That's a-peeling

Good morning Staker! Here’s what’s cookin’ today. How low dose radiation can help your achy knees; Gremlins 3 is delayed; and game-worn Michael Jordan 1998 finals jersey sets record.

Let’s get into it!

A study conducted by researchers in Russia found small doses of radiation directed at the knees can alleviate the painful symptoms of osteoarthritis.

The researchers recruited 292 participants to test their hypothesis, tracking their progress over a period of nearly 12 years.

"Patients experienced sustained improvement in pain and function; [their] MRI showed less joint deterioration and years later, we saw less disability and, in patients with grade 2 disease, fewer knee replacements," said study co-author Dr. Nagendra Koneru, a radiation oncologist at Loyola University in Maywood, Illinois.

"Together, these findings raise the possibility that treatment may influence the longer course of osteoarthritis," he said in a news release. 

Dr. Koneru and team found participants typically reported immediate relief after receiving radiation, but perhaps most notably, the radiation actually slowed the process of inflammation.

While those with osteoarthritis at either stage 0, 1, or 2 are often treated with medication and prescribed diet and exercise routines, these remedies rarely actually stop the condition from advancing. High-dose radiation can slow cancer growth, and now it appears low-dose radiation can slow the progression of arthritis.

The jersey Michael Jordan wore during Game 3 of the 1998 NBA finals sold at auction the other day for a record-setting $12.26 million.

It’s the only white jersey worn by a player whose team won during that entire finals run to ever go on sale, according to auction house, Joopiter.

“This is the type of object collectors wait a lifetime for—an irreplaceable artifact that transcends basketball to become a piece of global cultural history,” said Caitlin Donovan, global head of sales, in a press release prior to the sale’s conclusion.

Like many MJ records, this one was set while beating another MJ record. The previous highest price ever paid for an NBA jersey was held by one the GOAT wore in Game 1 of that same series, which the Bulls of course went on to win and secure their second threepeat of the 1990s.

The Last Dance still has a few more jerseys to offer that could eclipse Michael’s $12.26 million, though he’s still only half way to the highest price ever paid for a sports jersey, the record for which is held by the jersey Babe Ruth wore during the famous “Called Shot.”

Warner Bros. announced Gremlins 3 will officially come out exactly two years and one day from today.

The announcement was actually to reveal the film’s release was pushed back. Initially scheduled for November of next year, the pushback by almost a year was reportedly just a standard shuffle within the studio to avoid any unnecessary competition when Gizmo finally returns.

After nearly 40 years, Gizmo and his pals will resume getting up to what’s surely no good, and that will include Chris Columbus in the director’s seat. Columbus wrote the original film for fun while he was at NYU, having no idea it would turn into a career-making cult classic.

The master himself Steven Spielberg will produce, along with his pals Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy at Amblin. Joe Dante, who directed the first two, will not have any involvement with the third.

“Few titles are as beloved and iconic as ‘Gremlins,’ and we’re beyond excited to bring it back for both lifelong fans and a whole new generation,” Warner Bros. Pictures’ president of development and production Jesse Ehrman said in a statement when the third instalment of the franchise was first announced.

All for you, from ’82

Do you remember what you were doing, this week in 1982? If you do, you’ll have a great shot at today’s trivia, when we look back at that week’s biggest songs, TV shows, movies, and books!