• blogTO notes the amazing spike upwards in temperatures for this weekend.
• Dangerous Minds shares photos of some stark war memorials of the former Communist world.
• The Dragon's Gaze reports on brown dwarf HIP 67537b.
• The LRB Blog looks at Donald Trump's interest in a Middle Eastern peace settlement that looks as if it will badly disadvantage the ( Read more... )

• blogTO recommends five neighbourhoods for people looking for apartments.
• False Steps' Paul Drye describes a failed European-Russian project for a manned capsule.
• Language Log looks at the oddity of English pronunciations of words in foreign languages, like placenames, with no connection to how these words are pronounced in English.
• Lawyers, Guns and ( Read more... )

CBC News' Laura Howells reported on the imminent closure of Palestinian diaspora centre Beit Zatoun, displaced by the transformation of Honest Ed's and Mirvish Village.

Toronto's rampant development is claiming another casualty this week: community space Beit Zatoun will host its final event on Wednesday ( Read more... )

• Bloomberg notes Petrobras' dismissal of rumours it is threatened by the impeachment, observes that many Europeans expect a chain reaction of departures if the United Kingdom leaves, notes that a return to high economic growth in Israel will require including the Palestinian minority, and
  looks at Panamanian efforts to convince the world that the ( Read more... )

• The Dragon's Gaze notes an observation of bright star HD 76582 that may have turned up indirect evidence of planets.
• The Dragon's Tales notes a study claiming that climate change will trigger large-scale migrations.
• Joe. My. God. notes controversy in North Carolina over the demand for a rapid repeal of HB2.
• Language Log shares a paper taking an ( Read more... )

• Centauri Dreams looks at debris disks, and potential planetary formation, around red giant stars.
• Crooked Timber notes the Bitcoin frenzy.
• The Dragon's Gaze looks at studies of the atmospheres of hot Jupiters.
• Lawyers, Guns and Money cannot understand skepticism about the harmful nature of the waters of the Michigan city of Flint.

( Read more... )

• blogTO notes the plans to build a large park under the western Gardiner.
• Centauri Dreams looks at Pluto.
• The Dragon's Tales goes to Syria.
• Far Outliers reports from a despairing Siberian village.
• Geocurrents notes that most Moravians live in Tanzania.

Al Jazeera's Creede Newton reports on the decline of the Dead Sea, at best slowed down by new proposals.

The Dead Sea, a unique body of water marked by mineral-rich, unusually salty water - nearly 10 times saltier than the world's oceans - is dying. Its water level is dropping by roughly one metre each year ( Read more... )

• blogTO identifies ten shows to look out for at this year's Toronto Fringe Festival.
• The Dragon's Gaze notes a paper suggesting that superearth rho 55 Cancri e may have had a spectacularly violent history.
• Geocurrents maps voting patterns in Nigeria's recent election, observing how there are echoes of Biafra.
• Marginal Revolution suggests the ( Read more... )