A sample of NY Times’ weekly guide to good watching

By The Watching Team The weekend is here. It’s here! Regardless of what streaming service you subscribe to, we want to help. We’ve gone through Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ to find the best titles on each service. Melvin Gregg and Zazie Beetz in “High Flying Bird,” which Steven Soderbergh shot on an … Continue reading A sample of NY Times’ weekly guide to good watching →

CA’s wildfire smoke turns out to be truly toxic

Turns out the smoke enveloping much of the western U.S. during California's wildfire season was ten times as toxic as other airborne forms of pollution, including vehicle exhaust. California’s wildfire smoke could be more harmful than vehicle emissions, study says Toxic particles spewed by wildfires resulted in 10 times as many respiratory-illness related hospitalizations as … Continue reading CA’s wildfire smoke turns out to be truly toxic →

Oscar nominations announced

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/mar/15/the-full-list-of-2021-oscar-nominations The full list of 2021 Oscars nominations From Mank to Judas and the Black Messiah, all the nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards, which take place on 25 April Two female directors and nine actors of colour nominated in historic year  Photograph: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images Guardian filmMon 15 Mar 2021 09.11 EDT 73 Best actress … Continue reading Oscar nominations announced →

All vaccines are not the same, but does that matter?

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/03/pfizer-moderna-and-johnson-johnson-vaccines-compared/618226/? The Differences Between the Vaccines Matter Yes, all of the COVID-19 vaccines are very good. No, they’re not all the same.HILDA BASTIANMARCH 7, 2021 ADAM MAIDA / GETTY / THE ATLANTIC Public-health officials are enthusiastic about the new, single-shot COVID-19 vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, despite its having a somewhat lower efficacy at preventing symptomatic … Continue reading All vaccines are not the same, but does that matter? →

Who’s behind studies used by Republicans to oppose clean energy?

Is anyone surprised that fossil fuel industry fingerprints are all over Republican-favored study opposing Biden's plans to clean the air and water? https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/09/republican-study-wyoming-biden-climate-plans Republicans' new favorite study trashes Biden's climate plans – but who's behind it? Wyoming representative Liz Cheney says the study proves Biden’s policies would destroy state economies. But it has the oil … Continue reading Who’s behind studies used by Republicans to oppose clean energy? →

Rotten Tomatoes 2020 Best

AND THE TOMATO GOES TO… Welcome to RT’s 22nd Annual Golden Tomato Awards, which honor the best-reviewed movies and TV shows of 2020 — and, for movies, a little bit of 2021. Like many awards bodies, we decided to push back eligibility for our film categories to February 2021 to include movies released in the … Continue reading Rotten Tomatoes 2020 Best →

Butterflies, key to ecology, are dying out

Unfortunate that the reason butterly populations matter is relegated to the penultimate paragraph (bolded by me). http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/04/butterfly-numbers-plummeting-us-west-climate-crisis Butterfly numbers plummeting in US west as climate crisis takes toll The total number of butterflies west of the Rockies has fallen 1.6% a year since 1977, a study finds – ‘You extrapolate it and it’s crazy’ A … Continue reading Butterflies, key to ecology, are dying out →

Much to learn about friendship from how boomers use Zoom

I have to agree that I'm more in touch with some of my long-distance friends than I was before the pandemic. Before, there were a million other activities competing for the time needed to simply be a friend. I find that I'm savoring the contact with people who felt further away before March 2020. https://www.vox.com/22307177/zoom-meetings-backgrounds-friendship … Continue reading Much to learn about friendship from how boomers use Zoom →

Taylor Swift reminds us of nature

I'm one of the many boomers who respect Taylor Swift's talent and music. Despite the recent "making of" the album Folklore set at the bucolic Long Pond Studio, I hadn't focused on the persistence of nature images in her work. Lovely op-ed below. And do give that documentary about the recording of "Folklore" a try. … Continue reading Taylor Swift reminds us of nature →

Is heat the problem? Or is there more?

nytimes.com/2021/03/08/climate/climate-change-heat-tropics.html? Global Warming’s Deadly Combination: Heat and Humidity A new study suggests that large swaths of the tropics will experience dangerous living and working conditions if global warming isn’t limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius. By Henry Fountain March 8, 2021 Here’s one more reason the world should aim to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a … Continue reading Is heat the problem? Or is there more? →

Why Daylight Savings Time will be harder this year

Bonus post added in wee hours of the morning. More than the usual explanation of who wants which kind of time permanently. Many different t viewpoints means nothing gets done. http://www.inverse.com/mind-body/daylight-saving-time-will-be-harder-this-time-heres-why