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U.S. jobless claims held near multi-decade lows last week as companies worked to keep employees on their payrolls amid ongoing labor shortages.

The Labor Department released its latest weekly jobless claims report Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET. Here were the main metrics from the print compared to consensus estimates compiled by Bloomberg:

Initial jobless claims, week ended April 9: 185,000 vs.170,000 expected and a revised 167,000 during prior week

Continuing claims, week ended April 2: 1.475 million vs. 1.500 million expected, 1.523 million during prior week

While first-time unemployment claims rose slightly more than expected in the latest weekly data, they were still near a 54-year low set earlier this month. Weekly claims fell to the lowest level since 1968 during the prior week at just 167,000. That compares to the average of about 218,000 new claims filed per week throughout 2019 before the pandemic. And the latest figures represent a staggering reversal from the outsized claims filed at the height of the pandemic two years ago, when claims at one point topped 6.1 million in a single week in April 2020.

Given the surge and then decline in jobless claims, the Labor Department has also now reconfigured the way it adjusts the weekly data to account for seasonal factors. Starting last week, the Labor Department returned to using "multiplicative" seasonal adjustment factors for the data. For much of the pandemic, the department had been using "additive" seasonal adjustments that help smooth out large swings in the weekly numbers.

Nevertheless, the underlying trend in the claims data has undeniably pointed to a labor market still short of sufficient worker supply to meet demand. Labor costs have risen for companies across industries as a result, and contributed to a further jump in inflation. The March Consumer Price Index (CPI) released earlier this week showed consumer-level inflation rose 8.5% in March over last year the fastest annual rate since 1981.

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"It seems like were in the midst of a perfect storm of factors with rising commodity prices, supply chain issues, and a tight labor market so it is not surprising that inflation is rising at its fastest pace in 40 years," Brian Price, head of investment management for Commonwealth Financial Network, said in an email Tuesday.

Other recent economic data have also underscored the dual concerns companies have been facing over labor supply challenges and rising costs. In the National Federation of Independent Business' latest monthly small business optimism survey released earlier this week, the firm said 31% of surveyed owners reported that inflation was their single-most important business problem, edging out "labor quality" as the top concern. That also marked the highest proportion of firms citing "inflation" as their top problem since 1981.

Inflation has impacted small businesses throughout the country and is now their most important business problem,NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg NFIB said in the release. With inflation, an ongoing staffing shortage, and supply chain disruptions, small business owners remain pessimistic about their future business conditions.

Emily McCormick is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @emily_mcck

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Jobless claims: Another 185,000 Americans filed new claims last week - Yahoo Finance

Finally, after a long pause that leaned into the oddity of Tom Bradys brief retirement, were going to see the finale in the quarterbacks Man in the Arena documentary. Is it going to dig under the fingernails of the past few months or gloss it all over with a manicure?

Given the pause that has gone into this 10th and final episode, its hard to believe it will be anything but the latter.

Brady has been nothing but calculated these past few years when it has come to his brand, career and narrative. From his end with the New England Patriots which seemed to begin inside the Facebook series Tom vs. Time to seemingly every step taken inside and outside the Tampa Bay Buccaneers organization. But the past month has seen the heavily crafted plot whipsaw significantly, with overlapping reports from ProFootballTalk, The Boston Globe, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and a handful of others. You should know these reports by now. The ones that have outlined a plan with a lot of moving parts, which would have allegedly come together with Brady in a Miami Dolphins uniform in 2022, then landing a stake in ownership down the road.

Some have criticized it all as dot-connecting mythology, despite lacking an alternative timeline that makes Bradys five-plus weeks of retirement make any sense. The fact is, it all looks more like a spider web than a smattering of dots. And most of it didnt even get deeply into the granular details that offer the fabric of a complicated plan like the two supposed Miami targets, Brady and Sean Payton, sharing agent Don Yee, or the serendipity of Brady and wife Gisele Bndchen completing their move to a $17 million Miami estate thats a half hour from the Dolphins' practice facility and 20 minutes from Hard Rock Stadium.

What's the real story behind Tom Brady's brief retirement and return to the Buccaneers? (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Remarkable coincidences all around, none of which are likely to get anywhere near the final episode of Bradys Man in the Arena.

So what exactly is supposed to get answered in this grand finale?

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Certainly its something that could roll out some detailed descriptions and footage of what the hell happened between February and March, when Brady didnt want to commit himself to football anymore and then suddenly did again. Because theres dirt under those fingernails and plenty of time to get into all of it. Only, it likely wont. Instead, whats more likely to happen is an effort to move Brady out of the zone of anything dicey.

Exit plans? Never. Dicey relationship with a head coach? No way. Never mind if it feels familiar to the end in New England and has the very recognizable fingerprints of a narrative-controlling Tom Brady who is becoming more recognizable by the year.

If anything, the grand finale and bow that ties it all up will dovetail with the fuzzy bow Brady has already tried to put on his semi-retirement. One day he wasnt feeling the tug of football. A few weeks later he was. Simple as that. Anything else that happened that weird, dragged-out coaching search in Miami, Brady seeming wishy-washy about his football future almost from the second he retired, Arians stepping aside as head coach in Tampa Bay thats the stuff for the editing floor if you believe it would have ever been considered for a final cut in the first place.

So heres what the final episode is promising, in a release from ESPN, who is partnering with Brady on the project and has been remarkably quiet on the whole Brady/Dolphins front:

In episode 10, Brady leaves New England to start a new chapter with the Buccaneers. Joined by former teammate Rob Gronkowski in Tampa Bay, Brady captures his 7th Super Bowl title. As he reflects on life outside of football, Brady shares his hopes of living up to the example set by his hero, his father. The episode features exclusive interviews with Brady, as well as his father Tom Brady Sr. and teammate Rob Gronkowski. The docuseries is co-produced by ESPN, Religion of Sports, 199 Productions, and NFL Films.

It sounds like a dad-centered episode wrapped in something contemplative and ultimately open-ended. That apparently necessitated a long pause in the seasons rollout to produce. For reasons that likely also wont have a litany of explanation.

Perhaps it will be more. Well see. But when it comes to many of these documentaries that are really more of a miniseries of me, by me, for me with the centerpiece being the driving partner, something is going to get flushed. Betting money should land on it being most of what really went down in Bradys offseason about-face.

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The long-delayed final episode of Tom Bradys self-styled miniseries is coming. And it has a lot of explaining to do. - Yahoo Sports

Baseballs most dominant pitcher is only 20 years old. Its been 17 innings since he last allowed so much as a baserunner. On April 10, he fired a perfect game with 19 strikeouts. In his next start, this past Sunday, he threw eight more perfect innings before his manager removed him from the game. Before you ask, no, hes not on the Los Angeles Dodgers. Hes not on any MLB roster.

His name is Roki Sasaki, and he plays for the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japans Nippon Professional Baseball. At an age when many American hurlers are college juniors, Sasaki is flummoxing the second-best baseball league in the world with triple-digit fastballs and ferocious splitters.

As he piles historic performance on top of historic performance, its time to learn about the pitching star rising in Japan.

Sasaki, a 20-year-old right-hander, has been a source of intrigue and fascination since his high school days.

Originally from northeastern Japan, Sasaki lost his father when the devastating March 2011 tsunami swept away his familys home. As he grew into a star high school hurler, his fastball was clocked over 100 mph in training with the national youth team, per Jim Allen, a journalist who covers Japanese baseball.

But Sasakis high school coach and later the Marines bucked the conventions of Japanese baseball culture by holding him out of important games and ramping him up slowly into professional baseball to protect his arm.

Chiba Lotte won the draft lottery for him in 2019, but Sasaki didnt pitch at all in 2020, and then appeared in only 11 top-level NPB games last season. So embarking on a full campaign to start 2022 would already have been notable. Instead he has generated international attention by spinning off his leagues first perfect game since 1994 and shattering its records for consecutive batters retired and consecutive strikeouts.

Roki Sasaki has captivated the baseball world with 17 perfect innings. (Michael Wagstaffe / Yahoo Sports)

Its probably the best-pitched game modern professional baseball has ever seen.

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By game score, created by sabermetrics forefather Bill James to compare single-game pitching performances, Sasakis 19-strikeout perfect game rates as a 106. The best nine-inning game score in MLB history is Kerry Woods 20-strikeout game in 1998, a 105. Max Scherzers 17-strikeout no-no in 2015 is second, at 104.

In simpler terms: None of MLBs 23 perfect games have involved more than 14 strikeouts.

Within that masterpiece, Sasaki struck out 13 consecutive batters. The MLB record is 10 strikeouts in a row a mark that Mets legend Tom Seaver held alone for 51 years before it was tied by Corbin Burnes and Aaron Nola in 2021.

Yes. On Sunday, Sasaki tossed eight more perfect innings. His manager, the former major-league infielder Tadahito Iguchi, pulled him due to an elevated pitch count and signs he was tiring. Sasaki said afterward he had felt some fatigue. The Marines eventually lost the game, which was scoreless when Sasaki departed.

He will enter his next start with active streaks of 17 perfect innings and 52 straight batters retired. The MLB record for consecutive batters retired? Yusmeiro Petits 46, a number rendered less glamorous because it was recorded in relief.

Well, for starters, his fastball is averaging 98.9 mph this season. That would have beaten all major-league starters not named Jacob deGrom in 2021. It also comes with an extraordinary amount of movement though its worth noting the Japanese baseball is tackier than its MLB counterpart, which affects how much spin pitchers can impart.

His splitter is the other featured pitch. Sometimes referred to as a forkball, its a power pitch that drops off the table as it bears down on hitters. Its similar to Shohei Ohtanis favorite secondary pitch, but flies in a bit harder (about 91 mph compared to Ohtanis 88 mph splitter) and veers off more toward Sasakis arm side.

On any given day, he could be the best pitcher in the world, an MLB scout told Allen. His splitter is as good as Shohei Ohtanis.

Time for some bad news: We probably wont see Sasaki test his mettle against MLB hitters any time soon. If Sasaki decides he wants to come to America, MLB rules around international players could back him into a complicated choice.

Under the current system, he could:

A) Ask to be posted during his peak in the next few seasons, but sacrifice untold financial guarantees and enter MLB with just a limited signing bonus and a league-minimum salary, as Shohei Ohtani did.

B) Wait until he turns 25, at seasons end in 2027, to age out of MLBs restrictive policies and negotiate with teams more or less like a free agent. Exciting rookie slugger Seiya Suzuki came over from NPB this offseason and landed a five-year, $85 million deal with the Chicago Cubs.

The great unknown here is whether that particular system for MLB amateurs will remain in place. In striking a deal to end the lockout this spring, MLB and the players union left open the possibility of adopting an international draft that could govern Sasakis path to MLB if it were instituted.

The two sides have until July 25 to continue negotiations and decide on that draft. The top pick in MLBs proposed format would reportedly carry a bonus of $5.25 million more than double what Ohtani signed for but we simply dont know if those details would hold in the eventual plan, when the draft system would take effect or how it would ultimately affect Sasakis options.

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Who is Roki Sasaki? Meet the 20-year-old who almost pitched 2 perfect games in a row - Yahoo Sports

Shark Tank star and OShares Investment Advisers Chairman Kevin OLeary predicts that one day blockchain and cryptocurrency will represent the 12th sector of the S&P 500 and is "very confident" sensible government crypto regulation will happen before mass adoption.

The pace and acceleration of policy proposals coming out of bipartisan Senate committees and the Hill has never been greater Kevin OLeary said on Yahoo Finance Live We've got the Lummis bill. We have the Haggerty bill for stablecoin, the Toomey bill for stablecoin. We have the POTUS executive order, all within six weeks of each other, all discussing the future of cryptocurrencies.

Cryptocurrency regulation has varied internationally, ranging from outright bans to early cases of bitcoin becoming a country's national currency as El Salvador announced in 2021. Fifteen countries currently ban bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and deem them illegal in any shape or form, according to data from Cryptimi.

On the opposite end, Canada allows bitcoin ETFs, ethereum ETFs and has licensed a cross-country cryptocurrency dealer.

There's so much innovation going on in different geographies with regulators at different stages of releasing policy on this, that we have fallen behind in the U.S., OLeary said.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has yet to introduce regulation for crypto exchanges, but SEC Chair Gary Gensler is hopeful to formalize guidelines this year. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve published a research and analysis white paper which called attention to the price volatility, limitations on transaction throughput and energy footprint of cryptocurrencies, suggesting the Fed may favor a Central Bank Digital Currency or stablecoin.

Cryptocurrency on Binance trading app, Bitcoin BTC with altcoin digital coin an dother cryptocurrency. Credit: Getty

Meanwhile, the benefits of cryptocurrencys underlying technology blockchain are being heralded by technologists and the finance sector.

JPMorgan Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon had historically bashed bitcoin, but in his latest annual shareholder letter, he said, Decentralized finance and blockchain are real, new technologies that can be deployed in both public and private fashion, permissioned or not.

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Major investment firms have also been pouring capital into blockchain and cryptocurrency unicorns.

OLeary commented on one such recent deal, The announcement of BlackRock and Fidelity putting $400 million into USDC, the Circle product that's unprecedented for such staid financial services companies to make a bet that large on cryptocurrency.

Bradley Smith is an anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter @thebradsmith.

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Kevin OLeary on US crypto regulation: We need to catch up with the rest of the world - Yahoo Finance

LAGUNA HILLS, Calif. & LAUSANNE, Switzerland, April 19, 2022--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BrainChip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN, OTCQX: BRCHF, ADR: BCHPY), the worlds first commercial producer of neuromorphic AI IP and chips, and nViso SA (NVISO), the leading human behavioral analytics AI company, today announced a collaboration targeting battery-powered applications in robotics and mobility/automotive to address the need for high levels of AI performance with ultra-low power technologies. The initial effort will include implementing NVISOs AI solutions for Social Robots and In-cabin Monitoring Systems on BrainChips Akida processors.

Developers of automotive and consumer technologies are striving for devices that better respond to human behaviorwhich requires tools and applications to interpret human behavior captured from cameras and sensors on devices. However, these environments can be constrained by limited compute performance, power consumption, and cloud connectivity lapses. Akida addresses these weaknesses with high performance and ultra-low power (micro- to milliwatts) as well as by performing AI/ML processing of vision/image, motion, and sound data directly on devices, instead of in a remote cloud. Since information is not sent off-device, user privacy and security are also protected.

NVISOs technology is uniquely able to analyze signals of human behavior such as facial expressions, emotions, identity, head poses, gaze, gestures, activities, and objects with which users interact. In robotics and in-vehicle applications, human behavior analytics detect the users emotional state to provide personalized, adaptive, interactive, safe devices and systems. The result of the collaboration between NVISO and BrainChip is expected to enable more advanced, more capable, and more accurate AI on consumer products.

"Our work with BrainChip will support AIs demanding power/cost/performance needs for OEMs, even at mass production and scale, so they can benefit from faster and more efficient development cycles," said Tim Llewellynn, CEO of NVISO. "Ultra-low power edge-based consumer processing is expected to deliver a more intelligent and individualized user experience, and we believe running our AI solutions for Social Robots and In-cabin Monitoring Systems on Akida will provide a competitive edge for joint customers demanding always-on features on low power budgets."

"NVISOs human behavioral analytics AI systems offer fascinating possibilities in homes, cars, buildings, hospitals, and more, and were enthusiastic about supporting these functions with BrainChips processing performance and energy efficiency," said Sean Hehir, BrainChip CEO. "This is not only a collaboration between two companies, its advancing the state of the art in AI with platforms for edge AI devices to interpret human behavior, improving product performance and user experience."

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BrainChips first-to-market neuromorphic processor, Akida, mimics the human brain to analyze only essential sensor inputs at the point of acquisition, processing data with unparalleled efficiency, precision, and economy of energy. Keeping AI/ML local to the chip, independent of the cloud, also dramatically reduces latency while improving privacy and data security.

For additional information about the BrainChip, NVISO partnership contact sales@brainchip.com.

About NVISO

NVISO is an Artificial Intelligence company founded in 2009 and headquartered at the Innovation Park of the cole Polytechnique Fdrale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland. Its mission is to help teach machines to understand people and their behavior to make autonomous machines safe, secure, and personalized for humans. As leader in human behavioral AI, it provides robust embedded software solutions that can sense, comprehend, and act upon human behavior in real-world environments deployed at the deep edge. It achieves this through real-time perception and observation of people and objects in contextual situations combined with the reasoning and semantics of human behavior based on trusted scientific research. NVISOs technology is made accessible through ready-to-use AI solutions addressing Smart Mobility and Smart Health and Living applications (in-cabin monitoring systems, health assessments, and companion robot sensing) with a key focus on the deep and extreme edge with ultra-low power processing capabilities. With a singular focus on how to apply the most advanced and robust technology to industry and societal problems that matter, NVISOs solutions help advance human potential through more robust and rich human machine interactions. ir.nviso.ai

About BrainChip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN, OTCQX: BRCHF, ADR: BCHPY)

BrainChip is a global technology company that is producing a groundbreaking neuromorphic processor that brings artificial intelligence to the edge in a way that is beyond the capabilities of other products. The chip is high performance, small, ultra-low power and enables a wide array of edge capabilities that include on-chip training, learning and inference. The event-based neural network processor is inspired by the spiking nature of the human brain and is implemented in an industry standard digital process. By mimicking brain processing BrainChip has pioneered a processing architecture, called Akida, which is both scalable and flexible to address the requirements in edge devices. At the edge, sensor inputs are analyzed at the point of acquisition rather than through transmission via the cloud to a data center. Akida is designed to provide a complete ultra-low power and fast AI Edge Network for vision, audio, olfactory and smart transducer applications. The reduction in system latency provides faster response and a more power efficient system that can reduce the large carbon footprint of data centers.

Additional information is available at https://www.brainchipinc.com

Follow BrainChip on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/BrainChip_inc Follow BrainChip on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/7792006

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220419006065/en/

Contacts

Media Contact: Mark SmithJPR Communications818-398-1424

Investor Contact: Mark KomonoskiIntegrous CommunicationsDirect: 877-255-8483Mobile: 403-470-8384mkomonoski@integcom.us

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BrainChip and NVISO Partner on Human Behavioral Analytics in Automotive and Edge AI Devices - Yahoo Finance

LAVAL, Quebec, and VAUGHAN, Ontario, April 20, 2022 /CNW/ -- Bausch Health Companies Inc. (NYSE/TSX: BHC) ("Bausch Health" or the "Company") announced today that, in connection with its previously announced intention to separate its eye health business (the "Separation"), its wholly owned subsidiary, Bausch + Lomb Corporation ("Bausch + Lomb"), is seeking to enter into a new credit agreement (the "Bausch + Lomb Credit Agreement"), which is expected to include a $2.5 billion term B loan facility (the "Term Loan Facility") and $500 million revolving facility (the "Revolving Credit Facility", and together with the Term Loan Facility, the "Credit Facilities").

The Term Loan Facility is expected to mature in 2027. The Revolving Credit Facility is expected to mature in 2027 and to be undrawn at closing of the proposed initial public offering ("IPO") of Bausch + Lomb. The Credit Facilities are expected to be secured by substantially all of the assets of Bausch + Lomb and its material, wholly-owned Canadian, U.S., Dutch and Irish subsidiaries, subject to certain exceptions.

Upon completion of the Bausch + Lomb IPO, the proceeds from the Term Loan Facility are expected to be used to fund the repayment of an intercompany note issued to Bausch Health in connection with the Separation.

The foregoing transactions are subject to market and other conditions and are anticipated to close in the second quarter of 2022. However, there can be no assurance that Bausch + Lomb will be able to successfully complete the transactions on the terms described above or at all.

About Bausch + Lomb Bausch + Lomb, a leading global eye health business of Bausch Health Companies, Inc., is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the gift of sight for millions of people around the world from the moment of birth through every phase of life. Its comprehensive portfolio of more than 400 products includes contact lenses, lens care products, eye care products, ophthalmic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter products and ophthalmic surgical devices and instruments. Founded in 1853, Bausch + Lomb has a significant global research and development, manufacturing and commercial footprint with more than 12,000 employees and a presence in nearly 100 countries. Bausch + Lomb is headquartered in Vaughan, Ontario with corporate offices in Bridgewater, New Jersey. For more information, visit http://www.bausch.com and connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

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About Bausch HealthBausch Health Companies Inc. (NYSE/TSX: BHC) ("Bausch Health") is a global company whose mission is to improve people's lives with our health care products. Bausch Health develops, manufactures and markets a range of pharmaceutical, medical device and over-the-counter products, primarily in the therapeutic areas of eye health, gastroenterology and dermatology. Bausch Health is delivering on its commitments as it builds an innovative company dedicated to advancing global health. For more information, visit http://www.bauschhealth.com and connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Forward-looking StatementsThis news release may contain forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, our and Bausch + Lomb's financing plans and the details thereof, including the proposed use of proceeds therefrom, the timing expectations of the Bausch + Lomb IPO and the Company's plan to spin off or separate its eye health business from the remainder of Bausch Health, subject to market conditions and regulatory, stock exchange and other necessary approvals, and that the spinoff will occur following the expiry of customary lock-ups and the achievement of our target net leverage ratios, subject to receipt of shareholder and necessary approvals, and the capitalization structure of such transaction, the anticipated dis-synergies resulting from such transaction (including the allocation thereof between the separated entity and the remainder of Bausch Health) and the Company's plans and expectations for 2022 and beyond. Forward-looking statements may generally be identified by the use of the words "anticipates," "expects," "predicts," "goals," "intends," "plans," "should," "could," "would," "may," "will," "believes," "estimates," "potential," "target," "commit," "forecast," "tracking," or "continue" and variations or similar expressions, and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results may, could, should or will be achieved, received or taken or will occur or result, and similar such expressions also identify forward-looking information. These forward-looking statements are based upon the current expectations and beliefs of management and are provided for the purpose of providing additional information about such expectations and beliefs and readers are cautioned that these statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risks and uncertainties discussed in the Company's most recent annual and quarterly reports and detailed from time to time in the Company's other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including those identified in Bausch + Lomb's filings relating to the IPO, and the Canadian Securities Administrators, which risks and uncertainties are incorporated herein by reference. They also include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties caused by or relating to the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, the fear of that pandemic, the availability and effectiveness of vaccines for COVID-19, the emergence of variants of COVID-19 (including with respect to current or future variants), COVID-19 vaccine immunization rates, the evolving reaction of governments, private sector participants and the public to that pandemic, and the potential effects and economic impact of the pandemic and the reaction to it, the severity, duration and future impact of which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, and which may have a significant adverse impact on the Company, including but not limited to its supply chain, third-party suppliers, project development timelines, employee base, liquidity, stock price, financial condition and costs (which may increase) and revenue and margins (both of which may decrease).

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any of these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Bausch Health undertakes no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this news release or to reflect actual outcomes, unless required by law.

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Bausch + Lomb Corporation Seeking to Enter Into New Credit Facilities to Facilitate Previously Announced Separation from Bausch Health - Yahoo Finance

The NBA playoffs continue Tuesday night with three more games, starting with Atlanta and Miami squaring off at 7:30 p.m. ET. While the Heat handled their business in Game 1, not every top seed had the same success. After recording the NBA's second-best record during the regular season, the Memphis Grizzlies were stunned by the Minnesota Timberwolves in front of their home crowd. Favorites went 7-1 S/U in the series openers and followed that up with a 2-1 record last night. I am taking both a favorite and a big underdog to bounce back after poor Game 1 performances. The best bets are sometimes the ones that are hardest to make. Here is why I am backing both the Hawks and Grizzlies on Tuesday night's NBA card.

All lines from BetMGM.

The Heat made a statement early Sunday by completely shutting down Atlanta's offense in a 115-91 blowout. It's clear Miami is tired of hearing about Milwaukee, Boston and Brooklyn, whenever the Eastern Conference title odds are discussed, and took out its anger on a fatigued Atlanta team that just fought through the play-in tournament. It was a stark reminder that the East will go through the Heat this postseason.

Miami's star guard and leader, Jimmy Butler, embraces the opportunity to play with a chip on his shoulder. But will he be able to carry over that same energy in Game 2? I think it's going to be difficult. Atlanta was coming off an emotional 107-101 road win Friday night that required the Hawks to come back from a 10-point halftime deficit. They looked sluggish from the start to say the least in Game 1 against Miami, some in part due to the Heat's elite defense. However, there is no denying the major rest disadvantage Atlanta faced in that game. Trae Young was miserable from the field, shooting 1-of-12 including 0-of-7 from 3-point range. Previously, he had averaged over 25 points per game in four regular-season meetings vs. the Heat, including going off for 35 points in a four-point loss only 11 days ago. The Hawks stayed within six points the last three times these two teams played heading into Sunday's blowout. I understand the playoffs are a different animal, but Young has proven that he can carry Atanta's offense and deliver in the biggest postseason spots. I am inclined to bet he doesn't go away so easily, and the Hawks keep this one competitive by staying with the number.

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It doesn't get any better than Ja Morant vs. Anthony Edwards. The Minnesota Timberwolves were the butt of everyone's jokes for their celebration after qualifying for the playoffs. After running the Memphis Grizzlies out of the arena in Game 1, nobody is laughing anymore. The Timberwolves' odds to advance past the Western Conference's second-best team have dropped sharply from +260 to a modest +115. There is real momentum with Minnesota.

Let's not forget that Memphis won 56 games during the regular season and can easily get back to doing what got it there against a team like Minnesota that pushes the pace and plays with tempo. Morant will get his in the paint, where Memphis outscored Minnesota 60-50, but expect his supporting cast to focus on making Game 2 much more physical. The early foul trouble of Steven Adams and Jaren Jackson Jr. contributed to the Wolves winning the rebounding battle, which I don't expect to see again considering Memphis crashes the glass better than anybody. This time around the Grizzlies will get back to doing the dirty work to create the type of second-chance scoring opportunities that makes their offense go.

Edwards was the best player in Game 1, but it's going to be even more challenging when he gets a heavier dose of Dillon Brooks for all four quarters. I'm betting Minnesota won't match Memphis' physicality, and the Grizzlies make a statement with their backs against the wall at home. Morant will make the big buckets when they need them, but the contributions of Bane, Desmond Brooks and Jackson Jr. will fuel Tuesday night's turnaround.

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NBA betting: Will Trae Young and the Hawks rebound in Game 2? - Yahoo Sports

WASHINGTON It was not, in the final analysis, the most clement weather for an outdoor party, with a cold rain falling on Washington, D.C., but Easter comes when it comes. This year, it happened to come as vestiges of winter moved over the mid-Atlantic region, but that did little to dampen enthusiasm for the White House Easter Egg Roll, acherished tradition that had been put on hold by the coronavirus pandemic.

This years event was attended by the comedian Jimmy Fallon and the actress Kristin Chenoweth.

Fallon watched his daughter roll eggs down the lush lawn with the president presiding over the first race and then read from Nana Loves You More, a childrens book he authored. This is so cool, Fallon said, describing himself as a bestselling author, though he is more famous for hosting a late night talk show.

President Biden and first lady Jill Biden read the classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

President Biden and first lady Jill Biden listen as Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon reads his book Nana Loves You More. (Andrew Harnik/AP)

Members of the extended Biden family were also on hand, including the presidents son Hunter, whose personal troubles and professional conduct have recently become the focus of public attention once again. Few people present, however, appeared to be occupied withallegations of stolen laptops or secret Chinese deals not with Snoopy and Charlie Brown around.

The singer Ciara, who had visited the White House several months earlier, was also scheduled to make an appearance. John Fetterman, the Pennsylvania lieutenant governor and U.S. Senate candidate, was captured at one point in a stoic pose.

Easter is a holiday of spring awakening and renewal. Two years ago, then-President Donald Trump envisioned that the pandemic would be over by the time Christians around the world marked the holiday, in late April.

I would love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter, Trump told Fox News at the time, only to see the coronavirus linger for the rest of his presidency.

The vaccines developed by Trumps administration in concert with the pharmaceutical industry became widely available right around the time Biden became president. He has stressed caution and reliance on scientific expertise. Last year the White House canceled the annual Egg Roll event, but the president and first lady appeared on the South Portico of the White House in masks. The costumed Easter bunny even wore a giant surgical mask on top of the costume.

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The president and the first lady with the Easter bunny at the White House on April 5, 2021. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Since then, masks have remained an unrelentingly contentious issue, while vaccination followed by booster shots has emerged as the most consistent way to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Neither the president nor the first lady wore a face mask on the South Portico on Monday. They were flanked by two Easter bunnies this time around. And neitherbunny was masked either.

This years festivities were billed by the White House as an Eggucation Roll, a reference to the first ladys work as a professor of education and a subtle nod, it seems, to the challenges of schooling amid the pandemic, which could turn out to be a problem for Democrats in the looming November midterm elections.

We werent able to host this Easter Egg Roll last year because of the pandemic, the president said. This year, were finally getting together again. And its so special. It means so much to see and hear the children and all the families show up to be here today.

Throughout the day, 30,000 guests would attend the Egg Roll, one of the first events at a White House that is finally reopening to the public. The White House resumed public tours late last week.

Welcome to your house the peoples house, the first lady said in her own remarks.

In another sign of returning government normalcy, President Biden is also planning his first state dinner, CNN reported over the weekend.

The Bidens at the Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House on Monday. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Earlier in April, a gala at the Gridiron Club and other events caused a spate of high-profile cases in the White House, as the highly transmissible Omicron subvariant BA.2 moved through parts of the Northeast, including the Washington area. None of thosehigh-profile cases, however, appeared to be serious, a reflection of high vaccination rates in the region.

Few masks were worn by participants in the Easter celebrations on Monday, in keeping with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance that has long said face coverings were not necessary outside. In recent days, the White House has had to fend off questions from the press corps about whether sufficient precautions were being taken. It has insisted that no new measures, like a new mask mandate, are necessary.

Philadelphia recently became the first major American city to reimpose a mask mandate, a move that has been met with criticism that seems to reflect a broad public desire to move beyond the pandemic. I believe it was premature for the local government to reimpose a mask requirement, former Baltimore public health commissioner Dr. Leana Wen wrote in the Washington Post, arguing that neither infection rates nor hospitalizations justified the return of masking. Other cities should not follow suit.

A sign in Philadelphia indicating that it is mandatory to wear masks in city facilities. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Washington, D.C., has resisted following Philadelphia, and so has the White House itself, which operates under its own rules and restrictions. For months, the Biden administration has pointed out with increasing urgency that the widespread availability of vaccines, as well as the advent of and access to therapeutics pills that can treat severe COVID-19 cases should allow most Americans to return to normal.

Evidence of that desire was apparent elsewhere on Monday. For the first time since the pandemic began, the Boston Marathon was held on Patriots Day, as has been custom for more than a century: The famed race had been canceled altogether in 2020 and was moved to October last year. Unlike in Washington, the weather in Boston was reported as perfect.

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Biden hosts Easter Egg Roll with Jimmy Fallon, in another sign of an emerging post-pandemic normal - Yahoo News

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) this week commenced a sweeping agency review that will examine the institution's response to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as its ongoing efforts to manage the outbreak.

More than a dozen people close to the CDC told CNN that the agency requires major changes if it aims to respond deftly and effectively next time a pandemic arises.

New York Times best-selling author Michael Lewis agrees. Lewis, whose latest book "Premonition" chronicles the experts who perceived the threat posed by the COVID pandemic in its early days, sharply criticized the CDC during a new interview with Yahoo Finance.

He said the CDC primarily monitors outbreaks rather than controlling them. Political influence on the agency often prevents decisive action, he noted.

"As currently structured, the CDC kind of demonstrated that it wasn't the Centers for Disease Control, it's more like centers for disease observation and reporting," Lewis said.

"They've kind of gotten out of the business of controlling disease," he added. "It's controversial, it's political, it's unpleasant."

"It requires [a] real kind of leadership that they have a hard time providing as a politicized institution," he said.

The CDC has drawn criticism from across the political spectrum for some elements of its COVID-19 response. Last May, the agency lifted an indoor mask mandate but re-imposed the guideline just two months later. The agency took almost two years to acknowledge that N95 masks prevent COVID-19 more effectively than cloth masks.

Defenders of the CDC have noted that scientific research moves slowly because it often requires lengthy studies, and that agency guidelines have shifted appropriately in response to a volatile pandemic.

Last May, President Joe Biden proposed an $8.7 billion budget allotted to the CDC for fiscal year 2022, which marked the largest funding increase at the agency in nearly 20 years, CNBC reported. In turn, the Biden administration budget proposal for 2023, released last month, would boost the agency's budget to $10.6 billion.

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Lewis questioned whether the Biden administration has "grappled with the deep issue" of the CDC's ineffectiveness.

"You don't really want to give them $8 billion and say, 'Just you do more of the same,'" Lewis said.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks to Rochelle Walensky, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, prior to a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing on Capitol hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 20, 2021. Stefani Reynolds/Pool via REUTERS

Despite a critical view of the CDC, Lewis lauded a program at the agency that would help predict the timing and location of future disease outbreaks.

"In fairness, inside the CDC, they're trying to build a structure that we should have had long ago, which is kind of like a National Weather Service for disease," he said. "That we should have better predictability."

"It would go a long way to stopping pandemics before they happened," he added. "I'm not sure inside the CDC is the best place to do it."

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Elon Musk says he is a free-speech absolutist.Jae C. Hong/AP

Elon Musk, who has a 9.2% stake in Twitter, is no longer its largest shareholder.

Vanguard Group said its funds now own a 10.3% stake, according to a recent SEC filing.

Musk said on Thursday he's "not sure" if his $43 billion takeover bid for Twitter will be successful.

Elon Musk has lost his position as Twitter's largest shareholder as he attempts to buy the company in a $43 billion deal.

The Tesla and SpaceX boss said in early April he had become Twitter's largest shareholder, having built a 9.2% stake in the micro-blogging platform.

But he has now lost the top spot: An asset manager at Vanguard Group said in a filing submitted recently to the Securities and Exchange Commission that, as of April 8, its funds now own a 10.3% stake in the company, which is worth $3.6 billion as of Friday's close.

The filing shows Vanguard increased its stake in Twitter over the course of the first quarter.

On Thursday, the world's richest man unveiled a $43 billion bid for the entire company, in a take-it-or-leave-it offer.

Musk is still the largest individual shareholder, with Twitter cofounder Jack Dorsey the second largest. Musk said on Thursday, hours after making the offer, that he's "not sure" whether his takeover bid will be successful.

"I am not sure that I will actually be able to acquire it," Musk said while speaking at the TED 2022 conference in Vancouver on Thursday.

Musk said that he had a "plan B" if his bid was unsuccessful, but did not elaborate on what that would be.

Speaking to TED chief, Chris Anderson, Musk explained that he made the offer because he believes it's important to have an "inclusive arena for free speech."

"This is not a way to make money," Musk said. "My strong intuitive sense is that having a public platform that is maximally trusted and broadly inclusive is extremely important to the future of civilization."

In a letter to Twitter's chairman on Wednesday, Musk said his $54.20-per-share offer was his "best and final" offer.

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He said if the offer isn't accepted, he may dump his massive stake in the company and walk away entirely.

Twitter confirmed Thursday that it had received "an unsolicited, non-binding proposal from Elon Musk" and said it would "carefully review the proposal to determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interest of the company and all Twitter stockholders."

Musk tweeted on Thursday that it would be "utterly indefensible" for Twitter to not put his offer to a shareholder vote.

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