#Testing Equipment for Infrastructure

[sophieguo]

Manhole Cover Compression Testing Machine

Reliable and Accurate Testing for Manhole Covers The Manhole Cover Compression Testing Machine is a specialized testing device designed to assess the structural integrity of manhole covers under extreme pressure. This testing machine plays a crucial role in ensuring that manhole covers meet the required safety standards and durability expectations. Whether used for quality control in…

[vincivilworld]

Magnetic Particle Test: Techniques and Principles Explained

Magnetic Particle Test (MPT) is a widely used non-destructive testing (NDT) method. It detects surface and near-surface discontinuities in ferromagnetic materials, such as iron, nickel, cobalt, and their alloys. This technique is renowned for its speed, cost-effectiveness, and relative ease of application, making it a preferred choice across various industries, including aerospace, automotive,…

[cognitivejustice]

Across Africa, many rural communities face a growing sanitation crisis. Wastewater treatment systems, where they exist, are often old, overloaded, or broken. In some towns, untreated sewage flows directly into rivers, contaminating water sources and harming both ecosystems and public health.

For decades, the global response to wastewater has been to clean the water in large wastewater facilities designed to remove physical, chemical and biological contaminants from domestic wastewater (toilets) or industrial effluent. Wastewater plants produce treated water that is safe to discharge into rivers.

But they’re expensive and energy intensive. They’re also difficult to maintain in rural areas where local government doesn’t get much revenue.

 a team of scientists led by environmental management researcher and professor Paul Oberholster, who set out to look for a much simpler and greener solution in a small town in South Africa’s Limpopo province. Our research found that algae – the same green organisms often dismissed as pond scum – could offer a low-cost, low-tech way to clean domestic sewage.

The team inserted tiny microalgae into the ponds at the Motetema Wastewater Treatment Works in Limpopo. The microalgae removed pathogens without using any chemicals or mechanical equipment that runs on electricity. They cleaned up the sewage from 1,560 homes.

This is a sustainable, low-cost approach to wastewater treatment that can improve public health and the environment in small towns, especially those with limited infrastructure and unreliable electricity. And it’s especially important to find ways of cleaning wastewater that don’t cost much or use electricity because climate change increases water stress and energy costs across the continent.

[mckitterick]

She Won. They Didn't Just Change the Machines. They Rewired the Election. How Leonard Leo's 2021 sale of an electronics firm enabled tech giants to subvert the 2024 election.

Everyone knows how the Republicans interfered in the 2024 US elections through voter interference and voter-roll manipulation, which in itself could have changed the outcomes of the elections. What's coming to light now reveals that indeed those occupying the White House, at least, are not those who won the election.

Here's how they did it.

(full story is replicated here below the read-more: X)

She Won

The missing votes uncovered in Smart Elections’ legal case in Rockland County, New York, are just the tip of the iceberg—an iceberg that extends across the swing states and into Texas.

On Monday, an investigator’s story finally hit the news cycle: Pro V&V, one of only two federally accredited testing labs, approved sweeping last-minute updates to ES&S voting machines in the months leading up to the 2024 election—without independent testing, public disclosure, or full certification review.

These changes were labeled “de minimis”—a term meant for trivial tweaks. But they touched ballot scanners, altered reporting software, and modified audit files—yet were all rubber-stamped with no oversight.

That revelation is a shock to the public.

But for those who’ve been digging into the bizarre election data since November, this isn’t the headline—it’s the final piece to the puzzle. While Pro V&V was quietly updating equipment in plain sight, a parallel operation was unfolding behind the curtain—between tech giants and Donald Trump.

And it started with a long forgotten sale.

A Power Cord Becomes a Backdoor

In March 2021, Leonard Leo—the judicial kingmaker behind the modern conservative legal machine—sold a quiet Chicago company by the name of Tripp Lite for $1.65 billion. The buyer: Eaton Corporation, a global power infrastructure conglomerate that just happened to have a partnership with Peter Thiel’s Palantir.

To most, Tripp Lite was just a hardware brand—battery backups, surge protectors, power strips. But in America’s elections, Tripp Lite devices were something else entirely.

They are physically connected to ES&S central tabulators and Electionware servers, and Dominion tabulators and central servers across the country. And they aren’t dumb devices. They are smart UPS units—programmable, updatable, and capable of communicating directly with the election system via USB, serial port, or Ethernet.

ES&S systems, including central tabulators and Electionware servers, rely on Tripp Lite UPS devices. ES&S’s Electionware suite runs on Windows OS, which automatically trusts connected UPS hardware.

If Eaton pushed an update to those UPS units, it could have gained root-level access to the host tabulation environment—without ever modifying certified election software.

In Dominion’s Democracy Suite 5.17, the drivers for these UPS units are listed as “optional”—meaning they can be updated remotely without triggering certification requirements or oversight. Optional means unregulated. Unregulated means invisible. And invisible means perfect for infiltration.

Enter the ballot scrubbing platform BallotProof. Co-created by Ethan Shaotran, a longtime employee of Elon Musk and current DOGE employee, BallotProof was pitched as a transparency solution—an app to “verify” scanned ballot images and support election integrity.

With Palantir's AI controlling the backend, and BallotProof cleaning the front, only one thing was missing: the signal to go live.

September 2024: Eaton and Musk Make It Official

Then came the final public breadcrumb:In September 2024, Eaton formally partnered with Elon Musk.

The stated purpose? A vague, forward-looking collaboration focused on “grid resilience” and “next-generation communications.”

But buried in the partnership documents was this line:

“Exploring integration with Starlink's emerging low-orbit DTC infrastructure for secure operational continuity.”

The Activation: Starlink Goes Direct-to-Cell

That signal came on October 30, 2024—just days before the election, Musk activated 265 brand new low Earth orbit (LEO) V2 Mini satellites, each equipped with Direct-to-Cell (DTC) technology capable of processing, routing, and manipulating real-time data, including voting data, through his satellite network.

DTC doesn’t require routers, towers, or a traditional SIM. It connects directly from satellite to any compatible device—including embedded modems in “air-gapped” voting systems, smart UPS units, or unsecured auxiliary hardware.

From that moment on:

Commands could be sent from orbit

Patch delivery became invisible to domestic monitors

Compromised devices could be triggered remotely

This groundbreaking project that should have taken two-plus years to build, was completed in just under ten months.

Elon Musk boasts endlessly about everything he’s launching, building, buying—or even just thinking about—whether it’s real or not. But he pulls off one of the largest and fastest technological feats in modern day history… and says nothing? One might think that was kind of… “weird.”

According to New York Times reporting, on October 5—just before Starlink’s DTC activation—Musk texted a confidant:

“I’m feeling more optimistic after tonight. Tomorrow we unleash the anomaly in the matrix.”

Then, an hour later:

“This isn’t something on the chessboard, so they’ll be quite surprised. ‘Lasers’ from space.”

It read like a riddle. In hindsight, it was a blueprint.

The Outcome

Data that makes no statistical sense. A clean sweep in all seven swing states.

The fall of the Blue Wall. Eighty-eight counties flipped red—not one flipped blue.

Every victory landed just under the threshold that would trigger an automatic recount. Donald Trump outperformed expectations in down-ballot races with margins never before seen—while Kamala Harris simultaneously underperformed in those exact same areas.

If one were to accept these results at face value—Donald Trump, a 34-count convicted felon, supposedly outperformed Ronald Reagan. According to the co-founder of the Election Truth Alliance:

“These anomalies didn’t happen nationwide. They didn’t even happen across all voting methods—this just doesn’t reflect human voting behavior.”

They were concentrated.

Targeted.

Specific to swing states and Texas—and specific to Election Day voting.

And the supposed explanation? “Her policies were unpopular.” Let’s think this through logically. We’re supposed to believe that in all the battleground states, Democratic voters were so disillusioned by Vice President Harris’s platform that they voted blue down ballot—but flipped to Trump at the top of the ticket?

Not in early voting.

Not by mail.

With exception to Nevada, only on Election Day.

And only after a certain threshold of ballots had been cast—where VP Harris’s numbers begin to diverge from her own party, and Trump’s suddenly begin to surge. As President Biden would say, “C’mon, man.”

In the world of election data analysis, there’s a term for that: vote-flipping algorithm.

And of course, Donald Trump himself:

He spent a year telling his followers he didn’t need their votes—at one point stating,

“…in four years, you don't have to vote again. We'll have it fixed so good, you're not gonna have to vote.”

____

They almost got away with the coup. The fact that they still occupy the White House and control most of the US government will make removing them and replacing them with the rightful President Harris a very difficult task.

But for this nation to survive, and for the world to not fall further into chaos due to this "administration," we must rid ourselves of the pretender and his minions and controllers once and for all.

[beanjang-draws]

Plague Ponies - Duty-Bound

CONTENT WARNING: Blood (minor), violence, body horror

Masterpost | Previous | Next

Summary:

Shortly after recovering from the Plundervine attack, Celestia is readjusting her methods of protecting Equestria...

Having grown increasingly distrustful of herself and those around her, Celestia has taken to running things on her own again. She needs to remove any risk, even when it might take a familiar shape. In the midst of this process, things are breaking down at Canterlot Hospital and the guards stationed there have requested intervention--immediately.

Transcript below:

Title Page:

Plague Ponies Episode 6: "DutyBound"

Shortly after recovering from the plundervine attack, Celestia is readjusting her methods of protecting Equestria...

Content Warnings: blood and violence, body horror, disease mention

Comic Start

Celestia, thinking: What a quiet morning..

As she is lowering the moon and raising the sun for the day, Celestia is startled by the fiery arrival of a letter.

Celestia, thinking: Another letter...

Seeing Twilight's mark on the wax seal, Celestia's expression softens.

Celestia, thinking: Oh, it's from Twilight! Certainly a welcome change of pace...

Twilight's letter reads:

"Dear Princess Celestia,

I have begun preparing Ponyville for mass contagion as you have instructed. Construction of the experimental facilities are nearly complete, and I am gathering information on pre-existing infrastructure historically used in Ponyville in times of health crisis.

Granny Smith has shared with me an account of past protocols used during times of sickness. I intend to continue to work with the insight of everypony here.

We now have confirmation that a majority of Ponyville harbored an early version of the sickness. Although we assume that the wave of magic from The Tree of Harmony cleansed most of the residents...the small amount of remaining infections remain yet unaccounted for.

Participants to undergo observation have been selected, and testing is expected to run smoothly. Will an official statement be made soon? I believe patients may cooperate more readily when presented with more information.

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle"

Celestia lets out a sigh as she finishes reading Twilight's letter. She sends out a pre-written response letter and heads to the throne room. Upon entering, she uses alicorn magic on the throne to reveal a spiral staircase descending far below the castle.

Celestia's reply to Twilight reads: "Dear Twilight Sparkle,

For now, continue as you have done and keep the peace. In the wake of the recent Changeling invasion and the return of The Crystal Empire, keeping the peace is our priority.

I leave the continued care of The Elements of Harmony and The Tree of Harmony to you. I wish your princesshood had started during more peaceful times, but I know you and your friends are well-equipped to handle them.

Yours,

Celestia"

Celestia, thinking: Twilight, at least, can be trusted. What dark times these are, that nopony can be trusted--not even those dearest to us...

Celestia hesitates before entering a lit room at the end of the underground passageway.

Celestia Hello "Luna".

Luna stares up at Celestia from low on the ground. Her front legs and wings are restrained by chains. Black anti-magic crystals grow from her primary horn.

Luna: Sister, you must release me! Think of our subjects!

Celestia: Luna would understand that is precisely why I do this.

Luna: Sister, you are unwell...you cannot continue this way on your own--

Celestia: Silence.

Celestia uses her magic to raise Luna up. It seems to cost her a lot of effort as beads of sweat roll off of her body. She does not notice the dark curls of magic slinking by Luna's legs.

Celestia: I have been the sole guardian of Equestria for a thousand moons. I will not compromise the safety of my ponies. Not even for this. Changeling.

Luna hangs limply in the air, held up by the restraints on her wings.

Luna: It is you who are compromised. Your judgement grows hasty.

Celestia: Enough--

Luna: The gazes of your subjects you so thrived beneath...have become a burden to your addled mind.

Celestia: How dare you...

Before either of the sisters can say more, a letter arrives in a burst of flame.

Celestia: A letter from The Royal Guard...

Sunburst and Moondancer are in a storage closet. There is banging coming from the other side of the door.

Sunburst: I'm sure help is coming soon...we've just got to sit tight and stay calm!

Moondancer: You've said that for the past hour and a half now at least.

A particularly loud "CRACK" startles both ponies.

Moondancer: Can't I get one second to think?

Moondancer leaps to her feet and braces her hooves against the door, lighting her horn. Sunburst watches in both fascination and alarm. There's a flash of light, and a pink bubble now covers the door, blocking out all the noise.

Sunburst, thinking: To think, she'd cast a sustained spell just for some peace and quiet...

Moondancer: I know it's a little excessive...but I really needed a break from the noise. I'm normally on the analytics team so I'm used to...quieter environments.

Sunburst: I don't think any of us are used to hiding in a storage closet during a biohazard breach...but your barrier is definitely helping.

Sunburst: It's funny, we've been in the same project this whole time and I had no idea you were such a skilled spell caster! Silencing spells are so complicated, and this one is so stable--

Moondancer: It's not that hard once you've done it a few times. But um, thanks.

Moondancer awkwardly adjusts her glasses to brush off the praise. Sunburst doesn't really know what to say.

Sunburst: Ah, anyways, Moon Dancer, right? How are you at layering spells?

Moondancer: I've been doing it since I was a filly, why?

Sunburst: How familiar are you with magnetism spells?

Celestia and two Royal Guards are flying to the hospital. The guards are Flash Sentry and Cirrus Cloud.

Celestia: Report!

Flash Sentry: The quarantine zone was overrun at around sunrise. We were forced to lock down the laboratory.

Celestia: "Overrun"?

Flash Sentry: The patients have become...aggressive. All but two of the researchers have been evacuated.

Celestia: Contact with patients must be a last resort. Retrieving the researchers is priority.

They arrive at the hospital and find flashes of light coming from the windows.

Cirrus Cloud: That light...! It must be the researchers. None of the patients are able to use magic in their current state.

Celestia: I will lead. Avoid coming to blows if you can. I would like there to be little harm inflicted here today.

Both guards: Yes, your Majesty!

Celestia looks grim. She is still sweating quite a bit, clearly not at her best.

Celestia, thinking: I should never have entrusted this project to external facilities...I'm sorry for endangering you, my little ponies.

Celestia: Prepare to--what...

Celestia looks up in bewilderment to see the two missing researchers floating in pink bubbles. Sunburst is putting a haggard looking Fancy Pants to sleep.

Moondancer, whispering: Princess!

Sunburst, whispering: Please, ah, watch your step!

Moondancer: We've been putting patients into a magical sleep as we find them.

Celestia: And the two of you are alright?

Moondancer: It's been a strange day in the lab for sure...luckily Sunburst here had the idea to combine bubbles of silence and a gravity reversal spell so we didn't have to stay trapped in a storage closet. Who knows how long it would have taken for us to be discovered!

Sunburst: It wouldn't have been much of a plan if there weren't a spell caster capable of pulling it off!

Moondance: Oh please, this isn't much--Woah!

Moondancer and Sunburst are surprised as something zooms by.

Flash Sentry: Princess, watch out!

Lyra Heartstrings slams into a wall close to everyone. Flash Sentry moves instinctively to shield Celestia. Before anyone else can react, he has a spear pointed at Lyra.

Flash Sentry: Halt! You are charged with unruly flying in the presence of the princess. Put away your wings and come with us quietly...

Lyra Heartstrings: Run!

Flash Sentry looks over his shoulder to see an unrecognizable Fleur De Lis contorting herself through the halls Lyra had just flown from.

Lyra Heartstrings, quietly: Stay silent...she can't see us.

End transcript.

[collapsedsquid]

The possibilities I’ve laid out in this article are somehow even more dangerous than using the payments system to impound congressionally appropriated spending. As I was finalizing this article yesterday afternoon, the news broke that Citibank- in a separate case- had made a court filing providing evidence that the FBI had demanded that it freeze bank accounts associated with an Environmental Protection Administration grant program. These bank accounts included a New York state government bank account. The pattern across my previous reporting, my current reporting, the reporting of others and this late-breaking FBI-EPA-Citibank situation suggest that the Trump administration is testing the waters in order to gain far greater control of the United States entire payments infrastructure- control great enough to bend Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s enemies to their will at a speed far faster than courts could ever conceivably contain. We are entering waters beyond the scale of constitutional crises and nearly every expert in this shallow pool feels ill-equipped to speak about it publicly for a variety of reasons. I’m having trouble imagining circumstances more dangerous.

[wachinyeya]

Friday, June 20, 2025, Kaleigh Harrison

A new approach developed at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden could reshape how cellulose textiles are produced. Instead of relying on resource-intensive cotton or chemically processed wood pulp, researchers have demonstrated that common agricultural residues—like wheat straw and oat husks—can serve as effective raw materials for dissolving pulp, the base for cellulose fibers.

The process centers on soda pulping, a simplified technique that involves boiling plant matter in sodium hydroxide (lye). This method sidesteps many of the environmental drawbacks of traditional pulping, significantly reducing chemical use and eliminating the need for intensive pre-treatment steps like debarking or wood chipping. By applying this cleaner process to crop byproducts, the team is addressing both raw material scarcity and agricultural waste management.

Sweden produces substantial volumes of cereal waste annually, and the study highlights how these byproducts can be redirected into the textile supply chain. The approach offers global potential to ease deforestation pressures, lower emissions, and provide new income streams for farmers and grain processors.

Scalable With Existing Infrastructure

One of the key advantages of this method is its compatibility with existing pulp and paper infrastructure. Because soda pulping can be implemented without the need for major new equipment, facilities already operating in forest-rich or agricultural regions could more easily transition to this alternative feedstock. This reduces both capital investment and the time required to scale.

The research, a collaboration between Chalmers, Tree To Textile, and the IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, is funded by Bioinnovation’s Resource-Smart Processes program. It aligns with broader industry goals to reduce environmental impact while maintaining high fiber performance standards.

Beyond wheat and oat residues, researchers are also investigating other candidates including press-cake—a byproduct from grass juice extraction—which has shown potential in early tests. These developments signal a growing toolkit for climate-resilient cellulose sources that don’t rely on high-input crops or mature forests.

Pilot-scale fiber production is already underway using the newly developed pulps, moving the concept closer to commercial viability. For brands seeking lower-impact alternatives without overhauling existing supply chains, agricultural cellulose could present a viable next step.

[ghrgrsfdesfrfg]

I liked writing my first story about the Rat king so now it's the Baron's turn, a litteral gentle giant and lovable teddybear.

Just like last time, the picture isn't mine, found on pinterest and belongs to whoever created it, credits to them if they see it.

Let me know what you think in the comments, i'm open to criticism and tips.

Baron Bon-Bon

Archived informations about Experiment 1257 ‘‘Baron Bon-Bon’’

-Experiment 1257 alias “Baron Bon-Bon” was created in 1991 by the Bigger Body Initiative to create a large toy capable of acting as a bodyguard for higher-ups of playtime but was later assigned to the Game Station to work alongside Mommy Long Legs to entertain the children in his own game called “Treasure Hunt”.

-He measure 3 meters/9,8f’t in size and his body is made of faux-fur for his chin while most of his body use a mix of minky and polyester to be both durable, soft and huggable.

-Out of nearly every other “Bigger bodies” the Baron is one of the few that is truly a pacifist and harbor a profound aversion to violence no matter it’s form, such is the case that he needed to be assigned to another position due to his refusal or incapability to use violence against anyone or anything.

EARLY LIFE :

-David bohman was an orphan amongst many others at Playcare but what set him apart during his years there was his ability to make friends out of nearly everyone, he was extremely jovial and could entertain anyone with his antics and jokes to the point that he was sometimes seen with the Smiling Critters and Miss Delight to prepare games to amuse his fellow orphans.

-Although David was close with virtually every orphan, he had no proper best friend to speak of, he wasn’t close with anyone in particular and seemed focused on bringing a smile to everyone’s face instead of building a circle of close friend like many others did.

-The scientists and counselors stationed at Playcare proposed him for the Initiative hoping to use his jovial nature to make him an unsuspecting enforcer for the company and he was soon taken to undergo the procedure.

PROCEDURE AND WORK FOR PLAYTIME :

-David Bohman, now called ‘‘Baron Bon-Bon’’ had a particularly difficult operation due to the materials chosen and size of his body also accompanied by trouble regarding his voice box and eyes.

-Baron had a difficult adaptation period to his new body and was in a strange daze most days where he would blankly stare at random objects, wall or even his clothes not able to recognize where he was or who he was.

-Another roadblock hit by the scientist were his inability to use violence, even swinging his cane at a training dummy was difficult and he seemed more afraid of using his cane than the dummy in front of him.

-It was eventually discovered that the procedure to create a “Bigger Body” amplified certain traits of the subject, in this case the Baron’s jovial and happy nature was amplified to the point that violence was almost entirely removed from him.

-disappointed but not discouraged the scientist tried, in vain, to get him to defend himself but his weapon of choice were words instead of his cane or bears claws.

-He was eventually trained as an entertainer using magic tricks and creative game to entertain the children visiting the Game Station, he worked alongside Mommy Long Legs due to his fun and almost comical appearance who made him easily approachable to most children despite his size and (sometime) uncanny smile.

-(Note: his secondary purpose was also to test the children’s intelligence during the Treasure Hunt by pushing their tracking and orientation skills further with each game).

Appearance, abilities and infrastructure.

-As stated previously his body was made using a mix of minky and polyester, this allowed him to have a malleable, soft yet sturdy body and capable of storing his equipment in hidden compartments of his body.

-Said hidden compartments include (but not limited to) : the sleeves to disperse harmless explosive glitter to capture people’s attention, his abdomen for a hidden balloon pump in case some children wants a balloon that Baron customize to theirs preferences and finally his legs storing all his magical equipment such as vanishing cards or glitter bottles and Golden Coins.

-His appearance is very reminiscent of a circus Ring master, easily recognizable yet unforgettable, he was fashioned after polar bears to show both their strength and hidden sweet nature as lovable giants.

-While he was assigned to the Game Station and couldn’t use violence (despite attempts to train him) his weapons are his cane that act as blunt weapon, his bears claws and his arms who are easily capable of lifting someone to eye’s level and suffocate or even crush them.

Trivia :

-His name of Bon-Bon came from the word candy in french while also referencing his kindness and sweet attitude thus calling him a candy or a Bon-bon (candy is "bonbon" in french is anyone is curious)

-His popularity was such that after being introduced at the Game Station, toys version of him were quickly made and flew off the shelves almost as quickly as they were produced, he was also proposed as being the face of the company but Huggy remained in this position.

-Baron Bon-Bon had a very close working relationship with Mommy-Longs-Legs and the day of a visiting child at the Game station often ended in a Treasure Hunt and a singing session where Baron and Mommy sung together to end the day for the children.

-He was so kind and jovial that people called him a “child at heart”, if only they knew…

-His games often included rewards such as the Gold Coin who needed to be exchanged at a store near the Game Station for a reward.

-Baron loved to play with children outside of his own game and could often be seen “carried away” by multiple children when he would have to jokingly call Mommy to save him from his kidnappers.

-Baron’s game held the records of being one of the cheapest game to host despite all the gadgets and tricks used during these games.

-He also hold the records of using the most glitter in a single game after being dared by an employee to make a Mommy Balloon and filling it with glitter, it exploded and covered the whole area of Treasure Hunt.

-He was scheduled to have his own show and even a cameo with the Smiling Critters but his game alone was so successful that he could’ve been considered the richest toy in the Game Station.

-His hat was supposed to be bigger but an administrative error resulted in him having a hat designed for his toy variants, he loved it and kept it often bowing with it, which soon became a signature move of his.

-"Gentle giant" was often a word heard during his appearances and games with how often he would gather groups of children to hug them or carry them on his arms and shoulders, much to their delight.

-Puppet shows were not uncommon but not as popular as the Treasure Hunt, he often made his own puppets and would switch voice depending on the characters, most famous include the King, the Old Lady, the Laughing Crow and the Pirate.

[fearfulfertility]

CONFIDENTIAL PROGRESS REPORT

DRC, Insemination Operations Command, Mobile Operations Unit

Date: [REDACTED]

To: Minister [REDACTED], Ministry of State Security

From: Administrator [REDACTED], Mobile Operations Unit

Subject: Cost of Conscripting Youth in Rural Communities

[REDACTED] (Arkansas, FEMA Zone 6) is an outlier for a small rural community with a population of [REDACTED] and a long history in the lumber industry. Of particular note, [REDACTED]% of the 18-25-year-old population has tested positive for high fertility markers and subsequently been conscripted as surrogates. The DRC Planning & Evaluation Office has been monitoring the situation as a case study of the economic impact of forced surrogacy conscription.

Mobile Paternity Units (MPU)

The newly deployed Mobile Paternity Units (MPUs) accelerate conscription rates by conducting field-based surrogate insemination protocols. The MPUs are fully equipped mobile hubs designed to identify, secure, and inseminate fertile surrogates in regions lacking the infrastructure or security to establish permanent paternity compounds.

Currently there are [REDACTED] MPUs in commission, operating in circular routes- - - - -

[SYSTEM RESPONSE]

[AUTHENTICATION PROTOCOL ENGAGED]

[SECURITY LEVEL]: [HIGH]

[USER IDENTIFICATION]: [Executive Level-01A]

[CREDENTIAL AUTHENTICATION IN PROGRESS...]

[ENTER PASSWORD]: [***************]

[PROCESSING INPUT...]

[VALIDATING PASSWORD...]

[█░░░░░░░░░░░░] 10% [███░░░░░░░░░░] 30% [███████░░░░░░] 60% [███████████░░] 90% [█████████████] 100%

[PASSWORD ACCEPTED]

[ACCESS GRANTED]: [HIGH CLEARANCE MODE ACTIVATED]

[SECURITY OVERRIDES]: [Enabled]

[REDACTED DATA]: [Unlocked]

MPU Background Context

The rural disruption program continues to be a success thanks to the deployment of the MPUs, which have been incredibly effective at deliberate societal destabilization.

As mentioned in last quarter's deployment report, in addition to the direct impact of mass insemination, MPUs employ covert biochemical measures to destabilize social order further. By introducing a cocktail of hormones and aphrodisiacs into the water supply, the MPUs incite heightened states of lust, confusion, and distraction among the population.

Among surrogates, this amplifies the effects of prenatal nymphomania, who, driven by uncontrollable desires, contribute to a pervasive atmosphere of hedonism and chaos. It also magnifies the feelings, thoughts, attractions, and behaviors of the non-surrogate members of the community, who participate in the physical activities with almost primal intensity.

The relentless pursuit of physical gratification prevents the community from focusing on its deteriorating condition, eroding familial bonds, productivity, and any sense of collective purpose. The combination of mass pregnancy, chemical manipulation, and social disarray leaves these towns paralyzed while serving the DRC’s objectives of surrogate acquisition and societal control.

By the time the vast majority of surrogates give birth and the MPUs return to collect the resultant offspring, the workforce is effectively crippled and vulnerable to collapse. Their ability to organize, resist, or rebel against external control diminishes, dependent on external support, unable to mount any meaningful opposition.

The cumulative consequences are both immediate and long-term, unraveling the town’s economic stability, social cohesion, and cultural identity.

I. Labor Market Collapse

As their pregnancies advance, these surrogates are unable to contribute meaningfully to the workforce. Compounding this crisis, the introduction of aphrodisiacs to the water supply inflames the atmosphere of widespread indulgence and physical fixation, leaving critical sectors paralyzed:

Agriculture: Fields go untended as the remaining workforce is too distracted or physically compromised to perform essential tasks.

Retail & Services: Shops and local businesses experience severe staff shortages, with employees increasingly abandoning their posts in favor of personal distractions. Productivity is reduced, and many businesses shut permanently.

Construction & Infrastructure: Public services (water supply, power, policing) are abandoned as skilled laborers become unavailable or uninterested.

This mass disengagement leads to a cascading failure across the economy. The distraction and incapacitation ensures that productivity never recovers.

“It’s like everything just… fell apart overnight. Most of the boys are now carrying these enormous pregnancies, some with 10, 12, or even 16 babies. They’re so big they can barely move, let alone work. My nephew is bedridden, his stomach so swollen and stretched it looks like he’ll burst. Businesses are shutting down left and right. The diner is now it’s closed because the staff is too preoccupied, too exhausted or too pregnant to keep things running.” - Victor Hayes, Charlevoix, Michigan, FEMA Zone 5

II. Population & Social Erosion

The breakdown of social order is exacerbated by prenatal nymphomania. This heightened state of physical fixation pervades the community, undermining traditional values and civic responsibilities:

Educational Decline: Schools lose both students and teachers as attendance drops. Classrooms empty out, and extracurricular programs vanish as the youth prioritize physical distractions over learning and participation.

Community Disintegration: Social events, youth programs, and local traditions deteriorate. The focus shifts away from community-building activities as families experience fragmentation and isolation as personal indulgence takes precedence over collective well-being.

The resulting social decay ensures that the community’s structure collapses from within, leaving it vulnerable and dependent.

“It’s like the entire town has lost its mind. My little brother is one of the surrogates. He’s just 19, and carrying 14 babies. He can barely move now, his belly is so massive and tight with those babies. And it’s not just him — every boy his age is the same. The weirdest part is they used to fight this, but now they seem so into it. And the rest of us? It’s like we’re all under a spell. Nobody wants to work, go to school, or even talk about what’s happening. Everyone’s just chasing some kind of high, day in and day out. There’s no sense of responsibility, no one to keep things running.” - Collin Tanner, Owensboro, Kentucky, FEMA Zone 4

III. Economic Ripple Effects

The economic consequences of the MPU deployment extend beyond immediate labor shortages. As the population becomes consumed by the chemically-inflamed environment, traditional economic functions disintegrate:

Real Estate Market Collapse: The prospect of family life and economic stability vanishes. Young adults are physically incapacitated or disinterested in establishing households or familial units.

Healthcare Strain: The need for prenatal care among the surrogates overwhelms local clinics. Meanwhile, rising cases of substance abuse and physical exhaustion further strain the system. Access to local healthcare diminishes, and locals become dependent on DRC resources.

This economic freefall ensures that recovery becomes unattainable, plunging towns into long-term decline.

“I’m 21, and I’m carrying 15 babies right now. My belly is so huge and heavy, I can barely get out through the front door. I used to work at the hardware store, and I was saving up to get my own place. But that dream’s gone now. Everyone my age is pregnant or taking care of someone who is. I’m too big and too tired to care. We’re all trapped in these enormous pregnancies, and there’s no help coming.” - S???-994-O, Andersonville, Georgia, FEMA Zone 4

IV. Collapse of Social Norms

These combinations contribute to a disintegration of social and familial distinctions, fostering an environment where traditional lines of propriety become increasingly obscured:

Dissolution of Familial Roles: As surrogates’ pregnancies advance and the community’s pervasive fixation on physical indulgence, interactions begin to appear that defy established familial roles. Young surrogates, often confined to their homes due to the extreme size of their pregnancies become focal points of attention in ways that undermine traditional respect and relational boundaries.

Loss of Interpersonal Distinctions: The community’s collective fixation results in behaviors and dynamics that would otherwise be constrained by societal norms. Familiarity within and outside households devolves into ambiguous interactions influenced by heightened compulsions.

The cumulative effect of these blurred boundaries ensures traditional norms are rendered obsolete, leaving the community adrift in a state of chaotic permissiveness.

“It’s hard to explain how things got this way. My cousin is one of the surrogates. He’s only 19, and his belly is just… massive... swollen beyond anything you’d think possible. He’s carrying 14 babies, and the sheer size of it, how tight and stretched his skin is... There’s something about seeing him like that — so heavy, so full — that just draws you in. Now, when I see my cousin leaning back against the couch, his huge belly dominating his frame, moaning as the babies kick and move inside him, I can’t stop myself from feeling drawn in. His body his so full and stretched... it’s mesmerizing.” - Derek Knight, Fulton, Illinois, FEMA Zone 5

V. Long-Term Consequences

The deployment of MPUs and the ensuing mass insemination drive the town into an inescapable cycle of decline:

Economic Decay: With the majority of the workforce incapacitated, businesses fail, infrastructure deteriorates, and investment ceases. The community becomes a “ghost town,” marked by derelict buildings and economic stagnation.

Dependency on External Aid: As self-sufficiency erodes, the town becomes reliant on DRC support. Demoralization set in, deepening the dependency cycle.

Loss of Cultural Identity: Traditions and community legacies fade as the surrogates’ incapacitation prevents participation in cultural life, collective heritage disintegrates into chaotic, aimless distraction.

“It’s like everything that held us together just fell apart. Both my brothers were turned into two swollen balls of babies by the end. Everyone their age was knocked up, fattened, and taken. The whole town looks like it’s been abandoned, a bunch of ghostly reminders of what used to be. We barely survive on government aid, but even that feels like a band-aid on a wound too big to heal. The town feels hollow.” - Jackson Bender, Northampton, Massachusetts, FEMA Zone 1

Conclusion

The deployment of MPUs and the ensuing biochemical manipulation devastate rural communities. The combined impact of enforced surrogacy, incapacitation, and chemically-induced distraction ensures that these towns collapse economically, socially, and culturally.

[SYSTEM RESPONSE]

[AUTHENTICATION PROTOCOL ENGAGED]

[SECURITY OVERRIDES]: [Disabled]

[REDACTED DATA]: [Locked]

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[maryellencarter]

* free housing. allowed to paint, garden, choose where you live, etc. no hoas. free maintenance included, so you can just call someone if the toilet backs up or whatever and don't have to maintain it yourself.

* free food. i like the food stamps model of "you get so much a month, it doesn't expire, spend it on anything with a nutrition facts label", because i have trouble prioritizing food and having money i can't spend on anything else helps. but make it not means-tested and give everybody the same amount, whether they share food or not. it's hard to figure out how to balance the amounts if it can also apply to hot food, since that's so much more expensive, but god knows you psychologically need hot food sometimes, so figure that out.

* ubi. for everyone. saw a proposition recently that it should start as half-pay at fifteen and ramp up to full pay at eighteen, which, no. do you know how expensive kids are? start it at birth. full pay. a full food stamps allowance as well. or when the pregnancy is diagnosed. so the family can buy baby furniture in advance. give the kids at least partial *control* of it in their teens, maybe full control -- there's a massive conversation on children's rights to be had that's not within the scope of this post.

* free healthcare. vision, dental, therapy, surgery, meds, dme (including glasses), you name it. if the medical professional prescribes it, it's covered at 100%.

* free transportation. buses and trains, bikes with infrastructure support, taxis (including those vans with wheelchair lifts), shuttles connecting to the train station, if somebody wants to go to a place they should be able to get there. Also redesign buses to have proper luggage spaces so you can bring your groceries without taking an extra seat, and better handicap access so they don't get behind on their schedule whenever a wheelchair user needs to get on or off.

* free communications. cell phones with unlimited data plans and mobile hotspot, landline phones that work when the power's out (remember those?), free internet service at a usable baseline speed with net neutrality and strict privacy controls.

* free education. all of it. well funded, free textbooks and supplies, free college, free postgrads, if someone wants to spend their entire life getting different degrees or retaking algebra then let them. why not? they might learn something.

* free third spaces. libraries are good, but give us free community centers. free swimming pools. free gyms. free craft classes (supplies included).

* i'm not even sure what to call this one. free domestic support? if you need a housekeeper or a laundry service or a cook or a babysitter, you should be able to get one without having to rely on family or friends. UBI might make this easier, but I don't feel like disabled people should have to spend their UBI on a housekeeper and a cook just to have the same standard of living as an able-bodied person who can do their own laundry.

* strong labor protections. we're going to need garbage disposal people and housekeepers and bus drivers and the people who do the technology shit when your phone doesn't work. and they need to be well paid and not exploited. (i actually enjoy doing the technology shit when your phone doesn't work! i'm good at it! it was the being exploited by a megacorp that i couldn't handle.) this includes legal sex work with equally solid labor protections. paid training in all jobs so you can get into a new field without risking your livelihood, and free protective equipment whether that means condoms or hardhats.

* strong supports for small business and individual creators. rebalance the taxes so people don't pay absurd amounts for daring to do something for money that isn't An Job.

[beardedmrbean]

Russia has agreed to help North Korea set up sites on the divided peninsula to manufacture Iranian-designed Shahed drones, a senior Ukrainian intelligence official has said.

Why It Matters

North Korea is heavily supported by Russia and China, and last year became the first country besides Russia and Ukraine to commit combat troops to the war in Eastern Europe. North Korea has also been a major contributor of ammunition and missiles to Russia's war effort.

International watchers believe Pyongyang is, or will be, receiving economic aid and a hand-up with its weapons development programs, including submarines and ballistic missiles, from Moscow in exchange for munitions, missiles and troops.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un announced a mutual defense pact in June last year, which was signed in November.

What To Know

Russia has agreed to help North Korea set up sites on the divided peninsula to manufacture Iranian-designed Shahed drones, said Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Kyiv's GUR military intelligence agency.

"It will for sure bring changes in the military balance in the region between North Korea and South Korea," the intelligence chief told The War Zone.

"This is gravely concerning," William Alberque, a visiting fellow at the Henry L. Stimson Center and a former director of NATO's Arms Control, Disarmament and WMD Non-Proliferation Center, told Newsweek.

Cooperation between Pyongyang, Moscow and Tehran on drones will likely equip North Korea with "thousands, and then tens of thousands, of attack drones ready for combat, tested in battle, and incorporated into doctrine," Alberque said.

Seoul would benefit from working closely with Kyiv and NATO member states to develop new ways to shield South Korea's airspace and critical infrastructure from its northern neighbor, he added.

Newsweek has reached out to the South Korean embassy in the United Kingdom for comment via email.

Shahed drones have plagued Ukraine's air defenses since the early months of the full-scale war, launched by Russia in February 2022. While slow-moving, the uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as Geran drones, are hard for Ukraine's overworked air defenses to detect.

The drones are known for their distinctive, low buzzing sound, and can carry warheads that shatter or explode when the UAV reaches its target.

Russia quickly established sites to pump out the Iranian-designed drones on Russian soil. The GUR told Ukrainian media earlier this month that Moscow was capable of producing roughly 170 new drones each day.

Russia launched 315 Shahed drones and two of North Korea's KN-23 short-range ballistic missiles at Ukraine overnight, Kyiv's air force said early on Tuesday.

Moscow has used North Korean-made ballistic missiles frequently when targeting Ukraine. Experts say that Russia wielding these missiles in combat can reveal details about opaque weapons development in North Korea, but will also allow Pyongyang to tweak and improve its missiles.

North Korea has recast South Korea as its "principal enemy," officially moving away from the long-held goal of reunification. The countries have remained technically at war since an armistice agreement signaled the end of the Korean War in 1953.

What People Are Saying

The U.S. State Department said last week that Russian support for North Korea "must end" after Sergei Shoigu, Russia's former defense minister now serving as the secretary of Russia's security council, visited the secretive nation's capital.

North Korea's state news agency said in a readout that Moscow and Pyongyang agreed to "dynamically expand and develop" relations and deepen the "strategic partnership" between the two countries.

What Happens Next

Kim reassured Shoigu that North Korea would "unconditionally support" Russian foreign policy, including on Ukraine, state media reported.

[girlactionfigure]

🟠TORTURE, UNRWA, ANTI-ISRAEL COALITION - Real time from Israel  

▪️HOSTAGE TORTURE - a topic we have avoided due to the sensitivity.  The three hostages returned yesterday spoke of harsh conditions in captivity, a lack of food, and how they were constantly taken from place to place by Hamas terrorists - above and below ground, held in cages during their captivity, and experienced physical and mental abuse.

The terrorists would beat them for no reason, and there were days when they deliberately put them in dark places, even when they were in above-ground shelters, to disrupt their sense of time.

One of the female hostages described how she was hung upside down and beaten, while the torturer laughed about how Israel had provided his daughter with medical treatment saving her life while beating.

▪️EGYPTIAN MILITARY BUILDUP - The Americans have begun investigating the violation of the agreement with Israel and demanded explanations from the Egyptians - at the same time, Israel is increasing intelligence gathering in the region and not waiting for the Americans. (News 14)

▪️PM IN WASHINGTON - The Prime Minister has landed in Washington. Tomorrow the meeting with Trump Middle East envoy Witkoff, the day after a meeting with Trump.  Also on the schedule - a meeting with families of the hostages, and meetings with senior figures in Congress and the Senate.

▪️HAMAS COMPLAINS - A delegation of senior Hamas terrorist organization officials met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Doha, Qatar.  Hamas accused Israel: “the occupation's delay in implementing the provisions of the humanitarian protocol, especially on basic issues such as the introduction of tents, prefabricated houses (trailers), fuel and the reconstruction of hospitals, water wells and heavy equipment.”

▪️DRILL - UPPER GALILEE - A military exercise will begin today (Monday) from morning until noon in the Upper Galilee region. As part of the exercise, there will be a lot of movement of vehicles and security personnel in the area.  IT’S A DRILL.

▪️SIREN TEST - HERZLIYA - 11:05 in Herzliya Central and at 11:10 in Herzliya West. IT’S A TEST.

▪️GAZA CITY MAYOR SAYS - “80% of the city's infrastructure was destroyed as a result of the war.”

▪️ANOTHER GUN SMUGGLER - after spotting police, a smuggler began throwing pistols out his car window.  13 Glock pistols recovered on Route 6 by the Yokneam tunnels, smuggler captured, a “resident of the south”.

▪️UNRWA - now illegal to operate in Israel or in contact with any Israeli govt. agency.  Members of parliament from 14 different European countries appealed to the UN Secretary-General demanding that "UNRWA be removed from the UN agencies.

.. Foreign Ministers of Britain, France and Germany decried the cessation of UNRWA's activities in Israel and therefore lack of services in Jerusalem. The Min. Of Jerusalem Porush replied: "Your statement does not correspond to reality. The services we provide to the residents of East Jerusalem are much better than the poor services of UNRWA. The entire municipal territory of Jerusalem is under Israeli sovereignty, and as such all municipal services there are handled by the Jerusalem Municipality. I regret that you chose to publish a statement without real familiarity with the situation on the ground.”

▪️JUSTICE vs. ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES - The Attorney General in a message to PM Netanyahu: I will oppose the reappointment of Ben Gvir as minister.  If you consider reappointing Ben Gvir as minister, you will be required to re-examine whether he is disqualified.

▪️VERSUS ISRAEL - First publication: 9 countries in S. America and Africa announced the establishment of a group that will fight Israel on the international stage, press for the arrest warrants for Israeli officials to be carried out, and declare the imposition of economic sanctions.

♦️SAMARIA - Al-Ain, Shechem: Arab reports, a fierce exchange of fire between the terrorists and IDF forces.

[cognitivejustice]

Locally adapted, decentralised innovation is reshaping what environmental monitoring in Africa

Projects like AirQo in Uganda and Clarity Nodes in Nairobi are deploying low-cost particulate matter sensors to create real-time urban air quality maps.  

These portable devices, calibrated against reference stations, are not housed in government ministries—they’re installed in schools, markets, and transit corridors. 

This hyperlocal, community-focused deployment marks a decisive shift toward monitoring as a distributed public good. 

In the water space, compact mobile testing kits—some linked to smartphones—are enabling NGOs and universities to test for E. coli, nitrates, and fluoride in boreholes and streams.  These kits don’t require lab infrastructure or formal training, making them ideal for community-led sampling in rural areas. 

Remote sensing is also playing a vital role. Satellite data from programs like Sentinel and MODIS is being used to track vegetation loss, algal blooms, and surface water dynamics.  

In Lake Victoria, a hybrid approach pairs satellite analysis with on-the-ground sensors—offering a model for blended, multilayered monitoring frameworks that don’t depend on centralised equipment alone. 

Perhaps the most transformative development is the rise of citizen science networks.  

In Ghana, Nigeria, and Uganda, residents are using hand-held air monitors to document conditions in their own neighbourhoods.  

These datasets are often shared via open-access platforms, where they inform city planning and regulatory debates. They also demonstrate a growing confidence in decentralised data ownership and interpretation. 

Universities across the continent are enabling much of this innovation. Institutions like the University of Cape Town and Makerere University are not only building and testing sensors but also training local technicians and hosting data platforms. Their work has become a central node in an emerging, distributed monitoring ecosystem. 

Source

[andmaybegayer]

Since January 2021, all new cars and small vans that can run on liquid fuels have to be equipped with approved on-board fuel consumption monitoring (OBFCM) devices before they can be placed on the EU market. These devices record the vehicles’ fuel or energy consumption and the total distance driven.

The first data from a sample of 600 000 cars indicates that the real-world fuel consumption and CO2 emissions from diesel and petrol vehicles on the road are around 20% higher than indicated by the official values from the standardised WLTP type-approval test used for regulatory purposes. This discrepancy is in line with what the Commission had anticipated. For plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, the real-world CO2 emissions were on average 3.5 times higher than the laboratory values, which confirms that these vehicles are currently not realising their potential, largely because they are not being charged and driven fully electrically as frequently as assumed.

man that sucks. I would have assumed that especially in Europe PHEV would be really popular to charge at home since fuel costs are so high but if you're just using it as a conventional hybrid it's even worse because you're lugging around a bigger battery with a smaller engine. I wonder how much of that is poor understanding of how PHEV works and how much is difficulty accessing charging infrastructure. I guess if you're able to run on petrol you might just not change your normal habits as easily as with pure electrics.

The WLTP value being off by 20% for pure IC cars isn't that unusual, everyone knows that spec sheet fuel consumption is optimistic.

Some tables from the report itself, linked below the article

Dataset sampled

Representativeness

Total emissions and economy values being realized by vehicles in the dataset

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Monica Lenis was in Great Exuma, Bahamas, yesterday when she caught this image of Starship's explosion. Thank you, Monica! SpaceX's flagship vehicle, #Starship - designed to take humans to the moon and Mars - exploded midair late yesterday minutes after its test launch from a beach in south Texas. Other aircraft flying over the Gulf of Mexico were forced to alter their courses in order to avoid the falling debris, which was seen by beachgoers in the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos. Starship itself was completely lost. Meanwhile, the Super Heavy booster that had launched Starship successfully returned to the launchpad and was caught in midair. Read more at https://earthsky.org/human-world/starship-explodes-minutes-after-launch-planes-diverted/

EarthSky

* * *

In what sounds like an attempt to hand over air traffic control systems to Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite system and his AI company, Trump today said—and here are his words, as Aaron Rupar transcribed them—“We’re all gonna sit down and do a great computerized system for our control towers. Brand new. Not pieced together, obsolete, like it is, land-based. Trying to hook up a land based system to a satellite system. The first thing that some experts told me when this happened is you can’t hook up land to satellites and you can’t hook up satellites to land. It doesn’t work. We spend billions of billions of dollars trying to renovate an old, broken system, instead of just saying cut it loose, and let’s spend less money and build a great system one by two or three companies, very good companies, specialists, that’s all it is. They used 39 companies. That means that 39 different hookups have to happen. And I don’t know how many people of you are good in terms of all the kinds of things necessary for that. And it's very complex stuff. But when you have 39 different companies working on hooking up different cities at different people. You need one company. With one set of equipment. And there are some countries that have unbelievable air controller systems. And they would’ve, bells would’ve gone off when that helicopter literally even hit the same height. Because it traveled a long distance before it hit. It was just like, just wouldn’t stop. Follow the line. But bells and whistles would’ve gone off. They have ‘em where it actually could virtually turn the thing around. It would’ve just never happened if we had the right equipment . And one of things that’s gonna be, I'm gonna speaking to John and to Mike and to Chuck and everybody, we have to get together and just as a single bill just pass where we get the best control system. When I land in my plane, privately, I use a system from another country because my captain tells me, I’m landing in New York and I’m using a sys— I won’t tell you what country, but I use a system from another country because the captain says ‘This thing is so bad, it’s so obsolete.’ And we can’t have that.”

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy posted today that “the DOGE team” is “going to plug in to help upgrade our aviation system,” saying that “‘experienced’ Washington bureaucrats are the reason our nation’s infrastructure is crumbling.”

Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton pointed out that “US airlines had gone 16 years without fatal crashes. Then MAGA fired the FAA chief, gutted the Aviation Security Advisory Committee, and threatened air traffic controllers with layoffs. Now there have been two fatal crashes. Hope your unvetted 22-year-olds fix things fast.”

Critics of the idea of Musk taking over the nation’s air traffic control systems note that his Tesla electric vehicles have the highest fatal accident rate among all car brands in America. The average fatal crash rate is 2.8 per billion vehicle miles driven; Tesla has a rate of 5.6 per billion miles driven. On social media, “God” posted: “Thou shalt not let the foreign billionaire whose rockets blow up all the time anywhere near the air traffic control system,” an apparent reference to the January 16 explosion of a SpaceX rocket over the Caribbean that scattered debris over the region led the Federal Aviation Administration to lock down airspace over Turks and Caicos.

[Heather Cox Richardson : Letters From An American: Feb.6,2025]

[wachinyeya]

June 16, 2025, Kaleigh Harrison

Verde and Ergon have signed a memorandum of understanding to scale the use of carbon-negative asphalt binders in U.S. infrastructure projects. The collaboration is designed to integrate Verde’s binder technology into Ergon’s existing national operations, making low-carbon asphalt available at commercial scale.

While efforts to cut operational emissions have advanced, the embedded emissions in materials such as asphalt remain a significant hurdle. By targeting these often-overlooked emissions, Verde and Ergon’s collaboration provides a practical, near-term solution that can be implemented within current roadbuilding practices.

Unlike many emerging carbon-reduction technologies, Verde’s binder is already compatible with existing asphalt standards and construction methods. This allows roadbuilders to adopt the material without the need for design changes, new equipment, or extensive retraining—critical factors for gaining market acceptance in the risk-averse construction sector.

Ergon brings established strengths to the partnership, including a nationwide network of asphalt refining and blending facilities and relationships with departments of transportation, contractors, and material suppliers. Leveraging this infrastructure provides a clear pathway to moving beyond pilot projects to full-scale market rollout.

Tackling Embodied Carbon in Road Construction

Pavement materials, including asphalt, contribute a significant share of the total carbon footprint of infrastructure projects.

Verde’s technology addresses this issue by capturing and converting CO₂ into a high-performance binder that replaces traditional petroleum-based materials. The resulting asphalt products are designed to meet or exceed current performance standards while delivering a lower carbon profile.

By combining Verde’s field-tested technology with Ergon’s operational scale, the companies aim to offer a practical solution for decarbonizing one of the infrastructure sector’s most carbon-intensive materials—without disrupting existing supply chains.