Here’s what’s happening in the Bay Area as curated by KALW News:
Curing AIDS: New San Francisco-based Institute gets $20 million // San Jose Mercury News
“Some of the world's top AIDS scientists unveiled a plan on Monday to create a major new Institute for HIV Cure Research, with the ambitious goal of eliminating the deadly virus from those who are infected.”
“With a gift of $20 million over five years from the Foundation for AIDS Research, the institute will support the work of investigators at labs and clinics at UC San Francisco, a long-standing pioneer in AIDS research. The foundation, known as amfAR, announced the grant at a news conference on the eve of World AIDS Day.”
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Complaints skyrocket over syringes on streets in S.F. // San Francisco Chronicle
“There’s little in life that Amos Howard resents more than used needles in the street.”
“He’s 60, and the street is where he sleeps in San Francisco. So he spends a good portion of each day picking up dirty syringes with thick gloves so he doesn’t get pricked when he sits or lies down.”
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Quinn: Can tech save the planet? // San Jose Mercury News
"Technology has given us many conveniences. Cyber Monday for shopping. Dating apps for love. Fitness tracking for health."
"But can it save the planet?"
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Report shows growing racial disparities in Oakland residents’ health // Oakland North
“A major report on urban health in America has given Oakland mixed grades. The 2015 Big Cities Health Inventory showed the city has seen mortality rates from most major causes of death drop in the last decade. But it also highlighted deep and, in some cases, widening racial disparities in its residents’ health.”
“Funded in part by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and compiled by a national coalition of public health departments, the report collected data on more than 30 health indicators in 27 metropolitan areas with populations over 350,000. The assessment, released November 18, was the first such report issued since 2007.”
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Dozens Of Spiked Baseball Bats Found Chained Around The City // Hoodline
“Here's a weird one.”
“On Thanksgiving morning, police say they began receiving reports of multiple ominous wood or metal baseball bats, some with spikes driven through them, chained to parking meters and poles around the city.”
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USPS asks volunteers to answer children’s letters to Santa // Kron 4
“San Francisco children writing letters to Santa Claus may get their wishes fulfilled this holiday season, according to the U.S. Postal Service.”
“Starting Tuesday, USPS will begin its Letters to Santa program, collecting children’s letters and then allowing volunteers and organizations to respond to them.”