Amazon buys video doorbell startup Ring

Amazon confirmed Tuesday that it bought video doorbell startup Ring, in a move that could help the internet giant’s delivery arm reach into people’s homes.

Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, but online reports valued the deal at more than a billion dollars.

“We’re excited to work with this talented team and help them in their mission to keep homes safe and secure,” an Amazon spokesperson said.

California-based Ring first caught the spotlight with a failed quest for funding about five years ago on reality television show Shark Tank.

Ring went on to win backing from the likes of billionaire Richard Branson and Amazon’s Alexa Fund.

“Ring is committed to our mission to reduce crime in neighborhoods by providing effective yet affordable home security tools to our neighbors that make a positive impact on our homes, our communities and the world,” Ring said in a statement.

“We look forward to being a part of the Amazon team as we work toward our vision for safer neighborhoods.”

Ring home security products include internet-linked video doorbells that can connect to smartphones to show people who is at their doors and allow them to chat.

Amazon late last year unveiled a smart lock and camera combination in a move into home security.

“Amazon Key” is available exclusively to members of the internet giant’s Prime subscription service in an array of US cities.

Key is designed to provide a secure and trackable way for packages to be delivered inside homes when people aren’t there.

Each Key kit includes an Amazon Cloud Cam synched to the internet and a smart door lock.

Prime members with the service can use a smartphone application to track packages and then watch deliveries happening or review video of in-home dropoffs.

Key allows someone making a delivery to request access to the recipient’s home, with Amazon checking to make sure the proper driver is at the right location at the intended time before unlocking doors, according to a description of the service.

A Cloud Cam providing a view of the inside entryway spurs into action when doors are unlocked, recording a delivery. Delivery people are not given access codes, as unlocking doors is done online.

The move into home security opened a new competitive front with Google’s parent company Alphabet, owner of Nest Labs, which recently expanded its line of products aimed at that market. MKH

source: technology.inquirer.net

Samsung launches new S9 phone with augmented reality features

BARCELONA, Spain — Samsung unveiled its new flagship smartphone on Sunday with a focus on augmented reality features as it seeks to keep its title as the world’s biggest smartphone maker.

The South Korean firm showcased the Galaxy S9 on the eve of the official start of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, which comes after a year of flat smartphone sales.

With no other major handset maker using the annual event, the world’s largest phone show, to launch a new flagship device this year, Samsung had the opportunity to grab the spotlight.

The S9 features essentially the same design as last year’s previous flagship, with the full screen and curved glass edge of the S8, which was followed by Apple’s iPhone X and others.

But it includes louder sound, a faster processor and software that turns selfies into animated emojis, which will appeal to consumers who are increasingly preferring to use their phones to send text messages rather than talking.

Samsung also included a dual lens camera on the Galaxy S line for the first time, which will improve low-light capture and enhance slow motion video, which is popular on social media.

A service powered by artificial intelligence (AI) allows users to point its camera to instantly translate a sign in a foreign language.

It is also one of the few flagship phones left that still comes with a standard headphone jack.

“Despite these incremental innovations, Samsung will have to smartly leverage its brand and marketing machine to correctly position the new smartphones to a target audience,” said Forrester analyst Thomas Husson.

Global smartphone sales fell by 6.3 percent in the fourth quarter due to slower than expected Christmas sales, according to research firm IDC.

Overall global smartphone sales for 2017 were virtually flat — down 0.1 percent at 1.47 billion units — as phone makers struggled to come up with innovations that encourage customers to upgrade their devices.

Cost concerns

Samsung suffered a humiliating recall of its Galaxy Note 7 device in 2016 after several devices exploded, but its Galaxy 8 smartphone was a consumer and critical success.

While it kept its lead over Apple as the world’s biggest seller of smartphones in 2017 with a 21.6 percent market share, up from 21.1 percent in the previous year, Samsung faces stiffer competition from Chinese rivals like Huawei and Xiaomi that offer cheaper handsets with many high-end features.

The S9 will sell for 859 euros ($1,055), a price which analysts warned could turn off many consumers.

While the S9’s camera is “markedly different” in quality from older smartphones that people already own “consumers may delay purchase because of rising flagship prices,” IHS Markit said in a research note.

“Samsung must work hard to market the benefits of these designs to counter negative pricing perception.”

Huawei unveiled a new laptop and tablet in Barcelona earlier on Sunday but will present its new flagship smartphone — the P20 — on March 27 in Paris.

Thomas said this will allow it to “fine tune its marketing message based on how the new Samsung S9 devices are perceived by consumers”.

Earlier on Sunday South Korea’s LG unveiled the V30S — an updated version of its flagship V30 smartphone launched six months ago — which features higher memory and artificial intelligence-based technologies that focus on photos and voice recognition.

More than 100,000 people are expected to descend on Barcelona for the annual show, which features driverless carmakers, social media giants and chip companies in addition to handset makers. /cbb

source: technology.inquirer.net

WATCH: Samsung Galaxy S9 launch video breaks into the internet ahead of sked

Samsung Galaxy S9’s reveal video broke into the internet one day ahead of the Galaxy Unpacked 2018 event which was scheduled for Feb. 25. in Barcelona, Spain.

The video uploaded on YouTube channel Slashleask on Feb. 24 banners the S9 tagline of “The Phone. Reimagined.” and goes on to explain the various features that Samsung included in its new flagship device.

One of the highlights of the new smartphone is an upgraded version of the S8’s Samsung DeX Station, which turned the phone into a makeshift desktop computer through a special dock.

Augmented reality appears to be another selling point for the S9. The video shows how AR could be used for the work environment rather than just for playing games.

The S9, as shown, have both facial recognition and fingerprint scanning features as security measures. However, it may be worth noting that the fingerprint scanner could be seen on the back of the phone instead of being embedded in the front screen.

Finally, there’s the Enterprise Edition of the S9. The video claims it as an adaptation for the modern mobile workforce to provide better data security and reliability. Software updates could be controlled by a company’s IT administrators, which Samsung hopes would better protect its phones against cyber attacks.

All in all, the video geared the Samsung Galaxy S9 as a productivity tool meant to help modern mobile workers get more done with a single tool. The use of AR as a tool for work reminds us of how Microsoft marketed their Hololens AR headset. How people will actually use the technology in the real world remains to be seen, until the S9 hits store shelves. JB

source: technology.inquirer.net

Former NFL player detained by police after Instagram post

LOS ANGELES — Former Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Jonathan Martin, who has struggled with mental health issues after a 2013 bullying scandal that shook the NFL, was questioned by Los Angeles police after a threatening Instagram post on his account mentioned two former teammates who had harassed him.

Martin was detained by investigators after the post showed a shotgun and referred by name to the private Harvard-Westlake prep school in Los Angeles that he once attended but was not under arrest Friday evening, police spokesman Josh Rubenstein said.

The post also included mentions of the Instagram usernames of former Miami Dolphins players Richie Incognito and Mike Pouncey and said suicide and revenge were the only options for a victim of bullying.

The Harvard-Westlake prep school was evacuated earlier Friday after officials were made aware of the post. It was not immediately clear whether Martin posted the photo himself.

Martin left the Miami Dolphins midseason in 2013 after accusing teammates of bullying. An NFL investigation found that Incognito, Pouncey and teammate John Jerry engaged in persistent harassment directed at Martin.

Incognito was suspended for the final eight games and sat out the 2014 season before joining the Buffalo Bills.

The NFL’s investigation also found that teammates threatened to rape Martin’s sister, called him a long list of slurs and bullied him for not being “black enough.” Martin is black and Incognito is white.

Martin, who underwent counseling for emotional issues after the bullying scandal, posted on Facebook in 2015 that difficulties in football led him to attempt suicide multiple times.

Martin, the son of two Harvard graduates, attended Stanford University. After he left the Dolphins, Martin played for the San Francisco 49ers and Carolina Panthers. He left the NFL in 2015.

Representatives for the Miami Dolphins and the NFL declined to comment and referred questions to Los Angeles police.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Indian state offers free breast implants to poor women

Thousands of poor women in India’s Tamil Nadu state have been offered free cosmetic breast surgery, including implants, its health minister said Friday, because “poor people also have a right to look beautiful.”

The southern Indian state is known for its populist schemes, which have previously included free canteens and providing thousands of disadvantaged people with goats, laptops and bicycles among other items.

It will now offer cosmetic breast surgery free of cost to all women — for aesthetic or medical reasons — with priority given to those from the poorest sections of society.

“If a poor woman desires to look beautiful, we will support her financially,” state health minister C. Vijayabaskar told AFP.

“Whether they require medical procedures or beauty treatment, it will be free.”

Tamil Nadu is ranked among the top states in India’s public healthcare system, compared with ailing government-run facilities in many other parts of the vast country.

But critics of the new scheme said the state government is wasting public money on cosmetic surgery instead of spending money on treating serious ailments.

“It is sad that we are now focusing on beauty instead of life-saving surgeries,” Dr S. Elango, a former public health official in Tamil Nadu, told the Times of India newspaper.

Cosmetic breast surgery is becoming increasingly popular in India, but private hospitals charge anywhere between $2,300 to $3,800 for a procedure — a year’s wage for most Indians.

More than 90,000 such procedures were carried out in the country in 2016, according to the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, up from 50,600 in 2010.

The Tamil Nadu scheme was launched Wednesday at a state-run clinic in state capital Chennai, with a promise to soon expand it to other districts of the state.

V. Ramadevi, who heads the clinic, told AFP some women want such surgery because they “face psychological issues that may severely impact their lives.”

“Their career, (their) marriage are derailed because they are taunted and their confidence is shattered,” she said, adding that the clinic expects up to 150 women a month to take up the offer.

One of India’s more prosperous states, Tamil Nadu has for decades offered freebies to its marginalised population, mostly under the government of popular actor-turned-politician Jayalalithaa. She died in 2016 but her party still rules the state.  /muf

source: technology.inquirer.net

US women end drought, beat Canada for gold in a shootout

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — The Americans’ gold medal drought is finally over. They needed the first shootout in an Olympic women’s final to do it, too.

Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson scored a dazzling, triple-deke goal in the sixth round of a shootout thriller and Maddie Rooney stuffed the last two Canadians to wrap up a 3-2 victory over archrival Canada on Thursday.

The Americans piled over the boards, throwing gloves in the air before huddling and hugging on the ice — 20 years after the women’s last gold medal in women’s hockey and 38 years to the day after he men’s famous “Miracle on Ice” victory over the Russians in group play at Lake Placid.

“I can’t put it into words,” defenseman Kacey Bellamy said. “This whole year is for everyone that came before us. This is for Julie Chu (former USA team captain) and for all our families at home, the schools that we went to, everyone supporting us.”

Lamoureux-Davidson’s shootout goal was the talk of the game. She feinted a wrist shot, then drew Szabados out of the net by faking a backhand and came back to slide the puck past Szabados’ outstretched leg into the open net for the clinching score.

Her twin, Monique Lamoureux-Moranda, said coach Peter Elander, now at Ohio State, had taught the sisters the shootout move when the three were at the University of North Dakota.

“Not everyone can take the pressure like that and she took it like a champ,” she said.

Gigi Marvin and Amanda Kessel also scored in the shootout, another nail-biter ending four years after Canada won its fourth-straight gold medal in Sochi after rallying to stun the Americans in overtime.

Monique Lamoureux-Morando tied it up with a breakaway with 6:21 left in regulation . Hilary Knight also had a goal and Rooney was spectacular, making 29 saves for the win. The 20-year-old goalie stopped the last two Canadian shooters in the shootout in Brianne Jenner and then Meghan Agosta on her second attempt.

It was sweet redemption for the 10 Americans who watched the Canadians snatch gold away in Sochi. Not only did the Americans end the Canadians’ stranglehold on Olympic gold, they ended a skid of five straight against their rival coming into this game, including a 2-1 loss in the tournament a week ago.

“It is everything for our country,” U.S. coach Robb Stauber said. “I am just so thankful for the outcome. It was a thrilling final. It was unreal.”

Marie-Philip Poulin and Haley Irwin each scored goals for Canada. Agosta and Melodie Daoust scored in the shootout.

The Canadians, who had pushed the Americans around for much of the game and taken penalties for it, wept on the ice as they accepted their silver medals. Jocelyne Larocque took hers off immediately and held it in her hands as the Americans stood nearby awaiting their gold.

“It’s just hard,” Larocque said. “You work so hard. We wanted gold but didn’t get it.”

Added Canada coach Laura Schuler: “There’s not a lot of words that can describe how you feel. It was a great game of hockey. It’s what we expected: back and forth hockey.”

The Americans had dominated the women’s game in non-Olympic years, winning the last four and eight of the last 10 world championships, including a 3-2 overtime victory over Canada last spring.

It only made the lack of gold at the Olympics all the more noticeable, and Canada has been in their way since losing the inaugural gold in Nagano in 1998. Canada had won 24 straight Olympic games to go along with those four consecutive gold medals — a streak of success in a women’s team sport second only to the U.S. basketball team’s current streak of six straight gold.

This was the eighth time these North American rivals had met in the Olympics and the fifth with gold on the line. None of the previous seven was decided by more than two goals.

U.S. coach Robb Stauber went with Rooney in net for the biggest game of her career — the goalie for each of the three wins against Canada last fall during a pre-Olympic exhibition tour.

Canada had Shannon Szabados in goal for her third Olympic gold medal game, and her teammates made her job very easy by keeping the puck in front of Rooney for most of the first period by dictating play. The Americans couldn’t use their speed or get organized even with two power plays until Sarah Nurse went in the box for interference late in the period.

Knight gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead with 25.4 seconds left in the first, redirecting a shot from Sidney Morin through Szabados’ pads to give the Americans a jolt of energy.

That lasted only 2 minutes into the second when Irwin tipped a midair pass from Blayre Turnbull over Rooney’s left leg for Canada. And when Morin lost the puck, Melodie Daoust grabbed it and passed to Meghan Agosta who hit Poulin for the wrister into the left side of the net at 6:55 for a 2-1 lead.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Gold drought about to end: Russians 1-2 after short program

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — Friends, rivals, and soon, medalists.


The only question is: Which Russian teen figure skating star will end the nation’s gold medal drought?

Alina Zagitova or Evgenia Medvedeva will almost certainly take gold in one of the Winter Games marquee events after they went 1-2 in the women’s short program Wednesday with the highest scores ever. The 15-year-old Zagitova and the 18-year-old Medvedva train with the same coach, hang out together and set world records just minutes apart.



With a dominating lead over the field, their friendly competition is the main drama left when the women compete in the free skate Friday. With all of Russia waiting for the first gold medal of the Pyeongchang Olympics, you’d think their relationship could become frayed, but only on the ice.

“We can talk about anything to each other,” the 18-year-old Medvedeva said, “and when we take the ice it’s sport and we must fight. Every competition I feel like (is) a little war.”

Added Zagitova, 15: “We are friends first and rivals second, because you have to have competitiveness in sport.”

Medvedeva had not lost a competition in two years until she was beaten by Zagitova at the European Championships in Moscow. That set the stage for a showdown with a glaring spotlight — as the Russian fans are hoping for a high-profile success at this Olympics where the nation is officially banned because of a doping scandal.

The youngsters responded with world records. Yet neither thought they had done their best.

“I’m satisfied with my performance today. It was not my best, but it was OK,” said Medvedeva, who held the record for a few minutes with a score of 81.61. “All the battle is still ahead.”

A group of Russian fans swayed together in the stands and chanted her name when that number was posted.

Three skaters later came her training comrade, who put down a more difficult program, including a triple lutz-triple loop combination that outdid Medvedeva’s flip-toe loop combo.

So, another world record, 82.92.

And again the Russian fans rocked back and forth, this time chanting Zagitova’s name.

“Well done to her,” Medvedeva said. “She did everything she could.”

Not exactly, Zagitova said.

“A few imperfections,” she explained.

Oh really?

“I’m happy I was able to cope with my nerves and skate well, set a world record,” she added, “but I’ve still got something to work towards and I can’t afford to relax.”

Medvedeva had set the previous record for a short program in the team event last week, when her team won silver. Zagitova handled the free skate.

Russia had never won Olympic gold for women until Adelina Sotnikova took home the medal in Sochi. The nation could have two straight after the free skate.

Canada’s Kaetlyn Osmond and Gabrielle Daleman, second and third respectively at last year’s worlds, had varying success.

Osmond, in her best performance of the season, nailed everything with speed and precision to wind up third with 78.87 points. Daleman looked confused and made a gesture with her hands as if to say “What happened?” after going down on the second half of a combination jump. She was seventh Wednesday.

“I left nothing out on the table and I’m really glad I could do that,” said Osmond, the 2017 world silver medalist.

Italy’s Carolina Kostner, the bronze medalist at Sochi and, at 31 the veteran in this field, struggled and wound up just ahead of Daleman.

It was not a strong showing for the Americans, each of whom had a major mistake.

Nine days after becoming the first U.S. woman and third overall to land a triple axel in the Olympics, Mirai Nagasu came down on two feet on the jump, then fell to the ice. While the rest of her program was clean, Nagasu’s chances for an individual medal to go with her team bronze were damaged. Nagasu, 24 and the fourth-place finisher at the Vancouver Games, earned 66.93 points, a season’s best, but was ninth.

“Sometimes it isn’t the right day, and today was one of those days,” Nagasu said. “This isn’t a sport where mistakes are forgiven. You only get one shot.”

U.S. champion Bradie Tennell went first among the 30 skaters, hardly an advantageous position. She led for 2 hours, 40 minutes until the upper echelon began skating and Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto passed Tennell. A fall on the back end of a combination jump — Tennell had been virtually perfect with her jumps in her breakthrough season — was costly.

“It was definitely unexpected. I don’t remember the last time I made a mistake in my short program, especially on the jumps,” Tennell said. “But things happen. We’re all human. We all make mistakes. You just have to get up a keep going. I’m definitely a fighter. I do not give up.”

Tennell ended up 11th, one spot behind Karen Chen, the 2017 American champ. Chen put a hand down on her triple lutz and couldn’t finish a combination jump.

“I’ve been nailing that every day in practice and I expected myself to, and to not be able to do that was a huge disappointment,” she said. “For sure, I was a little flustered after that. But I sold my program the best I could, got the most points I could and I’m proud of that.”

The United States’ worst top placement in a women’s Olympic event since the games resumed in 1948 after World War II is sixth. Getting that high will be a huge challenge.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Saudi Arabia to host first Arab Fashion Week

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Saudi Arabia is set to host in March its first ever Arab Fashion Week, the Arab Fashion Council announced Monday, overturning decades of draconian policies on arts and entertainment.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the powerful heir to the Saudi throne, has been leading a drive to reform the country’s dependence on oil, including expanding the private sector and empowering women.

The Dubai-based Arab Fashion Council said on its website that fashion week would be held in Riyadh from March 26 to March 31, with a second edition already scheduled for October.

Arab Fashion Week will take place at Riyadh’s eco-friendly Apex Center, a white honeycomb-like venue designed by the late celebrated Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid.

In December, the Arab Fashion Council announced the opening of a regional office in Riyadh and named Saudi Princess Noura Bint Faisal Al-Saud as its honorary president.

“The first Arab Fashion Week in Riyadh will be more than a world-class event, it is a catalyst through which we believe the fashion sector will lead other economic sectors such as tourism, hospitality, travel, and trade,” Princess Noura said in a statement on the council’s website.

Listed as an international fashion week alongside Paris and Milan, the twice-yearly Arab Fashion Week offers exclusively see-now-buy-now collections and pre-collections.

The line-up for the Riyadh event has not been revealed yet and it remains unclear whether it will be limited to modest designs in accordance with the strict dress code observed in Saudi Arabia.

The Gulf kingdom, which has some of the world’s tightest restrictions on women, requires them to wear, by law, a loose-fitting abaya robe to shroud their bodies in public.

Earlier this month, a senior Saudi cleric said Saudi women should not be “forced to wear abayas”.

The comment was made by Sheikh Abdullah al-Mutlak, a member of the Council of Scholars — the kingdom’s highest religious body.

The government has not said whether it will change the law.

But Prince Mohammed has introduced over the past months a series of reforms in favor of women.

In January, Saudi women were allowed for the first time ever to enter a football stadium to watch a game and the kingdom is also opening several sectors of the workplace to women.

Saudi Arabia has also announced an end to a longstanding ban on women driving, which is to take effect in June.

In the past, Arab Fashion Week have been hosted so far exclusively by Gulf fashion capital Dubai and have included runway darlings Marchesa and Tony Ward.

Dubai will continue to host its own parallel Arab Fashion Week, with the sixth edition slotted for May 9 to May 12. /cbb

source: lifestyle.inquirer.net

American triumph and disappointment in Olympic ice dance

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — Ecstasy, heartbreak and a crash.

Kind of sums up the American ice dance experience at the Winter Olympics.

The Shib Sibs — Maia and older brother Alex Shibutani — added a bronze medal in the event to their team bronze early in the Pyeongchang Games.

U.S. champions Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue made two key errors in their free dance and slid from third to fifth place.

Madison Chock and Evan Bates had an even bigger slip-up: the rare ice dance fall.

Still, a third, fifth and 12th with a major mistake should not be underplayed.

“It’s great for us and it’s great for Team USA,” Maia Shibutani said after they moved up from fourth place and held off a Russian couple to give the United States a podium spot for the fourth straight games: a gold, two silvers and a bronze.

“It feels like gold,” Alex Shibutani added. “It’s unbelievable.

“It’s such an honor to represent your country in the Olympics, and our sport is such a strong event, as you saw from the marks,” he said, noting that the top two duos — gold medalists Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada, silver winners Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France — set world records Tuesday. “It’s amazing to have that Olympic moment we dreamed of.”

The Shibutanis also believe their performance could lead to more siblings and more Asian-Americans in ice dance. Alex noted how rare each combination is.

“We had no path to follow,” he said. “There was no blueprint for us. (Coach) Marina Zueva had no experience with siblings or Asian-American ice dancers and we had to discover by ourselves our own path.”

That path led them from ninth place at the Sochi Games to two U.S. championships. They also have three world championships medals. And now, an Olympic jewel.

“It’s really been a leap of faith we had to take,” Maia Shibutani said. “We really have discovered we need to be ourselves.”

Added Alex: “We found we needed to not play characters but to be Maia and Alex.”

He is 26, she is 23, and they didn’t want to look ahead to another Olympic go-round. But Hubbell and Donohue made it clear they aren’t through; he is 27 and she soon will be.

Hubbell’s eyes were wet when she spoke about the rough go in the free dance. They had been perennial third-place finishers in America before making a huge leap this season, winning their first national title. They believed the Pyeongchang Games would be their special moment.

Then they made two errors in the free dance, one early and then a late stumble by Donohue.

“At this moment, we are disappointed and frustrated,” Hubbell said, “because this was not close to our best. At this level, you cannot afford to make mistakes against this type of competition.

“But we will build off this and not allow this to be our legacy.”

Donohue admitted he wasn’t as mentally sharp as he needed to be in such a pressure-cooker atmosphere. He looked back at last year’s worlds, when they hoped to compete for a medal and wound up ninth.

“Every experience brings a piece of information we didn’t have before,” he said, noting the couple would pay extra attention to their mental approach as they prepare for next month’s world championships in Milan.

Chock and Bates didn’t want to look beyond Tuesday. They were the only ice dancers to have a fall in the entire competition, and it came as they were preparing to do a combination spin. Their blades clicked just as he was bending down and she was beginning to spin.

Crash!

“It’s impossible to do the spin with our feet attached,” Bates said.

“We were too close together,” Chock explained.

“It’s a moment we wish we could have back,” Bates added. “It’s a mistake that has never happened in training before, ever. There’s no explanation.”

Chock and Bates also didn’t want the fall to take away from the message they were trying to convey while skating to John Lennon’s “Imagine.”

“We hope we got the message of peace across,” Chock said as she wiped her eyes. “We think the audience understood.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Busy times ahead for Oscar-nominated Timothée Chalamet

This year, the young Franco-American actor has more projects to add to his already impressive CV, including “Beautiful Boy” with Steve Carell, which is now slated for a United States release on Oct. 12. In the meantime, the upcoming star’s breakout performance in “Call Me by Your Name” sees him bag his first Oscar nomination at just 22 years old.

Hollywood’s next big thing, Timothée Chalamet, is being tipped as one of the most promising actors of his generation, thanks to his performance in Luca Guadagnino’s “Call Me By Your Name”. With this one movie, the breakout star has already won over Hollywood with his youthful energy, his spontaneity and his fresh appeal.

In “Call Me By Your Name”, out from Nov. 24 in the U.S., the actor stole the show from his more experienced co-star Armie Hammer (“The Social Network”), with his portrayal of an adolescent who falls for an older boy. Indeed, his performance earned him a nomination for the “Best Actor” Oscar, where the newcomer and outsider faces household names like Gary Oldman, Daniel Day-Lewis and Denzel Washington.

Hot property 

The actor stars in another of this year’s Oscar contenders, with a role in Greta Gerwig’s “Lady Bird”, released in November, and also stars in “Hostiles”, a western with Christian Bale and Rosamund Pike. Timothée Chalamet is set to join Steve Carell in “Beautiful Boy”, the story of a father’s struggle with his son’s meth addiction. This poignant role could see the actor return to the red carpet at the Dolby Theatre next year. His other projects for 2018 include a role in the upcoming Woody Allen movie, “A Rainy Day in New York” starring Jude Law, Selena Gomez, Rebecca Hall and Diego Luna.

As Hollywood’s latest hot property, Timothée Chalamet’s schedule for 2019 is already starting to fill up. In June, he starts filming “The King”, a historical movie heading to Netflix next year. Chalamet will play King Henry V of England, a historical figure known for his military successes against the French in the Hundred Years’ War. David Michôd (“War Machine”) will direct and some rumors link Robert Pattinson to the project. JB

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Book it: Devin Booker hits 28 to win 3-point contest

Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns won the 3-point contest with a record 28 points in the final round. He beat 2016 champion Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors and Tobias Harris of the Los Angeles Clippers.

“It feels really good,” Booker said. “I wanted to go out there and make a name for myself.”

Did he ever. He was sensational in the final round on Saturday, when he missed only five of 25 shots.

Each player shot five five-ball racks with a one-minute time limit. The final ball of each one was a “money ball” worth two points, and one of the racks, usually the last one, was all money balls. Booker made the money ball shot on his first four racks, and then made four of the five balls on the money ball rack.

Harris, Booker and Thompson advanced from the eight-man field to the finals. Harris scored 17 points before Booker scorched the nets for 28 points. Thompson followed and scored 25 points.

The previous record was 27 points, set by Stephen Curry in 2015 and matched by Thompson the following year.

Booker, the 21-year-old sharpshooter in his third season with Phoenix, is averaging 24.2 points per game this season as the NBA’s 12th-leading scorer. Eleven months after the shooting guard dropped 70 points against Boston to become the youngest player in NBA history to score even 60 in a game, Booker added another accolade to his promising career with the 3-Point title.

Thompson beat the buzzer with his final shot of the first round to reach the finals with 19 points. Booker also scored 19 and Harris had 18.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Russians charged with meddling in 2016 presidential race

WASHINGTON — In an extraordinary indictment, the U.S. special counsel accused 13 Russians Friday of an elaborate plot to disrupt the 2016 presidential election, charging them with running a huge but hidden social media trolling campaign aimed in part at helping Republican Donald Trump defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.

The federal indictment, brought by special counsel Robert Mueller, represents the most detailed allegations to date of illegal Russian meddling during the campaign that sent Trump to the White House. It also marks the first criminal charges against Russians believed to have secretly worked to influence the outcome.

The Russian organization was funded by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the indictment says. He is a wealthy St. Petersburg businessman with ties to the Russian government and President Vladimir Putin.

Trump quickly claimed vindication Friday, noting in a tweet that the alleged interference efforts began in 2014 — “long before I announced that I would run for President.”

“The results of the election were not impacted. The Trump campaign did nothing wrong — no collusion!” he tweeted.

But the indictment does not resolve the collusion question at the heart of the continuing Mueller probe, which before Friday had produced charges against four Trump associates. U.S. intelligence agencies have previously said the Russian government interfered to benefit Trump, including by orchestrating the hacking of Democratic emails, and Mueller has been assessing whether the campaign coordinated with the Kremlin.

The latest indictment does not focus on the hacking but instead centers on a social media propaganda effort that began in 2014 and continued past the election, with the goal of producing distrust in the American political process. Trump himself has been reluctant to acknowledge the interference and any role that it might have played in propelling him to the White House.

The indictment does not allege that any American knowingly participated in Russian meddling, or suggest that Trump campaign associates had more than “unwitting” contact with some of the defendants who posed as Americans during election season.

But it does lay out a vast and wide-ranging Russian effort to sway political opinion in the United States through a strategy that involved creating Internet postings in the names of Americans whose identities had been stolen; staging political rallies while posing as American political activists and paying people in the U.S. to promote or disparage candidates.

While foreign meddling in U.S. campaigns is not new, the indictment for an effort of this scope and digital sophistication is unprecedented.

“This indictment serves as a reminder that people are not always who they appear to be on the internet,” Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said Friday. “The indictment alleges that the Russian conspirators want to promote discord in the United States and undermine public confidence in democracy. We must not allow them to succeed.”

The 13 Russians are not in custody and not likely to ever face trial. The Justice Department has for years supported indicting foreign defendants in absentia as a way of publicly shaming them and effectively barring them from foreign travel.

The surreptitious campaign was organized by the Internet Research Agency, a notorious Russian troll farm that the indictment says sought to conduct “information warfare against the United States of America.”

The company, among three Russian entities named in the indictment, had a multimillion-dollar budget and hundreds of workers divided by specialties and assigned to day and night shifts. According to prosecutors, the company was funded by companies controlled by Prigozhin, the wealthy Russian who has been dubbed “Putin’s chef” because his restaurants and catering businesses have hosted the Kremlin leader’s dinners with foreign dignitaries.

Prigozhin said Friday he was not upset by the indictment.

“Americans are very impressionable people,” he was quoted as saying by Russia’s state news agency. They “see what they want to see.”

Also Friday, Mueller announced a guilty plea from a California man who unwittingly sold bank accounts to Russians involved in the interference effort.

The election-meddling organization, looking to conceal its Russian roots, purchased space on computer servers within the U.S., used email accounts from U.S. internet service providers and created and controlled social media pages with huge numbers of followers on divisive issues such as immigration, religion and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Starting in April 2016, the indictment says, the Russian agency bought political ads on social media supporting Trump and opposing Clinton without reporting expenditures to the Federal Election Commission or registering as foreign agents. Among the ads: “JOIN our #HillaryClintonForPrison2016” and “Donald wants to defeat terrorism … Hillary wants to sponsor it.”

The indictment details contacts targeting three unnamed officials in the Trump campaign’s Florida operation. In each instance, the Russians used false U.S. personas to contact the officials. The indictment doesn’t say if any of them responded, and there’s no allegation that any of the campaign officials knew they were communicating with Russians.

Two of the defendants traveled to the U.S. in June 2014 to gather intelligence on social media sites and identify targets for their operations, the indictment alleges. Following the trip, the group collected further intelligence by contacting U.S. political and social media activists while posing as U.S. citizens. They were guided by one contact to target “purple states like Colorado, Virginia and Florida,” prosecutors say.

“They engaged in operations primarily intended to communicate derogatory information about Hillary Clinton, to denigrate other candidates such as Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, and to support Bernie Sanders and then-candidate Donald Trump,” the indictment states.

Cruz and Rubio ran against Trump in the Republican primary; Sanders opposed Clinton in the Democratic primary.

According to one internal communication described by prosecutors, the specialists were instructed to “use any opportunity to criticize Hillary and the rest (except Sanders and Trump_we support them).” And according to one internal review, a specialist was criticized for having a low number of posts criticizing Clinton. The person was told “it is imperative to intensify criticizing Hillary Clinton” in future posts.

The indictment also asserts that the posts encouraged minority groups not to vote or to vote for third parties and alleged Democratic voter fraud.

Ahead of a Florida rally, the Russians paid one person to build a cage on a flatbed truck and another to wear a costume portraying Clinton in a prison uniform. But they also organized some rallies opposing Trump, including one in New York after the election called “Trump is NOT my president.”

The Russians destroyed evidence of their activities as Mueller’s investigation picked up, with one of those indicted sending an email in September 2017 to a family member that said the FBI had “busted” them so they were covering their tracks.

That person, Irina Viktorovna Kaverzina, wrote the family member, “I created all of these pictures and posts, and the Americans believed that it was written by their people.”

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Switzerland’s Hoefflin skis to gold in women’s slopestyle

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea — Switzerland’s Sarah Hoefflin is the Olympic champion in women’s slopestyle skiing.

The 27-year-old put together an electric final run down the demanding course at Phoenix Snow Park on Saturday, posting a 91.20 to edge teammate Mathilde Gremaud for gold. Gremaud scored 88.00 on the first of her three runs in the finals but couldn’t top Hoefflin.

Hoefflin is a latecomer to freestyle skiing. She didn’t get serious about the sport until her early 20s when she couldn’t get into medical school after earning a degree in neuroscience.

Isabel Atkin of Britain took bronze with a score of 84.60 in her final run.

Defending Olympic champion Dara Howell crashed twice during qualifying and didn’t advance. American Devin Logan, a silver medalist in Sochi, reached the finals but wasn’t a factor after either crashing or having execution problems in each of her last three runs.

Unlike the women’s snowboarding slopestyle final, where wind wreaked havoc with the field, the issues this time around seemed to simply be the treacherous course. Only nine of the 36 runs in the finals were scored higher than 70, typically a benchmark for a relatively clean trip.

Hoefflin was in position for the silver when she stepped into the gate for her last trip. Rather than try to simply hold on to second, she went for the top spot. She finished with an off-axis 720 degree flip. She raised her arms after sticking the landing before skiing into the arms of her coaches.

Logan, who will compete in the halfpipe competition next week, never really got going on her 24th birthday. She was a middling sixth during qualifying and her best trip during the finals came on her second run, when she appeared to be doing well only to scrape the ground after landing her penultimate jump.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Google removes ‘View Image’ option to avoid stealing of photos

Have you had the habit of taking photos from Google? It looks like it will be a little harder to grab them from the search engine as it has removed the “View Image” option.

The change came into effect on Thursday to “help connect users and useful websites,” according to a series of tweets by Google’s Search Liaison.

Today we’re launching some changes on Google Images to help connect users and useful websites. This will include removing the View Image button. The Visit button remains, so users can see images in the context of the webpages they’re on. pic.twitter.com/n76KUj4ioD




— Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) February 15, 2018


Another change made by the search engine is the removal of the “Search by Image” button, but a reverse image search can still be done by dragging it to the search bar, as reported by The Verge.

“Ultimately, Google Images is a way for people to discover information in cases where browsing images is a better experience than text,” the search liaison tweeted. “Having a single button that takes people to actionable information about the image is good for users, web publishers and copyright holders.”

This comes after Google sealed a deal with Getty Images to improve on copyright disclaimers and on the attribution of someone’s work.  Katrina Hallare /ra

source: technology.inquirer.net

‘Numerous fatalities’ in US school shooting, suspect in custody

PARKLAND, United States — Authorities in Florida could offer no explanation Wednesday night as to why a former student armed with an AR-15 rifle opened fire at a high school earlier that day, killing at least 17 people.

Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel identified the gunman as Nikolas Cruz, 19, a former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland who had been expelled for “disciplinary reasons,” but was currently enrolled in Broward County Public Schools.

Cruz, whose fellow students described him as “troubled,” was arrested without incident in the nearby town of Coral Springs after the Valentine’s Day rampage and taken to hospital with minor injuries, the sheriff said.

“We have already begun to dissect his websites and things on social media that he was on and some of the things… are very, very disturbing,” Israel said.

“If a person is predisposed to commit such a horrific event by going to a school and shooting people … there’s not anybody or not a lot law enforcement can do about it.”

Israel said both students and adults had been killed, 12 of whom have now been identified.

He said at least 14 were taken to hospital and two had died there of their wounds. He added one of those killed was a football coach, and one student injured was a deputy sheriff’s son.

“This is a terrible day for Parkland,” Israel said, speaking of the city of about 30,000 people, located 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Miami.

A teacher at the school said Cruz had been identified previously as a potential threat to his classmates.

“We were told last year that he wasn’t allowed on campus with a backpack on him,” math teacher Jim Gard said in a Miami Herald interview.

“There were problems with him last year threatening students, and I guess he was asked to leave campus.”

Cruz was also said to have been in the Junior ROTC (Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) program while at school.

A law enforcement source told CBS News that the gunman pulled a fire alarm before opening fire, but Israel could not confirm that report.

‘Everyone started running’
The shooting, one of nearly 20 at a school since the start of the year, will once again throw the spotlight on the epidemic of gun violence in the United States, where there are 33,000 gun-related deaths annually.

But when questioned at a press conference late Wednesday, Florida Governor Rick Scott — who described the massacre as “just pure evil” — declined to make a statement on gun control in the aftermath of the shooting.

“There’s a time to continue to have these conversations about how through law enforcement, how through mental illness funding that we make sure people are safe, and we’ll continue to do that,” said Scott, a Republican.

At the same briefing, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi said the state will cover the costs of funerals and counseling for survivors.

“We will continue to work together as a team, as a family, and love and take care of all of these victims and their family members,” she said.

Parkland Mayor Christine Hunschofsky told CNN she had spoken to a number of students after the shooting erupted shortly after 2:00 pm (1900 GMT).

“They were very scared,” she said. “And almost in shock when they came out.”

Students, some with their hands in the air, were led out of the school by heavily armed police officers and an armored vehicle filled with a SWAT team on the scene.

Student Jeiella Dodoo told CBS News that she and her schoolmates evacuated calmly after hearing what they thought was a routine fire alarm.

“The alarm went off so we had to evacuate from our classes,” she said. “Then we heard gunshots.

“I heard about six gunshots,” she said, “and then some people started running and then everyone started running because we were like ‘If it’s real, then just run.'”

Teacher Melissa Falkowski told US networks that she had helped 19 students squeeze into a closet with her.

“We were in there for probably 40 minutes. We were locked in the closet until SWAT came and got us,” she told CNN.

Police officers in helmets, bulletproof vests and armed with automatic weapons could be seen stationed at several points around the sprawling school complex, which serves nearly 3,000 students.

“Just a horrible day for us,” said the superintendent of the county’s school district, Robert Runcie.

“This is very sad to me and our family too,” 61-year-old Joseph Panikulangara, whose 17-year-old niece Dhiya attends the school, told AFP.

The FBI said it was assisting local law enforcement with the investigation.

When asked about security, Hunschofsky said a police officer is always stationed at the school and there is a “single point of entry.”

No child should ‘feel unsafe’

President Donald Trump offered his “prayers and condolences to the families of the victims.”

“No child, teacher or anyone else should ever feel unsafe in an American school,” he said on Twitter.

But since January 2013, there have been at least 291 school shootings across the country — an average of about one a week, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, a non-profit group that advocates for gun control.

“It is pretty clear that we’re failing our kids here,” said Falkowski, the teacher who helped shield her students from harm in a closet. /cbb

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Olympic figure skating unveils new, modern soundtrack

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — When the International Skating Union made the popular decision to allow lyrics in all performances, the Paul Simon classic “The Sound of Silence” seemed like it would be a natural choice.

The folk tune is light and airy and fits neatly within the confines of traditional figure skating.

Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres went in another direction.

Yes, the French pairs team chose the 1960s hit for their free skate last year, and will bring it back for their Olympic program Thursday. But rather than the melodic version performed by Simon and Art Garfunkel, they opted for a haunting, heavy metal cover by American rock band Disturbed .

“It was our coaches who found it,” James told The Associated Press. “They were like, ‘We really think it could be a hit.’ And Morgan listened to it and was like, ‘I don’t like it,’ because we weren’t used to it. And I was like, ‘OK, let me see if I can get into this.’ I thought it could be amazing, and I was like, ‘Morgan, let’s trust them.’ And we were so right to have trusted them.”

That’s because the stirring rendition, coupled with the pair’s dramatic program, became such a fan favorite that they replaced this season’s program with it for the Pyeongchang Games.

“When you have a powerful voice and words to express,” James said, “it changes everything.”

Now, nobody is throwing tradition out the window. Fans still will see four Olympic programs set to “Carmen” and three to “Swan Lake.” Two programs are set to the figure skating staple “Moonlight Sonata,” including one by ice dance favorites Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron.

But the decision by skating’s governing body after the 2014 Sochi Games to allow lyrics in all disciplines expanded the breadth of what is available, and skaters have taken broad liberties with it.

Ed Sheeran and Coldplay will provide popular soundtracks to the rest of the Olympic skating scene. The rock bands Imagine Dragons and Snow Patrol, English vocalist Benjamin Clementine and pop musicians Lorde, Christina Aguilera and Adele also have music in the mix.

“At the beginning, people were just choosing random music,” Cipres recalled, “but after some time I think people realized it didn’t work. You have to choose your music carefully.”

Many skaters, such as James and Cipres, wound up choosing covers over an original. They may like the lyrics or message of a song but they also want it to have a different rhythm or feel.

Two-time world champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford of Canada wanted “With or Without You” for their short program, but they decided U2’s original was a bit monotone. Their choreographers unearthed a little-known cover by singer-songwriter April Meservy that worked better for their routine.

“There are people who are like, ‘Why aren’t they skating to the original?’ But if you listen to the original, it doesn’t lend itself well to a figure skating program,” Radford explained. “April’s version just has more ebb and flow, and it just works better for us.”

Worked out well for Meservy, too. An anonymous donor provided funds for her to travel from the U.S. to South Korea and watch Duhamel and Radford perform to her rendition on Olympic ice.

“‘With or Without You’ is a popular song,” Duhamel said, “but we always try to find unique versions of things. We try to veer off the path and pick obscure versions of songs.”

That’s what German skater Paul Fentz thought he was doing when asked his choreographer to find a 1950s-style jazz tune, and wound up doing Paul Anka’s version of the Oasis hit “Wonderwall.”

Fentz performed to it during his short program for the team competition last week, and he quickly became a trending topic on social media as fans debated whether it was cool or cringe-worthy.

“That’s the risk you take,” said Fentz, whose free skate set to music from “Game of Thrones” ought to win back some skeptics. “I know the Oasis song, I really like it. But it wasn’t like I was trying to make something new or something. I just wanted something a little smoother.”

The Austrian pairs team of Miriam Ziegler and Severin Kiefer will perform to the well-known song “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” when they step on the ice Wednesday for their short program.

Rather than the pop-fueled original by The Proclaimers , though, Ziegler and Kiefer chose a soaring version by the cast of “Sunshine on Leith” — a British musical set to the Scottish duo’s music.

Jeff Buckley’s popular version of the Leonard Cohen song “Hallelujah” will make an appearance, but so will two covers by K.D. Lang , including the one chosen by pairs favorites Han Cong and Sui Wenjing.

“We have so much more music to choose,” Fentz said. “Many skaters picked Ed Sheeran or something, and you can’t skate to Ed Sheeran without lyrics. You can’t pick that.

“With lyrics,” Fentz said, “it’s just better.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Recyclable electronic skin can heal, regenerate itself in 30 minutes

The idea of regenerating skin has stepped out of the world of science fiction and into medical and technological reality. Human skin tissue renews itself every couple of weeks, sure, but can it replace itself in just thirty minutes? Probably not. But that’s why artificial electronic skin exists.

The invention of electronic skin is precipitated by manifold reasons, from heightening the senses of artificially-intelligent robots to being used in biomedical implants and minimally invasive surgery. The latest e-skin comes from the University of Colorado Boulder, which created an electronic skin that can heal itself when torn apart, as published in the Science Advances journal last week, Feb. 9.

The catch: it’s 100 percent recyclable and environmentally friendly.

“This particular device won’t produce any waste,” said Jianliang Xiao, co-author of the study and assistant professor of mechanical engineering, said in an interview with The Verge, Feb. 9. “We want to make electronics be environmentally friendly.”

The e-skin is a dynamic covalent thermoset-based e-skin and the first of its kind. Thanks to its thermoset with conductive silver nanoparticles, it can be re-healed when damaged and be fully recycled at room temperature — something that has never been seen in the history of e-skin thus far. Once completely healed or recycled, the e-skin then regains properties similar to the original e-skin, all while being economical and eco-friendly.

As per Xiao, the recycling of the e-skin only takes around 30 minutes at 140 degrees Fahrenheit to 10 hours at room temperature. The healing, on the other hand, is much faster: 30 minutes at room temperature or just a couple of minutes at 140 degrees Fahrenheit.

“We are facing pollution issues every day,” Xiao told The Verge. “It’s important to preserve our environment and make sure that nature can be very safe for ourselves and for our kids.”

A GeoBeats video on the University of Colorado Boulder’s electronic skin may be watched below. Cody Cepeda/JB

source: technology.inquirer.net

Whoops! Wardrobe malfunction mars Olympic debut for ice dancers

GANGNEUNG, South Korea (AP) _ Five seconds into your Olympic debut, you suffer a wardrobe malfunction. What do you do? Keep your shoulders back and keep smiling.

That’s exactly what happened to South Korean ice dancers Yura Min and Alexander Gamelin during their performance in Sunday’s team event. A hook on the back of Min’s red dress slid loose, threatening to reveal rather more than it already did.

“I know that if this comes undone, then the whole thing is going to come undone. So I had that panic,” she said. “That wouldn’t be the most ideal Olympic experience, obviously. The whole time in the back of my head I was just thinking: ‘Keep your back straight because it might come down.”


Things got worse during the twizzles _ a synchronized side-by-side spin _ when Min felt the dress slipping off her shoulder and down her arm. She had to react fast to stop her Olympic debut being remembered alongside Janet Jackson’s halftime performance at the Super Bowl in 2004.

“It started to come down so I had to stop my twizzle and pull it back up,” she said. Gamelin added: “We were skating well _ you just had to keep everything, well, intact.”

Gamelin is from Boston, while Min was born in California to Korean parents. They might not have grown up in the Olympic host nation, but it didn’t stop the crowd from taking them to heart. Min’s dress issues hurt their points total as they finished ninth, but they’re optimistic for the ice dance competition starting Feb. 19.

“The second we stepped onto the ice, the fans started to scream and I think we really fed off that energy,” Min said. “Even with my costume coming undone, the fans helped us, picked us up.”

Gamelin talks with Min in Korean and is “at least proficient” _ which was handy during his citizenship interview last year.

To march as an American-born athlete alongside North Koreans in the opening ceremony was unforgettable, he said.

“That was crazy. The unified team was a really historic event,” he said. “I’m loving this whole theme of peace.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Korver drops 30, James posts triple-double as Cavs top Hawks

ATLANTA — LeBron James had a triple-double and Kyle Korver scored a season-high 30 points, including four straight 3-pointers to close the third period, as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Atlanta Hawks 123-107 on Friday night for a successful start to their reboot.

One day after unloading six players, including guards Isaiah Thomas and Dwyane Wade, in three trades, the Cavaliers were in a state of transition. They had only nine available players against the Hawks, but Korver more than made up for a short bench.

Korver, the former Hawks fan favorite, made 7 of 13 from 3-point range and finished two points from matching his career high of 32.

James had 22 points, 17 assists and 12 rebounds. Jeff Green, also coming off the bench, had 24 points.

Newcomers George Hill, Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance Jr. and Rodney Hood joined the Cavs, but remained in the locker room during the game. They are expected to make their debuts with Cleveland on Sunday in Boston.

The team sent medical staff to Atlanta to complete physicals with the four players as quickly as possible.

The team planned a practice on Saturday to begin what coach Tyronn Lue said would be a re-introduction of the offense and defense.

“It can be good for us offensively and defensively, starting all over and breaking everything down from scratch will be good for this team,” Lue said. “Even guys who have been here, I think it will be good. It will take some time to do that but we’ve got the All-Star break coming up. … We’ll try to get those guys up to speed as quickly as possible.”

Dennis Schroder led Atlanta with 25 points. Taurean Prince had 15 points.

Cleveland led 83-80 late in the third period when James scored and was fouled by John Collins. James’ momentum carried him into a section of fans under the basket, and he was limping when he emerged. He made the free throw, remained in the game and then had assists on back-to-back 3s by Korver for a 91-80 lead.

Korver made a third straight 3-pointer following a timeout to stretch the lead to 14 points. Following a basket by Atlanta’s Malcolm Delaney, Korver added his fourth 3 of the period, a buzzer-beater.

TIP-INS

Cavaliers: Cedi Osman, making his first start, had 16 points but struggled at the free-throw line. He made only two of seven free throws, twice missing each of two attempts. … London Perrantes and John Holland played limited roles to add depth to the temporarily short-handed roster.

Hawks: Coach Mike Budenholzer says the team bought out Marco Belinelli’s contract both for the veteran 3-point specialist and to give younger players, including rookie Tyler Dorsey, more playing time. Dorsey had 14 points and made three 3-pointers. The move with Belinelli, 31, was announced before the game. … G DeAndre Bembry posted bond and was with the team following his arrest early Friday for speeding on an Atlanta interstate. He was clocked driving a purple Dodge Charger at 128 mph on Interstate 85 about 12:20 a.m. Bembry, who has a left abductor strain, has not played since Dec. 22. … Former Braves standout Chipper Jones, to be inducted into the Hall of Fame this summer, sat courtside near the Hawks bench.

UP NEXT

Cavaliers: Visit Boston on Sunday.

Hawks: Host Pistons on Sunday.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Macy’s launches a hijab collection

It may have been a long time coming, but it’s here—United States department store chain Macy’s is launching on its website next week (Feb. 15) a clothing line for Muslim shoppers.

The chain partnered with the boutique Verona Collection to sell a selection of dresses, separates and hijabs online, according to a post in The Business of Fashion website.

“The brand was developed by Lisa Vogl, a graduate of Macy’s minority- and women-owned business development program, which aims to offer more fashion diversity,” the post read.

This move to address the specific needs and requirements of Muslim shoppers was pioneered by Nike in March last year when it launched Nike Pro Hijab.

The garment—cut from the sports brand’s most breathable fabric—was designed to tackle performance problems associated with wearing a traditional hijab.

“Hijab” refers to the Muslim women’s general practice of covering their faces and bodies. It is also the most widely used head scarf.

A few months after the Nike launch, in June and July, Somali-American model Halima Aden appeared on the covers of Vogue Arabia and the US edition of Allure—wearing a hijab.

For the Vogue shoot, she wore black-and-white outfits and patterned head scarves while on the cover of Allure she wore Nike’s (partially hidden) hijab.

The outspoken model, who is the first Somali-American to compete and reach semifinalist status in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant, told Vogue about her goals.

“[I want to] send a message to Muslim women and young women everywhere that it’s okay to break stereotypes and be yourself. Always stay true to who you are—barriers can and will be broken!” she said.

With Macy’s new collection for Muslim women, it seems the industry is finally listening and taking action.

source: lifestyle.inquirer.net

Billionaire buys Los Angeles Times for $500M

LOS ANGELES, United States — Billionaire physician and investor Patrick Soon-Shiong agreed Wednesday to buy the Los Angeles Times, in a move aimed at reviving the fortunes of the newspaper amid recent turmoil.

Publishing group Tronc Inc. said it reached a deal to sell the LA Times and San Diego Union-Tribune to Soon-Shiong’s Nant Capital for $500 million plus the assumption of $90 million in pension liabilities.

The move comes after months of newsroom unrest at the storied Los Angeles daily that has seen three editors in the past six months, and a vote to unionize the journalists.

“We are pleased to transition leadership of the Los Angeles Times and The San Diego Union-Tribune to local ownership, and we are certain that the journalistic excellence in Southern California will continue long into the future,” said Justin Dearborn, chief executive of Tronc, the name adopted for the group previously known as Tribune Publishing.

Soon-Shiong, a surgeon whose biotech investments have boosted his net worth to some $7.8 billion, said in a statement: “We look forward to continuing the great tradition of award-winning journalism carried out by the reporters and editors of the Los Angeles Times, The San Diego Union-Tribune and the other California News Group titles.”

The LA Times, like many newspapers, has been downsizing its staff as readers turn away from print to online news platforms.

The Los Angeles daily was family-owned for more than a century before being sold to the Chicago-based Tribune Co. in 2000.

Tribune Co., which split off its broadcast division and renamed its publishing arm Tronc (for Tribune Online Content), will continue to own the Chicago Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Baltimore Sun and the New York Daily News.

The LA Times Guild, which recently won the right to represent employees, welcomed the news, saying it “looks forward to working with a local owner who can help us preserve The Times as a guardian of our community and as the voice of the American West.”

Billionaire newspaper owners

Soon-Shiong, born in South Africa to Chinese parents, has been an investor in Tronc and also owns a stake in the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team. He has been a faculty member at the UCLA medical school and has invested in and donated to medical research.

He was a founder of the Cancer MoonShot 2020 program, renamed Cancer Breakthroughs, aimed at developing immunotherapies to cure cancer.

Soon-Shiong is the latest billionaire to seek to turn around struggling newspapers, following on the heels of Amazon owner Jeff Bezos’s purchase of the Washington Post and Boston Red Sox owner John Henry’s deal for the Boston Globe.

“I’d say this is good news, but with a caveat,” said Dan Kennedy, a Northeastern University journalism professor and author of a forthcoming book on the efforts of Bezos and Henry to remake American newspapers.

“Wealthy local ownership is exactly what the Los Angeles Times and the San Diego Union-Tribune need, assuming that Dr. Soon-Shiong is willing to be patient and to respect the independence of the newsroom.”

Kennedy noted that the businessman has in the past criticized “false reporting” about his own research efforts.

“Given that, we’ll have to see which Dr. Soon-Shiong shows up in the owner’s suite,” Kennedy said.

Separately, Tronc announced a new digital strategy, and appointed recently reinstated executive Ross Levinsohn to head a new Tribune Interactive division.

Levinsohn, a former interim CEO at Yahoo who has worked in other online services, returns from leave after an independent probe into allegations of sexual harassment which found no wrongdoing, according to Tronc.

New York University journalism professor Jay Rosen said the new digital strategy appears at odds with the plan to shed the Los Angeles Times.

“If there was any discernible plan at @tronc it depended on the idea of scale,” Rosen tweeted. “Selling @latimes means that idea has gone bust.” /cbb

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Knicks’ Kristaps Porzingis tears ACL in left knee

NEW YORK — All-Star Kristaps Porzingis left the Knicks’ game against Milwaukee in the second quarter Tuesday night with a left knee injury.

The Knicks said in an update that Porzingis has torn the Anterior Cruciate Ligament in his left knee, MRI results showed.

Porzingis dunked with 8:46 left in the half and landed awkwardly, crashing to the court and holding his left knee. He was eventually helped up and taken to the locker room.

Porzingis had scored 10 points before he was hurt.

source: sports.inquirer.net

WATCH: Logan Paul returns to YouTube, pledges $1 million for suicide prevention

A month-long hiatus was all YouTube star Logan Paul needed before making a comeback to his beloved YouTube turf, where his 16 million-strong fanbase awaits.

It can be remembered that Paul uploaded a video of himself in YouTube in the beginning of January, where he was seen inside the Aokigahara forest in Japan, laughing at a corpse of a suicide victim hanging from a tree.

Aokigahara forest is most unfortunately known for being the world’s second most popular place to take one’s life. Paul’s reaction to the corpse and his lack of empathy garnered worldwide condemnation and prompted YouTube to cut Paul from his Google ad deal and put his YouTube Red movie on hold.

Now, however, Paul is back in YouTube with a fresh comeback video, which he uploaded on Feb. 4; the video has 11 million views as of this writing.

Paul started the video by showing off his new merchandise from his clothing brand, Maverick, and calling on his followers to buy because YouTube cut his AdSense in half. He also mentioned that Maverick is being sued for $4 million, which he promised to expound on in another vlog.

Addressing his Aokigahara forest issue, Paul shared that he met with suicide prevention experts during his social media blackout to learn better about suicide awareness and prevention. He also pledged to donate $1 million to suicide prevention organizations.

“I’m sort of immersing myself in this world,” Paul said in his vlog. “It’s something obviously I’m not gonna try to ignore. I can’t ignore it, so I’m not gonna pretend that didn’t happen.”

The full video of Logan Paul’s comeback may be watched

source: technology.inquirer.net

Justin Timberlake salutes Prince in Super Bowl halftime dance party

Justin Timberlake danced his way through a club-inspired Super Bowl halftime show Sunday as he paid tribute to Prince in the late singer’s hometown with a towering yet tasteful projection.

After fevered speculation on whether or how Timberlake would salute the icon as the Super Bowl came to Minneapolis, the pop star obliged midway through his performance.

“Minneapolis, this is for you,” Timberlake told the crowd as he sat down to a piano, the field bathed in purple light.

As Timberlake slowed down the tempo for a soulful cover of “I Would Die 4 U,” footage of “Purple Rain”-era Prince shot up toward the roof of the new US Bank Stadium in a smoky haze, closing with a silhouette of The Purple One with his guitar.

But Prince, who died in April 2016 of an accidental overdose, did not “perform” in a hologram — as some fans had feared — and the segment, while memorable, amounted to a fleeting moment of the up-tempo show.

There was also no naked “wardrobe malfunction” of the type that marred Timberlake’s last appearance 14 years ago, when he joined Janet Jackson at the Super Bowl — by far the most watched US television event of the year.

While many Super Bowl performers go heavy on pyrotechnics, Timberlake instead showed off his dancing skills, opening the show in a nightclub-like maze of lasers as he sang his recent single “Filthy.”

Timberlake then strutted into the stadium with his mic in hand, leading a squad of dancers — and matching them step for step — as he sang a medley of his best-known songs including “SexyBack.”

He rose to center stage and sang “Suit and Tie” with back-up from the appropriately attired University of Minnesota marching band, who moved to the music with their instruments doubling as props.

How to honor Prince?  

Timberlake has described Prince as a “huge influence” on him, but his Super Bowl tribute had generated controversy even before it happened.

The celebrity gossip site TMZ earlier said that Timberlake was considering a Prince hologram, horrifying many fans.

Sheila E., one of Prince’s closest collaborators, said late Saturday that she had spoken to Timberlake who voiced “heartfelt words of respect” for The Purple One — and assured no hologram.

Prince had a famously complicated relationship with technology, with the artist among the first stars to embrace the possibilities of online music but eventually becoming disgruntled over the internet’s cultural effects.

In a 1998 interview with Guitar World, Prince said he would never want to “perform” with a dead artist such as Duke Ellington through digital effects, calling such lack of artistic control for a late musician “the most demonic thing imaginable.”

In Timberlake’s last Super Bowl appearance in 2004, he entered as the surprise guest of headliner Jackson and swiped his hand across her chest — exposing one of her breasts.

A scandalized TV-watching nation saw Jackson’s nipple — well, covered with a metal nipple shield — and broadcaster CBS was fined $550,000 for indecency.

Jackson took to social media ahead of the latest Super Bowl to make clear she was not coming back for a do-over.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Foles, Eagles outshoot Patriots for 1st Super Bowl

MINNEAPOLIS — The Philadelphia Eagles’ flight from last to first ended up with a Lombardi Trophy.

In a record-setting shootout between Nick Foles and Tom Brady of the favored New England Patriots, the backup quarterback led a pressure-packed 75-yard drive to the winning touchdown, 11 yards to Zach Ertz with 2:21 to go Sunday night. Then a defense that had been shredded throughout the second half made two final stands to win 41-33.

Brandon Graham strip-sacked Brady and Derek Barnett recovered, setting up rookie Jake Elliot’s 46-yard field goal for an 8-point lead.

Brady got his team to midfield, but his desperation pass fell to the ground in the end zone.

The underdog Eagles (16-3), even injured starting quarterback Carson Wentz, came bolting off the sideline in ecstasy while Brady sat on the ground, disconsolate.

“For us, it was all about one stop we had to make. We went out here and made that one stop,” Graham said.

It was the first Super Bowl title for Philadelphia (16-3), which went from 7-9 last season to the franchise’s first NFL title since 1960.

“If there’s a word (it’s) called everything,” Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said. “That’s what it means to Eagles fans everywhere. And for Eagles fans everywhere, this is for them.”

Super Bowl MVP Foles orchestrated the victory with the kind of drive NFL MVP Brady, a five-time champion, is known for. The drive covered 14 plays, including a fourth-down conversion.

“I felt calm. I mean, we have such a great group of guys, such a great coaching staff,” Foles said. “We felt confident coming in, and we just went out there and played football.”

The Eagles had to survive a video replay because ball pop into the air as Ertz crossed the goal line.

“If they would have overturned that, I don’t know what would have happened to the city of Philadelphia,” Ertz said. “But I’m so glad they didn’t overturn it.”

The touchdown stood — and so did thousands of green-clad Eagles fans who weren’t going to mind the frigid conditions outside US Bank Stadium once they headed out to celebrate. But not before a rousing rendition of “Fly Eagles Fly” reverberated throughout the stands once the trophy was presented to Lurie. Later, fans danced along with the “Gonna Fly Now,” the theme from “Rocky,” the city’s best-known fictional underdog.

The Patriots (15-4) seemed ready to take their sixth championship with Brady and coach Bill Belichick in eight Super Bowls. Brady threw for a game-record 505 yards and three TDs, hitting Rob Gronkowski for 4 yards before Stephen Gostkowski’s extra point gave New England its first lead, 33-32.

Then Foles made them forget Wentz — and least for now — with the gutsiest drive of his life, including a fourth-down conversion to Ertz at midfield.

Foles has been something of a journeyman in his six pro seasons, but he has been spectacular in four career playoff games. He finished 28 of 43 for 373 yards and three TDs.

The combined 1,151 yards were the most in any modern NFL game, and Brady’s 505 were the most in any playoff contest. The 40-year-old master finished 28 of 48 and picked apart the Eagles until the final two series.

It was such a wild game that Foles caught a touchdown pass, and Brady was on the opposite end of a Danny Amendola throw that went off his fingertips.

Eagles coach Doug Pederson brought home the championship in his second year in charge. Belichick is 5-3 in Super Bowls and his teams have only a plus-4 overall margin in those games.

So this one was in keeping with that trend: breathtaking and even a bit bizarre.

Brady and the Patriots looked more like five-time champions by opening the second half with a 75-yard touchdown drive. Gronkowski was unstoppable, grabbing four passes for 69 yards, including the 5-yard score.

Philly didn’t flinch, answering with a precise 75-yard march and three more third-down conversions; the Eagles were 10 for 16. The last was on Foles’ perfect pass to Clement over double coverage. The rookie’s reception was upheld by review, and the Eagles were back on top by 10.

Brady shrugged and, getting steadfast protection, went over 400 yards passing on the next TD drive. Chris Hogan scored from the 26 as he turned around safety Rodney McLeod.

When all the Eagles could manage was Elliott’s 42-yarder for a 32-26 lead, it seemed inevitable the Patriots would go in front, then become the first repeat Super Bowl winner since they did it in the 2004 and ’05 games.

Foles, Ertz, and — at last — a revitalized defense said otherwise.

The weird image of Brady ambling downfield on a pass pattern came three plays after New England lost receiver Brandin Cooks to a concussion on a vicious but clean hit by Malcolm Jenkins in the second quarter. Amendola’s pass required an over-the-shoulder grab and the ball fell off Brady’s outstretched hands.

When he got back to what he has done better than anyone in Super Bowls, Brady led a 90-yard drive following an equally strange play. Alshon Jeffery nearly made a spectacular attempt near the Patriots’ goal line, only to juggle the ball into the air while off-balance. Duron Harmon picked it off at the 10. Moments later, Brady was connecting with Chris Hogan for 42 yards.

James White broke several tackles with a brilliant 26-yard run and it was 15-12. That gave White seven touchdowns in his past three postseason games, including the overtime winner last year.

But the Eagles still had 2:04 left in the half — and some more magic in their bag.

A short third-down throw to rookie Corey Clement on a circle route turned into a 55-yard explosion down to the Patriots 8. Philly got to the 1 and on fourth down, it was Foles’ turn to morph into a receiver.

He did better than Brady. On fourth down, Clement took a direct snap, pitched to tight end Trey Burton, and the former Florida QB hit an uncovered Foles. The Eagles were up 22-12 at halftime, the most points New England has allowed in the opening half of a Super Bowl under Belichick.

Each team started with 67-yard drives to field goals — New England had never scored a first-quarter point with Brady in a Super Bowl.

Each kicker later faltered, with Elliott missing the extra point, his fifth failed PAT this season, after Jeffery’s 34-yard touchdown. Then Gostkowski hit the left upright with a 26-yard field goal after holder Ryan Allen mishandled the snap. Gostkowski also missed an extra point.

When LeGarrette Blount, who won the title last season with the Patriots, scored on a 21-yard burst, Pederson went for 2, but the pass failed, making it 15-3.

The Eagles and Pederson brushed it off and stayed with their usual aggressive approach. Breathtakingly, it eventually paid off.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Dylan’s other passion

When not working on and promoting his Netflix drama series “13 Reasons Why,” actor Dylan Minnette is making music with his rock band, Wallows.

Minnette, the vocalist and guitarist, is joined by buddies, fellow singer-guitarist Braeden Lemasters and drummer Cole Presston.

On Instagram, he posted about the group’s North America winter tour, which is ongoing until March.

The band has over 136,000 followers on the photo-sharing site.

Minnette will return as sensitive but troubled teen Clay Jensen in “13 Reasons Why” in an as yet unspecified date this year.

Lemasters, also an actor, has appeared in the TV shows, “NCIS,” “House” and “Grey’s Anatomy.”—OLIVER PULUMBARIT

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

2 Amtrak workers killed, 116 hurt in South Carolina crash

CAYCE, South Carolina — An Amtrak passenger train slammed into a freight train parked on a side track in South Carolina early Sunday, killing two Amtrak employees and injuring more than 110 people, authorities said. It was the third deadly wreck involving Amtrak in less than two months.

Amtrak’s Silver Star was on its way from New York to Miami with eight crew members and about 140 passengers around 2:45 a.m. (3:46 p.m. PH time) when it plowed into the CSX train at an estimated 59 mph (95 kph), Gov. Henry McMaster said. The wreck took place around a switchyard about 10 miles (16 kilometers) south of Columbia.

The governor said investigators have yet to determine how the Amtrak train ended up on that stretch of track.

“The CSX was on the track it was supposed to be on,” McMaster said.

The National Transportation Safety Board sent investigators.

McMaster said 116 people were taken to four hospitals. The main trauma hospital in the area had three patients in critical or serious condition, with the rest treated for minor injuries such as cuts, bruises and whiplash, said Dr. Steve Shelton, Palmetto Health director of emergency preparedness.

Drone footage showed the locomotives of both trains crumpled, the Amtrak engine on its side. One car in the middle of the Amtrak train was snapped in half, forming a V off to the side of the tracks.

“It’s a horrible thing to see, to understand the force involved,” McMaster said after touring the scene.

Many passengers were asleep with the train began shaking violently and then slammed to a halt, passenger Derek Pettaway told CBS.

“You knew we’d hit something or we’d derailed,” he said.

Elliot Smith told The State newspaper of Columbia that he was staying with a friend when they heard what sounded like a propane tank exploding.

“The sound was so loud, you instantly knew it was bad,” he said. Smith said he and his friend saw passengers limping along the tracks, while others tried to get everyone out of the cars.

Amtrak officials gathered up luggage and other belongings and within hours put passengers aboard buses to their destinations. Before being sent on their way, those who were not hurt were taken to a shelter, and local businesses provided coffee and breakfast.

“We know they are shaken up quite a bit. We know this is like nothing else they have ever been through. So we wanted to get them out of the cold, get them out of the weather – get them to a warm place,” sheriff’s spokesman Adam Myrick said.

On Wednesday, a chartered Amtrak train carrying Republican members of Congress to a strategy retreat slammed into a garbage truck at a crossing in rural Virginia, killing one person in the truck and injuring six others.

And on Dec. 18, an Amtrak train ran off the rails along a curve during its inaugural run on a route south of Tacoma, Washington, killing three people and injuring dozens. It was going nearly 80 mph (129 kph), more than twice the speed limit.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net