Author: admin@primenews

At the onset of his unprecedented third term, Xi Jinping stacked China’s top ranks with a slate of loyalists who he presumably hoped would smooth the paths to achieve his grand vision for China. Less than a year on, however, a storm of turbulence is roiling Xi’s hand-picked ruling elite, raising questions about his judgment and dampening international confidence in his governance – at a time when China is facing major economic troubles at home and increased competition with the United States on the world stage. In just a matter of months, two senior members of China’s cabinet who served as the country’s…

Google’s Bard artificial intelligence chatbot is evolving. The company on Tuesday announced a series of updates to Bard that will give the chatbot access to Google’s full suite of tools — including YouTube, Google Drive, Google Flights and others — to assist users in a wider variety of tasks. Users will be able, for example, to ask Bard to plan an upcoming trip, complete with real flight options. Or a user could ask the tool to summarize meeting notes made in a recent Google Drive document. The connections to Google’s other services are just some of the improvements to Bard coming Tuesday.…

Wall Street has a knowledge hole. The last time American finance was operating in a high-inflation, high-interest rate environment, like the current economy, was nearly 40 years ago. That means most current executives, who came up in the era of easy money, are unfamiliar with the complexities of running a bank under today’s conditions. As the top brass at financial institutions start to accept that interest rates will likely be higher for longer, they’re scrambling to find leaders with the skills to succeed in such an unpredictable environment. Some CEOs are deciding that they need to make drastic, expensive and often…

Young black scientists will get sizeable grants towards cutting-edge research in a pilot scheme aimed at increasing their numbers in the field. Five scientists a year will get up to £690,000 spread over four years. The Royal Society, which represents the UK’s leading researchers, hopes its grants increase low numbers of black scientists, particularly in research. The fellowships should allow the recipients to work in any of the country’s research institutes. It will also mentor the scientists and help with career networking. Royal Society President Prof Sir Adrian Smith told BBC News that the low numbers of black scientists in the…

The City watchdog says it has found no evidence to suggest politicians’ bank accounts are being closed primarily because of their views. The findings by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) follow a row over threats to close the Coutts account of former Ukip leader Nigel Farage. Mr Farage, who claimed his account was being shut over his views, told the BBC the findings were “total nonsense”. The FCA stood by its findings but said it would be making further inquiries. The government said free speech was “a fundamental human right”. Customer behaviour “While no bank, building society or payment firm…

It is called the United Nations – but right now it seems anything but united. The 140 or so world leaders gathering in New York for their annual assembly have a lot on their plate: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a global cost of living crisis, a worsening climate emergency, and the disruption of new technologies such as artificial intelligence. There are disagreements internationally not only over what is most important but also what the remedies should be. “People are looking to their leaders for a way out of this mess,” says Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary General. “Yet in the…

The union representing Canadian autoworkers at Ford has put its strike plans there on hold, keeping its more than 5,000 members on the job at three plants there and providing some good news for an industry dealing with unprecedented labor disruptions. According to an update posted on the union site: “Unifor is extending negotiations with Ford Motor Company for a 24-hour period. The union received a substantive offer from the employer minutes before the deadline and bargaining is continuing throughout the night. Unifor members should continue to maintain strike readiness.” The contract between Ford and Unifor was set to expire at…

Folk singer Roger Whittaker, famous for his 1969 hit song Durham Town and expert whistling, has died at the age of 87. His other hits included The Last Farewell and New World in the Morning, and he sold nearly 50 million records around the world, his website said. After starting in folk clubs, his successes included the Skye Boat Song, a duet with Des O’Connor in 1986. He was also able to sing in several languages. They included German and French, allowing him to appeal to a wide audience, especially in Germany, where he was particularly popular. Whittaker was born…

Twenty-four years after three prominent opposition figures vanished in Belarus, a former member of the country’s special forces is to stand trial in a Swiss court. Yury Garavsky is charged with the forced disappearance of the three men. He was arrested after confessing he was part of a unit tied to the abduction and presumed killing of opponents of the country’s authoritarian leader. Now a Swiss judge will decide whether he is telling the truth. In media interviews, Mr Garavsky has given a detailed account of how a secret hit squad snatched the three opponents of Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus’ leader,…

Military officials have found the debris of an F-35 military jet that went missing after the pilot ejected over South Carolina. The wreckage of the $100m (£80m) plane – which disappeared on Sunday afternoon – was discovered in rural Williamsburg County, said authorities. The pilot ejected from the cockpit and parachuted to safety in a North Charleston neighbourhood. The public had been asked to help find the jet. In a statement on Monday, military officials said the debris was found “two hours north-east of Joint Base Charleston”. Officials had focused their searches around Lake Moultrie and Lake Marion, north of…