Wednesday, August 5th, 2020
Beirut Explosion, Promising COVID Research & Flight to Nowhere
All the news you need in 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by www.Blinkist.com/news.
Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want reading about the latest happenings…
Deadly Beirut Explosion
A powerful explosion shook the Lebanese capital of Beirut, killing at least 100 people and injuring thousands more. As of early this morning, search and rescue efforts are still underway. It’s not clear yet exactly what caused the blast. It happened at a warehouse where nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate, which is highly explosive, had been stored. That material is used in fertilizers and bombs. An official investigation into the cause of the blast is underway. The government has promised to release results within a week.
Read More: AP, CBS News, Reuters, NBC News, How to Help
Isaias Damage, Deaths
What was once Hurricane Isaias has been downgraded twice. It’s now a post-tropical cyclone. The worst of the storm impacted the Atlantic coast yesterday. It caused at least 21 tornadoes in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and New Jersey. Overall, six people died from tornadoes, falling trees, or floodwaters. As of early this morning, the storm is hitting New England with rain and strong winds, but the storm is still weakening.
Read More: AP, USA Today, ABC News, Axios, CBS News, National Hurricane Center
U.S. Coronavirus Death Toll
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to take a toll on the U.S. The nation has averaged more than 1,000 coronavirus-related deaths every day for the past nine days. Overall, in the last six months, nearly 157,000 Americans have died from the virus.
Read More: Johns Hopkins
Another Vaccine Shows Promising Results
Another possible coronavirus vaccine is showing positive results in early studies. This one comes from the biotech company Novavax. It showed a promising immune response and only mild side effects in the 130 people tested so far. This is just one of many possible vaccines in the works. Candidates from Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Pfizer are already in the final phase of trials with more than 30,000 volunteers involved in each one.
Read More: CNN, CNBC, Stat
Convalescent Plasma Study
There are promising new results from a large national study about a type of treatment for the sickest COVID-19 patients. The Wall Street Journal reports patients who received the blood from coronavirus survivors responded well to treatment. The transfusions reduced mortality rates by 50%. The results still need to be peer-reviewed.
Read More: WSJ, WaPo
Census Schedule Cut
The U.S. Census Bureau announced it will wrap up a month ahead of schedule. It will now stop collecting information on September 30th. The Census Bureau didn’t give a reason for the change, but as of this morning, 60 million U.S. households are still uncounted. However, the Census Bureau Director says the agency will not sacrifice completeness. Everyone can fill it out now online, by phone, or by mail.
Read More: AP, NBC News, ABC News, NY Times, Fill Out Census
Millennials, Younger Now U.S. Majority
Most Americans are now Millennials or younger. Newly-released data shows more than half the U.S. population is now younger than 38 years old. This is the first time the younger generations have outnumbered Baby Boomers and their older cohorts. The generation names aren’t the only ways the population is changing either. The younger generations are also more diverse. More than half of them identify as a racial or ethnic minority, compared to only about a third of older generations.
Read More: CNN, AP, Brookings
Android Version of Airdrop
Google launched its version of Apple’s AirDrop. It’s called Nearby Share and it’s now available for Android phones. It lets you instantly share photos and files with other smartphones around you, so you don’t have to use email or text. It’s now available for Google and Samsung phones as long as they’re running the Android 6.0 operating system or newer. It’s also expected to come to Chromebook sometime in the next few months.
Read More: Engadget, CNBC, Google
NHL Success
Several major league sports are running into big problems with COVID-19, but the National Hockey League seems to be doing everything right. Even though the NHL also restarted its season over the weekend, there have been zero positive COVID-19 tests. The league has conducted more than 7,000 tests so far. One reason it's going well could be because teams are playing in “bubbles.” All the games are happening in two host cities, which cuts down on travel and helps players stay isolated.
Read More: NBC Sports, ESPN, CNN, CBS Sports, DraftKings, NYMag
Taiwan’s Flight to Nowhere
A Taiwanese airline is selling tickets for a flight to nowhere. The plane will take off, fly around for a few hours, and land right where it started. EVA Air says it’s doing this because people are desperate to travel, but can’t because of pandemic-related restrictions. So the flight will include a seafood feast put together by a Michelin three-star chef. Guests will also get kits with amenities and gifts. Tickets start at $180.
Read More: CNN, Travel + Leisure, STAT News
Work Wednesday: Virtual Internships
The pandemic has dramatically changed internships. Glassdoor reports 50% fewer internships available at the start of the pandemic. A fifth of employers even revoked internship offers. However, a recent Reuters survey found 60% of companies say they’re now offering virtual opportunities. There are some upsides though. For example, interns may get a chance to work at a company in a different location from where they live or meet people at the company who live elsewhere.
Read More: Reuters, Forbes, WBIR