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Blunderbuss: Croatia minister apologizes for klutzy kiss on Germany’s Baerbock

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

There’s another kiss controversy, but this time it seems more clumsy than creepy. Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić-Radman’s ham-fisted attempt to greet his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, with a kiss sparked a chorus of chastisement in both Croatia and Germany last week. Grlić-Radman apologized on Saturday, after his awkward maneuver had made the rounds on social media.“We ministers always greet each other cordially,” Grlić-Radman was quoted as saying by Croatian daily Večernji List. “If someone saw something bad in that, then apologies to whoever took it that way,” he said, adding that his diplomatic offering “might have turned out awkwardly.”The gawky greeting took place at an EU enlargement conference in Berlin on Thursday that brought together foreign ministers from member states and candidate countries. As the ministers gathered in front of the media for a group picture, Grlić-Radman, 65, first reached out to sha...

Trent Brown, rookie wide receiver among Patriots’ inactives vs. Commanders

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

FOXBORO — The Patriots will be without starting left tackle Trent Brown on Sunday against the Commanders.Brown is listed among the Patriots’ six inactives. Here’s the full list, which includes rookie wide receiver Kayshon Boutte as a healthy scratch:Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Patriots-Commanders preview: Bill Belichick could start to U-turn the season Sunday New England Patriots | Patriots sign ex-USFL defensive tackle to 53-man roster New England Patriots | Patriots extra points: Bill Belichick says rookie WR had best practices this week New England Patriots | Demario Douglas one of the 4 Patriots most important to beating Washington New England Patriots | The Patriots’ glue guy linebacker keeping Bill Belichick’s defense together QB Will Grier (emergency third QB)WR DeVante ParkerWR Kayshon BoutteOT Trent BrownDT Sam RobertsCB Alex AustinMac Jones will start at quarterback...

Sweet 16: Reversal of fortune in Stoneham

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

When Stoneham football coach Bob Almeida walked off Fred Green Memorial Field in Melrose on Sept. 29, he wondered: will we ever win a game?For Almeida and the Spartans, September Sorrow has morphed into November Nirvana.After an 0-4 start, Stoneham had four straight wins to earn a Div. 6 tournament berth. The 15th-seeded Spartans made the most of their second opportunity, hitting the road to knock off No. 2 Abington, 22-14.“I give all the credit to the players and my assistant coaches, they stayed the course,” Almeida said. “We have two terrific captains (Matt Tran and Ty Baker) who have been very instrumental all season long. They are not the most demonstrative types, but they are the type of kids who know when something needs to be said and everyone listens.”Almeida figured his team would suffer some growing pains. The Spartans graduated a large chunk of players from the 2022 team which advanced to the Div, 6 state championship game, so there were plenty of new faces in the lineup...

Cape Cod surfers have close call with 10-foot great white shark: ‘The shark circled behind me very aggressive and agitated’

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

Two Cape Cod surfers have quite the story to tell after they evaded an “aggressive and agitated” 10-foot great white shark off an Eastham beach over the weekend.The pair of surfers, cousins Ray Trautz and Pete Emond, reported that they had a close call with a shark on Saturday at around noon off Coast Guard Beach.Trautz over the years has spotted about 100 white sharks while surfing, but this experience is definitely at the top of all his shark interactions.“Pete was sitting on his board and I was standing on mine when I looked over my shoulder and a 10′ Great white Shark was on track right at Pete’s legs,” Trautz posted a day after the close call.“The shark even turned on its side as if to take a leg, in that moment I yelled SHAARRRRK as Pete was still unaware,” he added.As Trautz yelled, he stabbed his paddle into the water at the back of the shark, and the apex predator “violently” turned at him — with its tail and...

A muted box office weekend without ‘Dune: Part Two’

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

This weekend, the box office felt the lack of what was supposed to be on the calendar.Moviegoers weren’t lacking for options: The video game adaptation “Five Nights at Freddy’s” repeated in first place, “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” is still going strong, Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla ” expanded nationwide, “Oppenheimer” returned to IMAX screens and several well-received indies opened as well. But this was the weekend that Warner Bros. and Legendary’s “ Dune: Part Two” was supposed to open, before the SAG-AFTRA strike had many studios shuffling release dates in anticipation of a lengthy dispute as opposed to opening films without the help of movie stars. In August, the “Dune” sequel starring Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya was moved to March 2024, and no major blockbusters moved in to take its Nov. 3 spot.Even with “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” still bringing Swifties to the multiplex, and many other prestige offerings, including Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon&...

Tola sets NYC Marathon course record to win men’s race; Hellen Obiri of Kenya takes women’s title

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia set a course record to win the New York City Marathon men’s race on Sunday while Hellen Obiri of Kenya pulled away in the final 400 meters to take the women’s title.Tola finished in 2 hours, 4 minutes and 58 seconds, topping the 2:05.06 set by Geoffrey Mutai in 2011. Tola pulled away from countrymate Jemel Yimer when the pair were heading towards the Bronx at mile 20. By the time he headed back into Manhattan a mile later he was up by 19 seconds and chasing Mutai’s mark.While the men’s race was well decided before the last few miles, the women’s race came down to the stretch. Obiri, Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia and defending champion Sharon Lokedi were all running together exchanging the lead. Obiri made a move as the trio headed back into Central Park for the final half-mile and finished in 2:27.23. Gidey finished second, 6 seconds behind.___AP sports: https://apnews.com/sportsDoug Feinberg, The Associated Press

Humanoid robots are here, but they’re a little awkward

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

Building a robot that’s both human-like and useful is a decades-old engineering dream inspired by popular science fiction.While the latest artificial intelligence craze has sparked another wave of investments in the quest to build a humanoid, most of the current prototypes are clumsy and impractical, looking better in staged performances than in real life. That hasn’t stopped a handful of startups from keeping at it.“The intention is not to start from the beginning and say, ‘Hey, we’re trying to make a robot look like a person,’” said Jonathan Hurst, co-founder and chief robot officer at Agility Robotics. “We’re trying to make robots that can operate in human spaces.”Do we even need humanoids? Hurst makes a point of describing Agility’s warehouse robot Digit as human-centric, not humanoid, a distinction meant to emphasize what it does over what it’s trying to be.What it does, for now, is pick up tote bins and move them. Amazon announced in October it will beg...

The best airlines for 2023 holiday travel on points

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

(NerdWallet) - With flights getting more expensive around Thanksgiving and the winter holidays, you may be inclined to use accumulated points and miles to try to save some money. About 30% of holiday travelers plan to use points and miles to pay for travel expenses in 2023, according to a NerdWallet survey conducted by The Harris Poll of more than 2,000 adults.That might have been a dependable money-saving strategy five or 10 years ago, back when airlines published award charts that clearly showed how many points or miles you'd need to book a flight. But most U.S. airlines have switched to dynamic award pricing, meaning the cost in points can fluctuate as much as cash prices do.So in many cases, holiday flights on points are no longer the deal they once were — and can be high enough to make your jaw drop. In fact, you might get a lower cent-per-point value than usual if you’re not careful.What the data says about holiday travel on milesNerdWallet does an annual analysis of the value...

American Airlines to cut routes from Austin airport

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — American Airlines will make some route changes that affect departing routes from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, an airline spokesperson said. An American Airlines spokesperson said AUS is "an important market for American as we continuously evaluate our network." The spokesperson did not confirm the number of routes affected or when changes will go into effect. AUS Data Hub: How many passengers have flown out of AUS so far this year? An AUS spokesperson confirmed that American Airlines plans to cut routes at AUS and that the airline will adjust its AUS flight schedules starting next year. "We’re grateful for their offerings, which provide more nonstop departures and more seats to Central Texas travelers than in 2019," the statement continued. The airline said it will keep its service levels with nonstop flights to its eight hubs, and the airline will contact affected customers.The American Airlines service changes also include 53% more seats daily and ad...

Vikings left tackle Christian Darrisaw ruled out for game against Falcons

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:14:32 GMT

ATLANTA — In the first start of his NFL career on Sunday afternoon, rookie quarterback Jaren Hall was without the man that was supposed to be blocking his blindside.After suffering a groin injury late this week, left tackle Christian Darrisaw was ruled out for the Vikings in the game against the Atlanta Falcons.The likely replacement for Darrisaw is veteran left tackle David Quessenberry.The other inactives for the Vikings included safety Lewis Cine, running back Kene Nwangwu, linebacker Brian Asamoah, tight end Nick Muse, receiver Jalen Nailor, and defensive tackle Dean Lowry.