Author: admin@primenews

A college admissions program popular among the country’s most selective universities may actually be skewed against lower-income applicants, college consultants and experts say. Early decision is an option that allows students to single out their top-choice school and apply to it months before regular applications are due. The choice is binding, but the student is rewarded with an earlier answer from the school, and a higher percentage chance of getting in. Some highly competitive schools pick a large percentage of their incoming freshman class from this applicant pool. While anyone can apply under the early decision deadline, some students literally can’t…

Lewis Hamilton was disqualified from second place in the US Grand Prix after running Max Verstappen’s Red Bull close for victory. Hamilton was just two seconds behind Verstappen at the flag but his car was later declared illegal for excessive wear on the underfloor skid blocks. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc suffered the same fate after finishing sixth. Hamilton’s disqualification promoted McLaren’s Lando Norris to second and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz to third. Verstappen was measured, slowly picking off the cars in front of him and then holding on for his 50th career win. Hamilton passed Norris for second in the final laps…

Coaching centres in the northern Indian city of Kota are facing tighter regulations after a rise in the number of student suicides. BBC Hindi’s Vineet Khare has been talking to pupils who have travelled to Kota to receive tuition to help them pass entrance exams for elite colleges and found many feel intense pressure to succeed. Twenty-one-year-old Vijay (not his real name) has failed the entrance exam for medical college three times. He had hoped that studying at an expensive coaching centre in Kota in the north Indian state of Rajasthan would get him through the test. Like many other…

Argentina’s economy minister Sergio Massa has defied expectations by winning more than 36% of the vote in Sunday’s presidential election, putting him on course for a run-off contest with far-right candidate Javier Milei. With most ballots now counted, no candidate has received more than 45% of votes – the threshold to be elected. Many pollsters believed voters would punish Mr Massa for presiding over a financial crisis. Inflation in Argentina is nearing 140%. Front-runner Mr Milei was leading in the polls prior to the vote. He received 30% of votes, which was surpassed by the tally of his left-wing rival.…

China has launched an investigation into Taiwan-based iPhone-maker Foxconn, Chinese state media reported on Sunday. The Global Times, citing anonymous sources, says officials conducted tax inspections at Foxconn businesses in two Chinese provinces. Foxconn says it will co-operate with the investigation. The firm, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, is the biggest maker of iPhones and is one of the largest employers in the world. The Global Times also said China’s natural resources department made on-site investigations into land use by key Foxconn businesses in the provinces of Henan and Hubei. “Legal compliance everywhere we operate around the…

Warning: This article contains details that some may find distressing At the Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in central Gaza, they are running out of material to cover the dead with. The bodies are stacked in a courtyard outside, prayers are said, and relatives collapse to the floor wailing in grief. Inside the hospital, doctors battle to patch up the walking wounded and save the gravely injured – but stores of medicine and supplies are dwindling by the day. A BBC Arabic reporter witnessed a facility overwhelmed with casualties where doctors were racing to finish procedures before moving on to the next…

The House remains paralyzed with no end in sight to the Republican leadership crisis as GOP Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio continues his bid for speaker despite facing stiff resistance. The Ohio Republican, who has made a name for himself as a hardline conservative agitator, has so far vowed to stay in the race despite two failed votes for the gavel. The House could hold a third vote for speaker as soon as Thursday afternoon, though no vote has been officially scheduled yet. Tensions are rising among House Republicans as pressure grows to find a way to resolve the standoff.…

A US-Russian dual national working for Radio Free Europe has been detained in Russia and charged with failing to register as a foreign agent, the US-funded news organization reported Wednesday. Alsu Kurmasheva is currently employed as a journalist and editor for the Tatar-Bashkir service of Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and is based in Prague. According to her employer, Kurmasheva was detained on June 2 in the city of Kazan in Russia while waiting for a return flight to the Czech Republic. She had arrived in Russia on May 20 due to an urgent family matter, RFE/RL said. RFE/RL said Kazan…

With most of the world’s population residing in cities, it’s often challenging to understand how our actions affect remote and wild regions. For Call to Earth Day 2023, we will focus on the vital link between urban areas and wilderness, and shed light on the impact cities have on distant natural spaces. This year’s Call to Earth Day will take place on Wednesday, November 28, with the theme “Our Shared Home.” From the inner city to the suburbs, the plains, the mountains, the jungle, and beyond, we must protect and nurture our connected ecosystems. Here, we explore how our cities can…

Hottest day, hottest week, hottest month, and – increasingly likely – hottest year; 2023 has garnered unwanted records as the climate crisis escalates. Animals, like humans, are greatly affected by the rising temperatures. Species that have evolved tactics to combat the heat are relying on those behaviors to try to keep cool. From peculiar methods like “splooting,” to changing physiology altogether, here are four ways different creatures are trying to beat the heat. Splooting You might never have heard of it but if you’re a cat or dog owner, you’ve almost definitely seen a “sploot.” Also known as “frogging” or “pancaking,” splooting…