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14-year-old Dev Shah of Florida wins Scripps National Spelling Bee with final word ‘psammophile’

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

(CNN) — Dev Shah, a 14-year-old from Largo, Florida, won the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday night, correctly spelling psammophile to take the $50,000 first prize.“It’s surreal. … My legs are still shaking,” he said at the competition in National Harbor, Maryland.Eleven students made the finals after 11 million people entered spelling competitions throughout the world.The preliminary rounds were held Tuesday, while the quarterfinals and semifinals took place Wednesday.In Thursday’s finals, Dev correctly spelled schistorrhachis, aegagrus, rommack and tolsester. In the word meaning round, Dev picked the right definition of chiromancy, identifying it as someone who tells fortunes using lines on the palm of the handDev competed against 14-year-old Charlotte Walsh from Merrifield, Virginia, as the final two standing. She earned $25,000 for reaching second place after correctly spelling akuammine, collembolous ...

US employers added a strong 339,000 jobs in May as labor market stays durable

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER (AP Economics Writer)WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation’s employers stepped up their hiring in May, adding a robust 339,000 jobs, well above expectations and evidence of strength in an economy that the Federal Reserve is desperately trying to cool.Friday’s report from the government showed that the unemployment rate rose to 3.7%, from a five-decade low of 3.4% in April.The stronger hiring demonstrates the job market’s resilience after more than a year of rapid interest rate increases by the Fed. Many industries, from construction to restaurants to health care, are still adding jobs to keep up with consumer demand and restore their workforces to pre-pandemic levels.Having imposed 10 straight rate hikes since March 2022, the Federal Reserve is widely expected to skip a rate increase when it meets later this month, though it may resume its hikes after that. Chair Jerome Powell and other Fed officials have made clear that they regard strong hiring as likely to keep infl...

‘Veteran young guy’ Gleyber Torres showing Yankees signs of leadership

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

Only 26 years old, Gleyber Torres doesn’t consider himself a veteran.“I feel the same younger way,” the six-year pro told the Daily News, but he’s no longer among the Yankees’ youngest players. That group has been headlined by Anthony Volpe, 22, and the recently demoted Oswaldo Cabrera, 24. Other pinstriped contributors this season, including Oswald Peraza and Jhony Brito, also predate Torres, who debuted at age 21 in 2018.“He’s like the veteran young guy,” Cabrera told The News. “When you say veteran, that doesn’t mean you have to be an old guy.”While Torres can debate his veteran status with his younger peers, there’s no denying that the second baseman has shown signs of growth this season. At the plate, that’s meant well-documented adjustments to his approach, which has yielded better strikeout and walk rates and a higher on-base percentage.But Torres has also shown more leadership this year, a developm...

Endangered tree kangaroo born in San Diego

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A female joey named Kikori is now nine months old after being born at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in August of last year, officials announced Thursday. Born to mother Arona and father Bek, this is only the second time this endangered Matschie’s tree kangaroo species has been born at the Safari Park. Video shows several sharks feed on dolphin at Torrey Pines State Beach At birth, these tiny joeys are only about the size of a jellybean, park officials explained. The baby kangaroos then crawl into their mother's pouch, where it remains for about six months until it gains enough nourishment to become active.  “We are elated with the birth of this Matschie’s tree kangaroo joey,” said Donovan Vila, wildlife care specialist at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. “Matschie’s tree kangaroos are endangered, so this joey provides hope for the future of this species.” Kikori has recently started climbing out of her mother's pouch and park officials say she's showing interest in...

How Biden and McCarthy struck a debt limit deal and staved off a catastrophe

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — It was advice that Mitch McConnell had offered to Joe Biden once already: To resolve the debt limit standoff, he needed to strike a deal with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy — and McCarthy alone. But after the first meeting of the top four congressional leaders with the president in early May, the Senate minority leader felt the need to reemphasize his counsel.After returning from the White House that day, McConnell called the president to privately urge him to “shrink the room” – meaning no direct involvement in the talks for himself, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.That, McConnell stressed to Biden, was the only way to avert a potentially economy-rattling default. A week later, Biden and McCarthy essentially adopted that path, tapping a handful of trusted emissaries to negotiate a deal that would lift the debt limit. It was a turning point in an impasse that, until then, seemed intractable. Having lived through the deba...

America’s religious leaders sharply divided over abortion, a year after Roe v Wade’s reversal

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

In the year since the Supreme Court struck down the nationwide right to abortion, America’s religious leaders and denominations have responded in strikingly diverse ways — some celebrating the state-level bans that have ensued, others angered that a conservative Christian cause has changed the law of the land in ways they consider oppressive.The divisions are epitomized in the country’s largest denomination — the Catholic Church. National polls repeatedly show that a majority of U.S. Catholics believe abortion should be legal in most or all cases, yet the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops supports sweeping bans. Among Protestants, a solid majority of white evangelicals favor outlawing abortion. But most mainline Protestants support the right to abortion, and several of their top leaders have decried the year-old Supreme Court ruling that undermined that right by reversing the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973.For example, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, Michael Curry, sai...

Ford urges owners of some Lincoln SUVs to park outdoors because they can catch fire with engines off

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — Ford is telling owners of more than 140,000 SUVs in the U.S. to park them outside because they can catch fire even when the engines are turned off. The company is recalling certain Lincoln MKC SUVs from the 2015 to 2019 model years. Ford says a short-circuit can develop in the 12-volt battery monitor sensor. It can overheat and cause an engine compartment fire while parked or in motion.Owners are urged to park away from structures until the recall repair is made. The sensors can be damaged when the battery or related electrical parts are serviced. Ford says in documents posted Friday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that it has 19 reports of fires that may be related to the problem in the U.S., China and Canada. The company said it’s not aware of any injuries. Dealers will add a fuse to the battery monitor sensor power circuit. Owners will be notified by letter starting June 26. The Associated Press

Germany reports labor shortage in one-sixth of professions

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Germany has labor shortages in one-sixth of professions and the number is growing, the national labor agency said Friday as ministers prepare to travel to Brazil to encourage the recruitment of caregivers.Germany has Europe’s biggest economy. The Federal Labor Agency said its annual analysis showed that 200 out of about 1,200 professions it surveyed had labor shortages last year, up from 148 the previous year. It said that bus drivers, service jobs in hotels and restaurants, and jobs in metalwork were among those that joined the list.Other professions where Germany is struggling to fill jobs are in nursing care, child care, the construction industry and automotive technology, along with truck drivers, architects, pharmacists and information technology specialists. The labor agency said that it’s keeping an eye on another 157 professions that could potentially develop labor shortages.The agency pointed to a “mismatch” between demand for labor and potential e...

Stock market today: Wall Street up ahead of May jobs report and chance for a rate hike pause

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

BEIJING — Wall Street pointed higher Friday ahead of a U.S. jobs market update, one day after U.S. lawmakers approved a deal to avert a government debt default. Futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5% before the bell.Late Thursday, the Senate gave final approval to an agreement to raise the amount the government can borrow in exchange for spending cuts.The widely expected step removed the threat of default that roiled markets last week before President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy negotiated a compromise.While the U.S. debt agreement was positive for the markets, investors are more concerned about whether the economy will fall into a recession before inflation recedes enough to convince the Federal Reserve to ease off rate hikes.A report Thursday showed fewer workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than expected, while another suggested employers increased their payrolls last month by more than forecast.That’s good n...

NATO chief heading to Turkey this weekend in fresh push on Swedish membership

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:00:16 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg will hold talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other senior Turkish officials this weekend as pressure mounts on Turkey to lift its objections to Sweden joining the military organization.In a statement on Friday, NATO headquarters said Stoltenberg would attend Erdogan’s inauguration, after the long-term Turkish leader won an election runoff last weekend. The former Norwegian prime minister will also take part in meetings in Turkey on Sunday. No details were provided.NATO wants to bring Sweden into the fold by the time allied leaders meet in Lithuania on July 11-12, but Turkey and Hungary have yet to endorse the move. All 31 member countries must ratify a candidate’s accession protocol for it to join.Turkey’s government accuses Sweden of being too lenient on “terrorist organizations” and security threats, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt. Hungary has also delayed its appro...