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☆ Deep space orbit to provide non-traditional resting place
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The couple from Mesa, Arizona, will be sending their DNA into space in the upcoming Enterprise mission being launched by Celestis, a space burials company based out of Houston, Texas. [1/3]Gerry Paulus holds a DNA Memorial Kit given to families by Celestis, inc. as a keepsake for those who use their space burials service, in Mesa, Arizona, U.S., June 26, 2023. REUTERS/Liliana Salgado/File PhotoWhile space burials are not a new concept, the company is preparing for their first deep space flight, orbiting around the sun indefinitely. "That repository is going to be 330 million kilometers out into space," Celestis President Colby Youngblood said. Reporting by Liliana Salgado and Evan García; Writing by Mark PorterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Gerry, Elizabeth Paulus, they’ll, we're, ” Elizabeth Paulus, Gerry Paulus, Liliana Salgado, Gene Roddenberry, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, George Washington, Dwight Eisenhower, John F, Kennedy, Colby Youngblood, Evan García, Mark Porter Organizations: Enterprise, Celestis, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: United States, Mesa , Arizona, Houston , Texas, U.S

When the torrential rain stopped on Friday afternoon, Laura Lowry could see the steam rising off the wet pavement. She was on her front porch in the Fifth Ward neighborhood of Houston, desperate for relief from the relentless humidity and 91-degree heat. The air-conditioner in her house worked, but she and her husband, reliant on disability checks, couldn’t afford to run it. The lack of cool air wasn’t simply a matter of discomfort for Ms. Lowry, 73. “I felt like I was passing out.”Another wave of dangerous heat sweeping across the South and into the West this week has posed particular perils for older people, who are among the most vulnerable to such extreme conditions.

Persons: Laura Lowry, Lowry, ”, “ Organizations: Fifth Ward Locations: Fifth, Houston

☆ She's an 'Alien Superstar' — and now she's in housing. Beyoncé joins Kelly Rowland and the city of Houston in support of a new affordable development.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Beyoncé Knowles is teaming up with Kelly Rowland and Houston officials to support a housing project. It was unclear if Knowles and Rowland are investing in the project. However, Knowles and Rowland are among the few that have taken their real estate interests beyond the glitz and glamor of purchasing luxurious homes. With more buyers moving into the area, home prices and rents have surged as residents compete for housing. Given that statistic, he said he's "grateful" for the Knowles and Rowland project.

Persons: Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, —, Knowles, Rowland —, Kennedy Sessions, Rowland, LeBron James, Shaquille O'Neal, Queen Latifah, they're, Harris, Lina Hidalgo, Joe Biden's, Houston Pastor, Rudy Rasmus, he's Organizations: Houston, Service, American, Harris County, Hollywood, NBA, Golden Globe, Coalition, Homeless, Census Bureau, Texas Tribune Locations: Houston, Harris County, Midtown, Harris, America

☆ Oil prices rise 2% as market weighs supply cuts against economic outlook
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Natalie Grover | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, July 4 (Reuters) - Oil prices climbed 2% on Tuesday as markets weighed August supply cuts by top exporters Saudi Arabia and Russia against a weak global economic outlook. The total cuts now stand at more than 5 million bpd, or 5% of global oil output. "Clearly, the Saudis are taking proactive and pre-emptive steps to stabilize the price of crude oil as well as see gains to reach $80 a barrel to sustain their domestic budgets," said Andrew Lipow, president of Houston-based Lipow Oil Associates. Even so, the market will wait to verify Russia's announced cuts, and concerns continue that high interest rates will weigh on global demand, Lipow said. Oil benchmarks settled about 1% down in the previous session, as a gloomy macroeconomic outlook served to erase early gains.

Persons: Tamas Varga, Andrew Lipow, Russia's, Lipow, Craig Erlam, Natalie Grover, Rod Nickel, Arathy Somasekhar, Trixie Yap, Mark Potter, Alexander Smith, David Goodman, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Brent, . West Texas, Houston, Lipow Oil Associates, Independence, International Energy Agency, Thomson Locations: Saudi Arabia, Russia, Algeria, OPEC, China, Europe, U.S, London, Winnipeg , Manitoba, Houston, Singapore

☆ Berkshire Hathaway boosts stake in Occidental Petroleum to 25%
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 28 (Reuters) - Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) said on Wednesday it has acquired more shares of Occidental Petroleum Corp (OXY.N), boosting its stake in the oil company to above 25%. The conglomerate, controlled by billionaire Warren Buffett, said in a regulatory filing that it paid about $122.1 million for 2.14 million Occidental shares between June 26 and June 28. Berkshire had also purchased about 4.66 million Occidental shares on May 30. It also recently owned about $9.5 billion of Occidental preferred stock carrying an 8% dividend, plus warrants to buy another $5 billion of Occidental shares at $59.62 each. Berkshire had amassed a 22.6% stake in the BNSF railroad before paying $26.5 billion for the remainder in 2010.

Persons: Warren Buffett, Buffett, We're, We've, Jonathan Stempel, Sherry Jacob, Phillips Organizations: Berkshire Hathaway Inc, Occidental Petroleum Corp, Occidental, Berkshire, Anadarko Petroleum Corp, BNSF, Apple Inc, Thomson Locations: Berkshire, Houston, Russia, Ukraine, Occidental, Omaha , Nebraska, Bengaluru

☆ ‘Man Down!’: Surviving the Texas Heat in Prisons Without Air-Conditioning
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( J. David Goodman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On the third day of 100-degree temperatures last week, locked without air-conditioning in a Texas prison north of Houston, Joseph Martire said he began to feel overwhelmed. An inmate for nearly 16 years, Mr. Martire was expecting to be released in a few weeks. But it was so hot that day, he recalled, that he wondered if he would make it that long. “They kept me there for two hours, drinking ice water, salt water, taking my temperature, making sure I was still alive,” he said. The weekslong June heat wave scorching Texas has been particularly brutal and dangerous inside the state’s sprawling prison system, where a majority of those incarcerated, and the guards who watch over them, have been struggling without air-conditioning.

Persons: Joseph Martire, Martire, ” Mr, ” Locations: Texas, Houston

☆ Lost ancient Mayan city discovered in the dense, remote jungle of Mexico by archaeologists
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of an ancient Mayan city in Mexico. The lead researcher said that it must have been an important site between 250 AD and 1000 AD. The previously unknown village was discovered in the Yucatán Peninsula by a team from the Archeology Council of the National Institute of Anthropology and History. The site sprawls has several pyramid-like structures measuring around 50 feet in height, Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History said. Sprajc said that the site most likely underwent changes between 800 and 1000 AD and then experienced the collapse of the Lowland Maya civilization in the 10th century.

Persons: sprawls, —, Ivan Sprajc, Ṡprajc, Sprajc Organizations: Service, Archeology, National Institute of Anthropology, Mexico's National Institute for Anthropology, University of Houston Locations: Mexico, Central, Campeche, Lowland, Guatemala, Belize

☆ Facing Brutal Heat, the Texas Electric Grid Has a New Ally: ‌Solar Power
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( J. David Goodman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Strafed by powerful storms and superheated by a dome of hot air, Texas has been enduring a dangerous early heat wave this week that has broken temperature records and strained the state’s independent power grid. But the lights and air conditioning have stayed on across the state, in large part because of an unlikely new reality in the nation’s premier oil and gas state: Texas is fast becoming a leader in solar power. The amount of solar energy generated in Texas has doubled since the start of last year. And it is set to roughly double again by the end of next year, according to data from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. Already, the state rivals California in how much power it gets from commercial solar farms, which are sprouting across Texas at a rapid pace, from the baked-dry ranches of West Texas to the booming suburbs southwest of Houston.

Persons: ” Joshua Rhodes Organizations: Electric, of Texas, California, University of Texas Locations: Texas, West Texas, Houston, Austin

CNN —Victor Wembanyama, a 7-foot-4 Frenchman who some NBA commentators think could be a generational talent, was the No. 1 pick by the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Draft on Thursday night. “It’s a tough league,” Wembanyama told draft broadcaster ESPN through tears after he was selected. G-League player Scoot Henderson, a 6-foot-2 guard, was the third pick, going to the Portland Trail Blazers. The 6-foot-7 brothers are the first siblings to be picked in the top five (or top 10, even) of the NBA Draft in the same year.

Persons: CNN — Victor Wembanyama, Frenchman, – David Robinson, Tim Duncan, ” Wembanyama, “, Adam Silver, Wembanyama, LeBron James, we’ll, Victor, ”, Gregg Popovich, “ He’s, James, Duncan, Bryant, He’s Victor, that’s, I’ve, Wembanyama’s, Bilal Coulibaly, Washington, Jarace Walker, Brandon Miller, Miller, “ I’m, Scoot Henderson, “ They’re, Amen Thompson, Ausar, Jalen, we’ve, Ausar Thompson, FaceTime, Marcus, Markieff Morris, Robin Lopez, Kris Murray, Keegan Organizations: CNN, San Antonio Spurs, NBA, of Fame, ESPN, Levallois Metropolitans, Mets, ” Spurs, Wembanyama, Indiana, University of Houston, Pacers, Hornets, SEC, Charlotte Hornets, University of Alabama, Southeastern Conference, Portland Trail Blazers, “, NBA.com Twins, Houston Rockets, Rockets, Detroit Pistons, University of Iowa, Sacramento Kings Locations: Kobe, San Antonio, Washington, Alabama, Atlanta

☆ 38-year-old makes up to $9,000 a month on Fiverr—his 3 best career tips: ‘Stay a perpetual student’
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Gili Malinsky | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

While he was "going to school, working at Domino's, working at McDonald's, I'm still rapping," he says. "That's still what I'm doing in my breaks, in my free time, on my weekend. Burton, who's based in Houston, graduated from the University of Houston in 2013 and ended up working at a call center. Today, Burton's working full time as a rapper on the site, writing original verses for people and making up to $9,000 per month. Here's his career advice for new grads looking to find work doing what they love.

Persons: Mike Burton, I'm, It's, Burton, who's, He's, Here's Organizations: University of Houston Locations: Domino's, McDonald's, Houston, Fiverr

☆ Houston rapper Big Pokey dies after collapsing on stage
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Rapper Big Pokey has died at the age of 45 after collapsing on stage in Texas. “It is with deep sadness that we share the news of the passing of our beloved Milton ‘Big Pokey’ Powell,” the post reads. “Big Pokey will forever be ‘The Hardest Pit in the Litter,’” it adds, referencing the title of his debut album, which was released in 1999. A video posted on Twitter showed Big Pokey collapsing backward while holding a microphone at a bar in Beaumount, Texas on Saturday. The rapper hailed from the city of Houston, Texas and was a member of the Screwed Up Click rap collective.

Persons: Pokey, Milton Powell, Milton ‘, ’ Powell, Houston Sylvester Turner, ” Sylvester, Bun, ” Organizations: CNN, Twitter, Mayor, Houston Locations: Texas, Beaumount , Texas, Houston , Texas, The City, Houston

☆ 21 Teenagers Injured in Walkway Collapse at Beach Park in Texas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Livia Albeck-Ripka | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Five teenagers were airlifted to a hospital and 16 others were also injured when part of an elevated walkway collapsed on Thursday at a park in Surfside Beach, Texas, city officials said. The teenagers, ages 14 to 18, were visiting from Cypress and Tomball, outside Houston, and Spring Branch, outside San Antonio. They were there as part of a summer camp run by the Bayou City Fellowship, city officials said in a news release. Officials said that the collapse occurred at about 1 p.m. at Stahlman Park, a seaside recreation area with access to the beach and views of the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal community of Surfside Beach is about 60 miles south of Houston.

Organizations: Bayou City Fellowship Locations: Surfside Beach , Texas, Cypress, Houston, Spring, San Antonio, Bayou, Stahlman, Gulf of Mexico, Surfside

☆ Justice Dept. Reaches Cleanup Deal With Houston After Civil Rights Inquiry
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Justice Department has reached an agreement with the City of Houston to improve trash removal and environmental monitoring after an investigation into the widespread dumping of garbage, including human bodies, in predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods. The pact, announced on Tuesday, was the result of a yearlong inquiry by the department’s civil rights division into dozens of complaints from residents. It includes a commitment by Mayor Sylvester Turner to fund cleanup projects, under the supervision of federal officials for three years. The agreement, which followed weeks of negotiation between department officials and municipal leaders in Houston, is part of the Biden administration’s larger environmental justice agenda, which seeks to redress the disproportional impact of waste, air and water pollution on communities of color around the country. “No one should have to live next to discarded tires, bags of trash, rotting carcasses, infected soils and contaminated groundwater, all caused by illegal dumping,” Alamdar S. Hamdani, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Texas, said on Tuesday during a news conference in Houston.

Persons: Sylvester Turner Organizations: Department, City, Biden, Southern, Southern District of Locations: Houston, Black, U.S, Southern District, Southern District of Texas

☆ What Elizabeth Holmes’ life in prison could look like
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Holmes reported to the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, on Tuesday to begin serving out her 11-year sentence after being convicted on multiple charges of defrauding investors while running the now-defunct startup Theranos. Located approximately 100 miles outside of Houston, where Holmes grew up before moving to California to attend Stanford, FPC Bryan is a minimum-security federal prison camp housing more than 600 women offenders. Disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes is escorted by prison officials into the the Federal Prison Camp on Tuesday, May 30, 2023, in Bryan, Texas. But according to Mark MacDougall, a longtime white-collar defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor, the prison won’t be a walk in the park for Holmes. Housing at FPC Bryan typically consists of dormitory-style arrangements featuring a four-bunk cubicle and communal bath facilities, he said.

☆ Florists, caterers...Tiktokers? Content creators are bringing in up to $150/hour filming weddings for social media
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Jennifer Liu | In Jljenniferliu | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Wilkins, 29, of Fayetteville, Ark., says social media plays a large role in her life as a small business owner. She thinks hiring wedding content creators makes sense in addition to hiring traditional wedding photographers and videographers. For one, she says, "No matter what media you use to take the pictures, they're going to end up on social media." Lanise Harris was always good at capturing social media content at weddings. Alejandra Hernandez wedding content creator, Always a Bride Events

☆ With New Voting Bills, Texas Legislature Targets Elections in Democratic Stronghold
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( J. David Goodman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Why It Matters: Harris County could tilt the power balance in Texas. Harris County, the state’s most populous county, has become a reliable Democratic stronghold. Senate Bill 1750 eliminates the appointed position of elections administrator, which has been in place in Harris County only since late 2020. Yet another bill, House Bill 1243, increases the penalty for illegal voting from a misdemeanor to a felony. The bills invite new scrutiny of elections, especially in Harris County, where officials would be expected to revamp their system just months before important elections.

☆ Japanese Moon Lander Crashed Because It Was Still Three Miles Up, Not on the Ground
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Kenneth Chang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

The Beresheet lander, from an Israeli nonprofit named SpaceIL, launched to the moon in 2019, but it crashed. The Indian Space Research Organization attempted to land a lunar spacecraft the same year, too, and that vehicle, Vikram, also crashed. Only China has landed robotic spacecraft on the moon recently, with three successes in three attempts over the past decade. Ispace had obtained insurance for the lander, and the financial impacts on the company would be small, Mr. Hakamada said. The Indian space agency also announced this week that Chandrayaan-3, a follow-up to its moon landing attempt in 2019, could launch as early as July 12.

Persons: ”, Ryo Ujiie, “, Vikram, Takeshi Hakamada, ” Mr, Hakamada, Ispace Organizations: Draper Laboratory of Cambridge, NASA, Lunar Reconnaissance, Indian Space Research Organization, Technology, Pittsburgh, Houston Locations: China

☆ A 46-bedroom Texas mansion that nobody wanted, sat abandoned for decades, and nearly got bought 20 times finally has tenants
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Jordan Pandy | Dennis Green | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A 63,000-square-foot mansion near Houston, Texas, has sat vacant for more than 20 years. Owner Jim Youngblood tried to sell the vacant home more than 20 times, but every deal fell through. In 2007, Youngblood, a partner at a local leasing and property management company, bought the abandoned mansion for $525,000. ("Everybody has these grand ideas," Youngblood told Realtor.com in 2016, "but they don't have any money.") "I held onto it for several years and had it under contract over 20 times," Youngblood told the Houston Chronicle, "but nobody could get it closed."

☆ Valero responds to fire at Corpus Christi, Texas, refinery
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Valero Energy Corp FollowMay 17 (Reuters) - Valero Energy Corp (VLO.N) said crews are responding to a fire on Wednesday within its 290,000 barrel-per-day Corpus Christi West refinery in Texas. "This morning, a fire occurred at Valero's West Plant refinery. Most of the motor fuels made at the refinery comes from the West Plant. The Bill Greehey refinery East and West plants are located along the Corpus Christi ship channel and the East refinery processes sour crude, while the West plant processes sweet and sour crude and residual fuel oil, according to the refinery website. Community air monitoring indicated there were no offsite concerns, Valero's Schroeder said and the City of Corpus Christi posted on its website.

☆ One worker dies after fire at Marathon's Texas refinery
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Marathon Petroleum Corp FollowMay 15 (Reuters) - A Marathon Petroleum <MPC.N> worker has died from injuries suffered in a fire that broke out on Monday at the company's giant Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas City, Texas, the company said. "A Marathon employee has passed away as a result of the fire today at Marathon Petroleum's Galveston Bay refinery," company spokesperson Jamal Kheiry said in an emailed response to Reuters. The Texas City Emergency Management Department said on Twitter earlier that a shelter-in-place order was not needed. A contract worker died in March after receiving an electric shock at the refinery. Texas City is located 42 miles (68 km) southeast of Houston.

☆ Owen Davidson, Who Won 8 Grand Slams With Billie Jean King, Dies at 79
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( Alex Traub | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Owen Davidson, an Australian tennis player who formed a dominant mixed doubles team with Billie Jean King in the 1960s and ’70s, winning eight Grand Slam titles with her, along with five doubles titles with other partners, died on Friday in Conroe, Texas, a suburb of Houston. Davidson came of age during a heyday for Australian tennis, with peers like Rod Laver, Ken Rosewall, Roy Emerson, John Newcombe and Margaret Court. Unlike those players, Davidson did not have significant success in singles tennis, never advancing beyond the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament. From 1965 to 1974, he won 11 major mixed doubles titles and two men’s doubles titles. In 1967, he swept every major mixed doubles event, winning the Australian Open with his countrywoman Lesley Turner Bowrey and then winning the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open with King.

☆ Companies are betting on a demand rebound in second half of year, DHL says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

That marks the second consecutive month that U.S. imports increased and are higher than 2019 levels, according to data provided to CNBC from Descartes Datamyne, a global trade data platform. The combination of a slow ramp up from "Zero Covid" in China and the reopening of manufacturing plants in the country delayed exports. The top Vietnamese imports in the latest data are wrought iron fencing and plant stands, imported for companies including Home Depot. Black jewelry bags for Zales and men's and boy's t-shirts for Nike rounded out the list of U.S. imports data from China, Vietnam, Thailand, and India reviewed by CNBC. In April, the trade data shows that vitamins and containers of pencils were bound from India to Walmart , and zip polos and t-shirts for Guess .

☆ In Shift, Texas House Advances Bill to Raise Age to Buy Assault Weapons
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( J. David Goodman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

AUSTIN, Texas — What had for years been a solid wall of opposition among Texas Republicans to gun control showed small signs of cracking on Monday as a bipartisan committee of the State Legislature voted to advance a bill raising the minimum age to purchase AR-15-style rifles. The preliminary vote was remarkable in a State Capitol dominated by Republicans, all the more so because it had been entirely unexpected: When the day began, the 13-member committee had not been scheduled to meet at all. But the killing of eight people, including several children, at a shopping center in Allen, Texas, on Saturday has exerted an unexpectedly raw and emotional force on the Legislature. “It was the most emotional vote I’ve ever taken, and I started crying after I made it,” said State Representative Sam Harless, a Republican from the Houston area who voted to keep the bill moving toward the House floor. “That means my heart told me I made the right vote.”

☆ Former Army officer and witness to Texas mall shooting who calls himself a 'gun lover' says mental health isn't the problem: 'We need more gun control'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Former Army officer who rushed to scene of mass shooting in Allen, Texas says US needs gun control. Steven Spainhouer said he's a "gun lover" but that "this is going to keep happening" without stricter laws. He added that it was a gun, not mental health issues, that "killed these people." "I don't know what the gunman's problem was, but it wasn't mental health that killed these people. "I'm a gun lover.

OMAHA, Nebraska, May 6 (Reuters) - Warren Buffett said on Saturday that Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) is not planning to acquire Occidental Petroleum Corp (OXY.N) but remains happy with its large investment in the oil company. Speaking at Berkshire's annual shareholder meeting, Buffett rejected speculation that Berkshire would buy Occidental after having accumulated a 23.6% stake. "We will not be making any offer for Occidental," Buffett said. "Hollub is an extraordinary manager at Occidental," Buffett said. Last August, Berkshire won U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission permission to buy up to 50% of Occidental's common stock.

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