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University of Tokyo researchers created a new bipedal robot that runs with living muscle tissue. This unique component enables the machine to walk on two legs and make sharp turns to avoid obstacles. Moreover, the living tissue enables it to crawl and swim like humans. As a result, it may help future robots perform more human-like activities more efficiently. Tesla and other tech firms want to bring humanoid robots into more industries, but they should become more flexible than existing models. For example, Tesla could bring us humanoid household bots, but they should be able to turn their bodies less than 90 to navigate homes. Fortunately, this bipedal bot might be the right step to...

Keep on reading: Bipedal robot walks with living muscle tissue

MANILA, Philippines ---The Department of Transportation and Philippine National Railway recently opened their South Commuter Rail's site office and a 15-hectare integrated pre-cast yard in Santa Rosa, Laguna, signaling the start of permanent works at the 12.8-kilometer Laguna railway project. The Laguna railway project, covered by PNR South Commuter Rail contract package (CP)-05, forms part of the 147-km North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) system connecting Clark in Pampanga and Calamba, Laguna. The site office and its cutting edge facilities in Santa Rosa is covered by the P27.6-billion contract package 05 which was awarded to the joint venture between Hyundai Engineering and Cons...

Keep on reading: DOTr’s Laguna site office seen to propel NSCR project forward

NBA Scores, News, Schedules   HOUSTON--- Jonas Valanciunas scored 25 points, Brandon Ingram added 24 and the duo combined for 24 rebounds to help the New Orleans Pelicans snap a three-game skid with a 110-99 win over the Houston Rockets in the NBA on Wednesday night. New Orleans led by five to start the fourth quarter before scoring the next 15 points to make it 99-79 with just under 6 1/2 minutes remaining. Jose Alvarado hit a 3-pointer during that stretch and Valanciunas had six points to help the Pelicans pad their lead. The Rockets missed eight shots and committed two turnovers in the fourth before Fred VanVleet scored their first points on a jump shot halfway thro...

Keep on reading: NBA: Pelicans zoom past Rockets to end 3-game skid

NBA Scores, News, Schedules MIAMI--- Jimmy Butler scored 31 points and the Miami Heat snapped a seven-game skid with a 115-106 victory over the Sacramento Kings in the NBA on Wednesday night. Butler shot 10 of 14 from the field and had seven rebounds for the Heat, who ended their longest losing streak since dropping 15 straight during the 2007-08 season. Josh Richardson was 6 of 10 from 3-point range and finished with a season-high 24 points. Bam Adebayo added 16 points and 11 rebounds. Tyler Herro was Miami's fourth double-figure scorer with 14 points. "Just remember that we are very fortunate to have a job that we get to hoop, that we get to play before so many great fans...

Keep on reading: NBA: Heat beat Kings and snap 7-game skid

MANILA ---The Philippine Stock Exchange has cleared the P12.9-billion initial public offering (IPO) of tycoon Edgar Saavedra's Citicore Renewable Energy (CREC), which hopes to jumpstart the 2024 listing season with its planned market debut on March 22. Citicore Renewable received the notice of approval from the PSE on Jan. 29. The IPO price will be set on March 6 while the offer period will run from March 11 to 15 this year. The company is raising up to P11.25 billion via the sale of 2.9 billion primary shares for as much as P3.88 each to bankroll its expansion. READ:Citicore Renewable kicks off 2024 IPO season with P12.9-B offer Another 435 million shares, worth P1.69 billio...

Keep on reading: PSE OKs Citicore Renewable’s P12.9-B IPO; listing on March 22

  BERLIN -- Security staff at some of Germany's biggest airports, including the global hub Frankfurt, walked off the job on Thursday, grounding flights and piling pain on Europe's largest economy. The 24-hour strike, called by labor union Verdi, is the latest in a series of industrial actions that has paralyzed the country's transportation sector in recent weeks. Almost 200,000 travelers will be affected by over 1,100 flight cancellations or delays, the German airports association ADV estimated on Wednesday as some of Germany's biggest airports including Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg and Stuttgart said there would be no departures for passengers.   READ: Operator ...

Keep on reading: German airport security’s nationwide protests to ground flights

NBA Scores, News, Schedules CHARLOTTE, N.C. --- Coby White scored 35 points, Nikola Vucevic added 22 points and 12 rebounds and the Chicago Bulls outlasted Charlotte 117-110 on Wednesday night to send the Hornets to their fifth straight loss in the NBA. Ayo Dosunmu scored 16 points for the Bulls (23-26), who are in ninth place in the Eastern Conference. White turned in one of his better outings of the season, attacking the hole with a purpose. He finished 12 of 22 from the field with four 3s, nine assists and seven rebounds after being limited to 13 points Tuesday night in a 118-107 loss to the Toronto Raptors. "I personally don't think he was happy the way he played (Tuesd...

Keep on reading: NBA: Bulls hand Hornets their fifth straight loss

  SUZU, Japan -- Moments after a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck western Japan on New Year's Day, Yoshimi Tomita was trapped in the dark under the roof of her collapsed house, feeling the sharp edges of protruding nails. "I was thinking, if I'm going to get crushed I hope it's fast," the 35-year-old said. She was rescued 10 hours later without any major injuries, but that proved to be only the beginning of weeks of fatigue and stress, Tomita said on Wednesday, while sitting in a tent at an evacuation centre in hard-hit city Suzu, surrounded by cardboard boxes used as a makeshift bed. A month after the earthquake, residents of the devastated Noto peninsula still have ...

Keep on reading: Fatigue sets in for Japan quake survivors facing long road to recovery

In a groundbreaking scientific feat, researchers at Northwestern University have transformed the very ground beneath our feet into a powerful energy source. Their pioneering fuel cell taps into an unlikely ally -- the microbes dwelling in soil -- to generate electricity. This innovative approach not only marks a significant departure from previous microbial fuel cell (MFC) designs, which were hampered by low power and performance issues, but also heralds a new era in sustainable energy. Our world is expanding its digitalization, meaning we will deploy more electronic gadgets for more industries. However, building them from conventional materials could exacerbate climate change an...

Keep on reading: New fuel cell runs on earth’s natural dirt

NBA Scores, News, Schedules CLEVELAND--- Donovan Mitchell scored 20 of his 45 points in the fourth quarter, Darius Garland had 19 points in his return from a broken jaw and the Cleveland Cavaliers held off the NBA-worst Detroit Pistons 128-121 in the NBA on Wednesday night. Jarrett Allen had 14 points and 11 rebounds for his franchise-record 16th straight double-double and Isaac Okoro added 14 points for the Cavaliers. Cleveland won for the 11th time in 12 games and has the best record in the league since Dec. 16 at 16-4. "You marvel at what Donovan does when the game is on the line," Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "We have a closer. Not a lot of teams can say that and...

Keep on reading: NBA: Donovan Mitchell scores 45, Cavaliers hold off Pistons

Elisse Joson was all smiles as she declared that she and her partner McCoy de Leon are "healed" after their relationship went through a rough patch last year. On the sidelines of a brand Thanksgiving event, Joson told reporters that while the past year had been tough for her and de Leon, their relationship grew stronger after taking the time to heal. "We talked about it. I guess last year was a stage for us where we wanted to be quiet and heal on our own. It happened, and what you see is what you get. But now, we're happy to show it to you," she said in response to a question on how she and de Leon are doing. The actress said 2024 is a year for them to be "healed and [be] be...

Keep on reading: Elisse Joson on ‘healed’ relationship with McCoy de Leon

MANILA, Philippines ---The European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) on Wednesday expressed optimism about the Philippine economy and the local business environment for this year. ECCP President Paulo Duarte said they remain "mostly positive" despite the economic impact arising from the situation in the Red Sea and the Israel-Hamas conflict, as well as from the continuing war between Russia and Ukraine. "We remain mostly positive with regards to the performance of the Philippine economy... also for 2024," Duarte said during a press conference in Makati. "I think we have good elements, good tailwinds," he added, citing the announcement on Wednesday of the 5.6 percent...

Keep on reading: European business group optimistic about PH prospects for 2024

Margot Robbie is taking up the cudgels for her "Barbie" the movie director Greta Gerwig, who has not been nominated for the 96th Academy Awards, citing the latter's "once-in-a-career, once-in-a-lifetime" contribution to filmmaking, and their movie's impact to the world. Robbie herself received an Oscar snub for her role in "Barbie," but she said during a Q&A hosted by the Academy Museum on Tuesday, January 29 (Wednesday, Jan. 30 in the Philippines): "There's no way to feel sad when you know you're this blessed." She noted that Gerwig should have been recognized given the exceptional work she did directing one of the most critically acclaimed films of 2023. "Obviously, I ...

Keep on reading: Margot Robbie breaks silence on her, Greta Gerwig Oscars snubs

WASHINGTON - U.S.laborcostsrose less than expected in thefourthquarterand the annual increase was the smallest in two years, signs of moderating wage inflation that could give the Federal Reserve room to start cutting interest rates by June. Compensationcostsgrowthis slowing aslabormarket conditions ease in response to the U.S. central bank's tight monetary policy stance. Government data on Tuesday showed Americans were becoming less enthusiastic about job-hopping, with the number of people quitting their jobs near a three-year low in December, a trend that could further slow wage inflation. The Fed kept rates unchanged on Wednesday against the backdrop of a resilient economy, ...

Keep on reading: Slowing US labor cost gains brighten inflation picture

MANILA, Philippines --- The northeast monsoon is forecast to weaken in the coming days, resulting in fewer chances of rainfall over most parts of Luzon this coming weekend, state meteorologists said Thursday. Weather expert Benison Estareja, of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), said in a report thatthe northeast monsoon, locally known as amihan, will only affect parts of Northern and Central Luzon in the next three days. "Unti-unting hihina po iyong ating northeast monsoon, so possible over the weekend, iyong Northern and Central Luzon na lamang po iyong makaka-experience ng amihan," Estareja explained. (Our northeast ...

Keep on reading: Northeast monsoon to wane, less rain likely this weekend – Pagasa

WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, in a sweeping endorsement of the U.S. economy's strength, said on Wednesday that interest rates had peaked and would move lower in coming months, with inflation continuing to fall and an expectation of sustained job and economic growth. Powell, speaking after the end of a two-day policy meeting, declined to declare victory in the U.S. central bank's two-year inflation fight, vouch that it had achieved a sought-after "soft landing" for the economy or promise that rate cuts would come as soon as the Fed's March 19-20 meeting, as investors had hoped in the run-up to this week's policy decision. "Inflation is still too high. Ongoing...

Keep on reading: Fed’s Powell sees lower rates on the horizon as inflation ebbs

MANILA, Philippines --- The operations of Light Rail Transit 1 (LRT-1) were halted for about an hour on Thursday morning due to a faulty light rail vehicle (LRV) at Libertad Station, the Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC) said. At 6:43 a.m., the LRMC issued an advisory saying it placed a 25-kilometer-per-hour restriction on LRT-1 from Baclaran Station to Fernando Poe Jr. Station. By 6:51 a.m., LRT-1's operations were completely put on hold. "As of 6:51 AM, February 1, 2024, a stop for safety has been put in place from Baclaran to Fernando Poe Jr. Station," the LRMC said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). "Technician is already on board working the fault of the affected ...

Keep on reading: LRT-1 operation stops for an hour due to faulty light rail vehicle

NEW YORK -The Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced changes to its nearly two-year-old ethics system, expanding who is covered by it as well as enhancing how the Fed can ensure its top workers are in compliance. In a press release issued by the Federal Open Market Committee at the close of the policy-setting panel's meeting on Wednesday, the Fed said it would subject more of its top central bank staff to tight limitations on how they can trade and invest for their personal accounts. This will include those "who regularly and materially advise FOMC participants on the conduct of monetary policy." Fed policy makers and top staff were already subject to those restrictions. "The up...

Keep on reading: Federal Reserve expands investing restrictions to more top staff

MANILA, Philippines ---February is not off to a good start for consumers as the price of cooking gas climbed for the second month in a row. In an advisory, Petron Corp. said it implemented an increase of P0.95 per kilogram in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices on Thursday, Feb. 1. This is equivalent to an increase of P10.45 per 11-kilogram tank. "This reflects the international contract price of LPG for the month of February," Petron said in its advisory on Thursday morning. READ: DOE: LPG price freeze in Davao de Oro Last month, consumers welcomed the new year with a hefty price increase of up to P3.45 per kilo, or P37.95 per tank. Data from the Department of Energy ...

Keep on reading: LPG prices up P10.45 per 11-kg tank  in Feb

Actor Alec Baldwin on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to a charge of involuntary manslaughter over the 2021 on-set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during filming of the Western "Rust" in New Mexico. Baldwin made the plea as he waived his right to an arraignment after he was indicted by a grand jury on January 19, court documents showed. READ: Alec Baldwin again charged with manslaughter in 'Rust' movie-set shooting The "30 Rock" actor was allowed to remain free without posting a bond under the arraignment waiver with the First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe. Baldwin was originally charged for the shooting in January 2023. Those charges were dropped a f...

Keep on reading: Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to manslaughter charge in ‘Rust’ shooting