This weekend, we’re following clues and learning to wind down with the sun.
A quick catch-up on the week’s top stories, plus conversation starters to take into your weekend. Delivered free to your inbox every Saturday.
A New Search for Amelia Earhart’s Plane:
“Follow the evidence”
Purdue University senior vice president Steve Schultz, speaking to CBS News about a new expedition underway to investigate an object that some believe could be part of Amelia Earhart’s missing plane. Earhart's connection to Purdue goes wayyyyyy back ...
The pioneering aviator joined Purdue in 1935, advising the university’s aeronautics program and helping women explore career opportunities. In 1937, Earhart disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first woman to fly around the world. Nearly 90 years later, her plane remains missing, and her fate is unknown.
The team, which includes the Purdue Research Foundation and the Archaeological Legacy Institute, will examine a “visual anomaly” in a lagoon on a small island between Australia and Hawaii. Researchers first spotted this site in satellite imagery in 2020, then identified it in aerial photographs from 1938.
🗞️ The Catch-Up:
SmartHER Podcast: What does justice look like — and who decides? Jenna and Mary Katharine Ham discuss the big news of the week, including a smarter take on the fall out from the botched execution in Tennessee (your most requested story of the week), and the importance (and complexity) of marking three years since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel.
You can also listen on podcasting platforms everywhere.
Plague Outbreak? A 28-year-old worker at a Russian plague research institute died of “severe” pneumonia after a reported lab accident, prompting concerns about possible plague exposure. Russian officials say they found no evidence of a lab accident, but key details about what caused her illness remain unknown. The CDC and the World Health Organization have both weighed-in. The New York Times breaks down what’s known so far.
Accepting AI Risks: How much risk should come with AI’s benefits? Speaking with Politico, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said, “we believe that the world should accept some bad things happening for the benefits of this technology and people having the agency.” But he also said he would not accept catastrophic risks. This comes as Pres. Trump continues an attempt to rebrand "artificial intelligence" as "super intelligence" (SI). This week the president announced a new investment in science; last week, he brought together AI executives like Altman, who signed an agreement that set some standards for self-governance.
Join a private community where you can talk through the news with Jenna, the SmartHER News team and other Insiders, ask questions, get behind-the-scenes context and connect over the other ways to live a little SmartHER.
🗣️ Your Conversation Starters:
🌇 “Sunset Deadline”: Real Simple breaks down how using the season's earlier sunsets as a cue to wind down from work or errands may help calm your nervous system.
⚾ Little League, Big Bills: As youth baseball costs rise, participation shows an income divide: Data shows that since 2014, frequent participation has fallen 28% among children in families earning less than $100,000 a year while rising 21% among those earning more — raising questions about how costs may impact which families can afford to participate.
🎧 Missed Moments: A writer ditches her headphones during her commute for a month as part of a personal experiment. The takeaway: “I realized how rarely I let myself be bored,” leaving “less room for the constructive daydreaming ...”
🛫 Time to Book: Google analyzed flight data to identify the best times to book holiday travel. A SmartHER takeaway: Thanksgiving fares tend to be lowest in October, while the best Christmas deals typically fall between late October and mid-November.
🍁 Leaf Life: A fact for your next fall walk ... yellow and orange colors are already in leaves. But they only become visible with the breakdown of chlorophyll (the substance that makes leaves green and helps them use sunlight to make food). The Washington Post illustrates the transformation in “A Year in the Life of a Leaf.”
🙌🏽 What We Found SmartHER This Week:
Apparently, getting cozy has a name: “cushcore.” House Beautiful explores the fall decorating trend, which starts with a plush sofa and extends to soft textures and warm lighting. An easy place to start? We like a good candle. Ours are from Ranger Station — one of our favorite family-owned small businesses.
Why we think they’re SmartHER: Hand-poured in Nashville with soy-based wax, nontoxic and cruelty-free — plus, the cocktail glass gets a second life after the candle burns down.
✨ A Little Something Extra:
“You’ll never know that tomorrow will be better if you don’t give it a chance”
An officer with NYPD’s elite Emergency Service Unit speaking with a person — reportedly a 19-year-old man — sitting on the ledge of New York City’s Williamsburg Bridge and threatening to jump. Officers spoke with him for about an hour before bringing him to safety and taking him to the hospital for evaluation. Sharing the video this week, the NYPD said, “ESU officers undergo intense training to handle these situations, but it's their compassion that leads to successful rescues.”
According to CDC data, suicide is a leading cause of death among U.S. teens ages 15–19, behind accidental injuries and homicide.
Credit: NYPD
And that's the Weekend Digest!
🩷,
Jenna and the SHN Team
Daily news, interviews, our latest podcasts and more at www.SmartHERNews.com.
