An ROI that lasts generations

A US startup is partnering with the International Atomic Energy Agency to develop global standards for using AI in nuclear power operations (HEATMAP)

🌍 A widely cited climate study that calculated global economic impacts was retracted after data errors involving Uzbekistan’s economic data from 1995-1999, but the researchers maintain their core findings about substantial climate damages remain valid (Bloomberg)

You can now get a window-mounted heat pump that heats efficiently in temperatures as low as -22°F and be installed in under an hour (sign me up, yesterday) (Fast Company)

🌍 Scientists have warned UK leaders that the country faces severe climate risks to its economy, health, food systems, and national security (The Guardian)

🌍Canada’s former environment minister resigned from cabinet, stating that Canada can no longer achieve its climate targets following a deal to roll back measures like consumer carbon pricing, the Zero Emission Vehicle standard, the emissions cap on the oil and gas sector, and clean electricity regulations (Bloomberg)

🌍 A new meningitis vaccine that costs just $3 per dose is being rolled out across Africa’s “meningitis belt” as experts aim to eliminate epidemic meningitis by 2030 (The Telegraph)

🌎 Tuberculosis killed 1.2 million people and infected 10.7 million in 2024, and while global TB rates declined, significant cuts to funding could cause up to 2 million additional deaths by 2035 (World Health Organization)

The science on declining US birth rates is unsettled, with debate over whether sperm counts are truly declining globally and whether delayed childbearing by women, rather than male infertility, is the primary driver (Undark)

Researchers are developing blood tests to diagnose chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in living people, with studies examining tau protein and other biomarkers, although a clinical diagnostic test is still years away (Bloomberg)

In predominantly Black communities in Louisiana, residents face environmental devastation from the plastic and petrochemical industry and cancer rates 8x the federal limit, forcing communities to lose nearly 10% of their population between 2019 and 2024 (Capital B)

🌍 Iran is considering relocating its capital due to an unprecedented water crisis in Tehran, caused by decades of overuse, groundwater depletion, and a water demand that exceeds supply (The Conversation)

🌎 Mongolia is committing nearly $200 million over 15 years to protect 30% of its land, addressing severe climate challenges that include devastating winters that killed millions of livestock in 2024, while working with herding families to implement sustainable grazing practices (Nature)

🌎 Humans and livestock comprise 95% of all mammal biomass on Earth, a dramatic shift from 100,000 years ago when wild mammals made up essentially all mammal biomass before declining an estimated 85% due to human expansion (Our World in Data)

The FDA is deploying agentic AI across the agency for safety reviews, inspections, and compliance work, including food safety regulation (Civil Eats)

During the SNAP funding suspension, some grocers responded with emergency programs to provide free meals for folks in need (Grocery Dive)

There has been a surge in AI-amplified holiday shopping scams, including deepfake celebrity endorsements, phishing attacks, and fake delivery notifications (Politico)

Three new studies warn that AI chatbots can significantly sway voters’ political preferences, shifting support up to 10 percentage points in some cases, four times more effectively than traditional video ads, while also increasingly deploying misleading information and evading detection in public opinion surveys (404 Media)

A suspicious freelance pitch led to the discovery that a writer had fabricated interviews and likely used AI to generate articles published in several large outlets, exposing how overworked editors, eliminated fact-checkers, and AI tools have made journalism increasingly vulnerable to fraud (The Local)

🌏 Chinese AI companies are hiring Kenyan university students and graduates to label thousands of videos daily for very low pay, exploiting Kenya’s high youth unemployment rate in what labor advocates are calling “digital colonialism”(Rest of World)

Nearly half of US states now require adults to submit biometric data or personal identification to access legal pornography (a privacy nightmare brought to you by the “small government” crowd) (404 Media)