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CARL AZUZ: Hi, I'm Carl Azuz with your down the middle
explanation of world news.
To what extent should the US government's
recommendations be followed when it comes
to mask mandates in schools?
Right now, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
a government agency, recommends universal masking.
Meaning, everyone in school is urged to wear one.
The Biden administration says the same thing.
It supports masking in schools.
But the White House also says it's always
been up to local school districts
to decide whether they'll follow the government's guidance
and the results have been mixed across America.
Some states require masks to be worn in schools.
Some have banned mask wearing in schools,
and some have rules on this that just aren't being enforced.
It's the same thing in individual districts.
Some require masks, some don't, some let students and teachers
decide for themselves.
But with their COVID cases decreasing,
governors in several states that currently have school mask
mandates are moving to get rid of them, even though it goes
against federal guidelines.
Critics of federal health officials
say they haven't been clear enough about those guidelines
that they haven't updated them often enough
or that these recommendations don't
make sense for all schools.
A CNN medical analyst says if the CDC'S recommendations
aren't being followed, it hurts the credibility
of the agency and government health officials.
For its part, the CDC says its guidance is, quote,
"meant to supplement, not replace any other safety
laws and regulations, and that it continuously
reviews pandemic and scientific information when deciding
on its recommendations."
One medical expert interviewed by CNN
says communities should look at local COVID case counts
and hospitalization rates when deciding what they'll
do about masks in schools.
10-second trivia.
Besides the ISS, what is the heaviest object
people have ever sent to space?
Skylab, Mir, Hubble, or the Apollo Command Service Module.
The Soviet and, later, Russian Space Station, Mir, had a mass
of almost 286,000 pounds.
Since 1971, hundreds of pieces of old space equipment,
including Mir and Skylab, have been intentionally crashed
at Point Nemo.
It's an area so remote and so far from inhabited land
that, oftentimes, the closest people to it
are those flying overhead on the International Space Station,
227 miles over the ocean surface.
Space experts say Point Nemo is the safest place on Earth
to crash something from space.
Planes and ships passing through the area are warned in advance.
And when it comes to space junk, a dump is
something that's badly needed.
- After decades of launches since the dawn of the space
age, Earth's orbit has become a junkyard of dead satellites
and abandoned rocket bodies.
And any time two objects traveling at about 5 miles
a second collide, the impact could
look like a scene straight out of the movie, "Gravity."
In real life, no people in space have ever been hit,
but the International Space Station has.
In 2016, a small piece of debris cracked a window
on the orbiting outpost.
And in December, its crew prepared for an emergency
evacuation after a Russian anti-satellite missile test
created a massive debris cloud.
- We will need to activate Dragon Safe Haven.
- Today, US Space Command is tracking more than 40,000
objects in space, and only about 5,000 of them
are active satellites.
The vast majority of space junk still in orbit
is from the two major players in the first space race--
Russia and the United States.
- If these spacecraft were left there by the US government,
and in general, they were, then that becomes
their responsibility to clean it up in the same way
that the military would not leave a broken down tank
on the battlefield nor would it go ahead and leave a ship,
a derelict ship at sea.
- But so far, the effort to clean up space
has been led by Japan and the European Space
Agency and private companies.
Some companies, like Clear Space,
are trying to grab debris with robotic tentacles.
Others are trying to catch it with a massive fishing net.
And in August, a company called Astroscale
successfully tested capturing a small satellite
with a magnetic arm.
- We used a robotic arm that extends and attaches
to that metallic plate.
That allows us then to, basically, perform a tow truck
or a tug service, bringing that satellite down
to a safe distance, and then we can
release it to naturally and safely
burn up in the atmosphere.
- Astroscale caught the attention
of the Prince of Wales, who visited its UK-based
mission control last week.
The company now has debris removal contracts with the UK,
the European Union, and Japan.
- In the US, unfortunately, we haven't seen
and we haven't gotten as much traction
from the US government.
- But the Biden administration is starting to change that.
In January, the White House held meetings with experts
about how to clean up space, and the Space Force
is launching a program called Orbital
Prime that will give companies the seed funding to do it.
- Our vision in this partnership is to aggressively
explore those capabilities with you
today, in the hope that we and others can purchase them
as a service in the future.
CARL AZUZ: The fact that Americans plan
to spend almost $24 billion this Valentine's Day
only tells part of the story.
That number works out to $72 per person for everyone
in the country, but not everyone plans to celebrate,
counting only the people who do the average amount of spending
jumps up to more than $175 per person,
and this is not a record.
According to the National Retail Federation,
that was set in 2020 with the COVID pandemic
looming in America.
In that year, Valentine's celebrants spent almost $200
each on average.
But if you're feeling pressured to spend a lot,
remember that money isn't everything.
According to personal finance website, WalletHub,
54% of Americans say they break up
with their significant others if they spent too much.
- Six blocks with dozens of wholesale flower vendors.
- Just checking on and make sure everything's good.
- Business in the Los Angeles flower district really blooms
in February, so much that the California Flower Mall,
one of the district's large markets
will stay open around the clock from Super Bowl
Sunday through the end of Valentine's Day.
- It's a good feeling.
It's like you're buying flowers for somebody you care about.
So all of that really helps despite the economic.
- Owner Mark Sarnoff says his 35 vendors
face the same thorny economic issues as any other retailer,
as growers and suppliers count down to a second pandemic era
Valentine's Day.
- We are facing rising costs, logistics,
transportation, which is part of logistics, shortages.
- Rosane Bustos brings flowers to the Los Angeles market
from local growers but also items
like roses from South America.
He says disruptions to those air shipments are unlike anything
he's seen in his 30 years in the flower industry.
- One Airline cancels.
Then, whoever is behind it got the pressure
to pick up what's behind.
- And the high demand holiday, falling on a Monday this year,
puts on the pressure, especially for florists
tasked with vinyl delivery.
- Those are 2021 problems that are continuing into 2022,
but it does get more difficult at Valentine's Day.
CARL AZUZ: We don't let this bug you.
But researchers recently filmed chimpanzees
catching insects and then putting them on injuries.
Could this be a form of animal medicine?
There are a lot of questions here.
For one thing, are bugs effective medication when
it comes to healing wounds?
That might need some research.
For another, this could be a first for science.
Even though animals have been known
to take care of their young or apply medicine,
like plants to themselves, these apes
have never been observed applying medicine
to another chimp before.
In fact, an animal has never been
observed applying insect matter to another animal's wounds
before.
So if that's what was happening here,
scientists think it could be a form
of empathy, a sign of individuals caring for others.
The video was captured at Luongo National Park
in the African Nation of Gabon.
For today's 10 out of 10 segment,
we're going for the gold, and it has nothing
to do with the Olympics.
This is Goldens in Golden Day.
The first part relating to golden retrievers, the second
related to the City of Golden, Colorado.
One participant-- a human-- said she thought it was the best
holiday there ever was.
My border collie would snap at that,
but there's no question that this retriever
is a lot of popularity and a lot of publicity.
But could Goldens and Golden inspire other related events?
Consider Aussies in Australia, Bostons in Boston,
Chihuahuas in Chihuahua, Dalmatians in Dalmatia,
English Fox Hounds in England, French Bulldogs in France,
German Shepherds in Germany, Havanese in Havana,
Irish Setters in Ireland, Jack Russells in Jackson,
King Shepherds in Kingston, Labradors in Labrador,
Maltese in Malta, New Finlands in New Finland,
Otter Hounds in Ottawa, Papillions in Papillion,
Queenslands in Queensland, Rotties in Rotterdam,
Shibas in Chiba, Tibetans in Tibet,
Utonagan in Utah, Vizsla and Visalia,
Whippets in Whipple's, Xolos in Xolo, Yorkies in Yorkshire,
and Zwergpinscher in [inaudible]..
We've gone to the dogs from A to Z. One more we missed, though--
Plotts in Plattsburg because Plattsburgh,
New York is where we are shouting at you,
Plattsburgh High School.
I'm Carl Azuz for CNN.