The first episode of a possible prequel series to HBO’s global hit “Game of Thrones” has completed filming in Belfast, a network executive said on Wednesday.HBO executives will review the episode before deciding whether to make a full season but Casey Bloys, president of programming at the network owned by …
your ad hereElton John AIDS Fundraiser Brings in $6M for Kenya HIV Testing
Updated on July 25, at 12:56 am EDT.Elton John on Wednesday hosted a celebrity-packed gala that raised more than $6 million to fight HIV/AIDS in Kenya, thanks partly to auctions of a luxury car and an autographed piano used in the singer’s “Rocketman” movie musical.The British singer-songwriter, on a break …
your ad hereExplorer to Search for Amelia Earhart’s Plane
Robert Ballard, the underwater explorer who found the Titanic, has a new quest: searching for the plane of famed aviatrix Amelia Earhart, who disappeared over the Pacific in 1937. National Geographic said Ballard plans to leave from Samoa on Aug. 7 to carry out the hunt with his state-of-the-art …
your ad hereBeethoven Behind Bars: Peru Rehabilitates Inmates With Music
Holding a violin, saxophone or clarinet with handcuffed hands, some two-dozen prisoners were transported in an armored bus to learn music alongside the symphony orchestra in the national theater in Lima, the Peruvian capital.The recent excursion is part of a pioneering project to rehabilitate criminals, some convicted of murder, robbery …
your ad hereRapper Meek Mill Granted New Trial on 2008 Drugs, Weapons Convictions
Meek Mill, a rap artist from Philadelphia who has become an advocate for reform of the U.S. criminal justice system, is entitled to a new trial on drugs and weapon charges that have kept him on probation for a decade, a Pennsylvania appeals court ruled Wednesday.A three-judge Pennsylvania Superior Court …
your ad hereEbola Vaccine Hampered by Deep Distrust in Eastern Congo
Until his last breath, Salomon Nduhi Kambale insisted he had been poisoned by someone and that was the reason he was vomiting blood. The 30-year-old man wouldn’t give community health teams his phone number, and when they found it, he hung up on them.Health workers were desperate to persuade him …
your ad hereStudy: Global Warming Dwarfs Climate Variations of Past 2,000 Years
Earth’s rapid warming in the late 20th century was far more widespread than any temperature variations during the previous 2,000 years, according to a study published on Wednesday that shows how profoundly humans have altered the climate.The study crunched data covering two millennia from almost 700 sources ranging from tree …
your ad hereNetflix Film: Data Is the New Oil So Watch Out for Mass Mining
Big business and politics are mass-mining everyday data — from Facebook ‘likes’ to online subscriptions – for profit and power, according to a Netflix documentary released on Wednesday.”The Great Hack” says personal data has surpassed oil as the world’s most valuable asset, and warns viewers that companies and governments are …
your ad hereFacebook Settles for $5 Billion Over Handling of User Data
Facebook has agreed to a $5 billion settlement over allegations that the social media company mishandled user’s personal data.The settlement, announced in a statement Wednesday by the Federal Trade Commission, is the largest reached with a tech company over user privacy.As a result of the agreement with the government, Facebook …
your ad hereFuturistic Space Habitat Solves Problems With Human Space Travel
Fifty years ago, the first humans landed on the moon. Could longer space flights to Mars and beyond happen 50 years in the future? What new technologies are needed for future space missions?An aerospace engineer at Texas A&M University has been working on a space habitat for long-term space travel. …
your ad hereBig Tech Faces Broad US Justice Department Antitrust Probe
The U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday it was opening a broad investigation of major digital technology firms into whether they engage in anticompetitive practices, the strongest sign the Trump administration is stepping up its scrutiny of Big Tech.The review will look into “whether and how market-leading online platforms have …
your ad hereVirtual Reality Art Show Transports Visitors Into Alternate Realities
Virtual reality, or VR, is not just a medium for software engineers who can code. Artists and filmmakers are exploring the stories they can tell with VR. A collection of such experiences are now a part of an art show called Robot Remix. The art show challenges visitors to rethink …
your ad hereTaylor Swift, Ariana Grande Lead MTV VMA Nominations
Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande each received 10 nominations for the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA) on Tuesday, leading the race in the youth-orientated awards show, which this year includes two new categories, best K-pop and video for good.Singer-songwriter Billie Eilish scored nine nominations, including video of the year, best …
your ad hereNike Shoes Race to $437,500 World Record Auction Price for Sneakers
A pair of 1972 running shoes, one of the first pairs made by Nike Inc, sold for $437,500 on Tuesday, shattering the record for a pair of sneakers at public auction.The so-called Nike “Moon Shoe,” designed by Nike co-founder and track coach Bill Bowerman for runners at the 1972 Olympics …
your ad hereAustralia Searches for Climate-Proof Crops
Australian researchers are looking to Africa and the Middle East for drought- and heat-resistant crops as many grain farmers face another failed season.Key farming regions in southern Queensland are forecast to miss their third winter grain crop in a row. The national crop this year is expected to be about …
your ad here‘Havana Syndrome:’ Scans Show Differences in Affected Diplomat’s Brains
Brain scans show “significant neuroimaging differences” in 40 U.S. embassy employees affected by mysterious neurological symptoms in Cuba in late 2016, according to a study released Tuesday.The diplomats had significantly smaller amounts of white brain matter, and markedly lower levels of connectivity between parts of the brain responsible for sight …
your ad hereRoss: US Will Deal With Huawei Waiver Applications Within Weeks
The Trump administration plans to handle applications from tech companies seeking waivers over Huawei Technologies Co Ltd’s blacklisting within the next few weeks, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told Bloomberg Television on Tuesday.”We will deal with them very promptly,” Ross said in an interview. “There are 50-some-odd applications from 35 …
your ad hereRussian Boxer Maxim Dadashev Dies After Fight
Russian boxer Maxim Dadashev has died from injuries sustained in a fight in Maryland, the Russian boxing federation announced Tuesday. “Maxim Dadashev has died in the United States following injuries sustained during his fight with Subriel Matias,” the federation said in a statement.The 28-year-old underwent emergency brain surgery in Washington after …
your ad hereUS Attorney General Says Encryption Creates Security Risk
U.S. Attorney General William Barr said Tuesday that increased encryption of data on phones and computers and encrypted messaging apps are putting American security at risk.Barr’s comments at a cybersecurity conference mark a continuing effort by the Justice Department to push tech companies to provide law enforcement with access to …
your ad hereB.B. King’s ‘Lucille’ Guitar Going up for Auction
Her name was “Lucille,” and in B.B. King’s hands she gave voice to the “King of the Blues.”Julien’s Auctions announced Tuesday that King’s black Gibson ES-345 prototype guitar is among the items from his estate that will go up for bid on Sept. 21.Julien’s says Gibson gave King the instrument …
your ad hereFacebook-Style App Launches in Vietnam Amid Tightening Internet Rules
A Facebook-style social network was launched in Vietnam on Tuesday, Gapo, a mobile app that lets users create personal profiles and share posts to a Facebook style “news feed”, has received 500 billion dong ($21.55 million) in funding from tech corporation G-Group, its chief executive, Ha Trung Kien, said.”Vietnamese users …
your ad hereDC Building Museum Takes Summer Vibes to Whole New Level
Imagine a giant green lawn that offers hammocks, lounging areas, refreshments and lawn games – a perfect summer place to unwind and enjoy the season. Now the National Building Museum in Washington has taken these summer vibes to a whole level in an unusual, new installation. Maxim Moskalkov has more. …
your ad herePitt, DiCaprio and Robbie Reconcile a Changing Hollywood
Once upon a time, not too far from Hollywood, two of the world’s biggest movie stars were talking about what it’s like to screw up on set. “Messing up the lines in front of the entire cast and crew?” Leonardo DiCaprio said. “It’s the going to school in your underwear …
your ad hereAll Aboard America’s Oldest Operating Railroad
Coal-fired steam train number 90 takes off on the Strasburg Rail Road, spewing black smoke as its big wheels turn and clank on the tracks. The powerful locomotive, built in 1924, pulls old fashioned wooden passenger cars, as it takes tourists on a 45 minute ride through tranquil farms in …
your ad hereChris Kraft, 1st Flight Director for NASA, Dies at 95
Behind America’s late leap into orbit and triumphant small step on the moon was the agile mind and guts-of-steel of Chris Kraft, making split-second decisions that propelled the nation to once unimaginable heights.Kraft, the creator and longtime leader of NASA’s Mission Control, died Monday in Houston, just two days after …
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