With Stunning Comeback, Tyson Fury Completes Trilogy By Proving He Is Lord Of The Ring

By Lem Satterfield

Tyson Fury delivered on his promise to give Deontay Wilder a beatdown during Saturday’s five-knockdown slugfest.

But “The Gypsy King” had to rise from the canvas twice in the fourth round and drop “The Bronze Bomber” on three other occasions to complete an 11th-round TKO victory in defense of his WBC heavyweight crown before 15,820 fans at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The 6-foot-9 Fury (31–0–1, 22 KOs) floored the 6-foot-7 Wilder (42–2–1, 41 KOs) in the third round, rose from a pair of knockdowns in the final 53 seconds of the fourth and dropped “The Bronze Bomber” once each in the 10th and 11th to win a battle for the ages.

Wilder lay on his left side at the 1:10 mark as referee Russell Mora indicated a victory for Fury, who rose from ninth- and 12th-round knockdowns during a December 2018 draw with Wilder before dethroning him via two-knockdown, seventh-round TKO in their February 2020 rematch.

Fury’s head- and body-swiveling right hand ended the night for Wilder, who was still on his way to the canvas as Mora signaled the conclusion of a trilogy that featured a combined nine knockdowns — five by Fury and four by Wilder.

“I hit him solid with a crunching right to the temple, and shots like that end careers,” said Fury, who led, 94–92, 95–92 and 95–91 on the three judges’ cards. “[Wilder] took a lot of punishment tonight from left uppercuts, left hooks and right hands. We’ll see what he can do in the future. I just hope that he’s okay.”

Fury, 33, rushed to a corner of the ring, stood on the ropes and triumphantly thrust his gloved fists overhead in celebration.

Deontay Wilder (foreground) fails to rise from the third and final knockdown against Tyson Fury, who rose from a pair of fourth-round knockdowns to retain his WBC heavyweight title by 11th-round TKO. (Mikey Williams/Top Rank) 

“It was a great fight tonight worthy of any trilogy in the history of the sport. I was down a couple of times, and I was hurt because Wilder’s a strong puncher and a tough man,” said Fury, whose career-high 277 pounds countered Wilder’s career-high 238.

“But my legs are strong. Wilder is a tough man because I was hitting him with some big shots tonight. I’ve always said I’m the best in the world, and he’s the second-best. I’m the WBC champ and the lineal champion.”

Fury’s cornerman for the second straight bout was Javan “Sugar” Hill-Steward, nephew of the late Hall of Fame trainer, Emanuel Steward. Steward foreshadowed Wilder’s becoming heavyweight champion, calling him “The No. 1 best American prospect for winning the heavyweight title” before dying of cancer three days after Wilder’s 27th birthday on Oct. 25, 2012.

“My uncle Emanuel’s blood is in me, and tonight, he was a part of me, part of Tyson, part of Wilder, and that’s what this was all about,” Hill-Steward told Zenger within an hour of the fight’s ending.

“For Tyson Fury to rise from a combined four knockdowns against one of the hardest punchers in the heavyweight division’s history in Deontay Wilder, and to come back from those and pull off the big knockouts in back-to-back fights shows that Tyson Fury is a big-time fighter.”

Wilder had recorded seven straight knockouts entering his first fight with Fury and hoped to regain the crown he earned on Muhammad Ali’s 73rd birthday by dethroning Bermane Stiverne via unanimous decision on Jan. 17, 2015.

Wilder, who became America’s first heavyweight titleholder since Shannon Briggs in 2007, is 10–2–1 (9 KOs) in title fights, 9–0–1 (9 KOs) in 10 consecutive defenses and has knocked down or stopped every man he has faced as a professional.

“The Bronze Bomber’s” 10 defenses are tied with Ali for fifth all-time among heavyweights behind Joe Louis (26), Larry Holmes (19), Wladimir Klitschko (18) and Tommy Burns (13). Mike Tyson is seventh with nine defenses.

Ali served as motivation for Wilder against Fury, having become a two-time heavyweight champion on Oct. 30, 1974, with an upset, eighth-round knockout of previously unbeaten George Foreman.

“I did my best, but it wasn’t good enough. I’m not sure what happened,” said a swollen-eyed, bloody-lipped Wilder, who turns 36 on Oct. 22. “I know that in training he [Fury] did certain things, and I also knew that he didn’t come in at 277 to be a ballet dancer. He came to lean on me, try to rough me up, and he succeeded.”

Fury was losing the third round before scoring the first knockdown with 38 seconds remaining with a three-punch combination.

After chasing Wilder to the ropes, Fury staggered him with an overhand right to his left temple, then sent him to the canvas with a right-uppercut, left-uppercut combo, the latter to Wilder’s right temple.

“I was one punch away from knocking him out the entire fight,” Fury said. “But Wilder kept getting up.”

Wilder fired back in the fourth, his powerful right hands dropping Fury twice within the final 57 seconds.

Fury walked into and absorbed the brunt of the first blow in the middle of his face with 57 seconds left, spiraling to the canvas in a delayed reaction before rising at the count of seven.

Another right to the top of the head with 15 seconds left once again dropped Fury, who was on his feet with six seconds remaining. Fury managed to beat Mora’s count and survive the bell ending the round.

“I want to say that if it wasn’t for ‘Sugar’ Hill, America and Detroit’s own, I wouldn’t have gotten through that fight tonight,” Fury said. “He said, ‘Get your jab working, big dog, and shoot that right hand down the middle. That’s how the big dogs do it.’”

WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (standing) dropped Deontay Wilder in the third round (above), hit the deck twice himself in the fourth and floored Wilder once each in the 10th and 11th of his 11th-round TKO victory on Saturday. “I was one punch away from knocking him out the entire fight,” Fury said. “But Wilder kept getting up.” (Sean Michael Ham/TGB Promotions)

Fury sent Wilder to his hands and knees at the 1:20 mark of the 10th round, a short overhand right to the temple doing the damage before Wilder valiantly reached his feet again to survive into the 11th.

“It was that final right hand to the head that finished him. I showed initiative, dug deeper and wanted it more. I wasn’t willing to let it go to the scorecards,” Fury said.

“I was definitely trying for a knockout. I pulled it out of the bag when it needed to be done. This was one of my greatest wins, and I’ve gotten off the floor to do it.”

The victory potentially sets up a unification match with newly crowned 6-foot-3 southpaw Oleksandr Usyk (19–0, 13 KOs), a 2012 Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist whose unanimous decision dethroned 6-foot-6 IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO champion Anthony Joshua last month.

The WBC recently declared that Fury has 30 days to complete unification talks with Usyk, if not the winner of an Oct. 30 clash between the organization’s interim titleholder Dillian Whyte (28–2, 19 KOs) and southpaw Otto Wallin (22–1, 14 KOs).

In the meantime, Joshua, a 2012 Olympic Gold medalist at super heavyweight, has exercised the rematch clause in his contract with Usyk. Their return bout could happen in early spring 2022.

“Before I start thinking about fighting other men, I’m going to bask in this victory,” said Fury, a married father of six. “I’ve been away from my family for six months. I’ve just earned a break from everything.”

The Wilder trilogy helped to rescue Fury from depression and anxiety so debilitating that “The Gypsy King” had once lost his desire to live.

“I’m never down and out,” said WBC champion Fury, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. “When the chips are down, I can always deliver.” (Sumio Yamada/WBC)

Fury felt little validation in November 2015 from his career-defining unanimous decision over long-reigning Wladimir Klitschko, a feat that ended 6-foot-6 “Dr. Steelhammer’s” dominance at 22–0 (15 KOs) and 11 and a half years and made Fury the IBF/WBA/WBO/IBO champion.

Fury turned to alcohol and drugs, his weight ballooning to 400 pounds, and failed to satisfy mandatory defenses. He tested positive for banned substances, which ultimately led to the suspension of his boxing license in October 2016 by the British Boxing Board of Control.

Fury, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in October 2017, returned to the ring in 2018 with a pair of victories — a fourth-round stoppage of Sefer Seferi (June) and a 10-round unanimous decision over Francesco Pianeta (August).

In August, Fury’s wife, Paris, had their sixth child, Athena, who remained hospitalized on a ventilator and in intensive care with health complications before making a full recovery in advance of her father’s return to training for Wilder.

“Big shout out to my dad, my mom, and my kids all watching. Thank you to my wife, Paris, I love you so much,” said Fury, whose wife was in the ring for his postfight interview.

“I hope Oct. 9, 2021 will go down in history as one of the greatest fights,” Fury added. “Don’t ever doubt me, because I can never be written off or beaten. I’m never down and out, because when the chips are down, I can always deliver.”

Edited by Stan Chrapowicki and Kristen Butler



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VIDEO: Passionate Skydiver Returns For First Time Since Botched Op Left Her Quadriplegic

By William McGee

A skydiver who was left quadriplegic following an operation has recovered some of her movement and has shown her resiliency as she again takes up her sport.

Raquel Zendron did her first jump with an instructor in Anapolis, Brazil, when she was 19 years old — 15 years ago.

It was on her second jump in October 2017 that she met the man she would eventually marry, Jefferson Lages. She describes him as “the great love of my life.”

Two years later, however, her life as she had known it was turned upside down.

“After experiencing severe pain in mid-October 2019 and losing strength in my left arm, it was found I had a slipped disc,” Zendron, a banker, said. “I needed to undergo surgery in February 2020, and post-op I was left without any movement.

“At first it was really nerve-racking, as the diagnosis was not good and all my dreams were falling apart overnight. It was supposed to be a simple operation, but when I got out, I couldn’t move anymore. I never imagined this could happen.

“I can’t explain my reaction. I remember thinking crying wasn’t going to solve it. I thought ‘from now on, I will do the best I can to recover’. From then on, I focussed all my strength on what I had and not on what I didn’t have.”

A determined Raquel Zendron resumes skydiving after a debilitating operation. (Raquel Zendron/Zenger).

Her recovery went better than expected, and she regained some movement following several physiotherapy sessions.

“I’ve seen a considerable improvement in my arm movements, and I’m also able to balance my torso with support,” she said.

She had a nerve graft on both arms in February this year, which further improved the movement in her arms.

“I was always nurturing my strength, thinking positively, valuing all the good things around me,” she said. “I feel very privileged because I have a family that supports me unconditionally and a husband who has never allowed me to give up.”

Quadripegic Raquel Zendron (center, in purple) returns to her favorite sport in Anapolis, Brazil, in September. (Raquel Zendron/Zenger)

On Sept. 29, Zendron had her first skydive since her misfortune.

Video shows a happy Zendron as her husband carries her into the aircraft and she successfully completes the jump with an instructor.

“This leap was a fresh start,” she told Zenger. “We intend to continue jumping from time to time, and we will adapt what is necessary to make our dreams come true.

“We continue to go on with life. There are no easy days, but with love and willpower we will make everything brighter, and we won’t let ourselves be affected.”



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VIDEO: Moo Just Don’t Know Cow Rare You Are

By Peter Barker

An adorable gray calf, born at the world’s oldest zoo, will be used to educate visitors on the history of traditional farm methods and animals in the Tyrolean Oberland region.

The Tyrolean grey calf, named Seppl, is a member of a critically endangered cow breed. It was born Sept. 9 at the Tiergarten Schönbrunn Zoo, in the Austrian capital of Vienna.

The species is a small- to medium-sized dual-purpose cattle breed, which means they provide two resources: milk and meat. The animals are solid gray to iron-gray with black hooves. “The Tyrolean grey cattle is an old Austrian livestock breed,” said the zoo.

The Tyrolean grey can be found primarily in the Austrian state of Tyrol, west of Innsbruck, and in the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy.

Seppl was recently born in the Tiergarten Schonbrunn Zoo in Vienna. He will help educate the public on farming methods in the Tyrol. (Daniel Zupanc/Zenger News).

Seppl was named after his father Sedinus and currently weighs 110 lbs. The calf spends its days grazing on hay and suckling its mother.

Gerold Vierbauch, a zookeeper, said: “Seppl is suckled up to the age of seven months. Lena is a great mother cow and takes great care of her first offspring.“

Once Seppl is fully grown, he will weigh up to 1,200-1,300 lbs. The cows are fast growers, reaching their full size within three years. They can produce nearly 10,000 lbs. of milk per year.

Their milk is considered of superb quality and is often used in the production of high-quality products. These cows are hardy, able to survive in rugged mountain terrains, thanks to their excellent foraging skills.

Gerold said Seppl is a member of a “critically endangered” species.

The 4-week-old Seppl is seen suckling its mother. (Schonbrunn Zoo/Zenger News).

“There are currently only 5,000 registered breeding cows in Austria. The grey cattle are a piece of Tyrolean cultural heritage that we want to preserve,” said Raphael Kuen, managing director of the Tyrolean Grey Cattle Breeding Association.

That 5,000 is less than the 7,500 threshold under which cattle breeds are considered threatened, according to the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity. The proportion of Tirolean grey among all breeds in Austria is 1 percent.

Tyrolean greys are mostly bread in the Alps at an elevation of more than 3,280 feet. They require specific conditions to maintain the breed’s desired quality, which include hardiness and fertility.

Tyrolean grey cheese is a protected product made in Tyrol from the milk of Tyrolean greys. It is known for its low fat content, an estimated 3.7 percent, and its pungent scent.



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Cancer Drug Reverses Alzheimer’s Symptoms In Mice

By Martin M Barillas

A chemotherapy drug commonly used to treat kidney cancer has shown promise in treating symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease.

Researchers found that Axitinib, which inhibits the growth of new blood vessels in the brain, restores cognitive function and memory in lab mice that show symptoms of Alzheimer’s. It and other forms of dementia affect more than 50 million people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization.

The study shows that approved anti-cancer drugs may be repurposed as treatments for Alzheimer’s, said Professor Wilfred Jeffries of the University of British Columbia (UBC), who led the research effort.

“It could shorten the clinical development by years,” Jeffries said.

In research published in eBioMedicine, mice showing symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease were given Axitinib therapy. They not only exhibited a reduction in blood vessels and other Alzheimer’s markers in their brains, but they also performed well in memory and cognitive function tests.

Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia affect more than 50 million people worldwide. (Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images)

UBC researchers focused on limiting the growth of new blood vessels, a process known as angiogenesis.

The study results led Jeffries to say that “a great deal of effort appears to have been directed toward the wrong targets for reversing Alzheimer’s disease.”

Jeffries’ earlier research had demonstrated that the blood-brain barrier in Alzheimer’s patients was compromised by the proliferation of blood vessels. The blood-brain barrier protects the brain from the entry of foreign materials that can be infectious.

Knowing that cancerous tumors depend on the growth of new blood vessels, the research team theorized that Axitinib might work to halt that same process for Alzheimer’s. Study co-author Chaahat Singh said the drug blocks the brain’s tyrosine kinase receptor, which is partly responsible for encouraging blood vessel formation.  “It stops abnormal blood vessels from growing, which then prevents many downstream effects,” Singh said.

After being given Axitinib for a month, the mice showed greatly reduced blood vessel growth, while their blood-brain barrier was restored. As a result, they did better on cognitive tests. To assess cognitive ability, researchers trained the mice to find desired objects in a maze. While healthy mice could find the reward, rodents with Alzheimer’s were unable to.

While they have seen success only in treating mice, the researchers are optimistic that human clinical trials will show the positive effects of repurposing anti-cancer drugs such as Axitinib to treat Alzheimer’s patients.

“The therapeutic approach we discovered has an opportunity to revise the clinical treatment of Alzheimer’s patients, which I think is absolutely needed at this point for the field to advance,” Jeffries said.

Edited by Richard Pretorius and Kristen Butler



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VIDEO: Great Barrier Grief: Study Shows Climate Change Is Pushing Reefs To Brink Of Collapse

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By Peter Barker

Coral reefs across the globe, even the most isolated ones, have been pushed to the brink due to climate change and overfishing, a new comprehensive report says.

After spending 10 years studying 1,000 reefs, the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) Global Reef Expedition’s final report issued October 7 sent a distress signal.

“Coral reefs are clearly in crisis. … Scientists estimate that half of the world’s coral reefs have been lost in the last 40 years,” the foundation said in a press release summarizing the report. “Both natural and man-made factors have contributed to a precipitous decline in coral reefs as coastal development, pollution, disease, severe storms and climate change have all impacted the health of coral reefs.”

The study, involving scientists from 16 countries with 15,000 surveys conducted, highlighted the impact of climate change, stating that the reefs cannot be saved without addressing this issue.

“Climate change is believed to be a key driver of coral bleaching with events becoming more frequent and severe as water temperatures rise,” the press release noted.

Coral bleaching occurs when corals turn white as a result of losing their vibrant colors, which come from microscopic algae called zooxanthellae, according to the World Wildlife Fund. When the temperature warms, the algae float off and the coral eventually dies.

According to United Nations Environment Program, between 2014 and 2016, the longest recorded global bleaching events killed coral on an unprecedented scale.

Today, the average reef is being affected by bleaching every six years while in the 1980s it was between every 25 and 30 years. One bleaching event killed an estimated 29 to 50 percent of all corals on the Great Barrier Reef in 2016.

Renee Carlton, a marine ecologist at KSLOF, said another major issue facing reefs is overfishing, which disrupts the food chain, damaging the reef and the coastal communities that depend on fishing to survive.

“Nearly every country we studied showed signs of overfishing, even some of the most remote and well-protected reefs,” Carlton said.

A diver conducting scientific research surveys an ocean’s plant and animal life as part of the Global Reef Expedition.  (Keith A. Ellenbogen,iLCP/Zenger )

KSLOF’s Global Reef Expedition aimed to emphasize the need to act now to save the reefs, upon which the planet’s ecosystem depends and that also provide food and income for millions of people.

“The Global Reef Expedition was a monumental achievement. It owes its success to nimble planning and a common vision shared by a broad group of forward-thinking scientists, managers and educators,” Sam Purkis, KSLOF’s chief scientist, said.

“I have no doubt that the baseline determined by the Global Reef Expedition for the world’s reefs will remain a reference for centuries to come.”

A healthy, colorful coral community that was surveyed as part of the Global Reef Expedition in French Polynesia. (Michele Westmorland,iLCP/Zenger News)

Prince Khaled bin Sultan, the Saudi Arabian prince who funded the study, said he hopes it will encourage humanity to “leave a legacy of ocean conservation, so our children and our children’s children can also experience the beauty and wonder of a coral reef.”

The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation is a US-based non-profit environmental organization that protects and restores the world’s oceans through scientific research, outreach and education.

Edited by Richard Pretorius and Alex Willemyns



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Issa Rae Opens Up About Diversity Problem In Hollywood Projects

By Zenger News Desk

WASHINGTON — Hollywood actor-director Issa Rae has recently spoken out against the issue of lack of diversity in American films and shows.

In an interview with a media organization, Rae took a stroll down memory lane and recalled how a former co-worker once told her to always include a white character in her TV shows, as per reports.

“She was just like, ‘Girl, if you want this s — t to set off to the next level, you got to put a white character in there, then white people will care about it, then NPR is going to write about your s — t, and it’ll blow up,” she said.

Rae took her advice seriously and added a white character to the cast of “The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl” before it was released in 2011. She once again heeded the advice when she developed “Insecure,” which in early seasons featured the character Freida, a white woman and co-worker of Issa Dee’s.

Early iterations of the show heavily featured the character and raised the question for the show’s team of whether Freida should be more heavily included so white viewers could connect, as per media reports.

“And I was like, F — k no! This is not a show about Freida,” she said.

“That was when I started actively resisting. When Issa quit work, and we got rid of the We Got Y’all storyline, I realized, ‘Oh my gosh, our show is just about Black characters now in the most refreshing way.’”

The final season of “Insecure” is scheduled to return in October 2021.

On the personal front, “The Lovebirds” actress tied the knot with her longtime boyfriend and businessman Louis Diame on July 25, 2021.

Taking to her Instagram handle, Rae shared a thread of pictures from her destination wedding at Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, a commune in the South of France, Europe.

“A) Impromptu photoshoot in a custom @verawang dress. B) My girls came to help me, but they all coincidentally had on the same dress! They were so embarrassed. C) Then I took a few flicks with Somebody’s Husband,” she captioned the post.

“Big thanks to @whiteedenweddings for being so gracious and accommodating and making this feel so real and special.”

In the pictures, Rae is seen wearing a tulle gown by designer Vera Wang, whereas Diame can be seen decked up in a red Dolce and Gabbana tuxedo.

The duo first sparked engagement rumors after Rae was spotted wearing a diamond ring on the cover of a magazine’s April 2019 issue.

(With inputs from ANI)

Edited by Ojaswin Kathuria and Nikita Nikhil



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Daniel Craig Receives Hollywood Walk Of Fame Star

By Zenger News Desk

WASHINGTON — Hollywood actor Daniel Craig has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Craig, whose tenure as “007” came to an end with the latest film “No Time to Die,” is the 2,704th celebrity to receive a star on the coveted Walk of Fame — right next to Bond actor Roger Moore.

The 53-year-old received the star in the company of his “No Time to Die” team members, including Rami Malek, on Oct. 6, 2021, as per reports.

“I never thought I’d hear myself saying this, but it’s an absolute honor to be walked all over in Hollywood,” said Craig in his acceptance speech.

During the event, Malek had paid tribute to Craig by heaping praises on him.

“If you are lucky enough to play a bad guy, you would better make sure the good guy is legendary. And this good guy is the best,” he said.

Ana Martinez, the Hollywood Walk of Fame producer, also expressed her excitement in a statement.

“Daniel Craig is a British cultural icon, as is James Bond, the man he has portrayed in five 007 films,” she said.

“We are thrilled to place his terrazzo Walk of Fame star next to the star of another famed actor who also portrayed James Bond, Roger Moore. Fans will be thrilled when they see that their stars are appropriately located at 7007 Hollywood Boulevard.”

As Bond, Craig has appeared in four other movies — “Casino Royale” (2006), “Quantum of Solace” (2008), “Skyfall” (2012), and “Spectre” (2015).

Aside from “No Time To Die,” Craig is all set to return to Broadway in a new adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” The “Munich” actor will team up with Ethiopian-Irish actress Ruth Negga for the production directed by Tony Award winner Sam Gold.

The limited 15-week engagement will officially open on April 28, 2022, while the performances will begin at Broadway’s Lyceum Theater on March 29, 2022.

Gold, who had previously teamed with Craig for “Othello” and staged other Shakespearean dramas like “King Lear,” “Hamlet,” etc., expressed his excitement for his upcoming project.

“I am beyond thrilled to be participating in this historic season as theater re-emerges and to be working with two such masterful actors on one of dramatic literature’s most challenging and epic dramas. I can’t wait to get started!”

On the film front, Craig will next be in Rian Johnson’s “Knives Out 2” opposite Ethan Hawke, Dave Bautista, Madelyn Cline, Edward Norton, and Kate Hudson.

He will also star in Todd Field’s “The Creed Of Violence” and Showtime’s series “Purity.”

Craig’s other credits include “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo,” “Logan Lucky,” “Lara Croft,” “I Dreamed of Africa,” “Road to Perdition,” “Flashbacks of a Fool,” “Enduring Love,” etc.

(With inputs from ANI)

Edited by Ojaswin Kathuria and Nikita Nikhil



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‘WandaVision’ Spinoff Featuring Kathryn Hahn In Works At Disney Plus

By Zenger News Desk

WASHINGTON — A spinoff for the Primetime Emmy Award-winning series “WandaVision” starring Kathryn Hahn is in development at Disney Plus from Marvel Studios.

Though exact plot details remain under wraps, Hahn would reprise the role of Agatha Harkness in the dark comedy series, as per reports.

“WandaVision” head writer Jac Schaeffer would serve as the writer and executive producer on the project.

If the spinoff goes forward, it would be the first project Schaeffer has set up with Marvel since she signed an overall deal with them and 20th Television in May 2021.

Hahn started out playing the role of Agnes, Wanda and Vision’s nosy neighbor, before it was revealed she was, in fact, Agatha, a powerful witch in “WandaVision.”

In the Marvel comics and the series, Agatha is shown to have survived the Salem Witch Trials and is more than a match for Wanda. In the finale of “WandaVision,” Wanda traps Agatha in Westview by using her powers to force her to revert to her Agnes persona, as per reports.

“WandaVision,” which aired from January-March 2021, is the first live-action Marvel series to debut on Disney Plus. It was met with widespread acclaim upon its debut.

The series garnered 20 Emmy nominations in 2021, including one for Hahn for best supporting actor in a limited series. One of the show’s wins also came in the best original music and lyrics category for the song “Agatha All Along.”

Aside from “WandaVision,” Hahn also bagged an Emmy nomination in the “Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series” category for Amazon Original’s “Transparent.”

On the film front, Hahn will next be seen in Apple TV Plus’ dark-comedy series “The Shrink Next Door,” where she will be playing the role of Phyllis Shapiro. The show will also star Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd, Casey Wilson, and Cornell Womack.

She will also be seen in Rian Johnson’s crime-drama film “Knives Out 2,” “Hotel Transylvania: Transformania,” and series “The Comeback Girl.”

Hahn is represented by Schreck Rose Dapello, The Gersh Agency, Lighthouse Management & Media.

On the other hand, Schaeffer is known for writing the animated short film “Olaf’s Frozen Adventure,” which was voiced by actors Josh Gad, Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff and Chris Williams.

She also wrote “The Hustle,” which featured Anne Hathaway, Rebel Wilson, and Timothy Simons.

Her other works include writing, producing, and directing the 2009 romantic-comedy “Timer,” which starred Emma Caulfield Ford, Scott Holroyd, Kali Rocha, and Susan Ziegler.

Schaeffer is repped by Verve, Writ Large, and Paul Hastings.

(With inputs from ANI)

Edited by Ojaswin Kathuria and Nikita Nikhil



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Nature-based Activities Can Improve Mood, Reduce Anxiety

By Zenger News Desk

YORK, England — Nature to the rescue! Outdoor nature-based activities can be effective for improving mental health in adults, including those with pre-existing mental health problems, finds a study.

The findings of the study were published in the journal “SSM — Population Health.”

The research, led by the University of York, showed that participating in outdoor, nature-based activities led to improved mood, less anxiety, and positive emotions.

The study found that activities lasting for 20 to 90 minutes, sustained over the course of 8 to 12 weeks, have the most positive outcomes for improving mood and reducing anxiety.

Gardening and exercise were among the activities associated with mental health benefits.

Engaging in conservation activities was also reported to make people feel better, as did ‘forest bathing’ (stopping in a forest to take in the atmosphere).

Nature-based interventions (NBIs) support people to engage with nature in a structured way to improve mental health.

As part of the study, researchers screened 14,321 NBI records and analyzed 50 studies.

The lead author of the study, Peter Coventry from the Department of Health Sciences, said, “We’ve known for some time that being in nature is good for health and wellbeing.”

“But our study reinforces the growing evidence that doing things in nature is associated with large gains in mental health.”

“While doing these activities on your own is effective, among the studies we reviewed, it seems that doing them in groups led to greater gains in mental health,” said Coventry.

However, the study found there was less evidence that outdoor activities led to improved physical health. The research has suggested that there need to be more appropriate ways to measure the short and longer-term impact of nature-based activities on physical health.

The study argued there is a need for substantial, sustained investment in the community and place-based solutions such as nature-based interventions, which are likely to play an important role in addressing a post-pandemic surge in demand for mental health support.

“One of the key ideas that might explain why nature-based activities are good for us is that they help to connect us with nature in meaningful ways that go beyond passively viewing nature,” said Coventry.

The research forms part of the new ‘Environment and Health’ research theme, supported by the York Environmental Sustainability Institute (YESI). As part of the same theme, Coventry and co-author Professor Piran White are now working with partners at the University of Central Lancashire to understand the health benefits of green social prescribing.

Academics from the Department of Health Sciences, Department of Environment and Geography, York Environmental Sustainability Institute (YESI), Hull York Medical School, and Stockholm Environment Institute at York contributed to the study.

(With inputs from ANI)

Edited by Ojaswin Kathuria and Pallavi Mehra



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Study Finds Clean Air Matters For A Healthy Brain

By Zenger News Desk

CALIFORNIA CITY, Calif. — Cleaner air may reduce the risk for Alzheimer’s and other dementias, reveals a study.

Cars and factories produce a fine particulate matter: PM2.5 that USC-led studies have linked to memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease.

Smaller than the width of human hair, these tiny particles pose a big problem. Once inhaled, they pass directly from the nose up and into the brain, beyond the blood-brain barrier that normally protects the brain from dust or other invaders.

The findings of the study were published in ‘The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.’

Two researchers at the University of South California (USC) linked air pollution to a greater risk of Alzheimer’s disease, and the faster cognitive decline shows that cleaner air can make a difference in brain health.

The USC researchers described how their labs independently reported indications of recent decreases in neurotoxicity (damage to the brain or nervous system caused by exposure to toxic substances) of PM2.5 air pollution in humans and mice.

University Professor Caleb Finch and associate professor of gerontology and sociology Jennifer Ailshire, with the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, focused on PM2.5 pollution. Long-term exposure to PM2.5 has been linked to premature death, particularly in people with chronic heart or lung diseases.

The research showed a strong association between cognitive deficits and air pollution among people with lower levels of education in 2004.

Based on data from the nationwide Health and Retirement Study, her work explained, when exposed to PM2.5, adults 65 and older who had fewer than eight years of education faced a greater risk of cognitive impairment. But a decade later, Ailshire found no such association for study participants.

A likely factor was the reduction in PM2.5 over the prior decade, said Ailshire. Air quality data showed the average annual PM2.5 levels in the study participants’ neighborhoods were 25 percent below 2004 levels.

Notably, in 2014, very few study participants lived in places with an annual average PM2.5 that exceeded the US Environmental Protection Agency air quality standards. This further suggested that the improvements with cognitive decline were linked to a drop in exposure to high pollution among older adults.

“Improving air quality around the country has been a tremendous public health and environment policy success story. But there are signs of a reversal in these trends,” Ailshire said.

“Pollution levels are creeping up again, and there are increasingly more large fires, which generate a significant amount of air pollution in certain parts of the country.”

“This gives me cause for concern about future trends in improving air quality,” Ailshire said.

Finch’s research on mice, published earlier this year in the ‘Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease,’ also found evidence of lower neurotoxicity of air pollution over time.

Finch and his research team have studied pollution levels at the same Los Angeles site and their effect on mouse brains since 2009. After 2017, the mice exposed to a tiny, nanoscale version of PM2.5 appeared healthier.

Markedly, they showed sharp declines in several factors of neurotoxicity, including oxidative damage to cells and tissues.

During the years that Finch’s and Ailshire’s studies were taking place, the composition of air pollution in the United States was also changing.

From 2000 to 2020, PM2.5 levels declined nationwide by 41 percent, as per US Environmental Protection Agency.

In contrast, urban PM2.5 in Los Angeles declined only slightly from 2009 to 2019. While nationwide ozone levels decreased, Los Angeles County ozone reversed the prior trends by increasing after 2015.

Finch and Ailshire emphasize that their findings cannot evaluate the potential benefits of air pollution improvements to the risk of cognitive decline and dementia. Although PM2.5 levels declined nationally from 2009 to 2016, the year-over-year increases observed since 2017 show that improvements in air quality can be reversed.

“Our findings underscore the importance of efforts to improve air quality as well as the continued importance of demographic and experimental evaluation of air pollution neurotoxicity,” Finch said.

Finch and Jiu-Chiuan “JC” Chen, an associate professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, previously published a study.

The study used human, and animal data that showed brain aging processes worsened by air pollution might increase dementia risk.

Their research indicated that older women who lived in locations with high levels of PM2.5 suffered memory loss and Alzheimer’s-like brain shrinkage not seen in women living with cleaner air.

(With inputs from ANI)

Edited by Ojaswin Kathuria and Pallavi Mehra



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