Officials racing to prevent an overheating chemical tank in California from exploding breathed a small sigh of relief Monday after confirming a crack in the structure had helped reduce pressure inside, eliminating the risk of a catastrophic blast and allowing tens of thousands of evacuated residents to return home. But with a toxic leak or smaller explosion still possible, officials are asking 16,000 residents closest to the site in Orange County not to return home yet, as they continue to try to cool the tank’s internal temperature. Authorities are expected to meet Tuesday to assess the situation after officials expanded their focus overnight on cooling efforts since finding pressure in the tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove had been alleviated, preventing a disaster known as a BLEVE, or boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/05/24/us/california-orange-county-evacuation-what-we-know-hnk
Few living architects can claim, in good faith, to have shaped the character of a whole neighborhood, let alone a city or country. Yet, on a landmass around 40% larger than Europe, one man has exerted an outsize influence on the architecture of an entire continent. Antarctica is home to over 70 permanent research stations — and 61-year-old Hugh Broughton has worked on more of them than anyone else. His eponymous firm has designed scientific facilities for the UK and Spain, developed proposals for South Korea, India and Brazil, and worked with Australia and New Zealand to redevelop their polar bases. His distinctly space-age aesthetic, born of necessity in one of the world’s most unforgiving environments, is now arguably the continent’s prevailing architectural style. “I think our coverage of Antarctica is pretty good — certainly more than anyone else in the world,” said Broughton in his 16-person London office, almost 10,000 miles from the South Pole, before modestly caveating the claim: “You could call us the continent’s most prolific architects. But I don’t think it would make my head swell too much, because there’s probably only two or three others in the game.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/05/25/style/antarctica-architecture-hugh-broughton
A new coffee chain may be headed to a town near you, and it’s not Starbucks or Dunkin’. Many Americans likely haven’t heard of 7 Brew, which has only been around since 2017 when it opened its first location in Rogers, Arkansas. The chain has since grown to over 700 locations in 38 states, with about 340 more on the way, but can’t be found in airports, indoor shopping malls or busy street corners in major US cities. Instead, it operates through drive-thrus and walk-up windows in parts of the country with little-to-no coffee competition. The growth of 7 Brew and other rapidly expanding beverage chains, including competitors like Dutch Bros and soda-focused Swig, shows that Americans are perhaps unwilling to give up quick treats during hard times.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/05/25/business/7-brew-coffee-chain
Kara Alaimo is a professor of communication at Fairleigh Dickinson University and advises parents, students and teachers on how to manage screen time. Her book “Over the Influence: Why Social Media Is Toxic for Women and Girls — And How We Can Take It Back” was published in 2024. Manoush Zomorodi has some good and bad news for you. The bad news? All that sitting you do — whether you’re working at a desk or scrolling — is way worse for your health than you probably realized, the New York City-based NPR journalist warned in her new book, “Body Electric: The Hidden Health Costs of the Digital Age and New Science to Reclaim Your Well-Being.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/05/25/health/body-electric-breaks-manoush-zomorodi-wellness
Cave divers are squeezing through narrow, flooded corridors in a delicate operation to reach seven villagers trapped underground in a cave in Laos for nearly a week. The villagers went into the cave in the central Laotian province of Xaisomboun last Wednesday in search of gold, but heavy rain triggered flash flooding which blocked the exit, the Associated Press reported, citing Laos and Thai rescue teams. Two Thai divers and a Finnish expert who helped in the 2018 dramatic cave rescue of a young soccer team in Thailand joined the risky operation Monday.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/05/26/asia/laos-flooded-cave-rescue-operation-intl-hnk