Stop and smell the roses

Good morning Staker! Here’s what’s cookin’ today: Several security agencies say to avoid public Wi-Fi networks; Researchers find men and women age differently; and which countries are the most polite and friendliest?  

Let’s get into it!

A new study published in Nature Aging found female immune systems age according to “different dynamics” compared to males, providing supporting evidence for a phenomenon that had previously only been anecdotally observed around the world.

It’s well-documented that female immune systems are generally more potent than males’. It’s why males tend to be more susceptible to infectious diseases, and why females typically respond better to vaccinations.

However, it’s also why roughly 80% of autoimmune diseases are found in women.

The study looked into immune systems of both sexes over a period of time to identify their natural differences, along with how those differences impact the way each sex’s immune system ages.

"Until now, most studies have analyzed the immune system based on the average of many cells at once, which makes it difficult to capture the progressive effects of aging. With cell-by-cell analysis and a much larger sample, we were able to detect these patterns and compare them robustly between biological sexes," said Maria Sopena-Rios, first co-author of the study.

Public Wi-Fi networks are a cesspool of potential cybersecurity issues for anyone who connects to them. With minimal antivirus and anti-malware infrastructure anywhere in sight, these networks can expose personal data to bad actors in seconds, according to Google, the TSA, and even the NSA.

A threat report published recently by mobile solutions firm Jamf found use of public networks by consumers on their own phones and employees on work devices continues to rise, despite the overwhelming evidence that it’s a bad idea.

18% of employees “connect to risky hotspots (which) open the door to infrastructure threats like rogue access points or Adversary-in-the-Middle attacks.” The company noted this is particularly likely “if devices are not configured to address this risk,” which most are not.

Jamf pointed out these vulnerabilities can be exploited on company devices, even though most companies have cyber and info-security officers in place to ensure those devices are up to date with the latest operating systems.

Notably, plenty of individual consumers don’t keep their devices as up to date.

“Accessing public Wi-Fi hotspots may be convenient to catch up on work or check email, but public Wi-Fi is often not configured securely,” said the National Security Agency. “Using these networks may make users’ data and devices more vulnerable to compromise, as cyber actors employ malicious access points, redirect to malicious websites, inject malicious proxies, and eavesdrop on network traffic.”

As many know, Canada is almost always anecdotally considered the most polite country in the world.

Maybe it’s the fact that it’s shown some grit over the last year, or because of the rivalries that have flared up in professional sports during that same time, but according to Remitly’s survey, Canada is not, in fact, the most polite country on earth.

The company surveyed 4,600 people across 26 countries, and found 35.15% believed Japan to be the most polite country in the world. Make no mistake about Canada, however; the Great White North still came in second place with 13.35%, followed the U.K. (6.23%), China (3.07%), and Germany (2.8%). The United States came in 13th place with 1.57%.

On the topic of friendliness, however, Canada was indeed the top dog, according to people from all around the world. 10.5% of respondents said that Canada is where the world’s friendliest people live, followed by Brazil at 7.96%, and Australia (5.10%), Japan (4.94%), and Spain (4.90%) rounding out the top five. The United States came in 13th in this category as well with 3.21%.

Interestingly, when asked about their perception of their own politeness in a score ranked out of ten, Canada and Japan respectively fell from second place to 14th place and first place to 25th place, which one could perhaps attribute to being too polite to brag about their politeness. The United States’ self-perception boosted it from 13th place to ninth place.

This year’s full list of artist inductees for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame includes Phil Collins, Billy Idol, Wu-Tang Clan, Joy Division/New Order, Sade, Luther Vandross, Oasis, and Iron Maiden.

The most pressing question (aside from what is Wu-Tang doing there?) surely remains: who will actually show up?

Speaking with Ultimate Classic Rock, Phil Collins said, “Obviously I'm pleased and honored to be inducted. It wraps up what has been a wonderful life in music.” But owing to poor health, it’s unlikely Collins will attend.

As for Iron Maiden and Oasis, well, it’s anybody’s guess.

In 2019, this is what Noel Gallagher had to say about Oasis one day entering the Hall: “I said, ‘Let me f—ing stop you there. I know what it is, I know where it entails. It won't be f—ing happening, ok?’”

While his brother Liam is a notorious trouble maker, upon hearing the news of Oasis’ induction, he quickly took to X to thank his fans, while denying he’d ever disparaged the honour.

On the other hand, Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson tends to err more on the side of saying what he means and meaning what he says. In 2022, “I actually think the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is an utter, complete load of bollocks to be honest with you,” he said in 2022.

As it stands, who knows if either will show up? Rock ‘n’ roll has always been about taking a left when the world goes right, so we’ll just have to wait and see.

Wizard of odds

Quizmaster Joey has cooked up another game of Odd One Out, with today’s trivia! 😜

Complete the game and earn a shot at a $25 e-gift card.

Winner will be notified on Thursday afternoon. Keep an eye on your inbox and don’t forget to check your spam folder! *