World in a Pulse
Briflio distills the day's signals into one calm feed — a personalized mix of the top stories across every topic, with context, not noise.
Anduril and Qualcomm to build laptops in the US for government use
Anduril and Qualcomm have unveiled BlueChip, a US-made laptop line for government and defence, with orders opening in 2027 and a Snapdragon X chip inside.
US tests 2-version cleanup system against chemical, biological agents
BLADE has won a contract to develop a transportable system that removes chemical and biological agents from sensitive military gear.
Information-theoretic entropy imaging of quantum matter
Phase transitions can generate intricate spatial organization invisible to spatially averaged probes, yet quantitative measures of this organization remain limited. Here we develop "entropy imaging," an information-theoretic technique that harnesses lossless compression to quantify spatial complexity, predictability, and order in quantum materials. Using this approach, emergent spatial textures can be imaged and converted into an experimentally-accessible observable: the computable information d
Congo’s Ebola outbreak tops 10,000 cases as authorities race to slow the spread
Congo’s fast-moving Ebola outbreak has topped 10,000 confirmed cases as authorities race to slow the spread across Africa
NFL hot-seat rankings: Aaron Glenn feels the heat, Shane Steichen running out of time
These coaches are feeling the most heat entering Week 8
Design-forward, all-day restaurant Host to open in Detroit in 2027
Host restaurant first opened a Utica location in 2022 followed by one in Romeo earlier this year.
Congo suspends artisanal mining agency head for failing to prevent illegal activities
Democratic Republic of Congo's mines minister has suspended the head of the state agency overseeing artisanal and small-scale mining, accusing him of failing to prevent illegal mining on licensed concessions, according to an order seen by Reuters. Mines minister Louis Kabamba Watum suspended Jean-Pa
Trump Defends White House Renovations After Obama Cheesecake Factory Joke
President Trump isn't taking Barack Obama's criticism of his White House makeover lying down ... firing back at his predecessor and claiming the place was a total mess when he moved back in.
Dictionary.com’s word of the year is one that you’re tired of seeing everywhere on the internet
Dictionary.com just crowned maxxing its 2026 word of the year. Here’s what the word means and how it went from gaming slang to everyday talk.
Retriever-Free Retrieval: Navigating Documents with Decision Models
While language models have become dramatically more capable, retrieval still largely relies on lexical matching or similarity in fixed embedding spaces. This creates a capability asymmetry: what the retriever fails to find, even the strongest generator cannot recover. We propose DecisionRAG, which brings the capabilities of pretrained language models to retrieval using decision models that jointly evaluate candidate branches in a single forward pass, without generating any tokens, and show that
Third harmonic generation in the transition metal trichalcogenides
The transition metal trichalcogenides (TMTs) are an interesting class of layered 2D materials that have strong anisotropic electrical and optical properties. We report on the polarization-dependent nonlinear optical response of exfoliated crystals at the third harmonic using non-resonant excitation with a 1560 nm femtosecond laser. All members of the TMT crystal family explored (ZrS3, HfS3, TiS3, and NbS3) display large anisotropy in their polarized third harmonic generation signal, with anisotr
A possible treatment for brain-eating amoebas, found in the sea
Brain-eating amoebas are hard to treat and nearly always fatal. But researchers have isolated a compound that could help stop the disease.
Brewers vs. Rays prediction, odds, time: 2026 World Series Game 4 picks by proven model
SportsLine's model simulated Tuesday's Milwaukee Brewers vs. Tampa Bay Rays World Series Game 4 matchup 10,000 times
Spot gas prices surge twofold — GECF
LNG imports in major Asian and European markets have declined, Secretary General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum said
Why the new Lego x Daft Punk collab makes perfect sense
Lego recently announced that Daft Punk, the French electronic duo that split up in 2021, is entering the Lego universe in a partnership that spans “product, content and brand experiences.” What the brick is this, you ask? Yet another damn licensing deal, now absurdly mashed up with a defunct electronica band? As much as I dislike Lego’s reliance on IP licensing, this one makes all the sense in the world from a pure creative philosophy perspective. After speaking with Daft Punk’s and Leg
Young & Restless Reveals Who Is Leaving or Joining This Week From Oct 26-30
Viewers curious to know who is leaving and joining The Young and the Restless this week can get their answers here.
Opera introduces a new web standard to let users deploy AI locally in their browser
The new standard, WebAI, is designed to work with a variety of AI models.
Apple responds to iPhone Duo crackgate affecting "a small number of units"
Apple hits the first hurdle with its folding phone
China Zorrilla: World’s largest electric ferry starts commercial runs
The world’s largest battery-electric ship begins service on the Argentina–Uruguay route with a 40 MWh-plus battery system.
Emergency pediatric care is now in permanent crisis mode
“In 2026, the unprecedented pediatric patient crowding of 2022 has become a normal Tuesday,” write Jonathan Kohler and Mary King.
Tom Fornelli's College Football Power Ratings: Big Ten hype gives way to hard truths
Preseason expectations have collided with reality as several Big Ten powers continue to underperform
Qatar’s Emir meets Iran’s Pezeshkian in Moscow
The pair discussed energy cooperation and ways to enhance bilateral relations, Iranian state media reported.
Polish investor Virtus sets up shop in Canada to recover base metals from mine dumps
Warsaw-listed financial and investment company Virtus Group has set up offices in British Columbia to help recover metals from post-mining and armament waste using a unique technology. The company aims to build a portfolio of projects within six months and list on TSX-V.
Meghan Markle's acting comeback suffers major blow as Netflix 'safety net' disappears: expert
Meghan Markle is no longer in talks to join "The Gentlemen" as sources allege Netflix leaked casting news to boost the show's publicity online.
Japan internet giant GMO says hackers posted stolen customer data
Japan's GMO Internet is verifying alleged customer data posted by suspected hackers following a cloud service breach.
REVIEW: Razer Wolverine V4 Pro controller (Xbox, PC) — Powerful, versatile, comfortable. It's an all-round standard-bearer.
This premium Xbox and PC controller absolutely demands your attention. If you're in the market for something as powerful as it is versatile, look no further.
220-second X-ray scan delivers images 27 times faster than conventional method
Instead of multiple elements, the team used a reflection zone plate, which can reflect, focus, and separate soft X-rays at the same time.
Dynamic heart rate variability for classification of arrhythmia burden
Purpose: Heart rate variability (HRV) may provide information beyond heart rate (HR) for identifying arrhythmia burden, but the value of temporal HRV variation remains unclear. This study developed a dynamic HRV measure quantifying the interquartile range of window-level root mean square of successive RR-interval differences (IQRRMSSD) and evaluated its utility in classifying total abnormal-beat and premature ventricular contraction (PVC) burden compared with the conventional RR-based HRV measur
Why Real Madrid's Mbappé, Barcelona's Yamal lost Ballon d'Or
Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal both achieved greatness last season, but it still wasn't enough for either of them to claim soccer's top individual prize.
Russia targets Kyiv as Finnish, Norwegian leaders hold rare call with Putin
Strikes hit a major bridge in the Ukrainian capital as leaders push for 'direct discussions' to end the war.
Model Selection for Off-Policy Evaluation via Pairwise Bellman Validation
Model selection and hyperparameter tuning pose a central challenge in off-policy evaluation (OPE) because errors of fitted Q-functions and occupancy-ratio estimates cannot be directly evaluated from held-out transitions. Bellman-residual and minimax validation methods often require auxiliary regressions or optimization over separate critic classes, adding computational and tuning costs. We introduce pairwise Bellman validation (PBV), a tuning-free minimax procedure for selecting among finite cla
Imran Khan gets temporary relief, as 'leave India' notice put on hold, court to hear the actor's plea on November 2
Actor Imran Khan has received temporary relief in his legal battle against a notice asking him to leave India by October 28. The Bombay High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing on his petition to November 2 at 3 pm after the Centre sought additional time to respond.
Security Researcher Claims Samsung Smart TVs Use AI To Monitor Audio, Screenshots, and Viewing Habits For Targeted Ads
Samsung's 2025 Smart TVs face privacy concerns over extensive user tracking capabilities, including audio monitoring and AI-driven profiling
Auto-Research Arena: Benchmarking and Advancing Auto-Research in Language Modeling
As autonomous research systems become more capable, benchmarks must both evaluate their performance and support meaningful research progress. We introduce Auto-Research Arena, a multi-target benchmark for evaluating autonomous research systems and discovering ideas in language modeling. Arena supports diverse research objectives within a shared experimental environment by separating admissibility from improvement: model quality and resource constraints determine whether a result qualifies, while
Ukraine improves drone interception rates despite Starlink disruptions
Ukraine made significant progress in countering Russia's jet-powered drones, with some air defence units reporting interception rates around 80%. But recent restrictions on US satellite services exposed Kyiv's reliance on US technology as it races to develop cheaper, more effective interceptors.
Long-term medication or modern crash diet? Inside the new world of GLP-1s
GLP-1s were designed and tested for long-term use, to combat chronic health conditions like diabetes and obesity. But what happens when you take ...
Lessons from NFL Week 7: Jaxon Smith-Njigba could make WR history, Seahawks look like champs again
Seattle delivered a championship-caliber performance, while Cincinnati discovered that its best offensive formula may also be its simplest
King Charles’s Caribbean tour: Will he discuss slavery reparations?
UK's King Charles launches nine-day Caribbean tour amid monarchy questions and growing demands for slavery reparations.
HelloNation Explains Construction Preparation for a Custom Home With Insights From Custom Home Expert Nick Randol
/PRNewswire/ -- What should homeowners understand before starting a custom home on their own land? HelloNation has published an article that answers this...
Noah Wyle Crowned PEOPLE's 2026 Sexiest Man Alive
Noah Wyle was "incredulous" when he first heard he was PEOPLE's 2026 Sexiest Man Alive -- but that's only because he never believed for a minute that he'd win the title!
The New iMac Doesn't Have an OLED Display—but It's Much More Powerful
Still no OLED in this generation, but the iMac gets a two-generation upgrade to Apple's M6 chip.
Center-of-Mass Interpretation of Evolution Strategies
Evolution strategies (ES) update a model by sampling a population of perturbed copies, scoring each one, and moving in the reward-weighted direction of the perturbations. This update is usually presented as an estimate of a smoothed gradient. We present a geometrical interpretation of this update instead. Treat each perturbed model as a particle and its reward as the particle's mass. Before scoring, every particle has the same mass and the population balances at its centroid. Once rewards are as
Halloween fans seek the ‘real’ thing on paranormal tours
From former psychiatric hospitals to funeral homes, US attractions offer ghost hunts and overnight stays for Halloween fans seeking an otherworldly encounter.
A theory of noisy linear recurrent neural network learning dynamics
Biological neural networks are noisy: their dynamics involve difficult-to-predict fluctuations which are likely due not just to chaos, but also to a variety of low-level biophysical processes. Despite the omnipresence of intrinsic noise, its theoretical consequences are incompletely understood, especially in the context of learning. For example, does noise meaningfully shape representation learning, or is it better viewed as a nuisance factor whose presence or absence changes little about what s
Watkins expected to be No. 1 WNBA draft pick, but lottery still needs to be held
JuJu Watkins, Madison Booker and Hannah Hidalgo are the projected top three picks in ESPN's first mock draft for 2027.
Russia strikes Kyiv ahead of localised ceasefire in Oleshky
Russia struck Kyiv multiple times on Monday night, hours before a humanitarian ceasefire in Oleshky took effect.
Biggest stock listing ever? A look at Anthropic’s IPO by the numbers
Anthropic has the chance to make history with what could be the biggest initial public offering of stock ever.The artificial intelligence lab filed papers Monday setting up a Wall Street debut next month, ahead of its chief rival OpenAI and just months after SpaceX set records in June with an initial public offering that raised $86 billion.In a 335-page prospectus, the company behind the Claude chatbot outlined rapid revenue growth, but an inability to turn a profit yet. The offering could bring
Trump Accused of Brutally Raping Former Miss Switzerland at Plaza Hotel in 1993, He Denies
President Trump brutally raped a former Miss Switzerland beauty pageant contestant at New York's Plaza Hotel in 1993 ... at least according to the accuser's account to Congress ... but Trump says it's all BS.
The iMac is back with an M6 chip and faster connections
Apple's 24-inch iMac sees a big speed increase, not just from the chip
Australia warns of 'unprecedented' AI threat
Artificial intelligence poses an "unprecedented" threat as foreign governments turn it loose to hack computer networks and critical infrastructure.
US method identifies radioactivity from 100-feet above in seconds
The aircraft with an aerial detector traced the radionuclide's identity, activity, and location nearly 100 feet above the source.
Hair surgeon warns against using 3 items in Halloween costume
Your Halloween costume choice could be harming your hair
How to watch Serie A: Christian Pulisic sparks Milan ahead of massive derby clash with Inter
It's a midweek matchday in Italy ahead of a huge weekend for Italian soccer
The Netherlands pulls out of Eurovision 2027 due to Israel ‘sensitivities’
Dutch withdrawal is the latest in a number of boycotts by countries unhappy about Israel's inclusion.
Adequacy radii for stepped-wedge trials with time-varying effects
Complete stepped-wedge designs guarantee eventual intervention delivery, but their final periods contain no concurrent controls. Under exposure-time heterogeneity this creates a design-analysis tension: a constant-effect analysis can be precise while targeting a design-dependent contrast, whereas an exposure-time indicator (ETI) analysis targets a prespecified time-averaged effect but may be much less precise. We develop an adequacy radius that quantifies the size of exposure-time heterogeneity
Netherlands makes U-turn over Eurovision 2027 participation
A Dutch broadcaster reverses a decision to take part, citing "sensitivities" over Israel's participation.
General Compute raises $100 million Series A, countering the neocloud disaster narrative
General Compute is betting on inference chips from outside the Nvidia ecosystem.
Serving LLMs at Scale: The Hidden KV Cache Advantage
Khawaja Shams shares a distributed systems perspective on scaling LLM inference stacks efficiently. He discusses practical strategies for optimizing GPU utilization, managing KV cache memory cliffs, leveraging tiered storage, reducing tail latency, and implementing disaggregated prefill and decode a
Jay-Z and NFL seal deal for rapper to headline 2027 Super Bowl show
After days of speculation, Jay-Z, the rapper who became hip-hop's first billionaire by building a career as an executive and entrepreneur, is returning to his roots as an entertainer to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show.
On the stability of learning
Learning algorithms are usually analyzed under the assumption that informative gradients are continuously available. But this is not always true---learning signals in biological neural networks, for example, may be sparse, local, and only intermittently available at any given synapse. In this work, we show that if gradient information is noisy and only intermittently available, learning may be unstable. In particular, even if average learning dynamics converge to the correct optimum, variance in
Panthers vs. Packers prediction, odds, time: 'Thursday Night Football' picks from proven model
SportsLine's model has revealed its Carolina Panthers vs. Green Bay Packers picks for 'Thursday Night Football'
Putin calls Africa 'continent of future'
The head of state added that Russia is promoting the creation of a new investment platform within BRICS, which will also target fast-growing markets
AI in Econometric Theory: An Example
This note contains a story and a paper. The paper is about the admissibility of two-stage least squares with weak instruments, a topic we have worked on together since 2019. The story is about how we (or, rather, our LLMs) wrote the paper, and some thoughts on what this may mean for our field.
Who Was BP Singh? The Man Who Made Us Love CID And Fear Aahat
BP Singh, veteran producer and creator of the iconic Indian television series CID and Aahat, passed away at the age of 77 following a massive heart attack.