A Paris court has sentenced former World Athletics chief Lamine Diack to four years in prison on charges of corruption, money laundering and abuse of confidence. The charges stemmed from a Russian doping scandal, and for accepting Russian money to finance the 2012 election campaign of a Senegalese president. …
your ad hereSoftware Helps People Waiting in Lines to Social Distance
Indonesia has had more than 220,000 COVID-19 cases and the country still hasn’t reached its peak. Social distancing is an important part of controlling the virus and new technology aims to help people stay safely apart. VOA’s Rendy Wicaksana reports from Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. Camera: Rendy Wicaksana …
your ad hereResearchers: North Korean Hackers In League With Russian Cybercriminals
North Korean hackers are probably working with Russian-speaking cybercriminals on ransomware and other malicious software, researchers said Wednesday. Security firm Intel 471 said in a report it found links between North Korean hacker group Lazarus, known for attacks on banks worldwide, and a Russian-operated malware operation called TrickBot. …
your ad hereCelebs Join Instagram ‘Freeze’ to Protest Facebook Inaction
Kim Kardashian West, Katy Perry and Leonardo DiCaprio are among celebrities taking part in a 24-hour Instagram “freeze” on Wednesday to protest against what they say is parent company Facebook’s failure to tackle violent and hateful content and election misinformation. They were among the high profile names lending their backing …
your ad hereScientists: Climate Change Making Western Wildfires Worse
Fires burning in California are the largest on record. In Washington state, a larger area burned in five days than have burned in any previous year on record save one. And in Oregon, one-tenth of the state’s population was under fire evacuation warnings or orders last week. Scientists say climate …
your ad hereHurricane Sally Threatens Historic Floods Along US Gulf Coast
Heavy rain and pounding surf driven by Hurricane Sally hit the Florida and Alabama coasts Tuesday as forecasters expected the slow-moving storm to dump continuous deluges before and after landfall, possibly triggering dangerous, historic flooding along the northern Gulf Coast. “It’s going to be a huge rainmaker,” said Phil Klotzbach, a …
your ad hereWell-Preserved Ice Age Cave Bear Remains Found on Russian Island
Scientists at a Russian university have announced the discovery of a remarkably well-preserved ice age cave bear, with much of its soft tissue including its nose, flesh and teeth intact.In a statement, scientists from North-Eastern Federal University (NEFU) in Yakutsk say reindeer herders on Great Lyakhovsky island in the New Siberian …
your ad herePompeo: Confident There Will Be Effective Competitors to Huawei from Western Vendors
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday he is confident there will be effective 5G competitors to China’s Huawei from Western vendors at comparable costs, adding that he believes Western technologies will come to dominate telecommunications. “I am confident that there will be a cost-effective deliverables from Western …
your ad hereGender Reveal Events Grow in Popularity, Risk
The massive El Dorado wildfire in the U.S. state of California was reportedly started by a reveal party, a growing trend in the United States in which couples come up with increasingly elaborate ways to announce the gender of their expected child. For some couples, the revelation of the baby’s gender …
your ad here‘Uighurs Are the Real Mulan,’ Uighur Advocates Say
“Mulan” has been one of Jewher Ilham’s favorite movies since she was a little girl. She says she remembers sitting with her dad and watching Disney’s 1998 animated version of the tale of a Chinese woman who disguises herself as a man and wins acclaim as a warrior.“I was so …
your ad hereHurricane Sally Stalls Just of Southern US Coast
The U.S. National Hurricane Center says slow-moving Hurricane Sally, the latest storm to threaten the U.S. Gulf Coast, remains offshore but is already bringing high winds, rain and surf to the coastline. In the latest report, forecasters say Sally was about 110 kilometers east to southeast of east of …
your ad here‘Uighurs Are the Real Mulan,’ Fleeing Uighur Women Say
“Mulan” has been one of Jewher Ilham’s favorite movies since she was a little girl. She says she remembers sitting with her dad and watching Disney’s 1998 animated version of the tale of a Chinese woman who disguises herself as a man and wins acclaim as a warrior.“I was so …
your ad hereHumpback Whales Found In Crocodile-Infested Australian River, Baffling Scientists
Marine experts are planning to rescue humpback whales that have been recorded for the first time in crocodile-infested waters in the Kakadu national park in tropical northern Australia. It is thought the giant sea mammals took a wrong turn during one of nature’s most epic migrations. The humpbacks should be starting their …
your ad hereTrump, Biden Differ on Approach to Western Wildfires
At opposite ends of the country, President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden presented vastly different views Monday about the cause of the historic, destructive wildfires in the Western United States, which have killed at least 35 people.In California, the president — brushing aside concerns about climate change as a catalyst …
your ad hereFather Springsteen Advises Students During COVID
At the start an otherwise dreary academic year for many college freshmen because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Boston College — a Jesuit Catholic university — treated incoming freshmen to a pep talk from one of the biggest stars in American music. “If you completed your assignment and read my book, you …
your ad hereHurricane Sally Threatens US Gulf Coast with Slow Drenching
Hurricane Sally, one of five storms lined up as if on a conveyor belt across the Atlantic, churned toward the Louisiana-Mississippi coast Monday with rapidly strengthening winds of at least 145 kph (90 mph) and the potential for as much as 60 centimeters (23.5 inches) of rain that could bring …
your ad hereAstronomers Announce Possible Sign of Life on Venus
An international team of astronomers Monday announced the discovery of a rare gas molecule — phosphine — in the clouds of Venus, which may be the first solid evidence of extraterrestrial life in the solar system. The researchers say on Earth, phosphine is only made industrially or by microbes that …
your ad hereHuawei’s Survival at Stake as US Sanctions Loom
Starting Sept. 15, China’s telecom giant Huawei — once a symbol of Chinese technology prowess — will be cut off from essential supplies of semiconductors. Without those chips, Huawei cannot make the smartphones or 5G equipment on which its business depends, business analysts say.The sanctions against one of China’s most …
your ad hereDRC Video Centers Score With Young Gamers
Some people stuck inside during coronavirus lockdown are playing video games. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, entrepreneurs are catering to young people who want to share the gaming experience. From Kinshasa, Anasthasie Tudieshe has the story. …
your ad hereSally Set to Become Hurricane and Threaten US Gulf Coast
Tropical Storm Sally slowed down Sunday as it churned northward toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, increasing the risk of heavy rain and dangerous storm surge before an expected strike as a Category 2 hurricane in southern Louisiana. “I know for a lot of people this storm seemed to come out of …
your ad hereReport: TikTok Deal Moves Forward with Oracle
ByteDance, the Chinese company behind the wildly popular video sharing app TikTok, has rejected Microsoft’s bid to buy the app and appears to be leaning toward a deal with investors led by Oracle. The Trump administration has given ByteDance until September 20 to make a deal or stop operating inside …
your ad hereA Fatherly Springsteen Advises Students During COVID
At the start an otherwise dreary academic year for many college freshmen because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Boston College — a Jesuit Catholic university — treated incoming freshmen to a pep talk from one of the biggest stars in American music. “If you completed your assignment and read my book, you …
your ad hereTaylor Swift Returns to ACM Awards for ‘Folklore’ Premiere
Country-turned-pop star Taylor Swift is coming back to her roots with a performance at this year’s Academy of Country Music Awards.The nine-time ACM award winner will perform from the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee, where the awards show will be broadcast Wednesday on CBS.Swift will perform “Betty” from …
your ad hereWelcome Back: Lakers, LeBron Headed to Conference Finals
The Los Angeles Lakers are going to the conference finals for the first time in a decade, ending the longest drought in franchise history. LeBron James is going there for the first time since 2018. For him, that also qualifies as ending a drought. James scored 29 points and the Lakers wrapped …
your ad hereMedical Journal: Masks an Important Tool to Fight COVID-19
Wearing a face mask during the COVID-19 pandemic could be a more important part of the arsenal against the virus than previously thought.An article in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests that universal face mask wearing “might help reduce the severity of disease and ensure that a greater proportion …
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