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Israel criticizes UN vote to list ruins near ancient Jericho as World Heritage Site in Palestine

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

JERICHO, West Bank (AP) — A U.N. committee voted Sunday to list prehistoric ruins near the ancient West Bank city of Jericho as a World Heritage Site in Palestine, a decision that angered Israel, which controls the territory and does not recognize a Palestinian state.Jericho is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities on earth, and is in a part of the Israeli-occupied West Bank that is administered by the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority. The listing refers to the Tell es-Sultan archaeological site nearby, which contains prehistoric ruins dating back to the ninth millennium B.C. and is outside the ancient city itself.The decision was made at a meeting of the U.N. World Heritage Committee in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, under the auspices of the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO. Israel’s foreign ministry released a statement Sunday that said the listing was a “cynical” ploy by the Palestinians to politicize UNESCO, and that Israel wi...

Drew Barrymore and ‘The Talk’ postpone their daytime talk shows until after the Hollywood strikes

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Drew Barrymore, who drew criticism for taping new episodes of her daytime talk show despite the ongoing writers and actors strikes, now says she’ll wait until the labor issues are resolved. Hours later CBS’ “The Talk” did the same. “I have listened to everyone, and I am making the decision to pause the show’s premiere until the strike is over,” Barrymore posted on Instagram on Sunday. “I have no words to express my deepest apologies to anyone I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team who works on the show and has made it what it is today.”Barrymore’s initial decision to return to the air Monday — without her three union writers and with picketers outside her studio — was met with pushback on social media. Her show resumed taping in New York last week and was picketed by striking writers.“We support Drew’s decision to pause the show’s return and understand how complex and difficult this process has been for her,” said a CBS Media Ventures spokespe...

Alabama high school band director stunned, arrested after refusing to end performance, police say

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama high school band director was shocked with a stun gun and arrested after Birmingham police said he wouldn’t tell his band to stop playing.Local news outlets report that Minor High School’s band director was arrested Thursday night after a football game between Minor and Jackson-Olin High School. He’s charged with disorderly conduct, harassment and resisting arrest.Birmingham Police Officer Truman Fitzgerald, a department spokesperson, said police were trying to clear the stadium at Jackson-Olin after the game and asked both bands to stop playing so people wouldn’t linger.Police say the Jackson-Olin band stopped performing, but that the director disregarded officers and told his students to keep playing.Police officers accompanied by school security guards went to arrest him for disorderly conduct but he got into a scuffle with them, Fitzgerald said. He said the band director refused to place his hands behind his back and sho...

The Walnut Foundation raises awareness of increased prostate cancer risks in Black communities

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

As Ontario marks prostate cancer awareness month, a charitable organization is working to raise awareness about the increased risk of the disease among men who are Black.Anthony Henry, the president of The Walnut Foundation, knows first-hand what it’s like to survive the disease, but his devotion to the cause is also fueled by how prostate cancer ran in his family.“Four of us in my family were impacted. Dad was not screened and the outcome was disastrous. The rest of us were screened and we’re all still here today,” he told CityNews.The Walnut Foundation’s name references the size of a normal prostate in younger men. It grows as men age, but that growth isn’t always normal. So in 2007, Dr. Winston Isaac and Simon Samuel formed the organization in an effort to increase general knowledge about the disease, reduce stigma and promote an interest in men’s health.“There just wasn’t enough information and support out there and especiall...

Minnesota man acquitted of killing 3 people, wounding 2 others in case that hinged on alibi defense

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A judge has acquitted a Minnesota man accused of fatally shooting three people and wounding two others in St. Paul last year in a case that hinged on an alibi defense.Ramsey County Judge Kelly Olmstead on Friday found Antonio Dupree Wright not guilty on all charges, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported. Wright, 42, of Minneapolis, had waived a jury trial, allowing the judge to decide his fate.“There’s insufficient evidence to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is the person who committed these heinous crimes,” Olmstead said.Prosecutors had charged Wright with second-degree murder and attempted murder, alleging he was the masked man who fired a handgun at the victims at a St. Paul duplex on Sept. 4, 2022. Killed were Angelica Gonzales, 33, Cory Freeman, 42, and Maisha Spaulding, 44.“There is no question that the victims were intentionally targeted for murder,” Olmstead said. “The sole, true issue in this case is the identity of the shooter....

‘Nun 2’ narrowly edges ‘A Haunting in Venice’ over quiet weekend in movie theaters

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — “The Nun 2” and “A Haunting in Venice” virtually tied for the No. 1 spot in U.S. and Canadian theaters over the weekend, with a slight edge carrying the horror sequel over the Hercule Poirot mystery, according to studio estimates Sunday. In its second weekend of release, Warner Bros.’ “The Nun 2,” a spinoff from the studio’s lucrative “Conjuring” franchise, grossed $14.7 million. If numbers hold, that will give “The Nun 2” (up to $56.5 million total and $158.8 million worldwide) the top spot at the box office for the second straight week. Very close behind was “A Haunting in Venice,” Kenneth Branagh’s third Agatha Christie adaptation following 2017’s “Murder on the Orient Express” and 2022’s “Death on the Nile.” It opened with $14.5 million. Final box-office figures will be released Monday. After the successful run of “Murder on the Orient Express” ($352.8 million worldwide against a production budget of $55 million) and the less-s...

Why humans can’t trust AI: You don’t know how it works, what it’s going to do or whether it’ll serve your interests

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

(The Conversation) - There are alien minds among us. Not the little green men of science fiction, but the alien minds that power the facial recognition in your smartphone, determine your creditworthiness and write poetry and computer code. These alien minds are artificial intelligence systems, the ghost in the machine that you encounter daily.But AI systems have a significant limitation: Many of their inner workings are impenetrable, making them fundamentally unexplainable and unpredictable. Furthermore, constructing AI systems that behave in ways that people expect is a significant challenge.If you fundamentally don’t understand something as unpredictable as AI, how can you trust it?Why AI is unpredictableTrust is grounded in predictability. It depends on your ability to anticipate the behavior of others. If you trust someone and they don’t do what you expect, then your perception of their trustworthiness diminishes.Many AI systems are built on deep learning&nbs...

What's with all the student driver stickers?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (WXIN) — Have you noticed an increase in bumper stickers asking you please be patient, student driver? It appears the trend is similar in communities across the country. These commonly yellow stickers seemed to be plastered on all sorts of vehicles, and often times the people behind the wheel don't appear to be fresh-faced drivers still learning the rules of the road. So, what's the deal? A search online will show people in cities throughout the United States asking the same question: Are there really this many student drivers on the road? Or is there some other movement around plastering the yellow sticker on your bumper? "I swear in the last 6-10 months I've seen an insane amount of "'student driver, be patient' stickers," a Portland driver said on Reddit. In a separate Reddit discussion, a Colorado driver sounded off about seeing an increase in student driver stickers and motorists from other parts of the U.S. chimed in with similar observations. "Whenever I see some...

High school secretary in Texas accused of performing sexual acts on student, docs show

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

MISSION, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A secretary for the assistant principal was arrested after allegedly performing sexual acts on a student, documents show.Samantha Lee Carranza was arrested on charges of sexual assault of a child and improper relationship between an educator and student, according to Hidalgo County Jail records.According to a probable cause affidavit, on Sept. 1, an officer was informed that a 16-year-old student wanted to file a police report.The officer escorted the student to the main building, with the student saying he did not want to be seen by a "teacher" who was in the assistant principal's office.The student said that on Aug. 31, during lunch period, he went to the assistant principal's office to borrow a cell phone charger. There he asked the assistant principal's secretary, identified as Carranza, to which she said yes.He asked her if he could take the charger and return it later, but Carranza told him to stay and charge it in the conference room, a few fe...

How a 16-year-old owns a family-run bakery in Texas

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:42 GMT

SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) — If you find yourself driving through the Texas Hill Country in Menard, Texas, you will see a brightly painted building right off the road. Walking inside, you will be greeted with smiling faces, the smell of ground coffee and the aroma of freshly baked goods. This is Texas Scratch Kitchen, a family-owned business looking to bring more than just delicious treats to their community.Joe and Amy Prest have five kids together that make up the Texas Scratch Kitchen family. The three older siblings, 16-year-old Maia, 18-year-old Zea and 14-year-old Laila Prest, were all born in England, where they were accustomed to French and European pastries made by their Nana. The two younger siblings, seven-year-old Sienna and five-year-old Jet Prest, were born in Texas.The Texas Scratch Kitchen is a Southern/European market and bakery, bringing fresh food to Menard and surrounding Texas communities. The owner, who is just old enough to get her driver's lic...