nearly three million people in texas are without power in sub zero temperatures, as a huge storm sweeps across the south and east of the united states. more than 20 people have died and thousands of homes have been left with no water because of frozen or burst pipes. authorities in the united states have charged three north koreans with conspiring to steal more than $1 billion in cash and crypto—currency from banks, and businesses, worldwide. the state department said pyongyang's cyber activities posed a significant threat to the us, and its allies around the world. the queen's husband, the duke of edinburgh has been admitted to hospital after feeling unwell for a few days. buckingham palace says it's just a precaution, and it's not covid related. the 99—year—old is expected to remain under medical care for a few days.

almost a year after our lives changed dramatically, our business correspondent has been talking to three people about their lockdown experiences and what may lie ahead. for so many in the pandemic, where we live has become where we work. i wish to have more flexibility to work from home, but i didn't wish it initially. she to work from home, but i didn't wish it initially.— wish it initially. she is a preject _ wish it initially. she is a project manager - wish it initially. she is a project manager for - wish it initially. she is a project manager for a l wish it initially. she is a - project manager for a heating business, working until 10:30pm to keep up. business, working until10:30pm to keep unm— business, working until10:30pm to keep pp— to keep up. i've been quite emotional— to keep up. i've been quite emotional today, - to keep up. i've been quite emotional today, i've - to keep up. i've been quite emotionaltoday, i've had i to keep up. i've been quite| emotionaltoday, i've had a emotional today, i've had a cry. it's just really

overwhelming, balancing everything. overwhelming, balancing everything-— overwhelming, balancing eve hina. ., everything. counting the days until the kids _ everything. counting the days until the kids are _ everything. counting the days until the kids are back - everything. counting the days until the kids are back in - until the kids are back in school. would you like to go back to the office five days a week with mac no. i like the flexibility of _ week with mac no. i like the flexibility of being _ week with mac no. i like the flexibility of being able - flexibility of being able to choose, you know, when i can work from home or when they can be in the office. my industry didn't necessarily promote home working flexible working in the way we are doing now so why have there will be some sort of change. have there will be some sort of chane. ,, , ., ., , change. she is not the only one. change. she is not the only one- right _ change. she is not the only one. right now, _ change. she is not the only one. right now, more - change. she is not the only one. right now, more thanj change. she is not the only . one. right now, more than 296 change. she is not the only - one. right now, more than 296 of one. right now, more than 2% of working adults are thought to be doing theirjobs from home. it's incredible, really, and shows what can be done. for many, this pandemic is likely to change the way we work for good. millions of workers, though, have stayed in their work base throughout. pi, though, have stayed in their work base throughout. a big lace of work base throughout. a big place of service _ work base throughout. a big place of service starts - work base throughout. a big place of service starts with l work base throughout. a bigj place of service starts with a smile, that's impossible to do with a mask on.— smile, that's impossible to do with a mask on. stephen manages the supermarket _ with a mask on. stephen manages the supermarket in _ with a mask on. stephen manages the supermarket in livingston. - the supermarket in livingston. the role of a store manager is

completely different. in fact i've also had to be a psychologist, i've also had to be a counsellor, i've had to be a health and safety expert, a crowd manager, there's many, many different strings to the bow that i've had to pick up very, very quickly.- bow that i've had to pick up very, very quickly. have you felt you've _ very, very quickly. have you felt you've been _ very, very quickly. have you felt you've been on - very, very quickly. have you felt you've been on the - felt you've been on the frontline?_ felt you've been on the frontline? definitely. an actual fact, _ frontline? definitely. an actual fact, i _ frontline? definitely. an actual fact, i feel - frontline? definitely. an actual fact, i feel a - frontline? definitely. an actual fact, i feel a of. frontline? definitely. an - actual fact, i feel a of pride. actualfact, ifeel a of pride. and in this pandemic, there have been plenty of workers forced to change jobs, like mark, a comedian who is now tailing walls and floors. are tailing walls and floors. are used to hate _ tailing walls and floors. are used to hate living - tailing walls and floors. site: used to hate living room flat now i love it. used to hate living room flat nowl love it.— used to hate living room flat now i love it. nowl love it. get it? when the venue is closed, _ nowl love it. get it? when the venue is closed, mark went - nowl love it. get it? when the venue is closed, mark went on | now i love it. get it? when the. venue is closed, mark went on a course to brush up his skills and is now doing good business. just needed some sort of income coming in. in a strange way i think might carry on doing a dual life. comedy works in the evenings but going out and doing tiling jobs, that's actually nice, it something different. actually nice, it something different-— different. when the dust eventually _ different. when the dust eventually settles, - different. when the dust| eventually settles, many different. when the dust i

eventually settles, many of different. when the dust - eventually settles, many of us will want to work in a different way than we did before this pandemic. time now for the travel show. coming up on this week's show — dubai's world expo plans. i've been told that when it's finished, it's gonna look incredible. the porter poet of cuba. the town that typewriters made. and what we all need right now — a little glimpse into our near future. it's golden time. golden time for me — i like the sound of that!

hello and welcome to the travel show, coming to you this week from tokyo. now, it's been a long winter of restrictions here and around the world, but now there's the prospect of vaccines and, with them, hope that life can slowly begin opening up again and returning to some kind of normal. at the travel show, we have been doing our best to carry on, bringing you inspiration from all over the world — a little bit of sunshine in an otherwise gloomy moment in history. of course, tokyo was supposed to host the 2020 olympics and paralympic games last year. we are all keeping our fingers crossed that it will go ahead in 2021. at the moment, that's in serious doubt. if it doesn't happen, the likelihood is that it will be cancelled completely.

and in that instance, the next big global event will be the postponed 2020 world expo in dubai. as it stands, it's still on. lucy has been finding out how the authorities there are planning to throw open the gates to ticketholders from all over the world against the background of the current global pandemic. ad: see a futuristic - festival filled with ideas, new and radical! be there to see the alliance of art, music, fashion and science! this, you can't afford to miss! expo 2020 — over 190 countries coming together here in dubai in a vast new purpose—built exhibition space the size of a small city. a six—month global event showcasing advances in technology, sustainability and opportunity, and the whole thing was due to open in october last year. but thanks to the covid pandemic, nine months ago, the decision was made to postpone the opening of expo 2020 until october this year, a full year on from the original date.

well, a lot of the countries that are participating in the expo were impacted quite severely by covid—i9, and so it really was the sort of collective decision, under the guidance of the bureau of international exhibitions — which is our governing body — to postpone. but what is also given us is time — this extra time that we've got is to work with the countries on issues and subjects and sort of the programme they want to bring to the expo that is relevant to a post—covid world. the united kingdom isjust one of over 190 nations exhibiting here, all hoping to showcase the very best of what their countries have to offer. ok, so i have arrived at the uk pavilion. as you can probably tell, still a work in progress, it's still under construction and if i'm being honest, it's looking a tad unimpressive at the moment. but i have been told that when it is finished, it's gonna look incredible. so let's go and meet

the man in charge. so we've got a few more months to go, but we will be ready well in advance of expo and we will be looking really forward to welcoming everybody to the site. and what can people expect? what can people get excited about when it comes to the uk pavilion? so the uk pavilion is basically for us a hub to showcase the best that the uk has to offer. it's a really beautiful building but really what is equally as important is what goes inside it. so what we're gonna have is focusing on uk innovation and technology. and this is a really, really special building — it is based on stephen — one of the last pieces of work that stephen hawking did, which is about his breakthrough message, and the idea is if we could communicate with another species in outer space what would we, as this planet, sent across? and the building is a very interactive one and all the guests that come across pull out their smartphone and are able to donate a word. and we built this artificial intelligence system in the background, and the same word then goes into a much larger poem that's being written by that a! system and that cone, the poem will be displayed there for everybody to see. we want to bring the world together to look at the global

challenges that we all face — whether it is dealing with pandemics, or whether it's about climate change and sustainability. this provides a great opportunity for us to be able to do that. there is no doubt that a lot is riding on the expo — not only in terms of international prestige for dubai as it celebrates its 50th anniversary, but also financially. it was originally forecast up to 25 million people would visit the expo, with the majority coming from abroad, leading to thousands of new hotel rooms being built. but filling them will now be reliant on how many of us are able — and happy — to travel again towards the end of the year. currently, the uae is on the uk's banned list for travellers because of a recent increase in covid cases here. tickets for this year's expo haven't gone on sale yet but with the future of the tokyo 0lympics still hanging in the balance, nadia says that not only could expo be the first big—scale global event to go ahead in 2021, but also

that its message will now be even more relevant. under the sort of banner of connecting minds, creating the future, we've realised that our three themes of sustainability, mobility, and opportunity are even more relevant today than they were even pre—covid. and so, you know, the experiences that the visitors will go through when they come, particularly in our thematic pavilions, really resonate with the moment — a moment in time in a post—covid world. lucy in dubai. and a glimpse of things to come, once we can start moving again. next, to a totally different part of the world. horn beeps. soft latin music played on guitar.

luis has written thousands of poems about different cities around the world, which he describes as if he has only just seen them. and to this day, he has never left cuba. luis dropped out of school in 1958 and studied maps.

but due to the us embargo against cuba, they quickly became out of date. but he managed to stay in touch with world events by chatting to tourists while working as a porter at the trinidad bus station.

still to come on the travel show — the long legacy of italy's top typewriter tycoon. and i meet the robot that can see the future, apparently.

i find that a bit ominous, but i guess the takeaway is don't be greedy! next this week, we are in italy, and here is a name that might ring some bells with literary types. it is 120 years since adriano 0livetti's typewriter company transformed the little town of ivrea, near turin, into a pulsing industrial hub. that was a long time ago, of course, but the town's tourism chiefs are now looking to that golden age as a source of new inspiration. before the pandemic, we took our cameras to check it out.

anti—vax archival footage: this little town has become a kind - of industrial paradise, a place where the employers and the employed are believed to enjoy the best of all possible worlds. in these foothills of piedmont, a worker who has entered camillo's kingdom has all but entered the kingdom of heaven. this is camillo 0livetti's empire today — an empire which has distributed over most of the world and employs over 50,000 people. the 20 men here at ivrea have become 14,000. they are the largest typewriter manufacturers in the world and yet, typewriters are only one quarter of their business.

since the beginning, camillo and his son adriano, who followed him as head of the company, have given great thought to the human side of their operation. even from the first days, 0livetti and his blacksmith partner used to set an hour aside each day for the worker who had family or money or health problems. they always had time for the employee who wanted a job for his wife or son, or needed a loan to buy a home orfurniture.

after one year of restrictions and lockdowns, we are all anxious to know what is going to happen in our lives and our travels in the near future. well, south korea may provide some answers. last year, i went to its capital city seoul to find out about a very ancient and booming tradition of fortune—telling. a stroll on one of seoul's main streets gives a clue about the importance of fortune—telling in south korea. dozens of cafes offer a look into the future through tarot cards, palm and face reading, and saju, an ancient form of divination which uses the cosmic energy of your time and date of birth to predict your luck. you were born in summertime, 0k. please be patient.

but after next year could be much better, from 2022 to here, 2029. it's a golden time. golden time for me — i like the sound of that. yes, it's very nice. so do you get lots of young people coming in? yes, mostly we have young customers. young people come for — about relationships, they want to know boyfriends, what he thinks, what they think, and about their career. because saju is not some energy, it decides your destiny. wow. thank you so much. no audio translation available. saju has become a form of entertainment for koreans but the pressure of modern lives and competition for education and jobs also

compel many koreans to seek reassurance in traditional clairvoyance. most of them take it with a pinch of salt. was it a good reading? and was it a good match? are you still with your boyfriend?

thank you. there are an estimated 300,000 fortune tellers in south korea and it's a booming business, worth almost us$4 billion — no wonder many people are keen to learn its secrets!

metal, water, wood, fire and earth are the five elements that students need to learn about. looking at the board, it is not that straightforward. how long do you have to study to become a saju professional? as is often the case in south korea, tradition has blended with technology. the high—tech industry was quick to grasp the appeal

of fortune—telling and dozens of apps now offer instant predictions. this app here has been downloaded 10 million times and there is even an english version. ok, so let's see what my fortune is today. oh, dear. it does not look good! "you need to learn how to fight temptations. temptations are all around you." well, that doesn't sound good! local artists also take inspiration from the traditional culture of fortune—telling. this buddha robot uses artificial intelligence to dispense personalised prophecy. it is slightly disconcerting, being this close to the robot and when i move my head, she also moves her head. hello! the artificial intelligence recognises people's faces

and they analyse age, gender and their feeling. and based on the daily information, it makes a sentence that it says to the person in front. no audio translation available. so she just said "where there is greed, there is fear, so if you are not greedy, you have nothing to fear" — i find that a bit ominous! but i guess the takeaway is don't be greedy! so for now, fortune tellers in south korea have a bright future to look forward to — if only their crystal balls could predict when we will all be able to travel the world again. great memories from my trip to south korea there,

before any of us had ever heard of coronavirus. well, that's it for this week but coming up next time — lucy is back with some of our favourite trips around south asia, including the time henry got stuck up a tree in kerala. i think i'm going to rip my pants! this is tough! and a white—knuckle ride to remember down pakistan's hunza river. this feels quite serious now. i have not seen ed for almost 2.5 hours. and don't forget you can catch more of our recent shows on the bbc iplayer, and we are on social media too in all of the usual places. but for now, let's cross our fingers and hope some better news in the coming months. see you soon. bye—bye.

hello. quite a lot of wind and rain in the forecast, but some sunshine too. at least it is very mild out there. thursday is going to be quite a mixed bag, so we might have a spell of very heavy rain, but there's also some sunshine on the way. you can see the weather fronts gathering out towards the southwest. they are going to be moving across the uk. there's another one deep out in the atlantic. that's on the way for friday, and that will bring more heavy rain and strong winds. so here is the first bout of wet and windy weather through the early hours. the weather front crossing england and wales, also some heavy rain there wrapping around the centre of the low—pressure, close to northern ireland and scotland. obviously, very mild — between 5—9 celsius across the uk overnight. that weather front will be moving

into western parts of the uk through thursday morning. it will be accompanied by some very gusty winds across cornwall, devon, parts of wales as well. this is where it will be around eight o'clock in the morning just about moving through bristol, parts of the midlands, the northwest of england as well, into parts of western scotland. this is where the centre of the low is. winds actually not too strong in scotland. they're slightly stronger towards the south here. and then the rain will reach the east coast by the time we get to around lunchtime, and then after that, actually, the skies clear, and it's going to be a bright day but a blustery one. gusts of wind in excess of 40, maybe approaching 50 mph in places, and also plenty of showers out towards the west. so suffice to say it is going to be a mixed bag on thursday. 9—10 celsius — it's going to feel chilly in the gusts of wind. here's thursday night, into friday. that next area of low pressure heading our way. more weather fronts. a lot of isobars here, so that means some strong winds. in fact, a prolonged spell of strong winds out towards the west.

gales around these coasts here — 50 mph at least, maybe even 60 in places. breezy inland, too. the best of the weather, i think, on friday, will be towards the east, say, hull, norwich, london as well. but once the rain sets in and out towards the west, it could last well into the weekend. now, we were promising some milder weather. it is heading our way. saturday and through sunday, milder air streaming straight out of the canaries. so that does mean that temperatures come sunday could get up to around 16 or 17 celsius across the southeast.

welcome to bbc news, i'm mike embley. our top stories: nato debates the future of troops in afghanistan, after nearly 20 years of bitter conflict. are taliban willing to piece? if not, then taliban should know that the international community will remain. a huge storm sweeping across the us state of texas has killed at least 21 people and left millions without power. the united states charges three north korean computer programmers of conspiring to steal more than $1 billion in a global hacking spree. buckingham palace says the duke of edinburgh, who's 99, is in hospital, as a precaution, afterfeeling unwell. and, facebook blocks users in australia from sharing or viewing news content, in a dispute over planned

social media laws.