Jay-Z Lawyer Says Jane Doe Accusing Rapper of Rape Must Reveal Her Identity or Drop Lawsuit

Vice President Kamala Harris and breakout pop star Chappell Roan were among the year's most talked-about people. Their names were also among the most mispronounced. On Wednesday, the language-learning company Babbel and closed-captioning company The Captioning Group released a list of the words that news anchors, politicians and other public figures in the U.S. struggled with the most in 2024. The list also provides a retrospective of the year’s most discussed topics and people, from pop culture to politics. “It’s a nice way to kind of look back into the year and see everything that has happened,” said Esteban Touma, a linguistic and cultural expert at Babbel. Roan — whose hits include “Good Luck, Babe!” — shot to fame this year and is nominated for six Grammy awards. According to the list, her name is pronounced CHAP-uhl ROHN, not SHA-pel ROW-an. During Harris' unsuccessful run for president this year, her great-nieces took to the stage at the Democratic National Convention to clear up how to say her first name, pronounced COM-a-la. Also making the list was U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, whose last name still leaves people tongue-tied. During his 2020 presidential run, his campaign made posters and T-shirts with the pronunciation “Boot-Edge-Edge” to help. Other words on the list include: — Dutch Kooikerhondje, pronounced COY-ker-HUND-che, is a breed of dog that made it's way into the lexicon this year. This is largely because Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has a Kooikerhondje called Decoy who won the hearts of fans while delivering a ceremonial first pitch. — The name of the actress Zendaya, who starred in “Challengers,” is often mispronounced as zen-DIE-uh, but it should be zen-DAY-a. — Online fast-fashion giant Shein is SHE-in, not SHEEN. — Newly discovered exoplanet Speculoos-3b is pronounced SPEK-yuh-lohss three bee. — Phryge, the mascot of the Paris Olympics, is pronounced FREE-je. It was a nod to the Phrygian cap, an emblematic accessory of the French revolutionaries. — Semaglutide, the drug in weight-loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, is pronounced sem-ah-GLOO-tide, not SEE-mah-gloo-tide. — The last name of Irish actor Barry Keoghan, who starred in “Saltburn,” is pronounced key-OH-gin. Nancy Niedzielski, chair of the linguistics department at Rice University in Houston, points out that most of the words on the list are not English, so it’s not surprising that they would be mispronounced in the U.S. The key to pronouncing them correctly, she said, would probably just be hearing them spoken. “There aren’t really tricks short of knowing how orthology works in that language,” she said. Several of the words on the U.S. list, including Keoghan, Phryge and Shein, also made the list for the U.K., which Babbel compiled with the help of the British Institute of Verbatim Reporters, an organization for subtitling professionals. Other words on the U.K. list include flygskam, a Swedish term pronounced FLEEG-skam, popularized by climate activist Greta Thunberg, which translates as “flight shame,” and the Chagos Islands, pronounced CHAY-goss, which made the list after the British government this year returned sovereignty of the long-contested Indian Ocean archipelago to Mauritius. Touma, a native Spanish speaker, said if you can't pronounce a word, it's important to just keep trying. “One of the problems we have is our mouths are not trained to do these sounds that come from different languages,” he said. Touma admitted even he struggles with some words, including Harris' first name. Even though he knows the correct pronunciation, he said, it's hard to get it correct in the moment when he's in a conversation. As Roan's music gained popularity over the year, it was interesting cultural moment to watch as people learned to pronounce her first and last name, he said. “The way we create understanding with each other is just trying to do these things,” Touma said.Vice President Kamala Harris and breakout pop star Chappell Roan were among the year's most talked-about people. Their names were also among the most mispronounced. On Wednesday, the language-learning company Babbel and closed-captioning company The Captioning Group released a list of the words that news anchors, politicians and other public figures in the U.S. struggled with the most in 2024. The list also provides a retrospective of the year’s most discussed topics and people, from pop culture to politics. “It’s a nice way to kind of look back into the year and see everything that has happened,” said Esteban Touma, a linguistic and cultural expert at Babbel. Roan — whose hits include “Good Luck, Babe!” — shot to fame this year and is nominated for six Grammy awards. According to the list, her name is pronounced CHAP-uhl ROHN, not SHA-pel ROW-an. During Harris' unsuccessful run for president this year, her great-nieces took to the stage at the Democratic National Convention to clear up how to say her first name, pronounced COM-a-la. Also making the list was U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, whose last name still leaves people tongue-tied. During his 2020 presidential run, his campaign made posters and T-shirts with the pronunciation “Boot-Edge-Edge” to help. Other words on the list include: — Dutch Kooikerhondje, pronounced COY-ker-HUND-che, is a breed of dog that made it's way into the lexicon this year. This is largely because Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has a Kooikerhondje called Decoy who won the hearts of fans while delivering a ceremonial first pitch. — The name of the actress Zendaya, who starred in “Challengers,” is often mispronounced as zen-DIE-uh, but it should be zen-DAY-a. — Online fast-fashion giant Shein is SHE-in, not SHEEN. — Newly discovered exoplanet Speculoos-3b is pronounced SPEK-yuh-lohss three bee. — Phryge, the mascot of the Paris Olympics, is pronounced FREE-je. It was a nod to the Phrygian cap, an emblematic accessory of the French revolutionaries. — Semaglutide, the drug in weight-loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, is pronounced sem-ah-GLOO-tide, not SEE-mah-gloo-tide. — The last name of Irish actor Barry Keoghan, who starred in “Saltburn,” is pronounced key-OH-gin. Nancy Niedzielski, chair of the linguistics department at Rice University in Houston, points out that most of the words on the list are not English, so it’s not surprising that they would be mispronounced in the U.S. The key to pronouncing them correctly, she said, would probably just be hearing them spoken. “There aren’t really tricks short of knowing how orthology works in that language,” she said. Several of the words on the U.S. list, including Keoghan, Phryge and Shein, also made the list for the U.K., which Babbel compiled with the help of the British Institute of Verbatim Reporters, an organization for subtitling professionals. Other words on the U.K. list include flygskam, a Swedish term pronounced FLEEG-skam, popularized by climate activist Greta Thunberg, which translates as “flight shame,” and the Chagos Islands, pronounced CHAY-goss, which made the list after the British government this year returned sovereignty of the long-contested Indian Ocean archipelago to Mauritius. Touma, a native Spanish speaker, said if you can't pronounce a word, it's important to just keep trying. “One of the problems we have is our mouths are not trained to do these sounds that come from different languages,” he said. Touma admitted even he struggles with some words, including Harris' first name. Even though he knows the correct pronunciation, he said, it's hard to get it correct in the moment when he's in a conversation. As Roan's music gained popularity over the year, it was interesting cultural moment to watch as people learned to pronounce her first and last name, he said. “The way we create understanding with each other is just trying to do these things,” Touma said.Aneesah Morrow had 20 points and 18 rebounds as No. 6 LSU rallied to an 83-61 victory over Albany.

Former Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz on Thursday as about sexual relationships he had with a minor emerged. Gaetz had already announced his immediate resignation from Congress, but it’s possible he could take his seat in the next Congress in January. How would this work? First, Gaetz would have to rescind his intention to not take the seat that he won in November in the Congress that begins in January 2025. He officially from Congress on Nov. 13 when he submitted a letter declaring his resignation “effective immediately.” Adding, “I do not intend to take the oath of office for the same office in the 119th Congress.” There is no existing precedent for a member of Congress resigning from one session of Congress, but then taking the same seat they were elected to in the next. That makes this a bit murky — and there are for the situation. If Gaetz claimed that he now intends to take his seat in January, someone could sue to prevent him from doing so. That could be the Florida Secretary of State, who could claim that his resignation was official and the special election to fill his seat was already under way. It’s unclear how courts would rule in such a situation because it’s unprecedented. Related...Lincoln Educational Services Expands Footprint with Second Campus in New YorkIs Maine finally turning the tide on overdose deaths? Maybe.

In the past few years, state and local governments across the U.S. have begun spending billions in opioid settlements paid by companies accused of fueling the overdose crisis. But where is that money going, who is getting it, and is it doing any good? KFF Health News, partnering with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Shatterproof , a national nonprofit focused on addiction, undertook a yearlong investigation to find out. Dozens of interviews, thousands of pages of documents, an array of public records requests, and outreach to all 50 states resulted in a first-of-its kind database that catalogs more than 7,000 ways opioid settlement cash was used in 2022 and 2023. It’s the most comprehensive resource to date tracking some of the largest public health settlements in American history. Among the findings: --States and localities received more than $6 billion in opioid settlement funds in 2022 and 2023. According to public records, they spent or committed about a third of that amount and set aside about another third for future use. The final third was untrackable, as many jurisdictions did not produce public reports on the funds. --Reports of spending tracked the minuscule to the monumental, from $11.74 to buy postage in Yavapai County, Arizona, to more than $51 million to increase the addiction treatment workforce in California. --States allotted, on average, about 18% of their funds for addiction and mental health treatment; 14% for recovery services such as housing, transportation, and legal aid; 11% for harm reduction efforts such as overdose reversal medications; and 9% for prevention programs that aim to stop people from developing substance use disorders. States committed, on average, about 2% for syringe service programs, through which people can get sterile needles. (A variety of entities received this money, from law enforcement to nonprofit organizations to government agencies.) --Governments reported spending more than $240 million on purposes that did not qualify as opioid remediation. (Most settlements allow states to spend up to 15% of their funds this way.) Most of this tranche went to legal fees, but several jurisdictions funneled money to their general fund. One county even sent funds to its road and bridge department. --Several cities and counties reported expenditures they said addressed the overdose crisis but that would leave an average person scratching their head — such as $33.07 to an anti-abortion pregnancy center in Sandborn, Indiana, and $30,362 to screen first responders for heart disease in Oregon City, Oregon. “When people know that people aren’t watching and there’s no accountability, then they can kind of do what they want,” said Tonja Myles , a community activist in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who is in recovery. “That’s why we have to have some kind of database and accountability.” Despite the recent decline in overall overdose deaths in the U.S., more than 90,000 people still died in the 12 months ending July 2024 and rates are rising in many Black and Native American communities . “We can’t mess up or miss this moment,” Myles said. Opioid settlement payouts are expected to total about $50 billion over nearly two decades, paid by more than a dozen companies that made or distributed prescription painkillers, including Johnson & Johnson, Walgreens, and Walmart. Although it’s a large sum, it’s dwarfed by the size of the crisis, making each dollar that’s spent critical. KFF Health News and its partners reviewed hundreds of settlement spending reports, extracting expenditures line by line, and developed a methodology to sort the expenditures into categories like treatment or prevention. States were given an opportunity to review the data and comment on their spending . To be sure, the database does not capture the full picture of opioid settlement spending nationwide. Some places do not publish spending reports, while others declined to engage with this project. The data presented here is a snapshot as of the end of 2023 and does not account for further spending in 2024. The differences in how states control , process , and report on the money make apples-to-apples comparisons nearly impossible. Still, the database helps fill a gap left by a lack of national reporting requirements and federal government inaction . It is “a tool for those who want to objectively measure whether everything that can be done is being done,” said Matthew Myers, a former president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, which compiles similar annual reports on tobacco settlement money. Treatment a Clear Winner The top priority to emerge from early opioid settlement spending was treatment, with more than $416 million spent or committed to residential rehabs, outpatient counseling, medications for opioid use disorder, and more. The state of New York — which spent the most on treatment — allocated about $22 million of that for programs that make the gold standard for care as easy as possible for patients: providing same-day prescriptions for buprenorphine, a medication that decreases cravings for opioids. The result was a program that John Greene said changed his life. Greene, 57, used to live in the woods down the street from Family & Children’s Counseling Services in Cortland, New York. He cycled through jails and hospitals, overdosing half a dozen times and trying rehab just as many. But now he has four months of recovery under his belt — the longest stint since he started regularly using drugs at 14. He said it’s because the counseling center’s new program — funded by a mix of state and local opioid settlement dollars — has a different approach. Counselors aren’t didactic and judgmental. They don’t force him to stop smoking marijuana. Several staff members have experienced addiction themselves. They drive Greene, who doesn’t have a car, to doctor appointments and the pharmacy for his buprenorphine prescription. Now Greene lives and works with his brother, looks forward to weekly counseling sessions, and is notching small victories — such as buying his nephew toy cars as a stocking stuffer. “It made me feel good to do something for somebody and not expect nothing back,” Greene said. Emily Georgia , one of Greene’s counselors, said the center has worked with nearly 200 people like him in the past year. Without the settlements, “the program probably wouldn’t exist,” she said. Across the country, the money supports other innovative treatment approaches: --$21 million for a new program in Kentucky that diverts people with mental illness or addiction who face low-level charges away from incarceration and into treatment, education, and workforce training --More than $3 million for, in part, three new mobile methadone programs in Massachusetts, to bring the medication to rural and underserved areas --Tens of thousands of dollars each in Iowa and Pennsylvania to cover out-of-pocket treatment costs for people without insurance or those with high deductibles Philip Rutherford , an expert on substance use disorder at the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, said these efforts “are really positive” and many have been “historically difficult or impossible to achieve with federal or state funding.” But some funds are also flowing to treatment approaches that defy best practices, such as denying people medications for opioid use disorder. Some in the recovery community consider methadone and buprenorphine a crutch. But study after study show that the medications help people stay in treatment and reduce the risk of overdose and death . Research even suggests that treatment without these medications can be more harmful than no treatment at all. Although not everyone will want medication, settlement funds shouldn’t “prop up a system that doesn’t allow people to have that choice,” said Regina LaBelle , a professor of addiction policy at Georgetown University. Babies, Forgotten Victims of the Epidemic While treatment received a windfall in early opioid settlement spending, another aspect of the crisis was neglected: neonatal abstinence syndrome , a condition in which babies exposed to drugs in the womb experience withdrawal. Nationwide, more than 59 newborns a day are diagnosed with it. Yet only about $8.4 million in settlement money was committed to the issue — less than 0.5% of all funds publicly reported as spent or committed in 2022 and 2023. Experts in public health and addiction, as well as affected families, say it’s due to stigma. “A mom using drugs and being a parent is a very uncomfortable reality to face,” said Ashley Grant, a 38-year-old mother of three in Mesa, Arizona. “It’s easier to just push it under the rug or let them fall through the cracks, as sad as that is.” It almost happened to her. Grant learned she was pregnant with her third child last year. At the time, her partner was in jail and she was using drugs after an eight-year period of recovery, was estranged from her family, and didn’t know how she’d survive the next nine months. During a visit to a methadone clinic, she saw a booth about Jacob’s Hope , a specialty nursery that cares for substance-exposed newborns and their moms. Nursery staff connected her with a therapist, helped her enroll in parenting classes, and dropped off diapers and a playpen at her home. After delivering at the hospital, Grant and her baby boy stayed at Jacob’s Hope for about a week. Nurses showed her how skin-to-skin contact calmed his withdrawal symptoms and more frequent feedings and burpings decreased gastrointestinal discomfort, which is common among substance-exposed newborns. Today, Grant has roughly five months of recovery. She got certified as a peer recovery specialist and hopes to join Jacob’s Hope one day to help moms like her. But the nursery’s future is uncertain. After opening in 2019, Jacob’s Hope nearly shut down this summer due to low reimbursements and delayed payments from insurers, said Lyndsey Steele , its associate director. Community donations kept the nursery afloat, but “it’s still hanging on by a thread,” she said. She’s hoping opioid settlement money can help. In 2022, Jacob’s Hope received about $250,000 from Arizona’s opioid settlements. But this year, the legislature captured the state’s share of remaining funds and, in a controversial move , gave it to the Department of Corrections. Jacob’s Hope has now turned to local governments, which control their own settlement dollars. Its home city of Mesa said a first round of grant applications should open in the spring. Steele prays it won’t be too late for babies in need — the epidemic’s “forgotten victims,” she called them. Heart Disease Screening, Robot Ambulances, and More Some opioid settlement expenditures have sparked fierce disagreement. They generally fall into three buckets: money for law enforcement , funding for youth prevention programs , and purchases unrelated to the opioid crisis. Settlement dollars nationwide have bought body scanners , K-9 units , bulletproof vests , patrol trucks , and laptops and printers for police and sheriffs. Some spending strayed even further from the spirit of the settlement. In Oregon City, Oregon, more than $30,000 was spent on screening first responders for heart disease. Police Chief Shaun Davis said his staff respond to opioid-related emergencies and experience trauma that increases their risk of heart attack. But some people question if settlement funds should be footing the bill. “This looks to me like you’re trying to defray other costs” from the police budget, said Stephen Loyd , chair of Tennessee’s Opioid Abatement Council. “I don’t think that there’s any way that this opioid money was earmarked for stuff like that.” A second area of contention is youth prevention. Although most people agree that stopping children from developing addictions is important, the execution is tricky. Nearly half a million settlement dollars have gone to the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, commonly known as D.A.R.E. Decades of research suggest its original curriculum is ineffective . Robeson County, North Carolina, spent about $10,000 in settlement money to buy “ Andy the Ambulance ,” a robot ambulance with big eyes and an audio system through which a human operator can discuss the dangers of drugs. EMS Director Patrick Cummings said his team has taken the robot to churches and elementary schools. We “don’t have any studies that show it’s working,” he said, but educating kids seems like a good investment because “if they never try it, they don’t get addicted.” Then there’s the chunk of money — up to 15% of each state’s funds — that’s a free-for-all. Flint, Michigan, spent nearly $10,000 on a sign for a community service center. The city reported that the expense did not qualify as “opioid remediation.” In other words, it’s unrelated to addressing the crisis. But Caitie O’Neill, a city spokesperson, said that “the building sign makes it possible for residents to find” the center, which houses city services, “including Narcan kits, fentanyl testing strips, and substance abuse referrals.” Jurisdictions across 29 states reported non-remediation spending in 2022 and 2023. Most opioid settlements require such reports but operate on an honor system. No one is checking if the other 21 states and Washington, D.C., were truthful. Jackie Lewis, an Ohio mother whose 34-year-old son, Shaun, died of an overdose in October 2022, finds that hard to stomach. “This is blood money,” she said. Some people have “lost sight of that.” Lewis is raising Shaun’s daughter, ensuring the 9-year-old receives counseling at school and can attend the hip-hop music classes she enjoys — all on Lewis’ Social Security payments. This year they moved to a smaller town with lower costs. As settlement funds continue flowing, she wants officials in charge of the money to help families like hers. “We still exist and we’re still struggling,” she said. KFF Health News’ Henry Larweh and Megan Kalata, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Sara Whaley and Vivian Flanagan, and Shatterproof’s Kristen Pendergrass and Sahvanah Prescott contributed to this article. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has taken a leading role in providing guidance to state and local governments on the use of opioid settlement funds. Faculty from the school collaborated with other experts in the field to create principles for using the money , which have been endorsed by over 60 organizations. Shatterproof is a national nonprofit that addresses substance use disorder through distinct initiatives, including advocating for state and federal policies, ending addiction stigma, and educating communities about the treatment system. Shatterproof is partnering with some states on projects funded by opioid settlements. KFF Health News, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the Shatterproof team who worked on this report are not involved in those efforts. ( KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs of KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling and journalism.) ©2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.People in urban communities of the Bay Area are likely already used to the screech of tires that can signal the presence of a nearby “sideshow” or street takeover . Although this aspect of car culture is native to Northern California, police are cracking down on them due to the dangers and inconveniences posed. Q: What is a sideshow? Sideshows are informal, and often illegal, car shows where drivers perform tricks in front of a crowd, often taking place in vacant parking lots or even in wide street intersections. Some sideshows have happened in high-profile locations like the Bay Bridge . According to San Jose Deputy Police Chief Brandon Sanchez, the term “sideshow” was a spin-off of “high-siding,” when a person sits on the passenger side window of a car while someone else was driving. The term evolved as high-siding became a spectator sport into sideshows. Q: What happens at a sideshow? Oakland native and Northeastern University professor Mario Hernandez said that sideshows were based in a masculine, muscle car culture around classics like Ford Mustangs, Chevrolet Camaros and Dodge Chargers. Although some people showed off their cars by washing them before an event, sideshows also attracted drivers with older, junkier cars, he said. There was a DIY aspect to the culture, with people hooking up amps and wires through their car. “It’s an extension of yourself in a lot of ways, because it’s like you put time and energy and money into it,” Hernandez said. Sideshows commonly include racing and driving donuts with the doors open. An infamous and dangerous trick is ghost-riding, which is when someone exits a car while it is in drive and stands or dances in the street alongside the moving vehicle. Hernandez said another common sight is people sticking out of the sunroof as someone else drives. Sideshows in the Bay Area have taken place at all times of the day and night, sometimes running into the early hours of the morning. Q: Why are sideshows illegal? Although young people participating and watching sideshows in the past kept their activities to abandoned or unused areas, like parking lots, University of Redlands professor Jennifer Tilton said local businesses and city leaders complained about tire tracks in the street and the noise in the late evening and early morning hours caused by drivers, large crowds and loud music, leading to police cracking down. Aside from the danger posed by the stunts performed by drivers, Sanchez said violence has been increasing around sideshows. He gave examples of stolen vehicles, assaults and people in the crowd carrying guns and shooting them off into the air. He also pointed to looting and vandalism of storefronts near intersections where sideshows occur. While the crackdowns pushed some events into neighborhoods and smaller street intersections, other sideshows moved to large arteries, like Stevens Creek Boulevard and Winchester Boulevard, which interrupted the flow of traffic. When police came to bust drivers, the resulting car chase became a part of the thrill and added to the danger. Additionally, because sideshows would attract large crowds, Sanchez said it can take “almost a small army” to break up the activity, which puts a strain on the police’s resources when they are needed elsewhere. Q: What is Bay Area law enforcement doing about sideshows? For as long as sideshows have existed, expression and enforcement has been a cat-and-mouse game between promoters and police. People driving in sideshows can be charged with a misdemeanor offense such as reckless driving, and face a number of penalties, including fines, jail time, vehicle impoundment or driver’s license suspension. In some California cities, including San Jose and Oakland, watching a sideshow could be punishable with fines , jail time, probation or community service. Since the early 2000s, Oakland has passed a series of laws criminalizing sideshows, enabling police to seize involved cars and ticketing people for watching them. The Oakland Department of Transportation introduced a pilot program in 2021 intended to curb sideshow activity: One part included building curb extensions and traffic islands to reduce the number of intersections where a sideshow could take place, and another focused on modifying street surfaces with different materials, like steel plates, to deter sideshow activities in a low-cost way. In San Jose, Sanchez said the police use a variety of strategies to find and break up sideshows and their organizers, leading to a “nice downward tick” in sideshow activity in the South Bay city. They monitor social media to find out when and where a sideshow might occur and schedule more officers on duty, if possible. They also also use license plate reader cameras and other intelligence to identify promoters, spectators and the cars they drive. Because sideshows can quickly move from intersection to intersection, Sanchez said they also share information with other Bay Area jurisdictions to identify drivers and vehicles. “What we’ve tried to do in San Jose is try to bring some awareness to sideshows, the violence that actually comes with it,” Sanchez said. Q: How did sideshows first start? Sideshows first started coming onto the scene around the late 1980s and early 1990s, said Tilton. One of the most notable places where sideshows took place was the Eastmont Mall parking lot, she said. Formerly a car factory in the early 20th century, the location provided jobs for working class people. But as East Oakland integrated in the late 1960s, the predominantly white community in the area moved out to the suburbs, taking their businesses and their capital with them. The mall — built in the early 1980s to serve a burgeoning population of mostly Black middle class residents — was on the decline by the end of the decade, leaving young people without a major recreational outlet. Tilton said the young people in East Oakland, specifically young Black people, at the time told her that there was “nothing to do in East Oakland” and there were “no spaces in which they were welcome.” So, sideshows were born out of their boredom and lack of public space where they could come together. And in the early days, it was seen as a positive thing young people could do with their time as an alternative to getting involved in the drug market.A meat thermometer is an essential gadget when it comes to cooking the perfect Christmas turkey, and Ninja's new ProChef Wireless Thermometer is leaving shoppers impressed. The wireless device will help you 'confidently roast, smoke, sear, char and grill' a variety of meats until they're 'perfectly cooked'. Ninja is selling the gadget for $89.99 and includes a one-year limited warranty. The device has built-in HeatShield Technology which means the thermometer is flare-up resistant and can withstand temperatures up to 700 degrees Fahrenheit. You can link the thermometer to the Ninja Pro Connect app for a personalized experience and get live updates, tailored recommendations and settings. As well as using the device indoors with air fryers, ovens and stovetops, you can also use it outdoors with barbecues, smokers, and fire pits. Shoppers can get Uniqlo's 'roomy and stylish' bag for just $15 ahead of Christmas Cut your electricity bill in weeks with tiny gadget available at Walmart and Amazon The leave-in probe has a battery life of up to 30 hours before it needs recharging, allowing you to cook without interruption. It has a waterproof design so you don't need to worry about sauce splatter or grill grease, and you can wash it without compromising the technology. The Ninja ProChef Connected Thermometer has earned an overall rating of 4.6 out of 5 on Ninja's website . One five-star review reads: "Extremely accurate and cooked to perfection. Absolutely love it." A second happy buyer commented: "Absolutely love this thermometer , it works on everything I have cooked, especially joints of meat. It's very easy to use and the app certainly helps the cooking and timing to perfection." Another satisfied buyer said: "10/10. This product is a fine piece of equipment. It is so easy to use and has made our cooking experience so much better. We would highly recommend the use of this product, especially if you want a perfectly cooked 12oz steak." Sadly one customer was left unimpressed, as they explained: "Waste of money. Will not connect to my phone. Have tried everything but no success." If you'd like to give the Ninja ProChef Connected Thermometer a try this Christmas, you can buy it from Ninja for $89.99 . Elsewhere, Amazon is currently offering the ThermoPro TempSpike Plus 600FT Wireless Meat Thermometer on sale for $69.99, while Walmart has the MEATER Plus Ultimate Smart Meat Thermometer on sale for $79.Modi-Factor Continues To Steam Roll Everyone in 2024 | Explained

Cencora Inc. stock underperforms Wednesday when compared to competitorsDog food recalled in 7 states for salmonella risk after puppy litter gets sick, FDA saysWarren County helped save most of the footage of last week's seven-hour Board of Supervisors meeting. The county issued a news release on Friday along with a statement from Granicus explaining the loss of video footage of the Board of Supervisors’ Dec. 10 meeting. A public hearing on the creation of a library board took up the bulk of the meeting that started at 7 p.m. and ended around 2 a.m. Wednesday. Approximately 115 people signed up to speak at the hearing. The county has since posted the video recording of the meeting, minus the 40-plus minutes not recording, to its website. The county notes under the video window that the recording is missing content. Deputy Clerk of the Board of Supervisors Zach Henderson said in an email Monday that he has the names of the speakers and the minutes of the missing time. Megan Rhyne, executive director for the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, commented on the matter in an email Monday. “It's a good reminder to public bodies that when providing this service, which more and more citizens rely on to stay informed about their communities, it's good to have back-ups and redundancies in place,” Rhyne states. The county Department of Technology did have a backup, which helped to piece together the video recording since Granicus had lost nearly four hours of the meeting, the release states. At the meeting, staff determined that, given the number of speakers, the normal recording window for the meeting needed to be extended to 5 a.m. Wednesday to ensure the video included all speakers, the release states. The department contacted the video services provider, Granicus, and requested that it extend the recording window by three hours, from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. The department received confirmation from Granicus that it updated the recording window, the release states. However, the department learned Wednesday evening that Granicus had lost nearly four hours of footage from the meeting, according to the release. The department uploaded the local backup recorded in the video services booth at the government center to Granicus for processing. The collected footage had a gap of 44 minutes, from approximately 10:34 p.m. to 11:18 p.m. The department requested that Granicus perform a thorough review of its services to determine why and how the disruption occurred and what steps it can do to ensure it does not happen again, the release states. “WCIT and Warren County Administration will monitor the response from Granicus and determine if any contractual changes are necessary in the future. “Warren County continues to work toward transparency and accountability with the public while providing the citizens of Warren County the best services available,” Granicus provided a statement, which the county included with the news release. Granicus subsidiary Swagit Productions live-streamed and recorded the meeting. Automated recordings were set to run until 2 a.m. The Granicus video support team received a call from the county at 8:46 p.m. requesting the video recording window for the meeting in progress be extended to 5 a.m. Granicus contacted the county department at approximately 9:13 p.m. stating the recording window had been extended. “However, during the process of extending the recordings, a technical malfunction caused the recording to end prematurely,” the Granicus statement reads. “Our investigation into the encoder and camera control devices revealed that the issue stemmed from an unexpected conflict in the recording parameters when the feed extension was initiated. “The issue has been reproduced and will be addressed,” the statement reads. “The next day when Granicus began indexing the meeting for posting on the Warren County website. Granicus realized that approximately 4 hours of footage, from 9pm until 1am was not available on its systems. Several checks were made to ensure the requested footage was not available in an alternative storage system. Granicus had posted its footage to the county website at 10:50 p.m. Wednesday. Granicus notified the county of the missing footage and asked that it send any backup footage recorded locally. Granicus received a call from the department on Thursday to take down the existing footage until they could determine how to restore the video in its entirety. Granicus’ management team and resources worked to identify what happened and why, and what they can do to prevent the problem from occurring again, according to the statement. “Granicus will continue to work with the Warren County Information Technology team to review resources, hardware or programming changes ensuring that this problem does not happen again,” the statement reads. “Granicus is actively implementing corrective measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future, including enhanced monitoring, additional testing of recording systems, and procedural updates for extending recordings during live sessions.”Oklahoma to obtain drone monitoring systems after mysterious sightings in other states

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Transport has traditionally propelled economic growth and connected nations. Yet, as a formidable contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, accounting for nearly a quarter of energy-related emissions worldwide, the transport sector now finds itself at a crossroads. According to the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), inland transport contributes more than 72% of global energy-related CO2 emissions in the transport sector, with 69% stemming from road transport. Aviation is responsible for approximately 2.4% of total anthropogenic emissions of CO2 on an annual basis, whereas estimated total emissions from maritime transport correspond to 2–3%. Against this background, and for the first time ever, the three United Nations organizations responsible for transport – the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), International Maritime Organization (IMO) and UNECE – came together at COP29 with aligned visions to reduce the impact of their respective sectors on climate change. While civil aviation, inland and maritime transport face distinct challenges and solutions to reduce GHG emissions, they share a common ambition to transition to low- or zero-carbon fuels technologies and infrastructure, and to reshape transport as a pillar of sustainable development and environmental responsibility. “Alongside ICAO and IMO, UNECE has a long-standing commitment to advance decarbonization across every mode of transport, as well as to support our Member States in achieving this ambitious goal,” reminded UNECE Executive Secretary Tatiana Molcean. “This year, UNECE’s Inland Transport Committee adopted its Decarbonization Strategy, setting an ambitious path towards net-zero emissions by 2050. This path will require transformative policy shifts, groundbreaking technological innovations, and the seamless integration of sustainable practices at all levels of governance.” The UNECE Strategy on Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Inland Transport sets out the mission of the UNECE Inland Transport Committee (ITC) to assist its member States and Contracting Parties to 61 UN legal instruments under its purview in achieving the aspirational goal of net zero GHG emissions from inland transport by 2050, through enhanced regulatory support, intergovernmental policy dialogue, and increased coordination and partnership among all relevant stakeholders. The event at COP29 highlighted the recent progress made by UNECE, ICAO and IMO in addressing the impact of their transport sectors on climate change, as well as showcased how their Member States and key stakeholders are contributing to actions necessary to achieve carbon neutrality. Juan Carlos Salazar, Secretary General of ICAO, pointed out that significant progress has been made and that strong political will can be seen worldwide to achieve the net-zero goal by 2050. ICAO now faces a great challenge to finance this ambitious transition. “Achieving net zero carbon emissions requires adequate financial resources,” Mr. Salazar noted. “The international aviation sector will require an investment of approximately USD 3.2 trillion between now and 2050 for cleaner energy transition.” IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez recalled that international shipping carries more than 80% of international trade and has already improved its energy efficiency performance by over 20% since the first IMO climate regulations came into force. “I wish to highlight just one aspect which I think is key in achieving ambitious strategies in all transport modes – the need for abundant, safe, affordable and environmentally sustainable fuels and energy sources,” Mr. Dominguez noted. “Both IMO and ICAO aim at carbon pricing and are also looking to strengthen our interaction with UNECE, particularly on programmes which involve multi-modal transport, including maritime, and the green and digital development of the Middle Corridor trade route.” Source: UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe)

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers have traded guard D'Angelo Russell to the Brooklyn Nets for forward Dorian Finney-Smith and guard Shake Milton. The Lakers also sent forward Maxwell Lewis and three second-round draft picks to Brooklyn on Sunday. Russell averaged a career-low 12.4 points for the Lakers this season in a diminished role under new coach JJ Redick, who had vowed to unlock the point guard's formidable offensive game. Instead, Russell was removed from the starting lineup early in the season, and he struggled to make a consistent impact as a reserve, with his shooting percentages declining significantly. The 6-foot-7 Finney-Smith isn't a top scorer, but he is a steady 3-and-D wing who fills an obvious need for the Lakers. Los Angeles has had inconsistent wing play and has lacked an effective defender at the key position during the long-term injury absence of Jarred Vanderbilt , who hasn't played since Feb. 1. Finney-Smith averaged 10.4 points and 4.6 rebounds this season for the Nets, who acquired him from Dallas in the February 2023 in the trade of Kyrie Irving. Finney-Smith has been limited to five games this month by a sprained ankle and a bruised calf, but the 31-year-old played 27 minutes against San Antonio on Friday. Redick and Finney-Smith were teammates with the Mavericks during the 2020-21 season, and Redick has expressed admiration for Finney-Smith's hard-nosed game. Milton is joining his sixth NBA team in less than two years, including his third trade in 11 months. He is averaging 7.4 points and 2.4 assists per game this season as a Nets reserve. Russell is being traded by the Lakers to the Nets for the second time in his career. He also made the move in 2017 after spending his first two NBA seasons with Los Angeles, which drafted him in 2015. Russell earned the only All-Star selection of his career during his two seasons in Brooklyn. Russell has been traded five times in the past 7 1/2 years. The 10-year pro excelled for the Lakers during their run to the 2023 Western Conference finals after returning to the team in February of that season, although he got benched during that final playoff series against Denver. Russell remained a fairly consistent scorer last year while setting a new franchise record for 3-pointers made in a season, but his career-long problems with offensive inconsistency and defensive ability kept him out of Redick's plans this year. With Russell's departure, Gabe Vincent is the only true point guard left in the Lakers' rotation, although LeBron James often fills the role of initiating their offense. The Lakers (18-13) have won five of six heading into their visit from Cleveland on New Year's Eve. The trade continues a roster restructuring by the Nets, who traded former Lakers point guard Dennis Schröder to Golden State two weeks ago. Schröder was Brooklyn's third-leading scorer, while Finney-Smith was its fourth-leading scorer. The Nets have been one of the NBA's lowest-scoring teams this season, so Russell should have plenty of chances to make an offensive impact. Brooklyn has lost three of four heading into its road game against Orlando on Sunday. Russell's $18.7 million contract expires this summer, while Finney-Smith has a $15.4 million player option for the 2025-26 season. Lewis was the Lakers' second-round pick in 2023, but he played in just 41 games over the past two seasons while shuttling to the G League. AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

It only took 17 weeks but the New York Giants finally earned their first win at home this season on Sunday. The Giants’ offense exploded against the Indianapolis Colts to propel the team to a 45–33 victory in the home finale. New York now has a 3-13 record with one game left to play this season. Drew Lock had the game of his life Backup quarterback Drew Lock had the game of his career on Sunday. He finished the day with a near-perfect 155.3 passer rating, going 17/23 for 309 yards, four passing touchdowns, zero turnovers, and one game-winning rushing touchdown. Lock is the first Giants quarterback since Eli Manning in 2014 to total 300+ yards, 3+ passing touchdowns, and 1+ rushing touchdown in a single game. Malik Nabers is a superstar Lock’s favorite target on his career day was of course wide receiver Malik Nabers. The superstar rookie turned in the best performance of his career so far, totaling seven receptions for a career-high 171 yards and two touchdowns. With this performance, Nabers crossed the 1,000-yard and 100-reception marks on the season. He is the first Giants receiver to cross 1,000 yards in a single season since Odell Beckham Jr. back in 2018. It’s been an ugly year for the G-Men, but at least they know they have a young star in the making going forward. Nabers isn’t the Giants’ only special rookie Along with Nabers, rookie running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. also crossed the 1,000-yard threshold. He totaled 59 rushing yards on 20 carries with an additional 14 receiving yards in the game. He has totaled over 1,000 total yards from scrimmage this season. Nabers and Tracy are the first rookie pairing since Marques Colston and Reggie Bush in 2006 to each have 1,000+ scrimmage yards in a season. The Giants tumbled down the draft order Entering Week 17, the Giants were in sole possession of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. But with this win, they have fallen to third-overall in the draft order, significantly hampering their ability to draft the class’s top quarterback prospect. With one game left to play, New York will have an uphill battle to gain the first-overall pick in the draft. Due to their strength of schedule, they no longer control their destiny for the No. 1 pick and would need some help across the league to land the top spot. Looking ahead to the Giants’ next matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles The Giants’ final game of the season will be on the road next Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. Philadelphia has already clinched the NFC East so, with nothing left to play for, they could decide to rest their starters. However, superstar running back Saquon Barkley is racing for the NFL history books and could decide to play in Week 18 in an effort to break the league’s single-season rushing yards record against his former team. The former Giants playmaker crossed the 2,000-yard mark in Week 17. This article first appeared on Empire Sports Media and was syndicated with permission.Axon Enterprise president Joshua Isner sells $2 million in stockStaff counselled, says rly after video shows cleaning leads to inconvenience to passengers sleeping at stn