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Your attention span is shrinking, studies say. Here’s how to stay focused

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

(CNN) — I’ve been working steadily for hours but feel as if I haven’t even started. My attention is being pulled from my assigned task — writing this story — by a myriad of what I believe are necessary work interruptions. (OK, a couple were from my cat, who also firmly believes in their necessity.)My kids and I call days like this “squirrel days” in honor of Dug, the talking dog in (squirrel !!) the 2009 Pixar movie “Up,” who (squirrel !!) was constantly distracted by well, just about (squirrel !!) …Unfortunately, all too many of us are having “squirrel” days, according to Dr. Gloria Mark, a professor of informatics at the University of California, Irvine, who studies how digital media affects our lives. In her book “Attention Span: A Groundbreaking Way to Restore Balance, Happiness and Productivity,” Mark explains how decades of research have tracked the decline of the ability to focus.“In 2004, we measured the average attention on a screen to be 2½ minutes,” Mark said. “...

What is permitting reform? The critical energy provision buried in debt-ceiling negotiations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

(CNN) — Tucked into a bipartisan debt ceiling deal is a critical energy provision that Democrats and Republicans in Washington both want – at least in theory.Energy permitting reform, which aims to cut down the time it takes for new projects to get approved, is one of the few bipartisan measures to emerge from a debt limit deal. But it is not without controversy.Here’s what to know.What is energy permitting?Energy permitting may sound dry, but it’s an important and necessary step for any plan that intends to bring new sources of energy to our homes and businesses. It’s the shorthand term for all the environmental and technical approvals needed for a major energy project like a wind farm, massive solar array, electrical transmission line, or gas pipeline.Essentially, it’s the key hurdle to getting new energy projects built in the United States.In the US, this process is particularly complex because there are multiple layers of governm...

D.J. Reed bullish on potential of Jets’ defense: ‘I feel like we can be No. 1’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

A year ago, the Jets’ defense looked to improve from being the worst unit in the NFL.Not only did Gang Green accomplish that goal, but it also finished with a top-five defense.Despite their success on the defensive side of the ball, Jets players believe there’s still room for improvement.“We are a top-five defense, so I feel like we can be No. 1” Jets cornerback D.J. Reed said. “But we gotta put the work in. I just think it comes down to being just deliberate and just communicating and just having that swag when we’re out there.”In Robert Saleh’s first season as coach of the Jets, they finished dead last in yards and points allowed during the 2021 season. After a few additions, including signing Reed and drafting Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, the Jets defense significantly improved last year.Gang Green’s defense finished fourth in yards (311.1) and points (18.6) allowed. In part, because of their stout unit, Gardner, defensi...

‘Humbling and sobering moment’ for Liam Hendriks as Chicago White Sox fans show their love in his return to the mound

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

Liam Hendriks walked to the bullpen before the fifth inning Monday. Fans held up letters in the left-field bleachers that spelled, “TEAM LIAM.”Hendriks tipped his hat as he received a thunderous standing ovation.The Chicago White Sox closer announced in January he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He was back in a big-league game Monday, pitching the eighth inning of a 6-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels in front of 23,599 at Guaranteed Rate Field.Hendriks allowed two runs on three hits with one walk. But the stats were a small part of the remarkable story.“It was great being back out there,” Hendriks said. “Getting back, putting cleats on, running out, doing all that. I felt good, I felt strong, I felt comfortable out there.“Unfortunately for me I wasn’t able to get the two-strike pitch where I wanted to. That was the bit for (Monday). It was get ahead, generally, and then struggle to put them away.“There were some positives fro...

9 injured in Memorial Day shooting at Florida beach

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

By TERRY SPENCER (Associated Press)HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) — Nine people were injured when gunfire erupted along a beachside promenade in Hollywood, Florida, sending people frantically running for cover at the crowded beach on Memorial Day.Police and witnesses said the shooting began as a group of people fought in front of a busy stretch of shops on the Hollywood Oceanfront Broadwalk about 7 p.m. Monday.The sound of gunshots sent witness Alvie Carlton Scott III ducking for cover behind a tree before he fled on foot at the command of a police officer. Another witness, Jamie Ward, said several young men were fighting when one of them pulled a gun and started firing. The shooting upended busy holiday weekend festivities at the popular beach destination where there was already a heavy police presence to oversee the big crowds. Police spokesperson Deanna Bettineschi said four children between the ages of 1 and 17 were hit, along with five adults between 25 and 65. All of the victims w...

Man dead after trying to board moving Green Line trolley: MBTA

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

A man died after falling under a Boston subway train early Tuesday, authorities said.The man apparently wanted to board a moving Green Line trolley at North Station at 12:18 a.m., Transit Police Superintendent Richard Sullivan said in a statement.As the northbound trolley was departing on its way to the Medford/Tufts station the man kicked its side, the statement said, and he “lost his balance and fell under the trolley as it was in motion.”His name wasn’t made public. No other information was released.The North Station stop serves the TD Garden, where the Boston Celtics lost to the Miami Heat in Game 7 of the NBA’s Eastern Conference championship series about an hour and a half before the death.

Celtics’ Jaylen Brown’s playoff struggles may have been expensive with contract decisions looming

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

Jaylen Brown is a fine player. On paper, he qualifies as great. The Boston Celtics’ co-star is unequivocally one of the NBA’s best players at his position.He made his second straight All-Star appearance this season, qualified for second-team All-NBA this year, has been a Top-17 scorer each of the past three seasons and averaged a career-best 26.6 points per game in the regular season for a Boston Celtics team that finished with the second-best record in the Eastern Conference this year.Brown has averaged at least one steal per game in five of his seven NBA seasons, shoots five percentage points better than the NBA’s average field goal percentage (42%), has proven mostly durable appearing in at least 57 games every season and has historically been a reliable three-point shooter.A fine player indeed. On paper, a great.There’s a gap, however, between fine, possibly great, superstar and a show-stopper, which Brown proved himself not to be in the Eastern Conferenc...

Overturned vehicle prompts freeway lanes to close near La Mesa

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

LA MESA, Calif. — Two lanes of southbound State Route 125 near La Mesa were closed Tuesday after a vehicle flipped over following a crash, the California Highway Patrol said.The two-vehicle crash happened shortly after 6:10 a.m. on southbound SR-125, just north of Spring Street, according to CHP.One vehicle involved in the collision flipped onto its roof near the center divide of the freeway, prompting crews to issue a Sig Alert to block the two left lanes of SR-125. Video shows several sharks feed on dolphin at Torrey Pines State Beach According to CHP's Traffic Incident Information Page, one person in the overturned vehicle needed to be extracted from the vehicle and was transported to a nearby hospital.It was not immediately known if there were any other injuries related to the crash or how many people were in each vehicle involved.As of 6:50 a.m., crews were working to flip the overturned vehicle back onto its wheels so that a tow truck could remove it from the scene.According...

Juror and spouse: Texas state Sen. Angela Paxton could vote in trial on husband’s impeachment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — On the way to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton becoming a rising figure in the GOP, his wife, Angela, used to entertain crowds with a guitar and a song.“I’m a pistol-packin’ mama, and my husband sues Obama,” she sang at campaign events and Republican clubs in Texas.When it came time for the high school teacher and guidance counselor to launch her own political career, a $2 million loan from her husband propelled Angela Paxton to a narrow victory for a state Senate seat in the booming Dallas suburbs. Once elected, she filed bills to expand his office’s powers, and approved budgets over his state agency and salary.Now, Sen. Paxton is a key figure in the next phase of Ken Paxton’s historic impeachment: as a “juror” in a Senate trial that could put her husband back in office or banish him permanently.It’s a role that raises an ethical cloud over the Senate proceeding. State law compels all senators to attend, but is silent on whether s...

The easiest way to get a $7,500 tax credit for an electric vehicle? Consider leasing.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:01 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — Thanks to a boost from the government, leasing — not buying — is becoming the most affordable way to get your hands on an electric vehicle.Last year’s Inflation Reduction Act provided a federal tax credit of up to $7,500 to use toward an EV. Under the rules, a dealer can apply that credit to any leased electric vehicle, no matter where it’s made, to reduce a customer’s monthly payment.Not so for people who buy an EV.For buyers, only EVs made in North America qualify for the full tax credit. And only 10 of the 49 electric vehicles for sale in the United States this year meet that requirement. Even then, the EV must contain certain percentages of battery parts from the United States or countries with which it has a trade deal for the buyer to receive a full $7,500 credit.Why the distinction between leased and purchases vehicles?The Treasury Department says that in establishing the tax credit, Congress classified leased — but not purchased — EVs as “commercia...