TikTok, Snapchat respond as Ontario school boards sue social media giants

Four major Ontario school boards are taking some of the largest social media companies to court over their products, alleging the way they’re designed has negatively rewired the way children think, behave and learn and disrupted the way schools operate. The public district school boards of Toronto, Peel and Ottawa-Carleton, along with Toronto’s Catholic counterpart, are looking for … Read more

DeSantis and Disney settle lawsuit sparked by Florida governor’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law

Allies of Gov. Ron DeSantis and Disney reached a settlement agreement Wednesday in a state court fight over how Walt Disney World is developed in the future following the takeover of the theme park resort’s government by the Florida governor. In a meeting, the DeSantis-appointed members of the board of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight … Read more

Beached orca in B.C. dies despite life-saving efforts

A female killer whale that beached on northern Vancouver Island died on Saturday despite efforts by the community to push the mammal back into the water. Video of the incident, which occurred near the village of Zeballos on the island’s northwest coast, shows dozens of people trying to save the stranded orca. The female orca was stranded on shore … Read more

Montreal-based musician awarded $1.5M in Alberta defamation lawsuit

A Quebec-based electronic music artist hopes to get his career and life back on track after triumphing in an Alberta defamation lawsuit tied to social media posts accusing him of being a sexual predator. “It was terrible. The whole thing was like pure nightmare and hell,” Frederik Durand said in an interview from Montreal. “I … Read more

Bank of Canada worries a rate cut now could overheat the spring housing market

The Bank of Canada is trying to thread a needle. It’s keeping rates higher for longer at least in part because it’s worried a rate cut now could undermine the last two years of pain and progress. “We don’t want to keep monetary policy this restrictive for longer than we have to. But nor do … Read more

New satellite will track elusive methane pollution from oil and gas industry globally

A privately funded satellite is set to push methane tracking into a new era, once it launches into space on Monday. A collaborative mission between Environmental Defense Fund, Google, the Government of New Zealand and several other partners, MethaneSAT will track methane emissions around the globe in attempts to identify and quantify sources spewing the climate-heating greenhouse gas.  For 20 … Read more

Lab-grown meat could be the future of food — but possibly not in our lifetimes: experts

The Current24:29Will lab-grown meat ever reach our plates? What’s cultivated, meat-like, and could help lower greenhouse gas emissions? Lab-grown meat — and it could be the future of protein. Sometimes known as cultured meat, lab-grown meat is unlike plant-based alternatives from companies such as Beyond Meat or Impossible Foods. Instead, it’s made by taking a few stem … Read more

Bleak, beautiful Oppenheimer tells us about our apocalyptic future

There are few figures in American history as mythologized as J. Robert Oppenheimer — in no small part due to the man himself.  So building a cohesive story about him — the physicist who helped define an entire scientific field so new and arcane it was called “boys’ physics”; the precocious child-genius who delivered a … Read more

Country music star Toby Keith dead at 62

Singer-songwriter Toby Keith, who twice won the Academy of Country Music’s entertainer of the year award, has died. He was 62. Keith, who had stomach cancer, died peacefully on Monday surrounded by his family, according to a statement posted on the country singer’s website. “He fought his fight with grace and courage,” the statement said. He … Read more