Arts, Culture & Books

An Australian state is toughening its punishments for anyone caught violating coronavirus quarantines, including jailing rule breakers for up to six months – a warning that follows rising virus cases worldwide and violations of restrictions that are now being further tightened. The current set of fines for breaking a mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine for some […]

Robots that can cook – from flipping burgers to baking bread – are in growing demand as virus-wary kitchens try to put some distance between workers and customers. Starting this fall, the White Castle burger chain will test a robot arm that can cook french fries and other foods. The robot, dubbed Flippy, is made […]

Thailand’s government tightened regulations for the entry of foreigners on Tuesday, after two new imported coronavirus cases with possible exposure to the public raised concern about a second wave of infections. Thailand has been 50 days without confirmed local transmission of the coronavirus, but two cases among foreigners this week has led to the self-isolation […]

Luiz Augusto Rizzo, 29, is no specialist in infectious diseases, but he is part of perhaps the most important scientific endeavor in the world today: the hunt for a vaccine against the novel coronavirus. The pediatric surgeon is one of 2,000 volunteers in Brazil’s largest city of Sao Paulo taking part in mass human trials […]

Israeli Hasidic Jews will have to forego an annual pilgrimage to the central Ukrainian town of Uman this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, the town’s mayor has said. Every Jewish New Year, tens of thousands of Hasidic Jews visit the grave of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, who revived the Hasidic movement and died in […]

Movie star Johnny Depp concluded five days of testimony in his libel case against Britain’s Sun newspaper on Monday, saying his ex-wife Amber Heard had thrown a “haymaker” punch at him on the night he found out he had lost $650 million. The 57-year-old “Pirates of the Caribbean” star is suing the Sun’s publisher, News […]

Tattoo shops, beauty salons and massage parlours in England reopened on Monday after being forced to close for almost four months in the latest easing of the coronavirus lockdown. Customers are required to wear masks while face tattoos, eyebrow trimming, face waxing and facials are prohibited under government guidelines. People clamouring to get a new […]

Britain’s royal family has begun selling dry gin infused with lemon, verbena, hawthorn berries and mulberry leaves collected from Queen Elizabeth II’s gardens at Buckingham Palace. The “small batch” gin is on offer for 40 pounds ($50) a bottle from the Royal Collection Shop, but only for delivery in the United Kingdom. ‘For the perfect […]

A new animated “Star Wars” series will debut on Walt Disney Co’s Disney+ streaming service in 2021, the company announced on Monday. Called “Star Wars: The Bad Batch,” the series will follow a group of elite and experimental clones in a rapidly changing galaxy following the end of the Clone War, the company said.

Can’t embrace friends and family these days? Hug a tree instead. That is the message Israel’s Nature and Parks Authority is spreading on social media to try to help people overcome the sense of detachment that coronavirus social-distancing rules can bring. “In this unpleasant corona period we recommend to people around the world to go […]