Good morning. It’s Friday, Oct. 2, and we’ve finally made peace with the end of summer. It’s time to get cozy and these five fall recipes are guaranteed to help. Let’s get to the news.
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Tennessee officials are under scrutiny after the botched execution of Christa Pike.
On Wednesday night: State officials injected Pike, a convicted murderer, with deadly drugs that did not kill her. She is in critical condition, her lawyers said yesterday.
What now? Gov. Bill Lee (R) said he halted scheduled executions and ordered an investigation. It is the second time this year that an execution in the state has gone wrong.
Unsealed documents detail Cornell’s investigation into an alleged rape at a frat house.
Students spoke about sexual violence on campus during a student assembly meeting at Cornell University yesterday. (Matt Rourke/AP)
What to know: The school interviewed 32 witnesses after a student reported she was drugged and raped by several men in 2024. None of the accused men faced criminal charges.
A group chat screenshot spread online: It reportedly shows Chi Phi frat members talking about the alleged victim. Columnist Monica Hesse was horrified by three words in particular.
Ads boosting President Donald Trump used money meant for border security.
In recent weeks: The Trump administration has aired campaign-style ads. They were paid for with funds approved for border security upgrades and officer memorials, records show.
In other Trump news: The president said that Secret Service officials have encouraged him to take down and replace the Oval Office, according to an interview with Time magazine.
It was a combative interview: Find four more takeaways here.
The U.S. military is planning for a possible surge of naval forces to the Middle East.
Why? Trump is considering further strikes on Iran after the midterms. Officials are planning to send nearly 20,000 troops to the region, adding to about 50,000 already deployed.
A Post exclusive: The Trump administration has stripped military aid from European and Middle Eastern nations. The money will instead go to Latin American countries, officials said.
A volunteer army is hunting down rogue AI agents for fun.
Selena Zhang, a researcher at Transluce, and her colleagues found AI agents targeting Australia’s public health service. (Minh Connors for The Post)
As fears about AI hacks grow: Internet sleuths are exposing AI agents in their spare time. They’ve revealed that the tech industry has a bigger problem than previously acknowledged.
Do you find Google’s AI irritating? The“AI Overview” feature has taken over search results. It’s useful for some queries, less so for others. Learn when to use it and skip it here.
A simple skill used by therapists could help you become a better listener.
It’s called reflective listening: If someone is upset, try to listen to what they’re saying and paraphrase it back to them. It may feel awkward, but researchers say it’s effective.
Try it for yourself: Find five steps to improving your everyday conversations here. Start by asking more short, open-ended questions. They are very useful to get someone talking.
Grandmas don’t want to be called “grandma” anymore.
“Nana,” “Mimi,” “Gigi,” “Meemaw,” “Lovey,” “Lolly” and “Glama” are some of the names modern grandmas go by. (Illustration by Abby Ouellette for The Post)
When moms become grandmothers: It comes with an important branding decision. Over the years, titles conjuring up images of cotton-ball white hair have gone out of fashion.
Celebrities have popularized the trend: Katie Couric chose “Gogo” and Kris Jenner goes by “Lovey.” We asked for more examples of grandma names and got over 500 responses.
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