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Trillions of insects migrate across the globe each year, yet little is known about their journeys. So to look for clues, scientists in Germany took to the skies, placing tiny trackers on the backs of giant moths and following them by plane. To the researchers’ surprise, the moths seemed to have a strong sense of where they were going. Even when the winds changed, the insects stayed on a straight course, the scientists reported in a study published Thursday in the journal Science. Their flight paths suggest these death’s-head hawk moths have some complex navigation skills, the authors said, challenging earlier ideas that insects are just wanderers. “For many, many years, it was thought that insect migration was mostly just dictated by winds, and they were blowing around,” said lead author Myles Menz,…

Walt Disney Co. said it is raising prices for streaming subscribers in the U.S. who want to watch Disney+ without ads, as more viewers switch to what CEO Bob Chapek described as the “best value in streaming.” The price increases are tied to a new tiered service Disney will launch in December for U.S. subscribers. The basic Disney+ service today costs $7.99 per month. Starting in December, that basic service will run ads, so a subscriber who wants no ads will have to upgrade to a premium service that starts at $10.99 per month, a 37.5% rise over current prices. An annual plan will cost $109.99. “We expect the ad tier to be popular and we expect some people to want to stay with ad-free,” Chief Financial Officer Christine McCarthy said on…

Gas prices have fallen from the record highs they reached earlier this summer, but they’re still much higher than a year ago. And with inflation driving up the cost of pretty much everything else, finding the funds to cover your commute may be increasingly tricky. “Being able to get to work is so essential to people’s basic survival that other things have to go first,” said Abbie Langston, director of equitable economy at PolicyLink, a national research institute. “When we see these massive increases in gas prices, it’s really hurting people.” Whether you drive, take the bus or ride the subway, here’s what you need to know about how commuters are affected by the cost of living in the United States. HOW ARE GAS PRICES AFFECTING COMMUTERS? More than 76% of Americans commute by…

The European Union expressed concern that a new U.S. tax credit plan aimed at encouraging Americans to buy electric vehicles would discriminate against European producers and break World Trade Organization rules. Under the Inflation Reduction Act nearing final approval in the U.S. Congress, a tax credit of up to $7,500 could be granted to lower the cost of an electric vehicle. To qualify, the bill requires that electric vehicles should contain a battery built in North America with minerals mined or recycled on the continent. “The European Union is deeply concerned by this new, potential, trans-Atlantic trade barrier,” European Commission spokeswoman Miriam Garcia Ferrer said. “We think that it’s discriminatory, that it’s discriminating against foreign producers in relation to U.S. producers.” “Of course this would mean that it would be incompatible with the…

Honda’s fiscal first quarter profit fell 33% from last year as a global computer chip shortage, a pandemic-related lockdown in China and the rising costs of raw materials hurt the Japanese automaker. Tokyo-based Honda Motor Co. reported that its profit totaled 149.2 billion yen ($1.1 billion) in the April-June quarter, down from 222.5 billion yen ($1.7 billion) a year earlier. Quarterly sales slipped 7% to 3.8 trillion yen ($28 billion). Honda kept its profit forecast for the full fiscal year through March 2023 unchanged at 710 billion yen ($5.3 billion). The semiconductor shortage has hurt all the world’s automakers, including Honda, despite strong demand, and the manufacturers have been scrambling to secure alternative suppliers. Honda, which makes the Accord sedan, Odyssey minivan and Civic compact, sold about 815,000 vehicles last quarter, down from 998,000…

Alaska will receive at least $100 million through a new federal program to expand high-speed internet to underserved rural areas and promote workforce development, officials said Tuesday. U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, an Alaska Republican, coordinated a summit with state, federal and tribal officials in Anchorage, in an effort to ensure parties were on the same page moving forward. Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy signed a bill at the summit establishing a broadband office to help coordinate between all entities. Sullivan said it is important to seize “this incredible opportunity that we have before us, which is to connect every part of Alaska, every village, every community to broadband and other internet activity.” The federal infrastructure package included $65 billion to help ensure all Americans have affordable, reliable and high-speed internet through the Internet for…