China is set to lead Asian stocks higher on optimism of more economic stimulus to come from Beijing,

By Timothy Gardner and Daphne Psaledakis WASHINGTON The United States imposed sanctions on two owners of tankers that

These WNBA players could be on the move ahead of the Aug. 7 trade deadline.The "W" isn't known for big trade deadline deals. That said, this could be the year we see WNBA players that will be traded by the deadline on Aug. 7.With teams jockeying for title contention or eyeing ...

Citigroup Inc. raised its growth forecast for China to 5% this year, as promising data helps build consensus

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Russian 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva reached the third round of a Grand Slam for a second successive time...

Well, we’re not sure how we ended up here, but Piers Morgan has responded to a strange AI image of himself in the bath which has been circulating online. The presenter commented on the odd picture which shows a generated version of Morgan sitting in the tub, holding a book with a rubber duck by his side. Only, this version of Morgan looks like he spends all his free time in the gym and he’s holding a book with dimensions that defy the laws of physics. Morgan responded to the bizarre image by writing: “I never have baths. fyi.” Unsurprisingly, the picture sparked a lot of reaction on social media, with one Twitter user responding to the pic: “I still can't unsee it - the horror!!!!” Another said: “My brain will never erase this image.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Others pointed out the strange nature of the book in the image, with one saying: “The way the book looks in the picture seems to give it away that it is AI generated.” Another joked: "Give me nuclear annihilation by AI over this any day.” It has to be one of the most unusual uses of AI we’ve seen so far, and if this is the future of artificial intelligence, count us out… AI, meanwhile, continues to make headlines – and a group of individuals including Grimes, who described herself as an "AI popstar" recently on social media, signed a statement warning of its risks to humanity. The singer signed the message from Center For AI Safety (CAIS) delving into the potential dangers of AI. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Back in March 2021, Merrick Garland pledged on his first day as attorney general a return to what he calls the “norms” of the Justice Department

The Flash movie is officially in cinemas and it's fair to say that it has received a lukewarm to negative response from fans and critics. Although the movie pays a lot of fan service to the character and history of DC Comics it has been criticised for its shonky CGI and 'grotesque' cameos of deceased actors. There is also the issues and numerous controversies surrounding lead actor Ezra Miller. Now one particular scene in the movie has raised eyebrows just for how absurd it is. Warning: This article obviously contains spoilers for The Flash so don't read any more if you want to see it. Early in the movie The Flash, aka Barry Allen is called into action to save citizens from the collapsing wing of a hospital which includes several babies falling from a great height. Sign up to our new Indy100 weekly newsletter Now due to the Flash being able to move at incredible speeds, he is able to do seemingly complex things in the blink of an eye. So, in order to save the falling babies The Flash places one of them in a microwave to protect it from the flying debris and shrapnel. Yes, a microwave... Only one baby goes into a microwave while the other kids are placed in a line and safely fall on to a stretcher that the Flash has laid on the ground. Now, this is all fairly standard goofy superhero fare and isn't unlike anything that you would see in comic books but the scene has since gone viral and out of context looks very strange indeed. Yet people who have seen the movie are still completely baffled by what they had just witnessed. It remains to be seen how successful The Flash will be despite the negativity but Deadline does report that it is protected to make $72 million at the box office in its first 4 opening days. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Three West African nations led by military juntas met this week to strengthen a newly formed alliance described by some analysts on Friday as an attempt to legitimize their military governments amid coup-related sanctions and strained relations with neighbors. In his first foreign trip since the July coup that brought him into power, Niger’s junta leader, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani held separate meetings Thursday with his Mali and Burkina Faso counterparts. During their meetings, the leaders pledged security and political collaborations under the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), a partnership the three countries announced in September as a measure to help fight the extremist violence they each struggle with and across the Sahel, the vast arid expanse south of the Sahara Desert. The alliance provides a “path of sovereignty” for the countries and for their citizens, Gen. Tchiani told reporters after his meeting with Malian leader Col. Assimi Goita. “Through this alliance, the peoples of the Sahel affirm that … nothing will prevent them from the objective of making this area of ​​the Sahel, not an area of ​​insecurity, but an area of ​​prosperity,” Tchiani said. In reality, though, the partnership "is in part an effort to entrench and legitimize (their) military governments” more than to tackle the violent extremism which they have limited capacity to fight, said Nate Allen, an associate professor at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies. The violence across the Sahel has contributed to a recent surge of coups in the region and militaries that claimed they took over power to help tackle their country's security challenges have struggled to do so. On Thursday, Gen. Tchiani partly blamed the violence on foreign powers, repeating claims his government has often made against France — which had been influential in the three countries before being forced out after their militaries took over — and against West Africa’s regional bloc of ECOWAS, which has heavily sanctioned Niger as a measure to reverse the surge of coups in the region. The new partnership also offers the military governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger an opportunity "to say, ‘we are not internationally isolated and we actually have partners that share our ideology and philosophy’,” said James Barnett, a researcher specializing in West Africa at the U.S.-based Hudson Institute. Some analysts, however, believe that by pooling their resources together, those countries are able to reduce individual reliance on foreign countries and tackle the security challenge with one front. “The merit of this new alliance, despite its limited means and capabilities, lies in its initiation by concerned members," said Bedr Issa, an independent analyst who researches the conflict in the Sahel. "Its long-term success depends both on the resources that member countries can mobilize and the support that Africans and the broader international community could provide,” he added. In the Malian capital of Bamako, 35-year-old Aissata Sanogo expressed hope that such a partnership could be useful. “It’s important that we take charge of our own security,” said Sanogo. “That’s what I’m expecting from this alliance.” ____ Associated Press journalist Baba Ahmed in Bamako, Mali, contributed to this report. ____ Follow AP’s Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa Read More Victims in Niagara Falls border bridge crash identified as Western New York couple Mexico's arrest of cartel security boss who attacked army families' complex was likely personal Argentina and Brazil charged by FIFA after fan violence delays World Cup qualifying game at Maracana Germany's economy shrank, and it's facing a spending crisis that's spreading more gloom NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn't happen this week Putin to boost AI work in Russia to fight a Western monopoly he says is 'unacceptable and dangerous'

Olivia Rodrigo recently dropped the music video for her second single 'bad idea, right?' from her sophomore album GUTS and fans couldn't help but notice some references from iconic TV shows and films. The pop-rock song is all about leaving your friends and lying to them about meeting up with an ex-boyfriend (always a bad idea), and the music video plays out this exact scenario where Olivia leaves a house party to reconnect with her ex - with some obstacles getting in the way. Here is a breakdown of all the different TV and films that were referenced: Glee Perhaps the clearest reference of them all was when Olivia was on the bus and ends getting a red slushie chucked on her, ruining her outfit. Anyone watching TV in the 2010s will know that's a shoutout to Glee where members of McKinley High's Glee Club would often receive a slushie to the face. We know Olivia is a fan of Glee and the show even got a mention in another song of hers 'Deja vu', from her previous album SOUR, where the lyrics go: "Watching reruns of Glee, being annoying singing in harmony..." Euphoria Euphoria is one of the biggest teen shows of recent years and so it's no surprise there was a reference in Roderigo's video in the form of the singer channelling Maddie (Alexa Demie) with her persistent knocking. While Maddie was knocking to go to the bathroom, Roderigo was knocking on her ex-boyfriend's front door. Empire Records (1995) and Can't Hardly Wait (1998) Olivia is known for her vintage fashion looks and her outfit in the music video took inspiration from a look Liv Tyler's character Corey Mason wore in the 1995 film Empire Records. The outfit that was referenced was a pale blue jumper but instead of the tartan skirt Liv wore in the film, Olivia wore a silver sequined skirt. Danielle Goldberg, a stylist on the music video revealed this in an Instagram Story where she posted a still from Olivia's video along with images from 90s movies such Can't Hardly Wait (1998) and Empire Records (1995) with the image of Tyler, calling it the “90s mood board of [her] dreams." Here is a still from Can't Hardly Wait (1998) where you can see the party scene inspo. Olivia's second album GUTS will be released next month on September 8. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

LONDON E-commerce giant Shopify is investing in wholesale platform Faire, the companies said on Wednesday, in a global