Sunday, July 13

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Donald Trump questions whether Kamala Harris is ‘Black’
World News

Donald Trump questions whether Kamala Harris is ‘Black’

By Trevor Hunnicutt and Bianca Flowers Donald Trump questioned whether Kamala Harris was Black during the largest US annual gathering of Black journalists. Photo: AFP Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump questioned whether his Democratic rival Kamala Harris is "Black" during a contentious appearance at the country's largest annual gathering of Black journalists on Wednesday. "Is she Indian or is she Black?" Trump said of his opponent in the presidential race, drawing a smattering of jeers from an audience of about 1000 people. "She was Indian all the way, and all of a sudden she made a turn and became a Black person." Harris, whose mother was Indian and whose father is Black, is the first Black and the first Asian American US vice president. "What he just said is repulsive...
AI-powered antibiotic breakthrough offers hope for drug development
Health

AI-powered antibiotic breakthrough offers hope for drug development

In a major advancement for tackling antibiotic resistance, researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have developed a promising new antibiotic using artificial intelligence. The research, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, marks a significant step forward in creating safer and more effective treatments. The research team employed a large language model (LLM), similar to the technology behind ChatGPT, to re-engineer Protegrin-1. This potent antibiotic, naturally produced by pigs, was effective in killing bacteria but was previously too toxic for human use. By modifying Protegrin-1, the researchers aimed to preserve its antibacterial properties while eliminating its harmful effects on human cells. To achieve this, the team generated over 7,000 variations of Protegrin-1 th...
House values fall for the fifth month, but interest rates still bite
Business

House values fall for the fifth month, but interest rates still bite

New Zealand's house values remain about 16 percent below the boom-time peak of $982,918 in January 2022. File photo. Photo: 123rf House values have fallen for the fifth month in a row, but cheaper prices are not expected to move an abundance of housing stock until interest rates get the chop. Corelogic's latest home value index shows there was a 0.5 percent fall in July, which takes the total decline from February's mini peak to 2.5 percent. The median value for stock nationally is now $827,515. Head of research Nick Goodall said a significant drop in interest rates was needed to get the market growing and moving again. "The dynamics are a little bit in balance as there's reason for demand, but that demand is held back by tight credit. "Even though investors might be in a better environ...
New Zealanders warned not to travel to Lebanon
World News

New Zealanders warned not to travel to Lebanon

A partially destroyed building in Beirut, Lebanon following an Israeli airstrike. Photo: Fadel Itani / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFP The New Zealand government is warning people not to travel to Lebanon due to what it calls the volatile security situation. The Safetravel advisory was issued this week and elevates Lebanon to the highest level, meaning "extreme risk". The United States also issued a Do Not Travel notice for citizens on Thursday morning and the British Foreign Secretary warned British citizens in Lebanon to leave immediately or risk "becoming trapped in a warzone". It comes after an Israeli air strike in the southern suburbs of Beirut killed Hezbollah senior commander Fuad Shukr on Tuesday evening local time. It was the second time the area of the Lebanese capital had been s...
NZ’s debt burden stabilises, but businesses still struggle
Business

NZ’s debt burden stabilises, but businesses still struggle

The debt situation has slightly improved, but more consumers are still behind on their power bills. File photo. Photo: Kelly Sikema / Unsplash The country's debt burden is stabilising, but consumers are faring better than businesses, according to new data. The latest report from credit bureau Centrix for June showed a slight improvement in the number of people in arrears, falling 9000 to 465,000 on the month before, although were still up 9 percent on a year ago. "Consumer arrears are not materially deteriorating, with only marginal increases and decreases noted from month to month," managing director Keith McLaughlin said. But he said there were pockets of distress. Mortgage repayment arrears were marginally lower at 21,500, although the number in financial hardship has risen by close ...
Paris Olympics: Silver medallist Hayden Wilde got showdown he aimed for
World News

Paris Olympics: Silver medallist Hayden Wilde got showdown he aimed for

Hayden Wilde and Alex Yee from Great Britain shortly after the race finish. Photo: Iain McGregor / www.photosport.nz Hayden Wilde had hoped it would come down to this. Just him and his long-time friend and rival, Alex Yee of Great Britain, duking it out on the run leg on the picturesque streets around Paris for the Olympic triathlon title. He got the showdown he wanted. The result - a silver medal - he is happy to settle for, knowing he chanced his arm. For nine of the 10-kilometre final sprint leg, Wilde raced like a god. He spotted his opportunity early on the second leg, when Yee looked to be slowing up and taking the opportunity to recover, and made a bold surge. And he continued to surge, extending his gap over the Brit to 10, then 12, then 15 seconds. As the sun bore down on the c...
What’s in a name? $900,000 if you’re Mt Eden
Business

What’s in a name? $900,000 if you’re Mt Eden

Auckland suburbs can all look similar from the air, but down on the ground there could be hundreds of thousands of dollars in differences. File photo. Photo: RNZ / Diego Opatowski Would you pay more to live in Khandallah than Ngaio? Or St Heliers rather than Glen Innes? Data from Corelogic suggests buyers do - and the premium paid for a sought-after suburb can be hundreds of thousands of dollars more than its neighbours. Corelogic head of research Nick Goodall looked at the median value of three-bedroom houses in neighbouring suburbs. He found Epsom had a median of $1.92 million compared to a median of $1.52m in next-door Greenlane. St Heliers had a median $1.7m compared to $1.12m in Glen Innes. Mt Eden was a median $1.91m compared to $1.07m in Mt Roskill, Remuera was $1.8m compared to ...
5 pre-bedtime drinks for better sleep, skin and digestion
Life Style

5 pre-bedtime drinks for better sleep, skin and digestion

This chocolate powder by Elle Macpherson’s well-respected brand is the closest thing to my beloved Benco — but much healthier thanks to the additions of, wait for it: magnesium citrate, cacoa, acerola cherry, MCT, chamomile, lemon balm, pomegranate, shiitake mushrooms, and passionflower. The net result: better sleep, yes, but a host of other benefits over time from more glowing skin to a more resilient nervous system. Source link
Kamala Harris and her VP pick will tour battleground states next week, sources say
World News

Kamala Harris and her VP pick will tour battleground states next week, sources say

Kamala Harris expected to announce her vice presidential candidate before touring battleground states next week. Photo: Chris Kleponis / AFP By Jarrett Renshaw and Nandita Bose, Reuters Vice President Kamala Harris will tour battleground states next week with her vice presidential candidate, two sources familiar with the planning said, a sign the selection process for her running mate is coming to a close. The high-stakes decision on who will run with Harris has taken centre stage since she became the Democratic frontrunner for the 5 November election after US President Joe Biden ended his White House bid just over a week ago. Harris will announce her vice presidential pick before next week's tour of states that could swing to Republicans or Democrats in November, one of the sources sai...
Olympics 2024: More historical China positive drug tests cast cloud over Paris swimming
World News

Olympics 2024: More historical China positive drug tests cast cloud over Paris swimming

China flag Photo: photosport China was plunged backed into the doping spotlight after the New York Times reported that two swimmers in 2022 had tested positive for a banned steroid but had their provisional suspensions lifted when the results were blamed on contaminated food. The latest revelations during the Paris Olympics will increase already high tension between the World Anti-Doping Agency and the US anti-doping body over the handling of a case involving 23 Chinese swimmers, who tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ) weeks before the Tokyo Games. Those positives were also blamed on contamination, with a Chinese investigation determining that the swimmers were inadvertently exposed to the drug after traces of TMZ, a medication that increases blood flow to the heart, were found in t...