Sex, blood and patriotism: The Ukraine conflict has ushered a new wave of Russian music and it’s here to stay

The past year has demonstrated that Russia’s popular music hasn’t undergone a radical transformation. Some new regional figures have emerged, such as the rapper Akim Apachev, but most of the popular performers sing the same repertoire as they used to, sprinkled with a few patriotic songs. The only exception is the singer Shaman, who has acquired a whole army of devoted middle-aged fans in a short period of time and moved ahead of his more experienced peers.

#Russia #Music #Patriotism #PopCulture

Brazil wants to replant the Amazon. Where’s it going to get enough trees?

Brazil finds itself at an inflection point where it might instead choose to build the kinds of supply chains that generate economic growth through restoration instead of damage to the planet. It’s a powerful opportunity for a new “social bioeconomy” for the Amazon, one that harnesses much of what makes the Amazon so irreplaceable: biodiverse native seed mixes, techniques like muvuca and agroforestry approaches, and the knowledge from and care by its indigenous defenders.

#Brazil #AmazonRainforest #Nature #trees

Opinion: We’re in the midst of anti-sex backlash that has ensnared Jennifer Lawrence’s new romcom

But when you build your entertainment on the supposed edginess or sexiness of marginalized people, you do have some minimal responsibility to acknowledge the discrimination and danger they face. At the very least, it would have been nice if “No Hard Feelings” could have acknowledged that those marginalized people exist and that the film is, in fact, talking about them.

#NoHardFeelingsMovie #SexWorkIsWork #ReligiousRight

Research suggests cleaner air may be possible with a cold catalytic converter

The so-called three-way catalytic converter in the exhaust system of a car consists of expensive materials and only works correctly when the exhaust gases have a temperature that is several hundred degrees Celsius.

#Science #AutoIndustry #CleanAir