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Top U.S. doctors offer updated flu and COVID vaccine recommendations, aiming to ease confusion

Leading U.S. medical groups are urging people to get updated flu and COVID-19 vaccinations this fall, banding together Wednesday to issue shot guidelines — and highlight the science behind them — saying they hope to ease confusion caused by the Trump administration's changing advice.

Sep 2 • 2:21 PM EDT • Health • pbs.org

Cook County Department of Public Health Launches Building Healthier Communities 2030, a Community-Driven Roadmap to Advance Health Equity Across Suburban Cook County - Cook County Department of Public Health

Today, Cook County Department of Public Health launched Building Healthier Communities 2030, suburban Cook County’s Community Health Improvement Plan. The plan was announced together with Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County Department of Public Health, community organizations, healthcare providers and cross-sector partners. Building Healthier Communities 2030 serves as both a collective vision and a practical roadmap that will guide public health efforts across suburban Cook County through 2030.The plan aligns with President Preckwinkle's Policy Roadmap and reflects a shared commitment to advancing health equity through coordinated, community-informed action.

Sep 2 • 1:45 PM EDT • Health • cookcountypublichealth.org

Training program helps community health workers connect patients with dental offices to receive timely care

Community health workers and the dental care team can work together to reduce barriers to care. CHWs and California dentists can learn how with a new training program created by the UCLA School of Dentistry.

Sep 2 • 1:04 PM EDT • Health • cda.org

US medical groups urge people to get flu and Covid shots in counter to Trump guidance

Top medical groups band together to ease confusion from Trump administration’s changing immunization advice

Sep 2 • 11:14 AM EDT • Health • theguardian.com

Christopher Borick blends public opinion with politics at Lehigh Opinion Observatory

For Dr. Christopher Borick, relocating to Lehigh is more than a change in workplace. It’s an opportunity to bring together decades of teaching, political research and public opinion analysis to a university that has long been part of his professional and personal life. Borick joined Lehigh full-time in July after spending much of his career

Sep 2 • 10:00 AM EDT • Politics • thebrownandwhite.com

Everett Symposium will bring together business, industry and government leaders to examine the ethics of AI

Troy University will host the second-annual Terry and Barbara Everett Symposium on Emerging Technologies on Sept. 18 at the Dothan Campus.

Sep 2 • 9:49 AM EDT • Business • today.troy.edu

EA SPORTS FC™ 27 Brings Fans Closer to The World’s Game With New Partners, Leagues, and Stadiums

Powered by the support of global football partners, EA SPORTS FC™ 27 captures The World’s Game with unrivalled authenticity. Today, Electronic Arts announced an expanded roster of leagues, clubs, partners and stadiums coming to EA SPORTS FC 27, bringing players closer to the football they love through one of the most authentic representations of The World’s Game. Additions include new and renewed partnerships with a number of major European clubs, the highly anticipated return of Liga MX, and the continuation of EA SPORTS FC’s long-term relationship with the Bundesliga, the ROSHN Saudi League and the A-League. FC 27 AUTHENTICITY “With EA SPORTS FC 27, we’re building on years of bringing our community closer to football,” said James Salmon, Senior Director Partnership Marketing, EA SPORTS FC . “New and renewed partnerships bring more of the clubs, leagues, players and stadiums fans care about into FC 27, with the authenticity they expect from us. Together, they make The World’s Game

Sep 2 • 8:00 AM EDT • Sports • news.ea.com

August Monthly Review: ChatGPT In Epic

Death, taxes, another frontier lab healthcare launch inspiring truly insane LinkedIn takes. As much as I want to stay away, I repeatedly am the crewman unplugging his ears whenever we pass these sirens. So it’s not the first and probably not the last time we dial up the typewriter rather than tie ourselves to the mast. The full blow-by-blow timeline: Health API Guy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe The End of the Standalone PHR (Jan 8): ChatGPT Health arrives for consumers, at the time powered by b.well. I was bullish on the approach in that the best way for the PHR to finally solve distribution was to meet consumers were they already are (i.e. When Horizontal Meets Healthcare (Jan 9): OpenAI for Healthcare puts out the shingle for enterprises, with SharePoint ingestion standing in for the EHR integration the product actually needed. Another One: Anthropic’s Healthcare Debut (Jan 16): Claude's version, on HealthEx rails instead of b.well, with Agent Skills for FHIR development as the one true vertical-specific investment. ChatGPT for Clinicians: The Trap Sprung (Apr 24): OpenAI filled in the missing GTM middle with a free product for verified clinicians, effectively peeling the enterprise wrapper off ChatGPT for Healthcare and taking the PLG fight directly to OpenEvidence. OpenAI’s Second Attempt at Health (Jul 31): a relaunch of their patient specific app, now branded Health in ChatGPT, where the privacy partition came out, the connectors thinned, and b.well disappeared in favor of first-party FHIR work against a smaller network Beyond a Shingle So what was announced now? Today, we’re introducing a new electronic health record integration that brings authorized patient context from Epic into ChatGPT for Healthcare, along with the Healthcare Public Data plugin for direct, structured access to official healthcare datasets like PubMed, DailyMed, and CMS Coverage. Together, these capabilities bring ChatGPT closer to the systems and sources healthcare teams trust, while supporting the controls and compliance healthcare work requires. The core portfolio is unchanged from prior announcements we delineated and discussed (aside from the relaunch of patient-facing). Since trade publications still seem to be confusing them by using the wrong names: Enterprise sales motion: ChatGPT for Healthcare Protecting their core product / PLG: ChatGPT for Clinicians Consumer/patient-facing product: Health in ChatGPT So really, this is a feature release (specifically for ChatGPT for Healthcare when it comes to EHR integration). What’s cool about it, though, is that we are moving beyond just putting out a shingle. Everything in the January enterprise launch was horizontalizable: Horizontal tech companies thus generally start verticalization with their “putting out a shingle phase”. Telling the world you’re open for business as a horizontal tech company reliably attracts early inbound interest from buyers who are already trying to force-fit horizontal tools into domain-specific workflows and are eager for any signal that the vendor intends to support their use case more directly. Nothing was really vertical specific, which is exactly what you'd expect from the ultimate hypergrowth horizontal company dipping their toes into specific industries. But eventually you have to stop changing the sign on the door and start changing the product. Can you guess where the horizontal product was going to run out of road? This is the core dilemma writ large: verticalization requires differentiation, while scale economics of consumer and horizontal push toward unification. I’ve buried the lede so deep here it will be painful to some readers, but what should be shocking to no one is that my perspective is that EHR integration is the only path that meaningfully resolves this tension for ChatGPT for Healthcare. Integration with Microsoft Sharepoint is fine, but it is categorically insufficient for any product that hopes to influence clinical decision-making. SMART Money Well here we are, eight months later! Real vertical investment has begun, which surprised a few people. One friend in the industry messaged me: “Absolutely no way Epic gave ChatGPT API access.” Looking forensically at the announcements, the integration is notably read-only across appointment notes, laboratory results, medications, and specialist documentation. So while I’m not a betting man, I'd wager the house this is a SMART on FHIR launch: That sounds a lot like USCDI! The recommended path for the workflow they outline would be SMART on FHIR Their Health AI lead’s post is evocative of both standalone and EHR launch SMART, which another termed “ChartGPT” and “EHR Plugin” The implementation burden for SMART on FHIR is the lowest of the available integrative paths This is the team who literally did patient-facing SMART on FHIR with Epic last month Most importantly, if you’re a horizontal company, you generally still haven’t taken the full plunge and thus (overly) value reusability. SMART on FHIR is the logical compromise: healthcare-specific enough to matter, but standardized enough to reuse. Nobody Asked Judy Another friend asked “I thought they had to go to each health system, or did they go direct to Epic and now health systems opt in?” Given the trust paradigms in healthcare, this functionally cannot be Epic hoovering up all the data for OpenAI and shoving ChatGPT in their customers’ faces (or they would revolt). However, I do believe the aforementioned terrible coverage by TechCrunch and other outlets is probably responsible for that question, given the 325 million reference. When using FHIR as a business associate to an Epic customer, there is no EHR gatekeeping to speak of, as that isn’t how fhir.epic.com works: You register an app You pick your APIs You test against the sandbox APIs You list as “Ready for Production” Hospitals pick your app You test and go live with them Bluntly, nobody had to say yes or no in Verona (nor were they given the chance). Vendor Services (their next developer tier up that I doubt OpenAI is using quite yet in this initial release) certainly has contractual paperwork that some resent, but even there, the twin pressures of mounting antitrust and information blocking make outright gatekeeping increasingly fraught. My friend’s sentiment is, to me, representative of a broader industry neurosis, perhaps a sort of scar tissue of prior eras: people assume the gate is still there and never actually try the door. There are certainly other ways Epic (and any EHR) can put its thumb on the scale, but they are not so dumb as to stand in front of a federally mandated API and play bouncer at this exact moment in time. So I think they can and probably should go deeper, as this release is at best parity and at worst behind vertical-specific competition. OpenEvidence did a basic SMART launch with Sutter Health in February, allowing for more convenient evidence search by providers. They then add patient-context (the equivalent SMART on FHIR flow to what we see here) when Cedars-Sinai went enterprise-wide in May. UpToDate has four distinct applications across deeper workflows like patient engagement listed in Epic Showroom and announced a partnership with Epic to power Art at UGM Abridge and other ambient scribes have invested deeply into the deepest bidirectional clinical copilot workflow with integrations well beyond SMART on FHIR. In that light, the “Who is OpenAI primarily targeting here?” is clear. This release brings them into striking distance of OpenEvidence, but not the others quite yet. They are the only one of the three you can reach without building something truly Epic-specific. When will they go further? Competition is a great motivator to overcome the horizontal demons and start building things that can’t be reused: not across industries, not across EHRs, maybe not past the customer you built them for. That’s the price of actually verticalizing. The question is if and when OpenAI will be willing to pay it. Month in Review Here is the monthly review. As a reminder, this is a regular round-up of the month’s posts and other content to surface things you may have missed across regulation, litigation, interoperability, and beyond. AI assistance is used in these bullet summaries so I can focus on articles. Articles Published: None this month Video Content: The Information Exchange: Standards-based Thruple Edition (Aug 14): Back to school for us too, with Brad reporting in from the CMS Health Tech Ecosystem’s one year anniversary in DC. We get into the January CMS-0057 deadline, the fall rulemaking reading list, and why enrollment still keeps most apps off FHIR. The Information Exchange: Epic Dúnadan Edition (Aug 25): A UGM roundup with Ryan Brickner joining for the first time to check our takes against what the building actually thinks. Rangers, Ergo sitting on top of EHI, and a down-market lineup that needs some cuts. Regulatory: Stacked Deck, Bad Hand (Aug 05): ONC’s website refresh took the entire HIT Policy Committee record with it, so I rebuilt the archive and went looking for the regulatory capture story everyone assumes is buried in there. Stacking the deck and winning the hand turn out to be very different things. The Sixth Generation of Patient Access (Aug 19): A quick catalog of the five generations of patient access we’ve layered on since HIPAA, and the two candidates now competing to be the sixth. One is planned. The other is the market routing around the plan entirely. Court cases: Three Cases Walk Into a Docket (Aug 06): Two surprise settlements cleared the board in a single week, and then Judge Maddox dropped ninety-four pages on Vyne v. Henry Schein. The sleeper is a DMCA holding that makes direct-to-database a considerably riskier business model. Epic v. Health Gorilla: Into the MDL (Aug 10): Nine class actions are headed to Miami, and the Panel signaled it wants to bring the case that spawned them along too. That would leave Epic arguing the requests were obviously fraudulent in one courtroom and unknowable in the other. Amazon v. Perplexity: Agents Are Legalized! (Aug 11): The Ninth Circuit vacated the injunction against Comet, holding that the user is the one accessing the servers rather than the company that built the agent. A real win for agentic access, and a much narrower one than the headline suggests. Veeva v. Epic: Come At Me, Bro (Aug 26): Epic’s response brief wants the dismissal affirmed and, unusually, wants the opinion published as precedent. Buried in it is Epic’s own description of what its non-competes actually prohibit, which current and former employees should read closely. EHRs: The Contract Epic Would Never Sign Today (Aug 04): A 1999 SEC exhibit catches Epic licensing nearly its entire product line, Tapestry included, to the company that became TriZetto. The marketing services menu attached to it is the part that will make you blink. Forecast from Verona (Aug 07): The Epic Almanac makes one argument six different ways: the AI is only as good as the networks behind it. Emmie headlines, Art’s context stack is the most ambitious part, and Penny finally gets an autonomous coding date on the calendar. Works With Epic MyChart (Aug 17): Epic’s first new Showroom category since the death of Workshop certifies hardware instead of software, badge on the box and all. Made for iPhone, but for blood pressure cuffs, and rough news for anyone selling the RPM stack sitting in between. UGM Hot Takes 2026 (Aug 20): Everyone else covered the AI announcements, so I went after Savvy deleting the payment gateway, Rangers as Boost with the timer removed, and a down-market lineup with too many entries. Plus the Health Grid tidbits I cannot help myself on. MyChart Central Grows Up (Aug 24): Device data and Emmie turn Epic’s identity hub into a full consumer platform, which is both a logical answer to ChatGPT and a bit of a mistake. It also happens to be the best scraping target Epic has ever shipped. Industry Analysis: The Wrong Yardstick (Aug 12): Vertical software keeps getting judged against Superhuman and Notion, which is the wrong bar entirely. Your user is comparing your product to a whiteboard and forty phone calls before lunch. Primitives vs. Abstractions (Aug 27): Developers want building blocks, systems of record prefer to hand out business logic, and both sides have a real case. There’s no test from the outside that separates the engineering reason from the competitive one, which is why this keeps ending up in court. Cross-industry Comparisons: The Two Kinds of Platform Power (Aug 18): Attention power and record power are different problems that keep getting handed the same regulatory toolkit. Congress’s latest swing at Big Tech shows both what’s possible and where it falls apart. The Dogs of (Platform) War (Aug 21): A CourtListener alert turned up a property management fight with healthcare’s exact shape and none of the Cures Act. Shell prospects, ghost accounts, a notetaker bot that came back to haunt someone, and a lawyer arguing both sides of the same theory in two states. Fractals All the Way Down (Aug 31): Yardi dominates property management right up until you zoom into one segment, where AppFolio owns it outright and Yardi doesn’t appear at all. Where you draw the line around a B2B software market is about to decide an awful lot of cases. Other News: If Judy Had the Courage (Aug 13): A short eulogy for the era when software was allowed to look insane: WinAMP, bold colors, and everything the grey chatbot era has taken from us. External Media: Portland Monthly Health Tech Meetup: Erin O’Brien channeled my own feelings - maybe it’s just because it’s August and beautiful, but the monthly edition of the PDX Health community meetup was a ripper. Make sure to reach out if interested to join for the next one. STAT’s Coverage of Epic This Month: Brittany Trang of STAT did a fantastic job of breaking the FTC investigation that’s been lurking, as well as UGM related coverage, so I had to give her her wish of a meme. Fall Conferences: I’m pumped to be kicking off my fall conference season in NYC at Nabla Accelerate next month, which Chrissy provided the link to apply for. Here’s the rest of my schedule in case you want to meet up: Commonwell (Redwood Shores, CA): Oct 13-14 Open@Epic (Madison, WI): Oct 21-22 eHealthExchange (Austin, TX): Oct 27 Sequoia Project (Austin, TX): Oct 28-29 HLTH (Vegas): Nov 15-18 RSNA (Chicago): Nov 29-Dec 3 Posts I Liked: HTI-6 Should Unbundle API Certification: Josh Mandel makes the case that HTI-6 should split (g)(10) into separate authorization and data certifications, so a PACS or a genomics platform can certify only the role it actually performs. Imaging is the urgent example, but the structure solves a much bigger problem. On implementing ePrior Auth with Epic: Scott Rossignol’s field notes from a live ePrior Auth build on Epic, including the two app registrations nobody warns you about and the CPT mapping problem waiting at the end. CMS-0057 implementations are going to be such a beast. Healthcare point solutions are starting to look a lot like streaming services: Spencer Dorn runs the cable-to-streaming arc against health IT and lands squarely on the bundling half of the cycle. Bundling can be good! It can also be bad! Life is nuanced. Health API Guy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe

Sep 2 • 5:05 AM EDT • Health • healthapiguy.substack.com

Celebrate 40 years of Waynesville's Main Street milestones

For 40 years, merchants, property owners, volunteers, community leaders and residents have worked together to shape downtown Waynesville into the vibrant Main Street community it is today. Next month, the

Sep 2 • 12:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • themountaineer.com

Connecticut Latino Business Expo seeks to help entrepreneurs

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — Entrepreneurs, community leaders and elected officials came together Tuesday to strengthen Latino-owned businesses in Connecticut. The Hispanic Federation’s CRE…

Sep 1 • 6:18 PM EDT • Business • wtnh.com

Fernbank Museum gala to honor Teresa M. Finley

Fernbank Museum of Natural History will host its annual fundraising gala, A Timeless Affair, on Saturday, Oct. 3, bringing together Atlanta’s philanthropic, business and civic communities for an evening of

Sep 1 • 3:04 PM EDT • Entertainment • gwinnettdailypost.com

Dialed Health Is Officially Live, with a Launch Centered Around Events

At its core, Dialed Health brings together three elements that have often been treated separately: recovery tools, community engagement, and event infrastructure.

Sep 1 • 12:22 PM EDT • Health • usatoday.com

Broward’s Memorial Healthcare System board to vote on CEO position this week

During his tenure, interim CEO Shane Strum has pushed for Broward Health and Memorial to work together.

Sep 1 • 11:44 AM EDT • Health • miamiherald.com

What We Learned from the First Leadership Louisiana Health Fellows Session - Leaders for a Better Louisiana

The strength of Leadership Louisiana has always been its ability to bring together accomplished leaders from different sectors and regions to learn from one another while developing a broader understanding of our state. The Health Fellows program extends that tradition by focusing on one of Louisiana’s most significant opportunities for improvement.

Sep 1 • 9:00 AM EDT • Health • betterla.org

NSF launches three new Science and Technology Centers with $90M investment in transformative research

The U.S. National Science Foundation is investing $90 million over five years to support three new NSF Science and Technology Centers (NSF STC). These centers will advance American leadership in science and technology, strengthen the nation’s STEM workforce, and accelerate innovation in fields ranging from artificial intelligence and biotechnology to fusion energy and robotics., , , , The three centers will bring together researchers from universities, national laboratories, industry, and oth...

Aug 31 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • webwire.com

Trump Urges Congress to Pass Tax Incentives for Entertainment Industry

Aug 31 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump ⁠on ⁠Monday said that ⁠Congress should pass tax incentives for the entertainment industry to keep production in the country. "I am going to suggest ‌that Republicans and Democrats ‌get together, and immediately craft Legislation to save the ⁠Movie,

Aug 31 • 6:48 PM EDT • Entertainment • usnews.com

Ernst Names Small Business of the Week, The Bread Board

Read the release on Sen. Ernst's website HERE. Throughout this Congress, Chair Ernst plans to recognize a small business in every one of Iowa’s 99 counties. RED OAK, Iowa – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Chair of the Senate Small Business Committee, today announced her Small Business of the Week: The Bread Board of Marion County. Throughout the 119th Congress, Chair Ernst plans to recognize a small business in each of Iowa's 99 counties. “The Bread Board has risen to the occasion, growing from Heidi’s passion for baking into a thriving Pella bakery that brings people together,” said Chair Ernst. “From serving fresh sourdough and homemade meals to supporting local businesses, schools, and community events, Heidi and her team have proven they have the perfect recipe for success.” Heidi Rozenboom grew up baking fresh bread alongside her grandmother, always using the same bread board that would eventually inspire her business’ name. Years later, Heidi started selling fresh bread to local coffee shops and cafes. As demand grew, she opened her storefront in downtown Pella in 2021 and named her bakery the Bread Board. Today, the Bread Board serves fresh sourdough bread, pastries, homemade meals, and other baked goods. Stay tuned as Chair Ernst continues to recognize outstanding Iowa small businesses with her Small Business of the Week award. ###

Aug 31 • 6:01 PM EDT • Business • sbc.senate.gov

Nike, RAJ Epicenter Week And The Business Of Women’s Sports

Portland’s Nike Global Sport Summit and RAJ Sports Epicenter Week brought 500+ leaders together to explore investment, infrastructure and the future of women’s sports.

Aug 31 • 3:00 PM EDT • Business • forbes.com

In the 608: Kindness Bank launching Kindness Alliance to promote community health and well-being

Kindness Bank is launching a new division focused on bringing organizations and community members together to address basic human needs and improve community health and well-being.

Aug 31 • 10:55 AM EDT • Health • channel3000.com

U.S. Special Envoy for Global Partnerships Paolo Zampolli’s Meeting with Uzbekistan's Minister of Sports and National Olympic Committee

U.S. Special Envoy for Global Partnerships Paolo Zampolli’s Meeting with Uzbekistan’s Minister of Sports and National Olympic Committee Tashkent, Uzbekistan – August 31, 2026 – U.S. Special Envoy for Global Partnerships Paolo Zampolli met with the leadership of the Ministry of Sports and the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Uzbekistan to discuss the current state of the U.S.-Uzbekistan sports cooperation and prospects for its continued growth. Discussions focused on strengthening international sports cooperation, advancing the Olympic movement, and identifying promising joint projects. Special Envoy Zampolli congratulated Uzbekistan on its selection as the host of the 2027 World Fencing Championships and welcomed Uzbekistan’s possible participation in a planned World Robotics Organization. Special Envoy Zampolli also congratulated the people of Uzbekistan on the 35th anniversary of the country’s independence. “Sport brings people together like nothing else,” said Special Envoy Zampolli. This engagement builds on Special Envoy Zampolli’s prior meetings with Uzbekistan’s national sports leaders and teams and reflects the United States’ sustained commitment to sports diplomacy as a bridge for cultural exchange and international cooperation.

Aug 31 • 8:46 AM EDT • Sports • uz.usembassy.gov

Scientists discover two superconducting states hiding as one

Scientists have uncovered hidden complexity inside two ultrathin superconductors that seemed much simpler than they really are. Niobium diselenide and tantalum disulfide appeared to have a single superconducting state, but highly sensitive measurements revealed that each actually contains two strongly interacting states working so closely together that they masquerade as one.

Aug 31 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com

SB Nation Launches App Home for Its 200 Fan Communities

SB Nation and Sportico are both part of Penske Media Corporation’s PMX Global division. SB Nation is launching an app to pull together content and chats from its network of close to 200 team- and league-focused sports communities. The launch comes as artificial intelligence impacts the amount of web search traffic media publishers receive and …

Aug 31 • 7:50 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Together, GLP-1s And GenAI Can Solve Healthcare’s Affordability Crisis

Two innovations offer a new path to healthcare affordability: GLP-1 medications and generative AI. Here's how to two could radically improve medicine and lower costs.

Aug 31 • 4:30 AM EDT • Health • forbes.com

ELDEN RING Community Quests

In celebration of the recently released ELDEN RING Tarnished Edition for Nintendo Switch and the Tarnished Pack available on PlayStation, XBOX, and STEAM we encourage all Tarnished to return to the lands between and rise together in shared quests to unlock new artwork commemorating each challenge.

Aug 31 • 3:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • bandainamcoent.com

Family ties bring 2 generations of physicians together

Medicine is a family affair for Drs. Niranjan, Megha and Nakul Rao who work as doctors and colleagues at Saint Peter's Healthcare System.

Aug 31 • 3:00 AM EDT • Health • ama-assn.org

Italian American Powerhouse AGBO Unveils New Hit Thriller ‘The Whisper Man’ on Netflix

AGBO's latest feature film, The Whisper Man, premiered Friday on Netflix and surged to the platform's no. 1 spot, marking another major release for the independent studio founded by Italian American filmmakers Joe and Anthony Russo. Based on Alex North's bestselling 2019 novel, the psychological crime thriller brings together an acclaimed cast led by Robert…

Aug 30 • 2:46 PM EDT • Entertainment • orderisda.org

10 Gadgets Under $100 That Deserve A Spot In Your Home Office

From better audio and lighting to extra screens and cooling, these affordable gadgets can make your home office feel much more put together.

Aug 30 • 10:30 AM EDT • Technology • slashgear.com

1.4-million-year-old footprints reveal a surprisingly large human relative

Ancient footprints in Kenya reveal that eight Paranthropus boisei may have traveled together 1.4 million years ago, with some individuals reaching surprisingly large, human-like body sizes. The tracks offer a rare glimpse of their social behavior and suggest these extinct human relatives may have lived in more complex groups than previously thought.

Aug 30 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com

Reclaiming your kid's childhood from their screens starts here

There is a particular kind of silence parents know well: a room full of children, together but apart, each looking down at a screen.

Aug 30 • 6:04 AM EDT • Health • usatoday.com

A fifth-grader in Kansas City clicked ball-and-stick atoms together in science class and asked her teacher if she'd made a real molecule — he photographed it, sent it to a chemistry professor, and at ten years old she became co-author of a published paper on a structure nobody had ever described

A ten-year-old's casual question about her chemistry model kit led to a published paper describing a molecular structure that had eluded professional scientists for decades.

Aug 29 • 10:02 PM EDT • Science • spacedaily.com

Democrats project unity, talk Trump at convention

The Michigan Democratic Party convention offered a chance to come together following a divisive primary and focus on defeating Trump's picks.

Aug 29 • 7:02 PM EDT • Politics • freep.com

Tom Cruise Announces “Days of Thunder” Sequel Will Also Star Anne Hathaway, Marking Their First Time Working Together

The new movie will be a follow-up to the 1990 racing drama that first paired Cruise with Nicole Kidman

Aug 29 • 1:52 PM EDT • Entertainment • yahoo.com

Avalanche Set NHL History With Massive Cale Makar Extension

After weeks of speculation as to what his next contract could look like, the Colorado Avalanche and defenseman Cale Makar have come together on an extension that has officially set NHL history.On Friday, the Avalanche announced that they have signed Makar to an NHL-record $163.2 million contract extension over eight seasons. This means that Makar […] The post Avalanche Set NHL History With Massive Cale Makar Extension appeared first on HEAVY.

Aug 28 • 8:31 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

BMC Health System Hosted a "Family Meeting" of Experts on Land and Generational Wealth at Historic Union Chapel

At historic Union Chapel on Martha’s Vineyard, BMC Health System brought Black leaders together to explore land, legacy, family, and generational wealth.

Aug 28 • 2:57 PM EDT • Health • healthcity.bmc.org

Initiative brings Arizona cities and towns together to tackle shared challenges

Municipalities are inundated with data. Police and fire department activity, water usage, development permits, traffic incidents, pavement conditions and resident service requests generate a steady stream of information every day. The challenge is determining how to put that data to its best use to improve residents’ lives.

Aug 28 • 11:28 AM EDT • Politics • news.asu.edu

Missouri announces jersey patch sponsorship deal with Ambetter Health

Missouri and Learfield have partnered together for a “historic” sponsorship, the school announced on Friday. Along with it comes a new jersey patch for the Tigers after the program came to an agreement with Ambetter Health. This is just the latest college football program to add a patch ahead of the 2026 season. “In less […]

Aug 28 • 9:08 AM EDT • Health • sports.yahoo.com

Son works for parents' hospitality business gets upset when he is fired for starting similar business without telling them

Nobody should have to make their livelihood at the expense of their family members.Work and family can prove to be a problematic mix for many reasons, and one of these is that those who work together ...

Aug 27 • 9:00 PM EDT • Business • yahoo.com

The Literacy Crisis Reaches Dog-Bear Science

“New analysis of more than 300 bear encounters suggests our canine companions often increase odds of conflict and rarely serve as early warning systems many recreationists assume,” reads a subhead in Mountain Journal. The thing is, that study reaches no such conclusion. But you have to read beyond the abstract to understand that. Mountain Journal is not alone. Let’s look at a brief list of takeaways published elsewhere just to establish that none of them seem to know how to read science. Wes Siler’s Newsletter is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Here’s CBC: “A new peer-reviewed study, The Canine Conundrum: Is a Dog a Help or Hindrance in Bear Country?, dug into conflicts similar to what the video depicts, by analyzing 326 reported human-bear conflicts from 1901 to 2023 involving dogs.” “The study found 54 per cent of conflicts were started by dogs. In the encounters researchers included in the study, five people and 56 dogs were killed, and 170 people were injured.” “Lana Ciarniello, an independent researcher who co-authored the study, said researchers found when a person goes hiking with at least one other person, the odds of a negative bear encounter decrease by 50 per cent.” “However, when a dog is involved, the chances of a negative bear encounter increase because ‘a dog really adds a chaotic factor into the mix of recreation,’ said Ciarniello.” Again, the study finds no data supporting that conclusion. “Hiking with your pet dog may make you feel safer in bear country—but a hiker’s recent encounter and a new study prove that the numbers don’t add up,” writes Backpacker, which is now part of Outside. The numbers don’t add up to support this take. There’s plenty more examples, but all are equally dumb, so I’ll stop there. How did so many people get this so wrong? Three reasons: 1) the study is published behind a paywall, with only the abstract freely available. 2) the methodology sets out to create work relevant to a hyper-specific audience, not the public. And 3) the dataset studied is almost absurdly limited and doesn’t bear (get it?!) comparison to wider information. Let’s work through all three. The Problem is Money I understand the irony, since I’m writing about this on a subscription-model newsletter, but information wants to be free. The study is published by The Wildlife Society and costs $16 to access. Reprinting it is specifically prohibited by the terms of use, so I can only share snippets and my conclusions with you here. Having worked as a journalist for 24 years, I can report with some authority that journalists are both lazy and cheap. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that much of the material you’re seeing written about this study is drawn from the freely-available abstract (above) only, and not a deep dive into its methodology or data. And that’s a problem, because abstracts are where researchers are able to break from their numbers and editorialize their opinions about conclusions. So what’s getting reported isn’t based on numbers, it’s based on an opinion designed for a specific audience, not the general public. Hell yeah ladies, kick that bear’s ass. The Methodology is Designed to Support a Predetermined Conclusion One of the biggest issues with the science that everyone likes to cite about bear spray’s efficacy is that no one understands that study was designed for a specific audience, looking for a specific answer. And since that audience is not the public, and our safety was not the question being asked, its conclusion is rendered irrelevant to our needs. Yes, I’m talking about Efficacy of Bear Deterrent Spray in Alaska, which was created by Tom Smith and Stephen Herrero, two of the same scientists who put together this dog-bear conflict analysis. In the spray study, the purpose was to present relevant agencies with the information they needed to issue their field workers with bear spray. As such, incidents where people were unable to access the spray or similarly failed to get it deployed in time were excluded from the results, and only incidents they deemed successful were included. Could a ranger roll down their vehicle’s window and scare a bear away from a dumpster by spraying it? Turns out the answer was yes, and that was good enough for the purposes of that study. The sample size of actual bear attacks—the thing you and I would want bear spray to provide a solution to, was too small to draw conclusions from, and didn’t indicate success in that role. Is a Dog a Help or Hindrance in Bear Country? has similar limitations. “Insights provided here are intended to help wildlife managers create effective guidelines regarding the presence of domestic dogs in bear habitat,” is explained clearly by the study’s text. To conduct the study, Smith and Herrero went looking for publicly available reports of dog-bear conflicts: “All incidents included in our analysis involved at least one bear, one dog, and one person who was at immediate risk of injury (e.g., not in a protective structure such as a cabin or vehicle), injured, or killed,” explains the report’s methodology. Why is that a problem? “We recognize that data used in this study are biased in that people generally only report adverse interactions with bears, not benign ones. Consequently, we assume that for the most part, people and their dogs pass through bear country without incident.” As was the problem with the bear spray study, people are drawing conclusions here from a study that was never intended to be relevant to the general public. The Smith-Herrero database famously excludes Alaska’s Defense of Life and Property records, which are elsewhere considered the largest and most authoritative source on human-bear conflict. The Dataset is Absurdly Limited A 2009 study conducted by the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife estimates that each year there are at least 43,000 documented complaints of human-bear conflict across North America. Is a Dog a Help or Hindrance in Bear Country? Examined those reports for years ranging from 1901 to 2023, and only managed to find 326 such incidents that met the criteria explained above. Let’s do some quick math, poorly. 43,000 incidents x 122 years = 5,246,000 total incidents of documented human-bear conflict. Smith and Herrero were only able to find 326 incidents that met their criteria for dog+human+bear+risk or occurrence of injury. That means there’s a 0.006 percent chance that the study’s conclusion—that dogs make bear encounters more dangerous—even gets a chance of occurring. And remember, that’s only in documented conflicts. There’s no way to know how many people across North America run into a bear in any given year without any conflict, but it’s probably safe to assume that the total number is well in excess of 43,000. And, dig deeper into the study and you can find further restrictions that skew its conclusions even more. “While the people involved in these incidents did not report the level of training their dogs had received, it is our assumption that most were untrained companion dogs as opposed to well-trained bear dogs, such as Karelians and livestock guardian breeds that have proven to be significant aids in bear country,” the study’s methodology explains. And that’s a problem, because an ongoing study here in Montana is finding that the simple presence of a Kangal like our youngest dog Teddy can reduce visits to private property from grizzly bears by 87.8 percent. In addition to being a badass, Teddy is also a companion animal. And in my admittedly limited sample size of the three dogs currently present in our living room, she’s no more effective than her mutt brothers. Plenty of people own a dog capable of deterring bears, even if they didn’t set out to own a bear dog. The real purpose of this study appears to be a recommendation that leashes are mandated and recreationists pursue training in their deterrent of choice. But that doesn’t make for sensational headlines. Are There Any Real Takeaways Here? Let’s throw some numbers around, just to try and get our hands around what the larger picture might look like for bears and dogs here. The American Veterinary Medical Association estimates that 42.6 percent of American households own a dog. The Canadian Animal Health Institute says roughly 35 percent of households in Canuckistan own a dog. In an attempt to create the worst possible result for dogs, let’s run with that 35 percent number. And given that outdoorsy and rural people are more likely to both own a dog, and have bear encounters, let’s just make a giant assumption and apply that number to those 43,000 conflicts documented annually. If 35 percent of 43,000 human-bear encounters involve a dog, then we can assume that at least 15,050 dog-bear conflicts are occurring annually in North America. 15,050 x 122 = 1,836,100. Smith and Herrero were only able to find 326 incidents that met their human, dog, chance or occurrence of injury criteria across 122 years. And only 170 documented human injuries. So, with all the obvious caveats about these numbers in no way describing reality beyond narrow study parameters, what they actually found is that your risk of injury if your dog tangles with a bear is only 0.009 percent. I’ll take those odds next time I’m hiking my dogs in bear country. Top photo: “Superintendent Horace Albright, eating pancakes with bears, at Lake Lodge, Yellowstone National Park.” NPS. A journalist with more than two decades of experience working around the world, Wes Siler is here to cut through the outrage and disinformation to bring you the factual, insightful, actionable reporting you need to understand what’s going on. Upgrading to a paid subscription supports this reporting, and buys personal access to Wes, who will help you save money on gear, plan outdoor adventures, and prepare for real life, and who promises he’s less salty in real life than he sometimes comes across as on the Internet. Wes Siler’s Newsletter is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe

Aug 27 • 6:47 PM EDT • Science • wessiler.substack.com

MSBA Business Forward Tour makes stop in South Mississippi, bringing together business leaders, others

The tour aims to bring together business leaders, stakeholders and policymakers to talk about growth and the challenges local companies are facing.

Aug 27 • 1:37 PM EDT • Business • wlox.com

UT To Lead NSF Center That Will Study How Robots and People Learn To Live and Work Together

A 5-Year Collaboration Between 6 Universities and Industry Partners Will Place Assistive Robots in Everyday Human Environments.

Aug 27 • 1:24 PM EDT • Science • news.utexas.edu

Is Germany benefitting yet from the crisis in US research?

Science|Business - Table.Media partnershipScience|Business has partnered with Table.Media, a leading source of news about higher education and research in Germany. Each week, we are publishing one of each other’s stories to give readers an even broader range of insight into R&D policy across Europe.Drawing over 500 participants, the German Academic International Network conference in San Francisco brings together researchers, universities, scientific organisations and policymakers in the US as part of an attempt to recruit international talent for Germany. It also serves as an annual barometer for the uncertainty triggered by the Trump administration’s science policies. As was the case last year, Germany’s political presence was unusually strong: federal lawmakers, nine state ministers of science and research, and federal research state secretary Marcus Pleyer all attended. Joybrato Mukherjee, president of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), has observed a marked shift at US universities a year after the Trump administration began sweeping interventions: the initial state of "shock and paralysis" has given way to a strategic approach to the situation. Universities are seeking new funding sources, mounting legal challenges against interventions and opening themselves up more to international collaborations, including with Germany, he said. Early-career international researchers with expiring visas are considered particularly vulnerable. Germany is benefiting from increased demand among this pool of young talent; the country’s 1,000 Minds Plus programme, designed in part to lure German academics back home, has already filled up around one-third of its capacity. Meanwhile, Markus Blume, Bavaria’s science minister and current chair of the federal Conference of Science Ministers, sees an "enormous outflow of talent from the US." An increasing number of international researchers want to leave. Applications to Canada have risen by 42% January, and those to Europe by 32%. Meanwhile, the number of people drawn to the US is plummeting. "In this context, Germany must position itself as a prime destination offering reliable conditions, institutional stability and academic freedom, including through smart collaborations," Blume told Table.Briefings.“Darkest hour”At the get-together in San Francisco, the former president of the US National Academy of Sciences, Marcia McNutt, highlighted the gravity of the situation on the ground in a keynote address. She described the present moment as the "darkest hour for the US scientific system." At the same time, she said that cooperation should be maintained, especially during a crisis. Established researchers in the US are less likely to leave. Ulrike Malmendier, a former member of the German Council of Economic Experts and an economist at Berkeley, explained why established researchers are not packing their bags and leaving the US in droves: working conditions and the concentration of talent at places like Berkeley and Stanford remain unparalleled. According to Peter-André Alt, managing director of the Wübben Foundation, which helps Germany attract international academics, political restrictions are not the only grievance voiced by US-based researchers. "There are evidently still many areas where, fortunately, unfettered research is possible," Alt told Table.Briefings. Instead, the primary complaint concerns the cost of living, which has "skyrocketed” to absurd levels. "Runaway inflation, like that currently seen in the US, is certainly no draw for young scientific talent,” he said. Return homeA growing number of early-career researchers from Germany appear to be considering a return home. Jörn Benzinger, who is responsible for recruiting early-career researchers from abroad at Ruhr University Bochum, reports numerous conversations with researchers who are taking a closer look at the German academic landscape."Germany has definitely moved more into the spotlight,” he said. States, university alliances and research organisations joined forces to recruit talent. Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia were prominently represented, as were alliances such as the Berlin University Alliance and the University Alliance Ruhr. Benzinger sums up Germany’s approach with a new formula: "collaboration is the new competition." He notes that it is becoming increasingly difficult for individual universities to gain international visibility, while regional research ecosystems and collaborations are growing in importance. Afraid to leaveThe crisis in the US academic sector is also straining transatlantic research relations. Benzinger reports that some US-based researchers had to decline brief invitations to Germany because they could not be certain of being allowed to re-enter the US afterward.He considers the simple poaching of researchers to be the wrong approach; what is needed, he says, are "reliable offers and long-term partnerships."However, Green Party politician Ayşe Asar, who also attended the conference, sees a significant need for improvement, particularly regarding career paths in Germany.While lifetime professorships and academic freedom certainly make Germany attractive, young researchers also require predictable career paths, tenure-track positions and flatter hierarchies.

Aug 27 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencebusiness.net

Catholic priest’s new study Bible brings faith and science together for a doubting generation

Father Spitzer hopes readers recognize that the relationship of science and reason with faith are complementary and corroborative instead of contradictory.

Aug 27 • 12:03 AM EDT • Science • thecatholicthing.org

CRF Announces Late-Breaking Clinical Trials and Science to Be Presented at TCT 2026

The Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) announced the late-breaking clinical trials and science selected for presentation at TCT 2026, the annual scientific symposium of CRF and the world’s premier educational meeting specializing in interventional cardiovascular medicine. This year’s conference will take place October 31–November 3 at the San Diego Convention Center bringing together leading investigators, clinicians, and innovators from around the world.

Aug 26 • 10:35 PM EDT • Science • newswise.com

Royal Roots & Rhythms Festival at Hanna Park on Saturday

A festival celebrating culture, heritage and community is set to bring families together in Utica.

Aug 26 • 1:24 PM EDT • Entertainment • wktv.com

Nex and Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc. Announce Collaboration to Bring PAC-MAN™ to Nex Playground in Q3 2026

Nex, maker of Nex Playground, the active play system that gets families moving together, has entered a licensing partnership with Bandai Namco Entertainment ...

Aug 26 • 3:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • businesswire.com

Inside the Disney | Champion NFL Collection: Where Sports Fandom Meets Storytelling

All 32 team-character pairings have now been revealed—completing the collection and bringing together NFL fandom with beloved characters from Disney, Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars.

Aug 25 • 7:04 PM EDT • Sports • d23.com

Gamma-ray signal could be long awaited evidence for WIMPs

Dark matter is known to make up roughly 85% of all mass in the universe, as evidenced by the way galaxies spin and how galaxy clusters are held together under gravity. Yet despite decades of searching, ...

Aug 25 • 2:10 PM EDT • Science • phys.org

Associate directors help shape future of Fermilab

Fermilab’s recent reorganization brings its accelerator, physics and technology programs under three unified directorates, each charged with advancing the laboratory’s most important scientific priorities. Together, these directorates form a coordinated leadership structure designed to deliver world class research and guide Fermilab’s future.

Aug 25 • 11:00 AM EDT • Science • news.fnal.gov

CinéShow Exhibitor Marketing of the Year Award: Cinergy Entertainment

The last few years have been an exciting time for in-theater marketing. Gen Z’s enthusiasm for FOMO-inducing events and social media–friendly menu items, together with the unfortunate culling of marketing personnel and resources on the studio side, have set the stage for a surge of creativity among cinema marketing professionals, At the top of the […]

Aug 25 • 8:11 AM EDT • Entertainment • boxofficepro.com

TryHard Joins Forces with EHang and SKYTEK to Advance Next-Generation Drone Entertainment in Japan

Collaboration brings together TryHard’s large-scale entertainment capabilities, EHang’s advanced drone technology and SKYTEK’s local expertise to present a successful record-setting 4,000-drone light show, which unlock new aerial entertainment opportunities across JapanOSAKA, Japan, Aug. 25, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TryHard Holdings Limited (“TryHard” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: THH), a lifestyle entertainment platform in Japan, today announced a strategic collaboration bringing together SBI MUSI

Aug 25 • 8:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • finance.yahoo.com

Two new Nintendo Switch 2 bundles deliver sun-soaked sports, high-speed thrills and extra value - News

Power up your play with two exciting Nintendo Switch 2 bundles, arriving in the coming months and bringing even more fun to players! Gather friends and family together, whether in the same room¹ or miles away², for some high-energy races across a sp…

Aug 25 • 8:00 AM EDT • Sports • nintendo.com

'MacBook Ultra' Coming Soon With Touchscreen and 5 Other Changes

Reports and rumors suggest the next high-end MacBook Pro that Apple will release might not be a ‌MacBook Pro‌ at all. It could actually be something altogether new and more exciting – a "MacBook Ultra" – marketed as the company's top-tier laptop offering. The device is likely to sit above the current M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pros, rather than replace them, suggesting that they will remain on sale.

Aug 25 • 7:43 AM EDT • Technology • macrumors.com

Unisun Sports Announces Landmark Multi-Conference Media Rights Agreement with ESPN

Jacksonville, Fla. – On behalf of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) and the United Athletic Conference (UAC), Unisun Sports announced a groundbreaking long-term media rights agreement with ESPN, marking the first time multiple NCAA Division I conferences have joined together under a unified media rights deal.

Aug 25 • 6:00 AM EDT • Sports • asunsports.org

Unisun Sports Announces Landmark Multi-Conference Media Rights Agreement with ESPN

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – On behalf of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) and the United Athletic Conference (UAC), Unisun Sports announced a groundbreaking long-term media rights agreement with ESPN, marking the first time multiple NCAA Division I conferences have joined together under a unified media rights deal.

Aug 25 • 5:00 AM EDT • Sports • letsgopeay.com

Penn State Health RecFest celebrates inclusive recreation for all ages and abilities

Penn State Health RecFest 2026 brought together hundreds of community members to explore adaptive sports, inclusive recreation and wellness opportunities for all ages and abilities.

Aug 24 • 4:51 PM EDT • Health • pennstatehealthnews.org

Catholic priest’s new study Bible brings faith and science together for a doubting generation

When Jesuit Father Robert Spitzer realized a number of young Catholics were abandoning their faith in the name of science, he decided to do something about it: Create a new study Bible.

Aug 24 • 4:27 PM EDT • Science • americamagazine.org

SO Pilipinas Equips More Than 500 Education Leaders to Advance Inclusive Sports Across the Philippines

Special Olympics Pilipinas has reached a new milestone in its nationwide push for inclusive education. The program recently hosted a National Training of Trainers on Unified Sports in Baguio City, that brought together 500 education leaders from the Department of Education (DepEd), representing 18 regions and a combined 45,000 schools across the Philippines.

Aug 24 • 2:30 PM EDT • Sports • specialolympics.org

AMC Entertainment Spikes 7%, Cinemark Climbs 6%: Is This a Short Squeeze in Progress?

Theater stocks are surging together on a down-market Monday with no earnings, no analyst upgrades, and no press releases to explain the move. When three separate exhibitors all spike at once without a single headline, something deliberate is driving the tape.

Aug 24 • 1:56 PM EDT • Entertainment • 247wallst.com

Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group Partners with Horror Inc.

The companies work together to bring the world of Jason Voorhees, a Halloween icon, to life through an immersive walkthrough.

Aug 24 • 11:02 AM EDT • Entertainment • licenseglobal.com

Bird flu is spreading. Your backyard feeder could make it worse

Backyard bird feeders could become unexpected hotspots for H5N1 as Australia’s bird flu outbreak spreads, bringing species together in ways that rarely occur naturally. Experts say stopping feeding is safest, while smaller amounts of food, no hand-feeding, and careful cleaning can reduce the danger.

Aug 24 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com

Mozambique strengthens regulation of medicines and imported vaccines, boosting health protection

Mozambique has reached a major milestone in strengthening the regulation of medicines and imported vaccines, with its national regulatory authority recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as having a stable, well-functioning and integrated regulatory system.The Autoridade Nacional Reguladora de Medicamentos de Moçambique (ANARME) has achieved Maturity Level 3 (ML3) for the regulation of medicines and imported vaccines under WHO’s global classification of national regulatory authorities.Mozambique becomes the 10th country in Africa to reach ML3, joining Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe and marking further momentum in strengthening regulatory systems across the region.For people in Mozambique, stronger regulation means greater assurance that medicines and vaccines are appropriately evaluated for quality, safety and efficacy and monitored throughout their lifecycle. It also strengthens the country’s ability to identify and respond to safety concerns and substandard or falsified products, while supporting timely access to quality-assured health products.“Mozambique’s achievement is the result of sustained investment in regulatory capacity that will deliver crucial benefits for public health,” said Dr Sylvie Briand, WHO Chief Scientist and Assistant Director-General a.i. for Health Systems, Access and Data. “Strong regulatory systems protect people, build confidence in health products and help countries respond more effectively to evolving public health needs and challenges. Mozambique’s progress also contributes to advancing regulatory capacity across Africa and promoting more equitable access to safe and quality-assured medicines and vaccines.”Building a stronger regulatory systemMozambique’s achievement follows years of sustained efforts to build the institutions and capabilities needed for effective regulation.WHO worked closely with ANARME throughout this process, assessing the national regulatory system and supporting the authority in addressing identified gaps and strengthening priority areas.WHO evaluates national regulatory systems using its Global Benchmarking Tool (GBT), which assesses the regulatory functions required to ensure the quality, safety and efficacy of medical products. These include registration and marketing authorization, licensing, market surveillance and control, pharmacovigilance, regulatory inspection, laboratory testing and oversight of clinical trials, as applicable. WHO’s maturity levels range from 1 to 4. Reaching ML3 confirms a stable, well-functioning and integrated regulatory system, while ML4 represents an advanced system focused on continuous improvement.Benefits for Mozambique and the African continentAn ML3 regulatory system can support more timely and predictable regulatory decisions, reinforce safety monitoring and help ensure that health products entering and remaining on the market meet appropriate standards.It also creates greater opportunities for regulatory cooperation and reliance – approaches that help authorities make use of the work and decisions of trusted regulators, reduce unnecessary duplication and allocate limited resources more efficiently, while maintaining rigorous standards for quality, safety and efficacy.As the first Portuguese-speaking country in Africa to reach ML3, Mozambique’s experience can also contribute to strengthening regulatory systems and fostering greater cooperation, knowledge sharing and reliance among Portuguese-speaking countries and across the African continent. Its achievement further reinforces a more connected African regulatory ecosystem, providing a solid foundation on which the newly established African Medicines Agency can build to advance regulatory convergence and cooperation across the region.Strengthening confidence in regulatory recognitionMozambique’s achievement comes as WHO strengthens the process through which the performance of national regulatory systems is recognized.The newly established Technical Advisory Group on Regulatory Systems Strengthening (TAG-RSS) brings together independent international experts to advise WHO on whether recommendations concerning regulatory authorities reaching ML3 and ML4 and WHO-Listed Authorities, are supported by the findings of WHO evaluation processes. Its recommendations provide an additional level of independent assurance, strengthening the impartiality, transparency and credibility of WHO’s recognition process.Mozambique is among the first countries to achieve ML3 following consideration and recommendation by the TAG-RSS. As part of the same TAG-RSS process, South Africa was recommended to retain its ML3 status for the regulation of vaccines manufactured, imported or distributed in the country, following an additional WHO assessment. This extends the recognition first granted in 2022 and underscores the sustained performance of the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA).The two recognitions highlight continued progress in strengthening regulatory systems across Africa, as well as the importance of continued performance, improvement and assessment in sustaining regulatory maturity.WHO will continue working with ANARME and SAHPRA to sustain these gains and support continuous improvement as science, technologies and public health needs evolve.

Aug 24 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • who.int

Discover the team sports to watch at the Dakar 2026 YOG

As the first Olympic sporting event to be held in Africa, the Dakar 2026 YOG will bring together the world’s best young athletes in Senegal from 31 October to 13 November 2026. Discover four team sports in the official competition programme: Baseball5, futsal, rugby sevens and 3x3 basketball.

Aug 24 • 7:00 AM EDT • Sports • olympics.com

As students head back to school, some may be on sports teams with players from other districts

Michael Bisson, who runs the Interscholastic Division at the Maine Principals Association, said that as enrollments have declined, schools have had to work together to field full teams.

Aug 24 • 6:15 AM EDT • Sports • mainepublic.org

Fanta Brings Halloween to Life with an All-New Entertainment Universe

, , , , • This Halloween, Fanta is unleashing Fanta’s Haunted Universe - a new world of four original characters inspired by classic horror legends, bringing fans a season packed with spooky surprises. , , , , , , , , , , • Launching today with an introductory cinematic trailer, Fanta’s Haunted Universe has been developed with entertainment studio GRAiL, bringing together leading creative talent and new technology to build an original world for a new generation of Halloween and Horror fans. , , , , , ...

Aug 23 • 8:00 PM EDT • Entertainment • webwire.com

Notability's Android arrival gave me the digital whiteboard I've been searching for since 2010

My creative process is coming together

Aug 23 • 3:00 PM EDT • Technology • androidpolice.com

Eastlake science students make district history

Three Eastlake High School students made Sweetwater Union High School District history this year when they became the first students from the district to qualify for the International Science and Engineering Fair, an international competition that brings together some of the top high school researchers from around the world. Ronald Wyatt, Giles Del Priore and Ihan Sung advanced to the competition after successful runs at regional and state science fairs. Sung went a step further, placing fourth in the chemistry category at ISEF. The students were recognized on Aug. 10 during a Sweetwater Union High School District board meeting at the district office in Chula Vista.For Wyatt and Del Priore, recent Eastlake graduates, the journey began with a shared concern about dementia and the challenges faced by families caring for loved ones with memory impairment. Their engineering project, “Design and Evaluation of a Behaviorally Grounded Caregiver-Governed AI Companion for Individuals with Memory Impairment,” earned the Sweepstakes Award at the Sweetwater District STEM Fair and first place in its division at the Greater San Diego Science and Engineering Fair. The project explored whether Artificial Intelligence could provide companionship and support while helping reduce stress for people with dementia and their caregivers. “Our inspiration came from personal experience. Both of us have seen family members and loved ones affected by dementia, and we’ve witnessed how overwhelming the caregiving process can be,” Wyatt said. Del Priore said the students also wanted to address the high cost of third-party health care services while creating something that could potentially help their own families as well as people elsewhere. The students developed an AI system designed with safeguards intended to prevent misinformation reinforcement, emotional escalation and unsafe responses. In 240 controlled trials involving memory, identity, agitation and neutral scenarios, they said the system consistently prevented harmful incorrect reinforcement while using context-aware silence, de-escalation and caregiver verification. The project required the students to combine Artificial Intelligence, psychology, neuroscience and human-computer interaction. For Del Priore, one of the biggest technical challenges was getting the AI companion to communicate verbally with a patient. Hardware limitations required the students to collaborate with multiple Python libraries for speech-to-text and text-to-speech functions while keeping the cost of the companion low. “For us, the biggest challenge was translating complex behavioral and cognitive care principles into a functioning AI system,” Wyatt said.Qualifying for ISEF was a milestone that student expected. The international competition proved to be another milestone. “Competing at ISEF was an incredible experience and unlike anything we’ve ever done before,” Del Priore said. “Being surrounded by some of the most talented young researchers from around the world was both inspiring and motivating.” He said the experience stood out because of the emphasis on collaboration, innovation and scientific discovery. “The most memorable part was seeing how people from completely different backgrounds and disciplines approached solving real-world problems with creativity and passion,” he said. The students also credited teachers and mentors who supported their work. Del Priore said his sophomore-year AP Physics teacher, Dr. Price, was particularly influential. “Through all of my personal and academic struggles, Dr. Price always believed in me,” Del Priore said. “All of his faith in me really molded me into the person I am today and helped create my love for science even through tough times.” Wyatt is continuing his education at UC Santa Cruz, where he plans to study biomolecular engineering and bioinformatics, with an interest in research involving Artificial Intelligence, biology and health care. Del Priore plans to double major in chemistry and accounting. Sung, a rising Eastlake senior, qualified for ISEF after winning first place in the Engineering: Energy, Materials & Transport category at the Greater San Diego Science and Engineering Fair and first place in chemistry at the California Science and Engineering Fair. His project, “Renewable Ammonia Electrochemical Synthesis by Glow Discharge with an Iron-Based Catalyst,” involved a device he designed and engineered to produce renewable ammonia, with potential applications in fertilizer production and energy storage. Sung became interested in the project after considering the relationship between food insecurity and fertilizer costs. His system uses plasma to break apart nitrogen molecules so they can interact with hydrogen and form ammonia. At ISEF, Sung competed against more than 1,700 students from 65 countries and earned fourth place in chemistry. “I am proud to become one of te first students in the district to qualify for ISEF because this milestone can inspire others in the district to attain similar goals,” Sung said.

Aug 23 • 1:00 PM EDT • Science • thestarnews.com

Springfield event supports Latino healthcare leadership

The National Association of Latino Healthcare Executives brought together over 150 people in western Massachusetts for a fundraiser celebrating culture and healthcare work.

Aug 23 • 10:41 AM EDT • Health • wwlp.com

How long can Knicks keep their core together?

Aug 23 • 10:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Building the beat: How New Orleans can grow the business behind the music

People dance to the music of the TBC Brass Band Photo by Michael DeMocker / The Times-Picayune This week New Orleans hosts the annual Cutting Edge CE Conference, which brings together members of the music industry, musicians, lawyers and others to learn about and discuss the latest changes in the business of making, producing and selling music. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('ad-1492300'); }); The conference comes as AI and streaming are causing upheavals in the industry. Meanwhile, we’ve seen at least a partial collapse of the global festival industrial complex which has long been a key financial lifeline for many artists.All of that can feel a bit removed from life in New Orleans. After all, we are a city filled with music. On any given day or night, there are dozens of shows across the city, ranging from jazz and blues to hip-hop, bounce and house. Whereas in other cities kids dream of being the star of their local sports team, in New Orleans more often than not they dream of leading their own band.And music is a huge part of our economy. Before New Orleans was known as a foodie destination, it was already drawing millions of visitors from around the globe to experience our jazz, soul and funk scenes firsthand.But the reality is, if you want to make it big, you’re probably going to end up leaving the city. We’ve seen major performers like Lil Wayne, Master P and Jon Batiste (though he’s back on the Northshore) decamp to Los Angeles, Miami and New York. Likewise, up-and-coming musicians like Greer Grimsely, $leazy EZ and Lucky Daye have also left town in search of more profitable pastures.Meanwhile, our local universities train some of the best producers and engineers in the business — only to see them head to one of the big music industry cities after graduation.It’s not a new phenomenon, though the reasons have changed over the years. Like a lot of early jazz musicians, Louis Armstrong famously left New Orleans, first for Chicago before ultimately settling in New York City. But while those early migrations had more to do with racism, in today’s day and age, musicians end up leaving because New Orleans doesn’t have the industry infrastructure necessary to sustain the kind of growth and, well, success, a lot of folks dream of.It’s a hard, but very real, truth. Artists have to go to Nashville for publishing, Los Angeles for production, Atlanta to join a label or New York for representation. That, in turn, is a drain not only on the city’s talent pool but on money that could be staying here at home.Not being an industry town inevitably makes it that much harder for musicians who don’t leave to get the recognition and success they deserve. It also undoubtedly plays a part in keeping the wages working musicians in New Orleans make at their gigs here lower than in places like Austin or Nashville.That’s not to say we don’t have any of the infrastructure needed to make New Orleans a music industry town. We’ve got live music venues, studios, record labels, management companies, copyright attorneys ... all the various building blocks are there. We just haven’t ever built upon that solid foundation. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('ad-1492297'); }); The question is how do we do that in a way that supports our existing industry and artists, respects our cultural traditions and ensures the wealth generated is equitably distributed so it isn’t just C-suite executives who end up reaping the benefits. And the time to start figuring out the answers is now: next year the legislature will focus on taxes and spending, making it vital that New Orleans leaders have a plan to try and secure funding to help grow our industry.So we asked a group of New Orleanians to give us their thoughts, ranging from industry attorneys and venue operators to working musicians and cultural advocates. Their answers point toward turning New Orleans into a music industry city without leaving musicians behind or abandoning what makes us the greatest music city on earth.If a dusty city like Austin can transform itself into a major hub not just for music but the industry behind it, surely the birthplace of jazz — and pretty much all modern music by extension — can figure it out as well. +3 Mailbox Money: The Recording Academy’s Reid Wick on supporting, and growing, New Orleans’ music industry Reid Wick has been a part of the New Orleans music landscape from virtually every angle. He'… California Dreaming: Pell discusses his time in L.A. and how New Orleans can help young musicians In 2015, New Orleans-born rapper Pell decided to make the move to Los Angeles. He was fresh … +2 Up from the street: To build a stronger music industry, support community first. At MaCCNO, most of our team aren’t just advocates, we’re also working musicians. Here are a … +2 Live and direct: Public investment in independent venues is key to a robust music economy. I’ve spent most of my adult life looking at the New Orleans music business from every side o… +2 Helping Hand: New Orleans doesn’t need more talent. It needs more infrastructure. People love to call New Orleans a music town. And they’re right. +2 \We out here: New Orleans doesn't need to be Austin. It's already a music industry city. +2 Futureshock: New Olreans has the music talent. Now it needs the innovation. New Orleans has long been known as a place for music creation and innovation. People travel … .donate-gambit-article-module-container { text-align: center; padding: 10px; /* background-color: #24da6d; */ background-color: rgb(153, 0, 0); margin-bottom: 20px; } .donate-gambit-article-module-title { font-weight: bold; color: #fff; } .donate-gambit-article-module-copy { color: #fff !important; font-size: 16px; } .donate-gambit-article-module-button { background-color: black; width: 50%; border-color: black; font-size: 16px; } .donate-gambit-article-module-button:hover { background-color: black; } @media only screen and (max-width: 600px) { .donate-gambit-article-module-button { font-size: 14px; width: 100%; } .donate-gambit-article-module-copy { font-size: 14px; } } BECOME A GAMBIT MEMBER AND JOIN OUR KREWE TODAY For more than 40 years, Gambit has covered New Orleans, for New Orleans. We’ve stood up to city hall with you, cheered the Saints with you, danced in the streets with you and cried over our collective loss with you. And we’re plannin’ on being here for 40 more. To do that, we need your help. Become a Gambit member today and help us continue our mission SUPPORT GAMBIT

Aug 23 • 9:00 AM EDT • Business • nola.com

Broncos have one player on Fox’s NFL Half-Decade Team

FOX Sports recently put together a team from the best NFL players for the first half of the 2020s. One player from the Denver Broncos earned a spot.

Aug 23 • 7:01 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Jeffries and Kushner Meet Privately as Midterm Attacks Fly

President Trump’s son-in-law and the man in line to be speaker of a Democratic-led House discussed how Democrats and the administration could work together.

Aug 23 • 5:02 AM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

Triad Business Expo brings local business owners together to network, share ideas

Local business owners gathered at the Triad Business Expo in Winston-Salem to connect, learn and explore opportunities for growth amid a challenging yet innovative market.

Aug 22 • 7:12 PM EDT • Business • wxii12.com

Pollinator parties bring science and community together across North Central Florida

Pollinator lovers across North Central Florida spent the day watching bees, butterflies and other pollinators while helping scientists collect valuable data.

Aug 22 • 6:24 PM EDT • Science • wcjb.com

Pollinator parties bring science and community together across North Central Florida

Dozens of people took part in the Great Southeast Pollinator Census, including at a pollinator party at the Butterfly Sanctuary at the Gainesville Garden Clubhouse.

Aug 22 • 6:00 PM EDT • Science • wcjb.com

Joey Gase joins We Are Sharing Hope SC Community Health Fair to promote organ donation

We Are Sharing Hope SC hosted its fifth annual Community Health Fair Satruday in West Ashly, bringing residents together with health and wellness resources.The

Aug 22 • 4:35 PM EDT • Health • abcnews4.com

How will NASA's astronaut training hub change with commercial space stations?

A tour of Johnson Space Center in Houston shows how NASA and private industry are already working together on the future of human spaceflight.

Aug 22 • 12:00 PM EDT • Technology • space.com

Historical Museum Flamenco Show Unites Performers from Spain, U.S.

Flamenco artist María Bermúdez says flamenco is 'about community. ' Courtesy photo) Flamenco artists from Spain and the U.S. come together in Santa

Aug 22 • 12:00 PM EDT • Entertainment • noozhawk.com

Diane Simeone: Science, Surfing and Community Came Together for Legends of Science and Surfing

Diane Simeone: Science, Surfing and Community Came Together for Legends of Science and Surfing / cancer, Diane M. Simeone, Diane Simeone, Legends of Science

Aug 22 • 10:57 AM EDT • Science • oncodaily.com

Hidden Pulses Within Your Brain May Hold Your Thoughts Together

The findings offer a compelling possibility.

Aug 22 • 6:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencealert.com

Scotts Valley business owners raise concerns over business license fee, road changes

A group of Scotts Valley business owners have banded together to raise awareness about the impact of a local business license tax and changes to road structures.

Aug 21 • 7:07 PM EDT • Business • santacruzsentinel.com

Art and science must come together for coral reef conservation, biologists argue

Art and science can work together to raise public awareness and propel conservation efforts needed to safeguard coral reef ecosystems, a group of coral scientists argues in a new research article published in Science Advances. Coral reefs are among Earth’s most threatened ecosystems amid climate change, coral bleaching and threats from mining. However, most people […]

Aug 21 • 4:00 PM EDT • Science • news.mongabay.com

BLM Southeastern States Office engages visitors at the Mississippi Sports & Outdoors Show

The Mississippi Sports & Outdoors Show, held July 24–26 at the Mississippi State Fairgrounds, brought together thousands of outdoor enthusiasts for a weekend celebrating hunting, fishing, land management, and recreation.

Aug 21 • 8:00 AM EDT • Sports • blm.gov

Germany's Climate Crisis: Why Politics Struggle To Keep Up

Germany is heating and drying up faster than ever. Yet climate change is not high on the agenda of many politicians. Together with sustainability researcher Maja Göpel and SPD climate spokesperson Jakob Blankenburg, DW’s Berlin Bureau Chief Max Hofmann examines the growing gap between climate reality and political action and asks: can Germany keep up with climate change?

Aug 21 • 6:14 AM EDT • Politics • dw.com

A strange new quantum droplet can hold itself together

Two very different types of quantum particles may be able to form stable droplets that hold themselves together, challenging decades of conventional thinking. The prediction could soon be tested experimentally and may reveal an unexpectedly rich world of new quantum phases.

Aug 20 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com

Scientists smash atoms together to create 'little' big bangs

Recreating the universe’s earliest moments could help us learn more about the elusive quark-gluon plasma.

Aug 20 • 4:03 PM EDT • Science • popsci.com

‘Living, Together’ seeks to redefine roommates, communal living

Samantha Paige Rosen and fellow contributors to "Living, Together" will be at Third Place Books Ravenna on Aug. 28 for a discussion with Daniel Tam-Claiborne.

Aug 20 • 4:00 PM EDT • Entertainment • yakimaherald.com

NanoClaw comes to Slack, letting you create persistent AI agent teams and colleagues from a single message

The NanoClaw agents can work together in channels and shared Slack Canvases, and can be even messaged outside of Slack on other platforms like Telegram or WhatsApp, letting their human colleagues ping them across platforms.

Aug 20 • 1:25 PM EDT • Technology • venturebeat.com

How Republican Politicians and Conservative Judges Work Together to Preserve Capital Punishment

Public opposition to capital punishment is growing. But more people are being executed.

Aug 20 • 12:58 PM EDT • Politics • ballsandstrikes.org

The player Ohio State can’t afford to lose

The Buckeyes have plenty of talent along the offensive line, but no one is more important to the unit’s stability than the veteran center responsible for protecting, communicating and holding everything together.

Aug 20 • 9:31 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Science in Action for a Resilient Future: Regional Dialogue for

The Regional Dialogue on the International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development brought together experts for interdisciplinary discussions on how science, innovation, and partnerships can

Aug 20 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • unesco.org

Scientists discovered four snakes curled together in a burrow for 38 million years as the volcanic ash preserved their remarkable fossils

A snake fossil discovery in Wyoming has given palaeontologists an unusually close look at the lives of these ancient reptiles. Four complete skeletons belonging to a newly recognised species, have helped researchers understand an early member of the ‘boa family’ and the history of small, burrowing snakes in North America.

Aug 20 • 5:10 AM EDT • Science • timesofindia.indiatimes.com