The most beautiful thing about a person is not a curated aesthetic or how loud they dominate a room. It is the quiet, unbreakable respect they hold for their own set of morals. In a world constantly pushing you to bend, compromise, or sell out for a quick win, standing firm takes serious grit. Your […]
NASA’s Artemis II mission is officially underway, with the first day marked by a series of successful maneuvers and a—thankfully—fixed problem with the onboard toilet.
The Artemis II crew includes NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen. Not long into their flight, they were tasked with a very important test: to make sure the toilet was working. This is the first time a moon-bound human spacecraft has had a functional toilet, after all.
Worryingly, they noticed a “blinking fault light” on the toilet, according to NASA, but the issue was short-lived and has since been resolved.
The toilet is a notable innovation. Made of titanium, it sits in the floor of the Orion spacecraft and allows the astronauts to defecate and urinate simultaneously—a luxury not afforded to astronauts who had relied on earlier toilet models. (The Apollo astronauts used bags to collect their waste.) In another first for moon missions, it also has a door.
Software was reportedly acting up as well: in a recording of livestream audio from Orion, the astronauts could be heard saying that their computers had two versions of Microsoft Outlook—neither of which seemed to be working. NASA did not immediately respond to a request for comment on this issue from Scientific American.
The troubleshooting wasn’t the only task on the crew’s day-one to-do list, however.
The astronauts also practiced an important docking maneuver to test the Orion’s abilities for future missions. Glover, the mission’s pilot, tested the spacecraft’s ability to move up, down, left, and right and tilt in space—critical for ensuring its maneuverability on any future missions.
In the docking test, rather than dock to another spacecraft, the crew used a target on the interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS), which was originally part of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket that lofted Orion and the crew into space before it separated from the capsule.
After the test, the ICPS will fire its engines for a “disposal burn,” sending it back to Earth and into the Pacific Ocean.
Orion also performed several burns, including one on Thursday morning, to lift the spacecraft’s orbital path, ensuring it wouldn’t fall back to Earth and putting it on the right trajectory as it zips around the planet before heading to the moon.
The rest of day two will also feature some important maneuvers—albeit after the astronauts get some sleep. At around 8:12 P.M. EDT on Thursday, the Artemis II crew will perform a translunar injection burn, a critical step that will send the Orion on its path toward the moon. During this burn, the engines will fire for about six minutes.
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A view of Earth from NASA’s Orion spacecraft as it orbits above the planet during the Artemis II test flight. NASA
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped Thursday in volatile trading as oil prices surged following President Donald Trump’s remarks that the Iran war would continue for weeks.
The blue-chip Dow declined 61.07 points, or 0.13%, closing at 46,504.67. The S&P 500 advanced 0.11% to end at 6,582.69, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.18% to settle at 21,879.18.
The three major indexes ripped higher from their steep losses earlier in the day to briefly turn positive after Iranian state media said that the Middle Eastern country is working with Oman on a protocol to “monitor” ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz. At their lows, the Dow was down more than 600 points, or 1.4%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were down 1.5% and 2.2%, respectively.
“It’s pivotal for the United States that the Strait is reopened, not so much because of oil but because of helium,” said Todd Schoenberger, chief investment officer at CrossCheck Management, noting that helium is “more valuable than foreign oil” given its usage in semiconductor processing and that “there is no substitute for it.”
“Expect more volatility going into the long weekend,” he added.
The indexes oscillated between gains and losses throughout the session following the developments. The CBOE Volatility Index, otherwise known as Wall Street’s fear gauge, touched a session high of more than 27.
“I think investors are having knee-jerk reactions — they want the news to be good, but then think about it a little longer and decide perhaps the uncertainty is still too high, hence the high intraday volatility,” Melissa Brown, managing director of investment decision research at SimCorp, said to CNBC.
Trump delivered an address Wednesday night, providing updates on the Middle East conflict. Though he said that the U.S. is “getting very close” to ending the Iran war, Trump added that the nation would “hit” Tehran “extremely hard.”
“Over the next two to three weeks, we’re going to bring them back to the stone ages where they belong,” the president said.
His comments led to a surge in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled up 11.41% at $111.54 per barrel — the highest level since June 28, 2022. Brent crude futures settled 7.78% higher at $109.03 per barrel.
Oil prices will likely “stay higher for longer,” Brown believes. But even if they do eventually come down, she said that gas prices would still take longer to do so, meaning there’s going to be a “continued inflationary impact on the economy.”
Even with the week’s volatile trading, the major averages posted gains over the period. The S&P 500 advanced 3.4% week to date, while the Dow rose nearly 3%. The Nasdaq outperformed and climbed 4.4%.
Thursday marks the last trading day of the shortened week, as markets are closed for Good Friday. March’s jobs report is set for release on Friday morning, however.
— CNBC’s Spencer Kimball contributed reporting.
Dow closes lower Thursday
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished Thursday’s session in the red.
The 30-stock index dropped 61.07 points, or 0.13%, to finish at 46,504.67. However, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both closed in positive territory, rising 0.11% to 6,582.69 and 0.18% to 21,879.18, respectively.
— Sean Conlon
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Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the opening bell on April 2, 2026.
President Trump has unapologetically wielded the power of the United States on the global stage, taking a much more belligerent approach economically and militarily to try to dictate the actions of other countries.
From high tariffs to the war with Iran, Mr. Trump has claimed that this aggressive behavior internationally has only upsides, and that past leaders were fools for refusing to tap into America’s power.
But one clear drawback of the strategy is emerging. While many countries have acceded to the president’s demands, some have found a highly effective new way to fight back. Mr. Trump’s aggression has given them the opportunity to test their control over choke points, threatening the United States and the global economy.
One such choke point is the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, which accounts for less than 1 percent of global economic output, has control over the shipping lane that transports a fifth of the world’s oil and gas. Its closure since the United States and Israel began attacking Iran at the end of February has blocked shipments of fuel, fertilizer, and other goods, sending gas prices sharply higher and spreading anxiety among U.S. farmers and manufacturers.
Another experiment in retaliatory coercion began one year ago on Thursday, when Mr. Trump walked into the Rose Garden and unveiled tariffs on what he called “Liberation Day.” While many governments — even powerful economies like the European Union — complied with U.S. demands, China was a notable exception. Beijing rolled out a licensing system for exports of rare-earth minerals and magnets that has given China unparalleled control over the global manufacturing system.
Makers of cars, semiconductors, fighter jets, and other goods — the backbone of a U.S. factory system that Mr. Trump wants to revive — depend on rare earths, most of which are processed in China.
While China is approving some licenses and allowing some rare earths to flow, supplies for many manufacturers are running short. And China has cut off exports of these materials to companies that work for the U.S. military, leaving them struggling to find other suppliers. Mr. Trump’s decision to delay a visit to China by roughly six weeks until mid-May worried some executives who hoped that his meeting with Xi Jinping, the Chinese leader, could alleviate the pressure.
The difficulties underscore an inconvenient truth for the president: As powerful as the American economy is, its inextricable links with the rest of the world can still bring it to its knees.
Edward Fishman, the author of “Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare,” said the rest of the world had seen how the mineral controls had gotten Mr. Trump to back off China last year. Since Mr. Trump threatened in January to take over Greenland, even European officials had been searching for potential choke points in U.S. trade, Mr. Fishman said.
“The lesson is that the way to deal with American economic coercion is to fight back,” he said. “Iran now is proving that again.”
China began designing a system of rare-earth controls before the re-election of Mr. Trump, whose strategy is not entirely new: The United States has a long history of weaponizing supply chains, from using its control of the global banking system to punish enemy nations to trying to halt the flow of advanced artificial intelligence technology to China.
But Mr. Trump stepped up American antagonism, with tools ranging from tariffs to military strikes. One of his basic principles has been that the United States should do a better job of leveraging its power. He argues that, as the world’s biggest consumer market, the United States can force other countries to trade on terms less favorable for them, and that with the world’s most powerful military, it can remove heads of state from Venezuela to Iran.
Mr. Trump has dismissed any criticism that those actions violate international alliances, laws or conventions, preferring to see the world in terms of raw power. The countries that have done best against him, like China, seem to recognize that same principle, responding in economically destructive ways to try to force him to back down.
It remains to be seen whether Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz persuades Mr. Trump to call off his campaign. But the disruption appears to be encouraging him to try to bring the war to a quicker end.
In an address to the nation on Wednesday night, Mr. Trump said that the United States received “almost no oil” through the strait, and that countries that did “must take the lead in protecting the oil that they so desperately depend on.”
“In any event, when this conflict is over, the strait will open up naturally,” he added.
Oil prices surged, and stocks sank on Thursday after the address.
The United States has been more insulated from the economic aftershocks of the shutdown of the strait than closer economies in Europe, Asia and Africa. But more expensive global energy and tighter supplies of fertilizer, aluminum, helium and other products from the Middle East are still pushing up prices and slowing economic activity in the United States, creating a problem for the Republican Party as midterm elections approach. Higher fuel costs are trickling into the price of fresh food, and rates for international shipping have risen sharply, adding to the cost of importing goods to the United States.
Analysts at Evercore ISI projected on Wednesday that the U.S. economy would grow 2.2 percent this year, rather than 2.8 percent, because of the war and the accompanying energy shock, while core inflation would tick up 0.2 percentage points.
“The U.S. is now heading for a subpar year relative to its potential rather than a strong and above-trend year,” they wrote.
U.S. manufacturers have been quieter about the effect of Chinese rare-earth restrictions, to avoid panicking investors or angering the Chinese government. But many industries are deeply worried about limitations on those shipments and a thinning supply.
China’s controls are having some effect on companies that make M.R.I. and CT machines that use rare earths to do imaging, as well as those that make the magnets inside the machines, said Geoff Martha, the chief executive of Medtronic, a U.S. medical equipment manufacturer, at an event on Monday at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington.
The industry has engaged with the Trump administration and the Chinese government to try to obtain licenses for exports, he said.
“What we’re finding, it takes work, it creates supply chain disruption, it’s a distraction. But we’re seeing an ability to work through these so far,” Mr. Martha added.
Gina M. Raimondo, who was secretary of commerce in the Biden administration, said at the same event that the Trump administration had seemed surprised by China’s move to weaponize mineral supply chains. She was not, she said.
“It is a huge leverage point that China has over the United States,” she said. She argued that there were plenty of other levers that the U.S. should be attuned to.
For a typical artificial intelligence data center, for example, “most Americans would be alarmed of the dependency we have on China,” Ms. Raimondo said, adding, “China is very aware of that, and they’re going to do everything they can do to maintain that advantage.”
More on the Fighting in the Middle East
Trump’s Address on Iran: More than a month into the war in Iran, President Trump gave a prime-time address to make the case for why he believes the conflict is necessary. Here are five takeaways from the speech.
Diplomatic Talks: Multiple U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed in recent days that the Iranian government is not currently willing to engage in substantial negotiations over ending the U.S.-Israeli war, according to U.S. officials.
Passover in Israel: The atmosphere during preparations for the Jewish festival in the country has been unusually subdued, with people afraid to stray far from their homes and shelters.
Southern Lebanon: Israel’s defense minister outlined plans to occupy much of the region, offering his clearest indication yet that Israel intends to control southern Lebanon even after its ground invasion ends. Israel has also pressed some Christian and Druse leaders to expel Shiite Muslims from their towns, according to local leaders.
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President Trump has claimed that his international aggression has only upsides. Credit…Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times
Wuthering Heights is a romantic period drama produced, written, and directed by Emerald Fennell. Loosely based on the 1847 novel by Emily Brontë, the film is a reinterpretation intended by Fennell to “recreate the feeling of a teenage girl reading this book for the first time”. Wuthering Heights premiered at the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in […]
The global burden of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is high and getting higher. In 2023, it was the ninth-leading cause of death for adults and the 12th-leading cause of healthy years lost to illness, disability, or premature death. In the U.S., researchers estimate that more than one in seven adults have CKD. Nine in 10 of those people are not aware that they have it, but their kidneys will struggle to filter waste and extra water from the blood as they worsen.
CKD has many different triggers and is intertwined with a range of other illnesses, including cardiovascular disease and hypertension. An analysis published in 2025 showed that CKD is more common in regions with a high diabetes prevalence, such as Oceania and the Middle East. In other areas with high rates, the cause is attributed to genetic variants within regional populations, such as in West Africa and Central America. Variability across communities underscores the complex nature of this noninfectious disease.
COUNTRIES THAT STRUGGLE AGAINST KIDNEY DISEASE
In 1990 an estimated 378 million people aged 20 and older were living with chronic kidney disease (CKD). By 2023 that number had increased to 788 million worldwide.
The total number of people over 20 with CKD in the U.S., standardized for age, has increased 5 percent since 1990, reaching 11.7 percent in 2023. The 2023 global average was even higher, at 14.2 percent. Countries with large populations, such as China, have a high number of cases, but often their rates are actually below the world average. Countries with the highest rates in 2023 are labeled.
Part of that rise can be attributed to a population that’s increasing in both number and age. But CKD’s upward trend is outpacing those of several other
leading causes of death.
Jen Christiansen; Source: “Global, Regional, and National Burden of Chronic Kidney Disease in Adults, 1990–2023, and Its Attributable Risk Factors: A Systematic Analysis for the Global Burden of
Disease Study 2023,” by Patrick B. Mark et al., in Lancet, Vol. 406; November 22, 2025 (data)
WHAT IS KIDNEY DISEASE?
Kidney disease is an umbrella term that includes a wide variety of causes, but in every case the condition disrupts the kidneys’ ability to filter waste and maintain balance in the body. It is classified based on the amount of damage and remaining kidney function.
How is Kidney Health Tracked?
Physicians divide chronic kidney disease (CKD) into five stages depending on how well the kidneys function, something that helps guide care. Because CKD usually develops gradually, stage-specific treatment can slow damage and keep the kidneys working as well as possible.
What puts your kidneys at risk?
Kidney injury is often triggered by certain medications or another medical condition, such as severe dehydration, a urinary tract blockage, or infection. Factors that fall within the following three categories can also increase the risk of developing the disease.
Where can damage occur in the kidney?
The kidneys are composed of different structures, and damage to any of them can disrupt how waste gets filtered from the blood and removed from the body. Here are some examples of where and how that damage can occur.
Film and Writing Festival for Comedy. Showcasing best of comedy short films at the FEEDBACK Film Festival. Plus, showcasing best of comedy novels, short stories, poems, screenplays (TV, short, feature) at the festival performed by professional actors.
President Trump has claimed that his international aggression has only upsides. Credit…Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times
James' World 2 