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Li Keqiang: China’s former premier has died at the age of 68, state media reported

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Thierry Monas/Getty Images/File

Former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang speaks at the EU-China Summit in Brussels, Belgium in 2019.


Hong Kong
CNN

Former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, once considered a reform-minded contender for the country’s leadership, died suddenly of a heart attack in Shanghai early Friday, state media reported.

He is 68 years old.

As of the end of last year, nominally China’s no. 2 As president, Li served as the country’s premier — traditionally in charge of the economy — under strongman Xi Jinping for a decade from 2013 to March this year.

During his time in the role, Li led the world’s second-largest economy through a challenging period of emerging technology and trade tensions with the United States, mounting government debt and unemployment, and the Covid-19 pandemic.

In his final year in office, the economist has been a strong voice warning of the challenges to China’s economy by training amid widespread Covid-19 lockdowns.

He supported efforts to increase employment and maintain economic stability.

When news of Li’s death broke Friday morning, social media users rubber-stamped a line from Li’s annual speech to China’s parliament in 2022, where he pledged, “No matter how the international environment changes, China will keep a broad course. Openness.”

At a time when the country’s relations with the West were increasingly strained, Lee was seen as representing a different approach to China’s relations with the world while making his English-language skills appear outside the mainland.

“China and the United States have common interests,” Li told CNN in response to a question at his annual press conference in March 2021. “Both countries must devote more energy to their common ground and expand their shared interests.”

Li is also being remembered for his focus on addressing social ills — social media users on Friday also pointed to his 2020 comments, noting that 600 million people in China would still have a monthly income of 1,000 yuan ($137).

The comments come as China touts its success in lifting millions out of poverty as a point of national pride.

Li, a highly educated technologist with degrees in law and economics, was seen as friendly to the private sector. He has increasingly taken an economic policy stance away from Xi, who has tightened party control over the economy.

Li is widely seen as a supporter of Xi’s predecessor, Hu Jintao, who presided over an era of rapid growth in China from 2002 to 2012. Men shared economic sentiments and rose to power through the Youth League of the Communist Party. A field for future leaders.

The sect was known for producing reform-minded leaders from humble family backgrounds, but its influence is believed to have been suppressed since Xi came to power.

The relationship between Li and Hu drew attention last year when the former top leader was unexpectedly ousted at the closing ceremony in October 2022. Communist Party CongressXi also consolidated power.

In a moment of drama during the usually highly choreographed event, Hu was led from the room, patted on the shoulder by a stony-faced Li, who nodded and turned to watch the former leader depart. State media later suggested Hu quit due to health issues.

Under Hu, Li was named In 2007 the Politburo Standing Committee, the party’s top leadership body.

He previously held key roles as party leader in the industrial Liaoning province and provincial chairman of the agricultural base of Henan.

Born in Anhui, Li spent his teenage years with the Dongling Production Brigade in the eastern province during the Cultural Revolution, a decade-long social and political upheaval launched by the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong.

Li was among the first batch of students after the college entrance exam was reinstated following the end of the Cultural Revolution. In 1978, he enrolled at the prestigious Peking University, where he studied law and later earned a doctorate in economics.

Unlike Xi, Li is not considered one of China’s princelings from a prominent party family. He served in the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League in the 1980s and 90s.

His tenure at the Chinese Communist Party’s top committee came to an end last October. He was not named in the party’s central committee during the leadership change that happened twice in a decade. It was then that Ji found himself surrounded by key allies.

Li, then 67, was a year short of the unofficial retirement age for Chinese Communist Party leaders.

He was succeeded as prime minister earlier this year by former Shanghai Party chief and Xi loyalist Li Qiang.

Georgia’s voting maps were destroyed

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Republicans in Georgia violated a key civil rights law in drawing voting maps that diluted the power of black voters, a federal judge in Atlanta ruled Thursday, ordering new maps to be drawn for the 2024 elections.

Judge Steve C. of the Northern District of Georgia. Jones demanded that the state’s legislature move quickly to draw congressional and general assembly districts that would provide an equal level of representation to blacks who make up more than one-third of the state’s population.

In the ruling, Judge Jones wrote, “the Court will not allow another election cycle in redistricting plans” that were found to be illegal.

Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, responded Thursday to a special session of the Georgia General Assembly that begins Nov. 29, giving lawmakers 10 days to meet the Dec. 8 deadline set by Judge Jones.

The deadline, Judge Jones wrote, ensures that “if an acceptable settlement is not produced, the court will have time to shape it.”

Georgia is one of several southern states where Republicans are defending congressional maps that federal judges have said discriminate against black voters. Republican officials attacked the ruling; State party leader Josh McCune described it in a statement as a “bare-handed power grab”.

“For a far-left federal judge to invalidate the will of Georgia’s elected representatives is simply outrageous,” he said, “who drew fair maps consistent with longstanding legal principles.”

Challenges to these maps were spurred by a Supreme Court ruling in June that found race could play a role in redistricting — a surprise decision that upheld a key tenet of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the federal legislative achievement of civil rights. A movement that has otherwise been largely destroyed by the court’s conservative majority in recent years.

As part of the regular redistricting process that takes place every decade after the census, Georgia Republicans have tried to reduce Democratic influence by dividing key electorates into different districts.

For example, two heavily black suburbs were moved from a district represented by Rep. David Scott, a black Democrat, to the district of hard-line Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene.

But in doing so, Judge Jones found that Georgia violated the Voting Rights Act by apportioning statehouse districts that reduced the power of black voters on the state congressional map.

“Georgia has made great strides toward voting equality since 1965,” Justice Jones wrote. “However, the evidence before this court shows that Georgia has not reached a point where the political process is equally transparent and has equal opportunity for all.”

The redistricting plans came as Democrats gained new ground in once reliably Republican Georgia. Although Republicans maintain a tight grip on state government, voters in 2020 elected a Democrat to the presidency and two Democrats to the Senate for the first time since 1992, ousting Republican incumbents.

Black voters were a driving force in the growth of Georgia’s electorate, which increased by 1.9 million voters between 2000 and 2019. A Pew Research Center analysis found.

In legal challenges to the maps, critics argued that the size of the state’s black electorate warranted at least one additional majority-black district in Congress, as well as additional majority-black districts in the state House of Representatives.

Also arguing in the challenges are Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, the nation’s oldest black fraternity with thousands of members, and the African Methodist Episcopal Church, one of the oldest black-founded Protestant denominations in Georgia with hundreds of congregations.

“Decades after the Civil Rights Movement, it is unfortunate that we still have to protect and promote the voting rights of the African American community,” said Presiding Bishop Reginald D. Jackson said in a statement Thursday.

Appointed to the federal bench by President Barack Obama in 2011, Judge Jones had allowed The challenged maps will take effect in 2022, calling it a “difficult decision” that “the court did not take lightly.” That decision was one of several that found it too close to elections that year to implement new maps.

Republicans argued that there was ample evidence to show that black voters retained equal influence in the state, pointing to the victory of Senator Raphael Warnock, a Democrat and the state’s first black U.S. senator, and Representative Lucy McBath, a Democrat. Republican-held seat among others. (When Ms. McBath saw her district reshuffled in favor of Republicans, she successfully challenged another Democrat, Representative Carolyn Bordeaux, for another suburban Atlanta seat.)

But the Supreme Court’s surprise decision to uphold Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act had implications for Georgia as well, when Alabama admitted it had illegally diluted the power of its black electorate.

With control of the House held by a narrow Republican majority, redrawing a few districts in the South could flip control of the chamber. The court also said that the Legislature should redraw its state map.

The decision in Georgia can be appealed. Republicans in other states sought to pursue lawsuits and avoid new maps that were not politically favorable to their incumbents.

Adult-onset ADHD is associated with an increased risk for dementia

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Adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is often misunderstood, and those who struggle with it are often viewed as quirky and erratic. Creative or oblivion. Many people go a lifetime without receiving a diagnosis or treatment.

Untreated ADHD Unsafe driving, drug abuse and a Increased risk of early deathAccording to the growing body Research.

Now, new research shows that adult ADHD can affect the brain and is linked to a higher chance of developing dementia. A study published in JAMA Network Open A diagnosis of ADHD as an adult was reported to be associated with a 2.77-fold increased risk of dementia.

The study only showed an association and did not tell us whether ADHD was a direct cause of cognitive decline. But the results suggest that “if you have attention deficit disorder, you may have more trouble with normal brain aging.” Sandra Black, a cognitive neurologist at Sunnybrook Research Institute in Toronto, who was not involved in the study. “It adds another risk factor.”

This research highlights the importance of seeking care – and the need for more research. Treatment with psychostimulant drugs may reduce the risk, he said Stephen Levine, is a professor at the University of Haifa School of Public Health in Israel and lead author of the study. Lifestyle changes such as better sleep and social engagement can reduce the risk of dementia.

To examine the link between adult-onset ADHD and dementia, Levine and colleagues analyzed the electronic health records of 109,218 Israeli adults aged 51 to 70. Participants were not diagnosed with ADHD or dementia at the start of the study.

After 17 years, when the researchers followed the participants, 730 adults (0.7 percent) received a diagnosis of ADHD and 7,726 adults (7.1 percent) had a diagnosis of dementia. Notably, of the 730 participants with adult-onset ADHD, 13.2 percent (96 participants) were diagnosed with dementia. In contrast, of 108,388 participants without adult-onset ADHD, just 7 percent (7,630 participants) developed dementia.

Interestingly, adults with ADHD who took psychostimulant drugs such as Ritalin or Adderall had no increased risk of developing dementia compared to those who did not take the drugs. Only 22.3 percent of those with ADHD had taken psychostimulant medication at any time.

A strength of the research is that it takes 18 confounding factors into account. “That’s at the heart of the question,” the new study said, whether having ADHD confers dementia risk. Sarah BeckerA postgraduate research associate at the University of Calgary, he was not involved in the study.

For example, adults with ADHD are more likely to smoke and have comorbid health conditions such as high blood pressure and depression, which are also known risk factors for dementia. But even when controlling for these other factors, there is a higher risk associated with adult-onset ADHD and dementia.

A few studies have investigated the relationship between ADHD and dementia in adults. A 2023 Systematic ReviewBecker and her colleagues identified only seven previous studies examining the link between ADHD and neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia, most of which found that adult-onset ADHD confers a higher dementia risk.

Parents of children with ADHD should not panic. The research only examined older adults, and couldn’t extrapolate how ADHD in earlier life might affect dementia risk, Levin said. Just about Half of childhood ADHD ADHD continues to be diagnosed in adolescence, and has been Discussion About whether childhood ADHD is different from adult ADHD.

What is clear, the researchers said, is that more research is needed on ADHD in adults. “Older adults with ADHD are relatively poorly understood,” Becker said.

A estimated at 3 percent ADHD exists in adults, but the majority of research focuses on childhood ADHD.

“We don’t know much about ADHD in adults, and as a society, we’re thinking, ‘Shouldn’t we know about the disease system?’ We have to ask ourselves that,” Levin said.

Reduced ‘brain availability’ and increased need for ADHD monitoring

It is not yet known what biological mechanisms may account for the association between ADHD and dementia, but adults with ADHD may have less of the later.”brain presence” or the ability to maintain cognitive function and compensate for age-related changes.

Block said that disease in the brain associated with attention deficit disorder dementias may make people more susceptible to biological changes.

Until now, “no one has really looked at the biological basis of this,” Becker said. Because ADHD is linked to bad Vascular healthBecker and his colleagues are currently investigating whether specific vascular changes in the brain are linked to an increased risk for dementia.

The new study also indicated that both ADHD and dementia are less likely to be diagnosed in older adults. ADHD in particular is not something doctors or patients suspect. ADHD and dementia have some similarities in their cognitive symptoms, which can easily be conflated: for example, if one doesn’t pay attention to what their spouse is saying, they are less likely to remember what they said. Identifying and diagnosing attention problems early on can allow those struggling with such problems to seek treatment for chronic conditions.

“Policymakers, caregivers, patients and clinicians, as well as people with or without ADHD, who suspect ADHD should consider reliable surveillance for adult ADHD,” Levin said.

How to reduce the risk of dementia

It’s understandable to worry about developing dementia, but “everyone with ADHD is going to develop dementia in adulthood,” Becker said. “If you take care of yourself like everyone else in the general population, you can reduce this risk.”

Although the study’s results provide a “positive indication” for the long-term effects of psychostimulant drugs, it’s too early to recommend them without further clinical trials, especially when weighing the added cardiovascular risks in the elderly, Levine said.

“If psychostimulant drugs have the potential to reduce dementia risk in individuals with ADHD, we need to provide evidence for additional research to confirm that potential,” Levin said.

But there are other well-studied ways for adults with and without ADHD to reduce their dementia risk.

A 2020 The main study The Lancet Commission highlighted 12 modifiable factors for dementia that, if addressed, can reduce the risk of dementia by up to 40 percent. Some of these factors include hearing loss, excessive alcohol consumption and smoking.

Other lifestyle changes like physical activity, restorative sleep, eating a Mediterranean diet and being socially engaged can make a big difference, Black said.

“Be aware of risk factors. Take good care of your health. Take good care of your brain, that’s what we’re telling everyone to do,” Becker said.

Do you have a question about human behavior or neuroscience? Email [email protected] That can be answered in a future column.

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Lewiston, Maine, active shooting situation: At-large suspect, 22 dead after multiple incidents, authorities say

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CNN

At least 22 people are dead and dozens injured after two shootings Wednesday night at a bowling alley and restaurant in Lewiston, Maine, and authorities say a manhunt is underway for a person of interest in the shootings.

Robert Card, 40, of Bowdoin, is a person of interest and should be considered armed and dangerous, Maine Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck said.

Law enforcement officials in Maine tell CNN that Card is a certified firearms instructor and member of the U.S. Army Reserve. Card recently threatened to shoot at a National Guard facility in Saco, Maine, and also reported mental health issues, including hearing voices, authorities said.

During Wednesday night’s press conference, Sauschuck declined to provide additional information about the card. “We’re not ready to go behind (the card),” he said.

Lewiston Police Department

The Lewiston Police Department has identified Robert Card as a “person of interest” in the shooting.

At least 22 people were killed, Lewiston City Councilman Robert McCarthy told CNN, citing the city administrator.

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The shooting happened around 7 p.m. ET, Sauschuck said. Lewiston police reported active shooter incidents at Sparetime Recreation, a bowling alley on Mollison Way, and Scheminge’s Bar & Grill restaurant on Lincoln Street.

“We encourage all businesses to lock or close while we investigate,” the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. Register on Facebook Wednesday evening.

Sheriff’s Office Published “Suspect to be identified” pictures. The man is seen holding a high powered assault style rifle.

Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office

The Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office released a photo of what is believed to be the suspect in Lewiston, Maine.

Residents of Lewiston and neighboring Lisbon are under Accommodation on site Ordered, Sauschuck said. (Should “shelter in place” be hyphenated?)

A “vehicle of interest” was found in Lisbon, the commissioner said. Earlier, Lewiston police said they were looking for a vehicle Posted a picture What appeared A small, white SUV believed to be painted black with a front bumper. Maine State Police confirmed a photo of the suspect’s car to CNN.

Lewiston is 36 miles north of Portland and is the second largest city in the state.

“Please stay indoors with doors locked,” state police said In a post on facebook. “Call 911 if you see suspicious activity or persons.”

Lewiston Maine Police Department

The Lewiston Police Department released a photo of the vehicle involved in the shooting.

More about Lewiston

  • Second most populous city Maine
  • Population: 38,493 (2022)
  • Median household income: $48,069 (2021)
  • Population: 83.4% white, 7.3% black

A city spokesman initially told the Sun Journal newspaper that another shooting occurred at a Walmart distribution center, but a company spokeswoman told CNN that none of Walmart’s facilities were involved in the incidents.

Authorities in the nearby city of Auburn have “strongly stressed” residents because of the ongoing active shooter situation. A position At X, formerly Twitter.

Check out this interactive content on CNN.com

Mass shootings: Read more

Auburn is 2 miles west of Lewiston.

In a statement, the FBI said its Boston division was coordinating with law enforcement partners in Maine and “stands ready to assist with any available evidence” and urged the public to remain vigilant.

Maine Gov. Janet Mills said Wednesday night that she had been briefed on the situation.

“I urge all residents in the area to follow the guidance of state and local law enforcement. I will continue to monitor the situation and remain in close contact with public safety officials,” the governor said. said on facebook.

CNN’s Jamiel Lynch, Josh Campbell, Christina Maxouris and Chris Boyette contributed to this report.

Representative Bowman accused Congress of pulling the fire alarm when there was no emergency

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CNN

Representative Jamal Bowman, Democrat of New York, has been accused by the DC attorney general of sounding a fire alarm in a House office building when there was no emergency.

Bowman has been summoned to appear in DC Superior Court at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, where the congressman is expected to plead guilty. He will also be booked, fingerprinted and processed on misdemeanor charges.

If he abides by the terms of an agreement with the DC Attorney General’s Office, including three months of probation, the misdemeanor charge will be dropped. The deal requires Bowman to issue a formal apology to the U.S. Capitol Police and pay a $1,000 fine for improperly pulling a fire alarm, his office told CNN.

“I am grateful for the District of Columbia Attorney General’s Office’s swift resolution of this matter, and the U.S. Capitol Police General Counsel’s Office’s acknowledgment that I did not or did not intend to obstruct any House vote or action,” Bowman said. A statement on Wednesday. “I am responsible for activating the fire alarm, I will pay the fines issued and I expect these charges will eventually be dropped.”

The DC Attorney General’s Office said in a statement that “Bowman was treated like anyone else who breaks the law in the District of Columbia.”

“Based on the evidence presented by the Capital Police, we charged the only offense we had jurisdiction to prosecute. He pleads guilty and agrees to pay the maximum fine,” the office said.

In late September, just before the House was scheduled to open, Bowman was caught on tape pulling a fire alarm at the Cannon House office building. Vote on the Government Finance Bill. The building was subsequently evacuated.

The Congressman said following the incident that it was an accident.

“I was trying to get to a door. I thought the alarm was going to open the door and I accidentally pulled the fire alarm to open the door,” Bowman said at the time, adding: “I was trying to cast my vote and the normally open door didn’t open. Opened, it closed.”

In an interview with a USCP officer after the incident, Bowman said he was “trying to get out of the building,” “pushing open a door and pulling the lever next to it, which should have been a warning.”

Bowman said the door was “a regular door that he uses” and that he did not want to cause security concerns or disrupt congressional proceedings, the USCP official wrote in the affidavit. The officer noted that several emergency exit signs were posted at the door.

“The defendant stated that the door was still not open and went to the first floor to exit,” the affidavit states.

Bowman told the officer that he heard an alarm and “was in a hurry because the votes were called and he didn’t want to miss the vote to fund the government,” according to the affidavit. He did not tell anyone what happened, despite passing several USCP officers immediately after the incident.

This story has been updated with additional details.

Boeing earnings: Dow reverses as aerospace giant backs cash flow targets

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Boeing (B.A) reported weaker-than-expected third-quarter earnings results on a new financing deal with a jet supplier. Spirit Aero Systems (S.P.R) weighs its liquidity. But Dow Jones Aerospace reaffirmed 2023 cash flow targets even as it cut 737 Max delivery targets.




X



Boeing shares fell on Wednesday, hitting new 2023 lows.

Boeing earnings woes

Assessments: Analysts expected Boeing to narrow its net loss sharply to $3.18 a share from $6.18 a year ago, according to FactSet.

Revenue was seen up nearly 13% year-over-year to $18.013 billion, despite some estimates of around $18.3 billion.

Adjusted free cash burn was worse than expected at $310 million.

Boeing already announced Q3 deliveries of 105 commercial jets and 28 defense jets. Orders for 224 aircraft in September were up from 45 orders in August, reflecting the ongoing recovery in business aviation.

Results: Boeing narrowed its loss to $3.26 a share as revenue rose 13% to $18.1 billion. It was the ninth straight quarter of losses and the third quarter of declining sales gains.

Outlook: Boeing still sees full-year operating cash flow of $4.5 billion-$6.5 billion and free cash flow of $3 billion-$5 billion. Analysts were expecting $4.67 billion and $3.35 billion, respectively.

Boeing also cut its 737 Max delivery forecast amid ongoing production issues.

Boeing stock

Shares of Boeing rose as high as 187 at the open, but fell 3.2% to 176.56 in stock market action on Wednesday. Boeing shares are at an 11-month low and below the 10-week and 40-week moving averages, a MarketSmith chart shows. BA stock hasn’t provided a buy point since its last breakout failed in July.

Boeing’s millions to support Spirit

This year, quality defects at fuselage supplier Spirit Aerosystems have limited Boeing’s 737 and 787 programs, which have already suffered during the pandemic. Those problems included improperly drilled holes in the rear fuselage bulkhead of Boeing’s best-selling jet, the 737.

But on Monday, Bernstein analysts cut their price target on Boeing from $274 to $270, while upgrading Spirit shares to outperform.

The company now expects 396 deliveries of the 737 by 2023, Fly said. This is at the low end of the company’s guidance of 400-450 deliveries. Bernstein analysts noted news of a financing deal between Boeing and Spirit Aerosystems last week.

Boeing will now send $100 million immediately to its troubled suppliers, aiming to stabilize jet production. But analysts at Vertical Research, the most closely watched metric on Wall Street, expect cash to come out of Boeing’s cash flow.

Despite rising orders, Boeing stock has fallen 25% from a 52-week high it set in July, while losing key support levels.

Spirit Aerosystems fired Chief Executive Tom Gentile this month and was replaced by former Boeing executive Pat Shanahan. Earnings must be reported before the market opens on November 1.

SPR shares fell 3.5% on Wednesday. Spirit Aero rose 1% to 22.15 on Tuesday. Shares hit a three-year low of 14.65 last month.

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Hurricane Otis makes landfall near Acapulco as a Category 5 storm

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Hurricane Otis made landfall near Acapulco, Mexico early Wednesday morning as a Category 5 hurricane with winds of 165 mph, the most intense storm ever recorded in the northeast Pacific Ocean.

“A dire scenario is unfolding in southern Mexico,” the National Hurricane Center wrote in a bulletin Tuesday evening as Otis headed toward the city of about a million people.

Otis had peak winds of 90 mph at 12 p.m. Tuesday. Fastest intensity observed According to Bill Klotzbach, a hurricane researcher at Colorado State University, satellite tracking of hurricanes in the northeast Pacific began in 1966. Tuesday morning, Otis was a tropical storm with sustained winds of 70 miles per hour. By the time it made landfall shortly after midnight local time on Wednesday, it was a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 165 mph.

“This is a very serious situation for the Acapulco metropolitan area, with a potentially damaging tornado approaching or over the major city early Wednesday morning,” the hurricane center wrote.

It warned that as the hurricane barreled ashore, it would create “catastrophic damage” near its center, a “life-threatening” storm surge or sudden rise in sea level and catastrophic winds that could cause hurricane-like damage.

During Category 5 winds, “a high percentage of framed homes will be destroyed, with total roof failure and wall collapse,” the hurricane center writes. “Downed trees and power poles can isolate residential areas. Power outages can last weeks to months. Most areas will be uninhabitable for weeks or months.

5 Types of Hurricanes, Explained

Rainfall from the storm is expected to range from 8 to 16 inches widely, with local amounts of up to 20 inches expected through Friday. “This rainfall will produce flash and urban flooding, and mudslides in overland areas,” the hurricane center wrote.

Scientists say the extreme intensity of storms like Otis, fueled by unusually warm ocean waters, is more likely due to human-caused climate change. This week, a study described a rapid increase in intensity in Atlantic storms over the past several decades.

“The increased likelihood of hurricanes changing from weak storms to major hurricanes in 24 hours or less is significant,” study author Andrea Garner told The Washington Post.

Hurricane warnings extend from Punta Maldonado north to Zihuantanejo in Guerrero state, the southernmost part of Mexico’s west coast; This warning zone covers Acapulco. in the area No experience with strong hurricanes like Otis and has been affected by only significantly weaker storms since records were kept.

“No hurricane even close to this intensity has been recorded for this part of Mexico,” the hurricane center wrote.

Rapidly intensifying storms like Otis are more difficult to prepare for, as they leave little time to warn residents and mobilize resources for emergency management.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Social media Disaster planning is underway and people have been encouraged to move to shelters and stay away from rivers, streams and valleys.

“The state of Guerrero is working closely with the armed forces and the government of Acapulco to “redouble efforts” to strengthen surveillance, prevention and assistance to the population,” state governor Evelyn Salgado Pineda said. Mail on facebook.

Abelina Lopez Rodríguez, Mayor of Acapulco, said Facebook has opened 25 temporary shelters across the city for people whose homes are at risk.

Meteorologists often describe poorly predicted, rapidly intensifying storms like Otis as a worst-case scenario, especially when they lead to immediate landfall.

On X, earlier on Twitter, meteorologists said they were shocked by Otis’ sudden strengthening, which computer models failed to predict.

“This is a catastrophic failure of modeling. It leads to an extremely poor forecast outcome for the Acapulco region,” Posted by Matt LanzaRuns Eyewall, a hurricane commentary website.

Although forecasts of hurricane strength have improved significantly in recent years, predicting rapid intensity remains a major challenge — especially for small storms like Otis, which are more prone to sudden changes in their environment.

Otis drew comparisons to Patricia in 2015, which rapidly intensified along the west coast of Mexico and became the most intense hurricane on record in the Northeast Pacific. However, the storm weakened some before making landfall.

Otis is set to become the fourth tropical storm or hurricane to hit the west coast of Mexico this month, following Lydia, Max and Norma.

Snapdragon says its new X Elite processor will beat Apple and Intel

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Qualcomm has announced its new Snapdragon X Elite platform, which seems to be its most powerful computer processor to date. The chips (including the new Qualcomm Orion announced today) are built on a 4nm process and include 136GB/s of memory bandwidth. The PCs are expected to ship in mid-2024.

Qualcomm claims that its Snapdragon X Elite outperforms many Intel Core i7 processors in the Geekbench 6 benchmark. The company presents a chart as proof of this, which isn’t labeled in any particularly useful way. I don’t know if this y-axis is a linear or logarithmic scale or where it starts. There’s no mention of single-threaded performance, an area where Intel’s processors have traditionally been very strong. Additional charts show the X Elite chip beating AMD’s Ryzen 9 7940HS in GPU benchmarks, with the same vague “comparative performance” on the y-axis.

I love it.
Image: Qualcomm

Oh, and Qualcomm also says its chip will offer “50% faster peak multi-thread performance” than Apple’s M2 chip. It’s a funny statement; The X Elite has 50 percent more cores and absorbs more power than the M2, so of course it performs better in “Peak Multi-Thread Performance” on Geekbench. It’s like a professional sprinter bragging about winning the 100 meters against the marathon champions. But I digress. Clearly, this chip is no slouch, and I imagine it will offer a big step up in performance from the Snapdragon PC chips we’ve seen in the past. Will it “beat” Apple’s M2? I mean… I guess we’ll have to see.

Why don’t they put a chart here? I mean, I have a guess. I think we all have a guess.
Image: Qualcomm

Qualcomm also announced a new technology called Snapdragon Seamless. In Qualcomm’s words, it’s “a cross-platform technology that enables Android, Windows, and Snapdragon devices using other operating systems to discover and share information with each other as a unified system.” For example, they can drag and drop files and windows across different devices, share screens, or have their earbuds automatically switch between them. Seamless is integrated into Snapdragon’s mobile platforms; Current partners include Microsoft, Google, Dell, Lenovo, Honor and Oppo.

It sounds like a neat idea, but you’ll only see widespread use if a lot of people buy Qualcomm’s PC chips. So, like I said, I guess we’ll have to see.

China sacked Defense Minister Li Shangfu following the Qin Gang shooting

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HONG KONG — China announced Tuesday that it had removed General Li Shangfu as defense minister, the country’s senior leader disappearing from public view with little explanation.

Li and former foreign minister Qin Gang were removed as state councilors on Tuesday, according to state broadcaster CCTV, in a move to ax officials from the ruling Communist Party’s inner circle.

Nearly two months after Li’s firing, his absence sparked widespread speculation and three months after Qin — a former ambassador to the United States and once seen as a fast-rising protégé of President Xi Jinping — was ousted under mysterious circumstances. This follows a recent shake-up at the head of the country’s nuclear forces.

Beijing is grappling with economic crises and swirling tensions with the United States. It is not clear whether the above upheaval signals any change in policy or instead reflects a deepening crackdown on corruption and disloyalty.

“Ultimately, with the country’s State Council now missing two members, Xi Jinping’s focus is on the party’s hegemony over the state,” said Alexander Neal, a Singapore-based strategic consultant on Asia-Pacific geopolitics.

“It’s absolutely a hallmark of his power and control in China,” he told NBC News.

Former foreign minister Qin Gang was a previous high-profile target of a crackdown by the country’s increasingly powerful leader.Its Takeuma / Pool via AP file

Wang Yi, replacing Qin, is scheduled to meet with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jack Sullivan in Washington this week, paving the way for a possible first meeting between President Joe Biden and Xi in a year.

No explanation was given for the couple’s removal, as is customary in the country’s regime. After a vote by China’s top lawmaker, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, it decided to leave Li’s post vacant.

Although Li held the position of Defense Minister, his role was more ceremonial than that of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

“The People’s Liberation Army is not like America. It is not an army under the command of the President. It is the responsibility of the Communist Party leadership,” Neal said.

Nevertheless, the aerospace engineer and army general remained a high-ranking figure in Xi’s government.

Neal said his removal means the U.S. may now finally end direct dialogue with the PLA’s top officials.

Li, who took office in March during a cabinet reshuffle, has not been seen in public since August 29.

A series of reports in Western media, including The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal, suggested he was under investigation for corruption and was about to be fired.

NBC News has not confirmed these details.

The removal of both from the center of government power virtually ends their political careers. However, little is known about their whereabouts or whether they will be prosecuted.

Li is sanctioned by Washington for his role in China’s 2017 purchase of Russian arms. At the time, China expressed “strong anger” at the move, calling it “unfair” and “a mistake”.

Barclays narrowly beats profit forecasts in strong consumer, credit card business

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A view of London’s Canary Wharf financial district.

Ducasse’s Prisma | Universal Pictures Group | Good pictures

LONDON – Barclays on Tuesday reported a net profit of £1.27 billion ($1.56 billion) in the third quarter, slightly ahead of expectations as strong results in its consumer and credit card businesses weakened investment banking revenue.

Analysts polled by Reuters had produced a consensus forecast of £1.18bn, up from £1.33bn in the second quarter and £1.51bn in the same period in 2022.

Here are other highlights for the quarter:

  • The CET1 ratio, a measure of banks’ financial strength, stood at 14% from 13.8% in the previous quarter.
  • Return on fixed equity (RoTE) stood at 11%, with the bank targeting an upside of 10% by 2023.
  • The group’s total operating expenses fell 4% year-on-year to £3.9 billion as inflation, business growth and investments were “offset by efficiency savings and lower litigation and conduct fees.

Barclays CEO CS Venkatakrishnan said the bank “continued to manage debt well, was disciplined in costs and maintained a strong capital position” against a “mixed market backdrop”.

“We see additional opportunities to improve returns for shareholders through cost efficiency and streamlined capital allocation across the group.”

Barclays will set out its capital allocation priorities and revised funding targets in an investor update with its full-year earnings, he added.

Barclays’ corporate and investment banking (CIB) revenue fell 6% to £3.1 billion, with the bank citing lower client activity in global markets and lower investment banking fees.

This was largely offset by a 9% rise in revenue to £1.4 billion in its Consumer, Cards and Payments (CC&P) business, reflecting higher balances on US cards and the transfer of the Wealth Management and Investments (WM&I) division from Barclays UK.

The bank has not announced any new capital returns to shareholders since July’s £750m withdrawal announcement.

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