"Altman and company have adopted an incredibly risky strategy...more than $1.4 trillion worth of infrastructure deals...those agreements can only be described as circular...In the first half of 2025, investment in data centers accounted for nearly all of US GDP growth."

"...this year, President Trump closed a loophole that had allowed goods worth $800 or less to enter the United States tariff free...the de minimis exemption, ended...Shoppers must now pay duties for the first time, often in amounts far higher than they expected." buff.ly/OJCN9jU

"...although DOGE is gone, its malign legacy endures. Arguably DOGE’s biggest “achievement” was shutting down the U.S. Agency for International Development. And the dismantling of USAID has left a legacy of death...."

"...the ideal scenario for deployment would be something like the international collaboration between nations and industry that saved the ozone layer from human pollutants through a 1987 U.N. deal — and he noted that this too was a pact forged amid geopolitical tensions..."

"Christian Jimenez, 17, a U.S. citizen...an officer proceeded to break the car’s driver’s side window and detain him...the boy can be heard telling an officer that he is a citizen, to which the officer replies, “Get out of the car” and “I don’t care.”"

"Current and former IHS clinicians told ProPublica the changes threaten vaccine uptake in Navajo communities and have left medical practitioners who serve this population feeling censored."

“Libraries are always targeted...” The Trump administration implemented a massive overhaul of government websites that included taking down countless pages...It was the archive...which enabled journalists to understand what had been altered."

“Drax has come into British Columbia claiming to solve some of the problems that our forestry industry has, but they have not. It’s very disheartening, and offensive, to hear Drax claiming to be solving these problems..."

"If the prospect of people going hungry doesn’t move you, consider some of the other beneficiaries of SNAP. Like Walmart, Amazon, McDonald’s and other titans of Corporate America whose profits rely on workers who are paid low wages..."

"Perkins says at 1 a.m. Friday, his full monthly SNAP benefit of $298 showed up on his card...he pulled his clothes on and drove to Winco, the value grocery store that’s open 24/7. In the middle of the night, he filled his cart..."

"Environmental DNA detection is an exciting and relatively new approach that allows scientists to recognize and amplify the genetic material that all creatures, living and dead, shed into their environments, and it already has gotten results in some fields of research."

"Previous research found that early exposure to green space was linked to a healthy immune system, but it was unclear if this was causation or correlation. The Finland study suggests it could be causal."

"Thompson wondered if it took so long to recognize its potential because he’d been specifically told not to work on operating systems...But now Unix had its first user community — future legends...“All the user IDs were one digit. That definitely put a limit on it.”"

"...part of a larger trend of unverified AI content being sold on Amazon. Last year, amateur mushroom pickers were warned to avoid foraging books sold on the platform...written by chatbots & containing questionable advice on how to discern a lethal fungus from an edible one."

“Wouldn’t it be great if we could be the Dr. Ian Malcolm of ‘Jurassic Park’?” “We scientists … think about whether we should, not whether we could.”

“Wouldn’t it be great if we could be the Dr. Ian Malcolm of ‘Jurassic Park’?...We scientists … think about whether we should, not whether we could.”

“The declining strength of the US passport over the past decade...signals a fundamental shift in global mobility and soft power dynamics. Nations that embrace openness and cooperation are surging ahead, while those resting on past privilege are being left behind.”

"Rather than acknowledging that the US is in danger of being permanently overtaken by China’s technological and economic prowess, the Trump administration...is actively opposing progress in critical sectors while giving grifters like the crypto industry everything that they want."

"Rachel gave her date the benefit of the doubt...she’d been “Chatfished” before, so when the gap between his real and digital selves failed to close on their second date, she called it off. “I’d already been ChatGPT-ed into bed at least once. I didn’t want it to happen again.”"

"Starbuck’s online posts have not changed in tenor since the “anti-DEI agitator” was brought into the Meta fold, and his Trump administration connections raise broader questions about the extent to which corporate America has capitulated to the Maga movement."

"The question of Truth Terminal's autonomy is another story. "The interest around Truth Terminal is a bit like an audience wanting to suspend their disbelief," says Fabian Stelzer, a cognitive scientist, AI researcher and founder of Glif..."

"I would have saved, on average, almost nothing during Amazon’s recent fall “Prime Big Deal Days” — and for some big-ticket purchases, I would have actually paid more..."

"...ultrasound approaches already in use are ushering in a new era in oncology – one that aims to replace, or at least improve, effective-yet-devastating therapies like surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. "Cancer is awful...What's making it even worse is cancer treatment.""

A critique of pure stupidity: understanding Trump 2.0

"Employees are using AI tools to create low-effort, passable looking work that ends up creating more work for their coworkers."

My 18 year old son Sequoia has been working on a huge personal project for the last few years. He has written a full feature length animated film screenplay and musical score called, "The Unlikely Pairing of Fowl and Cheese." Check out the work on his website: sequoia.dreilinger.com/writing-coll...

Sperm racing is all the rage among the tech bros. Why am I not surprised? | Arwa Mahdawi

They’re Narcissists, and They’re Proud

The Newest Face of Long-Term Unemployment? The College Educated.

"85+ rising and established scientists working in the US have joined Chinese research institutions...since the start of last year...a so-called reverse brain drain that is raising questions about the US’ long-term ability to attract and keep top-tier foreign scientists..."

The Story of DOGE, as Told by Federal Workers

"1st, AI is almost certainly in what economists call an asset bubble or a speculative bubble...2nd, AI is also arguably in what we might call an infrastructure bubble...3rd, AI is certainly in a hype bubble, which is where the promise claimed for a new technology exceeds reality..."

"...the technology is still evolving...parents can use this as an opportunity to explore it together. For example, the next time your child asks you a question, type it into an AI chatbot and discuss the response"

"KPMG, predicts coffee prices “will easily exceed the record as the full effects of the 50% tariffs levied on Brazil last month work their way onto store shelves...” Big brands and small shops have been trying to absorb the costs, but consumers’ luck...appears to have run out."

"The art world is in a precarious state as it heads into the second half of 2025. Not a week goes by, it seems, without a major gallery closing...Smaller galleries are exiting and downsizing...Overheads are killing businesses. Sales are down. It’s no longer fun."

As artificial intelligence got smarter, it was supposed to become too cheap to meter. It’s proving to be anything but. Developers...are discovering their bills are higher than expected—and growing."

"As the planet heats up, experts warn that indoor heat deaths among elderly, sick and low-income people could surge amid deepening financial hardship driven by Donald Trump’s energy policies, trade wars and his administration’s dismantling of the social safety net."

"The concentrations in indoor air are far higher than outdoor air...worrying because humans spend about 90% of the day indoors...higher because it is an enclosed environment with high levels of plastic in a small area, and there is generally poor ventilation." buff.ly/fe1rihQ

"...national averages have fallen 13% since 2021, while Auckland has dropped nearly 20% and Wellington 30% - prompting questions about whether New Zealand has finally managed to turn around its housing crisis, and what it could mean for other overheated markets around the world." buff.ly/P7CDvVo

"Katrina became a watershed moment in American disaster response and led to a massive overhaul of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)...20 years later, those efforts...are being undone. In his second term, President Donald Trump has vowed to dismantle the agency..."

Why is AI so slow to spread? Economics can explain

"...for 95% of companies in the dataset, generative AI implementation is falling short...MIT’s research suggests companies see far more failures when going solo...“the data showed purchased solutions delivered more reliable results."

"Generative AI tools are undeniably useful for information seeking, and even novice users recognize that potential value right away. However, this study reminds us that, while people working in tech may feel that genAI’s uses are obvious, that is not the case for many consumers." buff.ly/us0lEye

"...rural residents were understandably upset. The impacts of climate change were abstract to many people, Golden said, until they started getting those letters — at the same time insurance companies were dumping them."

"AI-generated content is what math decides the groupthink wants to hear based on what it’s already said in the past."

"its survival speaks volumes about the cultural appeal of reassurance in chaotic times...calm perseverance in the face of adversity–continues to strike a chord. It has thrived in meme culture because its message is timelessly adaptable; calm resilience suits both crisis and comedy."

"...expect the cost of LLMs to decrease over time. “That’s what everyone’s banking on...the inference cost today, that’s the most expensive it’s ever going to be...” Rather than falling as expected, the cost of some of the latest AI models has risen"

"The sale of the president’s house came as Cornell faces “profound financial challenges...” They referenced hundreds of millions of dollars in federal research contracts that were terminated or frozen by the Trump administration as well as threats to future funding...""