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Why we’re all paying different prices online

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

In today’s Big Story Podcast, you and a friend might be given two different prices by the same website for the same item. You might be given two different prices yourself depending on where you are when you’re browsing the site. It’s a phenomenon that began as dynamic pricing — a computer balancing supply and demand to ensure everything was sold at a price the market was prepared to pay — but it’s now gone well beyond that.Colin Horgan wrote about personalized pricing in The Walrus. He says the concern here is the opacity of the pricing systems and the data they use.“There’s very little transparency about what information they’re gathering about you, that is the real crux of this issue,” he says.As algorithms become smarter and more advanced, and as we voluntarily offer our devices and the companies we do business with more of our information, the prices you see may take into account everything a machine could possibly deduce about you and your shopping habits.Is t...

Thursday Forecast: Patchy fog with temps in mid 70s

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

CHICAGO — Patchy dense fog with mostly sunny conditions Friday and cooler lakeside. Winds: E 5-10. High: 75/72. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storms here Dense Fog Advisory until 9 a.m. for: McHenry, Kane, DuPage, DeKalb, LaSalle, Kendall, Grundy, Will, Kankakee, Jasper counties.Mostly clear tonight with calm conditions. Winds: E 0-5. Low: 59.Saturday Forecast: Mostly sunny, cooler lakeside, SSE 0-5. High: 82/77.Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog

What to know as fall vaccinations against COVID, flu and RSV get underway

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Updated COVID-19 vaccines may be getting a little easier for adults to find but they’re still frustratingly scarce for young children. Health officials said Thursday the kid shots have started shipping — and reminded most everyone to get a fall flu shot too.About 2 million Americans have gotten the new COVID-19 shot in the two weeks since its approval despite early barriers from insurance companies and other glitches, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.For the first time, the U.S. has vaccines to fight a trio of viruses that cause fall and winter misery. But health officials worry that shot fatigue and hassles in getting them will leave too many people needlessly unprotected.“We need to use them,” Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Thursday. “Right now is the right time.”A flu vaccination and that updated COVID-19 shot are urged for just about everyone, starting with babies as young as 6 months.Al...

Dean's Weekender: War, Mike Toomey and more

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

Check out Dean's Weekender for the latest events coming to the Chicagoland area this weekend.Get Dean's reviews and A-List interviews delivered right to your inbox. Sign up for Dean's Downloads weekly newsletter. You'll also get his Dean Cooks recipes too!

White neighbor sprays Black party guests with water hose in NY, lawsuit alleges

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

QUEENS, N.Y. (WPIX) - The way a neighbor in Queens, New York, handled a noise complaint against a family who lives on the other side of his fence is now the subject of a lawsuit that alleges racist acts.Marcus Rosebrock is the defendant in a civil lawsuit filed by attorneys for Yves and Claude Duroseau. The couple hosted a garden party in the Forest Hills neighborhood to celebrate the birthday and engagement of Dr. Yves Duroseau's sister.As the party was wrapping up, according to the Duroseaus, water started raining down on their guests. They soon realized it was a stream of water coming from the neighbor just over their backyard fence.Around the same time, another neighbor walked into the Duroseaus' home with her German shepherd."We were afraid," Claude Duroseau said. "We were afraid." Fentanyl seized at drug mill located blocks away from Bronx day care: ‘Shockingly brazen’ She's one of 19 people, almost all of whom are Black or Latino, who filed the lawsuit against Rosebrock. It...

'Rooted deep inside': Meet the two women who led charge, saving site of Austin's first black school

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN)—Myrtle Robinson and her daughter Carol Williams took a walk down memory lane, on the grounds of Austin's first all-black school. Robinson attended The Montopolis School. She and Williams have led efforts for years to protect the school through their group called Montopolis Strong. They're thrilled after the City of Austin recently voted to dedicate the land to protect the old school building. It said it is committed to preserving it as a historical and cultural landmark."Oh, man, if I could have shouted up in that city council, would say 'Oh, mommy' while I shout. 'The neighborhood has changed, and this is the only thing we really have left,'" Williams said.The land used to be privately owned before 2019, and almost became a site for mixed-use housing and retail spaces.It wasn't until a tense eminent domain process that the city took possession of the land."Our numbers are dwindling among Hispanics and African Americans, so ensuring that we have places like the histori...

East Greenbush police investigating serious bicycle vs. car crash

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

EAST GREENBUSH, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The East Greenbush Police Department is investigating a serious car crash involving a bicycle at the intersection of Route 4 and the Albany Hudson Electric Trail. Both lanes of traffic are closed on Route 4, and police say the driver involved in the crash is cooperating with the investigation.Check out NEWS10's traffic tracker. You can plan your route and see traffic delays in real-time! Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! The portion of Route 4 between Iroquois Drive and Pittsfield Avenue is closed. Drivers should seek alternate routes. Information regarding the crash is limited at this time. Stick with NEWS10 as more information becomes available.

Crews responding to Alton, Illinois house fire

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

ALTON, Ill. - Emergency crews are responding to a house fire in Alton, Illinois, on Friday morning. Our Bommarito Automotive Group SkyFOX helicopter is flying over the area, located on 20th Street and Alby, where flames and smoke can be seen erupting from the top of the building. Missouri restaurant among TripAdvisor’s 25 best ‘hidden gems’ The cause of the fire has not yet been determined and so far, no injuries have been reported. FOX 2 will update this story with more information as it becomes available.

Free pet adoptions this weekend in St. Charles

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. - If you're interested in a new family pet, this is a good weekend for it.'Mars' and its pet care brands will pay for your dog or cat adoption fees. They're partnering with the city of St. Charles Animal Shelter. The company is celebrating 15 years of helping to find forever homes for shelter pets. St. Louis had only 2 officers for an entire district – Both called in sick According to the ASPCA, more than six million animals enter shelters in the U.S. every year.

Plant conservation meeting happening today at Missouri Botanical Garden

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:28:57 GMT

ST. LOUIS - International officials meet in St. Louis Friday to discuss plant conservation to prevent plants from becoming extinct. Missouri restaurant among TripAdvisor’s 25 best ‘hidden gems’ The meeting is at the Missouri Botanical Garden. Participants will announce the garden's commitment to the 'Global Strategy for Plant Conservation,'  which will be recommended to the United Nations for the entire planet.