Today: September 23, 2024
Today: September 23, 2024

World

World

How Europe is leading the world in the push to regulate AI

Authorities worldwide are racing to rein in artificial intelligence, including in the European Union, where groundbreaking legislation is set to pass a key hurdle Wednesday. European Parliament lawmakers are due to vote on the proposal — including controversial amendments on facial recognition — as it heads toward passage. A yearslong effort by Brussels to draw up guardrails for AI has taken on more urgency as rapid advances in chatbots like ChatGPT show the benefits the emerging technology can bring — and the new perils it poses. Here’s a look at the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act: HOW DO

June 14, 2023
How Europe is leading the world in the push to regulate AI
World

UK police hunt motive in Nottingham attack as friends mourn student athlete victims

Police worked Wednesday to piece together details of a knife and van attack that killed two 19-year-old students and another man in the English city of Nottingham, as friends and family remembered the two younger victims as talented athletes with a passion for life. Nottingham University students Barnaby Webber and Grace Kumar were stabbed to death in a street near student housing before dawn on Tuesday. Police say a 31-year-old suspect also killed a man in his 50s more than a mile (1.6 kilometers) away, stole his van and ran down a group of pedestrians. Three people

June 14, 2023
UK police hunt motive in Nottingham attack as friends mourn student athlete victims
World

South Korea sues rival North Korea for blowing up joint liaison office in 2020

South Korea filed a 44.7 billion won ($35 million) damage suit against North Korea on Wednesday for blowing up a joint liaison office just north of their border in 2020, which highlighted a revival of tensions between the rivals following the collapse of larger nuclear talks between the U.S. and North Korea. The symbolic lawsuit filed with the Seoul Central District Court comes amid a prolonged freeze in diplomacy and growing concerns over North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile programs. South Korea had until this Friday to claim damages, when a three-year statute of limitations

June 14, 2023
South Korea sues rival North Korea for blowing up joint liaison office in 2020
World

Silvio Berlusconi's polarizing force in Italy remains strong as his funeral is held in Milan

Silvio Berlusconi’s legacy — positive or negative — was being hotly debated among Italians as the nation prepared for a national day of mourning and a state funeral in Milan’s Gothic-era Duomo cathedral on Wednesday. Most Italians identify Berlusconi, a media mogul, soccer entrepreneur and three-time former premier, as the most influential figure in Italy over recent decades. But they remain sharply divided on whether his influence was for the better or worse. They are split over whether the three-time former premier merits all the fuss and ceremony. Berlusconi died at the age of 86 on Monday

June 14, 2023
Silvio Berlusconi's polarizing force in Italy remains strong as his funeral is held in Milan
World

Philippine volcano's eruption, which has displaced thousands, can last for months

A gentle eruption of the Philippines’ most active volcano that has forced nearly 18,000 people to flee to emergency shelters could last for months and create a protracted crisis, officials said Wednesday. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. flew to northeastern Albay province to reassure villagers who were forced to evacuate from mostly poor farming communities within a 6-kilometer (3.7-mile) radius of the Mayon volcano’s crater since volcanic activity spiked last week. Marcos distributed food packs and other aid to displaced villagers, and was expected to meet Albay town mayors later Wednesday to discuss the unfolding crisis. The

June 14, 2023
Philippine volcano's eruption, which has displaced thousands, can last for months
World

US beefs up campaign to ensure accurate animal welfare claims on meat, poultry packaging

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Wednesday it hopes to weed out false or misleading animal-welfare claims on meat and poultry packaging with new guidance and testing. The claims __ such as “pasture-raised,” “humanely raised,” and “raised without antibiotics” __ are increasingly popular with consumers and allow producers to charge a premium. Perdue “free range” chicken breasts with no antibiotics sell for $5.78 per pound at Walmart, for example; store brand chicken breasts without those claims sell for $2.79 per pound. Both meat producers and animal welfare advocates say the USDA isn’t adequately substantiating the claims or ensuring they meet

June 14, 2023
US beefs up campaign to ensure accurate animal welfare claims on meat, poultry packaging
World

Abortion rights protests planned across Poland after death of pregnant woman

Women’s rights advocates have called for protests in dozens of Polish cities on Wednesday under the slogan “Stop killing us,” after a woman in her fifth month of pregnancy died of sepsis, the latest such death since a tightening of Poland’s abortion law. The protests demanding a liberalization of the abortion law are scheduled to take place in the capital and nearly 50 other cities in the afternoon and evening. The 33-year-old woman died last month in the John Paul II hospital in Nowy Targ in southern Poland. It is a hospital in a deeply conservative

June 14, 2023
Abortion rights protests planned across Poland after death of pregnant woman
World

Russian court sends an associate of Kremlin foe Navalny to prison for 7 1/2 years

A court in Russia on Wednesday convicted an associate of imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny on extremism charges and sentenced her to 7 1/2 years in prison, the latest step in a yearslong crackdown by the Kremlin on opposition activists. Lilia Chanysheva, who used to head Navalny’s office in the Russian region of Bashkortostan, was found guilty of calling for extremism, forming an extremist group and founding an organization that violates rights. The charges against Chanysheva, who was arrested in November 2021, stem from a court ruling earlier that year that designated Navalny’s Foundation for Fighting

June 14, 2023
Russian court sends an associate of Kremlin foe Navalny to prison for 7 1/2 years
World

Wimbledon prize money up more than 11%, winners of singles to get $3M each

The total prize money at Wimbledon this year will rise by more than 11%, with the winners of the singles each getting 2.35 million pounds ($3 million). The total prize fund at the championships will be 44.7 million pounds ($56.5 million), the All England Club said Wednesday. That is an increase of 17.1% compared to 2019, the last Wimbledon before the pandemic. The earnings for the winners of the singles competitions are back to the levels they were in 2019. The prize for the singles champions had dipped to 1.7 million pounds in 2021, after the tournament

June 14, 2023
Wimbledon prize money up more than 11%, winners of singles to get $3M each
World

It’s almost time to resume student loan payments. Not doing so could cost you

After three years, the pandemic-era freeze on student loan payments will end soon. Student loan interest will start accruing on September 1 and payments are starting in October. It might seem tempting to just keep not making payments, but the consequences can be severe, including a hit to your credit score and exclusion from future aid and benefits. More than 40 million Americans will have to start making federal student loan payments again at the end of the summer under the terms of a debt ceiling deal approved by Congress. Millions are also waiting to find

June 14, 2023
It’s almost time to resume student loan payments. Not doing so could cost you
World

Google must break up digital ad business over competition concerns, European regulators say

European Union antitrust regulators took aim at Google’s lucrative digital advertising business in an unprecedented decision, saying Wednesday that the tech giant must sell off some of its ad business to address competition concerns. The European Commission, the bloc’s executive branch and top antitrust enforcer, said its preliminary view after an investigation is that “only the mandatory divestment by Google of part of its services” would satisfy the concerns. The 27-nation EU has led the global movement to crack down on Big Tech companies — including groundbreaking rules on artificial intelligence — but it has previously relied

June 14, 2023
Google must break up digital ad business over competition concerns, European regulators say
World

Indigenous community wins, then loses, path to reclaim ancestral rainforest land in Peru

A landmark ruling that an Indigenous community in the Peruvian Amazon could reclaim ancestral rainforests has been set aside by an appeals court in a move some legal experts called irregular. Kichwa tribes lived in the area of Cordillera Azul National Park for centuries before the park was founded in 2001 in what the Kichwa say was theft of their land. Major companies such as Shell and TotalEnergies have spent more than $80 million since then buying credits in the park to counter their carbon emissions. That money hasn’t helped the Puerto Franco community of Kichwa, who fell into food

June 14, 2023
Indigenous community wins, then loses, path to reclaim ancestral rainforest land in Peru
World

Vodafone, Three to merge UK mobile phone operations to capitalize on 5G rollout

Two of the U.K.’s four mobile phone operators agreed Wednesday to merge their businesses to capitalize on the rollout of next-generation 5G wireless technology in the country. The tie-up of Vodafone U.K. and Three U.K., which is owned by Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison, would create Britain’s biggest mobile phone player, with a combined 27 million customers. But the deal is likely to face stiff regulatory scrutiny because it will reduce the number of mobile networks down to three. Vodafone will account for 51% of the merged firm, with CK Hutchison owning the rest. Vodafone will have an

June 14, 2023
Vodafone, Three to merge UK mobile phone operations to capitalize on 5G rollout
World

What you should know as the Fed nears the peak of its rate-hiking cycle

The Federal Reserve’s likely decision Wednesday afternoon to leave interest rates alone for the first time in 11 meetings will raise hopes that it may be nearing the end of its rate-hiking campaign to cool inflation. That’s not to say the Fed is done raising rates. Most economists foresee another increase or two, starting as soon as next month. And even after the Fed has stopped hiking, it’s likely to keep borrowing rates at a peak for months to come. Consumers would still have to bear the weight of higher-cost auto loans, mortgages, credit cards and

June 14, 2023
What you should know as the Fed nears the peak of its rate-hiking cycle
World

Inflationary pressures continue to ease, producer prices drop 0.3%

Wholesale prices in the United States dropped 0.3% from April to May, another sign that inflationary pressures continue to ease in the face of repeated interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The Labor Department’s producer price index — which measures inflation before it reaches consumers — rose 1.1% last month from May 2022, it said Wednesday, the smallest year-over-year gain since Dec. 2020. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core wholesale inflation was up 0.2% last from April and 2.8% from a year earlier. Unleashed by an unexpectedly strong economic recovery from 2020’s COVID-19 recession,

June 14, 2023
Inflationary pressures continue to ease, producer prices drop 0.3%
World

German opposition party launches legal challenge to reform meant to shrink parliament

A German opposition party on Wednesday launched a legal challenge against an electoral reform designed to reduce the size of the country’s increasingly bloated parliament. The Barvarian center-right Christian Social Union is one of two opposition parties that have been vehemently critical of the legislation, which lawmakers approved in March, and see their future place in parliament at risk. They accuse Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party coalition of cobbling together constitutionally dubious rules to favor itself. The party’s general secretary, Martin Huber, said it has filed a complaint to Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court against the “undemocratic, anti-federalist, manipulative

June 14, 2023
German opposition party launches legal challenge to reform meant to shrink parliament
World

Reds prospect Elly De La Cruz still soaring after incredible big league debut

There may have been 30 people inside Kauffman Stadium on Tuesday with a view of the field, including a couple of workers who were busy hosing off seats hours before the game, yet all would occasionally turn to see where the ball landed when they heard the crack of the bat. Inside the cage, hat flipped backward a la Ken Griffey Jr. and with a left-handed swing nearly as sweet, was the hottest thing to hit baseball in quite some time. Elly De La Cruz pounded ropes into the stadium’s massive alleys and soared shots

June 14, 2023
Reds prospect Elly De La Cruz still soaring after incredible big league debut
World

AI chip race heats up as AMD introduces rival to Nvidia technology

Advanced Micro Devices has revealed a new artificial intelligence chip in its race to compete with rival chipmaker Nvidia in supplying the foundation for a boom in AI-fueled business tools. The semiconductor company, based in Santa Clara, California, described its new MI300X chip as “the world’s most advanced accelerator for generative AI.” It’s expected to attract interest from big cloud providers such as Amazon or Microsoft, but AMD hasn’t specified which cloud provider might use it. CFRA senior equity analyst Angelo Zino predicted this month that that AMD’s MI300 processor “will see significant interest from cloud

June 14, 2023
AI chip race heats up as AMD introduces rival to Nvidia technology
World

Southern Baptists refuse to let Saddleback Church back into the denomination for women pastors

The Southern Baptist Convention has refused to welcome Saddleback Church back into its fold, rejecting an appeal by the California megachurch over its February ouster for having women pastors. Southern Baptist church representatives at their annual meeting here also rejected a similar appeal by a smaller church, Fern Creek Baptist of Louisville, Kentucky, which is led by a woman pastor. The results of the Tuesday votes were announced Wednesday morning on the concluding day of the the two-day annual meeting here of the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, whose statement of faith asserts that only qualified men

June 14, 2023
Southern Baptists refuse to let Saddleback Church back into the denomination for women pastors
World

Pennsylvania using tons of recycled glass nuggets to rebuild collapsed Interstate 95

Pennsylvania will truck in 2,000 tons of lightweight glass nuggets to help quickly rebuild a collapsed section of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia and crews will work 24 hours a day until they can reopen the critical commercial artery, officials said Wednesday. By using the recycled glass to fill in the collapsed area, they’ll be able to avoid supply-chain delays for other materials, Gov. Josh Shapiro said. But Shapiro repeatedly declined to estimate how long it will take to get traffic flowing again on the busy East Coast highway. “We’re going to get this job done as quickly as possible,” Shapiro

June 14, 2023
Pennsylvania using tons of recycled glass nuggets to rebuild collapsed Interstate 95
World

Wisconsin governor vows to veto state budget if GOP cuts diversity dollars from university system

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said Wednesday in a newspaper report that he won’t sign the state budget if Republican lawmakers follow through on their plan to cut funding for the state university system’s diversity officers, escalating a bitter fight over dollars for the state campuses. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he wants to cut $32 million from the UW System in the state’s 2023-25 budget, an amount he said is equal to what the system spends on diversity officers. He said during a news conference Wednesday that diversity efforts have

June 14, 2023
Wisconsin governor vows to veto state budget if GOP cuts diversity dollars from university system
World

Kosovo says 3 border police officers 'kidnapped' by Serbia; Belgrade says they crossed illegally

Serbian authorities said Wednesday they have captured three “fully armed” Kosovo police officers inside Serbia near their mutual border, while Kosovo police said they have likely been “kidnapped” on Kosovo territory as they patrolled the area. The latest incident further raises tensions between Serbia and its former province. Serbia had put its troops on the border on the highest state of alert amid a series of recent clashes between Kosovo Serbs on one side, and Kosovo police and NATO-led peacekeepers on the other. Kosovo police said in a statement Wednesday that the three police officers called

June 14, 2023
Kosovo says 3 border police officers 'kidnapped' by Serbia; Belgrade says they crossed illegally
World

Agribusiness giant Cargill not doing enough to fight deforestation, protect human rights, group says

An activist group and researchers tried to increase pressure on agribusiness giant Cargill on Wednesday to do more to fight deforestation and human rights abuse, releasing a report that accuses the company of not following through on commitments to help end such practices. The report argues that the family-owned company has been misled by its managers and now should take the lead in ensuring it carries out its promises to fight forced child labor in the cocoa industry and protect forests and other natural resources. As one of the world’s largest privately held companies and by far the largest grain

June 14, 2023
Agribusiness giant Cargill not doing enough to fight deforestation, protect human rights, group says
World

Canadian quits Chinese-founded development bank, complains 'Communist Party hacks' dominate it

A Canadian public relations manager for a Chinese-founded development bank announced his resignation Wednesday in a statement that accused it of being dominated by “Communist Party hacks” and said Canada’s interests weren’t served by being a member. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank confirmed in an email that Bob Pickard resigned as its director general of global communications and rejected his criticism as unfounded. The AIIB, seen by some as a Chinese rival to the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, was founded in 2016 to finance railways and other infrastructure. It has 106 member governments including most

June 14, 2023
Canadian quits Chinese-founded development bank, complains 'Communist Party hacks' dominate it
World

In blow to Russian LGBTQ+ community, lawmakers weigh a bill banning gender transitioning procedures

Russian lawmakers gave initial approval Wednesday to a bill that would outlaw gender transitioning procedures in yet another blow to the country’s beleaguered LGBTQ+ community. Senior lawmaker Pyotr Tolstoy, who is among the bill’s sponsors, has said it is intended to “protect Russia with its cultural and family values and traditions and to stop the infiltration of the Western anti-family ideology.” Russia’s LGBTQ+ community has been under growing pressure for a decade as President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church embarked on a campaign to preserve what they deem the country’s “traditional values.” The bill

June 14, 2023
In blow to Russian LGBTQ+ community, lawmakers weigh a bill banning gender transitioning procedures

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