While most musicians seek to avoid a frosty reception at concerts, for Norwegian composer and performer Terje Isungset a chilly feeling is nothing to fear: he performs with instruments he makes himself out of ice. A recent performance at London’s Royal Festival Hall featured a set including ice horns, ice …
your ad hereWhen It Comes to Holiday Cards, Which Celebs Do It Right?
The Associated Press recently caught up with a few celebrities and asked them about their favorite holiday cards from fellow notables. Hugh Jackman of The Greatest Showman wouldn’t name any names, but he said some cards are remarkable. He even rates them. Liam Neeson, who stars in The Commuter, really …
your ad hereMichael Jackson Sex Abuse Lawsuit Dismissed
A judge on Tuesday dismissed the lawsuit brought by a choreographer who alleged Michael Jackson molested him as a child, resolving one of the last major claims against the late singer’s holdings. Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff’s summary judgment ruling against the now-35-year-old Wade Robson found that the two Jackson-owned corporations, …
your ad hereTop 5 Songs for Week Ending Dec. 23
We’re thawing out the five most popular songs in the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles chart, for the week ending Dec. 23, 2017. It’s a festive time of year for many of us, so here’s something to celebrate: a new number one single! Number 5: Imagine Dragons “Thunder” Imagine Dragons …
your ad hereSurvey: Rohingya Refugees Fear for Health, Safety
A survey by the U.N. refugee agency reveals heightened worries by the Rohingya refugee population in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh over their health and safety. It has been nearly four months since the mass exodus of Rohingya refugees began from Myanmar into Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. More than 645,000 Rohingya who escaped …
your ad hereEU Court Rules Uber Should be Regulated Like Taxi Service
The European Court of Justice ruled Wednesday that ride-hailing company Uber should be regulated like a taxi service instead of a technology firm, a decision that limits its business operations in Europe. The decision was handed down in response to a complaint from a Barcelona taxi drivers association, which tried …
your ad hereWorld Meteorological Org.: Arctic Warming Appears Irreversible
The World Meteorological Organization reports 2017 is on track to be among the three hottest years on record, just behind the two preceding years. While 2017 may only emerge as the third warmest year on record, scientists predict it will beat out the competition for warmest year without a warming …
your ad hereEPA Says Superfund Task Force Left Behind Little Paper Trail
The Environmental Protection Agency says an internal task force appointed to revamp how the nation’s most polluted sites are cleaned up generated no record of its deliberations. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt in May announced the creation of a Superfund Task Force that he said would reprioritize and streamline procedures for …
your ad hereHistory Behind the Carol of the Bells
The traditional Ukrainian Bell Carol has become an essential part of the American Christmas tradition. “Carol of the Bells” is a popular Christmas carol composed by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych in 1914 with lyrics by Peter J. Wilhousky. The song is based on a Ukrainian folk chant called “Shchedryk.” …
your ad hereA Collision of Two Stars 1,800 Years Ago Will be Visible to Us in 2022
In the universe, particularly in our galaxy, there are a great number of multiple-stellar systems where two or more stars rotate around each other. In many of these systems, the stars collide – a phenomenon that has been familiar to astronomers for a long time. But scientists say a collision …
your ad hereStudying Music’s Healing Powers
“Music hath charms,” the saying goes, and it does have power, to make us happy, sad, or even ignite social change. But it also has healing powers, and researchers want to know how that works. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …
your ad hereDisplaced by Mining, Peru Villagers Spurn Shiny New Town
This remote town in Peru’s southern Andes was supposed to serve as a model for how companies can help communities uprooted by mining. Named Nueva Fuerabamba, it was built to house around 1,600 people who gave up their village and farmland to make room for a massive, open-pit copper mine. …
your ad hereLos Angeles Muralist Aims to Make a Big Mark
Brushstroke by brushstroke, muralist Robert Vargas is telling the story of this changing metropolis, using the facade of a 14-story downtown apartment building as his canvas. Vargas suggests the massive painting, an homage to his hometown, was inevitable. He grew up in East Los Angeles “on a street called City View, and …
your ad hereStudy: There’s No Fail-safe Way to Prevent Dementia
A new study has dashed hopes that people may be able to protect themselves from dementia through medicine, diet or exercise. “To put it simply, all evidence indicates that there is no magic bullet,” Dr. Eric Larson wrote in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The study outlined in the medical …
your ad hereUS Sees Foreign Reliance on ‘Critical’ Minerals as Security Concern
The United States needs to encourage domestic production of a handful of minerals critical for the technology and defense industries, and stem reliance on China, U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Tuesday. Zinke made the remarks at the Interior Department as he unveiled a report by the U.S. Geological Survey …
your ad hereStriking a Chord, Researchers Tap Brain to Find Out How Music Heals
Like a friendly Pied Piper, the violinist keeps up a toe-tapping beat as dancers weave through busy hospital hallways and into the chemotherapy unit, patients looking up in surprised delight. Upstairs, a cellist plays an Irish folk tune for a patient in intensive care. Music increasingly is becoming a part …
your ad hereGreek Lawmakers Approve 2018 Budget Featuring More Austerity
Greece’s parliament on Tuesday approved the 2018 state budget, which includes further austerity measures beyond the official end of the country’s third international bailout next summer. All 153 lawmakers from the left-led governing coalition backed the budget measures in a late vote, while the 144 opposition lawmakers present rejected …
your ad hereEx-Odebrecht CEO, Symbol of Brazil Graft Probe, Leaves Jail
One of the most prominent people convicted in Latin America’s largest corruption scandal left prison Tuesday for house arrest after serving two-and-a-half years behind bars at a time when many Brazilians are becoming disillusioned with the graft investigation once hailed as a political game-changer. Marcelo Odebrecht’s release came a day …
your ad hereGene Therapy for Rare Form of Blindness Wins US Approval
U.S. health officials on Tuesday approved the nation’s first gene therapy for an inherited, rare form of blindness, marking another major advance for the emerging field of genetic medicine. The approval for pharmaceutical company Spark Therapeutics offers a life-changing intervention for a small group of patients with a vision-destroying genetic mutation …
your ad hereLady Gaga Achieves ‘Dream’ with Las Vegas Residency
Pop star Lady Gaga is swapping touring for a two-year stint in Las Vegas, joining the likes of music divas Celine Dion, Britney Spears and Shania Twain who have recently taken up concert residencies in the entertainment mecca. Gaga, 31, said on Tuesday she will start a two-year engagement at …
your ad here‘Ticking Time Bomb’ as Pacific Children Bear Mental Scars of Climate Disasters
Each time teenager Freddy Sei hears the rumble of thunder, sees rains pound the earth in his small coastal village or watches strong winds whip palm trees, he is gripped with fear. The 15-year-old lives in Vanuatu, a Pacific island nation that two years ago was ravaged by monster cyclone …
your ad hereAnalysis: US Tax Cut to Deliver Corporate Earnings Gift
A planned massive Republican tax overhaul has led Wall Street strategists to revise their 2018 corporate earnings forecasts sharply higher, but the jury is out on how long the accelerating effect on profits will last. The tax bill, which the U.S. House of Representatives approved on Tuesday, will cut the …
your ad hereZimbabwe’s Ruling Party Hopes for Economic Turnaround
Less than a month after a military intervention forced longtime leader Robert Mugabe to step down, the new leaders of ruling ZANU-PF party have big plans for Zimbabwe. Retired General Sibusiso Moyo announced the military takeover on November 15 and has been appointed to serve as foreign minister. He sees …
your ad herePoll: Americans Hold Favorable View of US Economy, But Not Trump
Nearly two-thirds of Americans have a favorable view of the U.S. economy, according to a new poll, even as they give President Donald Trump negative reviews for his handling of the world’s largest economy and an array of other issues. In its latest poll, Quinnipiac University said 63 percent of …
your ad hereFacebook to Notify Users When Photos of Them Are Uploaded
Facebook Inc said on Tuesday it would begin using facial recognition technology to tell people on the social network when others upload photos of them, if they agree to let the company keep a facial template on file. The company said in a statement it was making the feature optional …
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