These are the top maybe-not headlines from the past 36-hours presented by The Conversation Project from raw engagement data from our social media to the headlines posted over the past day.
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The 8 topics that our followers ranked as the most conversational are:
DUCHESS MEGHAN, DUCHESS KATE, PRINCE WILLIAM, AND PRINCE HARRY TEAM UP FOR POWERFUL MENTAL HEALTH PSA
Though their charitable endeavors are now officially separate, the Cambridges and Sussexes have joined forces once again to lend their voices to a powerful new mental health PSA. As part of a new initiative with Britain’s National Health Service (NHS), the Fab Four provided narration for the short film alongside a number of U.K. TV personalities, actors and sports stars, including Gillian Anderson, Glenn Close, and former cricket player Freddie Flintoff. Every Mind Matters, which is backed by a coalition of mental health charities including the Royal Foundation’s Heads Together initiative, is a new online program that aims to help people take simple steps to look after their mental wellbeing and support others’. The Special website will enable people to create a personalized action plan that recommends tailored self-care actions to help deal with stress, boost mood, improve sleep and feel in control.
[SOURCE: harpersbazaar.com]
NEVADA FIGHTING TO KEEP ‘ZOMBIE DEER’ FROM ENTERING STATE
“Zombie deer” may sound like something in a bad B-movie, but wildlife regulators say they’re real. Officials are working to keep them out of Nevada. The Las Vegas Sun reports the term relates to animals that have contracted chronic wasting disease — a highly contagious and terminal disorder. Causing symptoms such as lack of fear of humans, lethargy and emaciation, it can destroy deer and elk populations. Nevada state wildlife veterinarian Peregrine Wolff says officials are testing dead animals and monitoring migratory elk and deer at the state line with Utah for signs of sickness. A state law passed this year prohibits parts of certain carcasses in the state in an attempt to stop the spread of the disease. States reporting animals with the illness include Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming.
[SOURCE: kutv.com]
ACTOR AND COMEDIAN RIP TAYLOR IS DEAD AT 84
Taylor was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles in the intensive care unit after suffering a seizure last week, his publicist Harlan Boll said. He was born Charles Elmer Taylor in Washington, D.C., according to Boll. Taylor served in the Korean War and began entertaining then, according to Boll. Taylor’s signature became wacky costumes and props, a handlebar mustache and his confetti tosses during the 1970s, according to IMDb. He was a frequent guest on game shows of that era, including the “Gong Show.” Taylor acted on Broadway, film and television, and was known for his over-the-top personality. Taylor’s voice was heard on animated films, including “DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp,” “Tom and Jerry: The Movie,” and “Scooby-Doo and the Monster of Mexico,” according to IMDb. Taylor was nominated for an Emmy Award for voice of Uncle Fester in the TV cartoon series,” The Addams Family,” according IMDb. Taylor is survived by longtime partner, Robert Fortney, according to Boll.
[SOURCE: cnn.com]
US TO STEP ASIDE FOR TURKISH ASSAULT ON KURDS IN SYRIA
The White House said Sunday that U.S. forces in northeast Syria will move aside and clear the way for an expected Turkish assault, essentially abandoning Kurdish fighters who fought alongside American forces in the yearslong battle to defeat Islamic State militants. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened for months to launch the military operation across the border. He views the Kurdish forces as a threat to his country. Republicans and Democrats have warned that allowing the Turkish attack could lead to a massacre of the Kurds and send a troubling message to American allies across the globe. U.S. troops “will not support or be involved in the operation” and “will no longer be in the immediate area,” in northern Syria, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in an unusual late-Sunday statement that was silent on the fate of the Kurds. There are about 1,000 U.S. troops in northern Syria, and a senior U.S. official said they will pull back from the area — and potentially depart the country entirely should widespread fighting break out between Turkish and Kurdish forces. The announcement followed a call between President Donald Trump and Erdogan, the White House said. The decision is a stark illustration of Trump’s focus on ending American overseas entanglements — one of his key campaign promises. But his goal of swift withdrawals in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan have been stymied by concerns from U.S. officials and American allies about the dangerous voids that would remain. As he faces an impeachment inquiry at home, Trump has appeared more focused on making good on his political pledges, even at the risk of sending a troubling signal to American allies abroad. Key Republican leaders in Congress appeared taken aback by the move.
[SOURCE: apnews.com]
PUPPY FOUND ALIVE IN RUBBLE ONE MONTH AFTER HURRICANE DORIAN HIT THE BAHAMAS
Members of Big Dog Ranch Rescue found the dog, now named “Miracle,” on Friday in Marsh Harbour using infrared detection from a drone, the organization’s spokesman Chase Scott told CNN. Scott said that Miracle was nearly crushed to death after a building collapsed, trapping him under broken glass, an air conditioning unit and building debris. The 1-year-old mixed breed had been surviving only on rainwater, and was “skeleton thin and unable to walk,” Scott said. Despite his dire condition, Miracle greeted rescuers with a wagging tail. Scott said they’re providing the pup with medical and emotional support, and are hoping for a full recovery. Hurricane Dorian struck the Bahamas in early September, killing dozens of people and leaving hundreds of others missing. Mass evacuations resulted in countless animals being abandoned. So far, Big Dog Ranch Rescue has saved 139 dogs.
[SOURCE: cnn.com]
PARALYZED MAN WALKS USING BRAIN-CONTROLLED ROBOTIC SUIT IN GRENOBLE, FRANCE
A man, paralyzed from the shoulders down, is now able to walk using a mind-controlled robotic suit. It may sound like science fiction, but it really happened in France. The man, identified only as Thibault, severed his spinal cord after falling from a balcony. University of Grenoble researchers implanted recording devices in his head that can transmit signals into movements, which are then executed by a robotic exoskeleton. For two years, Thibault has been using a video game avatar to help it understand his thoughts. Over the course of the study, he was able to walk the distance of more than one and a half football fields. Scientists say the technology is an experimental treatment that could help others, after it’s improved.
[SOURCE: abc7.com]
HSBC TO CUT UP TO 10,000 JOBS IN DRIVE TO SLASH COSTS
HSBC Holdings Plc is planning to cut up to 10,000 jobs, more than 4% of its workforce, as interim Chief Executive Officer Noel Quinn seeks to reduce costs across the banking group, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. The plan represents the lender’s most ambitious attempt in years to cut costs, the newspaper said here citing two people briefed on the matter. It said the cuts will focus mainly on high-paid roles. HSBC declined to comment on the FT report. The bank had 237,685 full-time employees at the end of June 2019, according to its 2019 interim report. HSBC could announce the beginning of the latest cost-cutting drive and job cuts when it reports third-quarter results later this month, the FT said, citing one person briefed on the matter.
[SOURCE: reuters.com]
IRAQI POLICE FIRE ON PROTESTERS IN NEW UNREST, DEATH TOLL PASSES 100
At least eight people were killed in new clashes between Iraqi security forces and anti-government protesters on Sunday, the sixth day of unrest in which the death toll has now passed 100 and more than 6,000 have been wounded. The eight were killed in eastern Baghdad, police sources said, after police backed by the armed forces used live rounds. The demonstrators had taken to the streets hours after the government announced reforms to try to ease anger over corruption and unemployment. The unrest is the biggest security and political challenge for Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s government since it took power a year ago. The clashes have revived fears of a new spiral of violence that could suck in influential militia groups and be exploited by Islamic State. Before the latest clashes in the Sadr City residential district of the capital, an Interior Ministry spokesman said 104 people had been killed, including eight members of the security forces, in the unrest since Tuesday. He said 6,107 had been wounded, including more than 1,000 police and security forces, and dozens of buildings had been set ablaze, he added. But he denied the security forces had fired directly at the protesters.
[SOURCE: reuters.com]
Eight Things To Talk About uses the raw engagement data from the social media engagement from The Conversation Project to generate the top-ranking headlines over the course of a weekend.
A full weeks’ data (from Friday to Friday) is compiled, weighed, and sorted to produce the content for the Wrap-Up Show with J Cleveland Payne, published every Saturday as a podcast available at ThisIsTheConversation.com or wherever your favorite podcasts are found.
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