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Bill Belichick's Girlfriend Is Leaving Notable Clues On Social MediaST. LOUIS — Matvei Michkov scored 26 seconds into overtime and the Philadelphia Flyers beat the St. Louis Blues 3-2 on Saturday night. Owen Tippett and Tyson Foerster also scored for Philadelphia, and Aleksei Kolosov had 25 saves. Dylan Holloway and Jake Neighbours scored for St. Louis. Jordan Binnington finished with 28 saves. Neighbours tied the score with 19 seconds left in regulation, putting in a loose puck from just outside the crease. Tippett tapped in the puck from the right side after a pass from Michkov at 9:15 of the first period. Holloway tied it 1-1 with 8:49 remaining in the third, and Foerster scored on a rebound to put the Flyers back ahead 51 seconds later. Takeaways Flyers: Veteran Sean Couturier ended a four-game point streak (three goals, two assists). Philadelphia Flyers right wing Tyson Foerster, center, has a shot blocked by St. Louis Blues defenseman Justin Faulk, right, during the first period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in St. Louis. Credit: AP/Jeff Le Blues: Defenseman Philip Broberg was back on the ice on day after coming off injured reserve after recovering from a lower body injury and missing 12 games. He was hurt in a game against Toronto on Nov. 2. Key moment Binnington recorded two eye-popping saves late in the second period with the Blues trailing 1-0. Binnington was sprawled in the crease blocking a backhand shot by Tracy Konecny with 1:02 remaining. Sean Couturier nabbed the loose puck, but a prone Binnington made an acrobatic glove save on the goal line seconds later to prevent a sure goal. Key stat The Flyers are 4-0-1 in their last five games, with three of them going into overtime. Since their victory over the Blues on Halloween night, Philadelphia has gone 8-3-2. Up next Blues visit Winnipeg to begin a four-game trip, and Flyers host Florida on Thursday. St. Louis Blues defenseman Justin Faulk, left, pressures Philadelphia Flyers center Morgan Frost, right, during the first period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in St. Louis. Credit: AP/Jeff Le __ AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHLLes Ferdinand blasts Spurs lack of ‘urgency’ as video emerges of ugly scenes between Ange & supporters
Earth just experienced its second-warmest November on record — second only to 2023 — making it all but certain that 2024 will end as the hottest year ever measured, according to a report Monday by European climate service Copernicus. Last year was the hottest on record due to human-caused climate change coupled with the effects of an El Nino. But after this summer registered as the hottest on record — Phoenix sweltered through 113 consecutive days with a high temperature of at least 100 degrees Fahrenheit — scientists anticipated 2024 would set a new annual record as well. In November, global temperatures averaged 14.10C (57.38F). Last year's global average temperature was 14.98C (59F). FILE - People are silhouetted against the sky at sunset Nov. 12 as they run in a park in Shawnee, Kan. Jennifer Francis, a climate scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center in Cape Cod, who wasn't involved in the report, said the big story about November is that "like 2023, it beat out previous Novembers by a large margin." This also likely will be the first calendar year in which the average temperature was more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times, the report said. The 2015 Paris Agreement said human-caused warming should be limited to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and ideally below 1.5. In the following years, the world's top scientist said limiting to 1.5 was crucial to stave off the worst impacts of climate change, such as increasing destructive and frequent extreme weather events. Scientists say the main cause of climate change is the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas. That "does not mean that the Paris Agreement has been breached, but it does mean ambitious climate action is more urgent than ever," said Copernicus Deputy Director Samantha Burgess. A young family visiting Washington cools off from the warm weather in a fountain Nov. 6 at the base of the Washington Monument. Francis said the new records are "terrible news for people and ecosystems." "The pace of warming is so fast that plants and animals cannot adapt as they always have during previous changes in the Earth's climate. More species will go extinct, which disrupts natural food webs they're a part of. Agriculture will suffer as pollinators decline and pests flourish," she said, also warning that coastal communities will be vulnerable to sea-level rise. Heat waves over the oceans and a loss of reflective sea ice and snow cover probably contributed to the temperature increase this year, experts said. Copernicus said the extent of Antarctic sea ice in November was 10% below average, a record. Oceans absorb about 90% of the heat trapped by greenhouse gases, later releasing heat and water vapor back into the atmosphere. Last year's record heat was caused partly by an El Nino — a temporary natural warming of parts of the central Pacific that alters weather worldwide. People walk Nov. 27 on an autumn-colored ginkgo tree-lined avenue in Tokyo. But that ended this year and a cooling effect that often follows, called La Nina, failed to materialize, leaving the scientific community "a little perplexed by what's going on here ... why temperatures are staying high," said Jonathan Overpeck, a climate scientist at the University of Michigan. One explanation is that an El Nino releases more heat to the atmosphere because of warmer ocean waters, then "we're not getting the cooling effect that often in decades gone by helps bring the temperature back down," Overpeck said. "So it does look like this could be contributing to the acceleration of global warming. But this year, he said, "is such a big jump following yet another jump, and that's a scary thing." It's no secret that a warming world will drive food prices higher, a phenomenon increasingly known as " heatflation ." What's less known, but a growing area of interest among economists and scientists alike, is the role individual extreme weather events — blistering temperatures in Texas , a destructive tornado in Iowa — may have on what U.S. consumers pay at the supermarket. At first glance, the answer might seem logical: A drought or flood that impacts agricultural production will, eventually, drive up prices. But it's not that simple, because what consumers pay for groceries isn't only reflective of crop yields or herd sizes, but the whole supply chain. As Grist reports, that's where it gets interesting: Economists are beginning to see a growing trend that suggests weather forecasts play a part in sticker shock. Sometimes the mere prediction of an extreme event — like the record-breaking temperatures, hurricanes, and wildfires forecasters are bracing for this summer — can prompt a spike in prices. It isn't the forecast itself to blame, but concerns about what the weather to come might mean for the entire supply chain, as food manufacturers manage their risks and the expected future value of their goods, said Seungki Lee, an agricultural economist at Ohio State University. "When it comes to the climate risk on food prices, people typically look at the production side. But over the last two years, we learned that extreme weather can raise food prices, [cause] transportation disruptions, as well as production disruptions," said Lee. How much we pay for the food we buy is determined by retailers, who consider the producer's price, labor costs, and other factors. Any increases in what producers charge is typically passed on to consumers because grocery stores operate on thin profit margins. And if manufacturers expect to pay more for commodities like beef or specialty crops like avocados in the future, they may boost prices now to cover those anticipated increases. "The whole discussion about the climate risks on the food supply chain is based on probabilities," Lee said. "It is possible that we do not see extreme temperatures this summer, or even later this year. We may realize there was no significant weather shock hitting the supply chain, but unfortunately that will not be the end of the story." Supply chain disruptions and labor shortages are among the reasons food prices have climbed 25 percent since 2020 . Climate change may be contributing as well. A study published earlier this year found " heatflation " could push them up by as much as 3 percentage points per year worldwide in just over a decade and by about 2 percentage points in North America. Simultaneous disasters in major crop and cattle producing regions around the world — known as multi-breadbasket failure — are among the primary forces driving these costs. Crop shortages in these regions may also squeeze prices, which can create volatility in the global market and bump up consumer costs. Historically, a single, localized heat wave or storm typically wouldn't disrupt the supply chain enough to prompt price hikes. But a warming world might be changing that dynamic as extreme weather events intensify and simultaneous occurrences of them become the norm. How much this adds to consumers' grocery bills will vary, and depends upon whether these climate-fueled disasters hit what Lee calls "supply chain chokepoints" like vital shipping channels during harvest seasons. "As the weather is getting more and more volatile because of climate change, we are seeing this issue more frequently," he said. "So what that means is the supply chain is getting more likely to be jeopardized by these types of risks that we have never seen before." An ongoing drought that plagued the Mississippi River system from the fall of 2022 until February provides an excellent example of this. The Mississippi River basin, which covers 31 states, is a linchpin of America's agricultural supply chain. It produces 92 percent of the nation's agricultural exports, 78 percent of the world's feed grains and soybeans , and most of the country's livestock. Vessels navigating its roughly 2,350 miles of channels carry 589 million tons of cargo annually . Transportation barriers created by low water, seen above, hampered the ability of crop-producing states in the Corn Belt to send commodities like corn and soybeans, primarily used for cattle feed, to livestock producers in the South. Thus emerged a high demand, low supply situation as shipping and commodity prices shot up , with economists expecting consumers to absorb those costs . Past research showing that retail prices increase alongside commodity prices suggests that the drought probably contributed to higher overall food costs last year — and because droughts have a lingering impact on production even after they end, it may be fueling stubbornly high grocery prices today. But although it seems clear that the drought contributed to higher prices, particularly for meat and dairy products, just how much remains to be gauged. One reason for that is a lack of research analyzing the relationship between this particular weather event and the consumer market. Another is it's often difficult to tease out which of several possible factors, including global trade, war, and export bans , influence specific examples of sticker shock. While droughts definitely prompt decreases in agricultural production, Metin Çakır, an economist at the University of Minnesota, says whether that is felt by consumers depends on myriad factors. "This would mean higher raw ingredient costs for foods sold in groceries, and part of those higher costs will be passed onto consumers via higher prices. However, will consumer prices actually increase? The answer depends on many other supply and demand factors that might be happening at the same time as the impact of the drought," said Çakır. In a forthcoming analysis previewed by Grist, Çakır examined the relationship between an enduring drought in California, which produces a third of the nation's vegetables and nearly two-thirds of its fruits and nuts , and costs of produce purchased at large grocery retailers nationwide. While the event raised consumer vegetable prices to a statistically significant degree, they didn't increase as much as Çakır expected. This capricious consumer cost effect is due largely to the resiliency of America's food system . Public safety nets like crop insurance and other federal programs have played a large part in mitigating the impacts of adverse weather and bolstering the food supply chain against climate change and other shocks. By ensuring farmers and producers don't bear the brunt of those losses, these programs reduce the costs passed on to consumers. Advanced agricultural technology, modern infrastructure, substantial storage, and efficient transport links also help ensure retail price stability. A 2024 study of the role climate change played on the U.S. wheat market from 1950 to 2018 found that although the impact of weather shocks on price variability has increased with the frequency of extreme weather, adaptive mechanisms, like a well-developed production and distribution infrastructure with sufficient storage capacity, have minimized the impact on consumers. Still, the paper warns that such systems may collapse when faced with "unprecedented levels of weather variability." Last year was the world's warmest on record , creating an onslaught of challenges for crop and livestock producers nationwide. And this year is primed to be even more brutal , with the transition from El Niño — an atmospheric phenomenon that warms ocean temperatures — to La Niña , its counterpart that cools them. This cyclical change in global weather patterns is another potential threat for crop yields and source of supply chain pressures that economists and scientists are keeping an eye on. They will be particularly focused on the Midwest and stretches of the Corn Belt, two regions prone to drought as an El Niño cycle gives way to a La Niña, according to Weston Anderson, an assistant research scientist at the University of Maryland and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Those growing regions for corn and soybeans are what he'll be watching closely as La Niña develops. It's something Jennifer Ifft, an agricultural economist at Kansas State University, is also thinking about. "If you have a very severe drought in the Corn Belt ... that's going to be the biggest deal, because that's gonna raise the cost of production for cattle, hogs, poultry," said Ifft. "So that would probably have the largest inflationary impacts." As of January , U.S. beef herd inventory was at its lowest in 73 years, which multiple reports noted is due to the persisting drought that began in 2020 . Americans, the majority of whom are already spending more on groceries than last year, are poised to soon see "record" beef prices at the supermarket. Food prices are also expected to rise another 2.2 percent in 2024 , according to the USDA's Economic Research Service. In a world enmeshed in extremes, our already-fragile food supply chain could be the next system teetering on the edge of collapse because of human-caused climate change. And costlier groceries linked to impending risk is the first of many warning signs that it is already splintering. This story was produced by Grist and reviewed and distributed by Stacker Media. Get the daily forecast and severe weather alerts in your inbox!None
China makes magnetic levitation trains that travel faster than a plane and Elon Musk wants to get into the businessWith technical prowess and considerable style, Marta danced around two sliding defenders, outwitted a goalkeeper and calmly scored as another player rushed forward in desperation to stop her. It was more Marta Magic. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.‘End of an era’: What’s next for Matt Gaetz?Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau flies to Florida to meet with Trump after tariffs threat WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has flown to Florida to have dinner with President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club after Trump threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products. Joining Trump and Trudeau at dinner were Trump's picks for commerce secretary, interior secretary and national security adviser, and the three men's wives. From the Canadian side, the dinner guests included Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, whose responsibilities include border security. Trump’s transition did not respond to questions about what they had discussed or whether the conversation alleviated Trump’s concerns about the border. A smiling Trudeau declined comment upon returning to his West Palm Beach hotel late Friday. Emboldened 'manosphere' accelerates threats and demeaning language toward women after US election CHICAGO (AP) — An emboldened fringe of right-wing “manosphere” influencers has seized on Donald Trump’s presidential win to justify and amplify misogynistic derision and threats online. Many have appropriated a 1960s abortion rights rallying cry, declaring “Your body, my choice,” and have been using it publicly on college campuses and even in public schools. While none of the current online rhetoric is being amplified by Trump, experts say many young men see the former president’s return to the White House as vindication of their views on women. For many women, the words are a worrying sign of what might lie ahead as some men perceive the election results as a rebuke of reproductive rights and women’s rights. Syrian insurgents are inside Aleppo in a major setback for Assad as government forces regroup BEIRUT (AP) — Thousands of Syrian insurgents have fanned out inside Syria's largest city Aleppo a day after storming it with little resistance from government troops. Syria's army said troops have redeployed to prepare for a counteroffensive. Witnesses said insurgents were seen Saturday at landmarks in Aleppo for the first time since 2016, when they were expelled by government forces backed by Russia and Iran. The surprise offensive is a major embarrassment for Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has regained total control of the city eight years ago. An Israeli strike in Gaza kills workers with World Central Kitchen charity DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — An Israeli airstrike on a car in the Gaza Strip on Saturday killed five people including employees of World Central Kitchen. The charity says it is “urgently seeking more details” after Israel’s military said it targeted a WCK worker who had been part of the Hamas attack that sparked the war. The charity in an email says it is “heartbroken” by the airstrike and that it had no knowledge anyone in the car had alleged ties to the Oct. 7, 2023 attack, saying it is “working with incomplete information.” It says it is pausing operations in Gaza. Lebanese fisherman hope ceasefire with Israel means normal life returning TYRE, Lebanon (AP) — The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah is bringing hope for normality back to many in southern Lebanon. That includes fishermen who’ve long launched their single-engine wooden boats into the Mediterranean at dawn. For months, Israel imposed a siege that kept hundreds of fishermen at this ancient Phoenician port ashore. That upended their lives and dealt the industry a major blow. The port siege also cut people off from key ingredients for traditional Lebanese dishes. As war devastated their country, the loss of fish damaged a deep association with home. Now, the possibility of renewed fishing is helping fuel hope. How Brazilian police say Bolsonaro plotted a coup to stay in office SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s Federal Police have formally accused former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro and 36 others of plotting a coup to keep him in office. The plot was allegedly comprised of several components and substantiated by evidence and testimony in the agency's 884-page report. The pieces of the puzzle include laying the groundwork by systematically sowing distrust of the electoral system among the populace. It also includes drafting a decree to give the plot a veneer of legal basis and pressuring top military brass to go along with the plan. Bolsonaro and his main allies have denied any wrongdoing or involvement and accuse authorities of political persecution. More than 100 arrested as Georgian police clash with protesters over suspension of EU talks TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — More than 100 demonstrators were arrested overnight in Georgia as protesters clashed with police following the government’s decision to suspend negotiations to join the European Union, the country’s Interior Ministry said. Friday marked the second straight night of protests after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze of the country’s ruling Georgian Dream party announced the suspension the previous day. The Associated Press saw protesters in Tbilisi being chased and beaten by police as demonstrators rallied in front of the country's parliament building. The violence follows Georgian Dream’s disputed victory in the Oct. 26 election, which was widely seen as a referendum on the country’s aspirations to join the European Union. Romania's parliamentary vote risks being overshadowed by presidential race chaos BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanians are preparing to go to the polls in a parliamentary vote that will determine a new government and prime minister to lead the European Union and NATO member country. However, Sunday's vote is sandwiched between a two-round presidential race and is overshadowed by controversies and chaos following the outcome of the first vote. While the president has significant decision-making powers in areas such as national security and foreign policy, the prime minister is the head of the nation’s government. Sunday’s vote will determine the formation of the country’s 466-seat legislature. North Korea's Kim vows steadfast support for Russia’s war in Ukraine SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country will “invariably support” Russia’s war in Ukraine as he met Russia's visiting defense chief. A Russia military delegation led by Defense Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday as international concerns about the two countries’ expanding cooperation deepened after North Korea sent thousands of troops to Russia. During a Friday meeting, Kim and Belousov reached “a satisfactory consensus” on issues on how to further boost strategic partnership and defend each country’s sovereignty and security interests, state media said. Great Lakes, Plains and Midwest forecast to be hit with snow and dangerous cold into next week BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The first big snowfall of the season is threatening to bury towns in New York along lakes Erie and Ontario as the hectic holiday travel and shopping weekend winds down. Numbing cold and heavy snow could persist into next week and cause hazards in the Great Lakes, Plains and Midwest regions. A state of emergency was declared for parts of New York, making it problematic for scores of Thanksgiving travelers trying to return home. This week’s blast of frigid Arctic air also brought bitterly cold temperatures of 10 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit below average to the Northern Plains. Cold air was expected to move over the eastern third of the U.S. by Monday, the weather service said, with temperatures about 10 degrees below average.
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