Why universities in the West must decolonise curricula to remove biases that impede Black students’ progress to PhD
Black students face barriers progressing to PhD programmes, and experience other career setbacks, because they are more likely to receive lower undergraduate degree classifications than their white peers, an analysis by a leading UK university has found. The study, based on exam and coursework data, and published in the journal...
Drone reforestation: Flying Forests plans to plant trees in East Africa and Panama
Like other companies involved in drone reforestation, DroneSeed is reluctant to say how many trees it has planted to date. The company would not disclose the names of customers but says it is working with three of the five largest timber companies in the US, as well as non-profit conservation...
As onslaught of climate change driven by wildfires deepens, companies adopt drone reforestation
Last year’s Castle Fire in California’s Sierra Nevada is estimated to have killed more than 10 per cent of the world’s giant sequoias, the tallest trees on earth. Sequoias can live through many fires over life spans that last thousands of years; their bark is fire-resistant and they rely on...
African countries face serious political unrest as rising food prices hit the roof – ISS Africa report
African Governments must act fast to ensure their people are fed and avoid conflict the continent cannot afford, Institute for Security Studies Africa (ISS Africa) reports. In its September report, ISS Africa observes that since the onset of Covid-19, global food prices have rocketed, putting pressure on the world’s most...
Studies: Bats’ virus tolerance is higher than humans’, hence the massive load of pathogens they traffic
When a host, whether bat or human, is infected with a disease-causing pathogen, the ensuing interaction is often described as a battle: The host’s immune system pulls out the big guns to fight and eradicate the invader. In immunology parlance, this is known as resistance; its end-game is destroying the...
Reworking democracy: Goal of ‘ranked-choice voting’ is to produce winners with a mix of the electorate
Ranked-choice voting (here called instant-runoff voting) can also be used for contests that decide several seats at once, such as races for city councils or school boards. The counting is more involved, but the goal is to produce a slate of winners that roughly matches the partisan makeup of the...
In ranked-choice voting candidates with lowest totals are ejected, votes reallocated to supporters’ second option
Ranked-choice voting, the option Americans are considering to heal divisions in the country, tries to produce winners who have majority support. If no one wins a majority of the vote outright, then the candidate with the lowest total is eliminated and their votes are reallocated to their supporters’ second choices....
Why President Biden’s original $20 billion request for historically Black universities is key to research
It’s a scandal: for decades, more than 400 colleges and universities in the United States that focus on educating students from under-represented communities, including Black, Hispanic and Indigenous Americans, have been underfunded, by both state and federal governments. Efforts are now underway to address some of these historical injustices. Courts...
Historically Black US colleges and universities ready to ramp up funding for scientific research
Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the United States are set to ramp up investments in scientific research and education following a wave of new grants and proceeds from legal settlements. Most of these institutions were created in the nineteenth century to serve students of African descent. They are...
Studies show sexually active British men would consider taking hormonal contraceptives
With reported side-effects of contraceptives ranging from irregular bleeding, breakouts, nausea, headaches and hair loss to mood swings, reduced sex drives, blood clots, anxiety and depression – to name a few – the family planning pill, while revolutionary, is still not perfect. Using it for nearly 15 years until Mary...
