The Washington Post
Majority of spilled oil in Gulf of Mexico
unaccounted for in government data
Back in May, BP's chief executive told a British newspaper that "the Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean," and the vast amounts of oil and chemical dispersants dumped into it were small by comparison. After he said that, BP's well leaked for two more months. Hayward's upbeat assessment was cast as one of many gaffes committed on his way to resignation. Now, 14 days after the well was closed and 100 days after the blowout, U.S. government scientists are working on calculations that could shed some light on Hayward's analysis (even if they can't shed light on why he said it). They are trying to figure out where all the oil went.

The New York Times
Arizona Ruling Acts as a Warning to Other States
A federal judge in Arizona on Wednesday broadly vindicated the Obama administration’s high-stakes move to challenge that state’s tough immigration law and to assert the primary authority of the federal government over state lawmakers in immigration matters. The ruling by Judge Susan R. Bolton, in a lawsuit against Arizona brought on July 6 by the Justice Department, blocked central provisions of the law from taking effect while she finishes hearing the case. But in taking the forceful step of holding up a statute even before it was put into practice, Judge Bolton previewed her opinions on the case, indicating that the federal government was likely to win in the end on the main points.

The Nation
Obama Team Takes the Lead
on LGBT Rights at the UN
The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is not the first group advocating to end discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity to win the right to be represented in major United Nations and other meetings - and to have to fight hard for that privilege. But after years of futile campaigning against a front of homophobic nations, otherwise skittish governments and the Vatican, IGLHRC last week found its most powerful ally in the Obama administration.

The Boston Globe
Mass. Legislature approves
plan to bypass Electoral College
The Massachusetts Legislature has approved a new law intended to bypass the Electoral College system and ensure that the winner of the presidential election is determined by the national popular vote. "What we are submitting is the idea that the president should be selected by the majority of people in the United States of America," Senator James B. Eldridge, an Acton Democrat, said before the Senate voted to enact the bill. Under the new bill, he said, "Every vote will be of the same weight across the country."

Science Daily
Marine Biodiversity Strongly
Linked to Ocean Temperature
In an unprecedented effort that will be published online on the 28th of July by the international journal Nature, a team of scientists mapped and analyzed global biodiversity patterns for over 11,000 marine species ranging from tiny zooplankton to sharks and whales. The researchers found striking similarities among the distribution patterns, with temperature strongly linked to biodiversity for all thirteen groups studied. These results imply that future changes in ocean temperature, such as those due to climate change, may greatly affect the distribution of life in the sea.

Hey Minnesota!
Tarryl Clark for Congress

This is War - 30 Seconds to Mars

Cumbersome - Seven Mary Three

Rolling Stone
U2's Spider-Man Musical Gets Back on Track
After months of financial woes and casting changes, rehearsals for Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, the Broadway musical featuring songs by U2's Bono and the Edge, will finally begin on August 18th, a spokesperson for the musical told the New York Times . The $50 million production has yet to announce details about its new premiere date, but actor/singer Reeve Carney, who will play hero Peter Parker, confirmed on his Twitter that choreography rehearsals were already underway. "I can't wait for the world to see this thing — It's finally happening," he tweeted.