ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — A University of Michigan student is one of the world’s foremost “speedcubers,” a person capable of quickly solving a Rubik’s Cube. He also is an accomplished violinist.
Stanley Chapel says the two fields go hand in hand.
NEW YORK (AP) — There are those for whom recycling and composting are not nearly enough, who have reduced their annual waste to almost zero, ditched their clothes dryer or given up flying, and are ready to take the next step in exploring the frontiers of sustainable living.
NEW YORK (AP) — When Bill Lawrence was developing his new Apple TV+ comedy ”Shrinking,” he introduced one character in the pilot script as a “Harrison Ford-type” — but never dreamed he would get the real deal.
PARIS (AP) — The experimentalism and audacity of 1980s club kids inspired Valentino, one of the last high-octane shows of this Paris Fashion Week couture season.
Thousands of fans lined the Pont Alexandre III bridge on a chilly Wednesday night to scream as their idols went in and out — from K-pop star Suga of BTS fame to Anne Hathaway and Kylie Minogue — some of whom danced into early Thursday.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Like a lot of great projects, the idea for Grammy-nominated album “The Urban Hymnal” was first sketched out on a paper restaurant napkin.
MONTEREY PARK, Calif. (AP) — For decades, Monterey Park has been a haven for Asian immigrants seeking to maintain a strong cultural identity — and a culinary heaven worth visiting for anybody near Los Angeles craving authentic Asian cuisine.
NEW YORK (AP) — A Fox News Channel correspondent who was badly injured while covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine has a memoir coming out next month.
HarperCollins Publishers announced Thursday that Benjamin Hall's “Saved: A War Reporter’s Mission to Come Home” will be released March 14, the one-year anniversary of the Russian bombing in Kyiv, which left Hall hospitalized and killed two of his colleagues, cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski and Ukrainian journalist Oleksandra Kuvshynova.
NEW YORK (AP) — Lloyd Morrisett, the co-creator of the beloved children's education TV series “Sesame Street,” which uses empathy and fuzzy monsters like Abby Cadabby, Elmo and Cookie Monster to charm and teach generations around the world, has died.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jill Biden says her Inauguration Day outfits, now featured in a Smithsonian museum exhibit about first ladies, were a “voice for me on one of the most important days of my life.”
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Two months after undergoing surgery for serious burns, Jay Leno is now contending with a number of broken bones after being knocked off a motorcycle.
Between financially helping his parents and losing income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jeremy Mazza landed into serious credit card debt. Relief came from a source he wasn’t expecting: his partner, Ginna Lambert, who had come into a small inheritance.
(RNS) — When actor Daniel Franzese visited Jerusalem in November, he looked for God in all the usual places.
But it wasn’t at the Western Wall or Mount of Olives where he encountered the divine, but in a hole-in-the-wall ’80s-style gay bar that was hosting a “David and Jonathan” theme night for religious queer people.
PARIS (AP) — The pioneering Black performer Josephine Baker — who left the United States to find global fame in Paris in the 1920s — was Dior’s muse for an old school spring couture collection of archetypal classicism.
For the past couple of years, hotel and airline loyalty programs have extended elite status in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. But in 2023, that’s coming to an end. A tsunami of downgrades will wipe out some travelers’ elite status because pandemic-era offers are expiring and loyalty programs are upping the qualification requirements.
CHIANG MAI, Thailand (AP) — Just a handful of Chinese visitors were posing for photos and basking in the sun this week in the market and plazas near Chiang Mai’s ancient Tha Phae Gate, one of many tourist hotspots still waiting for millions of Chinese travelers to return.
Replete with spellbinding multiverses, “Everything Everywhere All at Once” topped the 95th Academy Awards nominations with 11 nods. Elsewhere, stories of friendship and family permeated 2022 cinema and the nominations this year, as did big-budget blockbusters.
PARIS (AP) — Elie Saab whisked his guests away to Thailand for a Paris Fashion Week couture show Wednesday that gleamed with gold and intricate silk embroidery.
Sheer diaphanous cloth floated around the runway in Le Marais’ Carreau du Temple amid wafting perfume, as “Emily in Paris” star Paul Forman and socialite Olivia Palermo posed for the cameras.
NEW YORK (AP) — For many people filing U.S. tax returns — especially those doing it for their first time — it can be a daunting task that's often left to the last minute. But if you want to avoid the stress of the looming deadline, start getting organized as soon as possible.
In 2022, 48% of Medicare beneficiaries were enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans instead of original Medicare, and experts predict that number will be higher in 2023.
Medicare Advantage plans are offered by private insurers and bundle Medicare benefits in a way many people find appealing — but they also limit care to network providers , often require preapproval to see specialists and can saddle beneficiaries with high out-of-pocket costs for serious conditions.
Software was a big theme for automakers attending CES 2023 in January. BMW, Stellantis, Volkswagen and a joint venture between Honda and Sony showed off upcoming or concept vehicles that are significantly reliant on computers and code.
PARIS (AP) — Art returned to a glittering Chanel couture universe Tuesday with monumental animal sculptures gathering in the center of the runway-in-the-round like a surreal zoo for its Paris Fashion Week show.
When visiting friends or family who have both houseplants and young children, I’ve been compared to “Aunt Bonnie” from the Geico commercial “Aunt Infestation.”
In it, a young couple who just moved into a new home complains of having pests — not ants but overbearing “aunts.” Like the one who declares the condiments in their refrigerator to be “Expired!
CONCORD, Calif. (AP) — As the fine-dining chef at a suburban high school gave samples of his newest recipes, junior Anahi Nava Flores critiqued a baguette sandwich with Toscano salami, organic Monterey Jack, arugula and a scratch-made basil spread: “This pesto aioli is good!"
NEW YORK (AP) — One day in January, a once-regular customer at Fuel Training Studio in Newburyport, Massachusetts, stopped in to take a “shred” class. She hadn’t stepped foot in the gym since before the pandemic.
Save more, spend less and pay off debt are popular New Year’s resolutions — and perhaps the ones most likely to fall by the wayside a few weeks into the year when reality sets in and expenses derail plans.
Amazon is adding a prescription drug discount program to its growing health care business.
The retail giant said Tuesday that it will launch RxPass, a subscription service for customers who have Prime memberships.
NEW YORK (AP) — Across the country, there’s a silent frustration brewing about an age-old practice that many say is getting out of hand: tipping.
Some fed-up consumers are posting rants on social media complaining about tip requests at drive-thrus, while others say they’re tired of being asked to leave a gratuity for a muffin or a simple cup of coffee at their neighborhood bakery.
Citrus fruits are a staple in my house 365 days a year, but I appreciate these fruits the most during the colder months.
Other fruits are in scarcer supply in the winter, which is the peak season for citrus.
For centuries, the channel of ocean running between Mozambique and Madagascar provided passage and port to ships during the height of the spice trade. The results were delicious, combining local seafood and coconut with rich spice blends for seafood curries.
When Mark Winternheimer’s 12-year-old tabby cat was diagnosed with diabetes last year, the treatment was daunting: twice-daily injections of insulin, an implanted monitor and frequent visits to the vet.
BEIJING (AP) — From Jakarta to Seoul, Bangkok to Beijing, people in Asia have been celebrating the Lunar New Year marking the start of the Year of the Rabbit.
Lunar New Year is the most important holiday in the Chinese calendar, a time to gather with family, reconnect with friends and indulge in food and drink.
HONOLULU (AP) — One of the world’s most prestigious and storied surfing contests — dubbed the “Super Bowl of Surfing” — went forward Sunday in Hawaii for the first time in seven years with towering wave faces and a gigantic swell that was expected to grow throughout the day.
KAPOLEI, Hawaii (AP) — Kona Purdy never wanted to live anywhere but Hawaii. As a Native Hawaiian, he wanted his children to grow up like he did: rooted in their culture, and nourished by the mountains and ocean.
HONG KONG (AP) — Rabbits scamper around a play area in a climate-controlled building in suburban Hong Kong, some climbing a castle made of wood while others explore a cotton tunnel.
In one of the world's most densely populated cities, where most apartments range from small to miniscule, rabbits are popular pets.
BEIJING (AP) — People across China rang in the Lunar New Year on Sunday with large family gatherings and crowds visiting temples after the government lifted its strict “zero-COVID” policy, marking the biggest festive celebration since the pandemic began three years ago.
PARIS (AP) — Jonathan Anderson, it seems, can do no wrong. Loewe’s Northern Irish designer’s imaginative and boundary-pushing designs are often credited by front-row editors as among the best, if not the best, gracing the Paris runways today.
PARIS (AP) — Dior mania descended on Paris Fashion Week menswear Friday as over a thousand screaming fans thronged the magnificent Place de la Concorde for a glimpse of their favorite stars, with some almost risking their lives in snarled traffic.
Glittering rock ‘n’ roll, women warriors and kings, spellbinding multiverses and stories of friendship and family permeated 2022 cinema and the AP Top 25 Movies list.
HONG KONG (AP) — As the week-long Lunar New Year holidays in China draw near with promises of feasts and red envelopes stuffed with cash, children have another thing to look forward to –- one extra hour of online games each day.
With hundreds of new movies released each year, many of us depend on the expertise of film critics to help curate our own watching — a thoroughly communal yet deeply personal experience.
BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand ushered in a new age of train travel on Thursday as Southeast Asia’s biggest railway station officially began operations. The government says the huge, modern development on the edge of central Bangkok will bolster the country’s position as a regional hub and boost its economy.
BANGKOK (AP) — A hoped-for boom in Chinese tourism in Asia over next week’s Lunar New Year holidays looks set to be more of a blip as most travelers opt to stay inside China if they go anywhere.
From the beaches of Bali to Hokkaido’s powdery ski slopes, the hordes of Chinese often seen in pre-COVID days will still be missing, tour operators say.
NEW YORK (AP) — When New York's first licensed recreational marijuana outlet opened last month, the chief of the state's Office of Cannabis Management, Chris Alexander, proudly hoisted a tin of watermelon-flavored gummies above the crowd.
PARIS (AP) — Singer Rosalía stunned Louis Vuitton’s guests at the Paris house’s dramatic, digital age-themed menswear show Thursday owing to a surprise reveal, atop a vintage 1980s yellow sedan, in shades and hooded jacket.
The Agriculture Department on Thursday issued new requirements for foods labeled organic, a move aimed at cracking down on fraud and boosting oversight.
NEW YORK (AP) — Countless artists have taken inspiration from “The Starry Night” since Vincent Van Gogh painted the swirling scene in 1889.
Now artificial intelligence systems are doing the same, training themselves on a vast collection of digitized artworks to produce new images you can conjure in seconds from a smartphone app.