In Florida, women voters turning out in larger numbers than men so far
Women voters in Florida are turning out in larger numbers than men so far, with just five days before Election Day, in a year when abortion rights and a female presidential nominee are on the ballot.
With more than 6.6 million votes already cast by Friday, about 3.6 million came from women across all parties, compared to about 3 million from men.
About 11 million people voted in 2020, and 9.6 million in 2016.
Among Democrats, over 505,000 more women have voted in Florida than men. Among Republicans, nearly 3% more women – or more than 89,000 – have voted so far than men. About 17,000 more women who were not affiliated with any political party voted than the same group of men.
Affordable Care Act's open enrollment is underway. Election could bring changes
Nearly 21 million people enrolled in the ACA program benefited from subsidies that expire next year.
Congress would need to pass a new law to continue subsidies that have dramatically boosted enrollment. That could cost as much as $335 billion over the next decade, which Republicans have balked at.
The open enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act marketplace runs through Jan. 15, but to have coverage in the new year, you must enroll by Dec. 15.
Billions of dollars in tax credits are also at stake. Established during the COVID-19 pandemic, the money has expanded eligibility for millions of Americans, made health insurance coverage more affordable for many, and dramatically boosted enrollment.
Significant changes to the program are possible if Republicans take control of Congress in Tuesday’s elections. They are threatening to scale back the ACA, also known as Obamacare.
AI-powered hospital transcription tool invents things no one said
OpenAI has touted its artificial intelligence-powered transcription tool Whisper as having near “human level robustness and accuracy.”
However, according to interviews with more than a dozen software engineers, developers, and academic researchers, Whisper has a major flaw: It is prone to making up chunks of text or even entire sentences.
Those experts said some of the invented text — known in the industry as hallucinations — can include racial commentary, violent rhetoric and even imagined medical treatments.
They say that such fabrications are problematic because Whisper is being used in a slew of industries worldwide, including medical centers who utilize Whisper-based tools to transcribe patients’ consultations with doctors, despite OpenAI’ s warnings that the tool should not be used in “high-risk domains.”
A recent study by computer scientists uncovered 187 hallucinations in more than 13,000 clear audio snippets they examined.
Researchers said that trend would lead to tens of thousands of faulty transcriptions over millions of recordings.
New Florida tourist thrill: Hunt, Pythons. ‘No experience necessary’
Amy Siewe, is well known in South Florida’s python-hunting community, and is pioneering new territory in the wildlife guiding business, leading adventurous visitors on excursions to find the invasive constrictors that have overrun the Everglades.
Other hunters have dabbled in guided tours, but Siewe has made this her full-time business in the last two years.
Her biggest snake measured 17 feet 3 inches and weighed a whopping 110 pounds.
Experts estimate the number of snakes in the hundreds of thousands in South Florida. And they have been slowly spreading north, as far north as Orlando and Brevard County. This march could continue as climate change raises temperatures and makes more areas inviting for the tropical invaders.
More: www.floridatoday.com