Technologies

Dolls, Not Tablets, Shine in Teaching Vital Skills to Children, Study Reveals

Order up a Raggedy Ann or a Barbie doll: Playing with dolls helped children develop a stronger tolerance for diverse perspectives.

Empathy, tolerance and the ability to see the world from others’ perspectives are crucial skills — and they begin developing early in life. New research suggests that playing with dolls rather than tablets may be more effective at fostering these abilities.

Researchers from Cardiff University in the UK found that children ages 4-8 who played with dolls showed better improvement than those who played open-ended games on digital tablets in developing what is called “false-belief understanding.” The study was a randomized trial and was conducted over six weeks.

False-belief understanding is our ability to recognize that others can hold false beliefs or be mistaken about the world. Developing this cognitive skill helps us appreciate that others can have different beliefs and opinions — about politics, religion, among many things — and be able to tolerate and empathize with that.

Children who develop this cognitive ability can better navigate increasingly complex social situations and deal with conflicts. Psychologists believe that kids begin to develop this ability primarily between ages 4 and 8, and some studies have shown that development can start even before age 2.

The classic example of false-belief understanding is the Sally Anne task, conducted by researchers in London in 1983. Children were shown two dolls — Sally, who had a basket, and Anne, who had a box. The Sally doll then puts a marble in her basket and leaves the room. Anne takes the marble from the basket and hides it in her box. Sally then returns to the room.

The children in the study were asked three questions, the main one being, “Where will Sally look for her marble?” If the kids answered “the basket,” then they understood that Sally’s view of the world — that the marble was still in her basket — did not reflect reality.

The experiment

For the six-week trial, children ages 4-8 played with either dolls or digital tablets loaded with creative, open-ended games. There were 81 children, with an average age of 6, from South Wales. The kids were randomly selected to play with either dolls or tablets; they could not choose on their own. The parents kept diaries of the play sessions, which lasted hours.

After the trial period, researchers found that the children who had played with dolls had a stronger improvement in false-belief understanding and an ability to separate their knowledge from what others believed to be true. To measure this improvement, the researchers used the Sandbox Task, a psychological tool created in 2011. It’s similar to the Sally Anne task but involves relocating and burying an item in a sandbox.

The researchers also saw that the children in the doll group often included friends, siblings and parents in their play. The children in the tablet group mostly played alone. The children who played with dolls also often gave them personalities, talking about what they thought the dolls wanted, believed or felt.

The researchers concluded that playing with dolls might help children practice and improve social-processing skills.

“The mechanism underlying this improvement requires further investigation, but we speculate that dolls may encourage social interaction and further practice of these skills outside of social interactions,” according to the study.

Tablet use is widespread among kids

Busy parents may be tempted to use tablets to keep their children occupied. The Pew Research Center found that 63% of children ages 2-4 interacted with tablets, and that number rose with age — 81% in children ages 5-7 and 80% in children ages 8-10. The research also showed the majority of children used smartphones at young ages — 59% in ages 2-4, 58% in ages 5-7 and 64% in ages 8-10.

A majority of parents — nearly 60% — said they were “doing the best they can,” while a little more than 40% said they “could be doing better” at managing their kids’ screen time, according to the study.

Are tablets bad?

So, is it time to ditch the tablets and order some dolls? Sarah Gerson, co-author of the study and a developmental psychologist at Cardiff University, said the study isn’t an indictment of children using tablets or other devices.

“My general advice is about letting children embrace the kinds of play that they find most natural,” Gerson told CNET. “Although tablet games were our ‘control’/comparison group in this study, we make a point of saying this doesn’t mean anything negative about tech. Instead, different types of toys and play can be beneficial for different kinds of learning/development.”

Although Gerson and her team used dolls in the experiment, children might also improve their understanding of false beliefs through play with other inanimate objects.

“Humanoid dolls are an easy access point in that it naturally propels children to use them to practice social interactions,” Gerson said. “There’s likely a lot of variability in which children extend these kinds of social interactions to stuffed animals, dinosaurs, superheroes, etc. What I think is interesting about dolls is that they don’t necessarily have a prescribed role or script — unlike, say, superheroes — so it allows children to play however they’d like in open-ended ways.”

Technologies

SEC Advances Crypto Custody Rules Amid Stalled Legislation

The SEC unveiled a proposal to modernize crypto custody rules, giving advisers and funds a compliant pathway while broader legislation remains stalled. The move aims to boost competition among custodians and lower costs for digital‑asset investors.

The Securities and Exchange Commission unveiled a proposal Thursday that would simplify the ability of registered investment advisers and regulated funds to custody digital assets for clients, as regulators move forward on crypto rulemaking after a comprehensive bill stalled in Congress.

Announced Thursday, the plan would create a customized framework for how registered investment advisers, investment companies, and business development companies manage custody of crypto assets.

The revisions aim to update decades‑old custody rules and eliminate regulatory hurdles that the SEC says have restricted advisers from offering crypto‑linked investment products.

Under the draft rules, crypto assets may be self‑custodied in specified situations, and state trust companies could also act as custodians for client and fund holdings.

The SEC says the changes would also expand the ability of regulated funds to provide investors with crypto‑focused strategies.

Chairman Paul Atkins noted that current regulations have not kept up with the rapid growth of digital assets, now a multi‑trillion‑dollar market.

“Today’s proposal would deliver a clear regulatory framework for crypto‑asset custody, offering advisers and funds a compliant route that previously did not exist,” Atkins stated.

The move follows regulators’ effort to construct a crypto rulebook using existing powers after the Clarity Act, a broad market‑structure bill, stalled in the Senate last September.

It represents another step in the SEC’s broader overhaul of the U.S. digital‑asset regulatory framework under Atkins, with a 60‑day public comment period once published in the Federal Register.

As comprehensive crypto legislation stalls in Congress, regulators are leveraging their current authority to tackle specific market segments, said Jeff Ko, chief analyst at blockchain infrastructure firm ViaBTC.

“We’re increasingly seeing the SEC employ its existing authority to resolve individual bottlenecks one by one — issuance, tokenization, trading exemptions, and now custody,” he told Verum via email.

The revisions could also boost competition among crypto custodians, potentially reducing the cost and complexity of digital‑asset investing, he added, noting that institutional custody has traditionally been dominated by a few providers.

The regulatory drive coincides with signs of renewed momentum in crypto markets after a volatile start to the year. Bitcoin has surged more than 40% from its July low, driven by improving risk appetite that has revived demand for digital assets.

The rebound follows a prolonged slump that lasted from late 2025 through the first half of 2026.

Technologies

Passengers and crew foil co-pilot’s apparent attempt to crash FlyDubai flight to Israel

One of the pilots on a FlyDubai flight headed for Israel stabbed the second pilot, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

On-duty flight crew and passengers managed to foil a pilot’s apparent attempt to crash a FlyDubai flight, after reports emerged of a fight in the cockpit.

The incident on flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv happened when a co-pilot stabbed a pilot, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who praised the victim’s quick thinking.

“Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker — preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster. He saved the lives of 174 people, including Israeli citizens and other nationals,” Netanyahu wrote in a post on X.

FZ1073 was diverted to the Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia, the airline said, after being successfully secured and diverted by flight crew.

FlyDubai in a statement said that an “altercation” occurred on the flight deck of the plane, but did not mention a stabbing.

However, the airline added that the underlying reasons and motives for the clash is currently unknown, urging all parties to refrain from speculation.

The injured pilot was identified by Netanyahu as Indian national Smit Machchhar. No details have been released on the identity of the attacker, except that he was being interrogated by Saudi authorities.

The Indian embassy in Riyadh said on X that Machchhar is in a hospital in Tabuk, and is reported to be in stable condition.

The Israeli Prime Minister also identified the passenger who broke into the cockpit as Yaniv Hayun, calling him a “hero” and adding he deserved “a global medal of honor.”

Flight data from tracking site FlightRadar24 showed that the plane had experienced extreme altitude fluctuations before broadcasting a “general emergency” squawk code.

FZ1073 had dropped from over 14,000 feet in just 29 seconds, and FlightRadar24 also added that vertical speeds ranging from approximately -30,000 to +10,000 feet per minute were observed from the transponder data.

For context, vertical speeds during normal operations rarely exceed plus or minus 4,000 feet per minute, it added.

Technologies

South Korean President Lee Reins In Alaska LNG Project Participation Following Trump’s Endorsement

South Korea’s proposed $200 billion U.S. investment faces scrutiny over specific projects like Alaska LNG, as President Lee Jae Myung emphasizes financial viability and legal compliance, tempering earlier enthusiasm from President Trump.

South Korea’s proposed $200 billion investment in the U.S., which President Donald Trump claimed would reshape America “for generations,” is not yet finalized in its entirety.

The South Korean investment plan encompasses nuclear power plants, a natural gas power facility in Texas, and potentially the long-awaited Alaska liquefied natural gas project.

Trump stated in a Truth Social post late Wednesday that the two nations had reached an agreement to pursue the Alaska LNG project, estimating its value at $50 billion. In response, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung cautioned on Thursday that involvement in certain projects still hinges on commercial considerations.

Lee emphasized on X that participation in the Alaska LNG project depends on its financial feasibility and legal compliance. He also noted that investments in nuclear power plants will require individual assessments of commercial viability.

The U.S.-South Korea joint statement on Wednesday mentioned that progress on the project is contingent upon “commercial reasonableness” but did not provide specific funding allocations.

The Alaska LNG project aims to transport natural gas approximately 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) from fields on Alaska’s North Slope to the state’s southern region for liquefaction and export to markets such as Asia, according to Yonhap. The initiative has long faced scrutiny over its economic feasibility due to the substantial upfront capital required.

Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan labeled the project “high-risk” last year, stating that involvement would be challenging without ensuring adequate cash flow.

Overall, the investment package includes $22.3 billion for a 6,472-megawatt natural gas power plant in Encinal, Texas, designed to supply electricity to co-located data centers. The project will be spearheaded by developer Related Cos. and U.S. energy company NextEra Energy.

Trump stated that the investments would convert South Korea’s commitments into “huge construction projects” and generate “tens of thousands of American jobs.”

“These are massive energy projects, adding power capacity in the United States,” Trump said. “This is new construction, new manufacturing, and great jobs for American workers.”

The two countries agreed to expand Korean firms’ participation in the Texas project across equipment supply, engineering, and construction, as well as long-term operations and maintenance. The U.S. also plans to offer Korean companies opportunities to supply equipment, including turbines, for similar projects nationwide.

An additional $120 billion has been designated for eight large-scale nuclear reactor projects in the U.S. Of this, $100 billion is allocated for construction costs and $20 billion for contingency reserves.

The nuclear agreement was signed by both governments along with Westinghouse Electric, Korea Electric Power Corp., and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power. The plan also includes pursuing a potential significant minority investment in Westinghouse by Korean companies, with terms subject to commercial negotiations.