The Daily Valet. - 4/7/22, Thursday

✔️ Going Up?

April 07, 2022

Thursday, April 7th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

There’s nothing wrong with being a night owl.

Cory Ohlendorf , Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s edition is presented by

Today’s Big Story

Vertical Farming on the Rise

See what we did there? But seriously, the trend may be the farming of the future, but it faces some serious challenges

Traditional agriculture has gotten much more efficient over the last few decades, but farming still has its problems. It takes a huge amount of land and can be energy- and water-intensive. And the land itself is in trouble. In fact, half of the Earth’s topsoil has been lost over the past 150 years.

In addition, produce needs to be transported to customers, often over great distances. To satisfy the ever-increasing appetite of the world’s population, new solutions are needed. And indoor vertical farms—where crops grow in towers reaching heights of 30 feet or more—seems to tackle a lot of those concerns. Which is why they’re becoming more and more popular (and gaining investments) in the U.S. and Canada.

Vertical farming is the process of using automated technology to control and monitor every aspect of the growing cycle. While the technology was initially developed by NASA to produce food on cramped interstellar space journeys, it’s now being utilized here on Earth, at a time when consumers are embracing healthy eating habits and climate change is expected to further affect crop yields.

Software meticulously handles the growing process, monitoring climate, irrigation and LED light luminance to control crop cultivation much more efficiently than outdoor or greenhouse farming, removing guess work from growing, reports CTV News.

One founder told Bloomberg that by precisely controlling variables, vertical farming can deliver high-quality produce to local consumers with less waste and without concerns over fickle weather in the age of global warming. He also boasted that robotic arms could deliver fresher produce by picking at the height of ripeness, while indoor growing cuts down on the use of pesticides.

But (you know one was coming, right?), the industry faces some serious challenges before they can really scale. According to the New York Times, there’s now a rush on warehouse space, while other concerns include high costs for energy to power the farms, current technological limitations and the ability to scale production to keep expenses/costs down.

↦ FYI: Currently less than 1% of fresh produce is grown through hydroponics systems versus open-field agriculture, but vertical farming is proving that by shortening the supply chain, you reduce energy and food waste.

Russia Fully Retreats From Kyiv

But Ukraine prepares for renewed Russian offensive on its eastern front

All Russian ground forces have left the areas near Kyiv, Kharkiv and Chernihiv in northern Ukraine, according to U.S. military officials. On Wednesday, Ukrainian forces were moving in and clearing mines left behind by the Russian troops.

Kyiv was a Russian defeat for the ages, reports the Associated Press. The fight started poorly for the invaders and went downhill from there. “The Russians were ill-prepared for Ukrainian resistance, proved incapable of adjusting to setbacks, failed to effectively combine air and land operations, misjudged Ukraine’s ability to defend its skies, and bungled basic military functions like planning and executing the movement of supplies.”

Currently, the Russian units are regrouping in Russia or Belarus, north of Ukraine. The Pentagon believes they will likely be sent back to Ukraine, into the industrial eastern part of the country, where civilians started fleeing Wednesday.

Also on Wednesday, the U.S. rolled out a new wave of financial sanctions against Russia that President Biden said would place a lasting penalty on the country's economy. The United Kingdom quickly followed suit, and more pain is coming from the European Union as the allies pressed forward with an escalating campaign to tighten the economic screws on Putin.

↦ Meanwhile: The U.S. Department of Justice neutralized a botnet controlled by a notorious hacking group linked to Russia’s military spy agency.

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Night Owls Get the Worm, Too

Justice for those of us who stay up late!

I've never been a morning person. Instead, I tend to stay up late, refusing to give up the day. But it turns out, I was likely born that way. Research shows roughly half of people are night owls, dictated by genetics, not choice.

And it seems that our new working landscape is better for night owls, because COVID didn't just upend where we work, but when we work. A staggering 76% of global companies are allowing hybrid work, meaning most employees at any time, on their own terms.

According to Axios, the 9–to-5 workday is fading, with more people hopping on their computers at breakfast time and past happy hour. Take for instance, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, who told the Wall Street Journal he's most productive after 10 P.M.

Of course, workers are loving the change, since one of the best ways to develop a good work-life balance is to get in tune with your internal clock. That way, you work and rest when it's natural to you. And if you have a boss who's not on board with this new wave just yet, here's a primer that could help.

↦ FYI: The National Institutes of Health found that a natural bedtime for the majority of adults is after midnight.

Baseball Is Back

Our long national nightmare is finally over

Major League Baseball's Opening Day is finally here. There were originally nine games on today's schedule, but two of those games—Yankees vs. Red Sox (originally set to be the first game of the 2022 MLB season) and Twins vs. Mariners—have been postponed due to inclement weather in the forecasts. Both of those games were moved to tomorrow, when 16 teams will now play their openers.

According to CBS Sports, there will be a 12-team playoff field in 2022, the largest postseason field ever in a full season. In theory, at least, that should mean more teams than ever realistically have a chance at winning the pennant heading into Opening Day.

Of course, today is the last day for preseason predictions. And, it seems, like everyone's got some. As sport writer Dan Schlossberg put it, “baseball writers are like weather forecasters, who can only guarantee accuracy by calling for 50% chance of precipitation, but never stop trying.”

If you want a ranking of all the Opening Day matchups, MLB has it. Some of The Ringer's predictions seem obvious, but others may surprise you. And The Athletic's Keith Law offers up win totals for every team, plus awards and playoff picks.

↦ Superstar: Why Shohei Ohtani is worthy of Babe Ruth comparisons, and how he can set a new standard for two-way players.

In Other News

↦ You’ll Need $5,200 More This Year to Live the Exact Same Life

↦ Smoking Was so Uncool That Gen Z Decided to Bring It Back

↦ The Cookies Are Too Damn Large

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

The world’s skinniest skyscraper

Skincare secrets

Coachella drama

Partner

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What We’re Buying

The weather that spring brings is always unpredictable, so why not get an outerwear piece that'll help you conquer decision fatigue when it comes to preparing for the outdoors? This packable vest from Nike can be your outer or inner layer no matter what the weather brings. Made from lightweight fleece and recycled ripstop fabric, it's not only insulating but it rolls up easily for travel too. Size down to layer under a denim jacket or size up to wear over a soft fleece—either way this vest is the perfect outerwear option for transitional climate shifts.

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