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Huff, puff: Blowing down five strength-training myths
Come on, don't be a weakling: Load weight plates onto a barbell on a squat rack at chest level. And making sure to follow proper technique to avoid injury, do several sets of squats - uff - a standard strength-training exercise. Strength training is diverse and can be quite complex, and many myths surround it. We spoke with two fitness experts, who dispel five common ones. 1. You should train as often as possible, and with heavy weights "It's not that simple," says physiotherapist and fitness coach Johannes Frank, who owns a fitness facility in Berlin. Proper strength training is a matter of...
'I never sit on trains:' Bedbug advice for summer travellers
Ever woke up to a sudden, inexplicable, itchy rash on your neck, arms and shoulders? There's a strong chance you have bedbugs - and that requires fast action. It's a situation familiar to many who visited Paris in 2023, when a widespread infestation saw visitors picking up bedbugs in hotels, cinemas and trains. As the city prepares for the 2024 Paris Olympics between July 26 and August 11, government officials are keen to avoid renewed international headlines about another "Bugpocalypse." After all, getting rid of bedbugs is akin to an Olympic feat. Searching for bedbugs is notoriously difficult, as they are no more...
Scholz says US missiles in Germany will help in 'preventing a war'
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday again rejected fears that the planned stationing of long-range US missiles in Germany could lead to an escalation with Russia. The weapons are intended as a deterrent, Scholz said after a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Berlin. "What we are always concerned with is preventing a war," Scholz said. Earlier this week, Germany and the US announced an agreement to station long-range US missiles on Germany territory beginning in 2026, the first time such weapons have been stationed in Germany since the end of the Cold War. The US weapons are to include Tomahawk cruise...
Erdoğan demands no NATO cooperation with Israel until end of Gaza war
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said that he will not approve any future cooperation between the NATO military alliance and Israel while the war in Gaza is continuing. Turkey, a NATO member since 1952, will not accept this kind of cooperation "until a comprehensive and sustainable peace is established in the Palestinian Territories," Erdoğan wrote on X on Friday following the NATO summit in Washington. "It is impossible for the Israeli government, which tramples on the fundamental values of our alliance, to continue its partnership with NATO," Erdoğan wrote. Israel is not a member of the defence alliance, but closely cooperates with...
First lady to lead US delegation to Paris Olympics opening ceremony
US First Lady Jill Biden, the wife of US President Joe Biden, will lead the country's delegation at the opening ceremony for the Olympic Games in Paris on July 26, the White House said on Friday. Douglas Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, will head the United States delegation for the closing ceremony on August 11. The president has also named the delegations for the opening and closing ceremonies of the subsequent Paralympics, the White House announced. The delegation to the Paralympics opening ceremony on August 28 will be led by US Senator Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat from Illinois and former US Army pilot who has used a wheelchair since losing both legs when her helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade in Iraq. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra will lead the US delegation to the Paralympics closing ceremony on September 8.
AI 'help' for writers takes the novelty out of novels, research shows
Fiction writers who use artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots end up churning out narratives that are more alike than those penned by people, according to a team of UK-based academics. Researchers at the University College London and University of Exeter found that when AI output was added to fiction, the outcome was stories that "decreased in novelty, overall" as these tales ended up "more similar to each other than stories by humans alone." At the same time, using AI somehow "may be able to improve the creativity of individual writers" even if the end product echoes that of fellow would-be authors who lean...
Number of prostitutes registered in Germany rises slightly
The number of registered prostitutes in Germany is on the rise but remains below the number working before the coronavirus pandemic, according to government figures released on Friday. At the end of 2023, around 30,600 prostitutes were registered with the authorities in Germany, 8.3% more than in the previous year, according to the Federal Statistical Office. Although this is a further increase, it remains lower than the number of registered sex workers in the country before the pandemic. At the end of 2019, 40,400 prostitutes were registered. German law has required sex workers to register since 2017. Unregistered sex workers are not included in...
EU firm as UN resolution for Srebrenica genocide sparks Balkan debate
Europe and the world commemorated the 29th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, often described as the worst crime committed on European soil since World War II. Ceremonies were held at the Potočari Memorial Centre in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and also in many European countries and in the United States. The massacre took place in the Bosnian city of Srebrenica on July 11, 1995 and on subsequent days. Most of the victims were Bosniak men and boys – Bosnian Muslims – who had been separated from the women, girls and small children who were bused to territory controlled by the Bosnian army. According to the International...
Lufthansa cuts financial forecast after slower second quarter
German aviation giant Lufthansa Group has slashed its financial forecast for the year following a disappointing performance in the second quarter. The firm - which encompasses Germany's flagship Lufthansa Airlines and a number of subsidiaries - said on Friday that its bottom line fell on the back of lower ticket revenues, especially for travel to Asia. In the second quarter, Lufthansa Airlines made a profit of only €213 million ($232 million), down from €515 million in the same period last year, the company announced in Frankfurt. The group now has a loss of €427 million on its books for the first half of...
European Commission finds Elon Musk's X breaches EU digital laws
Elon Musk's social media platform X is in breach of EU digital laws due to deceiving users and transparency failures, the European Commission announced on Friday in a preliminary finding. The commission said that X's verification system for users, known as the blue checkmark system, was open to abuse by "motivated malicious actors" since anyone may purchase the status. Before, the blue checkmark system "used to mean trustworthy sources of information," EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton said in a statement. "Now with X, our preliminary view is that they deceive users," he said. "X has now the right of defence — but...
Iran's new president names veteran diplomat as top adviser
Newly elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has appointed a diplomat widely viewed as a political moderate as his top adviser. According to Iranian media reports, former foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will advise the new president on domestic and foreign policy issues during the transition phase. In this role, Zarif will also oversee the selection of potential ministers for the new Cabinet Zarif was the country's chief diplomat during Hassan Rowhani's presidency from 2013 to 2021 and was able to conclude the international nuclear agreement with six world powers in 2015 as head of the Iranian negotiating team. He is a proponent of better...
Showdown in Berlin: England's redemption or Spain's record?
In their hunt for a first-ever European title and first major trophy in 58 years, England will have to stop an undefeated Spain in the Euro 2024 final at Berlin's Olympic stadium on Sunday. "Just one more step and we'll be in the history books," England captain Harry Kane said as they reached a second consecutive Euros final after heartbreak at Euro 2020 with a defeat on penalties to Italy at their home Wembley stadium. This final step is becoming an event of national significance in England. Not because of fear of another bitter failure, but because of the dream of sporting...
Closing arguments in trial of German footballer Boateng in Munich
In the trial of German football player Jérôme Boateng, prosecutors urged the court to impose a fine of €1.12 million ($1.22 million) over allegations of violence against his ex-girlfriend. At the centre of the proceedings are allegations of violence made by Boateng's ex-girlfriend during a holiday together in the Caribbean in 2018. The trial is being held after the Bavarian Supreme State Court overturned previous verdicts against Boateng in the case, citing legal issues. Boateng, a former star on the German national team and long-time defender at Bayern Munich, recently transferred from the Italian club US Salernitana to Linzer ASK in Austria. "For me,...
Key Catalan separatist leader Marta Rovira returns to Spain
Influential Catalan separatist leader Marta Rovira is back in Spain after more than six years in exile in Switzerland. The 47-year-old crossed the border between France and Catalonia in a car with four fellow campaigners. Shortly afterwards, she gave a combative speech in the border community of Cantallops: "We have come back to finish what we left unfinished," she shouted to the cheers of many supporters. They carried a banner reading "Freedom for Catalonia." Catalonia's pro-independence movement reached a high point in late 2017 with an independence referendum, although it was later declared illegal. A group of separatists leaders fled the country after...
Outrage in Germany as Russia denies plot to kill Rheinmetall boss
German politicians voiced their outrage on Friday after a report detailed an alleged Russian plot to assassinate the head of German arms maker Rheinmetall, as a Kremlin spokesman denied any involvement from Moscow. According to the report, which was published by US broadcaster CNN on Thursday, US intelligence earlier this year uncovered Russian government plans to assassinate Armin Papperger, the chief executive of Rheinmetall. Citing "five US and western officials familiar with the episode," CNN said German authorities were notified of the plot and subsequently increased security for Papperger at the time. The broadcaster said a German government official confirmed that Berlin had...
Lithuanian President Nausėda vows security focus in second term
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda was sworn in for a second five-year term on Friday. In a speech in parliament in Vilnius, the 60-year-old promised to work for the security of the Baltic EU and NATO country, which borders the Russian Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad and Russia's close ally Belarus. Nausėda was convincingly re-elected at the end of May. The economist has led the country since 2019. "National security will be one of my most important tasks as head of state," Nauseda said after being sworn in. Achieving Ukraine's victory in the war against Russia must remain the priority, he said: "We must continue to be the loud voice of Ukraine on the international stage." Nausėda regularly represents his country at EU summits, and the Lithuanian president is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces. In response to the war in Ukraine, the German government has pledged to permanently station a brigade of up to 5,000 German soldiers in the Baltic state.
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