Here’s a historical tidbit that will break the ice!
113 years ago today, the Titanic — aka the “Unsinkable Ship” — sank after colliding with a giant chunk of ice in the Atlantic Ocean. One of our favorite fun facts about the tragedy — well, as fun as a fact about a tragedy can be — is that the ship’s chief survived after treading water for roughly 2 hours. He sure was on a roll!
Although Rose probably could've made room on the life raft for him, too...
💊 Scientists rethinking ADHD?
🇻🇦 The first millennial saint
🦜 Hilariously profane parrot in Sweden
–Max and Max
KEY STORY
Top Scientists Revisit ADHD
Some top ADHD researchers are questioning long-held assumptions about the disorder, per the NYT
Researchers have long tried to identify a biological signature for ADHD, but there is little evidence that such genetic “biomarkers” exist: A 2017 study found little difference between the brains of patients with and without ADHD
Despite this, stimulant prescriptions for ADHD treatment have risen by 58% in the past decade
One leading scientist said “rather than treat the biology, we should be focusing on building environments that improve outcomes and mental health”
Dig Deeper
One study found that children on stimulant medications worked faster than those on placebos, but did not have any measurable improvement in learning outcomes
Another found that young adults with childhood diagnoses said their symptoms faded when they entered work environments that matched their interests and abilities
KEY STORY
Church Preps For New Saint
Carlo Acutis is set to become the Catholic Church’s first millennial saint later this month
Acutis died of leukemia when he was 15 years old in 2006. He was an avid computer programmer and spread Catholicism online
The Church attributed two miracles to Acutis – the healing of a Brazilian child and the recovery of a student who suffered head trauma
In the past year, over a million Catholics have travelled to Assisi, where his body has been held, to pay homage. The outpouring of support surprised the local parishes. One Bishop told the AP, “I’m seeing here a volcano of grace erupting… I can’t believe my eyes”
Dig Deeper
His mother said that he was an “ordinary child” who “used to play, to have friends, and to go to school,” but used his coding skills to “spread the good news, the Gospel”
Pope Francis beatified Acutis – the first step toward sainthood — in 2020 and last year approved his canonization, which would recognize him as a saint
QUOTE OF THE DAY
There are people who suffer much more than me.
ROCA’S SPONSOR
Upgrade your shave. Save 25%
Your face deserves better than a drugstore razor. For a limited time, get 25% off The Chairman™ Pro Package. This premium face shaving kit by MANSCAPED® is designed to give you a close, clean, comfortable shave every time
The Chairman™ Pro is built with game-changing features:
SkinSafe® Technology helps reduce nicks and cuts
FlexAdjust™ Technology adapts to your face for less irritation and razor burn
Powerful enough to shave up to five days of growth down to the skin
Designed to be gentle on your neck and sensitive areas
Whether you're cleaning up for the office, a date, or just for yourself, this kit makes it effortless. And with free shipping and a 30-day money-back guarantee, there’s no reason not to try it
Don’t wait—this 25% off deal won’t last
KEY STORY
RFK Jr’s Autism Study
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ordered “a massive testing and research effort" into the cause of autism
Autism diagnoses have risen sharply, now impacting roughly 1 in 30 US children, up from 1 in 150 in 2000
RFK said, “By September, we will know what has caused the autism epidemic, and we’ll be able to eliminate those exposures,” adding, “Everything is on the table: our food system, our water, our air”
Skeptics of the study have attributed the rise in diagnoses to a better understanding of the condition and more awareness. A former FDA exec. accused RFK of giving affected families “false hope”
Dig Deeper
While the direct cause of autism is unknown, doctors suggest that its characteristics may develop when the fetal brain is being wired
Others link it to maternal factors like exposure to pollution or harmful contaminants. Autism is more likely to occur in children born with low birth weight, complications before or during birth, and immune disorders
KEY STORY
Young Adults Working for Parents
More young adults are now choosing to work for their parents, a new Wall Street Journal study found
The number of young Americans working for family businesses has doubled since 2018, the WSJ reported
Analysts say pandemic lockdowns, AI replacing or reducing entry-level jobs, and general economic uncertainty have driven the shift
The baby boomer generation owns 41% of privately-owned small businesses, many of which will be passed down in the next few years. A separate study found that 28% of these businesses are expected to be passed down to a family member
Dig Deeper
While the share of business owners employing their children is still relatively small, the company’s chief economist said, “[the] movement is significant”
RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office
🇺🇸 Per The Washington Times, President Trump answered roughly 90 press questions in his first three Cabinet meetings, nearly 20 times more than President Biden did in his nine Cabinet meetings as president
🇨🇳 China accused the US National Security Agency (NSA) of carrying out a cyberattack targeting the Asian Winter Games in February, issuing arrest warrants for three NSA employees on a top-secret hacking team
💲 Over the first three months of 2025, Wall Street banks logged their highest quarterly revenues from stock trading in over ten years, per the Financial Times
💰 The federal government said it will freeze $2.2B in grants to Harvard University after the university rejected White House demands
🤑 The White House is expected to request Congress cut $9.3B from public broadcasting stations (incl. NPR and PBS) and the State Department, per Politico
What does Roca Nation think?
🧠 Yesterday’s Question: Do you support RFK’s plan to ban pharma ads on TV?
I'm a dermatologist in Wisconsin and although I don't agree with many of RFK's stances, I do agree with this one. Direct to consumer advertisement by the pharma industry has only added to the growing costs of healthcare. The money spent on advertising instead should be used on making the drugs more affordable. I prescribe a lot of the biologics seen advertised on TV as they work really well. However, are they worth the exorbitant cost? Everywhere else in the world gets these medications for a fraction of the price. The American pharma industry desperately needs to be reformed and I think this is a good start.
100%. As a physician, I need to balance so many things in developing a treatment for my patients. When the public looks at a commercial, they don't necessarily get all the cons of a treatment. There might be (and most often are) cheaper and better treatment options, but since they saw it on TV, they think it is the best treatment for them.
You had me really fired up with this one…haha.
1000% support, and this is coming from someone who apparently walked around the house singing about "Detriol" as a toddler.
Look at how many of these big news corporations are sponsored by drug companies, and therefore influenced BY these same companies. If they say the sky is yellow, your news network better believe it's the color of a canary unless you want the plug (aka funding) pulled. Look at how trustworthy these celebrities are as they roll up a sleeve and smile at the camera as Pfizer jabs them with a vaccine and jabs you with the belief that "this is totally safe and effective." Look at the amount of people who could sing the Ozempic, Trelegy, and Wegovy commercial tunes, but not know a thing about what these drugs do.
(Don't even get me started on Jardiance...)
If I need a medication, I will go to and trust my doctor over the chorus of people bopping around on the screen while I hear about how I could potentially get diarrhea, blood clots, suicidal thoughts, loss of vision, heart failure and ultimately die. For every one of these overly joyous people taking the drug (which most of them even aren't), there's another follow-up commercial advertising legal compensation for those who took that same drug. Sorry Big Pharma, but it's about time someone finally put a stop to this madness and prescribed a little less screen time for YOU.
From the perspective of a doctor.. there are extremely few things I agree with RFK on when you get into the actual medical details.. but banning pharma ads on TV is one of them. There is no reason whatsoever to do it from a societal standpoint. Advertise to doctors, sure - send us the trial data on your new drug so we can evaluate it and decide if it’s right for our patients, and so we can learn about it and have it in our arsenal of treatments against disease in the right situations. As shady as all capitalistic industries can be, pharmaceuticals have lengthened lifespans and helped people live better. But direct to consumer marketing makes no sense because it encourages patients to ask for medicines that are 1) usually more expensive and 2) may not even be medically appropriate for them. And, pharma companies spend a ton of money running these ads when they could be sending that to R&D. We’re one of only two industrialized countries in the entire world that allows this and there’s a reason for that.
🧐 Today’s Question: Who has a better chance of winning the White House in 2028: AOC or Stephen A Smith?
POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour
🏌️♂️ Masters Viewership: 13M people watched Rory McIlroy win a thrilling playoff in the final round of The Masters, an increase of 33% from last year
🚸 Crosswalk Hack: Several communities near Palo Alto, California, reported that crosswalk signals had been hacked to play recordings of Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg
🦜 Profane Parrot: Firefighters in Sweden reported a parrot screaming “f*** you” at them while they tried to rescue it from being stuck in a tree
👮♂️ Unwarranted Warrant: A police department in India issued an arrest warrant for the judge overseeing a theft case instead of the suspect after confusing the names on a court document
🚓 Robin Takes Down Robbers: London police officers in Batman and Robin costumes arrested gang members trying to “fleece” tourists, saying they had to devise “creative plans” to “deliver vengeance”
ROCA WRAP
Ant Smugglers
Authorities in Kenya busted a smuggling ring transporting rare giant ants to exotic pet markets.
While poachers have long targeted endangered wildlife, particularly elephants and rhinos for their tusks and pangolins for their scales, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said they have seen “a shift in trafficking trends – from iconic large mammals to lesser-known yet ecologically critical species.”
Among those lesser-known species is the Giant African Harvester Ant, which are known for their distinctive reddish color, large size – with queens reaching up to 25mm in size – and unique foraging behavior.
On Monday, Kenyan authorities announced the arrest of four suspects in an ant-smuggling ring, a bust the KWS hailed as a milestone in counter-wildlife trafficking. The suspects – two Belgians, one Kenyan, and one Vietnamese – pled guilty to charges of illegal possession and trafficking of live wildlife.
According to Kenyan authorities, the suspects ran “a coordinated, intelligence-led operation,” with officials reportedly intercepting about 5,000 queen ants packed in 2,244 containers. The KWS’s spokesman told the BBC it was the country's first case of “bio-piracy” on such a large scale, particularly of an unusual species.
Officials revealed that the men had sought to smuggling the ants in test tubes “designed to sustain the ants for up to two months and evade airport security detection,” calling the operation “premeditated and well-executed.”
The smugglers had reportedly sought to sell the rare ants in exotic pet markets in Europe and Asia. Given the ants’ unique foraging behavior and size, they are sought after by “ant aficionados,” who enjoy keeping them in transparent cases to watch them construct intricate colonies.
Announcing the “unprecedented” arrest, the KWS said, “This prosecution sends a strong message that Kenya will enforce compliance…and marks a significant step forward in Kenya's fight against unconventional wildlife crimes.”
ROCA VIDEO
If Big Pharma Ads Vanished Overnight...
ICYMI
EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts
The answers to yesterday’s question about banning pharma ads on TV were fascinating. We had nearly a dozen doctors write in, and all of them supported the ban. In fact, only a few respondents didn’t, which surprises us. The responses usually span the political spectrum, but this seems to be an issue that unites you.
Hope you have a great Wednesday!
–Max and Max
