Life

Plastic ‘has entered’ Antarctic terrestrial food chain

by Kelly MACNAMARA PARIS, France (AFP) — Scientists have found bits of polystyrene in the guts of tiny, soil-dwelling organisms in the Antarctic, raising concern that microplastics pollution has already “deeply” entered the world’s most remote land-based food systems. While the infiltration of microplastics throughout the oceans is well-known, researchers said their findings provided the first evidence of contamination in the Antarctic terrestrial food chain. “Plastics have therefore entered even some of the most remote […]

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Anti-racism protests turn spotlight on icons of US history

by Cyril JULIEN Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — As the wave of anti-racism protests rocking the United States brings down monuments to figures linked to the country’s history of slavery, the spotlight is shifting to historic characters long considered untouchable. Although protesters initially focused on removing statues of Confederate generals, the movement has begun to turn its focus to icons of US history, including the nation’s founders Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, […]

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China launches final satellite to complete rival to GPS

BEIJING, China (AFP) — China on Tuesday launched the final satellite in its homegrown geolocation system designed to rival the US GPS network, marking a major step in its race for market share in the lucrative sector. Footage from state broadcaster CCTV of the launch in southwestern Sichuan province showed the rocket blast off against a backdrop of lush mountains as a small group of onlookers filmed on their phones. The launch of the Beidou-3GEO3 […]

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Water hyacinth pest chokes Iraq’s vital waterways

by Asaad Niyazi with Ali Allaq in Kut Agence France-Presse AL-BADAA, Iraq (AFP) — The broad leaves and delicate purple flowers floating on the Euphrates look breathtaking — but they are suffocating the waterways of Iraq, celebrated as the “land of the two rivers”. The water hyacinth, nicknamed the “Nile flower” in Iraq, is an invasive plant native to South America’s Amazon basin that has ravaged ecosystems across the world, from Sri Lanka to Nigeria. The […]

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Lenin statue unveiled in western Germany after legal battle

by Tom BARFIELD Agence France-Presse GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany (AFP) — A divisive new monument to Soviet leader Lenin was unveiled in Germany on Saturday, in the middle of a global row over the controversial background of historical figures immortalised as statues. More than 30 years after the post-World War II communist experiment on German soil ended, the tiny Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany (MLPD) installed Lenin’s likeness in the western city of Gelsenkirchen. A few hundred gathered […]

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Machu Picchu July reopening ruled out over fears of virus spread

LIMA, Peru (AFP) — The ancient Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, a jewel of Peruvian tourism, will not reopen in July as originally scheduled due to concerns over the coronavirus, local media reported Sunday. The Machu Picchu management group, UGM, made the decision based on reports from authorities in the Cusco region, where the citadel is located. “It has been decided that it will not be opened on July 1,” Machu Picchu district mayor Darwin […]

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‘Ring of fire’ solar eclipse thrills skywatchers on longest day

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Skywatchers along a narrow band from west Africa to the Arabian Peninsula, India and the Far East witnessed a dramatic “ring of fire” solar eclipse Sunday. So-called annular eclipses occur when the Moon — passing between Earth and the Sun — is not quite close enough to our planet to completely obscure sunlight, leaving a thin ring of the solar disc visible. They happen every year or two, and can […]

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YouTube hit with discrimination suit by black video artists

  SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — A lawsuit filed this week in federal court accuses YouTube of discriminating against African American video makers and viewers by factoring in race when it comes to filtering or monetizing content. The suit filed in a courthouse in the Silicon Valley city of San Jose on Tuesday seeks class action status and names as defendants the leading video sharing platform and its parent companies Google and Alphabet. “Under […]

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London Churchill statue to be uncovered before Macron visit

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The London statue of British wartime leader Winston Churchill that was controversially boxed up after anti-racism protests will be uncovered for a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, the mayor’s office said Wednesday. “The covering around the Winston Churchill statue will be removed for the visit of President Macron to London,” said a spokesman for mayor Sadiq Khan. Other monuments to Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi, and the Cenotaph war […]

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Case cracked: mystery Antarctica fossil is massive prehistoric egg

by Sara HUSSEIN Agence France-Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Scientists had nicknamed it “The Thing” — a mysterious football-sized fossil discovered in Antarctica that sat in a Chilean museum awaiting someone who could work out just what it was. Now, analysis has revealed the mystery fossil to be a soft-shelled egg, the largest ever found, laid some 68 million years ago, possibly by a type of extinct sea snake or lizard. The revelation ends nearly […]

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China cancels flights, classes over new outbreak as India deaths soar

by Jing Xuan Teng and Laurie Chen, with AFP Bureaus Agence France-Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — China closed schools in Beijing and restricted air travel from the capital on Wednesday to prevent a second wave of coronavirus infections, as India’s death toll spiked. The new Chinese cluster and surging infections in Latin America and South Asia have raised fresh doubts about how soon the world can control the pandemic, which has seen more than 8.1 […]

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Robots: allies during virus crisis, enemies later?

by Pierrick YVON Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — When human contact needs to be kept to a minimum, robots can save lives and factories. But when the coronavirus crisis is over, will they amplify job losses? It may be a mechanised arm pulling beers in a Seville bar, a dog-like dispenser of hand sanitiser in a Bangkok mall, a cooler on wheels that delivers groceries in Washington, or a vaguely humanoid greeter at a […]

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