From the beginning of my course, I've been thinking about what my graduation dress was going to be, says Keerthana Krishnadas. I had to make sure I looked 10 out of 10, I couldn't compromise on that. She is one of hundreds of thousands of university students graduating this summer and, like many, has been figuring out what to wear for a photo marking one of life's milestones - without breaking the bank. You can save some bucks if you thrift your outfit because you're only going to wear it once, says Keerthana. She bought hers second hand.

A photograph of Earth glowing in deep space, the Moon's cratered horizon stretching across its foreground, caught many people's eyes in April 2026. Astronauts captured the image while aboard NASA's Artemis II mission, and like the famous Apollo 8 "Earthrise" image, the picture felt instantly real and inspiring for many. But when almost anyone can fabricate a visually similar image in seconds from a text prompt using artificial intelligence, how do people decide which image is real? The proliferation of AI-generated science images in public spaces is not simply a misinformation problem. As a researcher who studies visual science communication and public trust, I believe it also contributes to a crisis of trust in science in the age of AI, and the tools scientists have long relied on to establish visual credibility are losing their grip.

After a year of logs, buckets, bins, and bark chips, I've found that growing mushrooms is tough. If you're a novice who wants to guarantee success, there are only two methods I'd recommend. Mushroom hunting is cool and fun, but you know what's not cool and fun? Having slugs or other mushroom hunters discover your secret spot. Or, worst of all, accidentally collecting the wrong kind of mushroom that could make you quite sick--or worse.

From the best air fryer to frying pans to knife sharpeners anyone can use, these ideas will keep the curious home chef in your life tinkering away. A Lightweight Cast-Iron Skillet Field Company No. 8 Cast Iron Skillet The Best gifts for cooks can be a tough prospect, especially because chances are the cook in your life is cooking for you. You want it to feel special, thoughtful, something luxuriant that they wouldn't buy for themselves and will be excited to have. This is a guide to the best kitchen gifts that mix classic beauty and technological innovation, geared to home chefs who love not just food but the act of cooking. We've gathered up some of our favorite gift ideas for every budget. For more inspiration, be sure to check out our guides to the best air fryers, the best cast iron pans, the best blenders, chef knives, and pizza ovens . One could plausibly argue for a 5-quart Le Creuset. But otherwise, when you picture a classic and beautiful cast-iron Dutch oven, what you picture is likely this: the 4-quart Staub La Cocotte. It argues for itself, sitting majestically baroque in its heft and with its trademark self-basting cones on the underside of its lid, its classic shape, and its elegant sense of proportion. It is welcome in any home.

Here's How to Prevent Heart and Lung Damage As wildfire smoke threatens air quality and safety for millions, here's your playbook to keep your family safe from the damaging effects of smoke particulates. Wildfire season is fully upon us-- and with it, the smoke . The most spectacular threat of a wildfire is of course the possibility it might directly threaten lives and homes, like the wildfires last year that devastated Los Angeles . But it is the smoke and the stinging haze--and especially the invisible particulate matter borne aloft for hundreds of miles--that is most likely to pose grave health risks to millions across the country, as wildfires rage in Canada and across the American West during summer months. So do visits to lung doctors.

This remarkably vivid home projector has deep inky blacks, without a five-figure price tag. Premium home theater projectors often come at premium prices, usually north of $10,000. The Xgimi Titan Noir Max is different. It's priced at $5,999, well under five figures, but it supports IMAX Enhanced mode and has outstanding picture quality, a 10,000:1 native contrast ratio, 7,000 lumens brightness, and a unique dual intelligent iris system that makes on-the-fly adjustments. Even though Xgimi has been around for more than a decade and is known for affordable home cinema models, the company ran a Kickstarter campaign for the high-end Titan Noir Max home theater projector and raised $19 million.

Projectors are adopting RGB backlighting, the hottest tech from the world of TVs. This large but vivid projector is a great option for summer movie nights. Did not perform as well in a bright room. RGB backlighting is the hottest new tech in the world of televisions, bringing brighter and more colorful images to the world of LED screens. And now, projectors are following suit.

These are the cleaning robots, water monitors, and toys actually worth buying for pool season. This is not news to anyone who owns one, but the uninitiated may not know about the inordinate amount of daily labor and chores that lie behind a pool's clear, sparkling, perfectly chlorinated (or salted) water. Luckily, pool tech has come a long way in the past decade--gone are the hours spent scooping leaves and dead bugs out of the water with a long-handled net, laboring over pH strips, and trying to relax on floaties too small for your adult-sized behind. We've now got robots that clean your pool, apps that monitor water quality from your phone, and even a slushie machine for proper pool-party margs. With gas and plane ticket prices soaring to astronomical levels, there's never been a better time for a staycation at your own pool.

New York City's Summer of Ludd festival is teaching people how to live offline amid the suffocating presence of Big Tech. A papier-mâché woman is the backdrop to a play about the Luddite movement. On a Sunday evening in the middle of Tompkins Square Park in New York City's East Village, hundreds of people gather in front of a giant papier-mâché face of a woman wearing a crown. She's the backdrop of a play, her body made up of curtains that look like a dress but serve a dual purpose, allowing actors to scurry on and offstage. I'm here to watch a performance called " Luddite Recreations," which is a history of the Luddite movement--a group of artisans and textile workers who resisted the adoption of machines during the early years of the Industrial Revolution in England and whose resistance to being displaced from their work was met with violence by the British monarchy.

Follow this section to personalize your feed and get instant alerts. Follow Go to your personalized feed WHY FOLLOW? Smart Alerts: Get notified about major news as it happens. Follow this tag to personalize your feed and get instant alerts. Follow Go to your personalized feed WHY FOLLOW? Smart Alerts: Get notified about major news as it happens.