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Bridge: May 27, 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

“Simple Saturday” columns focus on improving basic technique and developing logical thinking.I’ve heard it said that the best thing about rules is knowing when you can enjoy breaking them. To be sure, many defensive “rules” that players learn have exceptional cases.In today’s deal, West leads the nine of spades against four hearts, and declarer plays the queen from dummy. Suppose East “covers an honor with an honor,” as the rule enjoins. South takes the ace and cashes the A-K of trumps. When West discards, South tries the A-K of clubs and a club ruff.GOOD CLUBWhen the suit breaks 3-3, South goes to dummy with the jack of spades and throws his last spade on a good club as East ruffs. West gets two diamond tricks, but South makes his game.East defeats the contract if he ignores a rule. If he plays low on the first spade, he deprives South of a late entry to dummy, and the defenders get four tricks in all.Beware of “rules.” Th...

Word Game: May 27, 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — SERENADED (SERENADED: seh-rih-NADE-ed: Played or sang a love song to.)Average mark 43 wordsTime limit 45 minutesCan you find 53 or more words in SERENADED? The list will be published Monday.YESTERDAY’S WORD — SILICONE scion scone silicon silo since sine slice sloe soil sole sone sonic icon incise insole isle lenis lens lesion lice lien line lion loin lone lose clone close coil coin cole cone cosine once nice nicoise noel noes noil elisionTo purchase the Word Game book, visit WordGameBooks.com. Order it now for just $5 while supplies last!RULES OF THE GAME:1. Words must be of four or more letters.2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible.4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allo...

¿Cómo y dónde votar en las elecciones municipales y autonómicas de España 2023? Papeletas, sobres, documentos válidos y más

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

(CNN Español) — Es año de elecciones en España y este domingo el país tendrá su primera jornada electoral de 2023.Las elecciones municipales y autonómicas se llevarán a cabo el domingo 28 de mayo en territorio español. Muchos ven estos comicios como un termómetro para lo que pueda ocurrir a finales de año, momento en que tendrán lugar las elecciones generales en el país.En las elecciones municipales y autonómicas, las fuerzas políticas de España se batirán para mantener la continuidad de los gobiernos que lideran y conseguir la presidencia en aquellas autonomías donde hasta ahora les haya sido esquiva.Por ejemplo, el Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE) ostenta actualmente la mayor cantidad de presidencias autonómicas, nueve en total: Aragón, Principado de Asturias, Islas Baleares, Canarias, Castilla-La Mancha, Comunidad Valenciana, Extremadura, La Rioja y Navarra. Mantenerlas o perderlas podría servir para pronosticar qué partido tiene más posibilidades de hacerse con la ...

Father knows best: Keith Tkachuk’s words came at just the right time for Panthers

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Keith Tkachuk never played a game for the Florida Panthers, and hadn’t recorded an assist at the NHL level in nearly 13 years.That is, until March 29. That’s the day he might have had the biggest helper of Florida’s season.A rant on a Toronto radio station that morning by Tkachuk — a hockey legend and Florida star Matthew Tkachuk’s dad — just happened to coincide with the Panthers turning their season around. Hours later, the Panthers beat the Maple Leafs to start a push that let them squeak into the playoffs and ultimately roar into the Stanley Cup Final.“He’s still in timeout,” Matthew Tkachuk said, explaining why he’s urged his dad to not do more interviews right now.Doesn’t matter. His words live on, and he didn’t offend the Panthers. They’re going to the title round next week, with Game 1 at either Vegas or Dallas.“We’re here because of him,” Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said.Barkov wasn’t kidding. There have been countless reasons for Flo...

Baby eels remain one of America’s most valuable fish after strong year in Maine

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Fishermen in the U.S.’s only commercial-scale fishing industry for valuable baby eels once again had a productive season searching for the tiny fish.Baby eels, called elvers, are often worth more than $2,000 per pound because of how valuable they are to Asian aquaculture companies. That makes them one of the most valuable fish species in the U.S. They’re raised to maturity so they can be used in Japanese food, some of which is sold in the U.S. in unagi dishes at sushi restaurants.The elvers have again been worth more than $2,000 per pound at the docks this year, according to the Maine Department of Marine Resources. The fishermen are limited to a combined quota of a little less than 10,000 pounds per year and were about through it by early May, the department said. The price was a tick below last year’s, but higher than the previous two.Fishermen this year have been aided by favorable weather and strong international demand, said Jeffrey K. P...

Taiwan says Chinese warships pass through Taiwan Strait as Beijing keeps up pressure on island

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said Saturday that it detected three Chinese warships, including the Shandong aircraft carrier, passing through the Taiwan Strait, as Beijing keeps up pressure on the self-ruled island it claims as its own. The ministry said it was monitoring the movements of the ships and will respond accordingly. In a tweet, the ministry said that the three vessels were headed north along the Taiwan Strait at noon and were steering along the west of the median line — an unofficial boundary once tacitly accepted by both sides. China has stepped up its military activities around Taiwan in recent months amid deteriorating U.S.-China ties.China claims Taiwan as its own territory to be brought under its control by force if necessary and regularly sends ships and warplanes into airspace and waters near the island.The ministry also said that in the 24 hours from 6 a.m. Friday to Saturday, it detected 33 of China’s People’s Liberation Army aircraft and ...

Egypt unveils recently discovered ancient workshops, tombs in Saqqara necropolis

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian antiquities authorities Saturday unveiled ancient workshops and tombs they say were discovered recently at a Pharaonic necropolis just outside the capital Cairo.The spaces were found in the sprawling necropolis of Saqqara, which is a part of Egypt’s ancient capital of Memphis, a UNESCO World Heritage site.Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the workshops had been used to mummify humans and sacred animals. They date back to the 30th Pharaonic Dynasty (380 BC to 343 BC) and Ptolemaic period (305 BC to 30 BC), he said.Inside the workshops, archaeologists found clay pots and other items apparently used in mummification, as well as ritual vessels, Waziri said.The tombs, meanwhile, were for a top official from the Old Kingdom of ancient Egypt, and a priest from the New Kingdom, according to Sabri Farag, head of the Saqqara archaeological site.In recent years, Egypt’s government has heavily promoted new archaeological finds to...

Pearson airport to stage simulated plane crash as part of emergency exercise

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

Pearson Airport is warning of possible traffic disruptions in and around the airport as it stages a full-scale emergency exercise on Saturday morning.The airport says approximately 400 members of the airport community, partners and volunteers will be involved in a simulated plane crash starting at 9 a.m. around the area of Derry Road just west of Airport Road. The event is scheduled to conclude by 2 p.m.Peel police along with Mississauga Fire and both Peel Region and Toronto paramedic services will also be taking part in the simulated emergency response which is required by Transport Canada.Last year at this time, emergency responders took part in an exercise involving 300 volunteers playing the part of protesters, blocking an access road and testing the response to a security breach. It was the first in-person security event since the pandemic began.The Greater Toronto Airports Authority typically runs one full scale and one tabletop exercise per year to test protocols, procedures,...

StatCan report casts clouds on claims of a widespread labour shortage in Canada

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

OTTAWA — A new report is casting doubt on the idea that Canada is facing a widespread labour shortage and bolsters the arguments by some labour economists that high job vacancies aren’t due to a shortage of workers.The Statistics Canada analysis finds there are no labour shortages for jobs that require high levels of education, suggesting other factors, such as a mismatch in skills and pay, might be to blame for a high number of empty positions.In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, labour shortages have grasped headlines from coast to coast as businesses have advertised more job openings than ever. Job vacancies skyrocketed to more than one million at one point last year. The perceived countrywide labour shortage has put pressure on governments to help businesses find workers, including by increasing Canada’s immigration targets.  But the report published this week compares unemployment and job vacancies by education level and paints a more nuanced picture of the la...

Dry start to the holiday weekend

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:48 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The overnight hours were quiet under a fair to partly cloudy sky. Temperatures fell to the 60s areawide.Another area of showers and thunderstorms is moving southeast out of the South Plains. If it holds together through the day then parts of Llano and Mason Counties could see a few showers/isolated thunderstorms after 3 p.m. Otherwise, expect clouds to increase during the morning and afternoon. Saturday's highs will be back in the middle to upper 80s.Today's normal high is 90°A few showers and isolated thunderstorms (10% chance) are forecast for Sunday afternoon with many highs between 83° and 87°.Upper-level low pressure has moved from Nevada into Utah. A disturbance from this low will move across Central Texas Sunday night/Monday. Showers will be increasing Sunday night to a 50% chance of showers and thunderstorm Monday. Memorial Day's forecast will feature rain and a few non-severe thunderstormsStorm Prediction Center forecast for MondayThe precipitation continue...