Author: Guillermo Steele

Explore the natural world around you, discover dinosaur fossils and more at this free gem on the National Mall. Planning your visit to the Natural History Museum The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History opened in 1910 to invoke discovery and education of the natural world. Its green dome and immense size (comparable to 18 football fields) are signatures, as well as the 140 million-plus natural science specimens and cultural artifacts that the museum contains. The Museum of Natural History is centrally located in Washington, DC on the National Mall. Like all Smithsonian Institution museums, admission is free. Its regular hours are 10 a.m. – 5:30…

Rocky Mountain Power, Wyoming’s largest electric utility, wants to increase ratepayers’ bills by an average of 7.6% in response to higher-than-expected fuel and transmission costs during 2022. The rate adjustment would translate to an extra $50.3 million for the utility. The utility sources the vast majority of its electricity from its own power plants and through long-term contracts. But about 5% comes from the more volatile wholesale market. “Sharply higher prices in the wholesale power market during the severe summer weather of 2022 are responsible for nearly half of Wyoming’s share of increased power costs,” said Jack Painter, the utility’s…

Washington will not provide its naval nuclear propulsion overseas beyond its commitment to Canberra, following the announcement that it would assist Australia in fielding nuclear-powered submarines. The US has moved to explicitly state that no further countries will be permitted access to its naval nuclear propulsion technology following the historic agreement with Australia which will see the Royal Australian Navy operate nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSN) under the AUKUS agreement. In a recently announced decision, it was revealed that the US would sell up to five of its Virginia-class SSNs to Australia from the start of the 2030s, before Canberra would team with…

Joe Biden likes to say he’s the most pro-union president in U.S. history WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden likes to say he’s the most pro-union president in U.S. history. When he announces his expected reelection campaign in the coming weeks, he’ll get the chance to prove it to his own staffers. Workers on his 2024 campaign will be unionized, political allies say, making him the first president to run a reelection campaign with staff represented by a union. That means hammering out a collectively bargained agreement that could establish salary minimums, set work hours and offer overtime pay, among other…

A new exhibition at London’s Barbican Art Gallery celebrates the work of Alice Neel, an unconventional, innovative artist who painted those on the margins of society, writes Cath Pound. Alice Neel was never one to bow to convention, neither in the way she lived her life nor in the manner in which she chose to paint. Born at the turn of the 20th Century, she grew up in a Pennsylvania town devoid of culture in a society riven with racism, homophobia and misogyny. Yet she escaped to study art and went on to create astonishingly innovative portraits of those generally…

A Grammy award-winning a cappella group has said a Christian college in Florida abruptly cancelled a performance over the sexuality of some of its members. The King’s Singers, founded in Cambridge, UK, said it was given just two hours’ notice of Pensacola Christian College’s (PCC) decision to axe the gig last Saturday. PCC said a performer “maintained a lifestyle that contradicts Scripture”. The college defended its “sincerely held beliefs”. “The college cannot knowingly give an implied or direct endorsement of anything that violates Holy Scripture, the foundation for our sincerely held beliefs,” the school said in a statement. “PCC cancelled…

The path to the 2024 US presidential election begins almost as soon as midterm elections end – and several candidates are already waiting in the wings. Former president Donald Trump has announced he will run for the party’s nominating contest, vowing to “make America great and glorious again”. But while he remains popular with Republican voters, an underwhelming midterm performance, due in part to losses for Trump-endorsed candidates, has left him more vulnerable. The ex-president, who will be 78 in two years, is likely to face a stiff challenge from a coterie of Republican hopefuls, including some who once backed…

(Reuters) – U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov discussed “priorities”, including air defence and artillery, for upcoming meetings of Kyiv’s allies in Brussels, both sides said late on Saturday. After securing a promise of scores of modern battle tanks, including the U.S. M1 Abrams, German Leopard 2 and British Challenger 2, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and other Kyiv officials have been urging allies to send fighter aircraft. The Ukraine Defense Contact Group will meet on Tuesday at the NATO headquarters, following upon a Jan. 20 conference at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany that was key…

Kenes Rakishev, former special envoy of the Kazakh government and current chairman of Fincraft Resources signed a memorandum of understanding, as well as a shareholder agreement with the Indian holding Monnet Group on the establishment of a joint venture in Kazakhstan for the production of ferroalloys. The company was named TB Alloys Kazakh Limited.The new plant is planned to be located in the industrial zone of the Taraz city. The company has already started pre-project work. At the first stage, the planned capacity of the enterprise will be up to 50 thousand tons of ferrosilicon per year with a gradual…

A wave of brands and retailers from the U.K. are bringing their product across the pond. During a period of high inflation, the U.S. market is looking more attractive to some British retailers hoping to win American consumers. This year, Irish fashion retailer Primark unveiled 10 new store openings, which essentially doubles its U.S. presence. Meanwhile, products from British retailer Marks & Spencer will be available at Target this holiday. Clothing brand River Island is also planning to open its first U.S. store after seeing its online sale climb in the country. Retailers in the U.K. are weathering a harsh economic environment, as…