We are now one week away from Barbenheimer. The long-awaited, dual-blockbuster premiere will put us through an emotional spin cycle. Of course, it’ll be Oppenheimer for the laughs and Barbie for a mind-bending psychological thriller. Or something like that. Have a great weekend, Roca Nation. What a week it’s been for the Roca Wave. All thanks to your support.

In today's edition:

• Hollywood actors go on strike

• Powerball jackpot on the rise

• 20 Questions

 🔑 Key Stories

Hollywood Actors on Strike

160k Hollywood actors are going on strike 73 days after screenwriters did the same

• In May, 11,500+ screenwriters – people who write scripts – went on strike against the AMPTP, a union that represents studio. That strike is now on day 73

• Every 3 years, the SAG-AFTRA – which represents 160k+ actors – negotiates a new contract with AMPTP. Negotiations collapsed, this year, though, and on Thursday, SAG announced a general strike

• SAG accused the studios of being greedy; the studios accused SAG of being unrealistic. This is the first time 2 Hollywood unions have been on strike simultaneously since 1960

Dig Deeper

• During the Thursday premiere of upcoming movie Oppenheimer, actors Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, and others walked out in solidarity with the workers. Director Christopher Nolan told reporters that they’re “off to write their picket signs”

New Epoch Dropped

A team of scientists claims that after 11,700 years, Earth has entered a new epoch

• Geologists organize history into five tiers: Eons, eras, periods, epochs, and ages. The current Holocene Epoch began ~11,700 years ago at the end of the Ice Age

• For years, scientists have theorized that Earth is in a new epoch defined by humanity’s impacts on it. Since 2009, a team of scientists have searched for rock layers that identify when the switch occurred

• In April, the team settled on a sample taken from a Canadian lake. They will submit that to 3 geologic organizations that will formally determine if Earth is in a new epoch

Dig Deeper

• If all three organizations agree with their evidence, then Earth will officially be in a new epoch. Some scientists said the change would signify that humans are fundamentally changing Earth. Others said it has little practical meaning and reiterates what scientists already know

Opill Approved for OTC Sale

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the US’ first over-the-counter (OTC) birth control pill

• Birth control pills are available only via prescription due to their potential side effects. OTC drugs are easier to get but many insurances don’t cover them

• Opill – first approved 50 yrs ago – is a highly effective women’s birth control pill. Its maker, HRA Pharma, applied in 2022 to be able to sell Opill OTC

• Proponents said doing so would reduce unwanted pregnancies; critics said users may not follow directions properly. On Thursday, the FDA approved it OTC. It will become available in the US by next year

Secret Service Ends Investigation

The Secret Service closed its investigation into how cocaine ended up in the White House

• On July 2, White House staff found a small baggie full of white powder in in the White House. Authorities evacuated the White House before determining it was cocaine

• The baggie was found in a cubby where visitors are frequently asked to drop off their belongings. A White House official called it a “heavily traveled area.” President Biden and his family weren’t in the White House at the time

• On Thursday, the Secret Service said it had closed its investigation without identifying a suspect. Several Republican representatives criticized the investigation as a failure

Dig Deeper

• Several House representatives criticized White House security following the incident. “Somebody walks in the White House, the most secure building in the [US]...and can place something in a locker. What if it was a biological [weapon]?” one Republican asked. Another Republican called the incident a “shameful moment in the White House’s history”

🍿 Popcorn

ICYMI

• $875M Jackpot: The Powerball jackpot has reached $875M after nobody won Wednesday night’s drawing. Sunday’s drawing will be Powerball’s third-largest ever

• Wimbledon Effect: The prison stabbing of Larry Nassar occurred after he made remarks while watching Wimbledon, prison sources told ABC. He allegedly said, “I wish there were girls playing”

• Celsius C-E-No: The founder and former CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Celsius, Alex Mashinsky, was arrested Thursday for defrauding investors

Wildcard

• Human “Decorations”: Authorities arrested a Kentucky man for possessing dozens of stolen human skulls and bones, which he used as decorations. The FBI raided his apartment

• Catfight Emergency: A fight broke out between two women aboard a Frontier Airlines flight from Philadelphia to Las Vegas, causing it to divert to Denver

• E-Chair Wave: Young people in Guangzhou, China, are using electric wheelchairs for transportation in response to speed limits and other new regulations on e-bikes

👇🏻 What do you think?

Today's Question:

Just 20 Questions!

See yesterday's results below the Wrap! 

🗣 20 Questions

Every Friday, we ask the Roca readers 20 questions, then feature our favorite answers the following week.

Last week, we did “this or that” words edition. This week we are going one step further: “This or that” INTERNATIONAL words edition. What’s better: Flat or apartment? Gas or petrol? This age-old questions will be settled today, once and for all, by YOU!

Here’s the link and have fun. See you on Monday!

 🌊 Roca Clubhouse

Yesterday's Poll:

Which do you prefer first?

Good news: 49%
Bad News: 51%

Yesterday's Question:

Will AI influence your daily life over the next year?

Alexa from Washington: "Not if I can help it!"

Elizabeth from Sioux Falls, South Dakota: "I'm a Jr high teacher currently taking a class on how to use AI in education and there are so many ways I could personally use it from producing lesson plans and tests, to giving students feedback on their papers, to creating a song about any topic I teach! I'm also learning good and bad ways students can use it too! It's like the Wild West!"

Tyler from Rogers, Arkansas: "I'm employed as an engineer in logistics, so at some point we'll probably see a lot of it. I think AI will "change" our jobs, not necessarily "take" them. Just like when computers got big in the past, they made workers more efficient, but the computer still needed an operator. I think AI will be similar, because it still has to be trained and prompted correctly (and is wrong more times than people think)”

Sheri from The Villages, Florida: “The scary thing is. . . I have no way of knowing. I personally will not use it, but I may have no way of knowing if it’s being used on me.”

Yesterday’s Wrap Replies:

Carlos from Charlotte: “Hipólito Mora was a Hero. He did what the Mexican Government should be doing in order to protect its people. However, since the cartel has gotten powerful, they now influence the political agenda and have been putting fear within their own people. Mexico is beautiful country with alot of potentical being a great country. It saddens me as a Mexican American, who has lived in Mexico from the age 14-15, on why Mexicans cross the border in order for a more peaceful life and, yet still the cartel finds a way to influence that by promising you safe passage across the border only to leave you in the desert to perish. Hopefully the Mexican people take inspiration from Mora and not listen what the government said about him. He is a hero to the people of his town”

Marty from Alamogordo, New Mexico: “Mora is a courageous Mexican whose bravery should be celebrated. He was disliked by Mexico’s Cartel and Government because they’re both criminal enterprises. I hope someone else steps up to save Mexico, not just for its own sake, but the good of all North America.”

Last Week's 20 Qs Responses:

Last week’s 20 Qs were regional slang edition. We gave you 2 options and let you decide which was better.

1. Soda or pop
   Soda: 75%
   Pop: 25%

2. You all or y'all?
   You all: 46%
   Y'all: 54%

3. Faucet or spigot?
   Faucet: 95%
   Spigot: 5%

4. Drinking fountain or bubbler?
   Drinking fountain: 95%
   Bubbler: 5%

5. Hoagie or sub?
   Hoagie: 8%
   Sub: 92%

6. Lollipop or sucker?
   Lollipop: 51%
   Sucker: 49%

7. Tennis shoes or sneakers?
   Tennis shoes: 59%
   Sneakers: 41%

8. Excuse me or pardon me?
   Excuse me: 87%
   Pardon me : 13%

9. Clicker or remote?
   Clicker: 9%
   Remote: 91%

10. Aunt or aunt?
    Pronounced Awnt: 20%
    Pronounced Ant: 80%

11. Rotary or roundabout?
    Rotary: 12%
    Roundabout: 88%

12. Highway or freeway?
    Highway: 78%
    Freeway: 22%

13. Frosting or icing?
    Frosting: 63%
    Icing: 37%

14. Fireflies or lightning bugs?
    Fireflies: 53%
    Lightning bugs: 47%

15. Jimmies or sprinkles?
    Jimmies: 8%
    Sprinkles: 92%

16. Northerner or Yankee?
    Northerner: 68%
    Yankee: 32%

17. Hella or a lot of?
    Hella: 15%
    A lot of: 85%

18. Liquor store or packy?
    Liquor store: 98%
    Packy: 2%

19. Frappe or milkshake?
    Frappe: 7%
    Milkshake: 93%

20. Whoops or ope?
    Whoops: 82%
    Ope: 18%

🧠 Final Thoughts

Thank you all for another week of reading Roca. We had a great week and hope you did too. See you on Monday, and don’t forget those 20 Questions!

—Max and Max