Innholdsfortegnelse for January 03-17, 2025 i Newsweek

CALIFORNIA AIMS TO OFFER 100 percent zero-carbon energy by 2045—which some might joke is also the date when the rooftop solar panel you ordered this year will get installed. Red tape, high costs and an aging grid...will the challenges to the state’s green dream render it a waking nightmare? In September 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Clean Energy, Jobs, and Affordability Act of that year into law, an ambitious program introduced to the state legislature requiring zero-carbon sources to provide 90 percent of the state’s energy by 2035 and the 100 percent target in 2045. Achieving these milestones requires a dramatic ramp-up of clean energy production, with natural gas still accounting for 39 percent of Californian in-state electricity generation in 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.…

ANDREA MCCARTHY TOLD FRIENDS and family when she gave up alcohol on January 1, 2024, that she would toast 12 months off the sauce with a drink to ring in 2025. As that anniversary approached, the Los Angeles-born content creator told Newsweek she had had a change of heart. “At the beginning, if you asked me, I would have said, ‘At midnight, I’m having a shot at tequila to celebrate not having a drink for the entire year.’ But now that I’ve gotten to an entire year, I couldn’t think of anything worse than drinking,” McCarthy said. “The feeling that I thought I would get for not drinking for an entire year in terms of my mental clarity, my physical health, like, everything—it is exactly what I thought. It feels…

FOR MORE THAN A CENTURY, the genetic secrets behind the vibrant orange coats of ginger cats and the intricate patterns of tortoise-shells have puzzled scientists and cat enthusiasts alike. Now, two studies have finally identified the genetic key to this mystery, solving a puzzle first theorized in 1912. The studies, conducted independently by Japanese and American research teams, have pinpointed the gene responsible for orange coat coloration in cats: ARH-GAP36, informally dubbed the “orange” gene. This discovery not only confirms a 112-year-old hypothesis, but also sheds light on a new biological pathway involved in pigmentation. In 1912, American geneticist Clarence Cook Little proposed a visionary idea linking coat color inheritance in cats to the X chromosome. His theory suggested that orange coat color was controlled by a variant on the…

High winds and rolling waves batter a lighthouse in East Sussex on December 18 as the wet U.K. winter sets in. Last March, it was reported England had experienced its wettest 18 months since records began in 1836, with climate change exacerbating weather around the world. Last summer was the warmest on record globally, surpassing records set in 2023, and 2025 looks set to be a hot one, too. according to Met Office, the u.K.’s weather and climate service, the average global temperature for 2025 will be between 34.32 and 34.75 degrees Fahrenheit above the average for the pre-industrial period (1850-1900), before fossil fuels started being burned at scale.…

BABY BOOMERS WHO ENJOYED watching equity in their homes rise over recent decades are facing a new retirement problem: accessible and affordable homes in which to age. Millions of Americans born before 1964 have benefited from skyrocketing house prices. But now, due to a glut of unfavorable conditions in the U.S. housing market, they are “aging in place” in their current homes—a trend likely to affect younger generations. According to a recent Redfin study, 78 percent of boomers plan to stay put for retirement. And a 2022 Redfin report found that empty-nest boomers take up 28.2 percent of all “large homes”—three bedrooms or more—compared with 14.2 percent of millennials, who are more likely to have children still living at home. Downsizing into a home designed with retirement in mind seems…

AS COMPANIES IN THE UNITED STATES CONTINUE TO navigate the evolving dynamics of the workplace, diversity remains a cornerstone of organizational success and social responsibility. Many employers are fostering environments that include people from a wide spectrum of backgrounds, age groups, races, genders and sexual orientations. This commitment to diversity is good for business. Research suggests nearly 80 percent of U.S. workers believe it’s important for companies to foster an inclusive culture. Diversity also plays a crucial role in attracting and retaining talent as people, particularly younger generations, look to join and stay at companies where they feel seen and valued. However, as diversity becomes a buzzword, it can be challenging for job seekers, customers, employees and potential business partners to distinguish which companies truly walk the talk. Newsweek and Plant-A…

THE SUDDEN DOWNFALL OF LONGTIME SYR-ian President Bashar al-Assad at the hands of a rapid rebel offensive has brought a dramatic turn to Syria’s nearly 14-year civil war. While opponents of the ousted government are elated, there are also deep-rooted concerns for the many uncertainties that lie ahead. Now all eyes are on the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, group—a former Al-Qaeda affiliate—and its charismatic leader, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, as questions arise as to his willingness and capacity to come through on promises to eschew extremism and oversee a more prosperous and inclusive future for Syria. However, new front lines are already being drawn. Fears are mounting of a fight along the lines of control between the insurgent coalition and the United States-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-led faction…

WALGREENS IS PREPARING TO SHUTTER 1,200 stores as Amazon Pharmacy gears up to launch in 20 new cities. The two retail giants are each promising customers a new pharmacy experience, but they have different ideas of what it should look like. It’s been a tough 12 months for Walgreens and its drugstore-chain competitors. Walgreens shares have fallen nearly 70 percent, and the company is exploring a deal with private-equity firm Sycamore Partners that could complete early 2025. On the company’s October earnings call, Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth announced plans to close roughly 14 percent of locations over the next three years—adding to the hundreds of stores already slashed by each Rite Aid and CVS. Amid these closures, some pharmacies are promising big on delivery. On October 9, Amazon Pharmacy said…