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đ Boeing's Woes Leave Earth
Plus: Brain implant reduces British boyâs seizures by 80%!
Congrats to all the first-time champs!
Roca Nation, some congratulations are in order this morning: First to the Florida Panthers â and their 30 non-bandwagon fans â for winning their first Stanley Cup last night. Congrats also to the Tennessee Volunteers for winning their first-ever Menâs College World Series. And, finally, congrats to Wild Thang for winning the 2024 Ugliest Dog competition, his first Ugliest Dog trophy. If you would like to see Wild Thang, keep scrolling to Happy Hour. Wow, it looks like we go to the same barber!
đ„Ÿ Hiker was found after missing for 10 days in California
đ¶ Meet the ugliest dog in the world
đ«đ· France to swimmers: Let them eat s*it
âMax and Max
KEY STORY
Terror in Russia
A terror attack killed 20+ people in southern Russia
Dagestan is a mountainous, predominantly Muslim southern Russian state that faced frequent terror attacks until the mid-2010s
On Sunday, assailants in two of Dagestanâs largest cities used guns and Molotov cocktails to attack synagogues and Russian Orthodox Churches, then attacked police officers. The attacks killed 15 police, a Russian Orthodox priest, and at least four civilians
Government media said the attackers were directed âfrom abroadâ and âadherents of an international terrorist organizationâ without providing additional details
Dig Deeper
The attacks come three months after one by ISIS-K â the Islamic Stateâs Central Asian branch â killed 145 at a Moscow theater
Vladimir Putinâs spokesman denied that Russia was returning to the days of the 2000s when Russia faced frequent terror attacks: âRussia is different now. Society is completely together,â he said. âCriminal terrorist incidents like this do not have support in societyâ
KEY STORY
10 Daysâ Survivor
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A hiker was found after missing for 10 days
On June 11, Lukas McClish, 34, set out for a 3-hour hike in northern California, equipped with only a small flashlight and a multipurpose tool. He ended up lost, though, unable to find his way home
McClish started walking in various directions, spending his days climbing and shouting. âI had a mountain lion that was following me, but it was cool. It kept its distance,â he told local media
After five days, his family reported him missing. Five days later, two park rangers with a sniffer dog heard his cries and found him in a remote canyon
Dig Deeper
âEach day, I go up a canyon, down a canyon to the next waterfall, sit down by the waterfall, and drink water out of my boot. I made sure I drank at least a gallon of water every day,â he said, adding that he slept on beds of leaves
His failure to show up to a family dinner sparked a search and rescue operation involving 300 emergency workers and drones
McClish called it âawesomeâ and âreally humblingâ to learn how many people had been concerned about his whereabouts
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KEY STORY
Brain Implant Working
A first-of-its-kind brain implant has reduced an epileptic British boyâs seizures by 80%
Oran Knowlson, 13, suffers from treatment-resistant epilepsy that can cause him to have 100+ daily seizures, some of which lead him to stop breathing. His condition requires him to be under constant supervision
In October, he underwent an experimental surgery that implanted electrodes in his brain and delivered a constant electrical pulse to treat the condition
On Monday, Knowlsonâs family revealed that he has since experienced an 80% decrease in seizures
Dig Deeper
Surgeons drilled a hole in Knowlsonâs skull and implanted electrodes deep in his brain. They wired the electrodes to another device, which delivers a constant but mild electrical stimulation into his brain
The stimulation intends to block the electrical pathways through which seizures happen
âThe future looks hopeful, which I wouldnât have dreamed of saying six months ago,â Knowlsonâs mother said
KEY STORY
Stranded in Space
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Boeing delayed the Starlinerâs return for a third time, stranding two astronauts at the International Space Station (ISS)
In early June, Boeingâs Starliner completed its first manned launch and brought two NASA astronauts to the ISS, a major success for the company after years of delays that put it well behind rival SpaceX
The astronauts intended to spend a week on the ISS and return on June 13. However, technical errors on the Starliner have led Boeing to delay their return three times, most recently on Friday
A Boeing exec said, âItâs still not working like we designed it. So weâve got to go figure that outâ
Dig Deeper
Boeing has been competing with SpaceX to produce a spacecraft that NASA can use to carry astronauts into space. While SpaceX has been completing regular manned trips to the ISS in 2020, Boeingâs program fell over budget and behind schedule
The Starlinerâs first manned launch, earlier this month, was meant to be a major success for the company. However, it now risks becoming a liability
RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office
đïž A Swiss court found members of the Hindujas â the UKâs richest family â guilty of exploiting their house staff. The family brought workers from India, prevented them from leaving home, and paid them as little as $8 a day
đ°ïž A Florida family is suing NASA after debris from the ISS crashed into their home, leaving a hole from their roof to their flooring
đŁïž Russia blamed the US for a Ukrainian missile strike that reportedly killed five people on a beach in Russia-occupied Crimea. The attack allegedly used US-provided munitions that exploded over a crowded beach
đŠđ· New data showed that Argentina entered a recession in the first quarter of 2024, during President Javier Mileiâs first full term. Milei pledged to slash government spending and curb inflation, which has contributed to a shrinking economy that he believes is necessary to stabilize finances
đ„ President Biden and California Governor Gavin Newsom issued statements criticizing antisemitism after 150+ people obstructed a Los Angeles synagogue on Sunday. Fights and shouting matches erupted before 60 police officers dispersed the crowd
COMMUNITY
đ§ Yesterdayâs question: CNN recently announced that RFK Jr. wonât be in the presidential debate this week. Should he be on stage with Trump and Biden?
He should absolutely be in this debate. He met their established qualifications. He must have something to say that CNN doesnât want said. Censorship is not freedom.
No, RFK has no path to win. And heâs being controlled by a brain worm.
Of course he should be on that stage, but Biden and Trump are scared. They are physically and mentally incapable of discussing the real issues that Americans are facing every day.
đ€ Todayâs Question: If the Greeks had âThe Iliadâ and the Romans had âThe Aeneid,â what is Americaâs great epic? Book, movie, or whatever.
POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour
đŠ Introducing the lladie: A North Carolina golf course trained ~30 llamas to carry golf clubs and serve as caddies for golfers. The course says the llama caddies are now a tourist attraction
đ Let them eat s*it: Parisians have threatened to poop in the River Seine to protest the âŹ1.4bn ($1.5B) expense of cleaning it for the 2024 Summer Olympics
đ¶ Whoâs the ugliest boy? A Pekingese from Oregon named Wild Thang won the 2024 Worldâs Ugliest Dog competition. It was his fifth time as a contender in the annual contest, which is held in California
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Congrats to Wild Thang on winning ugliest dog in the world!
đșđž âMerica: Team USA announced it would bring its own air conditioning units to Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics, shirking Franceâs climate-friendly cooling system
đ UNO reverse card: New Orleans police arrested a man for allegedly impersonating a police officer while attempting to conduct a traffic stop on an actual officer
ROCA WRAP
Tricks of the Trade
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This is part two of our series on ultra-processed foods.
The food matrix represents foodâs physical and chemical composition and how its molecules interact for digestion. When the matrix breaks down, itâs harder for the body to absorb that foodâs nutrients. One effect of that breakdown is that people feel the need to eat more; another is that they get fewer of the foodsâ benefits.
In 2019 â to explore these effects in practice â the NIH ran a study on a group of weight-stable adults. Over two weeks, half the participants ate ultra-processed diets while the other half ate unprocessed diets. Participants were allowed to eat as much of their designated foods as they wanted.
Researchers found that throughout, the group eating UPFs did not get enough fiber. Fiber triggers the release of GLP-1, the hormone that regulates appetite, and weight-loss drugs like Ozempic aim to mimic it. Irregularities in GLP-1 levels lead consumers to snack more and not feel full when they should.
For that and other reasons, the UPF group consumed 500 more calories per day than the group eating unprocessed foods, leading the NIH to conclude that limiting UPF consumption may help treat obesity and related conditions. The study also shed light on one characteristic of UPFs: While they can be eaten in moderation with few negative health effects, the foods do not lend themselves to moderation.
Other studies have since linked UPF consumption to diabetes, high blood pressure, and a range of other negative outcomes. While medical authorities have been trying to spread awareness of this among the public, thatâs no easy task: In many instances, UPFs have been packaged and marketed so that consumers will mistake them for lightly processed alternatives.
One way is through labeling: In the US, âCertified Naturally Grownâ labels are regulated, for example, but ânaturally grownâ is not. The word âhealthyâ is also entirely unregulated on packaging. A product made with âreal fruitâ could contain 99% sugar with a sliver of banana. âOrganicâ doesnât mean a food is unprocessed: Organic sugar can be added to soda to make it organic.
Backing these efforts is a multi-billion dollar industry that seeks to make UPFs as appealing as possible. Because highly processing food enables vastly more â and cheaper â production, food companies have found itâs cheaper to make UPFs and advertise them as healthy than to sell âwholeâ foods.
Per Business Insider, major food corporations spent $7.5B in advertising in 2022: Thatâs $620M per month, or enough to recreate Star Wars: The Force Awakens â the most expensive movie ever produced â every three weeks.
There is a chance, though, that times are changing: Every five years, the US releases new dietary guidelines, and the US Department of Agriculture is currently running a multi-year study on UPFs whose results could shake up regulations for the industry. The next set of guidelines is due for release in 2025, so while UPFs are todayâs most popular foods, they may not always be.
EDITORâS NOTE
Final Thoughts
Today is the 148th anniversary of Custerâs Last Stand at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Chiefs Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull defeated Custer and his army in their biggest victory of the Great Plains War.
Today is also the 15th anniversary of Michael Jacksonâs death.
And that is right about where the George Armstrong Custer and Michael Jackson comparisons end. Have a great day!
âMax and Max