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The best new science-fiction books of June 2026
There is plenty of intriguing sci-fi on offer this month, whether it’s solar-powered cities from Adrian Tchaikovsky or a strange future from M. John Harrison
In Harris County judge runoff, a Democratic underscores voters’ desire for new blood
Former Houston City Council member Letitia Plummer defeated longtime local politician Annise Parker to win the Democratic nomination for Harris County judge in what political experts say might be a sign of the changing of the guard.
These Producers Built a Business Working With First-Time Directors. It Paid Off Big With ‘Obsession’
Tea Shop's James Harris and Mark Lane are the prime movers behind Curry Barker's hit movie, and they pride themselves on taking a chance on newcomers.
Lehigh Valley HVAC Company to Pay $300K and Revise Business Practices After AG Sunday Lawsuit for Aggressive, Deceptive Sales Practices
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Dave Sunday announced that Curtis Total Service, Inc., and two of its employees – current manager Richard Price and former HVAC field supervisor Matthew Price – have agreed to pay the Commonwealth $300,000 and significantly revise their business practices to comply with the Pennsylvania Consumer Protection Law and Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act.
Entertainment Highlights: New show at the Briggs explores science and sex work
Rigel Harris' new show 'Body of Work' explores the moral complexities of scientific inquiry and sex work through the life of a doctoral candidate.
Colin Allred wins Texas primary to get his old House seat back
On Tuesday, he won the Democratic primary for Texas' 33rd District.
Houston Ship Channel bridge honors Dr. Richard Tapia, National Medal of Science recipient
Harris County names Houston Ship Channel bridge after Dr. Richard Tapia, a pioneering mathematician who transformed STEM education nationwide.
Many Latino voters have turned away from Trump, but Democrats aren't necessarily winning them over, new poll finds
Hispanic voters are heading into the midterms feeling economically squeezed and increasingly skeptical of the direction of the country — but Democrats are not necessarily running away with their support, a new poll by UnidosUS finds.
Letter to the editor: Modernizing mental health care
As Pennsylvania approaches the 50th anniversary of the Mental Health Procedures Act, we must consider whether this law still effectively supports the state’s...
Julia Louis-Dreyfus to make Broadway debut
Julia Louis-Dreyfus will star in a revival of the family drama “Other Desert Cities,” alongside Broadway veterans Ed Harris, Allison Janney and Lily Rabe
Game Discussion for St. Louis Cardinals vs Milwaukee Brewers Tuesday
After losing to the Milwaukee Brewers on Memorial Day Monday, the St. Louis Cardinals will try again on Tuesday night as Michael McGreevy will start for the good guys while Kyle Harrison takes the mound for the villains. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40pm at American Family Field in Milwaukee and will be watchable on Cardinals.tv.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, an 11-time Emmy winner, to make Broadway debut in revival of Tony-winning production
Ed Harris, Allison Janney, Lily Rabe, and Joe Keery will also star in "Other Desert Cities."
AJ’s Gentlemen’s Barbershop celebrates 7 years in business
AJ’s Gentlemen’s Barbershop in Harrisonburg celebrated its seventh anniversary on Monday by giving back to its customers.
San Diego Politics Show: The vacant homes tax on the June ballot
Shane Harris the spokesperson against Measure A, the vacant homes tax on the June ballot, joined the San Diego Politics Show.
Harris tells Pearson 'your fight is for America': Week in Politics
Plus, Blackburn hosts a policy summit and Cohen endorses Molder in the 5th Congressional District.
Recap: Sporting KC sees comeback fall short in 2-1 defeat to Red Bull New York
Sporting Kansas City (3-9-2, 11 pts.) saw the team’s attempted comeback fall just short in a 2-1 setback against Red Bull New York (6-5-4, 22 pts.) at Sporting Park on Saturday night. Calvin Harris scored his second goal of the season to reduce the deficit in the second half, but
Pocantico Hills Resident Honored with Business Award
By Rick Pezzullo--- A Pocantico Hills resident has received a prestigious honor from The Business Council of Westchester (BCW). Wiley Harrison, President
Harrisburg’s Artsfest continues through the holiday weekend, rain or shine: photos
The downtown arts festival Memorial Day weekend includes musical acts, food trucks and children’s activities.
This week in politics: How Schuylkill County’s legislators voted
The PA House and Senate were both out of session this week, and will return to Harrisburg on June 1. The U.S. Senate and House were both in session this week. The Senate passed seven bills and the House passed 18. Let’s take a look at how S…
Black Women, Beauty Politics and the Power of Rage in 'Is God Is'
In one of the film’s most surreal scenes, the twins at the center of *Is God Is*—Racine, “the Rough One,” and Anaia, “the Quiet One”—pretend to be strippers for a room full of men. But while Racine is welcomed, Anaia is rejected because her scarred face disrupts the men’s fantasies. That moment crystallizes one of the film’s central questions: What happens when Black women refuse to shrink themselves for the comfort of others? In Aleshea Harris’ Gothic revenge thriller, ugliness becomes both a burden and a source of power, as the film transforms into a stereotype-busting meditation on misogynoir, beauty politics and righteous rage. As the twins travel cross-country seeking vengeance against the father who burned their mother alive, Harris layers the conventions of the revenge genre with distinctly Black feminist aesthetics. The film moves between absurd comedy, trap music, intimate sisterhood and brutal violence while interrogating the ways Black women are expected to manage their pain, suppress their anger and perform acceptability. Anaia’s scarred face and Racine’s consuming rage become mirrors of the same misogynoir that shapes Black women’s lives—whether through beauty standards, domestic violence or the demand to remain silent. What makes *Is God Is* so striking is its refusal to look away from the “ugly.” Harris insists that Black women marked by violence, scars and fury still deserve visibility, complexity and even divinity. The film embraces the “angry Black woman” and the “ugly” Black woman as figures worthy of space, power and humanity. In doing so, it expands the tradition of Black feminist filmmaking by asking viewers to confront the realities dominant culture would rather ignore—and to recognize the beauty, dignity and selfhood that exist beyond respectability.
Faulkner’s Harris College of Business Shapes Ethical Leaders for Today’s Marketplace
In a world where stories of corporate corruption dominate headlines, the need for ethical leaders has never been greater.
4 takeaways from the DNC's long-awaited 2024 election autopsy report
It's never a good sign when a report comes with a big red disclaimer at the top of each page, but that's what happened on Thursday when the Democratic National Committee belatedly released its controversial autopsy report on the 2024 election.
DNC's 2024 election autopsy criticizes Kamala Harris while sidestepping controversial elements of the campaign
Although the autopsy criticizes Democrats' focus on “identity politics,” the report does not address former President Joe Biden’s decision to seek reelection, the rushed selection of Harris to replace him on the ticket or the party's acrimonious divide over the war in Gaza.
5 Takeaways From the Democrats’ Autopsy of Kamala Harris’s 2024 Loss
A draft report released by the Democratic National Committee argued that Ms. Harris did not sufficiently separate herself from President Joseph R. Biden Jr.
DNC Report Live Updates: Democrats' Autopsy Report on 2024 Election Faults Biden, Harris and Others
An incomplete report on what went wrong in 2024 was released after it had become an embarrassment for the Democratic National Committee.
Clemson Livestock Poultry Health Names Catherine Harris Deputy State Veterinarian
Harris said the unit’s unique organizational structure, which includes its adjacency to Cooperative Extension, the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences, and the Harvey S. Peeler Jr. College of Veterinary Medicine, was a major draw and provides opportunity for collaborations that will benefit the state’s animal agriculture industry.
Steven Thrasher on Why We Must Think Past Skin-Deep Identity Politics
A conversation with the author of The Overseer Class about how people from marginalized groups can "mistake representation for liberation and confuse visibility with safety," as Kwaneta Harris put it.
State Treasurer Stacy Garrity Joined NFIB’s Small Business Day in Harrisburg
Small business owners met with elected officials at the Capitol.
Mark Cuban forced to play nice with President Trump after agreeing to be business partners
Billionaire Mark Cuban stood beside Trump at the White House to promote TrumpRx.gov after spending months campaigning against him for Kamala Harris.
Sen. Dave McCormick asks Pennsylvania to embrace AI during Harrisburg luncheon
HARRISBURG — U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick wants Pennsylvania at the forefront of the artificial intelligence boom happening across the United States.
Georgia GOP scrambles to pick candidate to face Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff
Trump has not endorsed a candidate, which could lead to a runoff on June 16.
Choose your own adventure: A Business Data Analytics alum goes looking for problems
Jeremy Harris’ love of puzzles and a fascination with cybersecurity took him from Army signals intelligence to building an award-winning IT firm in West Virginia.
Minnesota Vikings News and Links: What Moves Are Next?
Not much going on right now as we await the first OTAs and minicamp. The current Cap Space (per OverTheCap) without the Jennings signing reflected is : $12,267,125One June 2nd it will increase due to the Post-June 1 release savings: +$12,500,000 (combined from Harrison Smith and Jonathan Allen)Adjusted Total Cap Space: $24,767,125 I imagine Jennings […]
'Pawn Stars' icon Rick Harrison says Trump tax policies change everything for small businesses
Rick Harrison of "Pawn Stars" told Fox News that workers at his Las Vegas businesses are seeing astronomical tax returns thanks to Trump's small business tax policies.
Urban Science survey: Dealers confident in sales process, wary of AI for lead follow-ups
The sixth annual automotive research study by Urban Science in collaboration with The Harris Poll highlighted that nine in 10 U.S. car buyers said a traditional
Bob Myers, Josh Harris address Jared McCain trade; 76ers weighing if 3-max-player roster can still deliver NBA title
GK Digital Ventures and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Announce New Date for “The Global Game: The Future of Soccer, Tech & Media Summit”
GK Digital Ventures and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Announce New Date for “The Global Game: The Future of Soccer, Tech & Media Summit”
Calvin Harris, Dejan Joveljić spark Sporting KC to 3-1 victory over Galaxy
Charlotte business week: Hospital data breach, layoffs, an airline returns to CLT
From Harris Teeter’s parent company reaching a $100M settlement to over 100 layoffs at a Charlotte nonprofit, here’s a recap of business news.
Politics Now: May 9, 2026
This week on Politics Now with host John Langeler: Kamala Harris campaigns in Las Vegas How is Southern Nevada doing on creating affordable housing? Nevada tries to save Colorado River water, and a…
Big donors backed Harris in 2024. For 2028, they're not so sure
Though few in the party want to criticize Harris, few appear ready to endorse her. Conversations about her prospects often come down to one thing: Democrats' anxiety about winning.
A look at the past: Citrus Heights' oldest business celebrates 90 years
By Sara Beth Williams-- One of the oldest businesses in the Citrus Heights, Harris Industrial Gases, is set to celebrate its 90th anniversary next week
Democrats shy away from questions on whether Harris should run for president in 2028
House Democrats are shying away from endorsing Kamala Harris for a 2028 presidential run as names like Newsom, Shapiro and Whitmer are also being discussed.
Taxpayers could foot the bill for millions in unpaid bills from insurer, Harris Health says
Harris Health has filed a federal lawsuit alleging one of its contracted insurance providers owes the public hospital system millions of dollars in unpaid medical claims, costs the county says could ultimately fall on taxpayers.
How Kamala Harris is threading the needle on the DNC autopsy saga: From the Politics Desk
Plus, Tennessee is set to become the ninth state to enact a new congressional map since last year.
Pennsylvania community health centers request $5M for ‘crumbling’ safety net backbone
Organizations under a coalition of health centers assist more than 1 million patients across 450-plus centers each year.
Smaller balls for women's rugby 'worst decision ever'
England fly-half Zoe Harrison says the introduction of smaller balls for this autumn's WXV Global Series is "the worst decision someone has ever made".
As credit card swipe fees skyrocket, some businesses pass along the pain
Swipe fees have gone up 80% since the pandemic. "I don’t think it is fair business owners pay it or they will go under,” one Harrisburg restaurant owner says.
Empowering Veterans: The 2026 Fayetteville Veterans Business Expo aims to close the opportunity gap
This is the first year of the Veteran Business Expo, and it grew out of Fayetteville PWC’s Economic Impact Program, which focuses on expanding access and opportunity in public-sector contracting while strengthening the local economy. It builds off the success of previous events held by PWC, like the 2024 Industry Day (pictured above). Photo provided by PWC. The Fayetteville Public Works Commission (PWC) will host the inaugural 2026 Veterans Business Expo on May 14 at the PWC Main Operations Complex at 955 Old Wilmington Road, seeking to connect former U.S. Military members with vital business opportunities in their community. The event, which will take place from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., is part of a partnership between PWC and the Veterans Business Outreach Center at Fayetteville State University (VBOC) and Fayetteville-Cumberland Regional Entrepreneur and Business HUB (FSU HUB).Aaron Harris, PWC’s manager of economic inclusion programs, said the event is designed to connect Veteran-owned businesses with partners and decision-makers who can help move opportunities forward.“This event brings together Veteran entrepreneurs alongside government agencies, public entities, contractors and resource partners in one place, creating a purposeful space to build relationships, exploring procurement and contracting possibilities and strengthening our region’s Veteran-owned business community,” Harris said. The Veterans Business Expo was devised to feature, highlight and facilitate direct connections and commerce. “We want to get our Veterans a platform for their businesses,” said Camille Little, the supplier diversity analyst at PWC. “Here at PWC, we have 20 departments, and we procure… I can’t tell you all the goods and services. This is our first expo. We’re looking for general contractors, electricians, landscapers, janitorial, construction suppliers, architecture, farms and engineering firms.” Little said, much like businesses in every industry, Veterans are often in need of assistance getting their foot in the door.“When Veterans are starting up, they have to know what resources are [available],” Little noted. “They have this ample amount of resources, but they need to know how to get started.” Identifying those resources and connecting Veteran business owners with opportunities and business development programs are made possible by the partnership between PWC and VBOC, Little said. The partnership has allowed the expo to flourish, she added.“There are opportunities, there are consultant workshops and different things that we partner with them for all the time,” Little said. “It’s about easing that transition because starting a business is hard. Having the dedication to continue after that first year is even harder right now.” That is why, Little said, the partnership with resources from Fayetteville State University brings decision makers to the table. “If you are a Veteran business owner, you may not know how to do business with PWC or the City of Fayetteville or FSU, or partners,” Little said. “‘Where do I get started?’ ‘How do I get contracts?’ Bringing people to an understanding and then having an opportunity like this, where you’re talking to that person who’s making the decision… that is our goal.”Those meetings between Veteran-owned businesses and other decision-makers will present a chance to showcase products and services directly to organizations seeking qualified vendors and capable partners, Harris said. Agencies and contractors, he added, can meet and engage businesses ready to support upcoming needs. Little said PWC and all of its departments, as well as the City of Fayetteville, and FSU will be on hand. Additionally, there will be procurement officers from the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. “Resource partners who support small business development will also be on hand, helping make introductions and reinforcing pathways that support growth for Veteran entrepreneurs,” Harris said.For Veteran entrepreneurs, Little said she recommends two things: an answer to “why?” and a business plan.“I would ask them, what problem are they solving with their business?” she noted. “Then I would also tell them to start making a business plan. I run into a lot of firms, and it’s like, ‘What is your plan?’ So just knowing where you want to go with your business is important.”Little said it is important to differentiate between a business that helps transition servicemembers away from the U.S. Military versus a business that Veterans consider the next chapter of their lives.“How much dedication are you going to give to this business to make it successful?” Little noted. “So I would always start with what’s your business plan.”For Harris, the event will be able to cover the needs of all types of Veteran-owned businesses.“Another important lesson is the need to meet businesses where they are,” he said. “Veteran-owned businesses are at different stages of development, so offering multiple entry points, networking, education and referrals has proven essential.”Registration information can be found at: www.eventbrite. com/e/2026-veterans-business-expo-connecting-heroes-to-opportunity-tickets-1984308563329?aff=ebdssbdestsearch
Kansas City: On the Record - How we discuss politics in a polarized climate
KCTV5 anchor Brad Stephens has a discussion with Park University professor Dr. Matt Harris and former Kansas City Mayor Sly James.
Pistons vs Magic preview: It’s time for Game 7
It’s do or die time. Game Vitals Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, MIWhen: Sunday, May 3 at 3:30 PM ESTWatch: ABCOdds: Pistons (-8.5) Analysis Game 7, baby – IT’S TIIIME! Lineups Detroit Pistons (3-3): Cade Cunningham, Duncan Robinson, Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren Orlando Magic (3-3): Jalen Suggs, Desmond Bane, Jamal Cain, Paolo Banchero, Wendell Carter Jr Question of […]
A California Dream? Some Democrats Fear Harris Picked the Wrong Race.
Some wish Kamala Harris had decided to run for governor in California, where Democrats are struggling to break through, rather than weigh another White House run.
A California Dream? Some Democrats Fear Harris Picked the Wrong Race.
Some wish Kamala Harris had decided to run for governor in California, where Democrats are struggling to break through, rather than weigh another White House run.
Brewers win third straight game, 4-1 over Nationals
Three early runs backed another strong start from Kyle Harrison
Michael Harris DHs as Mauricio Dubon mans center field
Michael Harris returns to the starting lineup at DH, while Mauricio Dubon takes centerfield.
What’s changed about the 2028 Democratic presidential field? Kamala Harris
It’s too early to start really handicapping the 2028 presidential race, but some would-be candidates are already making serious moves.
2026 UFL Week 6 Results: St. Louis Battlehawks' Road Win vs. Louisville Kings
Here are the results from Week 6 of the 2026 UFL season.
UChicago students propose solutions to city's sports stadium conundrum
The annual Harris Policy Innovation Challenge, launched in 2023, pushes students to find solutions to some of Chicago’s most pressing public policy issues.
Sony clarifies recent PlayStation DRM update
PlayStation fans and gaming preservations have been alarmed since late last week that a new 30-day timer attached attached to newly-purchased digital games for PlayStation 4 and 5 might render those games unplayable if the system they’re on is offline for longer than a month. But a rep from Sony told Game File today that new system will require only a single online check before it functions as a perpetual license for the digitally purchased game. That is consistent with a newer theory that emerged by gamers testing the 30-day timer over the last two days. “Players can continue to access and play their purchased games as usual,” a rep for PlayStation told me over email. “A one-time online check is required after purchase to confirm the game’s license, after which no further check-ins are needed.” The rep’s explanation squares with the current understanding among players about what’s happening. A multi-day mystery A post last Friday by YouTuber Lance MacDonald spread awareness over the 30-day timer. Quickly, players began stress-testing the system, removing a battery within their PlayStations and checking what would happen if their systems were offline past the timer window. They noticed that setting a PS4 or PS5 to be the “primary” console—a common Sony-authorized method to retain rights to a digital game—wasn’t overriding the 30-day limit. On Tuesday came the breakthrough: A gamer called Andshrew on the Resetera forums posted the results of some tasting. They found that digital games purchased on PS4/PS5 after some time in mid-April would get a 30-day timer that could then be removed and replaced with a perpetual license that would allow the game to be played offline. The transition to the perpetual license occurred some number of days after the digital game was purchased and the system was connected to the internet. They believed that a PlayStation’s online check-in would trigger the license change no sooner than 15 days after the user had purchased the game. This synced with the theory that Sony’s new system is related to the 14-day window that PlayStation users have to request a refund for digitally purchased games. The new timer/check-in system could be a way to defeat some exploit in that refund system, some users theorized. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe In a follow-up, I asked the Sony rep if the 15-day timeline is accurate or if the perpetual license can be activated sooner after purchase. If they share more, I’ll update this post. Sony has not said why they’ve introduced the timer and whether it is designed to stop people from exploiting the refund system. But their explanation suggests that this new DRM method should not result in long-term loss of access to digitally purchased games, just because a PlayStation is offline for a month or Sony’s servers are down. Xbox flashback For many some gamers, the initial reporting of the 30-day timer conjured memories of Microsoft’s disastrous May 2013 announcement of the Xbox One, which was going to require an internet-connected check-in once a day, lest your games become unplayable.1 After widespread backlash, Microsoft abandoned that plan, ahead of the Xbox One’s launch. 1 Fun fact: That 24-hour check-in detail was my scoop from an interview I had that day with then-Xbox exec Phil Harrison. I was EiC of Kotaku at the time and rushing from one Xbox One preview appointment on Microsoft’s campus to another. I phoned the news in to reporter Jason Schreier, who wrote it up for the site.
HACC reverses course, will continue sports programs for next school year
HACC has reversed course on previously announced sports cutbacks, restoring several programs through the next academic year. On Wednesday, the Harrisburg-based community college stated that it will continue men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s soccer and women’s volleyball through the 2026-27 school year. Last week, HACC stated that it […]
Fox News’ Emily Compagno Groans After Hearing Jimmy Kimmel’s Ratings
See how she reacted when Harris Faulkner shared the details.
Public EV charging stations now available at Harris Street business
Four new EV charging stations have been installed at the Silk Mills building on Harris Street.
Pirates Drop Finale; One Mistake Opens Floodgates, Brewers’ Harrison Dominates
Pittsburgh Pirates starter Carmen Mlodzinski was rolling through three innings but ran into trouble in the fourth after a costly […] The post Pirates Drop Finale; One Mistake Opens Floodgates, Brewers’ Harrison Dominates appeared first on Pittsburgh Baseball Now.
Kamala Harris expected to blame Democrats and Republicans for failed economic policy at state party dinner
The former vice president recently told the National Action Network Conference that she's considering running for president in 2028.
GK Digital Ventures and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Announce Return of “The Global Game: The Future of Soccer, Tech & Media Summit”
NEWARK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 24, 2026--
GK Digital Ventures and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Announce Return of “The Global Game: The Future of Soccer, Tech & Media Summit”
GK Digital Ventures and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Announce Return of “The Global Game: The Future of Soccer, Tech & Media Summit”
Blind punk band frontman to run London Marathon
Phil Harrison, 69, will take on the challenge alongside his guide runner Dr Julia Tysoe.
GK Digital Ventures and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Announce Return of “The Global Game: The Future of Soccer, Tech & Media Summit”
NEWARK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 24, 2026--GK Digital Ventures, in partnership with Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE), today announced the return of “The Global Game: The Future of …
Attorney General Sunday Reaches $40K Settlement With Florida-Based Company that Allegedly Posed as Pa. State Agency Targeting New Business Owners
HARRISBURG – Attorney General Dave Sunday announced a settlement with a Florida-based company and its owners for allegedly impersonating a Commonwealth agency as part of efforts to get money from owners of newly-registered Pennsylvania businesses. The company will pay $40,000 in total restitution to impacted business owners. PA Corporate Certificates, LLC, contacted Pennsylvania-based business owners […]
Fantasy Baseball 2-Start Pitcher Rankings: Mick Abel, Kyle Harrison among top streaming options this week
Pinwheels and the ‘lobster district’: How Virginia Democrats drew up a US House map to all but lock out Republicans
Virginia Democrats hope the new congressional map they’re asking voters to approve Tuesday will flip four Republican House districts, delivering 10 of 11 seats in a state Vice President Kamala Harris won with just 52% of the vote in 2024. To do it, they want to dramatically rework entire sections of the state, slicing up deep blue districts in the Washington, DC, suburbs and around Richmond, and creating a new district running along the Blue Ridge Mountains that connects liberal cities. That’s required something called the “lobster district,” stretching from northern Virginia into two “pincers” grabbing up rural territory.
Inconsistent Nationals face challenge in surging Braves
The Washington Nationals will try to cool off Michael Harris II and the surging Atlanta Braves when the teams open a four-game series on Monday night.
Lt. Gov. Gilchrist wins Democratic nomination for secretary of state
Michigan Democrats nominated Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II as their candidate for secretary of state at a convention in Detroit on Sunday.
Potential 2028 Democrats Audition in Michigan,With a Focus on Trump
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey and Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky spoke at a gathering of party insiders in Detroit, fueling presidential speculation.
Harrison County sports complex opens after three years
Leaders cut ribbon on new facility featuring courts, walking track and splash pad.
Commissioners approve business accelerator initiative to expand child care accessibility in Harris County
The demand for child care subsidies soared during the COVID-19 pandemic and remains on the rise. In Harris County, around 30,000 families are on a waitlist to receive state scholarships for child care services through the Texas Workforce Commission, according to a recent University of Houston study.
Ronda Rousey steals the show with fiery Kayla Harrison rant
Ronda Rousey was at her very best during her time in the spotlight at the Palladium Times Square in New York, transforming the MVP MMA press conference into a war declaration on Kayla Harrison and the UFC. Despite being away from the octagon for almost a decade, Rousey remains atop the biggest ...
Houston midwife says access to care, systemic racism drive Black maternal deaths; urges prenatal visits
A certified nurse midwife with Ben Taub Hospital says barriers to basic health care along with systemic racism continue to fuel disproportionate maternal deaths among Black women in Harris County, even as Houston sits in the shadow of one of the world’s largest medical centers.
Nastassia Harrison ’28 blends art and science in pursuit of physical therapy through the help of her scholarships
Although she grew up playing nearly every sport in Warren County, North Carolina, Nastassia Harrison ’28 has loved dancing since she was three years old. “My dad would put me in any...
In Charlotte, Kamala Harris calls out Trump’s ‘obviously wrong’ Pope Leo post
The former vice president and presidential candidate was back in Charlotte Tuesday night promoting her campaign memoir.
Spring sports scores and highlights: April 14, 2026
Highlights feature the boys soccer game between Rocktown at Harrisonburg
Harrisburg appoints new business administrator; council concerned with his experience, hasty vote
Harrisburg has a new chief of staff. At a meeting Tuesday, City Council approved Antonio Megna as the new business administrator, a position that has been vacant since a legal battle between council and the mayor resulted in the former office-holder’s termination. Megna previously served as the special assistant to the business administrator for about […]
Gov. Spanberger visits the Valley to support business investments, I-81 widening
Gov. Abigail Spanberger made her way to the Shenandoah Valley on Tuesday morning, with stops around Harrisonburg and Rockingham County highlighting major investments, a local business expansion and the kickoff of a long-awaited widening project on Interstate 81.
Health Sciences Symposium celebrates student research - News
The Interprofessional Education Health Sciences Symposium was recently held in the Oscar N. Harris Student Union, bringing together students from… More on this post
Ecuador and Saudi Arabia Will Face Off at Sports Illustrated Stadium in May During Final Preparations for the World Cup
MIAMI, FL (April 10, 2026) - Utilizing the last FIFA match window prior to the World Cup, Ecuador and Saudi Arabia will face off at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, NJ on May 30th at 7:30 pm (ET). Both teams are laser focused on getting out of the Group Stage
Built for Success: Faulkner Business Alumni Excel Across Industries
Alumni of Faulkner’s Harris College of Business and the Khadanga School of Executive Education are making their mark across industries.
The Message Man: Ferraro Award Winner Matt Corridoni ’13 Helps Political Campaigns Connect
Forty years after Geraldine Ferraro ’56 became the first woman nominated for vice president by a major political party, Kamala Harris mounted her own ba...
Mauricio Dubon back in center for Braves-Guardians finale
With Michael Harris Jr. on the paternity list and Eli White day-to-day with plantar fasciitis, Mauricio Dubon will make his second straight start in center field for Sunday night’s finale of the Braves-Guardians series in Atlanta. Dubon will hit eighth in the lineup followed by Jorge Mateo, who will make his second straight start at […]
Sports Highlights
Chris Hayashi: Chris Hayashi, a senior on the Lake Oswego boys track team, put in one of the best efforts of the season during his team’s meet against Oregon City […]
Gary Jackson featured at FMU School of Business for annual Common Author Colloquium
More than 60 students, faculty and community members gathered at Harris Auditorium Thursday for the annual Common Author Colloquium featuring author Gary Jackson, who discussed his new book “Small Lives: Poems,” which reimagines superheroes with new themes. The event, hosted by Shawn Smolen-Morton, chair of Francis Marion University’s Department of Modern Languages and professor of...
“AI polls” are fake polls
A few weeks after Donald Trump’s second presidential win, I took the train up from London (where I was living at the time) to Oxford to attend a conference on polls and forecasts of the 2024 election. Most of the attendees were pollsters or academics, but I also watched presentations from Aaru and Electric Twin, two companies that do what is interchangeably called synthetic sampling, silicon sampling, or synthetic audiences. Stripped of startup jargon, that means they use large language models (LLMs) to simulate responses to public opinion polls by having AI agents take on the role of survey respondents. I had already heard of Aaru thanks to some articles with eye-catching headlines like “No people, no problem: AI chatbots predict elections better than humans” in the months leading up to Election Day. The founders were making some big, some might even say far-fetched claims, such as: “within two years, we will simulate the entire globe — from the way crops are grown in Ukraine to how that impacts production of oil in Iraq, trade through the strait of Malacca, and elections for the mayor of Baltimore.” When Semafor asked Aaru’s cofounders — Cameron Fink and Ned Koh — about my boss, they said “we respect all those who came before us.” Nate (as he so often does) shared his thoughts on Twitter: Fink and Koh were relatively good-natured about this back-and-forth when we spoke at Oxford. They even offered to mail me one of the t-shirts featuring Nate’s quote they apparently had made. I never took them up on the offer, which I now somewhat regret. These synthetic sampling companies fell off my radar for a while, but they do still exist. In fact, Aaru recently received a $1 billion valuation. Is what they’re doing anywhere close to the most important frontier in AI development? Not by a longshot, especially when Anthropic just developed a model so adept at exploiting software vulnerabilities that it’s only being released to 40 companies. Still, silicon sampling is increasingly finding its way into public polling. Axios reported in March that “a majority of people trust their own doctors and nurses” based on findings from Aaru — without mentioning that the “people” in that sentence were actually LLMs. Around the same time, the Public Sentiment Institute “boosted” their online sample of 373 real survey respondents with 114 AI agents.1 (Spoiler alert: even the co-founder of Electric Twin doesn’t think that’s a particularly defensible approach.) Polling companies like Qualtrics and Ipsos are also developing synthetic data panels. So, what should we make of these … “polls”? Let’s get one thing out of the way: whatever they are, they’re not polls in the way that term is usually defined. Subscribe You can’t replace polls with AI On one hand, using LLMs to essentially make up fake survey respondents sort of sounds like the dumbest idea ever, one that will at best imperfectly replicate real polls while introducing all sorts of biases. On the other hand, with LLMs improving at a remarkable, perhaps even alarming rate, maybe that means I’m a dinosaur at the ripe old age of 24 because I still want to rely on polls that talk to actual people. I’m not going to argue that synthetic samples are completely useless. In fact, as I’ll return to later, there is evidence that some techniques can replicate topline survey results quickly and cheaply. But the marketing from certain companies can be slightly optimistic. “No traditional poll will exist by the time the next general election occurs,” said Fink in 2024. We’re just 206 days away from the midterms, and based on the fact that I still have to collect a bunch of polls every day, I’d say he should have run that prediction by a sample of AI agents before the interview.2 To see why synthetic samples can’t replace polls, here’s a quick primer on how they work. The simplest version of these models involves taking a LLM (like ChatGPT or Claude), giving it a demographic profile (e.g., a white, college-educated woman who lives in Utah and makes $70k a year), and then asking it to respond to a survey question. You repeat that process a few thousand times using different demographic profiles and end up with a sample of synthetic survey responses. The actual models used by private companies are more sophisticated than this, usually because they incorporate more hypothesized demographic characteristics for each agent and provide them with extra information. Aaru, for example, feeds agents a diet of news and information they’d be likely to consume, while Electric Twin incorporates their customers’ proprietary data about the audience they’re trying to replicate. The way Ben Warner, the co-founder of Electric Twin, explained it to me was “we have a large amount of data on […] for instance, 5,000 people. Can we make an accurate prediction of how they would respond to another question?” Still, it should be obvious why synthetic samples can’t replace polls. Polling is fundamentally a data collection process. We might use surveys to make predictions by feeding them into election forecasts, but the main purpose of a poll isn’t prediction, it’s gathering new data about what people think and how they feel. Silicon sampling, on the other hand, produces no new data. It’s simply a model: you input LLM training data, demographic prompts, and a bunch of other information, and it spits out a prediction for what a poll would say. We love models here, but models aren’t polls. That difference is an important philosophical sticking point for most pollsters I talk to. “I think politics should stay away from [synthetic sampling], because we’re trying to […] represent the voice of the people,” said Natalie Jackson, a vice president at GQR Insights. Democratic pollster John Hagner told me: “I think I’m just incredibly skeptical of this idea. I don’t think it’s research. At that point, you’re asking the machine to tell you what you already believe.” Hagner has seen some presentations of early synthetic sampling experiments, but so far, “if it’s being used in a campaign, people are keeping it incredibly quiet.”3 But Eli, I hear you saying, aren’t polls themselves increasingly governed by modeling decisions? Indeed they are: pollsters’ choices on which sampling method to use, how to define their likely voter models, and how to weight their samples can and do lead to dramatic differences in the results they publish. Aaru even referenced these limitations in the methodology statement included with that maternal mortality “poll” — although I’m using the term “methodology statement” loosely here, because it doesn’t really explain how the model works at all. We can ignore the (frankly preposterous) implication that synthetic sampling isn’t subject to a separate set of biases. The important point is that there’s still a meaningful difference between using weighting and other statistical techniques on actual polling data and using a model to predict what a poll would say. The latter is far closer to election forecasts or techniques like MRP — potentially useful models, but not a replacement for polls.4 To be fair, other synthetic sampling companies are perfectly happy with the distinction between polls and models. Warner compared polling and synthetic sampling to different tools in a toolbox. “The mistake I think we make is we think that these new tools should either work in exactly the same way or somehow replace these old tools,” he said. “Rather than thinking of it as, okay, so we’ve always had the hammer, we’ve always had the screwdriver, now we’ve got a saw. But don’t use a saw to try [to] do the job of a hammer.” A quick comment from Nate Eli didn’t ask me for a comment — rather rude of him, don’t you think? But since I’m editing this story, I figured I’d add a few quick thoughts rather than putting words in his mouth. Beyond the frequently misleading marketing, what bothers me about the AI “poll” hype is that as AI tools make statistical inference cheaper and/or better (note that these are not synonyms) that actually increases the comparative value of collecting original data. You might be able to train a model to make a reasonable estimate of what some hard-to-reach poll respondent would say — say, a young Black man who voted for Trump. (Such a person checks a number of boxes for a voter who is usually hard to reach in surveys.) Indeed, this is closely related to what models like the Silver Bulletin forecast already do. They essentially smooth out the kinks in noisy survey data by making inferences based on past voting patterns or national polls or surveys of other states. But you don’t actually know what these voters think unless you’re reaching them directly. If there’s a shift in opinion among this subgroup, you’re not going to detect it. So if I were running a campaign, I’d invest more in going the extra mile to find a representative sample of those voters. And then I’d hire some smart quants — or Claude? — to figure out the implications for campaign strategy based on proprietary data that my competitors didn’t have access to. -Nate Silver Are these models any good? If synthetic surveys are just a new type of model, the next obvious question is whether the models are at least accurate. The answer very much depends on who you ask. On one end of the spectrum, you have the maximalist argument that synthetic sampling is more accurate than actual polls. “It’s an incredibly challenging problem to go to someone and say ‘hey, we’re going to be more accurate at predicting human behavior than you, even when you talk to your customers directly’,” Koh recently told CNBC. In his view, synthetic sampling isn’t a saw to polling’s hammer, it’s “magic.” There’s certainly evidence that synthetic samples can replicate certain survey toplines. But if Aaru does have any examples of their approach outperforming the polls, they’re keeping those to themselves.5 Aaru’s 2024 election model, for example, had Kamala Harris leading in Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin on November 4th. And although they’ve since taken down their forecast page, they gave Harris a 50.5 percent chance of winning the race on November 2nd.6 After the election, Fink told Semafor he was happy enough with those results because they were “within margin of error,” a term that is completely meaningless when applied to a “sample” of AI agents. And of course, Aaru says their models have improved since 2024, so supposedly now they’d be more accurate than the polls? Still, their stronger argument is on cost: “We are significantly faster and cheaper than traditional polling, and still more accurate,” said Fink. The first two claims are undeniably true, but the third brings us to the opposite end of the spectrum. Both Jackson and Hagner are skeptical that these models are reliable for anything beyond replicating common survey toplines. “I just […] don’t think the machines are what we want when we’re looking for nuanced views. My example on this is people in Arizona and Nevada in 2024 who voted for Trump and voted for expanding abortion in their states on ballot initiatives,” said Jackson. Hagner identified another issue. Maybe the synthetic respondents, like sycophantic LLMs, are inhuman in one important way: they’re too nice. “The reports that have come through at the meetings that I’ve been at are that the early experiments on this, they cannot get respondents to be as racist or sexist or, frankly, as negative as human respondents,” he said. Academic research mostly agrees on this point. While there are some papers that show promising results when using LLMs to replicate polling data, most show that LLMs suffer from various quirks like producing too few “don’t know” responses and can seriously overpredict the favorability of politicians like Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. They also seem to struggle with too little variation between demographic subgroups, so the difference in predicted opinion between Democrats and Republicans, for example, is too small. When I asked Warner about these studies, his response to these papers was that just because academics can’t get synthetic sampling to work doesn’t mean that the technique doesn’t work in general. “Actually, the argument is, okay, yours does not [work]. That does not mean […] for this complex set of machinery, which uses a lot of investment, a lot of time, a lot of money, you can’t get it to work.” Cards on the table, I’m somewhat sympathetic to this argument because academics aren’t exactly great at making election forecasts. Usually, the people with skin in the game are the most accurate. Warner’s argument is that the approach Electric Twin takes — which includes, for example, making multiple predictions for each synthetic respondent using different models and prompts and subsequently averaging those to get a final prediction in a sort of ensemble forecast — produces better results than the simpler academic models. Warner shared a comparison between his method and the method from a recent academic paper with me, and Electric Twin was indeed able to get more accurate replication. But even still, he acknowledged that synthetic sampling “is not a crystal ball.” “If you asked me, do I think using other data sources will be more accurate than asking somebody who they will vote for, I would probably say no. But if you asked me ‘would your system be useful for our turnout modeling today?’ I would say yes.” For better or worse, it looks like the method is already getting more popular in the market research world. Most of the clients Aaru touts these days are businesses like EY and McDonald’s. And AI will probably begin to pop up in other parts of the political polling process. Pollsters are already using it to code open-ended survey responses, and some firms, like YouGov, are testing using LLMs to ask survey respondents questions. More worryingly, one danger to actual polls is that AI agents can be used to infiltrate online surveys. Most online polls use various checks to prevent that from happening, but there’s conflicting evidence on how effective those filters are and how prevalent AI agents currently are in online panels. If those agents ever become impossible to detect, it might spell the end of online polling, but the solution isn’t to replace all of your respondents with ChatGPT. Silver Bulletin is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a subscriber. Subscribe 1 That particular poll obviously doesn’t meet Silver Bulletin standards for aggregation. But we exclude all Public Sentiment Institute polls from our averages because we classify them as an amateur polling firm. 2 You could argue that Fink meant the next presidential election, but (a) I’m also confident we’ll still have real polls in 2028 and (b) in that case he should have asked an LLM to define “general election.” 3 Quick caveat: that’s reporting from a Democratic pollster. It’s possible that Republicans are more willing to use AI in political campaigns. 4 Indeed, Silver Bulletin does not include “polls” produced by MRP in our forecasts or averages, and we think it’s extremely misleading when their practitioners describe them in a way that suggests original data had been collected among a large number of states or Congressional districts. 5 A recent report from Aaru and EY did show two examples of a synthetic estimate being closer than a survey to a real-world benchmark — but I’d take those findings with a grain of salt because the report reads more like an ad and didn’t involve any sort of prediction being made ahead of time. 6 For comparison, our odds for Harris on the same day were 48.2 percent.
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