Arctic fjords that hid Soviet nuclear-powered submarines during the Cold War are now being used as a weapon in the sanctions war with Europe – to rear fish that Russia can no longer import. Three years ago, Russia banned food imports from the West in response to a series of …
your ad hereClimate Change Altering Europe’s River Floods, Study Says
Climate change is affecting the timing of river floods across Europe, and societies may have to adapt to avoid future economic and environmental harm, scientists said Thursday. River floods are among the costliest natural disasters worldwide, causing annual damage of more than $100 billion. They affect millions of people each …
your ad hereLast Blast from Gregg Allman, Southern Man
So close to death was blues rocker Gregg Allman when he was making his final album, the cover photographer did not get to his Savannah, Georgia, house in time. Instead, “Southern Blood,” Allman’s posthumous paean to his life and music to be released in September, is adorned with a sepia …
your ad hereArtificial Intelligence Robots Aiding in Battle Against Crippling Nerve Disease
Artificial intelligence robots are turbocharging the race to find new drugs for the crippling nerve disorder ALS, commonly called Lou Gehrig’s disease. The condition attacks and kills nerve cells controlling muscles, leading to weakness, paralysis and, ultimately, respiratory failure. There are only two drugs approved by the U.S. Food and …
your ad hereCooking Gas Shortages Force Venezuelans to Turn to Firewood
Venezuelan homemaker Carmen Rondon lives in the country with the world’s largest oil reserves, but has spent weeks cooking with firewood due to a chronic shortage of home cooking gas – leaving her hoarse from breathing smoke. Finding domestic gas cylinders has become increasingly difficult, a problem that oil industry …
your ad hereUS-Africa Trade Talks End With No Decision, Waning Enthusiasm
Talks between African and U.S. officials to review the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) free-trade deal ended Thursday with no decision and a feeling on all sides that it has achieved little since it was set up. President Donald Trump’s top trade negotiator, Robert E. Lighthizer, and other U.S. …
your ad hereCroatia Cuts Import Fees to Avoid Trade War with Balkan Neighbors
Croatia revoked on Thursday its decision to raise import fees on some farm products by 220 percent, avoiding a trade war with its Balkan neighbors who had threatened to hit back with counter-measures. European Union-member Croatia last month raised its fees for phytosanitary controls — agricultural checks for pests and …
your ad hereIOC Monitoring Korean Tensions Amid Preparations for 2018 Winter Games
The International Olympic Committee said Thursday that it was closely monitoring rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, less than 200 days before the 2018 Winter Olympics are set to begin in South Korea’s Pyeongchang. The games return to the country next year for the first time since the 1988 Summer …
your ad hereUS Defense Secretary Mattis Begins Tech Outreach with Amazon Visit
U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis kicked off his first official visit to the U.S. technology industry on Thursday with a tour of Amazon’s headquarters in Seattle, the first stop on a two-day outreach campaign intended to highlight the Pentagon’s commitment to tech innovation. Mattis was scheduled to visit Mountain View, …
your ad hereEEOC Finds Reasonable Cause Cargill Violated Rights of Somali-American Muslim Workers
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has determined there is reasonable cause that the civil rights of Somali-American Muslims were violated when agri-business giant Cargill refused to allow them to pray at a meatpacking plant it owns in the western state of Colorado. The finding was reached almost two years …
your ad hereEEOC Finds Reasonable Cause Cargill Violated the Rights of Somali-American Muslim Workers
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has determined there is reasonable cause that the civil rights of Somali-American Muslims were violated when agri-business giant Cargill refused to allow them to pray at a meatpacking plant it owns in the western state of Colorado. The finding was reached almost two years …
your ad hereReport: Mexican Official Says Migration, Security at Stake in NAFTA Talks
Mexico could pull back on cooperation in migration and security matters if the United States walks away from talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement, the Mexican economy minister said in a newspaper report published on Thursday. Ildefonso Guajardo, who will take part in the first round of …
your ad hereTeen Girls Gather in Malawi to Advance Science, Tech Skills
A hundred teenage girls from seven countries are gathered in Malawi for a ‘Women in Science’ camp. Lameck Masina has the story from the Malawi University of Science and Technology in the Thyolo district of southern Malawi. …
your ad hereClock Ticking to Avoid US Debt Default
U.S. lawmakers will have three weeks to raise America’s $20 trillion borrowing limit and avert a potential debt default when Congress gets back to work next month — the first such deadline to occur during the Trump administration. If recent history is a guide, raising the debt ceiling will be …
your ad hereDutch Police Make Arrests in Contaminated Eggs Case
Dutch police arrested two suspects on Thursday as part of an investigation into the illegal use of a potentially harmful insecticide in the poultry industry, the Dutch prosecution service said. Millions of chicken eggs have been pulled from European supermarket shelves as a result of the scare over the use …
your ad hereControversial Film About Russian Czar Cleared for Release
A historical film about the last Russian czar’s affair with a ballerina has been cleared for release, the Culture Ministry said Thursday, despite passionate calls for its ban. “Matilda,” which describes Nicholas II’s relationship with Matilda Kshesinskaya has drawn virulent criticism from some Orthodox believers and hard-line nationalists, who see …
your ad hereEgypt Inflation Surges to 33 Percent After Fuel Subsidy Cuts
Egypt’s official statistics agency says the country’s inflation rate has jumped to 33 percent in July – up from 29.8 percent in June. The announcement comes as Egyptians struggle in the face of steep price hikes as part of the government’s economic reform plan. The Central Agency for Public …
your ad hereDevelopers File Antitrust Complaint Against Apple in China
A Chinese law firm has filed a complaint against Apple on behalf of 28 local developers alleging the firm breached antitrust regulations. The complaint, lodged by Beijing-based Dare & Sure Law Firm, accuses Apple of charging excessive fees and removing apps from its local store without proper explanation, Lin Wei, …
your ad hereNEH Funds Native American Cultural Projects
While the northern and southern U.S. states were engaged the civil war of the 1860s, a smaller war was playing out in the American southwest between the U.S. Army and the Mescalero Apache and Navajo peoples. Between 1864 and 1866, soldiers forced tens of thousands of men, women and children …
your ad hereNew Hope for Japan’s Summer Delicacy
The Japanese summer delicacy of roasted eel, braised with a tangy sauce and sprinkled with prickly mountain pepper, is in question as the creatures with their mysterious migrations become increasingly endangered. Soaring demand for Japanese eel, or Anguilla japonica, helped put the creatures on the International Union of Conservation …
your ad hereChina Sends ‘Hack-proof’ Code From Satellite to Earth
China has sent an unbreakable code from a satellite to the Earth, marking the first time space-to-ground quantum key distribution technology has been realized, state media said Thursday. China launched the world’s first quantum satellite last August, to help establish “hack-proof” communications, a development the Pentagon has called a “notable …
your ad hereBreastfeeding Center Helps Ugandan MP’s Juggle Work, Motherhood
The WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding for a baby’s first six months and continued breastfeeding up to two years of age. Uganda’s parliament has been promoting breastfeeding with a free, day care center for female legislators and staffers. Halima Athumani reports for VOA. …
your ad hereEmbryo Gene Editing Still a Long Way Off
A study published this month in the online scientific journal Nature stunned the world: Scientists were able to fix a hereditary genetic mutation in a human embryo. The milestone achievement was quickly tempered by the ethical question: Will this lead to the making of designer babies?’ VOA’s George Putic explains. …
your ad hereLow-tech Startup Transforming Sewage Into Fuel
The planet has a bit of a waste problem. Every year, at least 200 million tons of raw sewage goes untreated. This is an environmental and health crisis. But one enterprising startup in Kenya is turning all that waste into fuel. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …
your ad hereIn the Fight to End Modern Slavery, Machines May Hold Key
More than 20 million people are working as modern slaves, and a technology developer is hoping artificial intelligence can help clean up the world’s supply chains and root out worker abuse. Developer Padmini Ranganathan said mobile phones, media reports and surveillance cameras can all be mined for real-time data, which …
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