Mind-bending Medicine, More Shortages & Brexit 💊

In September, researchers at Johns Hopkins University received funding from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to investigate whether psilocybin could help people quit cigarettes. The DEA also recently proposed increasing the nationwide availability of psilocybin from 30 grams to 1,500 grams.

Startups in Psychedelics 

In anticipation of looser regulations, there’s a burgeoning psychedelic health care industry. Field Trip, a Canadian startup, is so confident in the promise of these drugs that it’s building 75 centers for psychedelic therapy over the next three years. There are another 31 publicly traded firms focused on psychedelics, and at least 18 more private ones, according to the psychedelics industry tracker Psilocybin Alpha. Venture capitalists, including Peter Thiel, have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into these companies.

This potentially revolutionary approach to mental health also represents a tremendous commercial opportunity for health care and pharmaceutical companies.

Did you think the U.S. is the only country facing labor shortages and unprecedented resignations? 

It seems UK is facing a similar labor crisis. 

The country has a record-high number of unfilled jobs—there were more than 1.1 million job vacancies in July through September of this year—and businesses blame the messy divorce from the EU.

While the UK government has tried to play down Brexit’s impact on staffing shortages, one in four businesses struggling to hire said that a reduced number of EU applicants was a factor, the UK Office for National Statistics reported. In the transport and storage sector, almost half (46%) said it was a factor.

Not only has the number of single adults in the U.S. ballooned since 1990, so has the gulf in economic fortunes between single and partnered individuals. 

A recent study by the Pew Research Center found that while single men fared the worst financially, partnered women made the biggest money gains.

The percentage of un-partnered Americans between 25 and 54 increased to 38% in 2019 from 29% in 1990. Single men saw their earnings drop 4% during this period, while the median wage for women living alone ticked down 0.9%. 

The earning outcomes were rosier for individuals living with a partner or spouse, with wages for partnered men growing by 7% and wages for partnered women jumping by 48% since 1990. 

The study also showed that in 2019, 73% of un-partnered men were employed, versus 91% of partnered men, 77% of single women, and 74% of partnered women. Single men are the least likely to have attained a bachelor's degree among the four groups, and 31% live with at least one parent.

• Post-Brexit Repite - The EU will reduce post-Brexit checks on goods/medicines arriving into Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK.
   
• Tips From Kevin O'leary - The Shark Tank judge says small businesses will benefit big time by investing in AI and cloud infrastructure to increase DTC sales. 
   
• IMF Forecasts - The IMF cut global growth estimates to 5.9% this year and 4.9% in 2022. It also cut estimates for the U.S., UK, Germany, Canada, China and Japan.  
   
• Travelling with Guns - A record number of Americans are trying to carry loaded guns on planes. In 2021, the TSA seized 4,500 guns. 
   
• Inequitable Wealth - The wealthiest 10% of Americans own 89% of all U.S. stocks - according to latest data from the Federal Reserve. 
   
• Her Personal Meteorite - A woman in Canada was awoken by a meteorite crashing into her bedroom. She plans to keep the rock.