Although U.S. Walmarts have eased back on their mask restrictions, the retailer’s Canadian locations are going the opposite direction.

Source: https://globalnews.ca/news/7255942/walmart-canada-mandatory-masks-august-12/

Large gatherings, of course, are a big “no-no” right now because of coronavirus, but that isn’t stopping thousands of people from rolling into South Dakota this weekend for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/08/06/motorcycle-rally-coronavirus/

For the 20th straight week, over a million Americans filed for unemployment aid last week, with 1.2 million claims filed.

While jobless claims were a bit down from the previous week by nearly 250,000, the recent claims come just as the critical $600 weekly federal jobless payments have ended.

MSN says that 16.1 million Americans are currently collecting unemployment aid from their state as Coronavirus cases spike in the west and the south.

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/around-1-1-million-people-filed-unemployment-benefits-first-time-n1235990

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/15-adults-have-been-hospitalized-after-drinking-methanol-contaminated-hand-n1235906

Another airline has filed for bankruptcy as the pandemic wreaks havoc on the air travel industry.

Virgin Atlantic, the airline founded by billionaire Richard Branson, filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy Tuesday in New York.

More than 3,500 staff have been laid off.

Some experts predict the air travel industry won’t fully recover from the pandemic until 2024.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-virgin-atlantic-files-for-bankruptcy-in-us-in-fight-for-survival-12042702

A Florida man who was bitten by an alligator has now survived a shark attack.

Estero resident Justin Stuller was catching spiny lobsters in the Florida keys last week when he dove down to help a fish that had become stuck in some rocks. “Right before I surfaced, wham,” Stuller says. “I felt the skin more than the shark. It rolled me over and I saw it swimming away.” Fortunately, his family was close by, and they were able to tie off his leg to stop the blood loss from the gaping wound, he says.

The incident marked the second time a predator has taken a chunk out of one of Stuller’s legs. He says he was once roping gators with some friends when one of the reptiles suddenly turned on him. “As he rolled he kind of clamped on my leg, you know?” Stuller says. “I mean, a lot worse things that could happen in those cases in my opinion. It was as good of a bad experience as you could have, I would say.”

Source: https://www.clickorlando.com/news/2020/08/04/florida-man-who-survived-gator-bite-gets-attacked-by-shark/

Like many children in the U.S., more than 30 million kids in Mexico won’t be returning to school later this month in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus. However, unlike their U.S. counterparts, Mexican students won’t be taking classes online.

The Mexican government has struck a deal with one of the country’s largest networks to broadcast classes on TV, the country’s education secretary has revealed. “We wanted to return to in-person classes, but it is not possible, nor prudent,” Esteban Moctezuma Barragán says, adding that schools are expected to reopen after the government feels the COVID-19 risk factor has fallen.

Mexico is currently home to 443,813 confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to health officials. More than 48,000 residents have died because of the virus.

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/world/mexico-schools-closed-homeschooling-television

The mysterious seeds that have turned up in mailboxes across the United States have been identified.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a number of the packets — which appeared to have originated in China — contain mixtures of mustard, cabbage and morning glory seeds, while others contain a mix of mint, sage, rosemary and lavender seeds. The news comes after state officials warned residents against planting the seeds, fearing they were sent as part of a plan to introduce invasive plants to the U.S.

USDA officials believe the seeds were actually sent out as part of a “brushing scam,” which involves sending unsolicited samples of a product to someone and then posting a bogus positive review from the receiver.

Source: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/china-seeds-usda-investigation-identified/

Although health officials say wearing face coverings could save lives, a robotics company in Japan has invented a mask that does a whole lot more.

Created by Donut Robotics, the C-Face Smart Mask transcribes dictation, amplifies its wearer’s voice, connects to its wearer’s smart phone via Bluetooth and translates speech into eight different languages, the company says. One thing it doesn’t do, however, is prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Donut officials say the new smart mask is meant to be worn over a standard face mask.

The C-Face Smart Mask, which will be priced somewhere between $40 and $50, is expected to arrive in stores this December, the company says.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/03/business/japanese-robotics-smart-face-mask-spc-intl/index.html