Movement is so important for mental and physical health — we write about it all the time — but here’s a reminder that it’s OK if your exercise routine has faltered a bit during this summer’s high temps. Working out amid extreme heat and humidity can pose risks, so Verywell Health compiled a guide to safely staying active in the summer. The gist? Take it easy.
“More Than Just a Doll”: Mattel Releases First Blind Barbie
Mattel
Barbie launched in 1959 and has come a long way since then, with an array of diverse dolls in the lineup. Most recently, Mattel released the first blind Barbie, made in collaboration with the American Foundation for the Blind. “Barbie is all about joy — about discovering and understanding the world through play — and it’s wonderful to think that children with a vision impairment can now play with a Barbie that looks like them,” Debbie Miller, director of customer advice and support at the Royal National Institute of Blind People, told CNN. The doll goes beyond representation, though, featuring details that make it more accessible. For example, Blind Barbie’s box has Braille lettering and her outfit is made with tactile fabric to provide a “satisfying play experience for kids with blindness or low vision,” per a press release. Mattel also released the first Black Barbie doll with Down syndrome, part of the same Fashionistas collection as Blind Barbie. “We recognize that Barbie is much more than just a doll,” said Krista Berger, senior vice president of Barbie and global head of dolls. “She represents self-expression and can create a sense of belonging.”
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Street Medicine: How a Team in California Is Successfully Caring for the Unhoused
CalOptima Health
Approximately 75,000 people are experiencing homelessness in the Los Angeles County area on any given night. While plenty of efforts are underway to help get people into housing, Sachin Jain, CEO of the SCAN Health Plan, knew they needed medical care in the meantime. In 2021, Jain launched Healthcare in Action, or HIA, to meet homeless people where they’re at and provide health care and social services right on the streets. The team of doctors, nurses, and social workers distributeGPS devices to track their unhoused patients and keep company credit cards handy to provide emergency food, water, or Uber rides to appointments. Three years later, HIA is making a difference — and, perhaps surprisingly, making money. Since launching, the group has provided care in 17 communities in Southern California, treated about 6,700 homeless patients, and helped manage roughly 77,000 diagnoses, KFF Health News reports. They’ve brought in millions in revenue by tapping into Medicaid, collecting donations from hospitals and insurers, and more. “It’s really innovative and entrepreneurial to take all this energy and grit to try and improve things for a population that is too often ignored,” said Mark Duggan, a professor of economics at Stanford University who specializes in homelessness and Medicaid policy. See the street medicine providers in action.
Science
Our Brains Don’t Tell Time by Minutes or Hours, Research Suggests
We’ve all heard that “time flies when we’re having fun,” and recent research suggests this sentiment to be somewhat true in terms of the way our brains process time. In a study of brain wave activity patterns in rats, scientists found that time is perceived based on the number of experiences rather than the passage of minutes or hours. “The brain is not a clock,” lead author James Hyman said in a statement. Hyman explained that busy, event-filled periods advance our brains “forward.” On the other hand, when less is happening, “time goes very slowly.” The takeaway: “If something is unpleasant, try to expose yourself to something else quickly,” Hyman told Gizmodo. “Do lots of things. Do new things. The more you can experience, the more distant the unpleasant thing.” But what if you’re having fun and want to make the most of it? Hyman advised: “Slow down and time will slow down with you.”
Just in time for back-to-school season,sales tax holidays are providing a “welcome relief” for parents.
The FCC votedto more closely regulate prison telecom services, a move that will reduce the fees that families pay to talk with their incarcerated loved ones.
Archeologists discovered an ancient Roman mosaic on the seafloor off the coast of Naples, Italy.
Alexis Smith was crowned Miss Kansas last month, and a clip of her onstage interview is now going viral — for good reason. She spoke up about domestic violence and shared that her own abuser was in the crowd, advising viewers, “To everyone watching that has experienced domestic violence, you are strong, this is not your fault, and you have the ability to take the lead.”
Photo of the Day
Hari Viswanathan/ U.S. Department of the Interior
A mountain lion in New Mexico wasn’t ready for his close-up. “This young cougar thought the camera was a fun new toy,” the U.S. Department of the Interior wrote on Instagram. “Good thing [Bandelier National Monument] had two, so they could capture this cute moment.”
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