Jane Rosenberg’s courtroom sketch of New England Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady has drawn mirth on Twitter, with hundreds of users poking fun at the not-so-recognizable likeness.
Twitter users pasted the sketch on everything from Edvard Munch’s The Scream to an image from the film E.T.
The online uproar prompted the artist New York to ask for forgiveness.
Jane Rosenberg said: “I apologize to Tom Brady if I didn’t make him as good looking as he really is.
“I’m probably going to go home and feel terrible.”
Jane Rosenberg has been a courtroom artist for more than 35 years.
Tom Brady was in a New York court on August 12 fighting a decision by the NFL to suspend him for four games.
The NFL claims Tom Brady broke league rules by using deflated footballs during a playoff game last season. Deflated balls can be easier to catch, giving a player an unfair advantage.
Married to supermodel Gisele Bundchen, Tom Brady is known for his movie star good looks – something that many felt the sketch failed to capture.
Alphabet Inc – Google’s new parent company – will make the company’s activities “cleaner and more accountable”, said its CEO Larry Page in a blog post announcing the news.
Larry Page, Google’s original founders, admitted that from the outset, some of Google’s interests “might seem very speculative or even strange” for the firm.
“We are still trying to do things other people think are crazy but we are super-excited about,” he said.
More detail of the surprise restructure is expected in the coming weeks, but here’s a brief guide to Alphabet’s core areas of activity so far:
Google itself will continue to exist as a subsidiary of Alphabet under the leadership of a new CEO, but long-term Google exec, Sundar Pichai.
It will include Google’s most obvious – and profitable – internet outlets such as search, Maps, YouTube, Chrome and the Android mobile phone platform.
Google X: This is Google’s research and development lab, where projects like the driverless car, drone delivery service Project Wing and Project Loon, an ambitious idea to connect rural communities to the net via a global network of high-altitude balloons, are born and nurtured.
Last year pharmaceutical giant Novartis agreed a deal to work with Google X on a smart contact lens for people with diabetes, designed to measure the level of glucose in the wearer’s tears and communicate the information to a mobile phone or computer.
The division is notoriously tight-lipped about much of its work but its web page lists 20 different research areas including artificial intelligence, data mining, software engineering and cryptography.
It refers to some of its more outlandish projects as “moonshots” – a Google X code word for big-thinking propositions.
Calico: Google launched a separate health-focused research and development company in 2013, with Larry Page announcing in a blog post that its work would be based around the research areas of “health and well-being, in particular the challenge of ageing and associated diseases”.
“We are scientists from the fields of medicine, drug development, molecular biology, and genetics,” says the company on its website.
“Through our research we’re aiming to devise interventions that slow ageing and counteract age‑related diseases.”
Nest: Google bought thermostat maker Nest Labs for $3.2 billion in early 2014.
Nest’s first major product, the thermostat, was able to learn about users’ behavior and decipher whether a building was occupied, but it has since branched out into other areas of smart homeware.
This has included, most recently, a camera that senses movement in a user’s home and alerts them via a smartphone app.
Google Fiber is a superfast broadband and TV-on-demand service, promising speeds of up to 1,000 megabits per second. It’s currently only available in certain parts of the US, including Atlanta, Nashville and Salt Lake City.
Google Robotics: It is unclear whether Google’s robotics work will also become a more separate entity under Alphabet Inc.
Google snapped up six robotics companies in 2013 – including military robot-maker Boston Dynamics which developed Cheetah, the world’s fastest running robot.
However the tech giant has been clear that none of its robots will be used for military means.
Investment: In addition to its acquisitions, Google has two investment arms – Google Ventures and Google Capital.
Google Ventures claims to have made more than 300 investments alone, with recipients including Uber, Periscope, and Fitstar (which has since been bought by fitness tracker form FitBit).
Tianjin explosions’ death toll has risen to 44 as more than 500 people were injured.
Twelve firefighters were among the dead, China’s official Xinhua news agency said as it reported a doubling of the death toll following two major explosions in the northern port city.
The blasts happened in a warehouse storing “dangerous and chemical goods” in the port area of Tianjin.
The explosions caused a huge fireball that could be seen from space.
Buildings within a 1.5 miles had windows blown out, office blocks were destroyed and hundreds of cars burnt-out.
Images on Chinese media showed local residents and workers fleeing their homes, some of them covered in blood from broken glass and flying debris.
As of 12:00 local time, 44 people had died and a total of 520 people had been hospitalized, including 66 in a critical condition, Xinhua reported.
The first explosion occurred at about 23:30 local time on August 12, followed seconds later by another, more powerful blast and a series of smaller explosions. The impact could be felt several miles away.
The China Earthquake Networks Centre said the magnitude of the first explosion was the equivalent of detonating three tonnes of TNT, while the second was the equivalent of 21 tonnes.
State broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) said a shipment of explosives had detonated but this has not been confirmed.
Senior managers of Ruihai Logistics, which owns the warehouse where the explosion happened, are being questioned by authorities, state media report.
China National Radio also said cracks were visible in buildings near the site of the blast.
Several tower blocks near the port area are without power, CCTV added.
Tianjin, home to some 15 million people, is a major port and industrial area to the south-east of the Chinese capital, Beijing.
The FDA has condemned Kim Kardashian’s promotion of morning sickness prescription drug Diclegis on social media.
Kim Kardashian, who is 5-month pregnant with her second child, posted a selfie last month holding up a branded bottle of the pills alongside text endorsing their effects.
Diclegis maker, Canada-based Duchesnay, later confirmed it had compensated Kim Kardashian for “sharing her experience”.
However, the FDA has attacked the posts for failing to flag potential side effects.
The agency has ordered the drugmaker to stop promoting its product in this manner.
Kim Kardashian’s posts talked of her own use of the drug Diclegis, before stating: “Most importantly, it’s been studied and there was no increased risk to the baby.”
The 34-year-old reality star provided a link to the pharmaceutical company’s own realted safety warnings, but did describe the potential risks herself.
One side effect of a normal dose of Diclegis is drowsiness. An overdose can cause vertigo, mental confusion and an abnormal heart rate.
“The social media post is misleading because it presents various efficacy claims for Diclegis, but fails to communicate any risk information,” FDA division director Robert Dean wrote in a complaint to Duchesnay.
“Because the violations described above are serious and repeated, we request, further, that your submission includes a comprehensive plan of action to disseminate truthful, non-misleading, and complete corrective messages about the issues discussed in this letter to the audiences that received the violative promotional materials.”
Robert Dean added that the correction should be distributed “using the same media” as the original messages, indicating that the warnings should appear on Kim Kardashian’s social media accounts.
Kim Kardashian’s selfie has since been deleted from Instagram and Facebook – although a tweet alluding to the posts remains online.
Duchesnay said that it would issue a formal response ahead of a August 21 deadline.
Sweden will drop its investigation into assault allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on August 13 because of the statutes of limitation, the BBC reports.
Julian Assange still faces the more serious allegation of rape.
However, Swedish prosecutors have run out of time to investigate Julian Assange for assault because they have not succeeded in questioning him.
The Australian journalist and activist denies all allegations and has said they are part of a smear campaign.
Julian Assange sought asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden.
Under Swedish law, charges cannot be laid without interviewing the suspect.
Prosecutors had until August 13 to question Julian Assange about one accusation of molestation and one of unlawful coercion, while the time limit on a further allegation of molestation runs out on August 18.
The more serious allegation of rape is not due to expire until 2020.
An official announcement from the prosecutor’s office is expected on Thursday morning.
Julian Assange has always denied all the accusations and says he fled into the Ecuadorian embassy because he fears being extradited from Sweden to the US and put on trial for releasing secret American documents.
He has said in the past that he will not leave the embassy, even if the accusations of se* crimes are dropped.
The woman who accused Julian Assange of molestation and unlawful coercion – who is identified in legal papers only as AA – is said to be relieved that the case is now behind her.
Swedish prosecutors had initially insisted that Julian Assange be questioned in Sweden, but earlier this year – under pressure to advance the investigation – agreed that he could be interviewed in London.
The Swedish government has been unable to negotiate access with the Ecuadorian authorities, with both sides blaming the other for the impasse.
Lawyers for Julian Assange say the allegations of assault should have been dropped long ago.
He said he believed Julian Assange could clear his name over the rape allegation.
Sweden is expected to continue discussions with Ecuador over the terms under which the prosecutor could question Julian Assange over the remaining accusation.
The UK government has urged Ecuador to co-operate, stressing that the UK has a legal obligation to extradite Julian Assange.
The cost of policing the Ecuadorian embassy in Knightsbridge for the past three years now stands at around £12 million ($18.8 million).
Jimmy Carter has revealed he has been diagnosed with cancer after a recent liver surgery.
The 90-year-old former president also said the disease has spread to other parts of his body.
Jimmy Carter underwent surgery to remove a small mass in his liver earlier this month.
He said he would reveal more “when facts are known, possibly next week”.
Jimmy Carter, a Democrat from Georgia, was elected president in 1977 and left the White House in 1981.
He has remained active carrying out humanitarian efforts with his Carter Center in recent years.
He founded the centre, which focuses on human rights efforts and political mediation, soon after he left office.
Jimmy Carter was later responsible for negotiating a 1994 nuclear disarmament pact with North Korea and has visited Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in recent years.
Your natural eye color can be enhanced far more easily than you might imagine with a few tricks and tips that you can do at home. There are three tips that can make the biggest impact when trying to enhance your natural eye color and knowing how to pull them off seamlessly is simple.
Enhancing With Contact Lenses
For starters, contact lenses are perhaps the easiest way to enhance your natural eye color. Contact lenses can also help change your eye color entirely if you so decide. A product like the FreshLook ColorBlends contact lenses work with your eye color to make it brighter, more vivid, and more striking without having to do much. These contacts work with your natural eye color instead of changing it completely. Contacts like FreshLook ColorBlends help to add just a hint of color that works with the natural color of your eyes. With color options like amethyst, blue, brilliant blue, brown, gray, green, honey, and more, you can help to make your own eye color brighter and more beautiful.
These contact lenses are going to help bring out your natural eye color without masking it. FreshLook ColorBlends blend in with the natural color of your eyes. These contacts have just enough color that they make your own eye color look different rather than masking it. With these contact lenses, it’s easy to use colors that complement the natural tones of your eyes and help to make them brighter and more vivid.
Photo Source: fashionihub.com
Using Makeup
Another way that you can help to enhance the color of your eyes is to use makeup. Makeup can do wonders and can change the whole look of a person with the right amount of product. With the correct makeup application, you can make your eyes look bigger, brighter, and more. The first step to enhancing your eye color with makeup is to figure out where your eye color falls on the color wheel. You will then need to figure out what color is opposite on the color wheel to find the shade that best enhances your own eye color.
Blue eyes look great with browns and oranges, brown eyes look great with blues, green eyes look best with purple, and gray eyes can be paired with whichever color you want. Colors that are opposite on the color wheel naturally look great paired together. Wearing a shade that is opposite of your eye color is going to help make your eye color stand out and sparkle. You can also use shades that are similar to your own eye color to bring out the color itself.
Wearing shades that are in the same color group as your own shade can also help bring out your natural color. For instance, wearing blue with blue eyes can make them appear bluer. Wearing green with green eyes can similarly bring out the green in the eyes. These colors can help make a huge difference in the overall color and appearance of your eyes. Using these colors can bring out the color of your eyes and make them much more vivid.
Brighteners and Concealers
If these options do not work for you there is a third option — using eye brighteners and concealers to help bring out the eye area can also help enhance your natural eye color. Brighteners draw attention to the eye area and they are going to make your eye color much brighter. Any of these tricks can help make your eye color stand out and can help make for a much more beautiful eye color all around. If you are feeling very bold, you can also pair contact lenses with eye makeup for an even bolder impact that will bring attention to your eyes and that will also help make your eyes look more beautiful than ever. Your natural eye color is stunning and you should embrace it, so the best tip is to look for ways to enhance it, rather than hide it.
Jeb Bush has blamed President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State and Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton for the current unrest in the Middle East and the rise of the Islamic State (ISIS).
In a 40-minute speech on August 11 at the Reagan Presidential Library in California, Jeb Bush outlined an argument made by many of the current Republican candidates.
By executing a “premature withdrawal” of all US forces in Iraq in 2011, the Republican hopeful said, the Obama administration and then-Secretary of State Clinton committed a “fatal error”, destabilizing the nation and setting the stage for the rise of ISIS militants.
“So eager to be the history-makers, they failed to be the peacemakers,” Jeb Bush said of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
“It was a case of blind haste to get out and to call the tragic consequences somebody else’s problem. Rushing away from danger can be every bit as unwise as rushing into danger, and the costs have been grievous.”
Rushing into a dangerous war is the critique often laid at the feet of Jeb Bush’s brother, President George W. Bush, the man who oversaw the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
However, Jeb Bush never mentioned his brother by name, although he made a few veiled references to his sibling’s often tumultuous foreign policy experience.
“No leader or policymaker involved will claim to have gotten everything right in the region, Iraq especially,” he said.
Jeb Bush went on to argue that the US military should become more involved in the Middle East – although the extent of such involvement was left unclear.
He called for a no-fly and “safe” zones over Syria, the removal of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, increasing support for Iraqi Kurds and greater co-ordination between US and Iraqi troops.
Earlier this week, Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton engaged in a round of accusations and counter attacks over education policy via Twitter.
The Indian government is suing food giant Nestle for $100 million over “unfair trade practices”, the BBC reports.
The complaint against Nestle is that it caused damage to consumers through misleading advertisements related to its Maggi noodles product.
Maggi noodles were banned in India after the food safety regulator accused Nestle of not complying with food safety laws.
The company has challenged this at the Bombay high court, saying its products are safe.
However, Nestle, which has 80% of India’s instant noodles market, has already destroyed 400 million tonnes of Maggi products.
The claim, made on behalf of Indian consumers, was not filed through the courts but with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), which has semi-judicial powers.
A Nestle spokesman in Delhi told the Reuters news agency that the company would only be able to “provide substantive response” after it received an official notice about the complaint filed to the NCDRC.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had earlier said that tests deemed the instant noodles to contain “unsafe and hazardous” amounts of lead.
Nestle says that its noodles are safe as seen in the results of tests conducted in other countries, including the US, the UK and Singapore.
Two Indian laboratories in the western state of Goa and the southern city of Mysore also recently cleared the noodles, but the findings were dismissed by India’s food safety authority, saying there were lapses in the tests.
The Bombay high court verdict on the case is expected soon. It has reserved its order, but has suggested that samples of Maggi noodles be re-tested. Nestle has agreed, but the safety regulator has responded negatively.
“There is no provision for such a testing according to the law, we will not follow a different procedure because of Nestle,” the lawyer for the regulator told the Indian Express newspaper.
The news of legal action has caused a stir on Indian social media. The tag “Rs 634” – a reference to the amount of the damages the government is seeking (634 crore rupees which is 6.34 billion rupees) – has begun trending on Twitter.
Most have asked whether the large amount of compensation that has been sought on behalf of the consumers would be redistributed to everyone who ever ate Maggi.
North Korea’s vice-premier Choe Yong-gon was executed in May on the orders of supreme leader Kim Jong-un, the South Korean government says.
Choe Yong-gon was executed after he “expressed discomfort against the young leader’s forestation policy”, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reports.
Close to 70 officials have been killed under Kim Jong-un’s rule, Yonhap says.
North Korea rarely confirms South Korea’s reports of executions.
Choe Yon-gon was last seen publicly in December, South Korea’s unification ministry said.
The ministry said it was “closely monitoring the possibility of any changes in Choe’s circumstances”.
Few details about the execution were given by Yonhap, which is often first to report news from North Korea.
Choe Yong-gon was deputy minister of construction and building material industries, and had represented North Korea in trade talks in Seoul in the mid-2000s.
He was appointed as one of seven vice-premiers in June 2014, and his promotion was seen by one analyst as a sign Pyongyang was keen to maintain close ties with South Korea.
In April, South Korea’s intelligence agency said Kim Jong-un had ordered the execution of 15 officials in the first four months of the year.
Among them was a forestry official who complained about the leader’s forestation plan, the agency said at the time, but it is not clear if this man was Choe Yong-gon.
In May, the agency said North Korean Defense Minister Hyon Yong-chol was reportedly executed by anti-aircraft fire for apparently showing disloyalty to the leader.
The reports of the killing of Choe Yong-gon for disagreeing with Kim Jong-un’s forestry policy bring into focus a program that is closely followed by the leader.
North Korea is suffering its worst drought in a century and close to a third of rice paddies have dried up.
Radio Free Asia says the country launched an intensive “greenification” program last year, with more power granted to every province’s forestry department.
In a speech in February, Kim Jong-un delivered a speech in which he said: “At present, the forests of the country can be said to have reached a crossroads – whether to perish for ever or to be restored.”
Kim Jong-un also criticized officials for seeking to respond to problems caused by flooding, rather than prevent flooding in the first place by planting more trees.
Texas police officer Brad Miller has been fired after shooting and killing unarmed black college student Christian Taylor.
Christian Taylor, 19, broke into a car dealership on August 7, prompting police to respond.
Arlington Police Chief Will Johnson called Officer Brad Miller’s pursuit of Christian Taylor “questionable”.
Surveillance video shows Christian Taylor jumping on vehicles in a car park and driving a car through a window into the showroom.
Christian Taylor’s death is one of several cases under scrutiny in the US, in which an unarmed black person has died during an arrest or while in police custody.
Although Christian Taylor – a student at Angelo State University in West Texas – failed to heed Brad Miller’s orders, Chief Will Johnson said that there was no physical contact between the officer and Taylor.
Brad Miller, a recent graduate of the city’s police academy, shot Christian Taylor four times killing him.
Chief Will Johnson said Brad Miller failed to follow police department policy and put himself and other officers in danger. The police chief said the officer “exercised poor judgement”.
Brad Miller, 49, has not been charged with any crime. However, police are still investigating and will turn over evidence to a grand jury, which will decide whether to charge him.
It is uncommon for a police officer in the US to be dismissed so quickly after a shooting involving the police. The investigative process normally takes months, which has frustrated victims’ families elsewhere.
However, amid months of nationwide protests over excess force by police, departments are becoming more aggressive in dealing with allegations of officer misconduct.
In April, North Charleston police officer Michael Slager was quickly fired and charged with murder after video surfaced showing him shooting a man in the back as he ran away.
Tyrone Harris appears in a video released by Missouri police while brandishing a gun before he was shot and badly wounded by officers during Sunday’s protests in Ferguson.
Police said the short clip from a security camera showed the teenager grabbing a gun from his waistband.
Tyrone Harris’s father has said his son was unarmed and was running away from police when he was shot on August 9.
Tyrone Harris, 18 was fired on during protests in Ferguson to mark a year since the killing of another black teenager, Michael Brown.
According to police, a gunfight erupted between two rival groups in West Florissant Avenue and a suspect, identified as Tyrone Harris, then shot at plain-clothes police officers, who returned fire.
“The video shows Harris grab a handgun out of his waistband once shots are fired during the protest in the West Florissant corridor,” St Louis’s police department said.
Tyrone Harris’s father said, before the video was released, that his son had been unarmed and was “running for his life”.
Prosecutors have filed 10 charges against Tyrone Harris, including assaulting an officer.
A state of emergency was declared on August 10 as protests continued to mark the anniversary of the fatal shooting of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown by white police officer Darren Wilson.
Protesters staged a sit-in outside the main courthouse in St Louis and gathered along a major highway as part of a day of civil disobedience called by activists.
Police in riot gear forced people off the streets on Monday night. They said 23 people were reportedly detained, but “there were no shots fired, no smoke or tear gas used”.
The state of emergency was still in effect on August 11 but no major protests were reported.
Michael Brown, 18, was shot dead in August 2014 by a white police officer who was later cleared of any wrongdoing by a grand jury and the DoJ.
Michael Brown’s death triggered a wave of protests over alleged racism and the use of excessive force by police officers.
Although the Chinese yuan’s devaluation shocked the international markets, a total move of more than 3% is not significant for most companies.
Further falls could start to change the fortunes of some businesses in and out of China.
China’s Central Bank has again cut the guiding rate for the national currency, the yuan, a day after August 11 record 1.9% devaluation.
The move sent fresh shockwaves through Asian markets, but the bank has sought to calm fears, saying it was not the start of a sustained depreciation.
The yuan fell another 1% on August 12, marking the biggest two-day lowering of its rate against the dollar in more than two decades.
Here are the potential winners and losers:
Winners
Chinese exporters, in particular textile and car companies, could become more competitive.
Foreign retailers will finds Chinese consumer goods cheaper, as will companies using Chinese services, products and components.
Foreign tourists to China will get marginal benefits from a cheaper yuan.
Losers
Chinese companies will have to pay more interest on debt in foreign currencies, in particular property companies and local government financing vehicles.
Chinese air carriers are also exposed to foreign currency debt and big fuel bills that have to be paid in dollars.
Exporters to China, particularly of luxury goods, will find it harder to sell as they become more expensive to Chinese consumers.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the move to make the rate more market-based “appears a welcome step”.
“Greater exchange rate flexibility is important for China as it strives to give market-forces a decisive role in the economy and is rapidly integrating into global financial markets,” the IMF said in a statement.
“We believe that China can, and should, aim to achieve an effectively floating exchange rate system within two to three years.”
The IMF added, though, that the decision would not affect its considerations of Beijing’s hopes for the yuan to be added to the “special drawing rights” (SDR) reserve currencies.
These are currencies which IMF members can use to make payments between themselves or to the Fund.
China has long been lobbying to have the yuan included alongside the dollar, euro, yen and the British pound.
China’s Central Bank has cut the yuan’s rate against the US dollar for a second day.
The move sent fresh shockwaves through Asian markets, but the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has sought to calm fears, saying it was not the start of a sustained depreciation.
The Chinese yuan fell another 1% on August 12, marking the biggest two-day lowering of its rate against the dollar in more than two decades.
The new rate is meant to boost exports.
Figures released at the weekend showed Chinese exports fell more than 8% in July, adding to concerns the world’s second largest economy is heading for a slowdown.
There were further signs of weakness on August 12, when figures showed industrial production in July rose 6% from the previous year. The rise was smaller than expected and was also below the 6.8% increase seen in June.
Fixed asset investment, a measure of state spending on infrastructure, expanded 11.2% for the first half of the year, also below estimates and at its lowest since December 2000.
However, the action on the yuan has sparked fears of a global and destabilizing “currency war”. There has been criticism from the US, where markets fell sharply overnight.
On August 12, the PBOC fixed the “official midpoint” for the yuan down 1.6% to 6.3306 against the dollar.
The midpoint is a guiding rate, from which trade can rise or fall 2% during the day.
Until August 11, that rate had been determined solely by the PBOC itself. But the rate will now be based on overnight global market developments and how the currency finished the previous trading day.
The bank, which had called Tuesday’s 1.9% cut a “one-off” adjustment, sought to reassure financial markets on Wednesday.
“Looking at the international and domestic economic situation, currently there is no basis for a sustained depreciation trend for the yuan,” it said in a statement.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has agreed to hand over to the FBI the private email server that she used on duty.
Hillary Clinton’s use of private email has generated a barrage of criticism as she runs for president.
Critics say that her set-up was unsecure, contrary to government policy and designed to shield her communications from oversight.
The FBI is investigating whether classified information was improperly sent via the server and stored there.
Hillary Clinton initially handed over thousands of pages of emails to the state department, but not the server.
Her lawyers will also hand over to the FBI memory sticks which contain the copies of the emails.
Hillary Clinton’s use of private email has been a major issue in the presidential race. Polls show an increasing number of voters view her as “untrustworthy” due in part to the questions surrounding her email use.
Under US federal law, officials’ correspondence is considered to be US government property.
Government employees are encouraged to use government email accounts although some top officials have used personal accounts in the past.
In March, Hillary Clinton said she and her lawyers made the decision over what would be considered work-related email when the state department asked for records from former secretaries of state.
The emails deemed work-related were about half of the 60,000 emails she sent in total during her time in office. The emails she deemed personal were deleted, Hillary Clinton said.
Since then, the state department has been releasing the emails to the public in batches about once a month.
On August 11, the state department said it would not be releasing a portion of Hillary Clinton’s emails because some of the messages were retroactively determined to be “top secret”.
McDonald’s has quietly changed the size of one its most popular items, the Quarter Pounder, CNBC reported.
The Quarter Pounder now includes 4.25 ounces of beef, slightly more than its former size of 4 ounces before cooking.
The former 4-ounce patty cooked down to just 2.8 ounces after heating.
On its most recent earnings call, McDonald’s noted domestic commodity costs rose about 1 percent, mostly due to climbing beef prices.
It will be up to the food chain’s operators to decide whether to raise prices for the bigger burgers, one source told CNBC.
The move comes as McDonald’s seeks to improve its core menu as part of an ongoing turnaround led by CEO Steve Easterbrook.
McDonald’s initiatives include different cooking methods, such as changing how it sears and grills its beef to deliver hotter and juicier sandwiches, and a new drive-through ordering process to improve accuracy.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says Kim Kardashian’s social media posts violate federal drug-promotion rules.
Kim Kardashian, who is 5 months pregnant with her second child, recently began promoting a prescription pill to treat morning sickness through her social media accounts. Such endorsement deals are relatively common for celebrities.
In posts to Instagram and Facebook earlier this month Kim Kardashian talks about her struggles with nausea due to pregnancy.
The reality star wrote: “I tried changing things about my lifestyle, like my diet, but nothing helped, so I talked to my doctor.
“He prescribed me #Diclegis, and I felt a lot better and most importantly, it’s been studied and there was no increased risk to the baby.”
Kim Kardashian, 34, has over 42 million followers on Instagram and 25 million on Facebook.
The posts link to a company website that includes the FDA-approved labeling information.
Photo Instagram
However, FDA regulators say the posts violate rules for promoting drugs because they don’t mention side effects of Diclegis, which include sleepiness that can make it dangerous to drive or perform other activities that require mental alertness. The drug label warns that Diclegis should not be combined with alcohol or other medications that cause drowsiness, such as sleeping aids or certain pain relievers.
FDA regulations require manufacturers to balance benefit claims with information about drugs’ risks, even when space is limited.
The posts also fail to mention that Diclegis is not approved for women with a form of prolonged vomiting that causes dehydration, the FDA notes.
The FDA posted its warning letter online on August 11, addressed to the CEO of Canadian drugmaker Duchesnay Inc., which markets the drug. The letter notes that the privately held company received a similar warning in 2013 for omitting risk information from a letter to doctors.
FDA regulators are “concerned that Duchesnay is continuing to promote Diclegis in a violative manner,” states the letter dated August 7.
The agency calls on the company to remove the social media posts immediately and outline a plan for preventing future violations by August 21
The Quebec-based company said in a statement it “will take quick action in responding to the FDA’s letter and immediately and effectively address any issues”.
The FDA approved Diclegis in 2013 to treat vomiting and nausea in pregnant women who do not respond to more traditional measures. It is the only prescription drug approved in the US for morning sickness.
A different version of the drug was recalled by the agency in 1983 following a series of lawsuits alleging links to birth defects. However, FDA investigations never established any link between the drug and the reported problems.
Kim Kardashian’s posts cited by the FDA no longer appeared on her accounts on August 11.
BASE jumpers Andrew Rossig and James Brady, who parachuted off New York’s One World Trade Center, “sullied the memories” of 9/11 victims, a judge has ruled.
Andrew Rossig, 34, and James Brady, 33, were convicted of reckless endangerment and unauthorized climbing in connection with the jump in September 2013.
The jumpers were fined $2,000 each on August 10 and given community service.
They leapt from the top of the 104-storey skyscraper after sneaking through a hole in a construction fence.
A third jumper, Marko Markovich, will be sentenced on August 17.
Base jumping is an extreme sport, which involves leaping from high structures with a parachute.
Photo Getty Images
The jumpers filmed their night-time exploits at One World Trade Center using helmet cameras and posted the video online.
The building, which was still under construction at the time, is located at the same site where 2,700 lost their lives in the Islamist attack on September 11, 2001.
It contains a museum and memorial garden dedicated to those who died.
Judge Juan Merchan said: “These defendants tarnished the building before it even opened and sullied the memories of those who jumped on 9/11, not for sport but because they had to.”
In June, a jury acquitted each of the three men of the more serious charge of burglary.
Speaking after sentencing, Andrew Rossig apologized for his actions and vowed never to parachute in New York City again.
“We understand that what we did could possibly have endangered other people and it’s never going to happen again,” he added.
Ciara has revealed she dropped 60 pounds in just 4 months after adhering to a strict diet and a fitness regimen that saw her going to the gym several times a day.
The singer welcomed son Future in May 2014 and she was determined to get back to her pre-baby weight.
In an interview for the September issue of Shape magazine, Ciara said: “When I was pregnant with Future, one thing I learned quickly was, don’t ever let a pregnant lady be hungry, because when I was, I was like the Tasmanian Devil!
“But as soon as the doctor said I could start training again, I was on the treadmill the very next day.”
Photo Shape Magazine
Ciara also said she hired popular celebrity trainer Gunnar Peterson, who helped her shed the baby weight.
“Five days a week, Gunnar puts me through an hour-long plyometric cardio circuit that always includes boxing elements,” she said.
“It’s hitting your muscles; it’s a cardiovascular workout; and it’s a mental exercise… After I’ve done a few rounds, I feel as if I can conquer the world.”
She was doing three workouts a day.
“I would go to Gunnar first for my one-hour training session, then I’d have two more cardio sessions later in the day,” she said.
“That, along with a really clean eating plan, was how I lost 60 pounds in four months.”
Ciara told the magazine that she ate five to eight nutrient-rich meals, but vowed to not go overboard with her diet.
“When I’m on a strict eating regimen, at some point I have to have French fries, a cheese burger and some pizza. And Oreos and vanilla ice cream!” she said.
Parts of a suspected Russian missile system have been found at Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crash site in Ukraine, international investigators say.
Investigators in the Netherlands say the fragments, possibly from a Buk surface-to-air system, are “of particular interest” and could help show who was behind the crash.
However, they say they have not proved their “causal connection” with the crash.
MH17 crashed on land held by Russian-backed rebels in July 2014, killing all 298 on board.
It had 283 passengers on board, including 80 children, and 15 crew members.
About two-thirds of those who died were Dutch nationals, with dozens of Malaysians and Australians among the rest.
Ukraine and many Western countries have accused pro-Russian rebels of shooting down the plane, saying they could have used a Buk missile system supplied by Russia.
Russia and the rebels deny any responsibility and say the Ukrainian military was to blame.
The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) said in a joint statement with the Dutch Safety Board that the parts had been “secured during a previous recovery mission in eastern Ukraine”.
“The parts are of particular interest to the criminal investigation as they can possibly provide more information about who was involved in the crash of MH17. For that reason the JIT further investigates the origin of these parts,” the statement said.
“At present the conclusion cannot be drawn that there is a causal connection between the discovered parts and the crash of flight MH17.”
The investigators would now enlist the help of weapons experts and forensic specialists to examine the parts, the statement added.
The JIT comprises representatives of the Netherlands, Ukraine, Belgium, Malaysia and Australia.
They are meeting in The Hague to discuss a draft report on the causes of the crash, the final version of which is expected to be published by the Dutch Safety Board in October.
The statement comes two weeks after Russia vetoed a draft resolution to set up an international tribunal into the disaster, triggering widespread outrage.
Moscow described the Malaysian initiative as “premature” and “counterproductive”.
Malaysia Airlines’ Boeing 777 was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was brought down on July 17, 2014, in Donetsk region.
Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio will team up for a big screen adaptation of Erik Larson’s 2003 book The Devil in the White City.
Leonardo DiCaprio is expected to play serial killer Dr. H.H. Holmes, who used the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago to lure his victims to their deaths.
H.H. Holmes claimed to have killed 27 people – although some later estimates put his death toll at nearer 200.
It will be the sixth time Leonardo DiCaprio has worked with director Martin Scorsese.
Their previous films include The Wolf of Wall Street, The Departed and Gangs of New York.
Leonardo DiCaprio reportedly bought the film rights to The Devil in the White City in 2010.
It tells the story of Dr. H.H. Holmes, who converted a large building in Chicago and turned it into what became known as a “murder castle”.
The castle had a padded room with a gas pipe to asphyxiate victims, a chute for dispatching bodies to the cellar and, in the cellar, a hidden butcher’s table and oven that had the remains of women’s clothing.
The screenplay will be written by Billy Ray, who scripted Captain Phillips and The Hunger Games.
Greece’s finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos has announced his country has broadly agreed the substance of a bailout deal with its creditors.
“Two or three small issues,” are pending with lenders, Reuters quoted Euclid Tsakalotos as saying.
A bailout agreement is needed to keep Greece in the eurozone and avert bankruptcy.
The Greek government is hoping to push the new €86 billion three-year agreement through parliament later this week.
Greece needs a deal by August 20, when the country has a debt repayment of about €3 billion to make to the European Central Bank (ECB).
The country will not be able to make that payment without funds emerging from its third bailout in just over five years.
Emerging from all-night talks at a central Athens hotel with negotiators representing Greece’s creditors, Euclid Tsakalotos said: “I think we are very close.”
“Two or three very small details remain,” he added.
Earlier, Reuters quoted a Greek official as saying an agreement had been reached.
Greece has agreed the function of a new independent privatization fund, and how non-performing bank loans will be administered, according to the official.
Both issues had been key sticking points in negotiations.
Colorado’s Animas River turned mustard yellow as a toxic leak of wastewater is three times larger than officials had originally estimated.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) now says that three million gallons of wastewater spilled from an abandoned mine last week.
The EPA does not believe wildlife is in significant danger because the sludge moved so quickly downstream.
Photo Durango Herald
Local authorities took steps to protect drinking water supplies and farms.
The spill began on August 5 when EPA workers, who were cleaning up the closed Gold King Mine, accidentally sent the toxic water flowing into a tributary of the Animas River.
The Animas River has been closed and local officials have advised people to stay out of the water.
The EPA is meeting with Colorado residents this week and testing local wells for contamination. More than 1,000 wells may have been contaminated.
“We’re going to continue to work until this is cleaned up and hold ourselves to the same standards that we would anyone that would have created this situation,” Shaun McGrath, an EPA official, told residents at one of the community meetings, according the New York Times.
Some residents derided the agency, calling it the “Environmental Pollution Agency”.
The EPA is still investigating the health effects of the leak, which included heavy metals including lead and arsenic.
The discolored water, which is now beginning to dissipate, stretched more than 100 miles into neighboring New Mexico.
