American Pope, Scorpion Invasion, & a Dangerous Close-up

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Adam Rogers
May 09, 2025

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Cardinal Robert Prevost, 69, has been elected as Pope Leo XIV, becoming the first American to lead the Catholic Church.

The Chicago native appeared on the St. Peter's Basilica balcony after white smoke signaled his selection on the conclave's second day. He addressed the crowd in Italian, Spanish, and Latin with a message of peace.
Prevost brings significant Vatican experience as the powerful head of the office that vets bishop nominations since 2023. He's also a Peruvian citizen who spent years as a missionary and archbishop in Peru, giving him deep connections to Latin America, home to the world's largest Catholic population.
Known for maintaining "good humor and joy" through challenges, Prevost previously led reforms that added women to the bishop nomination process and was twice elected as top leader of the Augustinian religious order.
Church experts hadn't expected an American to win the papacy, given concerns about the United States' already substantial global influence.

Bill Gates announced he will donate 99% of his remaining tech fortune, worth an estimated $107 billion today, to the Gates Foundation.

He is also setting a firm closure date of 2045. This significantly speeds up the foundation's timeline, which was previously set to continue for 20 years after Gates' death. The gift will fund an additional $200 billion in spending.
Gates amassed his massive wealth as the co-founder of Microsoft, the software giant he started with Paul Allen in 1975. The foundation has been funded primarily by this Microsoft fortune, though Warren Buffett has contributed about 41% of its resources.
In its 25-year history, the Gates Foundation has spent $100 billion and claims a "catalytic role" in reducing childhood deaths from preventable causes by almost half between 2000-2020. Future priorities include eradicating polio, controlling malaria, and reducing malnutrition.
Bill will be overseeing the foundation's final two decades alone after Warren Buffett's resignation as trustee, and Melinda French Gates’s departure in 2024 to focus on women's rights through her own organization.

The US and UK announced a "breakthrough" bilateral trade deal that maintains Trump's 10% tariffs on British exports while lowering specific barriers.

The deal cuts average British tariffs on US goods from 5.1% to 1.8% and reduces US tariffs on UK auto imports from 27.5% to 10% for the first 100,000 vehicles annually, nearly the total exported to the US last year.
This is the first of many anticipated agreements as Trump attempts to reshape global trade following his April implementation of steep import taxes on 57 trading partners. The deal creates $5 billion in potential new annual export opportunities for American producers while generating $6 billion in annual US revenue from remaining tariffs.
Key provisions include zero tariffs on UK steel (down from 25%), elimination of the UK's 19% tariff on US ethanol, and mutual access to sell beef in each other’s markets.
Meanwhile, the EU just listed American products that could get hit with tariffs if Trump doesn't back down. Their 218-page list covers everything from live animals to alcoholic beverages and sporting goods.

A new study shows New York, Dallas, Seattle, and 25 other major US cities are sinking, threatening infrastructure for 34 million people. Researchers blame groundwater extraction. (More)

The House just passed a bill backing President Trump's Gulf of America renaming order. It squeaked by with most Republicans supporting it, though passing through the Senate will be harder. (More)

POTUS dumped Nesheiwat's surgeon general nomination and quickly named Dr. Casey Means instead, praising her "MAHA" credentials and connection to RFK Jr. (More)

Fears of famine are growing in Gaza as a major aid group ran out of food. Meanwhile, Israeli strikes killed at least 100 people, including children, and injured scores more across the territory. (More)

Nagasaki's mayor is inviting 157 countries to the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing to show leaders the consequences of nuclear weapons amid growing global conflicts. (More)

Scorpions are invading Brazilian cities, with over a million stings reported in the last decade. Reports jumped 155% as unplanned urban growth creates environments for them to thrive. (More)

US stock markets closed higher on Thursday (S&P +0.58%, Nasdaq +1.07%, Dow +0.62%). President Trump’s trade deal with the UK fueled stock gains. (More)

Krispy Kreme's stock tanked 24% on Thursday after they paused their McDonald's rollout and ditched their yearly forecast. (More)

Bitcoin just hit $100,000 for the first time since February, jumping nearly 5%. The price started climbing when Trump teased a UK trade deal and kept rising as he revealed it. (More)

Lainey Wilson took home Entertainer of the Year and Female Artist of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards. Chris Stapleton won Male Artist of the Year. (More)

Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao is ending his retirement at 46. He'll fight Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight title on July 19 in Vegas, almost four years since his last bout. (More)

3 Doors Down's lead singer, Brad Arnold, announced he's got stage four cancer that has spread to his lungs. He also canceled the band's tour this summer. (More)

Amazon is now filling pet prescriptions online with hundreds of medications for everything from fleas to chronic conditions. Vetsource will handle the deliveries within 2-6 days. (More)

A new study found that over half of Black and Latina women in LA use beauty products with formaldehyde, a known cancer-causer. These include everyday items like soap, shampoo, and eyelash glue. (More)

Scientists revealed that the ocean floor is essentially undiscovered. After 67 years of deep-sea exploration, we've only imaged about 0.001% of it—roughly the size of Rhode Island. (More)

🚀 Photographer’s lens destroyed taking amazing close-up of a rocket launch.

📸 VE Day: See historic photos after WWII ended in Europe.

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