The Daily Populous

Friday August 26th, 2022 day edition

image for Ukraine narrowly escapes nuclear catastrophe as plant loses power, Zelenskiy says

Back-up diesel generators ensured power supply that is vital for cooling and safety systems at the plant, Zelenskiy said, praising the Ukrainian technicians who operate the plant under the gaze of the Russian military.

Residents in the capital Kyiv, some 556 km (345 miles) to the northwest of the plant, expressed alarm at the situation.

Russia's Defence Ministry said on Friday its forces had destroyed a U.S.-made M777 howitzer which it said Ukraine had used to shell the Zaporizhzhia plant.

Russia invaded Ukraine in February, captured the plant in March and has controlled it since, though Ukrainian technicians still operate it.

Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of shelling the site, fuelling fears of a nuclear disaster.

1/5 Overview of Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and fires, in Enerhodar in Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, August 24, 2022.

Nuclear experts have warned of the risk of damage to the plant's spent nuclear fuel pools or its reactors. »

White House trolls Marjorie Taylor Greene for student loan criticism: ‘She had $183k in PPP loans repaid’

Authored by independent.co.uk

The White House called out congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene on Thursday, after the Georgia Republican criticised the Biden administration’s student loan debt plan as unfair despite getting more than $183,000 in federal loan forgiveness herself.

Ms Greene wasn’t the only one the White House singled out for seemingly clashing views on federal loan forgiveness.

The Biden administration also noted that Republican critics of the student loan plan like representatives Vern Buchanan, Markwayne Mullin, and Kevin Hern each had over $1m in PPP loans forgiven. »

Federally funded studies must be freely accessible to the public, White House says

Authored by engadget.com

The White House has updated its policy on federally funded research.

Going forward, the results of studies funded by the government must be made public right away.

Under the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy's (OSTP) latest guidance , the administration is eliminating the option to put federally funded peer-reviewed research articles exclusively behind a paywall for 12 months. »

Xbox responds to PlayStation’s price hike

Authored by windowscentral.com

Since that announcement, Xbox fans and commentators from across the gaming sphere have wondered if Microsoft would follow suit with the Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S. Microsoft has won a lot of ground in the current console generation by focusing on value via Xbox Game Pass, and the more affordable Xbox Series S, which targets 1080p while bringing next-gen speeds.

Our Xbox Series S suggested retail price remains at $299 (£250, €300) the Xbox Series X is $499 (£450, €500).”.

While this isn’t a hard guarantee that we will never see a price hike for the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles, it’s certainly an encouraging sign that Microsoft has no intentions to do so in the short term. »