That’s Odd

he had been “demeaning” to subordinates.

Lander, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, is the first member of Biden’s Cabinet to resign.

For Lander’s critics, his exit took far too long. They say he shouldn’t have even been nominated.

During his campaign, Biden vowed to make the White House a fair and respectful place to work and said he would terminate bullies under his auspices “on the spot.”

Lander, who was founding director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, was tapped by Biden for scientific advice before his inauguration.

The resignation came after Politico reported on allegations that Lander had “bullied and demeaned his subordinates,” including his onetime general counsel Rachel Wallace, who resigned and filed a complaint before the White House launched a two-month investigation.

Multiple women had complained to colleagues about Lander’s behavior, which they generally described as demeaning.

Lander, a noted geneticist, molecular biologist, and mathematician, as well as a principal researcher on the Human Genome Project, apologized again in his resignation letter.

“I am devastated that I caused hurt to past and present colleagues by the way in which I have spoken to them,” Lander wrote, adding that “it is clear that things I said, and the way I said them, crossed the line at times into being disrespectful and demeaning, to both men and women.”

Following the news of Lander’s behavior, the American Association for the Advancement of Science disinvited him from its annual meeting next week.

The White House was warned about Lander’s behavior when he was nominated. But went through with it anyway.

World’s Biggest Igloo

It took 64 days for 25 people to build what could be the world’s biggest igloo.

But this is no ordinary igloo. It sits on top of a popular skiing resort in the western Himalayas in Gulmarg, India, which is about 540 miles north of India’s capital.

Workers started constructing the ice-house on December 3, 2021. They combined snow and ice in a box and would press the mixture together in a box to create a “snow brick.” Each brick took five minutes to make.

Eventually, the building took shape and is now 38 feet high and has a diameter of 44 feet.

Aside from its huge dimensions, the structure is also a café for those daring enough to climb heights for a cup of coffee. For now, it’s registered in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest café of its kind.

Hopefully, the coffee will warm visitors as they sip their brew. There is no fireplace there, although there are sheepskin-style rugs and ice sculptures that give a rustic, cozy vibe.

For now, the igloo café is expected to be open until March 15. After that date, the structure may not be safe as temperatures may rise.

Sounds so cool.

So Shocking

Desha-Ann and Rashann Kealoha live in Waianac, Hawaii. Living in Hawaii is generally blissful, but they were in for a shock when they opened their electric bill last month.

The couple was billed by Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) for $18,000 because they are said to be the legal owners of the street and are therefore responsible for the electricity of the lights on the road. Their bill? An outstanding balance of $17,860.09, which is currently more than $18,000 due to “several years of unpaid invoices.”

“Hawaiian Electric recently learned that you both own Halemaluhia Place…” the HECO said in the letter. “Because you own the street upon which the streetlights are located, Hawaiian Electric believes that you are responsible for the payment of electric energy supplied to these streetlights.”

“Yes, I was shocked, overwhelmed and confused, but still remained hopeful that there is some solution to this,” Desha-Ann Kealoha recalled after opening the letter. “My husband has a colorful vocabulary – he was upset.”

The HECO also provided documentation showing which of the streetlights allegedly belonged to the couple — which have been powered for several years without any payment to the company.

“During the review, Hawaiian Electric learned that several of these accounts did not have an existing customer,” the letter stated. “One such account relates to the streetlights that are found within the street at Halemaluhia Place.”

Desha-Ann Kealoha said this was the first time she heard about owning the streetlights.

A spokesperson for the electric company said it does not expect the couple to pay the balance but is working with them and the city to track down whoever should be responsible for paying the five-figure sum.

“We’re working with all parties and have spoken with the Kealohas. We want to assure them that we don’t expect them to pay the outstanding bill. Our goal is to determine who owns the street where the streetlights are located so that the bill can be paid going forward,” said spokesperson Shannon Tangonan.

Sounds like there’s some light at the end of the tunnel for Desha-Ann.

A Surprise Prize

The tourist from Arizona went home after trying his luck without much in his pockets.

But the Nevada Gaming Control Board realized that Taylor had hit the jackpot. A machine malfunction had prevented him and casino personnel from being notified of his win. And so, the Control Board had some detective work to do to find out who was sitting at that machine when the jackpot was struck.

The board combed through hours of surveillance videos from several casinos, interviewed witnesses, shifted through electronic purchase records, and even analyzed ride share data provided by the Nevada Transportation Authority and a rideshare company to find out who won the almost-$230,000 prize.

Finally, they identified Taylor and contacted him last week about his win. He is set to journey to Las Vegas to collect his prize.

And probably to spend some of it as well.

Insect Ink

Michael Amoia says he hates spiders, but his body is crawling with him. The music producer from New York has 864 tattoos of insects inked all over his body – more than anyone else in the world, according to Guinness World Records.

“A lot of people think I like bugs – actually it’s the complete opposite,” Amoia told Guinness. “I’m afraid of bugs. I hate bugs. But it has multiple meanings, that’s why I put them all over my body.”

He explained, “It’s some dark meaning, but more of a positive message.”

Amoia’s tattoos include 89 ants on his left forearm and 36 ants from his forearm to his bicep, plus an additional 23 red ants on his right calf.

He also has a 13-inch moth across his throat and chest, a 2.5-inch beetle over his right eye, and a 2.5-inch earwig behind his right ear.

In addition to his 864 insect tattoos, Amoia also has several tattoos of other creatures including spiders and two huge millipedes, a 50-inch millipede on his back, and a 17-inchby-19-inch millipede on his chest.

Amoia started his insect collection early – when he was just 21 years old. At the time, he got a red queen ant printed onto his right forearm.

Amoia is used to people’s curiosity about his markings and doesn’t tell them to bug off.

“People always come up to me and talk to me about my work,” he told Guinness. “I guess I have to expect it; but when they learn about my story, they start to formulate a completely different opinion of me.”

“Hopefully I can open up some people’s minds so they can realize, you know, there’s a few ways to look at things and don’t judge a book by its cover, I guess,” he added.

The previous record holder for most insect tattoos was Baxter Milsom, who sports 402 of them.

This story really bugs me out.