Shooting Their Shot

UNC Cancels Ongoing In-Person Classes

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Monday canceled ongoing in-person undergraduate classes one week after they began, shifting entirely to online learning amidst a COVID-19 outbreak on campus. According to the university’s online dashboard, 135 students and staff tested positive over the past week.

Trump Admin. Approves Drilling In Alaskan Refuge

The Trump administration formally announced its plan to sell oil and gas drilling rights to ~1.57M acres of land in the 19M-acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska on Monday. Congress passed a mandate to lease oil rights in the refuge as part of its 2017 tax overhaul. Environmental groups have raised concerns about the impact drilling could have on the caribou herds and polar bears native to the region, and pledged to challenge the plan in court.

Ex-CIA Official Accused Of Selling Secrets To China

Former 15-year CIA official Alexander Yuk Ching Ma was arrested on Friday and charged with selling U.S. secrets to China, according to court documents unsealed Monday morning. Prosecutors said Ma met with Chinese intelligence officials in Hong Kong 12 years after he retired and allegedly shared sensitive information about CIA operations, human assets, and methods of communication in exchange for $50,000 in cash.

More: Ma was allegedly assisted by an 85-year-old relative who also worked for the CIA and later spied for China, but was not charged due to “an advanced and debilitating cognitive disease.”

DNC Update: Former first lady Michelle Obama and Sen. Bernie Sanders were among the keynote speakers on Day 1 of the Democratic National Convention. Read more.

Worth Noting: NYC and federal authorities charged two suspects in the 2002 killing of Jam Master Jay, a member of hip-hop group Run DMC.

Bonus Read: Some scientists are saying herd immunity may be closer than we previously thought. Go deeper.

The Blacklist

The U.S. announced further restrictions on Huawei Technologies on Monday designed to prevent the Chinese tech giant from obtaining electrical components developed or produced using U.S. technology. In May, the Commerce Department placed over 100 Huawei affiliates on an economic blacklist, while Monday’s move adds 38 more affiliates used to circumvent previous restrictions.

Popping Bottles

Diageo has agreed to pay up to $610M to buy New York-based liquor distributor Davos Brands. The deal, which is expected to close by the end of the year, involves an initial payment of $335M, with further performance-based consideration of up to $275M over ten years. Among others, Davos Brands distributes and produces Aviation American Gin, which is partly owned by actor Ryan Reynolds (who will retain a continuing interest).

Epic Showdown Continues

Epic Games filed a motion for an injunction against Apple in a California court on Monday. The move comes after Epic received a letter from the tech giant stating that its developer accounts and access to developer tools would be revoked at the end of next week. Epic ran afoul of both Apple and Google last week when it introduced a discounted direct payment option into its popular game Fortnite, essentially bypassing the companies’ 30% app store fee.

Hey, Soul Sister

Lamar Hoke Jr. was separated from his sister, Connie, when their single mother passed away suddenly in 1946. As they had different fathers, the two siblings - ages 4 & 11, respectively - grew up more than 300 miles apart, and had virtually no way of contacting one another.

Lamar and Connie eventually started families of their own, but never stopped looking for each other. After 74 long years of searching, their children managed to reconnect on Facebook and reunited the two siblings. As Lamar told Desert Sun: “We picked up right where we left off in love.”

Toy Story

On the day that Jaydence Ronco, a six-year-old from Florida, was adopted, the judge who presided over his case gifted the young boy a stuffed dog to celebrate the momentous occasion. The plush animal, a dalmatian named Masch Masch, quickly became Jaydence’s most beloved toy, traveling with him wherever he went. That was until one day earlier this month when Jaydence accidentally left Masch Masch at the Cincinnati Airport.

When the airport staff discovered the misplaced Masch Masch at the facility’s Starbucks, they quickly launched a social media campaign to find its owner, posting pictures of the plush puppy eagerly searching the terminal for its owner. After nine days, a family friend of the Roncos viewed the viral images and helped the airport staff successfully reunite Jaydence with his treasured toy.

Marathon Man

It’s an impressive enough feat to complete a marathon at any age, let alone 76. But what was most impressive about septuagenarian Andy Wilmot’s recent marathon finish was not his maturity, but rather his consistency.

This month, Andy completed his 800th marathon in Suffolk, England, meaning he has now run almost the entire circumference of the Earth (over 20,000 miles). Andy is already busy planning his next milestone of 900 marathons. In doing so, he will have surpassed the equivalent of running around the entire world.