Tag Archives: affect

How Houthi attacks affect both the Israel-Hamas conflict and Yemen’s own civil war – and could put pressure on US, Saudi Arabia – The Conversation Indonesia

  1. How Houthi attacks affect both the Israel-Hamas conflict and Yemen’s own civil war – and could put pressure on US, Saudi Arabia The Conversation Indonesia
  2. Houthi ‘Rocket Storm’ Hits Israel; ‘Alarmed’ Netanyahu Beefs Up Defences In Red Sea | Watch Hindustan Times
  3. Yemen hasn’t declared war on Israel, contrary to online claims. Houthi rebels have launched missiles The Associated Press
  4. Vantage | Why Houthis joining the war makes spillover fears more real Firstpost
  5. Jordan Warns Iran-Backed Houthis, Hezbollah & Hamas Amid Israel War; ‘Don’t Fire Towards…’ Hindustan Times
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Travis Kelce-Taylor Swift relationship: Chiefs’ star says attention, rumors won’t affect focus on the field – CBS Sports

  1. Travis Kelce-Taylor Swift relationship: Chiefs’ star says attention, rumors won’t affect focus on the field CBS Sports
  2. Donna Kelce on meeting Taylor Swift amid rumored relationship with Chiefs star Travis Kelce: ‘It was okay’ Fox News
  3. Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce aren’t just having a good time — they’re bringing America together New York Post
  4. Willie Geist shares his theory behind rumored ‘Traylor’ relationship TODAY
  5. Chiefs’ Travis Kelce says Taylor Swift relationship won’t impact focus – ESPN ESPN
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NFL Week 3 weather: Tropical Cyclone could affect Bills at Commanders, Ravens at Colts and Patriots at Jets – CBS Sports

  1. NFL Week 3 weather: Tropical Cyclone could affect Bills at Commanders, Ravens at Colts and Patriots at Jets CBS Sports
  2. Commanders’ stats of the week: Bills’ Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs are tough foes The Washington Post
  3. FIVE TAKES: Allen, Bills hoping to remain red-hot against unbeaten Commanders, vaunted pass rush The Livingston County News
  4. Commanders fans feeling good and looking for a win on Sunday at home against the Buffalo Bills Hogs Haven
  5. Bills: 3 bold predictions for Week 3 game vs. Commanders ClutchPoints
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The utility for 1.2 million Ohio customers was just sold: Here’s how that will affect your bill – cleveland.com

  1. The utility for 1.2 million Ohio customers was just sold: Here’s how that will affect your bill cleveland.com
  2. Enbridge CEO on Dominion deal: This will create largest natural gas platform in North America CNBC Television
  3. Dominion Energy Says 2.6 GW Virginia Offshore Wind Farm On Budget and Schedule, Plans to Bring In Project Partner | Offshore Wind Offshore WIND
  4. Varcoe: Enbridge seizes ‘pretty rare’ opportunity, buying three U.S. gas utilities in $19B deal Calgary Herald
  5. Williams CEO says not interested in utility companies bought by Enbridge Reuters
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Agent’s Take: How Justin Herbert’s record-setting contract will affect Joe Burrow’s pending extension – CBS Sports

  1. Agent’s Take: How Justin Herbert’s record-setting contract will affect Joe Burrow’s pending extension CBS Sports
  2. Justin Herbert’s record $262.5M contract shows why Jalen Hurts’ Eagles deal is a bargain The News Journal
  3. Chargers News: Justin Herbert Emerges as Under-the-Radar MVP Hopeful Sports Illustrated
  4. Chargers Insider Daniel Popper Talks Herbert, Ekeler & More | Full Interview | The Rich Eisen Show The Rich Eisen Show
  5. Tua Tagovailoa not focused on contract extension with Dolphins: ‘This is something that I need to work for’ CBS Sports
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Robert Downey Jr. Was ‘100%’ Concerned Playing Iron Man for 11 Years Might Affect Acting Skills: ‘Let’s Work Those Other Muscles’ – Variety

  1. Robert Downey Jr. Was ‘100%’ Concerned Playing Iron Man for 11 Years Might Affect Acting Skills: ‘Let’s Work Those Other Muscles’ Variety
  2. Robert Downey Jr. Calls ‘Dolittle’ and ‘Shaggy Dog’ the ‘Most Important Films’ He’s Done in the ‘Last 25 Years,’ Says ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ Is ‘Content’ Yahoo Entertainment
  3. Robert Downey Jr says culture decides ‘who is and isn’t OK’: ‘It is baffling’ Fox News
  4. Robert Downey Jr Seemingly Throws Shade At Avengers Age Of Ultron GameRant
  5. Robert Downey Jr. thought playing Iron Man for a decade was going to ruin his acting chops: ‘You start to wonder if a muscle you have hasn’t atrophied’ Yahoo Entertainment
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‘Octomom’ Nadya Suleman Shares Rare Update on How Welcoming Octuplets Continues to Affect Her Health, Details ‘Excruciating’ Pain – Yahoo Entertainment

  1. ‘Octomom’ Nadya Suleman Shares Rare Update on How Welcoming Octuplets Continues to Affect Her Health, Details ‘Excruciating’ Pain Yahoo Entertainment
  2. ‘Octomom’ Nadya Suleman Talks Staying Fit After Having 14 KIDS Access Hollywood
  3. ‘Octomom’ Posts Workout Selfies & Reveals What Her Body Endured During Pregnancy HollywoodLife
  4. ‘Octomom’ Nadya Suleman Shares Ripped Gym Picture While Revealing She Herniated 3 Discs During Pregnancy Yahoo Entertainment
  5. ‘Octomom’ Nadya Suleman shares inspiring gym selfie after 14 kids GMA
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Power outages affect thousands as more ice hits


Austin braces for its second day of the winter storm, with more ice expected than previously. Causing road conditions to worsen and thousands to lose power early Wednesday morning.

Editor’s note: We’ve made this story free as a public safety resource for our community. But we need the support of subscribers to keep doing this work. Here’s how you can subscribe.

Forecasters expect more significant ice accumulation today throughout the Austin metro region and the Hill Country, causing already dangerous roads to become even more treacherous.

Thousands of Austinites lost power early Wednesday morning, as a result of the ice causing various problems, such as tree limbs falling on power lines. The number of customers without power continues to rise, with over 100,000 reported by Austin Energy as of 7:40 a.m.

Austin Fire said they’ve responded to over 75 calls related to arcing wires and that multiple stations have also lost power.

Here’s what we know about road conditions, today’s forecast and power outages:

Winter storm warning for Austin:Here’s what you need to worry about

9:45 a.m.: Heavier round of ice is over

This storm’s most significant round of freezing rain that hit the Austin metro area Wednesday morning has moved out of the region, according to the National Weather Service.

There’s still a chance of freezing drizzle and rain, which could turn to just a cold rain or sleet mix as temperatures are expected to get just above freezing Wednesday afternoon. However, the wintry weather mix could return Wednesday evening with more chances possible for freezing rain going into early Thursday morning.

Temperatures are expected to hover above freezing Thursday morning and move into the 40s by the afternoon. There’s a light chance of rain throughout the day also.

The winter storm warning is still scheduled to end at 6 a.m. on Thursday.

Austin Energy says power will be restored ‘quickly’

Austin Energy spokesperson Matt Mitchell said crews are dispatched and working to restore power as quickly as possible. He added that each outage is unique, and some repairs will take longer than others, especially as treacherous road conditions make it harder to navigate the city. Temperatures could get above freezing for a few hours Wednesday afternoon, which he said will help crews get outages fixed faster.

The utility company tweeted that outages are widespread and some customers could see outages for 12 to 24 hours.

Ice can cause tree limbs and other vegetation to freeze, snap and fall on power lines, resulting in mass outages.

If you do lose power, follow this advice from Mitchell: don’t panic, stay inside, keep all windows and doors closed, unplug major appliances and heaters, layer up, grab some blankets and wait for the power to be restored.

In addition, do not use stoves, ovens or portable grills to heat your home, as it can cause carbon monoxide poisoning that can result in hospitalization or death. If you have a generator, be sure it’s in a well-ventilated area before using it.

More:What you can do to stay safe, warm during an outage

While many in the region may be having flashbacks to Winter Storm Uri which caused massive power outages for days, this storm is not predicted to be that bad, and Mitchell said power will be restored as the weather warms over the next 24 hours.

“We as utility understand those memories are still very fresh,” Mitchell said. “This is not that. Our crews are in place, we are executing a plan, and we will safely and quickly restore power.”

Power outages across Central Texas

Austin Energy reports large numbers of power outages affecting up to 80,000 customers at one point early Wednesday morning. The company tweeted that the extreme weather, mainly the ice, is leading to power outages and that crews are dispatched and working to get the power back on.

Thousands of Pedernales Electric Cooperative customers in Central Texas and the Hill Country are also without power.

8:45 a.m.: Oncor reports 16,127 customers in Williamson County, 6,446 in Travis County and 1,054 in Bastrop County are without power.

8:10 a.m.: 125,000 customers are without power, as 422 active outages cause nearly 24% of Austin Energy customers to lose power. Meanwhile, nearly 3,100 Pedernales customers in Williamson and western Travis County are without power.

7:40 a.m.: 21% of Austin Energy customers are without power as a result of 367 outages, affecting over 113,000. Nearly 11,000 Pedernales customers and over 240,000 across the state are also without power.

6:36 a.m.: 294 active outages resulting in nearly 85,000 Austin Energy customers to be without power. Across the region, over 6,000 Pedernales customers are without power, while 197,000 in the state don’t have power.

6:00 a.m.: The number of Austin Energy customers without power continues to increase, as 204 outages are causing nearly 67,000 customers to be without power.

5:50 a.m.: Across Texas, about 161,500 customers are without power.

5:43 a.m.: Over 56,000 Austin Energy customers are without power due to nearly 190 outages across the region affecting 89% of customers.

5:43 a.m.: Nearly 2,900 Pedernales customers from Round Rock to Kyle to San Marcos to Dripping Springs are without power.

Weather tips:Here’s how to stay out of the emergency room during this winter storm

Austin’s Wednesday forecast

The Austin metro area and neighboring Hill Country will see a heavier round of freezing rain and ice starting Wednesday morning and moving throughout the day into early Thursday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

While Austin could see temperatures get up to 33 degrees for a few hours in the afternoon, the wind chill will cause it to actually feel like it’s in the mid-20s.

The Austin region could see anywhere an additional 0.1 to 0.25 inches of ice Wednesday. There is a chance the ice could turn to rain during the afternoon moving into the evening, however, forecasters expect the freezing rain will continue again during the evening and into early Thursday morning.

Freezing rain is predicted to end by about 3 a.m. Thursday, turning to a cold rain that will last up until nearly noon on Thursday. Temperatures are expected to stay in the 30s Thursday morning and will likely rise into the 40s by the afternoon.

Road conditions across Austin

Officials continue to discourage drivers from hitting the roads unless absolutely necessary, as road conditions will remain treacherous Wednesday.

The Texas Department of Transportation’s highway conditions map shows that all major highways have ice reported on them. TxDot officials said crews are working to clear roadways, but that conditions are still dangerous and people should stay off the roads.

City officials urge residents to stay off the roads. Austin first responders were called to nearly 300 traffic collisions as a result of the ice on Tuesday and dozens of falls.

6:27 a.m.: All lanes are blocked at the 183A toll and SH-45 toll.

Weather updates:Winter weather cancellations, closures, delays in Austin area

Austin airport cancellations, delays

7:55 a.m.: Airlines have canceled 202 flights, while 18 are delayed.

5:32 a.m.: There are over 180 flights canceled out of Austin-Bergstrom and 11 delays, according to Flight Aware.

Austin school districts cancellations

Nearly all school districts, including Austin ISD, canceled classes and extracurricular activities today

Winter weather:Austin-area high school athletic events postponed



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Autistic individuals may look to video games as a way to cope with negative affect and autistic burnout

A recent study uncovered why so many individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum conditions are fond of video games as a pastime. The new findings suggests that individuals with autism spectrum conditions may play video games for escapism, specifically self-suppression escapism when experiencing negative moods and self-expansion escapism when experiencing positive moods.

The study, which appears in the journal Computers in Human Behavior, adds to existing knowledge about the purpose of video games for those with autism.

The authors of the new study defined escapism as “an act that shifts the focus of attention from an unpleasant reality to a pleasurable unreality.” The research examined two types of escapism, self-suppression and self-expansion.

The self-suppression style of escapism refers to “engagement in activity, including gaming, to suppress negative emotions, considered as an avoidance of discomfort strategy related to negative affect (Stenseng et al., 2012, 2021).” Self-expansion escapism “facilitates autonomy, competence, and relatedness,… and harmonious, autonomous engagement.”

Research has found that those with autism spectrum conditions seem drawn to video games as an opportunity for escape and for a chance to be in control. In addition, playing video games can function as interpersonal interaction practice when those with autism spectrum conditions play collaboratively. Anna Pyszkowska and colleagues intended to investigate the positive and negative motivators for video gaming in individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum conditions.

Participants were recruited from neurodiversity societies in Poland. Participants were required to have a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder, be over 18 and play video games at least one hour per week. One hundred and eighty-nine individuals fit the criteria and agreed to participate.

Participants took measures of escapism, gaming motivation, autistic burnout, affective outcomes (a measure of typical mood), and hedonic tone (capacity to experience joy). Statistical analysis of this data revealed that those with high levels of negative affect or autistic burnout were more likely to play video games for self-suppression reasons. In addition, repetitive behaviors, the decline of cognitive and motor functions, failure to engage in self-care, and behaviors intended to avoid emotions were all related to self-suppression motivations for gaming.

Those scoring high on the measure of hedonic tone (or how able they were to experience joy) were more likely to report that self-expansion was the reason for their video game endeavors. Self-expansion as a motivation for video gaming was also related to a desire for mastery.

Acknowledged limitations include the absence of a control group. Consequently, we cannot conclude that these results are unique to the gaming or autism spectrum conditions. Additionally, the study had significantly more females (105) compared to males (50) or nonbinary (34), consequently, we cannot know if gender has an impact on results.

Despite these concerns, the research team feels their work was a meaningful addition to what is known about gaming motivations and autism spectrum conditions. Understanding what may motivate a person with an autism diagnosis to spend time video gaming may help practitioners determine if gaming is used to cope with challenges that could be addressed and treated in a therapeutic setting.

The study, “Determinants of escapism in adult video gamers with autism spectrum conditions: The role of affect, autistic burnout, and gaming motivation”, was authored by Anna Pyszkowska, Tomasz Gąsior, Franciszek Stefanek, and Barbara Więzik.

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Newly Discovered VEXAS Syndrome May Affect Thousands More Americans Than Thought

The patient, Hector Campos, came into the emergency department with shortness of breath, erratic fever, and swollen, itchy ears. His wife explained that Campos had tested negative for COVID-19. “What do you think this might be?” Campos asked the chief of emergency medicine, Ethan Choi, who was similarly befuddled by the man’s symptoms.

Scary, right? But it’s not real—Campos and Choi are both characters on the NBC medical drama Chicago Med. Over the course of the episode, which aired in March 2021, Choi initially misdiagnoses Campos’ symptoms as pneumonia and a bacterial infection, but a test comes back for widespread inflammation. Campos’ condition rapidly deteriorates, and the team of doctors is mystified until fellow ER surgeon Dean Archer suggests it might be VEXAS, a rare autoinflammatory syndrome. Genetic sequencing ultimately finds a mutation confirming the diagnosis, and Choi begins treating the patient.

The episode is fictional, but depictions like this one are surprisingly accurate to real-life cases of VEXAS, said David Beck, a clinical genetics researcher at New York University Grossman School of Medicine. “In terms of clinical manifestations,” he told The Daily Beast, “they’ve been spot on.” Beck ought to know: He and his colleagues first named the syndrome in a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2020. “I’ve been impressed, actually, with depictions in popular media, because [it shows] they’ve read the paper.”

Even so, these representations of VEXAS syndrome tend to highlight severe cases, in part because the NEJM paper did, too. Of the 25 cases the researchers studied, 10 of the patients died from VEXAS-related causes.

But more recent research has expanded the case definition of VEXAS to include a milder side. In a paper published in JAMA on Jan. 24, Beck and his colleagues scanned genetic sequencing readings from more than 160,000 people to determine how common VEXAS syndrome really is, and how its symptoms manifest in patients. The research team found that nine male patients and two female patients in their study had mutations that caused VEXAS.

And as a result, the researchers estimated that the syndrome affects about 13,200 men and 2,300 women over age 50 in the U.S. alone.

“It’s thrilling to go from trying to understand a few patients to finding that the same genetic cause and the same disease is found in tens of thousands of individuals,” Beck said. “Not just because we know that there are many patients out there who are suffering, who don’t get a diagnosis, or who don’t get the treatment that can help them and just taking a step in that direction; it’s also very surprising that you can still make these sort of discoveries despite all of the biomedical research going on.”

VEXAS is an acronym that stands for several key features of the syndrome. In every case of the syndrome, a patient has a genetic mutation coding for the enzyme E1. The mutation occurs on a gene on the X chromosome, which as you might recall from biology class, is a sex chromosome—men only have one, making them more prone to coming down with VEXAS. And the mutation is somatic, which means it is acquired during life as opposed to being inherited from a parent. That last feature, which gives VEXAS its “S,” is crucial: Because VEXAS is caused by a somatic mutation, the syndrome isn’t passed down and only occurs in older patients, typically over the age of 50, Beck said.

This type of research, Beck emphasized, has been made possible by recent advances in genetic sequencing that make it readily available and affordable to patients. The participants in the study all sought care at a Geisinger health care facility in central and northeastern Pennsylvania between 1996 and 2022. As part of a collaboration between Geisinger and the Regeneron Genetics Center to map genetic variation across the human genome, the participants’ exomes—regions of their genomes that encode proteins—were sequenced.

I’ve been impressed, actually, with depictions in popular media, because [it shows] they’ve read the paper.

David Beck, New York University Grossman School of Medicine

All of the 11 participants found to have mutations in the gene for the E1 enzyme were anemic and the vast majority had abnormally large red blood cells and a low platelet count—all symptoms consistent with VEXAS syndrome. Importantly, though, some of the more severe symptoms associated with VEXAS, like inflammation in the cartilage (which caused Campos’ swollen ears), were not present in these patients. This suggests that there may be a broader spectrum of severity when it comes to cases of VEXAS syndrome.

One other puzzling aspect of the study was the fact that the two women retrospectively identified as having VEXAS syndrome only suffered from the VEXAS-related mutation on one of their X chromosomes, not both. “It’s confusing for us,” since originally the researchers thought that VEXAS only affected men, Beck said. “We’ve been slowly recognizing more females that have the disease, and we don’t understand why that is.” One phenomenon at play could be X-inactivation, a process in which one of a female’s two X chromosomes is silenced throughout their cells.

The researchers wrote in the study that future analyses will be critical to understanding the prevalence of the syndrome in diverse populations, since 94 percent of the participants in the Geisinger cohort were white.

Currently, there are no treatments for VEXAS approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but a phase II clinical trial is underway to study whether blood stem cell transplants can treat or cure the syndrome. In 2022, a team of French researchers published a study suggesting that such a transplant can lead to complete remission, but such a procedure is not without its risks.

On the research side, Beck said that scientists are still trying to figure out how a mutation in the gene that encodes E1 leads to the widespread inflammation seen in cases of VEXAS. This enzyme starts a process for a cell to eliminate proteins it no longer needs, and further research is ongoing to determine how a dysfunctional E1 enzyme impacts this process.

“If you’re an older individual with systemic inflammation, low blood counts, don’t have any clear diagnosis, and you require steroids but don’t have any clear diagnosis,” you should contact your doctor about genetic testing for VEXAS syndrome, Beck said.

“It may help lead to better treatments for you—and at least a clear diagnosis,” he said.

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