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.
Feds: Malicious Cyber Tools Discovered; Evidence Suggests They Target Energy Concerns (Maria)
The author writes, “Multiple US government agencies issued a joint alert Wednesday warning of the discovery of malicious cyber tools created by unnamed advanced threat actors that they said were capable of gaining ‘full system access’ to multiple industrial control systems. The public alert from the Energy and Homeland Security departments, the FBI and National Security Agency did not name the actors or offer details on the find. But their private sector cybersecurity partners said the evidence suggests Russia is behind the tools — and that they were configured to initially target North American energy concerns. One of the cybersecurity firms involved, Mandiant … called the tools ‘exceptionally rare and dangerous.’”
Mark Meadows Removed From NC Voter Roll Amid Election Fraud Investigation (DonkeyHotey)
From the Asheville Citizen Times: “Mark Meadows has been removed from North Carolina’s voter rolls, a move made as the State Bureau of Investigation continues a probe into allegations the former White House Chief of Staff committed election fraud. Macon County Board of Elections Director Melanie Thibault confirmed April 12 that she had removed Meadows the prior day from the county’s active voter list. Thibault said she consulted N.C. Board of Elections staff in Raleigh after finding records that Meadows was registered both in Virginia and North Carolina.”
Kremlin-Connected Children Grew Up in the Very Countries Whose Societies Their Parents Claim to Reject (Russ)
The authors write, “Theirs is a world of private jets, posh Parisian apartments, Austrian ski vacations and schooling at elite universities in London and New York. Their parents own prime real estate on the most exclusive avenues of Europe’s capitals. Their social media profiles are filled with designer dresses and red-carpet events. One young woman posted photos of her 22nd birthday, poolside at the Adriatic Sea villa of one of Putin’s oligarchs. Meet the kids of the Kremlin. While their parents publicly rail against the West, their kids grow up in the very countries whose societies they claim to reject.”
Echoing WWII Rescue Efforts, Ethnic Russian Researchers in the US Support Ukrainian Scholars (Sean)
The author writes, “While the war rages on, ethnic Russian professors in the US … are trying to evacuate their Ukrainian counterparts. And the effort to find them safe havens on American campuses echoes the similar rescue of European scholars during World War II. Currently, such networking on behalf of Ukrainians is happening around the world. ‘When societies lose academics and researchers, they lose the capacity for self-reflection, for knowledge-generation,’ said Robert Quinn, executive director of Scholars at Risk Network.”
As Climate Fears Mount, Some in US Are Deciding to Relocate (Laura)
From Yale Environment 360: “As wildfires worsen and sea levels rise, a small but growing number of Americans are choosing to move to places such as New England or the Appalachian Mountains that are seen as safe havens from climate change. Researchers say this phenomenon will intensify in the coming decades.”
Good Hydration May Reduce Long-Term Risks for Heart Failure (Mili)
The author writes, “Staying well-hydrated may be associated with a reduced risk for developing heart failure, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health. Their findings, which appear in the European Heart Journal, suggest that consuming sufficient amounts of fluids throughout life not only supports essential body functioning but may also reduce the risk of severe heart problems in the future.”
Feral Cats ‘Having a Field Day’ at Oakland Coliseum (Reader Steve)
From the San Francisco Chronicle: “‘Feral cats have multiplied since the coronavirus and the kittens are running wild,’ Henry Gardner, executive director of the Coliseum Authority, a city-county agency that oversees the beleaguered sports complex, wrote in a memo to the authority’s Board of Commissioners. Gardner said the cats are ‘having a field day’ on the grass field where the A’s open their season on April 18 and have also managed to sneak into the arena that once housed the Warriors. ‘The good news is the rat population has decreased substantially,’ he said.”
