James' World 2

From Wikipedia

Click the link below the picture

.

The Wilmington insurrection of 1898, also known as the Wilmington Massacre of 1898 or the Wilmington coup of 1898, was a coup d’état and a massacre which was carried out by white supremacists in Wilmington, North Carolina, United States, on Thursday, November 10, 1898. The white press in Wilmington originally described the event as a race riot caused by black people. In later study from the 20th century onward, the event has been characterized as a violent overthrow of a duly elected government by a group of white supremacists.

The coup was the result of a group of the state’s white Southern Democrats conspiring and leading a mob of 2,000 white men to overthrow the legitimately elected local Fusionist biracial government in Wilmington. They expelled opposition black and white political leaders from the city, destroyed the property and businesses of black citizens built up since the American Civil War, including the only black newspaper in the city, and killed from 14 to an estimated 60 to more than 300 people.

The Wilmington coup is considered a turning point in post-Reconstruction North Carolina politics. It was part of an era of more severe racial segregation and effective disenfranchisement of African Americans throughout the South, which had been underway since the passage of a new constitution in Mississippi in 1890 which raised barriers to the registration of black voters. Other states soon passed similar laws. Historian Laura Edwards writes, “What happened in Wilmington became an affirmation of white supremacy not just in that one city, but in the South and in the nation as a whole”, as it affirmed that invoking “whiteness” eclipsed the legal citizenship, individual rights, and equal protection under the law that black Americans were guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment. tangie

.

.

.

Click the link below for the article:

.

__________________________________________

.

.

__________________________________________

Click the link below the picture

.

We are living in a golden age of apples, a time of delicious, diverse, mouth-watering abundance that we could barely have imagined at the turn of the millennium. How did we get to a time when most of us, most of the year, can eat our choice of fragrant, juicy, sweet, crisp (oh so crisp) apples?

We can thank a mix of science, innovations, investment in long-term research, the multi-multi-multi-generational transmission of knowledge, communal action, and people who joyfully dedicate their lives to a cause.

What’s your favorite apple? I asked this question on the social media platform Bluesky, and this is a sample of people’s answers: Macoun, Winesap, Gravenstein, Winter Banana, CrimsonCrisp, SnapDragon, SweeTango, Jazz, Cosmic Crisp, Jonathan, Empire, Envy, RubyFrost, Hidden Rose, Sonata, Pink Lady, Regent, Honeycrisp, Honeycrisp, Honeycrisp. (My favorite? Evercrisp.)

Many of us remember that the U.S. apple market was dominated for decades by one variety: Red Delicious, which is a bold name for a bland apple. It is certainly red, with a lovely rich jewel color and a handsome shape. But delicious? The main alternative was Golden Delicious, a perfectly fine but similarly uninspiring yellow variety. Tart, green Granny Smiths, which were propagated in Australia in 1868 by an orchardist named Maria Ann Sherwood Smith, started taking a decent share of the market in the U.S. in the 1980s. And that’s where we were stuck.

David Bedford, an apple researcher at the University of Minnesota who helps develop new varieties (his favorite apples: Honeycrisp, SweeTango and Rave) says, “I still remember some big marketers telling me: we have a red apple, a yellow apple, and a green apple. Do we really need any more?”

Apple History

Today’s cultivated apples are produced by the tree Malus domestica. Its ancestor is Malus sieversii, which still grows wild in what is now Kazakhstan and bears small and variable fruit. Farmers began domesticating apples sometime between 10,000 and 4,000 years ago in the Tian Shan Mountains of Central Asia, according to genetic analyses. These cultivated varieties then quickly spread along the Silk Road trade route, where breeders crossed them with another wild species, Malus sylvestris. The ancient Romans developed techniques for apple grafting (more on that in a sec) and propagated the trees across their empire.

It’s a little challenging to track the cultural history of apples because in many languages, the word that came to mean “apple” could refer to any type of fruit. There weren’t apples in Mesopotamia, for instance, so the tempting fruit in the Garden of Eden story was more likely a fig. When the Greek goddess of discord inscribed a fruit with “For the most beautiful” and started the Trojan War, that fruit may have been a quince. And William Tell probably didn’t shoot an arrow through an apple on top of his son’s head. Isaac Newton wasn’t hit on the head, but he did say that observing an apple falling from a tree helped inspire his theory of gravity.

.

LightFieldStudios/Getty Images

.

.

Click the link below for the article:

.

__________________________________________

Click the link below the picture

.

STEM toys are a fantastic way to combine fun and learning, sparking curiosity and creativity in children of all ages. Whether shopping for science gifts for kids or searching for activities that teach valuable skills, these toys offer engaging ways to explore science, technology, engineering, and math. From hands-on activities like the GraviTrax JUNIOR Starter-Set for younger kids to the advanced challenges of the LEGO Technic NASA Mars Rover Perseverance for teens, the best STEM toys offer something for every age and interest.

STEM toys can range from really high-tech gadgets to simple, hands-on activities like marble runs and model rocket kits to even more traditional options like classic paper toys. These toys are designed to build essential skills in science, technology, engineering, and math, providing fun ways to learn while encouraging problem-solving and creativity. Whether your child loves tinkering with building sets, experimenting with science kits, or exploring engineering challenges, there’s something for every budding inventor. High-tech children’s STEM toys can introduce coding and robotics, while simpler toys offer valuable lessons in physics and engineering. They all help foster critical thinking, making STEM toys for kids an excellent choice for playtime and learning. Explore our recommendations to find the perfect educational gift that balances fun and learning for every child.

• Best overall: Yoto Player and collection of STEM cards
• Best splurge: Makeblock mBot Ultimate
• Best for little kids (age 3-7): GraviTrax JUNIOR Starter-Set
• Best for big kids (age 8-12): 3 Doodler Start+ Maker Bundle
• Best for teens (age 13+): LEGO Technic NASA Mars Rover Perseverance
• Best budget: STEM Explorers Superhero Science 

How we chose the best STEM toys

Our top STEM toy recommendations are based on extensive research. We reviewed expert opinions, user feedback, and product reviews to compile a list of standout options and tested them thoroughly. Read on to discover the best STEM toys that balance innovation, ease of use, and educational value, providing your child with engaging opportunities to explore science, technology, engineering, and math in a fun and exciting way.

The best STEM toys: Reviews & Recommendations  

We’ve handpicked the best STEM toy options to suit a variety of skill levels. Whether you’re looking for something simple for beginners or more complex projects for advanced learners, our detailed reviews will guide you in choosing the perfect STEM toy to inspire creativity and help your child build something amazing. 

.

We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs.

.

.

Click the link below for the article:

.

__________________________________________

Click the link below the picture

.

An alcohol-only diet would throw most species for a loop, but new research suggests that hornets can live—apparently unimpaired—with an 80 percent ethanol sugar solution as their sole food source.

Fruit flies, tree shrews, and many other animals naturally consume alcohol in fruits that ferment; this happens when yeast or certain bacteria are around to break down sugars in ripe fruit, creating small amounts of ethanol. Most animal species show signs of impairment or toxicity after consuming this substance at concentrations above 4 percent. But animal nutrition researcher Sofia Bouchebti, now at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel, suspected that hornets and wasps might tolerate alcohol better—or even use it as a food source. After all, these insects’ gut is known to host yeast that converts fruit sugar to alcohol. When hornets or wasps pollinate and feed, some of this yeast rubs off onto plants and their fruits—playing a key role in the fermentation process.

Bouchebti turned her attention to the hornet Vespa orientalis, a type of social wasp. In a study this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, she and her colleagues at Tel Aviv University fed both hornets and honeybees sugar solutions containing 0 to 80 percent ethanol with a trackable carbon isotope. The researchers found that hornets’ exhaled breath contained up to 300 percent more labeled carbon than the honeybees’, suggesting the hornets’ bodies broke down the alcohol that much faster.

“There’s lots of energy in ethanol, and it’s a great metabolic fuel,” says study co-author and zoologist Eran Levin. The problem for humans and many other animals, of course, is that there are behavior and health consequences as the substance interacts with the brain and organs. But when provided with nest-building materials, the ethanol-fed hornets in the study completed construction tasks as efficiently as sugar-fed ones. When faced with an intruder, they did not delay sending “back off” signals. Moreover, hornets fed with 80 percent ethanol lived out their typical three-month-long lifespan; their honeybee counterparts died within 24 hours. Still, hornets showed no preference between sugar and ethanol when given a choice. “If ethanol is more nutritious and without bad effects, shouldn’t they want more? Maybe they can’t taste it,” Bouchebti suggests.

To distill the secret behind this metabolic mastery, study co-author and zoologist Dorothée Huchon led a hunt for genetic clues. She found that hornets possess multiple copies of the gene responsible for the enzyme that breaks down alcohol—an adaptation perhaps fueled by their relationship with yeast.

University of Rochester biologist James Fry, who was not involved in the new study, says it tells an “interesting evolutionary story.” But he cautions that the methods are too different from those of other studies to directly compare ethanol resistance between species.

Robert Dudley, an insect flight specialist at the University of California, Berkeley, notes that insects would never encounter such high ethanol values in nature. Bouchebti says the researchers “aimed to find a maximum limit, and we still didn’t find it.” Next up is examining gene expression during ethanol consumption and seeking patterns in this among animals known to be attracted to alcohol (some beetles and bats, for example). Dudley agrees: “A broader survey of social Hymenoptera and other insects is clearly called for,” he says.

.

.

.

Click the link below for the article:

.

__________________________________________

Click the link below the picture

.

When you enter a relationship, you’re not just embracing the shared present, you’re also stepping into the emotional landscape shaped by your partner’s past. Previous relationships can leave behind unresolved fears, scars, and insecurities that inevitably affect your dynamic.

While this emotional baggage may seem heavy, it can provide valuable insights into your partner’s needs and vulnerabilities. Yet, if these feelings go unspoken or unmanaged, they have the potential to cloud your connection and make you feel like you’re navigating someone else’s unresolved history.

The challenge lies in supporting your partner through their emotional residue without compromising your own boundaries. How can you offer empathy without becoming the emotional caretaker? How do you respect your partner’s past without letting it shape your future together? These are questions many couples grapple with.

Here are three steps to help balance empathy and self-care, allowing both you and your partner to thrive without being weighed down by past shadows.

1. Be A Mirror, Not A Healer

When someone you love struggles with emotional pain from their past, it’s natural to want to help. Our empathy drives us to heal those we care about, but in romantic relationships, attempting to “fix” your partner’s wounds can backfire. This approach places an undue burden on you that isn’t yours to carry.

Your role isn’t to erase their past hurts or provide a magical solution. Instead, you can be a mirror—reflecting their emotions back to them with empathy and understanding. This means listening deeply, offering validation, and creating a space where they feel seen and heard.

Research indicates that “partner-orientation thinking,” which involves evaluating both your feelings and your partner’s regarding the relationship, can lead to greater relationship satisfaction. Often, what your partner needs most is not a fix for their pain but for you to hold space as they work through it themselves.

Why is this important?

Trying to heal your partner can blur emotional boundaries and lead to burnout, resentment, or even codependency. Conversely, being a reflective listener fosters a healthy emotional balance, allowing both partners to maintain their independence while offering support.

In practice, when your partner expresses insecurity or anxiety tied to their past, you might say, “I understand why what happened before makes you feel this way. I’m here with you now, but how do you think we can approach this together?”

2. Watch For Trigger Loops

Emotional baggage from past relationships often brings triggers—specific situations that provoke strong emotional reactions tied to unresolved experiences like betrayal or abandonment. These triggers can create recurring patterns of conflict, known as “trigger loops,” where your partner reacts not to the present but to past hurts.

For instance, if your partner was betrayed in a previous relationship, they might

become anxious when you’re late or don’t respond to messages promptly. Their reaction is less about the current situation and more about the fear of being hurt again.

Initially, these triggers may seem like minor disagreements, but if they keep surfacing, it’s essential to recognize the underlying pattern. Ask yourself, “Is my partner responding to the present or to their past?” Acknowledging this distinction can help defuse tension and clarify the situation.

Why is this important?

Left unaddressed, trigger loops can erode trust and lead to misunderstandings, leaving both partners feeling frustrated or confused. Recognizing these patterns early helps interrupt the cycle and prevents small triggers from escalating into larger conflicts.

In practice, if your partner has trust issues stemming from past betrayal and begins questioning your actions, it’s crucial to acknowledge the trigger instead of reacting defensively—one of the “horsemen” that predicts the end of a relationship. You might say, “I understand why this brings up old fears, but I’m committed to being honest with you. Let’s talk about what’s making you feel uneasy.”

.

There are multiple ways to steer through past hurts without hitting rough waters. Here are a few of … [+]  Getty

.

.

Click the link below for the article:

.

__________________________________________