The estate of Henrietta Lacks announced a lawsuit against biotech company Thermo Fisher Scientific on Monday, alleging it exploits and profits off of stolen cellular tissue.
Why it matters: In the 1950s, Lacks was seeking treatment for cervical cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital when white doctors harvestedher tissue in a procedure that rendered her infertile. Doctors later used the tissue to successfully clone human cells for the first time, enabling innovations in modern medicine that now include gene mapping and COVID vaccines. That progress was marred by the revelation years later that the doctors had removed Lacks' tissue without her knowledge or consent.
2022 could bring a milestone for the airline sector: profit — at least in North America, new closely watched estimates show.
Why it matters: Globally, the industry will still lose billions of dollars. But its top lobbying group says further loosening of travel restrictions will help stanch the bleeding.
Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson tells Axios that he's planning to relaunch the company's newsletters and look for new board members in an effort to revive the company, which said last week it was ending operations.
Why it matters: Watson offered grand plans in an interview with Axios, but could not give many details about the execution, leaving doubt about what's real and his ability to pull it off.
OZY Media on Friday shut down, with a five-minute call to employees in which CEO Carlos Watson didn't take questions. The scandal-plagued company also sent a terse letter to investors, saying that a financial restructuring firm had been retained.
But, but, but: This morning Watson went on a TV tour to announce a change of heart, and that OZY will remain open.
Friday brought us a pile of fresh data to pick through for signs of the economy’s rebound from the Delta-induced slowdown.
Why it matters: One important indicator of economic activity surprised to the upside. But continuing supply chain problems and so-so August consumer spending may still put economists’ Q3 growth targets (which have already been revised down) out of reach.
Asher recently happened upon the delicious Caribbean-Latino food at Nyam Sunshine, a truck stationed in the charming grounds of Ani’s Day and Night in southeast Austin.
Picture colorfully painted picnic tables beneath strings of Christmas lights with planters of elephant ear and bamboo.
Even as more employers across the nation are listing COVID-19 vaccinations as an application requirement, Texas job postings are relatively mum, an Axios analysis of Indeed data has found.
Zoom in: The latest Indeed data shows that, on average, less than 1% — 0.7% to be precise — of Texas job postings sought only vaccinated employees over the week ending on Sept. 24.
Gen Z shoppers are bringing about a renaissance of thrifting.
Why it matters: The apparel and footwear industry account for about 10% of climate impact — greater than all international flights and maritime shipping trips combined. Buying clothes, shoes and more secondhand can significantly reduce fashion's carbon footprint.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai will declare Monday that an extensive review found China isn't meeting its commitments under the Phase One trade deal — laying the groundwork for the Biden administration to keep in place Trump-era tariffs while considering other punitive actions.
Why it matters: American businesses and importers have waited months to hear what President Biden will do with the trade war he inherited from Trump, which has pitted the world's two largest economies against one another.
Japan's Parliament elected Fumio Kishida as the country's new prime minister on Monday.
Why it matters: The former foreign minister faces immediate challenges, including reviving the world's third-largest economy and working with the U.S. and other key allies to address security threats, per the Wall Street Journal.
Over a dozen U.S. states have become "leaders" in "peddling financial secrecy," according to a global investigation of leaked documents, known as the "Pandora Papers," published this weekend.
Why it matters: "South Dakota, Nevada and other states have adopted financial secrecy laws that rival those of offshore jurisdictions," per the papers, obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in Washington, D.C., and shared with major news outlets.
Former acting Attorney General Sally Yates will lead an investigation into "allegations of abusive behavior and sexual misconduct in women's professional soccer," effective "immediately," the sport's U.S. governing body announced Sunday.
Of note: The National Women’s Soccer League said Sunday it hired an outside law firm to investigate the widespread reports of NWSL players being subjected to harassment and abuse, often by male coaches.
The whistleblower who leaked thousands of internal Facebook documents to the Wall Street Journal revealed herself Sunday on CBS' "60 Minutes" as Frances Haugen, a former lead product manager on the company's civic misinformation team.
Why it matters: On the show, Haugen said she realized this year that she needed to take tens of thousands of pages of documents so that "no one can question that this is real."
