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POTSDAM, Germany (AP) — Wolfgang Bivour, a renowned fungi expert in Germany, leads mushroom hunting tours near Potsdam. This activity, once a necessity after World War II, is seeing a revival. The pandemic and a growing interest in veganism and medicinal fungi have fueled this trend. This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors. Wolfgang Bivour 75, center, a mushroom hunting tour leader, instructs mushroom pickers on how to hunt mushrooms in a forest in Potsdam, Germany, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi) Wolfgang Bivour 75, center, a mushroom hunting tour leader, instructs mushroom pickers on how…
by Lacey Pfalz Last updated: 11:30 AM ET, Fri October 10, 2025 Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that air traffic controllers who call in sick during the government shutdown might lose their jobs, despite having to work unpaid.The comment was aired live on Fox Business’ “Varney & Co.” on Thursday, October 9, in which he called air traffic controllers who called in sick during the shutdown “problem children” and said, “If we have some on our staff that aren’t dedicated, we’re going to let them go. Again, I can’t have people not showing up to work.” Calling most air traffic…
Famed roboticist and iRobot founder Rodney Brooks has sounded the alarm on a humanoid robot investment bubble. He’s not the only one. In a recent essay, Brooks calls out the billions of venture dollars being poured into humanoid robot companies like Figure. His take: Despite the amount of money being injected into the industry, humanoids won’t be able to learn dexterity — or the fine motor movements with hands — rendering them essentially useless. His take might surprise some, especially those VCs investing in the sector. But not the multiple robotics-focused VCs and AI scientists who have told TechCrunch in…
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Walking along the broad pedestrian street that runs along the base of Athens’ famed Acropolis Hill, visitors can now enjoy something not seen in decades: an unobstructed, scaffolding-free view of the Parthenon temple.The scaffolding set up along the 5th century B.C. temple’s western façade for conservation work about 20 years ago has been removed, allowing an uncluttered view of the UNESCO World Heritage site.The western side of the Parthenon affords the best street-level view, so the removal from that side, which was completed in late September, has been the most noticeable for visitors. But Culture Minister…
POTSDAM, Germany (AP) — Wolfgang Bivour carefully emptied a basket of freshly collected mushrooms onto a forest floor covered with fallen autumn leaves. Brown-capped porcini and bay boletes lay beside slimy purple brittlegills and honey-colored armillaria — and, among them, the lethal green death caps.Bivour, one of Germany’s most famous fungi connoisseurs, described the different species just collected in an oak and beech forest on the outskirts of Potsdam in eastern Germany. Surrounding him were 20 people who listened attentively, among them university students, retirees and a Chinese couple with their 5-year-old daughter.Across Germany, the traditional forest art of mushroom…
The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on Friday designated Google with a special status in the market for online search that would enable the regulator to enforce stricter regulations. The CMA has designated Google as having “strategic market status” in the search and search advertising markets, which means the company has such “a substantial and entrenched” position that it requires special regulations to ensure fair competition. “Google has had an unparalleled position in this digital activity for an extended period. Other traditional general search providers are significantly smaller than Google and have been for many years. Bing is…
The energy transition is seemingly under assault, with congressional Republicans killing tax credits for clean energy and the Trump administration threatening to cancel billions of dollars’ worth of grants. But there are signs the setback might not be as catastrophic for the transition as the headlines make it sound. Investor sentiment, judging by the size of two new funds, remains strong. And more founders are pouring into the sector. The upshot: People and organizations are betting money and time that the energy transition isn’t going away. This week, Brookfield, the Canadian infrastructure and asset management giant, announced it had raised…
Rishi Sunak, who served as the United Kingdom’s prime minister from 2022 to 2024, has taken on senior advisory roles at Microsoft and Anthropic, The Guardian reports. Letters from the Parliament’s office of the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) disclosing Sunak’s appointments revealed concerns that the ex-Conservative PM’s privileged information could “grant Microsoft an unfair advantage.” Sunak has some history with Microsoft, which has several active contracts with British government departments. In 2023, he unveiled a £2.5 billion deal with Microsoft to invest in new data centers and training in the U.K. Acoba also noted that “there is a reasonable concern that your appointment could be…
Earlier this week, OpenAI launched a way for developers to build apps within ChatGPT, allowing users to prompt the assistant to perform tasks and answer questions directly related to the participating apps. Several companies have launched their interactive experiences, including Spotify, allowing listeners to ask ChatGPT to create playlists, recommend songs, and more. When you mention Spotify in your ChatGPT prompt, you’ll have the option to connect your account. A button that says “Use Spotify for this answer” will appear at the bottom of the page. Connecting your account allows the AI to access your data, such as your likes…
Elon Musk’s Boring Co., the tunneling and infrastructure firm, repeatedly violated state environmental regulations, even after the company agreed not to, Nevada regulators say. The Boring Co., which is in the process of expanding a tunnel network under Las Vegas, is accused of nearly 800 violations, according to a report from ProPublica. Nearly 100 of the violations occurred after the company signed an agreement with state regulators in 2022, which sought to force the company to comply with state laws. The alleged violations include digging without approval, dumping untreated water onto city streets, failing to install silt fences, and tracking…