On campus: CEOs give fireside chat, join Grainger Hall of Fame
Arvind Krishna and Sidney Lu, prominent tech CEOs and University alumni, spoke to a packed room at the Illini Union Friday just hours before their induction into The Grainger College of Engineering Hall of Fame.
Rashid Bashir, dean of the college, and Mary McDowell, Engineering alum and former CEO of Polycom Inc., moderated the discussion; Krishna and Lu answered questions about artificial intelligence and quantum computing, the environmental impact of data centers and their time at the University.
Krishna obtained a master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering from the University in 1987 and a doctorate degree in ECE in 1991. He has worked at IBM since and held positions ranging from technical research to executive management; he currently serves as CEO and chairman.
Lu, chairman and CEO of FoxConn Interconnect Technology, earned bachelor’s degrees from the University in mechanical science and engineering along with mathematics in 1981. The two were inducted into the Hall of Fame Friday night, alongside Grainger Chair Professor Emeritus of electrical and computer engineering Pete Sauer, who is now deceased.
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On campus: Viral TikToker Joshua Block visits UI
Joshua Block, a social media personality and streamer, visited the University Wednesday, drawing a large crowd to the Main Quad. Block has more than four million followers on TikTok and 500,000 followers on Instagram, and he uses the handle @worldoftshirts.
On his social media accounts, Block posts videos of his binge drinking, traveling and day-to-day activities. He’s attracted a large social media audience for his daily posts, as well as controversies and incidents involving alcohol and physical disputes.
During his stop on the Man Quad, Block livestreamed to thousands on the Parti platform while students crowded around him. Some took photos and shouted the viral phrase, “put the fries in the bag,” often directed at influencers. Others urged the crowd to “be nice to Josh” while he posed with fans and walked around with a Twisted Tea in hand.
Some content creators have raised concerns about Block’s well-being and heavy drinking, though several students — including a group identifying themselves as members of Zeta Beta Tau — handed him more alcoholic drinks. Block eventually left with his entourage.
In CU: Various road closures to begin Monday
Several road closures in Champaign-Urbana will begin Monday as crews work on sewer and water main repairs.
In Champaign, westbound University Avenue between Chestnut and Market Streets will shut down for storm sewer repairs, and traffic will be detoured through downtown until the project wraps up Friday. Northbound Prospect Avenue at Vine Street is also reduced to one lane in each direction for an emergency water main repair scheduled to finish Thursday.
In Urbana, a lane on South Lynn Street near Crestwood Drive will be closed through Friday, and intermittent closures are expected at South Lincoln Avenue and West Green Street. Urbana city leaders said motorists are encouraged to drive carefully through all construction areas.
In Illinois: IDHS restores SNAP benefits
The Illinois Department of Human Services announced the full restoration of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits Thursday, after Congress passed a spending bill on Nov. 12 to reopen the U.S. government.
The press release stated that 1.9 million Illinois residents and businesses rely on SNAP food aid, and that the Trump administration could have released funding sooner.
“The crisis was entirely avoidable – the Trump Administration had the funding to fully support SNAP but chose not to, putting tens of millions of Americans at risk of hunger,” IDHS wrote in the statement.
The department wrote that Illinois SNAP recipients will receive their full November benefits by Thursday.
In the US: Government reopens
The U.S. government reopened Wednesday after President Trump signed a Congress-passed funding bill into law, marking the end of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.
The bill extends government funds for most agencies until Jan. 30, but allocates funding for SNAP, benefits targeted at women, infants and children, or WIC, the Department of Veterans Affairs and Congress until September 2026.
The main contention point during the 43-day shutdown was whether the bill should extend Obama administration-era Affordable Care Act subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of the year. After eight Democratic senators voted with Republicans in favor of the bill, it moved forward without extending the subsidies.
As part of the deal, Senate leadership promised a vote on the subsidies in December, but Republican leaders in the House of Representatives have not committed to a vote on them.
Longtime Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin was among those to vote in favor of the funding package, stating that the bill is “not perfect” but “takes important steps to reduce their shutdown’s hurt.”
In the US: Trump feuds with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene
Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican representative for Georgia’s 14th congressional district, has expressed growing criticism of President Donald Trump in recent weeks, which led to an online feud and the president rescinding his endorsement of her.
Greene, formerly one of Trump’s staunch allies, said that the president’s foreign policies are not putting “America first.” The congresswoman has also pushed for the release of files related to the case of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — despite resistance from the administration.
Trump had a well-documented relationship with the deceased and disgraced financier, but he denies having knowledge of Epstein’s sex trafficking operation. A trove of Epstein’s emails released by the House Oversight Committee Wednesday, however, contradicted Trump’s claim.
In a Truth Social post, Trump described Greene as “Wacky,” and stated that he would support an opponent against her in the 2026 primaries.
Days before Congress is set to vote on the Epstein file release, Greene wrote in a social media post Sunday that she and her family have received hoax pizza deliveries and a pipe-bomb threat.
“As a Republican, who overwhelmingly votes for President Trump’s bills and agenda, his aggression against me which also fuels the venomous nature of his radical internet trolls (many of whom are paid), this is completely shocking to everyone,” Greene wrote on X Saturday.
In the world: Zelenskyy announces upcoming Russia-Ukraine prisoner exchange
Ukraine is working to continue prisoner exchanges with Russia that could bring home 1,200 Ukrainian prisoners, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday.
Rustem Umerov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said Saturday that Russia and Ukraine agreed to implement prisoner exchange deals brokered in Istanbul, Turkey, to release 1,200 Ukrainians. Moscow did not immediately comment, according to AP.
Russian drone strikes Saturday night and early Sunday damaged energy infrastructure in Ukraine, its State Emergency Service said. Ukraine is desperately trying to fend off Russian aerial attacks that have brought rolling blackouts across Ukraine as winter nears.
Combined missile and drone strikes on the power grid coincided with Ukraine’s efforts to hold back a Russian battlefield push aimed at capturing the eastern stronghold of Pokrovsk.
