The Navigator, Saturday, August 2, 2025
Trump's White House Ballroom, fresh water blues, 'noisy' egos, AI agents, conservative women who 'have it all,' Kamala Harris, job dip—and more
There are people (perhaps many of you) who love August and the beach beyond all reason, and who will be welcoming all 31 days of this month as though they are a reward for a year well-lived.
And then there are others, like writer Haley Mlotek, who wrote recently about August in the Paris Review, saying that for her, August “can feel like dreary work time, a final trial before the beginning of another, come September.”
These end-of-summer days, she says, create “an odd, uneven and between time, with days of many slow hours gone” before they can be counted, but with hope as a guide. “It is a time of knowing that the best of summer is now gone but the new fall is not yet born.”
So, dear readers, regardless of where you’ll be spending many of your days this month—on a beach or in an empty office (or both)—we wish you atmospheric and emotional ease these next weeks. A break from the hot weather? Absolutely—but also a stretch of peace amid the turbulence to re-charge, create possibility and, in the words of global leadership director Edward Brooks at Oxford, “to restore some hope for a future that can be good and difficult but with focus and commitment, is still very possible to attain.”
AI agents are here. Here’s what to know about what they can do—and can’t. (The Conversation)
We are entering a third phase of generative AI. First came the chatbots, then the assistants. Now agents are here—and they can “think and act” autonomously. Here’s what to fear and what to embrace.
An AI Tool that Helps Historians Fill in Missing Words in Ancient Roman Inscriptions (Smithsonian magazine)
Known as Aeneas, experts hope this new AI tool will help decipher many segments of ancient text—and history—lost to time.
Trump’s push to remove himself from Smithsonian’s Impeachment Exhibit Sparks Outrage (Newsweek)
Under pressure from President Trump, the history of his two impeachments is now missing from the Smithsonian’s regular exhibit on the limits of presidential power. Critics say Trump is trying to both censor and rewrite history.
The Conservative Women Who Are ‘Having It All’ (The Wall Street Journal)
Politicians and other prominent women on the right are juggling work and family on their own terms. They credit grit, religious faith, family support and a laser-like focus on priorities.
Kamala Harris’ first interview since losing the 2024 election (The Late Show/ Stephen Colbert)
In this conversation with Stephen Colbert, Harris explains why she decided not to run for governor of California and talks about ‘107 Days’—her new book that shares a peek behind her bid for the White House.
Modular homes are helping LA’s wildfire survivors rebuild (The Economist)
Could factory-made units ease America’s housing shortage, too?
How Big Tech Plans to feed AI’s voracious appetite for power (The Economist)
As data centers get more energy-hungry, the hyper-scalers are getting more creative.
The labor market is showing some cracks that were invisible just weeks ago (AXIOS)
Hiring has come to a screeching halt in the last few months, suggesting more underlying economic weakness than seemed.
OPINION: Trump’s plan to create a White House Ballroom Is a ‘Neoclassical Bludgeon’ (New York/Curbed)
Despite promises to cut costs, why does this seem like an over-scale, reactionary solution to the question of where to host a big state dinner?
Will our changing climate outpace our global supplies of fresh water? (Salon magazine)
New research confirms that drying regions of the Earth are fast expanding—and growing now by an area twice the size of California each year. So why is there no international framework for managing the threat?
Every Scientific Empire Comes to an End (The Atlantic)
America’s run as the premier techno-superpower may be over. Three-fourths of American scientists polled by the journal, Nature, said they are considering leaving the country. Both China and the EU are competing for their talent.
The Sydney Sweeney Backlash (Slate)
It was inevitable.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting will start “winding down” now that Congress cut its funding. (NBC News)
The CPB helps to support more than 1,500 locally owned NPR and PBS member stations, many of which will now be forced to go silent.
If you feel burned out, it might be time to work on quieting your ego. (Fast Company)
A ‘noisy ego’ can make you feel stressed, but calming it down is simple.
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