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Iran is reviewing proposals focusing on Tehran’s nuclear program, officials say
Iran is reviewing proposals from Qatar to address differences with the U.S. over Tehran’s nuclear program. That's according to two Middle East officials who are not authorized to comment publicly
Town of Normal to try again at updating home-based business rules, starting with public opinion
A proposal updating the current restrictions on certain home-based businesses was couched amid strong public backlash. The Town of Normal is now seeking feedback in an open house this month.
Harrison County High Schools take part in county-wide mock business symposium
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — High school business students from across Harrison County put their entrepreneurial skills to the test Friday, developing and pitching business proposals aimed at improving operations at The
Lawsuits challenge Money Out of Politics ballot measure on First Amendment grounds
Two lawsuits have been filed against Proposal 2, the “Michiganders for Money Out of Politics” ballot measure that passed on Tuesday with over 80% of the vote, arguing it violates the First Amendment.
Men’s College Soccer Calendar Change Faces Huge Rejection From Schools
Enough schools voted against the fall-to-spring calendar to block the NCAA’s proposal.
DTE, Consumers sue to block ‘money out of politics’ proposal approved by voters
Michigan’s biggest utility companies are suing to block implementation of Proposal 2, arguing voter-approved restrictions on political giving violate free speech rights.
Socorro ISD employee health insurance cost rise +$100 a month after tax proposal rejected
Socorro ISD employees could see health insurance premiums jump by $100+ a month after voters rejected a $49M tax proposal. The board moved ahead with a plan holding district contributions flat as cuts begin.
Consumers and DTE sue to block "Money out of Politics" proposal
Consumers Energy and DTE Energy filed a lawsuit in federal court on Thursday seeking a finding that Proposal 2, Money Out of Politics, is unconstitutional, and blocking it from taking effect.
DTE, Consumers sue to block ‘money out of politics’ proposal approved by voters
Michigan’s biggest utility companies are suing to block implementation of Proposal 2, arguing voter-approved restrictions on political giving violate free speech rights.
DTE, Consumers file lawsuit to block Proposal 2's implementation
Attorneys for the utility companies argue Proposal 2 would violate their free speech rights, once implemented.
Consumers Energy, DTE seek to block 'Money out of Politics' proposal
Consumers and DTE sued to block the implementation of a newly-approved ballot proposal that would bar monopoly utilities from political contributions.
Consumers Energy, DTE seek to block 'Money Out of Politics' proposal
Consumers and DTE sued to block the implementation of a newly-approved ballot proposal that would bar monopoly utilities from political contributions.
How, and why, to stress test your business case
An important element of every investment proposal is knowing the answer to this question: What happens if the assumptions fail?
Michigan voters approve ‘Money Out of Politics’ ballot initiative; lawsuit filed
(The Center Square) – Michigan voters overwhelmingly supported a proposal to ban political spending by state-regulated electric and gas utilities and companies with large government contracts. The “Mo...
Last session tonight to weigh in on Heights Business District plan
Current business district proposal would allow buildings up to six stories and zero parking as incentives for developers The latest proposal for the Heights Business District offers “public benefit incentives,” which are conditional bonuses for developers. Developers can build up to six stories if they offer a public plaza, a public amenity, or first-and-second floor active commercial use. Developers will have no requirement to build parking spaces if they offer 60% ground-floor active commercial use, or if they preserve a historical facade. Those incentives and other parts of the plans will be discussed tonight, Nov. 5, when the Heights Neighborhood
Medicare delays controversial RPM rule update
Despite widespread opposition, Medicare will finalize a controversial proposal that will prevent providers, such as hospitals, from using third parties to deliver remote patient monitoring services.
When papers become currency: a Chinese debate about trust in science
Last Saturday, 31 October, I went to the University of Hong Kong’s Beijing Centre for its Talent Forum. It was the fourth stop in the series this year, following events in Shanghai’s Zhangjiang, Shenzhen’s Qianhai, and on HKU’s main campus. The programme covered a remarkable distance in one afternoon. HKU’s Xiao-Jing Wang discussed computational neuroscience, intelligence, and the prefrontal cortex—before even delivering his inaugural public lecture to students back in Hong Kong. His colleague Bing Zhang took us from the Big Bang to artificial intelligence. Tsinghua’s Xue Lan asked how AI might reshape the institutional infrastructure underpinning higher education. There were lively panels featuring industry leaders from JD.com, Xiaomi, Haier—and Kaiser Y Kuo on the closing panel discussing innovation and international connections. I cannot pretend to have followed every detail of the brain models or the astrophysics. The talk that stayed with me was closer to something we have covered before: Zhou Zhonghe 周忠和 on papers, evaluation, and scientific trust. Zhou is a palaeontologist, an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and an international member of the US National Academy of Sciences. He is also editor-in-chief of The Intellectual (知识分子), China’s leading science commentary platform. His subject was uncomfortable enough for a room full of successful academics: what happens when the system for recognising good science starts rewarding something else? Part of my interest came from our sister newsletter, The East is Read, which covered the controversy around “Geng Tongxue” in May. A PhD dropout from Beihang University, Geng has publicly challenged papers by prominent researchers through detailed online allegations of manipulated images and fabricated data. At Tongji University, an investigation into a challenged Nature paper found academic misconduct, and the dean of its life sciences school was removed. The affair brought doubts about academic integrity well beyond laboratories and university committees. How could someone outside the established hierarchy spot problems in papers that had passed through prestigious journals and institutions? And what, exactly, had all that prestige guaranteed? Zhou approached these questions through two essays published in July by The Intellectual: one by Wang Xiaodong, director of the National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing, and a response by Wang Liming, of Shanghai’s Shangsi Institute of Natural Sciences. Both began with the controversy over Geng. Their arguments deserve a wider audience, so I want to put parts of them alongside what Zhou said on Saturday. Wang Xiaodong’s starting point is evolution. A research system selects for the behaviour it rewards. Grants, jobs, journals, talent programmes, and prizes collectively determine which scientists prosper and which practices get passed down from advisors to students. “Whatever the system rewards is what it will evolve to produce,” he writes, citing the ancient Chinese saying: The King of Chu loved slender waists, and many in the palace starved to death. That is a more demanding diagnosis than saying there are dishonest people in science. Punishing a fraudster does not change the selective environment that made a particular kind of research profitable. His account also gives scientific success an awkward role in the story. As Zhou put it on Saturday, science became a victim of its own success. Once research became central to industry, national power, and economic growth, universities and laboratories expanded, and public money followed. That created an administrative need for rapid decisions: who should get the next grant, the next laboratory, the next appointment? The difficulty is that the true value of a discovery may take years or decades of testing and building to become clear. Resource allocation cannot wait that long. Publication counts, journal prestige, impact factors, and citations therefore become convenient ways to make an instant judgement. “The real problem is not that these indicators have no value,” Wang Xiaodong writes, “but that they are trying to answer a question that only time can answer.” Telling administrators simply to stop counting papers will never be enough. They still have budgets to distribute and appointments to make. Something has to replace the shortcut. Zhou described the consequences inside publishing. Papers acquire ever more requirements: a complete story, polished presentation, extensive datasets, and accessibility to readers beyond the immediate field. Individually, those demands sound reasonable. Together, he warned, they produce formulaic “eight-legged” papers 八股文 and rigid reviewing, while genuinely original or non-consensus work struggles to get past journal editors—some of whom wield immense gatekeeping power despite having limited laboratory experience themselves. Meanwhile, the demands for sprawling, “complete” narratives have fuelled a wider replication crisis. Wang Xiaodong uses a mahjong metaphor to describe the result: put the complex papers published by the exact same lab over several years side by side, and they often look like “Thirteen Orphans” (十三不靠)—every tile completely unrelated to the next, and none of them reproducible by outsiders. Zhou also spoke frankly as an editor who has trouble finding reviewers. Everyone wants someone else to review their work; qualified senior researchers have little time to return the favour. The labour is anonymous, unpaid, and brings almost no institutional recognition, so it increasingly gets passed down to postdocs and graduate students. And while anonymity protects reviewers from rank and personal favours, hyper-specialisation means an author’s most qualified reviewer is often a direct competitor, shielded from accountability. The protection and the problem coexist. Wang Liming takes the argument a step further. The decisive change, in his essay, is the instant conversion of academic honour into material resources. Once a paper can be cashed in for funding, a job, students, commercial investment, or even a company valuation, scientists are alienated from their work: they must keep minting this “research currency” to keep their teams alive. He is careful not to romanticise the past. The old world of gentleman scientists—financially independent figures like Boyle and Darwin who needed nothing from external funders—was also a closed club that excluded people without inherited wealth, women, and much of humanity outside the West. Professional science allowed ordinary people, himself included, to become researchers. Nobody should want to undo that. The problem, in his account, is an exchange system that becomes too uniform and too difficult to correct. His most pointed Chinese example is the “hat” (帽子): the prestigious talent designation that brings continuing access to money, laboratory space, students, and institutional influence. “If papers are the circulating currency of the research system, then a ‘hat’ is a bond that pays interest over the long term,” he writes. A paper at least requires another round of peer review. A title in the Chinese context can lock in a judgement made years ago and turn it into permanent status rent, regardless of whether its holder is still doing good science. Here, official institutions hire, organise, and evaluate scientists. Unlike honours awarded by autonomous academic communities in the West, a Chinese “hat” blends non-scientist administrative power with state authority. Once granted, it turns a past judgement into permanent status rent that is nearly impossible to revoke—because taking a hat off would imply that official authority erred in putting it on. Both Wangs see China as experiencing, at compressed speed, pressures present across global science. Research expansion, rising investment, publication growth, and elaborate evaluation metrics arrived in China within two or three decades rather than two or three centuries. Zhou agreed with that international framing—noting that recent US White House science policy documents and the new president of the US National Academy of Sciences, a fellow palaeontologist who recently visited Zhou’s institute in Beijing, have raised strikingly similar warnings about consensus-bound peer review, short-term project grants, and the replication crisis. Still, Zhou emphasised that China’s traditional hierarchy, personal networks (guanxi), and the ethos that “a good scholar becomes an official” (学而优则仕) amplify those pressures at home. So what would change things? Here Zhou’s tone differed from the call for a revolution in scientific trust in Wang Xiaodong’s essay. As an evolutionary biologist, Zhou favoured patchwork repair (修修补补). Living systems survive through accumulated adjustments; dramatic mutations are usually fatal. Science cannot return to a small, slow-moving pastoral era, especially after the successive accelerations of professionalisation after the Second World War, the internet, and now artificial intelligence. But it can alter the local environment in which researchers work. He pointed to domestic experiments designed to support unconventional research and diversify funding, including Tencent’s New Cornerstone Investigator Program, the Xplorer Prize, and the Future Science Prize. He also mentioned participating in reviews for “major non-consensus projects” under the National Natural Science Foundation of China. One guiding principle he recalled was wonderfully direct: “Failure is allowed; corruption is not” (允许失败，不允许腐败). That distinction would mean quite a lot if taken seriously. An honest attempt that fails should not have to disguise itself as a success to survive an assessment. Wang Liming’s essay adds a sharp caveat to the optimism about new domestic funders. Multiple organisations do not automatically produce multiple ways of judging science. If the same pool of senior domestic scientists makes the decisions through the same two-round review procedures, it is still “fake diversity.” He argues for three distinct kinds of money: broad baseline funding governed by fair procedures; patient funding for questions that take ten years; and non-consensus funding based on individual taste, deliberately empowering a few genuine experts to make biased, contrarian bets on eccentric ideas that would inevitably be averaged out by a committee. Replacing one monopoly with another achieves little; a healthy ecosystem needs variance. Zhou’s proposals for publishing were similarly concrete: strip papers of their resource-allocation burden and return them to recording discoveries and establishing priority; separate dissemination from evaluation, as eLife and Peer Community In do; adopt more modular “micro-publications” and real-name endorsements; recognize the labour of editors and reviewers; and give replication work proper credit rather than treating it as an unpublishable dead end. AI makes every part of this debate more urgent—and Zhou wove it throughout his talk. In his own preparation, he used AI to survey the declining influence of academic monographs, noting how tools are already changing how scholars gather information. More fundamentally, he placed AI as the latest great acceleration in scientific history: just as the internet sped up the pace of research and tightened external resource pressures, AI is compressing the cycle again. In the essays Zhou cited, AI cuts both ways. Wang Xiaodong expects large language models to erase much of the English-writing disadvantage long faced by Chinese scientists, further swelling the flood of papers coming out of Chinese labs. Wang Liming sees AI accelerating both ends of the trust crisis: it lowers the cost of paper mills and fabricated images just as quickly as it lowers the cost of automated image forensics, data auditing, and code reproduction. “Whoever builds the verification layer wins,” Wang Liming writes. His proposed alternative to the static, packaged “story paper” is a continuously versioned “unit of discovery” containing a falsifiable claim, raw data, analysis code, experimental parameters, and an ongoing log of independent checks—where negative results and failed replications are recorded rather than buried. Zhou ended his keynote by bringing AI back to the question of scientific honour and credit. Citing a recent Intellectual discussion on “What AI Means for Mathematics” featuring Fields Medalist Deng Yu 邓煜—at a moment when AI is already batch-solving mathematical conjectures, as HKU Vice-President Lin Chen noted in his opening remarks—Zhou agreed that human researchers must remain the principal agents: AI is a tool that frees scientists from tedious calculation to think about deeper, messier real-world problems. Yet that partnership creates a thorny new evaluation problem. When a breakthrough is made with AI, what is the human contribution and what is the machine’s? And since AI models distil centuries of accumulated human scholarship, is it right that the credit and value flow so heavily to the private AI companies building the tools? The old struggle over how to assign scientific honour is acquiring a whole new layer. What I took away was a serious discussion of how science can remain trustworthy as its scale, incentives, and tools change. These were scientists with real standing inside China’s system questioning how that standing is produced, and proposing changes that would affect their own institutions and peers. That made the afternoon at HKU’s Beijing Centre worthwhile. At the close, Wang Feng, Director of Communications and Public Affairs at HKU, said the value of the forum series—which heads to Hangzhou in December and cities like Chengdu early next year—would lie in the real cooperation it helped bring about. The university has plenty to celebrate: this week it topped the QS Asia rankings for a second consecutive year, alongside its 11th-place position in the QS World University Rankings 2027. For me, bringing this debate to an audience beyond the people who review papers and allocate grants was a useful contribution. Share [ The East is Read PhD dropout’s exposé forces an academic fraud reckoning in China A former doctoral student turned blogger has shaken China’s academic establishment by publicly accusing prominent university scholars of fabricating data and manipulating papers, triggering investigations at several leading institutions and drawing rare attention from state media… Read more 5 months ago · 43 likes · 8 comments · Yuxuan JIA ](https://www.eastisread.com/p/phd-dropouts-expose-forces-an-academic?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=post_embed&utm_medium=web&embedding_publication_id=47580)
Proposals Emerge to Reinstate Some Taxes: Business NH Magazine
Proposals are emerging for next year’s legislative session aimed at increasing state revenues and lowering local property taxes.
UnitedHealthcare delivers proposal to Lee Health that could maintain network access
UnitedHealthcare said it delivered a proposal to Lee Health on Oct. 30 that could maintain long-term network access.
Voters reject Rosie’s in Pulaski, Amherst County
Voters in Pulaski and Amherst County reject pari-mutuel wagering proposals that could have brought Rosie’s Gaming Emporiums
Benson vows cost relief as businesses brace for new era of Democratic ‘trifecta’ control
Jocelyn Benson’s decisive victory is an opportunity to pursue tax, labor and environmental policies that have long been opposed by business groups. How far she intends to go and which proposals she will embrace remain unclear.
Money out of Politics ballot measure faces First Amendment challenge
The Mackinac Center for Public Policy argues provisions of the proposal violate the First Amendment. It filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday.
Lawsuit filed against 'Money out of Politics' proposal after Michigan voters pass initiative
Almost immediately after Prop 2 passed in Michigan, a lawsuit challenging its legality was filed in federal court.
‘Money Out of Politics’ ballot measure passes, constitutional convention fails
Proposal 2 on Michigan ballots, the “Michiganders for Money Out of Politics” initiative, has passed.
Mariners News: Jason Kanzler, Edwin Uceta, and Robinson Canó, Jr.
The Mariners have their new skipper, the Astros search for theirs, and MLB announces another CBA proposal.
Braves News: Salary cap proposal, Rolddy Muñoz review, and more
Atlanta Braves news and notes from Tuesday.
Michigan votes in favor of Proposal 2 to get ‘Money Out of Politics,’ AP projects
Michigan voters have voted in favor of Proposal 2, which aims to “get money out of politics.”
Michigan votes in favor of Proposal 2 to get ‘Money Out of Politics,’ AP projects
Michigan voters have voted in favor of Proposal 2, which aims to “get money out of politics.”
Michigan votes in favor of Proposal 2 to get ‘Money Out of Politics,’ AP projects
Michigan voters have voted in favor of Proposal 2, which aims to “get money out of politics.”
Michigan votes in favor of Proposal 2 to get ‘Money Out of Politics,’ AP projects
Michigan voters have voted in favor of Proposal 2, which aims to “get money out of politics.”
Michigan votes in favor of Proposal 2 to get ‘Money Out of Politics,’ AP projects
Michigan voters have voted in favor of Proposal 2, which aims to “get money out of politics.”
Michigan votes in favor of Proposal 2 to get ‘Money Out of Politics,’ AP projects
Michigan voters have voted in favor of Proposal 2, which aims to “get money out of politics.”
State employees to see small jump in health premiums under new PEIA proposal
During a hearing Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, the PEIA Finance Board released a plan that raised health insurance premiums 2% next year. This affects West Virginia state government employees.
Michigan's 'money out of politics' measure passes, faces legal challenge
Unofficial results from the New York Times show Proposal 2 received support from 81% of Michigan voters.
Cannabis Legalization Prevails in Massachusetts; Repeal Question Soundly Defeated
Ten years after legalizing adult-use cannabis, the Bay State voters rejected a prohibitionist proposal, Question 8, which aimed to wipe out the industry.
Constitutional convention fails, Money Out of Politics approved
LANSING, MI (WKZO AM/FM) - Michigan voters have said a loud "no" to Proposal 1 to hold a constitutional conven...
Michigan approves Proposal 2, citizen-lead effort to limit corporate influence in politics
Michigan voters passed Proposal 2 during the Nov. 3 midterm election. The Associated Press called the race at 9.38 p.m on Nov.3, 80.9 % of voters cast their ballot in favor of the proposal, 19.1% with more than 24% of the vote in.
Michigan votes in favor of Proposal 2 to get ‘Money Out of Politics,’ AP projects
Watch News 10+ for continuing election coverage
Proposal 2 for 'money out of politics' passes in Michigan
Voters approved Proposal 2 in Michigan in the 2026 midterm election. Proposal 2 would regulate political spending by utilities and large government contractors.
‘Money Out of Politics’ ballot measure passes, constitutional convention fails
Proposal 2 on Michigan ballots, the “Michiganders for Money Out of Politics” initiative, has passed. The initiative will alter state campaign finance law to ban campaign spending from “regulated electric and gas utilities, contractors with over $250,000 annually in government contracts, and people and organizations with substantial connections to those utilities or contractors.”
Michigan passes limits on utility money in politics, setting up likely court fight
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — Michigan voters approved Proposal 2 Tuesday, a citizen-led measure its backers say will get “money out of politics,” setting up a likely court fight in the coming months. Th…
Yankees’ perfect trade offer for Brewers’ Trevor Megill
The New York Yankees should pursue Trevor Megill with an offer that supports the Milwaukee Brewers’ championship defense. New York needs late-inning pitching , but Milwaukee needs a reason to surrender its proven closer. ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported Monday that the Brewers would at least listen to offers for Megill. This package is a proposal, with […] The post Yankees’ perfect trade offer for Brewers’ Trevor Megill appeared first on ClutchPoints.
Michigan voters pass 'Money out of Politics' proposal, reports say
Michigan voters approved a ballot initiative banning utility companies and other state contractors from making political donations.
Michigan elections: Voters decide on Proposal 2 Money Out of Politics question
Voters on Tuesday were asked to consider a ballot proposal that would prohibit regulated utilities and large state contractors from contributing to Michigan politicians.
Investor, business groups respond to SEC shareholder proposal rollback with litigation concerns
As the SEC pushes to scrap the federal regulation on shareholder proposals, both sides of the debate are raising concerns that the move could lead to a spike in litigation.
Council U-turn on children's nursing cuts
Suffolk County Council is reversing proposals to cut nursing staff from its health visiting service.
Michigan voters asked whether to limit certain political donations under Proposal 2
Normal looks at loosening housing and business regulations, lowering town tax rate
The Normal Town Council on Monday heard a proposal for new rules to relax housing construction rules amid an ongoing housing shortage.
Newsom proposes $1 billion cap for film and TV tax incentive
Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to expand California's current Film and Television Tax Credit Program from $750 million to at least $1 billion annually. The proposal would include credits for above-the-line
Yankees’ perfect trade offer for Dodgers’ Teoscar Hernandez
The New York Yankees do not need to chase every available bat. They do need to ask whether their offense is too dependent on left-handed hitters after being swept by Tampa Bay Rays in the ALDS. Teoscar Hernandez could answer part of that question. The Dodgers may move him this winter, and one speculative trade proposal has already connected him to […] The post Yankees’ perfect trade offer for Dodgers’ Teoscar Hernandez appeared first on ClutchPoints.
Kyrie Irving trade proposals: 3 best fits for Mavericks guard
Kyrie Irving could draw substantial interest at the NBA trade deadline and we broke down the best fits and ideal trade packages.
Around Town: An entertainment zone, a democratic dispute
Read about Palo Alto's newest proposal for a downtown 'entertainment zone' and a council candidate's dramatic exit from a Stanford event.
Census Bureau Proposal Threatens Our Public Health and Health Care System
The proposed changes would exclude noncitizens without lawful permanent residency – including many who are lawfully present.
'Zeus' Choi Woo-je fails to reach agreement on contract renewal with Hanwha Life prior to Worlds
It has been confirmed that Hanwha Life Esports' 'Zeus' Choi Woo-je rejected the club's contract renewal proposal before the start of the 2026 League of Legends World Championship (hereinafter Worlds).
Commentary: Let the feds know large businesses aren't small businesses
The U.S. Small Business Administration is looking to update its guidelines, affecting thousands of struggling small businesses. This proposal should not be allowed to move forward.
More than scary costumes: Finding friends, politics and love at Wild Rumpus
From elaborate costumes and political statements to longtime friendships and unexpected proposals, Athens’ 18th annual Wild Rumpus Halloween Spectacle and Parade commenced on Saturday, Oct. 31.
Yankees Trade Pitch Lands $288 Million Infielder in the Bronx
The New York Yankees can only bring so many bold trade proposals to fruition.But this doesn’t stop rumors from surfacing.In a recent New York trade pitch, an MLB writer sent a $288 million shortstop to the Bronx.Let’s take a look at his daring suggestion.Yankees Urged To Target Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr.When Anthony Ranaudo of FanSided […] The post Yankees Trade Pitch Lands $288 Million Infielder in the Bronx appeared first on HEAVY.
Florida education chief defends science plan
Education Commissioner Henry Mack pushed back Tuesday against criticism that Florida is de-emphasizing evolution in its new plan for teaching science, insisting the state is still covering a subject he agreed was a bedrock of biological science.“Evolutionary biology and the theory of evolution is in the standards,” Mack said. But several parents and teachers who attended an evening forum on the state’s proposed science standards criticized the proposal by the Florida Department of Education, which Mack runs, specifically the handling of evolutionary science.Joshua Garrett, a teacher in Orange County Public Schools, said the state’s proposed standards “danced around” evolution.State standards are benchmarks for what students should learn in their classes kindergarten through 12th grade, guiding what lessons are taught, what subjects are in state-approved textbooks and what concepts are tested on state exams.Florida’s current science standards call evolution a “big idea” and “the fundamental concept underlying all of biology.”The proposed ones barely mention evolution — a scientific theory explaining change in living species over time from natural selection that has been a cornerstone of biology for more than a century. The term “evolution,” in fact, is never defined in the new high school life sciences standards, though the concepts are sprinkled across several units.The education department has made revisions to its proposal, officials said, but it was not immediately clear at the Tuesday forum, held at Lake Buena Vista High School in southwest Orange County, what those changes were.Mack interjected during Garrett’s comments asking him where specifically he wanted the state to mention evolution more prominently. Then he said, “Consider it done.”Mack also asked Garrett to join the state’s faculty committee on the standards.The state released the new standards in September, and several experts quickly criticized them, saying they lacked depth and skirted around both evolution and climate change, important topics for Florida students to learn.The state has since hosted a “listening tour,” including a virtual forum and two other in-person meetings in Walton and Hillsborough counties. Tuesday’s meeting drew a small crowd of about 30 people, six of whom spoke.Mack described the state’s public forums as a chance for “myth busting” and to make clear Florida’s position.He wants to students to learn “above ideology,” he said, and added that evolution isn’t settled science. TNCMS.AdManager.render({region: 'fixed-big-ad-middle-asset', slot: 1, fold: "span"}); “I want to cultivate skeptics in the healthy sense of that term. As a result of these standards, students should not be walking away convinced of anything other than the rigor of the scientific method,” Mack said.The new standards would replace the current set, adopted after a monthslong, statewide fight over the inclusion of evolution as a required subject of study. Those who opposed the 2008 standards argued creationism, or the biblical story that God created all living things, should be taught alongside evolution.Thomas Simon, a Winter Park parent, compared Florida adopting the new standards to Nazi Germany ignoring the findings of Jewish scientists — which in part lost them World War II.“If this board could explicitly name communism in the history standards last year — because words matter — you must explicitly name the foundations of modern medicine, agriculture, and energy,” Simon said.Florida last year adopted new standards that require students learn about the “dangers and evil of communism.”Teri O’Connor, an elementary science teacher in Orange County, urged Mack to curtail the total number of standards, as they list more than 1,000 benchmarks teachers are to cover during their classes.“It’s only 180 days of school. That right there is an issue, especially if you want to dive in. If we need to teach the rigor of it and to critically think about each one, that’s difficult,” she said.Kathleen Murray, who spoke on behalf of the conservative political group Citizens Defending Freedom, said she was in “strong support” of the proposed standards. Science should teach children how to think, not what to think, she said.“When teaching the origins of life and the universe, the curriculum owes it to the Florida students to be honest about the limits of what scientific models can actually prove,” Murray said.State education officials said they’d received about 1,800 comments on the benchmarks, and they have updated them based on that criticism.With Tuesday the state’s final scheduled public forum, Mack said his biggest takeaway was that the standards needed to be more explicit about teaching students how to evaluate scientific studies and evidence and how to understand the scientific method.“We might have to do a better job of helping students question more as a result of these standards,” he said.In his original statement when the standards were announced in September, Mack wrote in a social media post that “science begins in wonder, not in ideology,” and “the classical tradition taught that nature is intelligible because it is ordered — that the book of creation can be read by reason.”Some read that to mean he was trying to interject religion into public school education. 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Letters — Granada Theater, homeless plan, Islam, politics, Denton
Readers share memories about the Granada Theater, question a homeless proposal, explain Islam's view of death, ask questions of Republicans and had good experiences in Denton.
German Minister Targets American Businesses With AI Tax Proposal
Germany’s education and family minister, Karin Prien (CDU), wants to impose a new tax on value created by artificial intelligence. A tax focused on AI
WBEZ’s Weekly News Recap, Oct. 30, 2026: Election Day preview, new Bears stadium proposal revealed, and more
As Election Day nears, Gov. Pritzker invests millions of dollars in out-of-state candidates. Here in Illinois, U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros sets up a hotline so voters can report possible fraud and voter intimidation.
Business Software Alliance Ups In-House Lobbying Costs By $110K
Business Software Alliance raised in-house lobbying costs $110,000 in Q3, including work on the PREVAIL Act, a patent-challenge proposal. Read more.
Reproductive Rights Left on the Table: Senator Cappelletti Reflects on Unfinished Business as Legislative Session Concludes
Harrisburg – October 30, 2026 – The Pennsylvania Senate recessed last Wednesday, October 22, with only two additional session days scheduled through the end of the 2026-2027 legislative session. As the chamber recessed—currently controlled by Republicans—the Senate left hundreds of bills on the table, including several that would advance reproductive freedoms in the Commonwealth. Senator Amanda M. Cappelletti (D-17, Delaware/Montgomery) said many of these state-level protections are critical for Pennsylvanians as Republicans in Washington continue to dismantle the nation’s healthcare infrastructure. “Wrapping up this legislative session and looking ahead to next Tuesday, access to abortion care is at the very top of my mind. I’m deeply disturbed that the majority party in our chamber was once again unwilling to come to the table and move lifesaving legislation that would protect basic healthcare in Pennsylvania,” said Senator Cappelletti, who served as the Director of Policy for Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania Advocates prior to her time in the legislature. Senator Cappelletti has proposed several bills to address reproductive healthcare, and three proposals to protect abortion care were left on the table for the third session in a row since she introduced them. On November 30, 2026, all legislative proposals not signed into law […]
Proposals to ditch clock changes weigh health impacts, recreation
The time for clocks to fall back is coming on Sunday and dueling proposals in Congress aim to bring twice yearly clock changes to an end.
Opinion: We can keep the Bears in Chicago. Here’s how.
This is Skidmore Owings & Merrill's proposal for a home for the Chicago Bears that is not only in but for the city of Chicago.
900-plus state contractors could be subject to 'money out of politics' plan
LANSING - A ballot proposal before voters in the Nov. 3 election could ban more than 900 businesses and nonprofits from contributing to Michigan political candidates, according to state contractor data reviewed by The Detroit News.
Advocates call on Michiganders to vote yes on political donation proposal
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — Advocacy group Michiganders for Money Out of Politics held a virtual press conference on Thursday, encouraging voters to approve Proposal 2, which would limit who can donate…
Democrats have big healthcare plans. The industry is preparing for a fight.
Corporations have always fought universal healthcare proposals. But will their old playbook still work in a new era?
One of LA's most dangerous areas could add 'entertainment zones' with public drinking under new proposal
One of LA’s most dangerous areas could add ‘entertainment zones’ with public drinking under new proposal
Similar entertainment zones are are active in Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade and Culver City.
New Eligibility Rules Proposed For Health Insurance Marketplace Enrollees
# Marketplace Eligibility Checks Tightened Under HHS Proposal ## Why It Matters Health insurance Marketplace applicants and enrollees would face new...
Colorado small businesses will suffer is this tax proposal goes through: Cheryl Casone
'The Big Money Show' discusses Florida's proposed property tax reform. The panel also analyzes Colorado's controversial ballot measures that could raise taxes.
Attorney General Neronha to announce health care system proposal
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha will announce a proposal to change the state’s health care system.He plans to restructure state agencies that overse
Global Health & WASH
The US National Institutes of Health reopened its center and program-project machinery in force. NIGMS is funding Collaborative Program Grants for interdisciplinary teams, NIAID opened both its Immune Tolerance Network and a next-generation R&D call, the NCI runs its Carcinogen Hazard Assessment Monographs program, the National Library of Medicine is funding institutional training in biomedical AI and data science, and NIH reopened its Centers for AIDS Research. The tell: these pay for standing centers and multi-year consortia at institutions with an existing funded research base, not one-off projects, so the fit is an established US research institution, not a single investigator. Disease-specific foundations are again funding the researcher, not just the research. The Parkinson’s Foundation opened its Paul Oreffice Innovations in Care Award and the National Ataxia Foundation its Research Seed Money Grant. The tell, the same one we flagged last cycle, is a named early-career or seed award that builds a pipeline of scientists committed to one condition, so what wins is a researcher willing to specialize. The post-USAID global-health money is routing through a State Department program statement and multilateral innovation funds. The US Department of State’s Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy opened its Advancing Global Health Annual Program Statement, Grand Challenges Canada opened Nexa Lighthouse for climate and health innovation in Asia and the Pacific at USD $250,000 to $2,000,000, and CEPI opened a rolling call on vaccine-manufacturing analytics. The tell: the largest health money this cycle sits in a standing program statement and in staged innovation vehicles, not in a single bilateral grant. Total Estimated Funding Pool: ~$35.4M across discrete grants. (Separately, large national-formula envelopes not counted in this total: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy (GHSD).) This post is for paid subscribers. This helps support the time and effort it takes to curate and organize these opportunities. Subscribe To keep this accessible to everyone who needs it, we’re happy to offer pay what you can rates. You can find more details here. New opportunities: Paul Oreffice Innovations in Care Award, Parkinson’s Foundation. *New!* *Closing soon!* The Parkinson’s Foundation created the Paul Oreffice Innovations in Care Award to fund clinicians rethinking how people with Parkinson’s disease receive care. The Foundation is using pilot funding to move promising ideas into testable projects, backing work across four lanes: strengthening community clinician capability, redesigning care models, building patient-centered technologies, and defining the minimum clinical datasets that make better standards possible. It wants hypothesis-driven, clinically grounded projects that can generate evidence strong enough to attract further funding. By opening the door to clinicians at every career stage and strongly preferring projects that involve people with Parkinson’s in their design, the Foundation signals that it values practical, patient-shaped innovation over prestige. The strongest fits are US-licensed clinicians with a focus on Parkinson’s and an institutional home for applied care research. Geographies: united states. Who can apply: Clinicians of all career stages, from fellows to established faculty, who are licensed to care for patients in the United States and have a significant focus on Parkinson’s disease. Physicians must have completed a neurology residency (or justify how their training pathway benefits people with PD); allied health professionals must hold an advanced degree, typically a PhD. Fellows, those in mentored positions, and those within two years of starting an independent position require a mentor and a mentor support letter. The sponsoring institution’s grants office is the authorized recipient and funds are disbursed to the institution. Funding amount: Maximum of $200,000 over two years; up to three awards. Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Innovation; Science & Technology. Deadline: November 1, 2026. Learn more and apply here. Design and Deliver the Next EIT Health Bootcamps, EIT Health. *New!* *Closing soon!* EIT Health is opening its call for consortia to design and deliver the next generation of its health start-up bootcamps, funding the curriculum, masterclasses, mentoring, and investor engagement that turn early health ventures into fundable companies. The organization is using these learning paths to strengthen Europe’s health innovation pipeline across digital health evidence, deep tech and AI commercialization, cross-border investment, and patient access. What EIT Health wants to back is not a single course but durable delivery capacity built by partners who span industry, education, and research. Requiring multi-country consortia and a revenue-sharing stake in the programs signals that EIT Health expects these bootcamps to outlast the grant. The strongest fits are established training providers, universities, and industry partners with proven reach into health entrepreneurs. Geographies: Europe. Who can apply: Consortia only (individuals cannot apply), comprising a minimum of two and a maximum of five independent legal entities. Partners must cover at least two sides of the Knowledge Triangle (industry, education, research), including at least one industry organisation, and at least two entities must be legally established in different Horizon Europe countries. Funding amount: Foundational Learning Path: up to EUR €112,000; Thematic Learning Paths: up to EUR €124,500 per path (up to four thematic projects); up to EUR €610,000 total EIT Health funding available under the call. Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Innovation; Science & Technology; Economic Development & Livelihoods. Deadline: November 2, 2026. Learn more and apply here. Technology Transfer Offices & Entrepreneurship Support Call (Beyond the Lab: From Research to Venture), EIT Health. *New!* *Closing soon!* EIT Health is opening its Technology Transfer Offices and Entrepreneurship Support Call to fund consortia that will deliver the Beyond the Lab: From Research to Venture program for healthcare researchers. EIT Health is using the grant to build local capacity for turning laboratory science into incorporated start-ups, paying experienced technology transfer offices and entrepreneurship support providers to run masterclasses, structured mentoring, and a closing Pitch Day across two cohorts. It wants to back organizations that can walk researchers from discovery to company formation, not just teach theory. Requiring two transfer offices plus one venture-building provider signals that EIT Health values proven commercialization experience alongside academic reach. The strongest fits are European research-commercialization teams with a track record of moving health innovations toward investable ventures. Geographies: Europe. Who can apply: A consortium of two Technology Transfer Offices (representing higher education institutions or research organisations) and one Entrepreneurship Support Provider with demonstrated experience in venture building and start-up support. Applicants may apply for more than one learning path where they can demonstrate the required expertise and capacity for each. Funding amount: Up to EUR €77,000 in 2027 and up to EUR €77,000 in 2028 (up to EUR €154,000 total per consortium over two years). Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Innovation; Science & Technology; Economic Development & Livelihoods. Deadline: November 2, 2026. Learn more and apply here. EIT Health RIS Country Representatives Call (2027-2028), EIT Health. *New!* *Closing soon!* EIT Health is seeking organizations to serve as Country Representatives across eleven Regional Innovation Scheme countries in central and eastern Europe for the 2027 to 2028 period. The money funds a national anchor in each country, an organization that maps the local health innovation ecosystem, connects startups and researchers to EIT Health programs, and builds the stakeholder relationships that let health ventures grow. EIT Health is backing local capacity rather than individual projects, which is why it accepts both single organizations and national consortia that span education, research, and industry. The requirement for co-financing signals that it wants representatives already embedded in their national systems. The strongest fits are established ecosystem builders with deep ties to health innovation stakeholders in one eligible country. Geographies: Croatia; Czech Republic; Estonia; Greece; Hungary; Latvia; Malta; Romania; Serbia; Slovenia; Turkey. Who can apply: Registered legal entities established in one of the eligible EIT RIS countries. Single organisations or national consortia may apply. Consortia must include at least two sides of the Knowledge Triangle (education, research and industry), and all consortium partners must be established in the same eligible country. Suitable applicants have demonstrated experience in healthcare innovation ecosystem development, innovation support and entrepreneurship, start-up acceleration, technology transfer, research and higher education, business support, and stakeholder engagement, with strong links to national innovation stakeholders. Funding amount: Up to EUR €182,000 per Country Representative (maximum funding per project); total call budget up to EUR €1,274,500; EIT Health funds up to 60% of total eligible project costs. Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Innovation; Science & Technology; Economic Development & Livelihoods. Deadline: November 2, 2026. Learn more and apply here. Architects of Trust: Community-Driven Demand Creation for New TB Vaccines, Treatment Action Group (TAG). *New!* *Closing soon!* Treatment Action Group, with funding from Wellcome, is opening its Architects of Trust call to help communities prepare for the new tuberculosis vaccines now moving through late-stage trials. The money backs civil society and community-based organizations to raise awareness, surface local questions and concerns, and press policymakers toward equitable national rollout. By pairing each grantee with an advocacy mentor and running a strategy workshop alongside the Global TB Vaccine Forum, Treatment Action Group is building a durable advocacy bench rather than funding one-off outreach. The two-stage design, starting with a short expression of interest, signals that fit and community rootedness matter more than polished proposals. The strongest fits are locally trusted groups with real TB, immunization, or health advocacy experience and a committed project lead. Geographies: Brazil; Ethiopia; India; Indonesia; Kenya; Malawi; Mozambique; Nigeria; Peru; Philippines; South Africa; Tanzania; Vietnam; Zambia. Who can apply: National, subnational, or regional civil society organizations (CSOs) or community-based organizations based in one of the 14 eligible countries or in Eastern Europe/Central Asia regional networks, with experience in TB, immunization, or other health advocacy and in community engagement or policy advocacy; well integrated into stakeholder networks with membership or affiliation to other CSO or community networks; naming a dedicated project lead (’architect of trust’) who can attend the April 2027 Zaragoza forum in person; and holding (or committing to adopt) organizational policies on safeguarding (bullying, harassment, abuse, and harm), equity, diversity and inclusion, and legal compliance, research practice and governance. Funding amount: Grants of up to US$45,000 will be awarded to 8 CSO partners across 14 high-TB-burden countries plus regional networks in Eastern Europe and Central Asia; each grant funds 12 months of work. Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Governance; Policy & Advocacy. Deadline: November 4, 2026. Learn more and apply here.
NASA Selects 19 New Citizen Science Proposals in 2026
The Citizen Science Seed Funding Program (CSSFP-25) of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate aims to support scientists and other experts to develop citizen
'Money out of politics' plan still has high backing, but Con-Con faltering
Recent polling shows voters turning on Proposal 1 and embracing Proposal 2.
Politicians are afraid to fix taxes. So 100 citizens tried.
Connecticut’s property tax system has been broken for decades and the politicians have failed to fix the problem. So now, they’re trying something new: a citizens assembly. (Citizens assemblies are also old. They go back to Ancient Greece, when lawmakers were chosen not through elections, but through random lotteries.) Today on the show, Connecticut’s citizens assembly. It's like jury duty, but for taxes. About hundred random people from all around Connecticut come together to try to solve the state’s property tax problem. They wrestle with whether they should raise taxes, cut spending, find efficiencies, or a mix of everything. Will this alternative attempt to solve the unsolvable succeed, or will it be politics as usual?It’s a modern case study of what happens when politicians step aside to let citizens decide what’s best. Come along as we talk to the professor who helped put this assembly together, learn from the citizens involved how this experiment changed them, and meet the politician who agreed to take their proposals to the state legislature. Planet Money will be at Kilkenomics Festival 2026. Tickets here.Read: - Our book: Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life - Our weekly longform Planet Money newsletter- Our weekly Indicator round-up newsletterFollow: - Instagram- TikTok- YouTube- FacebookSupport public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.This episode of Planet Money was hosted by Erika Beras and Jeff Guo. It was produced by James Sneed with reporting help from Áine Pennello. It was edited by Jess Jiang, Sierra Juarez is our fact-checker, and Jimmy Keeley & Travis Hagen engineered the show. Alex Goldmark is the executive producer of Planet Money..
MI Prop 26-2 aims to restrict political spending, researcher weighs in
A Michigan researcher explains Michigan’s Prop. 2, saying the proposal would amend the Michigan Campaign Finance Act to add new rules on political contributions and ad disclosures.
What Proposition 134 would mean for school sports in Colorado
The ballot measure would require schools and colleges to base athletic participation on a student’s sex as defined in the proposal.
Cary business owners push back on NCDOT project proposal: 'Would be devastating'
Dozens of small business owners in Cary are concerned about an $84M NCDOT project that could displace longtime stores near Maynard Road and Chatham Street.
UNAIDS Board Rejects ‘Sunsetting’, Opting Instead For Transformation
The UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board (PCB) has rejected the proposal by the United Nations Secretary-General that it is “sunsetted” by the end of this
HWO UV-VIS Technology Maturation Study
HWO UV-VIS Technology Maturation Study; Phase 1 Proposals Due 20 November 2026
US-Based Startup Faces Backlash For Testing Nighttime Sunlight: "Idiotic Project"
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in July approved Reflect Orbital's proposal to launch an initial demonstration satellite next year.
423-acre data center development pitched south of Lansing by startup
LEAP has been preparing the site — west of U.S. 127 between College and North Edgar Road — since 2018 and selected Lighthouse after a request-for-proposals process.
The case for 'Climate Popularism’: A new politics for an age of ecological crisis
Climate resilience and adaptation remain largely neglected in UK politics, a glaring omission our proposal aims to address.
Japanese firms eye up to 50% stake in JYP Entertainment as agency denies proposal
Two Japanese investment firms say they may seek up to 50 percent of JYP Entertainment, though the agency says it received no proposal.
Japanese Group Targets 50% Stake in JYP Entertainment
Japanese Group Targets 50% Stake in JYP Entertainment NEXROC and SVCV plan 30% premium tender; JYP denies receiving acquisition proposal
Adam Brody regrets his ‘very pedestrian’ proposal to Leighton Meester: ‘She deserved more’
“The only thing romantic about it was the speed,” the “Nobody Wants This” star admitted.
Wilmington Health facility sells for $9.4M
Wilmington Health’s main facility recently sold for more than $9 million. The 66,000-square-foot facility located at 1202 Medical Center Drive was purchased by Charlotte-based real estate investment firm Cedar Square in a $9.4 million sale-leaseback transaction, according to a deed recorded Oct. 21. Wilmington Health will continue leasing the facility, CEO Jeff James told the Business Journal in September. James said the lease term would likely be five years, with most services eventually transferring to a new medical office building under construction in the Midtown Park office area near The Pointe at Barclay. The Wilmington Health facility was originally listed earlier this year at $11.85 million. A Wilmington Health representative did not respond to a request for comment by press time. Steve Hall, vice president of BlueCoast Commercial, represented Wilmington Health in the transaction. “Wilmington Health wanted to unlock the value in its real estate without disrupting a single patient visit, and a sale-leaseback let them do exactly that,” said Hall in a text to the Business Journal Monday. “Cedar Square gets a long-term, absolute net investment anchored by one of the region’s leading physician groups, and Wilmington Health keeps its home on Medical Center Drive while redeploying that capital into care.” The sale marks Cedar Square’s first entry into the Wilmington market, according to Jon Dixon, the firm's managing partner and founder. “We are attracted to Wilmington's growth and what we see as strong long-term fundamentals,” said Dixon in an email Monday. “Population growth, relative affordability, and quality of life make it a compelling market for us. The climate and proximity to the coast are a big part of that appeal.” He added, “We hope to pursue additional opportunities across retail, industrial, medical office and multifamily in Wilmington. We will evaluate opportunities individually and remain disciplined about the properties we pursue. We would like this acquisition to be the beginning of a broader investment presence in Wilmington.” Given the facility’s age, Dixon said the site could eventually be redeveloped, potentially for medical office space or housing. Dixon said recent announcements from UNC Health and Atrium were among the factors behind the firm’s growing interest in Wilmington’s medical-office market. The announcements involve competing proposals for hospital expansion in New Hanover County, which are subject to the state’s Certificate of Need process. “Medical office remains one of the most sought-after asset classes in commercial real estate,” said Hall, “and well-located (medical office buildings) with strong operators are scarce in Southeastern North Carolina.” According to Dixon, Cedar Square describes itself as a boutique, hands-on real estate investment firm that values direct relationships with tenants and the communities where it owns property. “We’re very hands-on, and we like to be in direct contact with all of our tenants and the communities in which we own,” Dixon said. He added, “We’re definitely interested in building a presence with local owners, brokers and businesses or tenants.”
Will Proposal 2 get money out of politics? One researcher says ‘not really’
Michigan’s Proposal 2, which seeks to limit political spending by regulated utilities and government contractors, faces potential legal challenges due to existing Supreme Court rulings protec…
THE WEEK OF OCT 26, 2026
- FCC to discuss spectrum proposals - NOAA satellites under House Science scrutiny - NASA Science changes mission selection
2 political experts question Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson's tax proposals for 2027 budget
On the agenda: Chevron health risk findings, gun violence study and 23rd Street safety
The Richmond City Council meets Tuesday, October 27, to hear the Bay Area Air District's health risk assessment of the Chevron refinery, consider competing traffic safety proposals after two pedestrian deaths on 23rd Street, and hear a presentation about the city's Office of Neighborhood Safety. A special meeting
Proposed Downtown Lodi cocktail bar faces broader police concerns
A new cocktail bar could be coming to Downtown Lodi, bringing another option for people looking to grab a drink. But as city planners weigh the proposal, police have raised
Trump proposes eliminating race, ethnicity questions from 2030 census, alarming health, civil rights advocates
A proposal to eliminate races about race, ethnicity and sexual orientation from the U.S. census could hurt efforts to address racial inequities in Chicago and across the nation, health and civil rights advocates warn.