--:-- Shamita Basu: Good morning. It's Monday, February 20th. I'm Shamita Basu. This is Apple News Today.
--:-- Shamita Basu: On today's show, U.S.-China relations take a tense new turn. Why thousands of well-paying jobs that don't need college degrees are sitting empty. And the reason so many commercials use slow motion to sell you stuff. But first, President Biden made a surprise visit to Ukraine today.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The White House previously said Poland would be the only stop on Biden's trip to Europe. This is the first time in modern history that a U.S. president has entered a war zone where there's not an active American military presence.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Air raid sirens went off as Biden walked around Kiev with President Volodymyr Zelensky. The visit comes ahead of the one-year mark of Russia's invasion.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Biden recalled speaking with Zelensky at the start of the war, when Zelensky had asked for the leaders of the world to show their support.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Biden said one year later, the U.S. still stands with Ukraine. Remind us that freedom is priceless. It's worth fighting for for as long as it takes. and that's how long we're going to be with you, Mr. President, for as long as it takes.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Biden talked about the tens of billions of dollars in aid and equipment the U.S. and allies have sent to Ukraine's military.
--:-- Shamita Basu: But ahead of this trip, CNN reported on concerns that Ukraine is using ammunition faster than the U.S. and NATO can make it.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The Pentagon is working on ramping up production in what may be the biggest increase since the Korean War.
--:-- Shamita Basu: They've set aside $3 billion to buy ammunition abroad and boost production stateside.
--:-- [Sound of CNN Pentagon correspondent Oren Lieberman]
--:-- Oren Lieberman: CNN Pentagon correspondent Oren Lieberman reports from an artillery shell factory in Scranton Pennsylvania.
--:-- Oren Lieberman: This factory typically churns out around 11 shells a month but the Ukrainian military often goes through that amount in just a few days.
--:-- Oren Lieberman: The Defense Department is pushing the factory to staff up for 24-7 production.
--:-- Oren Lieberman: The goal within two years is to produce five times more artillery rounds each month, up to 70,000.
--:-- Oren Lieberman: Twice as many Javelin anti-tank missiles, up to 4,000 a month.
--:-- Oren Lieberman: 30% more rounds for the HIMARS rocket launchers, about 850 a month.
--:-- Oren Lieberman: And it's not just Ukraine needing ammunition. The U.S. also has to produce enough to supply to other allies in Europe, while making enough for American forces to be prepared for potential future conflicts.
--:-- Oren Lieberman: The Pentagon tells CNN it could take up to 18 months for the U.S. to hit its maximum production rate for artillery shelves.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Let's catch up quickly on some big developing stories. Staying with Ukraine developments, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he talked to his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, about concern that China may provide military aid to Russia.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Blinken said publicly that the U.S. has intelligence that Beijing is considering providing lethal support to Moscow as it wages war in Ukraine.
--:-- Shamita Basu: China says its relationship with Russia is not based on confronting or targeting third countries.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Blinken met with Wang at a global security conference in Munich over the weekend.
--:-- Shamita Basu: He talked to CBS about their first face-to-face meeting since the U.S. shot down a Chinese spy balloon.
--:-- Shamita Basu: I made very clear to him that China sending a surveillance balloon over the United States in violation of our sovereignty, in violation of international law, was unacceptable and must never happen again.
--:-- Shamita Basu: China foreign ministry said Wang told Blinken that the U.S. should change course and work to limit the damage of what Beijing calls an indiscriminate use of force
--:-- Shamita Basu: In Turkey and Syria the U.S. is sending billion in additional disaster relief aid after the earthquakes that killed at least 46 people.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Efforts to help survivors have been hindered by damaged roads and cold winter weather.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And back in America, former President Jimmy Carter is now in hospice care at home after a series of recent hospital stays.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The Carter Center said over the weekend that he chose to spend his remaining time with his wife Rosalyn and family rather than receive additional medical treatment.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The Fox Atlanta station was at services yesterday at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Carter taught Sunday school there for decades.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Lord, we pray that you be with his family, Lord, those around him, and God, we thank you for his service to this nation.
--:-- Shamita Basu: At 98 years old, Carter is the longest living president in American history.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Across America, thousands of high-paying jobs are going unfilled. We're talking about jobs in skilled trades that don't require bachelor's degrees.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Managers say they can't get enough people to fill good jobs in construction.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And they put part of the blame on high school students being steered elsewhere, told by parents and teachers to aim for four-year college degrees, not technical training.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Education news outlet The Hechinger Report digs into this for NPR.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Advocates for career and technical education say it's been challenging to overcome negative stereotypes about work in skilled trades.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Trade work often requires certifications or associate degrees, but those typically take less time and money than a bachelor's degree.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Another big advantage is trainees often get paid as they learn.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The Hechinger Report talked to men and women who've chosen to work in the trades and who really love it.
--:-- Shamita Basu: One ironworker said they felt a lot of pressure in high school to go to college but old classmates who went the four degree route are now making less money.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Demand for skilled workers doesn't look to be letting up.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The White House says the $1.2 trillion infrastructure plan will create 1.5 million construction jobs every year for the next decade.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Now it's up to the industry and the education system to make sure more people are trained and ready to step up.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Think of the last time you watched an ad for a luxury product. Champagne, a car, fancy chocolate.
--:-- Shamita Basu: There's a pattern here. Slow motion visuals.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The Wall Street Journal looks into the research on how our brains respond to slow motion.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And it turns out there is something about seeing a product in slow-mo that makes us think that it's higher end.
--:-- Shamita Basu: A marketing professor set up a wine-tasting experiment.
--:-- Shamita Basu: People either saw an ad with slow-motion video or without, and after they tried the wine, they were asked how much they would pay for it.
--:-- Shamita Basu: On average, the people who saw the slow-motion ad were willing to pay about 15% more for the same bottle of wine.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Similar experiments with chocolate and shampoo yielded similar results.
--:-- Shamita Basu: So think of this if you're trying to sell an old couch online. Maybe try uploading a slow-motion video to give it a little extra sizzle.
--:-- Shamita Basu: You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And if you're already listening in the News app right now, stick around.
--:-- Shamita Basu: We've got a narrated article coming up next from New York Magazine.
--:-- Shamita Basu: It's a nice listen coming off of NBA All-Star Weekend.
--:-- Shamita Basu: It's an in-depth look at NBA star Kyrie Irving and the many controversies that have consumed his career.
--:-- Shamita Basu: So check that one out, and I'll be back with the news tomorrow.
