The desperate effort this week to find two hikers who disappeared at the bottom of the Grand Canyon represented the National Park Service’s most extensive use yet of drones in a search-and-rescue mission. The Grand Canyon is the only national park with its own fleet of unmanned aircraft for …
Lawmakers from coal-mining states are pushing to extend health benefits for more than 22,000 retired miners and widows whose medical coverage is set to expire at the end of April. West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and other coal-state Democrats threatened to shut down the government over the issue in December, …
Motorists in Pyongyang are scrambling to fill their tanks as gas stations begin limiting services or closing amid concerns of a spreading shortage. A sign outside one station in the North Korean capital said Friday that sales were being restricted to diplomats or vehicles used by international organizations, while …
Silicon Valley is not the only place to find the next Mark Zuckerberg. Nearly 9,000 tech startups call New York City home, and their offerings reflect the unique needs of the most populous city in the U.S. VOA’s Tina Trinh reports from the NY Tech Day event in New York. …
Even after disembarking from North Korea’s Air Koryo plane at Pyongyang airport, it’s difficult to miss the airline’s brand. The Air Koryo conglomerate makes cigarettes and fizzy drinks, besides owning a taxi fleet and petrol stations – and all have the same flying crane logo as the carrier. The military-controlled …
U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered a full review of the powers given to government regulators to oversee the banking and finance industries following the financial meltdown of 2008. Trump went to the Treasury Department on Friday to sign three executive orders that start the process of fulfilling his campaign …
Greece far exceeded its international lenders’ budget demands last year, official data showed on Friday, posting its first overall budget surplus in 21 years even when debt repayments are included. The primary surplus — the leftover before debt repayments that is the focus of International Monetary Fund-European Union creditors — …
The pressure was on for Abdul Gouda and his classmates at George Mason University: not only did their graduation depend on the success of their project, but so did the hopes of impossibly cute 10-year-old girl. Fifth-grader Isabella Nicola wanted to play the violin, but she was born with …
As economic and political leaders gather in Washington for the annual spring meetings of the World bank and International Monetary Fund — new warnings Thursday about the impact of rapid change on the global economy. At issue, the pace of technological advance and its Impact on jobs, particularly in developing …
A Bavarian startup is developing a five-seat “flying taxi” after successful test flights over Germany of a smaller version of the electric jet, the company said Thursday. Munich-based Lilium, backed by investors who include Skype co-founder Niklas Zennstrom, said the planned five-seater jet, which will be capable of vertical takeoff …
A Bavarian startup is developing a five-seat “flying taxi” after successful test flights over Germany of a smaller version of the electric jet, the company said Thursday. Munich-based Lilium, backed by investors who include Skype co-founder Niklas Zennstrom, said the planned five-seater jet, which will be capable of vertical takeoff …
U.S. officials are reviewing Venezuela’s seizure of General Motors’ assets in the country, U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Thursday. “We are reviewing the details of the case,” Toner said in a statement, saying the United States hoped to resolve the matter “rapidly and transparently.” GM said Wednesday that …
President Donald Trump has ordered an investigation into whether foreign steel imports are damaging U.S. national security, saying his administration would “fight for American workers and American-made steel.” The probe is authorized under a rarely used section of a 1962 trade law that allows a president to restrict imports in …
A pet can provide comfort and companionship for an elderly person or someone who is disabled. But in the future that pet may be a robotic animal that uses artificial intelligence to interact with humans. The British company that developed the cute android says it would provide emotional support and …
General Motors said Wednesday that Venezuelan authorities had illegally seized its plant in the industrial hub of Valencia and vowed to “take all legal actions” to defend its rights. The seizure comes amid a deepening economic crisis in leftist-led Venezuela that has roiled many U.S. companies. “Yesterday, GMV’s (General Motors …
A federal judge in Miami fined Princess Cruise Lines $40 million Wednesday for illegally dumping oil waste into the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, and for falsifying records. It is the largest such water pollution fine in U.S. history. The Miami Herald newspaper says the British engineer who reported …
Peru’s economy will recover in coming years with investment in construction after recent flooding, likely growing 4.5 percent in 2018 and 5 percent in 2019, Finance Minister Alfredo Thorne said on Wednesday. Previously, the government had expected growth of 4.3 and 4.1 percent for the next two years. The estimate …
Facebook on Wednesday pulled aside the curtain on a secretive unit headed by a former chief of the Pentagon’s research arm, disclosing that the social media company is studying ways for people to communicate by thought and touch. Facebook launched the research shop, called Building 8, last year to conduct …
The International Monetary Fund said President Trump’s plans to cut regulations and taxes might encourage companies to make risky investments of the kind that preceded the financial crisis in 2008. The comment came Wednesday in the newest edition of the IMF’s Global Financial Stability Report, which also said the financial …
Emirates Airline, the world’s biggest international air carrier by traffic, said Wednesday it is cutting flights to five U.S. cities because of a drop in demand since President Donald Trump sought to curb immigration from several Muslim-majority countries and imposed restrictions on passengers carrying electronic devices on flights to the …
Khailee Ng wanted name brand clothes. So, as a suburban teenager in Malaysia, he shoplifted. He could have continued with his criminal life, he said, but took a different route. Ng started to build web pages because it was a better way to make money, he told a crowd at …
Every now and then scientists stumble upon a discovery that opens up new possibilities for research and lead to solutions for existing problems. Researchers at the University of Maryland say a fiery phenomenon called blue whirl could someday help clean up oil spills on water. …
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order aimed at making it harder for companies to hire temporary foreign workers. The order, called “Buy American — Hire American,” will take initial steps to reform the H1-B visa program. H1-Bs allow employers — mostly high-tech firms — to hire …
Not a US citizen? Got skills? Need work? This might be the visa for you. …
When Mark Pavlyukovskyy, founder of a do-it-yourself computer kit maker, was looking for investors last year, he wanted someone who knew the Chinese market. Turns out, Pavlyukovskyy didn’t have to go to Beijing or Shanghai. Chinese venture capitalists are everywhere in Silicon Valley. Last year, Pavlyukovskyy, a Ukrainian-born American entrepreneur …
In the science fiction series Star Trek, a doctor can use a handheld device called a “tricorder” to check a person’s vital signs and diagnose illness. What once was imagined is now a reality. The Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE challenged scientists to develop a “tricorder-like” device to improve health care globally. …