-
Elon Musk says X will fund legal bills if users treated unfairly by bosses
Getty Images By Malu Cursino BBC News Elon Musk has said X, formerly known as Twitter, will pay the legal bills of anyone who is treated unfairly by their employer for their activity on his social media platform. On Sunday, Mr Musk told users that financial assistance from his platform would have “no limits”. He…
-
Philippines accuses China of firing water cannon at boats in South China Sea
Reuters The Philippine Coast Guard has accused its Chinese counterpart of firing water cannon at its vessels and blocking them in the disputed South China Sea. It said this happened when its ship was escorting boats carrying supplies for Filipino soldiers stationed on one of the contested Spratly Islands. The US condemned Beijing’s “dangerous actions”,…
-
Taupo: The super volcano under New Zealand’s largest lake
The tidy town of Taupo is located amid a geological marvel that was responsible for the one of the largest eruptions in Earth’s history. Located in the centre of New Zealand’s North Island, the town of Taupo sits sublimely in the shadow of the snow-capped peaks of Tongariro National Park. Fittingly, this 40,000-person lakeside town…
-
Did India let down the maharajahs?
Keystone-France By John Zubrzycki Author They lived in fairy-tale palaces, amassed untold fortunes in diamonds and precious stones, maintained fleets of Rolls-Royces, and travelled in specially appointed train carriages, arriving in the capital Delhi to the sound of thunderous gun salutes. They had the power of life and death over their subjects, and thousands of…
-
Niger coup: Is France to blame for instability in West Africa?
Reuters By Leonard Mbulle-Nziege & Nic Cheeseman Africa analysts Niger has become the latest country in West Africa where the army has seized control, following Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, and Chad – all former French colonies. Since 1990, a striking 78% of the 27 coups in sub-Saharan Africa have occurred in Francophone states leading some…
-
Lostprophets’ Ian Watkins stabbed in jail
South Wales Police Former Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins has been attacked in prison while serving a 29-year sentence for child sex offences. The Mirror newspaper reports that the disgraced rock star, who is being held in HMP Wakefield, was stabbed. A prison service spokesperson said police were investigating an incident that took place at the…
-
Do people really swallow spiders in their sleep?
Getty Images By Helen Burchell BBC News, Hertfordshire “There was an old lady who swallowed a spider that wriggled, and jiggled and tickled inside her…” According to the rhyme and song, the unfortunate woman swallowed the arachnid to catch a fly she had previously eaten – followed by a number of other creatures in an…
-
Chatbots: Why does White House want hackers to trick AI?
Getty Images By Philippa Wain Technology reporter What happens when thousands of hackers gather in one city with the sole aim of trying to trick and find flaws in artificial intelligence (AI) models? That is what the White House wants to know. This week at the world’s largest annual hacker convention – Def Con 31…
-
Ahead of Ohio abortion vote, Republicans try to change the rules
Jake Olson/BBC By Holly Honderich in Washington A pro-abortion referendum looked poised to win in the conservative state of Ohio this November. Now, Republican state legislators are accused of moving the goalposts. Last summer, just like every summer for the past 22 years, Michael Curtin spent his days on the assorted baseball fields of central…
-
MrBeast: How the world’s biggest YouTuber made his millions
Getty Images By Tom Gerken Technology reporter Jimmy Donaldson, the person the online world knows as MrBeast, is the biggest YouTuber on the planet – and with that popularity comes large sums of money. The 25-year-old has branched out from video-making and now has his own fast-food chain, MrBeast Burger. It hit headlines this week…