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PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
Climate Disasters Hit Poor People Hardest. There’s an Obvious Solution to That. (Maria)
The author writes, “Humanitarian relief organizations are used to doing two things: helping people out after disaster has already struck, and helping them out by giving them stuff. A hurricane strikes, and in comes the Red Cross or the United Way with water and tarps for victims. Just-in-time climate cash transfers turn that model on its head. First, they offer people support before the shock hits, making them more resilient and limiting the economic and human damage when it comes. Second, they give straight-up cash. … We know from research on poverty alleviation that cash is preferable because it gives people the agency to buy the things they really need, as opposed to what outsiders think they need.”
Yes, Chinese Spy Balloons Flew Over the US When President Trump Was in Office Too (Sean)
From Forbes: “Talking heads on cable TV are up in arms about the Chinese spy balloon that was floating across the continental U.S., before it was shot down Saturday afternoon. Conservative commentators have insisted President Joe Biden should’ve ordered the balloon be shot down earlier and that a foreign balloon flying over U.S. territory never would’ve happened under President Donald Trump. But it did happen under Trump, according to several new reports.”
‘A Longshot’: Idaho Republican Wants to Talk to Oregon About Movement That Would Absorb Some of Its Counties (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “The Idaho Legislature may soon ask its neighbors to the west to join a conversation about absorbing some of its counties. Republican state Rep. Judy Boyle, of Midvale, on Wednesday introduced a joint memorial that would ask the Democratic-dominated Oregon Legislature to discuss the Greater Idaho movement with the Idaho Legislature. The movement seeks to secede Eastern Oregon counties from their state and join Republican-led Idaho, which better aligns with their political ideals.”
This Maine Home Can Stay 70 Degrees Without a Furnace, Even When It’s Freezing Outside (Gerry)
From Maine Public: “What if you could design a house that on a cold day in January would stay at 70 degrees inside — without running the furnace? Or even having a furnace? It’s already being done. In fact, what’s known as the Passivhaus concept came to the United States in 2006, and is being used to construct buildings throughout the U.S. Maine Public recently visited a passive house in the town of Hope to find out how it works — and what it costs.”
Insects Are Feasting on Plants Like Never Before, and the Consequences Are Unknown (Mili)
The author writes, “For eons, plants and insects have lived in a delicate dance, of pollinators giving life to flowering plants and plants feeding the insect masses. But a new study suggests that insects are feasting on plants more so now than in the past 66.8 million years. … To look at plant-insect interactions over time, [Lauren] Azevedo-Schmidt and colleagues compared the leaves of modern-era plants sampled from three forests to fossil assemblages of leaf imprints from as far back as the Late Cretaceous period, nearly 67 million years ago.”
Michigan Bald Eagles Are Dying of Lead Poisoning. The Reason May Surprise You (DonkeyHotey)
From Michigan Live: “Of all the lead-poisoned bald eagles Skegemog Raptor Center has seen in the past year, the recent cases have been some of the worst. There was the eagle discovered lying on its back in an intersection near Mesick; another found immobile on its belly, wings outstretched, in a field on Old Mission Peninsula; yet another brought in from the Gaylord area with head tremors and ragged breathing. Testing showed that all of them had sky-high levels of lead in their blood. The culprit? Ingested fragments of lead ammunition.”
Meet the Dinkwads: The TikTok Legion Making Everyone Jealous With Their Double Incomes, No Kids, and a Dog (Russ)
The author writes, “Matt Benfield and Omar Ahmed are proud DINKWADs. No, it’s not an insult, just another acronym in a culture that loves to divide people into buckets. It stands for double income, no kids, with a dog. You can also be a DINK — double income, no kids — or a SINK, meaning single income, no kids.”
