Opening Day, Naloxone, and the Movement of Snails

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US-Taiwanese Relations

China is threatening to retaliate if House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R, CA-20) meets next week with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen in Los Angeles—one of two US cities bookending Tsai's 10-day overseas trip. The tentative meeting was rebuked by Chinese officials yesterday, who view such visits as a provocation and de facto recognition of Taiwan's sovereignty (see background). 

Beijing views the self-ruling island as part of China, while Taiwan maintains its independence. The US has long adopted an ambiguous policy, which analysts say may be increasingly untenable as China becomes more assertive in the region.

The trip comes days after Honduras cut ties with Taiwan and established diplomatic relations with China, leaving Taiwan with only 13 countries that recognize it as a sovereign state. Tsai is set to transit through New York today on her way to Guatemala and Belize before meeting McCarthy and other Republican members of Congress in Los Angeles April 5 on her return to Taiwan. 

Opening Day 2023 

The 2023 Major League Baseball season begins today, with all 30 teams playing their first game on Opening Day for the first time since 1968 (see schedule). The sport has undergone several major rule changes analysts expect will have significant impact on the game.

The most visible change is the adoption of a pitch clock, where pitchers must throw the ball within a certain timeframe. The clock, combined with a limit on pitcher throws to first base, is expected to shorten games by roughly 20 minutes on average while boosting base-stealing attempts. Bases have been enlarged by three square inches (see photo), reducing the distance between bases by 4.5 inches. Additionally, certain defensive shifts—where infielders take positions based on a batter's hitting tendencies—have been banned, a move expected to benefit hitters. See a full rule breakdown here.

Defending champion Houston Astros are the betting favorites to win the World Series, followed closely by the Yankees, Dodgers, and Braves. 

Over-the-Counter Naloxone

The Federal Drug Administration approved the drug naloxone for over-the-counter sale yesterday; a move health officials hope will help slow the rise of opioid-related overdose deaths across the US. The drug will be available under the brand name Narcan, a nasal spray-based formulation, by late summer. 

Opioid overdoses occur when the brain's opioid receptors are flooded, depressing the central nervous system to the point where breathing slows or ceases (see overview, w/video). Naloxone is an opioid antagonist, blocking the drugs from attaching to the receptors—an effect that allows it to rapidly reverse the effects of an overdose. A study in Massachusetts found more than 90% of overdoses were successfully reversed when the drug was administered by emergency responders.    

The previous eight years have seen fatal overdose rates surge, doubling to more than 100,000 since 2015. Visualize the three waves of the opioid crisis here.

Science & Technology

Business & Markets

Politics & World Affairs

In-Depth

> Dangers of Fentanyl 

The Hill | Rafael Bernal, Rebecca Beitsch. The rise of fentanyl, a deadly opioid drug, is causing tensions to escalate between the US and Mexico, posing challenges for law enforcement on both sides of the border. (Read)

> The Deep Time Movement of Snails

MIT Press Reader | Thom van Dooren. What examining millions of years of snail biogeography and evolution can teach us about how these slow-moving, sedentary organisms disperse themselves across vast distances. (Read)

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