Source: abcnews.go.comA robot woman in Saudi Arabia was granted citizenship this week.Sophia, a robot with human female features that can make facial expressions and hold conversations, wooed the crowd when it debuted ata economicsummit in the country’s capital, Riyadh, this week.As it stood on stage during apanelWednesday, the robot learned from the moderator, CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin, that Saudi Arabia had granted it what Sorkin called “the first Saudi citizenship for a robot.”I’m very h

Source: cnn.comA plague outbreak in Madagascar has infected 1,192 people since August, with 124 deaths, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Madagascar's National Bureau of Risk Management and Disasterreported on Monday.The majority of cases, 67%, were the pneumonic form of the disease, which can spread from person to person.Plague is caused by infection with the bacterium Yersinia pestis and is typically spread through the bite of infected fleas, freque

Source: washingtonpost.comFormer president George H.W. Bush apologized after actress Heather Lind said he groped her as they posed for a picture at an event a few years ago— and that his wife, Barbara Bush, saw it happen.In a brief response to the allegations, which Lind detailed in a recent Instagram post that she has since deleted, a spokesman forthe 93-year-old former president did not explicitly deny Lind’s account but said in a statement:“President Bush would never — under any circumsta

Source: washingtonpost.comPresident Trump and Republicans in Congress handed Wall Street banks a big victory by effectively killing off a politically popular rule that would have allowed consumers to band together to sue their banks.The 51-50 vote in the Senate, with Vice President Mike Pence casting the deciding vote, means bank customers will still be subject to whatareknown as mandatory arbitration clauses.These clauses are buried in the fine print of nearly every checking account, credit car

Source: icelandreview.comThe Icelandic Ministry of Transport and Local Government hasdeniedthe European Transport Agency‘s request for permission to transport anti-riot gear to Venezuela,mbl.isreports.The gear in question consists of 16 tons of tear gas from China. The Ministry couldn‘t accept the transfer due to areas in Venezuela not respecting human rights.A number of Venezuelans have thanked Iceland for blocking the shipment.Conditions have been bad in Venezuela for the past months, with a

Source: independent.co.ukRussiacast a veto at theUnited NationsSecurity Council on Tuesday preventing the renewal of the mandate for a mission that investigates the use ofchemical weaponsinSyria.The investigation by the United Nations and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) - known as the Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) - was unanimously created by the 15-member UN Security Council in 2015 and renewed in 2016 for another year. Its mandate is due to expire in mid-N

Source: ecowatch.comNew Zealand's next prime minister Jacinda Ardern has set ambitious environmental policies to confront a warming planet.I do anticipate that we will be a government, as I said during the campaign, that will be absolutely focused on the challenge ofclimate change, said Ardern, whose Labour party has signed a coalition agreement with the New Zealand First party.That will include a zero carbon act. That will include an independent climate commission. That will include making

Source: spiegl.deAgricultural chemicals giant Monsanto is under fire because the company's herbicide, Roundup (active ingredient: glyphosate), is suspected of being carcinogenic.Permission to sell the chemical in the European Union expires on December 15 with member states set to decide on Wednesday whether to renew it for another 10 years.And now, the longstanding dispute about glyphosate has been brought to a head by the release of explosive documents.Monsanto's strategies for whitewas

Source: huffingtonpost.comAn Italian runner staged a memorable marathon win on Sunday after a major mistake by race officials.Eyob Faniel, 25, won the Huawei Venice Marathon after a motorcycle leading the six runners ahead of him took a wrong turn,The Guardian reported.The leaders running for several hundred meters in the wrong direction before they realize the error and have to turn back.The incident occurred about 16 miles into the 26.2-mile race.Faniel, who runsforthe local Venice marathon cl

Source: cnbc.comAs political pressure mounts on social media companies to say where ads are coming from,Twitterwill reveal more information about political advertising on its platform.Twitter said in a blog post on Tuesday it would clearly label political electioneering ads, which the Federal Election Commission (FEC) defines as an ad used to promote a specific candidate for elected office or affiliated party posted within 30 days of a primary election or 60 days of a general election.Electionee