| ☀️ Mostly sunny with chance of showers, high of 89. |
Boston's World Cup party is officially over. The nearly monthlong affair began with the welcome invasion by the Tartan Army and ended yesterday with France's 2-0 quarterfinal win over Morocco at Gillette Stadium. (Now they can send someone out to peel the tape off all 64,628 seats.) Let's kick it: Buggin': We know many of you read this newsletter over breakfast, so maybe put the cereal spoon down while we tell you about the latest food-borne illness making headlines. Cyclospora is a tiny one-cell parasite having a big impact. Massachusetts is one of 17 states with a documented case of cyclosporiasis. Eighteen people have been sickened so far this year, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. The DPH said that's a normal seasonal amount of cyclosporiasis, though other states have had larger outbreaks. Michigan has reported more than a thousand cases. - What is it? The parasite spreads when people eat food (often fresh produce) that's come into contact with infected feces. It's not likely to spread from person to person.
- What are the symptoms? Well ... (last chance to stop eating) the most common symptom is watery diarrhea for a few days. But other symptoms include weight loss, bloating, nausea and vomiting. Without treatment, illness can last for weeks, and some people can get sick again. It can take five to seven days for symptoms to set in after eating contaminated food.
- How to avoid it? Fresh imported produce (that is often eaten raw) is most risky, such as raspberries. Wash fruits and vegetables with water and a brush. Cooking will also kill the germs, and peeled fruits and veggies should be safe.
Screen time: The Massachusetts Senate passed a bill yesterday that would require social media companies to block certain “addictive” features for teens. The legislation passed 38-2 and comes after the House passed its own take on the issue back in April. Next, the two chambers will have to negotiate on how to try to address the many negative effects of smartphones and social media on teens’ mental health and development. State House News Service has more on the Senate bill here. - What's different? The House bill would ban social media for kids under the age of 14 — a proposal that has faced pushback from some privacy and LGBTQ advocates, and gotten stuck in court in other states. The Senate bill does not go that far. Instead, it adopts some similar ideas from Gov. Maura Healey's proposal this spring, like requiring social media platforms to have default settings for minors that block addictive feed features, autoplay and overnight notifications. But unlike Healey’s bill, the Senate proposal would not allow any minors to turn off the settings.
- What they’re saying: State Sen. Julian Cyr, a self-described "geriatric millennial" (same, Julian) called the bill a return to "OG social media." "Facebook for me in college, in the early aughts, was a way to keep in touch with high school friends who went to other schools, was a way to stay connected with new people I'd met, it was a way to learn about someone I maybe had a crush on," he said. "It wasn't an endless loop of algorithmic doom scrolling of self doubt and a misinformation trap."
- Relatedly: The city of Boston this week sued several social media giants, including Meta (operator of Instagram and Facebook), TikTok and Snapchat, over what it calls "addictive design features" on the companies' platforms.
On the picket line: Striking workers for Merrimack Valley Transit have offered up a deal that could end the now 10-day work stoppage. Teamsters with Local 170 submitted to the transit authority a one-year pre-ratified agreement, WBUR's Andrea Perdomo-Hernandez reports. The union says the extension includes health care improvements already negotiated. The transit authority said yesterday that they're reviewing the proposal. - Shop steward Michael Durso said the proposal is the union's way to "make things work here because we know that the public needs us out there. And we need to be out there because nobody wins in a strike."
- Bus service in 16 communities, including Lowell, Haverhill and Newburyport, has been offline since July 1. About 13,000 people use the service daily.
P.S. — Which yearly measurement at the Blue Hills Observatory has been recorded for more than a century to track climate shifts? Take our Boston News Quiz and test your knowledge of this week's stories. |
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| | | Ally Jarmanning Senior Reporter | | |
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A special program sends nurses who contract with the city to businesses including stores, restaurants, gas stations, barbershops and banks to train workers on how to use the overdose-reversal drug naloxone. Read more. |
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Two of the Democrats who lost last month's gubernatorial primary — former Maine CDC director Nirav Shah of Brunswick and former Senate President Troy Jackson of Allagash — both declared their candidacies after Platner said he was dropping out. Read more. |
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When the U.S. brokered a ceasefire last year, Israel controlled half of Gaza. Now Israeli forces have pushed deeper, and Palestinians are paying a deadly price. Read more. |
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Gov. Maura Healey signed the $63.4 billion annual budget Thursday, coming nine days into the new fiscal year that's poised to inflict major financial turmoil as a federal law reshapes public benefit programs. Read more. |
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Back-and-forth attacks have repeatedly threatened the ceasefire, but Thursday's appeared bigger all around. Read more. |
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- The banana is America’s most popular fruit — and it’s certainly the favorite of Ethan Gilsdorf, who eats one almost every day. But as Gilsdorf writes for Cognoscenti, the banana-industrial complex may be bad for people and the planet, pushing an old monkey like him to learn new tricks.
- Glitzy and glamorous, "The Great Gatsby" is on stage at the Citizens Opera House. Theater critic Jacquinn Sinclair writes that the wonderfully entertaining musical is a "subtle reminder that being part of the in crowd isn’t all it’s cracked up to be."
Some really big boats are on their way into Boston Harbor — the Tall Ships, specifically. The main event is tomorrow's Parade of Sail, when the flotilla will return to the Harbor for the first time since 2017. We have all you need to know about where to watch, including how to get to the best spots (hint: don't drive).
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Mountain bike enthusiasts have been working for years on an ambitious 485-mile, multi-use trail called The Velomont that will span the length of the state. They're making sure it's friendly for people with disabilities, particularly cyclists.
Read more. |
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Play: WBUR's daily mini crossword. Can you keep your streak going?
Before you go: "Pack up and run," — Paul Revere
WBUR's Nik DeCosta-Klipa contributed to this report. |
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