Good morning. In today’s edition:

• 💥 Iran war enters Week 3
• 🏀 March Madness brackets
• ☺️ America’s happiest cities

…and much more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~3.93-minute read (1,045 words).

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"The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us."

–Voltaire (1694-1778)

Israeli and US forces continued bombarding targets across Iran over the weekend, while Tehran kept up its strikes against Israeli and American targets across the Middle East, as the war in the region entered its third week.

Catch up quick

In addition to strikes from Israel and Iran targeting each other, Israeli forces also launched attacks on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, while Tehran has continued its daily attacks on oil and other infrastructure around the Gulf region, essentially closing all ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz (a key global shipping lane for oil).

President Trump on Friday said he directed a bombing raid on Iran’s Kharg Island for the first time, and threatened further strikes on Iran’s oil export hub. The terminal accounts for ~90% of the country’s crude exports, with a loading capacity of ~7 million barrels/day.

Oil markets react: Brent crude oil futures closed above $100/barrel for the second straight day on Friday. Overall, the global oil benchmark has surged more than 40% since the Iran war began on February 28.

Casualties continue to mount. More than 1,300 people in Iran have been killed in Israeli and US strikes since the war began, according to the country’s UN representative.

• Lebanon’s Health Ministry on Sunday said 850 people have been killed by Israeli strikes targeting Hezbollah since the war began, with 2,000+ others injured.
• In Israel, officials say 12 people have been killed by Iranian strikes since the war began.

The US military confirmed that all six crew members were killed after a US Air Force refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq. Officials say there’s no indication the craft, which was supporting operations tied to the Iran war, was brought down by enemy or friendly fire.

Domestic war coverage draws Trump admin’s ire. On Saturday, FCC Chair Brendan Carr warned broadcasters Saturday they could lose their licenses if their coverage of the war with Iran includes what he called “news distortions.” Carr’s comments echo criticism from President Trump over the weekend over what he framed as “intentionally misleading” headlines from the WSJ and NYT. Free-speech groups and Democratic lawmakers pushed back against Carr’s statement, saying it could violate the First Amendment.

Looking ahead…In an interview Saturday, Trump said he’s not ready to make a deal to end the war with Iran—despite the country’s willingness to do so—“because the terms aren’t good enough yet,” though he didn’t mention any specifics.

Separately, the Trump admin is expected to announce this week that multiple countries have agreed to form a coalition that will escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, per the WSJ.

📊 Flash poll: After 2+ weeks of conflict: do you support or oppose US involvement in the ongoing war in the Middle East?

• Support
• Oppose
• Unsure/other

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BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 🪙 Several US states—AZ, FL, OR, TN, VA, and WA—are setting new rounding guidance for cash purchases involving pennies, after the US Mint ceased production last year.
• 📲 TikTok investors to pay $10 billion fee to US Treasury as part of recent deal to take control of social media platform’s US business, per multiple reports; unprecedented fee represents ~70% of US TikTok’s $14 billion valuation in the deal.
• 🤖 Meta delays release of its new AI model, code named “Avocado,” from this month to May or June, per NYT; move reportedly comes after internal testing found Meta’s model doesn’t perform as well as leading competitors.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• 🏆 98th Oscar Awards held last night in Los Angeles; One Battle After Another leads with six awards, including Best Picture. | Chile's Smiljan Radic Clarke wins Pritzker Prize, often referred to as Nobel Prize of architecture.
• 🎥 Pixar’s Hoppers remains atop domestic box office with $28.5 million in its second weekend; Reminders of Him, based on a Colleen Hoover novel, debuts with $18.2 million.
• 🏟️ March Madness brackets finalized for men’s and women’s college basketball following Selection Sunday; men’s side led by top-seeded Duke, with #1 UConn atop the women’s bracket. | Team USA defeats the Dominican Republic 2-1 to advance to World Baseball Classic final on Tuesday; they'll play the winner of tonight's Italy-Venezuela matchup.

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 🚀 NASA clears Artemis Moon rocket for launch as early as April 1 following latest repairs; Artemis II mission will carry four astronauts around the Moon in humanity’s first visit since 1972.
• 💎 Chinese researchers create what they say is the world’s first samples of pure hexagonal diamond, a theorized rare variant of superstrong diamond.
• 🐟🧬 Amazon mollies, a female-only species of fish that reproduces asexually, can purge and repair harmful DNA mutations, new study reveals; findings help explain how self‑cloning species has avoided genetic decay expected in long‑term clones.

US, WORLD & POLITICS

• ☀️🌨️🌬️ Majority of US is projected to see extreme weather, either currently or very soon: Southwest is facing a record 100+°F heat wave; Midwest and East are facing major snowstorms; South is projected to see extreme winds; while Hawaii is experiencing heavy rains and flash flooding.
• 🧑‍⚖️ Federal judge tosses out DOJ subpoenas sent to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell earlier this year.
• 🇨🇳 China adopts “ethnic unity” law empowering authorities to promote a common culture, discouraging customs deemed outdated, and obligating parents to instill Communist Party loyalty in children; critics warn new law could erode rights for ~9% of country’s population who aren’t Han Chinese.

👆Chicago’s plumbers union dyed the city’s river neon green for the 64th time this weekend in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. Dyeing the entire river requires just ~40lbs of powdered dye—whose recipe remains a closely guarded secret—with the effects lasting for several days.

🤔 Did you know? Last December, Chinese engineers managed to accelerate a maglev (magnetic levitation) train from a speed of 0 to ~435 MPH in just two seconds, marking the fastest speed ever recorded on a platform of its kind.

📰 Worth a read: Pokémon Go is giving delivery robots an inch-perfect view of the world

🖱️ What we’re clicking:

• America’s happiest cities in 2026
• Do the Academy Awards still matter to most Americans?
• A new generation of mall rats has arrived

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On Friday, we covered how long security lines at airports across the US due to TSA staffing shortages have revived a long-running debate on Capitol Hill: should airport security be privatized?

❓ Our question to you: In general, do you support or oppose the idea of privatizing airport security to replace the TSA?

• Support: 38%
• Oppose: 46%
• Unsure/other: 16%

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

+Note on sample size: We received 556 votes and 70 longform responses.

Monday: Nvidia kicks off annual AI conference (ends Thursday)

Tuesday: St. Patrick’s Day; men’s March Madness First Four tips off

Wednesday: Federal Reserve widely expected to keep interest rates steady at 3.50%-3.75%; women’s March Madness First Four tips off

Thursday: Potential date for Eid al-Fatir (along with Fri.), marking end of Ramadan; weekly unemployment claims

Friday: Project Hail Mary starring Ryan Gosling hits theaters; Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man film debuts on Netflix

Guess the definitions of the following Greek/Latin root words:

1. Ar
2. Coron
3. Don
4. Manu
5. Oct

🧪 Science rules: Bill Nye the Science Guy, a classroom staple of the 2000s, recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th Annual Children's and Family Emmy Awards for his work in children's STEM education. 

1. Ar = Dry (e.g., arid)
2. Coron = Crown (coronation)
3. Don = Give (donation)
4. Manu = Hand (manual)
5. Oct = Eight (octagon, octopus)

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