Life

Move over, Musk: Kalashnikov unveils ‘electric supercar’

MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russian arms maker Kalashnikov on Thursday presented its new electric car inspired by a rare 1970s model, saying the new technology will rival Elon Musk’s Tesla. The brand, best known for the AK-47 machine gun, presented the decidedly retro-looking pale blue prototype, the CV-1, at a defense expo outside Moscow. The look was inspired by a Soviet hatchback model developed in the 1970s called “Izh-Kombi,” a statement on the Kalashnikov website […]

Eye exam may predict Alzheimer’s

by Kerry SHERIDAN Agence France-Presse TAMPA, United States (AFP) — Advances in eye exam technology could one day help doctors diagnose people with Alzheimer’s disease long before symptoms appear, researchers said Thursday. Using equipment similar to the kind already available at most eye doctors’ offices, researchers detected signs of Alzheimer’s in a small sample of 30 people, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Opthalmology. Those enrolled in […]

Scientists track how yellow fever raced through Brazil

by Ivan Couronne Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The yellow fever virus lurked deep in the Amazon jungle until around July 2016 when it leapt toward the highly populated south of Brazil, carried by monkeys and the mosquitoes that liked to bite them. At a speed of about two miles (3.3 kilometers) per day, the virus made its way to the outskirts of the big cities of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, […]

Swimmer Schooling, who paid tribute to his Filipina nanny in 2015, wins 1st gold for Singapore in Asian games

  (Eagle News) — Singapore’s Olympic swim champion Joseph Schooling, who had paid tribute to his Filipina nanny in a 2015 Singtel ad video, successfully defended his 100 meter butterfly title and won Singapore’s first gold medal at the Asian Games on Wednesday. Schooling swam a Games-record 51.04sec to beat China’s Li Zhuhao into second place. He was a rising star when he won at Incheon in 2014. The 23-year-old had also stunned Michael Phelps […]

Facebook suspends hundreds of apps over data concerns

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Facebook on Wednesday said it has suspended more than 400 of thousands of applications it has investigated to determine whether people’s personal information was being improperly shared. Applications were suspended “due to concerns around the developers who built them or how the information people chose to share with the app may have been used,” vice president of product partnerships Ime Archibong said in a blog post. Apps put on […]

Facebook to pull VPN app from App Store over data worry

  SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Facebook will pull Onavo Protect virtual private network application from the App Store after getting word that it violates Apple’s data collection rules, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. The free application creates an encrypted VPN connection that routes internet activity through computer servers managed and secured by Facebook. The app also alerts users when sites they visit might be malicious. Facebook is able to gather information […]

Scientists confirm ice exists at Moon’s poles

TAMPA, United States (AFP) — Scientists said Tuesday they have confirmed the existence of ice on the Moon’s surface for the first time, a discovery that could one day help humans survive there. Signs of ice on the Moon have been reported by scientists for years, but previous observations could have been explained by other phenomena, such as unusually reflective lunar soil, the study authors said. “This is the first time scientists have definitive evidence […]

Harvey Weinstein sued by German actress for alleged rape

  LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — A German actress has filed a lawsuit against Harvey Weinstein alleging the disgraced movie mogul raped her in 2006 at the Cannes Film Festival. Emma Loman says in a complaint filed on Monday in Los Angeles that she met Weinstein in 2004 at the Venice Film Festival and he later invited her to Cannes as his guest to discuss her career. The model-turned-actress says she was initially hesitant […]

Eagles overtake Michael Jackson with biggest selling album

NEW YORK, United States (AFP) – A box set of The Eagles’ greatest hits has surpassed Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” as the biggest selling album of all time, according to a new ranking by the Recording Industry Association of America. RIAA said “The Eagles: Their Greatest Hits 1971-75,” a compilation of the country-rock group’s first four albums, has now sold 38 million units, topping “Thriller’s” 33 million. The set had long held the top spot but […]

Google sued for unwanted tracking of phone locations

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP)–A lawsuit filed in federal court here accuses Google of invading people’s privacy by tracking the whereabouts of smartphones users despite “location history” settings being turned off. The suit filed Friday by a California man seeks unspecified damages along with class-action status to represent all US iPhone or Android smartphone users who turned off location history in order not to have their movements logged by Google. “Google expressly represented to users […]

Kevin Spacey movie takes in dismal $618

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP)–US actor Kevin Spacey’s latest movie has flopped big-time at the box office, taking in a mere $618 as it opened to dire reviews in a handful of theaters across the country. “Billionaire Boys Club,” a crime drama based on a true story, in which Spacey co-stars alongside Ansel Elgort (“Baby Driver”) and Taron Egerton (“Kingsman,”) earned a measly $126 on Friday according to industry magazine The Hollywood Reporter. The movie, […]

Paris aquarium offers haven for unwanted goldfish

by Brice Le Borgne Agence France-Presse Paris’ biggest aquarium has created a refuge for goldfish, providing a second life for any unwanted pets who might otherwise find themselves flushed down the toilet. The Aquarium de Paris allows the city’s residents to drop off their fish, with the numbers using the service swelling around the time of the long summer holidays. Instead of facing death in the city’s sewerage system, the rejected goldfish find themselves given […]