U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met Southeast Asian foreign ministers on Thursday to seek their support in pressing North Korea to give up its nuclear and missile programs. Tillerson’s first meeting with all members of the 10-nation Association of …
Month: May 2017
Elon Musk’s SpaceX says it will begin launching Internet-providing satellites in 2019. The move was announced Wednesday by SpaceX vice president of satellite and government affairs, Patricia Cooper, in testimony before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. She …
NASA has released stunning video taken by the Cassini space probe as it took the first of its “grand finale” dives between Saturn and its rings. The images were taken April 26 as Cassini made a southerly pass over Saturn. …
The European Union’s competition watchdog says it accepts commitments made by online giant Amazon to change part of its e-book contracts to avoid fines for anti-competitive behavior. Amazon has promised not to enforce any contract clause that might oblige …
A closely watched survey indicates that economic growth across the 19-country eurozone struck a 6-year high in April. Financial information company IHS Markit says Thursday that its purchasing managers’ composite output index — a broad gauge of economic activity — …
President Donald Trump’s pick to marshal the government’s response to the opioid epidemic and assist people with mental illness doesn’t quite fit the mold of some of his other nominees. Psychiatrist Elinore McCance-Katz isn’t an outsider bent on disrupting …
Modern agriculture is feeding more people more cheaply than ever, with large-scale farms that grow just one or a few crops. But there are risks in this way of feeding the world. A new book explores how large-scale agriculture invites …
An unusual machine working in Baltimore, with more than 20,000 followers on Facebook and Twitter, has just celebrated its third birthday. Imaginatively named “Mr. Trash Wheel,” this hybrid-powered contraption is responsible for preventing the city’s trash from reaching its inner …
President Michel Temer’s proposal to reform Brazil’s costly social security system cleared a committee vote Wednesday, but the measure, deeply unpopular with voters, faces an uphill battle in the full Congress. The committee voted 23-14 to approve the constitutional amendment, …
WhatsApp, a popular messaging service owned by Facebook Inc., suffered a widespread global outage Wednesday that lasted for several hours before being resolved, the company said. “Earlier today, WhatsApp users in all parts of the world were unable to access …
Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin says his department is seeking to close perhaps more than 1,100 VA facilities nationwide as it develops plans to allow more veterans to receive medical care in the private sector. At a House hearing Wednesday, …
Alphabet Inc. warned its users to beware of emails from known contacts asking them to click on a link to Google Docs after a large number of people turned to social media to complain that their accounts had been hacked. …
African-Americans and Hispanics, the largest racial and ethnic minorities in the United States, made positive strides economically and educationally during the past year but continue to lag behind whites, a civil rights group’s annual study contends. “The theme of this …
On a trip to India, the president of Portland State University reassured prospective students they’d be safe on his campus. Purdue University sent overseas applicants a note from two mayors touting Indiana’s “friendly smiles” and hospitality. And dozens of other …
In the wake of several Facebook videos depicting murder, suicide, rape and other violent acts, the social media giant says it is hiring 3,000 more people to review videos and remove those that violate its terms of service. The company …
Royal Caribbean International has announced it will resume weeklong cruises from New Orleans to the Bahamas and Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. News outlets report Royal Caribbean said in a news release Monday that their 2,435-passenger Vision of the Seas cruise ship …
Apple Inc. reported a surprise fall in iPhone sales for its second quarter on Tuesday, indicating that customers may have held back purchases in anticipation of the 10th-anniversary edition of the company’s most important product later this year. Under pressure …
Global health experts are striving to identify a mysterious illness in Liberia that has already killed 12 people. Officials with the World Health Organization in Monrovia have already ruled out Ebola, yellow fever and a regional virus called Lassa. They …
U.S. lawmakers have put the nation’s airlines on notice: Improve customer service or we will make you. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a hearing for top airline executives to testify, and to determine how Congress might respond after …
Greece reached a deal with its European lenders Tuesday for more reforms in exchange for a badly needed bailout installment so Athens could avoid possible bankruptcy. After months of often tough talks, Greek officials agreed to more pension cuts and …
Low-dose aspirin might help fend off breast cancer, according to a new study. Researchers at the City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center noted an overall 16 percent reduction in breast-cancer risk among the 57,000 women who took an 81-milligram dose …
A privacy group sued the New York Police Department on Tuesday to demand the release of documents related to its use of facial-recognition technology, which rights groups have criticized as discriminatory and lacking in proper oversight. The lawsuit is the …
President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the U.S. ambassador to China said on Tuesday he would do everything possible to address what he called China’s “unfair and illegal” sales of underpriced steel in the world market. “I want to do …
African military expenditures have finally slowed down after more than a decade of steady increases, according to a new report on global defense spending. The main reason, the report found, is a drop in oil prices. “The sharp decreases in …