Life

Microsoft reports loss due to tax charge

SAN FRANSISCO, United States (AFP) — Microsoft on Wednesday reported a hefty loss in the past quarter, as it set aside billions of dollars for taxes on profits it expects to bring back to the United States following passage of a major tax overhaul. The technology giant said its loss for the quarter to December 31 was $6.3 billion — as it took a charge of $13.8 billion to pay its taxes. Revenue for Microsoft’s fiscal second […]

Test of US-Japanese missile interceptor fails again

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A test of a US missile interceptor failed in Hawaii on Wednesday, a defense official said, marking the second such unsuccessful attempt in less than a year. The test using the Aegis Ashore system occurred at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on the island of Kauai, Missile Defense Agency spokesman Mark Wright said in a statement. Wright said the test was of an SM-3 Block IIA missile, made by arms giant Raytheon […]

Seize this rare triple treat: the super blue blood moon tonight; next one to happen in Dec 2028

  The phrase once in a blue moon means a thing that happens rarely. And such an event will happen tonight, Wednesday, January 31. What will happen is not just a blue moon, but a “super blue blood moon” – when skygazers will catch a rare triple treat of a glimpse of the giant crimson moon, thanks to a rare lunar trifecta that combines a blue moon, a super moon and a total eclipse. The […]

Facebook bans ads for cryptocurrencies

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Facebook says it is banning all ads related to cryptocurrencies in an effort to fight scams. The social media giant said it is barring ads for “financial products and services that are frequently associated with misleading or deceptive promotional practices, such as binary options, initial coin offerings and cryptocurrency.” Initial coin offerings or ICOs are a way for companies to raise funds by selling investors cryptographic assets. Fraud is common in the world […]

Palawan, kabilang sa listahan ng mga lugar na may “bluest water in the world”

(Eagle News) — Kabilang ang Palawan sa listahan ng mga lugar na may “bluest water in the world” ng Travel + Leisure magazine. Inilarawan sa artikulo ang Palawan bilang islang binabalutan ng asul na tubig, coral reefs, lagoon coves at mga lihim na beach. Kabilang dito ang El Nido, Linapacan Island at Puerto Princesa Underground River. Kasama rin ang Palawan sa listahan ng “The 15 Best Beach Destinations to Visit in January” ng magazine dahil […]

Global cancer survival up, but progress uneven: study

by Marlowe Hood Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Cancer survival is increasing across the world but large gaps endure between nations, while some cancers remain hard to treat everywhere, according to a major review released Wednesday. The progress, and the gap, are especially large for childhood cancers, according to the CONCORD-3 study covering 71 nations and 18 types of cancer, published in the medical journal The Lancet. For children with brain tumors, for […]

A whale with words: Orca mimics human speech

by Mariëtte Le Roux Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Her head above water, Wikie the killer whale looks at the human trainer next to her pool, listens, then loudly vocalizes: “Hello.” It is not a perfect imitation, but, astonishingly, recognizable. It is the first scientific demonstration of an orca mimicking human words, which also included “Amy” — the name of Wikie’s handler — “Bye-Bye”, and “One-Two-Three.” “We were not expecting a perfect match, like […]

Israeli president visits Greek site of future Holocaust museum

THESSALONIKI, Greece (AFP) — Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Tuesday announced the northern port city of Thessaloniki is to host a Holocaust museum, during a visit to the site with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. Greek shipping tycoon Stavros Niarchos and the German government will each make a 10 million euro ($12 million) donation to cover the bulk of the cost of the museum on the site of a former railway station from where trains […]

Poland to post Chopin collection online

WARSAW, Poland (AFP) — Poland’s Fryderyk Chopin Institute (NIFC) on Tuesday said it would make its entire collection devoted to the 19th-century composer available online for free by 2020. “Chopin will be the first great composer to have all of his musical scores digitised” and openly accessible by all, NIFC deputy director Maciej Janicki told reporters. Nearly 40,000 Chopin items from the UNESCO world heritage collection — including photographs and paintings of the Polish-French romantic […]

Vaping may raise cancer risk: study

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Vaping may raise the risk of cancer because it leads to DNA damage, even though it contains fewer carcinogens than tobacco smoke, a US study has found. The report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences did not compare the cancer-causing potential of traditional cigarettes to e-cigarettes. However, in studies on lab mice, those exposed to e-cigarette smoke “had higher levels of DNA damage in the heart, lungs, […]

US investigating iPhone slowing Apple software: report

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Apple’s move to slow down older iPhones as batteries weaken is under scrutiny by US prosecutors and stock market regulators, according to a report Tuesday by Bloomberg. The US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating whether Apple broke the law by failing to disclose a software update that made older iPhone models function slower, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter. It […]

Rare lunar eclipse offers glimpse of ‘super blue blood moon’

by Kerry SHERIDAN Agence France Presse MIAMI, United States (AFP) — Many parts of the globe may catch a glimpse Wednesday of a giant crimson moon, thanks to a rare lunar trifecta that combines a blue moon, a super moon and a total eclipse. The spectacle, which NASA has coined a “super blue blood moon,” will grace the pre-dawn skies in the western United States, as the moon crosses into the shadow of the Earth […]