OH: That Drone Hovering Over Your Home? It’s the Insurance Inspector.

Drones, photo-taking apps and artificial intelligence are accelerating what has long been a clunky, time-consuming experience: the auto or home-insurance claim.

Traditionally, an insurance claim associated with minor home damage or fender-bender auto accidents started with a phone call from a customer and ended days or weeks later with a mailed check. In between the insurer often would send an inspector to investigate the situation in person.

But about four in 10 car insurers no longer use employees to physically inspect damage in some cases, according to a LexisNexis Risk Solutions survey of insurance executives. Claims that rely on greater automation can be handled in two to three days compared with 10 to 15 days for a more traditional approach that involves an in-person visit, according to the survey.

A heads-up would be smart; 12-gauges are popular around here.

IMPRESSIVE: How Apple Is Putting Voices in Users’ Heads — Literally.

Bahnmueller suffers from hearing loss so severe that a year ago he underwent surgery to install a cochlear implant—an electronic device in the inner ear that replaces the usual hearing mechanism. Around a million patients have undergone this increasingly mainstream form of treatment, and that’s just a fraction of those who could benefit from it. (Of the 360 million people worldwide with hearing loss, about 10 percent would qualify for the surgery.) “For those who reach a point where hearing aids no longer help, this is the only solution,” says Allison Biever, an audiologist in Englewood, CO who works with implant patients. “It’s like restoring a signal in a radio station.”

Cochlear implants bypass the usual hearing process by embedding a device in the inner ear and connecting it via electrodes to the nerve that sends audio signals to the brain. The implant gets sound from an external microphone and sound processor that usually sits behind the ear. Until now, users have had to deal with balky remote controls to adjust the settings. And dealing with smartphones has required a separate piece of equipment that vexes communication thanks to its low quality and annoying lags. But Bahnmueller, a 49-year-old executive in automotive safety, has recently been testing a new solution. The reason I was coming through so clearly is that his over-the-ear device linked to the implant was streaming directly from his iPhone—essentially putting the conversation in his head.

The system he was using came from a collaboration between Apple and Cochlear, a company that has been involved with implant technology since the treatment’s early days. The firms announced last week that the first product based on this approach, Cochlear’s Nucleus 7 sound processor, won FDA approval in June—the first time that the agency has approved such a link between cochlear implants and phones or tablets. Those using the system can not only get phone calls directly routed inside their skulls, but also stream music, podcasts, audio books, movie soundtracks, and even Siri—all straight to the implant.

Only about 10% of those who suffer hearing loss are eligible for Cochlear implants, and of those of course not nearly all will receive one. But for those who do, this is life-changing technology.

ALT-HISTORY: Donald Trump Almost Became the President — In Sharknado 3.

THIS:

We just need to put the right Hitler in charge.

LATE-STAGE SOCIALISM: Venezuela Currency Disintegrates: Down 16% Today.

Positive spin? There’s nothing to buy, anyway.

HORSE, BARN DOOR: Sessions unveiling leak crackdown on heels of transcript bombshell.

The press briefing comes on the heels of one of the biggest leaks under this administration – the disclosure of transcripts of President Trump’s phone calls with two foreign leaders in January. Former federal prosecutors tell Fox News that leak likely constitutes a federal crime, and lawmakers of both parties have voiced concern about how that material got out and the security implications.

“Leaking the phone calls between our president and other heads of state is nothing short of a national disgrace,” Kellyanne Conway, White House counselor, told “Fox & Friends” on Friday. “I want there to be bipartisan outrage.”

She noted the West Wing is a “small place” and finding the leakers might be “easier” than some realize.

It’s impossible for a President to conduct foreign policy under these conditions, which I suppose is the point.

HOW COULD WE LOWER THAT EVEN FURTHER? U.S. military says chance of ISIS in Iraq and Syria fleeing to other parts of the world “very low.”

BEYOND DUCK-AND-COVER: Surviving a Nuclear Attack.

This piece by Lt. Colonel Dr. Eisenkraft (Ret.) covers the medical angle, which makes it a nice addition to articles linked here about surviving a general social-political collapse.

WE DON’T NEED NO EDUCATION: California State University to End Placement Exams and Remedial Classes for Freshmen.

ACCOUNTABILITY: Oregon Officials Blow Off Press Inquiries Regarding Illegal Alien Rapist In Portland.

ALLIES: Turkey Has Lost its Biggest Cheerleader: The U.S. Military.

Rebuilding confidence in the U.S.-Turkish relationships is going to be hard, because military to military ties between Turkey and the U.S. have been damaged, possibly beyond repair in the short-term. It used to be that in Washington, the strongest advocates for Turkey were people from the U.S. military. They had great impressions from working with Turks in NATO operations in Bosnia and Kosovo in the 1990s, they were grateful for Turkey’s part in winning the Cold War by blocking the Soviet Union’s access to the warm seas, and they were just very supportive of Ankara in general.

That is now the opposite. I would say that the people who have the most negative views of Turkey in Washington are, unfortunately, in the U.S. military as a result of a series of events, all of which took place under Erdogan’s watch. Turkey’s refusal to join the Iraq war in 2003, the collapse of Turkish-Israeli ties, the Turkish decision to buy Chinese air defense systems (although they backed down on that), Turkey’s recent decision now to buy Russian missiles, and Turkey’s lax policy in allowing radicals to cross into Syria in an effort to undermine Assad, all of these factors have hurt the relationship. And of course, from the Turkish perspective, the U.S. reticence to fully support Turkey against the Kurdish PKK group over the last decade – as well as the U.S. decision to fully support the Kurdish YPG against ISIS in Syria – has really soured the relationship.

Going back to the U.S. side, after 15 years of degrading ties, the U.S. military is probably one of Turkey’s weakest supporters in Washington, and that is just sad. Turkey has lost its biggest cheerleader in Washington, and I cannot see who will cheerlead for Turkey now in Washington.

That’s probably for the best.

GOOD LUCK WITH THAT: ‘Trump is on the knife edge of DEATH’ North Korea demands SURRENDER from US.

HMM: ‘Everything The President Wants To Do, McMaster Opposes,’ Former NSC Officials Say.

A Daily Caller exclusive:

“Everything the president wants to do, McMaster opposes,” a former senior official said in a wide-ranging interview. “Trump wants to get us out of Afghanistan — McMaster wants to go in. Trump wants to get us out of Syria — McMaster wants to go in. Trump wants to deal with the China issue — McMaster doesn’t. Trump wants to deal with the Islam issue — McMaster doesn’t. You know, across the board, we want to get rid of the Iran deal — McMaster doesn’t. It is incredible to watch it happening right in front of your face. Absolutely stunning.”

One former official characterized McMaster as a “sycophant” of retired Army Gen. David Petraeus.

I try not to lend too much weight to anonymous sources, but if true that’s a damning statement on a man who looked like one of Trump’s better picks.

POLITICO LIKES TRUMP’S GENERALS (SURPRISE!) AND THE NEW YORK TIMES STILL LIKES COMMUNISM (SURPRISE!): That and more in Liz Sheld’s morning brief.

TEACH WOMEN NOT TO… NOT TO DO ANY OF THAT: Married teacher, mom, 31, surrenders to police amid accusations of sex with four teen boy students.

KIMBERLY STRASSEL: The Scandal That Matters.

Imran Awan was arrested at Dulles International Airport July 24, while attempting to board a flight to Pakistan. For more than a decade the congressional staffer had worked under top House Democrats, and he had just been accused by the FBI of bank fraud.

It was a dramatic moment in a saga that started in February, when Capitol Police confirmed an investigation into Mr. Awan and his family on separate accusations of government theft. The details are tantalizing: The family all worked for top Democrats, were paid huge sums, and had access to sensitive congressional data, even while having ties to Pakistan.

The media largely has ignored the affair, the ho-hum coverage summed up by a New York Times piece suggesting it may be nothing more than an “overblown Washington story, typical of midsummer.” But even without evidence of espionage or blackmail, this ought to be an enormous scandal.

Because based on what we already know, the Awan story is—at the very least—a tale of massive government incompetence that seemingly allowed a family of accused swindlers to bilk federal taxpayers out of millions and even put national secrets at risk. In a more accountable world, House Democrats would be forced to step down.

Well, it isn’t like Awan or Wasserman-Schultz ever tweeted something nice about Vladimir Putin.

SHOW ME THE MAN… Mueller Moves Forward with D.C. Grand Jury as Senators Try to Protect Special Counsel.

JACK DUNPHY: The Real Reason Why America’s Cops Cheered President Trump’s Brentwood Speech.

WOW: In Breakthrough, Scientists Edit a Dangerous Mutation From Genes in Human Embryos.

YUGE IF TRUE: The sun might affect climate.

THE POLITICAL CLIMATE IS MISERABLE THAT TIME OF YEAR ANYWAY: U.S. passport holders will not be able to travel to North Korea beginning September 1.

NEWS YOU CAN USE: This site lets you check your password against 306 million leaked passwords.

SHE MUST BE REALER THAN I AM: British Home Secretary Claims ‘Real People’ Do Not Want Secure Communications.

DOCTOR: ‘Throwing Money at Addiction Treatment Centers’ Won’t Solve Opioid Crisis.

No, but it looks good on TV and provides rents to rent-seekers.

‘TOP CHEF’ PRODUCER: Padma Lakshmi was threatened, called racist names by Teamsters.

Four Teamsters members acted like real bottom-feeders toward “Top Chef” star Padma Lakshmi, her producer testified in court.

Show runner Ellie Carbajal said in Boston federal court on Wednesday that Teamsters Union members physically threatened the reality show’s crew and hurled racist insults at Lakshmi while they were picketing a 2014 shoot, leaving her “paralyzed with fear.”

Carbajal recalled the members of Teamsters Union Local 25 — John Fidler, Daniel Redmond, Robert Cafarelli and Michael Ross — swarming Lakshmi’s car and growling at her in 2014, Deadline reported.

Why are Democrat-run institutions such cesspits of violent, racist rhetoric?