Author: Chad Carroll

WASHINGTON — Following the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government, the Biden administration said it would fully support a transparent and inclusive transition process toward a nonsectarian government accountable to the Syrian people. “The transition process and new government must also uphold clear commitments to fully respect the rights of minorities, facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance to all in need, prevent Syria from being used as a base for terrorism or posing a threat to its neighbors, and ensure that any chemical or biological weapons stockpiles are secured and safely destroyed,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in…

In a world dominated by AI powerhouses like OpenAI, Meta, and Google, South Korea’s LG AI Research is stepping onto the global stage with a bold move—releasing EXAONE 3.0, the nation’s first open-source AI model. This groundbreaking initiative positions LG as a formidable competitor against industry giants, demonstrating its capability to hold its own in the race for AI innovation. In an interview with The Chosunilbo on Nov. 27, LG AI Research President Bae Kyung-hoon said the decision to release EXAONE 3.0 as open-source was driven by confidence in its capabilities. “We believe our model can compete with global AI…

TEHRAN, Apr. 02 (MNA) – Tehran has sent an important message to Washington following the Israeli regime’s attack on Iran’s consulate in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Monday, the top Iranian diplomat said. “An important message was sent to the American government as a supporter of the Zionist regime. America must be held responsible,” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian wrote on his account on X social media platform early on Tuesday. Following the terrorist attack by the Israeli regime on the diplomatic building of the consulate of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Damascus and the martyrdom of several…

The Bank of Canada (BoC) on Wednesday is expected to keep rates on hold at a 22-year high of 5% after growth contracted in the third quarter and is seen slumping next year, analysts predicted. The central bank hiked rates by a quarter point in both June and July and has left them on hold since, adding that it is prepared to tighten further to tame inflation that has remained above the bank’s 2% target for 31 months. Canada’s economy unexpectedly contracted at an annualized rate of 1.1% in the third quarter, avoiding a recession, but most economists forecast that…

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley was the subject of repeated attacks during Wednesday’s Republican presidential debate, as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sought to blunt her momentum just weeks before the party’s first nominating contest in Iowa. The two rivals were vying to emerge as the chief alternative to the absent former President Donald Trump, who has maintained a commanding lead in opinion polls ahead of Iowa’s Jan. 15 contest. The debate, which also included tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, saw a flurry of insults interspersed with discussions of the Ukraine war,…

NEW YORK— The U.S. flu season is underway, with at least seven states reporting high levels of illnesses and cases rising in other parts of the country, health officials say. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted new flu data on Friday, showing very high activity last week in Louisiana, and high activity in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, New Mexico and South Carolina. It was also high in the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, the U.S. territory where health officials declared an influenza epidemic earlier this month. “We’re off to the races,” said Dr. William Schaffner, a Vanderbilt University infectious diseases expert…

Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) unveiled legislation Tuesday to curb book bans. “I’m proud to introduce the Fight Book Bans Act, legislation that will help our school boards and school districts overcome these relentless attacks on our civil rights and civil liberties and academic freedom,” Frost said at a press conference on Capitol Hill. “The Fight Book Bans Act takes a stand against censorship by giving school districts the funding that they need to oppose these challenges.” Frost’s home state of Florida was found to have the most book bans in the country last year, making up 40 percent of those across the nation, according…

SpaceX on Saturday made progress in the second test launch of its mammoth Starship rocket, with the booster separating from the spaceship, but both then exploding shortly after over the ocean. “Such an incredibly successful day,” a SpaceX announcer said. “Even though we did have a… rapid unscheduled disassembly of both the Super Heavy Booster and the ship.” The largest rocket ever built — Elon Musk hopes it will one day be used to colonize Mars — blasted off from the company’s Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas shortly after 7:00 am local time (1300 GMT). Unlike the previous such attempt…

TALLAHASSEE — Talk about a paleontologist’s jackpot. Remnants of a prehistoric creature called the gomphothere, an extinct relative of modern-day elephants, were uncovered recently at the Montbrook Fossil Dig in North Florida. The fossils, estimated to be about five and a half million years old, provide invaluable insight into the diverse wildlife that once roamed prehistoric Florida. Gomphotheres roamed the Earth for over 20 million years. They evolved and adapted to different environments, spreading across continents and thriving in new landscapes. What makes them particularly intriguing is the variety of their features. Unlike their more well-known relatives like woolly mammoths, gomphotheres had…

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has banned 26 chemicals — used in many cosmetics such as hair products, bodywash and nail polish — due to concerns about health harms. The Golden State’s economy is the largest in the United States and the fifth largest in the world, meaning the new law marks another move that could influence the consumer landscape of not only California, but the rest of the nation. Introduced by Assemblymember Laura Friedman in February, Assembly Bill 496 expands upon the state’s 2020 Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act, which bans 24 other commonly used chemicals from inclusion in personal care products. The original law…