Port authority fined for lapses in airport rescue, fire safety training
NEW YORK — The operator of the major airports in the New York metropolitan region has agreed to pay $3.5 million for failing to train its police officers to perform rescues and fight fires, under a settlement agreement announced Monday by the Federal Aviation Administration.
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For the academic elite — tenured professors at private research universities — average pay this year is $167,118, while at public research universities such professors earn $123,393, according to the annual report by the American Association of University Professors.
North Korea suspends work at shared factory site in border town
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea said Monday that it was withdrawing all of its 53,000 workers from the industrial park it runs with South Korea, suggesting that the North was seeking to portray itself as willing to subordinate financial gains to political and military priorities as it increased tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
Wary of events in China, foreign investors take money to Cambodia
Tiffany & Co. is quietly building a diamond-polishing factory in Cambodia, a country popularly associated more with killing fields and land mines than baubles.
South Korea warns of possible missile launch by North this week
SEOUL, South Korea — The South Korean government warned on Sunday that the North might launch a missile later this week, while a top military leader postponed a scheduled trip to Washington, citing escalating tensions on the peninsula.
Top Cypriot bankers cited in report
LONDON — Two of the most senior executives at Bank of Cyprus may have deleted crucial email documents last year relating to what proved to be a disastrous decision to invest heavily in Greek government bonds just before Greece’s international bailout in 2010, according to an investigative report commissioned by the central bank of Cyprus.
North Korea moves missile to east coast, but limited threat seen
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s defense chief said Thursday that North Korea had moved to its east coast a missile with a “considerable” range, but that it was not capable of reaching the United States. The disclosure came as the Communist North’s military warned that it was ready to strike U.S. military forces with “cutting-edge smaller, lighter and diversified nuclear strike means.”
White House seeks to change international food aid: buy local
WASHINGTON — An Obama administration plan to change the way the United States distributes its international food aid has touched off an intense lobbying campaign by a coalition of shipping companies, agribusiness and charitable groups who say the change will harm the nation’s economy and hamper efforts to fight global hunger.
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MOSCOW — The Irish Bank Resolution Co. is working with one of Russia’s largest banks to help find and seize assets in the former Soviet Union that belong to Sean Quinn, a bankrupt Irish billionaire who was once Ireland’s richest man.
A new test for computers: grading essays at college level
Imagine taking a college exam and, instead of handing in a blue book and getting a grade from a professor a few weeks later, clicking the “send” button when you are done and receiving a grade back instantly, your essay scored by a software program.
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American flags mixed with Revolutionary War banners that warned, “Don’t Tread on Me.’’ Dire predictions of tyranny spurred cries of defiance from 1,000 people on Boston Common.
Connecticut legislators agree on sweeping gun control laws
HARTFORD, Conn. — More than three months after the massacre of 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., legislative leaders announced on Monday that they had agreed on what they called the most far-reaching gun-legislation package in the country.
US sees North Korea blustering, not acting
WASHINGTON — Despite a drumbeat of increasingly bellicose threats from North Korea, the White House said Monday that there was no evidence that the country’s leader, Kim Jong Un, was mobilizing troops or other military forces for any imminent attack.
Low-cost drugs in poor nations get lift in court
NEW DELHI — People in developing countries in Africa and Asia will continue to have access to low-cost copycat versions of drugs for diseases like HIV and cancer, at least for a while.
Cold and breezy, then back to normal
Yesterday afternoon, a cold front pushed through our area, bringing with it strong winds and rain showers. The rain showers are gone today, but the strong winds will remain, ushering in a cold air mass from the west. Winds will be strong throughout the day, with speeds in the 15-25 mph range gusting upwards of 30 mph at times.
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SHANGHAI — Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook, took the unusual step Monday of apologizing to Chinese customers over the company’s warranty policy and said he would improve customer service in the country.
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NEW YORK — For a political acolyte of Rudolph W. Giuliani, a ferocious rhetorical bomb-thrower, Joseph J. Lhota has proved an oddly mild candidate so far, repeatedly holding his fire — and his tongue — since declaring his Republican campaign for mayor of New York three months ago.
Ruling sets stage for pension battle in bankrupt city
A federal bankruptcy judge ruled Monday that the city of Stockton, Calif., was eligible for court protection from its creditors, clearing the way for a battle over whether public workers’ pensions can be cut when the city they work for goes bankrupt.
Gorbachev criticizes Putin and his restrictions
MOSCOW — Mikhail Gorbachev, the first and last president of the Soviet Union, now 82 and increasingly frail, may have needed a helping hand to climb on stage for a speech at the state-run RIA-Novosti news agency. Oratorically, however, he seemed nimble enough, delivering a sharp poke in the gut to President Vladimir V. Putin and the Kremlin.
Breezy conditions and seasonal temperatures
An area of low pressure just offshore will slowly drift away today, allowing for clear skies to overspread our region. The low pressure brought some snow yesterday and slick conditions in areas closer to Cape Cod. Any chances for light snow will occur early this morning. By afternoon and evening, skies should become partly cloudy and winds will increase.