5 things to know for Feb. 23: Storms, Toxic train, Shooting, Spy balloon, ChatGPT

By CNN

Published February 23, 2023 5:00 AM

By Alexandra Meeks, CNN

In the milk section of your grocery store, there are likely shelves of plant-based dairy alternatives: oat, almond, soy, cashew, coconut, flaxseed, hazelnut, hemp seed, macadamia nut, oat, pea, peanut, pecan, quinoa — and the list goes on. To help streamline the confusing array of products, the FDA issued new guidance Wednesday that requires companies to better explain how these products compare with dairy milk.

Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day.

(You can get “CNN’s 5 Things” delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.)

1. Winter storms

More than 850,000 power outages have been reported in winter storms across the US today, with more snow, icing and blizzard conditions ahead. The wintry weather has already closed roads and hampered air travel across the Midwest, with more than 40 inches of snow dumped in Wyoming and 32 inches in Montana over the past two days. More than 60 million people are currently under winter weather alerts from the West into the northern Plains, Great Lakes region and New York and New England. Out West, in an extremely rare event, some parts of Southern California will be under blizzard warnings beginning Friday — the first blizzard alert of its kind since 1989. Meanwhile, the Southeast is basking in unseasonably high temperatures, with dozens of record highs expected today from Florida to as far north as Ohio.

2. Ohio toxic train

Nearly three weeks since the toxic train wreck in a small Ohio community, the National Transportation Safety Board is expected to release its preliminary report on the derailment today. The report comes amid mounting questions about how Norfolk Southern, the train’s operator, has handled the incident and the mechanical failures that may have preceded it. Residents of East Palestine, Ohio, voiced their frustrations during a CNN town hall Wednesday night where they spoke to both Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, demanding answers about the derailment and the cleanup. Still, residents remain concerned about the impacts of chemicals lingering in the land, air and groundwater. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump on Wednesday visited the site of the derailment — and criticized the Biden administration’s handling of the disaster.

3. Florida shooting

Police are searching for a motive in a Florida shooting spree that killed three people, including a journalist covering one of the shootings. One of the victims was a 9-year-old girl who was fatally shot nearby before the gunman was arrested, authorities said. The 19-year-old suspect was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon, ending a spate of violence that stretched across several hours in a neighborhood just west of Orlando. Spectrum News 13, a CNN affiliate, mourned their slain colleague during a newscast Wednesday. “These are people that this afternoon we were having regular conversations here in the newsroom,” anchor Greg Angel said. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also released a statement, saying, “Our hearts go out to the family of the journalist killed today and the crew member injured in Orange County, Florida, as well as the whole Spectrum News team.”

4. Spy balloon

The Pentagon on Wednesday released a selfie taken by a US pilot showing the Chinese spy balloon in the air before it was shot down days later. The photo shows the shadow of the aircraft on the balloon, which was floating at 60,000 feet when it was spotted over Montana. It also shows a clear image of the balloon’s payload as it crossed across the continental US. The balloon was first spotted by the US on January 28 and ultimately shot down by the US military off the coast of South Carolina. Investigations began immediately after the balloon was retrieved from the Atlantic Ocean earlier this month. Pieces of the debris were transferred to the FBI Laboratory in Virginia to be studied further. The Pentagon also said Wednesday that the payload of the balloon had been recovered and is being investigated.

5. ChatGPT

Vanderbilt University is facing criticism for using the artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT to write an email about a mass shooting at another university. Last Friday, the university emailed its student body to address the tragedy at Michigan State University that killed three students and injured others. However, at the end of the school’s email was a surprising line: “Paraphrase from OpenAI’s ChatGPT AI language model, personal communication, February 15, 2023,” read a parenthetical in a smaller font. Following an outcry from students and the public alike, a school spokesperson issued an apology the following day. This comes as many schools and even companies have banned the use of the powerful chatbot, which can turn written prompts into convincing academic essays and creative scripts in seconds. JPMorgan Chase also recently announced it will ban employee use of ChatGPT due to compliance concerns.

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TODAY’S NUMBER

60+ years

That’s how long the man convicted in the shooting death of rapper Nipsey Hussle will spend in prison following his sentencing on Wednesday. A jury determined that Eric Ronald Holder Jr. shot Hussle outside the hip-hop artist’s clothing store in March 2019. Hussle, born Ermias Joseph Asghedom, was 33 at the time of the shooting.

TODAY’S QUOTE

“There is no time to waste in making bold investments to address the climate crisis.”

— Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, announcing on Wednesday the first US offshore wind energy lease sale for the waters in the Gulf of Mexico, an area long dominated by oil and gas production. The effort will open up more than 300,000 acres of offshore waters for floating wind turbines — one area off the coast of Lake Charles, Louisiana, and two off the coast of Galveston, Texas. The Biden administration said the wind turbines will help power millions of homes and create thousands of jobs in the offshore wind industry.

TODAY’S WEATHER

Check your local forecast here>>>

AND FINALLY

How faces develop in the womb

Most faces become recognizable as human after about two to three months in the womb. Watch this short video to see the fascinating process. (Click here to view)

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