As the global economy focuses on the Strait of Hormuz crisis, another shipping crisis looms in the region -- the return of Somali pirates.
The possible return of Somali pirates poses a new problem for the shipping industry
Thursday, May 28, 2026
Iranians are back online after a monthslong shutdown but face heavy restrictions
Iranians began to regain internet access after authorities ended a monthslong shutdown. Users said service was slow and spotty in some areas, with apps like YouTube and Instagram heavily restricted.
(Image credit: Vahid Salemi)
Wednesday, May 27, 2026
NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, May 28 (game #816)
Looking for a different day?
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, May 27 (game #815).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #816) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Talking scents
NYT Strands today (game #816) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
- DAWDLE
- SOON
- LIME
- MINER
- SLAW
NYT Strands today (game #816) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 9 letters
NYT Strands today (game #816) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: bottom, 5th column
Last side: top, 3rd column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #816) - the answers
The answers to today's Strands, game #816, are…
- JASMINE
- PEAR
- SANDALWOOD
- BERAMOT
- NEROLI
- SPANGRAM: FRAGRANCE
- My rating: Easy
- My score: Perfect
Apart from NEROLI taking me ages, despite it being my final word, this was a fairly straightforward game with a, thankfully, sensible (unlike yesterday) spangram.
Rare letters are hard to ignore in Strands, so I went straight to JASMINE — which immediately opened up PEAR.
I was surprised that my favorite FRAGRANCE of lime was missing, but at least it made an appearance as a non-game word.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, May 27, game #815)
- FRANKFURTER
- BRAT
- FOOTLONG
- BANGER
- WEENIE
- SPANGRAM: HOTDIGGITYDOG
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
Researchers say Google AI Mode changes recommendations based on your emails — and it risks creating a giant confirmation-bias machine
- Researchers found brands linked to Gmail activity appeared far more often in Google AI Mode results
- The effect was strongest for shopping searches like clothing, coffee machines and running shoes
- AI-powered search could reinforce existing habits instead of helping users discover new things
We all know that AI is often so eager to help that it can feel like it's simply reflecting whatever you think back at you in a way that feels sycophantic and artificial. We’ve written quite a few articles about how to stop chatbots like Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini from doing this, usually using some variation of the “be brutally honest” or “invert” prompt.
Now it turns out that AI’s tendency to keep you inside an echo chamber may extend beyond chatting with a bot. Researchers claim that if you’ve got Google’s Personal Intelligence switched on, AI Mode could start feeding more brands from your Gmail activity back into your search results.
Gmail has the biggest influence on AI Mode
Researchers at iPullRank tested nearly 2,000 Google AI Mode responses and found that brands connected to a user’s Personal Intelligence data appeared dramatically more often in results. In accounts linked to services like Gmail, certain brands showed up in AI answers almost three times as frequently and were far more likely to appear in the top recommendations.
Gmail appeared to have the biggest influence. Brands connected through email activity were cited far more often than brands linked through other Google services like Photos. The effect was especially noticeable for everyday shopping categories such as hoodies, coffee machines and running shoes, suggesting Google’s AI recommendations may become easier to shape based on a user’s personal data and habits.
As we reported recently, Google Search is increasingly turning into AI search, whether you like it or not, but if the new research from iPullRank is accurate then Google’s new AI-powered search risks becoming a giant confirmation-bias machine, feeding users more of the brands and products they already know instead of helping them discover new ones.
Turning Personal Intelligence off
Personally, I can see the benefits of Google wanting to become an answer engine rather than just a search engine. A lot of the time when I’m using search, I’m simply looking for a fast answer to a question, so this change can genuinely save me time. But the danger of personalization replacing exploration is that we lose some of the magic of Google Search leading us toward unexpected websites, products or ideas that turn out to be genuinely useful.
Before we raid Google towers carrying pitchforks and torches, it’s worth remembering that Personal Intelligence is an opt-in feature designed to make AI feel more useful and personalized to you. If you’re worried about it reducing the chance of serendipity in your search results, you can turn it off.
Personal Intelligence is off by default, but if you’ve enabled it and now want to disable it, open Gemini’s Settings (the gear icon at the bottom left), select Personal Intelligence, then click Connected Apps and toggle the services you want Gemini to access, such as Gmail.
It’s also important to note that this testing was carried out by external researchers, rather than Google publicly confirming exactly how AI Mode rankings and recommendations are generated.
Still, the findings raise an interesting question about the future of AI-powered search. If search engines become increasingly personalized around our habits, purchases, conversations and preferences, are they actually helping us explore the web, or just building increasingly convincing digital mirrors that reflect our existing tastes right back at us?
Tuesday, May 26, 2026
Trump gathers Cabinet as he looks to seal deal to end war
President Trump will meet with his Cabinet on Wednesday at a precarious moment for talks aimed at ending the war with Iran. The emerging deal has already exposed the president to fierce criticism.
(Image credit: Alex Brandon)
Quordle hints and answers for Wednesday, May 27 (game #1584)
Looking for a different day?
A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Tuesday, May 26 (game #1583).
Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,400 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.
Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
Quordle today (game #1584) - hint #1 - Vowels
How many different vowels are in Quordle today?
• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.
* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).
Quordle today (game #1584) - hint #2 - repeated letters
Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?
• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1.
Quordle today (game #1584) - hint #3 - uncommon letters
Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?
• Yes. One of Q, Z, X or J appears among today's Quordle answers.
Quordle today (game #1584) - hint #4 - starting letters (1)
Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?
• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 2.
If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:
Quordle today (game #1584) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)
What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?
• G
• R
• G
• S
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
Quordle today (game #1584) - the answers
The answers to today's Quordle, game #1584, are…
- GAUZE
- REPAY
- GIANT
- STEEP
With an A and U in the wrong positions and knowing it ended in an E, I felt certain that I was looking for a word with the other two vowels second and third.
I could think of a few using letters I had already used (cause, pause, sauce), but ones from the letters I had left eluded me. It was therefore a bit annoying that when my brain did eventually get there, “mauve” was wrong. I got to GAUZE in the end, but it was all a bit too painful.
Daily Sequence today (game #1584) - the answers
The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1584, are…
- PRIVY
- FINCH
- PRANK
- CIVIL
Quordle answers: The past 20
- Quordle #1583, Tuesday, 26 May: MODAL, MELON, PSALM, DRAWN
- Quordle #1582, Monday, 25 May: SLIME, ARISE, EAGER, SHEIK
- Quordle #1581, Sunday, 24 May: RIGHT, STALE, FLUKE, LINEN
- Quordle #1580, Saturday, 23 May: JUICY, DREAM, IDYLL, BRAID
- Quordle #1579, Friday, 22 May: GAILY, HITCH, DRUNK, COUNT
- Quordle #1578, Thursday, 21 May: RANCH, OTTER, WREST, ILIAC
- Quordle #1577, Wednesday, 20 May: TEDDY, MINUS, TRULY, STARK
- Quordle #1576, Tuesday, 19 May: HIPPY, FORTE, HORSE, QUELL
- Quordle #1575, Monday, 18 May: CLANK, SWINE, STEAM, DRAPE
- Quordle #1574, Sunday, 17 May: WHINE, TENET, KNAVE, GREED
- Quordle #1573, Satuday, 16 May: DEMUR, THREE, SLEEP, CRUDE
- Quordle #1572, Friday, 15 May: EPOCH, SPIKY, FAINT, PENNE
- Quordle #1571, Thursday, 14 May: SEVEN, DECRY, VILLA, MILKY
- Quordle #1570, Wednesday, 13 May: SKUNK, CHAFE, INTER, SOOTH
- Quordle #1569, Tuesday, 12 May: AGLOW, AVAIL, BADLY, STING
- Quordle #1568, Monday, 11 May: CLUMP, SALTY, BOAST, YIELD
- Quordle #1567, Sunday, 10 May: DONOR, FAITH, ROBOT, EXILE
- Quordle #1566, Saturday, 9 May: SHALL, ERUPT, WISER, DRIER
- Quordle #1565, Friday, 8 May: TOXIN, HELIX, FLOUT, ADULT
- Quordle #1564, Thursday, 7 May: DEALT, LOWLY, AHEAD, CHEEK
Attacks from residents complicate the fight against a rare type of Ebola
Three times in the past week, healthcare facilities have been attacked. On Sunday, angry young men stormed a hospital treating Ebola patients, forcing medical staff to evacuate them as gunfire rang out.
(Image credit: Moses Sawasawa)
