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☆ Elwood Edwards, the voice of AOL’s ‘You’ve Got Mail!’, dies at 74
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-08 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Elwood Edwards, an announcer and local TV staffer who became internationally famous as the voice of AOL’s “You’ve got mail!” prompt to millions at the dawn of the internet era, has died, AOL announced. His daughter Sallie Edwards said the cause of death was complications from a stroke, the New York Times reported. Mimi Mollica / Shutterstock fileIn a 2016 interview with CNN’s Great Big Story, Edwards talked about his iconic AOL voice-over work. In a 2000 episode of “The Simpsons,” Edwards provided the voice of an online doctor delivering some bad news: “You’ve got leprosy!”Elwood Edwards. He noted good-naturedly that “You’ve got mail!” became a catchphrase that “I have a certain amount of trouble trying to escape.”

Persons: Elwood Edwards, “ You’ve, Sallie Edwards, AOL —, Edwards, “, Mimi Mollica, CNN’s, ” Edwards, ”, Nora Ephron, Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks, ” Elwood Edwards, WKYC, Karen Edwards, Steve Case, You’ve Organizations: AOL, New York Times, Quantum Computer Services, Yahoo, Apollo Global Management, Verizon, NBC, YouTube Locations: New Bern , North Carolina, Cleveland

☆ Surprising element found in traces of Tyco Brahe’s alchemy lab confounds scientists
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

The covert nature of Brahe’s work was common among alchemists of the Renaissance, who kept their knowledge close to the vest. “Tungsten had not even been described at that time, so what should we infer from its presence on a shard from Tycho Brahe’s alchemy workshop?” Rasmussen said. In addition to serving as Brahe's home, Uraniborg functioned as a scientific center where students across Europe came to live and work. And Brahe himself wrote that the king was eager to support the scientist’s work in both astronomy and alchemy. Given the amount of gold found in Brahe’s remains, he may have also taken medicine containing potable, or drinkable, gold.

Persons: Tycho Brahe, Brahe, Kaare Lund Rasmussen, Poul Grinder, Hansen, Uraniborg, Lund University Gold, Rasmussen, ”, “ Tungsten, ” Rasmussen, Ann Ronan, Carl Wilhelm Scheele, Juan José, Fausto d’Elhuyar y de Suvisa, wolfram, Georgius Agricola, Agricola, Lawrence Principe, Drew, ” Principe, King Frederick II of Denmark, De Agostini, Paracelsus, Rudolph II, Emperor, Stjerneborg, “, ” Brahe, Isaac Newton, Johns, King Frederick II’s, Christian IV, Johannes Kepler, Kepler, Newton, Galileo Galilei Organizations: CNN, University of Southern, National Museum of Denmark, Heritage, Lund University, Getty Images, Humanities, Singleton Center, Johns Hopkins University, De Agostini Editorial, Culture, Hulton, Art, Sun, Scientific Locations: Danish, Ven, Sweden, University of Southern Denmark, Copenhagen, Europe, Baltimore . Principe, Norway, Uraniborg, Brahe’s, Mercury, Principe, Johns Hopkins

☆ Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida apologizes to people forcibly sterilized under former eugenics law
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-17 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Tokyo CNN —Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has formally apologized to a group of plaintiffs who were forcibly sterilized under the country’s decades-long former eugenics law following their lengthy campaign for justice. At least 25,000 people were sterilized under the law, Kishida told a meeting at his official residence of about 130 survivors, many now elderly and in wheelchairs, public broadcaster NHK reported Wednesday. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida apologizes during a meeting with the plaintiffs and their supporters at his official residence in Tokyo on July 17, 2024. Besides an official apology, the plaintiffs have also demanded a compensation law that would benefit all survivors, even those who haven’t filed lawsuits. “I heard the apology directly from the prime minister to the victims, but I think we could have heard it earlier,” said Koji Niisato, an attorney for plaintiffs, according to NHK.

Persons: Fumio Kishida, Kishida, “, ” Kishida, Kikuo Kojima, ’, ” “, ”, JIJI Press, haven’t, Koji Niisato Organizations: Tokyo CNN — Japan’s, NHK, Protection, JIJI, Getty, Eugenics, “ Locations: Tokyo, Japan

☆ Japan court orders government to pay damages for forced sterilizations under now-defunct eugenics law
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-04 | by ( Jessie Yeung | Junko Ogura | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Tokyo CNN —In a landmark decision, Japan’s Supreme Court has ordered the government to pay damages to people who were forcibly sterilized under a now-defunct eugenics law, ruling the practice was unconstitutional and had violated their rights. About 25,000 people were sterilized without consent during that period, according to the court ruling, citing ministry data. In the fifth case, the lower court had ruled against the plaintiffs and dismissed their case, citing the 20-year statute of limitations. The Supreme Court overturned this decision on Wednesday, calling the statute “unacceptable” and “extremely contrary to the principles of justice and fairness.”The case is now sent back to the lower court to determine how much the government should pay. In a press conference after the court ruling, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi expressed the government’s remorse and apology to victims, NHK reported.

Persons: Wednesday’s, Yuichi Yamazaki, ”, Saburo Tokura, Yoshimasa Hayashi, Fumio Kishida Organizations: Tokyo CNN, Supreme, Getty, NHK, – Locations: Japan, Tokyo, AFP

More than 8,000 people, mostly Native Hawaiians, perished at Kalaupapa, including Damien, who eventually contracted leprosy, later called Hansen’s disease. Damien’s love for Kalaupapa’s people was unconditional, said Barbara Jean Wajda of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities. “They keep me like this, make me strong.”She enjoys when people visit and when the church brings pilgrims, she said. The walls of the sisters' house, Kalaupapa’s largest dwelling, are filled with photos of the sisters who worked on the settlement after Marianne. “And we both feel connected to the patients, to the land, to the saints who were here, declared and undeclared,” Wajda said.

Persons: Saint Damien of Molokai, Kalaupapa’s, Damien’s, ”, Lance Toyofuku, ” Kalaupapa, Father Damien, Mother Marianne —, Alicia Damien Lau, Damien, Joseph De Veuster, Saint Marianne, Patrick Killilea, “ Fr, Paddy, “ It’s, Philomena, Barbara Jean Wajda, Francis, Lau, ” Marianne Cope, Marianne, Tonata Lolesio, ” Lolesio, “, Honolulu Bishop Larry Silva’s, Silva, didn’t, that’s, Wajda, Francis Church, she’s, Watanuki, ” Bishop Silva, ” Keani Rawlins, Fernandez, Mother Marianne, Marianne . Lau, Alicia, ” Wajda, ” They’ve Organizations: Toyota, National Park Service, St, Neumann, Sacred Hearts School, Honolulu Bishop, “, Associated Press, Maui County Council, Lilly Endowment Inc, AP Locations: KALAUPAPA, Hawaii, Kalaupapa, Molokai, Belgian, Hawaii’s, Honolulu, Belgium, Germany, Maui, Lahaina, American Samoa, Maui County

☆ ‘Bone biographies’ reveal what life was like for medieval commoners
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Ashley Strickland | Amy Woodyatt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

“An osteobiography uses all available evidence to reconstruct an ancient person’s life,” said lead study author John Robb, a professor at Cambridge University, in a statement. “Our team used techniques familiar from studies such as Richard III’s skeleton, but this time to reveal details of unknown lives — people we would never learn about in any other way.”An illustration shows a typical marketplace in medieval Cambridge. Mark Gridley/After the PlagueThe bone biographies are available on Cambridge University’s After the Plague project website. Together, the bones tell a collective story about a cross section of people living in medieval Cambridge and the hardships they faced. “Everyday diseases, such as measles, whooping cough and gastrointestinal infections, ultimately took a far greater toll on medieval populations,” Robb said.

Persons: —, ”, John Robb, “, Richard III’s, Mark Gridley, Sarah Inskip, osteoarchaeologist, John the, ” Robb, Anne, Eudes, Edmund, John, Wat, Robb, Christiana, Dickon, Maria, infirmity Organizations: CNN —, Cambridge, Cambridge University, University of Leicester, Cambridge’s Hospital of St, St, John’s, Stourbridge Fair, University of Cambridge, “, Cambridge Archaeological, Hospital of St Locations: Cambridge, Cambridge’s, Wat, Christiana, Norway, Stourbridge, England, ”, Europe

☆ Ron DeSantis leaves campaign trail and returns to Florida amid crises
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-27 | by ( Steve Contorno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Ron DeSantis left the campaign trail Sunday and returned to his state to navigate the crises. Before speaking on the storm, DeSantis read a statement addressing the attack at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville. DeSantis’ return to Florida to manage two high-profile crises comes as he has intensified his criticism of President Joe Biden’s response to the Maui wildfires. “As somebody that’s handled disasters in Florida, you’ve got to be activated. DeSantis was elected in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael, a powerful, destructive storm that ripped through the Florida panhandle.

Persons: Ron DeSantis, DeSantis, Idalia, ”, “, ” DeSantis, Donald Trump, we’re, Jeff Duncan’s, Casey, Bryan Griffin, Joe Biden’s, Biden, “ Biden, that’s, you’ve, You’ve, rallys, Carlos Guillermo Smith, Councilwoman Ju’Coby Pittman, Hurricane Michael, Ian Organizations: CNN, Republican, GOP, South Carolina Rep, Faith, National Hurricane Center, Hawkeye State, Jacksonville Locations: Gulf of Mexico, Florida’s, Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Florida, South Carolina, Cuba, Mexico, of Mexico, Iowa, Milwaukee, Georgia, Orlando, Israel, Hurricane, DeSantis

☆ Leprosy May Be Endemic in Central Florida, Scientists Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Apoorva Mandavilli | More About Apoorva Mandavilli | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The authors described a 54-year-old man who was diagnosed with the illness but had no known risk factors and had never traveled outside Florida. Other people have similarly become infected without obvious explanation, suggesting that leprosy is now endemic in the state, the researchers said. Still, there is no rising tide of leprosy in Florida. In the United States, the number of infections plummeted after peaking in 1983 but began a slow rise again about 20 years ago. The number of cases in the United States is fewer than 200 each year, and it is not rising.

Persons: ”, Charles Dunn Organizations: Leprosy, Disease Control Locations: Florida, United States

☆ Flesh-eating bacteria on beaches: What to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Kristen Rogers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Out of more than 100 Vibrio species, about 12 — the most common in the US being Vibrio vulnificus, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio alginolyticus — can cause a human illness known as vibriosis. Vibrio vulnificus is the species that can cause flesh-eating infections, known as necrotizing fasciitis. Vibrio bacteria can enter through even minor wounds, including cuts, scrapes, scratches, recent piercings, new tattoos or surgical incisions. Even though the risk of a Vibrio vulnificus infection is low, if contracted the effects can be severe. Around 1 in 5 people infected with Vibrio vulnificus die, sometimes within a day or two of getting sick.

Persons: Daniel Slim, Vibrio, vulnificus, it’s, ”, Jae Williams, wasn’t, Tracy Mincer, “, Linda Amaral, Williams, “ It’s, ” Williams, parahaemolyticus, Hurricane Ian, Vibrio vulnificus, Don’t Organizations: CNN, Research, Florida Atlantic University, US Centers for Disease Control, CDC, Florida Department of Health, Florida, Branch Oceanographic Institute, University of Amsterdam Locations: Florida, United States, Africa, Gulf of Mexico, Cancun, AFP, Caribbean, Hurricane, sargassum

☆ Health Plan Coverage of Abortion and Related Services
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Practical Law Employee Benefits | Executive Compensation | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +36 min

The Dobbs ruling, which returned the regulation of abortion to the individual states, has led to legislation that restricts abortion, including medication abortion, in many states. In response to the rapidly changing post-Dobbs legal landscape, this article addresses health plan coverage of abortion, medication abortion coverage and litigation, abortion-related travel benefits, and related Practical Law resources concerning these topics. The insurer in a fully insured health plan, health maintenance organization (HMO), or similar arrangement:Assumes the risk of providing health coverage for insured events by paying medical costs for eligible claims incurred under the plan. Self-Funded Health PlansBy contrast, employers with self-funded arrangements may have more discretion in providing coverage for abortion and related services. Changes to plan coverage of medication abortion will likely require plan administrators to:(For more on coverage of medication abortion, see Newly Launched, ReproductiveRights.gov Website Addresses Access to Medication Abortion (Mifepristone) Using Telehealth on Practical Law.)

☆ Candida auris is just one infection fueled by rising temperatures. See how extreme climate helps spread disease, in 3 simple charts.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Climate change may be driving the rapid spread of Candida auris, a deadly fungus, across the US. Three charts show how extreme weather and environmental changes help spread disease. Nicolas Armer/picture alliance via Getty ImagesA leading theory on this fungus's sudden emergence and wide spread is that it's fueled by climate change. Whatever survives, however, is adapted to extreme heat — including the fever our bodies produce to kill off pathogens. David Ryder/Getty ImagesHumans and their infrastructure are more vulnerable to the devastating impacts of disease when they're compromised by extreme weather.

☆ An elite Bronze Age man who underwent brain surgery 3,500 years ago may have suffered from leprosy, archaeologists believe
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Archaeologists discovered the remains of a man from the Bronze Age who had a rare brain surgery. The two brothers discovered were likely elite or even royal members of their society. "It's hard to overstate Megiddo's cultural and economic importance in the late Bronze Age," he said in a statement. Rachel Kalisher, a Ph.D. student, analyzed the bones of two upper-class brothers who were buried beneath the ancient city of Megiddo. Evidence of brain surgery — angular notched trephination — was discovered in the older brother.

☆ Conditions for China to downgrade its management of COVID-19 maturing - state media
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Thomas PeterBEIJING, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Conditions for China to downgrade its management of COVID-19 as a serious contagious disease improving as the coronavirus weakens, state media outlet Yicai reported, among the first to float the idea. Category A diseases in China include bubonic plague and cholera, while SARS, AIDS and anthrax fall under Category B. Infectious diseases such as COVID-19 that have strong pathogenicity, a high fatality rate and strong infectivity are classified as Class A or Class B but managed as Class A. COVID-19 could be downgraded to Category B management or even Category C, the expert told Yicai. Any adjustment to the management of infectious diseases by the National Health Commission, China's top health authority, requires the approval of the State Council, or cabinet.

HONG KONG, Dec 5 (Reuters) - China may announce 10 new COVID-19 easing measures as early as Wednesday, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, supplementing 20 unveiled in November that set off a wave of COVID easing steps nationwide. Management of the disease may be downgraded as soon as January, to the less strict Category B from the current top-level Category A of infectious disease, the sources said on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity. China will allow home quarantine for some of those testing positive, among the supplementary measures set to be announced, two sources told Reuters last week. COVID-19 could be downgraded to Category B management or even Category C, the expert told Yicai. read moreWriting by Ryan Woo; Editing by Alison Williams and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Irate Republicans in Michigan want revenge on their pandemic rules-enforcing attorney general
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Attorney general hopeful Matt DePerno is trying to unseat incumbent Dana Nessel in Michigan. Because the only thing Republicans across the Wolverine State seem to expect from the barely known candidate is that his winning will make incumbent Democratic attorney general Dana Nessel suffer like they say they did during the pandemic. hopeful Shane Hernandez, and former Florida attorney general and Trump impeachment lawyer Pam Bondi warmed up the crowd for headliner Tudor Dixon, the Trump-backed candidate challenging incumbent Democratic Gov. "When I'm attorney general: No more lockdowns! DePerno also brought up crime, fentanyl, defunding the police, and parental rights — but didn't say a word about election integrity.

☆ 3 charts show how extreme climate helped spread 218 infectious diseases, from leprosy to COVID-19
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-01 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

A new study shows extreme weather, ocean changes, and land disruption have already helped spread more than 200 pathogens. That's an extreme case of climate change creating new contact between humans and infectious diseases, but the phenomenon is widespread. Extreme heat waves, for example, can kill off many infectious viruses, bacteria, fungi, and the creatures that spread them. Whatever survives, however, is adapted to extreme heat — including the fever our bodies produce to kill off pathogens. David Ryder/Getty ImagesHumans and their infrastructure are more vulnerable to the devastating impacts of disease when they're compromised by extreme weather.

☆ New Yorker moves to Vietnam to help at-risk youth
▼ + stars: | 2018-05-10 | by ( Allie Torgan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Hoi An, Vietnam CNN —New Yorker Neal Bermas had traveled around the world, but Vietnam literally stopped him in his tracks. The organization provides at-risk young people with a rigorous 18-month training program, preparing them for careers in Vietnam’s booming culinary and hospitality industries. “We offer them a structured program and a very rich apprenticing experience.”STREETS’ participants range in age from 16 to 22. The group provides housing, meals, medical care, clothing and support services to help trainees gain skills and confidence for employment at top resorts. Bermas said 100% of STREETS graduates have found employment, mostly at four- and five-star hotels in Vietnam.

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