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Scientists Uncover Surprise Origin of Wispy Cirrus Clouds (Maria)

The author writes, “Cirrus clouds are our highest clouds; their wispy strands are like an artist’s brushstrokes in the sky. During the day, they are bright white; at dawn and dusk they can take on the hues of sunrise and sunset. But how are they made? New research reveals that some are seeded by storms on the other side of the world. … This has implications for global heating as storm patterns shift.”

A New York Marriage is Torn Apart by ICE (Sean)

From Documented: “Matthew and Allan Marrero went to 26 Federal Plaza together to interview for a marriage-based green card. Allan never came home.”

AI’s Safety Features Can Be Circumvented With Poetry, Research Finds (Russ)

From The Guardian: “Poetry can be linguistically and structurally unpredictable — and that’s part of its joy. But one man’s joy, it turns out, can be a nightmare for AI models. Those are the recent findings of researchers out of Italy’s Icaro Lab, an initiative from a small ethical AI company called DexAI. In an experiment designed to test the efficacy of guardrails put on artificial intelligence models, the researchers wrote 20 poems in Italian and English that all ended with an explicit request to produce harmful content such as hate speech or self-harm. They found that the poetry’s lack of predictability was enough to get the AI models to respond to harmful requests they had been trained to avoid — a process known as ‘jailbreaking.’”

Academic Society Bans Larry Summers for Life Over His Close Ties to Jeffrey Epstein (Reader Steve)

The author writes, “Former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers was banned for life Tuesday from an academic society in the latest fallout over recently released emails showing he maintained a friendly relationship with Jeffrey Epstein after the disgraced financier pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor. The American Economic Association, a nonprofit scholarly association dedicated to economic research, said it had accepted Summers’ resignation and banned him for life from ‘attending, speaking at, or otherwise participating’ in its events. ‘The AEA condemns Mr. Summers’ conduct, as reflected in publicly reported communications, as fundamentally inconsistent with its standards of professional integrity and with the trust placed in mentors within the economics profession,’ the group said in a statement.”

Scorching Saturdays: The Rising Heat Threat Inside Football Stadiums (Laura)

From Inside Climate News: “When Vanderbilt University football fan Douglas Dill set out with his son the morning of Oct. 4 to watch their team play rival University of Alabama, he didn’t expect his game-day experience to include a gurney ride to a medical facility inside Bryant-Denny Stadium. But by the fourth quarter in Tuscaloosa, with the sun beating down on the upper decks, the 60-year-old needed medical help. … Dill is one of hundreds of fans who have fallen ill from extreme heat in recent years at college games in powerhouse stadiums in the Southeastern Conference. The SEC, a collegiate athletic association, represents programs across a dozen states and accounts for nine of the country’s 13 largest football stadiums.”

The Hidden Brain Bias That Makes Some Lies So Convincing (Mili)

The author writes, “People are more likely to believe lies when there’s the possibility of a reward. Neuroimaging shows that the brain shifts into reward or risk mode depending on whether the context involves a gain or a loss. Friends show synchronized brain activity that can predict successful deception. Social bonds and incentives can subtly warp how we judge honesty.”

Lost for Over 400 Years, Rubens Painting Sells for $2.7 Million at Auction (Dana)

From NPR: “For more than four centuries, people believed it had vanished. But after being discovered in a Paris townhouse, a painting from the 17th century Baroque master Peter Paul Rubens sold [in November] at the Osenat auction house in Versailles for 2.3 million euros ($2.7 million). The painting, titled Christ on the Cross, was completed in 1613 but soon vanished from public view. For centuries, its existence was known only through engravings, printed reproductions made by other artists. Its whereabouts remained a mystery until the auctioneer Jean-Pierre Osenat uncovered it in September 2024 during a routine inspection of a Paris home he was preparing to sell.”