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Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, the architect of Cuba’s brutally proficient state intelligence apparatus that surveilled the Cuban people for decades and infiltrated counterrevolutionary groups at home and abroad, foiling assassination attempts against Fidel Castro and warning of the Bay of Pigs invasion, has died in Havana. He was 94.His death, in a hospital, was confirmed by Andy Gomez, a founder of the Institute for Cuban and Cuban American Studies at the University of Miami. Mr. Gomez said he did not know the day Mr. Valdés died, but a government statement published in Granma, the official newspaper of the Central Committee of…

Nigerian health technology company Medlitics Limited has launched an artificial intelligence-powered platform aimed at changing how chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension are managed across Africa, as healthcare providers seek new ways to tackle rising treatment costs and growing patient numbers. The platform, called Medlitics, connects patients, doctors, hospitals and insurance providers through a single digital ecosystem that continuously tracks patient health data and alerts physicians when medical intervention may be required. The launch comes as Africa faces an increasing burden of non-communicable diseases, with healthcare systems often struggling to provide consistent monitoring for patients living with long-term conditions.…

Public pushback against data centers has emphasized their water and energy consumption, and now Nvidia is highlighting its claim that the Rubin generation reference design for a fully liquid-cooled data center has “eliminated massive amounts of power usage and pretty much all water usage.” Still, it doesn’t address all of the concerns around AI data centers, including during their construction, and for the power generation requirements of the massive facilities. Also, as Gizmodo points out, Nvidia’s blog post doesn’t mention the cost of building this style of data center vs. one using less efficient air cooling, but claims that “every…

More than Albo might want to admit See more of Fiona Katauskas’s cartoons here Continue reading…

A ballista spider waits for a green tree ant to bite the cone of its web and spring the snareProfessor Ajay Narendra et al. 2026 A newly discovered spider in Australia builds a snare trap designed to catch a single species of ant, which launches the prey into its web with a g-force that would kill a human. Researchers have measured accelerations of up to 1367 metres per second squared when green tree ants (Oecophylla smaragdina) trigger the web snare trap, equating to 130 times the force of gravity. “To capture the moment, we had to push the cameras to…

Argentina forward Julian Alvarez has confirmed he wants ‌to leave Atletico Madrid to “fulfil his dream.”Alvarez is a target for Atletico’s city rivals Real Madrid who saw a £129m bid for the forward rejected earlier this month. Alvarez has also been subject of interest from Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal. “I spoke with ​people at the club, with those I had to speak with and the ​best thing for everyone is ‌a transfer and I want to fulfil my dream,” Alvarez ​said after Argentina’s 2-0 World Cup Group J win over Austria.”It’s not the time to talk about ​this, but…

In February, the second letter sent to the media regarding Nancy Guthrie‘s abduction indicated that the retired grandmother was killed shortly after she was taken from her Arizona home earlier this year, according to multiple reports on Monday. Nancy Guthrie, the mother of longtime Today host Savannah Guthrie, was reported missing after she disappeared from her Tucson home on Feb. 1. Evidence indicated she was taken from her home where she lived alone. The frantic hunt for the 84-year-old quickly became a national news story; still, as weeks passed, very little new information came in days after she vanished.  On…

By Eniola Olakunri Thursday, June 18, 2026, will remain etched in the memory of many who gathered at the Abuja Leadership Centre of Excellence, Yakubu Gowon University (formerly the University of Abuja). It was the day the Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Architect Sonny S. T. Echono, PhD, OON, FNIA, transformed a hall filled with professors, academics, university administrators, students and education stakeholders into a classroom. For nearly two hours, the accomplished administrator, scholar and public servant held his audience spellbound as he delivered a public lecture based on his doctoral thesis titled “Leadership Selection Process…

new video loaded: Police Officer Killed in Shootout in MontrealtranscriptBacktranscriptPolice Officer Killed in Shootout in MontrealOn Monday, a police officer was killed during a shootout. A civilian was killed and another police officer was wounded, the police said.It’s a very, very sad day. It’s a nightmare. He was a great, great, great police officer. A lot of credibility. And he was so passionate. The immediate threat is controlled, safe. So the community is safe. I’m hoping that we’re going to find out what was his motive, but we don’t know yet.On Monday, a police officer was killed during a shootout.…

Kylian Mbappe scores France’s first two goals, with Ousmane Dembele adding the other in a 3-0 win against Iraq.Published On 23 Jun 202623 Jun 2026Kylian Mbappe scored his second brace ‌of the tournament, and France eased to a 3-0 victory over Iraq ⁠in the first match ⁠of this World Cup beset by a lengthy weather stoppage.Mbappe’s goals came nearly three hours apart after thunderstorms in the region on Monday delayed the second-half kickoff by a shade ⁠under two hours.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listThey take him to 16 all-time World Cup tallies, pulling him level with former record-holder…