Author: Lance Garrison

Once upon a time on social media, the nicest app of them all, Instagram, home to animal bloopers and filtered selfies, established a land called Threads, a hospitable alternative to the cursed X, Formerly Known as Twitter. X had been taken over by the Dark Lord Musk, he who reopened X’s gateway to its banished demons Donald Trump, Kanye West and Andrew Tate.The good people of X tried to flee, scattering to the hinterlands of Mastodon and Bluesky, whose distant confines they then complained about on X.But Threads would provide a new refuge. It would be Twitter But Nice, a…

By Zvi MowshowitzGraphics by Sara Chodosh Mr. Mowshowitz writes a newsletter about artificial intelligence. March 27, 2024 We increasingly rely on artificial intelligence chatbots as tools to understand the world. Some are already replacing internet search engines and aiding in other tasks like writing and programming. Keeping an eye on chatbots’ emergent behaviors — including their political attitudes — is becoming more and more important.A.I.’s political problems were starkly illustrated by the disastrous rollout of Google’s Gemini Advanced chatbot last month. A system designed to ensure diversity made a mockery of user requests, including putting people of color in Nazi…

Kamala Harris arrived in San Juan, Puerto Rico, last Friday for her first official visit as vice president. The trip was meant, in part, to highlight the Biden administration’s dedication to aiding the island’s recovery. What unfolded instead was a revealing tableau of Democrats’ missteps and misjudgments.Ms. Harris’s roughly five-hour visit began in the community of San Isidro, in the municipality of Canóvanas. There, she visited María Ramos de Jesús, an 86-year-old whose home was only recently rebuilt with funds from a program of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.It was a curious choice. Many of the residents lack…

By Alexa Federico, as told to Lisa Mulcahy.I’m 27, I live in Boston, and I’m a certified nutritional therapy practitioner, an AIP coach, an author, and the owner of my own business, Alexa Federico Wellness. And I have Crohn’s disease.I was 12 when I was diagnosed. Many of my close friends have only known me since I’ve had Crohn’s. They’ve seen me sick, so I’ve been lucky in that I didn’t have to do much in terms of telling them about it. Those friends have always been so helpful and supportive.Several years ago, I started to have complications — three…

The moral panic about “woke” campuses has metastasized into actual legislation, and not just in the swampy idylls of Florida. Last week the governor of Alabama signed a bill that purports to limit the teaching of “divisive” topics in its colleges and universities. The bill is similar to Florida’s ban on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in public colleges, which was signed into law last May. Both are all-out attacks on learning by excommunicating liberal ideas from the classroom. Other state legislatures have also been busy. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that Republican lawmakers have proposed 81 anti-D.E.I. bills…

In terms of optics and in terms of energy, I wish President Biden were younger. There’s no point in pretending otherwise. And from the casual conversations all around me and the formal polling of voters, I know I’m in robust company. A great many Americans consider his age unideal, and that belief is why there’s no wishing away the focus on it. The swell of attention to it over the past few months is more beginning than end. There are tsunamis yet to come.Even so, aspects of the subject actually get too little consideration, starting with this crushingly obvious and…

For decades, Pakistan’s military has been the country’s most vital institution. Although it frequently intervened to oust elected governments, many Pakistanis saw this as salvation from the country’s blundering politicians. The army, it was thought, was the only force capable of holding the country together.The question now is whether the generals can keep themselves together.The military has suffered a catastrophic loss of prestige after the populist former prime minister Imran Khan directly challenged its influence. In response, Mr. Khan was ousted, jailed and his party — despite winning the most parliamentary seats in a divisive February election — was shut…

Getting adequate nutrition isn’t always easy. And for older adults, that’s especially true. You might not be as active as when you were younger, so you might need fewer calories. Yet research shows that older people may need more of certain key nutrients, such as B vitamins and calcium. Unfortunately, nutrient deficiencies and malnutrition can persist for a long time before they show up in physical signs or symptoms. Still, there are a few indicators you — and your doctor — can watch for. Fatigue is a common side effect of iron deficiency, which can lead to anemia, indicated by low levels of red blood…

If your child is overweight or obese, helping them get to a healthy weight is one of the best things you can do for them now and in the future. But what’s the right way to do it? That usually depends on your child’s age.There’s no single number on the scale that all kids must reach to be healthy. The right range depends on how tall they are, their gender, and their age. In fact, many children shouldn’t actually lose weight — they should just maintain it as they grow taller or put on pounds more slowly. But if they…

Many women don’t need to look at a calendar or open an app to know that their period is approaching, thanks to telltale signs like bloating, breast tenderness, and moodiness.  While these are among the best-known symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS), they’re hardly the only ones. Also on the list: trouble sleeping.Research backs that up.  About 1 in 10 people have insomnia – trouble falling or staying asleep. But twice as many go through that as they near their period. So says Sara Nowakowski, PhD, a sleep researcher at Baylor College of Medicine.For some women, the problem at that point…