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A visit to Europe's biggest tech show

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

Perhaps you've heard of CES in Las Vegas, but halfway around the world, in Berlin, Germany, there's another tech trade show with lots to see."This is actually the 99th year of IFA Berlin," said Oliver Merlin, managing director for this year's show.Show organizers brought me to Berlin to experience IFA's rich mix of history and cutting-edge innovation."IFA is Berlin and Berlin is IFA," said Merlin.The show is sprawling: 130,000 square meters to see spread across 26 different halls.It's almost tricky to describe. Think the biggest Best Buy you've ever seen, mixed with somewhat of a carnival atmosphere. Yep, there are pretzels and beer.There are brands from all over the globe, some were recognizable, and others were new to me."In the United States we tend to think the United States is the center of the universe, and at this show you see lots and lots of products that may not be available in the United States," said Mark Vena, principal analyst with SmartTech Research and host of the Sm...

Bay Area gospel star, who worked with Chaka Khan and Ray Charles, dies from cancer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

Bay Area gospel music star Maiia “Sunny” Hawkins, who had worked with Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Luther Vandross, Chaka Khan, Ray Charles and other well-known artists, died on Sept. 4.“I am sad to report that (Maiia) passed away on Monday morning 9/4/2023 after a long fight with this cancer,” an update reads on her GoFundMe page, which raised over $40,000 for her battle against cancer. ” We were with her to her last breath and she is finally at peace. Any new donations and all old donations will go to her kids and medical bills. Thank you again for being such a help during this difficult time.”The acclaimed Oakland singer had been battling stage IV breast cancer for several years, according to a post about Hawkins’ passing on soultracks.com.The Oakland native will be remembered for her tremendous singing voice, which she put to great use in her own solo career as well in collaboration with other acclaimed artists. She was also a notable songwriter,...

Save the date: turning chaos into the NFL schedule is no simple task

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

Have you ever wondered who decides where the 49ers play their season-opening game?Or why they won’t face division rival Seattle until Week 12 this season, or how the Red and Gold play multiple games on the East Coast back-to-back, allowing the team to stay out East for the week in between?It’s all thanks to a team of people at the NFL offices who spend months building out the perfect schedule, trying to create as many appealing matchups as possible while also trying to keep all 32 teams and fans as happy as possible.For years, the NFL schedule was created by hand. Tags with team names were plotted — and re-plotted — across a massive wooden board as each week’s matchups were determined. Schedule makers now input data and run simulations using Amazon Web Services and 4,000 cloud-based computers to cull down the trillions of scheduling possibilities into one 18-week, 17-game slate for each team.The only constant in creating the current NFL schedule is that there...

VP Kamala Harris says Donald Trump shouldn’t be an exception for Jan. 6 accountability

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

By CHRIS MEGERIAN | Associated PressJAKARTA, Indonesia — Vice President Kamala Harris said Wednesday that those responsible for the effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and the ensuing violence at the U.S Capitol must be held accountable — even if that means Donald Trump.“Let the evidence, the facts, take it where it may,” Harris said in an interview with The Associated Press in Jakarta, Indonesia, where she was attending a regional summit.Federal prosecutors have indicted Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, for his efforts to cling to power in 2020. The former president also has been charged in Georgia in a scheme to subvert the will of voters who elected Democrat Joe Biden instead of giving Trump a second term.“I spent the majority of my career as a prosecutor,” said Harris, who served as California’s attorney general before moving to Washington as a U.S. senator. “I believe that people should be held accountable und...

Return-to-office is a $1.3 trillion problem few have figured out

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

By Matthew Boyle | BloombergIn the emerging post-pandemic era, most aspects of life have returned to normal. Moviegoers are flocking to cinemas, vacationers jammed airports for summer travel and kids are returning to classrooms.The one thing that has remained stubbornly fraught: the world of work.Three and a half years after millions of office-goers were sent home en masse, companies, employees and governments are still figuring out how to adapt to lasting changes to corporate life. But stark differences have emerged across continents and cultures, with Asian and European workers largely returning to offices at a faster pace than their counterparts in the Americas.Asian nations did a better job keeping Covid-19 under wraps in the pandemic’s first year, so people there didn’t get as accustomed to working from home, making it easier to transition back to office life, researchers found. Europe’s habits vary widely — the UK has one of the highest rates of remote work, and France one of ...

Bay Area News Group high school football predictions: Week 3, 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

It’s time for another week of high school football picks.Joseph Dycus and yours truly went 10-6 in Week 2 to pull even with Mike Lefkow in the season standings. Lefkow finished 9-7.We’re all 18-14 through two weekends.We pick 16 more games in Week 3, highlighted by De La Salle’s return to St. Francis for the first time since the Lancers stunned the Concord powerhouse two years ago, ending the Spartans’ 30-year unbeaten streak against regional opponents.We also pick Amador Valley at Acalanes, Bishop O’Dowd at McClymonds, Grant-Sacramento at Los Gatos and several more.In our video roundtable, we discuss De La Salle’s vulnerability, Serra’s dominance and whether this week’s trip to Central Catholic-Modesto is a trap game and McClymonds’ reloaded roster.“I think De La Salle has come back to the pack a little bit and, to be honest, I am not sure they’re going to get through their schedule, the North Coast Section part of t...

Woman pulled into car outside Concord 7-Eleven, suspect arrested: police

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

(KRON) -- A woman was kidnapped outside of a Concord 7-Eleven on Aug. 19, the Concord Police Department confirmed to KRON4. A suspect in the kidnapping was arrested the next day.The incident happened at about 2 a.m. outside the 7-Eleven located at 2995 Monument Boulevard, near Oakmead Drive. Police said the victim was standing near the store when a man drove up to her and started talking to her. While he was at his passenger-side door, he grabbed her and pulled her inside the car, CPD said. The man drove away, and the woman was able to call 911 using her cell phone. She eventually opened the door and jumped out of the car as it was moving. She told police she was sexually assaulted while in the car.Patrol officers chased the suspect, but he got away. The next day, CPD arrested the suspect and identified him as Edgar Mendoza-Uribe. Mendoza-Uribe was charged by the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office with kidnapping and assault with the intent to commit rape. He is being he...

SF supes vote unanimously for first municipal bank in nation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

(KRON) -- The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to create the first municipal bank in the nation. The approved proposal comes at a time when the city continues to recover economically following the COVID-19 pandemic.The plans include a business and governance plan for creating a publicly-owned municipal financial corporation and then converting it into San Francisco’s first public bank.Public banks are not new. There are about 900 institutions worldwide controlling tens of trillions in assets. This municipal bank, however, would be a first for the United States. “As we continue to chart a path to economic recovery and a sustainable economy, the plans approved today provide a road map for our city to create the first municipal public bank in the country, a crucial strategy to ensure that our city funds are used to reverse inequities, not perpetuate them,” said Supervisor Dean Preston. “The approved plans are a huge step forward toward establishing a San Francisco P...

San Jose-based Roku to cut about 10% of its workforce

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Roku is cutting about 10% of its workforce, or 360 people, and it will limit new hiring as it cuts costs to stem a series of quarterly losses.The streaming platform also said in a regulatory filing Wednesday that it expects adjusted third-quarter revenue of between $835 million and $875 million, which is much better than the $828.6 million that Wall Street was projecting, according to analysts polled by FactSet.Shares, which have already doubled since the start of the year, jumped 10% at the opening bell.Roku Inc. anticipates a restructuring charge of $45 million to $65 million related to the job cuts. The charge will mostly include severance and benefits costs, with the majority of the charge expected to occur in its fiscal third quarter.The Silicon Valley company also expects impairment charge of $160 million to $200 million in its third quarter as it consolidates some offices. An impairment charge of $55 million to $65 million is anticipated for removing ...

Fauquier brewery celebrating new Commanders owner with ‘Hail to the Harris’ beer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:34:39 GMT

This article was written by WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com and republished with permission. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.Barrel Oak Winery and Brewery in Delaplane is launching a Washington Commanders-themed beer “to celebrate a new era of football in the DMV area.”The “Hail to the Harris” Hazy New England India Pale Ale – a nod to new Commanders owner Josh Harris – will be featured Sunday, week 1 of the NFL season. The Commanders host the Arizona Cardinals at 1 p.m., and the brewery is having a watch party from noon to 4 p.m.“The Washington Commanders have come under new ownership, and we want to celebrate with you! Josh Harris marks the start of a new era for the team, and we could not be more excited,” Barrel Oak states on its website.Harris, a D.C.-area native, took over ownership from much-maligned owner Dan Snyder earlier this summer. News of the sale set off celebrations around the region.In April, before the transaction was offic...