US Investors See Value in Israeli Tech Firms Despite War

On

HERZLIYA, Israel — Nearly 7,000 miles away in Portland, Oregon, venture capitalist George Djuric said he was compelled to visit Israel during the country’s war with Palestinian militant group Hamas and to pledge support for the high-tech sector. Djuric, chief technology officer at yVentures who arrived in the United States as a 3-year-old refugee from Bosnia during the Bosnian war in the mid-1990s, this week joined some 70 other U.S. tech executives and investors on a trip to Israel. “Coming here is a chance to stand in solidarity with Israel and also support the tech ecosystem, which is the world’s secondmore

Leave a comment

Insect Compasses, Fire-Fighting Vines: 2023’s Nature-Inspired Tech

On

Paris — Even as human-caused climate change threatens the environment, nature continues to inspire our technological advancement. “The solutions that are provided by nature have evolved for billions of years and tested repeatedly every day since the beginning of time,” said Evripidis Gkanias, a University of Edinburgh researcher.  Gkanias has a special interest in how nature can educate artificial intelligence. “Human creativity might be fascinating, but it cannot reach nature’s robustness — and engineers know that,” he told AFP. From compasses mimicking insect eyes to forest fire-fighting robots that behave like vines, here’s a selection of this year’s nature-based technology. Insect compassmore

Leave a comment

Republican Party Consolidates Control of Deep South Statehouses

On

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA — The January 8 inauguration of Jeff Landry as Louisiana governor consolidates Republican Party control of statehouses in America’s Deep South and the region’s shift to more conservative governance. Nearly 60% of Louisiana voters chose Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Republicans are ready for change at the statehouse in Baton Rouge. As a candidate and as the state’s attorney general, Landry backed banning gender-affirming medical care for transgender youths, expanding rights for gun owners and enacting a near-total abortion ban without exceptions for rape and incest. “I’m tired of the government doing everything for everybody, becausemore

Leave a comment

California Expanding Health Care for Low-Income Immigrants in 2024

On

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — More than 700,000 immigrants living illegally in California will gain access to free health care starting Monday under one of the state’s most ambitious coverage expansions in a decade. It’s an effort that will eventually cost the state about $3.1 billion per year and inches California closer to Democrats’ goal of providing universal health care to its roughly 39 million residents. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers agreed in 2022 to provide health care access to all low-income adults regardless of their immigration status through the state’s Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal. California is the most populous statemore

Leave a comment

Retirements Could Tip Control of US House Majority

On

WASHINGTON — A chaotic year for the House is coming to a close with more Democrats than Republicans deciding to leave the chamber, a disparity that could have major ramifications in next year’s elections. About two dozen Democrats have indicated they won’t seek reelection, with half running for another elected office. Meanwhile, only 14 Republicans have said they are not seeking another term, with three seeking elected office elsewhere. More retirements can be expected after the holidays, when lawmakers have had a chance to spend time with families and make decisions ahead of reelection deadlines. But so far, the numbers don’tmore

Leave a comment

Maine Bars Trump From Ballot, Cites 14th Amendment

On

portland, maine — Maine’s Democratic secretary of state on Thursday removed former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the Constitution’s insurrection clause, becoming the first election official to take action unilaterally as the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide whether Trump remains eligible to continue his campaign. The decision by Secretary of State Shenna Bellows follows a ruling earlier this month by the Colorado Supreme Court that booted Trump from the ballot there under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. That decision has been stayed until the U.S. Supreme Court decides whether Trump is barred bymore

Leave a comment

House Grills Three University Presidents Over On-Campus Antisemitism

On

The presidents of Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology were questioned by House lawmakers on Tuesday over whether their administrations are doing enough to combat the wave of antisemitism that has swept their campuses as the Israel-Hamas war rages. Republican Representative Virginia Foxx said the three presidents were called to testify because “we heard in particular that the most egregious situations have occurred on these campuses.” Claudine Gay, president of Harvard University, faced particularly difficult lines of questioning from congressional Republicans, including one fraught exchange with Representative Elise Stefanik, who demanded that Gay resign.  Stefanik,more

Leave a comment

Tuberville Ending Blockade of Most US Military Nominees

On

U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville announced on Tuesday that he’s ending his blockade of hundreds of military promotions, following heavy criticism from many of his colleagues in the Senate and clearing the way for hundreds to be approved. Tuberville maintained that his blockade of military promotions was over a dispute about a Pentagon abortion policy. The Alabama Republican said Tuesday he’s “not going to hold the promotions of these people any longer.” Almost 400 military nominations have been in limbo due to Tuberville’s blanket hold on confirmations and promotions for senior military officers. It’s a stance that has left key nationalmore

Leave a comment

China the No. 1 Country Sending Students to US, Data Show

On

China, India and South Korea sent the most students to the U.S. in 2023, according to Open Doors 2023 Report on International Educational Exchange. Open Doors is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. Among other things, the report broke down the schools with the largest number of international students. New York University took the top spot, with Northeastern University, Columbia University, Arizona State University and the University of Southern California rounding out the top five. Get the stats here. (November 2023) …

Leave a comment

Lacking Counselors, US Schools Turn to Booming Business of Online Therapy

On

Trouble with playground bullies started for Maria Ishoo’s daughter in elementary school. Girls ganged up, calling her “fat” and “ugly.” Boys tripped and pushed her. The California mother watched her typically bubbly second-grader retreat into her bedroom and spend afternoons curled up in bed. For Valerie Aguirre’s daughter in Hawaii, a spate of middle school “friend drama” escalated into violence and online bullying that left the 12-year-old feeling disconnected and lonely. Both children received help through telehealth therapy, a service that schools around the country are offering in response to soaring mental health struggles among American youth. Now at leastmore

Leave a comment

Judge Rejects Trump’s Claim of Immunity from Criminal Charges

On

A U.S. judge on Friday said Donald Trump does not have immunity from criminal charges for actions he took as president, rejecting a bid by the Republican to toss out the case accusing him of conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington found there was no legal basis for concluding that U.S. presidents cannot face criminal charges once they are no longer in office. Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, can immediately appeal the ruling, which could delay the trial while an appeals court and potentially the Supreme Court weighmore

Leave a comment

US Congressman Santos Refuses to Resign, Says Expulsion Would Set Precedent

On

In his closing arguments for remaining a member of the House, a defiant Representative George Santos depicted himself as a victim of a smear campaign by some of his colleagues and made clear that he would not resign before a vote Friday on whether he should be expelled. The first-term Republican congressman from New York could well become just the sixth member of the House to have been ousted by colleagues. While Santos survived two earlier expulsion efforts, a critical House Ethics Committee report released on November 16 has convinced more members that his actions merit the House’s most severemore

Leave a comment

Biden Takes ‘Bidenomics’ to Colorado, Hits ‘MAGA’ Republicans

On

U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday will tout his “Bidenomics” agenda, contrasting his economic vision with that of so-called “MAGA” Republicans, in remarks at CS Wind, the world’s largest wind tower manufacturer, in Pueblo, Colorado. CS Wind is expanding with a new $190 million facility that it directly attributes to the passage of 2022’s Inflation Reduction Act, Biden’s signature climate and energy bill. The company said the expansion is set to be completed in 2028 and will create 850 jobs. Pueblo is a district represented by Republican Representative Lauren Boebert, a supporter of former President Donald Trump’s Make America Greatmore

Leave a comment

ACT Scores Have Fallen for Sixth Year in a Row

On

The ACT is one of two commonly used college admissions tests in the U.S. Scores have fallen year over year and are now at their lowest level in 30 years. The pandemic made students less ready for college, but the trend predates it. Joseph Pisani of The Wall Street Journal has more. (October 2023) …

Leave a comment

Do US News College Rankings Exclude International Students?

On

The rankings are the most popular in the U.S., but the rankings have changed their methodology amid recent criticism. Two professors, Ryan Allen and Tomoko Takahashi, argue that this new system is unfair to international students. It fails to capture their earnings after graduation and excludes them from its list of first-generation students. Weigh their arguments for yourself in Inside Higher Ed, (October 2023) …

Leave a comment