Slightly altering your stride while walking could considerably ease pain caused by wear-and-tear knee arthritis, a new study says.
Foot positioning while walking can reduce stress on a person’s knee joint, researchers reported Tuesday in The Lancet Rheumatology.
People trained to angle their feet slightly inward or outward from their natural alignment experienced slower degeneration of the cartilage cushion inside their aching knees, results show.
They also reported greater reductions in knee pain and better knee function after a year, researchers said.
“Altogether, our findings suggest that helping patients find their best foot angle to reduce stress on their knees may offer an easy and fairly inexpensive way to address early-stage osteoarthritis,” said co-lead researcher Valentina Mazzoli, an assistant professor of radiology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City.
This strategy could lower patients’ reliance on painkillers and delay the need for knee replacement surgery, Mazzoli added in a news release.
For the study, researchers recruited 68 people with knee osteoarthritis and recorded their gait while walking on a treadmill. A computer program simulated their walking patterns and calculated the maximum stress they were placing on their knees.
The research team also generated computer models of four new foot positions angled inward or outward by 5 or 10 degrees and estimated which would best reduce stress on each person’s knees.
Participants then were randomly divided into two groups. Half were trained in six sessions to walk with the foot angle ideal to them, and the other half were told to continue walking normally.
Overall, those who adjusted their gait reduced maximum loading in their knees by 4%, while those who kept their normal stride increased loading by more than 3%.
Further, those taught the new foot position experienced a 2.5-point reduction on a 10-point pain scale, equivalent to the effect of over-the-counter painkillers like NSAIDs and acetaminophen, researchers said.
“These results highlight the importance of personalizing treatment instead of taking a one-size-fits-all approach to osteoarthritis,” Mazzoli said. “While this strategy may sound challenging, recent advances in detecting the motion of different body parts using artificial intelligence may make it easier and faster than ever before.”
AI software that estimates joint loading using smartphone videos is now available, allowing doctors to perform a gait analysis without specialized lab equipment, researchers noted.
The team next plans to test whether those AI tools can indeed help identify the best walking method for knee arthritis patients, Mazzoli said. They also plan to expand their study to include people with obesity.
More information
The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons has more about knee arthritis.
Outside audit firms are leveraging data analytics to revolutionize risk detection, streamline fieldwork, and deliver deeper client insights; and by embracing advanced technologies and upskilling their teams, firms can move beyond compliance to become strategic business advisors in a rapidly evolving audit landscape
Key insights
Data analytics empowers full-population testing — Leveraging data analytics is enabling audit firms to move beyond sampling and achieve deeper risk identification, fraud detection, and process optimization.
Audit efficiency and client value increase — Audit firms are advancing through the use of automation, real-time dashboards, and analytics-driven insights that support strategic business advisory, not just compliance.
Successful adoption requires investment — Firms need to put their resources into technology, data governance, and auditor upskilling, which would position firms to lead in a future of continuous, AI-enhanced auditing.
Outside audit firms are experiencing a profound shift as data analytics becomes central to the profession. Leveraging advanced technologies to analyze entire data sets, rather than just samples, enables auditors to deliver more accurate, efficient, and comprehensive engagements. For firms committed to growth and innovation, the use of data analytics is a vital pathway to better risk identification, optimized fieldwork, and expanded advisory capabilities.
Strategic benefits for audit firms
Modern clients expect more from their outside auditors than basic compliance. They look for insights that can help them make strategic business decisions. The use of data analytics enables auditors to go beyond verification, drawing out meaningful observations from trends, anomalies, and key performance indicators. This approach allows firms to provide valuable advice on emerging risks — such as those in supply chains or revenue cycles — and pinpoint operational bottlenecks or cash-flow inefficiencies. By viewing audit data through a strategic, advisory lens, auditors can become trusted business partners that deliver value far beyond traditional compliance.
Indeed, audit efficiency also is significantly enhanced through analytics. Fieldwork, often the most labor-intensive part of the audit, is streamlined as automation handles the reconciliation of large volumes of transactions, invoices, and payments. Visual dashboards empower teams to quickly identify high-risk areas, focusing attention where it matters most, rather than relying on fixed checklists. This data-driven prioritization results in more focused audits, broader coverage, and reduced risk of oversight. The time saved can then be invested by audit professionals in addressing higher-order concerns or engaging in more meaningful discussions with clients.
Fieldwork, often the most labor-intensive part of the audit, is streamlined as automation handles the reconciliation of large volumes of transactions, invoices, and payments.
Further, by incorporating analytics into risk management, auditors can transform their ability to detect fraud and other irregularities. Predictive models can highlight patterns that warrant closer scrutiny, such as unusual journal entries or transactions that were processed at odd hours.
These kinds of anomalies are often missed by traditional sampling methods. In an environment in which regulators and clients are increasingly vigilant about fraud, having the tools to identify the early signs of risk not only strengthens audit integrity but also builds client trust and confidence in the firm’s capabilities.
Implementation considerations for audit firm leaders
Adopting an analytics-driven audit approach requires more than new tools, it demands a comprehensive strategy. Technology infrastructure must be modernized to support secure, integrated data management and visualization. Ensuring data quality is critical, as the accuracy of analytics hinges on structured, reliable client data. This means establishing protocols for data extraction and cleansing while working closely with client IT teams from the outset of each engagement.
Equally important is investing in people. Audit professionals need training not only in the use of analytics tools but also in the interpretation of data and the ability to draw relevant conclusions. New roles, such as audit data specialists or digital audit leads, are emerging as essential. Also, learning and development programs should integrate analytics into continuing professional development, fostering a culture in which data fluency is as valued as technical accounting knowledge. Cross-functional collaboration among auditors, data scientists, and IT specialists is quickly becoming the norm.
Another consideration? Client protection. With greater use of client data comes increased responsibility for ethics, security, and privacy. Firms must implement robust data governance, including strict access controls, encryption, as well as compliance with data protection regulations like the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation or California’s Consumer Privacy Act. Transparent communication with clients about how their data will be used and protected not only ensures compliance but also strengthens the client relationship.
With greater use of client data comes increased responsibility for ethics, security, and privacy.
Forward-thinking audit firms already are embedding analytics into every aspect of their operations — from pricing models and engagement-scoping to client relationship management. By offering deeper risk assessments and real-time dashboards, firms can win new business and differentiate themselves in the marketplace. Further, automation drives efficiency, reducing the need for non-billable hours and enabling more competitive pricing. With scalable tools and processes, midsize audit firms now can take on larger, more complex clients, expanding their reach and capabilities.
In the long run, a reputation for analytics-driven insight makes a firm more attractive to both clients and top audit talent.
The road ahead: Continuous auditing & AI integration
The future of audit lies in continuous auditing, a process in which transactions are monitored in real time. The integration of AI and machine learning will enable predictive risk alerts, automatic anomaly detection, and context-aware report generation. Firms that invest in these advanced technologies now will be at the forefront of a new, smarter, and more strategic audit paradigm.
Data analytics is not just a technological upgrade — it’s a mandate for transforming how audit firms deliver value. By adopting data-driven approaches, firms can provide higher quality audits, richer client insights, and more resilient business models. Those who act decisively today will not only meet current audit challenges but also secure their place as leaders in the profession for the years ahead.
You can find out more about how firms are managing Audit Services here
Paul Simms, who served as showrunner for FX’s What We Do in the Shadows with Stefani Robinson, always knew the quirky mockumentary vampire show would have to come to an end, but there was never some grand plan on how to do so.
After six seasons, the ridiculous and charming series based on Taika Waititi’s 2014 film by the same name said goodbye and picked up six Emmy nominations in its wake, including best comedy and an outstanding writing nod for the series finale.
What We Do in the Shadows began its run in 2019 and continued to build its cult following during the pandemic and subsequent shutdowns. The show’s stars, Kayvan Novak, Natasia Demetriou, Harvey Guillén, Mark Proksch and Matt Berry, have talked previously about how much the show has meant for audiences looking for a break from real-world troubles. And even if it was at times unintentional, Simms is more than happy his little half-hour comedy could provide that.
The showrunner spoke to THR about What We Do in the Shadows coming to an end and the legacy left by its unexpectedly heartwarming vampiric roommates.
For a lot of people, this show was a comforting antidote during a difficult time. How were you thinking about the show ending?
What We Do in the Shadows was always about just being funny, and then accidentally some — I hate to say heartwarming because whenever I read something is heartwarming, I’m like, “I ain’t going to watch that” — but some moments snuck in. Whenever you do a show for six seasons and you have great actors like this, the characters start to feel like people that you’d like to hang out with. The characters are incredibly flawed. They’ve lived for hundreds of years and have learned nothing. They could have achieved so many things and just haven’t. It’s all the things that we feel about ourselves when we’re lying in bed, staring at the ceiling like, “I could have done so much, but I got lazy.” There is something uplifting in the message of nothing ever changes.
That is very present in the final season and episode. The idea of there being a comfort of falling back into a routine feels prescient right now.
It is, but there’s also a positive side of it, which is that no matter how big the crisis or whatever, your friends are still your friends. And no matter how much you argue with people, you’re eventually like, “These are the people I’m stuck with.” Of course, saying this makes it sound like we sat around in the writers room talking about it, but none of this was calculated. It was just going purely on instinct and trying to be funny, and also from us as writers really liking all the characters.
There’s a version of the show that has no humanity in it, but you guys definitely found so much heart in the characters.
Very early on, as early as the pilot, we realized that the whole thing couldn’t just be vampire jokes because you run out of those pretty quickly. So we looked at it as an opportunity to have these characters that are so out of touch with the modern world that everything in the modern world seems new to them and confusing and puzzling. That allows you take a fresh look at things that we consider absolutely normal and ordinary, like city council meetings or Airbnb’s.
I’d like to be able to say there was a grand plan for all six seasons, but every season was just trying to figure out that season. And sometimes every episode was just trying to get through that episode and figure out what the next thing was.
Harvey Guillén, Mark Proksch, Natasia Demetriou, Matt Berry and Kayvan Novak in What We Do in the Shadows.
Russ Martin/FX
After six seasons, how do you feel about how you were able to wrap up the show?
I’m very proud of it. The only overarching idea I had going into the finale was that I wanted it to be a happy ending for all the characters in the sense that I didn’t want anyone to die. I didn’t want any grand thing. Obviously, it’s going to be emotional because you’re saying goodbye, but I wanted to make sure that it was funny. We discussed huge guest stars that would come in, and then we were like, “It’s the last episode, I just want to see the regular characters doing dumb stuff and being funny.” I’m so happy that it got nominated because it is one of my favorite episodes of anything I’ve ever written.
You guys have had 35 nominations and only one win in six seasons. Do you think you deserved more recognition?
I’ve always felt like a lot of the shows I’ve worked on have been shows that people who are really into comedy like, but aren’t that wildly popular. So when we first started getting nominations, it was a complete surprise and a delight to me. I was just happy because I always thought this show was going to be that thing comedy people were really into and was really funny and obviously silly and not serious and not about issues or anything that would raise it to the level of being nominated for things.
But I was saying to my wife the other day, getting nominated is the high point to me because, whatever man.
This story first appeared in an August stand-alone issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
New hominin fossils recovered from the Ledi-Geraru Research Project area in the Afar region of Ethiopia suggest the presence of early Homo at 2.78 and 2.59 million years ago and a previously unknown species of Australopithecus at 2.63 million years ago.
Forensic facial reconstruction of Australopithecus afarensis. Image credit: Cicero Moraes / CC BY-SA 3.0.
The time interval between about 3 and 2 million years ago is a critical period in human evolution.
This is when the genera Homo and Paranthropus first appear in the fossil record and a possible ancestor of these genera, Australopithecus afarensis, disappears.
“We used to think of human evolution as fairly linear, with a steady march from an ape-like ancestor to modern Homo sapiens,” said University of Nevada Las Vegas researcher Brian Villmoare and his colleagues.
“Instead, humans have branched out multiple times into different niches.”
“Our pattern of evolution is not particularly unusual, and what has happened to humans has happened to every other tree of life.”
“This is what we should be finding in the human fossil record.”
“Nature experimented with different ways to be a human as the climate became drier in East Africa, and earlier more ape-like species went extinct.”
Dr. Villmoare and co-authors found 13 hominin teeth at the Ledi-Geraru site in the Afar Region of Ethiopia.
They determined that, although some of these fossils belong to the genus Homo, a set of upper and lower teeth belong to a previously unknown species of the genus Australopithecus.
This new species is distinct from Australopithecus afarensis, which last appears at roughly 2.95 million years ago and was discovered in nearby Hadar.
“The presence of both species in the same location shows that human evolution is less linear and more tree-like,” Dr. Villmoare said.
The Ledi-Geraru site is the same field site where in 2013, paleoanthropologists discovered the jaw of the earliest Homo specimen ever found at 2.8 million years old.
“The new finds of Homo teeth from 2.6-2.8 million-year-old sediments confirm the antiquity of our lineage,” Dr. Villmoare said.
“We know what the teeth and mandible of the earliest Homo look like, but that’s it.”
“This emphasizes the critical importance of finding additional fossils to understand the differences between Australopithecus and Homo, and potentially how they were able to overlap in the fossil record at the same location.”
“The Afar region is still an active rifting environment,” said Dr. Christopher Campisano, a geologist at Arizona State University.
“There were a lot of volcanoes and tectonic activity and when these volcanoes erupted ash, the ash contained crystals called feldspars that allow the scientists to date them.”
“We can date the eruptions that were happening on the landscape when they’re deposited.”
“And we know that these fossils are interbed between those eruptions, so we can date units above and below the fossils.”
“We are dating the volcanic ash of the eruptions that were happening while they were on the landscape.”
“It is a critical time period for human evolution as this new paper shows,” said Arizona State University’s Professor Ramon Arrowsmith.
“The geology gives us the age and characteristics of the sedimentary deposits containing the fossils. It is essential for age control.”
“Whenever you have an exciting discovery, if you’re a paleontologist, you always know that you need more information,” said Dr. Kaye Reed, a paleoecologist at Arizona State University.
“You need more fossils. That’s why it’s an important field to train people in and for people to go out and find their own sites and find places that we haven’t found fossils yet.”
“More fossils will help us tell the story of what happened to our ancestors a long time ago — but because we’re the survivors we know that it happened to us.”
The discovery is reported in a paper published today in the journal Nature.
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B. Villmoare et al. New discoveries of Australopithecus and Homo from Ledi-Geraru, Ethiopia. Nature, published online August 13, 2025; doi: 10.1038/s41586-025-09390-4
Aug. 13, 2025 – What if a blood test could flag multiple sclerosis years before symptoms start?
Amid recent breakthroughs in diagnosis and treatment – like advanced MRI techniques and powerful B-cell depletion therapies – scientists say the next frontier in MS care could be prevention. They believe they’re on the path toward being able to identify the disease before full symptoms appear, during what’s known as the “prodromal” phase. This could give doctors a chance to intervene in the teenage or early adulthood years, potentially preventing a condition that can lead to serious disability or neurological decline.
Although it would be many years before such a test becomes available, scientists are laying the groundwork now.
Canadian researchers recently analyzed health care visit patterns for more than 10,000 people over 25 years and found that those who eventually developed MS had a clear pattern of doctor visits that differs from those of the general population.
Among the findings: A dozen years before their MS diagnosis, patients visited psychiatrists at more than double the rate, compared with people of the same age, gender, and geographic region who did not go on to be diagnosed with MS.
What that means, said senior author Helen Tremlett, PhD, is that “people were already changing” during their early to mid-20s, since the average age of the start of MS in the study was 37.
A Pattern Stretching Back 15 Years
The pattern of health care visits revealed in the study aligns with existing knowledge about early MS symptoms, which include the kind of nondescript health issues – like pain, fatigue, headache, dizziness, anxiety, and depression – that can be challenging for doctors to diagnose.
Particularly striking was just how many years before MS onset the pattern of doctor’s visits started:
15 years: A decade-and-a-half before clear symptoms developed, people who would eventually develop MS had a 19% higher rate of visits to a general practice doctor, and they were more likely to have doctor visits for “ill-defined symptoms” like fatigue or pain.
12 to 14 years: Mental health visits were markedly higher at 14 years before diagnosis, with a rise in psychiatric visits starting at 12 years and escalating after that.
8 to 9 years: Eye pain and blurry vision are common MS symptoms, and people eventually diagnosed were more likely to seek neurology and ophthalmology care starting eight to nine years earlier.
3 to 5 years: Emergency room visits and radiology visits for medical imaging were higher than those of the general population starting around three to five years before diagnosis.
1 year: The year before an MS diagnosis, doctor visits across specialties peaked.
Tremlett, a professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, cautioned that MS is still uncommon, affecting about 1 million people in the U.S.
“The vast majority of people who visit a doctor for the issues we identified do not develop MS and will not develop MS,” she said. “No one should feel alarmed or concerned by our findings.”
Indeed, extra doctor visits for fatigue or pain are not reasons to get an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan to check for MS-related brain lesions, and it’s certainly not feasible to test everyone who frequently sees a psychiatrist for depression or anxiety.
“We cannot use any of these findings – because they’re too general – to accurately identify someone who goes on to develop MS. But I think it’s really inspiring to think about: What else do we need? Where do we go to next?” Tremlett said, suggesting that perhaps one day, a person’s age, gender, family history, and health care visit pattern could help identify whether they’re at high risk.
“But here’s the key point,” she added. “You need to include something more specific.”
What’s really needed, she said, is a blood test. And Yale School of Medicine researchers in New Haven, Connecticut, are working on just such a test.
Why a Blood Test for MS Is Not a Far-Fetched Idea
Yale professor David Hafler, MD, has studied MS for nearly 50 years. His pivotal research, spanning five decades, identified MS as an autoimmune and genetic disease. A team at his lab is now studying people with a strong family history of MS – an effort that has tallied some 250 genetic variations that heighten risk – with the aim of developing a blood test.
The key, Hafler said, is to monitor those who haven’t yet had the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) – an infection that usually doesn’t have symptoms and spreads through saliva and body fluids; it infects about 90% of people by age 25. A groundbreaking 2022 study linked the virus to MS.
Hafler suspects that in some people, EBV leads to breaking of “tolerance” – that is, it disrupts the immune system’s ability to tolerate its own cells. This leads the body’s autoreactive T cells to attack healthy cells.
Tremlett’s study fits the working model many scientists are using of a prodromal phase of MS, Hafler said.
“What’s happening is the disease is percolating,” Hafler said. “I think there is a first stage before the T cells go into the brain, which is what leads to MS.”
He and his colleagues are watching for changes in blood samples of people being studied after EBV is first detected.
The idea: “If someone starts to develop autoreactive T cells, for example, after an EBV infection, I would treat them with B-cell depletion,” Hafler said, noting that much more research would be needed before taking that step.
Even if a blood test were to be developed, it could raise ethical challenges. Some people have MS that isn’t severe, or they have brain lesions identified on an MRI ordered for a different reason and they never go on to develop symptoms. In these scenarios, B-cell depletion treatment might not be worth the potential side effects, like a weakened immune system.
Also on the horizon is genetic testing for MS. While not yet available outside of research trials, it’s getting more accurate, Hafler said. Alongside those known 250 genetic variants, scientists are examining risk among people whose parents (one or both) have MS. “We haven’t validated this yet, and it’s not a test you can order,” he said, “but the statistics tell us that if you’re in the top 10 percentile [of carrying risk-associated genetic variants], you probably have a 1 in 10 chance of developing MS.”
With the latest research confirming the condition’s long prodromal period, “the next step should be identifying patients at risk, and then to monitor them in the moment they show signs of developing MS biomarkers,” Hafler said.
What to Do if You’re Worried About MS
It’s unlikely that someone with the health care visit patterns revealed in the recent study would be at risk of multiple sclerosis, said MS specialist Brittani Conway, MD, of the University of Minnesota. That said, she also encourages people to advocate for themselves if they think they are having early warning signs.
“Trust your intuition,” she said. “A lot of patients with MS do actually come to me with a bit of PTSD from their experience of being shuffled around the health care system.”
Perhaps, for someone who has a first-degree relative with MS, such a pattern or a sudden change could be worth a discussion with your doctor, Hafler said.
Conway’s advice is to “maintain that determination that there may be something off, even if it’s not showing up right away.”
Also, remember that lifestyle changes – like eating healthy, exercising, and quitting smoking – are all key treatments for MS and for mood disorders, alike.
“Focus on what is in your control,” Conway said. “Focusing on lifestyle will be very helpful, and it’s something that is within the power of the patient even before their diagnosis.”
The Boys star shared an emotional tribute to mark the end of filming on the fifth and final season of the Amazon Prime Video series. On Instagram, Starr admitted he had “been waiting a little to let things settle and try and process the end of this show,” and that it’s “difficult (for me) to put into words what an incredible ride this has been.”
“It’s truly been the highlight of my career,” he wrote. “When we began, I had no idea what was coming. This juggernaut left the station and never stopped. Except for that Covid moment. Oh and the strikes. That was a thing too. But apart from those two times, it never stopped, boldly making its mark on the television landscape. There’s nothing else like it. It lives in its own lane.”
Starr added, “I love this show. And I love this character. Truly. I will dearly miss heading to work, knowing what we were aiming for but never knowing where we would find ourselves by the end of the day…only that we would have fun and it would be creatively rewarding in the extreme.”
On The Boys, Starr portrays the famed, infamous villain Homelander of the superhero group the Seven. After playing the character throughout its full five seasons (with the final season yet to release), the actor further sang praises to Homelander, writing, “This complicated character allowed the space and range to discover and push boundaries in a way I never expected and I will always be grateful for this experience.”
Towards the end of the post, Starr directly thanked series creator Eric Kripke: “And of course huge gratitude to my co-parent with this twisted gem of a character- @erickripke1. We created a monster, sir. And I will miss him, and you. Til we roll out the last season. When I’ll see you. But this creative chapter is closed, and I’ll miss it, brother.”
Kripke recently revealed filming on season five of The Boys wrapped in early July with his own emotional Instagram post. There, he shared an image of himself overlooking the infamous Seven meeting room where the group of seven supes (aka superheroes) convene, writing, “We have the best cast, the best crew, the most fun story to write, and something that is impossible to predict: the right timing. You wait your whole career to have maybe two of those things, if you’re lucky. We got all of them.”
After it was announced season five would be the last season of the superhero drama, Kripke told The Hollywood Reporter he always knew he “wanted to wrap it out around season five.” Still, the success of the show birthed a whole franchise of superhero content.
The Boys expanded with the spinoff series Gen V in 2023, which spotlights a group of young supes attending a superhero-only college. Season two arrives on Prime Video on Sept. 17. Plus, the streamer announced in July it ordered a prequel series, entitled Vought Rising, that will center in on supes Soldier Boy and Stormfront (played by Jensen Ackles and Aya Cash, respectively).
Starr concluded in his post, “And finally- massive thank you to the fans. You are the life blood. Without you, we don’t get to do this. And our fans are second to none. Mad love to you….and deepest respect for your taste. Okidoke people. We cooked for the last time. Can’t wait to show you what we made. TIL that day, Homelander, signing off. Xo.”
Taylor Swift’s sit-down with boyfriend and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and his brother, retired Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, for their “New Heights” podcast will debut Wednesday night as she discusses her upcoming album.
The Kelces will kick off their show at 7 p.m. ET with special guest Swift, who is expected to divulge more details about her 12th studio album.
The podcast’s start-time also coincides with a countdown on Swift’s website that appeared Wednesday afternoon and expires also at 7 p.m. The site shows a black screen, in the middle of which is a floating and sparkling door, one that fans pointed out matches a part of one of the closing displays from the Eras Tour. Below and to the left sits an orange lock box.
Monday threw the Swiftie fandom into a frenzy, when, minutes apart, both “New Heights” and Taylor Nation, a social media account affiliated with Swift’s team, seemed to hint at major pending news.
It started with a social media post from “New Heights” on Monday morning, teasing a new episode with a major guest. In the promo image, Jason Kelce wore a shirt with Swift’s face on it, and fans insisted a silhouette of said guest resembled Swift.
Shortly afterward, Taylor Nation shared a carousel of 12 photos on Instagram, featuring Swift during the Eras Tour performing in orange outfits. The caption read, “Thinking about when she said ‘See you next era…’”
On Monday night, a countdown to 12:12 a.m. Aug. 12 began on Swift’s website, and later, “New Heights” confirmed the guest rumors, posting a video clip of Swift recording the podcast with the Kelces.
“We’re about to do a f—ing podcast,” Swift exclaims in the video.
Finally, at 12:12 a.m. Tuesday, when the countdown was up, “New Heights” posted another snippet of Swift showing the brothers her new album, “The Life of a Showgirl.”
No other details about the album were revealed, but fans were able to place pre-orders on Swift’s website. The pre-orders will ship before Oct. 13, but the website said that is “not a release date” and added that the official date will be announced later.
Fans are hopeful Wednesday’s podcast will bring more details, like the reveal of the album cover, song titles and an official release date.
“Life of a Showgirl” will be Swift’s first release of 2025 and her first since the Eras tour wrapped last year. It follows the news in May that she was able to purchase the masters of her first six records from Shamrock Capital, gaining ownership of her entire catalog.
Topics of discussion on the podcast will likely not be limited to just her album, however, as “New Heights” posted another teaser Wednesday morning where Swift trolled “male sports fans” in the audience.
“And we all know that if there’s one thing that male sports fans want to see in their spaces and on their screens, it’s more of me,” Swift said on the podcast, tongue firmly in cheek.
Weight loss before in vitro fertilization (IVF) could improve reproductive outcomes by increasing the chances of getting pregnant, according to findings published by investigators in Annals of Internal Medicine. The study authors, from the University of Oxford, noted that while chances of getting pregnant were even greater in unassisted conception, the effect on live births remains unclear.1,2
Image credit: Christoph Burgstedt | stock.adobe.com
Obesity and Infertility
As obesity continues to rise globally, researchers have linked the condition to various health complications, including fertility; however, the exact effects of excess weight on reproductive health remain a subject of debate—despite its known risk for other conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.3
Previous studies suggest that obesity negatively impacts reproductive and pregnancy outcomes, but it is unclear if pre-artificial reproductive therapy (ART) weight loss improves results for individuals with both obesity and infertility. Evidence from existing studies highlighted in Nature indicates that obesity in women reduces ovarian response and affects egg and endometrial quality, thereby increasing miscarriage rates during ART. This suggests that while obesity may harm fertility, ART might help mitigate these effects.3
Obesity and IVF
Researchers reviewed 12 randomized controlled trials (RCTs), consisting of a total of 1921 patients from 5 electronic databases between 1980 and May 2025. The women involved in the RCTs were at least 18 years old or older with a body mass index of 27 kg/m² or greater. A BMI of 25 to 29.9 places women as overweight, and a BMI of 30 or higher is obesity.
All women assessed from the RCTs were seeking IVF with or without intracytoplasmic sperm injection treatment for infertility. The study authors noted that 2 independent reviewers conducted screening and data extraction to assess the risk of bias and certainty of evidence. The primary end points of the study were pregnancy and live birth rates—specifically, the number of participants achieving pregnancy without IVF, overall births, and those delivering a live infant. Where applicable, studies were pooled using random-effects meta-analyses.1,2
Among the 12 RCTs, 7 had a high risk of bias. Additionally, the researchers identified that the average participants were in their early thirties with a median baseline BMI of 33.6 kg/m². Weight loss measures that were studied included low-energy diets, an exercise program followed by healthy eating advice, and pharmacotherapy with diet and physical activity advice.1,2
Moderate certainty evidence suggests that pre-IVF weight loss interventions increase total pregnancy rates (risk ratio [RR], 1.21) and unassisted conception pregnancies (RR, 1.47), although their effect on pregnancies from IVF alone is uncertain. Further results demonstrated that these interventions did not appear to be linked with an increase in pregnancy loss rates (RR, 1.05) with moderate certainty, but their impact on live birth rates remains unclear due to very low certainty of evidence (RR, 1.15).1,2
The findings suggest that weight loss before IVF resulted in an increase in total pregnancies, specifically among women with unassisted pregnancy rates. However, larger clinical trials are needed to assess different weight loss interventions since the RCTs in this current study had small sample sizes and a high risk of bias.1,2
REFERENCES
1. Moscho Michalopoulou, Susan Ann Jebb, Alice Hobson, et al. The Effect of Weight Loss Before In Vitro Fertilization on Reproductive Outcomes in Women With Obesity: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Ann Intern Med. [Epub 12 August 2025]. doi:10.7326/ANNALS-24-01025
2. Losing weight before IVF may increase chance of pregnancy. EurekAlert! News release. August 11, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1093687
3. Jeong, H.G., Cho, S., Ryu, KJ. et al. Effect of weight loss before in vitro fertilization in women with obesity or overweight and infertility: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sci Rep14, 6153 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-56818-4
BRUSSELS (Belgium) – Belgium are becoming somewhat of a regular participant at FIBA EuroBasket events in recent years, securing their 19th qualification in total and sixth in a row.
They only qualified for the Final Round once from 1981 to 2009, but they made it six straight successful Qualifiers campaigns from 2011 to 2025, proving that basketball is on the rise in the country.
Glory days may well be long gone as Belgium haven’t made it to the top eight since 1977 on home soil. Securing Round of 16 at the last showing was deemed a success, and Dario Gjergja’s team will aim to replicate or even improve on that. However, things will be tougher as their star player Retin Obasohan is out due to injury.
Schedule
August 28: vs France (17:00 CET) August 30: vs Iceland (14:00 CET) August 31: vs Slovenia (14:00 CET) September 2: vs Israel (14:00 CET) September 4: vs Poland (20:30 CET)
📅
Games
The full FIBA EuroBasket 2025 schedule
Star Player
Ismael Bako
208 cm (6’10”) | Center
With Retin Obasohan dropping out of the Belgium’s EuroBasket squad due to injury sustained during preparations, many things will now fall on Ismael Bako’s broad shoulders to step up. The 30-year old center now becomes Belgium’s centerpiece as he comes into his third EuroBasket tournament, making his debut in 2017.
Bako is somewhat of a household name in European basketball. A regular part of Belgium’s campaign, this big man has also established himself in the club competitions, playing across the Europe. This tells us he should be force to be reckoned with in the paint whenever Belgium take the floor in Katowice.
He also helped Belgium secure their Final Round spot, albeit taking the passenger seat behind Obasohan and Emmanuel Lecomte with 7.3 points and 4.7 rebounds on average across three Qualifiers games. However, something resembling 12.9 points and 7.0 rebounds per game during the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Qualifiers will be needed now if Belgium want to achieve their goals.
History
6th
participation in a row
Belgium never finished on the podium in this competition, coming the closest all the way back in 1947, when they were fourth, just behind the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and Egypt.
They finished in the top 10 exactly 10 times, however, only one of those 10 came in this millennium, back in Slovenia in 2013, when they were 9th with three wins in eight games.
Since the new format was introduced in 2015, Belgium were in the Round of 16 twice, in 2015 and 2022, failing to reach it in 2017, when a 1-4 record was good enough only for 19th spot.
When all four of Taloa Lam Shong’s children were struck down with dengue fever in Samoa, she was on high alert.
“I was scared and worried, knowing dengue fever had claimed children’s lives,” she said.
Nearly 8,000 people have been diagnosed with the disease in Samoa this year, with children accounting for more than 70 per cent of cases, and six deaths reported.
“Many of our people have been infected with dengue fever, but I believe the children have borne the heaviest burden, as it has tragically claimed their lives,”
Ms Shong said.
Taloa Lam Shong’s children were infected with dengue fever this year. (ABC News: Adel Fruean)
Cases are escalating fast in Samoa, which recorded more than 1,900 clinically diagnosed dengue cases last week.
The Pacific’s health authorities are scrambling to contain its spread across the region. It has killed 18 people, and the World Health Organization (WHO) says it is the largest outbreak in at least a decade.
The Samoan National Emergency Operation Centre has undertaken a national dengue fever fumigation campaign across schools. (Supplied: Government of Samoa)
“This year has been another big peak of dengue, but the peak has been much bigger than any of the other peaks we’ve seen before,” said Mark Jacobs, director of Pacific technical support at the WHO.
Dengue fever is a viral infection transmitted between mosquitoes and humans, and outbreaks are often triggered by an infected person entering a country.
When local mosquitoes bite them, they later transmit the disease by biting other people.
Symptoms of dengue fever include high temperature, muscle aches, joint pain, nausea, and vomiting.
While most people recover within a week, in some cases, worse symptoms arise after seven days — a sign that severe dengue fever is developing.
Pacific Island communities have conducted rubbish clean-ups to reduce the habitats for mosquitoes spreading dengue fever. (Supplied: World Health Organization)
“Really bad stomach pain, lots of vomiting, really rapid breathing, you can get bleeding from your gums, nose, or in your bowel movements, or in vomit,” Dr Jacobs said.
Samoan authorities are trying to contain the disease, fumigating schools and other facilities, and warning the public to take precautions.
Public health programs are underway region-wide to prevent dengue fever. (Supplied: Pacific Community)
“It is important to heed the advice from the Ministry of Health,” Samoa’s prime minister, Fiame Naomi Mata’afa, said in a video broadcast online last week.
“Please seek immediate medical assistance if your child develops dengue fever symptoms; do not wait until it is too late.
“Early treatment can save lives.”
Climate makes Pacific vulnerable to outbreaks
Experts say dengue fever has spread across the Pacific as people carrying the infection have travelled across the region.
American Samoa, Tonga, French Polynesia, Kiribati and Tuvalu are grappling with cases.
And in Samoa, the Cook Islands, and Nauru, the outbreak is still growing.
Samoan communities are clearing breeding habitats for mosquitoes to prevent dengue fever. (Facebook: Samoa Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development)
In Nauru, the government said a 15-year-old boy and a seven-year-old girl died on July 31 from dengue fever.
Dr Jacobs said there had been 23,500 suspected cases of dengue fever, and more than 16,000 laboratory-confirmed cases across the Pacific this year.
He said the region’s climate made it vulnerable to outbreaks.
“It can be easier for the mosquito to breed faster, or to pass on the virus to somebody when there’s the right combination of temperature and humidity,”
Dr Jacobs said.
Fiji has been the worst-hit among Pacific countries this year, reporting more than 14,000 suspected cases and 11,000 lab-confirmed cases.
But the outbreak in Fiji has peaked already, and case numbers are decreasing.
Environmental health officers in Fiji spray an area to prevent mosquitoes spreading dengue fever. (Facebook: Fiji Ministry of Health and Medical Services)
Its tourism authority has warned visitors to take precautions, and says Fiji’s popular tourist areas and resorts are treated for mosquitoes.
“If they’re coming across to Fiji and they’re staying in a modern resort or island resort or similar to that, the owners, general managers and staff of those locations are taking all the precautions they possibly can and putting a lot of things in place,” Tourism Fiji chief executive Brent Hill said.
“We haven’t had too many reports [of infection] coming back from tourists.
“We take it seriously and we try and do everything we can to minimise the risk.
“Sadly, the prevalence of dengue fever in places like Fiji is often in our villages and often in parts of Fiji where tourists don’t go.”
‘No bite, no dengue’
Dr Jacobs said it was estimated that about half the world’s population lived in areas at risk of dengue fever, and that 100 to 400 million cases were recorded each year.
Mark Jacobs says the number of dengue fever cases is still growing for many Pacific countries. (Supplied: World Health Organization)
While there are no medications for it, experts say there are simple ways to avoid infection, including:
Wearing long-sleeve and loose-fitting tops and trousers
Covering windows and doors with screens at home
Wearing an effective insect repellent
Using mosquito coils indoors
Removing any still or stagnant water used by mosquitoes as breeding habitats
“If you don’t get bitten by mosquitoes, you don’t get dengue,” Dr Jacobs said.
But he said people were not protected from severe cases if they had previously had dengue fever.
“If you’re getting dengue for the second time, you’re much more likely to get severe dengue,” he said.
Experts say climate change will create more areas where mosquitoes can spread dengue virus. (Reuters: James Gathany/Center for Disease Control)
Dr Jacobs said anyone experiencing symptoms of severe dengue fever needed to act quickly.
“If you go off and you get good quality care, then you’re much less likely to die as a result of that.”
Dengue research
As the world awaits vaccines and medications for dengue fever, scientists looking to eliminate the disease are putting their hopes in bacteria called Wolbachia that live inside insects.
University of Melbourne research fellow Perran Ross said they could block the transmission of viruses spread by mosquitoes.
Perran Ross says Wolbachia bacteria are useful in preventing dengue fever outbreaks. (ABC News: Lachlan Bennett)
“It actually alters the reproduction, so that when the male mosquitoes have Wolbachia and the female mosquitoes don’t, they don’t produce any viable offspring,” he said.
“If you get enough mosquitoes in the wild that carry the Wolbachia, that can actually reduce their ability to spread viruses.”
Dr Ross said it had been used in places like Queensland, and was the reason the state no longer had local dengue transmission.
“The bacteria that are being released around the world, it’s reducing dengue by more than 50 per cent in some locations,” he said.
But Dr Ross said climate change was complicating efforts to control dengue fever by increasing the number of habitats where disease-carrying mosquitoes could live and breed.
“We do expect dengue to get worse as things get warmer and wetter,”
he said.
In Samoa, families are monitoring for symptoms of dengue fever.
“Many children in our family were infected with dengue fever, including all five of my sister’s children and my 15-year-old daughter,” Faalaniga Repoamo, a mother of six, said.
“When our daughter was sick, we didn’t leave it until it was too late; we saw the symptoms and rushed her to seek help.
“Parents should stay alert and identify the symptoms early, and take them to the hospital before their condition worsens.”
