What happened
A federal judge in New York yesterday released a jail suicide note purportedly written by Jeffrey Epstein. The handwritten note had been sealed for years in an unrelated case involving Epstein’s one-time cellmate Nicholas Tartaglione.

Who said what
“They investigated me for month — Found nothing!!!” the note said. “It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye. Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!! NO FUN — NOT WORTH IT!!” Tartaglione said he found the note in a graphic novel after Epstein was moved from their cell after a first suicide attempt. Epstein’s death weeks later was ruled a suicide but spawned murder conspiracy theories. Federal prosecutors approved the note’s release, citing “a strong public interest in the circumstances surrounding Epstein’s death.”

What next?
Tartaglione’s lawyers “said they authenticated the note,” The Washington Post said, but “no court or investigative agency has vouched for” its authenticity. The note does use phrases Epstein “used in emails, as well as in a separate note found in his jail cell at the time of his death,” The New York Times said. That final note “appeared to be a list of grievances about conditions at the jail,” The Associated Press said. 

What happened
Ted Turner, the billionaire media tycoon who pioneered around-the-clock news coverage by founding CNN, died yesterday. He was 87. No cause of death was announced, but Turner revealed eight years ago he had Lewy body dementia, a progressive neurological disorder. 

Who said what
Turner was a generous philanthropist, avid conservationist, accomplished yachtsman and owner of three Atlanta sports teams, including the Braves. But “it was his audacious vision to deliver news from around the world in real time, at all hours, that really made him famous,” CNN said, “once his idea finally took off.” 

Turner started CNN in 1980, but its “breakthrough came during the Gulf War with Iraq in 1991,” when it broadcast live from Baghdad after “most television journalists fled,” The Associated Press said. CNN “revolutionized television news,” The New York Times said. But Turner’s other cable channels — TNT, the Cartoon Network, Turner Classic Movies and Superstation WTBS — have also had “considerable” impact on American culture.

What next?
Turner’s “legacy as a businessman and outspoken environmentalist will continue” through his family, USA Today said. His “five talented, complex kids who I had the privilege of becoming stepmother to” are “all doing fine,” Jane Fonda, the most famous of Turner’s three ex-wives, said on Instagram yesterday.

A newly developed plastic film can successfully kill viruses on contact, according to a study published in the journal Advanced Science. The film contains nanopillars, structures that “grab and stretch the outer shell of the virus so much that it ruptures, killing the virus through mechanical force rather than chemical disinfectants,” Australia’s RMIT University said in a press release. When tested on human parainfluenza virus 3 (hPIV-3), the material irreparably damaged “94% of the viruses with which it came into contact after just one hour,” said Popular Mechanics.

Other surface viral disinfectants have been developed, but they “often involve incorporating materials” into “personal protective equipment” like masks or gloves, said Elena Ivanova, a senior author of the study, at The Conversation. While efficient, these disinfectants can “pose a risk to human health,” may be “environmental hazards due to chemical leaching” and have “declining effectiveness over time.”

Other disinfectants, like wipes and sprays, “must remain wet for some time to kill germs,” said Ivanova. Surfaces can also be “recontaminated quickly.” But acrylic films are “continually effective (meaning they don’t have to be reapplied over and over),” said Popular Mechanics, and they “don’t harm the environment.” The film could also be produced at scale, similar to cling wrap.

While this plastic material shows promise, it was tested only on hPIV‑3, an “enveloped virus with a fatty outer membrane,” said RMIT University. That membrane makes the virus more susceptible to getting caught and ripped apart by the nanopillars. Researchers now plan to “test smaller and non-enveloped viruses.”