Ripped from the Headlines: October 2023: This Week in Words: Current Event Vocabulary for October 28–November 3, 2023

General Motors reached a tentative agreement on a new contract with the United Automobile Workers union on October 30. The deal will give autoworkers the biggest pay raises they've had in decades. GM workers were on strike for six weeks before arriving at the contract agreement, which will be voted on by union members. The Latin roots of contract mean "draw" and "together."

A trial began this week in Denver that will decide if the 14th Amendment disqualifies Donald Trump from running for president. Six Colorado voters filed a lawsuit citing a clause which states that anyone who "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" against the Constitution is ineligible to hold political office. The plaintiffs will argue that Trump's attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election constituted insurrection, making him unqualified to run again.

Researchers at Yellowstone discovered a surprising diversity of tiny organisms living in Old Faithful. The famous geyser, which regularly spews hot water and steam into the air, had never been studied up close by microbiologists, who thought its high temperatures and volatility would make survival difficult for any living thing. Close inspection showed a wide range of microbes that seem to thrive in these conditions. Geyser is from the Icelandic Geysir, or "gusher."

New research helps explain why some people have a phobia of clowns. A psychology professor who studies irrational fear wanted to learn more about coulrophobia, or a terror of the face-painted, red-nosed comics. He found that being afraid of clowns isn't usually caused by personal experience, but by not being able to read their exaggerated facial expressions, as well as terrifying depictions of clowns in movies. The Greek phobos, "fear," is the root of phobia.

A group of researchers discovered two pristine deep-water coral reefs near the Galápagos Islands. The scientists were mapping the sea floor in the Eastern Pacific Ocean when they found the immaculate reefs, each about a half-mile long and estimated to be thousands of years old. The lack of sunlight and low temperatures in the deep water have preserved the coral, which provides homes for animals like brittle stars and shrimp. The Latin root of pristine means "original."

Fourteen-year-old Heman Bekele won the nationwide 3M Young Scientist Challenge with his idea for a bar of soap that treats skin cancer by reactivating the cells that protect human skin. The high school student was inspired by his early childhood in Ethiopia, where many people work outdoors. Bekele's concept for the melanoma-treating soap included using compounds that are able to revive guardian dendritic cells that have been damaged by cancer.

On October 30, President Biden issued the first U.S. regulations aimed at artificial intelligence. In an executive order, Biden outlined the new rules governing AI, which include a requirement that companies report any possible risks that systems could help make weapons, and protections against deepfakes that spread false information. The administration acknowledged that further regulation will require the cooperation of Congress.

An Indian teenager used his interest in robotics to invent a spoon for people with trembling hands. Aarrav Anil developed the spoon using a 3-D printer, sensors, and motors, after observing his uncle, who has Parkinson's Disease, trying to hold a utensil steady as he ate. The mechanized spoon has sensors that can detect and compensate for tremors. Robotics, "the science of robots," was first used in 1941 by science fiction writer Isaac Asimov.

After 73 people were sickened by salmonella, food safety experts urged consumers to handle food carefully and cook it thoroughly. The bacteria, which can cause severe food poisoning, contaminates vegetables grown near animal or human waste. Buying vegetables whole, instead of pre-chopped, and washing them before eating are two ways to reduce the risk of exposure. Salmonella is named for Daniel Salmon, despite the fact that his research assistant discovered it.

Groundskeepers at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. noticed feathers protruding from a sculpture and discovered a barred owl was stuck inside the iconic work of art. Typewriter Eraser, Scale X was sculpted by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen from steel, with a large fiberglass "brush" at the top where the owl had become lodged. After being extracted from the sculpture, the owl was taken to a wild animal rehab facility and eventually released to the wild.

A welding company in Colorado agreed to pay $23,500 to settle a lawsuit brought against it by a subcontractor. The resolution of the original legal case began a whole new controversy, as the welder, JMF Enterprises, attempted to deliver the money in coins instead of using a check or wiring it to a bank. After a 6,000-pound box containing thousands of pennies, nickels, and dimes was delivered to the FIred Up Fabrication office, a new lawsuit was filed against the welding company.

Experts are warning that antique kits supposedly used to kill vampires are fake. The kits are being auctioned off online, selling for as much as $20,000. According to historians, there was a widespread panic during the 19th century when rumors of blood-sucking undead creatures spread across the U.S. and Europe. There is no evidence, however, that vampire-killing kits — velvet-lined boxes with crucifixes, garlic, silver bullets, and Bibles inside — were ever sold during the 1800s.