A strong earthquake has shaken the Greek capital of Athens, knocking out phone networks and power in parts of the city.
The earthquake was registered at 5.1 magnitude with an epicentre about 22km (14 miles) north-west of Athens.
Parents have reacted angrily to a decision by Italy's top court which states that the right to eat packed lunches in schools is not "unconditional."
Italy's Supreme Court said schools should have the autonomy to decide if children are allowed to eat packed lunches on school grounds.
A lower court previously ruled in favour of a group of Turin parents who wanted to opt out of school meals.
Parents say school meals are costly.
They also argue that food provided by schools can be unhealthy.
The Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that bringing a packed lunch was "a possible violation of the principles of equality and non-discrimination based on economic circumstances".
A drug dealer in Brazil was caught trying to escape from the jail where he was locked up by disguising himself as his 19-year-old daughter.
Prison authorities in Rio de Janeiro released a video showing the inmate wearing a wig, a silicone mask, a bra and a tight-fitting T-shirt. The 42-year-old removes the items one by one to reveal a muscular physique very unlike that of his daughter. Officials said the daughter could be charged with aiding a prison escape. They said the 19-year-old had come to visit her father, Clauvino da Silva, at the jail in Rio de Janeiro known as Bangu 3, where he was serving a sentence of 73 years and 10 months.
A giant parrot that roamed New Zealand about 19 million years ago had a height of 1m (3ft 2in) - roughly half the average height of a human, a new study has found.
The remains of the parrot were found near St Bathans in New Zealand's southern Otago region. Given its size, the parrot is believed to have been flightless and carnivorous, unlike most birds today. A study of the bird was published on Tuesday in the journal Biology Letters. Weighing just over one stone (7kg), the bird would have been two times heavier than the kākāpo, previously the largest known parrot. "There are no other giant parrots in the world," Professor Trevor Worthy, a palaeontologist at Flinders University in Australia and lead author of the study, told the BBC. "Finding one is very significant."
@scottalanmiller Well maybe a whole package of crackers.
Bolivian opposition senator Jeanine Áñez has declared herself interim president of the South American country following Evo Morales' resignation.
Ms Áñez said she was next in line under the constitution and vowed to hold elections soon. Her appointment was endorsed by Bolivia's Constitutional Court. Lawmakers from Mr Morales' party boycotted the session, and the former president branded Ms Áñez "a coup-mongering right-wing senator". Mr Morales has fled to Mexico, saying he asked for asylum there because his life was in danger. He resigned on Sunday after weeks of protests over a disputed presidential election result. He has said he had been forced to stand down but had done so willingly "so there would be no more bloodshed".
The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak has risen to 170, and a confirmed case in Tibet means it has reached every region in mainland China.
Chinese health authorities said there were 7,711 confirmed cases in the country as of 29 January. Infections have also spread to at least 15 other countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) will meet on Thursday to again consider whether the virus constitutes a global health emergency. "In the last few days the progress of the virus, especially in some countries, especially human-to-human transmission, worries us," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday. He named Germany, Vietnam and Japan, where there have been cases of people catching the virus from others who have been to China. "Although the numbers outside China are still relatively small, they hold the potential for a much larger outbreak," the WHO chief said. More people have now been infected in China than during the Sars outbreak in the early 2000s, but the death toll remains far lower. Sars, also a coronavirus, caused acute respiratory illness.
The death of a Chinese doctor who tried to warn about the coronavirus outbreak has sparked an unprecedented level of public anger and grief in China.
Li Wenliang died after contracting the virus while treating patients in Wuhan. Last December he sent a message to fellow medics warning of a virus he thought looked like Sars - another deadly coronavirus. But he was told by police to "stop making false comments" and was investigated for "spreading rumours". "I don't think he was rumour-mongering. Hasn't this turned into reality now?" his father, Li Shuying, told the BBC. "My son was wonderful." News of his death was met with an intense outpouring of grief on Chinese social media site Weibo - but this quickly turned into anger. There had already been accusations against the government of downplaying the severity of the virus - and initially trying to keep it secret. Dr Li's death fuelled this further and triggered a conversation about the lack of freedom of speech in China.
BOULDER, Colo. -- Dozens of drivers in Boulder County are dealing with major car problems after unknowingly filling their cars with diesel.
The mix-up reportedly happening at a Circle K near Folsom Street and Pearl Street in Boulder. Dani Alexander says she filled up her 2015 Subaru Forester at the station on Wednesday. "I got gas and about three blocks later, my car started lugging and chugging," said Alexander. "It's a really good car and I just got it tuned up on Friday." Alexander thought her repair shop had forgotten to attach a line, so she called for a tow. "The tow truck driver stopped the car, and said, 'you're the second person I've towed this afternoon with that problem,'" said Alexander. Alexander called Circle K, which referred her to Travelers Insurance. The insurance company has agreed to pay for the $1,100 car repair, the tow and the tank of gas.
A medical worker wearing a protective mask and suit treats novel coronavirus patients in Italy.
A 101-year-old Italian man has recovered from COVID-19 and his city's deputy mayor said the story provides "hope for the future," CNN reported. Gloria Lisi told reporters the man, identified as Mr. P., had an "extraordinary" recovery. "Mr. P. made it. The family brought him home yesterday evening," CNN reported Lisi saying. "To teach us that even at 101 years the future is not written."
Nasa is to launch a new zero-gravity toilet for testing at the International Space Station (ISS) before its probable use in a future mission to the Moon.
The $23m (£17.8m) toilet, which sucks waste from the body, will be sent to the station on a cargo ship. Nasa said the toilet's "vacuum system" was designed for the comfort of female astronauts, unlike previous models. A rocket carrying the cargo ship was supposed to blast off from Wallops Island, Virginia, on Thursday. But the mission was aborted less than three minutes before lift off because of technical difficulties. Another launch attempt is due on Friday evening if engineers can fix the issues that caused Thursday's delay.
Then it wandered into Walmart and found its owner working at the register.
June Rountree and her husband circled their neighborhood night after night looking for their beloved lost dog Abby. Rountree, 60, realized the dog was missing Nov. 8, when she went to the backyard of their home in Dothan, Ala., and instead of seeing her 4-year-old black-and-white dog, she was horrified to see only Abby’s collar and leash, which was secured to a ground stake. Despite their efforts, there was no sign of Abby, and the Rountrees were beginning to lose hope. Three weeks later, an unlikely and perhaps miraculous turn of events left them convinced Abby is either the luckiest or the smartest dog in town.
The UN secretary general has called on all countries to declare a climate emergency.
António Guterres was speaking at a virtual summit on the fifth anniversary of the Paris climate agreement, He criticised rich countries for spending 50% more of their pandemic recovery cash on fossil fuels compared to low-carbon energy. Over 70 world leaders are due to speak at the meeting organised by the UK, UN and France. Mr Guterres said that 38 countries had already declared a climate emergency and he called on leaders worldwide to now do the same.
The US has agreed to suspend tariffs on UK goods including single malt whiskies that were imposed in retaliation over subsidies to the aircraft maker Airbus.
Tariffs will also be lifted on UK cheese, cashmere and machinery. The duties will be suspended for four months while the two sides seek a long-term settlement. On 1 January, the UK dropped its own tariffs on some US goods, put in place over a related dispute about US subsidies to Boeing. It is the latest twist in a decades-old trade row that has seen the EU and the US target billions of dollars worth of each other's exports with taxes. The UK is part of the dispute as a former EU member. Airbus makes wings and other parts in the UK, but assembles its commercial aircraft in the EU.
Scientists have detected two collisions between a neutron star and a black hole in the space of 10 days
Researchers predicted that such collisions would occur, but did not know how often. The observations could mean that some ideas of how stars and galaxies form may need to be revised. Prof Vivien Raymond, from Cardiff University, told BBC News that the surprising results were fantastic. "We have to go back to the drawing board and rewrite our theories," he said effusively. "We have learned a bit of a lesson again. When we assume something we tend to be proved wrong after a while. So we have to keep our minds open and see what the Universe is telling us."
A US science institute is on the verge of achieving a longstanding goal in nuclear fusion research.
The National Ignition Facility uses a powerful laser to heat and compress hydrogen fuel, initiating fusion. An experiment suggests the goal of "ignition", where the energy released by fusion exceeds that delivered by the laser, is now within touching distance. Harnessing fusion, the process that powers the Sun, could provide a limitless, clean energy source. In a process called inertial confinement fusion, 192 beams from NIF's laser - the highest-energy example in the world - are directed towards a peppercorn-sized capsule containing deuterium and tritium, which are different forms of the element hydrogen.
US drug regulators have approved Pfizer booster vaccines for people over 65 if they had their last shot at least six months ago.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has also authorised adults at higher risk of severe illness and who work in front-line jobs to get the booster jab. It means tens of millions of Americans are now eligible for their third shot. However the boosters still need approval from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Independent panels from the CDC are holding meetings on Wednesday and Thursday, and are expected to endorse the move quickly, US media reports. The panels' decisions will include recommendations on who qualifies as high risk, and which frontline workers should be eligible. For its part, the FDA says "health care workers, teachers and day care staff, grocery workers and those in homeless shelters or prisons" should be on that list, acting FDA commissioner Janet Woodcock said in a statement.