AI
ChatGPT adds audio uploads, with a transcript still needing review
Paid subscriptions and workspaces gain recorded-audio input for transcripts, summaries and questions, with a 512MB file limit and format restrictions.
October 6, 2026 · 2 min readTHE AMERICAN EDIT
The archive
Browse by story date. Choose a month, open the calendar, or explore the latest stories.
October 2026
The Edit
Prime Big Deal Days: compare model, total cost and return deadline
The October 6 and 7 sale gave Prime members a deadline. A replacement model number and an all-in budget are better buying tools than a discount badge.
October 6, 2026 · 4 min read
Culture
Google and TED ask teachers for ideas worth putting on stage
The World Teachers' Day announcement invites classroom ideas through a TED-Ed workshop focused on AI in education.
October 5, 2026 · 2 min read
The Edit
Make a NASA straw rocket for World Space Week
JPL supplies a printable template for a paper rocket launched with a drinking straw. Build it, measure the flight and change one feature at a time.
October 5, 2026 · 4 min read
The Edit
Banned Books Week 2026: the campaign and the books behind the lists
The ALA's October 4 through 10 campaign centers on freedom to read. Challenge lists describe attempts to restrict access, not a book's genre or intended audience.
October 4, 2026 · 2 min read
Life
The extra bands inside a New Jersey rainbow
NASA's October 4 feature used an older Jersey Shore photograph to explain supernumerary rainbows. The narrow bands come from light interference.
October 4, 2026 · 2 min read
The Edit
Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta: choose a session and allow for weather
Albuquerque's nine-day gathering rewards careful transport planning. Choose the session you want before deciding where to stay or how to arrive.
October 3, 2026 · 4 min read
Culture
The missing camera arm in Curiosity's Mars selfie
NASA's October 3 picture feature revisited a 2018 panorama. The photograph's construction explains why the rover seems to have taken it without a photographer.
October 3, 2026 · 3 min read
Technology
Review Mac Full Disk Access after Apple announces additional controls
An October 2 developer notice promised more explicit consent for an unusually broad Mac permission. Apple did not announce that every new control had already shipped.
October 2, 2026 · 4 min read
The Edit
Chicago Botanic Garden's bulb sale: plan the bed before buying
The October 2 through 4 sale offered spring-flowering bulbs and growing advice, with bulk orders limited to local pickup and no substitutions.
October 2, 2026 · 4 min read
News
Crew-13 launched with a science workload waiting in orbit
The four-person mission left Florida on October 1. Its experiments include tissue research, plant growth, and astronaut health.
October 1, 2026 · 1 min read
The Edit
Draw from the Index of American Design, at home or in Washington
The Index of American Design turns shoes, toys and household objects into subjects worth a second look. A small library exhibition offers a way in.
October 1, 2026 · 4 min read