Happy Saturday! Today’s edition is 919 words, a 3 minute read.

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Saturday’s Quick Hits

New Blood Test Could Diagnose Parkinson’s Before it Begins Damaging the Nervous System

Scientists have developed a test that can detect damage to mitochondrial DNA in the blood caused by Parkinson’s disease. Current diagnoses of the disease are based on clinical symptoms after significant neurological damage has already been done. Researchers hope the new test could be used to catch the disease before such damage occurs. They also hope the test can help identify drugs that will halt or reverse the mitochondrial DNA damage. (More)

Parenting advice YouTuber Ruby Franke arrested on suspicion of child abuse

Ruby Franke, a Youtuber who made videos about parenting advice, was arrested on suspicion of child abuse after her malnourished son escaped out of a window and ran to a neighbor’s house for help. The neighbor called the police after they saw duct tape on the boy’s ankles and wrists. Three more of Franke’s children were also found malnourished and are now in the custody of child protective services. (More)

August's hiring pace is steady, but not rip-roaring

The US job market is beginning to gradually cool, which is what the Federal Reserve was hoping for. The economy added 187,000 jobs in August, and wage growth continued to slowly decrease. If these trends continue, inflation may continue to decline in a way that won’t cause much pain for American workers. It also means the Fed could hold off on raising interest rates again at its next policy meeting in September. (More)

Hong Kong closes schools and cancels hundreds of flights as Typhoon Saola arrives

Schools and businesses were closed while hundreds of flights were canceled in southern China as Typhoon Saola swept near the coast. The storm was downgraded from a super typhoon to typhoon status. However a typhoon is still comparable to a category 4 hurricane, with winds reaching 140 mph. The storm will likely stay offshore and weaken, but it is still the strongest to hit the region in five years. (More)

ACC adds Stanford, Cal, SMU as new members beginning 2024-25

The Atlantic Coast Conference is expanding to include West Coast schools. With the addition of Stanford, Cal, and SMU, the conference will now consist of 18 teams. The additions include all sports and will begin in the 2024-2025 season. (More)

Biden administration proposes new nursing home staffing standards

Nursing homes will have to give each patient 33 minutes of care per day under the new staffing standards proposed by the Biden administration. Facilities will also need to provide two hours and 27 minutes of care from a nurse aide per resident each day. The nursing home industry has said that a policy like this would be impossible to implement without more funding. However, organized labor representatives in Congress have accused operators of diverting funds to themselves and away from patient care. (More)

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Weekly Dose of Positive

Son stolen at birth hugs Chilean mother for first time in 42 years

Forty-two years ago, a hospital took María Angélica González’s son right after she gave birth to him and later told her that he died. However, recently, Thyden was able to track down his mother with the help of the non-profit Nos Buscamos, which has helped 450 Chileans reunite with their families. He said “they took 42 years from us but not 43,” as they hugged each other for the first time. (More)

Stray Dog Escapes Michigan Shelter 3 Times in Order to Find New Home Among Elderly Care Facility

A stray dog named Scout escaped from a shelter three times in pursuit of a permanent home. Each time he climbed a 10-foot security fence and a 6-foot privacy fence en route to an assisted living facility located nearby. After the third escape, shelter employees asked the facility if they’d like to keep the dog. Scout had already endeared himself to the residents, and the insisted he stayed. (More)

Lego to sell bricks coded with braille to help vision-impaired children read

Lego will begin selling lego brick coded with Braille to help blind and vision-impaired kids learn how to read. They have been giving the specialized bricks to certain blind schools and services since 2020 for free but will now offer the toys to the public. The bricks have studs that correspond to the Braille version of numbers and letters and come with ideas for educational games that families can play together. (More)

Arizona cop, retired paramedic save baby who stopped breathing

An Arizona police officer was dealing with a non-compliant passenger when he heard a mother screaming for help. Officer Shaquille Perez saw that the mother’s child wasn’t breathing, took it in his arms, and began patting it on the back. A nearby retired paramedic assisted him, and they were able to resuscitate the child. (More)

Godmanchester woman completes solo Channel swim using arms alone

A woman with fibromyalgia competed a solo swim across the English Channel to raise awareness for swimmers with disabilities. Sophie Etheridge is largely confined to a wheelchair due to the pain from her condition. She completed the swim using only her arms in 29 hours. It is believed to be the longest duration for a chanel swim on record. (More)

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