SVB Fallout, Florida Red Tide, and Moon Beauty Filters

Bank Run Fallout (Cont.) 

President Joe Biden told Americans to have confidence in the US banking system yesterday after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank over the last week, calling on Congress and bank regulators to strengthen regulations for financial institutions. 

The government said bank fees will cover the losses rather than taxpayers' money and investors would not be protected, but customers would have immediate access to their deposits. The Federal Reserve also established a lending facility for US banks to protect them against financial risks stemming from SVB's collapse.

Despite the government's assurances, stock prices fell at midsize and regional banks that cater to startups and the tech industry, including First Republic (-60%) and Western Alliance (-45%). 

Separately, London-based bank HSBC acquired SVB's UK business for 1 pound to protect $8B in deposits for UK customers. SVB operates in Europe, Canada, Israel, and India, and has a joint venture in China.

Silicon Valley Bank's collapse is the second largest since the 2008 financial crisis. See bank failures in the US since 2001 here.

Bike Path Attacker Sentenced

An Islamic extremist convicted of killing eight people in an attack on a Manhattan bike path in October 2017 was automatically sentenced to life in prison without parole yesterday after a federal jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision on his punishment. The deadlock means prosecutors were unable to impose the death penalty on the 35-year-old attacker, who sped a truck onto a bike path. 

The federal jury in January found Sayfullo Saipov, an Uzbekistan citizen, guilty of 28 charges, including murder in aid of racketeering and supporting a terrorist organization. Prosecutors said he drove a rented truck into bicyclists on a path along the Hudson River, before crashing into a school bus and being shot by police. Five tourists from Argentina, two Americans, and a Belgian woman were killed in the attack. 

Federal executions have been paused under the Biden administration while the Justice Department reviews the death penalty policy, but prosecutors have been allowed to push for capital punishment in cases inherited from previous administrations.

Gulf Coast Red Tide

Florida's southwestern Gulf Coast has seen a flare-up in harmful algal blooms known as "red tides" in recent weeks, posing health risks to vacationers and harm to wildlife. It's the area's worst series of blooms since 2018, which was the most severe event in 70 years (see chart).

Known for their reddish-brown color, red tides in Florida result from the rapid multiplication of toxic algae Karenia brevis (see explainer). Typically, red tides manifest in the fall amid warmer, nutrient-rich waters and dissipate by December. In severe events, red tide can aggravate preexisting respiratory issues in humans while causing significant loss of marine life. 

Close to 90 Gulf Coast samples registered concentrations of red tide in recent days, or at least 100,000 algal cells per liter of water; several areas passed 1 million (see map). In Pinellas County, authorities had to clear tons of dead algae-stricken fish from the shore in the last week. See aerial photos of the phenomenon here.

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In-Depth

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ESPN | Justin Heckert. How nostalgia about the greatness of Michael Jordan caused a ticket from No. 23's first game with the Chicago Bulls to fetch one of the highest prices ever paid in history for a sporting event item. (Read)

US cities where rental apartment sizes are shrinking.

How the internet came to be. 

US presidents depicted as wrestlers. (via Twitter)

The best St. Patrick's Day parades in the US.

... and see photos of the annual Chicago green river dye.

Watch the trailer for the live-action "The Little Mermaid." 

Tasty pizza deals for Pi Day. 

The government's case for better crash dummies.

Clickbait: Samsung caught putting filters on photos of the moon.

Historybook: Eli Whitney patents cotton gin (1794); Albert Einstein born (1879); Stephen Curry born (1988); Seven-time Olympic medalist Simone Biles born (1997); Stephen Hawking dies (2018).