Will Charlotte FC switch from turf to grass for Messi? + Atrium Health inks first partner for innovation district

Andrew Nantais
·2 min read
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Hey, everyone! Drew here. TGIF!

#Barbenheimer fever has come to Charlotte.

If you are Team Barbie and plan on seeing the new movie soon, you might want to check out these Barbie-themed experiences in the Queen City.

Here’s your news.

1. Messi hasn’t played on turf. Charlotte FC won’t switch to grass. Could that change when Inter Miami comes to town?

Lionel Messi levantó el segundo trofeo con Argentina en menos de un año al vencer 3-0 a Italia el miércoles en la “Finalissima” entre los últimos campeones continentales.
Lionel Messi levantó el segundo trofeo con Argentina en menos de un año al vencer 3-0 a Italia el miércoles en la “Finalissima” entre los últimos campeones continentales.

If you haven’t heard, Lionel Messi, one of the greatest soccer players of all time, recently signed with MLS Club Inter Miami.

That means Messi is slated to make a trip to the Queen City for a match against Charlotte FC in October. There’s one problem: Bank of America Stadium has artificial turf, not natural grass, on its field.

Alex Zietlow provides an overview of the situation.

2. Atrium Health taps German medical tech company as first partnership in new innovation district

Germany-based Siemens Healthineers will be Atrium Health’s first strategic partner for its new innovation district, The Pearl.
Germany-based Siemens Healthineers will be Atrium Health’s first strategic partner for its new innovation district, The Pearl.

Atrium Health’s found its first partner for its new $1.5 billion innovation district.

German-based Siemens Healthineers will be a strategic partner for The Pearl as Atrium aims to attract STEM business to Charlotte. The innovation district will also be home to the Queen City’s first four-year medical school, a partnership between Atrium and Wake Forest School of Medicine.

Audrey Elsberry shares more details on the newest Atrium Health partner.

3. Why were some asymptomatic with COVID? UNC Charlotte professor’s study offers an answer

Danillo Augusto works in his lab in Woodward Hall on the Campus of UNC Charlotte. Augusto helped lead a study with two other professors into why some people caught COVID and evaded symptoms.
Danillo Augusto works in his lab in Woodward Hall on the Campus of UNC Charlotte. Augusto helped lead a study with two other professors into why some people caught COVID and evaded symptoms.

Why is it that some people who contract COVID-19 are asymptomatic?

That’s the question a new study published this week in the journal Nature, co-authored by UNC Charlotte professor Danillo Augusto, hopes to answer.

The study, conducted with the University of California San Francisco and La Trobe University in Australia, says genetics plays a part.

Terry Benjamin has more on the study’s findings.

4. Some more stories to read

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Drew Nantais is a Senior Growth & Engagement Producer for the Charlotte Observer.
Drew Nantais is a Senior Growth & Engagement Producer for the Charlotte Observer.