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Today's Word "extemporaneous"
extemporaneous \ek-stem-puh-RAY-nee-us\ (adjective) - 1 : Composed, performed, or uttered on the spur of the moment, or without previous study; unpremeditated; impromptu. 2 : Prepared beforehand but delivered without notes...Read more
This Day in History, December 11
On December 11th, 1872, P.B.S. Pinchback was sworn in as the first African-American member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Venus
You awake inside a small transparent capsule sitting on the surface of Venus. From a small speaker you hear a voice that says, "We will leave you here either for a day or a year. If you choose to stay a day, we will give you $1 million. If you choose to stay a year, we will give you $2 million. Either way, you will have sufficient food and water. We will make sure the temperature is a constant 70 degrees Fahrenheit. We will also supply cable ...
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Washington flooding a state of emergency, governor says
CAMP MURRAY, Wash. — Gov. Bob Ferguson declared a state of emergency Wednesday, called in the National Guard and said he is requesting assistance from the federal government following historic flooding that continues in ...Read more
Amazon bets on color and AI with its priciest Kindle to date
Amazon.com Inc.’s new Kindle Scribe Colorsoft is the company’s most serious effort yet to turn its e-reader into a productivity tool. But with a starting price of $630 — making it the priciest Kindle yet — Amazon ...Read more
AI slop ad backfires for McDonald's
People aren't lovin' it.
McDonald's was forced to pull down an AI-generated Christmas commercial from YouTube after some consumers said the AI-slop-filled tongue-in-cheek take on the holidays was distasteful.
The ad, ...Read more
Murder on the 'Orientate' Express
Q: Is "orientate" a valid word? I always thought it was just "orient," but I hear people say things like "I have to orientate myself." - A. LaCroix, New Britain, Conn.
A: "Orientate," which first appeared in English ...Read more
Review: ‘Marvel Cosmic Invasion’ revives an arcade beat-’em-up experience
Gamers of a certain age will remember when beat-’em-ups ruled arcades. The cabinets inhaled quarters as four players teamed up to brawl their way to save Maggie Simpson or battle Shredder across New York. Those ...Read more
Gadgets: Ice cream machine
Getting an offer to review a soft-serve ice cream machine is a dream come true, at least for me. Obviously, I'm an ice cream fan, and reviewing the Gourmia Soft-Serve Ice Cream Maker has to be one of my favorites in my ...Read more
Jim Rossman: When is a new battery better than a new phone?
A few weeks ago, a friend asked if he should replace the battery in his iPhone SE. He’d noticed the phone needed to be topped off before the end of the day and asked if I thought he should replace the battery or just ...Read more
Why the Bay Area is key to the new US push to win the international AI race
Bay Area laboratories are set to play a central role in the Genesis Mission, a multibillion-dollar effort by the Trump administration to accelerate the nation’s artificial intelligence push in the face of technological ...Read more
Tech review: Last call for Christmas tech gift ideas
This last Christmas gift guide is concentrated on gifts for the person with a home office or computer desk.
There are gifts here for all ages and price ranges.
I especially loved trying out the reMarkable tablet and the ...Read more
Commentary: How Spotify's video podcasts hijacked talk TV's playbook
Spotify Technology SA’s list of its top podcasts of the year didn’t offer much in the way of surprises — Joe Rogan, for example, is number one yet again, for the fifth year in a row. But one stat is noteworthy: ...Read more
Today's Word "yeasty"
yeasty \YEE-stee\ (adjective) - 1 : Of, pertaining to, or resembling yeast. 2 : Not yet settled or formed; immature or incomplete. 3 : Marked by agitation or change. 4 : Frothy or trivial; frivolous. 5 : Full of vitality; ...Read more
This Day in History, December 10
On December 10th, 1901, the first Nobel Prizes were awarded.
NOAA's denial of endangered status for salmon sparks talk of legal challenge
Federal fisheries officials on Monday rejected a bid to designate West Coast Chinook salmon as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
In response, one of the conservation groups that petitioned for the...Read more
San Diego County comes out against Trump's offshore drilling plans in California
SAN DIEGO — The San Diego County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday adopted a resolution vowing to fight efforts by the Trump administration to expand offshore oil and gas drilling more than three miles off the coast of ...Read more
New Jersey declares drought warning
New Jersey is parched top to bottom.
In some regions, rainfall has plunged as much as eight inches below average for the past year, straining reservoirs, streams, and aquifers enough that the state Department of ...Read more
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