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Fulton County health officials notify Johns Creek High School community of possible tuberculosis exposure
Students and staff who may have had close contact with the individual will receive separate notifications and be offered free tuberculosis testing.
How should European scientists respond to the US AI kill switch?
Earlier in June, Europe’s worst fears of technological dependence were confirmed when the White House ordered the AI firm Anthropic to stop non-US citizens using its leading models. This kill-switch moment crystalised anxieties in Brussels that the continent, lagging the US on the creation of leading-edge AI models, is now a technological of vassal of Washington. The shock has specific implications for European scientists and universities. Some governments are now worried that with AI being integrated into labs, Donald Trump now has his finger hovering over an off switch for European science. “Having restrictions on this tool, it can have an impact on our own research,” said France’s research minister, Philippe Baptiste, at the VivaTech conference in Paris on June 18.Baptiste, himself a former academic, said that colleagues in mathematics had recently warned him they were now cut off from leading-edge US models, risking their work. “This model is not available anymore now because of the US restriction, and for the first time this had an impact on mathematics,” a field where large language models (LLMs) are making a significant contribution, said Baptiste. So, should European scientists avoid relying on US models in the future? Or would this be a self-harming overreaction? And how is AI being used in science, anyway? What happened?On June 12, it emerged that Washington, citing cybersecurity concerns, had ordered Anthropic to stop non-US citizens using two models: Claude Mythos 5, and Claude Fable 5, a version of Mythos but with guardrails to prevent abuse. Anthropic said Washington’s concerns were overblown. But forced to follow the order, yet with no way to check who was using the models, the company suddenly shut down access for everyone, US citizens included. There’s still no agreement on how to restore broad access. But last week, Bloomberg reported that select US companies, and the US government, still had access to Mythos despite the ban, but the EU’s cybersecurity agency Enisa had been shut out. Class division of researchersIn the longer term, access outside the US should be restored, said Marcel Salathé, co-director of the AI centre at the Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne (EPFL), because a permanent restriction would be financially ruinous to US AI firms. “Even Trump will eventually budge to economic pressure,” he said.However, US AI firms might end up operating rather like banks, doing due diligence on users of their leading-edge AI models, he went on.European scientists are unlikely to fall foul of such checks, he said. But having a Chinese postgraduate in their lab, or doing a type of research the US disapproved of, could potentially result in access being denied. “It will create a sort of class division of researchers,” he said. More than frontier modelsHowever, successfully deploying AI in science is about far more than just having access to leading LLMs such as Mythos.Instead, many science-specific tools, most famously Alphafold, which predicts protein folding structures, require “far less” computing power to train than frontier models, well within the capabilities of European supercomputers, according to a recent analysis by the Arq Foundation, a Brussel-based AI think tank. Instead, tools such as Alphafold are possible because certain fields, like protein folding, weather prediction or astronomy, have large, clean, standardised datasets that can be used to train predictive models. Rather than compute, “data is the central constraint for AI for science,” the report says. For example, a less powerful physics model trained on CERN’s data “will be more valuable than the best model without certain data,” said Bengüsu Özcan, author of the report. European advantage?Europe could therefore steal a march by using its scientific data and infrastructure to create models US digital giants cannot. “They might actually match or go even beyond what these big [US] companies are doing,” said Özcan.Indeed, some European start-ups hope to create automated testing labs to create the kind of standardised data that could speed up the discovery of new materials. Materials scientists say there’s currently too little data to train models. AI scientistsHowever, even if the bottleneck for AI in science is often data, rather than compute, being at the mercy of the US for LLM access could still become a problem for European scientists. A new class of “AI scientists” based on leading LLMs is also emerging, Özcan’s report says.Unlike domain-specific tools like Alphafold, these try to automate day-to-day scientific work, by providing an overarching tool that coordinates specific models to synthesise existing literature, generate hypotheses or run analysis of data. The problem for Europe, however, is that these tools are sometimes based on US leading models. Google Deepmind’s AI Co-Scientist, for example, is built on Google’s Gemini LLM. Systematic failureThese scientific automation tools are still in their early stages, and still exhibit “systematic failures on scientific tasks,” Özcan’s report says. One of the problems is that the messy, day-to-day process of scientific discovery is largely not documented, meaning LLMs don’t have a good source of data to learn how scientists actually work. Meanwhile, some tasks, such as literature synthesis, don’t typically require access to leading edge models.However, the performance of AI scientific assistants could improve as companies such as Google pour resources into developing them. Rely on US“Unfortunately, for scientific assistants, there is not much we can do right now except rely on US frontier AI,” said Antoine Bosselut, a natural language processing expert based at EPFL. Chinese-built open models, which can run on local computers, lessening the risk of a shutdown, are touted as one alternative to US dependence. There’s also Mistral, once seen as Europe’s main AI hope, but the Paris-based company has seen its recent models fall behind in performance. But the Chinese alternatives are generally not as capable as US frontier AI models, said Bosselut, unless paired with fiddly, custom tools that allows them to act as independent agents. “Most scientists do not have the time,” he said. Don’t jump ship yetAlthough the kill switch moment is seen a warning shot for European scientists, it doesn’t mean labs should abandon US AI tools immediately. “I do not think the right response is simply to abandon US-based models and systems under the banner of sovereignty or independence,” said Mattias Björnmalm, secretary general of the Cesaer university association. “That would be an overreaction.”Related articlesEuropean sovereignty in AI requires ‘ugly trade-offs,’ say experts Robotic lab start-up makes case for €500M EU-funded materials testing facilityAI in science: is it useful? Instead, European researchers need to ask themselves whether they’re becoming dependent on technology that could be turned off in Washington, said Özcan. “They might not see this today, but they should really start asking this question,” she said. European researchers need a plan B, said Salathé. “I would recommend to every researcher, very proactively explore alternatives.”Own toolsIn addition, Björnmalm and others want European research institutions to develop their own scientific AI tools.Instead of signing AI deals with US digital giants, European universities should be using this money to create their own models, which may end up being superior for research, said Sabine Leonelli, an expert on the use of AI in science at the Technical University of Munich. “Universities in Europe seem to be happy to sign commercial contracts with US companies on the assumption [their AI tools] are better,” she said. But US frontier LLMs are typically opaque, and have been developed without independent scientific input, she said. “This is not good enough for science.”Last year, Swiss researchers released Apertus, an LLM designed to be completely transparent, from its development methods to its training data. The idea is that this makes scientific tools built on top of the model far more reproducible than with closed, commercial alternatives.“Europe needs more of this: serious capacity-building that gives researchers, universities and companies credible options,” said Björnmalm.
Susan Collins is testing whether old school politics still work
In the modern era, political activists want their representatives to fall strictly in line. To the base, the independent centrist is no longer a hero; they are a villain to be purged. But Susan Collins has a pitch that she is an independent voice.
This startup is using AI to close gaps in women’s healthcare
Xella Health’s precision health platform combines biomarker testing, clinical guidance, and AI analysis to help women get earlier answers about hard-to-diagnose conditions.
Vanderbilt Health is first US site for advanced clinical testing platform
Part of the cobas pro integrated solutions produced by Roche, the platform will speed up laboratory testing and improve patient care.
New T-Mobile 5G Test Shows a Simple Fix for a Common Slowdown
T-Mobile may have found a practical way to make its 5G network work better when several nearby phones are all trying to pull data at the same time. The big takeaway is simple: in a new benchmark study, a newer Nokia-powered setup helped cut interference between phones, which led to faster overall performance. According to Signals Research Group, the testing was done at T-Mobile’s ... [read full article]
iOS 27 upgrades Messages app with key new features for RCS
iOS 27 beta 2 arrived today for testing, and it includes some welcome new features for RCS conversations in the Messages app.
Apple Seeds iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 Second Betas to Developers
Apple today seeded the second betas of iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 to developers for testing purposes, with the update coming a week after Apple released the first betas following the WWDC 2026 keynote. Registered developers can download the betas from the Settings app on the iPhone or iPad by going to the General section and selecting Software Update. iOS 27 introduces Apple's smarter version of Siri, Siri AI.
National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association et al. v. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. et al.
The National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA) and its member, the Family Health Council of Central Pennsylvania (FHCCP), sued the Trump administration to protect the integrity of the Title X family planning program. Title X is the country’s only dedicated federal program for family planning services. For more than 55 years, the program has provided access to effective contraceptive methods, cancer screenings, testing and treatment for STIs, and other preventive services, with priority given to patients with low incomes.
Monthly BAT Days Initiative Connects Residents to Free Health, Recovery and Support Services
On the second Wednesday of each month, these organizations come together at the Centers for Addiction and Mental Health Programs (CAMP) on Orange Blossom Trail to provide HIV and Hepatitis-C testing, connections to affordable or free primary care providers, mental health resources and case management services.
Zeiss Medical Technology Collaborates With Envision Health Technologies to Advance Glaucoma Care Using VR-Based Testing
JENA, Germany—Zeiss Medical Technology, a leader in medical optics and digital healthcare solutions, has announced a strategic collaboration with Envision Health Technologies, a digital eye health company founded by glaucoma surgeon Lama A. Al-Aswad, MD, MPH, CEO, to help advance glaucoma care through gamified virtual reality (VR) technology. The companies said this collaboration aims to firmly strengthen scientific and clinical credibility in VR-based visual function testing, supported by Zeiss’ long history of innovation in perimetry, and will bring together clinical expertise and software innovation to help advance clinically relevant, patient-centered technologies for modern glaucoma care.
Talk Business & Politics: AR Sec. of Education Jacob Oliva, Rep. Aaron Pilkington
The results are in concerning Arkansas student progress in the Atlas testing program.
We spent months finding the 4 best TVs that make streaming and gaming look great
Our tech experts spent weeks testing TVs to help you find the one you should buy next, and these are their four favorites.
Cities and Schools Are Testing Wastewater for Illicit Drugs
The White House recently endorsed monitoring sewage for evidence of drug use. Critics fear such efforts could violate privacy and stigmatize neighborhoods.
Latest version of Google Messages comes with useful feature we've seen tested before
Back in January and in March, we saw Google testing this new feature that is finally here.
Millions Of Samsung Galaxy Phones Are Getting A Free Upgrade
Samsung is testing One UI 9 across more Galaxy devices. Here's the full list of phones getting the free Android 17 upgrade and when to expect it.
Siri AI Hands On: A Smart, Helpful Assistant
The new Siri AI is conversational, omnipresent, and actually helpful.
Joanna Stern spent one week with new Siri AI, and it’s very good
Joanna Stern spent a week testing iOS 27’s new Siri AI in a variety of ways, and her new video shares how it went.
Volvo XC60 crashes into a 793-pound moose dummy
Crash testing with these massive mammals has come a long way from using real cadavers.
I test TVs for a living. These are the 6 best early Prime Day TV deals on Amazon
Our tech writer has been testing TVs, soundbars and streaming devices, and he’s found the first six great home entertainment deals of Prime Day 2026.
YouTube is testing another Android redesign, and your muscle memory might hate it
YouTube is testing new changes to its player UI on the Android app, less than a year after its last redesign.
Analyst Perspectives on Oracle’s Strategy to Help Customers Secure Business Data against AI Threats
Oracle today announced its AI security strategy based on three principles: secure at source, secure at speed, and secure through resilience. To help customers accelerate and strengthen their security posture Oracle is making several of its most widely deployed and battle-tested database security, patching, testing, and lifecycle management tools available at no cost for a limited time, or at a 90% discount on one-year term licenses. This move has been positively received by leading industry analysts and reaffirms Oracle’s leadership in equipping enterprises to maximize their resilience in the face of increasing AI-era security threats.
UToledo Health offering free HIV, syphilis testing
The testing will be held on June 24 at the Walgreens at 4580 Monroe St. in Toledo from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Protesting a luxury resort in Albania
Why Albanians are demonstrating against a Trump-family business project. Also: Can a dying Spanish village still be saved?
Trump changes pregnancy-prevention program to promote childbearing
A federal poverty-fighting program focused on reducing unintended pregnancies is about to undergo a major overhaul. Reproductive health clinics use Title X federal grant money to provide birth control, cancer screenings and testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections to people with little or no health insurance. Title X money cannot be used for abortions. The […]
Amazon's next warehouse automation target: deciding where humans work
Amazon is testing software to move warehouse workers more efficiently, aiming to save millions of labor hours a year, internal documents show.
Mamdani tests his political clout in New York's primary as he looks to reshape the Democratic Party
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is testing the limits of his newfound political muscle in a bid to reshape the Democratic Party, even if it means challenging his own party’s leadership
Mamdani tests his political clout in New York's primary as he looks to reshape the Democratic Party
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is testing the limits of his newfound political muscle in a bid to reshape the Democratic Party, even if it means challenging his own party's leadership.
A surprising discovery reveals the kidney has a secret backup system
Scientists at Mayo Clinic have uncovered a surprising new way the kidneys conserve water, revealing a hidden backup system that works independently of the hormone long believed to control the process. The discovery emerged when researchers testing an old drug called probenecid expected it to worsen polycystic kidney disease (PKD) but found it actually slowed cyst growth instead.
iPhone Air With Dual Lens Camera Coming in Spring 2027
Apple is working on a new iPhone Air that's expected to launch in spring 2027, reports Bloomberg. The updated iPhone Air could get an Ultra Wide lens in addition to the Wide lens to make it a better value for the money. An iPhone Air with two camera lenses has reached the advanced testing phase. The device has the same design as the current model with the exception of the extra lens.
Water district project addresses contamination at Averill Park middle school
Elevated levels of PFOA/PFOS chemicals were found in the school's water during well testing.
I spent 48 hours comparing Siri AI to Gemini — and Apple really impressed me
Apple’s new Siri AI finally delivers on its promise. After 48 hours of testing, here’s how it compares to Gemini.
Testing longitudinal gene–environment interactions
Nature Computational Science - A gene–environment interaction test (SAGELD) is developed to speed up large-scale genome-wide analyses using longitudinal data, facilitating novel discoveries...
Ebola outbreak strains health system in eastern Congo
In eastern Congo’s Ituri province, a new Ebola outbreak is testing an already fragile health system. In the city of Bunia, hospitals are overwhelmed or shut down after suspected infections, while health workers race to contain the virus.
Not LG, Not Sennheiser: This Soundbar Gets Consumer Reports' Best Audio Rating
The HW-Q900F soundbar stands out for Dolby Atmos performance, dialogue clarity, and multi-speaker design in independent audio testing.
Health concerns linger as debris remains in Tracy neighborhoods after warehouse fire
County officials say environmental testing is underway as residents continue finding debris and wait for answers about potential health impacts.
World Cup 2026: How Scientists Helped Engineer The Perfect Soccer Field
Ahead of the largest World Cup in history, researchers spent years testing grasses and stadium conditions to create consistent playing surfaces across climate zones.
Metro Atlanta business owner pleads guilty to Medicaid Fraud, fake genetic testing services
Now convicted, the business owner will have to pay restitution and serve a 10-year sentence.
Fallout 76 | Fallout 76: Inside the Vault – Pspsps-TS (World Pets Testing Server)
Get an early look at a new feature arriving this later this year that allows you to take your C.A.M.P. Pets out into Appalachian wasteland!
Waze's traffic lights feature continues to roll out to more users
Waze started testing the feature last December. Last December, we heard that Waze - a crowd-sourced GPS navigation app - started testing a feature that...
DOJ officials called Garland memo targeting parents 'stupid' and 'political'
Fox News obtains internal DOJ emails revealing officials' concerns about the Merrick Garland memo. They described it as 'stupid' and 'political,' targeting parents for protesting COVID-19 rules and critical race theory in schools.
Frisco Mayor’s Race Tests Anti-Muslim Politics in Texas
A runoff in the Dallas suburb of Frisco is testing whether anti-Muslim rhetoric, prominent in G.O.P. primaries this year, can win over a broader set of voters.
Waze now shows traffic lights on your route, but it’s rolling out slowly
In testing for several months now, Waze is starting to roll out traffic lights more widely in navigation, but it’s...
Who evaluates the evaluators? The data science behind agent evals
Learn how Copilot Studio approaches AI agent evaluation with generated data, grader validation, and scalable testing that improve agent quality.
Halo: Campaign Evolved Is a Fascinating Preview of the Series' Unreal Engine Future
Testing two iconic levels on PC and Xbox Series X.
How a fishing business was financially affected by Potomac sewage spill
The stigma caused by last January’s devastating sewage spill had many people continuing to believe the Potomac River is unsafe — despite testing that showed otherwise. For those who make their living on the river, winter and spring were tough times. “Wintertime was cut short because of the advisories and we out of an abundance of caution just cut it…
YouTube rolling out new in-app messaging with invite-only chats
After testing got underway last year, YouTube is now more widely rolling out a new in-app messaging system...
The Franklin Institute and GSK celebrate 40 years of GSK Science in the Summer™ with a new "Be a Chemist!" theme and program expansion
A free hands-on STEM enrichment program led by The Franklin Institute and supported by GSK, celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2026.
It's all kicking off: how much do you know about the science of football?
Kick off the 2026 FIFA World Cup by testing your knowledge of the physics of football
Vanderbilt Health and UAB partner to help more clinicians use genomic medicine in everyday care
The project will create a genomic eConsult service that allows clinicians to ask practical questions about genetic testing and interpretation.
Some drugs 'fail' because of unrealistic testing conditions, scientists discover
A drug once dismissed as ineffective suddenly worked—when scientists tested it under more realistic conditions that mimic the human body. In this surprising new discovery, Northwestern University scientists ...
Building trust and lab testing at the heart of DRC Ebola response: WHO
In Ebola-stricken eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) a massive push for early testing and contact tracing is helping to contain the virus, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
A first test for Platner and other key races to watch in Tuesday’s primaries in Maine and beyond
Primaries in four states on Tuesday will offer clues about how much tolerance voters have for candidates embroiled in controversies, while testing President Donald Trump’s sway in a crowded Republican primary and setting up a key race for governor in one of the country’s premier presidential battleground states.
Apple Releases First iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27 Betas to Developers
Following the WWDC 2026 keynote event, Apple has seeded the first betas of iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27 to developers for testing purposes. Registered developers can opt in to betas and download the software through the Settings app on each device. The software includes many of the new features that were shown off earlier today, though some of what Apple demoed won't be available right away.
Testing AI against public health's existing tools shows mixed results
A new Penn-led randomized controlled trial has found that AI-powered chatbots can make vaccine-hesitant parents more likely to say they will immunize their children against human papillomavirus (HPV), ...
Philly’s COVID-era resource hubs are closing as services move to new centers. Some residents are fighting to keep them
COVID-19 supplies and other public health services at four resource hubs will move to new community action centers at different city locations.
Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra review: After four months of testing, I can’t part with it
Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra is the best showcase of consistent excellence and a solid return to innovative streak, despite not being the beefiest warrior in the Android ecosystem.
Microsoft is letting you kill Bing in Windows 11 Search, after years of forcing it on every PC
Microsoft is testing a new Windows 11 Search toggle that disables Bing, MSN, and Microsoft Store results, ending years of forced web results.
I Tested All 4 of Microsoft's New AI Models. Here's the Brutal Truth
Microsoft says its new MAI models revealed at Build 2026 are the future. After testing them, I'm not convinced they're ready for that spotlight.
McDonald's testing AI drive-thru order-taking system called ArchIQ at five locations across country
McDonald's is testing ArchIQ, a new AI order-taking system at five locations, as part of its McDonald's Next strategy announced by CEO Chris Kempczinski.
Business Alum Joins Hearing Aid Manufacturer as Supply Chain Director
Cal State Fullerton College of Business and Economics alum Garland Wong ’20 (MBA) is now a director of supply chain at Audien Hearing, a hearing aid manufacturer. In this space, being grounded in data is essential, but so is allowing room for testing and exploration. Thanks to CSUF’s MBA program, Wong can rise to the […]
Takeaways from the appeals court hearing on the White House ballroom project
President Donald Trump’s push to construct a massive ballroom at the White House without congressional approval was sharply questioned by a federal appeals court on Friday during a high-stakes hearing in a case testing the president’s power.
I've Used Starlink Every Day for 4 Years. Its Speeds Have Taken an Unexpected Turn
Years of testing Starlink from rural Idaho have transformed my home internet access, but my 2026 performance data raises new questions about speed, pricing, and priority tiers.
Linux 7.1 + Mesa 26.1 Performance With The Radeon RX 9070 GRE, RX 9070 XT
With this week's launch day review of the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE, Ubuntu 26.04 with its Linux 7.0 and Mesa 26.0 default driver stack was used for testing
Microsoft working on wearable AI gadget aimed at office workers
The company said its own workers are testing a "wearable access badge" and a desktop device.
New Microsoft tool lets devs spin up AI behavior tests using text descriptions
Microsoft on Tuesday took the wraps off Adaptive Spec-driven Scoring for Evaluation and Regression Testing, an open-source framework for spinning up AI evaluations.
How Science Works
The 2nd Weather and Climate Livestream is now underway. It is organized by a group of early-career researchers concerned about declining funding for the field and eager to demonstrate how weather and climate research makes a difference in our lives. Last year’s event was a great success, drawing terrific press coverage including a piece in the NY Times. This year features a strong lineup of talks aimed at a general audience — I highly recommend tuning in. Share I gave a talk yesterday about How Science Works in Three Steps. You can see the short presentation here (I’ve appended a transcript below): And please tune into the livestream here. It runs through tomorrow at 6 pm ET. Thanks for reading The Climate Brink! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Subscribe Cleaned up transcript: Thank you, and thanks to everyone tuning in. I want to talk about something I think a lot of people don’t really understand: how science actually works. Arguments over any scientific topic — climate change, vaccines, you name it — revolve around competing claims. For climate change, the claims are: Is the Earth warming? Are humans to blame? What will the impacts be? Over the last 150 years, the scientific community has developed a remarkably robust method for sorting out which claims are true and which aren’t. That method is what I want to walk through. So how does science generate knowledge? If you ask a high schooler, they’ll give you the version they learned in ninth grade: an individual scientist forms a hypothesis, runs an experiment, and draws a conclusion. That’s more or less what happens at the individual level, though in practice it’s more iterative — you design, test, and refine all at once, landing on a slightly different idea each time until you reach a conclusion about whatever hypothesis you’ve ended up with. But this isn’t science. It’s only step one. Any individual scientist can make mistakes — scientists are human. Maybe there’s a bug in the code, maybe there’s an error in the experiment. Just because someone ran an experiment and reached a conclusion doesn’t mean it’s right, and scientists don’t treat a single result as settled truth. Step two is peer review, the first layer of quality control. The scientist writes up what they did and submits it to a journal, which sends the paper to other experts in the field. Those experts judge whether the methods are sound, whether it properly references prior work, and whether the conclusions actually follow from the data. Ask any scientist and they’ll tell you peer review is miserable — the comments come back brutal, often harsh, and you have to revise and resubmit, sometimes multiple times, before an editor finally accepts the paper. Peer review catches an immense amount of bad science, but it can’t catch all of it. Reviewers get sloppy or overworked, they miss obvious mistakes, and they can’t catch hidden errors — a bug in the code, a misread instrument. So a peer-reviewed paper making it into a journal doesn’t mean the paper is right. Nobody treats a single paper as the final word. That’s where step three comes in: the crucible of science. Important results get retested by the broader community. If you publish something interesting, it gets dissected. Sometimes people try to reproduce your work directly but more often they test its implications. If someone claims X is true, and that implies that Y is also true, then scientists will go check Y. If a claim survives this gauntlet long enough, it becomes accepted. That’s how we generate knowledge. Let me give an example: the ozone hole. In 1985 — and I doubt many people watching were around then, but I remember it well — Joe Farman and his colleagues published observations from Antarctica showing that a huge chunk of ozone was disappearing every year. This was shocking because most atmospheric chemists had expected ozone loss to occur at mid-latitudes and high altitudes, not over the South Pole. When scientists see something they don’t understand, they rush to explain it, and several competing hypotheses quickly appeared in the peer-reviewed literature. One pointed to chlorine chemistry from chlorofluorocarbons. A second blamed nitrogen chemistry, possibly driven by solar proton events — meaning the sun was responsible. A third argued it wasn’t chemistry at all but dynamics: winds were carrying naturally low-ozone air from the lower atmosphere up into the stratosphere. Then the community went to work testing which theory could survive the crucible. Aircraft flew into the ozone hole and found no nitrogen, ruling out the nitrogen theory. Measurements showed the air in the polar vortex was descending, not rising — which would bring high-ozone air down, eliminating the dynamics theory. Meanwhile, those same flights measured enormous amounts of chlorine, strongly correlated with exactly the regions where ozone was being destroyed. That became known as the “smoking gun” paper, and it established that chlorine chemistry was the cause. Through this process, a consensus emerged. And it’s worth being clear that this consensus is organic. There’s no vote, no poll, no meeting where it gets decided. Scientists go to conferences, talk to one another, and independently arrived at the same answer. It’s the ultimate free market of ideas. After the consensus was established, the peer-reviewed literature doesn’t even mention the rival theories — it simply takes chlorine chemistry as given. That’s what a consensus looks like. It doesn’t mean every single scientist agrees, but it does mean there’s no longer any legitimate debate. So where can you see what scientists actually think? It’s all in the peer-reviewed literature, which contains the entire historical record of the argument: the discovery, the competing theories, the debate, the testing, and finally the community coalescing around one answer. But there’s a lot of room for misrepresentation. You can dig up an old paper claiming the ozone hole was caused by dynamics and wave it around as if there still was a debate about the cause of the ozone hole — without mentioning that the idea was disproven long ago and that even its own authors no longer believe it. There’s a bigger problem, though: the peer-reviewed literature is written in a language I call “nerd.” It’s extremely hard to read — honestly, some of it is hard for me to follow. It takes graduate students years to work through the literature in a single field, so we can’t expect policymakers or ordinary people to do it. This is where scientific assessments come in. The most famous is the IPCC — the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The job of an assessment is to read and summarize the peer-reviewed literature, synthesizing what’s settled, what’s been disproven, and what remains genuinely debated. To ensure the assessments accurately summarize the peer-reviewed literature, assessments are written by large teams, which are far less prone to bias than individuals and which dilute the influence of any one scientist with an axe to grind. The teams are deliberately assembled to avoid stacking the deck, and the reports themselves go through multiple rounds of peer review. That rigorous process is exactly why you can trust them and why people consider the IPCC to be the gold standard of what we know about the climate system. An assessment produced through a different process may well not be credible. You can even watch the consensus evolve across assessments. Take the attribution of warming. The 1990 IPCC report said the observed warming was broadly consistent with model predictions but also comparable to natural variability — in other words, we don’t know whether humans are responsible. By 1995, it concluded that the balance of evidence suggested a discernible human influence — a sentence only a committee could write, and one that barely commits to anything. By 2001, most of the warming over the previous 50 years was judged “likely” due to greenhouse gases; by 2007, “very likely”; by 2013, “extremely likely.” The 2023 report says essentially the same as 2013 — there’s not much stronger language available. So, to wrap up: science is our ultimate tool for deciphering the universe — the most successful method we’ve ever developed for determining what’s true and what isn’t. Our understanding is written into the peer-reviewed literature, so if you want to know what scientists think, that’s where to look. And for those of us who don’t speak nerd, scientific assessments are the Rosetta Stone — they translate nerd into English. Let me open the floor to questions. Thank you.
Leaker: Foldable 'iPhone Ultra' Will Feature Liquid Metal Hinge
Apple's first foldable iPhone will feature an innovative liquid metal hinge and has now shipped prototype units to carriers around the world for testing, the leaker known as "Fixed Focus Digital" today said. In a new post on Weibo, Fixed Focus Digital said development and production related to the foldable are now "progressing rapidly". The claim arrives one day after the leaker reported that the foldable iPhone would feature vapor chamber cooling.
Building Structured Generative AI Evaluation at Enterprise Scale
How Oracle built Veritas, a scalable GenAI evaluation framework for structured benchmarking, reusable pipelines, reproducible testing, and enterprise AI evaluation workflows.
iPhone 18 Pro Battery Capacities Allegedly Leaked
Battery capacities for Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 Pro have allegedly surfaced, and the numbers suggest only a modest increase over the iPhone 17 Pro. According to prolific Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station, Apple is testing the iPhone 18 Pro with different battery capacities for the China and U.S. versions of the device, similar to last year's iPhone 17 Pro models. The Chinese model is said to have a roughly 4,056 mAh battery, while the U.S.
New Jersey Democrats pick opponent in district where US Rep. Tom Kean Jr. has been absent
Democrats testing their chances in a right-leaning New Jersey battleground district are picking their nominee in a House primary to take on Republican incumbent Tom Kean Jr., who’s been absent for months from Congress as he deals with an unspecified medical issue
Poll: Fentrice Driskell, Michele Rayner locked in tight race for SD 16, but voters are still largely on the fence
The message-testing poll finds Driskell's support increasing as biographical information and negatives about her opponent are given.
Ebola Scares In Brazil, Italy Prompt Fears Of Global Spread (Live Updates)
Protesters in Kenya are protesting plans by the U.S. to build a quarantine and treatment center at Laikipia Air Base.
Brazil investigates possible Ebola cases amid scramble to contain oubreak
“Never before has an Ebola outbreak recorded so many cases so soon after its declaration,” Doctors without Borders said in a statement Saturday, calling for more testing and medics on the ground.
Windows 11 is getting new Start menu customizations, here is a closer look
Windows 11's Start menu is getting a bunch of long-requested features, which are already available for testing. Here is a closer look.
ARC Raiders PvE 'Rebellion' Map Condition Being Tested in China
Embark Studios appears to be testing a new PvE-focused ARC Raiders map condition in China called Rebellion Incident.
Data center critic's arrest draws attention to 387-acre site
An Illinois man was arrested after police said he threatened a local official. The resident said he was protesting against data center development.
Congo Expands Ebola Testing as Outbreak’s Real Scale Eludes Officials
The number of confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo has climbed to 260 as officials updated their estimates of the outbreak’s size and international health organizations warned of the risk of further spread.
Hundreds of faculty members of University of California sign open letter on Maths and Science papers; says: We call for the reinstatement of
Hundreds of University of California faculty members have signed an open letter urging the UC regents and faculty leaders to restore standardized testing requirements for Math and Science applicants. The letter cites an alarming drop in Math skills since the tests were abandoned.
Argonne to lead $2.8M project to accelerate catalyst discovery
Argonne National Laboratory has been awarded $2.77 million by ARPA-E to speed the discovery of industrial catalysts using AI, automation and rapid testing through the CATALCHEM-E program.
Germany news: Health care staff protest plan for major cuts
Medical staff in Germany are protesting proposed cuts that ministers say are necessary to stop spiraling costs. Meanwhile, a World War II bomb meant thousands were evacuated from their homes. DW has more.
Germany news: Healthcare staff protest plan for major cuts
Medical staff in Germany are protesting about cost-saving plans that ministers says are necessary to stop spiraling costs. Meanwhile, a World War II bomb meant thousands were evacuated from their homes. DW has more.
Meta launches Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp subscriptions, with more to come, including AI plans
Meta is rolling out paid subscription plans for Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp worldwide, while also testing new AI, creator, and business-focused offerings under its broader “Meta One” subscription brand.
Inside Optum Health's push to make AI practical for clinicians
A phased rollout of AI-powered chart summarization is reducing administrative burdens while testing how healthcare organizations can responsibly scale artificial intelligence.
This year’s World Cup is testing the public health playbook
Although rare diseases like Ebola are concerning, experts say that most public health preparation for the World Cup has been focused on familiar issues – but ramped up to match the scale of the event.
Apple Seeds First iOS 26.6 and iPadOS 26.6 Betas to Developers
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 26.6 and iPadOS 26.6 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming two weeks after Apple released iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5. Registered developers can download the betas from the Settings app on the iPhone or iPad by going to the General section and selecting Software Update. With the debut of iOS 27 approaching in early June, Apple is wrapping up work on iOS 26.
Microsoft Defender can now automatically isolate hacked endpoints
Microsoft is testing a new Defender for Endpoint capability that will automatically isolate compromised endpoints to thwart attackers' attempts to move laterally across the network.
Drug-testing bill gains momentum
A bill to prohibit medically unnecessary and nonconsensual drug testing of pregnant and postpartum women and newborns is gaining momentum in the state Legislature.
Rush for new Ebola vaccine as outbreak grows in Africa
US health authorities have warned that 10 African countries are at risk in the Ebola epidemic. There may be hope on the horizon: British scientists say a vaccine for this Ebola variant could soon be ready for testing.
WATCH: Trump speaks at N.Y.'s Rockland Community College, campaigning for Rep. Lawler
President Donald Trump, from a toss-up congressional district in New York on Friday, began testing his midterm-year message that was ostensibly on the economy. But he veered off-topic right from the start, going off on tangents about voter identification, crime in cities, transgender women in sports and “Dumocrats,” his new chosen moniker for the opposition party.
How to Tell if a Wellness Retreat Is Legit Before You Spend Thousands and Some Red Flags
From IV drips to biometric testing, luxury wellness resorts are blurring the line between spa and medical clinic.
Studying the science of baseball
Testing equipment at the UMass Lowell Baseball Research Center.
iOS 26.5.1 Update for iPhones is Coming Soon
Apple's software engineers are testing iOS 26.5.1, according to the MacRumors visitor logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. iOS 26.5.1 will almost certainly be a minor update that fixes bugs and/or security vulnerabilities, and it will likely be released by the end of next week. The logs show that Apple has ramped up testing of iOS 26.6 as well, with a first beta of that update likely to be released at some point in June.
Meta quietly released a new Reddit-like app called Forum
Meta is testing a new dedicated app for Facebook Groups called Forum.
Chester residents protest Philadelphia trash incineration, cite health impact
Chester residents are protesting Philadelphia's ongoing practice of incinerating its trash in Chester, citing health and environmental concerns, and are pushing for legislative action to stop it.
Gonorrhoea and syphilis hit record levels in Europe, data shows
STIs have surged thanks to record cases and gaps in testing and prevention, a health agency reports.
iPhone 19 Pro Prototype in Testing Allegedly Has Quad-Curved Display
Apple is testing an iPhone 19 Pro with a display that curves around all four edges of the device, a leaker out of China has claimed. According to Weibo-based Digital Chat Station, the 2027-generation Pro device, currently at the evaluation stage, has a hole-punch cutout in the display for the front-facing camera, but Face ID is completely hidden under the panel.
Transforming our future by unlocking the power of DNA: the representation of health-related genomic testing in UK news items
European Journal of Human Genetics - Transforming our future by unlocking the power of DNA: the representation of health-related genomic testing in UK news items
Philly health department notifies Center City dental patients of possible exposure to hepatitis, HIV
City health officials are recommending disease testing for some patients of Smiles at Rittenhouse Square following “unsanitary practices.”