Keeping it brief: five things to know for the week of Feb. 7-14

Photo provided by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images.

By Emma Puglia, Editor-in-Chief

1. Denver Broncos beat Carolina Panthers Super Bowl 50

In the third most-watched program in TV history, only behind the Super Bowl XLIV and the Super Bowl XLVII, the Carolina Panthers fell to the Denver Broncos 24-10 during Super Bowl 50 on Feb. 7. Though quarterback Peyton Manning continued his strong reputation (even with talks of retiring), it was the defense who truly took the title on Sunday evening. Linebacker Von Miller was the game’s official MVP  For more highlights from the game, click here.

 

2. Michael Bloomberg announces interest in presidency

Billionaire media owner and former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg may be easing his way into the 2016 presidential election. After criticising the quality of the former presidential debates, Bloomberg said he was “looking at all the options” in reference to having his name on the independent ballot. Current presidential candidates such as Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders have mixed opinions on the possibility: Trump would be “very happy” and Sanders claims that the US is “moving away from democracy to oligarchy.” To read more about the billionaire and his potential independent ballot, click here.

 

3. Obama seeks $1.8 billion to fight Zika virus

According to the World Health Organization, the Zika disease gathering public alarm across the nation became a public health emergency. On Monday, President Obama asked Congress for more than $1.8 billion in emergency funding to health officials, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Agency for International Development for improving laboratory testing capacity, education, research and health services. For more information, click here.

4. Taylor Swift plans to open Grammy awards

Hollywood’s sweetheart Taylor Swift, with yet another Album of the Year nomination up for grabs, will perform the opening act for the Grammy awards on Sunday, Feb. 15 on CBS. With seven Grammy nominations this year, the pop singer plans to showcase a tune from 1989, which is predicted to sweep because of its Billboard status as a top-selling album of 2015. Read more about Taylor’s performance here.

 

5. Presidential candidates’ last-minute attempts to sway New Hampshire primary polls

After final accusations over money and preparedness for the White House were thrown (with a bit of name-calling), Donald Trump holds a wide lead for the Republican vote in the New Hampshire primary poll, which will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 9. For the Democrats, Bernie Sanders took the lead 56-40 over Hillary Clinton. Read more about the New Hampshire final appeals here.