Author: nick

[ad_1] Story at-a-glance Human brain tissue contains far higher concentrations of microplastics than liver or kidney tissue, and researchers found the burden increased sharply between 2016 and 2024 Researchers discovered that patients with microplastics embedded inside carotid artery plaque faced a 4.53-fold higher risk of heart attack, stroke, or death compared to patients without detectable plastics in plaque Studies found plastic particles inside blood clots and diseased artery walls, while animal experiments showed nanosized plastics disrupting blood flow and worsening brain injury after stroke Ultraprocessed foods, bottled beverages, plastic packaging, contaminated water, and airborne particles expose your body to microplastics…

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[ad_1] Across the country, progressive politicians continue to push for an ever-higher minimum wage. Whether it’s New York City’s Mamdani-led pursuit of $30 by ’30, L.A.’s $30 “Olympic wage” for hotel workers, or Seattle’s minimum wage for the gig economy, it’s clear that the fight to raise the minimum is only escalating. Now, congressional Democrats have waded into the debate with the introduction of the Living Wage for All Act, spearheaded by Sen. Chris Murphy (D–Conn.). Sen. Murphy’s bill has garnered attention for seeking to increase the federal minimum wage from its current level at $7.25 per hour all the way up to a…

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[ad_1] Cover art for the book Shout It Out! 28 Portraits for a Committed World by Roberto Saviano – Fair Use Roberto Saviano begins his book Shout It Out! 28 Portraits for a Committed World with a quote from writer Ray Bradbury. “The Universe has shouted itself alive.” Saviano quotes from Bradbury’s short story “Long After Midnight.” “We are one of the shouts.” He spends the rest of this text writing about people who did shout out, some in the name of freedom and humanity, others as examples of the dangers of keeping quiet. These vignettes, beautifully translated from the…

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[ad_1] Photograph Source: Thomas Noack — www.foot-volley.de – CC BY-SA 3.0 My phone buzzed. It was my girlfriend. ‘Get out of there,’ she said. Her voice was shaking. I was in Graz, Austria, at a European footvolley tournament. I had come to compete. I was leaving for my safety. Hours earlier, a four-time European champion with over 25,000 Instagram followers had posted a story asking his fans what should be done with me. The responses came in fast. One stood out: ‘Post a picture, and we’ll take care of him.’ After our match, the same Israeli player thanked his followers…

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[ad_1] Democrats have a union problem. They have tied their political fortunes to unions, public and private, in ways that exacerbate intraparty conflict while stymieing both progressive and moderate goals. That’s not just a problem for the party. Democratic deference to unions creates economic hurdles for much of the country—almost everyone who isn’t in a union, and even some people who are—because today’s unions function as roadblocks to the future. To understand the party’s problem, consider that the two most powerful words in Democratic politics in 2026 are abundance and affordability. Both represent rival party factions. The abundance faction is a predominantly young,…

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