Toothbrushes used to be simple, powered only by your hand so they never broke down. Nowadays, rechargeable electric toothbrushes are increasingly popular because they make brushing easier and more effective, but they are a headache when they stop working properly. Inside an electric toothbrush’s waterproof housing is a battery that powers a tiny motor which rapidly rotates or vibrates a replaceable brush head.
Donald Trump's agenda includes a range of policies that could create new inflation pressures in the years ahead. The emerging debate among economists is exactly what those price effects would be.
The Cyprus government has given Chevron another six months to come up with a revised plan to develop a sizeable natural gas deposit off the island nation’s southern coastline after an earlier plan proposed by the U.S. energy company lacked a timetable, an official said Thursday. Chevron’s development proposal from March 29 for the Aphrodite deposit estimated to hold 4.2 trillion cubic feet of gas “wasn’t considered targeted and was without specific timetables,” the official with knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press. In a reply letter last Thursday, Cypriot Energy Minister George Papanastasiou asked Chevron for “specific, targeted actions” and a “specific timetable” that would confirm its commitment to developing the gas field.
World markets wobbled in Thursday trading after U.S. stocks swung to a mixed finish with the Federal Reserve delaying cuts to interest rates. European markets opened mixed ahead of a busy day for corporate earnings. Later, the yen reversed its course and erased its previous gains.
When firefighters arrived at a blaze in a pine forest on the Greek island of Rhodes last July, flames were already leaping above the trees into the night sky. As another summer approaches, and as climate change makes wildfires ever more deadly across southern Europe, Greece has developed a new doctrine to contain the damage, including deploying an extra fire truck to each new blaze, speeding up air support and clearing forests. But five firefighters and three experts said the initiative doesn't address shortfalls in planning and prevention and more devastation awaits.
South Korea’s parliament on Thursday approved legislation mandating a new, independent investigation into the 2022 Halloween crush in Seoul that killed 159 people. The single-chamber National Assembly passed the bill by a 256-0 vote. It will become law after it is signed by President Yoon Suk Yeol and promulgated by his government agency — steps that are considered formalities because the president and his ruling party already agreed on the legislation.
Crunch elections in Catalonia next week will test the wisdom of the latest political gambles by Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who aims to use the vote to buoy his power nationally but risks inadvertently awakening a dormant Catalan separatism. Sanchez aims to wrest control of the wealthy region in the May 12 vote from separatists who wield outsized influence over Spanish politics. It may also revive Catalan separatism seven years after the issue set off Spain's worst political crisis in over 30 years.
Renewed eruptions from a remote Indonesian volcano have triggered fresh evacuation orders and sparked flight cancellations and airport closures this week with smoke, lava and volcanic gasses spewing out of the fiery mountain.
India's food safety regulator said on Thursday it had ordered nationwide testing and inspections at all companies making spice mixes, widening a crackdown on the sector as global regulators investigate contamination issues with two popular local brands. Hong Kong last month suspended sales of three spice blends made by India's MDH and an Everest spice mix for fish curry. Singapore ordered a recall of the same Everest mix as well, flagging high levels of ethylene oxide, which is unfit for human consumption and a cancer risk with long exposure.
A judge denied bail Thursday to a 15-year-old boy alleged to be in a network planning terrorist acts and who claimed to be a friend of another teen accused of stabbing a Sydney bishop last month. The attack on the bishop triggered an investigation that led to the arrests of six teens, ages 14 to 17, who were charged last week with a range of offenses including conspiring to engage in or planning a terrorist act. The 15-year-old boy’s lawyer Ahmed Dib had applied for bail Wednesday in the Parramatta Children’s Court, arguing there were exceptional circumstances that required his client's release.
A huge explosion at a military base in southwestern Cambodia that killed 20 soldiers and injured many others was an accident caused by a “technical issue” stemming from the old and degraded ammunition that was being moved, the Defense Ministry said Thursday. The army said on Tuesday that Saturday's blast was believed to have been an accident caused by mishandling of ammunition by troops. The Defense Ministry's statement followed an allegation leveled by an opposition politician-in-exile suggesting that the explosion had been an attack.
Millions of voters in England and Wales will cast their ballots on Thursday in an array of local elections that will be the last big test before a U.K. general election that all indicators show will see the Conservative Party ousted from power after 14 years. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will hope he can point to successes, notably in a couple of key mayoral races, to douse talk that the Conservative Party will change leader again before the United Kingdom's main election, which could take place as soon as next month. On the other hand, Labour Party leader Keir Starmer will hope Thursday's local elections confirm what opinion polls have shown for two years — that Labour is on course for power for the first time since 2010.
The World Bank has urged the largest Pacific Island nation, Papua New Guinea, to address a "human capital crisis" and invest more in educating children, who suffer high rates of stunted growth and illiteracy, as a way to boost economic growth and security. An annual economic update for Papua New Guinea (PNG) released on Thursday shows economic growth was a modest 2.7% last year, half the previous year, because of delays in the reopening of the Porgera gold mine and lower liquefied natural gas production. To free PNG from dependence on the resources sector, the report urged more investment in people.
Former President Donald Trump refused to unconditionally accept the results of the upcoming 2024 presidential election in an interview Wednesday with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Microsoft is investing $2.2 billion over the next four years in Malaysia's new cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure as well as partnering with the government to establish a national AI center, its CEO Satya Nadella said Thursday. It marks Microsoft's single largest investment in Malaysia, as the tech giant seeks to bolster support for AI development in the region and worldwide. “We are committed to supporting Malaysia’s AI transformation and ensure it benefits all Malaysians,” he said.
Bollywood stars seldom weigh in on politics, so videos showing two celebrities criticizing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — and endorsing his main opposition, the Congress party — were bound to go viral. Claims circulating online in India recently have misstated details about casting a ballot, claimed without evidence that the election will be rigged, and called for violence against India’s Muslims. Researchers who track misinformation and hate speech in India say tech companies' poor enforcement of their own policies has created perfect conditions for harmful content that could distort public opinion, spur violence and leave millions of voters wondering what to believe.
U.S. Rep. David Scott faces multiple Democratic primary opponents in his quest for a 12th congressional term in a sharply reconfigured suburban Atlanta district. Attacks on Scott are in some ways a microcosm of Democrats' concerns about President Joe Biden, including claims that he's too old and that he's disconnected from young voters.
Congo is struggling to contain its biggest mpox outbreak, and scientists say a new form of the disease detected in a mining town might more easily spread among people. Since January, Congo has reported more than 4,500 suspected mpox cases and nearly 300 deaths, numbers that have roughly tripled from the same period last year, according to the World Health Organization. Congo recently declared the outbreak across the country a health emergency.