I updated the BIOS on my PC, which turned out to be a scary Halloween experience. The new version was released right before I happened to check, so I normally would have waited. But having one of Intel's more recent CPUs includes the fear that the scandalous voltage wonkiness might cause permanent damage, prompting a little more urgency. After overcoming apprehension about rushing into this, naturally there was a problem, as I ended up staring at a black monitor. The rule about BIOS updates is to avoid restarting during the process, but my motherboard has an LED to display error codes, which is a godsend in a spot like this. The code this threw translated to "Clean-up of NVRAM." This sounds like a disaster, and while it may be one in some cases, the main troubleshooting tip was to indeed restart the machine. So I held my breath and went for it. Thankfully it booted right up, and the BIOS reports its the latest version, so the drama was all an illusion and it all worked out fine. It should only take a few years to recover from the trauma and try something like that again.

Scary Round-up
Thanks Ant, Neutronbeam, and Max.

Brunch Link

• Tom Hanks Is Thankful a 'Forrest Gump' Sequel Was Never Made - The Hollywood Reporter. Unpopular opinion, but I hate the original.

Stories

• Gym requires climbing skills to use urinal - Boing Boing. The lawsuits will be worth all the lulz.
• US Space Force warns of “mind-boggling” build-up of Chinese capabilities - Ars Technica.

Science

• Fungi may not think, but they can communicate - Ars Technica. Future influencers.
• 15 Billion Miles Away, NASA's Voyager 1 Comes Back To Life Using 1981 Tech. Spock! Bones! Meet me in the transporter room!
• This Incredible Photo of an Ant's Face Is Like Something From a Nightmare - ScienceAlert.

Media

• How Da Bomb Hot Sauce is Made. Thanks RedEye9.
• NASA Rover Spots 'Googly-Eyed' Solar Eclipse - Videos from The Weather Channel.
• Doomed: The Czechoslovakian Nuclear Reactor That Kept on Having Accidents - Plainly Difficult. Thanks RedEye9.

Creature Features

• Hysterics As Dog Brings 'Flock of Chickens' and Rooster to His Farm - Newsweek.
• Man Finds Sloth Trying to Drive After Leaving Vehicle's Window Open - People.