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How a safari led me to discover the ancient history of house cats 2023-08-10 - Jonathan Losos' most recent book focuses on the North African Wildcat. Humans began interacting with the cats 10,000 years ago, turning them into the common ancestor of most house cats. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy Aside from some behavioral selections, humans have changed very few genes from the wildcats. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to go on safari in southern Africa. One of the greatest thrills was going out at night looking for predators on the prowl: lions, leopards, hyenas. As we drove through the darkness, though, our spotlight occasionally lit up a smaller hunter – a slender, tawny feline, faintly spotted or striped. The glare would catch the small cat for a moment before it darted back into the shadows. Based on its size and appearance, I initially presumed it was someone's pet inexplicably out in the bush. But further scrutiny revealed distinctive features: legs slightly longer than those of most domestic cats, and a striking black-tipped tail. Still, if you saw one from your kitchen window, your first thought would be "Look at that beautiful cat in the backyard," not "How'd that African wildcat get to New Jersey?" As an evolutionary biologist, I've spent my career studying how species adapt to their environment. My research has been reptile-focused, investigating the workings of natural selection on lizards. Yet, I've always loved and been fascinated by felines, ever since we adopted a shelter cat when I was 5 years old. And the more I've thought about those African wildcats, the more I've marveled at their evolutionary success. The species' claim to fame is simple: The African wildcat is the ancestor of our beloved household pets. And despite changing very little, their descendants have become among the world's two most popular companion animals. (Numbers are fuzzy, but the global population of cats and dogs approaches a billion for each.) A Female African Wildcat seen on a safari in South Africa. RudiHulshof/ Getty Images Clearly, the few evolutionary changes the domestic cat has made have been the right ones to wangle their way into people's hearts and homes. How did they do it? I explored this question in my book "The Cat's Meow: How Cats Evolved from the Savanna to Your Sofa." Why the African wildcat? Big cats – like lions, tigers and pumas – are the attention-grabbing celebrities of the feline world. But of the 41 species of wild felines, the vast majority are about the size of a house cat. Few people have heard of the black-footed cat or the Borneo bay cat, much less the kodkod, oncilla or marbled cat. Clearly, the little-cat side of the feline family needs a better PR agent. In theory, any of these species could have been the progenitor of the domestic cat, but recent DNA studies demonstrate unequivocally that today's house cats arose from the African wildcat – specifically, the North African subspecies, Felis silvestris lybica. Given the profusion of little pusses, why was the North African wildcat the one to give rise to our household companions? In short, it was the right species in the right place at the right time. Civilization began in the Fertile Crescent about 10,000 years ago, when people first settled into villages and started growing food. This area – spanning parts of modern-day Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Iran and more – is home to numerous small cats, including the caracal, serval, jungle cat and sand cat. But of these, the African wildcat is the one that to this day enters villages and can be found around humans. African wildcats are among the friendliest of feline species; raised gently, they can make affectionate companions. In contrast, despite the most tender attention, their close relative the European wildcat grows up to be hellaciously mean. Given these tendencies, it's easy to envision what likely happened. People settled down and started raising crops, storing the excess for lean times. These granaries led to rodent population explosions. Some African wildcats – those with the least fear of humans – took advantage of this bounty and started hanging around. People saw the benefit of their presence and treated the cats kindly, perhaps giving them shelter or food. The boldest cats entered huts and perhaps allowed themselves to be petted – kittens are adorable! – and, voilà, the domestic cat was born. Where exactly domestication occurred – if it was a single place and not simultaneously throughout the entire region – is unclear. But tomb paintings and sculptures show that by 3,500 years ago, domestic cats lived in Egypt. Genetic analysis – including DNA from Egyptian cat mummies – and archaeological data chart the feline diaspora. Daisy, the vomiting cat in question Sophie Kleeman/Insider They moved northward through Europe (and ultimately to North America), south deeper into Africa and eastward to Asia. Ancient DNA even demonstrates that Vikings played a role in spreading felines far and wide. What cat traits did domestication emphasize? Domestic cats possess many colors, patterns and hair textures not seen in wildcats. Some cat breeds have distinctive physical features, like munchkins' short legs, Siameses' elongated faces or Persians' lack of muzzle. Yet many domestics appear basically indistinguishable from wildcats. In fact, only 13 genes have been changed by natural selection during the domestication process. By contrast, almost three times as many genes changed during the descent of dogs from wolves. There are only two ways to indisputably identify a wildcat. You can measure the size of its brain – housecats, like other domestic animals, have evolved reductions in the parts of the brain associated with aggression, fear and overall reactivity. Or you can measure the length of its intestines – longer in domestic cats to digest vegetable-based food provided by or scavenged from humans. The most significant evolutionary changes during cat domestication involve their behavior. The common view that domestic cats are aloof loners couldn't be further from the truth. When lots of domestic cats live together – in places where humans provide copious amounts of food – they form social groups very similar to lion prides. Composed of related females, these cats are very friendly – grooming, playing with and lying on top of each other, nursing each other's kittens, even serving as midwives during birth. Image of a cat. Thomas Winz/ Getty Images To signal friendly intentions, an approaching cat raises its tail straight up, a trait shared with lions and no other feline species. As anyone who has lived with a cat knows, they use this "I want to be friends" message toward people as well, indicating that they include us in their social circle. Evolution of a master manipulator Household cats are quite vocal to their human companions, using different meows to communicate different messages. Unlike the tail-up display, however, this is not an example of their treating us as part of their clan. Quite the contrary, cats rarely meow to one another. The sound of these meows has evolved during domestication to more effectively communicate with us. Listeners rate the wildcat's call as more urgent and demanding ("Mee‑O‑O‑O‑O‑O‑W!") compared with the domestic cat's more pleasing ("MEE‑ow"). Scientists suggest that these shorter, higher-pitched sounds are more pleasing to our auditory system, perhaps because young humans have high-pitched voices, and domestic cats have evolved accordingly to curry human favor. Cats similarly manipulate people with their purrs. When they want something – picture a cat rubbing against your legs in the kitchen while you open a can of wet food – they purr extra loudly. And this purr is not the agreeable thrumming of a content cat, but an insistent chainsaw br-rr-oom demanding attention. Scientists digitally compared the spectral qualities of the two types of purrs and discovered that the major difference is that the insistent purr includes a component very similar to the sound of a human baby crying. People, of course, are innately attuned to this sound, and cats have evolved to take advantage of this sensitivity to get our attention. Of course, that won't surprise anyone who's lived with a cat. Although cats are very trainable – they're very food motivated – cats usually train us more than we train them. As the old saw goes, "Dogs have owners, cats have staff." Jonathan Losos is a William H. Danforth distinguished university professor for the Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.
Biden asks Congress for another $24 billion in aid for Ukraine and other allies 2023-08-10 - The Biden administration is asking Congress to approve billions more in aid for Ukraine. A US official said the money would cover the cost of the war through the end of the year. The US has provided Ukraine more than $100 billion in security and financial assistance since 2022. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy The Biden administration on Thursday formally asked Congress for billions more in aid to help Ukraine during its stalled counteroffensive against Russia, setting up a fight with a Republican-led House where there is growing skepticism of Washington's support for Kyiv. In a letter addressed to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the White House requested more than $24 billion for assistance to Ukraine and other "international needs." The request includes $13.1 billion for equipment and other military assistance to Ukraine, as well as the cost of replenishing the United States' own diminished weapons stockpiles. It also asks Congress for $7.3 billion in economic, humanitarian, and security assistance to Ukraine and other countries impacted by Russia's invasion. The new, supplemental request would cover the projected cost of aiding Ukraine through the end of the year, a senior administration official said on a call with reporters. "We don't know how much longer this war is going to go on or how much more assistance we might need to support Ukraine," the official said. "We won't be bashful about going back to Congress beyond the first quarter of next year if we feel like we need to do that." The money is on top of the $6 billion that the White House requested earlier this year as part of the 2024 budget. Since the invasion, the US has provided Ukraine with more than $100 billion in security and financial assistance. The request comes alongside the Biden administration's request for supplemental funding toward disaster relief and the border. Come the end of the fiscal year, temporary pay raises for wildfire firefighters will vanish without action from Congress. The Biden administration also wants to replenish the coffers of FEMA, which is now contending with wildfires raging across the country. But helping pay firefighters more and combat extreme weather might be an easier sell: Bipartisan lawmakers have already called for permanent pay increases for firefighters. Ukraine could prove tougher. While polls show most Americans oppose Russia's invasion of Ukraine, recent surveys have suggested there is diminished support for aiding Ukraine's military resistance. Earlier this month, a survey conducted for CNN found a slim majority now oppose more aid for Ukraine, including 71% of Republicans. Former President Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the GOP presidential nomination, recently called for aid to be suspended while Congress investigates Hunter Biden's business dealings in Ukraine. Despite the vocal misgivings of Trump and his allies in Congress, most members of Congress, from both parties, continue to support aid for Ukraine. Last month, when Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican, put forward an amendment to block all future assistance, it was voted down by a 358-70 supermajority.
Biden wants to make sure Congress doesn't slash pay for firefighters tackling wildfires raging across the country 2023-08-10 - The Biden administration wants additional funding from Congress for Ukraine, extreme weather, and the border. The Office of Management and Budget said 20,000 firefighters could see pay cuts this fall. Currently, wildfire firefighters are working under a temporary pay increase, which will expire by October. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy As disastrous wildfires ravage the country, the firefighters helping combat them could see their pay slashed in a matter of months. The Biden administration wants to make sure that doesn't happen. On Thursday, the Office of Management and Budget released President Joe Biden's letter to Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy requesting additional funding for Ukraine, the border, and emergency disaster responses — including a $60 million funding increase for the Agriculture and Interior Departments to support pay increases for wildland firefighters. The administration is also requesting $12 billion for FEMA to help replenish its disaster relief fund. Currently, firefighters are working under a temporary pay raise funded through Biden's bipartisan infrastructure legislation. That law, in an effort to help combat retention and hiring issues, mandated that firefighter pay in hard-to-hire areas would increase by either $20,000 annually or 50% — whichever is less. But that funding is only in place through the rest of the fiscal year. Per the OMB, that could mean over 20,000 firefighters could see pay slashed in October, with some making as little as $15 an hour. "The administration is committed to building a more robust and resilient wildland firefighter workforce and fairly compensate wildland firefighters' difficult and dangerous work that they do. Each firefighter has put their lives on the line to protect our community," a senior administration official told reporters on a Thursday press call. "We've seen bipartisan understanding of the need to provide firefighter pay to prevent a cliff," the official said. That potential pay cliff looms amidst a summer of deadly wildfires and extreme weather. "Unprecedented" wildfires currently raging across Hawaii have left at least 36 people dead. Apartment buildings and acres of land in Texas have been felled by still-raging wildfires. With record heat and extreme weather here to stay — and likely only to worsen — more wildfires could be on their way. At the same time, NBC News reports that should firefighter pay not permanently increase, thousands of wildfire firefighters could leave altogether — up to 50%, according to the National Federation of Federal Employees. On Tuesday, a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act, which would make pay increases for firefighters permanent. If pay increases expire, the lawmakers' press release said, "pay and benefit cuts would trigger a mass exodus of federal firefighters from the National Forest Service in the middle of the wildfire season this year." "Wildland firefighters put their lives on the line and endure hellish conditions to protect our families – at the very least, they deserve a living wage and support for their mental and physical health," California Rep. Josh Harder, who introduced the legislation, said in a statement. "When I found out these brave men and women weren't earning a living wage, I knew we had to do better," he continued. "Wildfire season is here, and we can't risk losing any more of our wildland firefighting force while more and more devastating wildfires put our homes at risk and make our air quality worse."
More than 1,000 people died on Virginia's roadways last year, but a high-tech trial showed safer streets might be just a couple of years away 2023-08-10 - A trial on a controlled-access road in Virginia used 5G to power split-second safety data. The tech identified abrupt or unusual movements, which could be messaged to cars and pedestrians. Researchers said the tech could become available in the next several years with more 5G access. This article is part of "5G Playbook," a series exploring one of our time's most important tech innovations. Morning Brew Insider recommends waking up with, a daily newsletter. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking “Sign Up,” you also agree to marketing emails from both Insider and Morning Brew; and you accept Insider’s Terms and Privacy Policy Click here for Morning Brew’s privacy policy. It's a sad fact of life that the more you drive, the more danger you put yourself in. There were 1.35 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in the US in 2022, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Dangerous driving can cost lives, and some road intersections are known to be more perilous than most. But technology being trialed on a controlled-access rural road in Virginia could help save lives. "We have been developing IT and networking infrastructure for a long time, from 2G and 3G up to 5G," Masahiko Mack Nakagawa, the vice president of the corporate-business-development division at NEC, one of the partners behind the Virginia project, told Insider. But the speed at which 2G and 3G systems operate is too slow for real-time information about traffic flows that can help prevent collisions between vehicles — or vehicles and pedestrians. 5G could make safer roads The lightning-fast speed at which 5G can transmit data through mobile-internet signals means that it's possible for AI to collect data, analyze it computationally, and make decisions based on that analysis within a split second — the amount of time it takes for accidents to happen. It's possible to identify dangerous traffic conditions or hazards on the road, such as approaching pedestrians or animals, and warn drivers to take evasive action. The Virginia trial involved installing cameras and private 5G base stations on signal poles that could capture and broadcast high-definition video in real time across a private 5G network to an artificial-intelligence-powered analysis system, then report back the results. "If a car is approaching the intersection, the AI will analyze if the car is going straight, turning right or turning left, and how many pedestrians are at the intersection," Nakagawa said. "Once the AI decides there is a risk of an accident, the system will broadcast information to the pedestrians and the vehicles." It may sound like science fiction — but it's fact. Trialed between January and March in Blacksburg, Virginia, on one of the test tracks that's part of the Virginia Smart Roads, one of the only facilities in the world that can conduct these advanced tests, the system analyzed video in real time using AI and broadcast warning signals to vehicles and pedestrians. The research team behind the project suggested using an LED light mat on the side of each road to light up if there was a vehicle approaching to prevent collisions. In all, 66 use cases were tested, including motorcycles, bicycles, and several types of situations. "We made sure that in all those use cases, the application had enough accuracy and enough performance," Nakagawa said. "Performance," for the experiment's purposes, meant parsing the data and providing advice in a short enough timeframe for drivers to prevent a fatal collision. The team behind the experiment set a 0.5-second limit for drivers to be notified after a risky situation arose, which the test met in all use cases. That time limit, and the success with which the system could meet the requirements, could also make the 5G-enabled communications tool useful for automated driving. The system also added types of video analytics beyond traffic and pedestrian monitoring. A detection tool for unusual pedestrian behavior looks to see, for instance, if a pedestrian falls down and doesn't move at the intersection for 45 seconds; in that case, that person may need help. Safer, high-tech roads require more 5G access It's important because too many people fall victim to serious or fatal crashes on Virginia's — and the nation's — roads. More than 1,000 people died in 2022 on Virginia's roadways, according to Drive Smart Virginia, while 162 people were injured every single day because of vehicle crashes across the state. The project comes at a critical moment for Virginia, whose pedestrian fatalities increased 37% in 2022 over 2021 data. State and county transportation departments were positive about the trial, Nakagawa said. The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute believes this proof of concept will "improve road safety by informing vehicles and pedestrians of possible traffic hazards when passing through an intersection," Mike Mollenhauer, the director of the technology-implementation division at the institute, said. And it's unlikely to stay solely within Virginia. "We have very high expectations that the 5G-enabled world will come," Nakagawa said. "We see a lot of potential implementation in the US and Japan. I think it'll take three to five years for the implementation."
How to connect your laptop to a monitor for work or gaming 2023-08-10 - When you buy through our links, Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more. Connecting your laptop to a monitor is simply a matter of using the appropriate cable; most Windows laptops use HDMI or USB, and MacBooks will use USB or Thunderbolt. After connecting the monitor, choose to duplicate or extend the display in the Display Settings windows on Windows or System Preferences on a Mac. You might need to get an adapter to connect your monitor to a MacBook if the display doesn't have the appropriate connector for your laptop (USB-C or Thunderbolt). Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy No matter how big your laptop is, connecting it to a separate monitor is always a great way to add extra space and keep your windows organized. It's also especially useful for gamers who want to play their favorite titles on a bigger, faster, and more vibrant screen — even the best gaming laptops can benefit from that. And luckily, it doesn't take much work to connect your laptop to another monitor. All you'll need is the right kind of cable. How to connect your laptop to a monitor Whether you have a MacBook or Windows laptop, the basic steps to connect to a separate monitor are the same. First, you'll need to confirm what kind of video connection your laptop and monitor support. HDMI is the most popular kind of video connection around today, but some devices may have other ports like USB, VGA, DisplayPort, or DVI. If your laptop and monitor don't share the same video connection, you can usually find an adapter that enables you to convert one of the above connections to the format you need. Common monitor connections include HDMI, VGA, and USB, depicted here respectively. Insider You'll also need to make sure that whatever cable you have can support the resolution and refresh rate you want to display. A standard 18Gbps HDMI cable can handle 4K at 60Hz, but if you have a gaming laptop, you'll probably want a 48Gbps HDMI cable that can transmit 4K at up to 120Hz. But remember, your monitor and laptop also need to support these display settings in order to enable them. If you're looking for a new cable to hook your laptop up to a monitor, check out our guide to the best HDMI cables. Once you have the right cable, just plug one end into your laptop and the other into your monitor. If the new monitor is on and plugged in, your laptop should automatically recognize and start using it. If nothing shows up on the new monitor, you might need to initiate the connection yourself. To do that on a PC, right-click a blank spot on your desktop and select Display settings, then click Detect. If your PC doesn't use the new monitor automatically, you can manually detect it. Microsoft; William Antonelli/Insider On a Mac, open the System Preferences or System Settings app and click Displays, then hold down the Option key and click Detect Displays. If you're using a Mac with an M1 or M2 chip, you might also need to open the Privacy & Security menu and use the Allow accessories to connect option. You can also use these menus to choose whether you want your two screens to mirror each other, or if you want them to extend, meaning they both act as a separate screen you can move between. And if you extend the screens, you can also drag-and-drop the monitor icons so they're in the same positions they are in real life.
Bittrex to pay $24 million to settle with US securities regulator 2023-08-10 - The seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo Companies Bittrex Inc Follow Aug 10 (Reuters) - Bittrex has agreed to pay $24 million to settle claims by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that the cryptocurrency exchange failed to register with the agency, according to a filing in Seattle federal court on Thursday. The SEC sued Bittrex Inc and its former CEO, William Shihara, in April, saying they operated an unregistered national securities exchange, broker and clearing agency. The SEC also claimed the exchange's foreign affiliate, Bittrex Global GmbH, failed to register as a national securities exchange in connection with its operation of a single shared order book along with Bittrex. Bittrex Inc filed for bankruptcy in May. The deal requires the company and Bittrex Global to pay the $5.6 million fine and hand over $18.4 million in allegedly illicit profit 60 days after a liquidation plan is filed in the bankrupctcy case. The companies and Shihara agreed to an order barring them from violating U.S. securities laws. They did not admit to the SEC's allegations. Seattle-based Bittrex Inc had previously denied that securities were traded on its platform. Bittrex Global has said it has no U.S. customers. The SEC claimed in its lawsuit that Shihara coordinated with crypto asset issuers seeking to make their tokens available for trading on Bittrex's platform to delete public statements that Shihara believed would lead regulators to investigate those token offerings as securities. SEC Enforcement Director Gurbir Grewal said the settlement "makes clear that you cannot escape liability by simply changing labels or altering descriptions because what matters is the economic realities of those offerings." Shihara called the settlement "a good outcome." "It's vital that our country strikes a balance between fostering innovation, encouraging entrepreneurs and the need to protect consumers, and I hope today’s proposed settlement helps move that forward," he said. A spokesperson for Bittrex did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Reporting by Jody Godoy in New York Editing by Chris Reese and Matthew Lewis Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Exclusive: Fear of tech 'brain drain' prevents Russia from seizing Yandex for now -sources 2023-08-10 - [1/2] The logo of Russian technology giant Yandex is on display at the company's headquarters in Moscow, Russia December 9, 2022. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina LONDON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - The Kremlin's fear of a serious tech brain drain is the main factor preventing Moscow from nationalising Nasdaq-listed Yandex (YNDX.O), often dubbed "Russia's Google", four people with knowledge of the company's divestment plans told Reuters. Yandex's fate has been the subject of much speculation since it announced plans to pursue a corporate restructuring last November, a move that should ultimately see its main revenue-generating businesses inside Russia spun off from its Dutch-registered parent company. As Russia's leading tech company, boasting some of the country's top developers among more than 20,000 staff, Yandex was one of the few Russian firms with genuine global ambitions before Moscow unleashed its war in Ukraine in February 2022. Many of its staff have moved abroad, some relocating to Serbia, where its new offices are filling up quickly. Maksut Shadaev, the head of Russia's ministry of digital affairs, told parliament in December that around 100,000 IT specialists had left Russia in 2022. And at a company where staff know-how is crucial to maintaining a leading position in search technology, advertising and ride-hailing, a hostile takeover by the state that sparks a talent exodus could do serious damage, according to the sources. "It's obvious that if (nationalisation) happens, the company will gradually come to nothing," said one of the people with knowledge of the talks. "And this is probably what is stopping tough action from being taken." The Kremlin did not respond to a request for comment. Yandex declined to comment. In a results filing late last month the company said its plans for the potential corporate restructuring were "progressing". Moscow has previous form. It seized assets in the Sakhalin oil and gas projects last year by presidential decree and has taken the Russian assets of four Western firms under "temporary control" in 2023, including handing the running of French food group Danone's (DANO.PA) Russian subsidiary to the nephew of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. Yandex co-founder Arkady Volozh, in a statement on Thursday criticising what he described as Russia's "barbaric" invasion, said he had been focused on extricating "talented Russian engineers" from the country since the war started. "These people are now out, and in a position to start something new, continuing to drive technological innovation," he said. "They will be a tremendous asset to the countries in which they land." It is not yet clear whether Volozh's comments may have any bearing on how Russia decides to proceed with the company. TALKS AT STANDSTILL Sources told Reuters in May that shareholders in Yandex's Dutch holding company, Yandex NV, could be in line to make $7 billion from a full divestment of its Russian businesses and that Yandex had received bids from several Russian billionaires. The likelihood of Yandex successfully divesting, however, is diminishing, three of the sources said. Talks are currently at a standstill. The fourth source said Yandex's people were the key asset and that no one wanted to be seen to be "killing the company". One of the sources said "hawks" in state companies believed nothing at all should be paid to foreigners. There was a risk that the "brains" at Yandex would leave en masse if the company were nationalised or sold to a state firm, the source added. Andrei Kostin, CEO of state-owned Russian lender VTB (VTBR.MM), in June proposed that Moscow should take temporary control of Yandex's assets, decrying the fact that Western investors were set to gain. VTB was the only party to publicly state that it had bid for Yandex, before later announcing a withdrawal from the process. Two sources said VTB had never been a serious option as a buyer, given sanctions on the state lender. VTB did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Extracting funds from Russia is getting harder. Obtaining approval for deals, with Moscow now demanding a 50% discount among other requirements, is a lengthy and difficult process, Western company executives have told Reuters. For Yandex, last month's U.S. sanctions on Alexei Kudrin, the former finance minister acting as a mediator between the Kremlin and the company, are another headache, two of the sources said. Reporting by Alexander Marrow and Polina Devitt; Editing by Mike Collett-White and Susan Fenton Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Tesla's 'Master of Coin' bids the EV-maker farewell after racking up a $590 million fortune 2023-08-09 - Tesla's CFO is leaving. YouTube A Tesla exec's departure will see him leave with a $590 million fortune, according to Bloomberg. Zachary Kirkhorn, worked at Tesla for 13 years, including four as its chief financial officer. Kirkhorn's wealth has surged in 2023, linked to the sharp rise in Tesla's share price. Tesla's chief financial officer is leaving the company with a bulky fortune. Nicknamed the "Master of Coin," Zachary Kirkhorn ended his 13-year stretch at Elon Musk's carmaker on Tuesday, having spent four of those years as CFO. Kirkhorn departs with a net worth of $590 million, largely due to the value of his Tesla shares and options, according to Bloomberg data. Despite owning less than 1% of Tesla's common stock, Kirkhorn has still gone home with deep pockets, according to the company's latest proxy filing. In 2022 alone, Kirkhorn earned about $16.3 million in stock awards, while being awarded almost $1.3 million in options. That's on top of a $300,000 base salary in 2022. Tesla shares have skyrocketed this year thanks to a string of aggressive price cuts and an AI-fueled tech boom. The company's stock has surged more than 100% year-to-date, boosting its market cap to roughly $800 billion, per Markets Insider data. Driving the automaker's stock higher in recent months was a pair of standout deals with GM and Ford that will allow the rival companies to use Tesla's charging network. Kirkhorn is by no means the only Tesla executive to benefit from the company's surging stock price. CEO Musk himself has seen his wealth climb to $229 billion, making him the richest man in the world. The tech guru owns about 13% of all Tesla stock, so his personal wealth is directly tied to the value of the company. It's unclear what Kirkhorn's next career step will be. Held in high-esteem at Tesla, it was rumoured he would succeed Musk as CEO. Vaibhav Taneja, Tesla's chief accounting officer will step in Kirkhorn's role following his exit. Read the original article on Business Insider
Disney+ subscribers decline as company's streaming loss narrows 2023-08-09 - Disney (DIS) reported fiscal third quarter earnings after the bell on Wednesday that beat expectations after the company revealed its flagship sports network ESPN struck a $2 billion deal with Penn Entertainment (PENN) to launch ESPN Bet, a branded sportsbook. Still, Disney+ subscribers missed estimates in the quarter, causing shares to initially slide in after-hours trading. The stock bounced back during the earnings call, however, after the company said full-year 2023 capital expenditures will total $5 billion, lower than the prior $6 billion forecast. Disney also said it would resume paying a dividend by the end of 2023. Shares climbed by as much as 5%. The company reported 146.1 million total Disney+ subscribers, a 7.4% decline from the previous quarter. Analysts polled by Bloomberg had expected a narrower loss of 154.8 million paying users. The majority of the losses came from its Indian brand Disney+ Hotstar, which saw users drop by 24% on a sequential basis. Disney said Hotstar is not financially material to the company due to its lower average revenue per user, or ARPU. Domestic users, which include those in the US and Canada, dropped by 1%. Amid Disney's continued efforts to slash $5.5 billion in costs this year, streaming losses came in at $512 million compared to a loss of $1.1 billion in the prior-year period and significantly ahead of estimates of a loss of $777 million. The company reported a streaming loss of $659 million in Q2 and a $1.1 billion loss in Q1. Bob Iger, who stepped back into the CEO position in November and recently accepted a contract extension through the end of 2026, has remained hyper-focused on profitability. The executive has consistently reaffirmed the company's outlook of reaching streaming profitability by the end of fiscal 2024, aided by new revenue streams like Disney's recently launched ad-supported tier, in addition to new price increases to help pare losses and lift metrics like ARPU. Story continues Mixed quarterly results Revenue in the quarter came in at $22.33 billion, slightly below expectations of $22.51 billion. Adjusted earnings were $1.03 compared to the $0.99 expected. Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products revenue beat expectations of $8.25 billion to hit $8.33 billion in the quarter. Operating income came in at $2.43 billion, ahead of estimates of $2.39 billion and above Q3 2022's $2.19 billion total. Analysts have remained cautious about the future of the parks segment, however, as demand appears to have slowed, coupled with heightened risks to margins amid inflation. Earlier this year, Disney announced long-awaited updates to its parks reservation system and annual passholder program following intense backlash from consumers over lengthy wait times and sky-high ticket prices. Advertising continued to be bumpy, echoing the results of competitors. Linear network revenue fell 7% in the quarter compared to the year-ago period, missing estimates of a 6% drop. Meanwhile, the company's media and entertainment division missed revenue estimates of $14.36 billion to hit $14 billion in the quarter. The segment was dragged by dismal studio results following the disappointing theatrical releases of films like "The Little Mermaid" and Pixar's "Elemental." Questions still loom about the ongoing double strike in Hollywood, ESPN's direct-to-consumer push, and the future of Disney's TV assets. Iger reaffirmed he would take an "expansive" look at the entertainment giant's traditional TV assets, signaling the potential for strategic options that could include a sale. He also reiterated the company is open to strategic partners for ESPN, either through a joint venture or part ownership, to enable it to make the transition to streaming. The future of ESPN Disney CEO Robert Iger arrives at the Save the Children "Centennial Celebration: Once in a Lifetime" event on Oct. 2, 2019, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) As ESPN officially enters the sports betting arena, investors will likely have even more questions when it comes to the future of the network. Late Tuesday, ESPN and Penn Entertainment announced they will be launching ESPN Bet, a branded sportsbook. This marks the network's first foray into the world of sports betting. ESPN is licensing its brand to Penn versus launching its own sportsbook. As part of the deal, Penn will pay ESPN $1.5 billion over the next 10 years, with ESPN holding warrants to purchase roughly 32 million shares of PENN worth $500 million, which will vest over the same period. Penn sold Barstool Sports back to founder Dave Portnoy after fully purchasing Barstool earlier this year. "We've been in discussions with a number of entities over a fairly long period of time," Iger said on the call. "It's something that we've wanted to accomplish, obviously, because we believe there's an opportunity here to significantly grow engagement with ESPN consumers, particularly young consumers." Iger also said it's "not a matter of if but when" ESPN makes the full move to direct-to-consumer. "The team is hard at work looking at all components of this decision, including pricing and timing," he explained. Disney has held exploratory talks with major sports leagues including the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB regarding strategic partnerships, according to a source with knowledge of Disney's plans. Variety reported last week that former Disney executives Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer have been tapped as advisers to help Iger with ESPN's streaming transition. Still, analysts and media watchers cautioned that the full transition to streaming will be a difficult journey, particularly when it comes to consumers footing the bill for an additional streaming service versus watching sports as part of the cable bundle. Disney will begin to report results with ESPN as its own standalone unit later this year. Alexandra Canal is a Senior Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @allie_canal, LinkedIn, and email her at alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com. Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
Stocks skid for second day, Nasdaq leads way down: Stock market news today 2023-08-09 - Stocks sputtered on Wednesday, as worries lingered on the US banking sector and attention shifted to a key US inflation report in the wake of disappointing Chinese price data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.54%, or 190 points. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) slipped 0.7%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) led the way down, 1.17%. With the crucial July US inflation report looming on Thursday, data released Wednesday showed China's consumer sector fell into deflation in July. It's another sign that Beijing is struggling to revive demand in the world's second-biggest economy, spurring fears about a prolonged slowdown with global repercussions. Meanwhile, investors continued to digest Moody's downgrade of midsize US banks, a reminder that the problems that roiled the financial world in the spring are not yet in the past. The health of the banking sector, as well as inflationary pressures, has played a part in the Federal Reserve's decision making during its rate-hiking campaign. Disney (DIS) is the highlight on the earnings docket, with its after-hours results closely watched for how it will tackle advertising headwinds and escalating streaming losses. Its shares ticked higher in premarket trading after its ESPN network signed a landmark sports betting deal with PENN Entertainment (PENN).
Biden touts economic agenda on first anniversary of CHIPs and Science Act 2023-08-09 - President Joe Biden highlighted his administration's economic policies in a speech Wednesday one year after the enactment of the CHIPs and Science Act. The legislation, signed into law Aug. 9, 2022, aimed to bolster semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S. and counter China's economic influence. It made nearly $53 billion in investments in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, research and development, according to the White House. "We made them more sophisticated," Biden said of America's impact on semiconductors. "But over time, we went from producing nearly 40% of those chips — the world's chips — down to 10%. That's why I designated and I signed, and I insisted that it be written and passed, the CHIPs and Science Act." Taiwan makes 60% of the world's semiconductors, according to a 2021 report from the Boston Consulting Group, but it faces threats from China, which claims the self-ruling island as its own. Joe Biden speaks before signing the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 during a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House on Aug. 9, 2022. Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images The president's speech echoed similar themes from previous "Bidenomics" speeches. He reiterated praise for unions — saying that "unions built the middle class" — and emphasized his administration's role in working to bolster domestic manufacturing and investments. "Instead of exporting American jobs, we're creating American jobs and we're exporting American products," Biden said to applause. The president's remarks took place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, during a three-state swing in the Southwest. He arrived in New Mexico from Arizona on Tuesday, and he plans to depart for Utah after Wednesday's speech. The trip is part of a lead-up to the anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law on Aug. 16, 2022. Senior administration officials blitzed across the country this week to tout aspects of the president's signature pieces of legislation. On Tuesday in Arizona, Biden announced a new national monument near the Grand Canyon. The monument encompasses nearly 1 million acres of land, according to the White House. Biden said that beyond conserving and protecting ancestral places significant to Indigenous people, the monument would also help grow the area's tourism economy. After he arrived in New Mexico, the president attended a fundraiser, where he said he would soon travel to Vietnam. The White House had not previously announced the trip. Biden won New Mexico in 2020 with 54.3% of the vote. His margin in Arizona was far slimmer, just over 10,000 votes. Utah went to Donald Trump, with 58.1% of the vote.
Disney says it will crack down on password sharing, following Netflix's lead 2023-08-09 - The Disney+ website on a laptop computer in the Brooklyn borough of New York, US, on Monday, July 18, 2022. Disney is joining the streaming fight against password sharing. CEO Bob Iger said on Wednesday's earnings call that the company is exploring account sharing for streaming and will provide additional details on its policy to curb it later this year. "We already have the technical capability to monitor much of this," Iger said Wednesday. "I'm not going to give a specific number, except to say that it is significant." The company will roll out tactics to mitigate password sharing in 2024. While Iger said Disney should see some effects from the rollout in 2024, the initiatives to prevent password sharing won't be completed next year. The move comes as Disney and its peers have looked for ways to make streaming profitable — methods that have included cutting content spending, introducing cheaper, ad-supported options and preventing account sharing. Disney follows the lead of Netflix , which began rolling out a new account sharing policy earlier this year. Iger said Wednesday the strategy is a "real priority" for the company. Disney has three streaming services under its umbrella: the flagship Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+. The three services are also available in a bundle for a cheaper price. The company has previously said it would soon be offering a "one app experience" in the U.S. that incorporates Hulu content into Disney+, although standalone options will still remain. Streamers have also used price increases to grow revenue. On Wednesday, Disney said it would raise prices on almost all of its streaming services. Ad-free Disney+ will cost $13.99 a month, a 27% bump. The price of Hulu without ads is increasing to $17.99 a month, a 20% hike. The ad-supported options of Hulu and Disney+ will see prices stay the same. Iger has said the company views advertising as a key way to reach profitability. As the company eliminates password sharing, it does not know how the action will affect subscriber growth, Iger said. "Obviously, we believe there will be some, but we're not speculating," he said, adding the change will be an opportunity to grow the business. Netflix has been a pioneer among streaming services in cracking down on password sharing. It was one of the initiatives Netflix discussed after it began to see subscriber growth stagnate in 2022 and looked for methods to boost revenue. Netflix, like Disney+, added a cheaper, ad-supported tier. In July, Netflix reported that it added 5.9 million customers during the second quarter as its password sharing crackdown began to take hold in the U.S. Netflix had previously said that more than 100 million households, or about 43% of its global user base, shared accounts. The company said that affected its ability to invest in new content. Netflix started to roll out account sharing initiatives internationally first. It notified its U.S. customers in May that they would have to stop sharing accounts. Netflix subscribers sharing accounts they were given a few options. Members could either transfer a profile of someone outside of their household so the person could begin a new membership and pay on their own. Or, the main account holder could pay an extra fee of $7.99 a month per person outside of their household using their account. It's unclear what methods Disney will use to reduce account sharing.
US Supreme Court refuses Epic bid to let App Store order take effect in Apple case 2023-08-09 - Smartphone with Epic Games logo is seen in front of Apple logo in this illustration taken, May 2, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Aug 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday dealt a setback to Epic Games, maker of the popular video game "Fortnite," in its legal battle against Apple (AAPL.O), declining to let a federal judge's injunction take effect that could force the iPhone maker to change payment practices in its lucrative App Store. Liberal Justice Elena Kagan, acting for the Supreme Court, denied Epic's request to lift a decision by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that effectively delayed implementing an injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers barring certain App Store rules, while Apple pursues a Supreme Court appeal. The 9th Circuit in April had upheld the injunction but in July put that decision on hold. Kagan handles emergency matters for the Supreme Court arising from a group of states including California. Epic filed an antitrust lawsuit in 2020, accusing Apple of acting as an illegal monopolist by requiring consumers to get apps through its App Store and buy digital content inside an app using its own system - for which it charges up to a 30% commission. Rogers in 2021 rejected Epic's antitrust claims against Apple. But the judge found that Apple violated California's unfair competition law by barring developers from "steering" users to make digital purchases that bypass Apple's in-app system, which Epic could save them money with lower commissions. The judge's injunction required Apple to let app developers provide links and buttons that direct consumers to other ways to pay for digital content that they use in their apps. In seeking to pause the injunction from taking effect while it readies an appeal to the Supreme Court, Apple told the 9th Circuit that Rogers had erred in prohibiting it from enforcing its rules against all app developers in the United States, rather than just Epic. "Apple will be required to change its business model to comply with the injunction before judicial review has been completed," the company told the 9th Circuit. "The undisputed evidence establishes that the injunction will limit Apple's ability to protect users from fraud, scams, malware, spyware, and objectionable content." Epic told the Supreme Court that the 9th Circuit's standard for putting cases on hold is "far too lenient." Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Editing by Will Dunham Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Stocks making the biggest moves after hours: Disney, Wynn Resorts, AppLovin and more 2023-08-09 - An inflatable Disney+ logo is pictured at a press event ahead of launching a streaming service in the Middle East and North Africa, at Dubai Opera in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, June 7, 2022. Check out the companies making headlines after the bell. Disney — The entertainment giant added about 5% in extended trading after posting mixed quarterly results. Disney reported adjusted earnings of $1.03 a share, versus the 95 cents expected by analysts, per Refinitiv. Revenue came in at $22.33 billion, behind the $22.5 billion expected. The company also posted a roughly 7% decrease in Disney+ subscribers during the period and announced a hike in streaming prices. Wynn Resorts — The casino stock rose 2.5% on second-quarter results that topped expectations on the top and bottom lines. Wynn Resorts reported adjusted earnings of 91 cents per share on revenue of $1.6 billion. That came in ahead of the 59 cents and $1.54 billion expected by analysts, per Refinitiv. AppLovin — AppLovin shares surged 22% on strong second-quarter results and optimistic third-quarter revenue guidance. The game developer said it expects $780 million to $800 million in revenue for the third quarter, ahead of the $741 million expected by analysts. The company posted earnings of 22 cents per share for the second quarter, ahead of the 7 cents expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv. Illumina — The DNA sequencing company shed more than 6% after the bell on weaker-than-expected guidance. Illumina topped Wall Street's expectations for the second quarter, but said it anticipates some weakness in the second half, due to a protracted recovery in China and more cautiousness in purchasing from customers. The company expects full-year revenue to rise 1% year over year, versus the 7.1% uptick analysts expected, per Refinitiv. The Trade Desk — Shares lost nearly 4% after the bell despite The Trade Desk posting better-than-expected quarterly results and slightly strong-than-anticipated guidance for the current period. The advertising technology company reported adjusted earnings of 28 cents per share on revenue of $464 million. That topped the 26 cents per share on $455 million in revenue expected, according to Refinitiv. Sonos — The wireless speaker maker's stock jumped 11% in extended trading on stronger-than-expected results. Sonos reported a smaller-than-expected loss of 18 cents per share on revenue totaling $373 million. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv had anticipated a 20 cent loss per share on revenue of $334 million. The company also lifted its full-year EBITDA guidance.
Journalists seek regulations to govern fast-moving artificial intelligence technology 2023-08-09 - NEW YORK (AP) — Several news organizations, writers and photographers groups are pushing to be involved in creating standards for the use of artificial intelligence, particularly as it concerns intellectual property rights and the potential spread of misinformation. In an open letter sent on Wednesday, they outlined priorities for setting rules on the technology, which is developing faster than regulators can keep up with. “We ... support the responsible advancement and deployment of generative AI technology, while believing that a legal framework must be developed to protect the content that powers AI applications as well as maintain public trust in the media,” the organizations said. The letter was signed by The Associated Press; Gannett; the News Media Alliance, which represents hundreds of publishers; Getty Images; the National Press Photographers Association; Agence France-Presse and others. The organizations want to make sure intellectual property owners maintain their rights when AI operators use material for training. The AP last month made a deal with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI to license the news agency’s archive of news stories. The letter also calls for artificial intelligence companies to take specific steps to eliminate bias and misinformation in the material it produces. In particular, photographers are concerned about the ability of artificial intelligence to create false images. Seven U.S. companies that are leading AI developers agreed in July to voluntary safeguards set by President Joe Biden’s administration for building their technology, but the commitments aren’t enforceable and don’t touch on intellectual property concerns.
The FAA, lacking enough air traffic controllers, will extend limits on New York City-area flights 2023-08-09 - Facing a shortage of air traffic controllers, the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday that it will let airlines continue to limit flights in the New York City area into October without penalties that they would normally face for such reductions. Airlines that fail to use enough of their takeoff and landing rights or “slots” at those airports risk losing them to competitors. The FAA said, however, it will extend current easing of those rules through Oct. 28 because the staffing shortage is beyond the control of the airlines. The waivers were set to expire Sept. 15, after the peak summer travel season. Airlines including Delta, American, United and JetBlue had agreed to cuts at LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy airports in New York and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. “The relief provided by the FAA during the peak of the summer season has provided stability at the NYC area airports,” the FAA said. The agency said canceled flights at the three big New York City-area airports from May 15 through June 30 fell 40% from the same period last year. The FAA said airlines have reduced their New York flights this summer by 6%, but increased the number of seats by 2% by using larger planes on average. The waiver of penalties also applies to some flights at Reagan Washington National Airport near Washington, D.C. United Airlines, which has cut flights at its big hub in Newark, and trade group Airlines for America had asked FAA to extend the penalty waivers. In a report to Congress this spring, the FAA detailed its efforts to hire and train about 3,000 new air traffic controllers. The agency is only half-staffed at a key facility that directs planes in and out of the New York City area.
An illicit, Chinese-owned lab fueled conspiracy theories. But officials say it posed no danger 2023-08-09 - SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Jesalyn Harper, the only full-time code enforcement officer for the small, agricultural city of Reedley in California’s Central Valley, was responding to a complaint about vehicles parked in the loading dock of a cold-storage warehouse when she noticed a foul smell and saw a garden hose snaking into the old building. A woman in a lab coat answered her knock, and behind her were two others in plastic gloves and blue surgical masks, packing pregnancy tests for shipping. Harper said they spoke broken English and told her they were from China. Walking through the lab, she found dozens of refrigerators and ultralow-temperature freezers hooked to illegal wiring; vials of blood and jars of urine in shelves and plastic containers; and about 1,000 white lab mice being kept in crowded, soiled containers. The women said the owner lived in China, provided a phone number and email address and asked her to leave. Alarmed by what she saw, Harper, whose work mostly entails ensuring people have permits for yard sales and are keeping their lawns mowed, contacted Fresno County health officials and then the FBI. The discovery last December launched investigations by federal, state and local authorities who found no criminal activity at the medical lab owned by Prestige Biotech Inc., a company registered in Las Vegas, and no evidence of a threat to public health or national security. Nonetheless, it was just the beginning of a case that this summer fueled fears, rumors and conspiracy theories online about China purportedly trying to engineer biological weapons in rural America. During a March inspection of the lab in Reedley, a city of about 25,000 people some 200 miles (320 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco, officials did find infectious agents in the refrigerators including E. coli, coronavirus, malaria, hepatitis B and C, dengue, chlamydia, human herpes, rubella and HIV. But the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there was no sign that the lab was illegally in possession of the materials or had select agents or toxins that could be used as bioweapons. “CDC has taken no further action in this matter,” the agency said in an email to The Associated Press, referring further questions to county and state officials. After company representatives stopped communicating with city and county officials, they got a court order to shut down the operation, euthanized the mice and cleaned the biological materials. Officials thought that would be the end of it. Then on July 25, the Mid Valley Times, a local online news outlet, published a story about the lab that quoted court documents saying a representative of Prestige Biotech, which makes pregnancy and coronavirus tests sold online, told officials in March that the mice had been genetically modified to catch and carry the virus that causes COVID-19. That was likely a miscommunication by Prestige Biotech representative Wang Zhaolin, whose English is not perfect, Harper said. “She stated that the mice were bred, and then she hesitated and said they were modified to carry COVID,” Harper said Zhaolin told her and other officials. After the lab was shut down, she added, Wang stopped cooperating with them. Wang’s comment prompted Reedley authorities to hire Nina Hahn, an attending veterinarian at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, to examine the mice. Hahn found they had not been injected with any infectious agent and were simply used to grow COVID-19 antibody cells to make testing kits. She also determined they were not subjected to experimentation, Harper said. But that hasn’t stopped the furor, however. After the Mid Valley Times article, national media outlets published stories saying the lab had bioengineered mice to carry COVID-19. A Fresno city official questioned the lab’s proximity to Lemoore Naval Air Station, about 35 miles (55 kilometers) away in neighboring Kings County. In a war with China, the official said, fighter jets would deploy from the base. Last week House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican who represents a Congressional district neighboring Reedley’s, said during a visit to a nearby town that he plans to raise concerns over the “very disturbing” case with colleagues on the Select Committee on China and follow up with the FBI. “My concern is to get to the bottom of what happened here but to also look at where this is happening in other parts of this country as well,” McCarthy said. Lok Siu, a professor of Asian American and Asian diaspora studies at the University of California, Berkeley, said the fears being fanned online reflect anti-Chinese sentiments that have existed in the United States for centuries and were heightened during the pandemic. “Ultimately all Chinese people are connected to the Chinese state. They’re not given the ability to act as responsible or irresponsible individuals and they are seen as agents, and the only reason for that is because ethnic Chinese people are seen as not loyal and always foreign,” Siu said. In Reedley, where the laboratory failed to officially register, officials took a dim view of the operation. “They were bad actors. They never came to the city and they moved in in the middle of the night. Those are pretty big elements that tell us they did not want us to know they were here,” said Nicole Zieba, Reedley’s city manager. The California Department of Public Health said in a statement that all clinical laboratories must get state and federal licenses to operate, and it is still investigating whether Prestige Biotech has a state license. Federal officials said they found no illegalities. Several Prestige Biotech representatives including attorney Michael Lin in Las Vegas did not respond to emailed requests for comment sent by AP. There were also questions from some about why the federal investigation was not made public until the Mid Valley Times reported on it. Zieba said that early on, state and federal officials advised the city to not share information with the public about the lab, which had been operating illegally in the city since October 22, because the investigation was still ongoing. And after California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control checked the air and water and found no threat, she decided to heed that advice. “It was fairly quickly apparent to us that there was nothing airborne, nothing in the water, nothing in the sewer system, so our public was safe,” Zieba said. “Had there been any hazard to their safety, we would have immediately notified the public.” Reedley officials said what has been most concerning about the discovery was finding out there is no single government entity overseeing private medical laboratories. “What’s frustrating is that we’re focusing on these myths, bioengineered weapons and stuff like that, rather than the real issue, the lack of regulation of these private labs,” Harper said.
Federal trial to decide whether ex-chief of staff lied to protect his boss, Illinois House speaker 2023-08-09 - CHICAGO (AP) — The trial of a former chief of staff to longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan opened Wednesday with a federal prosecutor arguing that the defendant lied under oath to a grand jury to protect his boss. The 68-year-old Tim Mapes, who served for almost two decades as Madigan’s chief of staff, faces single counts of perjury and attempted obstruction of justice. A conviction on the obstruction count alone carries up to 20 years in prison. Mapes lied repeatedly when he testified in 2021 to a grand jury investigating Madigan and others. In opening statements, the prosecutor told jurors Mapes specifically lied when he said he couldn’t recall any relevant details about Madigan’s ties to Michael McClain, who was a Madigan confidant, the Chicago Tribune reported. “The defendant lied. Not just once but again and again and again, to prevent the grand jury from finding out” what Madigan, a Democrat, was up to, prosecutor Diane MacArthur said. Federal jurors in May convicted four defendants of bribery conspiracy involving the state’s largest electric utility. Prosecutors said McClain, two former ComEd executives and a former utility consultant arranged contracts, jobs and money for associates of Madigan’s to ensure proposed bills boosting ComEd profits became law. For decades, the 81-year-old Madigan was one of the most powerful state legislative leaders in the nation. Then in 2022, he was indicted on charges that included racketeering and bribery. A year before his indictment and amid speculation that he was a federal target, he resigned from the Legislature as the longest-serving state House speaker in modern U.S. history. In her opening Monday, defense lawyer Katie Hill told jurors Mapes never intentionally misled the grand jury, saying he simply couldn’t remember many details about which he was asked. Hill likened the questions Mapes was asked to a pop quiz at a high school reunion. She asked jurors if they’d be able to remember the color of their prom corsages or who was class president their junior year, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. “Tim Mapes did not lie in the grand jury,” Hill said. “He did not attempt to obstruct justice.” The first prosecution witness Monday was a former House Majority Leader Greg Harris, a Democrat from Chicago, who explained to jurors how state government works. He also described the power Madigan yielded as speaker. Madigan has denied any wrongdoing. The indictment accused Madigan, among other things, of reaping the benefits of private legal work that was illegally steered to his law firm.
Biden issues an executive order restricting US investments in Chinese technology 2023-08-09 - WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden signed an executive order Wednesday to block and regulate high-tech U.S.-based investments going toward China — a move the administration said was targeted even though it reflected an intensifying competition between the world’s two biggest powers. The order covers advanced computer chips, micro electronics, quantum information technologies and artificial intelligence. Senior administration officials said that the effort stemmed from national security goals rather than economic interests, and that the categories it covered were intentionally narrow in scope. The order seeks to blunt China’s ability to use U.S. investments in its technology companies to upgrade its military while also preserving broader levels of trade that are vital for both nations’ economies. The United States and China appear to be increasingly locked in a geopolitical competition with a conflicting set of values. Biden administration officials have insisted that they have no interest in “decoupling” from China, yet the U.S. also has limited the export of advanced computer chips and kept the expanded tariffs set up by President Donald Trump. China has engaged in crackdowns on foreign companies. Biden has suggested that China’s economy is struggling and its global ambitions have been tempered as the U.S. has reenergized its alliances with Japan, South Korea, Australia and the European Union. The administration consulted with allies and industry in shaping the executive order. “Worry about China, but don’t worry about China,” Biden told donors at a June fundraising event in California. The officials previewing the order said that China has exploited U.S. investments to support the development of weapons and modernize its military. The new limits were tailored not to disrupt China’s economy, but they would complement the export controls on advanced computer chips from last year that led to pushback by Chinese officials. The Treasury Department, which would monitor the investments, will announce a proposed rulemaking with definitions that would conform to the presidential order and go through a public comment process. The goals of the order would be to have investors notify the U.S. government about certain types of transactions with China as well as to place prohibitions on some investments. Officials said the order is focused on areas such as private equity, venture capital and joint partnerships in which the investments could possibly give countries of concern such as China additional knowledge and military capabilities. J. Philip Ludvigson, a lawyer and former Treasury official, said the order was an initial framework that could be expanded over time. “The executive order issued today really represents the start of a conversation between the U.S. government and industry regarding the details of the ultimate screening regime,” Ludvigson said. “While the executive order is limited initially to semiconductors and microelectronics, quantum information technologies, and artificial intelligence, it explicitly provides for a future broadening to other sectors.” The issue is also a bipartisan priority. In July by a vote of 91-6, the Senate added as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act requirements to monitor and limit investments in countries of concern, including China. Yet reaction to Biden’s order on Wednesday showed a desire to push harder on China. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., said the order was an “essential step forward,” but it “cannot be the final step.” Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Biden should been more aggressive, saying, “we have to stop all U.S. investment in China’s critical technology and military companies — period.” Biden has called Chinese President Xi Jinping a “dictator” in the aftermath of the U.S. shooting down a spy balloon from China that floated over the United States. Taiwan’s status has been a source of tension, with Biden saying that China had become coercive regarding its independence. China has supported Russia after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, though Biden has noted that the friendship has not extended to the shipment of weapons. U.S. officials have long signaled the coming executive order on investing in China, but it’s unclear whether financial markets will regard it as a tapered step or a continued escalation of tensions at a fragile moment. “The message it sends to the market may be far more decisive,” said Elaine Dezenski, a senior director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “U.S. and multinational companies are already reexamining the risks of investing in China. Beijing’s so-called ‘national security’ and ‘anti-espionage’ laws that curb routine and necessary corporate due diligence and compliance were already having a chilling effect on U.S. foreign direct investment. That chilling now risks turning into a deep freeze.” China’s strong economic growth has stumbled coming out of pandemic lockdowns. On Wednesday, its National Bureau of Statistics reported a 0.3% decline in consumer prices in July from a year ago. That level of deflation points to a lack of consumer demand in China that could hamper growth. Separately, foreign direct investment into China fell 89% from a year earlier in the second quarter of this year to $4.9 billion, according to data released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange. Most foreign investment is believed to be brought in by Chinese companies and disguised as foreign money to get tax breaks and other benefits, according to Chinese researchers. However, foreign business groups say global companies also are shifting investment plans to other economies. Foreign companies have lost confidence in China following tighter security controls and a lack of action on reform promises. Calls by Xi and other leaders for more economic self-reliance have left investors uneasy about their future in the state-dominated economy. ___ AP reporter Joe McDonald contributed to this report from Beijing.
Norfolk Southern content with minimum safety too often, regulators say after fiery Ohio derailment 2023-08-09 - OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Norfolk Southern made improvements after one of its trains derailed, caught fire and spilled toxic chemicals near an Ohio town, but the company is nowhere near the “gold standard for safety” it is striving to be, according to federal regulators. Instead, the railroad is too often only willing to meet minimum safety requirements. The Federal Railroad Administration released its 143-page report on the Atlanta-based railroad’s safety culture Wednesday. The agency has been working on the report for months since thousands of people had to evacuate their homes after the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment. Poor communication and mistrust between employees and managers are hindering Norfolk Southern’s efforts to improve safety, the report also said. The agency questioned whether the company’s training for employees and managers is adequate. “At a time when so many people working on and living near train tracks are asking legitimate questions about how major freight railroads operate, railroads must have a culture and operations that are focused on safety,” agency administrator Amit Bose said. “This first-of-its-kind assessment — conducted immediately after the Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine — shows in too many instances the railroad should be doing more to ensure the safety people deserve.” The agency has promised to conduct similar safety culture reviews at all the major freight railroads, including CSX, Union Pacific, BNSF, Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City, but it hasn’t set a timeline for those reviews. Norfolk Southern is collaborating with workers on safety and addressing the report’s findings, said CEO Alan Shaw, who since the Feb. 3 derailment near Pennsylvania has repeatedly called for his railroad to set the “gold standard” for safety in the industry. Bose met with Shaw and several of the railroad’s other executives Tuesday to go over the findings, and the company gave a copy of the report to Atkins Nuclear Secured, an independent consultant with expertise in nuclear submarines that is reviewing the company’s safety program. “We aren’t waiting” to act, Shaw said. He said the railroad will keep working on improvements it announced in March while trying to address the regulators’ recommendations. Congress and regulators have called for all the major freight railroads to make a number of changes to improve safety but proposed legislation has stalled in the Senate and failed to get started in the Republican-controlled House. The rail agency said its assessment “shows numerous examples where NS seems more concerned with compliance with minimum safety requirements of federal regulations and industry standards rather than understanding and seeking to address safety concerns that fall outside the boundaries of existing rules and regulations.” And as investigators looked into the railroad’s practices, they “encountered multiple instances of lapses in trust between employees and their frontline supervisors,” including times when employees refused to meet with investigators because they feared they would be disciplined for speaking out about their safety concerns. Shaw has defended the railroad’s overall safety record and said its number of derailments is down since it began overhauling its operations in 2019 and making widespread job cuts in the name of efficiency. But the federal agency pointed out that between 2018 and 2022 the rate of accidents per million train miles on Norfolk Southern rose faster than any other major freight railroad. The agency said it has noticed some initial improvement since the derailment, but that it has been inconsistent as the railroad hasn’t always communicated the changes well to all its supervisors and employees. Just last year the agency audited Norfolk Southern’s safety practices and training programs after three railroad employees — including two conductors who had been on the job less than a year — suffered amputations while on duty. The agency made 25 recommendations in that audit that the railroad didn’t promptly or comprehensively respond to. Just two days before the East Palestine derailment, “NS responded, indicating that where recommendations exceeded the minimum regulatory requirements, they would take no further action, but did promise to engage in corrective action for the majority of the recommendations,” the report said. The National Transportation Safety Board has been investigating what caused the Ohio derailment after holding hearings on it in June. But that agency has said the derailment was likely caused by an overheating bearing on one of the rail cars. A sensor triggered an alarm about that bearing but the crew didn’t have time to stop the train before cars loaded with hazardous chemicals began to careen off the tracks. The federal rail agency took a close look at how Norfolk Southern monitors those sensors and found that there was often only one employee — sometimes working from home — monitoring all the roughly 1,200 detectors throughout the railroad’s network of 19,500 miles (31,382 kilometers) of track in the eastern United States. And that person relied on email to alert dispatchers about any problems — creating the possibility of a delay in notice. That person also dealt with reports of mechanical problems from train crews and safety concerns reported by the public. In addition to Wednesday’s report, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration said it had fined the railroad $49,111 for failing to provide proper protective gear and adequate hazardous materials training to the workers who were sent to East Palestine immediately after the derailment to rebuild the tracks. Norfolk Southern also agreed establish a medical monitoring program to track the health of workers who were at the site and improve its training for future derailments as part of a settlement with OSHA. Tony Cardwell, who leads the union representing track maintenance workers, said he’s glad to see OSHA doing something to hold the railroad accountable because its “actions were completely derelict.” Cardwell said he was “blown away” when he learned that his members were working at the derailment site just in their normal leather gloves and boots and not in the hazmat suits he kept seeing on news reports. “Unless agencies step in and force the carriers to do these things, they won’t do them because there’s a cost associated with it,” said Cardwell, who is president of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division union.