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Sports Humanitarian Awards to World Cup final: New York's blockbuster sports week
Follow our live coverage as the Sports Humanitarian Awards, ESPYS, Fanatics Fest, World Cup final and more turn the Big Apple into the center of the sports world.
Sports Humanitarian Awards to World Cup final: New York's blockbuster sports week
Follow our live coverage as the Sports Humanitarian Awards, ESPYS, Fanatics Fest, World Cup final and more turn the Big Apple into the center of the sports world.
Communicating Science in a Skeptical World
Food science leaders at IFT FIRST explain how empathy, storytelling, and social media can counter misinformation and build trust in food innovation.
Sports Humanitarian Awards to World Cup final: New York's blockbuster sports week
Follow our live coverage as the Sports Humanitarian Awards, ESPYS, Fanatics Fest, World Cup final and more turn the Big Apple into the center of the sports world.
WATCH LIVE: Senate Democrats block $1 trillion annual defense bill in protest over Iran war
Moderate San Francisco mayor's 'political machine' indicate the city's shift to the center: report
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie holds a 74% approval rating as moderate Democrats and tech-backed groups spend millions to lock progressives out of power.
OpenAI's First Device Will Be Movable, Screenless Speaker Built as AI Companion
(Bloomberg) -- OpenAI's much-anticipated push into consumer devices is slated to begin with a mobile, screen-free smart speaker designed to be a new type of home computer for the AI era, according to people familiar with the matter.Most Read from BloombergUS Hits Iran With Strikes, Blockade as Trump Plans Hormuz ChargeTrump Shelves 20% Fee for Hormuz Cargo After Gulf PressureA Cocaine Bust in Spain Leads All the Way to Wall StreetUS CPI Falls for the First Time Since 2020, Core Gauge Flat'We Fal
Trump revives his decades-old Iran warning as US ramps up military pressure: 'remarkably consistent'
A 1980 video clip shows Trump urging the U.S. to send troops into Iran during the hostage crisis, resurfacing as CENTCOM resumes a naval blockade.
House passes Daylight Saving Time reform as Trump signals support for ending clock change
The Sunshine Protection Act passed the House with bipartisan support, but Senate skepticism and debates over circadian rhythm and road safety loom ahead.
Senate Democrats Block Defense Bill Over War in Iran
The vote reflected how the political debate over the conflict in the Middle East has sapped bipartisan support for a normally popular measure.
47 revelatory hours with Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced
To review this month’s supposed remake of 2013’s Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, I must first correct the record. Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced isn’t a game about pirates (and assassins) in the 18th century Caribbean. Sure, sure, that’s what the trailers would have you believe. They’ve go their clips of Edward Kenway swinging his swords and steering his pirate ship into cannon-blasting combat against British frigates. Is Resynced truly a pirate game? Of the 47 hours I spent playing Resynced over the past few weeks, I will admit I spent maybe 44 (?) of them collecting plunder with Blackbeard, drinking rum with Anne Bonny and debating the pros and cons of the lawless pirate-run settlement Nassau with Benjamin Hornigold. I may in fact have spent dozens of hours sailing to remote islands, reading treasure maps, opening messages left in bottles, sinking the odd Man o’ War with a well-timed broadside, collecting sea shanties for my crew, befriending a pet monkey, and hunting whales. I am nevertheless neither so Gullible nor so Narrow-Minded as to call the magnificent Resynced a “pirate remake.” Oh no. Forget any reviews of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced you may have read. Forget what you yourself may have played, if you’ve spent any time with the game since its launch. What Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is really about I’m here to give you the scoop (spoilers for Resynced’s Animus menu lore, which many players are probably not going to see): Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, the new game whose development was led by Ubisoft Singapore, is set in the year 2096. It’s about a societal split, about revolution, about an old Assassin’s Creed adventure repurposed in the series’ distant future as propaganda or samizdat. It’s about the overheated future of 2096, essentially conquered by the series’ well-established nefarious Templar-run company Abstergo. (In this future, Abstergo is, among other things, remaking a 2013 pirate movie called Devils of the Caribbean, but this time in VR. The VR version will be backed by a marketing plan that involves AI influencers, a 10,000-avatar “metaverse premiere event” and that manufacturing of memes aimed at “50 million VR nodes.” See what I mean about Abstergo being evil?) Resynced is about a late 21st-century population mollified by the widespread use of Abstergo’s Animus devices which let people experience the lives of historical figures culled from “genetic memories.” It’s about an insurgent faction of Assassins. And it’s about a plan to wake the population into revolutionary fervor by showing them the memories of 18th century pirate Edward Kenway, who—as depicted in the original Black Flag and again in Resynced—gradually comes to an understanding about the Assassins of his day and their centuries old fight for freedom. Resynced is also about an AI developed within the late 21st-century Animus, called Ego. It has found a way to alter genetic memories, to create and show Animus users false ones. The game is about Ego’s efforts to tell the people experiencing Edward Kenway’s memories that Kenway was wrong, that fighting against order is folly, that we should crave a world where “compliance is rewarded with power.” Who are we in this game? We’re an unnamed Animus user in 2096 who experiences Kenway’s journey virtually. At four moments during Kenway’s exploits in the Caribbean our virtual jaunt can be interrupted for 10-15 minutes, as we explore Animus “rifts” where Ego explicitly tries to tell us how wrong Kenway was. None of this is what 2013’s Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag was about, of course. That was a different game, even if you also spent dozens of hours pirating as Kenway in that game, across missions and a map that’s been faithfully reintroduced and rebuilt for Resynced. The 2013 Black Flag was about you playing as an unnamed researcher newly hired in 2013 by Abstergo Entertainment, the video game development wing of the Templars’ evil-corp. In that game, you were assigned to use the Animus to dive into the genetic memories of Desmond Miles, a man who died in Assassin’s Creed III and who was descended from a long line of Assassins (and at least one Templar) whose adventures were featured across the prior AC games. In 2013’s Black Flag, your mission was to plumb the Edward Kenway experience for material that Abstergo could use in productions such as the motion picture Devils of the Caribbean, though the Templars had some ulterior motives for the assignment. Resynced is therefore not a remake of 2013’s Black Flag. It’s a sequel. It is a new game about a new exploration of Edward Kenway’s pirate/assassin journey, set 83 years after the framing sequences of the original game. Resynced provides a new narrative framework that, thanks to the concept of an AI that wants to alter historical memories, arrives with creative justification to tweak a now-classic 13-year old game. That makes Resynced, already a hot seller, a tantalizing hint of where Ubisoft could go with a line of Assassin’s Creed remakes. They could remake the first game, the Ezio games, even the recent ones set in ancient Egypt and Greece. And for each, they could not just modernize the graphics and controls but expand and alter their sequences of events to use them as reference points for a conflict set in the late 21st century, as rival factions try to weaponize historical memories. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, even when that work consists of ravings about Assassin’s Creed’s modern day plot, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe A story most players will probably miss If you didn’t know any of this, I’m not surprised. If you played the game and still didn’t catch it, I’m not a bit shocked. If Ubisoft has no plans to do more of this, I won’t fall down. Almost all of what I’ve described is optional and missable in Black Flag Resynced. I nearly missed it myself, as I planned for a breezy playthrough of an old Assassin’s Creed favorite. Instead, I found myself in a 40+ hour hunt for the “real” story, buried deeper in Resynced than any gold-filled chest. The story of 2096 is Resynced’s meta-story, told in two remote pockets of the game: 1) four optional playable “rifts” that players may find as they proceed through Resynced’s pirate fantasy , 2) in dozens of text files tucked three menus deep in the game’s barely-interactive Animus hub. Assassin’s Creed games have almost always had a meta-story about people in the 21st century (usually matching the game’s release year) and their connections to the main history portions you play. Those meta-stories have always been squeezed into the margins, though seldom as severely and as, uh, graphiaclly simple, as in recent games. Back in 2013, the modern-day exploits of you as an Abstergo Entertainment employee were prominent. They were portrayed via first-person portions that occasionally interrupted the third-person Kenway experience and could be explored for hours, complete with their own missions, side quests and puzzles. Resynced’s 2096 story—of Assassin “Watchers” vs. Abstergo/Tempar goons, of rogue AIs, of panicking scientists, of a woman wondering why her Animus-addicted husband is muttering about Mary Read (“What does he mean by Assassins?”), of a fight for the population’s hearts and minds via varying interpretations of Edward Kenway’s life choices—is mostly told through unlockable text files. The files are interesting. Offered via diary entries, intercepted chats and news reports, they present varied perspectives of a world in crisis. One set works as a narrative puzzle as it reveals the Rashomonic interpretations of a massacre, or was that a successful Assassin hit? Another favorite reveals the rising bitterness of a person who, through Edward Kenway’s journey, now shakes at the ignored evil around him. One surmises that Ubisoft is averse to putting the Assassin’s Creed’s meta-story in the way of more marketable pirate playgrounds and ninja/samurai epics. Instead, we get a better-than-nothing text-in-menus approach introduced in 2025’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows. In Shadows, players unlocked the meta-story text files largely via time-gated missions that called on the user to kill X number of enemy type Y, clear three enemy castles, re-win a three-phase fighting tournament, and other grinds. Time restrictions on accessing these missions and unlocking the files meant it could take players months to access the full story in-game. But even in the most hardcore Assassin’s Creed hangouts, the fanbase instead seemed to throw up their hands rather than grind to keep up. In Resynced, Ubisoft has shown some mercy, diminishing the amount of new text files that are tied to timed grinds. Now, most of the text-based 2096 lore are associated with “data file” collectibles that players can find in the world. That includes a batch of written entries that explain a historical link between the feudal Japan era in Shadows and the piracy adventures in Black Flag. Players who explore a lot will find dozens of data files, though the game does not appear to offer any in-game tracker for finding each one. You just need to keep looking for them. As of this writing, I have most of them, but not all. I can’t find any full guide for them online. And even Ubisoft’s optional $5 microtransaction that reveals lots of items in-game does not appear to reveal the locations of the text files (at least the official description omits them from its collectibles list). That’s not a huge bother, because tracking the data files down compelled me to re-explore the waves and islands of Black Flag. That was a thoroughly pleasant task to do for the first time in a dozen years. I expect many players, though, will be content to wait for the files to be reproduced in an online AC wiki somewhere, the easier to read on a web page. It may not seem enticing to play a video game in order to gradually unlock pages of text to read. Why not, you may ask, just read a book, where they put the pages in order? For one, they’ve not tucked this latest installment of Assassin’s Creed’s meta saga in a book. I also enjoy the unordered delivery, the dawning comprehension of a story about 2096’s desperate people and questionable tech, which I glimpsed first at its middle, then the end, then the front, then other moments in between1. I am also enamored with the idea of the Assassin’s Creed games I’ve previously played, including Black Flag, being repurposed for an information war. The ideas in Resynced’s meta-story, which builds off characters and ideas in Shadows’ chunks of text, are strong. The potential of where they could go with it is exciting. As for the pirate stuff? Looks great, controls pretty well, is fun to play and oh so speedy in terms of how much of a good time you can have with each sit-down. It never gets old to chase a new shanty page across a rooftop, bombard a fort with upgraded mortars or use a diving bell to explore sunken wrecks (hats off to the team at Ubisoft Barcelona that worked on the underwater portions in Resynced; that team is now facing layoffs, such is the misery of modern gaming and oft-troubled Ubisoft). New pirate missions in Resynced involving new ally characters are brief, dramatic and add more to Edward’s story, even if the gameplay perks they provide barely enhance the gameplay. A new denouement for high-class pirate Stede Bonnet is affecting; a new hunt for Blackbeard’s treasure is a welcome extra moment. A new epilogue to hunt down a pirate killer, on the other hand, over-complicates Kenway’s character. The ending credits remain my favorite of any game I’ve ever played. Black Flag provides great source material. The revisit is well-made and a great sign of what could be. It is offered in a different wrapper that hints at an opportunity for more interesting remakes to come, should Ubisoft choose to pursue such treasures—and as we brace to resist or comply with an Abstergo future. 1 The messages that Edward Kenway finds in bottles tell another out-of-order story, one about a man reckoning with the strange memories and voices he’s heard in his head since he was a boy. That tale was also in the 2013 game and develops into one of Black Flag’s most compelling character arcs. In Resynced, it has lost its climax, because the bottle story previously paid off in the halls of the first-person Abstergo Entertainment, which is exclusive to the older game. An altered resolution, written by the 2013 game’s lead writer is fine, doesn’t invalidate the 2013 version, but makes for an inferior final note.
Trump’s plan to make daylight saving time permanent to get a vote in House
The bipartisan Sunshine Protection Act would end the practice of switching clocks twice per year.
How can ASU's Cutter Boley lock down QB1?
Cutter Boley is the clear favorite to be named ASU's starting quarterback, so what does he still need to do to end the competition?
James Cook Highlights "New Energy" In Buffalo Bills Locker Room
As Joe Brady takes the reins, star running back James Cook details the revitalized atmosphere fueling Buffalo's high-stakes pursuit of a Super Bowl title following major coaching changes.
Microsoft keeps proving you own NOTHING with them — it blocks another user's entire Xbox game library, including his OneDrive
Gamer Joshua Khane is yet another victim of Microsoft's apathy towards its customers, in yet another example of it banning a user for the crime of ... being hacked?
Johnson scores win as conservative rebels end House floor blockade over voter ID bill
House conservatives blocked legislation to pressure Senate action on the SAVE America Act, but Speaker Mike Johnson proposed a deal to end the standoff.
Upcoming OLED iPad Mini Allegedly Uses 60Hz 8.4-Inch Display Panel
Apple is allegedly using a 60Hz 8.4-inch display panel in the upcoming OLED iPad mini, which is expected to be released later this year. The information comes courtesy of a hit-and-miss tipster running the account "yeux1122" on the Korean Naver blog. The leaker claims to have been told by a source in Apple's supply chain that the unreleased iPad mini is equipped with a low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) backplane hybrid OLED panel clocked at 60Hz.
Before you connect another smart TV, tablet or phone, lock it down
Smart TVs ship with ACR enabled by default, tracking everything you watch. A 10-step checklist covers privacy settings, VPN setup and guest wifi.
New York to impose country’s first statewide moratorium on data centers
New York will block the construction of any new large data centers for up to a year so the state can create a new set of rules.
How Chicken Bog became a beloved Horry County staple
While crowds of 30,000-40,000 people flock to Loris for its annual “Chicken Bog-Off” festival every third weekend of October to enjoy the savory rice, chicken and sausage-based one-pot dish, few may know when or how the cuisine was created and why it has sustained such popularity throughout Horry County.
Google Pixel Watch Fitbit Sensor Permission Bug Leaves Health Tracking Broken for Some Users
The Google Pixel Fitbit sensor permission bug locks users out of Google Health apps by demanding sensor access already granted. Even factory resets do not fix it.
Timberwolves Reportedly Sign Former Duke Star to $9.3 Million Contract
Minnesota locked in second-round pick Isaiah Evans on a four-year deal.
Payback politics? Wu backs challengers to state senators who blocked her tax plan
In a highly unusual move in the insular world of Massachusetts politics, Wu is the first mayor in recent memory to openly campaign against state senators who have blocked her priorities.
LAPD lets agreement with Flock Safety expire over privacy concerns
LAPD will not renewed its agreement with Flock Safety, citing concerns over "civil liberty" and a lack of clarity over terms regarding privacy.
Debt is central to Bending Spoons' business model, says Jim Cramer
'Mad Money' host Jim Cramer takes a look at recent IPO Bending Spoons and how to play the Italian technology company.
The policy gaps in behavioral health coverage — and what it’ll take to close them, per 1 exec
Nearly four years after the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline launched, states, payers and county systems still define behavioral health crisis care inconsistently, and Medicare offers limited coverage for community-based crisis stabilization services — leaving safety-net funding, Medicaid, federal block grants, and state and local dollars to carry the cost for nearly 200 million Americans. […]
Trump’s Cease-Fire Effectively Collapses as He Vows to Restart Blockade and Tolls
After several days of strikes, the president notified Congress that fighting had begun again and announced shipping fees that his administration previously deemed illegal.
Oregon, 14 other states sue Trump administration to block school mental health funding cuts
Fifteen states including Oregon and Washington sued the Trump administration to block funding cuts to a $1 billion program that helps school districts hire and train more mental health professionals.
The Quintessential Trump-era Politician
In 2020, I wrote an article about collaboration and collaborators. The title was History Will Judge the Complicit, and it started with the story of two famous East Germans, Markus Wolf and Wolfgang Leonhard, who both landed in East Berlin just after the end of the war. Although they came from very similar backgrounds, the former stuck with the regime, eventually becoming its spy boss; the latter, horrified by the brutal reality of Soviet-style communism, escaped. By way of juxtaposition, I also wrote about Lyndsey Graham and Mitt Romney. These two men also made very different decisions when confronted by Donald Trump’s assault on the ideals that they had both grown up believing: A glance at their biographies would not have led many to predict what happened next. On paper, Graham would have seemed, in 2016, like the man with deeper ties to the military, to the rule of law, and to an old-fashioned idea of American patriotism and American responsibility in the world. Romney, by contrast, with his shifts between the center and the right, with his multiple careers in business and politics, would have seemed less deeply attached to those same old-fashioned patriotic ideals. Most of us register soldiers as loyal patriots, and management consultants as self-interested. We assume people from small towns in South Carolina are more likely to resist political pressure than people who have lived in many places. Intuitively, we think that loyalty to a particular place implies loyalty to a set of values. But in this case the clichés were wrong. It was Graham who made excuses for Trump’s abuse of power. It was Graham—a JAG Corps lawyer—who downplayed the evidence that the president had attempted to manipulate foreign courts and blackmail a foreign leader into launching a phony investigation into a political rival. It was Graham who abandoned his own stated support for bipartisanship and instead pushed for a hyperpartisan Senate Judiciary Committee investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden’s son. It was Graham who played golf with Trump, who made excuses for him on television, who supported the president even as he slowly destroyed the American alliances—with Europeans, with the Kurds—that Graham had defended all his life. By contrast, it was Romney who, in February, became the only Republican senator to break ranks with his colleagues, voting to impeach the president. “Corrupting an election to keep oneself in office,” he said, is “perhaps the most abusive and destructive violation of one’s oath of office that I can imagine.” In the wake of Graham’s unexpected death on Saturday, I wrote about him again. He was, in many ways, the quintessential politician of Trump’s Washington, a man who shifted 180 degrees. Graham had been a fervent American patriot, proud reserve officer and military lawyer; he became one of the most important defenders of a president who believes soldiers are “suckers and losers” and shows no respect for law of any kind. As his politics changed, his language grew coarser and his behavior grew worse: He urged Israel to “level the place” in Gaza, and insulted the Danish prime minister in Munich, prompting a colleague, Senator Elissa Slotkin, to issue an apology. Here’s an excerpt from the article, which you can read in The Atlantic (gift link here) Like his close friend John McCain, Graham believed that America should stand at the center of a broad democratic alliance. The few times I met him were in that context, at the Munich Security Conference or at other European-American gatherings, which he once attended with great regularity. He also took seriously the practice of American democracy at home. In a 2014 conversation with The Atlantic, he described himself as a pragmatic politician who eschewed populist slogans. “I know Washington is broken, but what’s broken about it is everybody yelling and nobody trying to fix it,” he said. “I’m trying.” When Donald Trump first appeared in U.S. politics, Graham recognized him immediately for what he was: the spokesman for an alien ideology, one radically different from the idealistic patriotism that Graham had practiced and preached since childhood. Trump privately mocked the military that Graham loved as nothing but “suckers and losers.” He put falsehoods, cynicism, and personal greed at the center of his politics, while expressing disdain for transparency, accountability, and democracy itself. In 2015, Graham described Trump as a “race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot” who should “go to hell.” Also as a “nutjob.” When Trump won, Graham understood, as did so many others, that he would have to make some important choices. For a while, he went silent. In the spring of 2016, I saw him at one of those conferences in Europe. He seemed too depressed to speak. But then, like many other Republicans—and, more important, like many other people who have lived under political occupation or experienced radical regime change—he made the decision to abandon his previous ideals, to bury the patriotism that was once so important to him, and to become, instead, a loud, opportunistic collaborator. As I wrote in 2020, it’s very hard to look in to anyone’s heart and to understand their motivations from the outside. But it does seem that Graham had a deep need to be relevant, to be in the game, to be a player, at any cost. And that, rather than any particular achievement, is what he will be remembered for. Continuing to monitor conflicts of interest, ostentatious emoluments, outright corruption and policy changes that will facilitate outright corruption. (Read my original article, Kleptocracy Inc and check out the SNF Agora Institute chart) June 27 Trump diverted funds from more than 900 projects nationwide—including safety upgrades at national parks—to finance beautification projects around Washington, including $700,000 used to fix a White House walkway. June 28 After a years-long Department of Justice investigation into Abbott Laboratories over its management of a baby formula facility where potentially deadly bacteria turned up enough evidence to criminally charge the firm, top department officials instead opted for a financial penalty—illustrating the department’s move away from strict corporate enforcement under the Trump administration. June 29 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stacked the Defense Policy Board—which is charged with providing independent national security recommendations to the Office of the Secretary of Defense—with Trump allies, including tech billionaire Marc Andreessen, who has invested in defense contractors like OpenAI and SpaceX, after purging the panel last year. Trump purchased between $1 million and $5 million worth of stock in Axon—which makes about 90% of US tasers—two weeks before ICE solicited bids for a $220 million taser contract. The White House unveiled limited-edition US passports for America’s 250th birthday, featuring a portrait of Trump overlaid on the Declaration of Independence. June 30 Trump made around $1.2 billion from his various crypto companies last year, including more than $500 million from World Liberty Financial and $600 million from sales of his meme coin. Trump is considering issuing 250 pardons to commemorate America’s 250th birthday. These are expected to be largely doled out through the Office of the Pardon Attorney’s informal network of intermediaries. White-collar defense attorneys say they can typically win pardons for clients for $2 million. Last year, Trump administration officials awarded a no-bid contract worth up to $500 million to Clark Construction for the White House ballroom—negotiations in which the president was directly involved. July 1 The Amazon MGM Studios documentary about Melania Trump earned the First Lady more than $10 million. Trump made hundreds of individual stock purchases worth as much as $12.8 million the day before his announcement pausing “Liberation Day” tariffs for 90 days sent the S&P 500 soaring nearly 10%—one of the largest single-day gains ever. Mar-a-Lago and Trump National Doral saw record surges in revenue during Trump’s first year in office, earning $77.5 million and $121.9 million respectively, compared to average annual revenues of $25 million and $75 million during Trump’s first term. Entities across the Persian Gulf paid more than $300 million to Trump’s businesses last year, including $263 million from the sale of half his stake in World Liberty Financial to a firm backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a top UAE royal and brother of the country’s president. Kash Patel failed to properly disclose his stock purchase of a Department of Justice contractor, MicroStrategy, worth up to $250,000 last year, despite laws requiring disclosure within 45 days of the trade. July 2 Trump has been directing administration officials to steer more government contracts—so far worth more than $2.4 billion—to Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin aerospace firm, after Amazon gave $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund, donated to the White House ballroom project, and reached a $40 million deal to license a Melania Trump documentary. Alongside the billions he made from cryptocurrency last year, Trump earned millions of dollars from real estate licensing fees, including $21 million from organizations in the UAE and $9.2 million in Saudi Arabia, along with smaller sums from merchandise sales, including $4.7 million from Trump Watches and $35,920 from 45 Guitar, a guitar brand endorsed by the president. House Democrats accused consultants tied to the Trump administration of financial fraud, alleging they gave prospective donors to America250—the bipartisan committee created by Congress to celebrate the nation’s semiquincentennial—the banking and routing numbers for Freedom 250, the White House’s fund for events like the UFC cage fight. Democrats also allege that Freedom 250’s CEO traveled to the World Economic Forum in Davos to solicit donations from foreign government officials and business leaders. The Trump administration’s proposed rollback of gun regulations would lift the prohibition on mailing handguns to individuals, a significant win for GrabAGun—the direct-to-consumer firearm retailer on whose board Donald Trump Jr. sits and in which he holds a 1.1% ownership stake. GrabAGun currently must rely on a middleman to transfer firearms to customers. Trump’s financial disclosure revealed that he made more than 21,000 securities trades during his first year back in office, growing his investment account to at least $858 million across stakes in around 1,600 companies, compared to the 13 total trades Joe Biden made during his entire presidency. July 4 Nearly 1 million people who bought the president’s meme coin—Trump Coin—collectively lost $3.8 billion on the token, while he walked away with $636 million. July 6 Shares of Dell closed up 4.4% after Trump recommended people buy the firm’s computers during a speech announcing the launch of Trump investment accounts for children, boosting the more than $1 million worth of shares the president owns in the company. July 9 Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh named crypto investor and Trump ally Marc Andreessen to a task force aimed at modernizing the Federal Reserve, including rethinking its approach to inflation—a key factor keeping interest rates elevated. Palm Beach International Airport has officially changed its name to Trump International Airport—a move that will require Florida to pay royalties to the president’s family for licensing his name. I was there a few months ago, during a trip to Barcelona. The sculptures were a revelation, I’d never seen so many together before. Each one has its own personality. Enjoy the good weather, if you are lucky enough to have it. History Will Judge the Complicit The Quintessential Politician Autocracy Inc Open Letters, from Anne Applebaum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe
Pokémon GO Water Festival 2026 Guide – Arrokuda, Cramorant, Bonuses and GO Pass
Starts Tuesday, August 18, 2026, at 10:00 AM Local Time Ends Wednesday, August 26, 2026, at 12:00 AM Local Time Arrokuda and Cramorant make their Pokémon GO debuts during the Ultra Unlock: Water Festival 2026 event! Running from Tuesday, August 18, at 10:00 a.m. to Monday, August 24, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. local time, the […]
OnePlus will reportedly officially shut down in the US and Europe later this week
The end is near and the clock is ticking. OnePlus is reportedly going to be shut down for good in...
Paramount Says States' Effort To Block WBD Deal "Will Only Harm Entertainment Workers"
Paramount hit back at an antitrust lawsuit filed Monday by attorneys general of 12 states seeking to block the company's pending $110 billion merger.
Nova Entertainment Presents “Hail Mary/Maria” by Playwright RJ Silva and Directed by Adam Reed, August 14 – 23 at Theater Wit
Theater Wit||
Ultra Unlock: 10th Anniversary Edition
First Partner Pokémon with special backgrounds feature during the Ultra Unlock: 10th Anniversary event! The Pokémon GO Ultra Unlock: 10th Anniversary event runs from Tuesday, July 21, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. to Monday, July 27, 2026 at 8:00 p.m. local time. The event also sees a variety of rotating daily bonuses! This guide covers everything […]
California attorney general files lawsuit to block Warner Bros.-Paramount merger
The lawsuit was announced Monday
California attorney general files lawsuit to block Warner Bros.-Paramount merger
The lawsuit was announced Monday
Fentrice Driskell grows cash lead over Michele Rayner as clock winds down on SD 16 race
Driskell has a cash advantage of nearly $257,000.
Xbox fan successfully sues Microsoft for blocking his entire digital games library — in what could be a huge win for consumer rights
Brazilian Xbox player, Ordo_Liberal, recently won a court case against Microsoft, proving you can fight for the right to preserve digital ownership of your games and win.
Scientists strike invisible gold in the deep sea—locked inside fool's gold
Pyrite, an iron sulfide ore, is often known as fool's gold because its shiny metallic luster and pale brass-yellow color can easily fool the untrained eye into mistaking it for real gold. This time, however, ...
Red Sox's Garrett Whitlock: Notches second save
Red Sox's Garrett Whitlock: Notches second save
AI Is Breaking the Memory Chip Business Model
Investors who piled into SK Hynix’s $28 billion blockbuster Nasdaq debut on Friday should be aware: The business model on which the world’s leading memory chip makers are thriving is set to shift to one that requires a bit more strategic and financial gambling. So far, SK Hynix Inc. is making all the right moves but it’s unclear how well the field’s leading players will deal with that disruption.
N.H. lawmaker clocked at 107 mph asserts ‘legislative privilege’
The state representative likened her situation to that of an EMT or police officer responding to an urgent call. What was her emergency? She hasn’t said.
Despite having an offline mode, Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced was unplayable when Ubisoft Connect went down
Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced players on PC were shocked to find that a Ubisoft Connect outage has locked them out of playing the game.
Small business spotlight: Lockwood Cafe
In the Ontario neighborhood of Ames is Lockwood Cafe. Opened in 2017 by Sharon Stewart, the cafe serves as a community-first space. This is reflected in the businesses around it, its connections to other businesses in Ames, and its patrons. Stewart shared how the business started and how its neighborhood is vital to the cafe’s...
$10 Kalshi referral code “OREGONLIVE1” extended to politics odds
Kalshi referral code OREGONLIVE1 unlocks a Spend $10, Get $10 bonus, now valid on politics. See live Kalshi All-Star Game and 2028 Democratic nominee odds.
$50 Polymarket referral code “OREGON” extends invite bonus to politics
Polymarket invite code OREGON unlocks a $50 bonus on $20, now extended to politics. See live Polymarket All-Star Game and 2028 Republican nominee odds.
“Moana” capsizes with bumpy $43 million U.S. debut, while “Michael” breaks record with $1 billion at global box office
Disney’s live-action remake of the 2016 blockbuster failed to launch, marking a severe downturn after the success of “Toy Story 5.”
Europeans Have 'Changed' Their Opinion Of America During World Cup
It's official: Europeans have changed their opinion of America during the 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup. Thousands of Europeans, from countries like England, Norway, Switzerland, Spain, etc. flocked to North America for the 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup. While the United States, Mexico and Canada acted as ...
Federal funding and science doubled life expectancy. We can’t do more with less.
We are at dangerous risk of turning back the clock on the strides we’ve made in public health.
FULL SHOW: Inside INdiana Business 7/12/26
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Moving from SF to Buenos Aires helped him build a family
Sunflower cofounder Koby Conrad moved from San Francisco to Buenos Aires. Its helped him "lock in" and build a family.
Jaguars' Rookie Labeled Team's 'Biggest Bust' for 2026
Jacksonville stunned draft experts by reaching for Texas A&M tight end Nate Boerkircher, triggering immediate scrutiny over whether the blocking specialist can ever justify his second-round price tag.
Packers Get New Micah Parsons Injury Prediction From NFL Exec
The Green Bay Packers have multiple question marks to answer ahead of the 2026 NFL season, but none of them are bigger than the one about superstar pass rusher Micah Parsons. Last offseason, the Packers pulled off a blockbuster trade with the Dallas Cowboys to acquire Parsons. Unfortunately, after a strong start to the season, […] The post Packers Get New Micah Parsons Injury Prediction From NFL Exec appeared first on HEAVY.
'Win-Now' 49ers Trend for Blockbuster Trade in Bold Prediction
49ers 1st-Round Pick Flagged After ‘Subpar’ Rookie Season
PFF's Bradley Locker put "subpar" 49ers edge rusher and 2025 1st-round pick Mykel Williams on list of players under Year 2 pressure. The post 49ers 1st-Round Pick Flagged After ‘Subpar’ Rookie Season appeared first on HEAVY.
The Highest Grossing Movies Across 9 Sports
It began in 1894 with a boxing match filmed with Thomas Edison’s new invention. Here are some subsequent blockbusters.
'Mirror life' technology worries Doomsday Clock scientists. This is why
This year, scientists included a new potential threat in their decision to move the Doomsday Clock closer to midnight. So what is 'mirror life' and why are they concerned?
Celebrities flock to 2026 FIFA World Cup matches worldwide
Tom Cruise and David Beckham were among the celebrities seen at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Yale scientists may have found how Parkinson's disease spreads through the brain
Yale scientists discovered two neuron surface proteins that appear to help spread the toxic protein linked to Parkinson’s disease. Blocking these proteins in mice dramatically reduced disease progression, offering a potential new target for future therapies.
Why gold never tarnishes has finally been explained
Gold may have a secret self-defense system that helps it resist tarnishing. Researchers discovered that atoms on gold surfaces reorganize themselves into patterns that block oxygen from reacting with the metal, suppressing oxidation by up to a trillion-fold. Beyond explaining why gold jewelry stays bright for generations, the finding could help scientists create more powerful gold-based catalysts for manufacturing and clean energy.
An American Politician is Blocked by Israeli Settlers in the West Bank
Representative Ro Khanna was barred from leaving for 90 minutes. Where past U.S. leaders toured the region to show support for Israel, today’s Democratic presidential aspirants are going to bolster their credentials as critics.
Why some couples say marrying young helped their careers
While young marriage has fallen out of favor in the US, some couples believe tying the knot early helped them lock in on their careers.
NVIDIA GPU Hotspot Temperature Has Been Unlocked Through Mods, & Shows Widespread Thermal Issues Affecting RTX 50 GPUs That Throttle Gaming Performance
Mods have unlocked NVIDIA's GPU Hotspot measurement, which can give you a clue why your latest card is running at lower performance.
Bucs Fare Better in New NFL Power Rankings
Bolstered by fresh talent and a weak division, Tampa Bay aims for a resurgence, yet looming locker room tensions and a coaching hot seat threaten its stability.
XBOX Gamer Wins Digital Library Lawsuit Against Microsoft
In Brazil, one gamer has won their lawsuit against Microsoft over a locked account and blocked digital games library.
Microsoft loses lawsuit after blocking hacked Xbox account with digital games
One gamer took extreme measures to restore access to his compromised Xbox account. The Brazilian user filed a lawsuit against Microsoft after it refused to unfreeze his digital library. A court ruled in the plaintiff’s favor, and the decline of physical games could lead to more legal challenges.
“Survivor” winner Dee Valladares officially revealed as final “Big Brother” season 28 player
The reality TV champ was unveiled on “Big Brother: Unlocked”
Of all Rams TE’s, Colby Parkinson is the most important
While pass catchers get all the glory, the blocking TE’s make Sean McVay’s offense work
Rabid fox confirmed in Havelock, Craven County Health issues advisory
A fox that tested positive for rabies was found in Havelock, prompting a public health advisory from the Craven County Health Department.According to the health
Striking Mass General Brigham home health clinicians picket outside headquarters: "We're at our breaking point"
While 4,000 Brigham and Women's nurses are locked out of the Boston hospital following a one-day strike, 450 home health clinicians are on day 3 of their week-long work stoppage.
US judge won't block FTC case against transgender health nonprofit
A U.S. judge on Friday declined for now to block the Federal Trade Commission from pursuing a lawsuit accusing a nonprofit focused on transgender health of making misleading statements about the benefits of gender-affirming treatments for minors.
15 states sue Trump administration to block school mental health funding cuts
Fifteen states on Friday sued the Trump administration to prevent millions of dollars in cuts to school-based mental health funding. The new lawsuit is part of an ongoing legal battle between Democratic-led states and the U.S. Department of Education over a mental health grant program that Congress established following the 2018 school shooting at Marjory […]
Joe Klein: At 80, Here’s What I’ve Learned About Politics—and Life
I am 80 years old, this year of our 250th anniversary, and I find myself a cliché. My life has been a common political journey, from left to center. I recently took the Pew Research Center’s “political typology” test and found that I was a “pragmatic and polite conservative,” which seemed a rather abstruse basket: A politically mixed (though Republican-tilting) group, they lean conservative on economics and the role of government, while tilting more liberal on issues related to race and foreign policy. They prize civility and cooperation in politics. Well, that sounds pretty mushy—and I find it hard to square with the strong opinions I have on many issues. I’ve voted for Democrats in federal elections, but I grow more Republican the closer I get to local politics. Democrats, I’ve found, simply aren’t very good at running things, especially school systems, where they are in the thrall of the teachers unions. My friends joke about my obsession with the unions. They know all my lines. If industrial unions are organized against the power of capital, who are the public employees organized against? But enough of that. I’ve ranted that rant too often, and my political journey has been more complicated than that one issue. It has been empirical, based on actual experience—on a lifetime of reporting and a lot of reading. An early example: I was a journalist with the underground press in Boston at the turn of the 1970s and considered myself a member of the antiwar and civil rights movements. The first big issue I covered was busing to achieve school integration. Yes, the white bigots were disgusting. But I couldn’t find any black parents who favored the plan to bus their children to schools outside their neighborhoods either. Black activists and politicians—and white liberals—were gung ho, but not actual parents of black kids in school. Busing was a form of social engineering imposed from on high, by a judge—W. Arthur Garrity—who lived in a wealthy liberal suburb. Wealthy liberal suburbs were not affected by his plan, of course. I began to see that there were limits to what government could do, especially when it came to changing a society’s culture.
College of Public Health Students, Faculty Participates in National Gardening Conference
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health was well-represented at the 2026 American Community Gardening Association National Conference, “Pathways to Food Security: Localizing Solutions.” The college’s Center for Research, Health, and Society and the Community Garden Health Block collaborated with the host…
Not too late for Rimmon Heights Block Party entertainment sponsorship
The annual Rimmon Heights Block Party is coming soon, but there is still time to specifically sponsor some of this year’s main entertainers.
Hospitals Help: Grand Traverse Mental Health Crisis and Access Center Advances Behavioral Healthcare in Northern Michigan - MHA | Michigan Health & Hospital Association
Michigan hospitals are working alongside community partners to remove barriers and ensure residents across the state have access to timely, lifesaving behavioral healthcare services. Located on the Munson Medical Center campus, the Grand Traverse Mental Health Crisis and Access Center is transforming care delivery across Northern Michigan by providing around-the-clock…
This New Browser Extension Blocks All Those Junky, Fake Brands on Amazon
Knockoff works by filtering out brands you probably don't want to buy from anyway.
How World Cup stars pushing 40 are defying their biological clocks
Players in their mid-30s and older used to be rare. In 2026, they made up about 6% of the 48 national team squads.
6 hidden Samsung dial codes that unlock secret features on your Galaxy phone
Every Samsung phone has secret cheat codes, and it's a shame that more people don't know about them. Type these and see what happens.
Seahawks’ Mike Macdonald Gets Blunt on Potential Super Bowl Repeat
The Seattle Seahawks aren’t getting much attention despite being the reigning Super Bowl champions. Seattle hasn’t made any blockbuster moves this offseason to put themselves in the spotlight, while their NFC West rival, the Los Angeles Rams, has. Los Angeles made trades for Myles Garrett and Trent McDuffie this offseason to improve their defense and […] The post Seahawks’ Mike Macdonald Gets Blunt on Potential Super Bowl Repeat appeared first on HEAVY.
Aramark Sports + Entertainment Announces Results of First-Ever MLB Fan Culinary Vote with ‘Betsy's Banana Ice Cream Sundae' to Debut during 2026 MLB All-Star Week
PHILADELPHIA (July 8, 2026) – As Major League Baseball fans flock to Philadelphia to celebrate the 2026 MLB All-Star Week, Aramark Sports + Entertainment (Aramark; NYSE: ARMK) announced the winner of the first-ever MLB fan culinary vote, an initiative that gave fans a direct role in shaping the food experience
Aramark Sports + Entertainment Announces Results of First-Ever MLB Fan Culinary Vote with ‘Betsy's Banana Ice Cream Sundae' to Debut during 2026 MLB All-Star Week
PHILADELPHIA (July 8, 2026) – As Major League Baseball fans flock to Philadelphia to celebrate the 2026 MLB All-Star Week, Aramark Sports + Entertainment (Aramark; NYSE: ARMK) announced the winner of the first-ever MLB fan culinary vote, an initiative that gave fans a direct role in shaping the food experience
Mental health agency in Lansing out of brief lockdown after stabbing
A mental health agency in Lansing was briefly on lockdown Thursday after a person was stabbed with a plastic sharp object, its CEO says.
NYU Langone, Other NY Hospitals Blocked from Releasing Trans Youth Health Records
In May 2026, a federal grand jury in Fort Worth sent a subpoena to NYU Langone Hospitals, demanding that they turn over the identities and sensitive health information of any patient who had received medical treatment for gender dysphoria at the hospital while they were under 18 years old between January 2020 through May 2026.
Hip-hop musical 'On Da Block!' premieres in New Orleans, celebrating culture and youth voices
"It gives our young people a professional stage on which to discover their voices, build confidence, and believe in themselves."
Cann Built a $40 Million Business on THC Drinks. Now It’s Preparing for a World Without Them
Co-founder and CEO Jake Bullock is hedging his risk with magnesium, electrolytes, L-theanine, and passion flower.
Campaign staffers keep trying to bet on races despite push to curb insider trading
Kalshi says it has blocked "dozens" of trades from campaign insiders, but experts say the company's approach leaves lots of potential loopholes. NPR has found at least one trade that slipped through.
Medical equipment supplier’s cloud applications breached, leaking patient data to hackers
AdaptHealth said the intrusion on its network was made possible by compromised credentials phished from one of its vendors. Stolen data may include protected health information, though exactly what is still being determined.
Biological aging clocks in health and disease
Nature Medicine - This review outlines the state of the art of biological clocks and how they could help understand pathobiology, reduce the burden of disease and extend healthspan.
Building the future of global health, together
The Open Health Stack Software Foundation will provide a community-led home for the building blocks of global health solutions.
Dinos take over ‘Mad Science’ show at Topeka library
Blockbuster Wednesday is a free science-based family show held every week. Wednesday’s show had a special focus on dinosaurs and the period they lived in.
Holland packaging company buys former Howard Miller Clock facility for $15.9M
Coastal Container plans to use the facility to meet ongoing growth as it makes other investments.
The Business Perspective Is Being Entirely Ignored
Perhaps public transit solutions is what $528,000 should have been spent on, instead of fake wood pedlets along the 500 block?
Venus Williams-backed WeWard can now lock your apps until you hit your steps
With funding from tennis star and angel investor Venus Williams, the French app WeWard says that it increases walking time by almost 25%.
See when several major music stars will play at annual Turlock community blowout
The Stanislaus County Fair offers just some of the upcoming entertainment in the region.
Microsoft is reportedly considering making more of its first-party games exclusive to Xbox
Microsoft is reportedly planning to lean even harder on locking certain games to Xbox as exclusives.
DuckDuckGo browser now blocks YouTube video ads
DuckDuckGo announced that its browser can now block most video ads on YouTube, including those shown before the video starts playing and during playback.
Through the teargas, I saw something missing from German politics for too long: hope
I joined thousands of people blockading the AfD’s congress. A civil disobedience movement is showing how to beat the far right, says the journalist Scott Roxborough
iPhone Ultra Reportedly in Mass Production, No Delay Envisaged
Apple's foldable iPhone is on track to ship in September despite rumors of a delayed launch, reports Chinese financial outlet Cailian Press. The outlet says it spoke with several people within Apple's supply chain, who indicated that the device's design was locked in some time ago and that the foldable is now in mass production.
Hungary moves to overhaul university models banned from Horizon Europe
Hungary’s new government is aiming to overhaul the governance model of the institutions and universities that lost access to Horizon Europe and Erasmus+ funds “in a short timeframe,” according to Péter Horváth, the new state secretary for science policy and innovation. “As of today, the two non-university foundation-controlled institutions under my remit have been transformed,” he told Science|Business. “We hope the universities will follow and that this will be enough to satisfy the EU’s demands.”Under the previous government, led by Viktor Orbán and his Fidesz party, many academic and scientific institutions were restructured and made into special public trust foundations, with members strongly linked to the government given lifelong mandates and significant decision-making powers with little oversight. The European Commission deemed that this undermined academic freedom and transparency in the country, leading to a ban on 34 institutions in 2022, including 21 universities, which saw academics in Hungary lose access to Horizon Europe grants. The new Hungarian government, elected in May and led by Péter Magyar and his Tisza Party, has promised to dismantle this governance model and restore the institutions to EU programmes. As a result, the European Commission has promised to return access to the Erasmus+ education mobility programme, but so far no concrete agreement has been made on the Horizon Europe programme for research and innovation. Hungary has already made legislative changes in June to allow the institutions to be reformed and set a timeline for the implementation.The non-university foundations, which are mainly cultural centres such as the Foundation for Hungarian Culture or the Makovecz Campus Foundation, will all be dissolved by August 31 this year, a date tied to EU-set milestones that Hungary must meet to unlock frozen funds, with control transferred to relevant ministries. Meanwhile, the universities will have until 31 August 2027. For each university foundation, the government will set the dissolution date and the body to take over operations. There is no final decision on a permanent new model for the universities, according to Hungarian MEP Eszter Lakos, who is shadow rapporteur for the Horizon Europe specific programme, a separate piece of legislation detailing implementation rules for the EU’s next research programme, due to start in 2028. “The aim of the transition year is to settle this with [the universities], not to impose a model, and not to put them under state control,” she told Science|Business. “The goal is to give academic independence back to universities.”There are three models that are most likely to be implemented. One would be a return to a traditional, state-run model. Another could be a newer, more self-standing public institution. A third option would be a reformed version of the foundation models that meet EU standards. According to Lakos, the dismantling of the system put in place by the Orbán government is well underway and if all goes according to plan, Hungary could regain access to EU research money by the start of the next academic year in 2027. “I believe that the Hungarian government is doing the necessary changes so the universities could return as beneficiaries to Horizon from the next school year,” she said. In the meantime, “the universities, institutes and cultural assets carry on under proper public stewardship rather than a handful of unaccountable trustees,” said Lakos. The laws passed in June impose new safeguards: board terms are capped at four years and renewable only once, appointments are made through open competitions and sitting politicians cannot join joining these boards.It remains unclear whether a domestic science funding programme set up as a back-up scheme by the former government following the EU funding ban, called HU-rizon, could be continued. “This programme should never have had to have been established in the first place, but it has proven to be quite popular,” he said. “I am considering continuing this programme with a refined focus on helping international collaborations.”Re-organising the research network One of the first priorities for Horváth and his cabinet is to resolve questions over the future of the Hungarian Research Network, Hun-Ren. The network of academic institutes was taken away from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 2019 and turned into a quasi-private organisation, with similarities in its governance to the public trust foundations.Horváth and his team have consulted over 5,000 representatives from the network and the conclusion is broad unhappiness with the directors of all the institutes involved. “We have presented the results to the president and the chief executive of the network and this is currently being discussed,” Horváth said. The plan is to re-integrate the network back into the Academy of Sciences but in an improved way, “learning from mistakes of the past,” he added. The government also wants to reintegrate four humanities and social science research centres into the network that the previous government had transferred to Eötvös Loránd University. The transfer brought sharp criticism from the academic community, with a group of Hungarian research heads, including European Research Council grant recipients, sending an open letter to Orbán warning that the transfer would “cause historically significant harm to the entirety of Hungarian scientific life.” The transfer was “one of the biggest shames in Hungarian research in the past 20 years,” Horváth said. “We want to immediately re-integrate them back into the research network and to regain the trust of these institutions, because the way they were treated was really unfair.”Another pressing issue is the Élvonal Excellence Research and Talent Development Foundation, led by Nobel laureate Ferenc Krausz. The foundation signed a financing agreement with the former government earlier this year for a budget of over €730 million over the next five years. The goal is to create a world-class centre to attract top talent from abroad and to develop local researchers. But there was little transparency about this foundation, and news of its huge budget, which is nearly as much as Hungary’s entire research budget, caused a stir in the media following the recent elections. Another issue is that, as with the foundation boards of the institutes banned from Horizon Europe, there was little-to-no oversight of decisions led by Krausz. “It was an excellent idea but an unacceptable execution,” Horváth said of the foundation. “The fact that this is out of the Hungarian funding scheme, mostly concentrating on one person who decides on the budget is unacceptable for us.”The government plans to merge the centre with the National Research, Development and Innovation Office, the country’s R&D funding agency, with a reduced budget. Horváth is hopeful that Krausz will still be involved. The new government’s R&D goalsA phrase that crops up regularly during the discussion with Horváth is “democratic process.” The new state secretary is determined to involve Hungary’s research community in shaping future policies. This marks a departure from the previous government’s approach, and several people in Hungary’s research community have commented on the openness of the new government. In terms of concrete goals, Horváth and his team already have plans. He wants to create a new science fund in Hungary, based on the best practices of other European countries. The fund would not be tied to annual government budgets and would provide long-term, stable financing. “If we were to succeed in creating this fund, then I think it would be one of the biggest achievements for me in this period of government,” Horváth said. On the innovation side, he is looking into how best to bring in the private sector. “We want to make sure that we are working with the private sector to support innovation,” Horváth said. One of his big aims is to introduce entrepreneurship teaching into high schools. Hungary already has a reputable national academy offering research and innovation training in the field of natural sciences, and Horváth wants to expand this to all disciplines and across the whole country. “One of the main ways to elevate our innovative businesses is to teach our children to be innovative,” he said. “This will probably need ten years to pay off, but this is what we should do. Our aim is to make Hungary strong in our region, and this is what is needed.” Related articlesHungary’s Horizon Europe performance in numbersCommission unlocks Erasmus+ cash for Hungary, Horizon could be next‘Academic Huxit.’ Hungarian researchers speak out on impact of EU ban A more difficult task will be funding. The new government is aiming to increase research spending to 2% of the GDP by 2030, and then increase it to 3% in line with EU objectives. Currently, spending sits around 1.3%. But according to Horváth, the current budget, inherited from the previous government, is “heavily in the negative,” so any plans to increase research spending will have to start next year. Achieving 2% by 2030 already needs a big push, almost doubling the research budget. “This is something we’d definitely like to reach, and something I can see us achieving,” he said. “From the 2030s, I’d like to see an innovative generation growing up that can help us reach the 3% target.” Positivity in the new governmentDespite the many challenges facing Horváth and his team, the mood is positive. “It feels a bit like a start-up right now. Everyone is working 24/7, day and night, trying to do as much as they can. There is a lot of energy,” he said. It is a big change for the state secretary who, like many in his cabinet, is coming from a background in research or business, and not in politics. “Six weeks ago, I was sitting with my microscope and my research PhDs, so it’s been a big change for me,” said the computer scientist, who was previously the director of the Institute of Biochemistry at the Hun-Ren Biological Research Centre in Hungary and worked at the Institute for AI for Health at Helmholtz Munich. But he is relishing the task to transform the country’s R&D landscape. “We feel enormous support from the Hungarian people, but also from Europe,” he said. “We’ve received a lot of letters of support from around Europe. There is big trust there, and huge responsibility on our side. We want to get everything back on track, and there’s a lot to do.”