SCROLL NEWS / DISCOVERY
Search headlines
Find the stories shaping the conversation.
Results for " Ider " 10,893 found 🔀 AI-powered Shuffle
Russia turned cheap 'Molniya' strike drones into advanced recon tools
The modifications allow Russia to use these drones for battlefield reconnaissance instead of relying on more expensive platforms.
Trying to find best Greek yogurt at grocery store, ranked: Review
I tried and ranked Greek yogurt from different grocery stores, including Whole Foods, Costco, Trader Joe's, and Wegmans, to find the best one.
Mississippi health officer Dan Edney being considered for CDC director
Mississippi's State Health Officer Dan Edney is reportedly being considered for the director position at the CDC.
CT bill seeks to reduce business tax on energy, boost state tourism and international trade
State lawmakers are considering a wide-ranging proposal aimed at reducing business costs, increasing municipal revenue and expanding international trade.
A woman and her husband moved into her parents' garage to save money
MaryHelen Maida's parents turned their garage into a rent-free apartment for her and her husband while they started their own business.
Chris Froome Joins Vekta Leadership Team to Help Shape Sports Performance of the Future
Four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome to join Vekta as Chief Innovation Officer and Chair of the newly created Vekta Athlete Advisory Board.
Supreme Court to scrutinize former policy of turning away asylum seekers at southern border
The Supreme Court on Tuesday will consider the legality of a policy championed by President Donald Trump during his first term that prevented scores of migrants arriving at the southern border from starting the process of applying for asylum.
Iowa lawmakers OK conscience bill letting health workers deny services
Health care providers and institutions may decline services that violate their conscience under a bill headed to Gov. Kim Reynolds' desk.
DoorDash, Uber are using gig workers for AI, other data gathering
DoorDash and other gig apps are adding new tasks that let users photograph store shelves and train AI, moving gig work beyond delivery and rides.
OpenClaw creator: User asked for a token refund for errors
OpenClaw creator Peter Steinberger shared a refund request he received for errors, including "fabricated data." He refunded $0, as the agent is free.
On 16th anniversary of Affordable Care Act, Va.'s federal lawmakers and health leaders weigh risks
Virginia's Democratic federal lawmakers and health care providers met in Hampton Roads to discuss lapsed parts of the ACA program and steep cuts to Medicaid funding.
Employees are taking pay cuts in huge numbers
After getting laid off, many professionals are being forced to take jobs with much lower salaries than what they were earning before.
Perplexity CEO said AI could spur a small entrepreneurship boom
Aravind Srinivas said AI will lead to job cuts — and create small business opportunities.
Kalshi says it will crack down on politicians and athletes betting
Kalshi said the new features were aimed at preventing "bad actors" in sports and politics from engaging in insider trading.
I spent 4 hours in line at the TSA, and the situation felt dangerous
A couple traveling to Costa Rica for their anniversary vacation spent four hours at the TSA, missed their flight, and spent the night at the airport.
We disagreed on politics. We agreed on wine. That was enough.
At the Virginia Governor’s Cup Gala in Richmond earlier this month, a very dapper gentleman approached me and introduced himself. In his light-colored suit and bowtie, he looked very Southern in a classical sense, the sort of Virginia Gentleman you used to see south of the Rappahannock as recently as my college days. “I’m a longtime reader and fan of your writing, if not your politics,” he said. His comment was the proverbial iron fist in a velvet glove, simultaneously conveying praise and disapproval while establishing boundaries. Man, I wish we still discoursed like this instead of shouting bromides and insults to try and “own” our opponents with a funny meme and a furrowed brow. Subscribe “Well, we’ll always have wine to share together,” I said, and thanked him for his kind words. We clinked glasses, exchanged pleasantries about the delicious gold medal-winning wines being poured that evening, and went our separate ways. Our exchange reminded me that more unites us than divides us. Wine brings people together to share a meal and a few hours of joy despite our differences.1 That’s why I refer to the wine community — including readers and consumers — rather than the wine industry. Together, we are so much more than production, distribution and sales statistics. A few minutes later the evening’s awards ceremony began. Applause grew as the 12 winemakers who made the top-scoring wines for the Governor’s Case took the stage, including a loud cheer for Jonathan Wheeler of Trump Winery and his 2018 Blanc de Noir sparkling wine. All the winemakers on stage had reason to be proud, Wheeler perhaps more so. Trump Winery was the only winery to win six gold medals in the competition this year. (Wineries are limited to six entries.) Two of Wheeler’s ciders also won gold medals in a separate competition. When you cover the labels and take the sour taste of politics off your palate, the wines are pretty darn good.2 Then Gov. Abigail Spanberger, newly elected Democrat and Virginia’s first female governor, was introduced to great applause to announce which of the 12 wines had won the Governor’s Cup. She spoke for a few minutes about the importance of wine to Virginia’s economy and tourism and the international acclaim Virginia wine has received. Just two weeks earlier, she gave the Democrats’ response to Trump’s State of the Union speech, but this night wasn’t about politics. That didn’t stop several people in the crowd from speculating on the irony should she have to present the trophy to Trump Winery. In the end, Valley Road Vineyards was displayed on the screen behind Spanberger as the winning winery. Blue Bee Cidery in Richmond took top honors for that category. The crowd cheered a female governor presenting the state’s highest trophy to a female winemaker and then resumed the evening’s festivities, united by their mutual love of wine. A whiff of politics couldn’t dim the cheer of celebration and a community united by its love of wine. In Memoriam: Michel Rolland The global wine community lost a giant March 20, with the passing of Michel Rolland. He was 78. Rolland was the original “flying winemaker,” a globe-trotting consultant who helped Bordeaux regain its mojo in the 1970s and then shaped the rise of Napa Valley cult Cabernet as consultant to Simi, Harlan, Newton, Screaming Eagle, Araujo, Dalle Valle and other wineries. He was instrumental in Argentina’s rise to prominence and even had his own winery, Clos de los Siete, in a partnership with other wine families. Rolland’s career arc paralleled that of Robert Parker, the world’s most influential critic. Parker championed many of the wines Rolland consulted on, helping build his reputation and demand for his services. It also made him a target for Parker’s critics. As W. Blake Gray wrote on Wine-Searcher in his excellent tribute to Rolland: Rolland created the type of wines Parker loved: rich body, plenty of fruit, soft tannins. He sometimes faced the accusation of creating a generic international style of red wine, where the great wines he made in Argentina were indistinguishable from the great wines he made in France. Rolland chafed at that critique, as did many of his fans. He was credited with championing green harvesting and leaf pulling, as well as careful selection of grapes in the winery, practices we nearly universally think of today for high-quality winemaking. “Michel was an incredible innovator who changed how wine was made and how grapes were grown,” Napa Valley winemaker Aaron Pott wrote on Facebook. “His work has transformed the wine trade. He created new ways of looking at wine, tasting wine, evaluating ripeness and quality. … This was not just a man with a ‘style’ that he imposed on vineyards but a man that understood how to make great wine from great sites.” Rolland started his consulting company in 1973 in Libourne, in Bordeaux, with his wife, Dany. Both had graduated the year before from Bordeaux’s Institute d’Oenologie. The couple sold their majority share in the business in 2020, according to Wine Spectator. Over his career, Rolland reportedly worked with more than 100 wineries in 20 countries. He even made it to Virginia, where he consulted for Kluge Estate in the mid-2000s. (Kluge Estate is now Trump Winery.) Reader feedback, please! Last week, I did my first WineLine Live! with Dr. Laura Catena of Catena Zapata winery in Argentina. We enjoyed a fascinating discussion about her efforts to preserve the genetic heritage of old vineyards in Mendoza. I conceived of WineLine Live! for paid subscribers, as a thank you for your financial support. And while only a few people joined live, the video now has more views than I have paid subscribers, so I guess that’s pretty good. Even so, I’m considering opening future installments to anyone on Substack to reach a broader audience. So my questions to you: Should these be public? And what format do you prefer? Live gives a chat feature with the potential for viewers to interact with me and the guest, while a video post would just be that. Another alternative is a podcast, which would just be audio, without video of my chins. Please let me know in the comments. Leave a comment In the Glass A few wines I’ve enjoyed recently: Bonny Doon Vineyard Take Me to Your Liter, Le Cigare Volant, Red Wine of the Earth. 2023, Central Coast, CA. Blend of Grenache, Syrah Cinsaut and Petite Sirah. Delightful wine with expressive red fruit flavors, casual drinking. Doon lovers of a certain age will remember Randall Grahm’s Big House Red; this is more in that style than his original Le Cigare Volant, modeled after Chateauneuf du Pape. The liter bottle makes it an even better value. I see this online at about $15. Great value. Albert Bichot Bourgogne Pinot Noir Origines 2023. 13% - Textbook pinot noir and an excellent, affordable entry (regional) Burgundy. Wine Enthusiast Top 100 Wines of 2025. $24 at Total Wine & More. Loma Larga Pinot Noir 2021 “Coastal Cool Climate Wine”, Valle de Casablanca, Chile. An older sample, showing beautifully. Spicy and fruit forward. I’m seeing widely varied pricing online, from $18-$32. At the lower end, it’s a terrific value. 13.5% Dr. Loosen Riesling Dry 2016, Mosel, Germany. Found this “in the stack.” And it stacked up well, shedding some of its youthful acidity for opulent Riesling character, including a hint of the mineral oil older Riesling often features. A great value, as I’m seeing it as low as $14 online. 12% abv. Red Tail Ridge Blau Franc Blend 2024, Sans Oak, Finger Lakes. 13.4% abv. The name is a neat portmanteau of Blaufrankisch and Cabernet Franc, thus Blau Franc. The blend is 50-50, no oak involved. The Blau dominates on the palate, with the spicy caraway seed (think New York deli rye bread). The Franc adds body. The result is juicy, energetic and joyful. Sokol Blosser Estate Rosé of Pinot Noir 2025, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon. This first rosé of 2025 was a welcome respite to our cold, snowy winter here in the Mid-Atlantic. Oh man, I needed this! Bright and energetic, exuberant even, it perks up the mood and goes down fast. 13%. Certified B Corp. Ingredient and nutrition labeling, and in a modest way that doesn’t occupy a lot of label space. (Since it’s not required, presumably there are no minimum font size requirements.) More wineries should follow this example. Dave McIntyre's WineLine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Thanks for reading Dave McIntyre's WineLine! This post is public so feel free to share it. Share 1 Some restraint may be required. 2 Especially the bubblies.
The Business of Bull Riding: CEO Sean Gleason Opens Up His PBR Playbook
Under Gleason, the Cowtown-based Professional Bull Riders has evolved into a made-for-TV, multibillion-dollar sports property.
Secondary Trauma and Healthcare Providers | Modern Midwives Blog |…
Secondary trauma is a common form of distress experienced by anyone who is witness to the trauma another person experiences. Those who work in the…
Segment: Financing Action on Extreme Heat and Maternal and Newborn Health: The Way Forward
The segment “Financing Action on Extreme Heat and Maternal and Newborn Health: The Way Forward” will examine how innovative and better-aligned financing approaches can respond to these growing risks. Discussions will highlight country experiences in mobilizing domestic resources, opportunities to unlock and scale climate finance, and the role of heat-smart innovations in building resilient health systems. Particular attention will be given to low- and middle-income countries, where exposure and vulnerability remain highest, and where integrated solutions can deliver the greatest impact.
Microsoft hires Ali Farhadi to work with Mustafa Suleyman on AI
Microsoft hired Ali Farhadi, former Allen Institute CEO, to join Mustafa Suleyman's AI team as corporate VP.
I was on the Air Canada flight that crashed at LaGuardia
A 22-year-old student was on an Air Canada flight that crashed at LaGuardia Airport. He described the moment of the collision and the aftermath.
After patient deaths, Idaho budget committee approves restoring cut Medicaid mental health programs
The Idaho Legislature will consider restoring mental health programs the state cut to comply with the governor’s order for budget cuts.
SP40 Restomod Is Built Around The One Ford That Edsel Actually Got Right
Carbon-bodied SP40 brings the style of Edsel Ford’s one-off speedster to a wider audience
AI attack ads are hitting Massachusetts political campaigns
Lawmakers are considering new legislation to regulate the use of AI in political advertising. Have you spotted them?
Brian Doherty, 57, Dies; Chronicled Libertarians and Other Outsiders
Fascinated by the fringes, he wrote a definitive history of libertarianism and books about underground comics and the Burning Man festival.
Business Insider welcomes Ryan Kailath
Ryan Kailath joins Business Insider as a Senior Editor on the Economy team.
Epic says it has uncovered rot in patient record sharing. Will HHS act?
A recent Epic lawsuit revealed a company allegedly posed as a provider to access patient records for law firms, prompting a call for increased oversight.
When Vermont’s treatment landscape shifts, community providers step up
As Vermont’s substance use treatment landscape shifts, community providers are stepping up to maintain access to care. In Washington County, strong partnerships ensure rapid connection to treatment, recovery services, and coordinated support.
I go to Florida often; favorite destination is quiet, lesser-known
I grew up visiting family in Fort Pierce, Florida, and I think of this beach city as a hidden gem. The beaches are relatively uncrowded and beautiful.
Blue Jays extend manager John Schneider, GM Ross Atkins following World Series appearance
The Blue Jays are locking up two architects of the team's World Series run.
By Director Mr. Sakurai, Kirby Air Riders: Development Insights — Part 5 - News
Join Kirby Air Riders director Masahiro Sakurai as he shares insights into the development and details behind some of the game's modes and features. Check out the rest of the interview Part 1: Air Ride and Top Ride Part 2: Cramming everything into S…
How Healthy Are Meat Sticks and Jerky as Protein Sources?
These convenient snacks are rich in protein and low in calories, but they are considered processed meats. Here's how often you should eat them.
The final four of Business Insider's business-focused bracket
The business-focused March Madness bracket narrows to four trends: SaaSpocalypse, tariffs, longevity, and robotics.
My husband and I were laid off at the same time. Instead of panicking, we started our own business that now has 600 employees.
We both lost our jobs. So we started a company.
After being laid off in 2020, my husband and I launched Larroudé from home. Today, the shoe brand employs 600 people and generates millions.
Data centers under scrutiny by California lawmakers as fears rise about health and energy impacts
Due to health and energy concerns, the California Legislature is considering bills to prohibit data centers from being exempted from the state's stringent environmental law and impose new tariffs on new major energy users that strain power supplies.
OpenAI talent flow: See who's feeding into and hiring away employees
Big Tech, particularly Google, was a huge feeder for OpenAI. Many employees landed at smaller startups after they left Sam Altman's AI giant.
Rising Health Costs Push Some Middle-Aged Adults To Skip the Doc Until Medicare
Adults ages 50 through 64 faced some of the steepest increases in out-of-pocket costs for Obamacare plans after a set of federal subsidies expired at the end of December. Some say they are putting off care or considering dropping health insurance coverage until Medicare picks up the bill.
Pfeiffer, Pulley Join The Core Entertainment Leadership Team.
The Core Entertainment has added Sarah Pfeiffer as Head of Marketing and Gabriella Pulley as Chief of Staff. Both will report to Co-Founders and Co-CEOs Simon Tikhman and Chief Zaruk
Cursor acknowledges its new low-cost coding model has Chinese roots
Cursor says its new coding model builds on Kimi K2.5, a Chinese model it didn't mention at launch.
At 85, I can still work out on the bars and do headstands with my wife
Peng Lin Hua, 85, says retirement didn't slow him down. He and his wife split their time between two countries.
Trump’s new red line could set the Iran war on a fateful course
On Friday, President Donald Trump said he was considering “winding down” his war with Iran. But a day later, he threatened to “obliterate” the country’s power plants in an escalation that could further tip the conflict out of control.
The Christian Science Monitor Daily for March 23, 2026
Rethink the news: Reducing news to hard lines and side-taking leaves a lot of the story untold. Progress comes from challenging what we hear and considering different views.
Norman City Council to consider ordinance repeal related to Rock Creek Entertainment District
Norman City Council will consider repealing an ordinance related to the Rock Creek Entertainment District during its Tuesday meeting, according to a council member’s social media post.
Alabama vs. Texas Tech odds, time, March Madness predictions: 2026 NCAA Tournament picks from proven model
SportsLine's model has revealed its Texas Tech vs. Alabama picks for the NCAA Tournament 2026 second-round game on Sunday
The M-Trends 2026 report shows how to strengthen business cybersecurity.
Learn more about the evolving threat landscape based on Mandiant's new M-Trends 2026 cybersecurity report.
Man Born with ‘Butterfly Syndrome’ Is Fighting for Change for ‘the Worst Disease You’ve Never Heard of’ (Exclusive)
Ohio resident Shane DiGiovanna, who has the rare disorder epidermolysis bullosa (EB), is advocating for legislation to help cover costly medical bandages for patients with the disease, which is also known as ‘butterfly syndrome.’
Michael McCarthy Considering Three Races As Options For Journalism's Return
After Journalism worked five furlongs in company Sunday at Santa Anita, trainer Michael McCarthy said he is looking at three potential races to kick off the colt’s 4-year-old campaign. Journalism could return in either the Oaklawn Handicap (G2) or Ben Ali (G3) at Keeneland, both on April 18, or ...
Federal union says 'untrained' ICE agents shouldn't replace TSA
President Donald Trump said he would tap ICE agents to run security at US airports as unpaid TSA officers stop showing up to work.
Your Thymus and Your Healthspan
Our thymus gland plays a central role in the development or our immune system, specifically for supporting T cell development (how these cells got their name, maturation and differentiation in the thymus) and discriminating between self and foreign, non-self antigen proteins with production of dendritic cells. As we age, our thymus gland shrinks—the process known as involution—with progressive change from spongy to fatty tissue, with loss of functionality. But this process, with respect to timeline and extent, markedly varies from one person to the next. And to make things even more complicated, our thymus gland anatomy and precise location in the chest also is highly variable. So the famous Frank Netter diagrams from the 1960s (such as at left below) don’t capture the remarkable heterogeneity that a random set of 12 chest CT scans (below at right). What I consider as 2 landmark papers in Nature this week (here and here) used AI to quantify health of the thymus in 2 large cohorts, and then correlate the metric to a broad array of health outcomes. In this edition of Ground Truths, I’m going to cover three questions: (1) How was thymus health determined by AI?; (2) How is thymus health linked to key clinical outcomes? and (3) Are there ways we can promote a healthy (aka rejuvenate) thymus gland in our later years? Subscribe 1. How was thymus health determined by AI? This was accomplished by extensive work developing and validating an AI pipeline for 2 stages, the first for localization and segmentation of the thymus bed, and the second to quantify a digital marker, termed the thymic health score. There’s a lot to this algorithmic development, so I won’t go into all the details, but just provide a rudimentary outline of what was done. The 1st stage used supervised learning with 2 radiologists reviewing 2,461 chest CT scans. That work trained a 3D U-Net model to automatically identify the thymic bed’s 3D cropped region using center of mass coordinates, which reached 99.8% accuracy. The 2nd stage used a foundation model that was pre-trained with SwAV (which stands for Swapping Assignment between multiple Views), a self-supervised model, that generated a high-dimensional thymus representation of 4,096 features. That compares to the radiology reductionist and subjective scoring of 0 to 3 where 0 means the thymus is fully degenerated and fatty, and 3 is considered dense, intact glandular soft tissue. Notably, the self-supervised learning (SSL) performance was superior to supervised (AUC ~0.75 vs 0.55, respectively) reflecting the shallowness of the 0-3 classifier vs SSL’s holistic, self-taught AI. The thymic health score ranged from 0 to 100, with the highest number indexed to fully preserved thymic health. The algorithmic work extended to explainability with both Shapely value distribution, meaning the model was holistic not relying on any “magic” pixel, and occlusion sensitivity, demonstrating the model’s performance was not affected by ribs, sternum, lung tissue, but rather focused on the thymic bed directly. Below are a few saliency maps from the occlusion sensitivity that indicate the thymic bed focus, not affected by neighboring structures, using the jet color scale. Now the AI was ready for processing ~25,000 CT scans, each over 30 MB files, from the 2 large participant cohorts to provide a thymic health score, it did so in less than 14 hours, which is less than 2 seconds per scan! Share 2. How is thymus health linked to key clinical outcomes? The two cohorts were the National Lung Screening Trial, NLST (N=25,031) and the Framingham Heart Study, FHS (N=2,581) each with baseline demographics and long term follow up of >12 years for health outcomes. From the NSLT, you can see below that increased age and body-mass index were correlated to reduced thymic health. And, overall, men had reduced thymic health scores compared with women. There are a lot of graphs in the paper for outcomes, for both the NLST and FHS cohorts. To simplify the major outcomes, below is a composite Figure with striking reduction of all-cause mortality and for the different causes of death. The results were consistent between the 2 cohorts. For example, the cardiovascular mortality hazard ratio average was 0.57 in NLST and 0.38 in FHS (weighted to be 0.53 for the aggregate). The reduction of mortality also extended to digestive diseases and pulmonary disease (data not shown below). Lung cancer incidence was reduced by 36% for high vs low thymic health (Figure below, with a panel -incidence and b panel-mortality, adjusted for age, sex, BMI, smoking status). Notably, there was a smoker’s paradox: lower incidence and improved survival for lung cancer in smokers who had a high thymus health score. Smoking was associated with lower thymic scores whereas alcohol was not. Higher thymic health was linked to higher HDL cholesterol, lower triglycerides, lower fasting blood glucose, and lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Inflammation biomarkers, such as C-reactive protein and interleukin-6, were elevated in the people with lower thymic health scores. In their second paper, the same team looked at the relationship between thymic score and outcomes for 3,476 patients receiving cancer immunotherapy. The non-small cell lung cancer progression-free survival was reduced in patients with low thymic health score. A parallel relationship for survival was seen for other types of cancer including melanoma, breast, and kidney with a 44% lower risk among high thymic scores (Figure). A similar pattern was seen with different immune checkpoint inhibitors. The thymus health score outperformed programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1)and tumor mutation burden (TMB) assay of the tumor and was an independent prognostic marker of progression-free survival. In this dataset, a direct connect with thymus score and adaptive immune function was noted with a correlation before cancer treatment for both T-cell diversity and thymus T-cell production (a metric known as T cell receptor excision circles). Thymus Removal Study There is a highly relevant citation about thymus function before moving onto ways to rejuvenate it. In 2023, a very important study of thymus removal during cardiothoracic surgery was published, with 1146 patients undergoing thymus removal vs 1146 matched controls (mean age 55 years). The adverse outcomes for thymus removal were striking, with a 2.9 higher risk of all-cause mortality and doubling of cancer incidence, 1.5 fold increase in cancer mortality, and 1.5-fold increase in autoimmune diseases. The immune function showed marked compromise after thymus removal, as reflected by CD4+ and CD8+ T cells (Figure below) Share Ground Truths 3. Are there ways we can promote a healthy (aka rejuvenate) thymus gland in our later years? In recent months we’ve learned a lot about the process of thymus involution and the pathways by which this may be modulated. Thymus involution is primarily due to loss to thymus epithelial cells (TECs) and there are 2 subtypes with different functions: the cortical, responsible for positive selection of T cells, and the medullary, for negative selection. When adipose tissue infiltrates the thymus, thymic adipocytes are pro-inflammatory, knocking out T-cell output. Likewise, systemic inflammation, or “inflammaging,” from smoking, obesity, and chronic stress promote thymic adipocytes. Now, from preclinical studies, we know about key pathways that account for these processes. Historically, back in 2014, FOXN1 was recognized as a single master transcription factor essential for TEC function, with studies in mice with forced FOXN1 upregulation leading to thymus regeneration. That laid the foundation for potential regrowth of quiescent thymus cells. It took awhile to find pathways to accomplish this goal and to even refute its role as the master regulator. The Liver-Thymus Axis Feng Zhang and his team recently showed that injection of an mRNA vaccine to the liver encoding DLL1, IL-7 and FLT3-L in combination, factors known to support thymopoiesis (Figure), successfully enhanced immune function in aged mice. However, the effect was transient. The FGF21 Story Two reports in 2025 addressed the thymus gland’s production of FGF21, a growth factor (fibroblast growth factor 21) and its control of thymus involution. This growth factor is also produced by the liver, but it doesn’t have impact on the thymus in aged rodent models. In contrast, The liver’s hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been shown to reverse senescent TEC structural changes. Growth hormone stimulates production of insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in the liver and the thymus. Two small studies in human participants (TRIIM, for Thymus Regeneration, Immunorestoration, and Insulin Mitigation) of 6 and 50 people, respectively, treated with combined human growth hormone, metformin and DHEA, suggested the potential of slowing epigenetic aging and improving thymus mass and function. But the combination of drugs, small sample, and lack of controls make conclusions murky. Increased thymus FGF21 led to increased CD8 T cells in old mice and extended healthspan and improved physical performance. Building on the previous FOXN1 data, ablation of β-klotho, the obligatory co-receptor for FOXN1, accelerated thymic aging. The benefit to FGF21 was confirmed in a companion paper using an FGF21 knock-in mouse model showing thymus enlargement and increased TECs throughout the lifespan. (schematic Figure below). The accompanying editorial for these 2 papers speculated: “The proposed link between age-associated thymus involution and organismal aging is intriguing, and suggests we might seek to achieve systemic rejuvenation by counteracting thymic involution.” Other Factors Lessons from the Axolotl (Mexican Salamander) In an elegant set of experiments of the axolotl (Figure), known for its complete thymus regeneration after total surgical removal, mediators were identified. Surprisingly FOXN1 was dispensable. But midkine, a growth factor, appeared to be the driver, the initiator of thymus cell growth, survival, and repair. Other components that contributed were Postn+ (periostin-expressing mesenchymal niches) and Ccl19, a chemokine protein from the bloodstream. RANK and RANKL RANK (receptor activator of nuclear factor κB its ligand (RANKL) have been considered key regulators of medullary TECs. In a study of both aged mice and human thymus cell cultures, their key role was confirmed, with multiple benefits of resorting TEC function, recruitment of progenitor cells, and T cell development. Subscribe Summing Up This body of work strongly supports the health of the thymus gland as a critical regulator of human healthspan, not just a correlate or link. The new landmark studies are reinforced by the regenerative biology experimental models that have shown, via an array of mediators, that healthspan of aged mice is at least in part dependent on thymus gland function and its critical role for maintaining adaptive immunity. It sure seems that we’d be better off having an immune reservoir of naive T cells instead of a profile in older adults of exhausted, low quality, memory T cells, with a senescent phenotype. It is striking that we ignored the importance of the thymus gland for many decades. A wake-up call was the results of the thymectomy matched control study reviewed here, with the opposite of high thymic health score improved health outcomes. The convergence of AI and healthspan here is notable. The exceptional and laborious work for developing and validating (no less explaining) the AI to quantify thymus health set the foundation for probing the connect the major health outcomes in two cohorts with extensive follow-up. We’ve never had a way to meaningfully quantify the thymus gland before, so this represents important leverage of supervised, self-supervised, and transformer models. The study wouldn’t have been possible without AI. And it begs the question as to whether there are ways we can maintain our thymus at a high health score. But it’s not so simple to rejuvenate our thymus. There are multiple risks including the induction of autoimmunity, increasing the risk of cancer, and inducing a pro-inflammatory state. For example, factors that increase TEC proliferation could compromise the medulllary negative selection process and leak out auto-reactive (self-attacking) T cells. Thymic cells could be induced to proliferate, but we know, for example, that growth hormone and IGF-1 are associated with an increase risk of cancer. If thymus rejuvenation doesn’t clear out the accumulated senescent cells in older adults, then inflammation within the gland could block the production of TECs. Keeping these risks in mind, we now have identified many ways to keep our thymus healthy as we age that undoubtedly will be tested in clinical trials going forward. Ultimately, the benefit-to-risk tradeoffs will be defined. In the meantime, we have desperately needed an immunome. As I’ve stressed in multiple prior Ground Truths, we have no test in the clinic to assess a patient’s immune status! It was very encouraging for me to get an email from Hugo Aerts, the senior author of the landmark papers in the days after they were published: “I also wanted to say that your Substack on “Why We Need an Immunome” was inspiring for this work. We found it a very compelling perspective and greatly enjoyed reading it.” Just having an assessment of a person’s immune status via a chest CT scan, with millions of these performed per year, might help in guiding the right immunotherapy for cancer (e.g. more intensive, combinations for those with low thymic health scores) and help define people who are increased risk for age-related diseases of cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative. The main theme of Super Agers is that we now have many layers of data (genetics, proteins, biomarkers, organ clocks that can be integrated via multimodal AI) for us to define a person’s specific risk decades before one of these age-related diseases leads to symptoms, enabling prevention. From the new studies this week, we can add thymus health score as yet another way to understand a person’s risk, a window into their adaptive immune system and healthspan. And perhaps someday we will be able to safely rejuvenate the thymus, or maintain its health through one’s life, and use the thymus health score to monitor. NB: I wrote this post (No A.I.) A Quick Poll Loading... ********************************************************************* Thanks to Ground Truths subscribers (now > 200,000) from every US state and 212 countries. Your subscription to these free essays and podcasts makes my work in putting them together worthwhile. Please join! If you found this interesting PLEASE share it! Share Ground Truths Paid subscriptions are voluntary and all proceeds from them go to support Scripps Research. They do allow for posting comments and questions, which I do my best to respond to. Please don’t hesitate to post comments and give me feedback. Let me know topics that you would like to see covered. Leave a comment Many thanks to those who have contributed—they have greatly helped fund our summer internship programs for the past two years. It enabled us to accept and support 47 summer interns in 2025! We aim to accept even more of the several thousand who will apply for summer 2026.
LISTEN LIVE: Supreme Court considers late-arriving mail ballot laws in case that may affect midterms
Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Daniel Edney, a Vaccine Proponent, Is Under Consideration to Lead the CDC
Dr. Daniel P. Edney, Mississippi’s state health officer and head of the Mississippi State Department of Health, is now under serious consideration to lead the CDC.
Oil prices face new pressure as US and Iran trade threats
Trump said the US would attack Iran's power plants if it didn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz in 48 hours. Iran responded on Sunday with is own threats.
Team USA flag football team should consider these 12 NFL stars ... but not Tom Brady
These NFL players should consider making a run at Team USA inclusion in order to earn the first football gold medal in Olympics history.
I took an in-person Peleton class with Jess King. Here's how it went.
I took an in-person Peloton cycling class with Jess King. I liked how thought-out the experience was.
The best seafood restaurant in every state, according to Yelp
Yelp picked the best seafood restaurant in every state based on customer reviews.
'Everybody Loses' author discusses the meteoric rise of sports gambling
Two years ago, Americans bet $120 billion on sports, a 27% increase from the previous year. That figure grew to $150 billion in 2024. Journalist Danny Funt investigates what's considered one of the most consequential — and least scrutinized — shifts in modern American sports in his new book, "Everybody Loses: The Tumultuous Rise of American Sports Gambling."
Third-generation cafeteria owner won't force his 4 sons to take over
Michael Greene, who runs Matthews Cafeteria, shares the highs and lows of managing a family business, and why his kids may not take over one day.
4 tips for buying a home in a tough market, from the Property Brothers
Drew and Jonathan Scott, AKA The Property Brothers, have a new HGTV show where they guide buyers in a tough market. Here are their best tips.
Gen Z really, really loves China's trains
This is a condensed version of Business Insider Today, a newsletter that gives you a look at the week’s top stories. Sign up here to get the full Business Insider Today in your inbox every day for the top stories in markets, tech, and business.
How my time at Goldman is giving me a leg up building a cake business
Allison Sheehan left Goldman Sachs to build her "cake empire," but said her time on Wall Street has taught her crucial skills.
I left Goldman Sachs to build a small baking business. Here's how my time at the firm is giving me a leg up.
I'm glad my daughter was rejected from an Ivy League college
My daughter had her sights set on Brown University, but the Ivy League rejected her. Thankfully, she went to Fordham where she found her true passion.
How investors use the BRRRR strategy to scale real estate portfolios
"My strategy is basically to use every property to fund the next one," said one real estate investor.
Andrej Karpathy says he uses an AI agent to control his pool
Andrej Karpathy said an AI agent named Dobby texts him whenever he gets a Fedex package and helps him control his spa.
Federal employee retired, works at TJ Maxx; feels happy, less stress
Karime Masson thought she'd keep working for the Social Security Administration until she was at least 62. But after a tough 2025, she retired early.
'Love Story' is Gen Z's analog dream life
The unplugged lives in "Love Story" feel remarkable to Gen Zers today. They're nostalgic for a time they don't even remember.
Elon Musk uveils moonshot Terafab project. Here are 4 takeaways.
Elon Musk said his Terafab project, a joint Tesla and SpaceX chip manufacturing initiative, will be needed to unlock a terawatt of AI computing power.
Health Literacy as a Modifiable Clinical Risk Factor: Operationalizing an Underrecognized Determinant of Outcomes
Health literacy has been considered a social determinant of health and has never been extensively incorporated in the general practice of clinical care. Systematic reviews and cohort studies sho...
I let AI pick my Oscars ballot. It messed up oddly, but still won.
Alistair Barr's AI-assisted Oscars ballot, powered by Anthropic's Claude, outperformed despite missing some categories.
Four-star forward Joe Philon commits to UCLA
Joe Philon, a four-star power forward in the 2026 class, has committed to UCLA, he told On3. The 6-foot-8 senior out of Montverde Academy (FL) chose the Bruins after considering Ohio State, South Florida, UNLV, and Xavier. Philon, a native of Tampa, Florida, is the No. 56 overall player in the 2026 class, according to […]
Senate rejects Trump-backed measure to ban trans athletes in female sports
The chamber considered adding the measure to a far-reaching voting bill supported by the Republican president.
Trump Is Finally Eyeing an Exit From Iran. But Will He Take It?
President Trump says he is considering “winding down” operations in Iran. But many of his original war goals remain unaccomplished.
Salesforce (CRM) Partners with NVIDIA for AI Agents in Enterprise Business Workflows
Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) is one of the 10 Best AI Stocks to Buy for the Next 10 Years. On March 16, Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) announced a partnership with NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) to use its Agentforce platform and NVIDIA’s Nemotron models to bring AI agents into enterprise business workflows. This partnership connects Salesforce, Inc.’s (NYSE:CRM) Agentforce […]
NCDHHS launches new program looking to expand number of mental health providers in state
In North Carolina, the demand for social workers in the state is growing as substance use and mental health service needs increase. The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services launched the Public Service Leadership Program, a collaboration between the NCDHHS and 25 higher education institutions in the Social Work Coalition on NC Work Development, to help with that demand.Alongside the announcement of the new program on March 2, the NCDHHS released its first “State of North Carolina’s Mental Health and Substance Use Services Workforce Report” supported by UNC’s Behavior Health Workforce Research Center and Sheps Health Workforce NC.
Couple left biotech jobs to run a farm, how they keep marriage strong
Working together — in corporate jobs and with our own business — has taught us key strategies to help both our careers and marriage thrive.
My twins separated for the first time at 19
After doing everything together their entire lives, my twin sons separated for six weeks and hardly checked in. It was good for their relationship.
California settles with El Monte schools over misconduct complaints
The El Monte Union High School District must appoint a compliance coordinator and roll out an electronic sexual misconduct complaint system.
iPhone 18 Pro camera may come with pro software, Apple considered buying Halide
Two months ago, Halide cofounder and designer Sebastiaan de With made a surprise announcement that he was joining Apple’s design...
Apple Wanted to Buy Halide to Boost iPhone 18 Pro's Camera App—Now There's a Lawsuit
Apple's plans to enhance the iPhone 18 Pro's Camera app led it to consider acquiring Halide, but the talks ultimately collapsed and were followed by a fierce legal dispute between the startup's co-founders, according to The Information reports. In the summer of 2025, Apple reportedly held discussions to acquire Lux Optics, the developer behind the popular iPhone camera apps Halide, Kino, and Spectre.
Large Hadron Collider Discovers All-New Particle
Scientists have used CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC) to uncover what they say is an entirely new type of particle, dubbed Xi-cc-plus.
Large Hadron Collider Discovers All-New Particle
Scientists have used CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC) to uncover what they say is an entirely new type of particle, dubbed Xi-cc-plus.
Roomette vs. bedroom on Amtrak's California Zephyr train
I compared the roomette and bedroom accommodations on the California Zephyr, an overnight Amtrak train. The bedroom was twice as big.
10 US cities with the largest portion of institutional investors
Institutional investors don't have a strong hold nationally, but in a handful of markets in the South, they own 1 out of 10 homes.
Inside Fidji Simo's quest to make OpenAI profitable
Nearly 8 months into her job as OpenAI's CEO of Applications, Fidji Simo must start minting money while convincing staffers the mission hasn't changed.
Billionaire John Caudwell's rules for parenting his 8 kids
British billionaire John Caudwell says he flies his kids economy, shops at Primark, and always tells them he loves them.
List: The 6 bills that lawmakers have proposed on prediction markets
From banning lawmakers from Polymarket and Kalshi, to getting rid of sports trading, lawmakers have a variety of proposals for prediction markets.
How firms' heavy AI investments could affect your paycheck
Companies are investing heavily in AI, and layoffs aren't the only option for offsetting those costs.
More young people are filing for bankruptcy, lawyers say. Here's why.
Bankruptcy lawyers say more Gen Z and millennial clients are hitting a financial wall as costs rise and wages stagnate.
TSA agents are working without pay. Here's how much they usually make.
TSA agent pay starts at around $40,000 annually, but they can earn six figures as they gain experience and by living in more expensive cities.
Big changes ahead for State Health Plan as trustees work to lower costs
The State Health Plan hopes to save significant money by steering plan participants to preferred providers.
Wine vs beer vs spirits: Which is the least bad for your health?
A study of 340,000 adults suggests not all alcohol carries the same risk - even at low to moderate levels, beer, cider and spirits were linked to higher mortality, while wine was associated with a lower risk.
‘Hearing a lot from military families’: Local mental health provider reports surge in calls since conflict in Iran began
Since Feb. 28, what officials describe as an escalation in hostilities involving the United States, Israel and Iran has had ripple effects across the United States, from the stock market to gasoline prices and residents’ mental health.
Automatic enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans under consideration, top Trump health official says
The idea could be a major win for the health insurance industry, which has seen a crackdown on Medicare Advantage in recent years.
Making the Most of America’s Mega-Decade of Sports
Considering the diplomatic opportunities and risks of hosting the world’s biggest sporting events.
How writing fiction made me a better business strategist
Writing fiction sharpened my strategic thinking in ways no workshop could — here's how I use a novelist's mindset to solve complex business problems.
I made a Michelin-starred chef's version of a McDonald's McMuffin
The Michelin-starred chef's bacon and egg muffin was crunchy, cheesy, and moist. It tasted way better than a McDonald's McMuffin breakfast sandwich.
DirecTV completely exits the Sunday Ticket business
Thirty-two years after NFL Sunday Ticket launched exclusively on DirecTV, the satellite provider is officially exiting the Sunday Ticket business.
FOX5 Las Vegas Sports' Mike Davis on the state of the Raiders
FOX5 Las Vegas Sports Anchor Mike Davis wakes up with "GMFB" on the state of the Las Vegas Raiders and defensive end Maxx Crosby trade fallout.