In this computerized age, some kids have the opportunity to play with robots. The Scottish company Robotical has developed an inexpensive toy robot that children can program to walk, dance and even play football (soccer). But besides having fun, the idea …
More than 60 percent of the world’s nations are expected to meet some of their health targets in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. The targets include reducing child and maternal deaths and deaths from malaria. However, fewer …
Roughly one year ago, Denise Wallace, executive co-director of the Miss Minnesota USA pageant, received a phone call from 19-year-old Halima Aden asking if she could compete in the contest wearing her hijab. “Her photo popped up and I remember …
Protesters in Haiti damaged commercial buildings in the capital city and set cars on fire Tuesday, angered by government tax hikes that come at a time when foreign aid is declining. The Port-au-Prince protest, called by former presidential candidate Jean-Charles …
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday cast doubt on President Donald Trump’s goal of cutting the corporate tax rate to 15 percent, even as the president moved to inject new urgency into a sluggish effort in Congress to lower …
Two U.S. astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut blasted off from Kazakhstan on Wednesday for a six-hour trip to the International Space Station, a NASA TV broadcast showed. Commander Alexander Misurkin of Roscosmos and flight engineers Mark Vande Hei and Joe …
Lawmakers from 19 states are trying to develop a plan in Arizona this week for carrying out a growing, but unlikely, national effort to amend the Constitution to require a balanced U.S. budget, a long-held goal of conservatives who believe …
The Trump administration is updating safety guidelines for self-driving cars in an attempt to clear barriers for automakers and tech companies who want to get test vehicles on the road. U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao announced the new voluntary guidelines …
Former U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Dr. Tom Frieden on Tuesday announced the start of a new public health initiative funded by private philanthropies to fight heart disease and stroke and shore up infectious disease capabilities around …
More than 1.3 billion people live on agricultural land that is deteriorating, putting them at risk of worsening hunger, water shortages and poverty, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) said Tuesday. People’s use of the earth’s natural reserves …
Syria’s government signed a contract with an Iranian company on Tuesday to import five gas-fired power plants to the war-battered city of Aleppo, in an early sign of the major role Tehran is expected to play in Syria’s reconstruction. The …
At least a dozen children who had heart surgery at Children’s Hospital New Orleans between late May and July have infected incisions, apparently from contaminated equipment. The hospital’s chief medical officer says the infections were linked to a machine that …
Apple released the latest in smartphone technology Tuesday — the $1,000 iPhone X (the X stands for the number 10, not the letter X) — a gadget Apple calls the new generation of mobile communication. Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled …
Worried relatives, generous volunteers, frantic neighbors, even medical providers are turning to social media now that Hurricane Irma wiped out electricity and cell service to communities across Florida, cutting off most contact with remote islands in the Keys. “We all …
State-sponsored hacks have become an increasing worry among countries across the Persian Gulf. They include suspected Iranian cyberattacks on Saudi Arabia to leaked emails causing consternation among nominally allied Arab nations. Defending against such attacks have become a major industry …
Eiffel Tower employees planned a walkout, angry carnival workers snarled traffic around Paris’ Arc de Triomphe, and Paris police girded for potential violence as unions and others hold nationwide protests Tuesday against changes to labor laws they fear corrode job …
The end of this week will also see the end of a glorious decades-long space mission that thrilled space scientists, sending huge amounts of data about a distant alien world. On Friday, the space probe Cassini-Huygens will descend into Saturn’s …
The past few years have seen a drastic decline in the number of kids who play American football. One of the main reasons is the fear of brain injuries due to the constant helmet on helmet bashing. A new study …
While U.S. stock indexes continue to see record breaking gains and U.S. employment numbers are encouraging, American farmers continue to struggle with high costs for fertilizer and seed at a time when demand and prices for their products are low. …
U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao will unveil on Tuesday streamlined safety guidelines for automakers that want to deploy self-driving vehicles, a person briefed on the matter said Monday, as members of Congress push their own proposals to remove regulatory barriers …
Scientists say DNA tests on a skeleton found in a lavish Viking warrior’s grave in Sweden show the remains are those of a woman in her 30s. While bone experts had long suspected the remains belong to a woman, the …
Apple is expected to sell its fanciest iPhone yet for $1,000, crossing into a new financial frontier that will test how much consumers are willing to pay for a device that’s become an indispensable part of modern life. The …
Beautiful art and façades adorn buildings in many cities. Some are carved by hand, while others are manufactured. Now, a smart robot is creating large-scale art to transform public places. As we hear from VOA’s Deborah Block, the droid gives …
The former chairman of the world’s largest meatpacker, whose testimony implicated Brazil’s president in corruption, turned himself in to police Sunday after the country’s Supreme Court ordered his arrest. Joesley Batista has avoided prosecution under a plea bargain deal …