Richard Sima

Stop and read this deep dive on TikTok and how it's consuming much more than hours of our time.

One user: "It was harder for me to create my own opinions, it was harder for me to express my own thoughts in the day, and I think that took a toll with me."

www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/int...

Here’s how TikTok ‘power users’ end up scrolling 4 hours a day or more Washington Post reporters analyzed data from over 800 TikTok users to learn how the app turns people into power users, some of whom spend hours per day scrolling.

🤳EXCLUSIVE: We analyzed real data from over 800 U.S. TikTok users to reveal how the app transforms casual users into power users.

Extremely proud of this one, over a year in the making w/ @richardsima.bsky.social Leslie Shapiro @asteckelberg.bsky.social @ence.bsky.social

wapo.st/4obueib

Children and teens who had a Covid reinfection had a doubling of #LongCovid risk (PASC) and a significant increase in many other adverse outcomes (Figure) www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

What should you do to reduce your risk of dementia? Ask Richard Sima. Brain health expert Richard Sima will answer your questions during a live chat on Tuesday at 11 a.m. Eastern.

Excited to share that I'm doing a live chat tomorrow (September 30) at 11am Eastern to talk about brain health, dementia and whatever else may be on your mind!

You can also send in your Qs ahead of time - hope you can join :)

www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/202...

More on this here—World #AlzheimersDay
www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/202...

Statement from Post Guild Leadership: The Washington Post Guild condemns the unjust firing of columnist Karen Attiah

CDC director being ousted weeks into job Susan Monarez, a longtime federal government scientist, was confirmed by the Senate in late July to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

EXCLUSIVE: The new CDC director is being ousted weeks into the job.

@lenasun.bsky.social @ddiamond.bsky.social report www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...

CDC director ousted, top officials resign after RFK Jr. push to change vaccine policy Susan Monarez was confirmed as the CDC’s director in July. Three top agency officials announced resignations as the Trump administration pushed her out.

www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...

The CDC quietly scaled back a surveillance program for foodborne illnesses As of July 1, a critical surveillance program is monitoring for only two pathogens instead of the usual eight.

A federal-state partnership that monitors for foodborne illnesses quietly scaled back its operations nearly two months ago.

As of July 1, the critical surveillance program is monitoring for only two pathogens instead of the usual eight, a spokesperson for the CDC says.

Bluesky now platform of choice for science community It’s not just you. Survey says: “Twitter sucks now and all the cool kids are moving to Bluesky”…

Good to see @bsky.app has emerged as the social media platform of choice for science stuff
arstechnica.com/science/2025...

Rock Looked Way Cooler Wet

Rock Looked Way Cooler Wet

Got to see these little guys making their way into the ocean this morning! 🐢 #seaturtles #conservation #beach #nature #miamibeach

Everybody’s gangster until they see a lesbian couple on the big screen

The part where he doesn’t put the stick down to take a wee on the tree is simply legendary. I cackled.

Maybe I would be more tempted to use LLMs if I didn't really like writing and thinking, but, well,

I spent the 2010's arguing with my white colleagues that we were facing a crisis in newsroom diversity. The smart, dedicated, talented cis white journalists I thought of as my friends didn't want to hear it. Most of them ignored me. At least one of them told me to go to hell.

Why we procrastinate on joy — and how to stop We may fall into a “trap” of wanting something to feel special, which causes us to delay enjoying it now, research suggests.

This new WaPo piece by @richardsima.bsky.social addresses a rarely studied topic in procrastination research: if/why people put off ENJOYABLE activities. It features a PNAS Nexus article by Hagen & O'Brien. I was honored to be asked to comment on their interesting findings. Check it out!

Making cash off ‘AI slop’: The surreal video business taking over the web A mad rush of creators is using AI video tools to flood the web — and turn a profit — with videos that can seem remarkably real.

New: My deep dive into the business of AI slop. wapo.st/4mFECxC

And also disappearing the woman next to you

Scientist on green card detained for a week without explanation, lawyer says A Korean citizen studying in Texas on a green card was detained in San Francisco after a trip overseas. His lawyer says authorities won’t give a reason.

Tae Heung Kim, 40:
- Lived in US since he was 5
- Has green card
- Getting PhD at Texas A&M
- Researching vaccine for Lyme disease
- Has 1 minor pot charge from 2011, since sealed

Also: Detained incommunicado by DHS after returning from wedding in Korea

www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/...

it’s even more demoralizing when the history you’re repeating is history you were around for the first time

A timeline of changes to Covid-19 vaccine recommendations over the last month

As part of my @thesicktimes.bsky.social piece, we made this timeline summarizing the dizzying changes RFK, Jr. and his colleagues have been making over the past month. With the vax advisory committee meeting in just a few days, it feels like the chaos is the point. thesicktimes.org/2025/06/19/t...

Transparent peer review to be extended to all of Nature’s research papers From today, all new submissions to Nature that are published will be accompanied by referees’ reports and author responses — to illuminate the process of producing rigorous science.

Really excellent news. For journalists, access to peer review reports can clarify expert opinion, help us highlight excellent research, and—crucially—lead to accountability.
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Huge news, and a confirmation of what NSF staff have suspected/feared for a while.

Wikipedia definition of "idiot plot": In literary criticism, an idiot plot is one which is "kept in motion solely by virtue of the fact that everybody involved is an idiot",[1]: 26  and where the story would quickly end, or possibly not even happen, if this were not the case.

We just got an email that Hopkins is freezing salaries, hiring, and some construction projects. In addition to the 800 million USAID we lost, we’ve had another 50 million in grants canceled so far. And a 2/3 year over year decline in funded grants despite an increase in submissions

"To understand who is in control, observe who you are not allowed to criticize." -Voltaire

Diseases are spreading. The CDC isn't warning the public like it was months ago Some of the CDC's main channels for communicating urgent health information to the public have gone silent.

Some of the CDC's main channels for communicating urgent health information to the public have gone silent.