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  Colombo (AFP) July 25, 2018 Sri Lanka announced Wednesday it would waive debts for 200,000 women unable to repay microfinance loans and cap lending rates after a number of borrowers in drought-hit areas killed themselves. Government spokesman Rajitha Senaratne said women in a dozen districts who had taken small loans from microfinance institutions would have their debts forgiven and interest paid off with immediate effect. Lending rates from microfinance institutions, some of which were charging up to 220 percent interest, ... read more |
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EU court extends GMO rules to new techniquesLuxembourg (AFP) July 25, 2018 Plants and animals created by new techniques of genetic modification should be treated as Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and follow European rules aimed at preventing damage to the environment and health, the EU's top court said on Wednesday. ... more 
China's persistent food and drug safety problemBeijing (AFP) July 24, 2018 Chinese authorities are scrambling to defuse public outrage over a safety scandal involving rabies vaccines, just one of a string of food and drug scares to hit the country in recent years. ... more  
Ancient farmers transformed Amazon and left an enduring legacy on the rainforestExeter UK (SPX) Jul 24, 2018 Ancient communities transformed the Amazon thousands of years ago, farming in a way which has had a lasting impact on the rainforest, a major new study shows. Farmers had a more profound effec ... more 
We can feed the world if we change our waysLancaster UK (SPX) Jul 24, 2018 Current crop yields could provide nutritious food for the projected 2050 global population, but only if we make radical changes to our dietary choices, a new study shows. Researchers from Lanc ... more |
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Philippines president says corruption scandal protests justified
Philippines commission to probe widening flood project scandal Magnitude 7.4 quake strikes off Russian Far East, tsunami warning lifted Magnitude 7.4 quake strikes off Russian Far East, tsunami warning issued S.Sudan flooding displaces 100,000 in matter of weeks: UN Afghan deputy PM visits earthquake hit area Death toll from Indonesia flooding rises to 23 Death toll from Indonesia flash floods rises to 19 Deadly floods inundate Indonesia's Bali and Flores islands Surveillance camera captures tornado in eastern Australia |
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| Previous Issues | Jul 25 | Jul 24 | Jul 23 | Jul 20 | Jul 19 |
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Environmental changes in the Mekong Delta spell trouble for farmersUrbana IL (SPX) Jul 24, 2018 The Mekong Delta is home to 15 million people, many of whom rely on the delta's rich soil and water resources for farming and fishing. But their livelihoods are being threatened by rising sea levels ... more 
Dying groundskeeper links Monsanto's Roundup to cancerSan Francisco (AFP) July 24, 2018 A California groundskeeper dying of cancer said Monday he would "never" have used Monsanto weed killer Roundup, had he known it could lead to his terminal illness. ... more 
Cameroon's anglophone crisis hits palm oil, cocoa productionLibreville (AFP) July 18, 2018 The crisis in anglophone Cameroon is damaging the Southwest Region's economy, with palm oil plantations closing and the cocoa trade tumbling, an NGO report said Wednesday. ... more  
Taiwan steps in after China turns off tourist taps to PalauTaipei (AFP) July 19, 2018 Taiwan has stepped in to help its ally Palau attract more tourists after an airline from the Micronesian nation said it was forced to shut under pressure from China. ... more 
Using 'shade balls' in reservoirs may use up more water than they saveLondon, UK (SPX) Jul 19, 2018 Preventing reservoir evaporation during droughts with floating balls may not help conserve water overall, due to the water needed to make the balls. During droughts, communities may rely on wa ... more |
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 Researchers engineer bacteria to create fertilizer out of thin air 
European heatwave brings drought, wildfiresLondon (AFP) July 20, 2018 Wildfires in the Arctic Circle, drought-stricken farmers and a spike in hospital treatment for sunburn: an unusually long heatwave this summer has northern Europe in its grip. ... more  |
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Archaeologists discover bread that predates agriculture by 4,000 yearsCopenhagen, Denmark (SPX) Jul 19, 2018 At an archaeological site in northeastern Jordan, researchers have discovered the charred remains of a flatbread baked by hunter-gatherers 14,400 years ago. It is the oldest direct evidence of bread ... more 
In India, swapping crops could save water and improve nutritionNew York NY (SPX) Jul 18, 2018 India will need to feed approximately 394 million more people by 2050, and that's going to be a significant challenge. Nutrient deficiencies are already widespread in India today - 30 percent or mor ... more 
Tainted water exhibition roves around Beijing after initial shutdownBeijing (AFP) July 14, 2018 At first glance, it may seem like just a black truck filled with bottles of water, but a closer look reveals a darker - or rather murkier - side to what's sloshing around inside. ... more 
Stormwater ponds not a major source of greenhouse gas emissionsDurham NC (SPX) Jul 16, 2018 Stormwater retention ponds, a ubiquitous feature in developed landscapes worldwide, are not a significant source of climate-warming nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions, a new Duke University-led study fin ... more 
China chili fest gets off to scorching startNingxiangpu, China (AFP) July 9, 2018 An annual chili pepper festival kicked off Monday in central China's spice-loving Hunan province with a chili-eating contest in which the winner set a blistering pace by downing a gut-busting 50 peppers in just over a minute. ... more |
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 Kourou, French Guiana (ESA) Jul 25, 2018 
The launch of Aeolus - ESA's mission to map Earth's wind in real-time - is getting tantalisingly close, with the satellite due for lift-off on 21 August from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. With the wind in their sails, mission teams are busily preparing this unique satellite for its upcoming journey.
Aeolus will carry a sophisticated atmospheric laser Doppler instrument, dubb ... more |
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 Kourou, French Guiana (ESA) Jul 26, 2018 
Arianespace has successfully launched four more satellites in the Galileo constellation. Liftoff was at 8:25 a.m. (local time) July 25, 2018 from the Guiana Space Center, Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
Today's launch was the 99th mission by the Ariane 5 heavy launcher. It was carried out on behalf of the European Commission as part of a contract with the European Space Agency ... more |
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 Gile, Mozambique (AFP) July 23, 2018  From a distance, the Gile National Reserve in northern Mozambique is a vast, dense ocean of green that reaches as far as the horizon.
Bigger than Luxembourg, the 2,800-square-kilometre (1,080-square-mile) forest seems to be reassuringly preserved, its hardwood treasure placed by Mozambique under legal protection.
Close up though, the forest bears deep scars from bouts of rampant logging ... more |
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 Los Alamos NM (SPX) Jul 19, 2018 
Researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory and partner institutions have provided the first published report of algae using raw plants as a carbon energy source.
The research shows that a freshwater production strain of microalgae, Auxenochlorella protothecoides, is capable of directly degrading and utilizing non-food plant substrates, such as switchgrass, for improved cell growth and l ... more |
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 Washington DC (SPX) Jul 26, 2018 
Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory are developing technology for unmanned aerial vehicles that has given them the ability to fly for more than 12 hours by harvesting energy from the atmosphere and the sun.
Solar-Soaring is a pair of endurance enhancer technologies. They aid the warfighter by enabling a UAV to fly longer without carrying extra weight in batteries.
"One ... more |
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 Thuwal, Saudi Arabia (SPX) Jul 19, 2018 
Using outputs from a high-resolution regional climate model, KAUST researchers have confirmed the potential for wind as a significant energy resource across the Arabian Peninsula. This is an important first step in developing a strategy for Saudi Arabia's wind energy sector.
As part of an ongoing collaboration with the University of Notre Dame in the United States, Marc Genton's research g ... more |
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 Sydney (AFP) July 2, 2018 
Australia's largest pure-play coal producer Yancoal said on Monday it would apply for a dual listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange alongside a capital raising as it looks to increase its shares' liquidity.
China-based Yancoal trades on the Australian Securities Exchange and recently expanded its holdings of local mines by buying most of Rio Tinto's domestic coal assets for US$2.45 billion. ... more |
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 Beijing (AFP) July 24, 2018 
Students in Tibet have been banned from taking part in religious activities over the summer holidays, Chinese state media reported Tuesday.
The ban will fall hard on Tibet's large Buddhist community, already under pressure as Chinese President Xi Jinping tightens controls over religious observance.
The school regulations apply to all "underage students" in Tibet, the state-run Global Tim ... more |
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 Boston MA (SPX) Jul 25, 2018 
Researchers at MIT have created what may be the smallest robots yet that can sense their environment, store data, and even carry out computational tasks. These devices, which are about the size of a human egg cell, consist of tiny electronic circuits made of two-dimensional materials, piggybacking on minuscule particles called colloids.
Colloids, which insoluble particles or molecules anyw ... more |
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 Washington (UPI) Jul 24, 2018 
China's decision to regulate maritime fuels could have a significant impact on international efforts to lower emissions from shipping, analysis finds.
Following its so-called Blue Sky initiative, the Chinese Ministry of Transport announced extensions to emission control areas along the coastline. Yujiao Lei, a regional consultant for Wood Mackenzie, said in an emailed report the latest ... more |
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 Pasadena CA (JPL) Jul 26, 2018 
Although drought and overgrown forests are often blamed for major fires in the western United States, new research using unique NASA before-and-after data from a megafire site indicates that highly localized winds sometimes play a much larger role - creating large, destructive fires even when regional winds are weak.
The study was led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) ... more |
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 Helsinki, Finland (SPX) Jul 24, 2018 
Major abrupt shifts occurred in the climate of ancient northern Europe, according to a new study from University of Helsinki, Finland. The research reports that sudden cold spells, lasting hundreds of years, took place in the middle of the warm Eemian climate period, about 120 thousand years ago.
These cold intervals saw a fall in temperature of a few degrees, and replacement of forests by ... more |
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 Tokyo (AFP) July 24, 2018  An "unprecedented" heatwave in Japan has killed at least 65 people in one week, government officials said Tuesday, with the weather agency now classifying the record-breaking weather as a "natural disaster."
In the week to Sunday at least 65 people died of heat stroke while 22,647 people were hospitalised, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said in a statement.
Both figures are "the ... more |
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 Johannesburg (AFP) July 25, 2018 
Leaders of the BRICS emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - will gather in Johannesburg on Wednesday for a three-day meeting focused on the threat of a US-led global trade war.
US President Donald Trump's hardening stance has compounded fears of an all-out trade war after he slapped levies on goods from China worth tens of billions of dollars and imposed tarif ... more |
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 London, UK (SPX) Jul 24, 2018 
Skywatchers [in have a double treat in store on 27 July: the longest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century and Mars at its brightest for many years. The red planet and the (temporarily) red Moon will appear together in the same part of the sky after sunset.
Mars, the Earth, and the Sun will be roughly lined up on 27 July. Mars is on the opposite side of the Earth to the Sun, and hence th ... more |
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 Tampa (AFP) July 24, 2018 
More than 1,000 species of animals would face serious threats to their survival if US President Donald Trump's proposed border wall with Mexico is built, scientists warned on Tuesday.
Iconic creatures such as the Peninsular Bighorn sheep, Mexican gray wolf and the Sonoran pronghorn antelope - all of which are already endangered - would see their populations dangerously fragmented by a wall ... more |
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