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☆ Here are the weirdest items in Uber's annual lost-and-found report, including a Danny DeVito ornament, unicycle, and fake blood
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Aaron Mcdade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Uber released its seventh annual "Lost & Found Index" tracking unique lost items. Among the strangest items include fake blood, pets, a Danny DeVito Christmas ornament, and chicken wings. The most commonly lost items include clothes, tech devices, and wallets. Several living things were also reported lost, including multiple dogs, turtles, hamsters, and at least one rat, all safely reunited with their owners. Among the most commonly lost items are more predictable belongings like clothing, wallets, and devices like phones and laptops.

☆ Bears, Binoculars and Bucket-List Birds: A 15-Day Tour in Ecuador
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Dorothy Spears | Alexis Rockman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After a 4:30 a.m. breakfast at the Sani Lodge, where our group was staying, my husband, Alexis, and I pulled on our rubber boots. Our birding guide, Jeison Gualinga, whistled for a canoe while flashing his light among the reeds by the main dock. Our birding trip in Ecuador arose like a bird call, by word of mouth. Our friend Olaf Soltau, a devout birder, was tipped off by a respected birder friend to enlist Pablo Barrera of Adventures Columbia to coordinate a tour. Our trip would culminate with five days in the Yasuní National Park, whose humid green jungles are a birding paradise.

☆ Opinion: The revolving door access to state secrets has to end
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Brett Bruen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The US national security team is once more ignominiously living out the line made famous by pop star Britney Spears after finding itself back in the uncomfortable position of watching state secrets ping-pong around the internet. As a veteran of the National Security Council and State Department, I have a couple of ideas about what we need to change to get Spears’ song off repeat. Indeed, whatever the cause of this latest breach, it should galvanize us to shut the revolving door of access to our most sensitive secrets. For starters, there should be a minimum time commitment from those appointed to high political office. This turnover creates massive disruptions and gaps in our national security structure.

☆ I Direct Music Videos — the Bigger the Artist, the More Stressful the Job
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Courtesy of Neil FavilaMusic video director Hannah Lux Davis grew up watching TRL and always loved music videos. I took out a student loan to pay for my first two official music videos. I always loved music videos and was very passionate about them. I grew up watching MTV's music video show "TRL," and was inspired to be a director by music videos from Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, Christina Aguilera, and Janet Jackson. They assume some artists get more money for a video, so they're comparing their videos to other artists' videos.

☆ Rwanda is releasing dissident Paul Rusesabagina from prison, the government says. The hero whose story inspired 'Hotel Rwanda' saved over 1,000 people from being massacred in the 1990s.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rwanda announced Friday that it is commuting the 25-year sentence of dissident Paul Rusesabagina. Rusesabagina, whose story inspired the Hollywood movie "Hotel Rwanda," saved over 1,000 people from being killed during the Rwandan genocide in the 1990s. Paul Rusesabagina and his wife Tatiana at an event in West Hollywood in 2005. The Hotel des Mille Collines, known as "Hotel Rwanda," where Rusesabagina sheltered Tutsis. Paul Rusesabagina (left) and actor Don Cheadle (right) at a 2005 press conference for "Hotel Rwanda."

☆ In Florida, a $19 Million Home Sale is the Panhandle’s Priciest of the Year
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Libertina Brandt | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A beachfront spec home on Florida’s Emerald Coast has sold for $19 million, making it the Panhandle’s most expensive sale so far this year. The newly completed home in Seagrove Beach was listed for $25 million in May 2022, while still under construction, according to listing agent Jonathan Spears of Compass.

☆ Whales use a sound similar to Kim Kardashian's 'vocal fry' to hunt deep sea prey, say scientists
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Toothed whales can use vocal registers like humans to communicate and hunt. Like Kim Kardashian, whales have a "vocal fry" which can be used to find prey in deep sea. This gives them access to falsetto, which allows them to make their high-pitched whistles, and the chesty, vocal fry range, which is how they make echolocation. Christian B. Christensen, Aarhus UniversityAn affectation that shaped toothed whales' evolutionTeglberg and Elemans say this has very much influenced the way dolphins, orcas, and other toothed whales evolved a "Mona Lisa" fixed smile on their face. "While vocal fry may be controversial in humans and may be perceived as everything from annoying toauthoritative, it doubtlessly made toothed whales an evolutionary success story", Elemans adds.

☆ Top 25 roundup: No. 4 UCLA edges Colorado to claim Pac-12 title
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Feb 26, 2023; Boulder, Colorado, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. (24) shoots the ball past Colorado Buffaloes guard Luke O'Brien (0) in the second half at the CU Events Center. The Bruins (25-4, 16-2 Pac-12) came into Sunday's matchup needing a win to claim an outright league title, thanks to Arizona's loss on Saturday to Arizona State. However, Colorado jumped to an early lead of 10 points then exchanged the advantage with the visitors throughout the second half. Primo Spears tallied 26 points to lead Georgetown (7-23, 2-17), which has lost its last 12 games against Top 25 teams. Chase Audige had 16 points to pace the Wildcats, but only two came in the second half.

☆ Britney Spears said fans 'went too far' when they called the police to visit her home after she deactivated her Instagram
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Kieran Press-Reynolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Britney Spears called out fans for urging police to visit her after she took down her Instagram. Spears has deactivated her popular Instagram account multiple times before. Spears said she believed the police went to her house because of "prank phone calls" that went "a little too far." As of writing this story on Thursday, Spears' account still remains deactivated. The singer has deactivated her account multiple times before, which has not previously incited widespread panic among her fans.

☆ Football and Finances: NFL's Ndamukong Suh teaches kids money smarts
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Chris Taylor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

That would be Ndamukong Suh, 36, an American football star who strikes fear into the hearts of opposing teams. Some NFL players and other well-paid professional athletes run into money troubles after their playing careers end. But Suh did fall into a typical money trap early in his career, spending more than he should have. Personally I made the mistake of going out to nightclubs and spending $25,000 to $50,000, versus taking that money and investing it." It is his hope that beyond the current target cities, the money smarts initiative with Intuit will go global.

☆ CFB roundup: No. 16 Tulane stuns No. 10 USC in Cotton Bowl
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

16 Tulane scored 16 points in the final 4:07 to notch a dramatic 46-45 victory over No. 10 Southern California to win the Cotton Bowl on Monday at Arlington, Texas. Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams did all he could for USC (11-3), completing 37 of 52 passes for 462 yards and five touchdowns. He completed 8 of 21 passes for 95 yards, one touchdown and one interception and rushed for 47 yards on 10 attempts. Bulldogs quarterback Will Rogers completed 29 of 44 passes for 261 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

☆ Lyon's Festival of Lights goes energy lite to save power
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/7] The art installation "Time" by Philippe Roca and Marko Komar is seen on the Saint-Jean Cathedral during the festival of lights (Fetes des Lumieres) amid a worldwide energy crisis in Lyon, France, December 7, 2022. REUTERS/Denis BalibouseLYON, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Lyon's 'Fete des Lumieres', or Festival of Lights, which features intricate light structures projected on historical monuments and public buildings across town, is toning things down a bit this year due to the energy crisis, organisers said. Lyon locals Beatrice Roche and Laurent Oger attend the festival every year. 'La Fete des Lumieres', originally a festival in which locals celebrate the Virgin Mary by putting a candle on their window sills, attracts large crowds of visitors from all over the world. This year, one of the artworks is the projection on Lyon's art museum of giant portraits singing, among others, Britney Spears and AC/DC songs.

U.S. shale production costs are soaring and there is no sign that tight-fisted investors will change their demands for returns rather than investment in expanding drilling. At Helmerich & Payne (HP.N), one of the largest drilling contractors, its R&D budget will rise only $1 million, from 2022's $27 million. The U.S. government expects overall oil production to reach a new peak next year, but it has several times this year cut its forecasts. Shale production declines rapidly after peaking compared to conventional oil wells, falling about 50% after the first year. Lower production rates are "a longer-term prospect," said Mike Oestmann, chief executive of shale producer Tall City Exploration.

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☆ A slap, a maverick and some ABBAtars: the 2022 showbiz stories
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Marie-Louise Gumuchian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/8] Will Smith (R) hits Chris Rock as Rock spoke on stage during the 94th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 27, 2022. REUTERS/Brian SnyderLONDON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - From a shocking Oscars slap to a virtual ABBA taking to the stage, this year has seen a range of entertainment stories dominate headlines. He appeared in court in Britain to plead not guilty to accusations of sex offences dating back almost 20 years. * Tom Cruise premiered his hotly anticipated sequel "Top Gun: Maverick", returning as the cocky pilot he first played in the 1986 action flick. "Maverick" remains the biggest film of 2022, grossing $1.48 billion worldwide.

☆ More Foreclosures, Easier Mortgages Would Help Fix America's Housing Market
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( James Rodriguez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

These standards are based on factors including the borrower's financial stability and the state of the housing market and economy. Finding the right size for the credit box is much easier said than done. A tidal wave of foreclosures followed, plunging the US housing market — and the global economy — into chaos. Even just stabilizing the credit box over time could also help smooth out some of the boom-and-bust cycles that have come to define the housing market. "If we do not address this intrinsic cyclicality, the housing market will continue to experience boom-bust cycles, leaving destruction in their wake," the paper said.

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☆ The divorce lawyer who's represented Johnny Depp, Kim K, and Angelina Jolie charges $1,000 an hour and says tough love is how she gets things done
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Mark Ellwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Laura Wasser is a divorce lawyer whose clients have included Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie. "You'd go to someone's bar mitzvah and say, 'You're Dennis Wasser's daughter,' and they'd say, 'You're at that table,' according to whether my dad had represented the mom or the dad," she said. She'd majored in rhetoric at the University of California, Berkeley, and realized quickly that what she'd loved most about those studies was vital in divorce cases, as was her age and gender. She's a spokesperson for Divorce.com, the do-it-yourself split site, as its chief of divorce evolution and has hosted several podcasts, including "All's Fair with Laura Wasser" and "Divorce Sucks! With Laura Wasser," where one guest was the Kardashian momager and matriarch Kris Jenner.

☆ Dozens of times drought, ice melt, and storm surge unearthed unusual and unsettling discoveries this year
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( Paola Rosa-Aquino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Among the unearthed finds are old sites, ancient artifacts, rare fossils, and even human remains. This summer, low water levels created an eerie boat graveyard of previously sunken ships and beached boats, the Associated Press reported. The manmade reservoir's plummeting water levels also revealed human remains on at least six occasions since May, The Guardian reported. In Spain's Vilanova de Sau in the Catalonia region, plummeting water levels in a reservoir exposed a 11th century Romanesque church, the Associated Press reported. Switzerland's melting glaciers revealed the remains of a 1968 plane in August.

☆ In Mexico, Aztec dig sets new records as royal mystery deepens
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( David Alire Garcia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/10] A general view of the Templo Mayor where several ritual offerings have recently been found just off the steps of the Templo Mayor, the Aztec empire’s most sacred temple, in Mexico City, Mexico November 15 , 2022. MEXICO CITY, Nov 24 (Reuters) - An extensive cache of Aztec ritual offerings found underneath downtown Mexico City, off the steps of what would have been the empire's holiest shrine, provides new insight into pre-Hispanic religious rites and political propaganda. Archeologists believe Aztec priests carefully layered these offerings in the box within the elevated platform for a ceremony likely attended by thousands of rapt spectators amid the thunder-clap of drums. AZTEC WORLDVIEWTo date, no Aztec royal tomb has ever been found despite more than 40 years of digging around the Templo Mayor, where more than 200 offerings boxes have been found. Reporting by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Stephen Eisenhammer and Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Adele reminds us how Vegas made artist residencies cool
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Caryn Rose | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

After being abruptly postponed in January, Adele’s Las Vegas residency, “Weekends With Adele,” made its debut at Caesar’s Palace on Friday. But Adele highlights how it’s been transformed into an artistic achievement, why it’s never going away and reminds us how Las Vegas made residencies cool. This isn’t a complete list because a Las Vegas residency is no longer necessarily out of the ordinary. Does this all mean a Vegas residency is the right fit for everyone? In the shifting economic climate and post-pandemic realities, a Vegas residency may be more appealing to artists whowouldn’t normally consider it.

“You really need leadership in these local areas to execute on the Inflation Reduction Act to the fullest extent,” Spears said. “This completely opens the pathway for Michigan to lead on clean cars of the future, and that’s really exciting,” Spears said. Climate victories at the local level are also poised to make a big impact. If fully implemented, climate experts have said the Inflation Reduction Act could reduce U.S. emissions by about 40% below 2005 levels by 2030. “So it’s really important to have climate leadership in state and local governments to actually execute on that and make sure it happens well.”

☆ Fact Check- Britney Spears says nerve damage dates back to 2019
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Following an Instagram post from Britney Spears saying she has “nerve damage” on the right side of her body, social media users claimed, without evidence, that her condition was related to COVID-19 vaccines. Spears says in the same post that her condition traces back to 2019, however, prior to the pandemic. Comments on posts regarding Spears’ nerve condition include, “Must be the vaccine, it’s the common denominator” and “It’s the experimental jab” (here). Spears announced she had been vaccinated against COVID-19 in a video posted on Twitter on April 8, 2021 (here). According to her own account, Britney Spears’ nerve damage on the right side of her body traces back to 2019, predating the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent vaccines.

☆ 12 queer icons to channel this Halloween
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Ellie Rudy | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +10 min

Without further ado, here is a selection of queer icons and pop culture favorites — in no particular order — whom you can channel for Halloween (a.k.a. For a relatively stress-free Halloween ensemble, throw on a tux, top hat, a pocket square and some fierce red lipstick. To channel Ms. Kahlo this Halloween, you’ll need her signature unibrow (eyeliner or an eyebrow pencil should do the trick), a flower crown, red lipstick, a colorful blouse and a floor-length skirt. For this costume, you’ll need a fedora, a (preferably pastel) dress shirt, a tie matching the hat and, if you’re really feeling the fantasy, a color-coordinated sweater vest. If you dress up as any of these queer icons and pop culture favorites for Halloween, tag @NBCOut on Twitter or Instagram in a costume photo!

☆ Becky G sees 'magic' in collaborations with fellow artists
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Liz Calvario | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +9 min

Becky G was just 14 years old when she signed her first record deal. In 2016, Becky started releasing songs in Spanish, finding a wider audience and recognition. “I use the word collaboration a lot, because to me, that’s where the magic happens. 1 spot on the Hot Latin Songs chart. That’s really where I tried to focus a lot of my energy and make an impact.

Oct 19 (Reuters) - Renowned talent scout Simon Cowell is back, but this time he is focused on the social media platform, TikTok. With the international “Got Talent" TV series, “American Idol” and many more projects already under his belt, Cowell is ready to help aspiring musicians on TikTok share their unique sounds with the world. Cowell is partnering with TikTok to give users access to new unnamed songs by famous producers through the service StemDrop, which launches through the TikTok app on Oct. 26. From his Malibu mansion, Cowell shared that his and Martin's mutual interest in a project outside of a conventional TV show came after TikTok sparked in popularity. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Phil Lavelle and Danielle Broadway; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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