Trading and Business
Border Surge, Delta Variant Complicate Biden’s Immigration Agenda
Plans to ease public-health rules at the border, overhaul the asylum system and create a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants who entered the United States as minors all face potential delays or political pushback.
Behind the Rise of U.S. Solar Power, a Mountain of Chinese Coal
Reliance on coal-fired electricity to produce solar panels raises concerns in the West.
Delta Variant Fears Spur Some Americans to Get Covid-19 Vaccine
Concerns about the Delta variant, confidence in vaccines’ safety and pressure from friends and family are are contributing to increased vaccination rates.
In Other News
Baseball-U.S. pitcher woke to 2 a.m. call of trade to Twins
Simeon Woods-Richardson, the youngest U.S. baseball player at the Tokyo Olympics, was woken up at 2 a.m. on Saturday by an unexpected phone call.
Biden ramps up pressure on Iran as it grapples with protests
The Biden administration wants to ramp up pressure on Iran amid stalled talks.
Thousands protest against COVID-19 health pass in France
Thousands of people protested in Paris and other French cities on Saturday against a mandatory coronavirus health pass for entry to a wide array of public venues, introduced by the government as it battles a fourth wave of infections.
Delta variant raises fears of worsening mutations
Code, Gaming & Tech
Why is the English spelling system so weird and inconsistent? | Aeon Essays
Why is English spelling so weird and unpredictable? Don’t blame the mix of languages; look to quirks of timing and technology.
Google officially pairs Stadia Controller and Chromecast as a $100 deal
A new “play and watch” bundle from Google includes both the Stadia Controller and 2020 Chromecast for a reduced price of $99.99, a difference of $19 compared to buying separately.
Unicorns are ready for a haircut
The digitization of your haircut may not have been on your 2020 bucket list, but 2021 has an even more surprising line item: Tech-powered barbershops are now a business proposition valued at nearly a billion dollars.
The Retrocomputing Archive
The Rickroll drives ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ to 1 billion YouTube plays
The official video for Rick Astley’s 1987 hit “Never Gonna Give You Up” has surpassed 1 billion plays on YouTube. The song became a lasting part of internet culture thanks to the Rickroll meme.
And also this...
Man found dead in Tanjung Sepat died of Covid-19
Police have confirmed that a man found dead on the streets in Tanjung Sepat, Malaysia on Wednesday had died of Covid-19.
According to Wikipedia:
Tanjung Sepat is primarily a fishing town. Most of the inhabitants have some kind of connection to the fishing industry, although the relative importance of fishing to the economy is dwindling due to pollution in the Straits of Malacca. Many locals believe this is caused by the high amounts of pig-farming in the surrounding areas of the state. The uncontrollable waste flowing to the sea produces not only stench but hardship for the fishing industry participants.
Photo credit: Levi Meir Clancy / Unsplash