We can learn a lot from Troy's trash

Beneath the epic tales of heroes and gods, Troy's true story is written in something far less glamorous—its rubbish.

Inflation report Tuesday should provide clues on the impact tariffs are having on prices

June's inflation report will be looked at not so much for what the headline numbers show than what's in the underlying data.

Switch 2 restock coming to Best Buy for Donkey Kong Bananza launch

Players, rejoice: Nintendo Switch 2 restocks are going down at Best Buy on Thursday, July 17. The great Switch 2 restocking is in-store only at your local Best Buy and will coincide with the release of Donkey Kong Bananza. However, the announcement doesn’t reveal whether the

Frantisek Klisik, Protagonist of Documentary ‘Better Go Mad in the Wild,’ Dies Hours After Film’s Victory at Karlovy Vary Film Festival

Czech poet and former political activist František Klišík, one of the main protagonists in documentary “Better Go Mad in the Wild,” died on Sunday, hours after the film won the Grand Prix at Karlovy Vary Film Festival. He was 62 years old. Klišík, who lost his right arm in a

Plant theft is often overlooked. That's why it's on the rise

More than 180 plants were stolen from a well-loved public park in Nottingham called the Arboretum in May 2025. This incident took place just days after volunteers had re-planted flowers and shrubs to repair damage from a previous theft in March. In April 2025, the nearby Forest

Teaming Colombia’s Civil Jornal, Innoctum Media, Estuario Cine BAM Project ‘Wood’ Explores Several Ways Cutting-Edge Latin American Cinema is Going (EXCLUSIVE)

Civil Jornal, based in Colombia’s Barranquilla, is teaming with Bogota’s Innoctum Media and Barranquilla’s Estuario Cine to produce “Wood” (“Madera”), a hybrid doc fiction on the cutting-edge of current Colombian film-making in its bold genre mix and approach to Colombian

The Cheese Was Free

I am only a couple of chapters into James McBride’s Deacon King Kong (loving it!) and in the first chapter, there’s a relatively short passage about some cheese, Jesus’s Cheese, that comes into the lives of the members of the book’s community that is a first ballot Hall of

Egypt says Israel-EU agreement has not increased aid to Gaza

BRUSSELS - Egypt's foreign minister said on Monday that the flow of aid into Gaza has not increased despite an agreement last week between Israel and the European Union that should have had that result.

A robot stole my internship: How Gen Z's entry into the workplace is being affected by AI

For years, the expression "the robot took my job" has brought to mind visions of machines replacing workers on factory floors. But Gen Z is facing a new challenge: the loss of internships and other entry-level positions to AI.

Stream Two Shell’s Surprise New Album IIcons

Enigmatic electronic duo Two Shell released their great self-titled LP last October, and they played a couple songs from it during their recent set at Glastonbury’s club-ready IICON Stage. Also during that set, which you can listen to in full, they played a few songs that had

Beyond health: The political effects of infectious disease outbreaks

The COVID-19 pandemic has drawn attention to the far-reaching social implications of emerging infectious diseases, bringing to mind similarly impactful events like the Black Plague in early modern Europe or the Spanish Flu after World War I. However, how emerging epidemics

Neutrinos could have a secret life: Study suggests they may interact secretly during massive star collapse

Neutrinos are cosmic tricksters, paradoxically hardly there but lethal to stars significantly more massive than the sun.

Team engineers a microbial platform for efficient lutein production

A research group at KAIST has successfully engineered a microbial strain capable of producing lutein at industrially relevant levels. The team, led by Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, developed a novel C.

‘Ted Lasso’ Star Hannah Waddingham Says Season 4 Is Like a ‘Beloved Dog That Was Buried, and Now We’ve Exhumed It’

“Ted Lasso” star Hannah Waddingham says she’s been thinking a lot about what her character Rebecca Welton has been up to since the Apple TV+ Series finished its third and, as many involved thought, seemingly final season. Well, she’s about to find out. A fourth season will soon

Noah Cyrus Effortlessly Slides Into Country on ‘I Want My Loved Ones to Go with Me’

Singer-songwriter's second album sees her go more fully into a sound that's always been part of her musical DNA

Supreme Court allows Trump to resume Education Department layoffs

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed President Trump to resume efforts to dismantle the Department of Education in an apparent 6-3 vote along ideological lines, lifting a judge’s order to reinstate employees terminated in mass layoffs. The administration’s victory enables the

The safety and security of US judges must be a bipartisan priority

Congress must adequately fund the judiciary to ensure both the safety of judges and the health of our democracy.

House Dem will introduce resolution demanding Epstein files' release: 'Put up or Shut up!'

Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas) said on Sunday he plans to introduce a resolution demanding files be released in the case involving financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “Either @realDonaldTrump and his acolytes fueled the rumors of the significance of these Epstein

Soundgarden Explain Absence From Black Sabbath Farewell, Matt Cameron Clarifies He’s Not Retired

The surviving members of Soundgarden have sometimes performed together in the years since Chris Cornell’s death — with Brandi Carlile , for instance — and they were originally among the massive list of metal and hard rock legends slated to perform at this month’s Ozzy

With Period, Kesha Cashes In On The Sleazy Pop Blueprint She Pioneered

Few people in pop music have earned a comeback more than Kesha Sebert. For over a decade, her career has been defined by producer and ex-collaborator Lukasz Gottwald, a man she openly despises with good reason. Kesha sued the producer, better known as Dr. Luke, in 2014,

‘Saturday Night Live’ Visual Effects Artists Ratify Historic First Union Contract

Fifteen visual effects workers at “Saturday Night Live” have unanimously ratified theirfirst union contract. All 15 eligible voters voted “Yes,” marking a significant milestone for VFX artists and leads at the legendary sketch comedy show, which just celebrated its 50th season.

Trump Is Bullying MAGA Influencers to Fall in Line on Epstein

Over the weekend, right-wing media figure Charlie Kirk hosted the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit , where the young conservatives in attendance were up in arms about President Trump’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein affair. Now, after a phone call from the president

Judge Preska insists Argentina must pay for YPF expropriation

Judge Loretta Preska of the Southern District of New York Monday upheld her 2023 ruling against Argentina, rejecting the Libertarian Government's request to suspend the transfer of 51% of YPF shares to vulture funds Burford Capital and Eton Park Capital Management. This

Real Estate Announce Atlas “Eleven Year And Seven Month Anniversary Tour”

I haven’t thought much about Real Estate’s 2014 album Atlas lately, but it meant a lot to me upon release. So I’m excited to report that the band has decided to remind me how good that project is by celebrating it on tour, round numbers be damned.

Cuomo to run as third-party candidate in NYC after loss to Mamdani

Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) formally announced he is running as an independent in New York City’s mayoral race in November after losing to Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani in the party’s primary. “Only 13 percent of New Yorkers voted in the June primary. The general

New House food options start their rollout

‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Soundtrack Hits New Peak of No. 2 on Albums Chart

Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation’s “KPop Demon Hunters” soundtrack — performed by a fictional girl group called Huntrix in the animated feature — claims the No. 2 spot on the Billboard 200 albums chart this week. The film and its soundtrack have been surprise hits, with

Brooklyn Beckham on His Cloud23 Hot Sauce and Finding His Passion: ‘I Tried a Bunch of Stuff Out and Finally Created Something That Makes Me Happy’

Even before tasting Cloud23, a new hot sauce brand from Brooklyn Beckham launched last year, the elegantly designed bottle is what immediately ignites the senses — tall and elegant with sculpted vertical ridges at the base and a rounded wooden stopper that evoke a luxury

What time does Zenless Zone Zero 2.1 release?

Lots of action and hot days on the beach await in Zenless Zone Zero’s patch 2.1 “The Impending Crash of Waves.” This patch brings not only the high energy of summer, but also two new characters, new places to explore, and more quests in Yunkui Summit. Below, we explain when

Epic publicly humiliates 2 more Fortnite cheaters by forcing them to say sorry and promise to never, ever do it again

I'm starting to think this might be a good strategy.

Forest trees and microbes choreograph their hunt for a 'balanced diet' under elevated CO₂

Oak trees change their fine roots and "energize" soil microbes by supplying them with a cocktail of small organic compounds, all to supplement the trees' supply of essential nutrients when exposed to higher levels of carbon dioxide.

Quantum networks of clocks open the door to probe how quantum theory and curved space-time intertwine

Quantum networking is being rapidly developed world-wide. It is a key quantum technology that will enable a global quantum internet: the ability to deploy secure communication at scale, and to connect quantum computers globally. The race to realize this vision is in full swing,

Genome-scale model tracks how citrus plants respond to stress and disease

A new tool allows researchers to probe the metabolic processes occurring within the leaves, stems, and roots of a key citrus crop, the clementine. The big picture goal of this research is to improve the yields, flavor and nutritional value of citrus and non-citrus crops, even

Agro-pastoral activities accelerated mountain soil erosion for 3,800 years, study finds

Over the last 3,800 years, agro-pastoral activities have accelerated alpine soil erosion at a pace four to 10 times faster than their natural formation. The history of this erosion has just been revealed for the first time by a research team led by a CNRS scientist.

‘Brilliant Minds’ Season 2 Casts Bellamy Young

Bellamy Young appear in a recurring guest star role in the second season of “Brilliant Minds,” which is set to premiere this September. Young will play Dr. Amelia Frederick, the clinical director for a long-term mental healthcare facility named Hudson Oaks. Dr. Frederick is

Reports of DOGE’s demise are greatly exaggerated — it’s just getting started

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort, which exposed wasteful and harmful spending, is now entering its next chapter, with the White House and Congress working to address the $160 billion in improper payments and $3 trillion in waste, fraud and abuse in the last

Israeli released from captivity in Gaza: 'I know how it feels when the world is silent'

Speaking at the Knesset in Jerusalem, Ilana Gritzewsky begged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to get a deal, saying, 'You'll be remembered not for your speeches but your deeds'

We’re still so far off from a new Batman movie

The revamped DC Universe has finally made its theatrical debut with Superman, starring David Corenswet, releasing to majorly positive reviews and setting a new box office record for live-action Supes films. But amid the Man of Steel’s return, fans couldn’t help but wonder when

Musk’s Racist Grok AI Chatbot Is Now Part of the Defense Department

The Department of Defense will start using Elon Musk’s Grok AI chatbot to “develop agentic AI workflows.” Trump’s DoD awarded Musk’s xAI a $200 million federal contract to install “Grok for Government” into the national defense apparatus. “Announcing Grok for Government - a

My most-played game of the last 5 years is 30% off on Steam right now, alongside a ton of other factory games that can absolutely devour your life

Steam's Automation Fest includes our 2024 Sandbox GOTY Satisfactory, as well as one of the PC's all-time great puzzle games.

Voters say Trump hasn't been tough enough on Putin: Poll

Sixty percent of surveyed voters say they do not believe President Trump has been tough enough on Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a new Harvard CAPS/Harris poll released on Monday. Those respondents consist of 58 percent independents, 73 percent Democrats and 48

No, Britney Spears Did Not Adopt a Child

The singer joked with wink emojis about having a daughter named Lennon London — but Rolling Stone confirms she didn't actually add a "beautiful baby girl" to her family

Cambodia to begin conscripting civilians amid border row with Thailand

The move will mandate military service beginning next year under a law on the books since 2006.

Voters split on Trump's 'big, beautiful bill': Poll

Voters are evenly divided on President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” according to a poll. A Harvard CAPS/Harris poll released Monday found 44 percent of respondents said they supported the Republicans’ major policy bill while another 44 percent said they didn’t support the

Canadian Genre Filmmaking Sharpens its Edge, Cutting Deep Across Programming Strands at Fantasia’s 29th Edition

While the oeuvre of Toronto director David Cronenberg, the maestro of body horror, has inspired generations of Canadian filmmakers (including his progeny) and continues to do, Montreal’s Fantasia Festival and its Frontières Market event put them face-to-face with the global

A lovely, beautiful, and uplifting obituary of poet and activist Andrea Gibson....

A lovely, beautiful, and uplifting obituary of poet and activist Andrea Gibson . “One of the last things Andrea said on this plane was, ‘I fucking loved my life.’” 💬 Join the discussion on kottke.org →

Elon Musk praises retro-futuristic Tesla diner as ‘one of the coolest spots in LA’

Elon Musk had high praise for the diner and electric vehicle (EV) charging station that Tesla is creating in Los Angeles.

Spotted lanternflies love grapevines, and that's bad for Pennsylvania's wine industry

Spotted lanternfly season is back in Pennsylvania. The polka-dotted, gray-and-red-winged adult insects make their appearance each July and tend to hang around until December. It's an unwelcome summer ritual that started in 2014 when the invasive pests were first detected in the

Iran's Parliament approves increased military budget

The Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee has approved a bill to increase state military spending significantly. This legislation, supported by 120 lawmakers, aims to strengthen Iran's Armed Forces, including the Army and the Islamic Revolutionary

Israel renews plans for controversial construction that would effectively cut West Bank in two

Organizations and Palestinians objecting to the plan for building in Area E1 of the West Bank, which has been delayed since 2021 over sharp international criticism, say it will create one contiguous line of Jewish settlements from the central West Bank leading up to Jerusalem –