by Bryan McManus Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — The melting of Greenland’s massive ice sheet is happening much faster than expected and could put millions more people at risk by the end of the century, scientists warned Tuesday. Up to three kilometres thick (two miles) in some places, Greenland has lost 3.8 trillion tonnes of ice since 1992, enough on its own to add 10.6 millimetres (1.06 centimetres, 0.4 inches) to sea levels, according […]
Life
Climate concerns put Austria glacier project on thin ice
SANKT LEONHARD IM PITZTAL, Austria (AFP) — In his office nestled in Austria’s snow-capped Pitztal valley, Eberhard Schultes is among those pushing to expand the region’s skiing sector — but environmentalists alarmed about the region’s vanishing glaciers are pushing back. Schultes is the managing director of the Pitztaler Gletscherbahnen mountain lift company, which is trying to win approval for a new ski area to connect the Pitztaler glacier to the neighbouring Oetztal formation. Even though […]
First commercial electric plane takes flight in Canada
by Alia DHARSSI Agence France-Presse VANCOUVER, Canada (AFP) — The world’s first fully electric commercial aircraft took its inaugural test flight on Tuesday, taking off from the Canadian city of Vancouver where tall mountain peaks edge the Pacific Ocean. “This proves that commercial aviation in all-electric form can work,” said Roei Ganzarski, chief executive of Seattle-based engineering firm magniX. The company designed the plane’s motor and worked in partnership with Harbour Air, which ferries half […]
Russian sports minister says athletes can dispute WADA ban via sports arbitration court
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian Sports Minister Pavel Kolobkov said on Monday, following the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) ruling to ban Russia from sports for the next four years, that Russia athletes could dispute the agency’s ban through the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Earlier in the day, the WADA Executive Committee decided to ban Russian athletes from participating in the Olympic Games for 4 years. WADA decided to admit to the next Olympic […]
Japan launches human trial of new Ebola vaccine
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japanese scientists will begin the country’s first human trial for a new vaccine against the deadly Ebola virus this month, they said Friday. The vaccine, which has previously been tested in monkeys, uses an inactivated form of the virus that can only effectively replicate in artificial cells. Scientists hope that will make it safer than other treatments, the Institute of Medical Science at the University of Tokyo said in a […]
Measles killed more than 140,000 amid stagnating vaccine rates
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — More than 140,000 people died from measles worldwide in 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) and US authorities said Thursday, the result of global vaccination rates that have stagnated for almost a decade. Poorer countries were hardest hit, with the vast majority of measles cases and deaths in sub-Saharan Africa. Wealthier countries, however, have also been battling their own outbreaks, with four European nations losing their “eliminated” status in 2018. […]
Instagram to require birth dates in move to block underage use
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Instagram said Wednesday it would require new users to verify they are at least 13 when they join the visually focused, Facebook-owned social network. The move aims to help Instagram comply with US law and its own policies that require any user to be at least 13. “Asking for this information will help prevent underage people from joining Instagram, help us keep young people safer and enable more age-appropriate […]
Early cholesterol treatment lowers heart disease risk: study
PARIS, France (AFP) — Treating younger people with high cholesterol levels may help reduce their risk of heart attack or stroke in later life, a major study showed Wednesday. Described as the “most comprehensive” review of its kind covering almost 400,000 patients over more than 40 years, the study in The Lancet said its findings on the link between cholesterol levels and ill health “may be particularly important in people under 45 years.” A summary […]
Last 10 years hottest decade in history, UN says as emissions rise again
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — This decade is set to be the hottest in history, the United Nations said Tuesday in an annual assessment outlining the ways in which climate change is outpacing humanity’s ability to adapt to it. The World Meterological Organization said global temperatures so far this year were 1.1 degrees Celsius (two degrees Farenheit) above the pre-industrial average between 1850-1900. That puts 2019 on course to be in the top three warmest […]
NASA finds Indian Moon lander with help of amateur space enthusiast
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — India’s Vikram lunar lander, which crashed on its final approach to the Moon’s surface in September, has been found thanks in part to the sleuthing efforts of an amateur space enthusiast. NASA made the announcement on Monday, releasing an image taken by its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) that showed the site of the spacecraft’s impact (September 7 in India and September 6 in the US). A version of the […]
In photos: A peek at the Subic Bay venue for the 30th SEA Games
(Eagle News) — “Subic is ready for the 30th South East Asian Games,” said Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma who led the symbolic lighting of the SEA Games cauldron on Monday. SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator Ramon Agregado, manager of the SEA Games Subic Cluster, said a total of eight venues were prepared for the 17 games to be held in Subic The sports events to be held in Subic […]
Tens of thousands rally in Europe, Asia before UN climate summit
by Isabelle LE PAGE with Andrew BEATTY in Sydney Agence France Presse Tens of thousands of protesters, primarily in Europe and Asia, hit the streets on Friday to make a fresh call for action against global warming, hoping to raise pressure on world leaders days before a UN climate summit. Carrying signs that read “One planet, one fight” and “The sea is rising, so must we”, thousands flocked to Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate for the […]





