Ripped from the Headlines: August 2023: This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for August 26–September 1, 2023

A week after Yevgeniy Prigozhin's death in a suspicious plane crash, a Kremlin spokesperson said it may have been an assasination. Prigozhin, the head of a Russian paramilitary group, led a mutiny against the Russian government earlier this summer. Putin denies all responsibility for Prigozhin's death, but experts say it was likely a Kremlin-ordered killing that will silence the Russian government's critics.

CDC studies showed that during 19 days of Canadian wildfire smoke this spring and summer, U.S. hospital visits for asthma symptoms were 17% higher than normal. Some regions, including New York and New Jersey, saw even more dramatic increases in ER admissions of people struggling to breathe. Health experts said the tiny particles in wildfire smoke can embed in the lungs and trigger severe symptoms. In Greek, asthma means "breathing hard," from a root meaning "wind."

Two bear cubs were being transported on an Iraqi Airways flight from Baghdad to Dubai when one of them broke out of its crate. Upon landing, the crew discovered the cub roaming the cargo area, causing a whir of excitement as well as delays. Experts sedated and removed the bear from the plane while the Iraqi government said it will investigate how the animal got out in the first place. Cargo is from a Latin word meaning "to load a wagon or cart."

Sixty years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his "I have a dream" speech in front of Washington, D.C.'s Lincoln Memorial before a crowd of 250,000 people. On August 26, thousands gathered in the same place to mark the anniversary of the historic civil rights March on Washington. This week's event was described as an important "continuation" of King's dream, in the face of recent court decisions seen by civil rights activists as setbacks to the progress of racial equality.

Simone Biles reclaimed her position as the U.S. all-around gymnastics champion on August 27, as she returned to competition after withdrawing from several events in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. It's a remarkable comeback for Biles, who took two years away from competing to focus on her mental health. At 26, she is the oldest woman to win the event, and she is also the first American gymnast in history to take eight world titles.

Engineers are exploring ways to unlock the vast amounts of geothermal energy inside the earth's core. There's enough natural heat trapped deep in the ground that could theoretically power the entire world. New technologies are needed to tap into the hot, dry rocks inside the planet, and some experts say drilling methods currently used in oil and gas fracking might hold the key. The word geothermal comes from the Greek roots geo, "earth," and therme, "heat."

An anonymous group of San Francisco activists has been immobilizing driverless cars. Members of Safe Street Rebel say they object to the autonomous vehicle technology being tested in their city, claiming that it remains unsafe and undermines the expansion of public transportation. The protesters are able to incapacitate the cars simply by placing traffic cones on their hoods, which renders them unable to move forward.

Tropical Storm Idalia intensified into a hurricane on August 29 as it barreled toward Florida's Gulf Coast. By the time it made landfall the following day, the storm had grown into a category three hurricane, with wind speeds of up to 125 miles per hour. Idalia pounded Keaton Beach, Florida and moved into Georgia before losing intensity and regaining tropical storm status as it swept through South Carolina. More than 250,000 homes and businesses lost power in the wake of the storm.

Since India's successful moon landing last week, its rover has been sending detailed photos of the lunar surface back to Earth. Spectacular images and video of the Vikram lander's touchdown on the moon have been viewed by millions of people. Tools onboard the lunar rover have also gathered and tested samples of the moon's soil, finding evidence of many chemical elements, including oxygen and sulfur. Lunar is from the Latin root luna, "moon."

Ornithologists say climate change has made it much more likely for New Yorkers to spot rare birds. Warmer weather has led to urban sightings of tropical species like the brown booby and brown footed pelican, as well as arctic birds whose territory has increased due to snow melt. Bird scientists consider the changes to be sobering evidence of the climate crisis. The Greek word ornis, "a bird," is at the root of ornithologist.

The annual World Bog Snorkeling Championships, held in Wales, failed to produce a new champion. The contest featured intrepid competitors in masks and snorkels diving face-down into slimy trenches cut into the peat bogs of Llanwrtyd Wells. They tried in vain to break the 2018 record of Neil Rutter, who snorkeled across 120 yards of bog water in one minute and 18 seconds. Snorkel has a German slang root, Schnorchel, "snout."

Scientists genetically altered a squid to be transparent, allowing them to examine its living brain and beating hearts. Using the CRISPR gene editing technology, they bred a version of the hummingbird bobtail squid that is almost completely see-through, its organs just barely visible beneath its clear skin. The animal's large brain makes it especially useful for research. Transparent is from the Medieval Latin transparere, "show light through."