Tuesday, January 11 top stories
Hello! It is Tuesday, January 11. Here are today’s top stories.
U.S. reports 1.3 million Covid-19 cases on Monday
The U.S. reported 1.3 million new Covid-19 cases on Monday, which Reuters said is the highest daily total for any country in the world. That number may include some weekend tests that weren’t reported until Monday. The daily average cases in the U.S. is at about 700,000 a day.
Betty White cause of death revealed
The cause of death of actress Betty White has been revealed as a stroke that she had six days prior to her death on New Year’s Eve. She had the stroke on Christmas Day.
Maya Angelou first Black woman to appear on US quarter
Maya Angelou, the late poet and author, is now the first Black woman to appear on the U.S. quarter. The U.S. Mint said it has begun shipping the first coins with this design as a part of the American Women Quarters Program, which will feature American women who made an impact.
The new design is on the “tails” side, while the “heads” side will still have George Washington’s face on it, but with a different design created by Laura Garden Fraser, a sculptor from the early 1900’s.
Man receives heart from genetically altered pig
A 57-year-old man from Maryland had a heart transplant using a pig heart and was doing well three days after the surgery. The man had severe heart disease and was not eligible for a human heart transplant, so he went ahead with the experimental surgery. The pig was genetically modified to make it compatible with a human. Scientists hope that using genetically modified animals can be an answer to the shortage of organs available for seriously ill patients.
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Newborn tossed in dumpster
In New Mexico, a 18-year-old woman was caught on camera tossing a garbage bag with her newborn baby in it into a dumpster before driving off. Six hours later, others heard the baby crying and found it still alive, and fortunately the baby survived despite the cold 30-degree weather. The baby is in stable condition in a hospital. The mother, Alexis Avila, was arrested and charged with attempted murder and child abuse. She said she didn’t know she was pregnant until a day prior to delivering the baby in her parents’ home and panicked. Avila faces up to 15 years in prison.
Chicago schools reopen
The city of Chicago reached a deal with the Chicago Teachers Union on Monday to end a dispute over Covid-19 safety policies that has forced a week’s worth of classes to be cancelled. School is expected to resume on Wednesday. The deal includes additional Covid-19 testing and stricter policies on when to close schools due to outbreaks.
North Korea fires ballistic missiles
Japan and South Korea said they suspect that North Korea fired a ballistic missile today. It flew at an altitude of about 37 miles and landed into the ocean about 435 miles away. It is the second missile launched by North Korea in a week.
DOJ creates domestic terrorism unit
The Department of Justice announced it would establish a new unit to specifically investigate domestic terrorism, which are criminal acts dangerous to human life that appear to be intended to intimidate or coerce civilians or the policy of a government. The FBI and DOJ said the threat of domestic terrorism has increased since 2020. Republican and Democratic lawmakers have different views of what constitutes a domestic terrorist -- pointing fingers at either anti-police protesters or the Jan 6. protesters.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/betty-white-stroke-cause-of-death/
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/10/politics/maya-angelou-quarter-issued/index.html
https://apnews.com/article/pig-heart-transplant-6651614cb9d73bada8eea2ecb6449aef
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/10/us/chicago-schools-reopen-covid.html
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/10/asia/north-korea-missile-intl/index.html