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Exceptional drought affecting portion of Central Texas

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

Editor’s Note: The video above shows the latest from the KXAN First Warning Weather team.AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Drought conditions in Central Texas intensified dramatically in Thursday's weekly drought update. KXAN First Warning Weather forecast As we bake in Austin's hottest summer on record to date, data from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows the area of Texas impacted by the worst drought classification, "D4 Exceptional Drought", jumped from just 1% last week to 11% this week. Isolated rain showers some recent days are not making any measurable difference in severe drought conditions nor in very low lake and aquifer levels.Camp Mabry has only recorded 1/4" of rain in the last two months. This July was Austin's hottest on record, and August has been record-hot as well -- by a wide margin of 1.6 degrees at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Hot temperatures evaporate moisture more rapidly from the soil, vegetation, and water reservoirs.The U.S. Drought Monitor describes the Exce...

Austin-based startup revolutionizing how amputees control prosthetic limbs

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – An Austin-based neurotech startup is making strides toward revolutionizing the way amputees can interact with their prosthetic limbs. Dr. Connor Glass, CEO and President of Phantom Neuro, said that many companies have developed technology for amputees to control prosthetic limbs through brain implants but that his company is the first to innovate a muscle-machine interface. How it worksInstead of implanting a device into the brain, which Glass said can be “risky,” Phantom Neuro has created a thin sensor device that – after being inserted through a small incision – sits on top of the muscles where it can detect electrical activity from nerves. The sensor is able to pick up that electrical activity and correlate it to the intended movements in the prosthetic limb. “[We are] basically creating an implantable human-machine interface…so that you can control a robotic limb the same way that you can control an intact biological limb,” Glass said.  “We're absolutel...

Listen to two new Prince vault tracks from upcoming ‘Diamonds and Pearls’ box set

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

Prince’s 13th album “Diamonds and Pearls” is his latest project to receive the super deluxe treatment with a box set that boasts 47 previously unreleased songs and more than two hours of previously unseen concert video.Due out Oct. 27, the newly remastered “Diamonds and Pearls” will be available in three formats: the super deluxe edition with 12 LPs and Blu-ray ($349.98) or 7 CDs and Blu-ray ($159.98); a deluxe edition with a bonus disc of remixes on vinyl ($79.98) and CD ($16.98); and standard version on vinyl ($39.98) and CD ($12.98).Thursday, the Prince estate released two tracks from the project to streaming services, the previously unreleased funk number “Alice Through The Looking Glass” and a longer, early version of the album cut “Insatiable,” which features lyrics and instrumentation that were removed from the final version.Released in October 1991, “Diamonds and Pearls” features Prince’s then-new backing band New Power Generation, who share the credit with him o...

Adding Louie Varland to bullpen a timing issue for Twins

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

Twins fans who watched the bullpen give up 10 earned runs over 7⅔ innings in a pair of losses in Milwaukee on Tuesday and Wednesday can be forgiven if they were wondering when their team might start bolstering its bullpen with an arm or two from Class AAA St. Paul.Specifically, if they wondered when Louie Varland, a hard-throwing right-hander from Maplewood who is 5-1 with a 2.88 earned-run average in his past 10 starts for the Saints, will return to the staff.“It’s a good question,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said after Wednesday’s 8-7 extra-inning loss to the Brewers. “There is not one answer to that question.”It’s been generally assumed Varland, 25, will return to the active roster toward the end of the regular season, and with a surfeit of starters — Joe Ryan (groin) is expected to return Saturday and join a six-man rotation with Sonny Gray, Pablo Lopez, Kenta Maeda, Bailey Over and Dallas Keuchel — a bullpen role seems mostly likely.But the Twins started Thursday night’s seri...

Rams coach Sean McVay looks forward to stealing stuff from Sean Payton this season

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

For Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay, Sean Payton’s return to the sidelines after a one-year hiatus means he can steal some of his ideas.After the Broncos’ joint practice with the Rams on Thursday, McVay spoke of his utmost respect for Denver’s first-year coach. At the same time, McVay admitted that he plans to study Payton’s offensive concepts for his benefit. “I’m not proud to admit that we’ll do that from everybody,” he said.Payton is regarded as one of the most brilliant offensive minds in the league, so McVay’s comments shouldn’t come as a surprise. McVay, who is entering his sixth season in Los Angeles, has admired Payton’s consistency while learning to adapt and evolve.“My respect (for) him and some of these (coaches) is how hard it is to recreate yourself, but still have an identity (of) how you want to operate and adjust to your team,” McVay said. “I think that’s always been a staple of Sean.”McVay was “super impressed” with the Broncos during the two-day...

O.C. mass shooting gunman traveled from Ohio, targeted estranged wife, sheriff says

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

A retired Ventura police sergeant traveled from Ohio and targeted his estranged wife during a mass shooting at a popular Orange County bar that left three people dead, Sheriff Don Barnes detailed Thursday. According to witnesses, John Snowling walked directly up to his wife inside Cook's Corner, and without saying a word, shot and injured her and her female companion. He continued "randomly" shooting others both inside and outside the bar before being fatally shot while exchanging gunfire with seven deputies, Barnes said. Two men and a woman died at the scene. Only one of the victims, John Lahey, 67, has been identified. Snowling, who had worked with the Ventura Police Department for 28 years before retiring in 2014, was armed with three handguns and a shotgun, Barnes said. Authorities believed he had traveled to Southern California from Ohio before learning that his wife was at Cook's Corner. Witnesses described a chaotic and bloody scene as gunfire erupted both inside and outside ...

Woman fired after racist rant at California McDonald's

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

A woman whose racist outburst was captured on video at a Fresno, California McDonald's has been fired, KTLA sister station KSEE/KGPE reports.The Central Valley woman's employer, a dental office, said she no longer works there.Luis Aceves is the man who confronted the woman in the video, which now has hundreds of thousands of views. His friends were recording the whole incident while they were at lunch together. He said the woman exploded at employees over a soda."You [can't] come in here and try to degrade people," he tells her in the video. "(bleep) you, you (bleep) Mexican," she shouts back.Racist outburst; Woman in viral Tiktok no longer employed. (Credit courtesy of Kevin Alejandro and Parra Gonzalez)"Employees were already explaining that someone was cussing at them through the window, the drive-thru window. We overheard them, too," Aceves said."For me, it was like, 'Alright, that's none of my business,' but then once she started sitting there telling people 'Who are you? Look ...

The Unseen Role of an Estate Planning Attorney: Beyond Wills and Directives

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

When most people hear “estate planning”, they immediately think of wills and last testaments, directives that guide loved ones through the emotional process of settling affairs after a loved one passes away. However, estate planning is a broad and intricate field, stretching well beyond the preparation of these documents. At the heart of this practice is a pivotal but often overlooked figure: the estate planning attorney. Their role is expansive, meticulous, and profoundly consequential, especially when safeguarding retirement accounts and assets.Consider this: As you plan your golden years, you’re likely accumulating various savings accounts—IRAs, 401(k)s, pensions, and more. Yet, for all the focus on growing these funds, far less attention is often paid to the complex tax implications of these accounts upon withdrawal or when they are passed on to the next generation. This is where the estate planning attorney steps in, serving as an adept guide through the complicated...

AeroFlexx is Flexing its Muscle as the Premier Liquid Packaging Solution for Brands, Consumers, and the Planet

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

Brands that utilize liquid packaging solutions no longer need to choose between value, the consumer, or doing good for the environment. AeroFlexx, a full-service liquid packaging company, allows brands to have all three. Its innovative products combine the best attributes of rigid and flexible packaging into a single solution that enables a preferred customer experience, delivers significant brand value, and introduces unprecedented sustainability benefits.Delivering value to customers through responsible designCustomers will find that AeroFlexx is a committed leader in the sustainable packaging industry, delivering a real and measurable impact. Its AeroFlexx Pak completely reimagines liquid packaging, providing a product that has less plastic, less waste, and less mess. No molds are needed to produce the AeroFlexx Pak, which means set up is easier and less expensive. In addition, the Pak allows for 360 artwork, which means there are no limits on creativity when designing product la...

How TEN2 MEDIA Co-Founder, Donna Budica, is helping music artists achieve greater career success by unlocking access to knowledge & resources that empower.

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:39 GMT

TEN2 MEDIA started as an ambitious concept – build a company to help developing artists and content creators navigate the tricky landscape of YouTube monetization, content optimization, and music marketing. Now, as TEN2’s impressive roster and impact on the industry quickly grows, Co-Founder Donna Budica shares the foundation of the company’s mission:  “To ignite artist independence and democratize access to information, tools, and resources that empower.”  Let’s take a look at how she did it.The innovative media group was co-founded by Donna Budica, a first-generation Iranian Italian who grew up in Philadelphia. With degrees in Finance from The Wharton School and an MBA from the Marshall School of Business, Donna leads Strategy and Operations at TEN2, bringing her impressive pedigree and a unique kaleidoscope of omni-industry experience to the role. Offering an atypical, fresh perspective on the historically monolithic, gate-kept music industry has fostered the company’s unique pos...