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How Oral Bacteria and Gum Disease Impact Heart Health and Life Expectancy

As scientists link oral bacteria to heart disease and cognitive decline, a push is under way to treat the mouth as a source of bodywide inflammation

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Jul 26 • 11:00 AM EDT • Health • wsj.com
Coffee may help shield the liver from fat, scarring, and cancer

A major long-term study linked coffee consumption with lower risks of cirrhosis, liver cancer, and death from liver disease. Coffee drinkers also showed healthier liver scans and blood protein patterns, with less fat, inflammation, and scarring. Benefits appeared even at one or two cups daily and were strongest around three to four cups.

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Jul 25 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
The new private jet must-haves: Starlink, Zoom-ready cabins

Mike Francis, the head of aviation finance at Citi, has a rule of thumb about when to buy a private jet.

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Jul 25 • 5:46 AM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
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“Graphic Talk About Science: Adventures in Science Engagement”

Mount Wilson Observatory (MWO), Southern California’s esteemed home to several of the most groundbreaking astronomical discoveries in history, welcomes the public to the third Saturday Evening Talks & Telescopes of the season on Saturday, July 25, 2026. MWO is honored to present “Graphic Talk About Science: Adventures in Science Engagement,” a lecture by Clifford V. Johnson, from UCSB. This lecture explores how graphic storytelling can make cutting-edge physics more accessible, as Johnson discusses the science and creative process behind his illustrated book, “The Dialogues: Conversations About the Nature of the Universe.” Tickets are available here: www.mtwilson.edu/events/lecture072526 During the six-month season, each Talks & Telescopes event runs from 5:30pm to 11:30pm with the “talk” portion of the evening beginning in the Observatory’s Auditorium. The 60+ minute presentation is followed by picnic dining—bring your own, or purchase from a food truck or caterer—and then, after the sun goes down, stargazing through Mount Wilson’s immense telescopes, the largest in the world made available to the public. Additional stargazing around the grounds will be available thanks to members of the Los Angeles Astronomical Society. Both the 60-inch telescope and the 100-inch—the latter famously used by Edwin Hubble to discover the expanding universe—will be available for viewing the night sky. Priced at $50, this event series offers the most economical stargazing event option on the mountain. Tickets and more information are available on Mount Wilson Observatory’s website here: www.mtwilson.edu/lectures. Advance purchases are highly recommended. UPCOMING SATURDAY EVENING TALKS & TELESCOPES OF THE 2026 SEASON August 22: “Towards a Functional Cosmology” www.mtwilson.edu/events/lecture082226 Join artist Lita Albuquerque for a lecture on her multidisciplinary practice at the intersection of art, science, and cosmology. Drawing on decades of work across painting, land art, performance, and installation, she reflects on projects created in remote, astronomy-linked environments and how they shape her exploration of time, space, and human perception. September 19: “The Brightness of Stars: Henrietta Leavitt and the Transformative Nature of Attention in Art and Science” www.mtwilson.edu/events/lecture091926 Visual artist and author Anna Von Mertens explores the life and legacy of Henrietta Leavitt, whose study of variable stars enabled the first reliable measurements of cosmic distances. Working among the Harvard Computers, Leavitt laid the foundation for breakthroughs at Mount Wilson, including Harlow Shapley’s mapping of the Milky Way and Edwin Hubble’s discovery of an expanding universe. Drawing from her book “Attention Is Discovery: The Life and Legacy of Astronomer Henrietta Leavitt,” Von Mertens shares archival materials alongside her own artwork inspired by Leavitt’s life, to celebrate how careful attention leads to both scientific discovery and a meaningful life. October 17: “The Duality of Genius and Struggle: G.E. Hale” www.mtwilson.edu/events/lecture101726 This talk, presented by Sam Hale, explores the extraordinary life and legacy of his grandfather, George Ellery Hale—the visionary behind some of the world’s most important astronomical institutions. Drawing on both history and personal connection, Sam Hale offers insight into a legacy that continues to shape science and culture today. VISITING MWO The gate to Mount Wilson’s campus opens at 10:00am daily and closes at 5:00pm from early April through November. Entrance to the grounds is free. Visitors can hike, gaze at the telescope domes and towers that dot the landscape, and take a look at historic Mount Wilson photos and letters in the Museum. The Cosmic Cafe (www.mtwilson.edu/cosmic-cafe), located above the main parking lot at the Observatory entrance, is open on weekends in the spring, summer, and fall. In addition to traditional menu items such as hot dogs, drinks, and snacks, the Cafe offers wraps, salads, and sweet treats from Little Flower. PARKING A U.S. Forest Service Adventure Pass is required to park at the Observatory. A $5 day pass or a $30 dollar annual pass may be purchased at the Cosmic Cafe on weekends between 10:00am and 5:00pm. During the week, passes are available at locations around Los Angeles. The most convenient location before heading up is at the Shell station in La Canada Flintridge at the bottom of the Angeles Crest Highway (https://find.shell.com/us/fuel/10007957-4530-angeles-crest-hwy/en_US). Visit the U.S. Forest Service website for more information about Passes and other locations to buy them: www.fs.usda.gov/r05/passes/adventure-pass For more information about Visiting Mount Wilson Observatory, please visit: www.mtwilson.edu/visiting NOT ADA-COMPLIANT Please be advised that access to the 100-inch dome is via an open-air, 53-step staircase inside the building. There is no ADA-compliant access.

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Jul 24 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • discoverlosangeles.com
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Choctaw Nation Public Health Advisory: Multistate Cyclosporiasis Outbreak

Choctaw Nation Public Health is monitoring a multistate cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to produce.

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Jul 24 • 4:48 PM EDT • Health • choctawnation.com
U.S. tariff hikes linked to claims of forced labor anger trading partners

The Trump administration late Thursday announced extra tariffs of 10% to 12.5% on 60 countries

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Jul 24 • 10:38 AM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com
Cyclosporiasis outbreak now linked to 9 states. See which ones

A cyclosporiasis outbreak has now been linked to nine states, according to federal health officials.

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Jul 24 • 10:27 AM EDT • Health • usatoday.com
Interviews Available from 2026 OVC Football Media Day Presented by Shaw Sports Turf

CHARLESTON - Last week, the Ohio Valley Football Conference hosted their 2026 Football Media Day presented by Shaw Sports Turf. During the day, the Buccaneers' Head Coach and student-athletes spent time speaking with members of the media previewing the upcoming 2026 season. There is an available copy of one of the interviews with each of representatives from Charleston Southern on the department's YouTube page which can be found at the links on this page. Additionally, a link to the ESPN+ broadcast with the segment featuring Charleston Southern is attached here as well.

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Jul 24 • 9:20 AM EDT • Sports • csusports.com
The latest science points to good news for your caffeine habit

Coffee and tea – not energy drinks – are linked to health benefits.

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Jul 24 • 8:15 AM EDT • Health • washingtonpost.com
The latest science points to good news for your caffeine habit

Coffee and tea – not energy drinks – are linked to health benefits.

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Jul 24 • 8:15 AM EDT • Science • washingtonpost.com
PFAS Pose a Serious Threat to Human Health

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a large group of synthetic chemicals that were created in the mid20th century and quickly became popular for their water-, grease-, and stain-resistant properties. A growing body of research has linked certain PFAS to various health issues.

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Jul 24 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • pew.org
Blanche urged to investigate alleged foreign influence in fight against data centers

GOP lawmakers claim foreign-linked organizations tied to China and Russia are working to undermine U.S. data centers and AI infrastructure development.

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Jul 24 • 7:59 AM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Cyclospora Outbreak Linked to Iceberg Lettuce in 9 States

Information on the current multistate outbreak of Cyclospora in the United States.

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Jul 24 • 7:07 AM EDT • Health • cdc.gov
Nancy Armour's disastrous Caitlin Clark article exemplifies why sportswriting and sports media is failing

A USA Today columnist linked Caitlin Clark's interactions with WNBA officials to Emmett Till, presenting another example of modern sports media's political bias.

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Jul 24 • 6:49 AM EDT • Sports • foxnews.com
Florida State Lands Talented JUCO Infielder for 2028

Link Jarrett bolsters the Seminoles' future infield with Chipola College standout Tyler Correa, a Tallahassee native whose .372 average brings elite contact hitting back to his hometown.

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Jul 24 • 12:08 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
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Outdoor dining and entertainment proposed for The Links at Valley Fields

The Links at Valley Fields golf course could soon get an upgraded restaurant with outdoor dining and music, modified lighting, and improved netting to prevent golf balls from rolling off the course if the Planning Board approves a final site plan for the changes along with with an acoustic study that measures decibels for the music.

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Jul 23 • 8:00 PM EDT • Entertainment • news.halstonmedia.com
Philadelphia Eagles Get Linked to Intriguing Browns Trade Target

Going into the 2026 NFL season, the Philadelphia Eagles‘ biggest question marks will be on the offensive side of the ball. After dominating in the Super Bowl two seasons ago, the defensive side of the clear was by far the strongest for Philadelphia in the following season and it wasn’t particularly close. But with that […] The post Philadelphia Eagles Get Linked to Intriguing Browns Trade Target appeared first on HEAVY.

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Jul 23 • 7:04 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
US health panel recommends easing restrictions on controversial peptides

Vote from advisory group – whose members include people linked to peptides industry – likely to embolden RFK Jr

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Jul 23 • 6:45 PM EDT • Health • theguardian.com
Yankees Linked to Reds Catcher in New Trade Deadline Report

A new report links the New York Yankees and Cincinnati Reds as possible trade partners ahead of the deadline.

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Jul 23 • 5:36 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
U.S. health officials investigate new outbreak of parasite cyclospora

The Food and Drug Administration has not yet identified which products are linked to the illnesses.

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Jul 23 • 3:42 PM EDT • Health • pbs.org
Cassidy shifts on CDC nominee, citing change to disputed autism page

But the page’s core claim still suggests a long debunked link between vaccines and autism.

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Jul 23 • 3:00 PM EDT • Health • washingtonpost.com
FDA says it identified new cyclospora outbreak linked to unspecified product
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Jul 23 • 12:26 PM EDT • Health • cbsnews.com
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State board to look at MI Money Out of Politics signatures

A bipartisan state elections board meets Friday to decide if the campaign to ban political committees linked to utilities and public contractors has gathered enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot.

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Jul 23 • 12:01 PM EDT • Politics • michiganpublic.org
When It Comes to Fusion, Materials Matter

Fusion at high temperatures powers the sun and, if harnessed, could provide a potential source of energy here on Earth. But controlling fusion reactions has other benefits. The process also generates subatomic particles called neutrons that are used in a range of applications spanning medicine, research, and national security. Now, scientists at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis), and the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have found that the materials surrounding a fusion reaction can dramatically increase how often it occurs, particularly at low energies where fusion is rare. The study was published July 18 in Nature Communications. Their approach sets up a way to study and engineer nuclear reactions within solid materials, opening a new field of “materials-driven fusion.” Instead of designing materials just to survive the harsh conditions of fusion, researchers might be able to design materials that boost the reaction in specific conditions, similar to the way catalysts speed up chemical processes. “It gives you a new knob to turn that you didn’t have before,” said Arun Persaud, head of the Fusion Science & Ion Beam Technology group in Berkeley Lab’s Accelerator Technology & Applied Physics (ATAP) Division. “If we understand this effect better, it opens the door to engineering new materials that would affect the fusion rate under certain conditions. Someday future progress might enable more compact and efficient neutron generators, which have all kinds of applications, like cargo screening, planetary science, and medical therapy and imaging.” In the experiment, researchers used two different methods to pack deuterium, a heavy form of hydrogen atoms that is often used in fusion, into thin foils of palladium and titanium. They then fired a beam of deuterium ions at the foils at different energies and measured how often fusion happened. Then they compared the rates from the different materials and methods with the “bare” fusion reaction (not in a material). The team found that fusion rates depended on how the deuterium was loaded into the metal foils. The biggest effect was at the lowest energies, below 2.5 kiloelectronvolts (keV), where theory predicts fusion rates drop off sharply. Instead, researchers found a surprising plateau: Some samples showed elevated fusion rates roughly a quintillion times higher than bare fusion reactions. (A quintillion is a 1 followed by 18 zeroes.) Researchers are not exactly sure why that’s happening, though they have some ideas and ways to test them. The electrons and defects within the material might partially shield repulsive electrostatic forces between deuterium nuclei, making it easier for them to get close together and fuse. Tuning the electronic structure, defects, and composition of materials could help make nuclear reactions happen more readily. “It comes down to better understanding the mechanism so that we can try to enhance it,” said corresponding author Jeremy Munday, a professor at UC Davis. “We’ve seen that we can increase fusion rates, but what is the limit? Can we bring it to lower temperatures or energies? There’s obviously a lot of interest and excitement about fusion, so if there’s something we can learn about the physics at these lower energy scales, maybe there’s something we can translate to other areas of nuclear science.” The team plans to explore a wider range of materials and continue probing the unexpected fusion plateau at lower energies. Their work establishes a reproducible experimental platform to study how solid materials influence nuclear reactions, creating a new area of research that links fusion science with materials science and chemistry. “The work shows conclusively that the material environment where fusion occurs at low temperatures is an active participant rather than a passive container,” said Cameron Geddes, director of ATAP. “That adds a new dimension to fusion research.” This work was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). ### Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) is committed to groundbreaking research focused on discovery science and solutions for abundant and reliable energy supplies. The lab’s expertise spans materials, chemistry, physics, biology, earth and environmental science, mathematics, and computing. Researchers from around the world rely on the lab’s world-class scientific facilities for their own pioneering research. Founded in 1931 on the belief that the biggest problems are best addressed by teams, Berkeley Lab and its scientists have been recognized with 17 Nobel Prizes. Berkeley Lab is a multiprogram national laboratory managed by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science. DOE’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit energy.gov/science.

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Jul 23 • 11:00 AM EDT • Science • newscenter.lbl.gov
Nine-Year-Old RefluXFS Linux Flaw Gives Local Users Root on Default RHEL Installs

CVE-2026-64600 lets local users overwrite root-owned files on reflink-enabled XFS systems, preserving metadata and persistent root access after reboot

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Jul 23 • 4:04 AM EDT • Technology • thehackernews.com
Weekly Entertainment Report: Live music and lively arts, July 23-26

Fun Fact: "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" is a great song from the Sound of Music soundtrack, a word that most of us can say, but not spell.

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Jul 22 • 11:27 PM EDT • Entertainment • manchester.inklink.news
Weekly Entertainment Report: Live music and lively arts, July 23-26 » Nashua Ink Link

Mi-Me-Ma-Mo-Music - altogether now (we're warming up for a weekend of great music!)

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Jul 22 • 11:27 PM EDT • Entertainment • nashua.inklink.news
Cyclospora outbreak prompts caution among restaurants, boosts business for local farmers

A Cyclospora outbreak linked to contaminated fresh produce is prompting some customers to avoid leafy greens while encouraging others to buy locally grown produce.

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Jul 22 • 10:25 PM EDT • Business • wdel.com
Asia's rich swap sponsorships for stakes in sports as dealmaking hits record

Asian wealthy families and fund managers are increasingly moving beyond sponsorships and charity-linked sporting events to invest directly in sports assets, betting that growing audiences and rising media-rights ​fees will drive longer term returns.

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Jul 22 • 8:03 PM EDT • Sports • reuters.com
Common Weight Loss Drugs Have Been Linked to a Higher Risk of Hair Loss

Here are the stats.

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Jul 22 • 6:39 PM EDT • Science • sciencealert.com
Michigan Tech Atmospheric Scientists Linked to Three Research Projects Selected for DOE Genesis Mission

Michigan Technological University researchers are involved in three proposals tapped by the U.S. Department of Energy for consideration under its recently launched Genesis Mission: Transforming Science and Energy with AI. The mission’s goal is to address national science and technology challenges using artificial intelligence.

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Jul 22 • 6:29 PM EDT • Science • mtu.edu
Liverpool primed for business: Bezos, Bhatia and the next steps at Anfield

Fenway Sports Group looks to be locked in talks with a consortium led by the son-in-law of Lakshmi Mittal while the Amazon founder has now been linked

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Jul 22 • 3:31 PM EDT • Business • theguardian.com
Intuit Intros QuickBooks-Linked Small Business Credit Card

Intuit has debuted a new small business-focused credit card in collaboration with Mastercard. The World Elite Business Mastercard, announced Wednesday

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Jul 22 • 2:15 PM EDT • Business • pymnts.com
The Legend of Zelda Officially Returns With New Release Spring 2027

Nintendo might be working hard on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake, but another new release has been announced for Spring 2027.

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Jul 22 • 1:40 PM EDT • Technology • cbr.com
Prolonged exposure to wildfire smoke increases cardiovascular health risks

Repeated and cumulative exposure to wildfire smoke is linked to a higher risk of being hospitalized for cardiovascular disease in older adults in the U.S., a new Yale study finds.

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Jul 22 • 1:27 PM EDT • Health • news.yale.edu
Hasbro Is Making The Legend of Zelda Figures, and We've Got an Exclusive First Look at Link, Princess Zelda, and Ganondorf

Hasbro is revealing its first wave of The Legend of Zelda: Heroes of Hyrule figures at Comic-Con, and we've got an exclusive first look at all three.

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Jul 22 • 11:00 AM EDT • Technology • ign.com
Cyclosporiasis cases in Michigan climb to over 7,000, state health officials say

Michigan health officials reported 7,171 cases linked to an outbreak of cyclosporiasis on Wednesday, up 600 cases since its last ​update on Tuesday.

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Jul 22 • 10:54 AM EDT • Health • reuters.com
AOC Blames Trump Science Cuts for Rise in “Explosive Diarrhea” Cases

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez linked budget reductions in federal science departments during the presidency of Donald Trump to a sharp growth in the number of Americans suffering from explosive diarrh...

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Jul 22 • 10:34 AM EDT • Science • yahoo.com
Scientists warn of potential global marine invasive species event linked to idle ships in the Strait of Hormuz

New research from an international team of 24 marine scientists, led by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES) and including the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), ...

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Jul 22 • 10:00 AM EDT • Science • phys.org
Sunlight Boosts Fertility? What Scientists Have Discovered Will Surprise You - Futura-Sciences

Vitamin D, Sunlight, and Sperm: Digging Into the Science A meta-analysis published in the journal Biomedicines reviewed several observational studies that all pointed to a significant link between vitamin D levels—which are mainly produced in humans through sunlight exposure—and sperm characteristics. These studies also suggested a connection between higher blood...

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Jul 22 • 8:30 AM EDT • Science • futura-sciences.com
RFK Jr. says cyclosporiasis outbreak is ‘under control’ as Mexico casts doubt on link to Taylor Farms facility

Mexico said its own investigation hasn’t found evidence linking the outbreak to the Taylor Farms facility in central Mexico.

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Jul 21 • 5:58 PM EDT • Health • nbcnews.com
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Less invasive anesthesia strategies during TAVR linked to a key benefit

Long-term TAVR outcomes were comparable. When tracking 30-day data, however, researchers found that hospital readmission was much less common for patients treated with regional anesthesia or moderate sedation.

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Jul 21 • 4:55 PM EDT • Business • cardiovascularbusiness.com
Health: Searching For The Source Of Cyclospora

You may have heard of a parasite that’s causing some gastrointestinal distress.Cyclospora has sickened thousands of people across 34 states this summer – more than six times the number reported at this point last year. The CDC has linked a major cluster to shredded iceberg lettuce at Taco Bell in some states. And Taylor Farms de Mexico has now pulled all of its iceberg lettuce from the U.S. market despite an FDA finding that reports that its product contained the parasite were a false positive.We answer your questions about what cyclosporiasis is, how you get it, and why investigators have had such a hard time finding the source.Find more of our programs online. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a.

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Jul 21 • 4:14 PM EDT • Health • npr.org
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Bessent says Treasury tracked down ayatollah's 'money man,' plans to expose linked properties

Scott Bessent says Treasury has found the ayatollah's "money man" and is tracking over $100 million in properties linked to Iran's supreme leader.

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Jul 21 • 3:00 PM EDT • Business • foxbusiness.com
Regular Coffee Consumption Linked to Health Benefits, AHA Says

A new report from the American Heart Association says that it's safe for most adults to drink up to five cups of coffee per day. New research also suggests regular coffee consumption may be linked to lower risk of stroke, diabetes, and heart failure for some individuals. Health benefits apply to paper filtered or instant coffee.

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Jul 21 • 12:23 PM EDT • Health • today.com
COVID-19 Linked to Short-Term Increases in Medicare Health Care Spending

Postacute COVID-19 symptom diagnoses, health care spending, and utilization among Medicare beneficiaries diminish within 3 months of infection.

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Jul 21 • 9:22 AM EDT • Health • infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com
Patriots links 7/21/26: Summer spotlight on QB, CB

Daily news and links for Tuesday

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Jul 21 • 8:54 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Coffee may protect your heart but energy drinks could harm it

For most adults, a daily caffeine habit may be safer for the heart than many people assume. A new American Heart Association review found that up to 400 milligrams of caffeine a day, roughly three to five cups of regular black coffee, is generally safe and may even be linked to lower risks of heart disease, stroke, heart failure, and Type 2 diabetes. But the source matters: highly concentrated energy drinks and shots can sharply raise blood pressure and trigger irregular heart rhythms.

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Jul 21 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Parasitic infections likely linked to farming practices, not restaurants

Two state experts break down the mysteries around a complicated foodborne infection, Cyclosporiasis, that’s been gaining traction in North Carolina and across the nation.

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Jul 21 • 4:39 AM EDT • Health • northcarolinahealthnews.org
Linklaters partners handed record £2.5mn payday as Asia business booms

‘Magic circle’ law firm cites Hong Kong listings work and growth in US as it reports bumper payouts for top ranks

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Jul 21 • 12:00 AM EDT • Business • ft.com
Joint operation shuts down illegal business tied to Durham violence

Authorities said the property had linked to a series of violent crimes, including homicides, shootings, aggravated assaults, thefts and weapons violations.

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Jul 20 • 9:54 PM EDT • Business • abc11.com
Changes to government science department

The new Prime Minister has merged the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology into a new Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade. In response, Paul Nurse, the President of the Royal Society said: “The Prime Minister understands the transformative power of science, knowledge, innovation, and technology. They are all parts of an interlinked and interdependent system of research that drives economic growth, health care, security, education, prosperity and the public...

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Jul 20 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • webwire.com
Gardening is linked to a longer life. Here’s how it helps your body.

Even a few sessions a week can provide moderate exercise, sensory stimulation, stress relief, and a stronger sense of purpose.

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Jul 20 • 8:00 PM EDT • Health • nationalgeographic.com
William Contreras' Brother Linked to Brewers

A potential deadline blockbuster could see the Milwaukee Brewers bring the Contreras brothers together.

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Jul 20 • 7:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
UFC Freedom 250 Fails to Knock Out The Ratings

(Welcome to my weekly streaming ratings report, the single best guide to what’s popular in streaming TV and what isn’t. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. If you were forwarded this email, please subscribe to get these insights each week.) If UFC fans wanted one image to say, “Hey, Paramount+ is crushing it with their UFC rights deal,” I could provide that image. Here it is: (Reminder: this is my creation of the Nielsen Top 30, since Nielsen doesn’t combine the lists or include sports. I take all three lists and combine them. Some streaming TV shows probably have higher ratings than many of the films on this list.) Look at that! UFC Freedom 250 is number one! It topped the Nielsen “Top 30” list for shows and films that made the top ten the week of 15-June. So if you’re a UFC fan or supporter of Paramount+, that’s the good news for you this week. This program topped the ratings charts for one week. Everything else is bad news, or at least a huge caveat to that story, which I’ll explain today in the first part of this week’s Streaming Ratings Report—for the weeks of 8-June and 15-June—which is a double issue since I’ve been writing on a bunch of topics recently. UFC Freedom 250 is one of the biggest streaming events of the year, and super relevant to Paramount+’s strategy, so it merited its own article. Let’s dive in! (Reminder: The streaming ratings report focuses on the U.S. market and compiles data from Nielsen’s weekly top ten viewership ranks, Luminate’s Top Ten Data, JustWatch and Reelgood interest data, Samba TV household viewership, company datecdotes, Netflix hours viewed data, Google Trends, and IMDb to determine the most popular content. While most data points are current, Nielsen’s data covers the weeks of June 8th to June 21st 2026. You can find a link to my terminology here.) Subscribe Check Out My Interview on UFC 250 at MMA Draw After you read this article, if you want even more thoughts on UFC and Paramount-Skydance/Paramount+, I did a written interview with MMA Draw. They asked me to answer some questions about UFC Freedom 250, and I was happy to chat with them. Find it here: [ The MMA Draw Newsletter Did Paramount really overpay for the UFC? What the data tells us so far If you know the history of American television, you also know that combat sports is often a leading indicator of the future… Read more a day ago · 10 likes · 1 comment · Nate Wilcox and Zach Arnold ](https://www.themmadraw.com/p/did-paramount-really-overpay-for?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=post_embed&utm_medium=web) I never thought I’d need a combat sports newsletter in my life, but the good folks at MMA Draw publish an excellent one on UFC, MMA, pro wrestling, boxing and more, analyzing both the sports themselves and the politics, economics and antitrust issues that impact them. Check the article and their newsletter out! Paramount+ Has Its Best Sporting Event of All Time…But Was It Worth It? Before we look at the UFC Freedom 250 data in particular, let’s talk about what we can’t say. Namely, let’s start with the lack of comparisons. First off, I’d love to put a chart out comparing this fight to past UFC fights on Paramount+…but we don’t have the data. This is the first time we’ve gotten Nielsen data about a Paramount+ UFC fight. As far as I can tell, Paramount provided data for the first fight, but it was a proprietary datecdote (saying it had “an average minute audience” of 5 million “views”) and then, for two fights, we got the linear viewership numbers when they aired on CBS, but no streaming data. Everything else was crickets. We also can’t compare this fight to other fights/combat sports on streaming, in particular the MMA and boxing, because Netflix also didn’t use Nielsen to track those events, opting for TVision and VideoAmp, respectively. (This isn’t Paramount’s fault, but does still suck.) We also can’t compare to UFC’s fights that used to be on ESPN+, since we don’t have any data for that, plus Disney+ didn’t have marquee fights. The comparisons would not be apples-to-apples. Can we compare to past Pay-Per-View fights? Absolutely not. The comparisons would absolutely NOT be apples-to-apples. That didn’t stop Paramount+, though, who bragged that their UFC events have reached drastically more people than past PPV fights. Duh. Sorry, but I gotta make this point again. A basic tenet of economics is that the cheaper something becomes, the more people consume or buy it. That’s Econ 101. (Sometimes pundits call things “Econ 101” that are actually like Econ 210 or even PhD-level economics, but no, this is really like first or second class basic economics.) Yet I still see one analytics firm consistently say that more people watch films on streaming than PVOD proves streaming which means that the streaming window is more valuable than the PVOD window. No, it’s not! Same thing here. Pay-Per-View events back in the day could be really, really, really expensive! So whole groups of people pitched in to buy them. That increased the perceived value of, say, the Mike Tyson fight. Or a UFC numbered event. So yes, the fact that Paramount+ makes numbered UFC fights essentially “free” if you’re already a Paramount+ member means consumption will go up. Obviously. Same for Netflix and their boxing matches. They’re talking about fights that used to cost consumers, in some cases, $50 in 1996…which is over $100 in today’s dollars. Over 1.6 million people paid that to watch the Tyson-Holyfield fight! Again, streaming is essentially “free”. Or $10 to $20, depending on what streamer we’re talking about and what tier you’re on. No wonder more people are “watching”. (Plus, Nielsen’s out-of-home viewing also helps these numbers.) UFC Freedom 250 Did Well…But I Have A Lot of Worries So what can we compare the fights to? Well, the good news is Nielsen put out that the fight averaged 7.0 million viewers for UFC Freedom 250, which is a solid number for a fight. We also know the length, at roughly 4 and a half hours. (I saw different run times, but this seems to be the consensus considering it started at 8 pm, had a delay and then finished after midnight on the East Coast. If you assume a shorter run time, then yes, the total hours viewed would go down.) That means I have the two numbers needed to add this to my Nielsen database. And then…I can compare this viewership to the NFL: And, uh, not great. But also within striking distance, mainly because the runtime for this event was so long. I’d also add that this event had viewership equal to a regular season NFL game on streaming, but if anything, it was more comparable to an NFL playoff or Super Bowl-esque event. And you can compare viewership to the top football games on broadcast, cable and streaming, and it’s not impressive at all: We can also compare it to other sports that week, including the NBA Finals and start of the World Cup: Again, not great. The NBA generated roughly four times as many average viewers each game for its NBA Finals. The World Cup has similarly big numbers. Also, that’s just a tiny fraction of the 25 most watched sporting events each week. The NBA, NHL and FIFA World Cup had many, many more games racking up hours. We could also compare this to other streaming programs to get an idea of “is this a good investment?” and here is how it ranks compared to other top Paramount+ programs: The worry here? Well, unlike scripted programming, which has rewatchability, older fights/sporting events have very little library value. Very, very few people are rewatching these fights, especially years from now. Paramount has also released datecdotes bragging about their subscriber numbers. Earlier this year, they claimed that the first UFC fight on Paramount+ brought in 1 million subscribers. Then, in their quarterly earnings report, they only ended up with 700K subs. Not great! They claimed they dropped lower-value international subscribers, but that’s why I tend to discount subscriber additions when they’re leaked to the press.1 I expect we may see a bump again for UFC Freedom 250, but I’d caution using subscriber growth so soon after these events to judge the success, since new subs with high churn (see Peacock) aren’t great either. Also, analysts often want to attribute all subscriber growth to their favorite/pet show, and that just doesn’t make sense. The biggest caveat for UFC Freedom 250 and Paramount’s very first UFC marquee event is that these could be high watermarks for the sport. UFC Freedom 250 had an incredible amount of earned media coverage compared to most UFC fights. I mean, it had wall-to-wall national news coverage in the lead up to the event. (The first fight also had a lot of promotion from Paramount since it was first.) Other fights could reach this bar—say the Conor McGregor return to the Octagon—but they’ll be fewer and far between. Was This Deal Worth It? All to ask: is this Paramount deal worth it? In this case, I think the UFC Freedom 250 numbers are more distracting than helpful. This fight did well and compares well to other top sporting events. But we know that the first marquee event was at least a third smaller, if Paramount’s own data is to be believed. And it’s likely the other fights are much, much, much smaller. And then you get to the paycheck that Paramount-Skydance paid. FIFA’s World Cup cost about the same for Fox, but clearly generated multiples more total viewership. (Though it’s only every four years.) The NBA is much more expensive, but until the playoffs, they likely didn’t pay for itself. Even still, Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon Prime Video likely overpaid. So, in that context, the NBA may be an overpay that makes the UFC look not so bad. But two overpays don’t make an underpay, to paraphrase the old cliché about wrongs and rights. And looking at UFC Freedom 250 as the likely ceiling of MMA on Paramount+, Paramount-Skydance likely paid too much. Share 1 I would love regular reports on subscriber additions by programs, but as is, it’s mostly leaked or rumored in haphazard ways.

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Jul 20 • 6:48 PM EDT • Entertainment • entertainment.substack.com
The bacteria behind gum disease may also harm your heart valves, early research suggests

A bacterium linked to gum disease may contribute to heart valve disease by setting off inflammation that can lead to calcium buildup.

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Jul 20 • 4:15 PM EDT • Health • livescience.com
House Momentum, Senate Headwinds, and the Return of Shutdown Politics

With the House finally beginning to break its floor paralysis, appropriations may be back in motion. However, the path to funding the government for FY27, and keeping the lights on past September 30, remains complex. Last week, the House passed the National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs (NSRP) appropriations bill, which included a closely watched vote on Rep. Thomas Massie's amendment targeting aid to Israel.

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Jul 20 • 4:10 PM EDT • Politics • akingump.com
Kingdom Hearts Missing-Link’s Leaked Cinematic May Have Clues For KH4

Kingdom Hearts: Missing-Link may not be coming out, but its leaked cinematic may hint at stories yet to come

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Jul 20 • 3:30 PM EDT • Technology • kotaku.com
FDA says it’s still investigating Taylor Farms in cyclosporiasis outbreak

A false-positive test result doesn’t change the “overwhelming epidemiological data” linking Taylor Farms to the outbreak, the FDA said.

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Jul 20 • 1:55 PM EDT • Health • nbcnews.com
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Former Illinois public health chief Nirav Shah drops Maine Senate bid

Before moving to Maine, Shah presided over a series of fatal Legionnaires disease outbreaks at the state of Illinois’ veterans’ home in Quincy that were linked to 14 resident deaths and the sickening of dozens of other staff and residents at the former facility.

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Jul 20 • 1:19 PM EDT • Health • wbez.org
Introducing: Breitling Top Time B01 Chronograph 41 Tribute To Aston Martin DB5

Breitling leans into the shapely Top Time chronograph's cushion case in a tribute to the mighty Aston Martin DB5 (and a nod to its Bond-film links, too).

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Jul 20 • 1:00 PM EDT • Technology • hodinkee.com
The coffee sweet spot: How much a day is safe — and linked to heart benefits
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Jul 20 • 12:26 PM EDT • Health • nypost.com
Southern Nevada health officials report first local cyclosporiasis case linked to outbreak

Las Vegas health officials report cyclosporiasis case in Clark County tied to travel; no evidence of local exposure as CDC investigates outbreak.

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Jul 20 • 12:25 PM EDT • Health • fox5vegas.com
Ghana Opposition Politician Jailed 20 Years for Illegal Mining

Ghana has sentenced a senior opposition politician to 20 years in prison after convicting him on charges linked to illegal mining, Joy FM reported.

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Jul 20 • 10:36 AM EDT • Politics • bloomberg.com
Your LG TV Remote Can Control Your PlayStation 5 - Here's How

Sony offers a media remote for the PlayStation 5, but you don't need it if you own an LG TV remote. You can set it up via the Simplink function.

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Jul 20 • 9:47 AM EDT • Technology • bgr.com
FDA retracts test result but still links Taylor Farms lettuce to cyclosporiasis

The FDA did not back away from its conclusion that the company remains linked to a multistate outbreak of cyclosporiasis through its investigation.

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Jul 20 • 9:36 AM EDT • Health • washingtonpost.com
Shaky political "science": breakdown of the peer review process

[This article is the latest in our “Shaky Political Science” series. In our 38 page report, “Shaky political ‘science’ misses mark on ranked choice voting,” released in December 2025, we examined over 40 studies focused on ranked choice voting (RCV). Many of these studies suffered from puzzling research methodologies, poorly constructed surveys, unrealistic simulated elections, cherry picked data and faulty analyses that often were contradicted by results from real-world elections (a link to our full paper is here). Here are links to the first four articles in our series: the first one summarizing the overall results of our report; the second one analyzed a study co-authored by University of Minnesota academic Larry Jacobs, which was one of the most error-prone of all the research we reviewed in our report; a third article showing an admirable example of two political scientists holding two other political scientists accountable for their flawed, sloppy research; and a fourth article that analyzed seven studies sponsored by New America’s political reform program that deployed flawed methodology based on “simulated” elections instead of real-world elections, which when combined with some basic misunderstandings of RCV, produced odd and misleading results]. In this fifth article in our “Shaky Political Science” series, we examine two flawed studies on the impact of RCV on voter turnout authored by San Francisco State University professor Jason McDaniel. McDaniel’s research in these two papers stands out for its puzzling methodology, inadequate and cherry-picked data, and faulty analyses that not only misunderstands ranked choice voting but reflects a basic misunderstanding of politics in general. The first of the McDaniel studies actually passed through a peer review process and then was subsequently published by the Journal of Urban Affairs, despite its obvious errors. It is perplexing that a jury of peer political scientists did not catch the errors and send it back to McDaniel for a rewrite or outright rejection. This calls into question the credibility of the peer review process itself. The peer review process is supposed to represent the intellectual pinnacle of the profession – a way for academics to certify the quality of each other’s work, and to act as a check against sloppy research. In the case of the McDaniel study, the peer review process failed. Yet his flawed study has been cited dozens of times by other political scientists in their own flawed works — an unvirtuous circle of academic research. Here is the first Jason McDaniel study that we analyzed: “Writing the Rules to Rank the Candidates: Examining the Impact of Instant-Runoff Voting on Racial Group Turnout in San Francisco Mayoral Elections,” by Jason McDaniel, 2016, Journal of Urban Affairs. This study covered San Francisco’s use of ranked choice voting (RCV) in mayoral elections, purporting to show that RCV reduces voter turnout overall, increases voter errors, and has a negative impact on “marginal populations,” i.e. racial minorities, mainly as the result of the alleged complexity of RCV asking voters to rank candidates and having to be familiar with multiple candidates and related dynamics. McDaniel reached these conclusions by examining five San Francisco mayoral elections taking place in odd years (i.e. where there are no federal or state races on the ballot) from 1995 to 2011, comparing three earlier non-RCV races (in 1995, 1999 and 2003) with the later two RCV races (in 2007 and 2011). Only two RCV races were studied, and as McDaniel acknowledged, only the contest in 2011 was “competitive” (that contest in 2007 was the first mayoral election using RCV, and incumbent mayor Gavin Newsom won easily in the first round of counting, earning 74% of first choices and far ahead of the second place candidate who had just 6.3% of first choices). Yet even the allegedly competitive contest in 2011was won by an incumbent with a landslide margin of nearly 20 points. No other elections were studied by McDaniel, even though San Francisco elects 17 other offices besides mayor with RCV, including the 11 seats on the Board of Supervisors (the name for the city council) in even years, and six other citywide offices in odd years. Previous academic research has found that competitive elections can stimulate greater voter involvement and higher turnout. For unexplained reasons, this study ignored at least 34 other RCV races between the years 2004 to 2011, many of which were very competitive and had high voter turnout. Instead, McDaniel’s analysis based its conclusions on data from only a single, marginally-competitive mayor’s race using RCV. These 2007 and 2011 mayoral elections were the only two RCV elections that McDaniel used as the sole basis for his small data set to determine the impact of RCV on voter turnout. Despite having no meaningful data to inform his study, McDaniel nonetheless concluded that RCV lowered turnout when compared to the previous three mayoral non-RCV elections using two-round runoffs. Then, using the same inadequate database of San Francisco elections, McDaniel also found that “Instant-runoff voting is associated with a significant decline in Black voter turnout and White voter turnout…On average, Black voter turnout decreases by 18 points and White voter turnout decreases by 16 points …” But how could he credibly arrive at that conclusion when his study was based on voter turnout in two RCV contests that were not even remotely competitive? Beyond that, McDaniel tacitly admits that the key determining factor driving Black voter turnout was not RCV vs non-RCV elections, but the presence of a viable Black candidate. McDaniel wrote, “Black voter turnout was about 17 percentage points higher for the two elections that featured an African American candidate compared to the three elections that did not” — but one of those three elections did not use RCV. The same dynamic was present for White voter turnout, in which higher turnout was not correlated with RCV vs non-RCV elections, but the presence of a viable White candidate. Beyond that, McDaniel’s voter turnout results, whether correlated with the race of the candidates or RCV vs non-RCV elections, showed no clear patterns. In his Figure 1, he shows low Asian voter turnout in the non-RCV elections in 1999 and 2003 when there was no viable Asian candidate running, but in the 2007 mayoral election using RCV, there is still no viable Asian candidate, yet Asian turnout increases dramatically. For Latinos, voter turnout is virtually the same in 1999 (no viable Latino candidate, non-RCV elections), 2003 (leading Latino candidate, non-RCV elections), 2007 (no viable Latino candidate, RCV elections) and 2011 (leading Latino candidate, RCV elections). Meanwhile White voter turnout increased dramatically from a low in the 2007 mayoral election, in which the leading candidate was a white incumbent, to the 2011 election in which there were no leading white candidates that finished any higher than sixth place with 5.6% of the vote. Clearly other factors were determining voter turnout than either the race of the candidates or RCV vs non-RCV elections. Despite these inconsistent findings, McDaniel boldly marches forth to render conclusions about the impact of RCV on different groups of racial voters, even though his conclusions are not remotely supported by his data. This looks like the worst kind of “data cherry picking” to cover up a puzzling conclusion based on a poor data set involving only two RCV elections, neither of which were remotely competitive. McDaniel’s cherry picking didn’t stop there. In calculating voter turnout for the three non-RCV mayoral elections in 1995, 1999 and 2003, he failed to mention that in each of these years there was a two-round runoff election, with a first round election in November in which no candidate garnered a winning majority of the vote, followed by the decisive runoff in December. So there were two non-RCV elections in each election year. But McDaniel only decided to include one of the two elections in his data set, apparently the December runoff in each year (which had higher turnout in two out of the three mayor’s races, and lower turnout in the third). So he ignored the November 1995 election, the November 1999 election when turnout was only 45 percent, and the November 2003 election when turnout was only 45.7 percent. This is flawed methodology based on blatant cherry picking, since McDaniel simply omitted three elections worth of data that did not fit within his frame. His study should never have made it through a peer review process, and it is an embarrassment to political science that not only was it approved for publication, but it has been uncritically cited by dozens of other political scientists. Share A “study” without wider context or credible data Lacking a data set that included even a single competitive RCV mayoral race, McDaniel declared that RCV lowered voter turnout in 2011, when turnout was 42.5 percent. But he also ignored -- or did not realize -- that voter turnout in mayoral elections during 2011 had sharply declined in all big cities, including far more steeply in nearby Los Angeles and other cities. In fact, San Francisco’s election in 2011 had the second highest turnout of any mayoral election in the nation’s 22 largest cities from 2008-2011. Was 2011 just a particularly low turnout year all across the country, perhaps because the country was still reeling from the aftermath of the housing market collapse in 2008-2010? McDaniel ignored this factor and did not search for alternative explanations beyond his flawed thesis. Furthermore, while McDaniel suggested that RCV leads to more “overvotes” – which is an invalidated ballot in which a voter, in either a non-RCV or RCV race, makes a mistake and selects two candidates for a single choice – he failed to address that in the June 2012 US Senate primary contest, which used the typical “one-choice” plurality method and did not use RCV, there was more than five times as many overvotes in San Francisco and Oakland than in the RCV mayoral elections in those cities. Additionally, turnout had been significantly higher and more representative in RCV elections for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors races -- that McDaniel didn’t even bother to study -- as compared to previous “delayed two-round runoffs” for those offices, often higher by as much as 40% in the RCV races. Perhaps the most surprising irony was that an earlier study co-authored by McDaniel (Overvoting and the Equality of Voice under Instant-Runoff Voting in San Francisco by Francis Neely and Jason McDaniel, 2015, California Journal of Politics and Policy) found that overvotes are often more common in lower-income precincts, but that the pattern of overvoting is similar in both RCV and non-RCV contests. Wrote Neely and McDaniel: “[Overvote] errors appear to be a function of complexity in general and not IRV per se…. the pattern of overvoting is similar in both IRV and non-IRV contests…Even among votes cast in a top-of-the-ticket race like U.S. Senate, overvoting occurs in an uneven fashion” (IRV, or ‘instant runoff voting,’ is another name for ranked choice voting in single-winner contests). So McDaniel not only contradicted his own conclusion in his earlier study with Neely, but the earlier study had been an important corrective for one of the most frequently made mistakes made by anti-RCV political scientists – a continual failure to provide crucial context by pairing a comparative analysis of real world RCV elections with an analysis of real world plurality or other electoral methods. Unfortunately McDaniel’s earlier study does not get cited much by other researchers, and McDaniel did not even cite it in his own flawed study analyzed above. Incredibly, McDaniel cherrypicked McDaniel, even as his flawed study has been cited dozens of times. Despite being a textbook example of poor political “science,” featuring both inadequate as well as cherrypicked data, the shelf life of McDaniel’s study has been extended endlessly by other political scientists and media outlets who have cited it uncritically. Equally troubling, the Journal of Urban Affairs put this paper through its peer review process and published it despite its numerous flaws. McDaniel gets it wrong, Part II Not content with producing one shoddy, confused paper, McDaniel produced another one a few years later, here is the link: Electoral Rules and Voter Turnout in Mayoral Elections: An Analysis of Ranked-Choice Voting by Jason McDaniel. San Francisco State Univ. (McDaniel, 2019). In this paper, McDaniel extended his previous flawed research focused on San Francisco, about voter turnout and voter impact, to multiple RCV cities through the 2018 elections. In his data set he included San Francisco, Minneapolis, St Paul, Oakland, Berkeley, San Leandro and Santa Fe. He then compared their turnout in mayoral elections to non-RCV cities, and to mayoral elections in those cities held before first RCV usage, and concluded “a significant decrease in voter turnout of approximately 3–5 percentage points in RCV cities after the implementation of RCV.” But he replicated many of the same mistakes as his first study presented above. While in this study McDaniel attempted to distinguish between various factors, such as odd year vs. even year elections, competitive races vs. noncompetitive, contests with open seats and other factors, the analysis is superficial and inadequate. He attempts to incorporate so many often-conflicting variables that his conclusions are once again unsupported by the actual data, and ultimately unconvincing (this second study never underwent a peer review process). For example, McDaniel declared that for RCV cities “in elections that are more competitive than average (margin of victory less than 20%), there is no significant RCV effect on voter turnout.” Yet McDaniel is a professor in a city, San Francisco, in which the 2018 special election using RCV to fill a mayoral vacancy was exceedingly close, decided by a margin of only one percentage point, and resulted in the second highest turnout in San Francisco history for a mayoral election. Illustrating the complexity involved in assessing the critical factors in turnout, that special election was held on the same election day as federal and state offices, which tends to boost turnout. Yet more voters participated in that RCV mayoral election than voted on the same day in the non-RCV primary for governor in which former San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom was running. Even more puzzling, in this study McDaniel inaccurately cited his own previous study from 2015 with Neely. McDaniel wrote, “Neely and McDaniel (2015) examine individual ballot image files within a natural experiment, and find higher rates of ballot errors in RCV elections compared to non-RCV elections” (emphasis added). However, we quoted from that 2015 study several paragraphs above, and in actual fact Neely and McDaniel actually concluded the opposite -- that the pattern of overvoting – which is the most common form of ballot error – is similar in both RCV and non-RCV contests. McDaniel also ignored the fact that in Bay Area RCV elections held in even years – at the same time as federal and state elections, when turnout is highest -- the “undervote” (that is, the dropoff in ballots cast for governor or mayor) has declined, which contradicts his thesis that the act of ranking ballots in RCV elections is too complex and presents a barrier for certain demographics of voters. To his credit, McDaniel actually acknowledged another contradiction in his own paper, which found a negative RCV turnout effect in some odd-year elections but not others, admitting that “may present a challenge to the theory that increased complexity [from RCV] will have a marginal negative effect on voter turnout.” But he tried to wallpaper over that contradiction by blaming it on an unlikely source -- bad election administration. McDaniels wrote, “This would suggest that the negative impact of RCV on voter participation may be alleviated by high quality election administration,” without presenting any data or even anecdotes to support such an unfounded theory. While competent election administration of any election, whether RCV or non-RCV, is crucially important, there is no credible research that supports the far-fetched notion that the quality of election administration has much of an impact on voter turnout in US elections, whether using RCV or otherwise. Upgrade to a $5 subscription The unvirtuous circle of academic research It is puzzling how McDaniel’s first study could have survived the peer review process for the Journal of Urban Affairs. The mistakes in McDaniel’s first study above should have been obvious to anyone with a basic understanding of ranked choice voting as well as elections in general, and elections in San Francisco specifically. It undermines faith in the credibility of the peer review process to think that a jury of peer political scientists did not catch the egregious errors and reject McDaniel’s sloppy research and paper. And it remains a black mark on political science that this thoroughly discredited study has been cited dozens of times by other researchers. Indeed, in our research paper it became apparent that many political scientists cite each other’s flawed research to pad their list of citations and to legitimize their own flawed research, creating an unvirtuous circle of political science. More broadly, McDaniel’s voter turnout studies, like other studies evaluating RCV’s impact on turnout, lacked a recognition that no credible opinion or research can claim that RCV increases voter turnout merely because so many voters are excited to vote for their favorite candidates instead of “lesser evil” candidates without worrying about spoilers. Instead, with respect to turnout, the advantage of RCV has always been that, in most places where it has been used, it has eliminated a pre-November primary or post-November runoff, which usually saw about half the turnout of the November general election. This is especially true during even years when there are state and federal elections on the ballot which substantially drive turnout more than local contests. Any study that does not adequately account for this non-November primary/runoff vs November general election dynamic, or odd year vs even year election factors, is simply not credible. Both of McDaniel’s studies largely failed on those grounds. Steven Hill and Paul Haughey Share Upgrade to a $5 subscription Thanks for reading DemocracySOS…your digital portal for the pro-democracy movement. Subscribe for only $5 per month to receive full benefits and to support our work. Subscribe

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Jul 20 • 9:29 AM EDT • Science • democracysos.substack.com
Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 24 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg SFB

The Starlink 17-39 mission is SpaceX’s 85th Falcon 9 rocket launch of the year. Liftoff from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base is scheduled for 7:36 a.m. PDT (10:36 a.m. EDT / 1436 UTC).

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Jul 20 • 8:38 AM EDT • Technology • spaceflightnow.com
Up to 5 cups of coffee per day may potentially lower heart disease risk, doctors say

Drinking up to five cups of coffee a day is safe for most adults, and regular coffee consumption may be linked to a lower risk of stroke, diabetes and heart failure.

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Jul 20 • 5:06 AM EDT • Health • abcnews.com
Kingdom Hearts Missing-Link may have been cancelled, but that hasn't stopped footage of Keyblade-wielding astronauts from leaking online

A year has passed since the game was canned, but this new snippet shows it's not lacking in wackiness.

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Jul 20 • 4:48 AM EDT • Technology • eurogamer.net
FDA says Taylor Farms Cyclospora lettuce test was a false positive

The FDA says its lab finding of Cyclospora in Taylor Farms lettuce linked to the Taco Bell outbreak was a false positive after experts re-reviewed results.

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Jul 20 • 3:11 AM EDT • Business • foxbusiness.com
Kingdom Hearts' Canceled Mobile Game's Intro May Have Leaked

Kingdom Hearts: Missing-Link was a canceled

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Jul 19 • 9:26 PM EDT • Technology • kotaku.com
How eczema and acne can affect your mental health

Scientists are uncovering a complex communication network linking the skin, immune system, and brain—one that could transform how chronic skin disease and mental health are treated.

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Jul 19 • 8:00 PM EDT • Health • nationalgeographic.com
Coffee and heart health: How many cups of caffeinated coffee are safe to drink each day?

Statement Highlights: The latest research indicates that consuming up to 400 mg of caffeine/day (equivalent to up to 5, 8-ounce cups of caffeinated coffee per day) is generally safe for most adults and appears to be linked to a lower risk of several ...

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Jul 19 • 8:00 PM EDT • Health • newsroom.heart.org
Exclusive | Buyout Firm Truelink Nears $1 Billion Deal for Coffee Syrup Maker

Lyons Magnus specializes in fruit-based ingredients and beverages, from flavored syrups for coffee drinks to fruit purees for smoothies.

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Jul 19 • 7:33 PM EDT • Business • wsj.com
What scientists felt when approaching Egyptian mummies will truly shock you - Futura-Sciences

The Surprising Role of Scents in Ancient Egyptian Burial Rites In ancient Egypt, smell was far from a trivial detail: it was a crucial part of funerary rituals. Pleasant fragrances were linked to the gods and purity, while foul odors were a direct reminder of decay and death. For Egyptians,...

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Jul 19 • 7:00 PM EDT • Science • futura-sciences.com
The daytime habit that could transform your sleep, according to new study

A study of 89 adults found that brighter, more consistent daylight exposure was linked to earlier sleep timing and more deep sleep at night.

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Jul 19 • 3:51 PM EDT • Health • foxnews.com
Cyclospora outbreak cause identified: contaminated lettuce

Lettuce sold at Taco Bell in five states has been linked to the multi-state cyclosporiasis outbreak.

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Jul 19 • 1:41 PM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
New AI blood test predicts heart disease 15 years early

A new AI-powered blood test could give people a remarkably early warning of serious heart and circulation problems. Developed by researchers at the University of Hong Kong, CardiOmicScore analyzes thousands of proteins and metabolites to estimate the risk of six major cardiovascular diseases, including heart attack, stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation. Unlike genetic risk scores, which remain fixed throughout life, the system captures biological changes linked to a person’s current health, lifestyle, and environment.

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Jul 19 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Before Lettuce Felled Thousands, a Cilantro-Linked Cyclospora Outbreak Sickened New Yorkers

New York City health officials shared details of how they traced a much smaller cyclosporiasis outbreak, showing the difficulty of tracing contamination.

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Jul 19 • 3:00 AM EDT • Health • nytimes.com
What is Cyclospora? Health officials explain symptoms, risks amid FDA lettuce investigation

Cyclospora has been making national headlines as the FDA investigates a possible link between a recent outbreak and shredded lettuce products in several northeastern states.

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Jul 18 • 3:33 PM EDT • Health • ktvh.com
Steelers linked to surprising trade for former second-round pick

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been linked this offseason to a surprising trade for Jacksonville Jaguars offensive tackle Walker Little.

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Jul 18 • 5:07 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
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Louisiana restaurants, grocers respond to outbreak linked to contaminated lettuce

The food-borne parasitic outbreak that can cause extreme diarrhea and has affected several U.S. states, including Louisiana, is creating headaches for owners of local restaurants and supermarkets.

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Jul 18 • 5:00 AM EDT • Business • nola.com
Health officials investigate foods potentially linked to cyclosporiasis in North Carolina

North Carolina health officials continue to investigate amid a surge in cases of cyclosporiasis, an intestinal illness that can cause "explosive" diarrhea.

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Jul 17 • 5:59 PM EDT • Health • wlos.com
Health officials investigate foods potentially linked to cyclosporiasis in North Carolina

North Carolina health officials continue to investigate amid a surge in cases of cyclosporiasis, an intestinal illness that can cause "explosive" diarrhea.

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Jul 17 • 5:59 PM EDT • Health • newschannel9.com
Recall update: FDA now urging clinicians to return vascular device linked to 3 deaths

Cardiologists and vascular surgeons were previously told they could still use the device if necessary. Now, however, the message is that they should return the product to the manufacturer.

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Jul 17 • 3:26 PM EDT • Business • cardiovascularbusiness.com
Iceberg lettuce at Taco Bell linked to cyclospora outbreak in 5 states

Federal health officials have identified a single supplier of the produce from Mexico that was served in Taco Bell restaurants in five states.

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Jul 17 • 1:04 PM EDT • Health • npr.org
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Less sleep = less health; Led Zeppelin in the OR; dangers of people-pleasing; plus other stories with Vanderbilt Health sources

Prevention interviewed Beth Malow, MD, Professor of Neurology and Pediatrics in the Vanderbilt Sleep Division, for a story about two randomized trials published in Annals of Internal Medicinethat found decreasing sleep by just 1.5 hours each night was linked with increases in body weight, waist circumference, and sedentary time in adults with elevated cardiometabolic risk. Yahoo Healthalso picked up the story. WTVF News Channel 5 reporter Nikki Hauser interviewed Ashish Shah, MD, Professor and Chair of Cardiac Surgery, for a new video podcast series called “Why Nashville” where she interviews interesting people doing interesting work about why they came to Nashville and how it is going. Among the revelations: his go-to OR music includes Led Zeppelin and AC/DC. Everyday Health interviewed Aaron Brinen, PsyD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, for a story about the TikTok trend that encourages women to speak up about their concerns or they’ll develop an autoimmune disease. Overall, people suggest that suppressing feelings of anger, minimizing your own needs, or people-pleasing raises your risk. Telemundo Nashville broadcast a story on cyclosporiasis that quotes both William Schaffner, MD, professor of Preventive Medicine, and Juan C. Salazar, MD, MPH, chair of the Department of Pediatrics and system Pediatrician-in-Chief for Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. Schaffner also spoke to WKRN News 2 about measles and The Cutabout shingles and long distance running. WREG (Memphis) and others picked up the measles story as well. CNN reporter Deidre McPhillips interviewed John Trahanas, MD, Assistant Professor of Cardiac Surgery, and Director of Thoracic Aortic Surgery, for a story about aortic dissection in last week’s death of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham. The Nashville Post published a story by freelance reporter Leah Hunter on robotic surgery, including a patient story and numerous quotes from Sekhar Padmanabhan, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery in the Division of Surgical Oncology.

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Jul 17 • 12:27 PM EDT • Health • news.vumc.org
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U.S. health officials zero in on source of Cyclospora outbreak

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is zeroing in on the source of a parasitic outbreak linked to iceberg lettuce that has sickened hundreds of people across five states.

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Jul 17 • 9:13 AM EDT • Health • wlwt.com
Fleur-de-links, July 17: Exciting news for Olave

Here are today's Saints news links

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Jul 17 • 8:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Zelda: Ocarina Of Time Remake Pre-Order Date Appears Online

Zelda OoT Remake: August Pre-Order Date Leaked

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Jul 17 • 6:01 AM EDT • Technology • screenrant.com
Did ancient Egyptian princesses use weapons? Controversial study claims they hunted or trained with the military, but not all experts agree.

Nearly 4,000-year-old skeletal remains show that several royal women repeatedly used their upper-body muscles. Researchers link those changes to archery and weapon training, but outside experts urge caution.

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Jul 17 • 12:00 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
JobsOhio Opportunity Day links founders with growth resources

JobsOhio's Opportunity Day connected entrepreneurs with resources to help grow their businesses during Black Tech Week in Cincinnati.

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Jul 16 • 5:17 PM EDT • Business • spectrumnews1.com
IRS raises business mileage deduction rate amid fuel price surge

The IRS raised its standard business mileage deduction to 76 cents per mile amid surging gas prices linked to the Iran war's disruption of oil flows.

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Jul 16 • 4:22 PM EDT • Business • foxbusiness.com
Google's AI Mode now lets you link and interact with select apps

With this new update, Google is expanding AI Mode beyond answering questions and into completing tasks across the apps they use regularly.

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Jul 16 • 12:00 PM EDT • Technology • techcrunch.com
UT Health San Antonio study links sleeping long hours with higher levels of an Alzheimer’s-related protein

UT Health San Antonio study links sleeping long hours with higher levels of an Alzheimer’s-related protein

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Jul 16 • 9:52 AM EDT • Health • news.uthscsa.edu
Engagement in public life is linked with Americans’ views of politics, news

Americans who participate more in public life are more interested in politics – and more likely to have positive feelings about the state of their local communities.

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Jul 16 • 9:36 AM EDT • Politics • pewresearch.org
Dermatologist Reveals No. 1 Skin Symptom That Can Be a Sign of Heart Issues

In TODAY.com’s Expert Tip of the Day, a dermatologist explains the links between skin health and heart health.

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Jul 16 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • today.com
Bryce Link appointed as Buffalo’s new finance commissioner

Link has spent nearly the past two decades with the Buffalo Fiscal Stability Board.

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Jul 16 • 8:00 AM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com
UT Health San Antonio study links sleeping long hours with higher levels of an Alzheimer’s-related protein

Findings could signal early neurodegenerative processes at work Contact: Steven Lee, (210) 450-3823, lees22@uthscsa.edu SAN ANTONIO, July 16, 2026 – Regularly sleeping long hours each night is associated with higher levels of an Alzheimer’s-related protein in the blood, even accounting for other health factors, suggests a new study from UT Health San Antonio, the academic […]

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Jul 16 • 6:46 AM EDT • Health • news.uthscsa.edu