Coming to a Metro station near you: grocery delivery

Online grocer Peapod launches grocery Pick-Up locations at three DC-area Metro stations. (Courtesy of Peapod by Giant/Photo by Sean Shanahan This post has been updated. Too tired to stop by the grocery store after work? Metro thinks it has a solution for you — and a way the transit agency might eventually make some extra money. Metro has partnered with the online grocer Peapod in a six-month pilot that allows you to order groceries online and pick them up as you exit the Metro during the evening rush hour. Peapod by Giant has set up distribution areas at the Fort Totten, Glenmont and Vienna Metro stations. The program begins this week. While the amenity is only being offered at three stations, Metro says that if the six-month try-out is successful it could expand to other locations in the 91-station system. The service is one of several ventures Metro is pursuing to find new sources of revenue. “This type of program could generate additional non-farebox revenue in the future,” Metro spokesman Richard Jordan said. Metro is’t making a buck during the testing period, but if expanded beyond the pilot, Peapod, or another provider, would pay Metro a fee. For Giant Food, transit stations are new territory– and an opportunity to expand Peapod’s growing pick-up and home-delivery service, said Elizabeth Psaros, senior manager of regional marketing for Peapod. If it works in Washington, the company may expand to other markets, she said. “Everybody’s lives are just so busy and just continue to get busier,” Psaros said. “Being able to shop anywhere and anytime and have the convenience of getting it delivered to your door or being able to pick it up at a store and now at these three transit stations– we think it’s a life saver.” Grocery delivery and pickup services have grown in the Washington region in recent years. Peapod has 53 pickup locations in the region, including one at a Chevy Chase gas station. Other services also have popped up, including Instacart, which delivers from Whole Foods, Harris Teeter, Safeway, Costco and other grocers, and Google Express, which provides same-day delivery from various stores, including Giant. To use the service, Metro riders will place and pay for their order through Peapod’s online service with pickup options of 4 to 7 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Peapod will deliver the orders to pods at each station. An on-site attendant will


DERAY


The space race is not over yet — and the stakes are as high as ever

The space shuttle Discovery lifts off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 2011 on a mission to the International Space Station. (Stan Honda/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images) Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week we’re talking about space exploration. Thirty years ago, as footage of the Challenger space shuttle explosion streamed across television screens, “ More recently, discussions of the future of space exploration have shifted. Last summer, as the New Horizons spacecraft sped past Pluto to observe the dwarf planet for the first time in history, President Obama [Other perspectives: Why a Mars landing could be terrible for science] In general, there seems to be a growing focus on more benefits-driven missions like the colonization of Mars or asteroid mining. Tech giants across the country The privatization of space exploration isn’t new. Much of the United States’ work in space is already accomplished through government contracts Billion-dollar government investments into the space program have long been rationalized in academic terms, as steps toward figuring out But for many, a deeper philosophical justification came from Yet the recent shift toward commercialization poses a new question about how much these programs should continue to rely on government funding. Today, there’s only tepid interest in making another trip to the moon; as So the question now is: What’s the next big step? And who will — and should — fund it? According to free-market conservatives But the costs would be astronomical, the risks daunting and the upside still not guaranteed, which is why there are Still, it is hard to ignore the massive gains that the tech industry has already made. The moment SpaceX was able to [Why investors are following Musk, Bezos in betting on the stars] And those and other critiques come at a time when the United States Over time, the differences in narrative and goals will continue to solidify. Those touting the courageous risk-taking of billionaire capitalists will likely overlook or play down the government support needed to originally build the technology of the space industry. On the other hand, opponents of the free-market approach will resist space exploration as a profit-seeking enterprise and advocate for the government to protect space missions from insatiable exploitation. Tragically, both sides will oversimplify the complex relationship that government has had in developing technology. This, of


Fly over the dwarf planet Ceres in NASA’s latest video

Take a flight over dwarf planet Ceres in this video made with images from NASA's Dawn spacecraft. The simulated flyover was made by the mission's camera team at Germany's national aeronautics and space research center (DLR). Ceres In the animation above, you can see Ceres from Dawn's perspective. The spacecraft is currently in its final, closest orbit of Ceres – just 240 miles above the surface – but the video was actually made from images taken during its previous orbit of 900 miles. Even at those great heights, you'll notice that Dawn was able to see Ceres with remarkable clarity. The animation shows a wide variety of craters on the surface. Some, like the Occator crater (home to mysterious bright spots that may be the result of reflective salt plains) have steep, sheer cliff walls. Others, like the craters dubbed Dantu and Yalode, are much flatter. Enhanced color helps to highlight these differences, as well as the different composition of various regions of Ceres's surface. Blue-ish areas may contain younger materials – areas more recently resurfaced by geological activity. Now that Dawn is in its final orbit, it will stay there long as it is able, stretching the usefulness of the robot beyond the days of its primary science mission. With the help of more funding from NASA, a secondary mission could go on indefinitely. Read More: Why NASA’s top scientist is sure that we’ll find signs of alien life in the next decade This broken space telescope keeps spotting new planets ‘Have you SEEN Pluto?’ — New Horizons scientist still rallying for planetary status NASA orbiter cruises over dwarf planet Ceres, films bright spots and ‘pyramid’ Q The ‘Pluto Killer’ who thinks he’s found the true ninth planet Study: Maybe we can’t find aliens because they’ve all died already


Zika crisis: What is microcephaly? And what does this mean for babies?

One of the challenges is that the timing of the damage to the brain and resultant small head probably varies depending on when in pregnancy the infection occurred. Other signs that may also be picked up such as brain calcifications are also variable in the time they are detected by ultrasound. This is the best information we have at this time but of course subject to change as we get more information.” That sounds like some pretty strong evidence. Why are public health officials saying the association is still only suspected? There's still a lot of work to be done. Scientists have only been able to confirm the simultaneous presence of the virus and microcephaly in a limited number of babies and are still working their way through other suspected cases to get more information. Brazil is a large country, and there are cases in far-flung states. Part of the reason for the delay is that diagnostic tools to tell whether someone has had Zika are still not readily available. The virus typically clears a person’s blood within a few days to a week, meaning that it’s tricky to detect a past infection. In some cases, tests are able to tell someone had some kind of Zika-like infection in the past but are unable to tell whether it was actually Zika or a similar virus known as dengue fever. What's next? Experts say more epidemiological evidence is needed that looks at groups of pregnant women with and without the Zika virus to rule out other factors such as fetal alcohol syndrome, environmental factors or other types of infections. One important issue is that the mosquito that carries Zika is also known to carry a large number of other viruses like yellow fever, and researchers are investigating whether past infections with other viruses may play a role. World Health Organization officials have said that some of the women who have been tested showed evidence of prior infections with other viruses while others did not — adding to the mystery of what's happening in Brazil. Finally, if there is a link, researchers must then figure out the biological mechanism of how Zika causes the condition — how it enters the placenta and how it disturbs brain development. Many of those types of experiments could take years to complete. Mochida, from Boston Children's, said another issue that needs to be looked at is


The aftermath of the manhunt for Mexico’s notorious drug lord

helicopters opened fire at Duraznito. The family has not returned. (Allison Shelley) The shadow of Jose Eraclio Pena Najera, 30, falls on his bullet-ridden Ford F-150 at his home, El Aguila Ranch in Mexico’s Durango state. Marine helicopters opened fire, destroying his truck, and piercing the family’s home. The Marines then raided the property, stealing mattresses, food and other supplies. (Allison Shelley) While in the mountains, Shelley said, their reporting focused on those whose lives were disrupted. “It’s natural to gravitate towards the most dramatic elements of a situation, especially when you have an enigmatic, disappearing drug lord and a couple of international celebrities involved,” she said. “But we went into this reporting focused on the real-life, human collateral damage — the lives of many people were profoundly changed because of how this manhunt was conducted.” Although people were hesitant to speak about El Chapo, Shelley was still able to form connections within the mountain settlements. She said one man helped her and Partlow when their truck got stuck, “… a man on an ATV with a ski mask over his face, an AR-15 strapped across his chest and two pistols in his waistband — nicest guy in the world,” she said. “We ended up staying two nights at his house deep in the mountains, and he became our best connection to these communities. He didn’t, however, elaborate much about what he did, and we didn’t push it.” A bullet hole marks the bedroom wall in the home of Marta Marbella Valencia, 32, in the village of El Verano in the Sierra Madre mountains in Mexico’s Durango state. Valencia and her daughter Angela Cristela, 2, were home alone when Mexican Marine helicopters opened fire on their village. (Allison Shelley) A bullet hole scars a wall at the home of Marta Marbella Valencia. (Allison Shelley) A cemetery stands in the village of El Verano in the Sierra Madre mountains in Mexico’s Durango state. Marine helicopters opened fire on the village. (Allison Shelley) Laura Amayrani Ayon Robles, 20, and her father-in-law, Jose Antonio Pena Grey, 64. Robles was home alone when Marine helicopters opened fire on the family ranch, El Duraznito. Bullets struck within two feet of her. She, Grey and three other family members walked through the woods for four days to reach safety. (Photo by Allison Shelley) “The day that you die you will remember this night even 20 years


Army and Marine Corps chiefs: It’s time for women to register for the draft

have to register for Selective Service. “Now that the restrictions that exempted women from [combat jobs] don’t exist, then you’re a citizen of a United States,” Neller said. “It doesn’t mean you’re going to serve, but you go register.” The comments are a first in the Defense Department. Previously, senior defense officials have said only that the issue would need to be researched following Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter’s historic decision in December to open all jobs in the military to women without exception. Carter’s action allows women for the first time to apply for a variety of physically punishing positions, including Army and Marine Corps infantryman, as well as Special Operations jobs, including Navy SEAL and Green Beret. The Defense Department plans to begin implementing associated changes in training and evaluation by April 1. Sgt. Emma A. Bringas and Lance Cpl. Terrence A. Lay, fire a should-fired assault weapon during training at Twentynine Palms, Calif., last year. (Photo by Sgt. Alicia R. Leaders/ Marine Corps) The Selective Service System has existed for decades, and was created to make sure the military has enough manpower when it is short-handed in a time of war. A variation of it was first adopted in 1917, as the United States prepared to enter World War I. But Selective Service laws have never required women to subject themselves to the draft and face the prospect of being forced into military service. The current version of the Military Selective Service Act requires that virtually all men in the United States between the ages of 18 and 26 register, most within 30 days of turning 18. That includes non-U.S. citizens living in the United States, such as refugees. The generals appeared alongside Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Acting Army Secretary Patrick Murphy. Mabus and Neller faced a variety of pointed questions from senators, in light of a public rift that emerged last year in which the Marine Corps lobbied against integrating all jobs, and Mabus and Carter decided to anyway. Sen. John McCain (R.-Ariz.), the Armed Services Committee chairman, questioned Mabus why he publicly discounted more than 1,000 pages of research the Marine Corps had compiled backing their position before reading it. He also asked Mabus whether he had visited the Marine task force that carried out the research, and the secretary said he had not. “So you, with a straight face, make claims that the


BSO announces leadership change

It’s been a turbulent few weeks for orchestras, with the announcement of new music directors in Washington and New York, and now it’s the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s turn. No, Marin Alsop is staying put, but as the orchestra gears up for its centennial celebration this month, word comes in that Paul Meecham, its president and CEO since 2006, will be departing at the end of this season to take over the Utah Symphony / Utah Opera. It’s sad news for Baltimore. Meecham, a respected and straight-shooting administrator, has managed to lead the orchestra through some turbulent times. As other orchestras around the country dealt with strikes and lockouts, Meecham oversaw contract negotiations in which musicians voluntarily gave up a chunk of their salaries, with the promise — which was kept — that those salaries would eventually be reinstated. Meanwhile, he worked with Alsop to establish the BSO as a leader in the kind of community-based programming and approach — with programs for “Rusty Musicians” and inner-city schoolchildren — that are seen as veritably mandatory for 21st-century orchestras. Meecham replaces the interim president, Patricia Richards, who took over when Melia Tourangeau left to take over the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra last spring. His departure leaves Baltimore looking, rapidly, for a new leader.


Top U.S. general in Afghanistan: “A strategic stalemate without end is not the goal of this campaign”

Army Gen. John Campbell, commander of the International Security Assistance Force, U.S. Forces-Afghanistan, waits to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Feb. 12, 2015. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) As Army Gen. John Campbell, the top U.S. general in Afghanistan, prepares to step down from his 18-month command, he cautioned that America’s longest war is at a critical inflection point, and without proper adjustments will repeat the same mistakes of years past. “A strategic stalemate without end is not the goal of this campaign,” Campbell said, during testimony to the House Armed Services Committee Tuesday, adding that the United States must show flexibility in 2016 or else the new year will be a re-run of 2015. Campbell praised the decision to keep the current U.S. troop strength hovering around 9,000 troops for the remainder of 2016, instead of scaling it back to around 1,000 as President Obama had originally planned. [U.S. general tapped to take over in Afghanistan open to keeping more troops, boosting air war] Members of Congress, however, voiced frustration that 14 years later the U.S. continues to expend resources in Afghanistan with little tangible outcome. Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), used his question time to highlight how “sick and tired” the American people are of the war. “If I didn’t think it was worth it, I would tell my son to do something different,” Campbell said in response to the criticism. Campbell added that his son is an Army Sergeant who had just finished his second tour in Afghanistan and is about to start his third. Last October the city of Kunduz fell to the Taliban, although it was retaken by Afghan and NATO forces relatively quickly. Large chunks of Helmand province, the Taliban’s birthplace, also fell to the insurgent group. A recent inspector general report stated that the Taliban currently controls more territory in Afghanistan than at any point since 2001. Campbell pushed back against the report and pointed out that 70 percent of the district centers in Afghanistan are under government control or government influence. Only eight of of 407 district centers are under insurgent control, he said. One of things Campbell stressed was that the United States’ dedication to the Afghan campaign and continued involvement in Afghanistan is inexorably linked to fighting terrorism and protecting the homeland. Campbell said that terror groups like al-Qaeda and the Haqqani network have been weakened, but still


Americans spent more on legal weed than on Cheetos and Funyuns combined last year

Smells like profit. (Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post) Americans spent $5.4 billion on legal medical and recreational marijuana last year, according to new estimates from ArcView Market Research and New Frontier Data, two marijuana industry market research groups. The total includes over $1 billion in medical marijuana sales in California, nearly $1 billion in legal marijuana sales in Colorado, and more than a half-billion dollars in sales in Washington state. To put that $5.4 billion number in perspective, that's more money than Americans spent on Doritos, Cheetos and Funyuns combined in 2015, according to market research firm Euromonitor. With $5.4 billion, you can get America legally stoned for a year. Or you could have used the money to send the New Horizons probe to Pluto, the Curiosity rover to Mars, and had enough money left over to purchase the entire output of the Cheescake Factory for a year. Keep in mind that $5.4 billion represents only legal marijuana sales. Illegal sales still account for considerably more than that, although it's hard to know just how much. In 2012, drug policy experts Jonathan Caulkins, Angela Hawken, Beau Kilmer and Mark Kleiman estimated the total market value of legal and illegal marijuana sales to be in the $15 billion to $30 billion range. ArcView estimates that the legal sales are going to grow at an approximately 30 percent annual rate over the next five years as more states jump on the legalization bandwagon. Vermont may be the next to do so if its legislature passes a legalization bill this year. Voters in California, Nevada, Massachusetts and a handful of other states will decide whether to legalize marijuana this fall. A 30 percent annual growth would put the legal marijuana industry at something like $22 billion in annual revenue by 2020, according to ArcView. ArcView is encouraging investors to jump in: "Legalization of cannabis is one of greatest business opportunities of our time, and it’s still early enough to see huge growth," the group writes in the introduction to its report on new marijuana sales estimates. But as the group also notes, plenty of challenges to the industry remain. First and foremost is the vast and growing disconnect between federal policy, under which marijuana is 100 percent illegal, and laws in the states that have legalized it. Because of federal restrictions, marijuana businesses still don't have access to banks. They can't take advantage of


WHO declared a public health emergency about Zika’s effects. Here are three takeaways.

A female Aedes aegypti mosquito stings a human host. (James Gathany/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via AP) Last Thursday, the director-general of the World Health Organization, Margaret Chan, announced that she would convene an expert Emergency Committee to determine whether the Zika virus presents a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC, pronounced “fake”). Zika, which is “spreading explosively” throughout Latin America, appears to be associated with a steep increase in the number of babies born with microcephaly, whose symptoms are abnormally small heads and underdeveloped brains. It also appears linked to a rise in cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a neurological condition causing (usually) temporary paralysis. On Monday, WHO announced its decision. The Zika outbreak itself is not a PHEIC, but the clusters of microcephaly and GBS are. This decision comes after the agency has endured months of criticism over its sluggish, incompetent response to Ebola. While Zika is not Ebola, the current outbreak offers WHO a chance to prove that it has learned its lessons. But has it? Or, in attempting not to repeat past mistakes, has WHO overcorrected? What is a PHEIC? A PHEIC is defined by three criteria: It is an extraordinary event, poses a high risk for other countries through international spread and potentially requires an immediate, coordinated international response. Once a PHEIC is declared, WHO advises affected countries on how to contain the disease and advises not-yet-affected countries on how to stay that way. Recommendations may include surveillance measures, travel and trade restrictions and treatment guidelines. Equally important, PHEIC declarations advise governments and the public on what not to do and how to prevent panic and unwarranted, politically driven responses (as we saw with Ebola). WHO also coordinates the international response. For example, it facilitates sharing scientific data or sending experts to assist on the ground. And PHEIC declarations call vital attention to an outbreak that helps mobilize resources, research funding, bilateral cooperation and volunteer assistance. However, while there is no “intermediate” alert level, WHO can and does take similar actions without declaring a PHEIC. For example, the Emergency Committee on MERS has met 10 times over the past 30 months to monitor outbreaks, advise affected countries and promote collaboration on research and disease control, all without having declared a PHEIC. But what is the emergency, exactly? WHO’s decision is complicated by the fact that our knowledge of the Zika virus is so


Monday’s declaration: The emergency is that we don’t actually know what the emergency is. An emergency with no emergency measures Declaring a PHEIC is the most serious action WHO can take. It’s intended to catalyze a robust international response. This is only WHO’s fourth PHEIC declaration. The first three were for swine flu (H1N1) in 2009, and polio and Ebola in 2014. In those cases, the international response aimed to stop the virus before it became pandemic or endemic (or endemic again, in the case of polio). Countries took dramatic and sometimes overly aggressive measures. Those included, for example, activating pandemic preparedness plans, distributing stockpiled drugs, imposing travel restrictions and, for Ebola, launching a massive humanitarian relief effort. WHO doesn’t seem to have that as its goal this time — perhaps because Zika may already be here to stay. Rather, the recommendations are aimed at strengthening surveillance and studying the link between the Zika virus and microcephaly/GBS. WHO also recommends “precautionary measures” to address Zika itself, including encouraging vaccine development and mosquito control. For instance, Chan reminds us to wear bug spray. Many of the recommended activities are already underway. But other crucial but politically controversial measures that could reduce cases of microcephaly — like promoting access to contraception — were studiously avoided. So here’s the second takeaway from Monday’s declaration: the Zika-associated microcephaly/GBS clusters may be unusual, but WHO has not recommended any unusual steps to address it. Until we know more, the agency’s advice is to practice what Emergency Committee chair David Heymann calls “good plain public health.” Not too hot, not too cold: Is this response just right? Declaring a PHEIC is as much a political move as a scientific one. This one comes at a precarious time for WHO. The agency faces serious challenges: a shoestring budget, poor coordination between WHO headquarters and regional offices, competition for mandate and resources from other international organizations, and pressures from global civil society organizations and private donors. Over the past 15 years, the global health landscape has been radically reshaped by an influx of private funding and the creation of new public-private partnerships like the Global Fund. WHO is trying to adapt but has had some trouble finding its footing. Against this background, WHO’s botched Ebola response has prompted severe criticism and calls for radical reform. The agency has pledged to do better. But before Monday’s meeting, experts and


Top generals say women should be required to register for the draft – but we should instead abolish registration for men

Top Army and Marine Corps generals recently stated that they believe that women should be required to register for the draft, now that they are no longer barred from most combat positions in the armed forces: The top Army and Marine Corps generals told senators Tuesday that it will take up to three years to fully integrate women into all combat jobs, adding that women also should have to register for the draft…. Army Gen. Mark Milley and Marine Gen. Robert Neller both flatly said that women should be included in the requirement to register for the selective service at age 18. But Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Army Acting Secretary Patrick Murphy would only say that the issue should be discussed. Political leaders overall have so far been reluctant to endorse the draft requirement. The longstanding rationale for excluding women from draft registration is that their inability to serve in most combat roles makes female draftees less valuable to the military. That theory is undercut by the Pentagon’s recent decision to permit women to serve in virtually all those positions previously barred to them. The end of restrictions on women serving in combat also makes it more likely that the courts will invalidate male-only draft registration as unconstitutional sex discrimination. At least two cases challenging the male-only draft are currently making their way through the courts, and one of them might well succeed. The generals’ desire to eliminate sex discrimination in this field is commendable. But the best way to do it is to abolish draft registration for men, rather than expanding it to include women. That approach would simultaneously eliminate one of the last vestiges of open sex discrimination in federal government policy and protect men and women alike against the danger of being subjected to forced labor by the state. Abolishing draft registration completely would thereby promote both liberty and equality. In addition, an all-volunteer military is likely to be both more effective and less wasteful than one staffed by unwilling draftees. Eliminating draft registration would help protect the volunteer nature of the military by making it harder to reinstate the draft.


We could wipe mosquitoes off the face of the earth. Here’s why we don’t.

assaults may be ferocious enough to divert the migration lines of caribou. That could bring possible consequences to the landscape as the herds’ grazing and trampling shift location. In an unusually exact link between mosquitoes and their predators, a study of foraging little forest bats, Vespadelus vulturnus, in eastern Australia revealed a very heavy reliance on adults of the mosquito Aedes vigilax. So, that little forest bats need mossies may be as good a case as mosquitoes can muster. Juvenile mosquitoes are also important in some freshwater food webs, including as prey to specialists such as the mosquito fish, Gambusia affinis or in the tiny pools of water held in the leaf bases of pitcher plants and bromeliads high in the rain forest canopy. In among the canopy trees a miniature fauna of vividly colored poison dart frogs and crabs thrive in the bromeliad pools, called phytotelmata, feeding off the bodies of drowned juvenile mosquitoes. But despite poison dart frogs and bats having their own fan club among ecologists and nature enthusiasts, they are unlikely to sway the majority of people in favor of mosquitoes. The second argument is that mosquitoes have a more general role providing ecosystem services such as pollination by adults or driving the release of nutrients as their young feed on organic detritus. But although mosquitoes can act as pollinators for orchids and golden rods, among other plants, they don’t have a monopoly — they are not especially suited to this role and there are plenty of other pollinators to take their place. While the decline of the honey bee is a prominent example of an ecosystem service at peril, mosquitoes are just another one of the many pollination bit-part players, an unloved understudy that can be written out. Their significance has always been to menace. But then again, as the Portuguese explorer João de Barros said of the tropics: God has placed a striking angel with a flaming sword of deadly fevers, who prevents us from penetrating into the interior to the springs of this garden. So there seems no great reason to defend mosquitoes. Their destruction would lift a terrible curse from humanity. Except for one nagging doubt … All that warm, nutritious blood suddenly available. There are plenty of other midges and mites, black flies and fleas out there just waiting for the opportunity to step in. Be careful what you wish for.


Explosion leaves gaping hole in plane, forcing emergency landing in Somalia

A plane operated by Daallo Airlines sits on the runway of the airport in Mogadishu, Somalia, on Tuesday after a hole in its side forced an emergency landing. (AP) An explosion blasted a hole into the fuselage of a commercial airplane as it flew over Africa on Tuesday, forcing an emergency landing in Somalia. After Tuesday's explosion, the plane returned to Mogadishu, Somalia's capital city, according to the Associated Press. The blast, which is being investigated, occurred after the Airbus 321 took off from the Mogadishu airport. Capt. Vlatko Vodopivec, the 64-year-old pilot, told the news service that he had been told a bomb caused the explosion. Other officials told the AP that their investigation hadn't turned up evidence of a crime. "It was my first bomb," Vodopivec said. "I hope it will be the last." A hole was ripped open on the side of this Somali Daalo Airlines jet shortly after takeoff. The plane was carrying 74 passengers, the airline said. Daallo Airlines wrote on its Facebook page that a plane operated by Hermes Airlines was headed for Djibouti when there was "an incident shortly after take-off." The aircraft was carrying 74 passengers, according to the airline. "The Aircraft landed safely and all of our passengers were evacuated safely," it said. "A thorough investigation is being conducted by Somalia Civil Aviation Authority." But Vodopivec, the pilot, said: "We were told one person was sucked out of the plane, but that is still not confirmed." Reuters also reported that a body was "believed to have been sucked out of the plane." The incident occurred when the plane was "at about 11,000 feet," Vodopivec said. "It would have been much worse if we were higher," he said. The AP reported: Cellphone video taken aboard the plane pans from passengers, some wearing oxygen masks, in seats toward the back of the airliner in flight, and then swivels to the empty front area with a hole in the side of the cabin. There is a loud sound of rushing air. The video was taken by Awale Kullane, Somalia's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, and obtained by The Associated Press. The passengers bunched in the back appear calm. A child wearing an oxygen mask attached to the overhead compartment sits quietly, a blanket covering the legs. Near the hole, oxygen masks dangle and sway from overhead compartments. "When we heard a loud bang,


Main Street Morning: Fewer small businesses were bought and sold in 2015

very big thing missing from the President’s small business 401(K) proposals. - The U.S. strikes a crucial deal with Europe on data privacy. The Economy - The U.S. economy is showing signs of shrinking, but for the first time in months economic forecasts for the Midwest have risen. - Small business hiring has rebounded, despite a rough 2016 start. - Royal Caribbean’s profit misses estimates. - Growth at U.S. services companies slowed in January. - Ford sales were down 3 percent in January and F-150 sales tumbled 5.2 percent. The Elections - Microsoft’s app used to tally votes at Iowa caucus failed in some areas. - House Speaker Paul Ryan admits that “we’re all angry.” - Here are six takeaways from an exciting night in Iowa. People - A former Yahoo employee files a lawsuit over performance ratings. - Kate Winslet finally confirms what we’ve always known about Titanic. - These are the tech jobs with the highest salaries (and where they are). Management - Seagate is slapped with a class action lawsuit over hard drive failure rates. - The number of small businesses bought and sold declined in 2015, according to a new report. - Gravity Payments defends its business practices amid new allegations of financial trickery. Retail - Some are concerned that 2016’s empty shelves and store closings across the U.S. is a “retail apocalypse.” - How Amazon’s Allowance service helps its customers keep their Amazon spending in check. Restaurants - Some New York restaurants are eliminating tips to offset a minimum wage hike. - Arby’s reports its best same-store sales in two decades. Sales Marketing - A faith group ranks all Super Bowl advertisers from most Christian friendly…to least. - Here’s a list of 43 small business logo design services. Travel - Chicago’s O’Hare adds a runway. - Why the sun is setting on the Boeing 747. Finance - U.S. Bank’s CEO talks about interest rates and vanishing branches. - New York City saw $291 million in seed deals in 2015. Ideas and Opportunities - Americans now spend more on legal weed than on Cheetos and Funyuns combined. - This gadget could reduce pesticide use by up to 99 percent. Technology - Microsoft recalls 2.25 million power cords for its Surface Pro tablets and enabling Yammer by default for all eligible Office 365 commercial customers. - Windows 10 passes Windows XP in market share. - Thanks to


The meaning of Ikea’s restaurant and meatball makeover

the name suggests, the space is meant to offer something of a coffee house vibe: Cushy chairs and couches that are changed out several times a year to create a homey, seasonal spot where you’d feel comfortable lingering and chatting with friends. (And that might also inspire you to buy the furniture you’re sitting on, which will always be pulled directly from Ikea’s current line-up.) Ikea’s strategy is part of a broader push in casual and quick-service dining that is likely to become more competitive by leveraging existing restaurant space for different meals, or “day parts,” as they’re known in industry speak. Sit-down dining chain Olive Garden, for example, is pushing hard to make carry-out a bigger part of its business, while Starbucks is trying to win more of your lunch dollars instead of just being your go-to place for coffee. Ikea’s move to change up the look and feel of its dining areas follows an announcement last year that it would tweak its protein offerings to reflect consumers’ changing dietary preferences. For starters, there’s now a veggie version of the famous meatball, which contains chickpeas, kale, peas, and other ingredients. They’ve also added a chicken version of the meatball, which they say is produced in a more sustainable way than their traditional meatball. “The public today definitely wants to know where their food is coming from,” Ho said. Ikea will be trumpeting those efforts in the redesigned restaurants, with new graphics and menu boards that tout, for example, its decision to move last year to sourcing all of its fish from supplier that use sustainable fishing practices. Here, too, Ikea’s willingness to riff on its signature menu item reflects just how differently diners in America and elsewhere are thinking about food. This is why you’ve seen everyone from McDonald’s to Panera Bread making announcements in the last year about changing up their supply chains and trying to create more transparency around how they make their food. It makes sense that Ikea is investing in its food business at this particular moment: In 2015, the Commerce Department reported that restaurants saw 8.1 percent sales growth, even as the broader retail industry saw an increase of just 2.1 percent and as home furnishings stores posted a 5.8 percent increase. There’s clearly momentum in the dining category, and perhaps a fresher look and menu can help Ikea get a piece of that.


What mountaineers can teach the Marines about how to integrate women

The writer with his wife at the summit of Grand Teton. (Photo courtesy of Joe Plenzler) I joined the Marine Corps in 1995 – after a failed winter attempt to summit the Grand Teton in Wyoming. Our team climbed to 11,000 feet before bad weather forced us to hunker down. Forty-eight hours later, we retreated in the face of extreme avalanche conditions. Our team belonged to the Ohio State University mountaineering club, where one-third of the members were women. My early climbing heroes included Catherine Desteville, the first woman to solo the Eiger’s north face, and Lynn Hill, who completed the first free ascent of the Nose on El Capitan in 1993. Hill’s accomplishment, in particular, cannot be overstated. Many thought the Nose was unclimbable, yet Hill completed the route in four days. Today, she is known as one of the world’s best climbers. From an early age, I knew that women could “hack it” in the backcountry. Many of my female colleagues could climb harder routes than most men, and I respected them for it. These women built mental and physical toughness by challenging themselves in extreme conditions and willing themselves past perceived limits. Therefore, it was a shock when I arrived at my first infantry battalion in 1996, a unit that seemed to be fueled in part by snuff, pornography and a heavy dose of misogyny. It was clear that many of my brother Marines did not consider women as peers – and their pejorative view extended to women serving in the Corps. Watch average civilians attempt the Marine combat fitness test. This video was posted by the Marines and shot during 2011Marine Week in St. Louis, Mo. The Marine Corps is the only service that trains men and women separately at boot camp and gender bias within the Corps is systemic – fostered by double standards. For decades, the Corps has recruited women under lower standards and trained them to lower expectations. These gender-normed standards undermine the achievements of all women – especially those who can outperform men. Male Marines are expected to do more pull ups and run faster than women to achieve maximum scores, and consequently many view the accomplishments of women pejoratively. [How Marine Corps boot camp became the new battlefield for gender integration] The Corps’ systemic gender bias is most visible in the initial rifle marksmanship training at boot camp. The Corps places


National Signing Day 2016: Riverdale Baptist’s Sir Patrick Scott makes late flip, signs with Marshall

Sir Patrick Scott is one of several Riverdale Baptist football players expected to sign a National-Letter-of-Intent Wednesday. Sir Patrick Scott After spending months as a Michigan commit this fall, Riverdale Baptist Sir Patrick Scott dealt with angst he couldn’t have seen coming during the weeks leading into National Signing Day. Scott suddenly de-committed from the Wolverines without much explanation last month, electing to formally explore his options for the first time since an unofficial visit to Ann Arbor, Mich., for Michigan’s BBQ at the Big House recruiting event this past August. But Scott quickly found a new college home. He signed with Marshall Wednesday, ensuring he will be part of a large class of Crusaders that will be on college football rosters next fall. Sir Patrick Scott #FutureHerd https://t.co/4YmkNclfwr The cornerback has the length defensive coordinators covet on the outside and he’s young for the 2016 recruiting class with an 18th birthday that doesn’t arrive until next school year. Scott went on an official visit to Marshall this past weekend and committed soon thereafter. He was also in discussions with Penn State, Maryland, West Virginia and Pittsburgh. Scott teamed with Penn State signee Zechariah McPhearson at cornerback for Riverdale Baptist this past season. The three-star recruit is also the nephew of Crusaders’ girls’ basketball Coach Sam Caldwell. More National Signing Day coverage: Terrell Hall, Shane Simmons, Jauan Williams among top locals expected to sign Rashan Gary, Derrick Brown among top uncommitted national prospects Injured DuVal star Antoine Brooks commits to Maryland after late offer McNamara QB Ramar Williams, Riverdale RB Jonathon Lee commit to Navy After in-home visit, Landon LB Keith Simms commits to Oregon football


Come on out for the inaugural DC Bike Ride

A map of the inaugural DC Bike Ride (image courtesy of DC Bike Ride) D.C. is a town that likes to bike. And now all those cyclists will have their chance to take a tour of some of the city’s most famous sites as part of the first-ever DC Bike Ride. Organizers of the event — think of it as a marathon but with wheels — say they expect 8,000 riders to participate in the 17+ mile ride on May 22. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Washington Area Bicyclist Association and Vision Zero, the city’s campaign to improve bicycle and pedestrian safety in the District. D.C.’s Vision Zero is part of an international effort. According to a news release announcing the event: The recreational ride offers a unique car-free tour of the nation’s capital. Riders will cruise past some of the most iconic sites taking in everything from the Washington Monument to the White House and the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts. Participants will conclude their journey with a post-ride celebration near the United States Capitol. Organizers say in future years as many as 18,000 may take part. Added Erik A. Moses, senior vice president and managing director of Events DC Sports and Entertainment: “The addition of the DC Bike Ride to the sports landscape of the nation’s capital is a perfect and timely fit. DC has been voted the fittest city in America multiple times but has been missing a cycle event among the marathons, fun runs and the triathlon that currently provide athletic challenges for District residents and visitors to enjoy. The DC Bike Ride will attract bike enthusiasts and tourists from across the country by providing a unique opportunity to experience our great city and many of its wonderful features from an extraordinary perspective.” Details on registration are available here.


‘Zika isn’t important’: The infuriating case of a scientist’s search for funding.

Brian Foy is seen in 2008 in a Senegalese village wearing a mosquito aspirator and holding a box full of freshly caught mosquitoes. (Kevin Kobylinski/Courtesy of Brian Foy) For years, it was a curiosity. Brian Foy, a researcher who studies mosquito-borne diseases, said in a 2011 paper that he had found likely evidence of a little-known virus spreading through sex. If true, it would be the world's first documented case of sexual transmission of the virus, he said at the time. Foy wanted to study it further, but no one would give him the funding he needed: He had found just one example, and the virus — known as Zika — was too obscure, he was told. Neither is true anymore. On Monday, the World Health Organization designated the Zika virus — and its suspected complications in newborns — a public health emergency of international concern. On Tuesday, health officials in Dallas announced what appeared to be a confirmation of Foy's findings. A resident there was infected with the virus through sex, they reported, prompting the WHO to call for further investigation Wednesday. (This video was updated on Feb. 2, 2016.) Authorities have confirmed more than 30 cases of Zika virus in the United States. Here's what you need to know. The announcement served as an unfortunate vindication for Foy, who has long sought funding to research the issue. "We could have had a lot more research done by now, and perhaps an idea that this might be a concern in future epidemics (like our current one) and how to control it," the Colorado State University vector biologist said by email after the Dallas case was confirmed. "Now we all are behind and need to catch up." Foy was introduced to Zika by chance. And, as with so many revelations, the one at the heart of his 2011 paper arrived over beers. But first, there was a mystery in need of solving. In summer 2008, Foy and a then-graduate student, Kevin Kobylinski, were conducting research in the village of Bandafassi, in southeastern Senegal, a region known for transmission of diseases by mosquitoes. Late that August, the duo returned home to northern Colorado and both men promptly got sick. That came as little surprise. But then something strange happened. Days after Foy became ill, his wife, Joy Chilson Foy, came down with similar symptoms: Headaches, chills, wrist pain and torso rashes.


PM Update: Rain ending, dense fog tonight; Some sun on Thursday

* Flood watch in effect until 6 a.m. Thursday * 10:35 p.m. update: Fog advisory area through 7 a.m. (IEM) 8:50 p.m. update: From 5:15 p.m… It was a wet and gloomy day, with many spots picking up around a half inch to three quarters of an inch of rain so far. A little more falls, mainly D.C. and east, before this one ends. The front moves through overnight, but not too speedily, so some clouds may linger into Thursday. Through Tonight: Tomorrow (Thursday): See Dan Stillman’s forecast through the weekend. And if you haven’t already, join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. For related traffic news, check out Dr. Gridlock. Want our 5 a.m. forecast delivered to your email in-box? Subscribe here. A gray Wednesday on the Tidal Basin. (Jarrett Hendrix via Flickr) We fought the CAD, and the CAD won: Temperatures from early this morning into afternoon via the RTMA model. (Weatherbell.com)


He eats! Zoo says baby panda Bei Bei is eating solid foods

Bei Bei, the giant panda cub at the National Zoo, has hit another milestone — he’s eating solid foods. Zoo officials said on Twitter that the panda nibbles on bamboo leaves. His favorite food is sweet potato. A video put out by the zoo shows him nibbling on food. #BeiBei is eating solid foods! He nibbles on bamboo leaves, but he really likes sweet potato. #WeSaveSpecies https://t.co/A1BcsVFyaP The zoo said on its Facebook page that “even though he’s eating new things, he’ll continue to nurse from Mei Xiang for about one more year.” Bei Bei, now roughly 25 pounds, made his public debut in January. Zoo officials have said he will probably weigh about 275 pounds when he’s fully grown in about six years. Plenty of fans have connected with the fur ball that has its own panda cam and scores of followers on social media. One person on Facebook — Katie Luther Prasek — noted that her son was born about a week before Bei Bei. And her son has also started to eat solids. She wrote “Man, it’s fun to watch their parallel development! Can’t wait to introduce my baby to Bei Bei and a lifelong love of pandas.” Bei Bei’s other big milestones have been captured, including his first steps in November, first tooth and weight gains. Bei Bei’s next big step is likely when he heads outdoors. His mother Mei Xiang will decide when he’s ready to go. With a nudge, she’s expected to push him near the door, zoo officials said. [‘Bei Bei is just so cute, a little ball of fluff’] The panda cub’s name is pronounced “bay bay” and means “precious treasure” in Mandarin. He was born Aug. 22 at the zoo, along with a twin. His twin died a few days later. [National Zoo’s panda gives birth to two cubs] There are only four zoos in the U.S. that have giant pandas, according to officials at the National Zoo. Giant pandas are an endangered species. Their biggest threat is humans. Roughly 1,800 remain in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund.


The Daily 202: Hillary Clinton makes her Wall Street problem worse

my dad endorsed Ted Cruz https://t.co/Cb7yzKcL1s https://t.co/ZvQvZGgk4T Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) continues to offer Congress's best reactions to Trump news: (Wasn't me.) Anonymous US politician nominated Donald Trump as Nobel Peace Prize - Telegraph https://t.co/xLvVh0G7Zm Sasse has gotten under Trump's skin: .@BenSasse looks more like a gym rat than a U.S. Senator. How the hell did he ever get elected? @greta Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) documented President Obama's visit to a Baltimore mosque: Pres. Obama salutes Muslim American service members who "fight, die, and bleed for OUR freedom". Elijah my son is 1. https://t.co/lkue53TdSt This is an actual water pipe from Flint (via @ShaunKing): Lawmakers offered emotional reactions to the Flint crisis as the Oversight Committee held a hearing: Flint is my hometown. I grew up in Flint. I raised my children in Flint. I'm a son of this town, and the #FlintWaterCrisis breaks my heart. Satirist nails reality for millions of Americans. Should provoke us all to Liberty & Justice for all. https://t.co/PiaMei9xIo A taste of the congressional hearing on Flint: Yesterday Paul Ryan invoked "Bravehart" as he called for uniting "the clans" in a speech at Heritage. Our colleague Paul Kane flag a problem with this messaging: The danger of the Braveheart metaphor is Wallace ended up disembowled and chopped to pieces in front of angry mob https://t.co/TpuCX81qrK And a funny moment on the trail: Kasich, answering independent NH voter who complained McCain picked unqualified running mate in Palin: "I'm not thinking of picking Sarah" — Instagrams of the day: The King Cake went fast in Alabama Republican Rep. Bradley Byrne's office: GOOD READS FROM ELSEWHERE: Cruz in Greenville, S.C. yesterday (AP Photo/Rainier Ehrhardt) -- The New York Times, "Ted Cruz, a public firebrand on social issues, is cooler when it comes to wooing donors," by Jeremy W. Peters and Maggie Haberman: " -- The New York Times, "The Fives Stages of Donald Trump's grief over his loss in Iowa." -- BuzzFeed Politics, "Why Rand Paul Lost," by Rosie Gray and Tarini Parti: HOT ON THE LEFT A U.N. panel is expected to rule Friday that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been "arbitrarily detained." From the BBC: Assange has been living in the Ecuadorean embassy in London to avoid extradition on sex assault charges in Sweden. Assange has said his passport should be returned if the U.N. panel ruled in his favor. HOT ON THE RIGHT Paula Jones:


Health officials urge travelers to Zika-affected countries to delay giving blood as Brazil reports two new cases linked to transfusions

suspected of being linked to hundreds and perhaps thousands of cases of babies with brain damage in Brazil. The British move comes a day after the American Red Cross made the same appeal to travelers, saying the temporary policy was necessary despite the "extremely low" risk of Zika being transmitted through a blood transfusion in the United States. The group said its self-deferral policy will apply to anyone who has traveled to Mexico, the Caribbean, Central or South America during the past four weeks. "We will also ask that if a donor does donate and subsequently develops symptoms consistent with Zika virus infection within 14 days of that donation, that he or she immediately notify the Red Cross so that we can quarantine the product," the organization's vice president of scientific affairs, Susan Stramer, said in a statement. But, she added, "Donating blood is a safe process and people should not hesitate to give or receive blood." The professional standards group AABB, formerly known as the American Association of Blood Banks, published a lengthy set of guidelines this week in response to the ongoing Zika outbreak. It said the 28-day, self-deferral policy "should be an effective measure to reduce the risk posed by Zika virus transfusion transmission," as well as the transmission of other tropical diseases, such as dengue and chikungunya. In addition, the organization said such an approach will result in only minor decreases in overall donations to the blood supply. "It is expected to result in the loss of approximately 2.25% of otherwise acceptable donors during the winter months when such travel is more common than in the summer months," according to the guidelines. Officials at the Food and Drug Administration are assessing whether travelers who have visited places with local Zika transmission should defer donating blood. An agency spokeswoman said recently the FDA is working on recommendations to help ensure a safe blood supply in U.S. territories where the virus is already present. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Zika virus usually remains in the blood of an infected person for only a few days to a week. READ MORE: Dallas reports case of Zika virus spread through sex; CDC urges condom use WHO: Zika virus ‘spreading explosively,’ level of alarm ‘extremely high’ FAQ: What is Zika, and what are the risks as it spreads? CDC issues interim Zika guidelines for testing infants


Main Street Morning: Bill would privatize air traffic control

her business after her pet pig. - Elon Musk personally cancels a “super rude” customer’s Tesla order. Travel - United Airlines changes its boarding policy to help parents traveling with kids. Start-ups - Genentech offers $50K for start-ups working on new cervical cancer tests and treatments. - Some good advice on how to start a profitable tool rental business. Technology - Apple is now selling Square’s new NFC reader for Apple Pay and contactless payments. - Office climate control networks could let hackers in, IBM warns. Online - Sage 50 is now in a cloud version called Sage 50c. Social Media - San Francisco’s Fed reins in Twitter use after a wayward tweet. Ideas - A study finds that seniors are game for service robots, not thinking ones. On This Day in 2004 - Mark Zuckerberg launches Facebook. Around the Country - Indiana corporate leaders warned that the failure of the Republican-controlled Legislature to enact a law protecting gay, lesbian and bisexual people from discrimination could rebound on business, making it harder to recruit talented employees and sell the state as an attractive place to live. - These are the 10 states most dependent on the gun industry. - The Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit Experimental will host a town hall-style gathering of experts Feb. 18 between 4 and 6 p.m., to help companies better understand available resources and introduce key local California contacts. - A Virginia business affected by new power lines wants a compromise. - They Better Business Bureau of Richmond Virginia is alerting local non-profits to a new scam. - Vandals in Seattle draw swastikas in front of a Jewish family’s business. - GE’s planned move to Boston has boosted business confidence in Massachusetts. - A Kentucky towing business destroyed in a stockyard fire gets unexpected help. - Business interests lined up against two Washington State House bills that seek to ban non-compete provisions from employment contracts. Around the World - An underwater Atlantic museum opens off Spain’s Lanzarote Island - London may soon have more bikes than cars at rush hour. - Chinese companies to shop abroad at record pace - Samsung’s safety truck concept starts testing in Argentina. Gene Marks owns the Marks Group, a Bala Cynwyd PA consulting firm that helps clients with customer relationship management. Follow Gene Marks and On Small Business on Twitter. News we should know about? Email us here.


Your scientific guide to the ultimate Super Bowl nachos

as it cools down. That's fine if you're making yourself a plate of nachos to eat alone on the couch, but it's not ideal for a party: You want that smooth queso dip. But that doesn't mean you should resign yourself to the gross jarred variety. By adding just a pinch of chemistry, you can get any cheese to melt into a perfectly smooth, delicious goo. Here's the science: Cheese is made up of dairy proteins suspended in water, and it's all held together by proteins linked together by calcium molecules. To make cheese lose its shape and go all goopy, you need those proteins to break apart. Sodium citrate is an acid that will attract away those calcium molecules, leaving the proteins free to do their thing. You can probably find sodium citrate at a grocery, pharmacy, or online retailer. But if you can't, adding an acid like lemon juice is better than nothing. 2. Step up your guacamole game while you're at it. ACS Reactions has mashed up some fantastic avocado facts, as well as some cooking tips from the pros. Note: An earlier version of this video contained an error, which has been corrected. ACS has us covered on guac science, too. Check out our previous post on guacamole making for a complete run-down, but here's a teaser: You can use science-y tips to ripen stubborn avocados more quickly, and you can keep your pre-made dip from turning brown. 3. Think beer is safe from skunking in the winter? Think again. There’s nothing worse than reaching for a cold beer, taking that first sip and realizing your beer’s been skunked. Skunking is a chemical reaction that causes an awful, bitter taste. Why does it happen? Quick answer: It's all about light. Contrary to popular belief, beer doesn't "skunk" because it's been sitting out in the heat — it's sunlight that does it in. When hops are boiled down to make beer, they release chemical compounds called Iso-Alpha Acids. They're bitter on their own, but when exposed to sunlight they break down and interact with other molecules in the beer to produce a molecule that's almost identical to the one in a skunk's smelly spray. So don't keep your beer in direct sunlight, even if it's in a chilly spot. Read More: The science behind perfect grilling Here’s the chemistry that makes your beer taste good (or bad)


11 things to do in the D.C. area on the weekend of February 5-7

Welcome to Super Bowl weekend! There's plenty to do on Sunday in the Washington area, whether you're a fan of the Carolina Panthers or Denver Broncos, or just want to find somewhere fun to watch the game. (And there's plenty to do if you want to skip Super Bowl 50, too.) With that in mind, here are this weekend's best bets in nightlife, theater, music and much more around the Washington area. A brass chandelier hangs in the upstairs bar at Sovereign. The downstairs is designed to feel like an old drinking den in Brussels, while the second floor is decorated like a hunting lodge. (Photo by Fritz Hahn/The Washington Post) Thursday: [6 things to know about the Sovereign, opening Thursday in Georgetown] Thursday: Thursday-Sunday: Alexandria Restaurant Week [The Hotlist: What to see, eat, drink and do in D.C. this February] Friday: [February's can't-miss concerts: Rodrigo Amarante, Best Coast and Wavves and more] Friday-Saturday: Saturday: Saturday: New Belgium's Transatlantique Kriek, part of the "Lost in the Woods" event at Lost and Found. (Teddy Wolff) Saturday: Saturday-Sunday: [Where to watch Super Bowl 50 in D.C.] Sunday: - Head to Arlington Cinema ‘N’ Drafthouse to watch the Super Bowl on the big screen with full bar and table service. Doors open at 4:30 p.m., and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis - Check out Jack Rose Dining Saloon for its "D.C. Drink-Off," which features $5 beers from Right Proper and 3 Stars and regional North Carolina barbecue from Jack Rose chef Russell Jones. The deals run from 5:30 to 10 p.m. - Go to Union Social for a Super Bowl Pig Out with DC Brau, featuring $15 pitchers, $1 wings and $10 plates of whole-roasted hog. The party starts at 5 p.m. Super Bowl 50 kicks off at 6:30 p.m., but it's recommended you get these places ahead of time if you want a good seat and timely food and drinks. Here are some more Super Bowl 50 ideas from Fritz Hahn. [Ramen: A broth-to-basics guide to Washington’s super bowls] Wilco perform "More..." - Pitchfork Music Festival 2015 Sunday:


Forests are supposed to help stop climate change. These forests didn’t

goal of past management was primarily to ensure local energy supply and maintain food security, and not regulating global climate,” he said in his email. “So blaming past management for not cooling the climate is like blaming it for something it never set out to do in the first place.” And other experts argued that the way the study was designed — examining the blanket effects of one long block of time from 1750 on — obscures the fact that more recent forest management techniques have had better results. According to Marcus Lindner, head of the Sustainability and Climate Change Research Programme at the European Forest Institute, forest management techniques started to have a positive mitigation effect in Europe in the 1950s. “Obviously forest loss and forest degradation strongly contributed to greenhouse gas emissions until the 1950s,” said Lindner, who was not involved with the study, in an email to The Post. “I find it not credible to combine 200 years of suspected negative contribution to climate change mitigation with 60 years of positive climate change mitigation through management and then claim that (based on combined 260 years) forest management does not work.” Asked about this, Naudts said that the researchers started with 1750 because that’s the year used as a reference by the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and “from a climate perspective, that’s a very logical reference.” So it may be that forest management in Europe has had greater success in climate mitigation when a more recent history is considered. Regardless, the study’s authors suggested that paying more attention to the specific effects of certain land-use and management changes on the climate — as revealed by their historical effects — will benefit future forestry efforts. Naudts, for instance, suggested that foresters should not make management decisions based solely on the amount of carbon that will be released or stored under certain strategies. “If we manage them only for carbon we ignore the other unintended changes, like changes in solar radiation, absorption and evapotranspiration, and our study shows that those are actually quite important,” Naudts said. And she added, “In Europe, it could be wise to avoid the use of conifers when you do afforestation or when you are managing your forests.” A further key point to consider, according to Seidl, is that even current forest management “not only aims to cool the climate, but also is providing


Lawmakers introduce bill to make women take part in the draft

Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), a former Navy SEAL, have been critical of the decision to open all combat roles to women. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File) A pair of Republican congressmen who have criticized the military’s decision to open all combat roles to women are now leading the charge to have women register for the draft. Reps. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), a former Marine, and Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), a former Navy SEAL, introduced legislation on Thursday to compel young women to register for the Selective Service, the agency responsible for implementing a draft. For Hunter and Zinke, the bill does not mark a change of heart, but serves as a way to make a point. Hunter said the bill would allow Congress weigh in on the military’s recent policy changes, while noting he would likely vote against his own proposal. “If this Administration wants to send 18-20 year old women into combat, to serve and fight on the front lines, then the American people deserve to have this discussion through their elected representatives,” he said in a statement. “This discussion should have occurred before decision making of any type, but the fact that it didn’t now compels Congress to take a honest and thorough look at the issue,” he added. Earlier this week, the top officers in the Army and the Marine Corps told members of Congress they believed women should start registering for the Selective Service, given the recent decision to make them eligible for any military job. At a Senate committee hearing on Feb. 2, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) asked top military leaders if women should have to sign up for the selective service now that combat jobs are opening up to them. This is what they said. But while Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley has spoken positively about women in combat and Marine Corps Commandant Robert B. Neller has committed to implementing the new policy, Hunter and Zinke have been blunt in their criticism of the change. Hunter, a former Marine, hails from a branch of the service that has struggled most with the decision to make the selection process for combat positions gender neutral. “It’s going to get people killed,” Hunter said in an interview with Politico last month discussing the policy change. He added that Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, who had pushed for the changes, was “a greater threat to the Marine Corps than ISIS.”


What is Zika? And what are the risks as it spreads?

a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) declaration, it is defined as "an extraordinary event which is determined to constitute a public health risk to other States through the international spread of disease and to potentially require a coordinated international response." In the past it has been used only in the most dire of circumstances. The last time the WHO took this action was in August 2014 with Ebola and it is typically done when there is a great need for a coordinated international response deemed essential to stopping the spread of a disease. The WHO had done this only twice previously — during the 2009 during the H1N1 influenza epidemic and in May 2014 regarding the reemergence of polio. The declaration typically comes with a list of global recommendations to nations regarding practical measures such as international travel, trade and border crossings, as well as areas of scientific inquiry to target. The formal declaration was essential to mobilizing resources for previous crises by persuading wealthier countries to send more health workers and supplies to the hardest-hit regions. I just head about the patient in Dallas who may have contracted Zika through a sexual partner rather than a mosquito bite. How worried should I be about this? Dallas officials said on Feb. 2 that a person who had not traveled outside the United States appears to have been infected by a sexual partner. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the person has contracted the virus, but has not explicitly said the transmission was through sex. However, the CDC updated its advisory for pregnant women to reflect this concern. The CDC says that "until more is known," pregnant women should "avoid exposure to semen from someone who has been exposed to Zika virus." In Britain, health officials said that if a female is at risk of getting pregnant or already pregnant her partner should use a condom if he has been traveling under the following conditions: "for 28 days after his return from an active Zika transmission area if he had no symptoms of unexplained fever and rash" and "for 6 months following recovery if a clinical illness compatible with Zika virus infection or laboratory confirmed Zika virus infection was reported." What about blood transfusions? This is a very real concern. Experts say it is theoretically possible to get Zika through blood transfusions from an infected donor,


‘We can do more,’ FDA says in announcing overhaul of approach to opioid painkillers

more than six in 10 drug overdose deaths were caused by opioids that year. West Virginia, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Kentucky and Ohio had the highest rates of drug overdose deaths per 100,000 people in 2014. North Dakota, New Hampshire, Maine, New Mexico and Alabama saw the largest increases in their death rates. In recent years, government officials at the federal, state and local levels have devoted new resources to cracking down on illegal drug trafficking and, more broadly, to distributing naloxone. The Obama administration announced new "public health-public safety partnerships" in areas plagued by drug overdoses, moved to increase access to treatment and took steps to better train doctors who prescribe prescription painkillers. This week, the White House proposed more than $1 billion in new spending for an array of federal and state programs to offer expanded access to treatment for the millions of Americans hooked on opioid painkillers and heroin. The FDA itself has been faulted. Its approval last year of OxyContin -- an extended-release form of the painkiller oxycodone -- for certain pediatric use was welcomed by some pediatricians and pain specialists but provoked anger on social media and among some lawmakers. Though the agency restricted the drug to children 11 and older who need “daily, round-the-clock, long-term” relief from pain that can’t be treated adequately with other medications, critics accused it of acting irresponsibly. Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), whose state has been especially hard hit by the epidemic of prescription drug and heroin abuse, wrote a scathing letter telling the FDA it “should be absolutely ashamed of itself for this reckless act.” Like Markey, Manchin has threatened to hold up Califf's nomination. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton called the decision "absolutely incomprehensible." The FDA, in its defense, said the drug's approval wasn’t intended to expand the use opioids in children but to instead give doctors better guidelines about how to use OxyContin safely in pediatric patients. Doctors can already prescribe medications any way they see fit, and many physicians have long given potent painkillers “off label” to children suffering from cancer, major surgeries or other trauma, the agency said. This post has been updated. READ MORE: Deaths from opioid overdoses set a record in 2014 CDC urge doctors to curb opioid prescriptions: “The risks are addiction and death, and the benefits are unproven.” Three senators now holding up FDA nominee — for three different reasons


PM Update: Winter weather advisory D.C. and east as overnight rain turns to snow; SchoolCast

* Winter weather advisory for D.C. and areas east of I-95 * 9:15 p.m. update: 5:50 p.m. update: Winter weather advisory as of 5:50 p.m., running midnight through 10 a.m. From 5:25 p.m… An area of low pressure dashing up the East Coast overnight will cause rain to redevelop over the region from southeast to northwest, and mix with and change to snow as colder air spills in. The heaviest precipitation will occur near the Bay and Southern Maryland, where chances for 1-2 inches of snow accumulation are highest. But a coating to an inch cannot be ruled out in the immediate D.C. area and even some slick spots towards morning. Through Tonight: HRRR model simulation 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. tonight. (WeatherBell.com) The air will be coldest and most supportive of accumulation in our colder suburbs to the north and west, but this is where precipitation will be lightest, most spotty, and shortest in duration. Conversely, to the southeast – where temperatures are mildest and the changeover to snow will take longer, the precipitation will be steadier, heavier, and longer lasting. All told, areas east of the District have the best chance of accumulating snow – perhaps an inch or two, especially on grassy and elevated surfaces. But wherever steady snow is able to develop, some slick, slushy spots on the roads cannot be ruled out since the snow is falling at night. Use caution of you’re out between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m. Overnight low temperatures fall to 31-35, close enough to freezing to be concerned about some slipperiness on roads. Tomorrow (Friday): See David Streit’s forecast through early next week. And if you haven’t already, join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. For related traffic news, check out Dr. Gridlock. Want our 5 a.m. forecast delivered to your email in-box? Subscribe here. Snowfall maps: The National Weather Service is forecast generally less than 1 inch for the immediate metro area, no accumulation in our far western areas, and 1-2 inches in our eastern suburbs. We think this map is reasonable: (National Weather Service) The HRRR model is forecasting a general one to three inches for the metro area, but it’s amounts are very likely overdone by at least a factor of two, because it assumes all snow will stick…which is unrealistic since temperatures will be mostly be above freezing: (WeatherBell.com) SchoolCast: Fairfax and


This world map shows where pollution is getting worse. There’s good news for the U.S.

their analysis on nitrogen dioxide, which is commonly emitted by cars and industrial plants and is used an indicator of air quality, according to NASA. To illustrate to what extent pollution has increased or decreased, the NASA researchers measured concentrations between 2005 and 2014. Blue areas indicate a decrease in pollution; orange indicates an increase. The trend map of the United States shows the large decreases in nitrogen dioxide concentrations from 2005 to 2014. Only decreases are highlighted in this map. To say that air pollution has decreased in some areas, however, does not imply that perfect levels have been reached. This map, for instance, shows air pollution in the United States in 2014. There are still lots of red areas. Nitrogen dioxide concentrations across the United States, averaged over 2014. In western Europe, air quality has generally improved since 2014. The trend map of Europe shows the change in nitrogen dioxide concentrations from 2005 to 2014. Cities and areas that experienced a particularly positive trend are London, Paris and Madrid, as well as northern Italy, which is the country's economic powerhouse. In eastern Europe, however, air quality either stagnated or deteriorated in most countries. Last year, scientists with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis predicted that air pollution would increase in many European towns and cities — far exceeding limits by the European Union and the World Health Organization. "Air pollution has a major impact on human health, contributing to lung and heart disease," the scientists warned. London, for instance, is predicted to have much less harmless levels of pollution by 2030, but eastern Europe's deterioration will continue. (Source: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis/Modified by Gene Thorp for The Washington Post) Modern-day East Asia and Europe are hardly comparable. Much of East Asia's air quality (with some exceptions, including Japan and Hong Kong) has deteriorated in recent years, although pollution was already a major problem by 2005. The trend map of East Asia shows the change in nitrogen dioxide concentrations from 2005 to 2014. The same is true for much of the Middle East. Air quality improved in Syria — but that development is most likely due to the ongoing war, which has forced millions to flee. The trend map of the Middle East shows the change in nitrogen dioxide concentrations from 2005 to 2014. Also read: Map: These will be Europe’s most polluted cities by 2030


Baby giant panda Bei Bei goes outside

Bei Bei, the Smithsonian National Zoo's youngest panda cub, played outside for the first time on Thursday, Feb. 3. Bei Bei, the National Zoo’s giant baby panda, went outside for the first time — a move marking another milestone in the young cub’s life and popularity. The zoo noted the occasion on Twitter with the headline “Look who’s stepping outside!” Bei Bei was accompanied by mom Mei Xiang. A 15-second video from the zoo shows the cub outside with his mother nearby and then the little one climbs a tree. https://twitter.com/NationalZoo/status/695329151616688128 Bei Bei is also eating solid foods now and nibbles on bamboo leaves and likes sweet potato, the zoo said. [He eats! Zoo says baby panda Bei Bei is eating solid foods] The giant panda cub was born in August at the zoo, along with a twin, which died a few days later. Bei Bei’s name is pronounced “bay bay” and means “precious treasure” in Mandarin. Bei Bei, who now weighs about 25 pounds, made his public debut in January. [‘Bei Bei is just so cute, a little ball of fluff’] Only four zoos in the United States have giant pandas, according to officials at the National Zoo. Pandas are an endangered species and the biggest threat to them is humans. Roughly 1,800 remain in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund.


Jimmy Kimmel has a sneak peak at Trump’s Nobel Peace Price campaign ad [Video]

Jimmy Kimmel is pretty fascinated by the fact that Donald Trump has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize -- which he said "seems ridiculous ... because it is." But it's not hard to see The Donald himself playing up his Peace Prize credentials and campaigning for the honor. So Kimmel put together this campaign ad for it.


Don’t make women register for the draft. Just end draft registration for everyone.

Marine recruits stand in line for lunch in the boot camp chow hall Feb. 26 at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) Top military brass made headlines this week when they called for expanding the Selective Service System — as close as we come, these days, to a draft registry — to include women. Gen. Mark A. Milley, the Army chief of staff, and Gen. Robert B. Neller, the Marine Corps commandant, both framed the issue as a matter of fairness: All eligible U.S. citizens should be included, Neller said, “Now that the restrictions that exempted women from [combat jobs] don’t exist.” But a better idea than requiring women to register is to do away with Selective Service altogether, for women and men. When it comes to the draft, or any lingering vestige of it, it’s time for Congress to end it, not mend it. The entire draft architecture is anachronistic and unnecessary. We’ve operated with an all-volunteer force for decades; no one, regardless of gender, expects that they’ll be drafted; and the wars that we fight don’t depend upon conscription. Future wars aren’t likely to, either. Selective service was instituted during World War I, but America’s first peacetime draft, the Selective Service Act of 1940, was enacted as much of Europe and parts of Asia descended into the maelstrom of another world war. Many Americans wanted desperately to stay out, but also understood the need to prepare for it. All told, around 10 million men were drafted during World War II, but the act expired after the war ended. At a Senate committee hearing on Feb. 2, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) asked top military leaders if women should have to sign up for the selective service now that combat jobs are opening up to them. This is what they said. Selective service started up again in the late 1940s, but notably did not include President Harry Truman’s call for universal military training. Selecting some men via the draft provided the military with the troops it needed to prosecute the wars in Korea and Vietnam. But the idea of forcing all men to serve during peacetime never took hold because the requirements of those wars never called for 10 million-plus men to fight them. The selective nature of the draft exposed the system to charges of unfairness, particularly with respect to exemptions given during the Vietnam


America’s first peacetime draft, the Selective Service Act of 1940, was enacted as much of Europe and parts of Asia descended into the maelstrom of another world war. Many Americans wanted desperately to stay out, but also understood the need to prepare for it. All told, around 10 million men were drafted during World War II, but the act expired after the war ended. At a Senate committee hearing on Feb. 2, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) asked top military leaders if women should have to sign up for the selective service now that combat jobs are opening up to them. This is what they said. Selective service started up again in the late 1940s, but notably did not include President Harry Truman’s call for universal military training. Selecting some men via the draft provided the military with the troops it needed to prosecute the wars in Korea and Vietnam. But the idea of forcing all men to serve during peacetime never took hold because the requirements of those wars never called for 10 million-plus men to fight them. The selective nature of the draft exposed the system to charges of unfairness, particularly with respect to exemptions given during the Vietnam era for those able to ride out the war as college students, but it still made more sense than the alternative: compelling every man to serve in a military that didn’t need them. Compulsory service is even less essential today. America’s wars of the post-conscription era have been fought by far smaller forces, and our mixed track record in those conflicts hasn’t been a function of the number of available troops. Rather, the inability to achieve decisive victory in places like Iraq and Afghanistan reflects the inherent difficulty of nation-building, and our body politic’s understandable weariness with open-ended and costly missions in distant lands. Although in the wake of Paris and San Bernardino, there’s been an uptick in public support for deployment of additional ground troops to combat the Islamic State, having a draft, with one or both sexes, is unlikely to make the public more supportive of large-scale, decades-long wars. Meanwhile, a draft would likely reduce the military’s fighting effectiveness. Today’s force is uniquely capable precisely because it is comprised entirely of volunteers, men and women who choose to join the military for a variety of reasons, including the desire to serve their country, but also because of the


There’s a rift opening on how the U.S. should handle women and military drafts

Female soldiers try on a body armor vest tailored for them in 2012. (U.S. Army photo) As the U.S. military prepares to open all jobs to women beginning this year, a rift has emerged: Key decision-makers in the Defense Department and Congress seem to agree that the U.S. government needs to review its law outlining any future military draft, but differ on how any policy change should be made. Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter was among the latest to weigh in on the debate, telling a group of Marines in San Diego this week that he expects Congress to take up the issue. Women are not currently subject to a military draft as part of the Selective Service System, a variation of which has existed since 1917, as the United States prepared to enter World War I. The current version of the Military Selective Service Act requires that virtually all men in the United States between the ages of 18 and 26 register, most within 30 days of turning 18, but exempts women entirely. “To me, it stands to reason that it’ll be taken up by the Congress, this law, because of the decisions that we’ve made here in the department, which I’m sure are right,” Carter said, speaking at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar on Wednesday. [Why the Pentagon opening all combat roles to women could subject them to a military draft] The issue is largely academic at this point, but nonetheless emotionally charged. The U.S. government has not held a military draft since the Vietnam War, but Carter’s decision in December to open up all jobs to women in the military has led to questions about the constitutionality of the existing Selective Service law. The rule has been challenged in court before, with the Supreme Court reversing the ruling of a lower court in 1981 in Rostker v. Goldberg and saying that the law could stand as it was because women were not allowed to join combat units. That, of course, is no longer the case. Carter told the Senate Armed Services Committee in January 2015 in a confirmation hearing that he thought a review of the Selective Service Act was “prudent,” but noted that the issue was not solely an issue for the Defense Department. Rather, he said, it was “part of a much broader national discussion.” But Sen. Joni Ernst (R.-Iowa), an Army veteran and member


Scientists say humans certainly caused the spread of the virus that’s killing honeybees

Varroa mites on honeybees. (Prof. Stephen Martin, University of Salford) The global spread of a virus that deforms the wings of honeybees and kills them in droves was caused by humans, new research has found. According to the study published this week in Science, the problem dates back to the mid-20th Century when Asian honeybees traded widely in the former Soviet Union were introduced to Europe and paired with honeybees there. For centuries, Asian honeybees had learned to fend off a mite that used them as a host while feeding on their blood, but European honeybees did not recognize them as a pest. The mite compounded a problem that some European honeybee colonies had learned to live with for centuries, a virus that deformed their wings, now known as DMV. Before the introduction of the mite, the virus existed on the body surface of the European honeybees. But the biting mite picked up the virus and injected it into the bees' bloodstream, making the problem far worse, said Lena Wilfert, a lecturer at the University of Exeter and the lead author of the study. When European honeybees were introduced to the Americas and other parts of Asia in subsequent years, a localized endemic in Europe evolved into a global pandemic that led to bee colony collapse disorder and is threatening agriculture that relies on pollinating honeybees to grow food crops. Making matters worse, honeybees are spreading the virus through their saliva and feces to plants used by other pollinators, such as bumblebees and other solitary bees. "DWV has been detected in various insect groups that play dramatically different ecological roles, including insect predators and scavengers, pollinators, and pest species that live inside the colony," according to a Science article that announced the study. "We really see this as a multi-host problem," Wilfert said. "It’s really up to the beekeepers. When they keep their bees healthy, they also keep the wild pollinators healthy. To better understand how the mites spread the virus, the researchers used molecular sequencing of the virus and mites from 32 locations in 17 countries. By studying how the host behaved in different geographic regions, they determined the major routes of the virus’s spread . The mite is a natural pest called Varroa that's native to Southeast Asia. The virus is a strain that emerged in Europe. Both existed separately as manageable local problems likely for eons. But


CDC’s advice on Zika: You may need to consider avoiding sex

said. "Because the phenomenon is so new, we are quite literally discovering more about it each and every day." Yet with each passing day, he said, the association between the virus and microcephaly has become stronger. So, too, has a link between Zika and Guillain-Barré syndrome, which can lead to paralysis in adults. Several South American countries have identified cases of that rare condition. Colombia’s health minister Alejandro Gaviria told reporters Friday that three patients with the syndrome died last week at a clinic in Medellín, the country’s second-largest city. All three were infected with Zika, Gaviria said, and authorities believe the virus is to blame for their deaths. Two individuals were from the town of Turbo on the country’s north coast; the third lived on the Colombian island of San Andres in the Caribbean. As the Zika virus rapidly spreads to new countries, the World Health Organization provides answers to some of the most essential questions about the mosquito-born disease. The World Health Organization said Friday that the virus is spreading in at least 33 countries. Seven countries have reported an increase in cases of microcephaly and/or Guillain-Barré syndrome. In its latest report, the CDC said current information about possible sexual transmission of Zika is based on the three cases. The first is "probable sexual transmission of Zika virus from a man to a woman, in which sexual contact occurred a few days before the man's symptoms began." The second is the Dallas case. The third is an instance of virus isolated from semen at least two weeks and possibly up to 10 weeks after illness began. The virus remains in a person's blood for about a week. But researchers don't know how long it lingers in semen. "We know semen may have a large amount of viable virus for at least a short time after viral infection," Frieden said. The agency is advising additional screening for pregnant women who live in areas with ongoing spread of Zika. Those with symptoms should be tested at the time of illness, CDC recommends. If Zika behaves like other infectious diseases, the first trimester and early second trimester would be when the fetus is most at risk, Frieden said. But it's also possible the virus has the ability to target the developing brain, which means adverse consequences could occur at any time during pregnancy, he added. Pregnant women without symptoms can be


Transcript of the New Hampshire GOP debate, annotated

just as young men are required to do, should sign up for Selective Service in case the Draft is reinstated. Many of you have young daughters. Senator Rubio, should young women be required to sign up for Selective Service in case of a national emergency? RUBIO: First, let me say there are already women today serving in roles that are like combat. That, in fact, whose lives are in very serious danger, and so I have no problem whatsoever with people of either gender serving in combat so long as the minimum requirements necessary to do the job are not compromised. But, I support that, and obviously now that that is the case I do believe that Selective Service should be opened up for both men and women in case a Draft is ever instituted. I think the more fundamental challenge we're now facing is what's happening to the U.S. military -- I've said this many times, and I think it's important to start paying attention to this. Our Air Force is about to be the smallest it's been in 100 years. I'm sorry, in our history. Our Army is set to be smaller than it's been since the second World War, and our Navy is about to be the smallest than it's been in 100 years. I think we need to begin to refocus on rebuilding our military because every time we have cut our military in the history of this country we have had to come back later and rebuild it, and it costs more, and it's a lot more chaotic and dangerous. When I'm president, we are rebuilding the U.S. military. (APPLAUSE) RADDATZ: Thank you, Senator Rubio. Governor Bush, do you believe that young women... BUSH: ... Say it again? RADDATZ: Do you believe young women should sign up for Selective Service, be required to sign up... BUSH: ... I do, and I do think that we should not impose any kind of political agenda on the military. There should be -- if women can meet the requirements, the minimum requirements for combat service they ought to have the right to do it. For sure. It ought to be focused on the morale as well. We got to make sure that we have readiness much higher than we do today. We need to eliminate the sequester which is devastating our military. We can't be focusing on the


Fact checking the eighth GOP debate

a person acting under the color of law specifically intended to inflict severe physical or mental pain or suffering (other than pain or suffering incidental to lawful sanctions) upon another person within his custody or physical control.” According to the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture: “Torture is not an act in itself, or specific type of acts, but it is the legal qualification of an event or behaviour, based on the comprehensive assessment of this event or behaviour. Therefore, the difference between these different qualifications, torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment or ill-treatment depends on the specific circumstances of each case and is not always obvious.” “Waterboarding” describes the interrogation technique of pouring water into their nose and mouth while the subject is on their back, simulating the sensations of drowning. The subject also may be immersed in water. Such techniques show water or any other liquids “can be used in order to impose physical and mental suffering to prisoners,” according to the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture. There has long been a controversy over whether waterboarding meets the definition of torture. In 2002 and 2003, the Justice Department provided guidance that deemed the practice legal. But the practice was prohibited after that. From a 2008 Washington Post article: In 2006, [then-CIA Director Michael V.] [Then-White House spokesman Tony] Fratto said the tactic could not be used again unless the president obtained new advice about its legality, personally approved it and notified Congress. “I’m not aware that anyone has plans to use it in this program,” Fratto said. He said that although lawyers had determined that waterboarding was legal when it was used in 2002 and 2003, new laws passed since then would have to be considered. “We have made clear that the law has changed. That has given greater clarity to these questions,” he said. But he declined to rule it out, saying, “We are not going to speculate on the future.” President Obama has rejected the technique, and called it torture. In 2014, the International Red Cross declared for the first time that waterboarding is torture. Seven Republicans shared the stage for the final debate before the crucial New Hampshire primary. (About our rating scale) Send us facts to check by filling out this form Check out our 2016 candidates fact-check page Sign up for The Fact Checker weekly newsletter


Should women be drafted? It’s a question that finally joined the presidential debate.

Seven rivals for the GOP nomination took part in the Republican Presidential Candidates Debate on February 6, 2016 at St. Anselm's College Institute of Politics in Manchester, New Hampshire. (AFP / JEWEL SAMADJEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images) Among the big stories that emerged at the tail end of 2015 but got limited-to-very-limited attention was the Pentagon’s decision to clear women to serve in all combat roles. The Fix put the decision on our list of big stories in gender news for 2015. We even advised readers to stay tuned for the debate that was likely to follow about whether this change also required Selective Service reforms. If women are now eligible to serve in all combat roles, should they also be required to join men on the government's mandatory registry of Americans who can be drafted into military service? And yet, on Saturday, whatever portion of America that was watching the Republican presidential primary debate witnessed that issue get its first mention on during a Democratic or Republican presidential primary debate. What viewers got were clear answers from former Florida governor Jeb Bush, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) supporting the idea of including women in the registry mechanism, which would be put to full use in the event of a draft. Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson asked for time to answer the question and then did not do so, exactly. He commandeered time to run though his views on the need for more comprehensive mental health and social services for veterans to be paid for from a type of individual medical savings account Carson has tried to advance throughout the campaign. Carson ended his comments by declaring that such changes would help to improve the lives of veterans — that volunteers would make a draft permanently unnecessary. Carson’s response was, in odd way, both a strong and weak moment for the candidate and his flagging campaign. Carson has struggled to command time and attention, and even manage many of the questions directed at him specifically during previous debates. On this count, he essentially strung together several of his ideas into an answer which seemed to begin just slightly off the question's target. But the factual premise of Carson’s idea is a bit shaky. Female Marine recruits stand in line for lunch during boot camp on February 26, 2013 at MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty