The 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics kicked off Friday evening in Milan, Italy, with athletes from over 90 countries participating in the opening ceremony at the San Siro stadium, according to NPR. The games, running from February 6 to 22, will see athletes compete for a chance to earn a spot on the podium, as reported by Wired.
The opening ceremony paid tribute to Italian music, art, and culture, featuring performances by Italian ballet dancers, according to NPR. The event brought together thousands of spectators.
Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released provisional data indicating a slight decrease in U.S. births in 2025. Approximately 3.6 million births were reported through birth certificates, about 24,000 fewer than in 2024, as stated by Fortune. This decline appears to confirm predictions by some experts who doubted the 2024 increase marked an upward trend. Robert Anderson, who oversees birth and death tracking, noted that the final tally might only add a few thousand additional births.
In other news, the CDC has also reduced the number of health alerts issued, leaving doctors feeling "flying blind," according to NPR. The article cited a measles outbreak in Spartanburg, S.C., where the CDC had not issued a health alert.
As athletes prepare to compete, the importance of quality sleep is paramount. Wired highlighted the critical need for athletes to get the highest-quality sleep to recover and perform at their best.
In the realm of technology, the fan community is developing OpenCiv3, an open-source, cross-platform, mod-oriented reimagining of Civilization III, according to Hacker News. The project aims to rebuild the game for modern modders and players, removing arbitrary limits and expanding mod capabilities. The game is currently in an early pre-alpha state.
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