05.26.26
The gender pay gap has worsened, but at least Erin Brokovich is back
Erin Brokovich is back, and this time she’s tackling data centers. Her newly launched site maps out concerns, locations, updated information, and even includes the ability to report an issue. There’s no better person to have on our anti-AI side.
Another win for my fellow New Yorkers: funding has been restored to the New York, Brooklyn, and Queens library systems. Library costs account for less than 0.5% of the city’s total $124.5 billion budget. FYI: if you’re a resident of any of those boroughs, you can apply to have a card for all three systems!
Despite some marginal improvement, the gender pay gap increased in 2025. While women outnumber men across higher ed, they are still paid less no matter the educational level; as the current administration continues to eliminate workplace protections, policies, and jobs, this has only exacerbated pre-existing discrimination. Can Erin Brokovich add another issue to her growing list, please?
Our screens impact everything, even our reading speed and understanding of written materials. The brain typically processes written words in smaller segments (7-9 letters), with small pauses in between; however, those pauses last longer when reading on screens, resulting in an 8% drop in processing compared to reading on paper. This explains why it’s more challenging to read (and remember what we read) on screens compared to physical materials. While we know screens make reading more convenient, reading was never meant to have shortcuts. To help with this disparity, there are tricks to incorporate in your daily life, including eye muscle exercises, taking physical notes about the books, and using environmental cues like carving out a reading space and setting specific times for reading.
Body image in today’s GLP-1 world is something we’re all grappling with, but it goes beyond how you look. Body image is also a mindset: how you feel in your body and how you think about your body. It takes time, but learning how to retrain your brain (and being consistent about it) can help rewrite the story of how you view and feel about yourself.