Author: IQ TIMES MEDIA

Thoughts and prayers.The invocation appears like a litany after every mass shooting — and the backlash is just as inevitable.As if the slaughter of children amid screams and shattered stained glass wasn’t cause enough for grief, American opinion makers were convulsed once again this week in a debate over the role of prayer in the wake of a mass shooting, this time at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis.Those who support some legal restrictions on guns, often Democrats, say that Republican politicians who appeal to prayer are trying to distract from their own inaction on such things as red flag laws…

WASHINGTON (AP) — In an afternoon’s walk through ground zero of Americana — the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History — objects around every corner invite one question: What could possibly be more American than this?What could be more American than that enormous Star-Spangled Banner in all its timeworn glory? Or more American than Dorothy’s ruby slippers from “The Wizard of Oz”? And what could be more American than a reckoning with the nation’s sins, as illustrated by shackles representing slavery and photos of Japanese Americans confined to detention camps in World War II? It’s in authoritarian countries, like Russia,…

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — The disappearance of U.S. aid in Nigeria’s northeast has threatened a school that supports children who are victims of Boko Haram extremists. Boko Haram, which since 2009 has sought to establish Islamic law in the conflict-battered region, forbids Western education and first rose to global prominence in 2014 after its mass abduction of students in the Chibok village. The Associated Press visited the region to document how U.S. funding cuts has resulted in up to 700 students and 20 teachers being let go by an essential school that benefitted from such support. Ramatu Usman, who was…

It’s only been since June that Meta invested $14.3 billion in the data vendor Scale AI, bringing on CEO Alexandr Wang and several of the startup’s top executives to run Meta Superintelligence Labs (MSL). However, the relationship between the two companies is already showing signs of fraying. At least one of the executives Wang brought over to help run MSL — Scale AI’s former Senior Vice President of GenAI Product and Operations, Ruben Mayer — has departed Meta after just two months with the company, two people familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.  Mayer spent roughly five years with Scale…

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Israel Peter was 6 years old when Boko Haram Islamic extremists attacked his village in northeastern Nigeria and his family fled. Eight years later, he still hasn’t returned to school.A rare opportunity to change that disappeared this year, when a nonprofit offering free education to Boko Haram victims rejected Peter’s application. It cited the abrupt loss of U.S. funding as the Trump administration dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development. Multiple backers of the school had received USAID funding.“Now my future will not be great,” said Peter, who dreams of being an engineer. His trembling voice…

CVS and Walgreens are now requiring a prescription or are not offering COVID-19 vaccines in some states as the companies attempt to follow state guidelines that require approvals from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The Food and Drug Administration has approved vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax for all seniors, but only for younger adults and children with health conditions.In a statement, CVS said the pharmacy chain cannot vaccinate those even with a prescription in Massachusetts, Nevada and New Mexico due to state laws and regulations.”Based on the current regulatory environment,” CVS said it’s offering COVID-19 vaccinations in the…

One international student after another told the University of Central Missouri this summer that they couldn’t get a visa, and many struggled to even land an interview for one.Even though demand was just as high as ever, half as many new international graduate students showed up for fall classes compared to last year.The decline represents a hit to the bottom line for Central Missouri, a small public university that operates close to its margins with an endowment of only $65 million. International students typically account for nearly a quarter of its tuition revenue.“We aren’t able to subsidize domestic students as…

A new study released Friday found that young children diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, are often prescribed medication too quickly.The study, led by Stanford Medicine and published in JAMA Network Open, examined the health records of nearly 10,000 preschool-aged children ages 3 to 5 between 2016 and 2023 who were diagnosed with ADHD.”ADHD is a disorder characterized by difficulty paying attention, or what we call hyperactivity, which is sort of like kids that have a hard time sitting still, they have a lot of energy,” explained Jamie Howard, a senior clinical psychologist with the Child Mind Institute, which specializes…

NEW YORK (AP) — Novak Djokovic believes his tennis is still good enough to compete for a 25th Grand Slam title.It’s his body that has to show it can hold up.Djokovic shook off a back problem early in the match to beat Cam Norrie on Friday night and, at 38, become the oldest man to reach the fourth round of the U.S. Open since Jimmy Connors was the same age in 1991.Djokovic pulled away to win 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-3, helped by hitting 18 aces in what he said was his best serving performance of a tournament in which…

Whether you’re heading back to college or are just starting your first year of studies, a quality laptop is an important investment. The best laptops for college students are perfect for taking notes, writing essays, and keeping yourself entertained. Top models are versatile enough to help out in any class, portable enough to carry around campus without strain, and affordable enough that you won’t need to take out a second student loan to buy one.I’ve spent months reviewing laptops from various brands, including Acer, Dell, HP, and more. Based on my extensive hands-on testing, the Acer Swift Go 14 AI…