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Ed Davey accuses Reform UK and Tories of importing ‘Trump-style divisive politics’

Lib Dems will focus on ‘rolling up their sleeves and getting things done’, leader says at launch of local election campaign

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Mar 24 • 10:44 AM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com
With Guatemala’s Democracy at Stake, Arévalo’s Reformist Push Enters a Critical Phase

Bernardo Arévalo was elected president of Guatemala to tackle elite impunity. After two years on the job, it’s still an uphill climb.

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Mar 24 • 8:54 AM EDT • Politics • worldpoliticsreview.com
It’s not just vaccines: Parents are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns

Doctors across the nation are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment and medical mistrust is increasingly reaching beyond vaccines to other proven, routine, preventive care for babies.

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Mar 24 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • cnn.com
Notre Dame, NBC Sports panel reflects on 20 years of ‘What Would You Fight For?’ storytelling

On Thursday (March 19), the University of Notre Dame hosted an event celebrating 20 years of storytelling through the “What Would You Fight For?” (WWYFF) campaign. Part of the 2025-26 Notre Dame Forum, the panel discussion brought together leaders from the University and NBC Sports to reflect on the impact and evolution of this storytelling platform.

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Mar 24 • 8:00 AM EDT • Sports • news.nd.edu
Texas oil refinery explosion sends smoke into air, residents advised to shelter in place

An explosion and fire at a Valero oil refinery has sent smoke rising into the sky in Port Arthur, where some residents are being told to shelter in place.

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Mar 24 • 7:36 AM EDT • Business • foxbusiness.com
OpenClaw creator: User asked for a token refund for errors

OpenClaw creator Peter Steinberger shared a refund request he received for errors, including "fabricated data." He refunded $0, as the agent is free.

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Mar 24 • 5:44 AM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
Old Wisdom, New Science, and the Tools of Tomorrow

How can firefighters navigate between the hard-earned practical wisdom of the past and modern technological developments? Scott Guillerault says fire research may point the way.

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Mar 24 • 4:02 AM EDT • Science • firefighternation.com
We disagreed on politics. We agreed on wine. That was enough.

At the Virginia Governor’s Cup Gala in Richmond earlier this month, a very dapper gentleman approached me and introduced himself. In his light-colored suit and bowtie, he looked very Southern in a classical sense, the sort of Virginia Gentleman you used to see south of the Rappahannock as recently as my college days. “I’m a longtime reader and fan of your writing, if not your politics,” he said. His comment was the proverbial iron fist in a velvet glove, simultaneously conveying praise and disapproval while establishing boundaries. Man, I wish we still discoursed like this instead of shouting bromides and insults to try and “own” our opponents with a funny meme and a furrowed brow. Subscribe “Well, we’ll always have wine to share together,” I said, and thanked him for his kind words. We clinked glasses, exchanged pleasantries about the delicious gold medal-winning wines being poured that evening, and went our separate ways. Our exchange reminded me that more unites us than divides us. Wine brings people together to share a meal and a few hours of joy despite our differences.1 That’s why I refer to the wine community — including readers and consumers — rather than the wine industry. Together, we are so much more than production, distribution and sales statistics. A few minutes later the evening’s awards ceremony began. Applause grew as the 12 winemakers who made the top-scoring wines for the Governor’s Case took the stage, including a loud cheer for Jonathan Wheeler of Trump Winery and his 2018 Blanc de Noir sparkling wine. All the winemakers on stage had reason to be proud, Wheeler perhaps more so. Trump Winery was the only winery to win six gold medals in the competition this year. (Wineries are limited to six entries.) Two of Wheeler’s ciders also won gold medals in a separate competition. When you cover the labels and take the sour taste of politics off your palate, the wines are pretty darn good.2 Then Gov. Abigail Spanberger, newly elected Democrat and Virginia’s first female governor, was introduced to great applause to announce which of the 12 wines had won the Governor’s Cup. She spoke for a few minutes about the importance of wine to Virginia’s economy and tourism and the international acclaim Virginia wine has received. Just two weeks earlier, she gave the Democrats’ response to Trump’s State of the Union speech, but this night wasn’t about politics. That didn’t stop several people in the crowd from speculating on the irony should she have to present the trophy to Trump Winery. In the end, Valley Road Vineyards was displayed on the screen behind Spanberger as the winning winery. Blue Bee Cidery in Richmond took top honors for that category. The crowd cheered a female governor presenting the state’s highest trophy to a female winemaker and then resumed the evening’s festivities, united by their mutual love of wine. A whiff of politics couldn’t dim the cheer of celebration and a community united by its love of wine. In Memoriam: Michel Rolland The global wine community lost a giant March 20, with the passing of Michel Rolland. He was 78. Rolland was the original “flying winemaker,” a globe-trotting consultant who helped Bordeaux regain its mojo in the 1970s and then shaped the rise of Napa Valley cult Cabernet as consultant to Simi, Harlan, Newton, Screaming Eagle, Araujo, Dalle Valle and other wineries. He was instrumental in Argentina’s rise to prominence and even had his own winery, Clos de los Siete, in a partnership with other wine families. Rolland’s career arc paralleled that of Robert Parker, the world’s most influential critic. Parker championed many of the wines Rolland consulted on, helping build his reputation and demand for his services. It also made him a target for Parker’s critics. As W. Blake Gray wrote on Wine-Searcher in his excellent tribute to Rolland: Rolland created the type of wines Parker loved: rich body, plenty of fruit, soft tannins. He sometimes faced the accusation of creating a generic international style of red wine, where the great wines he made in Argentina were indistinguishable from the great wines he made in France. Rolland chafed at that critique, as did many of his fans. He was credited with championing green harvesting and leaf pulling, as well as careful selection of grapes in the winery, practices we nearly universally think of today for high-quality winemaking. “Michel was an incredible innovator who changed how wine was made and how grapes were grown,” Napa Valley winemaker Aaron Pott wrote on Facebook. “His work has transformed the wine trade. He created new ways of looking at wine, tasting wine, evaluating ripeness and quality. … This was not just a man with a ‘style’ that he imposed on vineyards but a man that understood how to make great wine from great sites.” Rolland started his consulting company in 1973 in Libourne, in Bordeaux, with his wife, Dany. Both had graduated the year before from Bordeaux’s Institute d’Oenologie. The couple sold their majority share in the business in 2020, according to Wine Spectator. Over his career, Rolland reportedly worked with more than 100 wineries in 20 countries. He even made it to Virginia, where he consulted for Kluge Estate in the mid-2000s. (Kluge Estate is now Trump Winery.) Reader feedback, please! Last week, I did my first WineLine Live! with Dr. Laura Catena of Catena Zapata winery in Argentina. We enjoyed a fascinating discussion about her efforts to preserve the genetic heritage of old vineyards in Mendoza. I conceived of WineLine Live! for paid subscribers, as a thank you for your financial support. And while only a few people joined live, the video now has more views than I have paid subscribers, so I guess that’s pretty good. Even so, I’m considering opening future installments to anyone on Substack to reach a broader audience. So my questions to you: Should these be public? And what format do you prefer? Live gives a chat feature with the potential for viewers to interact with me and the guest, while a video post would just be that. Another alternative is a podcast, which would just be audio, without video of my chins. Please let me know in the comments. Leave a comment In the Glass A few wines I’ve enjoyed recently: Bonny Doon Vineyard Take Me to Your Liter, Le Cigare Volant, Red Wine of the Earth. 2023, Central Coast, CA. Blend of Grenache, Syrah Cinsaut and Petite Sirah. Delightful wine with expressive red fruit flavors, casual drinking. Doon lovers of a certain age will remember Randall Grahm’s Big House Red; this is more in that style than his original Le Cigare Volant, modeled after Chateauneuf du Pape. The liter bottle makes it an even better value. I see this online at about $15. Great value. Albert Bichot Bourgogne Pinot Noir Origines 2023. 13% - Textbook pinot noir and an excellent, affordable entry (regional) Burgundy. Wine Enthusiast Top 100 Wines of 2025. $24 at Total Wine & More. Loma Larga Pinot Noir 2021 “Coastal Cool Climate Wine”, Valle de Casablanca, Chile. An older sample, showing beautifully. Spicy and fruit forward. I’m seeing widely varied pricing online, from $18-$32. At the lower end, it’s a terrific value. 13.5% Dr. Loosen Riesling Dry 2016, Mosel, Germany. Found this “in the stack.” And it stacked up well, shedding some of its youthful acidity for opulent Riesling character, including a hint of the mineral oil older Riesling often features. A great value, as I’m seeing it as low as $14 online. 12% abv. Red Tail Ridge Blau Franc Blend 2024, Sans Oak, Finger Lakes. 13.4% abv. The name is a neat portmanteau of Blaufrankisch and Cabernet Franc, thus Blau Franc. The blend is 50-50, no oak involved. The Blau dominates on the palate, with the spicy caraway seed (think New York deli rye bread). The Franc adds body. The result is juicy, energetic and joyful. Sokol Blosser Estate Rosé of Pinot Noir 2025, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon. This first rosé of 2025 was a welcome respite to our cold, snowy winter here in the Mid-Atlantic. Oh man, I needed this! Bright and energetic, exuberant even, it perks up the mood and goes down fast. 13%. Certified B Corp. Ingredient and nutrition labeling, and in a modest way that doesn’t occupy a lot of label space. (Since it’s not required, presumably there are no minimum font size requirements.) More wineries should follow this example. Dave McIntyre's WineLine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Thanks for reading Dave McIntyre's WineLine! This post is public so feel free to share it. Share 1 Some restraint may be required. 2 Especially the bubblies.

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Mar 23 • 10:54 PM EDT • Politics • dmwineline.substack.com
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Hochul pushes environmental review reforms amid state budget negotiations

Hochul has touted the policy as a key element of her affordability agenda.

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Mar 23 • 9:40 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com
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Firefighters control fire near excavating business off Stan Miller Drive near Breckenridge

7:15 p.m.: Crews from Red, White & Blue Fire Protection District and the Breckenridge Police Department are on scene at a fire off of Stan Miller Drive near Breckenridge. Black smoke turned white as crews...

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Mar 23 • 9:37 PM EDT • Business • summitdaily.com
Why are the Virginia Cavaliers sports teams also called the Wahoos?

The term “Wahoos” or “Hoos” are almost exclusively used by Virginia students when referring to their athletes and fans.

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Mar 23 • 6:51 PM EDT • Sports • usatoday.com
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Science Through Shadows: How Astronomical Alignments Reveal the Universe

When one celestial object passes in front of another, it can cast a shadow that travels across space – and sometimes across Earth. These moments of alignment, known as eclipses, occultations, and transits, allow scientists to study distant objects in remarkable ways. By observing how light changes when an object briefly blocks another, astronomers can measure sizes and shapes, detect atmospheres, and refine the orbits of asteroids and planets.

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Mar 23 • 3:47 PM EDT • Science • science.nasa.gov
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A Jamiroquai Music Video From 1996 Just Inspired A New Revuelto For 2026

Novitec refines the Revuelto with carbon fiber details, new wheels, and a bump in hybrid V12 performance

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Mar 23 • 3:22 PM EDT • Technology • carscoops.com
Finishing a video game can trigger “post-game depression,” study finds

Post-game depression is now being studied as a measurable phenomenon, with researchers identifying how finishing a video game can leave players feeling empty, reflective, and emotionally drained.

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Mar 23 • 10:38 AM EDT • Technology • dexerto.com
STC HVACR student turns childhood lessons into vision for future business

Currently pursuing an associate degree in Heating, Ventilation, AC and Refrigeration (HVACR) at South Texas College, Cesar Bernal III said he was just 12 years old when he began watching his father turn determination and hard work into a small but thriving air-conditioning business in Weslaco.

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Mar 23 • 10:19 AM EDT • Business • news.southtexascollege.edu
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Firefox 149 Now Available With XDG Portal File Picker, Rust-Based JPEG-XL Decoder

Firefox 149.0 release binaries are now available with a wide assortment of improvements for this month's update to the cross-platform Mozilla web browser solution.

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Mar 23 • 10:06 AM EDT • Technology • phoronix.com
Exit polls suggest Italy's Meloni has narrowly lost justice referendum vote

Exit polls on Monday suggested Italian Prime ​Minister Giorgia Meloni had ‌narrowly lost a referendum on her flagship reform of the ​judicial system, dealing ​a potential blow to the ⁠ruling coalition ahead of ​next year's general election.

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Mar 23 • 10:04 AM EDT • Politics • reuters.com
Apple Reportedly Preparing 'Biggest Set of iPhone Revamps' Ever

Apple is working on "the biggest set of iPhone revamps in the product's history," according to the latest word from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Specifically, he is referring to the long-rumored foldable iPhone, as well as an ambitious 20th-anniversary iPhone with a truly "edge-to-edge" design.

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Mar 23 • 9:28 AM EDT • Technology • macrumors.com
Jack Gibbens reflects on ‘bittersweet’ decision to leave Patriots

Gibbens signed a two-year deal with the Cardinals in free agency.

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Mar 23 • 9:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Major PlayStation Store Purge - Sony Removes Over 1000 Games

Sony continues to clean up the virtual storefronts.

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Mar 23 • 6:59 AM EDT • Technology • ixbt.games
Across Tanzania, Medical Refrigerators Preserve Life and Health for Kids with Diabetes

The technology Tanzania’s children with diabetes needed most urgently wasn’t a cutting-edge treatment. It was refrigeration. Local public health clinics across Tanzania provide monthly checkups for…

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Mar 23 • 6:48 AM EDT • Health • directrelief.org
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Doubts from key Republicans on surgeon general test MAHA’s political power

Casey Means faces pushback from some Republicans over her refusal to forcefully recommend vaccines.

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Mar 23 • 6:00 AM EDT • Health • washingtonpost.com
‘Anyone but Labour’ or ‘anyone but Reform’? Clash of animosities likely to define May local elections

While Labour braces for a rout that could see off Starmer, a rising drive to keep out Farage is complicating expectations

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Mar 23 • 3:00 AM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com
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What’s at stake for UK in May’s local elections: six key questions

Reform, Plaid Cymru, the SNP and the Greens are all banking on big gains and nationwide repercussions

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Mar 23 • 3:00 AM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com
Galaxy S27 Ultra may not bring major S Pen reforms

It was rumored that the Galaxy S27 Ultra could bring a major S Pen change, but that doesn't seem to be happening.

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Mar 23 • 12:42 AM EDT • Technology • sammobile.com
‘We’ve got some unfinished business’: Corey Gipson reflects on historic Austin Peay season

Austin Peay men's basketball head coach Corey Gipson recently reflected on his 2025-26 season and revealed what makes Clarksville special.

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Mar 22 • 3:29 PM EDT • Business • clarksvillenow.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
Apple iPhone Fold Might Have A Sun Glare Problem

Given the already high reflectance of iPhone displays, Apple's use of a CoE filter on the iPhone Fold can lead to a sun glare problem.

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Mar 22 • 11:05 AM EDT • Technology • wccftech.com
It's not just vaccines — parents are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns

Doctors are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment is increasingly reaching beyond vaccines to other proven, routine, preventive care for babies.

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Mar 22 • 9:26 AM EDT • Health • boston.com
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Core operating profit rises 4% as net profit holds steady, with full-year dividend maintained at HK35 cents

March 22, 2026 -- The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited (stock code: 0003, hereinafter referred to as “the Group”) has announced its 2025 ...

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Mar 22 • 8:07 AM EDT • Business • markets.businessinsider.com
Scientists twisted a mysterious superconductor and got a shocking result

A decades-old superconducting mystery just took a surprising turn. Strontium ruthenate, a material that conducts electricity with zero resistance at low temperatures, has long puzzled scientists with hints of an exotic, complex superconducting state. But by carefully twisting and distorting ultra-thin crystals, researchers found something unexpected: the material barely reacted at all. This challenges years of assumptions and suggests its behavior may be far simpler—or far stranger—than previously thought.

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Mar 22 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Trump touted bigger tax refunds this year, but Americans will likely spend them on gas

Spiking gas prices in the U.S. are on track to eat up tax refunds this year, leaving most Americans with little extra to spend.

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Mar 22 • 6:25 AM EDT • Business • ksat.com
David Suzuki at 90: A life in science, and a warning still unheard

With ninety laps around the sun, David Suzuki reflects on a lifetime of science advocacy and environmental work. Despite decades of effort, he warns that humanity may have already crossed a tipping point on climate change.

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Mar 22 • 4:00 AM EDT • Science • cbc.ca
Milwaukee stair climb raises awareness for lung health and firefighters

The American Lung Association hosted its 18th annual stair climb in Milwaukee, where participants, including firefighters, climbed 30 stories to raise funds and awareness for lung health.

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Mar 21 • 6:59 PM EDT • Health • wisn.com
Barber reflects on shooting outside of his business

A man was shot and killed outside a local business in Youngstown’s first homicide of the year yesterday afternoon.

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Mar 21 • 6:10 PM EDT • Business • wkbn.com
County Proposes Eliminating Preschool for All’s Early Childhood Mental Health Team

Unlike other cuts being made across the county in light of a budget shortfall, the decision to disband the team comes as Preschool for All sits on more than $600 million. The county says the proposed change is not driven by available funding.

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Mar 21 • 12:30 PM EDT • Health • wweek.com
Refund checks coming for former Boston Sports Club members, AG says

Former members of Boston Sports Clubs in Massachusetts may be eligible for a refund if they were wrongfully charged by the company during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Mar 21 • 9:56 AM EDT • Sports • wcvb.com
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Congress could be headed for a tipping point, irreversible decline

After nearly two decades covering Capitol Hill, a reflection on how bad things are.

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Mar 21 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com
March 21 Arts & Entertainment Calendar

Events coming up in the Greenville area offer music, arts, theater and family fun. Here is a sampling. In the calendar, “today” refers to March 21.

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Mar 21 • 6:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • reflector.com
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'Not a done deal': Democrats start to sweat over Virginia's redistricting referendum

The unique nature of the April special election and the state's recent redistricting history have presented challenges for Democrats, even as they hold a financial edge in the race.

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Mar 21 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • nbcnews.com
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Big changes ahead for State Health Plan as trustees work to lower costs

The State Health Plan hopes to save significant money by steering plan participants to preferred providers.

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Mar 21 • 4:00 AM EDT • Health • northcarolinahealthnews.org
Laid Off in Midlife, China’s Reform Generation Braces for Downward Mobility

The future once seemed boundless for those who grew up during China’s reform era. Now in middle age, they are pinned between economic stagnation and institutional age discrimination.

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Mar 21 • 12:00 AM EDT • Business • nytimes.com
‘Very foolish mistake’: Trump lashes out at NATO allies over their refusal to help
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Mar 20 • 6:05 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
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Eviction reform, Aquarion, towing laws: CT politics news

Plus: DeLauro wants to fund DHS but not ICE, and bills increasing the ECS formula and offering tax credits for paid internships advance.

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Mar 20 • 5:30 PM EDT • Politics • ctmirror.org
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'Keep it Kountry': How Kountry Wayne refused to code-switch and became comedy's most authentic voice

The Georgia-born comedian stands out through his authentic Southern voice and unconventional family dynamic as a father of 10, now breaking into film.

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Mar 20 • 3:53 PM EDT • Entertainment • latimes.com
Learning by serving: Rose fellows reflect on lessons from the field | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

The Rose Service Learning Fellowship funds community-engaged field projects around the globe.

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Mar 20 • 1:35 PM EDT • Health • hsph.harvard.edu
Pete Hegseth's Christian rhetoric reignites scrutiny after the U.S. goes to war with Iran

Hegseth has pushed policy changes that reflect his Christian views, including a revamp of the military chaplain corps.

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Mar 20 • 11:16 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
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[VIDEO] Lucy Wang Featured in Business Interview TV Series

Watch a new Business Insurance interview with Lucy Wang, discussing how California's historic insurance regulatory reform has impacted the state's insurance market and rates in response to increasing wildfire exposure.

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Mar 20 • 10:55 AM EDT • Business • hinshawlaw.com
Reform UK suspends Scottish candidate less than a day after announcing him

Stuart Niven suspended after it emerged he had been struck off as a company director over financial allegations

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Mar 20 • 10:24 AM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com
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Cracking the human simulation code: Aaru co-founders on refining the science of prediction

Cameron Fink, Aaru co-founder and CEO, Ned Koh, Aaru co-founder and president, and John Kessler, Aaru co-founder and CTO, join 'Squawk Box' to discuss the origins of the company, using AI to predict human behavior with higher accuracy and speed than traditional methods, and more.

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Mar 20 • 7:47 AM EDT • Science • cnbc.com
“Loyal Slaves” and Campfire Entertainment in Frank Vizetelly’s Confederate Camp

Frank Vizetelly’s illustration titled “Night Amusements in the Confederate Camp” appeared in the Illustrated London News on January 10, 1863. It was one among a number of wartime scenes that Vizetelly captured for the newspaper. Subscribe Following the war, the illustration appeared in a number of books, including John O. Casler’s Four Years in the Stonewall Brigade (1893) and Campfires of the Confederacy (1898) by Ben La Bree. The scene depicts a Confederate camp at night with an enslaved man, most likely a camp servant, performing a dance around a fire with the music provided by a soldier playing a banjo. Another enslaved man looks on at the right. Vizetelly likely witnessed the scene—one that would have been common throughout the war. It’s a wonderful example of the way in which Confederates—slaveowners and nonslaveowners alike—experienced the presence of slave labor in the army. Vizetelly was deeply sympathetic to the Confederate cause. His depiction of the enslaved man as more than happy to entertain the very people who were fighting to keep him enslaved was precisely the kind of image designed to reassure a British audience that slavery was benign, and by implication, that Britain need not feel morally troubled about recognizing or supporting the Confederacy. Share Just as importantly, the sight of a dancing slave reassured Confederates themselves that the institution of slavery remained secure even after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. I’ve come across this illustration many times before and I plan on using it in my next book project on the role of enslaved labor in the Confederate army during the Gettysburg Campaign, but this is not the reason I am sharing it with you today. It has to do with where I recently found it, which came as a complete surprise and is incredibly revealing. Let’s take a look.

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Mar 20 • 6:43 AM EDT • Entertainment • kevinmlevin.substack.com
Linda Flanagan: Sports Aren’t for All Girls

There’s nothing wrong with preferring dance or music over track and field.

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Mar 20 • 6:15 AM EDT • Sports • wsj.com
"I genuinely thought my controller wasn't working" - Crimson Desert players are getting so annoyed with its clunky controls they're asking for launch day refunds

Crimson Desert is out, and players are already having issues with the game's controls.

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Mar 20 • 6:00 AM EDT • Technology • eurogamer.net
Beyond Water: Why WASH Matters for Dignity, Health and Survival

Discover how Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) are vital to supporting and empowering refugees this World Water Day.

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Mar 19 • 8:00 PM EDT • Health • unrefugees.org
Markiplier to Microdramas: The Ankler x NAB Show’s Future of Entertainment

Share Subscribe Vegas, baby! The Ankler is heading back to NAB Show for a second year in a row — and doubling down on conversations with the smartest people in the industry. From April 18–22, we’re partnering again with the industry’s biggest media and tech gathering to break down the Business of Media and Entertainment as it’s actually evolving: faster, riskier and increasingly driven by new formats, new audiences and new power players. This curated series will bring together top creators, executives and innovators to tackle the forces reshaping the industry — from the AI disruption of Hollywood’s creative ecosystem to the rise of the creator economy, shifting audience behavior and the changing economics of production. We’ll be rolling out more programming in the coming weeks — including top speakers from leading AI studios, prediction markets and beyond — so keep an eye on the Business of Media and Entertainment hub. But first up, we’re announcing two panels about what’s actually working in Hollywood: The Scary-Smart Business of Horror A good scare has become one of the entertainment economy’s most reliable engines. With disciplined budgets, built-in fandoms and global box office upside, horror consistently outperforms. From theatrical releases to streaming-first originals and creator-driven IP, the genre is artistically flexible and financially durable — and one of the last truly communal experiences for Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences. Join YouTube creator Mark Fischbach, aka Markiplier, whose independent feature Iron Lung earned more than $50 million at the global box office, Atomic Monster president Michael Clear and screenwriter Akela Cooper (M3GAN, Malignant) for a conversation moderated by Like & Subscribe’s Natalie Jarvey about why horror travels so effectively across platforms and borders, how studios and independents are building sustainable genre pipelines and why the next wave of breakout franchises may emerge from unexpected sources. Inside the Microdrama Boom Short-form serialized storytelling is having a major moment. Microdramas, social-native series and creator-led narratives are capturing massive audiences with low-cost, rapid production cycles and direct-to-fan distribution. What was once dismissed as niche or experimental is now attracting major platform investment. Moderated by Jarvey, this panel of microdrama creators and executives — including one of the format’s top stars and producers, Kasey Esser, and Dhar Mann Studios’ head of vertical content, Erin McFarlane — examines how format innovation, fandom dynamics and algorithmic discovery are reshaping the economics of scripted storytelling and what traditional studios can learn from these agile models. For sponsorship opportunities, contact Lynne@theankler.com Share

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Mar 19 • 6:34 PM EDT • Entertainment • theankler.com
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Firefighters battling flames on roof of building housing row of businesses in Midwood

FDNY officials say a fire was reported in a restaurant at 1021 Avenue H between East 10th Street and Coney Island Avenue around 4:40 p.m.

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Mar 19 • 6:06 PM EDT • Business • abc7ny.com
Planet Labs’ stock soars as the satellite company says AI will unlock more business

The company, a Google partner, delivered record revenue for its latest fiscal year, reflecting growing demand for satellite imagery.

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Mar 19 • 6:01 PM EDT • Business • marketwatch.com
New dispute emerges around Subnautica 2’s early access release

Lawyers for the ousted—and now partially reinstated—leadership team of Unknown Worlds, the studio behind Subnautica 2, are crying foul over news that the game will be released into early access in May. The release announcement earlier this week was made improperly, potentially “damaging the game and sowing additional confusion among the Subnautica community,” the lawyers said in a letter sent on Tuesday to Vice Chancellor Lori Will of Delaware’s Court of Chancery. In their letter, the lawyers also floated the idea of asking Will to find Krafton in contempt of the court’s ruling. The letter was sent just one day after Will’s bombshell ruling that publisher Krafton had breached its contract with Unknown Worlds’ executive team, when it fired them last June. The new issue isn’t necessarily the May early access timeframe, but how the news was announced. The letter and Krafton’s response have not been previously reported. A quick recap of prior events: Subnautica 2 is an unreleased, underwater survival adventure and the most-wishlisted game on Steam. Last year, longtime Unknown Worlds CEO Ted Gill, along with studio co-founders Charlie Cleveland and Max McGuire, were fired by Krafton. They swiftly sued, saying the publisher had terminated them to avoid paying out up to $250 million in potential performance-based bonuses. The studio leaders had hoped to earn that with an early access release of the game, which Krafton had blocked. The publisher argued in court that Subnautica 2 wasn’t ready, which the ousted execs disputed. On Monday, Will ruled that Krafton had violated its contract, firing the execs to avoid the performance payouts, and that it had to reinstate Gill and give him full authority over any early access release for Subnautica 2. On Tuesday, IGN reported on a new memo issued that day to Unknown Worlds staff by Steve Papoutsis, the executive Krafton had put in charge of Unknown Worlds after the 2025 firings. In the note, Papoutsis said that Subnautica 2 had passed a key development milestone “last week” and that he and Krafton had determined the game “is ready for Early Access release in May.” This news appeared to catch the lawyers for Gill, Cleveland and McGuire by surprise. On Tuesday night, they sent a letter to Will expressing “serious concerns” about whether it would be possible to forge an agreement with Krafton consistent with the judge’s order. Papoutsis’ memo was a problem, they wrote. He didn’t have the authority to declare anything about Subnautica 2’s release. As of 9am ET on Monday, March 16, the effective date of Will’s order, Papoutsis wasn’t CEO of Unknown Worlds. Gill was. And, per Will’s order, only Gill could make Subnautica 2 release decisions. They continued: Krafton self-servingly announced the launch without any regard to its impact on the game, the team, or the community—let alone this Court’s Opinion. Announcing the release of a game is momentous, and it is typically accompanied by significant marketing activity, fanfare, and community coordination. And most importantly, the announcement is carefully designed to maximize excitement for the game. That entire process was supposed to be driven by Mr. Gill. However, in defiance of the Court’s Opinion, Krafton has now taken that away, further damaging the game and sowing additional confusion among the Subnautica community. The lawyers speculated that Krafton had “intentionally leaked” Papoutsis’ memo and then issued an official statement to confirm the leak. Game File is a reader-supported publication. My reporting is only possible through support from readers like you. To support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe On Wednesday, lawyers for Krafton defended their client in their own letter to vice chancellor Will, saying nothing they did violated her order nor showed contempt: Papoutsis’s message was simply celebrating the UW employees’ efforts toward a past event: Krafton’s pre-Opinion determination that Subnautica 2 was ready for Early Access release. There was nothing improper about conveying the results of the milestone review or thanking the development team for their dedication and talent. They added that Gill could still make his own call about Subnautica 2’s release: In his role as CEO, Gill will be able to assess independently his views on the state of Subnautica 2 and the appropriate release schedule; nothing in Papoutsis’s message alters Gill’s authority or discretion. Vice chancellor Will has not responded to the letters and doesn’t necessarily have to. Both parties were previously ordered by Will to confer this week and submit a proposed judgment consistent with her ruling. The letter from Gill’s attorney’s this week doesn’t indicate whether he would or would not support a May release for Subnautica 2. But it could limit his options. And, if Gill’s lawyers are right, the lack of marketing fanfare around the leak of the May date could dull the launch of the game. Any harm to Subnautica 2’s launch is an extra sensitive issue given the context of the legal dispute: millions of dollars of payouts are on the line, tethered to the scale of the game’s initial performance. In her ruling on Monday, Will noted that there was obvious “bad blood” between Gill’s side and Krafton but that the two would need to work together: “They can—and must—act in good faith to navigate their remaining contractual relationship.” Item 2: A new kind of couch co-op game A highlight of GDC each year is the Alt.Ctrl showcase that features games played with extremely experimental controllers. Perusing this year’s offerings last Friday, I found a game controlled with giant scissors, another with big toothbrushes and one that amounted to dumpster diving. My favorite was Pivot, a co-op game about collectively maneuvering a couch. It was developed by students at the University of Utah’s masters of arts and engineering games program. Players lift and tilt the physical couch in order to control the position of a virtual one. That virtual one is moving through an obstacle course on-screen, while being pursued by a giant skull. Developer Nishant Verma told me at GDC that the couch is made of styrofoam (this became more evident as I watched!) and that the name was a riff on an episode of the sitcom Friends. Item 3: In brief… 🚫 Ubisoft is laying off more than 100 workers at its Red Storm studio, as the North Carolina location known for decades for its Tom Clancy games, ceases in-house game development, VGC reports. 👀 On Monday, Nvidia’s revealed its DLSS 5 AI-driven graphics technology that purports to improve game graphics… and it has been roasted about it by the media and the online gaming public for the remainder of the week. The tech changed the faces of characters in footage from Resident Evil Requiem, Hogwarts Legacy and EA Sports FC, drawing accusations of giving carefully art-directed games the generic look of AI “slop.” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang had said on Monday that “DLSS 5 is the GPT moment for graphics—blending handcrafted rendering with generative AI to deliver a dramatic leap in visual realism while preserving the control artists need for creative expression.” By mid-week, Huang was telling Tom’s Hardware that the new tech’s critics were “completely wrong” because game-makers could still “fine-tune the generative AI” to suit their game’s aesthetics.

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Mar 19 • 5:28 PM EDT • Technology • gamefile.news
Credit Acceptance Appoints Steffen Schumann as Chief Business Officer

New Role Strengthens Enterprise Business Planning, Pricing Strategy, and Performance Management to Support Disciplined GrowthSouthfield, Michigan, March 19, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Credit Acceptance Corporation (Nasdaq: CACC) (referred to as the “Company”, “Credit Acceptance”, “we”, “our”, or “us”) today announced that Steffen Schumann has joined the Company as Chief Business Officer, reporting to Chief Executive Officer Vinayak Hegde. In this newly created role, Schumann will help drive growth

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Mar 19 • 4:02 PM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com
Bloomberg: Google begins testing dedicated Gemini app for Mac

Mac users who prefer Gemini for their AI interactions might not have to wait much longer for a dedicated app....

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Mar 19 • 3:44 PM EDT • Technology • 9to5mac.com
Business Briefs: Funding available for Rockwood storefronts

Rockwood storefront improvement grants Funds are available to freshen businesses across the Rockwood Urban Renewal Area. The storefront improvement grants aim to boost property values, improve perceptions of safety, increase […]

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Mar 19 • 3:15 PM EDT • Business • theoutlookonline.com
Cracks emerge in GOP over Iran war cost as administration floats more than $200B request to Congress

Cracks are emerging among congressional Republicans over the Iran war with key lawmakers skeptical about spending hundreds of billions of dollars to prolong the conflict and several refusing to support any money without a clear White House strategy.

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Mar 19 • 2:33 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Humans and animals have the same preference in mating calls, citizen science experiment finds

The bright colors of butterfly wings, the sweet aromas of flowers, and the euphonious melodies of songbirds all evolved as signals that help individuals propagate, yet humans also find these very same ...

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Mar 19 • 2:00 PM EDT • Science • phys.org
Firefox Is Adding a Free Built-In VPN. Here's What It Means for You

Mozilla has set a release date for its next version of Firefox, which will include a free VPN service and a new split-screen tab mode.

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Mar 19 • 1:58 PM EDT • Technology • cnet.com
Free Play Days – Sea of Thieves, Totally Reliable Delivery Service, Trailmakers, Hell Let Loose and Firefighting Simulator: Ignite

Free Play Days - hop into Sea of Thieves, Totally Reliable Delivery Service, Trailmakers, Hell Let Loose and Firefighting Simulator: Ignite this weekend.

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Mar 19 • 11:00 AM EDT • Technology • news.xbox.com
Art in Public Places

Art in Public Places (AIPP) is the City of Austin’s public art program. Administered through Austin Arts, Culture, Music, and Entertainment, AIPP commissions visual artists to create site-specific artworks that reflect Austin's communities.

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Mar 19 • 9:06 AM EDT • Entertainment • austintexas.gov
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Adobe’s AI image generator can now be trained on your own art

And maybe on other artists too.

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Mar 19 • 9:00 AM EDT • Technology • theverge.com
The Girl at the End of the World: A Gratitude Day Reflection on the Place that Built Our Science

⏱️ 9 min read | This Gratitude Day, March 23rd, we celebrate the extraordinary partnership between HD families, scientists, and caregivers, and reflect on the place that built the science on which we all stand.

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Mar 19 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • en.hdbuzz.net
Democrats move to impeach Bondi after ‘fake’ Epstein briefing

Anger grows after a closed-door briefing from attorney general where she refused to commit to testify under oath despite subpoena

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Mar 19 • 7:09 AM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com
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HHS investigating 13 states for ‘coercing’ healthcare providers to provide abortions

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced today that it is launching investigations into 13 states for violating a federal health refusal clause and “coercing” healthc…

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Mar 19 • 6:00 AM EDT • Health • thehill.com
Ever Joint Claims Evaluated: What the Science Says About EverJoint Joint Support Ingredients

A 2026 company-issued informational report outlining how Ever Joint positions its joint support formula, ingredient-level research context, oxidative stress claims, pricing structure, and what consumers should verify before purchasingTallmadge, Ohio, March 18, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- This release is based on information provided by Ever Joint and reflects how the company describes its product, ingredients, and related scientific context. It is not an independent product review or third-party ev

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Mar 18 • 6:10 PM EDT • Science • finance.yahoo.com
Finding Easter eggs in entertainment boosts enjoyment and fan behavior, study finds

If you've watched popular movies or television shows in the last decade, there's a good chance you've found an Easter egg or two: not an actual brightly colored egg but a subtle reference to another movie ...

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Mar 18 • 2:40 PM EDT • Entertainment • phys.org
Firefighters investigating ‘strong odor’ at Cleveland Clinic Beachwood Family Health and Surgery Center

Firefighters are investigating a ‘strong odor’ at the Cleveland Clinic Beachwood Family Health and Surgery Center on Wednesday afternoon.

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Mar 18 • 12:53 PM EDT • Health • cleveland19.com
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Google Search referrals to the web have plummeted, AI links are ‘less than 1%’ of traffic

New data shows just how impactful AI has been to the web, with Google Search referrals falling off of a...

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Mar 18 • 11:05 AM EDT • Technology • 9to5google.com
EU Seeks to Ease Burden on Business in Investment Push

Europe’s competitiveness issues are returning to the forefront this week as EU leaders meet.

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Mar 18 • 10:01 AM EDT • Business • bloomberg.com
Pope Leo XIV: Health cannot be a luxury for few

Pope Leo XIV reflects on situations of poverty, loneliness and isolation experienced by many people in Europe today and decries increasing ...

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Mar 18 • 8:23 AM EDT • Health • vaticannews.va
Mozilla to launch free built-in VPN in upcoming Firefox 149

Mozilla announced that Firefox version 149 will introduce a free browser-integrated VPN tier starting March 24, 2026.

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Mar 18 • 8:13 AM EDT • Technology • cyberinsider.com
Local farmer says entering politics 'shouldn't be daunting'

In part 2 of NEPM's series on newcomers entering politics, Easthampton, Mass., poultry farmer Karl Prahl reflects on how losing a campaign pushed him into community service.

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Mar 18 • 8:00 AM EDT • Politics • vermontpublic.org
Local farmer says entering politics 'shouldn't be daunting'

In part 2 of NEPM's series on newcomers entering politics, Easthampton, Mass., poultry farmer Karl Prahl reflects on how losing a campaign pushed him into community service.

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Mar 18 • 8:00 AM EDT • Politics • nhpr.org
Local farmer says entering politics 'shouldn't be daunting'

In part 2 of NEPM's series on newcomers entering politics, Easthampton, Mass., poultry farmer Karl Prahl reflects on how losing a campaign pushed him into community service.

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Mar 18 • 8:00 AM EDT • Politics • nepm.org
Texas primary results showed limitations of polling

Many factors explain why pollsters face challenges in getting good sample sizes that truly reflect who is going to cast a ballot.

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Mar 18 • 7:00 AM EDT • Politics • houstonchronicle.com
What to know about Bill Gates’ nuclear science company planned for the former South Philadelphia refinery site

TerraPower Isotopes will manufacture a rare, radioactive isotope for use in developing cancer treatments.

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Mar 18 • 6:00 AM EDT • Science • whyy.org
Montana senator pulls a fast one to boost preferred successor

Incumbent Steve Daines timed his retirement to all but guarantee his preferred successor will replace him. Never mind what voters, or other hopefuls, had in mind.

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Mar 18 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • latimes.com
Josh Shapiro and the Battle for Israel’s Place in American Politics – The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune

Essays – With his Iran war, or, if you prefer, excursion, President Trump is upending political debate in America on the right. The resignation in March of Joe

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Mar 18 • 5:42 AM EDT • Politics • jstribune.com
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
A dietitian and doctor review RFK Jr's new food pyramid

The new food pyramid was released earlier this year. It emphasizes protein, full-fat dairy and what Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. calls “healthy fats.” These guidelines influence the standards for school lunches, food labeling and programs like SNAP. Today on the show, Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong chats with registered dietitian nutritionist Shana Spence, and Dr. Sarah Kim, a diabetes specialist, about the new guidelines. Plus, NPR’s Reflect America fellow Kadin Mills unpacks how the new food pyramid could change school lunch trays. Check out more of Kadin’s coverage about the changes in dietary guidelines.Interested in more health science? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org.Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.

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Mar 18 • 3:00 AM EDT • Health • npr.org
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Reflecting On Health Insurance Providers Stocks’ Q4 Earnings: Progyny (NASDAQ:PGNY)

Quarterly earnings results are a good time to check in on a company’s progress, especially compared to its peers in the same sector. Today we are looking at Progyny (NASDAQ:PGNY) and the best and worst performers in the health insurance providers industry.

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Mar 17 • 7:52 PM EDT • Health • finance.yahoo.com
Douglas County Commissioner Mary Ann Borgeson reflects on 32 years in politics

As Women’s History Month highlights the achievements of women in society and culture, one woman has served the metro area community for more than three decades.

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Mar 17 • 6:01 PM EDT • Politics • wowt.com
White House offers 5 DHS reforms to Democrats

Funding for the Department of Homeland Security lapsed more than a month ago.

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Mar 17 • 5:25 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com
Trump says NATO's refusal to help on Iran is 'very foolish mistake'

Trump called on nations to help police the Strait of Hormuz after Iran responded to U.S.-Israeli attacks by using drones, missiles and mines to \u200ceffectively close the channel for tankers.

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Mar 17 • 12:21 PM EDT • Politics • detroitnews.com
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Need a healthy reset? Scales, supplements and smart trackers are on sale now

Refresh your wellness routine for less with top Amazon deals on smart scales, supplements, fitness trackers and more—all under $50.

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Mar 17 • 12:08 PM EDT • Health • usatoday.com
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WATCH: Johnson refutes outgoing counterterrorism official's claim that Iran posed no imminent threat
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Mar 17 • 11:57 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
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ASUS Announces 2026 TUF Gaming Laptop Lineup

ASUS TUF Gaming A16, F16, A18 laptops for 2026: Featuring stunning OLED/300Hz anti-reflection displays, Intel Core Ultra 9, AMD Ryzen 9, and NVIDIA RTX 5070 Ti for elite gaming. Subscribe to ASUS Pressroom for the latest tech updates!

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Mar 17 • 11:31 AM EDT • Technology • press.asus.com
Science & Innovation

Challenges to the American scientific enterprise—from the reproducibility crisis, to administrative bloat within research institutions, to diminished public trust in universities—together with sweeping reforms to the government’s role in science, make this a pivotal moment for science policy. An agenda to strengthen American science must enhance its productivity and credibility, preserve our research advantages, and ensure that the scientific enterprise remains accountable to American citizens.

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Mar 17 • 10:24 AM EDT • Science • thefai.org
😐 Neutral (0%)
Tim Cook names Apple's greatest contributions, talks tariff refunds and retirement rumors

Apple CEO Tim Cook continues the company’s 50th anniversary celebration with a press stop at Good Morning America on ABC...

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Mar 17 • 10:21 AM EDT • Technology • 9to5mac.com
'Probably the softest second booking I can remember seeing'

Who does not love a trip down to London? This felt like a fantastic opportunity for us to close the gap on Crystal Palace and pick up three points that some of the teams around us in the relegation fight failed to get. Fair play to West Ham for taking a point off Manchester City - although, if I am being honest, I would have preferred they did not.

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Mar 17 • 8:01 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
The Morning After: Apple's surprise AirPods Max refresh

The biggest news stories this morning: Samsung ends Galaxy Z TriFold sales three months after launch, NVIDIA and Bolt team up for European robotaxis, Samsung Galaxy S26 review.

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Mar 17 • 7:15 AM EDT • Technology • engadget.com
Your Average Democratic Voter Isn’t a Left Winger

President Donald Trump has a habit of referring to Democrats as “radical-left lunatics.” The unfair pejorative aside, it turns out the typical Democratic voter isn’t even left wing. Let that sink in.

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Mar 17 • 5:30 AM EDT • Politics • bloomberg.com
Japan's Idemitsu to invest $500 million in Australian Midocean to enter LNG business

Idemitsu Kosan , Japan's second-biggest oil refiner, said on Tuesday it ​will invest $500 million in Australia's ‌MidOcean Energy as part of a move towards a full-scale entry into the LNG ​business.

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Mar 17 • 5:26 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Clean your feed: Refresh your Instagram diet

It's not about missing out; it's about reclaiming your attention.

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Mar 16 • 9:25 PM EDT • Technology • axios.com
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