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‘All of the dream’: How Eurodance parody ‘Planet of the Bass’ became the song of the summer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

By Scottie Andrew | CNN“EVERYBODY MOOOOOVEMENT!” Eurodance maybe wasn’t due for a comeback for another few decades. But “Planet of the Bass,” a Eurodance parody track that’s become a TikTok hit and a legitimate banger in its own right, makes a compelling case for a return to a more innocent, synth-heavy time.It’s an uplifting song about glad rhythms and all of the dream. About a world where bass reigns supreme and its people are clapping the hands. About the mysteries of life — “how does it mean?” — and how to survive when danger and dance rule all.It’s nonsense. It’s comedy gold. And somehow, unironically, it’s become the song of the summer in a season devoid of the kinds of Top 40 hits that typically fill that slot. (Billie Eilish’s “Barbie” weepie “What Was I Made For,” anyone?) Oh, and “Planet of the Bass” hasn’t even been officially released on streaming services yet, but its mini music videos have been viewed millions of times across TikTok, X (formerly known as Twitter) and I...

Bay Area indie bookstores to celebrate Bookstore Romance Day

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

Love reading about love? Then mark your calendar for Aug. 19. That’s Bookstore Romance Day, when about a dozen bookstores around the Bay Area will join a national celebration of the romance novel.Bookstore Romance Day, launched in 2019, is aimed at helping independent bookstores connect with romance readers and writers — and it’s coming to independent bookstores across the U.S.This year’s celebration brings a series of bookish events for Bay Area romance readers, including a conversation with two authors at Books Inc. in Campbell, discounts on romance novels at Pegasus Books in Oakland and Berkeley and a queer rom-com book and wine pairing in Mountain View.Campbell’s Books, Inc. will host a discussion between romance authors Evie Blum and Lexie Sloane on Aug. 19. Blum is the author of “Ship It,” a romance novel set at a Silicon Valley start-up. Sloane’s latest, “Broken Summit,” is a romance set during a mountain getaway. Th...

Live Maui Map: Here’s where the deadly wildfires are raging now

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

Maui wildfires, which first sparked on Tuesday, have burned through 13,000 acres, killed 36 people, and raged through the costal town of Lahaina, which is the biggest on the Western coast of the island.The live map above shows fire hotspots recorded by an array of satellites operated by NOAA, NASA and other organizations. Each hotspot includes information on the intensity of the blaze, the confidence of the reading, and the amount of time since each was detected.Hundreds of homes and other buildings have been destroyed on Maui, many have had their power shut off, and thousands are planning to evacuate as the wildfires continue to spread. The embers spread fast starting on Tuesday as strong winds from Hurricane Dora far to the south hit Maui. Officials say that the death toll may continue to climb.Related ArticlesEnvironment | Maui surveys the burned wreckage caused by the deadliest US wildfire in years Environment | Wildfire devastates Lahaina, historic Ma...

Virgin Galactic flies first tourists to the edge of space

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

By Susan Montoya BRyan and Marcia Dunn | Associated PressTRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, N.M. — Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists Thursday, including a former British Olympian who bought his ticket 18 years ago and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean.The space plane glided back to a runway landing at Spaceport America in the New Mexico desert, after a brief flight that gave passengers a few minutes of weightlessness.This first private customer flight had been delayed for years; its success means Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic can now start offering monthly rides, joining Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX in the space tourism business.“That was by far the most awesome thing I’ve ever done in my life,” passenger Jon Goodwin told the crowd after his flight.Goodwin, who was among the first to buy a ticket in 2005, said he had faith that he would someday make the trip. The 80-year-old athlete — he compete...

Just making water more accessible has an impact on kids’ weight, Bay Area study shows

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

By Madeline Holcombe | CNNMaking water more accessible to kids leads to an increase in hydration and a decrease in children being overweight, according to a new study. And the change didn’t require a focus on children’s weight.The study, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, included more than 1,200 students across 18 schools in California’s Bay Area.“The study was conducted in racially and ethnically diverse and low-income elementary schools, where students are at most risk for chronic health problems, including overweight and obesity,” said lead study author Dr. Anisha Patel, professor of pediatrics at Stanford University.RELATED: How much are you spending on back-to-school shopping for your kid? Is $800 enough?Half of the schools were gifted water dispensers in the cafeteria and water-bottle filling stations in areas of high traffic, Patel said. The other half didn’t make any changes. The group that gained more access to water were also given cups or bottles as well as educ...

Northwest Biotherapeutics: Q2 Earnings Snapshot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

BETHESDA, Md. (AP) — BETHESDA, Md. (AP) — Northwest Biotherapeutics Inc. (NWBO) on Wednesday reported a loss of $14.4 million in its second quarter.On a per-share basis, the Bethesda, Maryland-based company said it had a loss of 1 cent.The cancer drug developer posted revenue of $201,000 in the period._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on NWBO at https://www.zacks.com/ap/NWBOSource

UN Security Council to hold first open meeting on North Korea human rights situation since 2017

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council will hold its first open meeting on North Korea’s dire human rights situation since 2017 next week, the United States announced Thursday.U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters that U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk and Elizabeth Salmon, the U.N. independent investigator on human rights in the reclusive northeast Asia country, will brief council members at the Aug. 17 meeting.“We know the government’s human rights abuses and violations facilitate the advancement of its unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles program,” Thomas-Greenfield said, adding that the Security Council “must address the horrors, the abuses and crimes being perpetrated” by North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s regime against its own people as well as the people of Japan and South Korea.Thomas-Greenfield, who is chairing the council during this month’s U.S. presidency, stood with the ambassadors from Albania, Japan and South Korea wh...

National Bankshares: Q2 Earnings Snapshot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — National Bankshares Inc. (NKSH) on Wednesday reported net income of $3.9 million in its second quarter.The bank, based in Blacksburg, Virginia, said it had earnings of 66 cents per share.The holding company for the National Bank of Blacksburg posted revenue of $17.4 million in the period. Its revenue net of interest expense was $12 million, which missed Street forecasts._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on NKSH at https://www.zacks.com/ap/NKSHSource

Some ‘Obamacare’ plans could see big rate hikes after lawmakers fail to agree on reinsurance program

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Some Affordable Care Act health plans could see big rate hikes in 2024 after Virginia lawmakers failed to reach agreement on a widely supported program that reduced premiums this year, state officials and insurance companies said this week. At issue is the state’s relatively new reinsurance program, which the General Assembly voted to create in 2021. Launched this calendar year, the program works by essentially pooling certain expensive claims and using mostly federal and some state money to cover them. By reducing risks and costs to insurers, it aims to lower premiums in the “Obamacare” individual marketplace — and did so successfully this year, according to state data. But now, due to a lack of consensus among lawmakers, the widely supported program is headed toward suspension for 2024, officials said Wednesday at a State Corporation Commission meeting. A range of observers said in interviews that they believed the program could still be salvaged, but ti...

At least 20 villagers killed in latest attack in Nigeria’s hard-hit north, survivors say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:27 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — At least 20 people were killed by gunmen in north-central Nigeria early Thursday, surivors said, the latest in a cycle of violence targeting remote villages in the West African nation.Dozens of gunmen arrived in Plateau state’s Heipang village after 1 a.m. and opened fire on villagers, most of whom were asleep, residents said. “In a particular family, they killed five people — both the father, the mother and the children,” said one survivor, Jacob Dadi.Dadi said villagers recovered 17 bodies in Heipang and then more people were shot to death as the gunmen fled to nearby brush land that often act as their hideout.A local youth group, the Berom Youth Movement, said 21 people had been killed in total and seven others were injured.Police confirmed the attack occurred but could not provide any detail about casualties in the area, which is 25 kilometres (15 miles) from Jos, the Plateau state capital.Such attacks have become common in many parts of Nigeria’s northern ...