| |  | | Brought to you by USATODAY.com | | So long, surreal 2016 | | As much as people will welcome in the new year on Saturday, they'll spitefully bid good riddance to 2016. The year was tragic and bizarre, but mostly, surreal, which Merriam-Webster's dictionary deemed the word of the year — for good reasons. Like the word, 2016 felt like a dream at times. Our pop culture icons died in droves, taking our most beloved from film and music, including the haunting back-to-back deaths of Carrie Fisher and her mother Debbie Reynolds. Some of it was nightmarish: Children were snatched by alligators and gorillas. Deaths were recorded on Facebook Live, and dozens were massacred at a gay nightclub. The rest of 2016 bordered on unbelievable. The Chicago Cubs finally won the World Series, sexting and "Access Hollywood" invaded the presidential contest, Pokemon returned, and Sean Penn incidentally took down an international drug lord with a telenovela star. Sweet dreams, 2016. | | Obama slaps sanctions on Russia for election meddling | | President Obama promised earlier this month to take action in retaliation for the hacking of Democratic Party officials' emails, which U.S. intelligence agencies say was carried out by Russia to sway the presidential election in favor of Donald Trump. The White House carried out that threat Thursday, sanctioning Russian officials it believes were involved in "tampering with, altering, or causing a misappropriation of information with the purpose or effect of interfering with or undermining election processes or institutions." The Treasury Department listed six individuals and five entities targeted by the sanctions. Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Russian officials have denied the allegations and pledged retaliation. Trump, who has questioned whether the Russians were involved in the hacking, expressed skepticism about the move, saying, "I think we ought to get on with our lives." | | Syria's 5-year-old civil war still isn't over | | Syria's civil war has devastated the country and led to one of the world's worst humanitarian catastrophes. Think back to all the stories of refugees and migrants fleeing war-torn countries who drowned in the Mediterranean Sea. Since the civil war started in 2011, at least 4.8 million Syrians have fled their country, with another 6.3 million people internally displaced inside Syria. The United States has only accepted 10,000 Syrian refugees. Despite a cease-fire reached Thursday between the Syrian government and rebel fighters , and backed by Russia and Turkey, there's one major issue to keep in mind. "The agreements reached are very fragile," said Russian President Vladimir Putin, who, along with Iran, backs the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad against the rebels. | | The latest crazy Amazon idea: Floating warehouses | | If you thought getting packages by an unmanned drone was cool, you're in for a treat. An Amazon patent details plans to create an "airborne fulfillment center." Basically, a flying warehouse! The fulfillment center would float at 45,000 feet, with deliveries made by drones. It sounds like something from the upcoming "Blade Runner 2049 ." But for Amazon, the future is now. The patent also says shuttles could deliver more inventory to the warehouse, as well as transport employees. Whoa. Amazon envisions using the flying warehouse not only to deliver customer orders but also for more creative tasks, like deliveries during a football game. Whether the company ever gets the flying warehouse off the ground, one thing's for sure, it's been a wild and crazy year for Amazon: | | • The company delivered its first package by drone this month in the United Kingdom. | | • Amazon opened a grocery store in downtown Seattle that lets customers shop without needing to stand in a checkout line | | • Amazon's best holiday season shipped over 1 billion items, with the Echo Dot being the company's most popular gift. |  | | This is why we can't have nice things — or in this case pets | | How do airlines know whether pets are true service animals and not impostors? Answer: They don't. Critics say travelers who don't want to pay for their pets to travel can easily claim their animals as service pets . Not cool. Blind people who fought hard for public access for their dogs worry that their rights become "diluted" by questionable pets. So, what's the answer? It's such a vexing problem that not even a committee of experts appointed by the U.S. Transportation Department this year could agree on a solution. At one point, some committee members favored recognizing dogs and miniature horses as service animals — the only animals covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act. The department is now considering rewriting the rules for service and emotional support animals, but a timetable has not been set. | | This is a compilation of stories from across USA TODAY | |
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