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New Jersey Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver still hospitalized, Scutari is acting governor

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver remained unable to carry out her duties as acting governor on Tuesday after she was hospitalized for an undisclosed medical issue.Oliver was acting as governor while Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy is out of the country of vacation.Senate President Nicholas Scutari, a fellow Democrat, is acting in Oliver’s place as mandated under the state constitution. No public events are currently on his schedule. Oliver, 71, was taken to Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston on Monday, according to Murphy’s spokesperson Mahen Gunaratna. Gunaratna said Oliver was receiving “medical care,” but declined on Tuesday to elaborate further.Murphy’s office has said he’s out of the country on a family vacation in Italy, where he owns a home. He is set to return Aug. 13.Oliver has served as the state’s second lieutenant governor since 2018. She concurrently serves as the head of the Department of Community Affairs, which coordinates s...

Palestinian opens fire in West Bank settlement, wounding 5 people before being killed

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

MAALE ADUMIM, West Bank (AP) — A Palestinian gunman opened fire in an Israeli settlement east of Jerusalem on Tuesday, wounding at least five people before being shot and killed, Israeli police said. The shooting outside a shopping mall in the sprawling Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim, in the occupied West Bank, was the latest in the most violent stretch of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the territory in nearly two decades. An off-duty police officer in Maale Adumim heard the gunshots and rushed to the scene, where police said the Palestinian assailant turned his gun on him. The officer opened fire in response, killing the Palestinian, who was dressed as a security guard in a neon vest.The Islamic militant groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad praised the attack as “heroic” but stopped short of claiming responsibility.In an audio clip purportedly recorded by the assailant and shared on social media, he vows to “die for the sake of Allah” and asks that his attack “not be ...

Thermo Fisher Scientific settles with family of Henrietta Lacks, whose HeLa cells uphold medicine

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

BALTIMORE (AP) — More than 70 years after doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital took Henrietta Lacks’ cervical cells without her knowledge, a lawyer for her descendants said they have reached a settlement with a biotechnology company they sued in 2021, accusing its leaders of reaping billions of dollars from a racist medical system.Tissue taken from the Black woman’s tumor before she died of cervical cancer became the first human cells to be successfully cloned. Reproduced infinitely ever since, HeLa cells have become a cornerstone of modern medicine, enabling countless scientific and medical innovations, including the development of the polio vaccine, genetic mapping and even COVID-19 vaccines.Despite that incalculable impact, the Lacks family had never been compensated.Doctors harvested Lacks’ cells in 1951, long before the advent of consent procedures used in medicine and scientific research today, but lawyers for her family argued that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., of Waltham, Mass...

Firefighters contain a quarter of massive California-Nevada wildfire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

MOJAVE NATIONAL PRESERVE, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters had managed to partially contain a massive wildfire by Tuesday morning after the blaze ignited in a California wildland preserve and spread into Nevada, its smoke blotting out the sun across Las Vegas while flames scorched tens of thousands of acres of desert scrub, juniper and Joshua tree woodland.The York Fire was mapped at roughly 125 square miles (323.7 square kilometers) on Tuesday, with 23% containment, making it the largest wildfire of the season in California.The blaze erupted Friday near the remote Caruthers Canyon area of the vast wildland preserve, crossed the state line into Nevada on Sunday and sent smoke further east into the Las Vegas Valley. Midday Monday, a smoky haze on the Las Vegas Strip obliterated views of mountains surrounding the city and suburbs. Because of low visibility, the Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas reported departure delays of nearly two hours.Firefighters battled “fire whirls” on M...

French reporters end an unsuccessful strike against a new editor known as a far-right supporter

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Journalists at France’s emblematic Sunday newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche ended a 40-day strike Tuesday after unsuccessfully protesting the appointment of an editor-in-chief they denounce as far-right supporter. It was the longest journalists’ strike in France in decades. The newspaper, also known as the JDD, was absent from newsstands for the sixth week in a row Sunday. The newspaper’s owner, the Legardere group, said the printed version would resume publication in mid-August.The journalists had denounced the appointment of Geoffroy Lejeune, known for his far-right political views, which they say is putting the editorial independence of the newspaper at risk. Lejeune has openly supported far-right presidential candidate Eric Zemmour, a former TV pundit who run in France’s April 2022 election, drawing fervent audiences with his anti-Islam, anti-immigration invective. Zemmour lost in the first round with 7% of the votes. The newspaper’s journalists’ as...

‘Little Mosque on the Prairie’ creator among finalists for Leacock Medal for Humour

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

The creator of the CBC hit series “Little Mosque on the Prairie” is among the finalists for this year’s Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour.Zarqa Nawaz’s novel “Jameela Green Ruins Everything,” published by Simon and Schuster, in on the short list for the $25,000award. The other two finalists are Wayne Johnston’s “Jennie’s Boy,” from Alfred A. Knopf Canada, and Susan Juby’s “Mindful of Murder,” from HarperCollins Publishers. Nawaz’s satirical novel is about a Muslim woman who becomes involved in a plot to infiltrate a terrorist organization, Johnston’s memoir tells the story of his Newfoundland childhood, and Juby’s book is described as a comedic murder mystery. Stephen Leacock Associates President Michael Hill says in a news release that all three finalists — selected from 71 entries — “perfectly” meet the judging criteria for humorous books that are written with style...

Migrants moving into Broadway Armory Tuesday, impacting Chicago Park District programs

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

CHICAGO — The City of Chicago will start welcoming migrants into a new temporary shelter Tuesday.Asylum seekers will start moving into the Broadway Armory Park, located at 5917 North Broadway. It will be used as a temporary shelter, but it will have an impact on programs offered there.The city has been preparinig for this move for the past couple weeks. According to the alderperson for the 48th Ward, at least 300 migrants could be staying at the site.People who live in the area are echoing a lot of what's been heard in other neighborhoods regarding the temporary shelters. They are concerned with safety, the lack of transparency, and the impact it will have on the Park District programs — specifically children's summer camps and senior programs. Helicopter crashes into cornfield in southern Illinois, killing pilot The city has been trying to make adjustments to continue the programs in some form while the Armory is being used as a temporary shelter.For the last week of summer camp,...

Northwestern hires former US Attorney General to conduct latest athletics review

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

EVANSTON, Ill. — In the wake of a major hazing scandal around its football program, Northwestern University is conducting a new review of its athletic department. This time it will be led by a former United States Attorney General, and the public will get the chance to see the results.Northwestern has announced a new independent review of the “processes and accountability mechanisms” at the school to address potential misconduct in athletic programs..Former US attorney general Loretta Lynch will lead the review & results will be made public..@WGNNews pic.twitter.com/auLhShNBL0— Larry Hawley (@HawleySports) August 1, 2023On Tuesday morning, Northwestern announced that they will have former Loretta Lynch from the law firm of Paul, Weis, Rifkind, Wharton, and Garrison lead a review of the "processes and accountability mechanisms" in place to prevent misconduct in athletic programs. She will conduct the review with feedback from faculty, staff, students, and alumni, with it be...

Report: Taylor Swift gifts $100K bonuses to truck drivers on 'Eras Tour'

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

Taylor Swift was generous with the truck drivers responsible for hauling her equipment over the country for "The Eras Tour" — gifting each driver with a $100,000 check, according to TMZ.She passed out the checks before her Saturday show in Santa Clara. Her U.S. tour wraps up Aug. 9 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.In addition to the drivers, TMZ reported that other people involved in the tour, including dancers, sound technicians and more, received a "very generous amount" of bonuses.Swift brought an economic boost to Chicago during her three-day stay at Soldier Field. According to Bloomberg, hotel occupancy averaged 96.8%. ‘Sooooo epic:’ Taylor Swift’s message to Chicago fans after Soldier Field concerts “Chicago that was sooooo epic. Playing 3 nights at Soldier Field and getting to sing ‘You All Over Me’ with Maren Morris who I adore. You guys were so much fun to play for, I love you,” Swift wrote on Twitter after the Chicago shows.Beginning on Aug. 27 in Mexico City, Swift begins...

Cedar Point reveals new record-breaking coaster

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:16:42 GMT

SANDUSKY, Ohio (WJW) - Calling all thrill seekers! Cedar Point has done it, again.The Roller Coaster Capital of the World announced that in 2024 they will debut "Top Thrill 2."Roller coaster experts say the new ride will be "the world’s tallest and fastest triple-launch strata roller coaster."So, how does it compare to the original Top Thrill Dragster? Outdoor waterparks in Ohio: Big and small Whereas the Top Thrill dragster had a single 120-mile-an-hour launch point, this new coaster will have three launches, the second being a backward launch at 101 miles-per-hour, the final one catapulting riders to speeds of 128 miles-per-hour. It will include a 90-degree verticle climb of 420 feet, equalling the height of the original Top Thrill Dragster.Courtesy: Cedar PointCourtesy: Cedar PointCourtesy: Cedar PointCourtesy: Cedar PointThe step-by-step breakdown, as described by the experts at Cedar Point:At the start, riders will peel out down the straightaway reaching speeds of 74 mph, rac...