Comment on Germany should have led the world at handling the pandemic. But experts slam Merkel's vaccine response as a disaster - CNN

This article is part of The D. C. Brief, TIME’s politics newsletter. Sign up here to get stories like this sent to your inbox. For about half of this country, former President Donald Trump’s boorish behavior is reason enough to pass on signing up for another four years of his bombast in the White House.

Washington — The horse transformed human history – and now scientists have a clearer idea of when humans began to transform the horse. Around 4,200 years ago, one particular lineage of horse quickly became dominant across Eurasia, suggesting that’s when humans started to spread domesticated horses around the world, according to research published Thursday in the journal Nature. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] There was something special about this horse: It had a genetic mutation that changed the shape of its back, likely making it easier to ride. “In the past, you had many different lineages of horses,” said Pablo Librado, an evolutionary biologist at the Spanish National Research Council in Barcelona and co-author of the new study.

As Russia’s war grinds on, the Biden Administration is now taking on bigger risks to support Ukraine. The latest example is a White House decision to allow Ukrainian forces to use U. S.-provided weapons to strike targets inside Russia. We may also soon see NATO personnel on the ground in Ukraine to train fighters. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Six months ago, Western leaders weren’t ready to discuss either of these changes—at least not publicly.

Hunter Biden, the second son of U. S. President Joe Biden, is currently on trial for charges of lying about his drug use on background check documents when purchasing a handgun in 2018. The President’s son has struggled with addiction for much of his adult life, and went through a particularly intense period after his brother, Beau Biden, died of brain cancer in 2015. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] In 1972, when they were just toddlers, Hunter and Beau survived a tragic car accident that left their mother, President Biden’s first wife Neilia Hunter Biden, and their younger sister Naomi Christina Biden dead.

SpaceX’s mega Starship rocket completed its first full test flight Thursday, returning to Earth without exploding after blasting off from Texas. It was the fourth launch of the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket, standing nearly 400 feet (121 meters) tall. The three previous flight demos ended in explosions. This time, the rocket and the spacecraft managed to splash down in a controlled fashion, making the hourlong flight the longest and most successful yet. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “Despite loss of many tiles and a damaged flap, Starship made it all the way to a soft landing in the ocean!” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said via X. Starship was empty as it soared above the Gulf of Mexico and headed east on a flight to the Indian Ocean.

Several streaming platforms are hiking subscription rates, potentially impacting monthly entertainment budgets for people. Max, Spotify, and Twitch recently announced they would raise prices for their various subscription plans in an aim to fortify their positions in a competitive landscape. Here’s what to know about recent streaming price increases. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Max increases prices across ad-free plans At the start of 2023, Max raised its prices for the first time, and a little over a year later, the platform is increasing the price again.