Refuses to Testify Amid Epstein Inquiry Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted former associate of Jeffrey Epstein, declined to answer questions from the US House Oversight Committee during a deposition on Monday. Currently serving a 20-year sentence at a federal prison in Texas for sex trafficking, Maxwell invoked her Fifth Amendment rights in a video call. Lawmakers are investigating anyone who may have helped Epstein perpetrate abuse, with both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton appearing frequently in recently released documents from the 1990s and early 2000s. Clemency as a Condition for Cooperation Maxwell’s attorney, David Oscar Markus, told the committee she would…
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Discord will soon require users worldwide to verify their age before accessing adult content. Users must confirm their age with a face scan or upload an official ID. The platform says it has more than 200 million monthly users. The company says the new safety measures will place all users into a teen-appropriate environment by default. Discord already enforces age checks in the UK and Australia to comply with online safety laws. The platform will expand the system globally from early March. Savannah Badalich, Discord’s policy head, said teen safety remains a top priority. She added that teen-by-default settings strengthen…
Melting Ice Opens New Shipping Lanes As global temperatures rise, Arctic sea ice is disappearing faster than ever, creating navigable routes that were previously locked in ice. Cargo ships, fishing vessels, and even cruise liners are taking advantage of these new passages, especially north of the 60th parallel. But this surge in traffic comes with a hidden cost: black carbon, or soot, emitted from ship engines. When soot settles on ice and snow, it darkens the surface, causing it to absorb more heat and accelerate melting—a vicious cycle that makes the Arctic the fastest-warming region on Earth. International Efforts to…
Drinking a couple of teas or coffees a day may lower the risk of dementia and slow cognitive decline, scientists say. A large US study found that people who drank two to three cups of caffeinated coffee or one to two cups of caffeinated tea daily had a 15–20% lower dementia risk than non-drinkers. The research analysed health data from more than 130,000 people followed for up to four decades and was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Caffeinated coffee drinkers also showed slightly better performance on cognitive tests than those who drank decaf. No protective effect…
The Seattle Seahawks dominated the New England Patriots with an unrelenting defensive performance, winning the Super Bowl 29-13 at Levi’s Stadium. The victory marked Seattle’s second championship in franchise history. Two of the NFL’s strongest defences met in the season’s biggest game, and Seattle controlled the field from the opening snap. Briton Aden Durde became the first overseas coach to lift the league’s top prize in the United States. Dark Side Defence Commands the Game Seattle’s 46-year-old defensive coordinator has built the NFL’s most feared unit, nicknamed “the Dark Side.” On Super Bowl Sunday in Santa Clara, California, the Patriots…
A dominant result for the ruling party Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is set for a commanding victory after snap elections, with early estimates showing her ruling bloc securing a two-thirds majority in the lower house. Media projections suggest the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) alone could win around 300 of the chamber’s 465 seats, a dramatic jump from its previous tally and its strongest showing since 2017 under former prime minister Shinzo Abe. The result could even give the LDP a supermajority without relying on coalition partners. LDP secretary general Shunichi Suzuki said voters had endorsed Takaichi’s “responsible and proactive”…
BP faces shareholder pressure as it prepares to publish weaker full-year results.Analysts expect profits to fall to about $7.5bn after declining oil prices hit earnings.Incoming chief executive Meg O’Neill must outline a clear strategy to end years of instability.Investor groups including Follow This and Nest want limits on future oil and gas spending.BP recently refocused on fossil fuels, launching seven new projects after retreating from renewables.Citi says BP’s shares outperformed rivals, though Shell may gain further value from new discoveries.Activists warn long-term demand will fall, citing forecasts from the International Energy Agency.
A South Korean cryptocurrency exchange accidentally sent customers more than 40 billion dollars in bitcoin. The mistake briefly turned some users into multimillionaires. The company had intended to give a small reward of 2,000 won, worth about 1.37 dollars. Instead, it sent 2,000 bitcoins to customers on Friday. The platform Bithumb apologised for the error and explained the incident. The company said it quickly noticed the mistake and recovered nearly all missing tokens. It restricted trading and withdrawals for 695 affected customers within 35 minutes of the glitch. Exchange Recovers Nearly All Misplaced Bitcoin Bithumb said it retrieved 99.7 percent…
Gigafactory Plans Put on Ice Automotive Cells Company (ACC) has dropped plans to build major electric vehicle battery plants in both Italy and Germany, citing weaker-than-expected demand for EVs across Europe. The decision affects proposed gigafactories in Termoli, Italy, and Kaiserslautern, Germany, projects that have been in limbo since 2024. Italy’s metalworkers’ union UILM said ACC management confirmed the worst fears during talks on Saturday, making clear that both sites have now been definitively shelved. Slower EV Demand Forces Rethink ACC, which counts Stellantis among its backers, acknowledged that the conditions needed to restart the projects are no longer in…
Researchers say menstrual blood testing could offer a simple, non-invasive alternative to cervical screening.A sanitary pad fitted with a sample strip can detect human papillomavirus, which causes most cervical cancers. Scientists in China compared menstrual blood samples with clinician-collected cervical samples.The study involved more than 3,000 women with regular menstrual cycles. Results published in BMJ showed high accuracy for detecting serious cervical abnormalities.The pad-based test detected disease at rates similar to clinician sampling. Researchers said the method could improve screening access for women who avoid clinic appointments.Cancer Research UK called the approach encouraging but said further trials were needed. Eve…
