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Washington and Oregon leave behind heritage — and rivals — for stability in the Big Ten

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — A day after leaving behind more than a century as a tenant to the premier athletic conference on the West Coast, Washington’s leadership said stability was at the forefront of its decision to join the Big Ten Conference.“It was about having a future that we could count on and build toward,” Washington President Ana Mari Cauce said Saturday.Cauce said there were several concerns that led to Washington and Oregon saying goodbye to their collective heritage to become the 17th and 18th members of the Big Ten beginning in 2024.The Ducks and Huskies were two of the founding members of the Pacific Coast Conference in 1916 that eventually morphed into the Pac-12. The decision by those founding members to leave in lockstep was the first of two crippling blows to the Pac-12 on Friday that left the conference on the precipice of collapse. Utah, Arizona and Arizona State accpeted offers from the Big 12 later Friday, following Colorado’s move late last month.It leaves Califo...

Sights and sounds of Caribbean Carnival take over Toronto

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

The sounds, dance and vibrant costumes of the Caribbean overtook the lakefront Saturday as thousands from around the world flocked to Toronto to take in the 56th annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival. Over 10,000 masqueraders performed along Lake Shore Boulevard as part of the Grand Parade which showcased a variety of elaborate costumes around this year’s theme “Diversity and Culture Live Here.”“I started my costume in late May and finished in the middle of July so it takes a lot of months,” said one participant. “But before then there’s a lot of planning, designing, finding material. It takes a while.”People from far and wide travelled to Toronto to take in the event, one of the largest Carnival celebrations in North America. Premier Doug Ford, federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh were among the dignitaries who were in attendance. “We’re kind of used to this with Marti Gras but this...

YMCA camp session canceled, allowing staff to deal with emotional trauma of Idaho bus crash

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

An upcoming YMCA summer camp session in Idaho has been canceled so staffers can deal with the emotional trauma of a bus crash that injured almost a dozen people, an official said Saturday, as police still tried to determine the cause.The bus was carrying about 30 adolescent campers and staff back to Boise from the Treasure Valley YMCA’s camp at Horsethief Reservoir. Eleven passengers were hospitalized, seven in critical condition, after the bus rolled over on a winding Idaho highway north of the town of Banks on Friday afternoon, Idaho State Police said. The flipped bus blocked a state highway that follows the Payette River, causing a massive traffic jam.The four-day camp at Horsethief Reservoir planned to start Sunday won’t be held, said Treasure Valley YMCA President and CEO David Duro. He said it “would be unfair” to ask the camp counselors, who had spent days with the youths who were injured, to operate as usual.“It’s like a family member is in a traumatic event,” Du...

Officer-involved shooting under investigation in South Shore

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

CHICAGO — An officer-involved shooting in Chicago's South Shore neighborhood is under investigation.The incident happened around 6:45 p.m. in the 2400 block of East 72nd Street.According to the Chicago Fire Department, one person was shot and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center and is stable.Read more: Latest Chicago news headlinesChicago police said no officers were injured.COPA is investigating and asked anyone with information to contact them online or by calling 312-746-3609.This is a breaking news story and will be updated as new information is released.

One home destroyed, multiple evacuations from Oak Grove wildfire, estimated at 100 acres and 10% contained

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Officials responded to a wildfire in Hays County Saturday, according to the Hays County Office of Emergency Services website.The wildfire, known as the Oak Grove Fire, was reported in the 200 block of Oak Grove Road in San Marcos. It is estimated at 300 acres and 10% contained around 7:30 p.m., according to the Hays County Office of Emergency Management (Hays OEM) and the Texas A&M Forest Service. The fire jumped across the Blanco River and was actively burning on the north side, Texas A&M said. Aircraft will prioritize the area.According to Texas A&M, the fire was very active, and structures were threatened. Additional aircraft was ordered to assist. Approximately 12 households were evacuated shortly before 6 p.m. Nearby: Vineyard Hills Fire contained at 150 acres City of Kyle Mayor Travis Mitchell said in a social media post that one home was destroyed, and several others were threatened. He also said that ap...

Twins Hall of Fame ceremony ‘was emotional for me,’ says Joe Mauer

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

Not surprisingly, Joe Mauer used his Twins Hall of Fame induction speech to honor his late father, Jake, during a pregame ceremony on Saturday at Target Field.“I knew he was watching every game,” Mauer told a crowd of about 35,000 before a 6:10 p.m. game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.Father to Joe, Billy and Jake, Donald Charles “Jake” Mauer Jr. passed away from a heart ailment Jan. 17. He was 66.“I talk to (my children) a lot about my dad, and about how much I appreciate him — now more than ever,” Mauer said during his induction speech.From a dais in front of the pitcher’s mound, and near a seated audience that included Twins hall of fame members, former teammates and coaches and family and friends, Mauer made his first public comments about his father, who with his wife, Teresa, raised his three boys in a house on Lexington Ave. and sent them to Cretin-Derham Hall.“It was emotional. For me, it comes in waves,” he told reporters after the ceremony. “Obviously being here, one of ...

As actors and writers push back on automation, Hollywood is in the midst of an AI hiring boom

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

LOS ANGELES — Getting paid $900,000 a year to manage artificial intelligence projects for Netflix would’ve been an eye-popping sum even before two of Hollywood’s major unions went on strike.But now that the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA are both picketing outside Netflix’s headquarters in protest of low streaming pay and ascendant automation, such a job listing seems acutely emblematic of where the entertainment industry currently stands — and where it’s going.The “Product Manager — Machine Learning Platform” role, first reported on by the Intercept, offers a pay range of $300,000 to $900,000 for work focused on setting priorities and managing projects related to the streaming giant’s AI software.And Netflix isn’t alone. Disney Branded Television is hiring for a senior vice president “on the leading edge of technology developments, like artificial intelligence.” Sony is pursuing hires related to AI ethics. And Amazon Prime Video and CBS both are looking to fill AI-related r...

Body found in White Bear Township lake where man went missing Wednesday

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

A body has been found in a lake in White Bear Township where a man went missing Wednesday evening, the Ramsey County sheriff’s office says.Ramsey County Undersheriff Mike Martin confirmed that a body was recovered about 6 p.m. Friday from Bald Eagle Lake.The identity of the person will be released by the Ramsey County medical examiner’s office, Martin said.Officials said Mark Edward Lowell, 62, was reported missing in the lake off U.S. 61 about 8 p.m. Wednesday.Witnesses said Lowell jumped off a pontoon boat to retrieve something from the water, went under and didn’t resurface, according to Steve Linders, a sheriff’s office spokesman.Related ArticlesCrime & Public Safety | 12-year-old boy fatally shot in St. Paul, 14-year-old arrested in connection with the crime Crime & Public Safety | 2 St. Paul men plead guilty to assaulting a federal agent during drug sting Crime & Public Safety | Charges: Men were playing with g...

Seven numbers that help explain Joe Mauer’s Twins career

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

Joe Mauer became the 38th person to be enshrined in the Twins’ Hall of Fame when he was inducted on Saturday. Here are seven numbers that help define Mauer’s career..306: Mauer became the first catcher to win an American League batting title in 2006.Mauer, one of the best hitting catchers of all time, would accomplish the feat two more times, leading the AL in hitting in three of four seasons. During his MVP season in 2009, Mauer hit a whopping .365, leading the American League not only in batting average, but also in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and on-base plus slugging percentage.He hit .347 to take home the batting title in 2009 and .328 when he won it in 2008. For his career, he hit .306.1: The Twins made Joe Mauer the No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 draft, opting to take the homegrown talent over Mark Prior, considered the consensus top player in the draft back then.The late Mike Radcliff, then the organization’s scouting director, was the one who ultimat...

Will Cal-Stanford rivalry die along with the Pac-12?

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:30 GMT

Rallying 70,000 fans to “roll on” the Golden Bears inside a packed California Memorial Stadium was a life-defining experience for former “Mic Man” Ken Montgomery.But as the Pac-12 teeters on the brink of collapse, the now-56-year-old alum has started grieving the Cal pride he’s enthusiastically embodied since he first arrived on campus in the early 1990s.By Friday evening, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah had announced they’re headed for the Big 12, just hours after Oregon and Washington revealed they’re on their way to the Big Ten. Colorado gave its notice the week before, while USC and UCLA fled last year. The moves are expected to go through in 2024, after the upcoming academic year, leaving only four schools standing: Cal, Stanford, Washington State and Oregon State.This exodus of teams from the “Conference of Champions,” anchored in the promise of more television money, may solidify the 108-year-old conference’s dissolution next summer.Montgomery is one of thou...