Featured Stories
Smithsonian STARS Begins Arizona Rollout With Yuma County
CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, Oct. 30 -- The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics issued the following news release:
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Smithsonian STARS Begins Arizona Rollout with Yuma County
10.29.26
This October, five rural schools across Yuma County partnered with Smithsonian STARS (Scientists Taking Astronomy to Rural Schools) to bring hands-on astronomy learning into their classrooms, marking the first phase of the program's statewide Arizona rollout.
The participating schools are Dateland Elementary School in Dateland, Mohawk Valley School in Roll, Antelope Union High School and Wellton Elementary
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CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, Oct. 30 -- The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics issued the following news release:
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Smithsonian STARS Begins Arizona Rollout with Yuma County
10.29.26
This October, five rural schools across Yuma County partnered with Smithsonian STARS (Scientists Taking Astronomy to Rural Schools) to bring hands-on astronomy learning into their classrooms, marking the first phase of the program's statewide Arizona rollout.
The participating schools are Dateland Elementary School in Dateland, Mohawk Valley School in Roll, Antelope Union High School and Wellton ElementarySchool in Wellton, and JD Price Elementary School at Yuma Proving Ground.
Through STARS, the participating schools received a Celestron NexStar 6SE telescope, standards-aligned K-12 lessons and educator training to help bring astronomy instruction into their classrooms. During visits to the schools from October 13-16, the STARS team worked alongside educators to familiarize them with the telescopes and conduct hands-on astronomy activities with students. Following the visits, STARS will continue to support participating educators as they incorporate the program's lessons and telescope activities into their classrooms.
Across the five schools, approximately 300 students and seven educators took part in activities during the visits. As educators begin using the telescopes, lessons and other resources at their schools, nearly 700 students will have opportunities to participate in astronomy learning.
"I'm so excited and happy for this opportunity," said Brenda Findley, a third through fifth grade teacher at JD Price Elementary school. "When the telescope came to the classroom, we were able to put it together. The students couldn't wait to use it."
For students in Yuma County, the program offers an opportunity to connect classroom science with the night sky around them by exploring objects such as the Moon, planets, stars, galaxies and nebulae using real astronomical equipment.
"Astronomy has a remarkable ability to spark curiosity and inspire students to explore broader STEM learning," said Dr. Emma Marcucci, Executive Director of Smithsonian STARS. "Rural Arizona's clear, dark skies are a tremendous natural resource. With the right support, these skies can turn into classrooms for discovery. Our goal is to empower educators to create meaningful, hands-on science experiences rooted in the remarkable skies that students can see from their own communities."
Beyond the school visits, members of the STARS team also participated in an evening star party hosted by the Yuma Astronomy Club. The event drew around 75 attendees, which included students, educators, and members of the local community. Attendees had the opportunity to explore the night sky and observe the Moon and other celestial objects through a STARS telescope.
Arizona: The First Chapter
Arizona is the first state in the country where Smithsonian STARS has launched. Following a pilot with schools in Southeast Arizona in spring 2026, the program began the first phase of its statewide Arizona rollout with Yuma County. STARS is expected to expand to additional counties across Arizona in the coming months.
Following its work in Arizona, Smithsonian STARS plans to launch operations in Delaware and Rhode Island later this school year, with additional states to follow as the program grows. Its long-term goal is to reach rural schools in every state across the country.
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Original text here: https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/news/smithsonian-stars-begins-arizona-rollout-yuma-county
NASA-funded Study Details One of Oldest Mars Meteorites Ever Found
PASADENA, California, Oct. 30 (TNSjou) -- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory issued the following news:
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NASA-funded Study Details One of Oldest Mars Meteorites Ever Found
Oct. 29, 2026
Called Teghaza 001, the rock is from a piece of Mars that formed more than 4.1 billion years ago.
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When a rose-colored meteorite was found in the Sahara Desert in 2022, no one knew how old it was or where it came from. Not until NASA-funded scientists age-dated its minerals did they realize the nearly 2-pound (800-gram) rock was a piece of Mars that formed more than 4.1 billion years ago, making it one of
... Show Full Article
PASADENA, California, Oct. 30 (TNSjou) -- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory issued the following news:
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NASA-funded Study Details One of Oldest Mars Meteorites Ever Found
Oct. 29, 2026
Called Teghaza 001, the rock is from a piece of Mars that formed more than 4.1 billion years ago.
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When a rose-colored meteorite was found in the Sahara Desert in 2022, no one knew how old it was or where it came from. Not until NASA-funded scientists age-dated its minerals did they realize the nearly 2-pound (800-gram) rock was a piece of Mars that formed more than 4.1 billion years ago, making it one ofthe oldest Martian meteorites ever found. Named Teghaza 001 after the salt plain in Mali where it was discovered, the meteorite is one of roughly 435 from the Red Planet.
In a paper published (https://www.science.org/eprint/6FRMXEUFASPRPAFJRZ64/full?activationRedirect=/doi/full/10.1126/science.adz5646) Thursday in Science, researchers offered an initial characterization of Teghaza 001, providing a rare snapshot of Mars' ancient crust and formation. What scientists learn from future studies could help answer many questions, including how water and rocks interacted on ancient Mars. A separate paper published in Science Advances in June detailed the meteorite's water content, offering a look at how water shaped the early planet's surface.
"It was only after we started looking closely that we realized this meteorite is really unique," said the paper's lead author, Yang Liu of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. "One of the paper's reviewers called it a Rosetta Stone for Mars."
Rose-colored stone
What sets Teghaza 001 apart from other Martian meteorites is its texture and age as well as the uniqueness of its igneous, or volcanic, minerals. It is one of the three most ancient Martian meteorites found on Earth. While invaluable, the others provide more limited glimpses of Mars' geological history. They include ALH84001, which is composed almost entirely of one mineral and is similar in age to Teghaza 001. The other meteorite, nicknamed "Black Beauty," formed about 2.1 billion years ago and is composed of small, volcanic rock fragments.
Unlike its ancient peers, Teghaza 001 has a mix of igneous minerals that tells a story about how the planet's crust formed from cooling magma before it was eventually altered by subsurface water. The meteorite's distinctive mineralogy matches what NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has observed in the planet's cratered southern highlands. No one will ever know exactly where the meteorite originated on Mars, but the paper identifies several potential locations that match Teghaza 001's mineralogy and chemistry.
"This is really our first piece of Martian crust from a part of Mars we've never had a sample of before," said the new paper's second author, Lee Saper, who conducted the research while at JPL as a postdoctoral scholar. Lee now is a scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. "It records interactions of water and rock and maybe even an imprint of the Martian atmosphere as it was losing water."
Although the Mars meteorites found on Earth differ from one another, they share a common history, having been blasted off the Red Planet's surface by an impact, followed by a trajectory that eventually placed them on Earth and into the hands of scientists. Meteorites are often found by collectors in deserts or snowy plains, where they stand out from the rest of the barren landscape. Scientists can verify a meteorite as Martian by matching its mineral and chemical components to data collected by NASA's Mars missions, including the Viking landers as well as the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers.
Signs of water
When Liu was first asked to look at Teghaza 001, she almost passed on the opportunity.
Researchers at the University of New Mexico had already identified it as Martian based on its oxygen isotopes, which serve as geochemical fingerprints for different planetary bodies. In this case, the researchers matched the meteorite's oxygen isotopes to those seen in other Martian meteorites. Teghaza 001 appeared to be a shergottite which is the most common class of meteorite from the Red Planet. As an expert in planetary samples, Liu has seen plenty of those, but she decided to take a peek, anyway.
At the very least, there were odd textures and unusual minerals she hadn't seen before. Liu and her colleagues discovered zircon crystals in Teghaza 001, which record clues to a rock's formation and can be used by geologists to precisely age-date a sample. Further analysis revealed when Teghaza 001 formed and when certain changes, like water alteration, occurred.
Caltech coauthor Francois Tissot helped the researchers utilize a novel age-dating method pioneered by his team. Compared with bulk-analysis techniques, where a sample is entirely dissolved and analyzed, Tissot's in-situ rubidium-strontium age-dating used a piece of Teghaza 001 that was smaller than a fingernail, analyzing single mineral grains on its surface. Besides its extreme precision and speed, the technique preserves rare samples like Martian meteorites for future studies.
"Right now, we are one of very few labs in the world able to perform this kind of age-dating, and the first to date such an ancient Martian meteorite," Tissot said. "Our hope is to pave the way for dating even more Martian meteorites, or samples returned from other planets, their moons, and asteroids."
When the age-dating results came back, Liu was shocked: This rock had been altered by Martian water sometime around 4.1 billion years ago, suggesting it originally formed even earlier. Clues within the oxygen isotopes, texture, and chemistry of Teghaza 001 minerals point to a much more dynamic water cycle on early Mars.
This year's papers are just the start. Liu and her co-authors are eager to see what the rest of the scientific community can learn from Teghaza 001.
"We've only scratched the surface," Liu said.
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Original text here: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasa-funded-study-details-one-of-oldest-mars-meteorites-ever-found/
Inter-American Development Bank: 'Understanding the Evolution of Agricultural Productivity in Colombia'
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper on Oct. 30, 2026, entitled "Understanding the Evolution of Agricultural Productivity in Colombia."
Here are excerpts:
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Colombia has favorable agroecological conditions but continues to face low agricultural productivity. This paper examines total factor productivity (TFP) between 2015 and 2023 using stochastic frontier analysis on household- and municipal-level panel data. We decompose productivity growth and assess the effects of climate shocks, access to credit, rural public investment,
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper on Oct. 30, 2026, entitled "Understanding the Evolution of Agricultural Productivity in Colombia."
Here are excerpts:
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Colombia has favorable agroecological conditions but continues to face low agricultural productivity. This paper examines total factor productivity (TFP) between 2015 and 2023 using stochastic frontier analysis on household- and municipal-level panel data. We decompose productivity growth and assess the effects of climate shocks, access to credit, rural public investment,and the peace agreement with FARC. Results show that output growth has been driven mainly by input expansion, with TFP increasing by less than 1% annually. Rural road infrastructure and low-interest credit are consistently linked to productivity gains, while input delivery and service programs show no measurable impact. Climate variability remains a major source of productivity fluctuations, highlighting sectoral vulnerability. The 2014 ceasefire with FARC produced heterogeneous effects: household-level productivity rose in previously affected areas, but municipal-level averages declined possibly due to land expansion into less productive zones. Findings underscore the need to shift from input-based support to connectivity, rural finance, and climate-resilient investments.
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View full text here: publications.iadb.org/en/understanding-evolution-agricultural-productivity-colombia
[Category: IADB]
Inter-American Development Bank: 'Long-Term Care Benefits and Functional Deterioration in Older Adults - Evidence From the Catalan/Spanish SAAD Registry (2015-2024)'
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper on Oct. 30, 2026, entitled "Long-Term Care Benefits and Functional Deterioration in Older Adults: Evidence from the Catalan/Spanish SAAD Registry (2015-2024)."
Here are excerpts:
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Population ageing is raising the demand for long-term care (LTC), leading many countries to develop publicly funded LTC systems. However, little is known about whether the benefits these systems provide help preserve the functional autonomy of the people who receive them. We use the administrative registry of
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WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper on Oct. 30, 2026, entitled "Long-Term Care Benefits and Functional Deterioration in Older Adults: Evidence from the Catalan/Spanish SAAD Registry (2015-2024)."
Here are excerpts:
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Population ageing is raising the demand for long-term care (LTC), leading many countries to develop publicly funded LTC systems. However, little is known about whether the benefits these systems provide help preserve the functional autonomy of the people who receive them. We use the administrative registry ofthe Catalan LTC system, covering 320,618 individuals aged 60 or over who entered between 2015 and 2024, and follow them for two, three, five and seven years. Because applicants are assessed and reassessed with the same standardised instrument (the BVD), we observe repeated, comparable measures of functional capacity, down to the level of individual daily-living tasks. We proceed in three steps. First, we estimate how the intensity of exposure to each benefit (informal home care, formal home care, day centre care and institutional care) is associated with death, grade deterioration and within-grade deterioration. Second, we compute life-years and deterioration-free years gained using regression-standardised survival curves. Third, we analyse the size and composition of functional decline among survivors. Greater benefit intensity is associated with lower mortality: full exposure to each benefit is associated with between 0.36 (institutional care) and 1.40 (informal home care) additional life-years over seven years, relative to no benefit. Among survivors, higher intensity is also associated with a greater probability of recorded deterioration, most markedly in institutional care. This pattern is consistent with survival-deterioration selection and with benefits responding to need, rather than with care causing decline. Losses in indoor mobility, changing body position and continence/toileting are most strongly associated with institutional care. Estimates are associations, not causal effects. The results show the value of routine functional assessment data for evaluating LTC policy in ageing societies.
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View full text here: publications.iadb.org/en/long-term-care-benefits-and-functional-deterioration-older-adults-evidence-catalanspanish-saad
[Category: IADB]
Inter-American Development Bank: 'Does Generative AI Narrow Education-based Productivity Gaps? Evidence From a Randomized Experiment'
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper on Oct. 30, 2026, entitled "Does Generative AI Narrow Education-based Productivity Gaps? Evidence from a Randomized Experiment."
Here are excerpts:
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Does generative artificial intelligence (AI) reinforce or reduce productivity differences across workers? Existing evidence largely studies AI within firms and occupations, where organizational selection compresses educational heterogeneity, leaving unclear whether AI narrows productivity gaps across individuals with different levels of education.
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper on Oct. 30, 2026, entitled "Does Generative AI Narrow Education-based Productivity Gaps? Evidence from a Randomized Experiment."
Here are excerpts:
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Does generative artificial intelligence (AI) reinforce or reduce productivity differences across workers? Existing evidence largely studies AI within firms and occupations, where organizational selection compresses educational heterogeneity, leaving unclear whether AI narrows productivity gaps across individuals with different levels of education.A related question is whether the productivity gains from AI reflect productive use of the tool or mere delegation, fading once AI is unavailable, and whether the answer differs across education groups. We address both questions using a randomized online experiment outside firms, in which 1,174 adults aged 2545 complete an incentivized, workplacestyle business problem-solving task with or without a generative-AI assistant, followed by a non-AI-assisted follow-up module. AI increases performance for all participants, with substantially larger gains for lower-education individuals. In the control group without AI, higher-education participants outperform lower-education participants by 0.548 standard deviations; with AI, this gap falls to 0.139 standard deviations, closing about three-quarters of the initial gap. Chat-log measures explain both why this gap narrows and why it does not disappear: lower-education participants successfully obtain substantial assistance from AI, while higher-education participants use the tool somewhat more effectively across several margins. The follow-up results showthat these gains are not purely driven by delegation; treated participants do not perform worse than controls once AI is removed, and lower-education participants retain part of their gain, although a sizable education gap re-emerges. Consistent with this interpretation, intensive use of the assistant produces strong task performance regardless of how much time and effort participants devote themselves, but follow-up performance is substantially higher only when intensive AI use is combined with sustained effort on the task. We interpret these findings as evidence that generative AI narrows effective productivity differences in task execution while underlying human-capital differences continue to shape unassisted performance and effective use of the tool.
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View full text here: publications.iadb.org/en/does-generative-ai-narrow-education-based-productivity-gaps-evidence-randomized-experiment
[Category: IADB]
IDB Approves $750 Million Loan to Improve Assistance for Vulnerable Households in Uruguay
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
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IDB Approves $750 Million Loan to Improve Assistance for Vulnerable Households in Uruguay
October 29, 2026
WASHINGTON - The Board of Executive Directors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved $750 million in financing to expand the coverage of social programs for vulnerable Uruguayan households with children and adolescents and improve their access to benefits.
The project is expected to benefit more than 410,000 children and adolescents up to age 17, aims to increase social
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
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IDB Approves $750 Million Loan to Improve Assistance for Vulnerable Households in Uruguay
October 29, 2026
WASHINGTON - The Board of Executive Directors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved $750 million in financing to expand the coverage of social programs for vulnerable Uruguayan households with children and adolescents and improve their access to benefits.
The project is expected to benefit more than 410,000 children and adolescents up to age 17, aims to increase socialprogram coverage among economically vulnerable children and adolescents from 82.4% to 85.6%, and reduce the time to process a benefit application from 67 to 30 days. The operation will also strengthen economic protection during pregnancy and early childhood.
"When these types of initiatives are timely and support families at critical junctures in life, their true value becomes evident. This project relies on digital technologies to streamline procedures, reduce wait times, and ensure assistance reaches everyone entitled to it. It focuses on supporting children and adolescents living in vulnerable households, which is both a responsibility of any government working to meet the needs of its citizens and an investment in a more promising future for Uruguay," said Miguel Porrua, representative of the IDB Group in Uruguay.
The plan calls for gradually implementing a new financial support scheme for children and adolescents, with benefits scaled by household vulnerability and life stage, plus enhanced incentives for pregnant women and young children. The amounts will be linked to the Basic Food Basket (Canasta Basica Alimentaria) and adjusted periodically to preserve purchasing power.
The plan also includes mechanisms to promptly identify pregnant women eligible for social assistance, which is expected to increase coverage from 86.7% to 95% for at least four months of pregnancy.
The program will also support efforts to simplify and modernize processes for accessing and managing benefits in order to enroll more eligible households. This work includes expanding the Single Service Window (Ventanilla Unica) for nationwide coverage.
The operation aligns with the IDB Group's Country Strategy for Uruguay 2026-2030 and will contribute to the well-being of vulnerable children and youth through cash transfers with better coverage, targeting, and adequacy.
The IDB loan has a 25-year repayment term, a five-year grace period, and a three-year disbursement period.
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About the IDB
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), a member of the IDB Group, is devoted to improving lives across Latin America and the Caribbean. Founded in 1959, the Bank works with the region's public sector to design and enable impactful, innovative solutions for sustainable and inclusive development. Leveraging financing, technical expertise, and
knowledge, it promotes growth and well-being in 26 countries. Visit our website: https://www.iadb.org/en.
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Original text here: https://www.iadb.org/en/news/idb-approves-750-million-loan-improve-assistance-vulnerable-households-uruguay
Board of Governors to meet Nov. 10
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 -- The U.S. Postal Service posted the following news release:
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Board of Governors to meet Nov. 10
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WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors will meet Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, in an open session at Postal Service headquarters, 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW, in Washington, DC. The public is welcome to attend the meeting, which begins at 10 a.m. ET in the Benjamin Franklin Room.
A public comment period will begin immediately following the adjournment of the open session. During this period, members of the public present at the meeting may comment on any item or
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 -- The U.S. Postal Service posted the following news release:
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Board of Governors to meet Nov. 10
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WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors will meet Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, in an open session at Postal Service headquarters, 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW, in Washington, DC. The public is welcome to attend the meeting, which begins at 10 a.m. ET in the Benjamin Franklin Room.
A public comment period will begin immediately following the adjournment of the open session. During this period, members of the public present at the meeting may comment on any item orsubject listed on the agenda for the open session. Registration of speakers at the public comment period is required. Speakers must register online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/bog-11-10-2026. Each registered speaker will be allowed 2 minutes for comment. Registration to speak during the public comment period shall end on Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, at 8:00 a.m. ET.
Individuals who submit written comments in advance will have their comments read into the record. These submissions must relate to one or more items or subjects listed on the open session agenda. The Postal Service reserves the right to exclude written submissions that do not pertain to items listed on the agenda as required. Additionally, the Postal Service reserves the right to exclude submissions for inappropriate content or language. Written comments must be received by Friday, Nov. 6, 2026. Comments may be emailed or mailed to the Office of the Board of Governors:
Email: BOG-inquiries@usps.gov
Mail: Office of the Board of Governors
USPS Headquarters
475 L'Enfant Plaza SW
Washington, DC 20260-0004
Participation in the public comment period is governed by 39 C.F.R. 232.1(n).
The board's expected agenda is:
Public comments
Open session meetings of the USPS Board of Governors are available on live audio webcasts at https://about.usps.com/who/leadership/board-governors/#sessions. Three hours after the conclusion of the open session meeting, a recorded audio file will be available for listening. In compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, the audio webcast will be open-captioned.
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Original text here: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2026/1030-board-of-governors-to-meet-nov-10.htm
