George Carlin estate sues over fake comedy special purportedly generated by AI (apnews.com)
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Los Angeles on Thursday asks that a judge order the podcast outlet, Dudesy, to immediately take down the audio special, “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” in which a synthesis of Carlin, who died in 2008, delivers commentary on current events....
An unlikely challenger to Putin brings a rare show of defiance, creating a dilemma for the Kremlin (apnews.com)
Boris Nadezhdin has become a dilemma for the Kremlin as he seeks to run in the March 17 presidential election. The question now is whether Russian authorities will allow him on the ballot....
Top UN court stops short of ordering cease-fire in Gaza and demands Israel contain deaths (apnews.com)
Russia fires a top geneticist who claimed people could live to 900 before sins caused Biblical flood (apnews.com)
Russia’s science and higher education ministry has dismissed the head of a prestigious genetics institute who sparked controversy by contending that humans once lived for centuries and that the shorter lives of modern humans are due to their ancestors’ sins, state news agency RIA-Novosti said Thursday....
Schools are using surveillance tech to catch students vaping, snaring some with harsh punishments (apnews.com)
When Aaliyah Iglesias was caught vaping at a Texas high school, she didn’t realize how much could be taken from her....
Top UN court orders Israel to prevent genocide in Gaza but stops short of ordering cease-fire (apnews.com)
Here is a pdf of the ICJ’s Order of 26 January 2024....
Tesla recalling nearly 200,000 vehicles because software glitch can cause backup camera to go dark (apnews.com)
The recall covers certain Models Y, S and X from the 2023 model year. All are equipped with “Full Self-Driving” computer 4.0 and run software version 2023.44.30 through 2023.44.30.6 or 2023.44.100....
In-N-Out to close first location in its 75-year history due to a wave of car break-ins and robberies (apnews.com)
In-N-Out Burger says it will close its first location in its 75-year history due to a wave of car break-ins, property damage, theft and robberies affecting customers and employees alike at its only restaurant in Oakland, California....
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to ask lawmakers to make community college free for all high school graduates (apnews.com)
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer plans to urge state lawmakers to pass legislation that would provide free community college tuition for all high school graduates during her sixth State of the State speech on Wednesday....
Donald Trump testifies for less than 3 minutes in defamation trial and is rebuked by judge (apnews.com)
He testified for under three minutes. But former President Donald Trump still broke a judge’s rules on what he could tell a jury about writer E. Jean Carroll’s sexual assault and defamation allegations, and he left the courtroom Thursday bristling to the spectators: “This is not America.”...
Iowa promised $75 million for school safety. Two shootings later, the money is largely unspent (apnews.com)
The June 2022 announcement was addressed to parents horrified by the massacre at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas: Iowa would spend $75 million in federal pandemic relief funds to improve school building security....
Top UN court stops short of ordering cease-fire in Gaza and demands Israel contain deaths (apnews.com)
Biden delays consideration of new natural gas export terminals. Democrat cites risk to climate (apnews.com)
The Biden administration is delaying consideration of new natural gas export terminals in the United States, even as gas shipments to Europe and Asia have soared in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine....
Once in the millions, Guinea worm cases numbered 13 in 2023, Carter Center's initial count says (apnews.com)
Guinea worm disease remains on the cusp of being eradicated, with the global number of cases in 2023 holding steady at 13, according to a provisional account released by The Carter Center.
Governor drafting plan to help Pennsylvania higher ed system that's among the worst in affordability (apnews.com)
Gov. Josh Shapiro plans next month to propose an overhaul of a higher education system in Pennsylvania that is among the worst in the nation in affordability, his administration said Friday....
A day after Trump testifies, lawyers have final say in E. Jean Carroll defamation trial (apnews.com)
Closing arguments are to begin Friday in the defamation case against Donald Trump a day after the former president left a New York courtroom fuming that he hadn’t been given an opportunity to refute E. Jean Carroll’s sexual abuse accusations....
Report finds 93 US deaths after cosmetic surgery in Dominican Republic since 2009 (apnews.com)
U.S. health officials say 93 Americans have died after cosmetic surgery in the Dominican Republic since 2009, with many of the recent deaths involving a procedure known as a Brazilian butt lift....
Robitussin maker recalls several lots of cough syrup due to contamination (apnews.com)
The maker of Robitussin cough syrup is recalling several lots of products containing honey due to contamination that could pose a serious risk to people with weakened immune systems....
West Virginia GOP majority pushes contentious bills arming teachers, restricting bathrooms, books (apnews.com)
West Virginia’s Republican-dominated Legislature pushed forward a slate of contentious bills Wednesday that would arm teachers, allow people to sue libraries over books that offend them and restrict where transgender kids can use the bathroom at school....
Harry Connick Sr., longtime New Orleans district attorney and singer’s dad, dies at 97 (apnews.com)
Former New Orleans District Attorney Harry Connick Sr. has died at age 97. An obituary distributed by his son and namesake, Harry Connick Jr., says Connick died peacefully at his home in New Orleans on Thursday with his family by his side.
A US Congressional delegation affirms bipartisan support for Taiwan in first visit since election (apnews.com)
A bipartisan delegation from the United States Congress reaffirmed support for Taiwan during a visit Thursday following its election of a new president. The delegation’s visit is the first by U.S. lawmakers to the island since the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party won a third-straight term in the Jan. 13...
A Texas school's punishment of a Black student who wears his hair in locs is going to trial (apnews.com)
A judge ordered Wednesday that a trial be held next month to determine whether a Black high school student in Texas can continue being punished by his district for refusing to change a hairstyle he and his family say is protected by a new state law....
Sri Lanka passes bill allowing government to remove online posts and legally pursue internet users (apnews.com)
Danish report underscores 'systematic illegal behavior' in adoptions of children from South Korea (apnews.com)
A Danish report on Thursday said that adoptions of children from South Korea to Denmark in the 1970s and 1980s was “characterized by systematic illegal behavior” in the Asian country....