Month: January 2025

2025 College Football Playoff odds, Rose Bowl predictions: Oregon vs. Ohio State picks from expert on 7-0 run  CBS Sports
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Two young nuns, divine one percenters, on why they embraced religious life  South China Morning Post
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Many public services in Britain are in a wretched state. Yet England’s schools are a clear exception. Pupils are increasingly numerate and literate, compared with peers abroad. In maths tests for the OECD, a club of rich countries, English teenagers bounded from 27th place in 2009 up to 11th by 2022. In reading, a recent test placed England’s primary schools fourth in the world. Foreigners tour England’s classrooms in search of tips. They include envious visitors from America, where trends in test scores are less encouraging.
The growing threat to undersea cables demands a robust response
The winner toppled a tyrant and seems headed for something better
Reducing sulphur emissions saves lives. But it could also be hastening planetary warming
A turbulent year has shed fresh light on some important truths
Let a balance of morals, liberty and efficiency be your guide
Georgia’s protesters and president need help
Published since September 1843 to take part in “a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.”
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Copyright © The Economist Newspaper Limited 2025. All rights reserved.

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How to calm your mind with breathing, according to science  The Washington Post
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Death Toll Rises to 15 in New Orleans ‘Terrorism’ Attack  PEOPLE
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A Charles County caregiver is celebrating a massive Keno win thanks to some sage advice from two trusted family members—one of whom had a “lucky feeling” and the other who suggested the winning numbers.
The winner had a hand in picking up the massive Keno prize.

The Southern Maryland woman, who asked to remain anonymous, turned $10 into a $48,108 windfall after a whimsical trip to Bridge Drive Inn in Calvert County on a friend’s hunch.
“My friend felt lucky about Keno, but only from a certain Lottery store—the Bridge Drive Inn,” the winner shared, adding that this friend has been spot-on with premonitions in the past. Despite the liquor store being a bit of a trek, she decided to make the journey.
The plot thickened when she arrived and realized she had no idea what numbers to play. 
“My friend was napping, so I didn’t want to call her,” she said. Turning to her mother, she was told to play family birthdays. “Everyone in the family is close to her, so that sounded like the right move.”
Her instincts—and family advice—paid off big time. After buying a 10-spot, 20-draw ticket, she asked her mother to check the results later that day. 
That call was unforgettable.
“When she called me, she was out of breath—I thought something terrible had happened,” the winner recounted. Instead, it was life-changing news. “I didn’t believe it when she told me how much I’d won. I still don’t, in fact.”
The Bridge Drive Inn at 6654 Hallowing Point Road in Prince Frederick also came out a winner, earning a $481.08 bonus from the Lottery for selling the lucky ticket.
While the jackpot made the winner’s day, she said the best part was telling her friend who sparked the adventure in the first place. “You should have seen my friend’s face when I told her,” she said with a laugh.
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We don't have to tell you that the COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented time in our lives. You probably read many similar headlines saying something like this at the time. It was also a pretty scary time in many ways—with risks to our health, jobs, and basically, life as we know it.
Now that almost five years have passed since it started, people are seeing the period with different eyes. Some even miss certain aspects that we no longer have. That's what this list is precisely about—folks online sharing which pandemic-related things they wish were a thing now, too. So, let's jump in and see whether we agree with them or not, shall we?
More info: Reddit
Our planet Earth getting a break for the first time in a long time.
Image credits: la_tejedora
Being left the hell alone.
Image credits: BeachBulge23
I live in Yosemite National Park. No visitors were allowed in during the initial lockdown, so it was only the employees who lived in the Park that got to enjoy Spring that year. No one on the Mist Trail on a fine spring day in May. No cars at Tunnel View for sunrise. No gumbies at Swan Slab. No careless influencers trampling the meadows. The birds were loud, the bears were comfortable, the dogwood blooms didn't get picked and ruined. I miss that–I miss having the Valley to "myself". It's so selfish. But man. What an experience.
Image credits: AnnaSmitseroo
No matter where you lived in 2020, you experienced the COVID-19 pandemic in one way or another. And, well, the whole world was impacted significantly.
It impacted the global economy, putting tens of millions at risk of poverty, disrupting food systems, and leaving countless individuals vulnerable to undernourishment and so on.
Then there’s its influence on the public's physical health, mental health, and the healthcare sector. Many people got COVID-19, and while some recovered without too many repercussions, others suffered for a long time (some still suffer) from long-term effects like fatigue, memory problems, trouble with taste and/or smell, shortness of breath, sleep issues, and many others.

Empty streets.
Image credits: kingsizeslim420
People keeping their f*****g distance. It took a bit, but now people are right back to hovering over your shoulder in line.
Image credits: mutemarmot42
Not feeling bad for sitting in my apartment all day and night. No FOMO.
Image credits: Accurate_Ad385
Unfortunately, many people lost their lives due to this illness, too. According to the Worldmeter, over 7 million people have died from the virus as of December 2024. Additionally, complications (and deaths) were worsened by the coronavirus or pandemic restrictions, as people faced delayed diagnoses and help.
At the same time, even though the pandemic was a horrific time for health, society, and the economy, some people still hold positive sentiments toward it. After all, even though it is human nature to focus on the negatives, some people try to find positivity in every horrible situation, as that is what drives them forward.
So, when one Reddit user asked netizens to share what they miss about the pandemic, many (to be more specific over 12K people) were quick to answer. We've compiled this list for your convenience, to show you what people had to say.

Common courtesy if people were ill. People staying home or masking up when sick. Now we’re back to disgustingly ill people hacking and coughing all over with zero regard for others. It’s gross.
Image credits: PollutionDouble229
The Pace of life almost felt like how life should be ? Less traffic, less crowded streets, less noise , more time to appreciate people at home , some jobs could commute, even people who had a variety of opinions on the pandemic details, seemed to have a community of sorts within their said beliefs… It just feels modern society is chaotic for no good reason, and the pandemic slowed things down for a short minute.
Image credits: SoapAndShampo
I miss having optimism that life would get better post pandemic. Somehow things have gotten worse and Elon f*****g Musk is making decisions that have potential to f**k s**t up even more for me and my income.
Image credits: DisaTheNutless
For instance, some people missed how empty the streets were due to the restrictions. For example, in this Bored Panda article, you can see how empty the streets of Krakow looked back in 2020. In comparison, here’s what driving through the streets of Krakow looked like in September of 2024—way busier, isn’t it? And that’s just one city; any other could probably be used as an example, too.
So, it's no surprise that some folks miss such emptiness. It seemed so quiet and calm, didn’t it?

The beginning. When we were all in it together. Then it devolved into the whole mask/no-mask and vaccine/anti-vax b******t. Ugh.
Image credits: HushabyeNow
The quiet. In the big city where I live there are various lakes / ponds around, and during the pandemic I could hear the frogs chirping like crazy in the evenings instead of traffic.
Image credits: TR3BPilot
Not having to talk to people. 
Having time to do extra stuff around the house. .
Image credits: Brave_Check6170
Speaking of calm, since people were ordered to stay at home during the COVID-19 outbreak, Earth got a well-deserved break. In 2020, Bored Panda wrote about how satellite images revealed a dramatic drop in pollution over Italy due to the lockdown.
Voa News reported similar things, too. Smog, which had been choking New Delhi for decades, began to clear up. Nitrogen dioxide pollution decreased by 30% in the northeastern United States—you get the gist.

Time, I had time, I was just starting to understand myself as I'm an addict and that time gave me the ability to actually look inward and make strong necessary changes to essentially grow up and become a better person.
Image credits: Sensul05
Pretty much everything except the people dying.
Image credits: infidelightfull
Working from home.
Image credits: Previous-Artist-9252
Basically, during the pandemic, we were able to see how strenuous we humans are on Earth and how quickly it regenerates once we slow down a little. It's no wonder some folks miss it, especially now that everything is back on. We continue to strain the planet, even though it’s the only one we have.
So, while the pandemic was a scary time, there were some positives in it that some of us are starting to forget. Maybe this list will serve as a reminder and a motivation that, even in the darkest times, light (even if just a small one) can be found.

Not being obliged to shake hands. You could just nod at each other and go on.
Image credits: Habaneroe12
Clean supermarket baskets. Actually just clean stuff in general. The moment it was no longer mandated, everything went back to being filthy
Your would think there would be minimum standards of hygiene in places that sell produce… I mean, I'm pretty sure a corner grocer would get in trouble for having baskets as gross as Woolworths baskets always are.
Image credits: Weary_Sale_2779
The illusion that the majority of people cared about others.
Image credits: KatrinaKatrell
I miss the ability to avoid people and tasks of other peoples….people got very selfish and demanding post covid like they’re more important than anyone else

Edit: Wow I didn't expect this comment to get so many upvotes. It's amazing to see how many of us think alike. And thank you for the awards.
Image credits: Jewnohh
– peace and quiet
– actually having no stress and being able to just exist and mind your own business
– being rested and getting enough sleep for the first and probably the last time
– not working for 5.5 months.
Image credits: MadameCoco7273
Hand sanitizer at gas pumps. Pandemic or no, some folks just don’t wash their hands.
Image credits: LadySerenity
Staying at home and having a family time almost every day like eating together, watching movies together.
Image credits: AbbyyAdventures
Sitting one person per pair of seats on the bus. Hate it when someone sits next to me.
Image credits: notagain78
Getting paid to stay home and do, essentially, nothing. Spending tons of time with my kids.

Also my kids loved that the school gave us school food for them to eat at home, so I miss them being excited for us to go pick up the weekly school food.
Image credits: thrifty917
Getting absolutely hammered on zoom with my buddies
Image credits: Ok-Camel7458
The price of petrol
Image credits: Ob1cannobody
Being 4 years younger.
Image credits: Brucedx3
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Drift, the Solana-based on-chain trading platform, plans to offer its Season 2 airdrop in May 2025.
The Drift team revealed the upcoming FUEL airdrop via a post on X, with this coming on the back of several landmark achievements for the platform in 2024. Drift launched its native token DRIFT (DRIFT) in May while FUEL is a rewards program the Drift protocol announced in July 2024.
The program marks the season 2 airdrop for DRIFT and will benefit all users across the decentralized exchange platform. Drift says FUEL will help align incentives as well as drive growth for the protocol.
Among top objectives for the year is to grow Drift into a Super Protocol, with focus across borrowing and lending, derivatives, prediction markets, automated market making and wealth management.
Drift saw significant traction amid real-world assets integrations, with support for Ondo a notable development.
The platform also added the USDe, PayPal USD, and Sky’s USDS stablecoins and introduced liquid staking. Drift Earn has also benefited from vaults, with structured products designed for trading and yield strategies bringing millions of dollars in total value locked to the protocol.
Crypto airdrops were a hot trend once again in 2024, with some of the biggest token distributions seeing early users earn massive handouts.
Over the past year, three of the top airdrops came from Hyperliquid, Starknet and Pudgy Penguins. The Open Network-based and tap-to-earn game Notcoin and Solana DEX protocol Jupiter also dominated the market with their respective airdrops.  
In most cases, users earn rewards by bridging assets to layer-2 networks, engaging with protocol features and participating in protocol governance.
For 2025, some of the top airdrops in the Solana (SOL) ecosystem crypto enthusiasts may be eyeig include Jupiter round 2, Solayer, Sanctum season 2, Sonic SVM and DeBridge S2. There’s also expectations around airdrops for Berachain, Karak Network, Linea, Babylon and Hyperliquid S2 among many others.
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African crypto revolution continues as Ethiopia ranks among global BTC mining leaders
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Posted in: Movies, Trailer | Tagged: kristen stewart, Love me, Steven Yeun
Bleecker Street has released the trailer and poster for Love Me, an unusual drama starring Kristen Stewart and Steven Yeun.

Love Me is a new drama starring Kristen Stewart and Steven Yeun, directed and written by Sam Zuchero and Andy Zuchero. It debuted at Sundance last year and will hit theaters on January 31st. Stewart plays a buoy, and Yeun plays a satellite, figuring out what it means to be alive and how to fall in love using only the internet long after humans have become extinct. The film, the director’s debut feature, uses live-action, animatronics, and classic animation to tell the story.
Long after humanity’s extinction, a buoy (Kristen Stewart) and a satellite (Steven Yeun) inherit the Earth, and with only the internet as their guide, learn what it means to be alive and in love. In this groundbreaking first feature from Sam and Andy Zuchero, LOVE ME explores AI and identity through live-action, animatronics, and classic animation in an epic tale of connection and transformation. The poster for the film is also down below.
Here is Stewart talking to Deadline about Love Me from way back at Sundance: “The movie’s about everyone, all of our projections, fears and insecurities. The way we interact with ourselves and each other, the way we present. The negotiation between lies and manipulation and also disparity in wanting to be seen. I just looked at it [the script] and was like, ‘Oh, so I could play everyone in the whole world in this movie, and then really I could only play myself.’… When I watched the movie it’s like everyone I’ve ever met is in it.”
The trailer certainly promises a unique love story, though I cannot help thinking about the Wall-E vibes it gives off when the buoy and satellite are onscreen. In a weak box office this January, Love Me could be a bit of a breakout if enough people are feeling adventurous to see a fresh take on a love story around Valentine’s Day. Honestly, I am willing to watch anything with Yeun in it.
Love Me opens in theaters on January 31st.
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By Tucker Reals, Kerry Breen
Updated on: January 1, 2025 / 3:24 PM EST / CBS News
A man intentionally drove a pickup truck into a crowd of revelers on Bourbon Street in New Orleans’ French Quarter early on New Year’s Day, killing at least 10 people and injuring dozens of others, officials said. The attack is being investigated as an act of terrorism, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said. 
The man driving the vehicle has been identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a U.S. citizen from Texas, the FBI said. 
FBI special agent Alethea Duncan said in a news conference on Wednesday afternoon that a black ISIS flag had been flying from the truck’s rear bumper. The vehicle was an electric Ford pickup truck and appears to have been rented, the FBI said. 
Duncan said investigators “do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible” for the attack, and the FBI believes he may have had help carrying it out. Duncan said that the FBI is looking at a “range of suspects” and does “not want to rule anything out” at this stage of the investigation. The FBI is also working to determine the man’s potential affiliations or associations with terrorist associations. A person familiar with the investigation told CBS News that at this point, neither ISIS nor any other foreign terror organization has claimed responsibility for the attack. 
The man drove around barricades and up onto the sidewalk of Bourbon Street, New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said, avoiding barriers that had been placed by police. Kirkpatrick said the man “was trying to run over as many people as he could.” 
“We had a car there, we had barriers there, we had officers there, and he still got around,” Kirkpatrick said. 
The man then exited the car and opened fire on officers, the FBI official said. He died after exchanging gunfire with three responding officers, the FBI said. He was struck by police fire and declared dead at the scene, the New Orleans Police Department said. Two police officers were hit by gunfire but were in stable condition. 
Weapons and two potential improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, were located in the vehicle, Duncan said. At least one other IED was found in the French Quarter, and was detonated by law enforcement, a person familiar with the investigation said. The number of IEDs left behind is a large part of why the FBI believes the man may have had an accomplice, sources tell CBS News. Investigators are combing through video to see if there were accomplices involved in placing the devices, sources told CBS News. 
Further sweeps by law enforcement did not find any more IEDs, Duncan said. Kirkpatrick said police walked the area as a grid, looking for any suspicious items. Anyone who sees anything suspicious should contact officials, Duncan said. 
A long gun was recovered from the scene, law enforcement sources told CBS News. The long gun had a “suppressive device” on it that acted as a silencer, according to sources on the scene. Two sources familiar with the investigation told CBS News the man was wearing body armor. 
A current and a former senior law enforcement source with direct knowledge of the investigation told CBS News the man rented an Airbnb in New Orleans. A fire broke out at the Airbnb Wednesday, and investigators are examining if there is a link between the blaze and the attack, the source said. Residents in the area have been evacuated.
Duncan asked that anyone with information about the man contact the FBI. A U.S. official confirmed to CBS News that he had previously served in the U.S. military. 
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry called it “a horrific act of violence” and said he and his wife were “praying for all the victims and first responders on scene.” He urged people to avoid the area. 
The popular tourist district was full of New Year’s Day revelers at the time of the apparent attack.
“He was hellbent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did,” Kirkpatrick said. 
Witnesses told CBS News reporter Kati Weis that a white truck crashed into people on Bourbon Street at high speed, and the driver then started firing a weapon from inside the vehicle, with police returning fire. Weis saw multiple people on the ground being treated for injuries near the intersection of Bourbon and Canal Streets.
The City of New Orleans said in a statement posted online that 30 people were transported to area hospitals with injuries and 10 people were confirmed dead. Kirkpatrick later said that at least 35 people were hospitalized.
Duncan said the FBI will be leading the investigation. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Justice Department’s National Security Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana will work with the FBI and local officials to support the investigation, Attorney General Merrick Garland said. President Biden was briefed about the attack, the White House said, and his administration has been in touch with Cantrell to offer support. 
Biden said in a statement he has directed his administration to “ensure every resource is available as federal, state, and local law enforcement work assiduously to get to the bottom of what happened as quickly as possible and to ensure that there is no remaining threat of any kind.” 
“My heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday,” Biden said. “There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation’s communities.”
President-elect Donald Trump also acknowledged the attack in a post on TruthSocial. 
“Our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the New Orleans Police Department,” Trump said, in part. 
The Sugar Bowl college football playoff game was set to be played at the nearby Superdome later Wednesday, but has been rescheduled for Thursday night. Kirkpatrick said bomb sweeps have been conducted at the Superdome, and said the stadium would be locked down until the game. 
Jeff Hundley, the Chief Executive Officer of the Sugar Bowl, announced the delay at Thursday’s news conference. More details about the rescheduled game will be available in the coming hours, he said. 
“We live in the fun and games world, with what we do, but we certainly recognize the importance of this and we’re going to support it 100%,” Hundley said. 
A student from University of Georgia, one of the teams playing in the game, was “critically injured” in the attack, according to a statement from the school on social media. The student was not identified. 
Jim and Nicole Mowrer were in New Orleans visiting from Iowa and witnessed the incident. The couple told CBS News they had watched the city’s fireworks display and were enjoying the New Year’s Day atmosphere in the French Quarter when they heard crashing noises coming from down the street. They said they then saw a white truck slam through a barricade “at a high rate of speed,” followed by gunfire and police. The couple said the truck hit people about a block away from where they had been walking.  
“Once the gunfire stopped, we stayed in the alcove until the gunfire stopped, came out into the street, and came across a lot of — several people who had been hit, [we] wanted to see what we could do to help,” Nicole Mowrer said. She said the couple found the victims had died. 
The Mowrers said the victims they saw had injuries from the truck impact, and they did not see any apparent gunshot wounds. They said they left the area once emergency responders started arriving.
In a 2017 memo reviewed by CBS News, the city of New Orleans had acknowledged the risk of a mass casualty incident in the crowded, tourist-friendly French Quarter. The memo specifically referenced vehicle attacks in Nice, France, London, England and New York City. To minimize risk, the city said it planned to establish a camera and surveillance program, a centralized command center, more police patrols and infrastructure upgrades. The city had been in the process of upgrading the pedestrian bollard system in the French Quarter to modernize and bolster protections, with work ongoing through February. 
Pat Milton, Andres Triay, Nicole Sganga, Anna Schecter and Robert Legare contributed to this report.
Tucker Reals is CBSNews.com’s foreign editor, based in the CBS News London bureau. He has worked for CBS News since 2006, prior to which he worked for The Associated Press in Washington, D.C., and London.
© 2025 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Copyright ©2025 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.

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