Good morning. It's Tuesday, April 14, and we're covering a promising pill for pancreatic cancer, a controversial plan for descendants of a drug lord's hippos, and much more. First time reading? Join over 4.7 million insatiably curious readers. Sign up here.
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Pope Leo XIV arrived in Algeria yesterday, marking the first-ever papal visit to the 99% Sunni Muslim nation. His 11-day African tour will also include Angola, Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea, which have larger Catholic populations.
The Chicago-born pope’s visit to Africa before the US or South America, where he spent two decades, underscores the continent’s growing importance to the Church. Africa is Catholicism's fastest-growing region, accounting for over half of the 15.8 million people baptized into the Church in 2023; about one in five Catholics now live on the continent. During his visit, the pope is expected to address authoritarian rule, polygamy, and tensions with Islam, among other issues.
En route to Algeria, Pope Leo reiterated calls for peace after President Donald Trump criticized him as weak on crime and said he "caters to the radical left" amid disagreements over the Iran war (listen here). Trump separately drew bipartisan backlash for a now-deleted Truth Social post appearing to depict Trump as a Jesus-like figure (see here). He said he thought the image depicted him as a doctor. |
A new drug to treat late-stage pancreatic cancer slashes the risk of death by 60% compared with chemotherapy, oncology company Revolution Medicines said yesterday. Shares closed up 41.4% on the news.
Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers, with a five-year survival rate of 13% for the more than 67,000 people diagnosed in the US annually. At issue are mutations in a group of genes known as RAS. (Watch pancreatic cancer 101.) Now, a daily pill called daraxonrasib has shown promise at targeting mutant RAS proteins, with patients surviving a median of 13.2 months, compared with 6.7 months on chemotherapy. Revolution Medicines plans to apply for FDA approval.
Former Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) is one of the roughly 500 patients who participated in the trial after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last year and given up to four months to live. His tumor has shrunk by roughly 76% since late December. Watch him reflect on embracing life after his diagnosis here. |
Colombia approved a plan yesterday to cull up to 80 wild hippos descended from an original group of one male and three females imported in the 1980s by drug lord Pablo Escobar. The hippo population, now estimated at around 200, has spread beyond Escobar's former estate and been declared an invasive species threatening local ecosystems and communities.
Escobar built one of the world's most powerful cocaine empires; his estate, Hacienda Nápoles, was a sprawling compound featuring a mansion, airstrips, artificial lakes, and a private zoo (see historical photos). After Escobar was killed in 1993, the government seized the property and later turned it into a theme park. The hippos—left behind because they were difficult to move—multiplied into the largest hippo population outside of Africa. Hippos are also the world's 17th-deadliest animals (see full list).
Officials say prior efforts to control the hippos, including sterilization and relocation, were costly and ineffective. Animal welfare activists urge nonlethal alternatives. Read how the hippos created chaos in Colombia. |
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Sports, Entertainment, & Culture |
> Dallas Wings select UConn's Azzi Fudd with No. 1 pick in WNBA draft; UCLA has record five players drafted in first round and six overall (More) |
> Over 1,000 Hollywood stars—including Bryan Cranston and Lin-Manuel Miranda—sign an open letter opposing pending Paramount-Warner merger, claiming it will lead to fewer jobs for creatives and fewer choices for audiences (More) | Read the letter (More) |
> Britney Spears voluntarily enters substance abuse treatment after March arrest on suspicion of driving under the influence; decision on charges expected ahead of May 4 court date (More) |
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> Meta is creating an AI clone of Mark Zuckerberg, trained on his mannerisms, tone, and public statements, so the company's nearly 79,000 employees feel more connected to their founder and CEO (More) |
> Audiovisual simulations provide one of the most realistic views yet of galaxy formation and evolution, helping scientists compare theories against observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (More) | Explore images taken by the powerful telescope (More) |
> Scientists map ocean surface currents in unprecedented detail using AI to analyze satellite temperature imagery, with potential applications in search-and-rescue operations, oil spill response, and climate research (More) |
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> US stock markets close up (S&P 500 +1.0%, Dow +0.6%, Nasdaq +1.2%) (More) | US existing home sales fell by 3.6% month over month in March, the lowest level since June; median home price of $408,800 is up 1.4% from a year ago (More) |
> Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) opens investigation into Lululemon over allegations that its activewear may contain toxic forever chemicals; Lululemon claims the allegations are false (More) | What are forever chemicals? (More) |
> Slate Auto raises $650M in funding to advance production of its mid-$20K electric pickup truck, which has over 160,000 reservations ahead of year-end launch (More) |
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> Rep. Eric Swalwell (D, CA-14) says he will resign after House Ethics Committee announces probe into sexual misconduct allegations; Swalwell exited the California governor's race late Sunday (More) | Rep. Tony Gonzales (R, TX-23) to retire, comes after admitting to an affair with an aide who had later died by suicide (More) |
> Federal judge dismisses President Donald Trump's $10B defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal over reporting on Trump's ties to Jeffrey Epstein (More) | See the story (More) |
> Super Typhoon Sinlaku is forecast to impact the US' Northern Mariana Islands today, as of this writing; storm is the strongest of 2026 to date, reaching Category 5 status over the weekend (More) |
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> Patterns without Desires
Aeon | Noah Charney. Authorship can mean the difference between art valued at roughly $450M or $450K. What role will AI play in affirming or casting doubt on the authorship of some of the most hotly debated art pieces in history? (Read) |
> Your Extinct Cousin Loved Eating Grass
SciShow | Staff. Learn about Paranthropus, a grass-eating cousin of early humans with a mohawk-like ridge on the top of its skull. (Watch) |
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Historybook: "Webster’s Dictionary" is first published (1828); President Abraham Lincoln is mortally wounded by John Wilkes Booth, dies the next day (1865); Marine biologist and environmentalist Rachel Carson dies (1964); Human Genome Project is completed (2003).
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