Author: darren

Carlos Alcaraz beats Novak Djokovic in Australian Open final

MELBOURNE, Australia — Carlos Alcaraz is the youngest man ever to complete a career Grand Slam after securing the Australian Open title against Novak Djokovic, who had never lost in his 10 previous finals at Melbourne Park.

Alcaraz, at 22 years, 272 days old, showed no ill effects of the severe cramping that nearly derailed his 5½-hour epic semifinal win against third-seed Alexander Zverev just 48 hours earlier, as he outhustled and overwhelmed the 24-time Grand Slam champion to prevail 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 in 3 hours, 2 minutes.

I had to do a double take when I saw he was not even 23 yet. I know he is young, but was still a shock to read.

A cup of coffee for depression treatment has better results than microdosing

The study has not yet been published. But MindBio’s CEO Justin Hanka recently released the top-line results on his LinkedIn, eager to show that his company was “in front of the curve in microdosing research.” He called it “the most vigorous placebo controlled trial ever performed in microdosing.” It found that patients dosed with a small amount of LSD (ranging from 4 to 20μg, or micrograms, well below the threshold of a mind-blowing hallucinogenic dose) showed observable upticks in feelings of well-being, but worse MADRS scores, compared to patients given a placebo in the form of a caffeine pill. (Because patients in psychedelic trials typically expect some kind of mind-altering effect, studies are often blinded using so-called “active placebos,” like caffeine or methylphenidate, which have their own observable psychoactive properties.)

This means, essentially, that a medium-strength cup of coffee may prove more beneficial in treating major depressive disorder than a tiny dose of acid. Good news for habitual caffeine users, perhaps, but less so for researchers (and bio pharma startups) counting on the efficacy of psychedelic micro dosing.

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Well given the amount of coffee I drink, I will approve of this study. Will take any help I can get. Also, someone tell Elon!

This issue has been talked about for years, courts have been saying that your face and/or fingerprint can be compelled to unlock your phone while they can’t force you to give up the pass code in your head. John Gruber wrote about this a few years ago, and the article contains some good advice that everyone should heed.