Charlie Kirk Anniversary, America’s Nobel, and Fat Bear Week

Good morning, it's Thursday, Sept. 10. Today marks one year since Charlie Kirk's assassination. First time reading? Join over 4.7 million insatiably curious readers. Sign up here.

Also in today's Digest: the winners of "America's Nobel" (Need To Know), a sinkhole at Nicolas Cage's home (Sports, Ent. & Cult.), drug use among hunter-gatherers (Sci. & Tech.), the Republican Party's first midterm convention (Pol. & World Affairs), Fat Bear Week is back (Etc.), and much more. 

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 Need To Know 

Kirk Assassination Anniversary

Today marks one year since conservative activist Charlie Kirk was fatally shot while speaking at Utah Valley University (read last year's write-up). His organization, Turning Point USA, returns to campus today for a memorial.

Kirk founded Turning Point in 2012 at age 18 and grew it into a nonprofit with an operating budget of over $100M. He is credited with helping to boost President Donald Trump’s support among voters under 30 from 36% in 2020 to 47% in 2024. Since Kirk's assassination, college students' support for violence as a means to combat speech has dropped slightly. His death has also fueled infighting among Republicans and sparked conspiracy theories across the political spectrum, with a 2025 poll finding 36% of voters distrust media coverage of the assassination. Kirk’s widow, Erika, now leads Turning Point, where new high school and college chapters have grown 168% and 64%, respectively. Read her op-ed on life without him here (free w/email).

Separately, a Utah judge last week ordered alleged gunman Tyler Robinson, 23, to stand trial on seven counts, including aggravated murder, which could make him eligible for the death penalty.

Pricey Oil Milestone

The cost of Brent crude topped $100 per barrel yesterday for the first time since July. US stock markets dropped on yesterday’s news (S&P 500 -0.5%, Dow -0.8%, Nasdaq -0.6%) as President Donald Trump said the war will end and gas prices will fall after the November midterms.

A wave of tit-for-tat strikes over the past week includes US strikes on at least eight Iranian oil tankers, including at least one near Kharg Island (what is Kharg Island?), and Iranian attacks on 10 ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran this week also captured an unmanned US submarine drone (scroll for photo) and promises to set up an “exclusion zone,” further restricting passage through the strait. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's oil exports are down to a 13-year low; the news comes after Iranian-backed Houthi rebels struck Saudi Arabia’s energy and utility infrastructure this week, wounding more than 70 people.

Track gas prices in your state here.

Discover more:

> How did Brent crude become the global benchmark?

> See oil prices change alongside key moments in the war.

> Visual guide shows how six months of war have changed the world.

Lasker Award Winners

The Lasker Awards recognized breakthroughs yesterday spanning the biology of sleep, a blood disorder treatment, and Parkinson’s disease advocacy. The prestigious honors, known as "America's Nobel," include a $250K reward per category.

Emmanuel Mignot (Stanford) and Masashi Yanagisawa (University of Tsukuba) won the basic medical research award for separately finding that the absence of a brain chemical called orexin causes many cases of narcolepsy. Their discovery translated into an FDA-approved drug for the neurological disorder, which affects an estimated one in 2,000 people in the US. Kunihiro Hattori, Takehisa Kitazawa, and Tomoyuki Igawa shared the clinical medical research award for developing a drug to treat hemophilia A (explore their invention, via YouTube). Actor Michael J. Fox received the public service award for raising awareness and funds toward Parkinson’s research. 

Established in 1945, the Lasker Foundation has honored over 400 recipients, more than 80 of whom have gone on to earn a Nobel Prize (scroll for map of winners’ home institutions). 

 In The Know 

Science & Technology

> Apple unveils iPhone Duo, its first-ever foldable phone with a 7.6-inch continuous inner display, which starts at $1,999 and goes on sale Oct. 23 (More, w/images) 

> Archaeologists uncover earliest known evidence of habitual drug use among hunter-gatherers who lived 16,000 to 25,000 years ago; tooth fossils suggest they sucked betel nuts to release psychoactive properties and ease toothaches (More) 

> Bursts of gentle static known as "pink noise" may spur more restorative sleep, potentially improving cognitive function and memory while slowing the progression of neurodegenerative diseases (More) | Listen to "pink noise" (More)

Business & Markets

> US Treasury Department announces it will buy back $6B in government debt in an effort to keep bond markets functioning; operation comes in response to a surge in 30-year Treasury yields (More) 

> Meta shares climb 6.6% yesterday after the tech giant debuts Muse, its new personal AI agent (More) | What can Muse do? (More) 

> Google plans to spend over $15B to develop AI infrastructure in Finland, marking the tech company’s largest single investment in Europe (More) | See a map tracking data center locations around the world (More) 

Politics & World Affairs

> President Donald Trump delivers keynote address at Republican Party's first-ever midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, says he will give every citizen $5K if Republicans control Congress (More) | Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) shares minute-long, pre-recorded video introducing Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA) (More) 

> Transportation Security Administration will allow TSA PreCheck members in 13 airports to visit airport gates without tickets, among changes (More) 

> Federal appeals court in Louisiana begins hearing oral arguments to determine whether abortion drug mifepristone can be accessed by mail or will require in-person visit; case is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court (More) 

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Clickbait: Fat Bear Week is back, and the competition is looking thick.

Historybook: Golf legend Arnold Palmer born (1929); Jack Ma, Chinese billionaire and cofounder of Alibaba, born (1964); Jane Wyman, actress and first wife of former President Ronald Reagan, dies (2007); Large Hadron Collider is tested for first time (2008); Hurricane Irma makes landfall in Florida (2017).