Politico: Europeans embrace EU amid growing gloom about world, survey finds A Politico piece reports on a new Eurobarometer survey: although Europeans have grown more pessimistic about the world’s future (58% view it with anxiety), faith in the European Union is high — 74% think EU membership has benefited their country, and 59% are optimistic about the EU’s […]
links: 29.06.2026
The New York Times: The Generational Force Hollowing Out the Economy A New York Times opinion piece argues that the vast artificial-intelligence buildout — already more than a trillion dollars a year — is not propping up the US economy, as is commonly assumed, but on the contrary is strangling it: data centres are soaking up so much […]
links: 25.06.2026
Yle: What annoys Finns the most? Wars, selfishness, and telemarketers A survey commissioned by a Finnish communications agency has found what annoys Finns most: wars, selfishness and telemarketing cold calls. It also revealed generational differences — pensioners tend to be irritated by more things (three in four are angered by wars, and many are also bothered by boastfulness […]
links: 24.06.2026
Wired: The ‘Parasite of Parasites’ Has Been Discovered in the Tropical Forests of Borneo In the rainforests of Borneo, Malaysian scientists have identified a new fungal species, Pleurocordyceps cornusynnemata — a parasite that feeds on another parasite. Its victim is the so-called zombie fungus (Ophiocordyceps), which infects ants, hijacks their nervous system and drives them to spread its […]
links: 20.06.2026
PBS / PolitiFact: Comparing the mood of America’s 250th anniversary with its 200th in 1976 As the US approaches its 250th anniversary, historians compare the national mood with the bicentennial of 1976 and see eerie parallels — international conflict, high inflation and gas prices, culture wars and low presidential approval. The key difference: society is far more polarised […]
links: 17.06.2026
NYT: The Cloud Has Sound: The Unrelenting and Unseen Cost of A.I. Data Centers The “heartbeat” of the AI economy is a low-frequency vibration produced by the giant cooling fans and diesel generators of data centers. The US already has more than 3,000 of them; some residents living nearby, whose health and homes are being wrecked by the […]
links: 15.06.2026
TechCrunch: The AI layoff wave is becoming a powder keg Last month the tech sector cut more jobs than in any month in two years — nearly 40,000 — and for the third month running AI was the most-cited reason. Yet a growing chorus argues AI is merely a convenient excuse, and the real cause is pandemic-era overhiring […]