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U.S. and U.K. Carry Out Strikes Against Iran-Backed Houthis in Yemen; The Doomsday Clock Reveals How Close We Are to Total Annihilation; See The Colors of the World Through an Animals Eyes. Aired 4-4:10a ET
Aired January 25, 2024 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COY WIRE, CNN 10 ANCHOR: What`s up superstar. I`m Coy Wire. Welcome to CNN 10, where I tell you the what, letting you decide what to think. It`s
Thursday, January 25th, happy Friday Eve.
We start the show today in Yemen where the U.S. and U.K. carried out another round of attacks against infrastructure held by the rebel group,
known as the Houthis. This strike marks the eighth round of attacks by the U.S. military on Houthis targets in just over 10 days. Here`s our Oren
Liebermann to explain who the Houthis are and why the U.S. is striking the region.
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. has carried out a series of strikes in Yemen in the Middle East over the past couple of
weeks. In at least two of those cases, they have been joined by the U.K. in carrying out this operation.
Now the region for this goes straight to the waterways of the Middle East and how critical they are, specifically the Red Sea, which is just west of
Yemen and the Gulf of Aden, just south of Yemen. These are some of the most critical waterways in the world, because if you can`t go through here in
the Red Sea, then you have to go thousands of miles all the way around Africa. And that`s why they`re so important for international shipping
companies.
Now, the problem here is that the Houthis on Iran-backed rebel group in Yemen have been launching attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea and
in the Gulf of Aden using one way attack drones and different kinds of missiles. This has caused many of the world`s largest shipping companies to
avoid the Red Sea in the Gulf of Aden entirely. That adds thousands of miles to the route they have to go all the way around Africa.
It also increases the cost of shipping, which has a profound effect and is expected to have a profound effect on the global economy. The question what
to do here, the U.S. and other countries tried to send a warning. There was a U.N. security council resolution against these continued Houthi attacks
on shipping in the Red Sea and in the Middle East. But when these failed to stop the Houthis, the U.S. and the U.K. began carrying out a series of
airstrikes on Houthis targets going after their facilities, where they store the kinds of weapons they`ve used to attack international shipping
lanes, such as ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and one way attack drone.
The hard part here is that the U.S. is trying not to escalate the region. The Middle East has already seen a tremendous amount of tension, not only
with the Gaza war, but also in Iraq and Syria still after continued attacks on international shipping lanes in these critical waterways, the U.S. has
felt compelled to act. Coy, back to you.
WIRE: Pop quiz, hot shot. What year was the Doomsday Clock invented?
1947, 1951, 1963 or 19 68?
1947 is your answer here. That`s when the bulletin of atomic scientist created the clock largely in reaction to the threat of nuclear weapons in
the prospect of a nuclear arms race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
So what is the Doomsday Clock? Once a year, scientists reflect on the state of the world and determine how close humanity is to well ending it. Our
Nicholas Blatt is here to explain the story behind this unique clock and tell us what some scientists are thinking as they reflect on our current
year.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICHOLAS BLATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is no ordinary clock. It doesn`t tell time. Instead it counts down to the apocalypse. This is the Doomsday
Clock. And if we`re to ever strike midnight, well, let`s just say we probably won`t be here to see it. On January 23rd, experts updated just how
close they think we are to catastrophe. The Doomsday Clock was conceived by a group of scientists who worked on the Atom Bomb known as the bulletin of
the atomic scientists.
In 1947, the symbolic clock was first set at seven minutes to midnight by designer Martyl Langsdorf representing their fears of atomic annihilation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A seeds of men`s oblivion.
BLATT: But fears eased by 1963, with the signing of the partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, and the Bolton reset the clock to 12 minutes to midnight.
Since then, the clock has been set further and closer to midnight. According to the severity of an increasingly diverse range of existential
threats, determined by scientists and Nobel laureates reaching its furthest in 1991 at a comforting 17 minutes from disaster.
In 2022, the clock was kept to just 100 seconds to midnight due to issues like nuclear armament, climate change and threats to democracy. In 2023,
scientists stated we were closer than ever to global catastrophe at just 90 seconds to midnight. And now in 2024 experts say we are still at an
alarming 90 seconds to midnight. Due in part to conflicts around the globe, AI advancement and slow movement on climate change.
The Doomsday Clock is as simple. An indicator of the perils humans create and a plea to find solutions for a better future.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One world
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Turning to the animal kingdom, I don`t know about you, but I was today years old when I learned that animals can see colors that we humans
can`t, thanks to new technology. We`re now able to get a glimpse of what the world looks like for bees, birds, butterflies, and more. Our Channon
Hodge reports on a brand-new camera that can help us see the world through the eyes of animals.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHANNON HODGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is a caterpillar through the eyes of a honeybee, and this is how a mockingbird sees the sky. A new technology
allows humans to see the world the way animals do.
DR. DANIEL HANLEY, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF BIOLOGY, GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY: Many color signals that we find in nature are not evolved to be viewed by
humans. We`re just not seeing the full picture. This is the first time that we`re able to establish a highly accurate measurements, then perceived
colors in motion.
HODGE: A standard camera captures three distinct color channels, red, green, and blue, but researchers led by Vera Vasas at the UK`s University
of Sussex and Professor Daniel Hanley`s team at George Mason University created a camera system that adds an extra dimension. It records four
different color channels, including the ultraviolet, and they just published a steady detailing what the new technology can do.
HANLEY: So my favorite video is the video of the rainbow as seen through the eyes of a mouse, a honeybee, bird, and human. So if you look in the
bottom, there`s a magenta stripe on the bird vision. This is the ultraviolet band of the rainbow. That`s invisible to our eye. This actually
goes to show us that there`s more dimensions to the rainbow than we typically appreciate.
HODGE: Hanley says birds and insects use color to find food attractive mate, or avoid predators. So the new technology can help humans to better
understand how animals communicate and how to protect them.
HANLEY: More than 600 million birds die every year from striking window surfaces. And there are stickers that you can place on the outer surface of
glass that absorb ultraviolet light, but because you can`t see it, it`s hard to assess how effective they might be. With the help of this new
technology, we can now see what the bird would see as it approaches a glass surface and come up with better solutions. This study is a metaphor for
seeing things from a different perspective.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: From what animals see to how we see animals, today`s story getting a 10 out of 10 is about a 600-pound bull from Newark, New Jersey named
Ricardo who made a miraculous escape from a slaughter house last month, his unbelievable feet steered a high school art class to catalog his story.
Toni Yates from affiliate WABC takes us to the exhibit.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s a bull running down the tracks.
TONY YATES, WABC REPORTER: When Ricardo made his famous escape from a slaughter house in Newark, back in December, Columbia High School`s art
teacher was inspired.
CURTIS GRAYSON, ART TEACHER: Well, what happened was it, it started where I had a vision. I was -- I wanted to have something with the Spanish
department.
YATES: He commissioned some of his best students to combine what they`re learning about Spain and his bull fighting tradition with Ricardo`s escape,
where the rule is if he gets away, he gets to live.
GRAYSON: So to focus on the bull and understanding, as far as the whole aspect of bull, the bull fighting, the empathy was happening or the bull.
YATES: After a month of work, this is the collection from Grayson`s artist.
JACK BOOKER-DODD, STUDENT: I wanted to incorporate how like the Cape is the only colored part of the drawing. And you see how the bull is just blindly
running into it almost as if the Cape commands what`s what to do.
LILLIAN KYLE, STUDENT: I wanted to capture like the animosity in the bulls when they`re running, but also how they are just innocent in the sense that
they`re put into the situation like they`re not choosing to run.
ELI GRONER, STUDENTL: I personally think that tradition is something that we should respect, but also can be altered over time facing the challenges
we face today.
YATES: The experience turned out to be quite thought provoking for this group.
GRAYSON: That`s why we have -- there are now our #empathy foot bull. So to hopefully spur more conversation about it, you know, more awareness.
YATES: The exhibits premier held this evening at the school, adding more voices to that conversation.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: That art was ebullient. They really grabbed that opportunity by the horns.
Moving on now, it`s shout out time. This shout out goes to, CY Middle School in Casper, Wyoming, goes Cyclones. We see why you`re so special.
And this shout out to goes to The Bears at White Bear Lake Area High School in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Make sure you go on and roar and rise up
today.
Have a wonderful Thursday, everyone. We`re going to see it right back here tomorrow, Friyay. I`m Coy Wire. And we are CNN 10.
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