The off-duty US pilot who tried to shut down the engines of a plane mid-flight over the weekend had taken magic mushrooms and thought he was having a...

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has stripped one of the nation’s largest pharmaceutical distributors of its license to sell highly addictive painkillers after determining it failed to flag thousands of suspicious, high-volume orders at the height of the opioid crisis

The Los Angeles Angels acquired right-handed pitchers Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo López from the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night

The park was hosting the Outside Lands Music Festival which thousands of people were attending when the grisly discovery was made

A close friend emphasized that the welfare of Christine's children is of utmost importance to her, more than a legal document

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham issued an updated public health order Friday temporarily suspending firearms near playgrounds and parks in Albuquerque and the surrounding county after a federal judge temporarily blocked a broader order.

A senior UN official says the humanitarian situation in conflict-wracked eastern Congo has deteriorated alarmingly in the past 18 months with 8 million people in urgent need of assistance and women and girls subjected to sexual violence on a massive scale -- just in three provinces

(Reuters) -The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday it will require some users of Pratt & Whitney's geared turbofan engine

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen confirmed on Monday that she unwittingly ate a dish containing hallucinogenic mushrooms at a restaurant during a visit to China last month. “So I went with this large group of people and the person who had arranged our dinner did the ordering. There was a delicious mushroom dish,” she said on Monday. “I was not aware that these mushrooms had hallucinogenic properties. I learned that later.” “I … read that if the mushrooms are cooked properly, which I’m sure they were, at this very good restaurant, that they have no impact,” she added. “But all of us enjoyed the mushrooms, the restaurant and none of us felt any ill effects from having eaten them.” During the Treasury official’s visit to China last month, she and her team stopped at a location of Yi Zuo Yi Wang, a restaurant chain specialising in dishes from the Yunnan province, where a food blogger on Weibo spotted the top official eating a variety of Chinese dishes. “When I walked by their table on my way to the washroom, I slowed down to take a glance at the dishes they ordered,” the blogger wrote. That included an order of potentially hallucinogenic jian shou qing mushrooms, a delicacy in Yunnan province. “Our staff said she loved mushrooms very much,” the restaurant wrote on social media. “She ordered four portions of jian shou qing (a Yunnan wild mushroom species). It was an extremely magical day.” The mushrooms are “considered poisonous as they can be hallucinogenic,” Dr Peter Mortimer, a professor at Kunming Institute of Botany who studies the region’s mushrooms, told CNN. “However, scientists have not, as of yet, identified the compounds responsible for causing the hallucinations,”he added. “It remains a bit of a mystery, and most evidence is anecdotal. I have a friend who mistakenly ate them and hallucinated for three days.” Chinese state media quoted diners praising Ms Yellen for her interest in Chinese cuisine and warning about the impacts of the mushrooms. “You thought you were walking straight but you just fell sideways,” one person who had eaten a similar dish told the Xinhua state news agency. The restaurant where the secretary ate was quickly flooded with reservations. "We received a larger number of inquiries about bookings. We are fully booked for Friday and Saturday," a staff member told the state-owned Global Times. Read More Biden signs order barring US investment in Chinese chips, quantum computing and AI sectors Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reportedly ate hallucinogenic mushrooms at restaurant during China visit China's Xi tells Kissinger that China-US ties are at a crossroads and stability is still possible

Playing with dolls could help the social development of children - including those with neurodiverse conditions such as autism, according to a study. The research, from Cardiff University, found children exhibiting higher levels of autism traits showed increased brain activity in a key region associated with social processing when engaging in conversations with individuals during doll play. The new findings suggested that broader social engagement with others while engaging in doll play was a unique pathway to social development for these children. This was in contrast to what was observed in neurotypical children, who were more likely to discuss the dolls’ thoughts and emotions. However, researchers said that despite this difference, it showed that both groups may be able to benefit from doll play by using it as a tool for practising social scenarios and developing social skills, such as empathy. The findings are the latest release from a multi-year study by the Centre for Human Developmental Science at the university’s School of Psychology. Previous years have focused on neurotypical children and found wide-ranging social and developmental benefits of playing with dolls. Now, in its third year, the research team has replicated those results with a more diverse range of participants, including children aged between four and eight displaying both high and low levels of traits associated with autism. Lead researcher Dr Sarah Gerson said: “Our study shows that doll play can encourage social processing in children, regardless of their neurodevelopmental profile. “The findings show that all children, even those who display neurodivergent traits commonly associated with autism, may use doll play as a tool for practicing social scenarios and developing social skills, such as empathy.” State-of-the-art functional, near-infrared spectroscopy equipment was used to explore brain activation while children played with dolls and on tablets, both by themselves and with another person, replicating conditions from the first year of the study. While observing children, researchers saw increased brain activity in the posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) region - which is heavily involved in social and emotional processing such as empathy - when playing with dolls, for both play with a social partner and during solo doll play, but less so during solo tablet play. The study’s results suggest that doll play could support social processing, regardless of a child’s neurodevelopmental profile, but through different pathways. For children displaying fewer autistic traits in the research, talking about the mental states and emotions of the dolls they were playing with was associated with increased pSTS activity. In contrast, for those displaying more autistic traits, talking with others during doll play, even when playing by themselves, led to more social processing on a neural level. Other research has shown that social processing and empathy skills are important determinants in children’s future emotional, academic, and social success. The study was a collaboration with the Wales Autism Research Centre. ‘Create a more inclusive and supportive environment for their development’ Its director Dr Catherine Jones said: “The study reinforces how it is important that that we acknowledge and value neurodiversity. “This means recognising and valuing the diverse ways in which children’s brains work and approaching social development in a way that is inclusive and accommodating for all children, regardless of their neurodivergence. “By embracing all ways that children choose to play, we can create a more inclusive and supportive environment for their development.” Since the landmark publication of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, the effects of play have been thought to be positive for kids’ social skills and creativity, but this has never been scientifically evidenced at the brain level. The multi-year long-term study, commissioned by Barbie, is the first time key Piaget theories on play have been scientifically evidenced via brain imaging and the first to use neuroimaging evidence with natural doll play, meaning there was no prescribed storyline to show how the brain is activated during doll play. Michael Swaisland, head EMEA of insight and analytics, Mattel, said: “We are proud to know that when children, regardless of their neurodevelopmental profile, play with Barbie, their playtime may benefit their development. “As Barbie continues to inspire the limitless potential in every child, we are delighted to know, through neuroscience, that playing with dolls may encourage the development of social skills such as empathy in children, including those who display neurodivergent traits commonly associated with autism. “We look forward to uncovering even more benefits of doll play through our long-term partnership with Cardiff University as we look to shine a light on the benefits the play pattern has towards development, that parents might not have been aware of.” Parents and caregivers can visit here to learn more about the research and access resources. Read More Toys children play with can have an effect on their success in adulthood The best exclusive discount codes this payday Many parents of under 5s on less than £50k ‘quit work due to childcare costs’ – survey

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Christian Encarnacion-Strand’s first major league hit was a pinch-hit, three-run homer that gave the Cincinnati Reds an 8-7 lead against the San Francisco Giants in the fifth inning Tuesday night