Good morning. In today’s edition:

• 🏭 US gov’t joins nuclear push
• 🏀 NBA Draft Round 1
• 🧓 World’s oldest-known land animal

…and much more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~3.71-minute read (988 words).

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“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.”

–Mark Twain (1835-1910)

The Trump administration announced Tuesday that the Department of Energy will provide billions of dollars in loans to help accelerate construction of nuclear reactors across the US.

The plan includes up to $17.5 billion in DoE-backed loans aimed at helping build 10 new nuclear reactors across the US.

• These large reactors, capable of powering 800,000+ homes apiece, would be spread evenly across five separate projects.
• The financing would help utilities purchase major reactor components years in advance, reducing costs and potentially speeding up construction timelines.

America embraces the nuclear option

Nuclear power has seen a resurgence of bipartisan interest in recent years, especially as demand for electricity rises due to AI data centers and more parts of the economy become electrified.

Major tech companies have emerged as some of nuclear power's biggest backers, with firms including Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, Amazon, Meta, and others investing in projects to significantly expand America’s nuclear energy capacity.

Supporters of nuclear power argue it can deliver the best of both worlds:

• Unlike coal and natural gas plants, nuclear reactors don't emit greenhouse gases during operation.
• Nuclear sources can also generate energy around the clock regardless of weather conditions, in contrast to wind and solar facilities.

Those advantages have helped nuclear energy sources attract support from Republicans focused on energy security, Democrats focused on climate goals, and companies searching for reliable sources of power.

But there are still major issues to solve. More than producing clean, reliable electricity, nuclear’s biggest challenge in recent years has revolved around construction. Large reactors require billions of dollars in upfront investment, and often take more than a decade before they even start to generate revenue.

Recent US projects have a mixed track record:

• An expansion at Georgia's Vogtle nuclear plant took ~15 years at a cost of ~$35 billion, after initially being expected to take 7-8 years and cost $14 billion.
• A similar nuclear project in South Carolina was abandoned after costs exceeded $9 billion.

Additionally, some US lawmakers have also cited concerns over long-term storage of radioactive waste, and the potential for catastrophic incidents like Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island or Japan’s Fukushima meltdown.

Looking ahead... The DOE says seven utilities have already signed letters of intent to participate in the program, though none have been publicly named. Federal officials currently plan to break ground on the 10 large reactors by 2030, and have them operational by mid-decade.

📊 Flash poll: In general, how do you feel about investing in nuclear energy as a source of electricity in the US?

• Strongly agree
• Somewhat agree
• Neutral
• Somewhat disagree
• Strongly disagree

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BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 📉 US tech stocks fall as recent selloff picks up steam overnight Monday (S&P: -1.44% | Dow: -0.1% | Nasdaq: -2.2%). | Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow) announces Alphabet will replace Verizon in the 30-stock index.
• 🏛️ Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) unveils plan to help fund Social Security’s current shortfall by creating a $1.5 trillion fund to invest in stocks on the program’s behalf.
• 👓 Meta unveils new set of smart glasses called Meta Glasses with a starting price of $299, which is $80+ lower than its previous entry-level Ray-Ban smart glasses.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• NBA Draft (fill in tonight) | 🏌️ PGA Tour unveils new two-tier system with strict promotion and relegation between the 120-player top level (Championship Series) and lower league (Challenger Series); competitive model will start in 2028.
• 🎧 ElevenLabs releases audiobook of The Odyssey read by an AI-generated version of Michael Caine’s voice, ahead of Christopher Nolan’s film adaptation next month.
• 🎭 Peacock cancels Ponies, its 1970s espionage thriller starring Emilia Clarke and Haley Lu Richardson, after one season. | Warriors, a new musical from Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and Eisa Davis based on the 1979 film, to premiere on Broadway next spring.

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 💻 LineShine, a massive Chinese computing system in Shenzhen, is declared the world’s fastest supercomputer by a group of researchers; the US had previously held the mantle since 2021.
• ☄️ Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, which blazed past the Sun and swung by Earth last year, could be the oldest and coldest object ever seen in our solar system, new Nature study suggests.
• 🦠 Congo's Ebola outbreak reaches largest ‌number of confirmed cases within first month of any episode of the disease, as cases climb above 1,000 with 267 deaths.

US, WORLD & POLITICS

• 🇮🇷🇺🇸 US-Iran talks: Iran's foreign ministry spokesman says the country has no plans to allow inspectors to access nuclear sites bombed by the US and Israel, contrary to VP JD Vance’s announcement on Monday; President Trump later says that despite Iran's "protestations and false statements to the contrary," it had "fully and completely agreed" to inspections in talks.
• 🏛️ Senate votes 50-48 to limit President Trump’s ability to conduct military operations against Iran without congressional authorization, with four Republicans joining all but one Democrat in voting “Yes”; experts say the measure is considered nonbinding based on SCOTUS precedent.
• 🏥 Justice Department unveils charges against ~450 defendants, including 90 medical professionals, for alleged healthcare fraud totaling $6.5+ billion that spanned Medicaid and hospice care.

☝️ Jonathan the Seychelles tortoise has further cemented his place in the record books, earning Guinness World Record ICON status for retaining the title of the world’s oldest-known land animal. At 194 years old, Jonathan predates the Victorian Era, London’s Tower Bridge, and Paris’s Eiffel Tower. The Saint Helena celebrity has lived at Plantation House, the official residence of the island’s governor, since arriving in 1882 at roughly 50 years old.

🤔 Did you know? Dolphins and some whales typically sleep with only half of their brain at a time, keeping one eye open while the awake hemisphere helps them surface for air and stay alert to potential threats. This adaptation, known as unihemispheric sleep, isn't limited to marine mammals; some migratory birds have also been observed taking brief naps while flying during long-distance journeys.

📰 Worth a read: Want to beat Wordle? Try a 1940s mathematical theory.

🖱️ What we’re clicking:

• The evolution of the S.A.T. Test
• M&M's is getting rid of 2 iconic colors—but there's a good reason why
• The 25 most American movies of all time

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How it works: We provide an incorrect stat. Your challenge is to guess whether the actual number is over or under the given value.

1. 🤤 2 liters: Amount of saliva your mouth produces per day.
2. ⚡ 8x: How many times more likely men are to be struck by lightning than women.
3. 🐌 500 million: Amount of snails served in restaurants globally each year

(keep scrolling for the answers)

🥟 Seattle’s Chinatown International District kicked off summer with a block party that turned into a record-breaking meal, gathering 830 people to set the Guinness World Record for the largest shared dim sum dinner. 

1. 🤤 Under; between 0.5–1.5 liters
2. ⚡ Under; it’s ~4x
3. 🐌 Over; around 1 billion

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