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GDC 2023 kicks off with a gathering that’s closer to normal

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

The Game Developers Conference opens this week at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, and the gathering is expected to be the closest thing to normal since the pandemic.The attendance is predicted to be about 24,000, below the 2020 mark, but Stephenie Hawkins, director of event production, points to the number of exhibitors and sessions as a healthier outlook.“We have over 330 exhibitors and over 700 sessions,” she said. “A lot of our community partners are coming back this year.”She also mentioned the return of events such as the Day of the Devs and the Independent Games Festival. GDC isn’t a trade show like E3 or an enthusiast event like PAX. It sits on the calendar as a gathering where game developers meet to learn tricks of the trade and establish connections.“Career development is a big deal for us,” said Ashley Corrigan, senior conference producer. First-time attendees can quickly be overwhelmed by all the sessions and keynote speake...

Colorado dentist suspected of fatally poisoning wife, police say

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

An Aurora dentist is suspected of poisoning his wife to death, police said Sunday.James Craig, 45, was arrested Sunday morning on suspicion of first-degree murder, Aurora police spokesman Joe Moylan said in a news release. Craig’s 43-year-old wife, who was not publicly identified by police, died early Sunday morning, days after being hospitalized and declared brain dead.Police say Craig drove his wife to a hospital at about 8:45 p.m. Wednesday because she was suffering from severe headaches and dizziness. Soon after she arrived, her “condition deteriorated rapidly,” and she was put on a ventilator in the hospital’s intensive care unit, Moylan said. She was declared medically brain dead “a short time later,” police said in the news release.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Woman killed in shooting inside East Bay home Crime and Public Safety | San Jose police investigate city’s 6th homicide Crime and Public Safety | After landm...

Civil lawsuit alleges sexual assault by former Northern California police chief

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

A federal lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Eureka accuses former Ukiah Police Chief Noble Waidelich of sexually assaulting a Mendocino County woman in her home last summer.Former Ukiah Police Chief Noble Waidelich (File photo/ Contributed–Ukiah Police Department) The woman is identified only as “Jane Doe” in the lawsuit, which was lodged by a Los Angeles law firm. The alleged victim is widely known, however, in Mendocino County law enforcement circles as a supporter of police and military, and is a friend of many high ranking local officers.The Waidelich case surfaced when Mendocino County Sheriff Matt Kendall was notified of the alleged assault at the woman’s Ukiah home on June 13. Kendall immediately referred the allegations to Sonoma County authorities for an outside investigation.City officials fired Waidelich three days later but the reasons why, and the results of the Sonoma investigation have been kept under wraps by local authorities. The specific allegation of s...

Spring equinox 2023: Ancient traditions of renewal echo into the modern world

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

By Forrest Brown | CNNThomas Nashe, the 16th-century British poet and dramatist, certainly looked forward to spring in his own colorful, singsong way:The fields breathe sweet, the daisies kiss our feet,Young lovers meet, old wives a-sunning sit,In every street these tunes our ears do greet:Cuckoo, jug-jug, pu-we, to witta-woo!Spring, the sweet spring!Sweet spring indeed — a time to observe the growing light, listen to the birds, smell the flowers and feel the growing warmth from the sun.They’re all signs that spring equinox 2023 is arriving. This official first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere is a sign of rebirth, a time of tradition and a harmonious balance between day and night.Precisely when will the spring equinox happen?Some folks like things scheduled down to the minute.The spring equinox will arrive exactly at 21:24 UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) March 20, according to EarthSky. Here’s how that breaks down at various points around the world (all t...

Longtime Burlingame restaurant Stella goes big with new location

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

For most of their 18 years on Burlingame’s Primrose Road, the owners of Stella Alpina Osteria knew they needed a larger space to accommodate private parties and corporate clients.Stella restaurant’s new home on Burlingame Avenue boasts seating for 200 diners, including alfresco options and a horseshoe-shaped bar. (Jennifer Gomez Photography for Stella) So more than a year ago, Alisa and Matteo Ferrari embarked on a $3 million construction project that would keep them in this restaurant-rich downtown. They took over the Burlingame Avenue property that was formerly home to Sixtos Cantina and Bit of England and renovated the space, creating 4,500 square feet of indoor space and 1,500 square feet of outdoor with the capacity to hold up to 200 guests in both public and private dining rooms.The project by Midglen Studios also features a 16-seat horseshoe-shaped bar; “wine bridge” seating for eight that overlooks the restaurant; and alfresco tables.“A lot of lo...

Here's when, where California's next atmospheric river will hit hardest

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – The start of spring in California is looking a lot like it has all winter: rain, rain and more rain. The 12th atmospheric river of the year is poised to hit the state this week, bringing heavy precipitation and strong winds. Rain is forecast to start late Monday night and continue through Wednesday afternoon, but the heaviest rain is expected to fall Tuesday morning and afternoon, according to the National Weather Service's Bay Area office. A graphic (below) from the National Weather Service's Los Angeles office further breaks down storm timing in Southern California. The heaviest rain for San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura and Los Angeles is expected to start Tuesday morning and continue overnight into Wednesday. After so many atmospheric rivers, how full are California’s reservoirs? Most communities are expected to get between 1 and 3 inches of rain, but mountain and hill areas could see as much as 4 inches. Thunderstorms are possible Tuesday afternoon and even...

Logano, Ford deliver answer to Chevy’s strong NASCAR start

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — As the reigning NASCAR champion, Joey Logano had no reason to panic when Team Penske had a slower than expected start to the new season.He was second in the season-opening Daytona 500 but hardly the dominant driver he was at the end of last season, when Logano won his second Cup title. Even worse, Ford was shut out of the first four races of the season, which were won by Chevrolet drivers.So Logano’s return to the winner’s circle in Atlanta was a much-needed boost for Ford. Chevrolet won the Daytona 500 with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., at California with Kyle Busch and then back-to-back wins by Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron.But at Atlanta Motor Speedway — led by Logano — Team Penske had the three fastest qualifiers for Sunday’s race. Austin Cindric and Ryan Blaney followed Logano in qualifying.Even better for the Blue Oval bunch? Ford drivers lined up in the top eight spots.Logano showed that qualifying was no fluke as he dominated the race...

US envoy hails ‘historic’ EU-brokered Serbia-Kosovo deal

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — The United States envoy for the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue on Monday welcomed the European Union-facilitated deal on normalizing relations between neighboring Kosovo and Serbia as an “important and historic agreement.”Gabriel Escobar said the weekend deal between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti in Ohrid, North Macedonia “sets the conditions for normalization between Serbia and Kosovo on European terms.On Saturday EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Vucic and Kurti agreed on an 11-point EU plan to normalize relations following their 1998-1999 war and Kosovo’s declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008.The plan calls for them to maintain good neighborly relations and recognize each other’s official documents and national symbols. If implemented, it would prevent Belgrade from blocking Kosovo’s attempts to seek membership in the United Nations and other international organizations. But it doesn’t explicitly call ...

N. Ireland unionists say no to Sunak’s Brexit deal, for now

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Northern Ireland’s main British unionist party said Monday it will vote against a deal struck by Britain and the European Union to resolve a thorny trade dispute that vexed U.K.-EU relations and triggered a political crisis in Belfast.Democratic Unionist Party leader Jeffrey Donaldson said the deal “does not deal with some of the fundamental problems at the heart of our current difficulties” and the party’s eight lawmakers would not support it when the House of Commons votes on Wednesday.The U.K.-EU agreement, known as the Windsor Framework, aims to ease customs checks and other hurdles for goods moving to Northern Ireland from the rest of the U.K. that were imposed after Brexit to maintain an open border between the north and its EU neighbor the Republic of Ireland. The open border is a key pillar of Northern Ireland’s peace process.Northern Ireland’s British unionist politicians strongly opposed the customs border, saying it undermines Northern Ireland’s place in the...

Germany hopes to repair reputation before hosting Euro 2024

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:42:40 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — With the European Championship looming next year, host Germany hopes this week to start repairing the tattered reputation of its men’s national soccer team.Two World Cup flops and a poor showing in between have taken their toll on what was a proud heritage for Germany. The four-time World Cup winner no longer strikes fear among opponents.The German soccer federation wants to change that before the country hosts Euro 2024. It’s an opportunity to restore lost pride, albeit with the potential for more embarrassment. The campaign starts this week with friendly games against Peru in Mainz on Saturday, then Belgium in Cologne three days later.The federation has given coach Hansi Flick another chance to lead the team after its first-round exit at the 2022 World Cup. It also brought in former Germany striker and coach Rudi Völler as sporting director to oversee what it hopes will be a successful shakeup.Another one.Former coach Joachim Löw attempted a shakeup after Germa...