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City Council approves grants to assist businesses located in construction zones
The pilot program uses $345,000 in American Rescue Plan funding to help small businesses survive disruptions.
WA lawmaker call for more oversight after Longview disaster
Although the state is facing a budget crisis, Sen. Jeff Wilson, R-Longview, said he “can’t think of a more worthy cause” for lawmakers to pass and fund.
Glenwood cremation business searched in South Chicago funeral home investigation
A cremation business in Glenwood is now part of a broader investigation connected to the South Chicago funeral home where authorities discovered 56 bodies last month.
Lansing cremation business searched in South Chicago funeral home investigation
A cremation business in Lansing is now part of a broader investigation connected to the South Chicago funeral home where authorities discovered 56 bodies last month.
Costco clinches $184M in tariff refunds, with more expected
Costco confirmed it received $184 million in tariff refunds, with more on the way, according to its latest earnings call. On Thursday, the big-box retailer said the money was reinvested
$54.6 million in rural health transformation funds awarded
Gov. Sarah Sanders announced Thursday (Sept. 24) $54.6 million in awards to recipients of the second round of Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) grants, which follows $149.3 million announced in...
Most Fundable Companies Competition at Pepperdine Graziadio Business School Celebrates Another Year of Innovation
Held at the University’s Malibu campus, entrepreneurs, investors, and educators from across all 50 states participated in the event, with winners selected by a distinguished panel of investors, venture advisors, and Pepperdine faculty.
Letter: Ethics of science cannot be separated from who funds it
From Vincent Straub, Interdisciplinary researcher, University of Oxford Nuffield Department of Population Health, Oxford, UK
Interested in purchasing a commercial space through the Business Community Ownership Fund?
Our Business Community Ownership Fund has two brand-new, cold-shell commercial spaces in Rainier Valley available to match with a business owner. If you’re interested in the spaces below, please visit our website for more details on eligibility and reach out to our program staff at OED_BCOF@seattle.gov. Available commercial spaces (9/24/26): Atrium Court, 7324 Martin Luther […]
Montana State Employee Health Plan Costs Change Under New Union Agreement
The State of Montana Benefit Plan faces rising medical and prescription drug costs. The state says its self-funded plan is expected to see nearly double-digit h
Board of criticized North Dakota business financing program plans meeting to address audit
Officials overseeing a state-backed business financing program that drew critical audit findings and a sharp response from lawmakers plan to meet in coming weeks to address the situation.
Governor announces another $54.6 million in rural health grants
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced an additional $54.6 million in federal funding to bolster rural healthcare on Thursday, the latest allocation from the state's share of a $50 billion fund established by Congress last year.
‘Love Me’: White House airs government-funded ad praising Trump
With the midterm elections approaching, the White House is airing a new TV ad promoting President Donald Trump and his policies that says it is “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”
Arkansas Rural Health Transformation Program Awards UAMS $5 Million to Fund 6 Initiatives
LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) received more than $5 million in funding under the HEART and RISE ARKANSAS initiatives of the Arkansas Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP).
Amid rising political violence, N.J. passes bill that would allow campaigns to use funds for security
The bill, which would campaign dollars to pay for politicians' alarm systems and other security measures, now heads to Gov. Mikie Sherrill's desk.
Arkansas awards $54M in second round of federal rural healthcare funding
Arkansas awarded $54.6 million to dozens of recipients through a new federal program to support projects aimed at bolstering rural healthcare, state officials announced Thursday.
This weekend: The Phantom of the Opera, Dinosaurs in the Desert, FoodieLand, and more!
The weekend is here! Check out these fun events happening around the Valley from September 25 through the 27.
Delta Peanut receives $5 million loan to continue operations
Peanut farmers in Northeast Arkansas and in the Missouri Bootheel have potentially staved off a disaster. A $5 million loan has been allocated from the Governor’s Quick Action Closing Fund...
Premier League keen to resolve EFL funding stalemate
The Premier League hopes to reach an agreement with the EFL over its funding model 'as soon as possible'.
Meet the expert: Shelby Buso on building the business case for climate resilience
Discover how cities can embed resilience into everyday decision-making by aligning climate risk, investment, funding, and long-term planning.
In a New Anthropic Lab, A.I. Turns to Biology
Scientists at the company announced their first finding: a group of enzymes whose function is unknown.
Google Photos Getting 5 Fun Feature Upgrades
Today, Google Photos announced that it is rolling out 5 upgrades to your experience, giving you power over photos with Gemini Spark, access to your digital closet, new Moods to style things with, new Remix templates, and an upgraded markup tool. Some of this new stuff you’ve heard of before, but this is Google acknowledging...
Trump ad airing with government funding despite law against ‘propaganda’
A TV ad boosting President Trump and saying that it was paid for by the U.S. government is airing in two major markets despite a federal law against using tax funds for "propaganda."
A smashing success, TaterFest returns Saturday
Mount Jackson’s TaterFest returns Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Lions Park, bringing a full day of potato-themed activities, food and family fun.
Ken Rosenthal Exposes the Biggest Problem Facing the Cincinnati Reds
Internal dysfunction and meddling ownership have paralyzed Cincinnati’s front office, preventing the strategic rebuilding needed to replicate the Brewers' and Rays' small-market success.
New entertainment spot ‘Funder Alley’ opens in Fort Oglethorpe, GA
Discover Funder Alley, a fresh entertainment spot in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, offering duckpin bowling, axe throwing, and darts alongside a varied food menu and full bar. Located on Battlefield Parkway, it boasts both indoor and outdoor seating options, perfect for casual fun and group events.
Mold, unsafe building conditions force Ballston Spa to move court functions
The village board approved multiple measures Wednesday to hold court functions elsewhere.
Earth life support systems are flashing red, warns 2026 Planetary Health Check
Human activities continue eroding the planet’s stability, resilience and life-support functions, the third edition of the Planetary Health Check released in September warns. The “scary” part of the 2026 report, says lead co-author Levke Caesar, is that the trends are largely going in the wrong direction. “We still have seven out of the nine planetary […]
Top Weekly Entertainment Picks
The first weekend of fall has arrived and South Jersey is the place to be. Experience the excitement of Margate’s Fall Funfest, hear the soulful sounds of Tom
Baptist Health South Florida and Lifepoint Rehabilitation Celebrate Grand Opening of New Inpatient Rehabilitation Hospital in South Miami
Baptist Health South Florida and Lifepoint Rehabilitation recently held a celebratory ribbon cutting to officially open the Baptist Health Rehabilitation Hospital in South Miami. The new 62-bed, state-of-the-art building expands regional access to specialized, patient-centered rehabilitation care for individuals recovering from a decline in function due to an injury or illness. The three-story, 100,000 square-foot […]
Is metascience being co-opted?
In July, the White House released a report that argued academia is deeply dysfunctional and in need of radical reform.Science: A New Golden Age sets out a litany of problems many academics will recognise: interminable waits for grants; short-term funding rather than support for longer, more ambitious projects; ballooning administrative requirements; pressure to publish, and many more. “The scientific machine is getting bogged down,” it says. At least on the face of it, Science: A New Golden Age is a triumph for the metascience movement, a loose-knit, global group of academics, philanthropists and think tankers that want far more testing and experimentation in how we fund public research and innovation. The report tells US research funders to set up internal metascience units to do just this. But it has also set alarm bells ringing that metascience is being conveniently deployed to help justify the defunding of US universities, which US vice president JD Vance has openly labelled “the enemy.” “Just because you have an issue with your plumbing in your house doesn't mean you light the entire house on fire and burn it to the ground,” said Colette Delawalla, chief executive of Stand Up for Science, a group campaigning against what it says are attacks on scientists by the Trump administration. No one is arguing that academia doesn’t need reform, but there’s debate over how far and how fast the system should be shaken up. Does public R&D need slow and steady evidence-based adjustment, or radical new experiments?One of the key arguments in Science: A New Golden Age is that there’s not enough funding for what it calls “mid-level” science: engineering-heavy projects that require tens of millions of dollars, involve ten to a hundred people, and last around five years. Such a project might develop a brain-computer interface for people with Alzheimer's disease, for example. As such, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) has already announced $1.5 billion to set up so-called X-Labs, effectively new research organisations to pursue breakthroughs in areas such as quantum sensing and new scientific instruments. Funding divertedBut there’s a catch: this money has squeezed NSF budgets for more traditional, fundamental research grants, Science reported in June, likely meaning less cash for university-based scientists. Science: A New Golden Age also makes various swipes at universities, accusing them of extracting overheads from scientists to fund administrative bloat. “We have become dependent on a narrow set of legacy institutions,” it says. The report doesn’t mention it, but the US government is simultaneously seeking greater powers over federal funding, which would allow political appointees at funding agencies to screen or cancel research grants mid-project. The White House is also seeking to slash the NSF’s budget by more than half in 2027, although similar cuts proposed for 2026 were blocked by Congress. Convenient hookThis has worried some that the metascience agenda could be misused as a kind of smokescreen to further weaken universities. James Wilsdon, executive director of the Research on Research Institute at University College London, said that the report contains lots of “interesting ideas” and agrees that in places, academia is a “pretty broken system.” But the risk is that metascience is being deployed as a “convenient hook” to support cuts and a “political land grab” to transfer grant power from scientists to political appointees in US funding agencies.So far, the metascience agenda hasn’t been seized on by radical right parties in Europe. But Wilsdon worries it will cross the Atlantic, politicising research reform efforts and making them more difficult to carry out. The report is already making some in Europe sceptical of the entire idea. “The system is not without flaws, but the metascience discussion is not likely to improve the system but rather to generate munition to undermine it,” said Claes de Vreese, a professor of AI and society at the University of Amsterdam. Peter Thiel protégéOfficially, Science: A New Golden Age has just one named author: Michael Kratsios, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and a former chief of staff to Silicon Valley mogul Peter Thiel. He also served as chief financial officer of Thiel’s Clarium Capital Management. Since the 1990s, Thiel has criticised US universities for moving away from teaching what he views as the classic works of western civilisation, and drifting towards “anti-Western zealotry.” And since 2011, he has offered two-year fellowships of $250,000 to young people to skip or drop out of university, and instead start companies or pursue scientific research. “College can be good for learning about what’s been done before, but it can also discourage you from doing something new,” according to the Thiel Fellowships website. In other areas, the Trump administration has promoted academics with a longstanding interest in metascience. For example, the head of the National Institutes of Health, Jay Bhattacharya, in 2020 co-authored a study arguing the funder backs overly conservative proposals, although he achieved wider prominence as a critic of pandemic lockdowns. Careless talk costs fundingEven before the Trump administration embraced the metascience agenda, some metascientists privately wondered whether they should be careful not to overstate dysfunctions in academia, in case this gets used as ammunition against universities. But others think being cautious with criticism is pointless. After all, last year, the Trump administration sought to cut funding from US universities on an entirely different premise: supposed antisemitism on campus. “I don't think these governments need a technical metascientific excuse to attack the universities, they will want to do so anyway,” said Will Stone, a researcher at Science Works, a new think tank advocating for a “metascience revolution” in the UK. “I think researchers should report what they find, even when the findings may be used to advance policies they disagree with,” echoed Russell Funk, a researcher at the University of Minnesota, who in 2023 co-authored a highly influential paper that argued scientific papers were becoming less disruptive over time. No justificationThat said, Funk thinks that metascientific research certainly doesn’t justify a weakening of universities. Instead, scientists need “time, resources and stability to pursue unfamiliar ideas,” he said. “Taking away those conditions works against the very goal the reforms are supposed to achieve.”The Institute for Progress, a Washington DC-based innovation policy think tank that has championed X-Labs and metascience units, also says that reforms should complement, not supplant, universities. “Unpredictable, unreliable, and reduced federal funding to researchers is destabilising to the very foundations of research and development and is bad,” said Jenn Gustetic, the institute’s director of metascience and R&D policy.Evolution or revolution?This points to a much bigger divide in the metascience community: how far and how fast should public R&D be shaken up? Does it need evolution or revolution? For example, Science: A New Golden Age says the science system relies too heavily on traditional “workhorse” project grants, the type that pay out around $250,000 a year to fund “hypothesis-driven science by small teams on tractable questions.” However, in criticising project grants, the report “decisively picks one side of a debate that is far from settled,” David Hilmer Rex, a metascientist based in Denmark, has written. In June, Pierre Azoulay, a metascientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, defended project grants, saying that the alternative of X-Labs “merits scepticism.”A-B testingOne challenge in metascience is that it’s easier to generate evidence for some types of change than others. Most straightforwardly, research funders can run A-B tests on different ways of awarding money. For example, Germany’s Volkswagen Foundation recently trialled distributed peer review, where applicants rate each other’s proposals, and measured its results against traditional review panels. Distributed peer review made quicker decisions, although awarded money to largely different ideas. However, much of the focus of the metascience movement has been on founding fast-moving and free-acting new research organisations and funders, in contrast to the alleged stodginess of mainstream academia or public innovation grants. A culture of speed and freedom are the animating principles behind Germany’s Sprind or the UK’s Advanced Research and Invention Agency (Aria).Related articlesViewpoint: it's time to experiment with how Europe funds science European researchers sound the alarm that Trump rule changes will hit cooperationHowever, while it’s possible to closely study previously successful bodies, such as the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa), for historical clues to their secret sauce, it’s impossible to guarantee in advance that the likes of Sprind or Aria will actually work as hoped. But advocates of new organisations say this inherent uncertainly shouldn’t stop us trying. “If we wait for definitive proof that something will work before we try it, I don't know where your proof is coming from,” said Stone. Trade-offsUp until now, experiments in metascience haven’t generally come with hard trade-offs over money. In the US, new ideas such as focused research organisations have often been funded by billionaire philanthropists. In Europe, new innovation agencies such as Sprind and Aria, or the Netherland’s new National Agency for Disruptive Innovation, haven’t needed explicit cuts elsewhere in the research system. But with the $1.5 billion establishment of X-Labs by the NSF, the trade-offs are becoming clearer. Some metascientists privately wonder whether a smaller pilot would have been more appropriate, given that the idea is untested. The Institute for Progress counters that the $1.5 billion X-Labs budget is spread out over a decade, so will account for less than 2% of the NSF’s annual budget. “It’s important to remember that [Darpa] was once an institutional experiment as well. Now it’s one of the most cited innovative funding models in the world,” said Gustetic.As for Europe?The US isn’t the only country placing metascience at the heart of its research strategy. Science: A New Golden Age looks admiringly at the UK, which in 2024 set up a Metascience Unit to scrutinise how it funds research. In Brussels, it’s more of a mixed picture. In 2018, the EU set up the European Innovation Council to funnel grants and equity to start-ups, although it’s sometimes criticised for awarding money too slowly. Recently, the council has started experimenting with challenges, where teams of inventors compete to overcome a technological challenge. The European Commission also wants to experiment with partially randomising grant winners, to cut down on bureaucracy. However, the Commission’s own advisers have said the EU’s own research schemes are too conventional. They want the Commission to establish a new dedicated unit to scrutinise and experiment with funding. But there’s no sign of a such unit emerging in Brussels’ plans for the next Horizon Europe programme, which from 2028 is set to distribute more than €160 billion over seven years. Sam Bogerd, director of breakthrough innovation at the Brussels-based Arq Foundation, an AI-focused think tank that also looks at metascience, says that Europe might have the opposite problem to the US: universities and basic research funding are still reasonably well supported, but there’s not enough experimentation. “We're not taking a close enough look at where this money can achieve the most, and I am worried that the good ideas around metascience will be tainted politically by their association with the Trump administration,” he said. He’s still lobbying for the Commission to set up an experimental unit. But in the meantime, the Arq Foundation plans to do its own research, and is currently hiring two metascience researchers to run the rule over how Brussels spends research funding.
EU science policy wonks debate prospect of stronger ties with Canada
Europe’s research and innovation sector has started asking questions on how European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s offer to make Canada “the first associate member of the EU” would actually work in practice, and who will get to shape priorities in a transatlantic relationship that is getting stronger. The Commission says it wants “a new model of association” under which the EU and Canada will aim to develop “a shared space” to face ongoing challenges. “Working in close coordination with our member states and the European Parliament, we will aim to create a new form of partnership that has not existed until now, building the closest imaginable form of association with a partner outside Europe,” a spokesperson told Science|Business.Locked in an escalating trade war with US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly talked of annexing Canada, Prime Minister Mark Carney has been looking east, but full EU membership was never in play. Taking the floor a day after von der Leyen’s proposal, he agreed to strengthen ties under “an alliance of the future” but reined in enthusiasm on the new label. He also suggested expanding Canada’s involvement in the Erasmus+ student mobility scheme, to which it currently has limited access, and the next iteration of Horizon Europe. Canada joined the present Horizon Europe in 2024, but only contributes to collaborative projects.Neither side has detailed the next practical steps in developing this new relationship. “I think nobody at the moment truly knows how this will work,” said Michael Browne, chief executive and founder of Crowdhelix, a global collaborative network that connects players in research and innovation. “It’s more of a statement of intent for closer collaboration, which requires legislative frameworks and approval processes, which have not started.”Kurt Deketelaere, secretary general of the League of European Research Universities, said von der Leyen’s pitch to Canada is “politically significant, but the legal content still has to be negotiated and constructed.”Mattias Björnmalm, secretary general of the Cesaer university group, agreed that she had only opened “a political door” to Canada, as “associate membership does not come with a predefined set of rights in the EU institutions.”Not only does this status not currently exist as a legal category in the two treaties that set up how the EU functions, but the Commission president cannot unilaterally create a new category of EU membership.According to Deketelaere, Article 217 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, which allows the bloc to make association deals with non-EU countries involving reciprocal rights and duties, is “the most obvious existing legal basis for building a much deeper EU-Canada relationship.”Getting universities involvedNo matter how this new cooperation takes shape, Liviu Matei, who heads the School of Education, Communication and Society at King’s College London, hopes to see universities involved in discussions from an early stage.“Its primary motivations, entirely justifiably, are political and geopolitical,” he said. “In the area of higher education, however, restricting the initiative to political and geopolitical considerations would limit the scope of cooperation and lead to distorted frameworks and counterproductive implementation.”It is all the more important since academic interests on the two sides of the Atlantic are “neither identical nor fully aligned,” Matei added. “This is not insurmountable; it simply requires work to articulate the details of this privileged cooperation, including its governance and funding frameworks, as well as its substantive content in education and research.”Related articlesCanada looks to deepen research and education links with the EUZaharieva hopes for a Horizon Europe deal in 2026Canada might participate in European Research Council schemes, for example, which was not on offer in the present Horizon Europe association agreement. But “there would have to be something in it for the EU,” Browne said. “They don’t want to be funding projects outside of the EU where intellectual property is going to sit outside of the EU. There has to be some kind of transfer of knowledge.”But access to funding will not by itself resolve all the practical difficulties of working together, said Björnmalm. “For researchers and students, these include visas and residence arrangements, recognition of qualifications and study periods, and the conditions for pursuing a research career across borders,” he said. “For universities, there is scope for more predictable access to shared laboratories, computing and research data, and stronger support for joint doctoral training and long-term institutional partnerships.”Linda Doyle, provost and president of Trinity College Dublin, said Europe should strive for the “closest possible expression” of this new political alliance. “If Europe is serious about recovering its voice and its place in the world, it needs to be strongly allied with countries who share its values and its vision for a stable, rules-based, peaceful world.”
Kennesaw State researcher developing safer, more efficient computing systems for intelligent vehicles
Modern vehicles are becoming computers on wheels, powered by increasingly complex software and artificial intelligence. As those systems take on more responsibility, they must process information quickly and reliably enough to keep critical functions running safely. Kennesaw State University computer science researcher Kun Suo is working to improve how those systems operate through a $356,782 National Science Foundation (NSF) grant focused on developing more efficient and secure computing infrastructure for intelligent vehicles.
Lee Health Foundation Hires Caroline Vives-Vietri as Associate Director of Development
Lee Health Foundation has welcomed Caroline Vives-Vietri as associate director of development, bringing a strong background in donor engagement, alumni relations, volunteer management and nonprofit leadership. Caroline joins Lee Health Foundation from the Florida Gulf Coast University Alumni Association. In addition to her fundraising and relationship-building experience, she has a longstanding record of community involvement […]
Science Research parent boosters to hold 6th annual dog-friendly Wag-a-thon fundraiser on October 4
Hold on to your leashes and grab your best furry friends because AMPLIFY, the parent support group for the Pelham Science Research Program, is barking with excitement to announce the 6th Annual Wag-a-Thon! This year’s event is poised to be bigger, better, and wag-tastically fun, with a new neighborhood venue and an enhanced format that...
Review: Apple's hyper-pricey M5 Ultra Mac Studio made me into a vibe coder
Usable local AI is a lot of fun, but how much would you pay for it?
Prop. 44 divides community clinics and health care union
The measure would restrict community clinic funding.
Oracle Health rolls out AI solutions for RCM, oncology as part of broader healthcare, life sciences strategy
ORLANDO, Fla.—Healthcare is entering an AI era, and the industry needs a fundamentally different architecture designed for AI from the start, Oracle Health executives said Wednesday. | Healthcare is entering an AI era, and the industry needs a fundamentally different architecture designed for AI from the start, Oracle Health executives said Wednesday.
Healey proposes new Health Care Stabilization Fund
Gov. Maura Healey filed a $2.24 billion supplemental budget Wednesday that would pump more money into the workforce that supports SNAP benefit recipients and establish a new healthcare fund as the …
Orange Boosts Life Science Portfolio With Biolevate Funding
Claire Scotton, VP Healthcare & Life Sciences at Orange, explains that Biolevate can accelerate life sciences innovation with trusted AI and workflows
SEAL Awards Marks Ten Years of Honoring Business Sustainability and Climate Reporting
This month marks the tenth anniversary of SEAL Awards, an organization dedicated to recognizing corporate sustainability leadership, funding early-career...
Things to do. Dwight Yoakam, Oktoberfest, Celtic Thunder, symphony
Autumn means fun things to do in the Canton area, including Oktoberfest downtown and in North Canton, as well as Dwight Yoakam at Palace Theatre.
Calling all current and future scientists: Kiel is the place to be this week
This week, Kiel has become a meeting place for science in Europe. Researchers, school pupils, young scientists and members of the public are coming together through a series of major events led or co-organised by Kiel University.At the centre of it all are around 150 of Europe’s most talented young researchers, aged 14 to 20, who have travelled to Kiel from nearly 40 countries for the 37th European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS). Running from 22 to 27 September, the European Union’s flagship competition for young scientists brings together winners of national science competitions to present around 100 original research projects across fields ranging from engineering and computer science to medicine, environmental research and the social sciences. The winners will be announced at the Award Ceremony on Saturday.For Kiel University, hosting EUCYS is both an honour and a natural extension of a much longer story. Germany’s northernmost comprehensive university has invested for many years in supporting young scientific talent and bringing research into dialogue with society. The Kiel Science Factory gives school pupils opportunities to experience research first-hand, while programmes such as Rent-a-Scientist send researchers directly into local classrooms. Major annual public events including Kiel Week and the European Researchers’ Night take science beyond the campus through talks, exhibitions and hands-on activities.That long-standing commitment has increasingly taken on a European dimension – and this week, many of those efforts are coming together.One of the foundations for this success is the European Researchers’ Night (ERN), which celebrates its tenth edition in the Kiel region this year. The initiative is funded through the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, with Kiel University developing the successful EU proposals and securing the funding, while regional partner KielRegion coordinates the many activities on the ground. Together with research institutions, schools, companies, local authorities and civil society, they have built ERN into a major platform for public engagement.Over the years, Kiel’s ERN programme has grown far beyond a single evening into a whole “Science Summer”, beginning with “Science Shopping” in spring and culminating tomorrow, 25 September, in Science Day.“We have developed a wide range of public engagement formats, often together with the other research institutions in the region, the city and regional authorities, schools, companies and civil society,” says Eckhard Quandt, Kiel University’s vice president for research, academic infrastructure and transfer. “Over the past decade, we have increasingly taken this commitment to the European level.”That combination of European funding expertise and strong regional partnerships also helped Kiel University take the next step. Drawing on its experience with ERN and its European networks, including the SEA-EU University Alliance, the university brought together Brest in France and Split in Croatia for a successful bid to the EU’s new Science Comes to Town initiative. Throughout 2026, the three cities are serving as Europe’s first Science Ambassadors, with more than one thousand activities bringing science into schools, public spaces, cultural venues and everyday life.EUCYS is perhaps the clearest example of how Kiel University is using Science Comes to Town to create new connections between major European initiatives. From the outset, the university deliberately planned the contest for the week of European Researchers’ Night and opened the EUCYS exhibition to the wider Science Day audience. Tomorrow, that means thousands of visitors can encounter the next generation of scientific talent first-hand, while the young researchers themselves gain a much bigger public stage.“Because we opened EUCYS up for European Researchers’ Night, there will be a lot of people actually visiting the exhibition,” says organiser Stefanie Altemark of Kiel University.“We wanted Europe’s most talented young scientists not only to compete with one another, but also to become visible to the wider public. At the same time, people in Kiel will have the opportunity to see what the next generation of scientists are already capable of,” says Quandt.“We’ve shown over the last years that science is a big part of Kiel, and it’s always been the goal to not only show that to people in Germany, but also to show it to people all over Europe. Thanks to Kiel University’s expertise in European funding programmes, we have been able to turn that ambition into reality,” says Sünje Fock, who is coordinating the Science Summer at KielRegion.The model is characteristic of Kiel University’s approach: combining European funding expertise and international networks with strong regional partnerships to give major initiatives greater reach and visibility.This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, giving Kiel University the special opportunity to welcome Vanessa Debiais-Sainton, Head of Department for the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions at the European Research Executive Agency, to Kiel tomorrow. Her visit brings together two priorities that have shaped Kiel University’s work over the past decade: supporting researchers and bringing science closer to society. Debiais-Sainton emphasises how closely the two are connected: "For thirty years, the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) have given more than 150,000 researchers the chance to pursue their dreams and open up new fields. Doctoral Networks and Postdoctoral Fellowships give them the freedom to move, to connect, to train and to follow their curiosity across borders, sectors and disciplines. But excellence cannot live only in laboratories. Researchers’ Night takes science out of the lab and into the city, to the families, the schoolchildren and the curious minds who will become the next generation. Kiel shows what that looks like at its best. That is the MSCA promise: open science, open borders, open doors."For Kiel University, these activities are not separate endeavours. They are part of a broader understanding of academic excellence in which outstanding research, talent development, international cooperation, knowledge transfer and engagement with society strengthen one another.“For me, one of the most important lessons from the past decade is that scientific excellence, knowledge transfer, talent development and engagement with society cannot be treated as separate tasks,” stresses vice president Quandt. “They reinforce one another.”That philosophy is also reflected in Kiel University’s current bid for Germany’s Excellence University status. The designation is part of Germany’s national Excellence Strategy, which provides substantial long-term funding to selected universities to strengthen internationally competitive research and their overall institutional development. A successful outcome would provide new opportunities to build on what has already been created: deepening international cooperation, creating more opportunities for knowledge exchange and public engagement, and extending the university’s reach across the region and beyond. “If we are successful, it would allow us to take what we have built in Kiel considerably further – including expanding our networks and transfer activities beyond the region and increasingly across the Baltic area,” says Quandt.This week’s events offer a glimpse of what that could mean in practice: a university using its research strength, European expertise and regional partnerships to create opportunities for scientists at every stage of their careers while making science more visible, accessible and exciting to the wider public.
Under Trump, NIH funding disruptions have evolved. Here's what the numbers show
Stories of science funding being cut, labs shutting down and scientists losing jobs have flooded the media under Trump's administration. These six graphics show how those changes have affected U.S. biomedical research.
Breast Cancer Research Foundation launches $100M venture fund with radiologist startup scoring 1st investment
BCRF’s first venture funding is going to Clairity Inc., which uses AI to analyze routine mammograms and predict a woman’s five-year risk of developing cancer.
Footballer turns to fundraiser for knee operation
Braintree Town defender Ange Djadja is aiming to raise £10,000 for his recovery.
Nikon Made a $1,400 Full-Frame Camera for Gen Z and I Might Be Too Old for It
The Z5IIC targets screen-first creators by ditching the viewfinder, but taking this fun-sized full-frame camera into bright sunlight reveals the trade-off.
Cherokee Nation Foundation Awards Behavioral Health
The Cherokee Nation Foundation has awarded five scholarships to students pursuing degrees in behavioral health. The Cherokee Nation Behavioral Health Scholarship is supported by a permanent $5 million endowment established through the Public Health and Wellness Fund Act, proposed by Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Deputy Chief Bryan Warner. “We worked hand in hand […]
Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities kicks off levy campaign
Without more funding, officials with the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities predict they'll have to start making cuts to programs in the next two years.
A planned 2029 debt redemption hinges on $3.97B in funding as AMC Entertainment (AMC) prices new borrowing.
AMC also priced $850M in new term loans. Proceeds and cash are intended to repay existing loans and redeem $903.4M of Muvico notes, subject to conditions.
Rep. Pocan joins bipartisan bill to end cat and dog testing funding
Wisconsin Rep. Mark Pocan is pushing a bill to end federal funding for cat and dog experiments after Ridglan Farms’ closure.
Healey proposes new health care stabilization fund
Gov. Maura Healey filed a $2.24 billion supplemental budget Wednesday that would establish a new health care fund as the state prepares for federal funding cuts.
Rhode Island rural health projects take shape with $156M federal award
With $156 million in federal funding, Rhode Island is developing plans to transform healthcare in its rural communities.
South Alabama student wins business competition with aquarium tech
Young entrepreneurs competed for seed funding to finance their businesses during the Launch Lower Alabama competition at the University of South Alabama.
NHL strikes local broadcast deal with Charter for four teams
The NHL has negotiated direct-to-distributor deals for four of its teams that were left without local media rights agreements this upcoming season following the collapse of Main Street Sports Group, the now-defunct owner of the FanDuel Sports Networks. According to a report by Alex Silverman in Sports Business Journal, the NHL has negotiated multiyear linear…
Wilson Sonsini Advises Ferry Health on $9 Million Fundraise as Company Emerges from Stealth
On September 16, 2026, Ferry Health, an agentic artificial intelligence (AI) platform supporting patients in administrative tasks, launched out of stealth, raising $9 million in seed funding from…
Citadel bolsters investor recruiting team by rehiring top Walleye exec
The hedge fund talent war has increased the profiles of top recruiters.
Metrohealth receives funding to continue support for maternal health
The Ohio Department of Health is awarding $4.2 million to MetroHealth.
Health foundations, UP organizations discuss programs to improve aging in the UP
Last year, 14 U.P. organizations received funding to support aging adults and their caregivers. On Wednesday, they met up to share updates about new initiatives for the region.
Jewel says her top songs were 'medicine' amid mental health issues. Now, she's helping others
Singer Jewel shares the tools that shaped her life, what worries her about young people and why talking about mental health isn't enough.
Health Care Partnership outlines workforce progress
More local nursing graduates are staying in the region, according to officials offering an update on the progress of the New Hanover Healthcare Career Partnership at a public forum last night. According to Jack Watson, dean of UNCW’s College of Health & Human Services, the number of UNCW nursing graduates choosing to remain in the area after graduation has climbed from 27% to the mid-40% range. The New Hanover Healthcare Career Partnership aims to address the region’s healthcare worker shortage, with a key focus on nursing through strategic partnerships between UNCW, Cape Fear Community College (CFCC), New Hanover County Schools and the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce Foundation. "Each of the partners had pathway programs,” said Watson, “but they were almost at times done in a silo." One of the New Hanover Community Endowment's largest commitments to date, the collaborative received a $22.3 million grant in 2023, to be disbursed over three years, beginning in 2024. At the public forum, leadership addressed the nursing bottleneck created by the pandemic, and Laurie Whalin, president of the Novant Health Coastal Region, acknowledged that Novant Health had relied heavily on travel nurses during that period, with travel nurses making up about 47% of staff and nursing turnover at 35% at the height of the pandemic. "I can say we are in a tremendously different place today,” Whalin said at the forum. The number of travel nurses employed by the Novant Health Coastal Region has dropped to around 100 today, which Whalin says accounts for less than 4% of the workforce. Roughly two years into the grant term, major stakeholders in the collaboration pointed to various accomplishments tied to the initiative. According to Stephen Hill, vice president of talent development with the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, 250 more nurses live in New Hanover County in 2026 than in 2023. Whalin added that between 2021 and 2025, the Novant Health Coastal Region has hired close to 1,200 registered nurses. Additionally, according to Whalin, over the past two years, hiring and retention of nursing graduates from UNCW increased by 103%, while hiring and retention of nursing graduates from CFCC increased by 70%. Mandy Mills, director of career & technical education at New Hanover County Schools, pointed to the launch of its first Health Sciences Academy program, established across the county's four traditional high schools (Hoggard High School, Laney High School, Ashley High School and New Hanover High School), which started with 38 students last year. Mills also pointed to growth in the district’s Nursing Fundamentals course, which grew from 10 seats in 2023 to 50 in 2025-2026 and is now offered at all four traditional high schools. Watson emphasized the growing nursing class sizes and offered an update on the school’s accelerated nursing degree, which launched last year. Eleven students graduated in the first class, and all passed their boards on the first try, Watson said. This year’s class has 24 students. When the endowment announced its $22.3 million grant for the collaborative in 2023, UNCW and CFCC were each slated to receive the bulk of the funds, at about $10 million each. UNCW’s plans for the grant money included expanding its simulation lab, Watson said. He added that construction is expected to begin on the simulation lab this year and will likely extend through next year. According to Mary Ellen Naylor, dean of Health & Human Services at CFCC, the college has experienced growth in its associate degree nursing retention, rising from 59% in 2023 to 76% for the May 2026 class. CFCC used part of its endowment funding to support wraparound services, including a housing stipend, tuition assistance, exam assistance, emergency assistance, drop-in daycare and clinical and educational supplies. "We have very strong … students, but once they get into the program, there are competing priorities,” Naylor said. “They are working multiple jobs. They have children. They're single parents." According to Naylor, in 2026, 94% of students who used support services are still enrolled or have graduated. Addressing a question from an audience member about an approaching “enrollment cliff,” driven largely by dropping birth rates, Watson and Naylor said demand remains strong at both schools. “Right now … we do have more applicants than we have spots in our nursing program, and it is still a competitive process to get into,” Watson said. “I do not foresee that changing.” "(We've) doubled enrollment in our nursing programs over the last few years, but just as Dean Watson said, we still have very robust applicant pools, so it is still very competitive to get in,” Naylor said. "We have the applicant pool to support that, but again, it's not as easy as just saying, 'Okay … we're going to take another 90 students.' It's making sure all the resources and infrastructure that we need to educate the students outside the classroom is there as well." In response to a question about applying the collaborative model to other healthcare positions besides nursing, Sophie Dagenais, CEO and president of the endowment, said she sees the potential for the model to expand to other healthcare jobs and even other industries, but that the endowment hopes to learn from this model first. “This is a grant that is in year two of three years, and first we wanted to learn what is this going to demonstrate, what will we learn and then how may we scale it possibly,” she said. According to endowment spokesperson Amber Rogerson, funds for the program are set to expire after June 2027. “It's too early to discuss what happens after that,” wrote Rogerson in an email, “though we know the partners are considering the future, and some of the work supported by the grants is now built into their regular operations.”
Health Care Partnership outlines workforce progress
More local nursing graduates are staying in the region, according to officials offering an update on the progress of the New Hanover Healthcare Career Partnership at a public forum last night. According to Jack Watson, dean of UNCW’s College of Health & Human Services, the number of UNCW nursing graduates choosing to remain in the area after graduation has climbed from 27% to the mid-40% range. The New Hanover Healthcare Career Partnership aims to address the region’s healthcare worker shortage, with a key focus on nursing through strategic partnerships between UNCW, Cape Fear Community College (CFCC), New Hanover County Schools and the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce Foundation. "Each of the partners had pathway programs,” said Watson, “but they were almost at times done in a silo." One of the New Hanover Community Endowment's largest commitments to date, the collaborative received a $22.3 million grant in 2023, to be disbursed over three years, beginning in 2024. At the public forum, leadership addressed the nursing bottleneck created by the pandemic, and Laurie Whalin, president of the Novant Health Coastal Region, acknowledged that Novant Health had relied heavily on travel nurses during that period, with travel nurses making up about 47% of staff and nursing turnover at 35% at the height of the pandemic. "I can say we are in a tremendously different place today,” Whalin said at the forum. The number of travel nurses employed by the Novant Health Coastal Region has dropped to around 100 today, which Whalin says accounts for less than 4% of the workforce. Roughly two years into the grant term, major stakeholders in the collaboration pointed to various accomplishments tied to the initiative. According to Stephen Hill, vice president of talent development with the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, 250 more nurses live in New Hanover County in 2026 than in 2023. Whalin added that between 2021 and 2025, the Novant Health Coastal Region has hired close to 1,200 registered nurses. Additionally, according to Whalin, over the past two years, hiring and retention of nursing graduates from UNCW increased by 103%, while hiring and retention of nursing graduates from CFCC increased by 70%. Mandy Mills, director of career & technical education at New Hanover County Schools, pointed to the launch of its first Health Sciences Academy program, established across the county's four traditional high schools (Hoggard High School, Laney High School, Ashley High School and New Hanover High School), which started with 38 students last year. Mills also pointed to growth in the district’s Nursing Fundamentals course, which grew from 10 seats in 2023 to 50 in 2025-2026 and is now offered at all four traditional high schools. Watson emphasized the growing nursing class sizes and offered an update on the school’s accelerated nursing degree, which launched last year. Eleven students graduated in the first class, and all passed their boards on the first try, Watson said. This year’s class has 24 students. When the endowment announced its $22.3 million grant for the collaborative in 2023, UNCW and CFCC were each slated to receive the bulk of the funds, at about $10 million each. UNCW’s plans for the grant money included expanding its simulation lab, Watson said. He added that construction is expected to begin on the simulation lab this year and will likely extend through next year. According to Mary Ellen Naylor, dean of Health & Human Services at CFCC, the college has experienced growth in its associate degree nursing retention, rising from 59% in 2023 to 76% for the May 2026 class. CFCC used part of its endowment funding to support wraparound services, including a housing stipend, tuition assistance, exam assistance, emergency assistance, drop-in daycare and clinical and educational supplies. "We have very strong … students, but once they get into the program, there are competing priorities,” Naylor said. “They are working multiple jobs. They have children. They're single parents." According to Naylor, in 2026, 94% of students who used support services are still enrolled or have graduated. Addressing a question from an audience member about an approaching “enrollment cliff,” driven largely by dropping birth rates, Watson and Naylor said demand remains strong at both schools. “Right now … we do have more applicants than we have spots in our nursing program, and it is still a competitive process to get into,” Watson said. “I do not foresee that changing.” "(We've) doubled enrollment in our nursing programs over the last few years, but just as Dean Watson said, we still have very robust applicant pools, so it is still very competitive to get in,” Naylor said. "We have the applicant pool to support that, but again, it's not as easy as just saying, 'Okay … we're going to take another 90 students.' It's making sure all the resources and infrastructure that we need to educate the students outside the classroom is there as well." In response to a question about applying the collaborative model to other healthcare positions besides nursing, Sophie Dagenais, CEO and president of the endowment, said she sees the potential for the model to expand to other healthcare jobs and even other industries, but that the endowment hopes to learn from this model first. “This is a grant that is in year two of three years, and first we wanted to learn what is this going to demonstrate, what will we learn and then how may we scale it possibly,” she said. According to endowment spokesperson Amber Rogerson, funds for the program are set to expire after June 2027. “It's too early to discuss what happens after that,” wrote Rogerson in an email, “though we know the partners are considering the future, and some of the work supported by the grants is now built into their regular operations.”
Cherry Hill sends $240,000 from opioid settlement to schools for mental health professional
Cherry Hill Township Council last week voted to make a $240,000 contribution to the district from the fund’s balance of about $764,000.
HHS Invests $51 Million to Expand Dental Care for Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services , announced $51 million in awards to 28 HRSA-funded health centers to improve access to dental care for children with neurodevelopmental disorders.
Voices From the Past Cemetery Walk returns in Oct.
The Voices From the Past Cemetery Walk explores how “Winonans Just Wanna Have Fun” this year. Community volunteer actors portray people from the past in this popular annual event. Take
NHHF Launches NHHF Action Fund as Hundreds of Health Leaders Gather in Washington
/PRNewswire/ -- The National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF) gathered health leaders, healthcare professionals, students, policymakers, and partners in...
Variety – the Children’s Charity awards grants to 104 Iowa nonprofits
Variety – the Children’s Charity has selected 104 nonprofits across Iowa to receive funding through its annual grant program. The funding supports projects and services for children and families across the state, including organizations serving local communities and nonprofits with a statewide reach. Variety provides funding for organizations that deliver care, treatment, activities and shelter…
New Mexico is spending big to fix behavioral healthcare. Why is there so little to show?
The Behavioral Health Services Division asked the state for another $7.2 million in general fund dollars for its FY 2028 budget.
Banks Do Not Owe a Duty of Care to Non-customers in Business Email Compromise and Wire Fraud Cases
Business email compromise (BEC) and other third-party fraud inducing funds transfers have generated a wave of litigation against banks: not just those
Lawrenceville set to bring the fun with fall events
The city of Lawrenceville has a trio of fun events scheduled for the fall season, beginning with the Around the World in the DTL & the Live in the DTL
How Valley National's New 'Foundry' Merges Tech Innovation with Business Development
The bank's innovation function combines internal and external players to speed tech adoption — and discover opportunities in the tech sector.
Exceptional Earnings and AI Immunity Fuel Hinge Health’s (HNGE) Performance
Osterweis Capital Management, an investment management firm, released its Q2 2026 investor update for its “Osterweis Opportunity Fund”. You can download a copy of the letter here. The fund returned 35.34% in the quarter, significantly outperforming the Russell 2000 Growth Index’s 25.71% gain. Robust corporate profits, AI investment, easing oil-shock concerns, strong labor markets, and […]
Islanders Preseason News: Varlamov returns in comeback win
The Islanders had their second preseason outing Tuesday night in Manhattan, and though it meant nothing, it’s still fun to see the Smurfs blow a 3-0 lead to the Islanders, who prevailed, 4-3, on the back of three power play goals. Elsewhere
Small Business Sales Are Growing. Smart Owners Are Capitalizing On It.
3 Sons Foods, a salsa maker in the Austin, Texas area, started with a homemade product sold in a fundraiser. The family business has grown rapidly by staying lean.
Stellar Blade will let players turn off frame generation on Nintendo Switch 2
According to Shift Up, when Stellar Blade launches on Nintendo Switch 2, the full game will include a toggle for frame generation, allowing players to turn it on and off at will. News about the planned functionality was shared on social media. A few days ago, the game received a demo on Nintendo Switch 2. Shift Up has been monitoring...
Barbara Finlay, psychology professor emerita, dies at age 75
Barbara Finlay, the W.R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Psychology Emerita and an award-winning scholar who challenged traditional thinking regarding psychology and brain function, died Sept. 12.
Arsenal to sign coach Mikel Arteta to long-term extension
Premier League soccer power Arsenal agreed to sign coach Mikel Arteta to a long-term contract extension. The Gunners are the defending chapions.
Groups Have LOTTs of Fun Visiting Downtown Olympia’s WET Science Center
When you’re a kid, nothing is more exciting than school field trip days. And if you were a kid in Thurston County, odds are the convoy of school buses dropped you outside the LOTT Clean Water Alliance’s WET Science Center in downtown Olympia.
National Trust, after battling with Trump, to announce legal defense fund
The preservation group, which sued to stop the White House ballroom, says it will push back against the administration’s changes to historic sites and laws.
Showcase your research at Science is Wonderful! 2027
Science is Wonderful! is the annual science fair organised by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA). It invites EU-funded researchers from around the world to come to Brussels and explain their work to children and youngsters. MSCA is calling on its fellows and alumni to apply and present their research project to over 4,000 pupils coming from all corners of Belgium to see science come alive. The 2027 edition will take place in Brussels, from 17 to 19 March 2027. Teams of researchers will showcase their work at booths through live experiments, interactive presentations, floor games, physical challenges, and many other
Redevelopment of Sleepy Hollow to begin as fundraising campaign nears goal
Construction is expected to begin next month on the redevelopment of Sleepy Hollow Sports Park into a year-round recreation destination with a new lodge, ski lift and snowthrowing equipment. The $18 million project received a funding boost last week when the Iowa Economic Development Authority approved a $4.5 million grant from the Destination Iowa program…
JPMorgan Weighs Opening Card Business to Private Credit
J.P. Morgan Chase is reportedly exploring whether other funding sources could approve some of the cards it rejects. That's according to a report late
Reform and the UAE – a threat to British politics
By Alex Carlen The United Arab Emirates likes to present itself as part of the solution to the climate crisis. The oil-rich Gulf state has committed to Net Zero by 2050, hosted COP 28, and even declared “championing climate action” as one of three strategic objectives for this week’s session of the United Nations General Assembly. But behind the scenes the UAE has quietly built one of its closest political relationships in Europe with the party most hostile to climate action in Britain: Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. There is no evidence that the UAE is funding Reform. But a new FairSquare report, Petro-populism: the UAE–Reform threat, published today, documents a growing political relationship that should concern anyone interested in the integrity of British democracy. Reform’s leaders have embraced the UAE’s political model and promoted positions that align closely with the Emirati government’s priorities, while the UAE has given Farage and his party unusually warm access and public backing. What is emerging is not simply a relationship between British politicians and a wealthy Gulf state, but a channel through which an authoritarian government can cultivate political influence here, and abroad. Democracy for Sale relies on its readers. If you already support us, thanks so much. If you don’t, sign up to support fearless independent investigative journalism. Subscribe Back in January, Nigel Farage appeared at a GB News event in Dubai. On the 50th floor of a tower overlooking the luxury resorts and upscale residences of Palm Jumeirah, the Reform leader declared: “I want Clacton to look like this.” At the event – which Farage never declared on his official register of interests – senior Emirati officials mixed with British expats. Farage was keen to flatter. “We recognise you are our friends”, he said, assuring them that “a Brexit London, a Reform London, will remember you.” Controversy surrounding Reform’s finances and its susceptibility to foreign influence have centred around high-profile donations from billionaire crypto donors, and the jailing of Nathan Gill, Reform’s former leader in Wales, for accepting bribes to give pro-Russia speeches. Far less attention has been paid to Reform’s blossoming new alliance with the UAE, an oil-rich authoritarian state with a track record of ruinous anti-democratic interventions. Farage wasn’t always so fond of the UAE. Back in 2023 he called it an “absolute monarchy with an abysmal human rights record.” Now Reform’s hierarchy calls the UAE home. Deputy leader Richard Tice splits his time between his constituency and Dubai and has called on the UK to learn from the UAE. The party’s treasurer Nick Candy runs a firm which has been in partnership with a UAE-state linked firm since 2024. Nadhim Zahawi sits on the board of an Abu Dhabi think tank alongside an array of the most senior UAE officials and is reportedly close to three brothers of the country’s despotic ruler Mohammed Bin Zayed. Reform’s leading lights have effusively praised the UAE’s governance model, defended it from criticism, and advanced its political agenda in the UK. GB News, whose two major shareholders – the Legatum Foundation and Paul Marshall – have strong links to the UAE, has been more than happy to broadcast UAE propaganda and was forced to pay damages in 2025 after airing a false claim about a UK charity by the UAE “disinfluencer” Amjad Taha. The UAE has responded in kind. When the UAE Minister for Foreign Affairs conducted an official visit to the UK in May, Farage was the only non-government figure granted an audience. UAE state media publicised the meeting, and said that they discussed “the strategic relations between the two countries and ways to enhance them in a manner that serves mutual interests.” For the UAE these ‘mutual interests’ largely concern its paranoia over political Islam, and in this regard the UAE-Reform alliance is part of a broad and troubling pattern. Following a crackdown on dissent at home in the aftermath of the Arab Spring, the UAE has offered material and political support to a range of violent and authoritarian actors willing to oppose the Muslim Brotherhood with no regard for the consequences. Its meddling in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, and most notably Sudan, have been devastating. The UAE’s strategy of seeking out partners on the political fringes who it believes will advance its interests is not unique to Britain – it extends beyond the Middle East to Europe and the US. In France, it has offered clandestine support to Marine Le Pen through secret meetings, as well allegedly funding trips to the region after which Le Pen returned with a renewed focus on the UAE’s perceived enemies – Qatar and the Muslim Brotherhood. Left-wing opposition leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon has accused the UAE of smearing him and of “encouraging discrimination, hatred or violence”. In the US, the UAE actively supported the rise of Donald Trump, establishing itself as a key ally during both his first and second terms. Around these relationships sits a wider ecosystem of figures willing to amplify UAE narratives, that even extends to Andrew Tate and Tommy Robinson. Subscribe In Britain, the UAE has used a combination of aggressive diplomacy and illicit, disruptive tactics to achieve its policy goal of eliminating any perceived threat from political Islam. In 2012, for instance, it threatened to block billion-pound arms deals with the UK and stop inward investment if David Cameron did not act against the Muslim Brotherhood and rein in the BBC’s coverage of the group – going so far as to suggest, with no supporting evidence, that the group had infiltrated the BBC. It has financed smear campaigns against a high-profile UK charity and funded a mercenary to secretly surveil, and possibly assassinate, a British national on British soil. In Reform UK, the UAE has finally found an ally willing to not only ban the Muslim Brotherhood, but to publicly vilify the group and repeat the UAE’s claims that dangerous Muslims are a fifth column in British society, a narrative that aligns with the Islamophobia and anti-immigration sentiments that underpin Reform’s populist politics. The Rycroft review into foreign interference concluded that “hostile states and non-state actors have a clear incentive to attempt to undermine UK democracy.” The UAE’s network and alliance with Reform must be understood within that framework. It is a powerful, disruptive and deeply authoritarian actor with the resources and networks to intervene in our politics, and a track-record of doing so in a multitude of other countries. The evidence of the threat the UAE poses is overwhelming. The question is whether parliamentarians are willing to call the UAE out and demand action using the tools that the government has to respond. Placing the UAE on the “Enhanced Tier” of the Foreign Registration scheme alongside Russia and Iran would send a powerful signal to the UAE that its meddling will no longer be tolerated, and would place Farage’s next trips to the UAE under the scrutiny they deserve. Alex Carlen is research and advocacy manager at London based human rights organisation FairSquare and author of its new report Petro-populism: the UAE–Reform threat. Subscribe
As school board election nears, CPS parents incensed by political group at school event
Some CPS parents say they want a stronger firewall to protect against electioneering on school grounds. It comes after a nonprofit affiliated with the Common Ground Collective, a group heavily funded by billionaire Michael Sacks that opposes the Chicago Teachers Union, paid for the DJ at a back-to-school fair and handed out fliers that directed to endorsements.
World Cup Ticket Sellers Still Waiting for FIFA Refunds
FIFA said it would refund sellers within 60 days.
AstraZeneca recommits to youth health to dial funding past $100M
AstraZeneca has re-upped its UNICEF-partnered Young Health Programme (YHP),
Attleboro Arts Museum holding 35th Benefit Art Auction
ATTLEBORO, Mass. – The Attleboro Arts Museum announces its 35th Benefit Art Auction. The Attleboro Arts Museum’s annual Benefit Art Auction is one of the museum’s largest fundraising events of
Quality Behavioral Health named in $18.8M federal case alleging Medicaid fraud, forced labor
The federal government is seeking to seize nearly $18.8 million in cash, bank funds, and precious metals as part of a civil forfeiture case alleging a Detroit-area behavioral health provider defrauded Medicaid and used forced labor involving people receiving treatment.
The hunt for extraterrestrial life is fundamentally flawed. But there's a fix.
We search for aliens on exoplanets by looking for the chemical signatures of life. But without understanding the host star better, we may be misled.
Gal Gadot's $3m. Genesis Prize initiative funds 24 Israeli mental health and trauma care NGOs
Recipients include Make-A-Wish Israel, United Hatzalah, and CareGivers Israel. The grants will support treatment, trauma counseling, caregiver training, and social work services.
Superintendent candidates spar over funding, private schools and politics
Debbie Critchfield and Becky Sundin Mitchell laid out different approaches to Idaho’s education system during Tuesday’s debate.
What links smoking, body fat, mental health, genes, and heart risk? Inflammation may be part of the answer
In a large UK Biobank study, higher levels of the chronic inflammation marker GlycA were associated with smaller heart chambers, thicker heart walls, impaired diastolic function, reduced stroke volume, and a 43% higher risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in the highest versus lowest GlycA group. Genetic susceptibility also modified the associations between environmental exposures, inflammation, and cardiovascular risk, while inflammatory proteins in the IL-1, TNF, and IL-6 pathways statistically mediated several of these associations.
What's ahead for the $250 million funding tool for Belton's Uptown Entertainment District?
At Tuesday night's meeting, there was plenty of discussion to better understand what Belton and developer, PETRA is getting into.
Federal complaint alleges Medicaid fraud, forced labor by Quality Behavioral Health CEO
The federal government is seeking to seize nearly $19 million in bank funds, cash, and precious metals linked to Quality Behavioral Health, alleging the organization’s CEO used Medicaid beneficiaries as forced labor and submitted claims for services that were not provided.
Alaska governor candidates discuss education, PFD and energy
Four Alaska governor candidates answered questions from community members and Rotarians about education, the Permanent Fund Dividend and energy. The candidates also discussed natural gas production in Cook Inlet ahead
Maui Wildfire Exposure Study gets $6M in federal funding to extend post-fire health tracking to 2031
Two grants from the National Institutes of Health will allow a critical post-wildfire University of Hawai'i study to continue and expand.
Gov. Whitmer signs off on funding for NMU College of Business
An NMU Spokesperson says the College of Business will be built as an addition to Hedgcock, featuring 24,000 sq. feet in the addition as well as 15,000 sq. feet of renovation within Hedgcock.
Vanderbilt Health to lead nationwide initiative to improve outcomes for critically ill patients
Funded via ARPA-H, CIRCLE will combine advances in diagnostics and AI to speed development of next-generation interventions that identify and respond to harmful immunoinflammatory states before life-threatening complications occur.
The 2026 Big Ten College Football Playoff Picture: Week 4
The Big Ten is mostly through its non-conference schedule. Now, the fun begins with conference play.