Cedar Rapids Student’s Artwork Earns Grant Wood Legacy Prize

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TALLAHASSEE — A smattering of new state laws will arrive with the new year, but the highest-profile change — restricting access to social media for children — will not be immediately enforced. Ten laws passed during the 2024 legislative session will take effect Wednesday. They were among 299 bills approved by the Legislature and Gov.

Ever wondered what the secret is behind the mysterious smile of the “Mona Lisa”? Ask her yourself during a multisensory journey through Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpieces and technological inventions, available through March 2025 in Boynton Beach. “Da Vinci — An Immersive Art Experience” has transformed the South Florida PBS Studios into Renaissance Italy, featuring more than 50 of his famous works, including “Virgin of the Rocks,” “The Baptism of Christ” and the ornithopter (a flying machine). After making its debut in Berlin in 2022, the exhibit traveled to Amsterdam, where South Florida PBS staff discovered its use of digital projections, audiovisual storytelling, and 360-degree immersion and advanced AI technologies to bring da Vinci’s creations to life. South Florida PBS President and CEO Dolores Fernandez Alonso spearheaded the effort to bring over the experience, which is produced by Phoenix Immersive, designed by flora&faunavisions and features original music by UK DJ Sasha and a script by Dan Cadan. “We enhanced the exhibition by developing our own interactive post-show experience featuring hands-on activities inspired by da Vinci’s work, including geometric art design, invention sketching and musical collaboration opportunities,”  said Anabel​​​​ Moncada, South Florida PBS Health Channel marketing specialist. “This combination of high-tech immersion, comprehensive content coverage and hands-on educational elements creates an experience that goes beyond traditional museum exhibitions or digital presentations.” Visitors to “Da Vinci — An Immersive Art Experience” at the South Florida PBS Studios in Boynton Beach take in the floor-to-ceiling digital projections of Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous works.

By ERIC TUCKER WASHINGTON (AP) — A ninth U. S. telecoms firm has been confirmed to have been hacked as part of a sprawling Chinese espionage campaign that gave officials in Beijing access to private texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans, a top White House official said Friday. Biden administration officials said this month that at least eight telecommunications companies, as well as dozens of nations, had been affected by the Chinese hacking blitz known as Salt Typhoon. But Anne Neuberger, the deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technologies, told reporters Friday that a ninth victim had been identified after the administration released guidance to companies about how to hunt for Chinese culprits in their networks. The update from Neuberger is the latest development in a massive hacking operation that has alarmed national security officials, exposed cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the private sector and laid bare China’s hacking sophistication. The hackers compromised the networks of telecommunications companies to obtain customer call records and gain access to the private communications of “a limited number of individuals.” Though the FBI has not publicly identified any of the victims, officials believe senior U.

By Vanessa G. Sánchez, KFF Health News (TNS) LOS ANGELES — President-elect Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations and tougher immigration restrictions is deepening mistrust of the health care system among California’s immigrants and clouding the future for providers serving the state’s most impoverished residents. At the same time, immigrants living illegally in Southern California told KFF Health News they thought the economy would improve and their incomes might increase under Trump, and for some that outweighed concerns about health care. Community health workers say fear of deportation is already affecting participation in Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program for low-income residents, which was expanded in phases to all immigrants regardless of residency status over the past several years.

Florida officials quietly ended a probe into Walt Disney World’s former taxing district, concluding that no laws were broken, according to a newly released memo. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement closed its case “due to a lack of a criminal predicate,” the state’s Chief Inspector General Melinda Miguel wrote June 21 to Gov.