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We’re covering the latest bird flu news to keep you up to date. Here’s what’s happening:

Different Strain of H5N1 in Dairy Cows

Several dairy cattle herds in Nevada have tested positive for a strain of H5N1 avian influenza that is different from the one that has been predominantly infecting such cattle since last March, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported on February 5. It was confirmed on January 31 during the agency’s recently launched national milk testing strategy. A dairy worker was also infected with the strain, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Monday. This genotype, called D1.1, is more commonly found in wild birds and poultry. It has been linked to some severe infections in humans, including the first death in the U.S. The finding means the virus could be harder to eradicate from cattle than scientists thought because it could be reintroduced by wild birds.

Bird Flu May Have Spread between Cats and Humans

The CDC briefly posted a report last week that contained data that suggested the H5N1 virus may have spread from house cats to humans, and vice versa, the New York Times reported. The information on H5N1 initially appeared in a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (the CDC’s regular publication on public health issues and outbreaks) that was about wildfire air quality, and it may have been inadvertently included. The data were quickly removed. They had described one household where a cat infected with H5N1 may have spread the virus to another cat and an adolescent child and a second household where an infected dairy worker may have spread the virus to a cat. Cats have previously gotten infected after drinking raw milk or consuming raw pet food, but this is the first known case of a cat infecting a human in the current outbreak—suggesting house cats could be a possible vector for spreading the virus to people.

New Head of U.S. Pandemic Office Will Face Bird Dilemma

President Donald Trump selected Gerald Parker, a veterinarian and former federal health official, to lead the White House Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy. Congress created the office in 2022 to advise the president and coordinate the government’s response to pandemics and other public health threats. Parker was associate dean for Global One Health at Texas A&M University and was head of the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB) under the Biden administration. The NSABB determines what research can be conducted with dangerous pathogens, including so-called gain-of-function research. If bird flu were to become a pandemic, Parker would have a central role in the coordinating the federal response. Ashish Jha, Biden’s former White House COVID response coordinator, told CBS News that Parker “is a very good choice.”

NYC Live Bird Markets Ordered to Close

New York State’s governor Kathy Hochul announced that all live bird markets in New York City and several surrounding counties are being ordered to close temporarily for cleaning and disinfection. The order came as H5N1 was detected at several bird farms in the city. The state’s Department of Agriculture and Markets issued the order, which requires the roughly 80 markets in New York City and Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk Counties to sell their inventory, conduct cleaning and disinfection and remain closed for five days afterward. Markets that have had confirmed virus in flocks will also be required to follow quarantine and culling instructions.

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“What happened now?” I bellow, my nerve endings frazzled from the exhaustion of being a mom to three kids ages 5 and under while pregnant with my fourth.

“Come on, guys! I’m trying to cook dinner. Why can’t we just play nicely?”

Rather than respond with care and empathy for my child who got hurt, I feel like a volcano has erupted right there in the kitchen. Suddenly I’m burning to yell at everyone for everything. I take a huge breath in and hug my son. I direct a dirty glare toward my other kid but eventually hug him, too, and ask that the kids talk about and apologize for what happened.

Then I immediately feel ashamed of my overblown reaction. They’re just kids, and everyone is OK.

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As the U.S. and China ramp up their 21st-century race to land humans on the moon, it’s easy to overlook another aspect of lunar exploration that in many respects has become a “no contest”: commercially built and operated missions.

As part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, private U.S. companies have been hurling a steady stream of innovative robotic landers at the moon in unmatched numbers. And that trend is set to continue later this month with the launch of the next CLPS mission, IM-2, from the private company Intuitive Machines. Launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket no earlier than February 26, IM-2 is the company’s shot at redemption after its inaugural predecessor, IM-1, tilted askew during its touchdown early last year. This time IM-2’s lander, Athena, will seek to stick its landing and ferry a robust array of science and technology experiments to the vicinity of Mons Mouton, a plateau near the lunar south pole.

Officials from NASA and Intuitive Machines confirmed the launch details and previewed the mission’s science during a press briefing on February 7.

“The IM-2 mission is particularly special…, as it is largely dedicated to lunar technology demonstrations that are truly foundational to creating a U.S.-led lunar infrastructure,” Niki Werkheiser, director for technology maturation at NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, said during the briefing. These demonstrations include NASA’s PRIME-1 (Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment 1), which is “capable of identifying and quantifying water [ice]” and other volatile substances in lunar soil thanks to a drill that can reach up a meter into the surface. “Demonstrating that we can collect these volatiles using the tech demonstrations onboard will not only help us better understand the origins of our solar system, but they will also be useful to our future astronauts for in situ resources, including drinking water, breathing air and creating rocket fuel,” added Nicky Fox, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, during the briefing.

Other key technologies onboard Athena are the Micro Nova Hopper and the Lunar Surface Communication System (LSCS), developed by Intuitive Machines and Nokia Bell Labs, respectively, as part of NASA’s Tipping Point technology initiative. Nicknamed “Gracie” after software pioneer Grace Hopper, the Micro Nova Hopper is intended to leap away from Athena sometime after the lander’s touchdown and to embark on a series of incremental hops toward Crater H—a 20-meter-deep, permanently shadowed crater about half a kilometer away. There it will poke around for any signs of volatiles at or under the surface.

“The purpose of the [hopper] demo is to show that we can reach extreme environments with technologies other than rovers,” explained Trent Martin, senior vice president of space systems at Intuitive Machines, at the briefing. Nokia’s LSCS, which uses the same 4G LTE communications technology as a smartphone, will keep all of Athena’s payloads “online” and connected as they branch out on their respective objectives. “We are set up to handle the very large number of payloads that we have on this mission … and supporting operations from around the world from different control centers for various payloads that are on the mission,” Martin added.

But Athena is also helping to continue previous and ongoing missions. For instance, it carries a tiny, NASA-provided aluminum device called the Laser Retroreflective Array, or LRA, which the space agency intends to use as a node in a larger lunar network for more accurately pinpointing the locations of key moon landers. And on its rocket to the moon, Athena shares a ride with various secondary payloads, chief among them NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer, a moon-orbiting satellite slated to provide sophisticated high-resolution maps of where water may lurk at or beneath the moon’s airless surface.

Besides highlighting some of the mission’s science at the briefing, officials also offered reassurances that Athena wouldn’t succumb to the same faults that led its predecessor, the IM-1 lander, nicknamed Odysseus, to land lopsided on the moon. During its landing on February 22 of last year, Odysseus touched down about 30 degrees off-kilter, breaking a leg and falling on its side—in spite of the prelaunch glitches Intuitive Machines purported to have fixed.

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What happens when you stop drinking alcohol? Pretty much everything you’d expect—and also plenty that you might not.

First, there’s the obvious: better sleep, less anxiety, and a clearer head. Then, there are the benefits you probably haven’t considered. Like: glowier skin, hotter sex, and deeper relationships—just to name a few.

“Nearly every area of my life has improved,” JW Wiseman, founder of the non-alcoholic craft cocktail brand, Curious Elixirs, says of his decision to quit drinking a decade ago. “It has improved my sleep, my sex life, my relationships, my memory, my weight, my skin, and my pocketbook.”

The benefits of not drinking alcohol

Wiseman isn’t being superlative. Studies show that the list of social, psychological, and physical benefits of teetotaling is ever-growing. There’s evidence that quitting drinking supports everything from more balanced hormones to a stronger immune system to reduced risks of heart disease, liver disease, and cancer.

Cutting out booze has the potential of increasing self-awareness, self-confidence, and self-esteem, too. “My emotional range is wider than it was when I was using alcohol to numb and unwind,” says Wiseman, noting that the impact of this has been profound: “When your emotions are bubbling up more often, you have to do more work on yourself,” he explains. “ Life isn’t necessarily easier without alcohol, but it’s far more fulfilling.”

As one doctor I interviewed put it, when you quit alcohol, “your entire body and soul improves.”

Changing attitudes about drinking

Though alcohol consumption among young people has been on a decline in recent decades, swapping that evening glass of red wine for non-alcoholic spritzes and mocktails isn’t always easy to do—even if you don’t officially struggle with an alcohol use disorder. After all, alcohol is literally everywhere, and its consumption is ingrained into our culture and societal norms.

“Alcohol is the only socially-accepted mind-altering beverage in the world,” says Dr. Rafaat Girgis, a triple-board certified psychologist and the medical director at Moment of Clarity, a mental health treatment center in Orange County, California. “It’s served at parties, during meals, and on holidays. For most people, it’s just a part of daily life.” Which is why taking even just a short break for Dry January or Sober October—not to mention, completely quitting long-term—can feel like it requires heroic levels of discipline.

Giving up alcohol

One way to make it a little easier: having a firm understanding of when you can expect to experience all the benefits. Anticipating everything that can occur after one day, one week, one month, and beyond can help you stay connected with the positive changes as they unfold—and remind you to treat yourself kindly when temptations emerge. “Getting your body back to normal functioning depends on many factors, including your gender, current health, and your willingness,” explains Girgis. “Accept it, learn, and gain insight as you go.” The body and the soul don’t improve overnight, in other words.

To that end, it’s important to stay patient—and persistent. Good advice for any challenging situation, really. Tanya Mezher, a certified dietary nutritionist and the founding practitioner at functional medicine platform Malla agrees. “Recovery takes time, and setbacks may occur,” she warns. “Stay committed to your goals. The timeline varies from person to person, but noticeable improvements in physical and mental health can often be seen within a few weeks to months.”

With that in mind, here are tips to help you succeed at every part of the journey, as well as an overview of what to expect when you stop drinking in the short and long term. Just remember: if you’re feeling hopeless or out-of-control because of drinking, it’s important to seek professional medical support. You don’t have to go it alone and quitting cold turkey is not advisable. Call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration hotline, which operates 24/7, 365 days a year, at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) for more information.

How long does alcohol stay in your system?

Though we may feel “sober” within a few hours of drinking, alcohol actually remains in the system for much longer than many of us assume. Though it takes six to twelve hours for alcohol to metabolize, booze can still be detected in the breath and saliva for 12 to 24 hours; in the urine for up to 14 days; and in the hair for a whopping 90 days.

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