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The Guardian - World News

2026-07-30 10:00:16 (2 weeks ago)

‘It’s the Meryl Streep of the orchestra’: why cinema loves the cello

From Audrey Hepburn to Pedro Pascal, cellists have become a movie shorthand for sensitivity, intensity and emotional depth. But why has Hollywood turned one orchestral instrument into a character in its own right?

There’s a throwaway line in 2012’s The Avengers, after a character’s death, when his partner is alluded to. “There was a cellist, I think,” muses Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark. It’s a spot of pathos amid the punch-ups – but also rather telling. Because when even a superhero blockbuster reaches for the cello, you know the instrument is carrying more than just a melody.

Earlier this month, a trailer dropped for the upcoming Pedro Pascal drama Behemoth!, in which he plays a celebrated cellist returning to Hollywood to score films. Real-life cellist and film composer Hildur Guðnadóttir says the instrument “is definitely having a moment right now. But it’s always been present.”

The Guardian - World News

2026-07-30 10:00:16 (2 weeks ago)

The future of AI hinges on openness and cooperation. China and Britain can gain much by working together | Zheng Zeguang

There is no point competing in isolation. There are so many benefits to be had, in manufacturing, healthcare, research and governance

• Zheng Zeguang is the Chinese ambassador to the UK

Artificial intelligence is widely regarded as one of the defining technologies of our time. Like the steam engine, the harnessing of electricity and the internet before it, it has the potential to transform how we work, live and interact.

But every technological revolution brings challenges as well as opportunities. As AI systems become more capable, people are asking legitimate questions. How can AI remain safe, accountable and under human control? How should its development be governed? How can its benefits be shared more widely?

The Guardian - World News

2026-07-30 10:00:16 (2 weeks ago)

Helm by Sarah Hall audiobook review – a breath of fresh air from the Pennines

Louise Brealey teases out the playful and poetic moments of these shapeshifting stories, told from the perspective of the northeasterly wind and those it has wreaked chaos on through the ages

The only named wind in the British Isles, Helm is a strong northeasterly gale that blows down the slopes of Cross Fell in the Pennines and is known for its unusual cloud formations. Helm has been known to dislodge roofs, haystacks, trees and riders from their horses.

Twenty years in the writing, Sarah Hall’s Helm is an ambitious novel that tells stories from the perspective of the wind, and from the people on whom, through the ages, Helm has wreaked chaos. Those figures include a Neolithic tribeswoman and seer called NaNay who is building a stone circle; an astrologer and exorcist known as a “wizard priest”; a Victorian meteorologist who travels across the Pennines by train and later by carriage into Helm’s “onslaught”; and a climatologist measuring microplastics in the atmosphere from her observation hut in the fells. Separated by centuries, their stories are nonetheless woven together, each of them bonded by weather.

The Guardian - World News

2026-07-30 10:00:15 (2 weeks ago)

No TV experience? At CBS News, that’s no problem | Margaret Sullivan

The conservative columnist Ross Douthat is the network’s latest perplexing hire – but the move is in line with the new leadership

In media circles, this week’s hire of a prominent New York Times columnist as a correspondent for CBS’s 60 Minutes was greeted with disbelief.

The collective response went something like this: “What?!”

Le Monde - World News

2026-07-30 10:00:12 (2 weeks ago)

Mapping access inequalities to swimming pools across France

Public swimming pools, essential for learning how to swim and cooling down during heatwaves, are in decline in France. But not all areas are affected equally.

Fox News - Top Stories

2026-07-30 10:00:01 (2 weeks ago)

Capitol sex scandals spark push to ban House lawmakers from sleeping with staffers

Rep. Nancy Mace's legislation would ban House lawmakers from having sex with staffers or living with them amid scandals involving multiple members of Congress.

Fox News - Video

2026-07-30 10:00:01 (2 weeks ago)

Trump cracks down on ILLEGAL TRUCKERS: Veteran plan REVEALED

President Donald Trump announces a new 'Freedom Haulers' initiative, aiming to replace illegal alien truck drivers, many under the influence of drugs or alcohol and unable to read signs, with U.S. military veterans.

New York Times - World News

2026-07-30 09:59:53 (2 weeks ago)

China, Its Economy Stumbling, Signals Only Cautious Support

The ruling Politburo called for “more proactive” tax and spending policies but did not endorse broad action to address weak consumer spending.

Times of Israel - World News

2026-07-30 09:57:58 (2 weeks ago)

Mediating Pakistan insists US-Iran talks ‘ongoing,’ despite heavy strikes

Egypt confirms it was hit by a drone but doesn't assign blame, as Iranian sources imply Tehran was behind the strike; 1 dead in Iranian attack on Chinese-owned building in Kuwait

The post Mediating Pakistan insists US-Iran talks ‘ongoing,’ despite heavy strikes appeared first on The Times of Israel.

Times of Israel - World News

2026-07-30 09:57:21 (2 weeks ago)

Feeling excluded in the literary world, US Jews launch their own publishing houses

Backlash against Jewish authors post-Oct. 7 inspires new initiatives, as many in the industry believe the situation is so dire that Jews need their own distribution pathways

The post Feeling excluded in the literary world, US Jews launch their own publishing houses appeared first on The Times of Israel.

Al Jazeera - Top Stories

2026-07-30 09:51:52 (2 weeks ago)

‘Go back to your own country’: NZ foreign minister faces backlash

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters told Chinese-born MP to ‘go back to your own country’.

Globo News - Mundo

2026-07-30 09:51:32 (2 weeks ago)

Congresso da Colômbia autoriza Espriella a tomar posse fora da capital Bogotá

Abelardo De La Espriella Charlie Cordero/Reuters O presidente eleito da Colômbia, Abelardo de la Espriella, tomará posse no dia 7 de agosto na cidade de Cali, depois que o Congresso aprovou nesta quarta-feira (29) a transferência temporária de suas funções para essa cidade nesse dia. A posse presidencial na Colômbia é tradicionalmente realizada na sede do Parlamento, na capital Bogotá. Mas o direitista solicitou que a cerimônia fosse realizada no sudoeste do país, após vencer as eleições de junho contra o senador Iván Cepeda, candidato da esquerda e do atual presidente Gustavo Petro. Com a aprovação de sua proposta, o presidente eleito conseguiu sua primeira vitória legislativa em um Congresso no qual tem representação minoritária. Quem é Abelardo de la Espriella, presidente eleito em apuração preliminar na Colômbia De la Espriella inicialmente buscava tomar posse em uma base militar no conturbado departamento de Cauca. Mas o presidente de esquerda Gustavo Petro, que não reconhece o resultado da eleição e alega fraude eleitoral, não autorizou o uso de instalações militares para o evento. ➡️ A lei da Colômbia estabelece que a cerimônia de posse presidencial aconteça no Congresso colombiano. Com 58 votos a favor e 30 contra, o Senado ratificou a transferência de suas funções nesse dia para um auditório universitário em Cali, a terceira cidade mais populosa do país, atingida por ataques constantes das guerrilhas. A Câmara já havia tomado a mesma decisão na terça-feira. Alguns trabalhadores limpam os assentos do auditório Arena da Universidade de Santiago de Cali para a posse do presidente eleito da Colômbia, Abelardo de la Espriella, em 29 de julho de 2026 (Joaquín Sarmiento) Foto por JOAQUIN SARMIENTO / AFP A bancada legislativa de esquerda, liderada por Cepeda, votou contra e argumentou que a transferência geraria custos adicionais. Seus congressistas anunciaram que não vão comparecer à posse e convocaram mobilizações em Bogotá, Cali e na caribenha Barranquilla, reduto político de De la Espriella. Com um discurso anti-sistema, De la Espriella quer consolidar o apoio no Congresso dos partidos tradicionais para levar adiante suas reformas, como cortar em 40% o tamanho do Estado e agir com mão pesada contra guerrilheiros e narcotraficantes. O advogado milionário de 47 anos disse que recorrerá a decretos caso o Congresso bloqueie suas reformas.