All posts tagged: treats

Starbucks’ Baffling ChatGPT Collab Treats Customers Like Empty, Soulless Venti Cups

Starbucks’ Baffling ChatGPT Collab Treats Customers Like Empty, Soulless Venti Cups

Published by José Betancourt

Sign up to see the future, today Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech As AI chatbots go, OpenAI’s ChatGPT isn’t the most provocative. Its relentlessly upbeat, hand-holding style has drawn constant criticism for coming across as condescending. Still, Starbucks’ newly announced partnership with the chatbot may have pushed that paternalism to a whole new level. Announced on Wednesday, the new “Starbucks app” is basically a widget within ChatGPT. After enabling Starbucks connectivity in the ChatGPT app, users can type “@Starbucks” to receive “personalized drink recommendations tailored to your taste, mood, and goals.” According to the Starbucks press release, this can include prompts like “I want something bright to start my morning,” and even ridiculous requests like “recommend a drink that matches the vibe of my outfit.” “You don’t need to know the name of a drink, just start with how you’re feeling or what you’re craving — in your own words or through a photo,” the presser enthuses. “It’s discovery that feels effortless.” We tried out the beta, and though it …

Why sugar may be the reason your skin is ageing – and 6 tricks to stop it without giving up treats

Why sugar may be the reason your skin is ageing – and 6 tricks to stop it without giving up treats

Published by Daniella Wilson

Diet does so much more than simply satisfy our hunger; today, we have a far deeper understanding of how the food we eat actually shapes and impacts our bodies.  This ranges from the importance of Vitamin K after the age of 40 to protect against osteoporosis and premature ageing, to the vital role of probiotics in supporting gut health and lifting our mood.  While nutrition is highly personal and there is no “one-size-fits-all” approach, there is one thing every nutritionist seems to agree on: we should all be cutting down on sugar as much as possible. Why does sugar cause ageing? Sugar does far more than just affect our waistlines; it is also a primary culprit behind premature ageing. This is largely due to glycation, a natural chemical reaction where sugars in the bloodstream attach to proteins like collagen and elastin.  This process causes stiffness and dryness, which eventually leads to a dull complexion and the appearance of wrinkles. The importance of reversing the sugar cycle “Collagen and elastin are the main proteins responsible for …

Toddlers are happier giving treats to others than receiving them, study finds

Toddlers are happier giving treats to others than receiving them, study finds

Published by José Betancourt

A new study published in Developmental Science suggests that the act of giving to others is intrinsically rewarding for humans, even at a very young age. Scientists found that toddlers express more happiness when sharing treats with someone else than when receiving treats themselves. This provides evidence that human cooperation is driven by a natural emotional reward from prosocial behavior, which refers to actions intended to benefit others. Across many different cultures, people routinely share their resources with friends and strangers. These generous acts often come at a personal cost, ranging from giving food to a neighbor to donating an organ. Scientists wanted to understand what motivates this type of deep cooperation. “Human beings are remarkably (pro)social, and some individuals are willing to share resources even at significant personal cost (as seen in surrogate pregnancy and organ donation). We are therefore very interested in exploring the developmental origins and motivational forces behind these generous sharing behaviors,” said study author Enda Tan, an assistant professor at the University of Victoria. Previous research suggests that helping others …

Trump treats war as entertainment

Trump treats war as entertainment

Published by Sam Flores

Donald Trump‘s war of choice against Iran is spiraling. For five decades, experts have warned that military conflict with the country would destabilize the Middle East and fracture the global order. Trump knew this, and yet he proceeded anyway. Previous American presidents have treated their role as commander-in-chief with great respect bordering on dread. Abraham Lincoln’s depression deepened during the Civil War, and the physical toll the conflict took on him can be seen in a series of famous daguerreotypes by Alexander Gardner, Matthew Brady and others. During the Vietnam War, Lyndon Johnson appeared to age in real-time as he and his military advisers sent tens of thousands of American soldiers to their deaths.  How is Donald Trump behaving compared to Lincoln and Johnson? He is reportedly bored by the war, which has killed 13 U.S. service members and nearly 1,500 Iranian civilians. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, up to 3.2 million Iranians have been displaced. As the war progresses, Trump is reportedly being shown daily compilation videos of “stuff blowing up” — …

JB food guide: Railway-themed briyani and seafront treats in Stulang Laut

JB food guide: Railway-themed briyani and seafront treats in Stulang Laut

Published by Sam Flores

We choose to rest our bursting bellies in Jom Cha’s tranquil, cow-themed garden, looking out at the Singapore skyline. With a final thanks to Vimala for welcoming me aboard the day’s itinerary of recommendations, my mind returned to Railway Briyani Station. The theme might suggest a gimmick, but the quality of the menu delivers a substance that more than matches the style. Though it only opened 20 months ago, it has already cemented itself as a favourite in the community. “They love the environment because they feel like they are in Chennai once they enter. All of our ingredients – tea, coffee powder, spices, everything – come from Chennai,” Dineshraj said. “And I travel there regularly to visit relatives and my grandmother.” A fittingly delicious tribute to family and the importance of staying connected to one’s roots. So next time you’re in the area, choo-choo-choose Railway Briyani Station for a one-of-a-kind JB dining experience. Railway Briyani Station is located at Vantage Bay Lot 6376 & 9236, Jalan Ibrahim Sultan, Stulang Laut, 80300 Johor Bahru, Johor Darul Ta’zim, Malaysia. It’s open from 11am to 8pm, closed …

Samsung Earbuds App Treats Motion Sickness With Deep, Soothing Sound

Samsung Earbuds App Treats Motion Sickness With Deep, Soothing Sound

Published by skeptic

Most people have experienced mild motion sickness — perhaps from staring at your phone in the back of an erratic Uber or riding a particularly loopy amusement park ride. It usually passes quickly, but severe cases can be challenging to manage. Samsung now has an app for that. The tech giant’s new Hearapy app for Android uses the headphones you already own to relieve motion sickness with sound. Motion sickness is generally what you get when the signals from your eyes and inner ear don’t jibe with each other, resulting most commonly in dizziness or, in severe cases, nausea, sweats and vomiting. It’s most frequently experienced in cars, on boats and other moving vehicles, but can also be caused by tech, including phones. The disorienting cybersickness, for example, can be brought on by scrolling screens or playing video games or VR.  Frequent or severe motion sickness can be treated with over-the-counter medicine, pressure point therapy, acupuncture, candy or just staring at a fixed point for a while. However, Samsung’s app directly targets and soothes the inner ear by …

Pete Hegseth Treats Fallen American Soldiers as a PR Problem

Pete Hegseth Treats Fallen American Soldiers as a PR Problem

Published by Daniella Wilson

This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here. The United States is at war. Americans, at such a time, might expect their government to speak to them regularly and report on U.S. goals—and casualties—but so far, they have gotten little beyond prerecorded videos of the president and some sound bites from various officials. Even Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has held only a few briefings. Perhaps the Pentagon chief’s reluctance to speak to the press is just as well, because many Americans would be alarmed to realize that their sons and daughters in combat are being overseen by a person as callous as Pete Hegseth. This morning, the defense secretary gave a briefing on the war that quickly degenerated into Trumplike bombast. (Wisely, the Pentagon scheduled this at 8 a.m. eastern time, when most of the country is either sleeping or busy starting their day.) Hegseth apparently …

Restaurants Emerge as Bright Spot for US Job Growth as Consumers Seek Treats

Restaurants Emerge as Bright Spot for US Job Growth as Consumers Seek Treats

Published by Sam Flores

NEW YORK, Feb 27 (Reuters) – On paper, American consumers spent last year tightening ⁠their ⁠belts, and even retail heavyweights stumbled. But sit-down restaurants ⁠and some drive-through chains buzzed with patrons seeking a special treat or cheap comfort food. Their upbeat sales made the ​U.S. restaurant industry a rare bright spot for jobs, with restaurant payrolls ticking up 1% last year, adding about 108,000 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  In contrast, the overall ‌U.S. economy added 181,000 non-farm jobs in 2025, ‌marking the weakest annual payroll growth in 20 years outside a recession year. Success among restaurants was not evenly spread, though. Corporate filings show that eateries such as Brinker’s Chili’s, Yum ⁠Brands’ Taco Bell ⁠and fast-growing coffee chain Dutch Bros lured customers by aggressively marketing bundled deals, leaning into digital innovation ​and limited-time offers, and focusing on high-margin, Instagrammable food.  But previous darlings like Chipotle and Cava were hurt by what analysts call the “slop-bowl fatigue” –  growing weariness among younger consumers with high-priced, customizable grain or salad bowls.  Tempe, Arizona-based …

Book review: George Saunders’s Vigil and Matthew Kressel’s The Rainseekers are sci-fi treats

Book review: George Saunders’s Vigil and Matthew Kressel’s The Rainseekers are sci-fi treats

Published by skeptic

In Vigil, a dying oil magnate is visited by ghosts liebre/Getty Images VigilGeorge Saunders, Bloomsbury In general, I am not a fan of novellas (or short novels). Just as I am sinking into them, they finish. However, while interesting people keep writing interesting-sounding works like these, I feel obliged to keep reading them, and this week I will be featuring not one, but two of these relatively slender tomes. First, there is Vigil by Booker prize-winning author George Saunders, whose novel Lincoln in the Bardo was a global hit. In Vigil, the ghost of a woman called Jill “Doll” Blaine comes plummeting down to Earth to oversee the final hours of an oil tycoon named K.J. Boone. Jill’s job, as she sees it, is to comfort. She likes to help a soul find peace with what they have done. But it turns out that Boone needs no comfort. He is quite happy with the decisions he has made, even though his life as an oil magnate, inevitably, involved so many lies and so much environmental …

Why Stoicism treats self-control as a form of intelligence

Why Stoicism treats self-control as a form of intelligence

Published by Jenni Sidey

Sign up for Big Think on Substack The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free. Stoicism has been flattened into slogans about toughness, detachment, and emotional silence, a version that’s easy to sell, but mostly wrong.  Massimo Pigliucci returns Stoicism to its original purpose: a practical philosophy built to help ordinary people make better judgments, set wiser priorities, and live well with others in a world that resists control. MASSIMO PIGLIUCCI: Today you’re going to learn a little bit about what the Stoics mean by being a good human being. We’ll learn to live more rationally, to conduct a life based on reason, and to deal with our emotions in the best way we can. I am Massimo Pigliucci. I am an evolutionary biologist and a philosopher of science. And my latest book is called “Beyond Stoicism,” co-authored with Greg Lopez and Meredith Kunz. – [Narrator] Chapter 1: What is Stoicism? – Stoicism is a philosophy of life that suggests that the best way to live a human life …