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Ukraine tennis player booed for not shaking hands with Belarusian opponent

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk was booed after refusing to shake hands with her Belarusian opponent at the Roland Garros tournament in Paris on Sunday.The tensions stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine took center stage in the international tennis championship as Kostyuk faced the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, who is the number two in the women’s tennis ranking and one of the favorites for the final victory, in the first round.The 20-year-old Kostyuk previously criticized the decision by tennis authorities to allow Russian and Belarusian players to compete as neutrals after the start of the conflict in Ukraine, and has refused to shake hands with her Russian and Belarusian opponents since.The crowd in Paris booed the Ukrainian tennis player on Sunday after she walked away from Sabalenka at the end of the match.Sabalenka was cheered by supporters as she took a bow at the end of the game. The Belarusian player told reporters that she understands her opponents’ decision not t...

Running through middle age can keep brain healthy and neurons wired: study

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

Toronto (CTV Network) — Exercising as you age can help maintain memory and fight cognitive decline, according to a new study.In the study, researcher’s from Florida Atlantic University and Mexico’s National Polytechnic Institute looked at the long-term effects of running on the brains of mice. They found middle-aged rodents with access to a running wheel did a better job of maintaining the wiring of older neurons linked to memory.“Our study provides insight as to how chronic exercise, beginning in young adulthood and continuing throughout middle age, helps maintain memory function during aging, emphasizing the relevance of including exercise in our daily lives,” study co-author and National Polytechnic Institute researcher Carmen Vivar said in a news release.The researchers focused on neurons formed during early adulthood that were connected to the hippocampus, a part of the brain associated with learning and memory. The hippocampus and connections with...

Jewish groups and city officials protest against Roger Waters concert in Frankfurt

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Several Jewish groups, politicians and an alliance of civil society groups gathered for a memorial ceremony and a protest rally against a concert by Roger Waters in Frankfurt on Sunday evening. They accuse the Pink Floyd co-founder of antisemitism – an allegation he denies. Waters has also drawn their ire for his support of the BDS movement, which calls for boycotts and sanctions against Israel.Frankfurt authorities had initially tried to prevent the concert taking place, but Waters successfully challenged the move in a local court.The concert is taking place in the city’s Festhalle, where in November 1938 more than 3,000 Jews were rounded up by the Nazis, beaten and abused, and later deported to concentration camps.“Against this historical background, the concert should not have taken place under any circumstances,” said Sacha Stawski, a member of the Frankfurt Jewish community and head of the group Honestly Concerned, that helped organize the protests.“It...

Unofficial results in Turkey’s presidential runoff split as counting continues

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Preliminary, unofficial results from Turkey’s state Anadolu news agency showed incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead with 76% of ballot boxes counted, while a competing news agency gave a slight lead to the opposition candidate in a presidential runoff that will decide whether the country’s longtime leader stretches his increasingly authoritarian rule into a third decade.Anadolu showed Erdogan at 54%, and his challenger, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, at 46%.Meanwhile, the ANKA news agency, close to the opposition, showed the results at 51% for Kilicdaroglu and Erdogan at 49%, with 75% of ballot boxes counted.The outcome could have implications far beyond Ankara. Turkey stands at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, and it plays a key role in NATO.Erdogan’s government vetoed Sweden’s bid to join NATO and purchased Russian missile-defense systems, which prompted the United States to oust Turkey from a U.S.-led fighter-jet project. But it also helped broker a crucial...

President attends 2nd grandchild’s graduation as daughter of Biden’s late son leaves high school

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s been a busier-than-usual graduation season for President Joe Biden.Biden and his wife, Jill, were on hand Sunday to watch granddaughter Natalie Biden graduate from high school, the White House said. Natalie is the daughter of the president’s late son, Beau. She is a student at St. Andrew’s School in Middletown, Delaware. The private Episcopal school was the setting for some scenes from the 1989 movie “Dead Poets Society,” starring the late Robin Williams. Presidents usually deliver a couple of commencement addresses every year, including at one of the military service academies. But this year, Biden also got to watch another one of his grandchildren go through that rite of passage. Earlier this month, Biden and the first lady attended granddaughter Maisy Biden’s commencement from the University of Pennsylvania. Biden was the commencement speaker at Howard University’s commencement on May 13. He is also scheduled to deliver the com...

Halton police investigating drowning of 3-year-old boy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

Halton police are investigating after a three-year-old boy died drowning in a backyard pool on Saturday night.Police were called to an address on Warwick Avenue in Oakville at approximately 7:00 p.m. Saturday, responding to reports of a drowning.A three-year-old boy was pulled from an inground pool in a backyard at the address without vital signs.Emergency services conducted CPR on the child, and he was transported to hospital but was pronounced dead that night.“The child does not reside at the address and was attending for a birthday party,” said Halton Police Constable Ryan Anderson in a statement to CityNews.The Halton Regional Police Service Homicide Unit is investigating, as it investigates all deaths involving children. The Coroner’s Office is also investigating.No charges have been laid in the incident.

Police: Missing girl from Chicago possibly has dog with her

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

CHICAGO — Chicago police are looking for a missing 17-year-old girl who left her home early Sunday morning and possibly has a dog with her.Jaida Dortch is described as being about 4 feet 10 inches tall, weighing about 106 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair. 3 shot in Lakeview According to information from the Chicago Police Department, she left her home around midnight in the 5400 block of West Grace Street.She possibly has a pet Chihuahua dog with her, police said.Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call Area 5 Detectives at 312-746-6554.

Lake County man arrested after allegedly picking up teen girls from Wisconsin, sexually assaulting one of them

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

LAKE COUNTY, Ill. — A 25-year-old man was arrested early Saturday morning after deputies said he allegedly picked up two teen girls from Wisconsin, brought them to his Lake County, Illinois home and sexually assaulted one of them.Through an investigation, detectives learned the girls met George Soriano, of unincorporated Antioch Township, through social media and made a plan to pick them up from their Wisconsin home, according to a news release from the Lake County Sheriff's Office. Man shot and killed during fight at house party in Kankakee County The girls said they were fearful because Soriano had a firearm, according to the release.Soriano allegedly picked up the girls, brought them to his home and sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl, according to the release.While serving a search warrant at his home, deputies found a cannabis growing operation, according to the release. 20-year-old man found shot in Bolingbrook backyard dies He was charged by the Lake County State's Atto...

Study: Sharks nearby more than we think, are not 'bothering' us

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

LONG BEACH, Calif. (NewsNation) — A new study hopes to change how beachgoers perceive sharks.In a first-of-its-kind study, researchers in Southern California used drones to observe great white sharks — and their encounters with humans.“Despite all the statistics you hear about the probability of being bitten by a shark (approximately 1 in 3.75 million), we actually have no real statistics because we don’t know how many people go in the water,” said Dr. Chris Lowe, a professor in marine biology and director of the Shark Lab at California State University, Long Beach.In a way, Lowe and his team are tracking humans as much as the sharks.“By gathering this data, we can better adjust those statistics about your chances of being bitten by a shark,” Lowe said in 2019. “I expect the risk to be much lower.”"We have a study coming out next week that was done using drones to survey and look at when white sharks and people were next to each other; we've actually found that the risk is very low,...

McCarthy: Student loan payment pause ‘gone’ under debt ceiling deal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:04:44 GMT

(The Hill) – Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Sunday that the student loan payment pause is "gone" in the debt ceiling deal announced by the California Republican and President Biden late Saturday night. "The pause is gone within 60 days of this being signed. So that is another victory because that brings in $5 billion each month to the American public," McCarthy told anchor Shannon Bream on "Fox News Sunday."McCarthy's remarks came after he and Biden came to an agreement in principle late Saturday to cap spending and raise the debt ceiling. The most popular college majors aren’t the highest-paying – these degrees are, study finds "What the president did, he went unconstitutionally and said he was going to waive certain people part of their debt for student loan, but then he paused everybody's student loan. So everybody who borrowed a student loan within 60 days of the signing is going to have to pay that back," McCarthy said on Sunday. "The Supreme Court is taking up that case. Bu...