Awarded

Gitanjali Rao, an 11-year-old girl, won this year’s nationwide Young Scientist Challenge in mid-October. The contest was open to grades five through eight and the winner took home $25,000. Rao designed an easy, reliable test to check the lead contamination levels in drinking water. She told the media she developed the device—which she calls Tethys—while watching her parents test the water in her home. Home-use lead testing kits are expensive and often inaccurate, but the only other option is to request a government organization such as the EPA to perform the test for you.

Rescued

Two sisters, one 5 years old and the other only 3 months old, are among 84 juveniles rescued from sex trafficking in a weeklong nationwide sweep led by the FBI in October. The two sisters were in Denver, Colo. Their alleged trafficker, a friend of the children’s family, made an offer to an undercover FBI agent to sell them for sex for $600. Overall, the operation led to around 120 arrests. FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a statement that the large number of arrests illustrates the size of the problem they need to fix.

Accused

Lawrence G. Nassar, former team doctor for USA Gymnastics was already facing 22 counts of first-degree criminal sexual misconduct when McKayla Maroney, a 2012 Olympic gold medalist, announced that Nassar sexually abused her, too, during her Olympic years. Nassar has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography and has been sued by more than 125 women accusing him of sexual abuse. Maroney said she was only 13 when Nassar first gave her what he called a special “treatment.” Nassar has pleaded not guilty to all assault charges.

Banned

Quebec on Oct. 18 passed a bill banning citizens who wear face veils from access to government services, including public transit. Philippe Couillard, the premier of the Canadian province, argues the ban promotes democracy because it allows people to interact on an equal level—no faces hidden. Muslim groups claim the bill targets Muslim women who choose to wear a niqab or burqa. A niqab covers a woman’s entire face except the eyes. A burqa covers even the eyes with a mesh. The government says the language of the bill is unbiased.

Killed

The death toll for the Oct. 14 Mogadishu, Somalia, truck bombing has risen to at least 358, according to the Somali information ministry. The truck exploded at a busy intersection, destroying businesses, hotels, and government offices. Authorities do not know whether the truck driver intentionally targeted the intersection or set the bomb off early due to an interruption. It exploded near an oil tanker, which made the blast worse. Officials have blamed the Islamist group al-Shabab. Somalis have been protesting al-Shabab, rioting in the streets and wearing red to show solidarity with the victims.