Thursday 01.26.23
Earth's inner core may have stopped rotating and could go into reverse, a new study suggests. Don't worry, you won't notice a difference -- and nothing cataclysmic is happening. But scientists are saying they weren't expecting these new observations about our planet's seismic records. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On With Your Day.
By Alexandra Meeks |
|
|
A family gathers at a memorial at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park, California, on Tuesday. |
|
|
Gun violence Communities across the US are being upended nearly every day as mass shootings in workplaces, schools and houses of worship become commonplace. There have been 40 mass shootings in the country this month, resulting in more than 70 people dead, the latest data from the Gun Violence Archive shows. On Wednesday, the suspect in the Half Moon Bay, California, shooting was charged with seven counts of murder in what is the deadliest attack in San Mateo County's history, the district attorney said. Meanwhile, investigators are continuing to piece together what led up to mass shootings in Monterey Park, California, and Yakima, Washington, which killed several others. This comes as congressional leaders are also receiving renewed pressure to act on gun safety legislation -- specifically on assault rifles, the weapon of choice for many mass shooters. |
Ukraine An air raid alert is in place across Ukraine today after Russia fired more than 30 missiles at the country this morning, the Ukrainian Air Force said. The attacks come after the US and Germany said Wednesday they would send tanks to Ukraine to aid its defense efforts. Moscow, however, sees the delivery of modern tanks to Ukraine as "direct involvement" in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today. Amid the heightened tensions, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he is "not interested" in meeting his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for peace talks. "After a full-scale invasion, for me (Putin) is nobody," Zelensky said in an interview with Sky News that aired today. |
Vaccine boosters Updated Covid-19 boosters are cutting the risk that a person will get sick from the coronavirus by about half, research from the CDC shows. For adults between the ages 18 and 49, the studies showed Covid-19 boosters lowered the odds of getting a symptomatic infection caused by the BA.5 subvariant by 52% and cut the odds of getting an infection caused by XBB or XBB.1.5 by 49%. For adults 50 to 64, the new boosters reduced the odds of getting sick with Covid-19 by 43% for BA.5 and 40% for XBB subvariants. For those 65 and older, the boosters cut the odds of an infection with symptoms by 37% and 43% for the BA.5 and XBB subvariants, respectively. |
Air travel The US Transportation Department is investigating the Southwest Airlines holiday travel meltdown that stranded millions of travelers, a spokesperson for the department said. The probe includes an examination of whether Southwest is scheduling more flights than it can handle. The airline, America's largest domestic carrier, canceled more than 16,700 flights between December 21 and December 29 -- costing it between $725 million and $825 million. Meanwhile, bad weather caused the cancellation of hundreds of flights in the US on Wednesday, with Southwest once again hit particularly hard. The airline is being especially impacted by a winter storm pushing through the Midwest due to its strong presence in many of the cities affected, including Chicago, Indianapolis and Cleveland. The latest batch of cancellations comes as Southwest is expected to report its fourth-quarter financial results today. |
Book bans Efforts are underway in Florida counties to comply with a law championed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis that requires the approval of books in classroom libraries. Some teachers in the state are expressing "fear" and "confusion" around the implementation of HB 1467, which requires that books be pre-approved materials or vetted by a media specialist trained by Florida's Department of Education. The law also indicates violations could be considered a third-degree felony. The contentious law marks just one of several efforts backed by DeSantis to legislate what can be taught in Florida schools. Just this week, the governor commented for the first time on the state's rejection of a new proposed AP course on African American studies for imposing what he called a "political agenda." |
|
|
Sponsor Content by CompareCards |
0% APR card offer now lasts until nearly 2025 With historically high interest rates, it's more important than ever to pay off high interest debt. Learn more here. |
|
|
People are talking about these. Read up. Join in. |
Paris Hilton and Carter Reum have had their first baby The heiress shared an adorable picture of a baby's hand clutching a woman's thumb with the caption, "You are already loved beyond words." Razzies apologize to 12-year-old for nominating her as worst actress The parody awards show is under fire for nominating child actor Ryan Kiera Armstrong in the worst actress category. She's 12, for goodness sake... Photo of Delta flight attendant goes viral On a more positive note, this Delta flight attendant warmed our hearts. See the photo of him comforting a nervous passenger mid-flight. Disney's Splash Mountain is closed, but the demand for mementos is going strong Hardcore Disney fans are buying, selling and trading whatever Splash Mountain merchandise they could get their hands on. Some people are even trying to sell water from the ride on eBay -- germs included. Bessie Coleman, pioneering pilot, now has her own Barbie
Barbie officially launched its Bessie Coleman doll on Wednesday as part of its "Inspiring Women" series. |
|
|
That's how many warnings Virginia school administrators received about a child in possession of a gun on the same day a 6-year-old allegedly shot a teacher. The administrators allegedly "downplayed" the possibility and denied employees permission to search the child, an attorney for the injured teacher said. The teacher was shot almost an hour after the search was denied, her attorney said. In response, the district's school board voted Wednesday to oust its superintendent. |
|
|
The public should be able to hear what their politicians are saying -- the good, the bad and the ugly -- so that they can make informed choices at the ballot box. -- Nick Clegg, president of global affairs at Meta, saying in a blog post Wednesday that former President Donald Trump's accounts on Facebook and Instagram will be restored in the coming weeks. Trump was suspended from the social media platforms just over two years ago in the wake of the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. |
|
|
Brought to you by CNN Underscored |
33 heartfelt Valentine's Day gifts under $50 to shop right now Valentine's Day is quickly approaching, so to help you find the best gifts for everyone on your list, we've pulled together some of our favorite presents under $50. From cute plushies and fragrant candles to coffee subscriptions and kitchen essentials, here our favorite gift ideas, all under $50. |
|
|
Meet the world's fastest backwards runner
Ready, set, reverse! Oh, you thought walking backwards was difficult? This man enjoys running backwards for miles. (Click here to view) |
| |
Sponsor Content by DepositAccounts |
|
|
|
No comments:
Post a Comment
Keep a civil tongue.