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Big ideas in the news from around the web
The U.S. State Department will file a démarche against China over the hacked gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. “A spokesman said the US would demand an explanation in the coming days. Google this week threatened to pull out of China because of what it said were hacking attacks and ...
Scientists and Nobel Laureates have set the Doomsday Clock back by one minute because of positive arms control measures leaving humanity seven minutes from destruction. “The world has inched further away from doom and nuclear disaster, said a group of respected scientists that includes 19 Nobel ...
The top U.S. climate negotiator is reminding the world that countries must follow through on the three-page agreement reached in Copenhagen despite its flaws. “Todd Stern, the chief American climate change negotiator, said Thursday that the flawed and incomplete agreement reached last month in ...
“Piggybacking on the hype of 2009’s biggest blockbuster Avatar, major TV manufacturers are placing a big bet on 3-D video with special high-end televisions slated for commercial release this year. Donning dorky glasses, Consumer Electronics Show attendees crowded into the booths of Sony, Panasonic ...
Being a spaceship pilot could be a “regular job”, comparable to driving a bus or flying an airplane, in just 20 years time according to a new report. “That is one of the findings of a government study into jobs of the future, which also suggests people will be employed to make human body parts. It ...
Technological advances have led to a dramatic fall in the weight of women’s handbags, according to research from a department store chain. “Women's handbags now weigh an average of 1.5 kg (3 lb), 57 percent less than the average of two years ago, Debenhams said in an emailed statement on Thursday. A ...
Investigations in Israel of a suspected cult leader who is accused of “raping and enslaving” numerous women took a dramatic turn today as one of his alleged victims agreed to testify. “The head of the cult, Goal Ratzon, was arrested on Monday on suspicions of rape, enslavement, and indecent assault ...
After Tibet’s governor Qiangba Puncog stepped down this week China today named his replacement an ethnic Tibetan and 17-year veteran of the People’s Liberation Army. Padma Choling, aged 58, will take the helm, while Puncog has been appointed head of the regional parliament. "Stability is of ...
Millions of Hindus in India have been bathing in the banks of the Ganges river in celebration of the world’s biggest religious festival, the Makar Sankranti. “Hindus believe that bathing in the Ganges during the three-month-long Kumbh Mela festival cleanses them of their sins. The festival ...
Former president of Haiti Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who was sent into exile after a rebellion involving US intervention which he claims was “a kidnapping”, has offered to return to Haiti. “‘As far as we are concerned, we are ready to leave today, tomorrow, at any time to join the people of Haiti, to ...
A group of influential clerics in Yemen are threatening to declare jihad, or “holy war”, if foreign troops are drafted into the region to battle the spread of Al-Qaeda. “The edict is a clear warning to the United States as it plans to step up its military involvement in the country. The leaders said ...
Sporadic gunfire, a symptom of the mounting anger and despair, rings out across Haiti’s earthquake-ripped capital Port-au-Prince as locals endure a third night on the torn streets. “Much of the aid remains at the Haitian capital's airport and some relief workers and officials say they are too scared ...
Scientists are planning on recruiting a tiny species of wasp, nicknamed “voodoo wasps”, in the war on agricultural pests and as part of a wider effort to boost food production. “The wasps are only 1 or 2 millimetres long fully-grown but they have an ability to paralyse and destroy other insects ...
Barack Obama has launched the first large-scale aid programme in his career as President, pledging the “unwavering support” of America to earthquake-wrecked Haiti on Wednesday. “Within hours of Mr. Obama being informed of the quake in Haiti on Tuesday, United States officials were plotting a ...
A blogger muses on a recent act of so-called “eco-terrorism” which he says “hit the wrong target” after activists committed arson on allegedly non-eco homes: “I’m not a fan of eco-terror. In fact, I think it is a very ineffective form of protest and gives environmentalists a bad name. For example ...