January 2024 - Page 7 of 10

What Happens When There Is No Food: Experts Say Severe Malnutrition Could Set in Swiftly in Gaza

Jan

What Happens When There Is No Food: Experts Say Severe Malnutrition Could Set in Swiftly in Gaza

A panel of experts affiliated with the United Nations has warned that the population of the Gaza Strip is at imminent risk of famine, with more than 90 percent of its 2.2 million people facing “acute food insecurity” and a quarter of the population experiencing “catastrophic levels of hunger.”Even before the war between Israel and Hamas, nearly 70 percent of Gazans were dependent on humanitarian assistance for food because the territory has been under Israeli and Egyptian blockade since 2007. Now, only 20 to 30 percent of what people there need is being permitted over the border into Gaza, according…

Special report: Maddy Cusack – why her family want a new investigation into her death

Jan

By Álvaro Sanz

Investments and Business

Special report: Maddy Cusack – why her family want a new investigation into her death

It is the heartbreaking story of a talented and popular footballer, her tragic death and the investigation into a family’s complaints about what they believe caused her emotional anguish.Maddy Cusack’s death in September sent shockwaves throughout the sport and plunged Sheffield United into a state of mourning for their longest-serving player. As her parents, David and Deborah, tried to get through their first Christmas without their eldest daughter, fans launched a petition to retire her No 8 shirt as a permanent tribute.“She fell in love with Sheffield United, the fans and the city of Sheffield,” Deborah told a memorial service…

U.S. Criminally Charges EBay in Cyberstalking Case

Jan

By Connor Hughes

Science and Technology

U.S. Criminally Charges EBay in Cyberstalking Case

The Justice Department charged eBay on Thursday with stalking, witness tampering and obstruction of justice in a rare criminal case against a well-known Silicon Valley company.The charges, which will be dropped under a deferred prosecution agreement if eBay maintains a good record for the next three years, stem from actions taken by the company in 2019 to undermine and silence the writers of an e-commerce newsletter that was mildly critical of some of its behavior. The intimidation efforts included various forms of cyberstalking and harassment that were continuing when the perpetrators were arrested.In its agreement with the government, eBay will…

As Utility Bills Rise, Low-Income Americans Struggle for Access to Clean Energy

Jan

By Sophie Caldwell

Investments and Business

As Utility Bills Rise, Low-Income Americans Struggle for Access to Clean Energy

Cindy Camp is one of many Americans facing rising utility costs. Ms. Camp, who lives in Baltimore with three family members, said her gas and electric bills kept “going up and up” — reaching as high as $900 a month. Her family has tried to use less hot water by doing fewer loads of laundry, and she now eats more fast food to save on grocery bills.Ms. Camp would like to save money on energy bills by transitioning to more energy-efficient appliances like a heat pump and solar panels. But she simply cannot afford it.“It’s a struggle for me to…

Ecuador Shaken by Days of Terror After Gang Leader’s Disappearance

Jan

By Álvaro Sanz

Investments and Business

Ecuador Shaken by Days of Terror After Gang Leader’s Disappearance

A sense of dread took hold in Ecuador on Wednesday, with the streets empty, schools closed and many people afraid to leave their homes after the disappearance of two gang leaders set off prison riots, police kidnappings and the on-air storming of a TV station.Even for a country accustomed to violence, the events that have rocked Ecuador this week were shocking.“I feel like the world I knew before is gone,” said María Ortega, a schoolteacher in Guayaquil, a sprawling coastal city. “You can know how things start, but not how they’ll end.”It began with violence erupting in prisons across the…

Ancient Skeletons Give Clues to Modern Medical Mysteries

Jan

By Álvaro Sanz

Investments and Business

Ancient Skeletons Give Clues to Modern Medical Mysteries

Multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease that affects 2.9 million people, presents a biological puzzle.Many researchers suspect that the disease is triggered by a virus, known as Epstein-Barr, which causes the immune system to attack the nerves and can leave patients struggling to walk or talk. But the virus can’t be the whole story, since nearly everyone is infected with it at some point in life.A new study found a possible solution to this paradox in the skeletal remains of a lost tribe of nomads who herded cattle across the steppes of western Asia 5,000 years ago. It turns out that…

Michigan stymies Michael Penix Jr., Washington to claim first national championship since 1997 season

Jan

By Álvaro Sanz

Investments and Business

Michigan stymies Michael Penix Jr., Washington to claim first national championship since 1997 season

By Lauren Merola, Max Olson, Austin Meek, Jim Trotter and Nicole AuerbachIt’s been 26 years, but finally, no one has it better than Michigan.The Wolverines rushed for 303 yards and held flame-throwing Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. in check to emerge as the College Football Playoff national champion with a 34-13 defeat of the Huskies on Monday night at NRG Stadium in Houston. The win marked Michigan’s first national title since 1997 and the completion of a long-anticipated return to the top of college football under head coach Jim Harbaugh.The Wolverines, who entered the night ranked second in the FBS…

Microsoft Debates What to Do With A.I. Lab in China

Jan

By Connor Hughes

Science and Technology

Microsoft Debates What to Do With A.I. Lab in China

When Microsoft opened an advanced research lab in Beijing in 1998, it was a time of optimism about technology and China.The company hired hundreds of researchers for the lab, which pioneered Microsoft’s work in speech, image and facial recognition and the kind of artificial intelligence that later gave rise to online chatbots like ChatGPT. The Beijing operation eventually became one of the most important A.I. labs in the world. Bill Gates, Microsoft’s co-founder, called it an opportunity to tap China’s “deep pool of intellectual talent.”But as tensions between the United States and China have mounted over which nation will lead…

How the War With Hamas Has Damaged Israel’s Tech Firms and Economy

Jan

By Sophie Caldwell

Investments and Business

How the War With Hamas Has Damaged Israel’s Tech Firms and Economy

At 6:45 a.m. on Oct. 7, Jack “Tato” Bigio, the founder of the technology company UBQ Materials, talked to his chief operating officer, who said that terrorists were on his kibbutz. Other employees texted that they were hiding in safe rooms, and one said her husband had been shot in the stomach.“It was like doomsday,” Mr. Bigio said.The attack by Hamas on Israel forced UBQ Materials to shut its plant, located 20 miles from the Gaza border, and left its work force in shock. Two employees were murdered. Many lost their homes and were relocated 100 miles away.Founded in 2012,…

Israel-Hamas War Live Updates: Blinken Visits Israel

Jan

By Álvaro Sanz

Investments and Business

Israel-Hamas War Live Updates: Blinken Visits Israel

Israel has long seen Hezbollah, with thousands of trained fighters and a deep arsenal of rockets and other weapons, as the most formidable foe on its borders. And Israeli officials say Hezbollah’s elite Radwan force, in particular, poses a major threat.A strike on Monday in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah’s stronghold, killed a Radwan force commander, Wissam Hassan al-Tawil, the latest volley in the back-and-forth attacks across the border that have deepened fears the war between Israel and Hamas could broaden into a regional conflict.The strike has been widely attributed to Israel, which did not confirm or deny responsibility. Israeli officials have…