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US   POLITICS  
US Homeland Security Department shuts down amid ICE raid impasse
- (Bloomberg) -- The Department of Homeland Security shut down early Saturday amid a congressional funding impasse that shows no sign of ending soon, touched off by backlash over the Trump administration's widespread and aggressive immigration enforcement raids. The lapse in funding could last for weeks, with Congress on a recess and no agreement on Democratic demands to enact new limits on the tactics employed by ...

Source: bostonglobe.com
POLITICS  
Trump erased a bedrock climate rule. Here come the lawsuits.
- When the Trump administration erased one of the nation's bedrock scientific principles on climate change this week, it set up a legal battle that's all but certain to hinge on the Supreme Court. And not for the first time. The scientific principle that was killed Thursday, the endangerment finding, which found that greenhouse gases endanger public health by heating up the world, itself resulted from a Supreme Court ...

Source: bostonglobe.com
US   MARKETS  
Traders pivot Fed interest-rate cut bets after January CPI surprise
- Federal Reserve showed a surprise. rose less than expected last month, it may have addressed concerns of some Fed policymakers that inflation may be too high to cut interest rates more than once this year, especially after the hot CPI had come in hot, we would have cautioned against taking it too literally – but the fact that the January report was so tepid relative to a typical January is somewhat of a ...

Source: bradenton.com
US   POLITICS  
As feds eye a potential Orlando ICE facility, records show detainees might stay for 7 days
- Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... ICE's new "processing centers," like the one it is eyeing in a massive warehouse in east Orlando, would each hold up to 1,500 immigrant detainees for as long as a week before they are transferred to other facilities or deported, according to an outline of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's plan released by New Hampshire's governor. Homeland Security intends to ...

Source: orlandosentinel.com
US   POLITICS  
At least half a dozen top Trump administration officials appear in the Jeffrey Epstein files
- At least a half-dozen top officials in the current Trump administration have connections to Jeffrey Epstein , according to an NBC News review of some of the over 3 million documents the Justice Department has released. The degree to which each individual was connected to Epstein varies significantly, from a single email to years of communications. President Donald Trump, who had a lengthy relationship with Epstein, ...

Source: nbcnews.com
US figure skater Ilia Malinin disaster long program Olympics
- This was not supposed to be a competition, but a coronation. Ilia Malinin had won 14 consecutive figure skating events over the last three years. He is the two-time world champion. He'd carried his American teammates to the gold medal last weekend. The only man at Olympus who could beat the Quad God was the Quad God himself. Astonishingly, he did . In the sport's biggest upset in the history of the Winter Games, ...

Source: bostonglobe.com
There's Now a Café Where You Go on Dates With AI
- There's Now a Café Where You Go on Dates With AI By As AI continues to reshape how people work and socialize, a more intimate frontier has emerged: romance. Millions of people now talk, flirt, confide, and form emotional bonds with AI companions-relationships that exist entirely on screens. But what has been missing, until now, is the presence of an IRL date itself. On Valentine's Day weekend, that boundary ...

Source: miamiherald.com
Ring cancels Flock deal after dystopian Super Bowl ad prompts mass outrage
- "This is definitely not about dogs," senator says, urging a pause on Ring face scans. Amazon and Flock Safety have ended a partnership that would've given law enforcement access to a vast web of Ring cameras. The decision came after Amazon faced substantial backlash for airing a Super Bowl ad that was meant to be warm and fuzzy, but instead came across as disturbing and dystopian. The ad begins with a young girl ...

Source: arstechnica.com
US   POLITICS  
Exclusive | Here's the crude email exchange with Jeffrey Epstein that ended Kathy Ruemmler's stint as Goldman Sachs' top lawyer
- It was an email about Jeffrey Epstein's penis that ultimately ended Kathy Ruemmler's run as Goldman Sachs' top lawyer , people close to her tell the Post. Ruemmler, who dealt with Epstein through one of her legal clients, is mentioned thousands of times in the Epstein files. But that one crude remark by Epstein, and her bland response made her situation untenable even if people close to her tell me it was intended ...

Source: nypost.com
WORLD  
U.K. High Court rules Palestine Action protest group's designation as terrorist organization unlawful
- London —  Britain's High Court ruled Friday that the government's decision last year to outlaw the protest group Palestine Action as a designated terrorist organization was unlawful, but it kept the ban in place pending an appeal. Judges Victoria Sharp, Jonathan Swift and Karen Steyn said "the nature and scale of Palestine Action's activities" did not meet the "level, scale and persistence" that would ...

Source: cbsnews.com
BUSINESS  
Banks Shift AI From Chatbots to Autonomous Money Movement | PYMNTS.com
- The most consequential artificial intelligence deployments in finance are invisible to customers. They are unfolding inside compliance queues, cash management dashboards and payment routing engines, where AI agents now initiate tasks and move money based on live signals. That transition marks the first real test of whether financial institutions trust AI with operational authority. From Assistance to Autonomous ...

Source: pymnts.com
US   POLITICS  
Man Shot By ICE Has All Charges Dropped As Officers Face Federal Probe
- Federal authorities have opened an investigation into two ICE officers and whether they lied in sworn statements after the Department of Justice dropped charges against a Venezuelan man who was shot during an operation. "The men and women of ICE are entrusted with upholding the rule of law and are held to the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and ethical conduct," acting Immigration and Customs ...

Source: huffpost.com
SCIENCE  
On their way! 4 people on NASA Crew-12 mission launch to International Space Station
- Four people are headed to the International Space Station after a predawn Friday liftoff from Cape Canaveral in Florida. When the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted off, it briefly turned the inky-black sky into daylight, as it roared to orbit on a nine-minute journey to space. The crew is expected to dock with the space station on Saturday afternoon, Eastern time. The space station has been operating with a reduced ...

Source: npr.org
US   POLITICS  
US justice department sues Harvard over admissions records access
- Justice department accuses university of failing to comply with government's request for over 10 months The Department of Justice filed a new lawsuit against Harvard University , accusing it of failing to hand over documents and comply with a federal investigation into alleged racial discrimination in its admissions process, in the latest escalation of Donald Trump's long-running legal pursuit of the nation's ...

Source: theguardian.com
US   POLITICS  
Journalist Don Lemon pleads not guilty to civil rights charges
- ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Former CNN host turned independent journalist Don Lemon pleaded not guilty to federal civil rights charges Friday, accused in a protest at a Minnesota church where an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official is a pastor. Four other people are also set to be arraigned in the case. Lemon did not comment to reporters as he entered the courthouse accompanied by his attorney, Joe ...

Source: bostonglobe.com
SCIENCE  
This Bizarre Star System Is Inside Out, and Astronomers Aren't Sure How
- Reading time 3 minutes Astronomers have discovered a star system that's out of order, with a late bloomer planet that may have sprung up at a different time than its neighbors. The discovery defies the norms of planet formation across the cosmos, raising questions over how this weird rocky world broke a familiar pattern. The inner planets of our solar system, Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, are rocky worlds, while ...

Source: gizmodo.com
POLITICS  
Logistics giant DP World replaces chairman named in Jeffrey Epstein documents
- Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... CAIRO (AP) — Dubai has announced a new chairman for DP World, one of the world's largest logistics companies, replacing the outgoing head who was named in the Jeffrey Epstein documents. The announcement by the government's Dubai Media Office did not specifically name Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem. However, it said that Essa Kazim was named DP World's chairman and Yuvraj ...

Source: orlandosentinel.com
WORLD   POLITICS  
Bangladesh's BNP claims landslide win in first election since 2024 uprising
- BNP claims victory in landmark Bangladesh election The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has claimed victory in the country's first election since a student-led uprising that ousted longtime leader Sheikh Hasina in 2024. Unofficial results confirmed by election officials to Al Jazeera on Friday showed the BNP winning 209 seats, easily crossing the 151-seat threshold needed for a majority in parliament. Its leader, ...

Source: aljazeera.com
TECHNOLOGY  
Google fears massive attempt to clone Gemini AI through model extraction
- The company identified over 100,000 prompts it suspects were intended to extract proprietary reasoning capabilities. Google detected and blocked a campaign involving more than 100,000 prompts that it claimed were designed to copy the proprietary reasoning capabilities of its Gemini AI model, according to a quarterly threat report released by Google Threat Intelligence Group. The prompts looked like a coordinated ...

Source: csoonline.com
US   POLITICS  
Judge Temporarily Blocks Pentagon Action Against Mark Kelly
- Home » » A federal judge in Washington, D.C. agreed to prevent the Pentagon from punishing Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly for his participation in a video where he urged troops to disobey unlawful demands. The judge granted the senator's request for a preliminary injunction against Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a suit filed by Kelly accusing Hegseth of trying to penalize him for his political ...

Source: floridianpress.com
WORLD   POLITICS  
Trump: Iran regime change 'would be the best thing to ever happen'
- Trump says Iran regime change is 'best thing that could happen' US President Donald Trump says regime change in Iran is "the best thing that could happen", signifying one of his clearest endorsements for replacing the clerical establishment. "For 47 years, they've been talking and talking and talking. In the meantime, we've lost a lot of lives," he said on Friday. Trump declined to specify who he wants to lead ...

Source: bbc.com
WORLD  
Japan seizes Chinese fishing boat and arrests skipper
- TOKYO — Japanese authorities have seized a Chinese fishing boat and arrested its captain for allegedly fleeing inspection in its exclusive economic zone, an incident that could further inflame tensions between Asia's top two economies. The captain, a 47-year-old Chinese national, is accused of ignoring orders to stop for an on-board inspection on Thursday in waters off southwest Nagasaki prefecture, Japan's ...

Source: nbcnews.com
US   POLITICS  
Governor candidate Amy Acton calls for 'immediate property tax relief' in Ohio
- COLUMBUS, Ohio—Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton on Friday called for "immediate property tax relief" for Ohioans, saying recent efforts by the Republican-led legislature to ease homeowners' tax burden aren't enough. Acton, speaking at a Columbus union hall to accept the endorsement of the Ohio AFL-CIO, said she will put out details about her tax plan – and how to pay for it – later in ...

Source: cleveland.com
POLITICS  
Judge Orders US To Retrieve Student Deported To Honduras Within 2 Weeks
- Stand with a newsroom that doesn't flinch. Become a member and help keep fearless reporting independent. Already a member? BOSTON (AP) — A college student deported to Honduras while traveling for Thanksgiving in November must be returned to the United States within two weeks, a federal judge in Boston ruled Friday. U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns issued an order that required the return of 19-year-old ...

Source: huffpost.com
MEDICINE  
Colorectal cancer is rising in younger adults. Here's who is most at risk and symptoms to watch for
- Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... By LAURAN NEERGAARD WASHINGTON (AP) — Colorectal cancer is a threat not just to older adults but increasingly to young men and women, too. It's now the top cancer killer of Americans younger than 50. The deaths of "Dawson's Creek" actor James Van Der Beek at 48 this week, and a few years ago "Black Panther" star Chadwick Boseman at 43, highlight the risk for younger ...

Source: orlandosentinel.com
MEDICINE  
Elephants Have a Secret Sensory Ability. Scientists Say It Could Inspire Design of Future Robots
- Dr. Katherine Kuchenbecker, a roboticist from the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS) , was walking down a hallway tapping the railings, walls, and columns with a "wand" her student, Dr. Andrew Schulz, had given her. While she tapped the wand on different surfaces, she realized she could feel the different vibrations of surfaces, without having to look at them. The vibrations felt soft and gentle ...

Source: greenmatters.com
US   POLITICS  
A judge orders DHS to give Minnesota detainees swift access to lawyers before transfers
- MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A federal judge has ordered the Department of Homeland Security to give immigrants detained in Minnesota access to attorneys immediately after they are taken into custody and before they are transferred out of state. U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel issued the emergency restraining order Thursday, finding detainees at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building faced so many logistical ...

Source: apnews.com
WORLD  
Trump Says Iran Regime Change Could Be 'Best Thing' As Second Carrier Heads To Middle East
- Stand with a newsroom that doesn't flinch. Become a member and help keep fearless reporting independent. Already a member? WASHINGTON/FORT BRAGG, North Carolina, Feb 13 (Reuters) - U .S. President Donald Trump on Friday embraced potential regime change in Iran and declared that "tremendous power" will soon be in the Middle East, as the Pentagon sent a second aircraft carrier to the region. Trump's military moves ...

Source: huffpost.com
On The Run For 16 Years… Until He Showed Up At The Winter Olympics
- Stand with a newsroom that doesn't flinch. Become a member and help keep fearless reporting independent. Already a member? MILAN, Feb 12 (Reuters) - The writing was on the wall - and had the man's passion for ice hockey been matched by a love of Italian music he may have spotted it. Milan police arrested a 44-year-old Slovak national on Wednesday evening, acting on a warrant issued against him by Italian ...

Source: huffpost.com
Shooting at a South Carolina State University residence complex kills 2 and wounds 1
- Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... ORANGEBURG, S.C. (AP) — Two men are dead and another was wounded after a shooting in a room at a South Carolina State University residential complex, the university said, prompting a nearly eight-hour lockdown that was lifted early Friday. The Thursday night shooting happened a little over four months after two shootings during homecoming celebrations on Oct. 4. One, ...

Source: orlandosentinel.com
MARKETS  
Existing Home Sales in January Plunged to Lowest Level Since 2024
- Existing home sales in January fell to lowest level since August 2024 as tight inventory continued to push home prices higher and winter weather weighed on sales activity. Total existing home sales fell 8.4% in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.91 million in January, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) . Total sales were 4.4% lower than a year ago. Despite mortgage rates trending ...

Source: nahb.org
US   POLITICS  
Members of Congress demand DOJ stop tracking lawmakers' Epstein files searches
- Members of Congress sharply criticized the Justice Department over allegations that it was tracking what lawmakers were searching for as they viewed unredacted versions of the Jeffrey Epstein files . A Reuters photo showed Bondi at a congressional hearing Wednesday holding a document labeled "Jayapal Pramila Search History." The document listed Epstein files that the Democratic representative from Washington ...

Source: nbcnews.com