Fog and mist offer photographers an exceptional opportunity to create deeply atmospheric, moody, and mysterious imagery. By embracing these unique weather conditions, you can transform ordinary scenes into captivating visual stories filled with depth, emotion, and intrigue. Here’s how to effectively harness fog and mist to elevate your photography. Understanding the Appeal of Fog and Mist Fog and mist naturally diffuse light, softening contrasts and textures within a scene. This soft diffusion creates a dreamlike ambiance and adds emotional depth to photographs, often evoking feelings of tranquility, solitude, or mystery. By obscuring and revealing elements selectively, fog and mist invite viewers to engage deeply with the visual narrative, filling in unseen details with imagination. Ideal Conditions and Timing The most atmospheric fog and mist usually occur during early mornings or evenings, especially near bodies of water or in valleys and lowlands. Paying close attention to weather forecasts can help you predict ideal conditions. Early preparation and scouting locations ahead of time ensure you’re ready when the perfect atmospheric conditions arise. Composition Techniques for Foggy Scenes Creating impactful foggy compositions involves thoughtful techniques: Layers and Depth: Use the fog’s varying densities to emphasize depth. Layering foreground, midground, and background elements adds visual complexity and interest. Silhouettes and Shapes: Fog reduces detail, emphasizing strong shapes and silhouettes. Compose your images around distinctive shapes, trees, or structures to anchor your photograph. Simplify the Frame: Minimalism is especially effective in foggy conditions. Embrace simplicity by isolating single elements or subjects against misty backdrops for dramatic effect. Lighting and Exposure Considerations Fog significantly impacts exposure and lighting conditions: Soft Light: The diffused, gentle lighting conditions in fog and mist reduce harsh shadows, creating flattering, ethereal images. Exposure Compensation: Fog often tricks camera meters into underexposing scenes. Consider slightly increasing your exposure compensation to accurately capture the brightness and subtle details of foggy conditions. Creative Opportunities with Fog and Mist Fog and mist open diverse creative possibilities: Black-and-White Photography: Foggy conditions lend themselves exceptionally well to monochrome photography, highlighting contrasts, textures, and shapes dramatically. Color Tones and Mood: Color images in foggy conditions can carry gentle pastel tones or cool hues, enhancing the atmospheric and emotional impact of your imagery. Enhancing Foggy Images Through Post-Processing Post-processing can refine foggy scenes: Contrast and Clarity Adjustments: Fine-tune contrast and clarity subtly to maintain the softness and mood without losing important detail. Selective Sharpening: Apply selective sharpening to key elements or subjects, ensuring they stand out within the foggy environment without diminishing the atmospheric quality. Fog and mist provide photographers with unique conditions to craft images rich in mood, narrative, and visual intrigue. By thoughtfully considering composition, timing, lighting, and post-processing, you can harness the power of fog and mist to produce atmospheric photography that deeply resonates with viewers. Embrace these ethereal elements, and transform everyday scenes into extraordinary visual stories. Extended reading: Alpine views: 12 breathtaking mountainscapes to celebrate the chilly season The post Crafting Atmospheric Images with Fog and Mist appeared first on 500px.

From August 23rd - September 14th, 2023 (Kodiak, Alaska to Seward, Alaska), NOAA Ocean Exploration conducted Seascape Alaska 5: Gulf of Alaska Remotely Operated Vehicle Exploration and Mapping (EX2306), a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and mapping expedition to the Gulf of Alaska on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer. Operations during this 23-day expedition included the completion of 19 successful remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dives, which were conducted in water depths ranging from 253.1 m to 4261.5 m for approximately 87 hours of bottom time and resulted in the collection of 383 samples. EX2306 also collected more than 28,000 sq. km of seafloor bathymetry and associated water column data using an EM 304 multibeam sonar. These images were captured on dives that were included in the source data for the How Little We’ve Seen: A Visual Coverage Estimate of the Deep Seafloor paper. They are good general reference imagery for the type of deep ocean observations captured by ROVs.(Image Courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration)NewsletterSign up for our email newsletter for the latest science newsKey Takeaways on Deep Ocean Exploration: We have visually explored less than 0.001 percent of the deep sea floor. To put that in perspective, 66 percent of the planet is deep ocean, and 99.999 percent of that ocean is unknown to us.Like ecosystems on land, the sea has a complex food web. Most of life in the sea depends on detritus, mostly phytoplankton, falling down from the surface, something called “marine snow.”Organisms that live in shallow water absorb carbon dioxide and take that with them when they sink to the bottom, often to be buried in deep-sea sediment. This is known as a carbon sink. It’s important to know the rates at which this happens, because this partially offsets the carbon we’re adding to the atmosphere. It’s been said many times that we know more about the moon than our own ocean. But is it really true that we’ve explored only a tiny portion of the sea?Katy Croff Bell wondered about this, too. Bell is an oceanographer and the founder of the Ocean Discovery League. She knew that Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and others have been operating deep-sea submersibles like Alvin for decades, and there are facilities in 20 or so places around the world doing deep-sea research. But how much of the sea floor have these projects actually explored visually, not just mapped or sampled?Mapping the Deep OceanBell started looking up dive data and doing some math. “I stayed up way too late and came up with a very, very tiny number,” she recalls. She didn’t believe her own results and got everyone she could think of to double-check her math. But the results held. Over the next four years, she and her team compiled a database of dives from organizations and individuals around the world, and the data support her initial estimate. The number is indeed tiny. It turns out that we have visually explored less than 0.001 percent of the deep sea floor. To put that in perspective, 66 percent of the planet is deep ocean, and 99.999 percent of that ocean is unknown to us. Bell and her team published their findings in May 2025 in the journal Science Advances.Why Deep Sea Exploration MattersFrom July 14 - July 25, 2023, NOAA Ocean Exploration and partners conducted the third in a series of Seascape Alaska expeditions on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer. Over the course of 12 days at sea, the team conducted 6 full remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dives, mapped nearly 16,000 square kilometers (6,180 square miles), and collected a variety of biological and geological samples. When combined with numerous biological and geological observations, data from the Seascape Alaska 3: Aleutians Remotely Operated Vehicle Exploration and Mapping expedition will help to establish a baseline assessment of the ocean environment, increase understanding of marine life and habitats to inform management decisions, and increase public awareness of ocean issues. These images were captured on dives that were included in the source data for the How Little We’ve Seen: A Visual Coverage Estimate of the Deep Seafloor paper. They are good general reference imagery for the type of deep ocean observations captured by ROVs. (Image Courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration)About 26 percent of the ocean has been mapped with multi-beam sonar, explains Bell, and that gives us an idea of the shape of the ocean floor. But that’s like looking at a topographical map of an area you’re planning to hike. You know where the hills and valleys are, but you have no idea what kind of plants and animals you’re likely to encounter. If you want to understand the deep ocean, you need to get down there and see what kind of rocks and sediment are there, learn about the corals and sponges and other animals living there, she says. Samples of ocean life are helpful, but they do not give anything like a full picture of the life-forms in the deep sea, and more importantly, they tell you little about the complex ecosystems they’re a part of. But when you put mapping and sampling together with visual data, plus data about temperature, depths, and salinity, Bell says, you start to build a picture of what a given ocean habitat is like, and eventually, the role of that habitat in the global ocean system.The Deep-Sea "Snow" That Provides LifeFrom August 23rd - September 14th, 2023 (Kodiak, Alaska to Seward, Alaska), NOAA Ocean Exploration conducted Seascape Alaska 5: Gulf of Alaska Remotely Operated Vehicle Exploration and Mapping (EX2306), a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and mapping expedition to the Gulf of Alaska on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer. Operations during this 23-day expedition included the completion of 19 successful remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dives, which were conducted in water depths ranging from 253.1 m to 4261.5 m for approximately 87 hours of bottom time and resulted in the collection of 383 samples. EX2306 also collected more than 28,000 sq. km of seafloor bathymetry and associated water column data using an EM 304 multibeam sonar. These images were captured on dives that were included in the source data for the How Little We’ve Seen: A Visual Coverage Estimate of the Deep Seafloor paper. They are good general reference imagery for the type of deep ocean observations captured by ROVs. (Image Courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration)Like ecosystems on land, the sea has a complex food web. Most of life in the sea depends on detritus, mostly phytoplankton, falling down from the surface, something called “marine snow,” explains James Douglass, an ecologist at Florida Gulf Coast University who studies life on the sea bed. This snow of nutrients is eaten by what are called suspension feeders, including filter feeders, such as sponges and corals, which have tentacles or basket-like appendages to trap the snow. Then other organisms, such as crabs and worms, feed on these creatures. The crabs and worms, in turn, are eaten by fish. Deposit feeders, such as the sea pig, a type of sea cucumber that “trundles across the bottom eating mud all day,” add to the already huge variety of life, Douglass says. The types of organisms you have in the deep sea depend on how deep it is, whether the sea floor is rocky or muddy, how quickly currents bring food, and whether there are underwater hot springs or cold seeps, or other sources of extra energy, says Douglass. So yes, it’s a complicated world down there, and there’s an awful lot we don’t yet know.Deep-Sea Ecosystems and Climate Change From July 14 - July 25, 2023, NOAA Ocean Exploration and partners conducted the third in a series of Seascape Alaska expeditions on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer. Over the course of 12 days at sea, the team conducted 6 full remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dives, mapped nearly 16,000 square kilometers (6,180 square miles), and collected a variety of biological and geological samples. When combined with numerous biological and geological observations, data from the Seascape Alaska 3: Aleutians Remotely Operated Vehicle Exploration and Mapping expedition will help to establish a baseline assessment of the ocean environment, increase understanding of marine life and habitats to inform management decisions, and increase public awareness of ocean issues. These images were captured on dives that were included in the source data for the How Little We’ve Seen: A Visual Coverage Estimate of the Deep Seafloor paper. They are good general reference imagery for the type of deep ocean observations captured by ROVs. (Image Courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration)Learning about ocean ecosystems is extremely valuable as basic science. But it has a more urgent purpose as well. Though we often think of the land and the sea as two completely separate places, they are intertwined in many significant ways. The ocean has absorbed 90 percent of the excess heat and 30 percent of the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by humans, says Bell. “But we don’t really have a good understanding of how this is going to impact deep-sea ecosystems, and those ecosystems play a vital role in the process of carbon sequestration,” she says.When it comes to climate change, the deep sea has a lot to teach us. In parts of the deep sea, Douglass explains, nothing disturbs the layers of sediment that are deposited slowly over the course of thousands, even millions of years. Geologists can interpret the layers and study the fossils preserved in them to get an understanding of what the conditions of the planet were like in the distant past, similar to the way climatologists study Antarctic ice cores. “We've learned things about how the ocean ecosystem changes when climate changes. We've learned that some worrying things can happen under certain climate conditions in the deep ocean,” Douglass says. “For example, the ocean can become less oxygenated, which would be a catastrophic threat to deep-sea life.”The Deep Ocean and Climate RegulationAnd, of course, there’s carbon dioxide. “The deep sea is not just a passive record of what happened to the climate; it’s involved in regulating climate,” Douglass says. Organisms that live in shallow water absorb carbon dioxide and take that with them when they sink to the bottom, often to be buried in deep-sea sediment. This is known as a carbon sink. Douglass says it’s very important to know the rates at which this happens, because this partially offsets the carbon we’re adding to the atmosphere. “Deep-sea carbon storage is a huge element in our understanding of the planet's ability to regulate climate,” he adds.If we are to truly understand the way the entire planet works, we need to understand the deep sea and its complex ecosystems as well as life on land and in the shallows. And to do that, Bell says, we need to get down there and look.Article SourcesOur writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:Science Advances. How little we’ve seen: A visual coverage estimate of the deep seafloorAvery Hurt is a freelance science journalist. In addition to writing for Discover, she writes regularly for a variety of outlets, both print and online, including National Geographic, Science News Explores, Medscape, and WebMD. She’s the author of Bullet With Your Name on It: What You Will Probably Die From and What You Can Do About It, Clerisy Press 2007, as well as several books for young readers. Avery got her start in journalism while attending university, writing for the school newspaper and editing the student non-fiction magazine. Though she writes about all areas of science, she is particularly interested in neuroscience, the science of consciousness, and AI–interests she developed while earning a degree in philosophy.1 free article leftWant More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/monthSubscribeAlready a subscriber?Register or Log In1 free articleSubscribeWant more?Keep reading for as low as $1.99!SubscribeAlready a subscriber?Register or Log In

Nature, Published online: 26 May 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-01575-1Researchers with the neurodevelopmental condition discuss its peaks and valleys and how they structure their work lives to succeed.

The Heart of Democracy update for Helldivers 2 has marked out a new battlefield on Super Earth itself. And it looks like Helldivers are jumping back on to help hold the line against the Illuminate invasion.Earlier this week, the Illuminate officially launched an invasion of Super Earth as part of the Heart of Democracy update in Helldivers 2. After a long build-up involving a mobile black hole, Super Earth has become a zone of conflict, and Helldivers are dropping into various cities to assist with the defense efforts.There are quite a few more Helldivers dropping in now, too. A quick look at SteamDB shows the player count rebounding back up alongside the Heart of Democracy update's drop, currently sitting at a 24-hour peak of just over 163,000 players. It's a number that exceeds the peak of the Omens of Tyranny update, though it's still far off from the release window peaks for Helldivers 2.PlayThat's still a feat for Steam, as developer Arrowhead Game Studios contended with negative ratings and complaints early on in Helldivers 2's PC life, alongside the infamous PSN situation. With recent valleys in the tens of thousands, a lift up to over 150,000 concurrents is certainly a shift worth noting.Over on X/Twitter, Arrowhead CCO Johan Pilestedt posted a few fascinating numbers. First, that this surge might be one of the largest simultaneous returns of players for Helldivers:And second, that around 2.5 million Helldivers have been playing the game every week. It's a pretty staggering number for any live service game, but shows how the community has stayed attached.Over on the Helldivers Discord (via VG247), Arrowhead CEO Shams Jorjani responded to players congratulating the team on the player count surge. "It's all you folks and your amazing support," said Jorjani.If you're eager to dive back in yourself, I can attest to it being a good time to play right now. The new Super Earth battlefields are great fun, and you can even recruit some SEAF helpers to assist in holding back the Illuminate threat. Just be mindful of all the chaos and destruction.Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Banánka House / Pauliny Hovorka ArchitektiSave this picture!© Matej HakárHouses•Banka, Slovakia Architects: Pauliny Hovorka Architekti Area Area of this architecture project Area:  416 m² Year Completion year of this architecture project Year:  2024 Photographs Photographs:Matej Hakár Manufacturers Brands with products used in this architecture project Manufacturers:  Geberit, JUNG, OTIIMA, Schöck, Vibia, Duravit, Agape, Ceadesign, Eden Design, Glas Italia, Kingspan Isoste, LED eco, Napoleon, Regency, USSPA, WaremaMore SpecsLess Specs Save this picture! Text description provided by the architects. The Banánka family house responds to its natural surroundings through a raw and honest use of natural materials, a restrained horizontal form, and the clarity of minimalist design. Living here is defined by a seamless connection between the interior and the outdoors, primarily achieved through large glazed walls that stretch along significant portions of the house. This connection can be fully opened by sliding the glass façade between the central living hall, the terrace, and the garden area with a pond—something that's not just a design gesture, but frequently used throughout the extended summer season. This allows the melancholic atmosphere of the rock garden, flowing stream, pond, and tall surrounding trees to flow right into the interior.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!The property is located on the outskirts of the village of Banka, in a peaceful, intimate setting at the end of a lush valley. The name "Banánka" refers to a female resident of Banka (with "Banánec" as the male equivalent). The area's relaxed, natural atmosphere stems from its established garden character and the loose, organic pattern of surrounding homes and cottages. The house is accessed via a narrow asphalt road that transitions into a forest path leading further into the valleys of the Považský Inovec mountains. A stream runs along the edge of the property, adjacent to a dense deciduous forest that borders the site both from the access road and from the rear, creating a natural privacy screen and a green backdrop. The valley is relatively narrow along the longer sides of the plot, with the forest rising steeply into the hills beyond. On the shorter sides, neighboring houses are present but obscured from view by thick garden vegetation. The former garden plot offers a rare advantage—deep privacy amidst mature trees and well-established greenery. The brief was to design a single-storey home with a carport, fully connected to the garden. The atmosphere was to be centered on relaxation and contemplation, with a clear separation between the private areas for parents and children. The house also had to be positioned to maximize sunlight in living spaces and preserve every existing tree. The material palette emphasizes natural elements—concrete, stone, wood, and glass—prioritizing durability, longevity, and timelessness. The result is a tranquil retreat immersed in greenery, which embodies the vision behind Banánka.Save this picture!Save this picture!The design solution takes the form of a Y-shaped floor plan, with three wings extending outward at 120-degree angles, carefully positioned to avoid existing trees and divide the plot into smaller garden segments. Each room enjoys its own unique view into a private corner of the garden. The structure is solid and expressive, with brushed board-formed monolithic concrete ceilings, concrete interior walls, and prefabricated parapet panels. The material concept is enhanced by crushed stone encased in galvanized mesh gabions, which flow from the exterior into the interior. These are complemented by wooden cladding, floors, and decking. Windows feature ultra-slim frames and can be fully retracted into wall pockets to maximize the visual and spatial connection with the outdoors. Hidden doors are integrated into cladding and plastered surfaces. The interior, largely free of decorative objects, is defined by custom-built furniture, beds, and a modular sofa that can be reconfigured as needed.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!The internal layout follows the three-winged shape of the house, all organized around a central living hall. This setup provides privacy for the main bedroom suite with a wellness area, separated from the children's and guest rooms. The smallest, north-facing wing houses the entrance, storage, and utility rooms, with an extended roof forming both a carport and a covered entryway. The southeast wing contains three smaller bedrooms, a shared bathroom, and a multipurpose room used as a study and meditation space. The southwest wing is dedicated to the master suite, featuring a bedroom with a walk-in wardrobe, a spacious bathroom, a WC, and a sauna. The wellness area connects to a smaller terrace with a hot tub and a cooling plunge pool adjacent to the stream.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!At the heart of the home lies the central living hall, combining kitchen, dining, and living areas and serving as a hub connecting both residential wings. One side houses the kitchen, the other the living room, with the dining area in the center. A glass-enclosed wine room, cooled and designed for presentation, forms part of the living area. A fireplace with a massive stone heat-retaining wall anchors the space. Large sliding glass walls allow the hall to fully open onto the covered terrace, merging inside and outside into one. The terrace includes a summer kitchen with a grill and an outdoor dining area oriented toward the garden, pond, and forest beyond.Save this picture! Project gallerySee allShow less About this office MaterialsGlassConcreteMaterials and TagsPublished on May 20, 2025Cite: "Banánka House / Pauliny Hovorka Architekti" 20 May 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1030304/bananka-house-pauliny-hovorka-architekti&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save世界上最受欢迎的建筑网站现已推出你的母语版本!想浏览ArchDaily中国吗?是否 You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

Elon Musk isn’t the only tech billionaire with power over the federal agencies that regulate his businesses. Since Donald Trump took office, more than three dozen employees, allies, and investors of Musk, Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen, and Palmer Luckey have taken roles at federal agencies, helping direct billions in contracts to their companies.  Companies owned, founded, or invested in by Musk, Thiel, Andreessen, and Luckey have collected more than a dozen federal contracts totaling about $6 billion since Trump’s inauguration in January, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis. And they’re actively pursuing billions more.  Those appointments, which are in departments that oversee, regulate, and award business to the four men’s companies, raise a number of red flags. They could violate conflict-of-interest laws or government ethics regulations, both of which prohibit federal employees from using public office for private gain. And while it’s not unusual to install trusted allies in government roles, Musk’s network has moved in at an unprecedented rate and scale. TechCrunch has previously reported on all of the people in Musk’s universe who have joined him at DOGE, where he has shuttered federal agencies and slashed workforces in departments that regulate his businesses. At least 19 others with Silicon Valley connections, be they founders or investors, have also joined DOGE.  “The second Trump administration is actually the first in recent years to not impose any sort of additional ethics safeguards on high-level appointees,” Daniel Weiner, director of the Brennan Center’s Elections and Government Program, told TechCrunch. He noted that Trump fired the director of the Office of Government Ethics and 17 inspectors general who served as watchdogs for fraud and abuse, immediately after taking office. “It certainly does potentially increase the risk that you have people working on matters that do impact, at least indirectly, their bottom lines,” Weiner said. “But this is a long-term issue in our government that’s not unique to this administration.” Innovation versus accountability Peter Thiel speaks during the Bitcoin 2022 Conference.Image Credits:Marco Bello / Getty Images Some may argue that it makes sense for employees and associates of Musk, Thiel, Andreessen, and Luckey to join government agencies. Their insiders are talented individuals who are behind the cutting-edge technology the government genuinely needs, and they understand how to innovate quickly and compete globally.  Techcrunch event Join us at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot for our leading AI industry event with speakers from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Cohere. For a limited time, tickets are just $292 for an entire day of expert talks, workshops, and potent networking. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you’ve built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | June 5 REGISTER NOW More serious questions arise when favoritism threatens to undermine competition, when policy is created or destroyed to protect market dominance, or when regulations that would serve the public good are waylaid to promote business interests.  For instance, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently retreated from pursuing rules that would restrict data brokers, despite growing privacy concerns — a shift that stands to benefit companies involved in AI, surveillance, and data analytics. Another example is DOGE’s firing of staffers at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration who investigate autonomous vehicle safety, including several probes into Tesla.  “One of the defining structural challenges the government of the United States has right now is that we have a system in which the very wealthiest interests have so much power to shape our elections and then turn around and shape government policy,” Weiner said.  Another Silicon Valley appointee, Mike Kratsios — a former Thiel employee — is now leading technology policy for the U.S. government. In an April speech, he spoke about throwing away bad regulations that “weigh down our innovators,” particularly those who are innovating in AI.  “Many people in Silicon Valley tend to think that whatever worked in Silicon Valley is also going to work for administering the United States government,” Weiner said. “And as we’re seeing now, the danger is a lot of people are going to get hurt because of the assumptions they make.” “The fact that you had a successful startup after five others failed doesn’t necessarily mean you know how to run the Social Security Administration,” he continued.  A network inside and a payoff outside Marc Andreessen, co-founder and general partner of Andreessen Horowitz.Image Credits:David Paul Morris/Bloomberg / Getty Images All of the businesses between Musk, Thiel, Andreessen, and Luckey are related. Musk’s SpaceX was backed by Thiel’s Founders Fund and Andreessen’s a16z (which also invested in X and xAI). Both of those VCs also backed Anduril, Luckey’s defense startup.  The overlapping network of founders, funders, and insiders extends into several federal agencies. And in many cases, those agencies are steering billions in federal contracts back to those companies.  The Journal found that across Washington, people from Musk’s network, including Tesla, X, and SpaceX, are in more than a dozen agencies, from the executive office of the president and Office of Personnel Management all the way down to the Department of Transportation and the Department of Energy. SpaceX employees are also in agencies that could provide the company new business. For example, the Journal reports that SpaceX senior engineer Theodore Malaska got an ethics waiver in February that lets him take a temporary job at the Federal Aviation Administration while still working at the rocket company. The FAA hasn’t given any contracts to SpaceX yet, but Malaska said on X the agency has used Starlink to upgrade a weather-observing system in Alaska.  SpaceX is also the main commercial provider that transports crew and cargo for NASA. Despite national security concerns — like the company’s secret backdoor for Chinese investment and Musk’s reported drug use — SpaceX in April won $5.9 billion of a $13.7 billion multi-year contract from the U.S. Space Force to launch Pentagon missions. The DOD, which is currently a Starlink customer, also plans to buy SpaceX’s Starshield satellites, a militarized version of the internet satellites.  Employees at Thiel-backed firms have found themselves in roles in the State Department, the Office of Management and Budget, Health and Human Services, and Social Security, per The Wall Street Journal. Thiel’s Palantir has already been awarded nearly $376 million since 2020 from the Department of Health and Human Services. In 2024, the company was also awarded at least $1.2 billion in Department of Defense contracts in 2024 and is in the running for another $100 million deal. Anduril, Palantir, and SpaceX recently submitted a multibillion-dollar proposal for Trump’s “Golden Dome” missile-defense program, which would also add to Anduril’s existing contracts with the U.S. Army. Recently, Anduril and Microsoft took over a 2021 contract worth up to $22 billion to develop AR headsets, per the Journal.  An Anduril executive, Michael Obadal, has been nominated to a top role at the Department of Defense. In his ethics disclosure, he stated that he would retain his Anduril stock if appointed. TechCrunch has reached out to Anduril, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Palantir, and SpaceX for comment. “This sort of concentration of private wealth and political power is ultimately very risky for our economy,” Weiner said. “Because instead of the government making decisions that are intended to foster competition, foster economic growth, you run the real risk that government decisions are going to instead be structured around protecting particular companies and particular industries from full economic competition.” 

May 16, 20253 min readTornadoes Expected to Strike Multiple States This Weekend in One of the Worst Seasons This DecadeTornadoes are predicted across swaths of the U.S. in the coming days, likely adding to this year’s already high tally of such stormsBy Meghan Bartels edited by Dean Visser Thomas Trott/Getty ImagesTornadoes threaten huge swaths of the U.S. this weekend amid a season already marked by unusually high storm activity, even as the National Weather Service faces budget cuts likely to impede its ability to respond to severe weather.What to ExpectThe National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center has forecast severe thunderstorms with scattered tornadoes—some of them intense—across parts of Kentucky, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, Arkansas and Ohio for the afternoon and evening of May 16.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.“Today we’re expecting a severe weather outbreak across the mid-Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio valleys,” says Jenni Pittman, a meteorologist and deputy chief of the Science and Technology Integration division at the National Weather Service’s Central Region Headquarters. These regions stretch farther east than the historically prevalent “Tornado Alley” of the mid- to late 1900s.“Then we see a renewed chance for severe weather Sunday, continuing Monday and continuing Tuesday as well,” Pittman says. “A lot of the risks on Sunday through Tuesday are going to be from the High Plains pretty much through the Midwest.” National Weather Service maps show these risks concentrated in Kansas and Oklahoma.This weekend’s predicted tornadoes would follow a slight lull in the region, she adds. “We’ve had a little bit of a break here in May, which is typically a pretty busy severe weather month,” Pittman says. “April was very active, and the rest of May does look pretty active as well.”This Year in TornadoesAs of May 15, the National Weather Service has tallied 779 tornadoes in its local storm reports—a preliminary number but a helpful metric for tracking the season’s severity. For comparison, between 2005 and 2015, that same tally averaged 624; between 2010 and 2024, it was 592.“As of mid-May, the U.S. is running well above the typical number of tornadoes to this point in the year,” says Rich Thompson, chief of forecast operations for the Storm Prediction Center.This year to date also stands out against individual years. The most active tornado season of recent years was 2011, when hundreds of storms struck in late April; by mid-May the tally stood at more than 1,300 storms, with more than 2,200 by the end of the year.That year also demonstrated the close connection between just a few days of serious storms and a bad season. “Intense tornadoes are disproportionately responsible for damage, injuries and deaths, and such tornadoes are more common on a few ‘outbreak’ days,” Thompson says. “Thus, the number of outbreak days often determines the severity of the season, with 2011 being the prime example of multiple high-impact tornado outbreaks.”Overall, this year is more on par with last year, which had seen 815 tornado reports by this point in the season. Notably, one third of those storms have occurred during just three outbreak days in March and April, Thompson says.Matthew TwomblyWhat to KnowIf you live in an area where tornadoes are forecast, follow local weather and emergency response offices closely. In general, experts recommend having supplies available to shelter in place and having a safety plan for pets as well as humans. Pittman also recommends that people have multiple ways to stay on top of weather alerts (such as through broadcasts on television and on battery-powered radios, outdoor sirens and fully charged mobile phones).During an event, the National Weather Service recommends that people living where a severe thunderstorm watch is active head to “an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building.”If you’re caught away from shelter, the calculus becomes more complicated. In a vehicle, if a storm is still at a distance, you may be able evade it by driving at a right angle to the tornado’s apparent approach. If already caught in the winds, park instead, and either keep your seat belt fastened and protect your head and neck or get out of the car if there’s someplace safe to lie below the elevation of the roadway. Avoid sheltering under bridges, however, which don’t offer much protection, experts note.

html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd" MAD has completed its first cultural project in Europe - today, the Fenix Museum, a brand-new international art museum focused on migration, has opened to the public on a historic location in Rotterdam's City Harbour.  Ma Yansong of MAD Architects, the globally recognized Beijing-based architectural firm, is housed in a renovated historic warehouse. It is the focal point of the revitalization of Katendrecht, a neighborhood by the harbor that was once the location of the oldest Chinatown in continental Europe and Rotterdam's red-light district.MAD Architects completed the building in collaboration with the Droom en Daad Foundation.Image  © Iwan Baan"When MAD Architects was asked to work on Fenix, we knew we had to create a dialogue with the existing building and its surroundings—and with a past containing so many stories of migration, memories, and uncertainty," said Ma Yansong, Founder and Principal Architect of MAD.The 16,000-square-meter structure, which dates back to 1923, was formerly a section of the world's largest warehouse and was crucial to the shipping and storage of the Dutch cargo and passenger line Holland America Line. In the 19th and 20th centuries, millions of migrants arrived and left from the nearby docks, made their journeys easier by the Holland America Line.Image  © Iris van den BroekCalled Fenix, it is the first cultural project of MAD architects in Europe. Its architectural masterwork, the Tornado, a dynamic, organic structure reminiscent of rising air, will be visible to visitors right away. Starting from the ground floor, this double-helix staircase ascends and exits the rooftop onto an observation platform that is suspended over the city. Visitors will be treated to breathtaking views of Hotel New York, the former Holland America Line headquarters, and the River Maas.Image  © Iwan BaanThe 2,275-square-meter Plein on the bottom level of Fenix is designed to resemble an indoor city plaza. It will be free for everyone and curated for and with Rotterdam's diverse communities, providing a platform for interaction and communication. Throughout the year, it will feature community gatherings, performances, large-scale events, and investigations of other culinary cultures. There will be a kiosk where guests can purchase a drink or snack and browse newspapers from around the globe.Image  © Iwan BaanRetail and dining options at the museum include Granucci Gelato, a gelateria on the museum's quayside that serves award-winning artisanal ice cream made by the Granucci family, who have been making gelato in the Netherlands since 1929, and O Café and Bakery, which is run by Michelin-starred Turkish chef Maksut Aşkar. With views of the city, the Espresso Bar is situated in the museum's first-floor exhibition area. The museum store, which is situated in the main entrance area, offers food, games, dinnerware, and other products to make visitors feel at home and included.Image  © Iwan Baan"Migration stories are the heartbeat of Fenix. We've woven them into every element - whether it's the magic of Ma Yansong’s architecture, the memories evoked by the artworks on display, the freely accessible Plein, or the gelateria by the Granucci family. We want everyone to feel welcome," said Anne Kremers, Director of Fenix."Fenix is funded by the Droom en Daad Foundation, founded in 2016 and led by Wim Pijbes, former Director of the Rijksmuseum. The Droom en Daad Foundation is helping redefine Rotterdam for the 21st century – developing new kinds of arts and culture institutions and fostering new creative talent that reflects the city’s diversity, its spirit and its history," Kremers.All Directions Installation View with Kimsooja's Bottari Truck. Image © Iwan BaanThe museum was opened with three exhibitions: "All Directions" showcases over 150 artworks and objects ranging from the historical to the contemporary, drawn from the Fenix collection and acquired over the past five years.The second exhibition is "The Family of Migrants", inspired by Edward Steichen’s Family of Man, one of the most famous photographic exhibitions of all time, which was first shown at MoMA in 1955. Fenix The Family of Migrants installation view. Photography © Iwan BaanThe last exhibition is "The Suitcase Labyrinth", a monumental interactive installation made up of 2,000 donated suitcases thatbrings to life a collection of personal histories from countries, cultures and communities from around the world. Completed Structure Review. Still From The Documentary Ma Yansong: Journey to Design the Fenix Tornado, courtesy of MADInterior Walkthrough. Still From The Documentary Ma Yansong: Journey to Design the Fenix Tornado, courtesy of MADInterior View. Photograph © Wilbert ZuiderduinOpening and Documentary, Fenix at Dusk. Image © Gregg TelussaMAD also revealed photos of the bird-like LIJ Airport nearing completion in the foothill valleys of Lishui, China. In addition, the firm revealed a mixed-use tower that features a cracked-open canyon in the heart of Denver, Colorado, United States. The top image in the article © Iwan Baan.> via MAD