News Above the Noise—Week of February 18, 2024
1. Who Was Alexei Navalny?
Alexei Navalny, a long time Kremlin critic and opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, died Friday in a Russian penal colony. But who, exactly, was he—and why is his death something that all of us should pay attention to? Read this explainer here.
2. Grandparents Have a Positive Impact on Maternal Mental Health
As any child with an amazing, involved grandparent will tell you, that relationship is magic. Turns out it’s a boon for mom’s mental health as well. New research shows mothers are less likely to need antidepressants if their own parents are younger than 70, employed, and don’t have severe health problems. For more on this new study, click here.
3. How AI Bots Could Sabotage 2024 Elections
We’re living in an age of misinformation and disinformation—one in which online trolls are poised to increasingly use generative AI to fuel election falsehoods, according to new research. The potential fallout could impact election results in more than 50 countries holding elections in 2024. For more on this research and what it means for all of us, click here.
4. Inside the Plan to Diagnose Alzheimer’s In People with No Memory Problems
A new proposal by a panel of cognitive health scientists aims to test tens of millions of Americans with normal cognition for abnormal levels of amyloid or tau, two proteins associated with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (a type of dementia). However, the proposal is somewhat controversial, as many who test positive for these proteins won’t go on to develop Alzheimer’s, and at least seven members of the panel receive money from pharmaceutical and medical testing companies who stand to benefit from this additional testing. For more on this developing story, click here.
5. Is It Time to Financially Cut Off Your Adult Children?
According to a recent survey, a third of young adults ages 18 to 34 live with their parents, and a majority of them (64 percent) say this living situation has had a positive impact on their personal financial situation. But is it possible to both accommodate adult children and not enable them? When is it time to cut the proverbial purse strings? This thoughtful piece has the answer to these questions and more.
Editor's Note: Every week, The Sunday Paper's team of journalists sift through the news to find what Rises Above the Noise, makes sense of what's happening in the world, and provides hope for your week to come. While we do our best to provide our own informative summary of each piece, some publications require their own subscriptions beyond our control.
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