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STATE COLLEGE – Another game, another couple of records for Penn State star tight end Tyler Warren. The No. 4 Nittany Lions lead Maryland 31-7 at halftime on Saturday at Beaver Stadium. Warren has five catches for 60 yards and a touchdown, a seven-yard scoring reception from quarterback Drew Allar with 1:46 left before half. Warren’s touchdown catch gave him 17 touchdown catches at PSU, a new record for a tight end. Warren had shared the record with Pat Freiermuth at 16 coming into the game. Warren also entered the game tied with Wisconsin’s Travis Beckum for the most catches by Big Ten tight end in a season (75). He currently has 80. ©2024 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit pennlive.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

What does Big Tech hope to gain from warming up to Trump?

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Stocks drifted higher on Wall Street in midday trading Thursday, as gains in tech companies and retailers helped boost the market. The S&P 500 rose less than 0.1%. The benchmark index is coming off a three-day winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 19 points, or 0.1%, as of 12:32 p.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite was up less than 0.1%. Trading volume was lighter than usual as U.S. markets reopened after the Christmas holiday. Chip company Broadcom rose 2.9%, Intel was up 0.7% and Apple gained 0.4%. While tech stocks overall were in the green, some heavyweights were a drag on the market. Semiconductor giant Nvidia, whose enormous valuation gives it an outsize influence on indexes, slipped 0.2%. Meta Platforms fell 0.9%, Amazon was down 0.5%, and Netflix gave up 1.4%. Health care stocks also helped lift the market. CVS Health rose 1.9% and Walgreens Boots Alliance rose 3.3% for the biggest gain among S&P 500 stocks. Several retailers also gained ground. Target rose 2.9%, Best Buy was up 2.1% and Dollar Tree gained 2.2%. U.S.-listed shares in Honda and Nissan rose 4.1% and 15.8%, respectively. The Japanese automakers announced earlier this week that the two companies are in talks to combine. Traders got a labor market update. U.S. applications for unemployment benefits held steady last week , though continuing claims rose to the highest level in three years, the Labor Department reported. Treasury yields rose in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.61% from 4.59% late Tuesday. Major European markets were closed, as well as Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia. Trading was expected to be subdued this week with a thin slate of economic data on the calendar. Still, U.S. markets have historically gotten a boost at year’s end despite lower trading volumes. The last five trading days of each year, plus the first two in the new year, have brought an average gain of 1.3% since 1950. So far this month, the U.S. stock market has lost some of its gains since President-elect Donald Trump’s win on Election Day, which raised hopes for faster economic growth and more lax regulations that would boost corporate profits. Worries have risen that Trump’s preference for tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation , a bigger U.S. government debt and difficulties for global trade. Even so, the U.S. market remains on pace to deliver strong returns for 2024. The benchmark S&P 500 is up roughly 26% so far this year and remains near its most recent all-time high it set earlier this month — its latest of 57 record highs this year. Wall Street has several economic reports to look forward to next week, including updates on pending home sales and home prices, a report on U.S. construction spending and snapshots of manufacturing activity. AP Business Writers Elaine Kurtenbach and Matt Ott contributed.What does Big Tech hope to gain from warming up to Trump?

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Simon Harris was elected with 16,869 first preference votes, well above the quota. Irish premier Simon Harris has said Fine Gael will gain seats in the General Election despite a further fragmentation of Irish politics. Fine Gael won 35 seats in the 2020 election, but 18 of those TDs did not seek re-election in Friday’s poll. An exit poll puts the party’s support at 21%, a fraction of a percentage behind the main opposition party Sinn Fein. Mr Harris, the outgoing Taoiseach, was elected with 16,869 first preference votes, well above the quota. He celebrated with his wife Caoimhe, his parents Bart and Mary, his sister Gemma and his political team at the count centre in Greystones, Co Wicklow. Ahead of his re-election, Mr Harris told reporters he was “cautiously optimistic” about the election result and said it was “clear that my party will gain seats”. “It’s also clear that Fine Gael will top the poll in at least 10 constituencies, many more than we did the last time, that we will gain seats in constituencies where we haven’t had seats in many years, like Tipperary South and Waterford, and that we will add second seats in other constituencies as well,” he said. “I think the people of Ireland have now spoken. We now have to work out exactly what they have said, and that is going to take a little bit of time.” In one of the five consecutive broadcast media rounds he did from the Greystones count centre, he said there were a lot of areas where there were “straight shoot-outs” between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael for final seats. He described the Sinn Fein vote as “pretty significantly down”, the Fianna Fail vote as “marginally down” and the Fine Gael vote as “static” compared with its 2020 vote. He said it was “a very close, a very competitive election” and that “we haven’t seen a Sinn Fein surge or anything like it”. He said: “It was predicted by many that I would become the Taoiseach for a brief period of time, take over from Leo Varadkar, and then have to rebuild my party from the opposition benches as Sinn Fein led a government. “We don’t know what’s going to happen on government formation yet, but that is now looking less likely than it was.” He acknowledged that it was “a very difficult day” for the Green Party and paid tribute to their work in the coalition government, alongside his party and Fianna Fail. “Definitely, politics in Ireland has gotten much more fragmented,” he said. Fine Gael minister Helen McEntee said that her party’s campaign had been “positive”. “The feeling on the doors was very much that people were relatively happy with the government,” she said on RTE Radio. “It will come down to the last seats and it will come down to transfers,” she said of the final result, adding that Fianna Fail and Fine Gael were performing better than the exit poll estimated.NoneInvestment tactics often require big buy-ins and high fees. New tech is lowering the price of entry in fields like direct indexing and private markets. This article is part of " Transforming Business ," a series on the must-know leaders and trends impacting industries. Investing like a billionaire comes with a high price tag. But thanks to technology, the barriers to these elite opportunities are starting to crumble. Consider direct indexing, a strategy favored by the rich to lower taxes by selling underperforming stocks and using the losses to offset other gains. These personalized portfolios used to be out of reach of the merely affluent, requiring steep account minimums. Over the past five years, direct indexing has exploded as technological advancements have made it worthwhile for wealth managers to offer the services to Main Street customers. The account minimum for Fidelity's FidFolios, for example, is only $5,000. "Direct indexing has become accessible at a different level of wealth than it has been in the past," said Ranjit Kapila, the copresident and chief operating officer of Parametric. "That wouldn't have been available or possible without the technology trends we've had to be able to do this level of computation at scale in a cost-efficient manner." Parametric, the pioneer of direct indexing, is also moving downstream. By adopting fractional-share investing, Parametric lowered the minimum for its core product to $100,000 from $250,000. The firm plans to offer a direct-indexing product with fewer customization features for $25,000 in 2025. Private markets face steeper hurdles. This opaque field was traditionally reserved for deep-pocketed investors like pension funds and ultrarich individuals. But now investors have more access to financial results for funds and privately held companies as data providers race to meet their needs. Machine learning and AI have made it easier for these firms to extract and analyze data. BlackRock views this data as the great equalizer and has grand ambitions of indexing these opaque private markets. The asset-management giant agreed this summer to acquire the data powerhouse Preqin for $3.2 billion. "We anticipate indexes and data will be important to future drivers of the democratization of all alternatives," BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said on a conference call. "And this acquisition is the unlock." Leon Sinclair, Preqin's executive vice president, argued that with the number of public companies dwindling, it's imperative for mass-affluent investors to get better access to private markets. "Clearly there's more, deeper, better sources of funding for private companies that could stay private for longer," Sinclair said. "I think it's fair that the mass affluent can — in the right way — be brought along on that journey to get exposure to that part of the mosaic earlier." Investing in automation for a competitive edge Kapila described these technological developments as part of a trend in wealth management to capture customers before they make it big. Related stories "There's a desire by financial advisors to try and engage investors earlier in their wealth-accumulation cycle," Kapila said. Parametric, acquired by Morgan Stanley in 2021, operates in a competitive arena. Thanks to a wave of similar acquisitions, Parametric faces well-capitalized rivals such as BlackRock's Aperio and Franklin Templeton's Canvas. Industry stalwarts like Fidelity and upstarts like Envestnet also want a piece of the action. Kapila said the need to compete on scale and fees required Parametric's technology to be as efficient as possible. "It'll be harder," he said. "We have to do many, many more accounts to really drive growth in assets, etc. But those challenges are exciting to me as a technologist." To meet that need, Kapila is pushing Parametric to develop more automated products, such as Radius, which launched this year. Radius constructs equity and fixed-income portfolios and runs simulations to identify the best selections for portfolio managers. He plans to launch more cloud-native tools, which are easier to scale and manage, for other asset classes in 2025 and 2026. Parametric is also piloting generative-AI tools to onboard accounts more efficiently. Clients' expectations are also rising. There's demand for Parametric's tax benefits but with actively managed strategies rather than indexes, he said, spurring partnerships with asset managers. Parametric recently launched an offering that allows customers to pick equities off strategies from the financial-advisory and asset-management firm Lazard. To stay ahead of the curve, Preqin is developing more sophisticated products. Last year, the UK firm launched an Actionability Signal that uses machine learning to identify private companies likely to be open for investment. "The sole focus on public information for certain tasks around valuation and risk management are not really going to be the way that people do this," Sinclair said. "We're moving much more to a world where real proprietary private information at the asset level, which is transactionally oriented, is available to people." In June, his division launched a data tool that analyzes $4.8 trillion worth of deals across 6,500 funds. This database can be used in a slew of ways, from backing up valuations in negotiations to identifying which financial factors, such as revenue growth or debt paydown, contributed the most value to a successful deal. With the rise of generative AI, Sinclair expects that users will be able to interpret data with more ease using natural language commands. "I think you'll see that be more prominent across the industry where people expect to interact with large data sets in really natural common ways," he said. "We think all that will probably start to be visible over the coming years." Tech is the first step to narrowing education gaps On average, retail investors allocate just 5% of their portfolios to alternative investments. If BlackRock successfully indexes private markets, it could go a long way toward boosting that percentage. However, Sinclair said more work is required to help mass affluent investors feel comfortable investing in private markets. As someone who grew up working class and was only introduced to finance in college, he knows there is an education gap to overcome. "To get Joe Bloggs very excited and comfortable with committing capital, they need to be able to understand what the different basis of those returns are," Sinclair said. He added: "I think it's in the industry's interest to enable those new sources of capital, to bridge the gap in understanding, to bridge the gap in analytics, to bridge the gap in frequency of reporting, to make that an easier journey for people to go on."Using an ISCC Plus-certified mass-balance approach allows for industrial-scale production of sustainable materials without sacrificing performance. Ascend's production facilities in the United States are all ISCC Plus certified to handle bio-based, circular and bio-circular materials. "We are focused on finding technical solutions for our customers' challenges," said Alex Mihut , Ascend's vice president for performance chemicals. "Using the mass-balance approach allows us to meet the growing need for sustainable materials at scale while continuing to offer reliable performance and quality." Combined with Ascend's efforts to lower its scope 1 and 2 emissions, the company's Bioserve products offer among the lowest product carbon footprints for industrial-scale nylon 6,6 and its precursors available in the market today. "Part of our sustainability strategy is a pillar we call 'Operating Without Compromise'," said Chris Johnson , Ascend's senior director for sustainability. "It is based on a commitment to find well-rounded solutions that meet the needs of our customers and help them achieve their goals." Ascend recently published its 2023 sustainability report , which highlights progress against the company's 2030 Vision. About Ascend Performance Materials Ascend Performance Materials makes high-performance materials for everyday essentials and new technologies. Our focus is on improving quality of life and inspiring a better tomorrow through innovation. Based in Houston, Texas , and with regional offices in Shanghai , Brussels and Detroit , we are a fully integrated material solutions provider with global manufacturing facilities in North America , Europe and Asia . Our global workforce makes the materials used to make safer vehicles, cleaner energy, better medical devices, smarter appliances and longer-lasting apparel and consumer goods. We are committed to safety, sustainability and the success of our customers and our communities. Learn more about Ascend at www.ascendmaterials.com . Contact: Osama Khalifa , +1 832-963-1347, [email protected]

PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced Wednesday she's suing a Saudi Arabian agribusiness for allegedly violating a public nuisance law, contending that its groundwater pumping threatens the public health, safety and infrastructure of local communities in a rural western county. The complaint filed in Maricopa County Superior Court alleges that the pumping at a Fondomonte Arizona, LLC. alfalfa farm has had widespread effects in the Ranegras Plain Basin of La Paz County, harming everyone who depends on basin water by drawing down supplies, drying up wells and causing the ground to crack and sink in some areas. The lawsuit is the latest action by Arizona against foreign companies that use huge amounts of groundwater to grow thirsty forage crops for export because of climate challenges in other countries. Rural Arizona is especially attractive to international businesses because it has no groundwater pumping regulations. The lawsuit alleges that since 2014, Fondomonte has extracted huge amounts of water that accelerated depletion of the basin’s aquifer. The company is a subsidiary of Saudi dairy giant Almarai Co. “We find the allegations of the Attorney General totally unfounded, and we will defend any potential action against Fondomonte and our rights vigorously before the competent authorities,” Fondomonte said in a statement Wednesday. “The company has invested significantly to bring the latest conservation technology and applies environmentally sustainable practices on these long-established farms,” it said. “Fondomonte has continued to develop responsibly during its time farming in the state and the company complies with all state regulations. ” Years of drought have increased pressure on water users across the West, particularly in states like Arizona, which relies heavily on the dwindling Colorado River. The drought has also made groundwater — long used by farmers and rural residents without restriction — even more important for users across the state. Mayes told reporters Wednesday that the Arizona Legislature has done nothing to fix the groundwater problem despite knowing about the problem for years. “While laws regulating groundwater pumping could have prevented this situation, the legislature’s inaction has allowed the crisis to grow,” Mayes said. “When the legislature fails to protect our most basic resources, the attorney general must step in.” La Paz County Supervisor Holly Irwin, a Republican, commended Mayes, a Democrat, for attempting to address what she described as her community’s “most challenging” concern. “I know that my constituents will be thrilled over this, that somebody is actually paying attention to the real problems here,” Irwin said during Wednesday’s news briefing via a video conference call. Mayes' lawsuit alleges that Fondomonte's actions are a public nuisance under a state statute that prohibits activity that injures health, obstructs property use, or interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property by a community. Mayes called the company’s groundwater pumping “unsustainable” and said it caused “devastating consequences” for people in the area. “Arizona law is clear: no company has the right to endanger an entire community’s health and safety for its own gain,” she said. The lawsuit seeks to enjoin the company from further groundwater pumping it says is “excessive” and require that an abatement fund be established. Arizona officials have been targeting Fondomonte for more than a year over its use of groundwater to grow forage crops, by not renewing or canceling the company's leases in Butler Valley in western Arizona. Some residents there had complained that the company’s pumping was threatening their wells. Gabriel Sandoval is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.Hisense India Partners with Reliance resQto Elevate After-Sales Service Nationwide

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The world must respond to Russia’s use of a new ballistic missile, Volodymyr Zelensky said as Vladimir Putin threatened to strike the UK with his hypersonic weapon. The Ukrainian president said the use of a ballistic missile to hit Dnipro was a “clear and severe escalation in the scale and brutality of this war” and he warned that Russian president Mr Putin would attack or destabilise other countries unless stopped. Mr Putin said the use of the new weapon was in response to the UK and US allowing missiles they have supplied to Ukraine to be used to strike targets in Russia. “In response to the use of American and British long-range weapons on November 21 of this year, the Russian armed forces launched a combined strike on one of the facilities of the Ukrainian defence industry,” Mr Putin said in a televised address. “One of the newest Russian medium-range missile systems was tested in combat conditions, in this case, with a ballistic missile in a non-nuclear hypersonic warhead.” He added: “We consider ourselves entitled to use our weapons against military facilities of those countries that allow their weapons to be used against our facilities.” But Mr Zelensky urged world leaders – his “dear partners” – not to be cowed by Mr Putin’s actions otherwise there will be “endless Russian strikes” and “not just against Ukraine”. “A lack of tough reactions to Russia’s actions sends a message that such behavior is acceptable,” the Ukrainian president said on X, formerly Twitter. “This is what Putin is doing. Putin must feel the cost of his deranged ambitions. “Response is needed. Pressure is needed. Russia must be forced into real peace, which can only be achieved through strength. “Otherwise, there will be endless Russian strikes, threats, and destabilisation-not just against Ukraine.” The UK is believed to have allowed its Storm Shadow missiles to be used by Ukrainian forces within the Kursk region of Russia, while the US has given permission for its ATACMS weapons to be fired at targets in Mr Putin’s country. Mr Putin confirmed Russia has tested the new intermediate-range weapon in an attack on Dnipro in response. The US said the weapon was a new, experimental intermediate-range missile based on Russia’s existing RS-26 Rubezh intercontinental ballistic missile. In Westminster, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “My understanding is that it is the first time that Russia has used a ballistic missile in Ukraine with a range of several thousand kilometres.” Defence Secretary John Healey said it was “yet another example of Putin’s recklessness”. He said: “Since the illegal invasion of Ukraine began, Russia has consistently and irresponsibly escalated the conflict while Ukraine continues to fight in self-defence for a democratic future.” The missile’s range far outstrips that of newly authorised US and British-supplied weapons, which can hit targets around 250-300km away. The distance from Moscow to London is around 2,500km, suggesting the range of the new missile could threaten the UK. Mr Healey said the UK knew Russia had been “preparing for months” to fire a new ballistic missile. Downing Street and the Ministry of Defence have repeatedly declined to comment publicly on Ukraine’s use of Storm Shadow. “It risks both operational security and in the end the only one that benefits from such a public debate is President Putin,” Mr Healey told MPs. The head of the UK’s armed forces, Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, met Mr Zelensky in Kyiv to discuss the war on Thursday. Mr Zelensky said: “We discussed defence co-operation between Ukraine and the United Kingdom, focusing on developing and enhancing the technological capabilities of the armed forces of Ukraine. “Particular attention was given to Ukraine’s current military needs and the continued support from our partners.”Optical illusions are fascinating games that challenge how our brains and eyes work together. Among these, a horse optical illusion quiz not only entertains but also offers insights into your personality. How many horses you spot can reveal surprising details about your character. Our sense of sight is one of humanity's most vital and beautiful gifts, shaping how we perceive the world. The way we interpret visuals, including optical illusions, can reveal secret aspects of our personality. How Many Horses Do You See? This unique optical illusion quiz is simple to take yet insightful. All you need to do is follow the game rules below and interpret the results: Game Rules: - Glance at the image for a second or two. - Count the number of horses you notice in the picture. - Match your count with the characteristics outlined below to uncover personality traits. What Your Horse Count Reveals About You 1. One Horse Spotting only one horse indicates that you’re a big-picture thinker. You view things holistically and are skilled at anticipating outcomes before others even begin planning. This ability makes you an excellent manager, as you’re adept at visualizing results. However, this strength can sometimes make you hasty in decision-making, leading to a lack of detailed evaluation. Your focus on the broader perspective can cause you to overlook finer details. To grow, focus on becoming more meticulous and avoid developing a laid-back approach. You have the potential to bring about meaningful change if you harness your natural skills thoughtfully. 2. Between 5 and 10 Horses If you saw between five and ten horses, you likely have a streak of perfectionism. You prioritize what matters and base your decisions on logic and reason. While you approach tasks sensibly, your work style can sometimes lack organization, making your journey to success less smooth than it could be. You’re always in motion—sometimes sprinting, other times crawling—but you never stop. This relentless drive helps you overcome failures and keep pushing forward. However, be mindful of overconfidence, as it can lead to overextending yourself. Accept that not everything has to be perfect, and allow yourself to celebrate small victories along the way. 3. 11 or More Horses Suppose you counted 11 or more horses, congratulations! You’re a perfectionist with keen observational skills. You notice details others overlook, making you a reliable and responsible individual. People enjoy working with you because they trust your sharp eye and dedication. However, perfectionism has its downsides. You may struggle to know when to stop refining a project, constantly thinking, “A little more improvement might help.” This mindset can lead to overthinking and dissatisfaction with outcomes. To balance your meticulous nature, consider incorporating relaxation techniques like yoga into your routine. Surround yourself with people who can remind you to set limits and take time to unwind. Why Should You Take the Optical Illusion Test Optical illusions like this one combine fun with self-discovery, offering unique insights into your personality. Whether you’re a big-picture thinker, a relentless go-getter, or a detail-oriented perfectionist, this test can help you understand and embrace your strengths while identifying areas for growth. Get Latest News Live on Times Now along with Breaking News and Top Headlines from Mental Health, Health and around the world.