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Passengers bought berths on a 3-year cruise. Months on, the ship is still stuck in Belfast
BELFAST, Northern Ireland — Lanette Canen and Johan Bodin gave up life on land to become seaborne nomads on a years-long cruise. Months later, the couple has yet to spend a night at sea. Their ship, the Odyssey, is stuck in Belfast undergoing repair work that has postponed its scheduled May departure for a 3 ½-year round-the-world voyage. Bodin said Friday that they have enjoyed…
Ship targeted by 2 suspected missiles from Yemen’s Houthi rebels in Gulf of Aden
Yemen’s Houthi rebels have fired two missiles targeting a Liberian-flagged container ship in the Gulf of Aden ByJON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired two missiles targeting a Liberian-flagged container ship in the Gulf of Aden, though the projectiles splashed down nearby without causing any damage, authorities said Saturday. The attack comes after…
Chocolate’s future could hinge on success of growing cocoa not just in the tropics, but in the lab
WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Climate change is stressing rainforests where the highly sensitive cocoa bean grows, but chocolate lovers need not despair, say companies that are researching other ways to grow cocoa or develop cocoa substitutes. Scientists and entrepreneurs are working on ways to make more cocoa that stretch well beyond the tropics, from Northern California to Israel. California Cultured, a plant cell culture company,…
On the first day without X, many Brazilians say they feel disconnected from the world
SAO PAULO — The blocking of social media platform X in Brazil divided users and politicians over the legitimacy of the ban, and many Brazilians on Saturday had difficulty and doubts over navigating other social media in its absence. The shutdown of Elon Musk’s platform started early Saturday, making it largely inaccessible on both the web and through mobile apps after the billionaire refused to…
Global benchmarks are mixed in cautious trading ahead of US holiday and jobs report
TOKYO — Global shares were mixed in cautious trading Monday ahead of the Labor Day holiday in the U.S., when stock exchanges are closed. France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.3% in early trading to 7,611.64, while Germany’s DAX fell 0.1% to 18,881.14. Britain’s FTSE 100 was little changed, down less than 0.1% at 8,370.39. U.S. shares were set to drift lower with Dow futures down 0.1%…
Robot waiters in Kenya create a buzz. But there are concerns about what it means for human labor
NAIROBI, Kenya — Children giggle as young people flash their smartphones to film robots carrying plates of freshly prepared meals on their inbuilt trays to deliver to diners in a busy eatery in Kenya’s capital. Nairobi has a vibrant tech industry with various startups and innovations in operation and has positioned itself as a tech hub in the East African region bearing the nickname The…
AI may not steal many jobs after all. It may just make workers more efficient
WASHINGTON — Imagine a customer-service center that speaks your language, no matter what it is. Alorica, a company in Irvine, California, that runs customer-service centers around the world, has introduced an artificial intelligence translation tool that lets its representatives talk with customers who speak 200 different languages and 75 dialects. So an Alorica representative who speaks, say, only Spanish can field a complaint about a…
Sports boats set out on a voyage to electrify the waters in the same way Tesla electrified the roads
AFLOAT THE SAN JOAQUIN RIVER — Grant Jeide looked like another dude riding the rollicking waves left in the wake of a 23-foot (7-meter) boat ripping through the water at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour on a river in Northern California’s Delta earlier this summer. But Jeide was performing his aquatic acrobatics behind a different breed of boat — one powered by…
US rights watchdog cites “a climate of fear” in Uganda oil development project
KAMPALA, Uganda — Oil activities on the shores of Uganda’s Lake Albert have triggered widespread suffering among locals facing forced displacement and other violent abuses, a U.S. climate watchdog said Monday. The report by Climate Rights International says banks and insurers should withhold further funding for an oil development project run by the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, or CNOOC. The project, one of two…
General strike in Israel over hostages found dead in Gaza reflects political divisions
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday pushed back against a new wave of pressure to reach a cease-fire deal in Gaza after hundreds of thousands of Israelis protested and went on strike and U.S. President Joe Biden said he needed to do more after nearly 11 months of fighting. In his first public address since Sunday’s mass protests showed many…