Author, outspoken vegetarian, social media abstainer and writing teacher Jonathan Safran Foer is author of three novels: Everything Is Illuminated, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and, most recently, Here I Am, which follows four generations of a Jewish family grappling with identity, connection and disaster. His nonfiction book about factory farming, Eating Animals, was also a New York Times best-seller. Episode music by Broke For Free Ad music by Uncanny Valleys Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on After The Score, Steve and Thomas talk to Martin Jarmond about the process of scheduling Ohio State football games. The process is a lot more in-depth than one might think.

The third Easter that the Orthodox world celebrated on May 5, 2024, is believed to be a victorious one for Russia, Elder Jonah of Odessa predicted. Victorious Easter in 2024 Elder Jonah of Odessa, the confessor of the Holy Dormition Monastery, who died in 2012 at the age of 87, warned long before the coup in Kyiv about the war that would erupt between a "small state” and Russia. The war, he predicted, would sow "chaos” in the world and spread "spiritual sprite” around Ukraine: "Ukraine and Russia do not exist separately — there is one Holy Rus'. Our enemies decided to divide us in order to destroy Orthodoxy in Little Rus'. God will not let that happen.”

Back to normal. Back to a spike in cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Politics before the People, it’s the economy, stupid! The UK heads for Hades. In the midst of this latest global pandemic, common sense seems to have flown out of the window, however incredible it may seem given all the collective knowledge we have gathered over the years. If we look at the history book, we are practically where we were one century ago with so-called Infuenza A H1N1 (Spanish Flu, which was not from Spain but from the USA) and if we turn back just one page, we see that we are back where we were at this time last year. We are going round and round in circles because policymakers are failing us. Common sense, not conspiracy theories Talking about common sense, forget all the conspiracy theories that this is a master plan to cull those members of society more dependent on the State, such as pensioners. It just so happens that their defences are weaker and so they are more susceptible to the illness. Forget the theories about injecting micro-chips with the vaccine. It just so happens that this is one of the main means we have to control the spread of the virus, not the only one but an important one. Forget the denial theories which say the disease does not exist. Go ask the families of those who have died from it. Mine included.

On Thursday, February 29, Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his annual Address to the Federal Assembly. In the beginning of the speech, he touched on the topics of the special military operation in Ukraine, relations with the West, strategic stability, and later proceeded to announce a number of new national projects, changes in economic and social sphere. About special military operation Putin recalled that 2024 marks the tenth anniversary of the "legendary Russian Spring.” "The love that the people living in Crimea and new regions share for their homeland evokes pride," Vladimir Putin said.

Los residentes cuyas propiedades hayan sufrido daños por los incendios forestales de Texas deben llamar a su compañía de seguros para presentar una reclamación lo antes posible.

El Departamento de Seguros de Texas (Texas Department of Insurance, TDI, por su nombre y siglas en inglés) les recuerda a las víctimas de las inundaciones que deben documentar los daños y presentar las reclamaciones al seguro de inmediato.

Si sufrió daños por causa del huracán Beryl, llame a su compañía de seguros para comenzar una reclamación.

El Departamento de Seguros de Texas (Texas Department of Insurance, TDI, por su nombre y siglas en inglés) tiene consejos para ayudarle a reconocer y evitar las estafas comunes de contratistas.

Andrei Rublev is one of the Russian tennis players banned from the Wimbledon tournament. He defeated world number one Novak Djokovic in the Serbia Open 2022 final in Belgrade today. Rublev, who is only eighth in the world rankings, beat his opponent 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), 6-0.

What if it was WADA employees who opened sample bottles of Russian athletes and then arranged a major provocation against Russia in cooperation with the International Olympic Committee? This could be possible, taking into consideration the fact that the US Justice Department announced the beginning of investigation into cases of corruption inside the IOC immediately after Federal Security Bureau and Foreign Intelligence Service officers visited the United States. Representatives of the US Justice Department announced the beginning of investigation into corruption in such international sports organizations as the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Football Federation (FIFA), the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), and the National Olympic Committee of the United States, The New York Times newspaper wrote. Soon afterwards, the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne made a positive decision regarding 28 appeals from 39 Russian athletes, whom the IOC had suspended from from the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. It looks like the anti-doping campaign against Russia could be a major a political operation, the goal of which was to discredit Russia and its president in front of the whole world.

India and China evince interest in the Russian nuclear power plant project on the Moon, TASS reports with reference to Rosatom chief Alexey Likhachev. "The new solution that we are asked to implement is a version of a lunar nuclear power plant with an energy capacity of up to half a megawatt,” Likhachev said at the Eastern Economic Forum. In May, Roscosmos Director Yuri Borisov said that a Russian-made nuclear installation for a joint Russian-Chinese station would be sent to the Moon after 2036. Borisov also said that the development of a nuclear power plant for a joint lunar station with China had already begun.

US President Joe Biden may take drastic actions before he resigns, Alexander Yakovenko, a member of the scientific council at the Security Council of the Russian Federation and former Russian Ambassador to the UK believes. "Biden and his administration are still in power as a lame duck. In December 2016, Barack Obama similarly decided to sharply aggravate relations with Russia by expelling 35 Russian diplomats. The same can be expected now, especially in Ukraine,” Yakovenko said. Trump will take up US foreign affairs before his inauguration while trying to push the current administration out of decision-making processes, Yakovenko suggested.

The October 18 blackout paralyzed Cuba completely. The Cuban government tries to shrug the problem off by making references to the economic blockade, although the leadership of the island of freedom with no electricity should rather look at its own effectiveness. Total blackout in Cuba: three days without electricity and water Blackout, or apagon in Spanish, is a long-standing problem in Cuba that the island nation has been living with since the 1970s. Yet, this is the first time when the country experienced such a large-scale accident. On Friday, October 18, the Cuban electrical system was completely shut down as a result of an emergency at its main thermal power plant Antonio Guteras in Matanzas. This thermal power plant has not been modernized since 1988. The Cubans had to live without electricity and water for three days. All institutions and industries stopped and thus put the country's security in jeopardy.

Brazilian journalist and geopolitical analyst Pepe Escobar admired the streets of Moscow and praised the city for its cleanliness. Escobar shared his impressions of the Russian capital on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, Moskovskiye Novosti (Moscow News) Telegram channel said. Escobar noted that he very much enjoyed walking along the streets of Moscow, especially at night. "I never take a taxi in the center, I always walk there. And it's a beautiful city: everything is clean, everything works. Fantastic. This is something that people in the West have no idea about,” the journalist said.

War correspondent Yevgeny Poddubny, who was injured in an attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kursk region, was hospitalised in serious condition to a regional clinical hospital. In the morning of August 8, Poddubny was taken to the Sklifosovsky Institute of Emergency Medicine in Moscow, the Health Department said. After the attack, the journalist was immediately placed in the anti-shock department, given intensive therapy and then transferred to intensive care. Specialists from leading federal clinics make every effort to save the man's life.

Eight Russian generals from various security agencies lost their posts in one day, a RIA Novosti source said. Some of the resignations have been officially announced. The list of the dismissed generals includes: head of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Stavropol Territory, Major General of Justice Igor Ivanov (he held the position since May 2022), head of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for Buryatia Vyacheslav Sukhorukov, deputy director of the operational management department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia, Major General Alexander Molchanov, head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations for the Moscow Region, Lieutenant General Sergei Poletykin, head of the Rostov Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations Sergei Filippov. General Sergei Poletykin was relieved of his post upon attaining the maximum service age of 60. According to TASS, he will be transferred to another job.

Omni-ID has been acquired by HID Global, worldwide leader in trusted identity solutions.

Security and Safety Things GmbH has entered into a partnership with the Johan Cruijff ArenA in Amsterdam to deploy its IoT platform for smart surveillance cameras to enhance overall fan experience, optimize ArenA operations and increase visitor security and privacy.

EKM, the software solutions provider for simplified managed print, remote service automation, and anything-as-a-service (XaaS) subscription enablement, has entered into an international partnership with Global Document Lifecycle Solutions Integrator, @DOCS, an end-to-end provider for document, records, print and visitor management solutions.

As many as 3,000 Wagner fighters joined the Akhmat special forces of the 2nd Army Corps of the Russian Armed Forces. Their commander Ratibor gathers people who will carry out the "tasks of the state.” The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, reported on Telegram that one of the commanders of the Wagner Group with call sign Ratibor would join the Akhmat special forces and bring in 3,000 fighters along with him too. The agreement was reached as a result of negotiations between the deputy commander of the 2nd Army Corps of the Russian Armed Forces, Apta Alaudinov, and Wagner commander, Alexander Kuznetsov (Ratibor). The Russian Defence Ministry approved the initiative. Kadyrov spoke of Ratibor as "an old comrade with whom he had fought side by side before.”

A specialist logistics recruiter is celebrating, following its debut at industry trade show Multimodal. Innovate Freight Talent exhibited and also presented a key seminar on finding the best logistics talent for your business, at the UK’s leading supply chain conference and logistics expo at the NEC.

In the Chinese city of Zhuhai, a car rammed into a crowd of people near a sports center. The 62-year-old driver fled the scene of the accident but was later detained. The victims were hospitalized, China Daily said with reference to local authorities. WARNING: The videos are extremely graphic! Click here to see more photos and videos from the scene.

Added February 17, 2006:

Added September 28, 2006: The Discovery Institute selectively quotes Judge Jones' decision in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District in aid of its "bait and switch" claim of scientific evidence in support of intelligent design.

Paynetics, provider of embedded finance services, has entered into a strategic partnership with tell.money to implement the Confirmation of Payee (CoP) service. The collaboration ensures that Paynetics will take advantage of tell.money CoP service, allowing partners to embed financial services while staying fully CoP covered with minimal effort.

Dr. Neil Johnson, a physics professor at George Washington University, explores unconventional areas within physics, focusing on complex, "taboo" problems not traditionally tackled by physicists, like online hate networks.

As student absenteeism reaches record highs in schools across the United States, new research finds that student absences are linked to lower teacher job satisfaction, raising concerns that this may exacerbate growing teacher shortages.

After major refurbishments, the old Johannesburg Planetarium has been transformed into the state-of-the-art Wits Anglo American Digital Dome.

[Politics] :
Massive rallies by labor and civic groups are set to take place in Seoul on Saturday afternoon. The Federation of Korean Trade Unions(FKTU), one of the nation's two umbrella groups, staged a rally in Yeouido at 2 p.m., denouncing what it calls the government's "anti-labor policies." The other umbrella ...

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[Politics] :
Labor and civic groups held massive anti-government rallies in Seoul on Saturday afternoon. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), one of the nation's two umbrella groups, staged a rally along with civic groups starting at 4 p.m. near Deoksu Palace and some of the protesters clashed with ...

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[Inter-Korea] :
Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has derided South Korea over its refusal to respond to the North’s allegations of a drone incursion over its capital city earlier this month. In a statement carried by the North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) on Monday, ...

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[Inter-Korea] :
North Korea and Russia reportedly held a joint information technology(IT) exhibition in Pyongyang.  The North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) said Wednesday that the joint IT product exhibition opened the previous day at the Pyongyang Science and Technology Complex. The KCNA said the ...

[more...]

[Sports] :
The South Korean men's national football team is set to face Jordan in the third round of 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. The qualifying match between the national team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, and Jordan at Amman International Stadium is scheduled to begin at 11 p.m. Thursday, Korea time. While ...

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[Sports] :
South Korea defeated Jordan two-nil in its third round of 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers without captain Son Heung-min. The national football team, led by head coach Hong Myung-ho, beat Jordan at Amman International Stadium in the Jordanian capital on Thursday in their Group B match in the third round of ...

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[Science] :
South Korea and the United States will conduct joint studies related to the Artemis moon exploration program. According to the Korea AeroSpace Administration on Wednesday, it has signed a study agreement on the Artemis program with U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA). The agreement ...

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[Domestic] :
Singer Kim Ho-joong has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for crashing into a taxi with his car and fleeing the scene. The Seoul Central District Court issued the ruling on Wednesday, saying Kim drove under the influence of alcohol and caused injuries and material damage, yet irresponsibly ...

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Heavy machinery and power tools are effective aids for improving efficiency, but they can also lead to serious accidents and fatal work injuries. It's no stretch of the imagination, then, to see how jobs that rely on these resources often land on the list of most dangerous jobs in America.

Ah, the humble cup of joe — our reliable morning sidekick. It's hard to imagine a time when coffee didn't cost half your paycheck or come with a laundry list of milk options. But once upon a time, you could get a steaming mug for under a buck, no barista needed.

Archangel Jophiel, whose name means "Beauty of God," is said to emanate divine inspiration and wisdom, transforming negative emotions into positive energy. His energy encourages both inner and outer beauty, helping people cultivate not just physical grace but also a deeper sense of spiritual self.

Who doesn’t love a good laugh, especially when it’s shared with friends and family? Jokes for kids are not just a source of entertainment; they help children develop language skills, social connections and a sense of humor.

Telling dad jokes is a hallmark of fatherhood; those groan-worthy quips that somehow always seem to land, even if it’s just to elicit a chuckle or a sigh. They're simple, usually pun-filled, and often require little setup. The funniest dad jokes come with punchlines so obvious, you can’t help but laugh while rolling your eyes.

Start your week off right with NVee and DJ Hyerim in another exciting episode of I Feel You! Today, they’re spilling stories about everything from their school days and being the coolest aunts...

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[Economy] :
Global investment banks have slashed their growth outlook for South Korea for this year. According to the Korea Center for International Finance on Friday, the growth forecast by eight foreign investment banks averaged two-point-three percent at the end of October, representing a zero-point-two percentage ...

[more...]

[Economy] :
The nation added 83-thousand jobs in October, with job growth falling below 100-thousand for the first time in four months.  According to Statistics Korea on Wednesday, the number of employed people stood at 28-point-eight million last month, up 83-thousand from the same month last year. Job growth fell ...

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BGS joins new initiative supporting technical career paths  British Geological Survey

Several proteins from plant pathogenesis-related family 10 (PR10) are highly abundant in the latex of opium poppy and have recently been shown to play diverse and important roles in the biosynthesis of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids (BIAs). The recent determination of the first crystal structures of PR10-10 showed how large conformational changes in a surface loop and adjacent β-strand are coupled to the binding of BIA compounds to the central hydrophobic binding pocket. A more detailed analysis of these conformational changes is now reported to further clarify how ligand binding is coupled to the formation and cleavage of an intermolecular disulfide bond that is only sterically allowed when the BIA binding pocket is empty. To decouple ligand binding from disulfide-bond formation, each of the two highly conserved cysteine residues (Cys59 and Cys155) in PR10-10 was replaced with serine using site-directed mutagenesis. Crystal structures of the Cys59Ser mutant were determined in the presence of papaverine and in the absence of exogenous BIA compounds. A crystal structure of the Cys155Ser mutant was also determined in the absence of exogenous BIA compounds. All three of these crystal structures reveal conformations similar to that of wild-type PR10-10 with bound BIA compounds. In the absence of exogenous BIA compounds, the Cys59Ser and Cys155Ser mutants appear to bind an unidentified ligand or mixture of ligands that was presumably introduced during expression of the proteins in Escherichia coli. The analysis of conformational changes triggered by the binding of BIA compounds suggests a molecular mechanism coupling ligand binding to the disruption of an intermolecular disulfide bond. This mechanism may be involved in the regulation of biosynthetic reactions in plants and possibly other organisms.

JUAMI, the joint undertaking for an African materials institute, is a project to build collaborations and materials research capabilities between PhD researchers in Africa, the United States, and the world. Focusing on research-active universities in the East African countries of Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda, the effort has run a series of schools focused on materials for sustainable energy and materials for sustainable development. These bring together early-career researchers from Africa, the US, and beyond, for two weeks in a close-knit environment. The program includes lectures on cutting-edge research from internationally renowned speakers, highly interactive tutorial lectures on the science behind the research, also from internationally known researchers, and hands-on practicals and team-building exercises that culminate in group proposals from self-formed student teams. The schools have benefited more than 300 early-career students and led to proposals that have received funding and have led to research collaborations and educational non-profits. JUAMI continues and has an ongoing community of alumni who share resources and expertise, and is open to like-minded people who want to join and develop contacts and collaborations internationally.