We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.
The cookies that are categorized as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site. ...
Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.
Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.
President of Ecuador Daniel Noboa said on Tuesday that he asked President Donald Trump in a private meeting for U.S. military operations to combat drug trafficking in the South American nation. Noboa and Ecuadorian First Lady Lavinia Valbonesi met with President Trump at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Saturday. While Noboa shared a picture…
For his first-ever book launch, things went “quite well,” says John Banovich.
Banovich, a wildlife photographer and filmmaker, and now a published author, launched his new book at Mason’s Cloverdale Home Furnishings March 28.
“We had a whole building full of people,” the Cloverdale resident said. “I met a lot of new folks in the area and it was, overall, very positive.”
He said there was a good-size crowd on hand, about 50 to 70 people, which included friends, family, and community members. They were there to meet Banovich, get a copy of his book, and possibly grab one of his prints.
Self-titled “Banovich,” his book—a massive 450-page, 9-lb coffee table book—is filled with more than 300 images of wildlife photography and personal stories behind the photos and the animals.
He said both his art and the book were well-received at the launch. He signed every book and said that most people requested personal messages be included, which he was more than happy to do. Banovich said out of every print, every book, and every postcard he brought along, he sold everything but one print.
“I was shocked, actually. Everyone gobbled everything up. It was surprising. I didn’t expect that kind of warm response.”
The book was scheduled to be released at the end of March online, but due to some printing and shipping delays, The book is now scheduled to be released at the end of April.
“The book itself is very Canadiana,” Banovich said. “It has a good sampling of images from across the country, most provinces and all the territories. It’s wildlife and wilderness.”
He’s also penned some personal reflections that have been included in the book.
“There’s quite a few stories that tie a lot of the images together and bring relevance to the photos,” he explained. “There are stories behind certain animals that reveal a little bit about their personality, their character. I named some of them. Some of them I have long-standing relationships with—certain grizzly bears and woodland caribou and certain moose. These are animals that I have revisited year after year after year. And so there’s some stories behind (the animals) that I share in the book.”
Banovich also reveals some of the tribulations he’s gone through working in remote areas and offers insight into the rewarding aspects of being a wildlife photographer as well.
“What I’m hoping to do with this particular book, and this is the first of three, is to engage and inspire people,” he said. “I hope I can lead the reader on a bit of a journey.”
Next up, Banovich will be travelling throughout B.C. and Alberta to do some promo for the book, including some events with Sony Canada. Banovich shoots all his images on Sony cameras.
“They’re going to have me come out and do some presentations,” he said. “They want to buy a bunch of the books. They’ve got a new camera coming out in the near future and they’re going to package the book with the camera.”
Visit shepherdsterling.com/banovich to read more about the book.
“Banovich” by John Banovich, 450 pages, Shepherd Sterling Publishing, will be available on Amazon sometime at the end of April.
For his first-ever book launch, things went “quite well,” says John Banovich.
Banovich, a wildlife photographer and filmmaker, and now a published author, launched his new book at Mason’s Cloverdale Home Furnishings March 28.
“We had a whole building full of people,” the Cloverdale resident said. “I met a lot of new folks in the area and it was, overall, very positive.”
He said there was a good-size crowd on hand, about 50 to 70 people, which included friends, family, and community members. They were there to meet Banovich, get a copy of his book, and possibly grab one of his prints.
Self-titled “Banovich,” his book—a massive 450-page, 9-lb coffee table book—is filled with more than 300 images of wildlife photography and personal stories behind the photos and the animals.
He said both his art and the book were well-received at the launch. He signed every book and said that most people requested personal messages be included, which he was more than happy to do. Banovich said out of every print, every book, and every postcard he brought along, he sold everything but one print.
“I was shocked, actually. Everyone gobbled everything up. It was surprising. I didn’t expect that kind of warm response.”
The book was scheduled to be released at the end of March online, but due to some printing and shipping delays, The book is now scheduled to be released at the end of April.
“The book itself is very Canadiana,” Banovich said. “It has a good sampling of images from across the country, most provinces and all the territories. It’s wildlife and wilderness.”
He’s also penned some personal reflections that have been included in the book.
“There’s quite a few stories that tie a lot of the images together and bring relevance to the photos,” he explained. “There are stories behind certain animals that reveal a little bit about their personality, their character. I named some of them. Some of them I have long-standing relationships with—certain grizzly bears and woodland caribou and certain moose. These are animals that I have revisited year after year after year. And so there’s some stories behind (the animals) that I share in the book.”
Banovich also reveals some of the tribulations he’s gone through working in remote areas and offers insight into the rewarding aspects of being a wildlife photographer as well.
“What I’m hoping to do with this particular book, and this is the first of three, is to engage and inspire people,” he said. “I hope I can lead the reader on a bit of a journey.”
Next up, Banovich will be travelling throughout B.C. and Alberta to do some promo for the book, including some events with Sony Canada. Banovich shoots all his images on Sony cameras.
“They’re going to have me come out and do some presentations,” he said. “They want to buy a bunch of the books. They’ve got a new camera coming out in the near future and they’re going to package the book with the camera.”
Visit shepherdsterling.com/banovich to read more about the book.
“Banovich” by John Banovich, 450 pages, Shepherd Sterling Publishing, will be available on Amazon sometime at the end of April.
NEW JERSEY — Twenty-five hours. That’s how long Cory Booker stood on the U.S. Senate floor, railing against Donald Trump, Elon Musk and an ongoing deluge of controversial federal budget cuts in a record-setting speech that ended Tuesday. The New Jersey senator’s speech, which lasted for a staggering 25 hours and 5 minutes, is now…
Accessibility at Apple began 40 years ago — who knew? In 1985, while I was wearing bulky in-the-ear hearing aids, Apple was quietly laying the foundation for something much bigger. That year, they introduced MacInTalk, a basic text-to-speech engine, and opened their first Office of Disability. These were not headline-grabbing moves, but they signaled a company starting to think differently about who technology was for.
I have spent a lifetime navigating the world with hearing loss — but it was an episode of 20,000 Hertz, the podcast by sound designer Dallas Taylor, that pushed me to finally write this. In that episode, Dallas interviews Sarah Herrlinger, Apple’s Director of Global Accessibility Policy and Initiatives, along with other members of the Apple accessibility team. They shared how deeply embedded accessibility is in Apple’s design process — not as an afterthought, but as a standard. Listening to that conversation made me reflect on my own journey, both personal and professional, and how much Apple’s approach reshaped what I believe accessibility can and should be.
“It is right out of the box”
As someone who has spent decades adapting to both technological change and social expectations, I do not say this lightly: I am grateful to Apple. Their stance on accessibility did not just align with my values — it strengthened them. It gave me confidence, clarity, and the ability to lead. As a hard-of-hearing man trying to make it in the world, my work at Apple showed me — and allowed me to show others — that accessibility is not extra. It is built in. It is right out of the box.
That phrase means more than convenience. It is a mindset. At Apple, I saw a culture that believed in making the impossible possible. Accessibility was not bolted on — it was part of how products were conceived from the ground up. And that belief gave me a platform to educate, advocate, and connect with people who had never considered accessibility before.
Throughout my time there, I met thousands of customers and team members who had not thought about accessibility, until we talked. Not because they did not care, but because it had not touched their world yet. But the moment they saw a demo, tried a feature, or heard a story, the connection was instant.
MORE FOR YOUiOS 18.4—Update Now Warning Issued To All iPhone UsersNYT Mini Today: Hints, Clues And Answers For Wednesday, April 2Cory Booker Breaks Record With 25-Hour Speech Blasting Trump
One of the most powerful experiences I had was leading our first-ever Accessibility Event in New York City. It was a packed room — parents, professionals, students, users with disabilities, and their families. That event sent a message: Apple is here. We see you. And we are building with you.
The impact was immediate. People saw possibilities, parents realizing their kids had options, adults discovering tools that supported their independence, coworkers rethinking how they collaborate. The event did not just introduce features. It offered dignity, recognition, and practical solutions for everyday life.
From a product standpoint, Apple led by example. Tools like VoiceOver, introduced in 2005, gave blind users full control of the iPhone’s touchscreen — a concept some said could not be done. Features like Live Listen, which streams live audio directly from an iPhone to compatible hearing aids, changed the way I move through the world. Accessibility was not seen as a niche — it was simply part of great product design with impact.
Dallas Taylor’s podcast underscored what I have always believed: that accessibility often leads to mainstream innovation. Captions. Voice control. Noise filtering. What begins as accommodation evolves into features everyone benefits from. Accessibility is not a silo — it is a driver of innovation. And when companies embrace it, they unlock new levels of customer loyalty, usability, and market reach.
Learn from the Apple model
That is why the business world needs to catch up. the Apple model offers a clear roadmap:
Start with specific needs and you will uncover better solutions for all users
Do not treat accessibility as compliance — it is strategy. Real commitment builds real trust
Include people with disabilities in the process. Hire them. Listen to them. Build with them. Inclusion changes outcomes.
As business leader, ask yourself: “Are we designing for everyone?” “Are we investing in accessibility as part of innovation?” “Are we creating cultures where people with disabilities are heard, represented, and empowered?”
I started my journey with hearing aids that made me feel awkward. I have lived through decades of tech evolution — and even more important, decades of shifting understanding. Working at Apple showed me what is possible when accessibility is seen not as a feature, but as a fundamental.
When we say accessibility is right out of the box, we mean no one should have to ask to be included. Everyone deserves the dignity of access — and the freedom to connect, create, and thrive.
That is more than good design. That is leadership.
That is forty years in the making. Here is to another forty years who knows what accessibility will look like then.
Happy anniversary to Apple and their accessibility work.
Major crime is down 29 percent compared to last year on New York City’s subways and buses — a seemingly positive trend. But that’s not how the U.S. Department of Transportation sees it. The Department of Transportation, or DOT, sent a letter to New York’s Metropolitan Transit Authority on March 18 warning that it must…
The Establishment’s Big Guns Come Out Blazing Against Tariffs Olivier Blanchard is a renowned economist—former chief economist of the IMF, Robert M. Solow Professor Emeritus at MIT, and Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. When he speaks, the establishment listens. So, when Blanchard took to social media Wednesday morning—or “Liberation Day,” as…
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn a significant step forward for open science, DeSci Labs has unveiled an AI-driven article matcher on its DeSci Publish platform, designed to assist scientists in navigating a vast repository of over 250 million articles. Launched by the Switzerland-based start-up, this innovative tool aims to streamline the research process for both authors and readers, fostering deeper connections within the global scientific community.The article matcher, powered by artificial intelligence, draws from the extensive Open Alex database to deliver highly relevant research matches. For authors, it offers a practical solution to refine their publication strategies. By identifying closely related studies, researchers can gain a clearer understanding of existing literature, pinpoint journals that have recently published similar work, and even discover potential peer reviewers for their submissions. This functionality promises to save time and enhance the precision of the publishing process.For readers, the tool provides an equally compelling benefit. Each time a paper is viewed on DeSci Publish, the matcher displays five closely related articles published within the past five years. Remarkably, this feature extends to older works as well, such as studies from the 1960s, enabling users to trace the evolution of a topic from foundational classics to cutting-edge advancements. This “time jump” capability enriches the reading experience, offering a seamless way to explore scientific progress across decades.Professor Philipp Koellinger, CEO and co-founder of DeSci Labs, highlighted the tool’s unique value. “DeSci Publish’s new AI article matcher opens up a new way to discover the scientific literature. Existing search engines require you to know what you’re looking for, like a paper title, but they do not show you closely related work. But what if you just want to browse and learn more about a topic? For that, you would typically look at the references of a paper you found interesting,” he explained. “However, that only reveals related publications that the authors were aware of when they wrote the paper. Our AI article matcher fills a gap by immediately showing you five closely related papers published in the past five years. You can just click on them and keep reading and discovering.”Founded in July 2021, DeSci Labs emerged with a mission to tackle the replication crisis in science by rethinking the fundamentals of scientific publishing. The organisation seeks to make research more accessible, innovative, and reliable through improved incentives, workflows, and infrastructure. DeSci Publish, its flagship platform, offers open-access publishing where research is not only shared but also validated and curated. The AI article matcher complements this vision by providing users with matching articles, novelty scores, and other AI-driven analytics.The tool’s launch has been met with enthusiasm from the scientific community, particularly for its potential to bridge gaps in research discovery. Key features of the AI article matcher include: Comprehensive coverage. It scans over 250 million articles, ensuring a broad and diverse pool of research.Author support. Researchers can refine publication strategies and identify reviewers with ease.Reader enrichment. The ability to connect classic studies with recent papers enhances contextual understanding.Accessibility. The tool is free to use, aligning with DeSci Labs’ commitment to open science.DeSci Labs’ broader mission underscores the importance of this development. By providing technology that simplifies the packaging and sharing of research, the organisation aims to elevate the quality of scientific practice. The AI matcher is a testament to its goal of fostering a fairer, more transparent research ecosystem where the best practices are recognised and rewarded.
Over the last few years, there have been increasingly worrying reports about the toxic impacts so called “forever” chemicals are having on our health and the wider environment. It’s hard stuff to swallow, but now there is a little glimmer of light in this worrying story. Researchers have developed a solution that removes these substances from water and then transforms it into valuable graphene.“Forever chemicals” are the common name for per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS), which are a group of synthetic compounds that are found in many common household items. Ever since the 1950s, these compounds have been celebrated for their water and stain-resistant properties. As such, they have been used as coatings in countless objects, including pots and pans, clothing, adhesives, food packaging, cooking surfaces, furniture, electrical wiring and even firefighting foams. They are also found in supposedly biodegradable objects, such as paper straws.PFAS have earned their common name from their long-lasting presence in the environment and the bodies of organisms that consume them – essentially, PFAS don’t naturally break down, which means they can linger for centuries after their use. Increasingly, scientists are becoming aware of the dangers these forever chemicals pose to human bodies as they have been linked to various adverse health outcomes, including cancer and immune system disruptions.As you can imagine, the growing awareness of these issues is prompting a greater need to deal with them, but traditional methods of PFAs disposal are costly and energy-intensive. They also usually create secondary pollutants as byproducts. However, researchers at Rice University, Houston, Texas, have developed a new method that overcomes these issues.“Our method doesn’t just destroy these hazardous chemicals; it turns waste into something of value,” James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Professor of Chemistry and professor of materials science and nanoengineering explained in a statement.“By upcycling the spent carbon into graphene, we’ve created a process that’s not only environmentally beneficial but also economically viable, helping to offset the costs of remediation.”Tour, graduate student Phelecia Scotland, and colleagues used flash joule heating (FJH) in their innovative approach. They combined granular activated carbon (GAC) saturated with PFAS and mineralizing agents, such as sodium and calcium salts, which they then zapped with a high voltage to produce temperatures of over 3,000 degrees Celsius (5432 Fahrenheit) in less than a second. The intense heat breaks down the stable carbon-fluorine bonds in the forever chemicals, converting them into inert and nontoxic fluoride salts. At the same time, the GAC is upcycled into graphene, a highly valued material used in electronics and construction.According to the researchers, their technique yielded more than 96 percent defluorination efficiency and 99.98 percent removal of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), one of the most common PFAS pollutants.Importantly, tests confirmed that the process produced undetectable amounts of volatile organic fluorides, which are the common harmful byproducts created in traditional PFAS treatments. The reaction also seems to eliminate the secondary wastes associated with traditional disposal methods such as incineration or adding spent carbon to landfills.“This dual-purpose approach is a game changer,” Scotland added. “It transforms waste into a resource while providing a scalable, cost-effective solution to an urgent environmental issue.”The new approach could have significant implications for dealing with toxic forever chemicals, extending beyond the treatment of PFOA and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid – the two most studied PFAS. The technique even works on the most difficult PFAS types – Teflon R. The high temperatures produced by the method could degrade a wide range of these chemicals, offering new solutions to water treatment and waste disposal.In addition, the FJH approach can also be tailored to produce other valuable materials, such as carbon nanotubes and nanodiamonds, adding to its versatility and economic strength.“With its promise of zero net cost, scalability and environmental benefits, our method represents a step forward in the fight against forever chemicals,” Scotland explained. “As concerns over PFAS contamination continue to grow, this breakthrough offers hope for safeguarding water quality and protecting public health worldwide.”The paper is published in Nature Water.
Kilmer’s depiction of the cool and confident fighter pilot resonated with audiences and solidified his status as a leading man in Hollywood despite Tom Cruise taking the leading role19:43, 02 Apr 2025Updated 19:44, 02 Apr 2025Val Kilmer died from pneumonia in Los Angeles after struggling with throat cancer for years that permanently altered his voice(Image: