“A Chinese-built humanoid robot beat the human half-marathon world record in Beijing on Sunday, marking a breakthrough moment in a high-stakes global race for technological dominance. A robot developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor completed the 21-kilometer (13-mile) race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, beating the human record of about 57 minutes set by Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo last month. The performance marked a dramatic improvement from last year’s inaugural event, when the top robot finished in more than 2 hours and 40 minutes. Dozens of humanoid robots competed alongside about 12,000 human runners, navigating a parallel course to avoid collisions.” (04/19/26)
“A 3-year-old boy shot and wounded a man and his son after mistaking them for a turkey at a Youth Turkey Hunt in Wisconsin. The toddler was being mentored by his 34-year-old parent who aided the three-year-old in shooting the 12-gauge semiautomatic shotgun. The two spotted motion in the woods that they mistook for a wild turkey, according to the Department of Natural Resources report. However, a 40-year-old man and his seven-year-old child were actually in the brush 35 yards away from the shooters and were struck by pellets in the back, hands and head.” (04/19/26)
“US President Donald Trump has directed the FBI to investigate a series of deaths and disappearances involving government workers who were somehow linked to sensitive nuclear and space programmes, amid swirling public speculation about whether the cases are ‘connected to UFOs.’ … White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the inquiry on Friday, stating that the administration was ‘actively working with all relevant agencies and the FBI to holistically review all of the cases together and identify any potential commonalities that may exist.’ … The cases in question involve approximately 10 individuals with ties to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and other sensitive defence facilities. They span roughly three years and include disappearances, murders, and deaths from apparently unrelated causes.” (04/19/26)
“Fifteen people deported from the US, who are reportedly from South America, have arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This is the first group of an unknown number of people that the US has expelled which the DR Congo had agreed to take in. The government in Kinshasa has stressed that their stay in the country is only temporary and that Washington is funding ‘their reception, support and care.’ The US has already sent deportees to several other African countries, including Ghana, South Sudan and Eswatini, as part of the crackdown on immigration.” (04/19/26)
“The Justice Department is turning to former Trump attorney Joeseph diGenova to spearhead a probe into ex-CIA Director John Brennan and others over the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation, as the department reshuffles leadership of the sprawling inquiry. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has tapped diGenova to serve as counsel overseeing the matter, according to a New York Times report, putting a former Trump attorney in a key role in the high-profile probe. A federal grand jury seated in Miami has been impaneled since late last year. … DiGenova, a former U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C., who represented Trump during Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, has repeatedly accused Brennan of misconduct tied to the origins of the Russia probe — allegations that have not resulted in criminal charges.” (04/19/26)
“A judge has granted the makers of the ‘ICE Sightings — Chicagoland’ Facebook group and the Eyes Up app a preliminary injunction to stop the Trump administration from coercing platforms to take these projects down. Judge Jorge L. Alonso of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois found that the plaintiffs, Kassandra Rosado and Kreisau Group, are likely to succeed in their case, which alleges that the government suppressed protected speech under the First Amendment by strong-arming Facebook and Apple into removing ICE monitoring efforts.” (04/18/26)
“Multiple people in Glendale have been sentenced in a bizarre felony insurance fraud case involving a bear costume and luxury cars. Officials from the California Department of Insurance launched the investigation back in 2024 after an insurance company flagged an unusual claim of a Rolls-Royce Ghost sedan being damaged after a bear climbed inside near Lake Arrowhead. The grainy surveillance footage appeared to show a bear rummaging through the vehicle, and photos submitted showed scratches on the interior of the car, which can retail for over $400,000 when new. But the video and photos from the scene didn’t look quite right. During the investigation, detectives sent the footage to a biologist from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, who ‘concluded the animal shown was clearly a human in a bear suit,’ according to the news release from the California Department of Insurance.” (04/17/26)
“A Canadian man facing murder charges for allegedly selling lethal substances online to people at risk of self-harm has agreed to plead guilty to 14 counts of counseling or aiding suicide, his lawyer said on Saturday. In turn, Canadian prosecutors will withdraw all 14 murder charges filed against Kenneth Law, lawyer Matthew Gourlay told The Associated Press in a email. … Canadian police say Law, from the Toronto area, used a series of websites to market and sell sodium nitrite, a substance commonly used to cure meats that can be deadly if ingested.” (04/18/26)
Every so often (and one really big time closer to the end of each year) I come to our readers to remind you that we’re a reader-supported publication. It’s not time for our year-end fundraiser and won’t be for several more months, but this is one of those “every so often” bits. PLEASE do one or both of the following things:
Tell your friends about us! The more readers we have, the better in every way … especially when it comes time to ask for money. Many hands make light work, etc. Send people you know our way at:
“A 10-day ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanon took effect at 5 p.m. Thursday, after Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah — an Iranian proxy — had threatened the ceasefire in the wider Iran war.” (04/17/26)
