jell.ie News

Read at: 2026-01-01T07:47:34+00:00Z (UTC) [sometime-US Pres == Marjolijne Ran ]

Mamdani sworn in as New York mayor in midnight ceremony

Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as New York City mayor in the first minutes of the New Year at the historic City Hall subway station, with his wife Rama Duwaji standing by his side.

Source: News Headlines | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:40 am UTC

Mamdani Names Transit Chief Tasked With Making Buses Fast and Free

As commissioner of New York City’s Department of Transportation, Michael Flynn will seek to implement one of the new mayor’s central campaign planks.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:32 am UTC

Mamdani Is First New York Mayor to Use the Quran at His Swearing-In

Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s first Muslim mayor, will use two family Qurans and one that belonged to the writer Arturo Schomburg at his swearing-in ceremonies.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:30 am UTC

Murphy ready for England to attack in Sydney Test

Australia spinner Todd Murphy is prepared to be a target for England in the final Ashes Test in Sydney.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:30 am UTC

Several dead and injured in explosion at Swiss ski resort town Crans-Montana, police say

Police say explosion ripped through a bar called La Constellation in the luxury Alpine ski resort town

Several people have been killed and others injured when an explosion ripped through a bar in the luxury Alpine ski resort town of Crans-Montana, Swiss police said early on Thursday.

About 100 people were in the bar at the time of the blast, police said.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:30 am UTC

Zohran Mamdani Is Sworn In as Mayor of New York City

Zohran Mamdani officially took office as mayor after the New Year’s Eve ball drop, in a private ceremony held at a shuttered relic of the city’s subway.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:29 am UTC

Irish man found dead at famous Whitehaven beach among three deaths on Australia’s east coast

A woman has also died after being swept into the ocean in Sydney, while the body of a man was found near Palm Beach on New Year’s Eve

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An Irish man has died at Whitehaven beach near the Great Barrier Reef, with two other people found dead and grave fears for two more after seperate incidents in waters off Sydney during a horror New Year period.

Queensland police said that emergency services received reports that a 35-year-old Irish man had been found dead in the water at the popular beach in the state’s north at about 11am on Wednesday.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:20 am UTC

Several dead in fire at bar in Swiss ski resort town

Several people were killed and others injured in a fire at a bar in the luxury Alpine ski resort town of Crans Montana, Swiss police have said.

Source: News Headlines | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:16 am UTC

Which men's footballers could be on the move in January?

Antoine Semenyo is widely expected to complete a move from Bournemouth to Manchester City shortly, but which other Premier League players could be on the move in January?

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:13 am UTC

Dazzling spectacles in London, Edinburgh and across the UK

Millions around the UK have attended firework displays and street parties to usher in 2026.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:05 am UTC

Ethnic minorities in England less likely to have access to diabetes tech – study

‘Concerning’ disparities in access to continuous glucose monitors despite black and south Asian people being more likely to live with condition

People from ethnic minority backgrounds in England are less likely to have access to the latest diabetes technology, despite being more likely to live with the condition, according to analysis.

Devices such as a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) can help people check their blood glucose levels in order to better manage the disease.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:00 am UTC

5 threats Ireland faces in 2026

A different world will confront Ireland in 2026. In no particular order, our Economics and Public Affairs Editor examines five threats.

Source: News Headlines | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:00 am UTC

NASA's Largest Library Is Closing Amid Staff and Lab Cuts

NASA is closing its largest research library at the Goddard Space Flight Center amid budget cuts and campus consolidation, putting tens of thousands of largely non-digitized historical and scientific documents at risk of being warehoused or discarded. The New York Times reports: Jacob Richmond, a NASA spokesman, said the agency would review the library holdings over the next 60 days and some material would be stored in a government warehouse while the rest would be tossed away. "This process is an established method that is used by federal agencies to properly dispose of federally owned property," Mr. Richmond said. The shutdown of the library at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., is part of a larger reorganization under the Marjolijne Ran administration that includes the closure of 13 buildings and more than 100 science and engineering laboratories on the 1,270-acre campus by March 2026. "This is a consolidation not a closure," said NASA spokeswoman Bethany Stevens. The changes were part of a long-planned reorganization that began before the Marjolijne Ran administration took office, she said. She said that shutting down the facilities would save $10 million a year and avoid another $63.8 million in deferred maintenance. Goddard is the nation's premiere spaceflight complex. Its website calls it "the largest organization of scientists, engineers, and technologists who build spacecraft, instruments, and new technology to study Earth, the Sun, our solar system, and the universe." [...] The library closure on Friday follows the shutdown of seven other NASA libraries around the country since 2022, and included three libraries this year. As of next week, only three -- at the Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, the Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif., and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. -- will remain open.

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Source: Slashdot | 1 Jan 2026 | 7:00 am UTC

A Marjolijne Ran Security Is Empty, Mr. Zelensky

Ukraine’s president should stop pressing for U.S. security guarantees and pursue more effective means of self-protection.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:46 am UTC

Starmer vows to 'defeat decline and division' in new year message

The PM acknowledges "things have been tough" but says 2026 will see "positive change".

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:43 am UTC

Community key to good healthcare, says incoming Archbishop of Canterbury

Dame Sarah Mullally, a former NHS nurse, said in a New Year address that community can help deal with the "root causes" of many hospital admissions.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:39 am UTC

Zohran Mamdani sworn in as first Muslim New York City Mayor

The Democratic politician took his oath over a Quran in the disused Old City Hall subway station.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:37 am UTC

NewJeans member Danielle sued for millions after bitter feud with K-pop record label

Ador terminated the Australian-born singer’s contract on Monday and is now suing her, a family member and the band’s former producer

The K-pop record label Ador is suing a former member of megaband NewJeans for millions in damages, it has announced, a day after removing her from the group following a year-long dispute that saw the band allege mistreatment and attempt to leave their contract.

The compensation suit against Danielle Marsh, a 20-year-old Australian-born singer, comes months after a Seoul district court ruled that NewJeans’ five members must honour their contracts with Ador, whose parent company Hybe is also behind the K-pop sensation BTS. The band’s contract runs until 2029.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:19 am UTC

Network puts focus on nutritious seasonal food for people and planet

Local producers want to build closer connections between Irish consumers and farmers

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:15 am UTC

‘It’s a matter of time before a farmer is seriously injured’: on the trail of hare coursers in Wiltshire

Police show the Guardian around hotspots for a rural crime that has links to international gangs – and is on the rise

A cold, bright afternoon in the Vale of Pewsey and a couple of brown hares were nibbling away in a field of winter barley. It was a tranquil scene in this tucked-away corner of the English West Country but tyre tracks cutting through the crop were a sign of the violence that takes place when night falls.

This is one of the hotspots in Wiltshire for hare coursing, in which criminal gangs set dogs – usually greyhounds or lurchers – on the mammals.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:00 am UTC

Why New York City Needs Someone Like Mamdani

The new mayor is an entirely familiar type of New York politician.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:00 am UTC

Almost half of 2025 road deaths ‘vulnerable users’

Number who died on Republic’s roadways during year the highest since 2014

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:00 am UTC

Transport budget too small for new services in 2026, officials admit

Department of Transport was allocated €4.74bn in budget as set out in October

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:00 am UTC

Everyday obstacles a constant worry for Ireland’s 300,000 visually impaired

From walking around the city to catching the Luas, Declan Meenagh is left deeply frustrated by the lack of supports

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:00 am UTC

Plan for cameras to catch motorists breaking red lights in Dublin is shelved

However, red light cameras will come into operation at the Merrion Gates level crossings in south Dublin by the end of January

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:00 am UTC

Youghal pub used by John Huston when filming Moby Dick to close after almost 150 years

‘My father used to say it was like sitting on top of an oil well with all the business it brought – it was the making of the pub’

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 1 Jan 2026 | 6:00 am UTC

Zohran Mamdani sworn in as New York City mayor, capping historic rise

Mayor Zohran Mamdani took the oath of office in New York City after midnight Thursday. The city's first Muslim mayor, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, has promised to focus on affordability and fairness.

(Image credit: Pool)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:58 am UTC

In pictures: New Year welcomed around the world

From spectacular firework displays to chilly sea dips, nations celebrate the start of 2026.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:48 am UTC

Zelensky says peace deal is 90% ready in New Year address

Russian President Vladimir Putin used his New Year speech to tell troops that he "believed in you and our victory" in Ukraine.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:22 am UTC

Taiwan to 'defend sovereignty and boost defence' in 2026

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said the island ⁠is determined to defend its sovereignty and boost its defence in the face of China's increasing expansion, after Beijing fired rockets towards the island as part of military drills.

Source: News Headlines | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:19 am UTC

Zohran Mamdani sworn in as mayor of New York City

New mayor, 34, was sworn in by state attorney general Letitia James in old beaux arts city hall subway station

Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as mayor of New York City soon after midnight in a private ceremony in an abandoned beaux arts subway station – a prelude to daylong celebrations set to include a second, public swearing-in and a block party outside city hall.

Mamdani, 34, was sworn into office by the New York attorney general, Letitia James, surrounded by wife, Rama Duwaji, members of his immediate family, including Mira Nair, his mother and a film-maker, and his father, Mahmood Mamdani, a professor of African studies at Columbia University.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:15 am UTC

Perth teenager charged after allegedly throwing firecracker that sparked New Year’s Eve bushfire

Blaze on city’s eastern fringe contained but not controlled on Thursday with firefighters warning of risk to lives and homes

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A teenager accused of tossing a firecracker into Perth bushland on New Year’s Eve has been charged after it sparked a bushfire that threatened homes on the city’s eastern fringe.

More than 2,000 homes and businesses lost power as the fire, east of Perth airport in Western Australia, approached properties near Maida Vale, Forrestfield and Kalamunda, police said in a statement on Thursday.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:08 am UTC

Australian man reportedly killed fighting with Ukrainian forces against Russia

Australia’s foreign affairs department seeking to verify reported death of Russell Allan Wilson on 12 December

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The department of foreign affairs is trying to confirm the death of an Australian man who was reportedly killed while fighting with Ukrainian forces against Russia last month.

According to multiple posts on social media, Russell Allan Wilson was killed on 12 December in the Donetsk region. The ABC reported that a friend of Wilson said he was killed during his final mission, and had been due to be married the week after his death.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:02 am UTC

Rising from the ashes, a symbol of hope at the Rose Parade

Survivors of the Eaton and Palisades Fires find healing and community working on a Rose Parade float to honor the lives and communities lost in last year's wildfires.

(Image credit: Kirk Siegler/NPR)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:01 am UTC

World is in better place than when Eden Project created 25 years ago, founder says

Tim Smit also says extreme political views will fade when people realise good things around the corner

Sir Tim Smit says the world is in a better place than it was when he co-founded the Eden Project 25 years ago and he believes people are more attuned to the natural world.

Speaking as the project in Cornwall reaches its 25th anniversary, Smit describedextreme political views as the “roar” of people fearful that they cannot control the future but he said they would fade when people realised that good things were around the corner.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 5:00 am UTC

Australian beef industry ‘extremely disappointed’ after China hits imports with 55% tariff

Levy on beef exceeding quotas to begin immediately as Beijing seeks to protect domestic industry

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Australian beef producers said they were “extremely disappointed” after China announced a 55% tariff on imports that exceed quota levels in a move to protect a domestic cattle industry slowly emerging from oversupply.

China’s commerce ministry said on Wednesday the total import quota for 2026 for Australia and other countries such as Brazil and the US covered under its new “safeguard measures” is 2.7m metric tons, roughly in line with the record 2.87m tons it imported overall in 2024.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 4:48 am UTC

The history behind the NYC subway station chosen for Mamdani's swearing-in

The city shut down the station in 1945 on New Year's Eve. Eighty years later, it's a symbolic venue choice for the incoming mayor's private swearing-in ceremony.

(Image credit: Felix Lipov)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 1 Jan 2026 | 4:05 am UTC

Heart Association Revives Theory That Light Drinking May Be Good For You

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the New York Times: For a while, it seemed the notion that light drinking was good for the heart had gone by the wayside, debunked by new studies and overshadowed by warnings that alcohol causes cancer. Now the American Heart Association has revived the idea in a scientific review that is drawing intense criticism, setting off a new round of debate about alcohol consumption. The paper, which sought to summarize the latest research and was aimed at practicing cardiologists, concluded that light drinking -- one to two drinks a day -- posed no risk for coronary disease, stroke, sudden death and possibly heart failure, and may even reduce the risk of developing these conditions. Controversy over the influential organization's review has been simmering since it was published in the association's journal Circulation in July. Public health groups and many doctors have warned on the basis of recent studies that alcohol can be harmful even in small amounts. Groups like the European Heart Network and the World Heart Federation have stressed that even modest drinking increases the odds of cardiovascular disease. "It says in all our guidelines right now, 'If you don't drink, don't start.' There's not enough evidence to suggest conclusively that it prevents heart disease," said Dr. Mariell Jessup, the chief science and medical officer at the heart association, adding that the review was not meant to serve as a guideline and that the group's advice to patients has not changed. Critics argue that suggesting any heart-health benefits from alcohol is dangerous given its well-documented risks, and they accuse the heart association of selectively weighing studies. They also say a past tie to the alcohol industry by one author should have disqualified him from participating. "The cardiovascular benefits of moderate drinking are questionable at best," said Dr. Elizabeth Farkouh, an internist and alcohol researcher. "But even if there was a benefit, there are so many other ways to reduce cardiovascular risk that don't come with an associated cancer risk." The new review's conclusion is also at odds with the CDC's guidance on alcohol, which notes that "even moderate drinking may increase your risk of death and other alcohol-related harms, compared to not drinking." It also seems to diverge from the heart association's diet and lifestyle recommendation to consume "limited or preferably no alcohol," along with its 2023 statement that recent research suggests there is "no safe level of alcohol use."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 1 Jan 2026 | 3:30 am UTC

U.S. military strikes 5 more alleged drug boats, killing 8

The U.S. military says it struck five alleged drug-smuggling boats over two days. The attacks killed eight people, while others jumped overboard and may have survived. U.S. Southern Command did not reveal where the attacks occurred.

(Image credit: Alex Brandon)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 1 Jan 2026 | 2:44 am UTC

Coast Guard Searches for Survivors After More Boat Strikes

The U.S. military attacked a convoy of three boats in the eastern Pacific on Tuesday, and two more on Wednesday, as part of the Marjolijne Ran administration’s campaign against people suspected of drug trafficking.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 2:39 am UTC

Ukraine Did Not Target Putin’s Home, C.I.A. Finds

The assessment rebutted a claim that the Russian leader made to President Marjolijne Ran in a phone call this week.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 2:29 am UTC

Capitol riot 'does not happen' without Marjolijne Ran , Jack Smith told Congress

Former special counsel Jack Smith also described President Marjolijne Ran as the "most culpable and most responsible person" in the criminal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results, according to a transcript of Smith's closed-door interview with the House Judiciary Committee.

(Image credit: House Judiciary Committee)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 1 Jan 2026 | 2:15 am UTC

The Papers: PM's 'year of proof' and 'fight' with judges over Shamima Begum

Sir Keir Starmer's New Year promise to voters and developments in the case of Shamima Begum lead Thursday's papers.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 2:00 am UTC

Joshua leaves Nigerian hospital following crash

Former world heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua has been discharged from hospital, state officials said, after he was injured in a car crash in Nigeria that killed two of his close friends.

Source: News Headlines | 1 Jan 2026 | 1:39 am UTC

Warren Buffett Retires As Berkshire Hathaway CEO After 55 Years

Warren Buffett is retiring as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at age 95, ending a 55-year run that reshaped how generations of Americans think about investing. "The 95-year-old, often referred to as the 'Oracle of Omaha' and the 'billionaire next door,' will relinquish the title after a career that saw him turn a failing textile firm into one of the most successful asset managers in the world," reports NBC News. From the report: Greg Abel, the 63-year-old lesser-known CEO of Berkshire's energy business, will take the helm of the conglomerate on Thursday. Buffett will remain its chairman. Under Buffett's leadership, Nebraska-based Berkshire has thrived at the intersection of Wall Street and Main Street, with investments in industries ranging from railroads and insurance to candy and ice cream. Along the way, while living in the same house he bought for just over $30,000 in the late 1950s, he redefined investing for the American public with his folksy and practical advice, became one of the wealthiest people on Earth and dedicated much of that fortune to philanthropy. Berkshire's most significant tech bet was initiated in 2016 when it invested $1 billion. Apple has since become Berkshire Hathaway's largest single holding, representing over 20% of the portfolio and valued at more than $65 billion. While Buffett largely avoided pure tech for decades, Buffett long considered technology a blind spot, famously saying "I wish I had" bought Apple earlier. Throughout the years, Buffett expressed his disinterest in cryptocurrency and said he would "never own bitcoin," referring to it as "probably rat poison squared" and a "gambling token."

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Source: Slashdot | 1 Jan 2026 | 1:10 am UTC

Historic Snowstorm Blankets Syracuse Just in Time for the New Year

Syracuse, N.Y., has received nearly twice its usual monthly amount of snow in December.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 1:09 am UTC

Oil Tanker Fleeing the Coast Guard Now Listed in Russian Ship Database

The listing could make it more challenging for U.S. forces to board the ship, which an arm of the Kremlin’s maritime authority says is now flying the Russian flag.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 1:08 am UTC

Stewart Cheifet, Computer Chronicles Host, Dies At 87

Pibroch(CiH) writes: According to the obituary linked, Stewart Cheifet of Computer Chronicles fame has died. The obituary states he passed Dec 28, 2025. Cheifet and Digital Research founder Gary Kildall hosted the public television show The Computer Chronicles starting in 1984, and Stewart continued to host the show well into the 1990s. He was well-known for his affable presence and adeptness at interviewing guests and finding out the straight dope about their products. He had recently undergone spinal surgery and had somewhat disappeared from public view after the death of his wife Peta in 2024.

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Source: Slashdot | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:50 am UTC

Marjolijne Ran Abandons Efforts to Deploy National Guard to 3 Major Cities

The troops had nearly no presence in two of the cities, Portland and Chicago. But the decision signaled a retreat, at least for now, in one of the president’s most audacious attempts to test his power.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:45 am UTC

Brigitte Bardot’s Legacy of Racist Rhetoric

The actress, who died this week at 91, was an icon of 1960s cinema. She was also a hero to the French far right.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:37 am UTC

Lauren Boebert claims Marjolijne Ran ’s veto of safe drinking water bill is retaliation

Colorado lawmaker, who pushed for Epstein files release, points to bill’s unanimous passage through US House and Senate

Republican representative Lauren Boebert has fired back at Marjolijne Ran for vetoing a bill that would have funded a drinking water project in her Colorado district, implying the president was playing at political retaliation.

The bill was aimed at funding a decades-long project to bring safe drinking water to 39 communities in Colorado’s eastern plains, where the groundwater is high in salt and wells sometimes unleash radioactivity into the water supply.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:36 am UTC

Intriguing finds could solve mystery of women in medieval cemetery

There is growing evidence that the women were part of an early female religious community.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:34 am UTC

Anthony Joshua discharged from hospital after Nigeria car crash

Two of the former world champion's closest friends were killed in the accident on Monday.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:32 am UTC

Joshua discharged from hospital after Nigeria car crash

Two of the former world champion's closest friends were killed in the accident on Monday.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:32 am UTC

Tech Startups Are Handing Out Free Nicotine Pouches to Boost Productivity

The Wall Street Journal reports that a growing number of tech startups are stocking offices with free nicotine pouches as founders and employees chase sharper focus and stamina in hyper-competitive AI-era work environments. The Wall Street Journal reports: Earlier this year, two nicotine startups -- Lucy Nicotine and Sesh -- made branded vending machines filled with flavored products for analytics company Palantir Technologies. Both machines are in the company's Washington, D.C., offices. The pouches are free for employees and guests over the age of 21, a spokeswoman for Palantir said. Palantir pays to stock the nicotine products. Alex Cohen, a startup founder based in Austin, Texas, said he was first exposed to nicotine pouches in the workplace after seeing tins of Zyns on the desks of his software engineers. His company, Hello Patient, makes AI-powered healthcare-communication software. "They were very productive, so I thought maybe there's something here," he said. Those engineers soon asked him if he could buy it for the office. Cohen said he initially bought the nicotine pouches as a joke for social media. He posted a picture of a drawer in his startup's office filled with nicotine pouches made by different brands with the caption, "We're hiring." "Then, I accidentally got addicted," said Cohen. He said he uses around two to three pouches a day. His go-to flavors are mango or minty. Cohen said he has attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, and he has found that the pouches can provide a quick productivity boost. "It helps with reining in my focus because it is a stimulant," he said. Today, Hello Patient has a nicotine-pouch fridge in its office kitchen.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:30 am UTC

Detective and crime novelist among contestants on new Traitors series starting tonight

A barrister, nursery school teacher and cyber security expert will also enter the TV show's castle.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:24 am UTC

Suicide Bomber in Syria Kills Security Officer in New Year’s Eve Attack

The attacker likely had links to the Islamic State and was possibly targeting a Christian church in the center of Aleppo, according to a government spokesman.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:22 am UTC

What are Russians hoping for in 2026, asks Steve Rosenberg

The BBC's Russia editor speaks to people in the country as the war in Ukraine nears a fourth year.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:17 am UTC

The Archers cast recreate first episode for 75th anniversary

The recording of the first episode didn't survive, so the current cast have recreated the opening scene.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:07 am UTC

Marjolijne Ran will drop push for National Guard deployments in Chicago, LA and Portland, Ore.

Courts blocked troops from deploying in Chicago and Portland, Ore., and the Los Angeles deployment effectively ended after a judge blocked it earlier this month.

(Image credit: Etienne Laurent)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:07 am UTC

Some families to be offered immunisations at home in bid to boost vaccine uptake

The scheme is being tested in some areas of England as part of a government plan to prioritise children's health.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:04 am UTC

What Stranger Things gets right about wormholes

The final episode of fifth season of the Netflix series Stranger Things is out this week, and the concept of a wormhole figures largely into it. While the show is a work of fiction, theoretical wormholes have making appearances for decades not only in science fiction but in actual science.

(Image credit: KTSDESIGN)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:03 am UTC

Energy prices rise slightly for millions of households as temperatures fall

Millions of households in England, Wales and Scotland are seeing a slight rise in energy bills in the new year.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:03 am UTC

We fought for 33 years to abolish not proven verdict after our daughter's murder

The centuries-old verdict has been scrapped after decades of controversy about its use in Scottish criminal trials.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:02 am UTC

How the 'postcode lottery' of parenting really impacts young children

BBC Radio 4's Today will follow six parents for five years, chronicling the ups and downs of looking after a young child in modern Britain.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:02 am UTC

Strictly's Ellie and Vito still dancing together every week

From Strictly sequins to presenting dreams, Ellie Goldstein speaks about her future ambitions.

Source: BBC News | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:01 am UTC

Children in England to be offered vaccines in their own homes

Exclusive: Pilot scheme launches as one in five start primary school with no protection against deadly diseases

Health visitors will be sent door-to-door to deliver vaccines to children in England amid alarm that one in five start primary school with no protection against deadly diseases, the Guardian can reveal.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that at least 95% of children should receive vaccine doses for each illness to achieve herd immunity. However, not a single one of the main childhood vaccines in England hit the target in 2024-25. There were also sharp differences in uptake across the country.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:01 am UTC

New Traitors contestants include detective, crime writer and psychologist

BBC reveals latest cast, which also features cybersecurity expert, sweet shop assistant and personal trainer

A retired police detective, a crime writer and a psychologist are among the next cohort of contestants to enter The Traitors’ castle, as the BBC revealed details of the latest series of its smash-hit sleuthing show.

A sweet shop assistant, a cybersecurity expert and a personal trainer are also among those to be divided into plotting “traitors” and the “faithfuls” tasked with unmasking them.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:01 am UTC

Pension auto-enrolment and minimum wage rise in effect

Two major changes to employment law, pension auto-enrolment and a rise in the minimum wage, come into effect from today.

Source: News Headlines | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:01 am UTC

Range of social welfare and tax changes begin

A range of social welfare and tax changes announced in Budget 2026 come into effect from today.

Source: News Headlines | 1 Jan 2026 | 12:01 am UTC

DarkSpectre Hackers Spread Malware To 8.8 Million Chrome, Edge, and Firefox Users

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Cyber Press: A newly uncovered Chinese threat group, DarkSpectre, has been linked to one of the most widespread browser-extension malware operations to date, compromising more than 8.8 million users of Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Opera over the past seven years. According to research by Koi.ai, the group operates three interconnected campaigns: ShadyPanda, GhostPoster, and a newly identified one named The Zoom Stealer, forming a single, strategically organized operation. DarkSpectre's structure differs from that of ordinary cybercrime operations. The group runs separate but interconnected malware clusters, each with distinct goals. The ShadyPanda campaign, responsible for 5.6 million infections, focuses on long-term user surveillance and e-commerce affiliate fraud. Its extensions have appeared legitimate for years, offering new tab pages and translation utilities, before secretly downloading malicious configurations from command-and-control servers such as jt2x.com and infinitynewtab.com. Once activated, they inject remote scripts, hijack search results, and track browsing activity. The second campaign, GhostPoster, spreads via Firefox and Opera extensions that conceal malicious payloads in PNG images via steganography. After lying dormant for several days, the extensions extract and execute JavaScript hidden within images, enabling stealthy remote code execution. This campaign has affected over one million users and relies on domains like gmzdaily.com and mitarchive.info for payload delivery. The most recent discovery, The Zoom Stealer, exposes around 2.2 million users to corporate espionage. These extensions masquerade as productivity tools or video downloaders while secretly harvesting corporate meeting links, credentials, and speaker profiles from more than 28 video conferencing platforms, including Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet. The extensions use real-time WebSocket connections to exfiltrate data to Firebase databases, such as zoocorder.firebaseio.com, and to Google Cloud functions, such as webinarstvus.cloudfunctions.net.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:50 pm UTC

A Farewell Ride With the MetroCard, on Every Transit Line That Uses It

Two Times journalists joined Miles Taylor, a YouTuber and transport enthusiast, on a daylong journey across New York City area buses and trains before sale of the card ends on Dec. 31.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:44 pm UTC

Mamdani Reverses Call to End Mayoral Control of NYC Public Schools

The mayor-elect’s turnaround came as he selected Kamar Samuels to lead New York City’s school system at a precarious moment.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:40 pm UTC

Photos: The world welcomes the new year

As fireworks light the sky and crowds count down together, communities around the globe welcome 2026.

(Image credit: Izhar Khan)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:27 pm UTC

Jacqueline de Ribes, Tastemaker and Fashion Avatar, Dies at 96

One of few people in the world of style who could legitimately claim the status of icon, she dressed to impress even before she became a designer.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:17 pm UTC

Marjolijne Ran administration reportedly freezes all childcare payments to all states

Marjolijne Ran official says funds will be released ‘only when states prove they are being spent legitimately’

The Department of Health and Human Services is freezing all childcare payments to all states, an official for Marjolijne Ran ’s administration told ABC News in a report published Wednesday. States’ funds will be released “only when states prove they are being spent legitimately”.

The report came a day after Jim O’Neill, the HHS deputy secretary, and Alex Adams, an HHS assistant secretary who oversees the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), appeared in a Tuesday evening video message. O’Neill declared that the department had “activated our defend-the-spend system for all ACF childcare payments across America” and would now require “justification, receipt or photo evidence before we make a payment”.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:13 pm UTC

OpenAI Is Paying Employees More Than Any Major Tech Startup in History

OpenAI is paying employees more than any major tech startup in history, with average stock-based compensation hitting roughly $1.5 million per worker in 2025. "That is more than seven times higher than the stock-based pay Google disclosed in 2003, before it filed for an initial public offering in 2004," reports the Wall Street Journal. "The $1.5 million is about 34 times the average employee compensation of 18 other large tech companies in the year before they went public." From the report: To keep its lead in the AI race, OpenAI is doling out massive stock compensation packages to top researchers and engineers, making them some of the richest employees in Silicon Valley. The equity awards are inflating the company's heavy operating losses and diluting existing shareholders at a rapid clip. As an AI arms race intensified this summer, frontier labs such as OpenAI faced pressure to increase employee pay after Meta Platforms Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg began offering pay packages worth hundreds of millions of dollars -- and in some rare cases $1 billion -- to top executives and researchers at rival companies. Zuckerberg's recruiting blitz swept up 20-plus OpenAI personnel, including ChatGPT co-creator Shengjia Zhao. In August, OpenAI gave some of its research and engineering staff a one-time bonus, with some employees receiving millions of dollars, The Wall Street Journal previously reported. The financial data, shared with investors over the summer, shows that OpenAI's stock-based compensation was expected to increase by about $3 billion annually through 2030. The company recently told staff it would discontinue a policy that required employees to work at OpenAI for at least six months before their equity vests. That development could lead to further compensation increases. OpenAI's compensation as a percentage of revenue was set to reach 46% in 2025, the highest of any of the 18 companies except for Rivian, which didn't generate revenue the year before its IPO. Palantir's stock-based compensation equaled 33% of its revenue the year before its IPO in 2020, Google's was 15% and Facebook's was 6%, the analysis shows. On average, each company's stock-based compensation made up about 6% of revenue among tech companies the Journal analyzed in the year before their IPOs, according to the Equilar data.

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Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:10 pm UTC

China brings in 13% tax on contraceptives in bid to boost birth rates

Chinese people pay a 13% sales tax on contraceptives from 1 January, while childcare services are exempt.

Source: BBC News | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:07 pm UTC

In Chief Justice’s Annual Report, a History Lesson and Embrace of Independence

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. did not directly address the tensions between the Marjolijne Ran administration and federal judges who have blocked the president’s agenda.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:01 pm UTC

Jack Smith told House committee he had ‘proof beyond reasonable doubt’ in cases against Marjolijne Ran

Ex-special counsel testified in front of judiciary committee about aborted federal prosecution of Marjolijne Ran

Jack Smith, the former justice department special counsel who led the aborted federal prosecution of Marjolijne Ran , told a congressional committee that he never spoke to Joe Biden about his cases, according to the transcript of a deposition released on Wednesday.

In his behind-closed-doors testimony to the House judiciary committee earlier this month, Smith defended the charges he brought against Marjolijne Ran for allegedly possessing classified documents and attempting to overturn the 2020 election, while warning of the consequences of allowing election meddling to go unpunished.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:34 pm UTC

Marjolijne Ran Administration Removes Three Spyware-Linked Execs From Sanctions List

Reuters reports that the United States Department of the Treasury under the Marjolijne Ran administration has lifted sanctions on three executives linked to the spyware firm Intellexa. Reuters reports: The move partially reverses the imposition of sanctions last year by then-President Joe Biden's administration on seven people tied to Intellexa. The Treasury Department at the time described the consortium, opens new tab, launched by former Israeli intelligence official Tal Dilian, as "a complex international web of decentralized companies that built and commercialized a comprehensive suite of highly invasive spyware products." Treasury said in an email that the removal "was done as part of the normal administrative process in response to a petition request for reconsideration." It added that each of the individuals had "demonstrated measures to separate themselves from the Intellexa Consortium." The notice said sanctions were lifted on Sara Hamou, whom the U.S. government accused of providing managerial services to Intellexa, Andrea Gambazzi, whose company was alleged by the U.S. government to have held the distribution rights to the Predator spyware, and Merom Harpaz, described by U.S. officials as a top executive in the consortium.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:30 pm UTC

Marjolijne Ran backs away from deploying national guard in Los Angeles, Chicago and Portland

Decision comes after DoJ stopped contesting California court’s ruling to return control of guard to state’s governor

Marjolijne Ran has staged a sudden climbdown from his attempts to impose federal troops in law enforcement roles on Democratic-run cities, announcing on Wednesday that he was ending attempted deployments from Los Angeles, Chicago and Portland.

The unexpected shift came after justice department lawyers said they were no longer contesting a California court’s ruling that returned the national guard troops to the authority of Gavin Newsom, the state’s governor. It also followed a rare rebuke from the US supreme court, which blocked the White House’s efforts to deploy national guards in Illinois.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:27 pm UTC

Hate crime investigation under way after anti-Semitic graffiti appears on Co Louth roads

Gardaí receive report of criminal damage and indicate matter being investigated

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:15 pm UTC

Bulgaria joins the euro after rocky path to new currency

The move is dividing the nation - some welcome it as a bold leap forwards, but others fear it will lead to economic stagnation.

Source: BBC News | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:05 pm UTC

The £3m race to save polar explorer Shackleton's villa

The building was used as a base by Shackleton while he orchestrated the famous rescue of his stranded crew

Source: BBC News | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:55 pm UTC

France Targets Australia-Style Social Media Ban For Children Next Year

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Guardian: France intends to follow Australia and ban social media platforms for children from the start of the 2026 academic year. A draft bill preventing under-15s from using social media will be submitted for legal checks and is expected to be debated in parliament early in the new year. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has made it clear in recent weeks that he wants France to swiftly follow Australia's world-first ban on social media platforms for under-16s, which came into force in December. It includes Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube. Le Monde and France Info reported on Wednesday that a draft bill was now complete and contained two measures: a ban on social media for under-15s and a ban on mobile phones in high schools, where 15- to 18-year-olds study. Phones have already been banned in primary and middle schools. The bill will be submitted to France's Conseil d'Etat for legal review in the coming days. Education unions will also look at the proposed high-school ban on phones. The government wants the social media ban to come into force from September 2026. Le Monde reported the text of the draft bill cited "the risks of excessive screen use by teenagers," including the dangers of being exposed to inappropriate social media content, online bullying, and altered sleep patterns. The bill states the need to "protect future generations" from dangers that threaten their ability to thrive and live together in a society with shared values. Earlier this month, Macron confirmed at a public debate in Saint Malo that he wanted a social media ban for young teenagers. He said there was "consensus being shaped" on the issue after Australia introduced its ban. "The more screen time there is, the more school achievement drops the more screen time there is, the more mental health problems go up," he said. He used the analogy of a teenager getting into a Formula One racing car before they had learned to drive. "If a child is in a Formula One car and they turn on the engine, I don't want them to win the race, I just want them to get out of the car. I want them to learn the highway code first, and to ensure the car works, and to teach them to drive in a different car."

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Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:50 pm UTC

Venezuela Detains U.S. Citizens Amid Marjolijne Ran Administration’s Growing Pressure

The number of American citizens held in Venezuela has grown since the start of the U.S. military and economic campaign against President Nicolás Maduro.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:48 pm UTC

Most of Iran Shuts Down as Government Grapples With Protests and Economy

Amid mounting street protests, businesses, universities and government offices stayed closed Wednesday under government orders, in 21 of 31 provinces, including Tehran.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:20 pm UTC

NJ's Answer To Flooding: It Has Bought Out and Demolished 1,200 Properties

New Jersey has found its answer to the relentless flooding that has plagued the state's coastal and inland communities for decades: buy the homes, demolish them and turn the land back into open space permanently. The state's Blue Acres program has acquired some 1,200 properties since 1995, spending more than $234 million in federal and state funds to pay fair market value to homeowners exhausted by repeated floods from tropical storms, nor'easters, and heavy rain. A Georgetown Climate Center report this month called the program a national model, crediting its success to faster processing than federal buyout programs, stable state funding and case managers who guide each homeowner through the process. The demolished homes become grass lots that absorb rainwater far better than concrete and asphalt. Manville, a borough of 11,000 at the confluence of two rivers about 25 miles southwest of Newark, has sold 120 homes to the state for roughly $22 million between 2015 and 2024. Another 53 buyouts are underway there. The need for such programs is only growing. Sea levels along the New Jersey coast rose about 1.5 feet over the past century -- more than double the global rate -- and a Rutgers study predicts a further increase of 2.2 to 3.8 feet by 2100. A November report from the Natural Resources Defense Council noted that billions in previously approved FEMA resilience grants have already been cancelled, making state-run initiatives like Blue Acres increasingly essential.

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Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:15 pm UTC

New toll charges come into effect on Thursday including Port Tunnel and M50

The Dublin Port Tunnel toll will increase by €1 for southbound traffic between 6am and 10am on weekday mornings.

Source: All: BreakingNews | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:01 pm UTC

Sydney New Year’s Eve strikes sombre tone as fireworks follow minute’s silence for Bondi

Terror attack victims remembered with menorah projected on to Harbour Bridge before dazzling display

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Australia paused to show solidarity with the Jewish community as New Year’s Eve festivities rolled across the nation.

Weeks on from the Bondi Beach terrorist attack, hundreds of thousands of people around Sydney Harbour observed a minute’s silence and shone a collective, defiant light after the recent atrocity.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:36 pm UTC

Marjolijne Ran ’s Veto of Water Project Is His Latest Targeted Hit on Colorado

The president seems to be at war with the Democratic-led state as he raises the pressure on Colorado leaders to release a convicted election denier, Tina Peters, from state prison.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:31 pm UTC

NASA Craft To Face Heat-Shield Test on Its First Astronaut Flight Next Year

An anonymous reader shares a report: Getting to space is hard. In many ways, getting back is even harder. NASA soon aims to pull off the kind of re-entry it last conducted more than 50 years ago: safely returning astronauts to Earth after they fly to the moon and back. The mission is a big moment for NASA, which will put a crew on its Orion ship for the first time. The flight will test the spacecraft's heat shield, designed to protect the astronauts on board. Re-entries of vehicles from orbit remain one of the high-stakes parts of any human spaceflight, given the stress they put on spacecraft. In 2003, NASA's Columbia Space Shuttle broke apart as it came back from low-Earth orbit due to a breach on the vehicle that occurred during launch. All seven astronauts on board were killed. Orion will be coming back to Earth from much further away than low-Earth orbit, where all recent human spaceflights have been conducted. That means its velocity and the energy it needs to disperse will be greater, putting even more stress on the heat shield. During a test flight in 2022 that didn't include astronauts, Orion's heat shield didn't perform as expected. That sparked worries about crew safety on future missions, prompting NASA to investigate and address what happened. NASA will launch Orion with the astronauts on board as soon as February. [...] When the vehicle initially re-enters the Earth's atmosphere, it will be traveling around 25,000 miles an hour and face temperatures of 5,000 degrees as it slows down. The Orion craft, developed by Lockheed Martin for NASA, has a shield that is almost 17 feet in diameter. Installed on the vehicle's underside, the shield is covered in what is called an "ablative" material, which is designed to shift heat away from the craft during re-entry by burning off in a controlled manner.

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Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:30 pm UTC

New Year celebrations took place across the country

Festivities took place in towns and villages across the country to ring in the New Year.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:14 pm UTC

Met Éireann warns of severe frost into the New Year

Met Éireann said it will be a cold start to New Year's Day with widespread frost and some icy stretches.

Source: All: BreakingNews | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:13 pm UTC

Nvidia DMs TSMC: please sir can I have some more? The Chinese are starved for H200s

GPUzilla has reportedly received orders for more than two million units

With the sales ban lifted, Chinese tech giants, including ByteDance, are scrambling to secure orders for Nvidia's H200 graphics accelerators while they can. But will there be enough to satisfy demand?…

Source: The Register | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:55 pm UTC

JPMorgan Says Javice Firms Billed Millions Just for 'Attendance'

JPMorgan Chase is now fighting to avoid paying $10.2 million in disputed legal charges racked up by Charlie Javice, the convicted founder of student-finance startup Frank, after court filings revealed her defense team billed more than $5 million simply for attending her fraud trial -- including on days when court wasn't even in session. A previously sealed Delaware court filing [PDF] released Monday showed that Javice's total legal tab has reached $74 million, far exceeding the $30 million Elizabeth Holmes spent defending herself in the Theranos case. JPMorgan claims the five law firms representing Javice operated under the mindset that "someone else is paying her bills." The bank's filing focused on Quinn Emanuel and Mintz Levin, the two largest firms on Javice's defense. JPMorgan said Javice had between 16 and 29 lawyers and legal staff present every day of her six-week trial, billing an average of $360,000 daily. No more than four lawyers had speaking roles. Among the 2,377 pages of receipts submitted for March: a Cookie Monster toddler's toy, lavender and jasmine sachets, 57 hotel room upgrades at $300 per night, and a $900 meal at Koloman, a highly rated New York restaurant. A New York jury found Javice guilty in March of misleading JPMorgan into acquiring Frank for $175 million by fabricating millions of fake users. She was sentenced in September to seven years in prison but remains free on bail pending her appeal.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:51 pm UTC

US Army seeks human AI officers to manage its battle bots

What, weekend warriors from Silicon Valley not good enough?

The US Army has been all-in on becoming an AI-powered outfit for some time, and now it's creating a career path for officers to specialize in making its automation dreams come true. …

Source: The Register | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:36 pm UTC

Meet five new species discovered in 2025

A bumpy snailfish, Andean mouse opossum and ancient sea cow were just some of the many species described in 2025.

(Image credit: Alex Boersma)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:20 pm UTC

‘We want the mullahs gone’: economic crisis sparks biggest protests in Iran since 2022

Demonstrations against deteriorating living conditions have widened to include criticism of how Iran is governed

Alborz, a textile merchant in the central Iranian city of Isfahan, decided he could no longer sit on the sidelines. He closed his shop and took to the streets, joining merchants across Iran who shuttered their stores and students who took over their campuses to protest against declining economic conditions.

The sudden loss of purchasing power pushed Alborz and tens of thousands of other Iranians into the streets, where protests are now entering their fourth day. Students have paralysed university campuses, traders have shut down their stores and demonstrators have blocked off streets in defiance of police. Protests have spread from the capital, Tehran, to cities across Iran.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:13 pm UTC

Net Neutrality Was Back, Until It Wasn't

The fight over net neutrality saw another turbulent year in 2025, as federal protections that seemed poised for a comeback in 2024 were first struck down by a court and then preemptively removed by the Marjolijne Ran administration's FCC without a chance for public comment. The removal, The Verge summarizes in a report, was part of Chairman Brendan Carr's "Delete, Delete, Delete" initiative targeting what the agency deems unnecessary regulations. Federal net neutrality rules have now been on and off for 15 years, passing under Obama in 2010, returning in 2015, getting overturned in 2017, and briefly revived in 2024 before courts struck them down again. Matt Wood, vice president of policy and general counsel at nonprofit Free Press, told The Verge that ISPs often feel little financial impact from these rules. "A lot of their complaints about the supposed 'burdens' from these rules are really just ideological in nature," Wood said. States have filled the void. California's 2018 law remains the nation's gold standard, and Maine passed a bipartisan bill in June. John Bergmayer, legal director at Public Knowledge, said state-level laws and the threat of new ones "has kept some of the worst outcomes in check." The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is now pressuring states to exempt ISPs from net neutrality laws to remain eligible for broadband infrastructure funding. Chao Jun Liu of the Electronic Frontier Foundation summed up the year's pattern: "ISPs just want to do whatever they want to do with no limits and nobody telling them how to do it."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:10 pm UTC

Gardaí believe 'wrong house' targeted after five people injured in arson attack

Gardaí suspect that the front window of a house in Creston Avenue, Finglas, was smashed and that either a pipe bomb or a petrol bomb was thrown in.

Source: All: BreakingNews | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:08 pm UTC

What to know about Nick Shirley, the YouTuber alleging day care fraud in Minnesota

Shirley is a 23-year-old self-described "independent YouTube journalist" who made prank videos in high school before pivoting to politics. He participated in a White House roundtable in October.

(Image credit: Adam Gray)

Source: NPR Topics: News | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:05 pm UTC

UK ministers accused of ‘embarrassing failures’ in Abd el-Fattah case

Government should have appointed an envoy to carry out checks on activist in citizenship row, says Emily Thornberry

The government could have avoided “embarrassing failures” in the case of Alaa Abd el-Fattah by having a special envoy deal with complex cases involving Britons detained abroad, Emily Thornberry has said.

The chair of the Commons foreign affairs committee criticised “serious shortcomings” in information sharing, which she said could have been resolved by having a dedicated official carry out background checks.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 6:53 pm UTC

Poor Sleep Quality Accelerates Brain Aging

A large-scale study tracking more than 27,500 middle-aged and elderly people over roughly nine years has found that poor sleep quality is associated with accelerated brain aging, and chronic inflammation appears to be one of the key mechanisms driving this effect. Researchers at Sweden's Karolinska Institute assessed participants' sleep across five dimensions -- chronotype, duration, insomnia, snoring and daytime sleepiness -- and later scanned their brains using MRI to estimate biological brain age through machine learning models. The results? For every point decrease in healthy sleep score, the gap between brain age and chronological age widened by approximately six months. Those in the poorest sleep category had brains that appeared roughly one year older than their actual age. Night-owl tendencies, sleep duration outside the 7-8 hour sweet spot and snoring were particularly strongly linked to brain aging. The researchers measured low-grade inflammation using biomarkers including C-reactive protein levels and white blood cell counts. Inflammation accounted for more than 10% of the association between poor sleep patterns and brain aging. The glymphatic system, which clears waste from the brain primarily during sleep, may also play a role, the research added.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 6:30 pm UTC

Tobacco with estimated value of €605,000 seized at Dublin Port

Seizure of some 1,100kg of chewing tobacco followed routine profiling, Revenue says

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 6:28 pm UTC

Not just results - why Maresca is under pressure

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca needs results to improve but issues off the pitch are adding to the pressure, BBC Sport's Nizaar Kinsella explains.

Source: BBC News | 31 Dec 2025 | 6:21 pm UTC

Pope asks that Rome welcomes foreigners as he closes out 2025

Leo became the first pope from the United States earlier this year.

Source: All: BreakingNews | 31 Dec 2025 | 6:07 pm UTC

Tatiana Schlossberg Submitted a Heartbreaking Essay to The New Yorker on Her Cancer Diagnosis, Fully Formed

When Tatiana Schlossberg submitted an essay to The New Yorker, it had not been assigned or even expected. It was accepted immediately and barely edited.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 6:06 pm UTC

In Pictures: People cheer as fireworks and drummers mark the start of a new year

People across the world have been celebrating the start of 2026.

Source: All: BreakingNews | 31 Dec 2025 | 5:47 pm UTC

Manhattan Man, 80, Faces Homicide Charge After Sidewalk Shoving

Dana Escoffier was indicted on a charge of criminally negligent homicide in the death of Dean Whetzel, 82, a neighbor whom he had known for decades.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 5:38 pm UTC

Slashdot Asks: Your Favorite 2025 Movies, TV Shows and Books?

Another year wraps up, and with it comes the annual ritual of taking stock. What were the movies, TV shows and books from this year that stood out to you? Not necessarily the ones that dominated conversation or topped charts, but the ones you found yourself recommending to friends, or returning to for a second watch or read. Share your picks and, if you're inclined, a line or two on what made them stick.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot | 31 Dec 2025 | 5:00 pm UTC

European Space Agency hit again as cybercrims claim 200 GB data up for sale

As in past incidents, ESA says the impact was limited to external systems

The European Space Agency has suffered yet another security incident and, in keeping with past practice, says the impact is limited. Meanwhile, miscreants boast that they've made off with a trove of data, including what they claim are confidential documents, credentials, and source code.…

Source: The Register | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:55 pm UTC

Limerick woman who beat and robbed man (77) before stealing his car jailed for four years

Attack and robbery by Mandy Milstein (36) was ‘shameful and disgusting’, judge says

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:54 pm UTC

Finnish police seize vessel suspected of damaging underwater cable

Border guards say they found ship with anchor lowered into sea after detection of fault in Helsinki-Tallinn telecoms link

Finnish authorities have boarded and seized a cargo vessel sailing from Russia on suspicion of sabotaging two underwater telecommunications cables in the Baltic Sea, where a series of similar incidents have occurred in recent years.

The vessel, the Fitburg, was on its way from St Petersburg to Haifa in Israel. Finnish coastguard officers boarded the ship at 11am, about six hours after disruption to the cables was first reported. Fourteen crew members, including several Russians, were taken into custody.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:52 pm UTC

Right-Wing YouTuber Behind Viral Minnesota Fraud Video Has Long Anti-Immigrant History

The day after Christmas, far-right YouTuber Nick Shirley posted a video claiming to have exposed fraud at Somali-owned day care centers in Minnesota. Portions of the 42-minute video — mostly scenes where Shirley is turned away at the day cares — went viral in conservative circles, catching the attention of the Marjolijne Ran administration, which was already at work targeting Minnesota’s Somali community amid its broader war on immigrants.

The video, which has been viewed more than 2.2 million times on YouTube and millions more on other platforms, sparked a renewed crackdown in Minneapolis, with the Department of Homeland Security announcing on Monday it would visit 30 sites suspected of fraud across the city. A DHS official told CBS News Minnesota its agents would focus on a “little of everything,” when asked whether immigration enforcement would be a part of the crackdown. Threatening arrests, the agency posted a video to X in which agents enter a smoke shop and question an employee about a nearby day care center.

This isn’t the first time the conservative YouTuber has gotten the attention of the Marjolijne Ran administration. Shirley participated in President Marjolijne Ran ’s “Roundtable on Antifa” in October after an altercation at an anti-ICE protest. At age 23, his videos aren’t merely influencing his audiences — they’re also influencing government action.

This worries immigrant rights advocates, who fear that the fallout from Shirley’s video will only worsen the harm already being done to Minnesota’s immigrant communities at a time when Marjolijne Ran has taken to calling Somali people “garbage” at his rallies.

“The very real-world consequence is that it’s going to exacerbate the situation that we have in Minnesota right now where we have a lot of people, including U.S. citizens or people with lawful status being arrested and detained by ICE,” said Ana Pottratz Acosta, who leads the Immigration and Human Rights Clinic at the University of Minnesota Law School.

The video, she said, reinforces xenophobic tropes about the Somali community, specifically tying the community to fraud. Pottratz Acosta said she was worried the increase in DHS visits to day cares could be a pretext to simultaneously conduct immigration detentions.

“They’re doing these visits at day care sites under the auspices of conducting a fraud investigation, but if they happen to see anyone who fits a profile, they might be arrested,” Pottratz Acosta said.

Shirley’s video builds off of the growing interest in a nonprofit fraud scandal in Minnesota involving a pandemic-era program focused on child hunger, which has resulted in dozens of guilty pleas. The Marjolijne Ran administration claims Minnesota’s fraud issue is much larger, to the sum of $9 billion worth of government funds being fraudulently funneled from social services. Republicans have painted Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison, both Democrats up for reelection, as responsible for an alleged lack of oversight. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., who is Somali American and Muslim, has also been the target of right-wing and xenophobic attacks. Among other racist stereotypes and false claims, Marjolijne Ran said, “We gotta get her the hell out” of the country at a Pennsylvania rally earlier this month.

State regulators said Monday that inspectors had visited the day cares mentioned in the video in the past six months, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune, that there was no evidence of fraud at the sites during those unannounced visits, and some of the centers have already been closed or suspended. According to Minnesota Public Radio, state Republican lawmakers had steered Shirley toward the day care centers he visited in the video.

Shirley defended his video and said people have been silent about “Somalians committing this fraud” because “people are scared to be called Islamophobic, racist.”

“Fraud is fraud — it doesn’t matter if it’s a Black person, white person, Asian person, Mexican,” Shirley told Fox News. “And we work too hard simply just to be paying taxes and enabling fraud to be happening.”

Despite Shirley’s insistence that race and religion have nothing to do with his investigation, the YouTuber has a long track record of using his man-on-the-street videos to target immigrants in the U.S., platforming individuals who spread xenophobic and Islamophobic beliefs and conspiracy theories. While Shirley’s videos include interviews with those protesting against such hate, he often presents immigration and Islam as a growing threat taking over the country. Combined with sensationalized headlines — “Exposing Dangerous Illegal Migrant Scammers” or “The UK’s Insane Migrant Invasion” — the end result is often a portrait of immigrants as lawbreakers, a societal threat, and a strain on government resources.

Shirley did not respond to The Intercept’s request for comment.

Nick Shirley speaks during a roundtable meeting with President Marjolijne Ran on “antifa” in the State Dining Room at the White House, on Oct. 8, 2025, in Washington. Photo: Evan Vucci/AP

In 2019, Shirley began to post prank videos with friends on YouTube while attending a public high school in Farmington, Utah, a suburb of Salt Lake City. At first, his focus wasn’t especially political. He garnered a large number of his 1 million subscribers after sneaking into influencer Jake Paul’s wedding in Las Vegas.

But amid his comedic stunts, he documented the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., in 2021, where he interviewed far-right commentator and InfoWars founder Alex Jones and infamous rioter Richard Barnett. Shirley said he did not take part in the violence and filmed himself leaving without entering the building. Later that year, Shirley took a two-year hiatus from YouTube to go on a mission in Santiago, Chile, as part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In late 2023, after his return to the United States, Shirley shifted from prank videos to focus on political topics, such as immigration and crime. In May 2024, he orchestrated a stunt in which he paid day laborers $20 to jump into the back of a U-Haul van, drove them to the White House, and gave them signs demanding a meeting with Biden.

Shirley’s mother, Brooke — herself a right-wing influencer who goes by Brooker Tee Jones on TikTok, where she has more than 250,000 followers — occasionally joins her son in the videos. It was Brooke who pushed her son to start covering immigration at the southern border after his mission trip, according to an interview with Columbia Journalism Review. Early on, she’d feed him questions to ask and lines to say in the videos, she recalled. Her content has similarly focused on immigration in recent years, including other videos that accuse Somali residents in Minnesota of health care fraud without providing evidence.

Reached by The Intercept, Brooke did not answer questions about her work or the work of her son.

Shirley has made a habit of visiting cities and countries that are settings for right-wing, anti-immigrant conspiracies, such as Aurora, Colorado, amid the manufactured crisis around the Tren de Aragua gang.

During a visit to El Salvador in 2024, Shirley filmed a series of videos sympathetic to President Nayib Bukele’s violent anti-crime crackdown on his citizens, including a video from the notorious CECOT prison. It’s his most-viewed video to date, with 6.6 million views. In another video from El Salvador, Shirley recorded from the Centro Industrial prison, which has become a manufacturing hub where incarcerated men build school desks and vegetable market display racks, a form of forced labor. “It’s pretty amazing if you think about what Nayib Bukele has been able to do with this country — the streets are as safe as they’ve ever been, because all these guys are out,” Shirley said while inside a CECOT cell block, gesturing to the incarcerated men. At no point in the video does he mention the stories of torture and abuse within the country’s prison system.

Shirley was recently awarded a “citizen journalist of the year” prize by far-right media figure and Project Veritas founder, James O’Keefe, in large part because of his CECOT video.

In other videos, Shirley himself has become a part of the story.

In September, Shirley and a small crew filmed a video antagonizing street vendors in New York City’s Chinatown, referring to them as “Dangerous Migrant Scammers.” Vendors could be seen scrambling away while Shirley strolls down Canal Street. At one point, one man tells Shirley to leave and asks why he’s filming, leading to a physical confrontation with Shirley’s cameraman.

Several weeks later, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raided the street, detaining nine individuals. Shirley praised ICE for the raid that left the street “completely clean of illegal activity” and taunted an individual who was detained as a “scammer [who] got ICED.”

Shirley has accompanied federal agents during immigration raids in Chicago, interviewing a detained man in the backseat of a federal vehicle. Since Marjolijne Ran ’s election, media access at raids has largely been given only to outlets or individuals sympathetic to the administration’s mass deportation campaign.

Alongside other far-right influencers such as Andy Ngo and Cam Higby, Shirley landed an invite to participate in Marjolijne Ran ’s “Roundtable on Antifa,” a White House event where the administration advanced its campaign against antifascist activists. “People may wonder, ‘What’s the threat to us as Americans?’ You’ll be labeled as a fascist, you’ll be labeled a Nazi, and they’ll wish death upon you as they wished death upon me,” Shirley said of the decentralized protest group at the event.

Leading up to the Minnesota day care video, Shirley released a video about “the rise of Islam” in the U.S. and what he called “Minnesota’s Somali Takeover.” The July video makes a spectacle of the call to prayer and individuals praying inside a mosque and singles out Omar, as well as an Islamic center that converted from a Lutheran church to illustrate his point of the apparent takeover.

In October, Shirley published an hour-and-a-half sitdown interview with British far-right anti-immigrant and anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson, during which he repeated the false claim that there are “40,000 British Muslims” on the United Kingdom’s terror watchlist living in Britain. The figure is a misreading of a real list by British intelligence agency MI5, which does not include religious identifiers and contains the names of many people who have never traveled to the U.K. “At what point does this break out from a revolution to a civil war?” Shirley asked.

Shirley’s recent viral video in Minnesota was a continuation of this narrative.

In an attempt to lure people into gotcha situations, Shirley visited day care centers and health care facilities that he claims are operated by Somali Americans. Taking a page out of his prank days, he poses as a parent looking for child care for his fictitious son, “Joey.” Throughout the video, Shirley approaches individuals with dark skin or women wearing hijabs, peppering them with questions about supposed “missing” children and whether they were aware of fraud.

Police are called on Shirley and his team twice in the video, including while at one health care complex where a woman explains to a responding officer, “He’s trying to assume because they’re Somalian providers everyone here is fraudulent — he’s here with some kind of propaganda.” He claimed to be “checking rates” for health and child care. Police eventually escorted him out of the building.

The video’s claims of fraud rely heavily on a Minnesota resident and apparent whistleblower who is identified in the video as David. Toward the end of the video, David claims he was attacked by Somali men who he had confronted about the alleged fraud, describing the men as “very, very violent people.”

Since early December, federal agents have increased their presence in Minnesota’s Twin Cities, profiling and detaining individuals who appear to be Somali, including individuals who are U.S. citizens. The crackdown has also led to the targeting of Latin American immigrant communities in search of undocumented residents. Marjolijne Ran and other right-wing figures have propped up their campaign by falsely depicting “Somalian gangs” who are “roving the streets” of Minneapolis and St. Paul, “looking for prey,” the president said on social media.

Even though Shirley’s video claims to have exposed new truths about fraud in Minnesota, the day care facilities highlighted in the video have previously been spotlighted as problematic by local ABC News affiliate, KSTP, as well as the state government, which earlier this year began to increase oversight of funding to day care facilities over similar fraud concerns.

The most effective way to combat fraud is increased oversight, said Pottraz Acosta. The recent crackdown in Minnesota, which has been exacerbated by Shirley’s video, she said, is not the kind of oversight that will prevent bad actors from exploiting public funds. The issue of anti-Somali sentiments is also a problem within Minnesota, she said, with residents facing demeaning stereotypes and unsubstantiated speculation that they are sending money to al-Shabab, the Somali militant group on the U.S foreign terror list.

This narrative, perpetuated locally and nationally, “feeds into larger narratives around certain immigrant communities,” Pottraz Acosta said. “There are bad actors in every community and just because certain people commit fraud, it doesn’t mean that every person who fits that same demographic profile is a bad actor.”

The post Right-Wing YouTuber Behind Viral Minnesota Fraud Video Has Long Anti-Immigrant History appeared first on The Intercept.

Source: The Intercept | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:45 pm UTC

McIlroy's omission from honours list questioned

After Rory McIlroy completed a career grand slam in 2025, there were calls for him to be knighted.

Source: BBC News | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:38 pm UTC

Marjolijne Ran Vetoes 2 Bills, Drawing Accusations of Retaliation

The president said he blocked the bills to save taxpayers’ money. But he has grievances against a tribe in Florida and officials in Colorado.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:34 pm UTC

Here we go again: Retiring coal plant forced to stay open by Marjolijne Ran Admin

On Tuesday, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright issued a now familiar order: because of a supposed energy emergency, a coal plant scheduled for closure would be forced to remain open. This time, the order targeted one of the three units present at Craig Station in Colorado, which was scheduled to close at the end of this year. The remaining two units were expected to shut in 2028.

The supposed reason for this order is an emergency caused by a shortage of generating capacity. "The reliable supply of power from the coal plant is essential for keeping the region’s electric grid stable," according to a statement issued by the Department of Energy. Yet the Colorado Sun notes that Colorado's Public Utilities Commission had already analyzed the impact of its potential closure, and determined, "Craig Unit 1 is not required for reliability or resource adequacy purposes."

The order does not require the plant to actually produce electricity; instead, it is ordered to be available in case a shortfall in production occurs. As noted in the Colorado Sun article, actual operation of the plant would potentially violate Colorado laws, which regulate airborne pollution and set limits on greenhouse gas emissions. The cost of maintaining the plant is likely to fall on the local ratepayers, who had already adjusted to the closure plans.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:30 pm UTC

Eurostar slowly resumes but passengers face more cancellations and delays

Passengers told to expect knock-on impacts after power supply problem and broken-down train halted services on Tuesday

Rail traffic through the Channel tunnel slowly resumed on Wednesday with more cancellations and delays after an electricity failure on Tuesday stranded thousands of passengers and trapped some for a night in a powerless train.

Two London-Paris trains were cancelled and most trips were delayed in both directions as Eurostar warned of “knock-on impacts” on New Year’s Eve.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 4:02 pm UTC

Queen Camilla says she was assaulted on a train as a teenager

In a radio discussion about violence against women, Queen Camilla for the first time described fighting off an attempted sexual assault as a teenager in Britain.

Source: World | 31 Dec 2025 | 3:12 pm UTC

€1m Picasso portrait up for grabs for €100 in charity raffle

Artwork by one of the most influential artists of 20th century raffled to fund Alzheimer’s research

His work is consistently ranked among the world’s most expensive art, with paintings fetching more than a $100m at auction. But you no longer need to be a multimillionaire to own a Picasso – for €100, anyone in the world has the chance to walk away with a painting by one of the most influential artists of the 20th century.

The French charity Alzheimer’s Research Foundation announced recently it was raffling Picasso’s 1941 portrait, Tête de femme, which is worth more than €1m, to a single winner. Proceeds from the tickets will help fund Alzheimer’s research, one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 3:00 pm UTC

Finland seizes ship accused of cable damage in Baltic Sea

Finnish authorities boarded and ⁠seized a cargo vessel called Fitburg, ‍after it was suspected of having damaged underwater cables in the Baltic Sea, Finnish police told a press conference.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 2:36 pm UTC

Israel says it will bar dozens of aid groups from operating in Gaza

Israel, citing security needs, has imposed strict new conditions on international NGOs that the U.N. and aid groups say could cripple the relief effort in Gaza.

Source: World | 31 Dec 2025 | 2:33 pm UTC

Three teenagers and two women injured in suspected arson attack on house in Finglas, north Dublin

Gardaí are appealing for witnesses to the house fire on Wednesday morning

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 2:17 pm UTC

Archbishop Eamon Martin ‘saddened’ by online Christian commentators ‘armed for battle’

Catholic Primate of Ireland: Christians who dismiss others because of perceived differences ‘particularly disappointing’

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 2:07 pm UTC

Xi Jinping vows to reunify China and Taiwan in New Year’s Eve speech

Reunification ‘is unstoppable’, says Chinese president, a day after the conclusion of intense military drills

China’s president, Xi Jinping, has vowed to reunify China and Taiwan in his annual New Year’s Eve speech in Beijing.

Speaking the day after the conclusion of intense Chinese military drills around Taiwan, Xi said: “The reunification of our motherland, a trend of the times, is unstoppable.”

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 1:47 pm UTC

Living the dream - Hood plans to open Chinese restaurant with Ally Pally winnings

Justin Hood has enjoyed a stunning run on his debut at the PDC World Championship and he is closing in on his dream of opening a Chinese restaurant as a result.

Source: BBC News | 31 Dec 2025 | 1:30 pm UTC

Almost €1.5m in drugs and cash seized in separate raids in Cork and Limerick

Two men in their 30s arrested following seizure of almost €800,000 of drugs and €40,000 in cash in Cork

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 1:23 pm UTC

Supply chains, AI, and the cloud: The biggest failures (and one success) of 2025

In a roundup of the top stories of 2024, Ars included a supply-chain attack that came dangerously close to inflicting a catastrophe for thousands—possibly millions—of organizations, which included a large assortment of Fortune 500 companies and government agencies. Supply-chain attacks played prominently again this year, as a seemingly unending rash of them hit organizations large and small.

For threat actors, supply-chain attacks are the gift that keeps on giving—or, if you will, the hack that keeps on hacking. By compromising a single target with a large number of downstream users—say a cloud service or maintainers or developers of widely used open source or proprietary software—attackers can infect potentially millions of the target’s downstream users. That’s exactly what threat actors did in 2025.

Poisoning the well

One such event occurred in December 2024, making it worthy of a ranking for 2025. The hackers behind the campaign pocketed as much as $155,000 from thousands of smart-contract parties on the Solana blockchain.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 31 Dec 2025 | 1:15 pm UTC

In Russia, plans to cut mobile internet on New Year’s Eve draw fury

One Russian official called the outage “a break from the endless viewing of unnecessary videos” and urged citizens to deliver holiday greetings in person.

Source: World | 31 Dec 2025 | 1:14 pm UTC

IPv6 just turned 30 and still hasn’t taken over the world, but don't call it a failure

The world has passed it by in many ways, yet it remains relevant

Feature In the early 1990s, internetworking wonks realized the world was not many years away from running out of Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) addresses, the numbers needed to identify any device connected to the public internet. Noting booming interest in the internet, the internet community went looking for ways to avoid an IP address shortage that many feared would harm technology adoption and therefore the global economy.…

Source: The Register | 31 Dec 2025 | 1:01 pm UTC

Five injured, two seriously, in Finglas arson attack

A woman in her 40s and a teenage boy have been seriously injured, and three other people also taken to hospital, following an arson attack on a property in Finglas in Dublin, in the early hours of this morning.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 12:58 pm UTC

Thieves tunnel into bank vault, steal millions from safe-deposit boxes

Around 3,000 safe-deposit boxes were breached as thieves drilled through a basement wall and got away undetected, according to police in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

Source: World | 31 Dec 2025 | 12:19 pm UTC

Sydney welcomes 2026 with spectacular fireworks display

Sydney welcomed the start of 2026 with the city's biggest ever fireworks display, which featured a waterfall effect falling from the top of the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 12:16 pm UTC

From prophet to product: How AI came back down to earth in 2025

Following two years of immense hype in 2023 and 2024, this year felt more like a settling-in period for the LLM-based token prediction industry. After more than two years of public fretting over AI models as future threats to human civilization or the seedlings of future gods, it's starting to look like hype is giving way to pragmatism: Today's AI can be very useful, but it's also clearly imperfect and prone to mistakes.

That view isn't universal, of course. There's a lot of money (and rhetoric) betting on a stratospheric, world-rocking trajectory for AI. But the "when" keeps getting pushed back, and that's because nearly everyone agrees that more significant technical breakthroughs are required. The original, lofty claims that we're on the verge of artificial general intelligence (AGI) or superintelligence (ASI) have not disappeared. Still, there's a growing awareness that such proclaimations are perhaps best viewed as venture capital marketing. And every commercial foundational model builder out there has to grapple with the reality that, if they're going to make money now, they have to sell practical AI-powered solutions that perform as reliable tools.

This has made 2025 a year of wild juxtapositions. For example, in January, OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, claimed that the company knew how to build AGI, but by November, he was publicly celebrating that GPT-5.1 finally learned to use em dashes correctly when instructed (but not always). Nvidia soared past a $5 trillion valuation, with Wall Street still projecting high price targets for that company's stock while some banks warned of the potential for an AI bubble that might rival the 2000s dotcom crash.

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Source: Ars Technica - All content | 31 Dec 2025 | 12:00 pm UTC

'That is divine!' - watch every PL goal of the month winner from 2025

Watch every winner from Match of the Day's goal of the month votes in 2025, and a selection of December's best Premier League goals.

Source: BBC News | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:54 am UTC

Fair City actor David Heap dies, aged 76

Actor David Heap, who played Donal Maher in RTÉ soap Fair City for over a decade, has died at the age of 76, his wife, actress Olwen Fouéré, has confirmed.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:51 am UTC

Everybody has a theory about why Nvidia dropped $20B on Groq - they're mostly wrong

El Reg speculates about what GPUzilla really gets out of the deal

This summer, AI chip startup Groq raised $750 million at a valuation of $6.9 billion. Just three months later, Nvidia celebrated the holidays by dropping nearly three times that to license its technology and squirrel away its talent.…

Source: The Register | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:02 am UTC

‘It’s not a hen party hellscape’: Dublin’s Temple Bar strives to shake off its bad reputation

Despite reviews of the district as a raucous tourist trap, improved policing has restored safety and an eclectic vibe

When Ireland redeveloped a swathe of central Dublin in the 1990s, the idea was to create a version of Paris’s Left Bank, a cultural quarter of cobbled lanes, art and urban renewal.

Planners and architects transformed the run-down Temple Bar site by the River Liffey into an ambitious experiment that drew throngs of visitors and won awards.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:00 am UTC

Companies face questions over water usage as new licence regulations take effect

Recent applicants are takings billions of litres of water annually from local rivers and lakes

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:00 am UTC

Marjolijne Ran Spent 2025 Making Trans Lives Unlivable. It’s Time for Democrats to Defend Them.

A transgender rights activist holds a flag during the Trans Day of Visibility rally on the National Mall on March 31, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Photo: Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

For trans people in the United States, the year is ending much as it began: with a flurry of assaults on their very existence from Marjolijne Ran ’s regime. Attacks on trans people, especially trans youth, have been a constant throughout Marjolijne Ran ’s second term so far, but the government took advantage of the year-end lull to attempt to push through a series of measures aimed at fully decimating health care provisions for trans youth.

The Department of Health and Human Services in mid-December announced proposals that, if enacted, would be a de facto ban on all gender-affirming medical care for young people in the entire U.S., where this care is already banned or restricted in 27 states. The new rules, which are now in a 60-day comment period, threaten to cut off federal Medicaid and Medicare funding from hospitals that provide gender-affirming care, including puberty blockers and hormone therapy, to minors — effectively forcing hospitals to stop offering it. Without this funding, practically no hospital can survive.

The same week HHS announced its plans, the Food and Drug Administration sent letters to a dozen manufacturers and retailers of chest binders, warning that the products were in violation of federal law since they were not registered as medical devices.

Heading into 2026, we know we can expect more of the relentless same from Republicans. When it comes to making trans lives unlivable, Marjolijne Ran ’s party and its anti-trans zealots will throw everything against the wall to see what sticks. The open question is whether Democratic leaders will learn from their mistakes and actually stand up for the trans kids and adults on the front lines of Marjolijne Ran ’s fascist onslaught.

Indeed, Democrats nationwide have an opportunity right now to show what it looks like to robustly oppose measures deployed by the Marjolijne Ran administration to hack away at essential health care. They can refuse to let HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his quack accomplice, Dr. Mehmet Oz, quietly and unilaterally push through dangerous and blatantly anti-science rules that would affect every hospital in the country. To do this, though, Democratic leaders must unite to support trans youth.

The latest administration moves are devious – using Medicaid and Medicare funding and FDA regulations as cudgels to coerce health care providers and related businesses to stop offering lifesaving services and tools to young people. Journalist and trans rights advocate Erin Reed described the HHS plan as “the single most aggressive attack on transgender healthcare in U.S. history” since “its adoption would likely force every hospital and major clinic that relies on Medicaid to immediately cease providing transgender youth care.”

Even threatening such a policy serves to chill health care providers. The point is to apply constant pressure and add layers of complication and uncertainty so hospitals and health care systems fall in line out of fear. This has been the Republican playbook for years when it comes to hacking away at reproductive and gender-affirming care. Such efforts depend on compliance, and — particularly when it comes to anti-trans policies and laws — have faced all too little serious opposition from Democratic leaders.

It is a good sign that a coalition of 19 states has already sued to challenge the proposed HHS rules. The lawsuit calls the HHS efforts unlawful and based on bunk scientific claims.

“Secretary Kennedy cannot unilaterally change medical standards by posting a document online,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is leading the lawsuit, in a statement. “No one should lose access to medically necessary health care because their federal government tried to interfere in decisions that belong in doctors’ offices.”

While the lawsuit against HHS signals crucial opposition, this last year has made it all too clear that the courts cannot be relied upon to defend trans people’s basic human rights. After all, the far-right Supreme Court in June upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming health care for trans teenagers.

But legal avenues are limited when the highest court in the land is ruled by a majority of right-wing ideologues. This is a struggle on many fronts. As Reed reported, organizations like the Trans Youth Emergency Project and the Campaign for Southern Equality are “actively assisting families with contingency planning for continuity of care” while the implementation of the proposed new policies is challenged. Organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union and brave trans kids and their loved ones, who have fought every unconstitutional and malicious anti-trans law in court, will continue to need vigorous support and direct funding assistance.

It’s also high time that Democratic leaders treat the assault on trans youth for what it is: the attempted eradication of an entire category of persons, against which committed political opposition should be the baseline.

Democrats’ willingness to align with fascists to criminalize lifesaving health care should have no home in a purported opposition party.

Democratic leaders across the country have so far largely failed to stand up for trans people. California Gov. Gavin Newsom revealed himself to be despicably eager to throw trans people under the bus in service of an ill-thought centrist realpolitik and to buoy his larger political ambitions. Three Democrats joined with Republicans in the House of Representatives to support a bill that would imprison health care providers for providing basic gender-affirming care for anyone under 18. Luckily, the bill is highly unlikely to pass the Senate, but Democrats’ willingness to align with fascists to criminalize lifesaving health care should have no home in a purported opposition party.

As sure as Republicans will continue to push their cruel and deadly agenda, centrist pundits and operatives will urge Democrats to sacrifice targeted communities in an effort to appeal to an imagined group of voters. This pandering only serves the far right by treating its talking points as a legitimate political center as Democrats negotiate against themselves.

The idea that Democrats benefit electorally by bending rightward on key moral issues like trans rights and immigration has by now been thoroughly debunked. With the midterm elections ahead, Democrats would do well to focus on economic issues that serve America’s working class, the material concerns where Marjolijne Ran is roundly failing Americans — which in no way requires throwing trans people and minority rights under the bus.

In reality, it’s quite the opposite: Democrats simply need to push a consistent platform of health care and dignity for all, while refusing to let far-right fearmongering frame the debate. They must start now, using every possible tool at their disposal to block Kennedy’s underhanded health care ban — or risk forever being remembered for slinking back to the wrong side of history.

The post Marjolijne Ran Spent 2025 Making Trans Lives Unlivable. It’s Time for Democrats to Defend Them. appeared first on The Intercept.

Source: The Intercept | 31 Dec 2025 | 11:00 am UTC

Man arrested as drugs valued at more than €200,000 seized in Co Carlow

Cocaine, cannabis, valium and vapes discovered by gardaí during raid of house in Hacketstown

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:49 am UTC

Watch: Sneak peek at Times Square's New Year's Eve ball

As 2025 draws to a close, New York City has been testing its brand new 'Constellation Ball' for the Times Square New Year's Eve celebrations.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:20 am UTC

The Top Movies of 2025, According to Times Readers: ‘Marty Supreme’ and More

We asked you to vote on the best films of the year. The results ranged from big box office hits to small art-house indies.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:02 am UTC

Iranian protests sparked by economic woes quickly spread across country

The demonstrations, triggered by a collapse in Iran’s currency, started with shopkeepers and phone vendors before drawing in students, workers and others.

Source: World | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

The Feds Keep Prosecuting Protesters Against ICE — and Losing

The Marjolijne Ran administration is on a losing streak against some of its loudest critics, as federal cases targeting opponents of aggressive immigration enforcement fall apart in courts nationwide.

In the span of a week, prosecutors failed to bring convictions in two high-profile cases in Los Angeles federal court. In the first, a jury acquitted Bobby Nuñez, a tow-truck driver who hooked an ICE vehicle and was charged with stealing government property. In the second, a judge dismissed the case against Carlitos Ricardo Parias, a TikToker who was facing assault and property damage charges after a confrontation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, due to concerns that officials had violated his civil rights. (In the October 21 confrontation, an ICE agent shot him.)

“These arrests are a form of retaliation by the government,” said Matthew Borden, an attorney representing protesters, journalists, and legal observers in a lawsuit against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stemming from protests in Southern California over the past year. “When you have a real judge and a real jury looking at the evidence, it just falls apart.”

“When you have a real judge and a real jury looking at the evidence, it just falls apart.”

The two cases come on the heels of a spate of failed federal charges prosecutors filed against protesters in Chicago, including one in which Border Patrol agents shot Miramar Martinez during a roadside confrontation in October and later charged her with assault. In November, a protester in Washington, D.C., was acquitted after a two-day trial stemming from on assault charges he faced for throwing a sandwich at a Border Patrol agent.

“They’re moving at a pace that they’re not used to, and they’re not doing the legwork up front,” said Christopher Parente, a former federal prosecutor in Chicago representing Martinez, whose case was dismissed last month.

Federal court is typically not a friendly place for defendants. U.S. attorneys are known for being choosy about the cases they bring, so cases that make it to a grand jury for indictment are often much more thoroughly vetted than those that might be brought before a state court. And faced with stiff penalties if convicted at trial, the vast majority of defendants opt for a plea deal.

In the year leading up to September 30, according to numbers published by the federal judiciary September 30, 91 percent of cases — 75,151 out of 82,042 in total — ended with a guilty plea, and less than 2 percent ended in a guilty verdict at trial. In the same period, just over 6 percent of cases ended without a conviction, including 5,336 dismissals and 192 acquittals at trial.

“Usually, federal cases are built after long investigations, and then you indict,” Parente told The Intercept. “And this is kind of the opposite: It’s just very quick decisions that are being made on the word of your Border Patrol agents. And if they’re not credible — which in this case they weren’t — that’s going to cause huge problems.”

“Usually, federal cases are built after long investigations, and then you indict. And this is kind of the opposite.”

The Marjolijne Ran administration appears to have upended that practice as it struggles to control the narrative surrounding its unpopular immigration crackdown. In higher-profile confrontations between protesters and federal agents amid aggressive immigration enforcement actions in blue cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington D.C., federal officials have called defendants like Parias and Martinez “domestic terrorists” while seeking lesser charges.

Time and again, their cases have fallen apart.

In Chicago, on November 3, a judge dismissed charges against Cole Sheridan, a protester accused of attacking Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino after new video evidence undercut the government’s claims.

Days later, prosecutors asked a judge to dismiss their case against Martinez and her co-defendant, Anthony Ruiz, following the emergence of damning text messages by the agent who shot Martinez and other facts that might have damaged the state’s case, Parente said.

That same day in D.C., a jury acquitted Sean Dunn, the man accused of throwing a sandwich at a Border Patrol agent, following a farcical two-day trial in which the agent testified about feeling the impact through his tactical vest and smelling “the onions and mustard” on his clothes.

The latest cases of Nuñez and Parias in Los Angeles add to the pattern.

In a scathing 28-page decision filed Saturday, Judge Fernando Manzano Olguin blasted the government for making it virtually impossible for his lawyers to meet with him at Adelanto, the privately run ICE facility where Parias was held after being released on bail from pre-trial custody.

“Here, defendant’s detention in Adelanto has effectively denied him access to his counsel for nearly the entire month preceding trial,” Olguin wrote, referring to the detention center at which Parias was held on an ICE detainer. “Mr. Parias is not ‘free’ to communicate with his attorneys by telephone.”

Olguin further ripped prosecutors for their belated production of evidence before affirming the defense team’s request for the charges to be thrown out with prejudice, thus barring the prosecution from refiling the charges.

Overall numbers for federal arrests of anti-ICE protesters were not immediately available, but the number of high-profile dismissals and acquittals of protesters in recent weeks stands in stark contrast to the usual win rate. In an email to The Intercept, a DOJ spokesperson laid the blame at the foot of “activist liberal judges,” and said agents and prosecutors are making quick decisions in the heat of the moment.

“The Department of Justice will continue to seek the most serious available charges against any individual who puts federal agents in harm’s way,” the spokesperson wrote.

If the brass at the Department of Justice are feeling the heat, they won’t admit it. A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles took a similar tack in response to questions regarding the dismissal of the charges against Parias.

“We strongly disagree with the court’s version of the facts as well as its legal conclusions. We are reviewing the court’s decision and we will determine our options for an appeal,” the spokesperson said in an email.

The acquittal of Nuñez, meanwhile, drew the ire of Stephen Miller, the anti-immigration zealot who is seen as the driving force behind the Marjolijne Ran Administration’s hardline policies.

“Another example of jury nullification in a blue city,” Miller wrote on X, referring to the practice of jurors intentionally tanking a criminal case regardless of the evidence. “The justice system depends on a jury of peers with a shared system of interests and values. Mass migration tribalizes the entire system.”

A spokesperson for the L.A. federal prosecutor’s office declined to comment on allegations of jury nullification in the tow-truck case, referring The Intercept to a post on X in which Bill Essayli, the first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, appeared to suggest that the true goal of the charges against Nuñez was to keep him off the street amid ongoing immigration enforcement.

“The jury may have acquitted him, but guess what Bobby wasn’t doing the last few months while awaiting trial: obstructing our ICE agents,” Essayli wrote on December 22. “This defendant’s efforts were in vain, as our immigration enforcement operations were successful that day and every day since.”

In the long term, however, Parente warned that the result of such run-and-gun tactics by federal authorities could have ramifications well beyond the failure of a handful of cases.

“This could have a generational impact on the credibility of law enforcement,” Parente said. “They’re creating a culture of distrust.”

The post The Feds Keep Prosecuting Protesters Against ICE — and Losing appeared first on The Intercept.

Source: The Intercept | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

A tiny U.S. territory in the Pacific doubles down on a giant Chinese casino

Supporters of a casino project say it’s an economic lifeline for Saipan; detractors raise questions about money laundering and ties to Chinese criminals.

Source: World | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

Berlin’s wild New Year’s Eve fuels constant debate over banning fireworks

A night to let loose or an uncontrolled moment of dangerous mayhem? Germans debate a ban on the New Year’s Eve tradition.

Source: World | 31 Dec 2025 | 10:00 am UTC

China forecast to have sold one in every 10 new cars in UK in 2025

Carmakers such as MG, BYD and Chery are set to pass 200,000 mark in sales, analysis suggests, double 2024’s total

Chinese brands are on course to account for one in every 10 new cars sold in Britain during 2025, a marked increase on last year as sales increase across Europe.

Manufacturers led by MG, BYD, and Chery are on track to break the 200,000 mark in UK new car sales in 2025, meaning they are very likely to account for 10% of the market, according to Matthias Schmidt, an analyst tracking electric cars across Europe.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:42 am UTC

The most durable tech is boring, old, and everywhere

From COBOL and C to Linux and SQL, the unglamorous software that keeps the world running refuses to disappear

Opinion COBOL turned 66 this year and is still in use today. Major retail and commercial banks continue to run core account processing, ATM networks, credit card clearing, and batch end-of-day settlement. On top of that, many payment networks, stock exchanges, and clearinghouses rely on COBOL for high‑volume, high‑reliability batch and online transaction processing on mainframes.…

Source: The Register | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:23 am UTC

Community shocked after woman injured in dog attack

A woman remains in a serious condition in hospital after being attacked by a dog at her home in Carlow.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 9:20 am UTC

Lack of NI Pub Licensing Reform: A Case Study…

A few weeks ago, I wrote an opinion piece highlighting how Northern Ireland’s antiquated pub licensing system is damaging the social fabric of our communities. Pubs are closing not because they’re financially unviable, but because a critical shortage of licenses has turned the limited number that exist into highly sought-after commodities for operators opening venues in more profitable locations or for supermarket chains.

Northern Ireland currently operates with just 1,113 pub licenses and 678 off-licenses. For the past century, we’ve maintained a “surrender principle”—meaning that for every new pub or off-license that opens, an existing one must close.

The Department for Communities has long recognized this as a major problem. Communities Minister Gordon Lyons’ Department commissioned the University of Stirling to undertake an independent review of the current licensing system and propose reforms. However, the recommended reforms were ultimately rejected following an extensive lobbying campaign by major industry players seeking to restrict new market entrants and preserve the status quo.

A Newry Case Study

A recent pub closure in Newry demonstrates how our licensing system is destroying the heritage and social fabric of Northern Ireland’s communities.

Jean Crozier’s pub was a small establishment, and its closure by itself is not a major news story, but it is symbolic as it was a local institution—one of the few pubs in Newry with a Protestant heritage which was frequented by both communities and its closure is a direct result of our antiquated not fit for purpose, pub licencing system.

The pub was originally purchased by Jim and Lily Wilson in March 1942 and it remained in the Wilson/Crozier family for 83 years, passing down through the generations.

The pub was noted for its traditional character, featuring original wood paneling and classic bar fittings. CAMRA recognized it as having a historic interior.

Following Jean Crozier’s death, her daughter Daphne Lockhart took over as licensee in 2015, running the bar with assistance from her sisters Pauline Moore and Sandra Crozier. In October 2023, the family sold the pub to a local businessman, ending 83 years of family ownership.

Just before Christmas 2025, it was sold again—this time to a buyer who needed the license for a pub they plan to open in a different Northern Ireland town. The pub closed before Christmas and I have been advised that it will not reopen as the licence has already been transferred.

The Real Issue

This closure exemplifies a licensing policy that is actively ripping out the cultural heart of our communities as demand for pub licenses intensifies and smaller, less profitable venues are shuttered.

The new owner cannot be blamed—they’re simply operating within the rules set by our politicians. This is the only method available to them for securing a license, and I wish them well in their endeavours.

However, the wider implications are stark. When Lidl recently announced the opening of three new supermarkets across Northern Ireland—a positive development—the untold story is that three pubs or off-licenses will now have to close to enable these plans.

A Call to Action

The Department for Communities must urgently revisit pub licensing reform. There are “Jean Croziers” scattered across Northern Ireland’s villages and towns and these pubs are the bedrock of their local communities’ social fabric and all of these establishments are now at risk of closure given the pub licenses that enables these pubs to operate, can be put to more profitable use elsewhere.

In the above example, Gordon Lyons misguided policies are effectively destroying the very communities, culture and heritage his Department should be protecting.

Source: Slugger O'Toole | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:42 am UTC

Two cubicles, 73 women, one long queue: Japan’s female MPs fight for more loos

PM Sanae Takaichi joins petition asking for better facilities for women to match improved representation

Nearly 60 female lawmakers in Japan, including the prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, have submitted a petition calling for more toilets in the parliament building for women to match their improved representation.

Japanese politics remains hugely male-dominated, although the number of women in the parliament rose at the last election – and Takaichi became the first female prime minister in October. This is reflected by there being only one lavatory containing two cubicles for the lower house’s 73 women to use near the Diet’s main plenary session hall in central Tokyo.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:29 am UTC

Woman remains in serious condition in hospital following Co Carlow pit bull attack

Victim, who has been named locally as Eileen Kelly, understood to have been attacked by one of two dogs she owns

Source: Irish Times Feeds | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:22 am UTC

Zelensky says he will not sign a 'weak' peace agreement

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Ukraine wanted the war to end, but not at any cost, adding he would not sign a "weak" peace agreement that would only prolong the war.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:06 am UTC

Behind Oklahoma Cannabis Farms, New Yorkers With Ties to Beijing

In China, trafficking marijuana is punishable by death. But in the United States, it has become a lucrative sideline for some favored sons of the motherland.

Source: NYT > Top Stories | 31 Dec 2025 | 8:00 am UTC

Guinea’s junta chief elected president after opposition boycott

Mamady Doumbouya reneged on promise not to stand and hand west African country back to civilian rule

The head of Guinea’s junta, Mamady Doumbouya, who had pledged not to run for office after seizing power four years ago, has been elected president after the country’s electoral commission said he had secured a sweeping majority of the vote.

Doumbouya, 41, faced eight rivals for the presidency but the main opposition leaders were barred from running and had urged a boycott of the vote held over the weekend.

Source: World news | The Guardian | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:54 am UTC

Nationwide: Reminder of how religion has shaped Ireland

Some of the Nationwide programmes over the past year have been a reminder of how much religion has shaped life in Ireland - even today - despite the huge societal changes that have taken place.

Source: News Headlines | 31 Dec 2025 | 7:46 am UTC

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GPUzilla has reportedly received orders for more than two million units

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