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  • ‘It’s So Fun and Freeing to Take Up This Much Space’: Louisa Jacobson on Her Breakout Year

    ‘It’s So Fun and Freeing to Take Up This Much Space’: Louisa Jacobson on Her Breakout Year

    The day that Louisa Jacobson and I are scheduled to chat over Zoom is a big one, for both New York and Jacobson herself. We’re meeting on the second day of a record-breaking heatwave, the culminating week of Pride Month, and, as it happens, the one-year anniversary of Jacobson publicly coming out. The third season of HBO’s The Gilded Age, in which Jacobson plays Marian Brook, a doe-eyed newcomer to late-1800s Manhattan high society, premiered a few days prior. And the night before, Zohran Mamdani clinched a historic victory over former governor Andrew Cuomo in New York City’s mayoral primary.

    “I ranked Zohran as number one,” says Jacobson. “So, yay…I’m really excited. It’s a very cool breakthrough moment in New York politics.”

    Mamdani’s win also coincided with the American premiere of Trophy Boys—a play written by Emmanuelle Mattana and directed by Danya Taymor—off-Broadway, at MCC Theatre. In it, Jacobson and the rest of the AFAB cast don drag to play an all-boys senior debate team as they prepare to face their sister school in the final battle of their high school careers. The task? Arguing the affirmative for the prompt that “feminism has failed women.”

    “The opportunity during Pride Month to be doing drag and doing a show like this is so cool,” says Jacobson. “And to investigate gender as performance and dive-deep into exploring the more masculine parts of myself, as well.” She also notes that this kind of drag is the reverse of what is usually represented in popular culture. “We don’t see it as often as we see queens, you know? I think it’s less digestible. I think people don’t always understand how to receive it…So I think we were batting up a little bit with that, but it’s been really fun.”

    Even as it navigates themes of privilege, toxic masculinity, and the nuances of sexual assault allegations, the play still manages to feel boisterous and campy. It even has one horny dance break, in which all the boys gyrate to Pretty Ricky’s 2005 hit “Grind With Me”—making literal the already effectively masturbatory nature of their debate. As the quartet humps chairs, doms desks, and spanks the air, it’s clear their intellectualizing is merely a coping mechanism for that specific, liminal teen space of extreme lust exacerbated by a maddening lack of experience.


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  • SPIE signs an agreement for the acquisition of SD Fiber

    Cergy, July 1st 2025 – SPIE, the independent European leader in multi-technical services in the areas of energy and communications, announces the signing of an agreement for the acquisition of SD Fiber, which will strengthen the Group’s FttX expertise in Switzerland and southern Germany. 

    Strengthening FttX expertise in Switzerland and southern Germany

     

    SD Fiber is a specialist in the deployment of fiber optic networks to the street (FTTS), to the building (FTTB) and to the home (FTTH). The Company offers turnkey solutions covering the entire value chain, from planning and installation to commissioning, maintenance and troubleshooting. In addition, SD Fiber is active in the field of smart metering as it installs digital electricity meters, which are a key enabler of intelligent energy consumption management.

    Headquarters in Dietikon, in the Canton of Zurich, SD Fiber operates in both Switzerland and Germany and employs approximately 340 people. The company generated revenue of c.70 million euros in 2024.  

    “With SD Fiber’s expertise, we are expanding our service offering in an attractive market. Fiber optic expansion is crucial for tomorrow’s digital infrastructure. SD Fiber is very well positioned, both technically and operationally, and relies on a highly skilled and dedicated team. We are very much looking forward to working together.”, says Pierre Savoy, CEO of SPIE Switzerland, Member of the Management Board of SPIE Germany Switzerland Austria. 

    “We are pleased to welcome the 340 experts from SD Fiber to SPIE. With SD Fiber, we are gaining a very well positioned company with strong FttX expertise. This strengthens our presence in both Switzerland and southern Germany. SD Fiber’s expertise in smart metering is also highly relevant as it is a forward-looking field with significant growth potential. We are excited about our future together.” adds Markus Holzke, CEO of SPIE Germany Switzerland Austria.  

    “SD Fiber is becoming part of SPIE and we are very excited about this next step. Since our founding, we have been committed to delivering projects efficiently, with strong technical expertise and in a customer-focused way. We look forward to contributing our know-how and shaping the future together in Switzerland and southern Germany”, says Jure Karazda, CEO of SD Fiber. 

    Upon completion of the transaction, SPIE will acquire 96% of the shares of SD Fiber. The remaining 4% will be retained by the current management team, who will continue to lead the company and will contribute to its ongoing business development. 

     

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  • Swiatek wins opener as she eyes best Wimbledon run yet

    Swiatek wins opener as she eyes best Wimbledon run yet

    WIMBLEDON — A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Iga Swiatek was the best junior here on the grass.

    “It feels like it was in a different lifetime, you know?” Swiatek told reporters on Sunday. “It was probably the highlight of my career back then. It felt pretty surreal. But on the other hand, I came back home, and nothing really changed.

    “I remember I thought maybe life is going to be, like, perfect now. I was a bit disappointed. It was still the same, and I still had to get back to work. I remember having a lot of just hope and just the feeling that maybe it’s going to be also possible in the future at the pro level.”

    Wimbledon: Scores | Order of play | Draws

    It was 2018 and the 17-year-old Swiatek won her first (and only) junior Grand Slam title on a surface that is technically her worst as a professional.

    That draw was loaded with future stars — No. 3 seed Coco Gauff, No. 8 Clara Tauson, No. 10 Wang Xinyu and No. 11 Leylah Fernandez. Swiatek beat unseeded Emma Raducanu 6-0, 6-1 in the quarterfinals.

    Fast forward to today, with Swiatek — a four-time Roland Garros champion on the red clay but with a career-best quarterfinal berth at Wimbledon two years ago — coming off her best Hologic WTA Tour grass result ever. Last Saturday’s final in Bad Homburg was her first WTA final since winning in Paris more than a year ago.

    On Tuesday, the No. 8 seed here dropped a 7-5, 6-1 decision on Polina Kudermetova. It was Swiatek’s 61st consecutive win in an opening match — the longest streak of any woman this century. She’ll meet Caty McNally, a 6-3, 6-1 winner over British wildcard Jodie Burrage on Thursday.

    With the victory, Swiatek’s record at Wimbledon is 12-5 (.706). That’s a fairly stellar mark, but perhaps because she is so dominant on clay, Swiatek has always been self-deprecating about her grass skills.

    And yet, the 24-year-old from Poland defeated Jasmine Paolini definitively, 6-1, 6-3, in the Bad Homburg semifinals.

    “It for sure gave me a lot of confidence,” Swiatek said. “Obviously it’s tennis, so every day is different, but I felt like I’m playing great. I really pushed Jasmine the way I wanted to. I had really great time in Bad Homburg and enjoyed it. Yeah, also having more time to practice before on grass really helped. I feel that I have a little bit more skills.”

    And while Paolini reached the finals here a year ago, she is not listed among the leading favorites to win this title. Swiatek, a small distance behind Aryna Sabalenka, is — ahead of 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina and reigning French Open winner Coco Gauff.

    Swiatek gave Jessica Pegula a good go in Bad Homburg, losing a brisk final by a 6-4, 7-5 count.

    “She said in her speech, `Oh, there’s hope for me.’ I was like, `You’re still pretty good,’ ” Pegula said on Sunday. “I’m pretty sure she made [Wimbledon] quarters a few years ago. She won junior Wimbledon — you’re obviously not like a lost cause.

    “I think she was a little hard on herself … it’s hard when you don’t feel as natural on a surface. Yeah, she’ll be fine.”

    Swiatek arrived at Wimbledon late Saturday night and — aside from her media responsibilities — had Sunday off. She practiced Monday and looked sharp in her first match.

    It’s all a part of a committed effort to get better on grass. After losing to Sabalenka in the semifinals at Roland Garros, Swiatek opted to skip the WTA 500 events at Queen’s Club and Berlin. Instead, she spent a week practicing in Mallorca. Slowly, surely, she’s feeling better on grass.

    “Just more time, like give me opportunity to, yeah, work on some movement and stepping to the ball a little bit differently than on clay — it helped,” Swiatek said. “You really have to trust your shots on grass. You can’t really pull back.

    “Any shot that will give your opponent more time to go in is probably the shot that will make you lose the rally. I just went for it in Bad Homburg, and it really worked.”

    There’s a theory floating around that because her customary clay runs in Stuttgart, Madrid, Roma and Paris have been so taxing, there was never much left in Swiatek’s tank, physically or emotionally, for Wimbledon.

    After a work-vacation on a lovely Spanish island, she looks fresh and ready to challenge for one of the two Grand Slam titles that have eluded her.

     

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  • CARMENES Data: Earth-like Planets Especially Common Around Low-mass Stars – astrobiology.com

    1. CARMENES Data: Earth-like Planets Especially Common Around Low-mass Stars  astrobiology.com
    2. Tiny stars, many Earths: Potentially habitable worlds may be especially common around low-mass stars  Phys.org
    3. There should be many Earth-like planets near red dwarfs  Universe Space Tech
    4. Astronomers Identify Promising Habitable Zone Candidates  Labroots

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  • Sean 'Diddy' Combs jury asks to review Casandra Ventura's testimony – Reuters

    1. Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs jury asks to review Casandra Ventura’s testimony  Reuters
    2. Here’s what the jury in Diddy’s sex trafficking trial is considering  BBC
    3. June 30, 2025 – Jury begins deliberations in the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs trial  CNN
    4. Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs confirms he won’t testify and praises the trial judge for an ‘excellent job’  AP News
    5. Abuser, cheater, charmer: Diddy’s trial revealed the many faces of the ‘freak-off’-loving impresario  inkl

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  • LVMH: Share transactions disclosure

    LVMH: Share transactions disclosure

    LVMH

    Paris, July 1st, 2025

    The disclosure of share transactions carried out from June 23rd to June 27th, 2025, was sent to the AMF on July 1st, 2025. As required by current law, this document is publically available and can be consulted on the Company’s website (www.lvmh.com) under the section «regulated information».

    LVMH

    LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton is represented in Wines and Spirits by a portfolio of brands that includes Moët & Chandon, Dom Pérignon, Veuve Clicquot, Krug, Ruinart, Mercier, Château d’Yquem, Domaine du Clos des Lambrays, Château Cheval Blanc, Colgin Cellars, Hennessy, Glenmorangie, Ardbeg, Belvedere, Woodinville, Volcán de mi Tierra, Chandon, Cloudy Bay, Terrazas de los Andes, Cheval des Andes, Newton, Bodega Numanthia, Ao Yun, Château d’Esclans, Château Galoupet, Joseph Phelps and Château Minuty. Its Fashion and Leather Goods division includes Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Celine, Loewe, Kenzo, Givenchy, Fendi, Emilio Pucci, Marc Jacobs, Berluti, Loro Piana, RIMOWA, Patou, Barton Perreira and Vuarnet. LVMH is present in the Perfumes and Cosmetics sector with Parfums Christian Dior, Guerlain, Parfums Givenchy, Kenzo Parfums, Perfumes Loewe, Benefit Cosmetics, Make Up For Ever, Acqua di Parma, Fresh, Fenty Beauty by Rihanna, Maison Francis Kurkdjian and Officine Universelle Buly. LVMH’s Watches and Jewelry division comprises Bulgari, TAG Heuer, Tiffany & Co, Chaumet, Zenith, Fred and Hublot. LVMH is also active in Selective Retailing as well as in other activities through DFS, Sephora, Le Bon Marché, La Samaritaine, Groupe Les Echos-Le Parisien, Paris Match, Cova, Le Jardin d’Acclimatation, Royal Van Lent, Belmond and Cheval Blanc hotels.

    LVMH CONTACTS

    Analysts and investors
    Rodolphe Ozun
    LVMH
    + 33 1 44 13 27 21

    Media
    Jean-Charles Tréhan
    LVMH
    + 33 1 44 13 26 20

    MEDIA CONTACTS

     

    France
    Charlotte Mariné / +33 6 75 30 43 91
    Axelle Gadala / +33 6 89 01 07 60
    Publicis Consultants
    + 33 1 44 82 46 05

    France
    Michel Calzaroni / + 33 6 07 34 20 14
    Olivier Labesse / Hugues Schmitt / Thomas Roborel de Climens / + 33 6 79 11 49 71

    Italy
    Michele Calcaterra / Matteo Steinbach
    SEC and Partners
    + 39 02 6249991

    UK
    Hugh Morrison / Charlotte McMullen
    Montfort Communications
    + 44 7921 881 800

    US
    Nik Deogun / Blake Sonnenshein
    Brunswick Group
    + 1 212 333 3810

    China
    Daniel Jeffreys
    Deluxewords
    + 44 772 212 6562
    + 86 21 80 36 04 48

    Attachment

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  • ‘Here One Moment’ by Liane Moriarty highlights the inner lives — and deaths — of airplane passengers

    ‘Here One Moment’ by Liane Moriarty highlights the inner lives — and deaths — of airplane passengers

    The cover of “Here One Moment” and author Liane Moriarty/ (Courtesy of Crown and Über Photography)

    Host Robin Young speaks with Australian author Liane Moriarty. Her latest best-selling novel, “Here One Moment,” tells the story of plane passengers who are told by a mysterious woman when and how they will die. The book is out in paperback on Tuesday.

    Book excerpt: ‘Here One Moment’

    By Liane Moriarty

    Excerpted from “Here One Moment” by Liane Moriarty Copyright © 2024 by Liane Moriarty. Excerpted by permission of Crown. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

    This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

    Copyright 2025 WBUR

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  • Melting mountains, rising danger: Climate change fuels glacial floods in northern Pakistan – Ptv.com.pk

    1. Melting mountains, rising danger: Climate change fuels glacial floods in northern Pakistan  Ptv.com.pk
    2. NEOC issues impact-based weather alerts for risk of flash floods, GLOF events, and urban flooding  Ptv.com.pk
    3. Shrinking glaciers: a threat to ecological balance  The Express Tribune
    4. Timely alerts, early preparedness key to disaster mitigation: NDMA Chairman  nation.com.pk
    5. NDMA issues monsoon flood alert  Dunya News

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  • Moon phase today explained: What the moon will look like on July 1, 2025

    Moon phase today explained: What the moon will look like on July 1, 2025

    It’s the first moon in July, and with each passing night, we’re seeing more and more of the moon lit up, signaling our journey through the lunar cycle.

    The lunar cycle is a series of eight unique phases of the moon’s visibility. The whole cycle takes about 29.5 days, according to NASA, and these different phases happen as the Sun lights up different parts of the moon whilst it orbits Earth. 

    See what’s happening with the moon tonight, July 1.

    What is today’s moon phase?

    As of Tuesday, July 1, the moon phase is Waxing Crescent. 38% of the moon will be lit up and visible to us on Earth (according to NASA’s Daily Moon Observation).

    This is the sixth day of the lunar cycle, and let’s hope for a clear sky tonight because there’s plenty to spot on the moon’s surface.

    With just the naked eye, you’ll be able to spot the Mare Crisium, the Mare Tranquillitatis, and the Mare Fecunditatis. If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, these will be positioned in the top right of the moon. If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, direct your gaze to the bottom left.

    If you have binoculars, you’ll see a little more. Both the Endymion Crater and the Posidonius Crater are visible, as well as the Mare Nectaris.

    And that’s not all, if you’re one of the lucky few with a telescope, there’s even more for you to spot tonight. Both Apollo 11 and Apollo 17 can be seen, marking two of the most famous moon landings: the first and the last human missions to the Moon.

    Mashable Light Speed

    Slightly south of these spots (north if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere), you’ll also get a glimpse of the Rupes Altai, a circular cliff.

    When is the next full moon?

    This month’s full moon will take place on July 10. The last full moon was on June 11.

    What are moon phases?

    Moon phases are caused by the 29.5-day cycle of the moon’s orbit, which changes the angles between the Sun, Moon, and Earth. Moon phases are how the moon looks from Earth as it goes around us. We always see the same side of the moon, but how much of it is lit up by the Sun changes depending on where it is in its orbit. This is how we get full moons, half moons, and moons that appear completely invisible. There are eight main moon phases, and they follow a repeating cycle:

    New Moon – The moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it’s invisible to the eye).

    Waxing Crescent – A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

    First Quarter – Half of the moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-moon.

    Waxing Gibbous – More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

    Full Moon – The whole face of the moon is illuminated and fully visible.

    Waning Gibbous – The moon starts losing light on the right side.

    Last Quarter (or Third Quarter) – Another half-moon, but now the left side is lit.

    Waning Crescent – A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

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  • OfS registration reopens in August ahead of franchise provider deadline

    The OfS, the independent regulator of higher education in England, recently announced it will accept new registration applications for higher education providers from 28 August following an eight-month hiatus. The regulator, which suspended registrations in December 2024 over financial sustainability concerns, said it will give priority to institutions with existing applications that have been on hold since last year.

    This development follows plans recently unveiled by the Department for Education (DfE) to bring greater oversight over higher education franchisees by bringing them under the scope of the OfS.

    Under the new proposals, it is anticipated that franchised providers with 300 students or more will be required to register with the OfS to ensure their courses are designated for student finance. The move, designed to bring greater regulatory oversight and assurance over public money invested in franchising providers, follows a consultation carried out by the DfE that closed in April. According to the consultation paper (32-page / 570KB), the new regulations will come into force in April 2026.
    The first decisions about course designation for student finance will be made in September 2027 for implementation in the 2028-29 academic year. Franchisee delivery partners will need to seek registration with the OfS over the next 12-18 months.

    There are several proposed exemptions to this requirement, including state-funded schools, the statutory further education sector, NHS trusts, police and crime commissioners and local authorities, which are already subject to regulatory oversight by government bodies. Franchised providers with 300 or more students that wish to deliver courses that are not designated for student finance will be able to continue to do so without any further requirement to register with the OfS.

    According to the government, more than half of 341 franchised institutions are currently unregistered with the OfS. In 2024, an investigation by the National Audit Office (NAO) revealed that fraud at franchised providers cost the public purse around £2 million in 2022-23. The NAO identified “weaknesses in the control framework” that contributed to several instances of fraud and abuse at franchised providers since early 2022.

    However, a recent report by The Post-18 Project, an initiative aimed at shaping policy for universities and colleges, says the proposals “represent a fundamentally flawed approach that misunderstands both the scale and nature of the problem” afflicting the higher education sector. In particular, the report’s author says the current proposals could still create geographic and other loopholes for rogue operators to fall through the cracks and fails to give universities any real powers over their financial arrangements.

    Commenting on the recent developments, Rachel Soundy, corporate and education specialist at Pinsent Masons, said: “The regulation of franchise partners in higher education is long overdue but the proposed reforms only skim the surface to tackle rogue players – leaving the opportunity for certain providers to step around the proposals. It is expected that DfE and OfS guidance will be issued which will seek to further tighten the regulation of such providers.”

    Gayle Ditchburn, higher education expert at Pinsent Masons, said it is now critical for affected franchise delivery partners to take active steps to prepare for their registrations with the OfS to ensure they do not lose out on vital funding. “This is a reputational and financial risk for both the franchise delivery partner and the university franchisor,” she said.

    “Universities partnering with franchise delivery partners to deliver their programmes should be working with their partners to support their registration journeys as their failure to register with the OfS will result in the franchised courses no longer being designated for student finance – the impact of which will severely impact student enrolment.” 

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