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Where's Santa? Follow his route on the NORAD tracker as he travels around the worldWhether you bought a ticket yourself or got some as a stocking stuffer, could that $1.15 billion Mega Millions jackpot have your name on it? The odds may be against you − like 1 in 302.6 million − but that doesn't mean you can't prepare. If there is a winner, Mega Millions jackpot would be the fifth-largest jackpot in Mega Millions history, making the take-home prize a lump-sum payment of an estimated $516.1 million after taxes. How do you even begin to get ready for a windfall like that? The "smartest thing" you can do, in the event that you do win, is keep calm and carry on, financial advisers shared with USA TODAY back in March. And avoid posting any and all details of your win on social media. "If you’re lucky enough to win the lottery, keep it quiet," Rob Burnette, an Ohio-based financial adviser at Outlook Financial Center. "Get organized and make a plan. Consider staying anonymous, if it’s a possibility.” Who, if anyone, do I tell about my Mega Millions win? If you find yourself in a situation where you stand to inherit millions of dollars, the best people to get in touch with financial experts right off the bat so scammers don't get the chance to bleed you dry before you even get the chance to cash in. Holiday deals: Shop this season’s top products and sales curated by our editors. "Crooks usually try to get you to wire money for 'taxes' or 'fees,' or may try to get you to provide them with a bank account number, which they will then clean out," Mega Millions said. "No real lottery tells winners to put up their own money in order to collect a prize they have already won." No Mega Millions representative would ever call, text, or e-mail anyone about winning a prize so be especially wary of who contact you out of the blue. In certain states, you can remain anonymous if you win . Steve Azoury, owner of Azoury Financial in Troy, Michigan, who has advised many lottery winners, including a $181 million winner "who said ‘If I didn’t know you before, I don’t want to know you now.’” "Get a tax attorney and a tax accountant right off the bat and then a financial adviser,” according to Azoury. “They’ll work hand in hand to figure out the plan.” The "plan" will help you get some things squared away, such as whether you will opt to take an immediate cash payout, or if you'd prefer the cash distributed over time. The difference between the two is outlined below: The decision, though, will likely depend on your goals, your age, and what lottery rules are for beneficiaries to continue receiving payments, or if you’d likely squander a lump sum. The size of the lottery winning as well as your current and projected earnings are some things to consider, according to Mark Steber, chief tax officer at Jackson Hewitt. Get expert advice: How do I find a financial advisor? These top firms can help with financial planning. Your financial expert, or experts can also help you find a "fall guy," a person or adviser "who keeps you from giving loans to anybody, who tells people all the money’s tied up in investments, not available," Azoury said. "We have nothing available to help you out, and we’re not interested in your project.” How do I decide what to do with my Mega Millions win? Only you and your financial adviser, or advisers can help you figure out the best way to protect you and your money. Most people won't claim their prize right away, taking some time to figure out a plan that's right for them. Mega Millions claim periods, which ranges from 90 days to one year from the drawing date, varies from state to state. "Winning tickets must be redeemed in the state in which they were purchased, but lotteries typically have a claim-by-mail option for most prize levels," Mega Millions said. But it might be in your best interest to "park" the earnings until you are able to hire and meet with a financial adviser, tax accountant and attorney that's right for you. "One suggestion would be putting your winnings in a brokerage account, as many brokerage firms can spread the cash deposits across multiple banks," according to Azoury. "Within one brokerage account, up to $4 million can be insured, if single, and up to $8 million can be insured on a joint account." How much of my Mega Millions win will I take home? And when do I get it? The exact amount you stand to net will vary, depending on the state you win the Mega Millions jackpot in. Lottery-related regulations and laws are different from state to state. While there is no hard and fast timeframe for the claimed prize to make its way to you, it shouldn't take more than a "couple of weeks," Azoury said. You’ll likely be propelled into the highest federal tax bracket , if you win the lottery. The state where you live and the place where you bought the winning ticket can greatly impact what you pay in taxes and how many, if any other states you will have to file taxes in. California is one a dozen states, including Alaska, Delaware, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming, that does not tax lottery winnings. “This is where a tax professional really comes in handy,” Steber says. “State taxes can be very tricky. When is the next Mega Millions drawing? And how do I play? The next drawing, where the winning numbers for the $1.15 billion jackpot will be determined, is Friday, Dec. 27 at 11 p.m. ET. Mega Millions drawings take place every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. ET. Tickets are available up to 15 minutes before the drawing takes place. In order to win the jackpot, you must match all six winning numbers in a drawing. That being said, players may pick up to six numbers from two separate number pools. Five of the numbers will come from white balls whose numbers range between 1 to 70 and the last number will come from the gold Mega Ball whose numbers range between 1 and 25. Players may also select the "Easy Pick" or "Quick Pick" options, which will have the computer randomly generate six-number sequence. The " Megaplier ," a $1 add-on feature, that can increase non-jackpot prizes by 2, 3, 4 or 5 times. Before each regular Mega Millions drawing, the Megaplier is drawn. From a pool of 15 balls, six are marked with "3X," five are marked with "2X," three with "4X" and one with "5X." Where can I buy lottery tickets? Lottery tickets can be found and purchased from local convenience stores, gas stations, grocery stores or purchased online − in a handful of states. Some airport terminals may even sell lottery tickets, too. You can also order tickets online through Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network , in these U.S. states and territories: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Texas, Washington, D.C., and West Virginia. The Jackpocket app allows you to pick your lottery game and numbers, place your order, see your ticket and collect your winnings all using your phone or home computer. Jackpocket is the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network. Gannett may earn revenue for audience referrals to Jackpocket services. Must be 18+, 21+ in AZ and 19+ in NE. Not affiliated with any State Lottery. Gambling Problem? Call 1-877-8-HOPE-NY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY); 1-800-327-5050 (MA); 1-877-MYLIMIT (OR); 1-800-981-0023 (PR); 1-800-GAMBLER (all others). Visit jackpocket.com/tos for full terms. Contributing: Emily DeLetter and Fernando Cervantes; USA TODAY
Chelsea suffered their worst Premier League collapse of the 2000s in their shock 2-1 home loss to Fulham at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day. Victory for Enzo Maresca 's team in the West London derby would have cut the gap to leaders Liverpool to just one point, albeit having played two more games than the Reds. Chelsea's quest for three points against their near neighbours kicked off on the right foot, as Cole Palmer guided home an exquisite side-footed opener after evading a couple of challenges. The England international broke a Chelsea goalscoring record with his sublime strike at Stamford Bridge, but his 26th Premier League goal of 2024 would not be a precursor for a dominant derby win. A late leveller from Harry Wilson preceded a last-gasp winner from Rodrigo Muniz , who sent the away end into pandemonium in the fifth minute of added time as Fulham won a league game away to Chelsea for the first time in 45 years. Chelsea were a goal to the good until Wilson struck with eight minutes of normal time remaining, and Thursday's loss marked the first time since October 1999 that they have lost a Premier League game where they were leading up to the 82nd minute. On that occasion, the Blues were coincidentally also at home to another London rival in the shape of Arsene Wenger 's Arsenal, taking a 2-0 lead inside the hour mark thanks to Tore Andre Flo and Dan Petrescu . However, Kanu cut the deficit in half in the 75th minute, before drawing Arsenal level in the 83rd and completing a stunning hat-trick on the 90-minute mark against Gianluca Vialli 's Chelsea. An absent attacker stole the pre-game headlines at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day, as Noni Madueke was left out of the squad entirely after being given just 14 minutes in the goalless draw with Everton at the weekend. Instead, Maresca selected Tyrique George and Marc Guiu to fill the empty spots on the bench, as well as calling up third-choice goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli alongside number two Filip Jorgensen . Explaining Madueke's snub, Maresca simply stated that the winger's absence was a 'technical decision', although he has not been shy to criticise the England international in the past. Madueke started 11 Premier League games on the bounce before being demoted for the 3-0 win over Aston Villa in early December, although the 22-year-old still came off the bench to register an assist that day. On that day, Maresca openly admitted that Madueke's attitude to training was poor, and he is seemingly fighting an uphill battle to return to the fold for Monday's trip to Ipswich Town. Chelsea' loss coupled with Liverpool's 3-1 win over Leicester City later in the day saw the Blues fall seven points behind the Reds in the Premier League table , and they will also be leapfrogged by Arsenal if the Gunners beat Ipswich Town on Friday.
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Fiction writers have explored some possibilities. In his 2019 novel “Fall,” science fiction author Neal Stephenson imagined a near future in which the internet still exists. But it has become so polluted with misinformation, disinformation and advertising that it is largely unusable. Characters in Stephenson’s novel deal with this problem by subscribing to “edit streams” – human-selected news and information that can be considered trustworthy. The drawback is that only the wealthy can afford such bespoke services, leaving most of humanity to consume low-quality, noncurated online content. To some extent, this has already happened: Many news organizations, such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, have placed their curated content behind paywalls. Meanwhile, misinformation festers on social media platforms like X and TikTok. Stephenson’s record as a prognosticator has been impressive – he anticipated the metaverse in his 1992 novel “Snow Crash,” and a key plot element of his “Diamond Age,” released in 1995, is an interactive primer that functions much like a chatbot. On the surface, chatbots seem to provide a solution to the misinformation epidemic. By dispensing factual content, chatbots could supply alternative sources of high-quality information that aren’t cordoned off by paywalls. Ironically, however, the output of these chatbots may represent the greatest danger to the future of the web – one that was hinted at decades earlier by Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges. The rise of the chatbots Today, a significant fraction of the internet still consists of factual and ostensibly truthful content, such as articles and books that have been peer-reviewed, fact-checked or vetted in some way. The developers of large language models, or LLMs – the engines that power bots like ChatGPT, Copilot and Gemini – have taken advantage of this resource. To perform their magic, however, these models must ingest immense quantities of high-quality text for training purposes. A vast amount of verbiage has already been scraped from online sources and fed to the fledgling LLMs. The problem is that the web, enormous as it is, is a finite resource. High-quality text that hasn’t already been strip-mined is becoming scarce, leading to what The New York Times called an “emerging crisis in content.” This has forced companies like OpenAI to enter into agreements with publishers to obtain even more raw material for their ravenous bots. But according to one prediction, a shortage of additional high-quality training data may strike as early as 2026. As the output of chatbots ends up online, these second-generation texts – complete with made-up information called “hallucinations,” as well as outright errors, such as suggestions to put glue on your pizza – will further pollute the web. And if a chatbot hangs out with the wrong sort of people online, it can pick up their repellent views. Microsoft discovered this the hard way in 2016, when it had to pull the plug on Tay, a bot that started repeating racist and sexist content. Over time, all of these issues could make online content even less trustworthy and less useful than it is today. In addition, LLMs that are fed a diet of low-calorie content may produce even more problematic output that also ends up on the web. An infinite − and useless − library It’s not hard to imagine a feedback loop that results in a continuous process of degradation as the bots feed on their own imperfect output. A July 2024 paper published in Nature explored the consequences of training AI models on recursively generated data. It showed that “irreversible defects” can lead to “model collapse” for systems trained in this way – much like an image’s copy and a copy of that copy, and a copy of that copy, will lose fidelity to the original image. How bad might this get? Consider Borges’ 1941 short story “The Library of Babel.” Fifty years before computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee created the architecture for the web, Borges had already imagined an analog equivalent. In his 3,000-word story, the writer imagines a world consisting of an enormous and possibly infinite number of hexagonal rooms. The bookshelves in each room hold uniform volumes that must, its inhabitants intuit, contain every possible permutation of letters in their alphabet. Initially, this realization sparks joy: By definition, there must exist books that detail the future of humanity and the meaning of life. The inhabitants search for such books, only to discover that the vast majority contain nothing but meaningless combinations of letters. The truth is out there –but so is every conceivable falsehood. And all of it is embedded in an inconceivably vast amount of gibberish. Even after centuries of searching, only a few meaningful fragments are found. And even then, there is no way to determine whether these coherent texts are truths or lies. Hope turns into despair. Will the web become so polluted that only the wealthy can afford accurate and reliable information? Or will an infinite number of chatbots produce so much tainted verbiage that finding accurate information online becomes like searching for a needle in a haystack? The internet is often described as one of humanity’s great achievements. But like any other resource, it’s important to give serious thought to how it is maintained and managed – lest we end up confronting the dystopian vision imagined by Borges. Roger J Kreuz is Associate Dean and Professor of Psychology, University of Memphis. The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.
BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 9, 2024-- Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) (“Smartsheet” or the “Company”), the AI enhanced enterprise grade work management platform, today announced that Smartsheet shareholders overwhelmingly approved the Merger Proposal for the Company’s proposed acquisition by funds managed by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners. This approval satisfies the shareholder vote condition for the consummation of the acquisition, originally announced in September 2024. In addition, shareholders also voted in favor of the executive compensation plan related to the acquisition, further validating their support for the Company's leadership and strategic direction. Smartsheet will disclose the final vote results on a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Following the approval of the Merger Proposal, the acquisition remains subject to other customary closing conditions, including certain regulatory approvals that are proceeding in the normal course. Assuming the satisfaction of necessary closing conditions, the acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter of Smartsheet’s fiscal year ending January 31, 2025, or shortly thereafter. About Smartsheet Smartsheet is the modern enterprise work management platform trusted by millions of people at companies across the globe, including over 85% of the 2024 Fortune 500 companies. The category pioneer and market leader, Smartsheet delivers powerful solutions fueling performance and driving the next wave of innovation. Visit www.smartsheet.com to learn more. Forward-Looking Statements This communication may contain forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including, among other things, statements regarding the ability of the parties to complete the proposed transaction and the expected timing of completion of the proposed transaction; the prospective performance and outlook of Smartsheet’s business, performance and opportunities; as well as any assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. When used in this communication, or any other documents, words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “forecast,” “goal,” “objective,” “plan,” “project,” “seek,” “strategy,” “target,” and similar expressions should be considered forward-looking statements made in good faith by Smartsheet, as applicable, and are intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of management at the time that these statements were prepared and are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that could cause Smartsheet’s actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties related to: (i) the risk that the proposed transaction may not be completed in a timely manner or at all; (ii) the possibility that competing offers or acquisition proposals for Smartsheet will be made; (iii) the possibility that any of the various conditions to the consummation of the proposed transaction may not be satisfied or waived, including the failure to receive any required regulatory approvals from any applicable governmental entities; (iv) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement, including in circumstances that would require Smartsheet to pay a termination fee or other expenses; (v) the effect of the pendency of the proposed transaction on Smartsheet’s ability to retain and hire key personnel, its ability to maintain relationships with its customers, suppliers and others with whom it does business, its business generally or its stock price; (vi) risks related to diverting management’s attention from Smartsheet’s ongoing business operations or the loss of one or more members of the management team; (vii) the risk that shareholder litigation in connection with the proposed transaction may result in significant costs of defense, indemnification and liability; (viii) Smartsheet’s ability to achieve future growth and sustain its growth rate; (ix) Smartsheet’s ability to attract and retain talent; (x) Smartsheet’s ability to attract and retain customers (including government customers) and increase sales to its customers; (xi) Smartsheet’s ability to develop and release new products and services and to scale its platform; (xii) Smartsheet’s ability to increase adoption of its platform through its self-service model; (xiii) Smartsheet’s ability to maintain and grow its relationships with channel and strategic partners; (xiv) the highly competitive and rapidly evolving market in which it participates; (xv) Smartsheet’s ability to identify targets for, execute on, or realize the benefits of, potential acquisitions; and (xvi) its international expansion strategies. Further information on risks that could affect Smartsheet’s results is included in its filings with the SEC, including its most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2024, and any current reports on Form 8-K that it may file from time to time. Should any of these risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could differ materially from expectations. Except as required by applicable law, Smartsheet assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update or supplement any such forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, new information, future events, changes in its expectations or other circumstances that exist after the date of this communication. View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241209789684/en/ CONTACT: Investor Relations Contact Aaron Turner investorrelations@smartsheet.com Media Contact FGS Global Smartsheet@FGSGlobal.com KEYWORD: WASHINGTON UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: PROFESSIONAL SERVICES DATA MANAGEMENT APPS/APPLICATIONS TECHNOLOGY OTHER TECHNOLOGY SOFTWARE FINANCE SOURCE: Smartsheet Copyright Business Wire 2024. PUB: 12/09/2024 04:27 PM/DISC: 12/09/2024 04:27 PM http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241209789684/enWASHINGTON − The State Department's Global Engagement Center, the highly touted nerve center for coordinating U.S. efforts to counter foreign disinformation – especially by Russia and China – shut down this week after becoming a lightning rod for conservative criticism. The mission of the GEC, as it is commonly known, was to “direct, lead, synchronize, integrate, and coordinate” the U.S. campaign against propaganda and disinformation efforts aimed at undermining or influencing the policies, security and stability of the U.S. and its allies. But the GEC, with a relatively tiny $60 million budget and staff of 120, was first criticized in 2023 by Elon Musk , the multibillionaire advisor to President-elect Donald Trump , as the " worst offender in U.S. government censorship & media manipulation." More: 'President-elect Musk': Elon's influence on display in government spending fight The GEC was initially included in a stopgap bill to fund the government past a Dec. 20 deadline , but GOP lawmakers deleted it from a last-minute bill ultimately passed by Congress. A State Department spokesperson said the GEC "will terminate by operation of law [by the end of the day] on December 23, 2024. The Department of State has consulted with Congress regarding next steps," the AFP news agency reported. GEC's origins in countering terrorist propaganda The GEC evolved from the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications, established by the Obama administration in 2011 to counter online extremist recruitment and propaganda. An Obama 2016 executive order created the GEC to broaden its mission to include fighting disinformation by state and non-state actors. The GEC soon began to focus primarily on using high-tech tools such as social media analytics to identify and counter disinformation campaigns by Moscow and Beijing that were increasingly targeting Washington and its allies. It sought to broaden its impact by working with other U.S. agencies, foreign allies and the private sector. ‘Calling out China’ – and Russia too A Sept. 28, 2023 report by the GEC called out China for spending billions of dollars annually on foreign manipulation efforts. It detailed how Beijing employed “a variety of deceptive and coercive methods as it attempts to influence the international information environment.” The report said China extensively pushed propaganda , including through fake media and research papers "falsely blaming the United States for creating COVID-19." Those efforts falsely promoted China and the Chinese Communist Party's "desired narratives on issues such as Taiwan, its human rights practices, the South China Sea, its domestic economy, and international economic engagement.” More broadly, the GEC report said, China sought to leverage propaganda, censorship and “digital authoritarianism” to encourage foreign governments, journalists and civil society at large to accept its preferred narratives and avoid criticizing its conduct as it sought more influence on the global stage. The GEC also has published numerous hard-hitting criticisms of Russia. In 2020, the GEC has detailed how Russia spread conspiracy theories during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has called out the Kremlin for trying to sow chaos in U.S. And it has exposed Russian attempts to destabilize U.S. influence in Africa by spreading false claims about U.S. health programs. In September, it called out Moscow and its state-run media organization RT for using propaganda, disinformation – and sophisticated “cyber capabilities” – to sway the global community on issues like its war against Ukraine. More: Lara Trump, Kari Lake, other notable Republicans appeared on podcasts accused of Russia tie That effort by RT involved not only information operations but also covert influence and even military procurement efforts in targeting countries around the world, including in Europe, Africa, and North and South America, the GEC said in a Sept. 13 report. “When state or non-state actors spread disinformation, material deliberately meant to deceive or divide our public, they attack the very foundations of our free and open society,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in releasing the report. He laid out specific steps the Biden administration was taking “to hold accountable those who weaponize disinformation to undermine our democracy,” including coordinated crackdowns by the State, Justice and Treasury departments . In January, the GEC spearheaded an agreement to counter state-run disinformation campaigns that’s now backed by at least 21 countries including Spain, Poland, Finland and the West African nation of Côte d’Ivoire – and that could enable them to also create their own versions at home. Funding for the GEC ran into congressional opposition in 2024 by Republican lawmakers who claimed it was overstepping its authority by trying to silence conservative voices in the U.S. including pro-Trump influencers. Three ranking House Republicans wrote Blinken in July to accuse the GEC of straying from its statutory duty to counter propaganda and disinformation abroad. “Your Department refuses to acknowledge that ... any value the GEC provides is tempered by genuine concerns that the GEC is at best indifferent to, and at worst complicit in, an orchestrated and systematic effort to stretch the term ‘disinformation’ to encompass viewpoints that, among American progressives, are deemed to be politically disfavored or inconvenient...” the lawmakers wrote. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who co-authored the 2016 legislation that established the center, said such criticisms were unwarranted and politically motivated. He led the effort to save it from GOP shutdown , along with Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn. Former Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman is also a staunch supporter . “[The GEC] has played an indispensable role in combating Russian and Chinese disinformation,” Murphy said in October. “It would unnecessarily undermine U.S. national security if we eliminated this tool.” When Trump won a second term on Nov. 5, Republicans also retained control of the House and retook the Senate. The GEC tweeted its last on Dec. 18, praising the European Union for its “first-time use of designations under its Russia hybrid sanctions framework.” On Tuesday, the day before Christmas, the site went offline with this message: “This account is no longer in use as of 12/23/2024. For updates on the U.S. Department of State, please follow @StateDept .”Opening Ceremony Of The 2024 Rainforest And You Experience Event And Rainforest Time - La'omen Rainforest Harvest Festival Held In Baisha
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Though the game was actually pretty competitive for prolonged stretches on Sunday afternoon at U.S. Bank Stadium, the Vikings imposed their will in the final quarter to run away with a 42-21 win over the Atlanta Falcons. ADVERTISEMENT It was a masterful performance from Sam Darnold in a game against the man he replaced. It wasn’t as good of a game for Kirk Cousins as he struggled to make much of an impact against his former team. Here are five takeaways from the Vikings’ 42-21 win over the Falcons: There were audible “MVP! MVP! MVP!” chants as the game between the Vikings and Falcons wound to a close. They were for Darnold, who completed 22 of 28 passes for 347 yards and five touchdowns, proving that the Vikings are legitimate Super Bowl contenders with him at the helm. There aren’t many quarterbacks in the NFL that have played better than Darnold over the past month. In that span, Darnold has completed 85 of 125 passes for 1,158 yards and 11 touchdowns, while leading the Vikings to a 4-0 record. ADVERTISEMENT Will he actually win MVP? Not likely. Does he deserve to be in the conversation? Absolutely. Never mind that Cousins put up some prolific numbers, completing 23 of 37 passes for 344 yards. He also threw a pair of interceptions and failed to keep the game competitive. There were countless games while he was playing for the Vikings that featured a similar script. It was commonplace for Cousins to pad his stats in garbage time of a game that he had no chance of winning. Now, that’s a problem the Falcons are navigating in real time. After some strong play from Cousins earlier this season, he has regressed over the past month, and as a result, the Falcons have an 0-4 record in that span. ADVERTISEMENT The dynamic duo of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison rewrote the record books for the Vikings in the win over the Falcons. They became the only players in franchise history to each record more than 100 yards receiving and a pair of touchdowns in the same game. That’s an insane stat considering Randy Moss and Cris Carter played together as did Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. In total, Jefferson finished with seven catches for 132 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Addison finished with eight catches for 133 yards and a trio of touchdowns. ADVERTISEMENT After being held in check last time out, Aaron Jones bounced back with a solid effort for the Vikings against the Falcons. He was extremely effective carrying the ball and finished with 13 rushes for 73 yards and a touchdown. The fact that Jones was able to find pay dirt late in the game was a nice reward for him, considering he was an unsung hero on offense. As explosive as the Vikings proved to be throughout the air, Jones provided a nice changeup on the ground, which helped in chewing up clock down the stretch. As somebody who had a lot of success in the final month of last season, Jones is well on his way to replicating that this season. Though the defense for the Vikings struggled at times, allowing nearly 500 yards of total offense, it also stepped up a couple of times to force key turnovers. ADVERTISEMENT Whether it was Josh Metellus recording an interception early, or Byron Murphy with an interception late, the defense needed both of them to help turn the tide in the game. There was also an important forced fumble from Brian Asamoah on special teams that ended up being recovered by C.J. Ham. On the flip side, the Vikings did not turn the ball over on offense, which helped them pull away in the final frame. ______________________________________________________ This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. Forum Communications Company uses content from agencies such as Reuters, Kaiser Health News, Tribune News Service and others to provide a wider range of news to our readers. Learn more about the news services FCC uses here .As the leaves fall, the heat goes on, the temperatures drop and the sweaters and jackets are pulled from storage, it’s also a great time to think about making a pot of soup. Soup is one of the best comfort foods, perfect for those New England fall and winter days. Whether you fancy clam or corn chowder, a roasted butternut squash soup, a classic Italian sausage orzo or something unique like lasagna soup, there’s a special place in everyone’s heart for that big pot on the stove. We have found five recipes that are sure to make your mouth water. No matter what soup preference you may have, you’ll find something to cook for the whole family. This recipe is by Allrecipes.com . Ingredients Directions This recipe is by Allrecipes.com . Ingredients Directions This recipe is by Allrecipes.com . Ingredients Noodles: Soup Base: Cheese Mixture: Garnish: Directions This recipe is by juliasalbum.com . Ingredients Directions This recipe is by Allrecipes.com . Ingredients Directions
JERUSALEM — A new round of Israeli airstrikes in Yemen on Thursday targeted the Houthi rebel-held capital and multiple ports, while the World Health Organization’s director-general said the bombardment occurred nearby as he prepared to board a flight in Sanaa, with a crew member injured. “The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on the social media platform X. He added that he and U.N. colleagues were safe. “We will need to wait for the damage to the airport to be repaired before we can leave,” he said, without mentioning the source of the bombardment. U.N. spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay later said the injured person was with the U.N. Humanitarian Air Service. Israel’s army later told The Associated Press it wasn’t aware that the WHO chief or delegation was at the location in Yemen. The Israeli strikes followed several days of Houthi launches setting off sirens in Israel. The Israeli military in a statement said it attacked infrastructure used by the Iran-backed Houthis at the international airport in Sanaa and ports in Hodeida, Al-Salif and Ras Qantib, along with power stations, asserting they were used to smuggle in Iranian weapons and for the entry of senior Iranian officials. Israel’s military added it had “capabilities to strike very far from Israel’s territory — precisely, powerfully, and repetitively.” The strikes, carried out over 1,000 miles from Jerusalem, came a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “the Houthis, too, will learn what Hamas and Hezbollah and Assad’s regime and others learned” as his military has battled those more powerful proxies of Iran. The Houthi-controlled satellite channel al-Masirah reported multiple deaths and showed broken windows, collapsed ceilings and a bloodstained floor and vehicle. Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the strikes. The U.S. military also has targeted the Houthis in recent days. The U.N. has said the targeted ports are important entryways for humanitarian aid for Yemen, the poorest Arab nation that plunged into a civil war in 2014 . Over the weekend, 16 people were wounded when a Houthi missile hit a playground in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv , while other missiles and drones have been shot down. Last week, Israeli jets struck Sanaa and Hodeida, killing nine people, calling it a response to previous Houthi attacks. The Houthis also have been targeting shipping on the Red Sea corridor, calling it solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The U.N. Security Council has an emergency meeting Monday in response to an Israeli request that it condemn the Houthi attacks and Iran for supplying them weapons. 5 journalists killed in Gaza Meanwhile, an Israeli strike killed five Palestinian journalists outside a hospital in Gaza overnight , the territory’s Health Ministry said. The Israeli military said all were militants posing as reporters. The strike hit a car outside Al-Awda Hospital in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. The journalists were working for local news outlet Al-Quds Today, a television channel affiliated with the Islamic Jihad militant group. Islamic Jihad is a smaller and more extreme ally of Hamas and took part in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack in southern Israel that ignited the war. Israel’s military identified four of the men as combat propagandists and said that intelligence, including a list of Islamic Jihad operatives found by soldiers in Gaza, had confirmed that all five were affiliated with the group. Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian militant groups operate political, media and charitable operations in addition to their armed wings. Associated Press footage showed the incinerated shell of a van, with press markings visible on the back doors. Sobbing young men attended the funeral. The bodies were wrapped in shrouds, with blue press vests draped over them. The Committee to Protect Journalists says more than 130 Palestinian reporters have been killed since the start of the war. Israel hasn’t allowed foreign reporters to enter Gaza except on military embeds. Israel has banned the pan-Arab Al Jazeera network and accused six of its Gaza reporters of being militants . The Qatar-based broadcaster denies the allegations and accuses Israel of trying to silence its war coverage, which has focused heavily on civilian casualties from Israeli military operations. Another Israeli soldier killed Separately, Israel’s military said a 35-year-old reserve soldier was killed during fighting in central Gaza. A total of 389 soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the start of the ground operation. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed across the border, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. About 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead. Israel’s air and ground offensive has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry. It says more than half the fatalities have been women and children, but doesn’t say how many of the dead were fighters. Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The offensive has caused widespread destruction and hunger and driven around 90% of the population of 2.3 million from their homes. Hundreds of thousands are packed into squalid camps along the coast, with little protection from the cold, wet winter. Also Thursday, people mourned eight Palestinians killed by Israeli military operations in and around Tulkarem in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli military said it opened fire after militants attacked soldiers, and it was aware of uninvolved civilians who were harmed in the raid. Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip. Associated Press writers Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report. A previous version of this story was corrected to show that the name of the local news outlet is Al-Quds Today, not the Quds News Network. Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war‘Relentlessly lying’: Elon slams SMH after scathing op-ed