📌 Chinese Threat, Partial Truce, More

China is the top threat to American interests globally, says a US intelligence report.

Beijing’s “coercive pressure” against Taiwan and “wide-ranging cyber operations against US targets” were indicators of its growing threat to US national security, said the Annual Threat Assessment by the intelligence community.

The report provides an overview of the “collective insights” of top US intelligence agencies about the security threats to the US posed by foreign nations and criminal organizations.

However, it said China was more “cautious” than Russia, Iran, and North Korea about appearing “too aggressive and disruptive.”

US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told a Senate hearing that China is the US’ main competitor. “China’s military is fielding advanced capabilities including hypersonic weapons, stealth aircraft, advanced submarines, stronger space and cyber warfare assets, and a larger arsenal of nuclear weapons.”

The report said Beijing would keep expanding its “coercive and subversive malign influence activities” to weaken the US internally and globally. The Chinese government would seek to counter what it sees as a “US-led campaign to tarnish Beijing’s global relations and overthrow” the Chinese Communist Party.

The US reached separate deals on Tuesday with Ukraine and Russia to pause their attacks at sea and against energy targets.

Washington has agreed to push to lift some sanctions against Moscow. While it was unclear when or how the Black Sea maritime security deals would start, the agreements are the first formal commitments by the two warring sides since President Donald Trump's inauguration.

The US agreement with Russia goes further than the agreement with Ukraine, with Washington committing to help seek the lifting of international sanctions on Russian agriculture and fertilizer exports, long a Russian demand.

Shortly after the US announcements, the Kremlin said the Black Sea agreements would not come into effect unless links between some Russian banks and the international financial system were restored.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said his understanding was that the truce agreements did not require sanctions relief to come into force and would take effect immediately, calling the Kremlin's statement an attempt to "manipulate" the deals.

Following the announcements, both Russia and Ukraine accused each other of launching drone attacks, but there were no immediate reports of hits on the Black Sea or energy targets.

MIT Media Lab and OpenAI studies studies find that AI chatbots can worsen emotional health.

The studies investigated how interactions with ChatGPT impacted users’ emotional health, focusing on the chatbot’s advanced voice mode.

The first followed close to 1,000 people for over a month with varying experience of ChatGPT using it for at least five minutes daily. The second study analyzed around 40 million user conversations from ChatGPT and surveyed how users interacted with the AI tool.

Across the studies, researchers found that people who used chatbots casually, without forming emotional connections, didn’t report feeling lonelier at the end of the study. However, users who said they were lonely before starting the study felt worse after it ended.

Researchers concluded lonely people feel even lonelier when spending more time with their digital companions. “Loneliness is both a cause and effect of problematic internet use,” the MIT team wrote

The studies also pointed to the negative impact of AI chatbots being a societal problem, not a technological issue, emphasizing the importance of healthier human connections.

Nearly half (46%) of New York City’s ‘runaways’ experienced human trafficking, with 32% reporting multiple exploitation.

A study of nearly 400 18–21-year-olds found 38% ran away due to emotional abuse, 29% because of conflicts with parents, and 27% owing to physical abuse. Their “displacement” affected their ability to secure stable housing and employment, forcing them to focus on survival, the research team of social scientists said.

Nearly all were US-born, raised in New York City, and without a stable address for at least a year. Some said they occasionally stayed with their relatives, while others “couch surfed” or slept on a friend's sofa for the night.

In New York and other US cities, the researchers say the lack of affordable housing and living-wage youth employment make it especially difficult for the youths to live safely. Often, they require help in obtaining safe short- and long-term housing, the researchers say

As well as financial aid, 66% expressed interest in educational assistance, and 68% in life skills support. They said both would help them prepare for a more stable life.

The researchers proposed an app to improve communication between youth and care providers and a pilot program to provide long-term housing and support.

Four paralyzed patients regained control of their legs within 24 hours of minimally invasive surgery in a clinical trial in China.

The breakthrough involved implanting electrode chips in the patients’ brains and spinal cords to create a ‘neural bypass,’ reconnecting the body's pathways. Within weeks, patients could lift limbs and walk independently and experienced restored nerve function.

Unlike Elon Musk's Neuralink, which tethers patients to computers, Shanghai's Fudan University’s brain-spinal interface reignites dormant nerves, enabling ‘neural remodeling.’ The four-hour surgeries saw two electrode chips with a diameter of about 1mm implanted into each patient's motor cortex.

The first volunteer was a 34-year-old man who was left paraplegic after a 10-foot fall two years ago. Within 24 hours of the surgery, he could lift both legs.

Two weeks later, his right leg could quickly lift and step over moving obstacles, and he could walk more than five meters with the support of a standing frame.

When the first patient had a follow-up appointment, he said: “My feet feel warm and sweaty, and there is a tingling sensation. When I stand, I feel the muscles in my legs contracting.” He also said he had begun to feel when he needed to use the toilet.

The other three patients had their operations later — all have started walking. Combined with “three to five years of rehabilitation training, the patient's nerves can reconnect and be reshaped,” said the project’s lead scientist, Jia Fumin. “Ultimately, we may free patients from device dependence.”

The Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI) diet is the most effective in middle age for healthy aging, says a 30-year study.

Results show that those with the highest AHEI score had 86% better odds of healthy aging at 70 and were 2.2 times more likely to be healthy at 75. The AHEI mostly contains fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes, and healthy fats, and it is low in red and processed meats, sugary drinks, sodium, and refined grains.

The AHEI, created by Harvard researchers in 2002, focuses on reducing chronic disease risk and is an alternative to the USDA's Healthy Eating Index, which measures how well people's diets stick to the federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Frank Hu, chair of nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said the 30-year study of eight diets takes a multifaceted view. It asks how diet impacts people's ability to live independently and enjoy a good quality of life as they age.

The AHEI was most strongly associated with better physical and mental health, while the Planetary Health Diet Index (PHDI) was best for cognitive health. Higher intake of ultra-processed foods, mainly processed meat and sugary or diet drinks, was linked to lower chances of healthy aging.

Harvard recommends the AHEI diet include five servings of vegetables, four servings of fruit, five to six servings of whole grains, daily servings of nuts, legumes, or tofu, and at least one serving of fish per week.

Police in South Carolina rounded up an escaped kangaroo, which turned out to have been released by a mischievous goat.

The Horry County Police Department said on social media that the 4th Precinct Patrol Division responded to a neighborhood where a kangaroo was seen on the loose.

The animal's owner, Lindsey Richardson, said she had just woken up when a neighbor alerted her that her exotic pet was loose.

Richardson said she had to go out in her silk, pink pajamas to help police wrangle the loose ‘roo.

Richardson later determined the kangaroo had gotten out by her goat unlatching a gate.