Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Working From Home More Favorable?

With the coronavirus threat mounting globally, companies are increasingly asking their employees to work from home, while others are staying at home voluntarily out of precaution. The huge push for remote work could be the tipping point for companies to embrace the policy more widely, particularly as workers prove that they can work just as effectively from a distance. The move toward remote work has also highlighted the inequality among workers in different industries and companies. (Buzzfeed)

Hospitals struggle to prepare

As the number of coronavirus cases grows in the U.S., hospitals and health care workers are bracing for impact. One of the major challenges is “accurately gauging supply inventory.” And if hospitals miscalculate this, it could force doctors to “make hard decisions on what patients are most likely to survive” if the outbreak becomes so severe. Another major concern is how to quickly detect infections, in addition to deciding where to put patients when isolation rooms have all been used up. (Modern Healthcare)

KFC Is Selling A Taco With A Shell Made Out Of Fried Chicken Because Dreams Do Come True

KFC continues to render the laws of typical food irrelevant. First, the brand made a sandwich with fried chicken for buns, recently it made chicken sandwich with donuts for buns, and now, at least in Singapore, it’s innovating in a way we never saw coming: a taco with a fried chicken “shell.” KFC Singapore is selling a deliciously unhinged item called the “Kentaco”. It’s made up of a fried chicken shell that’s filled with lettuce, tomatoes, and a mix of four different cheeses–Emmental, Romano, cheddar, and mozzarella. If you want to give it a try for yourself, you can pick one up in Singapore for $5.95 and $7.95 for a meal. This isn’t the only amazing thing KFC Singapore has cooking up. According to its Instagram, it’s also selling Fried Chicken Skin. (Yahoo News)

North Carolina woman ‘arrested’ on 100th birthday to check item off her bucket list

A North Carolina woman celebrated her 100th birthday by getting arrested and going to jail. The Person County Sheriff’s Office helped Ruth Bryant check an item off her bucket list by arresting her while she was enjoying a birthday lunch at her assisted living facility. Deputies served the “indecent exposure” warrant, cuffing the woman to her walker as she fussed about being arrested. She told one of the deputies he “was getting on my last nerve”. Lights and sirens blared as the deputies took her from the facility to the jail. Upon arrival, she told the deputies they should really be arresting the “people who make these low damn seats in all these cars. You ought to arrest every one of them.” She had her mugshot taken following the “arrest” and spent a few minutes in a jail cell. She even got a phone call. “I’m in the jailhouse now,” she said, holding up an orange suit that read, “Person County Jail.” She returned to the assisted living facility after her trip to jail to celebrate with residents, friends and family with a birthday cake. (WNCN)

Woman Whose Hair Was Stuck in a Chuck E. Cheese Ticket Machine for 20 Minutes Sues for Damages

One woman in Southeast Portland, Oregon, did not leave her local Chuck E. Cheese happy and she’s suing for damages. She was feeding tickets into a machine in exchange for prizes at one of the chain’s Oregon locations on December 8, 2019, when her hair allegedly got stuck in the equipment and she was left without any assistance for 20 minutes. As a result, she is suing CEC Entertainment for $1,000, citing negligence and insufficient warning signs. The complaint asks for $1,000, as well as a jury trial and the installation of more adequate signage in front of the machines. According to the lawsuit against CEC Entertainment, her hair was stuck “until defendant’s employee was finally able to get it out, causing plaintiff injuries including pain, discomfort, distress, and headaches. Defendant failed to use reasonable care in the design and layout of its ticket counting machine to ensure that guests like plaintiff would not get their hair caught in the machine”. The suit goes even further to accuse CEC of “fail[ing] to use reasonable care in the training and supervision of its employees to ensure that guests like plaintiff would be promptly freed, should their hair get caught in defendant’s ticket counting machine.”  (MSN)

Bible spared by Tennessee tornado, found open to inspiring passage

A Bible found beneath the rubble left after tornadoes ripped through Tennessee was nearly untouched and open to an inspiring passage. A group of students from Tennessee Tech found the Bible open to Jeremiah 46:27, which reads: “Do not be afraid, Jacob my servant; do not be dismayed, Israel. I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from the land of their exile. Jacob will again have peace and security, and no one will make him afraid.” The students were helping to clean up in the Cookeville area. A couple of devastating tornadoes destroyed buildings, killed 25 people and left many more injured last Tuesday (3/3). (Lauren Danielle Jackson Facebook)

Twitter now bans dehumanizing remarks based on age, disability, and disease

Twitter has updated its hate speech policies to cover tweets that make dehumanizing remarks, which are remarks that treat “others as less than human,” on the basis of age, disability, or disease. The changes follow updates to the company’s polices made last July that said Twitter would remove tweets that dehumanize religious groups. The company said in October 2019 that its automated moderation tools now flag and remove more than half of all abusive tweets before users report them. (Twitter)

Coronavirus Reportedly Causing Panic Buying of Hostess Twinkies and Ding Dongs

According to Hostess Brands CEO, the company is seeing a bump in sales of the popular snack cakes. The specific two types: Twinkies and Ding Dongs because they are both perceived by some to have a long shelf life. “We are seeing that,” the CEO said in a statement. “We are benefitting likely in the short-term due to traffic. That’s the great thing about Hostess, we are there to celebrate things. We are there to comfort things. So we are seeing a slight uptick in traffic. It’s too early to tell, a lot of our point of sale data lags.” In recent days, the outbreak has resulted in a number of cancellations and schedule changes. The latest James Bond film, No Time To Die, is seeing a delay in its release date due to coronavirus concerns while both Austin’s SXSW and Seattle’s Emerald City Comic Con have been cancelled due to the outbreak. Various companies, including Twitter, have shut down local offices to at least deep clean as new cases are confirmed. (Yahoo Finance)

What’s the inner workings in the mind of a teenager?

Before you commit totally to the idea that adolescents as irresponsible, immature, and overly hormonal, the teenage brain also offers creative advantages, according to research published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Part of this comes down to the brain’s prefrontal cortex, which manages decision-making and doesn’t fully mature until around age 25. Because teens’ brains are still developing, they are often more comfortable taking risks and more driven by rewards than adults. Yes, this may lead to ridiculous, possibly dangerous behavior. But such openness can also yield incredible discoveries and creative work, the kind that may help teens and adults alike. (Washington Post)

Scientists Found a Caterpillar That Eats Plastic

According to a new study published by Proceedings of the Royal Society B, the waxworm’s gut has the special ability to break down plastic. It turns out polyethylene is a viable nutrient source for these insects. And while it’s not feasible to unleash a massive army of caterpillars to consume the 300 million tons of plastic the world produces every year, we may be able to create solutions that mimic what these waxworms are doing naturally. The key is to figure out how caterpillar gut bacteria do the magic that they do. (Discover Magazine)

Vaccines may soon go needle-free

In 2018, some 13.5 million children across the world went without key vaccinations for diseases like polio and tuberculosis. Part of the challenge: Vaccines require refrigeration, which can be costly and is not readily available around the globe. Researchers at UT Austin think they have a solution: Ditch the needle and go with an edible film instead. Such film can be stored at room temperature. Even better, it doesn’t require accessories like syringes, vials and swabs. (The Conversation)

More states report their first cases

The number of coronavirus cases worldwide has topped 109,000, with 539 in the United States. Connecticut, Missouri, Washington, D.C., and Vermont have all reported their first coronavirus cases, which means it is in more than half of U.S. states. A cruise ship containing 3,500 passengers and crew docked in Oakland yesterday (3/9). All aboard the Grand Princess will be brought to a U.S. military facility where they will face a 14-day quarantine. At least 21 people onboard have tested positive for the coronavirus. New York joined Washington, California, Utah, Florida, Maryland and Oregon in declaring states of emergency. The number of coronavirus cases in New York has risen to over 100. (The New York Times)

Tuesday Comes At Us With:

• International Bagpipe Day
• International Day of Awesomeness
• Land Line Telephone Day
• Mario Day
• National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
• Organize Your Home Office Day (2nd Tuesday)
• Purim
• Salvation Army Day
• US Paper Money Day