Six wickets from Nishan Peiris led Sri Lanka to a 154-run innings victory in the second Test in Galle.

Sri Lanka beat New Zealand by an innings and 154 runs in the second Test match and completed a 2-0 series win in Galle despite a late fightback from the tourists.

Debut off-spinner Nishan Peiris took six wickets to secure the home team’s first series win against New Zealand in 15 years.

New Zealand were all out for 360 in their second innings before tea on Sunday, the fourth day of the Test, after being asked to play on.

The 27-year-old Peiris and fellow spinner Prabath Jayasuriya shared 18 wickets in the match, with the latter taking 6-42 in the first innings and bowling out the tourists for just 88 after the hosts posted a mammoth score of 602-5 had.

New Zealand’s lower league struggled strongly after recovering to 199-5, with Tom Blundell, Glenn Phillips and Mitchell Santner all hitting half-centuries.

Sri Lanka sealed victory when Santner’s stubborn resistance was finally broken and Kusal Mendis was bowled out for a 67 off Peiris.

Sri Lanka could have ended the game and the series in the morning session had it not been for a number of dropped catches.

The result leaves New Zealand winless in six Test appearances in Galle, with Sunday’s 360 representing their highest innings total at the venue.

Kamindu Mendis, whose unbeaten 182 helped Sri Lanka post a massive total of 602-5 in the first innings, was named player of the match.

Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva said Mendis had significantly strengthened his team’s batting power in the middle range.

“I think Kamindu can play the long innings at five and I can finish the game at number six,” said de Silva.

Dinesh Chandimal, who was promoted to number three, also scored a century, confirming the team’s decision to change its batting order.

Kamindu, who scored a century in the opening Test, became the fastest Asian to reach 1,000 Test runs by reaching the milestone in his 13th innings.

“I enjoy scoring goals, especially since Galle is my hometown,” said Kamindu after receiving the player of the match award.

“It is a great pleasure to score 1,000 runs so quickly but we have to improve day by day.”

New Zealand captain Tim Southee said playing two Tests in Galle, known as a spinner’s paradise, was always going to be a challenge.

“It’s difficult for a foreign team and Sri Lanka played great cricket,” Southee said after New Zealand slipped to seventh in the World Test Championship (WTC) rankings. New Zealand travel to India for a three-match Test series starting October 16.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings let Danielle Hunter leave as a free agent this year, deciding not to pay market value for a player who had become the franchise’s youngest player in a long line of productive pass rushers.

Hunter instead joined the Houston Texans, seizing the opportunity to play for an up-and-coming team in his hometown. After two games, the undefeated Texans are the NFL leaders in sack rate per pass play (16.1%) while they have 10th-year veteran Hunter on one side and Will Anderson Jr. on the other, according to the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year 2023, others can boast.

However, the Vikings are still going after those quarterbacks, which is the design and joy of defensive coordinator Brian Flores.

Hunter’s departure in March was stemmed by the acquisition of free agent edge rushers Andrew Van Ginkel (from Miami) and Jonathan Greenard (coincidentally from Houston). Then in April, the Vikings selected Alabama star Dallas Turner in the first round after making sure they got a quarterback, JJ McCarthy. The Vikings also added ninth-year veteran Jihad Ward in the second wave of free agency.

These four players combined have roughly the same salary cap hit as Hunter this season. The Vikings will once again put their roster-building strategy and pass-rushing skills to the test when they host Hunter and the Texans on Sunday, tasked with acquiring CJ Stroud, the 2023 Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. to defeat.

“We have a lot of guys that can all play and we really used those guys,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said.

The Vikings are undefeated themselves, which is due to the second-best sack rate in the league (14.1 percent). Their group of versatile edge rushers includes fourth-year backup Patrick Jones II, who has four of the team’s NFL-most 11 sacks.

“Flo has done a good job of recruiting smart, reliable, tough people who love football,” Van Ginkel said. If you have that, you have a recipe for success.

When Minnesota defeated defending NFC champion San Francisco last week, Minnesota forced the 49ers to a 2-for-10 performance on third-down conversions. On eight of those 10 plays, Flores called on his race car package, which gets the heaviest players off the field and puts four pass-rush specialists on the starting line.

“These five players play a big role in putting together the weekly schedule,” O’Connell said.

Not that the Vikings wouldn’t still like to have a player like Hunter, who landed in a formidable starting lineup with Anderson Jr. on the opposite side.

“It’s really special when you have two teams that play the way they know how to play,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said, adding: “They don’t talk a lot, don’t talk a lot outside, but they love football and that “That’s what connects them.” Two guys who care about playing the game the right way. They are intense, they are physical players and they love to test themselves.

The Collins connection

Texas wide receiver Nico Collins leads the NFL with 252 receiving yards, making him the only player in the league with two 100-yard games. Collins, who rushed for a career-high 1,297 yards last season, formed a unique bond with Stroud since the Texans drafted the quarterback second overall last year out of Ohio State.

“Reps after reps after reps, those are the things you accumulate over time and wait for moments like this,” said Collins, a 2021 third-round pick out of Michigan. So let’s make it look easy.

The trend is increasing

Vikings star wide receiver Justin Jefferson was forced to leave the game against San Francisco late in the third quarter because of a bruised quadriceps, but he has practiced limitedly this week and is leaning toward being suspended for Sunday. Jefferson said Thursday that he will definitely play.

Another tough test

Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold ranks fifth in the league in passer rating, marking a strong start to his reset season in a career that has taken him to four teams in seven years since he was the third overall pick in the 2018 draft .

“I definitely feel very comfortable with the offense and the system,” Darnold said. I feel like I can continue to grow.

Ka’imi’s big kicks

Houston’s Kaimi Fairbairn was the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week after making all four of his field goal attempts against the Bears. He made three from more than 50 yards, including a 59-yarder that was the second-longest kick in franchise history behind his 61-yarder in 2021.

Fairbairn has a record of 7-for-7 on field goals and 3-for-3 on extra points this season, with six goals from more than 50 yards.

“He’s always cool right now,” Ryans said. It never gets too high or too low. He’s shooting 59-yard field goals and still standing on the sideline saying, ‘Hey, this is what I do.’ When you exhibit that behavior, I think it really helps you.

The eight-year-old player practiced meditation every morning.

Just try to find that inner peace every day, Fairbairn said.

——

AP NFL:

The Minecraft movie trailer did a good job setting up low expectations for the new film, and the latest clip didn’t manage to change that.

Minecraft is the latest in what could be a long line of game and toy adaptations (à la Barbie and The Super Mario Bros. Movie) and aims to bring the famous 3D world to life.

After the reaction to the first Minecraft trailer proved to be bumpy, a new clip has now been released that further increases the cynicism. The clip, released on September 28, shows the new film’s main group meeting Jack Black’s Steve, who shows them how to use the crafting table.

The clip is another look at the combination of live action and computer-generated elements that caused backlash when the trailer was released. Unfortunately, the new teaser couldn’t beat the wave of negative reactions.

The National Weather Service said Helene had cleared most of western North Carolina as of 11:21 a.m. Friday, but significant impacts, including severe flooding, were expected to continue into the weekend.

Many areas and towns along the French Broad River are experiencing flooding and the river continues to rise.

Landslides are still possible in the mountains, especially until the last rain subsides on Friday afternoon or evening.

Here is some of the damage in the area caused by local social media posts and our staff:

Asheville River Arts District:

The French Broad River reached over 16 feet at 11 a.m. on Sept. 27, flooding most of the River Arts District, seen here from the Haywood Road bridge.

Get text alerts on your phone:Sign up to receive updates on conditions and safety by location

More:‘The worst storm damage I’ve ever seen’: Helene hits Fletcher and Henderson in historic flooding

Live updates:Rivers are still at flood level on Saturday

Starting Monday, American households can now request four free at-home COVID-19 tests from the U.S. government, although they may appear to have expired.

The U.S. government is once again rolling out free at-home COVID-19 testing for all Americans, offering four tests per household, delivered free by the United States Postal Service. However, consumers who receive the tests may find that they have an expired expiration date printed on them.

Government officials have noted that some of the tests introduced may appear to have expired but are still functional. Here’s what you need to know to ensure you get accurate results with your free at-home tests:

FLINT, Michigan — Larry Safford is well known in his central Michigan community.

He’s a veteran, a former crime-scene specialist and a John Wayne super-fan. The 85-year-old farmer is also nearing the end of sweet corn and raspberry season, and his 20 acres of land is full of new and old customers. He gives away pumpkins to kids in the fall and plows snow for his neighbors in the winter.

In many ways, Safford represents an American vision of the stereotypical Midwesterner: Honest, hardworking, kind. He told USA TODAY the region he calls home means bad weather and football — and no, not everyone is nice.

Musical creations made with artificial intelligence continue to go viral, from tunes like “10 Drunk Cigarettes” to “BBL Drizzy.” But despite the recent popularity of AI-generated music, the use of the technology has been met with strong criticism.

Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group sued AI music companies Uncharted Labs and Suno this summer over software that allows users to create music from text prompts, claiming that copyrighted songs were used without permission to train the AI became. Universal Music Group has no connection to NBCUniversal, which operates NBC News.

Record companies have worked quickly to remove music containing AI versions of Drake and The Weeknd’s voices.

And more than 200 musicians, including Billie Eilish, Stevie Wonder and Nicki Minaj, signed an open letter this year calling on AI companies to “protect themselves from the predatory use of AI to create the voices and likenesses of professional artists.” steal, violate creators’ rights, and destroy the music ecosystem.”

Despite the resistance, AI music companies have continued to grow and are using a novel argument to promote their business: accessibility.

Websites like Sound Draw, Musicfy, AIVA, and Boomy allow users to easily create music with AI using various inputs.

Users can choose from different genres of music and then adjust things like the tempo, mood, and instruments featured in the music.

AI music companies say the new ease of use allows users who may not have been able to easily create music before to create their own content.

“You don’t have to buy fancy equipment. You don’t have to have music lessons,” said Cassie Speer, head of creative success at Boomy. “There are a lot of things you have to do to be able to make music, and Boomy’s goal is simply to give anyone who wants to experiment with creativity the opportunity to come to our website and just try it out.”

Speer has traveled the country educating students about generative AI technology and Boomy, and she said she hopes AI technology can give low-income students new access to music.

“Marginalized people are often left behind in the tech space and don’t get equal access,” she said. “If we can work with people who want to do it right and provide resources to students and create a symbiotic relationship within the music industry and with schools, we can achieve much more.”

Access to music education is becoming increasingly restricted in public schools across the United States

According to the Arts Education Data Project, a data collection and analysis project run by an arts education nonprofit, 8% of all students in U.S. public schools did not have access to music instruction during the school day.

Other companies have embraced the idea that AI can lower the barrier to creating music and democratize the art form. Software company Musicfy said in a blog post that its technology “shortens the learning curve and allows beginners to focus on creativity rather than technical challenges.”

Canadian musician Grimes also highlighted the ideal by inviting her fans to make music with her AI-generated voice, writing on AI vocals used by Grimes with Smart. Contracts!? The future is now! That’s so cool.”

In Denver, Speer led a course on AI music tools with Boomy for young musicians.

Some of the local artists who performed at Youth on Record’s festival support the integration of AI technology into music education and production.

“Imagine how much more vibrant the Denver scene could be if everyone sitting at home with a song idea in their head but no keyboard or guitar skills or anything to actually execute it had a tool that could could start it for them,” said Regi Worles, a member of the band Dog Tags.

Worles took part in the AI ​​workshop with some bandmates where Boomy’s software was presented.

“I really feel like no one should feel like they can’t achieve their dreams because they don’t know how to use software that costs $400 or more to purchase,” he said. “If AI is a way to influence this in a different direction, then I’m pretty open to it.”

Boomy is free to use, but there are different pricing tiers depending on how many songs someone wants to release. Mitchell said Boomy keeps 20% of an artist’s profits when a song is created and distributed using its software.

Any track created using its software becomes the sole property of Boomy.

Michael Merola, bassist and vocalist of Dog Tags, said he used AI tools to aid his creative process, such as asking ChatGPT for synonyms for words in song lyrics.

Worles said the duo also took inspiration from music-specific AI tools.

“I just show Michael, ‘Oh, hey, here’s what I was thinking about. Listen to it mostly for the melody, but for a few chord ideas in the background.’ And then he says, “Oh, I could do that better, watch.” And then we’re writing the song now. So, as always, it is a starting point.

But not all young musicians at the festival in Denver were enthusiastic about the further development of the technology.

“Honestly, I’m really scared of it,” said singer-songwriter Genevieve Libien.

“I am a skeptic. Probably just because music is so human to me and is inherent and inextricably linked to our humanity. So any kind of artificial intelligence almost feels like a small affront to that sanctity,” she added.

Although she attended the Boomy workshop out of curiosity, it didn’t change her mind.

“I personally don’t see myself being able to use generative AI,” she said. “I think my biggest fear would be turning on the radio and hearing every song that plays like ChatGPT.”

Creatives across industries have expressed Libien’s concerns about the impact of AI on art and creative professions. In September 2023, writers ended one of the longest Hollywood writers’ strikes in history after film and television companies agreed on rules for the use of AI in their industries.

Tennessee this year became the first state to take legal action to protect musicians and artists from AI, passing a law to ensure that AI tools are not used to recreate artists’ voices without their consent, said The Associated Press.

Still, Speer hopes that integrating AI into music education can be beneficial.

“I hope this technology will enable more resources and more companies within public school systems and nonprofits to collaborate to support their mission so that music and art are never left behind,” she said.

• My father told me that the doctors had discovered a tumor and that he only had six months to live.
• I was 22 and still hadn’t lost any family members, so it was a shock.
• He wrote my wedding speech and I didn’t find it until after he died.

I remember the moment my father told me had six months to live like it was yesterday. I was stretched out on the overstuffed sofa bed he had set up in the corner of his log cabin at the end of the garden. On a warm, quiet Sunday morning in mid-March, I took a break while the olive goldcrest chirped in the nearby tree.

When I looked outside I saw my father with two cups of tea in his hand. He went into the hut, our dog Monty trotting behind him. We often spent the morning like this: Drink tea and chat to escape the burden of everyday life. This time, however, there was something heavy in him.

He smiled nervously as he walked over to me and handed me a cup. “Lar, we need to talk,” he said, standing at the edge of the bed. “I received news. It’s not good.”

He was given 6 months to live

He sat next to me; my heart was racing. I remember how sick I felt.

“That means I have a tumor spreads from my intestines. Although we can try chemotherapy, it is fatal. “The doctors gave me a six-month prognosis,” he said.

Whatever came next was a foggy, confusing blur hysterical cryingShortness of breath and pure panic.

This is one of those moments in life that nothing can prepare you for. At 22, I still had all four grandparents that I seemed to be blessed with health and longevity. The closest thing I had was my turtle Luigi when I was 10 years old. I had no prior resilience to draw on to process this catastrophic news.

It felt like hours later that I was in tears. My throat hurt from the whining. Wrapped in my father’s comforting arms, I blurted out, “Dad, that’s you.” I won’t walk myself down the aisle once.”

My father had similar experiences with my three other siblings – all of whom reacted differently to the news. Over the next week or so, that was my way of processing Write in a journal to let go of the outbursts of pain I experienced. Looking ahead, I forced myself to think about what I needed from my father before he died. Finally there was time not on our site.

I kept thinking about my hypothetical wedding day

Every time I sat down to write, I returned to the vivid and hypothetical image of my wedding day. It’s as if the universe wanted me to come to terms with the heartbreaking idea that my father wouldn’t betray me. This is something I romanticized from a young age. A vision that I undoubtedly believed would come true.

It hit me one sleepless night. I wanted to create a keepsake where my father and I could write letters together, share memories, and process our feelings. I found a worn old notebook and wrote him my first letter. I sobbed as the sunrise slowly peeked through my bedroom curtain. The very first thing I asked him at the end of the letter, in tear-stained ink, was if he could write his wedding speech for me. I left the letter in the cabin the next day.

Dad responded lovingly, but not the speech part. Months passed and Dad’s health deteriorated. As expected, his body rejected the chemo. There was no sign of a speech and I accepted that perhaps that was asking too much. It got to the point where he began to lose control of his limbs and could no longer speak, so our letters to each other became increasingly sparse.

“That’s okay,” I thought to myself. “It was brave of me to ask.”

I found the speech he wrote for me after his death

It was a hot summer morning, the day my father died in the care of our local hospice. He had been there for three weeks – in severe pain, stabilized by lots of morphine – surrounded by his family. He literally clung to his life before surrendering peacefully alongside those he loved most.

Later that day, as we navigated through the flood of peace lilies, “sorry for your loss” messages, and a pile of homemade lasagna that we had no appetite for, we came across his will in a pile of his belongings. We opened it together as a family at the kitchen table. Between pages of financial details and funeral wishes was a folder of white envelopes addressed to each of us – his wife and four children. My front says “Lar…”. On the back: “Your wedding speech.”

To this day, the envelope sits sealed at the bottom of my “dad box” along with the notebook we shared, photo albums of memories, and a collection of swimming medals that I would one day show his grandchildren.

The fact that I can pass on this precious feeling on what I consider to be the most special day of my life is invaluable to my grieving process – even if it does not make up for the fact that he will not be physically present by my side on my wedding day.

I often sit alone in his hut and enjoy the rays of sunshine glittering through the trees. I hold a cup of tea and feel comforted by the intuitive knowledge that he will always be with me in some form.

Over four years later, I feel glimpses of the peaceful moments we spent in that garden. Before our lives were turned upside down. I am incredibly grateful for these moments.

Lara Rodwell is the author of Guided Grief Journal “From Prognosis to Peace: Managing Grief through Gratitude, Discovery, and Healing.”inspired by the notebook she shared with her father. Available from Amazon and other booksellers.