The Download: four (still) big breakthroughs, and how our bodies fare in extreme heat

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. 4 technologies that didn’t make our 2026 breakthroughs list If you’re a longtime reader, you probably know that our newsroom selects 10 breakthroughs every year that we think will define the future. This group exercise is mostly fun and always engrossing, with plenty of lively discussion along the way, but at times it can also be quite difficult. The 2026 list will come out on January 12—so stay tuned. In the meantime, we wanted to share some of the technologies from this year’s reject pile, as a window into our decision-making process. These four technologies won’t be on our 2026 list of breakthroughs, but all were closely considered, and we think they’re worth knowing about. Read the full story to learn what they are. MIT Technology Review Narrated: The quest to find out how our bodies react to extreme temperatures  Scientists hope to prevent deaths from climate change, but heat and cold are more complicated than we thought. Researchers around the world are revising rules about when extremes veer from uncomfortable to deadly. Their findings change how we should think about the limits of hot and cold—and how to survive in a new world. This is our latest story to be turned into a MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which we’re publishing each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as it’s released. The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 A CDC panel voted to recommend delaying the hepatitis B vaccine for babies
Overturning a 30-year policy that has contributed to a huge decline in the virus. (STAT)
+ Why childhood vaccines are a public health success story. (MIT Technology Review) 2 Critical climate risks are growing across the Arab region 
Drought is the most immediate problem countries are having to grapple with. (Ars Technica)
+ Why Tehran is running out of water. (Wired $)

3 Netflix is buying Warner Bros for $83 billion 
If approved, it’ll be one of the most significant mergers in Hollywood history. (NBC)
+ Trump says the deal “could be a problem” due to Netflix’s already huge market share. (BBC)

4 The EU is fining X $140 million 
For failing to comply with its new Digital Services Act. (NPR)
+ Elon Musk is now calling for the entire EU to be abolished. (CNBC)
+ X also hit back by deleting the European Commission’s account. (Engadget) 5 AI slop is ruining Reddit
Moderators are getting tired of fighting the rising tide of nonsense. (Wired $)
+ How AI and Wikipedia have sent vulnerable languages into a doom spiral. (MIT Technology Review)

6 Scientists have deeply mixed feelings about AI tools
They can boost researchers’ productivity, but some worry about the consequences of relying on them. (Nature $)
+ ‘AI slop’ is undermining trust in papers presented at computer science gatherings. (The Guardian)
+ Meet the researcher hosting a scientific conference by and for AI. (MIT Technology Review)

7 Australia is about to ban under 16s from social media
It’s due to come into effect in two days—but teens are already trying to maneuver around it. (New Scientist $)

8 AI is enshittifying the way we write 
And most people haven’t even noticed. (NYT $)
+ AI can make you more creative—but it has limits. (MIT Technology Review)

9 Tech founders are taking etiquette lessons
The goal is to make them better at pretending to be normal. (WP $)

10 Are we getting stupider? 
It might feel that way sometimes, but there’s little solid evidence to support it. (New Yorker $) Quote of the day “It’s hard to be Jensen day to day. It’s almost nightmarish. He’s constantly paranoid about competition. He’s constantly paranoid about people taking Nvidia down.”  —Stephen Witt, author of ‘The Thinking Machine’, a book about Nvidia’s rise, tells the Financial Times what it’s like to be its founder and chief executive, Jensen Huang. One more thing How wind tech could help decarbonize cargo shipping Inhabitants of the Marshall Islands—a chain of coral atolls in the center of the Pacific Ocean—rely on sea transportation for almost everything. For millennia they sailed largely in canoes, but much of their seafaring movement today involves big, bulky, diesel-fueled cargo ships that are heavy polluters. They’re not alone. Cargo shipping is responsible for about 3% of the world’s annual greenhouse-­gas emissions, and that figure is currently on track to rise to 10% by 2050. The islands have been disproportionately experiencing the consequences of human-made climate change: warming waters, more frequent extreme weather, and rising sea levels. Now its residents are exploring a surprisingly traditional method of decarbonizing its fleets. Read the full story. —Sofia Quaglia We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet ’em at me.) + Small daily habits can help build a life you enjoy.  
+ Using an air fryer to make an epic grilled cheese sandwich? OK, I’m listening…
+ I’m sorry but AI does NOT get to ruin em dashes for the rest of us. 
+ Daniel Clarke’s art is full of life and color. Check it out!