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Top Journal Retracts Study Predicting Catastrophic Climate Toll
Dec. 4th, 2025 10:10 am![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
slashdot_feedNature has retracted a headline-grabbing climate-economics study after critics found flawed data that massively inflated its predicted global economic collapse. The New York Times reports: The decision came after a team of economists noticed problems with the data for one country, Uzbekistan, that significantly skewed the results. If Uzbekistan were excluded, they found, the damages would look similar to earlier research (PDF). Instead of a 62 percent decline in economic output by 2100 in a world where carbon emissions continue unabated, global output would be reduced by 23 percent.
Of course, erasing more than 20 percent of the world's economic activity would still be a devastating blow to human welfare. The paper's detractors emphasize that climate change is a major threat, as recent meta analyses have found, and that more should be done to address it -- but, they say, unusual results should be treated skeptically. "Most people for the last decade have thought that a 20 percent reduction in 2100 was an insanely large number," said Solomon Hsiang, a professor of global environmental policy at Stanford University who co-wrote the critique published in August. "So the fact that this paper is coming out saying 60 percent is off the chart."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
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Dec. 4th, 2025 10:00 amnotalwaysright_feedThis is not my story, but my great aunt’s story from a few years back. Her only son (my first cousin once removed) lives just far enough away from her that seeing each other is a hassle to do often. For one of their roughly once-a-month get-togethers, she goes out to eat lunch with him, […]
When Overdrafting Gives You Overconfidence
Dec. 4th, 2025 10:00 amnotalwaysright_feedRead When Overdrafting Gives You Overconfidence
Caller: "What you're doing is illegal! It's not stated in my terms and conditions!"
Me: "It actually is, sir. I can show you where—"
Caller: "—I'm going to go to the ombuds man."
icanhascheezburger_feedNo one should spend Christmas alone, whether they're hooman or feline. We feel especially bad for all the kitties sitting alone in shelters during the holiday season. They could be snuggled up next to their pawrents, sleeping in, or rushing down to climb the tree and nearly ruin Christmas. But instead, they're all stuck in tiny cages… except this beautiful black baby below. He's been in the shelter for nearly a year now with 0 adoption applications, until one of the volunteers decided to take him home. Now, they'll get to spend Christmas together!
Cats are the gift that keeps on giving, but we do feel a need to say that you should not give a cat as a surprise to a family member or friend. A cat is a 15+ year responsibility, and although they are relatively low-maintenance, they still change your life in many ways. Everyone needs to be on board with that change, or else the cat, and the hooman will suffer.
You have no idea how many cats are returned to shelters after the holidays because people either weren't prepurred or weren't aware of how much attention cats require. Instead of surprising someone, talk about it with them first, then take them with you to the shelter and pick out the cat together. Then everyone gets a happily ever after this Christmas!
Tender Cruelty by Katee Robert
Dec. 4th, 2025 09:00 amsmartbitches_feed
B+
Tender Cruelty
by Katee Robert
December 2, 2025 · Sourcebooks Casablanca
Fantasy/Fairy Tale RomanceRomance
The only way to review a book this late in a series is in a lightning review. There’s only so much you can say without spoiling the entire series. Suffice to say, spoilers for the preceding eight books lie ahead.
It is finally Zeus and Hera’s turn! PRAISE BE! I was one of the chumps who thought this would be book 3. Anyone else?
Can you believe?! Things are happening!
The threat of Circe has been hanging over Olympus for ages now and there hasn’t been much movement in the Circe plot. In Tender Cruelty, so much is revealed. We learn some of the truth about Hermes and we meet Circe. I’ll say no more than that outside of spoiler tags.
First, the plot. Circe’s plan to destroy Olympus is gaining traction. The entire city has been evacuated to the countryside because of the sea blockade. After the sea blockade fell apart in the previous book, the Thirteen are left floundering and trying to find Circe because they know she’s in the city.
The romance between Hera and Zeus involved a pleasing thawing of relations between the two. Although it is SHOCKINGLY revealed very early on that the two have sex in the dark every night and have done so for their entire marriage! I’m not sure if I’m on board with marital relations from the start or if I wanted their enmity to be even more all-consuming. Although how you get more intense enemies than the many-book-spanning ‘active plot to kill’, I’m not sure.
I would have liked more time with Hera and Zeus in their lovey dovey stage so I could relish the sweet tenderness a bit more, but the bigger Circe plot had different demands.
Don’t even attempt Tender Cruelty unless you’ve read the others in the series. I’ve been awaiting this story since early in the series, and if you read nothing else, please know that I really enjoyed Tender Cruelty (mostly because THINGS HAPPEN) and it brings me joy that I can recommend it to you.
Looking ahead to the final installment in the series, I believe we are offered drama of the highest order. I can’t wait.
A Snowy, Dozy, Cozy Blend of Cat Memes For Soothing Winter Silent Nights
Dec. 4th, 2025 02:00 pmicanhascheezburger_feedBurr, it's cold outside! There's something dialectically magical about winter nights. There's nothing cozier than a warm home protected from the dark and cold trying to barge in from outside. The soft glow of lamps in frosty windows, the promise of warmth waiting indoors can cause even the most summer-loving person to transition to being a winter girly. Even the most peaceful winter evening becomes infinitely better when coalesced with the gentle charm of sleepy, whiskered, pawdorable cats. Cats are basically the coziest creatures ever, so why not incorporate them into your snowy, dozy, cozy adventure of cat meme scroll?
These winter cat memes aren't just cute; they're ground breaking. They remind us to slow down, to breathe, to find joy in stillness. A meme of a cat tucked under a blanket with just its nose and whiskers sticking out carries the same energy as a warm hug. A fluffy white cat rolling dramatically in the snow is a reminder that play doesn't have an expiration date. Meanwhile, the classic cat by the frosted windowpane—eyes wide, pupils huge—speaks to the inner child in all of us who still finds winter enchanting. Enjoy this hissterical list!
20 Classic Photos of Cats Caught in Christmas Trees for Your Festive Spirit
Dec. 4th, 2025 12:00 pmicanhascheezburger_feedDecember has rolled around, and now we are fully locked in for the festive season. There is no more dilly-dallying, no more waiting around, it is time to get out all your Christmas goodies and fully lean into the spirit. But before you go full tilt, we wanted to offer up a little reminder of the classic conundrum which is what to do with your Christmas tree when you have cat children at home.
For it is not the easiest thing to strike the balance between holiday season joy thanks to a full and well-dressed tree and keeping that tree from hitting the floor because your cat child has decided to call it home or use it as a climbing frame. And we are most certainly not claiming to have come up with any kind of solution. Because if you ask us, there is no happy middle ground. Sometimes you just have to pay a price to have nice things, and sometimes that means those nice things come down in a blaze of glory, along with your cat.
The Customer Is The One That Got Away
Dec. 4th, 2025 08:00 amnotalwaysright_feedRead The Customer Is The One That Got Away
Realizing that the duck lure must be in the back, this poor girl jumped up and army crawled across the tops of the boxes all the way to the back of the shipping container and threw the lure over the boxes before crawling back.
Russian Astronaut Kicked Out of the US For Stealing Proprietary SpaceX Designs
Dec. 4th, 2025 07:07 amslashdot_feedSlashdot readers jmurtari and schwit1 shares news that a Russian astronaut slated for the next Dragon mission to the ISS has been removed after being caught photographing proprietary SpaceX hardware. UNITED24 reports: Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev has been removed from the prime crew of SpaceX's Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station and replaced by fellow Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev after sources alleged he photographed confidential SpaceX materials in California in violation of U.S. export control rules, according to The Insider on December 2. The outlet reported that Trishkin also said NASA did not want the controversy around Artemyev to become public, while Artemyev was removed from training at SpaceX's Hawthorne California, facility last week after allegedly photographing SpaceX engines and other internal materials on his phone and taking them off-site.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
icanhascheezburger_feedCuddly kittens are everywhere; we just don't always see them. Clever cat lovers know the tiny mews and the beady-eyed stares of a kitten are always only a few meowments away, but it's always up to the cats whether or not they wish to be discovered.
Cats are mysterious that way. Born to be predators and bred to be lap cudders, cats are the purrfect mix of salty and sweet, hiding in plain sight until they summon their humans for a whiskery kiss, a feather duster toss, or even a 3rd round of dinner. While we may think we have cats all figured out, it's not until the CDS plops another kitty in our midst, testing our fortitude and competency in the kitten department with one small meow, a casual trip to the parking lot, and a surprise flea-bag kitten. Behold, the kitten trials have begun. Will your self-proclaimed cat-loving self step up to the plate? Will you answer the call of the cat council and become a feline's indoor servant?
When the CDS has decided you're ready, you'll know.
(no subject)
Dec. 4th, 2025 06:17 amapod_feed
What would it look like to plunge into a monster black hole?
A Ray of Sunshine in the Form of 23 Fuzzy Feline Funnies (December 3, 2025)
Dec. 3rd, 2025 09:00 pmicanhascheezburger_feedThe holiday season is in full swing, which means you need to do everything in your power to deter your fuzzy feline from wanting to climb your Christmas tree. No, it doesn't matter if it's big or small; these felines will find a way to climb the tree, knock it down, and somehow get tangled up in the lights in the process. This is the season of festive feline tomfoolery, and it's essential for cat pawrents to be as pawpared as pawssible. Was that too many paws? Who cares? This is a cat website.
On that same festive note, what are you gifting your cattos for Christmas? Do they prefer Churus or Temptations? Do they like the fluffy cat bed or the box that it comes in? Most of all, do they love or hate wearing Christmas sweaters for Christmas cards? These are the questions every cat pawrent must be asking themselves.
As for the felines? They don't share the same worry as hoomans do during the holiday season. They eat, sleep, and repeat while we're stuck in long department store lines, hoping we don't pass out from our jackets keeping us too warm indoors. It could always be worse, right? But it would be better if we were all cats, pawbably…
icanhascheezburger_feedIn this housing market, you'll take whatever you can get, right? In the case of this couple, they got an extra perk… Two new cats. When these brand new homeowners moved in they were excited to finally own a home! Their excitement quickly turned into heartbreak after seeing what the previous owners left them. They abandoned their two cats there. How could anyone do such a thing? If you are taking on the responsibility of becoming a pet parent, then you have to know you are in it for life! So to see these cats just left behind by the home's seller made the hearts of this couple sink.
Luckily, they know the deal, and they are seeing this as an added bonus. They, of course, reached out to previous homeowners to see if this was some sort of mistake, but that was a while ago now and they have not heard anything back. So they have named them Billy and Bobby and they are keeping them. "It's their home more than ours," one of them say in a comment on their now-viral video. The cats needed some time to warm up, Billy more than Bobby, but now the two are warming up and seem to be happy to show them around the house.
Dying For A Drying
Dec. 4th, 2025 04:00 amnotalwaysright_feedRead Dying For A Drying
I've put my clothes in and hop back into my car, because I'm also running errands. As I'm driving back, I notice the streetlights go out. The traffic lights are dark.
Oh no.
Read Dying For A Drying
Valve Reveals Its the Architect Behind a Push To Bring Windows Games To Arm
Dec. 4th, 2025 03:03 amslashdot_feedAn anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge's Sean Hollister If you wrote off the Steam Frame as yet another VR headset few will want to wear, I guarantee you're not alone. But the Steam Frame isn't just a headset; it's a Trojan horse that contains the tech gamers need to play Steam games on the next Samsung Galaxy, the next Google Pixel, perhaps Arm gaming notebooks to come. I know, because I'm already using that tech on my Samsung Galaxy. There is no official Android version of Hollow Knight: Silksong, one of the best games of 2025, but that doesn't have to stop you anymore. Thanks to a stack of open-source technologies, including a compatibility layer called Proton and an emulator called Fex, games that were developed for x86-based Windows PCs can now run on Linux-based phones with the Arm processor architecture. With Proton, the Steam Deck could already do the Windows-to-Linux part; now, Fex is bridging x86 and Arm, too.
This stack is what powers the Steam Frame's own ability to play Windows games, of course, and it was widely reported that Valve is using the open-source Fex emulator to make it happen. What wasn't widely reported: Valve is behind Fex itself. In an interview, Valve's Pierre-Loup Griffais, one of the architects behind SteamOS and the Steam Deck, tells The Verge that Valve has been quietly funding almost all the open-source technologies required to play Windows games on Arm. And because they're open-source, Valve is effectively shepherding a future where Arm phones, laptops, and desktops could freely do the same. He says the company believes game developers shouldn't be wasting time porting games if there's a better way.
Remember when the Steam Deck handheld showed that a decade of investment in Linux could make Windows gaming portable? Valve paid open-source developers to follow their passions to help achieve that result. Valve has been guiding the effort to bring games to Arm in much the same way: In 2016 and 2017, Griffais tells me, the company began recruiting and funding open-source developers to bring Windows games to Arm chips. Fex lead developer Ryan Houdek tells The Verge he chatted with Griffais himself at conferences those years and whipped up the first prototype in 2018. He tells me Valve pays enough that Fex is his full-time job. "I want to thank the people from Valve for being here from the start and allowing me to kickstart this project," he recently wrote.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.