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One night in Miami: The Scotsmen of the apocalypse
BBC Scotland's Scott Mullen paints the scene from Miami as Scotland's World Cup hopes fade.
Hopewell's James Armstrong is the first sophomore to win Post-Gazette Athlete of the Year
James Armstrong is a teenager who doesn’t do well with downtime. Armstrong has a summer job as a maintenance worker at schools in the Ambridge Area...
Quiz of the week: how do scientists hope to protect Earth from dangerous solar storms?
Have you been keeping up to date with physics news? Try our short quiz to find out
It's Xbox's turn (again), as console prices keep going up
Microsoft announced a price hike for the Xbox Series consoles today, the third in little over a year. Effective August 1, the Xbox Series S, which launched in 2020 for $300, will cost $500 in the U.S. The Xbox Series X, which launched in 2020 at $500, will go for $800. This follows a round of PlayStation 5 price increases from Sony this spring, and a slow-motion increase for Nintendo’s Switch 2, which will kick in in the U.S. in September. (Mind you, there were also eight video game industry price hikes in six months of 2025). The chart up top shows the sudden ascent of console prices over the past year, a sudden surge in an already unusual hardware generation. Prices had been flat for years, now “up” is the new “flat.” Game console prices used to go down across the length of a console generation, but not this time around. Microsoft’s explanation for the new price hike today: We hoped another price increase would not be necessary, and we have spent the last several months working with suppliers on options. Unfortunately, console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027. The entire consumer electronics industry is struggling with the current components crisis, but the effects are particularly hard on consoles. Unlike phones, computers, speakers, and other consumer devices, consoles are typically not sold at a profit, but instead for less than they cost to make. This is an issue well beyond game consoles. Apple announced price hikes on its computers and tablets today as well. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Item 2: Brutal Bungie cuts Bungie laid off “most” of its Destiny development team and some developers who worked on Marathon, the newest game from the struggling Sony-owned studio. A WARN notice issued by Sony to Washington State, where Bungie is based, tallied cuts impacting 292 workers, effective next month. That’s strictly for Bungie/Sony jobs in Washington and wouldn’t account for any elsewhere. The video I clipped below shows the redacted list of Bungie cuts filed to Washington State officials. As you’ll see, I had to scroll for a while… In a note emailed to PlayStation workers and published online, PlayStation game studios chief Hermen Hulst offered the following explanation for these latest cuts at Bungie: This is painful news, especially for talented colleagues whose roles have been eliminated. This decision was made only after extensive discussion and careful consideration, and I want to provide some context on how we arrived here. Over the past several months, together with Bungie leadership, we reviewed the studio’s long-term direction, development priorities, resource needs, and role within our broader portfolio strategy. We explored multiple alternatives before concluding that a reduction was necessary to align the studio’s resources with its current priorities and long-term goals. In 2022, Sony bought Bungie for $3.7 billion. The studio’s marquee game, the multiplayer live service shooter Destiny 2 was losing popularity at the time. Its next game Marathon, released earlier this year, has been well-reviewed but had a slow start. Bungie is renowned for making great shooter games, and Destiny fans have mourned the wind-down of Destiny 2. They’ve also expressed bewilderment over reports that Destiny 3 is not, per Bloomberg, immediately in the cards.
Shockwave Medical announces new studies evaluating carotid IVL platform
Carotid artery disease causes up to 30% of all strokes, but severely calcified lesions can make treatment quite complex. The hope is that IVL can be as successful in this area as it has been in the treatment of coronary and peripheral artery disease.
Romeo Doubs' Exit Could Raise the Stakes for Jordan Love in Green Bay
Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers are eyeing a bounce-back campaign in 2026. The Packers opened the 2025 season with a strong start, posting a 9-3-1 record through their first 13 games, before a flurry of injuries derailed Green Bay's Super Bowl hopes. Since taking over as Green Bay's starter under center, the Utah State product has shown flashes of a top-five signal-caller, though the team hasn't yet made it past the divisional round under his leadership.
Brad Stevens discusses ‘excitement’ surrounding Chris Cenac Jr.
“I hope we’re good enough that it’s hard for any 18-year-old or 19-year-old to come in here and be really good out of the gate.”
CBS Sports named this transfer as a potential X-factor for the Longhorns, and it may not be who you expect
The Longhorns’ CFP hopes could hinge on this transfer addition.
From The Sports Desk: Is the Tartan party over?
Scotland’s hopes of advancing to the knockouts hang by a kilting thread.
Entertainment this week: Paul Thorn, Hike for Hope and more
Friday, June 26 Annual Ian Casey Classic – Tahoe Donner Golf Course. Our most popular event of the year, a full field of 130+ golfers will team up in foursomes and hit the links to...
How should European scientists respond to the US AI kill switch?
Earlier in June, Europe’s worst fears of technological dependence were confirmed when the White House ordered the AI firm Anthropic to stop non-US citizens using its leading models. This kill-switch moment crystalised anxieties in Brussels that the continent, lagging the US on the creation of leading-edge AI models, is now a technological of vassal of Washington. The shock has specific implications for European scientists and universities. Some governments are now worried that with AI being integrated into labs, Donald Trump now has his finger hovering over an off switch for European science. “Having restrictions on this tool, it can have an impact on our own research,” said France’s research minister, Philippe Baptiste, at the VivaTech conference in Paris on June 18.Baptiste, himself a former academic, said that colleagues in mathematics had recently warned him they were now cut off from leading-edge US models, risking their work. “This model is not available anymore now because of the US restriction, and for the first time this had an impact on mathematics,” a field where large language models (LLMs) are making a significant contribution, said Baptiste. So, should European scientists avoid relying on US models in the future? Or would this be a self-harming overreaction? And how is AI being used in science, anyway? What happened?On June 12, it emerged that Washington, citing cybersecurity concerns, had ordered Anthropic to stop non-US citizens using two models: Claude Mythos 5, and Claude Fable 5, a version of Mythos but with guardrails to prevent abuse. Anthropic said Washington’s concerns were overblown. But forced to follow the order, yet with no way to check who was using the models, the company suddenly shut down access for everyone, US citizens included. There’s still no agreement on how to restore broad access. But last week, Bloomberg reported that select US companies, and the US government, still had access to Mythos despite the ban, but the EU’s cybersecurity agency Enisa had been shut out. Class division of researchersIn the longer term, access outside the US should be restored, said Marcel Salathé, co-director of the AI centre at the Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne (EPFL), because a permanent restriction would be financially ruinous to US AI firms. “Even Trump will eventually budge to economic pressure,” he said.However, US AI firms might end up operating rather like banks, doing due diligence on users of their leading-edge AI models, he went on.European scientists are unlikely to fall foul of such checks, he said. But having a Chinese postgraduate in their lab, or doing a type of research the US disapproved of, could potentially result in access being denied. “It will create a sort of class division of researchers,” he said. More than frontier modelsHowever, successfully deploying AI in science is about far more than just having access to leading LLMs such as Mythos.Instead, many science-specific tools, most famously Alphafold, which predicts protein folding structures, require “far less” computing power to train than frontier models, well within the capabilities of European supercomputers, according to a recent analysis by the Arq Foundation, a Brussel-based AI think tank. Instead, tools such as Alphafold are possible because certain fields, like protein folding, weather prediction or astronomy, have large, clean, standardised datasets that can be used to train predictive models. Rather than compute, “data is the central constraint for AI for science,” the report says. For example, a less powerful physics model trained on CERN’s data “will be more valuable than the best model without certain data,” said Bengüsu Özcan, author of the report. European advantage?Europe could therefore steal a march by using its scientific data and infrastructure to create models US digital giants cannot. “They might actually match or go even beyond what these big [US] companies are doing,” said Özcan.Indeed, some European start-ups hope to create automated testing labs to create the kind of standardised data that could speed up the discovery of new materials. Materials scientists say there’s currently too little data to train models. AI scientistsHowever, even if the bottleneck for AI in science is often data, rather than compute, being at the mercy of the US for LLM access could still become a problem for European scientists. A new class of “AI scientists” based on leading LLMs is also emerging, Özcan’s report says.Unlike domain-specific tools like Alphafold, these try to automate day-to-day scientific work, by providing an overarching tool that coordinates specific models to synthesise existing literature, generate hypotheses or run analysis of data. The problem for Europe, however, is that these tools are sometimes based on US leading models. Google Deepmind’s AI Co-Scientist, for example, is built on Google’s Gemini LLM. Systematic failureThese scientific automation tools are still in their early stages, and still exhibit “systematic failures on scientific tasks,” Özcan’s report says. One of the problems is that the messy, day-to-day process of scientific discovery is largely not documented, meaning LLMs don’t have a good source of data to learn how scientists actually work. Meanwhile, some tasks, such as literature synthesis, don’t typically require access to leading edge models.However, the performance of AI scientific assistants could improve as companies such as Google pour resources into developing them. Rely on US“Unfortunately, for scientific assistants, there is not much we can do right now except rely on US frontier AI,” said Antoine Bosselut, a natural language processing expert based at EPFL. Chinese-built open models, which can run on local computers, lessening the risk of a shutdown, are touted as one alternative to US dependence. There’s also Mistral, once seen as Europe’s main AI hope, but the Paris-based company has seen its recent models fall behind in performance. But the Chinese alternatives are generally not as capable as US frontier AI models, said Bosselut, unless paired with fiddly, custom tools that allows them to act as independent agents. “Most scientists do not have the time,” he said. Don’t jump ship yetAlthough the kill switch moment is seen a warning shot for European scientists, it doesn’t mean labs should abandon US AI tools immediately. “I do not think the right response is simply to abandon US-based models and systems under the banner of sovereignty or independence,” said Mattias Björnmalm, secretary general of the Cesaer university association. “That would be an overreaction.”Related articlesEuropean sovereignty in AI requires ‘ugly trade-offs,’ say experts Robotic lab start-up makes case for €500M EU-funded materials testing facilityAI in science: is it useful? Instead, European researchers need to ask themselves whether they’re becoming dependent on technology that could be turned off in Washington, said Özcan. “They might not see this today, but they should really start asking this question,” she said. European researchers need a plan B, said Salathé. “I would recommend to every researcher, very proactively explore alternatives.”Own toolsIn addition, Björnmalm and others want European research institutions to develop their own scientific AI tools.Instead of signing AI deals with US digital giants, European universities should be using this money to create their own models, which may end up being superior for research, said Sabine Leonelli, an expert on the use of AI in science at the Technical University of Munich. “Universities in Europe seem to be happy to sign commercial contracts with US companies on the assumption [their AI tools] are better,” she said. But US frontier LLMs are typically opaque, and have been developed without independent scientific input, she said. “This is not good enough for science.”Last year, Swiss researchers released Apertus, an LLM designed to be completely transparent, from its development methods to its training data. The idea is that this makes scientific tools built on top of the model far more reproducible than with closed, commercial alternatives.“Europe needs more of this: serious capacity-building that gives researchers, universities and companies credible options,” said Björnmalm.
Scientists have just unlocked the secrets of an ancient scroll torched by Mount Vesuvius
After a centuries-long struggle, scholars managed to read five feet of text, using machine-learning methods they hope can unlock further discoveries.
Women in Science: Dr Jennifer D’Souza - TIB-Blog
The blog series “Women in Science” introduces women from TIB who share insights into their careers and personal experiences in science. Dr Jennifer D’Souza studied Natural Language Processing at the University of Texas at Dallas, USA, and is now an AI/NLP research group lead at TIB. In this interview, she shares what she finds most rewarding about a career in science, the lessons she has learned along the way, and her hopes for the next generation of women scientists.
Oil price falls to lowest level since before the US-Iran war; UK firms hope Burnham will ease burden
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Alliance Orthopedics high school sports polls June update. Who are the winners?
That's a wrap on the spring season for Shore Conference high school sports. Let's go over the list of winners of polls sponsored by Alliance Orthopedics
CHI Health debuts new orthopedic center in west Omaha
CHI Health is transforming its orthopedic care. On Wednesday, the organization broke ground on their new Lakeside Hills center. This will support patients from their initial diagnosis to recovery.
Fort Lauderdale hopes "Uptown Urban Village" could bring extra business to the area
Mayor David Chait Attends Capital Health's Pride Flag Raising and Juneteenth Ceremonies
Hopewell Township, Mercer County, NJ - Throughout the month of June, Mayor David Chait was honored to join community members at both Capital Health's Pride Flag Raising Ceremony and Juneteen
Pints & Politics with WUNC's Colin Campbell in Pittsboro
To celebrate WUNC's 50th anniversary this year, we're hosting 50 events across North Carolina! Please join us on August 19 at BMC Brewing at The Plant in Pittsboro for Pints & Politics with WUNC Capitol Bureau Chief Colin Campbell! The event kicks off at 6 p.m.We'll chat about all things North Carolina politics, and your first pint will be on BMC Brewing in a special WUNC 50th anniversary pint glass! This event is free and open to the public, but an RSVP is encouraged as space is limited. Please RSVP at the link below to let us know if you are planning to join us. You can also submit a question for Colin in advance when you sign up to attend. We hope to see you soon!> RSVP Here
An Evening of Hope: The Center for Youth Mental Health Hosts its Annual Benefit Dinner
The annual benefit dinner for the Center for Youth Mental Health at NewYork-Presbyterian was hosted by Anna Wintour, Mariska Hargitay, Dr. Zandy Forbes, Dr. Brian G. Donley, and Kim Richter Shirley and Jon Shirley.
Trump cancels plan to sign major housing bill as he fights with Congress over the SAVE Act
Just hours before heading to Capitol Hill, Trump called the big, bipartisan housing bill Republicans hope to run on in the fall “of minor importance.”
Galaxy Z Fold 8 wallpapers leak, and I hope the phone’s colors look half as good
A new leak has revealed the alleged wallpapers Samsung is bringing to the Galaxy Z Fold 8, with everything lining...
Valve admits Steam Machine is "more expensive" than it hoped
The PC giant is non-commital on whether the console's price will come down in the future if hardware costs reduce
German Business Confidence Edges Higher on Hopes Iran Tensions Ease
The Ifo business-climate index nevertheless remains at a subdued level, having plummeted after the outbreak of the war in Iran.
Maryland Democrats pick their U.S. House nominees as Moore wins primary for governor
Rising party star Gov. Wes Moore won the Democratic primary in his bid for reelection to a second term. Republican voters hope to return the state to GOP leadership by picking a candidate they think can unseat him.
Baltimore businesses hope Sail 250 Maryland will boost sales
Businesses hope Sail 250 Maryland and Air Show Baltimore will bring a much-needed boost in sales.
Drawing the Line Between Art and Science
“The lectureship will highlight both art and science, but I hope it also serves as a venue to hear from individuals with disabilities,” said Amanda Behr, PhD.
One transfer portal addition who could swing College Football Playoff hopes for every post-spring top 25 team
From must-perform offensive linemen to ceiling-raising quarterbacks, these 25 transfers are poised to change the College Football Playoff race in 2026
Who are the new 'Love Island USA' bombshells? 6 stars dumped in major Casa Amor twist.
This year's Casa Amor challenge brought a record number of bombshells to the villa — and a dramatic elimination that sent six hopefuls home.
Businesses In Europe, Asia See Costs Cooling On Peace Hopes
Eurozone businesses reported that their input costs rose at the slowest pace since the outbreak of the conflict, and they in turn increased their prices at a slower pace.
Little Saigon businesses say World Cup crowds downtown aren't boosting sales as hoped
But according to the organization, many business owners have reported fewer customers than expected during the tournament's opening weeks.
Mill Avenue businesses brace for recovery as construction nears the end
After months of construction being just one factor keeping customers away from Mill Avenue businesses, places that have made it through hope a rebound is coming as construction nears its end.
Romania’s Political Turmoil Deepens After PM Hopeful Loses Vote
Romania’s prime minister nominee failed to win parliamentary approval for his proposed cabinet, prolonging a political deadlock that risks stalling key reforms for crucial European Union recovery funding.
Mackenzie McMahon Earns "Best of Division III" Honor in College Sports Communicators Creative and Digital Design Contest
She had three entries place in the annual contest.
Apple’s Eddy Cue on ‘F1’ Sequel, Why Apple TV Has Never Licensed Any Library Content and Being Inspired by Steve Jobs
Apple hasn’t officially greenlit a sequel to last year’s blockbuster “F1: The Movie,” but Eddy Cue — who oversees the tech giant’s entertainment businesses — said one will “hopefully” be coming, in pa...
Scientists have designed a clay that can prevent fruits and vegetables from rotting too quickly
The gas ethylene causes fruit and vegetables to ripen faster and is responsible for millions of tons of food being lost annually during transport and storage. Now researchers from the University of Copenhagen, among others, have succeeded in getting clay to collect the gas and hope that the material can help reduce food waste in the long term.
Democrats’ Great Alaskan Hope
Mary Peltola, the Democrat most likely to win a red-state Senate seat this year, is largely unknown outside her home state. That’s not a coincidence.
Gossip: Jackson hopes to remain at Chelsea
Striker Nicolas Jackson will not push for a move away from Chelsea as he aims to impress new manager Xabi Alonso in pre-season. (Football Insider)
West Hartford Business Buzz: June 22, 2026 - We-Ha
A round-up of openings, closings, and other news about West Hartford businesses. Business Buzz is sponsored by NBT Bank, and we are very thankful for their support! By Ronni Newton Happy Father’s Day to all the dads and father figures out there! I hope you all had a special day on
World’s 1st HIV-to-HIV lung transplant performed at NYU Langone Health
The surgery brings new hope for HIV-positive patients in need of lung transplants, as it opens a pool of potential donors who were previously ineligible.
Yankees fall asleep against Reds, lose series
I hope the Dads out there had a better Father’s Day than the Yankees did.
Science & Medicine: A San Antonio researcher is studying magnets and money to treat alcohol use disorder
Alcohol use disorder affects millions of Americans, but treatment options remain limited, and relapse is common. A UT Health San Antonio researcher is studying two unconventional approaches that he hopes could one day be combined into a single, more effective treatment.
New Belleville resource hub hopes to curb maternal health care gaps in St. Clair County
A new maternal health resource center in Belleville is working to fill critical gaps in pregnancy and postpartum support in what leaders call a “maternal care desert,” offering services for mothers and families across St. Clair County and the region.
New Belleville resource hub hopes to curb maternal health care gaps in St. Clair County
A new resource center in Belleville is hoping to help address the growing maternal health care crisis in St. Clair County and beyond.
Weekly Portland women’s sports look ahead (6/19)
Weekly Portland women’s sports look ahead (6/19). Presented by Rivermark Community Credit Union and Rebound Orthopedics and Neurosurgery.
Weekly Portland women’s sports look ahead (6/19)
Weekly Portland women’s sports look ahead (6/19) Presented by Rivermark Community Credit Union and Rebound Orthopedics and Neurosurgery.
Weekly Portland women’s sports wrap up (6/19)
Weekly Portland women’s sports wrap up (6/19). Presented by Rivermark Community Credit Union and Rebound Orthopedics and Neurosurgery.
When will Trump let Republican hopefuls make moves to succeed him?
We recently assessed the large field of Democrats who could run for president in 2028 and are already making moves in that direction.
'Leviticus' finds hope in the horrors of gay conversion therapy
Spoiler alert! We're discussing major details about the ending of “Leviticus” (in theaters now). Stop reading if you haven’t seen the film and don’t want to know.
Stanislaus County OKs new mental health plan, prepares for state monitoring
County officials hope the plan increases access to care and serves to reduce homelessness, relieve burden on the criminal justice system and reduce untreated mental illness.
After a health scare, he's in his 40s, with abs and a supplement stack
Chris Gayomali used to party, then realized he wouldn't live forever. Now he's in shape for the first time, and hopes to keep it that way.
The Market’s AI Fanfare Is Running Into a Harsh Political Reality
Anthropic’s hopes for a blockbuster IPO could depend as much on the ballot box as on investors.
CT Culture Corner: Shepard Fairey exhibit, Somi concert this week
The artist responsible for Obama's "Hope" poster and the "Obey" graphic comes to New London Museum, Irish dance in Torrington and who wrote the classic "Danny Boy," anyway?
Fire Vitello Immediately
Vitello knew. And he has to go if this franchise has any hope of moving on from this scandal.
New Citizen Science Lab opens in Pittsburgh’s Hill District
Officials hope the new lab will open doors for young Pittsburgh residents.
McIlroy seven back but likes his chances at US Open
Three bogeys in a row and a double bogey on the back nine doomed Rory McIlroy's hopes of pushing the leaders Friday at the US Open, but he fancies his chances just the same.He followed with a 43-foot birdie putt at 14 but went over the 15th green and then into a bunker on the way to a double bogey.
Hope from Science and New Polling on America’s Creed
John West discussed the meaning of equality, enshrined in the Declaration of Independence, when it’s obvious that individual humans are not all equally gifted.
Citizen Science Lab’s new home brings hope to Herron Avenue corridor
The Citizen Science Lab expanded into the newly renovated, previously long-abandoned Martin Luther King, Jr. Reading and Cultural Center in the Hill District.
Kansas City’s Black-owned businesses court World Cup visitors with a new shopping guide
The hope is that the World Cup, predicted to bring in more prospective shoppers than Kansas City has ever seen at once, jumpstarts long-term growth.
Polymarket Launches Its First Entertainment Podcast: 'What Are the Odds?'
The company clearly hopes to expand its outreach to women.
North Side restaurant owner’s stroke leaves family business in limbo
After a stroke left Asian Bite owner Gunawan Halim hospitalized, his family is grappling with medical bills, lost income and the possibility of losing the restaurant they hoped to one day pass down to their children.
Scientists reprogram brain immune cells to fight Alzheimer’s
A newly identified molecule called OLE helped restore the brain’s immune cells to a more protective state in Alzheimer’s models. The treatment reduced toxic plaque buildup and improved memory, raising hopes for a new therapeutic approach.
Obama Presidential Center dedication: A nod to a past era in politics and future hopes
All living former presidents gathered for the dedication of the Obama presidential center in Chicago. It was a star studded event that harkened back to a more-optimistic era in American politics.
Arizona prosecutors dismissing fake elector case but vow to seek new indictment
The decision announced Thursday marks the third such fake elector case filed by states to be dismissed, though the Democratic attorney general is vowing to bring it back to a grand jury in hopes of securing another indictment.
Google Health App Gets Massive Update With 13+ Changes
Google released a major update to the Google Health app today as it works quickly to introduce missing features, fix as many bugs as it can, and hopefully turn all of the negative reactions they...
Dem Senate hopeful under fire for resurfaced comments calling cops 'opportunistic cowards'
Graham Platner's anti-law enforcement Reddit posts resurfaced as the far-left populist seeks to unseat Sen. Susan Collins in Maine's Senate race.
Ted Cruz bill to regulate college sports in NIL era advances
The Texan said he hopes the proposed changes, written with a Democratic senator, can save athletics from a stark separation between the haves and have-nots.
Kansas City’s Black-owned businesses court World Cup visitors with a new shopping guide
Kansas City G.I.F.T, a nonprofit focused on growing Black entrepreneurship, will distribute a guide in June that features 30 Black-owned businesses. The hope is that the World Cup, predicted to bring in more prospective shoppers than Kansas City has ever seen at once, jumpstarts long-term growth.
Spencer Strider gets moved to 60-day IL
See ya later, Strider. Hopefully things will be better in 60 days.
The secret sauce to how new Cowboys DC Christian Parker is increasing Dallas' communication
The Dallas Cowboys have a new system under Christian Parker, and the defensive coordinator hopes to turn things around in the NFC East.
Rochester Regional Health building new orthopedic and neurosciences center in Canandaigua
Canandaigua, N.Y. — Construction is underway on a new Rochester Regional Health facility in Ontario County.
Noah Hiles: What happens if the Pirates don’t improve? Ben Cherington should hope we don't find out
It’s been a rough June for the Pirates. Don Kelly’s club entered Wednesday with a 5-9 record on the month. A few of their recent victories...
Nuanced differences on business issues separate Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls
Both Democratic gubernatorial candidates vow to boost Colorado's business atmosphere, but they offer different approaches to doing so.
Latvia pilots citizen engagement in research grant evaluations
Latvia has introduced an element of citizen engagement to the evaluation of nationally funded research grants. The aim is to both create more connections between science and society, and to improve the quality of its evaluations. The move comes as research funders across Europe are experimenting with ways to improve evaluation processes in the face of a sharpened focus on science’s impact on society. Evaluators of grant applications submitted to Latvia’s Fundamental and Applied Research Programme (FLPP), the country’s main research funder, will this year have the option of consulting citizen feedback on challenges the public thinks science should focus on to inform their decisions. “In recent years, both public discussions and policy-level debates in Latvia have highlighted the importance of demonstrating how publicly funded research contributes to society, the economy and the resolution of real-world challenges,” said a source at the Latvian Council of Science (LCS), which manages the FLPP. “At the same time, research institutions themselves expressed interest in improving the project evaluation framework while continuing to ensure that funding is awarded to the highest-quality projects,” the source added. The citizen input comes from a survey that was conducted between 25 February and 16 March 2025, to which 1,737 people responded. It gathered information on what the public views as problem areas for Latvia, and the role of science and technology in providing solutions to these problems. A summary of these responses has been included as an annex to the FLPP 2026 call for proposals that evaluators can refer to, purely in an advisory manner, when judging proposals. Results from the survey show that the main problem areas identified by the public were in healthcare and public health, followed by the development of new treatment methods and medicines, and then digital technology, data security and cyber security. At the bottom of the list was research aimed at acquiring new knowledge about the universe, matter and the laws of nature. Further analysis looked at the public view of the possible role of science in solving these problems. The survey charted 4,167 individual responses based on open-ended questions that were derived from the participants’ answers. The analysis again found that medical and health sciences topped the scoring, with 788 responses referring to the field. Humanities and the arts were bottom of the list, with 625. Digging further into the details, the survey suggests citizens are aware of and concerned about a number of research areas. This includes technologies and innovation to improve the environment or reduce pollution, the development of modern military technologies and cybersecurity tools, and the development and application of artificial intelligence, among others. “We hope this initiative will help strengthen public trust in science and create a more meaningful dialogue between researchers and society,” the LCS source said, adding that it offers benefits to researchers, evaluators and to the general public. More space for citizen engagement in evaluationsThere is a gradual but increasing use of citizen engagement in research evaluation processes around Europe, especially in healthcare, but it remains relatively rare, said Henry Sauermann, a professor at the European School of Management and Technology in Berlin and an expert in citizen science.“Given that we are at a point where citizen involvement is extremely limited, there is presumably space for more, but it's not that we should do it just because we want to do it,” he told Science|Business. He said some research lends itself better to having citizen input, and this usually tends to be on the applied end of the science spectrum where the public can offer useful feedback based on their experiences. He added that advising scientists on certain topics to study is also a useful approach, in the way that Latvia is doing. “The public does fund a lot of science, there's a lot of tax money going into this. We of course do want to preserve academic freedom, but it's also not unreasonable to incorporate more feedback or input from citizens where possible,” he said. Related articlesCitizen science: where, when, and how to let the public contribute to researchHow can Europe cope with a flood of AI-assisted research grant proposals?Data Corner: Horizon Europe’s AI, digital and data call success rate is 5.2%There are several ways of involving citizens in science funding. The most minimal way is having a few representatives on a panel, such as members of a patient group or union. The most direct way is crowdsourcing funding for specific projects. There is an increasing number of online platforms that allow the public to chip in to support scientific proposals.Sauermann studied this in a recent paper and found that it can have its uses, but it still is not clear if there are benefits to it. There are various assumptions linked to citizen engagement, for example that it increases public trust in science, or that it provides a representative view of what the public thinks about science. These are not necessarily true, Sauermann found. People who participate in engagement activities tend to already be very trusting of science, and, on the whole, it is generally the well-off and well educated who contribute, giving a narrow view of public opinion. On whether citizen input can help manage the increasing number of proposals that are being submitted due to assistance from AI, Sauermann is more sceptical. “The obvious answer to the flood of AI-written proposals is AI-driven evaluation,” he said, adding that it doesn’t mean citizen engagement shouldn’t be a part of evaluations in a well thought-out manner. Southern Denmark’s successful approachOne successful example of citizen engagement in science evaluations was implemented in southern Denmark. Between 2019 and 2025, citizens in the region were invited to vote to fund one of five pre-selected projects in the field of healthcare. The project, called A Healthier Southern Denmark, was a collaboration between regional authorities, the University of Southern Denmark, and two media partners. Over the seven years, there were 75,000 votes and significant public engagement online and on social media. “It was a bit of a wild project, we’d never done something like that before and we were a bit nervous about what would be said in the media about it. But actually, people were very positive,” said Anne Kathrine Overgaard, one of the main organisers of the project from the University of Southern Denmark. The university and its researchers have learned a lot from the experience, particularly about engaging with society and shaping their research to match real-world needs. This is important with Europe’s increasing focus on competitiveness and bringing innovations to market faster, Overgaard said. She hopes to see more citizen engagement in evaluation processes and in science more broadly. “For many years, citizen engagement has been a bit of an add-on to proposals, just to check a box. But I think things are changing,” she said. It’s less about citizens just gathering data and more “about the dialogue between the public and the scientists,” she said. The initiative ended last year as the team wanted to regroup to find fresh momentum. The development of AI and AI-written proposals has made Overgaard reflect on how the project could be reworked to help evaluators. She hopes to bring it back in the future. “It could be a good idea to try this initiative again in a slightly re-worked format,” she said.
Merchants of Doubt and the attacks on Extreme Event Attribution science
Last week, I attended a meeting at Columbia University on attribution science and climate law, hosted by the Sabin Center. It was a fantastic event, bringing together scientists and legal experts working at the intersection of extreme event attribution and climate law. Subscribe For those unfamiliar with it, extreme event attribution attempts to quantify the contribution of climate change to an extreme event. For example, several groups analyzed the impact of climate change on Hurricane Harvey’s enormous rainfall totals over Houston, Texas and they found that climate change increased rainfall by 15 to 38%. One thing that came up again and again was how terrified fossil-fuel interests are of extreme event attribution science. They are acutely aware that this research could land them in court. And losing those cases would leave them legally liable for billions of dollars in climate damages. Because the legal stakes are so high, the blowback has turned ugly. I spoke with several scientists at the meeting who are facing ongoing harassment over their work. This blowback is a coordinated campaign to make the entire field look suspect. The goal is to create the impression that attribution science is too uncertain, too political, or too conflicted to be useful in court or in public policy. The strategy is not based on actual science or evidence of misconduct, but on the generation of doubt. The new Merchants of Doubt We’ve seen this before. In fact, not that long ago: We only have to go back a year to the Department of Energy (DOE) Climate Working Group (CWG) report to see an example of using doubt as the tool to push back against well-established science. This strategy is laid out in an email from a member of the CWG, Dr. Roy Spencer, that was released during litigation over the Climate Working Group process. The key quote is: About all I can hope is that what we write will provide sufficient “reasonable scientific doubt” regarding the science claims in the 2009 TSD [technical support document], based upon almost 2 decades of new science, to call into question the original reasoning for the EPA Administrator’s decision that CO2 presents a threat to human health and welfare. This statement is strong evidence that at least some members of the committee were working to support a particular policy outcome: revoking the Endangerment Finding. The email also explains how they planned to do it: by attempting to generate “reasonable doubt”. This is going to be hard, Spencer implies. Despite falsely claiming that “2 decades of new science” weakens the case, Spencer explicitly acknowledges that the actual peer-reviewed science of climate change overwhelmingly rejects his position: But if the science argument is decided upon by a vote, or by the number of published citations, we lose the science argument. We can go back even further: This CWG email shares unmistakable DNA with the infamous 1969 tobacco memo that declared: “Doubt is our product, since it is the best means of competing with the ‘body of fact’ that exists in the mind of the general public. It is also the means of establishing a controversy.” The tobacco memo also acknowledges the limit of this strategy: Like the CWG, they knew the science was not on their side. Share The new new Merchants of Doubt The people attacking the IPCC chapter on extreme event attribution are the newest iteration of the Merchants of Doubt. Their goal, like all Merchants before them, is to introduce doubt into the process. Because the report is not even out yet, they cannot attack its conclusions. So they are attacking the authors instead. Here is a press release from the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee: In the letter, the Chairmen express concerns about potential conflicts of interest involving members of the Attribution Committee, stating that “publicly available information suggests a troubling pattern” in which committee members are affiliated with nonprofits that support climate accountability lawsuits, “raising the appearance of impropriety and member bias.” To be clear, this is just innuendo. There is no actual evidence of bias. And given the robust process that these reports go through, including multiple lines of peer review, it seems very unlikely that significant bias can survive into the report. When the report comes out, critics will have the opportunity to make legitimate criticisms of the report — if any exist. If none do, however, they’ll still make criticisms, but they’ll be bogus, simply designed to generate doubt. We’ll see. A note to the press: Fix your frame To any journalists reading this: The public debate over extreme event attribution science is not going away. The science is simply too dangerous to fossil-fuel interests for them to stop fighting it. You very well might be assigned to write an article about this area of research in the future. When you do, do not automatically adopt the framing that climate misinformers want you to use. They want you to frame the story around questions like: Are climate scientists trying to put their thumb on the scale to achieve a predetermined, politically motivated result? Are climate scientists improperly letting their politics invade the science of the IPCC? That frame is a trap. Instead, you need to view this through the historical lens of the Merchants of Doubt. How does the ecosystem of doubt operate? Who funds it? What methods do they use to misrepresent science and slime researchers? What scientific results are they trying to keep people from understanding are legitimate? Ultimately, you instead need to focus your article on the generation of doubt as a way to maintain the fossil fuel industry’s social and legal license to keep burning oil, gas, and coal. If you treat the misinformers’ frame as a legitimate, good-faith scientific critique, you are helping them produce doubt. Don’t do it. Don’t be a Merchant of Doubt. Thanks for reading The Climate Brink! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Subscribe other stuff The Staying Curious Substack has an interesting post about the different flavors of climate sensitivity. This is crucial information if you want to understand how scientists think about how much warming the Earth will experience. I’d be grateful if you could hit the like button ❤️ below! 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