new video loaded: Forecasters Abort Flight Into the Eye of Hurricane Melissa
A hurricane hunter aircraft, tasked with collecting weather data for NOAA, aborted its mission into the eye of Hurricane Melissa after encountering extreme turbulence.
More than half of the grades handed out at Harvard College are A’s, an increase from decades past even as school officials have sounded the alarm for years about rampant grade inflation.
About 60% of the grades handed out in classes for the university’s undergraduate program are A’s, up from 40% a decade ago and less than a quarter 20 years ago, according to a report released Monday by Harvard’s Office of Undergraduate Education. Other elite universities, including competing Ivy League schools, have also been struggling to rein in grade inflation.
The report’s author, Harvard undergraduate dean Amanda Claybaugh, urged faculty to curtail the practice of awarding top scores to the majority of students, saying it undermines academic culture.
“Current practices are not only failing to perform the key functions of grading; they are also damaging the academic culture of the college more generally,” she said in the report.
Harvard’s academic programs are under additional scrutiny because of the Trump administration’s investigations into the university and broader efforts to remake higher education in the US. Federal officials have asked universities to sign a compact that includes commitments to “grade integrity” and the use of “defensible standards” when evaluating students.
One reason why grade inflation has increased at Harvard is concern among faculty about being tougher than their peers and thereby discouraging enrollment in their courses, Claybaugh said in the study, which was reported earlier by the Harvard Crimson.
Administrators have contributed to the issue by telling professors they should be mindful that some students struggle with “imposter syndrome” or have difficult family situations, she said. In addition, Harvard students, while not the “snowflake” stereotypes they’re sometimes made out to be, pressure their professors for better grades, according to the report.
The cutoff for earning summa cum laude honors at Harvard is now 3.989, higher than previous years. However, the number of first-year students with a 4.0 grade point average decreased by about 12% in the most recently completed academic year compared with the prior period. That’s a sign of progress and a reminder that the university isn’t “at the mercy of inexorable trends, that the grades we give don’t always have to rise,” Claybaugh said.
The Harvard report recommended that faculty share the median grades for courses and review the distribution of grades over time. A separate university committee is considering allowing faculty to give out a limited number of A+ grades, a break from Harvard’s current top grade of A. Such a move “would increase the information our grades provide by distinguishing the very best students,” Claybaugh said.
Administrators can also help mitigate grade inflation by better valuing rigorous teaching processes in faculty reviews, she said.
US president heaps praise on Japan’s first female prime minister as the leaders sign deals on the supply of rare earth minerals.
United States President Donald Trump has met Japan’s first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, in Tokyo, welcoming her pledge to accelerate a military buildup and signing deals on trade and critical minerals.
Trump on Tuesday lavished praise on Takaichi, saying she would be a “great” leader, while the prime minister said she planned to nominate the US president for a Nobel Peace Prize, according to the White House.
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Takaichi – a close ally of Trump’s friend and golfing partner, late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe – is also expected to offer a package of US investments under a $550bn deal agreed on this year, the Reuters news agency reported.
This included shipbuilding and increased purchases of US soya beans, natural gas and pick-up trucks, the agency reported, citing sources familiar with the talks.
Those gestures may temper any Trump demands for Tokyo to spend more on defending islands from an increasingly assertive China, which Takaichi sought to head off by pledging last week to fast-track plans to increase defence spending to 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
“It’s a very strong handshake,” Trump said, as the pair posed for photos at the Akasaka Palace in downtown Tokyo.
“Everything I know from Shinzo and others, you will be one of the great prime ministers. I’d also like to congratulate you on being the first woman prime minister. It’s a big deal,” Trump told Takaichi as the pair sat down for discussions with their delegations.
Takaichi gifted Trump Abe’s putter, a golf bag signed by Japanese major winner Hideki Matsuyama, and a gold-leaf golf ball, according to photos posted on X by Trump’s assistant, Margo Martin.
The US president was last at the palace, an ornate residence built in a European style, in 2019 for talks with Abe, who was assassinated in 2022.
Deal on critical minerals
Trump also praised Japan’s efforts to buy more US defence equipment, while Takaichi said that Trump’s role in securing ceasefires between Cambodia and Thailand, and Israel and Palestinian armed groups were “unprecedented” achievements.
“In such a short period of time, the world started to enjoy more peace,” Takaichi told reporters through an interpreter.
“I, myself, was so impressed and inspired by you, Mr President,” Takaichi added.
The leaders then signed an agreement to support the supply of critical minerals and rare earths, as the countries seek to wean reliance off China’s chokehold on the materials, which are crucial for a wide range of products, from smartphones to fighter jets.
The White House, in a statement, said the objective of the deal was “to assist both countries in achieving resilience and security of critical minerals and rare earths supply chains”.
It added that the US and Japan “jointly identify projects of interest to address gaps in supply chains for critical minerals and rare earths, including derivative products such as permanent magnets, batteries, catalysts, and optical materials”.
Trump and Takaichi will later visit the US naval base in Yokosuka near Tokyo, which is home to the aircraft carrier USS George Washington, part of the US military’s powerful presence in the region.
Trump will then meet business leaders in Tokyo, before travelling on Wednesday to South Korea. In talks there with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump said he hopes to seal a trade war truce between the world’s two biggest economies.
MBW Explains is a series of analytical features in which we explore the context behind major music industry talking points – and suggest what might happen next. Only MBW+ subscribers have unlimited access to these articles. MBW Explains is supported by Reservoir.
The Mechanical Licensing Collective’s legal battle with Spotify over audiobook bundling and royalty payments has entered a new phase following a series of October court filings.
The dispute traces back to March 2024, when Spotify reclassified its Premium subscription tiers as “bundles” after adding 15 hours of monthly audiobook access to these plans.
Under the 2022 Phonorecords IV settlement, an agreement between music publishers and streaming services that governs mechanical royalty rates through 2027, bundled multimedia services are permitted to pay lower mechanical royalty rates than standalone music subscriptions.
The MLC, designated by the US Copyright Office to administer the blanket compulsory mechanical license, filed suit in May 2024, alleging the platform was illegally underpaying royalties to songwriters and publishers.
In January 2025, Judge Analisa Torres dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice. Torres ruled that “audiobook streaming is a product or service that is distinct from music streaming and has more than token value” and that “Premium is, therefore, properly categorized as a Bundle.”
Last month, Judge Torres granted the MLC permission to file an amended complaint.
Here are three recent developments you might have missed:
1. THE MLC FILED AN AMENDED COMPLAINT ON OCTOBER 1, FOCUSING ON SPOTIFY’S MARKETING AND PRICING OF AUDIOBOOKS ACCESS
Following the September 25 court order that allowed the case to proceed with modified claims, The MLC filed its amended complaint on October 1, meeting the October 2 deadline set by Judge Torres.
The 48-page filing, which you can read in full here, presents arguments that Spotify’s bundling strategy violated regulatory requirements. The complaint makes two key amendments to the MLC’s original case.
First, the MLC challenges how Spotify valued and marketed Audiobooks Access, the $9.99 standalone subscription that serves as the basis for Spotify’s bundling calculation.
In the filing, the MLC contrasts how Spotify marketed Audiobooks Access versus how it announced the addition of audiobooks to Premium.
“Spotify, a sophisticated marketer that had grown Premium into the largest music streaming service in the world, launched Audiobooks Access with effectively no marketing,” the complaint states. The filing notes that Spotify’s announcement of audiobooks in Premium was a “highly publicized announcement” that featured comments from senior executives, including founder Daniel Ek.
According to the filing, “upon information and belief, the principal marketing for Audiobooks Access at launch consisted of a single 150-word press release that Spotify issued on March 1, 2024.” The MLC alleges that for months after launch, Spotify’s homepage listing subscription plans didn’t even mention Audiobooks Access, and the plan “could [only] be found by searching for words such as ‘Spotify’ and ‘Audiobooks Access’ on Google or a similar search engine.”
The MLC alleges that “Spotify has improperly used the price of Audiobooks Access as the value of the audiobooks component when calculating Service Provider Revenue for Spotify’s Premium tiers, which artificially inflated the value of the audiobooks component and, in turn, improperly reduced the amount of royalties paid for the music component of Premium.”
The complaint states that Audiobooks Access was “launched only in the United States,” despite Spotify providing audiobooks in nine other countries, but only to Premium subscribers, never as a standalone offering.
Second, the MLC argues that Audiobooks Access itself should be classified as a bundle. “Further, if Premium is properly characterized as a Bundle of music and audiobooks components, as the Court has previously concluded, then so too is Audiobooks Access, meaning that Spotify must report and pay royalties for Audiobooks Access as a Bundled Subscription Offering,” the filing states.
The complaint emphasizes: “There can be no dispute that Audiobooks Access is not a ‘standalone’ audiobooks offering. Spotify has repeatedly acknowledged throughout this litigation that Audiobooks Access provides its subscribers with music.”
The MLC contends that Spotify improperly combines reporting and payment of royalties for Audiobooks Access with Spotify Free, which “contravenes the plain language of the applicable regulations,” allowing Spotify to pay lower free-service rates instead of higher bundled subscription rates, thereby “sidestepping important royalty-calculation provisions under the Copyright Act.”
Tingey Law Firm via Unsplash
2. THE MLC DEMANDED A JURY TRIAL ON OCTOBER 8
Just over a week after filing its amended complaint, The MLC formally demanded a jury trial in the case on October 8, via a filing that can be read here.
The decision to request a jury trial marks a strategic shift for the MLC.
The jury demand puts factual questions before a jury rather than leaving them to a judge’s legal interpretation; specifically, how Spotify designed and priced Audiobooks Access, and whether it properly reported royalties for the service.
According to court filings, a case management conference is scheduled for November 3, with attorneys expected to file a proposed discovery schedule in advance of that proceeding.
The MLC’s path to a jury trial represents a significant pivot from its original legal strategy. When Judge Torres dismissed the initial complaint in January, she ruled that “audiobook streaming is a product or service that is distinct from music streaming and has more than token value” and that “Premium is, therefore, properly categorized as a Bundle.”
Rather than appeal that ruling directly, the MLC obtained permission to file an amended complaint focusing on different arguments: that Spotify artificially manipulated Audiobooks Access pricing and improperly classified the tier for royalty reporting purposes. These claims center on Spotify’s business decisions and practices, questions the MLC appears to believe are better suited for jury evaluation than legal interpretation alone.
Credit: miss.cabul / Shutterstock.com
3. SPOTIFY FILED its response ON OCTOBER 24, CHALLENGING THE MLC’S NEW CLAIMS
On Friday (October 24), Spotify filed its 35-page response to the MLC’s amended complaint through its legal team at Latham & Watkins, led by partner Allison L. Stillman. The document addresses both of the MLC’s theories while arguing that the claims lack factual support. You can read the filing in full here.
Spotify’s response notes the procedural history, admitting that “in October 2023, it announced that Premium subscribers would gain access to 15 hours of monthly audiobook streaming” and that “Premium subscribers began receiving this benefit in November 2023.” The filing characterizes the new claims as “two peripheral issues…both of which are unsupportable by the facts.”
Spotify’s response defends its $9.99 audiobook valuation with a comparative market analysis. The response also states that competing audiobook services “offering similar access to bestsellers cost at least $9.99 monthly, with most priced higher.”
Spotify provides specific pricing comparisons:
Audible Premium Plus: $14.95 per month
Barnes & Noble audiobook subscription: $14.99 per month
Kobo Plus (Read & Listen): $9.99 per month
Regarding the cheapest service the MLC cited, Spotify’s filing states: “The least expensive of the audiobook services cited by MLC in its Amended Complaint, Amazon‘s Audible Plus, is $7.95, and it gives access to virtually no bestsellers.”
The filing continues: “Furthermore, no other subscription audiobook service in the U.S. of which Spotify is aware costs less than $7.95 per month. What this means is that the least that the audiobook component of Spotify Premium could conceivably be valued at, consistent with the law, is $7.95 per month.”
Spotify then addresses even this lower price point: “even if Spotify were to use $7.95 as the standalone price in the Bundle calculation (which it should not), the result would be an extremely small percentage increase in royalties paid to the MLC.”
On the Audiobooks Access classification. Spotify argues the MLC’s second claim fails on a technical basis. “The music component of Audiobooks Access is Spotify Free, which is a nonsubscription music offering that is given free to any consumer,” the filing states. “Therefore, there is no plausible argument that ‘Audiobook[s] Access’ could in fact be a ‘Bundle’ under the existing regulations.”
The filing emphasizes that even if the MLC’s theory had merit, “the royalties at stake with respect to this issue, even if they could be properly calculated, would be miniscule—a drop in comparison to the ocean of royalties Spotify pays to the MLC.”
Spotify’s response addresses the financial implications of the MLC’s claims. “Ultimately, despite public statements by MLC and publisher representatives to the contrary, MLC’s remaining claims would not result in any dramatic increase in royalty payments to songwriters and publishers,” the filing continues.
The filing adds: “All of this raises serious questions about MLC’s motivations in continuing to spend resources on this litigation.”
Spotify requested dismissal of all claims with prejudice and reimbursement of legal fees.
The company noted in a regulatory filing in August that if the MLC were “entirely successful in its case, the additional royalties that would be due in relation to the period March 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025, would be approximately €256 million” (roughly $290 million), plus potentially penalties and interest.
All three majors have now inked direct publishing agreements with Spotify that move beyond the traditional CRB model in the US.
Spotify signed an agreement with Sony Music Publishing earlier this month that includes a new direct licensing arrangement in the US, which the streaming company said will, “ensur[e] songwriters share more directly in the growth of streaming”.
Spotify also signed a direct licensing deal with Kobalt covering the US last month.
MBW Explains is a series of analytical features in which we explore the context behind major music industry talking points – and suggest what might happen next. Only MBW+ subscribers have unlimited access to these articles. MBW Explains is supported by Reservoir.Music Business Worldwide
US President Donald Trump has not ruled out the possibility of seeking a third term for the White House, saying he would “love to do it”.
But Trump rejected the possibility of running for vice-president in 2028 – an idea floated by some supporters as a way for him to circumvent the US constitution that bars the president from running for a third term.
Speaking to reporters during his trip to Asia, Trump described the idea as “too cute” and said it “wouldn’t be right”.
It is unclear what method he would use to run again. Last week, former Trump strategist Steve Bannon said that a “plan” was in place to secure the 79-year-old president another term.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on his way to Japan from Malaysia, Trump said that while he would “be allowed” to run again as vice-president, he had no plans to do so.
“I think people wouldn’t like that,” he said. “It’s too cute. It wouldn’t be right.”
Talking about the possibility of a third term, Trump said: “I haven’t really thought about it. But I have the best poll numbers that I’ve ever had.”
Additionally, Trump also suggested vice-president JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio as potential successors, calling them “unstoppable”.
“All I can tell you is that we have a great group of people, which they don’t,” he added, referring to Democrats.
The 22nd amendment of the US constitution bars presidents from seeking a third term.
Repealing the amendment would require approval from two-thirds of both the House of Representatives and the Senate, or a constitutional convention called by two-thirds of state legislatures – a process viewed as highly unlikely.
The amendment would also need to have the backing of 38 states to ratify it, or making it officially valid.
Last week, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon – who remains a vocal supporter – claimed there was a “plan” to secure a third term for Trump.
“Trump is going to be president in ’28, and people ought to just get accommodated with that,” Bannon told The Economist. “At the appropriate time, we’ll lay out what the plan is.”
In March, Trump told CNBC he would “probably not” run again, though he later said he was “not joking” about the possibility.
It is still unclear which Democrats intend to run for the White House in 2028, although several have already expressed an interest.
On Sunday, California Governor Gavin Newsom told CBS, the BBC’s US partner, that he would “be lying” if he said he was not giving serious thought to a presidential bid.
Former vice-president Kamala Harris also told the BBC she may run again and that she could “possibly” be president in the future.
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Fitter and Faster Swim Camps is the proud sponsor of SwimSwam’s College Recruiting Channel and all commitment news. For many, swimming in college is a lifelong dream that is pursued with dedication and determination. Fitter and Faster is proud to honor these athletes and those who supported them on their journey.
Dublin, Ohio’s Jake Lloyd, who originally committed to Texas A&M six months ago, has flipped his verbal pledge to Arizona State University for the 2026-27 school year and beyond. He confirmed in writing to SwimSwam:
“After much thoughtful consideration, I am extremely excited to announce I will be continuing my academic and athletic careers at Arizona State University. I’m beyond grateful for the support and encouragement I’ve received from my family, friends, and coaches along the way — especially Coach Kyle, Coach McKinley, and Coach Lopresti, who’ve played a huge role in my development. A special thank you to Coach Herbie, Coach Daniel, and the entire Sun Devil staff for believing in me and offering this incredible opportunity. I can’t wait to be a part of something special in Tempe. Forks up!”
Lloyd won the Ohio High School Division I State Championship title in the 50 free as a sophomore at St. Charles Preparatory School, clocking in at a then-PB of 20.28. He also placed 5th in the 100 free in 2024, notching a best time of 45.90 in prelims. This past season, he was runner-up in both the 50 free (19.96) and 100 free (44.83) at high school States. Both times were new lifetime bests, and his 50 free marked the first time he had broken 20 seconds. He has also won 3 state relay titles: once in the 4×50 free and twice in the 4×50 medley.
Earlier in the season, he had thrown down PBs in the 100 free (45.11), 200 free (1:41.41), 100 breast (55.52), 50 fly (21.81), and 100 fly (49.31) while swimming with his club team, Central Ohio Aquatics, at the BGSC November Senior Invitational. At 2024 Winter Juniors East, he competed in the 50/100 free, 100 breast, and 100 fly and lowered his 100 free time to 44.85.
In LCM season, Lloyd clocked PBs in the 50 free (22.72), 100 free (52.18), 50 breast (27.79), 100 breast (1:02.99), 50 fly (24.37), and 100 fly (55.96) over the course of the summer. At Junior Nationals in Irvine, he was runner-up in the 50 breast and placed 3rd in the 50 free, 11th in the 50 fly, and 12th in the 100 breast. He closed out the summer ranked #1 among 17-year-olds (and #3 for 18-and-unders) in the 50m breast, and #4 among 17-year-olds (#8 for 18-and-unders) in the 50m free.
Lloyd is a member of the NAG record-holding quartets in the 15-16 boys’ 200-yard free relay and 200-meter free relay and the 15-16 mixed 200-yard medley relay. He holds the SwimStrong Dryland record in the broad jump with 10’.
Best SCY times:
50 free – 19.82
100 free – 44.83
50 breast – 25.26
100 breast – 55.52
50 fly – 21.81
100 fly – 49.31
If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to Recruits@swimswam.com.
About the Fitter and Faster Swim Tour
Fitter & Faster Swim Camps feature the most innovative teaching platforms for competitive swimmers of all levels. Camps are produced year-round throughout the USA and Canada. All camps are led by elite swimmers and coaches. Visit fitterandfaster.com to find or request a swim camp near you.
I used to hate renting apartments from websites like Airbnb or VRBO. As a solo traveler, I preferred the social atmosphere of hostels. You met people, hostels ran activities and they were where you were “supposed to stay” as a backpacker.
When I did want something other than a hostel, I used a hospitality network liked Couchsurfing or simply stayed with friends.
But, after close to two decades as a nomad, there are times when I like my privacy and the ability to “create a home.” I like to cook, want to relax on a couch, and just chill.
While apartment rentals often contribute to overtourism (discussed more below), there are still plenty of real hosts out there who are renting places they live in.
Below is a detailed guide about how they work, how to pick the perfect apartment, and how not to contribute to overtourism / make locals upset!
How Do Apartment Rentals Work?
Apartment rental sites allow locals to rent out an individual room, shared space, or entire home/apartment. The host lists their place online, posts photos, writes a description, hits publish, and, presto, they can start to make extra money with the unused space.
The booking process is like booking any other type of accommodation online. You search the database, find a place you like, create an account, and request a booking. When the owner accepts, you are sent a confirmation.
Apartment rentals represent the space between hostels and hotels. If you are traveling on business and want the comforts of home, you probably aren’t going to stay in a hostel. But hotels may be too expensive or too impersonal for you. A rented apartment is a perfect compromise.
Traveling with friends or a big group? This is definitely the option for you. Squeezing a bunch of people into a rental home/apartment will be much cheaper per person than a room in a hostel or hotel. Plus, you get space to spread out and relax. Dorm rooms and cramped hotels don’t give you a lot of “me” time.
If you don’t want a full apartment but are looking to save money, Airbnb has a new feature called “Rooms” which lets you search for listings in people’s homes or guest houses. It’s like how Airbnb used to be — people renting out extra rooms or guest houses for added cash. You always get your own room and, sometimes, a private entrance. You’ll also get to interact with your host, who can provide lots of insider tips and insight to your destination.
I’ve used Rooms a lot in the last couple of years — in LA, Rome, Paris, Nice — and, to me, as a solo traveler, it’s a much better way to travel. I highly recommend doing this as a way to combat the negative effects of these platforms (more on that below). Additionally, as hostels have gotten a lot more expensive over the years, Rooms are often cheaper than hostels! You get to stay and meet with a local and save money! Win-win!
How to Pick the Right Apartment
Unfortunately, as accommodation rentals have exploded into the mainstream, it’s become harder and harder to find great hosts. A lot of hosts now own multiple properties and live elsewhere. That means you often deal with property managers and never get to interact with the actual owner. Additionally, a lot of apartments aren’t quite as nice in reality as they appear in the photos. In order to find suitable accommodation, I use the following criteria when looking for a place to stay on these platforms:
Do they have positive reviews? – If other people stayed there, had a good time, and found the apartment as advertised, you probably will too.
Do they have multiple listings? – This is important because many people use these sites to be property managers. They buy a bunch of apartments and then re-rent them on Airbnb. I try to avoid these places because they cause a lot of problems for the local rental market and lack the personal touch that comes when hosts rent out their own apartments.
Do they have accurate photos? – Any listing that doesn’t include a lot of (quality) photos is probably hiding something (or at the very least misrepresenting the accommodation).
Are they an active user or Superhost? – Active users are good users, so see when they last logged on. If it’s been a while, your query might go unanswered.
Is their calendar updated? – While listings only show up in a search if they are available, hosts don’t always update their calendar. If someone hasn’t updated their calendar in 30 days, I tend to skip it. There’s nothing worse than going to book a place, only for them to cancel and say, “Whoops, sorry, it’s not available!”
Are they verified? – Verified accounts are less likely to be people of suspicious quality, as the listing site has at least found some background information on them.
Have they been someone else’s guest before? – If they were someone’s guest and that went well, it’s likely that they will be reliable.
These rules are helpful guidelines, but at the end of the day, you have to go with your gut. I don’t need a listing to meet every point. I once had a host who hit only a couple of these points and she turned out to be my favorite host! And sometimes, in places without many hosts, you might have to be a little loose with this list.
But the more points a place meets, the comfortable I feel renting.
How to Avoid Overtourism Over the years, Airbnb and other apartment rental websites have dramatically raised the price of rents and pushed out the locals you want to interact with as people have started to buy multiple properties in order to rent them out to tourists. It’s a big problem.
There have been strong protests against Airbnb (and similar sites) in Barcelona. Throughout Europe you often see “Airbnb go home!” graffiti. Japan cracked down on Airbnb. NYC has strict laws against it now too. Residents in Mexico City have protested. Every day brings a new story about the pushback against these websites.
Given local pushback and the issues with over tourism and the housing market, I strongly encourage you to only use Airbnb or similar services if you are renting a room in someone’s house, especially in large cities in Europe. As I mentioned above, Airbnb has a new feature called “Rooms” which allows you to easily search for rooms in people’s houses where they actually live. They are verified listings and a much better way to use the platform. It’s like how Airbnb used to be before it grew so big — people renting out extra rooms or guest houses for added cash. I highly recommend it.
However, if you can’t, try as hard as you can to make sure that the place you are renting is either a licensed B&B (if it’s only used for tourists) or someone’s house that they actually live in. This way you won’t add to any local housing issues!
Help end overtourism. You have the power. Don’t displace the people you want to visit!
A Note on Safety
These sites run on trust. All these companies try to verify both buyer and seller to ensure no one ends up robbing anyone else, but you sometimes hear reports of sex parties, robberies, or creepy hosts.
However, apartment rental companies do provide a window that allows you to get your money back if you get a place that’s not as advertised. Just call their 24-hour hotline and they will set you up somewhere else (you can also reach out on social media to get the conversation started). They also hold your money in escrow so that if the place isn’t as advertised, you’ll get your money back. You never hand it over directly to the host.
All types of accommodations have risks (cleaners can steal from hotel rooms, dorm mates can take clothes from hostels, Couchsurfing hosts can get creepy), which is why these rules are important. I don’t think apartment rentals are any less safe than your other options, and the benefits greatly outweigh the perceived danger.
The Best Sites to Find a Rental Apartment
I think these are three best sites for finding an apartment:
Another option for long-term travelers is house sitting and pet sitting. In exchange for looking after someone’s property or pet while they travel, you get access to free accommodation. It’s a great option for slow/long-term travelers looking to stay in one location for longer periods of time. Check out this post to learn more about it!
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Apartment rentals, when done right, are safe, affordable, and help you have a more authentic experience. Use the tips above and try one on your next trip. You’ll save money, get away from the tourists, and have a better trip!
How to Travel the World on $75 a Day
My New York Times best-selling book to travel will teach you how to master the art of travel so that you’ll get off save money, always find deals, and have a deeper travel experience. It’s your A to Z planning guide that the BBC called the “bible for budget travelers.”
Book Your Flight Find a cheap flight by using Skyscanner. It’s my favorite search engine because it searches websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is being left unturned.
Book Your Accommodation You can book your hostel with Hostelworld. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com as it consistently returns the cheapest rates for guesthouses and hotels.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
Want to Travel for Free? Travel credit cards allow you to earn points that can be redeemed for free flights and accommodation — all without any extra spending. Check out my guide to picking the right card and my current favorites to get started and see the latest best deals.
Need a Rental Car? Discover Cars is a budget-friendly international car rental website. No matter where you’re headed, they’ll be able to find the best — and cheapest — rental for your trip!
Need Help Finding Activities for Your Trip? Get Your Guide is a huge online marketplace where you can find cool walking tours, fun excursions, skip-the-line tickets, private guides, and more.
Ready to Book Your Trip? Check out my resource page for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use when I travel. They are the best in class and you can’t go wrong using them on your trip.
Did you know it rains on the Sun? Not water, of course. It’s solar rain, which occurs in the Sun’s corona, the outermost layer composed of intensely hot plasma. This phenomenon involves cooler, heavier blobs of plasma that condense high above the Sun’s surface and then plunge back down.
For years, researchers had been unable to understand how this “rain” formed so rapidly during solar flares. Now, researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi have finally figured out why.
Radiation helps cool the plasma in the Sun’s corona. But the mix of elements in different parts of the corona isn’t fixed. It changes over time, and across regions. Most models overlook this and assume that element levels remain constant everywhere.
Because of this, these models struggle to explain rapidly changing events like solar rain, which appear during flares and in active zones. Since the amount of energy lost through radiation depends on the elements present, oversimplifying their behavior means missing the key physics behind how the solar atmosphere really works.
Luke Benavitz, a first-year graduate student working on the project, said, “At present, models assume that the distribution of various elements in the corona is constant throughout space and time, which clearly isn’t the case.”
The team discovered that shifts in the mix of elements, called elemental abundances, can explain how solar rain forms so quickly.
To better model how radiation cools the Sun’s plasma, they updated a simulation tool called HYDRAD. Instead of assuming the element mix remains constant everywhere and all the time, they allow it to vary across space and time, especially for elements with low first ionization potential (low-FIP), which play a key role in solar activity.
They even added a new equation to track how these low-FIP elements move and change. When they compared this upgraded model to the old one, the results showed a much better match with real solar rain events.
HYDRAD is a specialized simulation tool that studies how solar plasma flows along magnetic field lines, like traffic moving through a cosmic tunnel. It treats the plasma as two interacting fluids (electrons and ions) and tracks their behavior in detail.
What makes HYDRAD powerful is its complete treatment of heat and energy flow. It includes thick radiation from the Sun’s lower atmosphere (the chromosphere), heat conduction with safety checks to avoid unrealistic spikes, and thin radiation losses from the corona.
Together, these features help researchers model the Sun’s dynamic atmosphere with high precision.
The researchers demonstrated that when tracking the movement of low-FIP elements through the Sun’s atmosphere, it becomes easy to understand solar rain.
Here’s what happens: hot plasma rises from the lower layers of the Sun, a process called chromospheric evaporation, and flows along magnetic loops in the corona. Most of the loop experiences a drop in these elements, except at the very top, or apex, where their levels increase. This increase raises radiation loss right at the apex, cooling the plasma quickly and causing it to condense. That’s how solar rain forms in loops that are suddenly heated, like during flares.
Currently, no other solar model accounts for radiation while allowing element levels to change across space and time. However, these shifting spatiotemporal abundances are crucial to understanding how plasma cools in the Sun’s atmosphere and why solar rain forms.
Researchers have shown that making these changes can trigger coronal rain in simulations. By including spatiotemporal abundances, researchers are not only improving one model; they are also enhancing how radiation is handled in all magnetohydrodynamic models.
In the simulations, researchers assumed the coronal loop already had a split mix of elements, which they refer to as fractionated. But if they include a force called the ponderomotive force, they could model the loop from an earlier stage, before it gets heated.
Observations from the Hinode/EIS spacecraft support this. They found that solar rain has a complex elemental fingerprint. The rain itself showed a photospheric signature (based on the silicon-to-sulfur ratio), while the hotter plasma around it had a coronal signature (based on calcium-to-argon).
This matches what the model predicts: during chromospheric evaporation, the Si/S ratio shifts to photospheric inside the rain, while Ca/Ar stays coronal in the surrounding hot plasma. That means the rain forms through the same physics the model describes.
“It’s exciting to see that when we allow elements like iron to change with time, the models finally match what we actually observe on the Sun,” Benavitz said. “It makes the physics come alive in a way that feels real.”
Co-author Jeffrey Reep added, “This discovery matters because it helps us understand how the Sun really works. We can’t directly see the heating process, so we use cooling as a proxy. But if our models haven’t treated abundances properly, the cooling time has likely been overestimated. We might need to go back to the drawing board on coronal heating, so there’s a lot of new and exciting work to be done.”
