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Self-esteem is overrated. The better path to enlightenment is through contemplating one’s insignificance.

Engagement with technology, far from contributing to “brain rot,” may offer cognitive benefits to older adults.

There’s a tradition around many Thanksgiving dinner tables that’s as consistent as pumpkin pie: the family stories that get told year after year. Sometimes these stories are funny; sometimes they make us roll our eyes. No matter how we feel about them, we rarely pause to consider how these stories shape who we are and how we view the world. This week, we revisit a favorite 2024 conversation about family storytelling with psychologist Robyn Fivush. Then, in a new installment of “Your Questions Answered,” Massimo Pigliucci answers listener questions about Stoicism, and why this ancient philosophy continues to resonate today.

Business depends on innovation, but what makes it accelerate or stagnate over time? Thanks Kimberly!

Government-spec’d glory projects produce tech demos. Enduring progress demands a better way forward. Counterpoints KEY TAKEAWAYS OF FIRST LINK ABOVE: In this op-ed, Blake Scholl, CEO of Boom Supersonic, argues that government-led “glory projects” ultimately hurt the aerospace industry they were meant to advance. He writes that both the Apollo and Concorde programs chased prestige over practicality, producing technological marvels with no sustainable path forward. Scholl believes the future of aerospace depends on entrepreneurial builders who pair bold ambition with economic discipline.

At the foundation of America’s progress movement are immigrants who still believe this country can build. KEY TAKEAWAYS In October, the Roots of Progress Institute organized Progress Conference 2025 to connect people and ideas in the progress movement. In this dispatch from the conference, writer and RPI fellow Afra Wang explores how immigrant founders are driving America’s new era of “physical dynamism.” She finds that America’s capacity to build — and to believe in building — depends on keeping its doors open to the people who still see it as a nation of possibility.

Before we can build the future, we have to imagine it. KEY TAKEAWAYS In this op-ed, Beatrice Erkers argues that progress begins with culture: the stories, symbols, and shared visions that make certain futures feel worth building. She explores how cultural forces like memes and movies act as “invisible infrastructure,” shaping technology, policy, and ambition long before they materialize in the real world. According to Erkers, we must deliberately invest in a culture of hope — one that inspires creation rather than fear of the future — to drive meaningful progress.

New special issue “The Engine of Progress” is out now.

He increasingly felt like he was wasting his time as a lawyer. Now, he hopes he can continue practicing his new profession until he’s 70.

Hated by some in the U.S., the warplane has tilted the balance in the Middle East Quick Summary Israel’s military advantage, largely due to its F-35 fleet, is threatened by a potential US sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia. Israeli officials fear F-35 sales to Saudi Arabia could lead to sales to other nations like Turkey, eroding Israel’s air superiority. Israel acquired 25 more F-35s in June 2024, bringing its total to 75, and seeks advanced US technology to maintain its military edge.

New devices navigate without satellites or risk of enemy jamming signals Quick Summary Scientists are exploring the use of quantum sensors as a secure alternative to GPS with military and civilian applications. A recent test involved a device that shines lasers at atoms that behave like compass needles. GPS signal jamming and spoofing has become commonplace, leading scientists to explore the quantum properties of atoms to aid navigation in contested environments.

Across a number of key benchmarks, the new model received top scores. Related