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Knicks look to limit SGA in rematch vs. Thunder

The last time the New York Knicks and Oklahoma City Thunder squared off, Knicks coach Mike Brown had some things to say about Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander after the game.

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Mar 28 • 4:43 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Skidding Heat taking nothing for granted vs. Pacers

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra has been known to get the best from his teams come playoff time.

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Mar 28 • 1:40 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Olivier-Maxence Prosper, Grizzlies set sights on Bulls

With nine games remaining in the regular season for the Memphis Grizzlies, head coach Tuomas Iisalo has other priorities in mind ahead of his team's game against the visiting Chicago Bulls.

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Mar 28 • 10:33 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Israeli Military Kills Three Palestinian Men in Gaza, Health Officials Say

March 28 (Reuters) - The Israeli military killed three ⁠Palestinian ⁠men in Gaza on ⁠Saturday in two separate air strikes, local health officials and medics said, the latest round of deadly violence despite a U.S.-brokered ‌ceasefire that is now more ‌than five months old. Palestinian health ...

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Mar 28 • 9:48 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
UFC Brings Cage-Match Bout to the White House, Home of a President Who Favors Cage-Match Politics

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cage-match fighting is coming to the White House to fete President Donald Trump, a proud proponent of cage-match politics. In the coming weeks, crews will erect a 6-foot wire-mesh fence shaped into an octagon on the lawn, where UFC fighters will use a combination of kickboxing,

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Mar 28 • 8:40 AM EDT • Politics • usnews.com
Michigan St. Spartans vs. Connecticut Huskies Live Score and Stats - March 27, 2026 Gametracker

Get real-time Men's College Basketball coverage and scores as Michigan St. Spartans takes on Connecticut Huskies. We bring you the latest game previews, live stats, expert picks and recaps on CBS Sports

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Mar 27 • 8:00 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Business Lookahead: Gauging the war's impact

STORY: From a worrying drop in stocks to a surge in energy prices from the war in the Middle East to key data on jobs and trade, these are the stories to watch in business and finance in the coming week. ::Look Ahead::War impactThe first quarter is ending with financial markets at the mercy of geopolitics.The Iran war has wiped roughly $7 trillion off global stocks since it erupted.With oil prices up nearly 70% year to date, suddenly interest rates are heading up, rather than down, and energy-hungry AI does not look like such a slam-dunk anymore.Meanwhile, gold has plunged 16% after being nearly unstoppable since the start of 2025.We’ll see whether markets roll on or rollover as the second quarter begins.::Job growth in focusThe U.S. jobs report for March comes out Friday.It will offer a crucial view into the economy's health as investors gauge fallout from the energy price surge.Monthly payrolls are seen rising by 48,000, according to a Reuters poll. February's surprisingly weak report caught Wall Street off guard, showing nonfarm payrolls fell by 92,000 while the unemployment rate increased to 4.4%.Uncertainty over the Iran war is also clouding the economic forecasts for the Federal Reserve, with Wall Street pulling back on expectations for U.S. interest rate cuts this year as the oil price surge fuels concerns about rising inflation.Other U.S. data in the coming week includes retail sales for February and reports on manufacturing and services activity.::Chip checkSouth Korea releases its trade data for March on Wednesday.It will provide an early indicator of how the global economy is holding up in the face of the war and the resulting shock to energy prices. Korea's export-heavy economy is a bellwether for global trade and one of the first to report data from the previous month.Its manufacturing fortunes are of even greater interest than usual, not just because of its dependence on Middle Eastern energy imports, but also because its world-leading DRAM chips are of critical importance to the AI sector and currently in short supply too. ::Inflation assessmentAnd flash euro zone inflation for March is due on Tuesday. After long hovering around the 2% mark, higher energy prices are now expected to push headline inflation up, as they did in 2022. The question is, how large and sustained any jump in inflation might be.Early data is not painting a pretty picture. Private sector growth in the euro zone slowed sharply in March, with input costs rising to their highest in more than three years and supply chains being significantly disrupted.Money markets are now heavily pricing in a rate hike which was almost unthinkable before the Iran war.

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Mar 27 • 3:28 PM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com
New COVID 'Cicada' Variant Is Spreading — What Experts Want You To Know

By HealthDay Staff HealthDay ReporterFRIDAY, March 27, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Another new COVID variant is starting to spread. Health officials say the variant — known as BA.3.2 or "Cicada" — has been quietly circulating for years but is now being detected more often in the United States and around ...

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Mar 27 • 9:25 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Columbus Blue Jackets await assessment on Damon Severson injury

Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Damon Severson will have an upper-body injury sustained in Montreal further evaluated in Columbus.

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Mar 27 • 8:08 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Lakers return home from successful trip to face spiraling Nets

Lakers return home from successful trip to face spiraling Nets

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Mar 27 • 7:38 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Italian regulator launches probe into LVMH, Sephora for unfair commercial practices

The Italian competition authority ​AGCM said on ‌Friday it had launched two ​investigations into ​LVMH-owned entities in Italy, ⁠citing unfair ​commercial practices linked ​to the premature use of adult ​cosmetics among ​minors.

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Mar 27 • 3:41 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Michigan in familiar environs, wants different result vs. Alabama

CHICAGO -- Top-seeded Michigan occupies the same United Center locker room for the NCAA Tournament as it did during the Big Ten tournament two weeks ago.

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Mar 26 • 6:16 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Bennedict Mathurin returns as surging Clippers visit Pacers

Looking to take advantage of a golden opportunity to bolster their play-in tournament status, the Los Angeles Clippers begin a two-game Eastern Conference road trip on Friday against the fading Indiana Pacers at Indianapolis.

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Mar 26 • 5:01 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Small Daily Habits Can Add Up To Better Heart Health

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay ReporterTHURSDAY, March 26, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Even small improvements to your daily habits – a few minutes more sleep, a couple extra minutes of exercise, a daily side serving of veggies – can lower your risk of heart attack, stroke and heart failure, a new study ...

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Mar 26 • 6:55 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Campaign hopes to boost business at Marshall restaurants impacted by water outage

A shop local campaign aims to help Marshall restaurants that were forced to shut down during the recent water main break and boil water notice. The city of Marshall, Marshall […]

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Mar 26 • 6:40 AM EDT • Business • marshallnewsmessenger.com
The Lancet retracts half-century-old unsigned commentary on talc for undisclosed industry ties

SewcreamStudio/iStock The Lancet has retracted a 49-year-old unsigned commentary on the safety of cosmetic talc after two researchers discovered the author was a paid consultant to Johnson & Jo…

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Mar 25 • 6:35 PM EDT • Technology • retractionwatch.com
Q&A: An AI-Powered Way to Help Detect Brain Bleeds Faster

Timing and accuracy are vitally important when it comes to a brain bleed. Viz.ai, the company behind an artificial intelligence platform for disease detection and workflow optimization used in about 2,000 U.S. hospitals, wanted to streamline the process of identifying hemorrhages. Their solution,

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Mar 25 • 6:12 PM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Stars align as healthier Thunder, Celtics match up

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be seeking their 13th consecutive victory when they visit the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night.

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Mar 25 • 11:50 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Want To Protect Your Brain? Science Says Exercise

By HealthDay Staff HealthDay ReporterWEDNESDAY, March 25, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Lunges and squats may do more for the brain than previously thought, including helping protect it from damage tied to aging and dementia, a new study suggests. In research published this month in the journal Cell,

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Mar 25 • 9:40 AM EDT • Science • usnews.com
Called out for leaky defense, Cavaliers take aim at Heat

Called out for leaky defense, Cavaliers take aim at Heat

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Mar 25 • 7:53 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
U.S. Medicine, Science Facing An Online Misinformation Siege, Poll Concludes

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay ReporterWEDNESDAY, March 25, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Americans are trapped in a ruthless social media spin cycle of viral misinformation regarding science and medicine, with many actively contributing to the problem, a new Harris Poll has found. People have come to ...

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Mar 25 • 6:35 AM EDT • Science • usnews.com
UMass Chan junior faculty receive child health research grants from Hood Foundation

Silvia Galván Peña, PhD, and Jin Zhang, PhD, are two of five recipients of a 2026 Hood Foundation Award.

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Mar 25 • 12:13 AM EDT • Health • umassmed.edu
Wolves, winning without Anthony Edwards, take on Rockets next

Bones Hyland is stepping up at the perfect time for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

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Mar 24 • 9:46 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Down another regular, Warriors try to extend Nets' skid

The injuries keep piling up for the Golden State Warriors, who will be without yet another regular when they face the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday in San Francisco.

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Mar 24 • 8:08 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Victor Wembanyama, surging Spurs face depleted Grizzlies

The San Antonio Spurs are building momentum as the season winds down, a push that is putting pressure on Western Conference leader Oklahoma City.

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Mar 24 • 7:20 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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New Fathers Face Mental Health Challenges, Study Finds

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay ReporterTUESDAY, March 24, 2026 (HealthDay News) — New fathers might be proud poppas, but their mental health might be shaky as they adapt to their increased responsibilities, a new study says. Men have a 30% increased risk of depression and stress disorders by the end ...

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Mar 24 • 6:25 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Crowded Democratic Race for California Governor Could Open Door for Republicans

By Joseph Ax and Costas Pitas March 24 (Reuters) - By many measures, California is the center of the ⁠Democratic ⁠Party's political universe. The most populous U.S. state, it is ⁠home to both the party's last presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, and possibly its future one, Governor Gavin Newsom. But ...

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Mar 24 • 6:02 AM EDT • Politics • usnews.com
Magic face urgency to end skid vs. rising Cavaliers

James Harden and Donovan Mitchell took turns rescuing the Cavaliers on their three-game road trip, allowing Cleveland to sweep the Milwaukee Bucks, Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Pelicans.

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Mar 24 • 5:29 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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On the Road With Antiprotons: CERN Runs Delicate Test on Transporting Ultrasensitive Antimatter

GENEVA (AP) — Scientists in Geneva are taking some antiprotons out for a spin — a very delicate one — in a truck, in a never-tried-before test drive. If this so-called antimatter comes into contact with actual matter — even for a fraction of an instant — it will be annihilated in a quick flash of ...

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Mar 24 • 1:48 AM EDT • Science • usnews.com
Photos: LSU players impress NFL scouts on Pro Day 2026

NFL scouts gathered at the LSU football practice facility to see 17 LSU players that have declared for the 2026 draft on Monday, March 23, 2026. Players like Garrett Nussmeier,

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Mar 23 • 8:26 PM EDT • Sports • theadvocate.com
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Playoff-bound Wild, Lightning out to improve positioning

The Minnesota Wild and Tampa Bay Lightning, two powerhouses preparing for the playoffs in their respective conferences, will complete their two-game season series in Tuesday night's matchup in the Sunshine State.

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Mar 23 • 7:21 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Knicks go for 7th straight win, face improved Pelicans

The New York Knicks are surging as the NBA regular season enters its final three weeks.

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Mar 23 • 6:18 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Scientists Say Surprising Smells Are Unlocking the Secrets of Ancient Mummies

Analyzing samples of mummies from different dynastic periods showed how the mixtures of substances used in mummification became more complex with time.

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Mar 23 • 3:00 PM EDT • Science • popularmechanics.com
Building a Culture of Health: BJACH Opens Armed Forces Wellness Center at Fort Polk

FORT POLK, La. — Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital marked a significant step forward in supporting warfighter readiness and community well-being with the grand opening of its new Armed Forces Wellness Center on March 23. The center, located on the first floor inside BJACH, provides Soldiers, Families, civilian employees and beneficiaries with access to personalized health assessments, education and coaching designed to improve overall health and performance.

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Mar 23 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • dvidshub.net
Bucks, Clippers still hoping to make playoff runs

The Los Angeles Clippers will welcome an old friend back into town Monday when former head coach Doc Rivers and his current team, the Milwaukee Bucks, make a visit to Inglewood, Calif.

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Mar 23 • 1:46 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Wichita State wins 96-70 against Oklahoma State in NIT

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) Kenyon Giles had 28 points in Wichita State's 96-70 victory against Oklahoma State on Sunday in the NIT.

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Mar 22 • 11:19 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Surging Hawks look to take advantage of short-handed Grizzlies

The streaking Atlanta Hawks will try to enhance their push for playoff positioning in the Eastern Conference when they host the struggling Memphis Grizzlies on Monday.

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Mar 22 • 10:26 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Auburn secures 91-85 victory over Seattle U in NIT

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) Kevin Overton had 23 points in Auburn's 91-85 win over Seattle U on Sunday in the NIT.

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Mar 22 • 9:44 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Nets' Danny Wolf: Exits early Sunday

Nets' Danny Wolf: Exits early Sunday

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Mar 22 • 6:59 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Luke Doncic facing suspension as Lakers oppose playoff-bound Pistons

The Los Angeles Lakers barely kept their winning streak alive on Saturday. They'll go for 10 in a row when they visit the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons on Monday.

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Mar 22 • 6:35 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Your Thymus and Your Healthspan

Our thymus gland plays a central role in the development or our immune system, specifically for supporting T cell development (how these cells got their name, maturation and differentiation in the thymus) and discriminating between self and foreign, non-self antigen proteins with production of dendritic cells. As we age, our thymus gland shrinks—the process known as involution—with progressive change from spongy to fatty tissue, with loss of functionality. But this process, with respect to timeline and extent, markedly varies from one person to the next. And to make things even more complicated, our thymus gland anatomy and precise location in the chest also is highly variable. So the famous Frank Netter diagrams from the 1960s (such as at left below) don’t capture the remarkable heterogeneity that a random set of 12 chest CT scans (below at right). What I consider as 2 landmark papers in Nature this week (here and here) used AI to quantify health of the thymus in 2 large cohorts, and then correlate the metric to a broad array of health outcomes. In this edition of Ground Truths, I’m going to cover three questions: (1) How was thymus health determined by AI?; (2) How is thymus health linked to key clinical outcomes? and (3) Are there ways we can promote a healthy (aka rejuvenate) thymus gland in our later years? Subscribe 1. How was thymus health determined by AI? This was accomplished by extensive work developing and validating an AI pipeline for 2 stages, the first for localization and segmentation of the thymus bed, and the second to quantify a digital marker, termed the thymic health score. There’s a lot to this algorithmic development, so I won’t go into all the details, but just provide a rudimentary outline of what was done. The 1st stage used supervised learning with 2 radiologists reviewing 2,461 chest CT scans. That work trained a 3D U-Net model to automatically identify the thymic bed’s 3D cropped region using center of mass coordinates, which reached 99.8% accuracy. The 2nd stage used a foundation model that was pre-trained with SwAV (which stands for Swapping Assignment between multiple Views), a self-supervised model, that generated a high-dimensional thymus representation of 4,096 features. That compares to the radiology reductionist and subjective scoring of 0 to 3 where 0 means the thymus is fully degenerated and fatty, and 3 is considered dense, intact glandular soft tissue. Notably, the self-supervised learning (SSL) performance was superior to supervised (AUC ~0.75 vs 0.55, respectively) reflecting the shallowness of the 0-3 classifier vs SSL’s holistic, self-taught AI. The thymic health score ranged from 0 to 100, with the highest number indexed to fully preserved thymic health. The algorithmic work extended to explainability with both Shapely value distribution, meaning the model was holistic not relying on any “magic” pixel, and occlusion sensitivity, demonstrating the model’s performance was not affected by ribs, sternum, lung tissue, but rather focused on the thymic bed directly. Below are a few saliency maps from the occlusion sensitivity that indicate the thymic bed focus, not affected by neighboring structures, using the jet color scale. Now the AI was ready for processing ~25,000 CT scans, each over 30 MB files, from the 2 large participant cohorts to provide a thymic health score, it did so in less than 14 hours, which is less than 2 seconds per scan! Share 2. How is thymus health linked to key clinical outcomes? The two cohorts were the National Lung Screening Trial, NLST (N=25,031) and the Framingham Heart Study, FHS (N=2,581) each with baseline demographics and long term follow up of >12 years for health outcomes. From the NSLT, you can see below that increased age and body-mass index were correlated to reduced thymic health. And, overall, men had reduced thymic health scores compared with women. There are a lot of graphs in the paper for outcomes, for both the NLST and FHS cohorts. To simplify the major outcomes, below is a composite Figure with striking reduction of all-cause mortality and for the different causes of death. The results were consistent between the 2 cohorts. For example, the cardiovascular mortality hazard ratio average was 0.57 in NLST and 0.38 in FHS (weighted to be 0.53 for the aggregate). The reduction of mortality also extended to digestive diseases and pulmonary disease (data not shown below). Lung cancer incidence was reduced by 36% for high vs low thymic health (Figure below, with a panel -incidence and b panel-mortality, adjusted for age, sex, BMI, smoking status). Notably, there was a smoker’s paradox: lower incidence and improved survival for lung cancer in smokers who had a high thymus health score. Smoking was associated with lower thymic scores whereas alcohol was not. Higher thymic health was linked to higher HDL cholesterol, lower triglycerides, lower fasting blood glucose, and lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Inflammation biomarkers, such as C-reactive protein and interleukin-6, were elevated in the people with lower thymic health scores. In their second paper, the same team looked at the relationship between thymic score and outcomes for 3,476 patients receiving cancer immunotherapy. The non-small cell lung cancer progression-free survival was reduced in patients with low thymic health score. A parallel relationship for survival was seen for other types of cancer including melanoma, breast, and kidney with a 44% lower risk among high thymic scores (Figure). A similar pattern was seen with different immune checkpoint inhibitors. The thymus health score outperformed programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1)and tumor mutation burden (TMB) assay of the tumor and was an independent prognostic marker of progression-free survival. In this dataset, a direct connect with thymus score and adaptive immune function was noted with a correlation before cancer treatment for both T-cell diversity and thymus T-cell production (a metric known as T cell receptor excision circles). Thymus Removal Study There is a highly relevant citation about thymus function before moving onto ways to rejuvenate it. In 2023, a very important study of thymus removal during cardiothoracic surgery was published, with 1146 patients undergoing thymus removal vs 1146 matched controls (mean age 55 years). The adverse outcomes for thymus removal were striking, with a 2.9 higher risk of all-cause mortality and doubling of cancer incidence, 1.5 fold increase in cancer mortality, and 1.5-fold increase in autoimmune diseases. The immune function showed marked compromise after thymus removal, as reflected by CD4+ and CD8+ T cells (Figure below) Share Ground Truths 3. Are there ways we can promote a healthy (aka rejuvenate) thymus gland in our later years? In recent months we’ve learned a lot about the process of thymus involution and the pathways by which this may be modulated. Thymus involution is primarily due to loss to thymus epithelial cells (TECs) and there are 2 subtypes with different functions: the cortical, responsible for positive selection of T cells, and the medullary, for negative selection. When adipose tissue infiltrates the thymus, thymic adipocytes are pro-inflammatory, knocking out T-cell output. Likewise, systemic inflammation, or “inflammaging,” from smoking, obesity, and chronic stress promote thymic adipocytes. Now, from preclinical studies, we know about key pathways that account for these processes. Historically, back in 2014, FOXN1 was recognized as a single master transcription factor essential for TEC function, with studies in mice with forced FOXN1 upregulation leading to thymus regeneration. That laid the foundation for potential regrowth of quiescent thymus cells. It took awhile to find pathways to accomplish this goal and to even refute its role as the master regulator. The Liver-Thymus Axis Feng Zhang and his team recently showed that injection of an mRNA vaccine to the liver encoding DLL1, IL-7 and FLT3-L in combination, factors known to support thymopoiesis (Figure), successfully enhanced immune function in aged mice. However, the effect was transient. The FGF21 Story Two reports in 2025 addressed the thymus gland’s production of FGF21, a growth factor (fibroblast growth factor 21) and its control of thymus involution. This growth factor is also produced by the liver, but it doesn’t have impact on the thymus in aged rodent models. In contrast, The liver’s hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been shown to reverse senescent TEC structural changes. Growth hormone stimulates production of insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in the liver and the thymus. Two small studies in human participants (TRIIM, for Thymus Regeneration, Immunorestoration, and Insulin Mitigation) of 6 and 50 people, respectively, treated with combined human growth hormone, metformin and DHEA, suggested the potential of slowing epigenetic aging and improving thymus mass and function. But the combination of drugs, small sample, and lack of controls make conclusions murky. Increased thymus FGF21 led to increased CD8 T cells in old mice and extended healthspan and improved physical performance. Building on the previous FOXN1 data, ablation of β-klotho, the obligatory co-receptor for FOXN1, accelerated thymic aging. The benefit to FGF21 was confirmed in a companion paper using an FGF21 knock-in mouse model showing thymus enlargement and increased TECs throughout the lifespan. (schematic Figure below). The accompanying editorial for these 2 papers speculated: “The proposed link between age-associated thymus involution and organismal aging is intriguing, and suggests we might seek to achieve systemic rejuvenation by counteracting thymic involution.” Other Factors Lessons from the Axolotl (Mexican Salamander) In an elegant set of experiments of the axolotl (Figure), known for its complete thymus regeneration after total surgical removal, mediators were identified. Surprisingly FOXN1 was dispensable. But midkine, a growth factor, appeared to be the driver, the initiator of thymus cell growth, survival, and repair. Other components that contributed were Postn+ (periostin-expressing mesenchymal niches) and Ccl19, a chemokine protein from the bloodstream. RANK and RANKL RANK (receptor activator of nuclear factor κB its ligand (RANKL) have been considered key regulators of medullary TECs. In a study of both aged mice and human thymus cell cultures, their key role was confirmed, with multiple benefits of resorting TEC function, recruitment of progenitor cells, and T cell development. Subscribe Summing Up This body of work strongly supports the health of the thymus gland as a critical regulator of human healthspan, not just a correlate or link. The new landmark studies are reinforced by the regenerative biology experimental models that have shown, via an array of mediators, that healthspan of aged mice is at least in part dependent on thymus gland function and its critical role for maintaining adaptive immunity. It sure seems that we’d be better off having an immune reservoir of naive T cells instead of a profile in older adults of exhausted, low quality, memory T cells, with a senescent phenotype. It is striking that we ignored the importance of the thymus gland for many decades. A wake-up call was the results of the thymectomy matched control study reviewed here, with the opposite of high thymic health score improved health outcomes. The convergence of AI and healthspan here is notable. The exceptional and laborious work for developing and validating (no less explaining) the AI to quantify thymus health set the foundation for probing the connect the major health outcomes in two cohorts with extensive follow-up. We’ve never had a way to meaningfully quantify the thymus gland before, so this represents important leverage of supervised, self-supervised, and transformer models. The study wouldn’t have been possible without AI. And it begs the question as to whether there are ways we can maintain our thymus at a high health score. But it’s not so simple to rejuvenate our thymus. There are multiple risks including the induction of autoimmunity, increasing the risk of cancer, and inducing a pro-inflammatory state. For example, factors that increase TEC proliferation could compromise the medulllary negative selection process and leak out auto-reactive (self-attacking) T cells. Thymic cells could be induced to proliferate, but we know, for example, that growth hormone and IGF-1 are associated with an increase risk of cancer. If thymus rejuvenation doesn’t clear out the accumulated senescent cells in older adults, then inflammation within the gland could block the production of TECs. Keeping these risks in mind, we now have identified many ways to keep our thymus healthy as we age that undoubtedly will be tested in clinical trials going forward. Ultimately, the benefit-to-risk tradeoffs will be defined. In the meantime, we have desperately needed an immunome. As I’ve stressed in multiple prior Ground Truths, we have no test in the clinic to assess a patient’s immune status! It was very encouraging for me to get an email from Hugo Aerts, the senior author of the landmark papers in the days after they were published: “I also wanted to say that your Substack on “Why We Need an Immunome” was inspiring for this work. We found it a very compelling perspective and greatly enjoyed reading it.” Just having an assessment of a person’s immune status via a chest CT scan, with millions of these performed per year, might help in guiding the right immunotherapy for cancer (e.g. more intensive, combinations for those with low thymic health scores) and help define people who are increased risk for age-related diseases of cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative. The main theme of Super Agers is that we now have many layers of data (genetics, proteins, biomarkers, organ clocks that can be integrated via multimodal AI) for us to define a person’s specific risk decades before one of these age-related diseases leads to symptoms, enabling prevention. From the new studies this week, we can add thymus health score as yet another way to understand a person’s risk, a window into their adaptive immune system and healthspan. And perhaps someday we will be able to safely rejuvenate the thymus, or maintain its health through one’s life, and use the thymus health score to monitor. NB: I wrote this post (No A.I.) A Quick Poll Loading... ********************************************************************* Thanks to Ground Truths subscribers (now > 200,000) from every US state and 212 countries. Your subscription to these free essays and podcasts makes my work in putting them together worthwhile. Please join! If you found this interesting PLEASE share it! Share Ground Truths Paid subscriptions are voluntary and all proceeds from them go to support Scripps Research. They do allow for posting comments and questions, which I do my best to respond to. Please don’t hesitate to post comments and give me feedback. Let me know topics that you would like to see covered. Leave a comment Many thanks to those who have contributed—they have greatly helped fund our summer internship programs for the past two years. It enabled us to accept and support 47 summer interns in 2025! We aim to accept even more of the several thousand who will apply for summer 2026.

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Mar 22 • 2:18 PM EDT • Health • erictopol.substack.com
Raptors, Suns playing for postseason in season's final stretch

Two of the best turnaround stories in the NBA this season belong to the Toronto Raptors and the Phoenix Suns, who each missed the playoffs a year ago.

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Mar 22 • 8:52 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Golden Knights intent on igniting sluggish offense vs. Stars

With 12 games left in the regular season, it's fair to say that things are trending in the wrong direction for the Vegas Golden Knights.

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Mar 22 • 7:49 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Alaska Sports Scoreboard: March 21, 2026

Scores and results from competitions across the state.

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Mar 22 • 2:16 AM EDT • Sports • adn.com
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Edgecombe's double-double helps 76ers down Jazz 126-116

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) VJ Edgecombe had 22 points and 13 rebounds and Quentin Grimes scored 26 points to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 126-116 victory over the Utah Jazz on Saturday night.

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Mar 22 • 12:20 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Election in Slovenia Will Test Europe’s Political Mood

The center-left government is being challenged by a right-wing populist accused of launching a smear campaign in the final days of a close race.

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Mar 22 • 12:01 AM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Coaches in elite company clash when Kansas faces St. John's

SAN DIEGO -- Only three active head coaches in Division I college basketball have won multiple national championships. Two of them meet for a berth in the Sweet 16 when Bill Self's No. 4 Kansas Jayhawks face Rick Pitino's No. 5 St. John's Red Storm on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament East Region.

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Mar 21 • 9:01 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Celtics' Luka Garza filling key role as unfocused Wolves visit

Celtics' Luka Garza filling key role as unfocused Wolves visit

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Mar 21 • 8:10 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Predators look to further cement playoff position in Chicago

The streaking Nashville Predators moved into a Western Conference wild-card spot on Saturday.

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Mar 21 • 8:02 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Illinois State, Wake Forest battle for NIT quarterfinal spot

Another prolific scoring performance by Juke Harris allowed Wake Forest to keep its season alive and the best game of Landon Wolf's career enabled Illinois State to continue playing.

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Mar 21 • 5:42 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Rockets to utilize tweaked starting lineup vs. Heat

Rockets to utilize tweaked starting lineup vs. Heat

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Mar 21 • 10:25 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Grizzlies, facing daunting road to play-in, visit hot Hornets

Grizzlies, facing daunting road to play-in, visit hot Hornets

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Mar 21 • 9:30 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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No. 4 Arkansas keeping guard up vs. Cinderella High Point

No. 4 Arkansas keeping guard up vs. Cinderella High Point

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Mar 21 • 8:39 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Nebraska, hungry for school's first Sweet 16, ready for Vanderbilt

After winning the school's first-ever NCAA Tournament game on Thursday, Nebraska wants more.

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Mar 21 • 8:20 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Big Money Flows Into State Attorney General Races as Legal Battles Shape American Politics

With control of Congress on the ballot in November, state attorney general races can get lost in the shuffle. But just outside the election spotlight, there are partisan groups, corporate interests and advocacy networks revving up campaigns for offices that are playing a growing role in American ...

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Mar 21 • 8:05 AM EDT • Politics • usnews.com
Clippers hope trip to Dallas gets them back on track

While trying to overcome their worst stretch since reviving their season starting in late December, the Los Angeles Clippers will visit the Dallas Mavericks on Friday while on a four-game losing streak.

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Mar 21 • 3:16 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Battling for top-six spot, Sixers face youth-driven Jazz

Earlier this week, Joel Embiid was said to be close to a return from a right oblique strain.

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Mar 21 • 2:16 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Spurs look to extend winning streak while hosting hapless Pacers

The San Antonio Spurs carry a four-game winning streak as they continue their hunt for the top spot in the Western Conference while hosting the hapless Indiana Pacers on Saturday.

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Mar 20 • 11:46 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Excess Heat Raises Tijuana River Valley Hydrogen Sulfide Emissions, Health Precautions Recommended

People in the South Bay, especially those living near the Tijuana River Valley (TJRV), are experiencing elevated hydrogen sulfide (H2S) emissions, often recognized by a strong rotten egg smell.

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Mar 20 • 2:22 PM EDT • Health • countynewscenter.com
Heat's Pelle Larsson: Scores in double figures again

Heat's Pelle Larsson: Scores in double figures again

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Mar 20 • 2:16 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Left's political targeting makes a comeback as prominent Democrats advocate for harassment

Fox News contributor Ben Domenech criticizes Democrats including Gov. JB Pritzker and Rep. Maxine Waters over rhetoric targeting Republican and Trump officials on ‘The Faulkner Focus.’

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Mar 20 • 12:43 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Giants' Logan Webb: Hit hard in spring outing

Giants' Logan Webb: Hit hard in spring outing

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Mar 20 • 11:10 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Panthers, Flames fight to extend flickering postseason hopes

The Florida Panthers continued their mastery over the Edmonton Oilers with a decisive 4-0 road victory on Thursday in a Stanley Cup Final rematch.

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Mar 20 • 3:41 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Judge Rules US Government Overreached With Transgender Health Care Declaration

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A federal judge said the government overreached by issuing a declaration that called treatments like puberty blockers and surgeries unsafe and ineffective for young people experiencing gender dysphoria, according to a ruling Thursday in Oregon. Judge Mustafa Kasubhai's ruling ...

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Mar 20 • 12:22 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Ayo Dosunmu bringing 'genuine energy' as Wolves take on Blazers

Nobody can fill Anthony Edwards' shoes, but Ayo Dosunmu is doing his best to help.

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Mar 19 • 8:11 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Miami (Ohio) has No. 6 seed Tennessee's full attention

PHILADELPHIA -- After being shut out from scheduling a high-major opponent during the season, Miami (Ohio) finally got a crack at one in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament.

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Mar 19 • 3:19 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Senior-laden Purdue pivots to ‘March mode’ vs. newbie Queens

For the third time in four years, Purdue enters the NCAA Tournament with a top two seed and a lot of experience.

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Mar 19 • 3:02 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
RFK Jr. Makes Food Sound Like a Miracle Drug. Researchers Say He Often Overstates the Science

In the Trump administration’s campaign to promote healthy eating, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has not stopped at his slogan urging people to “eat real food” to prevent disease. In recent speeches and podcast appearances, the nation’s health secretary also has claimed that diet can “cure” schizophrenia and ...

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Mar 19 • 9:02 AM EDT • Science • usnews.com
RFK Jr. Makes Food Sound Like a Miracle Drug. Researchers Say He Often Overstates the Science

In the Trump administration’s campaign to promote healthy eating, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has not stopped at his slogan urging people to “eat real food” to prevent disease. In recent speeches and podcast appearances, the nation’s health secretary also has claimed that diet can “cure” schizophrenia and ...

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Mar 19 • 9:02 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Lakers bring star power, winning streak into game against Heat

Luka Doncic and LeBron James are headed to Miami as the Los Angeles Lakers visit the Heat on Thursday night.

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Mar 19 • 7:26 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Premature Menopause Increases Heart Disease Risk

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay ReporterTHURSDAY, March 19, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Premature menopause can increase a woman’s long-term risk of heart disease from clogged arteries by 40%, a new study says. This risk is particularly important among Black women, as they are three times more likely to ...

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Mar 19 • 6:45 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Blue Jackets bring pressure-based mindset into meeting with Rangers

The Columbus Blue Jackets are on a 10-game point streak (6-0-4) as they prepare to host the New York Rangers on Thursday night.

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Mar 19 • 4:58 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Bell's 31 lead California over UIC 91-73 in NIT

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) Chris Bell's 31 points led California over UIC 91-73 on Wednesday night in the NIT.

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Mar 19 • 2:22 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Nevada defeats Murray State 89-75 in NIT

RENO, Nev. (AP) Vaughn Weems had 23 points in Nevada's 89-75 win over Murray State on Wednesday in the NIT.

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Mar 19 • 12:50 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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76ers hoping for Joel Embiid's return against Kings

The Philadelphia 76ers hope to have Joel Embiid back in the lineup when they continue a three-game Western swing with a matchup against the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night.

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Mar 18 • 10:14 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Struggling Panthers look to ice-out familiar foe Oilers

The Stanley Cup Final reunion returns to Wild Rose Country as Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers host the Florida Panthers on Thursday.

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Mar 18 • 8:42 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Duke shrugs off health issues, sets sights on Siena

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Duke enters the 2026 NCAA Tournament with a familiar goal and matching expectations as the No. 1 overall seed.

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Mar 18 • 2:32 PM EDT • Health • cbssports.com
Georgia meets Saint Louis in anticipated track meet

Georgia coach Mike White offered up a quick summation of Thursday night's NCAA Tournament Midwest Region first-round game against Saint Louis in Buffalo, N.Y.

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Mar 18 • 11:39 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Study Finds Little Proof Cannabis Helps Most Mental Health Conditions

By HealthDay Staff HealthDay ReporterWEDNESDAY, March 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Cannabis-based medications are often used to treat mental health problems, but a new review suggests they may not work as well as many people hope. Researchers looked at decades of studies and found little evidence ...

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Mar 18 • 9:05 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Playoff-bound Nuggets, jockeying for position, take on undermanned Grizzlies

Playoff-bound Nuggets, jockeying for position, take on undermanned Grizzlies

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Mar 18 • 8:38 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Film Review: “Project Hail Mary” - The Sweet Smell of Science Fiction Wonder

"Project Hail Mary" is an antidote to dystopias, real and imagined.

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Mar 18 • 7:00 AM EDT • Science • artsfuse.org
Playoffs? Check. Next up for Thunder: Handle lowly Nets

The Oklahoma City Thunder clinched the first step in their title defense and saw Shai Gilgeous-Alexander extend his historic streak on Tuesday.

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Mar 18 • 5:13 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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Paleontology has an Epstein problem. Women in the field say it's a symptom of a deeper misogyny

The names of hundreds of scientists have appeared in the Epstein files, including prominent dinosaur researchers. As the paleontology community reckons with the fallout of these revelations, women in the field say it's bringing to the forefront what they've known for years — that paleontology is ripe with abuse and harassment, and its institutions protect men at the top at the expense of women trying to build careers in spaces that treat them as disposable.

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Mar 18 • 4:00 AM EDT • Science • cbc.ca
City budget plan would boost potential business improvement district for Carytown

The proposed budget includes $125,000 to help establish the assessment district, which would charge businesses in Carytown an additional fee, above taxes, for enhanced city services.

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Mar 18 • 2:02 AM EDT • Business • richmondbizsense.com
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Stratton Wins Illinois Senate Race, Saving Pritzker From Political Embarrassment

The billionaire Democratic governor spent at least $5 million helping his lieutenant governor win the primary.

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Mar 17 • 10:42 PM EDT • Politics • wsj.com
49ers given uncomfortable 1-word assessment for offseason roster moves

This isn't exactly what the 49ers want to hear about their offseason so far.

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Mar 17 • 4:24 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Trump was warned of likely Iranian retaliation on Gulf allies, sources say

Pre-war intelligence assessments did not say that Iran’s response was \

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Mar 17 • 8:12 AM EDT • Politics • detroitnews.com
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Montana’s wild week in politics could have national consequences

What was shaping up to be a sleepy election year in Montana is now anything but. It was a head-spinning week in Montana politics: Two incumbent congressmen declared they weren’t running for re-election — and another got into a scuffle on Capitol Hill. In a tight election year, the shakeup could have national consequences.

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Mar 17 • 4:00 AM EDT • Politics • hcn.org
Laferriere's 3-point performance powers Kings over Rangers

NEW YORK (AP) Alex Laferriere had a goal and two assists to lead the Los Angeles Kings to a 4-1 win over the New York Rangers on Monday night.

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Mar 16 • 9:41 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Contrasting styles on tap as Oklahoma State, Davidson open NIT

Oklahoma State will be in familiar territory as it tries to cap a solid campaign with an NIT run. The Cowboy open by hosting Davidson on Tuesday night in Stillwater, Okla.

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Mar 16 • 8:51 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Sharks' late-game execution in spotlight vs. Oilers

San Jose has had no problem scoring goals and taking leads against Edmonton this season.

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Mar 16 • 8:50 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Knicks endeavor to remain focused against NBA-worst Pacers

The New York Knicks know they shouldn't have any reason to lose focus Tuesday night.

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Mar 16 • 6:54 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Plagued by early deficits, Wild turn page to meet Blackhawks

A three-game winless streak has done little to compromise the Minnesota Wild's solid playoff positioning.

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Mar 16 • 6:21 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Recently unbeatable, UMBC and Howard clash in First Four

DAYTON, Ohio -- The field of 68 teams in the 2026 NCAA Tournament begins to get whittled down Tuesday night when a pair of No. 16 seeds from the Midwest Region square off.

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Mar 16 • 5:51 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Factbox-Lawsuits Against Trump Administration's Health Policy Changes

March 16 (Reuters) - A federal judge on Monday blocked key parts of Health Secretary Robert F. ⁠Kennedy ⁠Jr.'s effort to reshape U.S. vaccine policy, including ⁠a move to reduce the number of shots routinely recommended for children. U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston sided with medical ...

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Mar 16 • 4:22 PM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Red-hot teams clash when Hurricanes visit Blue Jackets

Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho look to continue their respective strong play on Tuesday as the Carolina Hurricanes visit the streaking Columbus Blue Jackets.

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Mar 16 • 3:25 PM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
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NCAA tournament: Here are the 5 biggest March Madness snubs
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Mar 16 • 11:52 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Oz Says California’s Not Fighting Health Care Fraud. Data Shows a Larger Battle

By Don Thompson | KFF Health News SACRAMENTO, Calif. — For weeks, Mehmet Oz has been waging a public feud with California leaders over health care fraud, accusing the blue state of failing to adequately combat such abuse. Oz, who heads the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, alleged that

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Mar 16 • 11:23 AM EDT • Health • usnews.com
Dejounte Murray boosting Pelicans, who face Mavericks on uptick

New Orleans Pelicans guard Dejounte Murray is making up for lost time.

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Mar 16 • 5:26 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com
Trail Blazers looking to limit turnovers vs. youthful Nets

On Sunday, the Portland Trail Blazers struggled to avoid turnovers and could not match the physicality of an Eastern Conference team in a playoff race.

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Mar 16 • 5:08 AM EDT • Sports • cbssports.com