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Heres where you can read the first chapter and see the cover for Rick Riordans newest book
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"The Trials of Apollo" is by Rick Riordan. - photo by Herb Scribner
Best-selling author Rick Riordan recently told Entertainment Weekly that his latest book The Burning Maze from the Apollo series will have many connections to his past works.

Riordan opened up about his latest book, which is the third in the new Trials of Apollo series, to Entertainment Weekly this week.

Riordan, who penned the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, often tells stories of ancient Greek gods living in modern America. But for his latest series, Riordan put the focus on Apollo, an actual Greek god.

And the latest book in the series will include callbacks to previous books.

For example, for his newest book, Riordan said he brought back a specific setting, the Labyrinth, seen in The Battle of the Labyrinth, which was the fourth novel in the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series.

The Labyrinth weaves itself under the skin of the world, Riordan told EW. It can take you anywhere, assuming you dont get lost or killed by monsters or traps. Its one of my favorite extrapolated ideas from Greek mythology, so I couldnt resist bringing it back in 'The Burning Maze.' I just love the idea of a secret, unpredictable underworld that you might fall into at any minute. In this book, I think its not much of a spoiler to say that things in the Labyrinth are heating up.

Riordan confirmed that the new series will see many characters and locations from the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus series.

By the time The Trials of Apollo series is over, we will have gone to a lot of new places and met a lot of cool new characters, but well also have seen just about everyone we cared about from Percy Jackson and The Heroes of Olympus, he said.

You can read the first chapter of the book and review the cover at Entertainment Weekly.

The book hits shelves everywhere on May 1.

Riordan announced a list of new books for 2018, too. His list of books of the year includes The Magnus Chase Coloring Book and The Lightning Thief Illustrated Edition later this year.
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.