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👋 Welcome to 5 Things PM! The US is seeing a second peak in flu cases this season. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that there have been about 20 million cases and 11,000 deaths from flu so far. A bit of good news — now you can test for the virus at home.
Here’s what else you might have missed during your busy day:
5 things
1️⃣ Private prisons: On the campaign trail in 2020, Joe Biden made a bold pledge that he would end the federal use of private prisons, where inmates often complain of abusive treatment. That didn’t happen, and now the industry is ready to cash in big under President Donald Trump.
2️⃣ Controversial case: Teacher Ellen Greenberg was found dead on the kitchen floor of her Philadelphia apartment in 2011. Despite 20 knife wounds and 11 bruises, her death was ruled a suicide. The pathologist just changed his mind.
3️⃣ Fossil find: A nearly complete skull fossil discovered in Antarctica has revealed the oldest known modern bird. The creature lived 68 million years ago, just before a massive asteroid hit Earth and doomed the dinosaurs to extinction.
4️⃣ Lunar canyons: Billions of years ago, two massive canyons likely formed on the moon in a span of less than 10 minutes, scientists say. The formations, comparable in size to the Grand Canyon, are near where NASA’s Artemis III mission aims to land humans in 2026.
5️⃣ Words matter: People don’t buy “domestic” cars or salute the “domestic” flag, so they shouldn’t drink “domestic” beer — at least that’s what Anheuser-Busch’s CEO thinks. He even wants a change in terminology.
Watch this
🛥️ Daring jump: First responders rescued an unresponsive man from a boat that was spinning out of control on a Florida lake. The crew jumped on board, stopped the boat and brought him back to shore for medical treatment — later saying he is expected to make a full recovery.
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Top headlines
• How Trump arrived at his stunning idea to ‘take over’ the Gaza Strip
• Trump takes action to ban transgender women from women’s sports
• They lived through Musk’s Twitter takeover. Now they have advice for federal government employees
$120 million
💰 That’s the estimated amount of money raised for Los Angeles wildfire relief thanks to the FireAid concerts and Grammy Awards.
Check this out
🪸 Fancy footwork: Coral moves toward blue light waves in a way that’s reminiscent of jellyfish, a new study found. This suggests they may have more complex body functions than previously believed.
Quotable
🧳 The final straw: Some Canadians said they’re boycotting travel to the US because of Trump’s tariff threats and talk of making the country the 51st state.
Quiz time
😎 Legendary Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour removed her iconic sunglasses to meet with which VIP?
A. Elton John
B. Donald Trump
C. King Charles III
D. Taylor Swift
⬇️ Scroll down for the answer.
Good vibes
🐕 ‘We got him!’ A drone using thermal imaging helped reunite an Illinois couple with their missing dog nearly a week after he disappeared. Watch as they reconnect with Charlie, who spent several days outside in the cold.
Thanks for reading
👋 We’ll see you tomorrow.
🧠 Quiz answer: C. Wintour broke with tradition for her meeting with King Charles at Buckingham Palace in London.
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5 Things PM is produced by CNN’s Chris Good, Meghan Pryce and Kimberly Richardson.
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