Dez Reads. Good Manners Cost More Than Nothing.

Greetings from London, where my wife and I are celebrating my 40^th birthday by watching Nottingham Forest take on Manchester City in the FA Cup Semifinal. Dez Reads is the least professional responsibility I have on my plate.

When you ask your favorite AI model for some information, are you polite? According to Sam Altman and Mike Bova, it’s a massive drain on the electrical grid and thus the overall cost of compute. Bova leads us off this week with some insight into the cost of your pleasantries.

I thought I might have to cut Mark Emerson’s submission, but thankfully an Indonesian couple was unharmed after Google Maps directed them to literally drive off a bridge. Please heed this cautionary tale.

Additionally, Jen Hirshon provides a jolt of nightmare fuel in her dispatch on lab-grown human teeth in the UK, Maggie Johnston educates our audience on the importance of the impending papal conclave, and yours truly writes in support of the cultural dividends provided by the Vietnam War.

Thanks, as always, for reading along with us.

Here we go.

Technology.

NY Post. Saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ to ChatGPT costs tens of millions of dollars, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman admits

It turns out manners are costly. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told reporters that telling ChatGPT “please” and “thank you” is costing tens of millions of dollars in electricity expenses. While expensive, some experts say that these responses can help generate collaborative outputs and responses. A 2024 survey revealed that approximately 67% of American users regularly employ courteous language when interacting with chatbots.

I personally will still be saying please and thank you because that is how I was raised, but also in case the machines do take over, I want them to know I was always nice.

– Mike Bova

The Financial Express. Indonesian couple survives fall off from unfinished highway after following Google Maps directions

Ok. As someone who blindly follows Waze when driving literally anywhere, I’m honestly surprised we don’t hear more wild instances such as this story out of Indonesia. Where a man drove off a 12-meter incomplete bridge because Google Maps told him to. It reminds me of The Office episode when Michael follows the GPS straight into a lake despite Dwight’s screaming objections.

The 61-year-old driver and his passenger were following Google’s directions when the route suddenly rerouted and led them directly to a bridge that wasn’t a bridge, yet. Construction was incomplete; there were no barriers, just a 40-foot drop to a highway below. The car went airborne and was completely totaled. Miraculously, both passengers survived with only minor injuries.

Personally, I’ve followed Waze into some wild places. I’ve ended up on dirt roads and some alleyways that could double as movie-set crime scenes. But this story might be the yellow flag I needed. Maybe I don’t always need to save three minutes, and maybe, just maybe, a little patience could keep us from quite literally going over the edge.

– Mark Emerson

Health.

BBC. King’s College scientists’ lab-grown teeth breakthrough

You know that ooky feeling you get after watching a Black Mirror episode—like the season 7 premiere, where a couple signs up for a life-saving technology that, of course, comes with a monthly subscription? It’s unsettling because it always feels like reality is only a few steps behind.

Enter the latest research from King’s College London, where scientists have spent over a decade trying to help humans do what sharks and elephants have mastered: regrow teeth. Unlike our animal cousins, we only get one adult set. Lose a tooth, and you’re stuck with a filling, an implant, or, if you’re really unlucky, dentures.

Now, here’s where things get both creepy and kind of cool. The King’s team, working with Imperial College London, has developed a new material that lets cells “talk” to each other, like a microscopic group chat for tooth formation. Instead of overwhelming the cells with all the signals at once (which only confuses them), this material lets the messages trickle out slowly, mimicking the natural process in your jaw. The result? Lab-grown teeth that could, one day, be transplanted into your mouth and actually integrate with your jaw, healing and repairing themselves—no metal, no plastic, just real teeth grown from your own cells.

The future of dentistry could soon involve a lot more biology—and a lot less drilling. But for those prone to fillings, a subscription plan might not sound too bad!

– Jen Hirshon

Culture.

USA Today. When is a new pope chosen? Here’s how long the selection process generally takes

There’s no stage quite like the Vatican during a conclave. One of the most powerful roles in the world gets decided behind closed doors by fewer than 130 cardinals, most of whom will only ever get to cast this vote once in their lifetimes.

The drama is undeniable. The cardinals enter under frescoes, swear oaths of secrecy, and handwrite names onto ballots. Votes are threaded together with a needle and burned. The world waits for smoke. Black means keep waiting. White means they’ve chosen. But no one outside the room ever knows the conversations, the alliances, or the hesitations. And that’s the point.

The conclave is all tradition on the outside, but inside? It’s one of the most high-pressure political decisions imaginable. The pope isn’t just a religious figure; he sets the tone for the global Church. His priorities shape how 1.4 billion Catholics view issues like justice, mercy, power, and faith itself. Whoever is chosen now will likely guide the Church for a decade or more.

Pope Francis brought a more inclusive, outward-facing tone to the papacy. Now, as the world, especially the U.S., leans further right, many are watching to see whether the next pope will extend Pope Francis’ vision or pull back towards a more conservative Church.

It’s easy to get swept up in the ceremony. That’s by design. But beneath the incense and Latin, this is a real power transfer.

– Maggie Johnston

The Economist. The Vietnam War made American culture bolder and more varied

Whether you’re anti-war, a hawk, or indifferent, there’s no denying that the Vietnam War produced some cultural bangers.

Bob Dylan, CCR, Nina Simone, Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket, Deer Hunter…the list goes on. Whatever your opinion on the war, our film and record collections are better for it.

– Josh Culling

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