OPEN THREAD: Ring out the weekend.

EVERYONE DESERVES A GLOW-UP: NASA’s Perseverance rover is positively glowing in its new selfie on Mars.

VISION: Giant radio telescope sees Artemis 2 astronauts on Orion flying around the moon. ‘There are 4 people in those pixels.’

THEY CAN HANDLE TACO BELL AFTER 30? Humans in The Andes Have Evolved a Strange Digestive Superpower.

Actually, I’ve always been able to digest Taco Bell fine, though I don’t eat it often.

WELL, GOOD: Scientists Uncover Cancer-Fighting Power of Popular Fatty Liver Drug.

AT LEAST IT DIDN’T COME FROM A CHINESE LAB, ANYWAY: France says cruise ship Andes virus matches known South American viruses.

Well, if we can trust the French.

WE COULD USE SOME CHEAPER NEW CARS: Could Nissan Give Us the Cheapest New Car in America Again?

MAKE THEM PAY: Pile On: NSSF Sues Virginia Over Spanberger’s Unconstitutional Gun Ban.

NO MIDCHLORIANS? NO DICE. Casimir force co-opted to generate free energy, midichlorians not included. Personally, I want an Electron Pump. I think the downsides were exaggerated.

MORE NUKES, PLEASE: Stewart Brand on Fixing Stuff, Modern Environmentalism, and the Nuclear Future.

FASTER, PLEASE: Scientists Say They’ve Invented a Serum That Activates a Dormant Ability to Regrow Lost Limbs in Mammals.

USEFUL AT TIMES, BUT OFTEN OVERPRESCRIBED: Antidepressants are in the hot seat. Are we getting them all wrong?

DAVID BARON, CALL YOUR OFFICE: Northern California county declares mountain lions ‘imminent threat.’

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: We should consider making ‘cultural appropriation’ illegal – U. Miami law professor.

I.C.E. SHOULD DEFINITELY RAID THEM: Five more colleges plan ‘private’ grad ceremonies for illegal alien students.

Time for some people to check their academic privilege.

CHANGE: Listen to this trucker explain how “foreign” drivers are being sidelined just days after SCOTUS said companies are liable for them.

This is going to cause price increases and supply chain issues in the short term, better pay and opportunities for Americans in the industry in the medium term, and a quicker move to autonomous trucks in the longer term.

PREDICTIVE ACCURACY? How Well Does NOAA’s Hurricane Outlook Actually Perform?

DIPLOMACY: Trump Keeps His Friends Close, But China Closer. “Trump brushed off Xi’s veiled threats. Secretary of State Marco Rubio pointed out that the Chinese ‘always raise [Taiwan] on their side, we always make clear our position, and we move on.'”

SAVAGE:

These come from court transcripts https://t.co/fu2Zdq5WZX

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 16, 2026

21ST CENTURY HEADLINES: 4 alien species have been pulled from crashed UFOs, ex-government researcher claims.

CLASS IS A HUGE PART OF IT:

In fact I am struck by the embarassing degree to which which snobbery plays a role in Left/Right politics. Progressives have by imperceptibly slow degrees become the party of respectability, toffs, dignity and propriety.

The real emotional fuel for Trump hatred is only partly…

— wretchardthecat (@wretchardthecat) May 17, 2026

OPEN THREAD: Smoke ’em if you got ’em.

THE NEW SPACE RACE: The world’s biggest rocket: How SpaceX’s new Starship ‘V3’ differs from its predecessors.

SUCK IT, CHINA: Vast, Untapped Source of Lithium Found in The US Could Last 300 Years.

Actually, this just means they’ll have to fund some “environmental” opposition to mining here. That’s how this stuff works.

FOLLOW THE SCIENCE: Scientists Say a 40-Year-Old Childhood Obesity Warning May Be Completely Wrong.