Photronics Appoints New Board Member
Bitcoin has finally hit $100,000 . It took the world's largest crypto asset a decade and a half to go from being worth less than a cent to being six-figure. Bitcoin enthusiasts and investors are already on their next target— just how long would it take the world's largest crypto asset to be worth a million dollars? But while it took BTC seven years to 10x its value from 10K to $100K, meme coins have seen their value rise as much as 1000x in a matter of days to months. However, the reason for this is the market cap and liquidity. Bitcoin is a nearly $2 trillion market cap cryptocurrency that handles $160 billion in daily trading volume. Meanwhile, the entire crypto market capitalization is just $3.75 trillion, so BTC basically accounts for over half of that. Unlike BTC, a coin with a low market cap and trading volume is pretty easy to move. And because even small buy orders can send a coin to new highs easily, traders utilize them as a way to speculate and make quick profits. The likes of Bitcoin, unlike altcoins and meme coins, are utilized by traders and investors as a way to invest in the long term and secure their wealth. This is something that meme coin traders should never forget — meme coins are the gateway to having fun and making quick and sizable profits, but they better sell on time before it all becomes zero. That's not to say that your Bitcoin investment won't lose its value—it will when the bear market comes. However, if you end up not selling your Bitcoin, it's highly probable that you'll have a chance to sell it when the bull market returns. This is because Bitcoin has solidified its position as an asset class, having been battle-tested and now gaining broader institutional support via exchange-traded funds (ETFs) . But the same cannot be said for your meme coins, which may never see the light of the day once their time is over. So, for a trader to get better returns from meme coins, they must understand the difference between investing and speculation. Investing Vs. Speculation What separates an investment from a speculative trade is your mindset and the level of risk involved. That's the main difference, though the line between the two can often be very thin, as what's speculation for one could be an investment for another. Generally, if something is high-risk, it is categorized as speculation, while lower risk is attributed to investing. So, when you spend money with the expectation that the thing you put your funds on will return you a profit, that is investing. Essentially, you take an average or below-average risk to generate a satisfactory return on your capital. Here, you expect your investment to increase in value over time. Also, this approach is usually taken with a long-term perspective, which could be anywhere between over a year to decades, with an aim to build your wealth gradually. Moreover, your decision here is based on a reasonable judgment, which you have made after performing a thorough investigation and gaining enough understanding of your venture's soundness, which points to a good probability of success. Equity stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs, real estate, and market instruments are some examples of investments. Now, if you take a position in an asset and expect it to move in a certain direction, you are speculating. If you enjoy the thrill of volatile market conditions and use the market momentum to capture price movements, you are again speculating. In this approach, you purchase and sell assets over a short period of time to generate profits. It involves frequent buying and selling of an asset, often jumping from one trend to another, which means emotions tend to play a big role here. Not only do you disregard any fundamentals, but you also see a high probability of failure. Success or failure here largely depends on external forces or events that are outside of your control. Unlike speculation, which usually means putting your money into something and praying for good results, investing involves analysis. You put in your time and energy to study fundamentals and use it as a basis for your investment. Speculation also does not have much to do with protecting your wealth but rather increasing it quickly. In contrast, with investment, wealth protection is as much part of the process as wealth creation. Derivative products like futures and options come under speculative investment options. Interestingly, for a non-crypto native, cryptocurrencies fall under speculative investment, but as we saw this year, with ETFs, Bitcoin has become a legitimate asset class, providing institutional investors a way to diversify their assets. For a crypto-native, majors like Bitcoin and maybe even Ethereum fall under investment, while the vast majority of altcoins, specifically meme coins, are just speculative trading. So, what makes meme coins so speculative? Also, what exactly are they, and where does their value really come from? A Look into Memes and Meme Coins' Value Meme coins are the most profitable narrative of this cycle, and they have captured a lot of attention. But before we get into meme coins, let's first understand the concept of memes. You may feel that memes are an Internet phenomenon, but that's not the case. Actually, memes can trace their origins to centuries before when they were used as a way to communicate. The term ‘meme' was first introduced by Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book, “The Selfish Gene,” to describe the concept of cultural transmission. According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, a meme is defined as “a concept, belief, or practice conceived as a unit of cultural information that may be passed on from person to person, subject to influences in a way analogous to natural selection.” The term' Internet meme', meanwhile, was coined by Mike Godwin in 1993 to describe how memes spread through online communities. The emergence and popularity of social media have accelerated the speed at which memes proliferate the online world. Today, memes are an integral part of Internet culture, which helps people come together through humor and gain a sense of belonging to a community. The key elements of memes are their viral distribution and constant evolution. Now, meme coins are simply the financialization of memes. A cryptocurrency, when named after animals, characters, or individuals in an attempt to attract a user base, is a meme coin. Much like any other crypto, the underlying technology here is blockchain. But, unlike utility coins like ETH, which serve a purpose in this ecosystem, meme coins have no purpose other than offering a fun asset to learn about crypto and invest in to generate huge returns. Meme coins promise no fundamentals or inherent value other than creating a vibrant community of like-minded individuals. Given that meme coins remove any pretense of utility and are simply driven by hype, FOMO, and momentum, they are extremely risky and highly volatile. And that's exactly what makes them so popular in retail. The meme coin frenzy first gained traction this cycle in 2023 when PEPE, an inspiration from the popular Internet meme' Pepe the Frog,' captured the market's attention and saw an explosive increase in its value. This ignited the meme coin mania, which only allowed it to grow substantially higher. This year, the meme coin craze has risen beyond the wildest of imaginations, with new coins popping up every hour. The cheaper and faster blockchains like Tonchain and Base have been helping the meme coin trend thrive, with Solana at the center of it all. As the biggest beneficiary of the memecoin frenzy, Solana-based memecoins account for almost a fifth of the market value of meme tokens. A New Breed of Meme Coins: Easy Come Easy Go Solana isn't alone in fueling the memecoin craze; rather, it's Pump. fun, which is the fastest-growing crypto app in history that allows anyone to create new tokens in a minute for completely free. The biggest driver of the ongoing meme coin madness is Pump. fun's growth wasn't gradual but rather sudden and explosive. In February, less than a hundred coins were being launched a day on it, which has since skyrocketed to tens of thousands every day nowadays. While Pump.fun made it easy to create new meme coins, DEXs were already there to help people start trading right away. Unlike a CEX, there's no need for listing; the project provides the liquidity, and you are good to go. And this led to an eruption of meme coin mania, which is amplified by social media posts showing individuals turning their dollars into millions. While it's easy to start feeling FOMO with people bragging about bagging millions, it's not as widespread as one might believe. In fact, the reality is that most people lose money by trading meme coins rather than making profits. As per data from Dune , fewer than 3% of traders made more than $1,000 profit from investing in these speculative coins, while 0.8% have made over $10,000, and the bulk of traders, at over 60% , are incurring losses. Meanwhile, the platform itself (Pump.fun) is raking in millions of dollars in revenue and is now planning to launch a pro-trading terminal and its own token. Among the new line of meme coins, there's another category: celebrity meme coins, which might be the most fleeting ones ever, as well as net negative for the crypto industry. One may think that they would help gain crypto adoption, but the fast-paced crypto's low barriers to entry only end up attracting bad actors. Celebrity tokens are nothing but crypto that derive their value from the personality who launched them or whose name they bear. However, despite carrying the name of a celebrity, it's possible they may not be launched or promoted by them. The total market cap of celebrity coins is $113.7 million, as per Coinmarketcap . Currently, the biggest celebrity coin is MOTHER from music artist Iggy Azalea. The $65.8 million market cap token is currency trading at $0.065, down 72.68% from its peak of $0.240 from six months ago. In 2nd place is the $45 mln market cap DADDY from Andrew Tate, and then the $395K market cap JENNER from Caitlyn Jenner is in 3rd place, down 74% and 95% from their respective ATHs. Much like these, most of the celebrity tokens have been launched only to be dumped soon after and are now barely worth anything. Most recently, Hailey Welch, a.k.a the Hawk Tuah Girl, launched her memecoin $HAWK on Solana, which didn't even survive for an hour before plunging hard. As soon as the token launched, the initial surge saw its market cap rising as high as $500 million before tanking to $60 million in a mere 20 minutes. The crash cost many their “whole life savings,” igniting the calls of “rug pull” and “pump-and-dump” crypto scam. Some buyers took to Crypto Twitter to accuse Welch of orchestrating an exit scam and said that they would take legal action against her. One X user talked about losing their “life savings and children's college education fund,” while the other one pointed out how a vast majority of coins were held by an insider, only to be dumped on the retail. While some feel for those who have suffered grievous losses, others can't help but point out how the very purpose of meme coins is to get in and out of a trade before others. “It's a game of musical chairs,” said crypto trader Huss in a post on celebrity tokens earlier this year. “When they're right, they're geniuses, but when they're wrong, they were scammed and want reparations.” – Huss recently said in another post on X. Back in June, X user Slorg created a list of these celebrity coins and found that they had an average decline of 94%. Most of these new coins are also released on Solana through Pump.fun. Celebrity-linked projects aren't anything new. Back in 2017, boxer Floyd Mayweather and actor Jamie Fox promoted ICOs. Much like meme coins in this cycle, over 80% of 2017 ICOs were scams, including those associated with celebrities. The same was seen during the 2021 bull season when Mayweather, again, along with the likes of Jake Paul, DJ Khaled, and David Dobrik, promoted scam NFT projects. So, this has been happening since the beginning of crypto and will continue to happen, but that's not to say that there aren't better and more honest ways to achieve this. Also, investors must be more careful when interacting with these speculative coins, as there are meme coins that tokenize culture and have value. Meme Coins That Stand Out Every meme coin is not the same. Much like how BTC has stood the test of time, there are a few meme coins as well that continue to survive year after year. The OG Dogecoin (DOGE) leads this pack, which was created eleven years ago as a joke but soon found its place in people's hearts and portfolios. This meme coin played a huge role in onboarding mainstream investors and traders to crypto, who were overwhelmed with the technical complexity of the space. Dogecoin gained significant attention during the last bull market when Tesla CEO Elon Musk came out in support of it. In fact, US President-elect Donald Trump has created a specific department, ‘Doge,' – The Department of Government Efficiency, which he wrote on his social media platform, “will become, potentially, ‘The Manhattan Project' of our time.” The department is to be headed by the tech billionaire and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who recently met behind closed doors at the Capitol to discuss the DOGE initiative and reportedly talked about keeping a ‘naughty and nice' list of those who will be part of the budget-slashing proposals and those who won't. Then, during the last bull run, we got many new meme coins, most of which are simply lost or irrelevant, but the likes of Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Floki have still managed to maintain their presence among the top 100 crypto assets and in people's minds. Interestingly, during the past cycles, meme coins pumped toward the end of the bull market, but this time around, they have been experiencing capital rotation throughout the cycle. Before even the Bitcoin halving occurred, meme coins continued to attract interest and capital, even when BTC had its consolidation between March and October this year. The meme coin market capitalization actually makes up 3.16% of the total crypto market cap, up from 1.3% at the beginning of the year. Excluding majors, such as BTC and ETH, this share rises to 11.21%, up from 4.2%. This makes sense, given that among the top 100 crypto assets, meme coins are the biggest gainers this year, with WIF's 2,165% year-to-date (YTD) gains and PEPE's 1,578% upside. These two have been among the most popular meme coins, along with BONK, FWOG, BRETT, PNUT, and POPCAT, during this cycle. Conclusion So, as we saw, meme coins are the hottest trend of this bull market, offering an enticing opportunity for retail to make the best of it. The fun element combined with their low entry point makes meme coins a magnet to new investors who get lured in by people flashing their big ‘1 SOL to $1 million' gains from meme coins. Instead of treating it like a game of hot potato, they mistake it for an investment or simply hold it for too long in the hope of bigger gains, and they eventually end up giving up all of their profits. It is important for those putting their money into meme coins to understand and remember that the vast majority of these meme coins become irrelevant when their underlying connection to social events becomes stale. So, make sure not to lose sight of your goal, which is quick profits. Speculation is a great way to make sizable returns in a very short period, but that's what it is. It's not an investment, and meme coins should never be treated as such because they are driven by hype and momentum, and when the music stops, you don't want to be holding them, or you'll be left with significant losses, “but as long as the music is playing, you've got to get up and dance”! Click here to learn all about investing in Bitcoin (BTC).
An anti-corruption probe into one of the state’s busiest hospitals is examining claims that surgeons charged the Transport Accident Commission for operating on multiple patients at the same time. This masthead revealed on Sunday that the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission was investigating a handful of surgeons at the Royal Melbourne Hospital over allegations they billed the TAC for medical procedures never carried out on patients, and fraudulently claimed assistant surgeon fees. IBAC is investigating claims that surgeons fraudulently billed the TAC. Credit: iStock Four sources – speaking on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal – have revealed that surgeons would simultaneously run multiple theatres, often staffed by registrars, and then claim to the TAC they had operated in all theatres at the same time. This, the sources said, enabled them to attract higher rebates from the public insurer. Registrars are not allowed to charge the TAC. “The primary surgeon is jumping from one theatre to the next and not being meaningfully involved in the actual surgery but just writing operation reports,” one hospital source said. “They might write these reports from the tearoom. It is really disgusting.” The government-owned TAC is funded by Victorian motorists to pay for the treatment of road accident victims, and reimburses hospitals, surgeons and anaesthetists for each TAC patient they treat. Surgeons and anaesthetists bill the TAC for this work in addition to receiving an hourly rate from their hospital, an arrangement insiders say creates a perverse financial incentive for some surgeons to harvest TAC patients. It can also be revealed that IBAC is looking into concerns that some surgeons at the Parkville hospital cherry-picked lucrative TAC patients, prioritising them over public patients waiting for urgent surgery. “Some surgeons have monopolised the trauma ... they have gone out of their way to treat TAC cases ... to make sure they are the only ones who bill for it,” said one hospital source, who did not want to be identified for fear of reprisals. This masthead has seen evidence of one injured TAC patient being moved to a rehabilitation facility before their operation and then transported to the Royal Melbourne Hospital to allegedly coincide with a particular surgeon being rostered on. A hospital source claimed this was orchestrated to allow the particular surgeon to bill the TAC for the patient’s surgery. “Everyone knows what happens; they are too frightened to say anything,” another hospital source said. Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas. Credit: Nine On Sunday, Victorian Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas welcomed the IBAC investigation, saying that while there was no evidence the alleged behaviour was widespread, if the allegations were true that would be “a gross misuse of public funds and breach of trust”. “If this is true, I’m absolutely devastated. This is a breach of trust with the Victorian people,” she said. “The integrity of our health system is absolutely paramount, and it’s important that Victorians can have the highest trust in our healthcare system.” Both Thomas and TAC Minister Danny Pearson said they were not aware of the allegations before Friday, despite three hospital sources telling The Age the accusations were the worst-kept secret among Melbourne’s medical community. Thomas said there was no reason to believe the TAC incentives gave surgeons and anaesthetists the opportunity to abuse the state’s system. Pearson told media he would not comment on an ongoing investigation other than to say he had not been aware of the allegations until he read about them in this masthead. “I think it’s appropriate that that investigation be allowed to run its course without providing a running commentary,” he said. Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier called on IBAC to release its findings and said she believed the alleged scam was costing taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars a day. “These allegations were reported to the TAC years ago, reported to IBAC years ago, reported to the Royal Melbourne Hospital executive years ago,” she said. Credit: Paul Harris “Victorians deserve better than a health system that is mired in corruption and scandals like this ... we’ve got corruption rorting in one of Victoria’s largest and most prominent hospitals – and it’s just not acceptable.” Crozier said the relevant ministers should be stepping in to resolve these issues. While the exact scale of the IBAC investigation is unknown, medical fraud and compliance expert Dr Margaret Faux said better technology was needed to crack down on incorrect claims. While the TAC has adopted the Medicare Benefits Schedule items, definitions and rules for services provided by medical practitioners, Faux said it did not have a rigorous system to interrogate claims. “As soon as they have a TAC number, it is open slather,” said Faux, who runs a company that processes medical bills for doctors and hospitals. “They do as many things as they can to these patients because they are cash cows.” A recent hospital patient, who did not receive treatment at the Royal Melbourne, contacted The Age after reading about the claims and agreed that the system was open to “all kinds of manipulation”. The Victorian resident, who requested anonymity, said that after managing to check their surgery item numbers, they were surprised by how many there were. “What other business transaction can be made without the receiver seeing an account?” A Royal Melbourne Hospital spokesperson said the health service upheld strict governance and was proud to deliver exceptional care. Both IBAC and the TAC have said it would be inappropriate to comment on an any investigation. The TAC finalised 14 prosecutions last financial year, resulting in $484,124 in restitution payments for the public insurer. Thirty warning letters were sent over the same period in cases that did not meet the prosecution threshold. With Selina Zhang Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter .
The New York Democrat is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to immediately deploy special technology that identifies and tracks drones back to their landing spots, according to briefings from his office. Schumer’s calls come amid growing public concern that the federal government hasn’t offered clear explanations as to who is operating the drones, and has not stopped them. National security officials have said the drones don’t appear to be a sign of foreign interference. “There’s a lot of us who are pretty frustrated right now,” said Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, on Fox News Sunday. “The answer ‘We don’t know’ is not a good enough answer.” President-elect Donald Trump posted on social media last week: “Can this really be happening without our government’s knowledge? I don’t think so. Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down.” Certain agencies within the Department of Homeland Security have the power to “incapacitate” drones, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Sunday. “But we need those authorities expanded,” he said, without saying exactly how. The drones don’t appear to be linked to foreign governments, Mayorkas said. “We know of no foreign involvement with respect to the sightings in the Northeast. And we are vigilant in investigating this matter,” Mayorkas said. Last year, federal aviation rules began requiring certain drones to broadcast their identities. It’s not clear whether that information has been used to determine who is operating the drones swarming locations in New York and New Jersey. Mayorkas’ office didn’t immediately respond to questions about whether they’ve been able to identify drones using this capability. Schumer is calling for recently declassified radar technology to be used to help determine whether an object is a drone or a bird, identify its electronic registration, and follow it back to its landing place. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Sunday said federal officials were sending a drone detection system to the state. “This system will support state and federal law enforcement in their investigations,” Hochul said in a statement. The governor did not immediately provide additional details including where they system will be deployed. Dozens of mysterious nighttime flights started last month over New Jersey, raising concerns among residents and officials. Part of the worry stems from the flying objects initially being spotted near the Picatinny Arsenal, a U.S. military research and manufacturing facility and over Trump’s golf course in Bedminster. Drones are legal in New Jersey for recreational and commercial use, but they are subject to local and Federal Aviation Administration regulations and flight restrictions. Operators must be FAA certified.Key Precipitated Calcium Carbonate Market Trend 2024-2033: Focusing On The Expansion Of Manufacturing Plants
The Colorado men’s basketball team has been able to overpower, and out-talent, its first four opponents. The Buffaloes are traveling a long way to face a whole new ball game. On Monday, the Buffs will face Michigan State in the opening round of the Maui Invitational, one of the most highly-regarded of college basketball’s early-season tournaments. It will be a powerhouse field as the tournament returns to Maui after being relocated to Honolulu in 2023 following the Maui wildfire. CU head coach Tad Boyle has described the tournament as a mid-term exam, with three games in three days against teams bigger and more skilled than the ones the Buffs took care of during their 4-0 start. The Buffs are looking at the tournament as an opportunity to show they plan to be much better than the team picked 15th in the 16-team Big 12 preseason coaches’ poll. “(Michigan State) has a good team. I’m not taking that away,” CU forward Assane Diop said. “But it’s not about them. What I feel like is this game can maybe change how people see us as a program. We’re 4-0 right now and just trying to go get a ‘Dub.’” The Buffs essentially had two days of activities, and practice, scheduled after traveling to Maui on Friday. It is the first time CU has played in the Maui Invitational since 2009, but the Buffs have enjoyed plenty of tropical business trips during Boyle’s tenure, now in its 15th season. Boyle’s CU clubs have twice played in the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, in 2014 and 2018. More recently, the Buffs played three games at the Paradise Jam in the US Virgin Islands in November 2021. “I want our guys to enjoy the experience. Part of college basketball is enjoying experiences like this,” Boyle said. “Whether you’re going to a warm place or you’re going to New York City or you’re going to wherever. So I want them to enjoy the experience. “But I also want them to compartmentalize and understand when is the time for business and when is the time to relax and enjoy themselves, which I want them to do to a certain degree. We’ve got to do a good job as a coaching staff of being crystal clear on when those times are. Then it’s up to them to concentrate on the task at hand.” A rugged field awaits the Buffs with four of the top 10 teams in the latest Associated Press Top 25 on display. In the second game on Tuesday, CU will play either Memphis, coached by former NBA great Penny Hardaway, or second-ranked, two-time defending national champion UConn. In the opposite bracket, No. 10 North Carolina opens on Monday against Dayton, while No. 4 Auburn and No. 5 Iowa State square off in a first round matchup worthy of a title game, or even a Final Four showdown. For the Buffs, the actual results might be secondary to making certain they bring the requisite energy and intensity to the floor against the sort of foes they will see on a regular basis once Big 12 play begins. “Concentration is a skill that not all of our players have,” Boyle said. “The ones that don’t have it, we’ve got to sharpen it. It starts in practice and the film room, and understanding what your job is and going out and doing it.” CU Buffs men’s basketball vs. Michigan State Spartans TIPOFF : Monday, 3 p.m. MT, Lahaina Civic Center, Lahaina, Hawaii. TV/RADIO : ESPN2/KOA AM 850 and 94.1 FM. RECORDS : Colorado 4-0; Michigan State 4-1. COACHES : Colorado — Tad Boyle, 15th season (302-183, 358-249 overall). Michigan State — Tom Izzo, 30th season (711-296 at Michigan State and overall). KEY PLAYERS : Colorado — F Andrej Jakimovski, 6-8, Gr. (14.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg, .364 3%); C Elijah Malone, 6-10, Gr. (14.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg, .655 FG%); G Javon Ruffin, 6-5, R-Jr. (11.5 ppg, 3.0 apg, 2.5 rpg); F Trevor Baskin, 6-9, Gr. (10.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg, .571 FG%); G Julian Hammond III, 6-2, Sr. (9.5 ppg, 3.5 apg, 2.5 rpg); F Sebastian Rancik, 6-9, Fr. (7.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 6-for-9 3-pointers); G RJ Smith, 6-3, R-So. (7.0 ppg, 2.0 apg, 6-for-11 3-pointers). Michigan State — G Jaden Akins, 6-4, Sr. (14.6 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 2.6 apg, .468 FG%); F Frankie Fidler, 6-7, Sr. (11.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg); F Jaxon Kohler, 6-9, Jr. (10.2 ppg, 8.0 rpg, .500 FG%); G Jase Richardson, 6-3, Fr. (8.4 pgg, 2.6 rpg, .6325 FG%); F Coen Carr, 6-6, So. (7.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, .593 FG%); G Jeremy Fears Jr., 6-2, R-Fr. (6.2 ppg, 6.2 apg). NOTES : Colorado played at the Maui Invitational once previously in 2009, going 1-2 with losses against Gonzaga and Arizona before winning the finale against Chaminade. ... CU has gone 1-2 in each of its last four trips to Hawaii, including appearances at the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu (2014, 2018), the ’09 appearance at the Maui invite, and a 2008 appearance at the Rainbow Classic in Honolulu. ... The Buffs are 8-10 all-time in Hawaii. Three of those losses were against the University of Hawaii in true road games. ... CU and the Spartans haven’t met since Michigan State posted a 79-64 win in the first round of the 2003 NCAA Tournament in Tampa, Fla. ... The programs have met just four times overall, with the Spartans holding a 3-1 lead. Like Monday’s contest, three of those four games were played on neutral floors — the 2003 NCAA Tournament, the 1988 Far West Classic in Oregon, and the 1957 Big Seven Christmas tournament in Kansas City, which was the first meeting between the teams and CU’s only win in the series. ... Michigan State is coming off an eight-point home win last week against Samford, holding off Samford’s upset bid after trailing by 13 points early. ... The Spartans are shooting just .221 from 3-point range.Stanford takes aim at Andrej Stojakovic, Cal
Ollie's CEO John Swygert sells $413k in stockMELVIN Odoom secretly attempted to get his crush Carol Vorderman's attention BEFORE going on I'm A Celebrity. According to colleagues at BBC Radio One, the DJ asked Producer Tom to help him win her over - with an impressive idea. Advertisement 2 Melvin Odoom has repeatedly tried to win over Carol Vorderman's heart Credit: Rex 2 Carol Vorderman is Melvin's celebrity crush Credit: carolvorders / Instagram Host Danni Diston exclusively told The Sun: "None of us knew about Melvin's crush on Carol, but apparently Producer Tom, who works at Radio One, did. "He helped Melvin DM Carol Vorderman in Welsh because obviously she's a Welsh queen." Danni added: "Whether or not she replied, I don't know. "I would like to see them go on a date. I think they'd be a cute couple. Advertisement READ MORE ON I'M A CELEB GIMME MOORE Jane Moore leaves I'm A Celeb fans in hysterics with swipe at Dean McCollough Disaster I'm a Celeb star reveals her house has been flooded in sad video "I know she's done the jungle already, but do you reckon she'd go back in and surprise him? I don't think she would, but it would be great." Last week Melvin admitted fancying his "dream woman" Carol - and even asked her out live on TV. He acted out his desired 'date' with Carol to campmates - after admitting he'd been too shy to say hello to the former TV presenter. Carol reacted to the bizarre moment Melvin did role play with Tulisa in camp, as he asked Carol out to a Thai restaurant. Advertisement Most read in I’m A Celebrity 2024 Exclusive JUNGLE RICHES I'm A Celeb star revealed as 'richest' name in camp & it's not Coleen Rooney no maur! Watch moment Maura Higgins screams she’s ‘going to die’ as she faces HUGE spider edit outrage Jane Moore's Loose Women co-stars furious over show edit MAURA IN COMMON I'm A Celeb's Barry's son breaks silence after his ex Maura meets his dad In a voicenote sent in to ITV2's Unpacked, Carol said: "Melvin, or should I say Jungle Man.. Melvin Vorderman... It sounds the same to me. "Right, question. Have you been spying on me because just last night I had a little Thai food. Carol Vorderman’s cringeworthy voice note to I’m A Celebrity’s Melvin as she calls him her ‘jungle man’ after he asks her out live on TV "I had pad Thai, quite a lot of it, with a little chicken satay on the side. "It was delicious, Jungle Man. Advertisement "Anyway keep doing what you're doing. You're doing a brilliant job. See you on the other side." Melvin hosts the mid-morning show on BBC Radio One alongside his pal Rickie Haywood-Williams and Charlie Hedges. How to vote for our Jane ITV is logging all votes online at itv.com/vote or you can download the I’m A Celebrity app on your phone. Every time Ant and Dec announce a new trial you can cast five votes. Jane would love you to use all of them to get her another Bushtucker challenge. Later this week, vote to SAVE Jane from eviction. They also host the famous Live Lounge together. From January, his colleague Danni is moving to a new slot on BBC Radio One with her co-host Sam MacGregor. Advertisement Read more on the Scottish Sun REY-LY EXCITING US pop superstar announces first Scots show in almost 10 years BALLSED UP Lorraine apologises on air for using phrase she 'didn't know' was a swear word Sam and Danni, who previously held the Weekend Breakfast slot, will now host an afternoon show that runs from Friday to Sunday, 1-4pm. I'm A Celebrity 2024 i'm A Celebrity is back for its 24th series, with a batch of famous faces living in the Aussie jungle. The Sun's Jake Penkethman takes a look at the stars on the show this year.. Coleen Rooney - Arguably the most famous name in the camp, the leading WAG, known for her marriage to Wayne Rooney , has made a grand return to TV as she looks to put the Wagatha Christie scandal behind her. The Sun revealed the mum-of-four had bagged an eye-watering deal worth over £1.5million to be on the show this year making her the highest-paid contestant ever. Tulisa - The popstar and former X Factor judge has made her triumphant TV comeback by signing up to this year's I'm A Celeb after shunning TV shows for many years. Known for being a member of the trio, N-Dubz, Tulisa became a household name back in 2011 when she signed on to replace Cheryl on ITV show The X Factor in a multi-million pound deal. Alan Halsall - The actor, known for playing the long-running role of Tyrone Dobbs on ITV soap opera Coronation Street, was originally signed up to head Down Under last year but an operation threw his scheduled appearance off-course. Now he has become the latest Corrie star to win over both the viewers and his fellow celebrities. Melvin Odoom - The Radio DJ has become a regular face on TV screens after rising to fame with presenting roles on Kiss FM, BBC Radio 1 and 4Music. Melvin has already been for a spin on the Strictly dancefloor and co-hosted The Xtra Factor with Rochelle Humes in 2015 but now he is facing up to his biggest challenge yet - the Aussie jungle . GK Barry - The UK's biggest social media personality, GK, whose real name is Grace Keeling, has transformed her TikTok stardom into a lucrative career. Aside from her popular social media channels, she hosts the weekly podcast, Saving Grace, and regularly appears on ITV talk show, Loose Women. She has even gone on to endorse popular brands such as PrettyLittleThing, KFC and Ann Summers. Dean McCullough - A rising star amongst this year's bunch of celebs , Dean first achieved notability through his radio appearances on Gaydio and BBC Radio 1. He was chosen to join the BBC station permanently in 2021 and has featured prominently ever since. He has enjoyed a crossover to ITV over the past year thanks to his guest slots on Big Brother spin-off show, Late & Live. Oti Mabuse - The pro dancer has signed up to her latest TV show after making her way through the biggest programmes on the box. She originally found fame on Strictly Come Dancing but has since branched out into the world of TV judging with appearances on former BBC show The Greatest Dancer as well as her current role on ITV's Dancing On Ice . Danny Jones - The McFly star was drafted into the programme last minute as a replacement for Tommy Fury. Danny is the second member of McFly to enter the jungle , after Dougie Poynter won the show in 2011. He is also considered a rising star on ITV as he's now one of the mentors on their Saturday night talent show, The Voice , along with bandmate Tom Fletcher. Jane Moore - The Loose Women star and The Sun columnist is braving the creepy crawlies this year. The star is ready for a new challenge - having recently split from her husband . It will be Jane's first foray into reality TV with the telly favourite having always said no to reality shows in the past. Barry McGuigan - Former pro boxer Barry is the latest fighting champ to head Down Under following in the footsteps of Tony Bellew and Amir Khan. It comes after a tough few years for Irish star Barry, who lost his daughter Danika to bowel cancer . He told The Late Late Show in 2021: "She was such an intrinsic part of the family that every day we ache." Maura Higgins - The Irish TV beauty first found fame on Love Island where she found a brief connection with dancer Curtis Pritchard . Since then, she has competed on Dancing On Ice as well as hosting the Irish version of the beauty contest, Glow Up. Since last year, she has been working on building up her career in the US by being the social media correspondent and host of Aftersun to accompany Love Island USA. She even guest hosted an episode of the spin-off, Love Island Games, in place of Maya Jama last year. Rev. Richard Coles - Former BBC radio host the Rev Richard Coles is a late arrival on I’m A Celebrity , and he's ready to spill the beans on his former employer. The former Communards and Strictly star , said the BBC did not know its a**e from its elbow last year. An insider said: "Rev Coles will have a variety of tales to tell from his wild days as a pop star in the Eighties, through to performing on Strictly and his later life as a man of the cloth."