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[h=4]The Short List: Oscars all about causes; Homeland Security shutdown; killing the power cord[/h]Out of the loop today? We've got what you missed.
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Out of the loop today? We've got what you missed.(Photo: Valerie Macon, AP)
The best accessory at this year's Oscars was awareness
Disease and suicide prevention. Diversity, voting rights and equal pay for women. Whistleblower protections and immigration. No, this isn't a congressional calendar. These were the causes championed at last night's Oscars. Everyone who made an acceptance speech seemed to have one.
Some of our favorite moments:
- The push on the red carpet to ask female stars questions other than just the standard (euphemism for sexist) "who are you wearing?" Shonda Rhimes pretty much dominated everything about #AskHerMore with this tweet.
- Patricia Arquette (best supporting actress, Boyhood), called for equal pay for women (we were all Meryl during her speech). It may have been the first reference to the issue at the Oscars since the Equal Rights Amendment went down to defeat in the early 1980s. It's about damn time.
- John Legend (winner with Common for best original song, Glory from Selma), condemned modern threats to voting rights. Right before his win, he performed the song. Chris Pine cried, which led to a moment of hotness that we'd never even imagined before.
- Alejandro Gonzáles Iñárritú, the Mexican filmmaker whose film Birdman won four Oscars, including best picture, called for better treatment of Mexican immigrants in the U.S. We hope Sean Penn was listening.
Other Oscar thangs people are buzzing about: 1) Was Boyhood robbed? 2) Why Joan Rivers wasn't in the tribute. 3) What you missed after the show ended. 4) And yes, it's totally okay if you still want to see the dresses.
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USA TODAY had reporters throughout the 87th Academy Awards. Carly Mallenbaum, Bryan Alexander and Arienne Thompson talk about what they saw that wasn't on the telecast.
What else is in #theshortlist:
• Clock is ticking for Homeland Security Department
• Jerusalem mayor wins the Internet
• Inventor wants you to be able to charge your devices over thin air
• Feed your kids peanuts. No, seriously.
Homeland Security shutdown: What's it all about?
In case you haven't heard, the Department of Homeland Security might shut down at the end of the week. The Senate is fighting over the bill that funds the agency because of immigration amendments the House attached to the measure last month. The amendments would bar any federal funds from being used to carry out President Obama's executive orders to protect about 4 million undocumented immigrants from deportation and allow them to work in the USA. Congress has to reach a compromise by Friday, which is when the funding will expire. If it doesn't, about 30,000 DHS employees — mostly office workers — will be furloughed. More than 80% of the department's employees will still go to work because their jobs are deemed essential to our safety (think Customs and Border Protection and the Secret Service). But those workers won't be getting a paycheck, though Congress could decide to compensate them retroactively. #AllWorkNoPay
U.S. Border Patrol agents talk next to the U.S.-Mexico border fence on Dec. 9 near Nogales, Ariz.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: John Moore, Getty Images)
Jerusalem mayor tackles knife attacker, becomes Internet sensation
Is he really just the mayor of Jerusalem, or is he, in fact, a superhero? Kudos to Mayor Nir Barkat, who sprang into action and wrestled a knife-wielding attacker to the ground yesterday. He and his bodyguard then helped the victim, described as an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man in his 20s. The incident was caught on video. But wait, there's more — this isn't the first time Barkat has helped victims of a terror attack in Jerusalem. Eleven years ago, the mayor helped evacuate people from a bus that was targeted by terrorists, providing first aid and saving a woman's life. No wonder images of Barkat dressed as a superhero popped up on social media.
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Surveillance video shows Nir Barkat, the mayor of Jerusalem, and his bodyguard stop a knife assault on a man. They wrestled the attacker to the ground and held him until police arrived. VPC
Meet the 25-year-old inventor who may kill the power cord
Meredith Perry wants you to be able to charge your electronic devices over thin air. Her company is called uBeam, and although it's a few years away from being consumer-ready, we're amped about it. "The dream is to replace all electrical outlets with uBeam transmitters," Perry told USA TODAY. "...We want to be absolutely everywhere. And wires won't be anywhere." Here's how it works. uBeam's transmitter is a wafer-thin square the size of a salad plate that punches out ultrasonic frequencies much like a speaker creates sound. The receiver resonates at the same high frequency and turns that imperceptible movement into energy, charging the phone. Super cool. Perry is not your typical Silicon Valley entrepreneur. She swears like a sailor and considers Larry David her "spirit animal." We like you, Meredith Perry.
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USA TODAY's Marco della Cava talks to Meredith Perry, whose company uBeam hopes to make wireless charging technology as common as wireless Internet. Video produced by Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY
Want to make sure your kids aren't allergic to peanuts? Feed them peanuts
For years, parents were told that the best way to prevent kids from becoming allergic to peanuts was to make sure they didn't eat peanuts. A new study out today says "um, no." Researchers have shown that children who are regularly fed small amounts of peanuts from their infancy are actually less likely than others to develop peanut allergies. Babies regularly given peanuts for at least four years cut their risk of a peanut allergy by an average of 81%, compared to children who avoided peanuts, according to a study published today in The New England Journal of Medicine. Reese's for all.
A new study shows that doctors and parents can safely reduce risk of peanut allergy in high-risk kids through careful, monitored consumption of peanuts.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
Stories you're clicking on today:
Academy on Joan Rivers: Memorial couldn't fit all
Rudy Giuliani: I didn't mean to question Obama's motives
Coach bans players from locker room after fifth consecutive loss
11 things you missed after the Oscars ended
Kayla Mueller's friends guarded family, tragic secret
Extra Bites
Here's our favorite picture from today's Day in Pictures gallery. Right? Right. The link to the full gallery.
A jury views a Sphinx cat during an international cat exhibition in Warsaw, Poland.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Czarek Sokolowski, AP)
How Frank Zappa turned Jeb Bush's wedding photo into a Kodak moment.
Here's more on dealing with Facebook after death.
It's been 70 years since this famous photo was taken:
Before your next flight, you should really read about the myths of the carry-on luggage.
When should you start taking Social Security?
You just have to look through this Oscars red carpet gallery one more time:
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This is a compilation of stories from across USA TODAY.
Contributing: Maria Puente, Arienne Thompson, Liz Szabo, Patrick Ryan, Erin Kelly, Susan Davis, Marco della Cava, Jane Onyanga-Omara, USA TODAY; Michele Chabin, Special for USA TODAY
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