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State floats major mental health funding shift that could jeopardize North Bay mobile crisis teams
The proposed shift would shoulder counties with as much as $130 million annually to sustain the programs. For many, it would open a gap they can’t fill.
Heat, Hawks clash with major playoff implications
Heat, Hawks clash with major playoff implications
College basketball transfer portal tracker: Fit grades for every top commitment from the 2026 cycle
Tracking and grading the major commitments as the 2026 college basketball transfer portal season heats up
Iraq elects Kurdish politician Nizar Amidi as president amid Iran war fallout
Iraq's parliament voted Saturday to elect Nizar Amidi as president, five months after a parliamentary election that didn't produce a decisive majority.
Boom Ball blends baseball, high-energy entertainment for night of family fun in Birmingham
The touring baseball show announced Friday that they’re brining their one-of-a-kind family entertainment to Regions Field.
“AI polls” are fake polls
A few weeks after Donald Trump’s second presidential win, I took the train up from London (where I was living at the time) to Oxford to attend a conference on polls and forecasts of the 2024 election. Most of the attendees were pollsters or academics, but I also watched presentations from Aaru and Electric Twin, two companies that do what is interchangeably called synthetic sampling, silicon sampling, or synthetic audiences. Stripped of startup jargon, that means they use large language models (LLMs) to simulate responses to public opinion polls by having AI agents take on the role of survey respondents. I had already heard of Aaru thanks to some articles with eye-catching headlines like “No people, no problem: AI chatbots predict elections better than humans” in the months leading up to Election Day. The founders were making some big, some might even say far-fetched claims, such as: “within two years, we will simulate the entire globe — from the way crops are grown in Ukraine to how that impacts production of oil in Iraq, trade through the strait of Malacca, and elections for the mayor of Baltimore.” When Semafor asked Aaru’s cofounders — Cameron Fink and Ned Koh — about my boss, they said “we respect all those who came before us.” Nate (as he so often does) shared his thoughts on Twitter: Fink and Koh were relatively good-natured about this back-and-forth when we spoke at Oxford. They even offered to mail me one of the t-shirts featuring Nate’s quote they apparently had made. I never took them up on the offer, which I now somewhat regret. These synthetic sampling companies fell off my radar for a while, but they do still exist. In fact, Aaru recently received a $1 billion valuation. Is what they’re doing anywhere close to the most important frontier in AI development? Not by a longshot, especially when Anthropic just developed a model so adept at exploiting software vulnerabilities that it’s only being released to 40 companies. Still, silicon sampling is increasingly finding its way into public polling. Axios reported in March that “a majority of people trust their own doctors and nurses” based on findings from Aaru — without mentioning that the “people” in that sentence were actually LLMs. Around the same time, the Public Sentiment Institute “boosted” their online sample of 373 real survey respondents with 114 AI agents.1 (Spoiler alert: even the co-founder of Electric Twin doesn’t think that’s a particularly defensible approach.) Polling companies like Qualtrics and Ipsos are also developing synthetic data panels. So, what should we make of these … “polls”? Let’s get one thing out of the way: whatever they are, they’re not polls in the way that term is usually defined. Subscribe You can’t replace polls with AI On one hand, using LLMs to essentially make up fake survey respondents sort of sounds like the dumbest idea ever, one that will at best imperfectly replicate real polls while introducing all sorts of biases. On the other hand, with LLMs improving at a remarkable, perhaps even alarming rate, maybe that means I’m a dinosaur at the ripe old age of 24 because I still want to rely on polls that talk to actual people. I’m not going to argue that synthetic samples are completely useless. In fact, as I’ll return to later, there is evidence that some techniques can replicate topline survey results quickly and cheaply. But the marketing from certain companies can be slightly optimistic. “No traditional poll will exist by the time the next general election occurs,” said Fink in 2024. We’re just 206 days away from the midterms, and based on the fact that I still have to collect a bunch of polls every day, I’d say he should have run that prediction by a sample of AI agents before the interview.2 To see why synthetic samples can’t replace polls, here’s a quick primer on how they work. The simplest version of these models involves taking a LLM (like ChatGPT or Claude), giving it a demographic profile (e.g., a white, college-educated woman who lives in Utah and makes $70k a year), and then asking it to respond to a survey question. You repeat that process a few thousand times using different demographic profiles and end up with a sample of synthetic survey responses. The actual models used by private companies are more sophisticated than this, usually because they incorporate more hypothesized demographic characteristics for each agent and provide them with extra information. Aaru, for example, feeds agents a diet of news and information they’d be likely to consume, while Electric Twin incorporates their customers’ proprietary data about the audience they’re trying to replicate. The way Ben Warner, the co-founder of Electric Twin, explained it to me was “we have a large amount of data on […] for instance, 5,000 people. Can we make an accurate prediction of how they would respond to another question?” Still, it should be obvious why synthetic samples can’t replace polls. Polling is fundamentally a data collection process. We might use surveys to make predictions by feeding them into election forecasts, but the main purpose of a poll isn’t prediction, it’s gathering new data about what people think and how they feel. Silicon sampling, on the other hand, produces no new data. It’s simply a model: you input LLM training data, demographic prompts, and a bunch of other information, and it spits out a prediction for what a poll would say. We love models here, but models aren’t polls. That difference is an important philosophical sticking point for most pollsters I talk to. “I think politics should stay away from [synthetic sampling], because we’re trying to […] represent the voice of the people,” said Natalie Jackson, a vice president at GQR Insights. Democratic pollster John Hagner told me: “I think I’m just incredibly skeptical of this idea. I don’t think it’s research. At that point, you’re asking the machine to tell you what you already believe.” Hagner has seen some presentations of early synthetic sampling experiments, but so far, “if it’s being used in a campaign, people are keeping it incredibly quiet.”3 But Eli, I hear you saying, aren’t polls themselves increasingly governed by modeling decisions? Indeed they are: pollsters’ choices on which sampling method to use, how to define their likely voter models, and how to weight their samples can and do lead to dramatic differences in the results they publish. Aaru even referenced these limitations in the methodology statement included with that maternal mortality “poll” — although I’m using the term “methodology statement” loosely here, because it doesn’t really explain how the model works at all. We can ignore the (frankly preposterous) implication that synthetic sampling isn’t subject to a separate set of biases. The important point is that there’s still a meaningful difference between using weighting and other statistical techniques on actual polling data and using a model to predict what a poll would say. The latter is far closer to election forecasts or techniques like MRP — potentially useful models, but not a replacement for polls.4 To be fair, other synthetic sampling companies are perfectly happy with the distinction between polls and models. Warner compared polling and synthetic sampling to different tools in a toolbox. “The mistake I think we make is we think that these new tools should either work in exactly the same way or somehow replace these old tools,” he said. “Rather than thinking of it as, okay, so we’ve always had the hammer, we’ve always had the screwdriver, now we’ve got a saw. But don’t use a saw to try [to] do the job of a hammer.” A quick comment from Nate Eli didn’t ask me for a comment — rather rude of him, don’t you think? But since I’m editing this story, I figured I’d add a few quick thoughts rather than putting words in his mouth. Beyond the frequently misleading marketing, what bothers me about the AI “poll” hype is that as AI tools make statistical inference cheaper and/or better (note that these are not synonyms) that actually increases the comparative value of collecting original data. You might be able to train a model to make a reasonable estimate of what some hard-to-reach poll respondent would say — say, a young Black man who voted for Trump. (Such a person checks a number of boxes for a voter who is usually hard to reach in surveys.) Indeed, this is closely related to what models like the Silver Bulletin forecast already do. They essentially smooth out the kinks in noisy survey data by making inferences based on past voting patterns or national polls or surveys of other states. But you don’t actually know what these voters think unless you’re reaching them directly. If there’s a shift in opinion among this subgroup, you’re not going to detect it. So if I were running a campaign, I’d invest more in going the extra mile to find a representative sample of those voters. And then I’d hire some smart quants — or Claude? — to figure out the implications for campaign strategy based on proprietary data that my competitors didn’t have access to. -Nate Silver Are these models any good? If synthetic surveys are just a new type of model, the next obvious question is whether the models are at least accurate. The answer very much depends on who you ask. On one end of the spectrum, you have the maximalist argument that synthetic sampling is more accurate than actual polls. “It’s an incredibly challenging problem to go to someone and say ‘hey, we’re going to be more accurate at predicting human behavior than you, even when you talk to your customers directly’,” Koh recently told CNBC. In his view, synthetic sampling isn’t a saw to polling’s hammer, it’s “magic.” There’s certainly evidence that synthetic samples can replicate certain survey toplines. But if Aaru does have any examples of their approach outperforming the polls, they’re keeping those to themselves.5 Aaru’s 2024 election model, for example, had Kamala Harris leading in Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin on November 4th. And although they’ve since taken down their forecast page, they gave Harris a 50.5 percent chance of winning the race on November 2nd.6 After the election, Fink told Semafor he was happy enough with those results because they were “within margin of error,” a term that is completely meaningless when applied to a “sample” of AI agents. And of course, Aaru says their models have improved since 2024, so supposedly now they’d be more accurate than the polls? Still, their stronger argument is on cost: “We are significantly faster and cheaper than traditional polling, and still more accurate,” said Fink. The first two claims are undeniably true, but the third brings us to the opposite end of the spectrum. Both Jackson and Hagner are skeptical that these models are reliable for anything beyond replicating common survey toplines. “I just […] don’t think the machines are what we want when we’re looking for nuanced views. My example on this is people in Arizona and Nevada in 2024 who voted for Trump and voted for expanding abortion in their states on ballot initiatives,” said Jackson. Hagner identified another issue. Maybe the synthetic respondents, like sycophantic LLMs, are inhuman in one important way: they’re too nice. “The reports that have come through at the meetings that I’ve been at are that the early experiments on this, they cannot get respondents to be as racist or sexist or, frankly, as negative as human respondents,” he said. Academic research mostly agrees on this point. While there are some papers that show promising results when using LLMs to replicate polling data, most show that LLMs suffer from various quirks like producing too few “don’t know” responses and can seriously overpredict the favorability of politicians like Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. They also seem to struggle with too little variation between demographic subgroups, so the difference in predicted opinion between Democrats and Republicans, for example, is too small. When I asked Warner about these studies, his response to these papers was that just because academics can’t get synthetic sampling to work doesn’t mean that the technique doesn’t work in general. “Actually, the argument is, okay, yours does not [work]. That does not mean […] for this complex set of machinery, which uses a lot of investment, a lot of time, a lot of money, you can’t get it to work.” Cards on the table, I’m somewhat sympathetic to this argument because academics aren’t exactly great at making election forecasts. Usually, the people with skin in the game are the most accurate. Warner’s argument is that the approach Electric Twin takes — which includes, for example, making multiple predictions for each synthetic respondent using different models and prompts and subsequently averaging those to get a final prediction in a sort of ensemble forecast — produces better results than the simpler academic models. Warner shared a comparison between his method and the method from a recent academic paper with me, and Electric Twin was indeed able to get more accurate replication. But even still, he acknowledged that synthetic sampling “is not a crystal ball.” “If you asked me, do I think using other data sources will be more accurate than asking somebody who they will vote for, I would probably say no. But if you asked me ‘would your system be useful for our turnout modeling today?’ I would say yes.” For better or worse, it looks like the method is already getting more popular in the market research world. Most of the clients Aaru touts these days are businesses like EY and McDonald’s. And AI will probably begin to pop up in other parts of the political polling process. Pollsters are already using it to code open-ended survey responses, and some firms, like YouGov, are testing using LLMs to ask survey respondents questions. More worryingly, one danger to actual polls is that AI agents can be used to infiltrate online surveys. Most online polls use various checks to prevent that from happening, but there’s conflicting evidence on how effective those filters are and how prevalent AI agents currently are in online panels. If those agents ever become impossible to detect, it might spell the end of online polling, but the solution isn’t to replace all of your respondents with ChatGPT. Silver Bulletin is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a subscriber. Subscribe 1 That particular poll obviously doesn’t meet Silver Bulletin standards for aggregation. But we exclude all Public Sentiment Institute polls from our averages because we classify them as an amateur polling firm. 2 You could argue that Fink meant the next presidential election, but (a) I’m also confident we’ll still have real polls in 2028 and (b) in that case he should have asked an LLM to define “general election.” 3 Quick caveat: that’s reporting from a Democratic pollster. It’s possible that Republicans are more willing to use AI in political campaigns. 4 Indeed, Silver Bulletin does not include “polls” produced by MRP in our forecasts or averages, and we think it’s extremely misleading when their practitioners describe them in a way that suggests original data had been collected among a large number of states or Congressional districts. 5 A recent report from Aaru and EY did show two examples of a synthetic estimate being closer than a survey to a real-world benchmark — but I’d take those findings with a grain of salt because the report reads more like an ad and didn’t involve any sort of prediction being made ahead of time. 6 For comparison, our odds for Harris on the same day were 48.2 percent.
Iraq elects Kurdish politician Nizar Amidi as president amid war fallout
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s parliament voted Saturday to elect Nizar Amidi, a political official with one of the country’s two main Kurdish parties, as president, five months after a parliamentary election that didn’t produce a bloc with a decisive majority.
Iraq elects Kurdish politician Nizar Amidi as president amid war fallout
Iraq’s parliament has elected Nizar Amidi as president, five months after elections failed to produce a decisive majority. The vote took place Saturday.
Max Muncy, high-octane Dodgers set for rematch vs. Rangers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are the first 10-win team in the majors, and they largely have gotten there with a potent offense.
I found a new meteor shower — and it comes from an asteroid getting baked to bits by the sun
A NASA researcher in planetary sciences explains how he discovered a new meteor shower linked to a disintegrating asteroid.
Georgia gardening guru and ‘Southern gentleman’ Walter Reeves dies at 74
Walter Reeves spread his gardening gospel on WSB radio and through The Atlanta Journal-Constitution over a span of decades.
Major Wolverhampton genetics study targets community health gaps
A study invites Pakistani and Bangladeshi residents in Wolverhampton to help improve health care.
Early weight gain is linked to lifelong health consequences
Putting on weight earlier in life may be more dangerous than previously thought. Researchers found that early adulthood obesity significantly raises the risk of premature death, especially from major diseases like heart disease and diabetes. The longer the body carries excess weight, the greater the damage appears to be. Interestingly, cancer risk in women didn’t follow this pattern, suggesting other biological factors are at play.
Early weight gain is linked to lifelong health consequences
Putting on weight earlier in life may be more dangerous than previously thought. Researchers found that early adulthood obesity significantly raises the risk of premature death, especially from major diseases like heart disease and diabetes. The longer the body carries excess weight, the greater the damage appears to be. Interestingly, cancer risk in women didn’t follow this pattern, suggesting other biological factors are at play.
Two simple eating habits linked to lower weight, study finds
A major study suggests that when you eat could play a key role in staying lean. People who fast longer overnight and start their day with an early breakfast were more likely to have a lower BMI years later. Scientists think this is because eating earlier aligns better with the body’s internal clock. But skipping breakfast as part of intermittent fasting didn’t offer the same advantage—and may even be tied to unhealthy habits.
Mike Johnson, Steve Scalise face a long, difficult to-do list as Congress returns
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise return to Capitol Hill Monday afternoon after a two-week Easter break with a long list of “must
Anthropic's Mythos sparks Washington's big bank anxiety
Manufacturing a disease and selling the cure is a Bond villain business plan. Is Anthropic all that different?
The compact camera is back… Why 2.4 million people are discovering that real buttons are outpacing smartphones in 2026
The point-and-shoot camera is back from the dead
Dozens of hidden lakes discovered beneath Arctic glaciers in Canada
Researchers have uncovered the locations of 37 subglacial lakes in Canada’s Arctic, 35 of them discovered for the very first time — what could be a major scientific breakthrough in understanding the quickly-warming region.
Barcelona face major setback in race for teenage midfield sensation
According to SPORT, Barcelona are closely monitoring Kennet Eichhorn, a highly-rated 16-year-old currently developing at Hertha Berlin. The youngster has emerged as one of the most promising midfield...
Women's basketball transfer portal tracker: Latest news as Audi Crooks, other big names look for new teams
We're keeping tabs on every major move with the transfer portal open in women's college basketball
Animal Science Major Finds Familiar Sense of Community on the Farm
Elizabeth Reed left her hometown seeking a fresh start. Her determination and passion for livestock led her to leadership, and a close-knit community at the University Farm.
Democrats turn to strikers to talk politics under GOP majority
With only a handful of their bills getting a chance to be heard in committee, legislative Democrats have turned to striker amendments to generate attention.
100 Best & Brightest Undergraduate Business Majors Of 2026
Our annual celebration of the world's most promising business majors to graduate in 2026, featuring 100 truly exceptional students
How Sheng Wang finds 'Purple' comedy in a stuck drawer and a toothbrush choice
Comedian Sheng Wang discusses how his second special "Purple" represents a major evolution from his 2022 debut, reflecting his growth from intimate clubs to touring major theaters nationwide.
College basketball transfer portal fill up with more than 2,000 men's players
Mid-major conferences are being hit hard by transfers, but so are the Power Conferences as more than 320 players enter from P-4 schools
Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi says Melania Trump’s Epstein statement was ‘very important’
Broncos ownership group joins Rockies as minority partners
DENVER -- Penner Sports Group, the family entity of Greg and Carrie Penner that owns the Denver Broncos, has made an investment that will make it the largest minority owner of the Rockies franchise. The move, approved by Major League Baseball, was announced by Rockies owner, chairman and CEO Dick
Photos: Makeup tests, shoulder cuff health and student presentations
Darryna Guy-Williams, a bioengineering and bio chemistry major, sprays Jenna King, class TA and postdoctorate candidate in chemistry and chemical biology, with a facial hydrating mist in Leila Deravi’s cosmetic chemistry class.
Senator contacts leagues over 'gambling's ugly takeover'
As prediction markets expand partnerships with major U.S. sports leagues, a U.S. senator sent letters to six league commissioners Thursday raising concerns about "gambling's ugly takeover of sports."
Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Why is Parker Messick still so widely available?
Why the World’s Biggest TikTok Star’s $975 Million Business Deal is Suddenly Falling Apart
Khaby Lame’s landmark merger drew in traders and creator economy optimists alike, but the stock has since plunged more than 90 percent and major brokerages are restricting trading.
Trump administration admits a glaring error in its accusations about New York health care fraud
President Donald Trump's administration has admitted to a major error in data used to justify a federal fraud probe into New York’s Medicaid program.
Car Keys in Apple Wallet coming soon to major new vehicle brand
Apple Wallet’s car key feature is building momentum among automakers, and now we can add another “coming soon” brand to that list: Lexus.
Alphabet Is Quietly Building Its Next Major Business -- and It Could Be Bigger Than You Think
Most investors think of AI as a race to build better models. But behind every AI system sits something far more important -- the infrastructure that powers it. And that's where Alphabet is quietly building something big.
Alphabet Is Quietly Building Its Next Major Business -- and It Could Be Bigger Than You Think
Most investors think of AI as a race to build better models. But behind every AI system sits something far more important -- the infrastructure that powers it. And that's where Alphabet is quietly building something big.
A Hematology Science Researcher’s Experience of the Present Funding Environment
Rinku Majumder, PhD, gave a status update on her laboratory’s investigations of anticoagulant protein S.
Trump administration admits error in New York health care fraud probe
President Donald Trump's administration has admitted to a major error in data used to justify a federal fraud probe into New York’s Medicaid program.
Hong Kong animal groups urge HKTVmall boycott over life science experiments
Online retailer facing major backlash after its parent company confirmed tests on pigs’ and sheep’s detached heads and limbs.
Mainz midfielder ruled out for multiple weeks
1. FSV Mainz 05 will have to manage without Jae-sung Lee in the coming weeks.After the midfielder missed Thursday’s 2–0 win over Racing Strasbourg in the Conference League, sporting director Niko ...
Major United Nations Report Faces Budget Woes Amid Trump’s Pull Back
Without US backing and more money being spent than brought in, the IPCC’s trust fund could run out by 2028.
Watch: As AI Makes More Health Coverage Decisions, the Risks to Patients Grow
Major health insurers and even Medicare are using artificial intelligence to make coverage decisions. But class action lawsuits have accused insurers of using AI to wrongfully withhold treatment, and new research illuminates the risks.
Google Rolls Out DBSC in Chrome 146 to Block Session Theft on Windows
Google releases DBSC in Chrome 146 for Windows, binding cookies to devices to reduce session theft and prevent unauthorized access.
China’s K-pop worries: The reasons why a ban on Korean entertainment has lasted a decade
BEIJING (AP) — As mega K-pop group BTS returns to the stage after a hiatus of more than three years, one major market is conspicuously missing from its 12-month world tour: China. The omission of o…
Op-ed: You don’t have to major in business because your dad told you to
I’m a second-year student at Northeastern, and I’ve already changed my major four times — twice last semester. I know that sounds stressful, kind of scary and like I have no idea what I want to do with my life. But currently, my major is combined political science and journalism, and despite the changes I...
CDC delays COVID vaccine benefits report
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reportedly delayed the publication of its report detailing the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccine at the behest of its acting director. Acting CDC…
Michael Owen raises $93K in Q1, widening fundraising lead in HD 70 race
Owen’s latest report continues a steady upward trajectory in his fundraising operation.
Exclusive: DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics, Bet365 fund sports gambling super PAC
Several major sportsbooks have contributed tens of millions of dollars to a super PAC to support sports betting throughout the country, Axios has learned.
Municipal Health Insurance: Major Developments
Challenges Growing For Local Plans Coalition Bargaining Remains Mass Retirees Priority Rising premiums are placing significant … Read More
Proto-mammals laid eggs, paleontologists finally confirm
Lystrosaurus fills in a major evolutionary gap.
TCU FTDM launches business of entertainment media major
TCU is set to add a Business of Entertainment Media major to the FTDM department this fall.
New sports business major taps into Portland sports culture
For those dreaming of careers in fields like sports marketing or working with the Portland Trail Blazers, Adidas or Nike, declaring the new sports business major can unlock opportunity, according to Michael DeVaughn, dean of the School of Business. Beginning in spring 2026, the Bachelor of Business Administration in Sports Business will be available for underclassmen to declare at UP.
New sports business major taps into Portland sports culture
For those dreaming of careers in fields like sports marketing or working with the Portland Trail Blazers, Adidas or Nike, declaring the new sports business major can unlock opportunity, according to Michael DeVaughn, dean of the School of Business. Beginning in spring 2026, the Bachelor of Business Administration in Sports Business will be available for underclassmen to declare at UP.
3L Rachel Sadler Charts Path in Brain Health, Technology, and Policy Through UC Law SF’s Health Law Concentration - UC Law San Francisco (Formerly UC Hastings)
3L Rachel Sadler studies health law and policy at UC Law SF while researching the legal implications of neurotechnology and other emerging tools that may affect human cognition. 3L student Rachel Sadler shares how UC Law SF’s Health Law Concentration prepared her for a career focused on the intersection of brain health, government policy, and technology. Gained a detailed understanding of how U.S. health care is regulated and where policy reform is needed through coursework and research. Interned with state and federal agencies that regulate health care services and worked with a major health care provider’s bioethics department. Plans to pursue a career focused on protecting cognitive liberty and mental privacy as new technologies reshape healthcare. 3L Rachel Sadler: The Health Law Concentration has given me fluency in one of the most complex regulated industries and the tools to become an effective advocate for better health policy. Before coming to law school, I spent a decade teaching and working with teachers and administrators on high school programming for multilingual learners. Healthcare kept emerging as the most powerful driver of student outcomes. I wanted to understand how to make effective policy change in this area and how to use existing law to defend people’s health rights in California. Through the concentration’s coursework, I gained a sophisticated understanding of how U.S. healthcare is regulated. I also learned where the pressure points for reform exist. The courses gave me space to develop what became my central research interest: how law and policy can be built to protect human cognition and healthy brain development, particularly regarding new technologies such as generative AI and neurotechnology. The health law faculty were instrumental in that process, genuinely invested in helping me and other students define and pursue our own intellectual vision. During law school, I interned at the General Counsel’s Office for Region IX of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I also externed at the California Department of Justice’s Health, Education and Welfare Division. Additionally, I externed at Kaiser Permanente Northern California’s Bioethics Department. Alongside those placements, I conducted extensive independent research on mental privacy and emerging neurotechnology, working closely with Professors Emily Murphy and George Horvath. That research became the throughline of my law school experience and the foundation of my current policy focus. I must also credit Nicole Ozer of the Center for Constitutional Democracy (CCD), whose deep knowledge of California privacy law and the public-interest privacy landscape deeply informed my work. I currently serve a research assistant with the CCD, where I spearhead the development of K-12 educational resources in partnership with law faculty and students. I’ve found UC Law SF to be an ideal place for second-career, nontraditional students. There is a tremendous diversity of life and career experience here, and I felt fully welcomed into the community, despite returning as a student at a different stage of life. I came to law school wanting to promote equity in California’s healthcare system. I am leaving with a sharper and more specific ambition: to build a policy career focused on protecting cognitive liberty and mental privacy from technological intrusion. This is both an urgent and underserved area of law, and I want to be part of defining this landscape going forward. Whether as a practicing attorney or a policy advisor, I plan to work on these issues after law school. I strongly recommend UC Law SF and the Health Law Concentration. When I arrived in law school, I worried the concentration would be narrow and that my non-clinical background would be a disadvantage. The opposite was true. The health law faculty thinks about health expansively, encompassing social determinants of health, structural inequity, and emerging technologies alongside the regulatory mechanics of the industry. The faculty are accessible, intellectually generous, and genuinely invested in students’ development. I found my research vision here, and I deeply appreciate the concentration’s role in this. The Evidence of Success series highlights UC Law SF students as they share how the College’s opportunities equip them with the experience, skills, and confidence to excel in the legal profession.
Georgia’s 14th District runoff reveals significant shift to Democrats
A November rematch is already brewing after Republican Clay Fuller staved off Democrat Shawn Harris in Tuesday's runoff.
UC Berkeley students express transparency concerns in computer science comprehensive review process
UC Berkeley students attempting to add the computer science major have been navigating an uncertain comprehensive review process this year.
Abortion Pill’s Safety Called into Question in Congressional Actions Based on Misleading Data — The Monitor
False claims about the safety of mifepristone are driving legislative and investigative action in Congress, even as major medical organizations and decades of clinical evidence support the drug’s safety. And competing interpretations of what censorship and free speech mean are impacting how health misinformation is moderated.
Xbox Achievements are getting some major changes, including the option to hide embarrassing games that you don't want to show off
Xbox is changing the achievement system, allowing for visual customization, hiding specific games, and highlighting others.
A tiny experiment using Artemis II astronaut cells could reshape medicine
Chips seeded with the astronauts’ bone marrow cells circled the moon to help probe how deep-space flight affects human biology.
Xbox’s New System Update Delivers Overhaul Gamers Have Been Begging For
Xbox has finally listened to console user feedback with a major system update rolling out now.
Supreme Court remade by Trump ushers in historic defeats for civil rights
The court is the first since at least the ’50s to reject claims in a majority of cases involving women and minorities, an analysis conducted for The Post shows.
Democrats Are Obsessed With the Wrong Senate Races
Sherrod Brown and Roy Cooper aren’t driving the political conversation, but their races may ultimately decide the Senate majority.
Ohio Republican lawmakers proposed major new sports betting restrictions
Three Ohio Republican lawmakers are introducing legislation to place “guardrails” on the state’s sports betting system, including stopping online/phone gambling, limits on wagers, banning the use of credit for betting, and limiting advertisement.
Dimensity 9600 Pro Specifications Leak Point Towards A Major Flagship Chipset Release To Challenge Both Apple & Qualcomm This Year
A tipster has provided some specifications surrounding the Dimensity 9600 Pro, hinting that we’re in for a treat as far as flagship chipset releases go
Vilma Jää Brings herding calls and mocking songs to Met Opera’s production of 'Innocence'
Vilma Jää never expected to play a major role in one of the 21st century’s most acclaimed operas when she enrolled at the Sibelius Academy to study folk music | 1080 WTIC NEWSTALK
Vilma Jää Brings herding calls and mocking songs to Met Opera’s production of 'Innocence'
Vilma Jää never expected to play a major role in one of the 21st century’s most acclaimed operas when she enrolled at the Sibelius Academy to study folk music | Talk Radio 1210 WPHT
Vilma Jää Brings herding calls and mocking songs to Met Opera’s production of 'Innocence'
Vilma Jää never expected to play a major role in one of the 21st century’s most acclaimed operas when she enrolled at the Sibelius Academy to study folk music | KYW Newsradio
Vilma Jää Brings herding calls and mocking songs to Met Opera’s production of 'Innocence'
Vilma Jää never expected to play a major role in one of the 21st century’s most acclaimed operas when she enrolled at the Sibelius Academy to study folk music | KCBS All News 106.9FM and 740AM
Speedway champion tells of his ride from coma to comeback
Scunthorpe-born Tai Woffinden talks about his recovery from a major crash and his racing future.
Strait of Hormuz traffic still stalled despite US-Iran ceasefire
Movements are dominated by smaller, risk-tolerant operators, while mainstream oil majors and large global shipping firms remain absent.
Detroit Lions NFL Draft Injury Report: LSU S AJ Haulcy
AJ Haulcy NFL Draft medical report. Full injury analysis heading into the 2026 NFL draft. How will it affect Detroit Lions draft strategy?
2026 Masters odds, picks, field, date: Surprising PGA predictions from golf model that's nailed 16 majors
Mike McClure's model has simulated the Masters 2026 10,000 times and revealed golf picks for Augusta National
First-Generation Accounting and Finance Double Major Sets Sights on Future as Business Leader
Joana Camarena arrived with a plan to pursue accounting and financial literacy skills. On the cusp of graduating, she is completing her degree with a job offer and more.
ENTERTAINMENT: Dogtown Throwdown in Argenta; UCA stages ‘Little Women’
Main Street between Fourth and Fifth streets in the Argenta Arts District in North Little Rock will shut down Friday and Saturday for Dogtown Throwdown, two days of outdoor dining, live music and “family-friendly activities” with a Cajun theme.
New gene therapy may help protect the hearts of patients with Friedreich's ataxia
A majority of deaths from Friedreich's ataxia are associated with heart complications. A new treatment years in the making could provide some much-needed relief.
TRADING DAY Markets gorge on huge TACO
World markets soared on Wednesday and oil had its biggest fall in five years, as investors gave a hearty welcome to the ceasefire in the Iran war. The question now is whether this is just a mega-relief rally, or a major turning point in sentiment.
2026 Masters odds, picks, field, date: Surprising PGA predictions from golf model that's nailed 16 majors
Mike McClure's model has simulated the Masters 2026 10,000 times and revealed golf picks for Augusta National
Trump’s 2027 Budget Targets Major Cuts to Science Funding
Trump’s 2027 Budget Targets Major Cuts to Science Funding / 2027 budget, Donald Trump, healthcare, healthcare news, Science Funding, Trump, US healthcare, USA
Large Hadron Collider gives scientists their best look yet at conditions right after the Big Bang
"This is the first time we have observed, for a large interval in momentum and for multiple species, this flow pattern in a subset of proton collisions in which an unusually large number of particles are produced."
18 new features coming to Windows 11 in 2026, confirmed by Microsoft
Windows 11 is getting major upgrades with faster performance, improved File Explorer, better updates, native apps, etc. Here is the full list.
Anderson youth health center project faces uncertain future
A major partner withdrew from Anderson's planned youth behavioral health center, leaving its future uncertain.
N.Y. Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes won't run for reelection
She has been in the Assembly since 2003 and currently represents the 141st Assembly District.
Another Big Night for Democrats: Tuesday’s Wisconsin and Georgia Results
Democrats enjoyed another double-digit victory in a Wisconsin state Supreme Court race; their win will expand the liberal majority on the body to 5-2. Meanwhile, Republicans held GA-14, although it made for another Democratic overperformance.
Keratin may act as a 'brake' for skin inflammation, pointing to potential treatments
Keratin has been linked to skin diseases and inflammation in the past, but now, a new study may have uncovered one reason why.
NCAA weighs major eligibility change that could reshape college football and basketball
How the new NCAA proposal, if adopted, could impact NIL, transfers and European recruits
Trump says U.S. will work with Iran to 'dig up' enriched uranium. Iran hasn't confirmed that
He previously said the U.S. would retrieve the deeply buried material, which is expected to be an intensive undertaking, if it struck an agreement with Iran.
Using adjusted breakout age to help you evaluate wide receivers in the 2026 NFL Draft for fantasy football
UT Senior Named Among Nation’s Best Business Majors
UT Senior Tyler Porter has received national recognition as one of Poets&Quants 100 Best and Brightest Undergraduate Business Majors of 2026.
Megan Lahtonen
“I had always wanted to major in science, and after having that classroom experience, I knew biology education was the perfect fit for me."
AI Boom Could Cause Health Care Costs to Soar
AI is already affecting health care delivery, and the choices policymakers make about payment will define its future trajectory, says LDI Fellow Amol Navathe.
Mamdani earns positive marks at 100-day milestone, Marist poll finds
A majority say the city is headed in the right direction.
NCAA proposing major changes to eligibility rules, including age limits
Where stories meet science - College of Arts and Sciences
A North Carolina-focused digital humanities project is using storytelling to inform a major science and public health issue — the impact of PFAS exposure on people’s lives.
From classroom to the pros: Rice sport analytics program turning data into opportunity
Rice’s sport analytics program, a relatively new and still rare undergraduate major, is quickly becoming a pipeline into professional sports.
Live updates: Democrats demand Trump's ouster; Republicans win Georgia special election
Get live updates and the latest news as Democrats demand Trump's removal, Republicans win Georgia's special election, and Wisconsin Democrats expand their majority on the state Supreme Court
2026 Masters odds, picks, field, date: Surprising PGA predictions from golf model that's nailed 16 majors
Mike McClure's model has simulated the Masters 2026 10,000 times and revealed golf picks for Augusta National
How the Navy's retail business is working to pull off a turnaround
Sales have fallen at the Navy Exchange, the government-owned department store chain that provides tax-free products to enlisted servicemembers and veterans. Its stores are an important benefit to military families stationed across the world, and its profits directly improve the welfare of Navy sailors. The company is working to revamp its fleet of stores with a planned investment of around $100 million to better compete with major e-commerce players like Walmart and Amazon.
'I'm Still Beyond Confused Why They Didn't Go the Cyberpunk Route' — Crimson Desert Female Character Creator Mod Lets Players Unshackle Themselves From Premade Kliff
One of the major criticisms of Crimson Desert I’ve seen since launch is that it does not let you create your own character. Instead, you’re locked into playing as Kliff, who himself has been criticized for a lack of personality, and two other even less fleshed out playable characters. Well, now, like so many other things with Pearl Abyss’ open world action adventure, there’s a mod for that.
Opinion: The socialists are coming!
Democratic socialist candidates are targeting state House Democrats and local races across Georgia in 2026.
Horse Tracks: AFC West offseason expectations
The AFC West is changing this offseason, but the media narratives are all staying the same.