Author: palmbeachocean.com

Echoing patterns in prior years, coronavirus infections are slowly ticking up in parts of the country, the harbinger of a possible fall and winter wave. But the numbers remain low for now, and are unlikely to reach the horrific highs seen in previous winters, experts said in interviews.Infections have been trending upward for about four weeks now, according to data gathered from wastewater monitoring, test positivity rates and hospitalizations and emergency room visits. Taken together, the figures offer researchers and public health officials the first glimpse of the coronavirus as a post-pandemic, seasonal threat, a permanent fixture of the infectious…

The downgrade of the United States’ debt by a major ratings firm is a damning indictment of the country’s fractious politics and a blot on its financial record that is unlikely to be quickly erased. But many investors and analysts say it won’t affect the government’s ability to keep borrowing money.On Tuesday, Fitch Ratings lowered the credit rating of the United States one notch to AA+ from a pristine AAA. The firm, citing a “deterioration in governance” along with America’s mounting debt load, suggested that it could be a long time before that decision was reversed.“Our base case is that…

The answer to the quiz question of who was responsible for this finish, the end to the long and storied World Cup career of the Brazil great Marta, will be Jamaica.Marta’s two-decade relationship with the World Cup is over after Jamaica, one of the surprise performers in a tournament marked by surprise performances, prevented Brazil from securing the win it required to reach the round of 16. Jamaica held Brazil scoreless in a draw, 0-0, in Melbourne.“Marta ends here. There’s no more World Cup for Marta,” she said. “I’m very grateful for the opportunity I had to play in another…

And hot weather may affect a baby’s development in other ways: A 2021 analysis found a higher incidence of anomalies, such as cardiac defects, spina bifida, or cleft lip, at higher temperatures. A 2019 study took existing research that linked heat exposure to congenital heart defects and extrapolated how many such cases we can expect in the coming years: The authors estimated that over an 11-year period, an additional 7,000 babies will be born with congenital heart defects in the eight US states they studied. According to Bonell, there’s also early evidence from animals that heat stress may be triggering…

Elon Musk has indicated his desire to transform X, the microblogging site formerly known as Twitter, into an “everything app”. In a post explaining his decision to dump the Twitter name and bird logo last week, Musk said the rebranded platform would be expanded to offer “comprehensive communications and the ability to conduct your entire financial world”. Musk’s plans appear to take inspiration from the Chinese super app WeChat. WeChat, which combines social media, digital payments, internet browsing and more into a single app, has become a ubiquitous part of daily life in China since its launch by tech giant…

“PBS NewsHour” announced Wednesday that Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor in chief of The Atlantic, would be the next moderator of “Washington Week,” the Friday evening public affairs show that is a staple among policymakers in the nation’s capital.The Atlantic will co-produce the show, which will be renamed “Washington Week With The Atlantic.” The magazine will cover some of the costs and help to sell sponsorships.Mr. Goldberg, who has been at The Atlantic for more than a decade — its former owner, David Bradley, recruited him in 2007 with a team of ponies — said he believed there were still enough…

Antarctica: A continent mostly covered in ice, which sits in the southernmost part of the world.artificial intelligence: A type of knowledge-based decision-making exhibited by machines or computers. The term also refers to the field of study in which scientists try to create machines or computer software capable of intelligent behavior.astronomer: A scientist who works in the field of research that deals with celestial objects, space and the physical universe.black hole: A region of space having a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation (including light) can escape.blazar: A bright and distant active galaxy that shoots powerful jets of…

After years of false starts, men’s tennis finally has a proper war between the generations.In a startling comeback that rocked the All England Club’s venerable Centre Court, Carlos Alcaraz, the 20-year-old Spanish star who has blitzed the sport in his brief career, pulled off the nearly impossible, beating Novak Djokovic in a Wimbledon final on the grass that the man widely recognized as the greatest ever to play the sport has long treated as his back lawn.Besides chasing the Grand Slam, Djokovic was aiming to extinguish the dreams of another heralded upstart challenging his hold on the game, which, so…

The major entertainment studios and thousands of striking writers have agreed to meet to restart talks after a three-month standoff, according to the writers guild.The union, the Writers Guild of America, told screenwriters in an email Tuesday night that Carol Lombardini, the studio negotiator, asked for “a meeting this Friday to discuss negotiations.”The guild said it would not comment further. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the organization that bargains on behalf of the studios, also declined to comment.The meeting represents the first sign of movement in a stalemate that began in early May after negotiations between the…

When an office building next to her gleaming glass residential skyscraper in Moscow was hit by a drone filled with explosives early on Sunday, Mari Kletanina seemed worried.A popular nutritionist on Instagram, she asked her tens of thousands of followers whether she should be thinking about moving away from the area or from Russia altogether.But after the same thing happened on Tuesday at the crack of dawn, Ms. Kletanina already seemed to have moved on, focused instead on choosing her dress for the day and recommending her favorite perfume.With Ukraine signaling that strikes inside Russia have become part of its…