Euphoric reopening of countries was ill-timed as it occurred at the Delta variant was beginning to run riot
Your chance of being crushed in bed tonight by a falling satellite is minuscule. It is also non-zero. Ronald Howard, a Stanford engineering professor and founder of a discipline called decision analysis, made a point of noting the latter, the risk of splat. Perhaps best known for studying questions of...
Sanctions on Afghanistan: ‘There should be no excuse for a repeat of errors from previous embargoes’
The international community is waiting to see what a Taliban-led government will mean for Afghanistan and its people. But one thing is certain: new sanctions are on the horizon, and they will be broad, hard-hitting, and long-lasting. They will be imposed when political incentives or economic levers fail to deliver...
European journalists to Polish government: Reporter should not be jailed for refusing to disclose sources
The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) today joined the partners of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) in calling on the District Prosecutor’s Office in the Polish city of Gdansk to drop its legal case against Gazeta Wyborcza reporter Katarzyna Włodkowska. In a statement issued on Monday, EFJ also wants...
‘Baba-qued’ and ‘Hustled’ Kenyans wait with bated breath to vote in close presidential poll in history
Raila Amolo Odinga, a veteran Kenyan political leader and one-time prime minister, has long cast himself as an anti-establishment firebrand, despite belonging to one of the country’s top political dynasties. But his decision to strike an alliance with his arch-rival, President Uhuru Kenyatta, and secure the ruling party’s backing as...
Report: 13.5 million people in Africa projected to fall into poverty by 2050 due to climate change
Up to 13.5 million people across Africa’s Sahel region could fall into poverty due to climate change-related shocks by 2050, according to a new World Bank report. Sahelian countries need $33.16 billion for climate adaptation by 2030, the Country Climate and Development Report for the G5 Sahel region, released September...
New study reveals marijuana smokers most at risk of developing lung disease or ‘short of breath’
A new study found that airway inflammation and emphysema are more common in cannabis smokers than cigarette smokers. Smoking is the most common cause of emphysema, a chronic lung condition resulting from air sacs becoming stretched and damaged. While many people smoke cigarettes, cannabis use has increased considerably, especially since...
Doctors now doubt accuracy of BMI as prime indicator of obesity and healthy living
In 1972, American physiologist Ancel Keys examined several height-weight indices and found that Quetelet’s was the best predictor of the thickness of body fat. He renamed it the body-mass index and proposed that it was a better indicator of healthy body size than were the height-weight tables commonly used at the time.
Everybody’s hiding their skeletons: A gloves-off debate on aid diversion, double standards
Shrinking government budgets and fear of a public backlash in big donor countries has heightened scrutiny on fraud and mismanagement among aid groups and donors. Recent cases of aid diversion – including in emergency responses in Somalia and Ethiopia – continue to hit the headlines. Aid groups expect donor budgets to be significantly tightened due to domestic politics and economic trends in the coming months, raising the stakes at a time when programmes are being slashed.
Revealed: Russia’s Storm-Z fighters is made up of drunkards derided as ‘meats’ deployed in Ukraine
Russian state-controlled media has reported that Storm-Z squads exist, that they took part in intense battles and some of their members received medals for bravery, but it has not disclosed how they are formed, or the losses they take.
Collective punishment: General sanctions are worsening humanitarian crisis in post-coup Niger
The World Food Programme (WFP) has estimated that 7.3 million people may be driven from moderate to severe food insecurity as a result of the latest post-coup restrictions, which hit as the country was in its traditional “lean season” between harvests.
