Today’s Big Story

The Daylight Saving Debate

Should the U.S. end this practice, which began in 1918?

Most of us will “spring forward” Sunday for daylight saving time. That means the days will instantly be longer, and yet losing that hour of sleep will do more than leave you tired and cranky the next day. It also could harm your health.

Darker mornings and more evening light together knock your body clock out of whack—which means daylight saving time can usher in sleep trouble for weeks or longer. “Many Americans are already chronically sleep deprived or suffering from sleep disorders,” Jennifer Martin, former president of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, tells TIME. “This extra disruption amplifies any of the symptoms that they're already having.”

Studies have even found an uptick in heart attacks and strokes right after the March time change. Fatal car crashes also temporarily jump the first few days after the spring time change, according to a study of U.S. traffic fatalities. It’s no wonder that over half of U.S. adults now oppose daylight saving time, according to a recent Gallup poll. Many health groups favor sticking with standard time year-round over daylight saving time because they say it's more aligned with our body clocks.

This is why, there’s talk about ending the time change every year. In December, then-President-elect Donald Trump promised to eliminate daylight saving time. For the last several years, a bipartisan bill named the Sunshine Protection Act that would make daylight saving time permanent has stalled in Congress; it has been reintroduced this year. But now the president is saying that it's “hard to get excited” about changing daylight saving time and called it a “50-50 issue.”

The practice of daylight saving time was first adopted by the United States in 1918 amid World War I in an effort to save energy and fuel. While conserving light and heat is no longer a significant economic concern, the time change does impact the economy. Retail sales increase as consumers spend more time shopping in the brighter evenings, and businesses that rely on later sunsets prosper due to the extra sunlight. A report on the golf industry in 1986 found that one month of later sunsets could be worth up to $400 million due to the extended playing time in the evening—which in 2025 dollars translates to more than $1 billion.

Trump’s Swerving Tariff Plan

Goods covered by the countries’ USMCA agreement get a reprieve, but levies remain in effect for many others

President Donald Trump pulled back from his trade war with Canada and Mexico on Thursday, temporarily delaying tariffs on many goods from the two countries once again. Two days after imposing sweeping tariffs of 25% on all imports from America’s closest trading partners, the president announced that duties on a wide range of goods would be shelved until April. But the administration’s swerving trade policy strained relations with allies and raised recession fears.

Thursday’s respite doesn’t end trade tensions in North America, though, and there are still goods that will continue to be hit with new tariffs because they weren’t covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, U.S. officials said. Trump’s “chaotic, stop-and-start approach” has sent stock markets tumbling and generated anxiety among industries that depend on trade with Canada and Mexico, which account for more than a quarter of U.S. imports and nearly a third of U.S. exports.

On Thursday, the president brushed off the idea that he’s watching the markets, causing dismay in investors who were banking on the “Trump put,” the idea that the current president would prevent a steep drop in the stocks. He added that in the long term “the United States will be very strong with what is happening here.” Trump also blamed “globalist countries and companies that won’t be doing well” for recent losses in equities.

Coffee Prices Just Hit a Record High

A perfect storm of supply issues and market panic could mean big changes for your daily caffeine fix

Did you have your coffee before reading this? It's a morning ritual enjoyed by many of us, but it's one that could also be in serious trouble. Last month, coffee futures spiked in New York City (a price benchmark destination), rising more than 6% in a day on February 10 in the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE). This, Reuters reported, caused coffee to hit an all-time high of more than $4.30 per pound.

Experts pointed to limited availability due to reports of dry, hot weather in Brazil—the world's largest producer of arabica coffee beans. This weather pattern follows a prolonged drought in 2024, which Food & Wine reported resulted in poor crop estimates for the upcoming year. Volcafe specialists have reduced their 2025 and 2026 forecasts for arabica to 34.4 million bags, down nearly 11 million bags from the estimate made in September. A new drought will only worsen the situation.

Vietnam, the world's second-largest coffee producer, experienced its worst drought in 70 years in 2024. This was followed by severe flooding, which caused crop failure and only exacerbated already depleted supplies, according to NBC News. And as leading coffee-producing countries struggle to grow crops, others are trying to get into the game: South Sudan’s excelsa coffee is gaining in popularity and is now farmed in India and Indonesia as well. Currently, it comprises less than 1% of the global market—well behind the arabica and robusta species that are commonly consumed. But insiders say excelsa will have a chance to scale larger in order to bridge the gap in the market caused by this current crisis.

The Longevity Gap

Women are increasingly living longer than men

Women outlive men, by something of a long shot: In the United States, women have a life expectancy of around 80, compared to about 75 for men. This “longevity gap” holds true regardless of where women live, how much money they make and many other factors.

What’s more, the gap is widening. New research out of Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and UC San Francisco found that it’s been widening for more than a decade. And the researchers were able to pinpoint the reasons why. The biggies: cardiovascular disease, cancer, opioid use and suicide. COVID didn’t help matters either. At least 65,000 more men have died from the virus than women. This is primarily due to the fact that men are more likely to be homeless, locked up, and work in occupations putting them at higher risk for contracting the virus.

But genetics play a role, too. A growing body of research suggests that the XX set of female sex chromosomes (which, along with other chromosomes, carry our DNA) may impact longevity, though it’s not clear exactly how. For example, a 2018 study conducted by Dr. Dubal’s lab looked at genetically manipulated mice with different combinations of sex chromosomes and reproductive organs. Those with two X chromosomes and ovaries lived longest, followed by mice with two X chromosomes and testes. Mice with XY chromosomes had shorter life spans.

A Weekend Pairing

‘Daredevil: Born Again’ + an El Diablo Cocktail

Who would’ve thought in 2018 that Charlie Cox would be one of the MCU’s more consistent recurring faces post-Endgame? After appearances in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Echo and She-Hulk, Cox’s Matt Murdock is back to leading his own series alongside Vincent D’Onofrio as Kingpin. Elden Henson and Deborah Ann Woll are also returning to Daredevil: Born Again as Murdock’s friends and co-workers Foggy and Karen, respectively.

The new Disney+ series kicks off with a gangster preoccupied with status, profit and revenge who embarks on a dark-horse, fear-mongering election campaign. It’s for mayor of New York, not president of the United States, but the New York Times’ critic Mike Hale says “the real-life resonance is hard to miss.” And as the season proceeds through its nine episodes, the sense of familiarity only grows.

What you focus on flourishes.