How the Sound of Sport Is Being Reimagined for Deaf Fans

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How the Sound of Sport Is Being Reimagined for Deaf Fans (Maria)

The author writes, “For fans of live sport, the experience is as much about the atmosphere — the sights, smells and sounds — as the drama unfolding in front of them. Think about the crack of a bat, the blast of a whistle, thump of a ball and the roar of the crowd. … At the Deaflympics in Tokyo this year, sound has been reimagined to ensure no one misses out.”

Iranian Security Use Dragnet Spanning the Entire Country To Arrest Protesters (Reader Steve)

From ABC News: “The Iranian security agents came at 2 a.m., pulling up in a half-dozen cars outside the home of the Nakhii family. They woke up the sleeping sisters, Nyusha and Mona, and forced them to give the passwords for their phones. Then they took the two away. The women were accused of participating in the nationwide protests that shook Iran a week earlier, a friend of the pair told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity for her security as she described the Jan. 16 arrests. Such arrests have been happening for weeks following the government crackdown last month that crushed the protests calling for the end of the country’s theocratic rule. Reports of raids on homes and workplaces have come from major cities and rural towns alike, revealing a dragnet that has touched large swaths of Iranian society.”

I Followed an RFK-Approved, $15-A-Day Diet (Russ)

From Business Insider: “At the start of the year, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced the federal government’s new dietary guidelines for how Americans should aspire to eat. The gist: meat, full fats, and whole foods are in; sugars, processed foods, and excess carbs are out. After complaints that the recommendations leaned toward pricier food categories, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said you could follow the new protocol for as little as $3 a meal. … Despite my reservations, I decided to try it myself. For seven days, I would follow what I came to think of as the ‘RFK diet’ on a $15-a-day budget to see just how realistic this whole thing was. Would I have regrets? Of course. Would I learn something? Honestly, yes — among other things, that spices are my friend, that I don’t like apples that much, and that food is more political and emotional than we realize.” 

Amazon Ends Flock Partnership After Backlash Over Super Bowl Ad (DonkeyHotey)

The author writes, “Amazon’s Ring unit has ended its deal with security technology company Flock Safety after backlash over a Super Bowl commercial for the retail giant’s smart doorbell sparked concerns about unwanted surveillance. The Ring Super Bowl ad portrayed a family’s search for their lost dog, with the manufacturer’s internet-enabled doorbell coming to the rescue by showing additional smart doorbells around the neighborhood scanning for the pet and using AI to identify the lost animal. The service, called ‘Search Party,’ wasn’t related to Flock, but Amazon last year said it planned to work with the company to give Ring owners the option of sharing video with law enforcement through Ring’s ‘Community Requests’ service.”

Trump Justice Department Poised to Preserve Ticketmaster Monopoly (Sean)

From The American Prospect: “The Justice Department is on the verge of settling a monopolization case against Live Nation before a scheduled trial in March, another win for MAGA lobbyists who have worked urgently to get the ticketing and venue giant off the hook for its relentless intimidation tactics and distortion of market power. Mass public revulsion at Live Nation and its subsidiary Ticketmaster makes the likely slap on the wrist politically dicey. ‘If the DOJ and the US government care whatsoever about fans and citizens, they must continue this case,’ said Tommy Dorfman, a former club promoter who alleges that Live Nation muscled him out of the business. ‘It is one of the few truly bipartisan issues left, because working-class people, fans, and voters across the country are suffering from this monopoly regardless of political party.’”

Gavin Newsom’s Biggest Problem Is Gavin Newsom (Laura)

From The Intercept: “California Gov. Gavin Newsom is widely viewed as a strong contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, particularly by Gavin Newsom. But his record is a real problem, just not in the way pundits think it is.” 

Apocalypse No: How Almost Everything We Thought We Knew About the Maya Is Wrong (Dana)

The author writes, “As a seven-year-old, Francisco Estrada-Belli was afraid all of history would have been discovered by the time he was old enough to contribute. The year was 1970 and he and his parents had come from Rome to visit relatives in the Central American country of Guatemala. On the trip, they visited the ancient Maya ruins at Tikal. … Fifty-five years later, Estrada-Belli is now one of the archaeologists helping to rewrite the history of the Maya peoples who built Tikal. Thanks to technological advances, we are entering a new age of discovery in the field of ancient history. Improved DNA analysis, advances in plant and climate science, soil and isotope chemistry, linguistics and other techniques such as a laser mapping technology called Lidar, are overturning long-held beliefs. Nowhere is this more true than when it comes to Maya archaeology.”