Uncanny projects

Biden's cabinet had a combined net worth of around $120 million, which is absolutely dwarfed by the $20 billion net worth of Trump's presumptive cabinet. / The Intercept

Spencer Ackerman: What starts as temporary, emergency measures tend to become fixed in the firmament of American governance and normalized. / Forever Wars

See also: A running list of Trump's planned executive orders, actions, proclamations, and legislation. / Politico

Scientists are worrying over threats posed by manufacturing bacteria that are mirror images of natural ones. / Undark Magazine

Previously: Built with a reverse set of amino acids and sugars, synthetic "mirror cells" pose an "unprecedented risk" for all life, scientists warn. / Smithsonian Magazine

See also: Photographs of uncanny objects by Joyce Lin Blur. / Colossal

A theory called "predictive processing" says that we don't experience the world as it is, but as we predict it to be. / Vox

Should children really learn about getting rich? "It conjures a fantasy world where people who 'deserve' it get rich and those who don't simply disappear." / The Cut

Chinese traditional medicine is now a $60 billion-a-year industry—and cows' gallstones have become the must-have item. / The Wall Street Journal [+]

Some sound advice for any people in Southern California worried about air quality. / Torched

TMN recommends: This Friday—for 24 hours only—you can stream the generative documentary film Eno. / Oh You Pretty Things

See also: A very cool interactive interpretation of Eno and Peter Schmidt's Oblique Strategies. / It's Simply a Matter of Work

NASA astronauts will search for life that can thrive in harsh environments by checking if there's any clinging to the exterior of the International Space Station. / Gizmodo

See also: "You never know true beauty until you see Earth from space, or true terror until you hear someone knocking on the space station door from outside." / Clickhole

Over 100 medal winners at last summer's Paris Olympics have complained their medals are crumbling. / Semafor


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Your headlines are sourced and composed by Rosecrans Baldwin (☜) and Andrew Womack, Monday through Friday. View this edition and the latest headlines at TMN.