1 month ago
By Will Dunham
Sept 1 (Reuters) - Scientists have made a possible breakthrough in the hunt for dark matter — observing hints of it during an experiment about a mile (1.6 km) underground in South Dakota — though they stopped short of saying they have finally detected this elusive cosmic component.
The researchers described a particle interaction documented at the Sanford Underground Research Facility — built in a former gold mine in the state's Black Hills region — that may have involved a hypothesized particle called a WIMP, short for "weakly interacting massive particle." This is one of the proposed candidates for being a dark matter particle.
Ordinary matter makes up stars, planets, people and everything else we can see. But it represents only about 15% of all the matter in the universe. The rest is thought to be dark matter, which does not emit or reflect light, making it invisible to the human eye and to telescopes. But scientists are confident dark matter exists because of its gravitational effects at galactic scales.
Particle physicist Sam Eriksen of the University of Bristol in England, lead author of a study describing the work, said it "could be the first hint of a dark matter observation."
#matter #sept
Sept 1 (Reuters) - Scientists have made a possible breakthrough in the hunt for dark matter — observing hints of it during an experiment about a mile (1.6 km) underground in South Dakota — though they stopped short of saying they have finally detected this elusive cosmic component.
The researchers described a particle interaction documented at the Sanford Underground Research Facility — built in a former gold mine in the state's Black Hills region — that may have involved a hypothesized particle called a WIMP, short for "weakly interacting massive particle." This is one of the proposed candidates for being a dark matter particle.
Ordinary matter makes up stars, planets, people and everything else we can see. But it represents only about 15% of all the matter in the universe. The rest is thought to be dark matter, which does not emit or reflect light, making it invisible to the human eye and to telescopes. But scientists are confident dark matter exists because of its gravitational effects at galactic scales.
Particle physicist Sam Eriksen of the University of Bristol in England, lead author of a study describing the work, said it "could be the first hint of a dark matter observation."
#matter #sept
3 months ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — A judge in the nation's capital has set a trial date in September for a former Olympic canoe racer charged with deliberately damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the site of a troubled multimillion-dollar renovation project championed by President Donald Trump.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman scheduled the Sept. 28 trial date for David Hearn during a hearing on Monday. It was Hearn's second court appearance since a grand jury indicted him on a felony count of property destruction.
Hearn, who pleaded not guilty to the charge on July 9, has asked the court to dismiss the case. In a court filing, his attorneys argued the government has failed to properly preserve important physical evidence from the Reflecting Pool.
At least three other people have been charged in the same court with misdemeanors for allegedly removing pieces of paint from the Reflecting Pool. The felony charge against Hearn, which accuses him of causing at least $1,000 in damage to the pool, carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years upon conviction.
Trump ordered the pool's renovation work ahead of the country's 250th independence celebrations, but the project has been plagued by problems. Trump initially suggested that pool renovations would cost $1.5 million, but the cost of the project has exceeded $16 million.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman scheduled the Sept. 28 trial date for David Hearn during a hearing on Monday. It was Hearn's second court appearance since a grand jury indicted him on a felony count of property destruction.
Hearn, who pleaded not guilty to the charge on July 9, has asked the court to dismiss the case. In a court filing, his attorneys argued the government has failed to properly preserve important physical evidence from the Reflecting Pool.
At least three other people have been charged in the same court with misdemeanors for allegedly removing pieces of paint from the Reflecting Pool. The felony charge against Hearn, which accuses him of causing at least $1,000 in damage to the pool, carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years upon conviction.
Trump ordered the pool's renovation work ahead of the country's 250th independence celebrations, but the project has been plagued by problems. Trump initially suggested that pool renovations would cost $1.5 million, but the cost of the project has exceeded $16 million.
3 months ago
By Bianca Flowers
CHICAGO, July 14 (Chicago) - Civil rights leaders announced plans on Tuesday for a Washington march to defend voting rights, saying recent court decisions have weakened key federal protections against racial discrimination in voting.
The coalition — led by Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network and joined by Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King, and labor and civil rights groups — will host the "March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote" march on August 28. That will mark the 63rd anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.
Organizers said they hope to use the event to pressure lawmakers and rally a response to the erosion of voting protections.
The campaign centers on the Supreme Court's April ruling weakening Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, a key provision used to challenge voting laws and electoral maps that discriminate on the basis of race or dilute minority voting power. Organizers said the decision has intensified a long-running fight over Black political representation.
CHICAGO, July 14 (Chicago) - Civil rights leaders announced plans on Tuesday for a Washington march to defend voting rights, saying recent court decisions have weakened key federal protections against racial discrimination in voting.
The coalition — led by Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network and joined by Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King, and labor and civil rights groups — will host the "March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote" march on August 28. That will mark the 63rd anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.
Organizers said they hope to use the event to pressure lawmakers and rally a response to the erosion of voting protections.
The campaign centers on the Supreme Court's April ruling weakening Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, a key provision used to challenge voting laws and electoral maps that discriminate on the basis of race or dilute minority voting power. Organizers said the decision has intensified a long-running fight over Black political representation.
3 months ago
By Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff
WASHINGTON, July 1 (Reuters) - Donald Trump Jr. helped take an online retailer known as the "Amazon of guns" public last year. Now, GrabAGun, where the U.S. president's son is a shareholder and board member, could reap a windfall from a proposed rule change at Trump's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that would make it easier to ship guns directly to people's homes.
If finalized, the rule would be among the most consequential changes to the U.S. gun policy in two decades, potentially driving huge growth in online gun sales, according to ten industry officials, store owners, and gun-control advocates interviewed by Reuters.
The proposal would allow licensed dealers to ship firearms directly to in-state residents who undergo an online identity verification and background check, along with a seven-day waiting period after notifying local law enforcement. Currently, online buyers must pick up firearms at physical stores and undergo in-person background checks unless they have a permit.
Some gun shop owners, industry officials and gun control advocates argue the direct shipping of firearms poses significant public safety and security risks and threatens the viability of small brick-and-mortar gun shops.
WASHINGTON, July 1 (Reuters) - Donald Trump Jr. helped take an online retailer known as the "Amazon of guns" public last year. Now, GrabAGun, where the U.S. president's son is a shareholder and board member, could reap a windfall from a proposed rule change at Trump's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that would make it easier to ship guns directly to people's homes.
If finalized, the rule would be among the most consequential changes to the U.S. gun policy in two decades, potentially driving huge growth in online gun sales, according to ten industry officials, store owners, and gun-control advocates interviewed by Reuters.
The proposal would allow licensed dealers to ship firearms directly to in-state residents who undergo an online identity verification and background check, along with a seven-day waiting period after notifying local law enforcement. Currently, online buyers must pick up firearms at physical stores and undergo in-person background checks unless they have a permit.
Some gun shop owners, industry officials and gun control advocates argue the direct shipping of firearms poses significant public safety and security risks and threatens the viability of small brick-and-mortar gun shops.
3 months ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans have grown less proud of their country's history or the way its democracy works over the past decade, according to a new AP-NORC poll.
Americans' pride in the U.S. on several key attributes has dropped since 2017 — including the nation's military and its political influence around the globe — according to the survey from The ****** ociated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. This poll was conducted in April, as the United States and Iran fought over the Strait of Hormuz in a prolonged war that started with the U.S. and Israel launching strikes on Iran.
New Gallup polling also finds that only 53% of U.S. adults are "extremely" or "very" proud to be an American, the lowest reading in the trend dating back to 2001.
The findings point to a broad decline in patriotic sentiment over a tumultuous period that included most of President Donald Trump's first term, the COVID-19 pandemic and rising inflation that contributed to a backlash against President Joe Biden. That timeframe also covers Trump's return to the White House, where he's taken more aggressive actions on immigration and issues abroad.
Much of the falling positivity comes from Democrats, who have become increasingly disenchanted with the country since Trump's first term.
Americans' pride in the U.S. on several key attributes has dropped since 2017 — including the nation's military and its political influence around the globe — according to the survey from The ****** ociated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. This poll was conducted in April, as the United States and Iran fought over the Strait of Hormuz in a prolonged war that started with the U.S. and Israel launching strikes on Iran.
New Gallup polling also finds that only 53% of U.S. adults are "extremely" or "very" proud to be an American, the lowest reading in the trend dating back to 2001.
The findings point to a broad decline in patriotic sentiment over a tumultuous period that included most of President Donald Trump's first term, the COVID-19 pandemic and rising inflation that contributed to a backlash against President Joe Biden. That timeframe also covers Trump's return to the White House, where he's taken more aggressive actions on immigration and issues abroad.
Much of the falling positivity comes from Democrats, who have become increasingly disenchanted with the country since Trump's first term.
