Cannabis Policy, Hearing Loss Treatment, Gas Cost by State

News without the noise

Adam Rogers
April 24, 2026

Good Morning! Today’s edition is 933 words, a 4-minute read.

What’s on tap:

First-time reader? Sign up here!

The Justice Department announced it was immediately rescheduling FDA-approved and state-licensed marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III. It is the first federal reclassification of cannabis since the Nixon administration placed it in the most restrictive category more than 50 years ago. A full rescheduling hearing is set for June 29.
Schedule I drugs, which include heroin, ecstasy, and LSD, are considered the most dangerous with no accepted medical use. Schedule III drugs have "moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence." The move follows a Trump executive order in December to fast-track cannabis reclassification, but does not legalize marijuana at the federal level.
The rescheduling opens the door to expanded medical research for the millions of Americans who use medical marijuana for chronic pain, cancer, and terminal illness. Acting AG Blanche said the action would give "patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information." However, critics warn about the impacts on brain development in young people and male fertility.

The FDA approved the first gene therapy for inherited hearing loss, a one-time treatment for children born deaf due to a mutation in a gene called OTOF. The therapy, called Otarmeni and made by Regeneron, will be free to patients in the US. Gene therapies for rare conditions typically cost millions per patient.
In a clinical trial of 20 children, 16 showed measurable hearing improvements within five months. Among those followed for at least 11 months, five saw their hearing essentially return to normal. Otarmeni is delivered surgically in a procedure similar to cochlear implantation.
The condition affects up to 50 babies born in the US each year, and the FDA fast-tracked the approval under a new National Priority Voucher program.

A golden, orb-shaped blob discovered in 2023 at the bottom of the Gulf of Alaska has finally been identified after three years of analysis. Found two miles below the surface in total darkness and crushing pressure, it was the shed skin of a giant deep-sea anemone called Relicanthus daphneae — a creature whose tentacles can grow more than 6.5 feet long.
Scientists aboard the NOAA ship Okeanos Explorer spotted the glimmering mass stuck to a rock and collected it with a robotic arm. Initial speculation pointed to an abandoned egg case or a dead sponge. Conventional DNA testing was inconclusive, and only whole genome sequencing cracked the case.
The shed skin may be evidence of a rare reproductive process in which the anemone abandons its base and moves away. The blob was also teeming with microorganisms, suggesting it acts as a hotspot for deep-sea nutrient cycling.

Federal agents arrested 43 Mexican mafia members in Southern California on charges including murder, kidnapping, and drug trafficking. (More)

A bipartisan Senate bill would let food stamp recipients buy hot rotisserie chicken at grocery stores, which current rules ban as a prepared food. (More)

Navy Secretary John Phelan abruptly resigned without explanation, becoming the first military service head to leave under Trump's second term. (More)

India stripped 9 million West Bengal residents of their voting rights ahead of state elections, with critics calling the Muslim-targeted purge a "bloodless political genocide." (More)

President Trump ordered the Navy to shoot and kill any boats laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz and tripled mine-sweeping operations there as the US blockade of Iranian ports continues. (More) | Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend their ceasefire by three weeks after White House talks yesterday. (More)

Britain passed a law banning anyone born after 2008 from ever buying cigarettes, giving the UK one of the world's strictest anti-smoking measures. (More)

US stock markets closed lower on Thursday (S&P -0.41%, Nasdaq -0.89%, Dow -0.36%), led by a drop in software and rising oil prices. (More)

Meta is laying off about 8,000 workers, roughly 10% of its staff, as the Facebook and Instagram parent doubles its AI spending to $135 billion this year. (More)

Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders approved Paramount's $111 billion takeover bid Thursday, clearing a major hurdle for a deal that would combine HBO, CNN, CBS, and Paramount Pictures. (More)

The Las Vegas Raiders drafted Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft. (More)

CJ McCollum hit a go-ahead fadeaway jumper with 12 seconds left to give Atlanta a 109-108 win over New York, putting the Hawks up 2-1 in their first-round playoff series. (More)

A former employee sued MrBeast's production companies, alleging she was fired after complaining about sexual harassment and a hostile work environment; the company called the claims false. (More)

Texas A&M researchers successfully regrew bone, joints, and ligaments in mammals using a two-step treatment, suggesting humans may retain a hidden capacity for regeneration that could be unlocked. (More)

Analysts found two spy campaigns exploiting longstanding weaknesses in global phone networks to track people's locations, with surveillance vendors posing as legitimate carriers to access location data. (More)

Northwestern researchers found that some people over 80 have memory as sharp as someone in their 50s, and their brains either resist Alzheimer's-related buildup or somehow tolerate it without decline. (More)

Why US gas is cheaper than almost anywhere else.

…and the monthly cost of gas in each US state.

See photos of a one-in-fifty-million s p lit colored lobster.

Mars rover photographs dragon scales on Mars.

Your feedback helps us provide the best newsletter possible.