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World
A federal judge temporarily blocked construction of President Trump's 250-foot triumphal arch in Washington, shortly after a planning commission approved the plans.
Judge Tanya Chutkan barred construction-related work for 14 days while a case brought by Vietnam veterans, Virginia and Washington DC goes on. She found the plaintiffs likely to show the government skipped required legal steps. The planning commission had voted 8-4 in favour.
Nithya Raman, a democratic socialist city councillor, defeated incumbent Mayor Karen Bass in the Los Angeles mayoral race.
Raman is set to be the city's first South Asian mayor. She promised more affordable housing and a new approach to homelessness. Bass faced criticism over homelessness and the response to the 2025 wildfires.
Eva Geller, 90, who was shot in the Bondi beach attack last December, has died in hospital.
She was a Holocaust survivor and had been in and out of hospital since the attack, which killed 15 people. Naveed Akram faces charges including murder and a terrorist act. Police are working with the coroner.
Protests continued across France, with 448 arrests reported as students and workers demanded better learning conditions and higher pay.
Reports describe school blockades, clashes with police and the use of tear gas. Hundreds of thousands were said to be taking part.
Officials at Lima airport found more than 3,000 tarantulas hidden in socks in suitcases bound for Germany.
Two Germans and a Polish citizen were detained and face criminal proceedings. Peru's wildlife service said one tarantula can sell for about 500 euros in Europe.
Also: Nationwide protests and arrests in France; tarantulas smuggled in socks at Lima airport.
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Economy
Asian stock markets fell sharply as tech shares sold off after a drop in US technology stocks, with the Nikkei 225 below 60,000 and the Kospi under 5,000.
The snippets describe a major tech sell-off across key Asian markets that followed an overnight fall in US tech shares. The Nikkei 225 is at its lowest level since May.
A change in the make-up of the US Congress is expected to have little effect on economic policy for the rest of Trump's term.
The piece argues that hopes of economic change from a Democratic wave are likely to be disappointed.
Regional negotiators led by Qatar are stepping up efforts to arrange an interim deal between Washington and Tehran, while Iran reacts to Trump's election defeat.
The snippet says mediators want an interim agreement to end the war between the US and Iran. It also says Iran is celebrating the electoral setback for Trump.
Grupa Azoty reported a negative third-quarter EBITDA of 25 million zloty, as high gas prices hit results despite revenue growth of 11.5 percent.
Revenue rose to 3.22 billion zloty, but analysts had expected a 155 million zloty EBITDA profit. The company blames higher energy and raw material costs linked to tensions in the Middle East and Strait of Hormuz limits. Final results are due on 19 November.
An Edelweiss chairman says India is attracting foreign investors again.
Rashesh Shah links the renewed interest to improving corporate earnings and a healthy economy.
Also: A Polish chemical group's loss driven by gas prices; a banker on India regaining foreign investor interest.
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Politics
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has authorized the National Guard in Washington, DC to use patrol cars, military tactical vehicles and boats.
A Pentagon official said the change was approved in a memo dated Oct. 29, shortly before the midterm elections. The Guard presence in the capital is described as controversial, and the move widens what troops can use there.
President Trump signed a proclamation to make the Oval Office and Cabinet Room a national monument, saying Congress would need to ratify it.
Trump said no major changes to the rooms could be made without congressional approval. One report links the move to his focus on White House renovation projects since the midterm elections.
Reports say Secretary of State Marco Rubio is considering leaving the Trump administration, but the State Department calls them a baseless hoax.
Bloomberg reported that Rubio is weighing his next moves after the Republican midterm defeat. The State Department rejected the reports.
Ballots from the US midterm elections are still being counted in Alaska and Mississippi, even though the overall result has been clear for days.
The report notes that a Democrat has an unusual chance at a Senate seat in Mississippi. It also points to a data analysis suggesting Republican gerrymandering backfired while it worked for Democrats.
US tech shares fell sharply on Thursday, with the Nasdaq having its worst day in about a year and a half, as investors reacted to the Democratic midterm win.
Tesla dropped almost 11 percent and SpaceX shares lost 9 percent. Nvidia and other tech companies also fell. The report ties the drop to the Democrats' midterm victory.
Polish commentary says the Polish right has gone quiet after Republicans' heavy midterm defeat, in contrast to its loud celebration of Trump's win in 2024.
A presidential adviser, Zbigniew Bogucki, said Republicans had not won but also had not lost badly. The article contrasts this with the cheering by PiS lawmakers in parliament two years earlier.
Also: Ongoing vote counts in Alaska and Mississippi; tech stocks falling after the midterms; Polish commentary says the Polish right has gone quiet after Republicans' heavy.
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Sport
James Anderson is reportedly in talks to join Surrey for the 2027 county season after Lancashire let him go.
The 44-year-old England bowler took 50 Championship wickets for Lancashire last season as captain. He has not retired and said he is excited about the future. Surrey have the budget and a deep squad, which could allow him a managed workload.
A gymnastics coach given a formal warning by British Gymnastics is coaching at an international youth event in Greece this weekend, prompting criticism from complainants.
Clare Hague and her club received a two-year warning after concerns including fear-based coaching were upheld. Complainants call her selection for the Horizon Cup a smack in the teeth. Campaigners question whether retraining rather than tougher sanctions protects children.
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Tech
The New York Times Company is reportedly in exclusive talks to buy the film-fan social network Letterboxd for about $330 million.
Letterboxd's co-founders could stay in charge under a Times executive, and the service would likely stay standalone for now. The Times would add its ad technology. Reports say Sony and A24 had also shown interest, and Letterboxd grew from 3 million to 28 million users.
Salon announced it is ceasing publication after 31 years, saying its publishing model is no longer sustainable.
The site launched in 1995 as an early online-only outlet. Its owner Find.co bought it in 2023. A Salon executive said the archive will stay live for now.
Meta added a real-time voice and animated avatar mode to its Muse AI agent, now available to users in the US.
Users can talk with Muse and change the voice and look of the avatar. Meta says the feature is coming soon to its AI glasses and to the upcoming Muse Charm device, which is due to ship this year.
NASA announced the X-70 Fractal, a crewed experimental aircraft that could fly within two years, though many details remain unknown.
NASA says it has a modular design for swapping payloads and reconfigurable flight controls. It is meant to cruise at Mach 0.75 and carry up to 2,000 pounds of experiments. The press release used an apparently AI-generated image and named no manufacturer.
OpenAI said it will not use non-disclosure agreements with public officials on its data center projects and made other community commitments.
It will pay the full cost of the electricity and infrastructure it uses, publish expected job numbers and sign a local compact for each site. The move follows voter opposition to data center expansion in this week's midterms.
Also: NASA's newly announced experimental aircraft; OpenAI's new community pledges for data centers.
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Science
An astronaut photographed the deep, winding bends of Utah's San Juan River, which formed as the rising Colorado Plateau made the river cut into old rock.
The river runs through a canyon about 300 meters deep in Goosenecks State Park. One stretch winds 8.9 kilometers between two points only 2.1 kilometers apart. The park is also a recognized dark sky site, good for viewing meteor showers this month.
Powerhouse Parramatta, a large new museum in western Sydney, opens this Saturday after years of controversy over its cost and governance.
The $915m building has a steel exoskeleton and five opening exhibitions, including one on flight and space travel. A Treasury investigation into governance led to the chief executive being stood down in August. A 23-day festival marks the opening.
A UN Environment Programme report says money for climate adaptation in developing countries falls far short of what is needed as warming passes 1.5°C.
Public adaptation finance reached about $28–32 billion in 2024, against needs of around $305 billion a year by 2035. Even tripling it would cover only 20–29% of needs. Funding for losses and damages is also below demand.
Researchers showed how the protein TACO1 helps mitochondrial ribosomes keep making proteins through difficult sequences.
Using cryo-electron microscopy and modeling, the team saw TACO1 bind near the ribosome site where new amino acids arrive. Mutations in TACO1 are linked to some mitochondrial diseases, so the work helps explain them.
A Hannover Medical School project is studying how assisted suicide works in practice in Germany, where it is legal but barely regulated.
Cases rose from 109 in 2020 to over 1,000 in 2025 across three organizations, yet none are officially recorded. The study uses interviews and may inform future law. A registry was launched this fall.
A Cornell engineer is working on ways to replace, capture and find PFAS forever chemicals, using AI tools, polymer nanosponges and mass spectrometry.
Damian Helbling's group helps firms find PFAS in supply chains and design safer substitutes. His polymers capture PFAS from water so they can be destroyed. His lab has also found unlisted PFAS in semiconductor wastewater.
Also: How a protein helps mitochondria make proteins; research on assisted suicide practice in Germany; engineering ways to detect and remove PFAS.
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