The compact disc or CD is turning 40 years old in the U.S. this year. The first commercial CD was released in Japan in October of 1982, but they didn't make their way to the United States until March 1983. The CD served as an alternative to larger vinyl records and bulkier cassette tapes. When the first CD came out, it could hold up to 74 minutes of music, and it was only 4.5 inches in diameter. It would eventually overtake cassette sales by the late 1980s.
A four-day truce in the Israel-Hamas war has taken effect, setting the stage for the exchange of dozens of hostages held by militants in Gaza for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
While Black Friday may no longer look like the crowd-filled, in-person mayhem that it was just decades ago, the holiday sales event is still slated to attract millions of consumers.
A vehicle exploded at a checkpoint on the American side of a U.S.-Canada bridge in Niagara Falls Wednesday, prompting the closing of four border crossings in the area, authorities said.
