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On Friday, the U.S. Congress completed the official counting of the electoral college votes, confirming Donald Trump's pending U.S. presidency under their own authority. In most years, this is a formality, but amid concerns about Trump's losing the popular vote by a considerable margin, Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, and allegations that some of the presidential electors who supported Trump may have been ineligible to serve, more eyes than usual have followed the confirmation process. The final count was 304 votes for T

A joint research team from the University of Calgary, American Museum of Natural History, and Florida State University announced on Monday that the eggs of non-avian dinosaurs such as the duck-billed dinosaur took as long as six months to hatch, far longer than had previously been believed. Bird eggs incubate for 11 to 85 days, about half the time of most other egg-laying vertebrates. Scientists had thought dinosaur eggs were more like those of modern birds than modern reptiles, but this long hatch time is far more reminiscent of monitor lizar

{{DISPLAYTITLE:UK documentary claims fire weakened RMS Titanic}} A documentary broadcast on Sunday on the UK's Channel 4 claims the RMS Titanic was weakened by a three-week fire before its infamous 1912 sinking. More than 1,500 people died when the vessel sank partway between Southampton, England and New York, United States. The disaster has long been thought down to a collision with an iceberg. Titanic: The New Evidence focuses upon research by Irish journalist Senan Molony, who spent 30 years investigating the accident. Based on photograph

A gunman shot Burundi environment minister Emmanuel Niyonkuru dead early on Sunday, local time (UTC+2). Police said they detained a woman accompanying Niyonkuru. The 54-year-old minister was returning home for the night in Bujumbura. Burundi has seen turbulence since President Pierre Nkurunziza sought a third term in early 2015, winning it in a disputed election. Protesters claim Nkurunziza violated a peace deal and the constitution. Since then around 450 have died. Nkurunziza tweeted his thoughts were with "the family and all Burundians". Al

On Thursday, William Salice, credited with creating Kinder Surprise eggs, died at age 83 in Pavia, Italy because of a stroke, according to his foundation "Color Your Life Campus". Salice had worked with the businessman Michele Ferrero in the 1960s, the creator of the Nutella cream and owner of Ferrero Rocher. Ferrero died in 2015. In 1974, Kinder Surprise was launched with plastic toys, which are sold within the eggs to surprise children. Due to this, the sale of Kinder eggs is prohibited in the US. A 1938 US law prohibits the sale of food con

On Thursday, the U.S. government expelled 35 diplomats suspected of being Russian spies, and sanctioned the G.R.U. and F.S.B. intelligence agencies. Also sanctioned are several G.S.U. officials and three companies that work with it. This is one of many actions the Obama administration has taken in response to a CIA report issued two weeks ago that concluded the Russian government hacked servers belonging to the U.S. Republican and Democratic parties. The CIA report said this was to turn the 2016 presidential election toward president-elect Don

The Helsinki District Court on Thursday sentenced Jari Aarnio, once head of the city's anti-drugs taskforce, to ten years in prison for smuggling hashish and related crimes. Aarnio, who maintains his innocence, was among thirteen defendants prosecuted over the import and distribution of Dutch hashish totaling about 800 kg in 2011–12. Ordered into immediate custody, Aarnio was convicted of all 22 charges he faced. Five were of aggravated drug offence, with other offences including official misconduct, threatening a suspect, and aggravated evide

Military health authorities on Wednesday announced the death of Gregorio Alvarez, military ruler of Uruguay from 1981–85. He was 91 years old. Alvarez was serving a 25-year term imposed in 2009 for 37 homicides, and other human rights violations. He was initially detained in 2007 suspected of kidnapping dissidents living in exile in Argentina. Hundreds vanished during his term. In 1972 his brother died at the hands of militants. The following year he participated in a coup, leading an assault on the national legislature. Then-President Juan M

Acclaimed actor and singer Debbie Reynolds died at the age of 84 yesterday at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, California. Her son, Todd Fisher, said around noon yesterday she suffered a stroke brought on by the stress of the death of her daughter, Carrie Fisher. Reynolds' credits include lead roles in films Singin' in the Rain, Bundle of Joy, and The Unsinkable Molly Brown, the last of which earned her an Academy Award nomination. She worked to preserve Hollywood history and memorabilia for posterity and, like Carrie Fisher, as an advo

A military plane carrying 92 people crashed into the Black Sea two minutes after departing Sochi, Russia yesterday. The Tupolev Tu-154 was heading to Syria and was carrying 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, Russia's military choir. Nobody is thought to have survived. At least eleven bodies have been recovered and 100 divers deployed on-scene. President Vladimir Putin has ordered a probe; investigators have yet to rule out sabotage. The 84 passengers and eight crew were headed to Hmeymim Air Base to entertain Russian forces. Musicians, d

Yesterday, German football club Borussia Mönchengladbach announce their appointment of Dieter Hecking as manager until 2019. Hecking's predecessor André Schubert was sacked the day before, after one year of service at Borussia Park. Mönchengladbach has won only one out of its last eleven Bundesliga matches this season. Schubert began as an interim manager of the first team after Lucien Facts resigned from the coach position last September. Schubert led Gladbach to the fourth spot in Bundesliga. Schubert's last match as Gladbach's coach ended i

Two hijackers seized an Afriqiyah Airways jet this morning, diverting it away from its domestic Libyan route to Malta. The men surrendered to Maltese custody. Flight 209, an Airbus A320, was flying from Sabha to Tripoli. Men identified as Suhaha Mussa and Ahmed Alid, armed with what appeared to be a grenade and two pistols, took control of the aircraft. The airline said a proposal to land in Libya was rejected by the hijackers, who took the plane to nearby Malta owing to fuel limits. After landing, the plane's engines were not shut off for aro