Dr. Ben Carson spoke with Tucker for nearly two hours about the state of affairs, describing the down-to-earth, kind Donald Trump he has known for ten years. They discussed the media turning an immensely unpopular leftist woman into a “godlike figure” and delved into the North Korean media landscape in the United States. When asked […] The post Dr. Ben Carson: Marxism, a Corrupt Media & Threats to Democracy appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

Former President Barack Obama endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris in a video posted to X in the early morning hours on Friday. The post went live at 5:01 am ET, which meant 2:01 am on the West Coast. “Earlier this week, Michelle and I called our friend Kamala Harris,” Obama said in the post. “We told her we think she’ll make a fantastic President of the United States, and that she has our full support. At this critical moment for our country, we’re going to do everything we can to make sure she wins in November. We hope you’ll join us.” Earlier this week, Michelle and I called our friend @KamalaHarris. We told her we think she’ll make a fantastic President of the United States, and that she has our full support. At this critical moment for our country, we’re going to do everything we can to make sure she wins in… pic.twitter.com/0UIS0doIbA — Barack Obama (@BarackObama) July 26, 2024 The post included a video of Harris walking around with a cell phone as Barack and Michelle Obama gush about her. “Michelle and I couldn’t be prouder to endorse you and to do everything we can to get you through this election and into the Oval Office,” the former president says in the video. “Oh my goodness. Michelle, Barack, this means so much to me. I’m looking forward to doing this with the two of you, Doug and I both. And getting out there, being on the road,” Harris replied. Michelle also said she was proud of Harris. “I can’t have this phone call without saying to my girl, Kamala, I am proud of you. This is going to be historic,” she told the vice president. Along with the video, the Obamas also released a joint statement endorsing Harris, according to CNN. “But Kamala has more than a resume,” the statement said, according to the outlet. “She has the vision, the character, and the strength that this critical moment demands. There is no doubt in our mind that Kamala Harris has exactly what it takes to win this election and deliver for the American people.” Unlike many Democrats who quickly endorsed Harris following President Joe Biden’s announcement that he was ending his re-election campaign, Obama was noticeably silent for five days. Instead, Obama released a statement following Biden’s announcement: “I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges.” Even though around 14 million Democrat voters chose Biden as their 2024 presidential nominee, the party has adopted rules allowing a remote voting process to select a replacement nominee by August 7. Nearly 2,000 delegates already pledged to Biden – and voted for by the people – have already switched to Harris. “While this situation is unprecedented, the process we are prepared to undertake is not,” Democratic National Convention Chair Minyon Moore said Monday, according to CNN. “We have important deadlines to meet. We will make sure the process is fair, because, as it stands, no candidate has secured a majority of the delegates to the convention.” Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison also claimed that this process, which circumvents the will of the voters, “reflects the dedication to democracy our party stands for.”

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to challenge Deadpool to a game of dodgeball? Ok, neither had we. But now that you’re thinking about it, that sounds awesome, right? Well, this superhero-themed outdoor market made that fantasy a reality for tons of kids and parents! Based on the social media footage, it looks like everyone had a blast. @geekandgrubmarket here’s a compilation of our fave Deadpool Dodgeball moments from our Super Hero Market courtesy of our friends from @swordcircle #funny #funnyvideos #challenge #dodgeball #geek #geekandgrubmarket ♬ Funny video “Carmen Prelude” Arranging weakness(836530) – yo suzuki(akisai) In the clip, patrons got their chance to play a round of dodgeball with an actor dressed as Deadpool from the popular Marvel comics and films. Of course, this character managed to evade almost every toss with all the sass and personality you’d expect. Whether he swatted the ball out of the way like a fly or took a dramatic side step to avoid it, he seemed to be saying, “Is that all you’ve got?” with every movement. At one point, the hero didn’t even bother to dodge, simply allowing a poorly-aimed toss to soar over his shoulder. Even with his mask on, you could still read the “Really?” in his body language. Although almost no one in this hilarious video managed to land a hit, one unlikely candidate walked away with a victory. When the tiniest little girl approached the dodgeball field, Deadpool decided to make it easier for her by getting closer. This was a mistake! She hit him in the legs while he was kneeling down in front of her. Of course, the actor made a big show of getting knocked down for the little girl’s benefit. What was even funnier was that she threw another ball right at him while he was still on the ground! Commenters loved seeing Deadpool play dodgeball with these kids and their parents! They were especially impressed with how well the actor portrayed this character’s hilarious antics. Screengrab from TikTok “No because Deadpool would ACTUALLY DO THAT,” wrote one user. Another added, “He understood the assignment haha.” We just know this actor made a bunch of kids (and probably some grown-up Marvel fans) very happy that day! You can find the source of this story’s featured image here. The post Children & Parents Alike Delight In Hilarious Game Of “Deadpool Dodgeball” appeared first on InspireMore.

Over 200 plants will have their species name changed to remove an offensive South African apartheid-era racial slur after the results of a vote from the International Botanical Congress. In a thoroughly debated session in the recent meeting in Madrid, the vote passed 351 to 205 to rename all current botanical species with the species […] The post Botanists Vote to Remove Apartheid Slur from Plant Species Names in Africa appeared first on Good News Network.

Military families shouldn’t have to worry that their kids are being indoctrinated while they defend our country. However, for families sending their children to schools funded by the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), which operates domestic and overseas schools for military children, the consequences of a neo-Marxist education are now a troubling reality. In 2021, DoDEA schools sponsored an “Equity and Access Summit,” which prepared their teachers to instruct their students to engage in emotionally distressing discussions about their race and sexuality and how to be social justice activists. Two years later, in 2023, the DoDEA diversity, equity, and inclusion department—which facilitated the summit and other, similar initiatives—was disbanded following congressional complaints over anti-white tweets from the department’s chief DEI officer, Kelisa Wing, among other concerns related to what was being taught in schools. Following the disbanding, DoDEA formed a separate DEI Steering Committee to manage its efforts, and other DEI specialists were integrated into more behind-the-scenes roles at the agency. This restructuring has led to decreased transparency, as the agency is now also avoiding Freedom of Information Act requests from congressional representatives and parents, or returning them heavily redacted with little information to glean about its DEI-related activities. This month, Open the Books released a scathing report detailing DEI ideologies in curriculums still in place at DoDEA schools, such as instruction about social-emotional learning, sexuality and gender identity, and the values of social justice. Open the Books also highlighted concerns about unsafe practices related to student data at DoDEA schools. Overemphasis on Social-Emotional Learning The report explains that social-emotional learning instruction, which was also taught at the summit, includes making DoDEA students focus on their “privileges” and disclose their race, gender, socioeconomic status, and sexuality to their classmates and teachers to increase their social awareness and place them within a “hierarchy of ‘power.’” Furthermore, social-emotional learning forces children to be highly aware of their emotional states. Teachers are instructed to ask students questions similar to “What is something your parents don’t know about you?” or “What do you wish your parents would let you do?” which are meant to “build trust” with their classmates and teachers. These questions are part of a more extensive process of collecting data on students’ well-being that can be used “to direct students to mental health interventions that parents may not be aware of.” The Open the Books report also highlights that since the children of military families “are subject to frequent moves and unique family stressors,” they are “particularly vulnerable to … emotionally manipulative pedagogical methods,” such as social-emotional learning, which is being integrated into DoDEA schools. Teachers Are Trained to Indoctrinate DoDEA teachers are also being trained to advance social justice values in the classroom. They read the pedagogical book “Coaching for Equity,” which contains “rebukes of capitalism, ‘patriarchy,’ traditions like Thanksgiving, and America’s existence as a country (founded on ‘stolen land’).” Even worse, four of the 11 teacher-development standards used by the DoDEA directly reference equity, and they encourage educators to “advocate for ‘equitable’ policies in whatever context” they may find themselves. In addition, texts with “sexual and ‘anti-racist’ themes are available in school libraries from kindergarten up.” Teachers who think existing offerings are insufficient are given additional authority to include more “extremist content” in their classrooms and require it for assignments. Unsafe Practices in Pursuit of Data The report also highlights how the DoDEA’s pursuit of students’ emotional data has blinded it to many of the risky practices it employs. Data on a student’s internet activities is collected throughout the school day and stored on “Google Workspaces for Education,” which all DoDEA schools use based on their contracts with Google. In 2022, all Google products were banned from a city in Denmark due to security concerns regarding student data collection. Just as concerning, we also know that while using the Google Workspace products, students’ “emotional states are being recorded all day long,” and “teachers are encouraged to provoke student emotions.” Even worse, DoDEA administrators’ interest in tracking children’s emotions may lead to more overtly harmful practices down the road. During the Equity and Access Summit in 2021, one counselor suggested using “brain imaging device[s]” to track students’ responses to particular stimuli. Open the Books warns that giving children access to this technology could easily “encourage [them] to fixate on mental health conditions” or “be used to inappropriately pre-diagnose,” which could further enable medical intervention by school officials. What Happens Next? When the latest National Defense Authorization Act was signed into law in December, it included a bill of rights for service member parents. Those rights included the right to review school curriculums and instructional materials, be notified of and consent to medical examinations, and whenever medical information was being collected on their children. While these changes are necessary, there are almost no methods of recourse for parents who investigate what their children are being taught and disapprove of. And since military families move frequently, there often isn’t enough time for them to address those grievances. Giving parents the freedom to choose how their children are educated is the only way to ensure we properly honor those giving everything to serve our nation. A Federal Solution Federal lawmakers have already proposed to grant military families the educational freedom they deserve. The Education Savings Accounts for Military Families Act of 2023, introduced by Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., would provide military families with education savings accounts worth about $6,000. These accounts could be used to pay for various educational products and services of their choosing. We know that military families often decide whether to remain in or leave military service based on their children’s education quality. ESAs would give military families the educational assurance and freedom they deserve. Furthermore, military families are supportive of education choice. A 2019 nationally representative survey found that 72% of active-duty military respondents supported ESAs. The U.S. military is incredibly diverse, made up of Americans from all backgrounds. DEI efforts focus on our differences, which can undermine military cohesion. Schools that serve children of military families should not teach this pernicious ideology. Now is the time for federal lawmakers to provide more options for military children and their families, giving them confidence that they have learning options that support the American idea that the military upholds each and every day. The post Defense Department Schools’ DEI Agenda Underscores Need for Education Freedom for Military Families appeared first on The Daily Signal.

ICECDogs has released new advertising guidelines on Friday, July 12, in an effort to end the use of images of dogs with conformation issues in advertising.

No More Stonewalling on the Assassination Attempt!

Element 116 has been made with a new method – a step towards synthesizing element 120, a hypothetical element hypothesized to be in the long-predicted "island of stability", in the lab.Elements are defined by the number of protons in their nucleus, with hydrogen having one, helium having two, and uranium has 92 protons. The number of neutrons can vary, with different elements needing different numbers of neutrons to be stable (or at least long-lasting), with many elements having several different versions, known as isotopes.Though uranium is the heaviest naturally occurring element that we know of, scientists have synthesized heavier elements in the lab."The production of SuperHeavy Elements (SHE), and the investigation of their nuclear properties, stands as an important frontier in modern nuclear physics, pushing the boundaries of our understanding of the fundamental constituents of matter," the Berkeley Lab team explains in their new paper.Though not exactly in a linear fashion, elements become less stable the heavier they get. Element 115, moscovium, has a half-life of just 220 milliseconds in the form of moscovium-289, decaying before scientists can do much in the way of studying it. The heaviest element created by scientists – element 118, oganesson, first obtained in 2002 – has a half-life of less than a millisecond.So why go heavier if even the most stable superheavy elements decay with lightning speed? Looking at the stable isotopes of elements we do know about, scientists have predicted the "island of stability" further up the periodic table containing elements that might not decay so quickly.                          In the new study, as a stepping stone to creating element 120, the team attempted to make element 116 using a different method. Usually, heavier elements between 114 and 118 are made by bombarding target nuclei with a calcium-48 beam. The team instead used titanium-50, despite uncertainty about whether it could be used to make heavier elements.Doing so was not easy, requiring the team to vaporize titanium-50 in a tiny oven before using a complex superconducting magnet and free electrons bombarded with microwaves to increase their energy in order to knock away 12 of the titanium's 22 electrons. This was then maneuvered and accelerated using magnets, and used to bombard plutonium in order to make element 116. About about 6 trillion titanium ions hit the target every second before the element is separated from the debris using magnets.“We’re very confident that we’re seeing element 116 and its daughter particles,” Jacklyn Gates, a nuclear scientist at Berkeley Lab said in a statement, referring to elements that 116 decays into. “There’s about a 1 in 1 trillion chance that it’s a statistical fluke.”Now that element 116 has been synthesized using this groundbreaking method, the team has its sights set on creating element 120."It was an important first step to try to make something a little bit easier than a new element to see how going from a calcium beam to a titanium beam changes the rate at which we produce these elements," Jennifer Pore, a scientist in Berkeley Lab's Heavy Element Group, added. "When we're trying to make these incredibly rare elements, we are standing at the absolute edge of human knowledge and understanding, and there is no guarantee that physics will work the way we expect. Creating element 116 with titanium validates that this method of production works and we can now plan our hunt for element 120."Element 120, as well as being further up the table than any element we have produced, is nearing the island of stability. Were we able to produce an element there, it could be stable enough for scientists to study its properties – or perhaps even find a use for it. The team will attempt to make element 120 by bombarding californium-249, after first synthesizing it and making adjustments to their equipment, hopefully beginning work in 2025. The team believes it may take around 10 times longer to produce, but are optimistic that it is feasible.“We’ve shown that we have a facility capable of doing this project, and that the physics seems to make it feasible,” Kruecken said. “Once we get our target, shielding, and engineering controls in place, we will be ready to take on this challenging experiment.”The study is posted to pre-print server arXiv and is submitted to the journal Physical Review Letters.

Two groups of microbes have been found living in hot water in Yellowstone National Park. The existence of the groups was known previously, because their DNA had been detected and it was clearly unlike anything we knew, but this is the first time the organisms themselves have been seen and described.Cows are said to produce so much methane they are an important contributor to rising global temperatures, but in a sense they are maligned, as is anyone whose digestive system lets rip. The ultimate culprits are single-celled Euryachaeota organisms, for whom mammals are just the carriers. Until recently, Euryachaeota were considered to be the only life forms that produce methane as part of their natural life cycle, but a decade ago genes for the production of the enzyme methyl-coenzyme M reductase (MCR) were detected in hot springs. This is the enzyme all known methane producers use, but in this case, clearly came from something quite different."All we knew about these organisms was their DNA," said Dr Roland Hatzenpichler of Montana State University in a statement. "No one had ever seen a cell of these supposed methanogens; no one knew if they actually used their methanogenesis genes or if they were growing by some other means."The location where the DNA was found, and the other genes detected, indicated these missing organisms thrived in very hot environments, making them unlikely to affect the global methane balance much. Nevertheless, something so different from the rest of the tree of life was bound to be interesting.Hatzenpichler and colleagues took samples from hot springs in Yellowstone National Park (when it wasn’t exploding) that ranged in temperature from 61-72°C (141-161°F). Extremophiles (organisms that like very hot, acidic, or salty conditions) are usually very hard to grow in the lab, but doctoral student Anthony Kohtz and Dr Viola Krukenberg succeeded in this case.They found the two new groups of organisms, which they have named Methanomethylicia and Methanodesulfokora, do indeed produce methane. This would have made them the first methanogens known outside the Euryachaeota, were it not that a Chinese-Dutch team were growing a different Methanomethylicia at the same time. Rather than race, the two teams submitted together, leading to three papers in the same journal.Surprisingly, Methanomethylicia does not seem to be confined to volcanic environments; it’s been under our noses all this time, for example in wastewater treatment plants. The team based at China's Biogas Institute and Wageningen University found their sample in the Shengli oil field, although when cultured its abundance peaked at 45–65°C (113-149°F), showing it does like the heat. More significantly, Methanomethylicia has been there in the stomachs of ruminants and wetlands along with the Euryachaeota we’ve been focused on.That doesn’t mean Methanomethylicia is responsible for some of the methane from those environments. It’s possible it only releases the gas in hot environments, and grows through other paths elsewhere. "My best bet is that they sometimes grow by making methane, and sometimes they do something else entirely, but we don't know when they grow, or how, or why." Hatzenpichler said. "We now need to find out when they contribute to methane cycling and when not." Ideally, this might lead to ways to get Methanomethylicia to switch modes, reducing emissions of the potent greenhouse gas.The two new discoveries have a novel approach to methane production, making it out of methanol and similar molecules, rather than CO2 or acetate like the Euryarchaeota we knew.The origins of Methanomethylicia and Methanodesulfokora are unknown, but they are suspected of being very ancient, and possibly offering insight to the first life forms on Earth. If so, they could also give us a better idea of what seek in looking for life on other planets.Meanwhile, Methanomethylicia raise other questions, like why do they have tubes that connect two or three cells to each other, and is this some preparatory step to the formation of multicellular life?"We have no idea why they are forming them. Structures like these have rarely been seen in microbes. Maybe they exchange DNA; maybe they exchange chemicals. We don't know yet," said Hatzenpichler.Methanomethylicia and Methanodesulfokora come from the Thermoproteota and Korarchaeia phyla, respectively.The MSU team’s paper on culturing Methanomethylicia is published in Nature. The Methanodesulfokora paper is published in the same edition and the Biogas Institute/ Wageningen University team’s work on Methanomethylicia is also published in this edition.