Neil Freiman

traffic fatalities jump by almost 15%.

Those numbers are in comparison to the 10 day window before and after the release dates to control for seasonal variables.

It's a fascinating study.

What's even more interesting, perhaps, is how they designed it in the first place.

The researchers noted that the real world effects of smartphones on driving are very difficult to study.

because you can't ethically devise a randomized controlled trial where some people are injured or worse.

So they searched for a so-called exogenous event that could reveal the impact of increased smartphone use on driving, and they landed on popular album release dates.

Very clever.

Let's sprint to the finish with some final headlines.

Stocks are tumbling this morning and oil spiked over 6% after President Trump's primetime address offered mixed messages about the direction of the war in Iran.

Speaking to the American people for 19 minutes, Trump vowed to hit Iran extremely hard over the next two to three weeks, but also said the war was, quote, nearing completion, though he didn't mention any specific timeline.

As for the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has sparked an unfolding global economic emergency, Trump repeated his claim that it wasn't the U.S.

's problem to reopen it, telling the countries that rely on Middle Eastern oil to figure out a solution themselves.

So the investors didn't love what they heard from Trump, especially because he didn't really say anything new.

The war grinds on.

Yes, it seems like it does.

Bullying companies online absolutely works.

You got to punch up, can't punch down.

But if you punch up to these companies, they will listen to their customers, obviously.

Happened with Cracker Barrel.