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How old are you really? Counting birthdays may be a common tally, but your “age” isn’t determined by time alone. New research increasingly shows the importance of considering chronological age as something very different from biological age, in which the body and its cells, tissues, and organs all have separate “clocks” that can tick at different speeds.

“Calculating biological age, I think, is core to the advances we’ve made in the science of aging,” says Eric Topol, a cardiologist and genomics professor at Scripps Research in California. “It’s a way you can tell if a person, organ, or any biological unit is at pace of aging—if it’s normal, abnormal, or supernormal.”

In his new book Super Agers: An Evidence-Based Approach to Longevity, Topol delves into the recent surge in public interest in biological aging and the accelerating quest to refine ways to measure it, giving a more precise picture of a person’s longevity prospects and of potential ailments that can be prevented or treated early. Scientific American spoke with Topol about the latest research in biological aging, factors that might speed it up or slow it down, and what it can tell us about our health.

How is biological age determined, and how has the research evolved?

The real beginning of this research started more than a decade ago by geneticist Steven Horvath with his “clock” [test], with which, basically using saliva, you could look at specific genetic markers in a genome and predict a person’s biological age. His clock is really known as an epigenetic clock, or methylation clock. As people age, DNA changes and gets methylated—this is when a methyl group [molecule] attaches to specific nucleotides of DNA. I kind of liken it to the body rusting out. Basically, you’re getting marks at specific parts of the genome that track with aging in humans and every other species of mammal.

In Horvath’s initial test, there clearly was a detection of both alignment with the person’s real age, or chronological age, and when it wasn’t matching up. In other words, if a person’s biological age was off by a few years from their real age, you’d wonder why that is.

Then what’s proliferated in the more than 10 years since has been all these other clocks: protein clocks, RNA clocks, immune system clocks—you name it. Using plasma proteins from a blood sample, we can also clock organs—whether it’s the heart, brain, liver, or kidney. So we have seen just enormous advances in these clocks, and they keep getting refined with added features. There’s a race to get the best clocks to predict survival.

What can biological age tests tell us clinically?

We can detect in an individual if something’s not right at different levels. For example, if your biological age is five years older than your real age, is there an organ that might be linked with that? Then you can use these clocks to see if lifestyle, prevention, or treatment can slow down the pace of aging and get it into alignment with your actual age.

The question is: When will doctors actually start using them? The medical community is very hard to change. So it hasn’t happened yet, but I believe it will eventually. Tests are also made available by commercial companies, but they can be very expensive. You can run an epigenetic test in a very simple way for $10 or $20, while some of these companies are charging $200.

I haven’t seen their publications to be able to say with confidence that they are doing things right, and the lack of standards from one company to the next is disconcerting. They don’t want to shock [customers by telling them] that they’re 10 years older than their real chronological age. Eventually, I believe, we’re going to have high-fidelity epigenetic clocks with no motivation for a provider to hold things back if a person’s data are really bad.

Why might someone biologically age “faster” or “slower” than their actual age?

If you had to pick one mechanism behind why biological age and chronological age are misaligned, it would most likely be because there are some genes that are either protective or linked with accelerated aging, but that’s such a small part of the story. Another root cause appears to be that our immune system gets weaker and less functional as we get older. In the average person, this starts around age 55 to 60. It drops its level of protection, or it gets dysregulated—off track—and it can have an untoward, hyperactive response. Now, when you have that happen, you start to see inflammation in the organs, such as in the arteries of the heart or the brain—it’s what I call “inflammaging.”

Obviously, our lifestyle also has a big impact—eating a really healthy diet that’s not proinflammatory and doesn’t have a lot of ultraprocessed foods or red meat. Good sleep health helps reduce inflammation. There’s only one thing that’s been definitively shown to slow the epigenetic aging process, and that’s exercise. I think these clocks ultimately are going to be very good incentives for people to adopt a healthy lifestyle. We can’t get everybody to do all these things that we know help them, but if they get their own data and they see something’s off track, the hope is that they’d [change their lifestyle]. That’s, of course, just one of the ways to prevent diseases. There are also drugs and other treatments.

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From

fineartamerica

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I have been a professional artist since 2003, after my first exhibition in Istanbul, Turkey. Since then, I have exhibited extensively in New York, Miami, Sarasota, Bradenton, and Key Biscayne, Florida. In Europe, which is my home base, I have exhibited in my city of Valencia as well as Barcelona, Palma, and Sevilla, Spain; Dublin, Ireland, as well as Izmir, Turkiye. My drawings and paintings hang in many private collections throughout Europe, America, and Asia. I work on my paintings in the styles I have developed over the years, being ‘JaZzArT’ and ‘Surreal-Expressionism’. I graduated from Florida International University with a degree in Fine Arts (Theatre) and Psychology. I have created designs for theatre and for dance events. Now I embark in this new adventure and I am very enthusiastic about it. I have created images especially to be transferred as fine art prints. I hope you will like and join with my ‘JaZz DeSigNs’, especially if you love music, especially if you love LIFE! I come to you from my studios in Spain with something I think is new, fresh, different, and exciting.

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From

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The main differences between Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler include their backgrounds and paths to power; Trump was a wealthy businessman who took control of an existing political party, while Hitler rose from modest beginnings and built his own party from the ground up. Additionally, their historical contexts and the nature of their leadership styles also differ significantly

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Trump – Hitler

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Hmmmm…What is the real reason for this?

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Trump said Sunday on his Truth Social site that “The Washington ‘Whatever’s’ should IMMEDIATELY change their name back to the Washington Redskins Football Team. There is a big clamoring for this. Likewise, the Cleveland Indians, one of the six original baseball teams, with a storied past. Our great Indian people, in massive numbers, want this to happen. Their heritage and prestige is systematically being taken away from them. Times are different now than they were three or four years ago. We are a Country of passion and common sense. OWNERS, GET IT DONE!!!”

Josh Harris, whose group bought the Commanders from former owner Dan Snyder in 2023, said earlier this year the name was here to stay. Not long after taking over, Harris quieted speculation about going back to Redskins, saying that would not happen.

Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti indicated before Sunday’s game against the Athletics that there weren’t any plans to revisit the name change.

“We understand there are different perspectives on the decision we made a few years ago, but obviously it’s a decision we made. We’ve got the opportunity to build a brand as the Guardians over the last four years and are excited about the future that’s in front of us,” he said.

Both teams have had their current names since the 2022 seasons. Washington dropped Redskins after the 2019 season and was known as the Washington Football Team for two years before moving to Commanders.

Cleveland announced in December 2020 it would drop Indians. It announced the switch to Guardians in July 2021. In 2018, the team phased out “Chief Wahoo” as its primary logo.

The name changes had their share of supporters and critics as part of national discussions about institutions and teams to drop logos and names considered racist.

The Guardians are the fifth name for Cleveland’s baseball franchise. It joined the American League in 1901 as one of the eight charter franchises as the Blues. It switched to the Bronchos a year later and used the Naps from 1903 through 1914 before moving to the Indians in 1915.

Washington started in Boston as the Redskins in 1933 before moving to the nation’s capital four years later.

Washington and Cleveland share another thing in common. David Blitzer is a member of Harris’ ownership group with the Commanders and holds a minority stake in the Guardians.

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Workers finish installing the Cleveland Guardians sign above the scoreboard at Progressive Field, March 17, 2022, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane, file)

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The puzzle seems impossible: take a three-billion-letter code and predict what happens if you swap a single letter. The code we’re talking about—the human genome—stores most of its instructions in genetic “dark matter,” the 98 percent of DNA that doesn’t make proteins. AlphaGenome, an artificial intelligence system just released by Google DeepMind in London, aims to show how even tiny changes in those noncoding sections affect gene expression.

AlphaGenome shows promise in predicting how mutations in these regions cause diseases—from certain cancers to rare disorders where crucial proteins never get made. By revealing these hidden control switches, AlphaGenome could help researchers design therapies that target genetic conditions, potentially aiding millions of people.

But to understand the complexity of the task for which AlphaGenome was created, one must consider how the definition of a “gene” has evolved. The term, coined in 1909 to describe invisible units of heredity (as proposed by Gregor Mendel in 1865) initially carried no molecular baggage. But by the 1940s, the “one gene, one enzyme” idea took hold. And by the 1960s, textbooks taught that for a stretch of DNA to be properly called a gene, it had to code for a specific protein.

Over the past two decades, the definition has broadened with the discoveries of genes that code for the numerous types of RNAs that don’t get translated into proteins. Today a gene is considered to be any DNA segment whose RNA or protein product performs a biological function. This conceptual shift underscores the genome’s real estate map: Only about 1 to 2 percent of human DNA directly codes for proteins. But with the broader definition, roughly 40 percent is gene territory.

What remains unaccounted for is significant: more than a billion units of code that can determine how and how often genes get activated. Because relevant clues lie far apart and play out through complex cycles of gene regulation, decoding them has been among biology’s hardest challenges. AlphaGenome’s goal is to understand how these regions affect gene expression—and how even tiny changes can tilt the entire body’s balance between health and disease. To do so, the AI system uses a DNA sequence with a length of up to one million letters as input—and “predicts thousands of molecular properties characterising its regulatory activity,” according to a statement issued by DeepMind.

Already, AlphaGenome has replicated results from genetics labs. In a June 2025 preprint study (which has yet to be peer-reviewed), AlphaGenome’s team described using the model to run a simulation that mirrored known DNA interactions: mutations that act like rogue light switches by cranking a gene into overdrive in a certain type of leukemia. When AlphaGenome simulated interactions on a stretch of DNA containing both the gene and the mutation, it predicted the same complex chain of events that were already observed in lab experiments.

Though AlphaGenome is currently available only for noncommercial testing, responses in the scientific community have been enthusiastic so far, with both biotech start-ups and university researchers publicly expressing excitement about the system’s potential to accelerate research.

Limits remain. AlphaGenome struggles to capture interactions that are more than 100,000 DNA letters away, can miss some tissue-specific nuances and is not designed to predict traits from a complete personal genome. Complex diseases that depend on development or environment also lie outside its direct scope. The system does suggest wide-ranging uses, however: By tracing how minute changes ripple through gene regulation, it could pinpoint the roots of genetic disorders. It could help in the design of synthetic DNA. And above all, it could offer a faster way to chart the genome’s complex regulatory circuitry.

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Last night I attempted (rather unsuccessfully) to sleep through the sound of my son’s incessant coughing from his bedroom. (Far too) Soon, I woke up to a hungry baby, and one daughter who needed help getting ready for dance camp, while another wanted a ride to the gym. It was all in a matter of 10 minutes.

Upon returning from the urgent gym run, I could no longer put off a growing list of doctor and dentist appointments to schedule. At the same time, emails are flooding my inbox about summer math modules, practice schedule changes, and fees for upcoming clinics. 

The day ahead is packed with carpools, errands, feedings, and meals to plan and prepare. All I can think is, “Just let me get through this day.” 

This is why I completely relate to the sentiments in a new report from Duckbill and The Harris Poll. They surveyed American parents and found that most of us (65%) are “just getting through the day” rather than enjoying it.1 Interestingly, while married parents who make more than $100,000 are slightly less burdened by the tasks of modern life, half still report that they are just doing their best to get through the day, too.

As a mom of six, days like the one I mentioned are not the exception. They are the rule. I rush around trying to make life happen for my family. I’m constantly pulled away from conversations and thoughts by requests to find a Lego and questions like, “What can I do?” or “What can I eat?” 

Through it all, I’m also responsible for uplifting six people with problems ranging from getting a boo-boo to getting their heart broken. It’s exhausting and leaves little time to focus on myself.

Finding Joy Amid the Chaos of Modern Parenting

Not all is lost, however. Given that this study and others are finally shining a light on parents’ mental load, a major benefit has emerged: We are also being encouraged to start thinking about ways to refocus our attention on joy.

Here’s what I try and focus on—even when it feels impossible on some days. 

Remembering that this, too, shall pass 

For me, seeing how quickly my kids are growing up gives me an immense sense of appreciation for just how fleeting this time with them really is.

My oldest is about to head off to college—although I swear it was only a few years ago she was a little girl dressing up in Disney princess dresses and asking for string cheese. I also have younger children, with my littlest being just 5 months old.

The kids’ big age gap puts a lot in perspective, and I am able to actually enjoy their challenging stages, rather than just wishing they would move on from teething, tantrums, or middle school. It’ll be over way too soon, I now realize. 

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As water temperatures continue to rise during the peak of summer, state officials urge residents and visitors to be aware of the risks, especially following storms or in coastal areas where conditions allow this dangerous bacteria to thrive.

Four people in Florida have died and seven others have been sickened this year by a rare but potentially deadly bacterial infection known as Vibrio vulnificus, state health officials confirmed.

The bacteria, often referred to as “flesh-eating,” lives in warm saltwater and brackish water—a mix of salt and freshwater—and can cause a severe illness called vibriosis. In some cases, the infection leads to necrotizing fasciitis, a condition that breaks down skin and soft tissue so rapidly that amputation may be necessary to stop its spread.

The Florida Department of Health reported that the four deaths occurred in Bay, Broward, Hillsborough, and St. Johns counties as of July 11. While the number of cases—11 so far in 2025—is down from last year’s record-breaking total, officials are again urging caution during the peak of summer when exposure risk increases.

In 2024, the state recorded 82 cases and 19 deaths, most of them after hurricanes Helene and Milton caused heavy flooding in September and October.

What is Vibrio vulnificus?

Vibrio vulnificus is part of a group of halophilic, or salt-loving, bacteria. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it naturally occurs in coastal waters and thrives in warm conditions. While many infections are linked to eating raw or undercooked shellfish, others happen when open wounds are exposed to contaminated water.

“Most people are sickened by vibrio after eating raw or undercooked shellfish — particularly oysters — because the bacteria will ‘concentrate’ inside the shellfish,” the CDC explains.

The Florida DOH advises people not to enter the water if they have fresh cuts or scrapes. The agency also warned that people with weakened immune systems, such as those with chronic liver or kidney disease, should wear protective footwear at the beach to avoid injury and potential infection.

The bacteria’s connection to weather is notable. In both 2022 and 2024, Florida saw spikes in cases after hurricanes Helene and Ian brought widespread flooding. Floodwaters can increase the chance of exposure, especially when they mix with coastal or brackish environments. While 2025 hasn’t seen the same scale of tropical activity, warm coastal waters are already a concern.

Nationwide, vibriosis—including infections caused by Vibrio vulnificus and related species—results in an estimated 80,000 illnesses and 100 deaths each year, according to the CDC.

Symptoms of infection may include:

• Fever

• Vomiting

• Diarrhea

• Abdominal pain

• Chills

• Confusion or disorientation

• Rapid heart rate

The infection is rare but can turn life-threatening quickly, especially in people with compromised immune systems or underlying conditions. If the bacteria enters the body through a wound, it can cause skin discoloration, swelling, and intense pain at the site. In some cases, it leads to sepsis or requires amputation.

To reduce your risk, health officials recommend:

• Avoid exposing open wounds (including recent piercings or tattoos) to warm salt or brackish water

• Wear foot protection at the beach or near shells and rocks

• Do not eat raw or undercooked oysters or shellfish

• Thoroughly cook shellfish—boil or steam until shells open, then cook several minutes more

• Refrigerate leftovers and avoid cross-contaminating cooked food with raw seafood

• Wear gloves when handling raw shellfish

As water temperatures continue to rise during the peak of summer, state officials urge residents and visitors to be aware of the risks, especially following storms or in coastal areas where conditions allow this dangerous bacteria to thrive.

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Microscopic view of Vibrio Vulnificus bacteria. (Photo By BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

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On a small, gently rocking research boat anchored just offshore in Chesapeake Bay, I lowered a sterile plastic bottle into the water to collect a sample for studying aquatic microbes. Workers nearby dredged oysters from the shallows, and families played in the low waves. To them, it was a perfect summer day. But hidden in the seemingly tranquil waters were Vibrio bacteria, members of a group that exists naturally in coastal environments around the world. Some cause diarrhea, cramping, and nausea, and some can produce severe flesh-eating infections and even lead to death.

Vibrio live freely in the water, concentrate in sediment and on plastics, and colonize the surfaces and guts of shellfish, fish, and zooplankton. For those organisms, the bacteria can often be harmless or even beneficial. The bacteria also recycle nutrients such as carbon and nitrogen by breaking down organic material. They are found in both saltwater and freshwater bodies, and they thrive in warm water. That’s why for many years, Vibrio infections—called vibriosis—generally occurred along the hottest U.S. coastlines, particularly the Gulf Coast. But climate change is warming once cool waters, and vibriosis cases have been relentlessly spreading northward. Today, they are reported across the Eastern Seaboard, along the Baltic Sea in northern Europe, and even as far north as Alaska and Finland.

Not only is the bacteria’s favorable habitat expanding, but higher water temperatures can allow some Vibrio species to multiply more rapidly. That’s especially true when storms and heavy rainfall increase the nutrients and alter salinity in coastal waters, creating ideal conditions for their growth. These perfect circumstances raise the likelihood that someone who steps into the surf with a scraped knee or who accidentally swallows a bit of the water could succumb to serious illness.

Over the past decade, the research team I’m part of has tracked the northward advance of environmental conditions favorable for pathogenic Vibrio, as well as an associated rise in severe illnesses, most alarming, species that infect open wounds, potentially leading to life-threatening conditions such as necrotizing fasciitis (flesh-eating disease) or blood poisoning. Now we are trying to forecast risk by developing predictive computer models that use environmental data—such as temperature and salinity—gathered from satellites and monitoring stations, along with analyses of microorganisms in water samples when possible. Our goal is to devise a Vibrio alert system, much like the “red flag” system municipalities use to warn swimmers of dangerous surf. As summers grow hotter and storms more intense, we are trying to design and roll out models that can keep up with a shifting environment and to help coastal communities recognize the increasing risks washing up on their shores.

Scientists have described more than 100 Vibrio species. The comma- or bullet-shaped bacteria have evolved to thrive across a wide range of aquatic environments, from shallow coastal bays to deep-sea hydrothermal vents that present some of the most challenging living conditions on Earth. Many species form close symbiotic relationships with their host creatures. For instance, Aliivibrio fischeri organisms colonize the light-emitting organ of Hawaiian bobtail squid, helping the animals emit bioluminescence. Others attach to corals, fishes, oysters, and the exoskeletons of shrimp and copepods—tiny marine crustaceans that are fundamental to the food web and are major reservoirs for Vibrio

A single copepod can carry more than 10,000 Vibrio cells, so swallowing even a small amount of seawater can be enough to cause disease. These bacteria also concentrate in filter-feeding shellfish such as oysters, which continuously draw in and process large volumes of water, capturing suspended particles—including microbes—in their gills and tissues. Vibrio love this environment and can multiply inside oysters after harvest if the shellfish are stored or transported without proper refrigeration, raising the risk of infection for anyone who consumes them raw.

Temperature is the main prerequisite for Vibrio growth. Like many pathogenic bacteria, Vibrio species flourish in temperatures near that of the human body—around 37 degrees Celsius (98.6 degrees Fahrenheit)—making warm waters especially favorable. Higher temperatures accelerate their metabolism and reproduction and can trigger the expression of genes involved in infection. Salinity is another key factor; Vibrio typically need the sodium ions of salty or brackish water to maintain their cellular function. They are remarkably adaptable, however, and can live in freshwater lakes or ponds.

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Donald Trump has sued Rupert Murdoch and two Wall Street Journal newspaper reporters for libel and slander over claims that he sent sex offender Jeffrey Epstein a bawdy note and sketch of a naked woman.

Trump’s lawsuit on Friday, which also targets Dow Jones and News Corp, was filed in the southern district of Florida federal court in Miami.

It came after the Journal reported on a 50th birthday greeting that Trump allegedly sent to Epstein in 2003 that included a sexually suggestive drawing and reference to secrets they shared. It was reportedly a contribution to a birthday album compiled by Ghislaine Maxwell.

“A pair of small arcs denotes the woman’s breasts, and the future president’s signature is a squiggly ‘Donald’ below her waist, mimicking pubic hair,” the Journal reported of the alleged drawing. The letter allegedly concluded: “Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret.”

Trump vehemently denied the Journal report and claimed the letter was fake. He said on Truth Social that he warned Murdoch, the founder of News Corp, the newspaper’s parent company, that he planned to sue.

The president posted: “Mr Murdoch stated that he would take care of it, but obviously did not have the power to do so. Instead, they are going with a false, malicious, defamatory story anyway. President Trump will be suing the Wall Street Journal, News Corp, and Mr Murdoch shortly.”

Vice-president JD Vance poured scorn on the report, tweeting on Thursday: “Forgive my language but this story is complete and utter bullshit. The WSJ should be ashamed for publishing it. Where is this letter? Would you be shocked to learn they never showed it to us before publishing it? Does anyone honestly believe this sounds like Donald Trump?”

Trump aides were also expected on Friday to ask a court to release grand jury testimony about Epstein, as the president fought back against concerns over his administration’s handling of the deceased convicted sex offender’s case.

Trump said earlier his Truth Social platform that he had authorized the justice department to seek the public release of the materials, which are under seal, citing “the ridiculous amount of publicity given to Jeffrey Epstein”.

Trump has faced an extraordinary backlash from his own supporters over the Epstein files. A Reuters/Ipsos poll this week found that 69% of respondents thought the federal government was hiding details about Epstein’s clients, compared to 6% who disagreed and about one in four who said they unsure.

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Trump with Rupert Murdoch at Trump’s golf club in Aberdeen in 2016. Photograph: Carlo Allegri/Reuters

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Donald Trump has been dismantling “critical” parts of California’s response to wildfires as the state braces for peak wildfire season, according to a new report.

The Trump administration has cut thousands of employees from the federal workforce in the name of government efficiency.

One government entity that has been a target of these cuts is the National Weather Service, which keeps Americans informed of weather forecasts in the hopes of preventing catastrophic outcomes from natural disasters.

Tom Fahy, legislative director of the NWS Employees Organization, told the Los Angeles Times in a Wednesday article that the weather service’s staff has decreased from 4,369 to 3,757 employees thanks to layoffs and buyouts.

“This draws attention that we have a lot of critical, critical staff shortages,” Fahy said.

An official from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which houses the NWS, told The Independent it has implemented short-term assignments to fill key vacancies at the weather service.

NOAA has also announced opportunities for its employees to apply and quickly be permanently reassigned to weather offices that need it the most, according to the official.

The official says strategic hiring and reforming how the NWS delivers value to the American people will improve the service in the long term.

Staffing shortages at NWS offices in California could lead to problems in the coming months, when the state experiences the worst of its wildfires.

California is still recovering from devastating wildfires that raged through Los Angeles County in January.

The Palisades and Eaton fires led to 30 deaths and saw thousands of structures destroyed.

The Hanford office, which covers the San Joaquin Valley, including Fresno and Bakersfield, has five meteorologists and eight vacancies, the LA Times reported, citing data from the NWS Employees Organization.

Fahy said the office’s 62 percent vacancy rate is the worst in the country.

The Sacramento office, which also covers Stockton, Modesto, Vallejo, Chico, and Redding, follows the Hanford office with the second-worst vacancy rate in the country. That office has eight meteorologists and eight vacancies, according to Fahy.

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