What's on Your Mind?

Fans of Joann have one last chance to grab fistfuls of fabric, yarn, and other critical sewing supplies before the ill-fated retailer closes for good—but time is running out. The beloved brand, which has been winding down operations after seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for a second time, will close its last remaining stores at the end of May, meaning this is the last full weekend that they will be open for business. A spokesperson for GA Group, the asset firm that took control of Joann in February, shared the list of locations with Fast Company. It includes 444 stores in 45 states. At the time of its bankruptcy filing, Joann had roughly 800 locations, bu…

In the three months since Target overhauled its policies on diversity, equity, and inclusion, the retailer has faced an onslaught of public criticism and a boycott that has carried on for weeks. There has been a clear impact on its business: Foot traffic has reportedly dropped for the last 10 weeks, and Target disclosed that sales had dipped in February. The company’s stock price is the lowest it has been in four years. Now CEO Brian Cornell is meeting with Al Sharpton (at Target’s request) to discuss the company’s DEI stance and commitment to the Black community, according to a CNBC report. As the head of civil rights organization National Action Network, Sharpton h…

PECOS, Texas—Extreme drought has diminished the flows of the Rio Grande and Pecos River, two of the most iconic waterways in Texas. The advocacy group American Rivers recently named the Lower Rio Grande one of its most endangered rivers, describing a “near-permanent human-induced megadrought threatening all life that depends on it.” On the Pecos River, there hasn’t been enough water to distribute to irrigation districts below the Red Bluff Reservoir in recent years. While farmers and cities face increasing water scarcity, oil and gas companies use billions of gallons of water from these rivers annually. An exclusive Inside Climate News analysis found that driller…

Adam Becker is a science journalist and astrophysicist. He has written for The New York Times, BBC, NPR, Scientific American, New Scientist, Quanta, Undark, Aeon, and others. He also recorded a video series with the BBC, and has appeared on numerous radio shows and podcasts, including Ologies, The Story Collider, and KQED Forum. What’s the big idea? Tech billionaires like to hype up delusional doomsday fantasies in which they are the saviors and overlords of civilization. Many people may just laugh or disregard these outlandish claims, but a closer look reveals the scary truth of how seriously, specifically, and consequentially these thought leaders are committed t…

Jennifer Meyer always knew she wanted to work in fashion. It probably comes, she says, from the hours she spent in her grandmother’s Santa Monica, California, apartment, playing with art supplies, and the small kiln her grandmother kept on the kitchen counter. “She did a lot of enameling,” says Meyer, an LA-based jewelry designer. “She had all of these colors and plaques to put things on; wiring. I would design things with her for fun; I have this love of design from her.” Still, as the daughter of an entertainment executive, Meyer didn’t really have a road map for a career in design. She completed her education on the East Coast, studying child and family psychology…

Altadena Girls began as a pop-up shop immediately after the Eaton Fire tore through Los Angeles, born out of a desire to help affected teenage girls regain a sense of their identity. The mission was simple yet profound: offer a space where they could rebuild what had been lost—clothing, makeup, and other items that help define who they are. The impact was significant as it reached more than 42 million people on social media in the first few weeks while receiving support from high-level brands and celebrities. Now, Altadena Girls is planning to open a community center dedicated to empowering young girls, helping them through trauma, and providing long-term support…

AI integration remains a top priority across enterprises worldwide, yet success remains elusive despite widespread enthusiasm and significant investment. An October 2024 study by Boston Consulting Group found that only 26% of companies have derived measurable business value from their AI initiatives. As a result, CEOs face mounting pressure to deliver tangible ROI, shifting focus from experimentation to real-world outcomes. Modern AI development increasingly relies on open-source foundations, enabling rapid iteration and innovation. Many transformative breakthroughs have emerged from community-driven development—primarily in Python, the dominant language in data scien…

Rare cosmic events can feel like being smiled down upon from up above. However, on the morning of April 25, an actual smiley face will appear in the sky—kind of. Venus, Saturn, and the moon will align in a pattern called a triple conjunction. Given the moon will be in its crescent form, the lineup will resemble a smiley face, but only for a short time on Friday morning. “Venus is higher above the eastern horizon with Saturn lower, and a thin, crescent moon a bit lower and a little farther north,” Brenda Culbertson, NASA solar system ambassador, told Kansas TV station KSNT. “The thin, crescent moon looks like a smile. To some people, the triangle of bright objects …

Feeling like you’ve overdone it on the scrolling? Now you can take a break from TikTok to meditate, without ever leaving the app. TikTok’s new in-app meditation feature, announced Thursday, was first tested earlier this year with a group of teen users and is now rolling out to everyone. Designed to improve sleep quality, the meditations activate during designated “sleep hours” and serve as a gentle nudge to put the phone down during a late-night scroll session. For users under 18, the feature is enabled by default. If teens are still on the app after 10 p.m., their For You feed will be interrupted by calming music and breathing exercises. If ignored, the prompt re…

A colossal squid has been caught on camera for the first time in the deep sea by an international team of researchers steering a remotely operated submersible. The sighting was announced Tuesday by the Schmidt Ocean Institute. The squid filmed was a juvenile about 1 foot (30 centimeters) in length at a depth of 1,968 feet (600 meters) in the South Atlantic Ocean. Full-grown adult colossal squids, which scientists have uncovered from the bellies of whales and seabirds, can reach lengths up to 23 feet (7 meters) — almost the size of a small fire truck. The squid was spied last month near the South Sandwich Islands during an expedition to search for new sea life.…

Navigating bedtime with a teenager is, in many homes, a nightly battle with a constant refrain: Get off your phone! Go to bed! Research shows that today’s teenagers are more sleep-deprived than ever before. Adolescents need between eight and 10 hours of sleep, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But nearly 80% of American teenagers aren’t getting that, and experts say it’s affecting important areas like mental health and school attendance. Bedtime routines aren’t just for toddlers. Teenagers need them, too, says Denise Pope, an expert on child development and a senior lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education. Experts in ad…

The temperatures are heating up and school’s almost out for the summer. Before we fully dive into the warmer months and vacations, we get a mini-break in the form of Memorial Day weekend—a preview of coming attractions—but it requires some planning ahead because today (Monday May 26, 2025) is a federal holiday. Let’s take a look at a brief history of the day and what business and services will be closed to observe it. A brief history of Memorial Day Memorial Day has its roots in the aftermath of the Civil War. On May 30, 1868, John A. Logan, commander in chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, declared the first national observance of Declaration Day, Memoria…

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg once considered separating Instagram from its parent company due to worries about antitrust litigation, according to an email shown Tuesday on the second day of an antitrust trial alleging Meta illegally monopolized the social media market. In the 2018 email, Zuckerberg wrote that he was beginning to wonder if “spinning Instagram out” would be the only way to accomplish important goals, as big-tech companies grow. He also noted “there is a non-trivial chance” Meta could be forced to spin out Instagram and perhaps WhatsApp in five to 10 years anyway. He wrote that while most companies resist breakups, “the corporate history is that most com…

MNTN Inc, the advertising technology company that counts Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds as its chief creative officer, is expected to make its market debut on Thursday, in a closely watched initial public offering (IPO) that will test investor appetite for the rapidly growing segment of ad-supported streaming television. The Austin-based company priced shares at $16 on Wednesday, the higher end of its expected range, in an offering led by Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, and Evercore ISI. The stock will list on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the “MNTN” ticker symbol. Based on its IPO share price, MNTN—it’s pronounced Mountain—has an approximate valuation of $…

Chili’s and TGI Fridays are in a full-blown mozzarella stick feud. Last week, TGI Fridays unveiled its new menu with a post on X: “New menu’s out. mozz sticks hit harder. happy hour’s calling. life’s good.” The next day, the chain appeared to throw shade at its fast casual rival, Chili’s Grill & Bar. new menu’s out. mozz sticks hit harder. happy hour’s calling. life’s good. — TGI Fridays (@TGIFridays) May 13, 2025 “Somebody tell [chili pepper emoji] to stay in their lane,” TGI Fridays posted on May 14. “Y’all are not mozzarella stick people. We are. That’s it. That’s the tweet.” Chili’s clapped back by sharing a screenshot of the post: “@ us next time…

Noodles & Company, the fast-casual chain known for serving an array of noodle-based dishes, will shutter up to 21 restaurants. The brand, founded in Denver, Colorado in 1995, has already closed at least nine locations over the past year. In a conference call last week, chief financial officer Michael Hynes said, “We expect to close 13 to 17 company-owned and four franchise restaurants in 2025.” The most recent count is up from a previous estimate of 12 to 15 company-owned closures. Noodles & Company currently has 380 company-owned restaurants and 89 franchised locations in 31 states. According to the brand’s website, the impending closures are due to higher f…

Shares in major quantum computer companies were on the rise again in premarket trading on Tuesday, highlighting what has been a volatile couple of weeks for a nascent industry that continues to captivate. Here’s what’s driving the latest news: D-Wave announces Advantage2 By far, Palo Alto-based D-Wave Quantum Inc (NYSE: QBTS) is seeing the biggest boost in premarket trading, with its stock up more than 12% as of this writing. This boost follows a 7% increase in D-Wave shares on Monday. Investors are likely excited by news on Tuesday morning in which D-Wave announced the general availability of its sixth-generation Advantage2 quantum computing system, which the…