Things To Do In SW Florida

Joe Rohde, formerly of Walt Disney Imagineering, is releasing a book about creativity. “Floating Mountains: The Art of Imagining the Impossible” will be available in September.

“I’ve had a career as a creative person, and I finally have written a book,” Rohde said in a video posted on his Instagram account. He is seen surrounded by art books and wearing his elaborate trademark earring.

“This is a book about how creative we can be when we are creative together,” he said.

Rohde worked for Imagineering for 40 years, starting in 1980 as a model designer for Epcot. Eventually, he moved into roles that included the development of the Adventurers Club at the now-defunct Pleasure Island; Aulani, a Disney Vacation Club resort in Hawaii; and Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park, plus, subsequently, the addition of Pandora — the World of Avatar land there. The book’s cover may suggest to readers the gravity-defying, arching, mountainous structure seen above the Pandora attractions, which debuted in 2017. read more

NEW YORK (AP) — Warner Bros. Discovery has determined that Paramount’s latest takeover offer is superior to the streaming and studio agreement it struck with Netflix, marking a stark shift in momentum in the fight for the storied Hollywood giant.

Related Articles

• 
  Young woman says she was on social media ‘all day long’ as a child in landmark addiction trial

• 
  Convicted stowaway arrested again after a new alleged ticketless flight from US to Italy

• 
  FedEx says it will return to customers any refunds it gets back from Trump’s illegal tariffs

• 
  The IRS broke the law by disclosing confidential information to ICE 42,695 times, judge says

• 
  Burger King is testing AI headsets that will know if employees say ‘welcome’ or ‘thank you’

The owner of HBO Max, DC Studios and popular titles like “Harry Potter” had backed Netflix’s proposal for months. But after Skydance-owned Paramount upped its rival bid for the entire company to $31 per share, in addition to other revisions, Warner’s board on Thursday said that the offer “constitutes a ‘company superior proposal.’” read more

By MAE ANDERSON, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Delivery company FedEx said in a statement on Thursday that it will return any tariff refund it might get to shippers and customers who paid them.

The statement came after FedEx filed suit in the U.S. Court of International Trade to request a refund on what it paid for tariffs set by President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled that the IEEPA tariffs are illegal.

Related Articles

• 
  Warner Bros. Discovery deems Paramount’s takeover bid superior to Netflix deal

• 
  Burger King is testing AI headsets that will know if employees say ‘welcome’ or ‘thank you’

• 
  NASA announces leadership shakeup in wake of Boeing Starliner criticism

• 
  Weber recalls 3.2 million wire-bristle grill brushes

• 
  Walmart to pay $100 million to settle FTC allegations over deceptive practices for delivery drivers

More than 1,000 companies have filed suit in the U.S. Court of International Trade in efforts to recoup costs from the illegal tariffs, including large U.S. corporations like Costco and Revlon. read more

By DEE-ANN DURBIN, Associated Press

Burger King is testing AI-powered headsets that can recite recipes, alert managers when inventories are low and even track how friendly employees are to customers.

Restaurant Brands International – the Miami-based company that owns Burger King, Popeyes and other brands – said Thursday it’s currently testing the OpenAI-powered headsets in 500 U.S. restaurants.

The system collects data on restaurant operations and shares it via “Patty,” a voice that talks to employees through their headsets. If the drink machine is low on Diet Coke, Patty will tell the store’s manager. If a customer uses a QR code to report a messy bathroom, the manager will be alerted.

Related Articles

Warner Bros. Discovery deems Paramount’s takeover bid superior to Netflix deal

FedEx says it will return to customers any refunds it gets back from Trump’s illegal tariffs

NASA announces leadership shakeup in wake of Boeing Starliner criticism

Weber recalls 3.2 million wire-bristle grill brushes read more

A week after the NASA Administrator promised consequences for the agency’s mishandling of the Boeing Starliner saga, two key leaders of its Commercial Crew Program are being replaced.

NASA said that Ken Bowersox, who announced his retirement Wednesday, is no longer associate administrator of Space Operations Mission Directorate. His last day at NASA will be March 6.

Steve Stich is also no longer the program manager of the Commercial Crew Program. Stich is remaining at NASA, but has transitioned to an advisor role for the Human Landing Systems program for Artemis.

The Space Operations Mission Directorate oversees commercial crew as well as the International Space Station, human research, launch services and human spaceflight capabilities among other programs.

Bowersox’s replacement is Joel Montalbano. He has been most recently a deputy under Bowersox and before that the program manager of the International Space Station. Stich’s replacement is Dana Hutcherson, who had been Stich’s deputy in the Commercial Crew Program. Both will be installed as acting leaders for their new roles, effective immediately NASA stated. read more