A significant drought in Panama caused by the El Niño weather pattern has forced the Central American country to slash the number of vessels it lets through its major canal. And the reduced flow of goods through one of the world’s most consequential shipping lanes could create a ripple effect that shakes the global economy.

What did the commentators say?
Starting on Sept. 15, the Panama Canal Authority will let 32 ships pass through the canal’s locks daily — a drop from the 36 it currently allows. This represents a major change for a “critical chokepoint that moves about 5% of the world’s shipping,” said CNN. The U.S. is the canal’s “biggest user.” About “70% of all the goods moving through it are coming to or going from the U.S.”

These reductions are necessary because the Panama Canal “relies on fresh water to operate its locks and has had less rain than normal” in recent years, said the Financial Times. The coming El Niño, when “surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean rise, potentially causing severe drought and warmer winters, could be one of the most intense ever.” 

The shift in the number of vessels could result in higher prices for consumers in the U.S. and globally, according to experts. While some ships may “wait to transit to avoid the higher fees, those carrying more time-sensitive cargo are likely to take the plunge and pay the steep transit prices, driving up the price of those goods,” said CNN.

What next?
The shipping reductions are just the Panama Canal’s latest in a line of “other water conservation measures,” said The Guardian. The canal itself could also turn into a hindrance for vessels, as officials said that with the “upcoming reduction, waiting times for ships trying to get through without making a reservation beforehand will increase.”

Shipping companies have already been “preparing for possible disruptions,” said the Financial Times, with many taking drastic measures to get ahead of the cuts. For ships that don’t make reservations to pass through, officials typically issue several extra slots via auction. At least one ship “paid a staggering $4 million to fast-track its trip,” said CNN.

A new generation of drugs could transform the lives of people affected by narcolepsy and form the basis of future treatments for other neuropsychiatric disorders, including ADHD and depression. The Food and Drug Administration has approved oveporexton (brand name Orzeyful), the first orexin-agonist treatment for narcolepsy. 

But the “excitement is not just about narcolepsy,” said The Economist. Drugmakers are “betting” that orexins could “follow a similar path” to semaglutide (like Ozempic) and tirzepatide (like Mounjaro), the GLP-1 receptor agonists initially developed as diabetes medication before their wider applications were unlocked.

What are orexins?
Peptides (chains of amino acids) produced in the brain carry messages between neurons relating to the body’s sleep-wake system, as well as reward and motivation. These cells seem to die off in people with narcolepsy type 1. This means their brains lose the “ability to control” when their body sleeps, said Time.

How do orexin agonists work?
In 2011, researchers at Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda found a chemical compound that turned the orexin receptor off and could therefore become a treatment for insomnia. But the “bigger prize may lie not in blocking orexin’s signal but restoring it,” said The Economist. Oveporexton, also developed by Takeda, “activates the orexin pathway” and “restores the brain’s ability to remain alert,” said Time.

Narcoleptic volunteers who took oveporexton in a clinical trial were able to stay awake up to 25 minutes longer than those who hadn’t taken it and also had fewer episodes of cataplexy, loss of muscle control, hallucinations and irregular sleep. “It was the first time I felt somewhat alive in the last 10 years,” said one 19-year-old trial participant to Nature. “It’s the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

What might the future hold?
Around 1 in 2,000 people in the U.S. and Western Europe suffer from narcolepsy. Orexin-agonist-based medicines for narcolepsy and other sleep disorders could generate $15.9 billion a year by 2035, according to Morgan Stanley estimates.

And oveporexton’s success “opens the door to the use of orexin-mimicking drugs for other conditions associated with low levels of the chemical,” such as ADHD and depression, said Smithsonian Magazine. This is “just the beginning,” said Andy Plump, Takeda’s president of research and development to the outlet.

A resident walks along a street in Devghat, Nepal, after a mudslide on the Himalayan border triggered catastrophic flash flooding in Nepal and China. At least 160 people have died, and hundreds more are missing, including at least 47 American tourists. 
Prakash Mathema / AFP / Getty Images

TKFilmgoers love sports movies for the same reason that networks linger on players celebrating championships after the big game and then cut to the losers to capture their heartbreak: Sports narratives are innately moving. These superb dramas keep audiences riveted because they are about much more than winning or losing.

‘Bang the Drum Slowly’ (1973)
John D. Hancock’s largely forgotten “Bang the Drum Slowly” (pictured above) is the story of a friendship between New York Mammoths star pitcher and his unsophisticated catcher. The film’s “mixture of fatalism, roughness, tenderness and bleak humor” hit home despite the lack of “telegraphed big moments on the field,” said Roger Ebert at the time. (Prime Video)

‘Moneyball’ (2011)
A movie about the data analytics revolution in baseball is an unlikely contender for one of the best sports movies, but director Bennett Miller’s take on Michael Lewis’ 2003 book gets it done. Featuring a “sharp, sleek script,” it is as much about a “fundamental cultural shift and the rise of the information elite” as it is about baseball, said Manohla Dargis at The New York Times. (Netflix)

‘The Fire Inside’ (2024)
Ryan Destiny anchors “The Fire Inside” as Claressa Shields, the two-time Olympic gold-winning boxer from Flint, Michigan, and her coach, Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry). It asks a question rarely posed in sports films: “If you don’t come from privilege, what happens when you fight your way to the top, only to realize that it looks a lot like where you started?” said Alissa Wilkinson at The New York Times. (MGM+)