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The fishermen, led by Saligan, reported to the Philippine coast guard that Chinese coast guard personnel drove them away from the disputed Scarborough Shoal off the northwestern Philippines on Jan. 12 and ordered them to dump their catch of fish and seashells back to the sea. However, five Chinese coast guard personnel, three of them armed with steel batons, followed by boat, alighted on the islet and ordered the fishermen to leave. Go away,” Saligan said he told the Chinese coast guard personnel, who he said insisted that they leave the shoal immediately. They wanted us to return our catch to the sea,” Saligan told a small group of journalists, including from The Associated Press, in Manila. Philippine coast guard spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela said the written statements and video submitted by Saligan and his men have been validated as accurate by the coast guard.

Persons: Joely Saligan, Manila’s, Saligan, ” Saligan, “, Commodore Jay Tarriela, ” Tarriela, Tarriela, Thomas Shoal, Joeal Calupitan, Aaron Favila Organizations: Scarborough, The Associated Press, China, United, Associated Press Locations: MANILA, Philippines, China, Shanghai, Beijing, Manila, Washington, Philippine, Scarborough Shoal, South China, United States, Asia, U.S

☆ Politically motivated 'swatting' incidents reveal how common anti-government terrorism is becoming, expert warns
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

She told Business Insider that the increasing spate of swatting attempts is an intensification of anti-government extremism plaguing the country. An FBI report reviewed by CBS indicated there may be more than 500 recorded swatting calls nationwide since May of 2023. "These are tactics that terrorists have used in the past to disseminate chaos and fear with fake bomb threats — they're not new tactics," Ben-Ghiat told BI. "The thing about these threats is, whatever form they're taking, they normalize the idea of threatening public officials," Ben-Ghiat told BI. Advertisement"That's what Trump does 24/7, hammering the idea 'We're coming for you, don't resist, we're coming for you,'" referring to his administration and supporters, Ben-Ghiat told BI.

Persons: —, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Sen, Rick Scott of, Michelle Wu, Arthur Engoron —, Donald Trump —, Ruth Ben, Ghiat, Strongmen, Mussolini, they're, Ben, Trump, they'll, isn't, Andrew Thomas Finch, Casey Viner, Shane Gaskill, Gaskill, Viner, Tyler Barriss, Brian, he'd, Finch, Barriss, Donald Trump's, he's, Utah Sen, Mitt Romney, who've, autocrats, swatting, aren't, Liz Cheney, they've, that's Organizations: Service, Business, Georgia, Boston, New York University, FBI, CBS, Wichita, Gaskill, Republicans, Fifth, MSNBC, Trump, Ben, Wyoming, Republican Party, GOP Locations: Rick Scott of Florida, York, Utah, Ben

☆ The Lascivious, Decades-Long History Behind That Calvin Klein Ad
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-20 | by ( Soraya Roberts | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Calvin Klein has always trafficked in high and low — in classic all-American athleticism, shot through with an untethered primal lust. Some other Calvin Klein ads fail to have the same friction, the right wrongness. There are faintly fascistic undertones in the form Calvin Klein valorizes. (How surprising is it that Calvin Klein has worked with the estate of the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, who used his models to engage the viewer sexually?) ?” — as though a touch of discomfort isn’t precisely what creates a hit Calvin Klein ad.

Persons: “ I’m, I’m, ”, Calvin Klein, Brooke Shields, Mark Wahlberg —, Marky Mark, peekaboo, —, Justin Bieber, Jacob Elordi’s, Kate Moss’s, Calvin Klein valorizes, Leni Riefenstahl’s “, sleaze, Dominic Fike, Travis Fimmel, Robert Mapplethorpe, Wahlberg, Bieber, White, Jamie Dornan’s, Jeremy Allen, Ayo Edibiri, incredulously — Organizations: Stone, Golden Globe Locations: The, Chicago

☆ Opinion: We’ll finally get some answers from Iowa about Trump
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Richard Galant | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

It is a feat former President Donald Trump is trying to duplicate this year. The first true test of Trump’s comeback occurs Monday in Iowa, where caucusgoers will venture into sub-zero temperatures to choose between Trump, Florida Gov. After months of speculation, we’ll finally get some answers to a few questions: Is there an opening for any Republican aside from Trump? Most of our contributors thought Haley won Wednesday’s CNN debate in Iowa against DeSantis, but Trump’s absence from the stage again loomed large. “Haley sounded like someone looking to take on the genuine article — the Republican frontrunner,” wrote W. James Antle III.

Persons: George Washington’s, Grover Cleveland, ”, Troy Senik, Donald Trump, Cleveland, “, —, Republican frontrunner’s, Cleveland didn’t, Benjamin Harrison —, Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, we’ll, Will DeSantis, he’s, Haley, Wednesday’s, “ Haley, James Antle III, ’, ” Clay Jones, Chris Christie, Trump, ” Antle, who’s, Facebook Sophia, Nelson, “ Haley isn’t, Todd Graham, she’d, it’s, ” DeSantis, John Avlon, Laurence Tribe, Norman Eisen, Taylor Redd, Florence Pan, John Sauer, ” Bill Bramhall, Frida Ghitis, Ghitis, DeSantis, Julian Zelizer, Dean Obeidallah, Nikki Haley’s Lisa Benson, Peter Bergen, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, Biden, ” Walt Handelsman, Max, Drew Sheneman, Hassan Shahidi, Shahidi, Oprah, Oprah Winfrey, John Salangsang, Adrienne Bitar, WeightWatchers, couldn’t, Rose Blanchard, Sarah Gundle, Blanchard, Claudine ‘ Dee Dee ’ Blanchard, Gypsy Rose, ” Dee Dee, Gundle, Dee Dee Blanchard, Pope Francis, ” Jill Filipovic, Filipovic, Pope, ” Lloyd Austin’s, Lloyd Austin, Joe Biden, Austin, isn’t, Bill Bramhall, “ Oppenheimer, “ Barbie, “ Barbie ”, Gene Seymour, Oppenheimer, Emma Stone, ” Seymour, Don’t, Michael Bociurkiw, Ukraine Lanhee J, Chen, Noah Berlatsky, Belichick Bill Belichick, Vince Lombardi, Jeff Haynes, Bill Belichick, Will Leitch, Jeff Pearlman, Nick Saban, ” “ Belichick, Saban, ’ Pearlman, Lou Piniella, ‘ Organizations: CNN, University of Michigan, Cleveland, Republican, Trump, Trump , Florida Gov, Wednesday’s CNN, DeSantis, New, New Jersey Gov, Twitter, Facebook, Florida Gov, DC, Agency, Capitol, GOP, US, UK, Alaska Airlines, Boeing, Max, Portland International, Flight, Foundation, Golden Globe, Globes, Catholic, Biden, Warner Bros ., Academy, Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Belichick, New England Patriots, Reliant, Patriots, Carolina Panthers, Getty, Super, Football, NFL, Minor League NFL, University of Alabama, Schlitz, Seattle Mariners Locations: Cleveland, Iowa, Trump , Florida, Trump, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Graham, Houthi, Yemen, Red, “, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Bergen, Iran, Iraq, Iranian, Oregon, Beverly Hills , California, Ukraine, Houston , Texas, AFP, Swiss

☆ Past decade was the hottest on record as climate change ‘surged alarmingly,’ WMO reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Laura Paddison | Brandon Miller | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The decade between 2011 and 2020 was the hottest on record for the planet’s land and oceans as the rate of climate change “surged alarmingly,” according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization. This year is also expected to be the hottest year, after six straight months of record global temperatures. Scientists have said this year’s exceptional warmth is the result of the combined effects of El Niño and human-caused climate change, which is driven by planet-warming fossil fuel pollution. A separate analysis released Monday by the Global Carbon Project found that carbon pollution from fossil fuels is on track to set a new record in 2023 – 1.1% higher than 2022 levels. The WMO report comes partway through the UN-backed COP28 climate summit, on the day focused on energy and industry.

Persons: El, Petteri Taalas, ” Elena Manaenkova, Anupam Nath, –, ” Taalas, ”, Pierre Friedlingstein, Amy Cassidy Organizations: CNN, World Meteorological Organization, Global, Project, WMO, UN, EU, Copernicus, DG DEFIS, Reuters, El Niño, University of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute Locations: Dubai, India, China, US, EU, Mayong, Gauhati, Assam, Greater London, Antarctica, Paris, El, COP28

☆ Youth suicide rates rose 62% from 2007 to 2021: 'People feel hopeless,' one recent grad says
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Aditi Shrikant | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Last year, suicide rates in the U.S. were the highest they had been since 1941, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. From 2007 through 2021, suicide rates for Americans ages 10 to 24 rose 62%, according to the CDC. Young people don't think they can make 'a significant difference'Financial instability has proven to be a large contributing factor in youth suicide. In 2014 and 2015, suicide rates at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology surpassed the national average, which was about 13 deaths per year, according to CDC data. Easier access to guns is linked to increased suicide rates, as well, as gun suicides reached an all-time high in 2022, according to CDC data.

Persons: Young, Katie Meyer, Ian Alexander Jr, Regina King, Ellis Lariviere, Mariana Fabiana, —, Fabiana, Gen Z, ideation, Michele Berk, Berk, Bessel, Van der Kolk, Gen, Carl Fleischer, Fleischer, Nate Bronstein, it's, It's, Carl Fleisher, Jennifer Breheny Wallace, Wallace Organizations: Stanford University, Centers for Disease Control, North Carolina State University, Columbia University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT, CDC, Boston Child Study, Facebook, Harvard, Yale University, University of California Locations: Brooklyn , New York, U.S, Palo Alto , California, Los Angeles, Chicago

☆ Opinion: An anti-Muslim tirade inspires a beautiful response
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( Opinion Dean Obeidallah | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The former government official made vile anti-Muslim comments while jeering at the Egyptian food cart worker about the Israel-Hamas war with remarks such as, “If we killed 4,000 Palestinian children, you know what? Alarmingly, it appears one such horrific incident may have occurred on Saturday in Burlington, Vermont, when three Palestinian students were shot. Even before Seldowitiz was charged, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine said on social media: “This Islamophobic bigotry is absolutely reprehensible. As CBS New York reported, “what happened at the food cart has seemingly only brought people together.” One of the food cart workers, Bahaa Hassan, told CBS: “We have mostly Jewish customer in this building. Unbeknownst to us at the time, we filmed this video last weekend in the very neighborhood where Seldowitz had been taunting the Arab food cart worker.

Persons: Dean Obeidallah, Obama, Stuart Seldowitz, jeering, Seldowitz, “, Fayoume didn’t, Mohamed Hussein, Seldowitiz, Mark Levine, Bahaa Hassan, Stephanie Merabet, Max Brooks —, Facebook Max, Mel Brooks —, Abdul Organizations: CNN, CNN —, National Security, New York Police Department, Hamas, Defamation League, Cornell University, Islamic Relations, CAIR, ADC, CBS, East, Twitter, Facebook Locations: Manhattan, Israel, New York, Alarmingly, Burlington , Vermont, New York City, York, United States

☆ Mark Zuckerberg can kiss 'Hot Zuck Summer' goodbye. Instagram is now in full crisis mode.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

AdvertisementFor a few weeks in July, an uncanny phrase permeated the air that mildly pained some who typed it: "Hot Zuck Summer." And although "Hot Zuck Summer" might have been a lighthearted take on Zuckerberg, the latest scandal is anything but. On Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported the disturbing way that sexualized content of children was served to adults through Instagram's Reels. Those accounts were then recommended Reels for adult sexual content and sexualized child content, the Journal reported. "Hot Zuck Summer" has turned into "Instagram Nightmare Fall."

Persons: Instagram, —, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Zuckerberg, Frances Haugen, Meta, Sheryl Sandberg, Sandberg, Liza Crenshaw, Adam, Mosseri Organizations: Service, Elon, Street Journal, Canadian Centre for Child Protection, U.S, Walmart, Lean, Business, Meta, Facebook Locations: Massachusetts

☆ Opinion: Trump’s mental gaffes can’t be ignored
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Opinion Dean Obeidallah | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Longtime political analyst Larry Sabato was asked by CNN anchor Jim Acosta this weekend about former President Donald Trump’s increasingly frequent mental lapses. In response, Sabato told Acosta the truth: Trump’s supporters “don’t care” if he’s lost a step or two. They thought Bush because Bush supposedly was a military person — great.” He then added about Bush, “He got us into the Middle East. In that same speech, Trump also erred in telling the audience that Orban’s nation shared a border with Russia. Thank you very much.”The problem was that Trump was in Sioux City, Iowa — not in Sioux Falls, a city in South Dakota.

Persons: Dean Obeidallah, CNN —, Larry Sabato, Jim Acosta, Donald Trump’s, Barack Obama — alarmingly, Sabato, Acosta, “, he’s, Trump, ” Sabato, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Obama, ”, couldn’t, “ Hillary Clinton ’, Biden, Jeb Bush, George W, Bush, Viktor Orban, Viktor Orban —, He’s, ” Trump, Orban, Hungary, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Sen, Brad Zaun, Obama ”, — Obama, Florida Gov Ron DeSantis, Donald Trump, won’t, — Organizations: CNN, CNN — Longtime, White, Trump, Republican, “, South, GOP, Iowa Republican, Florida Gov, Democratic Locations: United States, South Carolina, Florida, Iraq, New Hampshire, Turkey, Russia, Hungary, Sioux, Sioux City , Iowa, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Iowa, Sioux City, Claremont , New Hampshire

☆ Opinion | Measuring Israel by the Just-War Yardstick
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( A. Walter Dorn | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +8 min

While Israel easily has just cause and constitutes a legitimate authority, its case is far weaker regarding the other five criteria. In addition, the fact that Hamas has violated these principles does not absolve Israel from an obligation to live up to higher moral standards. So the downside of Israel’s war outweighs any benefit. Israel can rightly claim that its ground invasion helps Israeli forces better distinguish Hamas fighters from civilians. Just-war theory reinforces the human instinct to not only preserve human life but also lament its loss, and to try to find solutions.

Persons: Israel’s, —, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Netanyahu’s, Israel, Abraham, Netanyahu, Hamas’s Organizations: Hamas, Criminal, United Nations Charter, Palestinian, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Abraham Accords, Civilian Locations: Gaza, Israel, The Hague, Oslo Accords, United States, Israeli, Lebanon, Syria, Saudi Arabia

☆ Google researchers deal a major blow to the theory AI is about to outsmart humans
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The race to build AI as smart as humans, or AGI, looks like it suffered a major blow. Google researchers found the transformer technology behind AI isn't very good at generalizing. AdvertisementAdvertisementGoogle researchers may have just given a major reality check to the ambitions of CEOs in chase of AI's holy grail. As it stands, AI is pretty good at specific tasks but less great at transferring skills across domains like humans do. AdvertisementAdvertisementTransformers' opacity and the scale of the data they're pretrained on gave some the illusion that they generalize beyond it.

Persons: —, Steve Yadlowsky, Nilesh Tripuraneni, they've, Pedro Domingos, AGI, Satya Nadella, Sam Altman, Arvind Narayanan, Jin Fan, G5mBuX6O36, Jim Fan, Domingos, it's, — Pedro Domingos, @pmddomingos, Sharon Zhou Organizations: Service, University of Washington, Microsoft, Nvidia, Google Locations: LLMs, Princeton, AGI

"Children ... have started to develop serious trauma symptoms such as convulsions, bed-wetting, fear, aggressive behaviour, nervousness, and not leaving their parents' sides," said Gaza psychiatrist Fadel Abu Heen. More than 4,100 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza so far, including more than 1,500 children, while 13,000 people have been injured according to the Palestinian health ministry. Conditions in makeshift shelters in United Nations schools, where more than 380,000 people are camped out in hope of escaping the bombardment, only compound the problem. They cry all night, they pee themselves without meaning to and I don't have time to clean up after them, one after the other," said Tahreer Tabash, a mother of six children sheltering in a school. A 2022 report by aid group Save the Children found the psychosocial wellbeing of children in Gaza at "alarmingly low levels" after 11 days of fighting in 2021, leaving half of all Gaza children in need of support.

Persons: Khan Younis, Mohammed Salem, Fadel Abu Heen, Tahreer Tabash, Tabash, Abu Heen, Ibrahim al, Agha, Nidal al, Angus McDowall, Crispian Balmer, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: United Nations, REUTERS, Israel Little, Hamas, Thomson Locations: Gaza, GAZA, U.N, Israel, Gaza City, Abo, wailed

☆ The days of rising interest rates could soon be over
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

What’s happening: US Treasury rates are white hot — 10-year Treasury yields are near their highest levels since 2007. It also means more expensive mortgage rates. Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on 10-year US Treasuries. When Treasury yields go up, so do mortgage rates; when they go down, mortgage rates tend to follow. US mortgage rates are at 23 year-highs, and home affordability is at its lowest level since 1984.

Persons: haven’t, Philip Jefferson, ” That’s, Lorie Logan, Raphael Bostic, ”, “, ” Bostic, Mary Daly, Bonds, What’s, Birkenstock, Elisabeth Buchwald, Megan Penick, Robinson, Rachel Ramirez, It’s, they’re Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, Federal Reserve, Fed, Financial, CME, Treasury, New York Federal Reserve, Federal Reserve Bank of New, Consumer, Dallas, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, American Bankers Association, San Francisco Fed, Index, PPI, CPI, New York Stock Exchange, Renaissance, Nature Communications Locations: New York, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovenia

☆ The climate crisis is coming for your hoppy beer
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Rachel Ramirez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

“One of the side motives of this study was to illustrate how climate change might be important for even those who think it doesn’t matter,” Trnka told CNN. Now, each of the basic ingredients of today’s beer — water, barley, yeast and hops – are threatened by global warming. Researchers used weather data and climate models to analyze how European hops have been and will be affected by climate change between 1970 and 2050, assuming precipitation decreases and temperature increases. Felix Kästle/picture alliance/Getty ImagesIn recent years, more consumers are preferring beer aromas and flavors that require higher-quality hops, according to the study. Since these hops are only grown in smaller regions, researchers say they’re put at even higher risk from climate change-fueled heat waves and droughts.

Persons: Miroslav Trnka, ” Trnka, “, Beer, I’m, ”, Douglass Miller, ” Miller, Felix Kästle, they’re, Mark Sorrells, Sorrells, Trnka, it’s Organizations: CNN, Nature Communications, Change Research, Cornell University, Cornell University’s School, Integrative Plant Locations: Germany, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Pacific Northwest

☆ Apple releases iOS update to fix overheating iPhone 15 Pro problems
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Apple released a fix for an issue that caused the new iPhone 15 to "run warmer than expected." Apple said the problem was a software issue and not related to the Pro's titanium frame. AdvertisementAdvertisementApple released a software update to fix a bug that caused the new iPhone 15 pro to overheat after some users complained the phone was getting too hot to handle. The iPhone 15 has proved popular since going on sale last month, with strong sales in China and queues at some Apple stores around the world. That's despite some Apple fans being dissatisfied with the fairly incremental changes from previous models, with some users branding the iPhone 15 "boring" and "underwhelming" on social media.

Persons: Apple, — Organizations: Apple, Service Locations: China

☆ NZ central bank holds rates, signals higher hurdle to further hikes; kiwi tumbles
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

View of an entrance to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in Wellington, New Zealand November 10, 2022. “Interest rates are constraining economic activity and reducing inflationary pressure as required,” the central bank said in a statement. The past RBNZ rate hikes have sharply slowed New Zealand’s economy but recent data showed it was tracking above central bank expectations at 0.9% quarterly growth. The central bank releases a comprehensive update of economic indicators and the forecast official cash rate track when it publishes its quarterly Monetary Policy Statement (MPS), which is due on Nov. 29. “The Bank appears content to wait for restrictive policy settings to fully feed through to the real economy,” analysts at Capital Economics in a note.

Persons: Lucy Craymer, ”, Kelly Eckhold, “ Organizations: WELLINGTON, Reuters, Reserve Bank of New, REUTERS, Bank of New Zealand, New Zealand, Westpac NZ, U.S . Federal Reserve, Capital Economics Locations: Reserve Bank of New Zealand, Wellington , New Zealand, Global, New Zealand

☆ Jamaal Bowman and Matt Gaetz Are Alarmingly Similar
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Gerard Baker | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Gerry Baker is Editor at Large of The Wall Street Journal. His weekly column for the editorial page, “Free Expression,” appears in The Wall Street Journal each Tuesday. Mr. Baker previously served as Editor in Chief of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones from 2013-2018. Prior to that, Mr. Baker was Deputy Editor in Chief of The Wall Street Journal from 2009-2013. He was educated at Corpus Christi College, Oxford University, where he graduated in 1983 with a 1st Class Honors Degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics.

Persons: Gerry Baker, ”, Baker, Dow Jones Organizations: Street, Fox Business Network, Street Journal, Dow, Financial Times, The, BBC, Corpus Christi College, Oxford University Locations: London

☆ Explainer: What you need to know about RSV and the new vaccines
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( Michael Erman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

That Pfizer (PFE.N) shot and one developed by GSK (GSK.L) in May became the first two RSV vaccines to win U.S. approval, for use in people aged 60 and over to prevent severe illness. Still, infants and older adults have a higher risk of developing severe RSV. RSV leads to 58,000 to 80,000 hospitalizations among children under age 5, and 60,000 to 160,000 hospitalizations among adults age 65 and older each year, according to the CDC. Early data suggests that the RSV shots are protective for at least two years, but it is not yet clear how often older adults will need to be revaccinated. Can I get the RSV shot alongside my COVID and flu shots?

Persons: Pfizer's, Synagis, it's, Jeffrey Duchin, you've, Michael Erman, Bhanvi, Caroline Humer, Bill Berkrot Organizations: . Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, Pfizer, GSK, CDC, FDA, Sanofi, AstraZeneca, Infectious Diseases Society of America, CVS, Humana, Thomson Locations: U.S, Aetna, New York, Bengaluru Edtiting

Polish leaders have compared Ukraine to a drowning person hurting his helper and threatened to expand a ban on food products from the war-torn country. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy suggested that EU allies that are prohibiting imports of his nation’s grain are helping Russia. All the EU countries will keep allowing Ukrainian products to move through their borders to world markets. Russia dealt a huge blow by withdrawing in July from a wartime agreement that ensured safe passage for Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea. Ukraine also threatened this week to ban some Polish food items, but appeared to back off that.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, “ Alarmingly, they’re, ” Zelenskyy, Pawel, “, Vasyl Zvarych, Jablonski “, Andrzej Duda, Mateusz Morawiecki, ” Morawiecki, Nikolai Denkov, Veselin Toshkov Organizations: Union, EU, World Trade Organization, General, Polish Foreign Ministry, Law, Justice, Croatia, Kyiv, General Assembly, Russia, Confederation, Polsat, Russia Socialist Locations: WARSAW, Poland, Kyiv, Warsaw, Russia, Ukraine, Europe, Moscow, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia, New York, EU, Ukrainian, Bulgaria, Sofia

☆ Solenopsis invicta: Red fire ants, an invasive species with a painful sting, have spread to Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The red fire ant, one of the world’s most invasive species, has been found in Europe for the first time, according to a new study. Institut de Biologia EvolutivaResearchers said they had identified 88 red fire ant nests spread over 5 hectaresnear the city of Syracuse in Sicily, Italy. While red fire ants had been discovered in imported products in Spain, Finland andthe Netherlands, a colony had never been confirmed before this study, theauthors said. The study suggested that wind could have transported flying queen ants fromthe northwest of Syracuse, where the commercial port is located. Genetic analysis of the ants revealed that they had most likely spread from the United States or China, where Solenopsis invicta is also an invasive species.

Persons: Evolutiva, “, alarmingly, ”, Mattia Menchetti, ” Menchetti, Paris — Organizations: CNN, invicta, Institut, of Evolutionary, Solenopsis invicta, Paris, United Locations: Europe, South America, United States, Mexico, Caribbean, China, Australia, Syracuse, Sicily, Italy, Spain, Finland, Netherlands, Barcelona, Rome, London, United Nations

☆ Burning Man attendees are expected to 'leave no trace,' but people fleeing the mud and rain left abandoned vehicles, furniture, tents, and trash
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Ed Komenda | Gabe Stern | Scott Sonner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Burning Man attendees are returning home and local businesses are having to manage leftover mess. Burning Man organizers did not immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press about how the rain will impact the cleanup timeline. Next month, teams made up of federal employees and Burning Man organizers will again conduct a site inspection. Nevada U.S. Rep. Mark Amodei, whose district includes the Black Rock Desert, said Burning Man is a positive event for the area. AdvertisementAdvertisementStill, Amodei said, Burning Man organizers have been good partners and have cleaned up after themselves in past years, as their event permit requires.

Persons: Eleonora Segreti, Jeffrey Longoria, San Francisco, Longoria, Scott Sonner, John Asselin, Asselin, Mark Amodei, Amodei, Cliff Osborne, Andy Barron, Osborne, Alexander Elmendorf, Sonner, Stern, Rio Yamat, Ken Ritter Organizations: Service, Rock City, Tahoe, Walmart, U.S . Bureau of Land Management, Burning, Associated Press, AP, BLM, Man, Sierra, Nevada U.S . Rep, America Statehouse News Initiative, America Locations: Wall, Silicon, Nev, Nevada, San Francisco, Reno , Nevada, Reno, Italy, Tacoma , Washington, Las Vegas

Political Cartoons View All 1146 ImagesEleonora Segreti, who lives in central Italy and made her second visit this year to Burning Man, left the site early Tuesday. Burning Man organizers did not immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press about how the rain will impact the cleanup timeline. Last year, after the festival’s return following a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the Burning Man team narrowly passed its Oct. 7 inspection. Next month, teams made up of federal employees and Burning Man organizers will again conduct a site inspection. Nevada U.S. Rep. Mark Amodei, whose district includes Black Rock Desert, said Burning Man is a positive event for the area.

Persons: Eleonora Segreti, ”, Jeffrey Longoria, San Francisco, Longoria, “, John Asselin, Asselin, Mark Amodei, Amodei, That’s, ” Amodei, Alexander Elmendorf, ___ Sonner, Stern, Rio Organizations: Rock City, Tahoe, Walmart, U.S . Bureau of Land Management, Burning, Associated Press, BLM, Man, Nevada U.S . Rep, America Statehouse News Initiative, America Locations: RENO, Nev, Nevada, San Francisco, Reno , Nevada, Reno, Italy, Black, Tacoma, Las Vegas

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The humanitarian situation in conflict-wracked eastern Congo has deteriorated alarmingly in the past 18 months with 8 million people in urgent need of assistance and women and girls subjected to sexual violence on a massive scale -- just in three provinces, a senior U.N. official said Tuesday. M23 rose to prominence in 2012 when its fighters seized Goma, eastern Congo’s largest city on the border with Rwanda. Recently, attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces, which is believed to have ties to the Islamic State extremist group, have also spiked along with intercommunal violence. The scale of suffering and insufficient funding have left humanitarian workers in the impossible situation every day of deciding whether to prioritize water, shelter or medical support for the constant stream of newly displaced people. And one result of the overwhelming needs is that thousands and thousands of children aren’t able to go to school, she said.

Persons: Edem Wosornu, “, ”, Wosornu, Gabriella Waaijman, and.one, aren’t, Waaijman, ” Waaijman Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, Allied Democratic Forces, State, London, International Locations: Congo, U.N, North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, Rwanda, Goma, Congo’s

☆ To Experience Paris Up Close and Personal, Plunge Into a Public Pool
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( Catherine Porter | More About Catherine Porter | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Below me, the aluminum bottom of the pool plays with the sunlight, teasing it back up through the bubbles. The pool windows offer an unobstructed, third-story view. Swimming in Paris is a full-on cultural experience. Many public pools don’t just feel like historical monuments, they are historical monuments. Backstroking beneath the buttresses stretching across the vaulted ceiling of the 99-year-old Butte-aux-Cailles pool feels like backstroking through a cathedral.

Locations: Paris

☆ Here's everything you need to know about ChatGPT, the chatbot everyone's still talking about
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-19 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

ChatGPT has drawn users at a feverish pace and spurred Big Tech to release other AI chatbots. But ChatGPT, the latest in technology known as "large language model tools," doesn't speak with sentience and doesn't "think" the way people do. Other tech companies like Google and Meta have developed their own large language model tools, which use programs that take in human prompts and devise sophisticated responses. Other researchers seem to be taking more measured approaches with generative AI tools. He told Insider he's helping to experiment with a chat bot called "Rentervention," which is meant to support tenants.

Persons: ChatGPT, Here's, what's, OpenAI, Matthew Sag, Koko, Rob Morris, Daniel Linna Jr, he's, Linna Organizations: Big Tech, Microsoft, Emory University, Google, Northwestern University, Committee, Better, Princeton

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