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Pope recognizes China’s appointment of Shanghai bishop three months after the fact

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis gave in Saturday to China’s unilateral appointment of a new bishop in Shanghai, formally recognizing Beijing’s installation of Bishop Shen Bin three months after the fact.In its daily noon bulletin, the Vatican said Francis had appointed Shen as bishop of Shanghai, transferring him from Haimen. The Vatican spokesman said in early April that the Holy See learned of Shen’s appointment to lead the Catholic Church in Shanghai from media accounts.The Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, said Francis decided to accept China’s unilateral appointment for the “greater good” of the faithful in Shanghai. But Parolin made clear China’s move had violated the “spirit of collaboration” outlined in a 2018 accord between the Holy See and Beijing on bishop appointments.He said he hoped future appointments would be made according to the letter and spirit of consensus called for in the accord.In comments to Vatican media explaining the popeR...

Capitol rioter who assaulted police with flagpole at Jan. 6 insurrection is sentenced to 6 years

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

(The Hill) – A woman who was charged for attacking Capitol Police officers with a flagpole during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on the Capitol was sentenced to six years in prison on Friday.Audrey Ann Southard-Rumsey amplified calls for revolution and violence on social media before the insurrection, according to federal investigators, including writing posts demanding to “hang the traitors.” She was also captured on video threatening then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who was inside the Capitol Building."Tell Pelosi we are coming for that b----,” she yelled at multiple U.S. Capitol Police officers, according to a Department of Justice news release. “There’s a hundred thousand of us, what’s it going to be?”Prosecutors called Southard-Rumsey a “principal agitator” during the insurrection, claiming that she went on a “violent rampage” with the flagpole against police officers. She was one of the rioters who led the mob towards the House chambers, prosecutors claimed.During the insur...

Delete these two apps that steal your photos, videos, location and more, experts warn

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – Over a million users may have had their data compromised by spyware in two apps that were available via the Google Play Store, cybersecurity experts warn.Anyone who downloaded File Recovery & Data Recovery or File Manager are urged to wipe the allegedly compromised apps from their devices.According to cybersecurity firm Pradeo, the supposed file management applications are actually "programmed to launch without users' interaction, and to silently exfiltrate sensitive users' data towards various malicious servers based in China." IRS warns taxpayers of new 'unclaimed refund' scam The apps, both created by the same developer, stole data that included contact lists from devices, social media and email; photos, audio and video; real-time user location and more, according to Pradeo.Pradeo believes the two apps, which have a combined download number of roughly 1.5 million – but few reviews – may have inflated download numbers that were boosted by bots.Google confirmed to...

Heat records will be set or tied in the next several days

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Clouds increased during the overnight hours but will gradually clear out during the morning. Look for a mostly sunny sky late this morning into the afternoon. South winds will increase to 10 to 15 mph this afternoon.Most highs today will peak at between 103° and 107°. Camp Mabry reached 107° Friday afternoon, 11° above normal and within 1° of tying a record. Today's record high is, again, 108° set in 1925.Heat alerts remain until at least 9:00 tonight. Much of the area is under a Heat Advisory. Llano County is under an Excessive Heat Warning. Gillespie County has no heat alert today and this evening. Heat indices up to 112° are possible.Forecast heat indices this afternoonYesterday's maximum heat index was 108° at six locations including Austin-Bergstrom and Camp Mabry. Dew points fell to the upper 50s to low 60s during the late afternoon and early evening hours resulting in the relative humidity dropping to the 20s. We expect this to happen this afternoon. Saturday...

'Barbie World': All things Barbie happening around Austin ahead of movie release

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin may not have a ginormous Barbie Dreamhouse Airbnb to celebrate the upcoming release of the "Barbie" movie, but it does have plenty of pink-themed parties and plans ahead of the premier. The highly-anticipated film follows Barbie and Ken leaving Barbieland to traverse into the "real world," but the closer the premier draws to theaters, the more the "Barbie World" bleeds into ours. It started with the famous "I love you so much" mural on South Congress Avenue being "dedicated" by Ken to Barbie on Friday. The mural now reads, “Barbie, I love you so much. -Ken.” This sweetly destructive defacement is only temporary because it’s part of a push to promote the film. SEE IT: Ken adds to ‘I love you so much’ mural ahead of ‘Barbie’ movie release Here are a few ways fans can step into their own Barbie Dreamland in Austin: Barbie PartiesSeveral businesses in Austin are hosting themed events to celebrate the movie's release: Taquero Mucho is holding a Barbie Brunch on...

Review | Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour dazzles in Denver

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

Taylor Swift called, and they answered.Sparkling from head to toe, clutching their phones at all times, and belting out well-memorized lyrics, more than 70,000 of her fans showed up Friday for Swift’s Eras Tour. The July 14 concert — the first of two dates at Empower Field at Mile High — prompted rapture from the opening moments.See more photos of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour show, night one.With spectacle and emotion tightly braided, Swift megadosed the faithful at the sold-out show with songs from across her catalog while gracefully navigating costume and set changes against a massive LED screen. It was a feat on par with her “Reputation”-era tour stop at Empower Field more than five years ago. Granted, that was a necessarily more focused and (relatively) edgy concert, but both found an ideal balance of ferocity and all-ages, rainbow-hued smiles that spoke directly to the mostly female, mostly young crowd.Taylor Swift performs during night one of Th...

A tech checklist for the dark side of summer weather

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

Summer is in full swing now, but along with vacation trips, camp and lazy days, extreme weather has arrived for many parts of the country. If you live in an area that’s prone to such conditions, it helps to be ready. Here are some tips to help you use your tech through major meteorological moments — sometimes even when power and cell service are shaky.Stay UpdatedGetting accurate local weather information helps you stay ahead of nearby threats like hurricanes, flash floods, tornadoes or wildfires. Setting up alerts on Apple’s default Weather app, the Google app or a specialized weather app keeps you notified. Bookmarking government webpages in your browser — like those for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Hurricane Center or the U.S. Air Quality Index — is good for manual checks of current conditions.Your phone can also receive wireless emergency alerts from authorized federal, state, local, tribal and territorial authorities. Check your ...

Elevation Community Land Trust opens door to home ownership for forever renters

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

Denver resident Charlene Taylor found herself in a bind after her daughter died in a car accident in 2020 while in the middle of a home sale.Her three grandchildren, who ranged from 13 to 21 years of age at the time, needed to find a new place to live and Taylor’s one-bedroom apartment was way too small to host everyone.After obtaining assistance from Denver for a few years for an affordable townhome that allowed the family to stay together, Taylor and her oldest granddaughter, Chantie, purchased a home in Montbello last month through the Elevation Community Land Trust. (ECLT)“You feel safe when you own. You don’t have to worry about the rent going up on you. You pay your mortgage and you do what you are supposed to do,” Taylor said.A community land trust pools private and public funds, using the money to acquire real estate assets, typically homes. Community land trusts, which got their start during the civil rights era, are becoming more popular in Colorado and o...

Black artists say AI shows bias, with algorithms erasing their history

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

The artist Stephanie Dinkins has long been a pioneer in combining art and technology in her Brooklyn-based practice. In May she was awarded $100,000 by the Guggenheim Museum for her groundbreaking innovations, including an ongoing series of interviews with Bina48, a humanoid robot.For the past seven years, she has experimented with artificial intelligence’s ability to realistically depict Black women, smiling and crying, using a variety of word prompts. The first results were lackluster if not alarming: Her algorithm produced a pink-shaded humanoid shrouded by a black cloak.“I expected something with a little more semblance of Black womanhood,” she said. And although the technology has improved since her first experiments, Dinkins found herself using runaround terms in the text prompts to help the AI image generators achieve her desired image, “to give the machine a chance to give me what I wanted.” But whether she uses the term “African American woman” or “Black woman,” machine dis...

3 Unique Ways To Use CBD

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:39 GMT

View the original article about Unique Ways To Use CBD at Real Tested CBD.CBD has taken the health and wellness words by storm. It can be found in a variety of forms from oils and tinctures to edibles and inhalables. With all the different products on the market these days it can be easy to find your preferred method of use and form of CBD. Even so, there are a ton of unique ways to utilize CBD.From cooking or crafting a cocktail to spicing up your skincare routine, let’s take a closer look at some different ways to use CBD in your day to day. Here are three unique ways to use CBD:What Is CBD?First, let’s do a quick breakdown of what CBD is. CBD, also known as cannabidiol, is one of over 100 naturally occurring compounds found in cannabis and hemp plants called cannabinoids. Cannabidiol is a major cannabinoid, meaning plants are rich with it.CBD can be extracted and turned into different products for use. Many people turn to CBD for its potentially therapeutic properties that range ...