- The top 25 stories curated by editors and fellow readers!
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Editor's Pick |
| Work Judge Rejects New Jersey's Bid to Halt Congestion Pricing  “We respectfully disagree with the trial court’s decision not to halt New York’s congestion pricing program before it goes into effect on Sunday,” Mr. Mastro said. “We will continue to fight for the people of New Jersey by seeking emergency relief from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.” |
| Work Israeli strikes kill at least 42 in Gaza as ceasefire talks set to resume in Qatar  The war has caused widespread destruction and displaced about 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, many of them multiple times. Winter has now arrived, and hundreds of thousands are sheltering in tents near the sea. |
| Work Norovirus, aka the stomach flu, is at decade-high levels in the US. Know these early signs  Norovirus will typically resolve on its own, but rest and supportive care can help manage symptoms. Rehydration is key, Schaffner notes. Drinking water, sports drinks and oral rehydration solutions can help replenish fluids lost during diarrhea and vomiting. |
| Work Judge rejects Jan. 6 defendant's request to attend Trump's inauguration  Taylor is not the only Jan. 6 defendant to seek permission to travel to the inauguration. Other defendants who have put in requests include Christopher Belliveau, whose request was denied; Eric Peterson, whose request was granted; and William Pope, who has not yet received a decision on his request, according to court records. |
| Work Jimmy Carter's state funeral starts Saturday. Here is what to know  The Carter family then will return to bury its patriarch in Plains after a private hometown funeral at 3:45 p.m. at Maranatha Baptist Church, where Carter, a devout evangelical, taught Sunday School for decades. |
| Work New Orleans attacker had a transmitter to set off explosive devices, FBI says  The New Orleans Fire Department responded to the fire at around 5:18 a.m., after Jabbar had carried out the attack on Bourbon Street, but the fire had "extinguished itself" before spreading to other rooms, allowing for the "recovery of evidence, including pre-cursors for bomb making material and a privately made device suspected of being a silencer for a rifle,” the statement said. |
| Work If you purchased these potato chips in the past 8 years, you could be eligible for payment  According to the Rankins v. Old Lyme class action lawsuit, it claims Old Lyme Gourmet Co. labeled certain Deep River brand chips with the “non-GMO ingredients” graphic, giving consumers the impression the snacks were certified by a third-party, such as the Non-GMO Project, as being free from genetically modified ingredients. |
| Work From Lionel Messi to Hillary Clinton, a look at the 2025 Medal of Freedom recipients  Stevens has "illuminated American ideals of racial equity and justice for half-a-century," the White House said. "His award-winning career has been dedicated to preserving and celebrating American film and the performing arts, including founding the American Film Institute and creating the Kennedy Center Honors." |
| Work Victor Wembanyama scores 35 as Spurs survive Nikola Jokic, Nuggets to start back-to-back  “I don’t look forward,” the coach said Friday. “I’m just trying to worry about San Antonio. We play them again tomorrow night. Hopefully, we get healthy some point soon, get Aaron Gordon back, but we’ll make those decisions when we are fully whole.” |
| Work Today in History: January 4, Nancy Pelosi becomes first female speaker of the House  In 2006, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a significant stroke; his official powers were transferred to his deputy, Ehud Olmert (EH’-hood OHL’-murt). (Sharon remained in a coma until his death in January 2014.) |
| Work From Lionel Messi to Hillary Clinton, a look at the 2025 Medal of Freedom recipients  Stevens has "illuminated American ideals of racial equity and justice for half-a-century," the White House said. "His award-winning career has been dedicated to preserving and celebrating American film and the performing arts, including founding the American Film Institute and creating the Kennedy Center Honors." |
| Work If you purchased these potato chips in the past 8 years, you could be eligible for payment  According to the Rankins v. Old Lyme class action lawsuit, it claims Old Lyme Gourmet Co. labeled certain Deep River brand chips with the “non-GMO ingredients” graphic, giving consumers the impression the snacks were certified by a third-party, such as the Non-GMO Project, as being free from genetically modified ingredients. |
| Work From Lionel Messi to Hillary Clinton, a look at the 2025 Medal of Freedom recipients  Stevens has "illuminated American ideals of racial equity and justice for half-a-century," the White House said. "His award-winning career has been dedicated to preserving and celebrating American film and the performing arts, including founding the American Film Institute and creating the Kennedy Center Honors." |
| Work How Marina Khidekel, the Hugimals Founder, Spends Her Sundays  SLEEP IN I usually sleep until 9 a.m. most weekends, and it’s about an hour before Mike gets up. I use that quiet time to collect thoughts that bubble up to the surface when I sleep, which happens a lot. Then I watch something quiet like “House Hunters” because I need to turn my mind off, too. |
| Work Friends From Debrina Kawam's Happy Past Aghast After Subway Burning  Ms. Kawam, 57, grew up in a small white house on a street dotted with modest single-family homes. Her father worked on the assembly line at the General Motors plant in Linden. Her mother worked in a bakery, said Malcolm Fraser, Susan’s husband and a childhood friend of Ms. Kawam. She had an older brother and sister. |
| Work N.Y.C. Congestion Pricing Begins on Sunday  “This is just simply a misguided policy,” said Ed Day, the Rockland County executive. He has sued to halt the program, which, he said, “raises serious questions about fairness, priorities and accountability.” |
| Work Mayor Adams's Inner Circle Has Changed. Two New Year's Photos Show How.  Mr. Adams, a Democrat who is seeking re-election, is expected to stand trial in April on charges that he conspired with the Turkish government to receive illegal foreign campaign contributions and improperly accepted benefits that included luxury international travel. He has insisted that he is innocent and has pleaded not guilty to the charges. |
| Work Rudy Giuliani, Slow to Transfer Assets to Election Workers, Could Be Held in Contempt  “There is no Reggie Jackson picture,” Mr. Giuliani said, referring to the right-fielder known as Mr. October. He had previously said in court documents that the picture would be handed over to the plaintiffs. But now, the photo didn’t exist, according to Mr. Giuliani. “The picture was Derek Jeter,” he said. “I was kind of confused about it.” |
| Work The top 30 H-1B employers hired 34,000 new H-1B workers in 2022 and laid off at least 85,000 workers in 2022 and early 2023  Key takeaways: The H-1B visa program was created to fill labor shortages in professional fields and could be a valuable temporary work visa program, but new data show it is being subverted by employers that are not facing labor shortages and by outsourcing firms. |
| Work How To Focus On The Right Problems  When it comes to building a successful startup, focus is critical. But how do you know if you're spending time on the right things? In this episode, Dalton and Michael share advice for how to break through the noise and zero in on solving the problems that matter most for your business. |
| Work Massive VW Data Leak Exposed 800,000 EV Owners' Movements, From Homes To Private Spaces  Many people worry about hackers stealing their personal data, but sometimes, the worst breaches come not from shadowy cybercriminals but straight from the companies we trust. |
| Work Extraordinary longevity great whales can live a lot longer than we thought if we leave them alone  In Moby-Dick, Herman Melville's epic novel of 1851, the author asks if whales would survive the remorseless human hunt. Yes, he says, as he foresees a future flooded world in which the whale would outlive us and "spout his frothed defiance to the skies". |
| Work As a child psychiatrist I see what smartphones are doing to kids mental health and its terrifying  Smartphone use among children has reached a critical moment. Many of us in the UK are increasingly aware of the dangers associated with them - and as a child and adolescent psychiatrist, I am more worried than most. |
| Work Stock market today: Indexes snap a 5-day losing streak as tech stocks surge  Looking to next week, investors will be focused on several economic updates, including jobless claims, preliminary consumer sentiment, and the US employment report for December. Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. closing bell on Friday: |
| Work British man, Edward Pettifer, among 14 killed in New Orleans truck attack  Sir Keir Starmer said on Wednesday: “The shockingly violent attack in New Orleans is horrific. My thoughts are with the victims, their families, the emergency responders and the people of the United States at this tragic time.” |
| Work Marlon Brando fury at a??feeling like a freaka?? among revelations in new book of Hollywood secrets  The memoir has a foreword by Sandy Lieberson, who worked alongside Kaufman and Lerner in Rome and went on to produce Nicolas Roeg's Performance, among other films. He writes: "The myth, the legend, but also the abyss and its squalour, one full of drug addiction, unrealised dreams and sexual favours. Hollywood on the Tiber is all these things together. It is heaven and hell." |
| Work UK weather live: country braces for snow and freezing rain as temperatures fall  Some football games have already been called off this weekend. They include Cheltenham’s clash with League Two leaders Walsall which was due to take place on Saturday, Halifax’s National League home game against Fylde which was also scheduled for Saturday, and Friday night’s Scottish Championship game between Airdrie and leaders Falkirk. |
| Work a??It is impossible to outrun thema??: how drones transformed war in Ukraine  With Donald Trump soon to occupy the White House, amid concerns he could halt US weapons gifts to Ukraine, homegrown technology is likely to become even more important to Kyiv. "Ukraine is fighting against an enormous country with several times more population," says Sternenko. "That's why we are calling for more weapons and more technology, because you cannot just fight with people. Drones demonstrate we can be much more efficient." |
| Work Man charged over alleged rape of Virgin Australia crew member in Fiji  Hosanna Kabakoro, founder of the Indigenous-led South Pacific Foundation which provides clean water access to rural and maritime communities in Fiji, said locals felt awful for the victims of the alleged crimes. “The general feeling here in Fiji is that everyone feels so bad for the [alleged] victims,” Kabakoro said. |
| Work Myanmar junta to free about 6,000 prisoners in annual amnesty, including 180 foreigners  A speech by Min Aung Hlaing, who was not present at the event, was delivered by deputy army chief Soe Win, who reiterated the junta’s call to dozens of ethnic minority armed groups that have been fighting it for the past four years to put down arms and “resolve the political issue through peaceful means”. |
| Work Mexico Has a Massive Surplus of Tequila as Demand for the Spirit Slows  Over the past few years, tequila has been the first choice of booze for a majority of drinkers here in the U.S., with reports indicating that it had even outpaced American whiskey in terms of sales (of course, vodka still reigns supreme). |
| Work Japan firm uses AI to train new staff in handling difficult customers, coping with stress  A company in Japan has turned to artificial intelligence (AI) technology to train staff how to deal with demanding customers.The move is aimed at boosting the adaptability of staff and enhancing their ability to cope with stress. |
| Work Samsung's 'AI fridge' has cameras to 'order food when you're low' and giant built-in TV with free channels and movies  SAMSUNG'S smart fridges will soon be brainy enough to help you restock your fruit and veg. If you're running low on something, a combination of cameras and AI can sort you out with a fresh delivery. |
| Work Essential open source large language models to watch in 2025  Hi developers! The topic that is going to capture the attention of everyone in the room is the open-source large language models. These open-source LLMs give the developers the freedom to create without the headaches of expensive costs and licensing complexity. |
| Work In France, Drug Traffic Spreads to Small Towns  Faced with what has been called the “simultaneous explosion” of supply and demand for illegal drugs, French officials nationwide are embracing proposals to crack down on traffickers. Conservative politicians have taken to blaming casual consumers, including marijuana smokers, for supporting a deadly industry at a time when some governments in the Americas and Europe have decriminalized or legalized cannabis. |
| Work Judge Upholds Trump's Sentencing in Hush Money Case but Signals No Jail Time  Unlike a conditional discharge, which allows defendants to walk free if they meet certain requirements, such as maintaining employment or paying restitution, an unconditional discharge would come without strings attached. |
| Work Microsoft expects to spend $80 billion on AI-enabled data centers in fiscal 2025  He added, "The best response for the United States is not to complain about the competition but to ensure we win the race ahead. This will require that we move quickly and effectively to promote American AI as a superior alternative." |
| Work Intense exercise found to suppress appetite more than moderate workouts  Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain A vigorous workout does more to suppress hunger levels in healthy adults than does moderate exercise, and females may be especially susceptible to this response, according to a small study published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society titled "The Impact of Exerc |
| Work Marie Winn, Who Wrote of a Famous Central Park Hawk, Dies at 88  “Shortly after his arrival in Central Park,” she wrote in her book “Red-Tails in Love: A Wildlife Drama in Central Park” (1998), “Pale Male had discovered a hunting ground that was to become his favorite: an area near the park entrance at Fifth Avenue and 79th Street — the killing corner, as the Regulars dubbed it.” |
| Work Washington Post Cartoonist Quits After Jeff Bezos Cartoon Is Killed  Matt Wuerker, a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist for Politico, called the decision to kill Ms. Telnaes’s cartoon “spineless,” adding that the storied Post cartoonist Herbert Block, known as Herblock, and Ben Bradlee, a former editor of The Post, were “spinning, kicking and screaming in their graves.” |
| Work Despite Blocked US Steel Bid, Japan Won't Stop Seeking American Deals  Japanese businesses have had little choice but to move significantly toward the United States in recent years, as they have had a harder time investing in China. Now, in anticipation of a second Trump administration, executives are even more busily lining up fresh investments in America. |
| Work With New Amazon Prime Show 'On Call,' Dick Wolf Enters Streaming  “You’re seeing a lot of people kind of rediscover what broadcast and basic cable had done so well, in terms of procedurals, cop shows, medical shows, things like that,” Mr. Bloys said late last year. |
| Work How One Pastor Is Helping Struggling Churches Keep Their Doors Open  In November, Pastor Foster met with the leadership team of Our Savior’s, where, Pastor Flack said, she stressed the importance of showing the congregants that even small contributions could make an impact. |
| Work Winter Storm Spawns Tornado in Northern California  Less than a month earlier, the National Weather Service issued its first-ever tornado warning for San Francisco. The city was spared, but one touched down in nearby Santa Cruz County, where it downed power lines and caused vehicle crashes. |
| Work State Dept. Tells Congress It Plans to Send $8 Billion in Arms to Israel  Once the four top members grant approval to the State Department, the agency would give formal notification to Congress, which essentially means the proposed sales will go through. Congress would need a two-thirds vote in each house to pass a resolution blocking the sales. |
| Work How the Democrats Lost the Working Class  The unintended consequences often came at the expense of American workers. And Mr. Reich’s “anxious class” — neither the impoverished nor the highfliers riding the rising global stock market — felt unheard until the rise of an unlikely new kind of Republican: Donald J. Trump. |
| Work Ailing Ex-Deputy Admitted to Killing Florida Store Clerk in 1979  The investigation into Ms. Easterly’s murder has now been closed, the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Tuesday that disclosed Mr. Greer’s confession in 2023. Detective Gandy said information about the confession had not been made public earlier because the office was contacting other law enforcement agencies in the South to see if Mr. Greer might be connected to other crimes and because investigators were busy with other homicides. |
| Work Tracing the New Orleans Attacker's Secret Radicalization  The devastating violence revealed a secret radicalization that confounded his loved ones, who knew him as a decorated Army veteran who held a $120,000-a-year job as a “senior solutions specialist” focused on government and public services at the international accounting firm Deloitte. Days later, investigators were still trying to trace exactly how Mr. Jabbar had managed to descend into such a murderous state without detection. |
| Work Trump Has Reeled in More Than $200 Million Since Election Day  Mr. Trump has boasted about the haul, telling people during the Christmas holiday season that he had raised more than $200 million since the election. Mr. Trump’s team has repeatedly noted how many people have wanted to find ways to donate to him since his election win. |
| Work Biden to Dole Out 19 Medals of Freedom, and One Unmistakable Message  They also include the magazine editor and cultural figure Anna Wintour, who put the first lady, Jill Biden, on the cover of Vogue twice in the last four years while spurning Melania Trump during her husband’s presidency. Ms. Wintour is one of the leading fund-raisers in the fashion industry, having hosted events for Mr. Biden’s re-election campaign in London and Paris last year. |
| Work How To Use Your Body To Make Yourself Happier  Kaplan is the author of many popular books including the New York Times bestseller The Gratitude Diaries and her new book What Your Body Knows About Happiness. She is the former editor-in-chief of Parade magazine |
| Work House Republicans? speaker drama, briefly explained  If you believe in the work we do at Vox, please support us by becoming a member. Our mission has never been more urgent. But our work isn?t easy. It requires resources, dedication, and independence. And that?s where you come in. |
| Work Donald Trump to be sentenced days before swearing in as president  Trump was supposed to be sentenced in July but his hearing was delayed until after this year's presidential election in November. When he won the presidency, the case was put in limbo, with Merchan postponing his sentencing indefinitely. |
| Work Biden to Ban New Oil Drilling Over Vast Stretch of US Atlantic, Pacific Waters - Bloomberg (No paywall)  Proclamation protects 625 million acres of Pacific, Atlantic Decision complicates any Trump bid to widen offshore drilling |
| Work Top Fed official warns of US inflation risk after Donald Trump takes power - FT (No paywall)  Tom Barkin?s comments come just weeks before president-elect takes office with vow to raise tariffs |
| Work What Is the Zodiac?And What Does It Mean for You? - Scientific American (No paywall)  What does that mean? If you?re an evidence-based thinker, it means nothing. If you?re a believer in astrology, however, it means I was born at a time of the year when the sun?s influence on me (unidentifiable and uncertain and unexplainable as it is) was ruled by the Libra ?sun sign,? although that sign?s relation to the actual constellation of Libra is fuzzy at best. If you do believe in astrology, you and I should have some words. |
| Work Why people over the age of 55 are the new problem generation - The Economist (No paywall)  THE WORDS ?retirement community? summon up images of easy chairs, overcooked food and endless daytime TV. Latitude Margaritaville, a community being built near Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, quickly disabuses these. ?There was a toga party this past weekend,? says Lynette, a resident. ?There was a live band, and it was a riot.? Barbie, another of the community?s ?ambassadors? (residents employed by the developers to help sell it to potential newcomers), compares living there to ?starting college all over again?. There are, she says, ?drinks on the driveway, cocktails on the concrete?. |
| Work Merck is a new year outlier with its diabetes drug - STAT (No paywall)  Happy New Year, biotech friends! We?re back with news, including Merck?s decision to cut the price of its diabetes drug Januvia by 42% and Neumora?s readout on its experimental depression drug. Also, is the best way to ?save the FDA? to break it apart? |
| Work Research: Do New Hires Really Understand Your Policies? - Harvard Business Review (No paywall)  Imagine arriving eagerly on your first day at a new job, only to find that you?re immediately asked to install location-tracking software, sign a mandatory arbitration agreement, or close your social media accounts. Perhaps you are even asked to allow your routine work communications ? emails, chats, and shared documents ? to be collected and analyzed to train emerging generative AI tools. Anxious to get started and make a good impression, you comply ? despite not fully understanding these terms. Over time, however, you start to feel that you were not fully informed about the conditions you agreed to. Your trust in and commitment to the organization begin to waver. You might even consider leaving or taking legal action over what now feels like an unfairly procured agreement. |
| Work Syria?s new Islamic government creates controversy with education overhaul - WSJ (No paywall)  A planned overhaul of Syria?s education curriculum is spurring concerns about the new government?s assurances that it will rebuild an inclusive society, and leading some to question whether it will seek to impose a conservative Islamic worldview. |
| Work The stock market is like a fashion show, and here?s one of its hot must-haves - WSJ (No paywall)  Like hemlines and haircuts, stocks go in and out of fashion. So do the ways companies communicate their performance to investors. Whatever numbers investors want to see, management will supply them, especially if they can be easily tailored to look flattering. |