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Things to do in Auckland this weekend: Christmas events, art and a celebration of Thai cultureWho is the man suspected of shooting insurance CEO dead?
Guessing game over Trump's Treasury pick adds to US bond market's negative mood
The Indiana vs. Notre Dame matchup in the first round of the College Football Playoff is the most expensive ticket on StubHub, but it's Tennessee vs. Ohio State that's selling the fastest. StubHub spokesperson Adam Budelli said Monday that the game being hosted in Columbus, Ohio, on Dec. 21 has sold 34% more tickets than the game in South Bend, Indiana, on Dec. 20. “The expanded college football playoffs are seeing early high demand, especially as we see new teams enter the competition for the first time,” Budelli said. StubHub lists tickets for sale from official event organizers, but most of its offerings are from the resale market. Here's the ticket marketplace's average CFP first-round prices as of Monday evening: 1. Indiana at Notre Dame — $733 2. Clemson at Texas — $518 3. Tennessee at Ohio State — $413 4. SMU at Penn State — $271 Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-footballLAKE PLACID — Lake Placid is the intended Plan B host site for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games sliding sports if the century-old Italian sliding track in Cortina d’Ampezzo is not completed by March 2025, according to state Olympic Regional Development Authority Communications Director Darcy Rowe Norfolk. ORDA has entered a “targeted dialogue” with the 2026 Milano-Cortina Organizing Committee, and will further develop the Plan B back-up plan for the sliding events. Lake Placid will now engage with stakeholders and partners to formalize the bid proposal into a detailed plan. “So now we’re going to dig in and start to detail out the proposal to formalize a plan, and that will take obviously more dialogue with Milanoo-Cortina, as well as our partners here to further that,” Norfolk said. WORKING IN PARALLEL This does not guarantee that Lake Placid will host the three sliding sports — bobsled, luge and skeleton — during the upcoming Olympic Winter Games, as work on the Cortina Sliding Centre is progressing rapidly, according to ORDA. The Milanoo Cortina 2026 Organizing Committee is “confident” that the Italian track will be completed on time. However, the Organizing Committee has always stated that it is working in parallel, according to the IOC, to identify a Plan B. The Associated Press reported last month that the Cortina Sliding Centre is progressing quickly, and begun to take shape. “The work has accelerated,” government commissioner Fabio Saldini told The Associated Press in November following a visit by International Olympic Committee technicians. “The timeline is being respected.” Norfolk said they’ve received similar feedback. “But, the IOC did step in, and wanted to ensure that they had a backup. Because obviously, back then when we proposed, there wasn’t a construction company in place nor had they even started construction,” she said. “The feedback that we are getting from them (now) is that they are progressing rapidly and they’re confident in the work and that it will be completed on time.” LP-NY BID The Milano-Cortina Organizing committee officially signed a contract on Feb. 2 with Parma-based construction company Impresa Pizzarotti & C. to rebuild a century-old bobsled track in Cortina d’Ampezzo, which closed in 2008. The Cortina track still needs to be certified by the IOC in March to be approved for use in the Feb. 6-22, 2026 games. No modern sliding track has been built in such a short timeframe. The Lake Placid-New York state bid was chosen over two other potential host sites — St. Moritz, Switzerland and Igls/Innbruck, Austria — as Plan B options. ORDA wasn’t given a specific reason as to what made its bid stand out above the other two candidates, but Norfolk said the Milano-Cortina commitee believed it was excellent and appreciated the time that they put into it. “I think what this showcases is not only that we do we have a competitive venue, and it’s regarded as fair play and a place where athletes thrive,” she said. “It’s a good location for Olympic events.” Norfolk pointed to the number of events that Mount Van Hoevenberg has hosted and is planning to host in the future, including the upcoming IBSF Bobsled and Skeleton World Championships in March. “We execute a number of major events, we expanded contractually with partners and we’re a reliable partner that other organizations can rely on and lean on that actually is versed in hosting events,” she said. “Well, in particular, sliding events.” While the Plan B site might not need to be activated, Norfolk said it’s still an honor. It showcases what ORDA does and the continued Olympic spirit that resonates here in Lake Placid and the state as a whole. “For decades, New York State’s commitment to winter sports has kept the Olympic flame burning bright in Lake Placid,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement. “This is a testament to the investment in the legacy that we continue to provide Lake Placid and the Olympic Movement. New York State is honored to be selected, and we will work closely with Fondazione Milanoo Cortina to discuss the planning in a detailed manner to stage the Plan B back up plan.”Researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the University of Shanghai for Science have successfully developed a new robot that uses traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) techniques to give massages. This new robot could eventually find a place in healthcare, wellness, and rehabilitation facilities as an additional patient therapeutic tool. “We adopt an adaptive admittance control algorithm to optimize force and position control, ensuring safety and comfort,” wrote Yuan Xu, Kui Huang, Weichao Guo, and Leyi Du in their paper published in the journal arXiv . “The paper analyzes key TCM techniques from kinematic and dynamic perspectives and designs robotic systems to reproduce these massage techniques,” they added. The as-yet-unnamed robot uses jaka zhu7 robotic arms, each with a multi-functional massage hand installed at their ends. These “hands” have been meticulously designed to mimic the approximate size and shape of a human hand. Chinese TCM-trained robot masseuse According to the team, the robot’s hands have four operation modes, each emulating different TCM massage techniques , such as the concept of zang-fu organs and meridians. To this end, the hands can perform palm punch, vibration, kneading, and finger technique function modules. Each function requires different hardware tools to perform tasks like turning the hand into a fist or providing directed vibration to an area. Others, like the kneading function, employ a specially designed “kneading motor” that allows the robot to “pinch” the user’s back. “We adopted a compliance control algorithm based on adaptive admittance control, aiming to optimize force and position control to address challenges such as patient posture changes and muscle stiffness differences, ensuring the safety and comfort of the massage process,” wrote Xu, Huang, and their colleagues. “Furthermore, combining massage techniques, this paper conducts an in-depth analysis of several typical massage methods from the kinematic and dynamic perspectives, designs corresponding mechanical massage hands, and uses robotic technology to replicate and automate these traditional techniques.” To develop their new masseuse robot, the team first had to observe and collect data from expert TCM massage therapists. This was done using a combination of motion capture and pressure sensors. This data was then used to train a machine-learning algorithm that would ultimately form the basis of the “brain” of the new robot. Yet to be tested on people “Through the introduction of these technologies, this paper provides theoretical support and practical guidance for the robotic implementation of massage techniques, promoting the integration of traditional Chinese massage with modern robotics and opening up new application prospects for assistive therapeutic methods,” explained Xu, Huang, and their colleagues. The team also tested their robot design in the real world to assess its ability to replicate different TCM massage techniques accurately. The results confirmed that the robot effectively performed its four primary massage techniques. The team hopes to test the robot on human users to assess its ability further and gauge how humans respond to it. They hope that this study will encourage further research into automated massage systems, potentially encompassing other massage styles as well. The complete study can be found in the journal arXiv .
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The 44-year-old Loggains replaces Shawn Clark, who was fired Monday after the Mountaineers finished 5-6 for their first losing season since 2013. Loggains was South Carolina's offensive coordinator for two seasons and an assistant at Arkansas, his alma mater, for two seasons before that. He spent 16 years in the NFL as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for Tennessee, Cleveland, Chicago, Miami and the New York Jets. “He brings experience as a leader and play-caller at the highest levels of professional and college football," Gillin said. "He is a great recruiter and believes strongly in building relationships. He is aligned with our core values of academic integrity, competitive excellence, social responsibility and world-class experience. This is a great day for App State.” Loggains' offense at South Carolina featured LaNorris Sellers, one of the nation's top dual-threat quarterbacks, and running back Raheim “Rocket” Sanders. Sellers and Sanders led the Southeastern Conference's third-ranked rushing offense. Loggains spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons as Arkansas' tight ends coach, and he worked with Sam Darnold, Jay Cutler, Mitchell Trubisky, Brian Hoyer and Vince Young during his time in the NFL. The Mountaineers, the preseason favorites in the Sun Belt Conference's East Division, tied for fifth with a 3-5 record in league play. App State was 40-24 under Clark, but the Mountaineers have failed to reach a bowl game two of the past three seasons. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-footballMyles Rice scores 18 to lead Indiana to 77-68 victory over Winthrop
No. 5 Alabama has a reputation as 3-point gunners, but it's defense and rebounding that have become a focus as the Tide welcome South Dakota State to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to end the 2024 calendar year. Alabama (10-2) is frequently thought of as an offensive 3-point shooting free-for-all program, but Nate Oats' 2024-25 squad has thrived largely on the basis of inside play. The Tide are shooting 62.2 percent on their two-point attempts and grab 45 rebounds per game, each figure placing the team among the national leaders in those categories. Alabama does still shoot an average of 31 3-point shots per game, again one of the nation's highest totals. But so far, Alabama's 31.2 percent connection rate is very ordinary. But connecting inside and owning the glass has held benefits for Alabama. Meanwhile, defense has concerned Oats, particularly coming off a 97-90 win over North Dakota on Dec. 18. Oats issued warnings about players losing spots in the rotation if defensive execution didn't improve. Alabama passed the first post-North Dakota test in an 81-54 win over Kent State on Sunday. "We did make a big point of emphasis on defense, especially after that debacle up in North Dakota," said Oats after the Kent State victory. "It was a much better defensive effort, so it will be a lot better Christmas break for us." Alabama won the rebounding battle over Kent State 60-40, although Oats contended that the Tide "gave up too many second-chance points." Alabama made 72 percent of its two-point attempts even as just 9 of 35 3-point attempts connected. Alabama has battled personnel uncertainty early in the season. An Achilles injury ended the season of guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. just as transfer Chris Youngblood was preparing to return from an ankle injury. The Tide have 11 players averaging double-digit minutes and eight averaging 7.4 points per game or better, led by super senior guard Mark Sears with 17.8 ppg. Super senior forward Grant Nelson remains a key player, leading the Tide with 8.7 rebounds per game while adding 12.8 ppg. Meanwhile, South Dakota State (9-5) will pin its upset hopes largely on Aussie transfer Oscar Cluff. A 6-foot-11 senior who transferred in from Washington State, Cluff has averaged 16.6 points and 10.8 rebounds per game. Cluff is connecting on 71.4 percent of his shot attempts. He's also shooting 79.2 percent at the foul line and has stabilized a young Jackrabbits team with four freshmen among the top seven scorers. "Oscar's just built the right way," said coach Eric Henderson. "We have probably played through the post more than any other team in the country the last five years and we just felt like we needed a big man that had some experience and boy does he ever." Cluff had a streak of five straight double-doubles, but that ended in recent losses to Nevada and Colorado. The Jackrabbits won 87-72 over Chadron State in their last game on Dec. 19. --Field Level MediaCole Anthony hit the game-winning basket with 1.3 seconds left to cap a furious rally as the host Orlando Magic erased a 21-point deficit and completed a season sweep of the Brooklyn Nets with a 102-101 victory on Sunday. The Magic ended their fourth win over the Nets this season on a 22-4 run over the final 7:16 and capped the comeback on Anthony's dramatic shot. After Jalen Wilson sank two free throws with 6.2 seconds left, Orlando called its final timeout. Rookie Tristan da Silva inbounded to Anthony from the left sideline and the guard moved to the basket. Anthony got by Keon Johnson and Simmons and hit an uncontested stepback four-foot jumper. After Anthony's clutch shot, Da Silva blanketed Cam Thomas at the left corner as the Brooklyn guard missed a 3-point try at the horn. da Silva led the Magic with 21 points to go along with seven assists and six rebounds. Goga Bitadze collected 11 rebounds and added 19 points, including a free throw that gave Orlando its first lead since the opening quarter with 17.7 seconds left. Caleb Houstan hit two 3s in the comeback and added 12 while fellow reserve Anthony contributed 10. Anthony did not play in the first half but replaced Jalen Suggs, who exited at halftime with a sprained wrist. Thomas returned from a hamstring injury and led all scorers with 25 off the bench but the Nets did not make a field goal in the final 7:16 and lost for the 10th time in 13 games. Wilson added 16 and Keon Johnson contributed 14 as the Nets also lost Cameron Johnson to a sore left hip after the third. The Nets took the loss after trading Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton to the Los Angeles Lakers for D'Angelo Russell and Maxwell Lewis. After taking a 61-43 lead by halftime, the Nets held a 71-50 lead when Keon Johnson hit three free throws with 7:55 left in the third. Thomas scored Brooklyn's final six points of the third to give the Nets an 83-68 lead into the fourth and Wilson sank three triples in a span of 47 seconds to up the lead to 97-80 before Orlando stormed back. --Field Level Media
Insurgents reach gates of Syria’s capital, threatening to upend decades of Assad ruleSir Keir Starmer has led a host of tributes to former US president Jimmy Carter, saying he “redefined the post-presidency with a remarkable commitment to social justice and human rights at home and abroad”. The Prime Minister said Mr Carter, who died aged 100, will be remembered for the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt, as well as his “decades of selfless public service”. He added that it was the Democrat’s “lifelong dedication to peace” that led to him receiving the Nobel Peace prize in 2002. Very sorry to hear of President Carter’s passing. I pay tribute to his decades of selfless public service. My thoughts are with his family and friends at this time. pic.twitter.com/IaKmZcteb1 — Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) December 29, 2024 Sir Keir was joined in paying tribute to the 39th president by other leaders including the King, current President Joe Biden, Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey and former PM Tony Blair. The King remembered former US president Jimmy Carter’s 1977 visit to the UK with “great fondness” and praised his “dedication and humility”. In a message to Mr Biden and the American people, Charles said: “It was with great sadness that I learned of the death of President Carter. “He was a committed public servant, and devoted his life to promoting peace and human rights. “His dedication and humility served as an inspiration to many, and I remember with great fondness his visit to the United Kingdom in 1977. “My thoughts and prayers are with President Carter’s family and the American people at this time.” Mr Biden said that Mr Carter was an “extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian”. He said his fellow Democrat was a “dear friend”, as he announced that he will order a state funeral to be held for him in Washington DC. “Today, America and the world lost an extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian,” he said. “Over six decades, we had the honour of calling Jimmy Carter a dear friend. But, what’s extraordinary about Jimmy Carter though is that millions of people throughout America and the world who never met him thought of him as a dear friend as well. “With his compassion and moral clarity, he worked to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil rights and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless, and always advocate for the least among us. He saved, lifted and changed the lives of people all across the globe. “He was a man of great character and courage, hope and optimism.” Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said Mr Carter “will be remembered for generations”. “Jimmy Carter was an inspiration,” Mr Davey wrote on X. “He led a truly remarkable life dedicated to public service with a genuine care for people. “My thoughts are with his family, friends and all those who loved him. He will be remembered for generations.” Mr Blair said: “Jimmy Carter’s life was a testament to public service; from his time in office, and the Camp David Accords, to his remarkable commitment to the cause of people and peace round the world over the past 40 years,” he said. “I always had the greatest respect for him, his spirit and his dedication. He fundamentally cared and consistently toiled to help those in need.”Syrian government services come to a 'complete halt' as state workers stay home
ST. THOMAS, Virgin Islands (AP) — Michael Christmas scored 15 points as Longwood beat UAB 89-81 on Friday for its sixth straight victory. Christmas shot 4 of 6 from the field and 6 for 6 from the line for the Lancers (6-0). Kyrell Luc scored 14 points and added five rebounds. Colby Garland had 12 points and shot 5 of 10 from the field and 2 of 3 from the free-throw line. The Blazers (3-3) were led in scoring by Yaxel Lendeborg, who finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Ja'Borri McGhee added 16 points and four assists for UAB. Christian Coleman also had 14 points. Longwood was tied with UAB at the half, 43-43, with Luc (eight points) its high scorer before the break. Longwood took the lead for good with 1:55 remaining on a jump shot from Luc to make it 80-78. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .Calzada TD to Alexander sends Incarnate Word to FCS quarterfinal with win over Villanova
By Danielle AbrilThe Washington Post Rising social media start-up Bluesky reached more than 25 million users in recent months, at one point adding a million users a day. Behind the scenes is a small team of 20 people – who all work remotely. Bluesky, which evolved from a Twitter research project to an independent entity in 2022, chose remote work because it needed specialized engineers from North America and abroad, its executives say. Employees write proposals that the team debates, looking for holes in ideas. They gather in person one week a quarter and in smaller groups throughout the year to foster collaboration. “When somebody tosses out an idea, I say, ‘Write a proposal!’” said Paul Frazee, Bluesky’s chief technology officer, who said the company’s way of working makes him confident in remote work indefinitely. “In some ways, this was the only way we could do this,” added Rose Wang, Bluesky’s chief operations officer. Almost five years after the pandemic forced many to work remotely or hybrid, companies across the country are wrestling with what works for their cultures, workforces and future. Some are enforcing five-day office mandates, arguing that innovation, collaboration and productivity are best accomplished in person. But others are reinventing how work gets done after doubling down on remote and hybrid models. In November, the share of people working fully on-site had decreased 2.8 percentage points from 79.5 percent during the same time last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Those who worked remotely, at least part time, also jumped 2.8 percentage points from 20.5 percent. The debate over work flexibility continues to ignite controversy, spurring employee protests, legal filings and even resignations. While companies implementing office mandates say they improve performance, a recent Gallup poll found that a majority of workers prefer hybrid work, saying it reduces burnout, improves productivity and encourages work-life balance. Companies that recently required workers to return to the office five days a week have garnered attention, including Amazon, whose founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post. The Post is also asking workers to return to the office five days a week. Goldman Sachs’ CEO David Solomon, one of the first to call workers back full time in 2021, also cited innovation and collaboration as reasons for the mandate. President-elect Donald Trump has also said he’ll call federal workers back to the office five days a week. “We’ve observed that it’s easier for our teammates to learn, model, practice, and strengthen our culture; collaborating, brainstorming, and inventing are simpler and more effective; teaching and learning from one another are more seamless; and, teams tend to be better connected to one another,” Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said when announcing the policy in September. Asked to provide a comment for this story, Amazon pointed to Jassy’s announcement. Goldman Sachs declined to comment. Related Articles Companies that embrace hybrid and remote work options tend to be highly online and have workers whose jobs don’t necessarily depend on location like those in blue-collar and health-care positions do. They acknowledge that it takes effort to rethink structure, communication, physical space and access to documents and colleagues. Some downsized their office footprint and invested the savings in helping teams gather when it makes most sense. They also say it can be a challenge to maintain momentum, align goals, foster communication, promote mentoring and support people’s sense of belonging. For Pinterest, the focus on changing how managers supervise and support became critical, said Sara Phillips-Broadhurst, the company’s senior director of people strategy and innovation. So offering managers new training has been key. Atlassian, a collaboration software company, determined it needed a way for everyone to better align on goals. So every Friday, teams create a tweet-length update on every goal and project for leaders and other teams to review the following Monday. “It gives the whole company the chance to understand what’s happening at any given time,” said Annie Dean, vice president of Atlassian’s Team Anywhere, the organization charged with overseeing distributed work. “So many problems companies have are because of silos.” Despite initial challenges, Kai Swavely, senior director of people technology at Pinterest, said the company’s policy called PinFlex, which allows workers to choose where they work if their jobs can be done anywhere, has helped expand its ability to innovate. After making its annual hackathon virtual in 2023, that year’s winning idea came from a Pinterest employee outside the United States and brought together departments to develop an internally “beloved” tool that helps workers find information. “Before the pandemic, you had to be in San Francisco to participate,” she said. “There was an unrealized limitation of time zone, country and teams you had never been exposed to.” The key to doing the best work in distributed environments is guidance and experimentation, Phillips-Broadhurst said. That includes tasking leaders with being intentional about asking employees to meet in person. It also means using a mix of traditional internal information hubs, messaging apps and emerging tech such as artificial intelligence for support. Atlassian reduced its office footprint and reinvested the savings in bringing employees together. It has a culture of documentation, using shared documents, messaging systems and video to help employees capture meetings and comments and collaborate even though they may work at different times. “It doesn’t make sense to me, in the age of AI, our focus is being spent on where people sit,” Dean said. “We have to intentionally design the new way forward.” Earlier this year, Atlassian released Rovo, its first AI product built and shipped within six months, marking the fastest product development at the company to date. Atlassian was able to move about 200 employees to the project and hire 200 more within that time frame. Most meetings were recorded and documented, and the shared goals and progress tracking made it possible to move faster, said Jamil Valliani, Atlassian vice president and head of AI products. “At first, it was like, ‘I have to write more?’” he said. “If you approach it that way, then of course you’re going to see nothing but problems. You’re not going to see that you increase your reach.” Allowing employees to work remotely also has helped Yelp become more efficient, said Craig Saldanha, chief product officer. About 87 percent of workers said they were more productive, he said. With the new model, Yelp brings new features to market 60 percent faster, Saldanha said. A lot of the efficiency, he said, came from formalizing processes already happening on an ad hoc basis. In distributed environments, being clear about goals and expectations impacts the efficiency of the team. Related Articles “What came during the pandemic was this realization that innovation comes from clarity rather than proximity,” he said. The ability for people to collaborate across teams and geographies has allowed people to innovate in ways that didn’t happen before, Saldanha said. For example, Yelp’s new AI assistant came from a group of distributed engineers who developed the idea during an online hackathon. Airbnb is also experiencing a jump in productivity, which Iain Roberts, head of people and culture, credits in part to the company’s flexible work policy. Airbnb has released 535 updates in the past three years, and the scale of each launch has increased every year, he said. Strategic gatherings, guidelines and specially designed spaces have helped the company navigate the new environment. “Our employees feel that the model works for them, and we’re able to achieve more,” he said. Those are the “leading indicators that this is working.” For H&R Block, which changed its initial office plan to allow people to work remotely part time, company data showed collaboration, employee engagement and productivity had not declined in remote work, said Tiffany Monroe, H&R Block’s chief people and culture officer. So H&R Block created a playbook that offered tips for managing distributed work, including when to host meetings or check in with direct reports, where documents are stored, and what tools to use for collaboration and communication. It also hosted trainings and question-and-answer sessions. “When we see things that may be shifting, as leaders, we shift,” Monroe said, adding that innovation won’t suffer if companies try “to be more thoughtful.” Nicholas Bloom, a Stanford University economics professor who studies remote work, said flexible work can allow companies to get better talent by investing in people rather than spaces. It also gives workers more time for deep thinking that can lead to better results, though he suggests companies should also ensure workers spend some time together in person. Deborah Lovich, future of work fellow at Boston Consulting Group’s Henderson Institute think tank, said many companies prefer the office-based model of working because it’s familiar, even though the pandemic showed that remote or hybrid models can be successful. In her view, those companies are becoming less employee-centric, to their detriment. “It completely demoralizes your talent,” she said. “There’s nothing that says ‘I don’t trust you’ like an RTO mandate – other than an RTO mandate tracking badge swipes.”Jimmy Carter passes at 100Exela Technologies Inc. stock remains steady Monday, still outperforms market
ZURICH — Saudi Arabia was officially confirmed Wednesday by FIFA as host of the 2034 World Cup in men's soccer, giving the oil-rich kingdom its biggest prize yet for massive spending on global sports driven by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Saudi bid was the only candidate and was acclaimed by the applause of more than 200 FIFA member federations. They took part remotely in an online meeting hosted in Zurich by the soccer body's president Gianni Infantino. "The vote of the congress is loud and clear," said Infantino, who had asked officials on a bank of screens to clap their hands at head level to show their support. The decision was combined with approving the only candidate to host the 2030 World Cup. Spain, Portugal and Morocco will co-host in a six-nation project, with Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay each getting one of the 104 games. The South American connection will mark the centenary of Uruguay hosting the first World Cup in 1930. The decisions complete a mostly opaque 15-month bid process which Infantino helped steer toward Saudi Arabia without a rival candidate, without taking questions, and which human rights groups warn will put the lives of migrant workers at risk. "We look forward to hosting an exceptional and unprecedented edition of the FIFA World Cup by harnessing our strengths and capabilities to bring joy to football fans around the world," Prince Mohammed said in a statement. FIFA and Saudi officials have said hosting the 2034 tournament can accelerate change, including more freedoms and rights for women, with Infantino on Wednesday calling the World Cup a "unique catalyst for positive social change and unity." "I fully trust our hosts to address all open points in this process, and deliver a World Cup that meets the world's expectations," the FIFA president said. An international collective of rights groups said FIFA made a "reckless decision" to approve Saudi Arabia without getting public assurances, and the Football Supporters Europe group said it was "the day football truly lost its mind." A fast-track path to victory was cleared last year by FIFA accepting the three-continent hosting plan for the 2030 World Cup. It meant only soccer federations in Asia and Oceania were eligible for the 2034 contest, and FIFA gave countries less than four weeks to declare a bid. Only Saudi Arabia did. The win will kick off a decade of scrutiny on Saudi labor laws and treatment of workers mostly from South Asia needed to help build and upgrade 15 stadiums, plus hotels and transport networks ahead of the 104-game tournament. Amnesty International said awarding the tournament to Saudi Arabia represents "a moment of great danger" for human rights. "FIFA's reckless decision to award the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia without ensuring adequate human rights protections are in place will put many lives at risk," said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International's Head of Labor Rights and Sport." One of the stadiums is planned to be 350 meters (yards) above the ground in Neom — a futuristic city that does not yet exist — and another named for the crown prince is designed to be atop a 200-meter cliff near Riyadh. During the bid campaign, FIFA has accepted limited scrutiny of Saudi Arabia's human rights record that was widely criticized this year at the United Nations. Saudi and international rights groups and activists warned FIFA it has not learned the lessons of Qatar's much-criticized preparations to host the 2022 World Cup. "At every stage of this bidding process, FIFA has shown its commitment to human rights to be a sham," Cockburn said. The kingdom plans to spend tens of billion of dollars on projects related to the World Cup as part of the crown prince's sweeping Vision 2030 project that aims to modernize Saudi society and economy. At its core is spending on sports by the $900 billion sovereign wealth operation, the Public Investment Fund, which he oversees. "It's amazing. The infrastructure, the stadiums, the conditions for the fans and everything. After what I see, I'm more convinced that 2034 will be the best World Cup ever," Cristiano Ronaldo said in a recorded package posted on X. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has been part of Saudi Arabia's lavish spending on soccer — stunning the sport when agreeing to sign for Al Nassr in 2022 for a record-breaking salary reportedly worth up to $200 million a year. Critics have accused Saudi Arabia of "sportswashing" the kingdom's reputation. The prince, known as MBS, has built close working ties to Infantino since 2017 — aligning with the organizer of sport's most-watched event rather than directly confronting the established system as it did with the disruptive LIV Golf project. The result for Saudi Arabia and FIFA has been smooth progress toward the win Wednesday with limited pushback from soccer officials, though some from women international players. The steady flow of Saudi cash into international soccer is set to increase. FIFA created a new and higher World Cup sponsor category for state oil firm Aramco, and Saudi funding is set to underwrite the 2025 Club World Cup in the United States that is a pet project for Infantino. North American soccer body CONCACAF signed a multi-year deal with PIF, Saudi stadiums host Super Cup games for Italy and Spain, and nearly 50 FIFA member federations have signed working agreements with Saudi counterparts. Lavish spending by PIF-owned Saudi clubs in the past two years buying and paying players – including Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Karim Benzema and Sadio Mané – put hundreds of millions of dollars into European soccer. That influence could be key in talks to agree which months to play the 2034 World Cup. The November-December slot taken by Qatar in 2022 to avoid extreme midsummer heat is complicated in 2034 by the holy month of Ramadan through mid-December and Riyadh hosting the multi-sport Asian Games. Still, January 2034 could be an option — and likely better for European clubs and leagues —after the International Olympic Committee said it saw few issues in clashing with the Salt Lake Winter Games opening Feb. 10, 2034. The IOC also has a major commercial deal with Saudi Arabia, to host the new Esports Olympics. Get local news delivered to your inbox!
NoneNew 2025 laws hit hot topics from AI in movies to rapid-fire guns
Police have named the "strong person of interest" in the shooting of UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson in New York City as 26-year-old Luigi Nicholas Mangione. Mangione was born and raised in the state of Maryland and had ties to San Francisco in California, according to New York Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny, He was arrested in Pennslyvania - the state between Maryland and New York - but his last previous address was in Honolulu, Hawaii. Mangione was arrested after he was recognised by an employee at a McDonald's restaurant in Altoona. He was "sitting there eating", Kenny added. He credited the tip to the wide circulation of a photo the New York City Police Department released of Mangione without a mask on. "Luckily, a citizen in Pennsylvania recognised our subject and called local law enforcement," Kenny said. Mangione was carrying a so-called ghost gun, a largely untraceable firearm that can be assembled at home using kits, that was likely manufactured on a 3D printer, a suppressor, as well as "multiple fraudulent IDs", including a New Jersey ID that matched the identity the suspect used to check into a New York City hostel before the shooting. Sometimes referred to as a "privately made firearm," ghost guns do not have serial numbers, making them more difficult to track and regulate. Purchasing kits to build ghost guns online does not require a background check, so buyers can also sidestep the typical requirements that might come with buying a firearm. Mangione was also carrying a handwritten document - "a three-page manifesto" - which railed against the health care industry and suggested violence is the answer, according to CNN. "We don't think there's any specific threats to other people mentioned in that document, but it does seem that he has some ill will towards corporate America," Kenny said. An official told CNN the following two quotes: "These parasites had it coming" and "I do apologize for any strife and trauma, but it had to be done," were written in the manifesto, which is currently in the possession of the Altoona Police Department. Mangione also wrote he acted alone and that he was self-funded. Family Mangione's Facebook account, which has since been deactivated, showed his hometown as Towson, near Baltimore, in the state of Maryland. According to CNN, Mangione is the grandson of Nicholas Mangione, a prominent Baltimore real estate developer, and his wife, Mary C. Mangione, a philanthropist who died last year. The Mangione family owns Lorien Health Systems, a nursing home chain in Maryland, and Luigi volunteered there in 2014, according to his LinkedIn page. Mangione is registered to vote at his family's address in Cockeysville, Maryland, a Baltimore suburb, and is registered as unaffiliated with a political party, according to the state's voter registration lookup website. He is the cousin of Maryland State Delegate Nino Mangione, a Republican, the state lawmaker's office confirmed to local media. Private security guards were blocking access to the family's house on a golf club on Monday afternoon local time, CNN reported. Education Mangione was a cum laude (with distinction) graduate from the University of Pennslyvania, completing both a master's and bachelor's of science in computer engineering within four years. His concentration, or major, was in artificial intelligence, and his minor was in mathematics. The University of Pennslyvania - commonly known as UPenn or Penn - is a private Ivy League university in Philadelphia. It has an acceptance rate of 7 percent, and is ranked 11 in the QS World University Rankings 2025. Mangione was also the valedictorian at Gilman School - an all-boys independent school in Baltimore, Maryland - in 2016. Work According to LinkedIn , Mangione has been working as a data engineer at the car-buying website TrueCar - in Santa Monica, California - since November 2020. However, a company spokesperson told local media CBS News that Mangione had not worked there since 2023. Social media A person matching his name and photo had an account on Goodreads, a user-generated book review site, BBC reported. Magnione gave four stars to a text called Industrial Society and Its Future by Theodore Kaczynski - more popularly known as the Unabomber manifesto. Starting in 1978, Kaczynski carried out a bombing campaign that killed three people and injured dozens of others, until he was arrested in 1996. In his review, Mangione wrote: "When all other forms of communication fail, violence is necessary to survive. You may not like his methods, but to see things from his perspective, it's not terrorism, it's war and revolution". "Violence never solved anything' is a statement uttered by cowards and predators."' CNN reported that, in total, Mangione's GoodReads profile listed him as reading or wanting to read nearly 300 books, including a book about mental illness, a biography of the creator of the atomic bomb and Michael Pollan's popular book on the science of psychedelics. Also on GoodReads, he reported reading or wanting to read a number of books about coping with chronic back pain. His account on X that appears to belong to him features a background profile photo of what looks like an X-ray image of a spine with hardware from a surgery. Posts addressed to the X account suggest that some of Mangione's friends have been trying to get in touch with him since earlier this year. In July, one user tweeted at Mangione, "I haven't heard from you in months," urging him to respond to his wedding invitation. Three months later, another user posted, "Hey, are you ok? Nobody has heard from you in months, and apparently your family is looking for you." Coverage In a statement, UnitedHealth Group said it had received many messages of support from "patients, consumers, health care professionals, associations, government officials and other caring people". However, many people - including UnitedHealthcare customers and users of other insurance services - reacted differently, according to the BBC. It said those reactions ranged from acerbic jokes (one common quip was "thoughts and prior authorisations", an insurance-themed play on the phrase "thoughts and prayers") to commentary on the number of insurance claims rejected by UnitedHealthcare and other firms. At the extreme end, critics of the industry pointedly said they had no pity for Thompson. Some even celebrated his death. Tens of thousands of social media users mocked the death of the health insurance chief executive. A post by UnitedHealthcare's parent company mourning Thompson's death received more than 82,000 reactions as of Friday; 76,000 of them were laughing emojis. And, as NBC News reported, TikTok users who would normally leap at the chance to identify an alleged criminal had stood down during the manhunt. "I have yet to see a single video that's pounding the drum of 'we have to find him,' and that is unique," said Michael McWhorter, better known as TizzyEnt on TikTok, where he posts true crime and viral news content for his 6.7 million followers. "And in other situations of some kind of blatant violence, I would absolutely be seeing that." CNN reported some had portrayed the killer as a man enacting vigilante justice against a healthcare system they say values profits over patients' lives, which could hinder some people's motivation to report possible sightings of him. The words "delay" and "depose" were written on a live round and a shell casing linked to the shooter, CNN said, words similar to a popular phrase about the insurance industry: "delay, deny, defend".Science is meant to be logical, objective, and rooted in research and observable fact. It is how we learn and advance human knowledge. Wokeness -- and all the things that come with it -- is not rooted in facts, logic, or reason. It is based in emotions and feelings, and when it becomes the priority, it taints everything it touches. When you mix wokeness with science, you no longer get an objective discipline, but a quasi-religion. At the San Diego science museum, there's a 'Hall of Woke' demonstrating that reality. 1/🧵 Welcome to the Hall of Woke! The San Diego science museum opened its doors for December Nights and we took all the kids for the lights, food and fun. While the girls were using the restroom I was waiting in what appears to be the Hall of Woke - just outside. Get ready for... pic.twitter.com/zPoojAmQpG The post continues: Get ready for the ride. The wall was emblazoned with rainbows and portraits declaring: New Science! 'Queer and intersectional identities are revolutionizing how science gets done' Which is why 'science' says there are 57 genders, right? Or that there's no biological difference between male and female athletes? 2/ The hallway, featured a dozen of the craziest most aggressive intersectionality “science people” ever assembled. They even had a queer Sikh with a rainbow Turban: “To me, science is personal. I bring my multifaceted identity into the lab, and it informs the work I choose to do... pic.twitter.com/HWP09K7jgu Here's how intersectionality impacts science: To me, science is personal. I bring my multifaceted identity into the lab, and it informs the workI choose to do and the way in which I do it. I enjoy doing interdisciplinary work that combines different methods from neuropsychology and neuroimaging along with advanced quantitative approaches, and I think that this overall strategy comes from an understanding of individual people as layered. My expression of queerness is influenced by my Sikh values, which motivate me to be visible and work towards equity within science and beyond Science is directly at odds with equity. Nature, by design, is not equitable. You can have one or the other but not both. 3/ Then you come across the superhero known as shark-non-binary person! (They/Them pronouns on many posters). “Sharks and I share a similar story-we are both ambassadors of our own existence and we both fight against a dying world. As one of a handful of non-binary people of... pic.twitter.com/t4ndgXwDyN How does a shark-non-binary person see their role in science? As one of a handful of non-binary people of color in shark sciences, I continue to lead the way for diversity and inclusion in academia, not just out of passion, but survival. So scientific! 4/ Look, to each his/her/they/their own... but pretending that queerness informs a better scientific outcome is eye-rolling. It’s also annoying and also rans if I’m being honest. As Leftist Sam Harris notes: “With any luck, your sexuality with be the least interesting thing about... pic.twitter.com/sMgq2b6tFY Sam Harris is right on this. And, yes, believing 'queerness' helps scientific outcomes is eye-rolling: As Leftist Sam Harris notes: 'With any luck, your sexuality with be the least interesting thing about you. This next person hits all the notes of identity politics. If only she was disabled (sorry, differently abled): 'My journey to becoming a physicist wasn't easy. It took time for me to realize that if I don't fit the mold, I need to break the mold. I am a Black, Mexican, lesbian woman and proud of all the things that make me myself. My identity informs the physics that I do.' No, your identity can't 'inform' the physics you do. The formula for terminal velocity will always be the same, even if you're a Black Mexican lesbian. 5/ They couldn’t get this intersection Chief Technology Officer to smile. Based on the bio - she’s sadly angry at life it seems: “Feeling invisible in Silicon Valley and tired of suppressing the impact of repeated assaults against my Black, female, and queer identities, I decided... pic.twitter.com/vjxjprwXLX 'Repeated assaults.' Oh! Found her! The trifecta, double-ethnic lesbian disabled they/them! “I've lived my whole life outside of the status quo. I am a queer, disabled, woman of color, half Asian and half Latina. I look at each day as a chance to break down barriers and stereotypes that people hold... pic.twitter.com/M2VKqtiGJx The holy grail of intersectionality. I’m guessing this exhibit might be a few years old. I get the sense that this type of woke queer fanfare is becoming passé. Thoughts? I hid the names. I don’t want these guys to get harassed. I just find it incredibly illustrative of why the Left continues to lose Americans from... This is precisely why Americans are turning away from the Left. We hope it's become passé; that's long overdue.George Kresge Jr., who wowed talk show audiences as the The Amazing Kreskin, diesClintons urge voters agitated by today's politics to remain involved in public service
