Nearly a Third of American Teens Interact with AI Chatbots Daily, Study Finds

I’m a little surprised it’s that low. I’m less concerned about the fact that they use them, I think eventually it’ll be just another feature of internet left, but how they’re using them is the really important thing

Studies: LLMs Sway Political Opinions More Than One-Way Messaging

Now imagine what would happen if human beings actually talk to each other

More Stories Below, but first some new content in the News Sidequest Podcast Universe…

Auditory Anthology

SCI-FI SHORT STORIES - NARRATED BY DARREN MARLAR & PRODUCED BY KEITH CONRAD

Tales From the Blue Line – Caller on Line Seven - The overnight staff at a dimly lit newsroom learns to dread… and then depend upon… a cranky, anonymous 11:37 p.m. caller on Line Seven who relentlessly complains about the station’s coverage of future events, accurately predicting everything from escaped goats at City Hall to the weatherman fainting live on air.

Tales From the Blue Line - Caller on Line Seven Keith Conrad / Darren Marlar Episode

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Also Worth A Look…

• Drone drops steak and crab legs for prisoner feast but South Carolina guards find it first - How did they think they’d be able to do that with no one noticing? Also, if you’re going to fly something in, why wouldn’t you figure out some way to sneak things in to help you escape? Whatever happened to cakes with files in them?

• GameStop Says Its ‘Trade Anything Day’ Led Customers to Bring In a Goose, a Bobcat, And a Wii Netflix Disc - You may think it’s silly idea, but we’re talking about GameStop again

• More people crowdfunded for essential needs like food and housing in 2025, according to GoFundMe - That seems like a less than stellar economic indicator

• In-N-Out removes ’67’ from orders amid viral ‘6-7’ trend - What have we become as a country?

• Ohio man accidentally sent meth through tube at bank drive-thru: police - Did his meth look a lot like his checkbook?

• Woman hospitalized after Pluribus ad on smart fridge triggers psychotic episode - That’s probably not a very effective ad. I don’t think she’s going to want to watch Pluribus

• Tesla’s Optimus Robot Crashes to the Floor During Miami Event, Video Goes Viral - Maybe we won’t have to worry about the robot uprising for a while after all

• First ALS Reversal Reported Using Brain Temperature Therapy - Science!

• 2,397 Golden Retrievers Got Together to Hang Out - That’s a lot of good boys

• Modern humans unfairly blamed for extinction of Indonesia’s ‘hobbits’, scientists say - Aragorn was unavailable for comment