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Kao Miura wins Grand Prix Espoo figure skating title to book a place at the finals

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

ESPOO, Finland (AP) — Japanese figure skater Kao Miura edged past his teammate Shun Sato to win his first figure skating Grand Prix title Sunday and book a place in next month’s finals. Miura and Sato each landed three quadruple jumps in the free skate Saturday at Grand Prix Espoo, with Sato scoring slightly higher. Miura’s three-point advantage from Friday’s short program helped him hold on to win with a total 274.56 points to Sato’s 273.34.It’s the first career Grand Prix series win for Miura, who won the world junior title and Four Continents Championship gold last season.Kévin Aymoz of France recovered from a poor short program to take the bronze Saturday, rising from fifth to third to finish on a total 250.03. Jimmy Ma of the United States had been in third place after the short program but a fall and other errors in his free skate dropped the 28-year-old from New York to 11th overall.In the other events later Saturday, world champion Kaori Sakamot...

Shooter kills security guard before being fatally shot at New Hampshire psychiatric hospital

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A shooter killed a security guard in the lobby of New Hampshire’s state psychiatric hospital on Friday before being fatally shot by a state trooper, officials said.The shooting happened around 3:30 p.m. at New Hampshire Hospital and was contained to the front lobby of the 185-bed facility, State Police Col. Mark Hall said at a news conference. He said CPR was performed on the victim, who later died at Concord Hospital.Authorities identified the victim Friday night as Bradley Haas, 63, a state Department of Safety security officer who was working at the front lobby entrance.All patients at the psychiatric hospital were safe, and the state trooper who killed the shooter was not wounded, according to authorities.“Investigators with the New Hampshire State Police have searched and cleared a suspicious box truck near the scene. They determined the truck poses no safety risk,” the statement from the attorney general’s office said.Haas lived in Franklin, a small city a...

Argentine presidential candidate Milei goes to the opera – and meets both cheers and jeers

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Both cheers and jeers for Argentina’s right-wing presidential candidate resounded with acoustic perfection inside the country’s legendary Colón Theater, laying bare the country’s polarization on the eve of Sunday’s runoff.The audience had gathered Friday evening in Latin America’s premiere opera house that is world-renowned for its acoustics to watch a performance of “Madama Butterfly” — but Javier Milei soon became the main event. A group began insulting him as he sat in the front row of a box alongside his girlfriend.“Milei, trash, you are the dictatorship!” some attendees chanted at the candidate. He has downplayed Argentina’s bloody 1976-1983 military rule, saying the number of its victims is far below what human rights organizations have long claimed, among other controversial positions.Some videos on social media also showed a few orchestra musicians playing the “Peronist March,” an anthem of the political party of Economy Minister Sergio M...

Residents of Iceland town evacuated over volcano told it will be months before they can go home

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — People in southwest Iceland remained on edge Saturday, waiting to see whether a volcano rumbling under the Reykjanes Peninsula will erupt. Civil protection authorities said that even if it doesn’t, it’s likely to be months before it is safe for residents evacuated from the danger zone to go home.The fishing town of Grindavik was evacuated a week ago as magma – semi-molten rock – rumbled and snaked under the earth amid thousands of tremors. It has left a jagged crack running through the community, thrusting the ground upward by 1 meter (3 feet) or more in places.The Icelandic Meteorological Office said there is a “significant likelihood” that an eruption will occur somewhere along the 15-kilometer (9-mile) magma tunnel, with the “prime location” an area north of Grindavik near the Hagafell mountain.Grindavik, a town of 3,400, sits on the Reykjanes Peninsula, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) southwest of the capital, Reykjavik and not far from Kefla...

‘Please regulate AI:’ Artists push for U.S. copyright reforms but tech industry says not so fast

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

Country singers, romance novelists, video game artists and voice actors are appealing to the U.S. government for relief — as soon as possible — from the threat that artificial intelligence poses to their livelihoods.“Please regulate AI. I’m scared,” wrote a podcaster concerned about his voice being replicated by AI in one of thousands of letters recently submitted to the U.S. Copyright Office. Technology companies, by contrast, are largely happy with the status quo that has enabled them to gobble up published works to make their AI systems better at mimicking what humans do. The nation’s top copyright official hasn’t yet taken sides. She told The Associated Press she’s listening to everyone as her office weighs whether copyright reforms are needed for a new era of generative AI tools that can spit out compelling imagery, music, video and passages of text.“We’ve received close to 10,000 comments,” said Shira Perlmutter, the U.S. register of copyrights, i...

Climate change is hurting coral worldwide. But these reefs off the Texas coast are thriving

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

OFF THE COAST OF GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — Divers descending into azure waters far off the Texas coast dip below a horizon dotted with oil and gas platforms into an otherworldly landscape of undersea mountains crusted with yellow, orange and pink coral as far as the eye can see.Some of the world’s healthiest coral reefs can be found in the Gulf of Mexico, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) off the Texas coast. Sheltered in a deep, cool habitat far from shore, the reefs in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary boast a stunning amount of coral coverage. But scientists say that like all reefs, they are fragile, and their location will only offer protection for so long in the face of a warming climate.“To see that much coral in one place is really magnificent — an experience that most people don’t get on reefs in this day and age,” said Michelle Johnston, the acting superintendent and research coordinator for the federally protected area.The sanctuary had some moderate ble...

New hardiness zone map will help US gardeners keep pace with climate change

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Southern staples like magnolia trees and camellias may now be able to grow without frost damage in once-frigid Boston. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ” plant hardiness zone map ” was updated Wednesday for the first time in a decade, and it shows the impact that climate change will have on gardens and yards across the country. Climate shifts aren’t even — the Midwest warmed more than the Southeast, for example. But the map will give new guidance to growers about which flowers, vegetables and shrubs are most likely to thrive in a particular region. One key figure on the map is the lowest likely winter temperature in a given region, which is important for determining which plants may survive the season. It’s calculated by averaging the lowest winter temperatures of the past 30 years.Across the lower 48 states, the lowest likely winter temperature overall is 2.5 degrees (1.4 degrees Celsius) warmer than when the last map was published in 2012, according to ...

Saturday Forecast: Sunny, warmer, mid 50s

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

Saturday: Sunny & a bit warmer. WSW 5-15 G20 mph. Air quality is Good to Moderate for Chicagoland. High: 55Saturday Night: Mostly clear & seasonally chilly. WNW  0-5 mph. Low: 35Sunday: Mostly sunny & not as breezy. NE 5-10 mph. High: 56Chicago Weather | Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center's Forecast (wgntv.com)Extended outlook calls for some rain late in the day on Monday with highs a bit cooler near 50. Cold Tuesday morning with a slight chance of rain/snow showers. Afternoon temps in the mid 40s. Wednesday high temps only near 40 with mostly cloudy skies. Thanksgiving looks cold with high temps only in the mid 30s. 

Thanksgiving dinner hacks for a smoother meal

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Thanksgiving will be here before you know it.While it may seem too early to even think about it, it's just two weeks away. Whether this is your first time hosting, or you're a veteran of preparing for the holiday, here are some hacks to help save some time and help your dinner go smoother.SpreadsheetsI am far too unorganized as a person to ever resort to the use of spreadsheets for anything outside of work or a budget, but my wife loves them. If organization or spreadsheets are your jam, or if you have trouble keeping track of everything, a spreadsheet can be a huge help. Keep track of how long each dish will take to prepare, what time something needs to go into the oven, and what time guests will arrive. Give yourself wiggle room for mistakes and disasters, just in case, but keeping things organized will make everything go smoothly. Make an inventory of every pot, pan, dish, piece of equipment, etc., that you are going to need on the big day. Is there a dif...

ERCOT cancels program aiming to increase power reserves ahead of winter

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 08:47:51 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) –  ERCOT canceled a program, which sought additional power from energy companies ahead of winter, due to limited responses from those companies. ERCOT announced the program in October to increase operating reserves and maintain grid reliability during the upcoming peak season. Still, without the additional resources, ERCOT said it does not expect any issues for the upcoming 2023-2024 winter.  MORE: ERCOT trying to increase operating reserves ahead of winter “The request for additional capacity was an extra layer of precaution to mitigate higher risk during extreme weather this winter,” said ERCOT President and CEO Pablo Vegas. “ERCOT is not projecting emergency conditions this winter and expects to have adequate resources to meet demand.”ERCOT said it has made many improvements to the grid since the deadly 2021 winter storm that left hundreds of thousands of Texans without power days. Some of those improvements include weatherization inspections of ele...