Guests...

 

Moot...

 

Supreme Court’s order temporarily blocking New York from setting coronavirus capacity limits at houses of worship is “irrelevant” and “moot,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo claimed Thursday.

In the 5-4 decision, the court sided with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and Orthodox Jewish synagogues, who sued Cuomo over his restrictions on congregating in state-designated coronavirus hot spots, saying his actions trampled on religious freedom.

Cuomo, in a Thanksgiving Day conference call with reporters, insisted the order was moot because the houses of worship in question in the court battle are no longer in designated red and orange zones in Brooklyn in Queens so the restrictions no longer apply to them.

The safety restriction to tame the pandemic imposed attendance caps at houses of worship from 10 to 25 people, respectively. The plaintiffs argued that the restrictions violated their religious freedoms under the First Amendment and unfairly targeted them while businesses deemed essential, including groceries and takeout restaurants, were allowed to operate. Just a thought.

Moderate...

 

Countless studies show that people who are active are less likely than more-sedentary people to develop or die from a host of health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, dementia, cancer, obesity and many others. Active people also tend to live longer and feel happier. 

   
Up to 40 minutes of "moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity" every day is about the right amount to balance out 10 hours of sitting still, the research says – although any amount of exercise or even just standing up helps to some extent.    

That's based on a meta-analysis across nine previous studies, involving a total of 44,370 people in four different countries who were wearing some form of fitness tracker.  

The analysis found the risk of death among those with a more sedentary lifestyle went up as time spent engaging in moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity went down.

"In active individuals doing about 30-40 minutes of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity, the association between high sedentary time and risk of death is not significantly different from those with low amounts of sedentary time," write the researchers in their published paper.

Maradona...

 

Diego Armando Maradona was loathed by a nation for the ‘Hand of God’ in Mexico City but adored by the world for his moment of genius just four minutes later.

The combustible Argentinian, who has died at the age of 60, was without doubt one of the greatest football players in history.

Maradona – a fiery, indomitable personality, a man so drastically different in his world view from Brazil’s beloved Pele – was an unstoppable force on his course to reaching the very top of the game.

After winning the World Cup in 1986, his fall from grace was swift, bizarre and, like the man himself, totally unpredictable.

Air...

 

The fountain of youth may be made of air, not water.

Scientists say they’ve successfully reversed the aging process of elderly people through “oxygen therapy” in a first-of-its-kind study.

Researchers from Tel Aviv University used hyperbaric oxygen chambers to target specific cells and DNA linked to shorter lifespans — and found the “Holy Grail” of staying young, according to a press release about the discovery.

They placed elderly participants in the chamber for 90 minutes a day, five days a week for three months and studied its impact on senescent cells, which are associated with tissue and organ deterioration. They also measured the length of each person’s telomere, a molecule linked to premature cellular aging.

Remarkably, scientists found that the participants’ telomeres had enlarged by an average length of 20 percent while their senescent cells decreased by up to 37 per cent by the end of the trial — the equivalent growing 25 years younger.

Bar...

 

Listen to your doctor.

Moving out...

 

The post office received 295,103 change of address requests from March 1 through Oct. 31, according to data obtained from the US Postal Service under a Freedom of Information Act request. While many city dwellers decamped to Long Island, New Jersey, Westchester and Connecticut, others scattered across the country.

The Postal Service data shows only the destination ZIP codes and counties where more than 10 New Yorkers forwarded their mail — and it points to places like Park City, Utah; Jackson, Wyo., and Brattleboro, Vt.

 Of New York City residents who earn $100,000 or more annually, 44% have considered moving out of the city in  the past four months. Looking ahead, 37% say that it is at least somewhat likely that they will not be living in the city within the next two years.

Bulletproof...

 

According to a growing body of research, some of the most influential factors shaping longevity don't cost a dime.    

Scientists called these factors soft health drivers. These include social networks, relationships, kindness, conscientiousness, optimism, and volunteerism.   

 They can make everyday living better  and add years to your life.

"Whereas diet and exercise are important, the social connection and the soft drivers of health — how you live your life, mentally, and socially — are even more important,

Luckily, having a healthy social and emotional life doesn't entail a bulletproof marriage or a hundred friends. It's just asking yourself: Do I have someone to confide in? 

Am I connected to my community?

Do I know my neighbors? Am I kind to others? 

Reported...

 

 Al Qaeda’s second-highest leader, accused of being one of the masterminds of the deadly 1998 attacks on American embassies in Africa, was killed in Iran three months ago, intelligence officials have confirmed.

Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah, who went by the nom de guerre Abu Muhammad al-Masri, was gunned down on the streets of Tehran by two assassins on a motorcycle on Aug. 7, the anniversary of the embassy attacks. He was killed along with his daughter, the widow of Osama bin Laden’s son Hamza bin Laden.

The attack was carried out by Israeli operatives at the behest of the United States, according to four of the officials. It is unclear what role if any was played by the United States, which had been tracking the movements of Mr. al-Masri and other Qaeda operatives in Iran for years.

Slow...