Free Republic

The smell wafted through the air in the October sunshine. At least one Harvard scientist has likened it to “rancid butter and vomit,” while Jennifer Iida, a spokesperson for Sacramento’s Department of General Services, called it downright “pungent and unpleasant.” It was the sweet aroma of two 75-year-old ginkgo trees in California State Capitol Park, and it’s gotten so bad, officials have taken matters into their own hands, surrounding the trees with metal barriers affixed with zip-tied and laminated signs to ward the public away. As the Sacramento Bee first reported, the issue isn’t just the odor. It’s the slip...

Woman in Chicago thought having kids in her car would shield her from arrest while she impeded ICE operations. She thought wrong.“I got kids in my car!”“We warned you.”

It won’t catch any fish, but the discovery of as many as 20,000 silver coins and pieces of jewelry dates back to the early Middle Ages. Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story: A fisherman digging for worms at his summer home in Sweden instead discovered over 13 pounds of buried silver treasure. The hoard comes from the early Middle Ages, and includes mostly coins (and some jewelry). The entire cache of silver was tucked inside a copper pot. A Swedish fisherman searching for gooey, juicy worms to use as bait near his summer home near Stockholm instead...

The containerized demonstrator has already been successfully tested several times. The weapon could also be equipped with greater capabilities and be used to destroy supersonic guided missiles. Rheinmetall/Wikimedia Commons ==================================================================== Ademonstrator laser weapon, which can fry enemy drones, has been delivered to Germany. The weapon is expected to be deployed for operational use starting in 2029. Developed by Rheinmetall and MBDA, the laser weapon could serve as a powerful and cost-effective addition to conventional guided missiles. The weapon’s effectiveness and precision have been proven under real operational conditions in over 100 firing tests. High-energy laser weapon system for maritime use...

The space environment would provide natural radiative cooling, as well as unlimited solar energy. With the generative AI boom in full force, scientists have warned of the immense power requirements of data centers used to train and utilize these systems. Now, a team of researchers from NTU Singapore has joined the call to place data centers in space. Doing so would pave the way for sustainable computing, the claim. According to the team, space data centers would be powered by round-the-clock solar energy and would harness free cooling. Crucially, all of this is possible using existing technologies. Sending AI infrastructure...

Pekrovsk and Kupiansk in total encirclement. Cauldrons, 5,000 Ukies trapped in each cauldron. Russian drones dropping surrender pamphlets, surrender in a few hours or be destroyed. Doesn't sound like winning, in fact St Z giving orders to not surrender, " to the last Ukrainian " thingy, in progress.

There has been much wallowing over news that Amazon and UPS have each just cut 14,000 jobs. Some Amazon employees report of being fired with all the heartlessness you might expect in a world where tech has taken over: by automated email. Maybe it was even AI which handpicked them to be de-emphasized, to use that dreaded 1990s expression. This, then, seems to be the future: where an elite of AI entrepreneurs grow rich while the rest of us slop off into idleness and unemployment. So much for those who have been gleefully predicting the implosion of the AI boom....

An Iraq Refugee goes viral for his comments about losing food stamps and financial help amid the freezing of EBT and SNAP programs amid the Democrat-induced government shutdown. This has turned the debate over President Trump, Democrats, and the government shutdown into a wider one around immigration and refugee resettlement programs as shocking numbers show the economic reality of American and European migration policies.

© Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizon ================================================================= A blue dune captured by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has raised new questions about wind, sediment, and geological diversity on the Red Planet. Though the coloring is artificially enhanced, the unique features of this formation, located in two distinct craters, are anything but ordinary. NASA scientists recently released two detailed images taken by the MRO’s HiRISE camera, showing separate dune fields inside Lyot Crater and Gamboa Crater. These images don’t just offer stunning visuals; they open a rare window into the complex interactions between Martian winds and surface materials. The unusually shaped and...

NASA's X-59 just made history with its first flight, and it could revolutionize the future of air travel by making supersonic flight quieter than ever! On October 29, 2025, NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic jet made its long-awaited first flight, soaring above the Mojave Desert from Palmdale Regional Airport in California. This experimental jet, developed by NASA in collaboration with Lockheed Martin, is designed to break the sound barrier without causing the disruptive sonic booms that have long hindered supersonic travel. The success of this flight is a crucial step towards a future where supersonic flights over land might become commonplace....

The recent appearance of gubernatorial candidate Democrat Abigail Spanberger at the Virginia NAACP's annual convention set off a predictable online firestorm. Given that her GOP opponent in the race, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, is a black woman, several right-leaning commentators took time to point out the obvious: The recent appearance of gubernatorial candidate Democrat Abigail Spanberger at the Virginia NAACP's annual convention set off a predictable online firestorm. Given that her GOP opponent in the race, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, is a black woman, several right-leaning commentators took time to point out the obvious: That line stings precisely because it...

Both leaders complimentary to each other at the start of their meeting.

UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall’s vision has been severely impacted after he suffered an injury Oct. 25 in a match-up against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321. Andy described his son’s troubling condition. “His right eye can’t — still can’t see anything. Said it’s just gray. [Doctors] tested him on words and he just couldn’t see anything,” he said. “His left eye 50%. He went about four letters [down the chart] and then couldn’t see letters. So, one’s really, really blurry — and one’s still not working.” Andy told ESPN on Sunday that Tom narrowly avoided “bone damage” to the region but...

Republicans in Congress enacting President Donald Trump’s agenda are on the verge of approving a sweeping tax-and-spending cuts package that creates a new, higher hurdle to receive food stamps for tens of thousands of former foster youth. Under the provision, those as young as 18 and living in poverty would have to prove they were employed, training or enrolled in school to be eligible for more than three months on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP. In interviews late tonight, three former foster youth who are leading national voices for their peers — two of whom once relied...

FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP, N.J. — A New Jersey officer has been charged with misconduct after prosecutors say he didn't quickly respond to and properly investigate reports of a shooting that turned out to be a double murder, instead stopping at an ATM and pizzeria. Franklin Township Police Sergeant Kevin Bollaro was the on-duty officer on the evening of Aug. 1, when police received 911 calls reporting gunshots and screaming in Pittstown, about 60 miles from Manhattan in central New Jersey, according to Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renee Robeson's office. But rather than responding immediately, prosecutors say, Bollaro drove nearly two miles in...

A small-town girl, Trudy Kockenlocker (Betty Hutton), attends a party – against the wishes of her father (William Demarest) – held to entertain soldiers on leave. After a night of dancing and carousing, she remembers little, but later discovers she is pregnant. Her adoring childhood friend, Norval Jones (Eddie Bracken), agrees to marry her. Her wisecracking teen sister, Emmy (Diana Lynn), is her only other ally. It has always been considered amazing that Sturges was able to produce a mainstream studio movie in Hollywood about “pre-marital” pregnancy during a period when a tight Production Code was being heavily enforced....

As the measles outbreak in the Upstate has grown to 30 people, including eight new cases this week, South Carolina public health officials addressed disinformation and myths contributing to lower vaccination rates, including that it is better to be infected and get immunity that way than get the shot. And as the measles outbreak in the Palmetto State continues to grow and one in Utah and Arizona takes off, the U.S. is closer to losing its status since 2000 of having eliminated measles from circulating in the country. Even before the first cases were confirmed in South Carolina in July,...

The jailing of a failed asylum seeker for randomly murdering a restaurant owner is only the latest serious crime by an illegal migrant to come to public attention in recent days. Today, an Afghan refugee was also charged with a triple stabbing in Uxbridge which caused the death of a dog walker. MPs and campaigners today described the cases as further proof of the damage caused by the government's failure to control Britain's borders. Safi Dawood, 22, is accused of one count of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and possession of an offensive weapon. During the rampage a 45-year-old...

Switching permanently to either standard time or daylight saving time would disadvantage either early risers or night owls, according to experts. The current system provides each group with benefits for half the year. Now, the Coalition for Permanent Standard Time is calling for change. The group contends abolishing seasonal time changes and adopting permanent standard time, follows science and prioritizes public health, safety and efficiency. A survey by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) found that half (50%) of Americans support legislation to eliminate seasonal time changes, while only one-fourth (26%) are opposed. Currently, more than 60% of countries...

Parents, please show this movie to your teenagers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFy_Ezt0r-4