Good morning, keen readers!

Today’s lineup has everything from genetic giants going bankrupt to snack aisles going quiet. Let’s jump in, shall we?

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🚨 Be the First to Know:

• ​Pope Francis looks frail as he is released from the hospital to continue his recovery.
• In an escalation of the renewed offensive, Israel strikes a Gaza hospital.
• Tiger Woods confirms his relationship with Vanessa Trump on social media.

Ransom Note

Columbia University has rewritten its rules after the Trump administration yanked hundreds of millions: Protests are banned, arrest powers added, and Middle East studies are under "academic receivership."

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Critics call it an alarming infringement on academic freedom, while the interim president says it's "essential." Activists and pro-Palestine groups are furious, seeing Columbia's concessions as an ominous precedent. Do these deals keep the research lights on or mark a new era of government-driven campus policy?

Twisted Unicorn

With looming legal debts and a failed pivot to subscription services, once a unicorn, 23andMe has officially filed for bankruptcy. It's the end of an era for former CEO Anne Wojcicki, who briefly owned nearly half the company.

Former biotech darling—valued at billions post-IPO—now wants a quick sale. 23andMe's story shows how cutting-edge ideas can burn bright and fade when profits don't come. Now, it's hoping a buyer can salvage its genetic ambitions.

In Context: Consumer Alert for 23andMe customers.

Empty Bowl

It's true: Shoppers are buying fewer chips, cookies, and even dog treats. Price hikes and cautious consumers sparked this "snacking recession." The threat goes beyond diets and weight-loss medications—people refuse to pay more for small indulgences.

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It's clear inflation's ripple effect has crept into our snack drawers, too, with cheaper store labels. Sweet tooth America is watching its wallet, so snack makers might have to rethink how they keep us coming back for more.

In Context: Consumer divide: The rich keep spending while poorer Americans struggle.

💬 Beyond the Core

Bes-tea: Lipton's social media manager posted an April Fool's joke two weeks too early (and inflaming the internet).

Zee-n it all! Millennials and Gen Z are fighting again—this time over gym clothes.

Screen You: I think "micro dramas" might be the next big thing— especially if TikTok has ruined your focus.

Pain-ticipate: Tired of back pain? Here's how some pro athletes avoid it.

📸 Lens to Life

​After the End of History: British Working Class Photography—in pictures.

🧮 Core Count: 300

The age of a violin that may be the most expensive musical instrument ever sold at auction.

🗓️ Flashback:

1603 - King James VI of Scotland, son of Mary Queen of Scots, succeeded Elizabeth I as King James I of England.

1837 - Canada gives its black citizens the right to vote.

1882 - Robert Koch discovered and described the tubercle bacillus (Mycobacterium tuberculosis), which causes tuberculosis.

1976 - Argentine President Isabel Martínez de Perón is deposed in a military coup by Jorge Rafael Videla.

2020 - China's Hubei province, where COVID-19 first spread, is easing travel restrictions after a nearly two-month lockdown.

2020 - India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered a 21-day lockdown for the world's second-most populous group, which has 1.3 billion people.

Before you go...

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I'm glad we could get together here. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow!

​Fatih Taskiran​

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