Year: 2025

Breathing Two Ways

The Cells That Breathe Two Ways | Quanta Magazine:

Then the team added oxygen back into the mix. As expected, the bacteria grew faster. But, to the researchers’ surprise, RSW1 also still produced hydrogen sulfide gas, as if it were anaerobically respiring. In fact, the bacteria seemed to be breathing both aerobically and anaerobically at once, and benefiting from the energy of both processes. This double respiration went further than the earlier reports: The cell wasn’t just producing sulfide in the presence of oxygen but was also performing both conflicting processes at the same time. Bacteria simply shouldn’t be able to do that.

Caligula as a Pharmacology Nerd

We still have lots to learn from the ancients… I’m hoping AI will help us process some of the lessons we’ve forgotten over the millennia, particularly with pharmacology…

Ancient Rome’s Most Notorious Emperor Was Also a Medicine Nerd, New Study Reveals (art net):

Conventional wisdom suggests Caligula was a madman, hence the apocryphal story of appointing his horse as a senator. But despite his character, and questionable sanity, Caligula was also man of great intellect and learning with a particularly keen knowledge of pharmacology. This is the conclusion of Andrew Koh and Trevor Luke, faculty in the Yale Ancient Pharmacology Program, who have delved into the unflattering histories concerning Caligula and found an Emperor who knew his medicinal plants.

Tech Fiefdoms (for real)

I’ve been saying this for a while now… Ursula Le Guin tries to warn us still:

Tech Billionaires Accused of Quietly Working to Implement “Corporate Dictatorship”:

“It sees a post-United States world where, instead of democracy, we will have basically tech feudalism — fiefdoms run by tech corporations. They’re pretty explicit about this point.”

Substack’s AI Report

Interesting stats here…

The Substack AI Report – by Arielle Swedback – On Substack:

Based on our results, a typical AI-using publisher is 45 or over, more likely to be a man, and tends to publish in categories like Technology and Business. He’s not using AI to generate full posts or images. Instead, he’s leaning on it for productivity, research, and to proofread his writing. Most who use AI do so daily or weekly and have been doing so for over six months.

Mistral’s Report on Environmental Impact

I’m generally skeptical about these sorts of tech related impact reports, but it is a good sign to see a mainstream AI-focused company put this together when we all are aware that the AI systems we are using water, rare earth minerals, and our electrical grid in non-sustainable and often coloinalistic ways (reflecting the larger global tech culture that has expanded over the last decade of decadence):

Our contribution to a global environmental standard for AI | Mistral AI:

Today, as AI becomes increasingly integrated into every layer of our economy, it is crucial for developers, policymakers, enterprises, governments and citizens to better understand the environmental footprint of this transformative technology. At Mistral AI, we believe that we share a collective responsibility with each actor of the value chain to address and mitigate the environmental impacts of our innovations…

In this context, we have conducted a first-of-its-kind comprehensive study to quantify the environmental impacts of our LLMs. This report aims to provide a clear analysis of the environmental footprint of AI, contributing to set a new standard for our industry.

Mullins in the Political Spotlight

Have to say, I did not have Newsom touring my beloved and small rural hometown of Mullins, SC on the BINGO card for 2025… but glad to see Mullins and the Pee Dee getting some attention from national candidates!

I wasn’t sold on Obama in 2007 until I heard his stump speech in Columbia that year and he rolled out the famous “YES WE CAN” call and response (along with “Fired up” at the same speech…. it was pretty electric and inspiring when he said we can do a better job teaching children how to read in Dillon County)…

Column: Newsom needs to stop kidding around. He’s running for president – Los Angeles Times…

California Gov. Gavin Newsom tours downtown Mullins, S.C., with Mayor Miko Pickett on July 8.

GMail

I was cleaning up my inbox this morning and realized that I had built up about 21 years of muscle memory working in GMail (was an ardent Eudora fan before that) since 2004. Amazing to me how quickly that span happened.

Dalai Lama’s Succession Plans

Religion and politics aren’t only enmeshed here in the West… fascinating situation unplaying here…

The Dalai Lama announces plans for a successor : NPR:

The English translation published on his website said the search for his successor will be carried out by The Gaden Phodrang Trust, a religious body of Buddhist monks who are part of the office of the Dalai Lama in India.

In what appears to be a nod to China, the statement adds that “no one else has any such authority to interfere in the matter.” China has stated that it alone has the authority to appoint the next leader of Tibetan Buddhism. Tibet is an autonomous region controlled by China…

… The Tibetan spiritual leader had previously speculated that his successor might be an adult, could be an “attractive” woman, or there might not be one at all. In his recently released book Voice for the Voiceless, he said that the new Dalai Lama will be born “in the free world” and outside of China.