• South Korea has resumed live-fire drills after seven years.
• South Korea previously paused the drills due to a 2018 military accord, which North Korea is accused of violating 3,600 times.
• The drills follow a flurry of other activity on the peninsula lately.

The South Korean military resumed live-fire drills on border islands Wednesday after a seven-year pause. The exercise follows a failed North Korean missile test and a flurry of other activity and comes as the two countries battle with balloons.

North Korea conducted a suspected hypersonic missile test Wednesday morning, but it is believed to have exploded in midair. The launch came as North Korea expresses frustration with the trilateral drills between the US, South Korea, and Japan, for which a US Navy aircraft carrier is present.

Not long after, South Korea restarted its own firing drills on the border islands of Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong.

The South Korean Marine Corps told Yonhap News Agency the drills were "defensive" and noted that the military will work to enhance "firepower operations capabilities and the completeness of the military readiness posture through regular maritime firing exercises."

The South Korean drills involved multiple rocket launchers, anti-tank missiles, and K9 howitzers.

Earlier this month, South Korea suspended a 2018 inter-Korean military accord it signed with North Korea, which banned drills, among other activities, from occurring in specified areas, including the border islands. North Korea had violated the accord roughly 3,600 times prior to South Korea's suspension.

But now the drills are back. Earlier this month, a US supersonic B-1B Lancer bomber conducted the aircraft's first live-fire bombing run on the peninsula in seven years.

As North and South Korea engage in various military activities, they have also been escalating tensions with balloons.

Hundreds of balloons filled with trash, among other things, have been floating from North Korea toward South Korea since May, and in response, Seoul activists have been flying balloons with leaflets and speakers toward North Korea.

CNN's Mike Valerio, who got ahold of one of the balloons, said that the speakers have been playing an "anti-Kim Jong Un anthem." South Korean activists have a long history of sending anti-Pyongyang balloons into the North that have also carried money, thumb drives, and ChocoPie desserts.

There's also been high-level diplomatic activity lately. After North Korea and Russia signed a new agreement that aligned their strategic interests and established a mutual defense pact, South Korea signaled it was re-evaluating some of its current positions, including on sending weapons to Ukraine.

The North has been fueling Russia's war with its own shipments, while South Korea has offered its support indirectly. South Korea has, however, expressed dissatisfaction with closer ties between Russia and North Korea.

"The government clearly emphasizes that any cooperation that directly or indirectly helps North Korea increase its military power is a violation of UN Security Council resolutions and is subject to monitoring and sanctions by the international community," South Korea's presidential office said in a statement.

• Disney World is replacing its Genie+ service and individual Lightning Lane entry pass.
• Guests can use the Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass starting July 24.
• Guests staying at Disney Resort hotels can plan Lightning Lane passes seven days in advance.

Walt Disney World will allow guests to make ride reservations a week in advance — but there's a catch.

The official Disney Parks Blog said the Genie+ service and Lightning Lane entry would be discontinued at the Florida theme parks. Instead, guests can register for two new reservation programs that go into effect on July 24.

"Walt Disney World will introduce new, simpler names to provide more clarity for everyone," a press release published Tuesday read. "Disney Genie+ service will become Lightning Lane Multi Pass, while individual Lightning Lane will now be known as Lightning Lane Single Pass."

The new passes let guests make Lightning Lane reservations ahead of their trip, but the biggest perk is for those who book at Disney Resorts and affiliated hotels.

"Guests staying at a Disney Resort hotel and other select hotels will be able to plan Lightning Lane passes up to 7 days in advance for their entire stay (up to 14 days)," the company said. "All other guests can plan up to 3 days in advance."

The new incentive could encourage some Disney guests to pour even more money into its Florida properties, which could expand under a $17 billion development deal between Disney and the local tourism district.

Some guests have criticized Disney's theme parks for being too expensive. Even CEO Bob Iger was shocked by ticket prices when he returned to the company in November 2022.

The price for Lightning Lane Multi Passes will vary by day and theme park, while the Lightning Lane Single Passes will vary by date and attraction.

Despite the cost, some parents with children under 18 are going into debt to finance their family's Disney vacation. Parents who completed Lending Tree's survey indicated that food, transportation, and accommodation wreaked the most havoc on their budgets.

Representatives for Disney referred to the press release and FAQ when contacted for comment.

Unlike the new Lightning Lane passes, Genie+ didn't permit advanced reservations.

Under Genie+, guests could register for Lightning Lane entrances at select rides and experiences, but they needed to wake up at 7 a.m. each day of their trip to secure their spot. This drew criticism from some Disney guests, who suggested that the Genie+ program is complicated and overwhelming.

The company said guests voiced their desire for a more comprehensive reservation program, which led them to create the Lightning Lane passes.

"We enjoy hearing from guests about all the things they love, as well as how we can make their experience even better the next time," the press release read. "At Walt Disney World, guests have told us they would prefer to have the option to do more of their planning before their theme park day."

• On Thursday and Saturday, two different "potentially hazardous" asteroids will fly by Earth.
• The first is as big as a mountain, and the second will be one of the brightest in recent history.
• Neither of them pose a threat to Earth, and you can watch their fly-bys live.

Two rare asteroids will zoom past Earth at close range this week, within just 42 hours of each other.

Due to their size and trajectory, both of these space rocks are labeled "potentially hazardous." But that doesn't mean they pose an immediate threat to Earth.

In fact, both of them will safely fly by at thousands of miles per hour. There's a zero percent chance that either will collide with our planet, according to the European Space Agency.

Neither of these asteroids will be visible to the naked eye, but you may be able to spot them with a telescope or binoculars, Gianluca Masi, astrophysicist and founder of The Virtual Telescope Project, told Business Insider over email.

Or, you can watch them via livestreams hosted by The Virtual Telescope Project:

• Use this link to watch Asteroid (415029) 2011 UL21 streak past Earth on Thursday, June 27, starting at 4:00 p.m. ET.
• And this link to watch Asteroid 2024 MK fly by on Saturday, June 29, starting at 5:00 p.m. ET.

Mountain-sized Asteroid (415029) 2011 UL21

Asteroid (415029) 2011 UL21 is one of the largest asteroids to have recently passed near Earth, Masi wrote in a press statement.

With an estimated diameter of roughly 1.4 miles, this mountain-sized space rock is larger than 99% of all known near-Earth objects, according to the European Space Agency.

Asteroid 2011 UL21 falls into a class of space rocks known as "planet killers," which are at least 1.2 miles wide. If one crashed into Earth, it would cause damage on a continental scale, and potentially kick up enough dust to trigger significant climactic changes for many years, LiveScience reported.

The Chicxulub asteroid, for example, credited with the dinosaurs' demise was about 6.5 miles across and triggered global warming for an estimated 100,000 years after impact.

Luckily, 2011 UL21 won't be coming close enough to cause any concern on Thursday. It'll sneak by Earth at a safe distance of more than 4 million miles, which is 17 times farther than the distance between Earth and the moon, Masi wrote.

But this fly-by is noteworthy because 2011 UL21 will be among the top 10 largest asteroids to pass by Earth at close range in the last 125 years, he added.

Newly discovered Asteroid 2024 MK

Asteroid 2024 MK was first discovered earlier this month, just 13 days before it will pass by Earth at remarkably close range, according to the European Space Agency.

It's much smaller than 2011 UL21, with an estimated diameter between 390 and 885 feet. That's roughly the length of one to 2.5 football fields.

But what this asteroid lacks in size, it should make up for in brightness. It will come within 184,000 miles of Earth, which is about 77% of the average distance between the Earth and the moon, Masi wrote.

It's close proximity will make it one of the brightest objects of its kind observed in recent history, he added.

• Nvidia's market cap dropped around $500 billion since it became the world's most valuable company.
• Skittish investors had been awaiting its annual meeting for comments that might reverse the trend.
• CEO Jensen Huang discussed the chipmaker's success but didn't offer much new news.

Nvidia briefly dethroned Microsoft to become the world's most valuable company just last week when it hit a valuation of $3.34 trillion.

But since then, it's dropped by around $500 billion. Now, investors are left wondering if the chip-making giant — whose shares have, until now, been on a dizzy upward trajectory thanks to its dominance of the AI semiconductor market — has peaked.

The annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday didn't ease their concerns.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang didn't say anything to sound off alarms during the meeting. But he also didn't say anything particularly reassuring about how it will fend off competitors and maintain its position at the top — or anything game-changing that hadn't already been touched on at the GTC conference in March.

CEOs like Sam Altman and Elon Musk still view the graphics processing unit chips as a key component of the generative AI boom. However, other tech giants have started to develop their own alternatives.

It's worth noting that even if companies do come out with their own versions, it could take a while before they become fully reliable. Still, Google said it's making its own Arm-based CPU processor, Axion, in April, and Microsoft is also attempting to create its own AI chips.

Huang also failed to mention during the meeting when exactly the company's next-generation AI chip, Blackwell will become available, although he said it would be "the most successful product" in Nvidia's history. He unveiled the chip at the GTC conference but hasn't provided information on its price or availability since. The chip is supposed to operate at least two times faster than its predecessor, the H100.

Huang talked positively about the prospects for Nvidia, saying that the company has created a path forward for the future of computing, which took about two decades to reach. Nvidia serves over five million developers and 40,000 companies, including thousands of AI companies.

"Nvidia accelerated computing, has reached a tipping point and achieved a virtuous cycle," Huang said.

That wasn't enough for shareholders, however. The stock stayed down more than 2%.

Nvidia is still one of the world's biggest companies, but time will tell if it can maintain its position as the main provider of computing chips — and if its massive market cap is sustainable.

Nvidia declined a request for comment from Business Insider.

• Tech is disrupting all areas of media and entertainment, and investors are rushing to cash in.
• Startups are attracting millions in investments to change how content is made, distributed, and more.
• Here are 23 pitch decks that startups used to fundraise for pre-seed and Series A rounds and beyond.

Technology is upending all facets of media and entertainment. New startups are raising capital to jump on audiences' shift to streaming, change hidebound production practices, and more.

Business Insider talked with founders about the pitches they used to raise millions and innovate in content creation and distribution. 

Investors have particularly chased AI startups like Runway, which promises to reduce the cost and time it takes to create special effects like de-aging and film restoration; and Papercup, an AI-based translation company.

"There's a lot of friction in making content," Peter Cioni previously said of his and his brother Michael's AI platform, Strada, which streamlines production processes. "We want to ease that."

There's Canela Media, which raised $32 million to build a streaming home for Latinos, believing the audience wasn't well served by mainstream streamers. "I kept reading about the streaming wars," cofounder Isabel Rafferty previously told BI. "But I'm a Latina and my options are very limited."

Legion M took an unconventional approach to fundraising. The production startup crowdsourced funding from ordinary people, who will then get a chance to help decide what projects the company pursues. The company called its app that lets users influence the development process a "fantasy football for film buffs." 

Check out the 23 examples below to learn more about how these and other founders have sold their vision (arranged in alphabetical order):

• Allstar, a startup that helps gamers become creators: $12 million Series A
• Almost Friday Media, formerly Friday Beers, a digital media company: $6 million seed
• Amagi, a media tech firm for streaming channels: $95 million
• Canela Media, a Latino-focused streaming startup: $32 million Series A
• Earth Speed Media, a media company launched by "Entourage" star Adrian Grenier: $150,000 in pre-seed
• Estate Media, a media platform cofounded by "Million Dollar Listing" star Josh Flagg: $1.7 million
• FilmHedge, a fintech company that helps new movies and TV series get made: $5 million
• Legion M, a startup film production company: 15 slides
• Lost iN, a creator-focused travel media startup: $4 million
• Metaphysic, an AI startup behind the viral Tom Cruise deepfake: $7.5 million
• Neosapience, an AI startup: $21.5 million Series B
• Overtime, the sports-media startup for Gen Z: $80 million
• Paper, an edtech startup behind a kids' streaming service: $270 million Series D
• Papercup, an AI dubbing company: $20 million Series A
• Rebel Girls, an empowerment-focused media company: $8 million Series A
• Recess, a live events startup: $5 million Series A
• Sonoro, a Latino-focused media company: $12.5 million
• Stagetime, a LinkedIn for performing artists: $1.5 million Series A
• StoryCo, a blockchain-based platform that links Hollywood creatives to fans: $6 million seed
• Strada, an AI startup to streamline content creation: $2 million
• Telly, an ad-supported TV startup from Pluto's cofounder: Seed round
• Toonstar, an animation studio: $4 million
• "Ultimate Beastmaster," Netflix's first reality show: 37-page deck

• I live in Maine, where browntail moth caterpillars can be found. 
• The caterpillars have a toxin on their hairs that can cause painful and itchy rashes on humans. 
• I woke up covered in what I thought were bug bites, only to realize it was the caterpillar rash. 

When I woke up, all I could feel was my entire body itching. I'm allergic to bug bites, and my first thought was that a mosquito had snuck under the covers and attacked me.

When I looked at my body, I was shocked. Yes, it was extremely itchy, but it looked more like a rash than a bite. All I wanted to do was scratch my entire body. Desperate, I went to my dermatologist to make sure it wasn't something dangerous. She took one look at me and said, "Yup, you got the classic presentation of browntail moth rash."

The moth is native to Europe and Asia and was introduced to New England in the 1800s. Maine, where I live, has a large population that comes out from hibernation in April and can cause rashes in humans until July.

The browntail moth caterpillar lives in trees

I first heard about browntail moths from my kids' preschool. They have backwoods where kids explore nature throughout the year, and it's not uncommon to get an email from the administration warning that some kids are coming home with rashes.

Still, the rashes I had seen on my kids were minor — little bumps on their fingers or the back of their hands. Nothing like mine, which spread on my arms, chest, back, legs, and toes.

The caterpillars' hairs contain a toxin that, when brushed against skin, produces a poison ivy-like rash that is incredibly itchy and uncomfortable.

Derek V. Chan, a board-certified dermatologist at All Dermis Dermatology in New York City, said it's key not to scratch the initial bumps. "You can spread the toxin and hairs to other areas of the body and cause new lesions to develop elsewhere," Chan told me.

I tried over-the-counter products, but nothing worked

Before my dermatologist prescribed a topical steroid medication, I tried over-the-counter products to help with the itching.

I took Benadryl before bed and Claritin during the day. The ointment and gel helped ease the itchiness, but only for a little bit. I was especially uncomfortable at night and would wake up scratching my skin raw.

Now, I'm trying steroid cream, but my dermatologist warned me that I wouldn't see results immediately. The duration of the reaction depends on your sensitivity to the toxin. In some people, it can last several weeks, Chang told me.

Chang said that on top of over-the-counter medication, "a cool bath with baking soda and/or finely ground colloidal oat powder" can ease the discomfort.

If you've already picked at the bumps — like I did, because I couldn't stop scratching — Chang recommends wearing sun-protective clothing to avoid scarring, and always wearing SPF when outside.

Chang added that if your tongue swells or you have difficulty breathing after coming in contact with the toxins, it becomes a 911 emergency.

I didn't touch an actual caterpillar

What's tricky about browntail moth is that you don't necessarily need to come in contact with it to get the rash. Touching an item that the moth walked over is enough to generate a reaction.

I still don't know where I came in contact with one since my husband and three kids were thankfully spared from this torture. The only thing I can think of is that I took a nap with our dogs while my husband was doing bedtime with the kids. I assume they rolled on a caterpillar or a nest and then laid on me, transferring the toxins.

My dermatologist said she's been seeing an increasing number of patients with browntail moth rashes. If you're traveling to Maine this summer or your kids attend summer camp here, watch out for these caterpillars. The Maine Department of Agriculture Conservation and Forestry recommends using pesticides to control the population outdoors and a wet vac to remove any caterpillars from indoors.

Chang added that after spending time outdoors, people living in browntail moth-prone areas should keep their skin covered, take a cool shower once they are inside, wash clothes immediately after, and if they come in contact with any other surface where hairs or toxins may linger, wash bedding and towels.