More people are dying in hospitals against their wishes / We're all micro-moving now / What should we feed our alien overlords?

Your parents' money is the new American Dream / Cut your daily choices or your brain will do it for you / China just deleted millions of AI relationships

A new CNN/Federal Reserve investigation finds that nearly half of adults aged 18-29 received assistance from someone outside their household to cover recurring expenses last year — and the people who got early inheritance aren't feeling good about it, they're feeling guilty and relieved simultaneously. Also: the average adult makes approximately 35,000 decisions per day, decision fatigue is real and measurable, and the research on how to fight it is more specific and actionable than "simplify your life." And on July 15, China's new AI companion regulations took effect — ByteDance, Alibaba, and Tencent all shut down their AI persona features, and the grief on Chinese social media was immediate and genuine. Plus two babies switched at birth 38 years ago, a man suing his bank for lending him money, an Alabama husband committed to a remarkable relationship, and the firefighting donkeys of Spain. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Scientists found a nearby planet that might have an ocean / Gen Z is afraid of what they use most / What will the world look like in 2100?

Astronomers analyzing new James Webb Space Telescope observations of LHS 1140b — a "super-Earth" just 49 light-years away — are now reporting the strongest evidence yet for a nitrogen-rich atmosphere on a habitable-zone exoplanet, and models suggest it may have a liquid ocean roughly the size of half the Atlantic. Also: a Pew Research/Newsweek survey of 5,119 Americans finds Gen Z uses AI more than any other generation and is simultaneously the most worried about where it's heading — 66% use chatbots regularly, up from 55% in 2024, and they're more concerned than older generations about job loss, AI's reliability, and its environmental impact. And scientists from institutions around the world just published predictions for life in the 2100s. Plus a bored pilot who skytyped it, the Florida woman betrayed by a cat, the Ohio lottery voice winner, and a pole dancing sprinkler flood. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Gen Z is picking up a wrench instead of a diploma / The pen that saved Apollo 11 just sold for $857,000 / Going to the movies might be keeping you younger

Enrollment at public two-year vocational schools is up nearly 20% since 2020, Gen Z is nearly evenly split between four-year college and trade school when asked what they'd choose today, and the math — sub-$25,000 programs leading to $80,000-plus jobs — is hard to argue with. Also: the felt-tip pen that Buzz Aldrin jammed into a broken circuit breaker on the lunar surface in 1969 to save the Apollo 11 crew sold at Sotheby's today alongside the snapped-off switch for $857,600. And a new Japanese study of 1,899 adults tracked over time finds that regular moviegoers, museum visitors, and theatergoers have bodies that function like people three years younger. Plus the 1,700-pound great white shark heading to Cape Cod, the bank robber's borrowed kitten, the deer in the antique store, and wildfire smoke rolling across the Midwest. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

More people are dying in hospitals against their wishes / We're all micro-moving now / What should we feed our alien overlords?

About 90% of Americans say they want to die at home. Only about 35% do — and the median hospice enrollment in 2024 was 19 days, meaning most people get palliative care so late it barely functions as a transition. Also: Taskrabbit data shows a 23% jump in quick-move bookings and a 19% increase in same-day moves year-over-year, with the "micro-move" trend driven by smaller spaces, lighter lives, and a housing market where staying flexible is more important than putting down roots. And University of Reading research shows clear-air turbulence — the kind you can't see coming, that doesn't show on radar — has increased 55% since 1979, is projected to double or triple by 2050, and is being driven entirely by climate change. Plus the dog who caused a $200K fire, the peanut butter museum floor, the robotaxi sleepers, and the Taco Bell investigation. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Music influencers are secretly selling you songs / AI is quietly pushing out older workers / You can rent a barbecue companion in Russia

NPR spoke with five music influencers who say they regularly accept payments from record labels to post about songs without disclosing it — and when they reached out to Interscope, Republic, Atlantic, RCA, Sony, Universal, and Warner for comment, none responded. Also: a Boston College Center for Retirement Research study finds that since ChatGPT launched, older workers in AI-exposed jobs — coders, accountants, tax preparers — are leaving the workforce significantly faster than before, reversing a long-standing trend in which those jobs actually extended careers. And a new service in Russia allows lonely people to rent a companion specifically to share a barbecue and beers with. That is the entire service. Plus the Airbnb family who found their own photos on the wall, Ontario's grenade advisory, Zara's dangerous pants, and sugar discovered in space. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.