The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) recently cut nearly $420 million in contracts within 80 hours, a move that could reduce the federal budget by up to 3% of Elon Musk’s original goal. This staggering figure highlights DOGE’s early efforts at cost-cutting and deregulation, with President Trump’s executive order redefining its mission as a focus … Read more
Chinese researchers have unveiled a groundbreaking open-source AI model called DeepSeek-R1, which challenges the dominance of ChatGPT. This new model was developed in just two months for $5.58 million, making it significantly more cost-effective than its competitors like OpenAI’s GPT-4 and Anthropic’s Claude. DeepSeek-R1 excels in tasks such as problem-solving, coding, math, and replicating human-like … Read more
The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management announced the presence of the H5N1 strain of avian influenza in a non-commercial farm flock of about 40 birds in southern Washington County. To prevent the spread, DEM staff humanely euthanized the flock. No person-to-person transmission of H5N1 has been detected in the U.S., including Rhode Island, where … Read more
The Dallas Cowboys have announced the hiring of Brian Schottenheimer as their new head coach, replacing Tom Landry, who served as coach for 29 years. General manager Jerry Jones made the official announcement following Landry’s firing on Dec. 16. Schottenheimer, a former assistant under Mike McCarthy at the Cowboys, will take over without prior coaching … Read more
Hanover County Public Schools has issued a warning following a data breach involving its student information system vendor, PowerSchool. On January 9, the school district announced that between December 19 and 22, unauthorized access to servers hosted by PowerSchool led to the exposure of sensitive student data, including names, addresses, contact info, teacher details, schedules, … Read more
Jabrill Peppers, the New England Patriots safety, was acquitted on all charges stemming from an October incident at his Braintree home. The 29-year-old pleaded not guilty to strangulation, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, as well as assault and battery on a family or household member. During the trial, Peppers admitted to being drunk … Read more
** A groundbreaking study from USC researchers reveals that exposure to manmade “forever chemicals” called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water is associated with a 33% higher risk of developing certain cancers, including digestive, respiratory, and cancer types that differ significantly between men and women. This U.S.-based study is the first to show … Read more
Chinese car companies BYD, Geely, and SAIC have sued the European Commission over anti-subsidy tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs). Tesla and BMW are also taking legal action following an EU investigation into China’s subsidies distorting the global EV market. The cases were filed in Luxembourg’s General Court last week, with companies challenging the basis for … Read more
As cases of norovirus rise in Canada and the U.S., researchers show progress toward a vaccine. Moderna, an American pharmaceutical company, is developing an mRNA-based vaccine called mRNA-1403 to combat multiple norovirus strains. The company aims to use this technology to create a safe and effective immune response without causing infection. Stéphane Bancel, Moderna’s CEO, … Read more
A 60-day truce between Israel and Hezbollah halted a ground invasion and cross-border attacks in Lebanon. However, both sides failed to withdraw as agreed, with Hezbollah scouts present in villages and Israeli drones overhead. The ceasefire collapsed just before its end, leaving both nations short of their obligations. Soldiers from Israel’s northernmost town delivered a … Read more