'You can experience so much without being in a defined relationship'

'Teens are forgoing a classic right of passage'

Faith Hill at The Atlantic

A "whole lot of American adults are withdrawing from romance," but the "trend seems to be especially pronounced for Gen Z," says Faith Hill. You "can grow into a perfectly mature and healthy adult without ever having had a romantic relationship," but this "shift could be concerning: a sign" of a "generation struggling with vulnerability." A "first love, for so many, has been a milestone on the path to adulthood." What's "lost if that rite of passage disappears?"

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'Want to reduce the cost of healthcare? Start with our billing practices.'

Sheldon H. Jacobson at The Hill

Our "nation's healthcare system is fragile, in a constant state of teetering on the edge," says Sheldon H. Jacobson. The "way clinicians code each service during patient interactions ultimately determines how much they can bill." This "model unfortunately encourages some clinicians to find ways to bill certain procedures, even if they have limited healthcare value." Good "medicine for patients should drive billing, not the other way around," as "every type of physician has its own set of codes."

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'Europe going nuclear would be a catastrophic mistake'

Olamide Samuel at Al Jazeera

The "proposal for some form of European nuclear sharing arrangement with France and the United Kingdom to protect against threats from Moscow is not new," says Olamide Samuel. But "resurfacing this proposal is not just a geopolitical miscalculation; it is a strategic dead end" that "reflects a misreading of both the nuclear balance of power and the existential risks of fragmenting Europe's security architecture further." This "gambit risks accelerating the very instability it seeks to avert."

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'The toxic reasons we fall in love with AI'

Silvia Park at Time

"Centuries of science fiction has primed us for relationships with AI," says Silvia Park. In the "seemingly inevitable future where artificial intelligence has flooded our workforce with emotionally engaged and intelligent AI agents, our overpromising technocrats offer us a consolation: AI will solve loneliness." This creates "partners who offer unconditional support without the messy demands of human relationships." AI is "training future generations to embrace a pleasant, if narcissistic, echo chamber in lieu of building intimate, challenging connections."

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