Good morning. It's Friday, March 28, and we're covering the latest in federal firings, a return to the fiction world by a famous author, and much more. First time reading? Join over 4 million intellectually curious readers. Sign up here.
Don’t keep us a secret: Share the email with friends (copy URL here).
And, as always, send us feedback at [email protected]. |
|
|
|
Health Department Reductions |
Heath Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced yesterday the federal agency would look to eliminate as many as 10,000 jobs as part of the Trump Administration's broader reduction-in-force efforts across the government. The figure comes in addition to an estimated 10,000 workers who previously accepted buyout packages—together, they represent roughly 25% of the department's previous workforce.
The Department of Health and Human Services has the largest budget of any federal agency at roughly $1.7T per year (see breakdown), though the bulk of the spending goes toward the disbursement of mandatory spending programs, including Medicaid, Medicare, and insurance for children in low-income families. Separately, the agency oversees key regulatory and research agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Each agency is expected to provide plans to reduce headcount in the coming months, per an executive order. See a tracker of federal terminations here. |
Rushdie Returns to Fiction |
Renowned author Salman Rushdie will publish his first work of fiction since a 2022 knife attack left him blind in one eye and in chronic pain. "The Eleventh Hour" is five connected short stories and novellas due to be released in November by Random House and follows last year’s memoir of the violent episode, "Knife."
On Aug. 12, 2022, the Booker Prize Award-winner was starting a lecture in western New York when then-24-year-old Hadi Matar ran on stage and stabbed Rushdie over a dozen times with a 10-inch blade. Rushdie spent 17 days in the hospital and lost the use of his right eye and most of the function of one hand. Last month, Matar was found guilty of attempted murder and assault and could face up to 25 years in prison.
Since the attack, the 77-year-old author of 15 novels has described fiction writing as difficult. The Indian native’s 1988 novel "Satanic Verses"—whose depictions of Prophet Muhammad were seen as blasphemous by many Muslims—prompted then-Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeini to call for the writer’s death. |
At least six people died and a number of others were injured after a submarine carrying dozens of tourists sank off Egypt's Red Sea coast yesterday. Officials said 39 people were rescued, with reports suggesting at least two of the victims were children.
The region of the Red Sea is renowned for its coral reefs—the bottleneck-like geography has created a marine ecosystem where nearly 15% of corals, mollusks, and fishes in the sea are found nowhere else in the world. Officials believe the vessel may have lost pressure after inadvertently colliding with a reef, sinking to the seafloor about a half-mile off the coast. The operating company, Sindbad Resorts, claims to have two of just 14 tourist submarines in the world.
The accident marked the second major incident involving a seafaring tourist vessel in Egypt in recent months—a boat sank in November during a sightseeing trip, leaving 11 people dead or missing, while others were trapped in the dark for more than a day waiting for rescue teams. |
|
|
|
|
In partnership with Incogni |
Keep Your SSN Off The Dark Web |
Every day, data brokers profit from your sensitive info—phone number, DOB, SSN—selling it to the highest bidder. What happens then? Best case: companies target you with ads. Worst case: scammers and identity thieves breach those brokers, leaving your data vulnerable or on the dark web.
It's time you check out Incogni. It scrubs your personal data from the web, confronting the world’s data brokers on your behalf. And unlike other services, Incogni helps remove your sensitive information from all broker types, including those tricky People Search Sites.
Help protect yourself from identity theft, spam calls, and health insurers raising your rates. Plus, just for 1440 readers: Get 55% off Incogni using code 1440DAILY. |
Please support our sponsors! |
|
|
|
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture |
> Sundance Film Festival to relocate to Boulder, Colorado, beginning in 2027 after 40 years in Park City, Utah (More) |
> Netflix's "Baby Reindeer" leads all series with eight nominations for the 2025 BAFTAs, or British Academy of Film and Television Arts (More) |
> NCAA women's basketball tournament Sweet 16 round kicks off today; see full schedule and preview (More) | ... and see latest men's bracket (More) |
|
In partnership with NativePath |
|
|
|
> Researchers discover new class of antibiotic that targets drug-resistant bacteria; molecule, known as lariocidin, interrupts bacteria protein production in a previously unknown way (More) | What are superbugs? (1440 Topics) |
> OpenAI to limit rate of requests for its new image generator within ChatGPT, saying the viral uptake has overloaded servers (More) |
> New findings link neural cell death with the growth of glioblastoma, one of the most lethal types of brain cancer; the five-year survival rate for the disease is under 10% (More) |
|
> US stock markets close lower (S&P 500 -0.3%, Dow -0.4%, Nasdaq -0.5%) as US tariffs on imported vehicles, effective April 2, weigh on stocks (More) |
> French video game maker Ubisoft spins out new unit for popular game brands, including Assassin’s Creed; Chinese tech giant Tencent to take $1.25B stake (More) | GameStop shares slide 22% after retailer says it plans to raise $1.3B in debt to buy bitcoin (More) |
> The US economy grew at an annual rate of 2.4% in Q4 of 2024, per revised data; full-year US gross domestic product—the total value of goods and services produced—grew at 2.8% rate (More) |
|
> President Donald Trump withdraws Rep. Elise Stefanik's (R, NY-1) nomination as US ambassador to the UN, cites narrow Republican majority in the US House (More) |
> Tufts University student, a Turkish national on a valid visa, detained and transferred to ICE center in Louisiana; Rümeysa Öztürk is the latest international student to be arrested amid a broader crackdown on pro-Palestinian sentiment in universities (More, w/video) | At least 300 students have had visas revoked, state secretary says (More) |
> New York county clerk blocks Texas from filing legal action against New York doctor who sent abortion pills to a Texas woman; dispute likely to reach Supreme Court, highlights conflict between states with differing abortion laws (More) |
|
> America's Obsession with Lawns
Noema | Oliver Milman. The manicured lawn has been a symbol of the American dream for decades. However, this pursuit of pristine trimmed grass has contributed to negative environmental impacts such as biodiversity loss. (Read)
> Why Stanford Students Are Turning to Defense Technology
The San Francisco Standard | Jasmine Sun. A growing number of Stanford students are seeking to join the defense tech market—with current affairs, a slowing Big Tech job market, and venture capital investments influencing the trend. (Read) |
> The Original Girl Scout Cookie
Tasting History | Max Miller. In the early 1900s, each Girl Scout had to bake their own cookie batches to distribute. See their recipe for a simple sugar cookie–the only flavor they sold at the time. (Watch)
> The Entrepreneurial Success of a Skincare Brand
How I Built This | Guy Raz. Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare—a brand whose unusual name actually helped it attract customers—started as a small venture between a dermatologist and his wife and eventually grew into a $450M company. (Listen) |
|
In partnership with Incogni |
Your Personal Info Is Floating Around the Web |
Please support our sponsors! |
|
|
"One cannot grow fine flowers in a thin soil." |
|
Why 1440? The printing press was invented around the year 1440, spreading knowledge to the masses and changing the course of history. More facts: In every day, there are 1,440 minutes. We’re here to make each one count. |
1440 Media 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Suite 1212 Chicago, IL 60654
Copyright © 2025, 1440 Media, All rights reserved. |
|
|
|
|
|
