Disney and a Central Florida tourism board backed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis reached a settlement Wednesday in a lawsuit over who controls the special governing district that encompasses the Walt Disney World Resort. Members of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District approved the settlement‚ which will bring an end to a court battle that has lasted for nearly two years.  "We are glad that Disney has dropped its lawsuits against the new Central Florida Tourism...

Questions are beginning to be answered in the wake of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore on Tuesday morning. A Singaporean cargo ship en route to Sri Lanka lost power‚ resulting in a collision with a structural beam of the Francis Scott Key Bridge‚ or Key Bridge‚ in Baltimore at about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.  “We are Maryland tough. We are Baltimore strong. In the face of danger‚ we hold out. In the face of heartbreak‚ we come together‚ and we come back stronger. That is...

For decades‚ the Sail Inn has been a mainstay bar and restaurant in this small community‚ tucked away near the Patapsco River just outside the city of Baltimore. Many customers who worked at the nearby port came in its doors during their lunch break or to grab a beer after their shift. Other customers drove over from residential communities on the opposite side of the nearby Francis Scott Key Bridge.  Suddenly‚ the bridge is gone and the Port of Baltimore—a top-10 U.S. port by...

Perhaps the most obvious cause for the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday is what’s seen in footage from the scene: a massive cargo ship laden with shipping containers striking the bridge‚ which buckles into the river below. It’s still early in the investigative process‚ but officials have ruled out terrorism as a motive; Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said at a news conference Tuesday morning preliminary information indicates the collision was an accident. How...

Wednesday marked one year since the Nashville community was devastated by what was the deadliest kindergarten through 12th grade school shooting in 2023. On March 27‚ 2023‚ an armed intruder shot through a glass door and entered The Covenant School in Green Hills‚ leading to the deaths of three children and three adults. The victims included Evelyn Diekhaus‚ William Kinney and Hallie Scruggs‚ all age 9‚ and Mike Hill‚ 61‚ Cynthia Peak‚ 61‚ and Dr. Katherine Koonce‚ 60.

Disney has dropped its lawsuits against a special district backed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that revoked the corporation’s self-governing status in the state‚ multiple outlets reported on Wednesday. DeSantis signed legislation in February 2023 replacing Disney’s Reedy Creek Improvement District with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District‚ setting off nearly a years-long legal battle between the two entities. Disney has decided to drop the pending litigation on Wednesday‚ resulting...

An English doctor named Edward Jenner took incredible risks to try to rid his world of smallpox. Because of his efforts and the efforts of scientists like him‚ the only thing between deadly diseases like the ones below and extinction are people who refuse to vaccinate their kids. Don't be that parent.Unfortunately‚ because of the misinformation from the anti-vaccination movement‚ some of these diseases have trended up in a really bad way over the past several years.Wellness involves a lot of personal choices and the tradeoff between personal liberty and shared public good. Measles is the starkest example. There were about 61 cases of measles in all of 2012‚ but in just the first seven months of 2014‚ there have been nearly 600.As this chart shows‚ vaccinations are not like taxes rates or even freedom of speech. The impact of one's personal health choices can have a significant impact on the population around them‚ in their communities and even on a national level. It makes that trade-off all the more complicated and one not easily distilled into one convenient political or religious ideology. Obviously‚ the topic of vaccinations has become immensely more complicated since the onset of COVID-19 in 2020. But history teaches us valuable lessons and information is power. No matter how you feel about vaccines today‚ this chart is a reminder that medical science can be used for incredible good. Without breakthrough vaccinations in the past‚ many of us would likely not be here to have the debate about our personal choices now and into the future. This article originally appeared on 11.21.14 and this infographic is based on data from 2012.

Yale University and the University of Idaho could not be more different. Ivy League vs. state school. East Coast vs. Pacific Northwest. City vs. farm town. But in the first two rounds of the NCAA basketball tournament‚ extenuating circumstances brought them together as one‚ with the Bulldogs and the Vandals becoming the "Vandogs" for a weekend. When Yale made it to the March Madness tournament‚ members of the school's pep band had already committed to other travel plans during spring break. They couldn't gather enough members to make the trek across the country to Spokane‚ Washington‚ so the Yale Bulldogs were left without their fight song unless other arrangements could be made. When University of Idaho athletic band director Spencer Martin got wind of the need less than a week before Yale's game against Auburn‚ he sent out a message to his band members asking if anyone would be interested in stepping in. The response was a wave of immediate yeses‚ so Martin got to work arranging instruments and the students dedicated themselves to learning Yale's fight song and other traditional Yale pep songs.Idaho band members even reached out to Yale band members via social media to get tips and asked the spirit squad for suggestions for making their "Vandogs" performance the best it could be. Yale also sent spirit gear with the big yellow Y for Yale for them to wear. “Everyone was really enthusiastic about covering for the Yale students who couldn’t make it‚” Martin told the Yale Daily News. “Universities help universities‚ and bands help bands.”That genuine act of sportsmanship and camaraderie touched people across the nation‚ much to the delight of the students. “'Look Mom‚ I’m on ESPN‚’” Martin told The Spokesman-Review‚ quoting his students. “You’re a farm kid in the middle of a farm town. How often do you get that? Never.”And people loved seeing it as well."Kudos to the University of Idaho band! Band kids are the greatest!" wrote one commenter."Awesome job Idaho..this is a perfect example of true sportsmanship!!" shared another."This is such a great show of collegiate athletics and why they are important! Well done!" shared another.It's hard not to catch the energy of the tournament‚ as the Vandogs found out."It was awesome watching them play‚" Idaho grad student Cody Barrick‚ who plays the tenor saxophone‚ told ESPN. "We were right on our feet with everyone else at the end there cheering them on for sure."And as it turned out‚ the pep in Yale's step did seem to be extra "on" during that first game. The Bulldogs went into the tournament as an underdog‚ with #4 Auburn being their first competitor‚ but they pulled off a dramatic upset that moved them to the next round. So not only did Idaho's band play for them that first Friday game‚ but they also drove the 90 miles to Spokane again the following Sunday night for Yale's second round game against San Diego State. The Bulldogs were eliminated from the tournament in that game‚ but memories were made for life. And Martin says the Vandals would do it anytime‚ for any school‚ a testament to the program.“If you choose the Vandal band‚ you know that it’s going to come through‚” he told the Spokesman-Review. “It always has. That’s the tradition. There was no doubt that we would come through for them.”

As more details of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore emerge‚ it's becoming more apparent how much worse this catastrophe could have been. Just minutes before 1:30am on March 26‚ shortly after leaving port in Baltimore Harbor‚ a cargo ship named Dali lost power and control of its steering‚ sending it careening into a structural pillar on Key Bridge. The crew of the Dali issued a mayday call at 1:26am to alert authorities of the power failure‚ giving responders crucial moments to prepare for a potential collision. Just 90 seconds later‚ the ship hit a pylon‚ triggering a total collapse of the 1.6-mile bridge into the Patapsco River.Dispatch audio of those moments shows the calm professionalism and quick actions that limited the loss of life in an unexpected situation where every second counted.In the recording of the conversation‚ we can hear authorities and responders quickly putting out a call to stop traffic onto the bridge and assessing what construction crew might be working on the bridge. No one knew that the entire bridge was going to collapse into the harbor‚ only that a possibility for collision was present. As one officer plans to drive onto the bridge to alert the construction workers‚ a voice announces‚ "The whole bridge just fell down. Start‚ start whoever‚ everybody ... the whole bridge just collapsed."Listen:It had to have been surreal to witness the bridge collapsing in its entirety. In the initial news reports it was unclear how much warning had been received‚ and at first it was feared that passengers traveling across the bridge may have fallen into the water. But as we gained a clearer picture of the moments before the accident‚ it's clear that the everyday workers in the harbor and the first responders who were nearby to receive instruction did everything they could‚ and their calm professionalism and quick actions saved lives. As we go about our daily lives‚ it's easy to forget that there are countless workers who are chugging away behind the scenes to keep things running smoothly. Our systems of transportation‚ our supply chains‚ the safety of our roads and bridges—all of these things require people to be on the job‚ doing what needs to be done‚ establishing‚ maintaining and following protocols that keep all the moving parts harmonized. When it's done well‚ we don't even notice it—their work becomes invisible. But when something goes wrong‚ when a wrench gets thrown into the system—like a massive‚ unsteerable cargo ship about to crash into a bridge—we see how valuable those systems are and how regulation and oversight of such systems is so important. 2/ Police dispatched with just a few crisp phrases\u2014ship has lost steering‚ close the bridge to traffic\u2014and race to do just that.\n\nNo time for confusion. No time for \u2026 \u2018What do you mean‚ close the bridge? Who says?\u2019\n\n4 minutes‚ alert to collapse.\n\nBridge successfully closed\u2026\n\n\u2014>; — (@) As Charles Fishman pointed out on X‚ "A system worked—a government system. All those people just ordinary frontline workers in anonymous‚ sometimes invisible jobs. Maritime radio operators. Police/fire dispatchers. Bridge police &; state police. All working 11p to 7a o’night shift.""All day‚ every day—that happens &; we don’t see it‚" he added. Of course‚ the construction crew members who lost their lives‚ along with the two crew who were rescued from the water‚ will be remembered as biggest loss as the daunting bridge rebuilding process gets underway. The Key Bridge collapse is an unfathomable tragedy‚ but one that could have been even more tragic had it not been for the systems and people working as they're supposed to. Kudos to those life-saving heroes.