Good morning. In today’s edition:

• 🪖 America’s Iraq mission ends
• ✈️ Passengers thwart pilot’s plane attack
• 🖼️ $450M auction to smash van Gogh record

…and much more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~3.92-minute read (1,042 words).

Did someone forward you this email? Subscribe here for free.

"Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved."

–Helen Keller (1880-1968)

America’s military officially ended its presence in Iraq on Wednesday, with the final US forces departing an air base in northern Iraq under a 2024 agreement between Washington and Baghdad to close out a 12-year mission against ISIS.

How we got here

The US first invaded Iraq in 2003 to topple Sunni Muslim dictator Saddam Hussein, and went on to fight a yearslong counterinsurgency before withdrawing in 2011. American troops returned in 2014 at the Iraqi government’s invitation, leading an international coalition of forces who helped recapture territory ISIS had seized across large parts of Iraq.

• With the group mostly reduced to scattered sleeper cells, Washington and Baghdad reached a deal in 2024 to wind down the coalition’s military mission.
• Around 4,500 American troops have died in Iraq since 2003, roughly twice as many as in the parallel war in Afghanistan.

What happens now?

Iraqi forces will take primary responsibility for the country’s security, while the US is expected to continue providing some training and intelligence support.

• One major focus will be ISIS, whose remaining cells continue to operate in parts of Iraq.
• Kurdish and Iraqi officials have reported increased militant activity ahead of the withdrawal, raising questions about whether local forces can effectively contain the group without direct US military support.

Iran-backed armed groups, which remain influential in Iraqi politics and security, represent another potential issue. Iraq’s government has pledged to bring these armed factions under state control, though several powerful groups have resisted disarmament.

partner. All of that sensitive information lives in an inbox that Gmail and Outlook can scan. Make your inbox fully private with Proton Mail instead.

Zero-access encryption on every plan, including the free one. Ensuring that no one can read your emails, not even Proton. It’s built in Switzerland, outside the Five/Nine/Fourteen Eyes intelligence alliances. Meaning there are no ads or data monetization and it’s funded entirely by subscribers.

Join the 100M+ people that already entrust their privacy to Proton Mail and get up to 80% off your first month.

It’s no secret that spending all day glued to a screen probably isn’t great for kids.

But a massive new study suggests the effects of those endless Minecraft sessions and YouTube binges may stretch further than previously thought.

Screening the evidence

Researchers from the University of Calgary synthesized 23 previous meta-analyses covering 2.8+ million children across 64 countries in a huge umbrella review.

• They found higher screen exposure was associated with lower overall academic achievement and language skills, as well as more emotional and behavioral problems.
• Social media use specifically was also associated with higher levels of internalizing problems, which include symptoms like anxiety and depression.

In some cases, screen use affected kids’ developmental outcomes as much as—or even more than—factors like wealth, parenting behavior, or even premature birth.

The results weren’t completely negative. Researchers found no significant association between screen exposure and several other outcomes, including executive functioning, prosocial behavior, or achievement specifically in reading, math, and science.

There are some caveats: The study only found associations between screen time and poor developmental outcomes in children, meaning it can’t establish that screen time caused those effects. Outside researchers also noted the overall associations were small, and that the review couldn’t reliably distinguish between different kinds of screen use, like gaming versus social media.

Looking ahead…Researchers say more work is needed to understand exactly how different types of screen use factor into the equation.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 🛒 PCE price index, the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation, rises at 3.4% annual rate in August, well below economists’ estimates of 3.7%; core inflation, at 3.0%, also came in well below expectations of 3.3%. |
• 📈 10-year US Treasury yield rises above 5.3%, blowing past its 2007 peak to reach its highest level since 2002. | US economy grew at 2.2% annualized rate in Q2, revised up from the previously reported 1.5% figure, per new Commerce Department estimate.
• 🤖 Google begins rolling out Gemini 4 Argon, its most advanced AI model yet, which the company says shows major improvements in coding, cybersecurity, and complex professional work.

SPORTS, MEDIA, & ENTERTAINMENT

• 📲 Instagram is bringing a new AI video assistant tool to Edits, its CapCut competitor; the conversational AI chatbot is intended to give personalized feedback to creators.
• ⚾ MLB Wild Card Round: Game 2s took place last night in all four best-of-three series across the league; the full scoreboard.
• 🍿 Digger, the R-rated original comedy led by Tom Cruise, is tracking for a disappointing $12 million–$15 million domestically in its opening weekend, per industry insiders; the film needs to make $300 million–$350 million globally to break even.

Your audience may not remember the slides, but they’ll remember the moment you stopped ‘performing’ and started leading with authenticity, clarity, and confidence.

For decades, Life-Changing Workshops has helped people turn their knowledge and experience into transformational workshops, trainings, and retreats rooted in presence and connection. Their best-selling book, Designing & Leading Life-Changing Workshops, has sold over 40,000 copies.

Join their free private Masterclass on Oct. 26th for guided experiences, personal reflection, and shared discovery. Explore what it means to create the conditions for transformation!

SCIENCE, SPACE, & EMERGING TECH

• 🧊 12.5 trillion tons of ice have been lost from Greenland and Antarctica since 1979, raising global sea levels about an inch, new research finds.
• 🦠 Newly discovered virus contains a human gene it stole ~100,000 years ago and has retained ever since, per new Science study; it may be the first known instance of a virus acquiring a human gene in recent evolutionary history.
• 💊 Synthetic opioid ~10 times more powerful than fentanyl, called cychlorphine, has been found in Chicago’s drug supply, per local advanced practice provider.

US, WORLD, & POLITICS

• ✈️ One pilot stabbed another pilot on an Israel-bound FlyDubai flight yesterday, causing the plane to plunge 14,000+ feet in under 30 seconds as passengers and crew subdued the attacker before stabilizing the plane and safely landing in Saudi Arabia; authorities have yet to identify an official motive, but arrested one of the pilots amid an ongoing investigation.
• 🎓 Citadel CEO Ken Griffin approves $3 billion donation to Carnegie Mellon University, marking the largest donation to higher education in US history; $2 billion will fund a new Carnegie Mellon campus in Miami, with $1 billion going to its Pittsburgh campus.
• 💰 $500 refund checks began going out Wednesday to nearly 1 million Affordable Care Act enrollees across 30 states whom the Trump admin says were being overcharged for insurance through Healthcare.gov.

☝️ 89 Backpack, aka the Lord of Lard or Earl of Girth, is officially the heftiest bear in Alaska's Katmai National Park & Preserve, winning the park’s 12th annual Fat Bear Week.

🤔 Did you know? Norway’s government publishes the tax returns of all residents and businesses online for any resident to access. But doing so requires a personal login, and also alerts any person whose records are being accessed as to the identity of the searcher (not applicable to businesses). It’s also limited to 500 lookups per month.

📰 Worth a read: How Chinese spies used lies, love and betrayal to target the Federal Reserve.

🖱️ What we’re clicking:

• $450M art auction expected to smash van Gogh record
• Cardiologist: 9 American foods you ‘couldn’t pay me to eat’
• Why do migrating birds tend to travel at night?

Yesterday we covered how car dealerships across the US are facing an unusual drought of new and redesigned vehicles in the coming years, largely due to fallout from its ongoing EV pullback amid lower-than-expected demand.

❓ Our question to you: In hindsight, do you think federal EV incentives accomplished enough to justify their cost?

• Yes: 28%
• No: 42%
• Too early to tell: 19%
• Unsure/other: 11%

Read some of the most thoughtful longform responses.

+Note on sample size: We received 518 votes and 33 longform responses.

Which river passes through the most countries? (Hint: It flows through Central and Eastern Europe)

(keep scrolling for the answer)

🐶 The power of community… After a difficult divorce and move, Lisa Wilson was devastated when she had to return her dog of 11 years to the shelter. But she never stopped visiting every week to take her pup for walks and spend time together. 

When the shelter owner learned why Lisa had given up her dog, they helped the community step in to reunite the pair for good.

The Danube River, which passes through 10 countries.

Advertise with us: Want to reach other smart and inquisitive readers like you? Become a DONUT partner.

Made it this far? Let us know what you think:

👍 👋 👎