Squeaky clean: Friendly robots spruce up S’pore

Singapore: Hundreds of “friendly” robots that speak multiple languages and sing are being rolled out in Singapore to help clean hotels, shopping malls and government buildings. Four of the robots, which have oval-shaped heads with lights for eyes, have already got down to work and it is hoped that 300 will be put into service by March. They scrub, mop, vacuum and sweep autonomously, and can entertain by rapping in English. The robots speak English, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil, Japanese and “Singlish”, a local patois that mixes English with words from the myriad local tongues. AFP

Sexual assault case against Kevin Spacey dropped

Boston: A criminal case against Hollywood star Kevin Spacey, who was accused of groping an 18-year-old man at a Massachusetts bar in 2016, has been dropped by the prosecutors in Massachusetts. Indecent assault and battery charges were dropped on Wednesday after the accuser refused to testify about a missing phone, which the defence said could prove the actor’s innocence. Several sexual misconduct accusations have been made against him but this was the only one to result in a criminal case. The accuser was ordered to take to the stand this month after he said he lost the phone he had used on the night of the alleged assault. IANS