‘Catnomics’: how Japan’s feline fixation became a multi-billion dollar industry The Guardian
Where Are the Economies of Scale in Home Construction? Construction Physics
A Blue Origin rocket explodes during a test pad in Florida France24
Total randomness was first seen by Phys.org
Climate/Environment
Multidecadal Atlantic “Warming Hole” Heat Content Variation Is Caused by Ocean Heat Transport, Not Surface Fluxes GeoPhysical Research Papers
‘King of Mangoes’ faces heat: Weather destroys Maharashtra’s Alfonso belt Business Today
The potential for hail damage is increasing globally in a tropical climate Environment
Outdoor lights may be prolonging mosquito season Science
Discontinuity is a work in progress
Toxic Events in the Air
Company Behind California Chemical Leak Was Making F-35 Parts Amid Rush of Orders from US and Israel The Intercept
An epidemic
Long-Term Persistence of COVID and Surveillance Gaps in 58 US Hospitals JAMA Network. “… it continues to grow exponentially through 2024, presenting an increasing burden instead of solving the disease.” That would not be right; the epidemic was declared over in May of 2023.
Ebola
Kenyan high court halts US Ebola quarantine center plan Kenya Reuters
China?
Expiration Date of Neutrality-China’s Middle East Crisis Haokai Li
Causes and Mistakes – Consider China Un-Diplomatic
China’s Industrial Revolution Warwick Powell
China’s private equity funds see assets rise above US$400 billion amid tech boom South China Morning Post
China to hold 39% of lithium by 2030: WoodMac Mining.com
MIT researchers develop cheap way to extract lithium from rocks MIT News
Syracistan
First since Oslo, Israel replaces military base inside West Bank city +972 Magazine
Israel Arms ISIS-Linked Gangs With Military Aircraft To Help Continue Ethnic Cleansing In Gaza. The opposition
Netanyahu orders the army to take 70 percent of Gaza The Cradle
Hungry Palestinians in Gaza Protest World’s Middle Kitchen Repatriation Amid Rising Food Costs and Israeli Demolition Site
A new report from Reuters shows that Israel has issued evacuation orders covering 20 percent of Lebanon, far from the “safe zone” it had previously declared on the Litani River.
More than half of the evacuation orders were north* of Litani.
Gaza Tactics in Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/R7zLp8xHhk
— Rosemary Kelanic (@RKelanic) May 28, 2026
***
Scoop: US, Iran reach deal but need Trump’s final approval, officials say Axios
Iranian official to Jeremy: “We will not consider President Trump’s decision as completely finalized until the financial markets close at the end of this week.”
— Ryan Grim (@ryangrim) May 28, 2026
EXCLUSIVE: Israel Secretly Pressures US to Kill Iran’s Top Negotiator and Launch New Strikes Capital and Regime
The breakup of Europe
Von der Leyen prepares to fight China trade relations Politico
China Sends EU a Specific Warning on Overcapacity in China
An Open Letter to Chancellor Friedrich Merz Jeffrey Sachs
Europe told to cool its datacenter boom before water and power run out Register
Microsoft accused of leaking data of Dutch government employees working on technology regulations to US government Cyber News
Africa
Sudan: RSF Rebellion Raises Troubling Questions Sawahil
The New Cold War
Live: NATO condemns ‘Russian negligence’ after drone strikes residential building in Romania France24
One step from the brink: NATO’s march towards an endless war with Russia Thomas Fazi
In the pine forests of Latvia, NATO’s drone future is changing Euractiv
A new Meduza analysis finds that Ukraine’s long-range strikes will double in depth but not increase by 2026. Russian industries, meanwhile, keep falling back. Medusa
South of the Border
Guatemala Agrees to Allow US Airstrikes on Its Territory as US Expands Military Intervention in Latin America Antiwar
How a DEA Sting Caused the Landfill of the Colombian Insurgency
Trump 2.0
A friend of Trump has collected millions of Israeli government funds from Responsible Statecraft
The White House Intervened to Get a $620 Million Deal for a Company Tied to Donald Trump Jr. ProPublica
Firm led by Republican fundraiser pardoned by Trump wins $106m federal contract The Guardian
National Park Admission Fees Fund Trump Projects DC New York Times
Treasury Secretary Bessent confirms limited steps toward $250 bill featuring Donald Trump AP
WHAT DO WEAPONS HAVE TO DO WITH WEAPONS’ PLUTONIUM, REPRESENTATIVE COMPANIES, AND DEAD SCIENTISTS/NUCLEAR MISCONDUCT? Leah
Democracies are simple
Pentagon’s Wall Street push pulls Semafor for Democrats
Imperial Collapse Watch
Pentagon Knew Enemies Were Able To Track Military Phones For Years. Now They’re Wired
Our Famously Free Press
Wow, the student reporter who won the Mike Wallace Memorial Scholarship at the News Emmys just called CBS News.
“While I would like to thank CBS News for funding this great gift towards my education, I want to acknowledge how the latest approach to the store is polluting… pic.twitter.com/zjPVjDrDij
— Jeremy Barr (@jeremymbarr) May 28, 2026
The AI
🚨 The AI ROI numbers are starting to look pretty grim.
Even under the “best” assumption – assuming zero costs, revenue compared to capex – the Financial Times calculated the implied return on investment in hyperscaler AI from 2025 to 2030.
Only one of them specifies that it is positive.… pic.twitter.com/JAlvMUL6K1
— Thierry from arvy 🇨🇭 (@ThierryBorgeat) May 28, 2026
Company accidentally spends $500 million on Claude AI in one month after forgetting Tech Startups spending limits
Toward Slop Materialism Hard Machines
Police State Watch
Exclusive: Intel Bureau Eyes AI’s new data center critics Dan Boguslaw and Ken Klippenstein
Big Brother is Watching You
Headway Therapy Patients Forced to Scan Their Faces to Continue Care 404 Media. As of 2024 Headway had operations in all 50 states and had 34,000 mental health providers in network affiliated with more than 40 insurance plans and handled 600,000+ treatment sessions per month.
The economy
‘Debt and Financial Insecurity Have Become Mental and Physical Problems’: Survey Finds More Than 30% of Americans Can’t Meet Monthly Debt Obligations Benzinga
More workers are raiding their 401(k)s as average balances drop, Fidelity tells CNBC
Exxon, Chevron take over: Oil prices weeks from spiking Oil & Gas Journal
We are ~9 million bbls away from reaching a storage level equal to a life check to pay for gasoline and distillate.
When we get there, even a small disruption (any kind of outage) will lead to gas lines at gas stations.
I think we really do… pic.twitter.com/63XG5L9b73
— HFI Research (@HFI_Research) May 28, 2026
The real surprise today was the downward revision in real GDP growth for the first quarter to +1.6% annual rate from the initial estimate of +2.0%. If you remember, there was a time in the middle of the quarter when the ballyhooed Atlanta Fed Nowcast model correctly predicted the number…
— David Rosenberg (@EconguyRosie) May 28, 2026
White House rejects ‘doomer vision’ of Economy Semafor
The Accelerationists
Why Peter Thiel Fell to the Bottom of the New York Times
Bezzle
Highlights: bad news for the three biggest IPOs in history Gary Marcus
Not being trusted
Splenda owner to buy Equal sweetener maker Food Dive
Class War
More people in the US are hungry now than during the pandemic 6 years ago NPR
OSHA has only 6 inspectors to keep West Virginia’s 60,000 workplaces safe. Here’s what that means for the Mountain State Spotlight staff
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s links and the Antidote du Jour here.
