• Demand for EVs has slowed in recent months amid concerns about cost, charging, and range.
• Startups and scientists are attempting to change that by using AI to design new EV batteries.
• Experts say AI could dramatically speed up battery development, bringing us closer to better EVs. 

EV sales have been accelerating, but they appear to have hit a speed bump.

Demand for electric vehicles in the US has slumped over the past year, with automakers rolling back hefty investments as sales grow more slowly than expected.

Surveys have shown that consumers are turning away from EVs due to concerns about cost, charging, and range. All of these have their roots in the most expensive and crucial part of any electric vehicle — the battery.

Jason Koeller, cofounder of battery startup Chemix, thinks that could change, thanks to AI.

"When you think about EV adoption, nearly all of the reasons why people don't want to buy EVs have something to do with the battery," he told Business Insider.

"Either it's too expensive or the range isn't long enough, it doesn't charge fast enough, or there are perceived safety concerns — whatever it is, it all boils down to the battery," he added.

The AI wave hits EVs

California-based Chemix, which raised $20 million in investment in April, is one of several startups and research labs looking to solve many of these issues with the help of AI.

Chemix is using machine-learning algorithms to develop EV batteries that can charge more quickly, hold more energy, and last longer than current EV power units.

Another common complaint drivers have about EVs is their tendency to lose performance in hotter and colder climates, an issue Chemix's custom-designed batteries could help address.

The startup's AI tech can also be used to filter out common battery materials, such as nickel and cobalt, that have been linked to human rights abuses.

Koeller said the primary advantage of using AI to design EV batteries is that it dramatically speeds up the process. A 2020 study in Nature found that machine learning models could reduce the time it took to identify a fast-charging battery design from 500 days to 16.

"The problem we're solving is really to speed up the pace of battery development," Koeller said, adding that this would be crucial to producing EVs that can hold their own against combustion-engine counterparts.

"We're definitely going to need significantly better battery performance and it's our belief that the way that we get there is by doing battery development in a fundamentally different way," he added.

Better EV batteries

Designing EV batteries is a three-step process, Georgia Tech assistant professor Micah Ziegler told BI.

Scientists must first decide on a structure and combination of elements that will produce a battery material with the desired properties before developing a recipe to synthesize it and testing that material in a lab.

The sheer number of potential combinations and the variety of demands placed on EV batteries — including longevity, safety, cost, and charging speed — makes designing batteries a lengthy and difficult process, Ziegler said.

"The number of options is just vast. Once you start putting different elements together, we're talking about potentially trillions of different combinations," he added.

AI could dramatically speed up this process, identifying potentially promising combinations far quicker than humans can.

Karl Mueller, a physical chemist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, described battery design as an "Edisonian" task: a drawn-out process of trial and error in which scientists compare and tweak billions of chemical combinations.

"The process is slow, and it can take years to find new materials and modify them," he told BI.

PNNL recently teamed up with Microsoft to discover a promising new material for making EV batteries using the latter's AI and cloud-computing technology.

The solid-state electrolyte they discovered relies less on lithium, an increasingly rare resource that forms the core of today's EV batteries. It is also less likely to catch fire than lithium-ion batteries.

'It's going to be phenomenal'

Mueller said incorporating AI into PNNL's workflow allowed the lab to dramatically speed up the process of whittling down 32 million possible chemical combinations to around 20 potential battery designs.

"The newest AI tools that we've been working on with Microsoft, it's allowed us to design for specific properties and to weed out things early that we believe won't have those properties," he said.

"It's going to be phenomenal for speeding up the discovery process. I think it's going to drive the speed of the discovery for what we need to do to allow for more electrification and better electric vehicles," Mueller added.

The hype around generative AI may be fading in some quarters, but one area where it's already reaping clear benefits is the scientific community.

Models such as DeepMind's AlphaFold 3 have improved the mapping of complex biological proteins, potentially opening up new opportunities for researchers to quickly develop life-saving drugs.

Mueller said that PNNL's collaboration with Microsoft has convinced him that generative AI could have applications far beyond speeding up EV battery design.

"This idea of building science agents based around large language models and coupling that to these discovery workflows, is very, very exciting," he said.

"I think in a year or two we're not going to recognize where science has got to."

• My boyfriend surprised me with a dog on my birthday.
• Raising the dog in a small apartment was difficult, but he became like a child to us.
• When we broke up, we fought over who should keep the dog; I ultimately gave up custody.

I vividly remember the day Mucho arrived.

My birthday had been unusually low-key, and my boyfriend seemed preoccupied. That evening, I found out why. My boyfriend finally revealed the big surprise: a Saint Bernard puppy lying in a large cardboard box in his car's trunk.

At first, the puppy's breed shocked me. Mucho was destined to outgrow our small apartment quickly. His name, derived from the Spanish word for "too much," reflected the overwhelming responsibility we were about to undertake. But Mucho quickly became a loved and cherished member of our little family.

So when things soured with my partner, everything got complicated with Mucho.

We had to first learn what was right for Mucho

My partner — then in the process of taking over his family business — spent long hours at work and thought a dog would keep me company during his long absences for work trips. However, he might not have fully considered the level of care a pet requires. The first two months were a whirlwind of adjustments — furniture rearrangements, veterinary visits, vaccinations, and potty training.

I juggled walking Mucho in the mornings with my full-time marketing job while my boyfriend took the evening shifts. Sometimes, we had to hire a professional dog walker to ensure Mucho got the exercise he needed. Thankfully, my workplace was pet-friendly, allowing me to bring Mucho on days when the house help didn't show up. My partner also occasionally took him to his office, where Mucho's cuteness charmed everyone.

My partner's family lived in a beautiful, spacious house on the city's outskirts — a stark and welcome contrast to our cramped apartment.

Visiting their home, we quickly realized how much happier Mucho was with the extra space, fresh air, and soft grass. He roamed freely, looking majestic as he strutted down the paved driveway. He loved the outdoors and sprawled on the cool marble floors indoors.

Mucho had ample room to play and relax inside the house, and he received abundant attention from my partner's family, who absolutely adored him. Mucho thrived in this environment, enjoying the freedom and space that our city apartment lacked.

We started spending weekends at my partner's family home, blurring the lines between our live-in relationship and marriage. For a year, we lived as a family, sharing meals, chores, and the inevitable drama. Our love for Mucho kept us sane amid the chaos.

Saying goodbye was the hardest

Despite our efforts, my relationship with my partner began to strain. At 27, I felt ready for marriage, but he had other priorities. Periods of high-intensity drama between us were interspersed with periods of taking time off from each other. Our differences led to a painful decision to part ways, but Mucho remained a contentious issue.

I felt he should stay with me as the person whom Mucho was gifted to; I was also his primary caretaker. My partner argued that the dog wouldn't have come into our lives without his decision to get Mucho. I argued that Mucho had spent more days living in the apartment and, therefore, was more comfortable there. The volley that came back was that Mucho was more comfortable at his family's suburban home.

Unable to reach an amicable solution, we continued our routine: Mucho stayed with me on weekdays and my partner on weekends. However, the emotional toll of our breakup and raising a large dog in a small apartment affected my mental and physical health.

Eventually, I decided to move back to my parents' city, which was an hour's flight or a 17-hour drive away. The logistics of relocating Mucho were daunting. Flying required repeated sedation, and a 17-hour drive was downright impractical. Most reluctantly, I concluded that Mucho was better off staying with my ex-partner in the spacious suburban home he loved.

Saying goodbye to Mucho was one of the hardest things I've ever done. He was more than just a pet; he was my dog child, whom I loved so deeply. We were a source of comfort and joy to each other. Despite the heartache, I prioritized Mucho's well-being over my own desires.

• Art teachers Loreal Hemenway and Stephanie Osmundson wore their wedding dresses to work.
• The teachers captured their colleagues' reactions in a video on their Instagram page.
• The duo's story highlights the fun ways to reuse wedding dresses.

With the average US wedding costing $33,000, it makes sense to get the most out of your wedding-day purchases.

So Loreal Hemenway and Stephanie Osmundson, two elementary school art teachers in Henderson, Nevada, found a creative way to use their wedding dresses again.

Their school administrators sent out an email in January about a professional development day themed "Back of the Closet" and asked staff to find the "hidden gem" in their closets.

While some of their colleagues wore old Letterman jackets and sports jerseys, "the idea came to mind that we should dig truly to the backends of our closet and wear our wedding gowns to school," Hemenway told Business Insider.

They decided to capture their coworkers' reactions and share the video on their Instagram page, Happily Ever Elementary, which has over 270,000 followers. Their reel, which they uploaded in January, has since had 11,000 likes.

"There's always a little bit of a shock value to everything, but at the end of the day, I don't think anyone we worked with was even remotely surprised that we'd do that," said Osmundson.

Having fun with the theme

Osmundson has been teaching for eight years; Hemenway for 10. Both women, who've shared an art-teacher position for three years, originally started in kindergarten, a grade they say allows more silliness and fun.

"If the teachers aren't matching the energy of kids and bringing the energy, then what's the point? So we're always the ones that try and bring extra fun factor and engagement through costumes," said Osmundson.

But Hemenway, who got married 10 years ago, and Osmundson, who has been married for seven years, only agreed to arrive in their wedding dresses if the other one promised to as well.

After Hemenway dug out her gown from her old bedroom in her parents' house, the friends exchanged photos of their dresses, which still fit.

They also had the support of their husbands. The Hemenways took a photograph together to mark their 10th anniversary a little early, while the Osmundsons celebrated by dancing in the house.

"It was really nostalgic and meaningful," Osmundson said. "I think that was an unexpected perk of embarrassing ourselves that day."

Then it was time to to show their colleagues.

"We were very nervous and anxious about what it would look like when we walked into our staff," said Hemenway. "So we waited until the room was pretty full before we walked in, and we were only met with laughs and smiles, which was great."

In the video, the two women walk into the school in their white, floor-length gowns, accessorized with their backpacks and water bottles. Their colleagues can be heard laughing and cheering, and one yells out, "Oh yes!"

Osmundson thinks the experience teaches a good lesson.

"Your students are going to gain a lot of excitement from what you do, but just don't be scared to do things," she said. "A lot of the time, what you build up in your head is a fleeting thought in other people's minds."

It also turned out to be an unexpected bonding moment with two other staff members who were wearing bridesmaids' dresses.

"So even though things can be intimidating, I think doing things that sometimes scare us or might embarrass us are still worth a try," she added.

Reusing and preserving a costly item

According to The Knot Real Weddings Study, which surveyed nearly 10,000 US couples who got married last year, the average wedding dress cost in 2023 was about $2,000.

Hemenway and Osmundson's story is one example of how brides are finding creative, head-turning ways to get more wear out of their dresses. Some brides have opted to wear their gowns for casual nights out, while others have worn them to formal events.

Some brides choose to professionally preserve their dresses, which can cost between $250 and $1,000, the Knot reported. The process includes restoring and cleaning the dress before wrapping it and placing it inside a box.

It can help a bride pass down their dress to a future generation or turn it into another garment — TikTok videos show brides wearing hand-me-down gowns for rehearsal dinners or receptions. Preservation could also help a bride sell their dress.

Hemenway's dress from Bowties Bridal cost around $1,800, while Osmundson's cost around $1,000 from Brilliant Bridal. Before this experience, they hadn't meticulously stored their dresses, but now they want to be more intentional about preserving them.

"I think moving forward when we put ours away, we showed them a little bit more love and affection," said Hemenway.

After all, there could be another dress-up day.

• My Korean grandmother has been a beacon of light and love in my life for as long as I can remember.
• In recent years, political disagreements have only ended in fights and tears.
• Our family has transitioned to a culture of silence when it comes to politics.

Few people in this world make me feel as loved as my halmoni does. In my earliest memories — hazy as they may be — she is there. She swaddles me in the warmest of hugs; she sings to me; she laughs toothily and heartily while conversing with my mother in what they have playfully coined "KorEnglish."

As I grow into adolescence, she is there. She cooks special seaweed soup as I experience my first menstrual cramps. At 13, I contract a viral infection, and a comment from a crush about my rash sends me home in tears. She painstakingly carves garden cucumbers into paper-thin slices and places them gingerly on the backs of my thighs. The sting cools.

At 19, I experience my first heartbreak. Without even trying, she says the perfect thing: "You had a good experience with a person that you loved. But now you have to find yourself. And clear mind. First love is always never work."

At 22, I lament the fact I cannot speak Korean. She institutes weekly phone call lessons and then gives me a Korean name: 만세, Manse. She tells me that Manse means "hooray," but not in a silly way. She shows me how it must be exclaimed — with one's arms outstretched, waving up and down. She tells me it was a very important word when the war ended.

Throughout my life, my grandmother has profoundly cared for me — physically, mentally, and sometimes spiritually. At every juncture, she has nurtured me, protected me, and been a fountain of unconditional, selfless love.

But now, we share very different political views, and for the first time, it's creating a divide in our relationship.

Political conversations are causing strife in our family

When I was in high school and living close to my grandmother, I would try to engage her in political debate, but conversations would all too often turn heated, sour, and sometimes even cruel. I eventually decided that what I most wanted out of our relationship was peace. For that peace to be maintained, politics must forever remain a can of unopened worms.

In my head, I know that such silence is counterproductive. But in my heart, I know that having a close relationship with my Halmoni is profoundly important to me. I feel that her love for her family is boundless, and my love for her is boundless too.

Recently, I asked her if she felt she could speak openly about political issues with her family. Her answer was a resounding no.

"Ah, Bella." She let out an exasperated sigh. "Politics…you cannot talk to people in the family about it. Because it's just fighting. Even in a family, everyone have their own opinion. So they fight. It's not open mind, Bella. Politics is very secret. Right now, so divided. So bad. So it's hard to talk about it."

I also struck a nerve when I asked Halmoni what it's like to engage in political discussions with my mother.

"Whenever I talk with your mother…she say that everything I say wrong. Everything she say right. So I shut my mouth. When your mother gets upset, she yells at me…I don't want to talk to your mother about anything."

Silence is the reigning power in my family when it comes to politics. But it doesn't mean that we don't talk. We just don't talk about things outside our insular familial universe.

"When I call your family — they always call right back," Halmoni tells me earnestly. "I respect about that. That is very good. I think your mother teach the kids good. I think your family is good quality."

I'm struggling to connect with my grandmother on a deeper level

Most of my conversations with Halmoni are relegated to the domestic sphere: relationships, recipes, romantic comedies. I know without reservation that there is a depth to our relationship that I am missing out on.

Often, I feel that I'm being irresponsible by pretending like political conversations don't matter. But it's also comforting to construct a bubble of safety for our relationship and live inside it. To do so, however, I must suspend my beliefs, which often leaves me feeling hollow.

This is not a method I can apply to other relationships in my life, but in the case of my Halmoni, I don't want to squander a single moment with her.

• I made frozen potstickers with my oven, stovetop, and microwave to find the best cooking method.
• If I'm making a big batch, I think the oven probably makes the most sense. 
• But nothing came close to rivaling the hot, crispy pan-fried potstickers. 

As of 2023, the global frozen-food industry was worth nearly $3 billion, and my family has certainly contributed to that. Frozen appetizers, meals, and sides are an easy way to get dinner on the table during the week.

One of our favorite frozen treats is potstickers, so I embarked on delicious hands-on testing to see if the flavorful dumplings are best when I use my oven, microwave, or stovetop.

Here's how the cooking methods stacked up.

If you're short on time, the microwave only takes five minutes.

If you're hungry for dumplings and only have five minutes to spare, the microwave is likely your only option.

To cook the potstickers in the microwave, I placed four dumplings in a standard bowl and poured in a little less than a cup of room-temperature water on top. I then popped the bowl in the microwave for four minutes.

When the timer went off, I retrieved the bowl, poured off the remaining excess water, and transferred the potstickers to a plate.

The microwaved potstickers came out better than I expected — but still not great.

Straight out of the microwave, the potstickers looked … not great. I was met with a damp, rubbery-looking lineup of dumplings I can hardly describe as appetizing.

Nonetheless, I dutifully drizzled some of my beloved Bachan's Japanese barbecue sauce on top and popped a dumpling in my mouth.

Appearances aside, I was pleasantly surprised. They lacked the traditional seared bottoms that give potstickers their winning taste and texture, but they weren't as chewy as I'd feared. In fact, the dumplings had a pleasant firmness.

They were evenly warmed inside — almost too hot, really — making them entirely satisfactory.

Although the potstickers were hardly remarkable, I'd certainly use the microwave again if I was short on time.

Making potstickers in the oven allows me to cook large batches at once.

To make the potstickers in the oven, I first preheated it to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Once the oven was hot, I thoroughly coated the dumplings in oil — I used a blend of avocado oil and sesame oil — and then lined them up, flat side down, on a baking sheet.

I baked the dumplings for 17 minutes (most recipes I found online called for 16 or 18). Right when my timer went off, I retrieved the potstickers and quickly got them off the baking sheet.

The finished dumplings were a little dry but still exceeded my expectations.

I figured the baked potstickers would be dry and tasteless, but I was happily proven wrong.

Although the ridge formed by the potsticker's seam was a bit dry and browned, the rest retained moisture. There was even a bit of a sear on the bottom.

I drizzled on the barbecue sauce and took a bite.

Aside from that dried-out strip along the top, the oven-baked potstickers were delicious. Plus, I could've cooked two dozen at once, making it ideal for preparing a large batch.

In the future, I'll briefly pull the dumplings out of the oven and mist or brush water over them at about the 12-minute mark to avoid any drying. But overall, I was impressed with how easy and effective this cooking method was.

I had high hopes for the stovetop method.

Potstickers get their name from the fact that they get fried in and stuck to a pan, so I was expecting the stovetop method to wow me.

To pan-fry my dumplings, I poured a generous tablespoon of avocado oil into a 10-inch pan and began to heat it over a medium flame.

Once the oil started simmering, I added the potstickers to the pan, flat side down, and poured about a quarter of a cup of water over them. Just make sure your oil isn't so hot that the water causes a flare-up.

I covered the pan and stood back for eight minutes. Then, I removed the lid and let the dumplings cook for two more minutes. I tried my best not to touch or move them much while they were cooking — it's best just to let the heat do its work.

After 10 minutes on the stove, I popped the pan-fried potstickers on a plate, drizzled some Bachan's sauce, and got to tasting.

The pan-fried dumplings were the clear winners.

The pan-seared dumplings were perfect — they had a tender, almost crunchy bottom, were moist but far from soggy, and were heated through but not too hot to enjoy right away.

The sauce kind of sloughed off the wetter microwaved potstickers, but these dumplings embraced the drizzle, further improving the taste and appearance.

All three cooking methods have their place, but the pan is best when you have the time.

When timing or volume are issues, I'll certainly use my microwave and oven again.

But ultimately, the pan-fried approach is the best method for cooking frozen dumplings.

It only takes about 12 minutes, and the perfectly crispy results are delicious.

Click to check out the other appliances we've put head-to-head so far.

• Shipping lanes off Yemen have seen a spike in successful Houthi attacks lately.
• They've hit several commercial ships in recent weeks and even sank one of them.
• The Iran-backed rebels are also getting their drone boats out to sea more often. 

The Houthis have scored a string of successful hits in recent weeks on commercial vessels — even sinking one of them — and demonstrated their ability to effectively strike targets with drone boats, signaling that they're getting smarter with their attacks.

Experts say these highly destructive achievements show that the Houthis are learning from their many months of regular attacks on shipping lanes in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and continue to receive help from Iran, their main supplier of military and financial assistance.

"They're learning, and they're getting more support," Archer Macy, a retired US Navy admiral, told Business Insider.

'A useful disguise' for the Houthis

Between December and March, Houthi attacks damaged at least 19 commercial ships, according to a June 13 report published by the Defense Intelligence Agency. Nearly all of the vessels were targeted by missiles, though some were struck by one-way attack drones.

The Houthis then lost a critical mission asset. An Iranian cargo ship suspected of providing them with targeting information and intelligence sailed home. MV Behshad spent months lingering in waters near Yemen, but it left the area in mid-April as Tehran braced for Israel to retaliate over its unprecedented attack.

The following weeks saw a decrease in the pace of successful Houthi attacks. In April and May, a total of three commercial vessels reported being struck by anti-ship ballistic missiles launched by the rebels, according to a list of incidents compiled by Military Times.

June, however, has been another story.

The Houthis started the month vowing to escalate their attacks in the wake of American and British strikes in Yemen. The rebels have since struck at least five commercial vessels, finding a level of success in their targeting similar to that of the opening months of their campaign.

Some of the incidents have also revealed dangerous new tactics. Most notably, on June 12, the Houthis struck a commercial vessel in the Red Sea with an explosive-laden drone boat for the first time since they began attacking merchant shipping in November.

Unlike the sophisticated naval drones that have taken center stage in the Ukraine war, devastating the Russian Black Sea Fleet, this crude-looking weapon was little more than a small, slow-moving craft staffed by two dummies that appeared to resemble a common fishing vessel. As such, the vessel managed to travel over 65 nautical miles across shipping lanes without being stopped.

"There's so many small boats in that stretch of water, and that's why, actually, it's so hard to stop the smuggling of missiles and drones to the Houthis as well," Brian Carter, the Salafi-Jihadism team lead and an analyst at the American Enterprise Institute's Critical Threats Project, told BI.

"You can't stop every small boat. So I do think it's a useful disguise for them," he said.

The initial drone boat attack on the commercial bulk carrier MV Tutor caused flooding and damage to the engine room. Hours later, a Houthi missile hit the ship. The double-tap strike forced the crew to abandon the vessel, and it eventually sank, becoming the second ship to do so since attacks began last fall.

The same week, the Houthis fired two anti-ship missiles, hitting the MV Verbena in the Gulf of Aden. Not even 24 hours later, the bulk cargo carrier was struck by another missile, marking the week's second double-tap strike. The ship's crew eventually abandoned the vessel due to the damage sustained by the attacks.

British security firm Ambrey said the attacks on the Tutor and Verbena, in addition to successful strikes on two other vessels in the days prior, were indicative of a "significant increase in effectiveness" of Houthi operations.

"Every single Houthi attack, the Houthis are probably learning something about what works and what doesn't," Carter said. "If you think about how a military organization operates, they're definitely taking away lessons from the different strike packages that they're using."

Double taps and drone boats

Beyond the recent double-tap strikes, the Houthis' ability to learn from past attacks is visible in their drone boat operations.

During the first few months of this year, US forces destroyed Houthi drone boats in Yemen nearly every time the rebels tried to launch them into shipping lanes. In June, though, the rebels managed to get well over a dozen drone boats into the water — far more than they had in any previous month.

And their ability to do so is what ultimately led to the catastrophic attack on the Tutor.

Experts say the uptick in drone boat attacks points to the Houthis' ability to react to US strikes in Yemen and adjust their operations accordingly.

That could mean better hiding them or picking more efficient launch sites. It also suggests that the rebels could now have a larger supply of such weapons, awarding them more opportunities to launch and thus leading to a greater chance that they'll eventually hit something.

"I think it's more likely they've got more of them, so they're more willing to use them," said Macy, now a senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies' Missile Defense Project. "They're not such precious objects, and they've probably just gotten better at it."

It's unclear what all the Houthi drone boats look like, but the small fishing craft that struck the Tutor is an inexpensive, readily available vessel that can be modified into a weapon.

It is difficult to not only prevent the rebels from obtaining their "low-tech, low-cost" means of attack and to deter them from launching attacks, Alex Stark, an associate policy researcher who covers Middle East security at the RAND Corporation, told BI.

These attacks are an "ongoing problem without an obvious or useful solution at hand," she added.

White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby acknowledged this week that the Houthis have been more successful in their recent targeting, though he pointed out that a majority of their attacks have still failed.

US and coalition naval forces are routinely tasked with destroying Houthi missiles and drones — both before and after launch — and many of these threats have landed in the water.

"They miss a whole hell of a lot more than they hit," Kirby told reporters on Wednesday.

He said the US will continue to "degrade their capabilities" — which American forces are said to be doing through the consistent strikes in Yemen — but cautioned that the Houthis are still getting supplied and resourced by Iran, which has been the case for years.

"The Houthis, who have no greater or lesser desire than they did six months ago, have been given more capability and are getting more support in doing so," Macy said.

Recent Houthi successes come amid changes in the American naval presence in the region. The Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, which spent more than seven months battling the rebels, recently left the Red Sea, but it will soon be replaced by the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group.

US officials have warned that the conflict has no signs of slowing down, and the growing financial toll has raised questions about the long-term sustainability of the counter-Houthi mission.

Experts say that despite the material effects of the Houthi campaign, which has caused disruptions to a key global shipping route, the rebels are still eager to use their attacks to boost their messaging and legitimacy. The Houthis characterize their campaign as a response to the Israel-Hamas war, but they are also attempting to position themselves as a big player in Iran's proxy network.

"I think they have discovered that this tactic is quite successful for them and very difficult to deter," Stark said.

Broader regional de-escalation might be the only way to sustainably address the problem, but that may not permanently solve it, she said. "I don't think the Houthis would be willing to cease these kinds of attacks forever."

• My kids are 6, 4, and 4, and we've been talking about going camping as a family. 
• We decided to start with a pre-set-up camp with a shower and bathroom to get them used to it. 
• Everyone had so much fun, we are starting to plan another camping trip together. 

I'll admit I'm not the most outdoorsy person. I love the beach and can lay on the hot sand for hours on end, but sleeping in a tent and fending off bugs is not my idea of fun.

That said, my husband and I moved our family from Brooklyn to Maine to spend more time outside. Our kids love getting dirty and playing outdoors regardless of the season. We had been talking about taking them camping — something I hadn't done in nine years but that my husband loves doing — but hadn't come around to actually planning a trip yet.

We spent a long weekend at a camping ground in southern Maine, and the kids absolutely loved it. They are already asking to go camping again, and I'm wondering why we didn't do this earlier in their lives.

We went with the easy option

Because our kids are little — they are 6, 4, and 4 — we felt like maybe a good start would be a camping ground that had already been set up. We found a company called Huttopia, which has a location near us. It was close enough to home that the kids wouldn't be stuck in the car for hours on end, and we could also abort the plan if we were all miserable.

There are different kinds of huts, from rustic to more modern, which include a private bathroom and shower. We went with the rustic option, which was a canvas tent with two rooms — one with a bunk bed that fit all three kids and one with a queen bed — as well as a small kitchenette, dining table, and bathroom. 

While some might say this is not technically camping, we still had to zip up our canvas windows at night, and we chased plenty of bugs out of the tent.

It was so family-friendly

I was surprised at how many families were there and how many activities were planned for kids.

The night we arrived, there was a movie night for kids. The next night, there was a concert for the whole family, and on our last night, there was a puppet show. This made navigating going from dinner time at the camp to bedtime easy, because kids had something to do to get their willies out. All these activities happened near the restaurant, where pizzas and smoothies were offered for purchase.

The campground also had tons of activities. There was a huge playset for little kids and all kinds of games, such as ping pong, foosball, and petanque.

There was also a pool and a pond for everyone to enjoy. We went in late May, which is still low season for Maine, and the pond was packed with people. The pool, on the other hand, was practically empty during our entire stay.

The campgrounds are also dog-friendly, although they have strict rules, which initially annoyed me but I came to appreciate during our stay. You can never leave your dogs unattended at your camp, and they are allowed everywhere except for the pool. Our two dogs had a blast walking around the grounds and snoozing at the pond.

We were also close to other towns, so when we needed a break from the campgrounds, we explored new beaches and restaurants.

I'm ready to do it again

This experience was so positive that I'm ready to do it again — as long as I have a shower and bathroom to myself.

That said, if staying again at Huttopia, I would ask to stay in a tent further away from the main reception, where the playground is. Because our kids are little, they went to bed before the "quiet time," which started at 10 p.m. Because of that, we could still hear older kids playing and yelling in the game zone area. Also, because we were so close to the reception and main parking spots, we got woken up several times when people were either checking in late or coming back from an adventure. I felt like not all guests followed the dog rules, and I encountered several tents left with dogs alone barking throughout the day. Thankfully, none of those were near ours.

My kids enjoyed collecting pinecones for our fire pit and building s'mores after dinner. They especially loved spending so much time outside in nature, away from distractions like television and toys. They made up games and played together, and it was truly memorable.

• Job seekers often look for ways to slip past the software many companies use to collect résumés.
• Yet it's often recruiters, not bots, that reject applicants for a role.
• A recruitment firm found that applications lead to "meaningful conversations" only 3% of the time.

Melissa Weaver was recruiting for a tech consulting company when she spotted something promising on a man's résumé: He'd worked at a pizza shop all four years of college.

"He had started as a dishwasher and, by the end, he was a manager," she told Business Insider.

Although the recent grad didn't have tech experience, to Weaver, he'd shown longevity with a company and a desire to take on more responsibility.

"That's definitely worth a conversation," Weaver said. The man eventually got the job and has since been promoted multiple times, she said.

It's the kind of feel-good story that seems impossible to repeat in a job market that can unfold like an obstacle course — one where the hurdles are the technologies that many companies use to filter and reject résumés.

Yet, for all the fear of so-called applicant-tracking systems, often, it's not a bot that's doing the booting — it's still people.

'The ATS doesn't care'

Mark Jensen, a recruiter with Upswing Talent Acquisition, told BI that job seekers often focus too much on sneaking past an ATS to get seen.

"They all think that the applicant-tracking system is some magical technology that screens people out on its own," he said. "The ATS doesn't care. It's just a repository."

Instead, recruiters often filter with keywords and other variables to reduce stacks of résumés, Jensen said. So, it's a good idea to tailor yours and your cover letter to ensure they're a good fit for a job description.

That's because, like many others who feel overworked, recruiters often are, too, he said.

"They don't have time to really parse through a résumé and think if someone may or may not be a fit. They need that résumé to jump off the page," Jensen said.

Weaver agreed. She recommends people list specific achievements and skills and not just focus on key words contained in a job description.

"Put any specific stats that show, 'I know what I'm talking about,'" she said. "That's really important in terms of catching the human eye."

Weaver said taking these steps makes it less likely that a résumé will be set aside when a recruiter sorts for certain attributes.

Don't fear the ether

It's understandable why people would stress over whether an ATS would block their résumé. Nearly all Fortune 500 companies, for example, deploy systems for ingesting résumés.

And the only thing worse than having a recruiter spend only six or seven seconds scanning your résumé is having no one read it. Online, people debate strategies for getting past an ATS. People and companies have even made businesses of creating ATS-friendly résumés.

Weaver sees value in using tech to filter candidates but worries about those who could get overlooked — like the pizza guy — because they don't have the experience that's in direct alignment with a job posting.

"Do they have relevant experience? Not in a way that an applicant-tracking system would tell you that they do. But their experience that may not be related to your field can still apply," she said.

Fear of getting ghosted by an ATS is why some people resort to what recruiters call "spray and pray." It's essentially applying to as many jobs as possible to break through somewhere. Artificial intelligence tools can now also help make you a serial applier.

Firing off as many résumés as possible also might make some job seekers feel better about the fact that not every posting they come across is real. A recent survey by Resume Builder, which offers résumé templates, indicated that three in 10 employers have put up fake job listings.

Often, the goal of bogus jobs is to collect résumés that could fit future openings. Or, the intent can appear somewhat sneaky: to signal that a company is growing or to make overworked employees feel like they'll soon have reinforcements.

One potential upside is that phony listings might lead to real interviews. Resume Builder, which surveyed nearly 650 hiring managers in May, reported that four in 10 said they always contacted workers who applied for fake jobs.

A 3% ROI

So, while it's easier than ever to apply for jobs — real or imaginary — that doesn't mean you should go wild. Applying to more than 1,000 roles, for example, doesn't guarantee success.

Aaron Cleavinger, a managing partner at Murdoch Mason Executive Search Group, told BI that his firm's research shows that when applicants apply for positions, that effort turns into "meaningful conversations" only about 3% of the time. He said that doesn't mean people shouldn't go for jobs, but they likely need to limit how often they focus on clicking that submit button.

"If it's 3% value, perhaps you should only spend 3% of your time doing it," he said.

So, what else should job seekers do? Cleavinger said it's about constantly challenging yourself to appear different from other candidates who are equally or more qualified than you.

"How do you stand out so that when there's a big pile of résumés or a giant list of LinkedIn profiles to look through that you'd be the one to come on top?" he said.

Jensen, the recruiter with Upswing Talent Acquisition, said the power also rests with those doing the hiring to make wise decisions about how to use an ATS.

"It's the recruiter and how they choose to filter to make hopefully the most relevant candidates bubble up to the top, so they don't have to review all 400 or 1,000 résumés," he said.

An earlier version of this story appeared on May 4, 2024.

• Small drones dominate Ukraine's battlefield, but their advantage won't last, France's army chief said.
• Small, relatively cheap drones have been hugely successful weapons in the war so far.
• However, experts told BI that advancing countermeasures would limit small drones' capabilities.

Small aerial drones have dominated the battlefield in Ukraine, but according to French Army Chief of Staff Gen. Pierre Schill, they could soon lose their combat advantage.

Speaking at the Eurosatory defense show in Paris on June 19, Schill said that their advantage represented merely "a moment in history," Defense News reported.

"The life of impunity of small, very simple drones over the battlefield is a snapshot in time," Schill said.

"Right now it's being exploited, that's clear, and we have to protect ourselves. Today, the sword, in the sense of the aerial drone, is powerful, more powerful than the shield. The shield is going to grow," he added.

The use of drones will likely fluctuate

Former British Army officer Christopher Lincoln-Jones told Business Insider that the use of small drones in warfare would likely "ebb and flow."

He said: "What will happen is that, as artificial intelligence becomes better and better and the senses become better, medium-sized drones will dominate rather than the small ones."

"Mini drones are limited by the fact that battery technology is not good enough for them yet. And although they can carry a small charge or weapon, they're not really good against military targets," Lincoln-Jones added.

Greg Bagwell, the UK Royal Air Force's former Deputy Commander, told BI "there is some truth" to Schill's comments about the future of small drones in battle.

"I think to say it's nearly had its day, and it's all over is probably a slight exaggeration. But I think it will get harder for them to operate as people now get wise to this threat. We'll start to see the counters maybe begin to take a higher position," he said.

Small drones are at the forefront of the war in Ukraine

Small drones, particularly first-person view drones (FPVs), have been a trademark of Russia's war in Ukraine, with both sides weaponizing them against each other.

FPV drones have had huge success on the battlefield so far, proving to be cheaper and more accurate than most artillery as they can be guided directly to their target.

A NATO official told Foreign Policy magazine in April that more than two-thirds of the Russian tanks that had been destroyed by Ukraine in recent months had been targeted with FPVs.

Ukraine has also pounded Russian oil refineries and airbases with drones as part of a widespread campaign to disrupt Russian military supplies and hamper the Russian air force.

Drone countermeasures are advancing

But Lincoln-Jones and Bagwell both echoed Gen. Schill's warnings that drone countermeasures are advancing and would increasingly render small drones less effective.

"There will be all sorts of techniques being used to jam the signals, the video, or the GPS signal," Bagwell said.

Schill said that electronic warfare — which uses the electromagnetic spectrum, including signals like radio, infrared, or radar, to disrupt an enemy's ability to use those signals itself — was already neutralizing 75% of drones deployed in Ukraine.

"Unless you can encrypt and use direct line of sight to control your drone, you're very vulnerable to nearly every electronic warfare system," Lincoln-Jones said. "You just need to know what frequency the drone is operating on from the point of view of its commands."

Nevertheless, current electronic warfare systems being used to defend against drone attacks have their limits. The use of such systems risks interfering with other technology, such as radios and cellphones that are in the drone's vicinity.

Drone production also continues to surge in Ukraine in spite of increasing defense systems, with more than 200 companies now producing aerial drones in the country.

Both sides are now also pumping money into developing AI-powered drones that can bypass electronic warfare systems.

It seems that small drone warfare won't be going away just yet.

Gen. Schill declined an interview with BI.

• My name Sara is pretty common, especially spelled with an h. 
• I named my daughter Charissa Anne, giving her an uncommon name first. 
• It was a popular name decades ago, but now it's popularity has dwindled and that's why I chose it. 

I was named after my great grandmother on my father's side and my great-great aunt on my mother's. My name also appeared on the top 10 girls names lists throughout the 80s, so everywhere I went there was another Sara(h). Even in my small high school graduating class of 50, there was another Sarah. I went to college and there were two other Sarahs just on my dorm hallway. At that point, I started being known by a nickname.

Since Sarahs with an h are about three times more common than those without, it is the default spelling. The spelling people even use when replying to emails signed with the correct spelling. I have a friend that I've known for almost 10 years that still spells my name wrong. At some point I just gave up on correcting her.

I married a man with a common name as well. Even worse, he is a junior, so he has the same first and middle name as his father. Childhood family gatherings were even more confusing, because he also had a grandfather, uncle, and cousin who shared his first name. Nicknames were necessary so everyone knew who you were talking to and about.

We wanted to name our child something that wasn't popular

When my husband and I started talking about future children, we knew we wouldn't be naming them either a family name or a popular, common name. We wanted them to have names that felt more special, ones that they wouldn't encounter too many other people with, if at all. But we also didn't want to name them something too unusual, that they could potentially be made fun of for.

When I got pregnant we started brainstorming. I always thought that if I had a girl I would name her after my favorite literary character, Anne of "Anne of Green Gables," a spunky creative who also had to correct people that spelled her name wrong. Anne has been out of vogue as a popular girls name for decades, but it is a classic girls name that already belonged to multiple people we knew, including an extended family member. So it ended up being demoted to a middle name.

I had the gut feeling that the baby was a girl long before we officially found out at the gender scan, just like I had the gut feeling that a name I came across early in the pregnancy was her name: Charissa. It felt even more right when I did an online search and saw it hadn't cracked the top 1,000 since the 1980s. There were three variations on the spelling and my husband and I chose the one that we liked the best.

I didn't realize people don't know how to pronounce Charissa

What we didn't anticipate was that there would be confusion about how to pronounce it. The first visit to the pediatrician's office when her name was called, pronounced incorrectly, was the first time that it occurred to me. I initially dismissed it as one person pronouncing it wrong, but then it seemed like everyone who was encountering her name in written form first was getting it wrong.

It has become a pleasant surprise when someone pronounces it correctly. While anyone that she has regular interaction with knows the correct pronunciation, unfortunately she'll have to constantly correct new people she meets throughout her life. Which is disappointing as someone who has experienced frustration due to her name and its spelling her whole life.

Even so, I wouldn't change her name or its spelling. It is unique and beautiful, just like her.