5 Things to Know This Morning

5 Things to Know This Morning

ByABC News
January 23, 2014, 6:41 AM
This undated family photo shows the front of an index card filled with letters written by Dorothy Holm.
This undated family photo shows the front of an index card filled with letters written by Dorothy Holm.
Courtesy of Janna Holm | AP Photo

Jan. 23, 2014— -- Your look at the five biggest and most buzz-worthy stories of the morning.

1.Internet Community Helps Crack Grandma's Code
When a brain tumor took away Dorothy Holm's ability to speak, she picked up index cards and began filling them, edge to edge, with seemingly random, indecipherable sequences of letters. Her grandchildren saw her scribbling and thought she was leaving them a code — but it was one the preteens couldn't crack. Eighteen years later, the puzzle has been solved after one of Holm's granddaughters posted images of a card online. In just 13 minutes, a MetaFilter.com user figured out that as Dorothy Holm was dying, she was writing out prayers.

2. Va. AG's Office: Gay Marriage Ban Unconstitutional
Following a seismic political shift in Virginia's top elected offices, the new attorney general has concluded that the state's ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional and he will no longer defend it in federal lawsuits, his office said Thursday.

3. Are Syrians Ready to Talk? UN Takes Day to Learn
The United Nations has a day to see if there is enough common ground for Syrians in Syrian President Bashar Assad's government and those representing the opposition to talk directly for the first time. Peace talks got off to a tense start, although the U.N. mediator meeting separately with each delegation Thursday said there are signs they could bend on humanitarian aid, cease-fires and prisoner exchanges. But there were few outward signs of relenting.

4. Toyota World's Top Selling Car Maker for 2nd Year
Toyota remained the top-selling automaker for a second year in a row, beating U.S. rival General Motors by some 270,000 vehicles in 2013, and set an ambitious target to sell more than 10 million vehicles this year.

5. Captain And Tennille to Divorce
It's over for Toni Tennille and Daryl Dragon, members of the husband-and-wife singing duo Captain and Tenille. According to paperwork obtained by ABC News, Tennille, 73, filed for divorce from Dragon, 71, in Arizona on Jan. 16. The couple had been married for nearly 40 years.