• US special operations forces are shifting their focus after decades of counterterrorism.
• Competition with China and Russia is reshaping how SOF supports the joint force.
• A senior Pentagon official said that special operations is also returning to its "roots."

A senior Pentagon official said this week that the role of US special operations is changing as the US faces increasing competition and challenges from China and Russia.

With the threat of a conflict against a powerful and advanced adversary looming, special operations forces are returning to their "roots," Christopher Maier, the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, said.

The direction of special operations forces (SOF) is adapting to the largest challenges facing the US — a rapidly growing Chinese military and Russian state set on expansion by force.

Maier said during a conversation with the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank on Tuesday that SOF is "still doing counterterrorism, crisis response, those have been the persistent missions," but the priority is shifting towards "increasingly where we can support other elements, largely in a support role, for those strategic competition elements."

That means playing a big role in solving challenges facing the joint force, like more modern adaptations to using artificial intelligence, as well as the traditional functions of SOF, such as "being that sensor out there and providing the necessary input to decision makers to better understand a situation," noted Maier, who previously led the Pentagon's Defeat-ISIS Task Force overseeing the campaign across Iraq and Syria that relied heavily on American special operators.

Special operators are the US military's most highly trained troops, the go-to teams for small raids and secretive missions, but they lack the numbers and firepower to go up against larger conventional forces for long.

Much of the US' special operations presence in over 80 countries around the world is focused on working closely with foreign militaries, law enforcement, and embassies to keep a finger on the pulse. For the past 20 years, the US has relied on these forces for some the most unconventional and difficult missions, like teaming with partner forces to fight enemies or running shadowy helicopter assaults to kill or capture key leaders.

Maier said he views it as both a continuation of the counterterrorism and crisis response that SOF has been doing for decades and also a step back to its origins.

"We're going back to the proverbial roots of supporting the joint force with some of the hardest problems against peer adversaries," Maier said.

With the so-called War on Terror, SOF has spent over 20 years operating in counterterrorism and unconventional warfare roles, fighting quietly in a variety of environments across the world and maintaining relationships that provide the US with information on tactics of specific groups and deeper understandings of regional and security issues.

That role is now changing, albeit just as important. In a 2023 article for the Royal United Services Institute, a British think tank, David Ucko, a professor and expert on irregular warfare, argues that leaders in Washington need to examine how to best use SOF for newer challenges against Russia and China. That includes irregular warfare, which is "highly relevant" to strategic competition with China.

But, Ucko notes, special operators fill a particular role in military operations and shouldn't be given missions that other US agencies or groups can also do.

One of the deepest challenges these secretive forces face is the widening surveillance by spy satellites and recon drones.

SOF missions often have multiple objectives like foreign internal defense and unconventional warfare; special operators can, for example, help boost a US ally's defense tactics against a foreign aggressor, such as Taiwan and China.

Allied special forces played critical roles in World War II, shaped by the need for specialization in unconventional missions and innovative tactics, such as sabotage behind enemy lines and disrupting German supply lines. In North Africa, British Special Air Services and Commonwealth Long Range Desert Group commandos aided in disrupting Axis troops deployments and airpower.

During the Cold War, special operators played a role in deterring the Soviet Union's influence, maintaining presence in and relationships with Western Europe and other areas.

All of that historical context is informing SOF's priorities today, as the US faces similar challenges against China and Russia and their activities across the world, Maier said.

"The differences, I think, here are some of the fundamental changes in adversaries' ability to access technology," he added, and their ability to "use different types of techniques than maybe we saw in the Cold War."

Both China and Russia are actively engaged in bolstering their irregular warfare tactics, including reconnaissance, disinformation, electronic warfare, cyberspace and space efforts, and psychological warfare.

In its report on China's military growth over the course of 2023, the Pentagon noted that China is expanding its capabilities towards a vision of future conflict it calls "intelligentized warfare" focused on AI, data, and controlling information spaces.

Other elements, such as China's campaigns in Taiwan to influence domestic politics and opinions on unification, are also notable.

Destructive brush fires are erupting across California as firefighters say there's "no possibility" of containment. The Palisades, Eaton, Hurst, and Woodley fires come as powerful winds slam northwest Los Angeles.

• Whatnot closed a fresh $265 million Series E round at a roughly $5 billion valuation.
• CEO Grant LaFontaine plans to use the funds to add new features for sellers and enter new countries.
• Whatnot is betting that live shopping will eventually be commonplace in the US and other markets.

Investors are betting big that live shopping is here to stay.

Livestream app Whatnot announced on Wednesday that it closed a $265 million Series E funding round, bringing its valuation to around $5 billion.

The round was co-led by Greycroft, DST Global, and Avra Capital, with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Durable Capital Partners, and Andreessen Horowitz, among others.

Whatnot hosts livestreams across categories including fashion, collectibles like sports cards and sneakers, and niche items like vinyl records and "storage unit finds." It makes money by taking a cut of the sales on its platform, which operates in North America and Europe.

Launched in 2019, Whatnot was an early entrant in the US in the live shopping category. Live selling drives hundreds of billions in annual sales in Asia but has been slower to gain adoption in other markets. The category has recently picked up steam in the US, driven in part by the popularity of TikTok Shop, which helped consumers get accustomed to buying from social media and livestreams.

"As consumers get used to purchasing in that format, as sellers start to build better businesses around it and then unlock really good inventory around it, adoption is just going to continue to increase," Whatnot CEO Grant LaFontaine told Business Insider.

Whatnot said it crossed $3 billion in livestream sales last year, roughly double what it pulled in for 2023.

In 2025, Whatnot also stands to benefit if TikTok, one of its biggest competitors, is banned in the US as mandated by a divestment law.

Whatnot's expansion plans in 2025

Whatnot plans to use its new quarter-of-a-billion dollars in funding for marketing, product, and engineering, as well as to support its expansion into new markets like Australia, LaFontaine said.

On the product side, the company wants to improve its merchant tools, including analytics and inventory management, and introduce new selling formats that could make livestreams more effective, he said. It's also investing in improving customer support. It plans to launch more product categories and double down on goods that performed well last year, such as golf items, as well.

Heading into 2025, LaFontaine said he expects the live-shopping phenomenon to lead to the creation of a new class of e-commerce content creators, a trend TikTok has also been driving.

"Just because you're entertaining on YouTube doesn't mean you have all the skills to be good at Whatnot," he said. "Live and social commerce will tend to create a new wave of its own influencers."

Whatnot said it's raised about $746 million in funding since its 2019 launch.

• Content moderation has always been a nightmare for Meta.
• Its new content-moderation policy is a huge change — and it could be an improvement.
• Mark Zuckerberg's "apology tour" from the past few years seems to be officially over.

Mark Zuckerberg's changes to Meta's content-moderation policies are potentially huge.

To fully understand their gravity, it's useful to look at how Meta got here. And to consider what these changes might actually mean for users: Are they a bow to an incoming Trump administration? Or are they an improvement on a system that's gotten Zuckerberg and Co. into lots of heat before — or a little of both?

Content moderation has always been a pit of despair for Meta. In its blog post announcing the changes Tuesday, Meta's new head of policy, Joel Kaplan, talked about wanting to get back to Facebook's roots in "free speech." Still, those roots contain a series of moderation fires, headaches, and constant adjustments to the platform's policies.

Starting in 2016, moderation troubles just kept coming like a bad "We Didn't Start the Fire" cover. Consider this roundup:

• Fake news.
• Macedonian teens.
• Russian troll farms.
• Hillary Clinton's team blaming Facebook for her loss.
• Mark Zuckerberg responding to that idea by calling it "pretty crazy."
• Cambridge Analytica.
• Alleged manipulation by President Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines.
• WhatsApp inciting lynchings in India.
• Facebook Groups spouting health misinformation like making kids drink bleach or DIY skin cancer treatments.
• The Rohingya Muslim genocide.
• COVID-19 misinformation.
• The Hunter Biden laptop story.
• "Stop the Steal" Facebook groups used to organize January 6.
• The Facebook Files and whistleblower leaks about Instagram and teen mental health.

Whatever your political alignment, it seems like Meta has been trapped in a vicious cycle of making a policy — or lacking a policy — then reversing itself to try to clean up a mess.

As Charlie Warzel pointed out in The Atlantic, Zuckerberg has a history of sometimes blaming external forces when he's faced with situations like some of the ones above.

That's maybe until now. As Zuckerberg posted on Threads on Wednesday: "Some people may leave our platforms for virtue signaling, but I think the vast majority and many new users will find that these changes make the products better."

Maybe the big changes were already brewing this past September when Zuckerberg appeared at a live event and said: "One of the things that I look back on and regret is I think we accepted other people's view of some of the things that they were asserting that we were doing wrong, or were responsible for, that I don't actually think we were."

In other words, as of this week, the apology tour seems to have ended.

What will Meta's changes mean for you and me, the users?

What will the changes mean? Who knows! I can make a few predictions: The "community note" system might work pretty well — or at least not worse than the current human- and AI-led fact-checking system.

There might be more content in your feeds that you don't like — political speech that you find abhorrent, for example.

It's also possible that while certain content might exist on the platform, you won't actually come across it because it will have been downgraded. "Freedom of speech, not freedom of reach" has been X's mantra (though considering the flow of truly vile content that has proliferated my feed there in the past year or so, I don't think that's been particularly effective).

One other piece of the announcement is that Meta will focus its AI-powered filtering efforts on the highest-risk content (terrorism, drugs, and child endangerment). For lesser violations, the company said it will rely more on user reports. Meta hasn't given details on how exactly this will work, but I imagine it could have a negative effect on commonplace issues like bullying and harassment.

A large but less glamorous part of content moderation is removing "ur ugly" comments on Instagram — and that's the kind of stuff that will now rely on user reporting.

It's also quite possible that bad actors will take advantage of the opening. Facebook is nothing if not a place to buy used furniture while various new waves of pillagers attempt to test and game the algorithms for profit or menace — just consider the current wave of AI slop, some of which appears at least in part to be a profitable scam operation run from outside the US.

What do the changes mean for Meta?

If these changes had been rolled out slowly, one at a time, they might have seemed like reasonable measures just on their face. Community notes? Sure. Loosening rules on certain hot political topics? Well, not everyone will like it, but Meta can claim some logic there. Decreasing reliance on automatic filters and admitting that too many non-violations have been swept up in AI dragnets? People would celebrate that.

No one thought Meta's moderation before the announced changes was perfect. There were lots of complaints (correctly) about how it banned too much stuff by mistake — which this new policy is aiming to fix.

And switching from third-party fact-checkers to a community notes system isn't necessarily bad. The fact-checking system wasn't perfect, and community notes on X, the system Meta is modeling its own after, can be quite useful. Even acknowledging that, yes, X has sometimes become a cesspit for bad content, the root cause isn't the community notes.

Still, it's impossible to weigh the merits of each aspect of the new policy and have blinders on when it comes to the 800-pound political gorilla in the room.

There's one pretty obvious way of looking at Meta's announcement of new, sweeping policy changes about moderation: It's a move to cater to an incoming Trump administration. It's a sign that Zuckerberg has shifted to the right, as he drapes himself in some of the cultural signifiers of the bro-y zynternet (gold chain, $900,000 watch, longer hair, new style, front row at an MMA match).

Together, every piece of this loudly signals Zuckerberg either a.) genuinely believed he'd been forced to cave on moderation issues in the past, or b.) knows making these changes will please Trump. I don't really think the distinction between A and B matters too much anyway. (Meta declined to comment.)

This probably isn't the last of the changes

I try to avoid conflating "Meta" with "Mark Zuckerberg" too much. It's a big company! There are many smart people who care deeply about the lofty goals of social networking who create policy and carry out the daily work of trust and safety.

Part of me wonders how much Zuckerberg wishes this boring and ugly part of the job would fade away — there are so many more shiny new things to work on, like AI or the new mixed-reality smart glasses. Reworking the same decade-old policies so that people can insult each other 10% more is probably less fun than MMA fighting or talking to AI researchers.

Content moderation has always been a nightmare for Meta. Scaling it back, allowing more speech on controversial topics, and outsourcing fact-checking to the community seems like a short-term fix for having to deal with this unpleasant and thankless job. I can't help but imagine that another overhaul will come due sometime in the next four years.

• Growing up, I wasn't valedictorian, but I strived for perfectionism.
• Now that I'm a parent, I don't want my son to want to be the best at everything.
• I want him to be happy above all things.

In high school, I was never in the running to be valedictorian, captain of any sports team, or president of any club. Even so, I was no stranger to certain markers of perfectionism that were just a bit less boldfaced.

I often felt weighed down by the looming dread of coming tests, even if I knew the material backward and forwards. I'd go to school when I felt sick so I could avoid missing something important and then falling behind. I'd feel exhausted by the juggle of extracurriculars, but paring back didn't feel like a viable option — I was no quitter. And I was concerned about being a great and supportive friend who always showed up and said and did the right thing.

But now that I'm a parent, I don't want my child to do the same as I did.

It's not bad to be a perfectionist

None of these qualities are bad — hey, striving to be a great friend is a great thing. Caring about what I do, being dependable, and having a conscientious stake in the way I impact others are attributes that have, for the most part, benefited me in my career and personal life. However, being steadfast in these values has also led to a perfectionist mentality that doesn't serve me.

The American Psychological Association defines perfectionism as "the tendency to demand of others or oneself an extremely high or even flawless level of performance, in excess of what is required by the situation." Historically, that has tracked for me, but as a parent of a toddler, I've grappled with my inclination toward the high standards I demand of myself and those closest to me. Because, frankly, I don't want my son to concern himself with being the best. And I definitely don't want him to expect perfection from his loved ones.

I want him to be happy, to make smart and thoughtful choices, to be a compassionate friend, to work hard, and to be kind to himself. Crucially, I want him to be open to the growth that comes from making mistakes rather than being stuck in feelings of self-loathing when he inevitably missteps.

I know I'm modeling behaviors

So, I'm working to welcome my own missteps and actively eschew any notions of personal perfection. I know that modeling behaviors is one of the most effective ways parents (even if passively) teach their kids. Research shows that children as young as infants take cues from behaviors and patterns modeled to them, which is sometimes called "observational learning." Essentially, kids and babies are sponges, and if I can help it, I'd like to help my little sponge learn how to be his best, most resilient self — which does not mean collecting every A+, gold star, trophy, or accolade.

With that in mind, I'm learning to be kind to myself and abandoning even a subconscious intention to be a perfect role model — someone who deftly excels at work and in her personal life at all times, who consistently makes time for both exercise and sleep, who is always patient, measured and responsive rather than reactive. If my son never sees me get frustrated, I'm not helping him develop the tools that'll help him regulate his emotions when he experiences a tough situation that elicits a range of feelings beyond those that are comfortable, positive, happy, or neutral.

Even so, I absolutely want the best for him, which means near-constant wondering and worrying about whether or not I'm exposing him to a wide enough range of hobbies, correctly encouraging — but not forcing — him to try new foods, buying toys he likes that are also educational, letting him have too much screen time, and the list goes on. I may not be able to stop endlessly wrestling with thoughts about his well-being, and I'm not sure if that qualifies as perfectionistic pondering.

What I am sure about is my aim to be the best parent I can be to my child. But I've realized that my version of being the best parent is a far cry from being a perfect parent. Perfection is limiting, suffocating, and bland. Striving for an ever-evolving "best for me" framework is my preference. And when I mess up, I'll be happy for my son to observe as I'm hopefully able to stop, notice, reflect, and move forward in a more aligned way.

• Morgan Stanley has promoted 173 employees to its top rank of managing director.
• That's a 12% increase over last year as demand for mergers and capital rebounds.
• The latest class is smaller, however, compared to 2023 and 2022 when James Gorman was CEO.

Morgan Stanley promoted 173 people to the rank of managing director on Wednesday, a 12% jump from this time last year as demand for mergers and capital raising rebounds across Wall Street.

The promotions come as Ted Pick finishes his first full year as CEO with 25% of last year's global M&A business, giving it the No. 2 spot behind Goldman Sachs, according to the London Stock Exchange Group.

Last year's class included just 155 names class, down from 184 in 2023 and 199 in 2022. The bank promoted 171 employees to MD in 2021 when M&A hit a global record of $5 trillion.

The bank has internally notified its newest members of their new titles and is planning to release the list of names publicly on Friday. Here are some stats about this year's class, according to a spokesperson for Morgan Stanley.

• Institutional Securities Group: 46%
• Investment management: 13%
• Wealth management: 9%
• 68% of MD promotes were in the Americas, 20% in EMEA, 12% in Asia

• The promotions represent 13 countries
• The average tenure of those promoted is 11 years at Morgan Stanley.
• 39% of the class have advanced degrees

• 34% of MD class are women, increasing overall women MD representation to 27%

  • Of US-based MD promotes, 22% of the class are ethnically diverse:

    • 3% are Black, 6% are Hispanic, 12% are Asian, 1% is 2+ races

Do you work on Wall Street? Get in touch with this reporter. Reed Alexander can be reached via email at [email protected], or SMS/the encrypted app Signal at (561) 247-5758.

• Zillow has released its forecast for the hottest housing markets of 2025.
• The metros are spread across the Northeast, Great Lakes, South, Midwest, and West regions.
• Buffalo, New York, is projected to be the hottest market in 2025, followed by Indiana.

High home prices, rising mortgage rates, and inflation have sharply reduced buyer demand in the US real estate market, leading to a slowdown in home sales over the past few years — even in previously booming areas like Austin and the Bay Area.

Brighter days may be ahead.

Several forecasts point toward an increase in homebuying this year.

Some areas are poised to see more action than others. Zillow has forecasted 10 metros where homebuyer competition will be the fiercest, taking into account factors like price growth, new construction, and job growth in each area.

Buffalo earned the title of Zillow's hottest market for the second year in a row. Located on Lake Erie and somewhat close to Niagara Falls, the metro has become an appealing choice for buyers thanks to its relatively affordable homes and strong job market, according to Zillow.

"Common threads among 2025's hottest markets are affordability — or at least relative affordability compared to nearby markets — and inventory shortages that have not been able to keep up with demand," Anushna Prakash, a data scientist at Zillow, told Business Insider. "An inventory shortfall of course limits sales, but it also means competition for each home on the market is ratcheted up."

Here are 10 metro areas forecast to see the most homebuying competition in 2025, according to Zillow.

10. Salt Lake City, Utah

• Median home price: $543,324
• Home value growth forecast: 2.3%
• Jobs per new home permitted: 0.5

9. Richmond, Virginia

• Median home price: $368,957
• Home value growth forecast: 2.9%
• Jobs per new home permitted: -0.1

8. Kansas City, Missouri

• Median home price: $299,118
• Home value growth forecast: 2.7%
• Jobs per new home permitted: 0.2

7. Charlotte, North Carolina

• Median home price: $377,450
• Home value growth forecast: 3.2 %
• Jobs per new home permitted: 0.5

6. St. Louis, Missouri

• Median home price: $250,141
• Home value growth forecast: 1.9%
• Jobs per new home permitted: 1.3

5. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Median home price: $362,744
• Home value growth forecast: 2.6%
• Jobs per new home permitted: 1.5

4. Hartford, Connecticut

• Median home price: $363,298
• Home value growth forecast: 4.2%
• Jobs per new home permitted: 1.1

3. Providence, Rhode Island

• Median home price: $484,019
• Home value growth forecast: 3.7%
• Jobs per new home permitted: 1.3

2. Indianapolis, Indiana

• Median home price: $275,639
• Home value growth forecast: 3.4%
• Jobs per new home permitted: 0.5

1. Buffalo, New York

• Median home price: $260,537
• Home value growth forecast: 2.8 %
• Jobs per new home permitted: 2

• Building tiny backyard homes can be expensive. The units can range in cost — from under $100,000 to over $300,000. 
• Three states will help with the cost by providing homeowners with grant money. 
• Here are the programs, how much homeowners can receive, and who is eligible to apply. 

If you've looked into building a tiny home in your backyard, you've probably discovered what many have: While they may save you money in the long run, they can be expensive to build.

These backyard homes, called accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, are small housing units ranging from 150 square feet to 1,200 square feet, depending on where you live.

The average cost of a unit can range from $100,000 to $300,000, not to mention the cost of the permit, and it can be difficult to get a loan to build an ADU.

In California, where most backyard homes are being built, ADU building permits cost anywhere from $450 to $15,000 — even before construction starts, Backyard Unlimited, a company that builds ADUs, said.

That's not all: Other costs could include site preparation, which includes anything from inspections to running utility lines. 

All this to say, if you don't have cash lying around or the ability to access financing for the project, it can be cost prohibitive — making it harder for middle- and low-income homeowners to actually build one, studies have shown.

To combat this disparity, promote equity, and ultimately propel the construction of much-needed housing, some states — and nonprofits in some cities — have created grant programs to help.

The deadlines for these programs vary from state to state. Those interested in building an ADU should be prepared for next year's application cycles, as they often experience high demand.

Here are the ADU programs available nationwide.

California: Up to $40,000 per grantee

The funding for 2024 has already been allocated. The state previously provided $40,000 to Californians for pre-construction ADU costs, such as design, permitting, and soil inspections. In 2024, several legal changes were made regarding ADU size, owner occupancy requirements, and more.

Who can apply? Californians that fall in the range of low- to moderate-income limits.

Total funding available: $100 million was allocated in 2021, but by 2023, the money had been fully distributed. The program's funds were infused with $25 million in grant funding for 2023 to 2024, but those have also been fully allocated.

When are applications open? The program is no longer accepting applications for 2024, and applications for 2025 have not yet been announced.

Requirements:

• Homeowners do not need to live in the primary home or the ADU they build.
• For single-family lots, you can be approved for one ADU (attached or detached) up to 1,200 square feet and one Junior ADU up to 500 square feet.
• For multi-family lots, you can build multiple ADUs attached to existing structures and up to two detached ADUs on the property.
• Homeowners can build an ADU at least 800 square feet, up to 16 feet high, and must be set back 4 feet from side and rear yards.

Agency or Department in charge of distribution: California Housing Finance Agency

New York: Up to $125,000 per grantee

The Plus One ADU Program provides eligible New Yorkers up to $125,000 to build or convert an ADU on their property.

In 2024, as part of Mayor Eric Adams's 'City of Yes' housing initiative, New York State legalized permitting ADUs on one- and two-family residential properties in low-density housing districts. However, whether a locality in New York allows ADUs depends on its land use and zoning regulations.

Who can apply? Homeowners who meet the income requirement of 100% or below the area median income.

Total funding available: The 2022-2023 NYS Capital Budget provided $85 million for the Plus One ADU Program over the next five years. Of the total, $60 million has been distributed across 50 municipalities, with the remaining $25 million available through a competitive RFP.

When are applications open? There are 50 participating localities, all accepting homeowner applications on a rolling basis.

Requirements:

• The ADU can be within the existing home, such as a basement or attic apartment, an in-law suite, or a completely independent and detached structure.
• A 10-year restrictive covenant is in place to ensure the home remains the owner's primary residence and that the ADU is kept in a livable condition.
• The ADU must be occupied by a tenant or a family member, and it cannot be rented out short term.

Agency or Department in charge of distribution: New York State's Homes and Community Renewal

Vermont: Up to $50,000 per grantee

This program allows Vermonters to receive up to $50,000 to build an ADU on their property. Both landlords and owner-occupied homes with plans to rent are eligible.

Who can apply? Any Vermont homeowner can apply through these five regional organizations: RuralEdge, Champlain Housing Trust, NeighborWorks of Western Vermont, Downstreet Housing and Community Development, and Windham and Windsor Housing Trust. These organizations review applications and oversee projects.

Total funding available: As of 2023, Vermont had a $15 million budget.

When are applications open? Open now, on a rolling basis.

Requirements:

• Those who receive a grant must abide by certain stipulations, such as complying with local ordinances, maintaining HUD Fair Market rent, and matching at least 20% of the grant funds.
• The project must be completed within 18 months of signing the grant agreement.
• Those using their ADU as a rental must sign a rental covenant or forgivable loan agreement, committing to charge rent at or below Fair Market Rent for the entire duration of the agreement.

Agency or Department in charge of distribution: Vermont Housing Improvement Program

Colorado: A new grant program still rolling out

In 2024, Colorado passed HB24-1152 to assist homeowners in building ADUs.

Who can apply? The Accessory Dwelling Unit Fee Reduction and Encouragement Grant Program will offer down payment assistance, low-interest loans, and interest rate reductions to eligible low—and moderate-income Coloradans building ADUs.

Total funding available: The General Assembly allocated $5 million for the program. Currently, grants are available to "accessory dwelling unit supportive jurisdictions," meaning local governments actively supporting ADU development. The Department of Local Affairs will manage the grant program created by the bill.

When are applications open? It has not yet been announced when applications will open to local governments or residents.

Requirements: The qualification requirements are still being finalized.

Agency or Department in charge of distribution: The Department of Local Affairs, Division of Local Government

Have you built an ADU on your property? We want to hear from you. Email the reporter, Alcynna Lloyd, at [email protected] to share your story.

• While some states' coldest temperatures were recorded recently, others were documented decades ago.
• Hawaii remains the only state in the US yet to report a temperature below zero degrees Fahrenheit.
• The coldest temperature ever recorded in the US was -80 degrees in Alaska in 1971.

Despite record-breaking temperature drops across the US over the last century, the world continues to get hotter. In fact, only three states have recorded their lowest-ever temperatures in the 21st century.

In Alaska, the coldest temperature ever recorded was -80 degrees Fahrenheit in Prospect Creek Camp in 1971 — and all but one of the 50 states has reported a temperature below zero. What's the holdout? Hawaii, which recorded its lowest temperature of 12 degrees Fahrenheit at the Mauna Kea Observatory on May 17, 1979.

According to data compiled by NOAA's State Climate Extremes Committee, the coldest temperatures ever recorded in each state are listed below.

Melissa Wells contributed to a prior version of this story.

Alabama's lowest recorded temperature was -27 degrees Fahrenheit at New Market on January 30, 1966.

On this snowy January day, it was Lucille Hereford, the postmaster and town volunteer weather observer, who recorded the -27-degree temperature, calling it a "terribly cold" morning in a 1988 interview with an Alabama State climatologist.

Per a 2021 news report by WHNT, a local news outlet, the official story comes with a caveat: The temperature was initially erroneously recorded as warmer than the -24 degrees Fahrenheit reported at Russellville the same day. It wasn't until years later that a Birmingham reporter uncovered the truth, and the National Climatic Data Center finally issued a correction in its records.

Alaska's lowest recorded temperature was -80 degrees Fahrenheit at Prospect Creek Camp on January 23, 1971.

The Anchorage Daily News reported in 2013 that there have been unofficial measurements of even lower temperatures. On the National Weather Service Alaska website, Phil Schaefer said it hit -84 degrees Fahrenheit in Coldfoot in 1989, and Joe Cochran said the temperature in Hughes dropped to -85 degrees Fahrenheit in the '90s, The Daily News reported.

However, the Prospect Creek Camp temperature is the only one that's been verified.

This is the lowest temperature ever recorded in the US.

Arizona's lowest recorded temperature was -40 degrees Fahrenheit at Hawley Lake on January 7, 1971.

Hawley Lake isn't a town so much as a remote weather station, but it's important in Arizona's meteorological history. In addition to setting a state record for 91 inches of snow in 1968, the overseer of Hawley Lake, Stan Bryte, recorded the state's lowest temperature of -40 degrees Fahrenheit in 1971, per AZCentral.

In fact, on the morning of January 7, 1971, Bryte's chief meteorologist told him, "You need to get up to Hawley Lake. I have a suspicion this is going to be a real record."

Arkansas' lowest recorded temperature was -29 degrees Fahrenheit in Brook Farm Pond near Gravette on February 13, 1905.

Brook Farm Pond is near the town of Gravette, which has just over 3,500 residents, according to census data.

It is located in Benton County, which has the motto "The Heart of Hometown America." At one time, it also bore the name of "Gate Community" for serving as a gateway to northwest Arkansas from Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. 

California's lowest recorded temperature was -45 degrees Fahrenheit in Boca on January 20, 1937.

The Los Angeles Times reported in 1937 that the low temperatures had brought "influenza, frozen toes, broken water pipes and automobile radiators, icy streets and traffic disruption."

Colorado's lowest recorded temperature was -61 degrees Fahrenheit in Maybell on February 1, 1985.

CBS News reported in January 2023 that Maybell, located 25 miles west of Craig, is home to just 76 people.

 Maybell resident of 56 years Georgia McIntyre told 9News in 2015, "You don't think about how cold it is. You just put all the clothes you've got on, and we even put newspapers in our shoes because we didn't have all these fancy things you have now."

Connecticut has recorded temperatures of -32 degrees Fahrenheit twice: First in Falls Village on February 16, 1943, and then again in Coventry on January 22, 1961.

In 1943, a National Weather Service observer noted February was a "relatively mild month" in Connecticut, only for the state to record its coldest temperature in the state's history 16 days into the month, per a 2023 CT Insider article.

A freezing day in January just 18 years later would hit that same low temperature.

Delaware's lowest recorded temperature was -17 degrees Fahrenheit in Millsboro on January 17, 1893.

Thirty-seven years later, a Millsboro weather station recorded a temperature of 110 degrees Fahrenheit on a scorching July day, according to the National Weather Service.

Florida's lowest recorded temperature was -2 degrees Fahrenheit in Tallahassee on February 13, 1899.

WTXL Tallahassee reported in 2020 that in Tallahassee 124 years ago, an inch of snow coated the city (its third biggest snowfall ever), and a record low of -2 degrees Fahrenheit was recorded.

Headlines at the time read "All Previous Records Broken," and editors were calling the storm, "The Snow King," "The Ice King," and "the Great Blizzard of 1899," Tallahassee Democrat reported in 2018.

Georgia's lowest recorded temperature was -17 degrees Fahrenheit in CCC Fire Camp F-16 near Beatum on January 27, 1940.

Not even 12 years later, on July 24, 1952, Georgia recorded its highest temperature at 112 degrees Fahrenheit in Louisville and again on August 20, 1983, in Greenville, according to NOAA's State Climate Extremes Committee.

Hawaii's lowest recorded temperature was 12 degrees Fahrenheit at the Mauna Kea Observatory on May 17, 1979.

Forecasters think this record may have changed because, on February 11, 2019, several sensors at the Mauna Kea Observatory reported temperatures between 8 and 11 degrees Fahrenheit, Khon2 reported in 2022, but it has yet to be confirmed.

Idaho's lowest recorded temperature was -60 degrees Fahrenheit in Island Park Dam on January 18, 1943.

Island Park Dam is located in the Targhee National Forest in the northeast corner of the state. It's tied for the eighth coldest temperature ever recorded in the US.

Illinois' lowest recorded temperature was -38 degrees Fahrenheit in Mount Carroll on January 31, 2019.

Frigid temperatures across Illinois in late January 2019 led to a startling discovery: On the morning of January 31, the weather observer at Mount Carroll in Carroll County recorded a temperature drop to -38 degrees Fahrenheit.

Only after an extensive review did the State Climate Extremes Committee collectively validate the reading as the new state record low temperature, The State Journal-Register reported in 2019.

Indiana's lowest recorded temperature was -36 degrees Fahrenheit in New Whiteland on January 19, 1994.

ABC57 reported in 2020 that all temperatures across Indiana dropped below zero on the morning of January 19, 1994.

In a newscast from 1994 for WRTV Indianapolis, a mail carrier told former Channel 6 meteorologist David James, "Well, I'll tell you, it's better today than it was yesterday, 'cuz there's not that wind. So, I don't mind this at all."

Iowa's lowest recorded temperature was -47 degrees Fahrenheit in Elkader on February 3, 1996. Previously, it was in Washta on January 12, 1912.

Iowa was one of many states in the Midwest that experienced the "1996 Cold Wave," as KCRG-TV9 described it in 2016.

Kansas' lowest recorded temperature was -40 degrees Fahrenheit in Lebanon on February 13, 1905.

The winter of 1905 was reportedly so bitterly cold that "it was impossible for one to face the storm," according to "Reno County Kansas, Its People, Industries, and Institutions," by B.F. Bowen & Co. Inc. of Indianapolis, published in 1917 and reported in 2014 by The Kansas City Star.

Kentucky's lowest recorded temperature was -37 degrees Fahrenheit in Shelbyville on January 19, 1994.

According to meteorologist John Belski, January 19, 1994, "was certainly a day for the history books." 

"Those who were not around in 1994, it was the only time I can remember when grocery stores in parts of Louisville ran out of food and gas stations ran out of gas that week since no deliveries were able to be made for several days. It was so strange to see people walking in the middle of Bardstown Road and also Broadway," he recalled for WLKY News in 2020.

Louisiana's lowest recorded temperature was -16 degrees Fahrenheit in Minden on February 13, 1899.

Over two weeks in February 1899, freezing weather swept over the US, with record-low minimum temperatures recorded in 12 states. According to weather historian David Ludlum in "The Great Arctic Outbreak and East Coast Blizzard of February 1899," this was "the greatest arctic outbreak in history" at the time.

Maine's lowest recorded temperature was -50 degrees Fahrenheit in Big Black River on January 16, 2009.

After a month of scrutinizing weather data, scientists said in February 2009 that Maine had reached a record low: 50 below freezing.

After much evaluation by the State Climate Extreme Committee, "It turned out [the -50 reading] was spot on," Bob Lent, Maine director of the US Geological Survey, said, as reported by NBC News in 2009.

Maryland's lowest recorded temperature was -40 degrees Fahrenheit in Oakland on January 13, 1912.

Oakland, Maryland, is home to 1,851 people, according to census data. It was established in 1849 and became a well-known tourist spot when the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad built a rail line that traveled through the town, according to Britannica.

Massachusetts's lowest recorded temperature was -35 degrees Fahrenheit in Chester on January 12, 1981; in Coldbrook on February 15, 1943; and in Taunton on January 5, 1904.

The same temperature was previously recorded in Coldbrook on February 15, 1943, and in Taunton on January 5, 1904.

Michigan's lowest recorded temperature was -51 degrees Fahrenheit in Vanderbilt on February 9, 1934.

Only 11 states have recorded colder temperatures than Michigan: Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Minnesota's lowest recorded temperature was -60 degrees Fahrenheit in Tower on February 2, 1996.

The average low in this sparsely populated former mining town is usually around 4 degrees Fahrenheit in February, according to WorldClimate.com.

Mississippi's lowest recorded temperature was -19 degrees Fahrenheit in Corinth on January 30, 1966.

By contrast, Mississippi's highest recorded temperature was recorded 36 years prior on July 29, 1930, when the mercury in Holly Springs hit 115 degrees Fahrenheit.

Missouri's lowest recorded temperature was -40 degrees Fahrenheit in Warsaw on February 13, 1905.

Interestingly enough, the coldest and hottest temperatures recorded in Missouri have both been in Warsaw, according to the University of Missouri Climate Center. The hottest temperature was a whopping 118 degrees Fahrenheit on July 14, 1954.

Montana's lowest recorded temperature was -70 degrees Fahrenheit in Rogers Pass on January 20, 1954.

"It's a day that will probably live in American history forever," Corby Dickerson, a National Weather Service meteorologist, said of the record, NBC Montana reported in February 2023. "It was the coldest day ever observed in the lower 48 states."

Nebraska's lowest recorded temperature was -47 degrees Fahrenheit in Oshkosh on December 22, 1989. Previously, it was in Bridgeport on February 12, 1899.

The biggest snowstorm on the southeast US coast was known as the "Christmas Snowstorm of 1989," according to The National Weather Service, and it was felt all the way to Nebraska. It broke snowfall records in several states, and unheard-of temperatures followed.

Nevada's lowest recorded temperature was -50 degrees Fahrenheit in San Jacinto on January 8, 1937.

Fifty-seven years after the state's cold temperature, a weather station in Laughlin recorded a temperature of 125 degrees Fahrenheit in June, per data from NOAA's State Climate Extremes Committee.

New Hampshire's lowest recorded temperature was -50 degrees Fahrenheit in Mount Washington on January 22, 1885.

More recently, sensors on Mount Washington logged the US' coldest windchill on record: -108. The Weather Service office serving Mount Washington posted in February 2023 that its recording software refused to log the reported low number.

New Jersey's lowest recorded temperature was -34 degrees Fahrenheit in River Vale on January 5, 1904.

"That was a very cold morning in northeastern New Jersey," David Robinson, a New Jersey State Climatologist, told NJ.com in 2019.

"A deep fresh snow cover, the valley location, adjacent to a pond that was used to make ice, and a generally treeless landscape near the station all helped contribute to the excessive cold."

New Mexico's lowest recorded temperature was -50 degrees Fahrenheit in Gavilan on February 1, 1951.

Conversely, the hottest temperature in New Mexico was recorded on June 27, 1994, at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Loving, where it reached a blazing 122 degrees Fahrenheit.

New York's lowest recorded temperature was -52 degrees Fahrenheit in Old Forge on February 18, 1979.

Jane Tormey, the official weather watcher for Old Forge for CNY Central, recalled in 2013, "People were saying their milk froze on the way home from the store to home. A lot of cars obviously couldn't get started. My car window driver's side was shattered."

North Carolina's lowest recorded temperature was -34 degrees Fahrenheit in Mount Mitchell on January 21, 1985.

One of the past century's most extreme arctic outbreaks occurred between January 18 and January 22, 1985. According to the National Weather Service, newspapers at the time reported at least 165 deaths related to the weather.

North Dakota's lowest recorded temperature was -60 degrees Fahrenheit in Parshall on February 15, 1936.

Coincidentally, both the hottest and coldest temperatures recorded in North Dakota's history happened in the same year, with Steele hitting 121 degrees Fahrenheit on July 6, 1936, KYFR-TV reported in 2023.

Ohio's lowest recorded temperature was -39 degrees Fahrenheit in Milligan on February 10, 1899.

Ohio was another state affected by the unprecedented cold of February 1899. The US Weather Bureau reported 105 fatalities between January 29 and February 13 from the arctic temperatures and avalanches brought on by "the Great Arctic Outbreak."

Oklahoma's lowest recorded temperature was -31 degrees Fahrenheit in Nowata on February 10, 2011.

2011 was reportedly Oklahoma's third snowiest year, and the state's record for most snowfall in 24 hours was reached in Spavinaw, with 27 inches, FOX23 News reported in 2020.

Oregon's lowest recorded temperature was -54 degrees Fahrenheit in Ukiah on February 9, 1933, and in Seneca on February 10, 1933.

Ukiah and Seneca are occasionally known as "Oregon's Icebox" due to their icy winter conditions. That said, Meacham residents have said the temperature once plummeted to -62 degrees Fahrenheit, but it has never been proven officially, The Oregonian wrote in 2010.

Pennsylvania's lowest recorded temperature was -42 degrees Fahrenheit in Smethport on January 5, 1904.

By contrast, in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, two consecutive days of 111 degrees Fahrenheit were recorded on July 9, 1936 and July 10, 1936, in the hottest temperature ever recorded in the state.

Phoenixville is five hours from Smethport, where the coldest temperature was recorded 32 years prior.

Rhode Island's lowest recorded temperature was -28 degrees Fahrenheit in Wood River Junction on January 11, 1942.

According to NOAA's State Climate Extremes Committee, -25 degrees Fahrenheit was previously reported at Greene, Rhode Island, on February 5, 1996, but it could not be verified.

South Carolina's lowest recorded temperature was -19 degrees Fahrenheit in Caesar's Head on January 21, 1985.

In 1985, in the Carolinas, the coldest temperatures ever recorded were dubbed "The Coldest Day," WMBF News reported in 2020.

South Dakota's lowest recorded temperature was -58 degrees Fahrenheit in McIntosh on February 17, 1936.

McIntosh was home to just 111 people in 2020. It is the county seat of Corson County.

Tennessee's lowest recorded temperature was -32 degrees Fahrenheit in Mountain City on December 30, 1917.

The two days of 113 degrees Fahrenheit were recorded in Perryville on July 29, 1930, and August 9, 1930, making them the hottest temperatures ever recorded in Tennessee.

Texas' lowest recorded temperature was -23 degrees Fahrenheit in Seminole on February 8, 1933. The same temperature was also recorded in Tulia 6NE on February 12, 1899.

Texas is known for its heat, but even this state has seen severe drops in temperatures — the best known was during the Great Blizzard of 1899.

Some unofficial reports even claim temperatures reached -30 degrees Fahrenheit in February 1899 at Wolf Creek, Texas. Either way, the Concho Valley Homepage reported in 2022 that newspapers in 1899 described the temperatures as "the worst freeze ever known in the state."

Utah's lowest recorded temperature was -50 degrees Fahrenheit in Strawberry Tunnel (East) on January 5, 1913.

By contrast, the city of St. George has been home to the state's record for hottest temperature — twice. A temperature of 117 degrees Fahrenheit was recorded in July 1985 and again in July 2021.

Vermont's lowest recorded temperature was -50 degrees Fahrenheit in Bloomfield on December 30, 1933.

Bloomfield, a town in Essex County, had a population of 217 in the 2020 US census. The weather station existed from 1906 to 1968, according to Century 21 Farm & Forest.

Virginia's lowest recorded temperature was -30 degrees Fahrenheit in Mountain Lake Biological Station on January 21, 1985.

Centered in the Allegheny Mountains is Mountain Lake, one of only two freshwater lakes in Virginia, according to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.

Just a year after this temperature was recorded in 1985, Mountain Lake was made famous again for "Dirty Dancing," which is where the movie was filmed.

Washington's lowest recorded temperature was -48 degrees Fahrenheit on December 30, 1968, in two different towns: Mazama and Winthrop.

On June 29, 2021, Hanford, Washington, reached 120 degrees Fahrenheit, the hottest recorded temperature in that state. 

West Virginia's lowest recorded temperature was -37 degrees Fahrenheit in Lewisburg on December 30, 1917.

Just 13 years later, the highest temperature recorded was 112 degrees Fahrenheit in Moorefield, West Virginia, on August 4, 1930.

Wisconsin recorded the lowest temperature in the state's history on February 2, 1996, in Couderay. Two days later, it broke its own record at -55 degrees.

The coldest temperature recorded in Wisconsin ranks ninth in the nation.

Wyoming's lowest recorded temperature was -66 degrees Fahrenheit in Riverside Ranger Station in Yellowstone National Park on February 9, 1933.

Although Yellowstone's temperatures in Wyoming haven't plummeted to the levels they once did in 1933, "since most of the park lies at an elevation of 6,000 feet above sea level or higher, unpredictability characterizes Yellowstone's weather," the National Park Service has said.

Correction: January 9, 2024 — An earlier version of this story included an image that was mislabeled as Minden, Louisiana. The photo has been replaced with one of Minden.

• Former US President Jimmy Carter died on December 29 at the age of 100.
• His casket arrived at the US Capitol for a lying-in-state ceremony on Tuesday.
• Politicians, Supreme Court justices, and members of the Carter family were in attendance.

On Tuesday, former US President Jimmy Carter's casket arrived at the US Capitol, where it will lie in state until his state funeral on Thursday.

Carter, who served as president from 1977 to 1981, died on December 29 at the age of 100.

Photos show lawmakers and members of the public paying their respects to the 39th president of the United States.

Ahead of former President Jimmy Carter's state funeral, his casket arrived at the Capitol to allow the American people to pay their respects.

Carter's casket will lie in state at the Capitol until his state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday.

Lawmakers attended a lying-in-state ceremony on Tuesday before the Capitol Rotunda opened to the public.

President Abraham Lincoln was the first president to lie in state at the Capitol after his assassination in 1865. Carter's casket lay on the catafalque, or raised platform, designed for Lincoln, according to the Architect of the Capitol.

Carter's flag-draped casket was carried into the Capitol by military service members.

The casket was first brought to the US Navy Memorial in a tribute to Carter's Navy service on the first fleet of nuclear submarines, then transported to the Capitol on a horse-drawn carriage.

Members of the Carter family watched as his casket was placed in the center of the Capitol Rotunda.

Carter's four children — Jack Carter, Chip Carter, Jeff Carter, and Amy Carter — were all in attendance at the lying-in-state ceremony.

Lawmakers from opposite sides of the aisle put their differences aside to pay tribute to Carter's legacy.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Majority Leader John Thune placed their hands over their hearts as they approached Carter's casket.

Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi greeted Republican Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming while gathered with members of Congress.

Pelosi, who is recovering from hip replacement surgery, entered the Rotunda using a walker and remained seated for the ceremony.

Politicians from Carter's home state of Georgia attended the ceremony.

Sen. Raphael Warnock and Sen. Jon Ossoff, both Democrats from Georgia, joined other members of Congress at the Capitol.

Supreme Court justices paid their respects.

Justices Brett Kavanaugh, John Roberts, and Elena Kagan stood quietly by Carter's casket with their heads bowed in respect.

In her speech, Vice President Kamala Harris memorialized Carter as "that all-too-rare example of a gifted man who also walks with humility, modesty, and grace."

"Throughout his life and career, Jimmy Carter retained a fundamental decency and humility," Harris said in her remarks at the event. "James Earl Carter, Jr., loved our country. He lived his faith, he served the people, and he left the world better than he found it."

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune also delivered eulogies.

"In the face of illness, President Jimmy Carter brought lifesaving medicine," Johnson said. "In the face of conflict, he brokered peace. In the face of discrimination, he reminded us that we are all made in the image of God."

Crowds formed at the US Capitol Visitor Center as members of the public waited for their turn to enter the Rotunda.

After Carter's state funeral, he will be buried at his home in Plains, Georgia.

Visitors signed a guest book with condolence notes.

Mementos with photos of Carter were also available to visitors.

A military guard of honor remained next to Carter's casket as the American people came to say goodbye to the 39th president.

"May his life be a lesson for the ages and a beacon for the future," the vice president said of Carter in her speech.

• As an American who spent six months moving around Europe, I encountered lots of surprises.
• I learned the hard way that not every country in the European Union uses euros.
• Not being able to understand background conversations was a bizarre feeling.

When I traveled around Europe, visiting places like France, Great Britain, and the Czech Republic, several things instantly stood out about how different living in Europe was from living in the US.

However, there were also some "slow burn" realizations I discovered the longer I was immersed in different cultures. Although some of them were pleasant surprises, others were less-welcome eye-openers.

Here are the five things that surprised me most about life in Europe.

A close trip for me was considered exceptionally far by some locals.

Like many Americans, I'm used to taking long road trips. In my opinion, anything less than 12 hours is reasonable to drive in a day.

So, I applied this same mindset to traveling around Europe. Instead of driving, though, I enjoyed the passing hours on trains.

However, I noticed several times that my travels shocked the locals. For example, my eight-hour train ride from Basel, Switzerland, to Amsterdam surprised one hotel worker, who couldn't believe I'd be traveling that far in a day.

When I tried to explain my experience with road trips in the States, I'd often receive blank looks in return. One woman was shocked when I told her you could drive for 12 hours in Texas and still be in the same state.

A Google search later, we realized she could drive for the same amount of time from her hometown of Brussels all the way to Milan.

I realized how much your perspective changes when traveling between countries, not states.

Not every country in the European Union takes euros.

I rarely carry cash anymore. However, I knew some remote areas I'd be visiting in the Czech Republic may not take credit cards. So, I pulled out some euros.

However, I received a bewildered look from a Czech takeout worker when I tried to pay with this currency.

I learned that although the Czech Republic is part of the European Union, it doesn't use the euro. In fact, of the 27 nations in the EU, seven countries don't use euros: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Sweden.

Although some of these countries may adopt the use of euros in the future, I'll double-check before traveling to these places.

Not being able to understand background conversations was a bizarre feeling.

I spent three months in areas where English wasn't the primary language. At first, it was exciting to try my hand at broken French or German to communicate with a shop owner.

I also met locals who spoke fluent English, allowing me to still have rich conversations in my native tongue.

However, around two months in, I realized that I was desperately missing something that I'd never given much thought to: background conversations.

These are the discussions that you pass by, but you're not in: a couple figuring out dinner plans, a mom and child choosing which apples to buy, or a worker helping a customer find a certain size.

Although I was often surrounded by people, I didn't anticipate the loneliness that set in when I couldn't understand the everyday conversations happening around me.

I was impressed by how well-behaved the dogs were.

Living in Colorado, I'm used to dog-friendly shops and restaurants. However, if I see a dog in public, that pup is on a leash.

This wasn't the case for much of Europe. Whether in a quiet neighborhood, park, or busy city center, people would go about their business with their dogs next to them — without leashes.

Although the dog might straggle behind, one whistle and they'd promptly return to their owner's side.

I'm not sure what the Europeans are doing to train their pooches so well — but it's obviously working.

I couldn't get over the sheer age of everyday places.

Europe is famous for its centuries-old churches and landmarks, but what I enjoyed most was finding history in ordinary properties. I'd wander into a deli or bookshop and spot a small sign revealing that the building was older than my home country.

My favorite instance of this was a pub in Edinburgh that I was told to check out. Before walking in, I did a double take when I saw the year the pub opened: 1360. As I sipped on my drink, I couldn't help but wonder who else enjoyed a pint in this very same spot throughout the years.

But that was a discovery for another day. There are only so many surprises a gal can take.

• Internal documents show Amazon workers in the UK can apply to work from home for up to two days a week.
• Staff in the Netherlands are following previous guidance for three days in the office, BI has learned.
• Amazon implemented a global five-day-a-week return-to-office policy on January 2.

Amazon's five-day-a-week return-to-office policy appears to be more flexible for some European employees than their US-based counterparts.

Employees in the UK can apply to work from home for one or two days a week, while Amazon workers in the Netherlands are currently following previous guidance allowing them to work from home for up to two days a week, Business Insider has learned.

A copy of Amazon's "Flexible Work Arrangement" policy document for the US, seen by BI, does not explicitly state that employees can request to work from home for one or two days a week. The document, last updated on December 17, states that Amazon "may grant exceptions for work arrangements" to staff in the US "who are in good standing on a case-by-case basis."

It follows Amazon's September announcement that employees globally would be required to work from the office five days a week, starting January 2. Some locations have delayed a five-day RTO policy because of insufficient office space, BI previously reported. In other cases, it appears to have been delayed by local employment requirements.

Amazon's management team in the Netherlands sent employees an email, seen by BI, on December 20 that says it entered into discussions with its works council — an organization representing employees — to define and introduce a flexible working arrangement.

It says, "Until further notice, while everyone is welcome and encouraged to work from the office for five days per week, you may continue to follow the current in-office guidance for your role and team into the new year."

Under that guidance, employees in the Netherlands can work up to two days a week from home until they have been notified of the outcome of ongoing discussions between the works council and management, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Nafsika Karavida, an attorney at law firm Reavis Page Jump, told BI that the differences between Amazon's RTO rollout in Europe compared to the US are "most likely due to cultural, legal, and operational differences" that could limit its "ability to act unilaterally."

Karavida added that employers in the Netherlands cannot legally enforce an RTO policy without the approval of a works council.

Like Amazon employees in Germany, staff in the UK can make a formal application to work from home for one or two days a week, according to an internal policy document seen by BI. It states employees based in the UK have a "statutory right to make a formal application" to change their work location, among other working conditions. If an application is approved, it will be subject to a three-month trial period, the document says.

Karavida said that Amazon's policy in the UK is shaped by flexible working regulations that took effect last April. "Although these regulations do not grant employees an automatic right to work from home, they obligate employers to consider such requests reasonably on a case-by-case basis," she said.

Amazon faces RTO delays

The UK, Netherlands, and Germany are the latest examples of Amazon's five-day RTO being implemented in different ways and at different speeds. An internal list shows more than 40 locations where Amazon's full five-day RTO policy is delayed, including Santa Clara, California; Hamburg, Germany; and Belfast, UK.

Amazon's CEO, Andy Jassy, said in a September blog post that the decision to return full-time to the office was to help the company "further strengthen" its culture and teams.

An Amazon spokesperson referred BI to that same blog post, in which Jassy also said "it was not a given" that staff could work remotely two days a week before the pandemic, and "that will also be true moving forward."

In the US, Amazon employees can submit requests for offsite work for the entirety of a week or more than 90 days, which are also reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

However, unlike the policies for the UK and Germany, the US flexible working document does not specifically mention the option for employees to formally apply to work from home for one or two days a week. It only details the offsite work arrangements and part-time work arrangements.

An internal Amazon FAQ document circulated at the time of the RTO announcement last year says that employees with existing approval, such as a "Military Spouse Remote Work Exception," do not need to change where they work.

• Firestorms in Los Angeles have burned over 5,000 acres, destroying homes and killing two people.
• One of the two biggest blazes, the Palisades Fire, could be the costliest in US history.
• The fires have spread so fast in part because of a windstorm and flood-drought whiplash.

All was well in Los Angeles at around 10 a.m. on Tuesday.

Less than 24 hours later, 2,925 acres of the Pacific Palisades were ablaze in what is being called the worst wildfire in Southern California since 2011.

Three more blazes have ignited in the area, with one, the Eaton Fire, engulfing another 2,000-plus acres.

Firefighters had not contained the blazes as of Wednesday morning, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

More than 1,000 structures have burned, at least two people have died, and the fires could get even worse in the coming hours.

California is no stranger to fires, but this situation is different and especially dangerous for a few reasons.

An 'urban firestorm' that could be the costliest in history

Few brush fires in California history have intruded into such vast areas of dense, urban housing.

The UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain called it an "urban firestorm" as he assessed live images of the developing Eaton Fire on Tuesday morning.

Perhaps the best historical comparison is the 1991 Tunnel Fire, which raged through more than 1,500 acres of Oakland, but it was smaller than either of the two giant blazes in Los Angeles. It killed 25 people and injured 150, and ranks as the third-deadliest and third-most-destructive fire in California history.

The true toll of this week's fires won't be clear until later.

Swain said that he and several colleagues have estimated that the Palisades Fire could be the costliest on record in the US because of the number of structures burning and the fact that those homes are some of the most expensive in the world.

"We are looking at what is, I think, likely to become the costliest wildfire disaster in California, if not national history, along with a number of other superlatives," Swain said.

A historic windstorm spread the fire fast

A powerful windstorm buffeted the flames throughout Tuesday and into Wednesday morning, with gusts of wind reaching up to 90 miles an hour, according to the National Weather Service.

During a 2 ½ hour period overnight, the Palisades Fire's size more than doubled, per the fire service's reports.

The winds were so powerful on Tuesday evening that water- and retardant-dropping aircraft could not fly.

It's a phenomenon that scientists have warned about: a deadly combination of high winds and dry, open land — such as the brushland now being swept by flames in Los Angeles — amounting to fires that move faster than emergency responders can keep up with.

"It's certainly unusual how fast it's grown," Douglas Kelley, a researcher at the UK's Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, told Business Insider. "It's definitely a lot faster than I guess a lot of people were expecting in the area at the time."

A study published in Science in October found that while only about 3% of US fires over a nearly two-decade period could be considered "fast fires," they caused disproportionate damage.

"The most destructive and deadly wildfires in US history were also fast," wrote the study's authors, led by University of Colorado Boulder's Jennifer Balch.

Between 2001 and 2020, fast fires accounted for 78% of fire-destroyed buildings and a full 61% of suppression costs — or $18.9 billion, the scientists wrote. And they are getting more frequent, the study said.

The windstorm was bad luck. But the other primary factor in the fires' rapid explosions — the fuel — is strongly linked to the climate crisis.

Weather whiplash made abundant fire fuel

Southern California has experienced heavy rainfall and flooding the past two winters — which is a huge part of the problem.

Abundant rainfall spurred an explosion of grasses and brush, the primary fire fuel in Southern California. Then, with very little rainfall in the past few months, all that vegetation was flash-dried.

Kelley said those dry conditions made the Palisades especially susceptible to a fast-spreading fire.

This is part of a growing phenomenon that Swain calls "hydroclimate whiplash," or weather whiplash. As global temperatures rise, many parts of the world, especially California, are seeing more violent swings between extreme wet and extreme dry conditions.

The same confluence of weather whiplash and extreme winds was behind the Camp Fire, Swain said. That November 2018 blaze in Paradise, California, was the deadliest and most destructive in the state's history, destroying 18,804 structures and killing 85 people.

• Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says he's fine with renaming the Gulf of Mexico.
• Only, though, if Trump works with them to lower costs for Americans, he said.
• Schumer said it "may be a zany new idea" but it won't "help people save money at the grocery store."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Wednesday that Democrats were open to President-elect Donald Trump's idea of renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the "Gulf of America."

However, he noted that he'd only do so if Trump works with Democrats on "an actual plan to lower costs for Americans."

"That is what the American people want us to focus on first, not on renaming bodies of water," Schumer said in a floor speech, adding that his party's priorities "are so much more closely aligned with the concerns of the American people than Donald Trump's seem to be."

Trump floated the idea at a press conference at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday, where he also refused to rule out the use of military force to take control of Greenland or the Panama Canal.

The Democratic leader's comments essentially amount to a challenge to Trump to focus on the economic issues that helped him regain the presidency, rather than merely changing names.

Over the next several years, Democrats will be making the case that their economic agenda is more beneficial for the working class than Trump's.

"Renaming the Gulf of Mexico may be a zany new idea, but it isn't going to help people save money at the grocery store. It's not going to make trips to the pharmacy more affordable," Schumer said. "If Donald Trump wants to rename a gulf to sound more patriotic, I'd say we will help him on one condition and only one condition: let's come up with a real plan first — not a concept of a plan — to lower prices for Americans."

• I spent two weeks on a luxurious Explora Journeys cruise exploring the Mediterranean with friends.
• When broken down, we spent about $480 a person per night for an ocean-view suite.
• The ports were great to explore, and we had delicious meals and fun experiences on board.

Having previously visited Greece and enjoyed it, I wanted to explore more of the Adriatic with some friends and family for my 40th birthday.

Since we'd be traveling during peak season, flights and hotel rates were quite high. So, I decided to look into a luxury cruise instead — it seemed like an especially good value if we wanted to see multiple places.

I ended up booking a two-week itinerary throughout Greece and the Adriatic Riviera with Explora Journeys, a luxury line from the MSC Group. Our ship stopped in places like Italy, Montenegro, and Croatia.

Unfortunately, this exact itinerary no longer seems to be available, though similar ones can be found on the Explora Journeys website.

I shared an ocean-terrace suite with one other person, and we each paid about $480 a night. Our fare included all of our food and drinks (except for one meal at a specialty restaurant), gratuities, and port charges.

Here's what our experience was like on a luxury sailing with Explora Journeys.

The ship felt impressively big.

We began our cruise in Piraeus, Greece, and the process was quick and easy.

Within minutes of arriving at our ship, we were brought on board and given Champagne.

Every cabin on this ship is a suite.

When booking our spots on the 813-foot-long ship, we could choose from three tiers of cabins: suites, penthouses, and residences. Residencies are the highest tiers and can come with butlers and private jacuzzis.

My roommate and I were happy with our 377-square-foot, entry-level ocean-terrace suite, which had two twin beds, a balcony, a walk-in closet with a dressing room, and a lounge area.

My favorite feature was the heated floor in the bathroom.

The heated floors were a nice touch in our fairly spacious bathroom.

I also loved the sizable walk-in shower, strong water pressure, and ample counter space.

The room featured a Dyson hairdryer and other solid amenities.

The dressing room was spacious, with ample storage and a vanity area complete with a light-up mirror.

My friends were particularly excited that cabins come with a quality Dyson hair dryer, as some cruise lines restrict the wattage you can use for these devices.

There were also nice touches throughout the room, like wireless charging pads for cellphones built into the nightstands.

Our cabin host also ensured our complimentary minibar was fully stocked with coconut water, ginger beer, Belvedere, and other items throughout our trip.

I loved that our terrace had a daybed.

All cabins come with private outdoor spaces. Ours had a comfortable daybed and a table with two chairs.

The ship has multiple restaurants, but Fil Rouge was my favorite.

The ship had numerous dining options, from a pan-Asian eatery to a steakhouse. Fortunately, meals atmost were included in the cost of our cruise fare.

My favorite was Fil Rouge, as I thought its French-inspired menu was very well executed. Standout dishes included crab cakes, escargot, lobster thermidor, veal Wellington, and daily soufflés.

My second-favorite eatery was the ship's only added-cost dining room.

Meals at the onboard Italian-inspired eatery Anthology were not included in our cruise fare, but we headed there for my birthday.

We participated in its seven-course tasting experience for 140 euros a person, plus an extra 60 euros each for wine pairings. It wasn't cheap, but we paid for it with onboard credits that came with our booking.

Our food was excellent, with bites featuring Oscietra Royal caviar, lobster, truffle, and A5 Japanese wagyu.

There were also bars and lounges on board.

We had plenty of spots to hang out in on the ship, from a whisky bar to a mixology lounge.

My favorite was Lobby Bar, which was centrally located on the ship. Some of my friends preferred the Explora Lounge, which served afternoon tea and offered sweeping views of the ocean.

I also liked the onboard spa, high-end retailers, and pools.

I had two incredible massages at the onboard spa, which was fantastic. Much to my surprise, going there didn't cost me extra — on most cruises, travelers must pay for spa access.

There were also numerous pools and jacuzzis on board and some seriously high-end retailers. We looked through luxurious pieces from brands like Cartier and Piaget, and my friend was even able to purchase a Rolex.

Still, the ports really made this cruise.

Our cruise stopped in numerous places throughout Greece, Italy, Croatia, and Montenegro.

The Greek island of Paros was a highlight for me. Its beaches were truly stunning, and I loved how authentically Greek the towns felt.

We also particularly loved Dubrovnik in Croatia. As my friends enjoyed shopping for leather goods, I relished walking through the walled city made even more famous by HBO's "Game of Thrones."

My favorite experience, though, was visiting the walled city of Kotor, Montenegro, and spending the afternoon at nearby Nikki Beach.

Overall, my Explora Journeys cruise gets high marks from me.

I was really impressed by the service, amenities, and rooms on this cruise.

Plus, we stopped in so many places and our small ship spent a decent amount of time docked in each. I really felt like I could take my time experiencing every city because we'd typically arrive at port very early in the morning and sometimes leave as late as 11 p.m.

As the MSC Group continues to grow Explora Journeys by adding new itineraries and ships, I think it will become a really prominent player in the luxury-cruise space.

• The amount of calcium in a glass of milk could lower the risk of colorectal cancer, a study on women found.
• Many foods, including seeds, canned sardines, and figs, are high in calcium.
• The studies comes as cases of colorectal cancer in people under 50 rise in the US.

Consuming the amount of calcium found in a glass of milk could reduce the risk of colorectal cancer, according to a new study involving women.

That was regardless of whether the calcium came from dairy or non-dairy sources. Foods such as figs, leafy greens, and tofu are among the non-dairy sources of calcium.

In the study published on Wednesday in Nature Communications, the authors said this suggests calcium itself, rather than milk, was the main factor responsible for cutting the risk.

Using dietary and health data provided by more than 542,000 women with an average age of 59 over for around 16 years, researchers from Oxford University studied whether 97 foods affected colorectal cancer risk. They found that consuming an extra 300mg of calcium a day was associated with a 17% lower colorectal risk from the baseline. In the US, the lifetime risk of developing the disease is approximately 4.4% for men and 4.1% for women.

Calcium is commonly known as a mineral the body needs to build and maintain strong bones. But calcium may have a protective effect against colorectal cancer because it binds to bile acids and free fatty acids in the colon, which helps reduce their cancer-causing potential, the study said.

Colorectal cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer-related death in US men and the forth-leading cause in US women, according to The American Cancer Society. The rate of people being diagnosed with the condition has fallen since the mid-1980s, but in people under 55, rates have been increasing by 1% to 2% a year since the mid-1990s.

The link between colorectal cancer risk and diet is well-established, and experts recommending people cut down on ultra-processed foods and red meat, and instead eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. But the new findings could help provide even more targeted dietary guidance.

The study was observational, meaning the researchers didn't intervene in any way, and more research is needed to confirm a link between calcium intake and cancer risk.

"It is difficult to separate the effects of individual nutrients from an effect of milk per se," Tom Sanders, professor emeritus of nutrition and dietetics at King's College London, said.

"We already know that around half of all bowel cancers could be prevented by having a healthier lifestyle, and this new research supports this, with a particular focus on dairy," Lisa Wilde, director of research and external affairs at the charity Bowel Cancer UK, said. If you don't drink dairy milk, there are other ways you can get calcium and still reduce your bowel cancer risk, she added.

Americans should consume around 1,000mg of calcium a day, according to the Office for Dietary Supplements.

Here are six foods that are high in calcium, including some that might surprise you.

Seeds

Some seeds pack a punch when it comes to calcium content.

One tablespoon of sesame seeds, for example, contains 100mg of calcium, while one tablespoon of poppy seeds contains 127mg or around 10% of the daily recommended amount.

They are also high in other nutrients such as fiber and healthy fats.

Whey protein

As well as being high in protein and helping to promote muscle growth, whey protein powder is very high in calcium.

A 1.2-ounce scoop of whey protein powder isolate contains about 160 mg or 12% of the daily recommended amount.

Leafy greens

Leafy greens are rich in many nutrients, including calcium.

One cup of cooked collard greens has 268 mg of calcium, or about 21% of the amount the average person needs in a day. And kale has around 250 mg of calcium per 100g, which is more than the 110mg in 100g of whole milk.

Spinach and chard contain lots of calcium, but they also contain a group of molecules called oxalates that bind to calcium and make it unavailable to our bodies.

Tofu

Whether it's firm, soft, or silken, tofu is also a good source of calcium. 120g of the plant-based protein steamed or fried contains 200mg of calcium.

Edamame beans, which are young soybeans, also contain the mineral.

Canned fish

Canned fish is higher in calcium than fresh fish because it contains bones that have become soft through cooking and can be eaten.

Canned sardines and salmon are particularly rich in calcium, with 60g of canned sardines in oil containing 240 mg, while 85 grams of canned salmon with bones contains 19% of the daily recommended amount.

Figs

Dried figs contain more calcium than any other dried fruit. Just two figs have 100 mg or 10% of the calcium we need each day.

They are also high in fiber, copper, potassium, manganese, magnesium, and vitamin K.

• The US Navy is officially referring to F/A-18s armed with nine air-to-air missiles as "Murder Hornets."
• This loadout was first observed during Red Sea combat operations last year.
• The loadout consists of four AIM-9X and five AIM-120 missiles.

The US Navy is officially using the term "Murder Hornet" to describe F/A-18 fighter jets armed with nine air-to-air missiles, a munition configuration first spotted amid Red Sea combat operations last year.

The office of the Chief of Naval Operations highlighted the new term for these missile-packed Super Hornets in a document outlining the Navy's achievements over the past year. It said the configuration, which was used in combat as the sea service faced off against numerous airborne threats, involves arming the jets with four AIM-9X instead of two and five AIM-120 missiles.

This air-to-air loadout was first seen on a Boeing-made F/A-18 Super Hornet during flight operations aboard the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Red Sea last April. The Ike and the other ships in its strike group had deployed to the region for several months in response to repeated Iran-backed Houthi rebel attacks on shipping lanes off the coast of Yemen.

The Navy took steps to boost the air-defense capabilities of its Super Hornets amid pressing threats in the Red Sea. Navy aircraft and warships have routinely shot down Houthi drones and missiles above the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since October 2023.

The head of Naval Air Systems Command's Program Executive Office for Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons, Rear Adm. Stephen Tedford, said last year that the heavy air-to-air configuration, among other efforts, was brought about due to the need for "a lot more firepower and capability immediately in support of Red Sea operations and counter-UAS," The War Zone, which first reported the new nickname, previously reported.

The AIM-9X is the latest model in the decades-old Sidewinder family of short-range missiles, and the AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile) is a beyond-visual-range missile capable of all-weather engagements. Both munitions are manufactured by US defense contractor Raytheon, now known as RTX Corporation.

The Eisenhower, where the Murder Hornet configuration was first showcased, is one of four carriers that, along with their strike groups, have participated in counter-Houthi operations. US forces are routinely tasked with intercepting rebel drones and missiles; the Navy said it has defended military and civilian ships from more than 180 attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Using a range of other munitions, the US military has also carried out airstrikes targeting the Houthis. Just on Wednesday, for instance, American forces bombed two underground weapons storage facilities in Yemen.

Despite a year of combat action, the Houthis still maintain the ability to launch attacks, which they claim are done out of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. In recent weeks, the rebels have stepped up drone and missile attacks on Israel, which has responded by bombing their facilities.

• I tried all of Rao's Alfredo-sauce varieties and ranked them from worst to best.
• I thought the brand's bacon Alfredo sauce was quite salty.
• At the end of the day, I thought Rao's classic Alfredo sauce was the best.

In my opinion, few meals are as delicious as pasta with Alfredo sauce. Sure, you could make homemade sauce from scratch, but the grocery store has plenty of delicious options as well.

For example, popular sauce brand Rao's, which is now owned by Campbell's Soup, is known for its high-quality sauces and makes five Alfredo varieties.

To find out which sauces were best, I sampled all five flavors and ranked them from worst to best. Here's how they stacked up.

Rao's bacon Alfredo sauce was my least favorite.

This version of Rao's Alfredo sauce contains tiny morsels of crumbled bacon (most of which you'll find at the bottom of the jar).

It had more texture than the other sauces I tried, and the dried-bacon pieces looked almost identical to store-bought bits. The bacon added a smokiness and sweetness that other Rao's Alfredos didn't have.

However, this sauce would've been better made with higher-quality bacon. I found it to be quite salty, and the sweetness from the bacon was distracting and unexpected in an Alfredo sauce.

The brand's Alfredo arrabbiata had some heat to it.

Rao's Alfredo arrabbiata was the thickest sauce in the bunch and had a markedly different texture from the others I tried.

Though it was still pourable, the arrabbiata had a distinct grittiness to it. It also had a pinkish tint and didn't have the same tiny speckles of seasoning as the classic Alfredo — because it was seasoned with ground red pepper instead.

The spice wasn't immediately noticeable upon first bite, but built up as I ate more.

I liked the heat — which lingered and sat at the back of my throat — for a few bites. However, I thought it dominated the other tasty flavors from cheese and cream too much after a while.

The four-cheese Alfredo was heavy and rich.

Rao's four-cheese Alfredo is made with Parmesan, Romano, Asiago, and fontina cheeses. This quartet added major umami flavor and richness to the light cream-based sauce.

This Alfredo was brighter and whiter than the others I tried, and it also tasted richer and denser. Though I loved the thicker texture and salty, cheesy flavor, this sauce was pretty heavy. For that reason, I probably wouldn't eat as much of it.

Rao's roasted-garlic Alfredo had a lot of flavor.

This sauce was overflowing with sweet and concentrated roasted-garlic flavor. It had a touch of smokiness and didn't taste as cheesy or salty as the four-cheese or bacon sauces.

According to the ingredient label, this sauce contains pureed garlic and granulated roasted garlic, which explains the strong allium concentration in every bite.

The brand's classic Alfredo sauce came out on top.

At the end of the day, Rao's classic Alfredo sauce was my favorite. The yellowish sauce was pourable and completely smooth, but thick enough to coat slippery noodles.

The sauce is speckled with cracked black pepper, which adds more color than flavor. Taste-wise, this traditional Alfredo was satisfyingly creamy and cheesy but not overly heavy.

It had a light fluffiness to it, and the Parmesan and Romano cheeses added a ton of umami flavor and savoriness — so it didn't feel like I was just eating cream.

• The DASH diet promotes low-sodium meals with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. 
• Eggs, oats, whole-wheat toast, and yogurt with fruits or veggies make up a DASH-approved breakfast.
• Wraps, smoothies, overnight oats, and parfaits are great to-go options for a healthy morning meal.

Dietitians have called the DASH, or dietary approaches to stop hypertension, diet one of the healthiest ways to eat. 

It emphasizes foods that are rich in potassium, magnesium, and calcium, and studies have shown that the eating plan may help followers lower their sodium to better regulate their blood pressure. It also emphasizes vegetables, fruits, and whole grains with small portions of low-fat dairy, fish, and poultry. 

Business Insider consulted nutritionists and dietitians to come up with a list of DASH-friendly breakfast ideas packed with protein, vitamins, and healthy fats. 

Avocado toast with salmon and arugula is a protein-packed breakfast idea.

Registered dietitian Rima Kleiner of Dish on Fish shared an elevated twist on classic avocado toast.

She recommended smashing avocado onto a slice or two of whole-wheat toast and topping it with arugula, smoked salmon, and a light drizzle of olive oil.

"This easy bistro-style breakfast provides one to two servings of whole grains and a serving of vegetables, which are both rich in dietary fiber to help lower blood cholesterol levels and provide important nutrients and phytochemicals," she told BI.

Overnight oats are filling and simple to prepare.

Registered dietitian and nutritionist Shena Jaramillo told BI that overnight oats are an easy way to start off a DASH-friendly day of eating. 

"This is a high-fiber food that will help to keep cholesterol in check and provide you with plenty of vitamins and minerals," she said. "Best of all, it's ready when you wake up, and it can be prepared in advance."

Overnight oats can be made with low-fat dairy or nondairy milk, your favorite fruit, and a sprinkle of coconut or chocolate chips. Simply mix uncooked oats with your choice of milk and let the mixture sit in the fridge until the oats are tender.

Clean out your fridge and boost your protein intake with a vegetable omelet.

Whipping up a veggie omelet is a sneaky way to use up leftover produce and start your day with some protein. 

"For this dish, throw in all the leftovers from the fridge. Spinach, onions, bell peppers, and jalapeños are some of my favorites," Jaramillo told BI. "This is a higher-protein food to help keep you full throughout the day."

Along with the protein punch from the eggs, the vegetables in this dish deliver some fiber and micronutrients. 

Start your day on a lighter note with a juicy mango bowl.

Certified nutritionist and skin-health specialist Ann Ramark told BI that a mango bowl may be the perfect breakfast for those who have a sweet tooth. 

She suggested topping thawed-out frozen mango chunks with fresh berries, a scoop of pea protein powder, and a handful of chopped almonds. 

"With this sweet breakfast alternative, you get an extra boost of antioxidants from the fruit and protein from the powder," she said. "The healthy fats from the nuts will also increase the uptake of the antioxidants from the fruit and berries."

Try a Mediterranean sandwich for a grab-and-go DASH breakfast.

If you don't usually have time for a sit-down breakfast, Ramark suggested making a Mediterranean-inspired sandwich with sourdough bread, hummus, bell pepper, tomato, and a few slices of avocado. 

"By choosing a whole-grain bread like sourdough, you're avoiding added sugar and sodium," she told BI. "Hummus is also a great spread with lots of extra fiber, protein, healthy fats, and even extra antioxidants from the chickpeas."

This breakfast can also be cobbled together the night before to keep your morning routine as streamlined as possible. 

A carrot and ginger smoothie is packed with vitamins and flavor.

Carrot and ginger may sound like an odd breakfast combo, but Ramark told BI that the smoothie blend is a great way to load up on fruits and veggies.

To make the smoothie, blend a handful of kale with some chopped carrot, a knob of fresh ginger, some mango chunks, a scoop of protein powder, and a squeeze of lime. Serve it up with a handful of nuts or seeds on top. 

"This is a powerful smoothie with tons of fiber, antioxidants, protein, and healthy fats from the nuts to make sure you get a great nutrient uptake," she said.

Peanut-butter toast topped with berries can keep you full for hours.

Registered nutritionist and dietitian Erica Ingraham told BI that peanut-butter toast made with whole-wheat bread and topped with berries is a fantastic DASH option that's both sweet and savory. 

"This breakfast has all the macronutrients: carbs, protein, and fat," she said. "Nuts contain monounsaturated fats, which are heart-healthy. Fruit is also a good source of fiber. Fiber may also help lower blood pressure and inflammatory markers in some individuals, contributing to a healthy heart."

Vegans may be delighted by this DASH-friendly tofu scramble.

The DASH diet recommends reducing animal products such as meats, cheeses, and butter, and adding in more plant-based foods.

Ingraham told BI she recommends trying a tofu scramble to boost your protein and fiber intake sans animal products.

"Sauté tofu with onions, peppers, greens, mushrooms, or whatever vegetables you have left in your fridge," she said. "This tofu scramble is a great way to get some plant-based protein and an extra few servings of veggies into your day."

Try an egg-white "tortilla" with vegetables for a low-carb morning snack.

Registered dietitian Melissa Nieves told BI that whipping up an egg-white "tortilla" and packing it with veggies is a hearty, low-sodium breakfast option. 

"Eggs are a great source of high-quality protein, which can make for a filling breakfast," she said.

Adding potassium-rich vegetables such as spinach, mushrooms, and broccoli will further help increase your overall daily vegetable intake.

To make the "tortilla," simply separate the yolks from the whites of two to three eggs and allow the whisked whites to cook in a non-stick pan until they are solid enough to flip. Then ladle in as many veggies as you like. 

A granola-and-nut parfait is a healthy and spoonable breakfast treat.

For a heart-healthy meal that comes together in seconds, Nieves recommended loading a cup or so of Greek yogurt with a spoonful of unsweetened granola, chopped fruit, and a handful of nuts such as walnuts or almonds. 

"I like to recommend Greek yogurt over regular yogurt since it's much higher in protein and therefore keeps you fuller for longer," she told BI. "Also, yogurt is full of potassium and calcium, minerals which are necessary for healthy blood pressure and which the DASH diet emphasizes."

A nut butter and yogurt smoothie can keep you full until lunchtime.

Nieves suggested blending up a smoothie that uses a base of low-fat yogurt with a dollop of nut butter and a handful of frozen fruit. 

"Adding nut butter to your smoothie increases the protein content and provides heart-healthy plant-based fats," she said. "Nuts may also help reduce the tightness in blood vessels, which contributes to high blood pressure."

Smoothies have the added bonus of being super easy to make, and you can even batch-prepare the ingredients and freeze until ready to use.

Mix chia seeds with dairy or plant milk for a satisfying morning pudding.

Registered dietitian Madeline McDonough told BI that chia pudding is a surprisingly easy and filling DASH-approved breakfast.

"Chia seeds are rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats as well as insoluble fiber," she said. "If you're making your own at home, you can opt for a low-fat milk or milk alternative as the base and top with your favorite fruit or nut butter for the perfect DASH breakfast."

Add cinnamon to your chia pudding for some sugar-free sweetness, or sprinkle on some fruit for an additional boost of vitamins.

This story was originally published in January 2020 and most recently updated on January 8, 2025.

Read More:

• I followed the Mediterranean diet for a week, and I get why it's so popular
• 5 of the biggest drawbacks of the Whole30 diet
• 8 of the best ways to eat eggs on the go
• I always skip breakfast, but eating it for a week changed my snacking habits for the better

• 2024 was a good year for many of the industry's biggest quant names.
• Players like Renaissance Technologies and Marshall Wace returned more than 20%.
• Cliff Asness's AQR also had a big year, with its multistrategy Apex fund returning more than 15%.

Much like their peers in the multistrategy world, quant hedge funds had a strong 2024.

Algorithm-driven trading firms mostly delivered double-digit returns across different quant strategy types, including "quantamental" funds that blend systematic and human-run qualities into one and trend-following offerings. However, most of these funds failed to match the S&P 500's 23% gain.

In 2024, the biggest and oldest names in computer-run hedge funds led the way, such as Renaissance Technologies, the firm founded by the late billionaire Jim Simons.

The firm's two main funds available to investors — Renaissance Institutional Equities Fund and Renaissance Institutional Diversified Alpha — were up 22.7% and 15.6%, a person close to the manager told Business Insider. Of course, the manager's legendary Medallion fund, which now runs around $12 billion of internal capital, performed even better with a 30% return, Simons' biographer and Wall Street Journal reporter Gregory Zuckerman said in a Linkedin post.

In the UK, longtime strategies for $70.9 billion Marshall Wace and $13.1 billion Winton Group had good years. Marshall Wace's TOPS fund, an alpha-capture pioneer that systematically evaluates ideas and research from humans to create its portfolio, made 22.7%, according to a person close to the London-based firm. The all-quant multistrategy Winton Fund was up 10.3% last year, a person familiar with the firm told BI.

French quant firm Capital Fund Management, which is expanding its US presence, made 14.2% in its Stratus fund, which manages roughly $11.8 billion. The firm overall runs $16.7 billion across its half-dozen strategies, all of which were up double-digits in 2024, a person close to the firm said.

Cliff Asness's AQR meanwhile made 17.9% in its $2.5 billion trend-following Helix fund, a firm spokesperson told BI. The manager's $2.3 billion multistrategy fund, Apex, returned 15.1% on the year.

Graham Management was also up, returning 11.9% in its quantamental fund known as Proprietary Matrix while its trend-following option returned 6.7%, according to a person close to the Connecticut-based manager with $20 billion in assets.

But these managers have no time to rest. Artificial intelligence advancements have firms racing to build out systems and teams to better their processes. A new fund from OpenAI alum Leopold Aschenbrenner has the backing of Stripe's founders and former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman and is "focused on" a type of AI that would match human intelligence.

"The industry is experiencing an information arms race with respect to how much information can be gathered and how quickly it can be processed," a new release from Don Steinbrugge, an industry consultant who runs Agecroft Partners, reads.

"Information advantages are often short-lived, and many managers will continue investing in a host of new technologies."

More firms' performance figures will be added as they are learned.