Blog

On Saturday morning Catherine, Princess of Wales, tiptoed back onto the public stage for the first time since announcing her cancer diagnosis this year in her signature colour-coordinated way, joining the rest of the royal family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace for the traditional final flyover of King Charles' birthday parade. She wore a knee-length white Jenny Packham dress with a black-and-white striped belt and a jaunty bow around her neck, topped off with a Phillip Treacy hat, angled just so.The nautical theme was reflected in the navy suit with a sailor collar and white trim worn by Princess Charlotte (who also wore white shoes to accompany her mother), along with matching navy double-breasted suits with gold buttons, white shirts and bright blue ties of Princes George and L...

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.[MUSIC PLAYING]sam andersonFrom “The New York Times,” this is “Animal.” I’m Sam Anderson. Episode three, Manatees.[MUSIC PLAYING]^KAITLIN ROBERTS^ All right.speaker 1Morning.^KAITLIN ROBERTS^ Good morning. How are you?buddy powellHey.sam andersonHow you doing?buddy powellDoing all right. How about yourself?sam andersonI’m good.buddy powellYou picked a great day.sam anderson[LAUGHS]: I know.buddy powellCome on. I wonder if I have the right —sam andersonWhat are the rules on that?buddy powellYeah. The rain’s not an issue. It’s the lightnin...

Lynn Conway, a pioneering computer scientist who was fired from IBM in the 1960s after telling managers she was transgender despite her significant technological innovations — and who received a rare formal apology from the company 52 years later — died on June 9 in Jackson, Michigan. She was 86 years old.Her husband, Charles Rogers, said she died in hospital from complications from two recent heart attacks.In 1968, after leaving IBM, Ms. Conway was among the first Americans to undergo gender reassignment surgery. But she kept it a secret, living in what she called "stealth" mode for 31 years out of fear of career retaliation and concern for her physical safety. She rebuilt her career from the ground up, eventually landing at the legendary Xerox PARC lab, where she once again made major...

The US military said Friday it would temporarily move a US-built pier off the coast of Gaza to deliver aid to the war-torn enclave, where global health authorities say there is "catastrophic hunger" and malnutrition. to prevent it from being damaged in rough seas. Just a week ago, the military said the pier had been repaired and reattached to the Gaza coast after it broke due to turbulence.“The decision to temporarily move the pier was not taken lightly, but is necessary to ensure that the temporary pier can continue to provide aid in the future,” the minister said. United States Central Command he said in a social media post, noting that the dock would be towed to Israel. The post added that the pier would be "quickly re-anchored" off the coast of Gaza once the expected turbulence pass...

Alcohol consumption has increased during the pandemic, which may be why news of any kind about alcohol seems to have found a receptive audience in recent years. In 2022, an episode of the “Huberman Lab” podcast dedicated to elaborating on the various risks of alcohol to the body and brain was one of the most popular programs of that year. Non-alcoholic spirits have gained such popularity that they have begun to form the basis for entire nightlife guides; and more and more people report consuming cannabis rather than alcohol on a daily basis.Some governments are responding to the new research by reviewing their messaging. Last year, Ireland became the first country to pass legislation requiring a cancer warning on all alcohol products sold there, similar to those found on cigarettes: &#...

Iran and Sweden exchanged prisoners on Saturday, breaking an impasse that brought relief to families but also raised concern over Sweden's decision to release the first Iranian official convicted of crimes against humanity.Iran has released Johan Floderus, 33, a European Union diplomat and Swedish citizen, arrested in April 2022 in Tehran, as well as Saeed Azizi, a dual citizen arrested in 2023, the Swedish prime minister said.“It is with pleasure that I can announce that Johan Floderus and Saeed Azizi are now on a plane back to Sweden and will soon be reunited with their families,” Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on social media.Mr. Floderus had been accused of espionage and corruption, and Mr. Azizi of “assembly and collusion against national security,” charges which both have co...

From Stuart A. ThompsonStuart Thompson collected and analyzed data on thousands of Facebook posts for this article.On the morning of January 6, 2021, Christopher Blair's fake news empire was abuzz.In some months, Blair had earned up to $15,000 by posting false stories on Facebook about Democrats and the election, reaching millions of people every month.But after a mob of Trump supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol, his growing feat came to an abrupt halt. Facebook appeared to recognize its role in fomenting an insurrection and changed its algorithm to limit the spread of political content, false and otherwise. Mr Blair witnessed her engagement flatline.“It just collapsed – anything political collapsed for about six months,” he said.Today, however, Blair is fully recovered, and then so...

On October 7, as the Hamas-led attack on Israel unfolded, many Palestinians took to the streets of Gaza to celebrate what they likened to a prison break and saw as the sudden humiliation of an occupier.But it was only a temporary boost for Hamas, whose support among Gazans has long been low. And while the Israeli assault brought widespread devastation and tens of thousands of deaths, the group and its leaders remained largely unpopular in the enclave. Many Gazans have even been willing to speak out against Hamas, risking retaliation.In interviews conducted with nearly a dozen Gaza residents in recent months, many of them said they hold Hamas responsible for starting the war and helping to bring death and destruction upon them, even as they blame Israel first and foremost.One Gaza residen...

A new law in Florida that allows doctors to perform C-sections in outpatient birth centers has raised serious safety concerns among medical experts, who say the procedures carry a small but real risk of life-threatening complications and should not be undertaken outside outside hospitals.The proposed new facilities, to be called advanced birth centers, will not be able to quickly mobilize extra staff, equipment and expertise if complications suddenly arise, as a hospital would, critics noted.“A pregnant patient who is considered low risk at one moment may suddenly need life-saving care the next,” said Dr. Cole Greves, Florida district president for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.“Advanced birth centers, even with more stringent regulations, cannot guarantee the lev...

Catherine, Princess of Wales, appeared in public on Saturday for the first time since her cancer diagnosis, smiling as she rode in a carriage with her three children as she took part in a ceremonial parade to mark the birthday of her father-in-law, King Charles III.Crowds gathered in central London to watch the princess and her family attend an event full of military tradition, music and pageantry, dampened only slightly by light rain. Her appearance was hailed as a sign of improvement in her medical condition and a significant moment for the British royal family, which suffered another blow this year when King Charles announced he also had cancer.However, when she announced on Friday evening that she was well enough to attend Saturday's events, the princess made it clear that her rec...