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International

Rwanda-backed rebels take over DRC’s largest city

The siege has the possibility to spread to a wider regional conflict. The M23 rebel group, led by ethnic Tutsis and backed by neighboring Rwanda, captured Goma, the largest city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

How did this happen?

The takeover, which occurred on Monday, marked a major escalation in the fight between rebels and the DRC government, which is one of Africa’s longest conflicts (see overview). The rebels announced their occupation after giving Congolese troops a two-day window to surrender.

• The M23 rebels are one of over 100 other armed militias trying to take over the North Kivu province, which includes Goma.

Why Goma? With a population of two million, the city plays a significant role in the trade and transportation of minerals and metals used to manufacture electronics and serves as a humanitarian hub for the country.

• The area is a hotspot for mining and holds approximately $24 trillion in mineral wealth.

According to officials, Goma has been flooded with hundreds of thousands of displaced residents who are attempting to flee the gunfire and bombings. This is in addition to the already 2.8 million displaced people in the North Kivu province.

The humanitarian situation is extremely dire, as reports say soldiers have been “killing and injuring civilians, including newborns and pregnant women,” along with bombing hospitals, according to Bruno Lemarquis, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Congo.

Repeat offenders

The M23 rebels also briefly took over the city in 2012 but were coerced into leaving due to international pressure. The group then resurfaced in late 2021 with increasing support from Rwanda, according to Congo’s government.

• Analysts claim that they are more confident now than they were before, and have since enlisted between 3,000 and 4,000 soldiers from the Rwandan Defense Force, per UN experts.

Looking forward: The presidents of the DRC and Rwanda have reportedly agreed to meet at an upcoming summit to discuss the crisis, despite the DRC severing diplomatic ties with Rwanda and demanding UN sanctions.

Health

New study shows cannabis affects critical brain processes

So that’s why your roommate keeps forgetting where the remote is. According to a study released this week, which is the largest of its kind to date, the use of cannabis has a significant effect on working memory and other brain processes.

In a time when cannabis potency has increased exponentially and legalization has expanded, many view the drug as harmless, but new studies are suggesting it has long-term health effects.

About the study

Researchers utilized data from brain imaging technologies, analyzing 1,003 people between the ages of 22 and 36. Participants were grouped according to how much cannabis they had used in their lifetime:

• Heavy users (more than 1,000 times), moderate users (10-999), and nonusers (less than 10).

Then, while being scanned, the participants performed tasks that evaluated linguistic processing, relational reasoning, working memory, emotion, reward, motor function, and theory of mind.

What did they find?

The study (see here) uncovered crucial findings about both the long-term and short-term effects of cannabis usage on the brain:

• 68% of recent users and 63% of heavy lifetime marijuana users showed less brain activity when completing working memory tasks.

• It also found some sex-related differences, as reduced brain activation was observed in male participants who had recently used cannabis, but not in females.

• According to the study, heavy cannabis usage has an overall detrimental effect on the parts of the brain in charge of memory, attention, decision-making, and emotional processing.

In summary, significant lifetime cannabis use results in long-term reductions in brain activity during working memory tasks, while recent usage may result in short-term cognitive function deficits.

Why does this matter? Working memory enables people to modify and remember short-term information, such as following verbal instructions or mentally completing math problems. It’s directly linked to information processing, executive function, and intelligence and is also crucial for goal-oriented behavior.

Aviation

This is the first private aircraft to go supersonic… ever

Boom Supersonic did a supersonic boom? On Tuesday, a jet from Boom Supersonic, an aerospace company, became the first private aircraft to reach supersonic speed when its XB-1 model broke the sound barrier during a test flight.

Boom goes boom

As it passed over the Mojave Desert, the XB-1 aircraft maintained a supersonic speed for four minutes, exceeding Mach 1 at around 35,000 feet. Pilot Tristan "Geppetto" Brandenburg achieved Mach 1.1, which is about 761 mph, or 10% faster than the speed of sound.

• Since the Concorde airplane retired in 2003, this is the first aircraft (that’s not government-funded) to reach the milestone.

• According to Boom CEO Blake Scholl, advancements in propulsion, material, and aerodynamics allowed the XB-1 to outperform the Concorde.

The jet then went supersonic two additional times, around 17 and 22 minutes after takeoff, to test its handling performance. Watch the video here.

• Unprecedented live footage of the aviation milestone was made possible by the installation of a Starlink Mini unit on the T-38 chase plane used during Tuesday's test flight.

This is only the beginning… XB-1 is essentially just a demonstration of Boom’s technology and a smaller-scale version of its next jet, a supersonic commercial aircraft called Overture.

• The company claims that its Overture jets (which hold 60-80 people) will be able to cut travel times in half, meaning you could fly from New York to LA in two and a half hours.

Looking forward: The Overture has no release date and plenty of testing still needs to be done, however, that hasn’t stopped airlines from getting a jump on orders. Over 130 preorders have already been placed for the jet, including some from United Airlines and American Airlines.

Grab Bag

Starbucks is switching up its operations

The massive coffee chain is hoping to bring back some good vibes. As part of new CEO Brian Niccol's remedy to address Starbucks' dropping sales, a number of in-store changes went into effect this week at around 11,000 locations across North America.

Vibe shift

The Seattle-based chain is hoping to get back to its roots and re-establish its “old school coffee house” vibe in order to combat its recent struggles. Here’s what differences you can expect:

• Baristas will now “warmly” talk to customers since they’ve been instructed to judge you less on the amount of sugar you put in your drink.

  • In-store customers will receive free refills for hot or iced tea and coffee, plus, drinks will be served in ceramic mugs.

• The condiment bar has been brought back, along with handwritten Sharpie messages to give your coffee a little extra “oomph”.

• The biggest change, perhaps, is that those who don’t buy anything can no longer use the bathroom, get a free water cup, or sit inside.

The changes are meant to emphasize in-store service and bring a better atmosphere, hoping the improved in-store experience will make people stick around and buy more.

Struggling in Seattle

The chain’s total sales in the US fell 4% and overall transactions were down 8% in the first quarter. Last year, Starbucks had its first yearly sales decline since 2020, and since Niccol became CEO in October, it hasn’t stopped evolving.

• Just one day after the changes were implemented, Niccol said the chain is planning on cutting “roughly 30%” of its menu by the end of the year.

What’s next? In addition to improving upfront pricing and streamlining customization possibilities, Starbucks will test out modifications to mobile ordering, though there is no “definitive timing” on when these will roll out.

OpenAI and Microsoft to investigate DeepSeek

So now IP is a big concern for OpenAI… interesting. OpenAI and Microsoft are investigating if Chinese AI startup DeepSeek stole technology from OpenAI after the debut of its new model wiped out nearly $1 trillion from the stock market earlier this week.

Why investigate?

Microsoft, OpenAI’s largest investor, notified the company of suspicious activity after its security researchers saw users, who are thought to have a connection with DeepSeek, using the OpenAI’s API to download a significant amount of data.

• This data, according to the companies, was then used to train DeepSeek’s own model, in a method known as “distillation”.

  • The technique is common in the AI industry, however, OpenAI has strict policy guidelines that prohibit using its models to create a competitor.

Earlier this month, DeepSeek released a new, open-source AI model that rivaled cutting-edge US products in the industry, but at a fraction of the cost. The news brought worries that US firms didn’t have the edge that was previously thought and completely upended tech stocks and erased nearly $1 trillion in market value.

To be fair… OpenAI has essentially been doing the same thing DeepSeek has. The company has been sued many times for violating data privacy and accused of taking data from nearly every corner of the internet. OpenAI is also currently in a legal battle with the NYT for using its publicly available articles to train its models.

Fast Facts

Plastered Poultry: Popeyes and Don Julio have revealed a unique menu that will be available for a limited time at select locations... tequila-marinated fried chicken. You can't deny it's pretty inventive.

Buy-a-Bully: A Malaysian man launched a "villain for hire" business where customers can employ him to harass someone in public or give them a chance to confront him and show off a little.

New Name: Google said Tuesday it is complying with President Trump’s executive order to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, though only for US users.

Evil Electricity: The Vatican warned that “the shadow of evil” could loom in AI and that it is a source of "profound risks".

Digital Dash: 55% of Gen Z and 49% of Millennials who make over $100,000 annually reported stealing from an online shop in the last year, according to a survey done in December by antifraud tech company Socure.