April 8, 2022

"Plastics." This is both a famous quote from The Graduate and an answer to the question, "What's hiding in your lungs?" Yep, you can read more below about the discovery of microplastics in humans. Now all of Beverly Hills is wondering, "Wait... we're not the only ones with plastic in us?"

Many of you have requested that we do a "would you rather" version of 20 Questions. Well, you left us with no choice. Answers to Max@RocaNews.com!

― Key Stories

Welcome, Zuck Bucks
Overview

• Meta is considering creating a digital currency for the metaverse
• Users would be able to use it for in-app purchases. The bucks would likely be a centrally controlled currency rather than a blockchain-based crypto
• Meta is also considering "social" and "creator" tokens, which would reward people who meaningfully contribute to Meta platforms, as well as providing financial services, including loans for businesses
• Meta has been looking for new revenue streams since changes to Apple's iOS made data collection harder and its ads less effective

New Supreme Court Justice Approved
Overview

• The US Senate voted 53-47 to approve Ketanji Brown Jackson's nomination to the Supreme Court
• President Biden nominated Jackson to succeed Justice Stephen Breyer, who will retire once the Court's session ends in June or July
• Jackson will join the Court's liberal wing, maintaining its current 6 conservative - 3 liberal split. Justices are appointed for life
• Jackson will be the first black woman on the Supreme Court

Microplastics Infiltrate Our Lungs
Overview

• Researchers identified microplastics in living human lungs for the first time
• Microplastics are tiny plastic particles that are generated as larger plastics degrade into smaller ones
• The plastics were found in 11 of 13 samples taken from people as they underwent lung surgery. Most common were polypropylene, from plastic packaging and pipes, and PET, which comes from bottles
• The plastics' health impacts are unknown, but the researchers said they were surprised to find them: "We would have expected particles of these sizes to be filtered out...before getting this deep"

Dinosaur Fossils from Asteroid Day
Overview

• Scientists believe they have found the first dinosaur fossils dating to the time of the asteroid that caused the dinosaurs to go extinct
• That asteroid is believed to have struck 66M years ago off the tip of modern-day Mexico. The fossils were found 1,864 miles (3,000km) away from the crash site, in North Dakota
• A debate among scientists is whether the dinosaurs died on the day the asteroid struck, or soon after
• Scientists also found fish that had inhaled impact debris. Until now, there have been few fossils dated to even within thousands of years of the strike

See yesterday's answers below!

  Popcorn

Culture & Sports 

• The New York Times announced a Twitter "reset" via a memo on Thursday, saying it's "purely optional" but discouraging excessive use
• Go get 'em Tiger: Tiger Woods winning the Masters would be an "all-time" disaster for Vegas sportsbooks, according to Caesars
• The actress who wore the red coat in Schindler's List (the only color in the whole film) is now 32 and helping Ukrainian refugees enter Poland

• No country for poor truckers: Walmart said its truck drivers will now make between $95,000 and $110,000 in their first year
• Bezos Lightyear: Amazon will help build the private space hotel "Orbital Reef" which is slated to open to tourists in 2030
• PayPal founder and top venture investor Peter Thiel called Warren Buffett a "sociopathic grandpa from Omaha" at a bitcoin conference

• Let's get back in the car-avaggio: A villa in Rome with the only ceiling fresco ever painted by Caravaggio failed to sell again
• A California woman claims that she won her $10M lottery prize after a stranger bumped into her and caused her to push the wrong button
• Skinny as a skyscraper: The world's skinniest skyscraper has been completed in New York City. Its height-to-width ratio is 24:1
• A rabid fox that bit 9 people, including a congressman, on Capitol Hill in DC has been caught and euthanized by authorities

― 20 Questions

 Games

1. 221B Baker St., London
2. 31 Spooner Street, Quahog, Rhode Island
3. 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey
4. 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C.

 Roca Clubhouse

Yesterday's Poll:

Yesterday's Question:

― Final Thoughts