was helping them, on Tuesday, August 18. Colorado fire officials say the wildfire "did not grow substantially" today due to northeast winds. As of Tuesday morning, 6,600 acres had already burned. This video, posted on Monday, August 17, shows an aerial [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/colorado-firefighters-battle-w.html

Sourdough bread and its unique allure date back at least 3,500 years to the ancient Egyptians. Of course, nobody knows exactly when someone first let ground-up grain, liquid, and the open air meet to cultivate wild yeasts that give sourdough its one-of-a-kind taste. But for literally thousands of years, bakers and pastry chefs have been [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/make-your-own-sourdough-bread.html

This from the Cleveland School of Rock in 2018. "The Jazz Band Rejects," as they call themselves, totally kill it on "Waiting Room." See, every day, the Internet has a villain; on a Monday, August 17, 2020, it was Zane Daniels, some straight-edge vegan from Texas who mockingly tweeted this 2018 video of some kids [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/watch-these-teenagers-totally.html

The bizarre 80s-vibe here is somehow both a brilliant performance art pastiche, and also painfully indicative of just how lame the DNC really is.

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/billy-porter-and-stephen-still-2.html

Host Deane Hutton from Australia's vintage children's program The Curiosity Show demonstrates the optical illusion called an Ames window. The trapezoid is named after American ophthalmologist Adelbert Ames Jr., who first demonstrated the phenomenon. Ames is probably better known for the Ames room: Ames rooms have been used in a number of music videos and [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/watch-this-cool-demonstration-2.html

Clapping in front of the Mayan Temple of Kukulcan in the ruins of Chichen Itza echoes back with a sound that mimics the colorful native quetzal bird. Kukulkan was a feathered serpent similar to the Aztec deity Quetzalcoatl. Here's a resplendent quetzal call for comparison: Image: YouTube / jessicep

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/clapping-at-this-mayan-temple.html

We're deep into August, the time every summer where we've all grown well and truly tired of this heat. Meanwhile, 2020 offers the added aggravation of masks and face coverings, leaving our faces more smothered and uncomfortable than ever in these oppressive temperatures. Instead of suffering through the summer heat in silence, you can take [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/this-neck-fan-keeps-the-crippl.html

The first attempts to form a permanent English settlement on modern-day North America began in the late 1500s. Here's the Wikipedia summary of events: The English, led by Humphrey Gilbert, had claimed St. John's, Newfoundland, in 1583 as the first North American English colony by royal prerogative of Queen Elizabeth I. Roanoke was second. The [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/the-mystery-behind-the-lost.html

YouTuber bycloud demonstrates how a deep face dictionary network (DFDNet) can be applied to degraded and low-quality images to create better quality facial restorations: "In this video I combined and compared colorization, upscaling, and image super-resolution." For those interested in the technical aspects, here is a paper on how it works. This iconic image of [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/watch-how-ai-accessing-a-huge.html

In this footage, posted anonymously to social media, a cop in Yorkshire is seen choking a suspect and threatening to kill him: "chill out or I'll choke you out." West Yorkshire Police said the officer had been suspended and the incident had been referred to the force watchdog. Assistant Chief Constable Osman Khan said: "We [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/uk-cop-filmed-choking-suspect.html

USA Today reports: Premiering Nov. 17 on the Disney+ streaming service, "The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special" brings beloved heroes like Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron back together to celebrate Life Day, the "Star Wars"-y holiday introduced way back in the infamous "Star Wars Holiday Special" that first aired on CBS Nov. 17, 1978. The [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/lego-is-making-a-new-star-wars.html

This lovely Super Mario zoetrope slipmat is one of many trippy ways to have fun with your turntable, even if you're not spinning a record. This one cycles at 33 RPM and shows Mario running and jumping as well as other themed delights. Here are a couple of other good ones Perhaps you'd prefer black [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/zoetrope-slipmats.html

I bet it won't take you long to figure out what song Randy Rainbow's latest parodies. It rhymes with "Kamala." screengrab via Randy Rainbow/YouTube

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/kamala-randy-rainbows.html

When I was a kid, something inspired me to jam so much Cheese Whiz up my nose that, even after a trip to the hospital, there's still very likely some hanging around in my sinus cavities, 35 years later. Anyway here's a story from The Guardian about a young fella that had a piece of [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/lego-piece-spends-two-years-in.html

Industrial designer Eric Strebel made a useful video on how to copy small toy parts using a clay and silicone molding process. Via Core 77

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/cool-video-teaches-the-basics.html

To complete your retro-swank lanai, you're going to need one of Shag's new MOAHA wood-burning chimineas. Made by TikiFarm, half the stock of these terracotta tiki-head chimneys has already been scooped up at $399 a pop through Shag's store. The rest will be sold through the TikiFarm website sometime this week. Each one weighs 80 [&]

https://boingboing.net/2020/08/18/shags-latest-tiki-head-chim.html