🌊 Your Brain on ChatGPT

“I want to just thank everybody, in particular, God.”

Whether you were catching up on Love Island, watching the LSU-Coastal Carolina College World Series game, or sending “you up?” messages to ChatGPT, the news of the US bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities hit like a bomb (sorry, we fired our metaphor intern) on Saturday night. The World War 3 memes were immediate, and you probably saw some of your group chats blow up. So much for a chill Saturday, huh?

In all seriousness, we know these are fearful times, so make sure to detach from the doom-and-gloom news cycle. Big News fuels your fear for profit and thrives on times like these. So breathe in, breathe out, read Roca, and live your life.

–Max and Max

KEY STORY

AI Cooking Our Brains

A new study from MIT’s Media Lab suggests that using ChatGPT to write essays weakens critical thinking and lowers brain activity during writing tasks

• Researchers divided participants into three groups – one using ChatGPT, one using Google Search, and one using no tools – and monitored their brain activity using EEG sensors

• The ChatGPT group showed the lowest brain engagement while writing and underperformed across cognitive measures

• While researchers acknowledged limitations in the study, they warned that overreliance on AI tools could undermine learning, particularly for younger users

Dig Deeper

• The study’s lead researcher, Nataliya Kosmyna, warned that overreliance on large language models (LLMs) could impair learning, especially for developing minds

• Though the study is small and has not yet been peer-reviewed, Kosmyna felt the findings were urgent enough to share early

• “What really motivated me to put it out now before waiting for a full peer review is that I am afraid in 6-8 months, there will be some policymaker who decides, ‘let’s do GPT kindergarten.’ I think that would be absolutely bad and detrimental,” she said

• “Developing brains are at the highest risk”

KEY STORY

Mahmoud Khalil Released

Mahmoud Khalil was released from detention

• Immigration officers arrested Khalil, a Syrian-born green card-holder at Columbia University, this March over his leadership in pro-Palestine protests

• The government had detained him under a law allowing deportation of individuals deemed harmful to US foreign policy. On Friday, a judge ordered his release, calling the detention likely unconstitutional and saying he posed no flight risk or violent threat

• After being released, he said, “The fact that I'm here, it sends a message…My existence is a message”

Dig Deeper 

• Khalil was initially detained under a provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 that allowed the Secretary of State to seek deportation if a noncitizen’s presence could cause “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences”

• “There is at least something to the underlying claim that there is an effort to use the immigration charge here to punish Mr. Khalil,” said the judge, “And of course that would be unconstitutional”

• Khalil has since returned to New York, but also faces a separate court proceeding before an immigration judge

QUOTE OF THE DAY

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KEY STORY

US Strikes Iran

On Saturday night, the US bombed Iran’s Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites

• The mission sought to help Israel destroy nuclear facilities that Israel might not be able to

• Trump called the mission “very successful” and said the US “obliterated” Iran’s underground Fordow facility, however, that has not been independently verified. As of Monday morning, Iran had vowed to retaliate but has not yet done so

• The UN, Saudi Arabia, and Russia were among those who condemned the strike; the UK, France, and Germany supported it; and American politicians roughly split along party lines

Dig Deeper

• Last week, Trump said he would decide whether or not to bomb within two weeks. On Saturday night – only three days after the two-week warning – Trump posted on Truth Social that the US “completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan”

• In an address to the nation at 10 PM that night, Trump said, “There will be either peace, or there will be tragedy for Iran, far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days. Remember, there are many targets left. Tonight was the most difficult of them all, by far, and perhaps the most lethal. But if peace does not come quickly, we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill”

KEY STORY

What’s Next in Iran?

Iran has vowed to retaliate but is yet to do so

• Iran’s options include: Attacking energy infrastructure or US bases in the Middle East; closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of global oil passes; or activating “sleeper” terror cells throughout the West

• However it responds, Iran’s government must weigh the risk of being toppled – which could happen if it attacks the US – with the risk of a coup from hardliners, if its reaction is insufficiently weak

Dig Deeper 

• So far, American officials have said they are not looking to topple Iran’s regime, although on Sunday, Trump posted, “It’s not politically correct to use the term, ‘Regime Change,’ but if the…Iranian Regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn’t there be a Regime change??? MIGA!!!”

• Israel, meanwhile, has floated regime change

• Another question is how much of Iran’s enriched uranium remains intact – a detail that could impact Iran’s ability to restart its program or assemble a weapon. While it’s unknown how much, analysts speculate that Iran likely moved some of the uranium stockpiles before the US bombings

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

⚾ The Los Angeles Dodgers said they denied entry to ICE agents at Dodger Stadium, though federal officials disputed that any agents were present

📊 Former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati raised $2B in seed funding for her AI startup, Thinking Machines Lab, valuing the six-month-old company at $10B

🚘 On Sunday, Tesla launched its first robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, offering autonomous rides to a limited group of users

💊 Novo Nordisk, maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, released late-stage trial data on its newest weight-loss drug, CagriSema

🎈 At least eight people died after a hot air balloon caught fire and crashed in Praia Grande, a popular ballooning spot in southern Brazil

What does Roca Nation think?

🇺🇸 Today’s Question: What was your reaction to the bombing of Iran?

Reply to this email with your response!

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

👯‍♂️ Seeing Double at Graduation: John F. Kennedy High School in Long Island graduated 15 sets of twins in a class of almost 500 students

💑 Cheese the Day: A record-breaking 1,180 cheese lovers gathered in Sopó, Colombia, for the world’s largest cheese-tasting

🐝 Buzz Kill: “Killer bees” – a notoriously aggressive hybrid species – are spreading across the US, with confirmed sightings in at least 13 states

🔭 Star of the Show: The Royal Observatory Greenwich, birthplace of modern astronomy and home of the Prime Meridian, turned 350 years old on Sunday

🦷 Brace Yourself: Czech police have accused a family of three of running a fake dental clinic without licenses, degrees, or proper equipment

ROCA WRAP
Prisoner Release

Belarus

A US-brokered deal led this country to release its most prominent political prisoner. Belarus – a landlocked Eastern European nation often called "Europe's last dictatorship" – has been under the rule of President Alexander Lukashenko since 1994.

Perhaps the most serious threat to Lukashenko’s rule came in 2020 when fraudulent elections triggered massive protests. The regime responded violently, arresting tens of thousands and forcing opposition leaders into exile.

On Saturday, a visit by US special envoy Keith Kellogg led Belarus to release a group of those prisoners, including Siarhei Tsikhanouski, who ran against Lukashenko in the 2020 vote. Over the weekend, Tsikhanouskaya was reunited with his wife, fellow opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who had been living in exile.

"The visit of Trump's envoy… brought a very concrete result: Release political prisoners," said one leading opposition spokesperson. Tsikhanouski had been serving an 19.5-year prison sentence under the harshest possible conditions, with no family visits, phone calls, or confidential meetings with lawyers. His wife had no contact with him since his imprisonment and previously told reporters she didn't know if he was still alive.

According to a prominent Belarusian human rights group, over 50,000 people have been detained in Belarus on political grounds since the 2020 protests, with at least 5,472 convicted in politically-motivated cases, with between 15-20 people still being detained daily. Yet since last year, Lukashenko has been regularly pardoning small numbers of political prisoners, suggesting a desire to ease tensions with the West.

If that’s the case, Saturday’s releases may be the biggest proof yet.

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

Why did we have to hear the “Bomb Iran” adaptation of “Barbara Ann” by the Beach Boys? It’s hard to cover this serious story with “bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran” playing in the back of our heads. Brian Wilson didn’t die for this.

Despite these tumultuous times (talking to you, Indiana Pacers fans), we hope you had a wonderful weekend. Now let’s start the week strong with a productive Monday!

–Max and Max