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US   POLITICS  
Amid Trump's touting of a 'golden age of America,' gory details abound
- The state of the union is strong, in President Donald Trump's telling, but also predatory and dangerous. An undercurrent of Trump's speech this week was that the "golden age of America" calls for a cold-eyed understanding of the threats that the nation faces and the resolute actions needed to defend itself. Undocumented immigrants lurking within the country are looking to plunder and kill, the president says. ...

Source: nbcnews.com
US  
Samsung Unpacked: S26 Ultra holds $1,300 price despite rising costs - TechBriefly
- The base S26 and S26+ models received a $100 price hike to $900 and $1,100, a move Samsung attributed to a worldwide shortage of RAM components. Samsung held its latest Unpacked event at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco on Wednesday, unveiling the Galaxy S26 smartphone lineup and redesigned Galaxy Buds 4 earbuds. The event took place ahead of Mobile World Congress, positioning the new devices for immediate ...

Source: techbriefly.com
Charlie McAvoy apologizes for Team USA's reaction to Trump joke
- "Certainly sorry for how we responded to it in that moment." Less than a week after playing a key role in Team USA's first Olympic gold medal in men's hockey since 1980, Charlie McAvoy will look to get back on the ice for the Bruins in a pivotal matchup against the Columbus Blue Jackets.  McAvoy — who logged the second-most ice time on Team USA behind Quinn Hughes during the 2026 Milano-Cortina games ...

Source: boston.com
US  
Summers to leave Harvard amid Epstein fallout
- A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers is stepping down as a professor at Harvard over his close relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, he and the university said Wednesday. Summers has been on leave from Harvard, where he once served as president, since the depth of his friendship with Epstein was revealed in ...

Source: theweek.com
POLITICS  
U.S. and Iran hold new talks as Trump raises pressure for nuclear deal
- The talks — a third round of indirect negotiations — come after Trump made his clearest case yet for a possible attack as he oversees a sweeping Two people familiar with the talks told NBC News that from the Trump administration's perspective, the discussions were "positive." The sources declined to share details of the negotiations. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also had a positive view of ...

Source: news.yahoo.com
US   POLITICS  
Hillary Clinton set for deposition with House Oversight Committee in Jeffrey Epstein probe
- Members of the Republican-led House Oversight Committee are scheduled to question former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday as part of their investigation into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein . The closed-door interview, which will be videotaped, is set to take place in Chappaqua, New York, where the Clintons have a house. The committee will meet with former President Bill Clinton the next day for ...

Source: nbcnews.com
BUSINESS  
The High-Stakes Fight Between Hegseth and Anthropic
- Ideas The High-Stakes Fight Between Hegseth and Anthropic Even when companies vow to develop AI responsibly, geopolitics may force them to abandon that commitment. Andrew Harnik / Getty February 26, 2026, 1:18 PM ET Save Listen − 1.0x + Seek 0:00 10:57 Humanity's real problem, the great biologist Edward O. Wilson once remarked, is that "we have Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions, and godlike ...

Source: theatlantic.com
US   POLITICS  
DOJ to investigate after missing Trump pages are discovered in Epstein files release
- Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent Notifications can be managed in browser preferences. Swipe for next article House Oversight Committee investigating whether FBI 'illegally' withheld interviews The Department of Justice said Thursday it is "currently reviewing" documents that appear to be missing from its public release of the Jeffrey Epstein files that detail unverified allegations ...

Source: independent.co.uk
US  
Netflix won't increase its offer for Warner Bros., ceding bidding war to Paramount
- Netflix said it would not submit a higher offer for Warner Bros. Discovery after the company's board described Paramount Skydance's latest offer as "superior." The stunning twist leaves Paramount Skydance, headed by David Ellison, as the remaining bidder and in position to take control of the storied media giant. Paramount's bid was for the entire company while Netflix was seeking to acquire only its streaming ...

Source: nbcnews.com
US  
Los Angeles Board of Education to discuss school superintendent after FBI searched his home
- LOS ANGELES (AP) — The governing board of the Los Angeles Unified School District will meet in a closed session on Thursday to discuss the superintendent , a day after the FBI served search warrants at his home and the district's headquarters. The calendar for the Board of Education notes a special afternoon meeting to discuss Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, but there were no additional details. The district ...

Source: apnews.com
POLITICS  
Florida Senate passes data center restrictions amid Trump AI intrigue
- By The Florida Senate unanimously passed a bill Thursday to add regulations to large-scale data centers aimed at protecting consumers from potential price increases for electricity or water. The bipartisan move came as wealthy tech companies are eyeing Florida as a potentially new frontier for the nationwide boom of data centers, the climate-controlled warehouses containing thousands of computers used to power ...

Source: miamiherald.com
Instagram to alert parents if teens search for self-harm content
- Parents using Instagram's child supervision tools will soon receive alerts if their teen repeatedly searches for suicide or self-harm related terms on the platform. It is the first time parent company Meta will proactively alert parents to searches by their child on Instagram for harmful material, rather than just block searches and direct users to external help. Parents and teens enrolled in Instagram's Teen ...

Source: bbc.com
US   POLITICS  
US federal court rules third-country removal policy unlawful
- News , Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons US federal court rules third-country removal policy unlawful A US federal court ruled on Wednesday that the Trump administration's third-country deportation policy is unlawful because it fails to provide migrants a chance to object or raise safety concerns.  The case, before the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts, came out of a class action lawsuit ...

Source: jurist.org
At least 1 U.S. citizen killed in Cuba boat incident, another injured
- At least one U.S. citizen was killed and another was injured in the confrontation between Cuban authorities and a Florida-linked speedboat, according to media reports. The clash left four people dead and six others wounded in Cuban waters. The incident occurred Wednesday morning about one nautical mile northeast of the El Pino channel near Cayo Falcones in Villa Clara province, on Cuba's north-central coast. Cuban ...

Source: bnonews.com
US  
Trump's 401(k) Push Leaves Key Details to Regulators, Congress
- Regulatory and legislative hurdles, along with a slew of unanswered practical questions, will pose significant challenges as the Trump administration seeks to turn its newly announced 401(k) expansion plan into a reality. President Donald Trump during his State of the Union address said he would act next year to offer Americans without employer-sponsored 401(k)s "access to the same type of retirement plan offered ...

Source: news.bloomberglaw.com
AI in Professional Services report takeaways for legal teams
- Highlights from the 2026 AI in Professional Services report and what it means for legal teams Industry‑specific AI is gaining traction in high‑stakes legal work, such as personal injury litigation. Highlights Generative AI use has surged, shifting professional services from experimentation to measurable impact. Legal teams are adopting AI cautiously, balancing speed with ethics, governance, and human ...

Source: legal.thomsonreuters.com
Columbia Student Taken by DHS After Officers Reportedly Lied to Gain Entry to Residence
- A Columbia University student was reportedly taken by federal immigration agents who lied in order to gain entry into her residence, the university's president said in a statement on the Thursday morning arrest, which critics have described as an abduction. The detained student has been identified as Ellie Aghayeva, an undergrad majoring in neuroscience and political science. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said ...

Source: truthout.org
US   MARKETS  
Long-Term Mortgage Rates Drop Below 6%—The First Time Since 2022
- U.S. Long-Term Mortgage Rates Drop Below 6% For The First Time In Nearly Four Years The average long-term mortgage rate in the U.S. fell below 6% this week, reaching the benchmark for the first time in nearly four years as affordability for homebuyers has improved in the last few years but has not yet recovered from a mortgage rate spike in 2022. The 30-year fixed rate mortgage average in the U.S. hit 5.98% on ...

Source: forbes.com
AI giant Nvidia made $120 billion in profit last year. Investors are still spooked.
- Nvidia — the most valuable company in the world thanks to its place atop the AI food chain — generated a staggering $120 billion in profits last year. This includes an eye-popping $43 billion during the three-month period ending in January, one of the strongest quarters of any business ever recorded. Investors didn't seem to care. Shares of Nvidia fell more than 5% Thursday, following the results. With ...

Source: nbcnews.com
HEALTH   MEDICINE  
Severe Heart Attacks Are Becoming Deadlier for Younger Americans, Study Finds
- The death rate of severe heart attacks has risen over the past decade among Americans under 55, new research shows. Reading time 4 minutes Heart attacks have become less life-threatening over time. A study out today, however, highlights a concerning reversal of fortune for younger Americans. Researchers examined nationally representative data of hospitalized heart attack patients. Between 2011 and 2022, they found ...

Source: gizmodo.com
WORLD   POLITICS  
Hong Kong mogul Jimmy Lai wins appeal in fraud case
- Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai won an appeal on Thursday over a 2022 fraud conviction, days after a court jailed him on separate national security charges. The ruling was a surprise win for Lai, the 78-year-old founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, who was sentenced to 20 years behind bars this month on collusion charges under a Beijing-imposed national security law. The fraud case grew ...

Source: digitaljournal.com
US   POLITICS  
At least 10 FBI agents who worked on Trump investigation fired
- The FBI has fired roughly 10 members, all of whom participated in a probe into Donald Trump's handling of classified documents after his first term. Their termination on Wednesday, confirmed by the BBC's US partner CBS, was announced shortly after FBI director Kash Patel told Reuters that federal agents subpoenaed his phone records when he was a private citizen during the documents investigation. Susie Wiles, now ...

Source: bbc.com
US  
NASA reveals details of medical incident that led to historic evacuation from ISS | Science, Climate & Tech News
- "Spaceflight is an incredible privilege and sometimes it reminds us just how human we are," said astronaut Mike Fincke. NASA has revealed details of an incident aboard the ISS that prompted the first medical evacuation in the space station's 25-year history. On 7 January, astronaut Mike Fincke "experienced a medical event that required immediate attention from my incredible crewmates", according to a statement by ...

Source: news.sky.com
DIGITAL  
Nano Banana 2 Is Here: What Changed in Google's Popular AI Image Tool
- Google couldn't let Samsung have all the fun and attention this week. The Gemini-maker dropped Nano Banana 2 on Thursday, the second generation of its viral AI image editing tool.  You might remember Nano Banana from last fall, when it made many fans and shocked AI users with its photorealistic capabilities. It quickly leapfrogged AI image tools from competitors like Midjourney and OpenAI, particularly with ...

Source: cnet.com
'Inhumane': Nearly Blind Refugee Found Dead After Border Patrol Agents Left Him Miles From Home
- With the administration challenging the Court and Congress, independent reporting is the only thing standing between you and the noise. Your membership funds the courage to ask the hard questions. Don't let the truth be sidelined, join Huff Already a member? A nearly blind refugee was found dead in Buffalo, N.Y., after Border Patrol agents abandoned him miles from his home, the Investigative Post, a local news ...

Source: huffpost.com
POLITICS  
Congress Isn't Likely to Rescue Trump on Tariffs
- Ongoing reports and analysis Following the U.S. Supreme Court's seismic ruling last week against U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs, there is little evidence of a Republican clamor on Capitol Hill to make those import taxes legal, even as the president claims that congressional action isn't necessary. It's too early to tell if Republicans have taken to heart the admonishment they received from the high court, ...

Source: foreignpolicy.com
MEDICINE   SCIENCE  
The science behind the 'super-ager' brain
- Older adults who remain cognitively sharp as they age have a genetic advantage over their peers, new research shows. Scientists at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Chicago found that so-called super-agers generate twice as many new neurons in the hippocampus — a part of the brain critical to learning and memory — as typical older adults. Their research was published Wednesday in the ...

Source: nbcnews.com
US   POLITICS  
Trump's Favorite Voter-ID Bill Would Probably Backfire
- Politics Trump's Favorite Voter-ID Bill Would Probably Backfire Congressional Republicans are trying to pass a strict "election integrity" law that seems almost custom-designed to disenfranchise their own supporters. Save On the surface, the debate over the SAVE America Act is familiar, even predictable. At Donald Trump's urging, Republicans are pushing yet another voter-ID bill, ostensibly to prevent fraud and ...

Source: theatlantic.com
US   POLITICS  
Mamdani and Trump Bromance Continues, This Time With Props
- Save this article to read it later. Find this story in your account's 'Saved for Later' section. New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump met for a second time Thursday afternoon in Washington, D.C. — and it looks like the president's unlikely affection for Mamdani hasn't abated. The mayor confirmed the sit-down with the president on social media, sharing a photo of the two of them in the ...

Source: nymag.com
US  
Frozen Blueberries Are Being Recalled After the FDA Says They Could Be Contaminated With Listeria
- Blueberries are a delicious fruit that is known for being high in antioxidants. And while these berries are best enjoyed fresh for their full nutritional benefits, many people opt to eat frozen berries during the off season when it's harder to get your hands on the newly harvested fruits. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is cautioning customers against eating certain berries after one company ...

Source: greenmatters.com
Former US Air Force pilot charged with unauthorized Chinese military training
- A former U.S. Air Force officer was arrested and charged for allegedly imparting unauthorized defense services to Chinese military pilots. Gerald Eddie Brown Jr. was arrested Wednesday in Jeffersonville, Indiana, and charged in violation of the Arms Export Control Act , which provides the Secretary of State with the legal authority to control the export of defense articles and services, according to a Wednesday ...

Source: militarytimes.com
MEDICINE   SCIENCE  
When we interbred with Neanderthals, they were usually the fathers
- Genetic evidence hints that there was a strong bias for male Neanderthals and female humans to mate, rather than any other combination When our species and Neanderthals interbred, it may have been mostly female Homo sapiens and male Neanderthals that mated. That's the conclusion of a study of the genetic traces left in both populations by the intermixing. It isn't clear why this sex-biased mating pattern would have ...

Source: newscientist.com
POLITICS  
Pilot who helped capture Maduro honored by Trump in camera-ready moment
- Trump awarded the Medal of Honor during his State of the Union address, rather than with a White House ceremony that's typically held for recipients. WASHINGTON — Less than two months ago, Eric Slover was a member of the U.S. special forces whose identity was shielded from the public as he secretly prepared for a high-stakes raid to capture the president of Venezuela. On Tuesday night, he appeared in the ...

Source: nbcnews.com
US   POLITICS  
Why top Senate Republicans are skeptical about using a 'talking filibuster' to pass Trump's SAVE America Act
- At his State of the Union speech Tuesday, President Donald Trump made his latest push for Congress to pass the SAVE America Act to overhaul elections by falsely claiming that "the only way" Democrats get elected "is to cheat." And he appeared to single out Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., by adding, "We have to stop it, John." Thune and Senate Republicans have been under an avalanche of pressure from the ...

Source: nbcnews.com
WORLD   POLITICS  
Ukraine Says Russia Launched a Major Aerial Attack Ahead of Geneva Talks With US
- KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a barrage of 420 drones and 39 missiles at Ukraine overnight, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday, as U.S. and Ukrainian envoys prepared to hold more talks in Geneva on ending the war that is now in its fifth year . The bombardment, which included 11 ballistic missiles, targeted critical infrastructure and residential areas across eight regions of Ukraine, ...

Source: military.com
15 state attorneys general sue RFK Jr. over "anti-science" vaccine policy
- Trump administration's reduced vaccine schedule "throws science out the window." Scientists have long warned that a warming world is likely to hasten the spread of infectious diseases, making vaccination even more critical to safeguard public health. And though most scientists hail vaccines as one of public health's greatest achievements, they have provoked fear, distrust, and contentious resistance since Edward ...

Source: arstechnica.com
US  
NYC police arrest man after officers were pelted during a snowball fight
- NEW YORK (AP) — A social media content creator was arrested Thursday after New York City police said he was one of a number of people who pelted officers with snow and ice during a massive snowball fight in Washington Square Park this week. Gusmane Coulibaly, 27, was charged with obstructing governmental administration, a misdemeanor, and harassment, a non-criminal violation. He appeared in handcuffs and ...

Source: apnews.com
Chicago man accused of killing girlfriend's mother in Indonesia pleads not guilty to U.S. charges
- of beating his then-girlfriend's mother to death with a fruit bowl and hiding the body in a suitcase more than a decade ago pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal charges in the U.S. Tommy Schaefer was sentenced in Indonesia to 18 years in prison in connection with the 2014 murder of Chicago socialite Sheila von Wiese-Mack while on vacation in Bali with the woman and her daughter, Heather Mack. According to ...

Source: news4jax.com
US  
Brothers. both politicians, convicted of arranging Marielle Franco murder in 2018
- Feb. 26 (UPI) -- A pair of brothers who were prominent Brazilian politicians have been convicted in the 2018 murder of Rio de Janeiro councilor Marielle Franco. João Francisco Inácio Brazão, a former congressman, and Domingos Inácio Brazão, a former adviser to Rio de Janeiro's court of auditors, were each sentenced to 76 years and three months in prison. They were convicted of ...

Source: upi.com
WORLD  
Israel Responsible for Two-Thirds of Journalist Deaths in 2025: Press Freedom Group
- A new report from a major press freedom group has found that a record 129 journalists were killed in 2025, and that Israel was responsible for two-thirds of the worldwide total. The Tuesday report from the Committee to Protect Journalists says that the Israeli military has cumulatively killed more journalists than any other government since CPJ started tracking reporter deaths in 1992, with the vast majority being ...

Source: commondreams.org
US   POLITICS  
Trump's MAHA influencer pick for surgeon general goes before Senate
- Casey Means holds no active medical license and promotes alternative medicine. Casey Means, President Trump's nominee for surgeon general, will appear before the Senate Health Committee on Wednesday and is likely to face scrutiny over her qualifications for becoming the country's top doctor. Though Means holds a medical degree from Stanford Medical School, she dropped out of her medical residency and holds no ...

Source: arstechnica.com
US   POLITICS  
Bill Gates apologizes to foundation staff over Epstein ties
- Billionaire Microsoft co-founder calls it a 'huge mistake' to spend time with Epstein but that he 'did nothing illicit' Bill Gates  apologized to staff of the Gates Foundation over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, admitting he made mistakes that had cast a cloud over the philanthropic group while insisting he didn't participate in Epstein's crimes.  In a town hall on Tuesday, ...

Source: foxbusiness.com
TECHNOLOGY  
After Backlash, Discord Will Delay Age Verification Changes to Its Platform
- In a lengthy blog post from its CTO and co-founder Stanislav Vishnevskiy, Discord announced it will delay and refine changes to the way the company handles content and communications for younger users, including adding age verification features. Earlier this month, the real-time chat and message board service announced it was going to default  all user accounts to a Teen setting. This would restrict access to ...

Source: cnet.com
Epstein files: Nobel winner Axel quits Columbia U. brain institute over friendship with predator
- Dr. Richard Axel, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist, said he is stepping down as co-director of Columbia University's Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute on the heels of his association with notorious sex predator Jeffrey Epstein drawing public attention. "My past association with Jeffrey Epstein was a serious error in judgment, which I deeply regret," Axel said. Axel won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine ...

Source: cnbc.com
Kalshi Bans MrBeast Video Editor and Political Candidate Over Insider Trading
- Reading time 4 minutes Kalshi has temporarily banned two people from betting on its platform, a video editor for MrBeast and a former gubernatorial candidate in California, over allegations of insider trading, according to a new blog post from the company. The two men have been issued fines, and their cases are being referred to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Kalshi didn't name the two men in its ...

Source: gizmodo.com
New York sues Counter-Strike game developer saying 'loot boxes' promote gambling
- Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... By PHILIP MARCELO NEW YORK (AP) — New York's attorney general has sued video game developer Valve, claiming the "loot boxes" found in Counter-Strike and other popular video game franchises illegally promote gambling. State Attorney General Letitia James said in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in New York state court that games such as Counter-Strike 2, Team Fortress 2 and ...

Source: orlandosentinel.com
Anthropic ditches its core safety promise in the middle of an AI red line fight with the Pentagon
- Tech 4 min read Anthropic, a company founded by OpenAI exiles worried about the dangers of AI, is loosening its core safety principle in response to competition. Instead of self-imposed guardrails constraining its development of AI models, Anthropic is adopting a nonbinding safety framework that it says can and will change. In a blog post Tuesday outlining its new policy, Anthropic said shortcomings in its ...

Source: edition.cnn.com