Former Prime Minister PJ Patterson says last week’s brutal murder of veteran journalist Barbara Gayle is a “wake-up call” for Jamaica, noting that it underscores the urgent need for the nation to reexamine its values and “prioritise those that are life-sustaining”. Gayle’s body was found at her Caymanas Country Club Estate home in St Catherine last Tuesday. She had been stabbed multiple times and had been bludgeoned. A man who was the main suspect in the killing was held two days later. READ: Police collar main suspect in Barbara Gayle murder In a release on Monday, Patterson remembered Gayle as “gentle, modest and conscientious” and noted that “as a legal scribe, she understood the essence of the evidence and complex points of law that eventually made her a reporter of the highest order.” “Her acumen for comprehensive legal reports was such that practitioners, including myself, could rely on the integrity and completeness of a Barbara Gayle story in the most intriguing and complicated trials,” the former prime minister said. He added that as the country is engulfed in condemning the heinous crime of Gayle’s murder, “it also marks a time for sober reflection how to end such despicable crimes.” He called for a “decisive change in the culture”, arguing that “anything less will be like recurring decimals which perpetuate our own individual vulnerability to criminal extinction.” “Anger and greed must give way to caring and tolerance at every level,” Patterson said, adding “The solution to the national dilemma has to begin with acknowledging the sacredness of life – the belief that one’s own life is of intrinsic value. That necessitates valuing and treating others with respect.” Patterson suggested that overemphasis on materialism is leading Jamaicans to a neglect of their social and moral fabric. “It is past time for Jamaica to reclaim its values and promote the attitudinal changes which emphasize the importance of respect for human life, empathy, civility and kindness,” Patterson said, noting that “The brutal murder of Barbara Gayle is a wake-up call for Jamaica to take action and promote a culture of love, compassion, and shared humanity.”COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Arkansas defensive end Landon Jackson was carted off the field and taken to a hospital with a neck injury late in the first half of Saturday's game at No. 24 Missouri. Jackson appeared to injure his neck while trying to tackle Missouri running back Jamal Roberts. Medical personnel tended to Jackson for approximately 10 minutes before he was placed on a backboard and driven to a waiting ambulance. Jackson gave a thumbs-up sign as he was carted off the snow-covered field. Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek said Jackson had movement in his arms and legs but was experiencing pain in his neck. He said Jackson was taken to the hospital as a precaution. Jackson leads the Razorbacks with 9 1/2 tackles for loss and 6 1/2 sacks, and is considered a potential first-round pick in next year's NFL draft. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up . AP college football: and David Solomon, The Associated PressBelfast Giants 2 Guildford Flames 0 Belfast Giants winger Bobo Carpenter celebrates scoring the game-winner against Guildford Netminder Tom McCollum kept his third shut-out in his last five games as Bobo Carpenter’s third goal in his last four games since returning from injury helped the Belfast Giants continue their winning momentum against the Guildford Flames. Against a team containing plenty of familiar faces – Guildford had four of last season’s Giants roster in their line-up – it was two of their first-year players who did the damage on Friday night as Adam Keefe’s side maintained their Elite League title push. Carpenter continued his red-hot streak with the game-winner just 10:52 into the contest, providing the finish to the rebound off Elijiah Barriga’s initial shot, and McCollum did the rest, turning away all 31 shots he faced over the three periods. And that allowed Scott Conway to take advantage of a major penalty to Daniel Catenacci midway through the third period to ice the result with his 11th goal of the season and ensure the points would be staying at the SSE Arena. Improving to 7-3-1 on the campaign, Keefe’s men made it back-to-back wins in the League and close to five points behind the Cardiff Devils having played one game more than their rivals, with a 4-for-4 penalty kill coming in very handy as well, particularly on back-to-back penalties in the second period. The win was largely down to the impressive McCollum, who backed up last week’s excellent outing against Glasgow, where he took a shut-out into the third period, with a clean sheet on this occasion that saw him tested by a strong Flames offense but always looked comfortable. And that allowed Carpenter to maintain his own excellent form at the other end, the winger in the right spot at the right time to slide home what would be the winning goal midway through the first period, his seventh of the year, and a lead that the home side would never relinquish. That they didn’t add on before the intermission is the bigger question as not only did a Marcus Tesink tripping penalty go unpunished but two excellent chances for Carpenter passed him by. But the second period would be a tale of the Belfast penalty kill shutting down the Flames offense superbly as all three of an interference call against Josh Roach and then back-to-back calls on Ben Lake (hooking) and Mark Cooper (tripping) were played out, largely to little difficulty. And where the Flames couldn’t click, the Giants could. Catenacci was ejected from the game for spearing and the hosts, after Carpenter hit the crossbar, finally got their second with 8:40 left on the clock as Conway slammed in the rebound off Pierre-Olivier Morin’s initial effort to seal the deal.
The spirit of Christmas is being upheld by the rail union and a state government after they decided to put their bickering aside and not spoil Sydney's holiday festivities. or signup to continue reading Revellers had been worried about the threatened cancellation of Sydney's New Year's Eve fireworks due to an ongoing wage battle between the Rail, Tram and Bus Union and the NSW government. An 11th-hour Christmas Eve hearing fizzled out on Tuesday morning, with the Fair Work Commission agreeing the union had dropped enough action for there to be a negligible risk to the New Year's celebrations. Despite threatening action throughout the holiday period, the NSW branch of the union dropped eight major work bans late on Monday. A lawyer for Sydney Trains requested a half-hour private meeting with the parties at the hearing before the industrial umpire on Monday, saying there had been "encouraging discussions" overnight. The media and member of the public were removed while the parties deliberated. The commission returned at 10am, with the matter seemingly resolved without much interference from Fair Work Commission Deputy President Bryce Cross. The union agreed to drop a solidarity action and one other by the Electrical Trades Union to ensure public safety over the holidays. The union had cast the last-minute changes as necessary to help ward off actions to "effectively crush" its bargaining strategy. It means New Year's Eve revellers and the businesses reliant on them no longer need to eagerly await the industrial umpire's call on potentially crippling train delays and cancellations. Pub and bar operators, a casino and the NSW Labor government had planned to argue on Tuesday that train driver work bans planned for New Year's would cause significant harm to third parties and potentially endanger life. The hearing at the commission cames after NSW Police warned of "grave concerns" for safety if one million people expected to line Sydney Harbour on New year's Even struggled to leave after the midnight fireworks. Organisers say the fireworks are watched by another 400 million people globally. The event delivers an economic benefit of about $280 million for the city. New Year's Eve also doubles as the busiest day on Australia's largest rail network with rare all-night running shuttling people across the state. Some 3200 services run about every five minutes throughout the day, with crunch time coming in the hour after midnight as the masses try to leave together. The union and government have been poles apart after seven months of pay negotiations. Workers continue to demand four annual wage increases of eight per cent but Premier Chris Minns has said that's unaffordable and can't happen while he is denying nurses a similarly costly claim. The state government has offered 11 per cent across three years, including superannuation increases. The saga could drag on for several more months. The Fair Work Commission cannot be asked to settle the substantive dispute - pay and conditions - until February. DAILY Today's top stories curated by our news team. WEEKDAYS Grab a quick bite of today's latest news from around the region and the nation. WEEKLY The latest news, results & expert analysis. WEEKDAYS Catch up on the news of the day and unwind with great reading for your evening. WEEKLY Get the editor's insights: what's happening & why it matters. WEEKLY Love footy? We've got all the action covered. WEEKLY Every Saturday and Tuesday, explore destinations deals, tips & travel writing to transport you around the globe. WEEKLY Going out or staying in? Find out what's on. WEEKDAYS Sharp. Close to the ground. Digging deep. Your weekday morning newsletter on national affairs, politics and more. TWICE WEEKLY Your essential national news digest: all the big issues on Wednesday and great reading every Saturday. WEEKLY Get news, reviews and expert insights every Thursday from CarExpert, ACM's exclusive motoring partner. TWICE WEEKLY Get real, Australia! Let the ACM network's editors and journalists bring you news and views from all over. AS IT HAPPENS Be the first to know when news breaks. DAILY Your digital replica of Today's Paper. Ready to read from 5am! DAILY Test your skills with interactive crosswords, sudoku & trivia. Fresh daily! Advertisement AdvertisementRams don't dominate, but they're rolling toward the playoffs with superb complementary footballCreateAI logo SAN DIEGO , Dec. 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CreateAI Holdings Inc., formerly TuSimple Holdings Inc. (OTCMKTS: TSPH) ("CreateAI" or the "Company"), a global artificial intelligence technology company, today announced shareholder voting results for its annual meeting of stockholders held on December 20, 2024 (the "Annual Meeting"). As of October 28, 2024 , the record date for the Annual Meeting, there were a total of 232,618,399 shares of common stock outstanding and entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting, comprised of 208,618,399 shares of Class A Common Stock (each with one vote per share) and 24,000,000 shares of Class B Common Stock (each with ten votes per share). At the Annual Meeting, holders of 207,347,538 shares of common stock, representing 423,347,538 votes, entitled to vote at the meeting were represented in person or by proxy and, therefore, a quorum constituted of the majority of the voting power of the shares of common stock issued and outstanding and entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting was present. The following is a brief description of each matter voted upon at the 2024 Annual Meeting and the numbers of votes cast for, withheld, or against, the number of abstentions, and the number of broker non-votes with respect to each other, as applicable. 1. Election of six nominees to serve on the Board of Directors (the "Board") for a term which will expire at the 2025 annual meeting of stockholders, or, if Proposal Two is adopted, to hold office until the annual meeting of stockholders in accordance with the class of director to which each nominee will be assigned. The following six directors were elected by the votes as indicated below. The totals above include the 240,000,000 votes represented by the Class B shares of Common Stock. 12,000,000 shares of Class B Common Stock (representing 120,000,00 votes) were voted "FOR" and 12,000,000 shares of Class B Common stock (representing 120,000,00 votes) were voted "WITHHELD" for each of the Directors other than Albert Schultz . All shares of Class B Common Stock were voted "FOR" the election of Albert Schultz . Excluding the 240,000,000 votes from the 24,000,000 shares of Class B Common Stock from the totals above, the 183,347,538 shares of Class A Common Stock were voted as indicated below. 2. Amendment to the Company's Restated Certificate of Incorporation to classify the Board of Directors into three classes, with directors in each class to serve staggered three-year terms. Pursuant to the Restated Certificate of Incorporation, Proposal Two must receive the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the voting power of all of the then-outstanding shares of the capital stock of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class, since directors representing two-thirds (2/3) of the total number of authorized directors have already approved. The amendment was not approved 2 by the votes as indicated below: Because Proposal Two was not approved, the six directors elected pursuant to Proposal One will serve on the Board for a term which will expire at the 2025 annual meeting of stockholders. 3. Ratification of the appointment of UHY LLP as the Company's independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024 . The selection was ratified by the votes as indicated below: Note 1: Includes 120,000,000 votes of the 12,000,000 shares of Class B Common Stock held by White Marble LLC and White Marble International Limited (together, the "White Marble Entities") controlled by Dr. Xiaodi Hou . Note 2: The White Marble Entities have filed an action in the Delaware Court of Chancery seeking a declaratory judgment that the voting agreement between White Marble and Mo Chen is invalid and White Marble, not Mo Chen , controls the vote. White Marble LLC v. Chen , C.A. No. 2024-1208-PAF (Del. Ch.) On December 13, 2024 , the Court entered an order that allows the Company to hold the vote on Proposal Two, and ordered that if Proposal Two is not approved at the Annual Meeting but the Court determines in the Action that Mo Chen , not the White Marble Entities, control how the White Marble Entities' Shares are voted, then the White Marble Entities' shares shall be deemed to have been voted in favor of Proposal Two at the Annual Meeting and that such vote shall stand. The vote totals above include the votes of the shares held by the White Marble Entities as voted by the White Marble Entities. If the shares held by the White Marble entities reflected in the totals above are deemed to have been voted in favor of Proposal Two, the Proposal will have passed. Accordingly, if the Court rules in Mo Chen's favor, Proposal Two will be deemed to have passed and the Company would be permitted to amend its Certificate of Incorporation to implement Proposal Two and each of the directors elected pursuant to Proposal One will serve on the Board until the annual meeting of stockholders in accordance with the class of director to which each nominee is assigned. About CreateAI CreateAI (formerly TuSimple) is a global artificial intelligence company with offices in US, China , and Japan . The company is pioneering the future of digital entertainment content production, seamlessly blending cutting-edge generative AI technology with the creativity of world-class talent. Our mission is to redefine the boundaries of what's possible in digital storytelling by developing immersive, captivating, and visually stunning experiences that resonate with audiences on a global scale. Investor Relations Contact: ICR for CreateAI CreateAI.IR@icrinc.com View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/createai-announces-results-of-2024-annual-meeting-of-stockholders-302338618.html SOURCE CreateAI Holdings Inc
Apple made waves when it announced that its AirPods Pro 2 , when combined with iOS 18.1, could fulfill the role of OTC hearing aids . Given that OTC hearing aids can often run as much as $1,500, it seemed too good to be true that the same hearing benefits could be had for just $249 or less. Better yet, given the popularity of Apple’s wireless earbuds , there’s an excellent chance that those who could benefit already own them (if you live in a country where Apple’s hearing aid feature has been approved ). So how good are the AirPods Pro 2 as OTC hearing aids? To find out, I looked at two key performance criteria: the accuracy of Apple’s software-driven hearing test, and their ability to provide speech enhancement. Testing the test Typically, prescription hearing aids are provided by a licensed audiologist. Before you get them, the audiologist will test your hearing using professionally calibrated instruments in a sound-proof booth. The results, known as an audiogram, are used to customize the hearing aids for you. At-home OTC hearing aids perform a similar test via software, and rely on the user to find a suitably quiet location. Related: How to take the AirPods Pro 2 hearing test My maternal grandfather struggled with hearing after he turned 60, and my father has moderate hearing loss in one ear. With that kind of family history, I get my hearing professionally checked annually to monitor my own health. Here’s how Apple’s audiogram of my hearing (December 2024) compares to my most recent audiologist exam (October 2024). While the Apple audiogram slightly overestimated my high-frequency loss (possibly because my test environment wasn’t quiet enough), it accurately measured my sensitivity across other frequencies, including the slight differences between my left and right ears. I shared the Apple result with my audiologist, and she agreed that it looked fairly accurate, exceeding her expectations for an at-home test. In the lab In an ideal world, we’d evaluate the AirPods Pro 2’s speech enhancement using both qualitative results (gathered from people’s real-world assessments) and quantitative results (lab-based testing). Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to gather qualitative data, but I did get in touch with HearAdvisor , an independent hearing aid testing company. HearAdvisor has lab-tested a variety of OTC and prescription hearing aid models, including the AirPods Pro 2, and maintains a published list of the best products. For OTC products, the testing methodology evaluates devices based on five major criteria using the initial settings created by the software-based hearing test. When possible, those settings are professionally tuned and the tests are repeated to see if there’s a difference in the results. The AirPods Pro 2 received a B grade , placing them in the second tier of HearAdvisor’s rankings. While that doesn’t seem especially noteworthy, the tests revealed a substantial difference between the initial and tuned results. “Speech in quiet” and “speech in noise” — arguably the most important criteria for any hearing aids — both increased by more than double (111% and 225%, respectively) after being tuned. This suggests that while Apple’s audiogram generation may be accurate, the company’s tuning undercuts the potential of the AirPods Pro 2 to deliver the best hearing enhancement. Why would Apple do this, when presumably it has access to the same (or better) assessment technology as HearAdvisor? “They may do this because new hearing aid users often prefer less-than-prescribed gain (probably to preserve naturalness, at the cost of intelligibility),” HearAdvisor scientific adviser Andrew Sabin told me. Curiously, the current king of the OTC hearing aid hill according to HearAdvisor’s tests is Sony’s CRE-E10 , with an A grade, and a perfect 5/5 overall score for both their initial and tuned results. Still, the CRE-E10 sell for between $898 and $1,199 (260%-480% more than the AirPods Pro 2) and yet they don’t deliver similarly large increases in performance. The CRE-E10 proved 18.4% better than the AirPods Pro 2 in speech in quiet, and 73% better in speech in noise. Arguably, this makes the AirPods Pro 2 an excellent value, and a great way to experiment with hearing enhancement if you’re on the fence. Even if you end up turning the feature off, you’re still getting a very good set of wireless noise-canceling earbuds for music and phone calls.Station Science Top News: Dec. 20, 2024
Big Tech takes Nasdaq, S&P 500 higher on a day marked by thin volumesArkansas DE Landon Jackson carted off field and taken to hospital with neck injury
ASUNCION, Paraguay (AP) — Gaston Martirena and Adrian Martinez scored first-half goals as Argentina's Racing won its first Copa Sudamericana championship by beating Brazil's Cruzeiro 3-1 in the final on Saturday. Martirena opened the scoring in the 15th minute and Martinez added a goal five minutes later to give “La Academia” its first international title since 1988 when it won the Supercopa Sudamericana. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.Little shop of Manitoba keepsakes
OnePlus 13 and 13R: Arriving in January to Challenge Samsung’s Galaxy S25 ThroneData released by Statistics Canada in April, say B.C. lost more people than it gained in interprovincial migration in 2023 for the first time in more than a decade. DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press The Business Council of British Columbia has launched an awareness campaign to counter the province’s rising outward migration to Alberta. The business advocacy group says its “Stay with B.C.” campaign is placing advertisements on billboards and transit stops, as well as online, in cities such as Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna and Prince George, urging residents to think twice before moving to Alberta for economic or other reasons. Council president Laura Jones says the campaign is inspired by the “Alberta is Calling” campaign launched in 2022, targeting skilled workers in other provinces with financial incentives and promises of better affordability at a comparable lifestyle. Data released by Statistics Canada in April, say B.C. lost more people than it gained in interprovincial migration in 2023 for the first time in more than a decade, with a net loss of 8,624 people to other Canadian jurisdictions. Alberta reported a gain of 55,000 – the biggest interprovincial increase recorded since tracking began in 1972 – and it was the most popular Canadian destination for those leaving B.C. Jones says that while the “Stay with B.C.” campaign “doesn’t have all the answers” on stemming the population flow, it has the potential to spur conversations among people who are considering a move. The advertisements are designed to look like an incoming cellphone call or an online dating profile from Alberta, with messages prompting readers to reconsider answering or “swiping right” – a term for accepting someone on a dating app. “We've all heard those Alberta’s Calling ads, and also Invest Alberta is being pretty assertive right now and they've opened an office in British Columbia,” Jones says. “So, we thought this would be a way to put the focus on a strong economy while having a little fun. “It’s a very serious topic,” she says. “We want young people to see a future in the province. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have a little bit of fun to get people’s attention on the importance of a strong economy.” In a written statement, Alberta Jobs, Economy and Trade Minister Matt Jones says the last round of the “Alberta is Calling” campaign ended on Sept. 23. Jones says federal statistics show 30,675 former British Columbians moving to Alberta in 2023-24, and the provincial government will continue to look at ways to address the skilled labour demand there. “With the Alberta Advantage, there are many career and lifestyle benefits to living in Alberta, including a thriving job market, some of the lowest taxes in Canada, high wages, affordable housing and diverse communities,” Jones says. Alberta’s third-quarter population report released this week says the province recorded Canada’s highest interprovincial migration gains for the ninth straight quarter, adding 3,170 more people from B.C. than it lost in the other direction. Only Ontario had a higher net-loss of residents with 4,369 for the three-month period. Premier David Eby had said B.C. is tackling the issue of affordability and economic opportunities for skilled labour “head on,” but also noted that the province did see an overall population increase of more than 178,000 in 2023 that was fuelled by international migration. Morgan Westcott, associate dean of marketing programs at the B.C. Institute of Technology, says it will be up to government and stakeholders to address affordability in the province, but there is more the province can do with branding to attract and keep talent from moving to Alberta. Westcott says B.C. has been very effective in marketing itself as a tourism destination, and the province’s natural beauty should be leveraged more, not only for getting visitors, but as a selling point for skilled labour. “I think sometimes what we’re missing in B.C. is this singularity of brand, and of voice, and of purpose in our campaigns,” she says. “Because if it’s an attractive place to visit for a weekend, it should be an attractive place to settle and to invest and to build your future. And sometimes I think we really miss an opportunity when we treat them as two separate things.” Westcott notes that the “Alberta is Calling” campaign places lifestyle as one of its three pillars for attracting skilled labour, alongside career opportunities and affordability, with all three factors forming the foundation of the Alberta brand. “I’m a Vancouver born-and-raised person, so I’m very biased, but it is fairly spectacular what we have available to us, and it is on a different level,” she says of B.C.’s access to nature and quality of life. “(Alberta) is leveraging some very similar things, and yet at the same time, I think we do have different cities that are vibrant in different ways,” she says. “I don’t know how you tackle the affordability piece – and I say that as a life-long Vancouverite – and maybe it’s not about that. Maybe it’s about that – something that’s this exceptional – does come at a cost.” Jones says the business council will be tracking future population numbers and economic indicators to see if its advertisements have moved the needle in keeping talent in B.C., and her team is already thinking about the next phase of the campaign. “We’ve got lots and lots of opportunity to create those high-paying jobs, and we just need to lean into making sure that all of our sectors can be thriving,” she says.
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Wednesday night’s episode of AEW Dynamite averaged 640,000 viewers on TBS, down 3.9 percent from last week. Despite the decline from last week, this is the second-highest audience total for the show since October 2. Dynamite finished fourth on the prime time cable charts with a 0.20 rating in the 18-49 demo. That’s down 9.1 percent from last week but ties the second-largest rating Dynamite has done in that category since the October 2 episode. The show went head-to-head with an NBA game on ESPN that topped the cable charts with a 0.35 rating in 18-49 and 1.2 million viewers overall, as well as the CMA Awards on ABC that averaged 6.1 million viewers and drew a 0.81 demo rating. As compared to the same week in 2023, Dynamite’s overall viewership was down 24.3 percent while its 18-49 rating was down 23.1 percent. Listed below are the last 11 weeks of overall viewership totals and 18-49 demo ratings for Dynamite, along with the 10-week average in both categories. This week’s show was up 3.2 percent in overall viewers and 5.3 percent in 18-49 as compared to the recent averages. Source
Social Security tackles overpayment ‘injustices,’ but problems remainRALEIGH — Newland student Laken Crowe was named among 210 students to the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program Class of 2025. The Teaching Fellows program is a competitive, merit-based forgivable loan program providing tuition assistance of up to $10,000 a year for qualified students committed to teaching elementary education, special education, science, technology, engineering, or math in a North Carolina public school. The purpose of the program is to recruit, prepare and support future teachers who attend institutions of higher education in North Carolina. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content.
“Spider-Man 4” Venom Rumors Keep Swirling
Tanner, Charles connect for 2 TDs and Robert Morris tops Stonehill 31-13
