BEIJING Bank of China Ltd, China's fourth-largest lender by assets, has launched a countrywide exercise to reduce the

Cultivated meat, also known as lab-grown meat, has been cleared for sale in the United States.

Save 20%: Go for a minimalist design with the Fitbit Luxe fitness tracker, down to

Timothee Chalamet, 27, one of the most dashing Hollywood actors out there, has become incredibly popular in an astonishingly short amount of time

Police in Berlin say they have opened an investigation of Roger Waters on suspicion of incitement over a costume the Pink Floyd co-founder wore when he performed in the German capital last week

It’s been a big weekend for Barbenheimer fans, as cinema goers poured into screenings of the two most anticipated movies of the year, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. But for one aptly named woman, it couldn’t get any better. Barb Heimer’s social media profile has gone viral in recent days after it was unearthed late last week at the peak of the Barbenheimer hysteria. People shared screenshots of the profile, with one person saying: “Huge weekend for her”. Another person said: “Please tell me her middle name starts with an N”. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The two films have already sparked a cultural moment that nobody could have seen coming, as their same-day release date and polar opposite subject matter drove social media into a frenzy. People clad in all-pink queued around the block for Barbie across the UK on Friday night, while others have shared pictures of themselves next to Oppenheimer posters. Some even went for back-to-back screenings of the two films. One person shared a photoshopped image of a fictional Barbenheimer poster, showing the all star casts of both films with the now infamous Barb Heimer added in. One person wrote: “I bet she’s having a fun week”. Others described the coincidence as “absolutely incredible”, and said it was the mysterious Barb’s “moment”. 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.

The issue of recreational marijuana legalization will be on Ohio's general election ballot in November after the initiative gathered enough signatures, the Ohio secretary of state's office announced Wednesday.

The British economy unexpectedly grew in the second quarter of the year largely as a result of a strong rebound in June when many businesses, particularly in the leisure sector benefited from the warm and settled weather

China’s most famous entrepreneur broke years of silence about Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. with a call to arms

Gunmen attacked a military barracks then broke into a prison in Freetown, officials say.

An elementary school teacher has divided opinion on social media after she was filmed giving a young pupil “birthday spankings”. The clip, which has been shared across TikTok, shows the woman beaming as she brandishes a large, wooden ruler and the boy braces for impact. The child is smiling, too, as he clutches the table, and she swings her makeshift paddle. Thankfully, the teacher stops before making contact, as she repeats a swing for each year of his life. Pranks and peculiar traditions are a quirk of the festivities across the world, with almost every culture having their own special rites and rituals. Bumps, “punches” and other torments have long been a celebrated part of the festivities, as have “spankings”. The North American tradition sees the birthday boy or girl receive the number of hits that corresponds to their age, plus “one to grow on”. @noahglenncarter People are upset with this teacher for giving a student birthday spankings #foryou #teacher #birthday Numerous TikTok commentators pointed out that they’d received the same treatment at the hands of their teachers while in school, though not everyone remembered the custom fondly. Search “birthday spankings” on the platform and you’ll see a number of videos dedicated to people’s realisation that the whole thing is a bit… creepy. @queenkoppes #stitch with @smithfulteaching The 90s were a different time. #teachersoftiktok @mackenzig__ i thought this was a fever dream or smth for the longest time until someone told me they saw it too Still, plenty of TikTokers have also laughed the whole thing off or pointed to similarly bizarre conventions that they’d fallen prey to. “This is a family tradition for me,” one wrote. “We all got and gave each other birthday spankings. It’s just a fun thing.” “My Spanish teacher pulls ears for birthday,” added another, explaining that it was “her culture’s tradition”. However, influencer Noah Glenn Carter pointed out that some traditions simply don’t age well, and plenty of people would file a complaint with the school if this happened to their kid. “So far it doesn't seem like any action has been taken against the teacher, which I think is fine because she probably didn't mean anything by this,” he said in a commentary on the clip. But, he added: “If I was a teacher, the last thing you would see me doing is giving out birthday spankings to students. “Because even if I was just doing it to be funny, people could see it in a very different light.” Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter 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

The Chicago White Sox have fired executive vice president Ken Williams and general manager Rick Hahn, cutting ties with their leadership on the baseball side amid another disappointing season