Quick check-in: How many unused, or underused, gift cards do you have sitting around from birthdays and holidays past? The New York state comptroller's office recently shared that there's nearly $55.5 million in gift card balances in New York City alone — and a good chunk of that amount ($15.5 million) is from cards that haven't been used in five years. So let this be your public service announcement to finally employ the cards sitting around in your junk drawer! If you don't have use for them, you might consider donating the balance.
Must Reads
Time revealed its list of the world's top universities
Taking Care of Grandkids May Give the Brain a Boost, Study Says
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Having a grandparent around to babysit can give parents much-needed time off to catch up on self-care — but grandparents themselves may reap some health benefits from this arrangement, too. A new study published by the American Psychological Association suggests that looking after grandkids can boost cognitive abilities and, in some cases, slow cognitive decline. Some previous research has suggested that consistent grandchild caregiving improves cognitive functioning. In the recent study, the authors not only evaluated the significance of caregiving frequency but also delved deeper into specifics, comparing grandfathers to grandmothers and the impacts of different activities. The findings? For both grandmothers and grandfathers, caregiving was associated with higher levels of verbal fluency and episodic memory. Caregiving grandmothers also experienced slower decline over time than noncaregiving grandmothers, although the number of days spent caregiving was not associated one way or the other with cognitive decline. "What stood out most to us was that being a caregiving grandparent seemed to matter more for cognitive functioning than how often grandparents provided care or what exactly they did with their grandchildren," lead author Flavia Chereches said in a press release. Learn more in our article, and consider forwarding it to a loving grandparent in your life!
Together With Quince
Get the Essentials for a Cozy Valentine's Day
Planning on avoiding the crowds and staying in this Valentine's Day? Quince has everything you need for a cozy, at-home date night — all at affordable prices. Craft the perfect gift basket for her with the peony dusk candle, slouch socks, and East Fork's artisanal, hand-finished mug. And for him, we recommend the Mongolian cashmere full-zip hoodie paired with matching joggers. Just don't forget the card and flowers.
Monty Is Back: Westminster's Top Dogs Return for Show's 150th Anniversary
Sarah Stier/Getty Images for Westminster Kennel Club
It's almost time to roll out the green carpet. Starting tomorrow, more than 3,000 of the finest canines from around the world will strut their stuff at the 150th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York City. To celebrate the big anniversary of the second-largest continuous sporting event in the U.S. (the Kentucky Derby being first), the show will feature a new "Westminster Legends" presentation. On Feb. 2, past iconic winners and fan favorite pups will participate in a non-competitive tribute event. One of the legendary canines making a reappearance is Monty, the giant schnauzer who won the Best in Show title last year. Also in the mix are Siba, a standard poodle, and Bono, a Havanese, both former winners. See the full schedule and meet one of the dogs we're rooting for this year.
Health
Researchers Make Progress in Eliminating Pancreatic Cancer Tumors: Study
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A recent study is providing a glimmer of hope in the fight against pancreatic cancer, a disease that has long had one of the lowest survival rates of any cancer. Aside from disease typically being found late, one of the reasons it's so deadly is that pancreatic cancer cells are notoriously resistant to treatment. To counter this, researchers at the Spanish National Cancer Research Center used a triple-therapy approach in mice that targeted three key points in the KRAS oncogene, a mutated gene that's often a key driver of the disease. They found that hitting three points rather than one eliminated pancreatic cancer in 16 of 18 mice and prevented recurrence, with no significant side effects. While the authors note the therapy isn't available to humans yet, it could pave the way for long-awaited new treatments. They wrote that "these studies open a path to designing new combination therapies that can improve survival for patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma," which is the most common pancreatic cancer. The study continued: "These results point the way for developing new clinical trials."
Global Good
🇨🇳 Troves of fossils found in China provide insight into a mass extinction event 513 million years ago (read more) 🇸🇳 An aquagym program in Senegal is offering low-cost and low-impact exercise for people with reduced mobility (read more) 🇹🇷 Knowledge is power: The Turkish Historical Society is unlocking free access to 50,000 digital books (read more) 🇪🇨 Small hummingbirds on the edge of extinction are finding refuge in an ancient Ecuadorian forest (read more) 🇸🇰 Shifting gears, here's how Slovakia became the world's largest car producer per capita (read more)
Inspiring Story
Cheers to this
Out of all the restaurants in New York, none are quite like Refettorio Harlem — an eatery located inside a church and operated by a nonprofit. Two nights a week, chefs serve up donated food that would otherwise go to waste for anyone in need of a free meal, no questions asked. Take a look inside.
Photo of the Day
Michele Luigi Edoardo Novaga—Anadolu/Getty Images
This train is chugging into the Guinness World Records book. Stretching 181 feet and weighing a whopping 5,000 pounds, the epic sculpture is officially the world's longest chocolate train. It was unveiled in Milan by a team of pastry chefs and culinary students, who clearly poured their hearts (and lots of cocoa) into every detail. Watch a video of the unveiling.
Cholesterol Conquered's Fruit Discovery
Italian researchers discovered one strange fruit that supports healthy cholesterol, without side effects or having to live on salads. This same fruit was shown to revitalize arteries after six months, improving blood flow throughout the body. A Boston doctor's video explaining which fruit and how much you need has already helped thousands — watch it below.
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Up This Weekend
Australian Open Finals: The women's and men's singles finals will begin at 7:30 p.m. local time on Saturday and Sunday, respectively — which means 3:30 a.m. EST (time to set that alarm!)
Westminster Dog Show: As noted above, tomorrowkicks off the 2026 Westminster Dog Show with the Annual Masters Agility Championship; the competition will continue with the Best in Breed judging on Monday and Best in Show on Tuesday
Grammy Awards: Rounding out a heavy events weekend will be Sunday night's Grammy Awards, hosted by Trevor Noah for his sixth (and final) time — revisit the nominees
The Nice News merch collaboration with Because Weekend is all about celebrating optimism and making every day feel like the weekend. To help us spread that ethos beyond the inbox, shop our collection of T-shirts and sweatshirts here.
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