Sweden - The 2010s

January 8, 2010

Top Stories –
Make it faster –
F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone in partnership with the Luxembourg-based private investment company, Genii Capital is making a bid to take over Sweden’s Saab motor company.
Bernie Ecclestone

Our multi-dimensional savior –
On the first day of CES in Las Vegas, TV manufacturers state that 3D could be the savior of the industry estimating around 3.4m 3D TV sets will be sold in the US this year.

Top Video –
555 KUBIK | facade projection

555 KUBIK | facade projection from URBANSCREEN on Vimeo.
CLICK TO SEE MORE STUFF FROM THIS DAY…

November 14, 2014

Top News Stories –

Comet probe Philae shuts down, but not before transmitting valuable secrets –
Controllers have powered down the comet probe Philae after its batteries fell to dangeously-low levels – though the craft still managed to transmit reams of crucial data. The comet probe Philae appears to have reached the end of its historic mission after its batteries ran out of power, but only after it managed to transmit a treasure-trove of scientific data back to Earth. Mission controllers put the European Space Agency (ESA) lander to sleep after the power in its solar-powered batteries fell to dangerously low levels following its landing at a spot in the shadow of a crater wall, shrouded in darkness. An ESA blog post said: “Philae has fallen into ‘idle mode’ – a possibly long silence. In this mode, all instruments and most systems on board are shut down.” [Daily Telegraph]

Rik Mayall ‘Bottom’ bench unveiled in Hammersmith –
A street bench like one that featured in the BBC sitcom Bottom has been officially unveiled in memory of comedy legend Rik Mayall. It followed an online campaign by more than 7,000 of his fans. Mayall, who starred in a string of TV comedies, said before his death, aged 56, in June that he had been saddened by the removal of the bench. It had appeared in the opening credits of Bottom, in which he starred with Adrian Edmondson. [Daily Telegraph]

Rik Mayall

Video of the Day –

Animator vs. Animation IV from Alan Becker on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	JustinBieber	#BreakTheInternet	#ChildrenInNeed
2	#MeVendriaRePiola	#FailedCharities	#ThanksAlex
3	#GubernurAhok	#Gruber	Christmas
4	Weather Update	#rokerthon	#WeCanLandOnACometButWeCant
5	#iloveashton2014	Kim K	#BreakTheInternet
6	#SonraDedimKi	106 & Park	Ched Evans
7	Happy Children’s Day	#iloveashton2014	#snp14
8	#AdmitoQue	#LouisYouSangGreat	#WorldDiabetesDay
9	#BreakTheInternet	Dumb and Dumber	Jessica Ennis
10	#FailedCharities	Too Many Cooks	#CIN2014

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
- Iraqi forces expel ISIS from the refinery town of Baiji in northern Iraq. (Al Arabiya)

Arts and culture

Russia plans an “alternative Wikipedia“. (BBC)

International relations

Swedish submarine incidents:
- Sweden releases a sonar image it says is proof that a foreign submarine entered its waters in October. The grainy image shows underwater tracks allegedly left by the vessel. (BBC)

Politics

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is preparing to dissolve the Lower House of the Diet on Tuesday and call a snap election on December 14thin order to seek a public mandate on whether to delay a scheduled increase in the consumption tax. (NHK World)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

May 23, 2015

Top News Stories –

Sweden wins Eurovision Song Contest –
Unabashed commercial dance music triumphed over kitsch and politics, as Sweden swept to its sixth victory in Eurovision, making it the most successful country in Eurovision history behind Ireland. Måns Zelmerlöw, a leather trousered hunk, with his pop anthem Heroes, beat off stiff competition from Russian (bolstered by some neighbourly votes from Eastern European nations) and Italy. Sweden won 365 points, while Russia, in second, got 303. [Daily Telegraph] Unfortunately after Eurovision went off air it was revealed that two countries had been disqualified. Montengro and Macedonia’s voting results have been disqualified after it was discovered the two countries used votes from the televoting to account for 100% of the country’s votes, rather than 50% with 50% coming from a jury, as is required. [Daily Mirror] See Video of the Day and List of the Day
Måns_Zelmerlöw from Sweden

Ireland becomes first country to legalise same-sex marriage by popular vote –
Ireland has voted by a huge majority to legalise same-sex marriage, becoming the first country in the world to do so by popular vote in a move hailed as a social revolution and welcomed around the world. Some 62% of the Irish Republic’s electorate voted in favour of gay marriage. The result means that a republic once dominated by the Catholic church ignored the instructions of its cardinals and bishops. The huge Yes vote marks another milestone in Ireland’s journey towards a more liberal, secular society. Out of an electorate of more than 3 million, 1,201,607 backed gay marriage, while 734,300 voters said No. The result prompted a massive street party around the gay district of central Dublin close to the national count centre. [The Guardian]

Spanish La Liga ends with Barcelona on top but Cristiano Ronaldo with 61 goals –
Cristiano Ronaldo finished with a season’s best goals tally of 61 as his first-half hat-trick helped Real Madrid end their season by hammering Getafe 7-1. The Portuguese forward’s haul is one more than the 60 he scored in 2011-12. Barcelona had already won the title and said adios to their captain Xavi Hernández who has won eight La Liga titles with the side after joing the club aged 11 in 1991. See List of the Day 2
Xavi Hernández

Banned number plates revealed: VA61ANA banned but PEN15 allowed –
The DVLA has revealed its entire catalogue of forbidden car number plates – including some amusing selections as well as surprising omissions. It seems motorists can drive a PEN15, but not a VA61ANA, and while BL03 JOB is forbidden ORG45M is fine. The list of personalised plates the DVLA believes to be in poor taste runs to 46 pages and includes religious or homophobic words. [Daily Telegraph]
Banned number plates – how they might look

Video of the Day –

Måns Zelmerlöw – Heroes (Sweden) – LIVE at Eurovision 2015 Grand Final

List of the day 1 –

Eurovision Song Contest 2015 results

Sweden – 365 points
Russia – 303 points
Italy – 292 points
Belgium – 217 points
Australia – 196 points
Latvia – 186 points
Estonia – 106 points
Norway – 102 points
Israel – 97 points
Serbia – 53 points
Georgia – 51 points
Azerbaijan – 49 points
Montenegro – 44 points
Slovenia – 39 points
Romania – 35 points
Armenia – 34 points
Albania – 34 points
Lithuania – 30 points
Greece – 23 points
Hungary – 19 points
Spain – 15 points
Cyprus – 11 points
Poland – 10 points
United Kingdom – 5 points
France – 4 points
Germany – 0 points
Austria – 0 points

List of the day 2 –

2014-2015 Spanish La Liga final table

#	Team	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	PTS

1	Barcelona	38	30	4	4	110	21	89	94

2	Real Madrid	38	30	2	6	118	38	80	92

3	Atlético Madrid	38	23	9	6	67	29	38	78

4	Valencia	38	22	11	5	70	32	38	77

5	Sevilla	38	23	7	8	71	45	26	76

6	Villarreal	38	16	12	10	48	37	11	60

7	Athletic	38	15	10	13	42	41	1	55

8	Celta Vigo	38	13	12	13	47	44	3	51

9	Málaga	38	14	8	16	42	48	-6	50

10	Espanyol	38	13	10	15	47	51	-4	49

11	Rayo	38	15	4	19	46	68	-22	49

12	Real Sociedad	38	11	13	14	44	51	-7	46

13	Elche	38	11	8	19	35	62	-27	41

14	Levante	38	9	10	19	34	67	-33	37

15	Getafe CF	38	10	7	21	33	64	-31	37

16	Deportivo	38	7	14	17	35	60	-25	35

17	Granada	38	7	14	17	29	64	-35	35

18	Eibar	38	9	8	21	34	55	-21	35

19	Almería	38	8	8	22	35	64	-29	32

20	Córdoba	38	3	11	24	22	68	-46	20

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	キスの日	#BreloVerdict	#BigWeekend
2	#PreguntasPelotudas	Ireland	#EqualityForAll
3	#JornadaDeReflexion	#SharedWordMovies	#furnishamovie
4	Dream Concert	Jeezy	Grange Hill
5	#جمال_الشخص_في	#BigWeekend	Adjoa
6	#اكتب_اسمك_وان�…	#NashsNewVideo	Southend
7	#EsteFindeLargoRePintaPara	#NewTLCShows	Fat Elvis
8	Dursun Özbek	Xavi	#askDinahYane
9	노건호	Bundesliga	Eric Pickles
10	#6raciesXavi	#UFC187	#CarShare

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- A roadside bomb kills two, including the district chief, in the Charcheno District of Afghanistan. (AP via ABC News America)
War in Somalia (2009–present)
- Islamic extremists kill at least 18 people in an attack on two rural towns Awdhegie and Mubarak, (AP)
War in Donbass
- Pro-Russian separatist military leader colonel Alexei Mozgovoi is confirmed killed in an ambush on his car. (BBC News)

Arts and culture

The Venerable Servant of God Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero, the assassinated former Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Salvador in San Salvador, El Salvador (d. March 24, 1980, while saying Mass, at the start of the Salvadoran Civil War) is beatified, in Pope Francis‘s name, by Angelo Cardinal Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, in San Salvador. (White House) (CNN)(Vatican)
The final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 is held in Vienna, Austria with Måns Zelmerlöw of Sweden winning for the song Heroes. (Sydney Morning Herald), (BBC)
A memorial service is held in the Scottish capital Edinburgh for the Quintinshill rail disaster which occurred 100 years ago and claimed over 200 lives. (BBC)

Disasters

The death toll from China‘s latest round of flooding rises to at least 48. (AP via Washington Post)
An Indian heat wave claims over 200 lives with the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana worst affected. (The Hindu)
Record breaking rain causes flooding in the American states of Oklahoma and Texas with Oklahoma City recording record rainfall levels for the month of May. (CNN)

International relations

South East Asia people smuggling
- Julie Bishop, the Foreign Minister of Australia, says that Indonesia has advised that most of the people who have traveled to South East Asiaby boat are from Bangladesh, not Rohingya from Myanmar. (Straits Times)
- Myanmar announces plans to deport recently rescued migrants to Bangladesh. (Sky News Asia)

Law and crime

Cleveland Police Department officer Michael Brelo is acquitted of manslaughter in relation to the 2012 deaths of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams following a a police chase. There are multiple arrests in protests afterwards (Los Angeles Times via WA Today), (Newsnet)
- The U.S. Justice Department announced it will review the decision to determine if further action is required. (The Guardian)
Nigerian drug agents arrest senator-elect Buruji Kashamu for extradition to the United States for his alleged involvement in a drug deal 20 years ago that is claimed to be the basis for the television show Orange is the New Black. (AP)
The President of Myanmar, Thein Sein, signs the Population Control Health Care Bill requiring some parents to space each child three years apart. (AP via Daily Mail)

Politics and elections

Peru declares a 60 day state of emergency in the Tambo Valley following violent protests against a mine project which has seen four deaths. (AP via ABC News)
The United States Senate adjourns without agreeing either to reform the National Security Agency or extend the Patriot Act which is due to expire at the end of this month. (The Hill)
Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015
- The counting of votes for yesterday’s referendum occurs with the Republic of Ireland becoming the first country to adopt same sex marriageby popular vote. (AP), (Independent Ireland), (The Guardian)

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June 13, 2015

Top News Stories –

Sweden royal wedding: Prince Carl Philip marries ex-reality star –
Sweden’s Prince Carl Philip has married a former reality-TV star and glamour model in a lavish ceremony in the chapel at Stockholm’s Royal Palace.
Sofia Hellqvist, 30, also worked as a topless model and a yoga instructor before helping to set up a charity. Her new husband, 36-year-old Carl Philip, is third in line to the throne. Thousands of well-wishers lined the streets for the event, despite polls suggesting the Swedish royal family’s popularity is waning. They cheered as Miss Hellqvist, a 30-year-old commoner, became a princess. [BBC]
Sofia Hellqvist

Gunman killed by police snipers after attack on Dallas police headquarters –
A police sniper has shot and killed an armed suspect in Texas hours after the gunman opened fire on Dallas police headquarters before fleeing in an armoured van. The getaway vehicle was pursued by police to a fast food restaurant parking lot in the nearby city of Hutchin, where officers disabled the vehicle, in the incident early on Saturday morning. Some hours later, police said the suspect was killed. Two explosive devices, including one described as a pipe bomb, were found earlier on outside the Dallas police building. They have both been cleared. One detonated when a bomb disposal robot attempted to move it, but nobody was injured. [Daily Telegraph]

Queen’s birthday honours list: knights outnumber dames five to one –
Men outnumber women by almost five to one in the highest honours announced for the Queen’s birthday, which sees knighthoods for comedian Lenny Henry, trade unionist Paul Kenny and singer-songwriter Van “the Man” Morrison. For only the second time in honours history, more women received awards – 51% of all recipients – but just seven are made dames, compared with 33 knighthoods for men, reflecting a gender imbalance at the highest levels of industry, business, politics and academia. [Guardian] See List of the Day

Video of the Day –

BEAT DOWN from Camp 4 Collective on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

The Queen’s Birthday Honours List 2015 – [For full list click here from the Metro]

KNIGHTS BACHELOR

Henry Angest. National Treasurer Conservative Party. For political service. (London)

Professor Harshad Kumar Dharamshi Bhadeshia F. R.S., Tata Steel Professor of Metallurgy, University of Cambridge. For services to Science and Technology. (Cambridgeshire)

The Rt Hon Simon Hugh McGuigan Burns. Member of Parliament for Chelmsford. For parliamentary and political service. (Essex)

Dr Philip Henry Montgomery Campbell. Editor in chief Nature. For services to Science. (London)

Dr Kevan Arthur Collins. Chief executive Education Endowment Foundation. For services to Education. (London)

Naim Eliahou Dangoor, CBE. Philanthropist. For charitable services. (London)

Michael Lawrence Davis. Chair Prime Minister’s Holocaust Commission. For services to Holocaust Commemoration and Education.

Ciaran Gearoid Devane. Chief executive Macmillan Cancer Support. For services to Cancer Patients. (London)

Professor Charles Peter Downes, OBE, FRSE. Principal and vice-Chancellor, University of Dundee. For services to Higher Education and Life Sciences. (Newport-on-Tay, Fife)

Gareth Owen Edwards, CBE. For services to Sport and for charitable services. (Bridgend, Mid Glamorgan)

Bernard Peter Gray. Chief of Defence Materiel Ministry of Defence. For public service, particularly to Defence. (Oxfordshire)

Patrick Head. Director Williams Hybrid Power Ltd. For services to Motorsport. (London)

Lenworth George Henry, CBE. Actor and Comedian. For services to Drama and Charity. (London)

The Rt Hon Simon Henry Ward Hughes. Member of Parliament for Bermondsey and Old Southwark. For public and political service. (London)

Thomas Baird Jeffery, CB. Director general, Department for Education, Children’s Services and Departmental Strategy Directorate. For services to the Department for Education. (Lewes, East Sussex)

Dr Karl William Pamp Jenkins, CBE. Composer. For services to Composing and Crossing Musical Genres. (London)

Paul Stephen Kenny. General secretary GMB Union. For services to Trade Unions. (London)

Dr James Loy Macmillan, CBE. Composer and conductor. For services to Music. (Glasgow)

Francis McLoughlin, CBE. Principal, City and Islington College and Chair, Commission on Adult Vocational Teaching and Learning. For services to Further Education. (London)

Iain Macleod McMillan, CBE. For services to the Scottish Economy. (Falkirk, Stirling and Falkirk)

George Ivan Morrison, OBE. For services to the Music Industry and to Tourism in Northern Ireland. (Down)

Professor Stephen John Nickell, CBE, FBA. Economist. For services to Economics. (Banbury, Oxfordshire)

Dr Nicholas Beaver Penny, FBA. Director general, National Gallery. For services to the Arts. (London)

Professor Hussein Munir Pirmohamed. David Weatherall Chair of Medicine University of Liverpool. For services to Medicine. (West Kirby, Merseyside)

Andreas Whittam Smith, CBE. For public service particularly to the Church of England. (London)

Gary Keith Verity. Chief executive Welcome to Yorkshire. For services to Tourism and the Tour De France Grand Depart 2014. (North Yorkshire)

Professor Ian Vincent Derrick Weller. Emeritus Professor of Sexually Transmitted Diseases Department of Infection and Population Health, University College, London.

For services to HIV Research. (Grantham, Lincolnshire)

Nicholas John Weller. Executive Principal Dixons Academies, Bradford. For services to Education. (Leeds, West Yorkshire)

Adrian Edwin White, CBE, DL. For services to International Trade and Investment. (Dorking, Surrey)

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#AskRachel	#DallasPDShooting	#BirthdayHonours
2	#ComoOdioAEsosQue	John Stamos	#NRocks
3	Dave Grohl	#FoodAnEightiesSong	#WorldGinDay
4	Jurassic World	#BecauseOfAriana	Dave Grohl
5	#AssistamTeuOlharFLY	Uncle Jesse	#SkypeREECEandCHARLIE
6	#ARGENTINARMY	#GETWELLSOONMICHAEL	Van Morrison
7	Bolivia	#NoControlMusicVideo	#TroopingTheColour
8	#USAvSWE	#Hillary2016	#IREvSCO
9	Barbie Velez	#UFC188	Wales
10	Fede Bal	#WhenIDiePeopleWillBeShock…	#QueensBirthdayHonours

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

The Taliban kill 20 police officers in attack in Helmand, Afghanistan. (WTVM)
Syrian Civil War
- Some 13,000 refugees have crossed into Turkey as Syrian Kurd People’s Protection Units encircle the ISIL-held town of Suluk. (AP via Yahoo!)

Arts and culture

The trooping the colour ceremony is held in London to celebrate the Queen’s Official Birthday while singer Van Morrison and American actorKevin Spacey are given knighthoods at the Birthday Honours. (CNN), (BBC)
The wedding of Prince Carl Philip, Duke of Värmland, and Sofia Hellqvist takes place in Stockholm. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

At least 22 Hindu pilgrims are killed after a van they are travelling in falls into a reservoir in the southern Indian town of Dhavaleswaram in Andhra Pradesh. (AAP via News Limited)

International relations

Immigration to Europe
- Austria stops processing asylum requests in an effort to pressure other European Union member states to do more to help absorb waves of refugees pouring into the continent. (Irish Times), (Telegraph)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Scheduled talks of 14th June, 2015 between Yemen’s Houthi rebels and the exiled government which are brokered by the UN have been postponed with a new schedule set for Monday 15 June, 2015 (The Daily Star (Lebanon) via Reuters
P5+1
- Iran asks Austria to secure the talks over its nuclear program following reports of cybersecurity breaches. (AFP via Daily Star)
Egypt opens its border with the Gaza Strip temporarily for the first time in months. Egypt blames Hamas for the Sinai insurgency. (AP via Daily Star)
Dozens of migrants who refused entry to France go on hunger strike at the border crossing in the Italian town of Ventimiglia. (AFP via Daily Star)

Law and crime

A man opens fire at policemen outside the police headquarters in the Texan city of Dallas, while a bag containing a pipe bomb is also found. He was later shot dead by police snipers following a car chase and standoff. (AP), (CNN)

Politics and elections

Thousands of people protest in Skopje demanding the resignation of the Prime Minister of Macedonia Nikola Gruevski. (AFP via Yahoo! News)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

July 5, 2015

Top News Stories –

Greece votes ‘No’ and gambles its future –
Greek voters have delivered a defiant response to Europe. Political leaders and heads of government had lined up to warn the Greeks that a “No” vote would be a vote to leave the euro. It did not deter them. Indeed many voters seemed to revel in their resistance. The European Project is now facing its gravest crisis. [BBC]

USA beat Japan 5-2 in Women’s FIFA World Cup Final –
Carli Lloyd scored an incredible 13-minute hat-trick as the United States thrashed Japan to win their third Women’s World Cup title. In a repeat of the 2011 final, which Japan won on penalties, the Nadeshiko could not live with their stronger and quicker opponents, who went 4-0 up when Lloyd scored an astonishing third from the halfway line. The pulsating finale to an entertaining tournament was the highest-scoring final in the tournament’s history, and matched the highest scoring men’s final, when Brazil defeated Sweden by the same scoreline in 1958. [BBC] See Video of the Day
Carli Lloyd

Video of the Day –

List of the Day –

FIFA Women’s World Cup results [from Wikipedia]

Year	Host	Champions	Score	Runners-up	Third Place	Score	Fourth Place	Teams
1991	China	United States	2–1	Norway	Sweden	4–0	Germany	12
1995	Sweden	Norway	2–0	Germany	United States	2–0	China PR	12
1999	United States	United States	0–0 a.e.t. (5–4 pen)	China PR	Brazil	0–0 ^[A] (5–4 pen)	Norway	16
2003	United States	Germany	2–1 asdet	Sweden	United States	3–1	Canada	16
2007	China	Germany	2–0	Brazil	United States	4–1	Norway	16
2011	Germany	Japan	2–2 a.e.t. (3–1 pen)	United States	Sweden	2–1	France	16
2015	Canada	United States	5–2	Japan	England	1–0 a.e.t.	Germany	24

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ToNoTwitterPq	Happy 5th of July	#greekreferendum
2	#QueLindoEstariaQue	#USAvJPN	Chile
3	デスノート	#dontjudgechallange	Messi
4	#Grefenderum	#ImThatGirlfriend	#UKBuyWorthIt
5	AGUANTE MESSI CARETAS	#YouMightBeARacist	#PutWalesinaFilm
6	Dragon Ball Super	#WeLoveYouHalsey	Argentina
7	#كم_رصيد_حسابك	#BadCharitiesToDonateTo	#YouMightBeARacist
8	#شي_مانستغني_عنه	#MakeAMovieMoreAmerican	Sanchez
9	Messi	Best 4th of July	#BritishGP
10	Vidal	Take Jackson Off the $20 Bill	#marr

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts

American-led intervention in Syria
- A United States bombing campaign against ISIL has killed at least 30 people in the Syrian city of Al-Raqqah. (AFP via Yahoo! News)
Iraq War (2014–present)
- Iraqi government air strikes kill at least 73 people in the ISIL held cities of Ramadi and Fallujah. (Al-Jazeera)
War in North-West Pakistan
- A roadside bomb in North Waziristan kills at least three Pakistan Army soldiers and injures six others. (AFP via Daily Star)
Boko Haram
- A suicide bomber attacks a church in the Potiskum area of Nigeria‘s Yobe State, killing five and raising the toll of Boko Haram attacks for the past week to 200. (BBC) (DailyStar via AP)

Arts and culture

UNESCO adds more sites to the World Heritage List including the San Antonio Missions National Historic Park in the US city of San Antonio, Texasand Scotland‘s Forth Bridge. (My San Antonio), (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- Over 1000 people in the Philippines are stranded temporarily by Severe Tropical Storm Linfa (Egay) as landslides occur in Palawan province.(GMA Network)
Canadian wildfires
- More than 60 wildfires start in the Canadian province of British Columbia over the weekend leading to several communities declaring a state of emergency. (CBC)
- Nearly 1,000 military personnel are sent to fight wildfires in Saskatchewan, (CTV)

Politics and elections

Greek bailout referendum, 2015
- Greek voters solidly rejected (61.3 percent) the latest austerity proposal of the European Union, the International Monetary Fund and theEuropean Central Bank. (Sky News), (The Guardian) (Reuters)
- The Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel and the President of France Francois Hollande call for an international summit of Eurozone leaders to discuss the next moves. (Bloomberg)
- The Greek opposition leader Antonis Samaras resigns as leader of his party, New Democracy; the new temporary leader is Evangelos Meimarakis. (To Vima)

Science and technology

A Russian space capsule reaches the International Space Station allowing resupply of provisions after the crash of the SpaceX space capsule last week. (CNN)

Sports

2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup
- The United States defeats defending champion Japan, 5-2, to win the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Vancouver, British Columbia,Canada. (BBC) (AP via Washington Post)
2015 British Grand Prix
- In motorsport, Lewis Hamilton wins the race for the second consecutive year with team mate Nico Rosberg finishing second. (News24)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

September 10, 2015

Top News Stories –

New human-like species discovered in S Africa –

Scientists have discovered a new human-like species in a burial chamber deep in a cave system in South Africa. The discovery of 15 partial skeletons is the largest single discovery of its type in Africa. The researchers claim that the discovery will change ideas about our human ancestors. The studies which have been published in the journal Elife also indicate that these individuals were capable of ritual behaviour. The species, which has been named naledi, has been classified in the grouping, or genus,Homo, to which modern humans belong. [BBC] See List of the Day

Pope Francis emojis launched for US visit –
Pope Francis draws huge crowds wherever he goes and now his fans can share their admiration with papal emojis. A new keyboard app is being released to mark the Pope’s upcoming visit to America. You can have the Pope balancing a basketball or riding a taxi (although we suspect he’d prefer his Popemobile). They’re among 52 emojis and 14 GIFs in the app from Swyft Media, the company which created the first ginger emojis.
Pope emojis by Swyft Media

Giant Lenin ‘head’ unearthed 24 years after burial in Berlin –
The giant head of a statue of Russian revolutionary Lenin has been unearthed, 24 years after it was buried in a German forest. Workers dug up the granite structure from woodland outside Berlin, following a campaign by historians. The head was once part of a 19m (62ft) monument to the communist leader, which towered over the east of the city. It was dismantled in 1991 after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the pieces were buried in a secluded forest. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

iPhone 6s – The Only Thing That’s Changed Is…

List of the Day –

Comparative table of *Homo* species
Species	Temporal range Mya	Habitat	Adult height	Adult mass	Cranial capacity (cm³)	Fossil record	Discovery / publication of name
H. habilis	2.1 – 1.5^[136]	Africa	150 cm (4 ft 11 in)	33–55 kg (73–121 lb)	510–660	Many	1960/1964
H. erectus	1.9 – 0.07^[137]	Africa, Eurasia (Java, China, India, Caucasus)	180 cm (5 ft 11 in)	60 kg (130 lb)	850 (early) – 1,100 (late)	Many^[138]	1891/1892
H. rudolfensis membership in Homo uncertain	1.9	Kenya			700	2 sites	1972/1986
H. gautengensis also classified as H. habilis	1.9 – 0.6	South Africa	100 cm (3 ft 3 in)			3 individuals^[139]	2010/2010
H. ergaster also classified as H. erectus	1.8 – 1.3^[140]	Eastern and Southern Africa			700–850	Many	1975
H. antecessor also classified as H. heidelbergensis	1.2 – 0.8	Spain	175 cm (5 ft 9 in)	90 kg (200 lb)	1,000	2 sites	1997
H. cepranensis a single fossil, possibly H. erectus	0.9 – 0.35	Italy			1,000	1 skull cap	1994/2003
H. heidelbergensis	0.6 – 0.35^[141]	Europe, Africa, China	180 cm (5 ft 11 in)	90 kg (200 lb)	1,100–1,400	Many	1908
H. neanderthalensis possibly a subspecies of H. sapiens	0.35 – 0.04^[142]	Europe, Western Asia	170 cm (5 ft 7 in)	55–70 kg (121–154 lb) (heavily built)	1,200–1,900	Many	(1829)/1864
H. rhodesiensis also classified as H. heidelbergensis	0.3 – 0.12	Zambia			1,300	Very few	1921
H. tsaichangensis possibly H. erectus	0.25 – 0.2	Taiwan				1 individual	pre-2008/2015
H. sapiens (modern humans)	0.2^[143] – present	Worldwide	150 – 190 cm (4 ft 7 in – 6 ft 3 in)	50–100 kg (110–220 lb)	950–1,800	(extant)	—/1758
H. floresiensis classification uncertain	0.10 – 0.012	Indonesia	100 cm (3 ft 3 in)	25 kg (55 lb)	400	7 individuals	2003/2004
Denisova hominin possible H. sapiens subspecies or hybrid	0.04	Russia				1 site	2010
Red Deer Cave people possible H. sapiens subspecies or hybrid	0.0145–0.0115	China				Very few	2012

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#WorldSuicidePreventionDay	#WorldSuicidePreventionDay	#WorldSuicidePreventionDay
2	#SameOldLove	Pokemon Go	#RenameAFilmLiterally
3	#FelizJueves	#HumanExperienceIn4Words	#charlotteproudman
4	#ChamuyeCuandoDije	Grace Jones	Pokemon Go
5	#CizreUnderAttack	#pitmad	#RejectedAppleProducts
6	#MeCambiaLaCara	#RejectedAppleProducts	Bonang
7	#ZaynWeAreAlwaysHere	#BieberTODAY	#HomoNaledi
8	#SemiIsBack	Bobby Jindal	Jonathan King
9	Palacio de Justicia	Aladdin	iPhone 6s
10	鬼怒川	#FallonTonight	#HumanExperienceIn4Words

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
- ISIL attacks a government held air base near the eastern city of Deir ez-Zor with dozens of government loyalists and ISIL militants killed. (Reuters)
Operation Martyr Yalçın
- At least 30 people have been killed in the southeastern Turkish city of Cizre following clashes between Turkish security forces and pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) supporters. Locals say Cizre has been “under siege” since the militaryimposed a curfew. (BBC)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Air strikes target Houthi political leaders and military bases in Sana’a, Yemen. (Al Jazeera English Online)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- In Japan, tens of thousands are forced to evacuate due to flooding and landslides caused by Tropical Storm Etau. So far, one person is reported as missing. (Radio NZ Online), (AP via US News and World Report), (Al Jazeera English Online),(BBC)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Denmark reopens rail services to Germany after closing rail lines and a motorway in order to stem the flow of migrants on their way to Sweden. (ITV)
- President of the United States Barack Obama directs his administration to accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next fiscal year from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. (Washington Post)
Russia–United States relations
- The United States expresses concern about alleged Russian military activities in Syria. (Al Jazeera English Online)
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action
- The United States Senate fails to pass a resolution blocking approval of the nuclear agreement with Iran, meaning it will formally be adopted on October 19. (New York Times)

Law and crime

An indigenous Lumad child dies in an evacuation center while the Philippine Senate investigates the alleged September 1 murders of an indigenous Lumad family and the alleged rape of an indigenous Manobo girl by soldiers and militiamen of the Philippine Army. (Rappler), (Mindanao News), (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
Azerbaijan jails journalist Khadija Ismayilova after a trial that many believe is politically-motivated. (Al Jazeera English Online)
Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez is convicted and sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for allegedly inciting violence at anti-government rallies. (AP)
A U.S. federal jury awards nearly $17.5 million to five former migrant workers at a South Florida farm in their case of sexual harassment and abuse in their work. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Peter Robinson, the First Minister of Northern Ireland, steps aside after the Democratic Unionist Party fails to get enough support to adjourn the assembly. (BBC)

Science and technology

Homo naledi
- Elife publishes a discovery by scientists at the University of the Witwatersrand announcing a new species of hominid (Homo naledi) in the Rising Star Cave in South Africa. Although the remains have yet to be properly dated, they could be three million years old. (BBC) (Al Jazeera English Online)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 12, 2015

Top News Stories –

Queen’s advisers strip Jeremy Corbyn of ‘Right Honourable’ title after Privy Council snub –
The Queen’s advisers told Parliament to strip Jeremy Corbyn of his “Right Honourable” status after Number 10 wrongly implied the Labour leader had joined the Privy Council, The Daily Telegraph can disclose. Mr Corbyn was described on Parliament’s website as “Right Honourable”, which denotes membership of the centuries-old Privy Council, until late last week. The Labour leader was also described as a “Right Honourable Gentleman” by Prime Minister David Cameron when they faced each other in the Commons last month, days after he was voted in as Labour leader. However, after Mr Corbyn failed to attend the first meeting of the Privy Council since the summer holidays with the Queen last Thursday, the “Rt Hon” title was removed from Mr Corbyn’s page on Parliament’s website. [Daily Telegraph]

Swedish police called on a beard club because they were mistaken for Isil –
The police in Sweden were shocked to receive a call from a passer-by that alerted them to a possible Isil warrior group, north of the city Jönköping. When they arrived, they “had a good laugh” – the group mistaken for Isil was actually a beard club called the Bearded Villians. They had stopped in the area in order to take a photo together, posing with a sign which, from a distance, could be mistaken for the Isil flag. [Daily Telegraph]

Bearded Villains

Video of the Day –

Apollo Missions from harrisonicus on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	フォロワーA	#MakeMondayBetterIn3Words	#mondaymotivation
2	#TheWalkingDead	#mondaymotivation	#ChocolateWeek
3	#LeventKırca	#ColumbusDay	#FishUpAMovie
4	#nadaquecelebrar	#IndigenousPeoplesDay	Angus Deaton
5	#كلمه_تختصر_في�…	Happy Thanksgiving	Julian Assange
6	#QuandoEraCriancaEu	Wallace	#NationalCurryWeek
7	#WeArePerfect	#1DImSorryFor	June Sarpong
8	Angus Deaton	Angus Deaton	#1DImSorryFor
9	Viva España	Carlos Correa	#StrongerIn
10	#ConfiesoQue	Jason Rezaian	#TheWalkingDead

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2015 Ankara bombings
- The Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu states that Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant is the prime suspect in Saturday’s bombing. (Reuters via Thomson Reuters Foundation)
Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Palestinian political violence
- Palestinians carried out three stabbing attacks against Israeli citizens and police in Jerusalem today with two of the attackers shot dead as the wave of violence continues, police said. There have been a series of stabbing attacks in Israel and the West Bank in recent days that have wounded several Israelis; nine attackers have been shot dead. Also, at least 16 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces during/after violent demonstrations in the West Bank and Gaza. (AP via Houston Chronicle)(Times of Israel) (Israel National News)
- An Arab attempting to stab pedestrians on a street in Tel Aviv is subdued by bystanders, with no injuries reported. (Israel National News)
- Two Palestinian teenagers stab and critically injure a Jewish teenager and another man in East Jerusalem’s Pisgat Ze’ev neighborhood in the third stabbing attack in the capital in six hours; one attacker is neutralized by a motorist and the second is shot dead by police. (The Jerusalem Post)
Islamist militants kill two Tunisian soldiers and injure four others who were seeking to free a man kidnapped in a mountainous area near the border with Algeria. (Reuters) (Azeri-Press Agency)
Syrian Civil War, American-led intervention in Syria
- U.S. cargo planes airdrop small arms ammunition and other supplies to Syrian rebels, including Kurdish groups such as YPG, in northern Syria. (Reuters)

Business and economics

U.S. computer maker Dell takes over EMC Corporation for $US67 billion. (BBC)

International relations

Syria Civil War, Foreign involvement
- European Union foreign ministers, gathered in Luxembourg to discuss the situation in Syria, release a statement urging Russia to stop its attacks in Syria and direct efforts towards a political solution. (Daily Sabah) (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) (European Council)

Law and crime

Iranian State television reports that court spokesman Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i clarified the Iranian-American reporter’s verdict — Washington Post’s Jason Rezaian was convicted in a closed-door espionage trial that ended two months ago. Details remain unknown. Rezaian faced four charges; it’s not clear whether he was convicted of all charges nor what sentence was imposed. Leila Ahsan, Rezaian’s lawyer, also had not received the verdict as of Sunday. Post executive editor Martin Baron says they will appeal. (The Washington Post) (Payvand.com)
London police end their three-year long, round-the-clock guard outside the Ecuadorian Embassy waiting to arrest WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Officers have been stationed at this embassy since June 2012. Police said the operation cost 11.1 million pounds (17.6 million dollars) through April 2015. Assange is wanted for jumping bail in England and sexual assault allegations in Sweden. Assange denies the Swedish charges and suspects the real reason is bring him to the U.S. (NBC News) (AP via Newser) (London Metropolitan Police)
Post 2011 Egyptian Revolution trials
- Cairo’s criminal court orders the release of the sons of former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, who are waiting for the Court of Appeal’s decision in a financial corruption case. Each was sentenced to three years. The court ruled Gamal and Alaa Mubarak, who were initially detained in April 2011, had already served the requisite time in prison for the sentence. (New York Daily News) (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Jioji Konrote is elected President of Fiji by the country’s Parliament. Konrote, Fiji’s Minister for Employment, Productivity and Industrial Relations, received 31 votes, defeating Epeli Ganilau, who garnered 14 votes. (Radio New Zealand International)
The Vanuatuan Speaker of the Parliament, Marcellino Pipite, serving as acting President, pardons himself and 13 other MPs who had been found guilty of bribery on 9 October 2015. (ABC News)

Science

Angus Deaton wins the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his analysis of consumption, poverty, and welfare, helping redefine the way poverty is measured around the world, notably in India. (Huffington Post) (Washington Post)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 4, 2015

Top News Stories –

Brazilian prison inmates using a mouse to courier drugs –
As prison guards in one of Brazil’s notoriously overcrowded and chaotic jails, the officers in Barra da Grota prison probably thought they had seen it all. But last week they saw something that shocked even their hardened heads: a mouse, they noticed, was being used by inmates to courier drugs. The animal was seen scurrying along the corridor with tiny bags of drugs tied to its tail, running between the cells. Gean Carlos Gomes, director of the central Brazil prison, 1,100 miles inland from Recife, said the mouse was being used as a “bridge” between cells. “They attached a hook to the mouse’s tail and then used it to carry the drugs and other goods from one cell to another,” he said. “When the animal arrived at its destination, the prisoner took the mouse and removed the hook from its tail.” [Daily Telegraph]

Vladimir Putin is Forbes magazine’s most powerful person in the world –
Vladimir Putin has been named the world’s most powerful person for the second year running by Forbes magazine. Of the 73 listed, 28 are billionaires. Thirty of the individuals are Americans. And only nine are women – the same number as last year. The 63-year-old Russian president has, unsurprisingly, retained his position at the top of the Forbes ranking of the world’s most powerful people. Forbes says the decision is made on the amount of money they control; the number of people they impact; their total spheres of influence; and how actively they wield their power. And in all areas Mr Putin has triumphed; he dominates one of the world’s largest countries, and his actions in Ukraine and Syria are changing the course of history. [Daily Telegraph] See List of the Day
Vladimir Putin

WARNING: Do Not Post Your Winning Ticket On Social Media –
Chantelle from Perth won $900 [Australian] by betting on 100-to-1 shot Prince Of Penzance in the Melbourne Cup yesterday… Like many punters around the country Chantelle celebrated the win by posting a selfie with her victorious ticket on Facebook. Little did Chantelle know, the photo of the barcode could be used at an automated machine to claim the cash – which is exactly what someone did. “To the low life who is obviously my friend on Facebook and used my photo to claim our winnings. You’re a massive dick. You ruined my day,” Chantelle wrote on Facebook. Chantelle told Triple M that police were able to track where the money was claimed and are confident of finding the person responsible. [Triple M]
Chantelle winning ticket Facebook post

Video of the Day –

Emirates: #HelloJetman
Armed with unguarded ambition and the vision to push boundaries beyond the unthinkable, Jetman Dubai and Emirates A380 take to the skies of Dubai for an exceptional formation flight.

List of the Day –

Forbes Most Powerful People Top Ten 2015 [Forbes]

Rank	Name	Organization	Age
#1	Vladimir Putin	Russia	63
#2	Angela Merkel	Germany	61
#3	Barack Obama	United States	54
#4	Pope Francis	Roman Catholic Church	78
#5	Xi Jinping	China	62
#6	Bill Gates	Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation	60
#7	Janet Yellen	Washington, United States	69
#8	David Cameron	United Kingdom	49
#9	Narendra Modi	India	65
#10	Larry Page	Google	42

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	告白の日	#YouHadMeAt	#NationalStressAwarenessDay
2	#9DaysUntilMITAM	#NationalStressAwarenessDay	#GrantsNotDebt
3	#QueVuelvaElFav	#9DaysUntilMITAM	#cipd15
4	#احتجاج_الهلال…	#NerdyCountryMusic	Gerrard
5	Briana	#CMAawards	#PMQs
6	#NationalStressAwarenessDay	UC Merced	Dapper Laughs
7	Benzema	Hump Day	#IPBill
8	#MasterChefBR	McDavid	Ashley Young
9	#felizmiercoles	#MyStonerConfession	#TwitterHeart
10	Valbuena	Bayern	Chris Powell

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Kogalymavia Flight 9268
- Flights between the United Kingdom and the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh are suspended due to concerns of the British government that the crash was caused by an “explosive device”. (ITV)
- CNN reports that intelligence sources suggest that the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant or an affiliate organisation planted explosives on the plane. (CNN)
- Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh airport chief Abdel-Wahab Ali is replaced; he is now an assistant to Adel Mahgoub, chairman of the country’s air transport service. (AP)
Kunduz hospital airstrike, Afghanistan War
- The United States says that last month’s airstrikes in Kunduz hit three locations, mistakenly including the Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) (MSF) hospital where at least 30 were killed. Afghan commanders, whose forces were actively engaged with the Taliban, requested the attacks. The Washington Post reports a warehouse and a mansion in two densely populated residential areas were “pulverized” without loss of civilian lives. According to residents, earlier their neighborhoods had been conflict zones, but no militants were there the time of the attacks. “Together, the three attacks raise questions about the quality and reliability of the intelligence that Afghan security forces are providing to their American partners, as well as U.S. decisions to act on that intelligence,” writes the Post. (Washington Post)
- Médecins Sans Frontières held memorials around the globe Tuesday, the one month anniversary of the bombing, to reaffirm their request for an independent investigation. U.S. officials resist an independent probe, pledging that the three investigations underway, by the Pentagon, NATO, and Afghan officials, will be thorough and transparent. Thomas Nierle, head of MSF Switzerland, told AFP that he had little hope the inquiries would ultimately see any wrongdoers punished. (The Hill) (DW Akademie) (AFP via Yahoo News)

Business and economics

Keystone XL Pipeline
- The United States State Department formally denies Calgary-based TransCanada Corporation’s request, made Monday, to pause the review of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline. Reuters states this is expected to lead to the project’s rejection by theObama administration. (Reuters) (AP via Chicago Tribune)
Whole Foods, the Texas based food retailer, announces that it will buy back $1 billion of its shares, and increases its dividend. [1]

Disasters and accidents

Ash from Indonesia’s Mount Rinjani volcano closes Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport, the country’s third busiest. Nearly 700 flights are cancelled. Officials will re-evaluate the situation tomorrow. Mount Rinjani started spewing ash last weekend.(Reuters) (International Business Times)
2015 Juba plane crash
- A cargo plane crashes shortly after takeoff from Juba International Airport in Juba, South Sudan. 41 people have reportedly died. The five Armenian crew members were killed. (Reuters Africa) (RT) (Al Jazeera English) (AFP via Rappler) (Daily Mail)
2015 Lahore factory disaster
- A building collapses in the Pakistani city of Lahore resulting in at least 18 deaths, at least 75 injured and around 150 people still trapped. (AFP via France24) (Al Jazeera English) (BBC Online)

International relations

Cross-Strait relations, 2015 Ma–Xi Meeting
- The presidents of China and Taiwan are scheduled to meet in Singapore on November 7th, the first such meeting since the Chinese Communist Revolution. (New York Times) (BBC)
An Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Malaysia fails to agree on a joint communique following disagreement between China and other nations over the South China Sea. (AP)
South Korea and China agree to establish an emergency navy and military hotline. (UPI)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, China–United States relations, Malaysia–United States relations
- U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and his counterpart from Malaysia will visit the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) as it cruises in the South China Sea, this in the wake of China’s dismay over a U.S. Navy ship’s sailing in the vicinity of artificial islands constructed by China in the Spratly Islands. (Stars and Stripes)
European migrant crisis
- European Union president Donald Tusk and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfvén, in a joint news conference, announce Sweden will ask to transfer some migrants to other European countries under an EU relocation plan. Sweden has taken the highest number of asylum-seekers per capita in the 28-member bloc. (AP) (The Local)

Law and crime

UC Merced stabbing spree
- Police, at the University of California, Merced campus, shoot and kill a male student who went on a stabbing rampage that wounded four people. The University closed its campus, except for housing, and cancelled classes for Wednesday and Thursday. The school reported all of the wounded are expected to recover. (KGO) (UC Merced) (Los Angeles Times) (AP via Houston Chronicle)
Police have the gunman in custody and San Diego International Airport flights resume. The airport closed after police encountered a man with a high-powered gun shooting in a Bankers Hill apartment complex, east of the approach path to the airport. Also known as Lindbergh Field, the airport is frequently cited as one of the scariest because of its downtown location. (AP update) (Reuters) (Airfare Watchdog)
The Mexican Supreme Court, in a 4-1 decision, rules that people have the right to grow and distribute marijuana for their personal use. The decision challenges the country’s current substance abuse laws. Fox News Latino and The New York Times point out the ruling only covers the plaintiffs in one case, a group that wants to form a “Pot Club.” A precedent will be established if the court approves five similar petitions. (Fox News Latino) (Reuters)
James Tran of Sacramento County is arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide in the October 8 stabbing of Airman Spencer Stone near a bar in Sacramento California. Stone had helped foil the 2015 Thalys train attack but officials believe it was just a drunken bar fight. (MSN)

Politics and elections

Colectiv nightclub fire
- Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta and his government resigns after tens of thousands took to the streets to protest over the Colectiv nightclub fire that killed 32 people. Mircea Dușa has been proposed to be installed as Acting Prime Minister.(Euronews) (BBC News) (The Guardian)
Canadian government
- Justin Trudeau is sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Canada along with his ministry. (Toronto Star)
- Trudeau announces an ethnically diverse cabinet which for the first time is equally balanced between men and women (15 each). (The Guardian)
Belizean general election, 2015
- Voters in Belize go to the polls with the United Democratic Party led by Dean Barrow hoping for a third consecutive term. (Voice of America)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 21, 2015

Top News Stories –

Ban bathtubs, says Sweden’s ‘green king’ –
The king of Sweden wants to ban all bath-tubs in an effort to save water. King Carl XVI Gustaf, who in recent years has put past scandals relating to his reputation as a lothario behind him to become better known as a dedicated environmentalist, has given a frank interview to describe his determination to turn the royal palace in Stockholm green. He also suggested that having given up taking baths himself his people should follow where he has led. “We should ban all baths, imagine that,” he said when asked about his suggestions for everyday energy saving. The question arose when he confessed he had recently been forced to run himself a bath when staying somewhere that lacked showers. “That’s when it hit me how much water and energy it used,” he said. “I thought ‘I can’t believe I’m having to do this’. I felt quite ashamed.” [Daily Telegraph]
King Carl Gustaf

Video of the Day –

Fire Tornado in Slow Motion – The Slow Mo Guys

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#2016IsZaynsYear	Justin and Selena	Red Cadeaux
2	#ALDUBSumptuousLunch	#ElClasico	#Blogfest15
3	#DosPalabras	Ohio State	#MakeAFilmWayTooCheery
4	#SeTermina2015YYo	#MakeAFilmWayTooCheery	ITS SNOWING
5	#YoQuieroSobredosisDe	#MSUvsOSU	#Michaela
6	Justin and Selena	#2016IsZaynsYear	#grahamnorton
7	#ElClasico	Bulls	#ElClasico
8	#الهلال_الخليج	#5quad	#2016IsZaynsYear
9	Liverpool	Les Miles	Justin and Selena
10	MAÑANA CAMBIEMOS	#HelloBtchzItsCL	Liverpool

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2015 Brussels lockdown
- Belgium raises its terror alert level to the highest level in the capital Brussels and deploys soldiers on the streets of major Belgian cities such as Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent. As part of the emergency measures, the Belgian government is advising people in the Brussels area to avoid crowded places, which includes concerts, train stations, airports, public transportation, and busy shopping streets, warning of an “imminent threat”. (France 24) (BNO News)
- The Brussels Metro is closed as part of the state of alert. (Reuters via Daily Mail)
November 2015 Paris attacks
- Recruitment in the French Army increases after the attacks. (Channel News Asia)
- Ahmet Dahmani is detained by Turkish police in the resort of Antalya on suspicion of being an ISIL scout ahead of the Paris attacks. (Sky News)
- French police release seven of the eight people arrested during Wednesday’s raid of a flat where the suspected mastermind of the Paris attacks was hiding. The man who said he was in charge of the property is still being held. (Reuters)
2015 Bamako hotel attack
- Olivier Salgado, a spokesman for the U.N. mission in Mali, says at least 19 people were killed in the attack along with two of the attackers. Earlier reports indicated that 27 people died. (CNN)
Ukrainian crisis
- Crimea is without power after transmission towers in Ukraine‘s Kherson Oblast were blown up by unknown people. The Crimean Emergencies Ministry declares a state of emergency due to the power outage and puts rescue teams on high alert. (RT)
Boko Haram insurgency
- A suicide bomb attack in Fotokol, a town in Cameroon‘s Far North Region near the Nigerian border kills at least nine people. (Daily Mail)

Arts and culture

British singer Adele‘s album 25 is released. (Billboard)
Miss World 2015
- Miss World Canada Anastasia Lin says that she is prevented from competing in China by the Chinese authorities after she spoke up against human rights abuses in the country. (BBC)
Muslim cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, the head of al-Azhar in Egypt, says violence has no link to authentic Islam, terrorism is a life philosophy whose adherents were willing to die and is an intellectual and psychological disease that uses religion as a front.(Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Seven people, including the pilot, are killed in a helicopter crash on Fox Glacier in New Zealand. (stuff.co.nz)
A fire in a coal mine in China‘s northeast Heilongjiang province results in 21 deaths and one person missing. (AP)
Hpakant jade mine disaster
- A landslide near a jade mine in northern Myanmar kills up to 60 people with more than a hundred missing. (AP via ABC News America)
The U.S. Geological Survey reports a magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck the central Chilean coast, south of the town of Coquimbo, at 6:05 PM EST. No immediate reports of damage or casualties; no tsunami alerts are in effect. (Reuters) (BNO News)(USGS)

Health and medicine

Research conducted by Columbus, Ohio’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital and published in the American Journal of Epidemiology suggests moderate caffeine consumption during pregnancy does not harm a baby’s future intelligence or behavioral health.(UPI)

International relations

Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- Japan‘s prime minister Shinzō Abe says he is considering sending Japanese Navy warships to the South China Sea to back-up U.S. naval operations, saying, “With regard to activity by the Self-Defense Forces in the South China Sea, I will consider it while focusing on what effect the situation has on Japan’s security.” In response, China‘s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Hong Lei, told Chinese state media that China will remain on “high alert for intervention by Japan in the South China Sea issue”. (Bloomberg) (The Diplomat)
Reactions to the November 2015 Paris attacks
- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak denounces the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant as an “evil” terrorist group. He said his Muslim-majority country is ready to join others to defeat it, cautioning that a military solution alone is not enough and that it is also necessary to vanquish the ideology of the group. (AP via Fresno Bee)
Refugee crises
- United States President Barack Obama vows to keep United States borders open to refugees, “as long as I’m president,” as he visited a Malaysian humanitarian center and met migrant children, many of whom escaped violence in homelands that includeMyanmar, Pakistan, and Syria. (UPI)

Law and crime

A student, whose disappearance with a gun caused the precautionary closing of Washington College in Maryland (U.S.) this week, is found dead in Pennsylvania of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The campus will reopen after Thanksgiving. (Washington Post) (Washington College)

Politics and elections

Elections in the United States; Louisiana gubernatorial election, 2015
- Democratic state Representative John Bel Edwards, the surprise winner of the October 24 open primary, is elected governor of Louisiana over Republican U.S. Senator David Vitter. Edwards’ margin is 140,931 votes (56.11 percent), all 3,945 precincts reporting. Edwards will replace former Republican presidential candidate Bobby Jindall, who was not eligible to seek another term. (NOLA.com) (Washington Post)
- Republican David Vitter says he will not run for reelection to the U.S. Senate in 2016. (AP)

Sport

In motor sport, the team of Timo Bernhard, Brendon Hartley and Mark Webber win the FIA World Endurance Championship. (Reuters via Yahoo News Australia)
In baseball, South Korea defeats the United States in the 2015 WBSC Premier12. (Yahoo Sports)
Boxing
- Anthony Crolla of England wins the World Boxing Association lightweight title defeating Darleys Perez in a title fight in Manchester. (BBC)
- Saúl Álvarez of Mexico defeats Miguel Cotto of Mexico to win the World Boxing Council middleweight championship. (AP)
Ireland beat Australia in the 2015 International Rules Series at Croke Park. (Guardian)
The Athens derby match between Superleague Greece’s top two football teams, Panathinaikos and Olympiakos Piraeus, is called off before play could start. There were scuffles between riot police and fans outside the Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium. Flares were also tossed onto the pitch. (Reuters)
Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao F.C. win the AFC Champions League for their second time, after defeating Al-Ahli in the final. (Channel News Asia)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 24, 2015

Top News Stories –

Angry Cheryl Fernandez-Versini takes legal action over ‘white powder’ bathroom picture –
Cheryl Fernandez-Versini has taken legal action to prevent the publication of a photograph in which she is seen next to a white powdery substance in a public lavatory. The X Factor judge was photographed by a fashion journalist who posted the picture on Instagram after the 2015 British Fashion Awards at the London Coliseum on Monday night. The image was later deleted, but lawyers for the Girls Aloud singer have sent a warning letter to media companies not to use the picture. Taken in the reflection of a mirror, the picture shows Mrs Fernandez-Versini washing her hands with other women either side of her, with three lines of a white powder on a glass shelf in front and slightly to the side of her. [Daily Telegraph]
Cheryl Fernandez-Versini

Jeff Bezos’ space company does world first in landing reusable rocket –
[As promised in September 2015] Jeff Bezos’ privately-funded space company Blue Origin announced a historic first today – it successfully landed a fired rocket back on Earth after an unmanned flight to space. Bezos announced the compelling test flight video on Twitter – the first time he has ever tweeted – calling the achievement the “rarest of beasts.” In this test flight, the rocket separated itself from the New Shepard vehicle, which flew to an altitude of 93km on Monday, at almost 4 times the speed of sound. Usually, the rocket would have fallen back to Earth and been unable to complete any more flights. “Rockets have always been expendable,” Bezos wrote in blog post about the landing. “Not anymore.” In this case, it was guided towards a launchpad on Earth where it slowed down and landed, intact. This means the rocket can be re-used for subsequent flights, which companies like Blue Origin claim will make spaceflight far less expensive. [Daily Telegraph] See Video of the Day
Jeff Bezos

Video of the Day –

Historic Rocket Landing

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#MentirasMasUsadas	#ThanksgivingWithBlackFami…	#CharityTuesday
2	#ThanksgivingWithBlackFami…	#RuinAnOldSaying	World War III
3	#NadaMejorQue	Johnny Manziel	Alan Johnson
4	#GRAMMYs	#4thPrecinctShutDown	#1in5Muslims
5	#شي_جميل_يبداا_…	#LaquanMcDonald	Christmas Eve
6	Zayn e Gigi	#GRAMMYs	#6YearsOfOneTime
7	Turquía	David Canary	#Trident
8	#24KasımÖğretmenlerGünü	#6YearsOfOneTime	Rusev
9	Su-24	#ThanksgivingClapBack	#TravelTuesday
10	#VideoMTV2015	Russian	#GRAMMYs

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Sinai insurgency
- November 2015 Sinai attack
  - A day after the second round of parliamentary elections closes, militants attack a hotel housing election judges in the provincial capital of al-Arish in Egypt’s North Sinai. At least seven people are killed and 12 others injured, including two judges. The Islamic State’s Wilayat Sinai branch claims responsibility. (Reuters) (Eyewitness News)
Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War, 2015 Russian Sukhoi Su-24 shootdown
- Turkish F-16 fighter jets shoot down a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 aircraft that had allegedly infringed its airspace near the Syrian border. Russia’s Ministry of Defence denies the Su-24 entered Turkish airspace and initially said it was shot down by ground fire over Syria’s Latakia Governorate. A video emerged of one pilot killed as local rebel Turkmen fighters shot at him while he was parachuting and a video of his body, while the fate of the other pilot is unknown but is presumed dead. A combat search and rescue mission by Russian forces failed to reach them. It is the first time a NATO member has shot down a Russian plane since the 1950s. (Irish Independent) (BBC) (The Telegraph)
- A Russian military helicopter is destroyed on the ground by a U.S. TOW missile used by Syrian rebels after it was forced to make an emergency landing in northern Latakia. (Reuters)
- A Russian marine is killed by rebel gunfire while on a mission to rescue the crew of the downed Su-24 near the Syrian-Turkish border, Russia’s Defence Ministry confirms. (BBC)
- Russian President Vladimir Putin says there will be “serious consequences” for Russia–Turkey relations following Turkey‘s actions, and describes the incident as a “stab in the back by the accomplices of terrorists”. Russian government agencies began limiting Russian tourists from traveling to Turkey. (Independent)
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warns everyone to “respect the right of Turkey to defend its borders,” says that the reason why worse incidents have not taken place in the past regarding Syria is because of the “cool-headedness of Turkey” and stresses that Turkey’s actions are fully in line with the new rules of engagement that the country adopted after Syria shot down a Turkish jet in 2012. (BBC)
- Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu defends the action saying Turkey has the right “to take all kinds of measures” against border violations as a “national duty,” but that it did not amount to an aggression against any foreign territory and the country called for NATO to hold an extraordinary meeting later in the day.(AFP via The Express Tribune)
Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- A car-bomb kills five guards at a checkpoint east of the Libyan capital, Tripoli. (Channel News Asia)
Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present)
- An explosion on a bus carrying Tunisian Presidential Guard personnel in Tunisia‘s capital Tunis leaves at least 15 people dead, as the country’s government declares a state of emergency. (Independent)

Arts and culture

Barack Obama presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 17 people including Willie Mays, Barbra Streisand, Itzhak Perlman, James Taylor, Gloria Estefan and Emilio Estefan, Stephen Sondheim and Steven Spielberg. (New York Times)

International relations

United Kingdom withdrawal from the European Union
- According to an opinion poll, a majority of British citizens now want the United Kingdom to leave the European Union as voter anxiety rises over the bloc’s handling of a crisis provoked by an influx of migrants into Europe. A referendum on the United Kingdom’s EU membership is scheduled to take place before the end of 2017. (Reuters)
European migrant crisis
- Sweden will introduce tighter border controls and asylum rules in a bid to reduce the number of asylum seekers entering the country. Sweden expects up to 190,000 asylum seekers to reach its borders this year and says its reception system cannot cope. “The situation is untenable”, according to Swedish prime minister Stefan Löfven who told reporters, “to put it bluntly, more people will have to seek asylum and get protection in other European countries”. (Reuters)
- Germany starts deporting unsuccessful asylum seekers to the Balkans. (Reuters via Thomson Reuters Foundation)

Law and crime

A military court in Bangkok charges two men Adem Karadag and Yusufu Miefaili with offences related to the 2015 Bangkok bombing. (Al-Jazeera)
A bomb blast at the Hellenic Business Federation offices in central Athens, Greece, damages the Cypriot Embassy across the street. While there is yet no claim for responsibility the authorities suspect a domestic guerrilla group set off the blast. (Reuters)
Shooting of Laquan McDonald
- Chicago, Illinois police officer Jason Van Dyke is charged with first-degree murder for the October shooting death of Laquan McDonald, a black teenager. The charge comes one day before the release of the police video showing the shooting. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel meets with community leaders to discuss the video’s release and the potential ramifications for the city. (CNN)
2015 Roubaix shootings
- At least one person is killed after a group of armed men took people hostage in the northern French town of Roubaix near the Belgian border. The hostages are thought to be a bank director and his family. French police say the incident may be related to a robbery and not to the November 2015 attacks in Paris. (Irish Independent)

Politics and elections

U.S. reactions to November 2015 Paris attacks
- The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana sues Indiana Governor Mike Pence over his decision to block Syrian refugees from resettling in the state. The ACLU, on behalf of Indianapolis-based nonprofit Exodus Refugee Immigration, accuses Pence of violating the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution by accepting refugees from other countries but not those from Syria. The decision also caused some financial harm to Exodus when a family of Syrian refugees, scheduled to arrive in Indianapolis on December 10 after a three-year wait, had to be diverted to Connecticut. (AP via Miami Herald) (Indianapolis Star) (USA Today)
Antonio Costa, the leader of the Socialist Party, is named as the Prime Minister of Portugal. (Reuters)
Echoing criticisms of the U.S. intelligence community in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Derek Harvey, a former U.S. intelligence official, says that the U.S. intelligence community is failing in its assessments of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Another unnamed source says the U.S. intelligence community is “playing catch up“ regarding efforts to monitor ISIL activities in the U.S. These, following reports that U.S. Central Command intelligence analysts were instructed to give favorable spin on anti-ISIL efforts. (The Telegraph) (Fox News)

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February 29, 2016

Leap Day – one of only two in this decade.

Top News Stories –

Peter Rabbit to feature on 50p coin to mark Beatrix Potter anniversary, Royal Mint announces –
Beatrix Potter’s mischievous Peter Rabbit is to become the first children’s literary character to appear on a UK coin. In a move certain to infuriate Mr McGregor, the anthropomorphic vegetable thief will feature on a silver 50p released to mark the 150th anniversary of the author’s birth in 1866. The Royal Mint said three more Potter characters will feature on special edition coins released later in the year to complete a four-piece set. [Daily Telegraph]
Peter Rabbit 50p

Blossom fans break into Chinese prison grounds –
A Chinese prison compound has been attracting hordes of visitors keen to see the site’s blossoming trees in full bloom – with some scaling walls in order to get in, it’s reported.
Members of the public had previously been allowed onto the site, in the southern city of Guilin, to wander among a huge grove of peach trees planted in an area housing jail staff. Guards say in past years they’ve only seen a trickle of visitors, but this year’s spectacular display means thousands have turned up, forcing prison authorities to limit access to people visiting inmates or staff, the local Nanguo Zaobao newspaper reports. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

How leap year works

List of the Day –

Leap Day Events [from Wikipedia]

1504 – Christopher Columbus uses his knowledge of a lunar eclipse that night to convince Native Americans to provide him with supplies.
1644 – Abel Tasman‘s second Pacific voyage began.
1704 – Queen Anne’s War: French forces and Native Americans stage a raid on Deerfield, Massachusetts, killing 56 villagers and taking more than 100 captive.
1712 – February 29 is followed by February 30 in Sweden, in a move to abolish the Swedish calendar for a return to the Old style.
1720 – Ulrika Eleonora, Queen of Sweden abdicates in favour of her husband, who becomes King Frederick I on 24 March.
1752 – King Alaungpaya founds Konbaung Dynasty, the last dynasty of Burmese monarchy.
1768 – Polish nobles formed Bar Confederation.
1796 – The Jay Treaty between the United States and Great Britain comes into force, facilitating ten years of peaceful trade between the two nations.
1864 – American Civil War: Kilpatrick–Dahlgren Raid fails: Plans to free 15,000 Union soldiers being held near Richmond, Virginia are thwarted.
1892 – St. Petersburg, Florida is incorporated.
1912 – The Piedra Movediza (Moving Stone) of Tandil falls and breaks.
1916 – Tokelau is annexed by the United Kingdom.
1916 – Child labor: In South Carolina, the minimum working age for factory, mill, and mine workers is raised from twelve to fourteen years old.
1920 – Czechoslovak National assembly adopted the Constitution.
1936 – Baby Snooks, played by Fanny Brice, debuts on the radio program The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air.
1936 – February 26 Incident in Tokyo ends.
1940 – For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind, Hattie McDaniel becomes the first African American to win an Academy Award.
1940 – Finland initiates Winter War peace negotiations.
1940 – In a ceremony held in Berkeley, California, because of the war, physicist Ernest Lawrence receives the 1939 Nobel Prize in Physics from Sweden’s Consul General in San Francisco.
1944 – World War II: The Admiralty Islands are invaded in Operation Brewer led by American General Douglas MacArthur.
1952 – The island of Heligoland is restored to German authority.
1960 – The 5.7 Mw Agadir earthquake shakes coastal Morocco with a maximum perceived intensity of X (Extreme), destroying Agadir, and leaving 12,000 dead and another 12,000 injured.
1964 – In Sydney, Australian swimmer Dawn Fraser sets a new world record in the 100-meter freestyle swimming competition (58.9 seconds).
1972 – Vietnam War: Vietnamization: South Korea withdraws 11,000 of its 48,000 troops from Vietnam.
1980 – Gordie Howe of the then Hartford Whalers makes NHL history as he scores his 800th goal.
1988 – South African archbishop Desmond Tutu is arrested along with 100 clergymen during a five-day anti-apartheid demonstration in Cape Town.
1988 – Svend Robinson becomes the first member of the Canadian House of Commons to come out as gay.
1992 – First day of Bosnia and Herzegovina independence referendum.
1996 – Faucett Flight 251 crashes in the Andes, all 123 passengers and crew died.
1996 – Siege of Sarajevo officially ends.
2000 – Second Chechen War: Eighty-four Russian paratroopers are killed in a rebel attack on a guard post near Ulus Kert.
2004 – Jean-Bertrand Aristide is removed as President of Haiti following a coup.
2008 – The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence decides to withdraw Prince Harry from a tour of Afghanistan “immediately” after a leak led to his deployment being reported by foreign media.
2008 – Misha Defonseca admits to fabricating her memoir, Misha: A Mémoire of the Holocaust Years, in which she claimed to have lived with a pack of wolves in the woods during the Holocaust.
2012 – Tokyo Skytree construction completed. Now it is the tallest tower in the world, 634 meters high, and second tallest (man-made) structure on Earth, next to Burj Khalifa.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#MakeDonaldDrumpfAgain	#MakeDonaldDrumpfAgain	#MakeDonaldDrumpfAgain
2	#SegundaDetremuraSdv	#LeapDay	#LeapDay
3	#FelizSemGlobo	#NotYourMule	#UnifiedResponse
4	#منشن_شخص_يستا�…	#RareDiseaseDay	#RareDiseaseDay
5	#LeapDay	#DayItForward	#ScotMAWeek16
6	#FelizLunes	#NHLTradeDeadline	Raspberry Pi 3
7	#شيرين_عبدالوه…	#Budget2016	#Oscars
8	#BugünBeşiktaşınMaçıVar	#HappyBirthdayJustinBieber	#OlivierAwards
9	#QuedaChavismoPaRato	#OneNationOneTeam	#WGT16
10	#29deFebrero	George Kennedy	#bondconf

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- At least 27 are people are killed and 55 others wounded following a suicide bombing at a Shi’ite funeral in the city of Miqdadiyah, Diyala Governorate. (Reuters)

Business and economy

China says it expects to lay off 1.8 million state workers in the coal and steel sectors, or about 15 percent of the industries’ workforce, as part of efforts to reduce industrial overcapacity. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

One person has died and hundreds of people have been evacuated after heavy rain in the Indonesian capital Jakarta. (Jakarta Post)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Macedonian police use tear gas after hundreds of migrants frustrated with long delays broke a gate on the border with Greece and temporarily cross the border. (Press Association via Irish Independent)
- Immigration Minister John McCallum says Canada has reached its target of resettling 25,000 Syrian refugees under its program started in November 2015. (Time)

Law and crime

Pakistani authorities hang Mumtaz Qadri for his role in the murder of reformist Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer in 2011. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
Calais migrant crisis
- Clashes break out inside the Calais jungle camp in the port city of Calais between migrants and riot police as officials attempted to evict hundreds of migrants from the southern section of the camp. Several tents and wooden shacks were set on fire by migrants. (The Telegraph)
School shootings
- In the United States, a 14-year-old shoots two students, who were hospitalized in stable condition, in the Madison Local School cafeteria. Two other teenagers are injured, none seriously. The southwesternOhio school, which had practiced for such an event, immediately went into lockdown; Tuesday classes are cancelled. (AP via The Citizen) (UPI) (School website)

Politics and elections

Former Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir Mohamad quits the ruling United Malays National Organisation due to concerns over “corruption” under current PM Najib Razak. (Reuters via The Age)
Hillary Clinton email controversy
- The United States Department of State releases the final batch of emails recovered from the private server of former Secretary of State and Democratic Party front runner in the race for the nomination for the 2016 presidential election. (NBC News)

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March 23, 2016

Top News Stories –

Foo Fighters singer Dave Grohl backs teenage metal band in Cornwall noise row –
US rocker Dave Grohl has leapt to the defence of a teenage heavy metal band from Cornwall – after their local council said they were too loud. The Black Leaves of Envy were told they would have to stop practising in a family garage after noise complaints from neighbours. Foo Fighters frontman Grohl penned an open letter to the authority after the band reached out to him. He asked Cornwall Council to “reconsider the restrictions”. In the open letter, former Nirvana drummer Grohl says he started out practising in a garage and says music is a “wonderful, creative outlet for kids”. Grohl also penned a separate letter to the band, giving them advice on soundproofing. He advised the group to fill the garage walls with sand and cover the floor in gym mats. Band member Adam Jones, 17, said: “It’s just been surreal – I’m speechless.” “Seeing the Foo Fighters tag you in a post on Facebook was just incredible,” he said. [BBC] Grohl famously broke his leg when he fell off the stage at a gig in Gothenburg, Sweden in June 2015 but returned to finish the concert.
Dave Gohl

Formula 1 drivers warn success of sport could be jeopardised –
Formula 1 drivers have demanded change at the top of the sport, saying its decision-making process is “obsolete and ill-structured”. Grand Prix Drivers’ Association (GPDA) directors Jenson Button, Sebastian Vettel and Alex Wurz have written a letter on behalf of the drivers. It “urges the owners and stakeholders of F1 to restructure its governance”. Many issues can be traced back to F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, but the letter does not mention the 85-year-old. Some recent decisions are “disruptive”, avoid “the bigger issues” and “could jeopardise F1’s success”, it adds. Writing the letter is an extraordinary step by the drivers, which reflects the strength of their feelings on the matter.
Jenson Button

Video of the Day –

iPhone SE (parody)

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#QuartaSantaClubeSDV	#NationalPuppyDay	#NationalPuppyDay
2	Katt Williams	#WednesdayWisdom	Katt Williams
3	#NationalPuppyDay	Katt Williams	#WeAreHereForYouJustin
4	#شبيهك_من_المش�…	David Letterman	#DogBooks
5	#ObamaEnArgentina	#1linewed	Suzanne Evans
6	#اشكر_ربي_علي	#ObamaEnArgentina	#SocialDayUK
7	#الهلال_في_ثلا�…	#WeAreNotThis	Bridget Jones
8	#EBGodGaveMeYou	#IndvsBan	#GeordieShore
9	#WeAreHereForYouJustin	#cowx	#SaudiArabiaUncovered
10	#ManInTree	#HandsOffMyBC	#FirstDates

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2016 Brussels bombings
- Belgian federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw says two brothers of Belgian nationality, Khalid and Brahim el-Bakraoui, were responsible for yesterday’s suicide bombings. Khalid bombed the subway station while Ibrahim bombed the airport, he added. A third suspect, who died at the airport, is identified as Najim Laachraoui, says De Standaard. A fourth suspect seen in the airport photo, who left a massive bomb at the airport that did not detonate, is unidentified and still at large. (UPI) (Los Angeles Times) (De Standaard)
- Van Leeuw says 31 people died and 271 are injured in the bombings. (UPI)
- Referring to the Brussels bombings, Poland abandons a pledge to shelter Syrian migrants under a European Union relocation agreement. (Reuters)
Yemeni Civil War (2015–present), War on Terror
- At least 50 militants are reportedly killed in a U.S. air strike on an Al-Qaeda training camp in southern Yemen. (Reuters)

Business and economics

The U.S. Labor Department releases a long-awaited rule, the so-called persuader rule that was first proposed in 2011. The regulation requires companies to disclose when they seek advice about countering union campaigns. The final rule will apply to contracts beginning on July 1, 2016. Several business groups, such as the National Retail Federation, the Associated Builders and Contractors, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers, object because the rule limits employers’ free speech rights to counter union organizing, it could interfere with attorney-client privilege, etc. Court challenges are expected. (Reuters) (The Hill)

Disasters and accidents

2015–16 North American winter
- Late March 2016 North American blizzard
  - A powerful blizzard sweeping Denver, Colorado, forces authorities to close Denver International Airport, Interstate 70, Interstate 25 and leaves more than 100,000 people without power. The Colorado Army National Guard has been deployed to help rescue those stranded by the storm. (The Denver Post)
  - Denver International Airport reopens at 7 pm (Mountain Daylight Time). Over 1,300 flights were canceled. Just a few flights are expected to arrive or depart through the night. The National Weather Service estimates that parts of Denver received 19.5 inches of snow as of 3:59 pm (MDT). (The Denver Post) (The Denver Post²)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) and the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, announce they are withdrawing from the so-called hotspots on the Greek islands because of the new EU-Turkey deal. UNHCR’s Melissa Fleming says, “Under the new provisions, these sites (hotspots) have now become detention facilities.” MSF’s Marie Elisabeth Ingres says, “We will not allow our assistance to be instrumentalized (sic) for a mass expulsion operation, and we refuse to be part of a system that has no regard for the humanitarian or protection needs of asylum seekers and migrants.” (Vox Media)(New Europe)

Law and crime

Passengers are evacuated from the south domestic terminal at Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport in the U.S. state of Georgia after a suspicious package is found. The package is declared safe by a bomb squad. (AP via News24)
The Supreme Court of the United States, which currently has just eight justices, today heard the case brought by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh (Zubik v. Burwell, which includes similar ones by other religious organizations) that challenges the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provision that employer-paid health insurance plans provide women with access to contraceptives at no additional out-of-pocket cost, and challenges the federal government accommodation offered in 2014 that would have a third-party provide the coverage with costs paid by the federal government. The plaintiffs state that both are unconstitutional because they violate the free exercise of religion. The decision is expected in June. If the result is a split decision (4-4), there would be no national precedent and each case’s final decision would be the one made in court before the case was forwarded to the Supreme Court. In the group of cases presented today, all but one appeals court upheld the government mandate. (Reuters)(USA Today) (NPR)

Politics and elections

Nigerien general election, 2016
- Nigerien President Mahamadou Issoufou wins re-election in a second round of voting, receiving 92 percent of the vote in an election that was boycotted by the opposition. (Al Jazeera)
Senegalese constitutional referendum, 2016
- Voters in Senegal approve a series of constitutional reforms, which include a reduction of presidential terms from seven to five years, with 63 percent of the vote. (BBC)
United States presidential election, 2016
- Tuesday, March 22 primaries/caucuses
  - Front runners Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump each won the Democratic and Republican primary in Arizona, respectively. (BBC)
  - Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz each won their party’s votes in Idaho and Utah (BBC)
  - The early results for Tuesday’s GOP caucus in American Samoa — nine uncommitted. The Democratic caucus was held on March 1, 2016, with Hillary Clinton getting eight delegates and Bernie Sanders three. (caffeinatedthoughts.com) (The Green Papers)

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May 14, 2016

Top News Stories –

Barcelona pip rivals Real Madrid to the La Liga title on last day –
Barcelona pipped bitter rivals Real Madrid to the La Liga title thanks to a Luis Suarez hat-trick at Granada. Barca’s fifth victory in a row ensured they won the league by one point from Real, who beat Deportivo La Coruna 2-0. Suarez tapped in, powered home a header and slotted Neymar’s pass to give him La Liga’s golden boot with 40 goals. [BBC]
Luis_Suarez

Eurovision Song Contest: Ukraine’s Jamala wins competition –
Ukraine’s Jamala has won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, held in Stockholm, Sweden.
The country scored 534 points with its song 1944, about the deportation of Crimean Tatars under Josef Stalin. Australia finished second with 511 points, while Russia – which was the favourite going into the competition – was third with 491 points. Jamala is the first ever Crimean Tatar to perform at the contest and caused controversy ahead of the show over her political song. The song references the year when Stalin deported almost all of the ethnic group from its native region of Crimea in what was then Soviet Russia (later to become part of Ukraine). [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Recap of all the Eurovision Song Contest finalists

List of the Day –

Spanish BBVA La Liga Table 2015-16

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Barcelona	38	29	4	5	112	29	+83	91
2	Real Madrid	38	28	6	4	110	34	+76	90
3	Atlético Madrid	38	28	4	6	63	18	+45	88
4	Villarreal	37	18	10	9	44	33	+11	64
5	Athletic Bilbao	38	18	8	12	58	45	+13	62
6	Celta Vigo	38	17	9	12	50	58	−8	60
7	Sevilla	38	14	10	14	51	50	+1	52
8	Real Sociedad	38	13	9	16	45	48	−3	48
9	Málaga	37	11	12	14	34	34	0	45
10	Las Palmas	37	12	8	17	44	49	−5	44
11	Valencia	38	11	11	16	46	48	−2	44
12	Eibar	37	11	10	16	47	57	−10	43
13	Deportivo La Coruña	38	8	18	12	45	62	−17	42
14	Real Betis	37	10	12	15	31	50	−19	42
15	Espanyol	37	11	7	19	36	72	−36	40
16	Granada	38	10	9	19	46	68	−22	39
17	Getafe	37	9	9	19	36	65	−29	36
18	Sporting Gijón	37	9	9	19	38	62	−24	36
19	Rayo Vallecano	37	8	11	18	49	72	−23	35
20	Levante	37	8	8	21	36	67	−31	32

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- At least two people are killed and 12 injured after a suicide bomb attack on a police training center in Helmand Province. (Stars and Stripes)
Syrian Civil War
- Turkey‘s Anadolu Agency reports that 45 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants have been killed by a combination of Turkish Army shelling and a U.S. air strike north of Aleppo. (Reuters vs Trust)
- U.S. officials believe the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has declared a state of emergency in its self-declared capital, Al-Raqqah. (CNN) (FOX News) (CBS News)
Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- At least 14 suicide bombers attack a complex, killing themselves and at least 6 people. (AP via FOX News)

Arts and culture

Eurovision Song Contest 2016, Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016
- Ukraine‘s Jamala, performing the song “1944“, wins the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm, Sweden. This is Ukraine’s second win in the Eurovision Song Contest; their previous victory was in2004. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

More than 50 have been killed by lightning strikes in Bangladesh over the past two days. (BBC)
A bus crashes on U.S. Route 83 in Texas about 46 miles north of the city of Laredo resulting in eight deaths and 44 injured. (AP)

Law and crime

Attacks on secularists in Bangladesh
- A Buddhist monk is hacked to death in Bangladesh. (VOA News) (CNN)
At least three people are killed and dozens are wounded after a mass brawl, involving around 200 people, mostly North Caucasusian migrants, breaks out in Khovanskoye Cemetery in southwest Moscow. The Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin said that none of those responsible would go unpunished. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

2016 state of emergency in Venezuela
- Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro orders the seizure of factories that have stopped production and the jailing of their owners amid a nationwide state of emergency. During a speech to pro-government supporters in Caracas, he said the country had to recover the means of production, to counter its deep economic crisis. He also said military exercises would take place next weekend to counter “foreign threats”. (BBC)

Sport

2015–16 La Liga
- In football, FC Barcelona wins La Liga for the 24th time. It is FC Barcelona’s second straight title and sixth in the last eight years. (Sports Illustrated)
FA Women’s Cup
- Arsenal LFC defeats Chelsea LFC 1-0 to win their 14th title before a record match for this fixture at Wembley Stadium. (Eurosport)

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The 2010s

The story of a decade

Tag Archives: Sweden

January 8, 2010

November 14, 2014

May 23, 2015

June 13, 2015

July 5, 2015

September 10, 2015

October 12, 2015

November 4, 2015

November 21, 2015

November 24, 2015

February 29, 2016

March 23, 2016

May 14, 2016