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Japan’s synthesized singing sensation Hatsune Miku turns 16

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

CHIBA, Japan (AP) — Hatsune Miku has always been 16 years old and worn long aqua ponytails. She is Japan’s most famous Vocaloid — a computer-synthesized singing voice software that, in her case, comes with a virtual avatar. Legions of fans are celebrating the 16th anniversary of Miku’s Aug. 31, 2007, release with events including a virtual exhibition and songwriting to showcase her standard high-pitched, cutesy voice. For sale are a special Seiko watch and a series of dolls in the character’s likeness.The Vocaloid’s hits have been widely shared online, including on Miku’s own official YouTube channel, which has drawn 2.5 million subscribers. She has CDs and DVDs out and video games focused on fun rhythms co-produced with Sega, as well as cosmetic products plastered with her name and famous manga artists drawing portraits of her for T-shirts. On Friday, thousands of people packed a concert hall in a Tokyo suburb to watch their virtual idol dance and sing while accom...

Daniels guides Stanford to 37-24 win over Hawaii in opener

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

HONOLULU (AP) — Ashton Daniels passed for 249 yards and two touchdowns and Stanford opened its season with a 37-24 victory over Hawaii on Friday night.The Cardinal were making their debut under new coach Troy Taylor, who spent the last four seasons at Sacramento State.Daniels, a sophomore, made his first career start. He completed 25 of 36 passes and was not intercepted.Benjamin Yurosek was Daniels’ favorite target. The senior tight end hauled in nine passes for a career-high 138 yards. Yurosek’s 32-yard TD catch with 12:24 left in the second quarter gave Stanford the lead for good.“I learned a ton about our guys and we talked about that all week, that this was not going to be perfect,” Taylor said. “This was gonna be a tough game and there were gonna be times when we had to bounce back and they reacted. Very proud of our guys. Coaching changes are difficult. It’s a great feeling to get a win and winning on the road is not easy to do. Just real proud of our guys.”Stanford finished w...

USA Basketball’s Anthony Edwards has tons of confidence at the World Cup

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — There is a fine line between confidence and arrogance, and it is a line that Anthony Edwards does not seem to cross. Ask him if he thinks USA Basketball is going to win its next game, and he’ll say yes. Ask him if he thinks he could set a USA Basketball scoring record, and he’ll say yes to that, too.He talks a lot. He also backs up the talk.Edwards is the top scorer for the U.S. so far in the Basketball World Cup at 16.5 points per game, the clear go-to guy on a roster stacked with some of the NBA’s top rising talent. At 22, the Minnesota guard is the second-youngest player on the youngest team in the tournament — yet is playing like he’s been on the world stage many times before, the leader of a squad that is assured of a berth in a quarterfinal game on Tuesday.“He just wants to hoop, have fun and win,” U.S. guard Austin Reaves said. “I think that’s all that matters.”It’s hard to argue with that sentiment.The first big test of the World Cup awaited ...

Sparks take on the Mystics on 3-game losing streak

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

Washington Mystics (17-19, 8-10 Eastern Conference) at Los Angeles Sparks (15-21, 8-11 Western Conference)Los Angeles; Sunday, 7:30 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Los Angeles aims to stop its three-game skid when the Sparks play Washington.The Sparks have gone 9-10 in home games. Los Angeles has a 7-8 record in games decided by at least 10 points.The Mystics are 5-12 on the road. Washington has a 4-11 record against teams over .500.The teams meet for the third time this season. The Sparks won 91-83 in the last matchup on Aug. 6.TOP PERFORMERS: Nneka Ogwumike is averaging 19.1 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.7 steals for the Sparks. Azura Stevens is averaging 13.9 points over the last 10 games for Los Angeles.Natasha Cloud is averaging 12.7 points and 5.9 assists for the Mystics. Brittney Sykes is averaging 18.6 points and 5.1 rebounds while shooting 46.3% over the last 10 games for Washington.LAST 10 GAMES: Sparks: 6-4, averaging 79.6 points, 31.5 rebounds, 19.8 assists, 9.2 steals and 2.6 blocks ...

New York visits Chicago following Copper’s 22-point showing

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

New York Liberty (28-7, 15-3 Eastern Conference) at Chicago Sky (15-21, 3-14 Eastern Conference)Chicago; Sunday, 3 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Chicago takes on the New York Liberty after Kahleah Copper scored 22 points in the Chicago Sky’s 76-75 win over the Los Angeles Sparks.The Sky have gone 3-14 against Eastern Conference teams. Chicago is sixth in the Eastern Conference with 24.5 defensive rebounds per game led by Alanna Smith averaging 4.9.The Liberty have gone 15-3 against Eastern Conference opponents. New York scores 89.0 points and has outscored opponents by 8.3 points per game.The teams square off for the fourth time this season. The Liberty won the last meeting 89-73 on Aug. 12, with Breanna Stewart scoring 21 points in the win.TOP PERFORMERS: Courtney Williams is scoring 9.9 points per game with 5.8 rebounds and 6.0 assists for the Sky. Copper is averaging 16.5 points over the last 10 games for Chicago.Stewart is averaging 23 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.5 steals ...

India lanza su primera misión espacial centrada en el sol tras el aterrizaje lunar exitoso

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

(CNN) — India lanzó su primera nave espacial dedicada al estudio del sol, tras un mes de éxitos históricos en los esfuerzos espaciales del país.La nave, llamada Aditya-L1, despegó de Sriharikota, una isla del golfo de Bengala, a las 11:50 hora local del sábado (2:20 hora de Miami). Y se dirige a un punto ubicado a unos 1,5 millones de kilómetros de la Tierra.El exitoso despegue de Aditya-L1 se produce menos de dos semanas después de que la agencia espacial india, la Organización India de Investigación Espacial, hiciera historia al aterrizar su nave Chandrayaan-3 en la superficie lunar. Este logro convirtió a la India en el cuarto país del mundo, y el segundo del siglo XXI, en alunizar con seguridad.Se espera que la misión concluya la próxima semana.Mientras tanto, Aditya-L1 se dirige a su destino en el punto 1 de Lagrange, una zona situada entre el Sol y la Tierra donde la atracción gravitatoria de ambos objetos celestes se anula mutuamente. Esa ubicación permitirá a Aditya-L1...

Phoenix takes on Minnesota, seeks to stop 7-game slide

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

Phoenix Mercury (9-27, 2-15 Western Conference) at Minnesota Lynx (17-19, 11-8 Western Conference)Minneapolis; Sunday, 7 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Phoenix looks to end its seven-game skid with a win over Minnesota.The Lynx are 11-8 in conference play. Minnesota ranks fourth in the Western Conference with 26.1 defensive rebounds per game led by Napheesa Collier averaging 6.3.The Mercury are 2-15 in Western Conference play. Phoenix ranks third in the Western Conference with 19.3 assists per game led by Sug Sutton averaging 4.5.The teams meet for the fourth time this season. In the last meeting on July 8 the Lynx won 75-64 led by 12 points from Collier, while Michaela Onyenwere scored 24 points for the Mercury.TOP PERFORMERS: Collier is averaging 21.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals for the Lynx. Kayla McBride is averaging 15.0 points over the last 10 games for Minnesota.Brittney Griner is scoring 17.8 points per game and averaging 6.6 rebounds for the Mercury. Sophie Cunningham is aver...

Dallas faces Indiana following Sabally’s 40-point game

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

Indiana Fever (11-25, 5-13 Eastern Conference) at Dallas Wings (20-16, 10-9 Western Conference)Arlington, Texas; Sunday, 4 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Dallas hosts the Indiana Fever after Satou Sabally scored 40 points in the Dallas Wings’ 110-100 victory over the Indiana Fever.The Wings are 10-7 on their home court. Dallas is third in the Western Conference with 26.6 defensive rebounds per game led by Sabally averaging 5.9.The Fever have gone 6-12 away from home. Indiana is sixth in the WNBA scoring 81.3 points per game while shooting 44.4%.The teams square off for the third time this season. The Wings won the last matchup 110-100 on Sept. 1. Sabally scored 40 points to help lead the Wings to the victory.TOP PERFORMERS: Sabally is scoring 18.5 points per game and averaging 8.3 rebounds for the Wings. Arike Ogunbowale is averaging 19.1 points and 3.5 rebounds over the last 10 games for Dallas.Aliyah Boston is averaging 14.8 points and 8.3 rebounds for the Fever. Kelsey Mitchell is av...

Hecho en Ucrania: la floreciente industria armamentística de Kyiv le permite proyectar su poder más allá del frente de batalla

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

(CNN) — En la madrugada del 29 de agosto, enjambres de drones ucranianos sobrevolaron siete regiones rusas. Muchos fueron interceptados, otros no.Varios alcanzaron una base aérea rusa en Pskov, a unos 600 kilómetros de la frontera ucraniana, destruyendo dos aviones de transporte militar rusos y dañando otros dos.Fue la prueba más drástica hasta ahora de una nueva dimensión del conflicto de 18 meses: el creciente apetito de Ucrania por llevar la guerra a territorio ruso.Los drones aéreos y marinos, los nuevos y misteriosos misiles y los grupos de sabotaje forman parte de las herramientas; los aeródromos, las defensas aéreas y el transporte marítimo rusos se encuentran entre los objetivos.Ucrania tiene muchas razones para ampliar el conflicto.Una victoria es una victoria dondequiera y cuandoquiera que se produzca, ya sea dañando aviones en una base aérea rusa distante, perturbando la aviación comercial y el transporte marítimo, poniendo en vilo a los residentes de las regiones f...

US green-lights depleted uranium munitions for Ukraine: Report

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:18:41 GMT

Ukraine could soon receive armor-piercing ammunition from the U.S. capable of destroying heavy Russian tanks under the terms of a new multimillion-dollar aid package expected to be unveiled by Washington in the coming days.Depleted uranium munitions could be included in the next tranche of military assistance, according to a Reuters reports citing a draft document and two American officials. The ammunition rounds, which use the highly dense metal to help penetrate thick armor-plating, are designed to be fired from the U.S. Abrams tanks that Ukraine is expected to receive in the same package.While depleted uranium is a byproduct from the production of fuel used in atomic power stations, its radiation levels are significantly reduced and it is employed for its physical, rather than nuclear, properties. Ukraine in March received depleted uranium munitions from the U.K. to use in its British-made Challenger 2 tanks.However, the U.K. decision sparked a row after Russia — which without fo...