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How Texas officials try to find poll workers for elections
Counties and political parties are using personal appeals, training and college internships to find people who can serve as poll workers and election judges to make sure voting runs smoothly.
Colorado businesses near this national park are working together to ride out seasonal ups and downs
In Mancos, near Mesa Verde National Park, sharing services and collaborating to lure people downtown gives businesses a boost in lean times
City of Memphis investing millions in Soulsville housing, development
Also this week, early voting is underway and a judge is pondering whether to lift a ban on several people who were barred from Memphis City Council.
Long March shows why the Communist Party needs strong leadership: state media
People’s Daily article draws parallel between the importance of Mao’s leadership during the 1930s and Xi’s role today.
Walmart chief people officer shares traits that get workers promoted
Walmart promotes roughly 500 employees every day. Two qualities help workers move up quickly, according to its chief people officer.
Live Science crossword puzzle #65: Animal that kills the largest number of people
Test your knowledge on all things science with our weekly, free crossword puzzle!
Rising temperatures could boost pregnancy risks worldwide
As climate change fuels extreme temperatures and makes severely hot days more frequent, doctors are concerned about the health impacts on pregnant people.
Anxiety about reinjury can derail a return to sports
Psychological factors are critical in bouncing back from a sports injury. Researchers find that many people cleared to play don't actually return to sports.
Business Beat: Navigant CU promotes Lori Jordan to Sr. VP, Chief People and Philanthropy Officer
NAVIGANT CREDIT UNION PROMOTES JORDAN TO SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, CHIEF PEOPLE & PHILANTHROPY OFFICER SMITHFIELD, R.I. (October 13, 2026) – Today, Navigant Credit Union announced the promotion of Lori Jordan to Senior Vice President, Chief People & Philanthropy Officer. The newly created executive leadership role reflects Navigant’s continued investment in its people, culture, and philanthropic…
What smart people are saying about Anthropic's 5% pledge
Anthropic's announcement generated enthusiasm, skepticism, and lots of questions.
'Star Wars: Galactic Racer Was Made By A Core Team Of 75 People'
Over 1000 people are in the credits, though
Burnham warns of Neets-fuelled 'economic catastrophe and moral failure'
The UK faces "economic catastrophe" with one million young people not in work or training, the prime minister says.
Family of man shot, killed by police in downtown Portland says he struggled with mental health
On Sunday, police released the name of a 36-year-old man who was shot and killed by Portland officers after he allegedly attacked two people with a box cutter.
DR Congo’s fast-moving Ebola outbreak spreads to eighth province
The Health Ministry has recorded two cases, including one death, in Nord-Ubangi province. Both people were men in their 20s, the ministry said.
Better Business Bureau warns people to pay attention for scams
Wheeling, W.Va (WTRF) – The better business bureau is warning people to pay extra attention when applying for jobs. Recently people have reported of a scam regarding a job opportunity. Includ…
Early humans in America endured climate chaos—new research
Some 23,000 years ago, during the coldest part of the last ice age, people walked across the muddy margins of an ancient lake in what is now White Sands National Park, New Mexico.
Inaugural QAC Chamber Contractor Summit builds regional networks, showcases trades
WYE MILLS — Bringing together local tradespeople and regional business leaders, the Queen Anne’s County Chamber of Commerce hosted its first Contractor Summit Sept. 24 at Chesapeake College to build
Biketoberfest brings crowds to Daytona Beach, but not all businesses see a boost
Biketoberfest was expected to bring up to 125,000 people to Daytona Beach over four days, but one local restaurant owner says the motorcycle event slowed down his business as regular customers stayed away.
Saginaw's No Kings rally urges residents to vote early
Nationwide rallies on Saturday, including one in Saginaw, urged people to vote early and use the midterm elections to make their voices heard, with organizers emphasizing nonpartisan participation, accessibility, and
Rob Raede: Santa Barbara Forge Turns Metalworking Expertise into Sizzling Cookware Business
Our usual focus here at Team Let’s Go Eat is talking to the people who put food in the pan. This time, we decided to talk to the people who make the
New tool offered to help navigate health coverage options
People in Oregon can now get an early look at their health coverage options for 2027 with the launch of the Explore Health Plan Guide.
Slotkin wants GOP prosecutions to deter young people from Trump administration jobs
Elissa Slotkin said she wants young people to fear legal problems before joining the Trump administration, sparking fierce online backlash..
Business People: Former Colle McVoy president Obele Brown-West to lead Folklore
ADVERTISING/PUBLIC RELATIONS Folklore, a Minneapolis-based ad agency, announced it has named Obele Brown-West as CEO and partner. Brown-West most recently was president at Colle McVoy (now DonerColle within Stagwell). … Midnight…
Former NFL Quarterback B.J. Daniels Supports Student-Athletes with Their Mental Health Struggles, Says ‘It’s OK to Not Be OK’
“Asking for help doesn’t make you less of an athlete,” Daniels said following an event in Florida on Oct. 9
California Politics 360 full episode | California, US government clash over voter rolls
The Trump administration sued California election officials this week. They asked a judge to block the state from counting mail-in ballots from people the federal government has identified as “likely” non-citizens until their status can be confirmed.
San Francisco techie takes down zombie video game that let players kill homeless people: 'It showed poor judgment'
The creator said that he refunded all advertisers and made a donation to a drug treatment and recovery service equivalent to the revenue generated by the game.
Allison Williams Says There Is ‘a Science’ to Buying a Kids’ Halloween Costume as a Parent (Exclusive)
The actress shares a 4-year-old son, Arlo, with husband Alexander Dreymon
Regional Science Consortium Researching Harmful Algal Blooms
If you've noticed large buoys or boats out on the bayfront and wondered what they were, you're not alone. The Regional Science Consortium is collaborating with Princeton Hydro on a research project funded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to study ways to control harmful algal blooms. Dr. Jeanette Schnars, the Executive Director of the Regional Science Consortium, explained the goal of the research."We are researching different ways to control blue-green algae, which creates harmful algal blooms and releases toxins," Dr. Schnars said.The project aims to identify potential techniques for controlling harmful algal blooms in Presque Isle Bay.Schnars explained that people may notice circular floats in the water near Perry's Landing and Liberty Park. Those floats are part of the testing process."You might see a circular float, almost like a hula hoop, that is out in the bay, near Perry's Landing and Liberty Park area, and those limn corrals go all the way to the bottom. And what we will do are some treatments within the limn corral in the bottom," Schnars said.After samples are collected, they are brought back to the laboratory at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center for analysis."A lot of those samples are coming back here. We are going to test them for the harmful algal bloom toxins before, during, and after, and see how effective the testing was," Schnars said.Sarah Magyan, an aquatic biologist with the Regional Science Consortium, explained that the team also collects samples from locations throughout the region."We pull samples every week from 30 different sites, and then we bring those back here, we preserve them and run them through the ELISA test," Magyan said.Schnars said researchers hope the results will help them develop effective ways to reduce harmful algal blooms in the future."If we can do some treatments over space and time in upcoming seasons, we may be able to reduce the number of harmful algal blooms we have in this area," Schnars said.The research is also important for public and animal safety. Magyan explained that toxins produced by certain algae can affect the skin, nervous system or liver.While toxin levels may be low for people, she emphasized the importance of protecting pets that swim in local waterways."Toxins can either be skin toxins, nerve toxins, or liver toxins. While we have low levels for people, it is important that we are keeping our pets safe because we recreate with our animals in the water, and we see hundreds and hundreds of dogs on Presque Isle and the rest of the shoreline," Magyan said.Testing began in September, and Schnars said researchers expect to conduct at least another six to eight weeks of testing to better understand the effectiveness of the treatments.
Bob Ferguson’s board is telling him to let people out of prison. He keeps saying no
Ferguson has given little explanation as to why he has so often rejected the recommendations of his Clemency and Pardons Board.
Some conservative states aren’t using Medicaid hardship exemption
States like Missouri and Iowa are choosing to not take up exemption designed to help low-income people keep coverage during hardship
Some conservative states aren’t using Medicaid hardship exemption
States like Missouri and Iowa are choosing to not take up exemption designed to help low-income people keep coverage during hardship
Scientists uncover 3 key brain pathways linked to lasting depression relief
Researchers have uncovered three brain pathways linked to lasting improvements in people receiving deep brain stimulation for severe, treatment-resistant depression. They also discovered that patients who failed to improve after two years shared a striking pattern: insufficient stimulation of a crucial brain connection. The findings suggest that millimeters in electrode placement could make a major difference in treatment outcomes.
Scientists link a strange sugar in red meat to a 63% higher diabetes risk
A study of nearly 90,000 adults found that people consuming the most of a little-known sugar found in red meat had a 63% higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Scientists suspect the sugar may trigger chronic inflammation, potentially revealing a hidden connection between red meat and diabetes that goes beyond weight gain.
Political parties ‘not doing their homework’ with young voters, IU advocates say
Young people have consistently turned out to vote less than their older counterparts.
Names in the News: People shaping the future of Lake Area business
EMS Academy grads honored A new group of 24 Emergency Medical Technicians has officially graduated from Acadian’s National EMS Academy’s Lake Charles campus, ready to step onto the frontlines of […]
Scientists Uncover a Hidden Factor That Could Change How We Manage Diabetes
Timing may matter in insulin-treated type 2 diabetes; patients with the steadiest daily rhythms were 2.3 times as likely to meet blood sugar goals, while afternoon activity was linked to smaller swings. People with type 2 diabetes who use insulin need to keep blood glucose from climbing too high or falling too low. In a
Scientists Discover a Surprising New Effect of a Popular Blood Pressure Drug
A drug for high blood pressure could inspire future treatments for people with normal readings, thanks to an unexpected effect on the body’s energy-burning fat. Losartan already helps people control high blood pressure. New research suggests it could have a second use in activating brown fat, a tissue that burns energy to produce heat and
16 Home Design Trends People Regretted Following
“TikTok really made me think it looked modern and chic, but instead, it made everything so dull and boring...”
Daredevil Jumped 25,000 Feet Without a Parachute. Now He Wants to Leap from Space: ‘That’s the Dream, the Drop-the-Mic Thing’
“Impossible is just an opinion,” said Luke Aikins, who hopes to jump from a rocket 330,000 feet above Earth
Hot Wheels' female executive wants more girls to be part of the brand
"It has been such an honor to be part of a brand that so many people love," Alex Ries, global head of Hot Wheels, said.
Three CT business owners charged with workers’ compensation violations
Three people have been arrested and charged with violations of Connecticut’s workers’ compensation laws, officials said.
‘4,000 people minding our own business’: four decades on, Falklands again face a hostile Argentina
Facing a slump in the polls, Argentina’s president is making economic attacks on the islands’ oil industry, and suggesting its key fisheries industry could be next
After deaths at Stryker Sports Complex, Comcare emphasizes mental health support
“Events like this affect far more people than those that were directly involved.”
Scientists Examine 5,000-Year-Old Skulls and Uncover a Disturbing Secret of Egypt’s First Kings
Serving Egypt’s earliest kings may have carried a deadly cost, and overlooked skull injuries are giving a century-old suspicion new weight. Some of Egypt’s earliest royal tombs at Abydos are surrounded by hundreds of smaller graves. When Flinders Petrie excavated the site in the 1920s, he suspected that so many people could not have died
The American Forest, Maybe Not-So-Primeval
New Yorker explores how Indigenous peoples changed the landscape before colonists
Hundreds seek free health services during WeCareWV Day in Charleston
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WOWK) – Hundreds of people turned to West Virginia Health Right on Saturday for free medical services during the organization’s annual WeCareWV Day. The one-day event was h…
'No Kings' protesters rally against Trump, urge voters to turn out
‘No Kings’ demonstrators rallied across Michigan Saturday, protesting Trump administration policies and urging people to vote.
For Trump opponents, the midterms have already begun as ‘No Kings’ rallies push early voting at county elections offices
The rallies also encouraged people to sign up to serve as poll watchers on Election Day.
SF tech bro pulls plug on controversial video game that let players kill ‘homeless people’
Workers Can Govern, but They Need Power First
A new book makes the most rigorous case yet for why so few working-class people hold office. But by treating the lack of workers in office as a law of electoral democracy, its authors underrate how mu...
Man gets 2 life sentences for killing 2, injuring 3 in Chester business shooting
A man was sentenced to two life terms in prison for killing two brothers and injuring three other people at a laundry business in Chester in 2024.
Kathy Castor, Mike Beltran square off in a rare debate for Congress
Also, Congressional Democratic candidates Kimberly Overman and Robert People appeared at the debate, held by Tampa Tiger Bay at the Cuban Club in Ybor City.
Beyond politics
"I trust Malena Stevens with that responsibility. I believe the people of Summit County can, too."
Germany win over 80 World Cup
Germany's over 80 team has won the inaugural World Cup title in Australia and said that this success goes beyond football. "We need to ensure that more older people take part in sport," player Michael Rätsch from Hertha Berlin told dpa.
Dear Abby: Daughter with grudges makes herself hard to love
Dear friend regularly attends funerals of people she does not know
Health insurance is the sleeper midterms issue: Why premiums are spiking
Americans are bracing to pay significantly more for health insurance next month, whether they have Affordable Care Act plans or get insurance through work. Premiums for some people could be t…
Health insurance is the sleeper midterms issue: Why premiums are spiking
Americans are bracing to pay significantly more for health insurance next month, whether they have Affordable Care Act plans or get insurance through work. Premiums for some people could be t…
Lessons in reporting from rural Vermont [Unscripted column]
I may be slightly biased, but I think local journalists are incredibly cool people. And no fictional journalist is cooler than Vermont radio host Vern Barclay, the protagonist of “Radio
Trump’s election fraud task force is going after the people who investigated him
President Donald Trump has made no secret of his demands to see charges against former officials.
Opinion: Do social media bans protect teens' mental health? Research suggests bans aren’t the answer.
Opinion by Ari Lightman: I research digital media and marketing and measure the impact of new technologies, and I’m skeptical about whether prohibiting access to social media platforms will actually improve young people’s mental health.
CT Culture Corner: K-Pop, RUSH, ‘Mamma Mia’ and more
"Mamma Mia!" has been seen by 70 million people internationally.
Tenderloin ‘zombie shooter’ game shut down by creator after backlash
The developer of a “zombie shooter” game set in the Tenderloin has shut it down after city officials and other San Francisco residents said it depicted homeless people as monsters to be killed.
Mogul Capital Partners empowers people to become business owners
Mogul Capital Partners is a private equity and business acquisition company focused on acquiring established, profitable businesses while expanding access and exposure to business ownership and investing.
Alberta early-voter surge suggests edge for Canadian side
CALGARY, Canada — More than 1 million people have already cast their ballots in Alberta’s referendum on separation from Canada, signaling strong voter turnout that pollsters say may favor the
East Las Vegas businesses on edge after deadly shooting, 3 suspects sought
A deadly robbery at an east Las Vegas business is now a homicide investigation and the three people police say were involved are still on the run.
Lancaster General Health doctor first in the region to perform groundbreaking procedure
(WHTM) — “Overactive bladder” and incontinence can be embarrassing to discuss, but they affect millions of people. A doctor at Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health has performed…
Timothy Busfield child sex abuse charges thrown out, judge orders
A New Mexico judge tosses out the multiple child sex abuse charges that actor Timothy Busfield had been facing.
The Leap Second Is No More
The metric might not mean much to laypeople, but leap seconds have been a source of contention in the timekeeping community for years. Now, they’re dead.
Apple's $79 iPhone Duo Case Sticks On With Adhesive
Apple's iPhone Duo Case uses adhesive to attach to the device, according to people who have picked one up. The case comes in two pieces and uses adhesive strips along the inside edges to attach securely to an iPhone Duo. An included insert instructs users to peel off the adhesive's protective film, put each half on the Duo, and then press down to make sure it's well-adhered. The iPhone Duo Case is made from polycarbonate and comes in Sand and Navy Blue.
Five Stones 20th Anniversary A Celebration Of People, Consistency
And those traits were cited Thursday at Five Stones Research’s 20th anniversary celebration.
Measles cases spike by 37 in the past week
Lancaster County’s measles cases continue to climb with 37 new cases in the past week, the highest rise in people sickened with measles in a seven-day period since early September.
Live-work-create tech village eyed for Manchester
A tech-entrepreneur turned venture capitalist is eyeing one of the largest undeveloped tracts in Manchester for a community where tech- and startup-minded people would live and work.Freedom Village would be located on 250 acres of mostly wooded land at Hackett Hill, which is located in the northwestern corner of Manchester.
The Next Pandemic Might Already Be Taking Shape at the Edge of the World’s Vanishing Forests
Outbreaks cluster where people, livestock, and damaged ecosystems collide, a new Nature study finds.
Alliance for Health releases H.R. 1 predictions | The Pajaronian
About one in three people who rely on Santa Cruz County Alliance Medi-Cal—25,000 people—will lose benefits by the end of 2028, said Central California Alliance for Health CEO Michael Schrader.
Can social media bans protect young people's mental health? Early research suggests that bans aren't the answer
The year 2026 has been an expensive one for social media platforms. Since March, YouTube and Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, have settled or paid out in multiple lawsuits totaling ...
Sylvester Stallone explains that shocking “Tulsa King” premiere twist: ‘I wanted people’s jaws to drop’
He believes that he went “as far as I could go” with the characters who met their end at the start of season 4.
Live entertainment emerging as winner in streaming era
LIVE ENTERTAINMENT EMERGING AS WINNER IN STREAMING ERAIn a digital world where entertainment is just a tap away at home, do people still crave the thrill of live spectacle and value shared experiences?UBS believes they do. In a recent note, the brokerage said it remains constructive on the long-ter…
Mars Impact Fund Commits $3M to 4-H science pathways
Mars is investing $3 million in National 4-H Council to expand agricultural, food science and veterinary career opportunities for up to 200K young people.
Can AI solve our mental health access problem?
Last week I asked you what worries you most about AI in health. It was close, but your top answer was “AI giving bad health advice.” Last week’s poll results: You’re in good company. This concern was top of mind at a conference I joined at Stanford last week, where researchers, clinicians, and people who build AI systems spent a day debating trust and safety in health AI. Stepping back, I’m also hearing your emerging concerns about AI’s impact on our well-being generally. I see this as a matter of public health, and we’ll take it in pieces as we learn together. Today we’ll focus on AI chatbots used for therapy for mental health. Early this month, Governor Newsom vetoed Senate Bill 903, California’s most ambitious attempt to regulate AI use for mental health. It’s at the center of active debate, and raises the questions patients, family members, citizens, and voters will face as AI moves deeper into health care. Let’s work through it. What is “AI-based therapy”? It’s really two things: purpose-built mental health apps designed to deliver structured support, and general chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini that people increasingly use for emotional support—even if they weren’t built for it. Spoiler alert: I don’t know whether the shift toward AI therapy is good or bad. The evidence isn’t there yet. But I do know it’s already happening, and I have some ideas about how we can roll it out with safety in mind. The therapy dilemma, in a nutshell Mental health challenges are common, and strain health and well-being across populations. Therapy (interactive dialogue with a trained, empathetic practitioner) helps many people heal. The demand for licensed therapists far exceeds the supply in California, and AI-based therapy can narrow that gap. AI-based therapy remains novel, unproven, and not well tested. Right off the bat, we can see we’re dealing with trade-offs here. Since the main driver of demand for therapy from a robot is lack of access to therapy from a human, we’ll start there. It’s too hard to find and afford a human therapist California is short roughly 55,000 licensed, non-prescribing therapists and counselors, about 40% of what we need. Psychiatrists, who rely on talk therapy as a complement to prescribed medications, are even more scarce. Eight counties have none, and density ranges from 1.7 per 100,000 residents in San Benito County, to 68.1 in Marin County. My wife is a psychiatrist in Marin, and even here access is tight. If it’s hard in the best-supplied county, imagine rural Sierra County, or the San Joaquin Valley. In 2024, more than half of Californians who tried to make a mental health appointment struggled to find a provider who took their insurance, compared with 14% for physical health care. When Senate staff posed as “secret shopper” patients and called 120 mental health providers in Medicare Advantage networks, they landed an appointment less than once for every five tries. Insurers pay behavioral health clinicians about 22% less than medical and surgical clinicians for comparable office visits. On top of that, billing denials and prior authorizations hit hardest at the solo and small practices common in mental health. Psychiatrists opt out of Medicare at the highest rate of any specialty. In many places, a cash practice for therapy fills quickly with patients paying $250 or more an hour, with no insurance paperwork at all. Families who can pay cash find providers more easily. Those who rely on insurance, including Medi-Cal enrollees, older adults, rural residents, and non-English speakers, compete for what’s left. So we can’t pretend the human system works, and we can’t blame people for turning to AI for support when they’re in distress. AI is filling the gap It’s estimated that roughly a quarter of AI users use it for mental health support. If you have internet, it’s available 24/7, it’s cheap, and it speaks your language. Uninsured adults are about twice as likely as insured adults to do it (30% vs. 14%). It feels anonymous in ways that may enable people to ask things they’re unsure or embarrassed about. The largely hidden, personal use makes it hard to study whether it’s actually helping people with their mental health issues, but researchers are trying. Does AI therapy work? A 2026 analysis of nearly 40 randomized trials found chatbots showed a real but small reduction in depression symptoms. But most of these trials were compared to an alternative of no therapy, not a human therapist. So the benefit of AI therapy is probably real, but modest, and mostly untested against the alternative of human contact. We need more studies. Serious concerns OpenAI’s own estimate is that more than a million ChatGPT users each week show signs of suicidal planning or intent. These are high stakes encounters, and AI doesn’t always get it right. That’s partly because a chatbot can sound like a therapist, but it has no license, no duty of care, and it’s not clear who to hold accountable when it gets things wrong. AI is also designed to help users in whatever task they’re seeking to accomplish. People may feel like they’re getting therapy, but they’re mainly getting a convincing conversation. It’s easy for an AI companion to wander into gray areas, like playing along with “creative writing” that may be about the user’s own suicidal intent. Courts are driving safety conversations A wave of lawsuits have been filed on behalf of families claiming that chatbots pushed people they loved toward self-harm, including teens who died by suicide. The first settlements came this year. OpenAI is headquartered in San Francisco, and dozens of cases alleging that ChatGPT drove users to suicide or self-harm are now before a San Francisco judge. Character.ai has filed for bankruptcy after several states brought lawsuits accusing the chatbot of pushing dangerous content to kids. But the technology seems to be improving. Last month, an independent evaluation found that newer AI models “almost never endorse suicide.” That’s progress, but our societal appetite for even one preventable death is very low. So how do we move forward? Finding a middle ground Earlier this month the governor vetoed Senate Bill 903, a bill designed to place guardrails on the use of AI for therapy. The bill would have prohibited any AI-based platform from being advertised as psychotherapy, and would have required a licensed professional to review and approve each encounter where AI was used to support therapeutic decisions. Newsom called it overly broad, since even routine screening questions would have needed clinician sign-off. Knowing we’re already short on mental health providers, requiring human review of AI encounters may not relieve our access problems. Still, the answer isn’t no oversight. Here’s one feasible short term solution. Rather than reviewing each encounter, a licensed clinician can design the guardrails: what counts as a crisis, what triggers an immediate handoff to a human, and what gets sampled for audit each month. The AI runs inside that structure. Conversations get checked, failures get reported, and a real clinician owns the framework. Medicine already has models to learn from. The FDA process for rolling out newly approved medications is an example. After a product reaches patients, we keep watching for adverse events. Patient-facing AI needs the same “digital pharmacovigilance”: systematic tracking of harms, near misses, and the types of groups that get hurt and why. It’s also critical that users know that they can reach a human if they’re in crisis. Most chatbots now include messages like these: Bottom line The rush to use unproven AI tools for mental health support is mostly a workaround, a sign of a health system people can’t get into. We need better access to proven care from licensed clinicians. That takes reimbursement that makes accepting insurance viable, and a bigger workforce. But, built and tested well, AI could be part of the answer. It could be the 2 a.m. check-in when no one else is awake, or a way for patients to practice skills their therapist taught them. It could be the first step to get someone the right level of care, and take paperwork off clinicians’ plates so they spend more time with patients. None of this is simple. The SB 903 veto doesn’t end the debate, and the legislature will be back. In the meantime, those of us using these tools need to stay informed, ask hard questions, and hold the companies building them accountable. I’ll try to do my part, and we’ll keep learning together. Love,Matt P.S. If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health challenges, emotional distress, substance use problems, or just needs to talk, call or text 988- you’ll reach a real person— or chat at 988lifeline.org 24/7. Dr. Matt Willis is the author of Your Local Epidemiologist in California. A California native, he’s served as a primary care physician, CDC epidemiologist, and public health officer for Marin County, where he guided the pandemic response. He lives in Marin with his family and their dogs, Teddy and Ramona. Thank you Cynthia He, MD, PhD, and Parnika Saxena, MD, for their guidance in preparing this article. Cynthia works in an outpatient mental health clinic, treating patients who have Medi-Cal or, sometimes, no insurance. Parnika works in an inpatient psychiatric unit, treating patients with public or private insurance or self-pay ability. All opinions are their own and do not represent their employers.
How Digital Entertainment Is Changing the Way People Spend Their Free Time
Digital entertainment has changed considerably over the past decade. Watching a game, following a favorite team, playing online games, and keeping up with sports discussions can all happen from the same device. What once required a television, a gaming console, or a trip out of the house can now fit into a few spare minutes […]
Influencers and biohackers swear by fasting. Here’s what the science says.
Fasting can help some people reduce how many calories they eat — but it’s not “effortless” as some influencers would have you believe.
Artemis II results show how much science people can do at the moon
We’ve studied the moon with robotic spacecraft for decades. What do human observers add? Artemis II’s first science results offer some answers.
Plague is stoppable. The next health threat may not be.
The word plague is scary. Centuries ago, the Black Death killed tens of millions of people and changed the course of history. Plague still kills people around the world, and the word still evokes catastrophe. New fears of plague surfaced on October 2, when a lab worker in Irkutsk, Russia, died of pneumonia. Reports suggested that she may have contracted plague through a laboratory exposure. Understandably, people were alarmed. On October 7, the World Health Organization called for the Russian Federation to be transparent about what it knew. WHO issued an update on October 10. Russian authorities told WHO that testing did not identify plague and that investigations found no laboratory release. WHO said confidence in its risk assessment remained limited and that further clinical, epidemiological, and laboratory information was needed. The cause of the woman’s illness remains unknown, and WHO says a laboratory-associated exposure cannot be excluded. As I explained in a recent interview, this incident is very unlikely to lead to a pandemic. Plague is still active, including in the U.S., which sees a handful of cases each year. But it is a disease we can prevent and treat. Plague doesn’t spread readily, and it responds to antibiotics. The standard response—isolate the patient, trace contacts, and administer antibiotics and monitor for symptoms among contacts for seven days—works. We have even planned for antibiotic-resistant plague. At CDC, we developed a playbook for antibiotic-resistant plague and ran exercises on how to find and stop it. CDC guidance anticipates engineered resistance and recommends two different classes of antibiotics if there’s reason to suspect it. There is no evidence that resistance—or even confirmed plague—is involved in this incident. We have thought through how to address plague, but we’re not ready for the next major health threat that emerges from a lab or from animal spillover to humans. What should concern people is how little stands between the world and the next pathogen to get loose. Since peak COVID, epidemic preparedness has fallen off the political agenda, but the risk is greater than ever. More labs handle dangerous pathogens with more ways to make those pathogens deadlier, and more people live and work in close contact with animals. There are actions we can take now: We need better lab safety in every country. The number of labs that work with dangerous pathogens has increased worldwide over two decades, but there’s no enforceable international standard and no inspection regime; the Biological Weapons Convention, fifty years on, still has no verification mechanism. Labs that study dangerous germs need strong safety systems, training, and oversight. We need to reduce spillover events. Three in four emerging human infections start in animals, and there’s a lot we can do to reduce spillover risk, but the world is doing very little of it. Live-animal markets are one place to act. For instance, closing live-bird markets helped control H7N9 influenza in China. Reducing opportunities for people to encounter infected animals can prevent infections before they become outbreaks. In The Formula for Better Health, which is now out in paperback along with the hardcover, Kindle, and audiobook versions, I argue that labs do too many risky experiments with too many dangerous pathogens in too many institutions, and that every experiment should first answer one basic question: Is the likely benefit greater than the risk? Spillover risk can also be reduced: In the book, I discuss how Brazil cut its deforestation rate by 70% from 2004 to 2012 while increasing agricultural production and reducing risky contact between people and forest animals. We need faster detection and response. Delay costs lives. Strong surveillance, good labs, and trained responders can turn a single case into a small cluster of infections instead of an epidemic. Resolve to Save Lives has worked for nearly a decade to help countries find and stop outbreaks faster. The 7-1-7 target, which Resolve to Save Lives developed with partners in Uganda and elsewhere, provides a clear standard: detect within 7 days, notify within 1 day and complete all essential early response actions within 7 days. In Uganda’s Kasese district, for example, a review of a measles outbreak using 7-1-7 identified shortages of accessible funds, fuel, and vehicles that delayed the response. District leaders established funds they could access quickly. When, a few months later, the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever appeared, the district detected it in three days, notified authorities in one, and mounted an effective response in two. Only one case was confirmed, and the patient survived. Because funds were available before the emergency, authorities were prepared and able to act. This kind of preparation can’t wait until the next crisis begins. Plague is an old disease we that know how to stop. The next threat may be harder to recognize, harder to treat, and easier to spread. Safer labs, less risk of spillover, and faster outbreak detection and response need sustained investment now, while we still have time to prevent the next emergency. Share
Can social media bans protect young people’s mental health? Early research suggests that bans aren’t the answer
Kids have found ways around most of the safeguards meant to keep them off social media platforms.
Renue by Science Launches Research Community to Bring Real-World Health Experiences Into Scientific Research
/PRNewswire/ -- People try supplements, track their sleep and experiment with wellness routines, but it is hard to know whether the changes they notice are...
TN Politics: As early voting commences, what are these state amendments all about?
Three amendments touching on crime and taxes top the ballot. What are people voting for?
Regenerative Growers in Florida aim to improve soil for health of food, environment, consumers and workers
The broad set of practices is becoming more popular at a time when climate change is stressing the state’s land—and the people who work on it.
After stopping weight-loss drugs, people given a procedure kept about 80% of lost weight
In a post hoc analysis, 32% of Revita participants were weight-stable or lost more, versus 18% with sham; one-year results are anticipated in Q1 2027.
Why America’s Political Divide Is Also an Economic Divide
Plus, the Justice Department sued California to block mail-in ballots from 20,000 people, and Trump nixed the planned livestream of a military execution.
Police chase ends in Oakland, damaging cruiser and nearby business
A police chase that began outside city limits ended in Oakland, causing damage to a smoke shop and a Pittsburgh police cruiser, with multiple people taken into custody.
Cook County Public Health encourages vaccinations as respiratory illness season approaches
As temperatures drop and residents spend more time indoors, Cook County Public Health and Human Services is reminding residents to get vaccinated against influenza and COVID-19. Respiratory illnesses become more common during the colder months as people gather indoors, increasing opportunities for viruses to spread. “From a public health perspective, this is a good time to...
Patients are why Lee Health made UnitedHealthcare decision
When people hear the words "hospital finances," they often think about budgets, spreadsheets, and balance sheets.
The Fatal Flaw of 911
A new book argues that as long as 911 defaults to police, people in mental health crises will be at risk for violent confrontations.
The People on the Move 10/16/2026
MANUFACTURING Fresno company Netafim USA, the precision agriculture business of Orbia, has appointed Jason Scheibel as senior director of sales for North America and Brian Shade as regional sales manager to support the company's
Are Dave Roberts’ Decisions Partly Responsible for the Dodgers’ Downfall?
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts doesn't get enough credit for the three World Series rings he has brought to LA. People assume that since the roster is loaded with superstars, wins are automatic. That would be an incorrect assumption. Baseball is a grind, and Roberts still has to push the right buttons. He did …
Meet the 19-year-old ASU student running for Maricopa County office
At a time when many young people have become disillusioned with politics, Matta is hoping his candidacy inspires them to get involved.
The Events Business Is Relentless. Susan Southerland Made Work-Life Balance Part of the Model.
The Just Events! Group founder says she built her company around a simple rule: people should be able to do great work without sacrificing the rest of their lives. She credits that culture with helping her keep strong employees and scale to hundreds of events around the world.
People in China are spending nearly as much of their income as Americans on healthcare
Increasing government spending on healthcare could help boost consumption in China, the International Monetary Fund said.
SF leaders slam video game where players shoot Tenderloin ‘zombies’
San Francisco leaders condemned a new game that turns a digital version of the Tenderloin into a shooting gallery, with targets that critics say resemble homeless residents and people with...