Late Summer 2025 Tiny Letter, Good News Included
Hello Friends,
I love clear, even blunt public health and safety communication. This sign is a perfect example. They could have been timid and used text: “Danger: bike wheels may get stuck in pavement joints,” or some such weak sauce. Instead, they made it clear! Now I’m waiting for a Portland prankster to add a hat, cape, or some other accessory to the stick figure.
A team of scientists has developed a groundbreaking sponge-like aerogel that can turn seawater into clean drinking water using only sunlight.
Unlike earlier materials, this 3D-printed structure is filled with microscopic vertical channels that enable it to efficiently evaporate water, even at larger scales. During outdoor testing, the sponge produced potable water in just hours, all without electricity or complex infrastructure.
More at SciTechDaily:
https://scitechdaily.com/this-breakthrough-sponge-could-change-how-the-world-gets-clean-water/
Really good news on HIV prevention
Just one year after its breakout public health moment, 'miracle drug' lenacapavir has been approved by the FDA and recommended by the WHO. The drug, which Science called its 'breakthrough of the year' in 2024, is a long-lasting shot that provides almost 100% protection against HIV infection. Why does this matter? Well, the WHO recommendation puts the medicine onto a list which donors and UN agencies rely on when they decide what to buy and distribute. Gilead, the maker of the drug, is already in talks to enable a low-cost rollout across 120 countries, which would be the biggest boost in the fight against AIDS since the large scale rollout of antiretrovirals more than 20 years ago.
It turns out JD Vance sets off the White House Trans Alarm sometimes due to his eyeliner.
Watched: Interior Chinatown
An unusual, unpredictable, sci-fi drama akin to The Truman Show or The Thirteenth Floor. Like a lot of good sci-fi, it’s not really about technology, but relationships. Fun, irreverent, twisty-turny. Jimmy Yang, known best for his standup comedy and role as the fake-hapless Jin Yang on Silicon Valley^, impressed me with this dramatic role. I wasn’t surprised, but it’s a departure from what he has done before. The show mostly wraps up in one season.
^ Watching clips of Jin Yang pretend not to understand English while scheming against Eric Bachman on “Silicon Valley” is a great break from a stressful day.
SOCIAL ANALYSIS SECTION
The loss of partying in the USA
You know how there are trends that you sense, or feel, but don’t have data for? Who keeps data on how often we party? Answer: The Government. Big Gubbmint?
This is one of those trends. When I have wondered “where are all the parties?” this answers my question.
TL;DR Americans are hosting far fewer parties than in years past.
The Death of Partying in the U.S.A.—and Why It Matters
Young Americans today spend 70 percent less time attending or hosting parties than they did at the beginning of the 21st century. Why?
A great and timely piece from the New York Times
Men, Where Have You Gone? Please Come Back.
So many men have retreated from intimacy, hiding behind firewalls, filters and curated personas, dabbling and scrolling. We miss you.
Gift link, free to read: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/20/style/modern-love-men-where-have-you-gone-please-come-back.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Y08.bDHl.mrlxWoAqQbHb&smid=url-share
Go Go Solar!
You know what I love? You can’t stop innovation. Well, you can try, but inventors and entrepreneurs love innovating, and there’s money, recognition, appreciation, even glory for those that do. As much as our authoritarians want to roll back progress on renewable energy, they will ultimately fail.
There are lots of other technologies vying to replace fossil fuels or to reduce climate damage: nuclear power, hydrogen power, carbon capture and storage; along with renewables, all were boosted by spending provisions in Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and will be hampered to varying degrees by congressional rollbacks. Some may prove useful in the long run and others illusory, but for now they are statistically swamped by the sheer amount of renewable power coming online. Globally, roughly a third more power is being generated from the sun this spring than last. If this exponential rate of growth can continue, we will soon live in a very different world.
New Yorker archive link: https://archive.md/i6lle
Portland continues to clean up in the bumper sticker wars
Closing quote
In the battle between reality and fundamentalism of all varieties, reality always wins – if it is given the freedom to breathe and we show the courage necessary to accept it. Even then it takes time. But when a truth has been suppressed by a massive lie for centuries, its eventual emergence is almost a miracle.
- Andrew Sullivan
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