News in brief
By Associated Press
Modi claims victory in
India’s election
NEW DELHI | Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s National Democratic Alliance coalition has won a majority in parliament, according to official results from India’s Election Commission.
Modi had already declared victory for his alliance earlier Tuesday, claiming a mandate to push forward with his agenda, even though his party lost seats to a stronger than expected opposition, which pushed back against his mixed economic record and polarizing politics.
More than 640 million votes were cast in the marathon election held over a span of six weeks in the world’s largest democratic exercise.
New study finds Earth warming
at record rate
Top scientists calculate that the rate Earth is warming hit an all-time high in 2023 with 92% of last year’s surprising record-shattering heat caused by humans. A group of 57 international scientists examining what’s behind last year’s deadly burst of heat say that even with a faster warming rate they don’t see evidence of significant acceleration in human-caused climate change beyond increased fossil fuel burning.
Last year’s record temperatures were so unusual that scientists have been debating what’s behind the big jump and whether climate change is accelerating. The study’s lead author says temperatures are alarmingly increasing exactly as predicted.
New York considers regulating what children see in social media feeds
New York lawmakers on Tuesday said they were finalizing legislation that would allow parents to block their children from getting social media posts curated by a platform’s algorithm, a move to rein in feeds that critics argue keep young users glued to their screens.
Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James have been advocating for the regulations since October, facing strong pushback from the tech industry. The amended version removes provisions that would have limited the hours a child could spend on a site. With the legislative session ending this week, Albany lawmakers are making a final push to get it passed.
“The algorithmic feeds are designed as dopamine for kids,” Assembly sponsor Nily Rozic, a Democrat, said Tuesday. “We are trying to regulate that design feature.”
—From AP reports
