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Have You Seen This? Boys rendition of Let it Go blows Idina Menzel away
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THE STAGE To anyone who says you should never meet your heroes, your hero probably isn't Idina Menzel. But she should be, as the kid in this video can probably testify.

The video was captured July 30 at the Dallas, Texas, stop of Menzel's "Idina" tour, and it's as sweet as it is impressive. Each night on her tour, Menzel has kids from the audience join her on stage to sing the popular "Frozen" hit, "Let it Go." On this particular night, she started chatting with one of the kids, Luke, and is immediately charmed by his excitement for the song.

"Let me just tell you what I've been through," Menzel tells Luke. "In the last month, I've gone to a couple cities and every time a boy comes up he tells me he doesn't really like the song."

"Heck to the no!" Luke responds with wide, shocked eyes and a level of sass befitting a future Broadway star.

Menzel hugs Luke, tries to calm his nerves (as he stands on stage in front of hundreds of people) and invites him to sing "Let it Go" with her. What happens next blows everyone away.

Luke bursts into song with a beautiful and powerful rendition of the song's chorus as the crowd screams and cheers just as loudly as they did for Menzel herself. When he finishes singing, Menzel is so impressed that she tells the crowd to quiet down so he can perform again and they can really listen this time.

In an interview, Menzel said she loves performing the song every night because it gives her a chance to connect with young people. "That makes me really proud. ... that I have a song and a character in a movie that is so powerful and really changes people," she told the Chicago Tribune.

I think it's clear that this song and Menzel's "Frozen" character connected with Luke, as they have with so many other kids (and adults!) since the movie was released, and it's heartwarming to watch Luke have this special moment with the longtime Broadway star.
Its toxic: New study says blue light from tech devices can speed up blindness
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A new study from the University of Toledo found that blue light from digital devices can transform molecules in your eyes retina into cell killers. - photo by Herb Scribner
It turns out checking Twitter or Facebook before bed is bad for your health.

A new study from the University of Toledo found that blue light from digital devices can transform molecules in your eyes retina into cell killers.

That process can lead to age-related macular degeneration, which is a leading cause of blindness in the United States, according to the researchs extract.

Blue light is a common issue for many modern Americans. Blue light is emitted from screens, most notably at night, causing sleep loss, eye strain and a number of other issues.

Dr. Ajith Karunarathne, assistant professor in the UT Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, said our constant exposure to blue light cant be blocked by the lens or cornea.

"It's no secret that blue light harms our vision by damaging the eye's retina. Our experiments explain how this happens, and we hope this leads to therapies that slow macular degeneration, such as a new kind of eye drop, he said.

Macular degeneration is an incurable eye disease that often affects those in their 50s or 60s. It occurs after the death of photoreceptor cells in the retina. Those cells need retinal to sense light and help signal the brain.

The research team found blue light exposure created poisonous chemical molecules that killed photoreceptor cells

"It's toxic. If you shine blue light on retinal, the retinal kills photoreceptor cells as the signaling molecule on the membrane dissolves," said Kasun Ratnayake, a Ph.D. student researcher working in Karunarathne's cellular photo chemistry group. "Photoreceptor cells do not regenerate in the eye. When they're dead, they're dead for good."

However, the researchers found a molecule called alpha-tocopherol, which comes from Vitamin E, can help prevent cell death, according to Futurism.

The researchers plan to review how light from TVs, cellphones and tablet screens affect the eyes as well.

"If you look at the amount of light coming out of your cellphone, it's not great but it seems tolerable," said Dr. John Payton, visiting assistant professor in the UT Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. "Some cellphone companies are adding blue-light filters to the screens, and I think that is a good idea."

Indeed, Apple released a Night Shift mode two years ago to help quell blue lights strain on the eyes, according to The Verge. The screen will dim into a warmer, orange light that will cause less stress on the eyes.