https://twitter.com/clashreport/status/2098053229074403830/video/1

@ShiningScience

A groundbreaking study shows schizophrenia is linked to epigenetic alterations in a critical stress-regulating gene. Researchers from the University of Sydney and the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry discovered that in individuals with schizophrenia, protective chemical tags—specifically DNA methylation—are stripped away from a gene known as FKBP5. This gene normally acts as a biological brake to help neurons shut down stress hormones like cortisol. Without these chemical brakes, the FKBP5 gene is essentially left ‘stuck on,’ causing the brain’s stress-control systems to remain in a permanent state of overload.

As these chemical tags are lost, the resulting hyper-heightened stress response is particularly concentrated in the frontal cortex, the area of the brain responsible for memory, decision-making, and emotional control. Scientists found that these changes become increasingly pronounced with age, meaning the stress response system switches on more easily and stays active longer as people grow older.

This cumulative exposure to unchecked stress over time can damage neural pathways, dramatically increasing vulnerability to severe psychiatric symptoms. By pinpointing this precise molecular switch, the research opens exciting new pathways for developing targeted therapies that could finally repair the brain’s broken stress-control machinery.

The work was published in the American Journal of Psychiatry. source: Edmond, K. Z. (2026). Association Between Age-Dependent DNA Methylation Changes at FKBP5 Enhancer Sites and Increased Cortical Gene Expression in Schizophrenia. American Journal of Psychiatry.

3 of 1,968

 Axios AM: MAGA’s millennial messenger

Inbox

Mike Allen Unsubscribe	10:57 AM (1 hour ago)
to me

View in browser PRESENTED BY ANTHROPIC Axios AMBy Mike Allen · Sep 11, 2026  Good Friday morning. Today we’re remembering the nearly 3,000 lives lost 25 years ago on Sept. 11, 2001.  Shanah Tovah to those celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, beginning at sundown tonight.Smart Brevity™ count: 1,687 words … 6½ mins. Thanks to Noah Bressner for orchestrating. Edited by Bill Kole.  1 big thing: MAGA’s millennial messenger Vice President Vance speaks at the GOP convention in Dallas last night. Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty ImagesAxios’ Marc Caputo reports from the GOP convention at American Airlines Center in Dallas: Support for President Trump is dropping among millennials and Gen Zers — particularly young men. Vice President Vance is in charge of getting them back in the midterms. Why it matters: The 42-year-old Vance, the first millennial VP, capped off the GOP’s two-day convention with a direct appeal to families with young children, emphasizing the “birthright” of U.S. citizens.Vance also sought to cast Democrats as anti-American, anti-family “crazies.” “America belongs to those who love it. Not those who hate it,” he said.  Zoom in: Support for Republicans is slipping across all age brackets. But the disapproval among millennials and young men is an acute concern for Trump’s political operation, because they were crucial to the president’s 2024 victory. Millennials (born from 1981 to 1996, so roughly ages 30-45) are the largest generation in America — and the cohort with the most school-age kids. So they particularly feel the bite of higher food and gas prices. In his 41-minute speech, Vance established his millennial bona fides by mentioning that he’s now the father of four young children who share in the “birthright … to inherit the blessings of the greatest country on Earth. “Vance spoke on the first anniversary of the assassination of his friend and ally, Charlie Kirk.“ Charlie spoke to young men in particular,” Vance said. “He understood that there was no greater calling for a young man … than falling in love, starting a family and becoming a father.”  Behind the scenes: Earlier in the day, Vance addressed a closed-door room of Republicans and emphasized the need to talk up the administration’s record on lowering costs for prescription drugs — and to attack Democrats. “We have to remind the American people of all the good things that we’re doing. And number two, we have to remind the American people of how effing crazy the Democrats have become over the past couple of years,” Vance said. Between the lines: Vance is younger than any member of Trump’s Cabinet, the freshest face in an administration led by the oldest person ever elected to the presidency — Trump, an 80-year-old Baby Boomer. An administration political adviser told us: “The dynamic you’re seeing play out in the administration between the young millennial leader and the boomer is happening in corporate boardrooms across America.” “JD is uniquely qualified to talk to parents with young families. He’s one of them, so this is only the start.”  What’s next: Vance and Trump plan to hit the campaign trail to support as many as 35 congressional candidates and a dozen Senate campaigns.Share this story.

Europe today

Brussels’ drug war in Saint-Gilles: residents caught between bombs, shootings and an absent state

By Nikolaj Nielsen

Brussels

8 September 2026 09:10

Beke* [EUobserver is not publishing his full name] was detained by the police at his work earlier this year when around 10kg of marijuana was shipped by FedEx to his home address in Saint-Gilles, a vibrant neighbourhood in Brussels where a spate of gang-related drug violence has made international headlines.

“I was put in a cell and interrogated by the police,” he told EUobserver.

Released some 26 hours later, Beke had become another innocent victim of neighbourhood violence, after drug criminals stole his identity to ship drugs.

The package had been sent to his home where his wife was caring for their new-born child. “We live on a street where there are criminals,” he added.

Saint-Gilles is one of Brussels’ 19 municipalities, known for its multicultural communities composed of some 140 nationalities as well as its striking Art Nouveau architecture all within 2.5 square kilometres.

Alongside its festivals, restaurants and cafe culture, Saint-Gilles also has a large artistic scene that annually opens up to the public.

But in recent years, gang-related violence has also taken hold, with dealers now openly selling drugs in the middle of the day and terrifying local residents.

They operate in broad daylight at a playground next to the Parvis, a central square in Saint-Gilles, even when children are at play. The distance between the dealers and the municipal police station, which is also located at the same square, is less than 400 metres.

They can also be found at Bethléem square, where dealers reportedly make anywhere between €15k to €50k daily even though the price of cocaine has dropped substantially over the years. Before the Covid pandemic, a gram was around $100. Today it is $16, according to Belgium’s interior minister, Bernard Quintin.

Last year, Brussels recorded 102 shootings across the city. This year’s tally already stands at 62 and is likely to rise, says Julien Moinil, Brussels’ chief prosecutor, who singled out Saint-Gilles and its neighbouring municipality, Forest.

“So is it going to stop? I don’t think so. Do you think it’s going to calm down? No. Are there risks of new shootings? Yes. And are there risks for citizens? Yes,” he recently told reporters, noting there had also been 22 explosions.

Bomb blows out school windows

In mid-April, several bombs were detonated in residential streets in Saint-Gilles. One blast shattered 15 windows at the Institut des Filles de Marie, a maternity and primary school directly across from the intended target, the OKLM Chicha Lounge bar. No one was injured. An earlier bomb, detonated in another street, had also damaged around 10 vehicles.

The April violence was then followed by a string of shootings in late August, prompting police to intercept two individuals armed with Kalashnikovs and handguns in a local park in Saint-Gilles, near the Halle Gate. The park is ripe with homelessness, often by undocumented migrants who have been largely abandoned by the state.

A police station in the adjoining neighbourhood of Anderlecht had also been shot up, in what authorities say was a tactic to intimidate them.

Moinil says police over the past year have made some 7,000 arrests in Brussels involving people without the legal right to stay in Belgium.

“I am not talking about people without residency papers, that’s an administrative problem. I’m talking about people staying illegally who commit offence, for example a rape, drug trafficking, a shooting,” he says, noting some offenders have multiple deportation orders.

Moinil also describes them as a cheap labour for leaders of criminal organisations. Some of those recruited by drug gangs are also minors from France, which can also easily slip through the Belgian justice system, he adds.

More than 80 convictions for shootings, including drug convictions, have currently been suspended by the government given prison overcrowding. And a new penal code now makes prison a last resort, a final option judges must justify outside alternatives like community service or fines.

Moinil is now pleading for more investigators and a larger budget to tackle the problem.

But the problem also runs deeper, rooted in Belgium’s often fragmented legal and administrative structures, which divide competences and budgets across local, regional, and federal levels even as the rightwing government under Bart De Wever seeks some €10bn in budget cuts.

Belgium, for instance, has five climate and environment ministers, one at the federal level with others spread out at the regional and communal level.

https://p.dw.com/p/5M6Km?at_medium=SocialMedia&at_campaign=Twitter&at_share_source=SharingButton&at_origin=Web

Fabian von der Mark23 hours ago23 hours ago

Osama bin Laden and al-Baghdadi are dead, but jihadist networks now reach from Kabul to Lagos. One question remains: Is the world safer 25 years after 9/11 and the War on Terror across Afghanistan, Iraq and West Africa?

https://p.dw.com/p/5M6Km

The attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001, killed nearly 3,000 people and triggered the War on Terror. The campaign, led by the US with allies across Europe and beyond, aimed to destroy al-Qaeda and stop Afghanistan from being a terrorist safe haven.

A quarter-century later, Osama bin Laden is dead, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead, and the War on Terror cost countless lives and trillions of dollars.

Did it defeat Jihadist terror? DW digs into the data, examines maps and talks with experts from around the world to find out.

We investigate what’s left of al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group: Are they still plotting attacks on the West, or have they changed their strategy? And what about African groups like JNIM and Boko Haram — are they advancing? Do jihadists still want a Caliphate? And what lessons are they learning from the Taliban being in charge of Afghanistan again and a former al-Qaeda-linked militia leader leading Syria as president?

https://p.dw.com/p/5MMAw?at_medium=SocialMedia&at_campaign=Twitter&at_share_source=SharingButton&at_origin=Web

Giulia Saudelli 23 hours ago

A US defense startup plans to produce up to 5,000 long-range Anthem cruise missiles a year in eastern Germany. What could that mean for European defense autonomy and Germany’s growing arms industry?

https://p.dw.com/p/5MMA

The long-range “Anthem” cruise missile is designed to be cheaper and easier to mass-produce than systems such as the Tomahawk. Its planned production in Germany comes as Germany and other European countries seek to strengthen their long-range strike capabilities and deterrence against Russia.

Reports suggest the Bundeswehr could be among the missile’s first customers. DW speaks to defense journalist Thomas Wiegold about why mass-produced cruise missiles are gaining attention, what they could mean for Germany’s defense needs and how greater weapons production could affect Germany.

Giulia Saudelli Political Correspondent@giuliasaudelli

Trump promises Americans $5,000 if Republicans win midterms

Zac Crellin 09/10/2026 September 10, 2026

The US president gave a wide-ranging speech at the Republican midterm convention. He defended the war in Iran, trade wars and tariffs, and the White House ballroom. He also called Democrats evil and immigrants animals.

https://p.dw.com/p/5MLip

US President Donald Trump made a pitch to voters on Wednesday: a $5,000 (€4,300) “dividend” for every American adult if the Republican Party keeps control of both houses of Congress in the midterm elections.

“If the Republicans win ​the House of Representatives ​and ‌the United States Senate, both of them … because of ‌our tremendous strength and success ‌economically, ​I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen in the ​United States of America for $5,000,” Trump said at the ⁠Republican midterm ​convention on Wednesday.

“The only caveat we have is that the dividend must be spent in the United States of America,” he added. “We don’t want you going to Canada spending the money, we don’t want you going to China or Germany.”

The president did not say how he would finance the measure, nor how the government would track where citizens spend the funds. He had previously promised citizens $2,000 checks from tariff revenues that have so far not materialized.

What else did Trump talk about?

Trump made the announcement as the two-day event kicked off in Dallas, Texas.

In a wide-ranging speech, Trump talked up some of the biggest — and most divisive — aspects of his second term in office, including the crackdown on immigration, the war in Iran, tariffs and subsequent economic retaliation, the White House ballroom, and restrictions on transgender people.

The president told voters to “pretend” that he’s on the ballot at the elections that will see new representatives and senators elected in November.

His attempts to rename the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario after America were met with rapturous applause. Later, he riffed on renaming the Strait of Hormuz as the “Trump Strait.”

Who else was at the Republican convention?

Other speakers focused less on the Trump administration’s track record and instead attacked Democrats as “evil,” “communists” and “socialists.”

Among those who spoke on Wednesday were Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a close Trump ally who is locked in a tough Senate race against rising Democratic challenger James Talarico, who represents a younger and more progressive wing of that party.

Another Republican senator, Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania, was introduced by his Democratic counterpart, John Fetterman, in an unusual move.

Fetterman, who has increasingly broken with Democratic Party positions in recent years, introduced the Republican as his “great friend” and pledged to work with Trump to protect the state’s steel industry.

Conservative activists were also in attendance.

The Associated Press spotted Stewart Rhodes, founder of the Oath Keepers extremist group. Rhodes had been sentenced to 18 years in prison for his role in the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol, but later benefited from Trump’s sweeping clemency after he returned to office.

Trump also praised Erika Kirk for being in attendance on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the killing of her husband, Charlie Kirk.

Vice President JD Vance received a brief shoutout near the end of the speech.

If you rely on our team for trusted reporting, please take a moment to select us as your Preferred Source on Google so you’ll always see our verified news first.

Edited by: Sean Sinico

https://www.dw.com/webapi/iframes/widget/en/66496852

Zac Crellin Journalist and editor based in Germanyzacrellin

Send us your feedback

Your feedback

Advertisement

LG TVs Caught Secretly Recording Users and Scanning Their Homes For Other Devices, Even When Disconnected From the Internet

“You[r] TV is wiretapping your whole house.”

By Frank Landymore

Published Sep 10, 2026 2:20 PM EDT

Add Futurism(opens in a new tab)More information

Sign up to see the future, today

Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech Email address Sign Up

It’s no exaggeration to say that if you own an LG smart TV, it might be spying on you.

The widely respected computer hardware experts at the YouTube channel Gamers Nexus found that the company’s boob tubes and pricey OLEDs can scan your Wi-Fi network to search for the devices you own, secretly record audio logs of your conversations using built-in microphones, and keep tabs on what you’re watching and listening to.

It collects all this data, Gamers Nexus found, even when the TV is disconnected from the internet and appears to be off in standby mode.

To unearth these surreptitious practices, Gamers Nexus partnered up with independent security researchers and Level1Techs. Their resulting two-hour video report has since been picked up by other trusted cybersecurity voices like Malwarebytes.

By digging into the firmware and intercepting some of the data the TVs were sending, the team found that the TVs were extensively scanning local Wi-Fi networks to log what devices were on it, including phones, computers, and other smart-home devices like thermostats. It even collected the names of nearby Wi-Fi networks, creating an alarmingly detailed picture of all the devices in a user’s household.

Why might that information be relevant to LG? The TVs also use a controversial technology called automated content recognition (ACR) that routinely scans and determines what you’re watching so it can sell that data to advertisers. 

Combined together, they build an advanced and disturbingly comprehensive profile of what you watch and the devices you use, Gamers Nexus warn. All this data is sent back to LG Ad Solutions, its lucrative advertising business.

LG TVs, on top of it all, can also listen to you. Tests showed that their built-in microphones could capture clean audio of nearby conversations and generate transcripts of them, even when the TVs were in standby mode, which most TVs default to when you think you’ve turned them off, with the display powering down. The recording feature continued even when the TVs were unplugged from the internet, storing the audio files locally and uploading them the moment the internet connection was restored.

The researchers also found a vulnerability that allegedly allow a hacker to remotely execute code, though they’re keeping the details on this light so they can responsibly disclose their findings.

Many LG owners are furious about the news.

“LG hardware is just spyware,” fumed a post on the r/LGOLED subreddit. “You[r] TV is wiretapping your whole house.”

Smart TVs collecting data on you isn’t new — ACR in particular is well-documented — but the reported findings here illustrate a degree of invasiveness the public could only speculate about previously.

It’s far from the first time LG has caused a stir over purported privacy violations, either. Another Gamers Nexus investigation last month found that LG monitors were sneakily installing pop-up ads onto customers’ computers. The ensuing controversy caught Microsoft’s attention, with the company demanding LG remove the ads.

More on surveillance: The Real Victims of the AI Surveillance Panopticon? Crime Fiction Writers

Add Futurism as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting.

Frank Landymore

Contributing Writer

I’m a tech and science correspondent for Futurism, where I’m particularly interested in astrophysics, the business and ethics of artificial intelligence and automation, and the environment.

Life lessons among Alaska’s glaciers

Axios’ Amy Harder kayaking on Spencer Glacier lake, Alaska, in August 2026. That glacier might look close, but it’s nearly 2 miles away. Photo: Amy Harder/Axios SPENCER GLACIER, Alaska — Sure, seeing is believing, but sometimes seeing leaves you in disbelief. That happened to me while kayaking among icebergs here recently, as the landscape transformed before my eyes, Amy Harder writes. Why it matters: I began the kayaking excursion certain of what I was seeing. I ended it with my mind blown — by the sheer scale of nature and by how much perspectives can change.  State of play: The glacial lake here, not far from Anchorage, is accessible only by the Alaska Railroad train. The glacier and lake looked rather small as we approached it on foot with our kayaks in tow. I felt a tinge of disappointment. I figured the glacier was maybe a half-mile away, with dainty-looking icebergs in between us. Then our guide told us it was 2 miles away. No way, I said, as confident as ever. “I’m fine being wrong,” the guide joked with equal parts politeness and sarcasm. Once we got into the water and started paddling, my entire field of vision changed dramatically in an extreme manifestation of “motion parallax.” I soon realized how small I was, how big those icebergs were and how far away that glacier really was.  How it works: “Motion parallax” is a common phenomenon we experience when moving. It’s why trees whiz past us while driving but mountains in the distance barely seem to move. Glacial landscapes can put this phenomenon — and our struggles to perceive depth and scale — on steroids. From shore, nearly everything in my field of vision was enormous — mountains, ice, water — leaving me with few familiar visual cues to grasp just how big or far away anything really was. When we started paddling, movement — and our kayaks themselves — gave my brain new information. Despite paddling quite a ways, the glacier remained stubbornly distant, while those dainty-looking icebergs grew to the size of cars and small buildings.A seagull showing just how big this iceberg is on Spencer Glacier lake in Alaska, August 2026. Photo: Amy Harder/Axios  The big picture: It was strangely empowering to be so wrong. I was confident in what I was seeing, and then my guide — and eventually my own eyes — showed me otherwise. That sense of wonder has lingered, making me curious about what else I might be so sure about — and wrong about. It was also a reminder that, from a distance, people and problems can look smaller, simpler and more obvious than they really are. Get closer, learn more and add context, and the picture can change dramatically. The bottom line: Sometimes changing your mind isn’t a sign that you saw things wrong. It’s a sign that you’re finally seeing more. Share this story.

Skip to main content

Google deepens its commitment to Finland with a €13 billion investment in AI infrastructure

Sep 09, 2026

2 min read

Google is deepening its commitment to Finland with a €13 billion investment in digital infrastructure, clean energy, and local partnerships. This investment will support thousands of jobs and help fund regional environmental projects across the country.

---

Bikash Koley

Vice President, Google Global InfrastructureShare

---

Since we converted a former paper mill in Hamina into a data center 15 years ago, Finland has been a vital hub for Google. Today, we’re deepening that commitment with a €13 billion investment in digital infrastructure, clean energy projects and economic partnerships across Finland over the next two years, to help meet growing demand for Google’s core services — such as Search, Maps, and Gemini — that people and businesses rely on every day.

Powering growth and local jobs

Throughout our 15-year history in Hamina, we have supported more than 40 social and community organizations in Hamina while pioneering environmental initiatives such as a seawater-based cooling system and offsite heat recovery distribution to local homes and businesses. From 2023 to 2025 alone, Google’s presence in Hamina supported an ecosystem of more than 600 Finnish suppliers across construction, operations, and network fiber that has created a multiplier effect for the economy. The Hamina data center currently supports a variety of jobs, from computer technicians, to electrical and mechanical engineers, to security staff, to catering, to facilities management, and more.

Today’s announcement, our largest single investment in Europe, will provide a significant boost to the Finnish economy. During the initial construction phase in 2027 and 2028, over 37,000 jobs nationwide will be supported and will contribute €3.6 billion annually to Finland’s GDP. Once fully operational, the new facilities will support thousands of permanent jobs, ranging from engineers to security and catering staff.

We’re also investing €31 million into local communities In Hamina, Kajaani, Muhos, and Vaala over the next four years to support education and economic growth. This includes teaming up with local colleges to offer AI upskilling programs for more than 4,400 workers and creating new training opportunities for 100 Finnish students for future data center careers.

Investing in clean energy and nature

As we grow, we are partnering on a portfolio of solutions that are aligned with our commitments to keep energy affordable for consumers and invest in clean energy. We’re taking steps to further support Finland’s grid by signing a 22-year agreement to support the life extension of the Loviisa nuclear power plant, adding new onshore wind capacity, and contracting for a new 94-megawatt battery system to help stabilize prices during cold, windless periods.

Finally, we want to support the local environment. We’re funding projects to regenerate native forests and wetlands near our sites, and building accessible recreational trails, public saunas, and fishing piers for the community to enjoy.

We’re excited to build the next chapter of digital innovation, right here in Finland.

Posted in: