Google won’t do artificial intelligence work for weapons, the company said Thursday. The company will not work on “technologies that cause or are likely to cause overall harm,” wrote Sundar Pichai, Google’s CEO, in a blog post. Google has come under fire in recent months for its contract …
your ad hereForeign Firms Invest in Brazil Oil Despite Fuel Price Strike
Multinational oil companies bought significant stakes in three Brazilian pre-salt oil fields auctioned Thursday, a show of confidence in the future of the energy sector despite a recent strike by truckers over rising fuel prices that brought Latin America’s largest nation to a halt. The auction, which included several multinationals …
your ad hereCDC Reports Spike in US Suicide Rates
Suicide rates rose in nearly every U.S. state from 1999 to 2016, with the rate spiking by more than 30 percent in half of the country, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported Thursday. Though mental health is often blamed for suicides, more than half of the people who …
your ad hereHeat-Trapping Carbon Dioxide Levels in Air Hit Another High
The amount of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the air peaked again this year at record levels, scientists reported Thursday. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday that carbon dioxide levels averaged 411.25 parts per million in May at the federal Mauna Loa observatory in Hawaii, up from 409.65 a …
your ad hereFeminist, or Just Fun? ‘Ocean’s 8’ Steals Hollywood Spotlight
For some, the female heist caper Ocean’s 8 is a strike at the heart of male-dominated Hollywood. For others, it’s pure summer escapism. And for a (mostly male) minority, it’s the worst idea ever. The Ocean’s 8 cast of Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Rihanna, Anne Hathaway, Mindy Kaling, Helena Bonham …
your ad hereNASA Rover Data Shows Mars Had Ingredients Needed for Life
A NASA rover has detected a bonanza of organic compounds on the surface of Mars and seasonal fluctuations of atmospheric methane in findings released on Thursday that mark some of the strongest evidence ever that Earth’s neighbor may have harbored life. But National Aeronautics and Space Administration scientists emphasized there …
your ad hereDoctor Uses Brain Scans in Diagnoses of Mental Illness
If doctors suspect a patient has a broken bone, they typically take an X-ray to be sure of the problem. But to treat a mental health issue, doctors typically don’t take a picture of the brain. One doctor is trying to change that with a controversial brain scan. VOA’s Carolyn …
your ad hereHawaii Volcano Gives Experts Clues to Boost Science
Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano may be disrupting life in paradise with its bursts of ash and bright-orange lava, but it also has scientists wide-eyed, eager to advance what’s known about volcanoes. The good news is: Volcanoes reveal secrets when they’re rumbling, which means Kilauea is producing a bonanza of information. While …
your ad hereEgypt Repatriates Stolen Ancient Artifacts from France
Egypt says it has repatriated nine illegally smuggled artifacts, including statuary and coffins, from France. Thursday’s statement by the Foreign Ministry says French authorities had seized the artifacts at a train station in Paris in 2012. The Egyptian Antiquities Ministry says the artifacts include parts of five coffins, two …
your ad hereLahore Literary Festival Comes to New York
The Lahore Literary Festival (LLF), an annual three-day gathering in Pakistan’s second largest city, is considered one of the premiere literary festivals of South Asia. Since 2016, New York’s Asia Society has been hosting an edition of this famous festival in the Big Apple, to showcase Pakistan’s contemporary art and …
your ad hereTrump’s Solar Tariff Costs US Companies Billions
President Donald Trump’s tariff on imported solar panels has led U.S. renewable energy companies to cancel or freeze investments of more than $2.5 billion in large installation projects, along with thousands of jobs, the developers told Reuters. That’s more than double the about $1 billion in new spending plans announced …
your ad hereBlockchain Advances Could Revolutionize Daily Life
As the internet continues to revolutionize communications, the next world-changing technology may already be here. Blockchain, a way of recording data and automatically storing it on computers around the world, has the potential to change everything from collecting crime scene evidence to creating new digital currencies. VOA’s Jill Craig visited …
your ad hereColorado Muslims Build a Mosque Inside a Community Center to Attract Their Children
Prayer is an especially important part of Ramadan observances this month, and for Muslims in Aurora, Colorado, that happens at the Daral Tawheed mosque. The mosque is not just a focus for the religious community, it is part of a center for the entire community … with a swimming pool, …
your ad hereNASA Chief: US Will Always Have Astronauts in Orbit
Major changes could be ahead for the International Space Station but there will always be an American astronaut in orbit, NASA’s new boss said Wednesday. The space agency is talking with private companies about potentially taking over the space lab after 2025, but no decision will made without the other …
your ad hereEmirates Seeks to Lead the Way to Windowless Planes
Passenger jets of the future will be safer, lighter, faster, more fuel-efficient and … windowless. So predicts Emirates Airlines chief Tim Clark. The Dubai-based airline has already introduced virtual windows in the first-class suites of its newest planes. Instead of being able to see out a conventional window, the passengers …
your ad hereLast Munchkin Dies at 98
The last Munchkin has died. Actor Jerry Maren was the last survivor of the group of little people known as Munchkins who greeted Judy Garland’s Dorothy when she landed in Munchkinland in the 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz. He died May 24 at age 98 in a San Diego nursing home, …
your ad hereTrump ‘Will Be Sticking to His Guns’ at G-7 Summit, Adviser Says
U.S. President Donald Trump “will be sticking to his guns” at the upcoming Group of Seven summit despite criticism of his trade policies from allies, one of his key economic advisers told reporters Wednesday. “The president is at ease with all these tough issues,” said Larry Kudlow, director of the …
your ad hereCurrent Miss America: Scholarships Don’t Rely on Swimsuits
In the nine months that Cara Mund has been Miss America, not once has she ever had to don a swimsuit as part of her duties. The reigning Miss America told The Associated Press on Tuesday night she supports the decision of the Miss America Organization to drop the swimsuit …
your ad herePop Star David Cassidy Said He Lied About Dementia, Drinking
Former teen idol David Cassidy did not have dementia, as he claimed before he died, and lied about giving up drinking, the singer told the makers of a documentary about him in the months before his death. Cassidy, 67, who shot to fame in the 1970s TV show “The Partridge …
your ad hereCambridge Analytica Boss Admits Getting Facebook Data From Researcher
The former head of Cambridge Analytica admitted on Wednesday his firm had received data from the researcher at the center of a scandal over Facebook users’ personal details, contradicting previous testimony to lawmakers. Cambridge Analytica, which was hired by Donald Trump in 2016, has denied its work on the U.S. …
your ad hereIndia’s Central Bank Raises Key Lending Rate to 6.25 Percent
India’s central bank raised its benchmark lending rate Wednesday to tamp down rising inflation following an increase in oil prices. The increase of one-quarter percentage point to 6.25 percent is the first since January 2014 and comes at a time when consumer inflation is at a four-year high. The Reserve …
your ad hereAs Internet of Things Lacks World Market Leader, Focus Turns to Startups
A surge in participation by startup companies this week, at a highlight of Asia’s biggest annual tech event, shows an increased reliance on young entrepreneurs to come with the IT industry’s strongest ideas for connected devices and artificial intelligence. The InnoVEX segment of Taipei Computex 2018 brought together 388 startups, …
your ad hereFrance, Germany, UK Seek Exemption From US Iran Sanctions
Britain, France and Germany have joined forces to urge the United States to exempt European companies from any sanctions the U.S. will slap on Iran after pulling out of an international nuclear agreement. In a letter made public Wednesday, ministers from the three European countries told U.S. officials they …
your ad hereFacebook Acknowledges Data-Sharing Pact with Chinese Companies
Facebook has admitted that it had a data sharing agreement with four Chinese technology companies, including one considered a national security threat by the U.S. intelligence community, raising new concerns about the social media giant’s handling of its consumer’s personal information. The admission by the U.S.-based social media giant Tuesday …
your ad hereGoogle Leading Computer Training in Vietnam
In and around the Mekong Delta, school children will spend this summer moving rainbow-colored blocks and cartoon animals around a screen to get an early taste of computers in a program backed by Google. The tech company is paying for Vietnamese students to learn some introductory programming, along the way …
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