Huge day for all of you Apple-holics out there. It’s the anniversary of both the iPhone’s release in 2007 and the Apple 1 computer’s first test in 1975. There have been few inventions — aside from maybe the Scrub Daddy — that have transformed daily life to the degree that these products have.

In today's edition:

• SCOTUS ruling on election maps

• Wanted: Colosseum vandalizer

• Man of the Hour

 🔑 Key Stories

Psychedelic Stock Sale

MAPS, one of the most prominent psychedelic research groups, is preparing to sell $85M of stock, reports the Wall Street Journal

• MAPS was founded in 1986 as a nonprofit dedicated to raising awareness of the benefits of psychedelic substances. It has since raised $130M+ to fund studies into psychedelics’ potential benefits

• MAPS has been financing an effort to secure FDA approval for MDMA-assisted therapy. Approval is expected within a year, but its costs have left MAPS with enough cash for just 2 months of operations

• Now, MAPS is preparing to sell $85M in stock to keep itself alive until it can begin selling MDMA

Dig Deeper

• MAPS has said the investors are mainly people who have already donated to the organization, and that their returns will be capped and they will be blocked from selling their shares

SCOTUS: Courts Can Decide Maps

The US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) ruled that state courts may overrule state lawmakers’ election maps

• Every 10 years, states redraw their voting districts. In most states, the legislature passes redistricting as it would any law. The state’s supreme court can strike the map down if they find it unfairly favors a party

• In February 2022, North Carolina’s supreme court struck down the maps drawn by the state’s Republican-controlled legislature. The legislature appealed, arguing that the Constitution gave it, not the court, the right to set the map

• On Tuesday, SCOTUS ruled 6-3 against the legislature

Dig Deeper

• 3 conservative and 3 liberal justices voted in the majority. “The Elections Clause [of the Constitution] does not insulate state legislatures from the ordinary exercise of state judicial review,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote, referring to a court’s power to strike down unconstitutional laws

• 3 conservative justices – Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, and Samuel Alito – dissented. They argued the case never should have even reached SCOTUS, because North Carolina’s supreme court reversed its own decision to overrule the electoral map

$500M in Pickleball Injuries?

Analysts at UBS, a bank, estimated pickleball will result in up to $500M in healthcare costs this year

• Pickleball is the US’ fastest-growing sport. 22.3M Americans are expected to play the game this year – a 150% increase over last year

• The analysts – whose job is to identify trends and business opportunities for the bank – studied data about pickleball, injuries, and healthcare costs

• They forecasted that this year there would be 67,000 pickleball-related emergency department visits, 366,000 outpatient visits, 8,800 surgeries, and 4,700 hospitalizations – costing a total of $250-$500M

Dig Deeper

• 80% of pickleball patients are above 60, and most of their injuries are fractures, strains, and sprains. The analysts estimate that Medicare – the US healthcare program for seniors – will pay for 85% of the related costs

Space Hunt Ends

Harvard physics professor Avi Loeb announced the end of a 2-week project to search the Pacific for the remains of what he believes may be alien tech

• In 2014, NASA tracked a meteorite that crashed into the Pacific Ocean

• Loeb analyzed the data and found that its velocity and entry angle meant it had to be from another solar system. He said that because it broke up so close to Earth, it may have been alien technology and not just a meteorite

• He located the meteorite’s place of impact and for the last 2 weeks has been using a magnet to scrape the sea floor. He will now investigate what he found

Dig Deeper

• Loeb wrote that they collected fragments composed of magnesium, titanium, and iron – an unusual combination for objects in our solar system. They also captured 43 “spherules,” which are half-millimeter “molten droplets of fireball”

• Loeb has suggested the findings will either prove these objects originated outside our solar system or that models about what can exist in our solar system are wrong

🍿 Popcorn

ICYMI

• RIP, Fridays: The chairman of Vornado Realty Trust – a major NYC landlord worth $3.35B – has declared Fridays in the office “dead forever.” Their data show Tuesday is the busiest

• Simone says: Gymnastics star Simone Biles plans to return to competition in August. It will be her first competition since she withdrew from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 over mental health concerns

• “Yo, who do you know here?” Costco announced a crackdown on members sharing their cards with non-members. It claims card sharing has soared with the expansion of self-checkout

Wildcard

• Oh no, repeat offender: A 3-year-old’s police officer parents jailed him for potty-training issues. The Florida cops handcuffed the child during his second visit to jail

• Are you not engraved? Italian officials have vowed to find and punish a tourist who carved names on the Colosseum’s wall. The perpetrator faces $15K in fines and up to 5 years in prison

• Crikey, a gambling ban: An Australian government committee suggested the country phase out online gambling advertising. Australians spend more per person on online gambling than any other nationality

👇 What do you think?

Today's Question:

Should MDMA-assisted therapy be legal?

Reply to this email with your answers!

See yesterday's results below the Wrap! 

🌯 Roca Wrap

In 2014, Narendra Modi wasn’t allowed to enter the United States. Last week, he dined with President Biden at the White House.

India became independent in 1947. Over the 67 years to 2014, the Indian National Congress (INC) ruled for 54 years.

The INC was the party of India’s founding prime minister, his daughter, and his grandson – all of whom were English speakers who studied at Oxford or Cambridge. This group represented what became known as India’s “English-speaking elite.”

Its politics were secular and of the left. Economic problems and corruption led many Indians to turn on the INC.

Then in 2014, an outsider – Narendra Modi – took power.

Modi was born in 1950 in a small town, where his father sold tea on a railway platform. At age 8, he became involved with the RSS – a massive nationalist and religious organization that organizes people to promote Hindu and nationalist values.

Modi had an arranged marriage at 18, but he soon left his wife and spent years traveling across India, visiting Hindu temples. After his travels, Modi went to university and became more involved with the RSS.

Modi became an RSS organizer, which placed him in the BJP – a Hindu nationalist political party. Modi excelled as a political strategist and rose through the party ranks. In 2001, he was chosen to replace the chief minister – governor – of his home province, Gujarat.

On February 27, 2002, a group of Hindu pilgrims was traveling back from a controversial pilgrimage site. While stopped at a station, the train caught fire, killing 59 Hindus. The exact cause of the fire is disputed – some say it was an accident; others say arson – but many Hindus blamed a Muslim mob.

Modi was among many who called the burning an act of terrorism against Hindus. Riots broke out in his state, where Hindu mobs killed up to 2,000 Muslims.

Rights groups, foreign governments, and others accused Modi of condoning or at least failing to stop the violence. The US, UK, and EU responded by banning him for religious freedom violations.

Despite the riots, Modi rose to national prominence for economic reasons. His province’s economy boomed, and it was soon referred to as the “Gujarat Miracle.” Modi was soon promising the same for India: More investment, more jobs, more development.

In 2014, India held the largest elections at that point in world history. Modi won in a landslide – the biggest since 1984 – and became prime minister. He won reelection by an even larger margin in 2019. Polls show he is now the world’s most popular elected leader.

Modi’s critics accuse him of dominating the government, including the courts, and using it to attack his critics, reduce democratic freedoms, and Hindu-fy Indian society. A series of brutal lynchings and religiously-inspired laws at the state level have led to accusations that he has made Muslims second-class citizens. Others say he hasn’t done enough to strengthen India’s economy or foreign policy.

Modi’s many supporters – he has a 77% approval rating – say those critiques are overblown and point to his achievements instead. His government has invested billions to develop highways, railways, and other infrastructure.

It claims to have put a toilet in every home and electricity in every village. It’s established a digital welfare state, where the government can deliver benefits directly to its citizens without corrupt officials stealing funds.

Other supporters consider him a strong leader who represents India well, has the country’s best interests at heart, and isn’t corrupt. While former leaders were highly-educated English speakers, Modi – who rarely speaks English and had a tea-selling father – connects with regular Indians.

Modi also has critics and admirers in the US – however his admirers won this round.

During his 2-day visit to the US this week, a small group of politicians boycotted him. The overwhelming majority celebrated his arrival, which included a White House dinner and an address to Congress.

At the end, the US announced new arms and economic deals.

While Modi’s leadership is a matter of debate, his influence is not.

If you have thoughts, let us know at [email protected]!

 🌊 Roca Clubhouse

Yesterday's Poll:

Do you think presidents have top-secret information about aliens?
Yes: 73%
No: 27%

Yesterday's Question:

What was your best memory from June? Pictures always welcome!

Hope from Muncie, Indiana: “My favorite picture in June. We saw a group of about 14 manatees while on vacation in Clearwater Beach, Fl”

Rich from Berlin, New Jersey: "This month we sat for my daughter's cat. One evening I really thought the cat died. He sleeps in very weird positions and I thought he was dead. I have attached a photo.”

Monte from New York City: “Visiting the Basilica of St Sana in Belgrade Serbia, the largest Eastern Orthodox Church after the Hagia Sofia in Istanbul!”

🧠 Final Thoughts

Happy Thursday, all. Thank you for the wonderful feedback you sent in yesterday about the RFK Wrap.

Our goal is to cut through the noise and provide information about what’s happening in the world without spin or bias. It’s good to hear we are doing well!

—Max and Max