Originally published at: Good News Friday: Psilocybin Treats Depression, Hero Goose Saves the Flock – Peak Prosperity
Health
A randomized trial published in Nature Medicine found that a single 25mg dose of psilocybin produced higher response and remission rates than placebo in patients with treatment-resistant depression. The trial, conducted by King’s College London and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, also showed the treatment could be administered safely in community settings. Analyses have noted that effect sizes in such trials have decreased substantially from Phase 2 to Phase 3 and that participant blinding is often poor.
A federal judge allowed Dr. Meryl Nass’s lawsuit against Maine’s medical board to proceed, ruling that an order for psychological evaluation lacked evidence or probable cause. Maine’s medical board had suspended Dr. Nass in 2022 for spreading “misinformation” about COVID-19. She had also prescribed ivermectin.
A National Bureau of Economic Research study reported that soda purchases among SNAP households fell 13 percent in states restricting sugary drink purchases with benefits.
US Politics
The U.S. Postal Service published a rule on Friday requiring states to submit mail-in voter lists at least 60 days before elections, consistent with an executive order issued March 31. Ballots would include serialized Intelligent Mail barcodes. A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking the rule. However, the Supreme Court allowed the administration to continue compiling state voter lists during ongoing litigation.
The Justice Department plans to deploy 1,000 federal monitors to polling places for the 2026 midterms, an increase from 714 in 2024. The Civil Rights Division has filed 31 lawsuits seeking unredacted state voter data. Critics have pointed to risks of politicization and reports of aggressive monitor conduct.
A federal court decision on Aug. 18 ended Temporary Protected Status for nationals of 13 countries. DHS is offering self-deportation with a free flight and a $2,600 payment. The Supreme Court previously ruled that federal courts lack authority to review TPS determinations.
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a $130,000 damages award against James O’Keefe and Project Veritas, holding that the jury award violated the First Amendment.
Privacy & Surveillance
Senator Josh Hawley, chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, sent a letter to Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley requesting responses by Sept. 8 on the company’s license-plate reader network. The letter references more than 120,000 cameras across 49 states and over 20 billion monthly scans. It seeks information on data retention, search functions, misuse incidents, biometric tracking, and government contracts. Hawley stated that Congress never authorized the network.
Artificial Intelligence
Palm Beach County commissioners unanimously approved ordinance language for a one-year moratorium on data centers with monthly peak loads of 50 megawatts or more. A final vote is scheduled for Sept. 24. The measure would pause applications while staff develop zoning rules on noise, water use, buffers, decommissioning, and ownership disclosure. The county would join more than a dozen other Florida jurisdictions with similar pauses.
Education
Thirteen states now require recess through at least middle school, and 12 set minimum weekly physical activity minutes. South Carolina enacted a law in June mandating 20 minutes of unstructured outdoor play daily for pre-K through eighth grade plus 90 minutes of PE weekly. The American Academy of Pediatrics issued updated guidance in May recommending multiple 20-minute daily breaks. Johns Hopkins published model legislation in December to prohibit using recess withdrawal as discipline.
Energy
Radiant secured a long-term TRISO fuel supply from Standard Nuclear for its 1-megawatt Kaleidos microreactor through the early 2030s. Each unit operates for five years before refueling and has a 20-year lifespan. Full-scale testing is underway at Idaho National Laboratory’s DOME facility. Manufacturing will occur at a 300,000-square-foot site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Equinix has ordered 20 units. Analyses have projected capital costs of $5–15 million per unit and levelized costs of energy between 9 and 30 cents per kilowatt-hour.
Preparedness
A family in Richmond, Texas, reported that their pet goose alerted them to a barn fire on Aug. 3, allowing them to extinguish it before it spread to 100 chickens and turkeys. Security footage captured the goose’s honking. The family plans to acquire a companion goose.
Sources
Palm Beach County Advances One-Year Moratorium on Large Data Centers
Palm Beach County commissioners are another step closer to approving a one-year ban on large-scale data centers.
Source | Submitted by Rodster
Hawley Demands Answers on Flock’s Unauthorized 20B Monthly Scans
“But Americans do not surrender their privacy rights when they drive to work, drop their kids off at school, or go to church,” the senator wrote. “Congress never authorized the network your industry has built.”
Recess Rebellion: Parents Battle Schools for Kids’ Playtime
There’s no voice that represents the parents and students. Everybody’s trying to get a hold of those valuable minutes of the kids being in the classroom because they view that – they all view it – as social engineering.
Radiant Secures TRISO Fuel Supply for Portable Kaleidos Microreactor
Radiant has secured a long-term source of nuclear fuel for its Kaleidos microreactor, removing a potential supply hurdle as the company prepares the system for deployment.
Goose’s Honking Saves Texas Family and 100 Birds From Barn Fire
A Texas family is crediting their pet goose for alerting them to a barn fire earlier this month, helping to save their hatchery’s 100 chickens and turkeys.
USPS Demands State Mail-In Voter Lists, Injunction Blocks Trump Order
The finalized rule, however, cannot go into effect under an outstanding federal injunction against Trump’s March executive order.
TPS Terminated: Over a Million Now Face Removal Proceedings
In total, more than a million foreign nationals living in the United States with such deportation protections are now up for removal.
DOJ Readies Record 1,000 Monitors for 2026 Midterms
The Justice Department is preparing to send a record 1,000 federal monitors to polling places for the 2026 midterms, the largest deployment of its kind in the agency’s history.
SCOTUS Lets Trump Test Mail Ballot Rules, Democrats Fume
The Supreme Court sided with President Trump over his plan to use the Postal Service to impose broad new restrictions on the distribution of mail ballots.
Court Backs O’Keefe: First Amendment Trumps Damages in Veritas Undercover Case
The principal question in this appeal is whether the jury’s damages award violated the First Amendment by punishing the defendants for publishing a news story. We conclude that it did.
UK Trial: Psilocybin Outperforms Placebo for Hard-to-Treat Depression
The first publicly-funded randomised controlled trial in the UK has found that a single dose of psilocybin, the active compound found in ‘magic mushrooms’, produced significant improvements in depression compared to a placebo.
Judge: Maine Board Lacked Evidence to Psych-Eval Ivermectin Doctor
An order from the Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine that Dr. Meryl Nass undergo a psychological evaluation for allegedly spreading misinformation about COVID-19 was based on no evidence or process, including no probable cause, U.S. District Judge Lance Walker said in an Aug. 20 decision.
SNAP Soda Bans Cut Purchases 13%, Exposing Government Nudges Over Choice
When states labeled soda as an unapproved purchase, it acted as a powerful psychological signal, according to the report.
In addition to sources submitted by community members, the following were also used in the creation of this report: Washington Examiner, Politico, Fox News, CBS Mornings, and NBC News.