Hello! Here's what you need to know for Thursday. 1. At least 17 people are dead and hundreds more injured after two explosions Wednesday night at a facility for hazardous goods in the Chinese port city of Tianjin, located 72 miles southeast of the capital of Beijing. 2. China weakened its currency, the yuan, for the third consecutive day on Thursday, triggering concerns that the government is panicking about an economic slowdown. 3. Former US President Jimmy Carter, 90, revealed Wednesday he has cancer. 4. The annual Perseid meteor shower peaked Wednesday night, with up to 100 meteors per hour observable to the naked eye. 5. Two of four sex allegations against Wikileaks founder Julian Assange have been dropped after reaching the statues of limitation under Swedish law. Assange has avoided questioning by hiding out at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London since 2012. 6. A massive cleanup is still underway after US Environmental Protection Agency workers accidentally unleashed 3 million gallons of metallic sludge from an old gold mine in Colorado into a river, which coloured it deep yellow. 7. Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis told the BBC that the latest Greek bailout deal, which is set for a parliamentary vote in Athens, "is not going to work" and that Germany's finance minister feels the same way. 8. The US launched the first air strikes on Islamic State targets in Syria from Turkey, which is ramping up its involvement in the fight against the militant group. 9. Alibaba shares fell as much as 7% to an all-time low in early trading Wednesday after the company reported revenues and sales growth below expectations. 10. Ninety-six million "shadeballs," black plastic balls designed to conserve water, were released into a reservoir in Los Angeles, one of California's latest attempts to combat a four-year drought. And finally ... The world's oldest living twin brothers, Belgians Pieter and Paulus Langerock, reveal their secrets to a long life: "Don't waste your time fooling around, don't eat too much, and don't run after women."Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: This 1998 supercar could auction for $15 million
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