Friday, July 3, 2020

Child marriage is “extremely prevalent” across the United States

About one in five children around the world is married, according to a new report from the United Nations Population Fund. In addition, underage marriage is not just an issue in other countries. In the United States, more than 200,000 minors were married between 2000 and 2015; most were girls and more than 80% were married to an adult, according to data analyzed by Frontline. There are only four states (Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey) that completely ban underage marriages. Most states have a minimum age of 18 but allow loopholes like parental consent that can leave girls vulnerable. (Frontline)

Penumbral lunar eclipse to coincide with July 4th fireworks

A penumbral lunar eclipse will occur during the evening hours on Saturday, which will be visible throughout the continental United States. A penumbral eclipse means that some, but not all, of the moon will be partially in Earth’s shadow. Despite the lunar eclipse occurring during a full moon, the moon will appear to be slightly darker during the peak of the eclipse. At its peak, more than one-third of the moon will be in parts of Earth’s shadow. Saturday’s eclipse differs from total and partial lunar eclipses as the Earth will not completely block the sun’s light from reaching the moon. The next total lunar eclipse visible from America will not occur until 2022. (Time And Date)

US astronaut at International Space Station loses mirror during spacewalk

A US astronaut lost a mirror attached to his spacesuit during a spacewalk after stepping out of the International Space Station (ISS) last week. US astronaut Chris Cassidy had gone out of the space station to replace the batteries when he lost his mirror. Cassidy’s colleague Bob Behnken had accompanied him when the incident occurred. Chris Cassidy said losing the mirror was “a real bummer”. (WION)

Mystery of how flying snakes move is solved by scientists

Flying snakes are able to undulate their bodies as they glide through the air, and those unique movements allow them to take flight, scientists have found. These snakes, such Chrysopelea paradisi, also known as the paradise tree snake, tend to reside in the trees of South and Southeast Asia. While up there, they move along tree branches and, sometimes, to reach another tree, they’ll launch themselves into the air and glide down at an angle. For their research, scientists from Virginia Tech put motion-capture tags on seven snakes and filmed them with high-speed cameras as the snakes flew across a four-story high theater. A professor in the department of biomedical engineering and mechanics at Virginia Tech who has studied these snakes for more than 20 years, worked with his colleagues to build a 3D model after measuring more than 100 live snake glides. Their model factors in frequencies of undulating waves, their direction, forces acting on the body, and mass distribution. With it, the researchers have run virtual experiments to investigate aerial undulation. That test, paired with simulated glides that kept the movement going, confirmed their hypothesis — that aerial undulation enhances rotational stability in flying snakes. (Nature Physics)

Declining eyesight can be improved by looking at red light

A few minutes of looking into a deep red light could have a dramatic effect on preventing eyesight decline as we age, according to a new study. If the results are replicated in future studies, and approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, the light could augur a new era in which millions of people have access to the easy home-based therapy. It would give them a new layer of protection against the natural aging processes that steal our eyes’ sensitivity to light and ability to distinguish colors. “You don’t need to use it for very long to start getting a strong result,” according to the lead author and professor of neuroscience at University College London’s Institute of Ophthalmology. The science works because the light stimulates the health of mitochondria, which are like batteries in our cells. And because mitochondria are implicated in a broad range of diseases, insights like these could help lead to new treatments for diseases including Parkinson’s and diabetes. (The Journals of Gerontology)

China’s Huawei and ZTE officially designated ‘national security threats’ by the FCC

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has officially designated Huawei and ZTE national security threats. That means that companies cannot use an $8.3 billion government subsidy program, known as the Universal Service Fund, to purchase, maintain or support any equipment or services from the two Chinese telecommunications giants. The ruling formalizes a unanimous FCC vote in November in which the regulator declared both Chinese companies as national security risks. 5G refers to next-generation mobile networks that promise super-fast data speeds. But they’re seen as even more important than previous generations of networks because of their potential ability to underpin critical infrastructure. Critics of Huawei and ZTE have claimed that their networking equipment could be used by Beijing for espionage. (CNBC)

Woman, 72, gored multiple times by bison after getting too close taking pictures

A 72-year-old woman was gored multiple times by a bison in Yellowstone National Park after trying to get a close up picture of the animal. The incident occurred on the evening of June 25 at the female’s campsite at Bridge Bay Campground in Yellowstone National Park when the woman approached within 10 feet of the bison multiple times while attempting to take a picture of it, according to a statement issued by Yellowstone National Park. Park Rangers were called to the scene and immediately administered first aid on the goring victim who suffered multiple wounds in the attack. (ABC News)

Minor League Baseball Season Is Canceled for the First Time

The announcement that 160 minor league baseball teams and tens of thousands of workers and players had long been expecting finally arrived Tuesday afternoon: the 2020 minor league baseball season will not happen. It is the first time in the history of Minor League Baseball, which was founded in 1901, that a season has been canceled. Many of the roughly 8,000 minor league players — those who are not part of their affiliated M.L.B. team’s 60-man player pool for the 2020 season — will miss an entire year of their careers. Most M.L.B. teams have committed to paying their minor league players, many of whom earn less than $15,000 per season, $400 a week beyond June 30. (The New York Times)

Federal agents charge four Toledo city council members in bribery probe

The FBI has arrested multiple Toledo city council members accused of taking cash in exchange for votes during what is described in court records as a years-long, sweeping bribery scandal involving some of the city’s highest elected officials. The city council members are all charged in federal court with accepting bribe payments for official acts and extortion, according to criminal complaints filed. One council member is a attorney who is accused of funneling bribes to another council member, also faces bribery and extortion charges along with being charged with interstate communications with intent to extort. (Toledo Blade)

Little Caesars Workers Fired After Couple Finds Pepperoni Swastika on Top of Pizza

A man from Brook Park, Ohio, picked up a ready-made pizza for his family, only to discover the symbol of hate on top of the pie. He chose pepperoni because the store had only that or cheese left. He paid for the food without checking inside the box, and was shocked along with his wife when they opened it later. He tried calling the store about the dark message on his pizza, but they did not answer before closing, so he and his wife shared the incident on social media. A Little Caesars spokesperson said in a statement that the employees responsible for the fashioning the pepperoni swastika were fired. (People)

Boston to remove statue of slave kneeling before Lincoln

Boston’s arts commission voted unanimously earlier this week to remove a statue that depicts a freed slave kneeling at Abraham Lincoln’s feet. The commission had fielded escalating complaints about the Emancipation Memorial, also known as the Emancipation Group and the Freedman’s Memorial, as a nation confronting racial injustice rethinks old imagery. The statue has stood in a park just off Boston Common since 1879. It’s a copy of an identical monument that was erected in Washington, D.C., three years earlier. The copy was installed in Boston because the city was home to the statue’s white creator, Thomas Ball. Although the monument was created to celebrate the freeing of slaves in America, its design disturbed many who objected to the optics of a Black man kneeling before Lincoln. More than 12,000 people had signed a petition demanding the statue’s removal. Officials did not immediately set a date to take it down, and said details would be worked out at their next meeting on July 14. (ABC News)

Two of television’s most iconic couch potatoes are ready to be harvested once again

Comedy Central has ordered two seasons of a “reimagined” Beavis and Butt-Head series. Creator Mike Judge will return to write and produce the series, as well as provide the voices of both Beavis and Butt-Head. According to Comedy Central, this updated iteration finds the duo “entering a whole new Gen Z world,” where they will continue to tackle social issues, media trends and more. The new series will have “meta themes relatable to both new and old fans — Gen X parents and their Gen Z kids.” As part of Judge’s deal with Comedy Central, he will also help the network develop potential spinoffs and other new series. (TVLine)

Florida Man Angry Over Gift Shop’s Mask Rule Exposes Himself In Front Of Children

A 37-year-old Miami man was arrested after exposing himself at the Theater of the Sea gift shop in Islamorada. The man was charged with incident exposure, disorderly conduct and driving with a suspended license. Deputy arrived shortly after he left the business in a car. Multiple witnesses, including one minor, told Deputies that he entered the gift shop without a COVID-19 face covering. They provided similar accounts of what transpired next: He was asked by an employee to put a mask on. He declined to do so and began speaking in vulgar terms, particularly to the women in the room, including one minor girl, about his genitals, their bodies and pornography. The man then dropped his shorts and exposed himself to all in the gift shop while continuing to use foul sexual language. Witnesses stated there other witnesses and additional children present, but they left before they could be interviewed by Deputies. Witnesses pointed to the man as he was leaving the parking lot in a Hyundai. Police caught up with the man shortly after. The man claimed he had to urinate and went to use the gift shop bathroom, but the staff refused to let him use the restroom, so he exposed himself. Needless to say, he was taken to jail. (Orlando Sentinal)

Friday Breaks Out With:

• Chocolate Wafer Day
• Compliment Your Mirror Day
• Drop A Rock Day (aka Rock Painting)
• Eat Your Beans Day
• Fried Clam Day
• International Plastic Bag Free Day
• Stay Out Of The Sun Day
• Superman Day