MEXICO CITY — The number of monarch butterflies wintering in the mountains west of Mexico City rebounded this year, doubling the area they covered in 2024 despite the stresses of climate change and habitat loss, experts said Thursday. The annual butterfly count doesn’t calculate the individual number of butterflies, but rather the number of acres they … continue reading -> “Monarch butterflies wintering in Mexico rebound this year”
WASHINGTON — Giving a new meaning to the phrase mad scientists, angry researchers, doctors, their patients and supporters ventured out of labs, hospitals and offices Friday to fight against what they call a blitz on life-saving science by the Trump administration. In the nation’s capital, a couple thousand gathered at the Stand Up for Science rally. … continue reading -> “US researchers and doctors rally for science against Trump cuts”
The U.S. Department of Justice dropped a proposal Friday to force Alphabet’s Google to sell its investments in artificial intelligence companies, including OpenAI competitor Anthropic, to boost competition in online search. The DOJ and a coalition of 38 state attorneys general still seek a court order requiring Google to sell its Chrome browser and take … continue reading -> “US drops antitrust case against Google over AI, not Chrome”
CAIRO — Nearly 100 people died of cholera in two weeks since the waterborne disease outbreak began in Sudan’s White Nile State, an international aid group said. Doctors Without Borders — also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF — said Thursday that 2,700 people have contracted the disease since Feb. 20, including 92 people who … continue reading -> “Cholera killed nearly 100 in Sudan over 2 weeks, aid group says”
Just as discoveries of fossil fuel reserves helped to shape the 20th century, the race for critical minerals is shaping the 21st. These minerals are seen as strategically crucial for modern economies, including those used in construction, energy and manufacturing — particularly for semiconductors and other technology applications. Where mineral resources are located and extracted … continue reading -> “Greenland and Afghanistan: Frontiers in race for critical minerals”
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday hosts top cryptocurrency players at the White House, a political boost for an industry that has struggled to gain legitimacy — and where the Republican president faces conflict of interest concerns. The president’s “crypto czar,” Silicon Valley investor David Sacks, has invited prominent founders, CEOs and investors along … continue reading -> “Trump to host White House crypto summit”
Nearly two months after an explosion sent flaming debris raining down on the Turks and Caicos, SpaceX launched another mammoth Starship rocket on Thursday, but lost contact minutes into the test flight as the spacecraft came tumbling down and broke apart. This time, wreckage from the explosion was seen streaming from the skies over Florida. … continue reading -> “SpaceX’s latest Starship test flight again ends in explosion”
A New Mexico resident who has died, tested positive for measles, the state health department said on Thursday, marking the second measles-related death in the United States in more than a decade. The unvaccinated adult patient did not seek medical care before death and was the first measles-related death in the state in more than … continue reading -> “Unvaccinated New Mexico adult tests positive for measles after death”
President Donald Trump is signaling a major change in how the U.S. will support growth in key domestic industries such as semiconductors. Michelle Quinn reports. …
PARIS — An Ariane 6 rocket roared skyward with a French military reconnaissance satellite aboard Thursday in the first commercial flight for the European heavy-lift launcher. The rocket took off smoothly from the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, quickly disappearing into thick clouds. Video images beamed back from the rocket showed the Earth’s beautiful colors … continue reading -> “Ariane 6 rocket roars skyward carrying French military satellite”
Canada is seeing a noticeable increase in measles cases this year, with more reported in the first two months of 2025 than all of last year, the country’s health agency said on Thursday and urged citizens to get vaccinated. The Public Health Agency of Canada said it has recorded 227 measles cases as of March … continue reading -> “Canada reports increase in measles cases, urges vaccination”
Collisions with boats are the cause of at least 20% of manatee deaths in Florida every year. But as Valdya Baraputri reports, that’s not the only threat faced by these gentle giants of the sea. Camera: Laurentius Wahyudi and Nabila Ganinda …
WASHINGTON — A drill to search for ice. A 4G network test. Three rovers and a first-of-its-kind hopping drone. After becoming the first private firm to land on the moon last year, Intuitive Machines is aiming for its second lunar touchdown on Thursday, carrying cutting-edge payloads to support future human missions. The Houston-based company is targeting … continue reading -> “US firm targets moon landing with drill, rovers, hopping drone”
NEW DELHI — The U.S. government will stop sharing air quality data gathered from its embassies and consulates, worrying local scientists and experts who say the effort was vital to monitor global air quality and improve public health. In response to an inquiry from The Associated Press, the State Department said Wednesday that its air quality … continue reading -> “US stops sharing air quality data, raising scientists’ concerns”
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA — A U.S. judge on Tuesday denied Elon Musk’s request to prevent OpenAI from becoming a for-profit business in a loss for the Tesla tycoon amid his feud with Sam Altman. U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Musk and his xAI startup failed to prove an injunction against OpenAI was … continue reading -> “Musk fails in bid to block OpenAI becoming for-profit business”
Ukrainians in Czechia raised nearly 19,000 dollars to help a Ukrainian war veteran and dancer get back on the floor. Yevhen Skripnichuk lost his leg while fighting the Russians. Omelyan Oshchudlyak has the story. Camera: Yuriy Dankevych …
MELBOURNE, Australia — James Harrison, whose blood plasma donations are credited with An Australian man credited with saving 2.4 million babies through his record-breaking blood plasma donations over six decades, has died at 88, his family said Tuesday. James Harrison, a retired state railway department clerk, died in a nursing home on the central coast of … continue reading -> “James Harrison, whose blood plasma donations are credited with saving 2.4 million babies, dies at 88 “
Chinese tech firms and state media have spotlighted humanoid robots, which have grown in popularity since the Unitree G1 appeared to run, jump, dance and perform martial arts-like movements in a recent demonstration. Both the United States and China are leaders in humanoid robot technology. But industry analysts believe that the United States is superior … continue reading -> “VOA Mandarin: Who has better humanoid robots, US or China?”
The United States may become the second country after Australia to ban China’s DeepSeek artificial intelligence on government devices. U.S. Representatives Josh Gottheimer and Darin LaHood introduced a bipartisan bill proposing the ban. In their letter to 47 U.S. governors and the mayor of Washington, the congressmen warned that DeepSeek could pose security risks to … continue reading -> “China uses DeepSeek AI for surveillance and information attacks on US”
WASHINGTON — Chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. announced on Monday plans to make an additional $100 billion investment in the United States and build five additional chips factories in the coming years. TSMC CEO C.C. Wei announced the plan in a meeting at the White House with President Donald Trump. “We must be able to … continue reading -> “Trump, Taiwanese chipmaker announce new $100 billion plan to build five new US factories”
CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA — A private lunar lander carrying a drill, vacuum and other experiments for NASA touched down on the moon Sunday, the latest in a string of companies looking to kickstart business on Earth’s celestial neighbor ahead of astronaut missions. Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander descended from lunar orbit on autopilot, aiming for the … continue reading -> “Private lunar lander Blue Ghost touches down on the moon with special delivery for NASA”
KAMPALA, UGANDA — A second Ebola patient, a 4-year-old child, has died in Uganda, the World Health Organization said, citing the country’s health ministry. The fatality brings the number of confirmed cases in Uganda to 10. The East African country declared an outbreak of the highly infectious and often fatal hemorrhagic disease in January after the … continue reading -> “Uganda reports second Ebola death, a 4-year-old, WHO says”
SEATTLE — President Donald Trump’s plan to pull federal funding from institutions that provide gender-affirming care for transgender youth will remain blocked on a long-term basis under a federal judge’s ruling in Seattle late Friday. U.S. District Court Judge Lauren King previously granted a two-week restraining order after the Democratic attorneys general of Washington, Oregon and … continue reading -> “Judge blocks Trump order threatening funding for transgender youth care”
WASHINGTON — More than 50 years passed between the last Apollo mission and the United States’ return to the lunar surface, when the first private lander touched down last February 2024. Now, starting Sunday, two more missions are set to follow within a single week, marking a bold push by NASA and its industry partners to … continue reading -> “2 lunar landings in a week for NASA’s private moon fleet”
Measles is rarely seen in the United States, but Americans are growing more concerned about the preventable virus as cases continue to rise in rural West Texas. This week, an unvaccinated child died in the West Texas outbreak, which involves more than 120 cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the … continue reading -> “Measles: What to know, how to avoid it”