Author: Press Room

ANTARCTICA – A Chicago-sized iceberg recently broke away from Antarctica, giving scientists the chance to explore a portion of the sea floor that may have been hidden for centuries.When an iceberg named A-84 broke off from the George VI Ice Shelf on Jan. 13, the crew of R/V Falkor (too) of the Schmidt Ocean Institute (SOI) was already nearby and traveled to investigate the footprint the iceberg left behind.”Being right there when this iceberg calved from the ice shelf presented a rare scientific opportunity,” said Schmidt Ocean Institute Executive Director, Dr. Jyotika Virmani. “Serendipitous moments are part of the excitement…

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia lawmakers on Friday approved tax breaks for farmers and timber owners harmed by Hurricane Helene that could be worth nearly $300 million.House members voted unanimously to send the bill to Gov. Brian Kemp for his approval.“This is a part of the Hurricane Helene recovery package that specifically addresses issues for farmers and foresters,” said House Majority Whip James Burchett, a Republican from Waycross.The tax breaks come on top of $862 million in spending that Georgia lawmakers earlier allotted for Hurricane Helene relief after the storm caused billions of dollars in damage when it cut across the…

The federal government allegedly collaborated with “media censorship organizations” to manipulate public discourse from 2016 Elon Musk has described as “crazy” a federal initiative which allegedly sought to silence US citizens under the guise of fighting foreign disinformation. The Global Engagement Center (GEC), part of the US State Department, was launched in 2016 under President Barack Obama and operated until its closure in December 2024.The GEC is the subject of an investigation by the conservative advocacy group America First Legal (AFL) published on Thursday. The report scrutinized GEC communications with Washington’s primary funding channel for political projects abroad, the US…

An activist group backed by progressive financier George Soros called on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, to step down from leading the party in the chamber. Schumer has received criticism from within his own coalition for allowing the advance of a Republican bill to fund the federal government, including from Indivisible, a nationwide activist network that has taken over $7.6 million from Soros’ Open Society Foundation since 2017, according to a report from the New York Post. Ezra Levin, the co-executive director of Indivisible, said in a March 15 statement that Schumer leading “the charge…

The 3rd Assault Brigade’s new R-73 launcher.Maksym Zaichenko photo Ukraine inherited a substantial stock of R-73 air-to-air missiles when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Normally fired in mid-air by Ukraine’s fleet of Soviet-made Mikoyan MiG-29 and Sukhoi Su-27 fighters, the 230-pound, infrared-guided R-73 chases the heat signatures of hot jet engines out to a distance of up to 19 miles. Like many air-to-air missiles, the R-73 also works from the ground. So when Ukraine’s inventory of purpose-made heat-seeking surface-to-air missiles—in particular, 9M33s for Osa wheeled launchers—began to run low, it turned to all those leftover R-73s. Now Ukraine has…

Protesters in the Turkish cities of Izmir, Istanbul, and the capital of Ankara clashed with police on Friday as protests against the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu grew larger and more intense. Thousands took to the streets on Thursday and Friday despite a four-day ban on public demonstrations imposed by the Istanbul Governor’s Office. Ankara and Izmir imposed their own five-day protest bans on Friday as angry citizens filled the streets. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Friday that 53 people were detained during protests overnight, while 16 police officers were injured. The worst of the scuffles took place…

Columbia University revealed they were making several policy changes such as allowing campus police officers to make arrests, rules regarding protesting, and discipline, among others. In a memo from the university, it was revealed that Columbia was working “hard to address the legitimate concerns” from within and outside the university community regarding “harassment, and antisemitic acts.” The memo from the university comes after the Trump administration revealed that it had cancelled roughly $400 million worth of grants and contracts to the Columbia. “Columbia University has, throughout its storied history, faced many challenges and obstacles,” the memo said. “We have worked…

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peru’s Congress voted Friday to remove the interior minister from office after deciding that he had failed to adequately handle rising violent crime in the Andean country.Interior Minister Juan José Santiváñez by law has 72 hours to leave his position after the no-confidence vote, which succeeded with 78 votes in favor, 11 against and 20 abstentions. Santiváñez insisted that he had worked hard alongside police during his 10 months in office, but that he would respect the lawmakers’ decision.Santiváñez must step down and take responsibility for his “inability to address the wave of citizen insecurity the…

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Homeland Security is making cuts to three key offices that oversee civil rights protections across its broad mission, suggesting that they were impeding immigration enforcement efforts.A spokeswoman for the department, Tricia McLaughlin, said in a statement Friday that it was implementing a “reduction in force” for three offices: the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, the Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman, and the Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman.President Donald Trump has made downsizing the federal government a key policy goal.Federal agencies were directed to submit by March 13 plans…

A Marion County grand jury on Friday unanimously found an Oregon State Police trooper justified in shooting and killing a 22-year-old Salem man in late February near the Gov. Ted Kulongoski Army Aviation Training Center on Turner Road.The decision came about three weeks after police responded to a report around 10 a.m. on Feb. 27 that Matthew Walter Wong had given a threatening note to a guard at the National Guard Air Station.Salem Police, which is the agency in charge of conducting the deadly use of force investigation per the Marion County Law Enforcement Officer Deadly Use of Force Plan, said Senior…