30jili Australia is banning social media for people under 16. Could this work elsewhere — or even there?President Joe Biden sent a heartfelt letter to ESPN “College GameDay” football analyst Kirk Herbstreit after his adored golden retriever, Ben, died of cancer last month. “I was so sorry to hear about the loss of your beloved Ben,” Biden said in the November 22 note. “Ben brought so much comfort and unconditional love to millions of Americans across our Nation. “In your most joyful moments and most grief-stricken days, he was there, sensitive to every unspoken feeling and emotion.” Herbstreit shared the letter and his gratitude to Biden on social media Wednesday. “Politics aside-REALLY honored to receive this personal note from @POTUS sharing his appreciation and compassion for the loss of our beloved Ben. I can only hope that Ben knows how many people he touched.” A certified emotional service animal, Ben became famous for his infectious, friendly nature while in the national spotlight each week. He caused uncontrollable “oohs-and-ahs” while accompanying Herbstreit around the country covering football. Ben — who had been with Herbstreit for 10 years — would often be seen on set during live productions. The long-time ESPN commentator would also bring his cherished dog along for his “Thursday Night Football” on Prime Video gig. Ben had taken ill this year and was diagnosed with leukemia in March and underwent surgery in July, according to ESPN. “I know what it is like to lose a beloved pet, and I hope you can find some comfort in cherishing the beautiful memories you shared with Ben,” Biden continued. “He was a good boy.” In June 2021, the Bidens announced that Champ, their “beloved” German Shepherd, who had been with their family since 2008, had died. David Close contributed to this report.

THE use of cash has grown for the second year in a row, amid worries that more businesses are refusing to accept notes and coins. Cash was used in 19.9 per cent of all UK transactions in 2023 — up from 18.8 per cent the previous year, according to British Retail Consortium figures. 3 Use of cash is growing - amid concerns businesses are refusing to accept notes and coins Credit: Getty The increase is a shift from a long-running trend of people switching to digital payments and debit cards. The BRC credited the rise to the cost-of-living crisis — with many people finding it easier to budget their outgoings in physical cash. The Treasury Select Committee is examining if there should be rules to force businesses to accept cash, amid a rise in the number of outlets that have already switched to contactless only. There are growing concerns they exclude many vulnerable people. A submission to the inquiry by VISA found that in 2019 over 15 per cent of people with an income under £10,000 a year relied completely on cash to pay for goods and services, compared with less than 2.5 per cent of all higher income groups READ MORE BUSINESS NEWS NO MORR COSTS Morrisons boss blasts Budget 'avalanche' amid warnings of higher prices BUDGET FALLOUT 'I wouldn't trust govt to do my shopping', fumes AO World boss on tax raid But there are also warnings that cash-only businesses such as nail bars and car washes are fuelling modern slavery and illegal immigration. Bas Javid, director general of immigration enforcement at the Home Office, said at the weekend some businesses rejected card payments to disguise illegal working. The Select Committee yesterday heard that physical cash is essential for victims and survivors of economic and domestic abuse. Deidre Cartwright, of Surviving Economic Abuse, told MPs: “It’s a means for them to escape an abuser — especially when that abuser can track them through a bank account.” Most read in Business NO MORR COSTS Morrisons boss blasts Budget 'avalanche' amid warnings of higher prices REYNOLD'S VOW Food will not be on table in any trade deal talks with US, says Business Sec FAST FOOD Tesco ramps up speedy deliveries so customers can get orders in just 20 minutes REEVES SLAMMED Chancellor’s business tax raid will 'add up to 15p to price of a pint' Concerns have also been raised about a growing number of council car parks that only accept payments made using unreliable phone apps . Ron Delnevo, of the Payment Choice Alliance, told the hearing: “I know older friends who’ve stopped going to places because they couldn’t park without an app.” Millions on low-incomes to get cost of living payments as Rachel Reeves reveals £1billion Autumn Budget boost Cash debate By Dame Meg Hillier SHOULD there be rules to force certain businesses and services to always accept physical cash? My committee heard from a carer to a wife with MS, who relies on cash to put money aside for bills. A supermarket worker told of the difficulty partially sighted customers have paying digitally at checkouts. Charity Mencap stressed how people with learning disabilities often use cash to guard from card scams. But corner shops have argued they should make their own decisions, and stress the cost of handling cash. The previous Government said no to rules for cash. We are yet to hear if this Government feels the same. NUKE KID ON THE BLOCK 3 First nuclear reactor for a generation is fitted to British power station, Hinkley Point A 500-ton steel reactor was fitted into Britain’s first nuclear power station in 30 years yesterday. The 42ft reactor pressure vessel was installed at Hinkley Point C in Somerset, which EDF says will generate power for three million homes . The project, which is due to start generating power in 2029, has been hampered by political wrangling, Covid and supply chain problems. The delayed start has caused concerns about Britain’s energy security. EDF and Centrica yesterday said they will keep four ageing nuclear power stations running to ensure there is a low blackout risk. Chris O’Shea, chief executive of Centrica, said: “Power generation that doesn’t depend on the sun shining and the wind blowing is essential to keeping the lights on.” B&M SICK AS A DOG BURBERRY has launched legal action against B&M in a trademark dispute. B&M had sold “Furberry” branded pet items, including dog bowls, toys, blankets, mats and beds this year. The items featured a print with red, white and black checks on a beige background, strikingly similar to Burberry’s famous check print. It says the discount chain was falsely representing its goods as Burberry, Sky News reported. OZ CALL FOR MINE GIANT RIO 3 Rio Tinto has come under fresh attack from an activist investor Credit: Getty MINING giant Rio Tinto has come under fresh attack from an activist investor pushing it to scrap its main London listing and focus on Australia instead. Palliser Capital yesterday published an open letter to Rio Tinto’s board arguing the dual-listed structure has been a “failure for shareholders”. The UK hedge fund, which has a £197million stake in the miner, urged it to follow BHP and drop its dual listing. The loss of Rio Tinto would be a big blow to the London Stock Exchange and many pension tracker funds would be forced to sell stock if it was no longer in the FTSE 100. The Exchange is in crisis after facing the worst exodus of firms in 14 years, with 45 companies removed from the market in takeovers, according to Bloomberg. The value of the UK PLC market is shrinking because there have not been any big listings to replace the losses. PETROL 'AT PEAK' BRITAIN has hit “peak petrol” and the number of cars needing to be filled up at the pumps will almost halve over the next decade, says a report. Auto Trader estimates there were 18.7million petrol cars this year, but that will slump to 11.1million by 2034. It predicts a “seismic shift” towards electric vehicles as they become cheaper, from 1.25million EVs to 13.7million in the next decade. It expects the share of EVs to rise to 23 per cent next year, below the Government’s eco-mandate of 28 per cent. Budget gloom THE services industry has almost ground to a halt since the Budget, with firms hiking prices and freezing hiring and investment to cover costs, a survey found. Read more on the Scottish Sun DECEMBER MISERY Scots face blizzards and travel chaos as weather map reveals 75mph storm CHOC OFF Mums fume at Poundland’s ‘rotten’ advent calendar they thought was ‘for dogs’ Business confidence has slumped to its lowest in two years, the influential S&P UK services purchasing managers index revealed yesterday. S&P Global's Tim Moore said: “Worries about the impact of policies in the Budget were widely reported as leading to a gloomier assessment of investment prospects and the broader UK economic outlook.”

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CARSON, Calif. (AP) — Joseph Paintsil and Dejan Joveljic scored in the first half, and the LA Galaxy won their record sixth Cup championship with a 2-1 victory over the New York Red Bulls on Saturday. After striking twice in the first 13 minutes of the final with goals from their star forwards, the Galaxy nursed their lead through a scoreless second half to raise their league’s biggest trophy for the first time since 2014. MLS’ struggled through most of the ensuing decade, even finishing 26th in the 29-team league last year. But the Galaxy turned everything around this season with a high-scoring new lineup that finished second in the Western Conference and then streaked through the playoffs with a whopping 18 goals in five games to win another crown. Sean Nealis scored for the seventh-seeded Red Bulls, whose improbable charge through the playoffs ended one win shy of its first Cup championship. With the league's youngest roster, New York fell just short of becoming the lowest-seeded team to win MLS' playoff tournament under first-year German coach Sandro Schwarz. Galaxy goalkeeper John McCarthy made four saves to win his second MLS title in three seasons. He was the MVP of the 2022 MLS Cup Final for the Galaxy's crosstown rival, Los Angeles FC. The Galaxy won this title without perhaps their most important player. Riqui Puig, the playmaking midfielder from Barcelona who ran their offense impressively all season long, tore a ligament in his knee last week in the Western Conference final. Puig watched the game in a suit, but his teammates hadn't forgotten him: After his replacement, Gastón Brugman, set up LA's opening goal with a superb pass, Paintsil held up Puig's jersey to their fans during the celebration. Paintsil put the Galaxy ahead in the ninth minute when he ran onto that sublime pass from Brugman and pounded home his 14th MLS goal — including four in the playoffs — in the Ghanaian forward's outstanding first season. Just four minutes later, Joveljic sprinted past four New York defenders and chipped home the 21st goal of his outstanding year as the Galaxy's striker. Nealis got New York on the scoreboard in the 28th minute when he volleyed home a ball that got loose in LA's penalty area after a corner. The Galaxy's usually shaky defense gave up another handful of good chances before reaching halftime with a tenuous lead. The second half was lively, but scoreless. Red Bulls captain Emil Forsberg hit the outside of the post in the 72nd minute, while Gabriel Pec and Galaxy substitute Marco Reus nearly converted chances a few moments later. The ball got loose again in the Galaxy's penalty area in the third minute of extra time, but two Red Bulls couldn't finish. The Galaxy bench rushed onto the field and prematurely celebrated a victory in the seventh minute of injury time, only to be herded back off for another 30 seconds of play. The Galaxy finished 17-0-3 this season at their frequently renamed suburban stadium, where the sellout crowd of 26,812 for the final included several robust cheering sections of traveling Red Bulls supporters hoping to see their New Jersey-based club’s breakthrough on MLS’ biggest stage. The Galaxy’s Greg Vanney became the fourth coach to win an MLS title with two clubs. The former Galaxy player also won it all with Toronto in 2017. The club famous for employing global stars from David Beckham and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Robbie Keane and Javier “Chicharito” Hernández rebuilt itself this season with lesser-known young talents from around the world. The Galaxy signed Pec from Brazil and the Ghanaian Paintsil out of Belgium, and the duo combined with incumbent Serbian striker Joveljic to form a potent attack that could outscore almost any MLS opponent. But the Galaxy also relied heavily on Puig, their Catalan catalyst and one of MLS’ best players. Puig stayed in last week's game after injuring his knee, and he even delivered the decisive pass to Joveljic for the game’s only goal. ___ AP soccer:

SAN CARLOS, Ariz. — After missing 40 days of school last year, Tommy Betom, 10, is on track this year for much better attendance. The importance of showing up has been stressed repeatedly at school — and at home. When he went to school last year, he often came home saying the teacher was picking on him and other kids were making fun of his clothes. But Tommy’s grandmother Ethel Marie Betom, who became one of his caregivers after his parents split, said she told him to choose his friends carefully and to behave in class. He needs to go to school for the sake of his future, she told him. “I didn’t have everything,” said Betom, an enrolled member of the San Carlos Apache tribe. Tommy attends school on the tribe’s reservation in southeastern Arizona. “You have everything. You have running water in the house, bathrooms and a running car.” A teacher and a truancy officer also reached out to Tommy’s family to address his attendance. He was one of many. Across the San Carlos Unified School District, 76% of students were chronically absent during the 2022-2023 school year, meaning they missed 10% or more of the school year. Years after COVID-19 disrupted American schools, nearly every state is still struggling with attendance. But attendance has been worse for Native American students — a disparity that existed before the pandemic and has since grown, according to data collected by The Associated Press. Out of 34 states with data available for the 2022-2023 school year, half had absenteeism rates for Native American and Alaska Native students that were at least 9 percentage points higher than the state average. Many schools serving Native students have been working to strengthen connections with families, who often struggle with higher rates of illness and poverty. Schools also must navigate distrust dating back to the U.S. government’s campaign to break up Native American culture, language and identity by forcing children into abusive boarding schools. History “may cause them to not see the investment in a public school education as a good use of their time,” said Dallas Pettigrew, director of Oklahoma University’s Center for Tribal Social Work and a member of the Cherokee Nation. The San Carlos school system recently introduced care centers that partner with hospitals, dentists and food banks to provide services to students at multiple schools. The work is guided by cultural success coaches — school employees who help families address challenges that keep students from coming to school. Nearly 100% of students in the district are Native and more than half of families have incomes below the federal poverty level. Many students come from homes that deal with alcoholism and drug abuse, Superintendent Deborah Dennison said. Students miss school for reasons ranging from anxiety to unstable living conditions, said Jason Jones, a cultural success coach at San Carlos High School and an enrolled member of the San Carlos Apache tribe. Acknowledging their fears, grief and trauma helps him connect with students, he said. “You feel better, you do better,” Jones said. “That’s our job here in the care center is to help the students feel better.” In the 2023-2024 school year, the chronic absenteeism rate in the district fell from 76% to 59% — an improvement Dennison attributes partly to efforts to address their communities’ needs. “All these connections with the community and the tribe are what’s making a difference for us and making the school a system that fits them rather than something that has been forced upon them, like it has been for over a century of education in Indian Country,” said Dennison, a member of the Navajo Nation. In three states — Alaska, Nebraska, and South Dakota — the majority of Native American and Alaska Native students were chronically absent. In some states, it has continued to worsen, even while improving slightly for other students, as in Arizona, where chronic absenteeism for Native students rose from 22% in 2018-2019 to 45% in 2022-2023. AP’s analysis does not include data on schools managed by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Education, which are not run by traditional districts. Less than 10% of Native American students attend BIE schools. At Algodones Elementary School, which serves a handful of Native American pueblos along New Mexico’s Upper Rio Grande, about two-thirds of students are chronically absent. The communities were hit hard by COVID-19, with devastating effects on elders. Since schools reopened, students have been slow to return. Excused absences for sick days are still piling up — in some cases, Principal Rosangela Montoya suspects, students are stressed about falling behind academically. Staff and tribal liaisons have been analyzing every absence and emphasizing connections with parents. By 10 a.m., telephone calls go out to the homes of absent students. Next steps include in-person meetings with those students’ parents. “There’s illness. There’s trauma,” Montoya said. “A lot of our grandparents are the ones raising the children so that the parents can be working.” About 95% of Algodones’ students are Native American, and the school strives to affirm their identity. It doesn’t open on four days set aside for Native American ceremonial gatherings, and students are excused for absences on other cultural days as designated by the nearby pueblos. For Jennifer Tenorio, it makes a difference that the school offers classes in the family’s native language of Keres. She speaks Keres at home, but says that’s not always enough to instill fluency. Tenorio said her two oldest children, now in their 20s, were discouraged from speaking Keres when enrolled in the federal Head Start educational program — a system that now promotes native language preservation — and they struggled academically. “It was sad to see with my own eyes,” said Tenorio, a single parent and administrative assistant who has used the school’s food bank. “In Algodones, I saw a big difference to where the teachers were really there for the students, and for all the kids, to help them learn.” Over a lunch of strawberry milk and enchiladas on a recent school day, her 8-year-old son Cameron Tenorio said he likes math and wants to be a policeman. “He’s inspired,” Tenorio said. “He tells me every day what he learns.” In Arizona, Rice Intermediate School Principal Nicholas Ferro said better communication with families, including Tommy Betom’s, has helped improve attendance. Since many parents are without working phones, he said, that often means home visits. Lillian Curtis said she has been impressed by Rice Intermediate’s student activities on family night. Her granddaughter, Brylee Lupe, 10, missed 10 days of school by mid-October last year but had missed just two days by the same time this year. “The kids always want to go — they are anxious to go to school now. And Brylee is much more excited,” said Curtis, who takes care of her grandchildren. Curtis said she tells Brylee that skipping school is not an option. “I just told her that you need to be in school, because who is going to be supporting you?” Curtis said. “You’ve got to do it on your own. You got to make something of yourself.” The district has made gains because it is changing the perception of school and what it can offer, said Dennison, the superintendent. Its efforts have helped not just with attendance but also morale, especially at the high school, she said. “Education was a weapon for the U.S. government back in the past,” she said. “We work to decolonize our school system.”WEBER STATE 68, PEPPERDINE 53The Latest: Police believe gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO has left New York CityOn election night, Republicans in New Hampshire delivered what many thought of as a slam dunk. But outgoing Gov. Chris Sununu doesn’t see Republicans’ trifecta control of the governor’s office, the House and the Senate in Concord as a free pass. The vast majority of bills that pass the Legislature are bipartisan, he said, as they must be. No matter which party is in power, Sununu said it’s the best way to ensure laws benefit the entire state, which trends more politically purple than red or blue. “You hear about the 30, 40, 50 that might be a little more controversial and might have a little more partisanship to them at times, just because of philosophy, but that doesn’t mean the people of the state don’t agree with them, right?” Sununu said. Not everyone will agree, but “the vast majority of what gets passed here is going to be done in the interest of the state.” As legislators gathered in the State House on Wednesday for Organization Day – where all lawmakers are sworn in for the next term and elect their political leaders – they echoed that message of bipartisanship. Sherman Packard, a Londonderry Republican, was reelected as speaker of the House of Representatives. He demanded civility from his colleagues, whether they agree on policy issues or not. “We are going to have a vast amount of difference on the subject matter, but by god, that doesn’t mean we can’t be civil and friendly and cooperating with each other when we are on the same page,” Packard said, at which point the House erupted into applause. “All I ask of all of you, on both sides, is that we respect each other and we make sure that we have a civil conversation.” He defeated his Democratic challenger, Rep. Alexis Simpson from Exeter, 202-162. Article continues after... Cross|Word Flipart Typeshift SpellTower Really Bad Chess These calls for bipartisanship are sure to be tested. The Legislature is set to vote on a multitude of divisive topics, including education funding, abortion restrictions, immigration laws and forming the next state budget, to name a few. Republicans have a 222-178 majority in the House and a 16-8 supermajority in the Senate. Londonderry Republican Sharon Carson was elected as Senate president. Other positions chosen by members of the Legislature were uncontested: David Scanlan will serve once more as Secretary of State, and Monica Mezzapelle will return as the State Treasurer. The Legislature will reconvene on Jan. 8 to begin the 2025 session. Charlotte Matherly is the statehouse reporter for the Concord Monitor and Monadnock Ledger-Transcript in partnership with Report for America. Follow her on X at @charmatherly, or send her an email at cmatherly@cmonitor.com.

The Margaret Chase Smith Library: Annual Leeke-Shaw Lecture on International AffairsThe 50-year-old executive was shot at about 6.45am as he walked alone to the New York Hilton Midtown from a nearby hotel, police said. The gunman appeared to be “lying in wait for several minutes” before approaching Mr Thompson from behind and opening fire, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. Police have not yet established a motive. “Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target,” Ms Tisch said, adding that the shooting “does not appear to be a random act of violence”. Mr Thompson was struck at least once in the back and once in the calf, Ms Tisch said. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The suspect, dressed in a hooded sweatshirt and carrying a grey backpack, then fled on foot down an alleyway before pedalling an e-bike into Central Park a few blocks away. The shooter was at large, sparking a search that included police drones, helicopters and dogs. “We are deeply saddened and shocked at the passing of our dear friend and colleague Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare,” the insurer’s parent company, UnitedHealth Group, said in a statement. “Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him,” the company said. “We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time.” Police issued a poster showing a surveillance image of the suspect pointing what appeared to be a gun and another image that appeared to show the same person on a bicycle. Police offered a reward of up to 10,000 US dollars (£7,860) for information leading to an arrest and conviction. The killing shook a part of New York City that is normally quiet at that hour, happening about four blocks from where tens of thousands of people are set to gather on Wednesday night for the annual Rockefeller Centre Christmas tree lighting. Mr Thompson’s wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News that the executive told her “there were some people that had been threatening him”. She said she did not have details, but suggested they may have involved issues with insurance coverage. UnitedHealthcare is the insurance arm of the health care giant UnitedHealth Group. The group was holding its annual meeting with investors to update Wall Street on the company’s direction and expectations for the coming year. The company ended the conference early in the wake of Mr Thompson’s death. “I’m afraid that we – some of you may know we’re dealing with a very serious medical situation with one of our team members,” a company official told attendees, according to a transcript. “And as a result, I’m afraid we’re going to have to bring to a close the event today. I’m sure you’ll understand.” Mr Thompson, a father of two sons, had been with the company since 2004 and served as chief executive for more than three years. UnitedHealthcare is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in the US and manages health insurance coverage for employers and state-and federally funded Medicaid programmes. Minnesota governor Tim Walz posted on the social platform X that the state is “sending our prayers to Brian’s family and the UnitedHealthcare team”. “This is horrifying news and a terrible loss for the business and health care community in Minnesota,” the Democrat wrote.Patrick Brown says foreign interference did not affect Tory leadership race outcome

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Dec. 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Codexis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CDXS), a leading provider of enzymatic solutions for efficient and scalable therapeutics manufacturing, today announced the approval of equity grants to five new employees as approved by the Compensation Committee of Codexis’ Board of Directors. The newly hired employees received equity awards consisting of an aggregate of (i) options to purchase 168,400 shares of Codexis common stock and (ii) 39,750 restricted stock units (RSUs) as inducement awards under the company’s 2024 Inducement Plan. The stock options have an exercise price equal to the closing price per share of Codexis’ common stock as reported by Nasdaq on the grant date, and vest over four years, with 25 percent of the shares vesting on the first anniversary of the vesting commencement date, and the remainder vesting ratably at the end of each subsequent month thereafter, subject to each employee’s continued service with Codexis through the applicable vesting dates. The RSUs will vest in equal annual installments on each anniversary of the grant date, until the third anniversary of such date, subject to each employee’s continued service with Codexis through the applicable vesting dates. Codexis is providing this information in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)4. About Codexis Codexis is a leading provider of enzymatic solutions for efficient and scalable therapeutics manufacturing that leverages its proprietary CodeEvolver ® technology platform to discover, develop and enhance novel, high-performance enzymes and other classes of proteins. Codexis enzymes solve for real-world challenges associated with small molecule pharmaceuticals manufacturing and nucleic acid synthesis. The Company is currently developing its proprietary ECO SynthesisTM manufacturing platform to enable the scaled manufacture of RNAi therapeutics through an enzymatic route. Codexis’ unique enzymes can drive improvements such as higher yields, reduced energy usage and waste generation, improved efficiency in manufacturing and greater sensitivity in genomic and diagnostic applications. For more information, visit https://www.codexis.com . For More Information Investor Contact Carrie McKim (336) 608-9706 ir@codexis.com Media Contact Lauren Musto (650) 421-8205 media@codexis.comMike Gundy will remain Oklahoma State coach after coming to agreement on restructured dealAfter drubbing, San Jose Sharks look for response in South Florida