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OBIT: Acclaimed composer Kaija Saariaho dies at 70

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

By Ronald Blum | Associated PressKaija Saariaho, who wrote acclaimed works that made her the among the most prominent composers of the 21st century, died Friday. She was 70.Saariaho died at her apartment in Paris, her family said in a statement posted on her Facebook page. She had been diagnosed in February 2021 with glioblastoma, an aggressive and incurable brain tumor.“The multiplying tumors did not affect her cognitive facilities until the terminal phase of her illness,” the statement said. Her family said Saariaho had undergone experimental treatment at Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris.“Kaija’s appearance in a wheelchair or walking with a can have prompted many questions, to which she answered elusively,” the family said. “Following her physician’s advice, she kept her illness a private matter, in order to maintain a positive mindset and keep the focus of her work.”Her “L’Amour de Loin (Love from Afar)” premiered at the Salzburg Festival in 2000 and made its...

Mysterious structures in Milky Way leave scientists ‘stunned’

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

By Kristen Rogers | CNNAn international team of astrophysicists has discovered hundreds of mysterious structures in the center of the Milky Way galaxy.These one-dimensional forms are hundreds of horizontal or radial filaments — slender, elongated bodies of luminous gas that potentially originated a few million years ago when outflow from Sagittarius A*, the Milky Way’s central supermassive black hole, interacted with surrounding materials, according to a study published Friday in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. The filaments are relatively short in length, each measuring 5 to 10 light-years.The findings come nearly 40 years after Farhad Yusef-Zadeh, the study’s lead author, and other researchers discovered another population of nearly 1,000 one-dimensional filaments, which are vertical and much larger at up to 150 light-years long each, near the galaxy’s center. Yusef-Zadeh and collaborators also found hundreds more paired and clustered vertical filaments in the same area in 2022...

Hayward handyman charged with violently molesting 8-year-old girl as she screamed for help, court docs say

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

HAYWARD — A 49-year-old Hayward man has been charged with sexually abusing a girl multiple times, beginning when she was 8 years old, after her family hired him as a handyman, court records show.Ruperto Espinoza Villanueva was charged May 17 with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child and enhancements alleging use of violence and being in a position of trust. He was also charged with first-degree residential burglary, a related offense that stems from one of the alleged incidents where he came over to the family home for dinner.The girl, now in her teens, kept the molestation to herself until recently. She was scared to come forward because Villanueva was in a position of trust and due to her trauma, authorities say.Villanueva was arrested May 16, and pleaded not guilty on May 18. He is being held in Santa Rita Jail in Dublin without bail.Prosecutors allege that the first act of molestation occurred when the girl was 8 years old, when Villanueva allegedly grabbed her...

Flag raised at San Francisco City Hall for Pride Month

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Mayor London Breed, LGBTQ+ community leaders, and Drag Laureate D’Arcy Drollinger celebrated the beginning of San Francisco's 53rd annual Pride Month with a flag-raising ceremony at City Hall on Friday. San Francisco is the first city in America to name an official drag laureate, and Breed selected drag performer Drollinger for the honor. "Here in San Francisco, the Pride flag is proudly flown. San Francisco celebrates individuality. It applauds people marching to the beat of their own drum," Drollinger said. Drollinger plans to make the city "sparkle" and even more "fabulous" by encouraging all San Franciscans to remain true to their authentic self. During Pride Month, people from all over the world come to San Francisco to participate in many events dedicated to celebrating the city’s diversity and commitment to the LGBTQ+ community. The festivities will culminate with the popular Pride Parade on Sunday, June 25.Drag Laureate D’Arcy Drollinger (Image courte...

Top seeds unbeaten in early NCAA Tournament baseball regional games

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

The first day of the NCAA Tournament headed into Friday night with no surprises among the national seeds.No. 2 Florida, No. 3 Arkansas, No. 5 LSU and No. 12 Kentucky won their regional openers, with the other four Southeastern Conference teams that earned national seeds playing at night.The Atlantic Coast Conference went 2 for 2 with No. 4 Clemson and No. 7 Virginia posting wins.No. 8 Stanford, the only Pac-12 school nationally seeded, also won.Indiana State, seeded 14th and hosting a regional for the first time, got a scare from Wright State before winning 6-5.The Sycamores of the Missouri Valley Conference trailed until they got to Horizon League pitcher of the year Sebastian Gongora in the eighth. Tristan Haught, who came on with one out and two runners on, gave up a sacrifice fly and walked two straight before Grant Magill singled in two runs for the lead.“That wasn’t the way we drew it out, by any means,” Sycamores coach Mitch Hannahs said. “It wasn’t the prettiest,...

Sale goes on IL, Rays, Red Sox rained out, will be made up on Monday

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — The Red Sox placed left-hander Chris Sale on the injured list on Friday with shoulder inflammation. It’s another setback for the seven-time All-Star as he attempts to re-establish himself as a reliable member of the rotation.“It’s just kind of a gut punch,” Sale told reporters before Friday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays was rained out. “I hate feeling like this. I started having fun playing baseball again. And now, back to not having fun. That sucks.”A day after being pulled from a start in the fourth inning, Sale said doctors weren’t sure what the injury was but he didn’t expect to need surgery. Acknowledging his past arm problems, he said he had always come back before and will do so again.“If there’s anything I can prove, it’s you’re not going to keep me down,” he said. “I’m just going to keep rolling. You knock me down I’m going to get back up.”Friday night’s series opener with Tampa Bay was called about an hour after the scheduled first pitch...

Royals left-hander Amir Garrett on injured list with elbow pain

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City Royals left-hander Amir Garrett was placed on the 15-day injured list on Friday because of pain in his pitching elbow.The Royals described the injury as a valgus extension overload and made the move retroactive to Tuesday. Right-hander Jackson Kowar was recalled from Triple-A Omaha.“It’s basically kind of like a bone bruise,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “There’s inflammation. There’s also a little bit of irritation.”Garrett had an injection intended to reduce inflammation. He will not throw for up to a week.“Probably five to seven days, no throw,” Quatraro said. “Re-evaluate, then three to four week overall timeline.”In his second season with the Royals, Garrett has a 3.00 ERA in 21 innings over 23 relief appearances. He last pitched during Kansas City’s 7-0 win at St. Louis on Monday, striking out two in a scoreless ninth inning. The team said the IL move was retroactive.___AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Spor...

Caglianone, Rivera carry Florida past Florida A&M, 3-0 in NCAA Gainesville regional opener

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Josh Rivera hit a two-run home run in the first inning and Florida needed to throw out two runners at the plate in the ninth inning to preserve a 3-0 win over Florida A&M in a first-round game of the NCAA Gainesville Regional on Friday.The Gators (45-14) advance to face Texas Tech on Saturday. Florida A&M (29-29) takes on UConn in an elimination game.Jac Caglianone fanned seven, walked three and scattered seven base hits over six innings to earn his seventh win in 10 decisions. Ryan Slater worked two perfect innings in relief. Brandon Neely took over in the ninth to earn his 11th save, but worked a rocky inning. After Slater got the first hitter to fly out to left, Josesph Pierini doubled to left, but was thrown out at the plate trying to score on a single by Will Brown. Brown attempted to score from second on an infield single to short by Ben Kim to end the game. Starter Caleb Granger (6-5) worked six innings, allowing four hits and walking four whi...

Detroit Pistons announce deal with new coach Monty Williams

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — Monty Williams is taking over the Detroit Pistons.The team said Friday it reached an agreement with Williams to fill its coaching vacancy. Terms of the deal were not announced, but a person familiar with the situation told the AP on Wednesday night it was a six-year contract.The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not been announced at the time.“After spending some time with Monty, it’s clear that he’s found a unique balance between achieving victory at the highest level while at the same time nurturing a culture of growth, development and inspiration,” Pistons owner Tom Gores said. “I’m beyond excited. This is a huge win for us.”The 51-year-old Williams was fired by Phoenix on May 13, two years after reaching the NBA Finals and a year after he won the league’s coach of the year honors.Williams won 63% of his games over four regular seasons with the Suns, but they were eliminated in the Western Conference semifinals two years in a row after los...

Red Sox lefty Chris Sale goes on IL for 6th season in a row

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:18:12 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — The Red Sox placed left-hander Chris Sale on the injured list with shoulder inflammation on Friday, another setback for the seven-time All-Star as he attempts to re-establish himself as a reliable member of the rotation.“It’s just kind of a gut punch,” Sale told reporters before Friday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays was rained out. “I hate feeling like this. I started having fun playing baseball again. And now, back to not having fun. That sucks.”A day after being pulled from a start in the fourth inning, Sale said doctors weren’t sure what the injury was but he didn’t expect to need surgery. Acknowledging his past arm problems, he said he had always come back before and will do so again.“If there’s anything I can prove, it’s you’re not going to keep me down,” he said. “I’m just going to keep rolling. You knock me down I’m going to get back up. It’s obviously not where I want to be … but I...