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Today: April 15, 2025
Today: April 15, 2025
The Los Angeles Post

The Los Angeles Post

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Economy

GOP's proposed expansion of SNAP work requirements targets many low-income people in their early 50s – but many of them already work

Many Americans in their early 50s take care of older loved ones. FredFroese/E+ via Getty Imagres The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work. The big idea Roughly half of the people who would be affected by a proposed expansion of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program work requirements already do what’s needed to meet those requirements. There’s also evidence suggesting that many of the rest have caregiving or health conditions that prevent them from working. Formerly known as food stamps, SNAP helps low-income people buy groceries. Republicans want the federal government to make SNAP benefits for adults age

GOP's proposed expansion of SNAP work requirements targets many low-income people in their early 50s – but many of them already work
World

Biden's shift on F-16s for Ukraine came after months of internal debate

President Joe Biden’s decision to allow allies to train Ukrainian forces on how to operate F-16 fighter jets — and eventually to provide the aircraft themselves — seemed like an abrupt change in position but was in fact one that came after months of internal debate and quiet talks with allies. Biden announced during last week’s Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, Japan, that the U.S. would join the F-16 coalition. His green light came after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spent months pressing the West to provide his forces with American-made jets as he tries to repel Russia’s

Biden's shift on F-16s for Ukraine came after months of internal debate
Environment

Coca-Cola's biggest challenge in greening its operations is its own global marketing strategy

Egyptian workers push Coca-Cola branded refrigerators, provided free to grocers, through a Cairo street. Mohammed Al-Sehiti/AFP via Getty Images Coca-Cola is one of the world’s most widely recognized brands. Its global reach, spanning more than 200 countries, was the theme of a 2020 commercial that showed families drinking Coke with their meals in cities from Orlando, Florida, to Shanghai, London, Mexico City and Mumbai, India. Operating on that scale creates a big carbon footprint. The company uses over 200,000 vehicles to distribute its products every day and runs hundreds of bottling plants and syrup factories across the globe. But Coke’s

Coca-Cola's biggest challenge in greening its operations is its own global marketing strategy
Environment

Is generative AI bad for the environment? A computer scientist explains the carbon footprint of ChatGPT and its cousins

AI chatbots and image generators run on thousands of computers housed in data centers like this Google facility in Oregon. Tony Webster/Wikimedia, CC BY-SA Generative AI is the hot new technology behind chatbots and image generators. But how hot is it making the planet? As an AI researcher, I often worry about the energy costs of building artificial intelligence models. The more powerful the AI, the more energy it takes. What does the emergence of increasingly more powerful generative AI models mean for society’s future carbon footprint? “Generative” refers to the ability of an AI algorithm to produce complex data.

Is generative AI bad for the environment? A computer scientist explains the carbon footprint of ChatGPT and its cousins
Environment

More than two dozen cities and states are suing Big Oil over climate change – they just got a boost from the US Supreme Court

Honolulu has lost more than 5 miles of its famous beaches to sea level rise and storm surges. Sunny-day flooding during high tides makes many city roads impassable, and water mains for the public drinking water system are corroding from saltwater because of sea level rise. The damage has left the city and county spending millions of dollars on repairs and infrastructure to try to adapt to the rising risks. Future costs will almost certainly be higher. More than US$19 billion in property value, at today’s dollars, is at risk by 2100 from projected sea level rise, driven by greenhouse

More than two dozen cities and states are suing Big Oil over climate change – they just got a boost from the US Supreme Court
Economy

Travelers will refuse an upgrade to sit near a loved one -- new research into when people want to share experiences

Would you decline a free upgrade to first class in order to sit next to a companion in coach? Image Source/DigitalVision Collection/Getty Images The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work. The big idea People will often sacrifice a better experience and opt for one that’s less enjoyable if it means they can do it alongside a loved one – whether that’s a romantic partner, close friend or relative. That’s the main finding of our research published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology in April 2023. For example, when taking a flight, two friends might decide to

Travelers will refuse an upgrade to sit near a loved one -- new research into when people want to share experiences
Health

Anesthesia can cause disturbing sexual hallucinations, leading to lasting psychological trauma

Having witnesses or recording devices during procedures requiring anesthesia could help prevent opportunities for sexual assault. Science Photo Library/Getty Images Some patients can have vivid and detailed sexual hallucinations during anesthesia with sedative-hypnotic drugs like propofol, midazolam, diazepam and nitrous oxide. Some make suggestive or sexual comments or act out, such as grabbing or kissing medical professionals or touching themselves in a sexual way. Others awaken erroneously believing they were sexually assaulted. Why does this happen? Doctors have long known that sedative-hypnotic drugs, which slow down brain activity to induce calm or sleep, can affect a patient’s perception of reality.

Anesthesia can cause disturbing sexual hallucinations, leading to lasting psychological trauma
Economy

What is 'ethical AI' and how can companies achieve it?

In the absence of legal guidelines, companies need to establish internal processes for responsible use of AI. Oscar Wong/Moment via Getty Images The rush to deploy powerful new generative AI technologies, such as ChatGPT, has raised alarms about potential harm and misuse. The law’s glacial response to such threats has prompted demands that the companies developing these technologies implement AI “ethically.” But what, exactly, does that mean? The straightforward answer would be to align a business’s operations with one or more of the dozens of sets of AI ethics principles that governments, multistakeholder groups and academics have produced. But that

What is 'ethical AI' and how can companies achieve it?
Arts

What is vernacular art? A visual artist explains

Henry Darger worked as a hospital custodian. After his death in 1973, hundreds of his illustrations were discovered. Brooklyn Taxidermy/flickr, CC BY Vernacular art is a genre of visual art made by artists who are usually self-taught. They tend to work outside of art academies and commercial galleries, which have traditionally been the purview of white, affluent artists and collectors. In the U.S., vernacular art – which can also be called folk art or outsider art – is dominated by the works of African American, Appalachian and working-class people. In many cases these artists took up making paintings, sculptures, quilts

What is vernacular art? A visual artist explains
Environment

2023 hurricane forecast: Get ready for a busy Pacific storm season, quieter Atlantic than recent years thanks to El Niño

Twenty years of storm tracks in the Atlantic and eastern Pacific basins. NASA The official 2023 hurricane season forecasts were just released, and while the Atlantic may see an average storm season this year, a busier-than-normal season is forecast in the eastern Pacific, meaning heightened risks for Mexico and Hawaii. A big reason is El Niño. El Niño typically means trouble for the Pacific and a break for the Atlantic coast and Caribbean. But while this climate phenomenon is highly likely to form this year, it isn’t a certainty before hurricane season ramps up this summer, and that makes it

2023 hurricane forecast: Get ready for a busy Pacific storm season, quieter Atlantic than recent years thanks to El Niño
Health

A little-understood sleep disorder affects millions and has clear links to dementia – 4 questions answered

Past age 50, men are much more likely to have REM sleep behavior disorder than women. Jose Luis Pelaez/Stone via Getty Images A little-known and poorly understood sleep disorder that occurs during the rapid eye movement, or REM, stage of sleep has been garnering attention for its role in foreshadowing neurodegenerative brain diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. The disorder, known as REM sleep behavior disorder, or RBD in the medical field, affects around 1% of the general population worldwide and about 2% of adults over 65. The Conversation talked with Anelyssa D’Abreu, a neurologist who

A little-understood sleep disorder affects millions and has clear links to dementia – 4 questions answered
Arts

European soccer is having another reckoning over racism – is it time to accept the problem goes beyond bad fans?

Vinícius Júnior is making the point, but are soccer’s governing bosses getting it? Aitor Alcalde Colomer/Getty Images After suffering months of racial abuse on the field and off, Brazilian soccer star Vinícius Júnior had enough. On May 21, 2023, the Real Madrid forward – commonly seen as one of the best soccer players in the world – brought a halt to a game at Valencia’s Mestalla Stadium, pointing to fans who were making blatantly racist remarks and gestures. He later made it clear that this was not an isolated event: “It was not the first time, nor the second, nor

European soccer is having another reckoning over racism – is it time to accept the problem goes beyond bad fans?
Environment

The Supreme Court just shriveled federal protection for wetlands, leaving many of these valuable ecosystems at risk

Many ecologically important wetlands, like these in Kulm, N.D., lack surface connections to navigable waterways. USFWS Mountain-Prairie/Flickr, CC BY The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in Sackett v. EPA that federal protection of wetlands encompasses only those wetlands that directly adjoin rivers, lakes and other bodies of water. This is an extremely narrow interpretation of the Clean Water Act that could expose many wetlands across the U.S. to filling and development. Under this keystone environmental law, federal agencies take the lead in regulating water pollution, while state and local governments regulate land use. Wetlands are areas where land is wet

The Supreme Court just shriveled federal protection for wetlands, leaving many of these valuable ecosystems at risk
Environment

Colorado River states bought time with a 3-year water conservation deal – now they need to think bigger

An irrigation canal moves Colorado River water through farm fields in California’s Imperial Valley. Photo by Sandy Huffaker / AFP via Getty Images Arizona, California and Nevada have narrowly averted a regional water crisis by agreeing to reduce their use of Colorado River water over the next three years. This deal represents a temporary solution to a long-term crisis. Nonetheless, as a close observer of western water policy, I see it as an important win for the region. Seven western states – Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California – and Mexico rely on water from the Colorado

Colorado River states bought time with a 3-year water conservation deal – now they need to think bigger
Environment

Colorado River states bought time with a 3-year water conservation deal – now they need to think bigger

An irrigation canal moves Colorado River water through farm fields in California’s Imperial Valley. Photo by Sandy Huffaker / AFP via Getty Images Arizona, California and Nevada have narrowly averted a regional water crisis by agreeing to reduce their use of Colorado River water over the next three years. This deal represents a temporary solution to a long-term crisis. Nonetheless, as a close observer of western water policy, I see it as an important win for the region. Seven western states – Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California – and Mexico rely on water from the Colorado

Colorado River states bought time with a 3-year water conservation deal – now they need to think bigger
Health

Including race in clinical algorithms can both reduce and increase health inequities – it depends on what doctors use them for

An increasing number of health care decisions rely on information from algorithms. Tom Werner/Digital Vision via Getty Images Health practitioners are increasingly concerned that because race is a social construct, and the biological mechanisms of how race affects clinical outcomes are often unknown, including race in predictive algorithms for clinical decision-making may worsen inequities. For example, to calculate an estimate of kidney function called the estimated glomerular filtration rate, or eGFR, health care providers use an algorithm based on age, biological sex, race (Black or non-Black) and serum creatinine, a waste product the kidneys release into the blood. A higher

Including race in clinical algorithms can both reduce and increase health inequities – it depends on what doctors use them for
Political

Diverse Republican presidential primary field sees an opening in 2024 with voters of color

Race has emerged as a central issue — and a delicate one — in the 2024 presidential contest as the GOP’s primary field features five candidates of color, making it the party’s most racially diverse ever. Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, who is of Cuban descent, announced his candidacy on Thursday, vowing to create a new brand of politics. South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, the first Black senator in the South since Reconstruction, entered the contest last month. He joined Nikki Haley, a former South Carolina governor and U.N. ambassador who is of Indian descent, as is Vivek

Diverse Republican presidential primary field sees an opening in 2024 with voters of color
Economy

Debt ceiling negotiators reach a deal: 5 essential reads about the tentative accord, brinkmanship and the danger of default

Biden speaks to reporters about the tentative accord. AP Photo/Susan Walsh President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on May 27, 2023, agreed in principle to a tentative deal that would raise the debt ceiling while capping some federal spending at current levels. The accord, if approved by both houses of Congress, would avert an unprecedented default that threatens to derail the economy and put hundreds of thousands of Americans out of work. Negotiators agreed to lift the ceiling for two years – past the 2024 presidential election – while putting a temporary cap on most nondefense spending at

Debt ceiling negotiators reach a deal: 5 essential reads about the tentative accord, brinkmanship and the danger of default
Environment

Atlantic hurricane season 2023: El Niño and extreme Atlantic Ocean heat are about to clash

Hurricane Florence, seen from the International Space Station in 2018. Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. NASA The Atlantic hurricane season starts on June 1, and forecasters are keeping a close eye on rising ocean temperatures, and not just in the Atlantic. Globally, warm sea surface temperatures that can fuel hurricanes have been off the charts in the spring of 2023, but what really matters for Atlantic hurricanes are the ocean temperatures in two locations: the North Atlantic basin, where hurricanes are born and intensify, and the eastern-central tropical Pacific Ocean, where El Niño forms. This

Atlantic hurricane season 2023: El Niño and extreme Atlantic Ocean heat are about to clash
Economy

After the ALS ice bucket challenge and the rise of MrBeast, stunt philanthropy might be here to stay

Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast, leaned into charity to get a massive following. Michael Tran/AFP via Getty Images Stunt philanthropy is what happens when influencers, other celebrities and people who aren’t famous at all use entertaining videos to encourage support for a charitable cause. When their stunts go viral, it can lead to massive public engagement that raises lots of money and draws new attention to previously less visible causes. Donald Trump took the ALS ice bucket challenge in 2014. Why stunt philanthropy matters The biggest early success with stunt philanthropy online was the ALS ice bucket challenge. People taking the

After the ALS ice bucket challenge and the rise of MrBeast, stunt philanthropy might be here to stay
Arts

Why more cities are hiring 'night mayors' and establishing forms of nighttime governance

A dancer at ‘The Fairy Tale Ball’ in Madrid in October 2022. Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images Growing up in a small town in Brazil, my daily life was shaped by the rhythms of my family’s working hours. My father has been a night shift worker for over three decades at a local factory. We got used to silent days and busy nights, noticing how our lives weren’t in sync with those of our neighbors. After all those years, my fascination with the night as a separate, habitable world became a research project as a Mellon Fellow at McGill University. Then it

Why more cities are hiring 'night mayors' and establishing forms of nighttime governance
Health

Cytomegalovirus lies dormant in most US adults and is the leading infectious cause of birth defects, but few have heard of it

Cytomegalovirus belongs to the same virus family, _Herpesviridae_, as cold sores and chickenpox. Callista Images/Image Source via Getty Images “Why didn’t anyone tell me about this virus?” is a frequent response I hear from parents upon learning their newborn is infected with cytomegalovirus, or CMV. Although more than half of the U.S. population will be infected with CMV by the age of 40 and the disease is common worldwide, few people have ever heard of it. CMV belongs to the same virus family as cold sores and chickenpox and, like those viruses, lives in the body for life. Most children

Cytomegalovirus lies dormant in most US adults and is the leading infectious cause of birth defects, but few have heard of it
Arts

How the sounds of 'Succession' shred the grandeur and respect the characters so desperately try to project

While the Roy siblings are shielded by their wealth, the show’s music chips away at their armor. Macall Polay/HBO HBO’s “Succession” delivered its grand finale on May 28, 2023 – the climax of four award-packed seasons of searing put-downs, nihilistic humor and desperate power plays. The show tells the story of ailing media tycoon Logan Roy and his four horrid children who aim to inherit his empire. I loved it because it rendered despicable people in power as human – funny, pathetic, capable of deep feeling – without once trying to redeem them. But as a music historian, I will

How the sounds of 'Succession' shred the grandeur and respect the characters so desperately try to project
Economy

Amid fears of Chinese influence, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has grown more powerful

Business deals by foreign countries in the U.S. can be reviewed by the government for national security risks. Jason Leung for Unsplash, CC BY-SA A Chinese private equity firm, Primavera Capital Group, acquired the well-known test preparation company Princeton Review and an online learning platform, Tutor.com, in May 2023. The move, like other Chinese investments in tech and those that deal with personal information, is increasingly drawing the attention of politicians, the U.S. government and national security experts – especially as tensions rise between the U.S. and China. What remains unclear, however, is if this seemingly routine business acquisition was

Amid fears of Chinese influence, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has grown more powerful
Economy

Most super rich couples have breadwinning husbands and stay-at-home wives, contrasting sharply with everyone else

Uber wealthy couples are rather traditional when it comes to who works and who doesn’t. EXTREME-PHOTOGRAPHER/E+ via Getty Images The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work. The big idea Men are the sole breadwinners in over half of super rich heterosexual couples – defined as those in the top 1% of households – while the women are not employed, according to our new peer-reviewed study. That’s twice the rate of less affluent heterosexual couples. Our finding is based on 30 years of data, from 1989 to 2019, from the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances. We

Most super rich couples have breadwinning husbands and stay-at-home wives, contrasting sharply with everyone else

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