There is an eerie emptiness at the seat of US economic power. The US Treasury is in shutdown like much of the federal government. Most staff are furloughed as the world's finance ministers and bankers jet in for the International Monetary Fund annual meetings a few blocks away, their delayed flights handled by a small number of unpaid air traffic controllers. There is, however, one clear message the Trump administration is notably keen to get out, not so much for its domestic audience but for the bewildered world outside. And they delivered it in the middle of last week to a small number of people ushered into the Treasury and what is said to be the finest room in Washington DC, the ornate and marbled Cash Room, which hosted the inaugural reception for post-civil war president, Ulysses Grant.

Game Theory Afghan Women's Team: The Fight to Play For the first time since the Taliban regained power in 2021, Afghanistan's women's football team will compete in an official tournament, albeit under a different name. U-20 World Cup Who would you play for?

The watershed moment Trump changed course on Israel after Netanyahu shattered their once-unbreakable bond: 'We felt betrayed' Kim Kardashian stuns onlookers in horrifying MASKED look at one of Hollywood's biggest galas DAPHNE BARAK: How I delivered the final, fatal blow to Andrew's fast-sinking reputation... and why Palace is right to still be deeply concerned Doctors expose the truth about melatonin... as terrifying side effects soar Gavin Newsom melts down as Pentagon plans to fire artillery shells over California highway during'No Kings' protest Olivia Nuzzi's memoir will reveal juicy text messages with RFK Jr. KENNEDY: Here's the truth of weird drug-fueled orgies in Congress that Tucker Carlson is investigating... it makes me sick to my stomach JANA HOCKING: I've uncovered the ultimate new sex secret and had the best night of my life... no wonder more women are trying it Limp Bizkit bassist Sam Rivers dead at 48 as iconic band pays tribute to'once-in-a-lifetime' talent Insiders reveal dark web of power behind earthquake of'No Kings' protests exploding across America Five safe haven investments if the global economy goes into meltdown (and one under the radar fund to buy RIGHT NOW): As more and more experts warn of a devastating fall in share prices... Inside the King's cold phone call that saw Prince Andrew lose his dukedom and have to cancel Sarah Ferguson's 66th birthday party as Epstein scandal exploded '90s icon looks unrecognizable as she teases her most infamous TV scene in bucket hat during rare outing Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith's daughter Stella, 29, weds her childhood sweetheart in dreamy Spanish wedding as actor toasts the newlyweds Stephen A. Smith makes racially-charged double standard accusation against LeBron James amid feud The Duchess of Scandal... who is now plain old Sarah: Fergie's humiliating downfall as King makes moves to'protect' her daughters Green Bay Packers' game in jeopardy with team stranded at airport less than 24 hours before kickoff Selena Gomez makes FIRST red carpet appearance with husband Benny Blanco since wedding as their'perfect' honeymoon is revealed READ MORE: Is there a God? It's a question that has been asked since the beginning of time: does God really exist? Traditionally, science has been the counterargument for the existence of a divine creator. However, French mathematicians Olivier Bonnassies and Michel-Yves Bollore now say that science'has become God's ally'. In a new book, the duo have distilled insights from 62 Nobel Prize winners and more than 100 leading scientists to pinpoint the scientific discoveries that could prove God is real.

Grand Theft Auto made him a legend. In July this year workers at Build a Rocket Boy, a video game studio in Edinburgh, were called to an all-staff meeting. Their first ever game, a sci-fi adventure called MindsEye, had been released three weeks earlier - and it had been a total disaster. Critics and players called it broken, buggy, and the worst game of 2025. Addressing staff via video link, the company's boss, Leslie Benzies, assured them there was a plan to get things back on track and said the negativity they'd seen was uncalled for.

Since 2004, the number of American adults who've enjoyed a daily cup of joe has increased 37 percent. Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Whether you're an early bird or a night owl, coffee is probably part of your daily routine. Since 2004, the number of American adults who've enjoyed a daily cup of java has jumped up 37 percent, the highest level in more than 20 years, according to the National Coffee Association . But coffee is hardly a new invention.

A Tory MP says he has reported a deepfake video depicting him announcing he had joined Reform UK to the police. George Freeman said he remained the Conservative MP for Mid Norfolk and have no intention of joining Reform or any other party, denouncing the video circulating on social media as an AI-generated deepfake. Freeman said he reported the video to the authorities. Norfolk Police and Facebook have been approached for comment. This sort of political disinformation has the potential to seriously distort, disrupt and corrupt our democracy, he added.

Are we living in a golden age of stupidity? S tep into the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab in Cambridge, US, and the future feels a little closer. Glass cabinets display prototypes of weird and wonderful creations, from tiny desktop robots to a surrealist sculpture created by an AI model prompted to design a tea set made from body parts. In the lobby, an AI waste-sorting assistant named Oscar can tell you where to put your used coffee cup. Five floors up, research scientist Nataliya Kosmyna has been working on wearable brain-computer interfaces she hopes will one day enable people who cannot speak, due to neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, to communicate using their minds. Kosmyna spends a lot of her time reading and analysing people's brain states.

The precarious work of training AI, which generally pays just a few dollars, has sparked a movement for better wages and conditions globally. Paris - For a generative artificial intelligence system to learn how to write an autopsy report, human workers must sort and annotate thousands of crime scene images. The precarious work of training AI, which generally pays just a few dollars, has sparked a movement for better wages and conditions stretching from Kenya to Colombia. You have to spend your whole day looking at dead bodies and crime scenes. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.

A weapons smuggler, who used a fishing boat to ship ballistic missile parts from Iran to Houthi rebels in Yemen, has been sentenced to 40 years in a US prison. Pakistani national Muhammad Pahlawan was detained during a US military operation in the Arabian Sea in January 2024 - during which two US Navy Seals drowned. Pahlawan's crew would later testify they had been duped into taking part, having believed they were working as fishermen. The Houthis were launching sustained missile and drone attacks on Israel at the time, as well as targeting international commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, saying they were acting in support of the Palestinians in Gaza. Iran has consistently denied arming the Houthis.

How nervous are investors about the stock market? Every week it seems US financial markets are hit by another bout of fear. The latest worries spread this week from the banking sector in the US, after two regional lenders warned they would be hit by losses from alleged fraud. But before that, markets swooned over signs of rekindled US-China tensions, as the two superpowers face off over tariffs, advanced technology and access to rare earths. The bankruptcies of car parts supplier First Brands and subprime car lender Tricolor acted as a trigger for nervous chatter in September.