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☆ Released Israeli hostages ask Red Cross to visit remaining captives
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Emily Rose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

In an Oct. 7 cross-border attack, Hamas militants killed 1,200 people and seized 240 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. While the deal was brokered by Qatar, the U.S., and Egypt, the handover of hostages and Palestinian detainees was facilitated by the Red Cross. The released hostages said in their letter that they had endured "harsh conditions" while being held and asked the Red Cross to help secure the immediate release of those still in captivity. They also asked the Red Cross to make visits to verify the health status of the captives, and provide medical assistance and proof of life which they said was urgent. The Red Cross has not commented on the letter, but it has previously called for agreements to allow its teams to check on hostages and deliver medication.

Persons: Abu Mustafa, Emily Rose, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, International Committee, Cross, Thomson Locations: Israel, Rafah, Gaza, Qatar, U.S, Egypt

Russia has increasingly had to turn to a so-called "ghost fleet" of aging tankers to ship oil and avoid the cap. Panama, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and Liberia have allowed some of those ships to carry their flags, according to Lloyd's List Intelligence and oil analysts. Lloyd's List Intelligence has said nearly 40% of the about 535 dark-fleet tankers have registered ownership via companies incorporated in the Marshall Islands. It also seeks to give leverage to countries buying oil outside the price-cap coalition to get discounted oil from Russia. The group is asking Liberia and the Marshall Islands to increase awareness among those in the trade that its flag should not be used for tankers transporting oil priced above the cap.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Lindsey Whyte, John Berrigan, Brian Nelson, Timothy Gardner, Simon Webb, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Marshall, Intelligence, Britain's Treasury, U.S . Treasury, Reuters, EU, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, U.S, Liberia, Marshall Islands, Panama, Moscow, Ukraine, Russia, China, India, Republic, Marshall, Washington, British

☆ Astronomers surprised to find planet 'too massive for its star'
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] An undated handout image shows an artistic rendering of the mass comparison of the star LHS 3154 and its planet LHS 3154b, and our own Earth and Sun. The mass ratio of this planet with its star is more than 100 times greater than that of Earth and the sun. "We discovered a planet that is too massive for its star," said Penn State astronomer Suvrath Mahadevan, one of the leaders of the study published this week in the journal Science. The planet, called LHS 3154 b, orbits at about 2.3% of Earth's orbital distance from the sun, circling its star every 3.7 days. So a very low mass star should have a disk that is also low mass.

Persons: Suvrath Mahadevan, Guðmundur Stefánsson, Stefánsson, Mahadevan, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: LHS, Penn State University, Handout, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Penn State, Princeton University, University of Texas, McDonald, Thomson

WASHINGTON, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Henry Kissinger, the most powerful U.S. diplomat of the Cold War era, who helped Washington open up to China, forge arms control deals with the Soviet Union and end the Vietnam War, but who was reviled by critics over human rights, has died aged 100. While many hailed Kissinger for his brilliance and statesmanship, others branded him a war criminal for his support for anti-communist dictatorships, especially in Latin America. Kissinger won the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for ending U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, but it was one of the most controversial ever. When Nixon's pledge to end the Vietnam War helped him win the 1968 presidential election, he brought in Kissinger as national security adviser. And in the India-Pakistan War of 1971, Nixon and Kissinger drew heavy criticism for tilting toward Pakistan.

Persons: Henry Kissinger, Kissinger, Richard Nixon, Nixon's, Gerald Ford, Joe Biden's, John Kirby, Biden, Le Duc Tho, Vladimir Putin, Benjamin Netanyahu, Abdul Momen, Kissinger's, Momen, Ford, Henry, Antony Blinken, Lloyd Austin, Heinz Alfred Kissinger, Egon Bahr, Fabrizio Bensch, Lyndon, Nixon, Premier Zhou Enlai, Mao Zedong, China Winston Lord, Leonid Brezhnev, Salvador Allende, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George W, Bush, Xi Jinping, Ann Fleischer, Nancy Maginnes, New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller, Steve Holland, Arshad Mohammed, Dan Whitcomb, Don Durfee, Kanishka Singh, David Brunnstrom, Trevor Hunnicutt, Jarrett Renshaw, Bill Trott, Diane Craft, Rosalba O'Brien, Tomasz Janowski, Frances Kerry, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Jewish, Kissinger Associates, Arlington National, Republican, Paris Peace, Democratic, U.S, HARVARD, Nazi, Social Democratic, Mary's, REUTERS, Army, Harvard University, State Department, Paris Peace Accords, Communist, Premier, Former U.S, Ford, CIA, Democrat, House, New York Governor, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington, China, Soviet Union, Vietnam, German, Connecticut, New York, Arlington, Israel, Paris, North Vietnam, America, Cambodia, North Vietnamese, Beijing, Russian, statesmanship, West, East Pakistan, Bangladesh, Fuerth, Germany, United States, St, Berlin, Europe, Jerusalem, Damascus, Syria, Golan, Vladivostok, Egypt, Sinai, India, Pakistan, Saint Paul , Minnesota, Long Beach , California

☆ Extreme sleep behavior documented in cute Antarctic chinstrap penguins
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Guarding their nests is serious business for these medium-sized penguins, with predatory seabirds called brown skuas on the prowl. But this species, scientists said on Thursday, has devised an ingenious way of getting sufficient sleep without compromising vigilance. The researchers documented extreme sleep behavior in these flightless birds. "Penguins do not display any obvious negative consequence of sleep fragmentation," Libourel said. During incubation, skuas prey on penguin eggs, particularly on a colony's periphery.

Persons: chinstraps, ecophysiologist Paul, Antoine Libourel, Won Young Lee, George Island, Libourel, Lee, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Lyon Neuroscience Research, Korea Polar Research, GPS, Penguins, Thomson Locations: Lyon, France, Korea, Incheon, Washington

☆ Key facts about Henry Kissinger, US diplomat and presidential adviser
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/9] Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger looks up during his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., October 10, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 29 - Here are some facts on American diplomat Henry Kissinger, who died at age 100 on Wednesday:* He was born Heinz Alfred Kissinger in Furth, a city in Germany's Bavarian region, on May 27, 1923. * The 1973 Nobel Peace Prize that went to Kissinger and North Vietnam's Le Duc Tho was one of the most controversial in the award's history. * Kissinger last worked in a presidential administration in 1977 but he maintained a relationship with George W. Bush. * Musician Tom Lehrer famously said: "Political satire became obsolete when Henry Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize."

Persons: Henry Kissinger, Donald Trump, Kevin Lamarque, Heinz Alfred Kissinger, Kissinger, Richard Nixon's, Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ford, Duc Tho, Tho, Candice Bergen, Shirley MacLaine, Jill St, John, Marlo Thomas, Liv Ullman, Samantha Eggar, Diane Sawyer, George W, Bush, Tom Lehrer, Bill Trott, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: U.S, White, REUTERS, Army's 84th Infantry Division, Harvard University, Nixon, ABC, Argentine, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Furth, Germany's Bavarian, Nazi Germany, New York, American, Vietnam, China, U.S, Israel, Paris

☆ Six planets found in synchronized orbit may help solve cosmic puzzle
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

This illustration shows the orbital motion of six planets discovered orbiting star HD110067 located around 100 light-years from Earth. The planets all are a type called 'sub-Neptunes,' which have diameters between 2 and 3 times that of Earth. Earth, the largest of our solar system's four rocky planets, has a diameter of about 7,900 miles (12,750 km). The planets orbit the star between 6% and 20% of the distance between Earth and the sun. "None of them are in the nominal habitable zone for terrestrial planets.

Persons: Hugh Osborn, Handout, Osborn, Rafael Luque, Luque, James Webb, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, Rights, University of Bern, University of Chicago, James Webb Space, Thomson Locations: Switzerland, JWST

☆ In a first, a newborn star's spinning disk is seen in another galaxy
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Newborn stars with these circumstellar disks had been observed by astronomers only in our Milky Way galaxy - until now. Observing these disks in other galaxies is very important because it tells us about how stars form in environments different from that of the Milky Way," McLeod added. The Large Magellanic Cloud is considered a satellite galaxy of the sprawling Milky Way, as is another galaxy called the Small Magellanic Cloud. The Large Magellanic Cloud has less dust than the Milky Way and a smaller content of what astronomers call metallic elements - those other than hydrogen and helium. McLeod expressed hope for detecting other circumstellar disks in the Large Magellanic Cloud and perhaps the further Small Magellanic Cloud.

Persons: Anna McLeod, McLeod, Jonathan Henshaw, Liverpool, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: European Southern Observatory, Durham University, Liverpool John Moores University, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, England, Atacama

☆ Charlie Munger, the 'Oracle of Pasadena' who was Buffett's second-in-command
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Berkshire Hathaway Vice Chair Charlie Munger arrives to begin the company's annual meeting in Omaha May 4, 2013. EXPANDING BUFFETT'S HORIZONSMunger and Buffett did differ politically, with Munger being a Republican and Buffett a Democrat. Like Buffett, Munger was a fan of the famed economist Benjamin Graham. ORACLE OF PASADENAFans dubbed Buffett the "Oracle of Omaha," but Munger was held in equal esteem by his own followers, who branded him the "Oracle of Pasadena" after his adopted hometown in California. "I was raised by people who thought it was a moral duty to be as rational as you could possibly make yourself," Munger told Daily Journal shareholders in 2020.

Persons: Charlie Munger, Rick Wilking, Charles Munger, Warren Buffett's, Munger's, Buffett, Munger, Berkshire Hathaway, HORIZONS Munger, Santa Barbara, Warren, Benjamin Graham, Charlie, Ben Graham, Charles T, Kathy Kristof, Buffett's, Ernest . Buffett, Olson, Wheeler, Alice Schroeder, Nancy, Graham, Heinz, Todd Combs, Ted Weschler, Nancy Munger, Jonathan Stempel, Diane Craft, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Berkshire Hathaway, REUTERS, Berkshire Hathaway Inc, Munger, CNBC, Buffett, HORIZONS, Republican, University of California, Berkshire, ORACLE, PASADENA, Oracle, Wesco Financial Corp, Daily Journal Corp, Daily, Los Angeles Times, University of Michigan, U.S . Army Air Corps, Harvard Law School, Tolles, Munger &, Omaha Club, BNSF, 3G Capital, Kraft Foods, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Omaha, California, Berkshire, Omaha , Nebraska, Vienna, Santa, Pasadena, Munger, TETE, Los Angeles, New York

☆ Haiti Gang Wars Now 'Cataclysmic' in Key Farmlands -UN Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Haiti's brutal gang wars have spread from the capital to key farming heartlands, displacing tens of thousands of people and having a devastating impact on access to food staples, the United Nations said in a report on Tuesday. The violence has severely limited humanitarian access to the area, leaving support for victims of sexual violence to cash-strapped rural associations. Victims rarely come forward, the report said, due to fear of reprisals and mistrust of police. "We are continuing to receive reports of killings, sexual violence, displacement and other violence – including in hospitals," he said. "The much-needed multinational security support mission needs to be deployed to Haiti as soon as possible."

Persons: U.N, Human Rights Volker Turk, Turk, Sarah Morland, Harold Isaac, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Reuters, United Nations, Human Rights Locations: Artibonite, Bas, United States, Haiti

☆ Charlie Munger, who was Warren Buffett's right-hand man at Berkshire, dies at 99
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/3] Berkshire Hathaway Inc Vice Chairman Charles Munger speaks at the Daily Journal annual meeting in Los Angeles, U.S., February 15, 2017. The death of Munger, a Berkshire vice chairman since 1978, marks an end of an era in corporate America and investing. "It's a shock," said Thomas Russo, a partner at Gardner Russo & Quinn in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and longtime Berkshire shareholder. PHILOSOPHICALLY ALIKESince becoming a Berkshire vice chairman, Munger worked closely with Buffett on allocating Berkshire's capital and not mincing words when he thought his business partner was making a mistake. Money manager Whitney Tilson, who knew Munger personally, said a "generation of investment managers" learned some of their craft from Munger and Buffett.

Persons: Charles Munger, Lucy Nicholson, Warren Buffett's, Charlie Munger, Munger, Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett, Thomas Russo, Gardner Russo, Quinn, Rick Meckler, Charlie, Warren, Paul Lountzis, Whitney Tilson, Tilson, Greg Abel, Ajit Jain, Abel, Buffett's, Howard, CHARLIE, Jain, Lountzis, Russo, Jonathan Stempel, Lewis Krauskopf Svea, Bayliss, Chibuike, Megan Davies, Rosalba O'Brien, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: Berkshire Hathaway, Daily, REUTERS, Cherry Lane Investments, Lountzis, Management, BNSF, Apple, Thomson Locations: Los Angeles , U.S, Berkshire, California, America, Omaha , Nebraska, Lancaster , Pennsylvania, Munger, New Jersey, Wyomissing , Pennsylvania, Omaha, Warren, New York

Argentine President-elect Javier Milei departs the Eisenhower Executive Office Building after meeting with Biden administration staff at the White House complex in Washington, U.S., November 28, 2023. His foreign policy, meanwhile, is unabashedly pro-United States and pro-Israel, with a cooler stance on top trade partners Brazil and China. 2 Gita Gopinath and other fund officials, the fund said separately. The IMF has said in the past that dollarization is not a substitute for sound macroeconomic policy. Milei and IMF officials had a first virtual meeting on Friday, which Georgieva called a "very constructive engagement".

Persons: Javier Milei, Kevin Lamarque, Milei, Jake Sullivan, Juan Gonzalez, Benjamin Gedan, Alberto Fernandez, Vladimir Putin, Kristalina Georgieva, Posse, Luis Caputo, Gita Gopinath, Georgieva, Jason Lange, Rodrigo Campos, Rosalba O'Brien, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Argentine, Biden, REUTERS, Rights, U.S, White, National Security, Western, United, Israel, America, Wilson, International Monetary Fund, IMF, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Washington, Argentina, United States, Brazil, China, U.S, Moscow, Ukraine, Beijing, Argentine, New York

☆ Delayed by War, Gaza's Olive Harvest Is Too Little, Too Late, Say Farmers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

In a normal year the harvest would have started weeks earlier, but until the truce farmers were afraid of being mistaken for Hamas militants and targeted by Israeli forces if they ventured out into the olive groves. He said that normally they would harvest enough olives to fill 12 containers, but this year they would fill just one. There were other problems linked to the war, he said, such as a dearth of fuel to transport the olives to the nearest press. As soon as we secured access to fuel, we were able to open the olive press, even if it's working at minimum capacity." He said some farmers had found nothing, while others had harvested a fraction of what they would normally expect.

Persons: Bassam Masoud, Saleh Salem, There's, Fathy Abu Salah, Abu Salah, Khan Younis, Sacks, jerry, Mohamed Wafy, Wafy, Fadi Shana, Estelle Shirbon, Rosalba O'Brien Locations: Saleh, Saleh Salem GAZA, Farmers, Gaza, Israel, Olives

☆ Climate change, overharvesting exacerbating Texas oyster decline
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Evan Garcia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

GALVESTON, Texas, Nov 28 (Reuters) - For the second year in a row, Texas has closed the majority of its public oyster reefs for harvesting due to declining populations. DECLINING POPULATIONSScientists estimate at least 85% of the world's oyster reefs have been lost, largely to overharvesting and disease. To harvest oysters, boats drag an underwater dredge across oyster reefs, collecting reef material that is dumped onto the boat. But dredging destroys the oyster reefs, which are also a habitat for fish and crabs, says the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. "And so, especially in the past decade, we've seen impacts from both harvest and heavy rainfall, heavy drought impacting those oyster populations."

Persons: Joel Gutierrez, Oysterman Romeo Bilcic, we've, Zach Olsen, TPWD, Olsen, we're, Jennifer Pollack, it's, Evan Garcia, Christina Anagnostopoulos, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, state's Department of Health, Human Services, Oceanic, Atmospheric Association, Reuters, Texas, M University, Corpus Christi, Thomson Locations: GALVESTON , Texas, Texas, Galveston, Galveston , Texas, Galveston Bay

[1/2] U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken disembarks from his airplane upon arrival at Brussels Airport in Brussels, Belgium, on November 27, 2023, as he travels to a NATO foreign ministers' meeting. "We've always said that this is a matter for Ukraine to decide," O'Brien said. At a press conference in Brussels on Monday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said he expected alliance foreign ministers to "reaffirm NATO’s long-term support" for Ukraine. Turkey has informed NATO that its parliament will not complete ratification of the bid ahead of the meetings, sources told Reuters last week. Blinken will also represent the United States at a meeting of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in Skopje, North Macedonia, this week, O'Brien said.

Persons: Antony Blinken disembarks, SAUL LOEB, Antony Blinken, James O'Brien, Blinken, we've, O'Brien, Biden, We've, Jens Stoltenberg, O, Brien, Stoltenberg, Simon Lewis, Daphne Psaledakis, Andrew Gray, Lisa Shumaker, Chizu Nomiyama, Deepa Babington Organizations: Brussels, NATO, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Ukraine, State Department, Biden, State, Eurasian, U.S . Congress, Germany's, Reuters, Washington, Organization for Security, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Russia, Europe, Gaza, Israel, Washington, Ukraine, United States, Taiwan, Germany, Kyiv, Moscow, Belgian, Turkey, Hungary, U.S, Western Balkans, Kosovo, Skopje, North Macedonia

☆ 'We're not here to talk about fights': Drama in Congress is starting to spill over
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Mike Rogers is restrained by Richard Hudson after getting into an argument with Matt Gaetz as House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy walks away. AdvertisementWhat happened: Greene called Boebert a "little bitch" on the House floor, according to The Daily Beast. When asked about it, Boebert told CNN, "I'm not in middle school." After his vote, Burchett told CNN that McCarthy had mocked his faith when he told then-speaker that he was praying over his decision. The aftermath: McCarthy told CNN that he did not purposefully run into Burchett.

Persons: —, Rock, Bill, John Boehner, Don Young, Donald Trump's, Joanne Freeman, Matt Gatez, flexes, Win McNamee, Mike Rogers lunges, Matt Gaetz, Kevin McCarthy, Mike Rogers, Richard Hudson, Anna Moneymaker, McCarthy, Rogers, Gatez, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Greene, Boebert, Joe Biden, Semafor, I'm, Georgia Lauren Boebert, Jabin, Tim Burchett, Sen, Markwayne Mullin, Mullin, Sean M, O'Brien, Elon Musk, Sean O’Brien, Bernie Sanders, ”, Sanders, banged, Burchett, McCarthy elbowed, — Claudia Grisales, NPR's Claudia Grisales, Grisales, Kevin ?, Kevin Organizations: Service, Capitol, Lawmakers, Yale, Politico, Florida Republican, GOP, Republican, House Armed Services, Rep, North Carolina Republican, Georgia Republican, Colorado Republican, Daily, CNN, Washington, Getty, Tennessee Republican, Caucus, Teamsters, Oklahoma Republican, MMA, United, Republicans Locations: Alaska, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Colorado, Tennessee, Boebert, Oklahoma, United States, Burchett

[1/4] An illegal money changer checks old U.S. dollars at a marketplace in Harare, Zimbabwe, November 26, 2020. The government reintroduced the local currency in 2019, but it rapidly lost value. Zimbabwe's dollarization story is as full of warnings as it is with promise. During the five years before dollarization in 2000, the monthly measure of annualized inflation averaged 33% in Ecuador. "With our local currency we couldn't buy anything, it was very expensive to acquire things, so dollarization ... allowed people to have greater security in their purchases."

Persons: Javier Milei, Milei, Zimbabwe's, Bongiwe Mudau, Dollarization, dollarization, Mudau, Moses Mhlanga, Nestor Cerneaz, Wilson Andrade, Juan Carlos Villota, Guido Puig, Tito Correa, Nyasha, Miguel Lo Bianco, Rodrigo Campos, Adam Jourdan, Karin Strohecker, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, Philimon, Rights, U.S ., Reuters, International Monetary Fund, hawker, Reuters Graphics Reuters, dollarization, Thomson Locations: Harare, Zimbabwe, Philimon Bulawayo, Rights QUITO, HARARE, BUENOS AIRES, Zimbabwe's, Quito, Ecuador, Argentina, El Salvador, greenbacks, Buenos Aires, Argentine, New York

☆ Geert Wilders: the anti-Islam, anti-EU populist who could be next Dutch PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Charlotte Van Campenhout | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Dutch far-right politician and leader of the PVV party, Geert Wilders speaks as he reacts to the exit poll and early results in the Dutch parliamentary elections, in The Hague, Netherlands November 22, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman Acquire Licensing RightsAMSTERDAM, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Geert Wilders, the Dutch populist whose anti-Islam comments have led to death threats, could become the next leader of the Netherlands following an election upset for his Freedom Party (PVV) on Wednesday. After 25 years in Dutch politics without holding office, Wilders was set to lead coalition government talks and has a good chance of becoming prime minister. Wilders' inflammatory views on Islam have prompted death threats and he has lived under heavy police protection for years. On a kids' TV program, Wilders last week said he enjoyed playing "Mario Kart" on his PlayStation and reading Donald Duck comics.

Persons: Geert Wilders, Yves Herman Acquire, Wilders, Frans Timmermans, Willem Post, Donald, Trump, Mohammad, Viktor Orban, Mario, Donald Duck, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Toby Sterling, Bart Meijer, Anthony Deutsch, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Freedom Party, Labour, Clingendael, PlayStation, Thomson Locations: The Hague, Netherlands, Dutch, Islam, Pakistan, Indonesia, Egypt, Hungarian, Ukraine

While OpenAI later transitioned to a for-profit model, its controlling shareholder remains the nonprofit OpenAI Inc. and its board of directors. This unique structure made it possible for four OpenAI board members — the company's chief scientist, two outside tech entrepreneurs and an academic — to oust CEO Sam Altman on Friday. When it was founded, OpenAI’s original board co-chairs were Altman and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Musk recently launched his own AI startup, xAI, to compete with OpenAI, Microsoft and Google, among others. OpenAI's board members have not responded to requests for comment.

Persons: ChatGPT, OpenAI, Sam Altman, Berkshire Hathaway, OpenAI’s, ”, Sarah Kreps, Altman, Greg Brockman, “, Kreps, Ilya Sutskever, we’ve, Adam D’Angelo, Tasha McCauley, Helen Toner, Reid Hoffman, Will Hurd, Shivon Zilis, Brockman, Elon Musk, Musk, D’Angelo, tweeting, ” He’s, Matt O'Brien, Michael Liedtke Organizations: FRANCISCO, Google, Facebook, OpenAI Inc, Cornell University’s Tech Policy Institute, Microsoft Corp, Microsoft, Georgetown Center for Security, Emerging Technology, Republican U.S . Rep, Tesla, OpenAI, Associated Press Technology Locations: Berkshire, OpenAI, Will Hurd of Texas, Providence , Rhode Island, San Francisco

[1/5] Cast members Corey Hawkins, Taraji P. Henson, Director Blitz Bazawule, and cast members Danielle Brooks, Fantasia Barrino and Colman Domingo attend the new musical adaptation of 'The Color Purple' in London, Britain, November 20, 2023. REUTERS/Hollie Adams Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 20 (Reuters) - The cast of the 2023 movie adaptation of "The Color Purple" said that it was important for them to retell the classic story in a new way as they walked the red carpet on Monday for the London premiere. "The biggest thing for me was just making sure that we can justify our reason for contributing to the canon of 'The Color Purple,'" Bazawule told Reuters on the red carpet. "The Color Purple" follows the story of two Black American teenage sisters, Celie and Nettie, in the American south during the early 1900s. The 2023 film, which arrives in theaters on Dec. 25 and is distributed by Warner Bros Pictures, stars Fantasia Barrino as Celie and Ciara as Nettie.

Persons: Corey Hawkins, Taraji P, Henson, Danielle Brooks, Fantasia Barrino, Colman Domingo, Hollie Adams, Blitz Bazawule, Marcus Gardley, Alice Walker, Whoopi Goldberg, Bazawule, Celie, Nettie, Ciara, Taraji, Shug Avery, Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Quincy Jones, Natasha Mulenga, Danielle Broadway, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, London, Globe, Reuters, Warner Bros Pictures, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, American, Ghanaian, Los Angeles

☆ Election victory of Argentina's Milei greeted globally by mix of hostility and support
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Steven Grattan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Asked for his reaction on Tuesday, Mexico's leftist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he respected the voters' verdict, but added that he believed Milei's win is unlikely to alleviate Argentina's problems. But other leftist Latin American leaders were more supportive. Chilean President Gabriel Boric and Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva both extended best wishes to Milei. Lula's congratulations came despite Milei's harsh criticism of the Brazilian leader on the campaign trail, where at one point Milei labeled Lula an "angry communist" and corrupt. Milei found enthusiastic support among right-wing populists, including former U.S. President Donald Trump and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who Lula narrowly defeated last year.

Persons: Javier Milei, Alberto Fernandez, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Milei's, Lopez Obrador, Evo Morales, Gustavo Petro, Gabriel Boric, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Milei, Lula's, Lula, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, Jair Bolsonaro, I'm, Argentina's, Nayib Bukele, Bukele, Steven Grattan, David Alire Garcia, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Peronist, Colombian, Ukraine, U.S, Sao Paulo, Thomson Locations: China, Argentina, Buenos Aires, Venezuela, Colombia, Chilean, Moscow, Russia, Beijing, Sao

☆ Webb space telescope spies precocious 'teenage' galaxies
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

But Webb has obtained even better data on galaxies a bit further along in development. The gas detected in star-forming regions - stellar nurseries - of teenage galaxies was much hotter, at about 24,000 degrees Fahrenheit (13,350 degrees Celsius), than observed in galaxies today. The galaxies were observed glowing with eight elements - hydrogen, helium, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, argon, nickel and silicon. Incidentally, oxygen is also the third-most abundant element in the universe (behind hydrogen and helium)," Strom said. The new study presents the first results from the CECILIA Survey that uses Webb to scrutinize the chemistry of distant galaxies.

Persons: James Webb, Webb, Allison Strom, Gwen Rudie, Strom, Rudie, CECILIA, Cecilia Payne, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Hubble, Northwestern University, Astrophysical, Carnegie, CECILIA Survey, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, Illinois, California

☆ X sues Media Matters after report about ads next to antisemitic content
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Sheila Dang | Companies Need To Integrate Climate Reporting Across Functions To Comply With California S New Law | Henry Engler | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Tesla, X (formerly known as Twitter) and SpaceX's CEO Elon Musk speaks with members of the media during the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in Bletchley, Britain on November 1, 2023. Leon Neal/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Media Matters Sf, Llc FollowNov 20 (Reuters) - Messaging platform X on Monday sued media watchdog group Media Matters, alleging the organization defamed the platform after it published a report that said ads for major brands had appeared next to posts touting Nazism. X, formerly Twitter, has faced growing outrage since Media Matters published the report on Thursday, which led IBM, Comcast and several other advertisers to pull ads from the platform in response. On Saturday, Musk posted that X would file a "thermonuclear" lawsuit against Media Matters and others "who colluded in this fraudulent attack on our company." In an interview with Reuters earlier on Monday, Media Matters President Angelo Carusone said the nonprofit's findings flew in the face of X's statements that it had introduced safety protections to prevent ads from appearing next to harmful content.

Persons: Tesla, Elon Musk, Leon Neal, Musk, Linda Yaccarino, Angelo Carusone, Sheila Dang, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: SpaceX's, Bletchley, Companies Media, Media, IBM, Comcast, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Bletchley, Britain, Dallas

BUENOS AIRES, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Argentines expressed a mixture of ecstasy and trepidation on Monday after libertarian outsider Javier Milei, pledging radical fixes to the economy, swept to power with an election win over Peronist government rival Sergio Massa. "It's a great unknown," said Guillermo Toledo, a 51-year-old university professor in the capital Buenos Aires, who said he did not vote for Milei. Milei's win brought flag-waving crowds on Sunday night out to the Obelisk in downtown Buenos Aires, a traditional rallying point for supporters to cheer election or soccer wins. [1/2]Argentine president-elect Javier Milei's supporters celebrate after Milei wins the runoff presidential election, in Buenos Aires, Argentina November 19, 2023. Milei gives me hope things can change," Bernal said.

Persons: Javier Milei, Sergio Massa, Milei, Donald Trump, Jair, Guillermo Toledo, haven't, Milei's, Leandro Boses, Javier Milei's, Adriano Machado, Massa, Claudio Bernal, Bernal, Julia Eva Saggini, Mauricio Macri, Lucinda Elliott, Candelaria Grimberg, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Peronist, Argentine, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, U.S, Buenos Aires

At OpenAI, Shear has promised to shed some light into Altman’s departure. In his X post, he pledged to hire an independent investigator to look into what led up to Altman’s ouster and write a report within 30 days. Both Altman and Shear know each other as alumni from the first class of startup founders at Y Combinator. In his post on X, Shear wrote he received a call offering him a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to become interim CEO at San Francisco-based OpenAI. In his post on X, Shear said he checked the reasoning behind the changes at OpenAI before he took the job.

Persons: Twitch, Sam Altman, Emmett Shear, “, Altman, OpenAI, Greg Brockman —, —, Shear, Twitch doesn’t, it’s, Y, he’s, ”, Mira Murati, Altman’s, Satya Nadella, Brockman, Sam, “ I’m, “ It’s, ” Shear, Matt O'Brien Organizations: Twitter, Microsoft, Amazon, Yale University, Associated Press, Investors, AIs Locations: Buffalo , New York, Germany, San Francisco, Providence , Rhode Island

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