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Peregrine Falcons nest at top of Boston’s Custom House

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

The Marriott Vacation Club Pulse at Custom House is welcoming some new guests to the top of the building’s 100-year-old clock tower this spring.The hotel announced Tuesday that a family of Peregrine Falcons has returned to the tower this spring, nesting 30 floors above the busy streets of Boston. Peregrine Falcons, which were once on the brink of extinction, have been nesting on top of the Custom House since 1987, the hotel said. Known as the fastest birds on the planet, these birds have been documented at speeds of up to 242 miles per hour. At Marriott Vacation Club Pulse, the falcons often swoop around the 26th floor observation deck.Over the years, more than 100 Peregrine Falcon chicks have fledged from the Custom House nest, which is cared for by professionals from Mass Audubon and the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, the hotel said. To follow the falcons through a live feed, click here.

Hampton Beach, NH makes Country Living Magazine’s list of top beach boardwalks

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

Hampton Beach, New Hampshire has made Country Living Magazine’s list of top beach boardwalks.While Hampton Beach’s annual sand sculpture contest draws crowds, it’s also known for its old school arcade games and salt water taffy stands. Boardwalks in Coney Island, New York, Venice Beach in California, and Virginia Beach also made the list.

Volcano erupts in Russia’s far east, spewing ash 20 kilometers into the air

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

(CNN) — The Shiveluch volcano erupted early Tuesday morning in Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka region, spewing ash up to 20 kilometers above sea level, according to the local branch of the Russia Academy of Sciences (RAS) Geophysical Survey.Seismic activity was first reported around 12:54 a.m. local time on Tuesday (8:54 a.m. ET on Monday), the Geophysical Survey said on Telegram, adding that the volcano was still erupting nearly 15 hours later.Videos posted on social media from the region show a large ash cloud in the sky and ash covering roads and cars in the town of Ust-Kamchatsky, about 90 kilometers (55 miles) from the volcano.According to satellite data, the size of the plume cloud measures 400 by 250 kilometers and has spread to the west and south of the volcano, the Geophysical Survey said.The Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far Eastern Branch of RAS said a “red” hazard designation, the highest level, has been issued for aviation and tha...

Patience with purpose: Kyle Lowry’s Heat maintenance program all about this moment

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

Patience in a playoff race can test the limits of both coach and player.It was a lesson learned by Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra immediately upon Kyle Lowry’s return from a month out of action due to knee pain.So, no, the plan on March 11 was not to play the 37-year-old veteran point guard 36:09 in his first game back in that overtime road loss to the Orlando Magic.“I felt we were very disciplined, except for the head coach the first game he came back,” Spoelstra said Monday with a smile.Since then, a slow build back to speed toward this play-in round, including Tuesday night’s win-and-in game against the Atlanta Hawks at Kaseya Center, the new name of the Heat’s arena.Utilized only in reserve.Held out for one of the two games in back-to-back sets.No more than 27 minutes after the initial misstep by Spoelstra.And now, the ability to play more minutes, with comfort about that element of the equation from both coach and player.“Yes,” Lowry s...

‘He’s the new sheriff in town:’ 3 moments that defined the Chicago Cubs’ 3-2 walk-off win over the Seattle Mariners

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

Chicago Cubs catcher Yan Gomes spotted the cowboy hat laying in the Wrigley Field clubhouse and felt inspired.He didn’t know who the hat belonged to, but Gomes grabbed it and delivered it to his intended recipient, second baseman Nico Hoerner. Gomes instructed Hoerner to wear it during his postgame interview, and the Cubs budding star obliged.A beaming Hoerner, whose game-winning single completed a three-hit night, sported the cowboy hat fittingly emblazoned with a silver star.“He’s the new sheriff in town,” Gomes declared after Hoerner’s first career walk-off hit gave the Cubs a 3-2 win in 10 innings Monday against the Seattle Mariners.“Just trying to have fun in here, man. I feel like this is a good place and we’ve got a good thing going on, especially a guy like Nico. Man, this guy works his tail off. He’s one of the faces of our team, and what a better way to start that?”A win on April 10 might not mean anything come Septembe...

Key lawmakers win access to mishandled classified docs

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has begun sharing with a bipartisan group of lawmakers known as the Gang of Eight classified documents found in the possession of former President Donald Trump, President Joe Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence, according to five people familiar with the matter.Top lawmakers, including Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, had for months been asking the Justice Department to provide access to the documents — or at least an assessment of what was in them — so that Congress could gauge the potential national security harm. That process recently got underway, said the people, who insisted on anonymity to discuss private interactions between the Justice Department and Congress. Committee leaders have been granted access to them on a rolling basis, said one of the people.A Justice Department special counsel, Jack Smith, is investigating whether Trump mishandled roughly 300 documents with classified markin...

IMF: Prolonged high inflation dims outlook for world economy

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The outlook for the world economy this year has dimmed in the face of chronically high inflation, rising interest rates and uncertainties resulting from the collapse of two big American banks.That’s the view of the International Monetary Fund, which on Tuesday downgraded its outlook for global economic growth. The IMF now envisions growth this year of 2.8%, down from 3.4% in 2022 and from the 2.9% estimate for 2023 it made in its previous forecast in January. The fund said the possibility of a “hard landing,” in which rising interest rates weaken growth so much as to cause a recession, has ”risen sharply,” especially in the world’s wealthiest countries. “The situation remains fragile,” Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas, the IMF’s chief economist, told reporters Tuesday. ”Downside risks predominate.”The IMF, a 190-country lending organization, is forecasting 7% global inflation this year, down from 8.7% in 2022 but up from its January for...

Why are there so many good TV shows to watch right now?

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

Picture May 17, 2001. In the final seconds of the season seven finale of “Friends,” Jennifer Aniston’s Rachel reveals she’s pregnant — but who’s the father? This was a classic May sweeps cliffhanger, luring viewers and reaping advertising dollars for NBC.Most shows used to kick off in the fall, air big episodes in November and February, and go out with a bang in May. Baby announcements, marriage proposals and sudden deaths were just a few of the popular plot twists used in spring season finales to hook viewers and build anticipation for the fall season.Network television still largely follows that model, but the streamers and premium cable competitors of the new guard tend to operate with different goals. Rather than angling for ratings, those companies are releasing new seasons of popular TV shows — “Ted Lasso,” “Succession,” “The Mandalorian,” “ The Last of Us,” and “ Yellowjackets ” — with an eye to Primetime Emmy Award recognition.Everyone wants to be fre...

Biden administration seeks input on AI safety measures

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

President Joe Biden’s administration wants stronger measures to test the safety of artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT before they are publicly released, though it hasn’t decided if the government will have a role in doing the vetting.The U.S. Commerce Department on Tuesday said it will spend the next 60 days fielding opinions on the possibility of AI audits, risk assessments and other measures that could ease consumer concerns about these new systems.“There is a heightened level of concern now, given the pace of innovation, that it needs to happen responsibly,” said Assistant Commerce Secretary Alan Davidson, administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.The NTIA, more of an adviser than a regulator, is seeking feedback about what policies could make commercial AI tools more accountable. Biden last week said during a meeting with his council of science and technology advisers that tech companies must ensure their products are ...

4 in 10 say next vehicle may be electric: AP-NORC/EPIC poll

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:11:38 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Many Americans aren’t yet sold on going electric for their next cars, a new poll shows, with high prices and too few charging stations the main deterrents. About 4 in 10 U.S. adults are at least somewhat likely to switch, but the history-making shift from the country’s century-plus love affair with gas-driven vehicles still has a ways to travel.The poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago shows that the Biden administration’s plans to dramatically raise U.S. EV sales could run into resistance from consumers. Only 8% of U.S. adults say they or someone in their household owns or leases an electric vehicle, and just 8% say their household has a plug-in hybrid vehicle.Even with tax credits of up to $7,500 to buy a new EV, it could be difficult to persuade drivers to ditch their gas-burning cars and trucks for vehicles without tailpipe emissions. Auto companies are investing billion...