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Shumita Basu, Narrating: Good morning! It's Wednesday, November 29th. I'm Shumita Basu. This is “Apple News Today.” On today's show…
Remembering former First Lady Rosalynn Carter's impact on mental healthcare…
The Supreme Court case that could transform government regulation…
And the growing controversy over bowling pins.
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But first, let's take a quick look at some other stories in the news.
There are high-level talks underway to further extend the pause in fighting in Gaza. Top intelligence officials from Israel and the U.S. have been meeting in Qatar to discuss what a deal could look like. Qatar has been in touch with Hamas throughout the process of hostage and prisoner swaps. If there's no new deal, today is set to be the last day of the six-day truce.
In climate news, a potentially game-changing flight is in the history books. For the first time, a commercial plane flew across the Atlantic without using fossil fuels. The Virgin Atlantic test flight from London to New York landed yesterday. It was powered by fuel made from recycled fats and plant sugars. The airline says this mix emits 70% less carbon than typical jet fuel. Aviation experts say it's a milestone, but we're still far away from offering regular flights with sustainable fuel.
And American life expectancy is rebounding from a dip during the pandemic, though it's still below pre-pandemic numbers. Early “CDC” data for 2022 shows a 1.1-year increase in life expectancy. That adds up to an expected lifespan of 77.5 years in the U.S.
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The funeral for former First Lady Rosalynn Carter is today. It's at the same church where Jimmy Carter taught Sunday school for decades, in their hometown of Plains, Georgia. Yesterday the 99-year-old former president made a rare public appearance at his wife's memorial service. He used a wheelchair and had a blanket across his lap embroidered with her portrait. Over the years, he has said his greatest achievement in life was not winning the presidency, or the Nobel Peace Prize. It was their marriage.
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Former President Carter: Well, the best thing I ever did was marrying Rosalynn. That's the pinnacle of my life.
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Mourners are remembering the impact Rosalynn Carter had. One of her signature issues was mental health. Today, the healthcare system has gotten better at emphasizing both mental and physical wellbeing. And more people realize that it's both good and important to talk openly about mental health. But that wasn't always the case, and Rosalynn Carter played a major role in changing the conversation.
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Rosalynn Carter: We must act now to ensure that another generation does not suffer needlessly. Today we have a great opportunity to change things forever for everyone with mental illness. The solutions are truly within our reach.
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Over the years she fought for better funding for mental-health treatment. And she worked to make sure that people who needed help wouldn't be ashamed to ask. Eve Byrd, director of mental-health programs for the Carter Center, spoke to “NPR.”
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Eve Byrd: I think what sets her apart is that she recognized the stigma, and really more so the discriminatory behaviors that come from that stigma.
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A former president of the American Psychiatric Association told “NPR,” Carter deserves credit for increasing federal funding for research on mental illnesses. There are also stronger rules for insurance coverage of mental-health care. And now, anyone experiencing a mental-health emergency can call 988 for free support.
Carter was vocal for the causes she cared about. But much like her husband, fairly modest when talking about herself. The memorial service included a quote from her, on how she wanted to be remembered. She said, simply, "I would like for people to think that I took advantage of my opportunities and did the best I could."
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The Supreme Court is hearing arguments today in a case with major implications for the way government agencies function.
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The case is Securities and Exchange Commission vs. Jarkesy. The SEC fined investor George Jarkesy for misconduct, securities fraud. He sued, saying that the SEC's process against him was unconstitutional, that Congress never had the authority to empower the SEC to act independently in the first place. And if he's successful in making this argument, the impact could be huge. NYU Law Professor, Noah Rosenblum, argues in the Atlantic that the case could change the way all independent government agencies operate.
Noah Rosenblum: The consequences will be dramatic and will ratify almost immediately. Agency lawyers, law professors, and politicians will have to spend a lot of time explaining why those agencies are really different from the SEC.
Rosenblum says Jarkesy's argument is built on a "fringe" legal theory, that there are limits on the powers that Congress can give to independent agencies.
Rosenblum: That includes agencies like the Food and Drug Administration, the Social Security Administration, the folks who inspect our borders. So, it's a huge range of government activity, all of which is bound by the same kinds of rules that the Supreme Court is considering in this one question about the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Rosenblum says, even though the technicalities are hard to follow for non-lawyers, this is a case all of us should watch closely.
Rosenblum: The underlying issue is not very complicated. It's just about whether the government should be allowed to operate according to the rules that it has followed for as long as anyone can remember.
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We're going to close with a story about technology's impact on a sport, how it works, and how it sounds.
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[BOWLING PINS BEING KNOCKED OVER BY A BOWLING BALL]
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That is the sound bowlers aim for: a nice clean crashing of the pins. But if you're a super avid bowler, you might be able to hear something a little different there. Those pins were attached to strings. So, once they get knocked down, they don't go flying all over the place - it's like watching a puppet crumple to the floor and then spring back up when the puppeteer pulls the strings. It's a cheaper and more efficient way to manage lanes than using old-school mechanical pinsetters.
The “L.A. Times” looks at how this technology is very controversial for serious bowlers. They say it leads to lower scores. And to make things worse, they say you miss out on that explosive sound.
Bowling popularity in America has declined sharply since an earlier heyday in the 1960s. In order to lower costs, and to keep more alleys open, the U.S. Bowling Congress - which is a real group - is supporting this shift to stringed pins. It recently certified them for tournaments and league play.
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<v The bowling congress commissioned research that found no statistical difference in scores between the two different kinds of pinsetters. But many bowlers are not convinced. And they're having trouble with that sound thing. With the new pins, it's like hearing a drum roll without the crashing cymbal at the end. As for the boss of the bowling congress, he thinks lowering costs using technology is good for the sport. He says>"All bowling is good bowling."
You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you're already listening in the News app right now, stick around.
We've got a Narrated Article coming up next from “The New Yorker.” It looks at school shootings from a very unusual viewpoint: the sister of a person who attacked a school 25 years ago.
If you're listening in the Podcasts app, follow Apple News+ Narrated to find that story. And I'll be back with the news tomorrow.
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