'Wouldn't want to be on any other team': the queer joy of watching the Matildas at the 'outest' World Cup ever

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'Wouldn't want to be on any other team': the queer joy of watching the Matildas at the 'outest' World Cup ever     When we sat down with friends to watch the Matildas take on England, the two of us played it cool through the pre-match period, as if this was a game like any other. There was the usual chatter while the mascots ushered our now familiar Matildas onto the field. But at half-time – three pizzas and a bottle of viognier in – we were a little subdued and trying to find distraction. Continued here

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The "-ification" of Everything     A half-formed thought feels worse than an empty head—the tip-of-the-tongue sensation, the inkling of a there there without the foggiest notion of how to get, well, there. Especially dire is when the "what" that we wish to articulate feels half-formed itself, something observable yet emergent, for which the masses have yet to find language. But all we have is language, of course, and so we must muddle through, reaching for a word to serve as a placeholder for our idea until something better comes along. Some would say that finding new language is the work of scholars, but in the age of the Internet we may have lost track of who is leading whom. However provisional, the placeholders sometimes stick.For example: I spent last month hunting for a new apartment in Chicago. All I wanted was a unicorn: an old building in a historic neighborhood, with humane updates and classic fixtures. Instead, I was confronted with a drab and seemingly ubiquitous new aesthetic. Like any U.S. city, Chicago has been beset by the constipated whimsy of as-seen-on-TV home renos: gray floors, gray counters, and the pallid ingenuity of an open floor plan. The look is "inoffensive, inexpensive, innocuous," as Amanda Mull described it recently in The Atlantic. Call it, as the headline of that piece does, the "HGTV-ification of America." Have you noticed it, too? Not the gray laminate but that suffix: "-ification." Continued here

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In Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republicans Have Something New     The Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is thirty-eight years old and slender, with thick black hair, receding a bit at the temples, swept up into something approaching a pompadour. On the campaign trail, he often wears a black suit and an open-necked white shirt, and he has an unusually theatrical style, holding a clenched left fist out in front of him as he speaks. Ramaswamy’s approach on the stump is pitch-deck aphoristic: “There actually wasn’t a rise and fall of Rome—there were many rises and falls,” he told the crowd at a stop this week in Rochester, New Hampshire. Rather than engage in knotty Washington debates, he prefers to find a ladder onto a more abstract plane, on which politics is an elemental conflict. His lawn signs say simply, “Truth.”Ramaswamy isn’t above using Fox News talking points (a favored line on Joe Biden’s support for Ukraine is that it’s “repayment for a five-million-dollar bribe,” a reference to Hunter Biden). But he likes to point out that he is annoyed with both parties (“You don’t hear me talking about Republicans and Democrats—it’s boring. Actually we have the managerial class in both of them”). He claims that the theatre of Washington politics is meaningless (“Congress is a joke”) and conceals the real action, which is taking place in the regulatory agencies. In some ways, he is taking a Trumpian insight—that elections are a reflection of emotions not ordinarily captured by politics—even further than Donald Trump. A religious audience might applaud if you say that Roe v. Wade is an abomination, and might applaud a little louder if you say that you’d permit state laws that criminalize abortion. But why not just say what all but the most programmatic among them really want to hear, which is that God is real, even if yours is a Hindu god and theirs is Christian? Rather than get trapped in endless questions about when you did and didn’t support Trump’s January 6th uprising, why not call for a revolt of your own? In Rochester, Ramaswamy said, to cheers, “Do you want incremental reform or do you want revolution? I stand on the side of revolution.” Continued here

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View from The Hill: Labor conference gives Albanese a firm 'yes' on AUKUS     Predictably, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese got his way on AUKUS at Labor’s national conference on Friday.But, ironically, he and his colleagues had to do a good deal more wrangling with the party than Albanese had done when Labor embraced the agreement in opposition and then followed through in government. Continued here

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The Best Sci-Fi Movie of 2023 is a Powerful Cure for Franchise Fatigue     Cory Finley's theatrical follow up to Thoroughbreds is a change in tone and genre, but his signature twisted streak is still present.Playwright-turned-filmmaker Cory Finley made a splash in 2017 with his directorial debut Thoroughbreds, a Heathers-esque teen thriller comedy that quickly became a cult hit. Since then, he’s gone back to basics in directing, helming the HBO movie Bad Education and a few episodes of AppleTV+’s WeCrashed. Continued here

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Unearthing the History of Anaheim     Anaheim, the most populous city in Orange County, got its name from German settlers who moved south from San Francisco after the 1846-48 war against Mexico, which led to the annexation of California by the United States. (The name combines the German word for “home” with the name of the Santa Ana River.) Spaniards and Mexicans were themselves colonists who had taken the land from its previous inhabitants, the Tongva and Acjachemen. Today, Anaheim, about thirty miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles, is best known as the home of Disneyland, the Los Angeles Angels baseball team, and the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League. The photographer William Camargo, who was born and raised in Anaheim and now lives and works there, recovers the city’s Indigenous and Mexican past and present by documenting the places and people just beyond the walls of the theme park.In a series called “Origins & Displacements: Making Sense of Place, Histories, and Possibilities,” Camargo stands at seemingly unremarkable sites where he holds up signs that tell an alternative history of Anaheim. Anaheim High School’s mascot is the Colonists. In one of Camargo’s photos, he stands in front of a “Home of the Colonists” sign painted on to the school’s wall, with his own sign that says “This is Tongva and Acjachemen Land!!” At Pearson Park, amid towering trees and dramatic afternoon shadows, Camargo holds a sign that reads “This park used to be segregated.” The Anaheim Packing House, which was built in 1919 and used by Sunkist, is now a fashionable food court. In another photo, Camargo holds a sign in front of the building that says “Brown women used to pack oranges here.” At Anaheim’s City Hall, his sign reads “In 1924 four Klan members were elected to the Anaheim City Council.” (They were all forced out in a recall election the next year.) Continued here

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Snapchat's 'creepy' AI blunder reminds us that chatbots aren't people. But as the lines blur, the risks grow     Deputy Director of the Centre for Data Analytics and Cognition, La Trobe University Artificial intelligence-powered (AI) chatbots are becoming increasingly human-like by design, to the point that some among us may struggle to distinguish between human and machine. Continued here

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The US navy is still more powerful than China's: more so than the Australian government is letting on     Greg Austin consults for the International Institute for Strategic Studies whose work is cited in this article. The federal Labor government today used the ALP national conference to address internal dissent over the controversial AUKUS security pact and its plan for acquiring nuclear-powered submarines. Continued here

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Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 Versus Z Fold 5: Which One Should You Buy?     Samsung's two new foldables — the flip-style Galaxy Z Flip 5 and the book-style Galaxy Z Fold 5 — are now available for purchase. As fifth-generation foldables, they're iterative, but very polished experiences.Both foldables share similar new features, including the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, faster UFS 4.0 storage, and redesigned hinges that allow for a gap-free design. Continued here

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Wild 'Ahsoka' Theory Reveals a Sneaky Way to Bring Anakin Back From the Dead     Hayden Christensen is Star Wars’ secret weapon. After he played Anakin in the prequel trilogy, he distanced himself from the franchise to focus on other work. But when Ewan MacGregor dusted off his robes to return in Obi-Wan Kenobi, Christensen did the same, and we finally saw the Mustafar rematch so many fans had been waiting for. Now he’ll appear in the series dedicated to his apprentice, not his master: Ahsoka Tano. However, his role isn’t as clear this time. Ahsoka is set years after Anakin’s demise, meaning there will have to be a flashback or Force ghost at work. But maybe there’s a secret third option that’s not only far more interesting, but perfect for Ahsoka’s story. Continued here

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Prospect of Kenyan troops in Haiti has sparked concerns - but may also prompt soul-searching across the Americas over lack of action     Interim Director of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future, Boston University Jorge Heine is a founder and sits on the board of Diplomats Without Borders and is a member of Chile's Party for Democracy, the International Political Science Association, the International Studies Association and of the Foro Permanente de Política Exterior, a Chilean foreign policy think. Continued here

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Fall Culture Preview: What to See This Season     For the first time since 2019, the fall culture calendar, especially for live events, is in full swing. The actors’ and writers’ strikes—with no end yet in sight—will likely continue to have ripple effects on the season’s television and movie slates, but there is still plenty to see, hear, and do in New York City and beyond. Here, in our fall culture previews, our critics round up the most exciting events on the horizon. At the theatre, I’m looking forward to plays by the vital contemporary playwrights Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and Annie Baker, as well as Rachel Bloom’s COVID-era musical, “Death, Let Me Do My Show,” and Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells’s “Gutenberg! The Musical!”—their first Broadway reunion since their smash pairing in “The Book of Mormon,” twelve years ago. The city’s music venues are stacked with shows from Janelle Monae, boygenius, the Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, and Stevie Nicks, to name but a few. Lincoln Center hosts three Metropolitan Opera House premières, as well as the return of full seasons for both New York City Ballet and American Ballet Theatre; blockbuster museum exhibitions of Manet and Degas (at the Met) and Ed Ruscha (at MOMA) will hold their own alongside showcases of the relatively lesser-known painters Barkley L. Hendricks (at the Frick) and Henry Taylor (at the Whitney). And the stars are blazing at the movies: DiCaprio, Chalamet, and Cumberbatch lead, respectively, Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” a “Dune” sequel, and Wes Anderson’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.” We’ll see you there.Jump to: Television | Theatre | Contemporary Music | Classical Music | Dance | Art | Movies Continued here

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How tracking menopause symptoms can give women more control over their health     People sometimes talk about the menopause as though it were a single event that happens when you are in your early 50s, which is the average time to have your last period. But the menopause generally stretches between the ages of 45 and 55. And some women will experience an earlier “medical” menopause because of surgery to remove the womb or ovaries. The menopause often happens at one of the busiest times of life. You might have teenagers at home or be supporting grown-up children, have elderly parents, be employed and have a great social life. If you feel exhausted, hot and bothered, irritable and can’t sleep well, you might be tempted to think that it is because you never get a minute’s peace. But that is why monitoring symptoms is important. Continued here

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Why Indonesia needs a long-term plan beyond subsidies to electrify its transport     Sales of electric vehicles in Indonesia grew by an astonishing 680% in May 2023 compared to the year before, following the recent implementation of government subsidies.Since March this year, different ministries have been issuing regulations on Rp7 trillion (about US$456 million) worth of subsidies for people buying or converting electric motorbikes in 2023 and 2024, as well as reduced taxes for electric car purchases. Continued here

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Star Wars Needs New Animated Shows Now More Than Ever     Lucasfilm is shutting down its biggest animation hub. Here’s what that means for future animated projects.Fans of Lucasfilm’s animated shows got a scare this week with the reports that the studio would be shutting down ILM Singapore, its hub for animation and visual effects. It’s one of many extensions of Industrial Light & Magic, the VFX company behind the dinos of Jurassic Park and the Star Wars saga’s most uncanny feats. While headquartered in San Francisco, CA, ILM has expanded across the world, having put down roots in Mumbai, London, Sydney, and Vancouver. Continued here

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Weight loss: drinking a gallon of water a day probably won't help you lose weight     Lead for Evidence-Based Medicine and Nutrition, Aston Medical School, Aston University It’s often claimed that if you’re trying to lose weight, one of the things you should do each day is drink plenty of water – with some internet advice even suggesting this should be as much as a gallon (about 4.5 litres). The claim is that water helps burn calories and reduce appetite, which in turn leads to weight loss. Continued here

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'Baldur's Gate 3' Is a Staggering Success and a Once in a Decade RPG     My plan was foolproof. I’d lure the leader of the Goblin army into an ambush, making her think I was on her side. It all went off flawlessly.But when I returned to the Goblin camp many hours later, I hadn’t counted on the rest of the army still being there, thrusting me into a desperate fight for my life that I was wholly unprepared for. When the dust settled, I had barely scraped by. Nearly twenty goblins were dead, but all three of my companions were incapacitated with my Paladin the last man standing. Continued here

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Edwardian local press invented the 'middlebrow' with a lively mix of local news, reviews and fiction     As the provincial press has declined in Britain, so too has local arts and cultural criticism. In the 19th and early 20th century, regional newspapers regularly published reviews of theatre productions and a wide variety of books including history, science, travel writing, poetry and fiction. Starting in the late 19th century and coming to a head in the Edwardian period (1901-1914), regional newspapers even experimented with a different style of reviewing, which was shorter, chattier and more personal – a shift from the more formal style of the Victorian era. Continued here

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Politics with Michelle Grattan: WA Premier Roger Cook on Labor's conference and his state's issues     Labor this week had its first face-to-face national conference in five years, and it all went Anthony Albanese’s way. He won on AUKUS and rallied the party faithful, who did not rock the government’s boat.For this podcast we caught up with the new Western Australian Premier Roger Cook on the sidelines of the conference, and canvassed a range of issues, including his recent backdown on the state’s cultural heritage law. Continued here

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Giuliani Claims Trump Could Never Have Got So Many Indictments Without His Help     NEW YORK (The Borowitz Report)—Fuming about his unpaid legal bills, Rudolph Giuliani has claimed that Donald J. Trump could never have garnered so many indictments without his help.“Those indictments didn’t happen all by themselves,” the former New York mayor told Fox News. “It took a village, and that village was me.” Continued here

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Neptune's Clouds Just Disappeared -- and Astronomers Think They Know Why     Neptune receives a tiny fraction of the sunlight that strikes Earth, yet somehow, that’s enough to transform the clouds of this faraway world.The main driver of cloud formation is generally the seasons, when a planet tilts a different part of its body towards or away from the Sun. Neptune’s seasons last decades, so short-term changes on the timescale of months to the cirrus clouds in the gas giant’s upper atmosphere must have another explanation. Continued here

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50 Years Ago, a Sci-Fi Classic Was Saved From Becoming a Disaster -- And Inspired a Modern Hit     A novelist and a robot gunslinger walk into a saloon, and accidentally make a classic science fiction movie. By his own account, Michael Crichton’s first cut of the 1973 sci-fi Westworld was “boring, contrived, self-indulgent and slack,” and yet the final product holds up as one of the more brilliant titles of the decade. Today, the original Westworld is overshadowed by the HBO reboot series, but it’s possible the film will have the stronger legacy. Revisiting it 50 years later is not only fun, but fascinating. Like the HBO reboot, Westworld tells the story of an amusement park run by a company called Delos. One of Delos’ parks is populated by androids who create an immersive Old West experience and, like in the first HBO season, a gunslinger android dressed in black — played here by Yul Brynner — goes rogue and attacks guests. Eventually, several other androids and even robotic rattlesnakes go berserk across Delos parks like Roman World and Medieval World. The film mostly follows two visitors, John Blane (James Brolin) and Peter Martin (Richard Benjamin), as they’re stalked by the Man-in-Black. Continued here

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Rising temperatures mean more air conditioning which means more electricity is needed - rooftop solar is a perfect fit     On June 12 this year, the UK’s last remaining coal-fired power station was awoken from a 46-day slumber to meet demand for electricity to run air-conditioning units.These were rare circumstances as hot weather across the country combined with low wind, a nuclear power station under maintenance and a faulty electricity interconnector with Norway. But the weather is only going to get hotter, and the incident has shed light on the vital role that rooftop solar systems should play in our future energy system. Continued here

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You Need to Play the Most Absurd Roguelike of 2023     After playing Astronaut: The Best, I understand why kids dream of being an astronaut, but not a single child dreams of being in charge of those astronauts. It's a nightmare. I’ve dealt with astronauts taking their pants off in public, spending the program's money on clothes, and sharing their “weird sex things.” Not to mention that if I can’t pull the program together, the higher-ups will have my head.Astronaut: The Best, from Universal Happymaker, is an occult management adventure that has you pulling your hair out as you desperately try to convince a nation that its failing space program is worth the money. The plethora of absurd systems in Astronaut: The Best make it one of the funniest games of the year. Continued here

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What Does It Actually Take to Build a Data-Driven Culture?     Building a data driven culture is hard. To capture what it takes to succeed, the authors look at the first two years of a new data program at Kuwait’s Gulf Bank in which they worked to build a culture that embraced data, and offer a few lessons. First, it is important to start building the new culture from day one, even as doing so is not the primary mandate. Second, to change a culture, you need to get everyone involved. Third, give data quality strong consideration as the place to start. Finally, building this new culture takes courage and persistence. Continued here

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The Five Stages of Small-Business Growth     Categorizing the problems and growth patterns of small businesses in a systematic way that is useful to entrepreneurs seems at first glance a hopeless task. Small businesses vary widely in size and capacity for growth. They are characterized by independence of action, differing organizational structures, and varied management styles. Continued here

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The Questions Every Entrepreneur Must Answer     Diversify your product line. Stick to your knitting. Hire a professional manager. Watch fixed costs. Those are some of the suggestions that entrepreneurs sort through as they try to get their ventures off the ground. Why all the conflicting advice? Because in a young company, all decisions are up for grabs. Continued here

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Cope or Quit? Facing a Mid-Career Crisis     Research shows that many people—even those with seemingly enviable careers—grow dissatisfied in their jobs in their mid-40s. They may regret past choices or feel stuck in a rut. But Kieran Setiya thinks the tools of his trade—philosophy—can help. He says sadness about the road not taken can be mitigated by attending to the people and pursuits that we cherish and wouldn’t have without our careers. He notes that we spend much of our work time solving problems and meeting needs, so we should engage in some feel-good activities (inside or outside the office). And he suggests focusing less on projects and more on process, to replace a “What’s next?” mindset with an appreciation for the present. Continued here

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A New Model for Ethical Leadership     Rather than try to follow a set of simple rules (“Don’t lie.” “Don’t cheat.”), leaders and managers seeking to be more ethical should focus on creating the most value for society. This utilitarian view, Bazerman argues, blends philosophical thought with business school pragmatism and can inform a wide variety of managerial decisions in areas including hiring, negotiations, and even time management. Creating value requires that managers confront and overcome the cognitive barriers that prevent them from being as ethical as they would like to be. Just as we rely on System 1 (intuitive) and System 2 (deliberative) thinking, he says, we have parallel systems for ethical decision-making. He proposes strategies for engaging the deliberative one in order to make more-ethical choices. Managers who care about the value they create can influence others throughout the organization by means of the norms and decision-making environment they create. Continued here

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The Founder's Dilemma     The author’s studies indicate that a founder who gives up more equity to attract cofounders, new hires, and investors builds a more valuable company than one who parts with less equity. More often than not, however, those superior returns come from replacing the founder with a professional CEO more experienced with the needs of a growing company. This fundamental tension requires founders to make “rich” versus “king” trade-offs to maximize either their wealth or their control over the company. Continued here