JQJO — General news · Page 4

A Massachusetts General Hospital study of more than 18,000 pregnancies found children exposed to maternal COVID were slightly more likely to receive neurodevelopmental diagnoses by age 3, mostly speech or motor delays. The association was strongest after third-trimester infection and in boys, though most children developed typically. Universal testing from March 2020 to May 2021 clarified exposure; about 5% of mothers had COVID. Researchers stress the study shows correlation, not causation, and plan follow-up. Experts point to inflammation in pregnancy as a plausible mechanism. Separate studies report no link between prenatal COVID vaccination and early developmental delays.

A federal appeals judge granted Sean 'Diddy' Combs a speedy review of his case, days after he was transferred to a low-security federal prison in New Jersey to begin a 50-month sentence for two Mann Act convictions. Judge Beth Robinson set briefs due Dec. 23 and Feb. 20, with a reply by March 13 and potential oral arguments as early as April. He has spent 14 months behind bars. Combs, acquitted of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking counts, will argue the Mann Act was unfairly applied, his lawyer said.

Jayden Daniels’ season took a grim turn after an awkward arm plant against the Seahawks left the 3-6 Commanders without their quarterback indefinitely, raising fresh concerns about his durability and Kliff Kingsbury’s faltering offense, which has slipped from sixth in points in 2024 to 19th. Fantasy fallout is immediate: Marcus Mariota is a matchup play only. Elsewhere in Week 9, Tucker Kraft suffered a season-ending knee injury, Brock Bowers erupted for the Raiders, Kyle Monangai earned a bigger Bears role, and the Vikings’ Aaron Jones exited with a sprained AC joint.

Jennifer Lawrence reflected on the trade-offs of being a working mother of two during The New York Times’ The Interview podcast, saying parenthood is “gratifying” yet “sacrificial.” She admitted she now turns down opportunities, wrestles with loving her creative work, and “would not be complete” without making movies. Lawrence said early on she thought acting fit hands-on motherhood, but realized that view was shaped by Covid. She and husband Cooke Maroney welcomed son Cy in 2022 and a second son in April; his name is unconfirmed, though believed to be Louie.

After a tense Game 6—sealed when Kiké Hernández caught a liner and turned a game-ending double play with the tying runs aboard, moments after a ball wedged in the wall for a ground-rule double—the Dodgers beat the Blue Jays 3-1 to force a decider. They then won Game 7, 5-4 in 11 innings, to clinch the title, becoming the first team since the 2000 New York Yankees to capture back-to-back World Series championships.

Books call the 2025-26 men’s race wide open: Purdue and Houston sit around +850, with Duke, UConn and Kentucky next. Duke’s odds lengthened after losing all five starters, including No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg. Purdue surged on offseason buzz, and at BetMGM both Houston and Kentucky are liabilities while longshot San Diego State is the largest. Florida’s 2025 title from +6000 underscores volatility as BYU, UCLA and Arizona chase early momentum. For the Wooden Award, Purdue guard Braden Smith is the consensus favorite, trailed by freshmen Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer.

Men's college basketball tips off with No. 3 Florida versus No. 13 Arizona and the debut of top freshman AJ Dybantsa as No. 8 BYU faces Villanova, with Duke versus Texas on Tuesday and a loaded weekend featuring Kansas at North Carolina and Alabama at St. John's. A 12-person panel issued preseason picks: only five teams drew championship votes, while 14 programs earned at least one Final Four nod. Title choices were split among Houston, UConn, Purdue, Kentucky and Michigan.

Guillermo del Toro’s long-awaited Frankenstein reunited him with sculptor Mike Hill, who first created a Karloff makeup sculpture for the director. After Hill feared being overlooked, del Toro said the film hinged on his participation. Following a brief theatrical run, it streams on Netflix November 7. Hill devised a tall, lean creature with geometric scars, avoiding heavy stitching and drawing on 18th-century surgery. Jacob Elordi ultimately embodied the role; his full-body look used 42 prosthetic pieces and about 10 hours of makeup. The design shifts from bald innocence to cloaked menace, mirroring the character’s transformation.

The Prince and Princess of Wales hosted a thank-you party at The York Club to salute builders and staff who sped up their move into Forest Lodge in Windsor Great Park. The family has left Adelaide Cottage — which William is said to call 'cursed' — after a half-term push to settle their children, with a Home Office-agreed security cordon now in place around the eight-bedroom Georgian home. They are funding the move and paying market rent, and plan to remain there long term. William next travels to Brazil for Earthshot events and to represent his father at COP30.

Microsoft has agreed to spend about $9.7 billion on artificial intelligence computing capacity from IREN Ltd., making the Sydney-based firm’s largest customer. The five-year deal gives Microsoft access to Nvidia systems in Texas built for AI workloads and includes a 20% prepayment, IREN said Monday. To fulfill the agreement, IREN agreed to buy $5.8 billion in graphics processing units and related equipment from Dell Technologies.