Wake-Up Call: COVID Surge Is Slowing

The United States reached a heartbreaking milestone of 700,000 deaths due to COVID-19 on Friday. But there are signs that the surge in cases due to the delta variant is beginning to slow. According to NPR, health experts believe the pandemic has peaked even in the Deep South, where it was raging only weeks ago.

The worst-hit state right now is Alaska. Intensive care units there are packed and supplies are running low, The New York Times reports.

Merck says its experimental Covid-19 pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus and that it would soon ask health officials in the U.S. and around the world to authorize its use. https://t.co/gkEYJ029Ey

— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 4, 2021

➤STUDY: WOMEN SPENT MORE TIME ON THE PHONE AND FOLLOWED RULES MORE CLOSELY IN COVID LOCKDOWN, BUT MEN BOUNCED BACK BETTER AFTERWARDS: Men and women handled the COVID-19 lockdowns differently. Researchers in Vienna looked at mobile phone data from 1.2 milllion Austrians from between February and June 2020. They found in general, people made fewer, but longer phone calls right after lockdown started, and phone calls involving women lasted significantly longer. After the first lockdown was announced in Austria, women calling other women had calls 1.5 times longer than before the pandemic began, and phone calls from men to women lasted nearly twice as long. The researchers also found that pre-existing social differences between men and women were amplified during the lockdown, with women going out far less than men. The data also showed that men visited a large recreational area and shopping mall during lockdown more often than women did. In addition, once lockdown restrictions were lifted, men returned to their pre-pandemic lives and behavior patterns more quickly than women did. Study co-author Stefan Thurner adds, “We are providing concrete information for policymakers which can either be used for planning in an acute crisis, or flow into a more targeted health planning, or could even lead to considerations on how to achieve a more gender-equitable society.

➤OIL SPILL ALONG CALIFORNIA COAST: Dead birds and fish are washing ashore along the Southern California coast after a major oil spill. The leak started about five miles off Huntington Beach. The spill's apparent cause was a broken pipe at an offshore oil platform. The final day of the Pacific Airshow had to be canceled and beaches along a nearly-five-mile stretch have been closed.

➤BODY BELIEVED TO BE MISSING COLLEGE STUDENT FOUND: A body found in Orlando on Saturday is believed to be that of missing 19-year-old college student Miya Marcano. She had been missing since September 24th. The body was found in a wooded area about 20 miles from her home. A maintenance worker at her apartment complex who was a prime suspect in her disappearance was found dead last week in an apparent suicide.

➤ALADDIN GOES DARK: Broadway’s Aladdin has to go dark to keep COVID-19 under control. Friday’s performance was canceled and all of the shows until October 12th have been canceled due to breakthrough cases being reported within the show’s cast and crew. The show reopened Tuesday after 18 months of darkness. "This 12-day pause allows the Aladdin company ample time to ensure that people with breakthroughs recover, and any other potential breakthroughs are identified before the Aladdin company gathers again," Dr. Blythe Adamson, the epidemiologist working with Disney Theatrical Productions, said in a statement.

➤OOPSY! BILLIONAIRES' OFFSHORE STASHES REVEALED: The king of Jordan, whose poor nation is propped up with foreign aid, owns a 26-room Malibu mansion overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It's just part of King Abdullah's global property portfolio, said to be worth about $100 million.

This is just one revelation from the Pandora Papers, a vast pile of information on the secret offshore accounts of the rich and powerful that has been acquired by The Guardian newspaper and other publishers around the world. More details are expected this week.

➤NOBODY WINS: The Powerball jackpot has swollen to $670 million for today's drawing after no one held the winning numbers in Saturday's drawing. A record 40 Powerball drawings have taken place without a grand prize winner, although one player scored a measly one million bucks in Saturday's drawing.

➤WHAT OUR WANDERING THOUGHTS CAN TEACH US ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH:  If you pay attention to where your mind wanders it can tell you something about your mental health. University of Arizona researchers found ruminative individuals had negative thoughts that lasted longer than positive thoughts, and those negative thoughts became progressively narrower in topic over time. Other people thought about positive things, and positive topics or goals they wanted to reach in their downtime. Study co-author Jessica Andrews-Hanna says, “Eventually, we hope to connect the psychological characteristics of idle thought to the biological patterns of activity and connectivity changing across time to provide a fuller picture of consciousness and mental health.”

🏈NFL SCORES -- WEEK 4:

• New York Jets 27, Tennessee Titans 24 (OT)
• Kansas City Chiefs 42, Philadelphia Eagles 30
• Dallas Cowboys 36, Carolina Panthers 28
• New York Giants 27, New Orleans Saints 21 (OT)
• Cleveland Browns 14, Minnesota Vikings 7
• Chicago Bears 24, Detroit Lions 14
• Buffalo Bills 40, Houston Texans 0
• Indianapolis Colts 27, Miami Dolphins 17
• Washington Football Team 34, Atlanta Falcons 30
• Seattle Seahawks 28, San Francisco 49ers 21
• Arizona Cardinals 37, Los Angeles Rams 20
• Green Bay Packers 27, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
• Baltimore Ravens 23, Denver Broncos 7
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers 19, New England Patriots 7

Tonight's Monday Night Football game on ESPN:

•  Las Vegas Raider's at Los Angeles Chargers, 8:15 pm EDT on ESPn

🏈WHY GRONKOWSKI WASN'T AT FOXBOROUGH: There's a reason that Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski didn't make it to Foxborough for the team's Sunday game against the New England Patriots. His injuries are more serious than had been known. In fact, Yahoo! Sports reports, he has a broken rib and a punctured lung in addition to cracked ribs. He's expected to be out for several weeks.

⚾GIANTS WIN NL WEST: The San Francisco Giants captured the NL West yesterday with an 11-4 victory over the San Diego Padres. It was a record 107th win for the Giants.

Gio Urshela with his own version of the Derek Jeter catch! #SquadUp #Yankees #NYY #MLB #GioUrshela pic.twitter.com/yNOIDps8E3

— Jose Mesa Corrales (@JmesaSports) October 4, 2021

The New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, with identical 92-70 records, play the American League wild-card game at Fenway Park tomorrow.

➤NASCAR AT NOON: The Cup playoff race at Talladega Superspeedway will happen at 1 p.m. ET today. The event was supposed to be held yesterday but NASCAR postponed due to rain.