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☆ Israel steps up deadly Lebanon attacks and ExxonMobil sued over plastics recycling: Morning Rundown
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-24 | by ( Elizabeth Robinson | Elizabeth Robinson Is A Newsletter Editor For Nbc News | Based In Los Angeles. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

Israel’s military warned residents in southern and eastern Lebanon to evacuate certain areas, spurring tens of thousands of people to flee their homes. The lawsuit alleges ExxonMobil misled consumers for decades, encouraging Americans to pursue a “throw-away lifestyle” and downplaying concerns about plastics’ ecological risks. Effort to change Nebraska’s electoral vote system blockedA Republican state senator’s opposition to a law changing how Nebraska allocates its electoral votes drew anger from former President Donald Trump. State Sen. Mike McDonnell wrote in a letter that he is opposed to changing Nebraska’s system — which awards electoral votes by congressional district — to a winner-take-all approach so close to Election Day. Under a winner-take-all model, Trump would be all but certain to win all of Nebraska’s electoral votes.

Persons: Fadel Itani, Israel, ”, Rob Bonta, “, Read, Donald Trump, Donald Trump . State Sen, Mike McDonnell, McDonnell, Trump, Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen, Ryan Wesley Routh, Marcellus Williams, Felicia “ Lisha ” Gayle, Bill Anders, — Elizabeth Robinson, Elizabeth Robinson Organizations: ExxonMobil, Getty, International Organization for Migration, U.S . State Department, NBC News, Republican, Donald Trump . State, drugmaker Novo Nordisk, Service, Justice Department, Trump, National Hurricane Center, King, Gettysburg College, NASA, NBC, Walmart Locations: Lebanon . California, Lebanon, Israel, Beirut, AFP, California, Nebraska, Omaha, Florida, Trump’s, Lago, Butler , Pennsylvania, Missouri, Caribbean, Colorado, Boulder, Boulder ., Pennsylvania, Spain

☆ 'They knew and they lied': California sues ExxonMobil, alleging deception about plastics recycling
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-24 | by ( Evan Bush | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

California's attorney general sued ExxonMobil on Monday, alleging that the company had waged a "campaign of deception" for decades to mislead consumers and convince them that recycling was a viable solution for plastic waste. I hope this is going to open the floodgates," said Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics, a nationwide project seeking to end plastic pollution. In 1973, industry leaders called those concerned about plastic waste "enemies," according to internal communications from the Society of the Plastics Industry (now known as the Plastics Industry Association), which are cited in the lawsuit. "They were having problems with plastic pollution — people being concerned about it — and they have internal discussions where they say, 'What are we going to do about this?'" In the U.S., the plastic recycling rate has never exceeded 9%, the lawsuit says.

Persons: Rob Bonta, Bonta, Judith Enck, Enck, Leehi, Yona Organizations: ExxonMobil, Superior Court of, Exxon Mobil, Beyond Plastics, Exxon, Mobil, Boy Scouts, Society of, Plastics Industry, Plastics Industry Association, Council, Waste Solutions, Cornell University, Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation Locations: Superior Court, Superior Court of California, San Francisco, California, U.S, Antarctica, Everest

☆ California sues ExxonMobil, alleging a 'campaign of deception' about plastics recycling
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-23 | by ( Evan Bush | Evan Bush Is A Science Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

The Summary California’s attorney general is suing ExxonMobil, alleging the company misled consumers into believing that recycling was a viable solution for plastic waste. California’s attorney general sued ExxonMobil on Monday, alleging that the company had waged a “campaign of deception” for decades to mislead consumers and convince them that recycling was a viable solution for plastic waste. I hope this is going to open the floodgates," said Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics, a nationwide project seeking to end plastic pollution. In 1973, industry leaders called those concerned about plastic waste “enemies,” according to internal communications from the Society of the Plastics Industry (now known as the Plastics Industry Association), which are cited in the lawsuit. In the U.S., the plastic recycling rate has never exceeded 9%, the lawsuit says.

Persons: Rob Bonta, Bonta, Judith Enck, Enck, Leehi, “ We’ve, ” Yona, “ Organizations: ExxonMobil, Superior Court of, Beyond Plastics, Exxon, Mobil, Boy Scouts, Society of, Plastics Industry, Plastics Industry Association, Council, Waste Solutions, Cornell University, Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation Locations: Superior Court, Superior Court of California, San Francisco, California, U.S, Antarctica, Everest

☆ Heavy metals may raise cardiovascular disease risk, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-20 | by ( Kristen Rogers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Coronary calcium buildup causes atherosclerosis, a chronic and inflammatory cardiovascular disease marked by narrowed arterial walls and thus reduced blood flow. Environmental contaminants have been increasingly recognized as risk factors for cardiovascular disease, but the association of metals with coronary artery calcification has been “largely unknown,” the study authors said. They hypothesized that higher urinary levels of nonessential metals — cadmium, tungsten and uranium — and essential metals — cobalt, copper and zinc — that have previously been associated with cardiovascular disease may be linked with calcification. The participants didn’t already have clinical cardiovascular disease and were recruited from Baltimore; Chicago; Los Angeles; New York City; St. Paul, Minnesota; and Winston Salem, North Carolina. The trouble with measuring urinary metal levelsThe study has a few other limitations.

Persons: Drs, Sadeer, Khurram Nasir, Sanjay Rajagopalan, weren’t, ”, Katlyn, McGraw, Winston, cardiologists, Andrew Freeman, wasn’t, they’re, ” Freeman, “ It’s, ‘, Kindi, Nasir, Rajagopalan, ” McGraw, —, Freeman Organizations: CNN, American College of Cardiology, Houston Methodist, University Hospitals Harrington, & Vascular Institute, Columbia University’s Mailman, of Public Health, Jewish Health Locations: Cleveland, Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles ; New York City, St, Paul , Minnesota, Winston Salem , North Carolina, Denver, Columbia

Users also “lacked any meaningful control over how personal information was used for AI-fueled systems” on the companies’ platforms, according to the report. The report includes staff recommendations calling for federal privacy legislation, as well as more efforts from companies to prioritize privacy in their data collection and recommendation systems. "Protecting users – especially children and teens – requires clear baseline protections that apply across the board," the FTC said in the report. The privacy of children and teens were not adequately protected on these social media platforms and streaming services, according to the report. However, children and teens are known to be on social media, and the FTC wrote that companies "should not ignore this reality."

Persons: Lina Khan, –, Twitch, Kate Sheerin, Sheerin Organizations: Federal Trade Commission, Committee, Energy, Commerce, FTC, Amazon, Facebook, Meta, Twitter, YouTube, COPPA Locations: Canada

☆ Eldest-Daughter Syndrome Is Real; Big Sisters Do More, Studies Say
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-19 | by ( Kelli María Korducki | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

But there may be more of a science to eldest daughters than meets the eye. When a mother needed help, biology caused her eldest daughter to step up and mature faster to provide that help. Most striking of all, maternal distress was not found to speed up adrenal puberty in sons or younger daughters. "I have a closer relationship with her, to this day, than I do with many of my other older siblings," he said. His wife grew up as part of a similarly large brood — and her eldest sister had a similar experience.

Persons: Lisa Doucet, Albert didn't, Doucet, Albert, I'm, " Doucet, babysitters, they'd, Molly Fox, Fox, Pamela Jakiela, aren't, isn't, Jonathan Westover, Mary Poppins —, Westover, We're, —, Lenette Azzi, Lessing, Jakiela Organizations: University of California, Fox, Center for Global Development, Williams College, University of Essex, Child, Utah Valley University, Boston University, Child Welfare League of America Locations: Rhode Island, Providence, TikTok, Los Angeles, Kenya, Utah

$ 5.34 $ 5.34 Estimated Environmental cost + $ 22.02 Say a pound of beef costs $5.34 at your local supermarket. The Hidden Environmental Costs of Food Damage to the natural world isn’t factored into the price of food. The proponents of true cost accounting don’t propose raising food prices across the board, but they say that increased awareness of the hidden environmental cost of food could change behavior. (True cost accounting also typically includes things like labor rights and dietary health, but here we’re focusing on environmental costs.) Large disparities between the retail price of food and its environmental costs are found in the proteins many of us eat every day.

Persons: True Price, ”, Claire van den Broek, “ They’re, Alexander Müller, True, “, Scott Swinton, Roger Cryan, Mario Herrero, chickpeas Organizations: United Nations, Rockefeller Foundation, True, Sustainability, Michigan State University, American Farm Bureau Federation, New, Cornell University, Price, Beef, Oxford University, “, U.S . Department of Agriculture, Mountain, United Nations Food, Agriculture Organization Locations: Dutch, United States, Berlin, New York State, Denmark, Walmart.com, U.S, North America, Europe, Brazil, India, Netherlands, Germany

“There’s no one that can organize quite like labor,” Harris campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said. All together, labor leaders predict thousands of union members will deploy to battleground states to knock on doors or work phone banks. “It will be determinative,” Butler said of the Sun Belt labor groups' role in the November election. “Arizona is going to be a state that, at the end of the day, will elect the president — President Harris — I truly believe that,” McLaughlin said. “Momentum will carry Vice President Harris and Governor [Tim] Walz through.

Persons: Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Harris, Donald Trump’s, “, ” Harris, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, ”, Verrett, Trump, Biden, Shawn Fain, Chavez Rodriguez, they’ve, ” Biden, canvassers, “ Trump, ” Chavez Rodriguez, Sen, Laphonza Butler, ” Butler, Harris ’, Karoline Leavitt, ” Leavitt, Jim McLaughlin, —, Harris —, ” McLaughlin, Tim, Walz Organizations: ” Workers, Service Employees International Union, Culinary Workers Union, AFL, CIO, Democratic, SEIU, United Automobile Workers, General Motors, Heritage Foundation’s, Trump, Democrats, Sun, Boeing, Teamsters Union, Teamsters, Arizona’s AFL, United Food & Commercial Workers, Biden Locations: Midwest, janitors, Canada, California , Illinois, New York, Arizona , Nevada , Georgia, North Carolina, Flint, Mich, McDonald’s, California, U.S, Reno , Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, Arizona

☆ Can Instagram's new 'Teen Accounts' help improve youth mental health? Experts weigh in
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-18 | by ( Aditi Shrikant | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The feature, called Teen Accounts, is meant to address the harm social media can do to young peoples' mental health. This is a good first step, says Dr. Shannon Bennett, associate director of the center for youth mental health at NewYork-Presbyterian. "The opportunity cost while using social media is sleep or in-person socialization," she says. Experts agree the new features might net positive changes, but say its really too early to tell. In his best-selling book "The Anxious Generation" NYU social psychologist Johnathan Haidt also cited social media and smartphones as a major cause of youth loneliness.

Persons: Instagram, Dr, Shannon Bennett, Facebook, Vivek Murthy, Murthy, Johnathan Haidt, Haidt Organizations: NYU, The Locations: NewYork, defensiveness

☆ US spy plane flies through the Taiwan Strait days after German warships angered China by sailing through
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-17 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewA US spy plane flew above the Taiwan Strait in international airspace, prompting a response from China. China's military reported that the American P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft's activity over the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday. Advertisement"The aircraft's transit of the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States' commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. China previously documented P-8A activity in the Taiwan Strait in April of this year, as well as December and October of last year. TED ALJIBE/AFP via Getty ImagesThe event comes on the heels of German Navy vessels transiting the Taiwan Strait last week for the first time in over 20 years.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, Command, Business, US, 7th Fleet, United, Eastern Theater Command, Navy, TED, Getty, Foreign Ministry, US Navy, Royal Australian Air Force Locations: Taiwan Strait, China, Taiwan, United States, Philippines, AFP, Hawaii

☆ Instagram will force millions of teens into protected accounts
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-17 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Instagram will automatically apply the new “teen accounts” settings to all users under the age of 18. The revision will allow teen users to receive messages only from people they are already connected to. The shift limits the types of “sensitive” content teens can see on their Explore page and in Reels, such as posts promoting cosmetic procedures. Teen users will also receive time limit reminders nudging them to leave after spending 1 hour on the app each day. The company says it is implementing artificial intelligence technology that will aim to identify teen accounts that may have wrongly listed an adult birthdate.

Persons: Instagram, ”, ramped, Arturo Bejar, Mark Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg, Meta, ’ Organizations: New, New York CNN, Tuesday, Meta, Teen, Advisory Locations: New York, United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia

☆ Instagram is rolling out Teen Accounts by default. It's about time.
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-17 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewTeenagers across the world will experience something slightly different when they open Instagram over the next few weeks: Meta will now designate users under 18 as "Teen Accounts" — by default. The teen settings will automatically apply to newly made accounts and existing ones. Teen Accounts will have "Sleep Mode" enabled by default. For younger teens, parents can see who their children direct message with — but won't be able to read their DMs. Accounts of 16- and 17-year-olds will automatically default to Teen Accounts, but they'll be able to change the settings on their own (unless a parent has already signed onto parental controls).

Persons: —, Nick Clegg, hasn't, Clegg, we've, it's, they'll, Adam Mosseri, Meta Organizations: Service, Business, Meta, Facebook, Apple, Google, US

☆ TikTok says it's not spreading Chinese propaganda. The U.S. says there's a real risk. What's the truth?
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Dilanianmug.Jpg | Ken Dilanian | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +11 min

Is TikTok trying to secretly influence Americans at the behest of the Chinese government? And an analysis of the ownership structure of TikTok parent company ByteDance, obtained by NBC News, argues that the company is deeply entangled with some of China’s major government propaganda organs. The most recent one, published last month, found that TikTok suppresses anti-China content compared to YouTube and other social media platforms. In recent years, according to media reports, Chinese government entities have increasingly taken golden shares in technology companies. “This report establishes that TikTok algorithms actively suppress content critical of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) while simultaneously boosting pro-China propaganda and promoting distracting, irrelevant content,” the researchers wrote.

Persons: —, TikTok’s, China —, ’, TikTok, ” Democratic Sen, Mark Warner, — Casey Blackburn, National Intelligence —, ”, ByteDance, Blackburn, Strider, ” Strider, Wu Shugang, “ Organizations: Congress, D.C, Justice Department, NBC News, Network, Research, Rutgers University, YouTube, Department, U.S ., Appeals, District of Columbia, Supreme, Strider Technologies, Communist Party of China, ” Democratic, U.S, of Economic Security, Emerging Technology, National Intelligence, TikTok, Chinese Communist Party, CCP, Net Investment, Technology, Communist Party, China Central Radio, Television Station, Beijing State, Administration, Investment, China’s Ministry of Education Locations: United States, Washington, U.S, China, Tibet, TikTok, People’s Republic of China, Tiananmen, Hong Kong, ”, Xinjiang, Beijing

☆ Chemical toxins from food processing migrate into our bodies, study says
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

“The study also shows that food contact materials can contain mutagenic chemicals that harm our DNA, such as heavy metals,” Wagner said. Another chemical group in food packaging that has migrated into people is phthalates, the research revealed. “We’ve got, say, 60 years of research into the migration of chemicals into food from food processing and packaging equipment. “Given that there are (tens) of thousands of food contact chemicals, biomonitoring programs do not have the capacity to test for all chemicals we are potentially exposed to,” Wagner said. “However, there are also important gaps that need to be addressed as we undertake the work to strengthen our food chemical safety activities,” he said.

Persons: ”, Martin Wagner, Wagner, Jane Muncke, ” Muncke, Muncke, “, ” Wagner, “ We’ve, It’s, there’s, Melanie Benesh, you’re, ” Benesh, GRAS, Jim Jones, Benesh Organizations: CNN, Norwegian University of Science, Technology, Food Packaging, Getty, American Chemistry Council, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, Medicine, US National Health, Canadian, Korean National Environmental Health Survey, National Health, Environmental, Food and Drug Administration, FDA, US, Committee, Energy Locations: Trondheim, Zurich, Switzerland, phthalates, PFAS, Europe, Biomonitoring California, United States

☆ TikTok has 15 minutes to fight for its life
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The law Biden signed seeks to ban TikTok on Americans’ personal devices unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, quickly sells TikTok to someone else — which may effectively end the app as we currently know it. TikTok will not get the luxury of a full trial to argue for its continued existence in its current form. But it won’t be alone: A group of TikTok creators also suing the Biden administration will go next, with 10 minutes to speak. Court filings show that TikTok and US national security officials had hammered out a draft proposal to address the security concerns. The question is whether all that amounts to enough influence over ByteDance and TikTok to gain access to US TikTok users’ data, in spite of the guardrails promised by Project Texas.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, TikTok, Sri Srinivasan, Judge Neomi Rao, Donald Trump, Douglas Ginsburg, Reagan, ’ TikTok, “, ”, Chris Inglis Organizations: CNN, Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, Oracle, Justice Department, Independent, Project Texas, Federal Communications Commission Locations: China, United States, ByteDance, U.S, Beijing

☆ German warships visit the Philippines amid its South China Sea clashes after angering Beijing by sailing through the Taiwan Strait
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Tensions are high in the South China Sea, as China continues its aggressive tactics against Philippine vessels. JAM STA ROSA/AFP via Getty ImagesClashes between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea have been escalating for months as China unjustly claims sovereignty over a majority of the South China Sea, defying international law while increasing efforts to assert its authority in the area. While traveling to Manila, the Baden-Württemberg and Frankfurt am Main transited the Taiwan Strait, sparking backlash from China. The German warships transited the Taiwan Strait last week for the first time in 20 years. "International waters are international waters," he said .

Persons: —, Per Andreas Pfaffernoschke, Pfaffernoschke, Mao Ning, German Defense Ministry Boris Pistorius, Mao Organizations: Service, Business, Baden, Philippine, ROSA, Getty, Ministry of Foreign, German Defense Ministry, Command Locations: Philippines, Taiwan Strait, Germany, China, South China, Berlin, Frankfurt, Manila, AFP, Beijing, Baden, Württemberg, Taiwan, Main

☆ British government had 'constructive' talks with Musk's X over disinformation, minister says
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-13 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Musk is the owner of X, the social media platform formerly known as X. Aytug Can Sencar | Anadolu | Getty ImagesLONDON — The U.K. government has had "constructive" talks with Elon Musk's social media site X over the spread of misinformation and other harmful content, technology minister Peter Kyle told CNBC Friday. Multiple social media users at the time spread false information about the alleged perpetrator, who has since been charged with murder and attempted murder, claiming he was an asylum seeker. The minister also told CNBC he is assessing whether he needs additional powers to regulate social media companies over the dissemination of harmful content online. A government spokesperson told CNBC earlier this year that its "immediate focus is getting the Online Safety Act implemented quickly and effectively." However, this spokesperson added, "our message to social media companies remains clear: There is no need to wait — you can and should take immediate action to protect your users."

Persons: Elon Musk, Peter Kyle, Kyle, CNBC's, hasn't, Musk, Taylor Swift, Keir Starmer, Keir, Dawn Butler, Chi Onwurah, Labour's Kyle Organizations: Anadolu, Getty, Elon, CNBC, Citizens, Financial Times, Labour, SpaceX, Ofcom, OSA Locations: United Kingdom, England

☆ The ‘sleeper case’ trying to stop Trump and the RNC from intimidating voters and poll workers
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-12 | by ( Devan Cole | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —A nearly four-year-old legal effort by Black voters to convince a court to prevent former President Donald Trump and the Republican Party from potentially intimidating voters and poll workers is quietly coming back to life as the 2024 election approaches. First brought in the days following the 2020 election, the lawsuit has moved slowly through the federal courts in Washington, DC, as Trump’s claims of presidential immunity from civil lawsuits were being litigated. It coincidently has landed before US District Judge Tanya Chutkan, the judge handling the federal election subversion charges against Trump. Attorneys for Trump and the RNC have asked to dismiss the case, saying any conduct at issue constitutes protected political speech. A federal judge found the two men liable for targeting Black voters in 2023, saying that their actions ran afoul of the KKK Act, the VRA and other laws.

Persons: Black, Donald Trump, coincidently, Tanya Chutkan, Trump, Rajiv Parikh, “, ”, ” Chutkan, Jack Smith, Weeks, “ It’s, Parikh, they’ve, Ruth Greenwood, Greenwood, Jacob Wohl, Jack, Harris Organizations: CNN, Republican Party, US, Trump, Republican National, Republicans, GOP, Black, Democratic Party, RNC, Black voters, Ku Klux Klan, White, Michigan Welfare Rights Organization, Democratic National Committee, Harvard Law School, Democratic, Capitol Police, Biden Locations: Washington ,, Michigan, “, New Jersey, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Charlottesville , Virginia, Texas

☆ Australia plans a minimum age limit for social media use
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-10 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Australia intends to set a minimum age limit for children to use social media, citing concerns about mental and physical health. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his center-left government would run an age verification trial before introducing age minimum laws for social media this year. The law would put Australia among the first countries in the world to impose an age restriction on social media. Australia has one of the world’s most online populations, with four-fifths of its 26 million people on social media, according to tech industry figures. But the inquiry has also heard concerns about whether an age limit would inadvertently harm younger people by encouraging them to hide their online activity.

Persons: Anthony Albanese, Albanese, “, ” Albanese, TikTok, ”, Daniel Angus, we’re Organizations: Australian Broadcasting Corp, European Union, Meta, Facebook, YouTube, University of Sydney, Queensland University of Technology Digital Media Research Locations: Australia

☆ A Surgeon General warning label must appear on social media apps, 42 state attorneys general demand
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-10 | by ( Jason Seher | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

But a bipartisan group of attorneys general on Tuesday demanded that Congress require Surgeon General warning labels on social media apps to help curtail addiction and a mental health crisis among young adults. Teens spend nearly five hours a day on social media apps, according to a Gallup poll. “Everyone needs to know the risk associated with these social media platforms,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. Appending a warning to social media apps requires Congressional approval. Congress has so far ignored Murthy’s plea to introduce a bill requiring warning labels.

Persons: CNN —, Vivek Murthy, Snapchat, Murthy, Letitia James, ” James, “, ” Murthy Organizations: CNN, Meta, New York Times, Facebook, American Medical Association, Gallup, New York, Microsoft

☆ Chinese farmers across 14 towns are spraying industrial sulfur on wolfberries so they'll be 'red and beautiful': state media
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-03 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In a report aired on Sunday, the broadcaster spoke to wolfberry farmers and merchants in a region spanning 14 towns in Jingyuan County, Gansu Province. Sodium metabisulfite is sometimes used in food preservation but is prohibited in the local wolfberry industry, state media reported. The practice had become so common that workers spoke of it as an industry standard, the outlet reported. Since his early days as China's top leader, Xi Jinping has promised to crack down on food safety breaches, saying they're central to how people perceive the government. Allegations of excessive sulfur fumigation in the Chinese traditional-medicine industry have surfaced before, leading retailers to often sell wolfberries and other products as "sulfite-free."

Persons: —, wolfberries, That's, Xi Jinping Organizations: Service, Business, CCTV, Food, Committee, Beijing Locations: Jingyuan County, Gansu Province, Golmud, Qinghai Province, West, China, Jingyuan, —

☆ Americans under 30 are miserable compared to Boomers: 'The future is looking pretty bleak’
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-28 | by ( Aditi Shrikant | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +14 min

Haidt and other researchers argue that technology and social media have led to an epidemic of isolation and loneliness. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy named social media as one of the main reasons young people feel more alone. "Social media is not this monolithic experience where everybody experiences the same thing," he says. Navigating an uncertain futureHaidt proposes a few solutions for Gen Z and their parents to curb social media and smartphone reliance. It followed an announcement by the Los Angeles Unified School District that it will ban student cellphone and social media use starting next year.

Persons: Jonathan Haidt, Vivek Murthy, Murthy, Haidt, Zach Rausch, Haidt's, Rausch, —, Jeffrey Hall, Candice L, Odgers, That's, Mark Zuckerberg, Jennifer Breheny Wallace, Z, Kyle K, Moore, Wallace, that's, Orna, Guralnik Organizations: U.S, The, NYU's Stern School of Business, University of Kansas, Odgers, University of California, Affordable, Facebook, Meta, Social, Pew Research, Economic, Institute, Harvard University, University of Chicago, New, New York City Public Schools, Los Angeles Unified School District, CNBC Locations: U.S, defensiveness, United States, Irvine, New York City, New York

☆ DOJ sues software firm RealPage for allegedly helping landlords collude to keep rents high
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The Department of Justice and eight states on Friday accused software company RealPage of unlawfully scheming to undermine competition among landlords and create a monopoly that harms millions of renters. RealPage “allows landlords to manipulate, distort, and subvert market forces,” the Justice Department said in a civil complaint in U.S. District Court in North Carolina. “At bottom, RealPage is an algorithmic intermediary that collects, combines, and exploits landlords’ competitively sensitive information,” the antitrust lawsuit said. “Antitrust law does not become obsolete simply because competitors find new ways to unlawfully act in concert,” Garland said. Democratic nominee Kamala Harris last week unveiled an economic plan that aims to lower rental costs in part by cracking down on the companies behind price-setting tools that let landlords collude.

Persons: “, General Merrick Garland, ” Garland, ”, RealPage, Garland, Kamala Harris, — CNBC’s Eamon Javers Organizations: of Justice, Justice Department, DOJ, “, Democratic Locations: U.S, North Carolina, “, North Carolina , California , Colorado , Connecticut, Minnesota , Oregon , Tennessee, Washington

☆ Human brains contain surprising levels of plastic, study says
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Human brain samples collected at autopsy in early 2024 contained more tiny shards of plastic than samples collected eight years prior, according to a preprint posted online in May. “Compared to autopsy brain samples from 2016, that’s about 50% higher,” Campen said. Nanoplastics are the most worrisome plastics for human health, experts say, because the minuscule pieces can take up residence inside individual cells. In that report, the consortium determined plastics are associated with harms to human health at every single stage of the plastic lifecycle. A March 2024 study found 1 liter of bottled water — the equivalent of two standard-size bottled waters typically purchased by consumers — contained an average of 240,000 plastic particles from seven types of plastics.

Persons: ”, Matthew Campen, ” Campen, Phoebe Stapleton, Philip Landrigan, “, Landrigan, You’re, Nanoplastics ‘, Campen, ” Landrigan, Svetlozar, — Organizations: CNN, University of New, Rutgers University, Program, Global Public Health, Global, Planetary Health, Boston College, American Chemistry Council, US Environmental Protection Agency, “, – Monaco, Plastics, Human, ”, Toxicity Program, International Agency for Research, Cancer, EPA, Endocrine Society, Invest, Natural Resources Defense Council Locations: University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, that’s, Piscataway , New Jersey, United States

☆ Judge Blocks E.P.A. From Using Civil Rights Law in Pollution Case
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( Lisa Friedman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A federal court in Louisiana has dealt a serious blow to the Biden administration’s effort to protect communities heavily affected by toxic industrial pollution. Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act allows the E.P.A. to investigate whether state programs that receive federal money are discriminating on the basis of race, color or national origin. But the judge’s ruling effectively means that the federal government is limited to taking action against specific agency decisions that are intentionally discriminatory. That means the state cannot be held liable for actions like allowing several chemical plants, refineries and other industrial operations in minority communities.

Persons: Biden Organizations: U.S, Western, Western District of, Environmental Protection Agency Locations: Louisiana, Western District, Western District of Louisiana

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