North & Central America

Breakthrough genomic test identifies virtually any infection in one go

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Researchers at University of California San Francisco (UCSF) have developed a single genomic test that can quickly detect virtually any kind of pathogen in a patient. This allows for much quicker diagnoses, enables targeted treatment to begin sooner, and could lower healthcare costs. Over the course of 7 years, researchers led by UCSF professor Charles Chiu tested 4,828 patients’ samples with its clinical mNGS method. The mNGS test accurately identified 86% of neurological infections.

Landmine

Groundbreaking laser tech enables faster, safer landmine detection

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Researchers at the University of Mississippi have come up with a faster, more efficient method for detecting landmines – millions of which pose a lethal threat to people in war-ravaged countries all over the world. That could spell a safer future for people who live in 70 current and former war-torn countries around the world that are riddled with an estimated 110 million active landmines. These explosives caused 2,793 deaths globally in 2017, and that number tragically rose to 4,710 in 2022.

Missouri voters approve ballot measure to expand abortion rights

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Missouri banned almost all abortions after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. The state’s current law is considered one of the most strict in the country, though it makes exceptions to protect the life of the mother, and for medical emergencies. The new amendment, which required a simple majority to pass, now removes the state’s ban on abortion and protects abortion rights up to fetal viability, around the 24th week of pregnancy, with exceptions afterward to protect the life or health of the woman.

Female politician at podium

Women have won 60 seats in the New Mexico Legislature to secure the largest female legislative majority in U.S. history

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New Mexico voters are sending 11 additional women to boost female representation in their state legislature. Women have made steady advances in statehouse representation across the country, with one notable surge in the 2018 election cycle almost entirely among Democrats in a trend associated with the #MeToo movement and political engagement linked to the election of Donald Trump. The share of women in all state legislatures across the United States combined roughly tripled from about 11% in 1980 to 33% in October 2024.

Tulsa elects its first Black mayor

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Monroe Nichols will become the first Black mayor of Tulsa. Nichols, a state representative, edged out Tulsa County Commissioner Karen Keith in a runoff election to become the mayor of Oklahoma’s second-largest city. Nichols’ election comes 103 years after the Tulsa Race Massacre, when a white racist mob, including some deputized by authorities, descended on the city’s Greenwood District, also known as Black Wall Street. They burned down homes and businesses, resulting in the deaths of an estimated 75 to 300 Black residents.

New York sign

New York passes Equal Rights Amendent passes

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New Yorkers have passed Amendment 1, branded the Equal Rights Amendment. The New York Constitution already forbids discrimination based on race, creed, or religion. Amendment 1 adds language that would prohibit denial of civil rights based on national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes or reproductive healthcare and autonomy. The amendment effectively guarantees a right to abortion and adds protections for trans New Yorkers.

Colorado voters move to put existing abortion laws into state constitution

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The amendment is similar to a law Democratic Gov. Jared Polis signed in 2022 and would codify protections for abortion including barring local governments from passing their own laws to try to restrict the procedure. It would also remove Colorado’s current constitutional ban against public funding for abortions. That would allow the state to cover the procedure under Medicaid and add it to state employee health plans.

Sarah McBride

Sarah McBride makes history as first trans member of U.S. Congress

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Her recent election win makes McBride the first out transgender person to serve in Congress. She beat her Republican opponent, John Whalen III, who ran on an anti-immigration, anti-choice platform. At only 34, McBride has already made an impressive name for herself, with her seat in Congress adding yet another “first” to the list. After working for the Human Rights Campaign and interning in the Obama-Biden White House, the 2020 elections in her home state of Delaware made her the first trans person elected to a state senate.

Biden delivers “long overdue” formal apology in Arizona for Indian boarding school atrocities

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President Biden has issued a formal presidential apology to Native American communities for the atrocities committed against Indigenous children and their families during a 150-year era of forced federal Indian boarding schools. “After 150 years, the United States government eventually stopped the program,” the president said. “But the federal government has never, never formally apologized for what happened — until today. I formally apologize, as president of the United States of America, for what we did.”

Salmon run

Salmon return to Klamath River for first time in 112 years

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On October 16, biologists with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife spotted the fish above the former site of the J.C. Boyle Dam in the Upper Klamath River. The dam was one of four that had blocked the salmon’s migration between the Klamath Basin and the Pacific Ocean. Each of those dams was recently deconstructed in the largest dam removal project in United States history, which has restored the river to its natural, free-flowing state.