<![CDATA[HHS rolls out a plan to curb psychiatric overprescribing, pushing deprescribing guidance as APA and AFSP urge caution and access to care.]]>
<![CDATA[Explore how chatbot brains diverge and compete with human brains. ]]>
STAT+: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about RFK Jr. targeting antidepressants, J&J pushing an IBD drug, and more
Rise and shine, another busy day is on the way. However, this is also shaping up as a beautiful day as well, given the clear and sunny skies — and delicious breezes — enveloping the Pharmalot campus this morning. This calls for celebration with a cup of stimulation, and we are opening a new package of cinnamon buns for the occasion. Spring has sprung, after all. What is upon us right now, however, is our ever-growing to-do list. Sound familiar? So here are some items of interest. Have a great day, everyone. …
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced several initiatives intended to rein in the prescription of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, the most widely prescribed class of antidepressants, which he has described as exceptionally difficult to quit, The New York Times writes. The initiative focuses on the most widely prescribed class of psychiatric medications, first-line treatments for depression and anxiety that include Zoloft, Lexapro, Paxil, and Prozac. In 2026. 16.7% of U.S. adults, or roughly one in six, reported currently taking one of these pills. The changes — new trainings, reimbursement mechanisms, and clinical guidelines — nudge clinicians to help patients get off medications, and to consider non-pharmaceutical interventions, like therapy, nutrition, and exercise.
A closely watched therapy developed by Johnson & Johnson failed to show a statistically meaningful improvement for patients with inflammatory bowel disease. But the company plans to advance the drug into late-stage testing, focusing on a growing subgroup of patients, STAT tells us. On Tuesday, trial investigators presented the results of a study that tested how well combining the drugs Tremfya and Simponi would stop the immune system from mistakenly attacking healthy tissues in the digestive tract. J&J tested the combined therapy in two Phase 2b clinical trials hitting both major forms of inflammatory bowel disease — ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. In each trial, the combination performed better than the individual drugs, but did not meet the primary endpoint of clinical remission.
New Human-Computer Interaction Software Designed to Support Diverse Online Teamwork Styles
Remote collaboration software tools, such as Zoom or Google Docs, have become essential for teamwork. But they often overlook the fact that people do not all approach collaboration in the same way, according to researchers at North Carolina State University (NCSU).
Scientists report that they have now developed a new human-computer interaction (HCI) method called RemoteCollabEval (RCE) to identify barriers to collaboration and inclusivity, allowing designers and developers to build software features that better support diverse teamwork styles.
The work is part of the broader HCI field, which examines how people use digital systems and how interfaces can be optimized for clarity and ease of use.
“At present, most remote collaboration platforms are evaluated by designers and developers using established HCI inspection methods,” says Sandeep Kuttal, PhD, the principal investigator behind the work and an associate professor of computer science at NCSU. “One of the most widely used inspection methods is a ‘groupware walkthrough,’ where designers essentially play out how a collaborative effort might unfold between two or three hypothetical users. However, these methods typically assume all users behave in similar ways.”
As senior author of a paper, “Equity by Design: A New HCI Method for Surfacing Inclusivity Issues in Remote Collaboration Software,” that will be presented at the ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS 2026) in Singapore, from June 13-17, Kuttal notes that “It’s well-established that people from various backgrounds often have different collaboration and communication styles. “Existing HCI inspection methods don’t account for these differences, which limits how inclusive and effective these tools can be. That’s what we set out to address.”
Six key personality facets
As a first step, the researchers drew on established social science and software engineering research to identify six key personality facets that influence collaborative behavior:
- Leadership style: Does the individual take a democratic or authoritative approach?
- Interruption style: Does the individual interrupt others or wait for cues?
- Non-verbal cues: Is the individual expressive or reserved in digital spaces?
- Relationship-seeking: Does the individual focus on building rapport or primarily on achieving goals?
- Social awareness: Is the individual attentive to or unaware of what their teammates are doing?
- Collaborative self-efficacy: How confident is the individual in the group’s ability to perform?
The researchers then created hypothetical users called “personas,” which are detailed representations of different types of users that incorporate descriptions of each of the six facets. These personas allow designers to simulate interpersonal friction and uncover “inclusivity bugs” that might otherwise go unnoticed during standard testing.
“Because we have descriptions of all six facets for each persona, we can incorporate those key characteristics into our assessment of how well a given platform allows for effective collaboration between people of different backgrounds,” explains Kuttal.
The team then modified existing groupware walkthrough methods, requiring designers and developers to explicitly consider these six facets as part of the process and created a specialized walkthrough. This combination of personas that account for personality facets and the specialized walkthrough forms the RCE method.
As a proof-of-concept study, the scientists recruited 29 undergraduate and graduate students and split them into 10 teams. Five teams inspected an existing remote collaboration platform using the conventional Groupware Walkthrough method; the other five teams inspected the same platform using RCE.
“The teams who used the RCE method identified six times more inclusivity issues than the conventional method,” continues Kuttal. “Essentially, RCE did a better job of identifying when conflicting styles would make collaboration between personas difficult. This is important, because identifying these challenges gives designers and developers an opportunity to modify features and user interfaces to improve these remote collaborative platforms. And, ultimately, to improve collaboration itself.
“Because RCE is a standardized, systematic method, it can be used by designers and developers anywhere. It doesn’t require a huge budget, or an expensive research effort. It’s a method that can easily be used to make these platforms better.”
The post New Human-Computer Interaction Software Designed to Support Diverse Online Teamwork Styles appeared first on GEN – Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News.
The Download: inside the Musk v. Altman trial, and AI for democracy
This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.
Week one of the Musk v. Altman trial: what it was like in the room
Two of the most powerful figures in AI—Sam Altman and Elon Musk—are in the middle of a landmark legal showdown, with Musk alleging he was misled about OpenAI becoming a for-profit company.
Our reporter Michelle Kim, who also happens to be a lawyer, has been in court each day, and has broken down the first week’s key moments in her latest report. In a new Q&A, she also reveals what it was like in the room, the new details that have emerged about how Musk and OpenAI operate—and what we can expect from this week’s proceedings.
Find out what she’s discovered so far, and if you want to keep up with MIT Technology Review’s ongoing coverage of the Musk v. Altman trial, follow @techreview or @michelletomkim on X.
—James O’Donnell
This story is from The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter giving you the inside track on all things AI. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Monday.
A blueprint for using AI to strengthen democracy
—Andrew Sorota & Josh Hendler lead work on AI and democracy at the Office of Eric Schmidt.
Faster than many realize, AI is becoming the primary interface through which we form beliefs and participate in democratic self-governance. This shift could further strain already fragile institutions, but it could also help address problems like polarization and declining civic engagement.
What happens next depends on design choices that are already being made, whether we know it or not. Here’s how we can harness AI to strengthen democracy.
Artificial scientists: 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now
Large language models can already assist scientists in all sorts of ways, from writing code to searching through literature and drafting articles. But companies and labs have a much more ambitious vision. They want to build AI systems that can act as a full member of a scientific team—and even conduct entire research projects.
These artificial scientists seem like a win for frontier labs and for society at large. But they could also narrow the scope of scientific inquiry.
—Grace Huckins
Artificial scientists is an item on our list of the 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now, MIT Technology Review’s guide to what’s really worth your attention in the busy, buzzy world of AI. We’re unpacking one item from the list each day here in The Download, so stay tuned.
The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 The Pentagon has struck sweeping AI deals for classified work
It’s signed contracts with Microsoft, Nvidia, AWS, and Reflection AI. (NYT $)
+ It wants the US military to be an “AI-first” force. (BBC)
+ The announcement leaves Anthropic increasingly isolated. (WP $)
+ Here’s how the firms could train on classified data. (MIT Technology Review)
2 Elon Musk has finally settled the SEC lawsuit over the Twitter purchase
He’s agreed to pay a $1.5 million fine for waiting too long to disclose his initial stock purchases. (Guardian)
+ But won’t lose any of the $150 million he allegedly saved. (The Verge)
+ Musk allegedly illegally hid his growing Twitter stake. (CBS News)
3 A Chinese court has ruled that firms can’t lay off workers on AI grounds
They can’t terminate employees just to replace them with AI. (Bloomberg $)
+ The court said a firm had illegally fired one of its workers. (NPR)
+ Chinese tech workers are starting to train their AI doubles—and pushing back. (MIT Technology Review)
4 A gene therapy is helping deaf children hear again
In a trial, 80% of patients gained measurable hearing. (Vox)
5 The White House is vetting AI models before they’re released
It may create a new working group to oversee AI development. (NYT $)
+ A war over AI regulation is coming to the US. (MIT Technology Review)
6 Nature has retracted a paper on ChatGPT’s educational benefits
Over “discrepancies” and a lack of confidence in the findings. (404 Media)
+ The paper had already racked up hundreds of citations. (Ars Technica)
+ AI giants want to take over the classroom. (MIT Technology Review)
7 GameStop made a $56 billion bid for eBay
eBay said it was reviewing the offer. (Ars Technica)
+ The bid has drawn skepticism from investors and analysts. (Reuters $)
8 AI systems are increasingly used to monitor workers’ emotions
New tools claim to measure “agreeability” as well as productivity. (The Atlantic $)
9 Peter Thiel is backing wave-powered data centers
He’s leading a $140 million investment into a startup developing the tech. (FT $)
10 Ask Jeeves is shutting down after nearly 30 years online
The closure marks the end of one of the internet’s earliest search engines. (NYT $)
Quote of the day
“By the end of this week, you and Sam will be the most hated men in America.”
—Elon Musk texted a warning to OpenAI president Greg Brockman two days before their courtroom battle started, NBC News reports.
One More Thing
SIMON MITCHELL
Meet the divers trying to figure out how deep humans can go
Two hundred and thirty meters into one of the deepest underwater caves on Earth, a team of extreme divers tested a route to new depth records: breathing hydrogen.
They believe the gas could help the human body withstand underwater pressure significantly past its natural threshold. But the approach is highly experimental—and dangerous.
Find out how far they’re willing to go.
—Samantha Schuyler
We can still have nice things
A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line.)
+ Wild horses are roaming in Spain for the first time in 10,000 years.
+ Star Wars meets the Renaissance in this bardcore cover of the “Imperial March.”
+ Improve your writing by avoiding these six common linguistic pitfalls shared by many Americans.
+ From Stephen King’s IT changing the clown industry to Black Widow boosting hair dye sales, here are 12 times movies changed the real world.
Frontotemporal dementia: does structural MRI-based clustering match clinical syndromes?
BackgroundFrontotemporal dementia is an umbrella term that encompasses several clinical syndromes with impaired behavioral, language, and motor functions. These syndromes show considerable overlap in clinical features and imaging patterns. Therefore, there is a need to investigate the syndromic heterogeneity in FTD using unbiased data-driven approaches.MethodsWe used data-driven clustering analysis of structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data on 400 patients with clinical FTD diagnoses [behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), semantic variant of primary progressive aphasia (svPPA), right temporal variant of frontotemporal dementia (rtvFTD), apraxia of speech with agrammatic aphasia (AOS-PAA), primary progressive apraxia of speech (PPAOS), progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), corticobasal syndrome (CBS) and primary progressive aphasia who did not fit into the other diagnostic categories (PPA-other)]. MR images were w-scored relative to cognitively unimpaired individuals, and principal component analysis was performed. A clustering ensemble approach, including hierarchical algorithms, was applied to the MR-based principal components, and imaging and clinical characteristics of the clusters were investigated. Various numbers of clusters (K = 2, 3, or 4) were evaluated.ResultsThe K = 3 solution offered the most clinically meaningful separation of FTD syndromes. The first cluster captured mostly frontal MRI abnormalities related to the speech, language and behavioral clinical dimensions, including patients with AOS-PAA, PPAOS, PPA-other, and bvFTD. The second cluster captured mostly temporal abnormalities and included mainly patients with svPPA and rtvFTD, but also bvFTD, AOS-PAA, and PPA-other. The third cluster captured cortical and subcortical atrophy, particularly in the midbrain, and included atypical Parkinsonian syndromes, with all PSP and CBS patients captured in this cluster, as well as most PPAOS patients. Considerable overlap of clinical syndromes was noted across these clusters, whereby patients with AOS-PAA, svPPA, PPA-other, and bvFTD were captured in more than one cluster.DiscussionOur findings highlight heterogeneity in FTD, which mainly exists along three axes: speech, language and behavioral deficits reflecting frontal atrophy, language deficits reflecting temporal atrophy, and motor and motor speech deficits reflecting mostly midbrain and subcortical atrophy, with cortical involvement.
Evaluation of human body malodor using functional near-infrared spectroscopy with regions of interest based on functional pathways in the olfactory system
IntroductionMalodors in the human body can diminish comfort in living and working environments, potentially increasing stress and dissatisfaction levels. Therefore, there is a growing need to objectively characterize the properties of human body malodor. The brain extracts various types of information from odor stimuli. Although the central processing pathways of the human olfactory system are not fully understood, some suggest that it comprises distinct parallel functional pathways. This study aimed to clarify whether human body malodor can be objectively evaluated using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) by defining regions of interest in the cerebral cortices based on functional pathways in the olfactory system.Materials and methodsEighteen healthy, right-handed Japanese adults in their 40s (nine women and nine men) participated in this study. During the three odor stimuli (middle-aged female scalp model odor (MFS model odor), isovaleric acid, and lavender), fNIRS measurements were performed on the cerebral cortical areas connected to the parallel functional pathways in the olfactory system. Odor intensity was adjusted to allow continuous inhalation without inducing marked changes in mood or stress, as confirmed by answering a questionnaire on temporary mood scales and measuring stress markers (heart rate, nose-tip temperature, fingertip blood flow, salivary cortisol, and salivary alpha amylase).ResultsThe MFS model odor elicited greater increases in oxygenated hemoglobin concentrations than lavender in the inferior frontal gyrus and left superior temporal gyrus, both of which are cortical regions that receive projections from the temporal piriform cortex. These differences in neural responses ceased to be significant after adjusting for perceived intensity, pleasure/displeasure valence, or subjective preference ratings. No significant odor-dependent differences were detected in physiological or endocrine stress markers.ConclusionThis study demonstrates the feasibility of objectively evaluating human body malodor using fNIRS in relation to cortical processing via olfactory pathways. The findings suggest that neural responses to human body odor, particularly in language-related cortical regions, do not simply reflect odor category, but are closely associated with subjective perceptual evaluations. This approach enables objective assessment of human body odor and holds potential for applications in sensory science and product development.
Brief report: joint trajectories of anxiety and depression symptoms in an inception cohort of autistic youth
Background and AimsAnxiety and depression symptoms are common among autistic youth, yet little is known about the pattern and relationship of their trajectories from childhood into adolescence, a period of increasing social and academic demands.MethodsThis study used parallel process latent growth curve models to examine joint trajectories, including initial levels and rate of change in caregiver-reported depression and anxiety symptoms across age 7–16 within an inception cohort of autistic youth with varied communication abilities. We also examined autistic traits, sex assigned at birth, emotional reactivity and communication ability as potential predictors. Child anxiety and depression symptoms were estimated from Child Behavior Checklist Anxiety and Affective Problems subscales, completed by caregivers approximately annually.ResultsWhereas anxiety symptoms were relatively stable from childhood into adolescence, depression symptoms increased on average; significant heterogeneity of individual trajectories underlaid these overall trends. Findings indicated cross-sectional and longitudinal co-occurrence of anxiety and depression symptoms. Greater autistic traits and emotional reactivity correlated with greater initial anxiety and depression symptoms, but not their trajectories. Stronger communication ability correlated with more initial anxiety, but decreasing anxiety symptoms over time.ConclusionsFindings indicate group-level changes in depression symptoms and synchronous evolution of anxiety and depression symptoms in autistic youth across childhood and adolescence. This indicates the importance of joint monitoring of anxiety and depression symptoms in this period, with changes being potentially informative for early detection and intervention. Considering how anxiety symptom presentation may evolve across development may be a helpful next step to identifying at-risk subgroups.
Retrospective evaluation of transcranial magnetic stimulation for enhancing arousal in patients with minimally conscious state: a single-centre study in Inner Mongolia, China
ObjectiveThis study aimed to investigate the effect of high-frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) targeting multiple brain regions on the recovery of consciousness in patients with minimally conscious state (MCS).MethodsA retrospective analysis was conducted on MCS patients between August 2022 and March 2024. Some patients received only conventional rehabilitation treatment, while others received additional TMS therapy. Clinical outcomes were assessed using the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) and the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) at three time points: before treatment (T0), two weeks post-treatment (T1), and one month post-treatment (T2). Additional assessments included electroencephalogram (EEG), brainstem auditory evoked potential (BAEP), somatosensory evoked potentials (SEP), and serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and neuron-specific enolase (NSE).ResultsA total of 30 patients were included and divided equally into two groups. The GCS and CRS-R scores of the 15 patients who received TMS therapy demonstrated significant improvements at T1 and T2. Furthermore, these patients exhibited significant enhancements in EEG and BAEP grading at T1.ConclusionThe findings suggest that adjunctive multi-target high-frequency repetitive TMS may promote recovery of consciousness in MCS patients. These results underscore the potential of repetitive TMS as a therapeutic intervention for MCS and warrant further investigation in future studies.
Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on autism spectrum disorder service providers in Qatar: challenges, insights, and lessons learned
PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic disrupted essential services, posing unique challenges for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) who depend on consistent, specialized support. Service providers faced unique challenges in adapting to remote delivery methods, highlighting the fragility of existing systems during crises. This study explored the experiences of ASD service providers in Qatar during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsAn online survey of 66 ASD service providers in Qatar was conducted. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square, and likelihood ratio tests, with qualitative responses assessed through thematic analysis.ResultsMost service providers (90.9%) worked remotely during the pandemic, with 81.8% engaging in online services. Providers reported significant skill regression in individuals with ASD. Stress levels were notably high (42.4%) and significantly associated with emotional tolls [p = 0.017, LR = 4.887], financial strains [p = 0.008, LR = 4.337], and personal challenges [p = 0.008, LR = 3.203]. Thematic analysis revealed decreased therapy effectiveness and difficulties in balancing work with family responsibilities.ConclusionThese findings suggest the importance of adaptive service delivery systems that maintain continuity of care during crises. Strengthening autism service infrastructure and developing resilient models are essential to safeguard autism support for future emergencies.