Edition 73 · Thursday, October 29, 2026
Here's what happened.
At Harvard, Asian American student enrollment rose to 43 percent while Black student enrollment fell to 9 percent. The changes followed the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision striking down affirmative action.
A fire broke out at the Savannah River National Laboratory in South Carolina, prompting officials to limit air traffic in the area. One person was hospitalized with minor injuries, officials said.
California Governor Gavin Newsom and the First Partner announced the passing of labor icon Dolores Huerta. The state will lower its flags in her honor.
Ian Choudri resigned as head of California’s high-speed rail agency after leading it since 2024. His tenure was marked by budget problems, project delays and scandals, including questionable taxpayer-funded trips by consultants.
A Russian strike on a Ukrainian train station killed 13 people. The attack underscored that, despite a rare local cease-fire around the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky, other Ukrainian communities remained under fire.
China confirmed the expulsion of 33 officials as Xi Jinping deepens his purge. The campaign is enforcing loyalty as Xi prepares to claim a fourth term as leader; among those removed was former diplomat Liu Jianchao.
A high-speed train crash in Spain killed 68 people, the country’s second major rail disaster this year. One train struck another from behind, raising fresh concerns about the safety of Spain’s rail network ahead of a national election.
A critical flaw in UEFI firmware, used by most server vendors and data centers, allows attackers to execute code early in the boot process. The breadth of the affected infrastructure makes this a significant cybersecurity risk for computing systems.
Google is opening Gemini and Search to more apps through a new developer platform. The platform will let businesses bring their services into Google’s AI experiences, potentially changing how consumers discover and use apps.
Astronomers have identified a possible dwarf planet beyond Pluto, designated 2026 ED138. It could be as large as 1,500 kilometers in diameter, but researchers are still confirming whether it meets the criteria for dwarf-planet status.
Arnab, the first named storm of the North Indian Ocean cyclone season, made landfall along the coast of Andhra Pradesh. NASA reported the storm through its Earth Observatory coverage.
Testing at RAF Upper Heyford found “unacceptable” levels of PFAS contamination. A report described the site’s chemical contamination as the worst among RAF bases in the UK.
Vietnam has become the 78th nation to sign the Artemis Accords. The agreement commits participating countries to peaceful, transparent, and responsible exploration of space.
The Department of Health and Human Services will let small compounding pharmacies make six peptide products that have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The policy may still fall short of meeting demand.
A new type of blood test can detect brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease. A growing number of patients are asking their doctors about the test.
Eli Lilly said its investigational drug retatrutide was more effective than Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic at lowering blood sugar and reducing weight in a large diabetes study. The drug is not described as approved in the supplied information.
US Health Secretary RFK Jr plans to expand access to unapproved peptides. Health experts have cautioned against using the drugs because of limited human clinical trials and unknown long-term effects.
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde will step down on 7 February 2027, nine months before her term was due to end. Her departure begins a leadership selection process as the eurozone contends with weak growth and inflation.
The U.S. Department of Energy is providing Constellation Energy with $5 billion in loans to modernize nuclear reactors. Most of the resulting new capacity is already committed to Google, Amazon, and Meta for data centers.
Creditors of troubled Thames Water are due to vote on an emergency £2.4 billion loan as the company’s cash runs low. Campaigners warn that interest costs could add £40 to each household’s bills, while the company disputes that concern.
With 93% of ballots counted, Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and its allies are projected to win 53 of the Knesset’s 120 seats. The bloc is leading but remains short of a majority, leaving coalition negotiations ahead.
A federal judge rejected the Justice Department’s demand to stop processing California ballots. The federal government immediately filed notice that it will appeal, and the case is not over.
Support for Proposition 40, a proposed first-in-the-nation billionaire tax, has fallen behind as Election Day approaches. A Public Policy Institute of California poll found that 46% of 1,086 likely voters support the measure.
The Federal Trade Commission is demanding information from nine major airlines, ride-share companies and retailers about algorithmic pricing and loyalty programs. The inquiry focuses on how companies may charge customers different prices or pay drivers different fares based on personal or purchasing histories.
Research involving 826 people across 140 teams found that women with higher cognitive ability were more likely to be perceived as hostile and, in one study, less warm or considerate. Those perceptions were linked to more mistreatment and less help from coworkers, while men with higher cognitive ability did not face the same penalty.
A Dayforce study found that employees and employers may not agree on how artificial intelligence will affect work. Workers expressed fears that AI could make their working lives worse, underscoring uncertainty around workplace adoption.
Fathers are taking parental leave more often as paid-leave programs expand across U.S. states. Across eight state programs, men account for 40% of leave claims, while fathers in states with paid leave take an average of more than four weeks off.
The Milwaukee Brewers have won the World Series by defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in five games. It is the franchise’s first championship since beginning more than five decades ago.
Elena Rybakina secured the year-end women’s singles number-one ranking by beating Yulia Putintseva in the last 16 of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. The result confirms Rybakina as the season’s top-ranked player.
Alessia Russo scored a hat-trick as Arsenal beat Benfica 3-0 in the Women’s Champions League. The performance made Russo England’s all-time leading goalscorer in the competition.
Bluesky told WIRED it blocked links to a leaked archive containing information on 41,000 ICE, CBP, and other Department of Homeland Security workers. The platform said the archive included people’s contact information shared without authorization.
Instagram head Adam Mosseri said negativity around artificial intelligence is likely to worsen. In an interview, he acknowledged that opposition to AI extends beyond young people and creatives.
BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk commented on the studio’s closure, which resulted in 50 job losses as part of 400 cuts across the company. The closure also involved the cancellation of Mass Effect 5, reportedly known internally as Mass Effect: Universe.
Epic Games confirmed it is expanding its use of generative AI across Fortnite and Unreal Engine 6. The company said its engineers are no longer writing most of the code, making the move a significant development in game production and engine development.
Valve acknowledged that Steam faces problems with AI-generated low-effort games and cloning. The company said Steam Next Fest is being flooded with thousands of such titles, while developers are becoming reluctant to share work over fears it will be quickly copied.
Phantom Blade Zero reached a peak concurrent player count of 448,000 on Steam only a few hours after release. IGN reported that the game topped Steam’s best-selling chart and ranked behind only Counter-Strike 2 among the most-played games.
The University of Providence, a Catholic university in rural Montana, will close next year. The school is facing enrollment problems, severe financial difficulties and the loss of a major funder that helped subsidize its costs.
An increasing number of colleges signed contracts with Flock Safety after the 2024 pro-Palestinian protests. Students concerned about privacy are now pushing schools to abandon some of the surveillance cameras.
Russell Brand testified in a London trial that he misused his fame but said his sexual encounters were consensual. He has pleaded not guilty to seven charges of rape, sexual assault or attempted indecent assault.
AI bots are copying jokes word for word from young female comedians. The coverage says the practice is also subtly changing audiences.
Artificial intelligence is making drones faster and more capable in the war in Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine both use AI-powered drones, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that AI could influence battlefield decisions as soon as next year.
Audio recordings from before a deadly train crash in Spain appear to show that one high-speed train was cleared to move even though another train ahead had stalled. The recordings reveal exchanges between the control centre and drivers before the crash.