20,000 activists petition Kenya to reject US plastics export deal
Despite publicly retreating on the push to force Kenya and by extension to allow trade plastics and petrochemical products, American Chemistry Council (ACC) is said to be quietly lobbying Washington to force concessions for exports during ongoing bilateral trade agreement negotiations between the two countries. The push by ACC has...
Biden positions US to retake lead role in climate agenda as he prepares for office
When Joe Biden won the US presidency earlier this month, it seemed like a huge opportunity to restore the country’s position as a leader in the fight against climate change. But whether he’ll be able to deliver on his climate agenda – the most aggressive ever put forth by a...
Senate GOP accepts Biden’s win, seals Trump’s November 3 loss
Senate Republicans are finally starting to recognise Joe Biden as the next president of the United States — even if they waited until the very last minute. When asked on Monday afternoon whether Biden was the president-elect, some GOP senators paused and asked how far along the Electoral College count...
Scientist: It will be a while before engineers identify source of noise in owl aviation
Forget about the superstition about bad omens associated owls. Science is gradually changing the perception and now beyond the ugly looks of owls, the birds are attracting the interest of researchers keen on identifying the most important source of noise in owl aviation. Research suggests that owl wings have three...
How stealthy owls inspired the design of silent flights
Every owl fancier has a story of the first time they heard an owl – or, rather, did not hear one. It is unforgettable to see an enormous bird, whose wingspan can reach more than six feet, slipping through the air without even a whisper. Justin Jaworski’s first close encounter...
Au revoir Nzayadio, the Cavacha artist who breathed life into sedate rhumba
When he arrived at Orchestra Lipua Lipua, the band was in a flux – nay, anarchy – with musicians leaving and others joining the band. However, Paul Nzaya Nzayadio who had just returned to Kinshasa from a trip to Abidjan, Ivory Coast, where he had accompanied Madilu System, did not...
Curtains come down on the life of Charley Pride, country music’s first Black superstar
Charley Pride, a son of sharecroppers who rose to become country music’s first Black superstar on the strength of hits including “Kiss an Angel Good Mornin’” and “Is Anybody Goin’ to San Antone,” died on Saturday in hospice care in Dallas. He was 86. Jeremy Westby, a publicist for Mr...
Australia terminates coronavirus vaccine trails after ‘false positives’
A billion-dollar deal for the Morrison government to buy more than 50 million doses of the University of Queensland’s potential coronavirus vaccine has been abruptly terminated after several trial participants returned false positive HIV test results. UQ, working in partnership with Australian global biotech company CSL will abandon its current...
12 multilateral lenders team up with IMF to finance Africa’s SDGs
Twelve multilateral development banks (MDBs) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have teamed up to pool resources to finance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Africa. Africa’s leading financier, the African Development Bank, announced in Ivory Coast capital, Abidjan, on Thursday this week that it had joined hands...
Children’s immune systems can repulse coronavirus
Young children account for only a small percentage of Covid-19 infections – a trend that has puzzled scientists. Now, a growing body of evidence suggests why – kids’ immune systems seem better equipped to eliminate SARS-CoV-2 than are adults’. “Children are very much adapted to respond – and very well...
