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How a Montgomery Co. nonprofit is helping low-income residents preserve their homes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

Help may be just around the corner if you are a low-income Montgomery County, Maryland, homeowner with a repair list as long as a nine-year-old’s Christmas gift list.Rebuilding Together Montgomery County provides critical home repairs and accessibility modifications to the county’s most vulnerable homeowners.Rebuilding Together Montgomery County provides critical home repairs and accessibility modifications to the county’s most vulnerable homeowners. (Courtesy Rebuilding Together Montgomery County)“Our goal is to preserve the affordable housing in Montgomery County and keep people in their homes,” Maury Peterson, executive director of Rebuilding Together Montgomery County, told WTOP.She said the organization focuses on senior citizens, veterans, people with disabilities and members of marginalized communities.“Their home is their biggest asset and we don’t want them to have to move and then they can’t afford to go anyplace else,”...

Spike your Thanksgiving sweet potatoes with Korean flavors

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

Each November in South Korea, the streets fill with toasty aromas of roasted sweet potato as they are cooked outside over barrel drums full of glowing coals. Meanwhile, home cooks take advantage of the season to feature the tubers in a variety of satisfying dishes.One such dish, goguma-bap, would make for an interesting Thanksgiving side with very little effort. It marries the sweet potatoes with short grain rice and a sweet-spicy soy-based dressing for a hearty vegetarian offering. After the potatoes are peeled and cubed, they are steamed with the rice and seasoned at the table with soy sauce and chives. The result is a dish with pure sweet-potato flavor accented by fresh notes of allium and nutty sesame seeds.It’s also a perfect weeknight dinner. In the version from our book “Cook What You Have,” which draws on pantry staples to assemble easy meals, we opt to season the sweet potatoes with just a little of this sauce before cooking to make them especially flavorful. And though we ...

Pakistan fast bowler Haris Rauf pulls out of test tour of Australia

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Fast bowler Haris Rauf pulled out of the Pakistan team and three uncapped players were named Monday in an 18-member squad for the test tour of Australia.Left-handed opening batter Saim Ayub, fast bowler Khurram Shahzad and allrounder Amir Jamal got their maiden call-ups after an impressive run in recent cricket tournaments.Newly appointed chief selector Wahab Riaz said Rauf was in the plans for Pakistan’s three test matches in Australia, but the express fast bowler pulled out on Sunday night despite confirming his availability two days ago.“He (Rauf) gave his consent, but later he changed his mind because he was worried about his fitness and the workload,” Riaz said in Lahore while announcing the squad. “His absence will affect the team combination.”Riaz said the medical panel of the Pakistan Cricket Board informed him that there were no fitness issues with Rauf and he could play test matches. The chief selector and team director Mohammad Hafeez later sat together w...

Hong Kong’s Disneyland opens first Frozen-themed attraction, part of a $60B global expansion

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

Paul Chan, Hong Kong's financial secretary, left, and Josh D'Amaro, chairperson of Disney Experiences, right, pose with performers in front of the press during the opening ceremony of the World of Frozen themed area at Disneyland Resort in Hong Kong, Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)(AP/Louise Delmotte) Paul Chan, Hong Kong's financial secretary, left, and Josh D'Amaro, chairperson of Disney Experiences, right, pose with performers in front of the press during the opening ceremony of the World of Frozen themed area at Disneyland Resort in Hong Kong, Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)(AP/Louise Delmotte) HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong Disneyland opened its first Frozen-themed attraction o...

Microsoft hires Sam Altman as OpenAI’s new CEO vows to investigate his firing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

LONDON (AP) — The new head of ChatGPT maker OpenAI said Monday that he would launch an investigation into the firing of co-founder Sam Altman, a shakeup that shocked the artificial intelligence world and led to Microsoft snapping up the ousted CEO for a new AI venture.The developments come after a weekend of drama and speculation about how the power dynamics would shake out at OpenAI, whose chatbot kicked off the generative AI era by producing human-like text, images, video and music.It ended with former Twitch leader Emmett Shear taking over as OpenAI’s interim chief executive and Microsoft announcing it was hiring Altman and OpenAI co-founder and former President Greg Brockman to lead Microsoft’s new advanced AI research team.Despite the rift between the key players behind ChatGPT and the company they helped build, both Shear and Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella tweeted that they are committed to their partnership.Microsoft invested billions of dollars in the startup...

Bronny James warms up before USC game for first time this season after heart issue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Bronny James warmed up with his USC teammates before a game for the first time this season after suffering a cardiac arrest in July.He has yet to make his collegiate debut after it was determined he had a congenital heart defect that was treatable.When asked how big a step that was for his son, Lakers superstar LeBron James smiled broadly Sunday night and said “Yeah. That’s awesome. I feel it. He’s almost there.” “It’s awesome having him back and on the team with us and participating with us,” USC guard Kobe Johnson said after the Trojans beat Brown 81-70. “We want him back as soon as possible but we want him to be as healthy as possible when he comes back. Every day we pray that he keeps getting better and hopefully sometime this year he’s able to get on the floor with us.”James has done some individual work before games, but hadn’t been on the court warming up with his teammates before Sunday’s game.Added USC coach Andy Enfield: “It was great. He wen...

UK leader Rishi Sunak urges world to use AI and science to end malnutrition

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Monday that the U.K. is setting up a new science initiative to help develop flood-tolerant rice, disease-resistant wheat and other crops that are more resilient to climate change.Sunak was joined by ministers, diplomats and philanthropists from about 20 countries at a one-day Global Food Security Summit in London, where he urged world leaders to harness artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge technology to end malnutrition around the globe.Sunak told delegates that a “fundamental shift” is needed to confront a food-security crisis that is being worsened by climate change. He focused on the role of science and said the U.K. would set up a “virtual science hub” linking international researchers working on more resilient crops. The U.K. hub will be part of a global research partnership known as CGIAR.“Climate change, conflict and population rise mean ever greater challenges to food supplies,” Sunak said. “So we need a f...

Gas prices are dropping in Denver ahead of Thanksgiving

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — If you are gearing up to hit the road this Thanksgiving holiday, you will have something extra to be thankful for. Prices at the gas pump have dipped ahead of the holiday.According to GasBuddy, average gasoline prices have fallen 14 cents in the last week in Denver. As of Monday, regular gas costs an average of $2.95 a gallon. Within the Mile High City, GasBuddy found the cheapest gas station was priced at $2.21 a gallon, while the most expensive was at $4.49 a gallon. Here’s how much the Denver skyline changed in the past 20 years Prices in Denver have continued to drop over the past month. According to GasBuddy, prices in Denver are 61.2 cents lower per gallon than they were a month ago. If you are planning to fill up in another state, you are in luck.The national average has also fallen in the last week. GasBuddy found that the price of diesel has fallen 6.9 cents in the last week. However, the average price is nearly $2 more than Colorado's. It's priced at $4.2...

Shooting incident in Hollywood leads to discovery of stolen car and guns; no injuries reported

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

Reports of an early morning shooting in Hollywood led to the discovery of a stolen car and multiple firearms. The incident occurred along the 1100 block of Jefferson Street shortly before 1 a.m., Monday. No injuries were reported.Authorities confiscated the guns and towed the stolen car as part of the ongoing investigation. Hollywood Police are actively looking into the circumstances surrounding the incident. Please check back on WSVN.com and 7News for more details on this developing story.

World on pace to blow past Paris climate targets, UN says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:51 GMT

Earth is on track for 3 degrees Celsius of warming, and humanity needs to make deep emission cuts this decade to have a chance of fulfilling the goals of the Paris climate agreement, the United Nations said in a report released Monday.The findings come amid record setting global temperatures and as the amount of planet warming pollution in the atmosphere reaches new heights. It also underscores the enormity of the task facing climate negotiators as they prepare for talks in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, later this month.The U.N. found global emissions need to fall 42 percent by 2030 to put the world on track to limit temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2050 or by 28 percent to hold temperature increases to the 2 C targeted by the Paris Agreement. Doing so would require a sudden reversal in global emission trends, which have risen steadily in recent decades. The longer it takes the world to meaningfully cut emissions, the more carbon dioxide removal technology will be...