A Higher Call by John D. Shaw

The Day When Mercy Was The Victor

June 16, 2025Posted inAviation
A Higher Call by John D. Shaw
“A Higher Call” by John D. Shaw is a depiction of the events on December 20, 1943

On the morning of December 20, 1943, a young American pilot named Charlie Brown climbed into the cockpit of a B-17F Flying Fortress for what would be his first combat mission as aircraft commander. Like most other bomber pilots in World War II, Brown young: he was twenty-one, from Weston, West Virginia, and had only recently joined the 379th Bomb Group of the US Army Air Force , stationed at Kimbolton Airfield in England. The target for that day was the Focke-Wulf aircraft factory in Bremen, Germany—a city ringed with anti-aircraft batteries and defended by scores of seasoned Luftwaffe pilots.

Lu The Hippo Passes Away At Homosassa Springs State Park

Lu The Hippo Passes Away At Homosassa Springs State Park

June 9, 2025Posted inFlorida State Parks, Things to Do and See in Florida, Travel, Visiting Florida
Lu the Hippo
via Florida State Parks

An era has passed, as one of Florida’s living icons has passed away. Lu the Hippo had been a long time resident at Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park, where he lived among native panthers, manatees, and black bears. He was not a native species, of course, but he was an official resident of the state of Florida and had the residency permit to prove it. He was 65.

lovebugs

Love Is In The Air — Love Bug Season Is Upon Us

June 1, 2025Posted inFlorida Travel, Moving To Florida

Every year in Florida, as predictably as afternoon thunderstorms and high temperatures arrive in early summer, a biological phenomenon unfolds that turns the air into an airborne lovers’ lane. It’s called Love Bug Season, and it is as romantic as it is disgusting. If you’re new here in Florida, here’s their story:

The largest of the small flies called lovebugs are the females, which are about 1/3 inch. The smaller males are 1/4 inch in length.
Photo by Tim Donovan, Florida Fish and Wildlife
Apple’s new BCI HID protocol meets Synchron’s brain implant, unlocking mind-powered access for people with paralysis.

Just Think About It: Apple Teams Up With Synchron For iPhone-Brain Interface

May 15, 2025Posted inNational News
Apple’s new BCI HID protocol meets Synchron’s brain implant, unlocking mind-powered access for people with paralysis.

Apple’s new BCI HID protocol meets Synchron’s brain implant, unlocking mind-powered access for people with paralysis.

Brain-computer interface (BCI) pioneer Synchron announced it will be the first company to achieve native integration with Apple’s new BCI Human Interface Device (HID) profile, unveiled this week. This milestone allows people implanted with Synchron’s BCI to control iPhones, iPads, and Apple Vision Pro using only their thoughts—no touch, no voice, no physical movement required.

teenager on phone

Controversial ‘Social Media Use By Minors’ Bill Fails In Florida Legislature

May 9, 2025Posted inFlorida News
teenager on phone

Florida’s controversial “Social Media Use by Minors” bill, which among other things sought to mandate encryption backdoors in social media platforms, has failed to pass into law. The legislation, known as SB 868/HB 743, was indefinitely postponed and withdrawn from consideration in the Florida House of Representatives earlier this week, despite having previously passed the Senate with a 34–3 vote.

A Soviet-Era Russian Probe Set To Crash Back To Earth This Week

A Soviet-Era Russian Probe Set To Crash Back To Earth This Week

May 5, 2025Posted inAviation and Space News, Space News
Venera 8
via X/X/@nexta_tv

After more than five decades in orbit, a relic from the first space race is making an unexpected return. Kosmos 482, a Soviet spacecraft launched in 1972 on a failed mission to Venus, is projected to reenter Earth’s atmosphere between May 8 and May 11, 2025. Experts are closely monitoring its descent, as the probe’s durable construction raises the possibility that parts of it could survive reentry and reach the Earth’s surface.

The lander has a titanium shell and shielding that could allow it to withstand reentry through Earth’s atmosphere. That seems almost likely, given that the descent module of Kosmos 482 was made to travel through Venus’s atmosphere all the way to the surface of Earth’s “evil twin.” If it survives intact, it could slam into the ground at speeds up to 150 mph. While chances are rated as low as being struck by lightning, there is a higher than zero chance that the spacecraft could land on Florida.

New NASA Budget Proposal Will Hit The Space Coast Region Hard

New NASA Budget Proposal Will Hit The Space Coast Region Hard

May 3, 2025Posted inArtemis, Aviation and Space News, KSC, NASA, Space News

Hard times for the Space Coast’s local economy might be ahead.

The Administration’s proposed fiscal year 2026 budget includes a 24.3% reduction in NASA’s funding, decreasing the agency’s budget from $24.8 billion to $18.8 billion. This so-called “skinny” budget blueprint is a high level one short of full details, which will be forthcoming. After that, Congress will take up and begin debate on a budget bill.

This proposed significant cut threatens to eliminate key programs and could result in substantial job losses at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC), a cornerstone of the Space Coast’s economy, and that will have ripple effects that everyone who lives in the region will feel.