Covert Strike, Bee Crash, & a Blue Forest

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Adam Rogers
June 03, 2025

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A man with a makeshift flamethrower attacked a pro-Israel rally in Boulder, Colorado.

Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, yelled "Free Palestine" and hurled incendiary devices into a group demonstrating for Israeli hostages in Gaza at Boulder's Pearl Street mall. Eight people, ranging in age from 52 to 88, were injured, some with burns, before Soliman was arrested after accidentally catching himself on fire during the attack.
The attack occurred on the Jewish holiday of Shavuot and came one week after another man who yelled "Free Palestine" fatally shot two Israeli embassy staffers outside a Washington museum. The FBI is investigating both as terrorism amid what officials describe as a spike in antisemitic violence
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu called it a "vicious terror attack" aimed at people "simply because they were Jews." The NYPD increased security at religious sites nationwide in response to the escalating pattern of attacks targeting Jewish Americans.

Paradromics has achieved its first human brain implant after nearly a decade of development.

The neurotech startup implanted its brain-computer interface in a patient on May 14 during epilepsy surgery at the University of Michigan, installing and removing the device in about 20 minutes to test its safety and ability to record neural activity. The successful test moves the company from research to clinical stage.
Paradromics' system records brain activity at the level of individual neurons, which CEO Matt Angle compared to placing microphones inside versus outside a stadium to capture detailed conversations rather than just crowd noise. The technology is designed to help paralyzed patients speak through computers by translating brain signals into commands.
The company plans to launch a clinical trial later this year, joining competitors like Elon Musk's Neuralink and Synchron that have already implanted devices in humans. However, Paradromics hasn’t received FDA approval for the trial like its more established competitors.

Ukraine smuggled 117 drones on trucks to strike deep inside Russia.

Ukrainian forces spent 1.5 years planning "Operation Spiderweb," which used trucks to transport drones to the perimeter of four Russian air bases before launching the coordinated attack on Sunday. One target was located 2,500 miles from Ukraine's borders in Siberia.
The strike destroyed 40 Russian aircraft, representing 34% of Russia's strategic cruise missile carriers. Ukraine's security service estimates the blitz caused $7 billion in damage. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called it a major blow to Russia's ability to launch long-range missile attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Russian military bloggers compared the attack to "Pearl Harbor," with some calling for nuclear retaliation, while Western analysts described it as a humiliation for Vladimir Putin. The strike occurred one day before peace talks in Istanbul, where Ukraine is offering a 30-day ceasefire, but Russia is essentially demanding Ukraine's surrender. The peace talks ended quickly with no ceasefire agreement.

A semi-truck carrying 14 million bees overturned in Washington, but two dozen volunteer beekeepers helped restore the hives and return most bees safely. (More)

Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols proposed a $105 million trust addressing the 1921 massacre that killed 300 Black people. It would fund rebuilding efforts rather than provide direct descendant payments. (More)

The Supreme Court declined to hear Second Amendment challenges to Maryland's AR-15 ban and Rhode Island's magazine restrictions, leaving both gun control laws in effect pending future cases. (More)

Bill Gates said he'll dedicate most of his $200 billion fortune to improving African health and education over 20 years, while urging AI healthcare innovation in Ethiopia. (More)

Sicily's Mount Etna erupted Monday, sending ash miles high with tremors felt nearby. Officials said the 14th recent eruption on Europe's most active volcano poses no danger. (More)

PM Starmer announced the UK's biggest defense overhaul since the Cold War. It plans to build nuclear attack submarines and a Europe-ready army to counter Russian threats. (More)

US stock markets closed higher on Monday (S&P +0.41%, Nasdaq +0.67%, Dow +0.08%). All three indexes finished up for the first trading day in June despite increased tensions in global trade. (More)

Applied Digital shares jumped 40% on long-term AI data center deals with Nvidia-backed CoreWeave worth an expected $7 billion over 15 years. (More)

Bristol Myers Squibb agreed to pay up to $11.1 billion to partner with BioNTech on cancer immunotherapy to compete with Merck's Keytruda. (More)

Texas Tech upset Oklahoma 3-2 in WCWS semifinals, advancing to their first championship finals in program history behind pitcher NiJaree Canady, setting up an all-Texas final against rival Texas. (More)

The Eagles' Saquon Barkley will headline the Madden NFL 26 cover and join the 99 Club as the first Eagles offensive player after his record-breaking 2,504-yard rushing season. (More)

King of the Hill voice actor Jonathan Joss was fatally shot by his neighbor, according to police. (More) ESPN’s “Sport Science” creator and host, John Brenkus, died after a battle with depression. (More)

Preprint research shows solar storms shorten Starlink satellites’ lifespans and increase reentry speeds, potentially raising debris landfall risks as the Sun approaches its 11-year activity peak. (More)

University of Utah researchers created the first cocaine-addicted fruit flies by disabling their bitter-sensing receptors. The work will enable rapid addiction gene testing since flies share 75% of human addiction genes. (More)

A Johns Hopkins study found most US counties had declining MMR vaccination rates over five years, with 78% seeing decreases and averages dropping from 94% to 91%. (More)

Ranking the countries with the highest life expectancy.

See photos of last weekend’s aurora across the world.

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