baccarat online game
Once cold and lonely, ‘snow management’ at Tahoe resorts goes high-tech with lasersBerkshire Hathaway Inc. Cl B stock rises Monday, still underperforms marketStock market today: Asian shares are mostly lower, with most world markets closed for Christmas BANGKOK (AP) — Shares are lower in Tokyo and Shanghai, two of only a handful of world markets open on Christmas day. Oil prices rose. On Tuesday, stocks closed higher on Wall Street in a shortened holiday session. Gains in Big Tech stocks helped the S&P 500 to a 1.1% gain, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9%. The Nasdaq composite climbed 1.3%. American Airlines shook off an early loss and ended mostly higher after the airline briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical issue. Treasury yields held steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was little changed at 4.59% Japan to maximize nuclear power in clean-energy push as electricity demand grows TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese government panel has largely supported a draft energy policy calling for bolstering renewables up to half of Japanese electricity needs by 2040. It also recommends maximizing the use of nuclear power to accommodate the growing demand for power in the era of AI while meeting decarbonization targets. Cabinet is expected to formally approve the plan by March following a period of public consultation. The policy says nuclear energy should account for 20% of Japan’s energy supply in 2040, with renewables expanded to 40-50% and coal-fired power reduced to 30-40%. Biden will decide on US Steel acquisition after influential panel fails to reach consensus WASHINGTON (AP) — A powerful government panel has failed to reach consensus on the possible national security risks of a nearly $15 billion proposed deal for Nippon Steel of Japan to purchase U.S. Steel. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States on Monday sent its long-awaited report to President Joe Biden, a longtime opponent of the deal. Some federal agencies represented on the panel were skeptical that allowing a Japanese company to buy an American-owned steelmaker would create national security risks. That's according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter. Both Biden and President-elect Donald Trump opposed the merger and vowed to block it. Nippon Steel says it is confident the deal will go ahead. Nissan and Honda to attempt a merger that would create the world's No. 3 automaker TOKYO (AP) — Japanese automakers Nissan and Honda have announced plans to work toward a merger that would catapult them to a top position in an industry in the midst of tectonic shifts as it transitions away from its reliance on fossil fuels. The two companies said they signed an agreement on integrating their businesses on Monday. Smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors agreed to join the talks. News of a possible merger surfaced earlier this month. Japanese automakers face a strong challenge from their Chinese rivals and Tesla as they make inroads into markets at home and abroad. What a merger between Nissan and Honda means for the automakers and the industry BANGKOK (AP) — Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan will attempt to merge and create the world’s third-largest automaker by sales as the industry undergoes dramatic changes in its transition away from fossil fuels. The two companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday and that smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors also had agreed to join the talks on integrating their businesses. Honda will initially lead the new management, retaining the principles and brands of each company. Following is a quick look at what a combined Honda and Nissan would mean for the companies, and for the auto industry. Survey: Small businesses are feeling more optimistic about the economy after the election A survey shows small business owners are feeling more optimistic about the economy following the election. The National Federation of Independent Businesses’ Small Business Optimism Index rose by eight points in November to 101.7, its highest reading since June 2021. The Uncertainty Index declined 12 points in November to 98, following October’s pre-election record high of 110. NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg said small business owners became more certain about future business conditions following the presidential election, breaking a nearly three-year streak of record high uncertainty. The survey also showed that more owners are also hoping 2025 will be a good time to grow. Heavy travel day starts with brief grounding of all American Airlines flights WASHINGTON (AP) — American Airlines briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical problem just as the Christmas travel season kicked into overdrive and winter weather threatened more potential problems for those planning to fly or drive. Government regulators cleared American flights to get airborne Tuesday about an hour after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a national ground stop, which prevented planes from taking off. American said in an email that the problem was caused by vendor technology in its flight operating system. Aviation analytics company Cirium said flights were delayed across American’s major hubs, with only 37% leaving on time. Nineteen flights were cancelled. Nordstrom to be acquired by Nordstrom family and a Mexican retail group in $6.25 billion deal Century-old department store Nordstrom has agreed to be acquired and taken private by Nordstrom family members and a Mexican retail group in a $6.25 billion deal. Nordstrom shareholders will receive $24.25 in cash for each share of Nordstrom common stock, representing a 42% premium on the company’s stock as of March 18. Nordstrom’s board of directors unanimously approved the the proposed transaction, while Erik and Pete Nordstrom — part of the Nordstrom family taking over the company — recused themselves from voting. Following the close of the transaction, the Nordstrom Family will have a majority ownership stake in the company. Stock market today: Wall Street rallies ahead of Christmas Stocks closed higher on Wall Street ahead of the Christmas holiday, led by gains in Big Tech stocks. The S&P 500 added 1.1% Tuesday. Trading closed early ahead of the holiday. Tech companies including Apple, Amazon and chip company Broadcom helped pull the market higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.3%. American Airlines shook off an early loss and ended mostly higher after the airline briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical issue. Treasury yields held steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was little changed at 4.59% An analyst looks ahead to how the US economy might fare under Trump WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump won a return to the White House in part by promising big changes in economic policy — more tax cuts, huge tariffs on imports, mass deportations of immigrants working in the United States illegally. In some ways, his victory marked a repudiation of President Joe Biden’s economic stewardship and a protest against inflation. It came despite low unemployment and steady growth under the Biden administration. What lies ahead for the economy under Trump? Paul Ashworth of Capital Economics spoke recently to The Associated Press. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.Thanksgiving Travel Latest: Airport strike, staff shortages and weather could impact holiday travel
If the coalition government saw Commissioner Lester Levy as the Christmas fairy, capable of sprinkling joy and new life into the health system, then the signs are not promising. Hardly a day goes by without a new negative story about the health system, and Prof Levy’s appointment in July has not stopped that. Any small scraps of glad tidings get lost in the melee. While there may have been a little progress towards achieving some of the government’s five health targets, many health workers are unhappy with their lot, short-staffing continues in most areas including in primary care, the future of the country’s creaking health infrastructure is still murky, and funding remains an issue. None of these problems lend themselves to quick-fixes, but some of the decisions being made at Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora, presumably with the blessing of Commissioner Levy, are downright baffling. It beggars belief Health NZ appears to be charging ahead with plans to get rid of almost half its digital and data staff when around the country alarm is being raised about this. It has been no secret our public health sector has huge information technology issues, limping along with a patchwork of about 4000 systems which are not integrated, often outmoded, and with no effective back-up. Health Minister Shane Reti. Photo: RNZ In recent days, our reporting has drawn attention to the fragility of Dunedin Hospital’s computer set-up, with a recent outage causing confusion, delays and risking patient care. The breakdown, which affected the emergency department and other staff’s abilities to look up medical histories, record care given and transfer notes between wards, contributed to patients having to spend more time in the emergency department. But such failures are not an uncommon occurrence at the hospital, and there are fears expected cuts to staff will make matters worse. In a sector which should value the welfare of its staff, we wonder at the logic of putting more pressure on IT staff who may remain after any cuts to staffing, particularly when existing staff are already feeling stretched. The idea that a course about managing stress levels was the solution to staff members’ stress from trying to deal with breaking systems with too few staff was a breathtaking example of how poorly the situation is being grasped by Health NZ. Further up the island, on the West Coast, an IT worker facing redundancy has predicted slashing staff there from 13 to four will result in patient deaths. The worker drew attention to the nonsense of the government’s artificial distinction between frontline and backroom workers. "Every nurse touches a keyboard during their day’s work. Every nurse looks at a monitor and looks at patient results. Every doctor, every GP, every surgeon ... it’s impossible to do this without IT; you can’t just do this on paper, it’s not feasible." Her concerns were echoed in a Health NZ risk register, compiled from staff feedback about the impact of the proposed cuts, leaked to the media earlier this month. The register said doctors and nurses could be forced to leave front-line duties to plug day-to-day gaps or may struggle to master IT upgrades without enough helpdesk support. It described rural and remote hospital services as disproportionately at greater risk of not having timely resolution to issues compared with metropolitan sites. If the cuts go ahead, there is also concern about the loss of knowledge with limited or, in some cases, no staff having the required deep understanding of systems, how they work and interact. We hope there is still time for Health NZ to see sense on this and backtrack in the new year. If it boxes on and some of the dire predictions become reality, chief executive Margie Apa, Prof Levy and Dr Reti will need a magic wand to avoid the fallout.The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had conferred a Presidential Charter on The Ensign Global College, has received a Presidential Charter making it s fully fledged university to offer its own degrees, diplomas and certificates. Now known as the Ensign Global University, the university college established in 2014, for the nearly eight was was affiliated with the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) , Kumasi. The President , Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo- Addo who conferred the Presidential Charter on the private tertiary institution at a ceremony in Accra on Thursday underscored his government’s commitment to academic excellence, innovation and nation-building. The President of the University , Professor Stephen C Adler sharing his joy over the achievement of the academic milestone, expressed gratitude to President Akufo-Addo and reiterated the College’s vision to be a world-class academic institution, built upon a foundation of excellence in public health and service, that promotes prosperity and growth in Africa. “The awarding of a Presidential Charter to Ensign Global College ushers in a new era of growth and impact for our beloved institution. “We aim to use this newly acquired status as an independent private institution of higher education to extend our impact solving the great challenges facing Ghana, Africa and the world. We are now poised to extend our reach by expanding our work in public health while we introduce new programmatic areas to respond to the needs essential to achieving prosperity. We will do this through graduates who are highly competent and innovative leaders, research and knowledge curation that leads to groundbreaking solutions, and engaged service with people, communities, and institutions around the world, “ he said. Prof Adler said as part of its new initiatives, Ensign Global University will be launching new health and safety programmes aimed at addressing emerging threats, particularly those caused by environmental degradation. Additionally, the President of the Ensign Global university was committed to tackling human trafficking as a public health issue and will facilitate the Master of Business Creation programme, run by the University of Utah in the United States. According to him, Ensign was a private, not-for-profit, non-sectarian tertiary institution located in Kpong in the Eastern Region of the country renowned for training global leaders in public health with innovative academic programmes that addresses rapidly evolving health challenges in Ghana. The university was currently running a Master of Public Health (MPH) programme accredited by the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) with its MPH Programme also accredited by the US-based and globally recognised Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). The College was established by Dr. Lynnette and Bob Gay in 2014 out of their desire and passion to transform public health education in West Africa. For the past 10 years, it has worked towards transforming public health education in Ghana through its public health professional training and initiatives such as the Health2Go project, Centre for Global Surgery and Centre for Medical Innovation. It also recently inaugurated a newly completed Centre for Leadership, Innovation, and Prosperity (CLIP). BY TIMES REPORTER
AMHERST — Perhaps the passionate followers of the UMass football team weren’t necessarily surprised when news hit last week that Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford had fired former Minutemen head coach Don Brown after a 6-28 record with the team; it was more so the timing of the move that rubbed people the wrong way. UMass had just come off its best four-quarter performance of the season – a 35-34 overtime loss to 8-2 Liberty – when Bamford gave Brown the boot, with only two games remaining on the Minutemen’s regular season schedule. Why didn’t Bamford let Brown, who emptied the tank during his third stint in Amherst (one that lasted nearly three seasons), finish out the season before sending him on his way? The timing of the firing may not have made much sense from a fan or player perspective. But the school’s athletic director determined it had to be done right then and there. When Brown was relieved of his duties, UMass became the 11th Group of 5 school to have a vacancy at the head coaching position. And as of Monday, there are now 13 openings across G5 schools – the Minutemen’s direct competitors when it comes to staffing hires and recruiting. Bamford said sticking out the rest of the 2024 campaign with Brown and then firing him would have prevented him from talking to potential coaching candidates until Dec. 1 (UMass’ last game is Nov. 30). In order for UMass to have the best chance at getting its guy, the AD said moving quickly was an unfortunate necessity. Even further, the transfer portal opens up on Dec. 9, and early signing day for high school recruits is the week prior to that. The sooner UMass has a head coach and a staff put together, the greater its chances are at landing transfers out of the portal. Entering the second week of December without a head coach in place would’ve put the Minutemen at a significant disadvantage in recruiting, according to Bamford. “In order to be in a coaching candidate pool and make sure that we have the appropriate conversations and be seen as in the market place for coaches and for agents, we really needed to open the job when we did,” Bamford said on Monday, a week removed from Brown’s dismissal. “We didn’t wanna miss the opportunity to position our job against other jobs in the market. That’s how college football has changed in the last five years, and it’s predominantly because the transfer portal opens up in early December. You wanna have a head coach in place to have their staff at least somewhat organized when the portal opens.” Bamford, who has been the UMass AD since 2015, said firing Brown was not an easy decision. The two have a strong relationship, but accumulating only two wins against FBS opponents in three years – none of which came against the MAC (where UMass is headed in 2025) – was a disappointment in Bamford’s eyes. Article continues after... Cross|Word Flipart Typeshift SpellTower Really Bad Chess Bamford denied there was an ultimatum – one where UMass had to win two of its final three games in order for Brown to keep his job. Bamford and Brown met on a weekly basis throughout the season, and the AD said he clearly stated from Week 1 that there needed to be real progress shown on the field this fall or a change may be made. After winning one game in Brown’s first year and three in his second, four or five wins were expected to continue to show improvement. But instead, the Minutemen’s only two wins this year have come against FCS opponents, and they lost every single game against MAC programs (0-5). “I felt like after three years, we had enough in the body of work for Don to understand where we were going, and we needed some momentum going into next year as we go into the MAC,” Bamford said. “We just didn’t feel like we were able to turn the corner competitively, and there are a host of reasons for that. Without question, Don and his staff have worked tremendously hard to try to get this program turned around, and the program is in a better spot now than when Don and his group got here. There’s no doubt.” Because Bamford fired Brown when he did, UMass now owes him up to $1.4 million over the next two years. If Brown takes another coaching job over the next two years, UMass would pay the difference between that number and his new salary. Had Bamford waited until the end of the season to fire him, UMass would have owed him $800,000 over the next two years. “To be fair to Don, I wanted to make sure that we honored an important piece of the termination language in the contract,” Bamford said. “We recognize him coming back to UMass and trying to build a program that he really helped put on the map as an FCS program. I thanked him for that, and I felt like it was appropriate to make sure that we did it when we did to recognize his contributions to this university.” Bamford neglected to share any names or front-runners in the coaching search, but emphasized the importance of hiring someone by the first week of December. When a hire is ultimately made, it’ll be Bamford’s third head football coach hiring of his 10-year tenure at UMass. Over the course of the past decade, the Minutemen have a 21-89 football record, including an 8-54 mark of coaches he’s hired. The Don Brown hiring back in 2021 was seen as a coup at the time, although it didn’t work out. The AD acknowledged the pressure behind this hire, but support from the administration and the help of Chad Chatlos of TurnkeyZRG Executive Search leaves Bamford confident in making a splash. Chatlos and TurnkeyZRG are highly regarded in terms of college football hiring firms, and even helped conduct the NCAA in its search for a new president back in 2022 (ultimately former Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker). It’s the first time Bamford has hired a search firm to assist him with the hiring process. When Walt Bell was hired in 2019, Bamford was assisted by a few advisors, but not a formal search firm. At the end of the day, who patrols the sidelines next year still falls on Bamford’s shoulders. “I have great confidence we’re going to find the right person for the job,” Bamford said. “We have a lot to sell. The job is a different job than it has been in the last two hiring cycles because we’re not [a football] independent anymore. That’s been an important ingredient in this coaching search, is the ability to go into the MAC to be resourced really well against MAC-competitive peers. I think agents and coaches, those in the business see this as a different job now. It was hard to overcome the nature of being an independent in the last two searches.” UMass is positioned to be one of the highest-resourced programs in the MAC next season, including staff compensation and NIL money. The head football coach at UMass is as sought after a position as it’s ever been, according to Bamford. “The reality is that college athletics has changed considerably in the last three or four years with the transfer portal, in the NIL space,” Bamford said. “Now, with us being in a league, I think we’re positioned really strongly to not only go in and make a really strong hire, but have that hire have the tools and the resources to succeed in the MAC and as an FBS program.”
After a sprawling hacking campaign exposed the communications of an unknown number of Americans, U.S. cybersecurity officials are advising people to use encryption in their communications. To safeguard against the risks highlighted by the campaign, which originated in China, federal cybersecurity authorities released an extensive list of security recommendations for U.S. telecom companies — such as Verizon and AT&T — that were targeted. The advice includes one tip we can all put into practice with our phones: “Ensure that traffic is end-to-end encrypted to the maximum extent possible.” End-to-end encryption, also known as E2EE, means that messages are scrambled so that only the sender and recipient can see them. If anyone else intercepts the message, all they will see is garble that can't be unscrambled without the key. Law enforcement officials had until now resisted this type of encryption because it means the technology companies themselves won't be able to look at the messages, nor respond to law enforcement requests to turn the data over. Here's a look at various ways ordinary consumers can use end-to-end encryption: Officials said the hackers targeted the metadata of a large number of customers, including information on the dates, times and recipients of calls and texts. They also managed to see the content from texts from a much smaller number of victims. If you're an iPhone user, information in text messages that you send to someone else who also has an iPhone will be encrypted end-to-end. Just look for the blue text bubbles, which indicate that they are encrypted iMessages. The same goes for Android users sending texts through Google Messages. There will be a lock next to the timestamp on each message to indicate the encryption is on. But there's a weakness. When iPhone and Android users text each other, the messages are encrypted only using Rich Communication Services, an industry standard for instant messaging that replaces the older SMS and MMS standards. Apple has noted that RCS messages “aren’t end-to-end encrypted, which means they’re not protected from a third party reading them while they’re sent between devices.” Samsung, which sells Android smartphones, has also hinted at the issue in a footnote at the bottom of a press release last month on RCS, saying, “Encryption only available for Android to Android communication.” To avoid getting caught out when trading texts, experts recommend using encrypted messaging apps. Privacy advocates are big fans of Signal, which applies end-to-end encryption to all messages and voice calls. The independent nonprofit group behind the app promises never to sell, rent or lease customer data and has made its source code publicly available so that it can be audited by anyone to examine it “for security and correctness.” Signal's encryption protocol is so reputable that it has been integrated into rival WhatsApp, so users will enjoy the same level of security protection as Signal, which has a much smaller user base. End-to-end encryption is also the default mode for Facebook Messenger, which like WhatsApp is owned by Meta Platforms. Telegram is an app that can be used for one-on-one conversations, group chats and broadcast “channels" but contrary to popular perception, it doesn't turn on end-to-end encryption by default. Users have to switch on the option. And it doesn’t work with group chats. Cybersecurity experts have warned people against using Telegram for private communications and pointed out that only its opt-in ‘secret chat’ feature is encrypted from end-to-end. The app also has a reputation for being a haven for scammers and criminal activity, highlighted by founder and CEO Pavel Durov's arrest in France. Instead of using your phone to make calls through a wireless cellular network, you can make voice calls with Signal and WhatsApp. Both apps encrypt calls with the same technology that they use to encrypt messages. There are other options. If you have an iPhone you can use Facetime for calls, while Android owners can use the Google Fi service, which are both end-to-end encrypted. The only catch with all these options is that, as with using the chat services to send messages, the person on the other end will also have to have the app installed. WhatsApp and Signal users can customize their privacy preferences in the settings, including hiding an IP address during calls to prevent your general location from being guessed. Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!