College Board makes changes to all four AP Physics exams starting from 2024-2025

College Board makes changes to all four AP Physics exams starting from 2024-2025

June 19 (ZFJ) — Starting from 2024-2025, College Board will revise the course content and exams for its four AP Physics courses for better alignment with corresponding introductory college courses and better communication of the knowledge required for the exams. One of the most notable course updates for AP Physics 1 is the addition of a new unit: Fluids, which was previously part of AP Physics 2. As such, Fluids will no longer be part of the AP Physics 2 curriculum.
Jim Muldowney, former Edison High baseball coach and athletic director, dies at 68

Jim Muldowney, former Edison High baseball coach and athletic director, dies at 68

EDISON, N.J., June 8 (ZFJ) — James “Diamond Jim” Muldowney, 68, an Edison High School baseball coach and athletic director, died on Tuesday, May 21, after briefly battling cancer. “Jim dedicated his life to the betterment of students and athletes, leaving an indelible mark on the community,” reads his obituary. He was a mentor to countless students and coaches alike. Muldowney was born in Pennsylvania and raised in Edison. He graduated from Edison High in 1973 and lived in North Brunswick for 33 years.
Nintendo to announce Switch’s successor within current fiscal year

Nintendo to announce Switch’s successor within current fiscal year

May 21 (ZFJ) — Nintendo will announce the successor to its Switch console by the end of the current fiscal year—so, by March 31, 2025. The confirmation came from Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa in an X post on the same day the company released its fiscal year 2024 (year ending March 31, 2024) earnings report. This is Furukawa, President of Nintendo. We will make an announcement about the successor to Nintendo Switch within this fiscal year.
North Plainfield man arrested for vandalism of Rutgers Center for Islamic Life

North Plainfield man arrested for vandalism of Rutgers Center for Islamic Life

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., April 22 (ZFJ) — Jacob Beacher, 24, of North Plainfield, has been charged with a federal hate crime for breaking into the Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University (CILRU) on 122 College Avenue in New Brunswick, announced federal authorities on Monday, April 22. Beacher, not affiliated with Rutgers, was arrested this morning and federally charged with one count of intentional or attempted obstruction of religious practice and one count of making false statements to federal authorities.
YouTube requires creators to disclose use of AI in realistic content

YouTube requires creators to disclose use of AI in realistic content

April 14 (ZFJ) — YouTube is requiring creators to disclose when realistic-appearing content—anything that can easily be mistaken for a real person, place, scene, or event—has been generated or altered using artificial intelligence, announced the video platform on March 18. Examples provided by YouTube of content requiring disclosure include digitally replacing a person’s face, synthetically generating a person’s face, making it appear as if a real building caught fire, altering a real cityscape to appear differently, and realistically showing a fictional tornado moving toward a real town.
EPA finalizes toughest-ever emissions standards for model years 2027-2032

EPA finalizes toughest-ever emissions standards for model years 2027-2032

April 14 (ZFJ) — The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized the toughest emissions standards yet for light and medium-duty vehicles of model years (MY) 2027-2032, announced the agency on March 20. The agency projects that the updated standards in Multi Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles will avoid 7.2 billion tons of carbon emissions between 2027-2055 and provide almost $100 billion of net benefits to society, including improved air quality and reduced annual fuel and maintenance costs for drivers.
FDA approves Dexcom’s Stelo, the first over-the-counter continuous glucose monitor

FDA approves Dexcom’s Stelo, the first over-the-counter continuous glucose monitor

April 14 (ZFJ) — The Food and Drug Administration cleared the Dexcom Stelo Glucose Biosensor System, the first continuous glucose monitor (CGM) approved for use without a prescription in America, for marketing on March 5. Stelo is an integrated CGM (iCGM) intended for anyone 18 years and older who doesn’t use insulin, such as diabetic individuals treating their condition with oral medications or people without diabetes who want to see how diet and exercise impact their blood sugar levels.
Woodbridge Center mall sold to new management

Woodbridge Center mall sold to new management

WOODBRIDGE, N.J., April 4 (ZFJ) — Woodbridge Center has been sold to new management, announced Woodbridge Mayor John E. McCormac in his State of the Township address on Feb. 23. “Woodbridge Center, like major malls across America, has struggled because of the internet and the ease of buying directly online,” he said. “It has done an admirable job of diversifying outside of basic retail by attracting new tenants, but it has just not been enough.
Rutgers Center for Islamic Life broken into, vandalized on Eid

Rutgers Center for Islamic Life broken into, vandalized on Eid

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., April 14 (ZFJ) — The Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University (CILRU) was broken into and vandalized on Eid. The Center reported on Instagram that art pieces with Quranic verses, windows, TVs, printers, artwork, and the Palestinian flag were damaged. “This reprehensible act, occurring on our sacred day, is undoubtedly fueled by Islamophobia is clearly a hate crime targeting our Muslim population at Rutgers,” the Center wrote.
Man sentenced to life in prison without parole for 2018 Edison Speedway gas station murder

Man sentenced to life in prison without parole for 2018 Edison Speedway gas station murder

EDISON, N.J., April 4 (ZFJ) — Marcus Wright, 27, of Beaufort, South Carolina, was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of an Edison Speedway gas station employee that occurred on Dec. 20, 2018, announced Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone. Wright was convicted on Sept. 12, 2023, of the murder of John Bertram, 38, of the Fords section of Woodbridge; armed robbery; conspiracy to commit armed robbery; and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.