Pleasant! Low 80s during the day, nighttime temps in the high 50s, low humidity. A pleasant reprieve from last week's heat wave. Only a few weeks left of summer temps and then autumn should descend on the mid-atlantic
Actually opened my bedroom window a couple nights ago. The GW Parkway has re-opened but Roosevelt Island still has big trees down from last weeks storms though the trails are passable.
High 80s that feels hotter because the breeze that usually saved the NW in June and the first half of July have mostly ceased, and the humidity is creeping up. Headed for the 90s for the weekend, which is just too hot when you have a lot of outdoor work to get done. I know it still pales in comparison to the southwest and southeast, but I don't have to work there.
The Somali Minister for Sports and Youth picked his niece to represent the country in the 100m sprint at the World University Games in China. She ran a 21.81. To put this into perspective, that's about 30% slower than a world-class marathoner averages over the entire 422 x 100 meters.
The Oakland Athletics took on the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Chavez Ravine tonight in game two of the three-game interleague series.
The A’s got the game off on the right foot when Tony Kemp singled off Tony Gonsolin and then advanced to second on a wild pitch. But he was unable to advance any further, keeping the run off the board. Mookie Betts led off for the Dodgers with a double to straight away center field against A’s starter Hogan Harris, and fellow All-star Freddie Freeman singled to drive him home. Will Smith walked, sending Freeman to second and newly acquired second baseman Amed Rosario grounded out, advancing the runners to second and third. Max Muncy walked to load the bases. Chris Taylor singled to drive in the second run of the inning, and James Outman grounded into a force out to score Smith. At the end of the first inning the Dodgers led 3-0.
Facing the worst team in baseball, the NL West-leading Dodgers are doing exactly what you would expect out of them, promptly dismantling Oakland the A’s so far in this home series. On Wednesday evening, by a couple of innings in this game had already become laugher, ending in a 10-1 win for the Dodgers.
With crooked numbers in both the first and second inning, the Dodgers took complete control of this one, setting up a rather stress-free outing for Tony Gonsolin. This was important, given that the Dodgers’ starter was coming off one of his most laboring outings last week, with a career-high pitch count against the Texas Rangers.
"Balls Out" and "Balls to the Wall" are terms related to the centrifugal governor - those balls spinning around atop olde-timey steam engines. They are essentially a force-regulated valve to keep engines from over-revving
As long as you're seeing it on a big screen you're good. I saw it ten days ago and it's still with me. Of course I'm reading the bio it's based on but it's a movie that lingers.
That year, public universities in the state — including Berkeley and U.C.L.A. — loosened their admissions criteria, telling high schools that they would consider applicants who had skipped Algebra II, a cornerstone of math instruction.
personally i sort of disagree. on the other hand just teaching kids how to find roots of parabolic equations is not helpful w/o useful context, which is sorely missing in most math instruction.
A lot of media speculation that Cal will be a Big 10 team when the conference expands to 20. East vs West playoff at the end of the season in the Rose Bowl.
A Cal vs. Big Ten East winner for the conference title would be more meaningful than recent Rose Bowls featuring playoff games. It might be as close as we can get to the traditional Rose Bowl
I kind of feel like this is the most likely endgame (albeit far from guaranteed): Cal and Stanford take an invite to the B1G at a reduced share, once the Pac fully collapses, as part of a newly formed west-coast pod to support the L.A. schools and their scheduling.
I’m not sure if it’s most likely at this point, sounds like Fox is driving the bus not the university presidents. We could be in the MWC or worse in 2024
I suspect, Oregon and Washington get in at 60-75% share initially, then Cal and Furd panic to get in at 40-50% share in a 2nd phase. Big 10 something presidents want that sweet Research money and library access
Yup that's where it's going to go. Not healthy for college sports as a product IMO (lose the quirky regionalism and it's just the NFL with worse talent), but it seems like no one can stop it.
Yup. We went from P6 -> P5 -> now P4 (but really P2 and two good but clearly lesser conferences). As streaming takes over, there will be a pressure to drop further markets - eventually even in the B1G in SEC (sorry Rutgers, Northwestern, Vandy, etc) until we end up with an NFL-style configuration with a similar number of programs. Fans of big brands will continue to watch but a lot of fans/markets will be alienated in the process. Why pay to watch NFL jr when you can watch the real thing the next day?
With all the realignment rumors floating around, one that really piqued my curiosity was a report that Kliavkoff presented the media package last week at the demand of Arizona, seemingly as a way to weigh their options.
OU/UW will go one way. ASU/UU/UofA will go another way. Cal and Stanford will be wished to the cornfield for a bit in order to soften up our negotiating power. Cal will eventually sign with a bad deal but be grateful for it and be left with Sophies Choice as to what to cut in order to balance the budget.
[NYT] Jack Smith is smart to indict Trump under various broader conspiracy charges rather than the more narrow Sedition charges. It's easier to prove, broad enough to be able to introduce a mountain of evidence, be quick in court, can be expanded to more serious charges, and puts the sword of Damocles over co-conspirators to either flip or be indicted themselves.
[NYT] John Eastman's lawyer confirms that he is Co-conspirator #2 and says his client will not do a plea bargain. Also, the NYT runs an op-ed piece with other lawyers who say that the others are not indicted because they want to pressure them into flipping. Have fun in the Federal Pen, Traitor Eastman.
Green Party candidate Cornell West wants to tax the rich and increase tax evasion charges... against other people because he's got over a half million in Federal tax liens against him
Giuliani's former assistant is suing Rudy for sexual harassment. She filed transcripts of audio tapes of Rudy and they contain some eye-twitchingly weird stuff
Canadian PM Justin Trudeau splits with his wife after 18 years of marriage. They have legally separated, but are going on vacation next week together with their 3 kids
1. Hotels are only just recovering from Covid. Many of them have been in default on their secured loans, still trying to catch up. So timing of strike is odd.
2. What in God’s name does Taylor Swift have to do with any of this??? She did not cause the strike or the reasons for it; it is weird to sort of foist this on her and set her up to look unconcerned for the common man if she doesn’t comply. This makes California look really stupid and unfriendly to business/commerce
FET I was in Seattle a few weeks ago during the same weekend that Taylor Swift was performing (I was there for a work trip--I promise). Even in a big city like Seattle, it was a huge deal. Hotels everywhere were booked solid and there seemed to be a huge influx of people into the area. It was a major, newsworthy event that must have brought tens (if not hundreds) of millions of dollars into the city. Flying out Sunday morning I saw loads of Taylor Swift shirts and sweatshirts, even a few on my flight back to Baltimore
I know I'm old now because about 15 years ago I deemed Taylor Swift a teeny-bop country act with a weak voice whose popularity would peter out quickly. This must be like people who dismissed the Beatles as a fad in the mid-60s.
(And yes, though I'm not a Taylor Swift "fan" exactly I have to admit that she has clearly grown a lot as a musical artist and broadened her style more than I could have ever imagined.)
Yeah it was a monstrous event here in Bay Area, too. Concert was at Levi Stadium so the City Council of Santa Clara renamed the city “Swiftie Clara” for the weekend
WEATHER
Pleasant! Low 80s during the day, nighttime temps in the high 50s, low humidity. A pleasant reprieve from last week's heat wave. Only a few weeks left of summer temps and then autumn should descend on the mid-atlantic
Actually opened my bedroom window a couple nights ago. The GW Parkway has re-opened but Roosevelt Island still has big trees down from last weeks storms though the trails are passable.
we are hoping for a nicer weekend than last one in DC. it was so hot we just stayed indoors mostly.
this time we have some little kids with us for the weekend so hoping to get to the zoo and the Air & Space as well as general fun walking around.
You may have figured this out already, but both require reservations (free).
yes. thanks.
we didnt appreciate it fully last weekend so ended up in the Asian Art museum which apparently no one wants to go to as badly.
Sitting in the living room in sweats and a sweater, windows open, listening to foghorns. Current temp, 62F. I am content.
It's winter in the Southern hemisphere and it's sweltering there, smashing records
https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/south-america-sweats-under-high-021248374.html
Predicted high of 67 in Berkeley today, loving life.
High 80s that feels hotter because the breeze that usually saved the NW in June and the first half of July have mostly ceased, and the humidity is creeping up. Headed for the 90s for the weekend, which is just too hot when you have a lot of outdoor work to get done. I know it still pales in comparison to the southwest and southeast, but I don't have to work there.
Quite lovely today.
PRO
The Somali Minister for Sports and Youth picked his niece to represent the country in the 100m sprint at the World University Games in China. She ran a 21.81. To put this into perspective, that's about 30% slower than a world-class marathoner averages over the entire 422 x 100 meters.
https://twitter.com/EGaraad_/status/1686362369306288128
lol her "running" at the end looked like that bare minimum running some kids would do in PE class
21.31 would be enough to break the women's 200m though
Well...she proved that she can jog.
I'd previously seen the story, without the detail that it was a niece of someone in authority.
[WWC] Germany shockingly crashes out as they draw with Korea and Morocco upsets Colombia
https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/38122260/womens-world-cup-daily-germany-crash-morocco-advance-colombia
That was some hectic action in stoppage time once the Morocco-Colombia match ended, putting Germany into win-or-go-home mode
Nice of the Germans to possibly grab “biggest flop” of the tourney ahead of the US losing to Sweden
Quite the down cycle for Germany on both the men's and women's sides.
Proves again that long term power programs can always be brought down by mismanagement.
Giants beat the DBacks 4-2
Athletics routed by first place Dodgers 10-1 in LA
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2023/8/2/23818304/athletics-dodgers-4-homers-harris-pounded
The Oakland Athletics took on the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Chavez Ravine tonight in game two of the three-game interleague series.
The A’s got the game off on the right foot when Tony Kemp singled off Tony Gonsolin and then advanced to second on a wild pitch. But he was unable to advance any further, keeping the run off the board. Mookie Betts led off for the Dodgers with a double to straight away center field against A’s starter Hogan Harris, and fellow All-star Freddie Freeman singled to drive him home. Will Smith walked, sending Freeman to second and newly acquired second baseman Amed Rosario grounded out, advancing the runners to second and third. Max Muncy walked to load the bases. Chris Taylor singled to drive in the second run of the inning, and James Outman grounded into a force out to score Smith. At the end of the first inning the Dodgers led 3-0.
Sigh, such a bad start by A's first pitcher
Dodgers set up rout of last-place A’s with massive scoring early
https://www.truebluela.com/2023/8/2/23818288/dodgers-home-runs-mookie-betts-athletics-rout
Facing the worst team in baseball, the NL West-leading Dodgers are doing exactly what you would expect out of them, promptly dismantling Oakland the A’s so far in this home series. On Wednesday evening, by a couple of innings in this game had already become laugher, ending in a 10-1 win for the Dodgers.
With crooked numbers in both the first and second inning, the Dodgers took complete control of this one, setting up a rather stress-free outing for Tony Gonsolin. This was important, given that the Dodgers’ starter was coming off one of his most laboring outings last week, with a career-high pitch count against the Texas Rangers.
Balls Out
"Balls Out" and "Balls to the Wall" are terms related to the centrifugal governor - those balls spinning around atop olde-timey steam engines. They are essentially a force-regulated valve to keep engines from over-revving
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centrifugal_governor
TIL...
Apropos: Stanfurd banned the use of the term in certain cases because they may have misunderstood its meaning
https://twitter.com/VictorishB123/status/1609011968530329601
someone at the 'furd not knowing something about reality? shocking.
even funnier that the school was founded by railroad robber barons and don't know how steam loco's worked.
“Balls to the Wall” by Accept
https://youtu.be/B_3TlrZLpQ0
This is a seminal 80s metal anthem
DBD AV CLUB
Gonna try and see Oppenheimer today. Have some options on theaters…what kind of showing format would be most recommended?
Seems like one where IMAX is worth it if you can find one.
Agreed. I’m gonna try & find one
As long as you're seeing it on a big screen you're good. I saw it ten days ago and it's still with me. Of course I'm reading the bio it's based on but it's a movie that lingers.
CAL
article about Aubrun ...
Coach Hugh Freeze 'anxious,' 'uncomfortable' as Auburn opens camp (ESPN)
https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/38127237/coach-hugh-freeze-anxious-uncomfortable-auburn-opens-camp
Imagine how "uncomfortable" he's going to be after getting his ass kicked by Cal on September 9th.
not sports.
Does Data Science = Algebra II? (NYT)
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/13/us/california-math-data-science-algebra.html
That year, public universities in the state — including Berkeley and U.C.L.A. — loosened their admissions criteria, telling high schools that they would consider applicants who had skipped Algebra II, a cornerstone of math instruction.
In its place, students could take data science!!
personally i sort of disagree. on the other hand just teaching kids how to find roots of parabolic equations is not helpful w/o useful context, which is sorely missing in most math instruction.
It would really go well with physics. They should merge classes.
A lot of media speculation that Cal will be a Big 10 team when the conference expands to 20. East vs West playoff at the end of the season in the Rose Bowl.
that sort of keeps the tradition of the Rose Bowl alive in maybe the best possible way given the way things have been going.
I did not expect "Cal making the Rose Bowl representing the Big 10" square appearing on my lifetime bingo card.
TIL: #12 Oregon State beat #2 Duke in the the 1942 Rose Bowl, which was held about a 15 minute drive from me in Durham NC.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942_Rose_Bowl
If we can squeeze into the Rose 🌹 Bowl one way or another I'll take it.
The phrase "Rose Bowl before I die" then takes on trenchant meaning.
BUT does that mean that the Cal Band marches in the Rose Parade?
true. but, we sort of got rid of the "Cal in meaningful Rose Bowl" expectation a while ago no?
A Cal vs. Big Ten East winner for the conference title would be more meaningful than recent Rose Bowls featuring playoff games. It might be as close as we can get to the traditional Rose Bowl
That would be a science fiction piece.
New story...
Big 10 leaders authorize commissioner to explore adding Oregon and Washington...
https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/big-ten-leaders-authorize-commissioner-to-explore-adding-oregon-washington-as-expansion-teams-per-report/
Dark times upon us.
I would think $C and fUCLA would want Cal/Furd in the West Coast pod since it would almost be 2 guaranteed wins.
Heh.
Agreed but are university presidents or fox execs driving the bus. I would bet on the latter.
I kind of feel like this is the most likely endgame (albeit far from guaranteed): Cal and Stanford take an invite to the B1G at a reduced share, once the Pac fully collapses, as part of a newly formed west-coast pod to support the L.A. schools and their scheduling.
It’s getting scarier; we may be on the outside looking in.
It's possible! Like I say, I think the B1G is the most likely landing spot but it's not guaranteed.
I’m not sure if it’s most likely at this point, sounds like Fox is driving the bus not the university presidents. We could be in the MWC or worse in 2024
Exactly. Fox is driving the bus because they have the bucks.
I have seen some of the recent Twitter posts (or . . . "X" posts), and yeah, not looking good!
I suspect, Oregon and Washington get in at 60-75% share initially, then Cal and Furd panic to get in at 40-50% share in a 2nd phase. Big 10 something presidents want that sweet Research money and library access
At what point is there just one giant super conference operating as a kind of bizarro NCAA?
we are getting there. with the ever expanded playoffs it wont matter as much if you are conference champion or not.
Yup that's where it's going to go. Not healthy for college sports as a product IMO (lose the quirky regionalism and it's just the NFL with worse talent), but it seems like no one can stop it.
Yup. We went from P6 -> P5 -> now P4 (but really P2 and two good but clearly lesser conferences). As streaming takes over, there will be a pressure to drop further markets - eventually even in the B1G in SEC (sorry Rutgers, Northwestern, Vandy, etc) until we end up with an NFL-style configuration with a similar number of programs. Fans of big brands will continue to watch but a lot of fans/markets will be alienated in the process. Why pay to watch NFL jr when you can watch the real thing the next day?
Go Bears!!!
Justin Allegri tapped as play-by-play replacement of Joe Starkey. Mike Pawlawski will remain the color analyst
https://admin.calbears.com/news/2023/8/3/athletics-news-justin-allegri-named-california-play-by-play-announcer.aspx
From the Front Page: Cardwell and Gamble out for season.
https://writeforcalifornia.com/p/cal-bears-byron-cardwell-collin-gamble-injury
The most Cal football news possible is players being out for the year before the season even starts.
Someone please wrap Brett Johnson in bubble wrap until September 2nd
Uh-Oh
This news was known for a while but was under embargo. I think that's why Cal did so well in the portal for these positions.
ELSEWHERE IN COLLEGE
I have reserved a page for Mark Emmert in my coffee-table book "Piss On Your Grave: a guide to the final resting spots of select figures"
With all the realignment rumors floating around, one that really piqued my curiosity was a report that Kliavkoff presented the media package last week at the demand of Arizona, seemingly as a way to weigh their options.
OU/UW will go one way. ASU/UU/UofA will go another way. Cal and Stanford will be wished to the cornfield for a bit in order to soften up our negotiating power. Cal will eventually sign with a bad deal but be grateful for it and be left with Sophies Choice as to what to cut in order to balance the budget.
It might actually be a blessing in disguise if Cal is forced to cut sports. Bad for those athletes, but needs to happen for the program.
the funny thing is all sorts of people will say they are willing to pay for and support Cal football once they decide to cut it.
That deal is never getting signed. The conference will cease to exist by next week.
Unfortunately, I believe that you are correct. This is the worst that I have ever felt about Cal Football.
Who's going to sign when most folks are abandoning ship?
OUR CRUMBLING DEMOCRACY
[NYT] Jack Smith is smart to indict Trump under various broader conspiracy charges rather than the more narrow Sedition charges. It's easier to prove, broad enough to be able to introduce a mountain of evidence, be quick in court, can be expanded to more serious charges, and puts the sword of Damocles over co-conspirators to either flip or be indicted themselves.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/02/opinion/jack-smith-trump-indictment.html
[NYT] John Eastman's lawyer confirms that he is Co-conspirator #2 and says his client will not do a plea bargain. Also, the NYT runs an op-ed piece with other lawyers who say that the others are not indicted because they want to pressure them into flipping. Have fun in the Federal Pen, Traitor Eastman.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/02/us/politics/trump-indictment-co-conspirators.html
When you're behind, you need a hail mary. DeSantis agrees to debate Gavin Newsome on Fox News. [ChairAndPopcorn.gif]
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/02/desantis-debate-gavin-newsom-fox-00109577
Green Party candidate Cornell West wants to tax the rich and increase tax evasion charges... against other people because he's got over a half million in Federal tax liens against him
https://www.thedailybeast.com/cornel-west-owes-more-than-half-a-million-in-unpaid-taxes
Drunk Uncle Rudy's lawyer confirms he is coconspirator #1
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/02/nyregion/giuliani-co-conspirator-trump-indictment.html
Giuliani's former assistant is suing Rudy for sexual harassment. She filed transcripts of audio tapes of Rudy and they contain some eye-twitchingly weird stuff
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/transcripts-rudy-giuliani-talking-dirty_n_64caa6dbe4b03d9b515f5c5c
Trump to be arraigned today at 4pm Eastern and is expected to plead not guilty on all charges
[NYT] Co-conspirator 6 appears to be Boris Epshteyn
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/02/us/politics/boris-epshteyn-co-conspirator-6.html
Canadian PM Justin Trudeau splits with his wife after 18 years of marriage. They have legally separated, but are going on vacation next week together with their 3 kids
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/08/02/justin-trudeau-wife-separation-00109437
Lt Gov of CA urges Taylor Swift to postpone her six concerts in LA in solidarity with hotel worker strike. https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/taylor-swift-asked-to-postpone-la-concerts-18274837.php?IPID=SFGate-HP-CP-Spotlight
Two thoughts -
1. Hotels are only just recovering from Covid. Many of them have been in default on their secured loans, still trying to catch up. So timing of strike is odd.
2. What in God’s name does Taylor Swift have to do with any of this??? She did not cause the strike or the reasons for it; it is weird to sort of foist this on her and set her up to look unconcerned for the common man if she doesn’t comply. This makes California look really stupid and unfriendly to business/commerce
FET I was in Seattle a few weeks ago during the same weekend that Taylor Swift was performing (I was there for a work trip--I promise). Even in a big city like Seattle, it was a huge deal. Hotels everywhere were booked solid and there seemed to be a huge influx of people into the area. It was a major, newsworthy event that must have brought tens (if not hundreds) of millions of dollars into the city. Flying out Sunday morning I saw loads of Taylor Swift shirts and sweatshirts, even a few on my flight back to Baltimore
I know I'm old now because about 15 years ago I deemed Taylor Swift a teeny-bop country act with a weak voice whose popularity would peter out quickly. This must be like people who dismissed the Beatles as a fad in the mid-60s.
(And yes, though I'm not a Taylor Swift "fan" exactly I have to admit that she has clearly grown a lot as a musical artist and broadened her style more than I could have ever imagined.)
Good comp to those that dismissed the Beatles. Didn't understand that either.
Yeah it was a monstrous event here in Bay Area, too. Concert was at Levi Stadium so the City Council of Santa Clara renamed the city “Swiftie Clara” for the weekend
Which ironically enough didn’t stop the Lt Gov from attending the Bay Area show herself
Real question: why would it? It was the closest one to her home, and not being held in a location where there was a major strike occurring.
Maybe she should postpone lieutenant governing in solidarity with striking writers and actors.
Stop lieutenant governing? Who's going to kiss the ribbons, cut the hands, and shake the babies?
I don’t know what the Lt Gov does, but the fact that she is issuing press releases about this makes it seem like the answer is “not much”
She's running to succeed Gavin Newsom. Which could be "not much".
I know she is Lt Gov now, but I would be shocked if she became the next gov
Hugh Freeze is already making excuses and setting low expectations in anticipation of his 9/9 hosing in Berkeley: https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/38127237/coach-hugh-freeze-anxious-uncomfortable-auburn-opens-camp
That will be a delicious victory!