Blog Posts by Mike Krumboltz, Yahoo! News

Aimee Copeland, the woman who lost her hands, one leg and her other foot to flesh-eating bacteria after a zip-line accident last year, spoke with WXIA.com and "Today" about her new bionic hands, which are helping her return to a normal life.

Copeland, 24, is in the process of learning to use two state-of-the art prosthetic hands called iLimbs. A fast learner, she has the basics down and says she is looking forward to using them for more advanced tasks like driving, according to WXIA.

The site also reports that Copeland's prosthetic hands are among the most advanced available and cost $100,000 each. She received them for free because she's agreed to be a spokesperson for Touch Bionics, maker of iLimb, according to Today.com. Robert Kistenberg of Georgia Tech is helping Copeland learn how to use the iLimbs. Via Today.com:

Over time, Copeland is learning how to control her hands by flexing and contracting the muscles in her residual limbs. In time, she’ll learn not only how to move the

Read More »from Woman who lost limbs to flesh-eating bacteria gets bionic hands

By Mike Krumboltz

A room filled with items

Regular viewers of reality shows about hoarding are used to being stunned by someone's clutter. But behind the sensationalistic stories of rooms buried in trash, kitchens filled with rotting food, and yards overrun by goats are people suffering from a serious mental illness –hoarding–that for many years was misdiagnosed.

The upcoming fifth version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) aims to change that. The highly influential DSM-5 will classify hoarding as a distinct disorder within the chapter about obsessive-compulsive and related disorders. Before the DSM-5, hoarding could be misdiagnosed as a form of obsessive-compulsive disorder.

The classification change isn’t just symbolic. The American Psychiatric Association believes it will have a real effect in terms of the diagnosis and treatment of people who have a persistent difficulty ridding themselves of possessions, regardless of their value.

The history

"The history of [misdiagnosing],"

Read More »from Hoarding disorder gets spotlight in DSM-5

When you're the president of the United States, you don't hold your own umbrella. Highly trained Marines do it for you.

There was an unexpected bit of rain during a joint news conference with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the White House Rose Garden on Thursday.

As drops fell on the two world leaders, President Barack Obama asked for some protection from the elements. "Why don't we get a couple of Marines," he said. "They're gonna look good next to us. Just 'cuz I've got a change of suits, but I don't know about our prime minister. There we go. [Gestures to press.] You guys, I'm sorry about."

Two dedicated Marines swooped in like hawks, open umbrellas at the ready. Those attending the news conference were presumably on their own.

The mockery began on Twitter almost immediately. One self-identified conservative posted a picture with a caption reading: "OBAMA CALLS IN MARINES TO HOLD HIS UMBRELLA."

🇺🇸Obama calls in the MARINES to Hold his Umbrella❗ 👉#tcot #USMC #Troops #Vets

Read More »from Umbrella-toting Marines protect Obama, Turkish PM from raindrops

An Albuquerque mother chased down a man she suspected of abducting her 5-year-old daughter on Wednesday night, eventually crashing into the suspect's car and triggering a manhunt.

The child, according to police, was grabbed near an apartment complex. She was then shoved out of the car by the suspect a short time later. The girl was uninjured. Not knowing that her child was safe, the mother pursued the suspect in her own car, causing the suspect to crash and then flee by foot.

The Albuquerque Police Department set up a 20-block perimeter on Wednesday night, according to KRQE.com.

From KRQE.com:

"At this point in time it appears to be a complete stranger abduction," APD Chief Ray Schultz said during a news conference outside the search perimeter. "It appears to be no relation that we've been able to determine from either the mother or any witnesses.

"It appears this time to be a stranger abduction, so that's how we're treating it. That's why such a large amount of resources out here

Read More »from Police: Mom chases down suspected child abductor

As a child, Lucas Post was cured of a rare type of cancer called Wilms' tumor. Now, 30 years later, Post is watching his 4-year-old daughter, Mia, wage the same battle.

CBS-Minnesota reports that Mia is undergoing a difficult and frightening treatment. But, the girl hopefully will suffer fewer side effects as a result of a study that her father participated in as a child.

Dr. Emily Greengard, who is treating Mia, told CBS-Minnesota that when Lucas Post participated in the trial as a child, doctors learned that they could use a lower dose of radiation and still get the same outcomes. That trial has had a direct effect on Mia's treatment.

Wilms' tumor is a rare childhood cancer that attacks the kidneys, CBS-Minnesota reports. About 500 cases are diagnosed in the United States each year. The American Cancer Society writes that Wilms' tumor is uncommon in children aged 6 and older.

Mia has been cancer-free for 16 weeks, according to CBS-Minnesota. Doctors will continue to monitor her with

Read More »from Girl fights same rare form of cancer father had as a boy

Ariel Castro appears in Cleveland Municipal Court. (Tony Dejak/AP)

Lillian Rodriguez, mother of accused kidnapper and rapist Ariel Castro, apologized for his actions.

Rodriguez spoke to reporters from inside her car as she was leaving the home of her son Pedro Castro.

"I am a mother in a lot of pain," Rodriguez told reporters in Spanish. "I am sorry for what my son has done." Cleveland.com reports that her comments were translated for reporters by Telemundo.

Rodriguez also said she feels sorry for the mothers of the the three women her son allegedly held captive for years inside his Cleveland home.

Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight and a six-year-old girl born in captivity to Berry were all freed earlier this week after Berry was able to place a call to 911.

Castro is being held on $8 million bail and is currently on suicide watch, reports CBS News.

Read More »from Ariel Castro’s mother apologizes for son’s alleged crimes

File photo of school road sign (Thinkstock)

The Board of Education in Buena Vista, Mich., has declared a financial emergency. The school district lacks the funds to pay teachers for the rest of the school year, MLive.com reports.

Students from the Buena Vista School District have not attended classes in a week, according to MLive.com. The district laid off all its teachers earlier this week.

The financial problems stem from three months of withheld state aid payments from the Michigan Department of Education. MLive.com reports that "the district took $401,962.51 to educate students from the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center who no longer attend the district."

The district also is suffering from declining enrollment, which has led to a loss in state funding, according to MLive.com

Michigan Senate Democratic Leader Gretchen Whitmer has asked Gov. Rick Snyder to provide emergency funds to the district, according to the Detroit News.

Via The Detroit News:

Snyder said Thursday he hopes to quickly resolve the financial crisis that

Read More »from Michigan school district lays off all its teachers

Cleveland police radio communication shows the conversation between a 911 dispatcher and officers discovering that three long-missing women were, in fact, alive in the home of Ariel Castro.

The initial 911 call came from Amanda Berry on Monday evening. "Help me, I’m Amanda Berry. I’ve been kidnapped and I’ve been missing for 10 years. And I’m here, I’m free now," Berry told the dispatcher.

After speaking with Berry, the police dispatcher relayed her story to Cleveland police officers: "A female, says her name is 'Amanda Berry,' and that she had been kidnapped 10 years ago. It's a Code 1."

The dispatcher then says that Berry told her the male's name was Ariel Castro, and gave his address.

Once at the scene, the officer asks the dispatcher if a "bus" (aka ambulance) is coming because "this might be for real. There might be others in the house."

A bit later, the officer tells the dispatcher, "We found them." Crying can be heard in the background.

In addition to Berry, Michelle Knight and

Read More »from Cleveland police to 911 dispatcher: ‘This might be for real’