A Bulgarian skier has come out of retirement for another shot at Olympic gold. He competed in Sochi under the Balkan country’s flag, but at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, he’d be a one-man team. Arash Arabasadi reports. …
your ad hereNew U.S. Fitness Fad Claims to Burn Fat All Day
Wearable technology is finding its way into many workouts. The thinking is that constantly monitoring their body can help people get the most out of their time at the gym. That’s the idea behind Orange theory, the newest U.S. fitness fad. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …
your ad hereProminent AIDS Crusader Mathilde Krim Dies at Age 91
Mathilde Krim, a prominent AIDS researcher who galvanized worldwide support in the early fight against the deadly disease, has died. She was 91. Krim was founding chairman of The Foundation for AIDS Research, or amfAR. The nonprofit says she died at her home in King’s Point, New York, on …
your ad hereGourmet Chocolate Becomes Economic Lifeline in Venezuela
In a modest apartment near a Caracas slum, nutrition professor Nancy Silva and four aids spread rich, dark Venezuelan cocoa on a stone counter to make chocolate bars to be sold in local shops that cater to the crisis-hit country’s dwindling elite. Like some 20 recently launched Venezuelan businesses, Silva …
your ad hereEl Salvador Eyes Work Scheme with Qatar for Migrants Facing Exit from US
El Salvador is discussing a deal with Qatar under which Salvadoran migrants facing the loss of their right to stay in the United States could live and work temporarily in the Middle Eastern country, the government of the Central American nation said on Tuesday. Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump’s …
your ad hereCurling Heads to Olympics as World’s Fastest-growing Sport
Curling, once a minority pastime played mostly by Scots and Canadians, will sweep onto the ice at next month’s Pyeongchang Olympics with the proud boast of being the world’s fastest-growing winter sport. The “roaring game,” with its origins in the frozen ponds and mists of medieval Scotland, is now popping …
your ad hereMexican Car Sales Slump Ahead of Election
Car dealerships in Mexico City have kicked off the new year offering “clearance sales” and free insurance as 2017 models collect dust on their lots, a reminder that consumer nerves over high interest rates could slow the economy ahead of elections. The first drop in auto sales in eight years …
your ad herePrince Photographer Afshin Shahidi Shares his Intimate Trove
No assistants. No wardrobe or make up people. No lighting technicians. That’s how Afshin Shahidi spent his most cherished moments with Prince over nearly a decade as his go-to photographer, and he included many of their more intimate encounters among 250 photos in his recent book, Prince: A Private View. …
your ad hereSculptor Kapoor Gives $1M ‘Jewish Nobel’ Prize to Refugee Effort
British-Indian sculptor Anish Kapoor donated $1 million Wednesday to five charities working with refugees worldwide, in a bid to alleviate a record-breaking global displacement crisis. Kapoor, who was born to an Indian father and Iraqi Jewish mother, won the Genesis Prize — dubbed the Jewish Nobel — last year for his …
your ad here21 States Sue to Keep Net Neutrality as Senate Democrats Reach 50 Votes
A group of 21 U.S. state attorneys general filed suit to challenge the Federal Communications Commission’s decision to do away with net neutrality on Tuesday, while Democrats said they needed just one more vote in the Senate to repeal the FCC ruling. The attorneys general filed a petition with a federal appeals …
your ad hereFrench Startup Launches Hydrogen-powered Bicyles
A French start-up has become the first company to start factory production of hydrogen-powered bicycles for use in corporate or municipal fleets. Pragma Industries, which is based in Biarritz, France and makes fuel cells for military use, has sold some 60 hydrogen-powered bikes to French municipalities including Saint Lo, Cherbourg, …
your ad hereSweden Already Schooling Future Winter Olympians
Next month’s Winter Olympics is the immediate focus for Sweden but the country is already training its next generation of winter sports athletes in special high school programs that combine sports and education for ambitious teenagers. At the Jamtlands Gymnaisum high school in Ostersund, some 550 kilometers (340 miles )north …
your ad hereLifelike Robots Made in Hong Kong Meant to Win Over Humans
David Hanson envisions a future in which robots powered by artificial intelligence evolve to become “super-intelligent genius machines” that might help solve some of mankind’s most challenging problems. If only it were as simple as that. The Texas-born former sculptor at Walt Disney Imagineering and his Hong Kong-based startup Hanson …
your ad hereGrowing Number of Actors Renounce Woody Allen
A growing number of actors are distancing themselves from Woody Allen and his next film, heightening questions about the future of the prolific 82-year-old filmmaker in a Hollywood newly sensitive to allegations of sexual misconduct. Timothee Chalamet on Tuesday said he will donate his salary for an upcoming Woody Allen …
your ad hereWidow of Eagles Guitarist Frey Sues NYC Hospital for Wrongful Death
The widow of Glenn Frey on Tuesday filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan over its treatment of the former co-lead singer and guitarist for The Eagles before he died in January 2016 at age 67. Cindy Frey accused the hospital and gastroenterologist Steven Itzkowitz of …
your ad hereResearchers: More Green Power Could Lessen India’s Water, Electricity Problems
Water shortages have disrupted India’s power plants for years and are likely to worsen as power demands grow and climate change brings more frequent droughts — a reality that is adding urgency to government plans to boost use of renewable energy, analysts said. Most of India’s energy comes from fossil-fuel-powered thermal …
your ad hereWorld’s Largest Sea Turtle Could Come Off US ‘Endangered’ List
Federal ocean managers say it might be time to move the East Coast population of the world’s largest turtle from the United States’ list of endangered animals. An arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has received a petition from a fishing group asking that the Northwest Atlantic Ocean’s …
your ad hereHarvard’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals Taps Kunis as Woman of the Year
Mila Kunis, who made her mark on two long-running television comedies and earned a Golden Globe nomination for her work on the big screen, was named Woman of the Year on Tuesday by Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals. Kunis is being honored by the nation’s oldest collegiate theatrical organization because …
your ad hereCareer Change Worth the Risk for Leather Artisan
Wheeler Stone, known as Doc, can spend hours working in his studio without getting tired or bored. He’s creating leather costumes and accessories for people who love to dress up as fictional characters from movies. He’s also designing and making various leather products for everyday life. To him, leather-working is more …
your ad hereInfants in War-torn Yemen Dying at Alarmingly High Rate
A report by the U.N. children’s fund finds babies born in war-torn Yemen are dying at an alarmingly high rate because of the collapsing health system, lack of food and clean water. The U.N. children’s fund reports more than three million children have been born in Yemen since the country’s …
your ad hereHebrew Grammar Book From 16th Century Returns to Prague
A 16th century book that belonged to Prague’s Jewish community before World War II and surfaced at a New York City auction last year was brought back to the Czech Republic on Tuesday. Titled “Mikne Avram — Peculium Abrae,” the recovered volume is a grammar book published in both Hebrew …
your ad hereEthiopian Airlines to Re-launch Zambia’s National Carrier
Ethiopian Airlines says it has finalized an agreement with Zambia to re-launch the southern African country’s national carrier. The partnership with Zambia comes as Ethiopian Airlines is opening new routes and hubs and is acquiring new aircraft. In a statement Tuesday, the airline said it will have a 45 percent …
your ad hereBitcoin, Rival Cryptocurrencies Plunge on Crackdown Fears
Bitcoin slid as much as 18 percent on Tuesday to a four-week low, as fears of a regulatory crackdown on the market spread after reports suggested it was still possible that South Korea could ban trading in cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin’s slide triggered a selloff across the broader cryptocurrency market, with biggest …
your ad hereMilan Line Offers Canine Couture for Pampered Pooches
Milan has long been the world’s ready-to-wear fashion leader. Now, dogs are getting in on the city’s sartorial scene with a new line of haute couture for canines. Dog-a-Porter, by the Milan brand Temellini, offers clothing custom-fit for different breeds, ranging from the tiny Chihuahua to the stately greyhound. The …
your ad hereClean Energy Investment Rose to $333.5B in 2017, Research Shows
New clean energy investment worldwide rose by 3 percent last year to $333.5 billion from a year earlier, driven by a surge in solar photovoltaic (PV) installations, research showed on Tuesday. The figure is below 2015’s record amount of $360.3 billion, Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) said in an annual …
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