In the fast-paced world of gaming, competition is fierce, innovation is key, and success is hard-won. And now, all eyes are on Alibaba Games as they make their move to shake up the industry with their latest initiatives. With a strong foothold in the e-commerce and tech sectors, Alibaba is poised to bring its expertise and resources to the gaming sphere, aiming to revolutionize the way we play and interact in the digital realm.
It was a hot summer day, and Mrs. Chen, dressed in a simple floral dress and clutching a weathered handbag, had set out from her home in a nearby neighborhood to run a few errands. However, somewhere along the way, she took a wrong turn and found herself lost in an unfamiliar part of the city. Determined to find her way back, Mrs. Chen continued walking, unaware of the distance she had covered and the worry she was causing her family.
By BILL BARROW, Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Jimmy Carter, the peanut farmer who won the presidency in the wake of the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, endured humbling defeat after one tumultuous term and then redefined life after the White House as a global humanitarian, has died. He was 100 years old. The longest-lived American president died on Sunday, more than a year after entering hospice care , at his home in the small town of Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, Rosalynn, who died at 96 in November 2023 , spent most of their lives, The Carter Center said. Businessman, Navy officer, evangelist, politician, negotiator, author, woodworker, citizen of the world — Carter forged a path that still challenges political assumptions and stands out among the 45 men who reached the nation’s highest office. The 39th president leveraged his ambition with a keen intellect, deep religious faith and prodigious work ethic, conducting diplomatic missions into his 80s and building houses for the poor well into his 90s. “My faith demands — this is not optional — my faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can, with whatever I have to try to make a difference,” Carter once said. A moderate Democrat, Carter entered the 1976 presidential race as a little-known Georgia governor with a broad smile, outspoken Baptist mores and technocratic plans reflecting his education as an engineer. His no-frills campaign depended on public financing, and his promise not to deceive the American people resonated after Richard Nixon’s disgrace and U.S. defeat in southeast Asia. “If I ever lie to you, if I ever make a misleading statement, don’t vote for me. I would not deserve to be your president,” Carter repeated before narrowly beating Republican incumbent Gerald Ford, who had lost popularity pardoning Nixon. Carter governed amid Cold War pressures, turbulent oil markets and social upheaval over racism, women’s rights and America’s global role. His most acclaimed achievement in office was a Mideast peace deal that he brokered by keeping Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at the bargaining table for 13 days in 1978. That Camp David experience inspired the post-presidential center where Carter would establish so much of his legacy. Yet Carter’s electoral coalition splintered under double-digit inflation, gasoline lines and the 444-day hostage crisis in Iran. His bleakest hour came when eight Americans died in a failed hostage rescue in April 1980, helping to ensure his landslide defeat to Republican Ronald Reagan. Carter acknowledged in his 2020 “White House Diary” that he could be “micromanaging” and “excessively autocratic,” complicating dealings with Congress and the federal bureaucracy. He also turned a cold shoulder to Washington’s news media and lobbyists, not fully appreciating their influence on his political fortunes. “It didn’t take us long to realize that the underestimation existed, but by that time we were not able to repair the mistake,” Carter told historians in 1982, suggesting that he had “an inherent incompatibility” with Washington insiders. Carter insisted his overall approach was sound and that he achieved his primary objectives — to “protect our nation’s security and interests peacefully” and “enhance human rights here and abroad” — even if he fell spectacularly short of a second term. Ignominious defeat, though, allowed for renewal. The Carters founded The Carter Center in 1982 as a first-of-its-kind base of operations, asserting themselves as international peacemakers and champions of democracy, public health and human rights. “I was not interested in just building a museum or storing my White House records and memorabilia,” Carter wrote in a memoir published after his 90th birthday. “I wanted a place where we could work.” That work included easing nuclear tensions in North and South Korea, helping to avert a U.S. invasion of Haiti and negotiating cease-fires in Bosnia and Sudan. By 2022, The Carter Center had declared at least 113 elections in Latin America, Asia and Africa to be free or fraudulent. Recently, the center began monitoring U.S. elections as well. Carter’s stubborn self-assuredness and even self-righteousness proved effective once he was unencumbered by the Washington order, sometimes to the point of frustrating his successors . He went “where others are not treading,” he said, to places like Ethiopia, Liberia and North Korea, where he secured the release of an American who had wandered across the border in 2010. “I can say what I like. I can meet whom I want. I can take on projects that please me and reject the ones that don’t,” Carter said. He announced an arms-reduction-for-aid deal with North Korea without clearing the details with Bill Clinton’s White House. He openly criticized President George W. Bush for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He also criticized America’s approach to Israel with his 2006 book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid.” And he repeatedly countered U.S. administrations by insisting North Korea should be included in international affairs, a position that most aligned Carter with Republican President Donald Trump. Among the center’s many public health initiatives, Carter vowed to eradicate the guinea worm parasite during his lifetime, and nearly achieved it: Cases dropped from millions in the 1980s to nearly a handful. With hardhats and hammers, the Carters also built homes with Habitat for Humanity. The Nobel committee’s 2002 Peace Prize cites his “untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” Carter should have won it alongside Sadat and Begin in 1978, the chairman added. Carter accepted the recognition saying there was more work to be done. “The world is now, in many ways, a more dangerous place,” he said. “The greater ease of travel and communication has not been matched by equal understanding and mutual respect.” Carter’s globetrotting took him to remote villages where he met little “Jimmy Carters,” so named by admiring parents. But he spent most of his days in the same one-story Plains house — expanded and guarded by Secret Service agents — where they lived before he became governor. He regularly taught Sunday School lessons at Maranatha Baptist Church until his mobility declined and the coronavirus pandemic raged. Those sessions drew visitors from around the world to the small sanctuary where Carter will receive his final send-off after a state funeral at Washington’s National Cathedral. The common assessment that he was a better ex-president than president rankled Carter and his allies. His prolific post-presidency gave him a brand above politics, particularly for Americans too young to witness him in office. But Carter also lived long enough to see biographers and historians reassess his White House years more generously. His record includes the deregulation of key industries, reduction of U.S. dependence on foreign oil, cautious management of the national debt and notable legislation on the environment, education and mental health. He focused on human rights in foreign policy, pressuring dictators to release thousands of political prisoners . He acknowledged America’s historical imperialism, pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders and relinquished control of the Panama Canal. He normalized relations with China. “I am not nominating Jimmy Carter for a place on Mount Rushmore,” Stuart Eizenstat, Carter’s domestic policy director, wrote in a 2018 book. “He was not a great president” but also not the “hapless and weak” caricature voters rejected in 1980, Eizenstat said. Rather, Carter was “good and productive” and “delivered results, many of which were realized only after he left office.” Madeleine Albright, a national security staffer for Carter and Clinton’s secretary of state, wrote in Eizenstat’s forward that Carter was “consequential and successful” and expressed hope that “perceptions will continue to evolve” about his presidency. “Our country was lucky to have him as our leader,” said Albright, who died in 2022. Jonathan Alter, who penned a comprehensive Carter biography published in 2020, said in an interview that Carter should be remembered for “an epic American life” spanning from a humble start in a home with no electricity or indoor plumbing through decades on the world stage across two centuries. “He will likely go down as one of the most misunderstood and underestimated figures in American history,” Alter told The Associated Press. James Earl Carter Jr. was born Oct. 1, 1924, in Plains and spent his early years in nearby Archery. His family was a minority in the mostly Black community, decades before the civil rights movement played out at the dawn of Carter’s political career. Carter, who campaigned as a moderate on race relations but governed more progressively, talked often of the influence of his Black caregivers and playmates but also noted his advantages: His land-owning father sat atop Archery’s tenant-farming system and owned a main street grocery. His mother, Lillian , would become a staple of his political campaigns. Seeking to broaden his world beyond Plains and its population of fewer than 1,000 — then and now — Carter won an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1946. That same year he married Rosalynn Smith, another Plains native, a decision he considered more important than any he made as head of state. She shared his desire to see the world, sacrificing college to support his Navy career. Carter climbed in rank to lieutenant, but then his father was diagnosed with cancer, so the submarine officer set aside his ambitions of admiralty and moved the family back to Plains. His decision angered Rosalynn, even as she dived into the peanut business alongside her husband. Carter again failed to talk with his wife before his first run for office — he later called it “inconceivable” not to have consulted her on such major life decisions — but this time, she was on board. “My wife is much more political,” Carter told the AP in 2021. He won a state Senate seat in 1962 but wasn’t long for the General Assembly and its back-slapping, deal-cutting ways. He ran for governor in 1966 — losing to arch-segregationist Lester Maddox — and then immediately focused on the next campaign. Carter had spoken out against church segregation as a Baptist deacon and opposed racist “Dixiecrats” as a state senator. Yet as a local school board leader in the 1950s he had not pushed to end school segregation even after the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision, despite his private support for integration. And in 1970, Carter ran for governor again as the more conservative Democrat against Carl Sanders, a wealthy businessman Carter mocked as “Cufflinks Carl.” Sanders never forgave him for anonymous, race-baiting flyers, which Carter disavowed. Ultimately, Carter won his races by attracting both Black voters and culturally conservative whites. Once in office, he was more direct. “I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over,” he declared in his 1971 inaugural address, setting a new standard for Southern governors that landed him on the cover of Time magazine. His statehouse initiatives included environmental protection, boosting rural education and overhauling antiquated executive branch structures. He proclaimed Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the slain civil rights leader’s home state. And he decided, as he received presidential candidates in 1972, that they were no more talented than he was. In 1974, he ran Democrats’ national campaign arm. Then he declared his own candidacy for 1976. An Atlanta newspaper responded with the headline: “Jimmy Who?” The Carters and a “Peanut Brigade” of family members and Georgia supporters camped out in Iowa and New Hampshire, establishing both states as presidential proving grounds. His first Senate endorsement: a young first-termer from Delaware named Joe Biden. Yet it was Carter’s ability to navigate America’s complex racial and rural politics that cemented the nomination. He swept the Deep South that November, the last Democrat to do so, as many white Southerners shifted to Republicans in response to civil rights initiatives. A self-declared “born-again Christian,” Carter drew snickers by referring to Scripture in a Playboy magazine interview, saying he “had looked on many women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times.” The remarks gave Ford a new foothold and television comedians pounced — including NBC’s new “Saturday Night Live” show. But voters weary of cynicism in politics found it endearing. Carter chose Minnesota Sen. Walter “Fritz” Mondale as his running mate on a “Grits and Fritz” ticket. In office, he elevated the vice presidency and the first lady’s office. Mondale’s governing partnership was a model for influential successors Al Gore, Dick Cheney and Biden. Rosalynn Carter was one of the most involved presidential spouses in history, welcomed into Cabinet meetings and huddles with lawmakers and top aides. The Carters presided with uncommon informality: He used his nickname “Jimmy” even when taking the oath of office, carried his own luggage and tried to silence the Marine Band’s “Hail to the Chief.” They bought their clothes off the rack. Carter wore a cardigan for a White House address, urging Americans to conserve energy by turning down their thermostats. Amy, the youngest of four children, attended District of Columbia public school. Washington’s social and media elite scorned their style. But the larger concern was that “he hated politics,” according to Eizenstat, leaving him nowhere to turn politically once economic turmoil and foreign policy challenges took their toll. Carter partially deregulated the airline, railroad and trucking industries and established the departments of Education and Energy, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He designated millions of acres of Alaska as national parks or wildlife refuges. He appointed a then-record number of women and nonwhite people to federal posts. He never had a Supreme Court nomination, but he elevated civil rights attorney Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the nation’s second highest court, positioning her for a promotion in 1993. He appointed Paul Volker, the Federal Reserve chairman whose policies would help the economy boom in the 1980s — after Carter left office. He built on Nixon’s opening with China, and though he tolerated autocrats in Asia, pushed Latin America from dictatorships to democracy. But he couldn’t immediately tame inflation or the related energy crisis. And then came Iran. After he admitted the exiled Shah of Iran to the U.S. for medical treatment, the American Embassy in Tehran was overrun in 1979 by followers of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Negotiations to free the hostages broke down repeatedly ahead of the failed rescue attempt. The same year, Carter signed SALT II, the new strategic arms treaty with Leonid Brezhnev of the Soviet Union, only to pull it back, impose trade sanctions and order a U.S. boycott of the Moscow Olympics after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. Hoping to instill optimism, he delivered what the media dubbed his “malaise” speech, although he didn’t use that word. He declared the nation was suffering “a crisis of confidence.” By then, many Americans had lost confidence in the president, not themselves. Carter campaigned sparingly for reelection because of the hostage crisis, instead sending Rosalynn as Sen. Edward M. Kennedy challenged him for the Democratic nomination. Carter famously said he’d “kick his ass,” but was hobbled by Kennedy as Reagan rallied a broad coalition with “make America great again” appeals and asking voters whether they were “better off than you were four years ago.” Reagan further capitalized on Carter’s lecturing tone, eviscerating him in their lone fall debate with the quip: “There you go again.” Carter lost all but six states and Republicans rolled to a new Senate majority. Carter successfully negotiated the hostages’ freedom after the election, but in one final, bitter turn of events, Tehran waited until hours after Carter left office to let them walk free. At 56, Carter returned to Georgia with “no idea what I would do with the rest of my life.” Four decades after launching The Carter Center, he still talked of unfinished business. “I thought when we got into politics we would have resolved everything,” Carter told the AP in 2021. “But it’s turned out to be much more long-lasting and insidious than I had thought it was. I think in general, the world itself is much more divided than in previous years.” Still, he affirmed what he said when he underwent treatment for a cancer diagnosis in his 10th decade of life. “I’m perfectly at ease with whatever comes,” he said in 2015 . “I’ve had a wonderful life. I’ve had thousands of friends, I’ve had an exciting, adventurous and gratifying existence.” ___ Former Associated Press journalist Alex Sanz contributed to this report.We hope you had a chance between holiday festivities to get some shopping done, but if not, you may not be out of luck. While some of the best deals have expired, many others from the long Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend are still holding on — and a handful are even cheaper. Today might be your very last chance to snag a great deal, but you’re not in it alone. We’re sorting through them all to make sure you can find a great deal on something and get through checkout before the gates fully close. Since this time last week, we’ve been sifting through what feels like endless discounts on everything under the sun, but especially things that delight techies, tinkerers, gamers, and fidgeters. There are still great Cyber Monday deals on TVs, earbuds, laptops, Apple devices, smart home gadgets, and far too many more tech things to name here. And everything we highlight has been tried, tested, or vouched for in some way by staffers, so you don’t have to guess whether any of the deals are too good to be true. Below, we’ve included navigation links that you can use to jump between categories that interest you most, or just scroll at your leisure until you see something you like. Don’t worry if you missed out on something specific you’ve had your eye on — many products typically go on sale at least once more throughout the holiday season, although there’s no guarantee they’ll be as cheap. / The second-gen AirPods Pro improve upon Apple’s original pair with much better noise cancellation, sound quality, and onboard volume controls. The latest refresh also ships with a USB-C charging case, as opposed to Lightning. Read our review. Sony’s new standard PlayStation 5 includes a removable disc drive, dual front-facing USB-C ports, 1TB of storage, and a slightly smaller and lighter design. is the latest installment in the franchise. The storyline and gameplay are similar to ’s but enough has changed to make Link’s return to Hyrule plenty special. Read our review. Apple’s AirTags are unobtrusive, waterproof, and tap into the massive Find My network for out-of-range locating. Read our review. The Keychron V1 is the best entry-level wired mechanical keyboard. It has hot-swappable switches, full remappability with VIA, great build quality, RGB backlighting, and double-shot PBT keycaps for under $100. The Goliath Power Saber is the first self-retracting and extending power blade you can buy. The clever light-up toy uses a long screw to automatically raise a series of telescoping tubes, which safely collapse when pressed against something. Just don’t call it a lightsaber. The X10 is a great robovac with excellent AI-powered obstacle avoidance, powerful oscillating mops, a user-friendly app, and good mapping capabilities. Its rubber bristle brush means it is not as good as my top picks at getting up dirt and debris, but it’s a terrific price for a bot with all these functions, and as a bonus, its dock is compact and not a major eyesore. Hoto’s electric screwdriver is perfect for making small- to medium-sized repairs around the house. In addition to a USB-C port, the screwdriver comes with a magnetic case and 25 steel bits. Max is home to and its spinoff, , as well as shows and movies like , , , and more As a part of its Black Friday / Cyber Monday promotion, Max is letting new and returning subscribers sign up for its monthly, ad-supported tier for just $2.99 for the first six months. The Twelve South AirFly Pro Bluetooth transmitter and receiver features an integrated 3.5mm cord and long-lasting battery life. It can also connect up to two sets of headphones, making it a great choice for listening to in-flight entertainment. The Aura Carver photo frame is a cloud-connected digital photo frame that’s more stylish than a Google Nest Hub or Echo Show, one that pairs just as well with Android as iOS. iFixit’s bestselling toolkit includes tweezers, spudgers, and — most importantly — a 64-piece driver kit with an array of bits for working with smartphones, laptops, and other small electronics. The controller designed for the PS5, featuring adaptive triggers, a built-in microphone, and haptic feedback technologies. Read our review. Bird Buddy’s charming camera-equipped feeder identifies and snaps shots of each bird that stops by, supplementing the 5MP stills with insightful facts via an app. Breville’s Barista Express certainly isn’t the cheapest option out there, but it’s elegant, straightforward, and relatively easy to maintain. Lego’s 327-piece Plum Blossom set is a fun way to add faux flora to your home. The set depicts a plum branch emerging from a blue-and-gold flowerpot on a wooden stand — all made from Lego, of course. The Apple Watch Series 10 has a larger, wide-angle OLED display with up to 30 percent more screen area. It’s also thinner and lighter than its predecessors. Read our review. The Apple Pencil Pro offers a slate of new features, including Find My support so you can find the stylus when it gets lost. It also touts new creative capabilities, like squeeze gestures and a “Barrel Roll” gyroscope. With lossless USB-C audio, 50-hour battery life, Find My, spatial audio, and more comfy ear cups, the Beats Solo 4 gained significant quality-of-life improvements over their eight-year-old predecessors. They still deliver that bass-rich Beats sound, too. Read our review. With dynamic, rich sound and the best noise cancellation available in true wireless earbuds, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds are a terrific pick if you want to listen to your music in peace. Read our review. Bose’s latest flagship headphones are a replacement for the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 that offer a more travel-friendly design, spatial audio, better call quality, excellent comfort, and some of the best noise cancellation around. Read our review. Jabra’s Elite 4 Active remain great fitness-focused earbuds if you’re on a budget. They’re smaller than Jabra’s Elite 3 and offer active noise cancellation along with IP57 water resistance, though they lack multipoint and wireless charging. Significantly smaller and lighter than their predecessors, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 also offer stronger noise cancellation, a crystal-clear transparency mode, and lengthy battery life. Read our review. The Galaxy Buds 3 Pro are Samsung’s best-sounding wireless earbuds yet. They have a stemmed design similar to the AirPods Pro, but even if their design is a little bland, the Buds 3 Pro make up for it with great call quality, useful voice commands, and more. Read our review. With improved comfort, refined sound, and even better active noise cancellation, Sony’s WH-1000XM5 offer a compelling mix of features for the price. With marathon 60-hour battery life and sublime comfort, the Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless also make good on the company’s reputation for detailed, rich sound quality. Read our review. Sony’s wireless headphones offer noise cancellation and up to 35 hours of battery life on a single charge. They also come in blue, white, and black. Amazon’s second-gen Echo Buds offer a comfortable design, good ANC, and a natural ambient sound mode. They support hands-free Alexa commands as well. Read our review. The JLab Go Air Pop is an affordable pair of wireless earbuds with eight hours of battery life (or 32 hours with the included charging case). The case also houses a built-in USB-A charging plug, so you’re never without a charging cable. Ultimate Ears’ latest disc-shaped Bluetooth speaker is small and affordable, with a built-in strap for attaching it to your belongings. It also charges via USB-C and features an IP67 rating against dust and water, along with up to 12 hours of battery life. The latest Emberton speaker is an IP67-rated Bluetooth speaker with great sound, long-lasting battery life, and a timeless design that takes a cue from Marshall’s classic guitar amps. The fifth-gen Echo Dot touts a temperature sensor, better sound, and faster response time than the prior model. It can also act as an extender for your Eero Wi-Fi system. Read our review. Amazon’s colorful Echo Pop offers a unique semisphere form factor and can function as an Eero mesh Wi-Fi extender. Read our review. Amazon’s full-size Echo from 2020 has a spherical build and better sound quality than previous iterations, with a broader sound than the smaller Echo Dots. Read our review. Samsung’s Music Frame is a 12.9 x 12.9-inch picture frame with a physical print at the front that you can customize with art or a photo. Along with support for Dolby Atmos, it’s compatible with Amazon Alexa and Samsung Bixby. The 2024 Beats Pill offers improved sound, USB-C, and native support for Find My and voice assistants on both iOS and Android. It also bests the previous model with double the battery life (24 hours) and IP67 water resistance. Read our review. The latest Echo Show 5 is just as small as its predecessor but features updated mics and a speaker system that delivers double the bass and clearer sound quality. Bose’s SoundLink Max improves on the smaller flex with true stereo sound — and very powerful sound at that. It’s got a removable handle for easy transport, and there’s an aux input for playing audio when you want to listen at a higher quality than what Bluetooth can deliver. The Boox Palma is a 6.1-inch smartphone-sized e-reader that’s highly portable. It also runs on Android and comes with the Google Play Store built in, allowing you to download apps for other digital bookstores, newspapers, note-taking apps, and more. The ad-free Kobo Libra Colour is a color e-reader with physical page-turning buttons and a 7-inch E Ink display. It also boasts IPX8 waterproofing and compatibility with the Kobo Stylus 2. Read our review. The Kobo Elipsa 2E is an ad-free, 10.3-inch e-reader you can write on with the included stylus. It offers a whole host of useful features, like the ability to convert handwriting to typed text and a great selection of pen types. The new Surface Pro maintains its winning form factor, which sets it apart from traditional laptops. It now houses the battery-efficient Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chipset, however, and the detachable keyboard has been improved with bolder, brighter keys and a Copilot button. Read our review. The 15-inch Surface Laptop offers more connectivity options than the smaller 13.8-inch model. It gains a second Thunderbolt 4 port and a USB-A port but touts the same AI-ready Snapdragon X Elite chipset, a Copilot key, and design tweaks to minimize display bezels. Read our review. MSI’s Cyborg 14 is a portable, modestly specced gaming laptop. It’s got a 1920 x 1200 display with 144Hz refresh, an Intel Core i7 13620H processor, RTX 4060 discrete graphics, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD — all in a fairly slim and affordable package, complete with a seethrough chassis. The ROG Strix Scar 17 X3D is one of the fastest gaming laptops you can get, thanks to its AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX3D processor and Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU. With 32GB of RAM, 1TB storage, and a 240Hz 1440p screen, it’s the high-end laptop to beat. This 14-inch ROG Zephyrus is an astonishingly balanced gaming laptop for its performance and price. Its AMD Ryzen 9 CPU and Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU can push high frame rates and smooth graphics in games with its OLED display. LG’s 27GR95QE-B is a 27-inch gaming monitor with a high-quality 2560 x 1440 OLED panel that supports up to 240Hz refresh for fast performance in competitive games. It has HDMI 2.1 ports with built-in downscaling for making 4K content look good on its 1440p display. Read our review. The Combo j9 Plus is our favorite Roomba robot vacuum. The first Roomba that can refill its own mop tank and empty its own bin, its redesigned dock doubles as a table. Neat! It has increased suction power and a new SmartScrub feature that moves back and forth to mop more effectively. At over 50 percent off, the Roomba j7 Plus is a great deal for our former top Roomba pick. It features obstacle avoidance that allows it to navigate around furniture and smaller objects that it deems hazardous. In addition to cleaning on a set schedule, the j7 can jump to work via voice commands or the Roomba app. Read our review. With a big 770ml bin and 5,500Pa of suction power, the Q5 Pro is a great budget option. It has a removable mopping pad with a small built-in water tank, dual rubber brushes, lidar mapping, and keep-out zones, making it an excellent cleaning machine. It uses Roborock’s very good app and can pair with an auto-empty dock for extra convenience. These smart lights have beautiful colors, a nice selection of festive scenes, and an easy-to-use app. They are super reliable when paired with a Hue Bridge and also work over Bluetooth. They come in two lengths, work with all the major smart home platforms, and are Matter-compatible. The latest version of Google’s Nest Learning Thermostat offers a new, sleeker design, support for Matter, and a Soli radar sensor to detect a person approaching it. It also includes one remote Temperature Sensor (second-gen) for monitoring the temp in a room of your choosing. Read our hands-on impressions. Designed to mimic an actual skylight, Nanoleaf’s smart ceiling lights offer tunable LEDs as well as hundreds of lighting scenes — including AI-generated dynamic effects. Nanoleaf’s modular lights can showcase over 16 million colors and are compatible with both Alexa and Google Assistant. Nanoleaf’s hexagonal panels represent a unique spin on smart lighting, with a wooden look that’s designed to be an attractive accent in your home even when they’re not illuminated. The LED panels can be arranged in a layout of your choosing, too. The Nest Wifi Pro is an upgraded version of the standard model, and it’s equipped with Matter and Thread support in addition to Wi-Fi 6E connectivity. Read our review. Kasa’s smart plugs let you add voice controls and scheduling to any outlet. They can also help you monitor your energy usage and work with Siri, Amazon Alexa, and Google Assistant. Aqara’s budget door lock, the U50, is a basic but great lock. It has a touchscreen keypad for key-free access and works with Apple Home Key as well as a regular key. It needs an Aqara hub or Apple Home Hub for out-of-home control, and it’s Matter compatible, so it works with all the major smart home platforms. Read our review. A Google Nest Cam attached to two bright, adjustable floodlights, this camera has free video recording, powerful lights, and on-device processing of smart alerts for people, vehicles, and animals. There’s no siren, but there is 24/7 recording and facial recognition. Read our review. Expensive but with a premium feel, this smart lock is reliable, feels good in your hand, and doesn’t require switching out your entire deadbolt. You can keep your existing key, and it will auto-unlock as you arrive home. But beware of the poor battery life and prepare to stockpile those CR123 batteries. Read our guide to the best smart locks. The last-gen Garmin Forerunner 255 is a great option for runners looking for a long-lasting memory-in-pixel display with dual-frequency GPS. Read our review. The Fitbit Charge 6 features a haptic side button, an improved heart rate algorithm, turn-by-turn navigation with Google Maps, and the ability to broadcast your heart rate on certain Bluetooth gym equipment. Read our review. The Oura Ring Gen 3 is a discreet sleep and recovery tracker that tracks heart rate, body temperature, and activity. It comes with a six-month free trial, with a $5.99 monthly subscription after that. Read our review. The Amazfit Band 7 is an unassuming, basic fitness tracker with a bright OLED display, long battery life, and an incredible feature set for the price. Read our review. The Chromecast with Google TV (4K) features a dedicated remote and intuitive software that pulls together recommendations from all of your streaming services. It also supports 4K HDR content with Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HDR10 Plus. Read our review. The TCL QM7 can hit a peak brightness of 2,400 nits and includes TCL’s premium features like a variable refresh rate that can be pushed all the way to 240Hz. TCL refers to it as a “QD-Mini LED” TV, which it uses to set apart models with the best picture quality. It uses Google TV and supports several of the latest HDR and surround sound technologies. The LG C4 is a 4K OLED TV that’s great for gaming, with a max 144Hz refresh rate and support for Nvidia G-Sync and AMD Freesync variable refresh rate tech. It has a brighter panel and overall better picture quality than its predecessor. The budget-friendly Hisense U6 Series supports Dolby Vision HDR and full-array local dimming, allowing it to deliver punchy colors and good contrast. It also comes with Google’s TV software built in, along with Dolby Atmos support for more immersive sound. The Xgimi MoGo 2 Pro is a portable smart projector and Bluetooth speaker that delivers surprisingly good picture and sound quality for its size. Read our review. Amazon’s own Fire TV Soundbar is a 2.0-channel speaker that stretches 24 inches long. It’s got support for Dolby Audio, DTS, and Bluetooth and connects to a compatible TV via an HDMI port with eARC or ARC. Read our hands-on impressions. The Sonos Arc is a powerful Dolby Atmos speaker that also integrates with the company’s multiroom audio platform. With extra capabilities like Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple’s AirPlay 2, it’s a feature-rich soundbar that sounds just as good when playing music. Read our review. Paramount Plus and Showtime grant you ad-free access to live sports as well as movies and shows from both platforms, including , , and . Until December 4th, new and returning subscribers can sign up for the ad-free Paramount Plus with Showtime plan for $2.99 a month for two months. YouTube TV offers access to more than 100 major channels covering live sports, news, entertainment, and more. It also includes unlimited recording for up to six accounts. The 2024 Razr Plus is Motorola’s best foldable yet, with an improved cover screen UI and one of the biggest front displays on any modern flip phone. Read our review. The S24 “Fan Edition” is the least expensive of Samsung’s S-series and has two major selling points: a dedicated 3x telephoto camera and a big, 6.7-inch display. Read our review. The Galaxy S24 Ultra is just loaded with goodies, including a big, beautiful display, an integrated stylus, and two telephoto cameras. Read our review. The DJI Osmo Mobile 6 is a compact smartphone gimbal that allows you to easily stabilize your videos. The latest version is similar to previous models, only it touts a small OLED display to manage various shooting modes and a more portable, foldable design. Belkin’s laptop-friendly Continuity Camera mount offers great build quality, a built-in kickstand, and — most importantly — an easy way to use your MagSafe-equipped iPhone as a webcam. Apple’s updated magnetic charging puck is available in two sizes, 1m and 2m, and supports 15W MagSafe / Qi2 charging as well as 25W charging on the iPhone 16 only. A compact, flexible Qi2 charger for vent and dash mounting. Read our review. Anker’s three-port portable charger features a digital display and 140W output, making it perfectly suitable for charging smartphones, laptops, and headphones simultaneously. Nomad’s updated 3-in-1 Stand One Max adds Qi2 support for charging compatible iPhones at 15W. It can simultaneously charge AirPods and fast-charge an Apple Watch. This all-in-one 20W power cube boasts three AC outlets, two USB-A ports, and one USB-C port. The Xbox Series X is Microsoft’s flagship console, serving as its most powerful (and biggest) option focused on fast, 4K gameplay. Read our review. The Huntsman Mini is Razer’s first 60 percent keyboard. It doesn’t feature a numpad or dedicated media controls, but it’s a very compact model that won’t take up much space on your desk. The Asus ROG Swift PG32UCDM 32-inch OLED supports 4K at up to 240Hz, and its generous port selection also offers KVM support for easily switching your peripherals between two devices. The Fusion Pro 3 is the latest version of PowerA’s affordable alternative to premium controllers like the Xbox Elite Series 2. It comes with swappable sticks, friction rings, a compact zip-up case, and features four programmable buttons built into its rear. is the kind of game you buy a PlayStation 5 for. The refreshing title features gorgeous environments and wildly inventive mechanics, many of which turn tried-and-true platforming mechanics on their head. It doesn’t hurt that Sony’s titular robot is as adorable as ever. Read our review. the latest FromSoftware title, takes the formula to a vast open world. Read our review. is the latest from the creators of the series, which is easy to tell based on its cell-shaded art style. The heavy-hitting story is less noticeable, though, and there’s a lot to unpack as you play through the medieval-era turn-based RPG. is the culmination of everything Remedy Entertainment has been building toward. The inventive third-person survival game is both horrifying and strange, with dual campaigns that are more than a little meta. Sony sells a bundle consisting of its PSVR 2, controllers, and a physical copy of for the PS5. Proprietary SSD expansion for the Xbox Series X / S consoles. The plug-and-play drives are designed to be as fast as the Xbox internal SSD and are sold in 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB configurations. Sony’s PlayStation Pulse Elite is an over-ear headset with a retractable boom mic. It’s designed to filter out background noise, deliver low latency and lossless audio, and work with the PlayStation Portal or the PlayStation 5, PC, and Mac via the PlayStation Link USB adapter. The Nova Pro Wireless gaming headset supports active noise cancellation, swappable batteries, Bluetooth support, and compatibility with PC and most consoles — including Xbox and PlayStation. This model includes a base station that makes it easy to toggle crucial sound settings. Read our review. The latest Tile Pro is the company’s most capable Bluetooth tracker and has an even wider range than its predecessor at 500 feet along with a user-replaceable battery, unlike other Tiles. Like the 2024 Tile Mate, however, it’s platform-agnostic and can also send SOS alerts if you pay for the $14.99 monthly Life360 Gold subscription. The Ember Mug 2 is a temperature-controlled smart mug that keeps beverages hot. The accompanying iOS and Android apps allow you to dial in a specific temperature, from 120 to 145 degrees Fahrenheit. If you’re looking for a way to break into the world of 3D printing, the full-size Bambu Lab P1P is a safe bet that requires little assembly. It offers breezy filament swapping and quick printing speeds, making it a great starter model. Fujifilm’s Instax Mini 12 is the best instant camera for most people. While it lacks more advanced features, the simple instant camera takes good-quality shots quickly and easily and offers a built-in selfie mode. It’s sold in a variety of fun colors that’ll especially appeal to kids and tweens. This walking pad can connect over Bluetooth with Mobvoi and other Android smartwatches. Headspace offers hundreds of guided meditations that are designed to relieve stress, improve productivity, and help you exercise. Right now, you can subscribe to an annual plan for $34.99, which is a 50 percent discount. The AeroPress has made a name among enthusiasts for its great brewing ability and extreme portability. Its simple, hands-on operation can make your morning coffee ritual more fun and engaging than a traditional drip-style maker. The Epomaker TH80 Pro is a well-equipped wireless mechanical keyboard. It’s customizable and feels good to type on while also being relatively affordable. Lego’s 540-piece Piranha Plant set remains one of the more affordable Lego Mario kits you can buy. It’s got a massive mouth, posable leaves, and comes with two coins inspired by the classic franchise. The G Pro X Superlight 2 is Logitech’s lightest and most advanced mouse to date. It features a 32,000 DPI Hero 2 sensor and 4kHz polling rate as well as support for USB-C charging and Logitech’s Powerplay mouse mat. Read our hands-on impressions. The Victrola Stream Onyx may be a cheaper alternative to the higher-end Stream Carbon, but it still features a metal platter and the ability to stream records straight to a Sonos system. The slice is a petite cutting tool with a ceramic blade that’s quick, easy, and safe. A strategy card game in which players compete to build Renaissance Europe’s most lucrative and prestigious jewelry business. In the iconic board game classic Catan players strategically compete and trade for resources. A cozy yet lightly competitive board game about caring for plants and flexing your (imaginary) green thumb. An instant-read thermometer that promises speed and accuracy. Garmin’s palm-size inReach Mini 2 satellite communicator provides off-the-grid contact with subscription plans starting at $14.95 a month. /In conclusion, the submission of Oscar's naturalization materials to the General Administration of Sport is a significant milestone in his journey towards potentially representing the Chinese national football team. While the outcome remains pending, the progress made so far signifies a promising future for both Oscar and Chinese football. As fans eagerly await the final decision, the potential impact of Oscar's naturalization on Chinese football cannot be underestimated, and it is a development worth following closely in the coming months.
Via Renewables, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIASP) Declares $0.72 Quarterly Dividend
December 12, 2024 This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlightedthe following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: fact-checked trusted source proofread by University of Oslo Is TikTok ruining today's youth? Not at all, according to a study led by Emilie Owens, researcher at the University of Oslo. The study is published in the journal International Research in Children's Literature . How does the social media platform TikTok affect teenagers' behavior? And how does it shape their lives? These are the questions Emilie Owens seeks to answer in her doctoral thesis . "My goal has been to get to know teenagers and their phones. I wanted to be in the room with them," says Owens, who is a doctoral research fellow in media studies at the University of Oslo. Her curiosity is a reaction to the negative attitude many adults have towards TikTok, she explains. "I too am critical of the commercial aspects of the platform. But I try to see it from another perspective as well. Teenagers in my research say that TikTok makes them happy and provides comfort. They also see it as a social activity." No significant gender differences Over a seven-month period, Owens visited a class at an international high school in Oslo. She did her best to make sure the students could relax and go about their normal teenage lives during her visits. Sometimes she assigned tasks—such as finding images on TikTok or creating their own to share. She did not just want to talk to the teenagers; she wanted to see them in action. "I thought I would see gender differences in the way boys and girls use TikTok. That was true to some extent, but not as much as I had thought," she says. A small subgroup of boys engaged more with sarcastic, political, and controversial topics, while the majority of the class mostly watched funny memes, quirky content, or educational content. Russian women explaining math "I was surprised by how much they said they learned from TikTok. Some even felt it was easier to understand people on TikTok than their own teachers," Owens says. A 16-year-old girl put it this way, "All of these controversies going on? There's always someone explaining it there. Or I have actually seen Russian ladies, like, describe math to me, and I understand it." A 17-year-old boy thought that the best part about TikTok is the short videos: "The best thing with TikTok is: because the videos are short, they just go straight to the point without any explanation. So you just get the main info and things, which is better for me, at least." A lens through which to see the world The teenagers also discussed various ways in which they use TikTok. Sometimes they watch while waiting for the bus or for dinner to heat up. Other times, they use it together with others—looking at each other's phones and sharing videos with one another. "In such cases, TikTok becomes a social focal point, a kind of lens through which they can see the world together," says Owens. Some also found it challenging to communicate with people who do not use TikTok. "I think TikTok can be a great way to bridge divides, such as in an international class with students from different countries. It provides common reference points," Owens explains. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. Sign up for our free newsletter and get updates on breakthroughs, innovations, and research that matter— daily or weekly . Eye strain after 12 hours A few mentioned that they did not like TikTok and preferred using YouTube, as they felt they learned more from it. Others said that they delete TikTok for three to four weeks when they have a lot of schoolwork. "One person said that after twelve hours, your eyes get sore. I'm not sure if she actually used it for that long, but it gives an idea of how it feels. Teenagers are well aware that this isn't good when it happens, and they don't like it." The teenagers felt that TikTok could be both good and bad for them. This also applied to the content. "If you follow the... I won't say the right type of people, but if you follow a certain type of people, it can be motivating. But if you follow a certain group of people, it can be very demotivating as well," said a 16-year-old boy. The word "brain rot" was also something the teenagers used to jokingly explain that the content on TikTok can be so silly that it makes your brain go rotten. As a term, it is not meant to be taken literally, writes Owens in a piece on psyche.co about TikTok and "brain rot." Growing up in a customized world One day, today's teenagers will become adults. What will it have meant for them to have had TikTok when they were young? This is something Owens has asked herself. "It certainly gives them a more customized world. They learn to expect things to be the way they want them, and if they don't like something, they can watch something else instead. I don't know what this means yet, but I think it could be interesting to explore the consequences." In terms of the parents, Owens points to another researcher at the University of Oslo, Professor Elisabeth Staksrud, who has conducted a lot of research on the parents of today's youth. Staksrud recommends that they get involved in their teenagers' lives. "It's probably wise to be realistic. Young people use social media now, and it's an important part of their lives. Approach it as you would any other issue in a teenager 's life. Ask them what's happening and show that you care," advises Emilie Owens. More information: Emilie Owens, Teens on TikTok: Understanding Young People's Digital Agency as Practice, International Research in Children's Literature (2024). DOI: 10.3366/ircl.2024.0562 Provided by University of OsloFor Elton John, Donald Trump's presidential election victory did not make Broadway great again. In an interview with Time magazine, which named the singer-songwriter its Icon of the Year, John seemed to blame Trump for the epic failure of his new musical "Tammy Faye." The composer, whose pricey show closed a flop on Sunday after just 29 regular performances, called "Tammy Faye" a "political piece of work" that pushed the wrong "buttons" in the days after Nov. 5. 3 Elton John said his flop musical "Tammy Faye" was too political to be embraced by theater critics. Bruce Glikas/Getty Images "It's a shame for everyone who put so much work in it," John, 77, told Time. "But that's what happens when you take a chance." "It's a fairly political piece of work," added John of the show that opened Nov. 14 and closed Dec. 8. "And with that you have to press somebody's buttons. The buttons we pressed last night with the critics weren't the right ones." "Tammy Faye" tells the story of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, the popular 1970s and '80s... Johnny Oleksinski
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Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has said his administration’s investment in infrastructural amenities on campus of higher institutions in the state has yielded positive results. Adeleke stated this on Thursday at the 8th combined convocation of the Osun State College of Technology, Esa-Oke. The governor, also said his administration’s efforts towards a more conducive environment for learning on campuses have made available the best possible training for students. He further said, “I am particularly delighted that our administration has been working tirelessly to support the growth and development of this institution. We have invested in infrastructure, equipment and human resources to ensure that our students receive the best possible training. Related News Osun APC plans ‘Trump’s strategy’ to unseat Adeleke Ex-NABTEB registrar seeks HND scrapping, advocates degree awards by polys Osun gov unveils agric scheme “I am glad that we have been able to boost the morale of both academic and non-teaching staff of this college through prompt payment of salaries since we came on board about two years ago.” Commending the chairman of the Governing Council of the institution, Diran Odeyemi and the management for their efforts towards improving the quality of education available in the institution, Adeleke, urged the graduands to use their skills and knowledge to create opportunities for growth and development for themselves and the nation at large. “At this juncture, let me congratulate our graduates. To you, I offer these words of encouragement: You have been equipped with the skills, knowledge and expertise to make a meaningful impact in your communities and the world. You have been trained to be innovators, entrepreneurs and problem solvers. “I urge you to use your skills and knowledge to create opportunities for growth and development, not only for yourselves but for your communities and our nation at large,” Adeleke said.
AUSTIN, Texas , Dec. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Oracle Corporation (NYSE: ORCL) today announced fiscal 2025 Q2 results. Total quarterly revenues were up 9% year-over-year, in both USD and constant currency, to $14.1 billion . Cloud services and license support revenues were up 12% year-over-year, in both USD and constant currency, to $10.8 billion . Cloud license and on-premise license revenues were up 1% in USD and up 3% in constant currency, to $1.2 billion . Q2 GAAP operating income was $4.2 billion . Non-GAAP operating income was $6.1 billion , up 10% in both USD and constant currency. GAAP operating margin was 30%, and non-GAAP operating margin was 43%. GAAP net income was $3.2 billion . Non-GAAP net income was $4.2 billion , up 12% in both USD and constant currency. Q2 GAAP earnings per share was $1.10 , up 24% in USD and up 23% in constant currency, while non-GAAP earnings per share was $1.47 , up 10% in both USD and constant currency. Short-term deferred revenues were $9.4 billion . Over the last twelve months, operating cash flow was $20.3 billion and free cash flow was $9.5 billion . "Record level AI demand drove Oracle Cloud Infrastructure revenue up 52% in Q2, a much higher growth rate than any of our hyperscale cloud infrastructure competitors," said Oracle CEO, Safra Catz . "Growth in the AI segment of our Infrastructure business was extraordinary—GPU consumption was up 336% in the quarter—and we delivered the world's largest and fastest AI SuperComputer scaling up to 65,000 NVIDIA H200 GPUs. With our remaining performance obligation (RPO) up 50% to $97 billion , we believe our already impressive growth rates will continue to climb even higher. This fiscal year, total Oracle Cloud revenue should top $25 billion ." "Oracle Cloud Infrastructure trains several of the world's most important generative AI models because we are faster and less expensive than other clouds," said Oracle Chairman and CTO, Larry Ellison . "And we just signed an agreement with Meta—for them to use Oracle's AI Cloud Infrastructure—and collaborate with Oracle on the development of AI Agents based on Meta's Llama models. The Oracle Cloud trains dozens of specialized AI models and embeds hundreds of AI Agents in cloud applications. For example, Oracle's AI Agents automate drug design, image and genomic analysis for cancer diagnostics, audio updates to electronic health records for patient care, satellite image analysis to predict and improve agricultural output, fraud and money laundering detection, dual-factor biometric computer logins, and real time video weapons detection in schools. Oracle trained AI models and AI Agents will improve the rate of scientific discovery, economic development and corporate growth throughout the world. The scale of the opportunity is unimaginable." The board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.40 per share of outstanding common stock. This dividend will be paid to stockholders of record as of the close of business on January 9, 2025 , with a payment date of January 23, 2025 . Earnings Conference Call and Webcast Oracle will hold a conference call and webcast today to discuss these results at 4:00 p.m. Central. A live and replay webcast will be available on the Oracle Investor Relations website at www.oracle.com/investor/ . About Oracle Oracle offers integrated suites of applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), please visit us at www.oracle.com . Trademarks Oracle, Java, MySQL, and NetSuite are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation. NetSuite was the first cloud company—ushering in the new era of cloud computing. "Safe Harbor" Statement: Statements in this press release relating to future plans, expectations, beliefs, intentions and prospects, including the expectations for converting the Remaining Performance Obligations to revenue, future total Oracle Cloud revenue this fiscal year and the scale of opportunity for Oracle trained AI models and AI Agents, are "forward-looking statements" and are subject to material risks and uncertainties. Risks and uncertainties that could affect our current expectations and our actual results, include, among others: our ability to develop new products and services, integrate acquired products and services and enhance our existing products and services, including our AI products; our management of complex cloud and hardware offerings, including the sourcing of technologies and technology components; our ability to secure data center capacity; significant coding, manufacturing or configuration errors in our offerings; risks associated with acquisitions; economic, political and market conditions; information technology system failures, privacy and data security concerns; cybersecurity breaches; unfavorable legal proceedings, government investigations, and complex and changing laws and regulations. A detailed discussion of these factors and other risks that affect our business is contained in our SEC filings, including our most recent reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q, particularly under the heading "Risk Factors." Copies of these filings are available online from the SEC or by contacting Oracle's Investor Relations Department at (650) 506-4073 or by clicking on SEC Filings on the Oracle Investor Relations website at www.oracle.com/investor/ . All information set forth in this press release is current as of December 9, 2024 . Oracle undertakes no duty to update any statement in light of new information or future events. ORACLE CORPORATION Q2 FISCAL 2025 FINANCIAL RESULTS CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS ($ in millions, except per share data) Three Months Ended November 30, % Increase % Increase (Decrease) % of % of (Decrease) in Constant 2024 Revenues 2023 Revenues in US $ Currency (1) REVENUES Cloud services and license support $ 10,806 77 % $ 9,639 74 % 12 % 12 % Cloud license and on-premise license 1,195 9 % 1,178 9 % 1 % 3 % Hardware 728 5 % 756 6 % (4 %) (3 %) Services 1,330 9 % 1,368 11 % (3 %) (3 %) Total revenues 14,059 100 % 12,941 100 % 9 % 9 % OPERATING EXPENSES Cloud services and license support 2,746 19 % 2,274 17 % 21 % 21 % Hardware 172 1 % 213 2 % (20 %) (19 %) Services 1,167 8 % 1,253 10 % (7 %) (7 %) Sales and marketing 2,190 16 % 2,093 16 % 5 % 5 % Research and development 2,471 18 % 2,226 17 % 11 % 11 % General and administrative 387 3 % 375 3 % 3 % 3 % Amortization of intangible assets 591 4 % 755 6 % (22 %) (22 %) Acquisition related and other 31 0 % 47 0 % (34 %) (33 %) Restructuring 84 1 % 83 1 % 0 % 1 % Total operating expenses 9,839 70 % 9,319 72 % 6 % 6 % OPERATING INCOME 4,220 30 % 3,622 28 % 17 % 16 % Interest expense (866) (6 %) (888) (7 %) (3 %) (3 %) Non-operating income (expenses), net 36 0 % (14) 0 % * * INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES 3,390 24 % 2,720 21 % 25 % 24 % Provision for income taxes 239 2 % 217 2 % 11 % 10 % NET INCOME $ 3,151 22 % $ 2,503 19 % 26 % 26 % EARNINGS PER SHARE: Basic $ 1.13 $ 0.91 Diluted $ 1.10 $ 0.89 WEIGHTED AVERAGE COMMON SHARES OUTSTANDING: Basic 2,790 2,746 Diluted 2,869 2,817 (1) We compare the percent change in the results from one period to another period using constant currency disclosure. We present constant currency information to provide a framework for assessing how our underlying businesses performed excluding the effect of foreign currency rate fluctuations. To present this information, current and comparative prior period results for entities reporting in currencies other than United States dollars are converted into United States dollars at the exchange rates in effect on May 31, 2024, which was the last day of our prior fiscal year, rather than the actual exchange rates in effect during the respective periods. Movements in international currencies relative to the United States dollar during the three months ended November 30, 2024 compared with the corresponding prior year period increased our operating income by 1 percentage point. * Not meaningful ORACLE CORPORATION Q2 FISCAL 2025 FINANCIAL RESULTS RECONCILIATION OF SELECTED GAAP MEASURES TO NON-GAAP MEASURES (1) ($ in millions, except per share data) Three Months Ended November 30, % Increase (Decrease) in US $ % Increase (Decrease) in Constant Currency (2) 2024 2024 2023 2023 GAAP Non-GAAP GAAP Non-GAAP GAAP Adj. Non-GAAP GAAP Adj. Non-GAAP TOTAL REVENUES $ 14,059 $ - $ 14,059 $ 12,941 $ - $ 12,941 9 % 9 % 9 % 9 % TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSES $ 9,839 $ (1,876) $ 7,963 $ 9,319 $ (1,914) $ 7,405 6 % 8 % 6 % 8 % Stock-based compensation (3)One of my top shows of 2024 actually premiered in 2021. That’s because it took a couple of years for the Australian series “The Newsreader” to make its way Stateside. Alas, it was only legal to stream in the U.S. for a handful of weeks in September and then — pffft! — it was gone before most people had even heard of it. Well, I have great news. The show will be available once again, this time via Sundance Now (accessible through the AMC+ streaming platform), which has licensed the first season. Premiering Dec. 19, it stars Anna Torv (“Fringe”) and Sam Reid (“Interview with the Vampire”) as TV reporters in Melbourne, circa 1986. At the outset, Reid’s character exudes big loser energy, which is such an amusing contrast to his work as Lestat. The show is unexpectedly funny and terrifically Machiavellian in its portrayal of small-time office politics, and I’m thrilled audiences in the U.S. will get another shot at watching it. Overall, 2024 offered a modestly better lineup than usual, but I’m not sure it felt that way. Too often the good stuff got drowned out by Hollywood’s pointless and endless pursuit of rebooting intellectual property (no thank you, Apple’s “Presumed Innocent” ) and tendency to stretch a perfectly fine two-hour movie premise into a saggy multi-part series (“Presumed Innocent” again!). There were plenty of shows I liked that didn’t make this year’s list, including ABC’s “Abbott Elementary” and CBS’ “Ghosts” (it’s heartening to see the network sitcom format still thriving in the streaming era), as well as Netflix’s “A Man on the Inside” (Ted Danson’s charisma selling an unlikely premise) and Hulu’s “Interior Chinatown” (a high-concept parody of racial stereotypes and cop show tropes, even if it couldn’t sustain the idea over 10 episodes). Maybe it just felt like we were having more fun this year, with Netflix’s “The Perfect Couple” (Nicole Kidman leading a traditional manor house mystery reinterpreted with an American sensibility) and Hulu’s “Rivals” (the horniest show of 2024, delivered with a wink in the English countryside). I liked what I saw of Showtime’s espionage thriller “The Agency” (although the bulk of episodes were unavailable as of this writing). The deluge of remakes tends to make me cringe, but this year also saw a redo of Patricia Highsmith’s “The Talented Mr. Ripley” on Netflix that was far classier than most of what’s available on the streamer. Starring Andrew Scott, I found it cool to the touch, but the imagery stayed with me. Shot in black and white, it has an indelible visual language courtesy of director of photography Robert Elswit, whether capturing a crisp white business card against the worn grain wood of a bar top, or winding stairways that alternately suggest a yawning void or a trap. As always, if you missed any of these shows when they originally premiered — the aforementioned titles or the Top 10 listed below — they are all available to stream. Top 10 streaming and TV shows of 2024, in alphabetical order: “Couples Therapy” (Showtime) The least cynical reality show on television remains as absorbing as ever in Season 4, thanks to the probing questions and insights from the show’s resident therapist, Dr. Orna Guralnik. Everything is so charged. And yet the show has a soothing effect, predicated on the idea that human behavior (and misery) isn’t mysterious or unchangeable. There’s something so optimistic in that outlook. Whether or not you relate to the people featured on “Couples Therapy” — or even like them as individuals — doesn’t matter as much as Guralnik’s reassuring presence. “Diarra From Detroit” (BET+) Created by and starring Diarra Kilpatrick, the eight-episode series defies categorization in all the right ways. Part missing-person mystery, part comedy about a school teacher coming to grips with her impending divorce, and part drama about long-buried secrets, it has tremendous style right from the start — sardonic, knowing and self-deprecating. The answers to the central mystery may not pack a satisfying punch by the end, but the road there is as entertaining and absorbing as they come. We need more shows like this. “English Teacher” (FX) A comedy created by and starring Brian Jordan Alvarez (of the antic YouTube series “The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo”), the show has a sensibility all its own, despite a handful of misinformed people on social media calling it a ripoff of “Abbott Elementary.” There’s room enough in the TV landscape for more than one sitcom with a school setting and “English Teacher” has a wonderfully gimlet-eyed point of view of modern high school life. I’m amused that so much of its musical score is Gen-X coded, because that neither applies to Alvarez (a millennial) nor the fictional students he teaches. So why does the show feature everything from Laura Branigan’s “Gloria” to Exposé’s “Point of No Return”? The ’80s were awash in teen stories and maybe the show is using music from that era to invoke all those tropes in order to better subvert them. It’s a compelling idea! It’s streaming on Hulu and worth checking out if you haven’t already. “Fifteen-Love” (Sundance Now) A one-time tennis phenom accuses her former coach of coercing her into a sexual relationship in this British thriller. The intimacy between a coach and athlete often goes unexplored, in real-life or fictional contexts and that’s what the show interrogates: When does it go over the line? It’s smart, endlessly watchable and the kind of series that would likely find a larger audience were it available on a more popular streamer. “Hacks” (Max) There’s real tenderness in this show. Real cruelty, too. It’s a potent combination and the show’s third and strongest season won it an Emmy for best comedy. Jean Smart’s aging comic still looking for industry validation and Hannah Einbinder’s needy Gen-Z writer are trapped in an endless cycle of building trust that inevitably gives way to betrayal. Hollywood in a nutshell! “Hacks” is doing variations on this theme every season, but doing it in interesting ways. Nobody self-sabotages their way to success like these two. “Interview with the Vampire” (AMC) I was skeptical about the show when it premiered in 2022 . Vampire stories don’t interest me. And the 1994 movie adaptation starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt wasn’t a persuasive argument to the contrary. But great television is great television and nothing at the moment is better than this show. It was ignored by Emmy voters in its initial outing but let’s hope Season 2 gets the recognition it deserves. Under showrunner Rolin Jones, the adaptation of Anne Rice’s novels is richly written, thrillingly inhabited by its cast and so effortlessly funny with a framing device — the interview of the title — that is thick with intrigue and sly comedy. I wouldn’t categorize the series as horror. It’s not scary. But it is tonally self-assured and richly made, rarely focused on the hunt for dinner but on something far more interesting: The melodrama of vampire existence, with its combination of boredom and lust and tragedy and zingers. Already renewed for Season 3, it has an incredible cast (a thrilling late-career boost for Eric Bogosian) and is well worth catching up with if you haven’t already. “Nobody Wants This” (Netflix) It’s been too long since the pleasures of banter fueled a romantic comedy in the spirit of “When Harry Met Sally.” But it’s all over the place in “Nobody Wants This,” one of the best shows on Netflix in recent memory. Renewed for a second season, it stars Kristen Bell as a humorously caustic podcaster and Adam Brody as the cute and emotionally intelligent rabbi she falls for. On the downside, the show has some terrible notions about Jewish women that play into controlling and emasculating stereotypes. You hate to see it in such an otherwise sparkling comedy, because overall Bell and Brody have an easy touch that gives the comedy real buoyancy. “Nolly” (PBS Masterpiece) I suspect few people saw this three-part series on PBS Masterpiece, but it features a terrific performance by Helena Bonham Carter playing the real-life, longtime British soap star Noele “Nolly” Gordon, who was unceremoniously sacked in 1981. She’s the kind of larger-than-life showbiz figure who is a bit ridiculous, a bit imperious, but also so much fun. The final stretch of her career is brought to life by Carter and this homage — to both the soap she starred in and the way she carried it on her back — is from Russell T. Davies (best known for the “Doctor Who” revival). For U.S. viewers unfamiliar with the show or Gordon, Carter’s performance has the benefit of not competing with a memory as it reanimates a slice of British pop culture history from the analog era. “Shōgun” (FX) The year is 1600 and a stubborn British seaman piloting a Dutch ship washes ashore in Japan. That’s our entry point to this gorgeously shot story of power games and political maneuvering among feudal enemies. Adapted from James Clavell’s 1975 novel by the married team of Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks, it is filled with Emmy-winning performances (for Anna Sawai and Hiroyuki Sanada; the series itself also won best drama) and unlike something like HBO’s far clunkier “House of the Dragon,” which tackles similar themes, this feels like the rare show created by, and for, adults. “Slow Horses” (Apple TV+) The misfits and losers of Britain’s MI5 counterintelligence agency — collectively known as the slow horses, a sneering nickname that speaks to their perceived uselessness — remain as restless as ever in this adaptation of Mick Herron’s Slough House spy novels. As a series, “Slow Horses” doesn’t offer tightly plotted clockwork spy stories; think too deeply about any of the details and the whole thing threatens to fall apart. But on a scene-by-scene basis, the writing is a winning combination of wry and tension-filled, and the cumulative effect is wonderfully entertaining. Spies have to deal with petty office politics like everyone else! It’s also one of the few shows that has avoided the dreaded one- or two-year delay between seasons, which has become standard on streaming. Instead, it provides the kind of reliability — of its characters but also its storytelling intent — that has become increasingly rare. Nina Metz is a Tribune critic.
The situation in Syria remains fluid, and the international community will closely monitor developments in the coming days and weeks. Questions remain about Assad's future role in Syrian politics and the extent to which his departure will lead to meaningful change in the country. It is crucial that all parties involved remain committed to the peace process and work towards a sustainable and inclusive political solution.
Trump promises to end birthright citizenship: What is it and could he do it?The news of Liu Dameili's untimely death has shocked and saddened many of her fans and followers. Reports indicate that she passed away suddenly under mysterious circumstances, leading to widespread speculation and concern within the online community.NEW YORK — Luigi Nicholas Mangione, the “strong person of interest” arrested in connection to the shooting slay of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is a Maryland native who graduated at the top of his high school class and went on to major in computer science at University of Pennsylvania. Included in an online list of books 26-year-old Mangione read this year is Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski’s “Industrial Society and its Future,” which Mangione rated four out of five stars. Mangione graduated as valedictorian of the private all-boys Gilman School in 2016, according to the Baltimore school’s website. A Gilman classmate, Freddie Leatherbury, told The Baltimore Sun he “almost had a heart attack” from the shock of seeing Mangione was suspected in the shooting. “He would be the last one I would think would do something like this,” Leatherbury said to the newspaper. “He was a nice kid. He was the valedictorian.” Leatherbury said Mangione had joined the private prep school in sixth grade. “He was a brainy kid,” he said. “He was a big math guy” and belonged to a number of academic clubs. In a profile of area high school valedictorians written in the Baltimore Fishbowl in 2016, Mangione said his instructors emphasized learning outside of school and “an excitement to explore academic topics outside of the classroom”. “The teachers at Gilman influenced me especially,” Mangione said before he graduated. In a recap of the Gilman graduation ceremony posted on the school’s site, Mangione is quoted as commending his classmates for their “inventive, pioneering mentality that accompanies a strong commitment to Gilman tradition.” During high school, Mangione learned how to code and when he got to the University of Pennsylvania he co-founded a group to develop video games, according to Penn Today, a publication of the college. University of Pennsylvania Game Research and Development Environment (UPGRADE), then in its second year, was profiled in Penn Today in 2018, and quoted Mangione as saying he was a computer science major. Before starting his freshman year of college, he posted in the class of 2020’s Facebook group asking if classmates wanted to start UPGRADE, he told the publication. “I just really wanted to make games,” said Mangione. According to a Facebook account, Mangione was a UI Programming intern at Maryland-based Firaxis Games in 2016 and 2017, which makes the popular XCOM strategy game series. Take2 Games, which owns Firaxis, declined to speak to the Daily News about Mangione on Monday. “As a practice, we do not comment on former employees,” said spokesman Alan Lewis. Mangione’s cousin is Nino Mangione, a GOP lawmaker who represents a suburban Baltimore district in the state’s House of Delegates, the lawmaker’s office confirmed Monday. In January, Mangione tweeted a post that asked for reactions to a quote from philosopher J. Krishnamurti: “It is no measure of good health to be well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” (John Annese, Chris Sommerfeldt, Rocco Parascandola, Graham Rayman and David Goldiner contributed to this story.) ©2024 New York Daily News. Visit at nydailynews.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Premier Doug Ford announced Thursday that the provincial government would be giving back $2.5 billion aimed at easing the burdens of doing business in Ontario. The four major components of the initiative include the distribution of a $2-billion surplus rebate from the Workers Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) back to eligible businesses, a reduction in the board’s premiums to reportedly historic lows, a $400-million investment in worker health, and the removal of certification exam fees for skilled workers. “Today I am thrilled to announce that our government is giving back to workers and businesses another $2.5 billion — that’s billion with a ‘B’ — through fee reductions and WSIB rebates,” the premier said during a speech before the province’s chamber of commerce on Thursday morning. https://www.youtube.com/live/WqebFJrKH6E The news was hailed by the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses (CFIB), which thanked Ford and Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development David Piccini “for listening and acting on our recommendations to deliver another Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) surplus rebate to Ontario’s small business owners and reduce the average premium rate.” “The announced WSIB measures won’t cost taxpayers a nickel, or jeopardize the board’s strong financial health. They will allow Ontario’s small business owners to invest in their employees, their operations, and stronger and safer workplaces,” the association’s director of provincial affairs, Julie Kwiecinksi, said in a public statement . “The Ontario government is doing the right thing, putting more surplus funds back in the hands of businesses where they belong.” WSIB chair Jeffrey Lang — himself, a former WSIB customer when he was an executive overseeing a manufacturing company several years ago — spoke of the personal benefits such disbursements entail. “I know what it was like to do business with us (WSIB) and today is a different day. That $2 billion, for my business — which was roughly 50 employees — we’d get like fifty or sixty thousand dollars back. That’s a lot of money for a small business. That would allow me to either hire people or invest in better health and safety, better technology.” Under Premier @fordnation ’s leadership, we’re returning over $2.5 Billion to workers and safe employers through WSIB rebates, lower premiums, and health & safety investments. More jobs, bigger paycheques, and safer workplaces - this is how we’re building a brighter future for all... The board has moved from strength to strength, Lang said, and the recent announcement by Ford is further proof of that. “It’s really the new WSIB, which is our approach to running it more like a business, where our primary service is making sure we can take care of working Ontarians if they become ill or injured, or worse, a fatality. We’re just doing a much better job of that and, as a result, our costs are coming down,” Lang told the National Post. The Ford government pursued a similar course of action in April 2022 when it disbursed over $1 billion to Schedule 1 businesses, essentially workplaces that have not been convicted of violating either the Workplace Safety and Insurance Ac t or an Occupational Health and Safety Act. Ontario’s official opposition, the New Democratic Party, said the reimbursement may help employers, but it does nothing for injured employees. “Since 2019 this government has gifted billions in WSIB premiums back to employers, and you know what didn’t change? The misery of tens of thousands of injured workers in this province. They were still left in poverty,” Lise Vaugeois, the party’s official opposition critic for WSIB and injured workers, told the Post in a written statement. “This is pre-election gift giving to employers no matter their safety records. It is a kick in the teeth to injured workers. Instead of restoring decades of cuts to injured workers, the conservatives are handing 2.5 Billion dollars to some of the very employers who have left workers injured, ill, and poor.” Vaugeois said that instead of pursuing the Ford plan, the NDP vision would focus on “restoring benefits to injured workers; end the practice of deeming (pretending an injured worker has a job that they cannot get and cutting their benefits) and overhauling the adjudication process.” Piccini said the initiative is rooted in “a very simple belief: money is best spent in the pockets of everyday Ontarians.” “One of the reasons we don’t have the labour workforce we need is because the previous Liberal Government created a complex web that included punishing costs on the trades,” the Peterborough-based Conservative MPP said in a written statement. “Today’s savings for businesses and workers combined with our historic investments in workers’ occupational and mental health are making Ontario the most competitive climate for both workers andemployers to succeed. We’ve done it all without raising a single tax — and we never will.” Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here .10. Erling Haaland
House approves $895B defense bill with military pay raise, ban on transgender care for minors