Weekly News Wrap

This week: a Disney princess business with a mission, women reaching new athletic heights, why we actually are colder than men, and more.

February 16, 2024

Hello and Happy Friday! Here’s what’s on the rise this week:

A shooting at Lakewood Church in Texas was perpetrated by a woman. Here’s a theory about why women make up less than 4% of shooters in the U.S.

Nikki Haley pressed on after losing the Nevada primary, hoping now that a visit to her home state will generate much-needed momentum for her campaign. Meanwhile, attacks between her and Donald Trump continue to get personal.
The North Carolina lieutenant governor, a top contender in the state’s upcoming gubernatorial race, said that transgender women using ladies’ restrooms will face arrest, proposing they use outdoor corners instead.
As Donald Trump inches closer to securing the Republican presidential nomination, news outlets speculate on the likelihood and consequences of a woman as his VP pick.

These entrepreneurs founded “princess-for-hire” companies that cast Black women to play Disney princesses at children’s parties, with the mission of teaching young Black girls that they are “princess-worthy.”
Ride-share app Lyft expanded its Women+ Connect program, which allows women and non-binary riders to request drivers in their demographic, to include major locations like New York and Los Angeles.
Plaid, a financial technology company that powers well-known apps like YNAB, announced a woman as its first President. Jen Taylor will bring past experiences at Cloudflare, Meta, Salesforce, and Adobe to her new role.
A woman will lead the charge to mitigate the risks of AI. Elizabeth Kelly has been appointed director of the Biden administration’s newly established U.S. Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on the gender and racial makeup of common occupations. Jobs with the greatest share of female workers include skincare specialists, kindergarten teachers, dental hygienists, and secretaries.

For the first time in Super Bowl history, an all-women team piloted the flyover before the game.
College basketball star Caitlin Clark of Iowa became the all-time leading scorer in Division I history, making her 3,528th point in last night's game against Michigan.

The Oakland Athletics, a Major League Baseball team, have hired the first woman in league history to serve as a main play-by-play announcer. Jenny Cavnar is set to cover the majority of the team's games in the 2024 season.
Racheal Kundananji from Zambia made history as the highest-priced women's soccer player ever, transferring from Madrid CFF to Bay FC for $860,000.

Scientists have identified a potential connection between the common hormone disorder PCOS and later-in-life cognitive decline. PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome, is the most prevalent endocrine condition among women aged 15 to 44.
We haven’t been making it up – women really do get cold more often than men. Reasons include lower heat-generating muscle tissue, slower metabolic rates, and higher skin surface-to-volume ratio (i.e. women are smaller on average), resulting in faster heat loss and lower internal heat production.

The Oscars announced a new award for achievement in casting, the first category the Academy has added in decades. With women representing roughly 70% of casting directors in Hollywood, the award could improve gender equity among Oscar winners.
Amateur photographer Nima Sarikhani won this year’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award (cover photo for today’s newsletter). She hopes her photo of a polar bear napping on an iceberg will inspire hope about climate change prevention.
At New York Fashion Week, one designer made a bold statement by casting only women over 40 to model in her runway show.
In North Carolina, Charlotte the stingray is pregnant despite having had no male contact for at least eight years.

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