Avengers: Infinity War Comic-Con Footage Leaks Online

Thanos is finally coming and we have the footage to prove it. That's right, Marvel fans! Disney wanted to make a big impression at D23 and, as such, they decided to bring some footage from Avengers: Infinity War to the party. Sadly, they just didn't release it for everyone to see. They didn't want to leave the fans at San Diego Comic-Con out, so they brought the footage to Hall H as well. They didn't intend for the footage to make it online after SDCC either, but fans simply can't be trusted. As such, some of the footage has leaked online and you can check it out right now. But you're going to want to watch it while you still can.

Marvel is always going to have a presence at San Diego Comic-Con. That's a given. But they decided to bring the biggest movie on their upcoming slate to D23 this year as well. Why not? It is Disney's event, after all. No better place to finally reveal some Avengers: Infinity War footage for the first time. But why not bring that, as well as some of their other upcoming movies, to San Diego Comic-Con? And that's exactly what they did. Marvel Studios previously released a behind-the-scenes video that teased the massive event film, and, at least in an official capacity, that is all they have given us. But this first bit of footage, even though it isn't ideal, totally lives up to the hype.

Avengers: Infinity War serves as the culmination of a decade worth of MCU movies and it is going to live up to that legacy. The footage is absolutely loaded with stuff to unpack. Captain America is rocking a beard looking full-on Nomad, Black Widow is blonde for some reason, Loki is up to no good. But like, way worse than we're used to and the Guardians hit Thor with their spaceship. Oh and did we mention that Thanos throws a planet? Because Thanos throws a planet. And Spider-Man definitely uses his Spidey sense. It is also pretty slim on the humor. This looks dark, serious and intense. We don't get to see all of that in this brief leak, but this gives a great taste of what to expect.

Joe Russo and Anthony Russo very successfully directed Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War. That led to Kevin Feige putting them in charge of directing the next two Avengers installments for Marvel, which includes Avengers: Infinity War and the still untitled Avengers 4. That is an awful lot to trust the directing duo with, considering that these movies are going to be the culmination of everything that the MCU has accomplished over the last decade. No pressure, gentleman. But considering Captain America: Civil war is one of the highest-grossing MCU movies and both of their efforts are considered to be among the best Marvel has put out, they probably don't have reason to be concerned. The Avengers are in good hands.

Avengers: Infinity War is poised to rule the summer box office next year when it arrives on May 4, 2018. Avengers 4 is going to follow a year later on May 3, 2019, which will be bringing an end to Marvel's Phase 3 plans. It's all been leading to this. Thanos is here. The Infinity Stones have been gathered. The world needs saving and The Avengers are the ones who have to do it. We're ready. Be sure to check out the first leaked footage from Avengers: Infinity War for yourself below.



Source: movieweb.com

Boots forced to apologise after suggesting women might 'misuse' morning after pill if price was reduced

Boots has been forced to apologise after it suggested women would misuse the morning after pill if the price was reduced.

The high street chemist said it is "truly sorry" for the way it responded to a campaign calling for it to cut the price of emergency contraception.

The chain faced criticism after refusing to reduce the cost of the morning-after pill over fears it could incentivise its use.

Labour MPs attacked the company for taking an "unacceptable" moral position and health campaigners claimed women were being hit with a "sexist surcharge".

A spokesman for Boots said: "Pharmacy and care for customers are at the heart of everything we do and as such we are truly sorry that our poor choice of words in describing our position on emergency hormonal contraception (EHC) has caused offence and misunderstanding, and we sincerely apologise."

Boots charges £28.25 for Levonelle emergency contraceptive and £26.75 for its own version, while Tesco charges £13.50 for Levonelle and Superdrug £13.49 for a generic product.

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), which launched the campaign calling on Boots to reduce the price tag on the emergency contraceptive, found the progestogen-based pills can cost up to five times more in the UK than other parts of Europe.

Boots said its price tag was based on the cost of the medicine and the consultation the pharmacists carries out with women but it is "committed" to finding less expensive versions of the tablet.

It said: "We firmly believe in the right of all women to access the EHC service with ease and convenience, and have long been at the forefront of increasing accessibility of contraception for women.

"The provision of EHC requires a regulated mandatory consultation to protect women's health and is a professional healthcare service provided by highly trained pharmacists. As a leading pharmacy, we will not compromise or undervalue this professional service.

"The consultation with the pharmacist is necessary to understand the patient's individual circumstances and ensure we provide an appropriate, safe and effective medicine for her.

"The pricing of EHC is determined by the cost of the medicine and the cost of the pharmacy consultation. We are committed to looking at the sourcing of less expensive EHC medicines, for example generics, to enable us to continue to make a privately funded EHC service even more accessible in the future.

"In addition the NHS EHC service where it is locally commissioned, is provided for free in over 1,700 of our pharmacies, and we continue to urge the NHS to extend this free service more widely."

It comes after a letter organised by Labour's Jess Phillips and backed by the party's women MPs expressed "deep concern" about the position Boots had taken and called for the chain to follow its rivals in cutting the cost.

The letter said: "The justification given by Boots for maintaining the high price was that it did not want to face complaints or to incentive the use of emergency contraceptive.

"This infantilises women, Boots largest customer base, and suggests Boots takes a moral position against women's choice which is unacceptable."

It added: "The women of the PLP (Parliamentary Labour Party) implore you to commit to following the example set by Superdrug and Tesco and agree to reduce the cost of emergency contraception at Boots.

"It will improve women's access to a vital method of back-up contraception, is supported by the majority of the public, is clearly commercially possible and will end the sexist sub-charge on emergency contraception."

BPAS welcomed the apology and said it was "delighted".

Clare Murphy, director of external affairs said: "We really welcome this apology from Boots and are delighted that they are committed to lowering the cost of emergency contraception.

"We look forward to learning what the next steps will be and the time-frame for these changes.

"As other retailers have been able to introduce a price reduction across their stores we hope Boots will act promptly to ensure women have affordable access to this back-up method of contraception, which gives women a crucial second chance of avoiding an unwanted pregnancy."



Source: mirror.co.uk

Baby Charlie Protesters Rally as Hospital Reports Threats

Protesters who want critically ill British baby Charlie Gard to receive an experimental medical treatment rallied Sunday, while hospital officials say emotions are running so high in the heart-breaking case they have received death threats.

A small group of about 20 activists supporting Gard's parents, including some from the United States, gathered Sunday afternoon outside the High Court in London where legal proceedings will resume Monday with new medical evidence expected.

Charlie has a rare genetic condition and suffers from brain damage. His case, which pits his parents' wishes in conflict with the views of doctors treating him, has generated international attention.

His parents are fighting to get him more medical care but Great Ormond Street Hospital officials say the experimental treatment won't work and will just cause the 11-month-old more suffering. They argue that his life support should be turned off and he should receive palliative care.

Hospital chairwoman Mary MacLeod said the London police have been contacted because of numerous threats received by the hospital's employees.

"Staff have received abuse both in the street and online," she said. "Thousands of abusive messages have been sent to doctors and nurses whose life's work is to care for sick children. Many of these messages are menacing, including death threats."

MacLeod said families visiting other ill children have also been "harassed and discomforted" on the grounds of the renowned hospital in London.

Charlie's parents have lost all previous court cases, including one before the European Court of Human Rights, which were designed to force the hospital to let them bring their son to the United States for an experimental treatment.

The loss in the European court, following an earlier defeat in Britain's Supreme Court, seemed final. But both Pope Francis and U.S. President Donald Trump expressed an interest in Charlie's fate, and the hospital asked for a new court hearing because of what the family claimed was new medical evidence.

Charlie has been examined by Dr. Michio Hirano, an American neurology expert from Columbia Medical Center in New York who has designed the proposed experimental treatment.

The doctor's findings are expected to figure heavily in Monday's court proceedings, as are the results of Charlie's recent brain scans.

A lawyer representing the hospital said in a brief hearing Friday that the latest brain scan results make for "sad reading."

That prompted an angry outburst from Charlie's father, Chris Gard, and prompted his mother, Connie Yates, to burst into tears.


Source: usnews.com

HIV advocates worry about gains reversal from Trump’s budget proposal

The United Nations said for the first time, more than half the people with HIV have access to treatment. Southern and eastern Africa have shown the most progress in fighting the virus.

But advocates are worried by proposed budget cuts from the biggest donor nation, the United States.

More than half of all people with HIV live in eastern and southern Africa. The United Nations organization UNAIDS said that since 2010 AIDS-related deaths have fallen by 42 percent and new infections are down by 29 percent. Still, globally 1.8 million people were newly infected in 2016.

President Donald Trump’s proposed budget cuts would reduce funding for global HIV programs by $1 billion.

“At this point in time they are abdicating their leadership; they are not living up to the global commitments to play in part in curbing the epidemic. And so we are almost at a crossroads and the US has a decision to make and that’s why we are looking to Congress. Are we really going to allow the US government to abdicate our leadership and our responsibility when it comes to our part in fighting global HIV,” Serra Sippel, President of the Center for Health and Gender Equity said.

Young women in Sub-Saharan Africa aged between 15 and 24 are at greater risk of HIV infection, with a 44 percent higher infection rate than their male peers.

“When you see this youth wave and you see the risk to young women. If in this moment we don’t figure this out and really get these programs to scale, we’re not going to have the impact on the epidemic we were hoping to have,” warned Deborah Birx from the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator.

The President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS relief, or PEPFAR set up a program called DREAMS two years ago to help girls and young women in 10 African nations.

The program recognizes that young women can only benefit from medical progress in treatment and prevention if they are empowered by better education and culturally sensitive healthcare and advice.

President Trump strengthened rules blocking funding for any groups that deal with abortion related issues, even if that involves simply providing advice, making it more difficult to support some projects.

But advocates have begun a determined effort to influence members of Congress who will organize and vote on the forthcoming budget, to ensure that the commitments on global HIV programs are maintained.



Source: america.cgtn.com

Trump: USS Ford is '100,000-ton message to the world'

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) - With praise and a blessing for the military, President Donald Trump helped hand over the USS Gerald R. Ford to the Navy on Saturday and said the state-of-the-art aircraft carrier will send a "100,000-ton message to the world" about America's military might when it is ultimately deployed.

U.S. allies will rest easy, Trump said, but America's enemies will "shake with fear" when they see the Ford cutting across the horizon.

The president, who is commander in chief of the U.S. armed forces, likened the $12.9 billion warship to "an incredible work of art" and boasted about the American labor that went into building a vessel that eventually will house thousands of sailors and crew members.

Trump's participation in the ceremony also capped "Made in America" week at the White House, during which the president and administration officials sought to draw attention to the U.S. manufacturing industry.

"American steel and American hands have constructed this 100,000-ton message to the world," Trump said of the Ford during a speech that praised the bravery and spirit of U.S. service members and referenced his desire for a buildup after years of spending restrictions.

"American might is second to none and we're getting bigger and better and stronger every day of my administration. That I can tell you," Trump told thousands of service members and guests, including former defense secretaries Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld, and Govs. Terry McAuliffe of Virginia and Rick Snyder of Michigan, who were packed into the steamy hangar bay on the main deck.

"Wherever this vessel cuts through the horizon, our allies will rest easy and our enemies will shake with fear because everyone will know that America is coming, and America is coming strong," Trump said.

After the speech, he put the Ford into commission and asked God to "bless and guide this warship and all who shall sail in her." He was followed by Susan Ford Bales, the ship's sponsor and daughter of the 38th president, whom the ship honors.

"There is no one, absolutely no one, who would be prouder of the commissioning of this mighty ship than the president of the United States, Gerald R. Ford," she said. "I am honored to give the command: 'Officers and crew of the United States Gerald R. Ford, man our ship and bring her to life.'"

"Anchors Aweigh" played as row after row of sailors in crisp, white uniforms who had been standing in formation began filing off to man their stations. Sirens and bells sounded, horns blared and the U.S. flag was hoisted high above the deck.

Soon after, the captain was informed that the "ship is manned and ready and reports for duty to the fleet."

Trump, who visited the carrier in March, told Time magazine this year that the Navy should revert to using steam catapults to launch fighter jets because some of the USS Ford's state-of-the-art systems and technology "costs hundreds of millions of dollars more money and it's no good."

Construction started in 2009 and was to be completed by September 2015 at a cost of $10.5 billion. The Navy has blamed the delays and budget overruns on the ship's advanced systems and technology, including electromagnetic launch systems for jets and drones that will replace steam catapults.

The warship also has a smaller island that sits farther back on the ship to make it quicker to refuel, re-arm and relaunch planes, and a nuclear power plant designed to allow cruising speeds of more than 30 knots and operation for 20 years without refueling.

The vessel completed sea trials in April but still will go through a battery of tests and workups at sea before becoming ready for deployment, work that is expected to cost nearly $780 million and take more than four years to complete, congressional auditors said this month.

Docked at Naval Station Norfolk, the USS Ford eventually will house about 2,600 sailors, 600 fewer than the previous generation of aircraft carriers. The Navy says that will save more than $4 billion over the ship's 50-year lifespan.

The air wing to support the Ford could add more personnel to the ship, which is designed to house more than 4,600 crew members.

The Ford was built at Newport News Shipbuilding, a giant Navy contractor in Virginia.

"I was with you four months ago and I knew that I had to be here today and I told you I'd be back to congratulate you and the crew and everybody involved in commissioning the newest, largest and most advanced aircraft carrier in the history of this world," Trump said Saturday. "That's a big achievement."



Source: wtol.com

New 'Justice League' Poster Is Really Colorful And Optimistic

Okay, we get it. Fair or not, the DCEU films (save for Wonder Woman) have been accused of being very dark and somber and colorless affairs. I may call foul on that charge (Larry Fong's Batman v Superman cinematography is still a sight for sore eyes either in IMAX or on HBO), but that's the narrative. And since Justice League's marketing is very much about disputing or changing the narrative, it makes sense that much of the art that we've seen has been really colorful and/or implicitly optimistic.

So, hours ahead of the SDCC panel which will presumably unveil a Justice League trailer and various other DC Films announcements, we've got a new poster and a new banner courtesy of the Twitter feed. And sure, enough, the theme is "Yay!" The color scheme is painfully bright (with arguably Alex Ross-inspired character designs), the heroes are almost... happy? And the tagline is weirdly conversational. As I've said before, I could never have imagined that a Justice League movie would be sold in such a casual/gee-whiz kinda way, but that's what we're going to see for the next few months.

Anyway, the actual design is pretty clever, using the respective logos to help spell out said tagline, and it's nice that it's not another "heroes stare off into the distance" sell. Sure, you can make the case that Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman should be in the center, but the word choice kinda demanded that Ben Affleck's Batman be in the middle. And I'm amused that we've got a Superman logo without Superman actually showing up in this poster. I'm curious as to whether we'll see Clark in the next trailer or whether Warner Bros. will hold off the reveal for as long as possible.


I think what's weird about all of this, and this isn't a criticism, is that we've got a Justice League movie that is being sold more like a Super Friends movie. That's for a future post after we get a look at that second trailer later today. But that's all I've got for the moment as my kids are requesting my attention. I'll be back for the actual panel in a couple of hours.


Source: forbes.com

 

Tewksbury Hospital clerk snooped in patient records

A clerk at the state-run Tewksbury Hospital inappropriately viewed the electronic medical records of 1,100 patients from 2003 to 2017, the Department of Public Health revealed Friday.

The clerk, who no longer works at the hospital, had access to records as part of her job but snooped into patient files she was not supposed to see, according to Tom Lyons, health department spokesman.

There is no evidence that the information she viewed was misused or ever left the hospital, Lyons said.

The privacy breach came to light in April after a former patient complained, Lyons said. He declined to provide details on how the patient found out and said he did not know why the clerk read the records.


Source: bostonglobe.com

Publishers Respond to Facebook's News Subscription Plan: 'It's Too Soon to Tell'

Facebook (FB) says it has the best interests of news publishers in mind. And toward that end, Campbell Brown, a former broadcast news correspondent hired by Facebook six months ago to heads up its news partnerships, teased a subscription-based news product that the world's largest social-media platform plans to launch later this year.

David Chavern, president and chief executive of the News Media Alliance, which represents 2,000 newspapers and digital publishers in the U.S. and Canada, says the idea of a product that might drive digital subscriptions would be warmly welcomed, though he said Facebook has yet to unveil details about the product.

"It's too soon to tell," Chavern said in a phone interview from Washington. "There's been a longterm request that Facebook have better integration with the publishers' subscription models. We're hopeful. I would love for it to be a great product that was really great for publishers but we don't know yet."

The News Media Alliance has begun talks with federal legislators about securing an anti-trust exemption to allow publishers to collectively negotiate content deals with platforms, most prominently, Facebook and Alphabet's Google (GOOGL) . Chavern argues that the very business model that sustains legacy newspapers is at risk for the simple reason that Facebook and Google currently control about two-thirds of all digital advertising.

And digital advertising is fast becoming the largest category of ad spending, surpassing television.

Securing such an exemption from Congress is a long shot, but one that the publishers' group is willing to explore as it seeks to reverse more than a decade of declining advertising and circulation sales. Weekday circulation for U.S. daily newspapers -- both print and digital -- fell 8% in 2016, the 28th consecutive year of declines, the Pew Research Center reported last month. Sunday circulation also fell 8%.


Source: thestreet.com

We Are Winning The War Against Harassment, Twitter Inc Says

Addressing issues such as harassment on Twitter has long been on management’s to-do list. Now it seems the company is getting a grip on the matter with the help of a string of updates in recent months.

Progress in checking harassment on Twitter

About six months ago, Twitter’s general manager of consumer product and engineering, Ed Ho, said they will put a check on the problem “in days and hours, not weeks and months.” Thereafter, a string of new updates was seen, and on Thursday, Ho announced that improvements have been seen in checking harassment on Twitter.

“While there is still much work to be done, people are experiencing significantly less abuse on Twitter today than they were six months ago,” Ed Ho said.

Though he admitted that there is still a lot to be done to make the website safer and more welcoming, he also offered a few data points to mark the changes that have been made. According to Ho, the number of flagged accounts on which Twitter has been taking action on a daily basis has gone up ten-fold year over year.

“It’s critically important that people can come to Twitter and talk about what’s happening without worrying about feeling safe,” said Ed Ho.

Twitter is also identifying repeated offenders who are trying to dodge its efforts by opening new accounts after their old accounts have been blocked. Over the past four months, the micro-blogging firm has taken action against twice as many “backup” accounts as it did previously.

Are the Twitter updates really working?

Twitter has made several changes to its existing products to bring down the number of incidents of online abuse. From notification filters to blocking mentions, the company has done quite a commendable job to address the issue. The company also amended its reporting tools to make it easier for users.

One of the features, often referred to as a “shadow ban,” is quite a popular tool to limit abuse. The technology helps limit the audience of the user on a temporary basis. However, users are not aware of any such bans, so when posting, they are under the impression that their comment is on the public forum. However, the message is only visible to them.

Despite the claims made by Ho, the reach of these safety tools seems only limited. Recently, Rob Kardashian posted nude pictures of his ex-fiance Blac Chyna on Twitter, and it was only after half an hour that those pictures were removed from the platform. British singer Ed Sheeran also had to delete his Twitter account entirely after being trolled for his Games of Thrones appearance on July 16.

Since Twitter has shared no additional data on the progress being made, the current status of its efforts is unclear. According to a study from Pew Research Center released this month, the micro-blogging firm is not the only social networking website where harassment is rampant. The report claimed that four in ten adults in the United States say that they have been harassed online.

More information is expected on July 27 when Twitter reports its second-quarter earnings.


Source: valuewalk.com

Coffee with a 'Viagra-like' ingredient was just recalled, and it reveals a bigger problem

The ingredient is increasingly being used in supplements claiming to have "male enhancement" properties. While some limited evidence suggests that taking a specific tongkat ali supplement can improve the quality and concentration of sperm in infertile men, there is little evidence to support its use for erectile dysfunction, athletic performance, or low testosterone.

The ingredient can also have dangerous side effects, which is why it's important for people to know what they are consuming.

According to the FDA, desmethyl carbodenafil can interact negatively with some prescription drugs by lowering blood pressure to dangerous levels. Men who have diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease are at particular risk.

The 'proprietary blend' loophole

To illustrate the problems plaguing the supplement industry, Cohen likes to compare the safety framework for supplements with the one we have for food.

Ingredients in food products have to meet a guideline known as the "generally recognized as safe," or GRAS, standard. Ingredients introduced to supplements do not.

There are some laws regulating dietary supplements, however. In 1994, Congress passed the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act to address the labeling and safety of supplements. Several more recent regulations mandate that manufacturers observe what is known as "good manufacturing practices," including ingredient testing.

But Cohen said those regulations are "not anywhere near the level of scrutiny" applied to food. A PBS Frontline investigation even found that the DSHEA received investments from many players in the supplement industry.

Under the DSHEA, manufacturers that list ingredients under the "proprietary blend" category don't have to note the amounts of individual items in that category. Instead, they only have to list the ingredients within the blend and the total amount of it. But certain ingredients are still often left out or mislabeled — either intentionally or not.

The act also allows supplement makers to claim their products do things they may not — so long as it says somewhere on the package that they are "not intended to treat, diagnose, prevent, or cure diseases."

If a product is unsafe, then, it becomes the FDA's responsibility to prove it, and supplements as a whole are subject to far less investigation than other products.

"From a regulatory perspective," Cohen said, all of these supplements "are presumed to be safe, but the reality is many people ... are harmed."


Source: businessinsider.com

Sue Bird Talks About the 2017 WNBA All-Star Game in Seattle

“My rookie year, I got voted in, and I didn’t really understand it fully,” Sue Bird says. “I remember being in a huddle at one point, and I don’t exactly remember the other starters, but I wanna say it was Lisa Leslie, Tina Thompson, Ticha Pinacheiro, Sheryl Swoopes. And I had a moment of ‘Oh, I belong in this group now?’”

Bird’s memory is correct. Back in 2002, she started with those legends and led that year’s All-Star Game in assists, handing out 8 helpers in the West’s 81-76 win.

Now with the WNBA world getting ready to travel to Seattle, where Bird’s been dishing out dimes for her entire Hall of Fame career, she’s played her way into ASG history.

By getting voted into this year’s game, she’s been selected to 10 All-Star games, tying Tamika Catchings for the most ever in the WNBA. Her young teammate, Breanna Stewart, has been named to her first All-Star appearance, and so have nine of the other players who will lace up in Seattle on Saturday. Bird, the ultimate leader and veteran, has advice for the first-timers.

“Usually you just wanna have fun with the All-Star Game,” she says. “It’s a great opportunity to play with these other great players. That’s how I felt my first year. I’m sure that’s how they’ll be feeling. You just want to have fun with it. You wanna put on a good show. Stay competitive, but also enjoy. Just enjoy the whole weekend and know that you got selected as an All-Star, and that’s saying something so you should take pride in that.”

At 36-years-old, Bird’s averaging a career-best 6.9 assists per game and shooting 43 percent from three-point land. She and the Storm haven’t been winning all that much, sitting at 9-11, but they’re not out of the playoff race.

Bird’s planning on enjoying the upcoming weekend-long basketball celebration before thinking about the postseason. And once the rest of the W gets up to Seattle, Bird knows they’ll enjoy the city just as much as she does.

“The basketball culture and community here is really one of a kind,” Bird says. “I’m from New York, I don’t say that lightly. The city isn’t quite as big as a New York, but it produces great basketball players. And not only that. Whether it’s the University of Washington, the defunct Sonics and then with us, there’s so many great players that have come through here. Whether you’re from Seattle or not, you’ve made your mark on the city and it really has made for this special, special community. From a basketball standpoint, the fans know good basketball. They’re gonna be cheering, they’re gonna be loud. And I think the community, in general, is really excited for this All-Star Game.”


Source: slamonline.com

Moon dust heading to auction after galactic court battle

NEW YORK – A bag containing traces of moon dust is heading to auction – surrounded by some fallout from a galactic court battle.

The collection bag, used by astronaut Neil Armstrong during the first manned mission to the moon in 1969, will be featured Thursday at a Sotheby’s auction in New York City of items related to space voyages. The pre-sale estimate is $2 million to $4 million.

The artifact from the Apollo 11 mission was misidentified and sold at an online government auction. NASA fought to get it back.

In December, a federal judge ruled that it legally belonged to a Chicago-area woman who bought it in 2015 for $995.

Sotheby’s declined to identify the seller. However, details of the 2015 purchase were made public during the court case.

Investigators unknowingly hit the moon mother lode in 2003 while searching the garage of a man later convicted of stealing and selling museum artifacts, including some that were on loan from NASA.

The 12-by-8 1/2-inch bag was misidentified and sold at an online government auction.

Nancy Carlson, of Inverness, Illinois, got an ordinary-looking bag made of white Beta cloth and polyester with rubberized nylon and a brass zipper.

Carlson, a collector, knew the bag had been used in a space flight, but she didn’t know which one. She sent it to NASA for testing, and the government agency, discovering its importance, fought to keep it.

The artifact “belongs to the American people,” NASA said then.

U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Marten in Wichita, Kansas said that while it shouldn’t have gone up for auction, he didn’t have the authority to reverse the sale. He ordered the government to return it.

The judge said the importance and desirability of the bag stemmed solely from the efforts of NASA employees whose “amazing technical achievements, skill and courage in landing astronauts on the moon and returning them safely have not been replicated in the almost half a century since the Apollo 11 landing.”

When it comes to moon landings, Thursday’s auction is far from the final frontier.

A group called For All Moonkind, Inc. mentioned the moon bag this week while campaigning for “measures to preserve and protect the six Apollo lunar landing sites.”

It plans to take up the issue next month at the Starship Congress 2017 in California.


Source: spokesman.com

Sonic Forces Gets Trailer Showing More of the New Villain ‘Infinite’

Sega launched a new trailer for their fast-paced action game Sonic Forces, coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC Holiday 2017.

The trailer shows more of the new villain in Sonic Forces named “Infinite”. This characters has joined up with Eggman’s henchmen, which include Chaos, Metal Sonic, Shadow and Zavok, who have already taken of the world. The group will try and stop Sonic at every turn as he attempts to put a stop to their plans to create more panic and disorder.

The character was first revealed during E3 2017, but now we see exactly what he is capable of in a new cutscene. Interestingly, he is faster than Sonic and seems to be stronger, but as we’ve learned every enemy has their weakness.

Sonic Forces borrows gameplay from multiple Sonic titles and brings them together for a fast action title featuring 3D and 2D levels for players to experience.

Additionally, players will be able to create custom heroes to play as throughout the game’s story. This will include in-depth customization mechanics, which will be sure to produce some interesting characters once players get their hands on the game this holiday.


Source: dualshockers.com