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A Filmmaker Made a Sam Altman Deepfake—and Got Unexpectedly Attached
The director of “Deepfaking Sam Altman” created a “Sam Bot” when he couldn’t get an interview with the OpenAI CEO. Watch an exclusive trailer for the documentary, which comes out in January.
Taylor Swift Put a ‘Curse’ on Chiefs, Says NFL Star
Los Angeles Rams receiver Puka Nacua drew attention this week by blaming Taylor Swift for the Kansas City Chiefs’ collapse. The remark came on social media when the Chiefs confirmed an early exit from playoff contention. The conversation also dived deeper into injuries this season and what comes next for the franchise, including Travis Kelce. […] The post Taylor Swift Put a ‘Curse’ on Chiefs, Says NFL Star appeared first on Mandatory.
Potential lack of funding for plan to prevent violence against women ‘deeply concerning’, says victims’ commissioner
Claire Waxman warns government’s delayed strategy to halve violence against women and girls could end up ‘less than the sum of its parts’
Saturn's moon Titan may not have a buried ocean as suspected, study suggests
New research suggests Titan instead may hold deep layers of ice and slush more akin to Earth's polar seas instead of a buried ocean as long suspected.
From Television Host To Media Mogul: How Scott Evans Is Expanding His Entertainment Empire
After years of dominating within the entertainment industry as an in-demand, beloved, and lauded Emmy-nominated television host, he has made shockwaves with his own brand and Webby-award-winning and self-funded show, ‘House Guest’ hosted on YouTube. His success lies in his infectious, warm personality and effortless ability to connect deeply with people, especially celebrities, through his show, ‘House Guest.’ The show filmed at his home with a small but mighty production crew, and curates an intimate environment that fosters authentic, genuine conversations, which typically go viral.
How dogs make teens feel less anxious
The beneficial relationship is much more than skin deep
A new era for sports communication at UNC Hussman | UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media
As director of UNC Hussman’s Sports Communication Focus Program, Distinguished Associate Professor of Sports Communication Livis Freeman is building on the work of the school’s legendary Distinguished Professor for Sports Communication John Sweeney. Sweeney, who retired last year, developed one of the most respected sports communication programs in the country. Freeman, now in his 12th year at the school, is launching an ambitious expansion of the program that is transforming how UNC prepares students for careers in sports media. The most visible change came this fall with a reimagining of “MEJO 377: Sports Communication.” Previously offered as two sections with 30 students each, the course expanded to 96 students and welcomed former UNC basketball star and NBA veteran Tyler Hansbrough as the co-instructor with Freeman, bringing real world professional experience directly into the classroom every week. The course has been a huge success. Students have participated in recording a podcast with Hansbrough and learned from an impressive lineup of guest speakers. Steve Kirschner, UNC’s senior associate director of athletics for communications, was the first in the course’s guest speaker series, followed by UNC Hussman alumni including Kaitlyn Schmidt ’23 from Bleacher Report, Deaton Bell ’90 from Turner Sports and Becca Royer ’19 from the Philadelphia 76ers. Travis Tygart, CEO of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, also shared his insights with the class. The highlight of the semester came when Roy Williams, who coached Hansbrough and the Tar Heels to a national championship in 2009, visited the classroom. Former UNC men’s basketball players Luke Maye and Marcus Ginyard showed up to support their former coach and Hansbrough, creating an unforgettable experience as Williams entertained students with stories and insights that captivated the room. Student demand has been overwhelming. The course reached capacity within two days of registration opening, with more than 40 students on the waitlist. “Students want to learn from people who have actually lived these experiences,” Freeman said. “Tyler shares insights into media relations, broadcast production and athlete communications that you simply can’t get from a textbook.” The model proved so successful that the school secured funding to continue it for the next five years, with a different former professional athlete co-teaching each fall. The school’s curriculum committee approved a proposal to expand the course to 150 to 200 students starting in fall 2026. This change will make it an introductory course accessible to students from across the University, transforming it into a showcase course for the entire campus. The course redesign represents just one piece of a broader sports communication program overhaul. This fall, the curriculum committee approved “MEJO 390: Sports Play by Play,” the first course of its kind at UNC. Limited to 10 advanced students, the course will be taught by Matt Krause, the current voice of UNC women’s basketball and an ACC Network broadcaster. Students will call actual games across multiple sports including women’s softball, soccer, volleyball, field hockey and lacrosse, as well as men’s soccer and lacrosse. They will also shadow broadcasts of men’s and women’s basketball games. “The sports broadcasting industry is exploding with streaming platforms and conference networks creating unprecedented demand,” Freeman said. The course emerged directly from student advocacy, led by Anna Laible ’26 and others who pushed for hands-on broadcasting experience. Professional equipment has been acquired, partnerships with UNC Athletics are in place and a soft launch began this semester with three experienced students calling games to test the system. The program’s growth extends into other specialized areas as well. Last spring, Stembler Professor Charlie Tuggle launched a new sports event management and hospitality course in partnership with On Location, a company that manages major sporting event experiences. The course provided students with opportunities to travel to the Super Bowl and NFL Draft, and Tuggle plans to take a group to the 2026 Milan Olympics this spring. Looking ahead to spring 2026, Associate Professor Ryan Thornburg will debut a sports data visualization course, adding another dimension to the program’s skill-building offerings. The curriculum expansion reflects the increasingly diverse career paths available in sports media, from traditional journalism and broadcasting to digital analytics and strategic communication. The program is also diving into one of college athletics’ most transformative developments: Name, Image and Likeness rights. Freeman’s “MEJO 466: Sports Marketing” class collaborated last spring with Associate Professor Gary Kayye’s “MEJO 371: Advertising Creative” class on a project with UNC’s Carolina NIL group to help rebrand their organization. That same semester, Kayye’s class envisioned Chapel Thrill, UNC football’s new pregame concert and entertainment experience. And Shaun Anderson, the school’s Knight Chair in Sports, Race and Media, continues to explore the broader implications of NIL through his research and teaching. These NIL-focused initiatives give students direct exposure to the business side of college athletics at a moment when the landscape is rapidly evolving. “Our students aren’t just learning about these changes,” Freeman said. “They’re actively helping shape how schools and athletes navigate them.” The transformation of UNC Hussman’s sports communication program reflects a broader philosophy about how to prepare students for careers in a rapidly changing industry. By bringing in professional practitioners like Hansbrough and Krause, partnering with industry leaders like On Location and ACC Network, and engaging with current issues like NIL, the program ensures students graduate with both theoretical knowledge and practical experience. For alumni who remember the foundations John Sweeney built, the expansion represents an evolution rather than a departure. The program still emphasizes strong reporting, strategic communication, ethical communication and critical thinking. But now it also offers students the chance to call live games, work on real NIL campaigns and learn directly from former professional athletes. “We’re not just teaching students about sports media,” Freeman said. “We’re giving them the tools, experiences and connections to actually build careers in it.” With new courses launching, professional partnerships deepening and enrollment expanding, UNC Hussman’s sports communication program is positioning itself as a national leader in preparing the next generation of sports media professionals. For current students, the message is clear: if you’re interested in sports communication, there’s never been a better time to be at UNC Hussman. And for the hundreds of students trying to get off waitlists and into these new courses, the school is working to create more opportunities. The program John Sweeney built is growing in ways that honor his legacy while meeting the demands of a new era in sports media.
Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis says some AI startups are wildly overpriced — and a correction is coming
The Google DeepMind CEO warns that some early AI startups are overvalued and the current pace of funding won't last.
"MicroProse and Geoff Crammond Reunite to Revive a Racing Legend"
MicroProse is excited to announce its renewed partnership with legendary game developer Geoff Crammond, creator of some of the most influential racing simulation games of the 1990s and early 2000s. Together, we are bringing back his groundbreaking racing game engine in a re-release of the original game technology, enhanced with updates, new tools, and Steam Workshop support, through the upcoming Geoff Crammond Racing series: GCR1, GCR2, GCR3, and GCR4, scheduled to release in 2026. These titles are being reintroduced under new names to reflect our independent direction and to ensure full separation from any official motorsport licensing. While the names are new, the core simulation engine, physics systems, and pioneering gameplay features developed by Geoff Crammond remain at the heart of each release. Geoff Crammond’s original work helped define the foundations of modern racing games, introducing innovations such as advanced real-time physics, highly configurable driving assists (including the ideal racing line, steering help and auto braking), realistic AI driver behaviour, deep telemetry analysis, comprehensive car setup systems, extensive wet weather system, and the list goes on. The GCR series proudly carries this legacy forward. Steam Workshop support will enable the community to create and share custom tracks, cars, liveries, teams, drivers and more. This reunion marks the beginning of a long-term partnership between MicroProse and Geoff Crammond, with further announcements in the series to come. MicroProse is officially back on the track at full speed. GCR1 Steam Page GCR2 Steam Page GCR3 Steam Page GCR4 Steam Page -- MicroProse, founded in 1982, is a world-famous simulation software company known for developing groundbreaking classics and new blockbuster titles such as Falcon, HighFleet, B-17 The Mighty Eighth, Ground Branch, Gunship and many more! Today, MicroProse is not only remaking select classics from its past but also paving the road to next-generation, state of the art games that will create the memories and experiences of new generations of gamers.
The Taylor Swift docuseries finally turned me into a Swiftie
“The End of an Era” on Disney+ goes deep into the star’s humanity.
Ramanujan’s 100-year-old pi formula is still revealing the Universe
Ramanujan’s elegant formulas for calculating pi, developed more than a century ago, have unexpectedly resurfaced at the heart of modern physics. Researchers at IISc discovered that the same mathematical structures behind these formulas also describe real-world phenomena like turbulence, percolation, and even black holes. What once seemed like pure mathematics now appears deeply intertwined with the physical laws governing the universe.
Business leaders agree AI is the future. They just wish it worked right now
By Deepa Seetharaman, Supantha Mukherjee and Krystal Hu SAN FRANCISCO/STOCKHOLM, Dec 16 - Last spring, CellarTracker, a wine-collection app, built an AI-powered sommelier to make unvarnished wine
A Political Scientist’s ‘Altar Call’: PW Talks with Ryan Burge
In The Vanishing Church (Brazos), the Washington University professor, who examines American religion through data, frets over Christians’ deep polarization, urging believers to find a church where differences, diversity, and doubts are welcomed.
WHO highlights health risks and opportunities in the global waste crisis
A new World Health Organization (WHO) report, Throwing away our health: the impacts of solid waste on human health – evidence, knowledge gaps and health sector responses, warns that poorly managed solid waste is driving a public health crisis and calls for urgent action to protect people and the environments they live in.Globally, the volume of municipal solid waste is growing at an unprecedented rate. Yet, many countries still lack the systems and resources to manage this waste safely. “Solid waste reflects how our societies produce and consume, and how we treat people and the environment in the process,” said Dr Ruediger Krech, Director a.i., Department of Environment, Climate Change, One Health & Migration at the World Health Organization. “If we continue to treat waste as an afterthought, we will lock in avoidable disease, climate pollution and deep social inequities. This report is a clear call to put health and equity at the centre of how we design, manage and ultimately reduce waste.”The report summarizes evidence on how solid waste – especially municipal solid waste – affects health through polluted air, water, soil and food. When waste is not collected, or is dumped, burned or not poorly treated, it can release hazardous chemicals, contaminate drinking-water sources and create breeding grounds for insects and rodents.Communities underserved by waste management services, those living near dumpsites and poorly managed landfills and incinerators, children and pregnant women, as well as waste workers – particularly those working informally – face the greatest risks. For the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) community, the report underlines that safe management of municipal and health care waste is integral to safely managed, climate-resilient systems.A large share of municipal solid waste is still not collected or is disposed of in uncontrolled conditions, including open dumpsites and open burning. These practices damage ecosystems, contribute to climate change and undermine efforts to build healthy cities. When waste is properly managed, however, it can become a resource – generating energy and creating green jobs. The report calls for a coordinated, multisectoral response grounded in the waste hierarchy: preventing waste where possible, then reducing, reusing and recycling, with safe recovery and disposal.Key actions for governments and partners include reducing waste generation at source; expanding affordable and reliable waste collection services, especially in underserved communities; improving control at recovery and disposal facilities; and eliminating open dumping and burning, including hazardous waste. The new report identifies a central role for the health sector in addressing solid waste as a public health threat. The health sector can prevent and minimize health-care waste at source, improve segregation and safe treatment, invest in cleaner climate-resilient technologies, and advocate for health-protective policies and standards. The report also encourages more surveillance, research and biomonitoring to strengthen the evidence base, and promotes social protection and inclusion of informal waste workers.“This report gives countries and health authorities a very practical agenda,” said Mr Bruce Gordon, Head, Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Unit, WHO. “Health ministries can start now by ensuring safe management of health-care waste, developing strong occupational health programmes for waste workers, and working with municipalities to reduce health risks from solid waste by closing open dumps and burn sites and gradually improving towards safe services. These concrete steps save lives today and will make cities cleaner and healthier in the future.
Book Review: ‘Free Gifts: Capitalism and the Politics of Nature’
'Free Gifts' is a book for deep thinkers wishing to delve into the ideas that formed our society and are now remaking the physical planet.
PayPal Deepens Small Business Lending Push With PayPal Bank
PayPal said it is ready to venture deeper into small business lending. The company applied to the Utah Department of Financial Institutions and the
Kinesiology and Health Sciences Program: Preparing Students for Dynamic Careers in Human Movement
Alma College’s Department of Kinesiology and Health Sciences (KHS) is evolving — building on decades of expertise while expanding opportunities for students to engage deeply with human movement, clinical practice,
Kinesiology and Health Sciences Program: Preparing Students for Dynamic Careers in Human Movement
Alma College’s Department of Kinesiology and Health Sciences (KHS) is evolving — building on decades of expertise while expanding opportunities for students to engage deeply with human movement, clinical practice,
NASA Continues MAVEN Spacecraft Recontact Efforts
NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) mission team, in partnership with the agency’s Deep Space Network, continues recovery activities after
The OpenFold Consortium Names Dr. Jan Domanski as Senior Science Lead to Drive the Next Generation of Open Source AI Models for Structural Biology and Drug Discovery
DAVIS, Calif., December 15, 2025--Dr. Domanski embodies the spirit of OpenFold: a deep scientific understanding of proteins with engineering expertise and a builder’s mindset
Kast wins Chile's presidency, deepening regional shift to law-and-order politics
Jose Antonio Kast won Chile's presidential election on Sunday, leveraging voter fears over rising crime and migration to steer the country in its sharpest rightward shift since the end of the military dictatorship in 1990.
The mystery of the Seneca Drums persists
Researchers are plumbing the depths of the largest and deepest of New York’s Finger Lakes to explain the source of its famous booming sounds.
People and planet: How human and planetary health are deeply connected
The health of people and the planet are inextricably intertwined, with time spent in nature positively improving our lives and inspiring us to help keep Earth healthy.
How NIH-Funded Science Supports US Biopharmaceutical Innovation
NIH-funded research supports the foundation for industry to develop vaccines and therapies, exemplifying deep public-private R&D complementarity. As global competition intensifies, expanding NIH funding will be key to protecting American health, supporting U.S. biopharmaceutical competitiveness, and ensuring national power and security.
Chile elects Kast as president, deepening regional shift to law-and-order politics
Jose Antonio Kast won Chile’s presidential election on Sunday, leveraging voter fears over rising crime and migration to take the country to its sharpest rightward shift since the end of dictatorship in 1990.
Oskar Fischinger Exhibit Explores Works of Pioneer Abstract Artist
A solo art exhibit, Oskar Fischinger: A Deeper Look, will open Jan. 2 at Sullivan Goss Gallery spotlighting the innovative painting career of Oskar
Latest on the Trump administration: Health care deadline looms, US-Venezuela tensions deepen
It’s the start of a consequential new week for President Donald Trump, with deadlines looming for the release of the Epstein files and addressing key health care subsidies. Follow for live updates.
Latest on the Trump administration: Health care deadline looms, US-Venezuela tensions deepen
It’s the start of a consequential new week for President Donald Trump, with deadlines looming for the release of the Epstein files and addressing key health care subsidies. Follow for live updates.
Mental Health Matters, People with Mental Illness Matter Too
Personal Perspective: Amid the mental health positive catchphrases, deep-rooted prejudice still exists toward people living with serious mental health conditions.
Strange, 7-hour explosion from deep space is unlike anything scientists have seen — Space photo of the week
Astronomers used major telescopes across the world to probe a cosmic explosion 8 billion light-years from the solar system.
Washington snags five picks, pummels Boise State in L.A. Bowl
Boise State and Washington were scoreless early, but a deep touchdown pass in the second quarter sparked the Huskies en route to a 38-10 win over the Broncos.
Civics vs. politics with UW-La Crosse political scientist Chergosky
We’re back on La Crosse Talk PM with UW-La Crosse political science professor Dr. Anthony Chergosky, who helps us take a deep dive into civics vs. politics. Before we get to that, we had to reset after nearly a year away from the Friday slot. The last PM show we did, Chergosky was ironically trying […]
Teen’s video a ‘Breakthrough’ in science communication
Seventeen-year-old Grace Lee from Chula Vista is gaining national attention as a finalist in the global Breakthrough Junior Challenge, an annual competition that invites students to create original videos explaining complex scientific ideas in creative and engaging ways. Founded in 2015, the contest encourages young people to break down advanced scientific theories using imagination and storytelling— “Steven Spielberg meets Albert Einstein,” as organizers describe it. Lee’s submission centers on the principle of least time in physics, a concept that explains why light always travels the path that takes the least amount of time. To bring the idea to life, she used intricate origami characters and stop-motion animation, along with simple at-home experiments, she said. “The fact that light always travels via the path that takes the least amount of time sounds simple at first, but nature is full of surprises,” she said. “This principle is actually very profound and underlies many different fields in physics that seem completely unrelated, from optics to Newton’s laws to Einstein’s theory of relativity.” Also, origami has long been one of her passions and integrating it into her project felt natural. She often makes origami gifts for friends and teaches origami in her school clubs. “A single 10-second scene would take hours to craft,” she said, noting the mixture of stop-motion and post-production editing required to animate expressions and movement. To ensure the science remained accurate and accessible, she spent time reading books and online resources, writing a script, creating a storyboard, and filming and editing repeatedly until the visuals worked.The experiments were among the biggest challenges. To demonstrate water waves, she used everyday household items — “a spatula and an electric toothbrush to vibrate the waves, glass in a baking pan for different depths, and an iPhone flashlight so the waves would be visible.” She also put careful thought into explaining the principle through analogies, including a gingerbread man and a fox. “Analogies and visuals are incredibly important,” she said. “Visual demonstrations allow viewers to see how the science actually works.” Beyond the competition, Lee is deeply involved in science leadership and advocacy. She serves as International President of miRcore, the world’s largest student computational biology organization, with 136 chapters across five countries. She leads a 20-member executive board, organizes outreach connecting schools worldwide, and has helped run workshops at locations including Scripps Research Institute and the University of Michigan. “I used to be intimidated,” she said, but she gradually grew her skills and confidence. “Now I am no longer afraid to use my voice and enthusiasm to bring out the best in others.” Her research experience includes two peer-reviewed papers on asthma and vaping. Misconceptions around vaping, she said, show why clear science communication matters. “Our research shows that there is long-term harm to your lungs on the cellular level that isn’t obvious unless you come down with an illness like the flu,” she said. Lee also founded Full Hearts at Eastlake High School, transforming the small club into one of the school’s largest, with hands-on service projects in partnership with local nonprofits. She continues mentoring younger students to sustain the mission. If she wins the Breakthrough Junior Challenge, Grace hopes the $100,000 science lab prize for her school will expand opportunities for students who have limited access to equipment and hands-on science outside the classroom.
Rare, deep-sea encounter: California scientists observe 'extraordinary' seven-arm octopus
Almost a half-mile below Monterey Bay's surface, California scientists recorded rare footage of a seven-arm octopus eating a red, bioluminescent jellyfish last month.
Wake Up Dead Man Knows the Whodunnit is Inherently Political. (It’s also a Perfect Movie.)
Featured image: Netflix To be honest, I’ve been afraid of writing this review. I was so deeply moved by Wake Up Dead Man, the new film from Rian Johnson (and the third in his Benoit Blanc tri…
The Republicans’ Endangered Health
The refusal to extend ACA subsidies becomes a huge political liability and signals deepening splits.
Giant structure discovered deep beneath Bermuda is unlike anything else on Earth
A thick layer of more than 12 miles of rock may explain why Bermuda seems to float above the surrounding ocean.
Green Bay Packers News: Christian Watson’s return sparks deep ball
With long balls squarely back in the Packers’ arsenal, the sky is the limit for where this team can go.
Scouting the Enemy: Green Bay Packers
The Denver Broncos take on the Green Bay Packers this Sunday. Here is a deeper look at their Week 15 opponent.
Ghost particles slip through Earth and spark a hidden atomic reaction
Scientists have managed to observe solar neutrinos carrying out a rare atomic transformation deep underground, converting carbon-13 into nitrogen-13 inside the SNO+ detector. By tracking two faint flashes of light separated by several minutes, researchers confirmed one of the lowest-energy neutrino interactions ever detected.
Google launched its deepest AI research agent yet — on the same day OpenAI dropped GPT-5.2
For the first time, developers can embed Google's Deep Research tool, based on Gemini 3 Pro, into their own apps.
Indiana Senate Republicans reject Trump’s redistricting push
The Indiana Senate on Thursday voted down a plan to redraw the state’s congressional districts to hand Republicans two more seats, dealing President Donald Trump a rare rebuke from his own party in the face of the president’s months-long campaign to pressure the GOP supermajority in the deep-red state to bend to his will.
Early Earth's belly held onto its water
When the early Earth’s magma ocean crystallized 4.4 billion years ago, the deep mantle trapped an ocean’s worth of water, scientists say.
Republicans worry Trump is missing the mark on affordability
President Donald Trump’s high-profile economic speech on Tuesday night was meant to alleviate Americans’ concerns about the cost of living. Instead, it mainly appeared to deepen fears within the GOP that he’s not quite getting it.
Republicans struggle to unite on health care as Obamacare subsidies expire
Recent weeks have showcased a free-for-all of competing GOP ideas and reinforced deep partisan divisions over the issue.
Louisville women's basketball routs Ball State ahead of North Carolina
Louisville women's basketball, behind its deep frontcourt, routed Ball State on Wednesday in its tuneup for an ACC game Sunday against North Carolina.
Google DeepMind to build materials science lab after signing deal with UK
Big Tech group will work with Sir Keir Starmer’s government to enhance AI use across public sector
AI to accelerate national renewal and growth as Google DeepMind backs UK tech and science sectors
A new partnership with Google DeepMind will help to turn cutting-edge AI into real benefits for working people.
Google DeepMind agrees to sweeping research collaboration with the U.K. government
The partnership will focus on nuclear fusion, discovering new materials, AI safety, and the societal impacts of AI.
Mysterious X-ray signal from deep space may be the scream of a star ripped apart by two black holes
A strange X-ray signal spotted decades ago may be the result of a star that got attacked by two black holes, one after the other.
UAMS to Train 75 Community Health Workers with Support from Arkansas Office of Skills Development
LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Institute for Community Health Innovation will work with partners to continue building the community health worker (CHW) workforce across the state after receiving $375,000 in support from the Arkansas Office of Skills Development Training Grant Program. The Office of…
Danforth Plant Science Center to Lead Multi-Disciplinary Research to Enhance Stress Resilience in Bioenergy Sorghum
ST. LOUIS, MO., December 10, 2025 – Andrea Eveland, Ph.D., Principal Investigator and member at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, will lead a multi-institutional project to deepen the understanding of sorghum, a versatile bioenergy crop, and its response to environmental challenges. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Biological and Environmental Research (BER) program supports the three-year $2.
Senate Republicans plan key health care vote despite deep divisions
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) says Senate Republicans will vote Thursday on a GOP-crafted proposal to address rising health insurance premiums, despite deep divisions within his confer…
Finland Needs More Reforms to Pay for Health Care, Report Says
Finland needs to fine tune how it provides basic health-care services in the midst of deeper budget deficits, according to a report assessing an overhaul carried out two years ago.
Penn State Health introduces advanced MRI technology that reduces anesthesia time
Penn State Health is now using a cutting-edge imaging technology that significantly reduces the time patients spend under anesthesia during MRI scans – with especially meaningful benefits for children.
New APHA Book Warns Social Systems Are Driving Deepening Health Inequities
Penn Nursing Dean Antonia Villarruel co-authors the work that examines how social determinants of health are different across multiple racial and ethnic groups
Rules on single-sex spaces pose risk to trans people’s mental health, UK charities say
Fifteen organisations sign letter expressing deep concern over EHRC guidance being considered by ministers
NYK Donates to Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology for Faculty of Marine Engineering’s 150th Anniversary Project
"NYK Donates to Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology for Faculty of Marine Engineering’s 150th Anniversary Project" - The NYK Group goes beyond the framework of a comprehensive logistics company to co-create the necessary value for the future through the deepening of core businesses and the growth of new businesses.
Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis says AI scaling 'must be pushed to the maximum'
Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis says AI scaling is key to reaching AGI, a still theoretical version of AI that reasons as well as humans.
Congressional Republicans face several divsive issues to end the year
NPR's Ayesha Rascoe asks Republican strategist Liam Donovan, head of the consulting and public affairs firm Targeted Victory, how deep current disagreements in the GOP Congressional caucus are.
The business of caring for older Americans is in a deepening crisis
Government funding cuts, caregiver shortages and immigration limits are adding new strains to an industry that’s already hard-pressed to meet demand.
The business of caring for older Americans is in a deepening crisis
Government funding cuts, caregiver shortages and immigration limits are adding new strains to an industry that’s already hard-pressed to meet demand.
Global scientists gather in SW China's Tengchong to drive innovation
The 2025 Tengchong Scientists Forum opened Saturday in southwest China's Yunnan Province, drawing hundreds of scientists, university leaders and entrepreneurs from across the globe to explore cutting-edge research and promote deeper integration between
100K Alabamians could lose health insurance overnight
Alabama hospital leaders and Congresswoman Terri Sewell are warning that a new federal healthcare bill could push many rural hospitals, including one in Wilcox county, into deeper financial trouble.
From Antarctica to AI: India International Science Festival 2025 brings science enthusiasts under one roof
The festival features over 150 technical and thematic sessions spanning science, technology, innovation, and industry. Key focus areas include artificial intelligence (AI), bio-economy, space, quantum technology, and the integration of traditional knowledge with modern science, alongside sessions on deep-tech entrepreneurship and the blue economy.
AI deepfakes of real doctors spreading health misinformation on social media
Hundreds of videos on TikTok and elsewhere impersonate experts to sell supplements with unproven effects
Vanderbilt Health deepens collaboration with Charité–Universitätsmedizin Berlin through memorandum of understanding
Vanderbilt Health has signed a memorandum of understanding with Charité to increase collaboration in medical education, clinical research, digital health and translational science.
Over a third of animals lost in test deep sea mining
The findings contribute to a controversial debate that pits green technology against the environment.
Exclusive: Some AI dangers are already real, DeepMind's Hassabis says
The race to develop AI is changing society in real time, generally for good — but bad actors are taking advantage, too.
Exclusive: "Transformative" AGI is on the horizon, DeepMind's Hassabis says
The DeepMind CEO describes AGI as "the most transformative moment in human history."
MUFG Seeks to Extend Morgan Stanley Ties to Asset Management Business
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. plans to team up with Morgan Stanley in asset management, deepening their 17-year partnership.
Americans under 30 are ‘under profound strain’ and deeply mistrust institutions, poll finds
Young Americans are “a generation under profound strain” with little confidence in institutions and widespread economic concerns, according to a Harvard Institute of Politics survey of adults younger than 30 released Thursday.
Global Fishing Watch and Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory launch Deep-Sea Mining Watch
The new global transparency tool will empower governments, researchers and civil society to monitor vessels involved in deep-sea mineral explorationWashington, D.C., United States, Dec. 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global Fishing Watch, an international nonprofit organization advancing ocean governance through transparency of human activity at sea, and the Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory, at the University of California, Santa Barbara, have unveiled an upgraded open-access portal designed to br
How diet affects gut health: 3 key takeaways from recent studies
Recent research has delved deep into the manifold ways in which diet can affect gut health throughout a person's life. Here are some of the most important takeaways.
PAHO Director and President of the Dominican Republic Strengthen Health Cooperation and Address National Priorities
Santo Domingo, December 3, 2025 (PAHO) – The Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Jarbas Barbosa, met today with the President of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader, at the Presidential Palace to deepen bilateral cooperation and review strategic areas to continue strengthening the country’s health systems.The meeting was also attended by the Minister of Public Health, Víctor Atallah; PAHO’s Representative in the Dominican Republic, Alba María Ropero Álvarez; and the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rubén Silié.
A dozen former FDA commissioners condemn plan to tighten vaccine approvals
In a New England Journal of Medicine article, the former FDA commissioners wrote they were “deeply concerned” by the top vaccine regulator’s approach to raising the bar for approvals.
Republicans barely won in a Trump-friendly Tennessee district. Here’s what it means for Pennsylvania and 2026.
The fact Democrats turned a special election in a deep-red district into a nail-bitter is a bad sign for Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterms.
69% Global Executives Predict AI Agents will Reshape Business in 2026, According to DeepL Research
The age of the AI agent has arrived. New research from DeepL, a global AI product and research company, reveals that 2026 will mark a decisive shift from AI experimentation to agentic automation with a majority (69%) of global business leaders expecting agentic AI to transform their operations in the year ahead.
Republican Matt Van Epps will win Tennessee special election, averting Democratic upset, CNN projects
Republican Matt Van Epps will win the special US House election for Tennessee’s 7th District, CNN’s Decision Desk projects, preventing an upset but emboldening Democrats as they were on track to over-perform in a normally deep-red district.
Republican Matt Van Epps holds deep-red House district in Tennessee special election
Van Epps defeated Democrat Aftyn Behn, NBC News projects, after an expensive campaign to replace former Rep. Mark Green.
Colts’ Stock Up/Down: Week 13 vs. Texans
Stock Up Alec Pierce No player in the NFL has earned himself more money than Pierce has this season. He has elevated his game to a whole different level and is right now the Colts’ best wide receiver on the roster, not just a deep threat specialist like last year with AR. He gets open […]
Vaulted Deep Named "Best in Business" By Inc. Magazine for Scaling Critical Waste Infrastructure while Delivering Carbon Removal
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Theoretical physicist and neuroscientist Àlex Gómez-Marín argues that modern science has become trapped in a framework that mistakes matter for the whole of reality. In this wide-ranging interview, Gómez-Marín challenges the foundations of materialism, defends the scientific study of near-death experiences, and calls for a new type of science grounded in mystery and a renewed sense of the sacred. He suggests that abandoning materialism could open the door to a deeper understanding of consciousness, death, and the purpose of human existence. Simon Custer: You are both a theoretical physicist and a neuroscientist, and you have also been fiercely critical of materialist theories of mind and consciousness. What do you think the ultimate nature of reality is?Àlex Gómez-Marín: I don't know what the ultimate nature of reality is, but what I try to first assess is whether the stories that they [mainstream science] have told us about it are right, or maybe whether there are other alternatives. That's why I've been a fierce critic of materialism. As a scientist, I realized that they had sold us this idea that to be a good scientist you also had to subscribe to many other -isms, like materialism, reductionism, and even secularism. And so first I think one needs to unmount these -isms, and then, as is happening today in consciousness studies, we have a huge landscape where there isn't only one game in town, the idea that matter is the only thing that really exists. But because we are studying the hard problem of consciousness, it may be the case that other views of reality, like idealism, or even dualism, or other theories like dual aspect monism... these are philosophical ideas that now, I think, have room in science to be taken seriously. How does something like materialism relate to dualism or idealism? What is materialism in the first place?Well, materialism is the philosophical position that matter is the only really ‘real’ thing in the universe. And I think that worked kind of well because science started 400 years ago and Galileo made that split, I call it the foundational wound. It was a great business move.He said, let's start doing science on that portion of reality that lends itself more easily to mathematization and measurement. So, for some reason, the solidity of this table or the movement of planets lend themselves very well to this foundational idea of science. But as time went on, 400 years later, we realized that we had forgotten the other side, which is what really matters.What really matters is pain, is love, is feelings, sensation, consciousness, which is very hard to define, but very intimate. We all know what it is. It's that thing that disappears when we go into deep sleep and comes back in the morning. SUGGESTED VIEWING On the edges of knowledge With Michael Shermer, Rupert Sheldrake, Güneş Taylor It's what it is like to be, as Nagel said. It's the feeling of being alive. So, materialism is good to study certain things, but then when it ossifies into this ideology and then is dressed like science, now it's preventing us from understanding these key questions that are really that everybody wants to know.Why are we here? Why do we feel reality? Where do we go when we die? And so we need other ways. We need pluralism. I'm only asking for having more options on the table and taking them seriously. Why does materialism fail to explain consciousness? For example, if you were to lobotomize me, I would not be a functional human being. What do you say to someone who might think that materialism adequately explains the mind?Well, here we could speak about different things. We could talk about physics or about neuroscience. I happen to have training with both.For instance, for neuroscientists, 99% of them, I'm not included in that portion, believe that the brain can only be a productive organ. It's an organ that somehow, somewhere, consciousness emerges. It's like a lamp. And then something happens, magic happens, and then consciousness emerges.That's the position you need to be if you're a materialist because if the only really ‘real’ thing is matter, then you need to say, just give us some more time and money and we'll figure out how mind emerges or is produced from matter. There are many philosophically sophisticated ways of criticizing this.Now there's another option, which is the brain as a permissive organ. This was said by William James more than 100 years ago.Now then the brain wouldn't be like this machine, like for instance, a heat engine whose smoke is consciousness, which is what we would have in the first big model, the productive model. But in the permissive model, the brain would be a kind of a filter. And so the brain would still have a very important role in consciousness, but it wouldn't be a productive role.It would be permissive, much like a filter or much like a prism which would receive light. And - I'm speaking metaphorically - it would receive the light of the mind and then it could reflect it and refract it.Now, with these two big options on the table, I think we can make progress into what I call the edges of consciousness, which are all these experiences, weird experiences that many people have, but we don't talk about enough, like near-death experiences, precognitive dreams, synchronicities. These experiences are very important for humans and they have a place in the permissive hypothesis and they are literally impossible in the productive hypothesis. So that's yet one more reason to explore alternatives to materialism. There may be anecdotal evidence for near-death experiences, but is there robust evidence that would be accepted by the majority of scientists who subscribe to the scientific method?Sure. And the plural of anecdotes, someone said, is data.And there's a lot of data. Actually, this year is the 50th anniversary, half a century, since Dr. Raymond Moody realized that we have two ears and one mouth and started listening to what his patients had to say about their experiences while they were clinically dead.The heart had stopped, breathing had stopped in these patients. These patients would come back and tell him these amazing stories that some people may say are hallucinations, but for the patients were hyper-real, like seeing light at the end of the tunnels, seeing deceased family members waiting for them, feeling bliss.___I would say the evidence suggests that the mind can survive the death of activity of the brain.___And so he and others started taking them seriously and writing their accounts down. And then you can do a science based on that material of experience that people have. Now, on the more objective side, more recently people have started to measure what's going on in the brain when people are clinically dead and brought back. This has opened a proper field of study, which is near-death studies.Evidence is a difficult word, because sometimes people think that when you say evidence, this is just the final proof. Evidence is like in a jury. You bring testimony, you bring pieces of data that point in one direction or another.I would say the evidence suggests that the mind can survive the death of activity of the brain. When brains are broken or shut off, there can still be mind going on. And that's revolutionary.That would entail that when we die, it's not game over, which, by the way, is the thesis of materialism. If consciousness survives, materialism dies. It's game over for materialism if something of us continues after we die. Do you think that there is mental continuity after death?Well, I think so, and I believe so, and I could also say I may have experienced it myself, because four years ago I had a near-death experience. I was in the hospital, I lost a lot of blood, and I saw those beings at the end of the tunnel, three beings, and there was yellow light. I was in a well, I was looking upwards, and I hadn't read about NDEs by then, but when I came back from this experience, I decided I would try to integrate this also in my professional life. Not just my personal life, of course, but my professional life as a physicist and as a neuroscientist. So I may have had the experience of glimpses of what an afterlife would be, and I'm not ashamed to say it in this way, and then one can do science of it, and then one can do philosophy of it.One can think about what -isms we were discussing, what views on reality would allow those experiences to be really ‘real,’ as opposed to, well, poor guy, the brain was kind of broken, it must have been a hallucination. Do you have a view about whether individuality or “the ego” persists after death, or whether we sort of merge into some sort of cosmic consciousness instead?I don't know, but my view would be along those lines you're suggesting. I think we could speak about a kind of universal mind, and then the problem is not how we emerge from matter, but how we fragment from a more holistic consciousness into these individual eddies and then when we die, this kind of dissipates.But I'm not sure. For instance, idealism would promote that view, but then what would survive of us after these eddies just vanish and become again the big Consciousness, I'm not sure what that would be. I don't know for sure, but I would tell you I believe something of us survives.And there are other lines of research, not just near-death experience, that can address this really hard question of survival. For instance, there are children who remember previous lives. This was studied by Ian Stevenson at the University of Virginia for more than 50 years.___Research takes place within a selection mechanism that also sometimes reinforces things that are not very scientific.___It's amazing research. He went all over the world, especially in the East, and collected all these case studies, all these stories. In plural, these were data of kids, very young age, who would describe up to 40 items that then he could go and verify.There was no internet. There was really no way the kid could know. Why would the kid say that when I was living in this other body and I was a woman and that's how my house would look like or that's how I would die, right? Again, there is evidence, not proof, but there's evidence not only that something weird and interesting is happening as we cross the threshold, but also when we come back to this life.Scientists should not be afraid of studying this, but they are because there's stigma. There's usually stigma upon the enigma, and this is so unfortunate. And one of the reasons is because of the ideology of materialism, because those things cannot be possible. What is wrong with the politics of science such that they have generated this stigma?So many things. Science is a human activity to begin with.So it falls prey to all our passions and ego and greed. That's one thing. Science is a job for the good and for the bad.You need to get a salary. You need to get grants. Research takes place within a selection mechanism that also sometimes reinforces things that are not very scientific.And then, we didn't have time to unpack this, but science for many years become entangled, as I was suggesting before, to other -isms, materialism, secularism. So anything that smells like the afterlife, people may think has to do with God, and then they freak out.Anything that suggests that there's something about the mind that may not need a physical material substrate to exist, it smells like non-materialism. So, all these -isms are ideologically blocking that kind of research, and then there are all these sociopolitical constraints as to what should be studied and what shouldn't be studied.I call it the backstage of science. Sometimes we scientists or science communicators seem to speak as if the data is the only thing that matters. We say, well, data and theory.But then there's a third leg of this stool, which is all the politics that goes behind the scenes. And we often don't speak about this, and it's quite vicious and petty, and it's very real. Why is materialism so attractive to most scientists?Well, an easy answer is because we've grown up with it.It's what the educational system promotes, and that's what you hear when you go to university. So it's like growing in a culture. It feels like the air in which you breathe.So it's very hard to begin with to detect, well, maybe there's another alternative. Maybe there are other ways of doing science, other environments in which one could do science. That's one reason.And other reasons maybe are more profound, and I'm not qualified to explain them, but I could say, looking at this 400-year history of science, since it started around 1623 with Galileo's book The Assayer, that science went and coupled with all what's going on in the West.And so the fall of religion, you could say, and science presented us this new alternative that then could be coupled very well with other -isms, and this idea of growth, and then science losing its good twin brother, which was philosophy. There's a whole natural history of science starting as philosophy, kind of emancipating or breaking out from philosophy, and then marrying technology, and then marrying other social systems.From that point of view, materialism is a very convenient idea to propose. There were attempts, like the German idealists tried to do a more romantic science. But no, the idea prevailed, like Francis Bacon said: You should pursue nature through all her corners, he said, and make her spill her secrets.Our attitude towards nature in the science that dominates is very much reflecting how we treat nature in our society, in our culture, like a resource to extract secrets by force and then dominate it. How is materialism related to the notions of growth and progress? What's wrong with having a productive citizenry?This is another very interesting and very difficult question to answer.But there's this recent book coming out by Paul Kingsnorth. In it, he explains this idea of the machine and this idea of progress. And this, again, this conflation of more is better, of we need to go forward always, and convincing us that the way to do that is to continually extract more from nature. But because we don't have the religious context anymore, because God is dead, then what do we have? We have what we can do as humans with our own gadgets.It's kind of the story of the Promethean fire. We will just build anything to make ourselves God.A good example today is transhumanism. Transhumanism is this pseudo-religion dressed in technoscientific language whose goal is very religious. They promise immortality, they promise redemption, they promise transformation of the entire natural world, but it's done by human means through technology. Are you suggesting that we can't have ethics without religion?Well, we should have ethics with or without religion. That's another pruning that has happened in science. We say, forget about aesthetics, although some physicists still think that beautiful means probably true, and forget about politics. We pretend there's no backstage of science, and even let's forget about ethics.___Science needs to be in the service of mankind.___Scientists, when they become more like engineers, they're just thinking how to make things work so that they can go to the moon, go to Mars, make machines that think, but they don't think whether that's a good idea.And also consider metaphysics. Many scientists for a long time pretended, and maybe that comes from the stream of positivisms, that really one doesn't need metaphysics at all, except that materialism is always the metaphysics running the system.You see, it's not just ethics. It's the pruning of all of these, you could say, five main legs of philosophy that just makes a kind of unconscious science, a science that doesn't really know what it's doing. It's doing it very well locally, but it just doesn't know what it's doing globally. Do you think science has to have an ultimate vision and purpose behind it for it to be effective or for it to be meaningful and transformative?Yes, a way I would say that is that science needs to be in the service of mankind. And it hasn't been that. And we can see it through, you know, when we discovered the secrets of the atom, and all of a sudden, the Manhattan Project, and then we create nuclear weapons.And now we're trying to crack how machines may think, and now we're creating this mess, right? So science needs to be in service of mankind, not in service of a few ideas that maybe want to make more money or just dominate upon nature. What about planes, trains, automobiles, and modern medicine? Hasn't science served mankind by helping us develop those technologies?Yes and no. I see where you're going, and it's fair.I came here by plane, and it's a blessing. When I almost died, the surgeons did their job, and they saved my life. But these two forced choices between Luddites and Silicon Valley types, I think, of course, it's a false dichotomy.Progress, in a way, it's good, but we often don't speak about the dark side of the moon. We say the great things that progress has brought, and we don't speak about the disasters, the side effects that it has come with, and the same when we promise new technologies. We tend to think that any technology is great, that email is going to save us so much time because we don't need to write letters and send them anymore.Is that true? I spend so many hours a week writing emails. Let's just say there are great things about it and bad things about it. People like Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, for example, argue that we've made moral progress over time because of the Enlightenment. Do you think that's totally wrong-headed?I think he's emphasizing a side of the moon, and he does that very well, and you can find tons of plots where there's a slope going up and say it's great. But I think he should also tell the not-so-friendly story.But if your ideology is just to resist and continue to explain that the Enlightenment is the best thing ever and reason is the best thing ever… this feels to me like you're worshipping these abstractions.I'm very critical of it and also of these, again, science communicators and scientists that say, Oh, science says, in the name of science, experts say. It's like, come on, let's be careful because we can shoot ourselves in the foot by putting forth to the people an image of science that we know is not really true. Recently there's been a resurgence of spirituality and of people who say that they're spiritual but not religious, especially in the United States. If materialism is going away, what is going to fill that gap? Are we going to return to traditional religion? Do you see that being connected with the rise of the political right?I'm not a fortune teller, so I don't know what's going to happen. But, yeah, we could say we're in this post-materialist age and even post-secular age. One cannot come back to the past, but maybe just to contact with the roots is a good idea.What do I mean by that? I think we need to do a science 2.0, a science that says thank you to Galileo and thank you to materialism, but we need to reinvent even a new kind of scientific method. We need to do so in a culture where we realize humans cannot thrive in a vacuum where there's this idea that the sacred has to be removed.Now, how do we do that without bringing in back all the vices of religion? I don't know. I'm from a Catholic country.Here we are in England, so there are differences and interreligious dialogue has always been a challenge. But I think maybe a way of putting it is: after all these conflicts and branchings I was quickly alluding to, science from philosophy and then also from religion, now there's a time of reconciliation perhaps and maybe debates in the proper sense, like exchange of ideas in service of learning and getting into something higher than both poles. We need science to talk to religious people and it's interesting when people say they're spiritual and not religious.I think this is just a way of saying, no, I don't want to go back, I want to go forward. But at the end of the day, religions have offered us practices and grounding that we now desperately need. Everybody can and should just meditate or pray or do whatever they want, but we're in a crisis and it's time for reconciliation. What do you say to critics that say you are merely projecting our need for meaning onto a fundamentally indifferent universe?Yeah, I know that the typical science communicator says something like this. But we're not projecting. Human beings feed on meaning.It's the other way around. If you're a materialist, because the only thing that there is is matter, all that comes next, free will, consciousness, meaning, this is a kind of illusion that we need to explain.They're just craving for meaning, but there isn't really for them. I would also like to remind my materialist friends that for decades, if not centuries, they've said in the name of science, we know that this and this and this doesn't really exist. I think now they sense they're forced to say, well, actually, we don't know. We've been saying, for instance, that there's nothing after you die, and now probably they need to admit that they don't know the answer.___We need to do a science 2.0, a science that says thank you to Galileo and thank you to materialism, but we need to reinvent even a new kind of scientific method.___So it's a moment to open up possibilities and also to gently but fiercely critique these claims that I think harm society. If you say in the name of science, get on with it, when your father dies, you'll never see him again. Well, what the F do you know about it? You haven't studied the literature, you haven't had any of those experiences, and basically what you're doing is you're just doing marketing on ideology. This needs to stop. Do you think that it's scarier for some people to entertain the thought that there might be life after death, compared to a materialist worldview where you just die, given that there might be consequences for unsavory behaviour?Well, death and dying is scary. It's maybe the ultimate ending. It's a limit on life, and when we're in this conquest mode, we don't like limits.And it also has, there's a shockwave backwards, so I think if you change your notion of what death is or may be, you live differently. It also has consequences, as you're saying, for the future because this is not our only goal here and we come back in whatever form. And again, different religions would say different things. I the East, they are more happy with the idea of reincarnation, and here in the West, there are other preferences. But in any case, it changes how we live, and that's really what matters.It's not about just projecting or imagining what we'll be after, but how we live now and also how we treat those who are dying. So it goes from the individual to the families, to the hospitals.Now in the near-death research I do, this has ramifications at all these levels, all the way to society.But our society is thanatophobic. It has a phobia of death. We don't want to hear about death, and this is another thing we need to put on the table and be willing to talk about it. Do you think that we might get closer to answering ultimate questions like why is there anything at all if we jettison materialism?That’s an excellent question, Simon. Two things: we should stop treating reality, I believe, as a great sudoku, as an enigma, as something that with intelligence, money, and time that we will crack and instead treat reality more like a mystery. And what you do for in front of a mystery is not to be the clever guy in a class and say “I’ll solve you” but more like “I will bow and you will transform me.”I know this sounds a bit like a scientist speaking like a mystic. But I think this reorientation is needed. In the end, we won’t crack the big questions, but they will transform us. If we free ourselves from this prison of materialism, the way we will explore these questions will be freer, more creative, and in service of mankind. Do you think exploring mystery is the reason why we are here?I think we are here because, and this pseudo-theological argument I’m making off the cuff, But the One, the Absolute, if there is such a thing, had everything except limitation. We are that absolute experiencing that contingency. It’s like an act of divine proprioception. It’s a wonderful adventure, it’s just incredible to be alive. Perhaps we have forgotten why we are here and the whole point is to experience the flesh.Let me end by saying this. I criticize materialism harshly. I bang on this dead horse, because I think it’s dead. But matter is a great mystery. So maybe my invitation is as follows: hey materialist friends, come here, let’s work on materialism 2.0! Consciousness is a mystery, but matter is also a mystery. The fact that we can have an intersubjective experience consensus, the fact that we can apply mathematics, that we can measure things... the physical world we take for granted, but it is a great mystery too.Maybe that’s related to your last question: why are we here? Why did spirit decide to incarnate? Being in the flesh may be a great thing if spirit decided to do so.Àlex Gómez-Marín, thank you very much.My pleasure.
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