CTE Funding Expansion, Monks Cross NC, and State Safety Rankings

Ten North Carolina school districts will receive $197,929 in grants from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction to expand Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs focused on homebuilding and residential construction.

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Tuesday, January 20, 2026 Good Morning! On this day in 1840, North Carolina's first public school opened in Rockingham County, launching the state's free common school system. The Common Law of 1839 enabled it, and voters approved local taxes for public schools in 61 of the 68 existing counties. By 1846, every county had at least one public school. Speaking of public schools, find out which of North Carolina's school districts received funds to expand homebuilding and residential construction classes in Top Stories. Later today: If you've been thinking about getting into silver, watch for a partner message from GoldCo breaking down why interest is rising right now. Today's sponsor is FemiCore, a women's health solution featuring a doctor-backed restoration technique that supports bladder control and confidence without traditional exercises. Asheville ☀️ 37°/18° | Boone ☀️ 27°/17° | Bryson City ☀️ 42°/20° | Cary ☀️ 42°/24° | Charlotte ☀️45°/25° | Durham ☀️ 41°/22° | Fayetteville ☀️ 45°/22° | Greensboro ☀️ 38°/22° | Jacksonville ☀️ 46°/23° | New Bern ☀️ 45°/23° | Outer Banks 🌤️ 40°/31° | Pinehurst ☀️ 45°/20° | Raleigh ☀️ 43°/23° | Wilmington ☀️ 48°/27° | Winston-Salem ☀️ 40°/24° Take The Flyover with you. Busy day? Listen to our daily 15-minute podcast while commuting, cooking, or walking the dog—your Flyover fix, anywhere.

10 Districts Receive CTE Expansion Funding Ten North Carolina school districts will receive $197,929 in grants from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction to expand Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs focused on homebuilding and residential construction. The grants, authorized by the General Assembly, were announced on Jan. 14. The following districts were selected from 33 applications and prioritized based on low-wealth status and higher populations of at-risk students and students with disabilities: Alexander, Duplin, Elizabeth City-Pasquotank, Harnett, Lee, Onslow, Robeson, Rockingham, Surry, and Yancey. The grants support hands-on learning opportunities that enable students to earn industry-recognized credentials, such as National Center for Construction Education and Research certifications and Occupational Safety and Health Administration safety credentials. Examples include Lee County Schools students building full Habitat for Humanity homes and Yancey County students constructing tiny houses for local disaster recovery. Buddhist Monks Walk for Peace Through NC Eighteen Buddhist monks, accompanied by their dog Aloka, are making their way through North Carolina as part of a 2,300-mile Walk for Peace from Fort Worth, Texas, to Washington, D.C. The journey, which began on Oct. 26, promotes mindfulness, compassion, unity, and national healing amid global challenges. They arrived in Lexington on Jan. 18, gave a Peace Sharing Talk, and had meals provided by the local Cambodian Community Center. The group rested overnight before continuing toward High Point and Greensboro early Monday morning in below-freezing temperatures. The monks, who practice Vipassana meditation and some of whom walk barefoot, have gained nearly 2 million followers online. They plan to stop in Raleigh by late January and conclude their walk in mid-February in Washington, D.C. Duke Targets Mitochondria for Pain Relief Duke University scientists have discovered a novel approach to treating chronic nerve pain caused by conditions such as diabetic neuropathy and chemotherapy-related nerve damage. The treatment works by restoring healthy mitochondria, the cell's energy-producing "power plants." Led by Ru-Rong Ji, PhD, the research shows that nearby support cells, called satellite glial cells, can transfer healthy mitochondria to struggling nerve cells through microscopic tubes, helping nerves recover and reducing pain behaviors. Using mouse models and human tissue, researchers enhanced this natural process by boosting the cells' own mitochondrial production and injecting healthy mitochondria into damaged nerve clusters. The injections significantly reduced pain for up to 48 hours. The findings support growing evidence that cells can swap mitochondria. Ji said, "This approach has the potential to ease pain in a completely new way."

Flying together with our sponsor Millions of women experience bladder leaks, urgency, or discomfort. Recent scientific research is uncovering a new piece of the puzzle: the urinary microbiome. Recent medical studies have found that the balance of bacteria in the urinary system is closely linked to bladder symptoms and overall comfort. When helpful bacteria are out of balance, it may contribute to irritation, sensitivity, and leaks. That's why many women are now exploring microbiome-focused support. FemiCore is a daily supplement formulated with targeted probiotics and plant-based ingredients designed to support urinary balance and bladder comfort. It's not a medication, but it offers a science-based way to support bladder health as part of a wellness routine. To learn how this emerging research works, watch the free educational video below. Watch the free video.

➤ Fayetteville: No charges will be filed in the Jan. 3 fatal shooting at Mac's Speed Shop, where brothers Timothy Nakamoto, 43, and Daniel Nakamoto, 45, were killed. The Cumberland County district attorney determined the shooter acted in lawful self-defense. (More) ➤ Forsyth County: Treymale De'Angelo Harrison pleaded guilty to felony charges of burning a public building and personal property after setting fire to lawsuit documents inside a courthouse restroom on Oct. 21. He was sentenced to 30 months of probation. (More) ➤ Zebulon: New search warrants reveal that Wellington Dickens III, charged with murdering his three children and stepson, may have had visitors at his Zebulon home via Grindr while their decomposing bodies were in his car trunk inside the garage. (More) ➤ Rockingham County: The sheriff's office is searching for 36-year-old Sandra Grbus from High Point. She was last seen on Jan. 9, leaving Gideon Grove Church Road in a blue 2014 Chevrolet Cruze, wearing black pants, a gray sweater, and black knee-high boots. Anyone with information should contact 336-634-3232. (More) ➤ Moore County: The UNC System launched its first systemwide Basic Law Enforcement Training academy at the Samarcand Training Academy, centralizing campus police cadet training statewide. The inaugural class of 17 cadets is underway. (More) ➤ NC State has launched new master's programs in Global One Health, cybersecurity, agricultural business management, and wide bandgap semiconductors. The first cohorts will begin in fall 2026. (More) Enjoy reading Flyover North Carolina? Click here to share with your friends and family. ✈️

➤ Men's Basketball AP Poll: Duke rose one spot to No. 5 this week, while UNC dropped eight spots, the most of any team in the country, to No. 22. (See Poll) ➤ UNC basketball's Caleb Wilson was named to the midseason watch list for the Oscar Robertson Trophy, awarded to the top player in college basketball. (More) ➤ The Miami Hurricanes are contenders to land Duke quarterback Darian Mensah, who announced last week he plans to enter the transfer portal. (More) ➤ Former UNC quarterback Drake Maye will play in the AFC championship game with the New England Patriots this weekend. (More) ➤ Yesterday's Results: NBA | NHL | NCAAF | NCAAM | NCAAW | Soccer | Tennis Flying together with our sponsor ➤ Support Your Gut, Boost Your Health. Your gut does more than you think—it impacts your digestion, immunity, energy, and mood. That's why we created Wellaray Probiotics, a powerful daily formula with clinically studied strains plus prebiotics for real results. Just one capsule a day can make a noticeable difference in how you feel. Try Wellaray today and get 70% off your first order.

➤ North Carolina ranks 15th overall in WalletHub's 2026 ranking of the best states to start a business, with a score of 49.73. The ranking is based on a No. 14 finish in business costs, No. 29 in access to resources, and No. 16 in business environment. (See Data) ➤ ECU Health has earned system-wide accreditation from the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer. The designation reflects its compliance with rigorous standards designed to improve cancer patients' survival and quality of life. (More) ➤ The PGA TOUR has named Nate Goldsnider as event director for the inaugural Biltmore Championship Asheville, scheduled for Sept. 17-20 at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove. (More) Flying together with our sponsor ➤ Life Insurance May Cost Less Than You Think. Life insurance doesn't have to be expensive or complicated. With Corebridge Direct, you can get term life coverage starting around $13 a month for $250,000 in protection. Quotes take just minutes, applications can be completed fully online (or with help from an agent), and policies can be tailored to fit your budget and goals. It's a straightforward way to help protect the important people in your life—often for less than you'd expect. VIEW RATES

Flying together with our sponsor Researchers are discovering that bladder health isn't just about muscles—it's also about bacteria. Studies show the urinary microbiome plays an important role in comfort and urgency. When that balance is off, leaks and irritation may follow. FemiCore is designed to support this balance with carefully selected probiotics and botanicals that promote urinary health. Learn about the science behind it and how women are using it as part of their daily routine.

➤ Annual closures of rock faces used by peregrine falcons for nesting began Jan. 15 in North Carolina's Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests. Climbing, camping, and foot traffic are restricted in specific areas through Aug. 15 to protect the endangered birds. (See Affected Locations) ➤ The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration closed the 2026 recreational giant bluefin tuna fishery in the Atlantic on Jan. 14, just 13 days into the season, after the southern trophy subquota was exceeded. (More) ➤ North Carolina ranks No. 22 in overall safety, No. 2 in workplace safety, No. 10 in personal safety, No. 30 in road safety, No. 33 in financial safety, and No. 45 in emergency preparedness, according to an analysis of government and industry data. (See Data) Flying together with our sponsor ➤ Who knew a simple dental product could help erase dark spots and wrinkles almost overnight? Just rub it on your face for a couple of minutes to support smoother, brighter-looking skin—without expensive creams. Over 16,500 women say the results are unbelievable. (LEARN MORE)

Did you take a career and technical education (CTE) class during high school? Yes No Can't remember Yesterday's Results: Should public universities' syllabi be considered public records or intellectual property? Public records: 26% No opinion: 20% Both: 19% Intellectual property: 18% Neither: 17%

What method did the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission use starting in 1984 to help re-establish the state's peregrine falcon population? Show me the answer

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🍜 Musk says AI will make work optional..

Big tech is actinAI is now editing Bible TV shows, getting lectured by the Pope, and getting told to stop drinking all the water in the desert.g like the world is a vending machine and AI is the...  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

January 20, 2026   |   Read Online In partnership with Sign Up | Advertise | Prompt Guide | Unsubscribe     Welcome, Noodle Networkers. AI is charming normal people, causing international facepalms, and promising a future where your boss becomes optional. Casual Tuesday. Claude is quietly winning over the AI world and even impressing non nerds. People who used to say "I do not get AI" are now saying "wait this one actually helps." Somewhere a spreadsheet just felt threatened. 🚀 Grok's sexualized image mess is pushing AI oversight to the breaking point. Regulators are furious, headlines are brutal, and the phrase "how did this ship" is doing overtime. AI safety meetings just became extremely unskippable. 🤖 And Elon Musk says AI will make work optional and money pointless. Translation: someday you will pursue passion projects while robots handle the bills. Until then please return to your desk and answer emails. 🤯 From AI glow ups to regulatory meltdowns to post money fantasies, the future is inspirational, chaotic, and slightly unhinged. Let's dig in. In today's AI digest: Claude is winning over the AI world and surprising non nerds 🚀 Grok's sexualized images push AI oversight to the edge 🤖 Musk says AI will make work optional and money pointless 🤯 Read time: 5 minutes listen online         WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY         Claude AI Claude is winning over the AI world and surprising non nerds 🚀 (source: WSJ) 🚀 The Digest: Claude is quietly winning hearts across the AI world and somehow impressing people who do not even like technology. Engineers love it, founders swear by it, and non nerds are shocked that an AI can actually be useful without a tutorial and three breakdowns. Claude has officially crossed into "wait this actually works" territory. Key Details: 🤖 Loved by Builders, Adopted by Everyone Claude started as a favorite among developers, but now marketers, operators, and normal humans are using it daily. When someone who calls WiFi "the internet box" starts praising an AI, you know something changed. 🧠 Smart Without Being Annoying Users say Claude feels more thoughtful, clearer, and less chaotic than other models. It explains things calmly instead of acting like it just drank four energy drinks and discovered philosophy. 💻 Actually Gets Work Done From writing code to analyzing documents to organizing ideas, Claude is proving it can handle real tasks. Not just demos. Not just vibes. Real productivity that makes people text their friends about it. 📈 Momentum Is Building Fast The buzz around Claude is spreading through word of mouth rather than flashy launches. People try it once, then wonder why their other AI suddenly feels exhausting. Why It Matters: AI adoption is no longer about who has the best benchmarks. It is about who feels the most helpful to regular people. Claude winning over non nerds is a big deal, because that is where the real scale lives. When your least technical friend says "this AI is kind of amazing," the race just got a lot more interesting.         Investor-ready updates, by voice High-stakes communications need precision. Wispr Flow turns speech into polished, publishable writing you can paste into investor updates, earnings notes, board recaps, and executive summaries. Speak constraints, numbers, and context and Flow will remove filler, fix punctuation, format lists, and preserve tone so your messages are clear and confident. Use saved templates for recurring financial formats and create consistent reports with less editing. Works across Mac, Windows, and iPhone. Try Wispr Flow for finance. Try Wispr Flow         Grok AI Grok's sexualized images push AI oversight to the edge 🤖 (source: Bloomberg) 🤖 The Digest: Grok's image generator has pushed AI oversight to a breaking point after sexualized deepfakes triggered backlash from regulators around the world. What was marketed as edgy AI experimentation quickly turned into a lesson on why guardrails exist. The vibe went from "bold innovation" to "please call the lawyers" very fast. Key Details: 📸 When Images Go Too Far Grok was used to generate sexualized images of real people without consent, sparking outrage and serious safety concerns. This is one of those moments where everyone agrees the tool learned the wrong lesson a little too well. ⚖️ Regulators Wake Up Authorities in California and beyond launched investigations into xAI, asking how this kind of content slipped through. Nothing accelerates regulation faster than headlines that make lawmakers put down their coffee mid sip. 🌍 Global Pushback Grows Several countries are now probing or restricting Grok, showing how fast AI controversies cross borders. The internet may be global, but accountability is catching up with a passport and a clipboard. 📣 Pressure on AI Companies The incident is fueling calls for stricter oversight before tools launch, not after things go wrong. Translation for Silicon Valley: maybe test the brakes before flooring the accelerator. Why It Matters: This controversy is becoming a turning point for AI governance. It shows that unfiltered creativity can quickly turn into real world harm, and jokes stop landing when trust disappears. Grok did not just spark memes. It sparked a reminder that powerful AI tools need rules, not just confidence and vibes.         Musk Musk says AI will make work optional and money pointless 🤯 (source: Fortune) 🤯 The Digest: Elon Musk says AI will eventually make work optional and money basically pointless. According to him, robots will handle everything and humans will be free to chill, create, and vibe. It is either a techno utopia or the most optimistic group project plan ever pitched. Key Details: 🔮 Jobs Become Optional Musk claims that in 10 to 20 years, AI and robots will do nearly all productive work. Humans will work only if they want to, kind of like how people bake sourdough for fun instead of survival. 💸 Money Loses Its Power In this future, money stops mattering because machines create so much abundance. When everything is available, cash becomes just a historical curiosity, like fax machines or balanced budgets. 🤖 Robots Do the Heavy Lifting AI would produce food, goods, and services at near zero cost. Humans would be free to pursue passions, hobbies, and very serious debates about which video game counts as art. 📈 Reality Check Included Musk admits this is not happening tomorrow. There is still the small issue of who owns the robots and how society transitions without chaos, riots, or AI landlords. Why It Matters: If Musk is right, the idea of a job might sound as outdated as dial up internet. If he is wrong, we still have deadlines, bills, and meetings that could have been emails. Either way, it is comforting to imagine a future where your alarm clock exists only because you like mornings.         THE NOODLE LAB         AI Hacks & How-Tos What Coinfeeds Does 📊 Coinfeeds uses AI to gather real-time crypto news, price data and market insights so you stay informed without digging through dozens of sites. It includes an AI chatbot that answers crypto questions, a personalized news feed and data monitoring tools for hundreds of digital assets. How to Use It 🧭 1. Create an Account and Log In Go to the Coinfeeds website and sign up. Open the dashboard to get started. Pro tip: Use email or OAuth to speed up onboarding. 2. Pick Your Market Focus Choose the specific cryptocurrencies you want to follow (Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.). Pro tip: Start with your top 5 to avoid noise. 3. Explore the News Feed Browse the AI-generated news feed to see the latest headlines, developments and trend summaries tailored to your interests. Pro tip: Filter by coin or topic to find what matters most to your strategy. 4. Ask the AI Chatbot Questions Use the built-in chatbot to ask natural language questions like "What's the latest on Ethereum regulation?" or "Why is XRP up today?" Pro tip: Ask for concise explanations of technical concepts or recent price moves. 5. Monitor Price Data and Market Signals Check current prices, volume, market cap and historical data for tracked coins. Pro tip: Use this alongside your news feed to match sentiment with real market movements. 6. Save or Export Insights Bookmark or export key insights, summaries and news for reference or sharing. Pro tip: Use summaries in your newsletter or daily brief to keep your audience informed. Why It's Useful ✨: Coinfeeds brings crypto research and real-time updates into one place so you spend less time searching and more time making decisions. The AI chatbot helps simplify complex topics and saves hours of manual research.         Trending AI Tools ClevopyAI – AI tool for writing blogs, posts, and content. Coinfeeds Crypto AI – AI-powered crypto news and market insights. W.A.I.T – AI writing assistant for faster content creation. Sidekic AI – AI sidekick for writing and productivity. 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