DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Dubai photographer reveals the UAE’s hidden wildlife
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Arya Jyothi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —In a country best known for its soaring skyscrapers, modern architecture and sprawling desert, wildlife isn’t always what comes to mind when people think of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Originally from India, Karingattil moved to Dubai 17 years ago and began photographing wildlife shortly after, specializing in macro photography, using extreme close ups. With the UAE’s president recently extending the country’s “Year of Sustainability” into 2024, Karingattil uses wildlife photography as a method of capturing the country’s biodiversity and sharing it with others. For Karingattil, conservation is an important aspect of wildlife photography, which he believes can serve as a powerful tool for advocacy. “By removing litter and debris, we can reduce the impact of human activities on the natural world.”

Persons: Anish Karingattil, Karingattil, ” Karingattil, “, ”, Herping, Andrew Gardner, Gardner, couldn't, Anish Karingattil Gardner Organizations: CNN, United Arab Emirates, “, Sustainability ”, Accounting, Biodiversity Conservation, Emirates Nature, Biological Diversity, Emirates Locations: UAE, Dubai, India, Emirates, dugongs, Australia

☆ He’s visited every corner of the Earth. Now he wants to try a very different challenge
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Richard Collett | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Standing on the South Pole at the start of the year with the wind whipping across the Antarctic, travel blogger Johnny Ward felt a surge of relief. Years before, in 2017, he’d become the first Irish person to visit every country in the world. Life goalIrish explorer Johnny Ward has climbed the seven summits, reached the North and South poles, and visited every country in the world. And originally I thought the freest you can be is to visit every country,” he said. Costly challengeWard cycling in south east Asia while completing the epic challenge of visiting every country in the world.

Persons: Johnny Ward, he’d, Ward, Johnny Ward “, ” Ward, ”, “, who’ve, Mount, didn’t, wasn’t, “ I’m, He’s, Mariana Trench Organizations: CNN, CNN Travel, UN, Antarctic, ” Locations: Thailand, Palestinian, Taiwan, Kosovo, Oman, Socotra, Yemen, Cairo, Cape Town, South Korea, Australia, Denali, Asia, Galway, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Spain, Florida, New York, Mauritania, Africa

☆ ‘From the Ashes’ exhibition is helping Indigenous communities in the Amazon Rainforest
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Arya Jyothi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The rest of it goes to the Indigenous Xingu community, primarily for firefighting equipment,” he said. Aislan Pankararu, Courtesy of Migrate Art and Christie'sThe Amazon rainforest, which is crucial for trapping and storing carbon emissions, is facing a tipping point by 2050 that could have devastating consequences. According to the non-profit Amazon Aid, the primary driver of wildfires in the Amazon rainforest is deforestation for agriculture, logging, and other economic opportunities. Butler visited the Amazon rainforest and its Indigenous Xingu communities two years ago. The collection also includes works made by members of the Indigenous community, such as three paintings by Kamo Waurá, a village shaman.

Persons: CNN —, Sarah Ball, Simon Butler, ”, they’re, Aislan Pankararu, Takumã, Butler, Piers Secunda, Takumā, Christie's, Kamo Waurá, “, ” Secunda Organizations: CNN, London’s Truman, Amazon Aid Locations: British, Brazil, London’s, London, Northeast Brazil, Iraqi Kurdistan

☆ The least-visited national parks in the United States in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Marnie Hunter | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The state of Alaska — which covers 665,384 square miles (426 million acres) — is home to five of the 15 least-visited national parks for 2023. Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve, Alaska - 78,305 recreation visitsAmerica’s largest national park, Wrangell-St. Elias encompasses 13.2 million acres — or about the size of Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park and Switzerland combined, the Park Service says. Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida - 84,285 recreation visitsThis island park in Florida is among 20 National Park Service sites that broke visitation records in 2023. Channel Islands National Park, California - 328,746 recreation visitsStretching over five islands and the surrounding ocean, Channel Islands National Park offer opportunities to hike, snorkel, kayak, birdwatch and more. While Pinnacles may rank among the 15 least-visited national parks, it gets very busy on weekends, holidays and throughout the spring, according to a notice on the park’s website.

Persons: Alaska’s Gates, “, ” Peter Christian, fa’asamoa, Gates, ”, Katmai, Brooks Camp, Elias, Lumir, Nabesna, McCarthy Organizations: CNN, &, CNN Travel, of, Park Service, National Parks, & Preserve, South Pacific, Hawaiian Airlines, Lake Clark, National Park Service, Getty, Isle Royale, NPS, Wolves, Elias, Park & Preserve, Yosemite National, Voyageurs National, Voyageurs National Park, ” Voyageurs, Voyageurs, Service, Channel Locations: Alaska’s, Fairbanks, Alaska, of American Samoa, South, Samoa, Smoky, Wild Rivers, American Samoa, Honolulu, , Alaska, Isle, Lake Superior, Isle Royale, Park , Michigan, Brooks, , Washington, Wrangell, St, Elias, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Switzerland, , Florida, Florida, Key, Fort Jefferson, , Nevada, Minnesota, Voyageurs National Park , Minnesota, Canada, Guadalupe, Park , Texas, Texas, Salt, , South Carolina, South Carolina, Congaree, There’s, Santa Cruz, , California, Southern California

☆ Opinion: ‘Dune: Part Two’ falls into a familiar – and telling – trap
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

His hero, Paul Atreides, is filled with doubts about his role as a Messianic leader and director of colonial conquest. (The distributor of “Dune” and “Dune: Part Two” shares a parent company, Warner Bros. So in the movie, it’s not just Paul who sees problems with his colonial power. Timothée Chalamet in "Dune: Part Two" Warner Bros. PicturesIn the book, Chani is mostly supportive of Paul, with few reservations. Paul feels bad for being the destined one; Herbert and Villeneuve, to varying degrees, seem to regret making Paul the destined one.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, CNN — Frank Herbert’s, revel, Whitey, Edgar Rice Burroughs, James Fenimore Cooper, Rider Haggard, Herbert, Paul Atreides, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky Denis Villeneuve’s, ”, Villeneuve, he’s, Paul, Timothée, Atreides, Paul’s, Leto Atreides, Oscar Isaac, Arrakis, Emperor, Christopher Walken, Baron Harkonnen, Stellan, Leto, Jessica, Rebecca Ferguson, Natty Bumppo, it’s, Chani, Tasha Suri’s “, Ambha, Sriduangkaew’s, Thompson’s, Suri, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Paul doesn’t, “ Organizations: CNN, Warner Bros, Pictures Locations: Chicago, swash, Vietnam

☆ Girls to the Front: Olivia Rodrigo’s Fans Show Up in Force
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Ok Mccausland | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Olivia Rodrigo shot to pop stardom pretty much overnight: Her first single, “Drivers License,” rocketed to No. 1 in January 2021 while most of the world was still in coronavirus lockdown, making her the youngest artist to debut atop Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. In April of the following year, she finally brought her songs to life onstage with her punky Sour Tour, which played theaters, though she could have easily sold out arenas. Now she has done just that: Her tour supporting her second album, the cathartic, rock-oriented LP “Guts,” kicked off last Friday night at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, Calif., with a performance “advertising the power of girlhood,” The Times pop music critic Jon Caramanica wrote in his review. The venue, and its parking lot, was filled with young women ready to receive the message.

Persons: Olivia Rodrigo, rocketed, ”, Jon Caramanica Organizations: Acrisure Locations: Palm Desert, Calif

☆ I've visited 39 US national parks. If I had to recommend just one, it'd be this unique spot with a brewery and bathhouses.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Kara Williams | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

After visiting 39 US national parks, one stands out as the most unique I've been to. Unlike many national parks, Hot Springs National Park is set in the middle of an Arkansas city. This park features a row of historic bathhouses and the only brewery located in a US national park. AdvertisementWhen thinking of national parks, many people imagine vast tracts of land and scenic drives through awe-inspiring mountain, forest, or desert scenery. Hot Springs National Park, on the other hand, is the country's second smallest national park and is set right in the middle of a small Midwest city.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, Business Locations: Arkansas, Midwest

☆ Why Zelensky’s plea will fall on many deaf Republican ears
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

CNN —There is a simple reason why many Republicans will snub Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s desperate plea for billions of dollars in arms and ammunition. He told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in an interview in Kyiv Sunday that Republicans such as Trump ally Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance – who have been speaking out against more Ukraine aid – do not comprehend the stakes of the conflict. How Trump transformed the GOPThe Ukraine war funding showdown highlights how America’s domestic politics are already reverberating around the globe. The splits in the GOP over Ukraine were exposed last week when 26 Senate Republicans voted against the bill containing Israel and Ukraine aid while 22 backed it.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky’s, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, It’s, Zelensky, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Ohio Sen, J.D, Vance –, –, ” Zelensky, Trump, Mitch McConnell, Vladimir Putin, Putin –, III, Biden –, Putin, Alexey Navalny, Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H.W, Bush, Matt Gaetz, ” Trump, Mike Johnson –, Biden, Johnson, ” Jake Sullivan, CNN’s Dana, •, • There’s, Vance, ” Vance, ’ ”, ” Zelensky –, CNN’s Collins, Avdiivka –, he’s Organizations: CNN, America, Republican, Kyiv Sunday, Trump, Ohio, GOP, NATO, Party, Trump Republicans, Conservative Political, Florida, Ukraine, White, Ukraine –, Munich, Conference, Republicans Locations: Europe, Russia, United States, Ukraine, Kyiv, Soviet, Washington, America, Mexico, “ State, South Carolina, European, China, Taiwan, Avdiivka, Israel, There’s

☆ Tourists are paddle boarding and frolicking in one of Earth's driest locations after record rains
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( Lauren Edmonds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewHeavy rainfall created a temporary lake in Death Valley National Park, one of Earth's driest locations, prompting travelers to take a potentially once-in-a-lifetime swim. The unexpected phenomenon began earlier this week at Death Valley's Badwater Basin after recent rainstorms battered California. Tourists wading through Death Valley's temporary lake. Tourists paddle boarding and wading in Death Valley's temporary lake. Two tourists sit beside Death Valley's temporary lake.

Persons: —, Ty ONeil, Andler, DAVID SWANSON, Heather, Bob Gang, Heather Gang, Guo Yu, hydrometeorology, Tiffany Pereira Organizations: Service, Lake Manly, National Park Services, Business, Associated Press, AP, Tourists, Research, Getty Locations: Death, California, Badwater, Lake, Lake Manley, Southern California

☆ Onstage, a Feisty Olivia Rodrigo Tests Out Life After Girlhood
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-24 | by ( Jon Caramanica | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

As a pop star, Olivia Rodrigo wields a rather unusual arsenal of weapons. In just three years, she has achieved something approaching stratospheric fame — a four-times platinum debut album and a Grammy for best new artist — while somehow remaining an underdog. It’s in plenty of other places, too, giving her anguished entreaties an extra splash of zest. On Friday night at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, Calif., during the opening performance of the Guts World Tour, Rodrigo couldn’t get enough of that word. But mostly she used it casually, in between-song banter, not because she needed to, but because using it felt like getting away with something.

Persons: Olivia Rodrigo, —, ”, Rodrigo couldn’t, connote Organizations: Acrisure Locations: Palm Desert, Calif

☆ I've lent people more than $63 million to buy homes and start businesses: 'If you see a problem, fix the problem'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-24 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Today, I'm the owner of a barber shop and the founder of the Washington Barber College. Courtesy of Story SyndicateI took $500 from the check and put it down on a rental space for a barber shop. I later purchased another barber shop, and with the profits from that business, bought an additional shop that was going out of business. AdvertisementThe People Trust Community Loan Fund. We would also pick up homeless individuals and bring them to the barber shop to provide haircuts.

Persons: Arlo Washington, —, Oscar, Barber, it's, Syndicate I'm, we've, We've, Mr, We're, Little, I've, It's Organizations: Service, Washington, Washington Barber College, Syndicate, People Trust Loan Fund, People Trust, Federal Credit Union, University of Arkansas, Little, Trust Community Loan Fund, Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, The Treasury Department, Trust Loan, People Trust Loan, Depository Institution Locations: Little Rock , Arkansas, Local, Washington, Arkansas, Little, Central Arkansas, Little Rock, Rock, Wrightsville , Arkansas

☆ ‘Mom, You’re Not Grunge Enough’: Olivia Rodrigo Fans Thrash in the Desert
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-24 | by ( Callie Holtermann | Molly Matalon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

On Friday, just outside Palm Springs, Calif., you might have thought a strange mirage had appeared: One or two zillion tweens descended upon an arena, all wearing platform Doc Martens. Had some official communiqué been issued, at a frequency undetectable to those older than 25? Had everyone been subconsciously nudged to pair boots with fishnets and leg warmers? No one seemed to care that it was hot out. What did matter was that the boots, punky symbols of past musical rebellions, were central to the unofficial-but-conspicuously-official uniform of Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour, which began that night.

Persons: tweens, Doc Martens, communiqué, Olivia Rodrigo’s Locations: Palm Springs, Calif

☆ He thought the guy he met on vacation was just a fling. He turned out to be the love of his life
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Francesca Street | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +21 min

Guillermo was looking forward to meeting Larry, expecting “some casual fun.”Then, when Guillermo and Larry met, there was “chemistry” right away. “Palm Springs had seats, so I booked my standby flight, got to Palm Springs, checked into this resort. Then, a few days after meeting Larry, Guillermo got an unexpected phone call from his mother in Costa Rica. Guillermo’s love of flying meant that, for him, the four-hour journey across the country was part of the fun. The last piece of the puzzleGuillermo and Larry love to travel together, here they are in Florence, Italy.

Persons: Guillermo Barrantes, Larry Mock, ” Guillermo, Guillermo, wasn’t, “, –, ”, Larry, Guillermo swiped, who’d, Larry’s workdays, he’d, – Guillermo, ‘, ’ ” Guillermo, Guillermo’s, compartmentalize, Guillermo Barrantes “, confiding, ’ ”, Larry . Long, Guillermo “, ” Larry, “ Love, Guillermo didn’t, peppering, Larry – who’d, they’d, Adele, hadn’t, Guillermo wasn’t, don’t, didn’t, Larry’s, Here's Guillermo, Heather Thompson, ” “, Rihanna, Larry –, sipped, they’ve Organizations: CNN, CNN Travel, American Airlines, “, Palm, Logan Airport, Dallas, San, Dallas Arboretum Locations: Palm Springs, California, Boston , Massachusetts, Texas, Palm, Dallas , Texas, Springs, Costa Rica, Boston, Dallas, Boston’s, Logan, Guillermo’s city, Delta, San Francisco, Hawaii, Florence, Italy

☆ I never expected to meet my husband while working at a restaurant together post-college. It was surprisingly romantic.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Saba Khonsari | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The last thing I expected after graduating from college and moving back home with my parents was to find my soulmate. I took a job waiting tables at a local Tex-Mex restaurant while I killed time applying to the Peace Corps. At my first mandatory all-staff meeting, the general manager commented how many people meet their future spouses working at that very restaurant. AdvertisementBen and I have now built a happy life togetherLess than two years after we started working together, we married. Our eldest took her first step before her aunt's rehearsal dinner —held at the same restaurant where Ben and I met.

Persons: Noble, Benjamin, he'd, margarita, Keanu Reeves, Ben Organizations: Service, Peace Corps, Barnes, Business, San, Ben, Corps Locations: Mex, San Juan, Luis, upsell, guacamole, expats, Europe

☆ In This Heroes’ Tale, Real People Risk Their Lives to Get to Europe
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Elisabetta Povoledo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At the end of “Io Capitano” (“I Captain”), Matteo Garrone’s harrowing contender for best international film at next month’s Academy Awards, a map tracks the journey taken by the film’s two teenage protagonists: over 3,500 miles from Dakar, Senegal, to Sicily, via the scorching Nigerien desert, horrific Libyan prisons and a nerve-racking Mediterranean crossing aboard a rickety vessel. Such perilous voyages, taken each year by countless Africans seeking a new life in Europe, is “one of the great dramas of our times,” Garrone said in a recent interview, and “Io Capitano” is framed as an epic, modern-day Odyssey, with protagonists no less valiant than Homer’s hero. “It’s a journey that’s an archetype so that anyone can identify with it,” said Garrone, who is best known to international audiences for the hyper-realistic 2008 drama “Gomorrah” and his dark and fantastical “Pinocchio” (2019). “Io Capitano” is also, he said, a “document of contemporary history.” This month alone, over 2,000 people reached European shores by crossing the Mediterranean, while at least 74 died, bringing the number of people who have gone missing in that sea in the last decade to more than 29,000, according to the International Organization for Migration, a United Nations agency.

Persons: ”, Matteo Garrone’s, ” Garrone, “, Garrone Organizations: month’s, International Organization for Migration, United Locations: Dakar, Senegal, Sicily, Europe, United Nations

☆ Copa Libertadores: Bolivian and Peruvian soccer teams set record after playing match at 4,150m altitude
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Matias Grez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Standing 4,150 meters (more than 13,500 feet) above sea level, it is one of highest soccer stadiums in the world. And on Tuesday, Bolivian team Always Ready and Peruvian side Sporting Cristal set a new record for the highest match ever played in the Copa Libertadores, South America’s equivalent of the Champions League. “We must clarify something: playing at this altitude is very difficult,” Cristal head coach Enderson Moreira said after the match, per El Comercio. “We played in a complicated stadium, it is perhaps the game that Cristal has played at the highest altitude, but there are no excuses,” Cristal star Yoshimar Yotún told El Comercio. Always Ready beat Sporting Cristal 6-1 at high altitude.

Persons: Estadio Daniel Alcides Carrión, Cristal, “, ” Cristal, Enderson Moreira, Cristal’s, ”, Yoshimar Yotún, El, Raldes, Estadio Hernando Siles, Alberto Gallardo, Moreira Organizations: CNN, El, Bolivian, Peruvian, Sporting Cristal, Copa Libertadores, Champions League, Spanish, AS, Estadio, El Comercio, Libertadores, Bolivian national, El Alto Locations: Bolivian, El Alto, Peruvian, Cerro de Pasco, El Comercio, Lima, AFP, La Paz, El

☆ Getting the chance to play at The Masters isn’t easy. Just ask LIV Golf’s Joaquin Niemann
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

It’s the final two sets of criteria that are most pertinent for Niemann and LIV Golf players. Though exact criteria differs between the four major championships, all incorporate world ranking points as a viable qualifier. Why is that an issue for some LIV Golf players? Mike Ehrmann/Getty ImagesHow are LIV Golf players making it to the majors? Meanwhile LIV Golf players without such past glories to stamp their tickets to major championships are, like Niemann, crossing the globe in pursuit of alternative routes in.

Persons: LIV, LIV Golf’s Joaquin Niemann, Tiger Woods, Jon Rahm, Ross Kinnaird, Nick Dunlap –, –, Niemann, It’s, Greg Norman, Gary Davidson, Peter Dawson, LIV Golf, ” Dawson, OWGR, Tom Dulat, “ It’s, it’s, ” Niemann, “, ”, don’t, Mike Ehrmann, Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune, Fred Ridley, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Rahm, Mike Blake, Reuters Rahm, Koepka, Cameron Smith, Adrian Meronk, Tyrell Hatton, Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, DeChambeau, Reed, Dean Burmester, David Puig jetted, Burmester, December’s Organizations: CNN, PGA, Augusta National, PGA Championship, British, Amateur, American Express, LIV Golf, LIV, OWGR, Hero Dubai, CBS, Golf, Augusta, Reuters, 152nd, Puig, Malaysian, Royal Locations: Augusta, Asia, Pacific, America, Saudi, Dubai, Chilean, South Africa, Malaysia, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, Scotland

☆ Universe’s brightest known object and fastest-growing black hole revealed
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Astronomers have spotted the brightest known object in the universe, and it’s a quasar powered by the fastest-growing black hole on record, according to a new study. The black hole powering the quasar devours the equivalent of one sun per day and has a mass about 17 billion times that of our sun, the researchers found. A black hole is massive power sourceThe intense gravitational influence of black holes draws matter toward these celestial objects in such an energetic way that the process creates light. The blinding radiation is due to the black hole’s accretion disk, or the ring around the black hole where material gathers before being consumed. The team followed up with observations from the powerful Very Large Telescope in Chile’s Atacama Desert to confirm details about the black hole, including its hefty mass.

Persons: ”, Christian Wolf, ” Wolf, Samuel Lai, Wolf, Southern Observatory’s Schmidt, Christopher Onken Organizations: CNN —, Southern, National University’s College of Science, National University’s Research, of Astronomy, Astrophysics, Hubble, Southern Observatory’s, Sky Survey, Sky, Dark Energy Survey, Energy Survey, ESO Locations: Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Atacama

☆ Sexual assaults carried out ‘systematically’ during Hamas attack, Israeli report says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Lauren Izso | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Israeli civilians suffered “brutal sexual assaults” that were carried out “systematically and deliberately” during Hamas’ October 7 attacks, according to a report published by the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel (ARCCI) on Wednesday. When most of the victims of sexual assaults are murdered, we have a moral and humanitarian obligation to amplify their silent cry,” the report said. According to evidence collected by the ARCCI, men, women, and children were all victims of gruesome sexual abuse on October 7. It is the only organization in Israel whose main aim is to combat sexual violence, according to its website. The allegations include extrajudicial killing, arbitrary detention, degrading treatment, rape and sexual violence, according to a statement by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Persons: ”, “, Orit Sulitzeanu Organizations: CNN, Association, Nova, UN, United, Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, West Bank, Human Rights, Israel Defense Forces Locations: Israel, Gaza, United Nations

☆ Saudi Arabia is reportedly borrowing to help fund its megaprojects as oil prices struggle
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Tom Porter | Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Saudi Arabia has started borrowing to fund megaprojects including Neom, The Wall Street Journal reported. AdvertisementSaudi Arabia is borrowing to help fund an array of ambitious projects including the $500 billion Neom desert megacity, The Wall Street Journal reported. Under its ambitious ruler Mohammed bin Salman's Vision 2030 project, Saudi Arabia is seeking to diversify its economy away from fossil fuels and become a global hub for technology and innovation. The Saudi sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, is providing funding for cornerstone "gigaprojects" estimated to cost tens of billions of dollars apiece. He said Saudi Arabia may need to raise another $270 billion for the Public Investment Fund by 2030.

Persons: —, Mohammed bin Salman's, Tim Callen, Brent, Karen Young Organizations: Street Journal, Saudi, Service, Public Investment Fund, Aramco, Gulf States Institute, Bloomberg, Monetary Fund, US Energy Information Administration, Middle East Institute Locations: Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Washington, Diryah

☆ Saudi Arabia's futuristic megaprojects are so expensive that even its oil riches may not be enough
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Tom Porter | Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

AdvertisementSaudi Arabia is borrowing to help fund an array of ambitious projects including the $500 billion Neom desert megacity, The Wall Street Journal reported. Under its ambitious ruler Mohammed bin Salman's Vision 2030 project, Saudi Arabia is seeking to diversify its economy away from fossil fuels and become a global hub for technology and innovation. The Saudi sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, is providing funding for cornerstone "gigaprojects" estimated to cost tens of billions of dollars apiece. He said Saudi Arabia may need to raise another $270 billion for the Public Investment Fund by 2030. AdvertisementThe International Monetary Fund said in October that the Saudis needed oil to be about $86 a barrel to fund its spending commitments.

Persons: Mohammed bin Salman's, Tim Callen, Brent, Karen Young Organizations: Street Journal, Public Investment Fund, Aramco, Gulf States Institute, Saudi, Bloomberg, Monetary Fund, US Energy Information Administration, Middle East Institute Locations: Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Washington, Diryah

CNN —United Nations experts have called for an investigation into what they described as “credible allegations of egregious human rights violations” against Palestinian women and girls in Gaza and the West Bank by Israeli forces. The allegations include extrajudicial killing, arbitrary detention, degrading treatment, rape and sexual violence, according to a statement by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights released on Monday. UN experts said they had heard reports of "multiple forms of sexual assault" against Palestinian women and girls. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images/File“Many [Palestinian women and girls] have reportedly been subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment, denied menstruation pads, food and medicine, and severely beaten,” the statement said. Responding on Monday to the UN experts’ call for an investigation, Israel again accused the UN of remaining “silent on the horrific sexual violence and gender-based violence perpetrated by Hamas on and since October 7.”

Persons: “, Benjamin Netanyahu, Fabrice Coffrini, ”, –, Israel Organizations: CNN — United Nations, West Bank, UN, Human, Israel Defense Forces, CNN, Getty, Hamas, ” CNN, Nova Locations: Gaza, Geneva, AFP, Israel

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronomers have discovered what may be the brightest object in the universe, a quasar with a black hole at its heart growing so fast that it swallows the equivalent of a sun a day. The record-breaking quasar shines 500 trillion times brighter than our sun. The black hole powering this distant quasar is more than 17 billion times more immense than our sun, an Australian-led team reported Monday in the journal Nature Astronomy. The rotating disk around the quasar's black hole — the luminous swirling gas and other matter from gobbled-up stars — is like a cosmic hurricane. Further analysis shows the mass of the black hole to be 17 to 19 billion times that of our sun, according to the team.

Persons: —, Christian Wolf, ”, Priyamvada Natarajan Organizations: —, Australian National University, Southern Observatory, ” Yale, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla, Australian, gobbled, Australia

☆ 5 Vision Pro party tricks that'll show friends what Apple's new gadget can do
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-19 | by ( Jordan Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewI've had Apple's Vision Pro for over a week now, and it's been the topic of conversation among my friends. And it turns out, with the right party tricks, the Vision Pro can be something that's fun for everyone, even people who are waiting their turn to try it out. My FaceTime PersonaMy Persona earned laughs from my loved ones when I called them in the Vision Pro. While FaceTime looks normal for me while I'm wearing the Vision Pro, the person on the other end of the line isn't seeing my real face with the Vision Pro covering my eyes. The Encounter Dinosaurs appAn image of "Encountering Dinosaurs" on the Vision Pro.

Persons: —, it's, I've, they've, Jordan Hart, It's, Apple Apple, haven't Organizations: Service, Business, Apple, Vision, Disney

☆ Amina Agueznay: Moroccan artist awarded prestigious contemporary African art prize
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-19 | by ( Callum Sutherland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The Norval Sovereign African Art Prize, designed to elevate the work of contemporary African artists, has found its latest artist to thrust into the spotlight. The Moroccan artist was invited to the ksar as architect Salima Naji was renovating its structure. “It’s a collaboration for African artists to expose their work, position them within the global art landscape and also give them the opportunity to exhibit a representation of contemporary African art,” she said. Agueznay is the third artist to win the prize, following Malian painter Famakan Magassa and South African sculptor Bonolo Kavula. She takes home $35,000 in prize money, and has been awarded an artist residency in London, supported by the Outset Contemporary Art Fund.

Persons: Amina Agueznay, “, ” Agueznay, Ashraf Jamal, Salima Naji, Agueznay, Amina Agueznay Agueznay, it’s, ”, Caroline Greyling, Famakan Magassa, Bonolo Kavula, Sotheby’s, who’s Organizations: CNN, Norval Sovereign African Art, Loft Art, The Norval Foundation, Art, Norval Foundation Learning, Norval Foundation Locations: Moroccan, Morocco, Tissekmoudine, ”, Casablanca, Malian, London, South Africa, Cape Town

Search resuls for: "Désert"

25 mentions found