Ripped from the Headlines: August 2024: This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for August 10–August 16, 2024

A school food service director in Chicago was sentenced to nine years in prison after a routine audit found she had stolen 11,000 cases of chicken wings. Vera Liddell pleaded guilty to charges that she took food meant for remote students' lunches from 2020 until 2022. The theft was revealed when a review of the district's finances showed that halfway through the school year, food costs were $300,000 over budget. Audits were originally oral, and the word's root means "to hear."

Coca-Cola is facing a backlash after the company tried to suppress a boycott of its products in South Asia using misleading advertising. A group of customers had started refusing to buy Coke products as part of a protest against corporations with alleged ties to Israel. A TV commercial in Bangladesh claimed, "Even Palestine has a Coke factory," urging an end to the boycott. In reality, the factory is an Israeli-owned bottling plant in East Jerusalem.

Researchers in Turkey discovered what may be the oldest lunisolar calendar, which appears to memorialize the comet that hit the earth 13,000 years ago. The impact of that icy space object in 10,850 BC may have triggered a mini-ice age that lasted 1,200 years. While scientists debate the significance of carvings found in ancient pillars, some believe they are a written record of the comet strike. Comet comes from the Greek (aster) komētēs, "long-haired (star)."

Three tourists defaced Joshua Tree National Park with paintball guns, according to a citation issued by park officials. After rangers discovered "yellow paintball splatter on structures and signs," they saw a slingshot on a nearby vehicle. Three German park visitors admitted to using a paintball gun and slingshots to fire the dye-filled capsules. At least 11 park signs had been damaged by paint. The Old French desfacier, "mutilate, disfigure," is the source of deface.

CDC officials said they now consider Covid-19 to be endemic. Four years after the pandemic began, the categorization means that Covid is expected to circulate indefinitely, the way flu does. Rather than trying to eliminate the virus, public health efforts will focus on vaccination against a disease that's become entrenched worldwide. Some experts disagree, saying Covid is too unpredictable to be classified as endemic. The root of endemic means "dwelling in a place."

The FDA approved a new nasal spray to treat serious allergic reactions. It's the first form of epinephrine that can be administered without a needle, and it could replace the EpiPen for some allergy sufferers. When the spray is administered in one nostril, it blocks severe reactions to allergens including bee stings, food, and medications. The quick, painless dose of synthetic stress hormone prevents anaphylaxis, which causes dangerously constricted airways and a drop in blood pressure.

A popular landmark in Utah’s Glen Canyon National Recreation Area collapsed late last week. The Double Arch was an ancient geologic feature that more than two million people visited annually. The large sandstone formation had a rounded shape and was also nicknamed "Hole in the Roof" and "Crescent Pool." Scientists believe that erosion from weather and changing water levels caused the collapse. Geologic is from Latin roots geo-, "earth," and logia, "science."

Hackers gained access to emails sent by members of the Trump campaign and attempted to break into accounts affiliated with the Democratic presidential campaign. Microsoft said that an Iranian group had hacked into emails sent by a campaign aide who many believe to be Trump's adviser Roger Stone, and Google also reported attempts to infiltrate email from both campaigns. The FBI did not confirm the origin of the hackers or which specific accounts were compromised.

More than a week after Ukrainian troops crossed the border into Russia's Kursk region and seized 390 square miles of territory, Ukraine continued its military advance. It was the largest Russian incursion since World War II, and the first time since Russia's 2022 invasion that Ukraine's forces have entered Russian territory. The Latin root of incursion is incurrere, "run against or rush at."

Boxer Cindy Ngamba won a bronze medal, becoming the first-ever winning athlete from the Refugee Olympic Team. The team was formed in 2016 as a symbol of hope for displaced people around the world. Ngamba was born in Cameroon and immigrated to Britain with her family. This year's 37 team members, who competed in more than a dozen sports, have all had to leave their home countries because of violence or persecution.

Tom Cruise helped close the Paris Olympics on August 11 by performing a spectacular stunt. The actor, who often plays an action hero, rappelled from the top of the 80,000-seat Stade de France during the closing ceremonies. He then jumped on a motorcycle holding the Olympic flag and rode out of the stadium. A pre-recorded video showed Cruise on a plane to Los Angeles, then sky-diving to the Hollywood sign, which was decorated with Olympic rings in a nod to the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

The world's largest iceberg has been slowly spinning in an ocean vortex for months. The iceberg, named A23a, is trapped on a rotating cylinder of water that's known as a "Taylor column." Scientists say A23a may be stuck there for years, gradually melting as it revolves. In Latin, a vortex is "an eddy of water, wind, or flame," from vertere, "to turn."