California could become the first state to transform backlash to services offering front-of-queue privileges into a law that targets TSA line-jumpers. The California Senate transportation committee is set to vote Tuesday on a bill seeking to bar Clear’s access to screening lanes at airports statewide. The for-profit fast-track security-screening company enjoyed an impressive stock market debut in 2021 under the banner of making travel “frictionless,” but the ride since then has gotten bumpier: Today it’s worth one-third of its peak value from two and half years ago—perhaps a sign of either con ..read more

Foxtrot and Dom’s Kitchen & Market, two popular Chicago-based grocery startups, abruptly ceased operations on Tuesday. The news comes five months after the two businesses announced they were merging into one entity, Outfox Hospitality. In identical messages posted to both websites and to their various social media accounts, the brands announced that the closure would affect all 33 Foxtrots in Chicago, Austin, Dallas, and the Washington, D.C., area, along with the two Chicago-based Dom’s Kitchen & Market locations. The closure resulted in layoffs of about 1,000 employees, according to v ..read more

There’s very little good news in Tesla’s Q1 earnings. Earnings per share and revenues both missed analyst expectations. Vehicle deliveries were at their lowest level since the third quarter of 2022. But in the after-hours market, shares of TSLA stock quickly soared by more than 8%. What’s going on? Tesla reported earnings of 45 cents per share, compared to expectations of 51 cents and revenues of $21.03 billion, versus an expected $21.15 billion. Typically, that big of a miss would be a pile-on event for investors. But buried in the earnings release, Tesla did something it doesn’t often do: It ..read more

Government IT projects are known for being challenging, and one of the biggest currently underway is the U.S. effort to forge a civil space traffic coordination platform. It’s been nearly six years since the Trump administration made the decision to transfer U.S. space coordination out of the military, but now the Commerce Department is hiring contractors and tapping companies for Pathfinder demonstrations. The goal is to begin implementing the system by the end of the fiscal year. The Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS) is designed to rely on minimal government infrastructure. It w ..read more

On her new album, Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé puts a new spin on Dolly Parton’s classic song, “Jolene.” Though the album has achieved critical acclaim and commercial success from the start, it has also attracted some pushback. It’s only natural that Beyoncé’s cover version would be compared to the 1973 original. Some people commenting online were vocal about not liking Beyoncé’s version, often citing its lack of vulnerability when compared to Parton’s version. But is vulnerability essential to the tale of “Jolene”? There are upwards of 80 covers of “Jolene,” but Beyoncé’s is a departure from the re ..read more

In 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) took a strong position on noncompete clauses with a proposed rule that would outright ban employers from using them in employment contracts. After a lengthy period of soliciting and reviewing feedback—which yielded more than 26,000 public comments—the FTC finally voted in favor of its final rule today, which will ban new noncompete clauses and render existing noncompetes unenforceable for most private-sector workers. The rule, which passed in a 3-2 vote, bans all noncompete clauses as of its effective date, but stops short of prohibiting them entirel ..read more

Curtailment has a special meaning in electric power systems. It describes any action that reduces the amount of electricity generated to maintain the balance between supply and demand—which is critical for avoiding blackouts. Recently, curtailment has made news in states like California and Texas that are adding a lot of wind and solar power. On very windy or sunny days, these sources may produce more electricity than the grid can take. So grid managers reduce production to manage that oversupply. This can be a lost opportunity. Electricity from solar and wind, as well as existing nuclear pla ..read more

Hospitals across the country have long operated under the same federal law that says they must treat and stabilize all patients when they have a medical emergency. But in states that now ban abortions and have limited or no health exceptions to these restrictions, medical providers face an impossible situation. They can administer a medically necessary abortion and violate state law, potentially facing jail time and losing their licenses, or they can decide not to provide the abortion and violate federal law, potentially resulting in the patient experiencing significant harm or even dying. Th ..read more

Cocoa prices began the week at their highest ever recorded—more than $12,500 per ton, the cost to buy about 150 barrels of oil—and it’s unclear to analysts if they’re even ready to level off yet. The cause is a sort of perfect storm of catastrophic harvests, decades of the farms themselves being under-resourced, and market speculation that is driving prices even higher. Chocolate brands have already responded with two of their favorite tools to blunt the impact of climbing supply costs: hiking prices and shrinking the product size. The shortage is a result of ongoing bad weather in West Africa ..read more

When Anna Branch, 37, had her hours at work reduced at the start of the pandemic in 2020, she suddenly noticed ads for an app called EarnIn. “You know how they get you — the algorithms — like they’re reading your mind,” Branch said. “The ad said I could get up to $100 this week and repay it in my next pay period.” Branch, who was working as an administrative assistant in Charleston, South Carolina, downloaded the app, agreed to the flat fee, and added the suggested “tip.” The cash helped her cover expenses until payday, when the app debited the borrowed $100, plus $18 for the fee and tip. Four ..read more