OVERWORLD:
-They want to artificially cool down Earth-

ONE BETWEEN:
-Every country is getting fatter… except France-

THE DEPTHS:
-World’s greatest elbow (seriously)-

"Start copying what you love. Copy copy copy copy. At the end of the copy you will find your self."
— Yohji Yamamoto

✦DISCOVERY PICKS✦

▶️ YouTube:
When Water Flows Uphill

✖️ X:
Penny stock trading is more popular than ever

❓
Mystery link.

What the fuck

They want to artificially cool down Earth

Okay so, planet Earth has never been hotter. Swamp-ass is worldwide.

What are we going to do about it? Well, lowering greenhouse emissions is sooo 2010. What if we cool the planet?

Seriously: The US Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is set to finance research into technologies that could artificially cool the planet. This idea was once seen as a bit out there, but with temperatures rising, it’s gaining serious attention.

The research will focus on estimating the potential effects of deploying artificial cooling technologies in different regions worldwide.

✦Bounce the sun off✦

For example, the EDF will fund research into solar radiation modification, or solar geoengineering. In plain English, it involves reflecting more of the sun's energy back into space.

Techniques may include injecting aerosols into the stratosphere or brightening clouds — a chemical process… coughs in apocalyptic lung-burn.

✦Band-aid solutions✦

Researchers believe this could temporarily reduce global temperatures until society significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

However, the potential side effects of these actions remain unknown. Like we might kill the planet doing it.

There are speculations about how reflecting more sunlight alters precipitation patterns or ocean circulation, affecting life on land and in the sea.

This speculation is what drives much of the opposition to solar geoengineering. Many environmental groups remain skeptical of geoengineering, calling it a "massive chemical experiment" on the planet due to human activity.

Some critics also argue these technologies create a false impression of quick fixes for climate change — a distraction from addressing the root causes.

But fuck it, we're here, right?

✦QUICK HITS✦

✦Business & Tech✦

Whoa: Apple briefly surpassed Microsoft as the world's most valuable company, hitting a $3.3 trillion market cap after announcing AI advancements. Shares surged 7%, driven by new AI features in iPhones.

BeReal was acquired for €500 million by Voodoo, a French mobile apps publisher. BeReal, with 40 million active users, has for years struggled to grow and sought a buyer. Voodoo plans to enhance BeReal with new features and marketing strategies.

Mistral AI raised 600 million euros ($645 million) in funding, valuing the company at 5.8 billion euros ($6.2 billion). Led by General Catalyst, the round aims to support Mistral's goal of competing with OpenAI.

War on AI: Major Danish newspapers and TV stations threaten to sue OpenAI unless compensated for using their content to train AI models. The Danish Press Publications' Collective Management Organization (DPCMO), representing 99% of Danish media, demands remuneration or plans to sue.

✦Fashion & Culture✦

The WNBA is seeing record fan engagement in its 28th season, with an average of 1.3 million viewers per game across major networks, tripling last season’s average. In May, 400,000 fans attended games, the highest in 26 years. Merchandise sales surged by 236%, driven by a strong rookie class. Diverse viewership increased significantly, with notable growth among people of color and young audiences.

Surprisingly good: BAPE debuted its Fall/Winter 2024 collection at Shanghai Expo-I Pavilion, featuring its main line and sub-brands with Eastern themes. Highlights included 40 pieces inspired by subculture, campus life, and city combat.

A 27-Year Old Tamagotchi Mystery Has Been Solved

✦Hmm… Interesting✦

Cozy 1-minute-read: Just enough social media

Cozy 5-minute-read: Just keep doing the bit

Big read for big-brained developers: How Much of a Genius-Level Move Was Using Binary Space Partitioning in Doom?

For game designers: “The Door Problem”

ONE 

BETWEEN

The age of chunk

Every country is getting fatter… except France

Things are fat. Over 1 billion people now live with obesity worldwide. This number, which surpasses earlier projections for 2030, was actually reached in 2022.

This means that global obesity rates have doubled for adults and quadrupled for children and adolescents between 1990 and 2020.

To find out exactly how fat we are, a huge study from The Lancet used 3663 studies with height and weight measurements from 222 million participants aged 5 years and older, including 63 million aged 5–19 years.

The Lancet study forecasts that by 2035, more than half of the global population will be either overweight or obese. This is supported by World Health Organization (WHO) data showing significant variations in obesity rates across different countries.

A few fat countries:

✦Less fat countries, and the fitter French✦

Interestingly, some countries with initially low obesity rates have managed to keep their rates relatively low.

In China, India, and Japan, obesity rates were under 2% in 1990 and have increased to around 8.3%, 7.3%, and 5.5% respectively in 2022.

Conversely, France presents a unique case where obesity rates have slightly declined from 10.4% in 1990 to 9.7% in 2020.

This decline is attributed to the French government's Programme National Nutrition Santé, which focuses on improving health through better nutrition and physical activity. The campaign "Manger Bouger" has also played a role by providing public guidelines on healthier living.

The campaign is a public health initiative launched as part of the National Nutrition and Health Program (PNNS) in 2001. The primary goal of this campaign is to encourage healthy eating habits and regular physical activity among the French population to combat obesity and related health issues.

Good job, France.

THE DEPTHS

The oldest school of perversion

The world’s greatest elbow (seriously)

Michelangelo, born in 1475, is renowned for masterpieces such as the Pietà, David, the Sistine Chapel ceiling, and Moses.

While David and the Sistine Chapel are more famous, Moses is just a different breed in anatomy, movement, and emotional resonance.

Case in point: Look at Moses' left foot, positioned as if he's about to rise from his seat. His left hand holds his slipping robe, exposing his knee to facilitate movement. His right shoulder tilts in opposition to his left foot, creating dynamic tension in his muscles. How insane is that?

✦Anatomy✦

Michelangelo's Moses is masterful in invoking subtle emotions through its tiny details. Its beauty transcends the visible, tapping into our subconscious ability to read emotion through body language.

Pulling this off requires a profound knowledge of human anatomy. Michelangelo shows off his understanding of muscles in the pronounced extensor digiti minimi in Moses' forearm. This detail is visible only when the little finger is lifted.

Look at the turquoise line below to see the extensor digiti minimi.

It's said that Michelangelo spoke to Moses while sculpting, frustrated when it didn't respond, leading him to strike its knee with his hammer in anger. Some people speculate that you can see where Michelangelo struck Moses.

There’s poetry in that. Passion and frustration are intertwined; to honor what we love deeply, humans tend to get destructive.