'Yale study finds nearly half of older adults improved with age'

 A long-term Yale study is challenging one of the biggest myths about aging. Nearly half of adults over 65 improved physically, mentally, or both over time, despite the common belief that aging means constant decline. Researchers found that people with more positive attitudes about getting older were significantly more likely to show these gains.

The study found that many older adults actually improve over time, and their beliefs about aging may play an important role in those gains.

Drawing on more than a decade of data from a large, nationally representative study of older Americans, researchers discovered that nearly half of adults age 65 and older experienced measurable improvements in cognitive function, physical function, or both.

The findings suggest that improvement in later life is far more common than many people realize.

“Many people equate aging with an inevitable and continuous loss of physical and cognitive abilities,” said Becca R. Levy, lead author of the study and professor of social and behavioral sciences at the Yale School of Public Health (YSPH). “What we found is that improvement in later life is not rare, it’s common, and it should be included in our understanding of the aging process.”

The study was published in the journal Geriatrics.

Aging and Improvement Over Time

The research team analyzed data from more than 11,000 participants in the Health and Retirement Study, a federally funded long-term survey of older Americans.

To measure changes in mental abilities, the researchers used a global cognitive assessment. Physical function was evaluated through walking speed, a measure often considered by geriatricians to be a key indicator of overall health because it is closely linked to disability, hospitalization, and mortality.

Participants were followed for as long as 12 years. During that period, 45% showed improvement in at least one of the two areas examined.

Approximately 32% improved cognitively, while 28% improved physically. Many participants experienced gains large enough to be considered clinically meaningful. When researchers also counted individuals whose cognitive abilities remained stable rather than declining, more than half of participants avoided the commonly held expectation of cognitive deterioration.

“What’s striking is that these gains disappear when you only look at averages,” said Levy, author of the book Breaking the Age Code: How Your Beliefs About Aging Determine How Long & How Well You Live. “If you average everyone together, you see decline. But when you look at individual trajectories, you uncover a very different story. A meaningful percentage of the older participants that we studied got better.”

The Role of Positive Age Beliefs

The researchers also explored why some older adults improved while others did not.

One possibility, they proposed, was the influence of age beliefs held at the beginning of the study. Specifically, they examined whether participants had adopted more positive or more negative views about aging.

Their analysis supported that idea. Older adults with more positive beliefs about aging were significantly more likely to improve in both cognitive performance and walking speed. The relationship remained strong even after adjusting for factors including age, sex, education, chronic disease, depression, and length of follow-up.

The findings build on Levy’s stereotype embodiment theory. The theory proposes that age-related stereotypes absorbed from society through sources such as social media and advertising can eventually become personally meaningful and have measurable biological effects.

Previous studies led by Levy found that negative beliefs about aging are associated with poorer memory, slower walking speed, increased cardiovascular risk, and biomarkers linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

According to Levy, the new findings show the opposite pattern can also occur.

The current study shows that those who have assimilated more positive age beliefs often show improvement, Levy said.

“Our findings suggest there is often a reserve capacity for improvement in later life,” she said. “And because age beliefs are modifiable, this opens the door to interventions at both the individual and societal level.”

Challenging Assumptions About Aging

The improvements were not limited to people who began the study with physical or cognitive impairments.

Researchers found that even participants who started with normal levels of cognitive and physical function frequently improved over time. This finding challenges the idea that later-life gains simply reflect recovery from illness or a return to previous levels after a setback.

The authors hope the results will help shift public perceptions about aging and reduce the belief that continuous decline is inevitable. They also suggest the findings support greater investment in preventive care, rehabilitation programs, and other health-promoting services that help older adults build on their capacity for resilience and improvement.

Martin Slade, a lecturer in occupational medicine at Yale School of Medicine and in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at YSPH, co-authored the study.

The research was supported by funding from the National Institute on Aging.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/06/260620100428.htm

NY ACS is failing children and kids are dying — why is Hochul getting in the way of reforms

 The Jarvis children “used to be strong, but then she had to push them up the steps,” according to building superintendent Dennis Rivera. “They couldn’t climb.” It’s been more than a week since Geneva Jarvis, 36, and her mother, Denise Jarvis, were charged with the murder of Geneva’s 16-year-old son Adonis. The nonverbal autistic teen weighed only 59 pounds when he was brought to The Bronx’s Lincoln Hospital in March, according to authorities. His twin brother, who suffered from the same disabilities, was only 60 pounds, but managed to survive. 

With the sadly unsurprising reports that the family has been on the radar of the Administration for Children’s Services since at least 2014 (when cops say ACS investigated an allegation that their mother was failing to give the boys seizure medication to treat their epilepsy), it is time for the public to demand transparency from the agency responsible for protecting abused and neglected children.

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Geneva Jarvis is walked out of the 40th Precinct by NYPD detectives after she and her mother, Denise Jarvis, were arrested for child abuse on Thursday, July 30, 2026, in the Bronx.Matthew McDermott for NY Post

Governor Hochul has astonishingly failed to sign legislation that would allow the Department of Investigation to get more access to ACS records in cases where there has been a fatality or where workers have been accused of sexual abuse.

But the time has come for bolder action. The state should consider a tool that has been used to shed light on the actions of other government agencies — body-worn cameras.  

The demand for bodycams on police officers began in earnest in 2014 after the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and has steadily increased since then. As of 2023, 82% of police departments used them. In recent months, there has been a growing call for bodycams on ICE agents as well. Front-line workers in Child Protective Services are performing a law-enforcement function and they too should be added to this list. 

Just as with police officers, there are always conflicts when child-protective services show up to investigate a report of child abuse or neglect. Were the workers respectful? Did they follow proper procedure. A lawsuit against ACS filed in 2024 charged that its workers were routinely performing unnecessary strip searches on children.

As much as I think child-protective service workers are undertrained or just incompetent, I am skeptical of such sweeping claims. But by all means, let’s look at the video.

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Inside apartment #6 at 527 E. 127th St., the home of mother Geneva Jarvis and grandmother Denise Jarvis, on Thursday, July 30, 2026. The two women were arrested by NYPD detectives for neglect and child abuse of their son and grandson.Matthew McDermott for NY Post

Bodycams for police have not revealed much in the way of system-wide bias or corruption, but they have shed light on individual incidents and ensured that officers are held accountable or exonerated in accordance with the evidence.  

There is also potential for bodycams to improve practices throughout the child-protection system. Agencies throughout the country are understaffed — some report a 40% turnover rate. Training includes too much on reducing racial disparities in child welfare and not enough on how to actually conduct a real investigation.

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New York State Governor Kathy Hochul speaks at a press conference in the Bronx, New York, on Tuesday, August 4, 2026. Hochul, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and New York City Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels announced that more than 2,000 children had received offers to join the city’s inaugural 2-K class. (Copyright Notice: Copyright (c) 2026 Splash News. No use without permission.)Andrew Schwartz / SplashNews.com

One state child-welfare leader recently told me that she asked a worker why she didn’t ask more questions of a family later found to be engaged in severe maltreatment. “That seemed nosy,” the worker told her. Can you imagine a police detective giving a similar response?

Being a frontline worker for a child welfare agency is a hard job — going into potentially dangerous environments, asking hard questions, gathering relevant evidence. Bodycams would show that we are not equipping workers with the right skills. 

They would also show the public some of the disturbing circumstances that CPS workers regularly encounter. We have now seen the pictures of the Jarvis home piled high with debris. Authorities say Adonis was found covered in flies and feces. The superintendent says that hundreds of pounds of clothing have been removed from the apartment.

But what did this apartment look like 12 years ago when investigators first came by? Or during another visit seven years later? How did Geneva and Denise Jarvis act then? Did they ask for help or did they behave as if they were suffering from mental illness or engaged in substance abuse (as the vast majority of the parents in these cases are)? 

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The inside of apartment #6 at 527 E. 127 St., the home of mother Geneva Jarvis and grandmother Denise Jarvis, is seen on Thursday, July 30, 2026. Both women were arrested by NYPD detectives for neglect and child abuse of their son and grandson. (Matthew McDermott)Matthew McDermott for NY Post

It is not uncommon these days to hear that the children investigated by ACS are simply suffering from poverty, not neglect. Indeed, educators in New York City schools have actually been discouraged from reporting families to ACS, and should instead offer to “support” them. (Which apparently is what happened in the case of the Jarvis family.) But if these teachers and administrators could see what was going on in many of these homes, they would report families to the state’s child abuse hotline immediately. 

Bodycams would show the public what neglect really looks like. One child welfare leader recently told me that her investigators actually have a separate pair of shoes for work because they so often encounter human and animal feces on the floor of homes they visit. People who are just poor may not have all the resources we would like them to, but the idea that any sane, sober person would have a home littered with excrement simply beggars belief.

Bodycams would allow New Yorkers to see that there are parents of young children behind closed doors behaving in the same unpredictable, crazy and violent ways as the city’s homeless population on the streets. And they would see ACS workers pretending everything is just fine. 

Naomi Schaefer Riley is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

https://nypost.com/2026/08/08/opinion/new-yorks-acs-is-failing-children-and-kids-are-dying/

'Iran official says footage of Khamenei Jr will be released'

 

Footage showing Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei in public and meeting armed forces commanders will be released, a senior Basij official said on Sunday.

Footage will show Khamenei “among the people and out in the streets, as well as in meetings with the commanders of the armed forces,” Basij Organization deputy Qasem Qoraishi was quoted as saying by the judiciary-affiliated Mizan news outlet.

Khamenei has not been seen publicly since being appointed Supreme Leader in March.

Senior Iranian sources have said Khamenei suffered facial disfigurement and other injuries in the February 28 strike that killed his father, the first day of US and Israeli air strikes on Iran.

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202608097905

Houthis launch new missile, drone attacks on Yemen's Mocha area - Sky News Arabia

 

A new wave of Houthi missile and drone attacks targeted Yemen’s Red Sea port city of Mocha and nearby areas and islands in the southern Red Sea, Sky News Arabia reported on Sunday, citing Yemeni sources.

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202608091586

'Hamas: Implementation of ceasefire must be priority'

 Hamas issued a statement on Sunday, calling on the US-led Board of Peace to commence its peacebuilding efforts in Gaza and prevent further violations of the ceasefire it had reached with Israel.

"We call on the mediators, guarantors, and the Peace Council to assume their responsibilities, ensure the commitment of all parties to the agreements reached, and prevent any violations or breaches that could disrupt the implementation process or undermine the ceasefire agreement," the organization announced.

Moreover, Hamas affirmed "that it will continue to engage positively and responsibly with efforts to complete the implementation of the agreement, ensuring the end of the suffering of [the Palestinian people], the protection of their rights, and their national interests."

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/Hamas:-Implementation-of-ceasefire-must-be-priority/66883708

Flock camera map: How many are in your neighborhood?

 Flock Safety, a surveillance equipment company, says it partners with more than 5,000 law enforcement agency partners across 6,000 communities. Is your city one of them?

The Flock cameras are solar-powered license plate readers that collect data as they record. Agencies that partner with Flock can then search the database for license plate numbers, car make and models, or identifying features like bumper stickers.

Proponents argue the cameras help law enforcement solve crimes, but critics say they data could be misused to track anyone, even those not accused of crimes, with little oversight.

A Flock Safety camera is shown mounted to a light pole on August 03, 2026 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

“They’re just collecting data as an active surveillance system, and every car that passes through, the data is collected from that car license plate, using AI. They make a vehicle fingerprint of the car that includes distinguishing features, make, model, color, bumper stickers, roof racks, all these different things,” said Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs in an interview with NewsNation.

“And then it’s retained for sometimes 30 days or more and then in a searchable database, which really turns the whole concept of a license plate reader on its head in that they’re not looking for one specific vehicle or specific vehicles. They’re just pulling everything in.”

Founder Garrett Langley said his surveillance equipment manufacturing company started out of frustration with crime rates in his home city of Atlanta.

“Crime felt too easy to get away with,” Langley said during a TED talk in April. “It didn’t make sense that you could steal someone’s car … or you could kill someone and have a 50 percent chance of getting away with it. … So I did what engineers do. I built a license plate-reading camera.”

How can I check the location of Flock cameras?

According to Flock, nearly 100,000 cameras are in place across more than 6,000 communities in 49 states. The company, however, doesn’t have a detailed list of camera locations publicly available.

That’s where DeFlock comes in. The organization says it wants to raise awareness about automatic license plate readers and “the threats it poses to personal privacy and civil liberties.”

DeFlock maintains a crowd-sourced map showing the alleged location of Flock cameras around the U.S. “Camera locations come from volunteers and the OpenStreetMap community, not a private company or government agency,” DeFlock says. Nexstar could not independently verify the camera locations.

You can zoom into the map below to explore the reported locations of cameras in your neighborhood, according to DeFlock’s crowdsourced data.

To open the map above in a new tab, click here.

The map includes cameras made by other tech companies, not just Flock.

The cameras have been proliferating for years, but backlash has been growing in recent months. Dozens of city councils have voted to get rid of or reject Flock cameras.

Other jurisdictions have been working to implement more safeguards. San Jose, California, for example, limits data storage to 30 days, San Jose Spotlight reported. The city also restricts camera locations so they can’t be placed outside abortion clinics, health care facilities or places of worship.

https://thehill.com/policy/technology/6016998-flock-camera-map-how-many-are-in-your-neighborhood/

'Turkish FM Affirms Defense Pact With Pakistan, Saudi Arabia Is Same As NATO's Article 5'

 World leaders have been reacting to the Friday signing of a major defense agreement between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan in the Saudi city of Makkah among their heads of state. It seeks to strengthen joint deterrence and expanding defense cooperation, the Saudi Press Agency said.

As we reported, it essentially a NATO-style agreement for the 'Muslim world' - given that it stipulates and formalizes that an armed attack on any of the countries will be treated as an attack against all of them.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has on Saturday affirmed this in very clear terms - in case there were any doubts among pundits - describing that is indeed technically the same as NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense agreement.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, via Reuters

He told state Anadolu news agency that a committee of ministers similar to that within NATO would be formed to undergird the new alliance, with the establishment of general secretariat based in Saudi Arabia. This will be the tripartite pact's version of Brussels, it seems.

What's more is that "Egypt could potentially join the pact once certain technical matters are resolved," Fidan added.

Some are already seeing in this a kind of 'counter-Abraham accords' but which goes much further, given the military implications.

Will Washington ultimately back it and give its blessing? 

Al Jazeera has provided the following commentary saying that the US will be okay with it so long as it does not become 'anti-Israeli' in its intent:

David Des Roches, an associate professor at the National Defense University’s Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, has described the defence pact signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan as a good move that will be welcomed by the US.

“So long as it doesn’t metastasize into some sort of malign anti-Israel thing, which I think is a very remote possibility, I think it’s positive,” he told Al Jazeera.

The alliance would benefit from Turkiye and Pakistan’s robust defence industries, “a more advanced one in the case of Turkey, less advanced, more machine-age in the case of Pakistan”, he said.

Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, could help finance its two allies. “In both countries, the capacity exceeds their ability to pay for it, and they can’t really maintain national defence industries without a market,” said Des Roches.

The analyst added: "So there’s money, there’s markets, and there’s the possibility for advanced training and education. From an American perspective, if our partners have increased capacity, that's burden sharing. And that’s been the aim of successive American administrations since, really, the end of World War II."

But in the context of the US war on Iran, Iranian forces have attacked Saudi Arabia multiple times. If this happens again, would Pakistan and Turkey really directly intervene against Iran in an Article 5 fashion? 

This scenario is highly doubtful, and Turkey and Iran even share a border which has long been fraught with tensions of its own, especially related to the Kurdish issue.

One thing is certain: this is definitely a Saudi move away from the Abraham Accords which Trump has long pushed for and not toward it. Turkey and Pakistan want to see a clearer divide between Israel and the Saudis and so are only too happy to present it that way.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/turkish-fm-affirms-defense-pact-pakistan-saudi-arabia-same-natos-article-5