Frustration grows in China as face masks compromise facial recognition [Thanks Tim]

Victims thought they were paying millions to free hostages. But the ‘minister’ who asked them was a fraudster in a mask

Romantic kissing is not a human universal

The scent of a romantic partner can improve sleep

This study did not detect any effect of daily caffeine intake on sleep duration

Women’s bust size and men’s courtship solicitation

The effect of touch on tipping: an evaluation in a French bar

Apple Pay accounts for about 5% of global card transactions and is on pace to handle 1-in-10 such payments by 2025

Amazon wants to patent paying with a selfie [2016]

Samsung, which makes both handsets as well as 5G network equipment, told investors on its own call that it expects its 5G business in South Korea to “shrink somewhat compared to last year.”

Scientists testing a small but random sample of donated blood ready for transfusion have discovered that 70 percent contained traces of Xanax [Thanks Tim]

How to donate a piece of your brain to science—while you’re still alive

A newly discovered virus has 74 genes, out of which 68 are completely unknown to science.

List of unsolved problems in philosophy [Thanks Tim]

An interactive museum dedicated to words and language is opening on May 31, 2020, in Washington, DC

The 50 Most Drug-Addled Albums in Music History

Cy Twombly, a retrospective, 1994 [PDF]

Emoji Mashup Bot — Tries to create new emojis out of two (or three) random emojis. Tweets every 60 min.

Ideas for a website

#churchsecurity [Thanks Tim]

every day the same again | February 18th, 2020