-
The evil housekeeper problem
The evil housekeeper problem refers to a concept in computer security where once somebody is in the room where your computer is, security of that device can no longer be guaranteed. And right now, we are seeing this play out in real time with Elon Musk and DOGE.
You might think that there would be technical measures to stop someone right out of high school from coming in and changing the code to a government system. That the system could require two-factor authentication to deploy the code to the cloud. That you would need a smart card to log in to a specific system to do that. Nope—all those technical measures can be circumvented by coercion at the hands of the evil housekeeper.
-
Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham
Midnight in Chernobyl is a meticulous examination of the Chernobyl disaster. It accounts for the bureaucratic neglect the Soviet system grew into that contributed towards key events. Neglect that contributed to the way the plant and reactor were designed, the town and state response, and the attempted cover up. Plus, it tells of the horrific human toll paid by those exposed to the radiation.
-
Scent Makes a Place
Sniffing, searching, naming: These actions enable us to more thoughtfully engage with our environment.
Katy Kelleher connects how scent shouldn’t be discounted as one of our senses. Scent makes a place, both physical as to where we are in the world at a particular time and the emotion and memories it evokes. With the background as a perfumer, they illustrate the importance unique smells brought to different cultures. Historically, language has had difficulty accurately translating or describing smell despite the power it can evoke.
Helen Keller called our sense of smell the “fallen angel.”
“It is difficult to put into words the thing itself,” she wrote. “There seems to be no adequate vocabulary of smells, and I must fall back on approximate phrase and metaphor.”
-
Homemade crunch bars
Do you like chocolate, peanut butter, a gentle but satisfying crunch with a light touch of salt? Here’s a super easy homemade crunch bar recipe in 15 minutes (plus chill time).
-
This is the Tom Green Documentary
This is the Tom Green Documentary is an insightful work of nostalgia, showing his rise, how he made it work, and how he understood media and technology. The documentary serves as a segue to his new reality series on Prime.
He performed TikTok, street style pranks before Gen Z was born. He executed Jackass style physical stunts before the Jackass crew got together. He even produced a web stream talk show before podcasting became a word.
Green’s parents and friends all appear, and towards the end, there’s a contemplative aura about him.
-
Chappel Roan takes Pink Pony Club on a ride
From first singing, the song, Pink Pony Club in front of 50 people in 2021 and thinking it too a 150,000 person sing-along in 2024.
-
Fixing a piano during an 8 hour layover
Aspiring piano tuner, Josiah Jackson, fixed a public piano in O’Hare Airport during an 8 hour layover.
On YouTube, his channel name is the Piano Doctor, and he posted a video of the endeavor.
-
Backing up government data sets
Fascist bureaucrats don’t like facts that contradict their agenda. Backing up government data sets as an act of resistance.
-
2024 in snacks
Cabel Sasser does his annual year in review of snacks. Did you know there are:
- Churro flavored Oreos
- Smore flavored Ramen
- Spiced Coca Cola
