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Newsom signs law allowing California to penalize oil companies for 'price gouging'

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

California will soon be able to penalize oil companies that engage in “price gouging” behaviors, after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a first-of-its-kind bill into law on Tuesday evening.“We proved that we could actually beat Big Oil,” the governor said at a press conference before signing the legislation. “There’s a new sheriff in town in California, where we brought Big Oil to their knees.”In about three months, the SBX1-2 bill will allow the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to establish a maximum gross gasoline refining margin — and then set a penalty for any California-based refineries that surpass that margin.The legislation, sponsored by state Sen. Nancy Skinner (D), passed in the State Assembly on Monday after receiving the approval of the State Senate in an “extraordinary session” to expedite the legislation last week.While the bill enables the Commission to create a penalty, it also mandates that the agency con...

AI can now write your next wedding toast

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

Artificial Intelligence is everything right now and it’s not going away anytime soon.We’re seeing new tools from Google to help you find information faster, AI to edit your photos and now, it can even write the first draft of your wedding speech.Google BardGoogle’s answer to ChatGPT is here and it's called Bard.You can sign up to try it out at bard.google.com. There is a waitlist, but Google is giving new people access daily.Bard looks simple but it packs a lot of functionality. You can ask it questions and get answers fast since it’s powered by pretty much all of Google's knowledge.It can also write code, recommend books and recipes and even make playlists of songs.Google calls Bard an experiment because it can and does get things wrong.It has some unique features including the ability to see other "drafts" of answers and a "Google It" button so you can check the facts.I find that it's easier to use and faster than Microsoft's Bing AI, and unlike Bing AI, you don't need a special b...

Presale Codes for John Mayer Solo Tour 2023

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

Watch out ladies and gents — John Mayer is adding new dates to his solo acoustic this tour, his first ever. The singer-songwriter will hit 17 more dates, and take the stage all by himself, a first in his two decade career. The tour will feature special guest JP Saxe. The new dates sees the tour extend, starting October 3 in New York, NY and will wrap here in Los Angeles on November 10 at the Kia Forum in Inglewood — see all dates below. Passwords and presale codes for John Mayer Solo Tour 2023 tickets are as follows:Passwords and presale codes for John Mayer Solo Tour 2023Presale tickets for John Mayer Solo Tour 2023 go on sale today, Wednesday, March 29, and we’ve been told the following presale codes and passwords may work. Details are subject to change, and vary by event date:Live Nation mobile app presale code or password: COVERTFor the Los Angeles show at the Kia Forum, the venue presale code or password: INGLEWOODSales for the general public should go on sale this ...

Top 5 Trending Scams to Watch Out for in 2023

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

Just when you think you outsmarted scammers, they, too, are getting more clever in finding ways to exploit people. Time and time again, there are new trending scams that surface — mostly on the internet — because many communicate and transact there now. Even if you think you’re clever enough to not fall for scams, there are still others who remain vulnerable to being tricked by these people.Check out some of their new scams below.5 Trending Scams to Look Out For1. Romance ScamsThere are people who look for love on websites and dating apps. But many of us know by now that not everyone on the internet uses their real names and photos. What’s worse is some of these people not only catfish their prey, but they can also go as far as pulling moves similar to “The Tinder Swindler.” Some of these romance scammers will use fake online profiles and act like they’re the best potential partner for you.Once they think you’re interested in them, they will then say things like they got caught in a...

Time to Kick Fido off the Bed: Sleeping With Dogs Can Ruin Your Sleep

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

To pet owners and animal lovers, sleeping with dogs is quite a normal part of their bedtime routine. According to a survey conducted by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 46% of respondents said that their pets sleep in the same bed as them. However, doing this might not always be a good thing.Find out why.What are the downsides of sleeping with dogs?Researchers from Lincoln Memorial University conducted a study to see whether sleeping with dogs affected pet owners’ sleep quality. Though they can’t definitively conclude that it’s Fido’s fault (as to why their humans can’t sleep properly at night), based on the university’s previous studies, it’s found that those who have pets beside them when they sleep are more likely to have trouble sleeping.According to Dr. Lauren Wisnieski, an assistant professor in the Public Health and Research and Affiliation, “On the one hand, dogs and cats may be beneficial for an owner’s quality of sleep due to the social support that pets provide – p...

For Everyone: Arts Calendar March 30 – April 5

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

Art for everyone, avant-garde films by artists, new work from future-fixated dance residents, comedians in community, poignant theatrical escapism, paintings of surreal optical architecture, the sights of Caribbean sounds, new gallery shows get all Pop-philosophical on everything, a deep dive into the visual culture of the Maya civilization, Light and Space shines at the museum, photography documents a movement for freedom, photography expresses passions of diasporic histories.Sky Hopinka: Still from Sunflower Siege Engine, 2023. HD video, 16mm to HD video, stereo, color, TRT 12:23 (Courtesy of the artist)Thursday, March 30Artist Film Series: Sky Hopinka at MOCA. A screening of selected shorts by artist Sky Hopinka — Sunflower Siege Engine, Kicking the Clouds, Mnemonics of Shape and Reason, Lore, and When you’re lost in the rain — followed by a conversation with Hopinka and art critic Jonathan Griffin. Hopinka’s video, photo, and text work centers around personal positions of Indige...

Pac-12 athletic department power ratings: Which schools are making the most of the dollars spent?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

Welcome to the Hotline’s inaugural Pac-12 athletic department power ratings, in which we assess performance in football and men’s and women’s basketball in 2022-23 against each school’s operating expenses.In other words: Wins per dollars spent.Which departments did the most with what they have?I’m sure everyone will agree completely with the order below.*** Notes on the following:— Because the three sports don’t carry the same impact across the athletic department and university, we weighted success in the following manner: football, then men’s basketball, then women’s basketball.— Final expenses for the current fiscal year aren’t available, so we have used the FY2022 operating budgets as the basis for judgment. (Investment in FY2022 obviously has a significant role in shaping performance in FY2023.)— Financial data for USC and Stanford was not available, so we used budgets at peer schools to create estimates. T...

Amazing space rock act brings its acclaimed live show to the Bay Area

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

Muse is one of the best live acts on the planet.The trio — featuring vocalist-guitarist Matt Bellamy, bassist Chris Wolstenholme and drummer Dominic Howard — has earned that high ranking by putting on so many great tours over the years.And Bay Area fans will likely see another amazing road show — one where the awe-inspiring theatrics/special effects are equally matched by sheer musical excellence — when Muse brings its Will of the People World Tour to Oakland Arena on April 14.The English space-rock act, known for investing so much fiery passion and emotion into its prog-meets-pop performances, is on the road in support of last year’s “Will of the People.” It’s the band’s ninth full-length studio effort, which was released in August and went to reach No. 1 on Billboard’s top alternative albums chart.Related ArticlesMusic | Review: Depeche Mode as powerful as ever during epic Bay Area show Music | ...

‘Stuck foot’ crash into Apple store now called murder; driver’s lawyer ‘astounded’ by indictment

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

HINGHAM, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts man whose SUV crashed through the glass storefront of an Apple store, killing one man and injuring nearly two dozen other people, has been charged with murder, prosecutors said.Bradley Rein, 53, was indicted by a grand jury on Tuesday on charges of second-degree murder, motor vehicle homicide by reckless operation and 22 counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in connection with the Nov. 21 crash at a shopping center, Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz’s office said in a statement.Rein’s attorney, Joan Fund, said Wednesday that she was “astounded” by the murder charge. The initial arraignment, in November, alleged reckless operation of a motor vehicle and motor vehicle homicide by reckless operation.Rein told police he was looking for an eyeglasses store around 10:45 a.m. on that Monday when he crashed his 2019 Toyota 4Runner at the Derby Street Shops. He said his right foot became stuck on the accelera...

Nashville school shooter sent alarming messages before the massacre

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:59 GMT

Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale sent alarming messages to a former middle-school basketball teammate shortly before Monday’s deadly massacre, the ex-classmate said.Hale wrote she planned to commit suicide and that she’d likely be covered on the news in a series of direct messages to Averianna Patton over Instagram at 9:57 a.m. Monday, Patton told the Nashville news station WTVF.“One day this will make more sense,” Hale wrote, according to the messages published by the TV outlet. “I’ve left behind more than enough evidence behind. But something bad is about to happen.”Police say they received an active-shooter call at the Covenant School, where Hale was a former student, at 10:13 a.m. The shooting left three 9-year-old students and three adults dead, and Hale was fatally shot by police, officials said.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Covenant School shooter was under care for emotional disorder and hid guns at home, police say Crime and Public Safety | ...