This Week in Words: August 11 - 17, 2018

Aretha Franklin, “The Queen of Soul,” died on Thursday at the age of 76. Franklin’s versions of songs like "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" and “Natural Woman” are all-time classics. Her career spanned multiple genres and six decades, during which she won 18 Grammy awards and sang for several US presidents. Franklin was awarded the US's highest civilian honor when President George W. Bush awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005.

FBI agent Peter Strzok was fired for sending texts critical of President Trump to another FBI employee. There was some question as to whether Agent Strzok's attested biases had colored his work, but he denied any wrong doing.

The Trump Administration has been stripping some people of their status as naturalized citizens — a move that had until now been used to punish serious criminals. Now, several naturalized citizens convicted of minor offenses, or in some cases who were only accused of crimes, have had their US citizenship revoked. Supporters of the measure point to the need to limit both illegal and legal immigration, while opponents are concerned about the apparent disregard of citizens' legal rights.

The leadership of Turkey is calling for a boycott of American-made products like Apple’s iPhone. This was in response to a clash between Turkey and the US over the case of an American minister being held in Turkey and accused of terrorism. Turkey seems to be faltering in economic terms — the value of their currency has plummeted in recent days and it’s not clear whether the country can sustain a boycott.

There is nothing more American than blue jeans, but blue jeans aren’t selling the way they used to. The company that owns Lee and Wrangler jeans brands is looking to move those brands into a separate company so they can focus on other clothing options. In recent years, Americans have started to embrace alternatives to denim, like yoga pants, leggings and sweat pants.

Nobel Laureate V.S. Naipaul died this week at the age of 85. In works like A House for Mr. Biswas and A Bend in the River, Naipaul created novels of immense power about the legacy of colonialism and its effect on individuals and their interactions with each other. Naipaul was born in Trinidad and Tobago, and was a British citizen.

Google's parent company, Alphabet, is investing in the health care company Oscar. The 375 million dollar stake will not mean that Alphabet owns Oscar, but the capital infusion will give Oscar to opportunities to expand. Oscar, one of whose founders is Josh Kushner, Ivanka Trump's brother-in-law, sells health plans as licensed under the Affordable Care Act. President Trump has expressed a wish to eliminate the ACA, which was adopted during the Obama administration.

A non-invasive method for treating brain diseases of all kinds, like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, is being tested in labs. This new method involves flashing lights at the patient. It is thought that this helps synchronize the firing of neurons. In lab mice, at least, the flashing lights have been shown to drastically reduce the presence of the substance in the brain thought to be responsible for Alzheimer’s disease.

The Girl Scouts are introducing a new cookie. This Girl Scout Cookie season will see a cookie which features caramel and chocolate chips and just a hint of sea salt added to the regular line-up of Thin Mints and Peanut Butter Patties. As an extra bonus, the new cookie is gluten-free, the second Girl Scout Cookie to be so designated. There are several Girl Scout cookies which qualify as vegan offerings, like the S'mores and the Thanks-A-Lots.

Ilhan Omar is on the verge of becoming the very first Somali-American to serve in Congress, after winning the Democratic primary in her heavily Democratic district in Minnesota. Omar came to this country when she was twelve years old and has been a state legislator for two years now. If she wins in November, she will also be one of two Muslims serving in Congress next session, the other one being Rashida Tlaib from Michigan, who is of Palestinian descent.