"Landing on the planet Regis III, navigator Rohan and his crew discover a form of life that has apparently evolved from autonomous, self-replicating machines — perhaps the survivors of a “robot war.” Rohan and his men are forced to confront the classic quandary: What course of action can humanity take once it has reached the limits of its knowledge?" https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/stanislaw-lems-prescient-vision-of-artificial-life/ #books #bookstr #scifi #StanislawLem

"In a post-scarcity society, why is the Federation so dull when it comes to eating? This suggests that the availability of any dish at any time via replicator has actually stifled the culinary traditions of Earth and perhaps the Federation at large." Finally, someone gets how evil post scarcity is.

Did Post-Scarcity Kill Earthlings' Culinary Traditions?

Let's look at why the culinary habits of 24th Century humans are stuck in the 20th.

#postscarcity #startrek #scifi

The 2023 U.S. Department of Agriculture's "plant hardiness zone map" is about 2.5 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than the 2012 map across the contiguous U.S. https://www.npr.org/2023/11/17/1213600629/-it-feels-like-im-not-crazy-gardeners-arent-surprised-as-usda-updates-key-map #climatechange #solarpunk

Lee Morgan – The Sidewinder https://song.link/i/724507033 #jazz #music #vinyl #nowplaying Bass – Bob Cranshaw Design – Reid Miles Drums – Billy Higgins Engineer – Rudy Van Gelder Liner Notes – Leonard Feather Mastered By – Ron McMaster Photography By [Cover] – Francis Wolff Piano – Barry Harris (2) Producer – Alfred Lion Tenor Saxophone – Joe Henderson Trumpet – Lee Morgan

"Bifacial solar panels capture diffused or reflected sunlight that hits the back of the panel, rather than only capturing solar energy on the sun-facing side ... Researchers are already exploring ways to enhance this ‘ground albedo’ effect with different types of ground coverings, including vegetation. That could lead to additional enhancements in solar cell efficiency on farmland." #solarpunk #renewableenergy

CleanTechnica

Bifacial Solar Panels To Unlock Agrivoltaic Potential

New bifacial solar panels could help make the economic case for agrivoltaic projects that help farmers conserve water and soil, too.

"Portugal produced more than enough renewable power to serve all its customers for six straight days."

Canary Media

Portugal just ran on 100% renewables for six days in a row

For nearly a week, the country of 10 million met customer needs with wind, hydro and solar — a test run for operating the grid without fossil fuels.

Jazz singer Mandy Chan sings #Shanghai #Jazz #dieselpunk

Q: What are the psychological reasons we might avoid acting on the information we have about climate change? A: Fight, flight and freeze mechanisms are an integral part of the older part of the brain … It’s affective, and it’s emotional … When you’re presented with traumatic information, the self-regulatory processes that normally work in a fluid manner are disrupted to the point where you cannot take in information. #ecopsychology #solarpunk #climatechange

Boulder Weekly

NCAR scientist turned ecopsychologist talks climate anxiety - Boulder Weekly

Jeff Kiehl had been a climate scientist at NCAR — now he's focused on coping with climate anxiety. Kaylee Harter. Boulder Weekly.

Sidney Bechet – The Grand Master Of The Soprano Saxophone And Clarinet #jazz #music #vinyl #nowplaying Clarinet – Sidney Bechet (tracks: A1, A3 to A5, B1 to B6) Ensemble – Bob Wilber's Wildcats (tracks: A2, A6, B3), Sidney Bechet Quartet (tracks: A1, A4, A5, B1, B2, B4, B6) Liner Notes – George Avakian Performer [Quartet], Bass – Pops Foster (tracks: A1, A4, A5, B1, B2, B4, B6) Performer [Quartet], Drums – Arthur Herbert (tracks: A1, A5, B1, B2, B4, B6), Freddie Moore (tracks: A4) Performer [Quartet], Piano – Lloyd Phillips (2) (tracks: A1, A4, A5, B1, B2, B4, B6) Performer [Wildcats], Bass – Charlie Traeger (tracks: A2, A6, B3) Performer [Wildcats], Clarinet – Bob Wilber (tracks: A2, A6, B3) Performer [Wildcats], Cornet – Johnny Glasel* (tracks: A2, A6, B3) Performer [Wildcats], Drums – Dennis Strong (tracks: A2, A6, B3) Performer [Wildcats], Piano – Dick Wellstood (tracks: A2, A6, B3) Performer [Wildcats], Trombone – Bob Mielke (tracks: A2, A6, B3) Performer, Baritone Saxophone – Ernie Caceres (tracks: A3, B5, B7) Performer, Bass – Henry Turner (tracks: A3, B5, B7) Performer, Drums – Zutty Singleton (tracks: A3, B5, B7) Performer, Electric Guitar – Leonard Ware (tracks: A3, B5, B7) Performer, Piano – Dave Bowman (tracks: A3, B5, B7) Soprano Saxophone – Sidney Bechet (tracks: A2, A6)

"The punk in both solarpunk and cyberpunk refer to rebellion." Dami Lee. Always interesting. #solarpunk

"Rather than drinking real alcohol, Starfleet officers can drink this new substance [synthehol] which balances the pleasurable effects of getting a buzz on. However, in case of the odd all-hands Red Alert, synthehol does not have the deleterious effects real alcohol has." Once again science has failed to deliver. #postscarcity #startrek #flyingcars #scifi

CBR

Synthehol: Star Trek's Sci-Fi Take on Alcohol, Explained

Of the many strange concepts on Star Trek, from warp speed to a post-scarcity economy, but none more confusing than the fake alcohol called snythehol.

"A new study from King’s College London found that bird sightings and sounds have a positive impact on people’s mental wellbeing." #ecopsycology https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/mental-health/3705500-being-around-birds-can-improve-mental-health-research-shows/

"World Economic Forum–adjacent thinkers call for a 'farm-free future' with food primarily manufactured via precision fermentation and other scientific processes that result in products like lab grown meat ... How did the environmental and conservation movements become so divided?" The existential question is: in ten years will it even be possible to have conventional farming and will we be forced to make food synthetically. #solarpunk #climatechange https://www.theamericanconservative.com/against-a-dystopian-farm-free-future/

Anyone know how real Sulfur Selenium Solid-State Batteries are? #batterytechnology #emergingtechnology #solarpunk

CleanTechnica

Sulfur Selenium Solid-State Battery From NASA Breaks Energy Storage Boundaries - CleanTechnica

What if batteries had two or three times more power than today's best lithium-ion batteries? And what if they also had no liquid or semi-liqui...

Eddie Heywood – Jumpin Keyboard #jazz #music #vinyl #nowplaying

"...light is only produced after the gravitational wave signal has ended, and may further be delayed by having to pass through the circumstellar material. This is why, even though light and gravity both travel exactly at the speed of light in a vacuum, the light we saw didn’t arrive until nearly 2 seconds after the gravitational wave signal ceased." #astronomy

Big Think

Light and gravity travel at the same speed, but don't arrive together

In 2017, a kilonova sent light and gravitational waves across the Universe. Here on Earth, there was a 1.7 second signal arrival delay. Why?

"Millions of young birds die from extreme heat in farm fields across America in what researchers say is a growing threat from climate change that could affect avian populations." #climatechange #solarpunk

E&E News: High heat is killing birds on American farms — study

Worsening heat waves in agricultural areas are affecting bird reproduction and nestling survival.

"The end of boring meetings: why workers are sending robots instead." This can't be real fast enough... #robots #officework

the Guardian

The end of boring meetings: why workers are sending robots instead

They can take notes, make suggestions – and critique your performance if you do deign to turn up. So what if they’re faceless drones?

"Rhythmic Refrains: Counting Time through Duke Ellington and Fred Waller's Jazz Shorts" In the 1920s and 1930s, Duke Ellington collaborated with several directors who narrativized his compositions for short films; Ellington's collaborations A Bundle of Blues (1933) and Symphony in Black (1935) with Fred Waller, Paramount's special‐effects man turned director, remain just out of step with the many other jazz shorts from the period. While synchronization was well‐utilized by the time Ellington and Waller's films were released, their films are notable for the absence of synchronized tap sounds. #jazz #1930s https://read.dukeupress.edu/liquid-blackness/article/7/2/28/382446

The Art Farmer Quartet* Featuring Jim Hall – "Live" At The Half-Note https://song.link/i/322124526 #jazz #music #vinyl #nowplaying Bass – Steve Swallow Cover – Marvin Israel Drums – Walter Perkins Engineer [Sound] – Joe Atkinson, Phil Iehle, Tom Dowd Flugelhorn – Art Farmer (tracks: A1 to B2) Guitar – Jim Hall Liner Notes – Martin Williams Photography By – Lee Friedlander Supervised By – Arif Mardin