Category Archives: WPTF News

Jane Goodall, conservationist renowned for chimpanzee research and environmental advocacy, has died

Jane Goodall, conservationist renowned for chimpanzee research and environmental advocacy, has died

Jane Goodall, the conservationist renowned for her groundbreaking chimpanzee field research and globe-spanning environmental advocacy, has died. She was 91. While living among chimpanzees in Africa decades ago, Goodall documented the animals using tools and doing other activities previously believed to be exclusive to humans. She also noted their distinct personalities. Her observations and subsequent magazine and documentary appearances in the 1960s transformed how the world perceived not only humans’ closest living biological relatives but also the emotional and social complexity of all animals, while propelling her into the public consciousness.… Continue Reading

ACC bets on being 1st league in college football to bring TV viewers inside live replay reviews

ACC bets on being 1st league in college football to bring TV viewers inside live replay reviews

The Atlantic Coast Conference is bringing TV viewers somewhere they’ve never been before: inside live replay reviews during college football games. The league and broadcast partner ESPN are now airing audio feeds of the in-game conversations between officials at the stadium and at the league’s replay command center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The ACC has used it in seven games so far. It also will be used in Saturday night’s matchup between No. 3 Miami and No. 18 Florida State on ABC. ESPN vice president of sports production Bryan Jaroch says he hopes to expand this to other conferences.… Continue Reading

Dabo Swinney relishes the chance to face Bill Belichick despite a matchup that has lost its luster

Dabo Swinney relishes the chance to face Bill Belichick despite a matchup that has lost its luster

Dabo Swinney is excited to coach against Bill Belichick on Saturday when Clemson faces North Carolina in Chapel Hill. Despite both teams’ rough starts, Swinney sees this as a unique opportunity. It’s only the second time in college football history that a coach with multiple national championships faces another with multiple Super Bowl titles. Swinney’s Tigers have struggled, starting 1-3, while Belichick’s Tar Heels have also been a disappointment. The game was expected to be played in prime time, but instead will be a noon kickoff, with rapper Ludacris performing a pregame concert at 9:40 a.m.… Continue Reading

Bermuda lashed by distant hurricane and prepares for the stronger Imelda

Bermuda lashed by distant hurricane and prepares for the stronger Imelda

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The outer bands of Hurricane Humberto are lashing Bermuda ahead of a more direct pass from the stronger Hurricane Imelda on the tiny British territory. Humberto is passing well north of the island in the north Atlantic, but wind gusts and some rain were forecast into Wednesday. Imelda had 85 mph winds late Tuesday and is forecast to strengthen. Its center is expected to be near the island Wednesday evening. A hurricane warning was in effect. The island’s international airport, schools and government offices were to close Wednesday. Both hurricanes were creating ocean swells that were likely to cause dangerous surf conditions on Bermuda, the Bahamas and the U.S. East Coast.… Continue Reading

5 homes collapse into the surf of the Outer Banks as hurricanes rumble in Atlantic

5 homes collapse into the surf of the Outer Banks as hurricanes rumble in Atlantic

Five unoccupied houses along North Carolina’s Outer Banks have collapsed into the ocean. Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda are far offshore but are churning the surf on the U.S. East Coast. The National Park Service says these are the latest private beachfront structures to fall in recent years. The homes that collapsed Tuesday were in the island community of Buxton. Video footage shows debris and entire homes being battered by waves on the shore. The park service warns more collapses are possible. North Carolina’s coast is eroding because of rising sea levels, with 17 houses in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore collapsing since 2020.… Continue Reading

Chunk, a 1,200-pound bear with a broken jaw, wins Alaska’s popular Fat Bear Week contest

Chunk, a 1,200-pound bear with a broken jaw, wins Alaska’s popular Fat Bear Week contest

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Chunk, a 1,200-pound behemoth with a broken jaw, swept the competition Tuesday in the popular Fat Bear Week contest — his first win after finishing in second place three previous years. The annual online competition allows viewers to follow 12 bears in Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve on live webcams as they fish for salmon, and then cast ballots in a bracket-style tournament that lasts a week. Chunk — known officially as Bear 32 — beat out Bear 856 for the crown. A glut of sockeye salmon fueled a memorable feast this summer for the contest, and more than 1.5 million people voted.… Continue Reading

Government headed to a shutdown after last-ditch vote fails in Senate

Government headed to a shutdown after last-ditch vote fails in Senate

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats have voted down a Republican bill to keep funding the government, putting it on a path to a shutdown after midnight Wednesday. The 55-45 vote Tuesday on the bill to extend federal funding for seven weeks fell short of the 60 needed to end a filibuster and pass the legislation. After the vote, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget issued a memo saying “affected agencies should now execute their plans for an orderly shutdown.” The action comes as Democrats are making good on their threat to close the government if President Donald Trump and Republicans won’t accede to their health care demands.… Continue Reading

Georgia farmers will get $531M in Hurricane Helene aid, but the deal’s not done yet

Georgia farmers will get $531M in Hurricane Helene aid, but the deal’s not done yet

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia farmers are still waiting for aid after Hurricane Helene, even as other states finalize agreements. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and Georgia officials announced $531 million for Georgia farmers on Tuesday. However, unlike South Carolina, Florida, North Carolina and Virginia, Georgia hasn’t completed an agreement on distributing the funds. Officials are still ironing out administrative details. The delays have frustrated farmers, who have faced financial stress and low crop prices. The September 2024 storm caused significant damage across several states, with Georgia’s poultry industry being a major target for additional aid.… Continue Reading

Pfizer agrees to lower prescription drug costs for Medicaid in a deal with Trump

Pfizer agrees to lower prescription drug costs for Medicaid in a deal with Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — Drugmaker Pfizer has agreed to lower drug costs under a deal struck with President Donald Trump’s administration. Trump made the announcement Tuesday with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla at the White House. The announcement comes as the Republican president has for months sought to lower drug costs and as Washington faces a possible federal government shutdown amid a standoff between Democrats and Republicans over health care and its costs. Trump says that under the agreement, New York-based Pfizer will charge most-favored-nation pricing to Medicaid and guarantee the same pricing on newly launched drugs. That involves matching the lowest price offered in other developed nations. Trump says similar deals will be struck with other drugmakers facing a threat of tariffs.… Continue Reading

Judge rejects claims of racial gerrymandering in North Carolina state Senate districts

Judge rejects claims of racial gerrymandering in North Carolina state Senate districts

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A federal judge has decided that two legislative districts in northeastern North Carolina can remain intact. Black voters argued that Republicans manipulated the boundaries to prevent them from electing their preferred candidates. U.S. District Judge James Dever sided on Tuesday with GOP leaders, stating that the plaintiffs failed to prove the lines diluted Black voting power. The case involved two state Senate districts approved in 2023. The lines include a region where African American population is high. The ruling could be appealed to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.… Continue Reading

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