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dailyrepublic.com | Well said. Well read.
Fauci: Omicron likely more contagious so get vaccinated Tribune Content Agency
Aaron Rosenblatt/Daily Republic photos
The Silva family, from left, Junior, Izzy, Gabriel, Mary and Miguel made TikTok videos that have been viewed by
their 3.7 million followers. Miguel and his daughters are featured in “TikTok Runs in the Family” trend report.
Virtual stars Fairfield family a favorite on YouTube, TikTok
Amy Maginnis-Honey
amaginnis@dailyrepublic.net
FAIRFIELD — You may have seen the Silva family around town. They moved here a few years ago from American Canyon. The odds are greater you have seen them virtually. The family of six has almost 6 million subscribers at www. youtube.com/lifewithbrothers. Check out www.tiktok.com/@izzy andmarysdad where the Silvas have almost 4 million followers. It was Izzy Silva, now 13, who launched the YouTube channel about six years ago. Mother Suzanne Silva noted her second oldest child was often recording the family on her iPhone. Soon, she recruited the family to join in the fun of pranking each other and accepting challenges. Izzy and older sister Mary Silva, 15, are often the stars. Their younger brothers Gabriel Silva, 6, and Junior Silva, 7, and dad Miguel also play roles. Mother Suzanne Silva can be heard on film but is
The Silva family has almost 6 million subscribers on YouTube. rarely seen. She is the videographer who learned on the job. The Silvas were recently featured in TikTok’s first family trend report. “From endearing toddlers with big attitudes to grandmas with hilarious one-liners, TikTok tran-
scends generations and brings families together to create, have fun, and be entertained. TikTok is a source of joy and inspiration, and it helps keep millions of families connected,” the report said. See Family, Page A7
Can lithium cure what ails the troubled Salton Sea? Tribune Content Agency SALTON SEA — Studying the complexity of mud on the ocean floor is a life’s work for Timothy Lyons, so when the tall and lean biogeochemist asks you to join an expedition in search of chemical mysteries buried deep beneath the waves, be prepared to get wet and dirty. On a recent foray onto California’s largest and most troubled lake, Lyons rode a Zodiac skiff with a 15-horsepower engine across the Salton Sea against a backdrop of desolate mountains, dunes and miles of shoreline bristling with the bones of thousands of dead fish and birds. As he approached the
Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times/TNS file (2019)
Grasses and cattails are sprouting up on exposed lake bed in the Salton Sea, Sept. 9, 2019. center of the lake with a clutch of passengers including two members of his laboratory at the University of California, Riverside, Lyons said, “Cut the engine. Let’s grab some mud.” Moments later, Car-
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oline Hung, 24, and Charles Diamond, 36, dropped a coring device over the side, then hauled up a sample of sediment that was gray on the bottom, dark brown on top, and as gooey as peanut butter.
“The big problem at the Salton Sea is intermingled with that organic brown layer on top – and to be honest, it’s scary,” said Lyons, 63. “It’s loaded with pesticides and heavy metals – molybdenum, cadmium and selenium – that linger in greatest concentrations in deeper water.” “That should worry people, because the Salton Sea is shrinking and exposing more and more of this stuff to scouring winds that carry them far and wide,” he added. “Our goals include mapping where these hazardous materials are located, and determining where
WEATHER 70 | 47 Patchy fog, then sunny. Five-day forecast on B8.
See Salton, Page A7
Covid-19’s omicron variant appears to be more transmissible, reinforcing the need for Americans to get vaccinations or booster shots, U.S. health officials said. Omicron “is a clarion call” for people to be vaccinated, Anthony Fauci, who is President Joe Biden’s top medical adviser, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Infections in the U.S. are already rising and stepped-up prevention with the emergence of the new variant will impact whether Americans are “headed into a bleak or bleaker winter,” he said. last week Biden restricted U.S. travel links starting Monday with eight African countries including South Africa, where omicron was first identified. After Biden was briefed by his Covid response team and Fauci on Sunday, the White House said the president will provide an update on the U.S. response to omicron on Monday. Francis Collins, director of the National
Greg Nash/POOL/AFP via Getty Images/TNS file
Dr. Anthony Fauci speaks during a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pen sion s C ommi t tee hearing to discuss the ongoing federal response to Covid-19 at the U.S. Capitol, May 11. Institutes of Health, said “there’s no reason to panic, but . . . a great reason to go get boosted” with the discovery of omicron last week in South Africa. Existing vaccines have worked against mutations and may again now, he said on “Fox News Sunday.” “Given that history, we expect that most likely the current vaccines will be sufficient to provide protection, and especially the boosters will give that additional layer of protection,” he added. See Fauci, Page A7
Will California become an abortion hub? How a Supreme Court decision could affect the state Tribune Content Agency WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court could alter abortion laws nationally when it hears a challenge to Mississippi’s law to restrict access after 15 weeks of pregnancy on Wednesday. If the court sides with Mississippi to gut abortion protections set forth by its 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade, states could ban the procedure to end pregnancy. Mississippi’s 2018 law was blocked by a judge before it could go into effect. Roe v. Wade and the 1992-case Planned Parenthood v. Casey affirmed that states could regulate, but not bar, abortions before fetal viability. Viability is
when a fetus could likely survive outside of the womb, usually around 24 weeks of pregnancy. California law allows people to have an abortion before a fetus reaches viability without restriction. After that, an individual can have an abortion if they and their doctor feel their health or life is in danger. California’s constitution protects the right to privacy, including over a person’s decision to have an abortion. More reproductive privacy protections have been added since. People in California seeking abortions would still be able to get them if the Supreme Court, which will likely release See Abortion, Page A7
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