Wednesday, December 10
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Louvre Museum workers vote to strike over working conditions, ticket price hikes, and poor security after $102M heist; demonstration begins Dec. 15 (More) | Armed thieves steal eight Matisse paintings from public library in São Paulo, Brazil (More)
> "One Battle After Another" leads all films with nine nominations for 2026 Golden Globe Awards (Jan. 11); "The White Lotus" tops the TV side with six nods (More) | Jimmy Kimmel signs one-year extension of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" with ABC (More)
> Florida State tops Stanford 1-0 to win its third NCAA women’s soccer national championship in the past five years (More)
Science & Technology
> Google to launch its first AI-powered glasses next year: one audio-only model and another model with in-lens display (More)
> Researchers develop wireless device that uses light to send information to the brain, bypassing natural sensory pathways; could help restore lost senses (More)
> Global coalition of scientists seeking to understand dark matter completes most sensitive search yet, detecting neutrinos from the sun’s core for the first time (More) | What we've learned about the dark universe (1440 Topics)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close down (S&P 500 -0.4%, Dow -0.5%, Nasdaq -0.1%) as investors await decision from Federal Reserve's final two-day policy meeting of the year, which begins today (More)
> President Donald Trump approves Nvidia's H200 artificial intelligence chips for sale to China; in exchange, the US will receive 25% of the sale revenue (More)
> Candy giant Mars to close $36B acquisition of Kellanova, maker of Cheez-Its and Pringles, this week after receiving EU regulatory approval (More) | Magnum Ice Cream reaches $9B market cap after trading debut in Amsterdam (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> Alina Habba resigns as US attorney in New Jersey, takes role as senior adviser for US attorneys to Attorney General Pam Bondi; comes after a court ruled Habba had been serving in the role unlawfully since her tenure was slated to end in July (More)
> Thai military launches airstrikes on Cambodia, accuses Cambodia of wounding two Thai soldiers at the border; clashes threaten US-mediated peace deal (More)
> Magnitude 7.5 earthquake strikes off Japan's northeast coast, triggering a tsunami of up to 28 inches and injuring at least 23 people (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
K I S S
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Some of you might think I look older, others might think I look younger than 78, but that is my age... not counting the nine months spent inside the womb.
I have lived almost 8 decades but over half a century... and, what have I learned from this life?
One - that one must learn from one's mistakes but it will take several mistakes before that happens.
Two - that not all mistakes are actually mistakes but what we must do to get there from here.
Three - don't look back but always plan for the future even though that plan is or will be or should be constantly changing.
Four - don't trust immediately... that is to say trust must be earned, but you must also execute due diligence.
Five- put family and friends ahead of fame, fortune, and one's career if you want to have a pleasant retirement.
Six - if you want to live a quality life, spend time exercising, sleeping, an eat healthy.
Seven - if you want to live a quality life, eliminate anger and revenge.
Eight - not only should you treat others as you want to be treated but do so with animals as well.
Nine - do not join a political party but always support and vote for the PERSON who you think is best for the country.
Ten - learn to create a budget and don't go in debt unless you have to, paying it off as fast as you can, buying only what you need not what you want.
OBVIOUSLY...
many people will disregard this ten points as this is not what they have been taught or because it overlooks the AMERICAN DREAM and one's desire for GREED and to become wealthy.
Getting what you want is not always as pleasant as simply wanting what you want...
Scientists Create 7 Remarkable New Ceramic Materials by Simply Removing Oxygen
Penn State scientists discovered seven new ceramics by simply removing oxygen—opening a path to materials once beyond reach.
Sometimes, less truly is more. By removing oxygen during the synthesis process, a team of materials scientists at Penn State successfully created seven new high-entropy oxides (HEOs)—a class of ceramics made from five or more metals that show promise for use in energy storage, electronics, and protective coatings.
During their experiments, the researchers also established a framework for designing future materials based on thermodynamic principles. Their findings were published in Nature Communications.
“By carefully removing oxygen from the atmosphere of the tube furnace during synthesis, we stabilized two metals, iron and manganese, into the ceramics that would not otherwise stabilize in the ambient atmosphere,” said corresponding and first author Saeed Almishal, research professor at Penn State working under Jon-Paul Maria, Dorothy Pate Enright Professor of Materials Science.
Tuesday, December 9
Headlines
Jan Sonnenmair/Getty Images
Trump announces $12 billion in aid for farmers amid trade war. The assistance—which President Trump says will be paid for with tariff revenue—includes up to $11 billion for one-time payments to farmers of crops included in the Agriculture Department’s new Farmer Bridge Assistance program, and the other $1 billion will be for commodities not included in that program. The help for farmers, a voting bloc that supported Trump in 2024, comes as many are squeezed by both low crop prices and the tariffs that Trump imposed—especially soybean farmers, as exports to China dropped to virtually zero.
Nvidia gets approval to sell H200 chips to China. The chipmaker secured permission from the Trump administration to sell the chip—its second most sophisticated AI processor—to “approved commercial customers” in China, as long as the US gets a 25% cut of the sales. The administration had previously barred such exports to China. Nvidia’s stock rose on the news. And China seems pleased as well, with President Trump posting to social media that Chinese President Xi Jinping “responded positively” to the idea.
One Battle After Another wins the fight for most Golden Globe nominations. The nominations for the big show before the Oscars were announced yesterday, and the Paul Thomas Anderson film dominated the field with nine nods. Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value scored eight, and Ryan Coogler’s Sinners snagged seven. Notable snubs included Wicked: For Good in the best picture category (though its witches still got nominated for acting). On the TV side, Netflix and HBO got the most nods—that’s not unusual, but it feels significant since they may come together in a merger. Meanwhile, over in the new podcast category, political pods like Joe Rogan’s got shut out in favor of lighter fare, including Good Hang with Amy Poehler. The award show, hosted by Nikki Glaser, will be held on Jan. 11.—AR
Robert Reich
Here's One Good Answer
Friends,
As you know by now, I don’t like raising big problems without offering big potential solutions.
The big problem I want to talk about today is that CEO pay has become utterly untethered from reality.
When I was a young man in the 1960s and ’70s, CEOs typically made 20 to 30 times the pay of their workers. That was enough to reward leadership, but not so much as to distort the entire economy and alienate workers who could still aspire to the American Dream.
Today, the gap between CEO pay and the pay of average workers has exploded. The average CEO at a major corporation now takes home nearly 300 times what their employees earn.
In some cases, the disparity is so grotesque it defies belief. For example:
At A Glance
Foolproof formula to avoid awkward goodbyes.
The newly discovered math of shattering objects.
The purchasing power of $100 by state.
Why you can't wiggle your toes one at a time.
... and why your body shivers when you're cold.
What it costs to live like a celebrity, mortgage edition.
Countries where tourists spend the most and least money.
Ranking the most annoying Christmas songs.
Clickbait: Cover charge for wedding crashers.
Historybook: Actor Kirk Douglas born (1916); Actress Dame Judi Dench born (1934); “A Charlie Brown Christmas” debuts (1965); Diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner Ralph Bunche dies (1971); World Health Organization confirms smallpox has been eradicated (1979).
1440 Trivia: Thank you all for testing 1440 Trivia with us! We're winding down this feature, but we deeply appreciate the thousands of readers who played alongside us. You can continue exploring topics you're interested in via 1440 Topics here.
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> President Donald Trump becomes first US president to host the Kennedy Center Honors, distributing lifetime achievement awards to actors Sylvester Stallone and Michael Crawford, rock band KISS, and singers Gloria Gaynor and George Strait; ceremony will air Dec. 23 on CBS and Paramount+ (More)
> Indiana takes No. 1 spot in 12-team field competing for college football's 2025 national championship (More) | Lionel Messi leads Inter Miami to first MLS Cup title (More)
> The UK's Lando Norris wins first Formula 1 world championship title following third-place finish in Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (More) | Former NASCAR driver Michael Annett dies at age 39 (More)
Science & Technology
> OpenAI reportedly moves up the release of ChatGPT 5.2 to as early as this week; move follows CEO Sam Altman's "Code Red" memo in response to Google's Gemini 3 (More)
> Scientists develop process using CO2 to create carbon-negative construction materials; concrete production accounts for about 8% of global CO2 emissions (More)
> California officials issue warning against wild mushroom foraging after identifying 21 cases and one death linked to amatoxin poisoning, likely linked to the "death cap" mushroom (More)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets rise Friday (S&P 500 +0.2%, Dow +0.2%, Nasdaq +0.3%), with analysts projecting a nearly 90% chance the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates again Wednesday (More)
> SpaceX to offer insider shares valuing it at $800B, passing OpenAI as the most valuable privately held company; may eye initial public offering late next year (More) | What we've learned about SpaceX (1440 Topics) | ... and IPOs (1440 Topics)
> Federal officials waive final, $11M installment of $140M against Southwest Airlines over its 2022 holiday meltdown that left more than 2 million travelers stranded; decision cited company's efforts to upgrade infrastructure (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> Supreme Court to hear case challenging President Donald Trump's move to fire Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, testing 90-year-old limits on presidential power to remove regulators (More)
> Japan says Chinese jets locked radar on its fighter jets; incident comes weeks after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi indicated the country could get involved if China took action against Taiwan (More)
> Hong Kong voters elect 90-member legislature weeks after fire in Tai Po kills at least 159 people; turnout is estimated at nearly one-third of the eligible population (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
TEN Years Retired
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December, once it ends, represents TEN FULL YEARS that my wife and I have been retired. At first my wife was concerned that it would be difficult to pay our bills with our combined working salaries reduced by 50%, but after the first year, she started to realize she needed not to be worried.
During the last 15-20 years of our working careers, we managed to save a substantial amount of money by watching how we spent our money and making sure we remained debt free. It also helped that I had a side income from my consulting business. You would be surprised what businesses will spend when you call yourself an EXPERT.
However, I more than had the experienced credentials to back up all of my claims, especially in the areas of: PROJECT and QUALITY MANAGEMENT and STRATEGIC PLANNING. There were not many people who could teach and audit the ISO National Quality Standards if you wanted to sell goods in Europe.
Rather than invest those extra monies into the STOCK MARKET which can be volatile at times, we invested in CDs.
Fortunately, during the Biden administration, inflation was high, so we were able to invest in HIGH INTEREST CDs that really helped our savings grow faster than normal.
We were also fortunate to have a family who was moving into East TN to avoid the high crime in Chicago who was willing to pay a substantial amount MORE for our house than we were asking.
Consequently, our investments grew to the point where we are now at a level of income that is greater than our income when we were working... TEN YEARS AGO.
Now, were we in the right place at the right time?
Yes...
as a matter of fact we were...
But, we were also in a unique position to take advantage of being in the right place at the right time.
PLANNING, caused that position to happen.
Nordic Eating Habits May Hold the Secret to Longer, Healthier Lives
A large Swedish study shows that closely following the new Nordic dietary guidelines may reduce premature death while also supporting environmental sustainability. Using data from over 76,000 Swedish adults, the researchers found lower overall mortality, as well as reduced deaths from cancer and cardiovascular disease, among those who adhered most closely to the recommendations. Credit: Shutterstock
A new study from Aarhus University shows that the updated Nordic dietary guidelines, designed to support both human and planetary health, are linked to increased longevity.
A new study from Aarhus University reports that the new Nordic dietary guidelines, which aim to support both human health and environmental well-being, are linked to a longer lifespan.
The guidelines advise reducing meat and added sugar while increasing the intake of whole grains, legumes, fish, and low-fat dairy products. These recommendations, released in 2023, were developed with attention to both nutritional needs and climate impact.
According to the Aarhus University research team, people who follow the guidelines tend to have lower mortality rates. The work was conducted by Associate Professor Christina Dahm together with PhD-Student Anne Bak Mørch.
Monday, December 8
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