Minnesota Poised To Ban Christians, Muslims, And Jews From Teaching In Public Schools

(Worthy Insights) – Minnesota will soon ban faithful Christians, Muslims, and Jews from teaching in public schools by requiring that every state-certified teacher “fosters an environment that ensures student identities such as … gender identity … are … affirmed.” Once the new requirements clear a final procedural hurdle, they will be immediately challenged in state and possibly federal court, a civil liberties lawyer told The Federalist on Tuesday.

“We have lots of parents who are upset by this sort of thing in schools already,” said Doug Seaton, president of Minnesota’s Upper Midwest Law Center, in an interview. “They’re going to be even more upset with how their teachers are going to be licensed. Their teachers are going to have to be faced with hiding their beliefs or getting denied [for a state teaching license].”

Seaton said it was accurate to describe the nearly finalized regulations as communicating: “Christians, Muslims, and Jews need not apply for Minnesota teaching jobs.” That is unconstitutional, he said, so UMLC plans to sue once the changes go into effect. [ Source: Federalist (Read More…) ]

Dem Rep. Adam Schiff wanted journalist Paul Sperry’s account suspended over reporting on Trump whistleblower, Twitter Files reveals

(Worthy Insights) – US Rep. Adam Schiff tried to get a journalist suspended from Twitter and to have “any and all content” related to House Intelligence Committee staffers removed from the site, according to the latest document dump authorized by new owner Elon Musk.

In Tuesday’s installment of the ongoing “Twitter Files,” independent journalist Matt Taibbi posted a Nov. 20, 2020, email regarding a request from the California Democrat’s office to suppress free speech on the social media platform.

The journalist in question was Paul Sperry, a Post columnist who in January 2020 wrote an article for RealClearInvestigations about the purported “whistleblower” behind former President Donald Trump’s first impeachment, for which Schiff served as a House manager. [ Source: NY Post (Read More…) ]

So what was the article that set off the firestorm?

The Beltway’s ‘Whistleblower’ Furor Obsesses Over One Name

For a town that leaks like a sieve, Washington has done an astonishingly effective job keeping from the American public the name of the anonymous “whistleblower” who triggered impeachment proceedings against President Trump — even though his identity is an open secret inside the Beltway.

More than two months after the official filed his complaint, pretty much all that’s known publicly about him is that he is a CIA analyst who at one point was detailed to the White House and is now back working at the CIA.

But the name of a government official fitting that description — Eric Ciaramella — has been raised privately in impeachment depositions, according to officials with direct knowledge of the proceedings, as well as in at least one open hearing held by a House committee not involved in the impeachment inquiry. Fearing their anonymous witness could be exposed, Democrats this week blocked Republicans from asking more questions about him and intend to redact his name from all deposition transcripts. [ Source: Real Clear Politics (Read More…) ]

A.I. legal assistant will help defendant fight a speeding case in court

(Worthy Insights) – An artificial intelligence is set to advise a defendant in court for the first time ever. The AI will run on a smartphone and listen to all speech in the courtroom in February before instructing the defendant on what to say via an earpiece.

The location of the court and the name of the defendant are being kept under wraps by DoNotPay, the company that created the AI. But it is understood … [ Source: New Scientist (Read More…) ]

Why Elon Musk’s ‘X App’ could be an even bigger headache for D.C. than Twitter

(Worthy Insights) – Even before Elon Musk’s dramatic and controversial takeover of Twitter, the restless mogul was pitching the social-media company as his key to realizing a much bigger dream.

Musk calls his next idea the “X App.” And if Musk-owned Twitter has already been a challenge for Washington’s politicians and regulators, the disruption caused by the X App could easily dwarf it.

The idea is a Western version of WeChat, the Chinese super-app that more than a billion people use for messaging, payments, shopping, rideshares, gaming, news and other daily activities. Musk is clearly serious about the plan: He tweeted about it this fall and pitched it to Twitter employees before he even bought the company, and reiterated the idea during a Twitter Spaces session in early December, saying “WeChat has a lot of functionality that Twitter should have.” [ Source: Politico (Read More…) ]

Jan. 6 Committee Raises ‘White Flag,’ Withdraws Major Action Against Trump

(Worthy Insights) – The House Jan. 6 committee has dropped its subpoena against former President Donald Trump as it wraps up work and prepares to dissolve next week.

Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, the committee’s Democratic chairman, wrote in a letter to Trump lawyer David Warrington on Wednesday that he is formally withdrawing the subpoena.

“As you may know, the Select Committee has concluded its hearings, released its final report and will very soon reach its end,” Thompson wrote. “In light of the imminent end of our investigation, the Select Committee can no longer pursue the specific information covered by the subpoena.” [ Source: Western Journal (Read More…) ]

‘I Also Orchestrated It’: Uncharged J6 Witness Ray Epps Transcript Released

(Worthy Insights) – Ray Epps, the uncharged man identified as a key instigator behind the January 6, 2020 Capitol Breach for telling people to storm the Capitol, said in a text message to his nephew that he “orchestrated” things, according to newly released witness transcripts from the January 6th Committee. [ Source: ZeroHedge (Read More…) ]

 

Woolly Mammoth Hybrids Could Be Roaming Earth in Just Five Years

(Worthy Insights) – Over four billion species are estimated to have walked this planet over the last 3.5 billion years. Ninety-nine percent of them are now gone. But today’s researchers are hoping to reintroduce these lost species—or at least something very similar to them—within the next five years.

One biotechnology company, called Colossal Biosciences, is aiming to do just that with the long-extinct giant of the last ice age: the woolly mammoth. Launched by tech entrepreneur Ben Lamm and renowned geneticist George Church, Colossal Biosciences hopes to use gene editing technology to create a cold-resistant elephant that closely resembles its ancient ancestor in form and function.

Woolly mammoths went extinct around 3,700 years ago, but their close genetic relatives still walk among us to this day. [ Source: NewsWeek (Read More…) ]

2 New Minerals Discovered in Meteorite

(Worthy Insights) – Scientists have identified two minerals never before seen on Earth in a meteorite weighing 15.2 metric tonnes (33,510 pounds).

The minerals came from a 70-gram (nearly 2.5-ounce) slice of the meteorite, which was discovered in Somalia in 2020 and is the ninth-largest meteorite ever found, according to a news release from the University of Alberta.

One mineral’s name — elaliite — derives from the space object itself, which is called the “El Ali” meteorite since it was found near the town of El Ali in central Somalia.

Herd named the second one elkinstantonite after Lindy Elkins-Tanton, vice president of Arizona State University’s Interplanetary Initiative. Elkins-Tanton is also a regents professor in that university’s School of Earth and Space Exploration and the principal investigator of NASA’s upcoming Psyche mission — a journey to a metal-rich asteroid orbiting the sun between Mars and Jupiter, according to the space agency. [ Source: CTV (Read More…) ]

A startup says it’s begun releasing particles into the atmosphere, in an effort to tweak the climate

(Worthy Insights) – A startup claims it has launched weather balloons that may have released reflective sulfur particles in the stratosphere, potentially crossing a controversial barrier in the field of solar geoengineering.

Geoengineering refers to deliberate efforts to manipulate the climate by reflecting more sunlight back into space, mimicking a natural process that occurs in the aftermath of large volcanic eruptions. In theory, spraying sulfur and similar particles in sufficient quantities could potentially ease global warming.

It’s not technically difficult to release such compounds into the stratosphere. But scientists have mostly (though not entirely) refrained from carrying out even small-scale outdoor experiments. And it’s not clear that any have yet injected materials into that specific layer of the atmosphere in the context of geoengineering-related research. [ Source: MIT Technology (Read More…) ]

Can artificial skin be used to help burn victims? Growing industry eyes ‘revolution’

(Worthy Insights) – Far from the humble sticking plaster, medical firms and researchers are seeking to create the “ultimate dressing” — artificial skin they hope will revolutionize the treatment of severe burns.

For the last 18 months, researchers from the French firm Urgo have been working toward achieving this Holy Grail of wound treatment, which would save serious burn victims from the painful and repeated skin grafts they currently endure.

The 100 million euro ($106,000 million) “Genesis” project hopes to have a product ready by 2030. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More…) ]