On at least two occasions, President Obama secretly met with Jon Stewart of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” . http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/29/us/politics/jon-stewart-secretly-met-with-obama-at-white-house.html?ref=us In 2011 and again in 2014, Mr. Stewart came to Washington for coffee with the president, entering the White House grounds at the entrance where the public tours begin. He shook hands with several tourists […]

Turkish jets hit Kurdish areas in northern Iraq overnight and the government said strikes would continue until the rebels lay down their arms, despite calls Wednesday by the pro-Kurdish opposition for an immediate end to the violence and the resumption of peace efforts. http://bigstory.ap.org/article/3333aa94e36a43d5a9ec78c3b277d304/kurdish-rebels-attack-turkish-government-lodgings The warplanes pounded about half a dozen positions belonging to the […]

The head of one of Iraq‘s fiercest Shi’ite militias called the U.S.-led coalition’s campaign against Islamic State ineffective and accused Washington of unwiling to uproot radical Sunni jihadis controlling large swathes of Iraq and Syria. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/28/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-khazali-idUSKCN0Q22ED20150728?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=twitter Qais al-Khazali, leader of Iranian-backed paramilitary group Asaib Ahl al-Haq, said the anti-IS campaign had failed because of an […]

Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking, along with hundreds of artificial intelligence researchers and experts, are calling for a worldwide ban on so-called autonomous weapons, warning that they could set off a revolution in weaponry comparable to gunpowder and nuclear arms. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/technology/elon-musk-and-stephen-hawking-among-hundreds-to-urge-ban-on-military-robots.html?smid=tw-nytimes In a letter unveiled as researchers gathered at the International Joint Conference on Artificial […]

The president of the U.S. military’s medical college said he took swift action after learning in 2013 that John Henry Hagmann, a former Army doctor teaching there, was injecting students with hypnotic drugs, inducing shock by withdrawing their blood, and performing rectal exams in class. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/23/us-usa-doctor-report-exclusive-idUSKCN0PX2L620150723?utm_source=twitter Hagmann was escorted off the Uniformed Services University campus […]

The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed a hotly debated measure that blocks any mandatory labeling of foods made with genetically engineered crops, including pre-empting a state law set to take effect next year in Vermont. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/23/us-usa-gmo-labeling-idUSKCN0PX17920150723  The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed a hotly debated measure that blocks any mandatory labeling […]

A general in line for the highest US military post says Russia poses the greatest threat to national security. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33469369 During his confirmation hearing to become chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Gen Joseph Dunford called Russia’s recent actions “nothing short of alarming”. Relations between the US and Russia have deteriorated since Russia […]

The F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, said on Thursday that counterterrorism authorities had thwarted multiple attacks being plotted for July 4 by the Islamic State and its sympathizers in the United States. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/10/us/july-4-terror-plots-foiled-fbi-chief-says.html?smid=tw-nytimes Mr. Comey would not say what the plots entailed or how many people had been arrested, but he said the plotters were […]

It is not easy being a vampire, and even harder to come out of the coffin to a physician or therapist for fear they will misinterpret the habit of ingesting the blood of willing donors or succumb to stereotyping, a study finds. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/08/us-usa-vampires-study-idUKKCN0PI00N20150708?utm_source=twitter Research led by D.J. Williams, director of social work at Idaho State […]

How often do you trust the government in Washington to do what is right? That question has been put to thousands of Americans over the decades by multiple survey research firms. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/04/upshot/the-long-decline-of-trust-in-government-and-why-that-can-be-patriotic.html?ref=us&abt=0002&abg=1 It’s easy to look at Washington and conclude that nothing ever gets done. Trust in government has steadily deteriorated over the past several […]

Consumption of sugary drinks results in some 184,000 deaths worldwide each year, a new analysis found. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/01/sugary-drinks-take-a-deathly-toll/?ref=health&smid=tw-nytimes To reach their conclusions, scientists pooled data from dozens of dietary surveys and large prospective studies of the effect of sugar-sweetened beverage intake on body mass index and Type 2 diabetes, and of the effect of B.M.I. on […]

Mastercard is testing a smartphone app that uses facial recognition to verify online purchases. http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-33379461 Users in the trial can hold their phone up as though taking a selfie to approve transactions. “The new generation, which is into selfies… I think they’ll find it cool,” the firm’s security expert Ajay Bhalla told CNN. One security […]

Russia said on Thursday a new U.S. military strategy was confrontational and would not help improve relations with Moscow, strained by the crisis in Ukraine.  http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/02/us-usa-russia-military-idUSKCN0PC0T320150702?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=twitter The strategy, released by the Pentagon on Wednesday, said Russia had repeatedly demonstrated it does not respect the sovereignty of its neighbors and that it was willing to use […]

Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul courted donors from the new marijuana industry Tuesday, making the Kentucky senator the first major-party presidential candidate to publicly seek support from the legal weed business. http://bigstory.ap.org/article/599112e367654cea94c56432bba87267/rand-paul-1st-major-party-candidate-court-pot-donors Paul’s fundraiser at the Cannabis Business Summit — tickets started at $2,700, the maximum donation allowed for the primary contest — came as […]