Tag Archives: Texas A&M

The Texas A&M Space Institute

Posted on November 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. A grassy field next to NASA’s Johnson Space Center is getting an otherworldly makeover. Officials gathered Friday to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Texas A&M University Space Institute, which will re-create the moon and Mars to help develop rovers, … Continue reading →

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Time for another warfarin update

Posted on November 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Not much effect on the feral hog population yet, but it’s still early days. Nine months after the Texas Department of Agriculture approved a new toxicant to curb crop-destroying feral hogs, many farmers and ranchers are still leery or unaware … Continue reading →

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The Ted Cruz Curse continues

Posted on October 6, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, Astros fans. Guess who was at the Astros game today? #Cruzcurse 😡 — Barbi (@Barbi__7) 10:00 PM – 02 October 2024 The Ted Cruz curse strikes (no pun intended) again. Allegedly. The Texas senator’s attendance at sporting events across … Continue reading →

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Texas TiKTok ban upheld

Posted on December 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, professors. A U.S. judge on Monday upheld Texas’ ban on state employees’, including public university employees, using Chinese-owned short video app TikTok on state-owned devices or networks. The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University filed suit in July … Continue reading →

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Montana TikTok ban blocked

Posted on December 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Of interest. Montana’s first-in-the-nation law banning the video-sharing app TikTok in the state was blocked Thursday, one month before it was set to take effect, by a federal judge who called the measure unconstitutional. The ruling delivered a temporary win … Continue reading →

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Warfarin update

Posted on November 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Warfarin is a toxicant that has shown promise in reducing the feral hog population. A few years ago the Lege asked for a study on its effects before it could be approved for more general use. We now have the … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

TikTok ban lawsuit has its day in court

Posted on November 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Looks like it was a pretty good day for the plaintiffs, but as we know that’s the first very small step in a long journey. A federal judge seemed skeptical of the state’s reasoning to ban TikTok on Texas public … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For that amendment, you know the one

Posted on September 21, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron approves an amendment but forgets to tell us which one. So much has changed in the 15 years since Renu Khator became UH’s president. She set a clear goal for Tier 1 status and worked toward it step … Continue reading →

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UT professors sue over TikTok ban

Posted on July 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t wait to see how this one plays out. A group of college professors is suing Texas for banning TikTok on public-university computers and phones, saying it has undermined their ability to teach students and research one of the … Continue reading →

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Texas to invest in microchips

Posted on June 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. Leaders in the semiconductor industry and their Texas allies were alarmed by supply chain disruptions to the sector during the pandemic. Now the state is seeking to turn the lessons learned in the past three years into an opportunity. … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Abbott tells state agencies and universities to hire more white people

Posted on February 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I mean, let’s be honest, that’s what this is about. Gov. Greg Abbott’s office is warning state agency and public university leaders this week that the use of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives — policies that support groups who have … Continue reading →

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More on the collegiate TikTok bans

Posted on January 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

An interesting perspective from a professor in Texas. The bans have come in states where governors, like Texas’s Greg Abbott, have blocked TikTok from state-issued computers and phones. Employers can generally exercise control over how employees use the equipment they … Continue reading →

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UT bans TikTok on campus WiFi

Posted on January 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This feels like a bit of an overreaction to me, but we’ll see if others follow suit. The University of Texas at Austin has blocked access to the video-sharing app TikTok on its Wi-Fi and wired networks in response to … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math, The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The next ridiculous lawsuit we’re all going to have to endure

Posted on September 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Grit your teeth, here it comes. A University of Texas at Austin professor has sued Texas A&M University claiming a new faculty fellowship program designed to increase diversity at the flagship university in College Station discriminates against white and Asian … Continue reading →

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No collegiate gymnastics in Texas

Posted on May 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I did not know this. Ragan Smith did not lack options when it came to choosing a college, as tends to happen when you’re an elite gymnast with a national title on your resume. One option was unavailable to Smith. … Continue reading →

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In Houston, the trucks drive you

Posted on May 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Yet another driverless truck story. Autonomous freight trucking company Embark will make Houston the hub for its new Texas operations and launch an autonomous trucking route along Interstate 10 to San Antonio. The San Francisco-based company this month said it … Continue reading →

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Studying COVID in cats and dogs

Posted on March 30, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Seems like a reasonable thing to look at. Brushing a dog’s teeth is hard enough. The dog looks at you plaintively, eyes wide with betrayal, as you insert the toothbrush and perform a quick pantomime of a tooth cleaning in … Continue reading →

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The COVID College Football Playoffs

Posted on December 24, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. If a team is unavailable to play in College Football Playoff semifinals on New Year’s Eve because of COVID-19 issues, the game will be forfeited and the available team will advance to the championship. With COVID-19 cases spiking across … Continue reading →

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Caught between a mandate and a madman

Posted on October 27, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I have sympathy for the schools. Many Texas universities — which collectively hold billions of dollars in federal contracts — are wrestling with how to navigate the Biden administration’s mandate that all federal contractors be vaccinated by Dec. 8 in … Continue reading →

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Zombie trees

Posted on September 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We are still experiencing the effects of the freeze. Zombies are in your yard, in parks and along roadsides and other green spaces throughout Texas. They’re trees that are partly dead and partly alive, struggling to move forward and waiting … Continue reading →

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Back to college, COVID-style

Posted on August 22, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Not the return anyone was hoping for. Texas A&M University’s new president M. Katherine Banks said this spring that she anticipated a “fall [semester] of joy” when the university reopens after 15 months of lockdowns and remote learning. She wasn’t … Continue reading →

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Big XII visits the Lege

Posted on August 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It’s something to do, anyway. As the University of Texas prepares for a jump from the Big 12 to the Southeastern Conference, state lawmakers are working to determine how the move will affect the rest of the state — and … Continue reading →

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SEC accepts UT and OU

Posted on July 30, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Time to start printing the money. The Southeastern Conference voted unanimously Thursday afternoon to invite the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Oklahoma to join their 14-member league during a meeting with the league member’s presidents and … Continue reading →

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UT and OU make it officially official

Posted on July 28, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Smell ya later, Big XII. After a week of speculation, the University of Texas at Austin announced Tuesday that alongside the University of Oklahoma it has asked to join the Southeastern Conference starting July 1, 2025. The news came a … Continue reading →

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The A&M and AAC responses to UT and OU and the SEC

Posted on July 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Moving from denial to bluster. Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork has a message for any newcomers to the Southeastern Conference: “We’re ready.” Texas and Oklahoma are preparing to exit the Big 12 and join the SEC, just as A&M … Continue reading →

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Some legislators want to keep UT out of the SEC

Posted on July 24, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This is kind of hilarious. As the college athletics world roils over the possibility of the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma leaving the Big 12 conference, a group of Texas legislators with ties to other universities in … Continue reading →

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Are the college conference dominoes set up for a tumble again?

Posted on July 23, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This would be a big deal. A decade after major conference realignment shook up college football, big changes might again be on the horizon. Texas and Oklahoma of the Big 12 have reached out to the Southeastern Conference about joining … Continue reading →

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You will eventually need a COVID booster shot

Posted on April 25, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Just get used to the idea. More than 28 percent of Texans 16 and older are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, having received either one shot of the Johnson & Johnson or two of Moderna or Pfizer. But as scientists … Continue reading →

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The COVID breathalyzer test

Posted on December 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Sounds promising. Texas A&M researchers and a Dallas artificial intelligence company are developing a rapid COVID-19 test that would use a breathalyzer, rather than a swab, and potentially make it safer to hold large gatherings. The testing device, housed in … Continue reading →

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Coronavirus and college sports update

Posted on November 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

What life is like for Texas’ college football teams. In the world of COVID-19-era college football, Sunday is a day not for resting but for testing. Each Sunday this fall brings a new set of checklists and guideposts that players … Continue reading →

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The Big XII will play football

Posted on August 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

That’s their plan, anyway. The start of the Big 12 Conference’s college football season will move forward as scheduled, conference officials said Wednesday, meaning four major Texas football programs are one step closer to playing this fall. “Ultimately, our student-athletes … Continue reading →

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Optimism abounds in the AAC

Posted on August 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck with that. In the face of a pandemic, the American Athletic Conference will attempt to conduct business as usual this football season. A plan announced Wednesday will allow AAC schools, including the University of Houston, to play a … Continue reading →

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Will college football shift to the spring?

Posted on July 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. [Dell] Billings, who graduated from A&M in 1995, also realizes it’s looking more like the brakes are about to be mashed on any “full speed ahead” approach, perhaps within a few weeks. “I can’t see how we would be … Continue reading →

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We need to understand what we did wrong

Posted on June 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

So yeah, we need this. Two of the nation’s most influential experts on the coronavirus pandemic, both based in Texas, are calling for an independent, nonpartisan investigation of the U.S. response to the novel coronavirus. “We must prevent this from … Continue reading →

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