Scientists in Ukraine warn of sinking, heaving ground that portends disaster ‘deeper and more dangerous than Chernobyl’
In the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, the ground has been behaving strangely. In some places, it is sinking; elsewhere it “heaves” – bulging upward, according to satellite data released this week. Before it became a conflict zone, the Donbas has long been Ukraine’s coal country, and the earth is...
Russian invasion of Ukraine viewed as start of long-term plan to shift balance of power from America
Russia’s audacious military assault on Ukraine is the first major clash marking a new order in international politics, with three major powers jostling for position in ways that threaten America’s primacy. The challenges are different from those the US and its network of alliances faced in the Cold War. Russia...
President Ndayishimiye’s new reforms beginning fast-track removal of Burundi from international list of pariah states
Since his inauguration in 2020, President Évariste Ndayishimiye has introduced a raft of foreign and domestic policy reforms to salvage Burundi’s international reputation and restore economic partnerships. His efforts seem to be paying off, with the European Union (EU) announcing on February 8 that it will be lifting the sanctions...
In just two decades, climate change will get worse and make the world sicker, hungrier, poorer and gloomier – report
Deadly with extreme weather now, climate change is about to get so much worse. It is likely going to make the world sicker, hungrier, poorer, gloomier and way more dangerous in the next 18 years with an “unavoidable” increase in risks, a new United Nations science report says. The UN...
Besides military attacks, Russia is also waging ferocious cyberattacks that ramp up the chaos and destruction in Ukraine
Vladimir Putin launched an illegal, aggressive attack on Ukraine last week that has already killed dozens of soldiers and sent panic rippling through the world. Russian forces are air-striking cities all over Ukraine, with countless civilians in the firing line, as people flee the capital in Kyiv. Cyberattacks have also...
Fashion and Islam: How Nigerian girls ‘mediate’ religion and blossoming beauty industry amid Boko Haram ravages
What’s in anyone’s wardrobe is inherently political. That’s especially true in Nigeria’s northeast, a region at the centre of a more-than-decade-long jihadist conflict where how a woman dresses comes under particular scrutiny. Most Muslim women in the main city of Maiduguri, the birthplace of Boko Haram, believe their religion calls...
Out of gas: Germany between a rock and hard place as an energy crisis looms after Russia went to war with Ukraine
Vladimir Putin’s aggression in Ukraine triggers a search for other natural-gas supplies, but it could take years for Berlin to wean itself off Russian imports. Germany’s decision to halt its Nord Stream 2 natural-gas pipeline to Russia, prompted by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recognition of two breakaway regions in eastern...
Africa’s oldest DNA helping address science’s racial bias as new findings place the continent further at the heart of evolution
Human history is written in DNA. Where our ancestors lived and who they loved – the story is right there if we can see into their genes. The trouble is that the ravages of climate and time degrade DNA, making its secrets harder and harder to detect. Gradually, however, scientists...
Covid mutation: New Omicron sub-variant proves deadly to the unvaccinated, double-vaccinated and boosted individuals
Covid-19 researchers are rushing to understand why a relative of the main Omicron variant is displacing its sibling in countries around the world. The variant, known as BA.2, has spread rapidly in countries including Denmark, the Philippines and South Africa in the past few weeks. It follows the initial spread...
Birds ‘talk’ but is theirs a language? In their cheeps, trills and tweets scientists find parallels with human speech
In our quest to find what makes humans unique, we often compare ourselves with our closest relatives: the great apes. But when it comes to understanding the quintessentially human capacity for language, scientists are finding that the most tantalising clues lay farther afield. An explosion of research is finding that...
