Where there’s smoke
A round-up of President Trump’s mixed messages from the weekend regarding his war on Iran. / Foreign Exchanges
Detailed maps show how the war has widened. / The Wall Street Journal [$]
The Pentagon adopts Palantir’s Maven model as its main AI system. Ironically, Maven uses Anthropic’s Claude to analyze its own data. / Bloomberg [$], Semafor
In Gaza, Israel used an AI-assisted platform called “the Gospel,” which produced potential targets so quickly “some Israeli officers compared it to ‘a mass assassination factory.’” / The Independent
“We do not want to die for Israel.” A reporter finds low morale among American troops. / HuffPost
Unrelated: One woman reduces her anxiety with “the 6:30pm rule”—basically a time to stop worrying. / The Guardian
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Among negotiations to consider this week are Trump versus Iran and Trump versus airport lines. / Wake Up to Politics
Another side effect of the war: Generic drugs are largely manufactured in India, and with petrochemicals as a key input, shortages are possible. / CNBC
California is feeling more of the war’s energy shock than the rest of the United States, because its oil mostly comes from Asia. / Heatmap
See also: A round-up of anti-ICE anthems and music videos. / LA Taco
Some thoughts on why buildings in Glasgow continue to catch on fire. / The London Review of Books
What it was like to ride the subway to New York City’s Coney Island in 1987. / Kottke
Jasmine Sun says language models are bad at creative writing because they “cannot smell, cannot taste, cannot sense.” / The Atlantic [$]
And in case you’re not following: The Tournament of Books, presented by Field Notes, is halfway through the quarterfinals! / Field Notes, The Tournament of Books
And now a brief chat with new sustaining member Delaine D.!
Hi, Delaine. You found us via the Tournament of Books, is that right? How long have you been following? This is my third year following the ToB. A friend from work recommended it to me.
We’re glad they did! What about it works for you? I enjoy the diversity of books in the competition and look forward to reading the judge’s opinions daily to see if we agreed on the same winner.
Terrific. And thanks again for supporting. Any particular reason you decided to sign up today? I decided to support today because I would like more book recommendations throughout the year.
In the members area, unlocked links from the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and the Atlantic ↓