US Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu Arrives In Nepal, To Meet Senior Political LeaderseGain Announces Extension to Stock Repurchase Programnew slot game 2024 。

ET Basketball Schedule2024 saw politics, culture, and the overlap between them grow ever stranger, and that’s reflected in our picks for the year’s top video essays. Videos about artificial intelligence, abuses of authority, mass hysteria, weird corporate trends (and weirder corporate collapses) fill out these ranks. Lest that make this year’s list sound like too much of a downer, know that most of these works are also supremely fun. It has now been six years since I first did a piece like this for Polygon . In that time, I’ve seen a lot of novice video makers become pros, the pros refine their craft to increasingly fascinating ends, and more and more promising new talent arise. I think this ranking reflects all those strands. On making this list: With this style of video continuing to grow in popularity, one way I’ve made keeping up with things manageable for the purposes of articles like this is abiding by stricter, more traditional parameters for what “counts” as a video essay. If there’s a notable video from 2024 that’s not present here, it may be because, as great as it was, it strayed too far from that definition. Additionally, each year, I’m conscious of trying to keep things fresh by not including too many essays from creators honored in earlier iterations. This time around, I decided to take it a step further by imposing a firm prohibition against including work by anyone who’s already appeared in these annual roundups more than once. Apologies, then, to consistently great essayists like Yhara Zayd and Jacob Geller . Finally, I will admit that I cheated last year by using double features and honorable mentions to include 15 videos in the “top 10”; I was more disciplined this time around. As always, these videos are presented in order of publishing date. ‘third places, stanley cup mania, and the epidemic of loneliness’ by Mina Le Mina Le has become one of my go-to resources for keeping up with and comprehending the vast ecosystem of online commerce, influencers, style, fads, and how these elements all feed into and off one another. The title of this video seemingly name-checks three distinct things. Le argues persuasively that viral shopping crazes like the one around Stanley bottles early this year are partly a way for people to feel a sense of belonging in an increasingly atomized and alienated society — even if they can only realize this feeling through consumption. ‘The Rhythms of Rage: from Solitude to Solidarity’ by Barbara Zecchi The shortest video on this year’s list is also its most formally inventive. Zecchi has constructed a collage of scenes from film and television that capture moments of female rage. But rather than a supercut, the shots are presented through a continually expanding (spiraling outward, in fact, which feels appropriate, given the subject matter) grid pattern. The essay ultimately transitions from these shots of isolated figures to ones of masses of women working together, illustrating the progression from individual grievance to collective action. ‘The Future Is Going To Be Weird AF (The Ultimate AI CoreCore Experience) - Part Two’ by Silvia Dal Dosso This is a sequel to an experiment Dal Dosso released last year. For the uninitiated, “corecore” is a nebulous emergent genre of social media videos that can perhaps most succinctly be summed up as assemblages of melancholy vibes — ambient music, dark footage, countless shots of Ryan Gosling in Blade Runner 2049 , etc. Dal Dosso strives for an especially pure corecore (corecore... core?) experience by juxtaposing unreal-seeming moments from the news and socials with actually unreal AI-generated images. It’s both a tribute to and a parody of the work of Adam Curtis, replete with an AI Curtis narrating. It’s one of the few genuinely artistic uses of the technology I’ve seen. ‘REFORM!’ by Secret Base Secret Base launched a Patreon this year with the most welcome news possible: the resurrection of Jon Bois’ long-dormant, deeply beloved series Pretty Good . (Catch up with this episode about Lawnchair Larry , this one about an epic bodybuilder forum argument , and this one about 24 .) Appropriately for an election year, Bois created a holistic three-part look at the brief life and embarrassing times of the Reform Party. In the backbiting and wheeling/dealing between the likes of Ross Perot, Jesse Ventura, and Pat Buchanan, the essay draws out the broader challenges of trying to disrupt the entrenched political system of the United States. Power by Yance Ford, et al . For a change of pace, here’s a film that appeared in festivals and theaters before becoming available via Netflix this year. Director Yance Ford is best known for his highly personal 2017 debut Strong Island , for which he became the first openly trans man to be nominated for an Oscar. He’s come back to feature filmmaking with this critical look at the evolution of policing as an institution in the United States. Wielding archival materials to devastating comparisons between past and present, Ford tracks an unmistakable surge of authoritarianism in America. ‘The History of Tetris World Records’ by Summoning Salt Tetris is one of the greatest works of art (video game or otherwise) made in the past 50 years because of how its initial simplicity opens up to infinite possible variations. A similarly expansive competitive community has built up around the game. It’s Tetris ; how much could there possibly be to getting good at it? There’s no better YouTuber to answer this question than Summoning Salt, the Ken Burns of speedrunning. This video gets you fully invested in these escalating struggles of one-upmanship, making people looking at screens and their investment in falling blocks and numbers going up extraordinarily compelling. The result is that one of the most exciting things I’ve seen in any film this year is a simple left-to-right tracking shot of a chart. ‘The Spectacular Failure of the Star Wars Hotel’ by Jenny Nicholson Jenny Nicholson’s work might seem more vloggy than essayistic, but that’s only if you aren’t paying attention. There are plenty of YouTubers who do nothing but talk to a camera at length, but people aren’t watching the entirety of this four-hour video just to get the nitty-gritty on Disney World’s short-lived, now-shuttered immersive Star Wars-themed hotel. Nicholson has an uncanny gift for making highly structured arguments and narratives feel informal and off the cuff. She has also probably forgotten more about theme park history, design, and logistics than most of us ever learn. This is one of the most impactful YouTube videos released this year, garnering news attention and reviving widespread discussion about Disney’s questionable business practices. ‘Sticky’ by Maria Hofmann Each year, the streaming service Mubi and the Filmadrid film festival collaborate to release a series of video essays. By far the standout in 2024 was Maria Hofmann’s “desktop horror documentary,” which uncannily replicates the way that simply existing online in the modern day can expose you to a constant stream of awful imagery. Different desktop windows — one for email, one for research, one displaying sobering news on the Mediterranean migrant crisis — shuffle about the screen, illustrating how much of modern life is compartmentalizing atrocity to the point where it becomes routine. In 2024, this feels especially apt. ‘The Narcissist Scare’ by Sarah Z Life in 2024 also means that seemingly every other week, you learn about an alleged disturbing trend or stack of how-to tips that turns out to have originated from a lot of gullible and/or grifty people playing a game of telephone over social media. It is disquieting to see, in a supposedly technologically enlightened age, how much sites like Instagram and TikTok facilitate and perpetuate almost primal superstitious thought. Sarah Z (like Nicholson, a strong practitioner of direct YouTube address) traces the junk science and fraudulent dime-store psychology seen in the myriad videos about the dangers of “narcissists” and traces them back not just to our petty need to find excuses to demonize others, but also to a literal belief in demons and spiritual warfare. Modernity is very odd, and I am frequently tired. ‘Hag Horror: Why Are We So Afraid of Old Women?’ by Broey Deschanel The Substance was one of the big lower-budget success stories and a notable engine of controversy in film this year, the latter due both to its grossness and to its ideas about womanhood, fame, and body image. Maia Wyman puts the movie in the historical context of body horror and “hagsploitation,” and how the duel between Demi Moore’s and Margaret Qualley’s characters acts out the broader cultural terror of aging and decay. Best of the Year Culture Entertainment Polygon Lists Polygon Picks Special Issues What to Watch

The New York Rangers called up goaltender Dylan Garand today as starting netminder Igor Shesterkin had to take a leave of absence from the team. Shesterkin is obviously one of the most important players if not the single most important player to the Rangers, but some things in life are more important than hockey. That is exactly why he is currently away from the team. Shesterkin and his wife are currently expecting their second child. This morning, his wife Anna went into labor so obviously Igor had to be there with her. As such, the team recalled goaltender Dylan Garand from the Hartford Wolf Pack. The move put the team over the 23-man roster, which would normally be a violation of NHL rules. However, the Rangers would not need to make an additional move if Garand was recalled on an emergency basis. It is not clear if that is the case or not though. Quick got the net this afternoon and got lit up by Seattle, giving up 6 goals on 21 shots. The Kraken would add an empty-netter to seal the game by a final score of 7-5. If Shesterkin is not able to return to the team tomorrow, which seems somewhat likely, the team would be forced to start a 38-year-old Quick on back-to-back days, or give the 22-year-old Garand his first taste of the NHL. Garand was a 4th round pick of the Rangers back in 2020. In 11 games at the AHL level this year he has a 7-2-2 record, a 2.42 goals-against-average, and a .917 save percentage. Be sure to tune in tomorrow to see if he makes his NHL debut against the Chicago Blackhawks . This article first appeared on Blade of Steel and was syndicated with permission.

NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s lawyers formally asked a judge Monday to throw out his hush money criminal conviction , arguing that continuing the case would present unconstitutional “disruptions to the institution of the Presidency.“ In a filing made public Tuesday, Trump’s lawyers told Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchan that anything short of immediate dismissal would undermine the transition of power, as well as the “overwhelming national mandate" granted to Trump by voters last month. They also cited President Joe Biden’s recent pardon of his son, Hunter Biden, who had been convicted of tax and gun charges . “President Biden asserted that his son was ‘selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted,’ and ‘treated differently,’" Trump’s legal team wrote. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, they claimed, had engaged in the type of political theater "that President Biden condemned.” Prosecutors will have until Dec. 9 to respond. They have said they will fight any efforts to dismiss the case but have indicated a willingness to delay the sentencing until after Trump’s second term ends in 2029. In their filing Monday, Trump's attorneys dismissed the idea of holding off sentencing until Trump is out of office as a “ridiculous suggestion.” Following Trump’s election victory last month, Merchan halted proceedings and indefinitely postponed his sentencing, previously scheduled for late November, to allow the defense and prosecution to weigh in on the future of the case. He also delayed a decision on Trump’s prior bid to dismiss the case on immunity grounds. Trump has been fighting for months to reverse his conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels to suppress her claim that they had sex a decade earlier. He says they did not and denies any wrongdoing. The defense filing was signed by Trump lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, who represented Trump during the trial and have since been selected by the president-elect to fill senior roles at the Justice Department. Taking a swipe at Bragg and New York City, as Trump often did throughout the trial, the filing argues that dismissal would also benefit the public by giving him and “the numerous prosecutors assigned to this case a renewed opportunity to put an end to deteriorating conditions in the City and to protect its residents from violent crime.” Clearing Trump, the lawyers added, would also allow him to “to devote all of his energy to protecting the Nation.” Merchan hasn’t yet set a timetable for a decision. He could decide to uphold the verdict and proceed to sentencing, delay the case until Trump leaves office, wait until a federal appeals court rules on Trump’s parallel effort to get the case moved out of state court or choose some other option. An outright dismissal of the New York case would further lift a legal cloud that at one point carried the prospect of derailing Trump’s political future. Last week, special counsel Jack Smith told courts that he was withdrawing both federal cases against Trump — one charging him with hoarding classified documents at his Florida estate, the other with scheming to overturn the 2020 presidential election he lost — citing longstanding Justice Department policy that shields a president from indictment while in office. The hush money case was the only one of Trump’s four criminal indictments to go to trial, resulting in a historic verdict that made him the first former president to be convicted of a crime. Prosecutors had cast the payout as part of a Trump-driven effort to keep voters from hearing salacious stories about him. Trump’s then-lawyer Michael Cohen paid Daniels. Trump later reimbursed him, and Trump’s company logged the reimbursements as legal expenses — concealing what they really were, prosecutors alleged. Trump has said the payments to Cohen were properly categorized as legal expenses for legal work. A month after the verdict, the Supreme Court ruled that ex-presidents can’t be prosecuted for official acts — things they did in the course of running the country — and that prosecutors can’t cite those actions to bolster a case centered on purely personal, unofficial conduct. Trump’s lawyers cited the ruling to argue that the hush money jury got some improper evidence, such as Trump’s presidential financial disclosure form, testimony from some White House aides and social media posts made during his first term. Prosecutors disagreed and said the evidence in question was only “a sliver” of their case. If the verdict stands and the case proceeds to sentencing, Trump’s punishments would range from a fine to probation to up to four years in prison — but it’s unlikely he’d spend any time behind bars for a first-time conviction involving charges in the lowest tier of felonies. Because it is a state case, Trump would not be able to pardon himself once he returns to office.Power couple: green energy, gas giant bet on renewables

WOBURN, Mass., Nov. 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Replimune Group, Inc. REPL , a clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of novel oncolytic immunotherapies, today announced that it has submitted a biologics license application (BLA) to the FDA for RP1 (vusolimogene oderparepvec) in combination with nivolumab for the treatment of adult patients with advanced melanoma who have previously received an anti-PD1 containing regimen. The submission was made under the Accelerated Approval pathway. The Company also announced that the FDA has granted Breakthrough Therapy designation to RP1 in combination with nivolumab in the same setting. Breakthrough Therapy designation is intended to expedite the development and review of therapies for serious diseases when preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the therapy may provide substantial improvement over existing available therapies on one or more clinically significant endpoints. This Breakthrough Therapy designation is based on the safety and clinical activity observed in the anti-PD1 failed melanoma cohort of the IGNYTE clinical trial. "Today is an important milestone for Replimune and for the melanoma community as we are one step closer to having another potential treatment available for patients who have limited options after progressing on anti-PD1 containing regimens," said Sushil Patel, Ph.D., CEO of Replimune. The confirmatory Phase 3 IGNYTE-3 trial of RP1 in combination with nivolumab in advanced melanoma patients who have progressed on anti-PD1 and anti-CTLA-4 therapy, or who are not candidates for anti-CTLA-4 treatment is currently enrolling patients. For more information, visit https://replimune.com/clinical-trials/ignyte-3/ . About RP1 RP1 (vusolimogene oderparepvec) is Replimune's lead product candidate and is based on a proprietary strain of herpes simplex virus engineered and genetically armed with a fusogenic protein (GALV-GP R-) and GM-CSF, intended to maximize tumor killing potency, the immunogenicity of tumor cell death, and the activation of a systemic anti-tumor immune response. About Replimune Replimune Group, Inc., headquartered in Woburn, MA, was founded in 2015 with the mission to transform cancer treatment by pioneering the development of novel oncolytic immunotherapies. Replimune's proprietary RPx platform is based on a potent HSV-1 backbone intended to maximize immunogenic cell death and the induction of a systemic anti-tumor immune response. The RPx platform is designed to have unique dual local and systemic activity consisting of direct selective virus-mediated killing of the tumor resulting in the release of tumor derived antigens and altering of the tumor microenvironment to ignite a strong and durable systemic response. The RPx product candidates are expected to be synergistic with most established and experimental cancer treatment modalities, leading to the versatility to be developed alone or combined with a variety of other treatment options. For more information, please visit www.replimune.com . Forward Looking Statements This press release contains forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including statements regarding our belief regarding the effect that the breakthrough designation will have on the timing and development of RP1 and other statements identified by words such as "could," "expects," "intends," "may," "plans," "potential," "should," "will," "would," or similar expressions and the negatives of those terms. Forward-looking statements are not promises or guarantees of future performance, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in such forward-looking statements. These factors include risks related to our limited operating history, our ability to generate positive clinical trial results for our product candidates, the costs and timing of operating our in-house manufacturing facility, the timing and scope of regulatory approvals, the availability of combination therapies needed to conduct our clinical trials, changes in laws and regulations to which we are subject, competitive pressures, our ability to identify additional product candidates, political and global macro factors including the impact of the coronavirus as a global pandemic and related public health issues and the Russian-Ukrainian and Israel-Hamas political and military conflicts, and other risks as may be detailed from time to time in our Annual Reports on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other reports we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Our actual results could differ materially from the results described in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof, and, except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements. Investor Inquiries Chris Brinzey ICR Healthcare 339.970.2843 chris.brinzey@westwicke.com Media Inquiries Arleen Goldenberg Replimune 917.548.1582 media@replimune.com © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.Notre Dame holds first mass after five-year restoration

Search for Missing 17-Year-Old Sophia Cano Continues in North Bexar County, San Antonio Police Request Public AssistanceINDIA bloc leaders from Manipur plan to stage protest in Delhi on Monday

Geopolitical Shifts and Market Reactions: A Martial Law Saga in KoreaUniversity of Phoenix Leadership Presents at 1EdTechMary Fowler's stunning return as young Matildas make statement amid Sam Kerr concernsVikings staying on track and in control behind Sam Darnold's composure and confidence

Power couple: green energy, gas giant bet on renewablesSMETHPORT — McKean County commissioners approved nearly $2.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding during their regular meeting Tuesday at the courthouse. Several significant allocations were approved, including $640,000 for county broadband projects, $300,000 for the Tri-County Fire School burn building expansion, $317,395.45 for change order number 6 of the McKean County radio project, $250,000 for Act 13 Bridges and Trails project and $280,680 for Vision tax assessment software and $247,500 for information technology projects. The radio project change order, totaling $549,401, was approved later in the meeting, during the portion for contracts, leases and purchase agreements. The McKean County Fair Association will receive $150,000 for upgrades to the Cecil Gallup Building, the McKean County Historical Society $100,000 for historical window replacement and the Potter County Education Council $100,000 for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 mentor programs. An ARPA allocation of $60,000 will provide for a Tyler Technologies Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software program. ARPA funding for infrastructure/blight remediation was granted to the City of Bradford for $6,414.76 and Lafayette Township for $24,637.91. Keating Township’s application for $8,178.21 in liquid fuels funds was approved and commissioners certified the local match of $111,896 for state financial operating assistance for the Area Transportation Authority (ATA) in the 2025-26 fiscal year. Commissioners also gave their approval to the 911 Statewide Interconnectivity grant agreement totaling $20,833 and to a memorandum of understanding between the county and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). Other contracts approved include a resource family (formerly foster care) renewal, a ConxxNE quote for $426,000 for software upgrades at five broadband towers and a maintenance and service agreement on the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Institute’s Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification (SAVIN) system, which offers offender status tracking and real-time notifications when an offender’s custody status changes among other features designed to help victims, law enforcement and community members. The county welcomed new employees James Taylor and Payton Shupe as a 911 dispatcher and CYS caseworker 1, respectively. During the commissioners’ comment portion of the meeting, Chairman Tom Kreiner, who joined the meeting by phone, took a moment to “commend the Port Allegany football team for their run to the state finals — it was a great accomplishment for District 9.” Commissioner Carol Duffy agreed, “We certainly are proud of the team over there and all the community participation was very nice.” Commissioner Marty Wilder moved to add to the meeting’s agenda the appointment of two directors to the McKean County Conservation District board. Kerry Fetter was approved as a farmer director and Jeff Holcomb as a public director, both for four-year terms beginning Jan. 1. Commissioners meet next at 11 a.m. Dec. 31.

Joe Biden says Assad’s fall in Syria is a ‘fundamental act of justice,’ but ‘a moment of risk’Russian state news agencies say ousted Syrian leader Bashar Assad is in Moscow and given asylum

In a flurry of nominations last week and over the weekend, President-elect Donald Trump added nine potential officials to his administration, including hedge fund manager Scott Bessent for treasury secretary, Brooke Rollins for agriculture secretary and Project 2025 author Russell Vought as head of the Office of Management and Budget. Most of Trump's picks share a certain quality: Loyalty. Bessent, for example, raised money for Trump's campaign, and both Rollins and Vought were part of the administration during Trump's first term in office. Rollins' selection as agriculture secretary rounds out Trump's choices cabinet-level secretary positions. RELATED STORY | Here's who Trump has asked to join his administration Trump and his cabinet appointments now face confirmation tests in the Senate, which are not a guarantee. Pushback from senators against Trump's first pick of Matt Gaetz for attorney general, for example, show that lawmakers are prepared to scrutinize and object to at least some of Trump's appointments. "The Senate, of course, under the Constitution, has the job of advising and consenting on nominations, and I take that responsibility very seriously," Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) told CBS' "Face the Nation." "It will be really important that the new Republican leader in the Senate uphold the Senate's prerogatives under the Constitution and not try to do an end run." Another concern, raised by President Biden's White House, is that the Trump transition team has not yet signed memorandums of understanding or ethics pledges that smooth the transition from one administration to the next. Without the paperwork in place, the FBI has so far not been able to conduct background checks into administration appointments.

The Edmonton Oilers are finding their groove after a rocky start, stringing together victories that reflect a team starting to play up to its potential. With a recent 4-2 win over the St. Louis Blues , Edmonton has won five of its last six games, showing the firepower of its stars and the resilience of its supporting cast. The Oilers’ momentum is building. Oilers Connor McDavid’s Is on a Record-Breaking Pace Connor McDavid is at the heart of the Edmonton Oilers’ resurgence, whose recent play has been nothing short of extraordinary. McDavid’s 27 points over the last 13 games underline his dominance, while his 123 assists in the 2024 calendar year have drawn comparisons to legends like Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky. Against the Blues, his unassisted goal exemplified his ability to capitalize on even the slightest defensive lapse, keeping opponents on constant alert. Zach Hyman’s return from an injury has been a game-changer. The forward has doubled his season goal total in just two games. That kind of success will push the team. Last season’s 50-goal scorer’s success will help everyone. He takes up space, and his net-front presence is something his team needs to score some easy goals close in. While McDavid and Leon Draisaitl lead the charge, the Oilers benefit from key contributions across the roster. Meanwhile, Stuart Skinner’s 29-save effort against St. Louis highlighted the team’s improving defensive play. These performances reflect the Oilers’ growing chemistry and success, which head coach Kris Knoblauch’s lineup adjustments fostered. The Oilers Are Engaging in a Collective Push for Consistency Edmonton’s recent success is not solely about individual brilliance. The Oilers are capitalizing on opponent mistakes and minimizing their own, signaling a shift in their ability to control games. A big home win further boosted their confidence, with players finding form at the right time. Maintaining this momentum and solidifying lineup consistency will be crucial if the Oilers hope to sustain their playoff push. With their stars leading the way and depth players stepping up, the Oilers are well-positioned to continue their ascent. This article first appeared on NHL Trade Talk and was syndicated with permission.What comes next for President-elect Donald Trump's cabinet picks?