QUITO, Ecuador (AFP) – A group of more than 1,400 iguanas have been reintroduced to an Ecuadoran island in the Galapagos archipelago around two centuries after they disappeared from there, authorities said on Monday. The Galapagos land iguanas from North Seymour Island were freed onto Santiago Island as part of an ecological restoration program, the National Galapagos Park authority said in a statement. The last recorded sighting of iguanas in Santiago Island had been made […]
Life
Breadmaking robot startup eyes fresh connections
LAS VEGAS, United States (AFP) — The robot bread-maker came to Las Vegas this week, aiming to bring some freshness to a sector that may be ready for disruption. Wilkinson Baking Company unveiled its BreadBot at the Consumer Electronics Show, a machine that mixes and bakes up to 235 loaves a day. Chief executive Randall Wilkinson said the device can lower costs and produce fresher breads than are available in most American supermarkets. “Consumers want […]
Paragliding popularity soars as Hongkongers seek urban release
by Yan ZHAO Agence France-Presse HONG KONG, China (AFP) — On a mountain slope overlooking Hong Kong, Giovanni Lam waits for the right gust of wind to send him soaring skywards, one of a growing number of paragliders using flight to escape the dense urban sprawl below. Patience is rewarded in paragliding, explained Lam, a university lecturer and youth counselor who brought three novices and heavy equipment on a 40-minute mountain trail hike last month, […]
In space, the US sees a rival in China
by Ivan Couronne Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — During the Cold War, US eyes were riveted on the Soviet Union’s rockets and satellites. But in recent years, it has been China’s space programs that have most worried US strategists. China, whose space effort is run by the People’s Liberation Army, today launches more rockets into space than any other country — 39 last year, compared to 31 by the United States, 20 […]
Bolivian bees under threat from coca pesticides
by William WROBLEWSKI Agence France-Presse COROICO, Bolivia (AFP) — High up in the Bolivian cloud forest, a woman tends to her bees, smoker in hand, working from hive to hive under a canopy of leaves to delicately gather panels of honeycomb. It’s a bucolic scene that experts say won’t last, for the bees are dying. The culprit — as in so many other cases across the world — is pesticide. The difference in Bolivia is […]
China lands probe on far side of moon: state TV
BEIJING, China (AFP) — A Chinese lunar rover landed on the far side of the moon on Thursday, in a global first that boosts Beijing’s ambitions to become a space superpower. The Chang’e-4 probe touched down and sent a photo of the so-called “dark side” of the moon to the Queqiao satellite, which will relay communications to controllers on Earth, state broadcaster CCTV said. Beijing is pouring billions into its military-run space program, with hopes […]
Chewing the fat with Pakistan’s BBQ masters
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AFP) — The sweet aroma of mutton smoke drifts through a maze of crumbling alleyways, a barbecue tang that for decades has lured meat-eaters from across Pakistan to the frontier city of Peshawar, the ancient city that has retained its reputation for some of Pakistan’s tastiest cuisine despite taking the brunt of the country’s bloody war with militancy. https://youtu.be/y0Fa8VpZXSk
Global tech show to celebrate innovation amid mounting concerns
by Rob Lever / with Julie Charpentrat and Glenn Chapman in San Francisco Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Amid trade wars, geopolitical tensions and a decline in public trust, the technology sector is seeking to put its problems aside with the Consumer Electronics Show, the annual extravaganza showcasing futuristic innovations. The January 8-11 Las Vegas trade event offers a glimpse into new products and services designed to make people’s lives easier, fun and […]
NASA spacecraft survives risky encounter with faraway world
TAMPA, United States (AFP) — An unmanned NASA spacecraft sent a signal back to Earth Tuesday that it successfully made it through a risky flyby past the most distant planetary object ever studied, the US space agency said. “We have a healthy spacecraft,” said Alice Bowman, missions operations manager for the New Horizons spacecraft, which zipped by Ultima Thule at 12:33 am (0533 GMT) on New Year’s Day. “We have just accomplished the most distant […]
Mayweather floors Japan’s Nasukawa in just two minutes
by Richard Carter Agence France Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Floyd “Money” Mayweather beat Japanese kickboxing phenomenon Tenshin Nasukawa by a technical knockout Monday after just two minutes of a New Year’s Eve “exhibition” bout that brought the US boxing superstar out of retirement for a big pay day. In a mismatched contest, Mayweather floored Nasukawa, a kickboxer less than half his age, three times in the first round of the three-round contest before […]
Climate change takes toll on French oyster farmers
by Elia VAISSIERE Agence France Presse CANCALE, France (AFP) — Gulping down oysters has long been a favourite New Year’s Eve ritual for the French, but as winters get warmer and summers get drier many growers worry there will soon be fewer of the prized mollusks to go around. “Twenty years ago, we’d be shivering in the warehouse while preparing the holiday orders. Today it’s 15 degrees (60 Fahrenheit),” says Brittany oysterman Mathieu Le Moal, […]
NASA spaceship zooms toward farthest world ever photographed
by Kerry SHERIDAN Agence France Presse TAMPA, United States (AFP) — A NASA spaceship is zooming toward the farthest, and quite possibly the oldest, cosmic body ever photographed by humankind, a tiny, distant world called Ultima Thule some four billion miles (6.4 billion kilometers) away. The US space agency will ring in the New Year with a live online broadcast to mark historic flyby of the mysterious object in a dark and frigid region of […]





