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Soweto Fashion Week Showcased Global Talent with Stellar Line-Up of International and Local Designers




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Local government is a mess – let’s fix it




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Expect a reality TV summer with engaging new local productions




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Egypt: Interview with Zachary Lockman

Lockman discusses the current struggle in Egypt among the Muslim Brotherhood, the revolutionaries of Tahrir Square and the military that has reclaimed power.




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Vandals slash out faces, Jewish stars, from Milan mural depicting Holocaust survivors


A previous work by the artist, dedicated to the Israeli victims of Hamas, was also vandalized.




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Defense Minister Israel Katz not blocking IDF issuing 7,000 draft orders to haredim


Speculation spiked after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu replaced Gallant with Katz that the attempts to draft Haredim would be halted, given Netanyahu and the haredi coalition parties' opposition.




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Dan Bilzerian 'would bet entire net worth that less than 6 million Jews were killed in Holocaust'


Bilzerian has also described Hamas as a "resistance organization" and had called its late leader Yahya Sinwar "a hero" after his death on the Piers Morgan Uncensored show.




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Liberia: Sources - Executive May Submit Draft Budget to the Breakaway Bloc This Week

[Liberian Investigator] Monrovia -- Sources have hinted to The Liberian Investigator that the Executive Branch, through the Ministry of Finance & Development Planning, is contemplating submitting the 2025 draft national budget to the breakaway "majority bloc" in the House of Representatives later this week.




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Film Commission delays in funds and rebate crippling local productions – MEIA

Maltese producers raise alarm over ripple effect of late payments in funding and services to creatives from Malta Film Commission




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Church opposes Villa Rosa project, local plan change

Archdiocese of Malta’s Environment Commission says it views the Villa Rosa project as another example where individual interests are prioritised over community wellbeing




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“Escalation Dominance” . . . and the Prospect of More Than 1,000 Holocausts

Everything is at stake. Everything is at stake with nuclear weapons. While working as a nuclear war planner for the Kennedy administration, Daniel Ellsberg was shown a document calculating that a U.S. nuclear attack on communist countries would result in 600 million dead. As he put it later: “A hundred Holocausts.” That was in 1961. […]




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Another Nobel for Anglocentric Neoliberal Institutional Economics

New institutional economics (NIE) has received another so-called Nobel prize, ostensibly for again claiming that good institutions and democratic governance ensure growth, development, equity and democracy. Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, and James Robinson (AJR) are well known for their influential cliometric work. AJR have elaborated earlier laureate Douglass North’s claim that property rights have been […]




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Somalia Moves to Relocate Ethiopian Embassy Amid Growing Diplomatic Tensions

[Radio Dalsan] In a move that has captured international attention, Somalia's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Moalim Fiqi, has announced plans to relocate the Ethiopian Embassy currently housed within the Somali presidential compound.




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IDF destroys most of Hezbollah weapons sites in Dahiyeh, mainly under civilian locations


IDF intelligence had been tracking these underground facilities for years, and over recent weeks, the air force focused on destroying them.




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Judges block Albania model again and order return of 7 migrants to Italy

Judges block Albania model again and order return of 7 migrants to Italy




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Scientific Research Can Play a Key Role in Unlocking Climate Finance



Climate finance will come under intense scrutiny during COP29, and its distribution aligned with scientific analysis of the impacts of climate change, but the methodology ignores the inequality in research networks of the Global South.




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British PM Rishi Sunak avoids wipeout in key local elections

By-elections were seen as an indicator of the two main parties' prospects at a time when voters are struggling with high inflation, strikes and rising mortgage rates.




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Asian Development Blog: Five Strategic Steps to Unlock Armenia’s Data Center Potential for Economic Growth

Armenia's data center industry offers significant opportunities for economic growth, with strategic reforms in regulation, financing, and technological innovation playing crucial roles. Addressing infrastructure challenges and fostering public-private partnerships will help position Armenia as a regional digital hub.




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unlock guide in google sketchup

unlock guide in google sketchup




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Axolotls seem to pause their biological clocks and stop ageing

In most vertebrates, a pattern of chemical marks on the genome is a reliable indicator of age, but in axolotls this clock seems to stop after the first four years of life




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Why our location in the Milky Way is perfect for finding alien life

Our arm of the Milky Way is filled with older, metal-rich stars. New research suggests these might provide the best conditions for life to form on their planets




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How the most precise clock ever could change our view of the cosmos

Forget atomic clocks. Nuclear clocks, which only drop a second every 300 billion years, can test whether nature's fundamental constants are constant after all




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You can turn any random sequence of events into a clock

A set of mathematical equations can help turn apparently random observations into a clock – and then measure its accuracy




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How the most precise clock ever could change our view of the cosmos

Forget atomic clocks. Nuclear clocks, which only drop a second every 300 billion years, can test whether nature's fundamental constants are constant after all




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Sun-blocking dust from asteroid impact drove the dinosaur extinction

The Chicxulub impact 66 million years ago filled the sky with fine silicate dust, which blocked out sunlight and lingered for 15 years




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This robot can build anything you ask for out of blocks

An AI-assisted robot can listen to spoken commands and assemble 3D objects such as chairs and tables out of reusable building blocks




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Need Advice on Medical Pot for Cancer Care? Don't Ask Local Dispensary

Title: Need Advice on Medical Pot for Cancer Care? Don't Ask Local Dispensary
Category: Health News
Created: 8/17/2022 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/18/2022 12:00:00 AM




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Five Local Zika Cases Reported in Miami Beach

Title: Five Local Zika Cases Reported in Miami Beach
Category: Health News
Created: 8/19/2016 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/22/2016 12:00:00 AM




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Five More Cases of Local Zika Infection Reported in Florida

Title: Five More Cases of Local Zika Infection Reported in Florida
Category: Health News
Created: 8/24/2016 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/24/2016 12:00:00 AM




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New Case of Local Zika Infection Reported in Florida

Title: New Case of Local Zika Infection Reported in Florida
Category: Health News
Created: 8/25/2016 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/26/2016 12:00:00 AM




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Health Tip: Dislocation First Aid

Title: Health Tip: Dislocation First Aid
Category: Health News
Created: 8/27/2019 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/27/2019 12:00:00 AM




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Lockdowns Tough on People With Eating Disorders: Survey

Title: Lockdowns Tough on People With Eating Disorders: Survey
Category: Health News
Created: 8/24/2020 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/25/2020 12:00:00 AM




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Nerve Block Plus Lidocaine Clears Psoriasis in Small Study

Title: Nerve Block Plus Lidocaine Clears Psoriasis in Small Study
Category: Health News
Created: 8/15/2022 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/16/2022 12:00:00 AM




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How Can You Unblock Your Ear?

Title: How Can You Unblock Your Ear?
Category: Diseases and Conditions
Created: 12/31/2020 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 6/29/2022 12:00:00 AM




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Comparison of Needle Depth Techniques for the Posterior Superior Alveolar Block

Purpose The posterior superior alveolar (PSA) block injection is one of many techniques used to provide profound anesthesia for invasive dental procedures. This technique has a high success rate but is not without complication risks. The purpose of this study was to determine if pulpal anesthesia of the maxillary second molar could be achieved using a reduced needle depth of 10mm or 5mm compared to the traditional needle depth of 16mm.Methods Sixty participants were asked to participate in three sessions. Each session started with a pre neural response test, followed by one randomized needle depth PSA injection, and ending with a post neural response test. The neural response test consisted of two parts, a cold refrigerant and a dental probe, on the buccal and interproximal surface of the maxillary second molar. After receiving a positive neural response, each participant received a posterior superior alveolar block injection using a short (21mm), 27-gauge dental needle with a randomized needle penetration depth of 16mm, 10mm, or 5mm. A post neural response test consisting of the same two parts as the pre-test was conducted on the maxillary second molar to evaluate for profound anesthesia.Results Positive neural responses were obtained from 100% of the participants (n=167) during the pre-tests. Study results demonstrated an 85% success rate at the traditional 16mm needle depth and a 93% and 92% success rates for the reduced needle depths of 10mm and 5mm, respectively. Pulpal anesthesia of the maxillary second molar had been achieved at all three needle depths with no statistically significant difference in the rate of success. Furthermore, there were no adverse events observed.Conclusion The reduced needle depth technique showed promise in achieving desired results of pulpal anesthesia with a reduced risk for complications associated with the PSA block injection. Additional studies are recommended to achieve evidence-based support for this reduced needle depth technique.




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The antivirulent Staphylococcal sRNA SprC regulates CzrB efflux pump to adapt its response to zinc toxicity [ARTICLE]

Bacterial regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) are important players to control gene expression. In Staphylococcus aureus, SprC is an antivirulent trans-acting sRNA known to base-pair with the major autolysin atl mRNA, preventing its translation. Using MS2-affinity purification coupled with RNA sequencing, we looked for its sRNA-RNA interactome and identified 14 novel mRNA targets. In vitro biochemical investigations revealed that SprC binds two of them, czrB and deoD, and uses a single accessible region to regulate its targets, including Atl translation. Unlike Atl regulation, the characterization of the SprC-czrB interaction pinpointed a destabilization of the czrAB cotranscript, leading to a decrease of the mRNA level that impaired CzrB zinc efflux pump expression. On a physiological standpoint, we showed that SprC expression is detrimental to combat against zinc toxicity. In addition, phagocyctosis assays revealed a significant, but moderate, increase of czrB mRNA levels in a sprC-deleted mutant, indicating a functional link between SprC and czrB upon internalization in macrophages, and suggesting a role in resistance to both oxidative and zinc bursts. Altogether, our data uncover a novel pathway in which SprC is implicated, highlighting the multiple strategies used by S. aureus to balance virulence using an RNA regulator.




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Early Lessons From Working With Local Partners to Expand Private-Sector Health Care Networks in Burundi and Mali

ABSTRACTThe private health care sector is an important source of service delivery in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Yet, the private sector remains fragmented, making it difficult for health system actors to support and ensure the availability of quality health care services. In global health programs, social franchising is one model used to engage and organize the private health care sector. Two social franchise networks, ProFam in West Africa and Tunza in East and Central Africa, provide health care through branded networks of facilities. However, these social franchise networks include a limited number of private health care facilities, and in fragile contexts, like Burundi and Mali, they have faced challenges in integrating with national health systems. The MOMENTUM Private Healthcare Delivery (MPHD) project in Burundi and Mali sought to expand the number of health facilities it engaged beyond the existing ProFam and Tunza networks. The expansion aimed to help improve service quality in more private facilities while advancing localization and reducing fragmentation for improved stewardship by health system actors. MPHD achieved this expansion by removing barriers for private health facilities to join inclusive, nonbranded networks and engaging local partners to build and maintain these networks. We share lessons learned regarding the growing role of local organizations as actors within mixed health systems and provide insights on strengthening stewardship of the increasingly heterogeneous private health care delivery sector in LMICs, particularly in fragile settings.




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Improving Maternity Care Where Home Births Are Still the Norm: Establishing Local Birthing Centers in Guatemala That Incorporate Traditional Midwives

ABSTRACTMore than half of births among Indigenous women in Guatemala are still being attended at home by providers with no formal training. We describe the incorporation of comadronas (traditional midwives) into casas maternas (birthing centers) in the rural highlands of western Guatemala. Although there was initial resistance to the casa, comadronas and clients have become increasingly enthusiastic about them. The casas provide the opportunity for comadronas to continue the cultural traditions of prayers, massages, and other practices that honor the vital spiritual dimension of childbirth close to home in a home-like environment with extended family support while at the same time providing a safer childbirth experience in which complications can be detected by trained personnel at the casa, managed locally, or promptly referred to a higher-level facility. Given the growing acceptance of this innovation in an environment in which geographical, financial, and cultural barriers to deliveries at higher-level facilities lead most women to deliver at home, casas maternas represent a feasible option for reducing the high level of maternal mortality in Guatemala.This article provides an update on the growing utilization of casas and provides new insights into the role of comadronas as birthing team members and enthusiastic promotors of casas maternas as a preferable alternative to home births. Through the end of 2023, these casas maternas had cared for 4,322 women giving birth. No maternal deaths occurred at a casa, but 4 died after referral.The Ministry of Health of Guatemala has recently adopted this approach and has begun to implement it in other rural areas where home births still predominate. This approach deserves consideration as a viable and feasible option for reducing maternal mortality throughout the world where home births are still common, while at the same time providing women with respectful and culturally appropriate care.




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Selection of Affibody Molecules Using Staphylococcal Display

Affibody molecules are small (6-kDa) affinity proteins generated by directed evolution for specific binding to various target molecules. The first step in this workflow involves the generation of an affibody library, which can then be used for biopanning using multiple display methods. This protocol describes selection from affibody libraries using display on Staphylococcus carnosus. Display of affibodies on staphylococci is very efficient and straightforward because of the single cell membrane and the use of a construct with a constitutive promoter. The workflow involves display of affibody libraries on the surface of S. carnosus cells, followed by screening and selection of binders using fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). The transformation of DNA libraries into S. carnosus is less efficient and more complicated than for Escherichia coli. Because of this, staphylococcal display is suitable for affinity maturation or other protein-engineering efforts that are not dependent on very high diversity, and thus magnetic-activated cell sorting (MACS) is often not required before FACS. However, MACS is an option, and MACS procedures used for E. coli can easily be adapted for use in S. carnosus if needed.




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GPs’ views of prescribing beta- blockers for people with anxiety disorders: a qualitative study

BackgroundBetween 2003 and 2018, incident prescriptions of beta-blockers for anxiety increased substantially, particularly for young adults. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance for anxiety does not recommend beta-blockers, probably due to a lack of evidence to support such use. Recent reports have highlighted the potential risks of beta-blockers.AimTo understand when and why GPs prescribe beta-blockers for people with anxiety.Design and settingIn-depth interviews with 17 GPs in Bristol and the surrounding areas.MethodInterviews were held by telephone or video call. A topic guide was used to ensure consistency across interviews. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed thematically.ResultsMany GPs viewed beta-blockers as ‘low risk’, particularly for young adults. Some GPs viewed beta-blockers as an alternative to benzodiazepines, acting quickly and not leading to dependence. GPs reflected that some patients appeared to want an ‘immediate fix’ to their symptoms, which GPs thought beta-blockers could potentially offer. This is salient in light of substantial waiting lists for talking therapies and delays in antidepressants taking effect. GPs described how some patients seemed more willing to try beta-blockers than antidepressants, as patients did not perceive them as ‘mental health drugs’ and therefore viewed them as potentially more acceptable and less stigmatising. Further, GPs viewed beta-blockers as ‘patient-led’, with patients managing their own dose and frequency, without GP input.ConclusionMany GPs believe that beta-blockers have a role to play in the management of anxiety. Given recent increases in the prescribing of these drugs in primary care, there is a need to assess their safety and effectiveness as a treatment for people with anxiety disorders.




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[Neuroscience] Reimagining Cortical Connectivity by Deconstructing Its Molecular Logic into Building Blocks

Comprehensive maps of neuronal connectivity provide a foundation for understanding the structure of neural circuits. In a circuit, neurons are diverse in morphology, electrophysiology, gene expression, activity, and other neuronal properties. Thus, constructing a comprehensive connectivity map requires associating various properties of neurons, including their connectivity, at cellular resolution. A commonly used approach is to use the gene expression profiles as an anchor to which all other neuronal properties are associated. Recent advances in genomics and anatomical techniques dramatically improved the ability to determine and associate the long-range projections of neurons with their gene expression profiles. These studies revealed unprecedented details of the gene–projection relationship, but also highlighted conceptual challenges in understanding this relationship. In this article, I delve into the findings and the challenges revealed by recent studies using state-of-the-art neuroanatomical and transcriptomic techniques. Building upon these insights, I propose an approach that focuses on understanding the gene–projection relationship through basic features in gene expression profiles and projections, respectively, that associate with underlying cellular processes. I then discuss how the developmental trajectories of projections and gene expression profiles create additional challenges and necessitate interrogating the gene–projection relationship across time. Finally, I explore complementary strategies that, together, can provide a comprehensive view of the gene–projection relationship.




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Major luxury lodge plans for shores of famous Scottish loch revealed

The site, on the shores of a famous Scottish loch, has been acquired for a luxury lodge development




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We’ve learned the hard way that ganging up on Deadlock doesn’t make it more digestible

The mystery surrounding Deadlock, Valve’s work-in-progress MOBA shooter, has largely evaporated. Its freely extendable invite system is about as effective at controlling player headcount as a disinterested football steward, meaning pretty much anyone with a clued-in Steam friend can get in and start poking around its secrets. And yet, being a lane-pushing wizard fighter in the Dota 2 vein, it’s already a vast tangle of interplaying abilities, items, strats, and often unspoken rules, of the kind that even experienced gankists will take hundreds of hours to learn. It’s been too much for poor Brendy, at any rate.

Still, Brendy is but one man. What if we had but four men, working in tandem to crush lanes and flatten Patrons just as Gabe intended? To find out if Deadlock is indeed more comprehensible as a team sport, Graham, Ed, Ollie, and James joined forces, promptly getting fucked up yet emerging from the warlock hospital with a deeper understanding of its workings. Or, at least, if anyone would keep playing.

Read more




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News Wrap: Trump’s latest travel ban blocked by federal judge

Watch Video | Listen to the Audio

JUDY WOODRUFF: And in the day’s other news: A federal judge in Hawaii struck down the Trump administration’s latest travel ban.

That temporarily blocks enforcement of the order nationwide, but the Justice Department says it will appeal. The ban extended to six mostly Muslim nations, plus North Korea and Venezuela.

Pennsylvania Congressman Tom Marino withdrew today from consideration to be President Trump’s drug czar. That followed an investigation by The Washington Post and CBS News. They found Marino was key in passing a 2016 law that limits the Drug Enforcement Administration’s ability to rein in opioid distribution.

A new verbal battle has broken out between the president and Republican Senator John McCain. It began last night in Philadelphia, when the Arizona senator and former Vietnam POW appeared to criticize Mr. Trump and his followers. He cited a list of failings.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, R-Ariz.: To fear the world we have organized and led for three-quarters-of-a-century, to abandon the ideals we have advanced around the globe for the sake of some half-baked, spurious nationalism cooked up by people who would rather find scapegoats than solve problems.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

JUDY WOODRUFF: The president answered by saying, “At some point, I fight back, and it won’t be pretty.”

In turn, McCain said, “I have faced tougher adversaries.”

In Afghanistan, Taliban bombings and shootings left at least 74 people dead today. The worst was Paktika province in the east, where two car bombs killed dozens, including the provincial police chief, and wounded more than 100 others. Taliban militants also staged attacks in the south and west of the country.

In Syria, militia forces backed by the U.S. say they have retaken the Islamic State group’s de facto capital. The city of Raqqa had been under ISIS control since 2014. The battle to recapture it began in June. Today, Kurdish-led fighters celebrated as they moved into the city center. The U.S. military said 90 percent of Raqqa has been taken, with pockets of militants remaining.

There’s word that U.S. airstrikes in Yemen killed dozens of Islamic State fighters on Monday. The strikes were apparently carried out by drones. The Pentagon says the targets were training camps for recruits.

In Northern Iraq, Kurdish forces withdrew from more territory today, as Iraqi government troops advanced. It came on the heels of the Kurds’ vote for independence. Federal forces and allied militia had already forced the Kurds to leave the area in and around Kirkuk and its oil fields.

Iraq’s prime minister said that paves the way for talks.

HAIDER AL-ABADI, Prime Minister, Iraq (through interpreter): I call for dialogue on the basis of partnership in one country and under the Constitution. The referendum is finished and has become a thing from the past. We hoped that they would cancel it, but we have finished it on the ground.

JUDY WOODRUFF: Meanwhile, the president of Iraqi Kurdistan, Massoud Barzani, insisted that the referendum will not be in vain.

Another 10,000 to 15,000 Rohingya Muslims fled Buddhist Myanmar for Bangladesh over the weekend. Drone video showed snaking lines of refugees making the trek to already crowded camps. Many told of villages torched by mobs and soldiers. Others said they were starved out of their homes.

Back in this country, a new fire broke out in the San Francisco Bay Area, just as crews had made major progress against other fires in Northern California. Thick smoke billowed from the new site early today, as it burned through forests in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Weary fire crews said they’re calling in more help.

ROB SHERMAN, Division Chief, Cal Fire: So, the idea is to hit it pretty hard with aircraft and then go ahead and hit it with the ground resources at the same time. We have had north winds, a lot of drying, and everything’s really, really dry. So it’s challenging.

JUDY WOODRUFF: In Southern California, yet another fire spread on Mount Wilson, about 25 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. It threatened a historic observatory and communications towers.

President Trump’s overall wealth has taken a hit, as his New York real estate loses some of its luster. Forbes ranks him 248 this year on its list of the 400 wealthiest Americans. That’s down nearly 100 points from last year. His estimated worth is $3.1 billion.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates again tops the list. He’s worth nearly $90 billion.

And on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average traded above 23,000 for the first time. In the end, it gained 40 points to close at 22997. The Nasdaq fell a fraction, and the S&P 500 added one point.

The post News Wrap: Trump’s latest travel ban blocked by federal judge appeared first on PBS NewsHour.




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This robot can build anything you ask for out of blocks

An AI-assisted robot can listen to spoken commands and assemble 3D objects such as chairs and tables out of reusable building blocks




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Bitter taste for local chefs

Only one Australian restaurant made the cut this year in the contentious World’s 50 Best Restaurants list.




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Some scientists say blocking the sun could slow climate change — just like on The Simpsons

Scientists say geoengineering, or doing things like intentionally increasing Earth’s reflectivity or blocking the sun, is a “really big deal” in slowing down climate change. Here are the ideas they are proposing.





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Hashtag Trending Mar.5- Apple Music fined for market dominance; LockBit back from the dead; OpenAI kills ChatGPT plugins

Apple Music gives a whole new meaning to the phrase the hits just keep on coming.  It’s not the opposing candidates, it’s public AI systems that are spreading election disinformation, and LockBit, the cybercriminal gang may be back from the dead and saying so long to the ChatGPT plugins, which went from innovation to legacy […]

The post Hashtag Trending Mar.5- Apple Music fined for market dominance; LockBit back from the dead; OpenAI kills ChatGPT plugins first appeared on ITBusiness.ca.




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How bad is modern life for our body clocks – and what can we do?

Modern life disrupts the circadian rhythms controlling our biology – increasing our risk of developing conditions ranging from diabetes to dementia. Lynne Peeples's new book The Inner Clock explores and offers solutions