Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum.

During pregnancy, this bacteria can pass from a mother with untreated syphilis, known as maternal syphilis, to her child in utero, causing the fetus to contract congenital syphilis.

In January 2026, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and ...Read more

The phrase “concentration camp” is freighted with dark historical meaning. Most people hear it and instinctively think of concentration camps used by the Nazis to exterminate Jews and other minority populations during the Holocaust.

But the use and name of concentration camps originated far earlier. In the late 1800s, Spanish ...Read more

In the summer of 2025, OpenAI released ChatGPT 5 and removed its predecessor from the market. Many subscribers to the old model had become attached to its warm, enthusiastically agreeable tone and complained at the loss of their ingratiating robotic companion. Such was the scale of frustration that Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, had to ...Read more

The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects nationwide retail gasoline prices to average near US$4.30 a gallon for April 2026 – the highest monthly average of the year. The political response has been familiar. Georgia has suspended its state gas tax, other states are weighing their own tax holidays, and the White House has issued a ...Read more

Iran’s record internet blackout is emerging as a key dividing line between the country’s powerful security apparatus and its civilian government, underlining how the war with the U.S. has extended the military’s control over daily life.

Top government officials have become increasingly vocal about their opposition to the shutdown, imposed...Read more

The U.S. government had no trouble deporting Lazaro Romero León to Mexico in February, despite a California federal judge's order that the Cuban national stay in this country.

The problem now, government officials claim, is getting him back.

First, Immigration and Customs Enforcement considered putting Romero León on a plane from the Mexican...Read more

As FIFA prepares to bring the largest-ever World Cup to Los Angeles and other parts of North America this summer, the global soccer organization is again promoting a commitment to environmental sustainability. But some of its sponsorship agreements tell a different story — including a premiere deal with the largest oil and gas company in the ...Read more

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Dozens of Mountain View homes have gone nearly a week without safe drinking water after a construction mishap contaminated a city water main, forcing families to cook, clean and care for children using bottled water.

An 11-month-old baby uses lots of water for Mountain View resident Maggie Wang. There’s the bottles ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said he was sticking with a naval blockade of Iranian ports amid concerns the vital Strait of Hormuz would not reopen anytime soon.

“Their economy is crashing, the blockade is incredible,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “Their economy is a disaster. So we’ll see how long they hold out.”...Read more

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday signed a presidential permit authorizing the Bridger Pipeline expansion project meant to carry Canadian crude to Wyoming — the latest in years of back-and-forth over oil pipelines linking the countries.

The project is a quasi-revival of the canceled Keystone XL pipeline that would have ...Read more

HARTFORD, Conn. — Connecticut’s child advocate addressed Gov. Ned Lamont, the Department of Children and Families commission, state policymakers and the public Thursday, saying deficits in care provided by DCF to the state’s children must be “urgently remedied” and that she is “increasingly alarmed” about the quality of services.

...Read more

Novo Nordisk A/S’s obesity shot Wegovy helped people with alcoholism reduce their drinking, in the first controlled study of patients who sought help with their addiction.

Volunteers on Wegovy reported drinking heavily for five days in a 30-day period after six months of treatment, 12 fewer days than before they started. The improvement ...Read more

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Thursday vetoed a sweeping election reform bill passed by the Legislature in March, the result of years of negotiations between factions in the House and Senate.

The bill seeks to make numerous changes to Alaska’s election laws sought by both Democrats and Republicans.

The Alaska Constitution calls on lawmakers ...Read more

Five hours of never-before-heard taped conversations the late Diana, Princess of Wales, recorded in secret in 1991 will form the basis for a new docuseries telling her life story in her own words, the project’s production team announced.

Diana made the clandestine recordings with close friend Dr. James Colthurst to document the disintegration...Read more

CHICAGO — Visitation and funeral services for slain Chicago Police officer John Bartholomew are set for next Thursday, and Friday, May 7-8, at St. Andrews Greek Orthodox Church in Edgewater.

The May 7 visitation begins at 2 p.m. and lasts until 8 p.m., and the funeral is scheduled for the next day at 10 a.m., according to Bartholomew’s ...Read more

The U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division is investigating 36 Illinois school districts to determine whether “sexual orientation and gender ideology” content is present in any Pre-K-12 classrooms, the agency said in a news release Thursday.

In the Chicagoland area, over 15 districts are listed as under investigation in Cook, ...Read more

ST. PAUL, Minn. — A federal judge on Thursday ordered the attorney for Aimee Bock to get back confidential case documents that prosecutors say the convicted ringleader of the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme had her son email to select lawmakers and media members ahead her May sentencing.

Bock, 45, was back in front of U.S. District Judge ...Read more

BOSTON — Massachusetts will award over $70 million in grants to Career Technical Education (CTE) programs across the state, creating up to 2,500 new vocational education seats, Gov. Maura Healey announced Thursday.

“Today, $70 million is going out to 28 schools,” said Healey. “With these funds our great, regional career-focused high ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia school board Thursday night adopted a sweeping $3 billion facilities plan that would close 17 schools and renovate 169 over the next decade, reshaping the system for years to come.

The vote came amid intense opposition and over the objections of hundreds of students, parents, and teachers who begged the board ...Read more