Today’s Big Story

Heart Transplant Breakthrough

Man lives for over 100 days with artificial titanium heart in groundbreaking new trial

Here’s some good news to end the week, because we could all use a little hope lately, right? An Australian man in his forties with severe heart failure has become the first person in the world to leave a hospital with an artificial heart made of titanium.

He lived with this groundbreaking robo-heart for a record 105 days while he waited for a donor heart to become available. He's the first person in the world to be discharged from the hospital with the titanium device, living at home for about a month before receiving his donor heart. Like a tiny motor, the metal organ’s levitating propeller pushed blood to the man's lungs and kept him alive as he went about his usual business.

On March 6, when a human donor heart became available, the man's titanium heart was swapped out for the real thing. (Do you think he got to keep it? Because I would’ve asked to keep it.) But in all seriousness, doctors say without the metal stop-gap, this patient's real heart would have failed before a donor became available. This is an all-too-common problem, so doctors are hopeful that this trial could soon help others in similar conditions.

The ability of the device to sustain him for so long is also being celebrated as a sign that the artificial heart could potentially offer a long-term option for people suffering heart failure. Of course, the device is still being trialed and has not yet been approved for general use.

“It is incredibly innovative,” says Sarah Aitken, a vascular surgeon at the University of Sydney, but she adds that there are still many unanswered questions about the level of function that people with it can achieve and the ultimate cost of the device. “This kind of research is really challenging to do because it is very expensive,” and the surgery involved is very high-risk, says Aitken. But the device—the BiVACOR Total Artificial Heart—which was developed by a U.S.-Australian collaboration, is being called “the Holy Grail”.

The DOGE Mess Gets Messier

A judge orders thousands of employees fired by Trump to be reinstated

Federal judges have dealt a blow to Elon Musk’s DOGE agenda. A federal judge Thursday night ordered that thousands of federal workers fired by the Trump administration be temporarily reinstated. Hours earlier, Judge William Alsup of San Francisco said that the firing of tens of thousands of federal probationary workers had been based on a “lie” and that the government had conducted the expulsions illegally—further calling the initiative a “sham”.

The reinstatement orders apply to thousands of federal workers fired from the Defense Department, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Energy, the Treasury Department, and the Department of the Interior. Government Executive reports that some 24,000 employees would regain their jobs as a result of the judges decisions. Meanwhile, Musk and crew are still digging and claiming wins. The agency says it’s saved the federal government $115 billion. But experts say the figures don’t stack up and another judge has ordered DOGE to turn over a variety of records and answer questions describing their efforts to slash federal spending.

And despite its popularity with the American public, the fate of a government program that made tax filing free and more efficient remains unclear. Musk says that he do away with the Direct File program along with cutting the IRS workforce by a total of nearly 20%. So far, the program is still available for use ahead of the April 15 tax filing deadline, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent committed during his January confirmation hearing to maintaining it, at least for this tax season.

Are the Kids Alright (Alone)?

Gen Z isn’t dating and fewer young people are getting into relationships

Social media might be to blame for yet another one of society’s ills. “I think flirting is dying,” one 20-something tells NBC News. “If someone thinks you’re cute, they just ask for your Instagram these days and then DM you or swipe up on your story to show they’re interested.” As the rizz dries up, less and less young people are dating.

But The Atlantic points out that they’re forgoing a classic and critical rite of passage. Research indicates that the number of teens experiencing romantic relationships continues to dropp. In a 2023 poll from the Survey Center on American Life, a little over half of Gen Z adults said they’d been in a romantic relationship at any point in their teen years, compared with 76% of Gen Xers and 78% of Baby Boomers. And the General Social Survey, a long-running poll of about 3,000 Americans, found in 2021 that 54% of participants ages 18 to 34 reported not having a “steady” partner; in 2004, only 33% said the same.

Often, the same culprits are blamed: social media, dating apps and hook-up culture, etc. But writer Kofi Mframa of USA Today opines that it might be something deeper and more nuanced. “America is politically fraught, and our polarization has seeped into our pursuit of love … Inflation and other economic factors leave us with little money for dates and other expenses that come with dating. All that paired with this generation’s overall feelings of hopelessness, nihilism and existential dread put love on the back burner.”

Beware of Airport Theory

TikTok is daring you to cut it dangerously close

When it comes to airports, travelers tend to fall into two camps. There are the anxious types who show up four hours early, with plenty of time to leisurely peruse duty-free and enjoy the airport lounge. And then there are those, like me, who don’t want to wait around, so we breeze into the airport with 45-ish minutes to spare, hoping for the best. That being said, I wouldn’t dare mess with this “airport theory” floating around TikTok.

The theory suggests arriving at the airport just 15 minutes before your departure in order to clear security. It seems like the trick is that because your flight is leaving soon, the TSA and other staff will help you skip lines and rush through to your gate. The concept has taken off online, racking up 400 million views. Unsurprisingly, it’s already backfiring and led to plenty of missed flights.

Buzzfeed reports that the TSA has chimed in on the phenomenon. “Our theory? You’re more than likely missing your flight, if you arrive 15-20 minutes before it departs.” Gary Leff, author of the blog View From the Wing, spoke to Fox News and said that the theory is bad news, but that the guidance of arriving two hours before a flight is often too conservative. He said airports do not want to be blamed if people miss their flights. Plus, people will shop at airport stores the longer they are waiting.

A Weekend Pairing

‘Everybody's Live with John Mulaney’ + a N/A Mexican Beer

Everybody loved John Mulaney’s Everybody’s in L.A. live show, so naturally, he’s back with a new 12-week stint, though here’s hoping for more. Richard Kind has also returned as Mulaney’s announcer. The show will air live every week for the duration of its run at 7 p.m. on Wednesdays, but if you didn’t catch the premiere, you can stream it now.

During a monologue introducing his new Netflix talk show on Wednesday night, the comic John Mulaney said the streamer had given him an hour to introduce his fans to the baby boomer culture that has made him “the unsettled weirdo” he is today. His guests included Michael Keaton and an appearance by Joan Baez, who gossiped about civil rights leaders.

No room for nonsense.