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Southern University in Louisiana was awarded $600,000 for its "Project Farm to Feminine Hygiene", a bold effort to develop natural alternatives to synthetic sanitary products. Using regenerative cotton, wool, and industrial hemp, the project also planned to launch educational programmes and support local fibre farmers by building a processing facility. But that vision has been cut short. On 7 March, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced on X that she was revoking the funding, claiming the grant was meant to study “menstrual cycles in transgender men.” It wasn’t. The actual documentation mentions transgender people only once—acknowledging that they, too, may menstruate. The single-line reference was enough to trigger a misinformation storm.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Sen. Tim Scott called President Trump on Tuesday with a last-ditch plea.The president was on the verge of publicly endorsing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the state’s tightly contested Republican primary.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. President Trump’s appointment of a special envoy for Greenland drew an angry response from Denmark and reignited its concerns about U.S. efforts to control the strategic Arctic territory.

The 27-country bloc faces 25 per cent import tariffs on steel and aluminium and cars and 'reciprocal' tariffs of 20 per cent from Wednesday for almost all other goods. President Trump's tariffs cover some 70 per cent of the EU's exports to the United States — worth in total 532 billion euros ($585 billion) last year — with likely duties on copper, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and timber still to come. When Trump hit steel and aluminium imports with a 25 percent tariff in March, the EU decided on «an eye for an eye» approach. «We will react in areas where it hurts the United States,» a senior EU official said. Officials have previously said the EU will target goods from politically important US states, including soybeans produced in Louisiana, the home of US Speaker Mike Johnson, who pushes Trump's agenda in Congress. The is happening even though, President Trump's one of the closest advisers billionaire Elon Musk told Italy League leader Matteo Salvini on Saturday that he hoped in the future the US and Europe could create «a very close, stronger partnership» and reach a «zero-tariff zone.» Musk spoke to Salvini in a video conference during the League's congress in Florence. Salvini is the leader of the far-right, anti-migrant League party and vice premier of the Italian conservative government led by Premier Giorgia Meloni.

The Blaze Star, also known as T Coronae Borealis, is expected to shine as brightly as Polaris for about a week, starting soon. Astronomers describe it as a «once-in-a-lifetime» sky show, best seen near the Corona Borealis constellation. Only once every 80 years does T Coronae Borealis explode, making it a new star in the night sky for about a week. Bradley Schaefer, an astronomer and Blaze Star expert at Louisiana State University told Annie Jennemann of Hearst, «We anticipate that T Coronae Borealis will erupt any night now, any month now,” as quoted in a report by The NY Post. ALSO READ: Monica Lewinsky turns heads at Broadway's star-studded opening night of Good Night, and Good Luck, leaves people stunned; here's what she wore

Lower-income buyers will suffer another blow from expected hikes in used car prices as demand surges and supply shrinks. New cars priced under $30,000 are already rare as the average new-vehicle price approaches $50,000. The only way automakers can eke out profits on economy cars, analysts say, is to build them in nations with lower manufacturing costs. A Reuters review of data from two auto research firms found just 16 models with an average sticker price less than $30,000 and only one, Toyota's Corolla, that is assembled in the United States. All others are made in Mexico, South Korea, or Japan. Slapping a 25% tariff on these low-end cars may force price increases that make them unaffordable to their target market or cause some automakers to abandon them entirely, industry analysts said.

flash floods. Millions of people could face severe weather conditions from Saturday through Monday. Travel disruptions and infrastructure damage are expected.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. WASHINGTON : President Trump is following through on his pledge to usher in one of the most sweeping deregulatory drives in modern U.S. history, moving swiftly to slash environmental rules and bank oversight, remove barriers to cryptocurrencies, and reverse the Biden administration’s restrictions on energy production.

Donald Trump at the White House on Monday. The investment includes a new $5.8 billion Hyundai Steel plant in Louisiana that will produce over 2.7 million metric tons of steel annually, creating more than 1,400 jobs. The steel plant is expected to supply steel to auto plants in Alabama and Georgia. Of the total, Hyundai also plans to invest $9 billion by 2028 to boost U.S. production capacity to 1.2 million vehicles in the United States and $6 billion to expand strategic partnerships with U.S. companies in autonomous driving, robotics, artificial intelligence, and advanced air mobility, the company said. Hyundai Motor plans to hold an opening ceremony for its new $7.59 billion car and battery factory in Georgia on Wednesday. The automaker has a factory in Alabama, while its affiliate Kia has a plant in Georgia. The two older plants can produce 700,000 vehicles a year and the new Georgia plant will have a 300,000-vehicle production capacity when fully operational. Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry had travelled to South Korea in October and met with Hyundai to discuss the investment plan.

Adani Green, Adani Enterprises, NCC, Dr. Reddy’s, Max Healthcare, and Apollo Hospitals will be in focus due to key developments. Godrej Properties: Godrej Properties has acquired 10 acres of land in Bengaluru, with an estimated revenue potential of Rs 2,500 crore. The proposed development will have a saleable area of about 1.5 million square feet and will offer homes in various configurations, catering to different segments of homebuyers.

Hamas ties. The detention of Badar Khan Suri, a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University in the US capital, came as fears mount in the academic world that freedom of research and speech is being challenged two months into US President Donald Trump's new term. Suri's lawyer demanded his release and denounced the arrest as a «targeted, retaliatory detention» that was intended «to silence, or at the very least restrict and chill, his speech» as well as that of others who «express support for Palestinian rights.» Early Thursday evening Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles of the Eastern District of Virginia Court ordered Suri «shall not be removed from the United States unless and until the court issues a contrary order.» The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which has also filed an emergency motion to stop the deportation, said Suri was being held at an immigration detention center in Louisiana.

Tagore Baal Niketan rejoiced alongside millions as Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams returned to Earth after 286 days in space. The school is also renowned for nurturing Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian-origin woman in space. The first Indian to achieve this feat was Rakesh Sharma, who journeyed aboard the Russian spacecraft Soyuz T-11 in 1984. Born in Karnal in 1962, Kalpana Chawla tragically lost her life on February 1, 2003, when the Columbia spacecraft disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana, killing all seven astronauts on board. Chawla completed her schooling at Tagore Baal Niketan and earned a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Engineering from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, in 1982. She moved to the United States later that year. The school, with a history spanning over six decades, has honored her legacy by dedicating an auditorium in her memory. Its principal, Dr Rajan Lamba said, «Everyone was happy and relieved at the safe return of Sunita William and fellow astronauts… Due to ongoing school Board exams, we could not hold celebrations in the school, but everyone was happy including students, teachers.» He reminisced about the Columbia Space Shuttle, recalling vivid memories and a series of letters exchanged between the school's founder and Chawla before her mission.

legal challenges and debates over its impact.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Trump administration is seeking to deport Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University student arrested last week after his participation in pro-Palestinian demonstrations, under a seldom-used provision of immigration law. Khalil, a 30-year-old lawful permanent resident, is awaiting his fate in a federal Louisiana immigration detention facility after being arrested in New York on Saturday.

hurricane-force winds, and massive hailstones. This system is no ordinary storm; it's a potential game-changer that could leave a path of destruction across multiple states.

The European Union launched countermeasures on Wednesday against new U.S. metals tariffs, with plans to impose its own duties on up to €26 billion (US$28.3 billion) worth of American goods.

A tornado watch was issued Wednesday morning for parts of North and South Carolina until early afternoon. Tornado warnings were issued in Florida and South Carolina on Wednesday morning. On Tuesday, high winds forced some changes to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, which moved up and shortened the two biggest parades to wrap them up ahead of the bad weather. Tornadoes touched down Tuesday in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana, according to preliminary information from the National Weather Service.

Al Green, a Democrat from Texas, was removed from the House of Representatives chamber on Tuesday night after repeatedly heckling President Donald Trump during his speech to a joint session of Congress. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, ordered Green's removal after multiple warnings.

The storm follows significant staffing cuts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service, whose diminishing workforce experts warn could put lives at risk. Last week, 779 NOAA employees were laid off, leaving people worried about how the nation will respond to extreme weather events.

Meta Platforms is in discussions to construct a new data center campus for its artificial intelligence projects, with potential costs exceeding $200 billion, The Information reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.