🐤 (Not) Leaving Las Vegas

🏦 Markets: Wall Street experienced some pretty heavy losses throughout the day on Wednesday, led by the tech sector and Microsoft’s reports of slower-than-expected growth. By the time the closing bell rang, however, most of the market’s losses had been reversed.

The Dow Jones and S&P 500 finished the day down just 0.1% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fared only slightly worse, dipping about 0.3%.

💥 Tanks a lot: Although critics have expressed concerns about escalating tensions with Russia, the Biden administration confirmed this week that the U.S. will be sending roughly 30 Abrams tanks and a number of other military vehicles to Ukraine as early as this week. The move comes after Germany asserted that it would only supply its Leopard 2 tanks if America agreed to send tanks of its own. Although the U.S. has sent a significant amount of money and other resources to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion nearly a year ago, it has heretofore rejected calls to provide certain equipment — including tanks. In addition to fears that the shipment could cause Russia to expand its military offensive, there is also some uncertainty about the level of training Ukrainian forces will need in order to effectively operate the complex machines.

🤑 Major coin: Digital currency exchange platform Coinbase will soon be parting ways with its chief product officer, and Surojit Chatterjee will be exiting the company with a massive compensation package. He has indicated that he’ll be leaving next month after serving just three years of a five-year contract, citing the need to spend more time with his family. On his way out of the door, he’ll be roughly $105 million richer based on the sale of company stocks. Chatterjee will also retain nearly 250,000 shares which, at its current stock value, is worth about $7.5 million. Since joining the company in 2020, he has already reportedly made roughly $115 million.

👶 Hilton expansion: Socialite Paris Hilton announced the birth of her first child this week, sharing the news in an Instagram post revealing her hand holding the newborn’s hand alongside the caption: “You are already loved beyond words.” The hotel heiress married businessman Carter Reum in 2021 and their son was reportedly born via surrogate. A number of her celebrity pals celebrated along with her, including posts from supermodel Naomi Campbell, actress Lindsay Lohan, and longtime friend Kim Kardashian, who wrote: “So happy for you guys!!!” Hilton did not reveal the baby’s name.

🐕 Top dog: You might be familiar with annual lists of the nation’s top baby names, but did you know that the American Kennel Club compiles similar data about dogs. For 2022, the group revealed the most popular names for male and female canines. Topping the list for female dogs are Luna, Bella, Daisy, Lucy, Willow, Penny, Sadie, Maggie, Rosie, and Ruby. Among male dogs, Max tops the list, followed by Milo, Cooper, Charlie, Teddy, Tucker, Buddy, Bear, Rocky, and Leo. Gina DiNardo of the AKC noted that some of the names reflect a particular attitude, adding: “It’s fun to see if a dog’s personality is reflected in its name.”

If you were asked to list the most desirable states in the United States, there’s a good chance Hawaii would be near the top. Its picturesque environment, rich cultural history, and beautiful weather are just a few of the reasons that it’s a tourist hotspot.

When it comes to living there, however, things can become unaffordable quickly.

Here’s how expensive it’s become

Considering the need to ship most supplies from the mainland, the cost of food and consumer goods has always been more expensive in Hawaii than almost anywhere else in the U.S.

In recent years, however, the cost of housing has escalated precipitously.

A few statistics will put the crisis in perspective:

• The median cost of a home is higher than $900,000 statewide — and tops $1 million on Oahu.
• Residents pay an average of more than 42% of their income for rent. California is a distant second at under 28.5%.
• A full-time worker would need to make roughly $18 per hour to afford necessities, but the state minimum wage is just $12.

Locals are increasingly moving away

Faced with the prospect of being priced out of the state they love, natives like Kona Purdy are making the tough decision to leave Hawaii behind. Like many others in the same situation, his family decided to move to a suburb of Las Vegas, Nevada.

The relatively low cost of living and vibrant Pacific Islander culture has made Clark County, which includes Las Vegas, the site of the biggest population growth of Native Hawaiians.

Purdy ultimately realized he couldn’t stay away forever, though, and moved his family back to Hawaii, explaining: “It’s a grind, it’s hard, it’s really expensive. But I also feel like we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be right now.”

We all mess up sometimes, and it’s a good idea to be honest when it happens. This often involves saying “I’m sorry” to someone, though, and that can be a tricky proposition for many people.

That’s why the authors of a new book — “Sorry, Sorry, Sorry: The Case for Good Apologies” — have compiled a short list of pointers to help you express your mea culpa in a heartfelt way.

• Be specific: Instead of beating around the bush, say what you really mean. Don’t use equivocal language in order to mitigate your responsibility. Own it and express exactly why you’re sorry so the recipient of your apology knows you understand what you did.
• Make an offer: If there’s some way you can make up for what you did, put it on the table. The other person might say it’s not necessary, but making a genuine gesture of goodwill can go a long way toward putting any hard feelings to rest.
• Signal change: In many cases, someone on the receiving end of an apology just wants to know that the other person has learned his or her lesson. Vowing not to do it again can be a good first step, but don’t hesitate to dig deeper and provide a list of steps you’re willing to take to back up your promise.

The book also includes a list of words that you shouldn’t use in your apology, such as “regret.”

Although you might be regretful when expressing an apology, they say that using the word instead of “sorry” can send the wrong message.

As co-author Marjorie Ingall explained: “Regret is about how I feel. We’re all regretful. ‘Sorry’ is about how the other person feels. And when you apologize, you have to keep the other person’s feelings at top of mind.”

The space exploration industry is in a boom period as companies compete to create exciting new products and technology. For one such startup firm, the primary goal is to become the first-ever mining company to target asteroids.

A group effort

Although California-based AstroForge is busy preparing to dig deep into extraterrestrial rocks, it is starting off with a slightly less ambitious mission. First, the company is planning two launches before the end of the year that will provide important observations of an asteroid hurtling through space.

AstroForge was only created last year but has already raised about $13 million in funding. It is also working with other space industry companies — OrbAstro, Dawn Aerospace, and Intuitive Machines, for example — to put its lofty plans into action.

The first mission is set to launch in April on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and will test the company’s mining equipment. About six months later, the firm will shoot for a destination about 22 million miles away from Earth in an attempt to observe an asteroid like the ones it hopes to eventually mine.

A search for riches

Just like mining operations on our own planet, the goal of AstroForge is to mine for potentially valuable resources that could be found in much greater quantity on certain asteroids.

One such space rock packed with metals like palladium, gold, or platinum result in an operation worth trillions of dollars.

While previous long-shot plans regarding deep-space mining have been dismissed as unfeasible or simply too expensive, AstroForge believes it can find a way to do it. Furthermore, CEO Matt Gialich says he thinks asteroid mining will soon be a necessity.

“With a finite supply of precious metals on Earth, we have no other choice than to look to deep space to source cost-effective and sustainable materials.”