{"id":898994,"date":"2026-04-14T03:12:31","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T08:12:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/14\/the-download-how-humans-make-decisions-and-modernas-vaccine-word-games\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T03:12:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T08:12:31","slug":"the-download-how-humans-make-decisions-and-modernas-vaccine-word-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/14\/the-download-how-humans-make-decisions-and-modernas-vaccine-word-games\/","title":{"rendered":"The Download: how humans make decisions, and Moderna\u2019s \u201cvaccine\u201d word games"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Plus: Sam\u00a0Altman’s\u00a0home has\u00a0been\u00a0attacked\u00a0twice\u00a0in\u00a0two\u00a0days.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n

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This is today’s edition of <\/em>The Download<\/em><\/a>, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.<\/em><\/p>\n

You have no choice in reading this article\u2014maybe<\/h3>\n

How do humans make decisions? The question has been on Uri Maoz\u2019s mind since he read an article in his early twenties suggesting that\u2026 maybe they didn\u2019t. \u00a0
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Had he even had a choice about whether to read that article in the first place? How would he ever know if he was truly responsible for making any decisions? \u201cAfter that, there was no turning back,\u201d says Maoz, now a professor of computational neuroscience at Chapman University.\u00a0
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Today, Maoz is a central figure in efforts to understand how desires and beliefs turn into actions. He\u2019s also uncovered new wrinkles in the debate. Read the full story on his discoveries<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\u2014Sarah Scoles<\/em><\/p>\n

This article<\/a> is from the next issue of our print magazine, packed with stories all about nature. Subscribe now<\/a> to read the full thing when it lands on Wednesday, April 22.<\/strong><\/p>\n

What\u2019s in a name? Moderna\u2019s \u201cvaccine\u201d vs. \u201ctherapy\u201d dilemma\u00a0<\/h3>\n
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Moderna, the covid-19 shot maker, is using its mRNA technology to destroy tumors through a very, very promising technique known as a cancer vacc\u2014\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a vaccine,\u201d a spokesperson for Merck said before the V-word could be uttered. \u201cIt\u2019s an individualized neoantigen therapy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Oh, but it is a vaccine, and it looks like a possible breakthrough. But it\u2019s been rebranded to avoid vaccine fearmongering\u2014and not everyone is happy about the word game. Read the full story.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u2014Antonio Regalado<\/em><\/p>\n

This article<\/a> is from The Checkup, our weekly newsletter covering the latest in biotech.\u00a0Sign up<\/a> to receive it in your inbox every Thursday.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The must reads<\/strong><\/p>\n

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I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun\/important\/scary\/fascinating stories about technology.<\/em><\/p>\n

1 Sam\u00a0Altman’s\u00a0home has\u00a0been\u00a0attacked\u00a0twice\u00a0in\u00a0two\u00a0days\u00a0<\/strong>
A\u00a0driver\u00a0reportedly\u00a0fired\u00a0a\u00a0gun\u00a0at\u00a0his\u00a0property\u00a0on\u00a0Sunday. (SF Standard<\/a>)\u00a0
+ A Molotov\u00a0cocktail\u00a0was\u00a0thrown\u00a0at\u00a0his\u00a0home\u00a0on\u00a0Friday.<\/em>\u00a0(NBC News<\/a>)\u00a0
+\u00a0The\u00a0suspect\u00a0wrote\u00a0essays\u00a0warning\u00a0AI\u00a0would\u00a0end\u00a0humanity.\u00a0<\/em>(SF Chronicle<\/a>)\u00a0
+\u00a0The\u00a0attacks\u00a0expose\u00a0growing\u00a0divides in\u00a0opinion\u00a0on\u00a0AI.\u00a0<\/em>(Axios<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

2 AI\u00a0weapons\u00a0are\u00a0ushering\u00a0in a new\u00a0kind\u00a0of\u00a0arms\u00a0race\u00a0<\/strong>
Countries are\u00a0racing\u00a0to\u00a0deploy\u00a0AI in\u00a0military\u00a0systems. (NYT<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0
+\u00a0The\u00a0Pentagon\u00a0wants\u00a0AI\u00a0firms\u00a0to\u00a0train\u00a0on\u00a0classified\u00a0data.\u00a0<\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0
+\u00a0Where\u00a0OpenAI’s\u00a0technology\u00a0could\u00a0show\u00a0up in\u00a0Iran.<\/em>\u00a0(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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3 Artemis II\u00a0was\u00a0a\u00a0success\u00a0<\/strong>
Astronauts did an array of experiments that will be crucial to the future of both the program itself and deep-space missions.\u00a0(Guardian<\/a>)\u00a0
+\u00a0But\u00a0next\u00a0steps\u00a0for\u00a0the\u00a0Artemis\u00a0missions\u00a0are\u00a0uncertain.\u00a0<\/em>(Ars Technica<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

4 OpenAI and Elon Musk are heading toward a massive courtroom clash<\/strong>
The\u00a0company\u00a0has\u00a0accused\u00a0Musk\u00a0of\u00a0a “legal\u00a0ambush.\u201d\u00a0(Engadget<\/a>)\u00a0
+\u00a0He\u2019s\u00a0lost\u00a0a\u00a0streak\u00a0of\u00a0cases\u00a0ahead\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0showdown.<\/em>\u00a0(FT<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0<\/p>\n

5 AI\u00a0job\u00a0fears\u00a0in China are\u00a0fueling\u00a0a viral \u201cability\u00a0harvester\u201d project\u00a0<\/strong>
It\u00a0claims\u00a0to\u00a0turn\u00a0human\u00a0skills\u00a0into\u00a0AI\u00a0tools. (SCMP<\/a>)\u00a0
+\u00a0Hustlers\u00a0are\u00a0cashing\u00a0in\u00a0on\u00a0China’s\u00a0OpenClaw\u00a0AI\u00a0craze.\u00a0<\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

6\u00a0Governments\u00a0are\u00a0hiding\u00a0information\u00a0about\u00a0the\u00a0Iran\u00a0war\u00a0online\u00a0<\/strong>
Through\u00a0restrictions\u00a0on\u00a0internet\u00a0access\u00a0and\u00a0satellite\u00a0imagery. (NPR<\/a>)\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

7 Apple\u00a0is\u00a0testing\u00a0four\u00a0smart\u00a0glasses\u00a0that\u00a0could\u00a0rival Meta Ray-Bans\u00a0<\/strong>
They\u2019re\u00a0part\u00a0of\u00a0a\u00a0broader\u00a0wearables\u00a0strategy. (Bloomberg<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0<\/p>\n

8 Meta is building an AI version of Mark Zuckerberg to interact with staff
<\/strong>It\u2019s\u00a0being\u00a0trained\u00a0on\u00a0his\u00a0mannerisms,\u00a0voice, and\u00a0statements. (FT<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0<\/p>\n

9\u00a0Anthropic\u00a0is\u00a0asking\u00a0Christian\u00a0leaders\u00a0for\u00a0guidance\u00a0<\/strong>
It\u2019s\u00a0seeing\u00a0advice\u00a0on\u00a0building\u00a0moral machines. (WP<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0
+ AI\u00a0agents\u00a0have\u00a0spread\u00a0their\u00a0own\u00a0religions.\u00a0<\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

10\u00a0A\u00a0dancer\u00a0with\u00a0MND\u00a0is\u00a0performing\u00a0again\u00a0through\u00a0an\u00a0avatar\u00a0<\/strong>
Her\u00a0brainwaves\u00a0powered\u00a0the\u00a0digital\u00a0dancer. (BBC<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Quote of the day<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cEarth was this lifeboat hanging in the universe.\u201d<\/h2>\n

\u2014Artemis II\u00a0astronaut\u00a0Christina Koch describes\u00a0her\u00a0view\u00a0of\u00a0Earth\u00a0from\u00a0space,\u00a0the Guardian<\/a>\u00a0reports.<\/p>\n

One more thing<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\"figure<\/p>\n

RAVEN JIANG<\/p>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n

How AI and Wikipedia have sent vulnerable languages into a doom spiral<\/h4>\n
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When Kenneth Wehr started managing the Greenlandic-language version of Wikipedia, he discovered that almost every article had been written by people who didn\u2019t speak the language. \u00a0<\/p>\n

A growing number of them had been copy-pasted into Wikipedia from machine translators\u2014and were riddled with elementary mistakes. This is beginning to cause a wicked problem.\u00a0<\/p>\n

AI systems, from Google Translate to ChatGPT, learn new languages by scraping text from Wikipedia. This could push the most vulnerable languages on Earth toward the precipice.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read the full story on what happens when AI gets trained on junk pages<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u2014Jacob Judah\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

We can still have nice things<\/strong><\/p>\n

A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day.\u00a0(Got any ideas?\u00a0Drop me a line<\/a>.)<\/em><\/p>\n

+\u00a0Hungary\u2019s\u00a0next\u00a0health\u00a0minister\u00a0can\u00a0throw some serious shapes<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0
+\u00a0Here\u2019s\u00a0a\u00a0welcome\u00a0route\u00a0to\u00a0an AI-free Google search<\/a>.\u00a0
+\u00a0Movievia<\/a>\u00a0eschews\u00a0endless\u00a0scrolling\u00a0to\u00a0find\u00a0the\u00a0right\u00a0film\u00a0for\u00a0your\u00a0needs
+ A photography trick has turned a giant glacier<\/a> into a tiny, living diorama.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Thomas Macaulay<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Plus: Sam\u00a0Altman’s\u00a0home has\u00a0been\u00a0attacked\u00a0twice\u00a0in\u00a0two\u00a0days. This is today’s edition of The Download , our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. You have no choice in reading this article\u2014maybe How do humans make decisions? The question has been on Uri Maoz\u2019s mind since he read an article in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":898995,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24097,4810,46],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-898994","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-download","8":"category-humans","9":"category-technology"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/898994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=898994"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/898994\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/898995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=898994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=898994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=898994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}