Scientists have pulled DNA from Ludwig van Beethoven's hair to look for clues about his many health problems and hearing loss. They weren't able to figure out why the famous composer lost his hearing and had severe stomach problems. But they reported Wednesday that they did find clues about the liver disease that is widely believed to have killed the German composer. Beethoven's genome showed that he had a high risk for liver disease and was infected with the liver-damaging hepatitis B. The researchers concluded that those factors, along with his drinking, likely contributed to his death nearly 200 years ago.

Milwaukee police say a 15-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with a shooting that killed another boy of the same age and left five young women injured. News reports Wednesday didn't say whether any charges have been filed against the arrested teen. Police say the shooting occurred about 11:30 p.m. Monday on the city’s north side. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the slain boy as Davion Patterson. Police say five women, ages 18, 19, 21, and two 22-year-olds, were taken to a hospital for treatment of nonfatal injuries.

The Federal Reserve extended its year-long fight against high inflation by raising its key interest rate by a quarter-point despite concerns that higher borrowing rates could worsen the turmoil that has gripped the banking system. Fed Chair Jerome Powell sought to reassure Americans that it is safe to leave money in their banks, two weeks after a rush of depositors pulled funds from Silicon Valley Bank, which collapsed in the second-biggest bank failure in U.S. history. Signature Bank fell soon afterward. “We have the tools to protect depositors when there’s a threat of serious harm to the economy or to the financial system,” Powell said. “Depositors should assume that their deposits are safe.”

Emergency workers say 25 people have been injured after a large ship in a dry dock in Scotland tipped over. Police and emergency services were called to the Imperial Dock in Edinburgh on Wednesday following reports that a ship had become dislodged from its holding. The Scottish Ambulance Service said 15 people were taken to the hospital, while 10 others were treated at the scene. The 76-meter (250-feet) ship, named the Petrel, is a research vessel previously bought and outfitted by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. Photos from the scene showed the ship leaning to the side at a 45-degree angle.

New research finds that drinking caffeinated coffee did not significantly affect one kind of heart rhythm that results in extra beats. But it did signal a slight increase in another type of heart hiccup in people who drank more than one cup of coffee per day. And it found that people tend to walk more and sleep less on the days they drank coffee. The volunteers in the study published Wednesday were younger and very healthy, so the results don’t necessarily apply to the general population, but are in line with previous research that finds coffee is safe.

Manhattan prosecutors have postponed a scheduled grand jury session in the investigation into Donald Trump over hush money payments during his 2016 presidential campaign. That's according to four people familiar with the matter who insisted on anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. Three people said the grand jury was told to be on standby for Thursday. The reason for the Wednesday postponement wasn't clear, but one person said it wasn't security-related. The postponement indicates a vote on whether or not to indict Trump might be at least temporarily pushed back. The grand jury may hear from yet another witness, according to a person familiar with proceedings.

U.S. cases of a dangerous fungus tripled over just three years, and more than half of states have now reported it. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wrote about the infections. They say the COVID-19 pandemic is likely part of the reason for the spread. Hospital workers were strained by coronavirus patients, and that likely shifted their focus away from disinfecting some other kinds of germs. The fungus is called Candida auris. It's a form of yeast that is usually not harmful to healthy people but can be a deadly risk to fragile hospital and nursing home patients. Some strains are so-called superbugs that are resistant to antibiotic drugs.

A lawyer says a 15-year-old arrested in a fatal shooting outside a Dallas-area high school will remain in custody. The shooting Monday on a high school campus in the suburb of Arlington left one student dead and another injured. The early-morning gunfire prompted officials at Lamar High School to lock the building down for hours, although police said they arrested a student on a capital murder charge within minutes. A lawyer for the boy accused of the shooting says a judge on Tuesday found there was probable cause for the teen’s arrest and ordered he remain at a juvenile detention facility.

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake has rattled much of Pakistan and Afghanistan, sending panicked residents fleeing from their homes and offices. At least 11 people died and dozens were injured in northwest Pakistan from Tuesday's quake, which was centered in Afghanistan and also felt in bordering Tajikistan. The tremors sent many people fleeing their homes and offices in Pakistan’s capital of Islamabad, some reciting verses from the Quran, Islam’s holy book. The scene was repeated in Kabul and other parts of Afghanistan. The U.S. Geological Survey said the epicenter was in Afghanistan’s mountainous Hindukush region, bordering Pakistan and Tajikistan. It struck more than 100 miles below the Earth's surface, causing it to be widely felt.

Tens of thousands of workers in the Los Angeles Unified School District are walking off the job over stalled contract talks. They’re being joined Tuesday in solidarity by teachers for a planned three-day strike that’s shutting down the nation’s second-largest school system. Demonstrations began at a bus yard and are planned at schools across the city by members of Local 99 of the Service Employees International Union, which represents about 30,000 teachers’ aides, special education assistants, bus drivers, custodians, cafeteria workers and other support staff. They are demanding better wages and increased staffing. Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho says the union has refused to negotiate.

An independent review says London police have lost the confidence of the public because of deep-seated racism, misogyny and homophobia. The report released Tuesday was commissioned after a young woman was raped and killed by a serving officer. The report says the Metropolitan Police Service, ust “change itself” or risk being broken up. The Metropolitan Police has more than 34,000 officers and is Britain’s biggest police force. The findings ratchet up the pressure for a major overhaul of the forcee after a series of scandals involving its treatment of women and minorities.

Former U.S. Rep. John Jenrette, who was convicted in the Abscam bribery scandal in the late 1970s, has died at age 86. An obituary from a funeral home in South Carolina indicates he died Friday. Jenrette served three terms as a Democrat in the U.S. House. His crime and his wife's claim that they had sex on the U.S. Capitol steps received the most attention. But Jenrette also was known for securing federal help for his mostly rural district. That includes aid to tobacco and other types of farmers and a tall new bridge in Georgetown that allowed ships to pass more easily.

A federal judge has rejected former President Donald Trump's effort to keep key evidence out of his civil rape trial next month. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan in Manhattan ruled Monday that misogynistic remarks Trump made about women in 2005 when he apparently didn't realize he was being recorded can be played for a jury that will hear quarter-century-old rape allegations made by a former magazine columnist. A trial resulting from E. Jean Carroll's lawsuit is scheduled for April 25. Carroll says she was raped by Trump in the mid-1990s in a Manhattan department store dressing room. Trump says it never happened.

A relentless winter at Lake Tahoe has now etched its way into the history books as the Sierra's second-snowiest on record. No one really knows how much snow fell on the infamous Donner Party when the pioneers were trapped atop the Sierra for months and dozens died in the winter of 1846-47. But 56.4 feet has now fallen this season at the Central Sierra Snow Lab at Soda Springs, California. That tops the 56 feet in 1982-83. The biggest winter in its 77 years of official record-keeping was nearly 68 feet in 1951-52 when more than 200 passengers on a luxury train were stranded for three days near Donner Pass.

Police says a student opened fire at a Dallas-area school Monday morning, killing one student and injuring another before being arrested on a capital murder charge. Officials say the shooting began on a high school campus in the suburb of Arlington around 6:55 a.m., before many students arrived for the first day back to classes after the spring break. Arlington police Chief Al Jones says a male student who was shot died at a hospital and a female student was receiving medical care after being “grazed” by shrapnel, causing injures that aren’t life threatening. He said another male student was arrested at the scene.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has welcomed Chinese leader Xi Jinping to the Kremlin, sending a message to Western leaders allied with Ukraine that their efforts to isolate Moscow have fallen short. Putin welcomed China’s plan for what he called “settlement of the acute crisis in Ukraine.” Xi's visit shows off Beijing’s new diplomatic swagger and gives a welcome political lift to Putin. The two major powers have described Xi’s trip as part of efforts to further deepen their “no-limits friendship.” China looks to Russia as a source of oil and gas and as a partner in opposing what both see as American domination of global affairs.

Wyoming has become the 19th state to ban transgender athletes from playing on girls' or women's sports teams after the Republican governor opted not to veto the legislation. Gov. Mark Gordon allowed the bill to become law without his signature Friday. He says he supports and agrees with the overall goal of fairness in competitive female sports. But he also called the ban “draconian” and “discriminatory without attention to individual circumstances or mitigating factors.” The law is among dozens of Republican proposals pushing back against transgender rights in statehouses across the U.S. and is likely to attract litigation.

Miami Beach officials imposed a curfew beginning Sunday night during spring break after two fatal shootings and rowdy, chaotic crowds that police have had difficulty controlling. The city said in a news release the curfew would be from 11:59 p.m. Sunday until 6 a.m. Monday, with an additional curfew likely to be put in place Thursday through next Monday, March 27. The curfew mainly affects South Beach, the most popular party location for spring breakers. The release said the two separate shootings Friday night and early Sunday that left two people dead and “excessively large and unruly crowds” led to the decision. The city commission plans a meeting Monday to discuss potential further restrictions next week.

North Korea has launched a short-range ballistic missile toward the sea as it ramps up testing activities in response to ongoing U.S.-South Korean military drills. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff says the missile launched Sunday morning from the North’s northwestern region flew across the country before it landed in the waters off its east coast. The launch was the North’s third round of weapons tests since the U.S. and South Korean militaries began joint military drills last week. The North views such drills as an invasion rehearsal. The chief nuclear envoys from South Korea, Japan and the U.S. condemned the launch as a provocation that threatens peace on the Korean Peninsula and in the region.

Millions of fish have washed up dead in southeastern Australia in a die-off that authorities and scientists say is caused by depleted oxygen levels in the river after recent floods and hot weather. Residents of the Outback town of Menindee in New South Wales state complained of a terrible smell from the dead fish. The Department of Primary Industries says the fish deaths were likely caused by low oxygen levels as floods recede, a situation made worse by fish needing more oxygen because of the warmer weather. Police have established an emergency operations centre in Menindee to coordinate a massive cleanup this week. State Emergency Operations Controller Peter Thurtell says the immediate focus was to provide a clean water supply to residents.

The Kremlin says that Russian President Vladimir Putin has visited the occupied port city of Mariupol, his first trip to Ukrainian territory that Moscow illegally annexed in September. Mariupol became a worldwide symbol of Ukrainian resistance after its outgunned and outmanned forces held out in a steel mill there for nearly three months before Moscow finally took control of it in May. Putin traveled to Mariupol late Saturday after visiting nearby Crimea to mark the ninth anniversary of the Black Sea peninsula’s annexation from Ukraine. The visit was a show of defiance by Putin two days after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest on war crimes charges.

Gloria Dea, touted as the first magician to perform on what became the Las Vegas Strip in the early 1940s, has died. She was 100. One of Dea's caretakers says she died Saturday at her Las Vegas residence. A memorial is being planned. Dea also appeared in several movies in the 1940s and ’50s, including “King of the Congo," starring Buster Crabbe, in 1952. Dea was 19 when she performed at El Rancho Vegas on May 14, 1941. The Las Vegas Review-Journal says Dea's show at the Roundup Room is the first recorded appearance by a magician in Las Vegas. After appearing in some moves in the mid-1940s and 1950s, Dea moved from California to Las Vegas in 1980.

The state of California and a generic drug manufacturer have entered a 10-year partnership to produce affordable, state-branded insulin that they hope will rival longtime producers and push down prices. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom says the intent is to disrupt the insulin marketplace, where prices have steadily climbed in recent decades. The product is not expected on store shelves until next year. It is difficult to predict what effect it would have on a market already shaken by change. Insulin makers have recently promised steep price cuts, as pressure builds on drugmakers and insurers to slash the cost of the drug used by millions of Americans.

The government’s response to the failure of two large banks has already involved hundreds of billions of dollars. So will ordinary Americans end up paying for it, one way or another? And what will the price tag be? It could be months before the answers are fully known. The Biden administration said it will guarantee uninsured deposits at both banks. The Federal Reserve announced a new lending program for all banks that need to borrow money to pay for withdrawals. The goal is to prevent a broadening panic in which customers rush to pull out so much money that even healthy banks buckle.

China is appealing to other governments to treat its companies fairly after Britain and New Zealand joined the United States in restricting use of TikTok due to fears the Chinese-owned short video service might be a security risk. Governments are worried TikTok’s owner, ByteDance, might give browsing history or other data about users to China’s government or promote propaganda and disinformation. The Chinese foreign ministry has appealed for a “non-discriminatory environment." New Zealand's government said Friday that legislators and employees in its Parliament will be prohibited from having TikTok’s app on phones. Britain announced a ban on TikTok on all government phones. U.S. federal agencies have been ordered to remove TikTok from government-issued mobile devices.

As America’s schools confront dramatic learning setbacks caused by the pandemic, experts have held up intensive tutoring as the single best antidote. Yet even as schools wield billions of dollars in federal COVID relief, a small fraction of students have received school tutoring, according to a survey of the nation’s largest districts by the nonprofit news organization Chalkbeat and The Associated Press. In eight of 12 school systems that provided data, less than 10% of students received any type of tutoring this fall. Some parents said they didn’t know tutoring was available, and some school systems have struggled to hire tutors.

Crews rushed to repair a levee break on a storm-swollen river in California’s central coast as yet another atmospheric river arrived, with the potential to further inundate the state’s swamped farmland and agricultural communities. Officials say the length of the levee rupture on the Pajaro River grew to 400 feet Monday, complicating efforts to plug the breach. More than 8,500 people were evacuated when the levee failed late Friday. It flooded farmland and agricultural communities on the central coast, about 70 miles south of San Francisco. Monterey County officials also warn that the Salinas River could cause significant flooding of roadways and agricultural land, cutting off the Monterey Peninsula.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has been released from the hospital after treatment for a concussion and will continue to recover in an inpatient rehabilitation facility. McConnell’s office says his doctors discovered over the weekend that he had also suffered a “minor rib fracture” after he tripped and fell at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington last Wednesday evening. The Senate returns to Washington Tuesday evening after the weekend off and will be in session for the rest of March.

Police say two men caught shoplifting at a grocery store in Georgia had an estimated $26,000 worth of baby formula in their car. Police in Cartersville say the men walked out of a Publix store north of Atlanta with backpacks filled with cans of formula. Cartersville police Lt. Greg Sparacio says officers searching their car found 662 more cans of formula inside. The men were jailed in Bartow County on charges of shoplifting, felony theft by receiving and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. They had a 16-year-old girl with them when they were arrested Thursday. Sparacio said authorities in other north Georgia cities and in Tennessee are working to determine whether the same suspects committed other formula thefts.

The Pentagon intends to load up on advanced missiles, space defense and modern jets in its largest defense request in decades in order to meet the threat it perceives from China. The Defense Department's chief financial officer says the spending path would have the military's annual budget cross the $1 trillion threshold in just a matter of years. The administration’s request for the 2024 budget year is $842 billion. With just a normal rate of growth for inflation, military spending would cross the trillion dollar-mark in just a few years, if Congress approves the request.

Donald Trump’s former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen has testified before a Manhattan grand jury investigating hush money payments he arranged and made on the former president’s behalf. Cohen arrived at the courthouse accompanied by his lawyer shortly in advance of his closed-door testimony. He spent about three hours inside answering questions. His closed-door appearance before the grand jury comes as the Manhattan district attorney’s office closes in on a decision on whether to seek charges against Trump. The former president denies having affairs with the women. Trump's lawyer has characterized the payments as extortion.