On Saturdays we catch up with the non-finance related items that we didn’t get to earlier in the week. You can check out last week’s edition. Have a great weekend!
Quote of the Day
"At the moment, universities are choosing a dangerous middle path: they are persisting with old forms of assessment as though they remained meaningful, without leaning into the potential that comes from calling upon the prodigious powers of AI."
(Yascha Mounk)
Autos
- What happened after Iowa City made their buses free? (sustainablepowernews.com)
- Tesla ($TSLA) is not the only auto company pivoting to robots. (theatlantic.com)
- Waymo is again expanding its service. (sherwood.news)
Road safety
- Poor road design is one reason behind the rise in pedestrian deaths. (wapo.st)
- The Department of Transportation has markedly cut back on safety investigations. (propublica.org)
- California has a drunk driving problem. (abc7.com)
Energy
- Climage change is making hydropower less reliable. (nytimes.com)
- How startups are using fracking techniques to expand the reach of geothermal energy. (wapo.st)
- Mining in the Arctic is a lot harder than it looks from the outside. (cnbc.com)
- Why Greenland hasn't yet started mining rare earth minerals. (whyisthisinteresting.substack.com)
- A restart of Three Mile Island is getting closer. (cnbc.com)
Environment
- Fights over Texas acquifiers are heating up. (grist.org)
- Insurers need better data on wildfire risks. (npr.org)
- When picking up trash became a competitive sport. (positive.news)
- These laid off Forest Service employees are still working. (washingtonpost.com)
Animals
- Japan has a worsening bear problem. (msn.com)
- Orcas in Alaskan waters like to eat halibut as well. (northernjournal.com)
- How bird flu devastated elephant seal populations. (smithsonianmag.com)
- Dogs were more diverse earlier than previously thought. (arstechnica.com)
- Why Madagascar's lemur population is at risk. (biographic.com)
- Ladybugs are cute, until they invade your house. (wsj.com)
Science
- What sits between Earth's mantle and core? (phys.org)
- Five insights from James Riordon's new book, "Crush: Close Encounters with Gravity." (nextbigideaclub.com)
Travel
- Why smart travelers love the Flighty app. (wsj.com)
- Good luck trying to cancel a hotel reservation these days. (theatlantic.com)
Technology
- How to set up your passport on your iPhone. (businessinsider.com)
- Grokipedia cites some sketchy resources. (nbcnews.com)
AI
- Google ($GOOGL) new Gemini is impressing users. (wsj.com)
- On the downside of using AI early in your exploration of a topic. (davidepstein.substack.com)
- Do you want AI 'hanging around' in your group chat? (spyglass.org)
- AI is already transforming how criminals operate. (axios.com)
Behavior
- How immune cells in your brain may affect anxiety. (sciencedaily.com)
- Speaking multiple languages may slow brain aging. (smithsonianmag.com)
- How financial insecurity affects stress levels. (papers.ssrn.com)
- Why do people so trust influencers? (theconversation.com)
Vaccines
- RFK Jr. personally directed CDC’s new guidance on vaccines and autism. (edition.cnn.com)
- Our new public health policy is to blame individuals for getting sick during a pandemic. (theatlantic.com)
- The U.S. is set to lose its 'elimination status' for measles. (arstechnica.com)
- Anti-vaxxers want you think that polio wasn't all that bad. (motherjones.com)
Weight loss drugs
- Can GLP-1 agonists slow the impact of Alzheimer's disease? A forthcoming study will give us some insight. (reuters.com)
- How oral weight loss drugs would work. (newscientist.com)
Health
- Why are clinical trials in the U.S. so expensive? (marginalrevolution.com)
- The case for more lung cancer screening. (abc7chicago.com)
- Why we might be facing a rough flu season. (npr.org)
- Got a cold? Grab a Neti pot. (theconversation.com)
Fitness
- We need more research on the use of weighted vests. (strongerbyscience.com)
- The case for longer walks. (wsj.com)
- Men, you likely don't need TRT. (twopct.com)
Drugs
Restaurants
- The story of Dishoom, the cult UK restaurant chain that is coming to America. (readtrung.com)
- Panera Bread is in turnaround mode. (wsj.com)
- How Taco Bell cooks up new products. (wsj.com)
Food waste
- How cutting food waste saves money and helps the environment. (outrider.org)
- Some tips on how to lower food waste. (readthejointaccount.com)
Food
- The 'Aldi effect' has come for America. (ft.com)
- Why we need organizations like Consumer Reports. (axios.com)
- Why some farmers are switching from growing grains to nuts. (reasonstobecheerful.world)
- How more frequent flooding affects rice cultivation. (sciencedaily.com)
- Fiber is the new protein. (apnews.com)
Sports
- Why Callaway ($MODG) is offloading a majority of the Topgolf business. (huddleup.substack.com)
- Why there are more weird scores in the NFL. (natesilver.net)
College
- The University of Miami is overrun with TikTok influencers. (washingtonpost.com)
- Choose student support over prestige. (tonyisola.com)
- How to succeed in college. (avitalbalwit.com)
- Trends in college pricing. (thecollegefinanciallady.com)
Earlier on Abnormal Returns
- What you missed our Friday linkfest. (abnormalreturns.com)
- Podcast links: asking shorter questions. (abnormalreturns.com)
- Freedom, democracy and long term stock market returns. (abnormalreturns.com)
- The great wealth transfer also includes a lot of unwanted stuff. (abnormalreturns.com)
- Don't miss a thing! Sign up for our daily e-mail newsletter. (abnormalreturns.com)
