The Best Hotels For Digital Nomads And Bleisure Travelers In 2025

Travel

Digital nomads and bleisure travelers (those mixing business with leisure) are redefining the way we experience travel, seeking out destinations that offer more than just a desk and decent Wi-Fi. The best hotels for this new wave of travelers combine seamless connectivity, inspiring workspaces, and all the creature comforts that make a trip both productive and indulgent. According to a recent report by Skift, 89% of business travelers expressed interest in adding leisure components to their trips, and the Global Business Travel Association reports that bleisure travel has grown by over 30% in the past five years. Meanwhile, digital nomadism is booming—research from MBO Partners indicates that over 16.9 million Americans now identify as digital nomads, a 131% increase from 2019. And with Forbes reporting that 55% of entrepreneurs now work primarily from home or remote locations, the demand for work-friendly hotels has never been higher.

If you’re a digital nomad or bleisure traveler looking for the perfect stay, here are the top hotels that seamlessly blend work and leisure in 2025.

Fairmont Grand Del Mar, San Diego, CA
For those who want their Zoom calls to have a five-star backdrop, Fairmont Grand Del Mar is the definition of work-meets-luxury. Nestled in the rolling hills of San Diego, this resort offers a quiet and sophisticated environment with top-tier amenities. Mornings can be spent handling emails from a private terrace, and afternoons can transition into rounds of golf, spa treatments, or Michelin-starred dining. With extensive meeting spaces and on-site business services, it’s an ideal choice for executives who need to balance boardroom obligations with a little California sunshine.

Sage Lodge, Pray, MT
If you dream of working remotely with a backdrop of Montana’s stunning Paradise Valley, Sage Lodge delivers. With its modern-rustic charm, high-speed internet, and breathtaking views of the Yellowstone River, this property lets digital nomads stay connected while feeling completely off the grid. Whether you’re writing reports by the fireplace, taking brainstorming calls on a scenic hike, or winding down with a soak in the outdoor hot tub, Sage Lodge is an escape that makes work feel less like work. According to a Harvard Business Review study, 64% of remote workers report being more productive in natural environments—something Sage Lodge delivers in spades. “Sage Lodge offers spaces where productivity meets inspiration. With modern amenities and Montana’s natural beauty, our guests who work remotely are able to feel inspired throughout the day.” — Jon Martin, General Manager, Sage Lodge.

The Nest Properties
For the nomads who thrive in boutique, design-forward spaces, The Nest Properties (Boise, ID; Missoula & Bozeman, MT; Walla Walla, WA) cater to travelers looking for thoughtfully curated stays in vibrant locations. These hotels are known for blending stylish interiors with functional workspaces—think cozy communal lounges, high-speed connectivity, and local charm at every turn. Plus, they tend to attract like-minded remote workers, making them perfect hubs for networking and collaboration. With 32% of digital nomads preferring boutique accommodations over traditional hotels, The Nest properties hit the sweet spot between work and wanderlust.
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The Avery, Boise, ID
Boise is rapidly becoming a favorite destination for digital nomads, and The Avery is at the forefront of this movement. Located in the heart of downtown Boise, this stylish boutique hotel offers a perfect mix of comfort and convenience. Guests can enjoy the cozy, modern rooms while being just steps away from local cafes, co-working spaces, and Boise’s thriving arts and food scene. After tackling emails in the hotel’s inviting workspaces, you can explore the city’s vibrant culture or unwind with a drink at the on-site bar. The Avery provides the ideal balance of small-town charm and urban sophistication, making it a top choice for working travelers. Boise has seen a notable increase in remote worker relocations, further cementing The Avery as a key spot for digital nomads looking to base themselves in this growing tech hub.

Virgin Hotels New York, New York City, NY
If you’re looking for an urban energy boost, Virgin Hotel NYC is your go-to. Located in NoMad, this sleek and stylish property is designed for modern travelers who need flexibility. With co-working spaces, private meeting rooms, and a rooftop bar for post-work unwinding, it’s the perfect blend of productivity and play. Plus, its vibrant atmosphere means you’ll never feel like you’re just another guest in a sea of business travelers—here, work and fun happen in equal measure. Data from JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group shows that demand for flexible co-working spaces in hotels has surged 45% since 2021, making Virgin Hotel NYC a prime example of this new trend.

The Future of Work and Travel
Today’s digital nomads and bleisure travelers are demanding spaces that support both their professional and personal aspirations. Whether you’re answering emails from a mountain lodge, strategizing from a boutique retreat, or closing deals in a high-energy city hotel, these properties prove that work trips don’t have to feel like work. With Airbnb reporting that 20% of all bookings now come from long-term stays (over 28 days), it’s clear that remote work and travel aren’t just trends—they’re the new reality.

LA Festival of Movies Adds Restorations and A24’s ‘Friendship’ to Lineup

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

For a town that’s all about the movies, Los Angeles strangely isn’t always the destination for a premier film festival. Enter the Los Angeles Festival of Movies (LAFM), heading into its second year, and adding more films to its lineup. IndieWire exclusively announces the latest additions. The festival runs April 3 through 6 across venues on the east side of L.A.Mubi and Mezzanine co-present the festival, which has just added A24’s fest-favorite comedy “Friendship,” starring Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd, to its lineup along with restorations of Robina Rose’s “Nightshift” and Jessie Maple’s “Will,” which is regarded as the first indie feature made by an African American woman. The festival, as previously announced, opens with Amalia Ulman’s satire of clueless documentarians adrift in South America, “Magic Farm,” and closes with Neo Sora’s dystopic coming-of-age Venice premiere “Happyend.” “Magic Farm” will be released later this year by LA Festival of Movies co-presenter Mubi, while “Happyend” has distribution from the up-and-coming Metrograph Pictures. Mubi just won its first Oscar, for the Makeup & Hairstyling in “The Substance.”

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“We couldn’t be more proud to close the festival with Neo Sora’s incredible debut feature ‘Happyend,’ a film that captures the joy and uncertainty of adolescence today in the face of what feel like insurmountable challenges of rising authoritarianism and climate change,” said Micah Gottlieb, co-founder of LAFM, in a press statement. “We’re also so excited to include two restorations of independent films by women on the cutting edge of independent filmmaking in the early 1980s, both here in the U.S. and Britain, with the revelatory naturalism of Jessie Maple’s ‘Will’ and the hypnotic reverie of Robina Rose’s ‘Nightshift.’ Finally, we’re overjoyed to spotlight one of the funniest new movies we’ve watched in years, Andrew DeYoung’s ‘Friendship,’ a comedy that deserves to be seen on the big screen with an audience.”

As announced before, the festival will feature the world premiere of “Room Temperature” from novelist, poet, and provocateur Dennis Cooper in collaboration with Zac Farley; the U.S. premiere of Alexandra Simpson’s “No Sleep Till”; director Grace Glowicki’s midnight Sundance premiere “Dead Lover”; and a series of panels and talks, including a conversation about transgression in cinema and literature between Dennis Cooper and writer Tony Tulathimutte, the millennial satirist whose 2024 novel “Rejection” was longlisted for the National Book Award. Charlie Shackleton’s “Zodiac Killer Project,” a Sundance premiere that looks with a close and critically funny eye at our obsession with true-crime documentaries, also features in the lineup.

Passes for the LAFM are currently on sale, and pre-sale pass-holder tickets go on sale March 10. Single ticket sales are on sale March 17. More about the LAFM’s full lineup is available via the festival’s website.

“Her books remind me that I’m not alone” — Inside the Mind of A Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Fan

Arts & Culture, Books

There are only a handful of writers working today in the world who have attained celebrity status quite like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Her TED talk, “We Should All Be Feminists” was sampled by Beyonce. Later, Dior printed it on T-shirts. She has graced the covers of magazines like Harper’s BAZAAR and Vogue. Tickets to see her deliver speeches sell out in seconds. On social media, her devotees proudly call themselves “The Daughters of Chimamanda.” Fans of her work almost held vigils outside bookstores anticipating her latest drop, Dream Count. 

Odeluwa Abba!

What has made her so popular among young women? I spoke with one such woman to try (because we can only try) to understand the gravitational pull she has on her fans.

As told to Tomide by Mariam.

Growing up, I always loved reading. One of the books that stuck with me as a child was Purple Hibiscus, Chimamanda’s debut novel. I was in SS2 when it was assigned in my literature class. At 14, I appreciated its storytelling and setting, but I didn’t fully grasp some of its themes. However, Aunty Ifeoma’s character stood out to me — a strong woman raising her children on her own. She was one of my earliest introductions to the idea that women could be independent and capable in a world that often insisted otherwise.

As I grew older, I understood the book differently. Eugene wasn’t just a strict father; he was an abuser. It made me realize how men who are admired in public can be entirely different — and much darker — behind closed doors. But the real shift in my perspective came when I read Dear Ijeawele, Chimamanda’s book on raising feminist children. It resonated deeply with me because, even as a child, I questioned the way things were.

Why were girls always the ones expected to cook, clean, and do most of the chores? These skills weren’t embedded in our DNA, so why were they treated as if they were? During Ramadan, I noticed how women were constantly occupied with cooking while men had the freedom to focus on prayer. I knew something about these gender roles wasn’t right, but Dear Ijeawele put words to the thoughts I had been carrying for so long. It was affirming to see someone write so passionately about these issues, making me feel seen and understood.

That’s the power of Chimamanda’s writing — it reinforces the belief I’ve always had: girls should be raised to be their own people, not just groomed to become someone’s wife. Her books remind me that I’m not alone in these thoughts. They make me reflect: Are we the way we are because of how we were raised? What other norms have we accepted simply because society told us they were normal?

Her writing also challenges how we treat and address women. Why do we call women “Dr. Mrs.” instead of just “Dr.”? Why is a woman expected to change her surname after marriage? These seemingly small details carry deeper implications, and her work reaffirms that women can be loud, stubborn, and unapologetically themselves. And that’s more than okay.

Every writer has their own way of telling stories, but Chimamanda’s writing stands out for its clarity and depth. Her storytelling is both poetic and powerful, making it easy for readers to connect with her words. There’s a profoundness in the way she crafts her characters and their experiences—raw, relatable, and deeply human.

Whether it’s Kambili’s silent struggles in Purple Hibiscus or Ifemelu’s complex journey with race and identity in Americanah, Chimamanda’s characters feel real, their emotions tangible. Americanah is my favourite of her books because, in my opinion, it’s where she most deeply explores feminism and identity. Through Ifemelu’s experiences, she dissects the ways gender and race shape our lives, making the novel not just a story but a lens through which to view the world.

In “We Should All Be Feminists” (which is also a book) she writes, “We teach girls to shrink themselves and make themselves smaller.” This powerful quote is one of the defining statements that cemented her voice and influence in both global and local cultural conversations.

In the week leading up to the release of her new book, Dream Count, the excitement was everywhere. Book lovers, reading clubs, and literary circles buzzed with anticipation — Chimamanda Adichie was the name on everyone’s lips. It was a moment of unity, a celebration of her impact on literature and culture.

Beyond her writing, her influence extends into real-life recognition. She made history as the first woman to receive a chieftaincy title in her hometown — a powerful testament to how her work and ideologies manifest beyond the page. Chimamanda is more than a writer; she is a symbol of possibility, a reminder that aspirations have no limits.

It’s impossible to talk about great and influential Black, African, or Nigerian writers without mentioning her name. I love that her work is not just celebrated but deeply appreciated across the world.

People won’t stop talking about Dream Count. Over the past few weeks, I’ve read every article I could find about it. Just like I binge-watched all of Chimamanda’s YouTube videos back in university, I found myself jumping from one article link to another. Book lovers attended her events, bought copies of the book, and even got her autograph. That’s influence. I wish I wasn’t in Nigeria — or at least, I wish I wasn’t a broke babe — because I would have been there, too.

For me, Chimamanda and her books are the perfect conversation starters with fellow book lovers. Lately, I’ve even bonded with people over her recent Vogue interview. 

In The Guardian article, I liked how she addressed some of the criticisms she has received, especially about Cancel Culture. She spoke about the importance of people being able to share their opinions and defend themselves. One of the points she made was about trans women and how, in her view, they don’t have the same lived experiences as cis women, particularly regarding safety and social conditioning. I understand where she’s coming from, but I also see how trans women begin to experience many of the same struggles that cis women face. It’s a complicated topic, and honestly, I’m still figuring out where I stand. It’s difficult to take a firm position without enough knowledge.

But that’s the beauty of discussion — engaging, listening, and allowing conversations to shape and refine our opinions. If I could talk to Chimamanda, I’d tell her how important her books are, though I’m sure she’s heard that countless times. Still, I’d want her to know that her work has shaped so many young Nigerian feminists, including me. It’s astonishing to see how much she has done for women and people in general through her writing.

We need to read, learn, and understand that there is no limit to what we can become. Society will always try to dictate who we should be, but we don’t have to conform. Women should have the same access and opportunities as men—in school, in workplaces, and in every part of life.

Wait, babes. Tickets to the hottest women-only party are now available. Get your HERtitude tickets here.

JPL Turns Off Two Voyager Science Instruments to Extend Mission

Science and Health

An artist’s concept depicts one of NASA’s Voyager probes. The twin spacecraft launched in 1977. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Mission engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena turned off the cosmic ray subsystem experiment aboard Voyager 1 on Feb. 25 and will shut off Voyager 2’s low-energy charged particle instrument on March 24. Three science instruments will continue to operate on each spacecraft. The moves are part of an ongoing effort to manage the gradually diminishing power supply of the twin probes.
Launched in 1977, Voyagers 1 and 2 rely on a radioisotope power system that generates electricity from the heat of decaying plutonium. Both lose about 4 watts of power each year.
“The Voyagers have been deep space rock stars since launch, and we want to keep it that way as long as possible,” said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at JPL. “But electrical power is running low. If we don’t turn off an instrument on each Voyager now, they would probably have only a few more months of power before we would need to declare end of mission.”
The two spacecraft carry identical sets of 10 science instruments. Some of the instruments, geared toward collecting data during planetary flybys, were turned off after both spacecraft completed their exploration of the solar system’s gas giants.
The instruments that remained powered on well beyond the last planetary flyby were those the science team considered important for studying the solar system’s heliosphere, a protective bubble of solar wind and magnetic fields created by the Sun, and interstellar space, the region outside the heliosphere. Voyager 1 reached the edge of the heliosphere and the beginning of interstellar space in 2012; Voyager 2 reached the boundary in 2018. No other human-made spacecraft has operated in interstellar space.
Last October, to conserve energy, the project turned off Voyager 2’s plasma science instrument, which measures the amount of plasma — electrically charged atoms — and the direction it is flowing. The instrument had collected only limited data in recent years due to its orientation relative to the direction that plasma flows in interstellar space. Voyager 1’s plasma science instrument had been turned off years ago because of degraded performance.
Interstellar Science Legacy
The cosmic ray subsystem that was shut down on Voyager 1 last week is a suite of three telescopes designed to study cosmic rays, including protons from the galaxy and the Sun, by measuring their energy and flux. Data from those telescopes helped the Voyager science team determine when and where Voyager 1 exited the heliosphere.
Scheduled for deactivation later this month, Voyager 2’s low-energy charged particle instrument measures the various ions, electrons, and cosmic rays originating from our solar system and galaxy. The instrument consists of two subsystems: the low-energy particle telescope for broader energy measurements, and the low-energy magnetospheric particle analyzer for more focused magnetospheric studies.
Both systems use a rotating platform so that the field of view is 360 degrees, and the platform is powered by a stepper motor that provides a 15.7-watt pulse every 192 seconds. The motor was tested to 500,000 steps — enough to guarantee continuous operation through the mission’s encounters with Saturn, which occurred in August 1980 for Voyager 2. By the time it is deactivated on Voyager 2, the motor will have completed more than 8.5 million steps.
“The Voyager spacecraft have far surpassed their original mission to study the outer planets,” said Patrick Koehn, Voyager program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Every bit of additional data we have gathered since then is not only valuable bonus science for heliophysics, but also a testament to the exemplary engineering that has gone into the Voyagers — starting nearly 50 years ago and continuing to this day.”
Addition Through Subtraction
Mission engineers have taken steps to avoid turning off science instruments for as long as possible because the science data collected by the twin Voyager probes is unique. With these two instruments turned off, the Voyagers should have enough power to operate for about a year before the team needs to shut off another instrument on both spacecraft.
In the meantime, Voyager 1 will continue to operate its magnetometer and plasma wave subsystem. The spacecraft’s low-energy charged particle instrument will operate through the remainder of 2025 but will be shut off next year.
Voyager 2 will continue to operate its magnetic field and plasma wave instruments for the foreseeable future. Its cosmic ray subsystem is scheduled to be shut off in 2026.
With the implementation of this power conservation plan, engineers believe the two probes could have enough electricity to continue operating with at least one science instrument into the 2030s. But they are also mindful that the Voyagers have been weathering deep space for 47 years and that unforeseen challenges could shorten that timeline.
Long Distance
Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 remain the most distant human-made objects ever built. Voyager 1 is more than 15 billion miles (25 billion kilometers) away. Voyager 2 is over 13 billion miles (21 billion kilometers) from Earth.
In fact, due to this distance, it takes over 23 hours to get a radio signal from Earth to Voyager 1, and 19½ hours to Voyager 2.
“Every minute of every day, the Voyagers explore a region where no spacecraft has gone before,” said Linda Spilker, Voyager project scientist at JPL. “That also means every day could be our last. But that day could also bring another interstellar revelation. So, we’re pulling out all the stops, doing what we can to make sure Voyagers 1 and 2 continue their trailblazing for the maximum time possible.”
For more information about NASA’s Voyager missions, visit:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/voyager

The priciest movie ticket in NYC is hiding beneath a historic hotel — and nearly impossible to book

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

New York’s most lavish, tantalizingly secretive dinner-and-a-movie date is nearly impossible to book — and costs five times more than Regal, AMC or Loews.

On a recent evening, 66 in-the-know cinephiles snuck down to a Parisian Art Deco theater hidden on the cellar level of Tribeca’s top five-star hotel for what was certainly the city’s most decadent theater experience.

Dubbed “Cozy Classics,” the venue at Hotel Barriere Fouquet’s New York, at the corner of Desbrosses and Greenwich streets, has become an unofficial Sunday supper club for movie lovers with money to spend.

Tickets, which go up to $215 (tax and gratuity not included), grant access to a formerly private theater, where attendees lounge artfully in gold velvet loveseats and plush chairs beneath an exquisitely apropos gold-leaf ceiling.

“It’s a great opportunity to do a date night,” Milica Rajković told The Post. Stefano Giovannini

Sunday’s event, a special one for the Oscars, was sold out; they usually are.

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While cineplexes struggle to fill seats at $20 a pop — and slovenly, phone-addicted patrons are the nettlesome norm — Fouquet’s theater, which opened to the public in December, is the oasis du jour for the well-heeled, well-dressed and better-mannered.

A $215 ticket (tax and gratuity not included) grants access to a formerly private theater, in addition to snacks. Stefano Giovannini

“It’s one of the rare places in the city you can go that has that ‘night out’ vibe and everybody’s dressed up,” said Milica Rajković, a CFO based in Long Island City and regular at the hotel’s Brasserie restaurant.

“I saw couples in formal attire and then there were couples that were in, you know, I would call it luxurious pajamas,” added Taylor Deves, who works in private banking. “It ran the gamut.”

Robed in a little black dress and a Gucci coat, Dr. Dendy Engelman, a Tribeca-based dermatologist, showed up Sunday for the Oscar fête with three girlfriends. 

“We live down the street,” said Taylor Deves, who attended the Oscar party with his partner, Nellie Davis. “We got engaged at the hotel in 2023 and since then we have just kept up with the different events.” Stefano Giovannini

“You could tell that the people really cared about the show,” she said. “There was no chatter. People were very focused on the speeches and who won. It caters to a very attentive crowd.”

“It’s so chic,” cooed one event regular, who spoke to The Post on the condition of anonymity for a très bonne, très French reason: Her movie date is her cinq à sept sidepiece. 

Officially christened the Cannes Cinema — a reference to their Le Majestic property that hosts the Cannes Film Festival — the theater had previously been open to private showings for brands and production companies (the Tribeca Film Festival is just next door). But it had never been open to the public.

So far, a few of the films they’ve screened include: “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” “Love Actually,” “Wicked,” “Crazy Stupid Love” and “The Notebook.” Stefano Giovannini

Now, flashy flicksters don’t mind flittering anywhere from $110 (for two drinks and a movie) to upwards of $215 (for special events) on a ticket — the regular price for the once-a-week screening of nostalgic favorites is $165 (dinner and a movie).

Still, to sit among this inner circle, you’ll have to figure out how to book.

Tickets drop on Resy two weeks before a showing and are not pre-bookable. They aren’t advertised either, beyond a discreet post on the hotel’s Instagram. Even then, no link is given — you’ll have to message and their Instagram page is a sea of requests. (Or, take an insider tip from us: Once the event goes live, go to Fouquet’s Instagram page, click the link on their profile and scroll down to a photo of the theater; it will redirect you to Resy.) 

Fouquet’s offers free popcorn served in stylish retro boxes and individual candy sacks for screenings. Stefano Giovannini

Fouquet’s New York is the neighborhood boîte where the self-consciously stylish slink for twinkling tête-à-têtes amongst acres of toile de Jouy. Stefano Giovannini

“People ask us all the time if they can book in advance and what our monthly calendar looks like,” Victoria Menechella Bello, the hotel’s director of marketing who is behind the events, told The Post. “But we’re sticking to that two weeks out period to make it a bit more exciting and secretive. It sells out very, very quickly.”

However, its regulars of the hotel’s restaurant, Brasserie Fouquet’s, and members of the hotel’s private club who seem to have the inside track.

Thanks to a booking mix-up, Gregory and Angela Day ended up getting the royal treatment with admission to the Oscar party. Stefano Giovannini

For Sunday’s Oscar-viewing soiree, guests absorbed cases of free-flowing champagne and nibbled golden macarons (200 were prepared for the event). Stefano Giovannini

“We’d been to Fouquet’s in Paris many times, so we thought we would see how the New York restaurant stacks up,” said Gregory Day, a Los Angeles resident who was visiting the city with his wife Angela on Sunday. “We walked in and they’re, like, ‘Are you here for the event?’”

“We had come in for the weekend to get away from the Oscars,” added Day, the president of hospitality at the Hollywood real estate group Mani Brothers. “So it was quite funny.”

For the Oscars, special drinks were available, aptly named the Nominee, the Oscar and the Envelope. Stefano Giovannini

There’s also a prix-fixe dinner prior to the showing at Brasserie Fouquet’s. Stefano Giovannini

But if you think shelling out $330 for a movie date for two is a little crazy, don’t worry — so do they. That’s why they’ve loaded it with extras, like a prix-fixe dinner prior to the showing at Brasserie Fouquet’s, where main courses normally run from $34 (mushrooms) to $115 (beef).

There are other perks, too: free popcorn served in stylish retro boxes and individual candy sacks (cocktails must be ordered from the bar). Nevertheless, it’s the lustrous French-Deco atmosphere — created by the famed design studio of Martin Brudnizki — and the Fouquet’s name that most are coming for. 

Proof of concept established, showings will now continue indefinitely. And this month the theater will celebrate International Women’s Day with all women-directed movies — so expect Sophia Coppola à gogo.

The theatre is hidden on the cellar level of the Tribeca five-star hotel. Stefano Giovannini

Director of marketing Victoria Menechella Bello (right) is behind the events and said they often sell out. Stefano Giovannini

“We’re learning as we go, but I think what we’ve realized with the last few showings is that the ones that do best are the older films,” says Menechella Bello. “Over Christmas, we did ‘Home Alone 2’ and over Valentine’s Day we showed ‘Pretty Women,’ and those sold out immediately.

“It’s the films that people love, that they want to see again.”

COLUMN: Physical books are way better than e-books

Arts & Culture, Books

There’s nothing better than sitting down in a quiet place and picking out a good book after you get home from class.  
Books are a part of all our daily lives and come in many forms from long-form novels to short stories. 
Over the years, there has been debate about whether a physical novel is better than an electronic book. The answer is clear: the physical novel is superior.  
I would like to first point out that you can physically move through an actual book. With e-books you must flip through a screen. Flipping pages in paper and hardback copies is a more immersive experience while you read.  
As someone who has read both physical novels and e-books, I find a better experience with the actual copies that you can get your hands on. I mainly appreciate them due to the ability to own an actual copy. You will always have the title with you no matter what, and no one can take it from you.  
E-books are nice due to the stories being on a phone, computer or tablet so you don’t have ripped pages and frayed covers. You have a book that can never soil. But you will not have full confidence that you own your e-book.
Yes, you paid for the book online, but what stops that device from losing your book? What stops that company from not taking it away from you eventually?
Technology is a useful tool for always keeping lots of information at our fingertips, including books. But it is also faulty. It can lose documents and photos. Technology can also lose books.  
Second, tablets and phones have a limited amount of battery and require a charge after long use.
With physical novels, you can read however long and much you want without having to worry about grabbing the charging cord off the counter and plugging in your device.
You can basically enjoy your book without having to worry about the screen going dark after a few hours of binge reading.  
And speaking of screens going dark, there is the issue of electronic page numbers and screen swiping.
E-books used on apps specifically do have page numbers in a corner. But in apps like google play books, your page numbers are not always accurate. They do not always count down correctly and can make it easier to not realize how far you are in a novel if you really want to know.  
Swiping screens become an issue due to whether a phone or tablet picks up your finger on the touch screen. While it’s not a large concern, it can become annoying when you want to read in the winter with gloves on and cannot make your screen flip the page.  
Physical books don’t require your bare fingers for flipping pages. All that you need to do is manually turn a page, even with gloves on.  
Last, I want to mention how much eye strain an e-book can cause.
We all know the age-old argument that screens can alter eyesight. Even if you turn down the brightness on your screen, you can still cause eye strain due to lower light levels and a hard ability to see the words on the screen.
Physical books don’t cause 24/7 eye strain and can be read in all kinds of lighting areas in a building, giving many options on where to read.
All you need is the perfect place to relax with a physical book.  

Michelle Doty can be reached at 581-2812 or at [email protected]. 

Jurassic Park… but fuzzier. Scientists say they’ve made a ‘woolly mouse’

Science and Health

Tiny lab mice just got a mammoth-sized upgrade — genetic tweaks have given them thick, woolly fur, bringing science one step closer to reviving traits of extinct species.
Texas-based bioengineering company Colossal Biosciences on Tuesday announced the birth of what it calls the “woolly mouse,” a genetically engineered rodent with key mammoth-like traits.Its thick, textured coat, reminiscent of a woolly mammoth’s, could help it adapt to colder climates, the company said.Woolly mammoths roamed the frozen tundras of Europe, Asia and North America for more than 300,000 years before going extinct around 4,000 years ago.The Ice Age icons had two huge tusks and a thick layer of shaggy, chocolate-brown hair.Since 2021, Colossal has been working on a plan to revive the woolly mammoth and later the dodo bird. To do this, the company has focused on identifying key traits of extinct animals by studying ancient DNA, intending to genetically engineer them into living animals. Story continues below advertisement

And that’s where the woolly mouse comes in.

In this February 2025 photo provided by Colossal Biosciences, a genetically edited mouse with long, thick, woolly hair at a lab in Dallas, Texas.

(Colossal Biosciences via AP)

“The Colossal Woolly Mouse marks a watershed moment in our de-extinction mission,” Ben Lamm, co-founder and CEO of Colossal Biosciences, said in a media release.“By engineering multiple cold-tolerant traits from mammoth evolutionary pathways into a living model species, we’ve proven our ability to recreate complex genetic combinations that took nature millions of years to create. This success brings us a step closer to our goal of bringing back the woolly mammoth.”Colossal said it focused on mice first to confirm whether the process works before potentially moving on to edit the embryos of Asian elephants, the closest living relatives to woolly mammoths.

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Results were posted online, but they have not yet been published in a journal or vetted by independent scientists. Story continues below advertisement

The making of the ‘woolly mouse’

To create their woolly mice, Colossal Biosciences studied 121 mammoth and elephant genomes to identify genes linked to traits like thick fur and cold adaptation.They focused on 10 genes related to hair length, texture and colour, plus fat metabolism. Using advanced gene-editing technologies, they made eight edits in the mouse genome, targeting seven specific genes.The result? Mice with hair three times longer than normal, and a woolly texture, wavy coats and curled whiskers.It’s the first living animal engineered to express cold-adapted traits from mammoth genes, the company said, adding it could serve as a valuable model for studying how mammals adapt to cold climates.“The Colossal Woolly Mouse demonstrates remarkable progress we’ve made in precise genome engineering, including optimized delivery methods, innovative multiplexing and combinations of gene targeting strategies,” George Church, professor of genetics at the Wyss Institute and Harvard Medical School and Co-founder of Colossal, said in a media release. Story continues below advertisement

“We are showing that we can now rationally design and construct complex genetic adaptations, with profound implications for the future of multi-gene de-extinction and engineering.”

Colossal said it focused on mice first to confirm whether the process works before potentially moving on to edit the embryos of Asian elephants, the closest living relatives to woolly mammoths.

Colossal Biosciences via AP

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What the science community is saying

Some independent experts are skeptical about the concept of de-extinction, with mixed opinions on whether this approach will benefit conservation efforts. Story continues below advertisement

“You’re not actually resurrecting anything — you’re not bringing back the ancient past,” Christopher Preston, a wildlife and environment expert at the University of Montana, who was not involved in the research, told The Associated Press.“You might be able to alter the hair pattern of an Asian elephant or adapt it to the cold, but it’s not bringing back a woolly mammoth. It’s changing an Asian elephant.”Still, the refinement of precision gene-editing in animals could have other uses for conservation or animal agriculture, said Bhanu Telugu, who studies animal biotechnology at the University of Missouri and was not involved in the new research.

1:09
Woolly mammoth skeleton discovered on Michigan farm

Telugu told The Associated Press he was impressed by Colossal’s technological advances that enabled scientists to pinpoint which genes to target.Colossal is not the first group to take aim at resurrecting the mammoth through gene editing. The California-based Revive & Restore Project also wants to see the woolly mammoth brought back to life. Story continues below advertisement

Scientists have toyed with the idea of resurrecting mammoths for years, in large part because there are so many well-preserved bodies left over in the Russian permafrost. Those bodies are rich with various tissues and DNA, unlike the remains of dinosaurs, which typically turn to stone through the fossilization process.— with files from Global News and The Associated Press

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Charli XCX eyed to step beyond the wardrobe for Netflix and Greta Gerwig’s Narnia film

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

Grammy-winning artist Charli XCX could join Netflix and Greta Gerwig’s Narnia movie in a key role for the upcoming fantasy film.

If Charli XCX joins the cast of Greta Gerwig’s Narnia movie, the Pevensie family could find a pile of panties in their wardrobe. According to Deadline, Gerwig is eyeing the Grammy-winning artist for her upcoming film based on The Chronicles of Narnia on Netflix. The outlet says Charli XCX is in the running for a key role, though details remain a mystery.

Whispers about Charli XCX possibly joining the Narnia cast arrive after hearing she’ll co-headline Saturday’s portion of this year’s Glastonbury Festival alongside Neil Young and Chrome Hearts, Doechii, Deftones, Beth Gibbons, Amyl and the Sniffers, Beabadoobee, Caribou, and many more. While Charli XCX’s potential Narnia role remains unknown, Deadline suggests she could play Jadis, The White Witch.

According to Jason Isaacs, Greta Gerwig’s Narnia movie is an adaptation of The Magician’s Nephew, a prequel to the original tale. “I loved all the Narnia books as a kid,” the actor said in January. “When Peter was told he wouldn’t be coming back, I understood something devastating about mortality. I picked this one because Greta Gerwig is about to make a film of it, which I can’t wait to see.”

Netflix acquired the rights to C.S. Lewis’ series of Narnia novels way back in 2018. There are seven novels in the series: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe; Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Horse and His Boy, The Magician’s Nephew, and The Last Battle. The first four books have received multiple television adaptations over the decades since they were published in the 1950s. Walden Media made two big-screen adaptations with Disney. The first, Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, was an enormous hit in 2005, grossing over $745 million worldwide, but the 2008 sequel, Prince Caspian, made significantly less, $419 million. So Walden Media had to go to Fox to get a third movie made, 2010’s The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. That one made about as much as Prince Caspian.

If Gerwig is indeed making The Magician’s Nephew, the description of the book’s story reads: “Narnia… a land frozen in eternal winter… a country waiting to be set free. On a daring quest to save a life, two friends are hurled into another world, where an evil sorceress seeks to enslave them. But then the lion Aslan’s song weaves itself into the fabric of a new land, a land that will be known as Narnia. And in Narnia, all things are possible.”

Charli XCX appears in several upcoming film projects, including Cathy Yan’s The Gallerist, Daniel Goldhaber’s adaptation of Faces of Death, Romain Gavras’s action-adventure comedy Sacrifice, and more.

If Greta Gerwig wants to separate her Narnia film from previous releases, casting Charli XCX is a good start. While the deal is not done, seeing how this plays out will be interesting.