Glass Wings Blog

The Glass Wings mailing list and blog is for general idle chit-chat about things we find interesting, especially humor, animation or other subjects relevant to the Glass Wings web site.

Victorian master builder transforms Warrnambool house into castle for his son

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:22:03 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-29/builder-transforms-warrnambool-home-into-castle-for-son/106176624>

“In Victoria's south-west, one man has taken the phrase "a man's home is his
castle" to a whole new level.

‘A little light in the dark’: the former Chinese police officer bringing bubble tea to wartorn Ukraine

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:20:54 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/30/former-chinese-police-officer-bringing-bubble-tea-to-wartorn-ukraine>

"Are you looking for a way to stay sane in an environment that has been torn
apart by war? Then perhaps what you need is a bubble tea.

US removal of panels honoring Black soldiers at WWII cemetery in the Netherlands draws backlash

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:15:41 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://apnews.com/article/netherlands-american-cemetery-black-liberators-trump-06d7a64d11a29736e999664054d29419>

"MARGRATEN, Netherlands (AP) — Ever since a U.S. military cemetery in the
southern Netherlands removed two displays recognizing Black troops who helped
to liberate Europe from the Nazis, visitors have filled the guestbook with

The case for co-locating offshore wind parks and nature reserves

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:14:23 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2022/01/the-case-for-co-locating-offshore-wind-parks-and-nature-reserves/>

"In 2014, marine scientists at the University of St Andrews in Scotland
undertook a pioneering study to examine the behavior of gray and harbor seals
in the North Sea’s sprawling wind parks. From onshore laboratories, the

A Dangerous Imitation of Care

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:13:14 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

https://jgcarpenter.com/blog.html?blogPost=a-dangerous-imitation-of-care

"Jacob Irwin was 30 years old, on the autism spectrum, and struggling. Like
many others, he turned to generative AI (genAI) for clarity, asking ChatGPT to
help him work through his ideas. The chatbot, fluent and obliging, reinforced

How effective is protesting? According to historians and political scientists: very

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:12:01 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/25/protests-effective-history-impact>

"Trump’s first and second terms have been marked by huge protests, from the
2017 Women’s March to the protests for racial justice after George Floyd’s
murder, to this year’s No Kings demonstrations. But how effective is this type

Clouds are vital to life – but many are becoming wispy ghosts. Here’s how to see the changes above us

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 19:18:53 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://theconversation.com/clouds-are-vital-to-life-but-many-are-becoming-wispy-ghosts-heres-how-to-see-the-changes-above-us-265575>

"As a scholar researching clouds, I have spent much of my time trying to
understand the economy of the sky. Not the weather reports showing scudding
rainclouds, but the deeper logic of cloud movements, their distributions and

Babblers, cops and quacks: the sometimes dark – but often amusing – origins of nicknames for jobs

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 19:18:02 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://theconversation.com/babblers-cops-and-quacks-the-sometimes-dark-but-often-amusing-origins-of-nicknames-for-jobs-270647>

"These days, human resources (HR) departments want us to use official titles
for jobs. But we know the social truths of a job — how well that job gets done,
whether we like the person doing it — are much more complex.

I switched to eSIM in 2025, and I am full of regret

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 19:17:07 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/12/i-switched-to-esim-in-2025-and-i-am-full-of-regret/>

"SIM cards, the small slips of plastic that have held your mobile subscriber
information since time immemorial, are on the verge of extinction. In an effort
to save space for other components, device makers are finally dropping the SIM

Emma Johnston was a visionary scientist, environmentalist and leader, with an abiding hope for humanity

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 19:16:14 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://theconversation.com/emma-johnston-was-a-visionary-scientist-environmentalist-and-leader-with-an-abiding-hope-for-humanity-272609>

"Emma Johnston, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Melbourne who has died
aged 52, was a marine ecologist, a visionary leader in science and research, a
passionate champion of the environment, a brilliant and engaging communicator,