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From One Major to Three in Four Years: Connecting Data Science, German and Linguistics at Montclair
In a German language program for local children and on an archive translation project, Isabella Zarate Gonzalez shows how Montclair’s mix of STEM, world languages and community engagement helped her connect her interests into a single path
WHO recommends new diagnostic tools to help end TB
On World TB Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) is urging countries to accelerate action to end tuberculosis (TB) and expand access to lifesaving services by using new innovations such as diagnostic tests that can be used near the point-of-care and tongue swabs that can help detect the disease faster reaching more people.
Utah Sen. John Curtis helps lead push to ban sports betting contracts on prediction markets
Utah Sen. John Curtis and California Sen. Adam Schiff are leading a push to make clear that sports prediction markets are indeed gambling.
The Monday Outlook: Project Hail Mary and the Science Behind Blockbuster Sci-Fi
Project Hail Mary is the latest sci-fi blockbuster to stretch the bounds of audience imagination and stir the curiosity of real scientists. But the science driving films like Project Hail Mary, Interstellar and The Martian isn’t all fictional: at UChicago, researchers exploring the cosmos and decoding the origins of life are making discoveries that would feel right at home on the big screen. This week's Monday Outlook features scientists from UChicago and Argonne National Laborat
Group abandons Michigan minimum wage ballot campaign
A group seeking to reverse changes the state Legislature made last year to Michigan's tipped and minimum wage laws is abandoning its efforts for now.
Rahm Emanuel says federal workers shouldn't bet on politics
Former Obama chief of staff and possible 2028 presidential candidate Rahm Emanuel is calling for a federal employee ban on prediction markets betting.
iOS 26.4 offers two Liquid Glass customization updates
iOS 26.4 is launching soon, and it will bring two updates for how you can customize the Liquid Glass design on your iPhone.
Travis Kelce reportedly re-ups with Chiefs on a 3-year, $54.7 million deal, but there's a catch
Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo Extra Service
To accommodate passengers attending the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2) taking place March 27-29, 2026, at McCormick Place, the South Shore Line will be offering extra train service on Saturday, March 28. As McCormick Place is not a scheduled stop, passengers traveling to C2E2 should purchase tickets for Museum Campus. MCCORMICK PLACE SERVICE: Please click here for special […]
The Core Entertainment Hires Sarah Pfeiffer As Head Of Marketing & Gabriella Pulley As Chief Of Staff
The Core Entertainment is continuing to scale its company, with the recent news of two new hires added to the leadership team. Sarah Pfeiffer has been named
Federal judge sides with Wisconsin in transgender health care suit
A U.S. judge ruled in favor of Wisconsin and 20 other states challenging a Trump administration declaration that tried to limit care for trans youth.
Top business leader demands end to stalemate over City Council's pick for zoning chair
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce President Jack Lavin said more than 40 development projects have been stalled by City Council's failure to agree on new permanent chair for the powerful Zoning Committee. He wants Mayor Brandon Johnson to forge a compromise to break the stalemate.
Kraken create One Roof Sports & Entertainment in expected pursuit of NBA expansion team
Kraken owner Samanatha Holloway created the umbrella brand One Roof Sports & Entertainment on Monday, a transaction that gives her a majority stake in Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena and is a likely precursor to a bid for an NBA expansion franchise.
Kraken create One Roof Sports & Entertainment in expected pursuit of NBA expansion team
Kraken owner Samanatha Holloway created the umbrella brand One Roof Sports & Entertainment on Monday, a transaction that gives her a majority stake in Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena and is a likely precursor to a bid for an NBA expansion franchise.
From radio to newsreels to Netflix, Yankees chart course through entertainment history
For more than a century, the Yankees have been more than a baseball team. The sport’s most storied franchise is a pop culture touchstone, a versatile backdrop that serves as both a symbol of excellence and a punchline across television, movies and more. So as the Yankees prepare to break
Trump’s Political Risk Insurance Plan for Ships in the Gulf Could Benefit China, Says Democratic Senator
President Trump’s $20 billion plan to provide political risk insurance for ships aimed at unblocking the Strait of Hormuz could end up ultimately
Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus Review - Intel's Fastest Gaming CPU
The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is a game-changer, featuring more cores and larger cache than the 265K, while cutting the launch price to just $300. In gaming, it outperformed all non-X3D Ryzen CPUs, and application performance is impressive as well, matching the much pricier Ryzen 9 9950X.
Cargo Headed to Station, Week Begins with Science Prep and Maintenance
A cargo spacecraft is in orbit catching up to the International Space Station for a docking tomorrow to deliver food and supplies to the Expedition 74 crew. Aboard the orbital lab, the seven residents kicked off the week with science operations prep, routine maintenance, and getting systems ready for a future spacewalk.
The MacBook Neo proves Apple is leaving a door wide open for Google’s ‘Aluminium OS’
Apple recently did something that, on paper, seems to make no sense. They launched the MacBook Neo; a $599 laptop powered by the A18 Pro chip that, in a previous life, powered the iPhone 16 series....
Microsoft-backed startup raises $40 million for advanced chipmaking equipment tech
Lace, a Norway-headquartered chipmaking equipment startup which is backed by Microsoft, has raised $40 million in funding to further develop a technology that could enable significant advances in semiconductor design and manufacturing, the company said on Monday.
Microsoft-backed startup raises $40 million for advanced chipmaking equipment tech
Lace, a Norway-headquartered chipmaking equipment startup which is backed by Microsoft, has raised $40 million in funding to further develop a technology that could enable significant advances in semiconductor design and manufacturing, the company said on Monday. To make cutting-edge chips, manufacturers such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and Intel employ a process called lithography that uses light to draw complex circuits that form the foundation of advanced artificial intelligence chips. Manufacturers use light-based lithography systems made by the Dutch company ASML - which dominates the market - as they race to shrink chip components and squeeze in more features to boost the computing horsepower on a limited area of silicon.
Susquehanna business school ranks No. 3 nationally for academic experience in debut on Poets&Quants
Stay up to date with the latest news, stories, and achievements from the Susquehanna University community.
I Turned My Childhood Hobby Into a $2K-a-Month Business. Then I Quit My Corporate Job and Hit $100K+ Month.
Danielle Meyer, founder of Spicy Dan, always had an "entrepreneurial mindset."
Causal Inference Is Eating Machine Learning
Your ML model predicts perfectly but recommends wrong actions. Learn the 5-question diagnostic, method comparison matrix, and Python workflow to fix it with causal inference.
Peregrine Road performs at the Jesup
BAR HARBOR — On Thursday, April 9, at 5:30 p.m., the Jesup will host a free Music and Conversation program with Peregrine Road (Rachel Bell and Karen Axelrod). Peregrine Road
DanDan restaurant in Milwaukee's Third Ward is temporarily closed
According to a sign posted on the door of the popular Third Ward American-Chinese restaurant, DanDan has been closed since March 20.
STC HVACR student turns childhood lessons into vision for future business
Currently pursuing an associate degree in Heating, Ventilation, AC and Refrigeration (HVACR) at South Texas College, Cesar Bernal III said he was just 12 years old when he began watching his father turn determination and hard work into a small but thriving air-conditioning business in Weslaco.
Google TV just lost a big TV brand to web app-based ‘Titan OS’
Philips, a major TV brand in markets such as the UK and Europe, is ditching Google TV for “Titan OS.”...
Roger Bennett of the Men in Blazers discusses the agony and the ecstasy of watching a penalty shootout
Q&A with Brain Health Expert Dr. James Galvin
The Miller School neurologist describes a new Brain Health Index that uses machine learning to measure brain health.
Rahm Emanuel proposes banning all federal employees from betting on prediction markets
Health in a Handbasket: Chips & Dip
Today we're putting a healthy spin on a snack we all know and love.
Exclusive: Prenuvo expands full-body MRI protocol. What's new?
Prenuvo is launching a new bloodwork component to complement its full-body MRIs. Here's what to know.
Top architectural and historic preservation groups sue Trump over Kennedy Center plans
A consortium of the nation’s top architectural and historic preservation groups is targeting President Donald Trump’s plans to temporarily close and extensively renovate the Kennedy Center, filing a new lawsuit Monday that asks a federal judge to indefinitely halt the project.
AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (AMC) Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know Before Betting on It
Zacks.com users have recently been watching AMC Entertainment (AMC) quite a bit. Thus, it is worth knowing the facts that could determine the stock's prospects.
Sewing And Munro Continue Dominance In New Global Sports Alliance International Pickleball Tour With Two Golds In Vietnam
The third event of the new Global Sports Pickleball Alliance saw the tour head to Ho Chi Minh City over the weekend, where Jack Munro and Sofia Sewing both won two golds.
Blue Jays extend manager John Schneider, GM Ross Atkins following World Series appearance
The Blue Jays are locking up two architects of the team's World Series run.
Emmanuel Grégoire, Socialist long involved in local politics, voted new Paris mayor; AP explains
Grégoire won over 50% of the votes, beating out prominent conservative contender Rachida Dati who reached 41% while hard-left contender Sophia Chikirou got about 8%.
Every NFL franchise's biggest position to improve, plus free agency and draft solutions
The Cowboys need to add to their defense, and they have the draft capital to make it happen.
Building a Culture of Health: BJACH Opens Armed Forces Wellness Center at Fort Polk
FORT POLK, La. — Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital marked a significant step forward in supporting warfighter readiness and community well-being with the grand opening of its new Armed Forces Wellness Center on March 23. The center, located on the first floor inside BJACH, provides Soldiers, Families, civilian employees and beneficiaries with access to personalized health assessments, education and coaching designed to improve overall health and performance.
PATLABOR the Case Files announced for PS5, PC
Publisher Good Smile Company and developer Chime Corporation have announced 3D action game PATLABOR the Case Files
Browns coach Todd Monken’s strong suit is blunt honesty without the politics
Monken's authenticity and commitment are strengths, said the Southern Miss AD who hired him for his only other head-coaching job in 2013.
Across Tanzania, Medical Refrigerators Preserve Life and Health for Kids with Diabetes
The technology Tanzania’s children with diabetes needed most urgently wasn’t a cutting-edge treatment. It was refrigeration. Local public health clinics across Tanzania provide monthly checkups for…
Sony Is Said to Near $1 Billion Home Entertainment Deal With TCL
Sony Group Corp. is nearing a binding agreement to sell a majority stake in its home entertainment business to Chinese rival TCL Electronics Holdings Ltd. in a deal that may be valued at about $1 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
Banijay Entertainment Dials Up Global Scripted with Premium Series Mania Slate
Media and entertainment powerhouse, Banijay Entertainment, today unveils its premium scripted offering for Series Mania, showcasing a broad range of high-end drama from across its global portfolio. As the number one European studio in scripted, with more than 100 titles launching each year, the company continues to demonstrate its scale, creative strength, global reach and […]
Health care advisory Chartis brings AI development engine in-house to build tools for clients
With the acquisition of artificial intelligence incubator Leap AI, Chicago-based Chartis’ health care advisers will move from making suggestions about AI to rolling up their sleeves and building custom AI solutions.
New York approves cannabis for anxiety. Science says it may not help
A Lancet Psychiatry study found no evidence cannabinoids treat anxiety, PTSD. In NY, any practitioner can certify a patient for medical cannabis for any condition they deem appropriate.
'ET's' archive has William Shatner on a whale and a young Taylor Swift
'Entertainment Tonight' is digitizing and preserving its archive of 45 years of interview set visits and red carpet walks, which include gems like George Clooney's first interview.
Scouting Michigan State basketball Sweet 16 matchup with UConn
Get a first glimpse at the NCAA Tournament East region Sweet 16 semifinal matchup between 3-seed Michigan State basketball and 2-seed UConn.
Rahm Emanuel proposes banning all federal employees from betting on prediction markets
Rahm Emanuel is proposing a far-reaching measure to crack down on betting in predictive markets in Washington as part of an effort to call attention to what he sees as a culture of corruption gripping the nation’s politics
Coeur d'Alene's science guy
Ahead of his retirement in May from the teaching staff at Arizona State University, behavioral neuroscientist Brian Smith has put his focus into making science more accessible to more people. “There's a lot of misunderstanding what science is,” Smith said.
Turning coal to medicines: Chinese scientists bring a 160-year-old dream to life
Study cracks a puzzle that has baffled scientists and will reshape modern medicine production as the world reels from a global oil shortage.
Pfeiffer, Pulley Join The Core Entertainment Leadership Team.
The Core Entertainment has added Sarah Pfeiffer as Head of Marketing and Gabriella Pulley as Chief of Staff. Both will report to Co-Founders and Co-CEOs Simon Tikhman and Chief Zaruk
St. Louis Blues Weekly Prospect Report (March 22)
Jiricek has big scoring week; McIsaac announces future plans; Ralph, Michigan State head to NCAA Tournament with Mayich, Clarkson University eliminated; Peterson scored pair, including a SH beauty for Springfield
Cursor acknowledges its new low-cost coding model has Chinese roots
Cursor says its new coding model builds on Kimi K2.5, a Chinese model it didn't mention at launch.
NCAA, NIT, WBIT tournaments lead to uptick in business for Wichita bars
Fans of KU, K-State and WSU flocked to sports bars to cheer on their favorite teams.
Scholar Athlete of the Week: Andra Stokes, Stevens High School
KSAT 12 Sports and CHRISTUS Children’s shine a spotlight on a local senior student athlete
Dean for Basic Science Colin Duckett tapped to serve as Boston University Provost
Duckett, executive vice dean for basic and preclinical science, will begin his tenure as chief academic officer at Boston University starting in July.
California Politics 360 Full Episode | Sexual abuse allegations against César Chávez
Civil rights leader Dolores Huerta broke her silence, saying she was also sexually abused by Chávez. It led to the birth of two children, a secret she kept for 60 years.
Wichita State wins 96-70 against Oklahoma State in NIT
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) Kenyon Giles had 28 points in Wichita State's 96-70 victory against Oklahoma State on Sunday in the NIT.
Michigan State basketball time, TV channel set for Sweet 16
Michigan State basketball knows when it will be playing, even before it knows its opponent in the Sweet 16 in Washington on Friday night.
These Michigan U.S. Senate candidates took money from ICE contractors
Anti-ICE messaging is expected to be featured prominently in Michigan's hotly contested U.S. Senate Democratic primary.
The 3DFX Voodoo Lives Again In An FPGA
The 3DFX Voodoo was not the first dedicated 3D graphics chipset by any means, but it became the favourite for gamers among the early mass-market GPUs. It would be found on a 3D-processing-only PCI …
Bill Self says coaching future at Kansas to be determined
Longtime Kansas coach Bill Self said after Sunday's season-ending loss to St. John's that he has not yet made a decision about his coaching future, later adding that any decision will be based solely on his health.
Bill Self weighs Kansas coaching future amid health concerns
Kansas coach Bill Self unsure about future after buzzer-beater loss to St. John's: 'I haven't decided'
After a heartbreaking last-second loss in the second round of the NCAA tournament, Self wasn't ready to discuss his coaching future.
Jerry Hanlon, longtime Michigan football coach, dies at 96
"Michigan Athletics has lost one of the finest ambassadors and mentors our football program has ever known," U-M AD Warde Manuel said in a statement.
'Project Hail Mary' blasts off to record-breaking $80 million, becomes 2026's best premiere
'Project Hail Mary' burned through the outer layer of box office projections this weekend, reaching an astounding $80 million in its domestic premiere and $141 million worldwide.
Jason Momoa forced to evacuate as devastating storm hits Hawaii
Thousands have been ordered to flee as the archipelago faces its most intense surge of storms in two decades.
‘Project Hail Mary’ blasts off with $80.5 million, a best for Amazon MGM, and the year
Studio estimates on Sunday say Amazon MGM's “Project Hail Mary” has topped the North American box office charts with $80.5 million in ticket sales — the second biggest ever for a non-franchise film.
Bursaries open for help with sports memberships
Children meeting certain criteria can get up to £200 from Epsom & Ewell Borough Council.
Minnesota Wild, NHL mourn hockey writer Jessi Pierce after death in house fire
Pierce and her three children were killed in a house fire outside of Minneapolis early Saturday morning.
Kentucky Gov. Beshear takes jabs at JD Vance in his home state of Ohio
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, speaking in JD Vance’s home state of Ohio on Saturday, tore into the vice president, questioning his Appalachian roots and telling voters they “deserve better.”
Your Thymus and Your Healthspan
Our thymus gland plays a central role in the development or our immune system, specifically for supporting T cell development (how these cells got their name, maturation and differentiation in the thymus) and discriminating between self and foreign, non-self antigen proteins with production of dendritic cells. As we age, our thymus gland shrinks—the process known as involution—with progressive change from spongy to fatty tissue, with loss of functionality. But this process, with respect to timeline and extent, markedly varies from one person to the next. And to make things even more complicated, our thymus gland anatomy and precise location in the chest also is highly variable. So the famous Frank Netter diagrams from the 1960s (such as at left below) don’t capture the remarkable heterogeneity that a random set of 12 chest CT scans (below at right). What I consider as 2 landmark papers in Nature this week (here and here) used AI to quantify health of the thymus in 2 large cohorts, and then correlate the metric to a broad array of health outcomes. In this edition of Ground Truths, I’m going to cover three questions: (1) How was thymus health determined by AI?; (2) How is thymus health linked to key clinical outcomes? and (3) Are there ways we can promote a healthy (aka rejuvenate) thymus gland in our later years? Subscribe 1. How was thymus health determined by AI? This was accomplished by extensive work developing and validating an AI pipeline for 2 stages, the first for localization and segmentation of the thymus bed, and the second to quantify a digital marker, termed the thymic health score. There’s a lot to this algorithmic development, so I won’t go into all the details, but just provide a rudimentary outline of what was done. The 1st stage used supervised learning with 2 radiologists reviewing 2,461 chest CT scans. That work trained a 3D U-Net model to automatically identify the thymic bed’s 3D cropped region using center of mass coordinates, which reached 99.8% accuracy. The 2nd stage used a foundation model that was pre-trained with SwAV (which stands for Swapping Assignment between multiple Views), a self-supervised model, that generated a high-dimensional thymus representation of 4,096 features. That compares to the radiology reductionist and subjective scoring of 0 to 3 where 0 means the thymus is fully degenerated and fatty, and 3 is considered dense, intact glandular soft tissue. Notably, the self-supervised learning (SSL) performance was superior to supervised (AUC ~0.75 vs 0.55, respectively) reflecting the shallowness of the 0-3 classifier vs SSL’s holistic, self-taught AI. The thymic health score ranged from 0 to 100, with the highest number indexed to fully preserved thymic health. The algorithmic work extended to explainability with both Shapely value distribution, meaning the model was holistic not relying on any “magic” pixel, and occlusion sensitivity, demonstrating the model’s performance was not affected by ribs, sternum, lung tissue, but rather focused on the thymic bed directly. Below are a few saliency maps from the occlusion sensitivity that indicate the thymic bed focus, not affected by neighboring structures, using the jet color scale. Now the AI was ready for processing ~25,000 CT scans, each over 30 MB files, from the 2 large participant cohorts to provide a thymic health score, it did so in less than 14 hours, which is less than 2 seconds per scan! Share 2. How is thymus health linked to key clinical outcomes? The two cohorts were the National Lung Screening Trial, NLST (N=25,031) and the Framingham Heart Study, FHS (N=2,581) each with baseline demographics and long term follow up of >12 years for health outcomes. From the NSLT, you can see below that increased age and body-mass index were correlated to reduced thymic health. And, overall, men had reduced thymic health scores compared with women. There are a lot of graphs in the paper for outcomes, for both the NLST and FHS cohorts. To simplify the major outcomes, below is a composite Figure with striking reduction of all-cause mortality and for the different causes of death. The results were consistent between the 2 cohorts. For example, the cardiovascular mortality hazard ratio average was 0.57 in NLST and 0.38 in FHS (weighted to be 0.53 for the aggregate). The reduction of mortality also extended to digestive diseases and pulmonary disease (data not shown below). Lung cancer incidence was reduced by 36% for high vs low thymic health (Figure below, with a panel -incidence and b panel-mortality, adjusted for age, sex, BMI, smoking status). Notably, there was a smoker’s paradox: lower incidence and improved survival for lung cancer in smokers who had a high thymus health score. Smoking was associated with lower thymic scores whereas alcohol was not. Higher thymic health was linked to higher HDL cholesterol, lower triglycerides, lower fasting blood glucose, and lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Inflammation biomarkers, such as C-reactive protein and interleukin-6, were elevated in the people with lower thymic health scores. In their second paper, the same team looked at the relationship between thymic score and outcomes for 3,476 patients receiving cancer immunotherapy. The non-small cell lung cancer progression-free survival was reduced in patients with low thymic health score. A parallel relationship for survival was seen for other types of cancer including melanoma, breast, and kidney with a 44% lower risk among high thymic scores (Figure). A similar pattern was seen with different immune checkpoint inhibitors. The thymus health score outperformed programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1)and tumor mutation burden (TMB) assay of the tumor and was an independent prognostic marker of progression-free survival. In this dataset, a direct connect with thymus score and adaptive immune function was noted with a correlation before cancer treatment for both T-cell diversity and thymus T-cell production (a metric known as T cell receptor excision circles). Thymus Removal Study There is a highly relevant citation about thymus function before moving onto ways to rejuvenate it. In 2023, a very important study of thymus removal during cardiothoracic surgery was published, with 1146 patients undergoing thymus removal vs 1146 matched controls (mean age 55 years). The adverse outcomes for thymus removal were striking, with a 2.9 higher risk of all-cause mortality and doubling of cancer incidence, 1.5 fold increase in cancer mortality, and 1.5-fold increase in autoimmune diseases. The immune function showed marked compromise after thymus removal, as reflected by CD4+ and CD8+ T cells (Figure below) Share Ground Truths 3. Are there ways we can promote a healthy (aka rejuvenate) thymus gland in our later years? In recent months we’ve learned a lot about the process of thymus involution and the pathways by which this may be modulated. Thymus involution is primarily due to loss to thymus epithelial cells (TECs) and there are 2 subtypes with different functions: the cortical, responsible for positive selection of T cells, and the medullary, for negative selection. When adipose tissue infiltrates the thymus, thymic adipocytes are pro-inflammatory, knocking out T-cell output. Likewise, systemic inflammation, or “inflammaging,” from smoking, obesity, and chronic stress promote thymic adipocytes. Now, from preclinical studies, we know about key pathways that account for these processes. Historically, back in 2014, FOXN1 was recognized as a single master transcription factor essential for TEC function, with studies in mice with forced FOXN1 upregulation leading to thymus regeneration. That laid the foundation for potential regrowth of quiescent thymus cells. It took awhile to find pathways to accomplish this goal and to even refute its role as the master regulator. The Liver-Thymus Axis Feng Zhang and his team recently showed that injection of an mRNA vaccine to the liver encoding DLL1, IL-7 and FLT3-L in combination, factors known to support thymopoiesis (Figure), successfully enhanced immune function in aged mice. However, the effect was transient. The FGF21 Story Two reports in 2025 addressed the thymus gland’s production of FGF21, a growth factor (fibroblast growth factor 21) and its control of thymus involution. This growth factor is also produced by the liver, but it doesn’t have impact on the thymus in aged rodent models. In contrast, The liver’s hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been shown to reverse senescent TEC structural changes. Growth hormone stimulates production of insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in the liver and the thymus. Two small studies in human participants (TRIIM, for Thymus Regeneration, Immunorestoration, and Insulin Mitigation) of 6 and 50 people, respectively, treated with combined human growth hormone, metformin and DHEA, suggested the potential of slowing epigenetic aging and improving thymus mass and function. But the combination of drugs, small sample, and lack of controls make conclusions murky. Increased thymus FGF21 led to increased CD8 T cells in old mice and extended healthspan and improved physical performance. Building on the previous FOXN1 data, ablation of β-klotho, the obligatory co-receptor for FOXN1, accelerated thymic aging. The benefit to FGF21 was confirmed in a companion paper using an FGF21 knock-in mouse model showing thymus enlargement and increased TECs throughout the lifespan. (schematic Figure below). The accompanying editorial for these 2 papers speculated: “The proposed link between age-associated thymus involution and organismal aging is intriguing, and suggests we might seek to achieve systemic rejuvenation by counteracting thymic involution.” Other Factors Lessons from the Axolotl (Mexican Salamander) In an elegant set of experiments of the axolotl (Figure), known for its complete thymus regeneration after total surgical removal, mediators were identified. Surprisingly FOXN1 was dispensable. But midkine, a growth factor, appeared to be the driver, the initiator of thymus cell growth, survival, and repair. Other components that contributed were Postn+ (periostin-expressing mesenchymal niches) and Ccl19, a chemokine protein from the bloodstream. RANK and RANKL RANK (receptor activator of nuclear factor κB its ligand (RANKL) have been considered key regulators of medullary TECs. In a study of both aged mice and human thymus cell cultures, their key role was confirmed, with multiple benefits of resorting TEC function, recruitment of progenitor cells, and T cell development. Subscribe Summing Up This body of work strongly supports the health of the thymus gland as a critical regulator of human healthspan, not just a correlate or link. The new landmark studies are reinforced by the regenerative biology experimental models that have shown, via an array of mediators, that healthspan of aged mice is at least in part dependent on thymus gland function and its critical role for maintaining adaptive immunity. It sure seems that we’d be better off having an immune reservoir of naive T cells instead of a profile in older adults of exhausted, low quality, memory T cells, with a senescent phenotype. It is striking that we ignored the importance of the thymus gland for many decades. A wake-up call was the results of the thymectomy matched control study reviewed here, with the opposite of high thymic health score improved health outcomes. The convergence of AI and healthspan here is notable. The exceptional and laborious work for developing and validating (no less explaining) the AI to quantify thymus health set the foundation for probing the connect the major health outcomes in two cohorts with extensive follow-up. We’ve never had a way to meaningfully quantify the thymus gland before, so this represents important leverage of supervised, self-supervised, and transformer models. The study wouldn’t have been possible without AI. And it begs the question as to whether there are ways we can maintain our thymus at a high health score. But it’s not so simple to rejuvenate our thymus. There are multiple risks including the induction of autoimmunity, increasing the risk of cancer, and inducing a pro-inflammatory state. For example, factors that increase TEC proliferation could compromise the medulllary negative selection process and leak out auto-reactive (self-attacking) T cells. Thymic cells could be induced to proliferate, but we know, for example, that growth hormone and IGF-1 are associated with an increase risk of cancer. If thymus rejuvenation doesn’t clear out the accumulated senescent cells in older adults, then inflammation within the gland could block the production of TECs. Keeping these risks in mind, we now have identified many ways to keep our thymus healthy as we age that undoubtedly will be tested in clinical trials going forward. Ultimately, the benefit-to-risk tradeoffs will be defined. In the meantime, we have desperately needed an immunome. As I’ve stressed in multiple prior Ground Truths, we have no test in the clinic to assess a patient’s immune status! It was very encouraging for me to get an email from Hugo Aerts, the senior author of the landmark papers in the days after they were published: “I also wanted to say that your Substack on “Why We Need an Immunome” was inspiring for this work. We found it a very compelling perspective and greatly enjoyed reading it.” Just having an assessment of a person’s immune status via a chest CT scan, with millions of these performed per year, might help in guiding the right immunotherapy for cancer (e.g. more intensive, combinations for those with low thymic health scores) and help define people who are increased risk for age-related diseases of cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative. The main theme of Super Agers is that we now have many layers of data (genetics, proteins, biomarkers, organ clocks that can be integrated via multimodal AI) for us to define a person’s specific risk decades before one of these age-related diseases leads to symptoms, enabling prevention. From the new studies this week, we can add thymus health score as yet another way to understand a person’s risk, a window into their adaptive immune system and healthspan. And perhaps someday we will be able to safely rejuvenate the thymus, or maintain its health through one’s life, and use the thymus health score to monitor. NB: I wrote this post (No A.I.) A Quick Poll Loading... ********************************************************************* Thanks to Ground Truths subscribers (now > 200,000) from every US state and 212 countries. Your subscription to these free essays and podcasts makes my work in putting them together worthwhile. Please join! If you found this interesting PLEASE share it! Share Ground Truths Paid subscriptions are voluntary and all proceeds from them go to support Scripps Research. They do allow for posting comments and questions, which I do my best to respond to. Please don’t hesitate to post comments and give me feedback. Let me know topics that you would like to see covered. Leave a comment Many thanks to those who have contributed—they have greatly helped fund our summer internship programs for the past two years. It enabled us to accept and support 47 summer interns in 2025! We aim to accept even more of the several thousand who will apply for summer 2026.
Buffalo Museum of Science celebrates 50% completion of upcoming Science Stadium Exhibit
The Buffalo Museum of Science marked a major milestone in its $3 million Science Stadium exhibit, announcing on March 20 the project is now 50% complete ahead of its planned
Business briefs: PNW honors doles out honors on Founders Day
News and events around the area
Chappell Roan reacts to claims her security made Jude Law's 11-year-old daughter cry: 'I do not hate children'
Chappell Roan has responded to claims that her security guard made Jude Law's 11-year-old daughter cry after she got excited when she spotted the singer in a hotel: 'I do not hate children— that is crazy.'
Apple’s busy March continues with three notable arrivals this week
Apple has had a jam-packed March so far after launching seven new products and surprisingly announcing an eighth. Looking ahead,...
Chiefs’ 2026 NFL Mock Draft roundup after NFL Free Agency
A closer look at the Chiefs’ 2026 mock draft outlook after free agency, with linked to edge help, cornerback, and offensive line support.
Wake County childcare centers take preventive measures as measles cases rise
Capcom celebrates Resident Evil's 30th anniversary by promising "even more wonderful experiences" are coming, but doesn't confirm when
Resident Evil series executive producer, Jun Takeuchi, has written to Resident Evil players across the world, thanking …
iPad 12 With A18 Chip for Apple Intelligence is 'Still Coming This Year'
Apple has updated a wide range of products and accessories this month, but there is still no entry-level iPad 12 with Apple Intelligence support. Fortunately, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said an iPad with an A18 chip for Apple Intelligence is "ready to go" and "still coming this year". An earlier report from Macworld claimed that the iPad 12 will actually have an A19 chip.
It's not just vaccines — parents are refusing other routine preventive care for newborns
Doctors are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment is increasingly reaching beyond vaccines to other proven, routine, preventive care for babies.
Apple Has Released More Than 10 Products and Accessories This Month
It has been a busy March for Apple, which has unveiled more than 10 products and accessories this month. However, aside from the all-new MacBook Neo and Studio Display XDR, the devices received faster chips or new colors and little else.
Report: New iPad with A18 chip still on track to launch in first half of 2026
As part of Apple’s week of product announcements earlier this month, many were hoping to see an update to Apple’s...
Core operating profit rises 4% as net profit holds steady, with full-year dividend maintained at HK35 cents
March 22, 2026 -- The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited (stock code: 0003, hereinafter referred to as “the Group”) has announced its 2025 ...
Gen Z really, really loves China's trains
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Chicago Cubs news and notes
#Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB news.
“Let’s get ourselves back to Fort Worth, but take care of business at hand,” LSU after loss in Tulsa
LSU Gymnastics’ Sophomore Kailin Chio and Head Coach Jay Clark spoke to the media following a third place finish in the 2026 SEC tournament in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Tiger fans came into the BOK Center hopeful for a victory due to having a podium setup, which LSU seems to have thrived on in the past. Which...
Margaret Cho on comedy, politics, and life in Hollywood
Comedian and actress Margaret Cho discusses her penchant for tackling political themes in her performances, evident in her upcoming tour, "Choligarchy,” coming to the Englert Theatre Friday, March 27.
Give Your Phone a Huge (and Free) Upgrade by Switching to Another Keyboard
Change up the default keyboard in Android and iOS and feel the benefit.
Where to watch Oklahoma vs. Michigan State in March Madness Second Round: Time, TV Channel
The No. 4 Oklahoma Sooners face the 5 Michigan State Spartans in the Second Round of the women's NCAA Tournament. Here's how to see all the action.
New law firm formed; new executive director at chamber; hospital picks new chief of staff
Take a look at some of the recent promotions and new hires announced at south Louisiana businesses.
What time is Michigan women's basketball's second round game?
Michigan cruised to a blowout victory over Holy Cross in their opening NCAA Women's Tournament matchup. See who they play next.
Chivas hold off Monterrey’s comeback to get another win
Chivas defeated Monterrey by a 3-0 score in match defined by the last play of the match.
One Of Resident Evil's Fundamental Joys Is Watching Beautiful Men Get Hurt
The people love Leon Kennedy for more than his action-game pedigree.
Elon Musk uveils moonshot Terafab project. Here are 4 takeaways.
Elon Musk said his Terafab project, a joint Tesla and SpaceX chip manufacturing initiative, will be needed to unlock a terawatt of AI computing power.
Election in Slovenia Will Test Europe’s Political Mood
The center-left government is being challenged by a right-wing populist accused of launching a smear campaign in the final days of a close race.
Teaching Health Through Food: Kayla’s Passion for Nutrition
In celebration of National Nutrition Month, Renee Dease met with Special Olympics Michigan staff member, Health Messenger, and athlete, Kayla Cornell, to talk about how she empowers Special Olympics athletes to build healthier habits through practical cooking skills and nutrition education. Check out their conversation below.
Black Family Wellness Expo returns to Wichita, promotes health awareness for second year
Organizers say more than 40 different vendors participated in the expo.