Nearly 10,000 U.S. Government Employees Laid Off in Major Downsizing Effort

In a significant move, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order on March 21, 2025, aimed at "eliminating" the federal Department of Education, marking a long-standing goal of conservative factions seeking more state control over education. During a ceremony at the White House, flanked by schoolchildren, Trump proclaimed, “We’re going to return education back to the states where it belongs” and asserted that the department “is doing us no good." The Education Department, established in 1979, cannot be completely abolished without Congressional approval; however, Trump's directive focuses on cutting its funding and staffing. Education Secretary Linda McMahon was instructed to facilitate the department's closure, with Trump stating that “hopefully she will be our last secretary of education.” Critics, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, condemned the initiative as a “tyrannical power grab,” while Republicans lauded it as a necessary step to enhance educational standards. Trump's administration has been marked by aggressive restructuring of government agencies, and juxtaposed with recent efforts to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Ricci Wynne, a 39-year-old MAGA influencer known for his controversial content about homelessness in San Francisco, was indicted on federal charges of producing child sex abuse material. The indictment, announced on Tuesday, includes two counts related to incidents involving minors in April and October 2022, according to documents obtained by HuffPost. Wynne, who goes by "Raw Ricci" and has a following of over 100,000 on Instagram, was initially arrested in November for pimping and pandering after he was taken into custody at San Francisco International Airport. At that time, he was also named a suspect in the sexual assault of a 15-year-old, as reported by The San Francisco Standard. Evidence recovered from Wynne's cellphones and luxury apartment suggested he may have been running a sex work operation across multiple cities. Currently held in federal custody, Wynne has pleaded not guilty to all charges. If convicted, he faces up to 30 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

Divya Tyagi, an Indian-origin master’s student in aerospace engineering at Pennsylvania State University, has made significant advancements in wind energy production by solving a century-old mathematical problem. Her breakthrough in refining a model originally posed by British aerodynamicist Hermann Glauert could lead to improved wind turbine designs and enhanced efficiency, according to Penn State University’s official website. By addressing limitations in Glauert’s model, which focused solely on the maximum power output of wind turbines, Tyagi's solution incorporates additional critical factors such as rotor forces and blade bending under wind pressure. “I created an addendum to Glauert’s problem which determines the optimal aerodynamic performance of a wind turbine,” she stated. Her research, published in Wind Energy Science, not only simplifies complex calculations but helps maximize the power output of wind turbines. Sven Schmitz, Tyagi’s advisor, praised her work, noting its potential impact on the next generation of wind turbines. Tyagi was awarded the prestigious Anthony E. Wolk Award for her thesis, emphasizing the importance of her contributions to sustainable energy solutions.