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In today’s edition:

• 👑 Queen Elizabeth II passed away
• 🚕 United Airlines is getting into the taxi business
• 🔭💪 The James Webb keeps putting in WORK.

… and more.

🚀⏰ Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news takes 3.67 minutes to read.

“Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.”

–Dale Carnegie (1888-1955)

The Biden administration issued its final rule yesterday replacing a Trump-era policy that limited benefits for immigrants who rely on social services like food stamps or Medicaid.

📝 More deets… Under a previous measure implemented in 2019, immigrants seeking permanent residency in the US (aka a ‘green card’) could have their application denied for receiving certain government benefits, like nutrition assistance or subsidized healthcare.

• The Department of Homeland Security’s new law will only reject an immigrant’s green card application if they’re “likely at any time to become primarily dependent on the government for subsistence."

📸 The big picture: The US population is around 330 million people. 47 million of them were born elsewhere (~1 in 7), and an estimated 11.4 million are unauthorized immigrants (~1 in 30), per gov’t figures.

• The federal government admitted 262,000 of the 648,000 immigrants who applied for a green card in the 2021 fiscal year, which runs from October through September. That covers the legal part of immigration.
• On the illegal side of things, Border Patrol agents reported 1.82 million arrests at the southern border as of mid-August – a new all-time high, with 1½ months still left to go.

📊 Flash poll: Do you think America should admit more or fewer immigrants than it already does?

More

Fewer

Unsure/other

Queen Elizabeth II “died peacefully” yesterday afternoon at the age of 96, surrounded by her family at the Balmoral estate in Scotland.

👑 A deeper dive… She was the UK’s longest-serving monarch ever, and the third ruler in human history to celebrate their “Platinum Jubilee” (aka 70 years of reign). While the Queen was technically England’s head of state, her powers were entirely symbolic and ceremonial, and she remained politically neutral.

During her time as Queen:

• Elizabeth II saw the decolonization and independence of more than 20 nations that were once a part of the British Empire.
• 15 UK Prime Ministers came and went, as did 14 US Presidents and ~30% of America's history.
• She was also the world’s largest private landowner by far, with the Crown owning 10.4 million square miles – including about 90% of Canada (such as the land upon which most private homes are built).

And while we’re on the fun-fact train: more than 80% of all British citizens living today were born during her rule.

📅 What’s next?... Elizabeth II’s eldest son will now become King Charles III – though it could take a year or more for him to be formally crowned. He’ll be the head of state in the UK and 14 other Commonwealth nations, including Australia, New Zealand, and Canada.

+Dive deeper: ​​Queen Elizabeth II: A life in pictures → (BBC)

BlackRock published a letter on Wednesday pushing back against claims made last month by 19 Republican state attorneys general, who accused the world’s largest money manager of putting its ESG agenda ahead of clients.

☝️ First things first… ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance. At its most basic level, ESG investing places other priorities – like increasing diversity, or reducing carbon emissions – on equal footing with financial returns.

For example: More than ⅓ of the 2,000 largest publicly-traded companies in the world have made net zero emissions commitments, and ⅔ of the S&P 500 have set emission reduction targets of some kind.

• Another one: A recent PwC survey found the single most important attribute being prioritized in corporate board director searches at Fortune 100 companies right now is racial and ethnic diversity.

✋ Yes, but: It’s virtually impossible to track many companies’ progress on ESG issues. Only a quarter (27%) of firms have any ESG metrics or key performance indicators in place, and just 3% have a full set, per the Harvard Business Review.

• What’s more, a recent analysis found ⅔ of the 702 companies in the Forbes 2000 with net-zero emissions pledges haven't clarified how they’re going to achieve that goal – aka all bark and no bite.
• And another thing worth mentioning: institutional money managers typically charge 40% more to manage ESG funds than traditional funds, per HBR… but they often have the same/similar top holdings.

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Forget Lyfts to the airport – a few years from now, we’ll be taking lifts. At least that’s according to United Airlines, which announced a $15 million investment into startup Eve Air Mobility yesterday, as well as an agreement to buy up to 400 of their tiny aircraft.

The goal? Attract thousands of big-city customers who’ll pay $100 or more for a ride to the airport in a four-seat, electric air taxi.

🏙️ More deets… Mike Leskinen, president of United’s venture-funding arm, said the eVTOLs (electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft) are ideally suited to traffic-clogged cities where the airline flies, like NYC, Chicago, and San Fran.

• eVTOLs would be quicker than driving to the airport and would produce fewer emissions, he said, but the aircraft only have a range of 40 to 100 miles – so they aren’t replacing conventional planes anytime soon.
• Eve Air is launching a three-week pilot (get it?) of its service in Chicago starting next week, though it’s not expected to deliver any aircraft to United until 2026 at the earliest.

🚁 Zoom out: This move fits the mold for United, whose MO is usually to invest in a few startups in a particular segment of interest that are juuuust about to garner FAA approval. Over the past year, United has also invested in eVTOL-makers Archer Aircraft and Heart Aerospace, ordering 100 aircraft from both companies.

And they’re not the only airline getting in on the electric game. American Airlines agreed to pre-order up to 350 eVTOLs from UK-based Vertical last year in a deal worth $1 billion, and Virgin Airlines also agreed to buy up to 150 of Vertical’s electric aircraft to use as a low-emission method of ferrying passengers to the airport.

💬 Quoted…​​ “An enormous relief and an outrage."

Las Vegas police arrested Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles and charged him with murder late Wednesday in connection with the death of Jeff German, an investigative journalist from the Las Vegas Journal-Review who was found dead with stab wounds earlier this week.

• Authorities said yesterday that they found a positive match for Telles’ DNA underneath German’s fingernails. The politician was the subject of a series of critical articles from German, and had recently lost his bid for reelection.

🍴 Stat of the Day: The total number of Americans dining in restaurants was 19% higher last month compared to 2019, per data from reservation service OpenTable.

🤯 Did You Know?... In 1909, the entire town of Ulysses, Kansas, moved three miles west to escape their debts.

📖 Worth a Read: Why Does This Horrifying Woman Keep Appearing in AI-Generated Images? → (Motherboard)

• ☝️ You’re looking at the “Tarantula Nebula," captured by (you guessed it) NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 📈 The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage in the US rose to 5.89% this week, per Freddie Mac, its highest level since 2008. | The European Central Bank lifted all key interest rates by 0.75 percentage points, the largest increase in its 24-year history.
• 💔 Ernst & Young has begun a months-long plan to split its consulting and auditing businesses; the rest of the Big Four have no plans to follow suit at this time.
• 🚘🔌 GM revealed an all-electric Equinox SUV starting around $30,000; it'll be released next year.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• 🏈 The Buffalo Bills beat the defending Super Bowl champ LA Rams 31-10 last night, officially kicking off the NFL regular season.
• 🍿 The Handmaid’s Tale has been renewed for a sixth and final season. | A viral VFX gaffe in House of the Dragon Episode 3 will be corrected, with the updated version hitting streaming platforms later in the week, per The Hollywood Reporter.
• 🏀 The Connecticut Sun beat the defending champs Chicago Sky in Game 5 to advance to the WNBA Finals; they'll face the Las Vegas Aces in Game 1 on Sunday.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 🦟 Here’s what makes mosquito bites itch – and what to do about it.
• 🧠 Your brain can unlearn chronic back pain, the leading cause of disabilities worldwide, according to new peer-reviewed research.
• ⚰️🗣️ A dead woman was able to talk to people who showed up at her funeral, thanks to AI.

EVERYTHING ELSE

• 🇺🇦 Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced an additional $2 billion in aid for Ukraine and its European neighbors yesterday during a trip to Kyiv.
• ⚖️ Steve Bannon, a strategist for former President Trump, ​​surrendered to NY prosecutors yesterday over money laundering charges stemming from a private fundraising effort called “We Build The Wall”; Bannon previously received a federal pardon in the case from Trump, but that doesn’t apply to state charges. (From the Left | From the Center | From the Right)

Fifty-one-year-old butcher Ikram Korkmazer has more than 40 years of experience in the industry – but his butcher shop is known for more than its fine cuts of meat. The Turkish storefront is loved around the world for its dedication to caring for any stray animals that stop by.

🐱 Story time... It all started when a stray cat named Yeşim frequented the shop to bed for food scraps. Ikram started feeding her, and soon enough the other neighborhood strays took notice. 

• Now he cares for all of the street animals that stop by; he even renamed his shop Yeşim Meat Gallery after that first kitty who stole his heart.

❤️ Animal lover: "I have instilled the love for animals in this world, and it makes me proud to introduce Turkey as an animal-loving country," he shared.

Below are three lists of ingredients. All you have to do is give us the completed dish they make. Easy peasy! (The rules, at least.)

☝️ Recipe #1:

• Apples
• Brown sugar
• Lemon
• Cinnamon
• Vanilla extract
• Flour
• Kosher salt
• Butter
• Sugar
• Melted apricot preserves

✌️ Recipe #2:

• Salmon filets
• Dijon mustard
• Dried parsley
• Salt & pepper
• Red onion
• Olive oil
• Apple cider vinegar
• Garlic powder
• Cherry tomatoes
• Avocado
• Romaine lettuce
• Red cabbage

3️⃣ Recipe #3:

• Steak
• Vegetable oil
• Onion
• Mushrooms
• Butter
• Flour
• Beef broth
• Dijon mustard
• Sour cream
• Salt & pepper
• Pasta
• Chives

(keep scrolling for the answers)

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What to do: Copy your unique link below, then send it to anyone who you think would like the DONUT. Once you hit each milestone, you'll get an email with a link to claim your prize. (Pro tip: there's no need to ration points, you're entitled to a prize at each tier.)

Start referring.👇

☝️ Recipe #1: Apple tart

✌️ Recipe #2: Salmon avocado salad

3️⃣ Recipe #3: Beef stroganoff