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Had enough of the "Wham, bam, thank you...hot damn!" attractions? There's no disputing their place in our personal love trajectories. And with romantic Venus in hot-blooded Aries on and off since February 3, it hasn't been that easy to settle down in 2017. But this Tuesday, the love planet settles into a steadier groove as she hunkers down in stable-but-sensual Taurus until July 4. Cue up the slow jams and let things unfold in a more organic way. Venus governs the way we spend money, so this cycle can green light the purchase of a luxury object. Just make sure it's as practical as it is beautiful — Taurus loves things that stand the test of time. Does it seem like there is no justice in the world? With globalist Jupiter in Libra stuck in a low-power retrograde since February 6, we've seen our fair share of corruption playing out on the world stage. But this Friday, June 9, Jupiter snaps back into action, exposing all the back-channeled B.S. that's been hidden from our view. With the red-spotted planet in Libra until October 10, our freedom-fighting spirits will be reawakened — and there could be at least one more Women's March sized protest for the history books again. Doubling this impact? Friday also features the annual full moon in outspoken, worldly Sagittarius. Like a lunar truth bomb, these moonbeams help Jupiter reveal what is real. The wake-up calls could be game-changing. Make way for progress — even if that means pushing back against a herd of dinosaurs...again!

Astrology

Zodiac

(CNN)With California residents being asked to stay at home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and all "non-essential businesses and areas" being closed down, officials in Los Angeles are making sure that marijuana is still available to the public. Marijuana dispensaries are being deemed as "essential businesses," as they are allowed to remain open under the state's "Safer at Home" order. Los Angeles has "cannabis dispensaries with a medicinal cannabis license" listed under "essential infrastructure" or "healthcare operations" that are exempt from closing. California Gov. Gavin Newsom made the announcement on Thursday night, asking nearly 40 million residents in the state to stay at home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. "There's a mutuality, and there's a recognition of our interdependence, that requires of this moment that we direct a statewide order for people to stay at home," Newsom said. There are approximately 995 cases in California, including "presumptive positive" cases and 19 deaths. The US has more than 13,634 cases with at least 196 deaths. CNN's Faith Karimi, Sarah Moon, Jon Passantino and Amanda Watts contributed to this report.

Politics

Legalization of Marijuana

CNN Senior International Correspondent Clarissa Ward and Producer Salma Abdelaziz went undercover in rebel-held Syria, where few Western journalists have gone for more than a year. They worked with Syria-based filmmaker Bilal Abdul Kareem on a series of exclusive reports. Warning: Graphic images. Rebel-held Syria (CNN)There's a sickening moment between hearing the planes and waiting for them to drop their payload. A pit forms in your stomach. You know you could die, but you also know there's no way to divine where the strike will hit. On a hill overlooking Ariha, our guard Abu Youssef seems to have located the jet in the sky and is following it with his eyes. "Russian planes," he says. Suddenly he ducks. The sound of the explosion rings out with a "thwoomp." Where the strike hit, there are other sounds. Sirens. People screaming for help. Rescue workers shouting for an ambulance. A woman wailing. Metal scraping against rubble as volunteers furiously try to dig people out of the debris. Survivors in this battered Syrian town cursing President Bashar al-Assad and his Russian supporters. At the nearest hospital, some 10 miles away, still more sounds. Men arguing as they try to delicately move a gravely injured boy from the back of a car. Doctors shouting at people to get back. A family member weeping softly. To a visitor, there is something dizzyingly surreal about it. The sounds stay with you as long as the sights. But these are the sounds of everyday life in northern Syria. We had been on the ground for less than 24 hours when the airstrikes hit. Now, five years into this war, the attacks against areas controlled by rebels are relentless, particularly from the air. It began with crudely made barrel bombs pushed, seemingly haphazardly, out of the back of Syrian Air Force helicopters. Then, last September, Russia joined the fight and the airstrikes -- thousands of them -- became even more powerful and punishing. Russia says it is only targeting "terrorists" -- fighters with ISIS and the al Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra. But the strike we saw hit a fruit market. Ordinary people out buying fruit. One minute they were arguing about the price of oranges. The next minute they were dead. Monitoring groups say nearly 2,000 civilians have been killed since the Russian intervention began. What goes unsaid "Every day, I struggle with whether to send my daughter to school," the young woman tells me. We're sitting on cushions on the floor of a house in Maarat al-Numan, a town ravaged by airstrikes in the past few months. Her 6-year-old daughter stands next to her, shyly eyeing these foreign visitors as she chews her hair. "Of course I want her to have an education, but every time she leaves the house there's always a chance ..." Her voice trails off. I don't finish the sentence for her. There's always a chance she won't come back. There's always a chance she will be killed. There's always a chance she will get maimed in a strike. Several Syrians have told me that you don't hear the planes if you get hit, you only hear them if you're not the target. It seems to provide some comfort -- at least you don't know you are going to die in the moments before it happens. I don't share this thought with the young woman. I nod silently. In Syria now, there are lots of silences. Much remains unsaid. Questions are generally greeted with suspicion. A culture of fear permeates the place. Almost no Western journalists have visited this part of the country in over a year. Turkey has all but sealed the border into rebel-held areas -- and inside, the threat of indiscriminate air strikes and kidnapping looms. We traveled undercover, wearing the niqab, a black veil that covers the entire face, except for a small slit at the eyes. It doesn't take long for people to work out that I'm a foreigner, yet very few ask where I am from or what I am doing here. They know better than to ask such questions. Instead they tell their stories. They want the world to know. David and Goliath The journey to get into Aleppo is now extremely difficult and dangerous. Assad's ground troops have used Russian air cover to encircle the rebels who control the eastern part of the city, where up to 320,000 people may be trapped. There is now only one road that rebels can use to get in and out of the city -- once Syria's largest, a bustling economic and cultural hub -- and it is flanked on either side by enemy forces. Snipers are everywhere. They call it the road of death. We hurtle down the road at top speed, hearts in our throats. I look at the berms of earth built up on either side to conceal cars from enemy view. They seemed pathetically vulnerable. I am reminded of a visit to Syria four years ago when one rebel leader proudly showed me a weapon they had been working on for months. It was a homemade catapult. A catapult to fight against artillery shells. "David and Goliath," I whispered to myself. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Closing in from all sides "The first was my grandson. And after him his cousin, my son, my daughter's son, my middle son, and one of his children, then my third son, and his son. All died on the frontlines, and I thank God for that." In a dark and cramped apartment in eastern Aleppo, 70-year-old Souad is listing family members who have been killed fighting in this war. Her milky eyes gaze blankly into the air as she counts them all on her bony fingers. There are nine in total. My brain struggles to process the scale of the loss. There are no tears. Sadness and loss long ago hardened into grim acceptance, made possible by an unwavering faith in God. "I thank God for any situation. I hear the news and I say thank God for anything," Souad says, adjusting her black headscarf. "We come from Allah and to him we return." Her grandson sits next to her as she speaks, listening attentively as he sips thick black Arabic coffee. He looks 40 but is probably in his late 20s. His beard is long and he wears camouflage pants. He is a fighter with Ahrar al Sham, an Islamist rebel group that is fighting on three fronts. On one is Assad's army. On another is ISIS. On the third, Kurdish forces lie in wait. When I address him, he looks down shyly to avoid meeting my eyes. To some, it might appear as sexism or disdain. But I understand it as it is intended, as a gesture of respect. I wonder what will happen if he is killed -- if Souad will continue to stay here in Sukkari, a neighborhood shattered by Russian and regime bombs. Yes, she tells me. She will stay here until she dies. The war on normalcy Doctor Firas al Jundi doesn't have long to sit down with us. He is one of a handful of surgeons in the only hospital still standing in Maarat al-Numan. Last month, the largest hospital, supported by Doctors Without Borders, was destroyed by airstrikes. Twenty-five people were killed. The group said it believed Russian or regime missiles were responsible. Russia has categorically denied involvement. Jundi tells us he now sees up to a hundred people in a day. His face is gray and dark circles line his eyes. It's the face of someone who doesn't know what to think or feel anymore, of someone who is just going through the motions. When he talks, he presses his hands down on the desk, as if it is somehow the only thing holding him up. He tells us that they don't have enough medicine, that the water is too dirty to use for surgeries. He says that, despite their denials, the regime and Russia are targeting hospitals deliberately and cynically. That four hospitals were hit in one day last month. That they want to destroy all medical services so that people will be forced to flee. I ask him why he doesn't leave Syria. With a medical degree it would be relatively easy for him to go somewhere safer. He pauses before answering. I can hear him swallow. "If I did that I would abandon my conscience," Jundi says. His face cracks and he whimpers softly. He is breaking down. "This is our country, we can't desert it. If we leave then we have sold our morals. Who would treat the people?" He stops and sobs. I dig my fingernails into my palms to stop my own tears. "I can very easily leave, but we will remain steadfast," he pushes on, growing stronger as he continues. "I am prepared to die rather than to leave. And I will carry on no matter what." It's the kind of bravery that leaves you baffled. The day before, we interviewed a lawyer who survived a strike on a courthouse. It was one of two we visited that have been leveled. "This is the tax we pay for living in a liberated area," he said matter-of-factly as we stood in the rubble. Assad and his Russian allies say that theirs is a war against terrorism. But on the ground, people believe that everyday life is the target. It's a war on normalcy. Going to settle a dispute at the courthouse? We'll hit you. Going to the hospital to get your heart checked out? We'll hit you. Going to buy some fruit? We'll hit you. 'Imagine that you're drowning' I look out the car window through the slit in my niqab. "Democracy is the religion of the West," a sign reads in black and white. There are lots of signs like this in these parts now. Billboards urge men to join the jihad against Assad and encourage women to cover themselves completely. We drive through checkpoint after checkpoint manned by Jabhat al-Nusra, the al Qaeda affiliate here. The radicalism that has taken hold in rebel-held Syria is more pronounced each time I visit, but the writing has been on the wall for years. In 2012, I asked then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton if she was concerned that Islamist and jihadist groups would exploit the vacuum created by the chaos and violence in Syria if the international community didn't somehow fill the void. She deftly avoided answering the question. Almost everyone you meet here will tell you that they want to live freely and fairly. But most will also tell you that they want to live under some type of Islamic governance. People will tell you that they hate extremism. Yet Jabhat al-Nusra enjoys a huge amount of support on the ground. It is a conflicted and complicated relationship. One young media activist told me in one breath that he hated Nusra -- and in the next, added that his cousin was a fighter with them. Years ago, a Syrian-American doctor explained it to me like this: Imagine you're drowning, that you're about to die and you're desperately looking for anyone to help you, but there's nobody there. But then you see someone holding out their hand. And maybe you don't like the look of that person, but it's your only chance to survive. So you take their hand. Hell and paradise It's our last day in Syria and we are in a sun-drenched olive grove near the Turkish border. It is spectacularly beautiful, serene even -- a world away from the devastation we witnessed hours earlier at the site of an apparent airstrike in the town of Daraat Izza. The contrasts and contradictions of this country leave me feeling light-headed. Syria is hell. But standing in the warm sun, watching the silver green olive leaves shiver in the breeze, it is also paradise. A ceasefire has been in place for a couple of days, though based on what we saw and heard, it's difficult to have much faith that it will hold. We are preparing to leave, saying our goodbyes. We hand over a bag full of British chocolates to our security guards. Abu Youssef thanks us and quietly hands each of us a folded piece of white paper with our initials on it. "Promise me you won't read these until you get back home to London," he says. Two flights and 72 hours later, we open the letters. "I hope you have a good idea of us," they read. "Please tell the world the truth about Syria."

Politics

Middle East

* U.S. manufacturing activity contracts for first time in 3 years * Silver surges 3% to near 3-year peak, breaches $19/oz level * British lawmakers bid to stop no-deal Brexit (Adds analyst comments, market details, updates prices) Sept 3 (Reuters) - Gold rose more than 1% on Tuesday after weak manufacturing data from the United States reinforced fears of an economic downturn, while uncertainties over U.S.-China trade ties and Brexit further boosted bullion's safe-haven appeal. Meanwhile, silver followed gold's rally to jump 3% while breaching the $19 mark for the first time since October 2016 at $19.07 per ounce. Spot gold rose 1.1% to $1,547.70 per ounce at 11:20 a.m. EDT (1520 GMT), not far off its more than six-year high of $1,554.56. U.S. gold futures surged 1.8% to $1,557.20. Renewing fears of a sharp economic slowdown and weighing on risk sentiment, U.S. manufacturing activity contracted for the first time in three years in August. Weak manufacturing data "will further embolden the view that the U.S. Federal Reserve is going to need to be aggressive with rate cuts," said Ryan McKay, a commodity strategist at TD Securities. "Equities are on the back foot, that's what's keeping gold higher. There's a lot of uncertainty on the Brexit front, politics in Italy, protests in Hong Kong as well - a lot of stuff that's positive for gold." Gold also shook off mild pressure from the dollar earlier in the session, with the U.S. unit holding gains versus other major currencies. "Dollar is also being seen as a safe-haven asset ... Even Treasuries are up, dollar is up, silver is up, gold is up - it's all the safe-haven assets up together," said Phillip Streible, senior commodities strategist at RJO Futures. Meanwhile, European currencies such as the euro and pound have dipped against the dollar as traders remain wary of developments surrounding Britain's imminent exit from the European Union and Italy's political turmoil. In Britain, lawmakers began a bid to stop Prime Minister Boris Johnson from pursuing a no-deal Brexit. On the trade front, China has lodged a complaint at the World Trade Organization over U.S. import duties, trashing the latest tariff actions as violating the consensus reached by leaders of both countries at a meeting in Osaka. "Gold has aggressively priced in Fed rate cuts. With little opportunity cost in holding gold and growing economic uncertainty tied to escalating U.S.-China trade tensions, investor appetite for the yellow metal has grown," BNP Paribas analysts wrote in a note, forecasting average gold prices to climb above $1,600 driven by the Fed's monetary easing cycle. Federal fund futures implied traders saw a 91% chance of a 25 basis-point rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve this month. Meanwhile, platinum rose 2.5% to $953.25 per ounce, while palladium was up 0.1% at $1,532.75 per ounce. (Reporting by Asha Sistla in Bengaluru Editing by Matthew Lewis)

Investment

Precious Metals

Melissa McCarthy, fresh off her Golden Globe nomination for Spy and ahead of her all-girl Ghostbusters reboot, found time to host Saturday Night Live for the fourth time. She’s as close to a sure thing as you get as host, having been nominated for an Emmy each of the previous three times she’s hit the stage at Rockefeller Center. The question wasn’t if she’d be funny, it was how she’d be funny. Would she and Leslie Jones rock a Ghostbusters sketch? Would she address her conspicuous absence from the Gilmore Girls? And how exactly would Kanye cap off a week that included a fashion show, a delayed new album, and a renewed beef with Taylor?The answers were, sadly, no to both Ghostbusters and Gilmore Girls, but McCarthy and Jones did have a lot of screen time. As for Kanye, he had some help from his friends, including Young Thug, Chance The Rapper, and Kelly Price; then, he announced his album had dropped on his website. Here are three moments from last night’s SNL worth watching:1. The Day Beyoncé Turned Black: This movie trailer satire spoofed how white people reacted to last week’s "Formation" video premiere and the resulting chaos that exploded everyone’s social media feeds. White people are shown running frightened through the streets, just like in a disaster movie, unable to wrap their heads around a political Queen Bey. “Maybe this song isn’t for us — but usually, everything is!” Cecily Strong screams in horror. The movie’s rating? NC-17 for white people, and G for Black people. 2. Rachel from Friends: In a standout moment from Weekend Update, Vanessa Bayer pulled out her spot-on Jennifer Aniston as Rachel from Friends. She rocks the hair, the turtleneck, and some denim overalls as she invites Colin Jost to see Phoebe perform at Central Perk. She is interrupted several times by transitions and music stings reminiscent of the '90s sitcom. She even has a baby — but only for a second. “You have a baby?” Jost asks in surprise. “Sometimes!” Look away from the screen and you just might think it was Aniston at the Update desk. Bayer’s that good. 3. The Art of The Pickup: This flashback to VH1’s reality show had Cecily Strong donning the red velvet jacket and feather boa to take the lead in coaching women on how to pick up guys in a bar. Her tips include "negging," being sexually aggressive, and setting future plans. McCarthy plays an awkward and strange character named Rhonda with a Members Only jacket and giant glasses. Her pickup lines are increasingly weird, and she licks and bites and generally harasses Kyle Mooney and Kenan Thompson. The sketch is funny enough on its own, but seeing the usually stone-faced Leslie Jones barely keeping it together, and sometimes not keeping it together at all, with her Ghostbuster’s castmate is priceless. Bonus: Kanye West was saving up the drop of The Life of Pablo for this moment. Watch his performance of "Ultralight Beam," a new track from the album:

Entertainment

Television

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel signed a 15-year, $775 million deal with the self-ruling Palestinian Authority on Tuesday to put electricity distribution for Palestinians in the West Bank in PA hands and build four power plants to that end, officials said. The nearly three million Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territory currently rely on Israel for their electricity, with neighboring Jordan providing power to the Jericho area in the Jordan river valley. The deal does not apply to the Gaza Strip, whose two million Palestinians suffer frequent blackouts due to severe fuel shortages and continued power-sharing disputes between Gaza’s Islamist Hamas rulers and the West Bank-based PA. As part of the new deal, the PA will pay off a 915-million-shekel debt to the state-owned utility Israel Electric Corp (IEC) [ISECO.UL], while taking charge of the distribution of electricity to West Bank Palestinians. The IEC will sell power to the Palestinian Electricity Transmission Company (PETL) through four plants to be built by the IEC and PA. PETL will own the power plants and channel the electricity supply. “The agreement ... frees the Palestinian electricity sector of complete Israeli control, which has lasted for decades,” said a statement issued in the name of Hussein Al-Sheikh, head of the PA’s civil affairs agency. Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said the agreement paves the way for Palestinians to develop a modern grid. “(The deal) brings about a new reality in the Palestinians’ energy sector, reduces restrictions on electricity supply, strengthens economic stability...and opens a new era in economic relations between the two sides,” said Israeli Finance Ministry Director-General Shai Babad. Palestinians in Gaza, an impoverished coastal enclave largely blockaded by Israel, suffer up to 18 hours of power cuts per day due to fuel shortages. The electricity Gaza gets from Israel, Egypt and a local power plant remains under half the estimated 600 megawatts that would satisfy daily needs. Talks on a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza have been frozen since 2014 and Israel and the PA have sparred repeatedly over unpaid PA debts to the IEC. The deal includes collateral and a guarantee mechanism to ensure the IEC is paid. Reporting by Steven Scheer in Jerusalem, Ali Sawafta in the West Bank and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza; Editing by Mark Heinrich

Politics

Government

PARIS (Reuters) - The operation to shore up fire-ravaged Notre-Dame Cathedral is entering a risky stage as engineers resume preparations for the removal of scaffolding that could provoke a further collapse. The Paris landmark lost its roof and spire in the April 15 blaze, but the main bell towers, outer walls and much of the vaulted ceiling survived, along with religious relics and artworks. After the first Christmas in more than two centuries without Notre-Dame services, work resumed on Thursday to prepare the site for years of rebuilding due to begin in 2021. Engineering teams have brought in a 75-metre crane now towering over the partly destroyed cathedral. Starting in February, their first delicate task will be the removal of 250 tonnes of damaged scaffolding installed for a renovation planned before the fire, without it falling onto the medieval vaulting. “We don’t know how that is going to affect the stability of the structure,” said a spokeswoman for the Catholic Church’s Paris diocese that includes Notre-Dame. Supports are now being installed around the mangled scaffolding to mitigate the risk of collapse, and a second lattice structure suspended above it for access. The edifice is monitored by dozens of sensors, crack detectors and lasers to pick up any first signs of instability, so that workers can be evacuated swiftly and damage minimized. “We’ve known from the start that there’s a certain amount of risk nobody can really quantify,” the diocese spokeswoman said. “A partial collapse of the vaulting is a possibility that can’t yet be ruled out.” Reporting by Laurence Frost; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne

Other

Other

President Trump is set to sign executive orders Wednesday afternoon on transparency in federal guidance and enforcement. The president is scheduled to sign the orders at 3:15 p.m. Watch live in the video above. View the discussion thread. The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax The contents of this site are ©2019 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Politics

Current Events

rates@ * Eyes on Fed chief as investors reassess rate cut hopes * EM stocks set to snap three days of losses * Mexican peso extends slide after finance minister exits July 10 (Reuters) - Emerging market currencies were caught in a tight trading range on Wednesday ahead of U.S. Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell's congressional testimony, which could offer insights on where interest rates are headed. Moves in emerging markets could be dictated by the tone Powell sets later in the day, building or breaking expectations of the Fed embarking on an easing cycle at a policy meeting this month, hopes of which have supported inflows into risky, developing world assets. While currencies were tepid, the MSCI index of emerging equities was set to snap a three-day run of losses, helped by gains in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Chinese stocks dropped despite news that Washington and Beijing officials had held a "constructive" telephone conversation as the two sides try to end a bruising trade war that has weighed on global growth. "It's not quite clear how EM currencies have priced in rate cuts. If Powell does not change market expectations of a cut in July, the reaction would be relatively small in EM," said Per Hammarlund, chief emerging market strategist at SEB. "If Powell does move to reduce expectations, EM currencies would weaken temporarily." Strong U.S. jobs data last week eased expectations of a 50-basis-point rate cut from the Fed in July, but investors have fully priced in a 25-basis-point cut. Jolting financial markets overnight was the stormy exit of Mexico's finance minister, Carlos Urzua, who cited "extremism" in economic policy. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador quickly named well-regarded deputy minister Arturo Herrera to replace him. The Mexican peso fell 0.24%, adding to its more than 1% slide on Tuesday. "The reaction was relatively muted, given the risks involved," SEB's Hammarlund said. "Investors are giving AMLO the benefit of the doubt as he has pledged to keep government finances under control." The Turkish lira extended this week's losses as investors fretted over political interference in Turkey's monetary policy. The Haberturk news website reported on Wednesday that President Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey could face serious problems if its central bank is not completely overhauled after the dismissal of governor Murat Cetinkaya. Russia's rouble edged higher as oil prices rose, while South Africa's rand held steady ahead of finance minister Tito Mboweni's budget speech. For GRAPHIC on emerging market FX performance 2019, see http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh For GRAPHIC on MSCI emerging index performance 2019, see https://tmsnrt.rs/2OusNdX For TOP NEWS across emerging markets For CENTRAL EUROPE market report, see For TURKISH market report, see For RUSSIAN market report, see (Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Dale Hudson)

Finance

Currency

Alona Tal is preparing for motherhood by celebrating in the most relaxing way possible. The Israeli actress is set to welcome a baby girl this year with husband Marcos Ferraez, she confirms to PEOPLE exclusively. To mark the occasion, the Supernatural alum was the guest of honor at a moon-and-stars-themed Beverly Hills, California, baby shower on Sunday, hosted by Good Carma Studio. “This is my first pregnancy, so needless to say, the shower was a nice break from the worries and ‘what ifs’ of the unknown that lies ahead,” Tal, 33, tells PEOPLE exclusively of her special day. “Being Israeli born, where baby showers aren’t really a thing, I couldn’t imagine how excited I would become about having one myself. The ladies at Good Carma Studio understood me and who I am, and based on that, threw the most amazing and relaxing baby shower I have ever attended.” The mom-to-be jokes, “I’m so grateful it was my own shower or else I would have been very jealous!” The “zen-like” bash, decked out in gold, white and black accents, was attended by Gal Gadot, Christy Carlson Romano, Noa Tishby, Susie Abromeit and Elizabeth McLaughlin. “Being surrounded by dearest friends who are all amazing, talented, nurturing women and watching them enjoy every minute of the baby shower was a gift I shall sincerely cherish forever,” says Tal. Want all the latest pregnancy and birth announcements, plus celebrity mom blogs? Click here to get those and more in the PEOPLE Babies newsletter. As guests arrived to the spa-infused party, they were gifted with custom Hamsa hair bows from Ella’s Bows. Each guest also had the opportunity to hand-pick a necklace with healing stones from Emma J. Company. Attendees noshed on gourmet bites catered by vegan chef Theresa Rountree, including falafel salad with beet dressing, hearts-of-palm-stuffed vegan crab cakes with mango salsa and crostini with herbed cheese, caramelized onions, roasted carrots and dill. For dessert, a Polkatots dessert table offered multiple cakes, cupcakes and cookies decorated to highlight the celestial theme. Flowers by Bashful Rose decorated the serene space and a La Croix sparkling water bar kept everyone’s thirst quenched, offering a variety of flavors, along with berries for garnish. Between bites and sips, Tal’s friends and family were treated to custom illustrations from Courtney coloring, were able to mix together their own Lalicious body scrubs and chose cute sunglasses by Real Shades for their own kids. To add to the tranquil atmosphere, guests enjoyed foot and hand massages from Manly Handz mobile spa. The expectant mom of the hour was gifted with a plethora of goodies to help her relax as she awaits the arrival of her baby girl, including a Muse Meditation Headband and a basket from Secrets of Tea, filled with brews for both moms and babies. But Tal wasn’t the only person to leave the party with gifts. Each attendee went home with a tote bag chock full of treasures, including products by Mabel’s Labels, USANA Nutrimeal, Stephen Joseph Gifts, Pixi, Aquiesse Candles, Munchkin, Stella & Dot, Truself Organics, Angels & Emeralds, Baby K’tan and more. “Being able to get pampered and showered with love and beautiful energy before we head into the next chapter of our lives was welcomed and very much needed,” Tal tells PEOPLE. “My husband and I could not be more excited and hopeful.”

Parenting

Pregnancy

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU antitrust authorities opened an investigation on Friday into Qualcomm’s (QCOM.O) $38-billion bid for NXP Semiconductors (NXP.N), ratcheting up pressure on the U.S. smartphone chipmaker to offer concessions to address their concerns. Qualcomm, which supplies chips to Android smartphone makers and Apple (AAPL.P), is set to become the leading supplier to the fast growing automotive chip market following the deal, the largest-ever in the semiconductor industry. The European Commission listed a raft of concerns about the combined company’s ability and incentives to squeeze out rivals and jack up prices. It said the company may bundle its products, excluding rivals in baseband chipsets and near field communication (NFC) chips. The combined entity would also have the ability and the incentive to change NXP’s intellectual property licensing practices, in particular the NFC technology, by tying this to Qualcomm’s patent portfolio, the EU watchdog said. It also voiced concerns about reduced competition in semiconductors used in cars. The Commission will decide on the deal by Oct. 17. Qualcomm said it was confident of allaying the EU’s worries and that it still expects to close the deal by the end of the year. U.S. antitrust enforcers gave the green light for the deal in April without demanding concessions. Reuters reported on June 2 that Qualcomm may face a lengthy EU investigation after it declined to offer concessions to address the bloc’s concerns in a preliminary review. Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, Editing by Gabriela Baczynska and Adrian Croft

Politics

International Relations

Two others were injured, one critically, in the shooting at a housing complex. The gunman, a 66-year-old resident, was found dead of what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the police said. A 66-year-old resident at a housing complex in Westerly, R.I., shot two employees and a neighbor on Thursday, setting off a manhunt before he was found dead in his room, the police said. All three victims were women. Julie Cardinal, 47, a manager at the complex, was identified on Friday as the woman who had been killed. Another manager, Robin Moss, 38, was in critical condition. The third, Donna Thornley, a 66-year-old resident, was in stable condition, Chief Shawn Lacey of the Westerly Police Department said in a statement. The gunman was identified as Joseph Giachello, a resident at the complex, Babcock Village, which offers affordable housing for older adults and people with disabilities. The motive for the attack was not clear. Officers arriving on the scene pulled surveillance camera footage to identify the suspect and entered his room with a master key, Chief Lacey said at a news conference on Thursday. The man was found in the room with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The authorities said they recovered a weapon at the scene. Angelo Fusaro, 65, a resident at the complex, said he had been in his third-floor apartment when he heard a shot and a scream. Rushing to a window in the hallway, which looks down on the lobby, he saw a complex employee lying on the floor. Nearby was another victim, a resident in her 60s, who was bleeding from the neck. “It was horrible,” Mr. Fusaro said. The police soon arrived, saw him in the window and ordered him to come down the elevator with his hands up. When Mr. Fusaro stepped into the elevator, he saw shell casings. “I could smell the gunpowder,” he said. The gunman, he later realized, had fled back to his apartment after the shooting. The employee who was killed had recently started working there, Mr. Fusaro said. He described her as a conscientious worker who took residents’ complaints seriously. “She was a nice person, great person,” he said. “It’s pretty awful.” The shooting prompted a two-hour lockdown at schools in Westerly, a waterfront town on the southern shore of Rhode Island, near the Connecticut border. Residents reported a heavy police presence, including armored trucks and helicopters, as the authorities searched for the suspect. The complex’s owner, Affordable Housing Strategies, and its manager, Property Advisory Group, said in a joint statement that company officials were “shocked and saddened that this tragedy has occurred.” “Our foremost priority is the safety of our residents and staff,” the statement said. “We are working with law enforcement to address this situation, and further questions should be referred to the Westerly Police and Rhode Island State Police.” The New York Times The Connecticut State Police dispatched troopers along the border and in the town of Stonington, Conn., which sits next to Westerly, to help with the investigation, a spokeswoman said. The Boston Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives tweeted that special agents from the bureau’s Providence office were on the scene to help the local police. Gov. Gina Raimondo of Rhode Island said in a statement that “I stand with the people of Westerly and all Rhode Islanders in coming together to support the victims and their families during this difficult time.” Jacquelyn Smith, an administrator at Christ Episcopal Church, about a mile from the shooting, said the church had been locked down afterward. Seven people were there at the time. As they waited for an all-clear, they alerted neighbors, friends and relatives about the shooting, she added. “We’re all as concerned about ourselves as we are our community and the people in it,” she said. Town Councilor Karen A. Cioffi said Babcock Village was a “normally quiet” public housing complex on Cross Street, about eight blocks from her home. “I have been here 26 years and I’ve never heard of an active shooter,” Ms. Cioffi said. “We train for it all the time, but this is probably a first for us. It’s shocking.” Derrick Bryson Taylor and Robert Liguori contributed reporting. Susan C. Beachy contributed research.

Crime

Police

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Illinois filed a lawsuit against Volkswagen for tampering with vehicle emissions controls in its Volkswagen and Audi diesel engine cars, becoming the 19th U.S. state to take legal action against the German automaker. The complaint, filed in the Cook County Circuit Court by Attorney General Lisa Madigan on Monday, was against the company’s American unit and sought civil penalties for violations of state environmental laws. The German carmaker admitted last year to cheating U.S. vehicles emissions tests using sophisticated software. About 29,800 cars sold in Illinois were affected, Madigan said. VW spokeswoman Jeannine Ginivan said the company would review the complaint. Ginivan also said Volkswagen agreed to buy back or modify affected 2-litre TDI vehicles, establish a $2.7 billion environmental remediation trust, which will benefit all states including Illinois, and invest $2 billion for infrastructure and awareness to increase the use of zero emission vehicles across the United States. Reporting by Arathy S Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila

Technology

Automotive

NO ONE BEATS about the bush quite like the Javanese, an ethnic group from Indonesia’s most populous island. Chronicling their mores in 1960 Clifford Geertz, an American anthropologist, noted that proposals for arranged marriages often start with the groom’s father visiting the bride’s family and saying something as vague as: “The frost in the morning means rain in the evening.” More metaphors ensue as the conversation slowly meanders towards the point. The future in-laws then counter with false protests, saying that their daughter is unworthy. This ritual is repeated a few times. When the bride and groom finally meet, direct eye contact is avoided and no one talks of weddings. Indonesia is a vast archipelago with hundreds of ethnicities spread across 13,000 or so islands. But Javanese dominate, with 95m people, or 40% of the population. There is much that is distinctive about Javanese culture, from shadow-puppet plays to tempeh, a fermented soyabean cake. The Javanese language is the 12th-most-spoken tongue in the world. Traditional Javanese religion blends Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam. To this day, the sultan of Yogyakarta, a Javanese royal, throws nail and hair clippings into the sea and a volcano each year to appease the gods. Upgrade your inbox and get our Daily Dispatch and Editor's Picks. Most noticeably, Javanese have a distinct etiquette. “We are a polite people who do not like conflicts,” explains Prabandari, a Javanese woman from Yogyakarta, which is considered a centre of Javanese culture. Her friend, a Javanese businessman, says he finds arguments so distasteful that he cannot bring himself to haggle. Asih, a Javanese teacher, complains that she is expected to “camouflage” her true thoughts. Geertz recounts the tale of a husband who wanted a divorce but thought it unseemly to say so. Instead he inflamed an old quarrel between his wife and a villager and, without saying anything directly, failed to side with his wife. She soon left him, in what he saw as a triumph of politesse. Javanese are softly spoken, too. Ellia Wamese, a student from Maluku, an eastern province, recalls giving a presentation to a group of Javanese. Although he spoke at what he considered a normal volume, they thought he was irate and shouting. Java plays a disproportionate role in the economy and politics. It is home to Jakarta, the capital, and generates 58% of GDP. Party bigwigs tend to be Javanese. Their dislike of conflict has helped create a parliamentary system run by consensus, rather than majority rule. Cross-party committees shape laws and the budget. This means law-making can be tediously slow and often ends in a woolly compromise. Political parties have only the vaguest of ideologies, and tend to fall in line behind the president of the day. The coalition supporting Joko Widodo, the current president, who is known as Jokowi, will probably command 60% of seats in the new parliament. His predecessor managed 75%. And before his re-election in April Jokowi contemplated striking an alliance with Prabowo Subianto, who had run against him in 2014 and ended up running against him this year. That would have done away with the need to hold an election at all. This week, after the official results of the election were released, Mr Prabowo’s supporters mounted protests in which at least six people died. This disorder, too, is very Javanese: what better way to show a leader is illegitimate than to prove he cannot preserve peace and harmony?

Other

Other

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi state television aired on Sunday footage of what it said was a U.S. raid in Syria that reportedly killed Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Day-time footage showed a crater in the ground and what appeared to be the aftermath of a raid, with torn blood-stained clothes on the ground. It also showed night-time footage of an explosion. The broadcaster quoted an expert on terrorism saying that Iraqi intelligence agencies had helped pinpoint Baghdadi’s location. Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is believed to have been killed in a U.S. military operation in Syria, sources in Syria, Iraq and Iran said on Sunday, as U.S. President Donald Trump prepared to make a “major statement” at the White House. A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that Baghdadi was targeted in the overnight raid but was unable to say whether the operation was successful. Two Iraqi security sources and two Iranian officials said they had received confirmation from inside Syria that Baghdadi had been killed. Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein; editing by Jason Neely and Alison Williams

Politics

Middle East

  Pick up PEOPLE’s special issue, Star Wars: The Secrets of Rogue One, on newsstands Nov. 30 — including a special Star Wars virtual-reality bonus with goggles included! And watch People Special: Star Wars Rogue One on the new People/Entertainment Weekly Network (PEN) starting Nov. 30. Go to PEOPLE.com/PEN, or download the PEN app on Apple TV, Roku Players, Amazon Fire TV, Xumo, Chromecast, iOS. May the Force be with the newest cast members of the Star Wars saga. As the latest installment in the Star Wars franchise, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story will be the first standalone film in the saga’s history — and PEOPLE will be bringing you exclusive interviews, videos and even a virtial reality experience in the coming weeks. (Look for our special issue Star Wars: Secrets of Rogue One, on newsstands Nov. 30.) In the newest outing, a maverick band of rebel fighters embark on a desperate mission to steal the plans for the Death Star before the Emperor can crush the rebellion – the very same plans Princess Leia would end up hiding in R2-D2 at the beginning of Star Wars: A New Hope. Meet the cast who’ll be bringing that story to life in Rogue One, and check out the video above to find out their favorite classic Star Wars characters.   1. Donnie Yen plays Chirrut Îmwe, a blind warrior monk with a strong belief in the Force and the Jedi way. 2. Alan Tudyk is the voice of driod K-2SO, a security droid created for the Galactic Empire. 3. Diego Luna plays intelligence officer Capt. Cassian Andor, a true rebel with combat experience — who also manages to temper the hot-headed Jyn Erso. 4. Forest Whitaker plays Saw Gerrera, a soldier who once trained with Anakin Skywalker (long before his transformation into Darth Vader). 5. Jiang Wen plays Baze Malbus, a soldier devoted to protecting Chirrut. 6. Felicity Jones plays Jyn Erso, the film’s badass heroine who must go deep undercover as a soldier of the Empire in an attempt to derail the new Death Star. 7. Mads Mikkelsen plays Galen Erso, father of Jyn and a defiant scientist who is crucial to the creation of the Death Star. 8. Riz Ahmed plays Bodhi Rook, the squad’s lead pilot who joined the rebellion after leaving the Empire. 9. Ben Mendelsohn plays Orson Krennic, a Military Imperial Director who intends to use his command over the Death Troopers to take down the rebel uprising. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, directed by Gareth Edwards, hits theaters Dec. 16.

Entertainment

Movies

(Reuters) - A Chicago investment advisor was sentenced to three years in prison on Tuesday for defrauding a bank and two clients, including former NBA all-star Scottie Pippen, out of more than $3.2 million, prosecutors said. Robert J. Lunn, 66, was convicted in 2014 on five counts of bank fraud for misleading Leaders Bank to obtain a line of credit and loans to benefit his business, Lunn Partners LLC, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois said in a statement. Lunn used nearly all of the fraudulently obtained funds for his own benefit and to pay some of his other clients, prosecutors said. In addition to prison time, U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle ordered Lunn to pay restitution of more than $1.16 million to the bank and $400,000 to Pippen, a former Hall of Fame player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association, prosecutors said. “It is clear from the evidence that Lunn’s avarice knows no bounds,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth E. Yeadon and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard G. Stoltz said in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “He enriched himself by taking out the fraudulent loans and went to great lengths to conceal his crime.” Lunn’s attorney, John Beal, said he plans to file an appeal, arguing the case revolved around investments made by Lunn that went “awry” and resulted in bankruptcy for his client. Lunn lied to the bank about the value of his assets and the purpose of the financing, as well as fraudulently stating that Pippen and the second client, retired venture capitalist Robert Geras, were aware of the loans, prosecutors said. During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that showed Lunn obtained a credit line in May 2001 for $480,000 from the bank, and twice increased it in 2004 - ultimately to $1.32 million - after submitting financial statements that falsely claimed personal ownership of millions of dollars in stocks. Additionally, Lunn arranged for an unsecured bank loan of $1.4 million, purportedly for Pippen, by claiming the former NBA star would use the money to buy an interest in an airplane, prosecutors said.

Law

Legal

WASHINGTON — Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has been one of the biggest proponents of President Trump’s crackdown on China, welcoming tariffs on Chinese imports while conceding that they will raise costs for American businesses and consumers. “There is no way for us to address China without absorbing some pain here,” Mr. Graham said in August. But behind the scenes, Mr. Graham has been working to help chemical and textile companies in his home state avoid the pain of Mr. Trump’s trade war. The senator has advocated on behalf of seven South Carolina companies that import products from China, writing letters urging the Trump administration to remove materials they rely on from a list of goods subject to Mr. Trump’s tariffs. Mr. Trump’s tariffs, Mr. Graham told the administration, could “economically harm consumers and stifle economic growth in South Carolina.” The senator has written seven letters to the United States trade representative on behalf of companies seeking tariff relief — more than any other member of Congress has penned. Four of those seven received at least some of the relief they were seeking. The jockeying to protect South Carolina companies highlights the tension inherent in Mr. Trump’s trade war, which is aimed at punishing China with tariffs on $250 billion worth of goods but is hurting many American companies in the process. Businesses across the United States have grown by embracing the global economy — producing, selling and buying goods from countries across the world, including China. As Mr. Trump threatens to impose even more tariffs on Chinese imports, many companies are appealing to the administration for relief — creating winners and losers in the process. Hundreds of American companies have urged the Trump administration to keep their products off the list of goods being taxed. Executives, trade groups and citizens have filed more than 6,000 comment letters with the United States trade representative. Companies have appeared at hearings in Washington, hired lobbyists and enlisted lawmakers to fight on their behalf. The lobbying has had an impact, with the trade representative removing products with an annual import value of about $7.4 billion from the list. Among the companies appealing to the trade representative were seven firms with operations in South Carolina, including Mitsubishi Chemical America, Standard Textile and paper manufacturer Archroma. In September, Mr. Graham wrote letters to Robert E. Lighthizer, the United States trade representative, on behalf of those firms, arguing that the tariffs would cause irreparable harm to domestic companies. “China’s behavior has unjustifiably burdened and restricted U.S. commerce and I am encouraged by President Trump’s attention to this important issue,” Mr. Graham wrote in each letter. “However, stiff competition from global competitors forces domestic manufacturers to absorb the additional cost of a tariff. This could put South Carolina companies at a competitive disadvantage.” Mr. Graham went on to urge “careful consideration” of a list of product codes that applied to each company, then said that imposing tariffs on them had “the potential to economically harm consumers and stifle economic growth in South Carolina.” At the conclusion of each letter, he said that “I appreciate your attention to these constituent requests and your continued efforts to combat China’s unfair trade practices.” Mr. Graham’s efforts helped four of the seven companies. The final list of tariffs on $200 billion worth of goods dropped three lines of chemicals used by Mitsubishi Chemical America, a Japanese company with an office in Greer, S.C. It removed one line of fabrics imported by Archroma U.S., a chemical company with a plant in Marin, S.C., and two lines imported by Domtar, a paper manufacturer with headquarters in Fort Mill, S.C., and a pulp mill in Bennettsville, S.C. Also dropped from the list were three lines that affect Standard Textile, which has a plant in Union County, S.C. In 2017, the United States imported about $30 million worth of those three fabrics, $25 million of which went to South Carolina, according to Census Bureau data. The product lines that Mr. Graham specified — and were removed from the tariff list before it was finalized last month — account for more than $430 million of imports from China annually, according to federal data. That’s about 6 percent of the total value of products removed from the final list. “Only a fool would not know that Lindsey Graham fights tooth and nail for business in South Carolina,” Kevin Bishop, a spokesman for Mr. Graham, said in a email. “He takes great pride in standing up for working men and women in our state, and that’s never going to stop.” The United States trade representative officials did not respond to questions about whether Mr. Graham’s efforts influenced their decisions on the final list. The trade representative’s records show that 40 members of Congress submitted formal comments over the proposed list of products for the most recent round of tariffs, which begin at 10 percent on $200 billion of imports, and are set to escalate to 25 percent next year. Most filed only one comment. None filed more than three, other than Mr. Graham. Representative Emmanuel Cleaver, Democrat of Missouri and a critic of Mr. Trump’s China tariffs, wrote three letters urging changes to the most recent tariff list, including the removal of gift bags imported by Hallmark and cement products imported by Demdaco, a home décor company. Mr. Cleaver also asked the administration to include on the list a category of products that includes imported log splitters, which compete with splitters made by Blount International, which has a factory in Kansas City. Other Republican senators who sought changes to the tariff list include Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who joined a bipartisan letter on behalf of paper manufacturer Appvion; Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts of Kansas, who jointly advocated on behalf of Pitsco, a small Kansas company that sells model car kits and other materials for science and math education; and Roger Wicker of Mississippi, who expressed concern that any additional tariffs could hurt United Furniture Industries, a manufacturer headquartered in Tupelo, Miss. Alaska’s entire Republican delegation — Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, and Representative Don Young — wrote Mr. Trump in August, asking that he remove tariffs on fish caught in Alaska but processed in China. The administration eventually spared some lines of processed seafood from its final list of tariffs, including some Alaska-caught fish. Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, a former trade representative under President George W. Bush, sent a letter containing dozens of product codes that he said were drawn from “Ohio constituent entities that have weighed in with my office.” Mr. Portman has said that a tariff escalation with China “is not good for us,” but he has praised the administration for taking a hard line against Chinese trading practices. His letter asked that some of the product codes be added to the list and others subtracted. Mr. Portman did not name the companies, nor warn of any economic damage if his recommendations were not heeded. Twenty-five of the product lines that he requested be dropped were removed from the final list. Some of his suggestions overlapped with Mr. Graham’s, including the textile lines requested for removal by Standard Textile, which is headquartered in Cincinnati. A critic of Mr. Trump when they were rivals for the Republican presidential nomination in the 2016 campaign, Mr. Graham has refashioned himself as one of the president’s closest allies in the Senate, most recently with his impassioned defense of the president’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett M. Kavanaugh, against allegations of sexual assault. South Carolina’s economy depends heavily on trade, but Mr. Graham has rarely wavered in his support for Mr. Trump’s trade agenda — including the imposition of tariffs against China — in an effort to force Beijing to end a long list of trade practices that the administration says violate international rules. “I’m very pleased and supportive of President Trump’s efforts to push back against China’s intellectual property theft, dumping, and other unfair trade practices,” Mr. Graham said in a news release in March, when the president announced a first wave of tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese imports. After Mr. Trump met in June with Republicans concerned over his trade policies, Mr. Graham released another statement. “Now is not the time to undercut President Trump’s ability to negotiate better trade deals,” he said. “I will not support any efforts that weaken his position.” Mr. Graham’s letters were shorter than most of his colleagues’, and they were nearly identical to one another, changing only the names of the company in question and the product codes that affect it. The companies Mr. Graham cited in his letters include multinationals that have set up operations in the United States. Archroma, which has a parent company headquartered in Switzerland, told administration officials in its own comment letter that tariffs on the chemicals it imports “will force Archroma to raise prices and customers will shift their purchases to foreign competition.” Mitsubishi Chemical America’s president, Dennis Price, testified in August that tariffs on chemicals that are critical to its manufacturing of lithium ion batteries for electric cars would “force us to reconsider our investments in the United States and our plans to continue to grow our manufacturing footprint in this country.” One of the companies Mr. Graham advocated, Standard Textile, welcomed his efforts but a spokeswoman said it did not know if they had helped. “Standard Textile and Senator Graham each filed comments with U.S.T.R. requesting that additional tariffs not be imposed on certain intermediate products imported by Standard Textile from China because these intermediate products are required to support manufacturing jobs in South Carolina,” a spokeswoman for the company, Judy Sroufe, said in an email, referring to the trade representative. “Standard Textile has no visibility into whether or not Senator Graham’s letter influenced the decision by U.S.T.R.”

Politics

International Relations

A Democratic senator is calling on appropriators to include funding in the upcoming budget bill for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to study gun violence. Sen. Ed MarkeyEdward (Ed) John MarkeyJoseph Kennedy mulling primary challenge to Markey in Massachusetts Overnight Energy: Trump sparks new fight over endangered species protections | States sue over repeal of Obama power plant rules | Interior changes rules for ethics watchdogs To cash in on innovation, remove market barriers for advanced energy technologies MORE (D-Mass.) said he wants to provide $10 million a year for six years to conduct or support CDC research on firearms safety and gun violence prevention. “We seem to have found the political will on research into gun violence prevention, so the only thing stopping it is funding,” Markey said in a statement. “For too long, our researchers, scientists, and policymakers have suffered from the lack of information about what is causing gun violence and what can be done to prevent it. No one should be afraid of science.” Long-standing restrictions have effectively prevented the CDC from conducting any kind of gun violence protection research. The so-called Dickey amendment was inserted into a 1996 government funding bill by the late Rep. Jay Dickey (R-Ark.) and has been renewed annually. The provision states: "None of the funds made available in this title may be used, in whole or in part, to advocate or promote gun control.” Although the provision doesn’t explicitly ban research into gun violence, public health advocates and Democrats say there’s been a chilling effect in place for more than 20 years. The provision has been brought to the forefront after a shooting last month at a Florida high school that left 17 dead and a number of others injured. Democrats have frequently railed against the research restrictions, but Republicans have been able to beat back Democratic attempts to restore the flow of federal research dollars to gun violence research. Still, recent comments by the Trump administration’s top federal health official, as well as some House Republicans, suggest that at least some Republicans could be changing their minds. In the past weeks, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar voiced his support for commencing gun violence prevention research at the CDC. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob GoodlatteRobert (Bob) William GoodlatteImmigrant advocacy groups shouldn't be opposing Trump's raids Top Republican releases full transcript of Bruce Ohr interview It’s time for Congress to pass an anti-cruelty statute MORE (R-Va.), and Republican Reps. Leonard LanceLeonard LanceBottom Line Push for ‘Medicare for all’ worries centrist Dems Incoming Dem lawmaker: Trump 'sympathizes' with leaders 'accused of moral transgressions' MORE (N.J.), Phil RoeDavid (Phil) Phillip RoeWant to solve surprise medical bills? Listen to patients House conservative's procedural protest met with bipartisan gripes This Memorial Day, I challenge everyone to find a way to honor our nation's fallen MORE (Tenn.) and Mark WalkerBradley (Mark) Mark WalkerOn The Money: House passes sweeping budget, debt limit deal | Dem court filing defends powers to get Trump's NY tax returns | Debt collectors to pay M to settle consumer bureau charges House passes sweeping budget, debt limit deal Romney to vote against budget deal: Agreement 'perpetuates fiscal recklessness' MORE (N.C.) have also expressed support for the CDC being able to research gun violence prevention. Goodlatte said last month that the research policy should be re-examined, particularly since Dickey later came to regret that his amendment was used to restrict funding for research on gun violence. But House Appropriations Health Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Tom ColeThomas (Tom) Jeffrey ColeTo fix retirement, we need to understand it On The Money: Trump banks on Fed, China to fuel 2020 economy | Judge orders parties to try to reach deal in lawsuit over Trump tax returns | Warren targets corporate power with plan to overhaul trade policy Lawmakers point to entitlements when asked about deficits MORE (R-Okla.) said earlier this week he thinks it’s “unlikely” that a provision restricting research on gun violence gets removed from a spending bill. “It's unlikely that we would remove it in this particular legislation simply because this is a $1.2 trillion bill,” Cole said Tuesday. “It shouldn't be derailed for a single thing.” View the discussion thread. The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax The contents of this site are ©2019 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Politics

Firearms

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump acknowledged on Sunday that his son met with Russians in 2016 at Trump Tower to get information on his election opponent Hillary Clinton, saying it was “totally legal” and “done all the time in politics.” The Republican president had previously said the meeting was about the adoption of Russian children by Americans. Trump’s morning Twitter post was his most direct statement on the purpose of the meeting, though his son and others have said it was to gather damaging information on the Democratic candidate. In a post on Twitter here, Trump also denied reports in the Washington Post and CNN that he was concerned his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., could be in legal trouble because of the meeting with the Russians, including a lawyer with Kremlin ties. He repeated that he had not known about the meeting in advance. “Fake News reporting, a complete fabrication, that I am concerned about the meeting my wonderful son, Donald, had in Trump Tower. This was a meeting to get information on an opponent, totally legal and done all the time in politics - and it went nowhere. I did not know about it!” Trump said. Political campaigns routinely pursue opposition research on their opponents, but not with foreign representatives from a country viewed as an adversary. Russian officials were under U.S. sanctions at the time. Special Counsel Robert Mueller is examining whether Trump campaign members coordinated with Russia to sway the White House race in his favor. Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied his government interfered. One part of the inquiry has focused on a June 9, 2016, meeting at Trump Tower in New York between Donald Jr., other campaign aides and a group of Russians. Email released by Donald Jr. himself showed he had been keen on the meeting because his father’s campaign was being offered potentially damaging information on Clinton. Donald Jr. said later he realized the meeting was primarily aimed at lobbying against the 2012 Magnitsky sanctions law, which led to Moscow denying Americans the right to adopt Russian orphans. President Trump has repeatedly denied that his campaign worked with Moscow, saying “No Collusion!” Last week, however, he adopted his lawyers’ tactics and insisted “collusion is not a crime.” While collusion is not a technical legal charge, Mueller could bring conspiracy charges if he finds that any campaign member worked with Russia to break U.S. law. Working with a foreign national with the intent of influencing a U.S. election could violate multiple laws, according to legal experts. CNN reported last month that Michael Cohen, the president’s longtime personal lawyer, was willing to tell Mueller that Trump did know about the Trump Tower meeting in advance. Trump’s lawyers and the White House have given conflicting accounts about whether Trump was involved in crafting Donald Jr.’s response to a New York Times article last summer revealing the Trump Tower meeting with the adoptions rationale. Trump’s lawyers acknowledged in a letter to Mueller’s team in January 2018 that Trump dictated the response, according to the Times. Trump has stepped up his public attacks on the Mueller probe since the first trial to arise from it began last week in Alexandria, Virginia, involving former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. The federal tax and bank fraud charges Manafort faces are not related to the Trump campaign but Manafort’s close relations with Russians and a Kremlin-backed Ukrainian politician are under scrutiny in the trial. Trump’s attacks on the special counsel’s investigation have been rebuffed by Republican leaders in Congress who have expressed support for Mueller. “The president should be straightforward with the American people about the threat to our election process that Russia, Putin in particular, is engaged in is ongoing,” Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday. One of the president’s personal lawyers said on Sunday that if Trump is subpoenaed by the special counsel, his lawyers will attempt to quash it in court. Any legal battle over whether the president can be compelled to testify could go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, the lawyer, Jay Sekulow, said on ABC’s “This Week.” U.S. intelligence agencies concluded last year that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. election with a campaign of hacking into Democratic Party computer networks and spreading disinformation on social media. American intelligence officials say Russia is targeting the November congressional elections, which will determine whether or not Republicans keep control of both chambers of the U.S. Congress. Reporting by Doina Chiacu, Damon Darlin, Lucia Mutikani, Lesley Wroughton; editing by Grant McCool

Politics

International Relations

When Justin Trudeau spoke to British Columbia residents in August on the campaign trail, he vowed to overhaul how Canada's National Energy Board approves pipeline projects — and give the community more of a say in the highly contentious Trans Mountain line that will course through the Rocky Mountains. "No, they're not going to approve [Trans Mountain] in January because we're going to change the government," Trudeau said in the interaction caught on video. "And that process needs to be redone." But that process wasn't redone. And this week, protesters in Burnaby, BC picketed outside a hotel while inside, hearings to decide whether Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline is in the public interest marched ahead in a ballroom that resembled a ghost town. More security guards and police officers attended the meetings than members of the public, thanks in large part to the same consultation process that Trudeau promised to overhaul. A ballroom dedicated to the National Energy Board (NEB) process was filled with mostly empty seats, apart from a handful of reporters and a smattering of "intervenors" — people the NEB deemed were directly affected by the pipeline. Nearly 70 percent of Burnaby's 220,000 residents are against the pipeline expansion project, which they say risks major oil spills from increased tanker traffic. By allowing the hearings to continue, the city's mayor, councillors and everyday suburbanites are accusing Trudeau of breaking his promise during the election. Although one of the most controversial pipeline proposals in Canada, and one that sparked tense protests and mass arrests in 2014, Trans Mountain still enjoys the support of some politicians outside of BC who hope it will carry the country's oil to international markets, in particular China. When Justin Trudeau spoke to British Columbia residents in August on the campaign trail, he vowed to overhaul how Canada's National Energy Board approves pipeline projects — and give the community more of a say in the highly contentious Trans Mountain line that will course through the Rocky Mountains. "No, they're not going to approve [Trans Mountain] in January because we're going to change the government," Trudeau said in the interaction caught on video. "And that process needs to be redone." But that process wasn't redone. And this week, protesters in Burnaby, BC picketed outside a hotel while inside, hearings to decide whether Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline is in the public interest marched ahead in a ballroom that resembled a ghost town. More security guards and police officers attended the meetings than members of the public, thanks in large part to the same consultation process that Trudeau promised to overhaul. A ballroom dedicated to the National Energy Board (NEB) process was filled with mostly empty seats, apart from a handful of reporters and a smattering of "intervenors" — people the NEB deemed were directly affected by the pipeline. Nearly 70 percent of Burnaby's 220,000 residents are against the pipeline expansion project, which they say risks major oil spills from increased tanker traffic. By allowing the hearings to continue, the city's mayor, councillors and everyday suburbanites are accusing Trudeau of breaking his promise during the election. Although one of the most controversial pipeline proposals in Canada, and one that sparked tense protests and mass arrests in 2014, Trans Mountain still enjoys the support of some politicians outside of BC who hope it will carry the country's oil to international markets, in particular China. The expansion of an existing Kinder Morgan pipeline would see a second line run from near Edmonton, Alberta to refineries in Burnaby, pumping 890,000 barrels of oil per day to international markets — almost three times as much oil as the previous pipeline, and more oil than the Keystone XL pipeline proposal. Related: What Trudeau's Liberal Victory Means for Canada's Oil Sands During the election, Burnaby residents raised concerns that the NEB process was tilted in favor of the proponent, and on October 19, after a heated local race with a focus on the pipeline, Burnaby elected Liberal Terry Beech. In the days following the election, the new MP reiterated his previous comments to Burnaby Now, stating that "Kinder Morgan will have to go through a new, revised process." But in early December, Liberal Minister for Natural Resources Jim Carr said that for "those projects that are currently under review, the proponents will not be asked to go back to square one." Confronted with activist complaints ahead of this week's hearings, Carr's office reiterated that promise. "In the meantime," Carr's statement said, "the National Energy Board must continue to operate under its current mandate." "To us, that's a broken promise," Burnaby councillor Sav Dhaliwal told VICE News. "I believe Prime Minister Trudeau has the responsibility, if you make a promise during a campaign, people vote for that." Trudeau's comments helped him clinch seats in BC ridings, including Burnaby, the councillor said. "People voted for that, and it is up to the prime minister now to live up to that promise." Burnaby city council sent a letter to Trudeau asking him to follow through with his promise to reboot the the approval process, but Dhaliwal said it's been two months and they haven't received a response yet. But on Wednesday, Cheryl Cameron, a picketer outside the hotel with environmental group the Dogwood Initiative, said Trudeau should be given more time to act. "No, I don't think the promise is broken yet," she said. "I think we need to give the government a chance." Cameron said picketers were hoping the federal government would signal they would redo the process before the hearings end January 29. Environmental lawyer Eugene Kung attended the hearings inside the hotel behind her. "It's super interesting to see how empty the room is," he observed, noting that taxpayers are on the hook for the sparsely-attended proceedings. The NEB — Hilary Beaumont (@HilaryBeaumont)January 20, 2016 "And part of the reason for that is the NEB itself has restricted entry into the hearings, so each intervenor can only have two people per day, unless they requested special permission. And I know for certain that some of the intervenors who asked for 10 people to come, for instance, or 15 were denied." Under rules passed by the Conservatives, to be certified as intervenors, members of the public had to apply two years ago in an 11-step application to show they were directly affected by the Trans Mountain expansion, Kung said. Related: This Pipeline Project Will Transport More Oil From Canada's Tar Sands Than Keystone XL "So it's disappointing but not all that surprising that there aren't that many people there, because it's pretty hard to get in. It really takes away from this idea that it's a public hearing," he said.  Despite BC's popular opposition to the pipeline and the process weighing its costs and benefits, not everyone is against it. "This project is good for Albertans and Canadians," Alberta Premier Rachel Notley posted on Facebook last week. "It will create jobs, spur economic growth, and help fund our province's transition to a greener, less carbon-intensive economy on many levels." Alberta's economic downturn, due to the tanking price of oil is taking its toll, but companies proposing pipelines to carry the province's oil to new international markets — instead of just the US, where demand has plateaued and local production is increasing — are banking on the market making a comeback in the long term. Only 2 percent of Canadian oil, which is largely landlocked, is being shipped to China now.  "Building pipelines to tidewater and to new markets, while at the same time taking action to curb emissions, are the two essential components required to diversify our economy, restore our prosperity and assert ourselves as one of the world's most progressive, responsible and forward-looking energy producers," Notley wrote. Meanwhile in Burnaby, anti-Kinder Morgan sentiments aren't ending anytime soon. On Friday, the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation, which stands directly across the water from the terminal that would export Trans Mountain's oil, is scheduled to argue against the project in court. And in a town notorious for its mass arrests over the pipeline, demonstrators outside the hotel promised to step up their presence Saturday. Follow Hilary Beaumont on Twitter: @hilarybeaumont

Politics

Government

(Reuters) - Special Counsel Robert Mueller wants President Donald Trump to commit to a follow-up interview to written answers to questions in his probe of any coordination between Trump campaign members and Russia in the 2016 U.S. election, Rudy Giuliani, who is representing the president, said on Thursday. Giuliani, who said talks between the two sides were continuing, saw Mueller’s stance as a hardening in the position prosecutors are taking after offering to allow Trump to answer questions in writing. “I thought we were close to having an agreement until they came back with, ‘You have to agree now that you’ll allow a follow-up,’ and I don’t see how we can do it,” Giuliani told Reuters. Peter Carr, a spokesman for Mueller, declined to comment. Lawyers for Trump have been negotiating over a potential interview with Mueller’s team since last year in the U.S. investigation of Russian meddling in the presidential election, which Moscow denies. Trump has denied any campaign collusion, calling the Mueller probe a “witch hunt.” In a letter to Trump’s lawyers last week, Mueller expressed a willingness to accept written responses on questions about collusion, but did not rule out a possible interview as a follow-up, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. After receiving the written responses, Mueller’s investigators would decide on a next step, which could include an interview with Trump, the person said. But Giuliani said on Thursday that Mueller’s team had stiffened its position in the latest talks. “They want a commitment” to a follow-up interview, Giuliani said. “We’ve said no, and let’s see how they deal with it.” Giuliani has described a possible interview with Mueller as a potential “perjury trap,” an opportunity to catch Trump making a false statement under oath, and legal experts have also suggested that Trump could open himself up to trouble. Mueller is also investigating whether Trump may have tried to obstruct the Russia investigation after winning office, but Giuliani said on Thursday that no questions on the obstruction issue would be part of the first round of questions. If negotiations break down with Mueller, a subpoena could be issued for Trump to testify before a grand jury, which Giuliani has said they would fight all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that Russia interfered in the campaign, seeking to tilt it in Trump’s favor against Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton by hacking Democratic computer networks and spreading disinformation on social media. Reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by Tim Ahmann

Politics

Law

Paul D. Ryan, the speaker of the House, has a nifty camera set up on his Capitol Hill balcony, which is used to live-stream all of his events. So it was decided that last weekend’s snowstorm would be streamed, too. Does watching snow fall sound boring? Apparently not — the footage attracted more than half a million Americans from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, where the snow totals were measured at close to 30 inches. The average viewer checked out the scene for nearly the entire three-minute looping, with the music, “Gold Skies,” playing in the background. The snowcam made for one of the highest traffic moments of Mr. Ryan’s speakership so far, rivaling the Instagram musings about his beard. So do Americans love Mr. Ryan, or just snow? Who knows, but Entertainment Weekly gave the whole deal a B+.

Other

Other

This story requires our BI Prime membership. To read the full article, simply click here to claim your deal and get access to all exclusive Business Insider PRIME content. Chip Reed, who manages one of the most successful mutual funds of 2019, says he&aposs concerned that bubble is developing in the private-equity market.Reed said the struggles of companies like Uber and WeWork were a bad sign for the economy and could spell trouble for pension funds, which are putting more and more money into the private market.Reed&aposs Eaton Vance Atlanta Capital Select Equity Fund was one of the most successful on Wall Street over the past four quarters.Click here for more BI Prime stories.As one of Chip Reed&aposs best investing years comes to a close, he&aposs thinking about how it could all go wrong.Reed is the lead manager of the Eaton Vance Atlanta Capital Select Equity Fund, the N0. 3 large-cap mutual fund of the past year. The fund is also in the 97th percentile versus peers in 2019. While Reed remains optimistic about the stock market, he said the private market was giving off some powerful warning signs."If there is a bubble, it&aposs probably on the private side," he told Business Insider in an exclusive interview.He added that high valuations in the private market have contributed to the disappointing performance of companies like Uber, which went public to great acclaim before suffering a painful slump in its stock, and the fiasco surrounding WeWork&aposs attempted initial public offering.While WeWork appears to have sent a chill running through the IPO market and the tech sector, a lot of onlookers felt the company&aposs woes ultimately didn&apost hurt many people because WeWork is a private company. But Reed said the problem wasn&apost a few companies with inflated valuations. It&aposs becoming a systemic risk."There&aposs been a lot of money chasing these ideas," he said. "That could be a problem for the overall economy that people aren&apost talking about."It&aposs well-known that as the current bull market nears its 11th anniversary, returns from stocks and bonds are diminishing, and more investors and funds are turning to the private markets. Reed says it&aposs a bet that isn&apost working out and might cause a lot of pain."A lot of these pension funds had gotten into private equity and alternatives because they couldn&apost get the return out of their fixed income in their traditional equity markets," he said. "They&aposve gone out — taken a lot more risk than I think that they ever thought that they were taking. ... They took on way too much risk for really subpar returns."He added that these private investments were tying them more tightly to the aging economic expansion by tying up their money in illiquid and unprofitable companies. That creates a risk that pension funds may not be able to hit their return goals, and members may not have enough money to retire securely."Not only are they linked to the cycle, they&aposre a higher beta to the cycle," he said. "Rates going the wrong way hurts them even more. If the economy gets soft, these companies struggle, and without access to capital, they&aposll struggle even more."

Technology

Internet

In anticipation of the third episode of season 7 of Game Of Thrones airing this Sunday, HBO has dropped a handful of new photos that give us a hint of what to expect — and it's something we've been waiting for for a while. A few of the photos all appear to be from the same scene, when we're pretty much positive that Jon Snow (Kit Harington) will be meeting Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) face to face. While none of those particular shots show these two leaders side-by-side, they do seem to all take place at the same time and room in Dragonstone, suggesting that Jon is addressing Daenerys at the throne. What they're talking about? For that, we'll have to wait and see. There are some other sneak peeks that have given us a lot to think about. Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson) has strapped on his armour, ready to head into battle after he and Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) had their first love scene last episode. Lord Varys (Conleth Hill) also makes an appearance in a couple of these shots, including one alone with Melisandre (Carice van Houten) — am I the only one who doesn't trust those two together? Basically, like most clues about Game Of Thrones, this only leads to more questions. Check out the rest of the photos ahead! Read These Stories Next: The Viral Words You Need To Know The Problematic SATC Scene No One Talks AboutEvery Time A TV Character's Death Just About Killed You

Television

Game of Thrones

LONDON (Reuters) - Unionised workers at the Quebrada Blanca copper mine in Chile walked off the job last week after failing to agree on a new labour contract. It’s the third strike at a South American copper operation in almost as many weeks. A three-week strike at Southern Copper’s Peruvian operations has just ended, while one of the unions at the giant Escondida mine in Chile held a one-day “warning” strike on Nov. 23. None of this labour strife has had much discernible impact on the copper price. That’s partly because any bullish enthusiasm about fundamentals has been overwhelmed by a mass exodus of fund money over the last couple of weeks. Funds have slashed their collective net long positioning on the COMEX copper contract from over 125,000 contracts at the start of September to a current 48,384. And in part it’s because in all three cases only one of several unions has been involved, allowing operators to minimise the impact on production. However, it’s an early sign of what is likely to be a defining feature of the market next year as an unusually high number of labour contracts come up for renewal. According to analysts at Citi bank, there are over 30 labour contracts, covering around five million tonnes of mine supply, due to expire next year, most of them in Chile and Peru. (“Global Commodities Focus”, December 2017). Analysts at Barclays Capital come up with even more contracts, 38, covering even more production, over seven million tonnes, by including a batch of contracts expiring this month. (“Copper Disruption Tracker”, Dec. 12, 2017). The number of labour contracts due for renewal is the largest since 2010, according to Barclays. “To give context, from 2011 to 2016, the average amount of supply at risk from contract renewal disputes averaged 1.69 million tonnes with an average of 12 contracts up for renewal,” the bank notes. The list of potential disruptions ahead includes some of the world’s largest copper mines. Antamina and Cerro Verde in Peru, with output of 430,000 tonnes and 520,000 tonnes last year respectively, will see contracts expire in July and August. In Chile, state-owned Codelco alone has 19 contracts up for renegotiation across its divisions, according to Barclays. But looming largest of all is Escondida, where the deadline is the end of June. Escondida experienced a 44-day strike in the first quarter of this year, cutting production by 214,000 tonnes, according to operator BHP Billiton. This is the world’s largest single mine and the walk-out depressed Chile’s overall copper production profile. National output fell by 14 percent in the first quarter and although the impact has since faded, Chilean production is still playing catch-up with cumulative output through October two percent off last year’s pace. The strike also affected broader market sentiment, refocusing attention on copper’s notoriously disruption-prone supply chain and laying the foundations for London three-month metal’s subsequent third-quarter ascent to the $7,000-per tonne level Critically, however, the walk-out ended with absolutely zero resolution of the underlying differences between management and unions. Unions invoked a rarely used provision of Chilean labour law, Article 369, to extend the old contract with its existing terms. They did so because BHP Billiton wouldn’t budge on any of the core points of dispute and because a new law, effective last April, tilts the playing field in the unions’ favour by forcing companies to offer the minimum benefits of the previous contract in any new contract. From the unions’ perspective, the call to end the strike was no more than a strategic retreat ahead of renewed battle this year. Indeed, skirmishing has already started, judging by the one-day walk-out to protest against 120 job cuts, which union leaders view as a “reprisal” for this year’s stoppage. The political climate in Chile has just changed again with the election of conservative Sebastian Pinera as the country’s president. But facing a divided Chilean Congress and a leftist coalition that has already pledged to defend the legacy of outgoing President Michelle Bachelet, the chances of Pinera revoking the new labour laws before Escondida’s mid-year contract deadline look thin. There may be one or two obvious flash-points on the labour contract horizon such as Escondida, but no-one is suggesting there will be 30 plus strikes next year. However, the sheer number of contract renewals will at the very least generate a continuous stream of bullish media headlines and analysts are already adjusting their “disruption allowances” in calculating next year’s copper market balance. Which begs the question as to what sort of cushion exists against the possibility of production hits from strikes over the course of 2018. A key offset to this year’s lost output at Escondida was the simultaneous surge in scrap copper supply as higher prices incentivised the release of material accumulated during the price trough of 2015-2016. That scrap surge is still in effect, albeit with fading momentum. All other things being equal, there should be less scrap to cushion potential mine disruption next year. The copper scrap sector, however, is itself in flux right now, with China threatening to tighten controls on imports of lower-grade material at the end of 2018. The consensus is that scrap flows will over time adjust to the new rules, with affected material diverted to other Asian countries for preliminary treatment. But in the shorter term, what Barclays terms “the temporary dislocations in the scrap supply chain” could generate both bear and bull outcomes, depending on how the Chinese ban plays out. Copper supply, in other words, is next year facing two big “known unknowns” in the form of the potential disruption to both primary mine and secondary parts of the chain. It is the former that will grab most of the headlines, a process that has already started. Escondida, where union and management will lock horns for the second year running, looks the most at risk of strike action but there are at least 30 other potential candidates. It would be a brave bear to bet on all of them rolling over smoothly. (The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.) Editing by Mark Potter

Mining

Geology

(Adds Lloyds, Agrium, CenturyLink, Attijariwafa, Gannett) Oct 27 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 20:07 GMT on Thursday: ** Gannett Co Inc remains in active negotiations to acquire U.S. newspaper publishing peer Tronc Inc, despite reporting disappointing earnings on Thursday that weighed on its shares, according to people familiar with the matter. ** Britain has cut its stake in Lloyds Banking Group to just below 9 percent in a renewed attempt to return the lender to full private ownership over the next year. **Shareholders of Agrium Inc and Potash Corp of Saskatchewan Inc are set to overwhelmingly approve a merger of the two Canadian fertilizer producers, according to a source familiar with the situation, despite initial skepticism from Agrium investors. ** CenturyLink Inc and Level 3 Communications LVLT.N are in advanced talks to merge, according to people familiar with the matter, in a deal that would create an enterprise telecommunications player worth more than $50 billion, including debt. ** Morocco’s Attijariwafa Bank said it will sell 50 percent of OGM Holding, the parent company of Morocco’s biggest insurance company Wafa Assurance, to the royal holding firm National Investment Co. (SNI) ahead of buying Barclays Egypt. ** Qualcomm Inc agreed to buy NXP Semiconductors NV for about $38 billion in the biggest-ever semiconductor industry deal, expanding the reach of its chips from phones to cars. ** The German government has turned down a Chinese request for approval of a planned takeover of Osram Licht AG’s Ledvance unit, German WirtschaftsWoche reported, citing financial sources. ** Polish insurer Powszechny Zaklad Ubezpieczen SA and state development fund PFR could clinch a deal to buy a combined 33 percent stake in Bank Polska Kasa Opieki SA from Italy’s UniCredit SpA as early as next month, a source close to the matter said. ** The biggest shareholder in German semiconductor manufacturing equipment maker Aixtron SE, Argonaut Capital, said the government’s plan to review an agreed takeover by Chinese investment fund Fujian Grand Chip Investment Fund LP was “irresponsible”. ** GuocoLand Ltd will buy a 27 percent stake in Malaysian property developer Eco World International during its IPO, as the Singapore-listed firm, controlled by tycoon Quek Leng Chan, seeks geographical diversification of its property business. ** Carlyle Group LP and Bain Capital LLC are the only major global buyout firms left bidding for McDonald’s Corp’s restaurants in China and Hong Kong after TPG Capital Management LP pulled out, people close to the matter said. ** Brazilian engineering group Odebrecht SA’s plans to sell its 55 percent stake in a $5 billion natural gas pipeline project in Peru to a Sempra Energy-led consortium collapsed in the final stage of negotiations, a source said. ** Hollywood executives Jeff Sagansky and Harry Sloan are in advanced talks to acquire magazine publishing company Playboy Enterprises Inc through an acquisition vehicle they launched last year, people familiar with the matter said. ** General Electric Co raised its bid for Swedish 3D printer maker Arcam AB (publ) and said it had agreed to buy privately held German 3D printing firm Concept Laser after its bid for rival SLM Solutions Group AG failed. ** Buyout group Ardian has won the bidding for German residential and technical lighting products maker SLV, people familiar with the matter said. ** Brazilian miner Vale SA will go ahead with the sale of its fertilizer business after its board of directors gave its approval, the newspaper Valor Economico reported. ** Australia’s richest woman Gina Rinehart and a Chinese partner raised their offer to buy the country’s largest private land holding, with Rinehart pledging to buy it outright if the joint bid was rejected on national interest grounds. ** Billionaires Viktor Vekselberg and Leonard Blavatnik will pay up to $700 million to buy 12 percent of shares in aluminum giant United Company RUSAL Plc from Mikhail Prokhorov’s Onexim Group, Vedomosti daily quotes three sources as saying. ** Mexico’s InvestaBank said it had agreed to buy two Mexican units of Deutsche Bank AG as the German lender exits non-core businesses amid a drive to cut costs in a major organizational shake-up. (Compiled by Ahmed Farhatha and Laharee Chatterjee in Bengaluru)

Government

Law

AMC Theatres is raising the price of its subscription movie plan Stubs A-List — at least in a handful of states. Rather than simply charging $19.95 per month across-the-board, AMC will soon offer differing prices to residents of different states. California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York will see the biggest increase, to $23.95 per month. Meanwhile, the cost will increase to $21.95 per month in Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, plus Washington, D.C. The price is supposed to stay the same every where. The increase will take effect on January 9, 2019, and AMC says that if you sign up before then, your price will hold for 12 months. Stubs A-List launched in late July, and in September the company said it had already attracted 380,000 subscribers. Now, after 4.5 months, the number is up to 500,000. Of course, AMC launched the service after MoviePass helped to popularize the subscription movie ticket model — but since then, MoviePass has limited users to a rotating lineup of movies, something that competitors have taken advantage of. (Stubs A-List allows subscribers to purchase up to three tickets per week for any movie in any format in any AMC theater.) “Our decision to keep the AMC Stubs A-List monthly price unchanged in 35 states, along with only a modest price adjustment in some key markets going in place in early 2019 will keep us in that sweet spot of successfully balancing profits and popularity,” said AMC Theatres CEO Adam Aron in a statement.

Technology

Consumer Electronics

(Adds details, quote, shares) JOHANNESBURG, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Scandal-hit South African retailer Steinhoff International said on Friday it had sold Blue Group, owner of Bensons for Beds and Harveys Furniture, to Alteri Investors for an undisclosed price. Steinhoff, which has been grappling with the fallout of an accounting scandal worth an estimated $7 billion since revealing holes in its accounts in 2017, said in August its only way to survive was to slim down and sell assets. "The sale of Blue Group is the latest in a series of planned divestments by Steinhoff as we continue with our announced strategy of simplifying the group's portfolio and deleveraging our balance sheet," Steinhoff CEO Louis du Preez said. The company, which added the transaction was subject to regulatory approvals, did not disclose its value. Blue Group was a relatively minor part of Steinhoff's operation, contributing just under 5% of revenues in the six months ended March 31. Alteri Investors, a specialist investor focused on European retail, was launched in 2014 as a joint venture between Alteri's management and funds managed by affiliates of alternative investment manager Apollo Global Management. Its founder and CEO Gavin George said the purchase was exactly the kind of opportunity it was launched to find - a trusted brand with strong management and the potential for profitable growth. "We... are confident that our operational capabilities, alongside the injection of fresh capital, can help to build a market leading, vertically integrated business," he said. Steinhoff shares were flat at 1127 GMT. (Reporting by Emma Rumney; Editing by Jason Neely and Mark Potter)

Government

Law

It's been nearly four years since The Office ended, and we're still not over it. We'll never be over it. How are we supposed to forget the legendary pranks Jim played on Dwight? How can we eat chili without pausing for a brief moment of silence for Kevin? How is it possible that we'll ever forget the character of Michael Scott? Answer: It's not possible. It's not possible for us superfans, and it's also not possible for the genius writers who gave us The Office. One of those very writers, Mindy Kaling, had Michael Scott on the brain on Tuesday, posting a simple, one-sentence tweet about her former boss. Michael Scott's Ted Talk would have been fun to write — Mindy Kaling (@mindykaling) April 25, 2017 This off-hand tweet immediately inspired Twitter to have an epic brainstorming session about what Michael Scott would have said if he had been given the chance to give a TED talk. The results are so real, so true, and so Michael that we can almost see him in front of us, awkwardly filling the silences with impressions of a car starting. @mindykaling he would show up and be surprised/honored they finally let someone not named ted do one — andy barron (@andybarron) April 25, 2017 @mindykaling Standing in front of a bulletin board with printed pictures of Ted Turner, Ted Cruz, and Ted Kaczynski — Kyle Harrison (@DeathbyHappy) April 25, 2017 @mindykaling pic.twitter.com/ClYw1ejRCu — Clif Dickens (@Clifwith1f) April 25, 2017 @mindykaling Never.... ever.... for any reason... ever... No matter who you're with... or where you are... or where you're going... ever... for any reaso — Incorrect Sex Advice (@Mc_Fellow) April 25, 2017 @mindykaling His #TedTalk goal pic.twitter.com/6JMd6jCwLQ — Moorenewz (@moorenewz) April 25, 2017 We understand the show is over and that it has been over for a while now, but it's pretty clear that this episode needs to happen. Just like how a potluck episode needs to happen, where everyone brings in their speciality (Kevin's chili!) and Michael gets extremely upset when no one eats what he brought in because it's something disgusting.  Basically our point is this: Bring. This. Show. Back. Please. And have Michael Scott give a TED Talk.

Television

Comedy

As volatile U.S. and Asian stock markets trend lower, it's Asia that could emerge as the bigger loser, given the region's softer economic prospects, one expert said. U.S. markets rebounded on Thursday, and Asia shares were mixed on Friday, but the broadly lower trend for stocks is seen continuing. That's because U.S. interest rates are rising on the back of "an environment of generally improving growth," Kathy Lien, managing director of FX Strategy for BK Asset Management, told CNBC's "Street Signs" on Thursday. But in Asia, rates have been raised in a number of countries in "kind of a desperate need" to protect their respective currencies against a strong U.S. dollar, she added. "It's not in an environment of positive growth trend so the pressure will be exacerbated in the emerging markets compared to the U.S. markets," said Lien, who's also a CNBC contributor. "Unfortunately this is the beginning. I think that when we get sentiment shifts like these, they always last longer than we would like to see and we could see the selling continue for some time," she added. Markets in Asia tumbled on Thursday morning, following in the footsteps of Wall Street which shrugged off several positive earnings reports amid fears that the ongoing tariff fight will dent business profitability in 2019. Adding to the bad news in Asia, South Korea missed forecasts in its third-quarter growth. The economy expanded by 2 percent year-on-year in the July-to-September quarter, below the 2.2. percent expected by analysts polled by Reuters. South Korea's export-oriented economy is threatened by a slowdown in global trade amid rising tensions between the U.S. and China. South Korea is not the only Asian economy that relies on trade, so its disappointing growth is seen by some analysts as a barometer for the worsening outlook across the region. "We ought to keep an eye out across the region given this weakness. Taiwan and Singapore share some, though not all, of (South) Korea's economic characteristics, " Robert Carnell, ING's chief economist and head of research for Asia Pacific, wrote in a Thursday note. The worsened outlook for Asia comes at a time when several economies in the region are already reeling from recent capital outflows that knocked their currencies to multi-year lows. But not all hope is lost for the region, Lien said, adding that many investors have not focused enough on "the possibility of change" in the coming U.S. midterm elections. In the event that the Democrats gain control of the Senate, there could be "positive political gridlock" that is beneficial for Asian currencies and markets around the world, she said. "I think the idea is if we do get a split government, President Trump will need to tamper his trade comments in order to get some of his other policies through. And I think that's what everyone is riding their hope on … this is what could really bring stabilization to the markets, " said Lien.

Finance

Investment

Your browser does not support HTML5 video tag.Click here to view original GIF GIF source: Fengyuan ZhuWhile the world catches up with VR, imperfect but affordable options for entry like Google Cardboard and Samsung’s Gear VR will get the job done. But augmented/mixed reality is also proving itself to be a ripe new field and for anyone looking to dip their toes in the water of this brave new world, the Holokit has come to save the day.Google&aposs VR Headset Is So Comfortable I Never Want to Take It OffIt isn’t the games that really wow me when I slip on the Daydream View VR headset. It isn’t the…Read more ReadLike Google Cardboard, the Holokit uses a cardboard frame to house a smartphone. Two mirrors reflect what appears on your smartphone onto an angled Fresnel lens. Unlike Google Cardboard, you want to see through this setup because you’re mixing reality with imagery coming from your phone. Unfortunately, like Cardboard, there’s no headstrap. But you can always make your own. Open source tracking software will be released on Github along with the headset on June 6, 2017. Amber Garage is a startup focused on augmented reality. Its founder Botao Hu showed off the little DIY kit this week at the Augmented World Expo. A price hasn’t been announced yet but it seems reasonable to say it’ll cost more than the $15 that Google Cardboard does and less than the $100 or so that headsets like Gear VR go for. Checking out the video demonstration, it’s safe to say that this will be a big step down from an actual Hololens but the lowest tier development kits for that device for $3000. It’s hard to say if what you see is going to look totally bootleg or if it’s just tough to capture with a camera. Probably a little of both. Regardless, I like the low-res vibe. This is a perfect way for developers to tinker around with the technology without having to make such a major investment. I’m sure the lawyers at the software giant will be taking some issue with that name but Microsoft’s developers should seriously consider making one of these themselves. I look forward to playing with all the stuff you guys make for this thing. Check it out for yourself in the video below and it should be available here on June 6th. [Holokit via TechCrunch]

Technology

Virtual Reality

Aug 22 (Reuters) - Canada’s resource minister said on Wednesday that construction on the Trans Mountain project had been delayed, but he did not provide an update on when the expansion of the oil pipeline from Alberta to British Columbia’s coast would be complete. The Canadian government agreed in May to buy the pipeline and project from Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd for C$4.5 billion ($3.5 billion), in an effort to ensure its expansion went ahead. It is currently scheduled to be in service by December 2020. “Yes, there’s a delay because of - the construction was stopped for a couple of months, but this is a project that is moving forward and will continue to move forward until it’s done,” Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi told reporters outside a Cabinet meeting in Nanaimo, British Columbia. Canada’s energy regulator gave the go-ahead last week for construction of a large portion of the expansion. Preliminary work on the route has started but pipeline crews are not expected until the spring of 2019. ($1 = 1.3055 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Julie Gordon in Nanaimo, British Columbia; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Politics

Government

* HK->Shanghai Connect daily quota used 2.1%, Shanghai->HK daily quota used 0.8% * FTSE China A50 +0.8% SHANGHAI, Oct 11(Reuters) - China and Hong Kong stocks advanced on Friday, as investors cheered signs of progress in the ongoing Sino-U.S. trade talks. ** The Hang Seng index added 2.2%, to 26,271.36 points, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index gained 2.0%, to 10,427.03 points. ** Both indexes were set for their best day since Sept. 4. ** The CSI300 index rose 0.5% to 3,894.83 at the end of the morning session, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.4% to 2,960.68. ** Top U.S. and Chinese negotiators wrapped up a first day of trade talks in more than two months on Thursday as business groups expressed optimism the two sides might be able to ease a 15-month trade war and delay a U.S. tariff hike scheduled for next week. ** U.S. President Donald Trump said “we had a very, very good negotiation with China”, while a White House official said the talks had gone “probably better than expected”. ** The developments of Sino-U.S. trade talks have been a major factor impacting the Hong Kong market, and any progress or partial agreement would greatly boost investor sentiment, Guodu Hong Kong wrote in note. ** Market participants had been awaiting favourable news for a rebound, as the overall valuations of Hong Kong stocks are quite cheap for now, the brokerage added. ** Meanwhile, developments towards a Brexit deal also helped sentiment. ** A Brexit deal could be clinched by the end of October to allow the United Kingdom to leave the European Union in an orderly fashion, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said after what he called a very positive meeting with Boris Johnson. ** Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 1.23% while Japan’s Nikkei index was up 1.09%. ** The yuan was quoted at 7.1038 per U.S. dollar, 0.16% firmer than the previous close of 7.115. ** The largest percentage gainers in the main Shanghai Composite index were Xinjiang Youhao Group Co Ltd, up 10.07%, followed by China Hi-Tech Group Co Ltd, gaining 10.06% and Bomin Electronics Co Ltd, up by 10%. ** The largest percentage losses in the Shanghai index were Panda Financial Holding Corp Ltd, down 9.96%, followed by Skshu Paint Co Ltd, losing 7.65% and Lifan Industry Group Co Ltd, down by 6.02%. ** The top gainers among H-shares were Sunac China Holdings Ltd, up 4.92%, followed by PICC Property and Casualty Co Ltd, gaining 4.7% and Anhui Conch Cement Co Ltd , up by 4.35%. ** The three biggest H-shares percentage decliners were CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd, which has fallen 7.03%, Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd, which has lost 1.3% and Postal Savings Bank of China Co Ltd, down by 0.2%. ** As of 04:16 GMT, China’s A-shares were trading at a premium of 29.11% over the Hong Kong-listed H-shares. Reporting by Luoyan Liu and John Ruwitch

Technology

Semiconductors

Space Pope is definitely cooler than Young Pope.  Look at him, just casually talking to astronauts in a goddamn (forgive me father) gold chair. And that TV stand. He could be watching Trailer Park Boys on that thing and still look like the most sophisticated guy on the planet.  Pope Francis and astronauts on the International Space Station had their friendly chat on Thursday. They talked about the usual pope stuff: our place in the heavens, the meaning of life, that kind of thing.  This is the second time a pope has video chatted with astronauts on the International Space Station. Pope Benedict XVI did it back in 2011.  “Your little glass palace in totality is greater than the sum of its parts, and this is the example that you give us," Francis said to the crew, which is great. We should all call the ISS the "little glass palace" from now on.  European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli translated the pope's Italian for his fellow crew members.  The pope has a nice TV. The pope, sitting in the Vatican Library, wanted to know what the best part of being an astronaut was.  "People can't come up here and see the indescribable beauty of our Earth and not be touched in their souls," said NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik. "As our planet goes around at 10 kilometers a second, there are no borders, no conflicts. It's just peaceful. We hope that the example of what we can achieve together at the ISS is the example for the world and the whole of humanity." 🙏🙏🙏

Other

Other

A UK government advisory body on AI and data ethics has recommended tighter controls on how platform giants can use ad targeting and content personalization. Concerns about the largely unregulated eyeball-grabbing targeting tactics of online platforms — be it via serving “personalized content” or “microtargeted ads” to individuals or groups of users — include the risk of generating addictive behaviors; the exploitation and/or discrimination of vulnerable groups; the amplification of misinformation; and election interference, to name a few. In a report published today, the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation (CDEI) sets out a number of recommendations for platforms that use targeting tools to determine what content or ads are shown to users. It argues these recommendations will help build public trust in digital services, including those delivered by the public sector. “Most people do not want targeting stopped. But they do want to know that it is being done safely and ethically. And they want more control,” writes chair Roger Taylor in an executive summary. “Our analysis of the regulatory environment demonstrates significant gaps in their regulatory oversight,” the report goes on. “Our analysis of public attitudes shows greatest concern and interest about the use of online targeting on large platforms. “Our research demonstrates that online targeting systems used by social media platforms (like Facebook and Twitter), video sharing platforms (like YouTube, Snapchat, and TikTok), and search engines (like Google and Bing) raise the greatest concerns in these areas.” The advisory body, which was announced by the Conservative-led government in 2017 to help devise policy for regulating the use of AI and data-driven technologies, is calling for online targeting giants to be held to higher standards of accountability over their use of targeting tools. Current regulations are inadequate to cover online targeting, per its analysis, while it dubs self-regulation and the status quo “unsustainable”. Respondents to a survey the CDEI conducted were overwhelmingly in favour (61 percent) of giving an independent regulator oversight of the use of online targeting systems vs just 17 percent preferring self-regulation to continue. The UK government set out a plan to regulate a number of online harms in a White Paper published last year — which proposes a duty of care be placed on platforms to protect users from a range of harms, such as age inappropriate content or material that encourages damaging behaviors such as self-harm or eating disorders. The CDEI suggests this proposed framework could help plug some of the regulatory gaps its report is flagging “if online targeting is recognised within the independent regulator’s remit” (while warning that would still leave a number of gaps in the regulation of political advertising). The report also calls for greater transparency in how online targeting systems operate “so that society can better understand the impacts of these systems and policy responses can be built on robust evidence”. Another key recommendation is for Internet users to be given greater control over the way they are targeted so that personalization can better fit their preferences. “Online targeting has helped to put a handful of global online platform businesses in positions of enormous power to predict and influence behaviour. However, current mechanisms to hold them to account are inadequate,” the CDEI writes. “We have reviewed the powers of the existing regulators and conclude that enforcement of existing legislation and self-regulation cannot be relied on to meet public expectations of greater accountability.” “There is recognition from industry as well as the public that there are limits to self-regulation and the status quo is unsustainable. Now is the time for regulatory action that takes proportionate steps to increase accountability, transparency and user empowerment,” it adds. The CDEI is not proposing any specific restrictions itself — but rather advocating for a regulatory regime that “promote[s] responsibility and transparency and safeguard[s] human rights by design”. It also recommends that a code of practice be applied to platforms and services that use online targeting systems, requiring that they adopt “standards of risk management, transparency and protection of people who may be vulnerable, so that they can be held to account for the impact of online targeting systems on users”. The future online harms regulator should have a statutory duty to protect and respect freedom of expression and privacy, it also suggests, writing that: “Regulation of online targeting should be developed to safeguard freedom of expression and privacy online, and to promote human rights-based international norms.” The regulator will also need information gathering powers in order to assess compliance with the code, per the recommendations — including the power to require that independent experts are given secure access to platforms’ data to enable further compliance testing of their code. “Online targeting systems may have a negative effect on mental health, for example as a possible factor in ‘internet addiction’. They could contribute to societal issues including radicalisation and the polarisation of political views. These are issues of significant public concern, where the risks of harm are poorly understood, but the potential impact too great to ignore,” the report warns. “We recommend that the regulator facilitates independent academic research into issues of significant public interest, and that it has the power to require online platforms to give independent researchers secure access to their data. Without this, the regulator and other policymakers will not be able to develop evidence-based policy and identify best practice.” Another recommendation is that platforms be required to maintain online advertising archives “to provide transparency for types of personalised advertising that pose particular societal risks” such as politics ads; employment and other similar opportunities where there may be a risk of unlawful discrimination; and for age-restricted products. An ad archive is one of the self-regulatory measures which ad platforms, including Facebook, have developed and implemented in recent years as scrutiny of their systems has dialed up in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica political ad targeting scandal which was carried out using Facebook’s ad tools and user data. Although such archives still tend to offer only limited visibility to users, and Facebook has been heavily criticized by researchers for failing to provide adequate tools to support academic study of its platform. On “more meaningful control” for users over how they’re targeted, the Centre suggests support for a new market in third party ‘data intermediaries’ to enable users’ interests to be represented across multiple services and new third party safety apps. It is also calling for formal coordination mechanisms between the future online harms regulator and the UK’s data watchdog (the ICO) and Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The report flagged other related work being carried out by the ICO and CMA, including the ICO’s Age Appropriate Design Code; and the CMA’s market study of online platforms and digital advertising. The latter raised concerns late last year about the market power of tech giants, floating a range of potential interventions in its interim report, including asking for views on breaking up platform giants. Behavioural advertising is out of control, warns UK watchdog

Technology

Privacy

If you want to buy a home, but you have a limited budget, you're going to have to make some compromises — and we're not talking about granite versus marble countertops. You might have to move to a cheaper locale. Earlier this year, real estate website Clever released a study that found 84% of millennials feel that owning a home is part of the "American Dream." But seeing as this generation is burdened by soaring housing costs, stagnant wages and overwhelming student loan debt, becoming a homeowner can seem like an impossible goal. Especially, if you live in a city like Seattle where the median home prices sit around $537,800. But it's still possible to find reasonable home prices in thriving cities, as Clever reports in its new Millennial Metric study. It looked at the top 100 most populated U.S. cities to find the best opportunities for first-time home buyers. Researchers ranked each city on a 0-100 scale in four metrics: job opportunity, home affordability, livability and housing market forecast. They then calculated the overall score based on the average of all four categories. Home affordability and livability scores account for 30% of the overall ranking, while job opportunity and housing forecast account for 20%. Rochester, New York, came in first with an overall score of 77. While the city's job score was lower, it got a high affordability and livability score (it's worth noting that Clever didn't take into account Rochester's long winters). Des Moines, Iowa came in a close second, with a high job score. Clever reports that Des Moines has recently been dubbed "Silicon Prairie" with a growing number of tech companies moving there. Here are the top 10 places for millennials to live: Average score: 77Job score: 51Home affordability score: 88Livability score: 79Housing market score: 79 Average score: 72Job score: 88Home affordability score: 75Livability score: 79Housing market score: 79 Average score: 71Job score: 64Home affordability score: 78Livability score: 63Housing market score: 63 Average score: 70Job score: 50Home affordability score: 98Livability score: 59Housing market score: 59 Average score: 70Job score: 42Home affordability score: 64Livability score: 79Housing market score: 79 Average score: 67Job score: 55Home affordability score: 96Livability score: 80Housing market score: 80 Average score: 67Job score: 42Home affordability score: 91Livability score: 67Housing market score: 67 Average score: 66Job score: 63Home affordability score: 67Livability score: 56Housing market score: 56 Average score: 65Job score: 67Home affordability score: 77Livability score: 75Housing market score: 75 Average score: 64Job score: 52Home affordability score: 78Livability score: 48Housing market score: 48 Of course, Manhattan and San Francisco, where the median home values go up to as much as $1 million, don't make this list. The majority of the best cities for millennial home buyers are in the Midwest. That doesn't mean it's impossible to find a home in a big city, as long as you're smart about how you manage your money. If you're in the market for a home, experts suggest making sure you're ready to transition from renting. And no matter where you settle down, living within your means and employing common-sense budgeting can help you save.

Real Estate

Housing

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta is scheduled to address the nation “within the hour” after the supreme court annulled his election victory, his spokesman, Manoah Esipisu, said on Friday. Esipisu did not provide more details. Reporting by Duncan Miriri; editing by John Stonestreet

Politics

Government

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May has secured indications of support from nearly 200 of her lawmakers, which would be enough to ensure she wins a confidence vote on Wednesday, based on statements made to the media and on social media. May needs a simple majority - from 159 of 317 Conservative lawmakers - to remain leader. A secret ballot is being held between 1800 and 2000 GMT. However, some lawmakers who have backed May publicly have said in private that they will vote against her, according to British political commentators. The latest Reuters tally of 198 is drawn from statements made to national media and local newspapers, as well as lawmakers’ own Twitter and Facebook posts. Reporting by Andy Bruce; editing by Stephen Addison

Politics

UK

Oct 14 (Reuters) - Boeing Co : * Boeing board elects Amgen CEO Bradway as new director * Bradway is Chairman and CEO of Amgen * Bradway will serve on Boeing board’s audit and finance committees * Board of directors has elected Robert Bradway as a new member Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:

Business

Appointments

  Victoria was supposed to be Samantha Gadd’s rainbow baby —  a child born after a miscarriage, stillbirth or the death of an infant. After suffering a miscarriage in August 2016, Gadd, of North Canton, Ohio, was overjoyed when she learned she was pregnant just months later in October. “She was going to be our baby after the storm; our baby after the miscarriage,” Gadd, 27, tells PEOPLE of Victoria. “We had clothes and we started preparing. I felt her kick. We saw tons of ultrasounds, we knew she was a girl. I felt her hiccups! But she passed away also.” Gadd and her husband Steven, 32, were excited to welcome the little girl into their family of boys — their sons are 7 and 3. But tragedy struck when Gadd went into labor at 22 weeks pregnant. Victoria’s umbilical cord prolapsed and the baby was stillborn on Feb. 1, 2017. Samantha Gadd “She never took a breath,” Gadd says of her daughter. “It was shocking. I couldn’t believe that I was that person that this happened to. She came out perfect, she was a baby. She was small, she had perfect feet. It’s something that changes your life forever.” She says the pain of losing Victoria was different from that of experiencing the miscarriage at 8 weeks pregnant. Having felt Victoria growing and moving, the loss was more “real,” she says. But even after both losses, Gadd says it was difficult to find healing — even when she became pregnant with another little girl in April 2017. “It was a mix of emotions. I was excited and hopeful and I needed that happiness — that new thing to be excited about,” says Gadd, who first shared her story with Love What Matters. “But I was nervous because I didn’t want this to end. I didn’t want there to be a miscarriage.” Abigail Gadd Samantha (top) and daughter Abigail Gadd Week after week, Gadd’s new baby, a girl, continued to grow strong and healthy. And, at five months pregnant, the expectant mom decided to honor her late daughter Victoria in a special way. She teamed up with Nicole DeHoff Photography and posed nude in a maternity shoot covered in rainbow glitter. “The whole shoot was a rush of emotions,” she tells PEOPLE of the shoot in October 2017. “It was an emotional battle after losing a child and I was excited and hoping the pictures would catch people’s attention and learn that this could happen to anyone.” Samantha and Steven’s sons with baby sister Abigail In the striking photos, Gadd is shown with her baby belly on full display with the glitter stretching from her left shoulder to her thigh. Gadd and Steven welcomed baby Abigail on Dec. 14, 2017. “I felt accomplished and relieved. Holding her in my arms, it was just amazing. We felt like what we worked so hard for was finally here. She’s so perfect and she looks just like Victoria did.”

Parenting

Pregnancy

WARSAW (Reuters) - A coronavirus testing laboratory in Warsaw has suspended work after one of its employees tested positive for the virus, effectively sending 17 staff into quarantine. “This is a risk inherent in the implementation of these tasks on the front line,” Grzegorz Juszczyk, the head of Poland’s National Institute of Hygiene, where the lab is located, told private broadcaster TVN. The individual was not involved in the testing process, but had contact with many people in the lab, Juszczyk said, adding that the facility was carrying out between 60 and 120 tests daily. None of the people involved in the diagnostics process have shown symptoms of the virus to date, Juszczyk said. There are 21 coronavirus labs in Poland in total. Some Poles have complained of a shortage of tests as the World Health Organization has pressed countries to carry out more of them to curtail the spread of the coronavirus. Poland is expected to receive 10,000 test kits from China, as well as thousands of items of protective gear, the foreign ministry said this week. Polish Health Minister Lukasz Szumowski has repeatedly insisted that Poland is testing at a sufficient pace, telling Polish radio that around 1,500 tests were currently being completed per day. Poland has confirmed 325 coronavirus cases and five deaths to date. Juszczyk said he hoped new teams would be created to allow testing at the lab to resume within 48 hours. In the meantime, surfaces in the laboratory would be decontaminated. “I don’t see any threat to the entire diagnostic process,” he told TVN. Reporting by Joanna Plucinska; Editing by Kirsten Donovan

Covid-19

Healthcare

The news, but shorter. Your daily wrap-up for the day in news. Subscribe to get Vox Sentences delivered straight to your inbox. Vox Sentences is your daily digest for what’s happening in the world. Sign up for the Vox Sentences newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday, or view the Vox Sentences archive for past editions. Wildfires rage in California; the fate of the missing Malaysia Airlines plane remains a mystery. “I do not believe that Bigfoot is real, but I don’t want to alienate any Bigfoot voters.” [GOP congressional candidate Denver Riggleman tries to address the strangest issue in the midterms so far: Bigfoot erotica] The conflict is really only 100 years old. [YouTube / Johnny Harris and Max Fisher] White threat in a browning America How music has responded to a decade of economic inequality Doctors are blasé about bone health, and it’s leading to more broken bones in the elderly Rudy Giuliani’s rambling new statements on Michael Cohen and the Trump Tower meeting, decoded The Guardians of the Galaxy cast is defending James Gunn against “mob mentality”

Politics

Government

Bloglovin’ is announcing the acquisition of marketing startup Sverve, a move that should the expand monetization options for writers using the Bloglovin’ platform. The New York-headquartered company offers an aggregator where consumers can find and follow fashion and lifestyle bloggers, and where those bloggers can reach and stay connected with a new audience. CEO Giordano Contestabile (who joined last year through the acquisition of his startup Finale) already helps writers monetize through native ad campaigns, but those are “very bespoke, high-end campaigns” and only accessible to the most popular bloggers. Sverve, meanwhile, has built a self-serve platform connecting brands and influencers for marketing campaigns, and then helping them track the results. These campaigns aren’t limited to blogs, either, but can also involve promotion on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. As a result of the acquisition, Sverve is being renamed Activate by Bloglovin’, with CEO Rohit Vashisht becoming president of the rebranded business. Bloglovin’ creators should be able to sign up today, and over time, the company plans to introduce more integrations between the two platforms. “It’s not going to be contained to a few influencers, not even a few hundred,” said Vashisht (pictured above with Contestabile). “Our goal is to bring those opportunities to the hundreds of thousands of influencers in our network. [Bloglovin’ says it has 750,000 registered bloggers.] Brands can pick and choose influencers, but there will also be automated campaigns where hundreds of influencers can start promoting a brand’s message.” The financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. Contestabile said it was primarily a stock deal — Sverve investors are becoming Bloglovin’ shareholders, and Vashisht is joining the company’s board of directors. According to CrunchBase, Sverve raised less than $1 million from 500 Startups, FundersClub, Scout Ventures and others. “Helping influencers succeed is a part of our mission, and we really feel this acquisition will allow us to do more of that,” Contestabile said.

Technology

Software

Having already been disrupted by the rise of mobile phones and streaming services like Netflix, many in Hollywood are keeping their eyes on virtual reality (for what it’s worth, Ashton Kutcher says it’s overhyped). Sam Esmail, creator of the hit drama “Mr. Robot,” is one of the people in the “pro-VR” camp, releasing a well-received spinoff experience at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. On the latest episode of Recode Decode, hosted by Kara Swisher, Esmail said he would do a project that’s entirely in VR — but he doesn’t want to. “The idea is, you’re connecting all these things into one experience, one storytelling universe, if you want to call it that,” Esmail said. “And I’m not just talking about sequels and prequels and whatever, I’m talking about legitimately saying, ‘No, you will deepen your experience of the characters, the world, by going into these other places.’” For “Mr. Robot,” those “other places” include the VR experience, a book called “Red Wheelbarrow” and a mobile game called “1.51exfiltrati0n.ipa.” Esmail stressed that these are not marketing gimmicks — they’re very much a part of the full story he intends to tell, and part of his vision for the future of entertainment. “Eventually, someone’s going to come up with a big movie, a big whatever it is, a big universe,” he said. “And they’re going to start it from the beginning and they’re going to utilize every faction, every screen, and it’s going to be an entire experience, and it’s going to prove the model.” He was inspired in part by his experience as a fan of the often-cryptic drama “Lost.” After each episode, he and his friends would spend hours arguing about what the show meant, and he’d find himself driven online hunting for clues and Easter eggs. He added that although he loves watching shows that release their whole seasons at once, that approach keeps viewers out of sync with one another and less likely to have a “community experience.” You can listen to Recode Decode in the audio player above, or subscribe on iTunes, Google Play Music, TuneIn and Stitcher. On Wednesday, we’ll have a bonus episode of Decode in which Kara talks to former AOL executive Ted Leonsis. If you like this show, you should also sample our other podcasts: If you like what we’re doing, please write a review on iTunes — and if you don’t, just tweet-strafe Kara. This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Technology

Virtual Reality

meetings@ * Halliburton rises after Q2 profit beats estimates * Boeing falls after Fitch revises ratings outlook * Tech stocks rose the most among major S&P sectors * Dow flat, S&P up 0.26%, Nasdaq gains 0.66% (Updates to early afternoon) July 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks eked out small gains on Monday as investors were wary of making big bets ahead of key central bank meetings on interest rates and waited for earnings from marquee companies including Facebook and Amazon due later this week. Shares of Boeing Co fell 1.13% and pressured the blue-chip Dow index after rating agency Fitch revised its outlook on the planemaker to "negative" from "stable," while the tech-heavy Nasdaq was lifted by chipmakers. "Markets are trading sideways because there are not a lot of earnings out today, with the exception of Halliburton, but it is going to be a very big earnings week," said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager at GlobAlt Investments in Atlanta. "We are anticipating the European Central Bank meeting and we have to wait next week for the Federal Reserve, and it seems as though the market has come into accepting a quarter point cut and that's just the right message." The European Central Bank meets on Thursday and money markets are pricing in a more than 50% chance of a 10 basis point cut in interest rates. Federal Reserve officials are set to meet a few days later, when they are widely expected to lower rates by at least 25 basis points. Hopes of an interest rate cut have helped Wall Street's main indexes hit record levels this month, recovering from a slump in May caused by a sudden escalation of U.S.-China trade tensions. About 30% of S&P 500 companies are set to report second-quarter results this week, with overall profits now estimated to rise about 1%, according to Refinitiv IBES data. Facebook Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Google-parent Alphabet Inc, up between 0.2% and 1.4%, are set to report results on Wednesday and Thursday. The technology index rose 1.23%, the most among the S&P sectors, while the Philadelphia chip index rose 1.88%. Chip stocks gained on news that White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow will host a meeting with executives of semiconductor and software companies on Monday to discuss a U.S. ban on sales to China's Huawei Technologies. At 12:43 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat at 27,155.32, the S&P 500 was up 7.63 points, or 0.26%, at 2,984.24. The Nasdaq Composite was up 54.06 points, or 0.66%, at 8,200.55. Second-quarter earnings have been mixed so far, with major banks raising concerns about profit growth in a low interest rate environment. Microsoft Corp and International Business Machines, on the other hand, have reported better-than-expected earnings. Halliburton Co rose 6.9%, the most among S&P 500 companies, after the oilfield services provider's second-quarter profit beat analysts' estimates. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.14-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.02-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P index recorded four new 52-week highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 43 new highs and 88 new lows. (Reporting by Amy Caren Daniel and Karina Dsouza in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)

Finance

Investing

The "Fast Money " traders debated whether it is worth getting into the biotechnology sector on Thursday. The iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was up more than 3 percent on the week so far, but it's down nearly 24 percent this year. Trader Tim Seymour said that there are some companies in the sector which seem like attractive opportunities because of their relative value. Gilead Sciences, for example, closed at $83.42 on Thursday, down 30 percent from its 52-week closing high of $119.60. Trader Steve Grasso agreed and pointed to the IBB, which closed at $257.34 on Thursday, down 35 percent from its 52-week closing high of $398. He said the ETF is a great way to "mute your risk." Grasso warned, however, that investors looking for yield should stick with the pharmaceuticals like Pfizer. Trader Guy Adami agreed, saying politicians haven't hammered on the sector recently because they have "other fish to fry, so you have a window to stay long the IBB right here." Tim Seymour Tim Seymour is long APC, AVP, BAC, BBRY, CLF, DAL, DO, EDC, EWZ, F, FCX, FXI, GM, GOOGL, GRMN, GE, INTC, LQD, M, MCD, MPEL, NKE, RACE, RAI, RH, RL, SINA, T, TWTR, UA, VALE, VZ, XOM. Seymour is short: SPY, XRT. Seymour's firm is long ABX, BABA, BIDU, CLF, EWZ, F, HD, KO, MCD, MPEL, NKE, PEP, PF, SAVE, SBUX, SINA, VALE, VIAB, WMT, WEN, YHOO, short HYG, IWM Karen Finerman Karen is long BAC, C, DRII, DRII calls, FB, FL, GOOG, GOOGL, JPM, LYV, KORS, KORS, KORS puts, WIFI long call spreads, M, MA, SEDG, SPY puts, URI. Her firm is long ANTM, AAPL, BAC, C, C calls, DRII, DRII calls, FB, GOOG, GOOGL, JPM, JPM calls, KORS, LYV, M, MOH, PLCE, SPY puts, URI, WIFI, her firm is short IWM, MDY. Karen Finerman is on the board of GrafTech International. Steve Grasso Steve Grasso is long BA, CC, EVGN, JCP, KBH, MJNA, MU, OLN, PFE, PHM, T, TWTR, GDX. His kids own EFA, EFG, EWJ, IJR, SPY No Shorts Stuart Frankel & Co Inc. and some of its Partners are long AAPL, AMZN, AVP, CUBA, CVX, FCX, HSPO, IBM, ICE, JCP, LDP, KDUS, KO, MAT, MCD, MJNA, NE, NEM, NXTD, OLN, OXY, RIG, STAG, TAXI, TEX, TITXF, UAL, URI, VALE, WDR, WYNN, ZNGA Guy Adami Guy Adami is long CELG, EXAS, GDX, INTC. Guy Adami's wife, Linda Snow, works at Merck.

Technology

Internet

43-year-old Uber driver Corey Robinson got sleepy somewhere between Philadelphia and upstate New York Saturday, so he let his passenger drive. The decision proved to be a poor one: When Robinson woke up from a nap, cops were in hot pursuit, as the New York Times reports. The passenger, Bronx resident Juan R. Carlos, reportedly hired the Uber to drive him 300 miles overnight from Philly to a college in Herkimer, New York. He agreed to take over when Robinson passed out, but caught police attention when he allegedly went blasting past a cop at 86 mph and refused to pull over. Once Robinson had regained consciousness, he apparently pleaded with Carlos to slow down the car. Cops say the passenger refused, and eventually smashed the brand new Hyundai into a guardrail in Colesville, New York—roughly 84 miles from the original destination. Both men were arrested, and Carlos was charged with fleeing the police, driving without a license, and "several other traffic violations." Robinson got off scot-free when it came to the cops, but has been temporarily suspended from Uber. Image via Lia Kantrowitz READ: All the Reasons Why Uber Is the Worst

Technology

Transportation

In TCP Meets, The Creators Project gets exclusive interviews with our favorite artists.  The Creators Project travels to Kabul to meet young feminist graffiti artist Shamsia Hassani, whose work challenges preconceptions about the role of women in Afghani society, and expresses a unique perspective on life in a country recovering from decades of war. We chat with her about identifying and working as an artist in Afghanistan, why condemning the burka isn't the answer, and how art can bring about cultural and social change for the nation of Afghanistan. Click here to learn more about Shamsia Hassani.  Related: Surprise! 'Serial' Is Back and Taking You to Afghanistan 3D Holograms Resurrect Destroyed Buddha Monuments Web Installation Depicts Afghan Violence Through Convergent Programming

Art

Visual Art

David Pecker, the publisher of the National Enquirer tabloid, has reportedly been granted immunity in the investigation into President Donald Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen and his payments to women during the 2016 campaign. That could potentially be bad news for Trump, as Pecker’s cooperation with prosecutors could offer more details on the efforts to quash these stories about Trump during the campaign, and the extent of the president’s knowledge about those payoffs to women. Pecker is the CEO of American Media Inc. (AMI), the parent company of the National Enquirer, and a longtime friend of Trump’s. In August 2016, the tabloid arranged what’s called a “catch and kill” deal with former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who alleges she had an affair with Donald Trump in 2006 and 2007. McDougal agreed to sell the rights of her story to AMI, and in exchange for not speaking publicly, she received $150,000 and the chance to publish a few fitness articles in the National Enquirer. (McDougal successfully sued to get out of the deal in April 2018.) Pecker’s involvement with the McDougal payoff was well-documented, but prosecutors revealed in charging documents that he was involved in the payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels as well. Which means that he knows a whole lot more about what went on behind the scenes with these payments than we realized. Cohen pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday to campaign finance violations related to his role in brokering the deals with McDougal and Pecker. He also testified that he made the payments to the women “in coordination with and at the direction of” a candidate for federal office, a direct implication of Trump. Pecker’s cooperation could potentially give prosecutors more evidence about Trump’s knowledge of the deals, and whether the then-candidate did coordinate and direct those hush money payments. Trump first denied any knowledge of a payoff to Daniels, but then admitted in May that he paid Cohen back for the Daniels payment. As for McDougal, Hope Hicks, then working on the Trump campaign, told the Wall Street Journal in November 2016 that “we have no knowledge of any of this.” But last month, Lanny Davis, Cohen’s attorney, released an audiotape of Cohen and Trump discussing the McDougal deal in September 2016. This week, Trump, when asked about his knowledge of the payments, told Fox & Friends that “later on I knew.” Now prosecutors have a witness who might be able to offer additional details about these payoffs and who beyond Cohen was involved. Prosecutors granting Pecker immunity means he won’t face criminal charges himself, but he’ll be compelled to testify — even if that means against his old friend Trump.

Politics

US

EditorsNote: Fixes Syracuse rank No. 18 Syracuse shuts down South Carolina State SYRACUSE, N.Y. — As coaches Murray Garvin of South Carolina State and Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim shook hands after Tuesday night’s game, Gavin jokingly said he had wished that Boeheim had stayed with the full-court press that he used for several minutes in the first half. That’s because the Bulldogs couldn’t make a shot against Syracuse’s vaunted 2-3 zone. South Carolina State shot 27.1 percent overall and 18.5 percent from 3-point range Tuesday as the No. 18 Orange routed the Bulldogs 101-59 in a Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational game before 17,073 fans at the Carrier Dome. “We knew that playing against their zone, the windows to shoot the ball are so small,” Garvin said. “Their length really bothered us; we couldn’t get the open looks that we’d like to have. Then when we got open, we were second-guessing, wondering if the next man is coming.” Meanwhile, the Orange (4-0) shot 54.4 percent as Tyler Lydon (14 points, 10 rebounds), Tyler Roberson (13 points, 12 rebounds) and Frank Howard (10 points, 11 assists, one turnover) recorded double-doubles. Andrew White (15 points), John Gillon (14) and Taurean Thompson (12) also reached double figures in scoring as Syracuse was 13 of 24 from 3-point range. “I was just put in good positions by my teammates to knock the ball down on the offense end, and defensively I wanted to get after it on the boards because I knew we had a height advantage on them,” said Lydon, who shot 4 for 5 from 3-point range after making only two of his first eight 3-pointers this season. Entering the game, the Orange were limiting their opponents to 30 percent shooting overall and 19 percent from beyond the arc. Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference-member South Carolina State managed a few easy shots against the press, but struggled against the Orange’s active zone. Freshman Ozante Fields led the Bulldogs with 11 points and six rebounds, while James Richardson added nine points. The Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational is a five-team, round-robin tournament that also includes South Carolina, Holy Cross and Monmouth. Syracuse and South Carolina play the tournament’s marquee game Saturday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Leading by 15 at the half, the Orange steadily increased their advantage. Lydon sank three 3-pointers in a 17-6 spurt that boosted Syracuse’s lead to 71-43. The Orange shot nearly 60 percent in the second half as they scored 55 points and reached the 100-point mark for the first time since a 108-56 victory over Monmouth in 2012. “Shooting is contagious,” said Gillon, Howard’s backup at point guard who also had four assists Tuesday. “When somebody else is hitting, it opens it up for other people.” The Orange limited the Bulldogs to 27.8 percent shooting in the first half as they built a 46-31 lead. Lydon, White and Howard sank 3-pointers to spark a 15-0 run as Syracuse held South Carolina State scoreless for 5:22 and grabbed a 15-3 lead. The Bulldogs pulled within 15-9, but DaJuan Coleman scored the first five points of a 13-2 Syracuse spurt that gave the Orange a 31-14 cushion. As the Orange rolled to victories over Colgate, Holy Cross, Monmouth and South Carolina State by an average of 33.8 points, coach Jim Boeheim can test various combinations with his nine-deep roster. “We’ve got nine guys and it’s different than playing six or seven,” Boeheim said. “Guys play different positions so they get in there and play different positions. We have some flexibility with this team, and we’ve got to keep working on it. A team with this many new faces isn’t going to come together the first couple of weeks, it’s going to take a while.” While Syracuse’s schedule gets more difficult with South Carolina on Saturday and at No. 16 Wisconsin on Nov. 29 in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge, the Bulldogs continue a brutal non-conference schedule as Garvin tries to prepare his team for MEAC play. “We have to make sure that every opportunity that we practice and we play, we get better at something and stay loyal to the process of becoming a championship basketball team,” Garvin said. “We’re from a one-bid league, so you have to be your best come March. Last year we made it to our championship game; this year our goal is to win our conference championship. “Thank God we don’t have to beat Syracuse to win the MEAC.” NOTES: Bourama Sidibe, a 6-foot-11 senior center at St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, N.J., announced Monday that he picked Syracuse over Oklahoma State and Texas Tech. Sidibe, a native of Mali, is ranked by ESPN.com as the No. 15 center in this year’s recruiting class. ... South Carolina State G Eric Eaves, who scored eight points Tuesday, was selected to the All-MEAC Preseason first team after being a second team pick last season. ... Freshman F Thompson, who left Syracuse’s previous game with a foot injury and was taken to the hospital for precautionary X-rays, showed no ill effects from the injury and played 24 minutes Tuesday.

Sports

Basketball

Wearable device company Jawbone has won a ruling in federal court invalidating two of three patents rival Fitbit Inc had accused it of infringing. U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman in San Jose said on Thursday two Fitbit patents on methods of tracking a person’s physical activity are invalid because they cover abstract ideas ineligible for patent protection. To read the full story on WestlawNext Practitioner Insights, click here: bit.ly/2lIitRa

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Other

Hong Kong, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Huge plumes of smoke billowed across eastern Hong Kong harbor on Friday close to a traditional fishing village popular with tourists, according to Reuters witnesses. Black clouds of smoke could be seen above the village of Lei Yue Mun. Police told Reuters they had received a report of a fire at a restaurant, although it was not immediately clear if that was the same case. (Reporting By Hong Kong bureau,)

Other

Other

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union lawmakers dealing with Brexit said on Wednesday there was an increased risk of a disorderly British exit from the bloc after Boris Johnson becomes prime minister. Johnson, the face of the “Leave” campaign in Britain’s 2016 EU membership referendum, will become prime minister on Wednesday, succeeding Theresa May, after he campaigned for the leadership of his Conservative Party promising to deliver Brexit on Oct. 31, with or without a divorce deal with the EU. The bloc has congratulated Johnson on his victory but was firm that it would not offer Britain better departure terms. The message was reiterated on Wednesday by a group of EU lawmakers dealing with Brexit. “The (group) notes that recent statements, not least those made during the Conservative Party leadership campaign, have greatly increased the risk of a disorderly exit of the UK,” it said in a statement. “A no-deal exit would be economically very damaging, even if such damage would not be inflicted equally on both parties.” The European Parliament must endorse any EU-UK Brexit deal and has said the bloc is ready to amend a declaration on their future ties, which accompanies the legally-binding divorce agreement. Johnson wants changes to the divorce deal, notably removing the so-called Irish backstop, an insurance policy that could tie the UK to some of the EU’s trading rules after Brexit to avoid deploying extensive checks on the Irish border. Brexit backers fear that would make it hard for Britain to strike independent trade deals around the world. “An orderly exit is only possible if citizens’ rights, the financial settlement and the backstop, that in all circumstances ensures no hardening of the border on the Island of Ireland... are guaranteed,” the European Parliament’s Brexit group said. “The Withdrawal Agreement ... cannot be reopened.” May agreed to the deal with the EU last November but the British parliament has since voted it down three times. The bloc is preparing for a no-deal exit or another delay to Britain’s departure date. Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Janet Lawrence

Politics

Brexit

OSLO — A worshiper thwarted an attack on a mosque Saturday by a young man wearing a helmet and body armor, according to the Norwegian authorities and a witness. Hours later, the police said they had found a dead woman at a home linked to the assailant. The police described the suspect as a young white man who appeared to have acted alone. He was arrested and charged with attempted murder in connection with the mosque attack near the capital, Oslo, and later with murder in connection with the dead body. When the police made their way into a home where the suspect once lived, they found the body of a young woman. “He is indicted for murder,” said Rune Skjold, a police spokesman. During the mosque attack, the suspect was overpowered by a 75-year-old member of the congregation who sustained light injuries, said Irfan Mushtaq, a former director of the al-Noor Islamic Centre mosque and a board member who witnessed it. “The man carried two shotgun-like weapons and a pistol” and was wearing body armor, a helmet and black clothes, Mr. Mushtaq told Norwegian televisionTV2. “He broke through a glass door and fired shots.” Only three people were in the mosque at the time, at about 4 p.m. local time. If he had arrived earlier during prayers, the attacker could have hurt many more people, he said. The police said they were aware of online posts linked to the suspect, whose name has not been released. About two hours before the attack, a post appeared on an online forum. The post raised questions of whether it could have been written by the suspect in the Norway attack. “Well cobblers it’s my time,” the post began. It ended: “Valhalla awaits.” Mr. Skjold said the authorities had no evidence that the suspect belonged any kind of network of extremists, but were prepared for the possibility that the attack was terrorism-related. He told the public broadcaster NRK that the suspect had been known to the police, without elaborating. After the attack, a police special unit and bomb detecting unit went to the address connected to the suspect, the newspaper VG reported. The local newspaper Budstikka reported in March that the mosque had adopted new security measures like introducing ID cards to enter after attacks that killed more than 50 people at two New Zealand mosques in March. In 2011, Anders Behring Breivik killed eight people with a bomb at a government building in central Oslo and then fatally shot 69 people at a summer camp on the island of Utoya. He claimed that he had been on a “martyr operation” to stop a Muslim invasion of Europe. Because of an editing error, an earlier version of this article misidentified the message board on which the suspect in the attack posted messages before the mosque attack. While it was an online message board, it was not 8chan.

Terrorism

Violence

SAN DIEGO — Steve Mollenkopf, the chief executive of Qualcomm, has been waiting for a phone call with news from China. It has been a long wait. His company, which makes chips that help mobile phones communicate, has been on extended hold while the Chinese authorities review a deal that Qualcomm struck 20 months ago to buy another chip maker, NXP Semiconductors. Mr. Mollenkopf said Qualcomm had done all it could to persuade Beijing to approve the $44 billion transaction, which the companies have said will be terminated next Wednesday without regulatory consent. But both the acquisition and Qualcomm have now become entangled in the trade war raging between the United States and China. China’s prolonged review of the deal for NXP is widely seen by analysts and trade experts as part of Beijing’s retaliation for President Trump’s tariffs on Chinese goods. “We want to see it get done,” Mr. Mollenkopf, 49, said in an interview at Qualcomm’s headquarters in San Diego. When asked if his company was caught in the trade war, he said, “That’s probably accurate.” The situation, which may be a sign of what is to come for other multinationals that also have interests dependent on China, is laced with irony. In March, Mr. Trump moved to protect Qualcomm when his administration blocked a $117 billion hostile takeover bid for the company by another chip maker, Broadcom. At the time, Mr. Trump said the deal would “impair the national security of the United States” after a government committee found that Broadcom would most likely reduce vital Qualcomm wireless research to the benefit of Chinese companies. Now Mr. Trump may end up hurting the company that he sought to shield, in an unintended consequence of the mounting trade hostilities that his administration has spearheaded. Mr. Mollenkopf and others have said buying NXP, a Dutch chip maker, is important to helping Qualcomm move more quickly into technology for cars and other new markets. A White House spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment. Mr. Mollenkopf appeared resigned to Qualcomm’s lack of options with China’s review. “We can only influence so much,” he said. But the chief executive, a company veteran who took the top job in 2014, also struck an optimistic tone, arguing that Qualcomm can prosper without NXP because “we have a good technology road map.” “That technology road map is going to be valuable regardless of whatever the outcome is with NXP,” Mr. Mollenkopf said. The heart of that road map is 5G, industry shorthand for a next generation of ultrafast global cellular networks that Qualcomm has been helping to develop. Mr. Mollenkopf predicts 5G will take his company beyond its stronghold in smartphones. And since signing the deal for NXP, Qualcomm has made progress on its own in diversifying its business by selling more chips into cars, he added, with its backlog of chip orders from the auto industry recently totaling $4 billion. In addition, Mr. Mollenkopf said, if the NXP deal does not go through, Qualcomm plans a stock buyback of $20 billion to $30 billion to help lift its stock price. Stacy Rasgon, an analyst with Sanford Bernstein, said Qualcomm’s political stalemate with China and the question of whether the company could integrate NXP effectively had led some investors to prefer a buyback. “People just want certainty, one way or another,” he said. The fallout from the trade war is the latest challenge for Mr. Mollenkopf, who has been on the hot seat for much of his tenure as chief executive. Qualcomm has been hurt by slower sales of smartphones, while an unusual business model that combines patent licensing with chip sales has prompted antitrust squabbles on three continents. Qualcomm’s share price has been largely under pressure since January 2017, when its longtime customer Apple and the Federal Trade Commission filed lawsuits accusing Qualcomm of abusing its market power and patent position to charge unfairly high royalties. The company has rejected the accusations. And Mr. Mollenkopf faces faces the possibility that Paul Jacobs, a former chairman of Qualcomm and the son of one of the company’s founders, Irwin Jacobs, may mount a bid to take the chip maker private. More recently, after the Trump administration blocked the Broadcom bid, White House actions have been problematic for Qualcomm. In April, the administration issued an order preventing American companies from selling components to China’s ZTE after finding that ZTE violated United States sanctions involving North Korea and Iran. ZTE is a major Qualcomm customer. Mr. Trump later softened his stance toward ZTE, which agreed to changes. The Commerce Department removed ZTE from a list of proscribed customers on Friday, enabling Qualcomm to resume selling chips to the Chinese company. It’s unclear if China might now relent on NXP, or keep withholding approval of the deal to push back against the Trump administration’s trade tariffs. “One weapon is obviously the Qualcomm weapon,” said Robert Atkinson, president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a think tank. China’s antitrust authority, the State Administration for Market Regulation, did not respond to a faxed request for comment. The country would be the ninth jurisdiction to complete a customary antitrust review of Qualcomm’s NXP deal; eight others, including the United States, have approved it. An NXP spokeswoman referred to recent remarks by Richard Clemmer, the company’s chief executive, who said the chip maker continued to believe in the Qualcomm transaction. Mr. Mollenkopf embarked on the NXP deal nearly two years ago to reduce Qualcomm’s dependence on the maturing mobile phone market. While Qualcomm primarily makes mobile chips and earns most of its profit from royalty payments from handset makers, NXP sells more than 14,000 different chips that are widely used in cars, mobile payments and other applications. The deal, announced in October 2016, seemed ambitious from the start. NXP has nearly as many employees as Qualcomm — about 30,000 — and a tradition of operating factories, which still make some of its products. Qualcomm has always relied on other companies to make the chips it designs. Regulatory approval was expected to take time, with the companies predicting they would not be able to close the deal until the end of 2017. But the review has dragged on even longer. In Europe and South Korea, where Qualcomm has faced antitrust challenges from regulators, the authorities won concessions to make sure the company would not unfairly exploit patents on a payment technology called near-field communications it would acquire by buying NXP. China presented special issues. The country’s regulatory authorities have taken an activist stance on antitrust reviews in the past few years. Qualcomm gets more than half of its revenue from the country, but its relations with customers and Beijing have not always been smooth. China’s antitrust authority previously investigated Qualcomm and found in 2015 that its patent-licensing practices violated antimonopoly laws. Qualcomm agreed to pay a settlement of $975 million. Mr. Mollenkopf, who rose through Qualcomm’s engineering ranks and helped lead chip development efforts, said the company had endured a turbulent period. But one thing is certain, he said: There will be no extension of the NXP deal deadline beyond next Wednesday, when Qualcomm reports quarterly earnings. “We think NXP is a great deal for us,” Mr. Mollenkopf said. “If it doesn’t get done, we also have means to create value in different ways.”

Technology

Telecommunications

BEIJING, Oct 30 (Reuters) - China Southern Airlines Co Ltd said on Tuesday its quarterly net profit more than halved, weighed down by a drop in yuan and higher fuel and debt costs. China’s airlines have been hit by rebounding oil prices and a volatile currency, which have pressured their earnings even as they enjoy strong travel demand. China Southern Airlines - the country’s largest carrier by passenger numbers - reported profit attributable to shareholders of 2.0 billion yuan ($287.42 million) for the third quarter, down from 4.3 billion yuan in the same period last year. Net profit was down 41 percent for the first nine months of the year at 4.2 billion yuan, though revenue rose 13 percent to 108.9 billion yuan in the period. The company incurred foreign exchange losses of 2.0 billion yuan due to a drop in yuan against the U.S. dollar in the nine-month period, compared with a gain of 1.2 billion yuan a year earlier. The yuan has fallen by about 6 percent against the dollar since the start of the year, raising airlines’ financing costs as their fleet expansion plans have been mostly financed by U.S. dollar-denominated loans. China Eastern Airlines Corp Ltd, the country’s second-largest airline by passenger numbers, on Friday posted a 38 percent fall in third-quarter net profit. [nL3N1WZ485 ($1 = 6.9584 Chinese yuan) Reporting by Stella Qiu and Brenda Goh; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Amrutha Gayathri

Finance

Banking

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey&aposs government is denying claims that former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder negotiated the release of a German human rights activist from prison. Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag confirmed Monday that Schroeder met with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan but said no "ongoing legal case" was discussed. Bozdag said the German activist was released by "an independent and impartial" court. He slammed reports suggesting that a negotiation had taken place as efforts to portray Turkey&aposs judiciary as one that takes "orders and directions." Last week, a court freed German Peter Steudner and seven other activists in prison pending a verdict in their trial on terror-related charges. Bozdag said Schroeder and Erdogan frequently meet to discuss Turkish-German or Turkish-EU relations. He said the last meeting took place with Chancellor Angela Merkel&aposs knowledge.

Politics

Turkey

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Second-generation ethanol production is overcoming the technical difficulties that had slowed its development and is now seen as commercially competitive with oil prices near $70 per barrel, industry representatives said on Thursday. As countries worldwide prepare to deliver on their respective commitments to the Paris climate deal, growing global regulations that favor advanced biofuels and programs that put a price tag on carbon-based fuels are creating a more positive environment, biofuels executives said at the “Forum Brasil Bioeconomia 2018” seminar in Sao Paulo. After years of investment and technical glitches, 2G biofuels, or cellulosic biofuels, are seen as the future of green fuels since they can be made from biomass, overcoming criticism about the use of food crops to produce fuel and sharply reducing carbon emissions from vehicles. “We had that moment of excitement some years ago, then came a downsize with players leaving the arena due to big difficulties to operate plants in a stable way,” said Victor Uchoa, Latin America biorefining head for biotech company Novozymes. “But that is in the past now, we are again in a ‘up’ moment. The Raízen plant is an example of that,” he said. Brazil’s Raízen, a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Cosan SA Indústria e Comércio, is producing some 40 million liters of cellulosic ethanol per year at its plant in Piracicaba, Sao Paulo state. “We solved the operational problems, production is currently stable and we are hitting the numbers we planned,” Raphaella Gomes, head of Raízen’s innovation arm told Reuters on the sidelines of the seminar. Raízen has previously said that it sells all of its 2G ethanol at a price premium over regular, sugar cane-based ethanol, due to its environmental credentials. Cellulosic ethanol in Brazil is mostly made from the cane waste from the production of sugar and ethanol. Novozymes supplied Raízen with enzymes used in the fermentation process, which was another technological challenge since the biomass needed a new type of fermentation to produce ethanol. Mauricio Adade, head of Latin America at DSM, a firm supplying products for cellulose fermentation, said that in other countries - including the United States, where 2G ethanol is made from corn waste - production is very close to being financially feasible. “With oil around $70 we can compete,” he said. Adade expects strong demand from Asian countries such as China and India, which are seeking to drastically cut carbon emissions from the transportation sector. Reporting by Marcelo Teixeira, editing by G Crosse

Other

Other

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan is not looking at a military option over Kashmir, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said on Thursday, after neighboring India revoked its decades-old special constitutional status for the disputed region this week. However, Pakistan reserves the right to respond to any Indian aggression, Qureshi told a news conference in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad. “We’re not looking at military option,” Qureshi said, adding, “Don’t we reserve a right to respond in case of any aggression?” Regional leaders have warned of a backlash against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision this week on Jammu and Kashmir, which also split the state into two federal territories to allow the government greater control. Reporting by Asif Shahzad

Politics

India

Hossa scores winner as Blackhawks edge Stars CHICAGO — Dallas Stars right winger Patrick Eaves thought he had a wide-open net for a game-winning goal in overtime. In a split second, Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Scott Darling recovered and extended his right leg for an incredible, sprawling kick save that kept the game alive. “It took every inch of me to get to that one,” said Darling, the 6-foot-6 netminder. Right winger Marian Hossa took it from there. Hossa scored on a slap shot with 28.7 seconds remaining in overtime to lift Chicago to a 4-3 win over Dallas on Sunday night. Center Jonathan Toews scored a goal and had two assists for the Blackhawks. Right winger Patrick Kane and center Artem Anisimov also scored as Chicago (9-3-1) won its sixth consecutive game. Darling’s save dominated the conversation in both locker rooms after the game. He moved left to right in the crease to stop the one-timer by Eaves and elicit a loud ovation from a sellout crowd. Toews said the save reminded him of a similar stop by Darling against Nashville during the 2015 playoffs. Darling provided a brief break for No. 1 goaltender Corey Crawford as the Hawks won a Stanley Cup title. “Same kind of save, just kicking those long legs out,” Toews said. “(Eaves) probably thought he had a goal no matter what and put it along the ice. Scotty’s foot comes out of nowhere. That was a huge one.” Eaves said he released the shot as quickly as he could. “That was the look we wanted, and it just didn’t go in,” Eaves said. “He made a (heck) of a save, and we’ve got to live with that.” Not all was lost as Dallas (4-5-3) earned a point on the road by extending the game to overtime. Rookie center Gemel Smith scored the first two goals of his NHL career, including a one-timer from the slot that evened the score at 3 with 1:20 remaining in the third period. Smith also scored a shorthanded goal on a breakaway during the second period. “I was thinking, ‘Stay calm, stay calm. Read the goalie, read the goalie,’ “ said Smith, 22. “I kind of lost the puck there (on the breakaway) and tried to pull it back, and luckily it went in.” Chicago trailed 2-0 after goals by Stars center Tyler Seguin and Smith. The Blackhawks regrouped for three straight goals, including two within a 56-second span, to seize a 3-2 lead early in the third period. Toews chipped a shot past Lehtonen with 16:21 to play in the third period to even the score at 2. Hossa faked a shot and passed to Toews for the point-blank goal. Moments later, Toews charged toward the left side of the crease and flicked a wrist shot on net. Lehtonen stopped Toews but could not control the rebound as Anisimov punched in his eighth goal. “(Toews) had the puck a lot tonight,” Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said. “I thought he was dangerous. He was hitting holes, had speed, protecting pucks. He had the production to show for it, as well. “He’s been getting better every game, and when he starts scoring, knowing everything else he does, it just adds (to our performance).” Dallas played without center Jason Spezza (lower body) and was forced to mix and match scoring lines with 11 forwards and seven defensemen. However, Stars coach Lindy Ruff said a depleted roster was no excuse for back-to-back losses. “Those are hard losses,” Ruff said. “We had a good opportunity with the power play in overtime, and Eaves had the great opportunity and I think shot it back into him a little bit. There’s your opportunity to win a game. We fought hard to get back into it.” Blackhawks right winger Tyler Motte left the game in the second period with an apparent left leg injury and did not return. Motte crashed feet-first into the boards and hobbled slowly off the ice. “We’ll know more in the next day or so,” Quenneville said. NOTES: The Stars recalled C Justin Dowling from the AHL’s Texas Stars and placed RW Jiri Hudler (illness) on injured reserve. Dowling, 26, recorded one assist in two games with Dallas in October. ... Blackhawks G Corey Crawford received a night off after starting the previous six games in a row. ... Stars C Jason Spezza did not play after sustaining a lower-body injury Saturday against Chicago. Spezza is “going to miss a little bit of time,” Dallas coach Lindy Ruff told reporters. ... Blackhawks LW Andrew Desjardins has been medically cleared to return from a lower-body injury, but he did not play Sunday as a healthy scratch. ... The Blackhawks honored the Chicago Cubs during a pregame ceremony. Cubs players Kyle Schwarber, Jason Heyward and Mike Montgomery carried the World Series trophy to center ice.

Sports

Hockey

Even after Palo Alto University professor Christine Blasey Ford levied sexual assault allegations against Brett Kavanaugh, his nomination for the Supreme Court is still on track for a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday — but first, the senators have some questions. The committee is in the process of scheduling phone calls with Kavanaugh and Ford after she came forward in a Washington Post report on Sunday alleging that Kavanaugh drunkenly pinned her down and sexually assaulted her when they were both teenagers in the 1980s. Ford’s lawyer, Debra Katz, in an appearance on CNN’s New Day on Monday said that her client would be willing to testify publicly to the committee. Following the publication of the Post’s Sunday report, Senate Democrats have been arguing for a delay in Kavanaugh’s confirmation process — something that Republicans continue to balk at. While a spokesman for Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley signaled that there are no plans to push a Kavanaugh committee vote scheduled for this Thursday, he noted there is bipartisan interest in conducting further review of the recent revelations. “The Chairman and Ranking Member routinely hold bipartisan staff calls with nominees when updates are made to nominees’ background files,” Grassley spokesperson Taylor Foy said in a statement. “Given the late addendum to the background file and revelations of Dr. Ford’s identity, Chairman Grassley is actively working to set up such follow-up calls with Judge Kavanaugh and Dr. Ford ahead of Thursday’s scheduled vote.” By conducting these calls — if they take place — lawmakers will be able to weigh both Ford’s allegations and Kavanaugh’s response as part of their evaluation of his candidacy for the high court. Ford had initially raised the sexual assault allegations in a letter that Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) referred (without Ford’s name) to the FBI last week. At that time, the FBI said it had added the letter to Kavanaugh’s background file, meaning that the White House and other senators would be able to access it. An agency spokesperson said it had no additional guidance to provide following the Washington Post report on Sunday. Ford said she had originally wanted to remain anonymous out of fear of retaliation and public attacks but ultimately decided “my civic responsibility is outweighing my anguish and my terror about retaliation.” Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing already took place in early September, where senators questioned him about his record, beliefs, and past for days. In response to the then-anonymous allegations last week, Grassley had his office publish a letter signed by 65 women Kavanaugh knew in high school saying he “treated women with respect.” After the Post’s story broke on Sunday, reactions poured in from the senators who will ultimately decide whether Kavanaugh, President Donald Trump’s second Supreme Court nominee, will be confirmed — at least on the Democratic side. Senators on the left called for the nomination to be slowed down until an investigation could be conducted. Republicans, meanwhile, were slower to respond, although Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) threw many off by emphasizing that he was opposed to moving forward with a vote on Kavanaugh without hearing from Ford, Politico reports. “If they push forward without any attempt with hearing what she’s had to say, I’m not comfortable voting yes,” Flake said. Feinstein, the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee who kept Ford’s identity confidential but did submit her allegation to the FBI, said in a statement that the professor’s decision to come forward was “extraordinarily difficult.” She also said the bureau should investigate her claims before the Senate moves forward with Kavanaugh’s nomination. “From the outset, I have believed these allegations were extremely serious and bear heavily on Judge Kavanaugh’s character. However, as we have seen over the past few days, they also come at a price for the victim,” she said. “I hope the attacks and shaming of her will stop and this will be treated with the seriousness it deserves.” Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), a member of the Judiciary Committee, called for a delay until there is an investigation as well, citing the Senate’s “constitutional responsibility” to scrutinize Supreme Court nominees. So did Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI), also on the committee, and multiple other Senate Democrats and Judiciary Committee members. Christine Blasey Ford courageously stepped forward to tell her story — it is a credible and serious allegation. The Senate has a constitutional responsibility to scrutinize SCOTUS nominees. A vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination must be delayed until there is a thorough investigation. As I said during the hearing, this is why the #MeToo movement is so important, because often in these situations, there is an environment where people see nothing, hear nothing, and say nothing. That is what we have to change. This is the most important Supreme Court vacancy in a generation, and President Trump has chosen Judge Kavanaugh to be the decisive vote on the health, privacy, and rights of all Americans, and whether our Constitution will protect everyone or just the wealthy and powerful. Sheldon Whitehouse: “Kavanaugh’s blanket denial cannot be reconciled with her specific recollections, and the FBI needs time to take proper witness statements. Lying to an FBI agent in a formal interview is a crime, and an impeachable offense.” https://t.co/4S8JOV98El pic.twitter.com/Ha8LR06h8q Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in a statement also called for a postponement of the vote on Kavanaugh. “To railroad a vote now would be an insult to the women of America and the integrity of the Supreme Court,” he said. Before Ford’s identity was revealed on Sunday, Sen. Doug Jones (D-AL) predicted Kavanaugh’s nomination would likely move forward in an appearance on CNN’s State of the Union — unless the accuser was revealed. “There’s really not much that can be done unless this person comes forward and you can see this and talk to the person who wrote that letter,” he said. After Ford came forward, he called for a delay in the nomination. This was a very brave step to come forward. It is more important than ever to hit the pause button on Kavanaugh’s confirmation vote until we can fully investigate these serious and disturbing allegations. We cannot rush to move forward under this cloud. https://t.co/SIHzdnnOFJ While a chorus of Democratic lawmakers quickly rose up, Republicans in the Senate and the administration were quieter. One of the few immediate responses came from Foy, who took a swipe at Senate Democrats for keeping Ford’s allegations under wraps and suggested they were politically motivated to do so. In a statement, Foy said the “uncorroborated allegations from more than 35 years ago” are “disturbing.” (She did not tell anyone about the alleged incident when it first happened in the 1980s, but she discussed it in therapy in 2012 and 2013 without naming Kavanaugh, and her therapists’ notes from the time corroborate that.) “Judge Kavanaugh’s background has been thoroughly vetted by the FBI on six different occasions throughout his decades of public service, and no such allegation ever surfaced,” Foy said. Judiciary Committee Republicans playing defense. This just in from Taylor Foy, communications director for the committee. https://t.co/4S8JOV98El pic.twitter.com/HtzGv4DHh6 South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said in a statement that he agreed with the committee’s concerns about the “substance and process” of the allegations but said he would “gladly listen” to Ford to hear what she has to say. “If the committee is to hear from Ms. Ford it should be done immediately so the process can continue as scheduled,” he said. My statement on Judge Kavanaugh. pic.twitter.com/QGz3uUyzC9 Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, considered to be the two swing votes in Kavanaugh’s confirmation, have expressed concern about Ford’s allegations. Collins told CNN she was “surprised” by them, adding, “I don’t know enough to create the judgment at this point.” Murkowski told CNN there “might” need to be “at least” a discussion on delaying the committee vote on Kavanaugh. Flake, who sits on the judiciary panel, has called for a delay on the vote until they’ve heard from Ford. Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, who does not sit on the committee, has as well. North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis said on CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday prior to the Post’s story that he hadn’t seen the letter and criticized the process that kept it under wraps. “So we have a confidential witness not willing to sit down at least in a closed setting — that’s problematic to me,” he said. “And as you said Judge Kavanaugh has categorically denied the allegations and I put some weight on that.” It’s not clear whether Ford coming forward has changed his calculation. The White House has reiterated Kavanaugh’s denial and is standing by him. The FBI, which handles background checks on government appointees, had previously said it added Ford’s original letter to Kavanaugh’s file, meaning the White House and other senators will be able to review it, and a spokesperson said they had no other guidance to provide. White House spokespeople did not return a request for comment. A lawyer close to the administration told Politico there was no way the nomination would be withdrawn. “If somebody can be brought down by accusations like this, then you, me, every man certainly should be worried,” the lawyer said. A lawyer close to the White House said the nomination will not be withdrawn. “No way, not even a hint of it. If anything, it’s the opposite. If somebody can be brought down by accusations like this, then you, me, every man certainly should be worried.” https://t.co/aAbYbNVgNj

Politics

US

Our beauty resolution for 2019 is to perfect smudged makeup — and we're going to do it without so much as touching an eyeliner. That's because some of the lipstick trends about to infiltrate the red carpet, Instagram, and our morning commute require a hazy, imperfect finish, according to makeup artist Robert Sesnek. He pegs the soft-focus look as the biggest burgeoning trend for 2019. "It's very unfinished in application, and almost smudged into the lip line — not ultra defined and done by using a lip pencil," Sesnek says. An easy way to nail the look? Powder lipsticks, another trend makeup artist Carola Gonzalez eyes for 2019. These innovative new formulations, configured in both pans and bullets, feature suspended pigment, and transform from creams to matte powders upon application for serious makeup magic. Get both artists' tips for nailing blurred, messy-on-purpose lip looks, ahead — along with the lipstick colors they say are about to be trending hard in 2019. At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy something we link to on our site, Refinery29 may earn commission. To help powder lipsticks adhere to the lip while still maintaining their matte quality, Gonzalez uses a non-shiny lip balm, like Keihl's Facial Fuel No-Shine Moisturizing Lip Balm, before applying color. The rich burgundy-mauve shade of this lipstick, which transforms into a lightweight powder on the lips, is a standout on darker skin tones. "Think of powder lipsticks as a version of a matte lipstick. They perform like traditional formulas, but have a different consistency, texture, and finish," Gonzalez says. "They can be worn with any makeup style [elsewhere on the face], whether it's dewy, satin, or matte."This formula looks like it has a powder-dry texture, but feels like a smooth balm when on. In lipstick, hydration typically comes with shine. But MAC has divorced the two in this formula, thanks to moisture-coated powder pigments that give a hazy matte look while conditioning lips at the same time. Gonzalez particularly likes this bright-pink shade for those with fair skin. "For a brown-nude lip color, I like NARS Satin Lip Pencil in Het Loo, applied and pressed out with your finger for a stained effect," Sesnek says. This lighter riff on the shade incorporates a bit of peach to complement fair skin tones. Apply it to the center of the lips, then tap toward the edges to achieve that imperfect look. Though Ellis Faas lip colors are made to flatter all skin tones, the orange-y base in this brown nude will particularly pop against darker skin. We love this neon-orange shade, which looks a lot more expensive than it is — and Gonzalez cosigns, praising the formula for its ability to deliver rich pigment in one swipe without streakiness. "These feel like nothing is on, but give a full, opaque coverage," she says, adding, "When picking a red lipstick for dark skin tones, go for one with orange undertones versus blue ones. There’s something unique and special about this color that’s really uplifting on dark skin." This coral-tinged shade is perfect for medium skin tones — it delivers a softer take on red, but with major color payoff. For those with fair skin tones, Gonzalez suggests a lip color so bright, it pares down the need to wear much of anything else. "Pinks have always complemented fair skin, but this shade takes pink to another level," she says. "The shade in itself is very bright and uplifting. It will definitely add a nice pop to the lip, and you won’t have to wear a lot of other makeup because of it." Sesnek likes this particular shade of coral to get the look, along with Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick in Sexy Sienna. "I would apply it with the finger for a stained effect," he says. "Not so precise, but almost smudged in and blotted out." This statement-making variation on traditional red is perfect for those with cool skin tones looking for a brighter take on coral. This pinky-coral lip color isn't just on trend for 2019 — it also boasts an ultra-comfortable gel formula that delivers intense pigment without drying out the lips.

Beauty

Cosmetics

THAILAND DISPATCH Deep in a jungle in Thailand, a battle is being waged between poorly armed forest rangers and poachers trying to sate China’s growing appetite for rare and precious rosewood. Thai forest rangers and recruits in Ta Phraya National Park. Ben C. Solomon/The New York Times TA PHRAYA NATIONAL PARK, Thailand — The rangers walked for hours in almost complete silence through the dense Thai forest, never speaking above a whisper. Even in the early morning, the leaves were dripping with wet heat. The scout in front scanned the landscape for signs of a criminal presence in a protected park — a sneaker footprint in the moist dirt, an old whiskey bottle tossed aside, ammunition left behind. Even a cracked twig on the path could mean their quarry was dangerously close. If they spotted a star-shaped symbol hacked into the side of a tree, then they could be sure: Poachers were nearby. China 200 miles VIETNAM MYANMAR LAOS THAILAND Ta Phraya National Park Bangkok CAMBODIA Gulf of Thailand South China Sea By The New York Times The jungles of Ta Phraya National Park in southeastern Thailand, part of a Unesco world heritage site, are home to sun bears, crocodiles and elephants. But these poachers are not after animal prey. They are hunting for the perfect tree, and when they do find it, they work quickly, chopping it down and slicing it into wooden planks in a matter of hours. Their target, rosewood, can sell for tens of thousands in China and has earned an infamous nickname: “bloodwood.” The poachers — who announce their presence to each other through the star-shaped symbol — are mostly Cambodians, said officials at the Freeland Foundation, a nongovernmental group that supports the rangers in their fight against poaching. The Cambodians sneak across the porous jungle border into the park, sleeping among the trees and carrying little but a few sacks of rice, battery-powered band saws and, sometimes, rusty Chinese assault rifles. On the other side are the rangers. Trained in woodland tracking, they scour the 230 square miles of the forest, looking for clues that could lead to an arrest. It’s dangerous work. Dozens of rangers have lost their lives in Thailand since 2009, according to the International Rangers Federation; at least six were killed by poachers, the group says. The Thai Army also helps, said Tim Redford, a training coordinator at the Freeland Foundation, which is funded in part by the United States government. “The army is out in many of the parks,” he said. “They are conducting joint patrols with the rangers.” Even with help, the 60 or so Thai rangers are outnumbered, underfunded and often outgunned. Some of the assault rifles and shotguns they carry are 60 years old. They often must buy their own food and supplies before each hike. But the rangers are still proud of the fight. “These forests are the lungs of the country,” said Kaew Kornkam, an elite ranger trainer. “The army protects the country, the police protect the society, we protect the air that we breath.” The fight to protect the rosewood tree — whose slow growth makes its wood both rare and precious — extends across much of Southeast Asia, where Vietnam and Cambodia are known as logging hubs, and where Laos just last year legislated its first formal logging limitations. Ta Phraya National Park. Ben C. Solomon/The New York Times Thailand is the only country in the region with significant stands of rosewood remaining. In the past three months, it has seen a sudden spike in cross-border tree poaching, Mr. Redford said. For more than 1,000 years, the region’s fragrant rosewood was used to make furniture for China’s elite. Since 2010, though, Chinese demand for Thai wood has ramped up. The wood has become highly fashionable for making ornamental furniture — a throwback to the imperial dynasties — and is a status symbol among China’s newly rich. Traditionally, Thais have rarely harvested rosewood, believing that the spirit of the forest resides in the tree. To build a house from rosewood would bring spirits and bad luck inside. But when demand began soaring for the wood nine years ago, some Thais guided Cambodian poachers into the forest and helped them find the prized trees, Mr. Redford said. Until about three years ago, Thai spotters equipped with GPS could make $1,000 by going into the forest and tagging a single large rosewood tree. Now, the Cambodian poachers know their way around the forest and have no need of local help. They have improved their tactics, too. Instead of camping in the forest for weeks, one crew comes in and quickly turns a tree into timber. Another crew hikes in during the night and carries out the wood before dawn. Siamese rosewood is dense and dark. Its grains are long and deep and red like a Thai sunset, one ranger said. A smaller tree worth logging takes around 60 years to grow, while the most mature ones are around 200 years old. Poachers typically can get $150 to $200 for a load of wood that could be worth tens of thousands of dollars in China. A single mature tree can be worth as much as $300,000. With faked documents testifying to a legal harvest and corrupt payments to transport the wood across international borders, rosewood is now readily bought and sold across China, Freeland organization officials say. “Probably around 2 percent of all rosewood is legally obtained,” Mr. Redford said. A recent patrol at the park included new recruits, who went through an array of training on a three-day trek into the jungle. They practiced arrest techniques, firing weapons, tracking and how to identify different types of trees. Some of the recruits had never held a rifle before. One young man, holding an old Remington rifle for the first time, practiced his stance. The instructor shouted, “Fire!” Before pulling the trigger, the recruit, however, lowered his gun. An older, shorter man could barely lift the shotgun he had been issued. As some of the men laughed at him, an observing Thai official walked over and told the trainers not to give the man a gun. On patrol, silence is paramount. The rangers hiked in cheap sneakers and plastic sandals to avoid giving away their presence. They walked along streams, refilling used plastic bottles with dingy drinking water and setting up tents in abandoned poacher camps, sometimes just hours after their targets had left. Many of them spread black tile grout on their faces for camouflage. They ate rice and beans, sometimes with some fried crickets or silkworms as added protein. One of the men on patrol, who goes by the name of Maung, was a former rosewood poacher now turned ranger. After being arrested and imprisoned for six months, he said he wanted to apply his knowledge of poaching tactics to make things better in the forest instead of continuing the problem. He also runs a volunteer group that takes children into the woods to teach them about the trees. “From now on, I’ll never give up this work,” Maung said. “Will do it until I die. I want to teach the next generation to learn to love the forest. Then they’ll know not to destroy it.” Ben C. Solomon reported from Ta Phraya National Park, Thailand, and Richard C. Paddock from Bangkok.

Other

Other

(CNN)There's a reason you fall into the rabbit hole of online shopping. A new study breaks down a few wily ways digital retailers sucker shoppers into spending more and committing to hidden costs. Websites, it turns out, employ a series of "dark patterns" meant to mislead or coerce online shoppers into making a decision that isn't always in their benefit, it says. You may not know that term, but you've certainly encountered them online -- surprise fees at checkout, false scarcity, clicking away that pop-up by admitting no, you don't want a great deal. These patterns can cause headaches in users' inboxes and dents in their wallets. But in their more harmful iterations, these misleading tactics could cause users to hand over personal data under the guise of something benign. In an analysis of 53,000 product pages on 11,000 online stores, researchers from Princeton University and the University of Chicago found at least one instance on 11% of the most popular websites. Most of them were deceptive, covert or hid information. Researchers broke down dark patterns into seven categories. They're familiar to anybody who's shopped online. Sneaking These are the messages that hide information that, if you'd known about up front, you probably wouldn't agree to. For example, that extra $15 that suddenly landed in your shopping bag? That's the sneaking method of hidden costs. Many online retailers delay the flurry of additional charges, like taxes and shipping/handling costs, until the very last step of the check-out process so they land like an unwelcome surprise. At that step in the process, most users have already committed to purchasing the item. The hidden costs, for some, are not a dealbreaker, but an extra fee they've resigned themselves to pay Urgency Ever stumble onto a website for a casual scan only to be met by an ominous countdown clock, ticking off the seconds left of a seemingly once-in-a-lifetime sale? Those are sometimes fake, the researchers said. A false sense of urgency is a deceptive way to push shoppers into buying something so they won't miss "limited-time" lower prices. But, as the researchers point out, these countdowns often reset when users refresh the page. Even after a few days or weeks, those same sales are still available. Misdirection These methods steer users toward or away a certain choice with coded language or obstructive visuals. Take the dreaded subscription pop-up offer: If the "Yes, I would LOVE to subscribe" option is contrasted with a smaller-text, "No thanks, I don't like gourmet cooking tips straight to my inbox" or "I don't enjoy great deals on luxury fashion," you've encountered what the researchers call confirmshaming. If you get the same pop-up offer and can't even find the exit button because it's so small and virtually invisible, you've been bamboozled by visual interference. Social Proof Some websites share a steady stream of customers' recent purchases while users scan the site, in a bid to convince the current shopper to join their peers and buy. The details in these notifications are fairly vague -- "Ashley from Tampa, Florida, just bought size small distressed boyfriend jeans" -- and flash constantly to make it seem as though the purchases are occurring incessantly while you, the shopper, are merely browsing. Websites manipulate reviews to the same effect: Researchers found the same positive testimony for a product on two different sites, though the name of the reviewer had changed. Scarcity Another deceptive tool to steer shoppers into buying their product, websites may show that items have limited availability or are in high-demand -- "250 other users are looking at this product!" or "Added to 500 people's carts" -- so users think if they don't buy a product now, it could go out of stock soon. The accuracy of these low-stock counters is questionable, but they can trigger an impulse-buy response in shoppers, the study said. Obstruction Ever sign up for a recurring subscription (or get tricked into it) that seemed impossible to cancel? That's on purpose, too. Obstruction methods make it harder to cancel those choices that seemed so easy to make. Websites often don't disclose that canceling a subscription or membership isn't simple, even if they're marketed as able to cancel anytime. Forced action Some websites lock users out unless they agree to terms and conditions or sign up for access. This is what the team calls "forced action," when shoppers can't complete a task without handing over some personal information. Websites learn more about shoppers this way than they would have consented to otherwise. What's to be done? Marshini Chetty, the paper's co-author and assistant professor of computer science at the University of Chicago, said the team discussed their findings with the Federal Trade Commission and sponsors of the Deceptive Experiences to Online Users Reduction (DETOUR) Act, a bipartisan bill proposed to ban to online dark patterns. "Often, it's trying to get the user to make a decision that they may not have made if they were otherwise fully informed. On the internet, they could be affecting thousands or millions of people, and we don't really fully understand what their impact is on decision-making," Chetty said. As for shoppers, knowledge is power. And if you see a countdown clock or extra fees in your shopping cart, you might think twice before you buy.

Technology

Privacy

Feb 11 (Reuters) - Marksans Pharma Ltd: * DEC-QUARTER CONSOL PROFIT 295.6 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS 251.3 MILLION RUPEES YEAR AGO * DEC-QUARTER CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 2.88 BILLION RUPEES VERSUS 2.48 BILLION RUPEES YEAR AGO Source text: (bit.ly/2SzrduJ) Further company coverage:

Finance

Investment

Rep. Ted LieuTed W. LieuDemocratic lawmaker dismisses GOP lawsuit threat: 'Take your letter and shove it' Democratic lawmaker says Nunes threatened to sue him over criticism Paralysis of nations is empowering cities MORE (D-Calif.) on Friday dismissed what he said was the threat of a lawsuit from fellow Rep. Devin NunesDevin Gerald NunesDemocratic lawmaker dismisses GOP lawsuit threat: 'Take your letter and shove it' House Democrats release second batch of Parnas materials Democratic lawmaker says Nunes threatened to sue him over criticism MORE (R-Calif.), telling a lawyer for Nunes to “shove it.” The Democrat shared on Twitter the first page of a letter sent by Nunes’s counsel and dated Dec. 31 in which the lawyer cited the right to maintain an "unimpaired reputation." The letter was mentioned by Lieu on Twitter earlier this week. Lieu hinted in his response that the threat centered on his comments tying Nunes to Lev Parnas, a Soviet-born businessman and former associate of President TrumpDonald John TrumpMnuchin knocks Greta Thunberg's activism: Study economics and then 'come back' to us The Hill's Morning Report - House prosecutes Trump as 'lawless,' 'corrupt' What to watch for on Day 3 of Senate impeachment trial MORE's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani who is at the heart of the impeachment proceedings. “I received your letter dated December 31, 2019 in which you state your client Congressman Devin Nunes will sue me if I don’t, among other actions, issue a public apology to Devin Nunes,” Lieu wrote in his own letter dated Thursday. “It is true that I stated Congressman Nunes worked with Lev Parnas and conspired to undermine our own government.”  “I welcome any lawsuit from your client and look forward to taking discovery of Congressman Nunes. Or, you can take your letter and shove it.”  Attached is the first page of a five page letter in which the lawyer for @DevinNunes threatens that Rep Nunes will sue me.Attached is my response. pic.twitter.com/bWAqdRhq97 Lieu pointed to recent evidence released by the House in its impeachment investigation and Parnas's MSNBC interview earlier this week, noting Parnas and Nunes communicated amid efforts by Trump allies to convince Ukraine to investigate his political rivals. Neither Lieu nor Nunes immediately responded to requests for comment from The Hill on Friday evening. Nunes has emerged as one of Trump’s top allies in the House from his perch as the top Republican on the Intelligence Committee, maintaining that the president acted appropriately in his dealings with Ukraine despite testimony from several current and former officials that they were alarmed by the president's efforts to push Kyiv to conduct investigations desired by Trump.  View the discussion thread. The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax The contents of this site are ©2020 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Politics

News

(Refiles this July 2 story to correct typo in name of former President George W. Bush in paragraph 7.) (Reuters) - The Trump administration on Monday named a top White House lawyer as the new head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration after the agency’s prior acting administrator announced his retirement last month. Uttam Dhillon, who most recently served as deputy White House counsel, was named as the DEA’s acting administrator at a time when the agency is devoting much of its attention to grappling with a national opioid epidemic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 42,000 people died from opioid overdoses in 2016. U.S. President Donald Trump declared the crisis a public health emergency in October. “The work of the Drug Enforcement Administration is critical to fighting this crisis, and President Trump and I are committed to continuing to give it the strong leadership it deserves,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. Dhillon replaces Robert Patterson, a 30-year agency veteran who became the DEA’s acting head in October following the departure of Chuck Rosenberg, who himself had led the DEA in an acting, rather than Senate-confirmed, capacity since 2015.[nL2N1M72E0] Patterson in an email to employees on June 18 said he “realized that the administrator of the DEA needs to decide and address priorities for years into the future — something which has become increasingly challenging in an acting capacity.” Dhillon earlier in his career served under President George W. Bush as director of the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement. Before that, he served as an associate deputy attorney general in the Justice Department. Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; editing by Jonathan Oatis

Substance Abuse

Addiction

Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump, in his push to make good on his promise to supporters by Election Day, has told officials he will pardon them should they break any laws in attempting to finish construction on the wall at the US-Mexico border, The Washington Post reported, citing current and former officials involved with the project. Trump has instructed aides to speed up the process of building the wall, directing them to rush through billions of dollars' worth of construction contracts, blow past environmental regulations and to "take the land" necessary by eminent domain, the Post reported Tuesday. "Don't worry, I'll pardon you," Trump has told officials during meetings at the White House about the wall when aides raised that some of those orders would be illegal, according to the Post. An unnamed White House official told the newspaper that the President is merely joking when he makes such statements about pardons. The push from Trump to complete his southern border wall -- a signature 2016 presidential campaign promise that helped him win the White House -- comes as he campaigns for reelection in 2020. Chants of "build the wall" were frequently heard at Trump's 2016 campaign rallies, and the President has already made it a talking point in his 2020 campaign despite criticism that the wall -- in areas in Arizona, California and New Mexico -- could harm the environment, prove detrimental to border communities and direct government funding away from other Defense interests. "Donald Trump promised to secure our border with sane, rational immigration policies to make American communities safer, and that's happening everywhere the wall is being built," Deputy White House press secretary Hogan Gidley told the Post on Tuesday. Gidley dismissed internal criticisms of Trump as "just more fabrications by people who hate the fact the status quo, that has crippled this country for decades, is finally changing as President Trump is moving quicker than anyone in history to build the wall, secure the border and enact the very immigration policies the American people voted for." Trump has also directed the Army Corps and Department of Homeland Security to paint the wall's steel barriers black, the Post reported, citing internal communications it reviewed. US Customs and Border Patrol said it has constructed over 60 miles of "new" border wall system along the Southwest border since 2017 and expects to complete 450 miles by the end of 2020. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper also has approved an additional 20 miles of 30-foot high barriers, a section of the wall that is being paid for by previously re-purposed Pentagon funds.

Security

Border Patrol

Hulu's timely adaptation of Margaret Atwood's 1985 novel The Handmaid's Tale is proving profoundly resonant for women living in Trump’s America. So resonant that even Elisabeth Moss —who plays protagonist Offred — feels her character represents the women in her country at this time. In an interview on BBC Radio Four's Woman's Hour, Moss said that of all the roles she's ever played, Offred is "nearest to Elisabeth.""Being Offred. That's who I would be if there was a Gilead. Most likely I'd be a Handmaid," said Moss."I feel that she represents women in my country at this time. I'm one of those women," Moss continued. Moss added that she feels a personal connection to Offred; one that's different to other roles she's played.  The series — which recently hit UK screens — tells the story of a patriarchal dystopia; a theocratic, totalitarian version of the United States where women are forced to bear children for leaders and their wives. In the Republic of Gilead, women's bank accounts are frozen, they are forbidden from working, categorised on their utility as child-bearers and sent to re-education camps. Moss spoke to Radio Four's Jenni Murray about the show's impact in the U.S., where the Handmaid costume has become a powerful symbol of the Resistance. "I think that something like this [series] gives people a voice. I think that a lot of people in my country feel they don't have one. They definitely don't feel like they're being heard," said Moss, adding that the series reflects "what we're worried about, what's on our minds."   "Art reflects what we're feeling." Elisabeth Moss on the difficulty of filming rape scenes for #TheHandmaidsTale: https://t.co/u1CIiqQXg7 📻 — BBC Woman's Hour (@BBCWomansHour) June 9, 2017 She says Offred is a woman who will not give up, someone who chooses to fight and "not lose her mind."  The series has inspired protests across the U.S. — most notably in Texas last month where 18 women dressed in red cloaks and white bonnets, stood in pairs in the rotunda of the Texas state capitol, calling out "Shame!" in unison.Moss spoke to Murray about the symbolism of the iconic Handmaid's uniform saying: "This Handmaid, this bonnet has become an iconic symbol of where we don't want to go." 

Entertainment

Television

OPEN markets have lowered prices and raised living standards for millions of people but a new tit-for-tat trade war now threatens that progress. After America said on March 8th it would impose 25% tariffs on imported steel, China retaliated with tariffs on dozens of American goods, from pork to wine. America’s president, Donald Trump, and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, were due to talk on May 8th in an effort to settle some of their differences. Mr Trump, for his part, insists that much of America’s trade with China is “stupid” and is confident that America can win a trade war. Mr Xi, meanwhile, insists that there will be “no winners”. While Mr Xi is right in thinking that a trade war will leave everyone worse off, the precise impact on American business is more uncertain. Resilinc, a supply-chain analytics firm, has attempted to model the impact of an additional $50bn of proposed Chinese tariffs on American exports ranging from soyabeans to scrap metal. Upgrade your inbox and get our Daily Dispatch and Editor's Picks. Using a trove of data covering transactions and inventories for 30,000 manufacturing companies across the world it demonstrates that the losers will not be evenly distributed. Electronics businesses will be least affected. They are reckoned to have the least dependence on China because they do not sell much in the country and have alternative countries to sell to. By contrast, agriculture and aerospace will be most affected: they sell a lot to China and are the least geographically diversified. When deciding what retaliatory tariffs to impose the Chinese attempt to hurt Mr Trump where he is most vulnerable: in industries that employ his blue-collar supporters. So though America’s president may hope to help 400,000 of America’s metal workers he is simultaneously threatening many more jobs in other industries. At the same time he will be making all consumers worse off by pushing the price of goods up for everyone. No winners indeed. Read more in “Chain reaction” from this week's edition

Politics

International Relations

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States would like to have a cooperative relationship with Russia but actions like Moscow’s “brazen” attack on a former Russian spy in Britain prevented that, the White House said on Monday. “Our relationship with Russia is frankly up to the Russian government and up to Vladimir Putin and others in senior leadership in Russia,” White House spokesman Raj Shah told a news briefing after the Trump administration ordered the expulsion of 60 Russian diplomats. “We want to have a cooperative relationship. The president wants to work with the Russians but their actions sometimes don’t allow that to happen,” Shah said. “The poisoning in the UK that has kind of led to today’s announcement was a very brazen action. It was a reckless action.” Reporting by Roberta Rampton; Writing by David Alexander\; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe

Politics

International Relations

In 2018, a Martian rover will land on that planet’s surface to dig in the dirt for signs of past life—and some newly commissioned Martian roadmaps may have accidentally revealed more than intended about just where that site will be.These maps from the UK’s Ordnance Survey of the Martian plains were designed to take the style of our own Earth maps and translate it to some alien, Martian territory. They’re cute, certainly, but perhaps quite a bit more than that.From that Martian map up above, the OS took an even smaller chunk to break out in greater detail:Maps of Mars done in the style of Earth roadmaps, from the UK’s Ordnance SurveyNow look at this map. It’s from the European Space Agency detailing the four proposed sites for the landing of their 2018 ExoMars rover—and they cover almost the exact same areas. That’s more than just an interesting coincidence. The researcher that suggested the map to the OS in the first place is Peter Grindrod, a professor who is on the ESA’s committee to choose a rover landing site.ESA’s proposed sites for ExoMars landing 2018.It’s not merely the overlap in areas that they cover that makes these maps so suggestive, though — it’s also what they are. The Ordnance Survey is not a space-focused agency. They are the organization responsible for mapping out Britain’s transit ways. In essence, these are transplanetary roadmaps, and it’s no great stretch to imagine that their intended use is to direct a traveller. Grindrod said as much to the BBC, when suggesting it could one day be used by future Mars colonists.But it makes sense that the intended traveller may be a less human, and much earlier, one: the ESA’s ExoMars rover. And, if it is indeed for the rover, then this map also says something new about where that rover may land.So, Where’s the Landing Site?There were four potential landing sites identified for ESA’s ExoMars rover when it hits the Martian surface in 2018: Mawrth Vallis, Oxia Planum, Aram Dorsum, and Hypanis Vallis. All of them are thought to be places that once held plenty of water, before drying up. When it gets to Mars, ExoMars intends to not just stay on the surface—it’s going to drill to see what lies beneath, and scientists are hoping what it finds there could be the key to knowing whether Mars once had life. The stakes are pretty high, and the debate over which of the sites to hit has been intense.Artist’s concept of ExoMars / ESAOS drew a fairly large section of Martian terrain in their map, but only part of that terrain, the area around the landing sites, was selected to be in the smaller breakout section that they posted separately. A closer look at the section reveals even more.Hypanis Vallis can be disregarded as an option—it’s literally off the map. What about the remaining three? Well, all are within the parameters of the map’s breakout section, but the centering of the map is also interesting. Aram Dorsum is the furthest south of all the sites and it would make sense for a map of that particular site to pan further downwards to get a better view of lower terrains. This map, however, has plenty of northern space, well above the two other remaining sites, making one of them the most probable focus. In other words, if you were a Martian driver, this would be an excellent map for a road trip starting from either Mawrth Vallis or Oxia Planum.Looking good for a Martian roadtrip? / OSThe case for Oxia Planum in particular gets even stronger when you look at the recommendation notes from the ExoMars landing comittee meeting back in October, when they said that they were moving towards the site as their primary recommendation. Based on this map, it appears their preference for that site is only getting stronger.We won’t know for sure just which of the finalist landing sites will be the ExoMars’ lucky host until later this year, when the ESA makes their final determination. But Oxia Planum is sounding like an even better bet today than it was before.Follow the author @misra.Open kinja-labs.com

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Other

March 29 (Reuters) - S&T AG: * ‍AMBITIOUS GROWTH PLANS: SALES SET TO GROW IN 2018 TO EUR 1 BILLION - AND TO EUR 2 BILLION BY 2023​ * FY ‍SALES GROWTH OF 75% TO EUR 882.0 MILLION (PY: EUR 503.7 MILLION)​ * FY ‍EBITDA NEARLY DOUBLED TO EUR 68.1 MILLION (PY: EUR 34.4 MILLION)​ * FY ‍CONSOLIDATED INCOME CAME TO EUR 29.4 MILLION (PY: EUR 20.4 MILLION)​ Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)

Finance

Investment

Alex Jones' day of reckoning continues. YouTube just became the latest platform to remove Jones' account for violating its policies. The Alex Jones channel, which had more than 2 million subscribers, was yanked from YouTube Monday. "This account has been terminated for violating YouTube's Community Guidelines," reads a message posted to the top of the page where his account used to be. YouTube's move comes on the heels of similar actions from other major platforms. Facebook pulled four pages belonging to the InfoWars host earlier in the day, and Apple removed several of his podcasts from iTunes and its Podcasts app Sunday night. YouTube had previously warned Jones with several "strikes," but hadn't delivered an outright ban. Now, YouTube has removed not just the Alex Jones channel, but all InfoWars channels, including InfoWars Live and InfoWars News. The site had come under increasing pressure in recent months to take action against Jones, who is known for spreading conspiracy theories and encouraging the harassment of victims of mass shootings. But up until now the Google-owned video service has resisted a full-on ban, which is a relatively rare occurrence on YouTube. The company typically prefers to punish users who break its rules by removing their ability to monetize their channels and removing their videos from YouTube's home page or recommendations.  But, faced with mounting public pressure, and repeated violations by Jones, YouTube pulled the plug on InfoWars, soon after Facebook and Apple did the same. In a statement, a YouTube spokesperson said the company removes accounts that repeatedly violate its policies. "All users agree to comply with our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines when they sign up to use YouTube. When users violate these policies repeatedly, like our policies against hate speech and harassment or our terms prohibiting circumvention of our enforcement measures, we terminate their accounts." Alex Jones is responding to his YouTube ban in a livestream by telling people to buy his dietary supplements: "Feed your gladiator." pic.twitter.com/k2u3ao2EgB — Will Sommer (@willsommer) August 6, 2018 With the YouTube ban, Twitter becomes one of the last major platforms still available to the talkshow host and conspiracy theorist. On Monday, he took to Twitter-owned Periscope to rail against "being banned from the internet." He urged his supporters to buy his supplements and make memes about the YouTube ban.

Technology

Google

This month marks my one-year natural hair anniversary. Meaning, it's been almost 365 days since I've cast aside relaxers, made the big chop, and embraced what my mama gave passed down to me: a head of naturally curly hair. I'm not usually one for reflecting on milestones in my life (aside from my birthday, because duh), but some moments call for it, and I think this is one of them. Ahead, I summarize the things I've learned, experienced, and come to realize since hopping aboard the natural train. It's important to note that they call it a natural hair journey for a reason. As my sister is quick to point out, I've only been a member of the curly gang for a year; I'm pretty much still in the initiation phase. It's a constant learning process, and I'll continue to check off lessons for a long time to come. I may not be officially sworn in yet, but I like to think that I'm well on my way.

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Other

Netflix has ordered 10 episodes of dark comedy Maniac, reports Variety, with Emma Stone and Jonah Hill taking starring roles and Cary Fukunaga directing. The show is a remake of a 2014 Norwegian series of the same name, which centered around a young man, Epsen, whose life is seemingly too good to be true. Every situation turns to his advantage, and there's nothing he can't achieve. Until it's revealed that he is in fact a patient in a psychiatric hospital, whose perfect life is just a delusion. No details about characters have yet been revealed, but if the remake follows the original, then Hill will likely take on this central role. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fukunaga will be directing all 10 episodes. He's previously worked with Netflix to create the streaming company's first feature film, the critically-acclaimed Beasts of No Nation, starring Idris Elba. Fukunaga came to the public's attention with his direction of the first season of True Detective, but he passed on its second season, which was less favorably reviewed. There's no word yet on when Maniac might be hitting our screens.

Television

Entertainment

On Campus MIDDLETOWN, Conn. — As the needle on the New York Times presidential predictor swung from a certain victory for Hillary Clinton to an upset win for Donald J. Trump on Tuesday, I began to think about how my campus, Wesleyan University, would react to the news. I am a Trump supporter and voter on one of the more liberal college campuses in the country, where for the past year and three months I have heard critiques of the candidate and his alt-right supporters argued to exhaustion. Along with my desire to celebrate, I feel sympathy for those who had invested so much in Mrs. Clinton, especially since I knew the sting of defeat in 2008 and 2012. A question I have heard from many people on campus, in one form or another, is how, after being taught liberal values for two years, could I still support Mr. Trump? It might be rubbing salt in the wound for liberals, but it was what I was taught at Wesleyan that cemented my vote. It was the economics department that taught me the problems of the widening income gaps, of the larger share of the wealth and income that the top 1 percent is devouring, and of the increasing number of people who are unable to break out of poverty and achieve the American dream, and of the negative effects of international trade that have hurt many Americans. And I learned that these problems have worsened regardless of which party was in power. It was the history, African-American studies, philosophy and classics departments that showed me that change rarely succeeds with a smile. Rather, it requires an aggressive and unapologetic effort to show those in power that they no longer represent the will of the people. The Republican Party found that out in the primaries, and the Democrats found that out early Wednesday morning. It was the students of Wesleyan who taught me to not judge a community by its fringe members, one of the messages that I received after the reaction to an article I wrote criticizing the Black Lives Matter movement. Taking their advice, instead of accepting the commonly held theories on the alt-right, I investigated the community of Trump supporters further and found a diverse, intellectual and multifaceted community that prides itself on its all-encompassing embrace of free speech. After following the movement for several months, I now think most members of the alt-right aren’t fueled by racial resentment but want a technocracy with positions earned through merit, instead of through the nepotism and cronyism that they see in Washington. As I walked around campus the morning after the election, there was an eerie silence complemented perfectly by a misting rain. I had felt the same as these disappointed Wesleyan students when I was in Iraq in 2008, when Senator John McCain was felled by the freshman senator from Illinois. I had concerns about unity after that election; I had concerns that Barack Obama’s inexperience would lead to a series of mistakes. I was angered by Obama supporters who seemingly attacked any criticism of their candidate, regardless of its content, as bigotry. And yet, I remember being quietly envious of the energy that the Obama campaign was able to generate, of those who had never been interested in politics rapidly becoming passionate about civics. I saw that excitement and had hope that Mr. Obama would bring in fresh ideas to move our country forward, even if I didn’t exactly agree with his methods. It was Wesleyan’s president, Michael Roth, and his staff who reinforced the idea that we should seek the right answer, no matter what partisan ideology happens to own it. They showed me what it looks like to reach across the aisle and stand up for free speech even though they didn’t agree with what I wrote in that controversial article. They defend democratic values, while also defending the right of those who disagree to express their criticisms in constitutional ways. I know there is an impulse to continue the deadlock in Washington. Republicans fell for that temptation too many times in Mr. Obama’s presidency. Instead, I hope we follow Mr. Roth’s postelection advice that “we have to remain vigilant to protect the people and values we care about,” but also that “we need more conversation across political and cultural differences, and we need new modes of engagement.” I hope we exit our echo chambers, abandon the vitriol and name-calling, and find common ground where we can debate solutions instead of taking the ball and going home at the first sign of disagreement. We need a recommitment to finding and fighting for the truth, no matter where that truth may be.

Politics

Political Science

The top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine arrived in the Capitol Tuesday morning to be interviewed as part of the Democrats' fast-advancing impeachment investigation, the latest in a string of witnesses to testify on President TrumpDonald John TrumpSchedule for additional depositions in impeachment inquiry revealed Sondland attorney disputes key portions of Taylor testimony: report Impeachment inquiry might be public by mid-November: report MORE's dealings with Kiev.William Taylor, the U.S. chargé d'affaires of Ukraine, had expressed concerns last month that Trump had crossed a line by threatening to withhold U.S. military aid to Ukraine to pressure the country's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, for political favors.ADVERTISEMENT <!--//--><![CDATA[// ><!-- googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display("dfp-ad-mosad_1");}); //--><!]]> Taylor entered the Capitol just before 9:30 a.m. and was escorted to the secure meeting room, three floors below ground, where the House Intelligence Committee — joined by the Oversight and Reform and Foreign Affairs panels — are leading the investigation into allegations that Trump enlisted foreign help to boost his reelection chances next year.Taylor did not comment as he passed reporters on his way to the room.A career diplomat who has worked under numerous presidents of both parties, Taylor last month had warned several State Department colleagues of a "nightmare scenario" if it came to light that Trump and his allies — notably his personal lawyer Rudy GiulianiRudy GiulianiTrump's new challenge is officials dishing dirt Budowsky: Trump presidency in mortal peril Graham nixes plan to send Pelosi letter warning GOP won't convict Trump MORE — had dangled the military aid to pressure Zelensky to find dirt on the president's political opponents.In a Sept. 8 text to Kurt VolkerKurt VolkerFive takeaways from US envoy's explosive testimony Democrats say they have game changer on impeachment Volker pressed Zelensky to convince Trump he would launch investigations before call: Report MORE, former special envoy to Ukraine, and Gordon Sondland, U.S. ambassador to the European Union, Taylor worried that Ukraine would make good on providing an unspecified "interview," but Trump would renege on the military aid."The nightmare is they give the interview and don't get the security assistance," Taylor texted to Volker and Sondland, according to the transcripts provided to Congress by Volker earlier in the month. "The Russians love it. (And I quit)."The next day, Taylor warned Sondland that "it's crazy to withhold security assistance for help with a political campaign."Sondland, a wealthy hotel magnate and Trump donor with no previous diplomatic experience, pushed back, saying Taylor was "incorrect" in surmising Trump's intentions."The president has been crystal clear no quid pro quo's of any kind," Sondland wrote. An official working on the impeachment inquiry said the House Intelligence Committee subpoenaed Taylor this morning after the State Department allegedly sought to "direct" the diplomat "not to appear for his scheduled deposition," or seek to limit his testimony. Both Volker and Sondland have already testified as part of the impeachment investigation, as has Marie Yovanovitch, the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine who was removed in May after voicing concerns over Giuliani's pressure campaign.Taylor is the most recent witness to testify in the Democrats' month-old impeachment inquiry, which was formally launched by Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiSpeier to run for Oversight gavel Graham nixes plan to send Pelosi letter warning GOP won't convict Trump House passes third bill aimed at preventing foreign election interference MORE (D-Calif.) in response to allegations from a government whistleblower that Trump had dangled almost $400 million in military aid to Ukraine if Zelensky would investigate the son of Joe BidenJoe BidenImpeachment inquiry might be public by mid-November: report The Memo: GOP schisms deepen as Trump impeachment pressure rises Graham nixes plan to send Pelosi letter warning GOP won't convict Trump MORE, a leading 2020 presidential contender.The White House has said it will refuse to cooperate in the investigation, saying it's illegitimate. But Democrats have issued numerous subpoenas to break the stonewalling, and Taylor is just the latest witness to defy the administration's attempted blockade.Trump has minced no words in his criticism of the ongoing inquiry, accusing Democrats of conducting a "witch hunt" designed with the sole purpose of sinking his reelection. Tuesday morning, just before Taylor arrived, Trump called the process "a lynching."  "So some day, if a Democrat becomes President and the Republicans win the House, even by a tiny margin, they can impeach the President, without due process or fairness or any legal rights," he tweeted. "All Republicans must remember what they are witnessing here - a lynching. But we will WIN!"Democrats have long condemned Trump's frequent race-based allusions, and wasted no time rebuking the president for his latest comments."Whenever his back is against the wall, a racial bomb is what we know him to [throw]," Rep. Karen BassKaren Ruth BassCNN: Biden likened Clinton impeachment to 'partisan lynching' in 1998 White House spokesman: Trump didn't mean to compare his experience with 'darkest moments' in US history The Hill's 12:30 Report: Trump faces backlash for comparing impeachment to 'lynching' MORE (D-Calif.), head of the Congressional Black Caucus, said Tuesday morning. Olivia Beavers contributed. View the discussion thread. The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax The contents of this site are ©2019 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Politics

US Foreign Policy

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan’s cricket star turned politician Imran Khan said India and Pakistan should resolve their dispute over the divided Kashmir region through talks, as he declared victory on Thursday in Pakistan’s still-disputed general election. “The leaders of Pakistan and India should sit down at a table and resolve the Kashmir issue,” Khan said in a victory speech on Thursday. Khan’s party has a commanding lead in partial election results, but supporters of jailed ex-prime Nawaz Sharif alleged rigging in the vote count, calling the process an assault on democracy in a country that has a history of military rule. Writing by Kay Johnson; Editing by Alex Richardson

Politics

Government

Universal Studios Japan released a trailer for its upcoming Super Nintendo World theme park, showing off Super Mario staples like Peach's and Bowser's castles, a Toad house, piranha plants, and more. Almost the entire trailer is animated, which makes sense considering Universal only just broke ground on the park recently. But it still shows the possibilities that await Nintendo fans at Universal's three upcoming Super Nintendo World theme parks at Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Universal Orlando Resort. Nintendo and Universal said in a release that the parks will be opening separately over the next several years and will include multiple attractions, shops, and restaurants. The only confirmed attraction so far is the Mario Kart Experience, announced yesterday at the groundbreaking ceremony in Osaka. That's more than enough to start salivating over. Just a Shiba Inu puppy gently wrestling with a feisty kitten Stephen Colbert busts out his best Bon Jovi impression to roast the Democratic candidates Hasan Minhaj's dad once hilariously destroyed him over a high school cheating scandal 'The Farewell' offers a different kind of fish-out-of-water story

Other

Other

Your best friend sees a side of you that few people do: From the first time they see you cry to the point where you’ll happily share a bathroom stall, there isn’t much you wouldn’t do in front of them. But have you ever taken a bath together? Probably not. In the UK, we can be a little uncomfortable with the naked body. The closest we ever seem to come to public exposure is at the beach or pool, where nonsense "beach-ready" myths still have many of us reaching for sarongs. But covering something up is rarely as effective as confronting it, and embracing our bodies – with or without the company of other women – can be hugely cathartic. That’s where communal bathing comes in. Elsewhere in the world, gendered communal baths are a cornerstone of how you hang out with friends. One country where this happens is Japan, where natural hot springs known as "onsen" are a big part of life. As Shino, a Kyoto resident who has been visiting the baths since she was four, explains: “Onsen are for relaxing and healing, as the waters are often high in minerals. As well as aches and pains, they’re supposed to be good for the skin, which is why a lot of women go.” For those who can’t make it out to the onsen retreats, public bathhouses – or "sentō" – offer heated waters to soothe and restore. In either case, the visit generally goes as follows: Enter a shower room, sit on a stool, and make sure you are totally clean using the soap provided. It is only then that you can go for a soak. Cloths or clothing are widely considered to dirty the hot water pools, so nakedness is pretty much a given, aside from a very small towel you can clutch as you walk around the room. It can be an amazing, affirming experience. You’re surrounded by women of all ages, having a laugh and catching up with friends, all while completing the serious business of getting clean. It’s a self-care ritual that almost everyone makes time for, and the low prices – some as little as £2 per visit – make them as affordable as a cup of coffee. Pochi, from Tokyo, has her own bath at home (not necessarily a given in a city where space is at a premium) but still goes to the sentō two or three times per month to relax with friends or family. It’s like going to the pub, only wetter. Trips to the spa start early and can last a lifetime. Mariko (from Shiga) loved going as a child because “it was like a big swimming pool,” while Shino notes the importance of the baths to elderly people, who use them as an opportunity to connect with friends and neighbours. With women in Japan enjoying the longest life expectancy in the world, communal activities such as these play a vital role in maintaining the health and happiness of an ageing population. It’s a stark contrast to the UK, where there’s a tendency to hide our bodies and ourselves away as we age. Over here, visiting a spa is usually an exclusive, expensive thing to do, unless going to a hammam is part of your regular routine. Of course, that’s why a spa feels like such a treat on the rare occasion you do go, but imagine if it could be something you did instead of, say, going to a bar (again). Naturally, supply and demand plays a big part in the price structure: While the Romans and Victorians were big fans of a bathhouse, many have now been closed down. Plus, the UK's level of geothermal activity means hot springs are never going to be — erm — springing up all over the place. But if communal bathing were as ubiquitous and budget-friendly as it is elsewhere, would we be ready to take the plunge? If you want to gauge how comfortable you would feel baring all at the baths, your general approach to changing rooms isn’t a bad place to start. The difference is that in that situation, it’s totally open to interpretation — there’s a certain amount of to-boob-or-not-to-boob involved in sharing a changing room with your colleague at your very first lunchtime spin class, for example. When the rules literally state "no swimwear," however, everybody’s in the same naked boat. There is, of course, a privilege that comes with being comfortable in a gendered space. Depending on how you identify, a female-only environment can come with its own challenges – especially if nudity is thrown into the mix. And even those who have grown up with it can find it challenging: One woman said that while she liked going to the onsen when she was young, “as an adult, I don’t want to be naked and I don’t want to see naked people. It makes me feel awkward, but my friends don’t see it that way.” Another said she felt self-conscious because her figure was fuller than others’. Finally, tattoos can make bathing difficult: some Japanese spas don’t allow them, as they’re associated with gang membership. Once you’re safely in the water, however, you’re ready to immerse yourself in the best bit – having an uninterrupted catch-up. For anyone who’s ever tried to hold a conversation while swimming lengths (and turned into a spluttering mess in the process), just sitting on submerged steps with nowhere to go is a revelation. Bonus: Phones and water do not mix, so there’s no trailing off into a silent scroll. If you’re lucky enough to have a gym membership that includes decent spa facilities or have an affordable spa on your doorstep (seriously, where?), then these benefits won’t be news to you. If you don’t, then the trick is to embrace the mindset: Sometimes self-care is simply about lowering your defenses and taking time out to be fully present with friends. Water and clothing optional. Related Video: Read these stories next:How To Take The Best Bath Of Your LifeIt's Time To Start Taking Baths Like A Grown-Up20 Of The Coolest Spas In The States

Other

Other

It’s National Security month in China, and the government made a cartoon to remind young children that they, too, can encourage their parents to protect national secrets and be counterspies, as first reported by Quartz. In a 10-minute video released by the state-run Chinese Society of Education, various kids, all wearing the requisite red scarves of the Chinese Young Pioneers, were asked what they think national security means. One girl says her mom often forgets to turn off the stove, but her dad reminded her enough times, removing that security problem. A boy says his dad is a rich man and can hire bodyguards to ensure his own security. The next boy, however, tells the class a story about his dad, a Chinese military engineer who was paid by a foreign magazine to send possibly sensitive photos of his factory workplace. With the money, his dad says, he can take the kid to go see pandas at the zoo. It’s a cute idea, but just then, grandpa barges in, holding up a newspaper article about a man arrested and jailed for sending 500 photos of China’s first aircraft carrier to — you guessed it — a foreign magazine. The boy’s dad laughs off the idea of spies, but under grandpa’s pressuring, he rejects the foreign magazine’s requests and even tries to return the money. The magazine threatens legal action, and the loss of the dad’s job, if he doesn’t cooperate. Like in any good propaganda, though, the true hero of the story is the state. The dad reports the incident to his local national security bureau, and an official promises to protect his career and his family. He’s encouraged to practice counterespionage, and that’s the lesson his kid brings to class for show-and-tell to a round of gasps and awe from his classmates. “Our national treasures aren’t just pandas,” the kid says, eyes burning with passion. “But technology, finance, and others are all national treasures.” China first passed its counterespionage law in 2014, which lets officials seize any property related to harmful activities and tell individuals to stop behaving in any way that endangers China’s interests. Although National Security Education Day in China usually falls on April 15th, it could be that children’s education on national security was an issue brought up during the Communist Party congress held at the end of October, as it’s an issue embedded in Xi Jinping’s presidency.

History

Asia

June 5 (Reuters) - Puerto Rico on Monday declared that the 2016 Zika epidemic is over, saying transmission of the virus that can cause birth defects when pregnant women are exposed has fallen significantly. About 10 cases of the mosquito-borne disease have been reported in each four-week period since April 2017, down from more than 8,000 cases reported in a four-week period at the peak of the epidemic in August 2016, the Puerto Rico Health Department said in a statement. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, has not changed its travel advice, noting that pregnant women should not travel to Puerto Rico. “At this time, there are no plans to change CDC’s travel recommendations for Puerto Rico. The agency is reviewing recent surveillance data and will update recommendations based on review of data,” CDC spokesman Tom Skinner said in an emailed statement. On its website, the CDC cites public health reports saying that “mosquitoes in Puerto Rico are infected with Zika virus and are spreading it to people.” CDC acting Director Dr. Anne Schuchat said in a statement that she is “pleased that the peak of the Zika outbreak in Puerto Rico has come to a close.” However, she said, “We cannot let our guard down.” Schuchat said CDC will continue to focus on protecting pregnant women and work closely with the Puerto Rican health department to support Zika surveillance and prevention efforts on the island, which is a U.S. territory. Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago; Editing by Lisa Shumaker

Science

Biology

On Pro Basketball Pregame tributes and fourth-quarter fireworks provide a spiritual lift at a revamped N.B.A. All-Star Game. CHICAGO — The N.B.A.’s 69th All-Star Game played out just as it was billed — and it also veered wildly off script to a delicious degree. The evening, as promised, served as the emotional culmination of a days-long Windy City tribute to Kobe Bryant, the former All-Star killed in a helicopter crash last month. And then, without warning, Sunday’s All-Star Game managed to deliver a second-half dose of the best, most competitive basketball seen on this stage in years. The result was the sort of spiritual lift, however fleeting, that this All-Star weekend, and frankly this league, needed. In the face of considerable mocking and skepticism initially, league officials were cautiously optimistic that a significant format change to the game, with a Kobe-inspired twist, would infuse its All-Star proceedings with a much-needed dose of competitive spirit. What they gratefully got Sunday night was a fourth quarter no one could have planned or promised, which had a United Center sellout crowd on its feet and led to countless participants raving about the changes afterward. The evening began with fans in prayer, song, poetry and shoe dedications everywhere you looked on the court — all flowing from a moving pregame program devoted to the memories of Bryant and his daughter Gianna, who died along with seven other victims in the Jan. 26 helicopter crash. It ended with unprecedented defensive intensity for an All-Star Game. Team Giannis’ Kyle Lowry of the Toronto Raptors took multiple textbook charges. Both teams agonized over numerous whistles as if something was truly riding on the outcome. Each side formally protested a call through — get this — a coach’s challenge in what is still an exhibition game. All of it added up to a crunchtime of high drama that was totally organic. “We had a little bit of playoff intensity out there,” said Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, who captained one side, Team Giannis, against the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James and his Team LeBron. Said Oklahoma City’s Chris Paul, who helped Team LeBron escape with a 157-155 victory: “I think the best way we could honor Kobe, Gigi and everyone involved was to play like we played.” It was Paul, in his role as president of the N.B.A. Players Association, who initially proposed to Commissioner Adam Silver that the league adopt what is known as Elam scoring. Based on the league’s adaptation of the concept, a so-called target score of 157 was established by adding 24 — a nod to one of Bryant’s jersey numbers — to the total of the team in the lead after three quarters. So with Team Giannis holding a 133-124 edge on Team LeBron at that stage, Sunday’s winner would thus be the first to reach 157 points in an untimed quarter. That commercial-free quarter wound up lasting nearly 40 minutes. Leading Team Giannis, Coach Nick Nurse of the Raptors played the same five All-Stars for nearly the entire period, while Team LeBron, led by Coach Frank Vogel of the Lakers, used only seven players. Two veterans, Paul, of Team LeBron, and Lowry, of Team Giannis, played all the important minutes over second-year stars who actually started the game: Dallas’s Luka Doncic and Atlanta’s Trae Young. In perhaps the most telling illustration of how serious the fourth quarter was, both teams combined to shoot an under-duress 35.5 percent from floor — after connecting on a combined 55.5 percent of their shots through three quarters. “Offensively it was hard to get anything started,” Nurse said of the final period. “Even first passes were being denied. It felt like the end of a playoff game, which was really cool.” The fact that the Lakers’ Anthony Davis registered the clinching point for Team LeBron with a free throw naturally turned off some, most notably Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid. The same was true for the fact that Davis’s free throw followed a failed coach’s challenge by Nurse after uncharacteristically heavy referee involvement, for All-Star conditions, throughout the fourth quarter. Yet there was no disputing how much energy the new format gave a game that has increasingly troubled the league office in recent years. Silver himself, in March 2019, once described the previous round of big All-Star format changes — instituting a player draft and abolishing the East vs. West concept — as putting “an earring on a pig.” “None of us knew what to expect,” James said. “But throughout the whole fourth quarter and at the end of the game, everybody was like, ‘That was pretty damn fun.’” “The change helped the whole experience,” Lowry said, even though the narrow defeat dropped his personal record in All-Star Games to 0-6. Lowry, of course, was referring to the in-game experience. Nothing could have completely offset the somber tone that prevailed over what is typically a celebratory convention for the league. As James put it, given Bryant’s immense stature in the game, anything other than a steady stream of tributes and a melancholy vibe “would be uncivilized.” Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers took home the first All-Star most valuable player trophy to bear Bryant’s name after leading Team LeBron with a game-high 30 points. Everyone on Team Giannis wore No. 24, in Kobe’s honor, while everyone on Team LeBron wore No. 2 — Gianna Bryant’s number. Before the game, the former Lakers great Magic Johnson called for an eight-second moment of silence dedicated to Kobe Bryant and the former N.B.A. Commissioner David Stern, who died Jan. 1 after sustaining a brain aneurysm in December. The singer and actress Jennifer Hudson and the rapper Common, both Chicago natives, followed with powerful performances in Kobe’s honor. The occasion, with or without the wild finish, was always destined to morph into a pre-memorial for Bryant: a prelude of sorts to the Lakers’ official ceremony, scheduled for Feb. 24 at Staples Center in Los Angeles. On Saturday, I crossed paths with the former 76ers star Allen Iverson at a Panini trading card signing. On the eve of his usual stint as a front-row spectator at the All-Star Game, and bracing for how much sadness was looming, Iverson insisted he would be taking measures to mask his emotions from the cameras. “Trust me,” Iverson said. “I’m going to have my glasses on, because I have an idea of what it’s going to be.” Yet when Sunday arrived, so much and so little went as planned. Iverson was a good example of that. For starters, he called an audible on his eyewear intentions. Iverson indeed packed some sunglasses with all the requisite winter gear he brought for a weekend that featured the coldest Valentine’s Day on record in Chicago in 77 years. But the Hall of Fame guard decided to ditch them for his Sunday ensemble and lean into the bittersweet mood. Sitting right near the Team LeBron bench, Iverson wore a purple Los Angeles Lakers hat pulled down low over his uncovered eyes and a rookie-year Kobe Bryant jersey in Lakers gold. Then came the big surprise: A beautiful basketball game broke out, filled with genuine animus between the ultra-talented teams and too many fist pumps to register. It was a most welcome surprise. “Probably one of the best All-Star Games ever,” Embiid said.

Sports

Basketball

(CNN)A Georgia driver made it out alive after he rear-ended a log truck, and his car was impaled by logs from the front windshield to the back window. Fortunately, the driver suffered only minor injuries, Whitfield County Fire Chief Edward O'Brien told CNN. The driver apparently was leaning down to get something he dropped when he ran into the log truck, O'Brien said. The department shared the images from the scene on its Facebook page. Firefighters had to cut through 30 to 40 logs with chainsaws before they could even start to cut open the car and rescue the man, O'Brien said. But after that, it took only about 10 to 15 minutes to get the driver from the car. Because the driver was not in the upright position in his seat, his head ended up in a gap between the logs, O'Brien said. "It was as if it was almost created just for his head," he said. CNN called multiple police departments in the area, and it is unclear what or if any charges the driver faces.

Disaster

Transportation

Thank you, Ellen DeGeneres. I have never watched her TV talk show or any of her movies. I think I saw her in a commercial a couple of times. I do not know much about her, except that she is a very successful and popular person. Recently, she sat beside President George W. Bush at an NFL game. Supposedly they engaged in casual banter — about the game, one presumes. For doing this — for sitting beside the former President of the United States — she was attacked and vilified by some members of the Hollywood glitterati. The attacks seemed especially ad hominem. She was charged by some of her movie town peers for talking to a “war criminal.” This is a harsh charge even by the low standards of Hollywood’s elite. Her response, however, was disarming and appropriate. She simply said let’s "be kind to one another.” How long has it been since we heard a leading light of the liberal establishment say something so needed, rational and upbeat? The use of the term “war criminal” is an inexcusably defaming phrase for any American to subscribe to in referring to a former president. This is especially true in the case of George W. Bush. President Bush, also known as 43, came into office with the aim of bringing the country together under the banner of compassionate conservatism. In his first nine months, he made considerable progress. He moved to reform education to leave no child behind. He reinvigorated the economy with tax relief for most Americans.  He pushed to deal with illegal immigrants in a humane and positive way. Then, America was attacked. The terrorist strikes of September 11, 2001 were the worse carnage seen on our soil since Pearl Harbor. We were at war. President Bush became a wartime president for the rest of his term. The issue was survival — keeping our nation and our people safe. His spontaneous words, standing atop the burning rubble of to the World Trade Center, galvanized us: “I hear you, the rest of the world hears you and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon." His decision to throw out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium was not only an act of personal bravery but a clear statement to the nation that we were going to handle this attack with the grace, courage and purpose that is at the center of our character. Were mistakes made? Yes, they always are when war is involved. Some were costly and tragic. But since 9/11, America has not been attacked again — in large part because of the leadership and clarity that Bush displayed. That is the true test of his policies. They worked, because they protected our country. It is ironic that people who profit from movies and video games that promote excessive violence, like Avatar, deem themselves qualified to judge a former President of the United States with such viciousness and vindictiveness. It is not only the liberal establishment that has gone off the deep end in its rhetoric of anger and debasement, but also President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump congratulates Washington Nationals on World Series win Trump hints that dog injured in al-Baghdadi raid will visit White House Vindman says White House lawyer moved Ukraine call to classified server: report MORE. The president revels in using the lowest form of demeaning discourse, in language and imagery, when it comes to attacking others. He has now made it almost a signature of his style to call people names and use words best left, if used at all, in a men’s locker room. He believes that by using of the tone of a Howard Stern show he shows his willingness to transgress the normal boundaries that govern presidential behavior. He seems to believe that he is fulfilling his campaign promise to be different. He is asserting that he is a person who is guided only by his own rules. Of course when one uses simplistic, tasteless language it becomes difficult to elevate the nation — or for that matter to make parents feel they can allow their children to listen to their president. The language of social media has also become peppered with pejoratives and baseness. It is a race to the bottom to see who, whether on the marginal right or the marginal left, can shout the loudest and most outrageously. The collapse in what used to be called decorum is bad for the nation. Our country requires respect for different views in order to facilitate compromise and good governance. Our system of government requires accommodation. This cannot occur if there is no civility. I suspect that, as a conservative, my political views are distinctly different from those of Ellen DeGeneres. But I immensely respect her willingness to set the correct tone in her response to those who attacked her. It is at least the second time she has stood her ground well. The first was when she stated her sexual preference at a time when such a proclamation carried considerable potential risk to her career. Now, one hopes her call for tolerance of other views will also be accepted. Maybe it will even help generate a general groundswell of decency in our political dialogue. She does after all have a very large following. Thank you, Ellen DeGeneres. You have reminded many Americans of how important the strength of civility is to our nation’s success. Judd Gregg (R) is a former governor and three-term senator from New Hampshire who served as chairman and ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, and as ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Foreign Operations subcommittee. View the discussion thread. The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax The contents of this site are ©2019 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Politics

Social Issues

March 25 (Reuters) - BIOPHYTIS SA: * ANNOUNCED ON TUESDAY IT HAS COMPLETED ENROLLMENT OF THE 231 PATIENTS INTO ITS SARA-INT PHASE 2B STUDY * STUDY SEEES TO EVALUATE THE SAFETY AND EFFICACY OF ITS LEAD DRUG CANDIDATE SARCONEOS (BIO101) FOR THE TREATMENT OF NEUROMUSCULAR DISEASES * SARCONEOS (BIO101) WILL BE ADMINISTERED ORALLY IN TWO DOSES IN PATIENTS WITH SARCOPENIA AT RISK OF MOBILITY DISABILITY * THE PRIMARY ENDPOINT IT THE GAIT-SPEED OVER THE 400-METER WALK TEST (400MWT)TO MEASURE THE PARTICIPANT’S MOBILITY FUNCTION * PROTOCOL ADAPTED TO ALLOW PATIENT FOLLOW-UP TO TAKE PLACE AT HOME DUE TO COVID-19 Source text: bit.ly/2UeAytU Further company coverage: (Gdansk Newsroom)

Pharmaceuticals

Drugs

Michelle Obama announced that she will spearhead a new initiative to support adolescent girls' education around the world, per a CNN op-ed. What's happening: Obama's Global Girls Alliance will seek to empower and connect grassroots organizations that already exist and are working to eliminate hurdles to girls' education through scholarships and mentorship programs. Obama said the organization will work to identify programs that need support and has partnered with GoFundMe to create a social fundraising platform.

Society

Culture

LONDON, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Dixons Carphone, the troubled British electricals and mobile phone retailer, said underlying revenue remained flat in the 13 weeks to July 28, as expected, and reiterated its full-year profit targets. The company is recovering from a huge profit warning in May. It said trading in the first quarter had been helped by demand for electronic products during the soccer World Cup, which offset weaker demand for white goods and computers. “Full year profit before tax guidance of around 300 million pounds ($387 million) and all other guidance for the year remains unchanged,” it said. ($1 = 0.7751 pounds) (Reporting by Kate Holton, editing by James Davey)

Business

Technology

Sept 19 (Reuters) - Avnet Inc * Avnet will receive $2.4 billion in cash and 2.8 million shares of Tech Data common stock * Avnet agrees to sell Technology Solutions Business Unit to Tech Data for $2.6 billion * Upon completion of transaction, Avnet expects to realize a gain of $3.75 to $4.75 per share Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:

Business

Technology

Tech companies that focus on AI-powered computer vision "are struggling to balance business opportunities with difficult moral decisions that could turn off customers or their own workers," the AP's Matt O'Brien reports. Why it matters: It’s part of a growing wave of concern about how Artificial Intelligence technology is used, especially involving facial recognition, Axios' Ina Fried emails. Details: A CIA-backed venture capital fund was spurned by Boston startup Affectiva, which makes face scanning tech. CEO Rana el Kaliouby told the AP "it’s not hard to imagine using real-time face recognition to pick up on dishonesty — or, in the hands of an authoritarian regime, to monitor reaction to political speech in order to root out dissent." The CIA's venture arm also approached facial recognition firm Kairos, CEO Brian Brackeen told Axios' Kaveh Waddell. "As the black chief executive of a software company developing facial recognition services, I have a personal connection to the technology, both culturally and socially," Brackeen wrote in an op-ed. Between the lines: China is apparently avidly investing in, and developing facial recognition tech, Axios' Kia Kokalitcheva emails. "Facial recognition — and more broadly, image recognition — has a range of applications, so everyone from tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Facebook, to startups have been working on it." That includes "auto-recognition of Facebook photos, image search, detecting road elements, scanning documents — all kinds of applications." Go deeper: IBM releases image data to improve facial recognition AI

Technology

Artificial Intelligence

Nov 22 (Reuters) - Grande Holdings Ltd * ‍HY profit attributable to shareholders of company HK$48.0 million versus HK$2.67 billion ​ * ‍HY revenue HK$81 million versus HK$123​ million a year ago * Does not expect any significant improvement in group’s operating profit in second half Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: (bangalore.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com)

Industry

Manufacturing

President Trump's team at the G-20 insisted on limiting the number of people present at his Friday meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to avoid leaks and multiple accounts of the event, according to the New York Times. The Russians reportedly wanted to bring several staff members to the meeting. But Trump aides insisted on keeping the meeting small to prevent any potential leaks from the highly anticipated meeting. The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment on the report. Trump's administration has been plagued with leaks about both his conversations with world leaders and diplomats, as well as leaks about the federal probe into alleged ties between the Trump campaign and Russian meddling in last year’s presidential election. The Washington Post reported in May that Trump disclosed classified information to the Russian foreign minister and ambassador during a meeting at the White House. Trump tweeted in May that leaks regarding the probe coming from the White House were “fabricated lies” concocted by the press.  It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media. The president has downplayed the investigation, saying Thursday that other countries besides Russia could have meddled in the U.S. election. "I think it was Russia, and I think it could have been other people in other countries," Trump said at a joint news conference with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw. Trump and Putin took part in their first official meeting at the global summit in Hamburg on Friday. “We’ve had some very good talks, we’re going to have a talk now, and obviously that will continue, but we look forward to a lot of very positive things happening for Russia, the United States and for everybody concerned. It’s an honor to be with you,” Trump said beside Putin after the meeting. “I’m delighted to be able to meet you personally, Mr. President, and I hope as you have said our meeting will yield positive results,” Putin responded.  View the discussion thread. The Hill 1625 K Street, NW Suite 900 Washington DC 20006 | 202-628-8500 tel | 202-628-8503 fax The contents of this site are ©2019 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Politics

International Relations

American Airlines posted lower second-quarter profits and cut its earnings outlook for 2018 after fuel costs surged during what CEO Doug Parker called the carrier's "most challenging quarter" since it merged with US Airways five years ago. The airline said it plans to defer some aircraft deliveries and slow its growth in the second half of the year to reduce costs. American's stock is down 24 percent in 2018, more than its closest competitors, but it was up 3.8 percent Thursday as investors welcomed the cost--cutting plan. Strong travel demand helped grow revenues nearly 4 percent to $11.64 billion from a year ago, which was slightly below Wall Street's expectations of close to $11.7 billion. American earlier this month lowered its revenue forecast for the three months ended in June, citing weakness in the domestic market. Net income fell more than 34 percent from the year-earlier period to $566 million, or $1.22 a share. After adjusting for one-time items, the airline earned $1.63 a share, above the estimated $1.59 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected. Like other carriers, American has been grappling with strong demand for travel but higher costs to fuel its planes. It said its fuel bill rose more than 41 percent in the quarter. Another challenge in the quarter was a computer problem at PSA Airlines, a regional subsidiary of American, led to the cancellation of more than 2,000 flights in June. American is trimming its growth plan for the second half of the year after costs rose, a move that was widely expected by analysts. In the third quarter, it plans to grow capacity, or the number of seats and the distance it flies them, by 3.3 percent and 1.6 percent in the fourth quarter, down 1 percentage point from its previous growth estimate. American is deferring the delivery of 22 Airbus Air321neo aircraft it planned to start receiving next year through 2021, which it said will reduce aircraft capital expenditures by $1.2 billion over the next three years. The airline is also changing its no-frills basic economy product to allow those passengers to bring a carry-on bag on board, starting in September. Correction: American's second-quarter net income was $566 million. A previous version of this story misstated the number.

Business

Markets

KUALA LUMPUR, April 23 (Reuters) - Malaysia is hopeful of getting more "fair" investment from China, its foreign minister said on Tuesday, after both countries agreed to resume two multi-billion dollar projects just before a Belt and Road conference in Beijing this week. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who came to power after a stunning election victory last May, had vowed to renegotiate or cancel what he calls unfair Chinese projects authorised by his predecessor. Earlier this month, both countries agreed to resume construction of the East Coast Rail Line (ECRL) at a discount. Last week, Mahathir announced the resumption of a multi-billion dollar property development linked to China. "We want to improve our ties with China. That is a fact. But it doesn't mean we will do whatever it takes," Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah told Reuters in an interview. "Agreements and arrangements have to be fair for both sides," he said. The minister said ties between the countries had improved since the resumption of the two projects - both part of China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a key policy of President Xi Jinping that envisions rebuilding the old Silk Road to connect China with Asia, Europe and beyond with massive infrastructure spending. Mahathir will travel to Beijing on Wednesday to attend a forum on the Belt and Road initiative. Mahathir and the Malaysian delegation are also expected to hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines with Xi, premier Li Keqiang and Li Zhanshu, the chairman of the standing committee of the national people's congress, according to the Malaysian foreign ministry. Saifuddin, who will be part of Malaysia's delegation, said Malaysia is open to Chinese investments from "any sector", but particularly in high-tech manufacturing. He said Malaysia is also optimistic that China will increase its imports of Malaysian palm oil, on top of an increase of 500,000 tonnes premier Li had pledged during Mahathir's last visit in August. Palm oil is a key Malaysian export. "We are hopeful that with the BRI conference and the positive closure of the two projects, we would be receiving more investments from China," Saifuddin said. (Reporting by Joseph Sipalan Editing by Frances Kerry)

Politics

Government

You probably won’t find many nanotechnologists at New York Fashion Week, but that may soon change thanks to the work of Felice Torrisi, a researcher at the Cambridge Graphene Center who is pioneering the future of wearable tech. Earlier this year, Torrisi and his colleagues at Cambridge published a paper in Nature Communications that showed how to print fully-integrated washable and stretchable electronic circuits onto fabric. Despite their prevalence in science fiction—from Marty McFly’s auto-fitted jacket in Back to the Future to the neonwave of Tron—wearable electronics have struggled to see wide adoption. Although there were some limited successes like the Apple Watch or Fitbit, these devices were either too cumbersome, ugly, or superfluous. “The so-called wearable devices which we see nowadays have a huge limitation, which is in their rigid electronic parts,” Torrisi told me in an email. “Truly wearable devices will have to fulfill all the requirements of the clothes we wear, such as comfort, breathability, washability, and so on. We wear textiles every day, so integrating electronics using fabric was the most sensible thing to do.” Torrisi said he doesn’t exactly consider himself a fashionista, but he did realize that if wearable tech was ever going to take off, it would only be due to a much more natural melding of regular clothing and electronics. To solve this problem, Torrisi and his colleagues designed a process for printing graphene, a 2-D form of carbon, directly onto fabric to create full electronic circuits. Using this technique, Torrisi and his colleagues printed a reprogrammable memory system and a logic gate—two core components in most everyday electronics— onto polyester. For now, the devices are just proofs of concept and the circuits are too small to be worn. But Torrisi said he and his colleagues are working with clothing designers to demonstrate larger prototypes on clothing items next year. These graphene inks have a low boiling point which means they are able to be washed a little over 20 times before the circuit no longer works. But according to Torrisi, this is just the beginning and it should be possible to build much more robust cloth-printed circuits in the future. “I think that 20 or more wash cycles does not make much difference,” Torrisi said. “The ground-breaking nature of our work is in the fact that we know how to make washable circuits on textiles.” Another benefit of Torrisi’s design is that it is environmentally friendly. Other printed electronics usually require toxic solvents that preclude them from being used on clothing, but Torrisi’s ink is both cheap and safe to use. It’s uncertain where this development will lead in the long term, but Torrisi expects the graphene ink to be used for everything from biosensors for real-time medical diagnostics to consumer fashion. He envisions a future where are clothing naturally incorporates various displays and sensors, but sees no reason why it should be limited to fashion. “I think the future is in electronics that can be worn,” Torrisi said. “But why not also textile displays or curtain televisions?” Humans of the Year is a series about the people building a better future for everyone. Follow along here.

Technology

Consumer Electronics

When Katy Perry wrote the song “Bon Appétit,” we don’t think she was talking about Taco Bell. However, that’s exactly where the singer wound up eating dinner while she was on her Witness World Tour in Glasgow, Scotland. When Perry took the stage at the SSE Hydro, she informed fans about her dining troubles before breaking out into song, The Scottish Sun reports. “I was on the Internet looking up the top 25 places for dinner,” Perry announced into the microphone. “Some are really fancy. Some only sit like 10 people. I called a couple of places and couldn’t get in anywhere.” “On the list at the very end it said Taco Bell,” Perry added. “So I went there – and then I went to your movie theater.” Although the “Firework” singer couldn’t get into Glasgow’s acclaimed restaurants, she probably didn’t mind swinging by the taco joint. Perry has been open about her love for the fast food chain, announcing that she celebrated her 2015 Forbes magazine cover story by “going straight to Taco Bell and getting my crunch wrap supreme.” Want the ultimate dish on the latest celebrity food news, plus exclusive recipes, videos and more? Click here to subscribe to the People Food newsletter. In fact, the American Idol judge is so dedicated to the taco eatery, she once waited in line for an hour for the grand opening of Tokyo’s first-ever Taco Bell location. “You can take the girl out of America but you can’t take the Taco Bell out of the girl, okuurrrr,” she wrote on Instagram in 2015.

Food

Cuisine

Katharine McPhee and David Foster are looking madly in love -- kissing and hugging on each other like school kids -- and it's great timing, considering they'll be tying the knot any day now. Katharine and David are living it up on the picturesque Greek island of Mykonos ahead of their nuptials ... and they already look like they're in honeymoon-mode, because they couldn't stop making out while splashing around in the ocean. Kat showed off her smoke show bod in a sexy beige bikini ... that clearly got David's attention. Maybe they haven't said "I do" officially yet, but David's face in these pics is kinda screaming it. We broke the story ... Katharine and David got their marriage license in Bev Hills just last month, meaning it's only a matter of time until the actress/singer and music mogul walk down the aisle. The license is good for 90 days, so ... tick tock. Still no word on a wedding date, but check out the gallery ... they're totally ready to do the deed. Marriage, that is.

Relationships

Weddings

Lanny Davis, an attorney for former longtime Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, said he has been reaching out regularly over the past few months to John Dean, the former White House counsel who helped bring down the presidency of Richard Nixon. Cohen has sent signals that he might cooperate in the investigations surrounding his former boss. The fact that his lawyer is talking frequently to Dean — who was name-checked by Trump on Sunday in the context of recent reports that White House counsel Don McGahn is cooperating with investigators — adds new hints that Cohen could be open to being a potential witness in any case against Trump. “I reached out to my old friend John Dean because of what he went through with Watergate, and I saw some parallels to what Michael Cohen is experiencing. I wanted to gain from John’s wisdom,” Davis told POLITICO. “I certainly don’t want to raise expectations that Mr. Cohen has anything like the level of deep involvement and detailed knowledge that John Dean had in the Nixon White House as a witness to Nixon’s crimes, but I did see some similarities and wanted to learn from what John went through.” Cohen, like Dean in the Nixon era, is wrapped up in a criminal investigation that has a parallel congressional probe, and he has been attacked by the president and by lawyers working for the president, including Rudy Giuliani, who said he has no credibility. Davis, known as a media-friendly lawyer, said he first became friends with Dean when they appeared together on MSNBC in the late 1990s to comment on President Bill Clinton’s impeachment proceedings. Rather than getting Dean’s legal advice for Cohen, Davis said he has been asking about Dean’s experiences during Watergate to refresh his own memory of the investigation. Dean confirmed his frequent recent discussions with Davis and told POLITICO that another “person I’d really like to talk to is Guy Petrillo,” Cohen’s criminal defense lawyer.

Legal

Crime