Storm Chaser

Where should you hide the next time there’s a tornado warning? A bathtub. At least, that’s what a woman in Texas is probably saying. Terrible thunderstorms and tornadoes made their way across the South this past weekend, killing 19 people in the process. In east Texas, a tornado that was 800 yards wide with winds of 130 mph carved a 130-mile path through Texas to Louisiana. One woman in her sixties hid in a bathtub as shelter from the storm. The tornado ripped the roof off her house, picked the bathtub up with her in it, and deposited it (and her) in the woods. She was not injured, only walking away with cuts and bruises, but was understandably shaken. Meteorologists have recommended taking shelter in bathtubs in the past because they are heavy and well-secured due to their strong framing and pipes. However, everyone is agreeing that her survival of a journey through the air is nothing short of a miracle.

Twain Strikes Again

Mark Twain is making another postmortem appearance in the literary world. As you might remember, Twain, the author of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, wrote an autobiography and instructed for it to be published 100 years after his death. In 2010, it was finally released. This year, another story by Twain will be published. In 1879, Twain told his daughters a bedtime story, like he always did, about a poor boy who eats a magical flower that gives him the power to talk to animals. After telling the story, he wrote down some notes about it: an unfinished manuscript of 16 handwritten pages called “Oleomargarine.” That same manuscript was found recently, over a century later, in the archives at the University of California, Berkeley. The manuscript marks the only children’s fictional story that Twain ever wrote. A writer-illustrator duo at Doubleday Books expanded Twain’s version, illustrated it, and will be releasing it in the fall. It is called The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine, and it is 152 pages, 11 chapters. Twain aficionados are less than thrilled about modern authors finishing the story, but the publishing company is insisting that the story needs to be told.

Women March Worldwide

The Women’s March that took place the day after President Trump’s inauguration was the largest inaugural protest in U.S. history. Though the march originally planned to be located solely in DC, more than 600 sister marches joined it in coordination with the March on Washington. More than a million people, male and female, marched in all 50 states and seven continents, including Antarctica. Many protesters wore symbolic pink “pussyhats” that had cat ears, and most people brought signs. People marched for a variety of issues: abortion, equal pay, sexual assault, immigrant rights, rights of people with disabilities, police brutality, and environmental protection. In Memphis, over 6,000 people met at the Judge D’army Bailey Courthouse and walked through downtown Memphis to the Civil Rights museum. They chanted things such as, “Love trumps hate,” and “This is what democracy looks like.” Now, the national organizers of the march are looking to fuel that momentum into other projects and organizations that could benefit their political stances. So, the statements about the march that are filling up your Facebook feed could be there a while.

Access Denied

President Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday that would allow a temporary ban on many refugees and suspend visas of citizens from Middle Eastern and African countries. Trump also gave another order that will prohibit visas from being issued to people from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. In addition, President Trump followed through with his renown campaign promise and ordered the construction of the wall on the Mexican-American border. This order will ultimately conflict deals that the U.S. has made with other countries in years past as well as inconvenience multiple people looking to seek refuge in America. Meanwhile, Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto is not happy about the decision.

Super Bowl Monday?

Kraft Heinz (the company that blessed us with Heinz ketchup, Velveeta cheese, etc.) is giving all its employees the day off the Monday following Super Bowl Sunday. The company is defending its decision, stating that over 16 million people call in sick the Monday after the Super Bowl. This consequently costs the country a billion dollars in lost productivity. Kraft Heinz is pushing a campaign to persuade other companies to follow their lead. There’s even an online petition that pens the potential holiday name “Smunday.” If the petition gets 100,000 signatures, Kraft Heinz will send it to Congress. As of recently, the petition has over 35,000 signatures. So, if you support the Smunday movement, sign the petition here.

Human-Pig Hybrid

Scientists recently created the first chimera. In other words, the first multi-species organism. Scientists injected human cells into a pig embryo. The embryo then grew to be four weeks old. Unfortunately, the reason for this experiment was not to create Frankenstein‘s monster. It was for a much more humanitarian reason – to use this process for the future of organ donations. More organs are needed for transplants than are available, so scientists hope they can use this method in the future in order to provide recipients with life-saving organs. However, the creation of this chimera has been making waves and is proving to be quite controversial. Some feel that scientists shouldn’t play God this way. Future studies in years to come will prove whether or not this is the future in organ transplants.

Heels or No Heels

In May, receptionist Nicola Thorp was sent home from work without pay. Why? Because she refused to take off her flats, which she was told were unacceptable, and to put on 2-inch heels instead. Months later, and Thorp started a petition to create a law that would prevent sexist dress codes in the workplace such as this. The petition reached over 150,000 signatures. Two years later, Parliament finally gave Thorp and others the answer they deserved: a law had been broken. Parliament also added that the laws that protected women from sexism in the workplace needed to be increased to prevent this in the future.

It’s The End Of The World As We Know It

According the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, the world is now two-and-a-half minutes from midnight. For those of you that don’t speak doomsday, this means that scientists are now predicting we are incredibly close to the end of the world. The group announced at a conference that they were moving the hands of the Doomsday Clock forward by 30 seconds. This is the closest the clock has been to midnight since 1953, when the threat of nuclear war was looming over the world. The group states that the reason for their moving the clock forward was the tumultuous international political climate in 2016. They also stated that the finally pushing point for changing the clock was the election of United States President Donald Trump. The clock last moved in 2015 when two minutes were taken away, but since its creation it has stayed between 2 minutes and 17 minutes till midnight.

The Truth’s Revealed

It’s been over 60 years since the death of Emmett Till and the civil outrage that sparked soonafter. The truth about the encounter between Till and Carolyn Bryant Donham has always been uncertain. Today, it was revealed that Donham, the woman that Till supposedly sexually harassed, exaggerated the details of their encounter. When asked about her “damning accusation” of Till, Donham told historian and author of The Blood of Emmett Till, Timothy Tyson, “That part’s not true.” Surprisingly, she seemed remorseful about Till’s death and stated, “Nothing that boy did could ever justify what happened to him.” She also expressed her sorrow for Till’s mother. If you’re interested in learning more about Till and the truth about his case, Timothy Tyson’s The Blood of Emmett Till will be released next Tuesday, January 31.

Pop Culture Announcement

The Oscar nominations are out. La La Land, the musical movie starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, has landed 14 nominations, which ties Titanic and All About Eve for the most nominations for a single movie ever. The nominations are also the most diverse they’ve ever been. Six black actors received nominations in a variety of diverse films, such as Hidden Figures,Fences, and Moonlight. Other noteworthy movies receiving several nominations: Arrival, Manchester by the Sea, Lion, and Hacksaw Ridge. But it hasn’t been smooth sailing for the Oscars’ website, where they incorrectly listed Amy Adams and Tom Hanks has nominated actors, even though they were snubbed. Now, they’re singing “Sorry” to the two celebs.