Last week, a person in Louisiana was hospitalized with a severe case of H5N1 infection, a.k.a. bird flu. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), this is the first severe case reported in the United States. As NBC News reports, the CDC said the patient was likely exposed to the virus from a […]
The Food and Drug Administration is (finally) making moves to ban the synthetic food coloring Red No. 3. As Food & Wine reports, last week, Jim Jones, the FDA’s deputy commissioner for human foods, shared with the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee that it’s likely time to reevaluate the safety of red food dye. […]
A rare tornado struck Scotts Valley, just south of the Bay Area, overturning cars, damaging trees and knocking out power with an estimated peak winds of 90 mph. As AccuWeather reports, San Francisco city and county received the first warning Saturday since the inception of reliable weather records in 1950, Nicole Sarment, a weather service […]
In recent months, our sun has ramped up activity, with giant flares erupting off the surface and belching streams of plasma and charged particles into space. Several of the solar storms have been aimed at our planet, and when they do, they trigger severe geomagnetic storms and supercharged dazzling displays of the northern lights. As NBC News […]
It’s officially illegal to farm octopus in the state of California. Gov. Gavin Newsom has just signed the bipartisan bill (which had zero opponents) that criminalizes the farming of octopuses for human consumption, based on the ideas that the aquatic animals are “highly intelligent,” have “long-term memory,” and have “have a well-developed nervous system.” And, […]
Hurricane Milton’s last 36 hours have been nothing short of astonishing, as it strengthened from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in just over a day. As NBC News reports, the storm’s blisteringly fast evolution is part of a trend of rapidly intensifying storms fueled by climate change. The term “rapid intensification” describes an increase in sustained […]
A respiratory virus that sometimes paralyzes children is spreading across the U.S., raising concerns about another possible rise in polio-like illnesses. As NBC News reports, wastewater samples have detected a significant escalation in an enterovirus called D68, which, in rare cases, has been linked to acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM. The illness affects the nervous system and causes […]
Cats have nine lives — and apparently they have 900 miles in them, too. Benny and Susanne Anguiano, a couple from Salinas, California, were reunited with their missing cat after he mysteriously traveled that far. As NBC News reports, while on a trip to Yellowstone National Park in early June, the couple’s beloved house cat […]
Mounting research over the last few years has found microplastics in nearly every organ in the body, as well as in the bloodstream and in plaque that clogs arteries. Whether these ubiquitous pollutants can reach the human brain has been a primary concern for scientists. Now, as NBC News reports, it appears their fears were not unfounded. Scientists […]
As much as we love our pets, their care isn’t always cheap. As Forbes reports, if you own a large dog, it can cost at least $1,570 a year. When all is said and done, the figures may reach upward of $22,000 over the dog’s 12-year lifespan. With additional expenses and care, it could reach a […]