Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, a fierce critic of Vladimir Putin, has died in a Russian penal colony. We’ll reflect on Navalny’s impact and what it means to push back against the slow creep of political change. Plus, more evidence that plastic recycling is a myth pushed by the plastics industry. And, we’ll weigh in on the romance novel revival and landline phones in a round of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:




“‘They lied’: plastics producers deceived public about recycling, report reveals” from The Guardian







“Tucker Carlson: ‘No decent person would defend’ what happened to Navalny” from The Hill







“OpenAI teases ‘Sora,’ its new text-to-video AI model” from NBC News







“Best Buy to End DVD, Blu-ray Disc Sales” from Variety







“Making beer with the help of AI” from Axios







“Steamy, sultry and stigmatized no more: romance novels are having a moment” from Marketplace







“The humble landline phone beloved by Gen Z” from Axios





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