NOTEWORTHY THIS WEEKEND

President Donald Trump's prime-time election security speech:

• Lasted almost 26 minutes.  Full presentation.
• Was only covered by Fox News, and even they actually fact-checked in real time. 
• CBS and MS NOW only aired portions, cutting away for analysis and fact-checking.
• ABC, NBC and CNN almost ignored this effort.
• Time magazine reported:
• Mostly about his version of the 2020 presidential election, the one he lost to Joe Biden.
• Lies, exaggerations and the like.  Fact-checking horror.
• Mostly catered to his MAGA base.
• Blamed China for interfering.  In advance, denied by China.
• Urged Congress to pass the doomed SAVE Act.  Needs 60 votes.
• From a variety of sources:  Trump's obvious message is that he is preparing to subvert the midterm elections.  109 days to November 3.

About that cyclosporiasis outbreak:

• Linked to Taco Bells in Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan (most cases), Ohio and West Virginia, but there are cases in at least 34 states.  But many so afflicted did not eat there.
• From iceberg lettuce provided by Taylor Fresh Foods, sourced from central Mexico.
• So far, 7,000 people may have been sickened.
• No deaths.

The final two FIFA World Cup matches:

• Saturday, July 18 at 5PM EDT from Miami Florida:  England vs France.
• Sunday, July 19 at 3PM EDT, from New Jersey:  Argentina vs Spain.

• 
  What about the Golden Boot Award?

Current Golden Boot Standings

Lionel Messi (Argentina): 8 goals, 4 assists
Kylian Mbappé (France): 8 goals, 3 assists
Erling Haaland (Norway): 7 goals, 0 assists (Eliminated)

Jude Bellingham (England): 6 goals, 1 assist
Harry Kane (England): 6 goals, 1 assist [1]

How the Winner is Decided

If two or more players finish the tournament with the same number of goals, FIFA applies the following tie-breaking criteria in order: [1]

Most Assists: The player with the higher number of assists wins the award. (Currently, Messi leads Mbappé 4 to 3).
Fewer Minutes Played: If assists are also tied, the player who has played fewer minutes in the tournament wins the Golden Boot. [1, 2, 3]
The two English players remain in contention.
1. Oleg Salenko of Russia in 1994 had 5 goals and 1 assist for 6 points.
2. Theoretically, then, Bellingham and Kane have a chance, but the odds are low.  They have a +8000 chance

• 
  The halftime show will feature:

Shakira: Performing the official anthem "Dai Dai" (also reported as "Die Die").

Burna Boy: Joining Shakira to perform the official anthem "Dai Dai".

Justin Bieber: Headline performance (supports the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund; songs unannounced).

Madonna: Headline performance (supports the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund; songs unannounced).

BTS: Headline performance (songs unannounced).

Coldplay: Curating the show and performing (songs unannounced).

Gustavo Dudamel and the PS22 Children's Choir: Providing classical and youth elements to the performance. [1, 2, 3, 4]

• President Donald Trump will be well protected in the stadium.
• Will present the championship trophy.
• In 2018, Vladimir Putin presented medals to the victorious French players.
• If you're in the neighborhood of Manhattan and want to attend:
  

Upper Level / Cheapest Seats: The lowest get-in prices range from roughly $5,650 to $8,000 for nosebleed and upper-tier views. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Lower Level / Midfield: Seats on the lower deck and closer to midfield typically start at $11,000, easily climbing up to $42,700 for prime, center-field views. [1]

Hospitality Packages & VIP: Premium tickets and VIP lounge hospitality access range between $32,000 and $69,968 per seat. [1, 2, 3]

Extreme Resale Outliers: Some incredibly rare, premium block tickets are listed on secondary markets for upwards of $2.3 million to over $11.4 million each, though these rarely reflect typical market trades. [1, 2, 3]

If you happen to be in the UK on Sunday, and want to personally watch the Open at Royal Birkdale.

• General public admission has long been sold out.
• Internet platforms still sell a ticket for $150 to more than $460.
• Upgraded spectator tickets allowing access to exclusive areas are listed for $462.
• Access to Dunes House, The Retreat and Links packages go for around $1,365.
• Platinum packages go up to $2,088.

Plus, maybe you brought your golf bag, can you actually play there?

• On Wednesday, July 29:

On that day, the golf club is hosting a 'Birkdale Open Experience' where golfers can experience 18 holes just as those in the year's final Major would have days earlier.

As well as full round, a meet and greet, a gift from a professional, a photo with the replica Claret Jug and a two-course bistro is also included in the package.

Tee times range from 10:20am BST through to 2pm, and the day will cost you £565 (approx. $756) per person.

Alternatively, a regular tee time on the few remaining days left open for visitors at Royal Birkdale in 2026 will cost you £495 ($663).

• The year was 1999.  A group of us went to Scotland for a biotechnology conference.  We also golfed.  Through connections, we played at:
• St. Andrews.  About $160/round.  Today, about $460.
• Then the next day we drove to Carnoustie, which had just hosted the Open that year.
• The Carnoustie Golf Hotel and Spa  (now called the Carnoustie Golf Hotel) was built just for the 1999 Open Championship.
• I was given a room on the first floor right next to the first hole tee off area.  I could hear player there talking.
• Perhaps a hundred yards away, I could also see the 18th hole.
• We played there.  Frankly, not much of a course.  Flat with few trees. A meandering stream that wended through the course.  It was expensive.  Around $250.  The cost today is a little more than $450/round.
• St. Andrews hosts the Open next year.
• 
  Here is a rather humorous posting of our experience golfing at St. Andrews during that era a little more than a quarter century.
• Professor Grant Burgess is here described by Google AI.

Professor Grant Burgess is a prominent Professor of Marine Biotechnology at Newcastle University in the United Kingdom. Based in the School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, he previously served as the Director of the Dove Marine Laboratory. [1, 2, 3, 4]    

• 
  Professor Tadashi Matsunaga.

Current Affiliation: Distinguished Professor at the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT).

Education: Earned his Ph.D. in Biotechnology from the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

Leadership Roles: Served as the Dean of Engineering (2001–2007) and as Trustee and Vice-President for Academic Affairs and Research (2007–2011) at TUAT.

Research Impact: He is a highly prolific researcher with over 800 publications and more than 30,000 citations on Google Scholar. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

To close, about that newly found orange-lipped monkey found in the Congo rainforest. AI generated graphic.

• Originally photographed in 2008, so nothing new.  But it is a new monkey specie. 
• There was a clearer sighting in 2018.

• 
  114 sightings between 2018 and 2022.
• Living in groups from one to 20.
• Weighs around 15 pounds.
• Those orange lips are quite exaggerated.  Most photos show the lower version.

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