All posts tagged: strain

Met Opera slashes season to lowest in 60 years amid financial strain

Met Opera slashes season to lowest in 60 years amid financial strain

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter The Metropolitan Opera is set to present its fewest productions in at least 60 years for the 2026-27 season, despite reporting encouraging box office figures for the current period. The decision underscores the financial pressures facing the venerable institution, even as audience engagement shows signs of recovery. Announcing its programme on Thursday, the Met confirmed it will stage just 17 productions, marking its lowest total in a non-abbreviated season since relocating to Lincoln Center in 1966. The schedule includes only five new stagings, with revivals of three popular operas – Puccini’s Tosca and La Bohème, and Verdi’s Aida – accounting for a significant 71 of the 187 individual performances, or 38 per cent of the total. Met general manager Peter Gelb explained the strategic shift: “It makes more sense for us, and this is an experiment — to present these works …

Messi suffers muscle strain, Miami reschedule preseason finale

Messi suffers muscle strain, Miami reschedule preseason finale

Published by Sam Flores

Feb 11 : Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi did not participate in training on Wednesday due to a muscle strain in his left hamstring, with his injury leading to the postponement of what was supposed to be the reigning MLS Cup champions’ preseason finale. Inter Miami, who are scheduled to open their MLS campaign on February 21, said the two-time reigning league MVP sustained the injury during a preseason game last weekend against Barcelona Sporting Club in Ecuador, where he scored but was substituted in the second half. Messi underwent additional medical tests that confirmed the diagnosis. “His gradual return to training will depend on his clinical and functional progress in the coming days,” Inter Miami said. As a result of the injury, the friendly between Inter Miami and Ecuadorian club Independiente del Valle, scheduled to be played on Friday at Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium in Puerto Rico, has been postponed to February 26. Source link

Call the Midwife: Helen George on Trixie’s strain with Sister Julienne

Call the Midwife: Helen George on Trixie’s strain with Sister Julienne

Published by Daniella Wilson

In Call the Midwife season 15, crunch time is fast approaching for Nonnatus House. The institution, which has played a vital role in Poplar’s welfare for decades, could soon be forced to close its doors for good if the sisters don’t fall in line with the NHS, which will stop their funding from the end of the year if they don’t ditch their religious clothing. While Jenny Agutter previously noted that making such a demand is “fine in itself”, it raises a “bigger question,” explaining: “It’s not just a matter of identification, it’s a matter of knowing what one’s role is and what they’re meant to be doing, and feeling that one’s no longer wanted.” First the habit, and then what? The ceasing of Nonnatus House altogether? As a result, Sister Julienne has spent the past few weeks deep in thought, weighing up whether the sisters should comply or go on their not-so-merry way, ahead of 31st August – also known as the feast day of Saint Raymond Nonnatus – when she will submit her …

Nasal spray could prevent infections from any flu strain

Nasal spray could prevent infections from any flu strain

Published by skeptic

Nasal sprays target flu viruses at their main point of entry into the body Tatiana Maksimova/Getty Images An antibody nasal spray has shown promise for protecting against flu in preliminary human trials, after first being validated in mice and monkeys. It may be useful for combatting future flu pandemics because it seems to neutralise any kind of influenza virus, including ones that spill over from non-human animals. The main tool we have for stopping the spread of flu is the annual vaccine, which stimulates our immune system to make antibodies against recently circulating strains of influenza virus. However, because influenza strains are constantly morphing, vaccines are only moderately effective. To address this, pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson developed a special antibody called CR9114 that can neutralise any of these strains. It does this by recognising and binding to a part of the virus that always stays the same, regardless of how other parts of it are changing. When CR9114 was initially injected into animals’ bloodstreams, it failed to provide robust protection against flu. This was …

USDA Details Billion Farm Aid Package Favoring Rice, Cotton; Soy Farmers Warn of Strain

USDA Details $12 Billion Farm Aid Package Favoring Rice, Cotton; Soy Farmers Warn of Strain

Published by Sam Flores

By P.J. Huffstutter and Julie Ingwersen CHICAGO, Dec 31 (Reuters) – The U.S. Department ‌of ​Agriculture released details on Wednesday about how ‌much row crop farmers will receive next year from a $12 billion aid program, but ​soybean growers say such payments fall short of helping those hurt by low crop prices and trade disputes. The Farmer Bridge Assistance program is ‍expected to distribute $11 billion in one-time payments ​to farmers, who will be paid on a per-acre rate if they planted one of the 19 commodity crops identified as ​being eligible for ⁠the program, USDA said in a statement on Wednesday. U.S. farmers produced massive corn and soybean harvests this fall amid a global glut of grain, and lost billions of dollars amid falling crop prices. Soybean farmers were particularly hard hit by the loss of soybean sales to China, by far the world’s top buyer, when it turned to South American suppliers during ‌stalled trade talks. While the aid is expected to help farmers prepare for the next planting season, growers and agricultural ​economists …

Antetokounmpo Scores 29 for Bucks Against Bulls After Missing 8 Games With Calf Strain

Antetokounmpo Scores 29 for Bucks Against Bulls After Missing 8 Games With Calf Strain

Published by Sam Flores

CHICAGO (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo returned Saturday night from the right calf strain that kept the two-time MVP from playing in the Milwaukee Bucks’ previous eight games. He blocked the Bulls’ first field-goal try and ended the game with a dunk to cap his first action since Dec. 3. “In the past, when I was younger, I think the recovery process for me was way faster,” said Antetokounmpo, who turned 31 this month. “Now you’ve got to be patient with everything. “I think I followed everything step by step.” Antetokounmpo was in the starting lineup for the Bucks’ game against the Chicago Bulls, after the team originally listed him as questionable on the injury report. “The goal is to stay healthy,” Antetokounmpo said, “and be available for the team and make the playoffs.” Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers said before the game the nine-time All-Star won’t be thrown back into the grind right away. “He’ll be on a minutes restriction,” Rivers said before the game. He played almost 25 minutes on Saturday night. Antetokounmpo hasn’t played …

Children with special educational needs are more likely to miss school – it’s sign of a system under strain

Children with special educational needs are more likely to miss school – it’s sign of a system under strain

Published by skeptic

Pupils with special educational needs and disabilities are twice as likely as their peers to be persistently absent from school. Persistent absence means that they miss up to 10% of school sessions (sessions are a morning or afternoon at school). For those with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) – a legal document that lays out support they are entitled to – the picture is even worse. They are up to seven times more likely to be severely absent, meaning that they are missing more than half of school sessions. Absence is higher still for pupils in special schools compared with those in mainstream education. Suspensions tell a similar story. Pupils with special educational needs are almost four times more likely to be suspended than those without. Engagement among pupils with special educational needs also drops sharply in secondary school. Only 45% say they like being at school. And it’s not just pupils who feel the system isn’t working: three-quarters of teachers in a recent survey said schools are not inclusive enough for all …