Would you ride on the back of a random orca at the beach? For the final part of this series on Free Willy star Keiko, deep sea correspondent Brianna Bowman tells Sarah about his rewilding and return to the open ocean -- something that up until that point had never been done before. Digressions include introducing adult cats to each other, Fyre Fest, and the 27 club.
U.S. and Iranian officials meet again in Geneva as the Trump administration sends more military forces to the region while pressing Tehran to limit its nuclear program. Nine defendants go on trial in Texas over a shooting outside an ICE detention center, in a case federal prosecutors are framing as terrorism and defense attorneys say grew out of a protest. And Reverend Jesse Jesse Jackson, the civil leader, presidential candidate and longtime advocate for racial and economic justice, has died at age 84.
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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by James Hider, Alfredo Carbajal, Kara Platoni, Mohamad ElBardicy and Alice Woelfle.
It was produced by Ziad Buchh and Nia Dumas.
Our director is Christopher Thomas.
We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. And our technical director is Simon-Laslo Janssen.
Our Supervising Senior Producer is Vince Pearson.
(0:00) Introduction (02:17) US-Iran Talks (05:40) Texas ICE Shooting Trial (09:26) Rev. Jesse Jackson Dies At 84
Plus: Hyatt executive chairman Thomas Pritzker is retiring following recently-released Epstein files. And Goldman Sachs plans to scrap DEI criteria for its board.
Michael Fester grew up in Denmark, the son of a French mother and a Danish father. He was always interested in tech, math and the arts, initially wanting to go into design. However, he did research in number theory at Cambridge, and founded his first startup in Paris, which eventually was acquired by Sonos. Outside of tech, he enjoys reading, in particular the classics - like Dostoyevsky - and biographies - like that of Einstein. He enjoys eating and living healthy, and promotes this lifestyle at his current venture.
Michael and his team noticed that despite the continual improvement of models, the process of maintaining systems using AI was tedious. Not only did this impact support operations, and building software for this area of a business, but negatively impacted the customers themselves. He and his wife wanted to build the new standard for how support operations are run.
Terms and conditions: Equitybee executes private financing contracts (PFCs) allowing investors a certain claim to ESO upon liquidation event; Could limit your profits. Funding in not guaranteed. PFCs brokered by EquityBee Securities, member FINRA.
The federal panel that oversees commercial and subsistence fishing in Alaska is putting a hard limit on the number of chum salmon that are caught — and wasted — by commercial pollack trawlers. It is a long awaited — and controversial — decision by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council after years of outcry by tribes to address the factors that go into the disappearing runs of salmon that Alaska Native people have always relied on for survival. Although presented as a compromise, the bycatch limit is seen as a severe blow by commercial fishers, who say such restrictions could be catastrophic to the industry. The decision comes as the state also instituted severe regional restrictions on king salmon fishing because of low numbers. They are among the latest measures to address the big and complex ecological threats to what is historically the most productive salmon fishery in the world.
GUESTS
Charles Wright (Athabascan), secretary/treasurer for Tanana Chiefs Conference
Jonathan Samuelson (Yup’iaq and Dene), vice-chair of the Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission
Craig Chythlook (Yup’ik), executive director of the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission
Terese Vicente, policy and programs director for the Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission
Full statement from the Alaska Pollock Fishery Alliance (APFA) mentioned in today’s show:
“The Council’s decision reflects the seriousness of the challenges facing Western Alaska chum salmon and the complexity of managing a dynamic fishery. The pollock industry respects the Council process and remains committed to working within this new framework while continuing to invest in science-based, real-time avoidance tools that have already delivered meaningful reductions in Western Alaska chum bycatch.
We share the goal of protecting salmon and the communities that depend on them while also providing the flexibility to respond to real-time fishing conditions. This allows the fleet to harvest its pollock while providing important benefits to Alaskan coastal and fishery dependent communities. While the alternative chosen establishes a restrictive cap and includes elements of fixed closures that may inhibit responsiveness to changing conditions, we understand the Council’s desire for strong incentives and clear parameters for management. We adhere to the principles of continuous improvement and will work with managers, scientists, and engaged partners to ensure the use of all available tools, including the use of real-time genetic analysis, to achieve meaningful conservation outcomes.”
Break 1 Music: Canoe Song (song) Chenoa (artist) Spirit of Salishan (album)
According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, the number of students enrolling in computer and information science decreased this past fall from the year before. That's at both the graduate and undergraduate level and the first drop since 2020. Meanwhile, the Computing Research Association says there's been a decline in a number of computing-related majors. Marketplace’s Stephanie Hughes spoke with Kari George, Senior Research Associate at the CRA's Center for Evaluating the Research Pipeline to learn more.
A.M. Edition for Feb. 17. A growing shortage of memory-chips is squeezing the makers of phones, laptops and games consoles, sending prices skyrocketing. WSJ’s Tim Martin explains how non-AI buyers are having to choose between raising prices, trimming margins, or reducing device memory. Plus the U.S. government is emerging from the holiday weekend partially shutdown. And we look at why this winter is worse and weirder than usual. Luke Vargas hosts.
For more than six decades, the United States has tried to topple the regime in Cuba. After ousting President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela, who was one of Cuba’s closest allies, the Trump administration is closer than ever to forcing radical change on the island.
The New York Times reporters Frances Robles and Michael Crowley discuss how the latest escalation is pushing Cuba to the brink, and whether this time the United States will get what it wants.
Guest:
Frances Robles, an international correspondent covering Latin America and the Caribbean for The New York Times.
Michael Crowley, a reporter covering the State Department and U.S. foreign policy for The New York Times.
A federal judge orders the White House to restore a slavery exhibit at Independence National Historic Park in Philadelphia. A father goes on trial in Georgia after allegedly gifting his son an assault-style rifle used in a mass shooting. And President Trump presses for voting reform that would create national voter ID laws.
