What's on Your Mind?

Alexander Balan was on a California beach when the idea for a new kind of drone came to him. While tossing a football, he realized that its form factor could translate into a lightweight unmanned aerial system (UAS) designed for rapid deployment and autonomous targeting. This eureka moment led Balan to found Xdown, the company that’s building the P.S. Killer (PSK)—an autonomous kamikaze drone that works like a hand grenade and can be thrown like a football. To create the PSK, Xdown teamed up with several defense companies, including Corvid Technologies, a North Carolina-based military contractor that specializes in the design, development, and prototyping of weap…

When companies rolled out return-to-office mandates starting in late 2024 and early 2025, labor force participation among mothers of young children fell from roughly 80% in 2023 to 77% by August 2025, reversing years of hard-won gains. Yet if you’re pregnant or postpartum, you have more rights than you may realize, including some that can help you keep your job while growing your family in a way that works for you. For all things working and mom-ing, we always turn to Daphne Delvaux, an employment attorney who represents working mothers, founder of the Mamattorney, and author of the new book Moms in Labor: An Employment Lawyer’s Secrets to Protect Your Baby and Your C…

At the Aysaita Refugee Camp in northeastern Ethiopia’s Afar region, there are about 40,000 Eritreans struggling to meet their basic daily needs. For the 10,000 children younger than 10 who live in the camp, that includes one often overlooked resource: play. At many refugee camps around the world, play can, understandably, become an afterthought as humanitarian organizations focus on delivering essentials like housing and food. But studies show that play is critical for helping kids develop executive motor function and relational skills. It’s also a key therapeutic tool for children who have experienced trauma. These insights inspired Playrise, a U.K.-based charity designi…

“Embrace the suck.” One of the first things you learn as a Marine is to “embrace the suck.” Not because it sounds tough—but because it’s how strength is forged. In today’s world, where ease is glorified, we need to remember this truth: real strength comes from struggle. Before I became a leadership coach and positive psychology expert, I was a United States Marine Corps officer. I learned quickly that discomfort isn’t a barrier to success—it’s the path to it. And that truth still guides everything I do. You don’t build strength by avoiding discomfort. You build it by seeking it. We live in a world where ease is glorified—but that pursuit is costing us our …

If you grew up pre-Y2K, chances are you’re familiar with the concept of a lava lamp. It’s much less likely that you’ve ever encountered a lamp made out of literal lava. That’s the basic description of a series of three lamps made by the luxury Italian lighting company Foscarini. The company’s new Alicudi, Filicudi, and Panarea lamps, designed by Italian father-and-son design team Alberto and Francesco Meda, are formed from actual lava rock sourced from Mount Vesuvius. To own a piece of Italy’s iconic volcano, you’ll have to fork over $866 for any one of the lamp models. The real lava lamp may be pricier than its ‘70s predecessor, but that’s thanks to the labor…

The 2017 fire that burned down much of Enchanted Hills Camp in Napa, California had a silver lining. The camp was originally designed in the early 1900s for people with sight, but it has become a beloved retreat for the blind and visually-impaired for the last 75 years. When more than a dozen of its buildings were destroyed in the fire, the chance arose to rebuild the camp for the unique needs of the people who have been using it for decades. “This really was never designed with the thought of access in mind,” says Helen Schneider, associate principal and project manager at Perkins & Will, the architecture firm that redesigned the camp. Working closely with the ca…

After 23 years as part of advertising and marketing services holding company IPG, creative agency R/GA bought back its independence through a new partnership between R/GA’s global management and private equity firm Truelink Capital. It marks the official announcement of a move reported by AdAge earlier this month, and after leaks about a potential sale emerged last summer. The management team leading the agency back to private business is headed by R/GA’s global CEO, Robin Forbes, and chair and global chief creative officer Tiffany Rolfe. Truelink Capital is also an investor in marketing tech companies Flipp and Ansira, as well as experiential marketing firm GES. Fin…

German aviation group Lufthansa is cutting back on flights amid fuel price surges related to conflicts in the Middle East. On Tuesday, the company announced plans to eliminate 20,000 short-haul flights through October, a decision expected to save around 40,000 metric tons of jet fuel. The adjustments to the flight schedule will impact the unprofitable routes across the Lufthansa Group network, which includes Lufthansa Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, and ITA Airways. “Passengers will therefore continue to have access to the global route network, particularly long-haul connections,” the company said in a press statemen…

A major Japanese beverage producer says it has been hit by a cyberattack that left its operations disrupted for the fifth day on Friday, and Japanese media are reporting that stocks of the company’s popular beer and other beverages are running low in some stores. Asahi Group Holdings said its computer systems were hit by a cyberattack on Monday, creating glitches that have affected orders, shipments, and a customer call center in Japan. Overseas systems were not affected. A company spokeswoman told the Associated Press on Friday that the problem had still not been fixed, though some emergency shipments were made on Wednesday, with employees entering information into com…

Los Angeles just became the first major school district to put limits on screen time at school. The resolution, which was brought by Nick Melvoin, a concerned parent, passed 6-0 with one recusal. Now, screens in schools will no longer be a free-for-all. The district will have to create policies around screen time based on both grade level and subject. The resolution will also prohibit screens in first grade and below, bans screen time at recess for middle and elementary schoolers, and will restrict access to YouTube in class. Additionally, it will make clear to parents how they can go about opting out of using screens at school. Screen time is part of most …

I like chatting with my friends—who doesn’t?—but I don’t always know where to find them. There are simply too many apps. Some of my friends text, others use WhatsApp, while others yet insist on using Discord or the DM feature in whatever random social network they prefer. It’s a mess, and it can mean keeping several tabs open all day just to keep the conversations flowing. It makes you wish some application could combine all of your conversations into one place. This is a dream that used to be reality. Applications like Trillian, Pidgin, and Adium all combined instant messaging services like AIM, MSN, and ICQ in one handy interface. Over time, though, messaging se…

Art gallery, science exhibition and 21st century funhouse, Paradox Museum Miami takes guests on a tour through optical illusions and other enigmas geared for the age of Instagram. The 11,000 square-foot (1,000 square-meter) museum, housed in Miami’s trendy Wynwood arts and entertainment district, features more than 70 exhibits that challenge the imagination, executive director Samantha Impellizeri said. “It ebbs and flows between periods of highly tactile and interactive exhibit pieces and fully immersive photo opportunities where you yourself become the paradox and walk away with some really fun and unique social media content,” Impellizeri said. Paradox Museum has mo…

America’s housing market is finally starting to tip in favor of aspiring homeowners. A new analysis from Realtor.com reveals that nearly two-thirds of the biggest housing markets in the U.S. have now moved into “balanced” or “buyer-friendly” status, while only a quarter of the major markets still favor sellers. That’s in sharp contrast to 2021, when low interest rates and a buying frenzy gave sellers the upper hand in 98% of the top U.S. housing markets. Out of the top metros, only 26% qualify as seller’s markets right now, with a relatively large ratio of home shoppers to housing stock. Of those cities, 46% are in what Realtor.com calls a “balanced-loosening” pha…

Today’s U.S. farmers and agricultural businesses are navigating a complex landscape, with unique near-term and long-term challenges that include intensified global competition, record trade deficits, rising costs, and more frequent and extreme weather events. These challenges have created economic instability across the entire agriculture sector with U.S. row crop farmer net income remaining persistently low for the third straight year. Estimates from the University of Illinois show that corn and soybean farmers could face a net loss of between $50 and $70 per acre this growing season. On top of this, global acreage has leveled off at 2.3 billion acres and the avera…

Part of a figure skater’s job is to make their routine look as effortless and graceful as possible, as if they’re floating on ice and soaring into the air through sheer force of will. In reality, they’re often launching themselves multiple feet into the air with what amounts to sand bags on their feet; generating hundreds of pounds of centripetal force through rotations; and landing on a blade that’s just 3/16 of an inch wide. At the 2026 Winter Games in Milan and Cortina, Italy, NBC is using an AI tool developed by a former MIT researcher to help audiences understand just how mind-boggling the feats of today’s Olympic athletes are. Jerry Lu Jerry Lu is a 202…

You don’t have to be an avid reader of restaurant industry trade publications—though I can attest that they are oddly fascinating—to realize that everything’s getting more expensive. The good news is that there’s an easy way to counteract those rising menu prices. By purchasing discounted gift cards, you can defray the cost of fast-food, fast-casual, and sit-down chains, and maybe even some other retailers that have nothing to do with stuffing your face. All you need is a place to find authentic, cheap gift cards and a little foresight on when to buy them. This tip originally appeared in the free Cool Tools newsletter from The Intelligence. Get the next issue …

The trope of the starving, broke artist has long maintained a place in the public imagination, even as it has morphed into idealized notions of “‘hustle” or “grindset.” “It’s cool to romanticize [that lifestyle] for a little bit and use it as part of your motivation,” says L.A.-based rising musician Gidi, “but at a certain point we gotta be able to see the fruits of our labor.” For many artists and songwriters, the fruits are there in the form of royalties—they’re just exceedingly difficult to harvest. In the labyrinthine world of the music industry, royalty collection is particularly complex. There are hundreds of music streaming platforms operating in hundreds of c…

With music streaming, users have gotten used to being at the mercy of algorithms. But French music streamer Deezer is making it easier for its subscribers to make the algorithm work for them. The company unveiled an update to its mobile experience that doubles down on its emphasis on personalization and sharing to set it apart from larger competitors like Spotify and Apple Music. “The new features we’re introducing today give users more control over their algorithm, greater flexibility to personalize their experience, and easy ways to share content with their friends, even beyond Deezer,” CEO Alexis Lanternier said in a press release. Rolling out over the nex…

He’s not a movie buff, so New York musician Larry Saltzman doesn’t always watch the Oscars. This year, however, he’s got a rooting interest. Saltzman taught actor Timothée Chalamet how to play guitar for the role of Bob Dylan in “A Complete Unknown.” In turn, Chalamet earned a best actor nomination and the film is also up for best picture at the Academy Awards on Sunday. A guitarist who’s performed with Simon & Garfunkel, Bette Midler and David Johansen, as well as in the pit at Broadway productions “Hairspray” and “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” Saltzman has developed a specialty in teaching actors how to play music for their roles. Besides Chalamet, recent pupils …