Good morning. In today’s edition:

• 📝 The NIH’s controversial cost-cutting plan
• 🇨🇳 60-second TV shows have taken over China
• 🐒 Sri Lanka’s monkey-caused power outage

… and more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~4.35-minute read (1,157 words).

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“When you judge others, you do not define them, you define yourself.”

–Earl Nightingale (1921-1989)

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) yesterday began implementing its plan to place a 15% cap on “indirect costs” associated with tens of billions of dollars in research grants, a move that’s drawn sharp criticism from the academic research community.

What are indirect costs? When a scientist receives a federal NIH grant for a project, the institution hosting that scientist’s work receives an additional percentage for indirect costs associated with their research – a catch-all term covering things like buildings, utilities, specialized equipment, support staff, and other overhead expenses.

• Of the ~$35 billion in grants issued by the NIH in the 2023 fiscal year, some $9 billion (26%) went to indirect costs, with each institution negotiating its own rate directly with the federal government.
• By lowering that figure to 15% across the board, the NIH says it will save $4+ billion/year – funds that Trump admin officials characterize as a taxpayer giveaway to elite universities who could easily cover those costs themselves.

Scientists largely oppose the NIH’s move. Academic leaders say the cap on indirect costs would harm scientific institutions’ ability to carry out cutting edge research, with potential side effects including longer waits for disease diagnoses and cures, fewer research jobs, and slower scientific progress compared to the rest of the world.

Pause button: Hours after it took effect, the NIH’s plan was temporarily blocked by a federal judge in response to a legal challenge from 22 Democratic state AGs, who claim the move violates laws governing how federal agencies implement new regulations.

🏛️ In other Trump admin news: President Trump yesterday announced 25% tariffs on all imports of steel and aluminum to the US, and said additional “reciprocal tariffs” are coming later this week.

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When it comes to food, Americans are turning over a new leaf more to leaves – and it’s denting PepsiCo’s sales.

The food-and-beverage giant last week reported Q4 results showing demand in North America has slowed for its salty snacks and drinks, as consumers continue to pay attention to their budgets and gravitate towards healthier options.

• North American sales at the Pepsi-owned Frito-Lay (home to brands like Doritos and Tostitos), which, at $7.3 billion, accounts for about a quarter of PepsiCo’s total revenues, fell 3%. It marks the fifth consecutive quarterly decline in Frito-Lay’s North American sales.
• Beverage sales in North America also fell 3% in the quarter.

PepsiCo execs attribute the declines in part to inflationary pressures. But another driving factor, per execs, is that consumers are gravitating away from Frito Pies and Mountain Dew and focusing more broadly on health and wellness.

In response: The company is leaning into healthier options, and plans to further bulk up its sales by packing protein into existing products. Its Quaker Oats division, for example, now offers cereals with additional protein.

👀 Looking ahead…As Americans remain cautious with their pocketbooks, and the MAHA movement and weight-loss drugs continue to gain steam, more companies could hop aboard the healthier snacks train. Researchers at Cornell SC Johnson College of Business late last year found that households with at least one person on a weight-loss drug such as Ozempic saw “significantly larger decreases in purchases of calorie dense, processed items, including an 11 percent decline in savory snacks.”

Minute-long dramas – talk about a period piece. Revenue in China’s mini-drama industry rose 35% to reach $6.9+ billion last year, making it more valuable than the country’s entire film box office, according to new figures published by Bloomberg.

Background: The format first popped up in China in 2018, not long after the debut of TikTok. But unlike traditional TikTok clips, mini dramas are professionally produced web series with clear storylines and major cliffhangers.

• Each “episode” typically runs 60-90 seconds, with an entire series spanning 50+ episodes.
• In total, short-form dramas cost just tens of thousands of dollars to make – far less than the average TV show – but can end up generating millions through advertising + charging users as much as $20 to finish the story.

Coming to America?

After experiencing recent success in China, many of the biggest short-form drama companies are now looking to expand abroad, with the US seen as a top target, according to Bloomberg.

These streaming services have reportedly started baiting American users with free access to 60-second episodes on popular platforms like YouTube, X, and TikTok – then directing those viewers to their own platforms for more content.

🤔 But not everyone is convinced. Some industry executives are worried about the longer-term outlook of such content, noting that China’s tech and online industry is known for intense but short-lived fads.

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BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 📈 US markets rose across the board (S&P: +0.7%; Dow: +0.4%; Nasdaq: +1.0%).
• 🍔 McDonald's reported disappointing Q4 revenue, dragged down by weaker-than-expected sales at its US restaurants following an E. coli outbreak; sales rose internationally.
• 🤖 An Elon Musk-led consortium of investors has reportedly made an unsolicited offer to buy the nonprofit that controls OpenAI for $97.4 billion; Sam Altman posted on X in response: “no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.” | 🏨 Hyatt agreed to buy Playa Hotels for $2.6 billion to bulk up its all-inclusive offerings.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

in partnership with Dyce Games

• 👕 Ye, formerly Kanye West, is selling a t-shirt emblazoned with a swastika on his website; as of Monday morning, it was the only product available on yeezy.com. | 📵 Ye's X account has also been either banned or deactivated following a series of antisemitic and racist posts.
• 🎙️ Fox has acquired Res Seat Ventures, a podcast and digital media company; Res Seat produces shows hosted by talent that includes a slew of former Fox and cable news stars such as Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson, and Bill O’Reilly.
• 🏈 The Aaron Rodgers era in New York is reportedly over. | 🤔 What's next for the Jets at QB without Rodgers?

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 🦷🐷 Tufts University researchers successfully grew human-like teeth in pigs, a step towards potentially regrowing teeth in people.
• 🦐🥊 Mantis shrimp have a sound-filtering “phononic shield" that protects them from shock waves created when they deliver the world's fastest punch; the finding could inspire new protective gear for athletes and/or soldiers.
• 🌎 Earth’s inner core – a ball of iron and nickel ~1,500 miles wide – has noticeably changed shape in recent decades, per a new study.

MISCELLANEOUS

in partnership with Thousand Fell

• ✈️ A small plane collided with a parked business jet at Scottsdale Airport in Arizona yesterday afternoon, killing one person and injuring four others; the plane belongs to Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil, who wasn’t onboard.
• 📝 The FBI has reportedly discovered ~2,400 records tied to President John F. Kennedy's assassination that were never provided to a board tasked with reviewing and disclosing the documents.
• 🌍 Hamas said it’s postponing this week’s release of Israeli hostages due to what the group claims are Israeli violations of their joint ceasefire deal. | 📝 President Trump said displaced Palestinians won't be allowed to return to Gaza under his proposal to rebuild the territory.

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Curious George is up to his usual tricks in Sri Lanka. This weekend, the island country’s 22 million residents experienced a nationwide power outage that local officials blamed on a single wandering monkey, who they say climbed into a power station south of Colombo and caused “an imbalance in the system.”

In addition to inspiring a slew of memes on social media, the outage highlights Sri Lanka’s ongoing struggles with energy security. Experts have long warned that the country’s power grid is outdated and vulnerable to monkey business mass disruptions, like the widespread blackouts seen during Sri Lanka’s economic crisis in 2022.

☝️ Late Intel co-founder Gordon Moore’s beachfront Hawaii vacation home, located on Big Island, is going on the market for $28.8 million.

🤔 Did You Know? Tug-of-war was an official sport at the Olympic Games from 1900-1920, but hasn’t returned since. People have gone back and forth on the topic.

📰 Worth a Read: The fraught US-Soviet hunt for extraterrestrial life

🖱 Clickbait: Where your tax dollars go in a single, searchable chart

Here are five stats from this past week that made our team go “whoa.” Hopefully you will, too.

👑 LeBron James is the youngest NBA player to score 40 points (19 years, 88 days) – and as of last week, he’s also the oldest player ever to do so (40 years, 38 days), eclipsing Michael Jordan.

💒🇨🇳 New marriages in China saw their largest annual drop on record last year – just ~6.1 million couples tied the knot, marking a 20.5% decrease from 2023.

🎰 The average Massachusetts adult spends $1,037/year on lottery tickets, or nearly 2x more than any other state’s residents.

📲 Mobile service provider Helium is offering a new phone plan for $0/month, in exchange for users agreeing to share anonymized location data.

😬 At halftime of the Super Bowl, the Eagles had more points (24) than the Chiefs had total yards on offense (23).

Yesterday we covered how in recent weeks, economists and federal agencies have published a flurry of data indicating the US economy is experiencing strong economic growth, a solid labor market, and relatively low inflation – but at the same time, the mood of the US consumer is souring.

❓ Our question to you: To all working professionals: would you consider the growth outlook in your industry/sector of the economy to be positive or negative over the next 12 months?

• 📈 Positive: 37%
• 📉 Negative: 63%

Click here to read some of the most thoughtful longform responses.

+Note on sample size: We received 2,139 votes and 204 longform responses.

🦫 A colony of beavers in Prague just saved the local government $1.2 million by building a dam exactly where authorities were planning to do so, once building permits were approved.

🌮 Taco Bell recently announced its new wedding package for Crunchwrap lovers who want to get married Las Vegas-style. The ceremonies, which take place at the Taco Bell Cantina in Vegas, come complete with an Elvis Presley impersonator, Vegas showgirls, and tacos (of course).

🔍 Jeff Levy’s affinity for metal detection has become more than just a fun hobby in the wake of the California wildfires. The SoCal resident has already found an elderly man’s retirement stash, a couple’s diamond engagement ring, and one resident’s treasured gold heirloom.

❓ Trivia: What type of fruit is a morello?

🍟 True or False? Ronald McDonald’s name in Japan translates to Donald McDonald.

🤔 Riddle Me This…What’s black when you get it, red when you use it, and white when you’re all through with it?

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❓ Trivia: Cherry

🍟 T/F: True

🤔 Riddle: Charcoal