Iniaes

In hurricane research

Wave-shaped walls and roofs reduced peak wind pressure near building corners by 40 to 60 percent in wind tunnel tests, according to research published in Engineering Structures. A FAMU-FSU engineering team tested 3D-printed low-rise building models and found the deepest waves worked best across wind directions. The findings could help designers reduce hurricane wind loads without necessarily adding structural material.

In India

The Reserve Bank of India raised borrowing costs on Wednesday for the first time in more than three years. The war in the Middle East is pushing up prices in Asia’s third-largest economy and adding pressure to an already fragile rupee.

Remembering Eva Marie Saint

Eva Marie Saint has died at 102. She won an Oscar for On the Waterfront and starred in North by Northwest. One of the last stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age, she was the oldest living Oscar winner.

In cybersecurity

Two major Seoul churches, Yoido Full Gospel Church and SaRang Church, confirmed Wednesday that they are investigating suspected breaches that may have exposed members’ personal data. The incidents follow a series of attacks on South Korean organisations that investigators believe may have involved AI.

Android’s October 2026 updates patch 25 security vulnerabilities, including a critical System flaw that could allow privilege escalation. Separately, Atlassian has patched a critical vulnerability affecting eight products that could let attackers access specific files in a web application’s root directory without authentication.

In German intelligence

Former German intelligence chief August Hanning and a senior BND official identified as Manfred D were reportedly arrested Tuesday on suspicion of espionage and treason. Prosecutors allege Hanning obtained thousands of classified documents through Manfred D over 16 years and passed secrets to a foreign power. The Telegraph reports that MI6 and GCHQ are reviewing intelligence shared with European allies to assess possible exposure and protect anyone potentially endangered.

In U.S. water costs

Water bills rose an average of 62 percent between 2015 and 2025 across the nation’s 500 largest community water providers, according to the advocacy nonprofit Food and Water Watch. Those systems serve 155 million people. The increase outpaced inflation and was more than twice the rate of grocery price increases. Separately, the American Water Works Association estimates drinking water systems will need up to $2.4 trillion over 25 years to sustain and modernize infrastructure.

In French schools

Pupils demanding better school funding clashed with riot police in Paris, with tear gas and fireworks during the unrest. The clashes came amid nationwide protests over shortages and crumbling schools.

In Yemen and Saudi Arabia

Yemen’s government says a missile in a Houthi attack hit Aden airport’s runway minutes before a flight from Cairo was due to land. Saudi forces also shot down a missile near Riyadh.

In EU migration policy

EU ministers have agreed on new migrant return rules allowing sanctions for people who refuse to cooperate with return procedures. The rules would permit detention for up to 24 months, or longer for those considered security risks, and allow return hubs outside the bloc.

In tech and security

Hackers claim they stole data from 3,615 Trump Mobile customers this week, potentially exposing names, email addresses and home addresses online. They also say the company responded to their warning by saying it had “no team” to handle the breach.

Separately, security firm Island says a phishing gang is impersonating artificial intelligence advertising tools to steal ad-account credentials. Its report, published Tuesday, describes a human-operated platform posing as ad products for ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity and Manus, and most recently Meta’s Muse.

In Florida

Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in 25 counties on Tuesday and urged residents to prepare as Tropical Depression Nine was forecast to strengthen into the Atlantic season’s first hurricane.

In the U.S. military

Army officials say Nidal Hasan is scheduled to be executed by firing squad on December 3 at Fort Hood, Texas, where he killed 12 service members and one civilian in 2009. President Donald Trump approved the execution on Monday. Hasan was convicted in 2013 of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted murder. If carried out, it would be the first U.S. military execution in 60 years.

On Wall Street

U.S. stocks have reached an all-time high as investors bet on artificial intelligence. The S&P 500 is up 14 percent this year, despite elevated oil prices and a sell-off in U.S. government debt.

At Cornell

Cornell campus police received an anonymous tip alleging that the Chi Phi fraternity was trying to conceal a reported gang rape. The tip arrived a day after university authorities alerted students about a reported rape.

In the Strait of Hormuz

Oman has evacuated injured crew members from the tanker On Peace after it was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz. India’s Foreign Ministry says 11 of the 12 injured crew members are Indian nationals.

In Argentine football

Lionel Messi scored in his final appearance for Argentina, a friendly against Benin, ending a 21-year international career. The crowd in Buenos Aires gave him a roaring farewell.

In Mali

Mali’s military has regained control of the strategic town of Kidal following an offensive backed by Russia’s Africa Corps. The operation forced Tuareg separatists and al-Qaeda-linked jihadists to withdraw.

In Venezuela

Venezuela’s second-largest oil refinery has suspended operations after an explosion at the facility.

In Tennessee

Christa Pike is awake and speaking while receiving hospital treatment after Tennessee’s failed attempt to execute her, her attorneys said Tuesday. The 50-year-old survived two doses of pentobarbital during the September 30 execution attempt. She had been scheduled to become the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years.

In AI research

OpenAI has published 722 mathematical manuscripts generated by an internal AI model, organized into 372 research families in a public GitHub repository. The collection covers pure mathematics, theoretical computer science and mathematical physics. Many proofs have been formalized in Lean, software that lets computers check their logic against stated assumptions. That does not validate the entire collection: many manuscripts lack Lean versions. The model attempted roughly 4,000 problems during the research process.

In U.S. elections

New York Times–Siena polling across eight Senate races gives Democrats a 30-point advantage among voters under 30. Those voters ranked the cost of living as their most important issue and gave Democratic candidates an even wider advantage on whom they trusted to address it.

In Florida, a separate NBC6, Telemundo and Mason-Dixon poll of likely voters puts Republican Ashley Moody ahead of Democrat Angie Nixon in the Senate race, 50 percent to 40 percent. Republican Byron Donalds leads Democrat David Jolly in the governor’s race, 48 percent to 41 percent. The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus four percentage points.

In precision measurement

Researchers at the Joint Quantum Institute, NIST and international partners have demonstrated a chip-based optical frequency comb that generally matched bulky tabletop systems in stability and noise performance within their tests. Its two-laser design can convert an atomic clock’s optical reference into microwave signals that electronics can read. Published in Nature, the work is a step toward portable atomic clocks and navigation systems that could operate without GPS.

In New Zealand

A government report released Wednesday says greenhouse gas levels have reached record highs. The Our Atmosphere and Climate 2026 report warns that New Zealand could face more frequent and intense heatwaves, catastrophic glacier melt, and damaging storms and cyclones, with wide-reaching consequences for native species, communities and the environment.

In Venezuela

Frequent power outages have fuelled public anger and protests against the government of interim President Delcy Rodriguez.

In U.S. elections

Republican groups are putting millions of dollars behind Representative Max Miller’s re-election bid after domestic-violence allegations prompted fellow Republicans, including his state’s two senators, to urge him to drop out, the Wall Street Journal reports. The spending comes as Republicans try to hold the seat amid a difficult midterm outlook. Miller says President Trump recently called to praise him after earlier doubting his chances.

In New Hampshire’s open Senate race, Democratic Congressman Chris Pappas leads Republican nominee John E. Sununu by seven percentage points among likely voters. The New Hampshire Institute of Politics poll, commissioned by AARP, was released Tuesday.

At Cornell

Former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates will lead an independent review of Cornell University’s handling of rape allegations. The university faces renewed scrutiny over its response to allegations that seven Chi Phi fraternity members sexually assaulted a student in October 2024. Disciplinary records obtained by a news publication describe expulsions, suspensions, a campus ban, no-contact orders and educational requirements.

The Reflecting Pool prosecution

Lawyers for former U.S. Olympian David Hearn are asking federal watchdogs to investigate how the Justice Department built a felony case accusing him of damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. Prosecutors later concluded he was not responsible. His attorneys sent their request Tuesday to the inspectors general at the Justice and Interior departments.

In media business

Skydance-owned Paramount has completed its $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.

In public health

Russia has denied plague cases following a laboratory technician’s death. The United States is demanding transparency, while the World Health Organization monitors the situation. Separately, New Mexico officials say a woman died of plague earlier this year.

Kenyan officials confirmed the country’s first Ebola case Tuesday, linked to an outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

In UK immigration enforcement

Home Office immigration officers have arrested three people in a raid targeting a gang accused of helping migrants falsely claim to be gay to obtain asylum. Those targeted are accused of charging up to £4,500 for fabricated evidence.

Investment fraud allegations

U.S. regulators say alleged investment scams took at least $15.3 million from retail investors. The schemes allegedly used AI trading bots, fake Securities and Exchange Commission credentials and online relationships to make bogus platforms appear legitimate and win investors’ trust.

At the Supreme Court

Justice Samuel Alito has expressed disagreement with President Trump’s administration over its remarks about the Supreme Court, MS NOW reports. Alito said everyone has the right to criticize the court, even harshly when warranted, but distinguished that criticism from the administration’s rhetoric.

In Tennessee

Christa Pike has been scheduled for execution by lethal injection on September 30, three decades after her first-degree murder conviction for killing 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in 1995. If carried out, it would be Tennessee’s first execution of a woman in more than 200 years.

In business

Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery have merged into Skydance Corp., and employees have been told layoffs are coming. Chairman and CEO David Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz notified staff in a memo Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, Reuters reports that luxury group LVMH has lost more than $167 billion in market value in 2026. Weakness in China is weighing on the company, with softer demand and Chinese shoppers becoming more selective about luxury purchases.

In Ukraine

Russia is intensifying missile and drone attacks on infrastructure and populated areas while making little progress on the ground in eastern Ukraine, according to Rolling Stone. The attacks threaten to leave parts of the country without heat and electricity over the winter.

In U.S. immigration courts

A federal judge in Boston has blocked the Trump administration’s effort to fine migrants up to $1.8 million for failing to leave after receiving final deportation orders. U.S. District Judge George O’Toole ruled Monday that the administration had imposed the fines unlawfully.

In a separate case, Kilmar Ábrego Garcia is due back in federal court Tuesday as the government seeks to deport him to Liberia. Officials are asking to lift Judge Paula Xinis’s preliminary injunction preventing Immigration and Customs Enforcement from detaining and deporting him. The hearing is part of an 18-month legal battle that began when he was mistakenly sent to El Salvador last year.

At Birzeit University

Israeli soldiers removed a monument commemorating students and alumni killed by Israel and replaced it with a fig sapling.

In New York

Governor Kathy Hochul declared a statewide disaster emergency Monday over a measles outbreak that has sickened more than 100 people.

In Hungary

Prime Minister Peter Magyar says Hungary will introduce a wealth tax on billionaires next year, according to Bloomberg. The measure fulfills an election pledge to make the wealthy shoulder a larger share of public obligations.

In data security

A reported data leak at Trump Mobile has exposed an online dataset listing 3,615 people. It includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, home addresses and order information, raising security questions about the wireless company’s wider technology chain.

In tech and security

Apple plans to tighten Full Disk Access controls in macOS, citing risks from increasingly capable and autonomous AI agents. The changes would add controls over access to files on a Mac.

In UK news

Childminder Amanda Mathewson has pleaded guilty at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court to neglect and abandoning children in her care. The 55-year-old left 27 children alone at her home.

Boats believed to be intended for people smugglers have been seized at a UK airport. The National Crime Agency says it is the first time small-boat equipment has been detected in air freight.

The Conservatives have pledged £10 billion for a British anti-missile defence system. The party says the proposal would protect the UK as NATO allies warn of Russian drone incursions.

In U.S. news

President Donald Trump has approved the execution of convicted Fort Hood mass shooter Nidal Hasan, following a recommendation from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a Pentagon spokesperson says. The Pentagon plans to carry out the execution by firing squad.

In Ohio, Caleb Flynn has been sentenced to life without parole for murdering his wife, Ashley, at their Tipp City home in February. Ashley Flynn, 37, was a teacher and volleyball coach. Prosecutors said he shot her and staged a burglary to conceal the killing. He was also convicted of felonious assault and tampering with evidence, and continued to deny killing her.

TKC Distilling fired chief executive Wes Henderson on October 3 after relatives filed a lawsuit accusing him of secretly recording family members and guests, including nude minors, at his homes and The Kentucky Castle resort. The Lexington Herald-Leader reports that the Department of Homeland Security is examining the alleged recordings. Henderson denies the allegations through his attorney. The company says its board plans an independent investigation.

In science and medicine

Belgian physicist Francis Halzen has been awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on the IceCube neutrino observatory at the South Pole. The University of Wisconsin–Madison professor led work on the detector, which uses Antarctic ice to observe particles arriving from space. In 2013, IceCube made the first detection of high-energy extraterrestrial neutrinos.

An Oxford-led personalised cancer vaccine project has secured Medical Research Council funding for its next research phase. Researchers are using UK supercomputers to identify potential immune targets in individual tumours. The next stage includes equipment to produce experimental mRNA vaccines and laboratory tests of whether AI-selected targets trigger an immune response in patient samples.

In Germany

Federal prosecutors say former intelligence chief August Hanning has been arrested on suspicion of espionage, treason and obtaining classified material for a foreign power. They allege former BND employee Manfred D supplied him with around 2,000 classified documents for payment. Prosecutors accuse Hanning of using sensitive intelligence to prepare an analysis for a foreign intelligence officer, but say it is unclear whether it reached the intended recipient. Neither foreign country involved has been identified.

In business

Starbucks faces a lawsuit alleging that eight protein drinks labelled sugar-free on its café menus may contain more sugar than a Reese’s peanut butter cup.

Jim Bakker and Jeffrey Archer

Televangelist Jim Bakker has died at 86. With his first wife, Tammy Faye, he built an evangelical broadcasting empire around The PTL Club. British novelist and former politician Jeffrey Archer has also died at 86. His career combined political disgrace and a conviction for lying with enormous commercial success, with worldwide book sales estimated at more than 300 million copies.

Schools near Yemen’s front line

Children near the front line in Yemen face sniper and mortar fire on their journeys to school, the BBC reports. During rare access to Taiz, BBC World Service journalists spoke with children, teachers and families about how the war shapes their daily lives and access to education.

Protests in Kosovo

Police used tear gas and water cannon as protesters clashed with officers outside Kosovo’s parliament in Pristina. The protests concerned moves to limit the powers of a war crimes court in The Hague.

Fort Hood execution order

President Trump has approved the execution of Nidal Hasan by firing squad, and the Pentagon has confirmed the order. Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people in the 2009 shooting at Fort Hood.

Suspected outbreak in Siberia

Trump has offered Vladimir Putin assistance amid a suspected plague outbreak in Siberia. Daria Shipilova, a 28-year-old assistant at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute, died on Thursday after becoming critically ill. Authorities quarantined a hospital in Shelekhov and placed nearly 200 people in isolation. Regional Governor Igor Kobzev has described the illness only as a dangerous infectious disease. The U.S. State Department says it is monitoring the situation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other partners.

Ship strikes in the Black Sea

Drone strikes have hit two ships off Bulgaria, sinking one. Rumen Nikolov, director of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Varna, says the crew of one vessel is unaccounted for. The government has called an emergency meeting.

In Britain

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has launched a judicial review against Thames Valley Police, seeking to quash search warrants used in an investigation into his links to Jeffrey Epstein. The police force is separately seeking to restrict access to court documents connected to the case.

In employment policy, parents and partners who experience pregnancy loss before 24 weeks will gain a legal right to take up to two weeks off work from April 2027. The new entitlement extends protection to people affected by early pregnancy loss, but the leave will be unpaid.

Brazil’s presidential runoff

Far-right senator Flávio Bolsonaro finished first in Brazil’s presidential vote and will face incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in a runoff. Bolsonaro is the eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro. A broad far-right victory in congressional races also secured seats for Jair Bolsonaro’s wife, two sons and a brother, expanding the family’s political reach.

In U.S. military news

President Trump says the United States moved its B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford in Britain after Washington received additional threats. He said those threats prompted the relocation.

Separately, Trump has approved the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan by Army firing squad, according to Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell, following a recommendation from Pete Hegseth. Hasan killed 13 people and wounded 32 in November 2009. He was convicted of premeditated murder and attempted murder in 2013 and sentenced to death. The Army secretary will set the time and place. If carried out, it would be the first execution of a U.S. service member since 1961.

In Congo

At least 30 people have died and dozens remain missing after two motorised wooden boats collided Sunday evening near Ngombe-Lukolela in Equateur province, provincial interior minister Crispin Mputu said. A security source told Reuters that a passenger boat carrying 163 people sank. At least 59 survivors have been rescued, and the search continues. The cause of the collision remains unclear.

On U.S. diesel rules

Trump signed an executive order Monday night temporarily easing restrictions on red-dyed diesel used off-road. He also ordered an excise-tax deferral.

In Quebec

The Parti Québécois has won Quebec’s election and is returning to power with a pledge to hold a third referendum on independence from Canada.

Remembering Jeffrey Archer

Jeffrey Archer, the bestselling novelist and former Conservative MP, has died at 86. HarperCollins said he died suddenly and peacefully at home on Monday, October 5, 2026. His books included Kane and Abel and the Clifton Chronicles series.

In Sudan

The UN Human Rights Council has adopted a resolution condemning attacks on civilians in Sudan and demanding an immediate ceasefire. It also extended the mandate of the mission investigating abuses in the country.

On taxpayer-funded advertising

Trump says his MAGA Inc. super PAC will pay for future television ads after criticism from across the political divide over at least $1.5 million in federal funds spent on the ads.

In water research

Researchers have developed a low-cost, 3D-printed filter prototype that removed up to 90 percent of micro- and nanoplastics from water. The team created tiny pores in a plastic mesh by washing out an additive with hot water. The results, published in Separation and Purification Technology, required 20 filter layers. Further improvements and potential reuse still need investigation.

In U.S. courts

A Chicago teacher shot five times by an immigration agent last year is suing the federal government for damages. She was charged with assault after the shooting.

At Cape Canaveral

SpaceX is seeking Florida regulatory approval for a 32.4-mile natural gas pipeline to support expanded Starship operations. Its subsidiary, Coastal Connect Services, proposes connecting facilities in Brevard County to the Florida Gas Transmission network. SpaceX says truck deliveries and local pipelines cannot meet its growing fuel needs. The gas could supply methane for Starship engines. The company has requested approval for a pipeline tariff, but construction has not been authorized.

In Ethiopia

Renewed fighting has broken out in northern Ethiopia, four years after the devastating Tigray war ended.

In medical AI

Utah has approved a pilot allowing Nolla Health’s AI system to issue initial acne prescriptions to adults without advance approval from a doctor. That autonomy will arrive in stages: doctors will approve prescriptions for the first 100 patients, then review automated prescriptions daily before moving to weekly sample checks. The system uses a questionnaire and facial scan to select from a limited list of physician-approved topical treatments. Nolla says cases outside those limits, or where the system cannot confidently choose a treatment, must go to a licensed physician.

In UK defence

Kemi Badenoch has proposed a £10 billion air defence network called Britannia Shield, inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome. The Conservative plan would use radar, interceptor missiles and counter-drone systems to protect the UK, its territories and overseas bases. Party officials put the cost at £1 billion a year over ten years, within an existing defence spending pledge. The Conservatives say they would fund their defence plans by reinstating the two-child benefit cap and reforming housing benefits.

In U.S. nuclear power

The Department of Energy has offered Vistra up to $4.2 billion in conditional financing to upgrade three nuclear plants: Beaver Valley in Pennsylvania, and Davis-Besse and Perry in Ohio. The projects would add 433 megawatts of generating capacity. DOE says they would also preserve nearly four gigawatts of existing capacity and support about 3,000 project-related jobs. No funds have been awarded. Vistra must first meet technical, legal, environmental and financial requirements and finalize loan agreements.

In UK steel

Britain could rebuild its steel industry by recycling more scrap at home, according to research by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit with CBI Economics. The report estimates that three quarters of UK scrap steel, around eight million tonnes a year, is exported because domestic recycling capacity is lacking. With steel demand forecast to rise, it says Britain needs two more electric arc furnaces the size of the one being built at Port Talbot to avoid greater reliance on imports.

In U.S. schools

PEN America reports a record 11,982 school book bans during the 2025-26 school year, up from 6,870 the year before. The free-speech organization says the removals covered 7,370 distinct titles, with some books banned more than once.

In Afghanistan

The International Criminal Court has disclosed arrest warrants for Taliban education minister Habibullah Agha and higher education minister Neda Mohammad Nadim over alleged persecution of women, girls and other targeted groups. The warrants were issued on September 9, 2025, and remained sealed until October 5, 2026.

In currency markets

The euro fell to a 17-month low against the dollar on Monday amid mounting government debt across Europe. By mid-afternoon on the U.S. East Coast, it was trading at roughly one dollar and twelve cents, after slipping below that level earlier in the day.

Among European Greens

The Green Party of England and Wales has adopted a policy declaring Zionism a form of racism, drawing objections from fellow European Greens. The European Green Party says the motion contradicts its policy. A co-leader of Germany's Greens called it intolerable and unacceptable, saying it conflicts with the German party's belief in Israel's right to exist.

In public health

The United States is monitoring the death of a worker at a Russian plague research institute in the Irkutsk region. Reports that she died from pneumonic plague remain unconfirmed. Russian health authorities say she had pneumonia whose cause had not been identified, and officials say they found no evidence linking her illness to materials she handled at work.

Officials say the Siberian hospital where she reportedly died is under quarantine and has stopped accepting new patients. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday there was no cause for alarm at this time. The U.S. is urging Russia to share information with international partners.

At the IRS

A Treasury watchdog report flagged dozens of IRS employees for suspicious access to the private tax records of 30 taxpayers, including government officials, business leaders and entertainers. The watchdog also found that 22 employees were not fired.