(upbeat music) - Coming up next on News Deck, the house passed a bill to prevent a government shutdown, but what does that mean?

Abby explains what a shutdown would look like for the US government.

New York and New Jersey saw very heavy rains and we see some innovative uses for artificial intelligence.

NewsDepth is now.

(upbeat music) With just hours left on the clock, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy got a bipartisan deal together that would fund the government for 45 days.

Hi, I'm Ygal Kaufman, in for Gabriel Kramer.

Thank you for joining us.

Bipartisan means that the two political parties are in agreement and with support from both sides of the aisle, both the House and the Senate passed the bill before sending it off to the president's desk for his signature, but the deal may cost Speaker McCarthy, his job as some in his own party are threatening to remove him from the speakership.

Rob Kirkpatrick has the latest in.

- [Rob] A last minute push to prevent a government shutdown.

The house passed a short-term spending bill to fund the government.

- The bill is passed and with that objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

- [Rob] Meetings between lawmakers evolved rapidly.

Saturday morning and house speaker Kevin McCarthy emerged to announce the plan on a short term spending bill to keep the government open.

- Winston Churchill once said this about America.

You can always count on Americans to do what's right after they exhausted every other option.

- [Rob] The spending bill passed the house with overwhelming support from Democrats.

- This is what the people have sent us to do, so I'm glad we passed this on a bipartisan basis outta the house.

- [Rob] But hardline conservatives have threatened to remove McCarthy as speaker if he worked with Democrats.

- McCarthy puts a CR on the floor.

Are you gonna bring up a motion to oust him?

- Well, that'll be something I'll chat with my colleagues.

- [Rob] But the house speaker pushed back on those threats.

- If somebody wants to remove because I want to be the adult in the room, go ahead and try.

If I have to risk my job for standing up for the American public, I will do that.

- [Rob] A shutdown would have enormous impacts across the country from air travel to clean drinking water, many government operations would come to a halt while services deemed essential would continue.

- Thank you, Rob.

The approved spending bill funds the federal government through November 17th, giving the House and Senate more time to finish their funding legislation.

But what would've happened if the bill didn't pass?

In this week's Politics on Point, Abby Marshall explains what a government shutdown entails.

(suspenseful music) - Imagine your family has a weekly budget to spend on things you need and activities you enjoy.

Your family usually plans how to spend this money each week, they decide how much goes to food games, toys, and other important things.

Now, let's say you can't agree on how to divide the the budget.

Maybe someone thinks more should go to games and others think more should go to food.

Because you can't agree, you decide not to spend any money at all for a little while until they figure it out.

A government shutdown is a bit like that.

The government also has money set aside to do important things like running schools, keeping parks open and helping people.

But sometimes the people who make the decisions in the government can't agree on how to spend that money.

They might have different ideas about what's most important.

A government shutdown occurs when the federal government temporarily stops all non-essential functions and activities due to a lack of approved funding for government operations.

This typically happens when the legislative body, such as Congress, fails to pass the spending bill or a budget that fund government agencies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year.

A spending bill, also known as an appropriations bill is a piece of legislation proposed and passed by Congress that authorizes the government to spend money on specific programs, agencies, projects and activities.

A government shutdown results in the closure of various government services and facilities affecting federal agencies, national parks, museums, research programs, immigration services, tax processing, and other non-essential government operations.

Essential services related to national security, public safety, healthcare and other critical functions usually continue to operate.

During a government shutdown, places like National Parks, museums and monuments may close temporarily, so families can't visit them during the shutdown.

Some government workers may not be able to go to work or may have to work without getting paid until the government starts working again.

Getting a new passport or visa might be delayed because the offices that process these documents may be closed or have reduced staff.

Processing of tax refunds may be delayed, which means people might have to wait longer to get their tax money back and certain government websites may not get updated or may not be available during the shutdown, making it hard for people to get information or services online.

A government shutdown ends when the legislative body approves the necessary funding through a budget agreement or a continuing resolution, allowing the government to resume its operations.

It's important to remember that a government shutdown is temporary and once the government starts working again, things go back to normal and these services and operations resume.

- Thank you, Abby.

A state of emergency is in effect in New York and New Jersey.

After torrential rains hit the region, 23 million people are under a flood watch and government leaders are urging people to stay off the roads and off public transportation.

Paolo Sandoval has more.

- [Paolo] Chaos in New York City as heavy rain pounded the five boroughs and the surrounding areas and more is yet to come.

Brooklyn saw a month's worth some four and a half inches in only three hours.

- Wow, this is unbelievable.

I had never seen this situation happen at, and this is crazy.

I don't know how they're gonna get this water up.

- [Paolo] Knee deep water flooded streets.

- Within, I guess about 10 minutes, it was waste high water.

- [Paolo] Forcing some residents to abandon their cars and others to create makeshift barriers to protect their homes and businesses.

Flooded subway stations in Brooklyn with at least 10 lines suspended and even buses taking on water while still in service.

- Oh my goodness.

- [Paolo] As he tried to wade through the floods, York's airports weren't spared either.

LaGuardia's historic Marine Air Terminal flooded the Bronx, the National Weather Service warning that the Bronx River reached major flood stage with levels hovering close to five feet.

Mayor Eric Adams declaring a state of emergency for the city.

- This is time for heightened alertness and extreme caution.

If you are home, stay home.

If you are at work or school, shelter in place for now.

- [Paolo] Officials said Friday marked the wettest day on record in the city since Hurricane Ida two years ago, warned that it's not over yet.

- Our priority once the immediate, in the immediate aftermath of this first wave of the storm, it could come back again.

- Thank you, Paolo.

Now from New York, we are flying over to Hawaii where dozens of residents in Lahaina are returning to what's left of their homes after last month's devastating wildfires.

Chelsea Davis reports.

- All right.

- [Chelsea] Tawny Kateamo holds onto her 84 year old grandmother, Noreen Wells as they walk through their canal road home, every step is an agonizing reminder of everything they lost.

Noreen built this home in 1968.

Four generations lived here.

- It's unrecognizable, it's hard to process, I would say, I guess.

- [Chelsea] Tawny says they don't wanna leave Hawaii, but they may have to.

- You think with two really good incomes, my husband and I, we'd be able to buy a house and you know, give my children what they deserve, what I had.

You know, growing up here, we had a home with a yard and a neighborhood and it's not possible.

- [Chelsea] Her mother, who also grew up here is heartbroken.

- That's the part that you know, it's gonna break our family apart.

I just can't believe it's gone.

It's heartbreaking you know, all our memories were here.

- [Chelsea] Tawny is a talented photographer who depends on tourists to make a living, but she says she's not ready to go back to work yet.

- It's frustrating because we depend on them so much and I don't see they're planning on opening, Lahaina on the eighth and as much as like I need the income, none of us is ready to put on a smile and you know, work for them when we're struggling.

We're still mourning, we're still grieving and the expectation for us to put on a brave face.

- [Chelsea] Tawny is calling on government officials to do better.

- It's still hard to process.

It's just, it should have been, you know, preventable.

Like this is all preventable.

- Thank you Chelsea.

Experts say the best way to stop a wildfire is to catch it before it spreads.

Now California fire officials say they've got a new tool to help them do that.

Artificial intelligence, CalFire and the University of California at San Diego have teamed up and are using a massive network of cameras across the state and AI to spot these fires early and it seems to be working.

Stephanie Elam takes a closer look at this remarkable technology.

- [Stephanie] In California where wildfires are a constant threat, firefighters want every advantage they can get on a blaze before it becomes an inferno.

- While I was asleep in bed, my phone dinged.

- CalFire's Scott Slump got that leg up while testing new technology in July when he got a text message with a link to this, video of a fire that started in the middle of the night deep in the California wilderness.

- The dispatch center there was not aware of the fire.

- [Stephanie] but something else was, artificial intelligence.

Cal Fire in partnership with UC San Diego's alert California program and its network of more than 1000 cameras across the state is using the technology to recognize a fire early on.

- The next morning, that fire would've been a fire of significance.

- [Stephanie] Instead, firefighters were dispatched immediately knocking the blaze down before it did major damage.

- So the fires that you don't hear about in the news is the greatest success of this.

- [Stephanie] These cameras are the new eyes for firefighters.

These two position more than 5,000 feet above sea level can see across this massive southern California valley, and they're really adding precision to the spotting of wildfires compared to more traditional ways like this lookout station where I'm standing.

With this new AI technology, they can often spot wildfires more quickly than the human eye can.

Here's how it works.

Look at this image, could you spot a fire?

Probably not, but notice that red box on the right side.

That's where artificial intelligence has detected a faint column of smoke.

- There's nothing on that horizon.

Then something appears on that horizon that wasn't there before.

That could be smoke.

The camera will pick that up and go, that does not look normal.

- We have multiple successes of fires at night that had gone undetected that we're able to suppress before a 911 phone call had even come into the command centers.

- The pilot program works so well that CalFire recently expanded it to all 21 of its dispatch centers where an official will validate the imagery to make sure it is not just dust or clouds.

- Our goal as an agency is to keep 95% of our fires at 10 acres or less.

So this tool increases our ability to ensure that we're keeping those fires small.

- And the AI is constantly learning.

Each time a human confirms or corrects what a detects the technology adapts.

- Do you think that it's making a difference in how you're able to protect the population?

- Absolutely.

- [Chelsea] This technology won't replace people.

CalFire says... - Nothing can take the place of the the boots on the ground.

- [Chelsea] But can help first responders stop fires before they explode.

- In my opinion, save lives and property.

- Thank you Stephanie.

Artificial intelligence can be innovative through various methods that leverage its capabilities to generate novel solutions, ideas and approaches.

Innovation refers to the process of creating and implementing new ideas to address specific needs.

Thanks to artificial intelligence, a 46 year old Swiss man who is paralyzed after a devastating fall is regaining movement.

Nick Watt shows us how a brain implant is providing new hope.

- If you talk to people with paralysis, it's their number one priority.

They want to restore hand and arm function even above.

They prioritize that above the ability to stand and walk again.

- [Nick] Here's how it works.

An implant is placed on the brain above the motor cortex.

AI in that implant deciphers intent to move arms, hands, fingers then relays that information wirelessly to another implant in the body.

So bypassing the damaged spine.

AI in that implant triggers the right muscles to actually make those movements.

They call this thought driven movement.

Dr. Jocelyn Block performed the surgery.

- We remove a little bit of bone, we replace this piece of bone by this set of electrodes, and then we close the skin.

This implant is going to work wirelessly and activate the spinal cord stimulation.

- [Nick] Her partner, a neuroscientist first had this sci-fi idea years ago, then waited for tech to catch up.

- If you are paralyzed with your hand and you can just open and close, it's a huge change.

Suddenly you can eat, you are gaining independence.

The change in the activity of daily living is dramatic.

This is why this new project is so exciting.

- [Nick] We met Bloch and Grégoire Courtine in July to discuss their previous project, another world first fitting a similar device to this man who lost the use of his legs after a bicycle accident.

- Now the the implants are able to capture my thoughts of walking and able to transfer to the stimulator in my lower back.

- [Nick] But they say restoring arm and hand function is actually harder.

- It's more refined, especially if we want to extend the restoration of movement to the fingers and not just the arm.

So help them grasp something or help them use individual digits.

- [Nick] While it is still too early to provide full results, Onward told us, "We are pleased to report that the technology works as expected and appears to successfully reanimate his paralyzed arms, hands, and fingers."

- We'll learn a lot from that first person.

Then we'll expand to four or five people and then if that goes well, we'll conduct a global Pivotal trial and hopefully get FDA approval and make it available.

- A lot of work still to be done for sure, but they, with these trial surgeries, have proved this can be done.

Something many people thought was impossible, restoring movement after a spinal cord injury.

One legal ethicist told me so many people could benefit from this, that we have an ethical imperative to continue this research.

- Thank you Nick.

AI offers a wide range of innovative applications across various industries and domains.

There are some creative and innovative ways to utilize AI.

In healthcare, education, finance, retail, environmental sustainability, transportation, entertainment, and humanitarian efforts.

By exploring these innovative applications of AI, organizations can unlock new opportunities, improve efficiency and positively impact individuals, communities and industries.

It's essential to prioritize ethical considerations and address potential biases and challenges associated with AI adoption.

For this week's write-in question, we want to hear your innovative ideas for artificial intelligence, you can use our inbox form online or send us an email to newsdepth@ideastream.org.

And for our poll this week, we want to know if you notice this section was written by ai, our producer, Natalia asked ChatGPT to describe the connection between artificial intelligence and innovation.

Jump over to our poll page to vote between "Yes, that didn't sound like NewsDepth" or "No, I didn't notice."

Okay, it is finally time to check our inbox.

This is my favorite part.

Last week, we asked you to imagine there was a new international student in your class and tell them what the coolest part about your school was.

Let's see what you had to say by opening up our inbox.

Adriana from Crestview Elementary in Brunswick told us how sweet school can be.

"Dear NewsDepth, this is Adriana.

If I was welcoming a student from another country, the coolest thing I would say about my school is that we have Pride Live, which means that if you get a pride point, your teacher will write your name on a piece of paper and you will get entered in the Pride Live.

And if you get picked out of the bucket at the Pride Live, you'll get to pick a type of ice cream next week on Tuesday and get to eat it at lunch in the cafeteria.

That is the coolest thing that I would say about our school.

Kieran from Bath Elementary School in Akron wrote, "Dear NewsDepth, I have a very interesting school, but the employees are the best of all.

The teachers have taught me so much.

The school counselor gives great advice.

The principal is so helpful and kind.

My school also has a speech therapist who has helped me so much.

My school is truly a great place to be."

Harley from St. Gabriel Consolidated School in Glendale is proud of the community.

"I have three things I'd say.

First, we have lots of fun parties every holiday.

Second, I'd say we have very nice teachers and we learn lots of cool and new things.

Lastly, we help our community by donating cereal to food pantries.

But before we dropped them off, we set them up like dominoes throughout the school.

It was so cool to watch them turn.

We also donated over 500 cereal boxes."

Yoesef from North Ridgeville City school district in North Ridgeville knows how to give a warm welcome.

"To welcome someone to our school.

Begin with a warm greeting and a friendly smile saying 'Welcome to our school, I'm thrilled to have you here.

My name is Yousef and I'm here to help you get ready with everything.

If you have any questions or need assistance finding your way around, don't hesitate to ask.

Our school is full of wonderful students and teachers, and I'm sure you'll quickly feel at home.

We look forward to getting to know you and sharing some great experiences together.'"

And Laura from Emerson Elementary School in Lakewood reminded us about the importance of mental health at school.

"Dear NewsDepth, I would say the coolest thing about my school is we have a reset room to breathe, and I think that is very important because school can be very stressful.

We also have very good teachers."

Thanks to everyone who wrote in, keep the letters coming.

If I was welcoming a new student to NewsDepth, I would tell them that we love hearing from our viewers, both in the discussion questions and the polls.

Last week, we also asked you to tell us how you normally get to school.

Here are the results of our poll.

58% of you said you took the school bus or public transportation.

So do I, I take the RTA to work.

29% said that you ride a car to school.

About 8% said you walked to school and 5% of you said you ride your bike to school.

Two young women in Wisconsin are making history after earning a title, nobody else in their area has.

To earn the rank of Eagle Scout requires a lot of time and commitment, and now they are leading the troop.

Isak Dinesen has their inspiring story.

- Troops and staff attention.

- [Isak] This court of honor ceremony in Wisconsin Rapids was four years in the making.

- We knew that it was coming and so actually after our boys Eagle Dow, we stayed involved.

- [Isak] Roger Dillon and Marjorie Miller, our scoutmaster and assistant scoutmaster for troop 9118, a troop created when the Boy Scouts started accepting girls in 2019.

Their daughters, Natalie and Maribel have gone from founding members to Eagle Scouts, the first in Wisconsin Rapids.

Has that sunk in for you guys yet?

- No.

- No.

- Not really, it's just like, hey, I'm an Eagle Scout now.

That's pretty cool.

- [Isak] But becoming one was inspired by family for both of them, and over time the scout law didn't just become words.

- Courteous, kind, obedient.

- [Isak] They became pillars for conducting themselves every day.

- Have just been something that my family has always valued as well.

They're like, Natalie, you better be telling the truth.

Yes, mom, I am telling the truth.

- Their goal is to become Eagles, but not just get the title, but to live the life of an Eagle.

- As the EMT, you have to be like, you know, you have to be loyal, honest, and stuff like that to basically, you know, do your job.

- [Isak] So with the rest of the troop looking on, they earn special plaques from State Representative Scott Krug as a symbol of anyone that puts in the work will be rewarded.

(audience clapping) - Thank you.

Isak.

Our A plus winner of the week is also an Eagle scout.

When I think about my high school, I can remember a few spaces that really weren't used up to their potential.

There are even a few places here at NewsDepth headquarters that could probably be spruced up a bit and people would use them more.

Well, Nicholas, a senior at Bay High in Bay Village, found a spot at his school that could use some tender loving care, the cafeteria courtyard, and he turned it into a popular spot for his classmates to relax and eat lunch, and his teachers are even using it as an outdoor classroom space.

This week's A plus award goes to Nicholas.

When we met with Nicholas, he told us that his inspiration came from a brainstorming session he had with his school's principal, Mr. Martin.

They were meeting because Nicholas was planning his Eagle Scout service project and he wanted to do something at his school.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the Boy Scouts, Eagle is the highest rank and it requires that you earn at least 21 merit badges and plan and complete a service project in your community.

Astronaut Neil Armstrong and Senator Sherrod Brown are both Eagle Scouts from Ohio.

Mr. Martin and Nicholas decided that he should focus his efforts on a courtyard at the school that was a bit overgrown and needed some work.

Nicholas got to work.

He told us that he had to first create a plan and schedule to make sure all of the work could be done over the summer.

He didn't want it to interfere with anyone's class schedules.

After he came up with his plans, he included a budget.

He had to recruit friends and fellow scouts to help with the work.

He told us that his crew is very motivated to work hard, but he learned the importance of making sure everyone had something to do.

The first step was to remove old bushes and to pressure wash the walkways.

He told us that some of the old bushes were extremely hard to get out of the ground because of their roots, but with some hard work and a little elbow grease, they were able to replace the bushes with newer ones that would grow very well in the space.

Nicholas was very proud to tell us that after all of the weeding, pressure washing and planting, the courtyard is used during the school's lunches, and quite a few teachers have been taking classes out to the courtyard for lessons.

Nicholas shared that he's been involved with the scouts since he was a first grader at Normandy Elementary.

He said he was drawn to the program by the exciting activities he's gotten to participate in.

His favorite merit badge has been cooking, and he told us the most difficult was wilderness survival.

I don't know about you, but those sound like some pretty cool merit badges.

Nicholas told us that the biggest lesson he's learned throughout scouting and life in general is that you should always follow your passions.

It doesn't matter if people say you can't do something, you should always come up with a plan, work hard, and do your best.

That's some great advice.

This week's A plus award goes to Eagle Scout Nicholas Seckley for finding a way to beautify his school and give his classmates a great place to relax and eat lunch.

Congratulations to Nicholas on his A plus award and earning his Eagle badge.

If you were wondering, the project took 170 bags of mulch.

I'm sore just thinking about it.

If News Hound was a scout, I think he would get the badge of communication for his skills in sharing animal news, of course.

Let's see if he's got a new petting zoo story for us.

(upbeat music) (News Hound barking) What's up News Hound?

Oh, did you find something?

That nose can find a good story for miles away.

What do you have for us this week?

Wow, okay.

You found a story about a 200 pound tortoise that returned home after being found wandering the streets.

You can check out the full story on our website and our YouTube channel.

Thanks News Hound.

Ugh, that was a packed show this week.

But before I sign off, let me tell you of all the ways that you can stay in touch with us.

You can write to us, we're at 1375 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio.

Our zip code here is 44115.

You can also email us at newsdepth@ideastream.org or you can tweet us.

Our handle is @NewsDepthOhio.

Thanks for joining us.

I'm Ygal Kaufman, and we'll see you right back here next week.

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] NewsDepth is made possible by a grant from the Martha Holden Jennings Foundation.

(upbeat music)

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