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US to require passenger vehicles to sound alarms if rear passengers don't fasten their seat belts
Adam McKay warns 'radical' Wicked could be banned by politicians in '3 to 5 years'None
AP Business SummaryBrief at 6:41 p.m. ESTWASHINGTON: The mother of Pete Hegseth , Trump's pick for secretary of defense, wrote him an email in 2018 saying he had routinely mistreated women for years and displayed a lack of character. "On behalf of all the women (and I know it's many) you have abused in some way, I say ... get some help and take an honest look at yourself," Penelope Hegseth wrote, stating that she still loved him. "I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around and uses women for his own power and ego. You are that man (and have been for years) and as your mother, it pains me and embarrasses me to say that, but it is the sad, sad truth." Penelope Hegseth, in a phone interview with The New York Times on Friday, said that she had sent her son an immediate follow-up email at the time apologising for what she had written. She said she had fired off the original email "in anger, with emotion" at a time when he and his wife were going through a very difficult divorce. In the interview, she defended her son and disavowed the sentiments she had expressed in the initial email about his character and treatment of women. "It is not true. It has never been true," she said. She added: "I know my son. He is a good father, husband." She said that publishing the contents of the first email was "disgusting." Questions about Pete Hegseth's treatment of women have emerged in the weeks since Trump chose him, a veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, to lead the Pentagon. The issue could be a subject of scrutiny during Senate confirmation hearings . Reports of his infidelity have focused attention on his character and leadership, particularly for a civilian overseeing the military, where active-duty service members can be subject to prosecution for adultery under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Another issue is how the senators will view a rape complaint against Hegseth filed to police in Oct 2017 after an incident at a political conference in Monterey, California. No charges were ever brought and the complainant has not come forward publicly. Hegseth has said he was falsely accused by a woman with whom he had a consensual sexual encounter. He secretly paid her a settlement a few years later - only because, according to his lawyer, he wanted to protect his job as weekend anchor at Fox & Friends. Penelope Hegseth emailed her son on April 30, 2018, during a turbulent period in his life. He was in the middle of a contentious divorce from his second wife, Samantha, the mother of three of his children. Samantha Hegseth filed for divorce after her husband impregnated a co-worker, part of a pattern of adultery that dated back to his first marriage. Pete Hegseth's mother wrote in the email that she was upset about his treatment of Samantha, writing: "For you to try to label her as 'unstable' for your own advantage is despicable and abusive. Is there any sense of decency left in you?" "She did not ask for or deserve any of what has come to her by your hand," she said. "Neither did Meredith," Penelope Hegseth added, referring to his first wife. Hegseth forwarded a copy of her email to Samantha the same night she sent it to her son. The NYT obtained a copy of the email from another person with ties to the Hegseth family. Hegseth told the daily on Friday she would consider providing with her apologetic follow-up email to her son but did not immediately do so.
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HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania conceded his reelection bid to Republican David McCormick on Thursday, as a statewide recount showed no signs of closing the gap and his campaign suffered repeated blows in court in its effort to get potentially favorable ballots counted. Casey’s concession comes more than two weeks after Election Day, as a grindingly slow ballot-counting process became a spectacle of hours-long election board meetings, social media outrage, lawsuits and accusations that some county officials were openly flouting the law. Republicans had been claiming that Democrats were trying to steal McCormick’s seat by counting “illegal votes.” Casey’s campaign had accused of Republicans of trying to block enough votes to prevent him from pulling ahead and winning. In a statement, Casey said he had just called McCormick to congratulate him. “As the first count of ballots is completed, Pennsylvanians can move forward with the knowledge that their voices were heard, whether their vote was the first to be counted or the last," Casey said. The Associated Press called the race for McCormick on Nov. 7, concluding that not enough ballots remained to be counted in areas Casey was winning for him to take the lead. As of Thursday, McCormick led by about 16,000 votes out of almost 7 million ballots counted. That was well within the 0.5% margin threshold to trigger an automatic statewide recount under Pennsylvania law. But no election official expected a recount to change more than a couple hundred votes or so, and Pennsylvania's highest court dealt him a blow when it refused entreaties to allow counties to count mail-in ballots that lacked a correct handwritten date on the return envelope. Republicans will have a 53-47 majority next year in the U.S. Senate. Follow Marc Levy at twitter.com/timelywriter
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The India’s government organisation dedicated to developing technologies for exploring and harnessing ocean resources has been exploring parts of the Indian Ocean for the last few years. In October, the National Institute of Ocean Technology conducted a successful exploratory mining trial in the Andaman Sea, between India’s Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Myanmar, for obtaining polymetallic nodules from the seabed. This trial followed surveys and identification of polymetallic nodules within the country’s exclusive economic zone by the Geological Survey of India. The Indian government has rights to explore this area in the sea, which extends approximately 200 nautical miles from the coast, for resources. The area includes the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea, and the Lakshadweep Island group in the Laccadive Sea. The scientists at National Institute of Ocean Technology, under India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences, employed a machine called Varaha-3, specially designed for this location. “A machine was developed that can withstand the rigors in the Andaman Sea with it being a rocky area, very unlike the soft soil found at the abyssal plain, and also mine with minimal environmental impact,” said a senior scientist from the deep-sea mining team at National Institute of Ocean Technology, who asked not to be named citing a team effort. Varaha-3 weighs six to seven tons under water and has a comb-type collector mechanism to pick up nodules embedded in the sea floor. What are polymetallic nodules? The ocean bed has tons of potato-sized rocks, formed over millions of years, called polymetallic nodules. Proponents of deep-sea mining say these nodules, which contain cobalt, copper, nickel and manganese, among other metals, will be vital for the production of batteries in electronics and electric cars, solar panels and wind turbines, and aid in the energy transition process. While India’s previous trial in the central Indian Ocean was with another model called Varaha-1 at a test depth of about 5,270 meters (17,290 feet), Varaha-3, with similar electrical and hydraulic systems, was operated at a depth of 1,200 m (3,940 ft) in India’s exclusive economic zone. It collected nodules that ranged in size from 60 to 120 millimetres (2.36 to 4.72 inches). As the next step, after a more comprehensive survey of the mineable areas in collaboration with Geological Survey of India, the National Institute of Ocean Technology plans for another trial in the Andaman Sea in 2025. According to the deep-sea mining team, this attempt is aimed at proving the technology and the engineering system for collecting and transiting the nodules to the surface. Varaha-3 being deployed in the Andaman Sea for an exploratory mining trial. Image courtesy of NIOT, via Mongabay. Deep-sea mining progress Even as the International Seabed Authority, responsible for the seabed mining policies, is yet to finalise the mining code for exploitation or commercial purposes, countries or parties with exploratory licenses have been conducting mining trials in international waters. Some national governments and mining companies plan to begin mining as soon as possible, which could be within the next few years. The International Seabed Authority has allocated 75,000 sq km (29,000 square miles) in the central Indian Ocean – an area almost 50 times the size of London – to India for conducting exploratory mining. The Geological Survey of India has also been exploring India’s exclusive economic zone, in the Andaman Sea and Arabian Sea, to locate polymetallic nodules, and it states that surveys to find more occurrences will continue. The country’s Deep Ocean Mission , at an estimated cost of $483 million, also mentions the development of deep-sea mining technologies as one of its key components. While the National Institute of Ocean Technology improves on the mining system, the Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology is also working on the technology to extract minerals from polymetallic nodules. It is evident that India is gearing up to harness deep-sea minerals. “With respect to the technology readiness level of India’s deep-sea mining system, we still have more steps to complete. We are conducting studies, fixing the configuration, and, as we get more information, we are improving the design and making it environment-friendly and efficient,” the National Institute of Ocean Technology scientist said. “While the trials are conducted in the sea, the plan is to have a complete system for collecting the nodules, sizing and pumping them up to the surface. The separated water thereafter would be disposed responsibly with minimal impact on the environment, adhering to the global standards.” The team expects to complete the work in the next few years. Nodules and rock pieces collected from Seawell Rise in the Andaman Sea. Image courtesy of NIOT, via Mongabay. New studies The resistance to deep-sea mining is simultaneously at an all-time high, globally. More than 900 scientists and policy experts have recommended a pause on deep-sea mining, citing the stress and impact of seabed mining on the marine ecosystem and biodiversity. “Within just two years, 32 countries have announced their commitment to a precautionary pause or moratorium,” said Sofia Tsenikli, from Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, an alliance of organisations working to promote the conservation of biodiversity on the high seas. “In addition to states, financial institutions representing trillions of dollars, automakers, battery companies, fishing groups, Indigenous communities, human rights and climate activists, youth, and others from all walks of life, are recognising that our planet does not need deep-sea mining and are calling for a moratorium. The message is crystal clear: humanity must find harmony with nature.” Earlier this year, a study published in Nature Geoscience found that dark oxygen is produced at the abyssal seafloor where polymetallic nodules abound in the Clarion Clipperton Zone of the Pacific Ocean. The study, funded by Canada-based The Metals Company, which aims to mine polymetallic nodules in the Clarion Clipperton Zon, started debates within the scientific community. Independent researchers and mining companies voiced their scepticism and critiques . However, the study also highlighted how little we know and understand about the deep sea. Deep-Sea Mining and the Water Column , a book published earlier this year, edited by deep-sea mining consultant and former chief scientist at India’s National Institute of Oceanography Rahul Sharma, spotlights the impact of plumes and waste discharged from mining operations in the water column . In another book published in 2022, Sharma outlines the likely environmental impacts of deep-sea mining, which include the potential mortality of zooplankton species at mid-water depths. Another study published last year in Current Biology found that an estimated 88%-92% of species in the Clarion Clipperton Zone region remain undescribed. Researchers have foregrounded the impact of mining on benthic ecosystems and the stress from noise pollution caused by mining. With each new study, scientists uncover previously unknown species and complex interconnections within these ecosystems. Some ecologists worry that mining in these areas could destroy habitats before we even know what lives there, and before we understand their roles in the ecosystem or their potential benefits to humanity. “There is consensus among independent scientists that there is currently no way to avoid irreversible and permanent damage to deep-sea species and ecosystems if deep-sea mining were to go ahead,” Tsenikli said. An underwater image from Andaman, India. Credit: Debel Das via Pexels, in public domain. The decade of the ocean As the world inches towards the halfway mark of the United Nations Ocean Decade (2021-2030), those in favor of deep-sea mining explorations recall the mission of “transformative ocean science solutions for sustainable development, connecting people and our ocean”. The Ocean Decade aims to both conserve and sustainably use the oceans and marine resources. “Any scientific research is an ongoing exercise,” Sharma told Mongabay India . “The awareness about the environmental impacts of mining is increasing. So, the technologists are becoming conscious and are designing systems that minimize the environmental impact. Right now, we are testing the pre-pilot mining systems, and the emphasis is already about minimising the interaction on the seabed. India is headed in the right direction.” One of the main concerns of ecologists is the discharge of wastewater after the nodules are pumped up to the surface and sorted. “It is preferred that the wastewater be discharged as close to the seabed as possible. The discharge should be done below the oxygen minimum zone, the depth where the oxygen saturation is the lowest, to avoid impacting many mammals and benthic ecosystems,” Sharma said. Nodules being picked up by deep-sea mining machine Varaha-3. Image courtesy of NIOT, via Mongabay. A call for a moratorium is “a regressive step”, he said. “The world must decide for itself whether it needs the resources for the future. While we don’t yet have the data for what impact long-term seabed mining would have, we do have benthic impact studies and results from exploration trials. Modeling systems can be used [to] calculate the impacts of long-term commercial mining.” Meanwhile, the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition sees a pivotal shift in the recent International Seabed Authority meetings. “The ISA is no longer operating in a bubble. Heads of state, scientists, Indigenous leaders, youth are now coming to the ISA and demanding the Authority prioritises precaution and science over mining interests,” Tsenikli said. “The DSCC looks forward to Leticia Carvalho taking charge as the new Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority in January 2025, and hope to see transparency, sustainability and science become central to her reign of the institution that is responsible for the common heritage of humankind.” This article was first published on Mongabay .
