WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 18, 2023--

When Pauline Philippe found out she was pregnant with twins, she felt a flash of happiness. Then she burst into tears in front of the ultrasound technician.

California lawmakers agreed to provide billions of dollars to the state’s ailing mass transit systems as agencies face

The St Louis Cardinals stormed back from a 4-0 first-inning deficit to beat the Chicago Cubs 7-5 and split Major League Baseball’s second London Series. For some punters this event was about gawking at two-foot long hot dogs and potentially seeing a handful of home runs, though noises around London Stadium suggested a decent number of the 55,565 in attendance were genuinely invested in the sport. Players from both sides emphasised the seriousness of MLB’s trip across the pond – which holds genuine consequences for the National League Central rivals’ postseason hopes – while MLB will be evaluating if and how they can continue to stage games in London after the last scheduled series here in 2026. Chicago were dealt a blow when pitching ace Marcus Stroman was forced off with injury in the bottom of the fourth, while the division-bottom Cardinals (32-45) benefitted from an alert offence and strong performance from the bullpen in a game that featured 11 different men on the mound. Stroman entered the afternoon with wins in an MLB-leading seven straight starts, while Cardinals boss Oliver Marmol turned to Matthew Liberatore after Jack Flaherty was a late fitness scratch. The Cardinals quickly fell behind after the ‘visiting’ Cubs batted first, capitalised on a pair of errors and got themselves out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning. But St Louis rallied in the bottom half of the second and had the bases loaded with two outs before singles from Tommy Edman and Brendan Donovan made it 4-3. With a man on first, Marmol swapped his starter for right-hander Jake Woodford at the top of the third, while neither of the two pinch runners Cubs boss David Ross introduced for the subsequent at-bats crossed home plate and the score stood at 4-3. But it was all tied up at the end of the inning after Jordan Walker’s line drive to centre brought home Lars Nootbaar. The Cards took the lead for the first time in the bottom of the fourth through Paul Goldschmidt, who this weekend became the first MLB player to play in five countries and drove in Edman to make it 5-4. Something seemed to be troubling the usually reliable Stroman. He began the game with the national league’s lowest earned-run average, but in London he ended the afternoon with six runs allowed and hit Donovan with a pitch. A mound visit determined the Cubs ace was suffering from a blister to his right index finger and he was pulled after 3.1 innings and replaced by Michael Fulmer, St Louis extending their lead when Lars Nootbaar’s sacrifice fly allowed Donovan to score from third. The Cardinals managed just six hits across all nine innings on Saturday. By Sunday’s seventh-inning stretch they had posted 11, including Nolan Gorman’s fifth-inning single to make it 7-4. The bullpen quartet of Woodford, Genesis Cabrera, Giovanny Gallegos and Andre Pallante combined for seven scoreless innings before Jordan Hicks gave up a sacrifice fly to Nico Hoerner, allowing Nick Madrigal to cross home plate. Though the Cubs had no given up a run since the fifth it was too late to spark a comeback, despite winning a video review challenge. It was down to Seiya Suzuki to make magic happen with their last out. Instead, Hicks caught him swinging to seal the all-important victory in Britain. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Football rumours: Jadon Sancho and Harry Maguire may be shown Man Utd exit door Cameron Norrie ‘really excited’ about leading British men into Wimbledon battle Andy Murray recalls ‘huge relief’ of his maiden Wimbledon win 10 years on

Ancient clay tablets unearthed from ancient ruins in Turkey by archaeologists have revealed a language lost to the passages of time. The new language was discovered in the ancient capital of the Hittite Empire at Hattusa (known as Boğazköy-Hattusha). The well-preserved tablets are among many incredible artworks found at the site - a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Over the past four decades, researchers have dusted off nearly 30,000 unique tablets - with most written in Hittite. New research, however, shows that some of the tablet haul shows that they are written in a language previously unknown to modern man. Of course, the meaning and words of this language have not been deciphered, but it appears from early inspection to branch off from languages used within the Hittite Empire - and is being referred to as Kalašma. archaeologist Interestingly though, researchers from the Istanbul Department of the German Archaeological Institute have noted that the new language is found within a recitation in a 'cultic ritual text'. While that's usually the basis of a middling horror movie, we're certain that there's nothing to worry about - it stems from an ancient Hittite practice. Professor Daniel Schwemer explains that the discovery wasn't unexpected. "The Hittites were uniquely interested in recording rituals in foreign languages," he said. These ritual texts provide insight into little-known languages, and thanks to this discovery, one more has been added to the list. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

A plane passenger has been left baffled by seats that were facing each other on the aircraft. Megan Homme sat in the bizarre seating arrangement onboard her flight. There were pairs of seats opposite one another. Like typical economy flights, she sat next to another passenger. Her knees were just an inch away from another pair of flyers who were sitting opposite her. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter A similar setup is popular on trains. However, it is unusual to see this on aeroplanes. Passengers were left to awkwardly look at each other during the flight. Megan, of Chicago, US, experienced it on a regional airline in Sweden. She didn’t disclose which airline it is. @meganhomme WHY #flying #traveltiktok #plane #travelvlog Megan was left feeling uncomfortable on the plane and criticised the airline. She said: “I’ve never seen this on a flight before. “Seats facing each other.” Megan said she wasn’t able to pick her seat. Other holidaymakers were left stunned by the bizarre seating arrangements. One person called Kayla said: “I’d rather sit down with the luggage.” Effie said: “That would be so awkward, especially on longer flights. ”Where do you look?” ”I’m walking out and I expect a full refund,” said Nancy Kaguima. ”I’ll just sit on the wing and hold on,” said Daniel. Opyemi Alexander said: ”I'll just have to walk. ”Don’t care how long it takes.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

By Lisa Baertlein LOS ANGELES Logistics startup Flexport on Tuesday unveiled services to make it easier for small

Meta is revamping Facebook’s logo to a darker blue with a few small tweaks to create what it claims is a “bolder, electric and everlasting” design. The “subtle” logo change – which at first glance may seem barely noticeable – incorporates a “more confident expression of Facebook’s core blue color,” the social media company said in a blog post. Facebook says the logo change to the lowercase “f” is more visually accessible in the platform’s app with “stronger contrast for the ’f’ to stand apart”. “We wanted to ensure that the refreshed logo felt familiar, yet dynamic, polished and elegant in execution. These subtle, but significant changes allowed us to achieve optical balance with a sense of forward movement.” Dave N, director of design at Facebook said. The social media giant highlighted three “key drivers” behind the evolution of its logo, including a push to “elevate the most iconic elements” of the brand, and to create “an expansive set of colors” anchored in blue. Over the years, the social media platform’s logo has undergone a number of changes, starting from one that had square boundaries to the current circular design. The new logo, the company says, uses its custom typeface – Facebook Sans – and a redesigned wordmark and logo to “create a consistent treatment and improve overall legibility.” The new design has led to some being left puzzled on social media. Some users, however, described the design changes in a little more detail. Facebook says it has also developed a new colour palette with a new set of hues, tones and contrast ratios. “The deep tonal range of secondary blues allows for flexibility while providing balance as a single expression of our brand identity,” the company said. It said more changes to the platform’s “reactions, typography and iconography” are to be rolled out in the future. “All of these refinements will create a more consistent, personal and seamless experience for the billions of people who interact with Facebook daily,” the company said. Meta likely has more changes planned for the brand’s design in the coming days, with the company describing the latest tweaks on Wednesday’s blog as “the first phase of a refreshed identity system” for the app. Read More Meta’s encryption plans will create ‘safe haven’ for paedophiles, Braverman says Elon Musk warns of ‘civilisational risk’ posed by AI at historic gathering of tech giant chiefs Twitter rival Threads’ launch of much-anticipated feature did little to attract more users, data suggests What is ‘Rumble’, where Russell Brand is posting videos? Google sued after man drove off collapsed bridge while following map directions Google’s powerful ‘Bard’ AI can now get into your email

Sam Reinhart moved up to the top line and scored two goals and the defending Eastern Conference champion Florida Panthers held off a late rally by New Jersey in posting a 4-3 victory over the Devils on Monday night

Harry Kane says Bayern Munich need to use Manchester United’s issues to their advantage as the England skipper looks to shoot down his long-term admirers in the Champions League. Kane has long been linked with a move to Old Trafford but last month moved to the German giants from boyhood club Tottenham. He has hit the ground running with four goals in as many domestic games as attention turns to Wednesday’s Champions League opener. United are the visitors and the England skipper, 30, maintains Bayern always felt like the right choice for his next club. “To be honest, obviously over the summer I know there were some talks between a few clubs in the background,” Kane said. “But Bayern was a team I was really excited by so there wasn’t too many other discussions once they came in. “My focus is on here. Obviously Manchester are a great club, a really big club as well, but I decided to come here and I’m really happy I have.” Kane joined Bayern in search of silverware that has evaded him for club and country – success that is almost guaranteed with the German behemoths. Trophies have looked far from certain over the last decade at United, who head to Bavaria in a precarious state after a third defeat in four matches compounded their well-documented off-field issues. Kane is wary of a potential backlash but acknowledged United have been going through a “bit of a tough spell recently” that they can capitalise on. “I don’t know about the perfect time (to play them),” he said. “There can be a big response from teams going through a difficult spell but of course we need to use circumstances to our advantage, to go with big confidence at home in front of our fans. “It is important to start the game on the front foot and really try and put the pressure on the opposition. “They have some big threats as well, on the counter-attack they have some really quick players, so we need to be wary of that. “But overall it’s a game we want to try to dominate and try to keep the pressure on and hopefully break them down as the game goes on.” Thomas Tuchel’s Bayern side are strong favourites to win Wednesday’s match and second only to holders Manchester City in the bookmakers’ odds to lift the trophy, but Kane is focusing on further improvements on a personal and collective level. “It’s been a good start for me here for sure,” he said. “Whenever there is a big transfer there is a little bit more pressure and expectation. “Really pleased to score the four goals so far. I still think personally I can play better but I think that will come with getting to know my team-mates more and the system and the way we play. “There’s definitely room for improvement in my all-round game but it’s always good to score four goals in four games.” Kane is the all-time top goalscorer of both England and Tottenham, who have started the season well despite their star turn’s exit. New head coach Ange Postecoglou’s side are unbeaten in the Premier League, with four wins – including one over United – and a draw leaving Spurs second. “They’ve had a fantastic start,” Kane said. “I’m always keeping an eye on them and I’ll keep an eye on Tottenham for the rest of my life. “I’m really happy to see the team playing the way they are and to see the fans happy is a great thing.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Italy boss Kieran Crowley wary of ‘massive threat’ posed by Uruguay Harry Kane defends ‘scapegoated’ Harry Maguire amid ‘unnecessary scrutiny’ Chris Billam-Smith confident of Lawrence Okolie win but doubts appeal of rematch

WASHINGTON The White House urged caution on Tuesday at polls showing President Joe Biden lagging behind leading Republican

The father of Keke Palmer's son is getting dragged on social media for recent comments he made regarding her clothing.