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Coca-Cola under pressure over alleged Black Lives Matter donation

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Coca-Cola under pressure over alleged Black Lives Matter donation

Conservatives are criticizing Coca-Cola for allegedly donating to the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, which recently came under fire after at least one chapter shared pro-Palestinian messages on social media, while others demand proof.

On October 7, Hamas led the deadliest Palestinian militant attack on Israel in history. Israel subsequently launched its heaviest-ever airstrikes on Gaza. As of Friday, at least 2,800 people had been killed on both sides, the Associated Press reported.

Posting to X—the social network formerly known as Twitter—CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) slammed the corporation for supposedly donating money to BLM and other “radical left” organizations. Newsweek was unable to verify that Coca-Cola donated to BLM.

“Hey @CocaCola and @CocaColaCo you donated $4 Million to Black Lives Matter Inc. along with other radical LEFT groups,” CPAC wrote.

“Do you still support BLM Inc’s antisemitism as they support terrorist attacks on Israel?”

The claims caused outrage amongst CPAC followers, with @StephenMaret declaring “#boycottcoke.”

“We demand a response,” wrote Bret Weingart.

“Their secret formula contains blood,” said @Vox_Oculi.

“Time to bud light them!” commented Eric. Conservatives boycotted the beer brand in April after it sent transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney a personalized beer can to celebrate her first year living as a woman.

However, accused CPAC of pushing false claims, with Deviantbreed writing: “You’re blatantly lying.”

“You know it’s a lie, you know those who listen to you don’t,” they said.

Jo West agreed, commenting: “Feel free to provide an actual source.”

“Protesting black people being murdered is not radical,” said Jay Caesar, while Pride Hawkins wrote: “This is a business trying to do their best in each community where they sell their products!”

The antisemitism claims in CPAC’s post appear to refer to a graphic shared by Black Lives Matter Chicago. On October 10, the branch was accused of supporting the recent Hamas attacks on Israel after sharing an image of a soldier paragliding with a Palestinian flag, alongside the caption: “I stand with Palestine.”

The post sparked an uproar. Black Lives Matter Chicago deleted the post shortly afterward, before apologizing on October 11.

“Yesterday we sent out [messages] that we aren’t proud of,” the organization posted to X, the social network formerly known as Twitter.

‘We stand with Palestine & the people who will do what they must to live free. Our hearts are with, the grieving mothers, those rescuing babies from rubble, who are in danger of being wiped out completely.”

CPAC doesn’t say where it got the $4 million figure from, or name the other “radical left” groups that Coca-Cola allegedly supports. However, the corporation does donate to charitable causes.

According to the Coca-Cola Foundation website, the brand has awarded over $1.5 billion in grants since its founding in 1984. Although it doesn’t mention specific organizations, the corporation pledges to support sustainability, equality, diversity, inclusion and human rights.

In 2020, the corporation partnered with several Atlanta-based social change organizations and celebrities for the Together We Must: Conversation, a virtual event to advance civil rights.

These organizations included the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, the not-for-profit social change organization The King Center, community engagement platform Inclusivv (formerly known as Civic Dinners) and Equitable Dinners, an annual event that brings people from diverse backgrounds together to fight racism and other issues.

Coca-Cola also donated $500,000 to 100 Black Men of America Inc., a mentoring organization for African-American people.

Newsweek has reached out to CPAC and Coca-Cola for comment via email.

"The View" co-host compares Hamas to Proud Boys on "Day of Rage"

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"The View" co-host compares Hamas to Proud Boys on "Day of Rage"

Sunny Hostin, a co-host on ABC‘s The View, compared Hamas militants to members of the far-right group the Proud Boys after warnings that a Hamas “Day of Rage” would occur on Friday.

Over the weekend, Hamas militants attacked parts of Israel and have taken Israeli citizens hostage. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the country is “at war” with Hamas, with the Middle Eastern country cutting off electricity and supplies to the Gaza Strip. According to the Associated Press, over 2,000 casualties have been reported across both sides of the ongoing fighting.

On Thursday, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and National Security Council issued a joint statement that said, “Against the background of Operation Swords of Iron, the Hamas leadership has called on all of its supporters around the world to hold a ‘Day or Rage’ tomorrow (Friday, 13 October 2023) and attack Israelis and Jews. It is reasonable to assume that there will be protest events in various countries that are liable to turn violent.”

“I look at this from a legal perspective, and I think we all know that Hamas has been designated a terror organization, just like many other terror organizations have this designation, like the Proud Boys here in the United States,” Hostin said on the program on Friday.

Hostin went on to talk about the ongoing fighting between Israel and Hamas militants saying that “retaliation against innocent civilians collectively is also terror, and is also a war crime, and again, those are not my words, those are the words of the law.”

In 1997, the U.S. State Department designated Hamas as a terrorist organization and according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Hamas is “the largest and most capable militant group in the Palestinian territories and one of the territories’ two major political parties.” However, despite Hostin’s comments, the Proud Boys are not designated as a terrorist organization in the U.S.

Newsweek has reached out to ABC News via email for comment regarding Hostin’s remarks.

In 2021, Canada designated the Proud Boys as a terrorist organization. New Zealand followed suit and issued the same designation for the far-right group in 2022.

Meanwhile, some members of the Proud Boys were recently charged with seditious conspiracy in connection with the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol building following the results of the 2020 presidential election.

On social media, users criticized Hostin for comparing the Proud Boys to Hamas.

“Sunny Hostin comparing Hamas to the Proud Boys is up there on my list as one of the most delusional takes I’ve heard in my life. Congrats, Sunny,” X, formerly Twitter, user Earl Joseph wrote.

User @KagensNews wrote, “Sunny Hostin is comparing Hamas to the Proud Boys? Really? Who watches this show anyways and do they actually believe such garbage?”

Elijah Schaffer, a journalist for The Gateway Pundit, posted: “The view compared Hamas to the Proud Boys. They really believe J6 where Trump supporters killed 0 people. was the moral equivalent to the raid on southern Israel that took 900+ lives. (This is how brainwashed they are).”

On the other hand, X user @hopefulgranny wrote, “Thank you Sunny for bringing the facts. My [heart] goes out to all the innocent civilians who will suffer in this conflict!”

Meghan Markle discusses "Suits" confusion in viral video

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Meghan Markle discusses "Suits" confusion in viral video

Meghan Markle’s time as one of the ensemble cast members of hit TV legal drama Suits has become the subject of a new viral video, as the show broke streaming records this summer, four years after airing its series finale.

Meghan joined the Suits cast in 2011, five years before meeting Prince Harry, and remained with the show until her royal relationship became serious, her final episode airing in the build-up to her 2018 wedding.

On the show, the future duchess played paralegal Rachel Zane, a character whose main storyline was her developing love story with colleague Mike Ross (played by Patrick J. Adams). A number of Meghan’s co-stars were special guests at her royal wedding in Windsor Castle, Berkshire, England.

Uploaded to TikTok by user @suitsarmy on October 10, resurfaced red-carpet footage of Meghan discussing the confusion of sharing a name with her onscreen counterpart has gone viral.

Filmed during a mid-season premiere of Suits‘ second season in Los Angeles, Meghan’s interaction with a red-carpet reporter saw the actress say that, though she is known as “Meghan Markle,” her birth name is “Rachel Meghan Markle.”

“My first name in real life is Rachel,” she said. “I’ve never been called it, but my parents named me Rachel Meghan Markle, and it’s just confused every legal document for my entire life!”

“And now the show is even more confusing?” the interviewer said, referring to the Rachel Zane character, with Meghan responding: “Exactly.”

The viral clip has been viewed over 300,000 times so far on TikTok, gaining more than 7,500 likes and numerous comments. Many of these were people writing about how they are also known by their middle names.

Since becoming romantically involved with Prince Harry, Meghan’s career as an actress has been repeatedly pulled into public focus, first as a working royal and then again after splitting from the monarchy with Harry to take up careers in philanthropy and the Hollywood industry.

With this has come speculation that the royal could return to her acting roots, something Meghan has denied so far, but said that she would never rule out completely.

At the time of her official engagement interview in 2017, Meghan spoke about her time on Suits and her decision to leave the drama.

“I’ve been working on my show for seven years,” she told BBC broadcaster Mishal Husain. “So, we’re very very fortunate to be able to have that sort of longevity on a series and for me, once we hit the 100-episode marker, I thought you know what I have ticked this box, and I feel really proud of the work I’ve done there, and now it’s time to, as you [Harry] said, work as a team with you.”

The next time Meghan explicitly spoke about her future onscreen, she told Variety in 2022 that it was not something she ever saw becoming a reality.

Asked, “Would you ever consider going back to acting?” the duchess said: “No. I’m done. I guess never say never, but my intention is to absolutely not.”

In July, Suits set a new Nielsen record as the most-viewed acquired title for a single week ever, after it was made available on Netflix. It had previously been streaming on Peacock for some time.

The 3.1 billion minutes of the nine-season show were streamed in the U.S. between June 26 and July 2. It led to fresh speculation that a reboot could appeal to audiences and studio bosses alike, though there has been no confirmation that it is being considered at this time.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek‘s royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek‘s The Royals Facebook page.

Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We’d love to hear from you.

Scarlett Johansson interview sparks race debate

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Scarlett Johansson interview sparks race debate

Scarlett Johnasson’s upcoming interview with Bobbi Althoff has sparked debate about whether the screen star was spoken to in a different manner to the podcaster’s usual style because of her race.

In a preview clip of Johansson’s appearance on The Really Good Podcast, which was posted to Althoff’s Instagram account on Wednesday, the Lost in Translation star, 38, is seen discussing the hair products she uses with her interviewer.

At one point, Althoff, 26, asked to put some product in Johansson’s hair to slick it down, as she had an issue with the star’s tresses not appearing as neat as she felt they should. “It’s, like, perfect,” Althoff remarked, after smoothing her guest’s hair.

The minute-long clip was awkward, which is no surprise. Since launching her podcast earlier this year, Althoff has made a name for herself by portraying an interviewer who’s aloof, sarcastic and barely interested in her guests.

In previous interviews with such stars as Drake, Offset, Shaquille O’Neal and Jason Derulo, Althoff has been seen subjecting her guests to awkward questions, painful silences and a general air of sheer boredom throughout.

Contrasting the usually sycophantic delivery of celebrity interviews, Althoff has garnered her popularity through looking all but bothered by the presence of stars.

While the clips have made for many a viral moment over the past several months, social media users observing Johansson’s interview preview have questioned why Althoff—while still awkward—appears to be decidedly more interested in her guest than usual.

A number of social media users on X, formerly Twitter, reacted by surmising that the character Althoff portrays in her interviews is reserved solely for her Black guests.

“So she’s only awkward around black people? Got it,” wrote one X user, while another commented that Althoff “landing an interview with a white woman and immediately dropping her entire gimmick and just being nice instead is so insane.”

“She completely changed her tone. As a result, I want y’all to ignore her forever,” another said, echoing the sentiment of a number of detractors.

“So she’s only awkward to men?” one X user asked, prompting another to respond that the awkwardness only appeared to apply to Black men.

“Oh I see. She’s only awkward with black people,” another said, sharing an oft-used video clip of singer Adele looking nonchalant while sitting courtside at a basketball game.

Amid the wave of criticism, many X users came to Althoff’s defense, with some pointing out that Johansson’s interview, while notably different in tone, still brought with it an air of undeniable awkwardness.

“I’m dying at all the angry men in the comments claiming she was uncharacteristically being nice in this interview because Scarlet is a white woman,” wrote one supporter, who added the detractors’ “perceptions of this interaction are just wildly off base and it’s fascinating to see just how clueless they are.”

“I don’t think y’all see the sarcasm in this video and it’s alarming that y’all don’t,” another told those who were criticizing the Johansson clip.

“Ok… I want to say something,” another chimed in. “Why can’t you guys see she’s also being weird with ScarJo as well? Lol. Y’all keep saying she dropped her whole schtick, but I clearly see her still doing it.”

Another viewer of the video said that while they accepted Althoff’s approach to the Johansson interview wasn’t in line with previous clips, it was likely for a different reason.

“I feel like she only has a softer tone because she’s a woman I don’t think it has anything to do with race,” they opined, adding their belief that the social media star would likely have interviewed a Black woman in the same manner as Johansson.

Another wrote that the people “saying [Althoff] is being kind need to interact with white women more [because] this is like textbook white girl passive aggressive behavior.”

Others pointed out that Althoff’s interviews with musician Charlie Puth and businessman Marc Cuban—neither of whom are Black—were also presented in her usual faux unimpressed and unenthusiastic style.

Newsweek has contacted a representative of Althoff via email for comment.

Interestingly, one of Althoff’s more popular interviews in recent months was with Offset, who turned the tables and roasted his interviewer for her irreverent approach, while also comparing her to an unseasoned piece of chicken.

“You should be [Apple digital assistant] Siri. Deada**,” he said. “You should hit Apple and be like, ‘Yo, it’s 2023. It’s time for the new Siri voice.’ You could apply for that s*** and they’re gonna give it to you. And that’s gonna be more money.“

While Althoff attempted to match Offset’s playful insults, the rapper dominated the conversation. He has maintained that he was speaking in jest.

In an interview with Cosmopolitan that was published in August, Althoff, who has more than 920,000 subscribers on YouTube, spoke about the negative feedback she often sees from those who don’t grasp that she is portraying a character in her viral interviews.

“The overwhelming majority of the feedback I’ve seen has been positive, but it’s obviously hard to read negative comments,” Althoff, who has struggled with depression, said. “That’s what’s nice about not putting the real me out there too much. They’re really judging a character, not me. I know I’m a good person.”

Regarding the genesis of her style, she explained: “When I started my podcast interviews, the character was someone who pretended to be super connected. Now my character is just a very dry, sarcastic person who doesn’t have connections and just wants money and success. It’s a very exaggerated version of my actual truth.

“I’m very insecure, and the character that I’ve created is made up of my biggest insecurities. I’ve just made her into someone who’s proud of who she is. I’ve always been so embarrassed about being socially awkward. Now, I’ve exaggerated that and made it even worse for this character. It’s a fun way to take control of this thing that’s been horrible for me my whole life.”

Virgin Atlantic faces boycott over Dylan Mulvaney award

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Virgin Atlantic faces boycott over Dylan Mulvaney award

Social media users are debating if Virgin Atlantic is going to get the “Bud Light treatment” after naming transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney “Woman of the Year.”

The airline has partnered with British gay magazine Attitude for the Virgin Atlantic Attitude Awards. The ceremony celebrates LGBTQ game changers and allies, with 2023’s winners including American Idol star Jacob Lusk and James Bond singer Shirley Bassey.

The magazine announced the 26-year-old theater actor’s win on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, on October 11. Replying to the post, Mulvaney said: “Knowing that my community sees me this way and acknowledges my womanhood is all I need to keep going.”

The achievement comes after a difficult year for Mulvaney. In April, a post by the social media star ignited a boycott of Bud Light after the beer brand sent her personalized beer to honor her first full year of living as a woman.

Mulvaney shared a clip of the Bud Light can—adorned with a picture of her face—to her TikTok account, where she has been documenting her transition as part of her Day 365 of Girlhood series. The partnership caused uproar amongst conservatives, including country singer Travis Tritt and rapper Kid Rock, with parent company Anheuser-Busch reporting a decline in Bud Light sales as a result.

After news of Mulvaney’s Woman of the Year win broke on X, users dubbed Virgin Atlantic “the new Bud Light.”

“I’m guessing they’re going to get a little taste of Bud Light,” commented @OculusDiscrim. “Did they not get the memo?”

“@VirginAtlantic I know you couldn’t care less, but I’ll never fly with you again,” said @TheMistressRox.

“BOYCOTT@VirginAtlantic!!!!” wrote Dave Etsy, while @JamboAldo asked: “Is this some kind of sick joke?”

However, others praised Mulvaney and congratulated her on winning the award, with one user, Dylan, calling her an “icon.”

“I’m so sick of seeing people s*** on Dylan Mulvaney every time she does something,” said asterfae. “This woman has done nothing wrong and people still vehemently hate her for being herself.”

Dylan agreed, writing: “Dylan Mulvaney handled some of the most vile transphobia and transmisogyny I’ve ever seen with class and grace that I know for a fact I wouldnt have been able to muster.”

“No one has worked harder at womanhood than Dylan Mulvaney,” said Ann Lesby. “Cope & seethe, TERFS (Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminists).”

In response to the boycott calls, a Virgin Atlantic spokesperson told Newsweek: “Virgin Atlantic has always championed individuality, creating spaces where our people and customers feel valued and included, regardless of sexuality, gender or ethnicity.

“We are a proud supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, it has been in our DNA since Virgin began advocating for LGBTQ+ rights back in the 1960’s.

“We have supported the Attitude Awards since their first amazing awards event in 2012 and we continue to use the power of our business, our brand and our people to drive change. It is clear that the LGBTQ+ community needs support and allyship now more than ever.”

While accepting her award from British singer Paloma Faith, Mulvaney referenced the Bud Light controversy, describing London as a “safe space” for her.

“When I arrived, I didn’t feel the baggage that I was carrying back at home in the U.S. I didn’t feel like the ‘trans beer girl,'” she told the audience.

“No matter how hard I try, or what I wear, or what surgeries I have, I will never reach an acceptable version of womanhood by those hateful people’s standards. But as long as the queer community sees me for my truth, I’m going to be OK.”

Newsweek has reached out to Virgin Atlantic and Dylan Mulvaney for comment via email.

Update 10/13/23 12:37 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Virgin Atlantic.

Receding Lake Powell reveals "extremely rare" fossils

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Receding Lake Powell reveals "extremely rare" fossils

The receding waters of Lake Powell have revealed some extremely rare fossils from the Jurassic period.

Paleontologists had been documenting fossil tracks in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Utah when they came across a bonebed containing fossils of a tritylodontid—an extinct mammal-like reptile that lived 180 million years ago.

The fossils, which include bones and teeth, are extremely rare and the first tritylodontid bonebed to be found in Utah’s Navajo Sandstone, a geological formation in the Glen Canyon, the National Park Service reports.

These fossils are some of the most important discovered in the United States this year—not just because they give researchers insight into the species but because they shed light on the history of Lake Powell’s changing shorelines.

The bonebed was previously submerged by Lake Powell, which, due to prolonged drought in the area, has seen declining water levels in recent years.

Paleontologists found the fossils in March. They happened to be in “the right place at the right time,” the NPS said, before a record amount of snowmelt flooded the lake, making it impossible to access. Lake Powell is replenished seasonally by snowmelt flowing down from the surrounding mountains through the Colorado River. While river flows have been low for many years, this year saw a record amount of snowmelt that accumulated through a particularly wet winter.

This meant that paleontologists had a very short amount of time to recover the fossils before they would be completely submerged once again.

“Studying these fossils will help paleontologists learn more about how early mammal relatives survived the mass extinction at the end of the Triassic Period and diversified through the Jurassic Period,” the NPS said.

Several hundred pounds of rocks containing the fossils were removed from the site and taken to labs for more research.

The fossils will become part of the Glen Canyon NRA museum collection to be housed at the Prehistoric Museum in Price, Utah.

Lake Powell is surrounded by huge geological formations that contain many more uncovered fossils.

“The most famous and abundant fossils known from Glen Canyon NRA are the footprints of meat-eating dinosaurs in the Glen Canyon Group,” the NPS said in a statement. “This series of sedimentary rocks, named after their exposures along the canyon itself, were laid down by rivers, lakes, streams and deserts from the Late Triassic Epoch through the Early Jurassic Epoch. One of the largest mass extinctions in Earth’s history happened during this period.”

While the drought in the southwestern United States poses many concerns over a water shortage, the receding water levels in some reservoirs and lakes have revealed some interesting findings.

The declining water levels of neighboring Lake Mead, located in Nevada and Arizona, have revealed a multitude of shipwrecks and artifacts.

This has also occurred in other areas of the U.S. that are experiencing dry conditions.

Dinosaur footprints from millions of years ago were revealed in the midst of a severe drought in Texas last year.

The footprints were discovered in the Dinosaur Valley State Park in Glen Rose when the Paluxy River’s water levels decreased amid severe temperatures.

Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about fossils in the Glen Canyon? Let us know via science@newsweek.com.

New ancient shark species discovered hidden in world’s largest cave system

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New ancient shark species discovered hidden in world’s largest cave system

A previously unknown species of ancient shark has been discovered in Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave National Park, home to the world’s longest cave system.

The system, which is located in the state’s south-central region, extends for more than 400 miles and features a series of large underground passages. The system’s rocks date to the Mississippian period (359 to 323 million years ago), around the time that the supercontinent Pangea was forming. For much of this period, the stretch of land that is now Kentucky, then located south of the equator, was covered by shallow tropical seas.

The unique environment within the Mammoth Cave system has resulted in the extraordinary preservation of ancient shark fossils. To date, more than 100 species of ancient cartilaginous fishes—a group that includes sharks, rays and skates—have been identified there.

The Mississippian rocks that form the Mammoth Cave system are divided into several layers called, from oldest to youngest, the St. Louis Formation, St. Genevieve Formation, the Girkin Formation and Big Clifty Sandstone. The older St. Louis and St. Genevieve formations contain the greatest diversity of ancient sharks.

Researchers identified the ancient shark species after finding several small, spoon-like teeth in a cave wall, the National Park Service (NPS) said Wednesday, which was National Fossil Day.

The teeth were uncovered during an ongoing research project known as a paleontological resources inventory (PRI) that is being coordinated by officials from the Mammoth Cave park and the NPS Paleontology Program.

Scientists have named the new shark species Strigilodus tollesonae. The creature is a kind of petalodont (“petal-toothed”), an extinct group of cartilaginous marine fish found in what is now the United States and Europe.

An NPS spokesperson told Newsweek, “The teeth of Strigilodus tollesonae were discovered within the St. Genevieve Formation rock layer at Mammoth Cave National Park. This would place it as living approximately 340 to 320 million years ago.”

In a press release, Barclay Trimble, the park’s superintendent, said, “We are excited to finally announce the discovery of our first new shark species at Mammoth Cave on National Fossil Day.”

He went on: “Teams of geologists, paleontologists, park staff, and volunteers have been hard at work deep inside the cave identifying and collecting fossils since the paleontological resources inventory began in 2019. Their important research allows us to better understand the scope, significance, distribution, and management issues associated with the fossil record found within Mammoth Cave.”

Strigilodus tollesonae is more closely related to modern ratfish than other present-day sharks and rays, according to researchers.

The teeth of this shark that have been found so far represent all possible tooth positions in the mouths of both adults and juveniles of this species. It appears that the teeth were arranged in a fan-like structure. The characteristics of the fossils indicate that the shark may have lived like modern skates, feeding on snails, bivalves, soft-bodied worms and smaller fish.

The shark’s name translates to “Tolleson’s scraper tooth” in Latin. The species was named in honor of Mammoth Cave guide Kelli Tolleson, who played a significant role in the PRI.

Tolleson uncovered several important fossil sites in the Mammoth Cave park, many of which are difficult to access. Sometimes researchers must crawl for long distances through small openings to reach them.

Update 10/13/23, 1:29 p.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from the National Park Service.

Gray whales keep washing up dead: "We are in uncharted territory"

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Gray whales keep washing up dead: "We are in uncharted territory"

Scientists may have gotten to the bottom of why gray whales keep washing up dead.

A study from the Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute published in the journal Science investigated the reasons behind three mass die-offs involving the eastern North Pacific gray whale population since 1980. Scientists found that “dynamic and changing Arctic Ocean conditions” were at the root of all three.

During each of these die-offs the population reduced by up to 25 percent, the study reported. The most recent of these die-offs began in 2019 and is still ongoing.

In the two earlier mass dies-offs—where gray whales began washing up dead for a period of time in the 1980s and then again in the 1990s—the population rebounded once Arctic sea conditions improved.

The most recent and longest mass die-off which started in 2019 has been a different story.

“We are in uncharted territory now. The two previous events, despite being significant and dramatic, only lasted a couple of years,” lead author Joshua Stewart, an assistant professor with Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute, said in a press release detailing the findings. “The most recent mortality event has slowed and there are signs things are turning around, but the population has continued to decline. One reason it may be dragging on is the climate change component, which is contributing to a long-term trend of lower-quality prey.”

The Eastern North Pacific gray whale population was hunted to near extinction due to commercial whaling, which ended in the United States in 1927. Since then, its population has bounced back and recovered to healthy numbers.

However as their numbers have grown, the population is becoming more sensitive to changes in their environment—and that includes sea ice levels in the Arctic, which has been rapidly changing as global climate change worsens.

The rapid changes to sea ice conditions are affecting the species’ access to food, mainly crustaceans.

A close look at long-term data sets involving these three stranding events told scientists that the numbers coincided with the length of time that gray whales had access to food before being blocked by sea ice.

“These are extreme population swings that we did not expect to see in a large, long-lived species like gray whales,” Stewart said in the release. “When the availability of their prey in the Arctic is low, and the whales cannot reach their feeding areas because of sea ice, the gray whale population experiences rapid and major shocks.”

“Even highly mobile, long-lived species such as gray whales are sensitive to climate change impacts. When there are sudden declines in the quality of prey, the population of gray whales is significantly affected.”

Stewart said there is no danger of losing gray whales due to climate change alone. However, he believes scientists should “think critically” about what these changes might mean for the future.

“An Arctic Ocean that has warmed significantly may not be able to support 25,000 gray whales like it has in the recent past,” he said.

Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about gray whales? Let us know via science@newsweek.com.

How your dog is likely to age based on size, head shape

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How your dog is likely to age based on size, head shape

Smaller dogs can live up to twice as long as their larger counterparts, research from Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary shows. And yet, this longevity is accompanied by an increased rate of canine cognitive dysfunction.

Based on data from 15,000 dogs, the team, led by Borbála Turcsán, the team investigated the age at which behavioral and cognitive changes begin to show and how fast they progress in different dog breeds.

“The inverse body size/lifespan relationship within species is a well-known phenomenon in biology,” Turcsán told Newsweek. “Although the exact physiological mechanisms underlying this trade-off in dogs is still unknown, research on other species, as well as some theoretical models on mortality data, suggest that it has to do with growth rates/aging rates. That is, larger individuals have higher growth rates, which can result in higher rates of cellular damage during early life, potentially having long-term negative effects on the animals’ health maintenance and longevity.”

However, what they did not know was whether larger dogs also had shorter healthspans than their smaller counterparts. In this study, which was published in the journal GeroScience on September 23, they found that, while dogs weighing more than 66 pounds show an earlier onset of age-related decline—by about two or three years—the rate of this decline was slower compared with smaller dogs.

“We found that there is a trade-off between longevity and relative healthspan which concerns mostly the two extreme sizes,” Turcsán said. “Small [toy] dogs have a much higher expected lifespan, but they also have a much higher risk of developing mental health problems.

“Large [giant] dogs have a shorter expected lifespan, but it is accompanied by a relatively long mental healthspan and a lower prevalence of canine cognitive dysfunction[…]we found that the smallest size group showed more than 4 times higher prevalence of canine cognitive dysfunction than the largest group.”

Head shape also played a role, with long-nosed dogs twice as likely to experience cognitive dysfunction a medium- and short-nosed dogs.

“Even though short-nosed dogs have higher predisposition to various diseases which poses a severe welfare problem, in this particular case, long-nosed dogs are at higher risk,” Turcsán said.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, pure breeds were also found to have higher frequencies of cognitive decline than mixed breeds.

“It seems that the genetic advantage of hybrid vigor of mixed breeds helps them maintain their cognitive health for longer periods,” Turcsán said.

But what do these results mean for potential dog owners, deciding which breed they want to welcome into their family?

“For owners who want a smaller sized dog but do not want to risk severe mental health problems in old age or want a larger sized dog but do not want to risk physical health problems at 7 to 8 years of age, we recommend a dog from the 14 to 66 pounds size range,” Turcsán said. “Based on our results, these dogs have a longer healthspan relative to their expected lifespan than both their smaller and larger counterparts.”

Their results may also help inform future veterinary health programs, as well as improve our understanding of aging in our own species.

“Our results have significant translational implications for human aging research, but they also carry a practical significance for owners and veterinarians and lay the foundation for future research about the risk factors and prevention of age-related cognitive decline, that can help developing interventions to maintain the dogs’ physical and mental well-being as they age,” Turcsán said.

The New York City areas sinking fastest

Fox News
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The New York City areas sinking fastest

New York City is sinking gradually, and some areas appear to be dropping faster than others, research shows.

A study published in the journal Science last month demonstrated how land across the city is sinking, or subsiding, at varying rates due to human and natural factors, while some locations are even rising, or uplifting.

The study authors from NASA‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, and Rutgers University, New Jersey, found that that New York City is broadly sinking at an average rate of about 1.6 millimeters (0.06 inches) per year, although there are significant differences across the metropolitan area.

While the rate of elevation change is only a fraction of an inch per year, such processes can enhance or diminish the risk of flooding in any given area as sea levels rise around the world.

“From prior work of our own and others, we know that many coastal areas are sinking, which can make flooding from sea level rise and storms worse,” JPL researcher and study author Brett Buzanga told Newsweek.

“We have a powerful satellite technique that can measure this sinking and has shown there can be differences in the speed of land motion from one neighborhood to the next. This information is important when considering how to build resilience at the coast to sea level rise as many locations around the world are doing.”

In their study, researchers investigated land motion trends across New York City from 2016 to 2023 using radar data collected by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-1 satellites. They then produced a detailed map of the “vertical land motion” with the data revealing hotspots of subsidence and uplift.

Some of the locations that are experiencing faster rates of sinking include LaGuardia Airport, Arthur Ashe Stadium, parts of Interstate 78, Governor’s Island and Rikers Island, among others.

Arthur Ashe Stadium, for example, is sinking at a rate of around 4.6 millimeters (0.18 inches) per year, while one runway at LaGuardia is subsiding at a rate of around 3.7 millimeters (0.15 inches) per year.

While the researchers could not provide a definitive cause for the sinking, they found that most of the subsidence is occurring in areas where prior modification to the ground—such as the reclamation of land and the construction of landfills—has previously taken place.

“We note that places that are sinking the fastest are collocated with landfills and reclaimed [filled in] land which tend to consist of material that is more compressible than something like bedrock, and so sinks faster when loaded with weight,” Buzanga said.

Some of the vertical motion may have also been influenced by the retreat of a vast ice sheet that covered most of New England thousands of years ago during the last ice age. After the ice sheet disappeared, Earth’s surface in the region has gradually readjusted.

“The most recent large ice age in North America persisted until about 20,000 years ago. The weight of the ice pressed down on the mid-continent, and caused a bulge along the Eastern Seaboard,” U.S Geological Survey researcher, Tom Parsons, who was not involved in the Science study, told Newsweek.

“After the ice melted away, the crust is returning to equilibrium, meaning that New York and other parts of the East Coast are subsiding,” he said.

Parsons and colleagues previously conducted a separate study on land subsidence in New York, finding that the city was sinking on average around 2 millimeters (0.07 inches) per year—similar to the figure proposed in the Science study. They also identified that some areas were sinking faster than others.

‘We made a rough calculation of the downward pressure from all the buildings and their contents on the ground beneath and found a highly variable effect depending on foundation types and local soil conditions,” Parsons said.

“In addition, sea level is rising about 2 millimeters per year, meaning that the average relative subsidence is doubled to 4 millimeters per year.”

In the Science study, the authors also observed that some isolated areas of New York were uplifting, including Newton Creek in Brooklyn and Woodside in Queens—although the latter stabilized after rising between 2016 and 2019.

While the researchers could not provide a definitive cause for uplift, they noted that groundwater pumping and injection wells used to treat polluted water may have played a role.

Overall though, the city is subsiding, and as sea levels rise, the risk of flooding could worsen, according to the researchers.

“The primary implications of this research are for resilience to ongoing sea level rise and its potential for increased flooding,” Buzanga said. “Over the following century and perhaps longer, sea level will continue to rise. The sinking we find here is an important part of the sea level rise that NYC is experiencing.

“Our findings—especially the variations in rate of sinking from neighborhood to neighborhood—can help communities decide how best to respond to current and prepare for future sea level rise.”

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