Suspicious wagers on the US-Israel war in Iran are creating huge windfalls and raising concerns among lawmakers

Sixteen bets made $100,000 accurately predicting the timing of the US airstrikes against Iran on 27 February. Later, a single user would make over $550,000 after betting that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would topple, just moments before his assassination by Israeli forces. On 7 April, right before Donald Trump announced a temporary ceasefire with Iran, traders bet $950m that oil prices would come down. They did.

These bets and other well-timed wagers accurately predicted the precise timing of major developments in the US-Israel war with Iran, creating huge windfalls and raising concerns among lawmakers and experts over potential insider trading.

Continue reading...

Péter Magyar hopes building stronger relations with Poland will help restore ties with bloc after Orbán’s rule

The Hungarian election winner, Péter Magyar, is eyeing a special relationship with Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk to draw on the neighbouring country’s experience of repairing relations with the EU after years of illiberal rule.

Since 1989, the two countries have seemingly shared parallels in their paths. Now the two centre-right, pro-European leaders preside over the tricky task of restoring the rule of law and improving state institutions after years of democratic backsliding and clashes with the EU.

Continue reading...

Covid, light pollution regulations and faltering global economy affect location and intensity of brightness

Earth continues to get brighter every year, researchers have found, but the location and intensity of the progression has become increasingly volatile because of Covid-19, regulations on light pollution, and a faltering global economy.

Nasa-funded researchers at the University of Connecticut (UConn) studied more than 1.1m satellite images taken over a nine-year period to establish that the planet’s artificial light increased by a net 16% between 2014 and 2022.

Continue reading...

Disgraced financier’s links to politicians and civil servants as far back as 30 years ago to be examined

The Epstein files have shaken Norway’s faith in democracy, the head of the Norwegian parliament’s oversight committee has said, as a sprawling investigation into the connections between its foreign office and the late sex offender gets under way.

An independent commission to look into information brought to light by the Jeffrey Epstein documents released by the US Department of Justice was launched on Wednesday after the Norwegian parliament voted unanimously last month for it to be set up.

Continue reading...

mukao has added a photo to the pool:

peaceful-jp-scenery has added a photo to the pool:

Rikugo Yamazakura
陸郷山桜 夢の郷

There are various types of cherry trees, including Somei Yoshino and mountain cherry trees, and you can enjoy strolling around the park.

ソメイヨシノに山桜など色々あって、園内を散策できます。

Ikedamachi, Nagano pref, Japan

Hiro_A has added a photo to the pool:

Hiro_A has added a photo to the pool:

The first census of Saorstát Éireann = the Irish Free State was taken on 18th April 1926, 3½ years after Independence. 12 hours ago, a searchable index of the citizenry was released. Under GDPR, 1,000+ centenarians were given the option of having their names redacted. Background, context, ExecSumm, quirks on RTE, the state broadcaster.

peaceful-jp-scenery posted a photo:

Rikugo Yamazakura
陸郷山桜 夢の郷

There are various types of cherry trees, including Somei Yoshino and mountain cherry trees, and you can enjoy strolling around the park.

ソメイヨシノに山桜など色々あって、園内を散策できます。

Ikedamachi, Nagano pref, Japan