Month: November 2021

By PAUL WISEMAN AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. home prices rose briskly in September, another sign that the housing market is booming in the aftermath of last year’s coronavirus recession.  The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price climbed 19.1% in September from a year earlier. The strong price gains marked a deceleration from

By CARLA K. JOHNSON AP Medical Writer The United States has improved its surveillance system for tracking new coronavirus variants such as omicron, boosting its capacity by tens of thousands of samples since early this year. The U.S. got a slow start compared to other nations where labs were conducting genetic sequencing on many more

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Associated Press MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has sternly warned NATO against deploying its troops and weapons to Ukraine, saying it represents a red line for Russia and would trigger a strong response. Commenting on Western concerns about Russia’s alleged intention to invade Ukraine, he said that Moscow is equally

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — There’s a famous saying in the world of showbiz: “Never work with children or animals.” NBC is wisely ignoring that as it mounts a live version of the hit Broadway musical “Annie.” The tale of the spunky young orphan with her dog Sandy set during

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is asking China to release “verifiable proof” that tennis player Peng Shuai is safe. The EU also urged Chinese authorities on Tuesday to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into Peng’s sexual assault allegations against a former Communist Party official. Peng dropped out of public view this month after

By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA has called off a spacewalk because of menacing space junk. Two U.S. astronauts were set to replace a bad antenna outside of the International Space Station on Tuesday. But late Monday night, Mission Control learned that a piece of orbiting debris might come

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Jessica Seinfeld became a vegan almost by stealth. The cookbook author and philanthropist started quietly making separate meals for herself without dairy or meat. Over time, she has managed to win over her three teenage kids and her husband, comedian Jerry Seinfeld. They all eat

By MICHAEL PHILLIS Associated Press ST. LOUIS (AP) — U.S. officials are considering a new method for testing water that could show more places have elevated lead levels than previously believed. The pending change under review at the Environmental Protection Agency is intended to test the water sitting in lead service lines, instead of water

COPENHAGEN, Denmark. (AP) — Sweden’s first female prime minister has presented her one-party center-left minority government with only a few changes compared to her previous Cabinet. Magdalena Andersson had been Sweden’s finance minister and she picked Mikael Damberg, the previous home affairs minister, to replace her in that role Tuesday. Andersson is the leader of

By MUHAMMAD FAROOQ Associated Press KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — The head of a team of veterinarians has called for urgent medical care for a pair of elephants in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi. Dr. Frank Goeritz, whose team was sent by the global animal welfare group Four Paws to examine four elephants, reported Tuesday that